#i don't understand people who hate sophie man

[thefanboyhub]

If i see one more person call Sophie mutha fuckin Elizabeth Foster a "marry sue" or diss her in any way I'm going to lose my shit.

You don't have to like her but don't talk about her god damn character if you ain't even know it. Like are you even reading the book? DO YOU UNDERSTAND HER AT ALL?

Homegirl has been through a lot, even before Fitz basically ripped her life by the roots and tossed her into a new world without warning.

How about you fucking think what your life would look like if you had thought constantly blaring into your mind, being bullied because you're too "smart" or stupid shit like being a geek. Imagine hearing how your family REALLY thinks about you, all. The. Fucking. Time.

Imagine being so scared to stand out more than you already do that your whole fashion and personality is shaped around being bland and boring. Imagine only having a damn cat to comfort you because you couldn't hear it's thoughts (which in actuality she probably did which I'll talk about later).

Imagine a cute guy changes your world, you get new parents and then they cancel the adoption, then you get fucking KIDNAPPED. WITH YOUR ONLY FRIEND ON TOP OF THAT.

Survive almost dying right after being kidnapped and realize you have more abilities that make you stand out EVEN MORE IN A WORLD THAT YOUR SUPPOSEDLY SUPPOSED TO FIT PERFECTLY IN WITH.

Then over the course of the next three years have your friends risk their lives after you BEGGED AND PLEADED WITH THEM TO NOT BE STUPID. On top of all that, y'know all the ADULTS trying to kill you and the "actually good guys" telling you to be a leader (but actually just need you as a damn puppet), you have normal teenage drama?

4 FUCKING YEARS OF TRAUMA AND GUILT AND DEATH AND DESTRUCTION. AND Y'ALL CALL HER A DAMN MAREY SUE AND SHES "so basic" OR "she's kinda bratty" OR, OH THIS ONES JUST SO FUCKING GREAT! "She risks all her friends lives"

Y'all. I swear. Don't talk about a character if you can't even BEGIN to understand them.

You don't gotta like em, but don't you DARE try to talk about em like you know em. Ugh.

Anyways, #sophiedeservessomeloveandtherapy!

[dootznbootz]

I don't think Greek Mythology retellings/adaptions/inspired/etc. are necessarily "evil"...but I DO think people REALLY need to understand that there's a huge difference between the actual mythology and certain media.

I feel like people have to basically do a "Fandom ___" to say the different versions. Like "PJO ___", "Hades game ___", "TSOA ___". For it to be understood that these depictions are DIFFERENT. I'm saying this as someone who grew up reading PJO and still has a soft spot for it. But as someone who really loves Greek Mythology as well, I sometimes get really SAD.

I'm going to use the comparison of Howl's Moving Castle with it's Book Vs. Movie. I enjoy both!!! But they are honestly very different. In the movie there is no "sister swap", Markle isn't a young teenager, Sophie doesn't throw weed killer at Howl, and many more moments. But I enjoy both because even though there are changes they still keep components that are ingrained into the characters!

In some Greek Myth retellings/adaptations/stories/etc., characters are...SO different from the source material. That's fine...Choose what you want with your story... But folks should know that the modern adaptations are NOT the source material!!!

It bothers me that a lot of these wonderful myths and stories are twisted up and seen so differently because of a modern version of them. You can have that character be "awful" or a certain way in your story. But I almost feel that as fans, it's not good to generalize them or see it as "This is the truth". People are hating the mythological figure when it's only in that interpretation they are like that.

In PJO, Ares is "Zeus' favorite", isn't a good dad, a misogynist, etc. The actual myths? One of his Epithets is LITERALLY "Feasted by Women", in the Iliad everybody basically bullies him with Zeus literally saying he hates him. He cries when he learns one of his sons is killed in the war. He literally kills someone about to rape his daughter. Ares isn't perfect but it makes me sad with how he's viewed and talked about when it's only in PJO he's like that. Same with Dionysus. Read the Bacchae, you'll love it.

In Lore Olympus, Apollo rapes Persephone (noticing the fact that modern takes on the myths add rapes where there never were hmmmmm) when he never did in any of the myths.

In TSOA, Thetis is cruel when in the Iliad, she is such a loving mother to Achilles. She grieved alongside her son over Patroclus. Also with Agamemnon. In Ipheginia at Aulis, Agamemnon is a MESS. He adored his children.

In Circe, Odysseus is viewed as a selfish man who ONLY hurts others and doesn't care about his family when that is LITERALLY his one consistent character trait. HE is actually the one who is the victim of rape. Circe was never raped.

Medusa is only a victim in Ovid's, a Roman man, works. Not in GREEK mythology. She was just a cool monster. Leave Perseus alone. Poseidon and Medusa actually had a consensual relationship in Greek Mythology!

These adaptations/retellings/inspired by/etc. whatever anybody wants to call them, are not the real myths! They may be similar in some ways but to just generalize them or hate the deity/mythological figure because of something they did in the new media feels fucked up!

You can enjoy these new stories. There's nothing wrong with that!!! But know they're not the real myths. Maybe even label it as "I hate ____'s version of ____". As that makes it clear what version you're talking about.

[ahoyimlosingmymind]

i have compassion for Fitz Vacker in the same way I have compassion for Child stars in Hollywood.

He is perceived as a living dream, while he exists in a nightmare that people have so little understanding and empathy for. There's a level to him that is fundamentally unrelatable to most. He has no perceived lacking. At least, not when you're taking in the situation at face-value.

And this^ way of seeing him is fundamentally isolating. It strips him of depth and realness, and it makes him into an image to ascribe ideas and false perceptions onto. A blank canvas to project all of your worst insecurities . After all, He's not real- it doesn't hurt him, right? In fact, it's trendy among the lower class to dislike him. If you aren't obsessed with him to the point of a parasocial relationship, then you resent him. He cannot struggle or have any issues whatsoever because the perception of what luxury is, is so powerful.

This is reflected in the way Dex saw the Vacker's in books 1 and 2. It's reflected in the fandom's inability to empathize with Fitz is any way shape or form (at least on Pinterest/YouTube/Instagram)

He's socialized more around adults than his peers, because of the idea of giftedness and notoriety. Which just puts him on a higher pedestal, and makes him a larger target to hate among kids his age.

He is known, but he is not known. If anyone pursues him as a friend, it is for the sake of making connections and being popular. It's disingenuous. It's to use him as a stepping stool on a rapid rise to fame. to exploit him for personal gain. His trust issues don't come from nowhere, after all.

He had one friend his entire childhood. and what do you know? It's a kid who is trying so hard to outrun the exploitation of his dad's dreams and wishes for him.

Sure, Fitz's parents are present in his life, but they can only mitigate so much of the outside world before it starts seeping right through the walls of their home.

I just think it would be so strange to have so many people barely know you and either obsess over you to the point that you are more fantasy than reality, or resent you so much that you can't say a word without hearing some snide comment in response. And to know that NONE of it is real. None of these people know you.

Fitz's family obviously represents a really big issue in society. Because Dex, Sophie etc... they are RIGHT, that the standards of their world aren't fair. They are right to call it out. They are right to have anger towards the 'upper class' who does nothing to help the lower class. It's understandable. and it's far more relatable than Fitz's situation. but the thing is, shame is shame. and scorn is scorn.

the upper class may whisper. But the lower class does too.

and that's just it. Therein lies the issue with the lost cities.

IT"S NO ONES CHOICE. It was not Dex's choice to born into a bad match marriage, it was not Keslar and Juline's choice to be born in a world where a system like mathmaking even exists. It wasn't their choice to have triplets. But it also wasn't their choice to raise them in a society that hates them.

But no more was it Fitz's choice to be born a Vacker. No more was it his choice that his parents happened to be a good match. It's not his choice to be born into a society where that stuff matters. He's a kid.

But because he represents something at face value that people tend to hate, he is undeserving of compassion when compared to a character like Dex. Fitz is dismissed and disliked because he represents something about their society, even though he's a child who has no real way to combat what generations older than him have enforced.

He is the vessel that is easy to target and to hate, because people need to find someone to blame. Even if that person technically has not contributed in any way to the thing that the people wish to destroy.

and it can only cause resentment to build between the two classes.

Idk man the perception of Fitz Vacker will forever have my head spinning.

