#i have started rewatching it. becoming evil as we speak

[skrunksthatwunk]

god you know who has tbitch swag. this guy

[thiscoldheart]

some details that i loved in la chimera (spoiler heavy) :

i posted this on twitter as well but i wanted to include it here too. i love this little moment here where italia rests her head on arthur's shoulder and for a brief moment, he's anchored to the present by that touch, but him being the orpheus that he is, just HAD to turn back and find himself gravitating towards the tombs, the past and his eurydice.

the fact that italia's name is literally italy in italian and by the end of the movie she creates a community of her own where she's looking out for those that are outcasted by society, in an abandoned train station named riparbella which literally means "to start again".

arthur's eye always being blocked by shadow throughout the movie until he sees the light at the very end

according to wiki, the goddess the statue is based on is cybele, goddess of nature, animals, wild places and represents the "creative and destructive force of nature." her phrygian name matar (mother) alludes to the fact that she was a "mediator between the boundaries of the known and unknown, the civilized and the wild, the worlds of the living and the dead." i love that this goddess' presence in the movie symbolizes arthur traversing between the living and the dead worlds and getting closer to beniamina. i love that by the end of the movie, the statue itself becomes unknown to human eyes and returns to the wild, far away from civilization, which is arguably the same fate that arthur meets as he dies.

the red string that's following arthur around is very reminiscent of the red string ariadne gives theseus to find his way through the maze. it's beautiful how this red string seems to appear only in his dreams at first but slowly starts crossing the boundaries of dreams and reality as the movie goes on until he is able to tug at it by the end and cross over into beniamina's world.

arthur, at the beginning of the movie, says "so it's you. my last woman's face." how cool is it that beniamina's face resembles cybele's?

arthur goes back to flora's house after being injured and her daughter finds him in the bathroom. spooked, she says "i thought it was a ghost" which arthur might as well be considering how he's essentially been a walking corpse this entire movie.

also a special shout out from the bottom of my heart to the sped up sequences, didn't even realize how badly i needed them until i saw them. the chaos in these sequences is everything to me. this is REAL cinema!

in general, one of the themes that i've come to love about this movie is how objects can have different meanings to everyone. an object like the bell arthur found was just "a thing that rings" whereas italia interprets it as a gift until she comes to realize it's been excavated from a grave. the statue was part of a shrine back when it was made, but to the tombaroli and the sellers, this is only a means to make more money. the train station started off as a place that symbolizes movement of people from the city to the countryside but has now become a home for the outcasts of society. the apotropaic phallus would've have warded off evil and bad luck back in the day, but is now used as a means of escape from the law. a simple red string is the literal lifeline for arthur as he tries to find his way back to his lover.

also want to give another shout out to the inclusion of the italian troubadours (our greek chorus) who beautifully spell out the tragedy of our protagonist and his gang.

speaking of music, i really liked this particular song italia was singing as she was practicing. the lyrics go "i'd like to explain to you, o god/ where my suffering lies/ but fate condemns me to weep/ to weep" and that's exactly when arthur finds her crying son. at least italia finds a way for her suffering to end by the end of the movie. maybe we can say the same about arthur too?

i'll probably add more as i keep rewatching the movie lol and make a thread of this on twitter too (x) thanks for sticking around and let me know what other cool details y'all noticed!

[ailoveuu]

Hello, and welcome to a series that I would like to call "what does an anti have to say", in which I watch a bunch of anti-proship videos to see if they can turn me into an anti!

Today, we are going to be watching "An Ex Proshippers advice" by Loki ZeGaymer. I found this video through someone on here (tamarahtalkstv), so major thanks to them for even making their own post about this and inspiring this whole thing.

Will I stop being anti harassment? Will I give up on blocking content I don't like?? Am I going to stop shipping bad ships (even though I keep it to myself 9/10 and have only mentioned my comships twice on this account)??? Will this be my last post before deactivating???? Let's find out together!

