#i doubt he would’ve betrayed the FN

[kyluxtrashpit]

K so I said I might write a post about what I wanted from ep 9 and then I ended up doing it. So this is essentially a summary of the movie I would’ve made if someone gave me that ability. It’s not fully fleshed out, but I literally could not stop myself from typing it out once I starting piecing it together lmao

Even though this is my own creation, I still consider this a spoilery post SO WARNING FOR RISE OF SKYWALKER SPOILERS RIGHT HERE

I still think the best thing to do with ep 9 would be to centre it on the FO falling apart instead of ‘oh no daddy palps is back :o’. Truth be told, I’d rewrite TLJ too if I could, but I’m going to try to work within its constraints on this as well as keep some tros stuff intact for the sake of trying to work with it. So here’s the basic plot of what I would’ve liked to see:

Kylo undermining and removing authority from Hux while he focuses on Force stuff. He’s still looking for secrets and holocrons, but there’s no palpatine

Meanwhile the Resistance is working on building up their forces and helping the little people, plus trying to get info to take down the FO

The focus of the Resistance side is them trying to get the strength to face the FO and working together and all that good stuff. Focus more on the small acts of goodness in the galaxy that bring people together and end up with those they help joining the Resistance. That’s where they get their strength

Rey’s story would also be mostly about mastering the Force (and Leia still helps to train her) and the love and family she’s found among the Resistance. She’s still stupidly powerful though. I’d love to make her a Skywalker, but hell, it’d even work if she remained a nobody. TLJ was her crucible; she knows who she is now. She doesn’t need anyone else to tell or write her story for her

Also I really want her to go grey jedi. So maybe she realizes what Luke really meant: it was time for the jedi not truly to end, but to change. To embrace emotion without losing themselves to it. To realize that the only true way to achieve balance is not by staying light in order to defeat the dark, but instead learning to master both and keeping the balance within herself. That way, when the darkness is defeated, it won’t need to rise again: true balance. This would be her growth in the story, to learn how to embrace true balance in the Force

Also Finn’s story is still going to focus on the Stormtroopers (and Jannah can 100% still be there). So he finds Jannah and her team in Act 1, and then in Act 2 they unearth some secrets as to how Stormtroopers are brainwashed. Conditioning can’t be broken out of by will alone; Finn was Force sensitive. But something else happened with Jannah and her company. An idea is born: could they recreate that on a large scale and free them all? That’d be a huge blow to the FO and it would save all those troopers who never had a choice in what to be

Poe’s focus would still be on becoming the leader they need him to be, with lots of fun trio moments. So his wouldn’t actually change that much, but nothing about him being a drug dealer. I’m sure Zori could still be worked in but tbh I didn’t feel she added much to the plot

Rose is there a lot more too and comes along on all their adventures, happy to liberate anyone they can. She’s always been in it for the little people and that’s where she shines

Also Kylo is even more erratic, even more lost. He feels torn apart all over again. He’s not doing well as SL; he thought it would make things clearer, but it didn’t. He’s unstable and feral, focusing on all the wrong things and making bad choices because of it

Near the end of Act 1 of the movie, Hux betrays Kylo in a near deadly fashion, but Kylo manages to escape by the skin of his teeth

The Resistance gets word of a civil war within the FO. It;s Hux’s fleet (the red troopers + newer FO officers) vs Kylo’s fleet (mostly the older imperials who remember Vader + the KOR – you can keep Pryde here too if you want). This is their chance. They can take advantage of the chaos

While Kylo recovers from Hux’s attack, he starts having doubts again. Nothing has felt right since he became SL but what other choice does he have? He can’t go back, can he? He’s not supposed to want to. And even if he did, he’s too far gone to ever be welcomed, even by his own mother. So he continues fighting against Hux, more harried and haunted than ever

This situation degrades quickly. Both sides are getting hits in, but Hux is winning. Worse yet: it’s spilling over and doing collateral damage. Places controlled by the FO are being exploited, even worse atrocities being committed against them in this rapid arms race to superiority