[darklinaforever]

The thing about romance books that have a lot of different couples explored within a several part series is that not everyone is like certain books. So I don't understand this whole obsession with genderbending love interests? Or even changing so much of it? Even if you like those changes, allow the OG fandom (the book lovers) to mourn for those changes? Sophie fans don't want her to be genderbent. Michael fans don't want him to be genderbent. And yet you will see some Michael fans pointing out that they should genderbend Sophie but not Michael. Some Sophie fans are trying to argue that it is fine for Michael to be genderbent. Then you have people who are making a case for Eloise to end up with a woman (genderbent sir philip or no) but some people who loved her book don't want that. There are many women who are arguing that having another female character who is outspokenly feminist be gay is a stereotype at this point, and many of those fans find it refreshing for her to end up with a man. Although, even those fans agree that they would like to see changes to the Philip + Eloise story. Not to mention, the discussion of possibly genderbending the love interests of Hyacinth and Gregory (which I will be so upset by - especially Lucy). I have already seen people on reddit debate that Lucy should actually be a man. I feel like it doesn't have to make "sense" to genderbend a certain character. If people are attached to a character being a certain way, don't make large changes.

Lastly, I feel like a part of introducing Michaela was for shock value but to also prep the fans the possibility of Sophie being a man. He could've been introduced much later, but I feel like part of the motivation is to gauge the audience's reaction and give people some time to adjust before the new season starts where they feature male!Sophie. Especially since they decided to finally address Benedict's sexuality which I feel was terrible writing. Benedict has barely had any good arcs. They should've explored his sexuality before and made that an arc rather than having it thrown about without any good writing. So, it feels they are pulling the Benedict is bi card NOW because they want audiences to be prepared for the change.

Anyways, I am a lesbian, in case any of the homophobia arguers want to get angry about this rant. I love romance books and my favorite are sapphic books. I just wish shows would stop pulling this shit. It only frustrates people and then divides fandom. It is like these showrunners are too lazy to ever actually be willing to take a risk or start from scratch and build up a fandom. They always want to take advantage of an already large fandom so they can make the changes they think will have people praise their writing and then gaslight the fans when they dislike those changes.

It's so insulting to so many minorities. Are we not good enough for our own stories? Must we always have these hollywood idiots steal other stories and try to force it? Do they have any IDEA how many LGBTQ books are published that would make for 10/10 romances. Sorry for the rant. I am just pissed.

Exactly ! There is so much history to be created about queer people. No need to change the types of characters already existing within a fandom !

And I completely agree with you on Benedict. I said it myself. They poorly explored his pseudo sexual discovery. Not to mention the fact that yes, we really give him little material each season and I don't understand why. Needless to say, I can't wait to finally see him shine in the forefront !

Also, probably even if you specify that you are a lesbian, you will still be accused of homophobia by these morons.

I'm Bi, and I had the right to an anonymous person telling me that I hated queer people.

Bullshit level we are damn high.

[cosmic-walkers]

Sansa and Alicent cannot be compared word for word, or every single way, but acting as if there aren't similarities between show alicent and sansa is just laughable, and acting as if both don't face the same amount of violet fandom misogyny, and that their actresses aren't getting abused and harassed by the fandom, is also absurd (because sophia, olivia, and emily all have spoken about fandom abuse and harassment).

Both alicent and sansa are victims, were groomed, were abused by their husbands, etc. both were viritually alone and used as pawns, and both did whatever they could do to keep themselves and their families safe.

that doesn't make them perfect, or flawless and i think a lot of their antis have this idea that if an abuse victim isn't perfect then she isn't a victim (and emphasis on the abused being a woman, because if sansa and alicent were men, this wouldn't even be an issue). sansa was bratty when she was younger according to fans and obsessed with joffery, so therefore she deserved the abuse he gave her, and deserved to be 'humbled' by ramsay.

alicent, who was a minor and who was pimped out by her father and groomed by a man much older than her is apparently throwing a temper tantrum when she snaps because of her abuse and when her son was almost killed (by people who started a fight with him for righftully claiming a dragon, and two of those were his bullies).

Because alicent and sansa aren't the 'perfect' victims, because they're flawed and act out, then they aren't given any respect, sympathy or understanding.

So what gets me upset is that targ/team black/dany stans tend to act as if they loved sansa all along and that she nor sophie ever got any hate. the way a lot of them are pulling a 'we LOVE sansa she's not like that bitch alicent!' is super shitty because now, all of a sudden, misogyny that sansa and alicent fans have been discussing doesn't exist anymore, because that side of the fandom picks and choose when to care about misgoyny.

and in this case, they pretend to care about the abuse sansa/sophia got to further abuse alicent and olivia.

[serial-serializednovelreader]

Hmm, let's see...

Jonathon Harker, Mina Harker, Kate Wetherall, Mr. Benedict, Doug Eiffel, and/or Renée Minkowski!

Whichever one(s) you want to answer I'd be happy to see! I hope you're having a good day <3

2. A canon or headcanon hill I will die on

9. Scene that first made me love (or hate) the character

12. Crack headcanon

16. Deepest darkest secret they won’t even admit to themselves

17. Quotes, songs, poems, etc. that I associate with them

20. Scars

21. Drink of choice (not just alcoholic)

29. Eating habits

30. Sleeping habits

42. 3 comfort items

49. Favorite toy as a child

So many great choices, thank you Sophie!!! I'm having a great day, I hope you are too! <33

2. A canon or headcanon hill I will die on:

Jonathan Harker -- He was not properly warned about Dracula before going to the castle. Canonically, he was only warned against going to the castle *that night* because it was the eve of St. George's Day and that's when evil spirits hold sway. He did go, yes, because of his job, not because he wanted to. He was not told what the Count was (he DOES ask, but is met with silence and the innkeeper and his wife crossing themselves, or just pretending not to understand him). The innkeeper's wife does ask "Do you know where you're going and who you're going to" but again, does not elaborate further.

He does later hear the words "vampire"/"werewolf" and other disconcerting words in passing (not told to him) while he's in the carriage, but he doesn't get enough translation to know who they're speaking of, so he assumes they're talking about him (because they were looking at him and I think he needs more self-esteem lol).

Why is this my hill to die on? I'm getting a bit tired of seeing posts that are like "Jonathan: *gets told Dracula is a vampire by the villagers* Jonathan: haha you're wrong! What ridiculous superstitions *goes anyway*" and I want to be like uhhh at what point was he warned by anyone explicitly that Dracula was a vampire???? And he doesn't just brush off their warnings either -- he does get bad vibes and he says "goodbye" to Mina on day two!!! I will allow he does assume the villagers' odd behavior is due to superstition and tradition and that's not great, but due to his upbringing and them not elaborating, what else is he supposed to think? If it was me, I know I would be confused and nervous, but I would probably also go to the castle too, because nothing in those implicit warnings was more important than a job. I would likely also assume they were more worried about what day I was going on, rather than the man I was going to, honestly. If anyone was able to glean "the guy I'm going to is a vampire" from what the villagers did without our knowledge of hindsight on Dracula, well....good for you I guess??? You are truly built different. 😭😭

Quick note: I don't blame the villagers for not warning Jonathan explicitly of Dracula. I imagine he keeps them under a strict "keep my true nature quiet" rule. They did above and beyond their duty by giving him vampire-repellent gifts, trying to implicitly warn him/delay his trip, and trying to deliberately make Jonathan miss Dracula's carriage. My sticking point is more on people trying to say Jonathan was told Dracula was a blood-sucking vampire and he just didn't listen. I'm not for sure if Jonathan would've believed the villagers and turned around and gone home if he had been explicitly warned (after all, his job and boss's reputation is on the line here!), but in the canon, he wasn't. Also, I'm talking about the novel canon only, so if he was warned explicitly in adaptations and did this kind of brush off, that's on the directors, not on the original text.

9. Scene that first made me love (or hate) the character:

Jonathan Harker -- It's difficult for me to say exactly when I fell in love with this guy the first time around. There are so many good scenes with him!! I would say I definitely enjoyed his tenacity throughout his time at castle Dracula, but the first scene where I really really fell in love with him was when he reunites with Mina. He's a mess emotionally and physically (after all, he's just been through castle Dracula), but his love for Mina shows through it all! He immediately marries her!! And though he doesn't want to talk about his trauma, he does hand her his journal from the castle as a sign of trust. He tells her if she wants to open it and read it, she can. That's how I knew his trust and love for her was deep. Plus, being able to communicate his emotions in such a surprisingly healthy way (considering the time period) was all that was really needed to make me love him! I could talk about more but it would be basically the whole novel...

Mina Harker -- Mina, my beloved. A QUEEN. It did not take long for me to warm up to her. She's sweet, funny, and obviously cares about her fiancé and her friend, Lucy. However, the scene that first made me love her was also when she reunites with Jonathan. She is eager to marry him, of course, but beyond that she's sympathetic to his obvious trauma. She doesn't push for information he's not ready to give, and when he gives her his journal, she decides to seal it with wax (using their wedding ring to do so -- I'm so normal about this...not) rather than read it. Why? She can tell it obviously distresses him to think about it at all and it disturbs him to think he could read it without his knowledge, though he's given consent. The wax allows him to know if/when she reads it. This is her sign of love and trust back to him. She also promises him she won't read it "unless it's for his dear sake or some stern duty". Her combination of love, integrity and ingenuity really shows here and I LOVE her for it!!!!

