#i can't wait to get to that part of my rewatch. i'm still on s1 tho so it's gonna be a bit

[jurassic-cunt]

a lot of gay shit happened in black sails. right? yeah. but remember when vane had billy tied to a chair and was tellin him how he tried to get flint deposed specifically with the hope that billy would defect to the ranger? if vane wanted billy as boatswain so bad he should've just dropped to his knees to suck him off

[twilightcitysky]

Everything Is Meant (long S2 analysis, part 3)

Part one

Part two

There's SO MUCH excellent meta out there right now, and I'm going to try not to reinvent the wheel too much, but I want to keep going with tying the episodes/ elements up together because on first watch it wasn't entirely clear how everything fit. I also strongly recommend a rewatch, no matter what you felt about the ending... if you need to stop it 10 minutes early, do that, but you pick up so much more the second time around.

So: Maggie and Nina. I spent most of my first watch wondering why we were bothering with them, honestly. Later in the season Nina, and then Maggie and Nina, gave Crowley some insightful advice, but their actual relationship didn't progress despite all the meddling, and the amount of emotional investment BOTH Aziraphale and Crowley had in making them get together was frankly strange.

I started thinking in terms of mirror couples, since that was such a big deal in S1 and that's clearly what they were set up to be, but I made the mistake that all of us made on first watch: that Nina was Crowley and Maggie was Aziraphale. It still wasn't really coming together.

Then I put the psych hat back on and started to think about displacement. Displacement is a defense mechanism, and it consists of satisfying an impulse (usually an unconscious one) with a substitute object. At the beginning of the season, Aziraphale and Crowley aren't really in a good place, and I think on some level they know that. Aziraphale is trying to SHOW Crowley that he wants to take the next step through all the casual touches and phone calls and inviting him in, and feeling frustrated because Crowley doesn't seem to be taking the bait. (I absolutely think that Aziraphale tried to get Crowley to stay with him at the bookshop instead of living in his CAR, and Crowley said no. That's a whole other meta.) Meanwhile, Crowley, I think, is waiting for a Grand Gesture. Where did he go, as soon as Aziraphale brought up trying to get two humans to fall in love? Romantic tropes. Getting caught in the rain under an awning. A dramatic kiss that opens someone's eyes. That's the sort of thing he's always done, right? Big rescues, impassioned pleas on the street, fancy dinners, "give you a lift anywhere you want to go". He's defensive and guarded and unlikely to let someone in unless he's CERTAIN he won't be rejected, and Aziraphale's approaches are just too... quiet. No one's fault, they just don't speak the same language.

Then, they're handed the opportunity to make two humans fall in love, and they're both All In immediately. Look at Crowley's face when he summons the rainstorm. This is HUGE for him. Why? Because of displacement. Look at Aziraphale arranging the ball and being borderline deranged about it. They're both desperate to demonstrate what they think it takes for two people to move past their misunderstandings and fall in love. They can't do it for each other because the stakes are too high, and if either of them shows their cards unequivocally the vulnerability feels life-shattering. They're codependent and terrified of rejection and also, importantly, have no idea what they're doing when it comes to love. "Saw it in a film", Crowley says. Aziraphale's read about it in books. But they have zero practical experience.

Instead of learning to communicate, they try to say what they want to say through the medium of Maggie and Nina, up to and including the questionable moral decision to exert control over people's actions and thoughts during the ball. If I can just make this come out right, they both think, then things between us will be alright too. It HAS to come out right. They're attempting to gain some control over their own lives, over something that feels so overwhelming and shattering they can't look directly at it.

It doesn't come out right. Nina's relationship falls apart, but that doesn't mean she's in love with Maggie. While Crowley's stress-cleaning the bookshop to the music that played when Aziraphale got his books back in 1941 (just fuck me up David Arnold), they come in and tell him so. "I don't understand", says Crowley. Because it should have worked. Why didn't it work?

They tell him, of course. "You need to talk to each other. Say what you're really thinking." But here's the thing about communication: you have to learn it. You need to get the hang of expressing your feelings without blaming your partner, and separating intent from impact, and staying away from getting defensive and lashing out. No one has ever taught Aziraphale and Crowley how to do this. It's like Maggie and Nina put Crowley in front of a loom and asked him to recreate the Bayeux Tapestry. He doesn't have the skills; he's always going to get it wrong, even if he tries his hardest.

And he does try. But that's where Maggie and Nina the mirror couple, rather than Maggie and Nina the displacement relationship or Maggie and Nina the Greek chorus, come in. Aziraphale, as Nina, has just ended an incredibly toxic, invasive relationship with Heaven. A relationship that invaded every facet of his life, isolated him, and prevented him from being close to anyone else. "Rebound mess," Nina says. Aziraphale is a rebound mess. He's transferred the responsibility for his emotional wellness to Crowley. Crowley is the person he calls when he's in trouble, or (and this is key) when he wants to report a clever/ good thing he's done, or when he's bored. (At no point did Crowley reference Aziraphale calling him for a solicitous reason-- another problem.) Crowley is meant to take care of him. He forgets, I think, that Crowley is a person with his own wants and needs, just like Maggie and Nina are people with their own wants and needs who don't appreciate being messed with. (I think things would have been much different had Aziraphale BEEN THERE for Maggie and Nina's talk with Crowley, but he wasn't.)

And Maggie-as-Crowley? Lonely. Behind on rent, at risk of being evicted (it's important to note that Aziraphale saves Maggie from losing her record shop, as he couldn't save Crowley from losing his flat). Pining. Awkward. Revolving around Nina like a planet, to the extent that we don't get much of an impression of her otherwise. They realize, there at the end, that they both need to round themselves out before jumping into a relationship. Aziraphale and Crowley need that too. They need to take time apart and learn to be healthy on their own. Unfortunately they don't have the skills to get to that conclusion in a healthy way, so it all explodes in their faces and everything falls apart.

Aziraphale tries to teach Nina and Maggie to dance as a substitute for communication. Nina and Maggie try to teach Crowley communication as a substitute for the dance they've been doing around each other. That's the reason they're a part of the plot: they exist to demonstrate the way Aziraphale and Crowley might have succeeded in forging a better dynamic. Sadly, the boys' dance is too practiced and they got sucked right back into it.

It's okay, I think, that Nina and Maggie's storyline never really went anywhere. It wasn't supposed to. It's an allegory, not something that needs to stand alone.

[chiibinomonodamon]

WHO WANTS TO HEAR ME RAMBLE ABOUT GAY FURRY DEMON SEX? XD

(damn, there's a sentence I never thought I'd say....)

Okay...so I see some Stolitz confusion and bashing online and I need to type up a defense here because I won't be able to sleep otherwise lol

I consider myself to be a Ship Critic and someone who takes shipping rather seriously.

What I mean by this is, I like to analyze and break down romantic relationships between fictional characters because it's just interesting to write for me. I especially take delight in friendly debating with opinions that I strongly do *not* agree with.

Let me start off by saying I am NOT a "this ship is awesome because gay furry sex lol" type of girl.

FAR from it. I'm generally more passionate about hetero ships between human characters (because I can relate to them more) among other reasons. So if you wanna dismiss my defense as "shallow fangirlism", you can forget about that lame excuse.

I fell in love with Hazbin Hotel when it was finally released in February and suffered waiting for each new two-parts per week. During that time, I decided to watch Helluva Boss as well, after a friend showed me a particularly soul-crushing clip (Moxxie's childhood trauma about his mother).

Yes, I like funny sex jokes as much as the next goofy adult but scenes like this, scenes that carry a very heavy emotional weight are what really get me in the end, even moreso when VERY little dialogue is exchanged. I knew I had to watch the entire episode run after seeing that the creators had a talent for this.

I saw people asking:

"How did Stolas go from using Blitz as a sex toy to being painfully in love with him?"

Oh I can tell you. I can tell you the EXACT moment this is revealed. But it's not spoon-fed to you; it's quite subtle actually and this is why lots of people miss it.

See, one of the strongest talents Vivenne has shown me is that she REALLY knows how to get her characters to communicate their feelings to the viewers JUST from their expressions and body language. These can be 'blink-and-miss-it' teeny little scenes and it may require a couple rewatches.

But since people demand time stamps for all information others post here, I'll rewatch a few scenes from S1 E7 'Ozzie's' as I'm typing this.

'Ozzie's' remains to be not just my favorite episode of HB...but probably my favorite episode of any adult-targeted animated show outside of Japan (aside from S2 E7's Mid-Season Special)

It has this huge reveal for both Blitzo and Stolas.

We'll first address Blitzo's irrational, stalkerish behavior of Moxxie and Millie.

He's obsessed with them. He finds both of them very attractive, fantasizes about threesomes with them and is constantly inserting himself into their personal lives.

Why?

Because they have everything that he badly badly wants for himself.

They have the perfect marriage and he is trying to live THROUGH them.

This was hilarious to me at the beginnning of the show but it's slowly revealed that it's one of the most tragic and depressing things I've ever seen. And it's scarily realistic too.

But you know this already so let's move on...

Blitzo follows the couple to Ozzie's but he can't get in without a date. So he calls up Stolas and yes, this is very low but he doesn't realize how much this means to Stolas (hell, I'm not sure even Stolas realizes it himself!) but the owl man is giddy with joy, he rushes over and they enter Ozzie's.