Hell, maybe Hux’s fleet still has those planet-destroying canons like Palps’ fleet cause why not, everyone seems to think SW needs a superweapon in it. Anyway

There’d be more development on the heroes’ side as I detailed above here. Rey helping people and learning to be grey. Finn discovering the secrets of the Stormtrooper program. Poe becoming a leader. Rose comes with them on their journeys. Leia is heard rather than seen for the most part; she’s surviving this time around, but her presence is felt through her messages and dialogue snippets rather than physically being in the scenes. Some of the footage could be used, especially her hug with Rey, but I’d use much less of it

The Resistance knows they have to hurry. Do they have enough people? They have no idea, but they’re gonna try anyway. They have to. And you can still have Lando do basically the same thing; show up, be cool, then go get some more people

I’d like to do more with the KOR too, but tbh I’m not sure how other than just some scenes of them and Kylo doing Ren Stuff (whatever that may be). But there’d definitely be something

Near the end of Act 2, there’s a particularly brutal fight. I’d want Kylo and the KOR on the ground here, doing their shit. It feels kinda cheap to have him almost die again but tros also had 2 death fake outs for Kylo before the actual death so fuck it lmao. He thinks he’s going to win (maybe Hux is even there? Or maybe Phasma is revived? Or even just some fancy trooper akin to FN-2199 or something. Maybe it’s even Force-nullifying tech), but then the last minute he gets his shit wrecked

He’s dying. He reaches out with the Force, violently, affecting everyone. Rey hears it through the shattered bond. Finn even hears it, though faintly. It hits Leia hardest of all

Meanwhile, Kylo sees the ghost of Anakin instead of a vision of Han. Anakin, who knows better than anyone what it is to turn to the dark, but also what it is to turn away from it. The scene would still play out similarly, but not mirror the past scene with Han so much

(Look, I know a lot of people don’t like bendemption, but I think that redemption is always possible as long as it’s written well. And that applies to pretty much any character. TROS just needed more time to develop it, which I am attempting to do here by showing Kylo’s instability at the beginning)

Anakin manages to heal Kylo enough to bring him back from the brink of death, but not fully. I don’t think I want Kylo to toss away his lightsaber, but he still could. Regardless, there’s some sort of symbolic gesture to prove he’s changed his mind

A ship arrives: it’s the Resistance. Finn and Poe are cautious, but Rey doesn’t fear him. She confronts him about this sudden change of heart, but she can feel his sincerity. So she reassures Finn and Poe and they bring him along, though no one is really happy about it. They fix him up

With Kylo’s fleet all but destroyed, Hux is ready to take out the Resistance and everyone who sympathizes. Now perhaps we have a planet the trio had previously visited get destroyed. There’s still an ultimatum from the FO to obey or die. It’s a crackdown. A final act to ensure domination of the galaxy. Hell, you can even still call it the Final Order if you want to

The Resistance now strikes. Lando’s getting more back up, if he can, but they take who they’ve got. Kylo is there and there’s a lot of mistrust (could be played for humour too) but not enough time to get into it. They need to do this or too many will die. If he tries anything, Rey will strike him down and she tells him so. She’s done listening to his attempts to get under her skin

This Kylo is also definitely more Ben (I’m mixed on whether he should just go back to his old name or not so I’m keeping him Kylo for the sake of this summary). There’s guilt, though. A lot of it. You can see it on his face and in what he says. But helping to fix this will be a start. His crimes aren’t forgotten; he wants to make up for them however he can

Also Finnrey happens. They kiss before the fight this time and it’s very cute and romantic

So basically the end fight is Resistance fleet vs FO fleet. Poe is leading the charge. Meanwhile, Finn, Jannah, Rose and company sneak on to try to end FO conditioning. Rey and Kylo also sneak on; they’re going for Hux and the elite troops he uses as guards

Hux is going to have to have Force-nullifying tech of some sort (which I think is extremely underused in the SW universe as a whole btw). But he underestimates what Rey (powerful as fuck) and Kylo (Skywalker) are capable of