Kate Wetherall -- Ah yes, Kate. Another character I'm totally normal about (if you can tell, I'm normal about none of these characters, lol) :D Let's see, I really loved her from the beginning of the first book (especially "The Great Kate Weather Machine" -- I died laughing at that nickname), but if I had to pick a particular scene...probably when she meets Milligan for the first time and refuses to do anything for the tests until they have proper introductions. Other than being lowkey funny, it introduces two new things about her character we haven't seen yet: 1) her stubborn streak and 2) her refusal to treat people as just random extras in her life not worthy of an introduction. Yes, she wants to know more about Milligan so he can answer her test questions, but she also wants to know so she can get to know him as a person. She's not content to just brush by him and forget he exists; he's just as important to her as anyone else she'll meet in her life. And she has no idea how much Milligan will actually come to mean to her until much later. It's a little thing, but I think it shows her willingness to treat everyone as important very well!

If we're talking show Kate, I already went in with the love for the book, but the VERY first scene where she runs in and introduces herself was like greeting an old friend. Her painful high fives. Asking them to call her the Great Kate Weather Machine. It makes me laugh every single time. Not to mention her saying "started a small fire. Easily containable. No injuries." ????? KATE???? The actor's way of having Kate talk in short bursts like that to show how fast she talks is just....*chef's kiss*. I love it!!!

Mr. Benedict -- Another character I loved from start to finish! Other than laughing at Constance's answers (as a kid, I was a stickler for rules, so I expected someone with so many test rules to be the same way too LOL, so seeing him laugh it off was...kind of nice and freeing), his "white knight" talk with Reynie is what made me love him. I loved how he knew it was Reynie right away -- a clear sign of his intuition. How he fell asleep after he told Reynie he couldn't contact Miss Perumal :( -- a clear sign of his empathy. Then, talking about Reynie's own inner fears through the test questions (aka the white knight and his doubts) was so cool to me: I loved his way of quiet empathy and helping Reynie learn more about himself! As a kid, I wondered if I had doubts like Reynie I needed to examine after reading that. He was like this steady rock for the kids throughout the series, though of course he had moments where he needed help too and I loved him for that!

As for show Benedict, they took an entirely different direction with him and I loved that too!! It took me slightly longer to warm up to him (mainly because the white knight story was a MESS in my eyes, I was like "what was THAT" lol), and because he almost seemed untrustworthy (which is kind of the point -- I would understand that purpose later). The first scene where I grew attached -- and you may have guessed it, I talk about it all the time -- is when he found out the Sender was his twin brother and, in response, goes “excuse me” before walking outside to scream for a bit. So relatable!!! I love him!!! I want the best for him!!! It really showed me that he was a bit of an anxious mess with obvious issues. And that was honestly refreshing to see. Yes, he's the kids' mentor, but he's not infallible. It also makes sense, considering what they add to his backstory.

Doug Eiffel — This is another one of those “I loved him from the first moment I heard him speak” scenarios, but I think what really sealed the deal was his toothpaste revolution speech. It’s so ridiculous and over-dramatic!! And for toothpaste? LOL, he is so funny. If you’ve read The Lunar Chronicles, it reminds me of Thorne and his soap rebellion (another one of my favorite characters, but I’m letting that series rest for now or else I won’t shut up about it). That’s how I knew I was going to love this guy and his ADHD vibes. Not to mention his near-incomprehensible references. I am *exactly* the same way with slang and vine references; sometimes it’s to the point where I have to explain full sentences I make, just like Eiffel. Love that guy <3

Renée Minkowski — As the one who has to reign in Doug’s…doug-ness (read: his ADHD), I definitely had to respect Renée for that alone. But I think I came to love her specifically in Cataracts and Hurricanoes. At the beginning of the episode, when Eiffel is making his “space — the final frontier” speech, Minkowski shuts it down, but I love the way she does it. She reminds him of the “strict no tomfoolery clause” she made which tells me that she knows him so well and is prepared for the silly he brings. Beyond that, it's the first time we see Eiffel put into actual danger and, as a result, see Minkowski go into Captain ModeTM. Her willingness to immediately put her life in danger for Doug, remain calm, and even humor his little quirks along the way ("yes, Eiffel, that's my jetpack thingy") really made me love her and want to see more of her! Plus, her shutting down Hilbert's "greater good" speech (it walked so Kepler's "big picture" speeches could run, change my mind) in a firm but professional way was awesome!! Love her so much!!!!

12. Crack headcanon:

Mr. Benedict -- This isn't my headcanon (I got it from this post), but I accept it as my own now: Mr. Benedict loves metal music. Expanding off of that, he enjoys going to live concerts in his free time (wearing earplugs to keep from getting overstimulated, of course!). He used to watch the mosh pits (namely, the "wall of death") with fascination, but could not participate due to the risk of getting too excited and falling asleep in the middle of one. After TPD, though? He definitely tried it at least once. Whether he did it more than once is up to you!

As for show Benedict, I got this from reading @nobodysdaydreams SOS AU fanfic (this is yet another plug from my to go read it if you haven't already, it's amazing). Remember in season 2 when Number Two and Nicholas are singing off-key at the top of their lungs? Well, Bods wrote it in as Milligan hearing their voices and feeling it "sounded familiar". Now, most people would take that as "he recognized their voices", which was almost certainly the intention. How did I take it? That Milligan has had to hear them sing before and immediately recognized their voices because he was like "ah yes, there's that off-key singing I know and...love?" So my headcanon is that Nicholas Benedict regularly sings in the shower and around the house when he thinks no one can hear him (I think Number Two does as well, just less so). As long as he doesn't get too excited, it doesn't trigger his narcolepsy!

16. Deepest darkest secret they won’t even admit to themselves:

Kate Wetherall -- In the first season and the first book, she can't admit to anyone -- not even herself -- that she needs help. She's been working on her own for so long that admitting this would be almost a weakness on her part. On a deeper level, I think another reason for guarding so hard against relying on anyone (and this is implied, though not really covered) is that she could lose that love and support again. A love and support she can't even really remember, save for one partial memory. To her, having it and losing it is probably more difficult than never having it in the first place and that's how she's determined to keep it, until she's finally forced to admit through drastic circumstances that she DOES need help. And that's when her father finally comes back into her life :''''')

17. Quotes, songs, poems, etc. that I associate with them:

Doug Eiffel -- I usually have trouble associating characters with songs, but once I though about it, this came quite easy to me!! I have a few:

First up, we have Mission Control by Normandie! I feel like this one really goes with Ep. 30 -- Mayday (and, if you go beyond that, literally any time Doug is in danger and his general feeling on the Hephaestus when things go wrong). A few lyrics to highlight:

System failure/ Calling mission control I've got a feeling we are heading/ for a black hole

I'm drifting to the light in the bitter end/ Cause there can be no life without oxygen/ The devil's at my door/ Cause I can hear him calling my name

I can't remember solid ground/ I'm losing my senses/ here in the silence/ Tell me that I'll be safe and sound

Next is Sirens by Imagine Dragons (no I can't make a song association without using Imagine Dragon songs -- sorry not sorry). I feel like this is a good one for describing Doug's anxiety and how he feels about failing Anne and succumbing to addiction when he shouldn't have. A few lyrics to highlight:

My heart bleeds/ I feel everything,/ I Drip, drop,/ drink out of the bottle/ Boy with a heart of gold/ Get run over/ by heaven knows what

Sometimes,/ I get a little bit scared at night/ I get a little preoccupied/ The sirens in my mind/ The sirens in my mind/ I just wanna be good again/ I wanna make it to the end

Last up is one of my all-time favorite songs by TWRP (feat. Dan Avidan): Starlight Brigade! I honestly want to make a separate post about how I see this song and Doug Eiffel (it's a WHOLE thing), but I think this song goes best with the series finale -- Ep. 61, Brave New World. It shows his courage in the face of great danger and his dedication to the friends he's made over the course of the podcast. Plus, it's also a certified bop. A few lyrics to highlight:

Halfway/ between the black and gray/ Is no place/ for a life to waste away/ I'll take/ the road with all the stakes

Arrays of enemies await,/ but fears allay/ We stand as one/ A bond beyond the vast wave,/ until the last grave

We have come so far/ Beyond the most distant star/ Starlight within will guide/ us to the other side

Lift off!/ The firestorm ignites/ Last thoughts of a life by candlelight/ Inside this speeding satellite

This fight is all I know that's right/ (whoa yeah)/ No fate/ but that of which we make/ Noble as the oath we undertake/ We are/ the great Starlight Brigade!