An obvious disclaimer, because the fact that I have to say this fucking sucks: don't harass this person. Being proship is all about being anti harassment, and if you can't be a decent human being over fiction, you are the issue. We are all humans, treat each other as such.

One of the first things that becomes obvious right off the bat, that actually gives this video so much more credibility than most others, is that this person used to be a proshipper! This is a very common rhetorical device, known as ethos. Believe me, I hate ethos, pathos, and logos discussions, but they exist for a reason. The fact that this person used to be a proshipper is them saying that they have experience with such things and can understand what they're talking about, in a way. They say both in the video and in the caption that they used to be a proshipper, so if you'd actually want to see how antis think, this could be helpful since they've been on both sides.

Although, an odd thing that seemed to show right after is the story of how they became a proshipper. The claim that they got groomed into proshipping is a common one, and I'm not surprised. Believe it or not, fiction can be used to spread ideas and connect to vulnerable individuals. My initial issue with this is that this wording, that they were groomed into proshipping, acts like proshipping in general is what caused this. Any type of fiction, even "legal" fiction, can lead to this.

I've had people in their 20's say that if they were my age, they'd have a crush on me. We met through harmless roleplaying. I was in a toxic relationship with someone I met through roleplaying, who happened to be an anti. Off topic, but I'm starting to think that roleplaying is the issue...but you get my point. Any and all type of fiction can be used against people. I know that toxic ex of mine did use "legal" fiction against me, and that's just how it is. Fiction can be used for malicious purposes. Any and all types.

(Also, jfc their ex sounds awful. Idgaf that they were 16-17, wdym you groomed a 14 y/o while in an online cult??? Ik this is about proshipping, but I genuinely hope they've recovered from this. Again, I speak from experience, that ex deserves to go to hell and back - and I'm the least religious person on this planet.)

Now, I'm gonna paraphrase, bc I don't wanna rewatch the clips 6383 times in order to get the exact quote. At 3:03, their claim is that "I've been groomed by multiple people, all of whom were proshippers. This contradicts their claim that fiction doesn't affect reality." All I'm gonna say, is that people who think fiction DOESN'T affect reality are stupid.

I feel giddy when I read cute fanfiction, I cry over sad scenes, I use it to cope! Fiction is affecting my reality, because I have let it. Fiction is affecting my reality, but not on a 1:1 basis. I'm a huge horror fan, I've been like that since about 3rd/4th grade. By this logic though, I'm a mass murderer, abuser, cult leader, and overall the embodiment of evil. Last time I checked, I've never killed a person.

At 3:39, they begin to talk about getting doxxed. I'm starting to think this person is like, my long lost twin bc I also got doxxed a while back, but not for being a proshipper. Ironically enough, that is exactly why they got doxxed. I haven't moved on past this part, but I'm going to make a prediction: I'm hoping that they say that this was wrong, they nobody deserves this, and that this is something that antis shouldn't do no matter how wrong proshipping may be. Was I right? Well...

Uh they didn't mention it at all past that. They didn't like, say "that's wrong", but instead they mention that they got therapy, and thank goodness for that! Idc that they're an anti, getting groomed and doxxed is not something you go through and be completely fine after. They say that they got therapy specifically for the abuse and not for the comshipping, which I agree with, esp since my own therapist agrees that people do use comshipping as a way to cope.

4:12, and now we're moving onto the whole anti-harassment claim. Oh no.

I haven't moved past that as of writing this part, but I'm willing to bet that they're gonna say "you can't be anti harassment and a groomer" which I agree with. Although that's just common sense. I don't think that it'll be worded right though because that'll just continue that idea that ALL proshippers are groomers, which this video literally contracts because I have faith that this person wasn't a groomer ever, esp not as a proshipper.

"They claim to be anti harassment while invalidating my trauma and misgendering my best friend." So that's a false claim and does not represent every proshipper...many proshippers are trans and use comshipping to cope with their trauma. If they're doing this while doing what you've claimed them to be doing then they'd be hypocritical. I am very lucky to have not experienced that myself, and I've never seen a proshipper harass anybody, but I don't doubt they exist.