I’m not 100% sure how this fight plays out but I think I want Rey and Kylo to take out Hux’s elite troops without being able to use the Force. It’d be a fun struggle to watch and also make the fight much more visceral and difficult for them. But they both know how to fight, so they win

On the other side, Finn, Jannah, and Rose manage to do whatever to free the Stormtroopers from mind control (I’m not sure exactly how this would happen, but it’s star wars, it doesn’t need to make much sense). We get the first stage of a full trooper rebellion. They go after the officers immediately

Outside, Poe is struggling, just like in tros. They might lose this. Even if the landing party wins, there’s just too many of them. Cue Lando bringing a big fleet to help and giving us an epic space battle

Back inside: something exciting happens and it turns into a struggle between Hux’s tech and their combined Force powers. This is how I think it should go:

Kylo gives Rey his Force powers, which knocks him unconscious. Rey now has the power to break through on her own. It shouldn’t be possible. She sends out a concussive blast that knocks Hux back. The ideal here would be Hux being captured and taken in alive to be tried for war crimes, but I know that’s asking too much lmao so

If I can’t have definitively alive Hux: Rey approaches him but the ship makes a buckling noise; her Force powers compromised the structural integrity. Debris falls, obscuring Hux (and probably implying it killed him), and she knows it’s time to run. Kylo also comes to around this moment and follows

(And for real, I’m also okay with Hux dying for sure here, because at least he got to have his day first, but this is fantasy land lmao so I’m just not gonna have it happen as far as that goes)

Finn, Jannah, and Rose lead the stormtroopers onto transports as the ship starts falling apart. Rey and Kylo (and Hux, if I got my way) show up and make it in too. They take off and make it out just as the Finalizer crumples. Everyone lives! (Plus Hux is plausibly still alive even if I can’t have him definitely alive sdkfsdkl)

They call for the fleet to stop; the Stormtroopers on every destroyer are rising up, freed from their shackles. Shot of FO officers tied up and captured as the Stormtroopers, without their helmets, celebrate

A sidenote: I can’t decide whether I want Kylo to have lost his Force powers permanently by giving them to Rey or for him to get them back. I think losing them would be a good act of sacrificial penance, but at the same time, I’m not sure if that’s a thing so lmao. I’m open to possibilities here

End bit would still be a celebration. Rey and Finn and Poe still hug. The Stormtroopers are happy. We can still have that moment with Lando and Jannah; the implication of trying to find where every one of the troopers came from. The FO officers have been imprisoned. Everything is right in the galaxy again

Now there’s one more scene with Kylo: he stands in front of a door, looking pensive, squeezing and unsqueezing his hands into fists. The shot moves to his back and the door opens. You can’t see what’s inside but you hear: “Ben?” followed by a pause, and then a small, broken “Mom.”. He steps inside and starts to fall to his knees. End scene

Now, as a last scene, we could still do Rey having a funeral for Luke on Tatooine and keep the ending shot basically the same except Leia and her saber aren’t there because Leia is alive. Rey could still decide to be a Skywalker if she’s a nobody. The shot of two suns. The End.

[spotlightsaga]

