#i considered 2x07 and 2x09 for S2

[adhd-merlin]

*based on my observations and my subjective opinion!! don't come at me with data. unpopular episodes I don't like did not qualify (4x08 I'm looking at you).

[imminent-danger-came]

A "MK is Related to the Underworld Somehow. Probably." List With Commentary (And I Consider it Evidence for EAMK)

(1x08 Skeleton Key)

(LIKE CAN I PLEASE HAVE AN EXPLANATION FOR THIS SCENE. CAN I PLEASE HAVE AN EXPLANATION??? WHAT. WHY. WHY WOULD YOU EVEN GIVE HIM THE KEY IN THE FIRST PLACE.)

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(1x08 Skeleton Key)

(Idiot boy putting the skeleton key in his ear.)

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(2x03 Pig Pong Panic)

(MK + Bones. Never a good sign)

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(2x05 Minor Scale)

(Is this perhaps just LBD trying to take control of MK? Maybe. Is it also really weird how her powers interact with MK in general? For sure!)

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(2x06 Game on)

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(2x07 Shadow Play)

(Number one: The Lady Bone Demon wasn't here to provoke this, number two: MK using "blue vision" to see his friend's fate inside the lantern is equally strange!)

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(2x09 72 Transformations)

(Again, could very well be LBD trying to take control of MK here—however, it doesn't seem like she's trying to do much of anything to MK in this scene, as she's focused on spider queen. So it weirds me out and goes into this post!)

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(3x03 Smartie Kid)

(So, if the stuff in s2 was LBD affecting MK then I get it. BUT THEN WHY HAVE MORE BLUE EYES IN S3 AFTER LBD HAS ALREADY "TAKEN" MK'S POWERS AND THE STAFF. Genuinely want to know what this was meant to imply.)

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(3x12 The Corrupted King)

(LBD HAS ALREADY POSSESSED WUKONG HERE. Wukong and the Mech alone was spreading her too thin. She certainly wasn't attempting to posses MK here—so what was happening?)

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(4x01 Familiar Tales)

(The scroll ink touches MK not once, but twice this episode and it doesn't ensnare MK. The scroll touches Monkey King once and this is what happens to him: )

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(4x02 Familiar Tales)

(The scroll's ink emanates from MK, which I thought was crazy at first BUT IT THEN HAPPENS AGAIN IN 4x11)

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(4x03 The Great Tang Man)

(Soooo we see a vision of an all inked up MK, then we see the stone cracking, then we see a shot of the curse from 4x02, and THEN MK turns Tang Sanzang's golden power blue, a color associated with both LBD and the underworld in general. HM.)

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(4x06 Show Me the Monster)

(There's no hair flip so it's not MK, so it would make me think that this is an ink version of SWK next to the stone. It's weird so I'm including it!)

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(4x06 Show Me the Monster)

(So. Ink blotting out the sun, something MK/SWK are often associated with, and then pouring out of the cracked stone, which we just learned MK was born from. And then the curse takes MK's form. I'm tripping over my own conspiracy board here.)

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MK: "You're not my friend—you're NOT me!" Curse MK: "Sure I am! I'm your best friend, well, closest at least! I know more about you than you'll even admit—to yourself, or to others."

(4x07 Pitiful Creatures)

(The curse claiming it's a part of MK is weird! The curse looking like MK in it's most weakened state is also weird! It's all weird!)

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(4x08 The Brotherhood)

(Absolutely no reason for a weird teal smudge to be there, and yet)

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(4x11 A Lifetime of Mistakes)

(BOOM. SCROLL EMANATING FROM MK AGAIN.)

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(4x11 A Lifetime of Mistakes)

(The broken memories flickering in the scroll are very similar to the way MK flickers in and out of monkey form: )

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(4x13 Rip and Tear)

(Scroll ink touches MK again and he does not become imprisoned inside it again. The scroll at the very least has no affect on the boy)

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And I think for now that wraps up this post!

[raayllum]

So following writing this short meta about Rayla and Callum's differing responses to their hostage exchanges (in 4x09 and here above in 5x08 respectively), I was also thinking about this scene with Viren because it shows, perhaps, the biggest difference I've always seen between Callum and Viren, even back in S1/S2.

I've talked about it before, but it always bears repeating: throughout the first three episodes of S1, we see Viren try everything he can to save Harrow's life, including offering up others' and his own through the soulfang spell... but giving up the egg never occurs to him as an option. The fact that we know it wouldn't have necessarily worked (hi Runaan's stubborn refusal) is a moot point; relinquishing a 'weapon' and letting it fall back into Xadia's hands is not something, point blank, that Viren is willing to do, even to save the life of someone he loves and is willing to die for.

And although the contexts are different - it seems Viren knew saving Soren might sour his relationship with Lissa (and led to him coining Kpp'Ar) but there were no global stakes attached to it as far as he knew or could conceptualize. However, it does show the way he's fallen, particularly with S5 in mind (as in the dream 'flashbacks' he tells Soren what Claudia did in 2x09: "You're okay now. That's all that matters"). But here, it doesn't Matter at all.

Arc 1 Viren is a villain and an antagonist precisely because of three things.

He's willing to sacrifice other people, even people who trusted and followed him (his best friend's children, the human armies)

He's willing to sacrifice, manipulate, and selectively choose amongst his children (Soren and Claudia)

He cares too much about what he considers to be the Greater Good ("a bright future for humanity" / "his destiny will be the destruction of all of humanity") that he loses sight of who he wants it for (his children: "I would've asked you to choose the egg over my own life, if it came to it")

While Viren says much of this is for the greater good, it's also very clearly self-serving in his own quest for power ("You made the same choice you've always made: the one that gives you power"). And while Callum has pride, he does not have ego.

Because you have Callum. The revenge spell creates a dangerous weapon. He knows this, and has seen and fought against the harm it caused first hand. Claudia was faced with a similar choice in 2x07 ("If you must choose between Soren and egg, pick the egg") and even she hesitated. But Callum doesn't. He doesn't hesitate for a second to give Finnegrin what he wouldn't under torture and under principle, because "the second you see that elf girl in pain" ("the second it looks like you're in danger, I'm jumping in after you"), he loses himself.

Because Viren says, "I would do anything for you," and doesn't mean it, but Callum says, "I would do anything for you," and means it in its entirety.

While Callum and Viren have a lot of similarities, they will never be truly like each other because Callum will never be willing to sacrifice his loved ones in the same way. That is their core and most crucial difference.

However, that doesn't mean that - like Viren - Callum's core and choices cannot be exploited, and that the ones he makes will always work out for him, going into S6 in particular.

Because he loves his family. And that's it - and that's everything.

[svenni-le]

Rant or Character/Relationship Analysis (?)

Since I saw a lot of people angry about the way Tatum got written out and the way Leighton broke up with her, I decided to go back and rewatch all of Tatum's scenes and boy did I notice some stuff (and yes I have quotes and stuff):

1. For context: I started watching TSLOCG because I saw story videos for Alicia & Leighton on Youtube. I really liked Alicia in S1 and I understood her decision to break up with Leighton. I'm not gonna talk about the discussion of "Alicia forced Leighton to come out", cause that's not the purpose of this post. Then S2 came out and I liked Leighton deciding to have some fun and be in her "hoe era". Tatum was introduced and I was really excited cause I really like Gracie (from Chasing Life, if anyone remembers that). I wasn't really sure about Tatum at first, but she won me over in 2x08.

2. I'm not trying to convince anyone to like Alicia nor am I trying to compare Alicia and Tatum or their relationships with Leighton. I'm just trying to show that Tatum wasn't the nice person some are making her out to be (if that makes sense).

3. Let's get into FACTS/QUOTES/REASONS:

- when Leighton was asked what her type is, she only described how her perfect woman would look like, not how their personality would be -> Tatum might be the perfect woman for Leighton, but only on a very superficial level

- Tatum might be understanding when it came to Leighton not being out to her dad, even Leighton had very nice and understanding moments but most times she was still being a bitch

- she almost ran over Leighton in 2x05, at this point Leighton was still a stranger to her so yeah...

- Leighton about Tatum: "She's so indifferent." (2x06)

- "But that should be fun for like Gen Pop." (2x06)

- Tatum's annoyed look at Leighton at the party in 2x06, when Leighton has done nothing wrong

- "I've never been Prada-shamed before." (2x06) -> explains itself

- "Just to be clear I'm not a Dining Hall person." (2x07)

- "Yikes, I'm sorry. [...] It all feels a little basic and fake." (2x07) -> technically not wrong, but after Leighton told her she got into Kappa; they were still getting to know each other

- "Her personality was as ugly as her name." (2x08)

- Tatum talks bady about her sex life with her ex, while her ex is present (2x09) -> you just shouldn't do that

- "The only time I consider dressing on theme is for the Met gala." (2x09) -> when she's invited to a costume party

- Tatum's judging looks at the Women's Center (-2x09)

- "I love all the Rainbows. So on the nose." (2x09) -> that's sth that S1 Leighton would have said

- "It's kinda cute they thought they could raise money by auctioning off things that are arguably garbage. I mean what is this other than being fucking ugly?" (2x09) -> doesn't even apologise when she gets called out for it

- "Guess I'm the asshole now?" (2x09) -> she directly insults somebody's work, gets called out for it and still thinks she's done nothing wrong

- "I am sorry, but this place smells like a wet thrift shop." (2x09)

4. Tatum only started paying real attention / reacted positively to Leighton, AFTER Leighton bragged about her being more judgemental than Tatum.