When Ozzie and Fizz mock Moxxie for being so sappy towards his wife, this strikes a chord with Blitzo (because they're his IDEAL relationship) and he speaks up to defend them.

NOW PAY CLOSE ATTENTION; THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART:

Fizz, still holding onto his past grudge turns on Blitzo to humilate him:

"Some nerve you got commenting on a relationship"

Time Stamp: 11:37

As Fizz says "-ship", Blitzo VERY QUICKLY makes eye contact with Stolas who has a look of panic on his face. Blitzo is seeking VALIDATION from Stolas in this sharp, subtle second of screentime, as if to ask

"Well, ARE we in one?"

And then what happens next...Stolas remains silent, Blitzo's ex joins in to announce how selfish Blitzo was in bed with her, tearing him down further. Stolas stands up like he's going to put a stop to it but then Ozzie notices him and interrogates him about sleeping with Blitzo.

Blitzo looks incredibly ashamed and guilty as Stolas blushes with similar feelings...and hides his face behind his menu; HIS BIGGEST MISTAKE IN THE SERIES SO FAR.

Time Stamp: 12:24

The look on Blitzo's face as he grits his teeth and darts his eyes away basically says

"Yeah, I should have known...boy am I an idiot for trusting him to stand up for me".

(look how SHOCKED he is...wow, this hurts fr ;_;)

This is a silent betrayal on Stolas's part. Afterall, his reputation is on the line, so if he were to defend Blitzo, it confirms they are in fact, dating. He chose his pride over Blitzo and Blitzo is crushed by this betrayal.

Moxxie finishes his song and kisses his wife tenderly. Stolas watches this and also wants to have an affectionate moment with Blitzo (who is rightfully glaring daggers at him) and tries to reach for his hand.

Blitzo rejects his touch and suggests they leave. As they do, Blitzo still looks furious and hurt. Stolas is now realizing how badly he screwed up with a "What have I done?" face (13:41)

He even looks disappointed with himself.

After Blitzo drops Stolas off, he thanks him and tries to smooth over the awkwardness with sweet talk but Blitzo just rolls his eyes in disgust and pulls on his face like "I don't want to hear this bullshit".

He responds coldly and curtly, "Yeah." Stolas makes more suggestions to spend time with him, which just makes him even angrier and he snaps

"I'm not fucking you tonight, okay!

I'm really just..." (14:28)

he pauses to wipe a tear because at this point he can barely hold it together (top notch voice acting and animation directing btw)

"...not in the mood, Stolas."

Stolas still tries to talk him into doing couple things unrelated to sex.

Blitzo's face switches back to anger and frustration because Stolas isn't getting the message so he goes for the blunt tactic;

"Stolas, don't act like what we have is anything but YOU wanting ME to fuck you, okay?"

(14:42)

"You make that really clear all the time."

(again his voice sounds like he's about to break down)

"But I-I just can't do it tonight, okay?"

(Finally meets his eye)

"...I'm sorry."

I believe this is code for "I'm sorry we're even in this situation and how your reputation got damaged. " Or, more painfully, "I'm sorry I'm such an embarrassment to you".

Stolas replies "Okay" and takes a deep breath to compose himself. They say goodnight and depart.

An important note here is that Stolas calls him "Blitzo" instead of "Blitzy" to show more respect.

As Blitzo zooms away coldly, Stolas looks up at the sky with tears in his eyes, surprised at how much it hurts.

He then sits down with his head in his hands in anguish...because he's getting that

"Oh...no. These feelings are real" epiphany.

And as if this wasn't enough angst, Blitzo collapses onto his couch at home, goes through the memories on his phone and starts sobbing.

I'm going to be real with you; this is the most heart-breaking shit I have ever seen in an adult show of this type. It's also the first time a show of this type got me to cry.

The last six minutes have revealed so much information without spoonfeeding it to the audience because the show RESPECTS its audience.

To recap:

*Blitzo takes Stolas on a first official date to use him

*Stolas is extremely happy about it

*Blitzo gets humilated and looks to Stolas for validation

*Stolas betrays him and breaks his heart

*Blitzo snaps that their relationship is nothing more than lust-driven sex

*Stolas realizes he's actually in love with Blitzo and it's a huge problem because (he believes) that it's unrequited.

*Blitzo breaks down because the ONE person whom he thought would protect him didn't do so.

So these two are convinced that neither one loves the other...while the irony is, it's quite the opposite.

Because if Blitzo REALLY didn't feel anything towards Stolas, he would not have gotten this emotional.

Yes, they are both lonely...but I really don't think that's all there is between them.

So..........we know WHEN they started falling...now the question is why;

I think the answer's quite simple; single-target affection.

It was mentioned in S2 that Stolas and Stella did sleep together ONE TIME...but Stolas didn't enjoy it at all. He is stuck with a wife who hates him so much that she put a HIT on him...and a daughter who thinks he's a loser. Blitzo is pretty much the one person in his life who is able to make him happy. That one small, bright spot. He enjoys the sex with him but he also simply enjoys his company, as shown in Ozzie's episode. He is thrilled to simply talk to him about his day...and do anything else that couples do. They're complete opposites. Stolas is an intellectual but naive and sheltered. Blitzo is poorly educated but cynical and street-smart. Opposites attract...though this is likely more from Stolas's POV than Blitzo's.

In other words, Stolas is into bad boys xD lmao

In Blitzo's case, Stolas is the only character who shows him physical affection which he desperately craves. He's pretty tsundere about it most of the time...but I think he actually does enjoy that attention...especially when he's always getting disrespected by Moxxie and Loona..and quite a lot of people around him. BUT he's too scared to get serious with anyone because of past trauma and he also believes that no one could possibly love him as a person. :(

Reasons I Think This Love is Real

Aside from what I pointed out in the Ozzie's episode...there's quite a lot of evidence, esp from Stolas's POV.

After he realizes he's in love, he goes to Asomodeous for an ALTERNATIVE method for Blitzo to use so they will no longer sleep together. He wants to set Blitzo free. Which means he DOES truly love him because love is about being generous to the other person. He COULD be totally selfish about it but he isn't.

Asomodeous mentions how against love potions he is and Stolas agrees. He thinks that's out of the question.

'Look My Way' music video. Lol I don't have to say anything more.

In S2 E6 OOPS

This exchange at 16:57

Fizz: Seems your taste has gotten more 'regal', lately?

Blitz: Yeah, well unlike you, I fuck who I want WHEN I want. I'm not gonna be tied down to some big blue-blood asshole.

Fizz: You coulda fooled me the way Prince was cozying up to you at Ozzie's.

Blitz (gets very defensive) HEY! Stolas only cares about have a rugged peasant raw-dog him into his mattress, okay!

It's nothing...(gets hesistant and looks away)...you know...

(Fizz gives him a 'bitch please' look xD)

"it's nothing else."

Fizz: Then why were you even there?

Blitz: OTHER very important reasons of course.

Fizz: Whatever. I don't actually care.

Blitz: Stolas is just a loud, thirsty BITCH!

(Fizz is rolling his eyes again)

Blitz: He loves feeling the thrill of getting dicked by the lower class.

It's a novelty to him.

Fizz: LITERALLY just said I don't care!

Blitz: And then he'll call me and try to see how my day was!

And he'll pretend to care about me and comment on my photos laugh at my jokes...

Fizz: (Smirking) OH! That's definitely your clue right there that it's all bullshit!

Blitz: I KNOW, RIGHT??

Fizz: (Making a 'What in idiot' expression, shaking his head)

Blitz: HE'S JUST A FAKE, PRIVELEDGED ASSHOLE...

Fizz: Sounds like you just hate him for being a prince!

No one (laughs) and I mean NO ONE pretends to care that much just for a cheap lay.

All right. IF ANYONE knows what real love is like, it's Fizzaroli...who is in a very HEALTHY relationship with Asomodeous. He recognizes the signs because he's IN that place. He sees it...and he's annoyed that Blitzo keeps denying it and brushing it off...yet clearly can NOT stop talking about Stolas (amusing irony)

To sum up (this freaking essay lol) 'Stolitz' ABSOLUTELY has the potential to be pure and true...these two just need to communicate...or Stolas has to PROVE to Blitzo that he's serious about his feelings in another way.

There is no doubt that this ship is 100% endgame and is a case of the 'Earn Your Happy Ending' Trope. I look forward to the rest of the journey. Ron is putting my feelings about Stolitz in a perfect phrase:

[rapha-reads]

IWTV rewatch

(s1 finale… Ready for pain and blood? Let's do this. *grabs tissues*)

Season 1 episode 7 [The Thing Lay Still] - part 1/3

- Oof, opening with the Moonlight Sonata, how to put you right in the mood.

- Daniel side-eyeing Rashid/Armand…

- [Daniel] "Can an immortal meet mortality?" - weeeell, to paraphrase our favourite rockstar, "the sun or the fire might kill me, but then again, it might not".