"Even if someone is a proshipper, you shouldn't be harassing them; especially if they're a minor" common sense we love to see it <3

"Just stop and seek some help. It's not that hard to seek therapy." but for some it IS HARD. The fact that I can go to therapy and get treated for my anxiety is a privilege that so many do not have. Do NOT act like therapy is so easily accessible. For many, it is not. They said the same thing at the end for adults as well...

We don't blame horror movie directors for people being inspired by their movies to commit murder. Why is it a proshippers fault when someone thinks pedophilia and incest is okay? I know many people who write and create that type of content will explicitly state that they're against it irl.

So, that's just a bunch of yapping... what's my actual thoughts on this?

In my opinion, while this person is very, very brave for sharing their story, and I can only hope that they've managed to recover from everything that happened, I cannot help but disagree. A singular story is not going to convince many people that they're in the wrong, especially when the video was marketed as "advice" and the only thing said was "get help".

In the beginning, they said they didn't know they were a proshipper, which explains why they're even using the term proship in the first place! Proship is "don't like don't read" and being anti harassment. What they're discussing is comshipping, and not every comship is bad. It could literally just be mortal x immortal. Yup, that's a comship!

tldr: i was not convinced. this person was respectful, and I'm very glad, however I do not agree with this opinion. this video seems like it was made for antis rather than existing proshippers, as their advice was lackluster. I rate it a 4/10, and I am still a proshipper.

[fantasygerard2000]

Reworking Wish

I know this was already said, but the main gripe people have towards Wish is that the potential was there, it just didn't put on the right amount of effort. A criticism that took me long to agree with after sifting through Starboy simping, Magnifico sandals smooching and parasocial hatred towards the house of mouse.

So, after rewatching Wish for like the tenth time or something, I dunno I lost count, I decided to write down some things in the film that needed improvement. This is going to be taking the film as it is and giving it that little push it needed, more time in the oven to bake.

Also, a side tangent I wanna bring up before we move on. I don't like to use the word "fix" especially since it's associated with some people taking a work and reworking it to suit THEIR tastes and preferences, often without permission and out of spite.

Okay, let's proceed.

The film starts with the shot of the book opening and a narrator explaining the story. A classic Disney staple. The narrator "reads" us the creation of Rosas by Magnifico. However, the opening narration emphasizes too much on Magnifico. I get the intent that this is a form of propaganda he made to get parents to tell stories to their kids about him, but this comes with a caveat regarding his backstory that I will explain later.

So, either you have a different person narrating the opening scene like how in the classic Disney movies do instead of Asha. Or have Asha narrating to Sabino told through hand drawn illustrations she drew about how he and his family came to the kingdom of Rosas, visually through hand drawn animation.

Have the rest of the scene play out but major difference here. Instead of Asha applying to become Magnifico's apprentice, she was recommended the job by Amaya. An issue of show-don't-tell is present as Amaya explains how kind and generous Asha is, but is never shown. Have Asha welcome the tourists but the child is too scared to leave the boat, so Asha sing to them about how wonderful the kingdom is to make the child feel better while also helping the townsfolk on the way in her unique way, reminiscent of Mulan during Honor to Us All. Have Amaya watch Asha guide the tourists on a balcony through a window like the Evil Queen if you like to add a nod to Snow White as well subverting the trope to show that she's a good queen.

A detail I like in the film is that instead of having a servant inform Asha that she's ready for the interview, Amaya herself came to the kitchen to inform her herself.

As for the apprenticeship thing, I like to spice things up by having Tomas, Asha's father once worked for Magnifico who he considers a close friend before retiring once Sakina was pregnant with Asha. Amaya, being more close to her people than Magnifico, knew that Asha is Tomas' daughter and seeing how she's takes after him, recommended her husband to have Asha work as an apprentice.

So, Asha, nervous about becoming an apprentice to her father's former boss/friend/like-a-brother cuz why not make an evil uncle figure. The scene plays the same but little emphasis on Tomas. As well as a "he betrayed me" rant from Magnifico later on.