5. Leighton felt the constant need to do something in order to impress Tatum or change her personality and you shouldn't feel that way about a new potential partner. I really didn't like they way Leighton behaved, it was like she's back to S1 Leighton.

- Leighton bought Willow a jacket just so Willow would introduce them, also taking a creepy picture of Tatum

- Leighton was excited about the comedy show, but "changed" her opinion after Tatum judged her for it

- Leighton felt the need to play games in order to "maintain her high-status" (waiting to text back, making herself seem busy)

- Leighton lied multiple times (about non-existent friends, makingup a cool party), she even says: "I lied to impress her.", "I really need to impress somebody."

- Leighton payed the pilates instructor to go easy on her and compliment her

6. They were never supposed to be a long-time thing. From the start they were set up to break up.

- Willow talking about "Twincest" and it being weird

- Willow described Tatum as Leighton's "Doppelbanger"

- Lila joking about mixing up Leighton and Tatum

7. All of this was not my way of saying that Tatum needs to change for Leighton, nobody should. I'm just saying that these two are not right for each other. Leighton did a lot of work on herself and she opened her mind to other people's perspectives, so staying with Tatum would have just set her back.

Leighton even says: "Maybe dating you has made me realize that the things we have in common are the things that I wanna change about myself."

At first this was supposed to be just a short post but the more I rewatched Tatum's scenes, the longer it got.

[nothingunrealistic]

another sorta jumping off prompt abt Billions In Full: thinking abt any & all instances of taylor's arcs having kinda Becoming Adrift or Struggling w A Quandary points that resolve into Turning Points & any such moments you might have especially had Thoughts Or Feelings abt in full context & knowledge of the series? a la navigating axe cap & axe's guidance vs their qualms in s2, the fancy watch saga, everything re douglas, anything re wendy, having plans to leave across s3, that kind of concept

hmm okay what Moral Quandary arcs do they have. let’s consider it

1. the sandicot fiasco (2x04-2x07): if you don’t count playing in the alpha cup / breaking krakow as a moral quandary (which taylor might, tbh) this is the first time they have to grapple with their principles. taylor is in on this from the beginning, researching the likelihood of sandicot getting a gambling license at axe’s request and telling axe there’s no reason to invest if they don’t get the license. when the license falls through, taylor is brought into the war room figuring out how to recover axe cap’s investment, and spells out both the repercussions of austerity and the reasons they think it’s the right choice. (people living in poverty? offensive. cities overreaching their budgets? MORE offensive, apparently.) mostly i find this arc boring & embarrassing to watch (libertarianism? in taylor? cringe), rather than compelling, but i’m still distraught over taylor telling axe “i find myself thinking in your words sometimes” in 2x05. (the words in question are “shit hole,” re: sandicot, which doesn’t help.)

2. the klaxon short (2x09-2x11): this actually starts out totally unrelated to taylor — dollar bill tells axe about klaxon, a company he is Not Uncertain will crash; axe hesitates to make this trade on inside information but decides to go for it. ben kim and mafee both fail to produce analysis that supports the short; taylor manages it because they analyze the situation from a different angle, and because they suspect axe has inside information supporting a short and just needs it to seem legitimate. coming up with this analysis, and signing off on it, gets taylor a promotion, a spontaneous bonus ($500k!) from axe, and thank-you money ($250k!) from dollar bill, but they’re conflicted enough about it to stop by the SDNY and find out what connerty knows first; seeing their signature on the report puts them under even more suspicion from connerty. this is the first arc that really Feels like a moral compromise for taylor, because they’re more obviously conflicted about it and get more material rewards for it.

3. their stance on fossil fuels (2x09-present): less a character arc than a character sinusoid. taylor’s reluctant to take a private jet given the carbon footprint, but axe insisting it’s fine if they buy some carbon offsets is enough to change their mind. they pitch ESG to grigor, an oil oligarch, as an act of sabotage because they don’t want axe cap to take his money, but they’re willing to take his money for mase cap, and to win over a sovereign wealth fund that gets its money from oil. they still somehow have an environmentalist reputation to preserve after all this, so they short fracking publicly and bait axe into legalizing fracking so they’ll profit privately. then from 5x03 onward, they’ve committed firmly to the Earth-Positive Approach, which somehow encompasses both convincing colleges to divest from fossil fuels and investing in fossil fuels themself while vowing to clean up the companies responsible. i don’t think this is taylor’s principles shifting so much as their commitment to those principles weakening when they’re in new and dire straits — torn between their personal and professional lives, desperate to break away from axe cap and make it on their own, or reeling from a rift in their family. in contrast, season 5 is about taylor (and everyone else) trying to get back on track & clean up the wreckage of their past choices — makes sense that it would include recommitting to the environmentalist approach. so i also have to wonder where it’ll go in the rest of season 5 — will mase carbon and its mission survive that long, or will some unforeseen crisis derail it?

4. having nice things (2x09-present): pretty much every instance of taylor purchasing some new & pricey thing accompanies another moral quandary, rather than the purchase itself being the only thing taylor’s torn about. for instance: reserving a flight on a private jet, as mentioned, while conflicted about the ethics of doing so and of Living Large more generally; signing the lease on a luxurious penthouse apartment after signing off on the klaxon short; buying the same $164k watch craig heidecker wore to quell their guilt over having profited from his death and wearing it every day, only taking it off when they’ve formally left axe cap and resolved to do business at mase cap The Right Way. similarly, though it’s never addressed in the show, i’m pretty sure taylor’s apartment in season 5 is a different, cheaper apartment than the one they rented in seasons 2-4 — the front door and interior layout we see in 5x02 are totally different from what we’ve seen before — and that this is another manifestation of taylor trying to get back on track / recommit to their principles in season 5. (it might also be that their income was reduced just a bit by mase cap crashing and burning and being forced back to axe cap and they decided to relocate to save on rent. multiple things can be true at once.) the only exception that comes to mind is axe offering to buy taylor a land rover to thank them for running axe cap: taylor turns it down, asks for a billion dollars of their own to manage, then changes their mind and asks for the car too once axe says yes to the billion. they’re not really in a moral quandary in that moment so much as a “wow it sucks that axe is taking the reins of axe cap back from me and undoing all my hard work, i’d like to have some semblance of control and power still, please” quandary, and we never see the land rover again after that, so it’s not exactly memorable. i still want to know what they did with it.

5. selling out oscar’s investment to axe (3x10-5x06): i would not count this as a moral quandary because i firmly believe that Taylor Did Nothing Wrong (in this case), but the 3x10 episode summary describes this incident as “taylor makes a personal compromise for business,” so i guess we have to consider it. taylor asks axe for a favor involving oscar and his business partner, then thanks axe for the favor and mentions the name of said business partner, as one might do when conversing with a trusted colleague / mentor. axe, who is scrounging for cash and should never be trusted, swipes the deal oscar was making; when taylor confronts him about it, he insists that they wanted him to swipe the deal, or else they wouldn’t have namedropped the business partner. it’s unclear whether or not taylor believes this / blames themself for what happened, but oscar certainly blames them — he refuses taylor’s offer of a conciliatory dinner in 3x12 because “after what you did, i could never open myself up to you again,” and tells the marithane ceo in 5x06 that taylor solving his patent issue actually proves just how untrustworthy they are, because “if they’re willing to do that for you today, they’re willing to do it to you later.” yet he was still willing to invest with taylor and have them make money for him, so long as axe’s name wasn’t attached. make it make sense, oscar!

6. selling douglas’s company (4x07-4x08): again, i don’t consider this a moral quandary because taylor was forced into a no-win situation by axe and wendy, and also because douglas just sucks, but again, the writing demands that we consider it. taylor was ready to partner with a VC on funding the development of douglas’s lattice fin design, but axe pulled some strings and got the federal government to demand the technology for national security reasons. with the VC and existing investors abandoning mase cap left and right, there was no way for taylor to keep both douglas’s technology and mase cap, so they chose to sell the tech to the government and keep their company afloat, at the cost of their already-crumbling relationship with douglas finally collapsing. naturally, axe then went on tv and spun this as taylor selling out their own father by flipping his company for their profit. much like what happened with oscar, this is yet another incident that’s more axe’s fault than taylor’s being described as a terrible choice taylor made that proves they can’t be trusted. (this only occasionally happens with actual questionable choices taylor made more freely — connerty prodding them about their new apartment in 2x11, danzig pointing out that taylor “led the charge in wringing cash from sandicot” in 4x01, axe also bringing up taylor taking grigor’s money in his tv appearance in 4x08.)

[serenagaywaterford]

What is your ONE favourite THT episode? Favourite scene?

This is the meanest message I’ve ever received on this hellsite. ;) How dare you make me choose ONE favourite. I’m not even sure if that’s possible? 

Honestly I think 2x04-2x09 is PEAK THT (except 2x07 is meh), and there aren’t many episodes I’d even remotely consider outside that group. The only one that comes close would probably be 1x03. Although I do enjoy 1x05 and 1x06. 

Look I am 100% biased towards more Serena-centric episodes. If you had to make me choose which episode objectively is the best THT episode, I may have a different answer. (Although, sometimes I think 2x09 is objectively the best episode they’ve ever done, all bias aside. Although 1x09 and 2x13 are up there in terms of general cohesiveness and quality too. I am so close to including 3x03 in this group but... I just can’t give S3 that sort of credit lol.)

So, in my personal opinion with all bias in mind, I think if I had to chose ONE favourite...

2x06?