- [Louis] "Decapitation. He confided that to me one blood-drunken night in Bâton Rouge." - and then Louis proceeded to never forget it. I want to know more about their nights of hunting and partying. There's like, 80 miles (is that roughly 100km? I'm French, I don't know miles) between NOLA and Bâton Rouge, even if they're vampires, that's still a little trip that could be special when they have all of New Orleans to hunt (an anniversary? A date? A special performance of Macbeth or Puccini? Someone needs to write a fic)…

- [Louis] "Add to the toxic air a new ever-present paranoia, and now, you are with us." - kinda wish I wasn't tbh. "The toxicity, in my city"… Ahem.

- [Louis] "Lestat de Lioncourt. 179 years in the Savage Garden. 148 years the blood-drinker, the bringer of death… the deer come up the trail." - ooof, first point, Lestat, or at least, Louis' version of Lestat in this recollection, oozes danger and predator. He looks, feels and moves dangerously. And acts unhinged. His words heavily accented. Go figure if he really was that scattered and angry at that time, or if Louis' anxiety, trauma and guilt color the scene that way.

Second point, another mention of the Savage Garden! Made by Louis this time, so one could imagine that Lestat told him about it, that they had a conversation or more about the subject during those 30 years together, given that the theme is a Lestat special.

- Ooooh, the unholy family moving and acting together as one, totally in synch! Say what you want about how toxic they are for each other, it can't be denied that they are a family that knows each other by heart.

- Hey, who turned off Moonlight Sonata? Now I'm left wondering if it was extra or intradiegetic music. A disk playing in NOLA in 1940 or in Dubai in 2022? Can't decide.

- [Lestat] "Enough! Two in one night. Dolls, Bibles, letters become torches and pitchforks. We have to leave this place. We have to leave New Orleans." - should have left 10 years ago when Grace decided to kill off Louis… I wanna say better late than never but given that people are actually openly seeking your house to ask for healing and whatnot… Y'all are in danger. And obviously it's Lestat so there's no leaving discreetly. Gotta make a show out of it.

- Looooove Daniel getting distracted by Armand's presence. Cannot wait for some more Devil's Minion.

- Hello social commentary, segregated tramway, another slight to Louis and Claudia. I love the layers.

- [Claudia] "'You share a coffin with him.' [Louis] 'I don't talk in my sleep.' [Claudia] 'You share a heart with him.' [Louis] 'I can cut it off!' [Claudia] 'No, Louis. You can't. You spend an hour with him and you're breathing in sync together.'"

Thank you for confirming that they've still got it bad for each other, Claudia. Love the way the heartbeat starts getting louder, love the way Lestat can feel Louis looking at him and immediately looks back.

[Claudia] "'He'll know. It'll only work if you give in. Give him all your heart and I'll do the rest.' [Louis] 'I can't do that. I'll lose myself in him.' [Claudia] 'Leave a little shelf inside there for me. I'll jump back in and pull you out before I kill him. Can you do that for us, Louis? Louis?' [Louis] 'Yeah, I can do it.'"

*screams* First the wink and Lestat obviously seeking Louis' attention. Then Claudia directly asking Louis to keep a part of his heart for her, all that she's ever wanted, to be put first. Then her overestimating her pull on Louis and underestimating the intensity of Lestat and Louis' relationship. And then Louis very clearly knowing he cannot resist his feelings for Lestat no matter what. And finally Louis outright lying to Claudia saying he can pull it through while already knowing it will destroy him, have you seen his face in the last shot before leaving the tram? He knows he can't but he'll still try and maybe do it, but he'll lose a part of himself, and he's already grieving for it.

Then again. That's 2022 Louis describing the scene and the conversation, with the hindsight of 80 years or more (I'm bad at maths) of knowing what he's lost and how he lost it and how much of himself he's lost. Maybe 1940 Louis wasn't thinking of that at all.

*screams a little bit more* Maybe if y'all learn to openly communicate, we wouldn't be currently plotting a murder. Maybe.

- [Louis] "'What about Greece? Cradle of Western civilisation.' [Lestat] 'Sun worshippers, hot springs…. Those Who Must Be Kept.' [Louis] 'What was that?' [Lestat] 'Nothing.'"

Yeah, absolutely nothing. Don't mind that. It's really not important. Not at all about to come back and bite you all in the neck.

Things that mean nothing for show-only and everything for book readers… *jumps around the room in excitement*

Do we think Marius is still in Greece in 1940? If Lestat still meets him around 1789-1790, it's been a century and a half, he's definitely moved them somewhere else.

Love how Lestat's face goes vacant and momentarily dreamy when he starts thinking about Akasha. You can tell she still lingers in his mind.

- [Claudia] "'Bach. Always back to Bach.' [Lestat] 'Bach is beyond you.' [Claudia] 'Yes, the music of the master race is… not made for these mongrel ears.' [Lestat] 'You irritate me. Your very presence irritates me.' [Claudia] 'I came to make peace with you, Uncle Les.' [Lestat] 'Mm. Sister, daughter, infant death, you must think me an idiot.' [Louis] 'Could you two please just…?' [Claudia] 'Musique française pour les mains françaises ?'"

Pleaaase I love them. Toxic mother-daughter relationship, it's like looking into a mirror. Love all of Claudia's punches. Bailey's French is really good. And love how Louis immediately moves in to turn the pages for them.

- Oooh, so the party idea is not Lestat's but part of Claudia's murder scheme? How delightful!! Like father like daughter I guess, how they resemble each other so much. And love how Lestat starts by being against it and then gets slowly seduced by the idea.

- Oh, goddamn fucking bloody Tom Anderson is still bloody fucking alive. Kill hiiiiiim, please kill him. Wonder why he hasn't led a mob to their doors yet, with how he literally has known them since 1910 and has a pic showing them still as they are. Too chicken, Tom? Or too New Orleans, rather not know and keep going as is? Oh, I see, tempted to make your own deal with the "Devil". Ha. Idiot.

- [Louis] "The weird brothers and their doll-like sister were coming out." - I just like this line. Tells about a whole story hidden behind the main story.

- "Let the flesh instruct the mind." - now that is one hell of a line.

- Lestat playing his bloody Marie-Antoinette fantasy is simultaneously so bad taste and so hilarious.

- Their outfits are GORGEOUS. And the white is making Louis' green eyes even greener.

- [Louis] "The blood was everywhere. The veins and arteries of a few hundred hearts ringing out like air sirens, drowning out the rhythm section of the hired band."

I love how Louis' narration is almost inaudible beneath the sounds of heartbeats.

- Lmao, Lestat has groupies everywhere he goes.

- [Louis] "A cascade of feelings came over me as I watched him sponge up the adoration. I wanted him dead. I wanted him all to myself. The fasting was a mistake. I wasn't thinking clearly. Something was off."

You never think clearly around Lestat, Lou babe. Case in point, the besotted face you were just making at him, that he was returning to you (where are Sam and Jacob's awards), and the fact that suddenly you can't even tell Claudia's mental voice from - oh, a wild Antoinette appears. Yeah, something is off.

- When can we get rid of Tom Anderson. Soon? "It's got to be one of those tricks that you and your fag pederast satanic trio got in your pocket." Ugh, he looks so proud of his dumb line. Please tell me we're draining him soon. Thank you Louis.

- Aaaah, a balcony scene, aaaaaah! Aaaah, the lightning of cigarettes, aaaaaaah! Aaaaah, Lestat being emotional and genuine, aaaaaah!

Time to sing Sam Reid's praises:

"I'm going to miss this place. There's not an inch of this city that wasn't built from the fierce wilderness that surrounds it. Hurricanes, floods, fevers. The damp climate on every painted sign, every stone facade. High windows, through which enamelled bits of civilisation glitter. Silhouettes emerging, wandering out to catch a silent flash of lightning. The silky warmth of summer rain. Desperately alive… and desperately fragile. The hunger has me too, it seems."

*pterodactyl screech*

It's the way his voice wavers with barely restrained emotion. It's the tears glittering in his eyes. It's the way he never stops looking at Louis. It's the way New Orleans was, is and continues to be a metaphor for him, for Louis and for their relationship, "I am she, she is me".

The way his voice breaks on "desperately alive", because at the end of it, that's what Lestat, little Wolfkiller, who refused Magnus' bite and was forced into the darkness, who rejected the idea of a coven, who gazed upon the Mother of all vampires, Lestat who is constantly struggling to run away from his pain, trauma and loneliness, that's what he is, desperate and alive and desperately alive. And so afraid to show his real self to Louis and be rejected for it that he immediately makes a joke out of his deeply genuine moment.

And the way Louis refuses to engage with this moment also says a lot about where Louis is at at this stage. Refusing to give in fully, rejecting the true emotions, running away from both Lestat's love (because that's what it's about) and his own love (the shame and the guilt and the fear)… Refusing to open up his heart and thus forcefully closing down any door that could be opened.

Imagine for a moment that Louis had answered Lestat's feelings in truth? What would it have changed, in what ways? Or would it not have changed anything, because neither he nor Lestat are in control of the narrative at that point and Claudia holds the power? And what would Louis responding in kind and giving in to Lestat's depth and his own emotions look like? It would be interesting to explore it…

ep1 | ep2 | ep3 | ep4 | ep5 | ep6 | part 2 | part 3

[amuseoffyre]

I was rewatching S1 the other day and remembered how much of it had struck me as "huh, that seems a very… specific thing to focus on" and my foreshadowing spidey-senses started tingling back when it first aired. And then more turned up while I was watching S2.