Bonus: can't forget one of his favorites -- the Mind Eraser (that really hits different after the finale, huh?) that is Canon in D Major by Pachelbel! I love that he enjoys this classical song because it's kind of unexpected for him! Since he's so against "nerdy stuff" (while simultaneously being a huge film nerd lolll), you wouldn't think it, but in a weird way I think this kind of balances him out :)

As for quotes, I don't have like, outside quotes I associate with Doug (except for maybe "Use the Force, Luke" lol), but some of my favorite Doug quotes are:

"Are you ready for a whirlwind road trip to Truth Town, USA? Population: Y'all!"

"but...Truth Town! 🥺"

"So the good doctor was all like, 'DIE!' And our heroes were all like, 'NOOO!' And he was all like, "Muahaha!" And they were all like, 'Boo-yah, nerd!'"

(to Lovelace) "thank you for talking to me. For helping me see the stuff I was getting wrong. It's not something you should've had to do, but… thanks for doing it." :)

(Minkowski: "I'm sorry Eiffel. You're going home.") "Not without you!...I'm not leaving you behind!"

(Hera: "You're going to have trust me") "With my life, darling. With my life…"

"I love you, Anne. Always and forever."

20. Scars:

Jonathan Harker -- This isn't so much a "scar", but definitely something I consider one. After Jonathan sees his wife being fed on by Dracula (and the aftermath where she's very obviously upset), his brown hair goes entirely white from the emotional stress it takes on him. If I wasn't already convinced this man loves his wife, this is a very obvious sign he does. (I am definitely normal about this fact. I do not go feral every time I think about it. /j)

Mina Harker -- After the aforementioned incident with Dracula, Van Helsing tries to help guard Mina against any more vampire attacks by touching her forehead with a Sacred Wafer. However, because Dracula has begun the process of turning her into a vampire, it leaves a burned cross mark on her forehead instead, which she wears until they defeat Dracula. This scar is a constant reminder of what she is slowly becoming and -- to her (the others reassure her otherwise) -- signifies she is "unclean" in the eyes of God. I believe it also reminds her of what she's fighting for -- to return to her humanity once more.

Kate Wetherall -- She has no canonical scars that I remember, but my headcanon is that she has some minor scars from her days in the circus, mostly on her legs and arms from some tricks gone wrong. I say minor because she's really agile and likely wouldn't get any major ones. I do think if I had to pick a Main ScarTM, I would say she has one across her left eyebrow that she got during her fight with the Executives in the first book.

As for show Kate, she definitely retained scars on her hands after hanging off a cliff for that many hours! I think she's a bit more careful than book Kate about what kind of scrapes she gets into (this is Disney, after all), but she has a scar or two from her time in the circus as well.

Mr. Benedict -- Mr. Benedict was in the navy and, while he wasn't in the field very much, I headcanon that he certainly was in a scrape or two which resulted in some scars. Before that, though, I think he retained a scars on his hands and possibly knees from when he dissembled and reassembled the drill on Violet's farm (I imagine it was quite uncomfortable). I also think that he has some scars from falling wrong on the ground (e.g. skinning his knees or elbows on a rock) with his narcolepsy when no one was there to prevent him from falling. :( Luckily, he has his family to protect him now!

As for show Benedict, I imagine Nathaniel being around prevented Nicholas from falling as a child (and vice versa, of course!), so I don't think he has any childhood scars. Nathaniel may have even "forbidden" scars because "how are we going to get adopted if we have imperfections like SCARS, Nicky??" If we want to dial up the angst, I headcanon his first scar came from when he came back to get his brother and found him gone. He had a narcoleptic seizure and, for the first time, his brother wasn't there to catch him. Unfortunately, there was some glass on the ground outside of the orphanage and he cut his right elbow on it when he fell. The scar is faint but still there, as a reminder from the day he didn't get his brother back and knew he had failed his promise. Just a thought. :)

Doug Eiffel -- This guy is always getting into trouble. I headcanon he has scars ALL over the place from various scrapes and injuries over the years. If you ask him, he will tell you the story of each individual one (he will not remember to update the star charts, but he will remember the one-inch-long scar on his knee he got falling from the jungle gym while trying to impress Jessica Perry in first grade). The one time he didn't get a scar? His accident with Anne. He searched for hours on his body trying to find a fresh one, hoping upon hope that he could at least have ONE permanent scar for all of the hurt he caused his daughter and the other driver but...no. Not a scratch. The fact he doesn't is almost a scar unto itself, though it's not physical. He used to brag about his scars with gusto. Now? Not so much. He'll talk about them, if you ask, but there's a bitter edge to his voice that doesn't quite match the lighthearted stories he tells.

Renée Minkowski -- Renée, like Eiffel, has numerous scars, though it's more from pushing herself rather than an inclination for trouble. Like Doug (pre-accident), she wears every scar with pride and remembers where she got each one. However, it's a quiet pride and she doesn't give out her "scar stories" easily. You need to be at least level 10 friendship to get that out of her. While Eiffel and scars are a touchy subject, he couldn't resist asking Minkowski about the slash on her cheek or the jagged scar running down her arm. After all, he can still enjoy a good story and they aren't HIS scars. Minkowski refused to tell him because -- well -- the guy can't even say her name right. No way is he at that level of friendship or trust yet. Eiffel, sensing this annoys her, proceeds to ask as often as he remembers (which is more often than you'd think). Then, Eiffel is rocketed into deep space. And somewhere along the line, she looks at the arm scar and remembers one of his annoying questions. It's such a small thing, but she has to run to her room to cry for a bit after that. Needless to say, Eiffel is told that arm scar story when he gets back to the Hephaestus. Minkowski told him more when he started saying her name right.

Quick note: there are 28 days between ep. 52 and 53, so I think that's when this last part would've happened.

21. Drink of choice (not just alcoholic):

Mina Harker -- I honestly don't remember if Mina has a canon drink of choice and I'm trying to keep myself "surprised" on my reread, so I don't want to comb through to check. So, in my headcanon, I believe she always enjoys a good cup of tea! Her favorite is what was most available to her at the time -- what's known as a "black tea", which is stronger and more bitter than the delicate teas of high society (source: this article). IIRC, Mina is an orphan like Jonathan, so she wouldn't always have had the luxury of the delicate, upper class blends which is more what we're used to today. She likely can afford those blends now, but I think she enjoys the stronger taste of the black tea blends.

29. Eating habits:

Renée Minkowski -- Renée was raised by a French diplomat so her eating habits are very precise. She has been trained in the table manners of several different countries. Also, in Poland, it's traditional to eat 5 smaller meals rather than three large meals, so Minkowski often prefers to eat smaller meals across the course of the day. Her exceptions are Thanksgiving and Christmas -- she loves getting together for these big dinners!

30. Sleeping habits:

Mina Harker -- She enjoys reading before bed (usually about train schedules, that Train Fiend lol) to relax her mind. Otherwise, she'll be thinking about everything under the sun and stay up all night! She's naturally inclined towards staying up later, but has restricted herself to going to bed at the same time -- 10:30 p.m. -- every night because she also has work to do as a schoolmistress and she knows Jonathan is a morning person. After their marriage, she is quite surprised to learn he likes staying up later too; she eases up on this rule a tad. She's also a stage five cuddler in her sleep, though she denies this (not because she doesn't like cuddling with her husband, but because it flusters her -- at first -- to think she'd cuddle him in her sleep. After that, it becomes amusing to act as if she's flustered because it makes Jonathan smile). Jonathan loves to tease her about it to no end (he knows very well she's not flustered anymore).

42. 3 comfort items:

Mr. Benedict -- His plaid shirts and blankets (of course!), a teacup with cute messages from his family he got for Christmas (Constance somehow fit a three-verse poem on there), and the picture Violet drew of him -- "The Boy on the Bluff".

As for show Benedict, he has the same comfort items as book Benedict, except for the last one. The last one is, instead, the photo of him and his brother, though it often brings more guilt than comfort. Bonus comfort item: a weighted blanket because he NEEDS one.

49. Favorite toy as a child:

Doug Eiffel -- Little Doug got a plush toy of Chewbacca for his birthday/Christmas one year and he LOVED it. He took that thing everywhere. He would play-pretend as Han Solo and Chewie would be right there as his co-pilot. While Eiffel was pretty destructive with his other toys, he was always careful with Chewie. He was encouraged to share this toy with his friends, but no. He vowed Chewie would be his and his alone. He kept that promise...until the day of Anne's first birthday. She immediately cuddled Chewie and Eiffel's heart melted. Now, he wonders if Chewie is in a trash bin somewhere because Anne doesn't want to be reminded of her dad :(

(spoiler alert: Chewie's fine. Kate wouldn't separate Anne from her favorite toy, especially because she cuddled it more than ever after the accident).