I think. Honestly, it flickers back and forth from 2x06, 2x08, and 2x09. Sometimes I think it’s 2x09. Sometimes I think it’s 2x08. But just in terms of general enjoyment and rewatchability, 2x06 probably. EXCEPT for the Eden rape scene. I take great exception to that particular scene being in 2x06 and I 100% skip it every single time. It is so gross and so disturbing that I can’t do it. (It really upsets me and wish I could recut the episode and just delete that whole scene. I do not like how it was so long and so graphic. It’s bad enough watching adult Handmaids get raped every second episode; watching a CHILD get raped is just too far for me. It is equally as bad to me as 2x10′s rape scene. How other people don’t see that boggles my mind. And I know why: a lot of people don’t care about Eden and even more people don’t see it as rape... but it absolutely is. So, anyway, that scene aside. As long as I don’t watch that scene, 2x06 is perhaps my fav.)

It’s not exactly the best episode they’ve ever made and I know a lot of ~critics panned 2x06, just like they panned 2x08 as well. But... well, I am a Serena fan so I’m going to gravitate towards mid-S2 obviously. And 2x06 is particularly good for getting into the other side of Serena’s character and her sheer desperation for connection with someone. And that belly scene has to be the most genuine non-tearful, non-rage-monster moments for Serena’s character.

I dunno, anon. I’m torn. I really want to say 2x09 also.

ANYWAY, favourite scene is even more difficult. There are so many. I feel like it’s cheating to say a scene from 2x06 although I adore that fucking weirdass lunch scene where Serena is playing house with June and her friends, and then makes the entire thing 400 times more awkward every second she’s there lol. 

I also fucking loved the scene where Emily stole the car and ran over the Guardian. There were a few really excellent scenes in S3 too (including The Break Up Scene), but over the whole season was such shit that I just can’t really get excited about them as much as I should. Serena screaming for June in 2x11 was riveting too, especially in conjunction with her and Fred’s fight with June’s gun trained on them. I really enjoyed that scene. (That was the only thing I liked about that whole crap episode too so I can’t give it total props.) June smacking Fred in 2x13 is also tops. But there were a lot of great scenes in 2x13 tbh. And pretty much every scene in 2x09 is amazing. (Why didn’t I say this was my fav ep again?)

But I think it may be a tie between 2x03′s “Feeding the ducks” flashback scene (aka the only good thing about 2x03 tbh, other than the fact Moss in boy’s clothes is exceptionally hot.), and 3x01′s June/Serena “My baby screamed for her mother!” scene. It’s a difficult choice.

I think if you put a gun to my head, eventually I’d settle on the 3x01 scene. Just cos....... I am a dirty fucking slut for my OTP touching each other like that and all those emotions.

[travllingbunny]

The 100 rewatch: 2x07 Long into an Abyss

A strong episode that moves the plot along in major ways and has some very tense scenes.

Rating: 8.5/10

It helps a lot that Finn’s storyline doesn’t get featured much, and that Finn is much more likable this time, showing actual guilt for what he’s done. The moment between him and Clarke, where she tries to comfort him: “Lincoln is saveable, and so are you” is actually touching.

This episode has one of the most effective creepy openings: starting out with an incredibly idyllic moment that feels like it’s from some other show, with a young woman enjoying the sunny, beautiful day on the outside, before turning into the horror scene of her dying of radiation burns while desperately begging people on the inside to let her back into Mount Weather. It’s a part of Dr Tsing’s and Cage’s experiment to find out if the blood treatments work – obviously, just for a short while – and they decide to let her die, so she wouldn’t tell about it to Dante, since they’re doing it behind his back. Tsing is firmly established as a completely cold evil scientist, and Cage is also OK with sacrificing their own people if need be, though he was initially uncomfortable with it. 

Cage and Dante later have a not-so-idyllic father/son moment when Cage convinces Dante to go outside courtesy of the treatment and feel for a moment what it’s like, as a part of the plan to convince him to go along with his and Tsing’s plans. Cage says "This is out world, we deserve it". He’s quite a Mountain Man supremacist. It’s that conviction that they’re entitled to the good life more than any other group of people, who aren’t even entitled to not be tortured and/or killed, that’s the main problem of the Mount Weather society. But Dante is angrily refusing to go along, because he’s apparently more moderate or more concerned with morality, or just more hypocritical: "What we've done to Outsiders has corrupted our legacy, I can't go that road any further". So, he is bothered by what they have been doing to Grounders? But he is still doing it anyway? How is that not going that same road? Because he likes the kids and doesn’t look down on them as “savages”? (The Mountain Men never considered assimilating the Grounders into the “gene pool” as they planned with the kids, did they?) Whatever, Dante.

The stakes are definitely raised as what we always could have guessed is confirmed: Cage and Tsing are planning to kill all the kids. We get the exact number of Mountain Men at the moment: 382. Tsing tells Cage they need the bone marrow and they need 8 treatment by a kid, which means that all the 47 kids will have to die. Now, if they had instead decided to not be terrible people for once and not treat other people as cattle, if they had met up with the other Arkers, offered them support and asked them to donate bone marrow, they wouldn't need to kill anyone, because there’s thousands of Arkers out there.

Other developments in Mount Weather include the 47 learning that the Arkers are alive and on the ground, and making plans how to work inside Mount Weather to free themselves – using Monty’s hacking skills and Miller’s thieving skills. Although Jasper has faith in Clarke (it’s so sad that their relationship will deteriorate so much after S2), they are not sure if she’s even alive, so they have to rely on themselves. (This is most info we’ve gotten on Miller so far: he was a thief, and he’s from the Alpha station.)

Meanwhile, poor Harper gets experimented on. Knowing now that she was first meant to die in season 1 of the hemorrhagic fever, it’s so lucky that she got a chance to survive till the end of season 5 and get such a great arc.

But most of the episode is about the tensions in Camp Jaha, where Arkers are debating what to do about the imminent Grounder attack that was threatened at the end of 2x06. Jaha and Abby find themselves on the opposite sides of the argument, which is awkward, since they both think they’re the Chancellor. Jaha advocates that they should leave and go look for the City of Light (oh, no, not a good solution), and justifies this by saying: "This is not our home, it's theirs". Urrrgh. See me roll my eyes. Not that crap, please. Everywhere they go is going to be someone’s “home”, if it’s inhabitable, nowhere is going to be “your home” since you’re refugees/exiles who have spent a century in space, but it’s not like there isn’t enough room for everyone. And hey, Jaha, you’re gonna change your mind completely come season 4! He’s just saying this because he got into his head that it’s his messianic mission to find the COL. Yes, I felt the same the first time when I had no idea what COL would turn out to be.  Abby, on the other hand, is like "I'm not ready to march our people into the desert". Again with the Biblical references.

Jaha’s better argument is that they’re going to die if they don’t leave, what with the Grounders being much more numerous, and if they live, they can fight another day and see what the best solution is then. This is basically the same argument Clarke made in her speech in 1x12, when she convinced the Delinquents to leave and try to search for Luna. But with one big difference: the Delinquents weren’t leaving anyone to die, and this time, leaving would mean giving up on the 47 in Mount Weather – so it’s a definite “no” for Clarke. Unsurprisingly, it’s also a big “no” for David Miller and the other parents of the kids trapped in MW. In one of the most tense moments of the episode, Jaha tries to stage a coup, unsuccessfully, but Miller and Byrne listen to Abby as the Chancellor instead of Jaha, and obey her order to arrest him. (I guess they’ll have to change the name of the camp soon.) Abby declares “I have faith, too, in my daughter". (But the mother/daughter relationship won’t remain that harmonious, with Clarke staging her own successful coup and showing her mom who’s really in charge in 2x11.)

The other big plot thread is Bellamy and Octavia asking Clarke to try to help save Lincoln, which Clarke can’t, but asks Abby to do. Lincoln’s friend, healer Nyko, tries to “save” him by killing him – clearly thinking that mercy kill is the only way to save a Reaper, but there’s a nice payoff to the scene a few episodes ago, when Clarke heard Anya say “Your fight is over” – it allows her to realize what Nyko is doing. But stopping the heart temporarily turns out to be part of the process of healing. And the two plot threads then become one, thanks to Clarke’s quick thinking and willingness to hope and take a huge risk: the possibility of healing Reapers is a big bargaining chip for peace and an alliance against the Mountain Men, which Clarke already tried to make happen by convincing Anya, and now she has to convince Lexa herself.

The first meeting of Clarke and Lexa starts with this exchange: “You’re the one who burned 300 of my warriors” – “You’re the one who sent them to attack our camp”. Thankfully, this is the last time Lexa mentions this, so I guess she must have realized that it’s stupid to complain about people defending themselves when you attack them, and was probably impressed by Clarke’s attitude. Grounder warrior culture respects strength, and Lexa is probably not used to people talking back to her. And this is probably why and how Clarke came to be regarded as the leader of the Arkers for the rest of season 2 – she acted like one, in her determination to save her people, so Lexa perceived her the leader and started treating her that way. Clarke then uses all her skills of persuasion and references Anya to convince Lexa to agree to an alliance against Mount Weather, with the promise of showing her the success of the Reaper treatment through Lincoln – even if she’s not sure that Abby will succeed in bringing him back. The most tense moment of the episode is the standoff that happens when Lexa and Indra come with Clarke to see Lincoln, but he appears dead, and for a moment, everyone is about to kill each other, until Clarke thinks of electro-shocking Lincoln to bring him back.