Kevin Cage of @spotlightsaga reviews... The Leftovers (S03E02) Don't Be Ridiculous Airdate: April 23, 2017 @hbo Ratings: 0.776 Million :: 0.34 18-49 Demo Share Score : 9.5/10 **********SPOILERS BELOW********** First off... Let's get one thing straight... 'Wu-Tang Clan ain't nuthin' to fuck with!' Second... It's true that at one time I was huge young fan of 'Perfect Strangers'. My mother and I still refer to Mark Linn-Baker's costar Bronson Pinchot's 'Balky's ridiculous line, 'Well feed me garlic and call me stinky!' That line was fed numerous times throughout the ridiculous number of 151 episodes of the 8 Season run that lasted 7 1/2 years. Sometimes we need 'ridiculous', sometimes 'the ridiculous' is what keeps a smile on our face, a stupid joke running for far too many years, it keeps us from cracking under the incredibly immense pressures of life. Nora has very much evolved from S1 to S2 to this very point in S3. Nora has lost everything and now clings on to The Garvey family, as they do to her... They need each other, it's comforting to know that they're just there, but anything beyond that is hollow. You know that moment after 'The Honeymoon' phase of a relationship is over and you wonder... 'Am I just here because I'm scared of being alone?' 'Are we together because I don't know if the grass is really greener on the other side?' After so much loss, so much grieving, and so much sadness... You finally put all the pieces back together again the best you can... And viola, something tests you. Something tests what you've built. The house of cards you built is barely holding up on a windy day, and you'll do anything to fight that seed of doubt... You know those days right? That's the kind of day Laura is having when she gets a ridiculous call from the only star left on earth who played a major role in 'Perfect Strangers', Mark Linn-Baker. He offers up Norma a 'ridiculous' proposition. Show up in St Louis, where he'll be for the next 24 hours, and he'll give her an opportunity of a lifetime... To see the family she lost, the one she has already accepted that she'll never see again. Absolutely ridiculous, right? Nora thinks so, but seeds of doubt always grow faster the harder you try to ignore them... And as 'ridiculous' as it sounds, what if it true? Of course it isn't, right? I mean, this isn't about that, not admittedly... This about uncovering a group taking advantage of those that were left behind and incinerating them. That's the most logical answer and logical always beats ridiculous, especially when all the faith that was left inside of you has been ripped to shreds by a proverbial pack of wild wolves. It's all so ridiculous... On her way out after a strange meeting with Mark Linn-Baker, Nora makes a quick detour to see Lilly, who doesn't even remember her. The sight of Christine scares her away. It's all too much for her to face. The family she attempted to create from the ashes of her own will never truly be hers, ever. Incinerator or not, could Baker's theory and thumb drive full of testimonials really reunite her with everything she had already accepted to be gone forever? Too heavy... Might as well stop by Erika's house on the way back in to town, show off her new accidental Wu-Tang Clan tattoo (Respect, 'Killer Bees sold 50 Gold, 60 Platinum!') and have a ridiculous jump on Erika's ridiculous new trampoline to ridiculously sick Wu-Tang beats. Is that ridiculous enough for you? Back to Jarden, Texas. Nora is having a ridiculous fn' day, After being stopped by Tom coming back into town, browbeaten for stopping in to see Lilly (Christine has apparently called), having every electronic device she cane across betray her in the most personal way possible a computer can betray or insult a human being. Oh, and let's not forget she walks in on Kevin killing himself and bringing himself back to life, a ridiculous little trick he does... She marches up to the now deceased Pillar Man's alter where people are treating him like some sort of divine being... His lonely wife, Sandy (Brett Butler) involving Matt to keep his 'fake departure' a secret to keep some sort of ridiculous faith going... And against all recommendations and pleas, she posts the picture of the Pillar Man's dead body for everyone to see. No one will be able to hold on to their ridiculous notions of faith, or believing in something greater, in believing that they too can be saved... Because that's just fn' ridiculous. Personally, I would've ended the episode right there. It was perfect, ridiculous, but perfect... Did I mention that it was ridiculous? Well, can't have an episode titled 'Don't Be Ridiculous' without some sort of over-the-top ridiculousness. Back in Australia, four women on a horse look for a Chief of Police named Kevin. Clearly there's a mix-up. This isn't the Kevin their looking for... They'll find that out later when they drown him and he doesn't survive. Ladies, as ridiculous as it may sound... The Kevin you're looking for is halfway across the world, but don't worry, he's on his way... Led by Nora & a ridiculous idea brought to you by 'Perfect Stranger's Mark Linn-Baker. Ridiculous, indeed!

[ecotone99]

[FN] Father and Son

u/reverendrambo: The Chosen One was defeated, but not killed. As punishment, he/she must live among their peers, tormented with the shame of letting them down.