Thank you for the great ask, Sophie! This was so much fun to write. Hope you enjoyed :)

[kellyvela]

regarding your update about rat (I love how you tag him) it was blind that rat cheated with some model or fan on tour, she was in her twenties or so and then a few days later first there were rumors of a divorce and then officially divorced. So maybe joe cheated more than once and who knows maybe even with this stormi (or whatever her name is). joe is horrible man, I hate him. And I still don't understand why some fans of joe think that rat won the case? After all, joe lost, as soon as joe and his team started saying that everything would be private, it became clear that rat would lose and Sophie would win, and when it became known that the case was moved to England, it became even more obvious that Sophie won, so everything is like this quietly and undisclosed, if their favorite rat won, he would definitely through his pocket TMZ, through some type of source, inform that these are the conditions and that type joe has a more favorable condition, the rat loves attention and doesn't care about children and their privacy, he would make it public. And since we don't know the details and everything happened quietly and privately, this is how Sophie and her team worked, and this clearly shows that Sophie won. I just can't understand how stupid his fans are. I'm sorry that I wrote so much, I just don't have anyone to talk to about it, and thoughts have accumulated. PS. Sophie looks very beautiful and very happy and glad that the children are around and that Perry supports her. And I'm also glad that she has two upcoming projects (I hope they won't be canceled), especially with Kit, I'm also waiting for Joan (for whom I have high hopes). I hope that everything will only get better and better in Sophie.

Hello anon!

Yeah, with all those rumors, it seems the rat is a serial cheater.

His fans believe he won because they are dumb and the press also mislead dumb people with the headlines, they only highlighted the fact that Sophie dropped her lawsuit against the rat, but they *pretend to be shocked* hide the part that she did that after the case was sent to a UK court, which was precisely what she requested in her lawsuit.

You can message me everytime you want!

I'm so very much glad as well, because Sophie is free from that nasty rat at last.

She's booked and busy, surrounded by her family, her closests friends and her baby girls. And also Perry is there being so sweet with her.

We can only hope the best for Sophie, always.

[edwinspaynes]

Rant about Julian Blackthorn a bit cuz I might not hate him but I agree with you on a lot of the things you've said about him

I detest that man, but I'm going to screenshot something I said on Reddit a while ago because I articulated myself well and don't feel like pissing myself off by thinking about that piece of shit again lol

The thing about Julian is that he makes me viscerally shudder. Like, as a woman, I would not feel safe around that man because of the way he behaves toward Emma. That's just part of it, but yeah.

I know that some people try to rationalize the Arthur thing as him caring for his siblings. While I kind of understand when he's 12, it is FUCKED UP that he kept drugging this disabled man and locking him an attic when he was old enough to know better.

He has a creepy ass room of hidden paintings of Emma!!!! THAT IS CREEPY!!! One painting for a gift would have been totally fine, but a ROOM OF PAINTINGS he NEVER planned on showing her? I worry for people who find that romantic.

Another thing people like to say is that Julian is like this because of PTSD. I have PTSD. Alastair, Matthew, Sophie, Clary, and Jace have PTSD, to name a few characters. None of us behave like monsters. Even if PTSD causes his demeanor, that's not why he's an asshole.

I understand that different people see different things in characters. I'm not bashing people who like him. But IMHO there is no bigger piece of shit creepy man in YA besides those who are SUPPOSED to be antagonists.

[throne-for-queens]

My feelings are honestly hurt. This woman tried to HUMILIATE him by doing immature shit (at her big ass age) and followed someone he's KNOWN for having issues with and others he may be feeling insecure compared to (cause WTF was even that with poor Timmy and Harry??). Made him out to be an abuser. It irks the fuck out of my soul because it was so disrespectful. Then she wanted to be a weirdo and play in our faces about Sophie when SHE started everything and put that weird as narrative out there in the first place (playing or not, she should have known better) and acted like she didn't know how the world could possibly think that that man was cheating on her and abusing her.

I understand she's considered pretty... But how she dogged him in multiple ways and tried to be cute about it made her so ugly to me. There's so many other beautiful and fascinating and mysterious women out there... Why deal with one who will try to ruin you when y'all hit a bump in the road?

And I'm so irritated cause it's been EST this and EST that from him ... But he's been icing everyone practically ever since he got with her. Then when people wanna scratch their heads and be like what is going on, they're in the wrong and can't question him. But then it sure is EST this again when it comes time to get him somewhere or something he wants.

I hate this. I hate that I do care and that so many took him at his word back at EST FEST 2014 when he said to remind him and don't leave him when he starts slipping.. just to not be listened to.

And you have every right to feel this way. I dont get where people get off policing other people. He even asked EST to personally remind him when he starts to forget, but God forbid someone actually does it. Now it's you're a bad fan, and he's allowed to change. They said the same thing about chantel and sommer until he went on social media acting all sad. Then, suddenly, it was buy one get one free pitchforks.

[wooglebear]

May I offer you another original character for tetocu23?

Details on her (and another person) under the cut.

To understand Juliet, we need to talk about tetocu23 Dante.

Like Javi and the Sophies, Dante talks in this reboot.

He's another theatre kid. He trades his canonical muteness to make room for a bit of a snarky attitude. Dante is creative, ditzy and kind of a pushover. He has a polite smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. And he's open-minded and easily persuaded. He's still Erica's right-hand man. And he's friends with toilette and dressy, too! Pretty good friends with Alyssa. They bond over being theatre kids :)

His design is the same, but his blue shirt is traded for a sweater vest.

Dante is from a privileged household, and knows all too well what Erica growing up too fast feels like (he himself has a stepsister). He's the golden child. His grades are perfect. Erica sometimes helps him with doing his homework.

But someone's a bit too obsessed with him.

Enter Juliet Baxter. In season 1, she's a background character who Krupp quickly deems an annoyance but she becomes major in season 2.

Juilet is… a bit of an enigma to put it lightly, to everyone else and to herself. On one hand, she's very excitable. Very loud, this tomboy can talk you into confusion in no time flat, and is a kendo master. When it comes to swordplay, even monsters of a chance don't stand a chance against her. Sometimes, Juilet is never seen without her bamboo sword. Anyone who tries to mess with her is in for a world of disappointment and pain.

But Juilet has another side to her..

She's a stalker.

Juilet is borderline obsessed with two people: Dante, and Cash Networth (not helping is the fact Cash and Juliet share the same birthday. Which is on February 14th. Yes, Juilet shares her birthday with both Cash and Valentine's Day & has the middle name 'Valentine').

It's not Cash and Dante, she fangirls over everyone else, too!

In fact, Juilet first shows this nightmarish side in the season 2 two parter, when SHE MEETS HAZEL AT THE BACK OF THE SCHOOL DURING ONE OF THE LATTER's INVESTIGATIONS AND ASKS IF SHE COULD CUT A PUECE OF HER HAIR OFF FOR HER SCRAPBOOK.

BUT HAZEL’S LIKE 'LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE I LIKE MY HAIR YOU FUCKING STALKER'

Poor Cash Networth. He was just chilling with Javi, and got slapped out of nowhere with a girl rambling about Transformers, Steven Universe, The Owl House, Amphibia, The Ghost And Molly McGee, and Gravity Falls.

Juilet at first: idk who this Cash Networth is. *hears about some of his adventures* So you're Cash Networth, billionaire owner of Camp Uppercrust, and resident adventurer, just as the rumors say! I’ll be your number one fan!

Cash's thoughts: You know what, Javi? I sometimes forget this a girl is a student at this school.

At the age where kids are struggling to figure out their identities, Juilet has to sort out TWO. Is she a boisterous sword wielding tomboy? Or is she a creepy stalker? These two sides of her are at war with each other, as her Kendoka sometimes overlaps with her stalking.

She's the only person Cash hates more than Krupp, despite Krupp not treating him as horribly as canon tetocu. Alyssa hates her. George and Harold are friends with her until they find out her stalker personality, and they hate her. Gooch, Bo, Jessica and the Sophies, Erica, Stanley, Dressy, and Dante hate her. Cara, Hazel, and even Melvinborg hate her. The teachers are just about the only people who tolerate Juliet.

Despite being a terrible person, Juliet cares about Cash and Javi. Whenever they’re in danger (or heck, turned into stone), she's ready to flatten a monster of the week with a steamroller if one were available. During the tetocu23 equivalent of the camoflush ep, not only does Camoflush have the same Predator powers he does in canon, but he kidnaps Cash and Javi as well! Not too surprisingly, the girl is really mad at Camoflush when she finds her "boyfriend" (in her eyes, anyway) and his boyfriend caught in a net snare. And when Camoflush does point out that Cash and Javi will not die… and they'll probably be still hanging there when he repaints the world into a rule free paradise, she gets even more fucking mad.

Juliet: You crossed the line!

Camoflush: The painting line!

Juliet: No, the other line!

Is Juliet as straight as a pencil? Probably. But for now Juliet hasn't decided much about her sexuality yet.