This is the beginning of the complicated relationship between Clarke and Lexa, and it pretty much sets up the parameters of it from the start: through everything that will happen between them, as allies, enemies or lovers, their dynamic will always be colored by the facts that Lexa has, at all times, the power to give orders to start killing Clarke’s people, while Clarke is determined to do her best to convince Lexa to not kill her people/not let them die.

And it gets additionally awkward when, in the big cliffhanger, Lexa tells Clarke the price of the truce: Finn’s death. I know from BTS comments that the writing staff wasn’t planning at this point to have those two romantically involved (they even didn’t give any thought to Lexa’s sexuality until the writer of 2x09 wrote the part about Costia), but once they did make that decision, this becomes kind of an awkward part of the setup for their romance. In a way, it’s nothing unusual for this show, which really loves developing romantic relationships from messed up situations (I think the only exceptions so far are Marper and Mackson), but “future love interest makes you kill your former love interest” is still high on the unpleasantness scale. What’s even odder is that it’s not even high on the list of the issues I’ll eventually have with their romance – because, in this case, Lexa is not doing anything bad, just following the law, and Finn is guilty.

Regardless of that, at this point my impressions of Lexa were predominantly positive (and remained so for 4 more episodes). She seemed reasonable, calm and controlled, which was very refreshing, since most Grounder warriors were constantly angry and talking about revenge. And Indra was one of the worst at this point. My god, I had forgotten how annoying she used to be – not only was she the Angry Black Woman stereotype, but she was the biggest warmonger at Lexa’s side and was constantly “Kill, kill, kill them all!” The only thing I liked about her was Adina Porter’s performance – she was way better than Dichen Lachman or any of the other actors playing Angry Grounder Warriors. This character has had such a huge character development.

One thing that did always bother me and still does is the fact that Lexa, Tristan, Nyko, Quint (annoying general who goes on to appear in 2x10)… all the white Grounders had such a strong fake tan. Wow, they must have great solariums in Polis! Who would think! And what about their cultural-appropriation-mishmash fashion sense? How did that happen? Did Becca tell her subjects: “I think it would be cool if you started wearing this, and this, and this…”? It makes even less sense as the distorted-English that the Grounders speak, even though it’s been less than a century since the end of the world, and that’s nowhere near enough time for a whole new language or even dialect to develop. But it’s not like anything about their culture and society is remotely realistic – however, overall it’s just a cliché of all post-apocalyptic dramas. The crap with bronzed tans and bindi and dreads etc.? That’s just idiotic and offensive. It doesn’t even make sense in the context of “Proud Warrior Race” stereotypes – I get the war paint, but why bindi and dreads, those aren’t even associated with warriors? If they wanted popular warriors/savages stereotypes, hey, how about Vikings? But nope – they were white, and the logic is “non-white cultures – savages” or something? Uuuum….

But that’s the kind of BS you get used to on this show after a while. What do you do? World-building has never been its strong suit. If I gave lower scores for episodes for that, I’ll have to give low scores to almost everyone episode from now on, so… never mind.

Body count: 1 - Keenan, the Mountain Man girl (and minor character that appeared in a couple of episodes before this) that Cage and Tsing used as an experiment.

[zutaralesbian]

Since I already did ATLA, here is pt 2 with Black Sails <3

Top 5 Episodes?

2x07 (Suuuuuuch a good episode for the ladies. Eleanor being a badass and rescuing Abigail. Maxanne bonding. Miranda having a role. Also “I’m Miranda Hamilton” and “I’m James Mcgraw” <3

2x05 (For the iconic Reveal)

2x01 (A fun episode! The official beginning of Maxanne, the introduction of Flinthamilton and the London flashbacks, and funny Flint and Silver shenanigans.)

4x08 (Max in Philadelphia and refusing to marry a man, even to achieve her ultimate goals. Maxanne reconciliation) 

3x01 (Had some good established Maxanne before things started to fall apart for them)

Bottom 5 Episodes?

1x01

1x04

1x05

1x06

I didn’t like season 1. Other than Maxanor and Silver being funny, it was kind of boring. And filled with rape. If I didn’t know that better things were to come, I probably would have stopped watching. 

Top 5 Characters?

Max

Eleanor Guthrie

James Flint

Anne Bonny

Miranda Barlow

Bottom 5 Characters? 

Out of the characters that got a good amount of screen time: 

Woodes Rogers

Charles Vane

Richard Guthrie

Captain Hornigold 

Edward Teach (Just because he was boring) 

Top 5 Romantic Ships?

Max/Anne

Max/Eleanor

Flint/Thomas

Silver/Madi

Featherstone/Idelle 

Bottom 5 Romantic Ships?

Eleanor/Rogers

Eleanor/Vane

I think those are the only canon ships I hate.

Top 5 Platonic Ships?

Flint/Miranda 

Flint/Eleanor

Max/Idelle (Although I also lowkey ship it romantically)

Anne/Jack

Max/Jack

Bottom 5 Platonic Ships?

Eleanor and her father. That’s the only one I can think of. 

Season Ranking?

S2 > S3 > S4 > S1

Character You Relate To The Most?

Hmmmm.....I don’t really think I relate heavily to any of them. I guess the closest would be Anne, with her being a late-blooming lesbian. But that’s the only thing we have in common lol. 

Character That Inspires You?

James Flint, my gay father who loves murdering homophobes 

Character You Can’t Understand?

Can’t think of one

Best Written Character?

James Flint. He had the most work put into him overall, I think. 

Worst Written Character?

Vane. The writers seemed to want to make him likable in S3. But they should have thought about that before they had him purposefully enable Max’s rape in S1. There was no redeeming him after that imo. 

Most Cliched Character?

Vane. He’s the character most of the straight dudebros probably wanted as the main lol. Glad he choked. (Literally)

Most Unusual Character?

I’m going to have to say Flint again. The fact that the writers made their main macho lead on a violent show canonically gay will never fail to get me hyped up. 

Most Inspired Storyline?

Max’s rise from being at the bottom to being on top in Nassau. She did that!!!

Favorite Hero?

......There’s only a small handful of characters that can really be considered heroes imo. I’m going with Madi. 

Favorite Villain?

Eh. I hated pretty much all of the traditional villains so none. 

Best Person?

Madi, The Maroon Queen, or Mr. Scott 

Most Influential Character?

James Flint. For pretty much the same reasons I think he’s the most “unusual” 

Most Manipulative Character?

Oh wooooow almost all of them are manipulative lol. But I think some of the top contenders are Silver, Flint, and Max 

Best Performance in an Episode?

Toby Stephens’ delivery of the “intolerable sacrifice” speech in S1 always gives me goosebumps. Also Louise Barnes during Miranda’s breakdown in 2x09.

Most Visually Stunning Episode?

I can’t really name a specific episode but the show had a lot of really good shots of ships on the ocean. 

Most Impressive Special Effects?

I dunno 

Character with the Best Aesthetics?

Max my fashion queen 

Favorite Song?

The opening theme kills me every time 

Best Writer?

Idk. I don’t really pay attention to specific writers for Black Sails. 

Favorite Theme?

See favorite song 

5 Words You Associate _____ With?

Thanks again! @kateaustensgf

[plounce]

compilation post of whichever bbc america employee who wrote the captain’s blogs being an ally and a hero via treating janto as more than just a sex joke, being genuinely warm and funny, and mentioning ianto super fondly in nearly every single entry (especially s2) because jack is in love with him despite what everyone else would have you believe. but i, a gay, know, and so does bbc america social media staffer circa 2007-2008.

some may call this “fringe canon.” i call it “some of the only specks of canon that respect the show’s canon gay relationship as the loving and affectionate relationship that it is.”

text pulled from ianto’s desktop, which is a fun read despite the defunct photobucket embeds - i only included captain’s blog stuff, but there’s a couple more janto tidbits in there. none as nice as these, though. under a cut because it is Long.

season 1

(one really cool thing the writer did for early season one is have jack note unexplained energy surges in the lower levels of the hub - handy foreshadowing for cyberwoman)

1x03 (ghost machine - alien tech leads to murder mystery):

Other issues: According to Ianto, Splott is pronounced "Sploe". I think Ianto may have been lying.

Upcoming issues: Energy surges in the lower areas of the hub still unexplained; there have been several more in the past week. Ianto volunteered to investigate, but has not discovered an explanation yet.

1x04 (cyberwoman - the episode where ianto’s secrets are revealed and we all have a Bad Time):

Other Staff issues: Ianto Jones temporarily suspended from active duty, to return at my discretion. His love for Lisa clouded his judgment, and he made some serious mistakes - but I have to wonder if I would have done the same thing in his situation. Ianto's personal needs and emotional state have been overlooked; I should not have missed something like this. During his suspension, I will try to spend more time with him. Hopefully we can establish a closer working relationship.

1x05 (small worlds - the one where the “fairies” abduct the little girl and jack has to let them, which makes everyone else very mad at him):

Staff: Ianto Jones' first week back after his suspension four weeks ago. I have tried to put him at ease, and have briefed the team to be as sympathetic as possible. Obviously there is a level of resentment remaining, but they are trying.

Other Staff issues: After what happened with Jasmine, nobody is talking to me (except Ianto). They'll come around. Everyone comes around.

1x06 (countrycide - the one with the cannibals and we all have a Bad Time):

Staff: Brought Ianto Jones along to get him out of the Hub, out of the city, get some relaxing time in the country with the team. May not have been the best decision I made this year.

1x07 (greeks bearing gifts - mindreading and predatory lesbian, the episode):

Other Staff issues: Ianto is still suffering, but putting on a brave face. Will try talking to him over dinner, outside the Hub, see if there's anything more I can do for him.