The At All Costs sequence remains the same and the argument afterwards also kept intact. Additional dialogue has Asha mentioning how her father would have told Magnifico the same but he quickly dismisses her.

The argument scene be tweaked with Sabino still hopeful about his wish being granted next year, making the news that Magnifico will never grant his more hurtful for Asha.

The filmmakers' intent for the animals is that they know much about the universe than humans but considering they can't talk, humans just think they're dumb. I'm a Star plays out the same but additional dialogue is given before the song plays, with the animals explaining to Asha that Star can't speak to answer her questions but they can in song form.

The scenes afterwards remains up to This is the Thanks I Get!? I like to add in minor details earlier like Magnifico checking his reflection during the interview as he "listens" to Asha, subtly showing his narcissism and his ties to mirrors.

Also in the interview scene, he mentions about his old home being destroyed by greedy thieves. This was the caveat I mentioned earlier and how his backstory despite being offhandedly mentioned a few times made him too sympathetic for the simps to defend his nonexistent lack of honor. Either we cut out the "tragic" his backstory and simply have him studying magic and the masses praise him so much that he has enough influence to make his own kingdom.

Once Asha returns Sabino's wish to him, have the unused scene above be kept. An issue with the film is that despite Sabino being the main drive for the plot, he barely appears in it enough for viewers to care. So the scene where he can finally be able to play his lute serves as this.

Magnifico arriving at the cottage to arrest Asha plays the same. Additional dialogue has Magnifico informing Asha and the viewer someone close to her who knows of Star ratted her out. After escaping Magnifico, have him burn the cottage if you like more villainy.

The scene after play out the same with some minor tweaks. The teens have a secret hideout, a cave with the entrance be under a tree, a nod the dwarfs and the lost boys. Asha doesn't know the hideout initially but Dahlia has left a clue for her in a form of a hardened cookie, a nod to Esmerelda leaving Quasimodo a clue to find where the Romani are hiding from Frollo. Amaya discovers the hideout by following Asha.

Instead of just books, Star uses the furniture the lift the teens up to the pulleys. Another scene has Amaya and Dahlia destroy the book in hopes of no one using it again. A major change is to have the book inform the reader that the more the person uses dark magic, the corrupt they become instead of committing once they commit to eternity, which I understand sounds like a lazy excuse to not redeem Magnifico.

Have most of the guards go after Asha who thought they were being led by Magnifico but was actually Simon. Have the animals attack the guards and Simon like in Tarzan and Beauty and the Beast.

When Magnifico blasts Amaya, she gets knocked out and drops her crown. To show his people he was the real traitor and make the crowd and remaining guards turn on him before he quickly overpowers them.

Have the climax be given additional dialogue and show Magnifico treating the wishes badly once he had Star.

Give a few moments to the scene where Asha remembers the "we are stars" message. Have her look at the her and her father's wishing tree and a moment of reflection before she starts singing.

After Magnifico's defeat, have the scene play out the same but with additional dialogue from Amaya towards Magnifico. Additional dialogue from Sakina reveal Asha her wish.

Once she takes after Magnifico's place as ruler, Amaya wears a more colorful dress, particularly a red colored tone down version of her original dress, showing she's a more competent ruler than Magnifico as well being tied to the rose, the symbol of Rosas.

After the brief timeskip, Asha wears a different dress than her previous one that gets sparkly once Star made her a fairy godmother, justifying the Cinderella reference without too being on the nose.

As for other stuff like the songs, they're fine. Just need a few lines change to sound less awkward.

The animation is fine too, though a lower frame rate like in the clip below would've suffice. And yeah, people will accused Disney for copying Spider-verse, but honestly I don't care since they'll accuse Disney of anything bad, even if they included the stuff they wanted.

And that's all what I can think of to "improve" Wish.