My father was an important man. A powerful man that many looked up to and worshiped. But apparently he felt that he wasn’t being worshiped enough, because he was always jealous of the ruler of the other place. The other man felt the same way, so they made an agreement: the two would battle for the right to rule everything.

Despite what others say, my father and his opponent aren't opposites but are remarkably similar. They’re both cunning, secretive, deceptive, and most importantly, egotistical. Seeing how alike they are, it should be no surprise that they came up with the same idea of using their children to do their dirty work for them.

My followers and my brother’s followers have a tendency to sugarcoat our fathers’ actions. For instance, they call the rape of my mother a “blessing” or her being “chosen,” but make no mistake, it was rape. To this day I still don’t know why my father and my brother’s father chose the same woman. Maybe they wanted only one person to have to suffer (although I doubt this “generous” interpretation), or maybe one of them wanted to play mind games.

Can you imagine what it’s like to have to be enemies with your twin? The memory of seeing him from across the battlefield is still burned into my mind. A man and his dark reflection, except I couldn’t tell which I was. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

After our poor mother gave birth to us, we were both adopted into different families and wouldn’t meet again until that day on the battlefield. I lived a fairly normal childhood filled with cartoons, toys, holidays, and vacations. Like most adopted children, I always wondered where I came from and how my life would’ve been if my parents had kept me. Little did I know that I wouldn’t have a say in the matter, and my father fully intended to claim me as his.

The week before my bar mitzvah, I had a dream about my father. I’ve always grown up hearing about him, but I wasn’t really religious enough to give him any thought. Truthfully, I was scared of him. The stories about his wrath and treacherous ways always terrified me, but this fear vanished after the dream.

In the dream, there was a handsome muscular man leading his army of winged soldiers, and there was something familiar about this man. With a start, I realized he shared a resemblance to me.

This man’s voice echoed as he talked, and I could tell that his soldiers feared him and respected him. This man was the one I had grown up hearing about, but he had no trace of angry or evil in his eyes. He was about to head into battle, but all I could see was a calm leader, ready for anything. I would have given anything to be like him back then.

I left home, and without any assistance, was able to find my father’s home. Not his real one obviously, but close enough. Once I performed a couple of miracles for the followers, they were ecstatic. They cried at my feet and praised my father and me. I was only a child, but adults- the same ones who were supposed to lecture me, punish me, look down on me- were worshiping me. I had found power.

The night of my 13th birthday, I had the dream again, except it kept going. I saw my father’s horrible struggle as he fought in Heaven.The golden blood of angels and demons dripped from their bodies, hitting the ground like raindrops. Flaming swords cut the wings of unsuspecting soldiers, causing them to fall and scream in pain. The smell of smoke was thick in the air.

I saw my father and his opponent fight viciously with their blades, and after their weapons were shattered, with their fists. They were the most powerful men in the world, but I felt none of their authority as they clawed each other with their nails, tumbling on the ground like wrestling adolescents, not war generals. As father and son battled, I felt the fear for the first time. The fear that I would follow my father’s footsteps and be forced to continue this pointless fight for him.

I kept a low profile for the years that followed, and traveled around the world to perform miracles and recruit followers. My brother was doing the same thing, but we never crossed paths. I always made sure to never go where he went, and I’m positive he did the same. My father- in the few times we would communicate- would always warn me to never get close to my brother, that he would whisper lies into my ears and betray me. My father was a liar himself, but I followed his advice and stayed cautious.

I was around 30 when it finally happened. Cases of a virus were being reported around the world, a virus that was managing to kill millions. It got so bad that people were ordered to stay at home, and wear masks if they went outside. I knew this was the opportunity I’ve been waiting for, and that my true task had begun.

I went to hospitals and showed the world the miracles I’ve been keeping hidden for years. I healed the sick, I gave faith to nonbelievers, and I even managed to raise the dead. People were begging to join my cause, and suddenly my small group of followers became an army at my command. The only reason the world didn’t bow at my feet was because of my brother, who once again was doing the same thing.