1x08 (they keep killing suzie - the episode that ends with ianto hitting on jack with a stopwatch):

Other Staff issues: Ianto and I stayed back to go over the case files and reorganize the safe. Internal security cameras were temporarily shut down to run diagnostic tests, so there was no monitoring of the Hub for approximately four hours - but there were no security breaches to report. Everything went very smoothly.

Upcoming issues: Need to requisition a new stopwatch. Old one damaged while moving a desk.

1x09 (random shoes - outsider pov, the episode):

Staff: Things seem to be calming down with everyone. Ianto is coping well; I'm pleased with his progress.

1x11 (combat - owen has manpain and fights weevils. whatever):

Other Staff issues: Ianto surprisingly proficient at the good cop/bad cop routine. Although obviously, he's the good cop. He's too cute to be the bad cop.

1x12 (captain jack harkness - jack and tosh are stuck back in time during the cardiff blitz and owen and ianto fight about what to do about it):

Other Staff issues: Ianto tried to stop Owen opening the Rift, and actually shot him in the shoulder. Everyone except Owen is finding this very amusing.

season 2

2x01 (kiss kiss bang bang - jack returns from his doctor who appearance, deals with his terrible ex spike from buffy, and asks ianto out on a proper date):

Other Staff issues: Gwen is now engaged. I'm happy for her, but I'm concerned about what it might mean - can she stay here, still keeping everything from Rhys? I worry that we're going to lose her. And I worry about Ianto. I think he took it harder than anyone when I ran off. It's going to take me a while to make things up to him. He is a decent, good man, and I'm lucky I met him.

2x02 (sleeper agent - the episode with sleeper agents):

Other security issues: Gwen taken hostage again. I’m beginning to think she’s jinxed. And why am I never taken hostage? I could be a good hostage. I never get any of that Stockholm Syndrome action. And according to Ianto, my bad cop routine needs some work.

Other Staff issues: I’m in trouble with Ianto for duct-taping a CB aerial to the SUV. Apparently the tape made the wing mirror “disconcertingly sticky”. Still, nothing a bit of warm, soapy water can’t fix.

2x03 (a man out of time - tosh’s cryo-boyfriend they unfreeze once every year. also, jack and ianto Have A Talk and then make out):

Other Staff issues: Ianto and I made some progress, talked things through. What happened with Tommy got to us all. I know it got to Gerald and Harriet, too, back then, considering what they went through to try and make up for it – but that’s another story for another day.

2x04 (meat - the episode with the whale and rhys finding out. some of the team gets taken hostage and ianto tazes a bad guy in the head and growls out “pray they survive.” or something and it’s VERY GOOD TELEVISION):

Staff: Ianto turned into a fighting, kicking, stun-gun machine, it was very exciting. I must get put in danger more often.

2x05 (adam - an alien infiltrates their memories and inserts himself into the team, and his plot is foiled by ianto reading his diary and finding inconsistencies because he’s Very Clever):

Other security issues: The only thing out of place was Ianto’s diary, which I found in my office. Naturally, I gave it back to him immediately after reading through it. Several interesting factual errors in there - and I thought he would know how to convert inches to centimetres. You think you know someone...

2x06 (reset - martha visits and owen ‘dies’):

Security: Must speak to Ianto about using names from ‘’Sex and the City’’ on fake IDs. Last week he sent me into an alien smuggling operation as ‘’Mr Big’’, without telling me. Wish I knew how he kept a straight face. I’d give him a stern talking-to, but I think he enjoys that too much.

(right after this is a very solemn paragraph about owen dying lmfao)

2x07 (dead man walking - jack resurrects owen and owen has manpain about it):

Other Staff issues: In big trouble with Ianto for risking everything to go and get the second glove. I should have told him before I went, but he’d probably have cuffed me to the chair to stop me. And I’ve fallen for that one way too many times.

2x08 (a day in the death - owen continues to have manpain):

Other Staff issues: Now that we have all tried, it is clear that only Ianto knows how to operate that damn coffee maker. I suspect it contains alien technology.

2x09 (something borrowed - gwen gets married, but not before playing host to shapeshifting pregnancy alien):

Security: ... Female Nostrovite proved to be extremely resilient to bullets, so I had to get my massive weapon out and take care of business. Ianto is still quietly chuckling about that now, days later. Gwen’s mother taken hostage. Must run in the family.

2x10 (from out of the rain - the terribly written ianto-’centric’ episode about circus film reel ghosts):

Alien activity: ... We only managed to save one of them, but that’s better than nothing. Sometimes in this job, one is enough. I can still see the faces of the people we lost - they weren’t part of this, they were just living their lives, until they were taken. Ianto took it badly, this one really got to him.

Staff: Have convinced Ianto to take me to a normal cinema, to see an actual movie. He’s also curious to know if I still have my old circus outfit. If I can find it, I think a private show is in order.

2x11 (adrift - gwen pursues a mystery about the people the rift takes and then puts back traumatized, even though jack resists. ianto is the one who gives her the info she needs. she also walks in on them naked in the greenhouse. wild):

Staff: Gwen would never have found the facility if Ianto hadn’t helped her. He was wrong to do that. But, of course, he was actually right in the end. There’s no way Gwen would have let it go. I should have trusted her with the information, but I knew what it would do to her. Sometimes, the only way to realise that you shouldn’t look behind that door is to actually go and look. Gwen learned that. Nikki learned that. We all did.

Other Staff issues: Seeing Gwen experience it for the first time took me right back to when I first heard that terrible scream. After Gwen had gone home, I just held on to Ianto for a couple of hours, as tightly as I could.

2x12 (fragments - a bomb explodes and everyone gets a flashback to how they joined torchwood 3 as jack and gwen rescue them from the rubble):

Staff: Everyone came out of the explosion pretty beaten up, but no major damage. We got lucky. And so did John. Because if he’d killed anyone - if he had hurt Ianto - I would have slowly ripped him limb from limb.

Other Staff issues: Although I have to say, Ianto does look good all messed up and dirty.

2x13 (exit wounds - jack’s brother comes back and blows up half of cardiff and kills owen and tosh):

Other Staff issues: The one glimmer of hope in all this? I still have Ianto and Gwen. Whatever the future throws at us, whatever madness the Rift vomits out next, whatever we have to face - Torchwood will be ready.

Capt. Jack Harkness.

Ianto, I know you’re reading this over my shoulder, pretending to fix that damn shelf. So get over here and take me out somewhere.

[fyeahwynonnaearp]

Sorry for rambling but I saw someone say they think maybe Nicole loves Waverly more the she loves her but I think the fact that Waverly betrayed her sister shows that it's equal, do you agree? I also think that as much as Emily is trying to make her not just the gf I think we still really only see her as that. We don't see her much with anyone else or her emotions much more then waves and work were we see all waves relationships and they mean a lot to her. Hopefully we see more next season.

Please! Ramble away!

I understand how others may get the impression that Nicole loves Waverly more. I think on the surface level, that is what you see. However, you need to understand and look at the past experiences of Nicole and Waverly (well, mostly Waverly’s because her love of Nicole is in question) to realize that they are equally devoted to each other and equally love each other deeply; they just express it in different ways

(I saw the same post; I believe we are talking about the same one)

This got a bit long, so everything under the cut.

1. Waverly always reacts with a physical response (kiss/making out/sex): Think back to 1x10 when Wynonna interrupts Wayhaught at the doorway of Nedley’s Office to say she slept with Doc. [Scene]

Waverly: Well–D-do you love Doc?Wynonna: [Rolls eyes] It’s just sex, Waverly. God!Waverly: T-That’s not a ‘no’.

Waverly does not do casual sex. She links sex with love (or, at the very least, a romantic relationship). Think back on her relationship with Champ (I know no one likes to think about it, but I am going somewhere with this), from the few conversations she and Wynonna have about that relationship, one can assume it was very physical and lacked all the typical romantic stuff such as vocal expressions of love, etc. Champ seems to be Waverly’s only notable previous romantic partner; hence, Waverly reacts to Nicole in the manner that she knows, physically. Note, Waverly is always the first to initiate kisses and sex. She also rarely expresses her love vocally to anyone else, not just Nicole. Remember? The only time we see her say “I love you, Wynonna” is when Tucker plans to kidnap her in 2x09. We don’t doubt how deeply Waverly loves for her sister even though she hardly says it, we see it through their actions, how they interact with each other. 

Waverly expresses her love of Nicole through actions, not words. Do I think this would change? Yes. I believe Waverly would start saying it more. I think she would realize how much Nicole needs to hear it (because we see that Nicole does have insecurities in regards to their relationship).

2. Waverly betrays Wynonna: I personally don’t believe people realize how HUGE it was that Waverly did not trust her sister. The first half of S2 worked hard to establish that Waverly will always be there for Wynonna, will always support Wynonna, will always be in Wynonna’s corner, and will trust that Wynonna will always save her. But in 2x10 when Wynonna needed Waverly to believe in her, have faith in her, trust in her the most, Waverly didn’t. 

Think back to the hostage situation in S1. Waverly knew about it; Nicole told her about it, left a voicemail. Two people who were in her life while Wynonna was gone were in a life or death situation; (1) Champ, her long-term boyfriend and (2) Shorty, another father-figure in her life. Waverly trusted that Wynonna will keep Champ and Shorty safe. And that did not end well. 