Ones that have come to fruition:

The nose jar It got a lot of focus for a one-scene moment. Why specify that someone causing trouble would get a nose cut off and then not show someone getting punished with their nose getting cut off? Chekov's nose-jar was used in 2x01 and is a trigger point for the entire villain arc for the second season.

The recurring threats to Lucius's life Honestly, the amount of times he was threatened and harangued and nearly killed by Jim. It really would have been bad for the vibe around there, so when they 'killed' him at the end, Naaaaaaah. Didn't believe it for a moment. (Speaking of, Izzy has a similar run of near-deaths all through S2, so HMMMMMMM)

"Captain Hornigold! There's a blast from the past!" The second they brought up his name, I was ears pricked up and staring and going oooooooo, because there's no way you mention a significant figure from both pirate history and Ed's department of backstory when we know he's Captain of the good ship Daddy Issues without having a plan for one of the major male influences in his life, especially knowing the history that Hornigold takes the act and turns hunter and is instrumental in tracking down Blackbeard.

The wait staff exchange in 2x06 It seemed like lot of dialogue to not be leading somewhere. Behold, the Revenge crew as Wait staff in 2x01:D

The escalation of the British enmity We started out with Captain Badminton and levelled up to Admiral Badminton with the British as recurring villains all through the season and the thread of royal influence popping up here and there, which got me thinking next stop would be either their elder brother or someone even further up the social pecking order. Enter Ricky.

Secret passages built into the ship So I, like many others, assumed Lucius would be the dead man hiding in the walls. We were halfway right XD There was a dead man hidden in there. Twice.

We'll go to China Was left with a "why China?" vibe from that and it wouldn't stop niggling me that there was some specific reason that the writers would have chosen China of all place. Turns out if you can't go to China with your boyfriend, China will come to you and kick your ass.

Still to come:

"You saved the clippings so we can make fake heads and escape" I maintain this is the big one for S3. We have no less than 10 separate references to heads/faces being removed and fake heads. Stede even uses three different fake heads as props (rowing boat, the skull in the fuckery and the corpse head in the triple-fuckery of his death) and given Blackbeard's death famously involves his head being strung from the mast of the ship, it feels prescient.

"I thought that when I did marry, it would be for love" "Peasants marry for love" Not. Subtle :D Our man has already made himself a peasant and has his boyfriend, so he's part of the way there.

"I always hated you" Ed saying this to imaginary Hornigold has me absolutely foaming at the mouth for what the real Hornigold is like and absolutely 100% certain this is the plan for S3. As mentioned earlier Hornigold became a pirate hunter but also it would tie in with the S1 foreshadowing as well - we've had him mentioned, we've seen what he looks like, we know what he's done so the second he shows up in S3, we need no introduction. Plus Ed's processing his history so having his history roll up to hunt him down? *chefkiss* YES. And if (as I'm convinced) Stede was in the Gravy Basket like Ed in 1x04, then based on how Mary and Father Teach behaved, the way Hornigold is acting in the Gravy Basket is completely out of character, which would track since he's being pally and nice and taking care of Ed at different points. The few facts we do know from Jack and Ed's recollections include stabbing them, beating them down, treating them like dogs, the Felix story and him threatening to flay Ed's skin off and feed it to him. This means that outside of the basket he's gonna be SO. MUCH. WORSE.

Crossing the Darien Gap We got the glimpse of Zheng's crews bringing ships through the jungles across the Darien Gap and saw the queue of ships lined up on the Pacific side on the map. Ricky may have taken out the ships that were in the Republic, but that wasn't all of Zheng's fleet and he has no idea more are on the way because everyone knows no one can cross the Darien Gap. He'll never see it coming ;)

A Royal Hostage Given how petty a little bitch Ricky is, I get powerful vibes that he would be the one to specifically unleash Hornigold on Stede and Ed. Stede especially, since he's the one who recommended taking him as a hostage, and he already blames Stede for leading him a) to the Republic and b) for his nose getting the chop. Him using Daddy's fortune to settle a vendetta by privately commission a famous pirate hunter doesn't seem like a stretch.

Our spirit will outlast your whole fucking empire Izzy's definitely not gone for good. He's gonna be back and he's going to be a glorious little bitch about it :D (Supporting foreshadowy evidence: shot in the left side, indestructible little fucker who has been shot-and-believed-dead twice before, existence of the gravy basket, canonical resurrections, a known seawitch with ties to purgatory at the grave)

There are some more, but it's getting late and I am sleeby, so will post 'em another day.

[avelera]

OK, so, I have now seen Good Omens Season 2 and had a moment to muster my thoughts after binging it.

SPOILERS below the cut, if that needed saying.

--

Let's start with the good.

Loved that Beelz/Gabriel became canon. What can I say? I love stories about immortals falling in love over the course of several meetings at a pub ;)

John Hamm in general was fabulous

I cackled at the fact we were getting an actual fem Aziraphale/Crowley, human coffee shop AU running parallel with the absolute fanficciest of justifications that Aziraphale and Crowley HAD to make them fall in love in order to *mumble mumble* something plot whatever, lol

I loved the bits of lore flashbacks we got about Aziraphale and Crowley first meeting when they were both angels and I found the whole Job encounter overall charming.

I was deeply fascinated by the fact that Crowley consistently performed selfless angelic acts while Aziraphale consistently needed to learn and grow around doing the right thing. Even to the end he remained, for the most part, a good little soldier. Aziraphale thinks the system can be fixed. Crowley "knows" that it can't. Presumably, Crowley is right. More on that later.

Muriel was adorable

Loved that we got the kiss. Also, huge shoutout to the fandom that I genuinely went in unspoiled on that front after the whole trailer debacle. I SUSPECTED based on the reactions that the spoiler was a kiss, but I was able to successfully forget all about it so I genuinely gasped when they kissed.

I'm not really all that bummed by the ending. It's so obviously a "temporary breakup so we come back together stronger" moment so I was largely unbothered. I actually want MORE angst, not less, in fic after that, please and thank you.

Unpopular opinion praise for S2, but I'm glad we didn't get more of The Them, or Madame Tracy (though the recasting of the actress in another role puzzled me?) or Anathema/Newt, or any of the non Aziraphale/Crowley, Heaven/Hell stuff. I found all those plotlines hugely boring and I'm glad the story moved on from them.

Did I mention I adored Gabriel/Beelz? Loved that plotline. Might rewatch that bit again just for that. I SORT of suspected it was happening but was still delighted by the confirmation. I couldn't BELIEVE this minor ship got made canon, but along the way I was sort of side-eying Beelz's reactions through the lens of, "Wait, what if Beelz is WORRIED for Gabriel?" and it worked very well so I was tentatively *glad* for the shippers who might view it that way and NEVER guessed they'd make it canon this season with more than a few tidbits for those shippers to cling to. Wow. Whole-ass parallel instead of what Aziraphale and Crowley COULD be if they actually 1) communicated and 2) understood each other's values and valued the same things.

Truly, it was a love letter to the fandom I found that to be very sweet as a choice made by Tumblr Girlie Neil Gaiman.

H'ok, now let's get into the negative. To be clear, I enjoyed the season! A lot of room is left to explore stuff in Season 3! And I'm not a deep Good Omens fandom person, I didn't read much fic after S1 dropped, I was more of a book fandom fic person for it. So my level of investment isn't such that I'm *crushed* by any of this, these are just more things I found a bit "meh"?

I really thought we were heading to a side-swap story about Aziraphale and Crowley and I was little bummed it didn't happen, though there's still room for the possibility in S3. The whole "maybe I did the good thing and you did the bad" taken to the max. I really wanted the angst of them finding each other only to end up on opposite sides again and opposite-OPPOSITE sides of where they'd been and been comfortable up to this point. I really wanted to see IMPACT and SUFFERING and DISCOMFORT and... idk, more drama? Than we got?

Like, there were SO MANY references to Crowley being selfless and doing the RIGHT angelic thing while Aziraphale did a lot of HORRIFYING things, including all the mind-fuckery stuff he did around the ball, totally insensitive to the needs and wants of the humans involved, only seeing them as tools, that REALLY made me wonder if we were getting a swap by the end.

The fact we saw SO MANY ominous references to Aziraphale FALLING because he was tempted by Crowley, over and over, because he questioned God, over and over? I thought something would come of that! I thought Crowley would get through to Aziraphale just in time to have Aziraphale fall and for Crowley to do something truly angelic, to have Aziraphale get through to HIM at the same time so they'd swap sides officially, against their will, the same way Crowley never meant to fall. It seemed like falling was something that COULD HAPPEN TO YOU AGAINST YOUR WILL and I wanted REDEMPTION to work the same way, AGAINST Crowley's will. I wanted them to get absolutely FUCKED by the moment they finally got through to each other and swapped philosophies.

So that was a bummer. Could still happen in S3 but...? I'd be a bit surprised at this point given I think it will instead focus on (*sigh*) averting the Apocalypse again.

I thought the pacing was fucking atrocious. There was so much dead time. So many scenes that were simply *not* needed and didn't add anything. So much meandering script with darlings that desperately needed to be killed for the sake of a snappier story. So much that felt like padding. With a better editor and 2 fewer episodes, I think it would have been a much tighter, better, fast paced show.