As much as I like this movie, I do understand why most people don't to the point of "fixing" it. However, fixing it isn't to add a love interest or a villain couple, it's to figure out what works and doesn't. Which is why as much as I have my own version of Star that is very loosely based after the Starboy concept, I didn't added them in it because it'd be unnecessary and distracting.

Wish's flaws are the intentions that were there and obvious, but the way they were executed was lacking. Hence why some of the "improvements" are what the filmmakers intended but given a tweak. Even stuff I added like Tomas being Magnifico's former best friend and apprentice are things the can be better if executed properly or not.

My general thoughts on the rewrite fandom is that some do have the right idea but just have the wrong priorities.

And as much as I wrote down changes to Wish that could may have and have not improved it, I don't want to be praised for it because they general attitude of "this is better than X" has left a sour mark on my thoughts towards the vocal minority in animation fandom or any fandoms.

[angelfirstclass]

Magneto: A Villain playing Dressup or Reformed Tortured Soul?

This is going to be hard one for me because I don't want to be too negative about Magneto because I think in X-men 97 he isn't the villain, but upon rewatching the show I think this question is viable. I may be accused of being a Romy shipper and Charles apologist, but I'm not really. I like Magneto in the show and he says some of the best lines in the show. But sometimes he says and does things that are kind of assholey am I right?

To start off with, the way that he introduces himself and announces that he's the heir to Xavier's mansion and the X-men. Did he really have to barge into Xavier's office and confront the team as they were bonding together playing basketball? He is so smug in that scene which is something I like about Magneto, his Alpha male strength and directness. It's hot and works when I'm writing Magneto fan fiction, but it is a tad presumptuous. His first reactions from everyone on the team is anger and suspicion and then he wonders why he's not getting a warm reception. He could have been normal and called or rang the doorbell or something, but it wouldn't have been as dramatic or as Magneto to come barging in.

The way that he says My X-men at the end of episode 1 is kind of smug and sinister is not? Maybe it's just the writers wanting tension out of that moment and having the readers shocked by Magneto, a known X-enemy inheriting everything, because at that moment we don't know if Magneto is going to be a good leader or not.

Then we see Magneto in action and he's playing the good guy. He saves a child from a busted ride and the Morlocks from the Friends of Humanity. It is shocking to the X-men but also shocking to humankind because of Magneto's past crimes. He enters leading the X-men tamping down his evil past and his more destructive methods of getting back at anti-mutant groups, but he is still Magneto with all his arrogance and his confidence and his strength of belief in himself.

Something that I actually love is the line that he toes the line between trying to be a good X-man and his feelings about humanity. He has seen so much that he is formed by those traumas and pain which cannot be so easily let go of. When he talks of not harming the Friends of Humanity members, the sneer when he says "sapiens" is pure gold. This Magneto is a tempered Magneto and we have to appreciate how far he's come. If it wasn't for his love of Charles Xavier he would be 1000 times worse.

It could be argued that other people might have made better leaders of the X-men, but for this season's storyline having Magneto play the leader was brilliant. He was just enough of an asshole to make the whole thing interesting and made the twist at the end more believable because he never really lost himself completely. You saw moments of him being potentially selfish, arrogant, cruel throughout the season which made him an interesting, complex character.

"My intentions here was not to cause drama or discord." Lol! Says the man in the cape and big M on his costume and the one who barged into the mansion without notice. Yeah, sure, Jan. He yielded to the UN, but not until after he proves how powerful he could be. A note to point out his that Wolverine talks about people being upset over all the things Magneto has done and "can't say I blame them" for being upset and I take this seriously. So currently he's trying to reform, but in this universe and timeline, Magneto has done some awful things.

The trial scene is really amazing. There are some great lines in it. The speech is probably the most compelling reason to want to trust Magneto. He is a great public speaker and he speaks of his past, how the oppressed become oppressors and that loving or being different will cause you to be punished. He is speaking Xavier's words and attempting to walk his past, but he must also acknowledge his past and the consequences of them. This is where I get confused or conflicted as I don't know if Magneto went too far or just enough or is justified or crazy. I don't know and I don't think it's something that the writers even know- like that is the crux of the show itself.