Think back to when Nicole was shot by Willa in 1x13. Waverly’s first thought was to stay with Nicole even though the stakes were high and Wynonna would probably need help. Yes, Waverly did end up leaving. But, it’s important to note that Nicole tells her to go. Even before that, in the hotel, Waverly asks Nicole to leave with her and Willa. 

Nicole’s safety is paramount to Waverly. I don’t think Waverly knows that Wynonna cares for Nicole, considers her as a friend, and aware of how much she means to her baby sister. In 2x06, Wynonna sends Dolls after Nicole for extra protection: “Waverly would die if something happens to Nicole”. In 2x07, Wynonna shares how much her time with Jack of Knives affected her and calls Nicole her ‘friend’: “See, this is what you get when you’re friends with a narc.” In the same episode, Waverly trusted Nicole to keep Wynonna company. But when she learns that Wynonna managed to drag Nicole somewhere else, Waverly comes looking for them.

3. Nicole only being the ‘girlfriend’ and her relationship with other characters: I do think Nicole has a relationship with the other characters outside of being “Waverly’s girlfriend”. Much of the development is off-screen. Do I wish that we have scenes of it? Of course! However, as much as I love Nicole and want to see more of her and know more about her, I understand that the show is called ‘Wynonna Earp’ and is ultimately about Wynonna and the people that are in direct proximity to her. For example, in 2x01, before Nicole was kept out of the BBD blood contract, she was present in the homestead during the Squad’s meeting when they talked about breaking Dolls out. Did she have to be there? It pains me to say this, but no. We first see her when Waverly was patching up her wound. Then, in her next scene, she was in her uniform. Meaning, she was on duty, but was called in to help. 

If Nicole did sign the blood contract, we definitely would have seen more of how her relationship with the others evolved. But I do appreciate that she has another path and it would be interesting to see how her being groomed for Sheriff plays out in the future. Ultimately, 2x10 showed how her relationship with the others had grown. And interesting enough in 2x11, with her being Sheriff and without Wynonna and not in a relationship with Waverly, she seemed to be much more involved and in the know with the ongoings of BBD (Dolls & Jeremy).

Nicole & Wynonna: If you watch 1x07 and compare it to 2x07, we do see how much their friendship has grown. From Wynonna thinking Waverly should be hanging out with someone like Nicole to referring to Nicole as the love of her sister’s life in 2x10. In 1x07, Wynonna was suspicious of Nicole and in 2x07 she shares how she dealt with the aftermath of their shared trauma: Wynonna being tortured and Nicole attempting to protect her, but dying and needing resuscitation.

Nicole & Dolls: From threats of treason to being cop buddies. I do get the vibe that they respect each other as officers of the law and there have been glimpses that they would work well together as a team (2x06). I like to think that Nicole complains to Dolls about Wynonna’s lackluster care about procedure and actual police work.

Nicole & Doc: In 1x10, when Nicole pulled Doc over for speeding he says, “It’s me, Officer Haught”. I do think they knew each other then, or at least well acquainted through Waverly; Doc mentioning to Waverly “she adores you back”. Doc was the first person that confirmed her suspicions about Purgatory in S1. In 2x10, Doc puts aside his bitterness about losing his immortality. Plus, he knew Calamity Jane. I like to think that Doc hangs out with Nicole at her house whenever Waverly and Wynonna have their own things going on or whenever Jeremy and Rosita are tinkering at the basement lab. Of course, Nicole low-key judges Doc for having whatever he has with Wynonna because that’s his best friend’s great-great-granddaughter. 

Nicole & Jeremy: In 2x03, we learn that whenever Nicole passes off a case to BBD, she gives it to Jeremy. We don’t see much interaction between them, but I absolutely would love to see Jeremy asking Nicole about the gay scene around town, which is nonexistent and Nicole would probably look at Waverly and say “It’s us. Waverly and I? Our relationship? That’s the gay scene”. So, Nicole plans a night out with Jeremy to a gay bar in the Big City and bringing Waverly along because she hasn’t experienced it.

Nicole & Rosita: They both have the same feeling of being “left out”. But ultimately...jury’s out on that one because of hot tub and champagne and sexy science talk.

[imminent-danger-came]

Hello friend. At first, I thought it was a joke that there's a Lego show that people love. I've seen you post about it a lot so I figure it's just one of those things that maybe a couple people really really love otherwise, whatever. But I just sat that clip of that characters death and it made me realize I know nothing about anything ever lol. What is the Lego show about? What do you love about it? I'm just super curious

Well. Okay. My embarrassment aside, I totally get it—it is a lego show, but it's my lego show and I'll gladly tell you about it!

(my apologies this got a little long)

*inhales cigarette* I remember starting to watch lmk (Lego Monkie Kid) and not expecting anything except some very pretty animation—it's just legos, right? And then it completely blindsided me. Then I did some digging and realized it's a modern retelling of Journey to the West (jttw—one of the great classic chinese novels), and that half of the whole reason this show exists is to retell a familiar tale to the modern age. That's how the show opens, and that's how s3 ends.

And, at the risk of sounding a little deranged, I'm going to say that the show being legos is thematically relevant. It legitimately adds to part of the story they're trying to tell—and the story Lego Monkie Kid is trying to tell is legitimately very solid. It's super good. They completely blew me out of the water with season 4.

So. The first special and s1 isn't anything too unique on a first watch through. The characters are charming and the show is very pretty, but it's nothing I'd write home about (though, 1x09 is very good—in my opinion—and 1x10, the season finale, builds plenty of intrigue).

But here's the thing: legitimately so much is set up in s1 and you don't even realize it, and it's STILL being re-contextualized well into s4.

So, then the s2 special happens right after s1, and it's like, alright! The plot seems to be going somewhere! We get introduced to a few more antagonists and the status quo from s1 is already somewhat disrupted. But then the last half of s2 comes around. And they're all bangers. 2x05 Minor Scale is GREAT. 2x06 is pure game motif. 2x07 gives us backstory and continues the main protags negative character arc. 2x08 is one of my favorites in the whole show. By this point you realize how consistent the character writing is if you've been paying attention. 2x09 is the beginning of the end. 2x10 ends the season on quite the cliff hanger, and it's like. HOLY SHIT. WHAT IS THIS ABSOLUTE GEM OF A SHOW.

s3 is lovely, and the end of the s3 special has one of my favorite scenes in anything. s4 is so ridiculously good. Lmk honestly has what I would consider to be god tier pacing. They have 10 minutes to achieve their goal, and by GOD are they going to do exactly that.

But like, what do I love about the show specifically?

The animation. The characters. The themes. I kid you not a major theme in s4 of the show is the fact that every single thing you do leads to pain. Being the hero or the villain, it doesn't matter—you cause suffering and destruction with every step you take. You hurt the people you care about. No, seriously. I'm not kidding. THAT'S one of the main focuses of s4, and oh boy is it a wild ride. You get used to legos crying. I am unironically expecting s5 of this show to be a tragedy.

I can not recommend it enough!

(If it's your thing that is! I TOTALLY get not being able to look past the legos, and the fast pacing isn't for everyone.)

Anyways, here's a bonus gif of Mei to end off!

[raayllum]

re: pining!callum and overlapping feelings for claudia and rayla in s1 / early s2

callum is like, “yes, rayla is brave and heroic. yes, i want to know everything about her and forgot the food we need to survive because i was so distracted by her and think she’s cute when she’s mad. yes, i trust her more than people i’ve known my whole life and notice when she’s missing in the middle of the night and consider her family. yes, i give her lingering looks and try flirting with her sometimes. no i only like claudia.” like… sweet summer boy

it truly is fascinating in retrospect to look at 2x04 onwards and see like, the first time he arguably gets flustered by rayla being close to him, and then him pretty blatantly flirting with her in 2x07 and drawing her, and being so worried about her it’s one of the significant reasons he does dark magic (if not the most significant). and then in 2x08 he doesn’t try to defend himself from her ire and can feel her holding him, and in 2x09 he’s so happy that she’s there with him and he goes over for the hug first and just has all his attention on her and

like he’s definitely crushing on both of them in s1 and early s2 and it’s just so funny to see

[findmeagreenlight]

I love this topic so please allow me to word vomit all over your post

1) The way he acts with Keith in 4x01 is particularly as if a switch was being turned on and off, but mainly: “That’s an order.” This line goes against the kind of subtle mini arc Shiro had in 2x07: he tries to order Black to go back to the castle at first, and ends the episode with this:

Later, in 2x12, Keith says this when volunteering for what Kolivan deems a suicide mission:

Shiro immediately agrees. Considering that Keith was already explicitly a candidate for Black at this point, and all “the paladin’s quintessence is mirrored in his lion” stuff, these two instances - noone commanding Black or Keith - seem connected. And “That’s an order.” goes against that completely.

2) A kind of similar point. In 1x01, right off the bat, Shiro tells Pidge that they don’t have time to search for the Holts on the Galra ship. It’s a war and sometimes “you have to make hard choices”. 

Familar wording?

The reason why returning to this “making hard choices” and picking your battles is regression for Shiro’s character is because after OG Shiro says that in 1x01, he spends the first two seasons completely going against that line of thinking. 

We can’t rescue the Holts - except that’s Pidge’s family, so we will check the prisoners AND get the red lion. Give up the castle to Sendak or protect Lance? He can’t sacrifice his friend. Attacking a huge Galra base would be the stupidest thing we could ever do! Except when Allura is captured and Shiro feels guilty, then it’s worth risking Voltron over. Ulaz volunteering to sacrifice himself to save Voltron? Shiro tries to talk him out of it until the last moment and looks tortured over his death afterwards. Give up Keith’s knife to be allowed out of the collapsing BOM base vs fighting five Galra, all taller than him? OF COURSE he will try to protect both Keith and the knife. Shiro is not the type to make sacrifices calmly or easily. It pains him and he will exhaust all options possible to get everyone involved out safe. 