S2 recalled with a problem I have with Neil's writing in general - he's a short story writer/comic issue writer at heart. I, personally, am a long-form novel writer. Neil is not great at writing novels, he's a novella/anthology/short story person and it shows when he so often, so consistently, fails to pull a long-form story together in a satisfying way (to me, and this is just my subjective opinion).

It shows up in so many ways with how, in my opinion, S2 seemed to flounder with how to fill 6 episodes. The flashback to the Resurrectionist stuff could have been half as long and I found much of the writing pretty awful and cliche in it.

I liked Aziraphale learning that morality is complex, truly, but that was all I really liked of that bit of flashback and it could have been much shorter. I found everything around Elspeth exasperating and on the nose. It was a short story straight out of a random issue of "The Sandman" and sometimes it really feels like Neil has never managed to break out of the same stories, plots, and themes, with a dash of horror as he did from that era. He's always, always, still just writing either 1) fanfic of another person or mythology's work or 2) an original Sandman short stories/issues with no long-form plot. In his defense, they're always COOL and have an interesting VISUAL or IDEA but these stories aren't very... good? Writing? Or rather, he tends to just do the same things over and over again. Nifty idea that don't actually really *gel* into anything more complex than a single storyline?

I felt the same way about the Nazi Zombie plotline. I found that entire story beat EXCEEDINGLY tedious and pointless except to fill airtime, not to mention a bit gross to watch. I found the Magician Aziraphale plotline in general EXCEEDINGLY pointless and tedious to sit through. I thought it added absolutely nothing and was incredibly dull for 99% of the story.

Everything with Shax was exceedingly tedious and boring to me. The fight in the bookshop felt nonsensical and poorly choreographed. That needed to be a 2x speed to feel any sense of peril or urgency at all, and not knowing where it was going, or if anyone was actually really threatened at all just robbed it of any real sense of tension.

There was just... zero sense in general of important stakes in the Shax storyline or really in the season because there was no Apocalypse to build towards, no event that we knew about to worry about.

The world wasn't ending. Shax didn't seem empowered to actually do anything or hurt anyone. They were just a random action plot for... reasons? To make the climax in the bookshop come together so we could have a Jane Austen ball at the same time as 69 demons (heh) invading? There were so many logical leaps there to make that happen and the pacing/editing being garbage just... robbed it of any feeling of importance except as a time waster of a plotline. The actress is great and all but dear lord was that plotline dull.

A lot of the flashbacks in general just felt like... padding. Yes, we got a bit more Aziraphale and Crowley but they never quite... worked for me in those. It was always pointless STUFF they were doing rather than anything that contributed to the plot or even to my sense of them being in love or working towards becoming a couple! They were just... there, a lot of the time, sitting next to each other.

Some of the script pauses were SO BIZARRE. Like as if they'd just written the script and not realized how bloody often Crowley is given NOTHING TO DO in the background so he just... stands there, waiting for his next line, or taking a nap, or observing random stuff. David Tenant in the Resurrectionist bit with all his theatrics felt, again, pointless and tedious but also the best the poor guy could fucking do to fill out this incredibly boring story with any sort of entertainment. Bless them, the actors worked their ASSES off to get some fun and excitement into huge swathes of this script.

Maggie and Nina's relationship was cute but ENTIRELY pulled off by the actresses, the story was again, incredibly tedious and pointless otherwise, as many coffee shop AUs are in my opinion. Their personal charm elevated the material but it all felt like more stalling tactics with a wink-and-a-nod at fic writers, with this entire season was stretched out to justify, presumably, Aziraphale being in Heaven after being promoted to Archangel while Crowley is on Earth and they're fighting.

Quite frankly, if the "real" sequel, which Pratchett co-wrote, just opens with Aziraphale thinking Heaven's shown up to destroy him, only to promote him on the spot, basically the last scene of S2, you actually don't need 99% of this season at all to get there. In fact, it's a pretty fun comedy beat to do quickly. Basically, "Oh shit, the cops!" then "Actually, we're here to promote you!" and boom, we've reached the same spot as we got to after 6 episodes of S2.

Not that I didn't enjoy many of the character moments! But overall, it felt like stalling for time to make it a trilogy series, since only a few plot threads had any longer term importance to anyone who isn't a fanfic-writing super fan who knows what a coffee shop AU is and can giggle over there being one in the actual show.

Basically, it was very lacking in the strengths of the story that I attribute to Terry Pratchett - like the ability to pull a long-form story together, and certain clever turns of phrase.

There were so many lines where there was a pause where it was as IF they were going to say something clever, and then they just... didn't? And the line was just another cliche or a trail-off of someone mumbling "comedically"? That's where I very much felt Pratchett's absence. It indeed felt like half the writing duo was missing in many ways. And I'm not personally... all that convinced of Neil's chops when it comes to long-form stories or romance, two things that this season kinda relied on pulling off right that I was left feeling pretty tepid about after.

Look, overall, I did like it! I'm really excited for how the fandom will run with what happened and make their own stuff with it. I'm very excited for Season 3, whenever we get it, and the return of Terry Pratchett's fingerprints on the story. I think it's going to be great!

It's not that I think my time was wasted so much as I thought places where *I* would have done things differently, which is not a fair criticism of any work. From a technical perspective, really I just think it needed a tighter script or tighter editing, and they just might not have been able to do that if they were contracted for 6 episodes when they only really needed 3. Oh well. Onward and upward!

[ladyluscinia]

Ok one last dip into "the Izcourse" before I take my own advice and pivot to rewatching S1 in prep and posting about what I love!

We get a lot of trolls, and harassers, and staunch antis looking to pick a fight with the "bad fans" who either drop bait or jump on people's posts to be annoying. That's the flame war part of all this mess. But we also get a fair number of posts from "neutral" people that I want to gripe about for a moment because at least the antis are misrepresenting "what Izzy fans believe / discuss" because they are actively against my take on the show for whatever reason. But it's more annoying to me personally when it's just... a lack of effort.

(And I've mentioned this before)

Like... a "neutral" observer weighing in on "The Izcourse" is a member of the general fandom who doesn't care enough about Izzy to really be an anti. Their perspective on the matter is coming from directly or indirectly following people in the antis' main meta circle. We know this, because just about every neutral person who was not from this background got classified as an Izzy apologist / problematic Edward thoughtcrimer and they are counted as in "the Canyon" now. We watched it happen a lot over the past year and a half. So the observer is not neutral, not really, but they probably aren't heavily blocking / blocked if they don't care and don't talk about Izzy.

Which makes it so frustrating when they feel the need to bring up "concerning" trends among Izzy fans and their interpretations and then they don't know what those interpretations are.

Like - in the most patient tone I can possibly manage - scrolling a bit of the Izzy Hands tag and taking fans squeeing about their blorbo as evidence there is no nuance in meta and too much babygirlifying here is dumb as fuck. Hell, even isolating a recent meta post and going "well I don't agree with this because XYZ" is still very much a "so what?" situation because that one person is not representing all Izzy fans? And also you still have a huge blind spot.

Because meta is - at its core - a collaborative structure.

You can't experience a particular branch of meta primarily through people vaguing or screenshotting and dunking on whatever looks the worst, then skim a little bit of a tag and be able to confidently call out what the "problematic trends" are. You can't even understand where the random meta you singled out is coming from, because you don't know which posts they've been looking at for over a year. And this is all really highlighted by the fact when you go to dissect that post you disagree with, you'll do it by just saying things that you understand to be established, well-defended facts from your own circle of meta and not back them up at all. Because in your mind you don't need to! And yet the post you're disagreeing with won't make sense because they are just assuming things and talking about this fanon version of Izzy you don't recognize. 🤷‍♀️

(This is why my typical meta post is linking to three separate discussions, lol. I'm building off of things said before like basically every meta writer, but I want those things referenced.)

If you aren't going to actually put in the effort to identify which blogs are the "major players" and then go back through tags or their popular posts or whatever to get an actual idea of what the meta structure Izzy Canyon has spent over a year discussing contains, then at least don't disparagingly comment on those people and discussions while lumping them into one "problematic" hive mind??? You don't know what you're talking about because you didn't care, and that's whatever. Just please stop confidently conflating random blog #7's generally happy post about how "i can't wait for my fave little guy to have friends 💕" with a concerning lack of discussions on Izzy's relationship with the crew.

My "#ofmd meta" tag - among others - is full of almost exclusively Izzy Canyon blogs writing complex posts about all sorts of things from romcom genre conventions to POC fans' takes on Edward's cptsd, and it's beyond annoying to see them repeatedly insinuated to have the depth of a puddle because the antis prefer to pile on a headcanon about Izzy reading and turn it into an insult to Edward's intelligence, and all the "neutral" blogs take it as gospel.

[queen-erika-the-songful]

What are your thoughts on the characters in the Dreamhouse Adventures/Vlogs/TOM/BCBG universe? I'd love to hear them.

My faves are probably Malibu, Brooklyn, Daisy, Renee, and Rocki.

Also, apperantly the next movie will be about Teresa from something I saw on the wiki. I'm really hyped for a movie to focus on Teresa, who I feel like her and Nikki deserve better because outside of a few vlogs and scenes they are often just "barbie's friends" . Also shame Road Trip isn't canon! I thought it took place between bcbg's s2 and tom's s1.