Eventually, between Javi being kidnapped by Krupp and the the stalker "girlfriend" he always thought he wanted until he got one in this theoretical reboot, Cash gets angry. Angry enough to do something to Krupp. He slaps him hard and this happens:

Cash: Mr. Krupp! You seem to care more about your girlfriend than the students of your school, you don't care about almost killing me, and you didn't care at all for my boyfriend! Plus, you would have almost certainly done the same horrible things you did to Javi to that janitor! You're horrible! You're... an irredeemable monster!

Javi: My boyfriend's right! Krupp, you need to get your eyes checked, because you clearly haven't seen what the rest of us have. Poor Hazel's just crying for help, to be saved from her big brother, and who the heck are we to just ignore her?

After this, it's just five whole "episodes" of Cash being pissed at Krupp. Krupp and Cash still have their Glom and Scrooge dt17-esque rivalry with each other, but now Cash thinks his anger feels even more deserving towards Krupp given how much he didn't give a fuck about Javi. Don't worry, Cash gets over his anger. At least, unlike those two Scottish ducks, Cash and Krupp aren't out to actively kill each other lol

As for why Cash slapped Krupp? Because the movie side of the fandom clearly didn't like how Krupp was depicted in tetocu season 3, I'm sure they wanted him to get more karma for what he did to poor Cash. So I figured, why not?

Also, Lee and Cash are not the same person in this reboot. I doubt any of us had a problem with the "cash networth = Lee Dingman" impersonation trick when it was first revealed, but by the end of the talent show episode, I think we all started seeing a few problems. Lee and Cara are going to be the same person. Let me explain. Cara actually has a shapeshifting invention, which ends up allowing plausibility for her to pass as literally anyone, regardless of age, gender, race, religion or shoe size.

(Tetocu23 AU belongs to @infini-tree and @cartchytuns)

[thefanboyhub]

Sophie is going to be my favorite character to talk about because she's so fucking interesting and her character is just so fun to look at and jdjdhdhd

My laundry is on the floor right now and I decided right now was a good time to do some digging into one of the most interesting characters in KOTLC.

It's time to dissect Fitzroy Avery Vacker!

So we all know Mr. Ritz Cracker,

Mr. "We're Cognate's!"

Mr. Golden boy

Mr. You-get-the-damn-point!

Fitz was the Elf who found Sophie in the Forbidden Cities. He was the one who introduced her to his— their— world. He was the first person to see Sophie cry, first person in the Lost Cities to support her.

From reading the books we learn a lot about how Fitz grew up, and you might be saying "uh... no?" BUT HA! YOU FOOL! You cannot just simply read the words, you must read behind the meaning and watch a characters behavior to learn how they grew to be who they are! (It's why I love characters so much, there's so many ways to learn about them)

From context clues and how he behaved in the books we know he was the golden child. First kid to manifest at the tender age of 13, and lose his leaping bracelet early too, not to mention he was a telepath and was basically flawless in school. He took pride in it, like most kids do. But you see here, that's the problem. He never had someone to take him down his pedestal that his parents practically built for him (fucking Alden). He grew up being told he'd do great things, that he was a strong Elf, that he was better then anyone else. So naturally he started to believe it and act like it. He wasn't necessarily vicious either, but he didn't need to be; he always got what he wanted anyways.

I think he felt alone. I mean he reacted so viciously towards his brother Alvar after finding out he was a traitor— UNDERSTANDABLY SO BY THE WAY! But my confusion with this was how angry he was. But I thought about it a lot through my rereading of the series and I realized that he was so angry because he had loved, trusted, looked up to, and felt inferior to his older brother. Despite— No— Because he was treated so much better by Alden(bitch) and Della(ILoveYouWifey) Alvar gained resentment for his siblings, mostly Fitz.

There was a part of Fitz sports thing in book 8.5 KOTLC Unlocked where he talked about playing with Alvar. He said it's no fun playing base quest (I think) with him because he'd stay invisible the entire time. What this tells me is Alvar agreed to play the game but would dip out of his own jealousy and pettiness. Which takes me to my previous statement—

Fitz felt alone. The one thing he never got was a brother who actually liked and loved him. The one thing he had been patiently waiting for and hoping for since he was younger and treated like the golden boy was his older brother. But he never got it, instead he got a traitorous older brother who hated him so deeply he'd hurt his friends without a second thought.

In my opinion, Fitz's rage over his brother is reasonable. It's honestly so real and raw that I can't even say he's being idiotic. Especially considering what I just said.

BUT

His fatal flaw his his anger— or more technical — His tantrums.

Like I said before, he always got what he wanted, he was spoiled and treated like a little prince. So every single time he didn't get what he wanted, his anger would rise. His emotional intelligence has been stumped because he never had someone say no to him or been rejected for something. So he's confused and angry; "Why not!? This never happens to ME!" Type of mentality.

This also comes along with jealousy and the need to compete with others. So when Keefe started to show his affections for Sophie a lot more openly back in book 4 KOTLC Neverseen, specifically when they ended up in Alluveterre for protection that was provided by the black swan, he started to act jealous. He realized how Keefe felt and noticed something about how Sophie acted and he automatically felt the need to compete which is why in book 9 KOTLC Stellerluna he has Sophie on a pedestal like a prise in his subconscious. He doesn't see her like a lover or a crush, he sees her as a prise to win over, subconsciously though. Consciously he thinks it's a crush. He went from thinking of her as a sister to someone he wanted to date; that doesn't happen for no reason.

Moving on from the relationship drama aspect of this, we can talk about his outbursts when something goes wrong. He needs someone to blame. Always. And it's never himself. He needs someone to push all this fear and anger out on because he's not emotionally or mentally equipped to deal with it. It's a self-destructive flaw he posseses. Same with his jealousy.

Which is why I love his character! He actually has some pretty bad flaws! But he also recognized it and is attempting to fix it; what he doesn't realize is that it will take time and whatever he broke will most likely never be fixed again. Simple as that. It's sad and will probably hurt him a lot but I will help him grow.

In conclusion: Kill Alden and get Fitz into therapy :D

[petalsmooth]

Oh, stumbled across someone saying the Bridgerton audience isn't ready for a black female lead...in reference to casting Sophie as black potentially. Are you all out of your damn mind?

When told about Rege they said...well look how he was treated. Oh? Last I checked he was the break out star of season one. Named most beautiful in the world and doing just fine in films. The audience wanted him back. Sure, they are racists in every fandom and no doubt he got his fair share since it's a global show it'll seem extensive but vast majority loved him. And people don't hate season two because of Simone not being white. They hated the damn triangle with sisters and the fact the characters don't get together until the closing minutes.

They also referenced Queen Charlotte...dudes, that show was a spinoff and for only 6 eps with mostly new actors THE AUDIENCE didn't know it did pretty well. Yes, there is a vocal group out there that has been screaming about the character not being historically accurate as black but they've been doing that on the parent show and didn't make it less successful.

Lastly, don't even try with Marina. Yes, there are racists and she got some of that but mostly it was a terrible character presentation and people can hate someone as a character for reasons other than race. Marina has the same issue Portia does. Do bad things, take no ownership of them and expect your circumstances to be enough to earn you affection. Does that mean I think the actors are untalented? Nope. It DOES mean I'm not sitting here feeling sympathy for Portia when she tells her daughter she's foolish to hope for anything but being her attendant in old age. And it means despite understanding the difficulty of being unmarried and pregnant in regency England, I am not going to like a girl who belittled the only person who treated her well from the start (Penelope) and tried to manipulate a nice guy into marriage because young and naive. Nor appreciate when treats him like dirt when her lies are exposed. Nor treats the passions of the current man she married with ridicule after he steps up to marry her.

Marina is not a good person. Sorry if you all want to hear otherwise, but she isn't. More to the point the man she idolizes as worthy of her respect is someone who had sex with her, left her alone to go off to war unmarried and didn't bother letting his brother know hey...could you keep an eye on this girl who may carry my children while I go off and fight and likely die? Even Anthony made provisions for Siena when he was about to duel and she was his mistress. The men she treats badly? The one who said he'd have married her if she'd simply been honest about her circumstances. The other one he does what his brother should have done, marries her.

So nah...I think the audience would be perfectly fine if Sophie was black just as they are fine with Victor's casting as John. The issue is more a) actors have chemistry b) Good storyline. That's it. I'm pretty sure everyone already knows the character won't be white as well. The real argument is over whether Benedict or Eloise should be next.

I dunno but I will say this. I think they could have done both. I'm not saying they will but I've thought of it and the easist solution imo would be a strong subplot with the intended for one, while doing the main plot for the other. For instance...Eloise writes to Philip for awhile in the books before they meet. And Benedict meets Sophie at a ball then she disappears a long time and is around as a servant. I figure you could set either Sophie or Philip up as a recurring character as a subplot allowing the audience to invest in them prior to their season while making either Eloise or Benedict the main for season 4. That way you appease both groups and neither character is just spinning their wheels another season because you are advancing both their plot.

[crymeariveronceagain]

Happy Halloween! Have some angst!