It was the first time I really hated him. I always knew that we were destined to be enemies, but I’ve never felt this jealousy and rage before then. Instead of turning to me, there were millions that said my brother was the chosen one and I was the false prophet. I wanted to burn them alive, flood them, torture them and their families in excruciating ways. I guess you could say the forbidden fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree.

My brother and I had our war, but we never fought ourselves. That was going to happen later. Our followers were the ones who bled for us. The first time I heard reports of fallen troops, I felt a tremendous sadness for not being able to aid them, not being able to revive their bodies, too torn to pieces in battle. But as the war went on, this sadness melted, and as their body count increased, so did my frustration. They were tools under my disposal, how dare they die uselessly! Instead of mourning them, I felt like spitting on their graves and cursing them for not being better.

Food became harder and harder to come by, and I did my best with my miracles to feed my followers, but even my powers weren’t enough. Many had to resort to cannibalism, eating enemies or even their friends and children if they had to. I punished my followers if they turned against each other, but I turned a blind eye to them eating enemies. I reasoned that not doing so would’ve been a waste.

I never engaged in the eating of human flesh myself, but I could feel every soul cry out as their bodies were bitten into. They couldn’t feel the teeth marks, but their souls still felt tarnished by the abuse of their corpses. The ghosts looked at me, not in anger but more in confusion of how I could let this happen to them. I had no answer.

One day, my soldiers told me that the opposition’s leader wanted to meet with me, face-to-face. The conditions were that we would call off our soldiers, and meet in the middle of the battlefield, far away from each of our camps. We were allowed to bring twelve of our guards, but no more than twelve.

I heard my father’s voice in my head- couldn’t be sure if it was real or imagined- telling me to not trust my brother. That he would use this to betray me. I don’t know if it was arrogance or loneliness, but I accepted to his terms and left for the battlefield.

As I walked out of the camp with my men, I thought about what I would say to him. Would we talk about our lives and how we ended up where we were? About our overbearing fathers, who viewed us as puppets instead of children? Or would we be like them and declare each other enemies and fight for an eternity? Whatever was fated to happen, I was determined to see it through.

When I reached the battlefield and saw him, a flush of memories hit me at once. I remembered my parents who loved and supported me, who I had tossed away immediately once I learned who I really was. Parents who might have been dead at this point. My simple life as a regular child, my friends who viewed me as an equal instead of their king. That world was gone now and replaced with blood and ash. And it was our fault.

I wanted to cry out to my brother and beg him to stop this war. We didn’t need to fight, we didn’t need to be our fathers’ sons. Instead of being mortal enemies, we could be brothers and bring back that world I had almost forgotten. Before I could say any of these things, I heard an explosion behind me.

I turned around with my men and saw my camp burning in flames. I felt the souls of my followers scream as they burned alive, their voices hitting me like a volley of arrows. Distracted by the screeching of my followers, I didn’t even notice the war cries of my guard. Fearlessly they charged at my brother and his men.

I didn’t see them fight, but once I heard their voices join the phantom choir, I knew that they had fallen as well. I made no resistance as I felt my brother’s knife plunge into my back.

After my death, I was greeted by a winged figure grinning cruelly at me. He called me “Prince” sarcastically and shoved me roughly down the stairs. It was so dark and I kept tripping over the steps, but the winged figure didn’t care. Their response was to kick me until I stood on my own and continued to walk down.

Mercifully, we reached the end of the stairs. There was a door, and I could see light spilling out from it. I was glad about leaving the darkness at first, but then my tormentor laughed. They opened the door, and I was blinded by a room filled with fire. Before I could shield my eyes, my tormentor threw me in and locked the door.

My soul is in constant pain from this fire, but this is still more bearable than their voices. My followers scream in their own prisons and ask how I could fail them, how I could betray their faith. As I’m trapped in this room, doomed to forever burn while hearing my followers curse me, my only solace lies in the fact that my father will one day join me when he loses the war. It’s about time father and son had a little chat.

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