I honestly feel really bad for all of Barbie's friends, especially Nikki, Renee, and Teresa. As time went on they really got pushed to the side, more Nikki and Renee than Teresa since they gave her a bigger part in the latest series (A Touch of Magic). I definitely agree with you that they are treated more as "Barbie's friends" instead of actually being characters. I feel like Nikki and Renee get this treatment the most. It's most disappointing in Nikki's case because she was probably the most fleshed out in terms of hobbies and personality. Teresa got a bit more in ATOM though so at least there's that. I'm honestly not a big fan of Daisy but I think it's cool that she's canonically LGBT+! Maybe during the next series or movie we'll get confirmation on what she identifies as (but I also know some people are unlabled and that's valid too!)

My favorite character is Ken. He's just so sweet and caring and will do anything for Barbie!! I hate that sometimes he just isn't given much to do. Not all the time, but sometimes. And we don't ever get to see his home life! What are his parents like? What does Ken do when he's not with Barbie?? I want to know!!

I think Brooklyn is a great addition to the lineup, though I wish she got more of her stuff outside of that short-lived web series (Barbie Life in the City). I like how passionate she is about putting on a good show, whether she's performing or behind the scenes! As for Malibu, I love her big heart but sometimes she's got too big a heart. There are times she should've been more assertive for herself like when Trey literally broke into her house. I think it got better I just can't remember right now (aside from ATOM I haven't rewatched any of the series lately).

I'm trying to stay optimistic about Teresa's movie, but after Skipper and Stacie's I am a little worried it's gonna be badly written or boring, maybe both. But I really like Teresa so I've got my fingers crossed it turns out good for her. I can't wait to get more insight into her character.

Yeah I'm still massively disappointed Epic Road Trip ended up not being canon. I thought at least ONE of those endings would tie into something but no, it looks like it was all self-contained. We finally got Karbie but then it all just gets erased and that romance gets dragged out EVEN MORE. Like seriously, why do the writers just refuse to let Barbie and Ken be together? Sure it would change their dynamic a bit, but they would still be Barbie and Ken, just now also a couple. I still headcanon ERT as part of the universe since it had time travel, so it supports my larger headcanon of that whole universe having constant timeline shenanigans. So in a way, Barbie and Ken are finally together in one of the timelines.

[aprillikesthings]

YOOO time for more she-ra rewatch

lolol at myself bc when I opened Netflix it was clear I'd left it paused right at the end of that sword-dragging scene eheheheheheh

so I watched it again

ahem, anyway

s1 ep 10, the beacon

my headphones aren't buzzing this time, thank fuck

(lol I got real distracted during this one)

oh right they all think Entrapta's dead

Also ADORA STOP

I mean I can't blame any of them for feeling that way

lol and then I got distracted and wrote a bit on my fic--I got some ideas at work today and wanted to pursue them.

and by "ideas" I mean I suddenly thought "hey remember that one bad breakup when you were 23, how the weekend after when you were alone in the house you cried so hard you worried you couldn't stop and started to panic and hyperventilate, and it only ended because a friend called to check on you? you should put that in the fic :D"

back now.

I dunno if they meant to do this, but to me it looks like Adora's WAY more upset than Glimmer and Bow are. I know part of it is her blaming herself.

yeah that's not good

"I'll recharge, stop glitching, and my mom never has to know :)" that's not how that works bb but okay

(hordak is speaking here)

And...that's a good point. She-Ra is even more dangerous than Hordak thought before, because she was part of the Horde and knows a LOT about them.

BAHAHAH I WAS WAITING FOR THIS

So this is one of the episodes I watched the first time with Daci over rabb.it. (That was actually our first "date," which is THE MOST LESBIAN THING EVER. Literally watching She-Ra online together in voice chat because we were long-distance.)

And I know this because I made a joke post about it to tumblr referencing K/DA, my fandom obsession at the time. That was on April 30th, 2019. I think that was the day Daci bought the plane tickets for their first visit. They moved in with me less than a year after that first visit.

Okay I looked up that date in our discord chats and

EIGHT HOURS lolol okay we watched the show the day before I made the post. Also Daci had just bought the plane tickets I was right-- that visit was the last weekend in June.

We'd been flirting for months but I didn't actually believe Daci was serious about it until they bought the plane tickets. And then the NEXT WEEKEND after watching she-ra and Daci buying those tickets my dad had a brain hemorrhage and we took him off life support a few days after that, and Daci and I started video chatting EVERY DAY because I was alone in the house and off work for two weeks of bereavement leave.

ANYWAY OFF TOPIC

Fuck one of my keys is acting up and the the paintbrush I use to dig under my keys to fix it is upstairs where Daci is sleeping, if I drop any r's that's why

I mean that seems fair. Also: Emily!!!

I'm trying to suppress how hard this is making me laugh and FAILING

Also her nose is wiggling omggg

Did you know it's canon that Catra is entirely covered in hair like an actual cat? Or at least it's "word of God" via the showrunners on twitter. But outside of fan art by furries nooooobody includes that. Especially not in fic. Which is fine. Because I personally do not want to write that. Her ears are fuzzy, the marks on her arms are just birth marks, but the hair on her body is just normal human body hair and that's it.

THAT SAID I think I've only read one fic that intentionally included her sense of smell being stronger, and it was referenced in ONE LINE for smutty reasons eheheheheheh

Anyway it's this fic and it's by a friend and it's good

SURPRISE!

Catra's expression is so often some variation on "...the fuck?"

Literally read a fic last week with a scene about how getting ill in the Horde was a good way to end up dead from a combination of bad nutrition/healthcare and being a victim of bullies but I cannot remember which fic it was

NO WAIT it's this one I think. I've still got two chapters to go reading that fic because I've been intentionally savoring it, the character stuff is just SO GOOD and it's just such the opposite of my own writing style. (But it's also the fic that has a scene of "Adora has a nightmare and injures Catra in her sleep," and I really hope nobody thinks I copied it considering I wrote mine before I read it in their fic, aaugh)

oh god there's a gif I can't find of a guy pressing his lips together like he's trying not to laugh and then looking at the camera and if you know the one: that one

Entrapta and her lack of ability to understand personal space or normal boundaries is just so great but also the phrase "another woman's tail" is just perfection

Yeah yeah I know Catra's being a manipulative little shithead here but also if I were to meet Entrapta and she didn't mind I would absolutely be twisting her hair CONSTANTLY just like I do my own

the weird noises she's making must've been so much fun to voice-act

So like, the whispering woods are like that one forest the hobbits walk through in the book version of lord of the rings where the trees keep like, closing in on them?

DEEP SIGH

that's the name of a g-idle song

oh right I see what's going to happen here

DO YOU THO

DO YOU

she's trying to comfort Shadow Weaver after immediately insulting her, bc of course she is

DIE, BITCH

"I was hard on you, I won't deny it; and I won't apologize. I just wanted to prepare you for the world. I just wanted you to be strong. :(" BULL FUCKING SHIT

well, for a given definition of "strong"

oh shit

Yeah that's a weird thing to bond over but okay

I dunno why they did the cute little fangie thing here but I'm not complaining

Okay so her face is stupid here (couldn't get a screenshot that included the caption and not the terrible face) BUT she really leaned into the sexy voice for this one and I made a noise and my laptop nearly slid to the floor pfft

[gellavonhamster]

monthly media recap: august 2023

read:

The Song of Roland - I wouldn't have picked it up if I didn't chance upon a neat old copy for free. It's, uh, educational? And the translation into Russian is quite beautiful

Angélique and the Demon, Angélique and the Ghosts, Angélique in Québec by Anne Golon - still reading this series and honestly can't wait to finish it - not because I don't like the books, but because the translation gets progressively worse with each volume. Someone please tell these people there's a difference between a wolverine and a lynx, or between a guinea pig and a porpoise (I know the latter two are called almost the same in Russian, but context, man. Context. Guinea pigs don't frolic in the waves). Story-wise, however, I am still having a great time

+ currently reading the next Angélique book and Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater (the sequel to Half a Soul I read last month)

watched:

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) - honestly, I watched it because: 1) I wanted to check out the show but thought I won't understand anything without the movie; 2) Salma Hayek pretty. I didn't expect to enjoy it because it's written by Tarantino and I really, really don't vibe with Tarantino, but enjoy it I did. The hostage-taking part was actually unsettling and the vampire-fighting part was fun; the family dynamics were also good. Again, Salma Hayek pretty, which also helps

From Dusk till Dawn 2: Texas Blood Money (1999) - empty, skippable

From Dusk till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter (1999) - now that's better, if only for the period setting. Ara Celi has perfect looks for a sweet kind girl tragically turned into a monster. I think the moral here is that if you're physically abusive to your kid, then your kid is better off being a vampire, what do you mean I'm misinterpreting?

From Dusk till Dawn: The Series (s1-3, 2014-2016) - as you could probably tell from the amount of gifsets I keep reblogging, I loved this one. Mythology, westerns, reluctant teamwork, family feels, hot people fighting and drinking blood - what's not to love? (Actually, that one character death is not to love, and the last episode is hella rushed, but what can you do). It actually isn't necessary to watch the film to understand it, but the knowledge of it makes it very interesting to compare the two and notice the cameos from the actors who were in the film. S3 kind of reminded me of Teen Wolf, which isn't much of a compliment, but this show overall had the same ambience as a lot of stuff I watched as a teen/in my early 20s (understandable, being made in that exact period), so that was nice.