Also, he is very protective of his teammates and he is very concerned whenever someone gets hurt. He doesn’t want Allura to go spying alone, he looks extremely concerned for Lance when he gets knocked out during the attack on the Castle, he looks pissed off when Keith and Hunk get hurt in 2x11, the whole BOM episode etc. 

So yeah, when the team gets hit in 3x06 because of a decision Shiro made and we don’t even see him make a suffering expression, that feels off. Very off.

3) The plan about attacking Naxzela is presented very differently compared to the big plan at the end of s2 where they attack Zarkon’s HQ. 4x05 has Shiro making the plan on his own, presenting it on his own in a monotonish voice with few interjections.

Compare that to 2x09, when everyone stands around the map, having devised a plan together. When Kolivan assigns Shiro the credit, he refuses it:

It’s not even him presenting the plan! It’s Lance. A lot more lively speech than what we heard in 4x05. (At least I always zone out during the latter…)

4) His apologies are a bit… lacking. At first I thought it was just imperfect writing and me being nitpicky with the “I’m sorry I had to step in back there” line, because that’s a crappy insincere apology, but. The way he apologises to Lance in 5x03 after yelling at him, that also seems like an afterthought? He’s smiling. 

Compare this:

To these:

I know it’s not the same level of dire situation when you yell at your teammate but eeeeh. 

5) The first thing that raised a red flag for me, even before I knew about the clone theory, was Shiro raising a gun at rebels in The Journey. I haven’t seen anyone mention this, even though, wtf. The hero doesn’t consider shooting allies, not even for 2 seconds.

It seems weird to slowly raise your gun before throwing it away, to me.

Anyway, this is why I don’t really agree with the clone having a separate personality from Shiro’s, or him being only Shiro under different circumstances - the full picture seems like regression in several aspects compared to the direction s1-s2 Shiro’s character was developing. All the differences are to make him seem more distant or paint him in a more uncomfortable light to the average viewer who doesn’t know what’s going on, but that’s just my interpretation, noone needs to agree with me, obviously.

What are some of the notable moments where you think clone-Shiro acted differently than the original Shiro?

i’m just going to keep this to season 3 and 4 before it becomes abundantly obvious he’s not acting the same:

asking keith to let the team take a hit and “deal with it”

his green room talk with keith after came across as weirdly patronizing and notably different from their other interactions

he refers to refugees as something like “new soldiers” for the war effort which did not seem very shiro-esque. i think he does that a couple times.

i think those were the big moments we were meant to pick up on. and as with all clone shiro talk, i have to disclaim that i block on sight for any discourse about this. calm discussions are fine!

[ofnailbatsandaxefives]

But if you look at the moments where they've shown they care about each other and say that that's build up then you could say that for literally every friendship on the show. Also Monty cares about everyone and he only interacted with Harper 2 or 3 times in the entire of season 2.

ah, but nonster, that’s why the characters in this show are so shipable with one another, and for the most part the romantic relationships make sense. I mean there’s a few ships I don’t ship, but if they became canon I wouldn’t be surprised by them. Also saying that Monty and Harper only interacted 2 or 3 times in the entire season 2 is simply not true.

In 2x06 Monty and Harper are sitting next to each other on a bed when Jasper comes in to try and recruit for treatments. They’re sitting together again on a bed in 2x07 when they’re having the little meeting consisting of them, Jasper, Miller, and I think two random delinquents. We then have the number of days (off screen) that they were together locked up in the cages from end of 2x09 to 2x11 and of course Monty giving Harper tea towards the end of 2x11. In 2x12 when Dr. Tsing and the guards come into take someone, Monty pulls Harper back and starts to move in front of her to protect her. When she’s started to be taken anyways, Monty physically tries to stop them, but is pulled back by a guard. Then when they’ve decided to take someone else and Jasper tells Dr. Tsing to stop, Monty is holding Harper. Then in 2x16 we have Harper being the one Monty goes to at the end to undo her handcuffs. This of course doesn’t include any off screen interaction interaction, but I also know that can’t exactly be considered ‘in canon’ since it isn’t something we, the audience, saw. Then of course if we go back to S1 we also have that scene where Monty defends Harper to Jasper when Jasper calls her ‘low hanging fruit.’ Whose to say that Monty didn’t have a crush on Harper back in S1 or even back on The Ark (prior to when the series picks up). I mean, it is possible. They did know each other before coming down to earth.

I’m not saying that you or anyone has to ship Marper, ship and let ship, but at the same time why is it so hard to see Marper when Minty had almost the same amount of interaction in S2, yet most people seem to have no problem shipping it (and I’m saying this as someone who ships Minty as well a Marper *and Briller for that matter*) Is it because there were more words spoken between Miller and Monty, where as most of what involves Harper and Monty in season 2 are unspoken scenes and moments between them? 

[imminent-danger-came]

While the lily orchard review didn’t do anything like calling the show bad (they actually praised it a lot but for some strange reasons imo) they did miss a lot of the main points of the show and lightheartedly insulted people who were making angsty fanart of it (they also didn’t credit the artist which was odd) I think they had only watched until season 2 at that point but season 2 was still pretty intense even if it wasn’t as bad as 3 and 4 so I don’t understand why they called it a “Saturday morning cartoon” because it clearly has an overarching plot. One of the quotes taken directly from the video is “There’s nothing in the plot that’s going to shock you or make you think about the human condition.” They said that people making the show seem dark were missing the point of the show. That’s pretty much it I think which isn’t too bad but it does not give the show credit for how they handle a lot of stuff imo

Okay so, watching s1 of the show? I totally understand the "saturday morning cartoon" perspective of LMK. That's what it is at the beginning—I have a half written meta in my drafts about LMK and "saturday morning cartoon" type tropes.

However, I also argue that s2 begings to deconstruct those tropes—take for example 2x05 "Minor Scale". That's an episode with what I would consider to be a tropey plot: "Oh no! The main character gets shrunk!". But, unlike a lot of previous episodes (like 1x06 being the "racing episode" or 1x02 being the "Main character is overworked and turns to a sketchy solution to fix their problem" episode), Minor Scale shifts us away from these monster of the week type plots. The whole reason MK shrinks to begin with is because he's belittling himself ("Maybe if someone was here to teach me! 'Oh you'll figure it out bud, just think little!' Ugh, like I could do this on my own."), which in itself is already a unique way to implement this sort of trope. But, not only that, rather than a little tease and a subtle feeling of the heroes continually losing like in the beginning of s2, the Lady Bone Demon reveals herself directly to MK. She manipulates MK, she gets inside his head, she makes him question his worth to Monkey King.

This pattern of "everything starts out normal and then dips into something darker" continues for the rest of s2. 2x07-2x10 all start out like you would expect—monster of the week "saturday morning cartoon" adventure set ups—that then take a turn for the worse during the episode.

Like, don't get me wrong, s2 isn't like s3, and I'd say it takes until s4 for LMK to truly deliver on everything it's set up, but s2 still has plenty. Minor Scale (STRAIGHT fate vs freewill directly into the veins with MK literally running away from the narrative), Macaque's shadow play ("Heroes inevitably bring darkness to those they hold dear" *sobs* THEY WEREN'T LYING ABOUT THAT), Sandy's sincere belief that helping his friends is where his true value lies (yet he breaks his vow to never fight again), MK's desperation in 2x09, LBD's inevitable victory.

Honestly, watching the way in which MK's mental illness manifests in the first 2 seasons makes even s1 of LMK unique. I remember watching Bad Weather (1x01) and being surprised that MK was so down on himself after the "I'm invincible!!!" facade fell.

But, ultimately, LMK starting with "saturday morning cartoon" tropes and then slowly transitioning into the darker and more plot focused episodes is completely on purpose. The start of the show, the "monster of the week adventures", is the home MK wishes, but cannot, return to. That simplicity and innocence turning to complexity and impiety is part of MK's "coming of age" story, and it's why I like the show.

[raayllum]

claudia/callum and rayllum parallels

There’s no denying that Claudia and Rayla are both very important people in Callum’s life. Callum considers them both good friends of his, enjoys spending time with them, will defend them, and has his relationship with both change drastically in S2. So while this isn’t a “which relationship is better,” type of post, my username probably makes it clear I do have a bias, but really I just have an interest in exploring the similarities and differences, so without further ado, here we go.

Sketches

Other people have commented very eloquently on the significance and differences between Callum’s sketches of Claudia and Rayla, so yet again I’d like to talk about the narrative significance of the drawing scene in 2x07. I’ve written a larger piece about this myself, but I also want to talk about the interesting way the information in this scene is relayed. Mostly, that we learn Callum has drawn Claudia seconds after we learn he’s drawing Rayla. Before this scene, we didn’t know that Callum had drawn Claudia. 

The fact we see Callum drawing Rayla, while his sketches of Claudia are put in the past, imparts two very important pieces of information. The first is that Rayla is the one currently on his mind, to the extent that randomly happening upon an old sketch of Claudia only makes Callum think about what he can do to help Rayla, instead. The second is to foreshadow future romantic interest, for reasons expanded upon in my meta enclosed above.