Little tiny fic ideas that I don't have enough of to write to completion.

Sophie Foster as a Frankenstein's Monster. She's science experiment, born of electricity and hubris, stitched together with parts of dead people, and she belongs to a man who refuses to be anything but her overlord, who sees her as an experiment. There's a part in the novel where Frankenstein's Monster watches this family, from a distance, jealous and hungry for the love he will never get. Sophie is stuck in that moment. She's the created monster, she's something people will never understand, never love, and from them on she's what terrifies children, what keeps them awake at night. And all she is is lonely. It's not her fault she was an experiment. It's not her fault she was created. She never asked for this. She never wanted to be this. Her life is borrowed, her fingers are people's who she's never met, and sometimes she doesn't understand why she was built. just out of pride? Lack of respect? Scientific advancement? To cater to the whims of those who play God over the life they create? She doesn't know. But she's fairly certain there's a reason her heart sounds funny to her own ears.

Fitz Vacker as a werewolf. There is a monster that lurks in his blood, waits, glittering like the full moon, for the perfect moment to spring out and destroy. It's ugly, his parents tell him. He transformed once and killed a man, they say. They can't let him do that. That's why there's chains in the basement and why they lock him up. That's why they're never going to be proud of him. He's always going to be a werewolf. It's the only flaw he has, that once monthly he gets possessed by a bloodthirsty monster. It's the only thing about him that his family hates, he's told, by everyone. Because it's common knowledge, at this point. Every member of his family knows, and they all hate him for it. he's brought disgrace on them all, hasn't he? It's his fault he got bitten. It's his fault he got turned. No matter how hard he tries, he's never going to be good enough. He's never going to be loved enough. He's never going to be accepted. Because every full moon they still lock him up in the basement, and he claws his sharp nails down the floor and over himself to try and get the monster out. He's bleeding, in the morning, as the moon finally wanes, and his mother unlocks the door. She hands him a new pair of clothes, but no bandages. There's some sort of symbolism there, he thinks, as he cleans the gashes he drew on himself, as he wraps the raw wrists that ache and burn with the feeling of chains. There's a symbolism to it, but he can't figure it out.

Keefe Sencen as a ghost. He died a long time ago, and his body was never buried. Maybe it's because no one cared all that much. Keefe hopes it wasn't. He wanders around, moving things in people's houses, turning lights on and off, and hearing them scream and call for a priest to bless their house. He paints on their walls in blue and green, and moves glasses around in the air. He's a prankster of a ghost, he'll admit it, but he's lonely. So lonely. He's not where he's supposed to be. The woman who owns the house is on the phone with an exorcist. He laughs until whispers of tears roll down his cheeks, exhausted and painful. Don't they know that blessing him won't solve anything? He's a ghost, not a demon. He's dead, not alive, and he's crying as a priest finally, finally, prays for the repose of his soul, and the ties of him to his restless body finally loosen. He's going home. Finally.

Linh Song as a Vampire. She's thirsty. All the time, and there's no escape. Animal blood can't satisfy her. Human blood makes her mouth water. She stares at her own brother and wonders if she could ask him for his blood. And she refuses to do it. She's not a murderer. She's not a blood drinker. She swears. She's a good person. But stars, she's wasting away. She's so hungry, so thirsty. It echoes through her body like tremors, like a slight breeze could knock her over. And it hurts, stings her nose with the scent of living, of breathing. She winds up walking through the streets, half in a trance, and she's at the site of an accident. There's blood on the ground, blood dripping down the tree from where the person fell. The person isn't there anymore, but the smell hangs heavy and delicious around her and before she knows what she's doing she's licking the stones, her body shaking and starving even more in response to the first real food it's had in years. And she doesn't cry, even as her nose prickles when she's gotten as much as she can, even when the empty, hollow ache has returned, a thousand times over. She is a good person. She is good. And if that means living in pain for all eternity, that's what that means. Tam hugs her, that night, and she shoves him away. His blood smells too good. She doesn't tell him that. His eyes ache with hurt. She runs to her room, and doesn't come out til the morning.

Dex Dizznee as a witch. He goes to the house of the Vackers, one day, to give Fitz a sort of check up. Fitz snarls that he's fine. Dex pats his head, and Fitz trembles, like he hasn't had anyone touch him in a very long time. Dex gives him a potion to try on his endless scars, and hugs the guy before he leaves. Dex doesn't see the way Fitz covers his face and cries about that tiny hug for the next half hour. He goes to the Song's house, and he finds Tam cursing at their parents. Linh's pale and deathly sick. Dex wonders if they know their daughter is a vampire. He brings it up to her. She flinches. "I don't want to hurt people." He blinks. "What have you been eating?" "Animal blood," she answers, her voice in whispers. "And it's not cutting it." Dex hands her a potion. "This might help. It's a supplement. Should give you more of the nutrients you need. Make it less painful." Linh nods, looking like she might cry, but Dex leaves, after telling her parents she'll be okay and that he gave her a potion to try. He walks home that night and hears something screeching from the depths of the woods. Birds fly up in a cloud. He sighs, wondering what the crazy scientist, Forkle is up to again. He'll have to go check on whatever he's done this time tomorrow. Dex collapses in the chair, and sets up the wards around his house with a wave of his hand. He rubs his face and makes himself some dinner. It's quiet, in his house. But he doesn't mind it.

[wewringmagicfromtheordinary]

#she also says it all out loud to Eliot--and like yes obviously to some extent she's saying it to us the audience but also--to Eliot#who she knows will understand exactly what she's feeling right now#she knows Eliot agrees that Hardison and Nate and Sophie are better than they are in this way. she knows Eliot feels bad about it sometimes#and she knows--she hates it but she knows--that they cannot bring the dead man back down the mountain. they can't.#and she knows that Eliot has already made peace with it#with not bringing the body back to his wife but also with being a bad man. having done bad things before. still doing bad things.#and I think more crucial than anything else in this scene Parker also knows that Eliot can and will help her with all of this#he can understand what she's saying he can articulate a response he will agree with her points and he won't think less of her for any of it#everybody on the show is so observant and so clever and so good at putting things together but Parker is the best at it#and here a full season before the French Connection Job she's trusting Eliot to help her with her feelings and I'm so /proud/ of her via ereborne

#THIS SCENE#these tags#forever emotional about this scene#the way eliot sees parker#the way they understand each other in a way that's just theirs#they can't be hardison#not in this moment#but they can be them#and that is exactly who they need to be via kekela717

#i'll never be over the way that eliot keeps letting parker try#he already knows it won't work but he's willing to slowly let her come to that realization#eliot is often impatient with parker and with hardison#he loves them obviously and a lot of times i think he's playing it up#like as part of their dynamic or even is way of showing affection#and also like he has to keep them just a little bit apart from him to keep them safe i think#but also this scene contrasted with the scene where parker asks him what the worst thing he did was#and he asks her not to ask him because he'll tell her and she backs down in understanding#like#eliot and parker do understand each other on a slightly different level than say hardison#anyway i'm going to run out of tag room so#just#the way that parker WANTS to be redeemed wants to be a good guy#her desperation here#and the way that eliot takes it and says essentially being survivors is who they are and that's neither good nor bad via theladywyn

#them!#god this scene hurts so bad everytime#it's not wrong to be sharp and it's not wrong to save yourself#what i like most about leverage is that people do get better but they don't get any less weird or dangerous. they just put those skills#towards better purposes#because it isn't wrong to be dangerous it's wrong to hurt people for bad reasons via thoughtformtheuniverse

[bookofmirth]

I would love your thoughts on Bryce 👀 seems like you have a lot

Yes I do 😭

Someone asked me this a couple of weeks ago and I have avoided the question because none of my thoughts about her are good. I was trying to get some distance and today is the day! No offense to anyone who likes her character, I completely respect that.

But to be frank, I don't like Bryce. Pretty much at all.

Bryce feels like she's trying really hard to be Aelin but lacks the courage of her convictions. Hell, Bryce lacks the convictions, too.

It really bums me out that I don't like Bryce because I have always loved sjm's main characters. Aelin? LOML. Feyre? I wish I could be that brave. Nesta? Would love to express myself. Lysandra? I too would like to cut a man someday.

But Bryce???? Ugh, Bryce.

I know what we are supposed to think about her. I know that Bryce is supposed to pretend to be a party girl so that people don't look at her too hard. But why can't they look? It's not like she's doing anything worthwhile that needs to be concealed. I appreciate that Bryce having a good time with her friends is valuable in its own right. I love that she has friends, and I love that she embraces her femininity. I love that we are supposed to take her seriously too, despite the things about her that are supposedly shallow.