Oak Thorn & The Old Rose of Love (2022) - this is like 20 minutes long but deserves to be on the list, because it's the story of Merlin and Nimue made by the director of The Green Knight, and it's beautiful

The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023) - it's good! Not "wow, incredible" good, but good, and I'm glad it is, because it's such a powerful and underrated chapter of Dracula. A slightly more detailed review with spoilers here

Woe Is No Big Deal / Раз, два — горе не беда! (1988) - rewatched this gem and dying to know if Leigh Bardugo has seen it, because this satirical fairytale/Cold War allegory was doing ~tsarpunk~ long before her

Wild Nights with Emily (2018) - that's right, there's more than one comedy about Emily Dickinson. This one's based on a play and feels like a play, which took some time getting used to, but in the end I enjoyed it

[thatdamndonnareed]

I can't wait to rewatch episode 5x10 so I can focus on the other stuff going on in the story, because it was such a good action packed episode and I feel like I missed a lot of details because I was too busy gushing about the opening scene. My heart was literally bursting out of my chest and I could not concentrate on anything.

What I love about this show so much is that, while yes I'm obsessed with Chenford, I'm also equally obsessed with all of the other characters and their well-beings. It's a rare show in which I genuinely like every single character and would be heartbroken if anything were to happen to any of them. (Yes, even Nolan and Bailey, which I know are not everyone's cup of tea, but I still genuinely like them both as characters--just maybe not so much as a couple--and I wish they would flesh out Bailey's character a bit more than just the love interest because she has potential).

Nyla continues to be a mother fucking bad ass. I adore Nyla and James' relationship, and their friendship with Angela and Wesley just gives me the warm and fuzzies. Angela and Wesley are just top tier married couple.

Sgt. Grey is just the best as the Papa Bear, with his gruff exterior but super squishy interior. He truly cares about all of his children, even Smitty.

Don't even get me started on Aaron "#1 Chenford fan" Thorsen. I need an entire DnD themed episode where Aaron and Celina rope in everyone else to play with them, and Tim pretends to be annoyed but secretly he is SUPER into it and Lucy can tell he is having so much fun, and she's just itching to tease him about it later. (Because let's be real, Tim Bradford is 1000% a closeted nerd).

The Rookie just makes me absolutely delighted, and I'm very very much enjoying Season 5. It's honestly one of the few things that are actually giving me joy right now. I'm so glad I decided to start watching it again after I took a year long break after watching S1.

And, I'm so glad to be a small part of the Rookie community.

xo, Nicole

[putonmyfavoriteshow]

Since you joke a lot about Gastòn b2inh dump in yoir rewatch... give us a hot take about him

My little dumb dumb. Much to say here after I'm about to wrap up s1 rewatch.

This boy is such a little weirdo. An absolute dork. What is wrong with him (affectionate)???

First off he has a collection of varsity sports jacket he's styling all time...but as far as we know this man doesn't play sports besides roller skating?? And even that he says he only does for fun and isn't that serious about it like the others. And S1 he's got bleach blonde in his hair like he's some 90s boy band member.

He also is such a pretentious art guy. He loves to read, dissect cinema, and photography. He's the snobbiest art snob to snob. And when he performs/sings he's always got to be dramatic because I mean he does have the range, but it's just so funny to see coming out of him.

But he idolizes Matteo for some reason?? I respect his loyalty to his boyfriend bestie but the fact that he thinks Matteo is "the man" just is so ridiculous to me when Matteo is the clown of all clowns.

Also the way he flirts shows this, because he acts like an absolute baffoon when he's dating anyone that's not Nina. Calling that one girl Felicity and getting annoyed at her because she only reads magazines? His disastrous relationship with Delfi (even tho a lot of that is her trying to create something that's not there). Trying to hit on resident girlfriends Jim and Yam who both roast him constantly?? Actually, the Jam vs Gastón rivalry was something I wasn't expecting in my rewatch but iconic - the way they love to bug him about Felicity are are obsessed with HER and not HIM, it's just comedy gold.

Also his whole romance with Felicity...help this man he's lucky he didn't get catfished!

He's just a fool. But then when he's with Nina idk the best parts of him comes out? He's so kind, and gentle towards her? He hangs on every word she says, constantly encourages her but without overstepping or mansplaining, and always is honest about his feelings when he's starting to like her but also still thinking about Felicity. Even he himself realizes she's the only girl he can talk to and be himself around. Suddenly he's Mr. Introduce Me To Your Parents

Anyway he's insane. Can't wait to watch his absolute bafoonery in S2 again.

[bakafox]

I am spending my evening watching all the fast reaction videos to the new LOVM S3 opening and rewatching some reactions of fave episodes. I'm so happy we have a date and that new opening I am in tears, and wish I had a friend interested in watching/rewatching S1 and 2 with me even if it's a little 'early'.

Like... I cannot stress enough, animation is my favorite media form for storytelling, I find animation a lot easier to watch than live action stuff in general, and I love when the art is this good in how it carries its style. I love amazing action scenes and soundtracks and yeah I like me some animated gore and blood, more than I like live-action stuff by far.

And while I got into Critical Role late- yeah I love their campaigns, even 3, even though I'm way behind it because I am having a harder time focusing on long live play episodes these days. I have good memories of being hyped with my friends during C2, though most of them have lost interest in CR since then, and only a couple of my friends have watched any LOVM.

I have such a hard time with my brain not wanting to let me try new things, even if I'm trying to work through that so I can enjoy branching out and watching things, too, so there being a beautiful, well done series where I already know enough of what's coming ahead that my brain will let me watch it, but makes the needed edits to fit it to a short animated series is in and of itself a fucking blessing for me, even moreso.

I'm of course also looking forward to the Mighty Nein. I also hope C3 will get animated.

My GOD I wish Dim20 stuff could become movies or series, again because I am just that thirsty for animated stories that my stupid brain won't get anxiety over.

Like... yeah ok. Tonight has been amazing since that opening showed up and surprised me on my Youtube recs. I cannot wait until October, I can't wait for every damn little teaser trailer they'll throw us.

For all that I have a long list of movies and shows I want to watch or even books I want to read, but that my brain is slow to cooperate on, this is my most anticipated thing of the year, because it is going to be an easy flow of laughter and tears and stress and relief as the story I know for the most part continues.

And the animation looks so damn good still. It's beautiful.

[spectres-fulcrum]

It's amazing. I watched Free! Iwatobi Swim Club summer 2013 as it was airing when I was 15 and just rewatched it(I watched S2, started S3 and noped out, I'm dying to start Eternal Summer). It is just as amazing, if not more, as it was when I was 15.

Part of why I loved it so much was cause I swam all the time back then. I was most at ease in the water. I always said I loved it as a swimmer, a fan, and a fangirl.

I feel like I understood it a lot deeper. Like the emotions, the characters, the way they needed each other, the passion the relay left them craving. It just felt so much more natural.

Also someone get them all(At least Rin, Haru, Ai, Makoto, and Sousuke) into therapy. Please the cast seems chalk full of depression/anxiety and it's startling to suddenly realize.

Like seriously Rin and Haru both flag depression and they seem to push and pull each other down really easily

It's less gay and more queer than I remember. Like less hot guys and more a tangle of guys who just emotionally need each other but don't know how to express it.

It's less deep kisses and more desperately pulling them close because you can't get close enough, fingers knotted in hair, staying there all night in the darkness.

And Rei. I can't believe I didn't like Rei as a teen. I loved him but I didn't like him. God his pain at seeing Haru's pain and knowing Makoto, Haru, and Nagisa shared such an emotional thing with Rin and not knowing and being jealous if he would ever have that emotion is just... Heartbreaking.

Ai is still my baby. He cares for Rin so much and I feel like Rin's probably his gay awakening and he can't explain why he just knows-he wants to soothe the gaping scars that Rin has while Rin has been so isolated and forced himself to rely on only himself for so long that he doesn't know how to-to let gentleness in

He's so far down that he doesn't know how to swim up to the light on his own but he doesn't know if he can trust Haru and the guys to guide him

Rin is such an asshole in S1, but such a broken asshole.

On the same tone, the quiet moments between Makoto and Haru said the world. But Rin and Haru's need for each other after losing the passion of swimming each other is so loud.

Free! is a world where so many ships work and I love it

I cannot wait to introduce Sousuke and Momo and their ships

It's really such a deeply emotional series and relays in there are so... passionate. It's the ultimate form of a bond to do a relay with someone.

(It's not like that IRL at all. AT ALL)

Free is still 100/10. Also Music is OP AF

And Eternal Summer>Iwatobi Swim Club. (Then there's the novels to rediscover and music and maybe I'll give the post S2 world another shot. MAYBE)

[kiirotoao]

S2 rewatch highlights pt 4

Episode 7

OHHHH the TV showing “Action News 8” OKMGJGKF

Oh wow the yellow lights everywhere - she’s on a soul search

“Mouth breather” made me laugh out loud - I love how the word is just like a gentle “f— u” for El, or like a “you’re not worth my time”

“Outside the Realm” played between Byler and Jancy and also between Kali and El! I didn’t know the song was played this many times.