Then there are also the differences between the sketches of each girl. Claudia’s are softer, perhaps through a more rose tinted hue - or at least, a different side of Claudia than the one that revels in squeezing magic out of innocent creatures - whereas Rayla is more fully herself: serious, strong, her blades at the ready. I have no doubt that Callum is sketching them both from real life references, but the fact we see different portrayals of Rayla - one where she’s smiling, etc. - whereas both pictures of Claudia paint a very similar picture is also worthwhile, as well.

Then, there’s the way each relationship differs on physical intimacy.

Physical Intimacy

Callum isn’t one to initiate a lot of physical contact. He’s comfortable with some casual contact, aka grabbing Rayla’s hand to tug her somewhere, or to help her up, but beyond that he doesn’t do much. The two times he puts a hand on her shoulder is both to console her. None of this means, however, that Callum isn’t physically intimate with Rayla, and that he isn’t comfortable doing so with her, either. She’s just the one who initiates more often, and the only time he’s ever surprised by her doing so is with the hug in 2x04, which he quickly melts into.

This is a far cry from his relationship with Claudia, where while not uncomfortable per se, Callum is far more self conscious and cognizant. With Rayla he has no problem rushing in to grab her hand or to get up in her personal space, but with Claudia he tends to hastily correct himself.

The last instance is also very noticeable for me, because it almost looks like Callum is going in for a hug because of how grateful he is, and yet Claudia looks away and clearly doesn’t want to linger on his apology about his primal stone, as she keeps trying to dismiss it in a way. After all, she likely doesn’t want Callum to think more about what he did while leaving the Castle than he has to.

But it still stands in stark contrast to the hug Callum initiates with Rayla at the end of 2x09.

He’s the one to walk over, arms spread, as they both move forward together for a close and joyful hug. 

Trust

Then, there’s the matter of trust. Rayla has quite a lot of Callum’s, but in season one and throughout season two, she always actively works to earn it and to reward his trust. She calls him a mage, and even when he annoys her, she doesn’t diminish him for it and take away the new found title giving him happiness, instead reaffirming it further (“Nobody likes a loud mage”). He opens up to her and she listens and supports him (1x04 about the cube, 2x07 in the cave). 

Claudia, because she’s known Callum for such a long time, takes his trust somewhat for granted and does, in her own words, try to use it for her own advantage. She knows going home isn’t what Callum wants, and she knows he genuinely cares about Rayla as a friend. And yet Claudia still tries to manipulate Callum, however subtly, into going home, and doesn’t hesitate about letting Rayla be harmed on numerous occasions. 

And as I’ve already talked about, Callum trusts Claudia... until he doesn’t. While he knows Soren has lied about Harrow and that Rayla suspects him, Rayla hasn’t actually brought any evidence against Claudia, and nor has Claudia herself. At the turning point of 2x03, Claudia has shown signs of returning Callum’s feelings, told him the truth about his dad, shows signs of supporting his mission and wanting to come along, and... that’s it. While we the audience knows she does have ulterior motives and is willing to accomplish her goal through more extreme means (lying, kidnapping, etc.), Callum does not.

And yet...

C: Yeah, in fact, she understands it so well, that she and Soren want to come with us. R: What? That is the worst possible plan. C: How? How is it bad? They’re offering to help. R: Or it’s a trap. Callum, I know you trust them, but if we let them come with us, by the time we know the truth it’ll be too late. Do you understand? We’ll lose everything. C: So then what are we supposed to do? How can we figure out if it’s help, or a trap?

When the moment of truth arrives, Callum picks Rayla. He chooses her gut, her feelings, her plan, over Claudia who has done nothing — really — to deter him from choosing her over Rayla. When the final decision comes, Callum trusts Rayla over two people he’s been friends with his whole life.

The most interesting thing to me, however, regarding trust, is how Callum reacts with each of them when they break it. Rayla and Claudia both lie to him in this season, for different reasons mind you, and Claudia only does so quite belatedly again in the grand scheme of things, but his reaction to each is very different and something I think is quite noteworthy.

So without further ado, let’s look into how grudges and forgiveness factor into each relationship.

Forgiveness & Grudges

Rayla keeps the secret of his father’s death from Callum, and he’s rightfully angry when he finds out. However, his anger is more of a reaction to the news than to her keeping it from him; he doesn’t want her explanations or excuses, and we find out shortly that it’s because he doesn’t need them, anyway. He gets it.

R: Callum, I’m sorry. I tried to tell you the king was dead. C: My stepdad. He was more than just the king to me. R: Your stepdad, I know. I really tried, but I could never find the right way, and whenever I tried I messed it up, and the next time it was harder— C: Rayla, just stop. I can’t talk about this right now. All I can think about is how I’m going to tell Ezran our father is gone.

In this moment, Rayla is seeking forgiveness and understanding for her actions, but Callum doesn’t have the emotional capacity do that right then and there. And despite his broiling emotions, Callum also isn’t cruel to her. He cuts her off, makes his point, and walks away to go tell Ezran, even if he can’t find it in him t do so, as it turns out. Rayla, to her credit, gives him space, staying outside that night until Callum approaches her again that morning, and they get to work things through. Rayla receives the compassion, forgiveness, and understanding from Callum — he doesn’t hate her, the way Corvus said he would back in 1x06 — and she simultaneously allows him to have a shoulder to cry on and someone to grieve with.

C: I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t tell him. R: Callum— C: And… I understand why you couldn’t tell me. When you care about someone it’s hard to hurt them. Even when what you’re telling them is the truth.

Sobbing into her shoulder is a far cry from the Callum we saw at the end of 2x02, who didn’t look as though he had cried much or let himself cry at all in front of Claudia (although that is more speculative than anything else). 

I don’t think there’s any denying however — even if Callum’s crush makes him put up walls and that doesn’t apply to Rayla, regardless of either girl’s own agency —that Callum is less guarded when he’s with Rayla. But either way, this is how Callum and Rayla show each other forgiveness and compassion: through understanding and empathy, and giving each other space. Callum knows where Rayla was coming from, in fear of hurting him.

And then he finds out Claudia is coming from the opposite place, and can justify hurting him. I think more than the kidnapping and lying, although that definitely hurt too, this moment is what makes Callum’s angry at Claudia solidify. 

He and Ezran are genuinely scared, unsure of what’s going to happen if Claudia and Soren succeed (and given that Callum knows that Claudia and Soren were lying about taking them home safely, they may have lied about everything — and Soren, unknown to them, has). Callum is pleading with her, and she doesn’t listen. And that’s the straw that breaks the camel’s back. If Claudia had let them go, Callum still would have been hurt and angry, and he still would have been upset with Soren and Claudia being so willing to endanger Rayla’s life even when knowing she’s a genuine friend to him — but more on that in a second — but I don’t think he would have quite the same reaction. 

Claudia persisting in trying to pull them down even when he’s pleading with her communicates that he’s not as important to her as her goals, and throws into question just how much of their relationship was a lie and how much she has manipulated him. So it’s no wonder he hardens and turns away first.

When Callum asks Rayla to stop, even when she’s the one pleading with him, she listens. When he pleads with Claudia, she doesn’t. Claudia is willing to hurt him to achieve her own goals, whatever her motivations are, and she’s made that clear. So when they meet again, and Rayla’s life is on the line, I’m not surprised that Callum looks positively venomous. He trusted her once, and she abused that trust, and is now trying to kill his friend for the third time. He’s had more than enough.

And for now — possibly for forever — there is no forgiveness.

Parallels

I’ve already talked about physical intimacy, but there’s tons of parallels, both related and not, that pertain to it. For example, Callum’s hesitance to touch Claudia in any way, even casually or for a hug, or a hand hold, when he shows no such hesitance with Rayla.

Among some more specific things, like “ emotion + Prince ” in some combination or the other.

C: Sorry, I didn’t mean it that way, I just—I loved learning magic, and I feel sad now that I can’t. Cl: But you can. If you want to. C: I want to learn primal magic, but you have to be born with that magic inside you. Cl: That’s the great thing about Dark Magic. You just take creatures that are born with magic inside and squeeze it out of them. What—uh, you’re doing it again, Prince Judgey Face.

R: Oh great, I’m sure it won’t be crawling with humans — humans that are looking for you, and want to kill me! Yay! C: No, it’s the winter lodge, it’s been empty for months. Trust me… Look, Rayla, princes are supposed to be good at things. Sword fighting, leadership, riding horses. But I’ve always been kinda bad at well, everything. So when I tried that spell, I was sure I’d end up on fire, or covered in spiders… but it worked. And then you called me a mage, and that felt… right. I just have a feeling that cube thing could help me. R: Hey, sad prince. Let’s go get your cube.

In the scenario with Claudia, she is the one trying to convince him — and to somewhat berate him when his morality get in the way. In the scenario with Rayla, he is the one trying to convince her, instead opening up, and her recognizing that causes her to support and trust him. Whereas Claudia says her in annoyance, Rayla says hers in fondness.

And while it’s not fair, perhaps, to compare of Claudia and Callum’s lowest moments to some of Rayla and Callum’s best, I do think the show paints a very distinct portrait of each relationship. Claudia and Callum, despite knowing each other for very long, disagree fundamentally on some key things, are not that comfortable around each other, and are largely unwilling to change for one another. Callum and Rayla, meanwhile, are comfortable in spite of issues of trust, which are also quickly dealt with and resolved, and change each other in very radical ways through the support they give one another.

Going forward into S3, I’m looking forward to see how each of their characters will change, and how each of their relationships will change by extension. One thing is for certain, though: Callum and Rayla’s bond has become far more unbreakable, while Callum and Claudia’s has become badly frayed. Only time will tell which one becomes the red string of fate.