But.... I don't take her seriously. She is shallow. I can't take her seriously when she is half human, and still doesn't understand why people would rebel. Not when her mother is treated like shit, and she still doesn't understand why people would rebel. Not when she watches what Hunt experiences being enslaved, when she is objectified and degraded for being human, when Sophie and Emile are hunted, and she is still like "*shrug* idk what those rebels are on about, they should really think about being Nice rebels."

REALLY????

I realize that this isn't just a Bryce problem, this is partly a narrative problem because humans are framed as being radical extremists who, while being constantly shit on, should definitely consider how to be nicer when they rebel. But Bryce should know better and she just... doesn't.

When she saved Emile, it felt so hollow. The sentiment behind it was admirable, the fact that he had value despite not having magic powers. I got verklempt. The fact that he had value because of the way that other people loved him was so poignant. But that whole thing felt like, again, Aelin Lite™️ because she was secretly doing things (which had no precedent but okay, we're just supposed to accept that Bryce is stealthy or whatever) and also shallow because she didn't think about the fact that Cormac also cared about Emile and was desperate to find him. She just... hid that from him, despite the fact that Emile has value in being loved for himself, Cormac loves Emile, and Bryce just doesn't make that connection???

I couldn't even remember, six weeks after reading hosab, what was driving Bryce in hosab. She doesn't seem to be doing anything out of any obligation or sense of morality or a personal goal or literally anything. She just keeps happening across stuff that Danika hid from her. I have zero idea what is driving Bryce, besides loving Hunt.

She just has no sense of the bigger picture, and I think that's what bothers me the most. She seems very very limited in her worldview, even when reasons for her to care are shoved all up in her face.

also I freaking hate her taste in clothes.

[evermoreparker]

Biggest Fan

Synopsis: When you and Tom realize how much your baby daughter loves Frozen, Tom decides to surprise her playing her favorite song, but she doesn't have the reaction he was hoping for.

A/n: Hey!! So I'm super excited to share this fic that started out as me sending a cute video to my incredible friend @kidney9-9 until I asked her if she wanted to write this fic with me. Go check all her work, she's an incredible writer, and I'm so lucky to have such a sweet friend. :) Let us know if you like it!! 💖💖

A/n 2: hi y'all hope you enjoy this colab! it was super fun and amazing, please follow and make sure to read my friend's writing! it's all incredible and so cool! :) thank you for reading!💖💖

It was a quiet evening, just relaxing at home with Tom and Sophie, when you heard the familiar strums of a guitar. It was only a few notes at first until you recognized the song that your husband was playing. It was a sweet song with such sweet memories that made you lull into a thought of the past.

As soon as the soft knock on Elsa's door stopped and Anna started singing, your daughter looked at the TV screen as if it was the sweetest melody she has ever heard and it made Tom's heart melt. The way Sophie's eyes were so focused on the screen made you laugh, it's like she was hypnotized. As soon as the song ended, she went running to you and Tom, telling you two how much she loved that part of the movie and the song.

Over the next few days, you and Tom giggled and chuckled about Sophie’s concentration and seriousness in practicing the song. You even watched her as she tried to make a dance routine, it was so cute and precious. One of the days, she even got into your closet and put an old pair of heels on, saying it was her turn to perform. You and Tom cheered her on as she belted out to her new favorite song, telling her how amazing she was.

Knowing how much your daughter loved that song, Tom learned how to play it on his guitar and how to sing the lyrics for Sophie. Tom practiced for that all week, because who cares if he's got to memorize Spiderman lines for the next movie, he needs to impress his baby daughter first. On Sunday he was finally ready to give your daughter the performance she deserved, but what he didn't expect was how much she hated it.

You started recording once Tom gave you the go-ahead and placed the phone down in a steady position on the table. You sat back quietly as Sophie walked into the room, confused at the sound of the guitar. She was usually at daycare when Tom practiced the song, or asleep. Tom chuckled, feeling excited to show her the song he’s been practicing.

Instead of the original “Elsa?” In the beginning of the song, he replaced it with Sophie, and you giggled a bit, glancing over to her. “Sophie? Do you wanna build a snowman? C’mon let’s go and play!” Tom sang, smiling widely as he watched Sophie unfold what was happening.

She struggled to say something at first, making Tom sure that she enjoyed it but the moment she opened her mouth, he realized he was wrong. “NO! NO! Stop it right now!”

Knowing how self conscious Tom gets about his voice you weren't sure if you should laugh at your 3 year old daughter hating her dad singing and playing for the first time to someone other than you. Before you could say something, Sophie turned to her dad who seemed confused about if he should keep playing, knowing how you two have the same weird sense of humor and this could be another one of his daughter's jokes.

Uncertain of his next movement, Tom went back to just playing his guitar, too scared of his daughter hating his voice. Before he could even touch the first string Sophie snatched the guitar with her little hands, shouting out,  ''No more Frozen for you!''

Sophie tried to take her dad's guitar out of his hands, but she realized it's useless to carry something that heavy, instead, she went to her room and searched for the Olaf plush one of her many uncles got her as soon as they heard about her newest obsession. Holding it tight as if it was the real character, she sang to it softly the melody that she loves the most in the world.

Back in the living room, you and Tom stared at each other for a few silent seconds, confused about what Sophie did. “What? I thought she loved that song.” Tom spoke up, a bit dejected and upset. He didn’t understand her reaction at all but he snapped out of his thoughts once he felt you place your hand on his shoulder, after you stopped the video.

“I think she does. Don’t be upset babe. I think she wasn’t expecting that!” You cheered him up, smiling back to him. You didn’t want to laugh in front of him in case that gave him the wrong impression, but you found it adorable that Sophie stopped him that way. You never saw her act that way before, but you could tell she really cared about Frozen.

“Maybe? I’m just confused why she did that.” Tom responded, shrugging back to you. After another moment, you sent him another sweet smile, still finding his song incredible.

“You’re a great singer and guitarist, honey. Maybe she was jealous or something.” You reassured him once more.

Tom still thought that something went wrong with his voice, until you tried to lighten up the mood. ''Did you see how she held the guitar strings to try to stop you from going again?'' You chuckled, and Tom put the guitar aside so that he could put his hands on his face. For a second you were worried that you said something wrong that would make him more upset, but he took his hands off his face. And then you saw that he was trying to hold back his laugh, and that was a sound that you loved to hear. ''I'm just glad she didn't throw something at me''

''C'mon,'' You tried to restrain yourself from laughing, but you ended up joining your husband. ''It wasn't that bad!'' You said while losing your breath from laughing too hard.

''I mean, I'm sure I won't be able to dress up Frozen themed for her birthday next month now.'' He said, understanding that would only make you laugh more. ''Man, I had the dress and everything, even bought the blonde wig on Amazon.'' He pretended to be upset about it, and almost immediately looked at you to see if you were amused.

A few quiet minutes went by before you two heard Sophie’s voice carry through the house. You knitted your eyebrows together, instantly recognizing the tune she was singing and Tom tilted his head to the side as well. “Is that what I think it is?” He mumbled to you as you started to smile more, nodding your head back to his question.

“Let’s go check up on her.” You whispered back, not wanting Sophie to hear you while she sang. You got up from the couch, along with Tom and slowly walked up the stairs, hearing her voice get louder.

“Do you wanna build a snowman? It doesn't have to be a snowman. Go away, Anna! Okay, bye.” Sophie continued, not noticing you and her dad in the doorway. She was playing with her Olaf plushie, making him dance along to her song.

You glanced back to Tom, chuckling silently as he smiled back over to Sophie, proud she was singing. He understood why she acted that way now; that song was special to her and only her. Maybe she didn’t want to hear her dad sing it and possibly embarrass her.

Tom wrapped his arm around your shoulder, clearing his throat once Sophie stopped singing.

As the newest singer in the family stopped her performance, you two sat on Sophie's bed waiting for her to continue while smiling, encouraging her to keep going. When she went back to her little concert, you smiled at Tom while leaning into whisper, ''Watch and learn how your daughter is not shy at all about singing in front of people.''

He scoffed knowing you were just teasing him. ''Please, we don't count. She has seen you cry, and sing, over Louis Tomlinson's solo on History.''

''Hey! That's low, you know how that song makes me cry, it's their last song, it's their goodb-'' Tom stopped you before you told him again how much that song meant to you and the fans. ''Ok ok I'm sorry babe, I think it's a great solo, I'd cry if I was a fan too.'' He said while putting your head on his shoulder. ''Don't talk shit about my boyband, that's my Frozen.''

Tom laughed at your reference, and turned around seeing his daughter suddenly quiet. She climbs on Tom's lap, while you two hug and congratulate her on her amazing performance. Too caught up on the family hug, you didn’t notice your daughter leaning to whisper in her dad's ear.

''Daddy?''

''Yea my love?'' He hummed back.

''What's shit?'' Tom's eyes widened as he looked at you begging for you to help him. You raised your eyebrows at him and shrugged before leaning over to Sophie.

“Don’t know, I heard him say it first.”