Awwh El did hear Hopper’s message!

“I’m a fighter. I’ve killed.” Okay I really like how the show emphasizes here that you can kill and still not be “fighter” - it’s clear that the gang’s intentions vs El’s are much different

“Festered” = “spread” Kali equates. Until she confronted it and it eased the pain. Oh my gosh if this ends up being true to Will, too. My heart

Alright as a former Winx Club girlie I am a sucker for transformations so I love the outfit change sequence

Okay side note “Shirley Temple” is so endearing to me as that’s also one of my nicknames haha

AWGFGF Funshine’s care bear mask

Oh El’s compassion when she sees the family photo :(((((((( <3

I love how you can hear Kali’s style of voice in Brenner!

And when she sees Brenner it seems that the light is more yellow and less red/purple once again I stand by my yellow = heart agenda

El clings to the first time Mike gave her the nickname, Dustin and Mike at the cliff, Hopper taking her in, and Hopper and the “compromise”

I LOVE WHEN THEY ALL FREEZE AND KALI MAKES THEM INVISIBLE AHHHHHHH Oh the camera panning around to them being gone is so cool. Every single time man

Oof wow the crescendo when El parts with the gang and runs as they drive off was really powerful wait what song is that???

Oh and the window transition!!! I love

Poor Kali! Please I hope we see her again

Episode 8

POOR MIKE no one's listening to him because everything moving so fast and the panic but omg he's right on the money

OH HAHA I forgot that electricity went out in the lab at the start! I didn't really pay attention to when it happened lol

OUGH. The stagnation and fear in Billy's eyes from his dad. Yikes.

Wow the way I held my breath for Bob AHHHh

BOB NOOOO ohhhh Joyce's trauma here OH YMHERATT I know that it's addressed next season as Joyce has flashbacks but like... does she do anything about it??? NOO and my heart I am shaking omg

“I should have been there” Jonathan self parallels from s1 HHHFJJGGJG 😭

AWW WAIT OMG Steve getting emotional when he looks at Nancy and Jonathan and Will omg????? Babygirl???

I forgot how heavy this season is for Joyce. Oh my gosh EULOGY PLAYING WHEN HOPPER ENTERS THE ROOM SOMEONE STOP ME I'M BOUTTA JUMP ONTO THE HIGHWAYYYYy /nsrs

Wow Mike comes up with a lot of the plan!!! AWW poor baby damn literally he wants to lead but he can't!!

OHHIHO JONATHAN ADN MIKE ARE CRYING OMMGHGHG

If we get a "proud [of you]" moment from Joyce to Will when he comes out to her I will be SICKKK

"It was the best thing I've ever done" SEDATE MEEEEE

Joyce and Jonathan holding each other in fear I AM ILL PLEASE just let this family have peace please I am on my knees

[stanharu]

beastars episode 24 thoughts!

this post got kinda long i have Many Thoughts on this one

Overall I had fun watching this ep but I could really tell it was rushed and there was so much that got cut, which makes me super sad. our fears about the finale having pacing issues due to all the added scenes & rearranging were confirmed & it rly sucks, but i'll elaborate more on that in a bit.

this week's ep covered the end of chapter 92, chapters 93-97, and included small bits of chapters 98 & 99.

so the ep starts with the ED and the latter part of the tunnel scene with ibuki and louis. i liked the visual effect they used to show that they were in the dark. louis' voice acting was also On Point. for the most part i think this scene was done pretty well but I can tell it's being rushed also. I really wish we got more buildup and narration instead of just jumping straight to ibuki telling louis to shoot him. the way it is in the anime feels less impactful imo.

also im sad we didnt get to see this in the anime

before i move on, i wanna talk a bit about louis and his relationship w/ the shishigumi and ibuki. i feel like in the anime quite a few of the lil moments that really endear you to the shishigumi and also ibuki were either cut or kinda glossed over, which is strange to me considering how much effort and care went into the ED. it's very emotional and good but i feel like maybe anime onlies are missing out only seeing the anime and the MV. but idk.

legosi and riz's fight was quite rushed as well. there's so much narration and dialogue missing from it and that really rubs me the wrong way. It wasn't all bad but compared to the manga I just don't think it's as good. I will say tho that I really liked the sequence w legosi and the moths. I thought it looked really nice and was pretty well done.

also i liked how the backgrounds had some anti-yahya graffiti, its a nice touch imo

it says "high quality horse meat"

I was happy to see legosi do the "tell me more" pose but I'm honestly disappointed that the anime took out the whole exposition about why legosi did it. like i feel like without that it's just legosi being weird when he has a reason for it!!! This is just one example of the anime taking out crucial narration during the fight.

I also think it's kinda weird how they changed how louis shows up at the fight. im not sure how i feel about riz just charging at him like that, but i liked how legosi kicked him before they ran lol.

i dont have much to say about pina's small scene but I did wanna say that during my first watch thru of the ep i was too distracted trying to read the graffiti behind him that i didn't notice him getting his phone out of the dumpster and calling the cops lmao

it says "devour yahya"

and now... here we are... the predation scene.

overall i thought it was pretty well done but, like the rest of the ep, i could tell it was also being kinda rushed. some important beats werent given enough time to really sink in, and there's a few bits of narration taken out of this part as well that i find disappointing :^(

tho i did like how the anime called back to this scene in s1 when legosi mentions utilizing his strength.

also this part where louis is remembering ibuki had me like😭

I also really liked seeing louis cry. I was crying too sjdflskjdflsjkdf. i thought that scene was really good, its prolly my favorite part of the ep tbh. getting to hear the whole predation scene voiced made me kind of a mess lol. i really liked louis' expressions throughout this whole ep too. studio orange used their whole louis expression budget on these last 2 eps lmao.

seeing legosi instantly get all beefed up was great too. he looked a little ridiculous but i kinda loved it lol. he's so huge and poofy. i love him.

big pomeranian

anyway, im also sad they took out louis' line about being reduced to a flashback character lol. instead he tells legosi "be a hero" again which... im not sure about that change. i liked the part with riz thinking back about tem tho. tho imo the way riz realizes he's in the wrong feels pretty sudden. again adding to how rushed the whole ep feels.

before i move on again i just wanna say legosi looks so cute. even all puffed up and covered in blood. how does he do that

baby boy baby. i wanna ruffle his cheek floofs.

i think one of the things im most disappointed about from this whole ep was how the fight got wrapped up. i really like how the cops show up and totally shift the tone in the manga jslkdfjskljdf. im also really sad we didnt get this interaction

tthe anime really took out most of the sillier moments from the finale, which makes me pretty sad to think about. i know the anime and manga have different tones but pls let the boys be silly sometimes!!

the next part where legosi and louis finally establish their friendship was really cute tho ❤️ even tho it was pretty different i enjoyed it a lot.

BABIESSSS 🥺😭❤️❤️

the wrap-up for this arc and this episode gave me whiplash sdjlfkjsdf. it literally speedruns thru legosi's predation conviction, being released, louis & haru's graduation, and legosi deciding he's going to drop out of school. that is SO MUCH AT ONCE. also i was holding out hope that legosi would have his new years call with haru after the fight instead but that didnt happen!! so it just got cut!!! kinda mad about that tbh. legosi and haru having a lil scene at the very end made up for it a lil bit but that's still one of haru's few moments in this arc that's just not included.

we didnt even get the part wher legosi learns he can't marry haru bc of his conviction.

ive been really hoping for a season 3 announcement once this season ended. with all the background allusions to yahya, the added plot point of someone stealing elephant tusks, and sebun and melon's lil cameos in this season, it seemed to me that studio orange was kinda teasing a 3rd season. but now, with the dismissive way the anime ended, and paru's note from earlier today, im less sure about the possibility of a 3rd season. i'd still like to see the rest of the series animated, but i guess we'll just have to wait and see if more anime is announced in the future.

if we do get another season in the future i just hope that we swing back around and actually address the things that got completely glossed over in the last couple minutes of this episode instead of charging forward w/o touching them again.

i really think the finale for this arc should've been two episodes at least. not including the tunnel scene. i think then things wouldn't have felt so rushed. people have been saying this season really would have benefitted from at least 1 extra episode and i cant help but agree. some have even suggested a whole 24 episodes just for this arc, but i think that this arc couldve been done properly with 12 or 13 episodes if there was some better prioritizing on what to include and what to cut.

like i dont mind not getting the parts about legosi's family if they can be addressed somehow in a future season (or if theres no more future anime seasons thats a plot thread that doesnt have to be worried about). i could have lived w/o seeing sheila & peach's chapter animated if it meant more time for the focus of this arc. and was the kangaroo red herring really necessary?

adaptation wise, i dont think this season was as good as the first. i still think it did fairly well, but i know that it could have been much better. ive been excited to watch this season with my friends once the dub releases, but now im wondering if i should just tell them to read the manga instead. sighs idk. perhaps it comes thru better as a bingewatch, or perhaps im being a bit too harsh. idk. at some point ill do a rewatch and see how i feel about the season as a whole, but that wont be for a while.

if you've read this far, thanks for reading my ramblings!! it's been fun to make these posts every week and im gonna miss getting new episodes every week.