His sardonic wit is the best! "Oh to play by the rules and still they come for you." Yes. It's all going sideways and Magneto is not panicked in the least. He may be a lot of things, but dumb is not one of them. He saw this all coming and knew it was a matter of time that the extremists broke through and the judges would be deemed traitors of the race. It's like a part of him wanted things to get extreme, so the X-men would get to be on his side and see that humanity is not to be trusted and making nice doesn't work.

When asks if this is the high roads destination and essentially kidnaps all the judges, viewers are justified in thinking he might have snapped and gone back to his evil ways. We are surprised to see that he is walking Xavier's path and applaud him for that. He eventually lets the people go and asks them to not let him let them down and that's so poignant because we see just in episode 2 what Magneto is capable of and what he could do if he wasn't walking Xavier's path.

Magneto did a pretty good job of leading the team from episode 3 to 5, he is concerned about Jean, Scott, and Nathan and coordinates the team. He fights clone Jean or Madelyn and she taunts him with the line about a villain playing dress up as a hero. I think that line is so apt with Magneto because I think that his character arc is at the heart of the storyline. I wrote once saying that his relationship with Xavier was the thesis of the story and I also believe that Magneto's belief of Xavier's ideals and his own is also a pivotal part of the story. Madelyn had the power to delve into the psyche of each mutant and find their weak spots, so it proves here that Erik is self conscious of seeming to play the hero and most likely doubts his own commitment to Xavier's cause.

Then we go to Genosha in episode 5, where Magneto is king, literally. There are posters and statues of him everywhere and this all was his dream. Magneto is a savvy politician and understands making grand speeches or doing publicity stunts. Even other mutants at Genosha understand that he is the handsome face of Mutant kind and especially after joining the X-men and following moderation is liked by moderate mutants as well as humans. Even when he speaks to the group, he acknowledges that this was all Charles' dream and he didn't believe that it would happen. He is asked to be king and then he asks Rogue to be his queen. Episode 5, I think is tragically the peak of when Erik is believing Xavier's dream and thinking that peace is possible and happiness is possible for him as well. He is letting down his guard, accepting the King position, declaring his love for Rogue, trying to walk Xavier's path, be a good X-man, and etc. We know what happens next tragically however.

Everything he believed gets snatched and beaten out of him in Genosha. He tried to walk Xavier's path and it did not work out for him. He was already scarred, but this time was too much. He was kidnapped, tortured, and saw many deaths. He was already toeing the line before and felt justified in a way for committing crimes and atrocities and Genosha set him back to that way of thinking.

When we see him later, trying to persuade X-men to join him, EMPing the planet, attacking members of the X-men trying to stop him, he is traumatized and reacting poorly to Genosha. I don't justify his behavior, but I understand it. This is an Omega level mutant that has a track history of hurting humans for hurting mutants, so when a massacre hits it is not surprising that the mutant in question flexes his powers and gets angry.

What I don't know and am still on the fence about is how dedicated he truly was to Xavier's cause. Was he really a believer and dedicated to being a X-man or did it just take one incident for him to return to his ways? Also, how far is too far? Who is allowed to seek revenge or retribution? And to what extent? It is these questions that I think are so fascinating and I'm glad I don't know. These questions about Magneto are what made the show so interesting and complex and wants to make me see Season 2.

[katherynefromphilly]

Are you still doing the DVD commentary ask thing? This is one of my favorite scenes from the story, I've always loved how it acknowledged that Arthur really loved Gwen but there was always something between Arthur and Merlin. But I wanted to hear what you were thinking when you wrote it.

Scene:

“As I said, a battle wound,” Arthur told him.  “It needs time to heal.  Though even when it does, I’m certain I’ll still awaken some mornings expecting Sir Leon to burst into the room with word of an attack. Or one of my Counsel to be waiting for an audience.  Or for Guinevere to be here in…”

Merlin flinched before he could catch himself.

Arthur noticed.  He began to speak, then hesitated, uncertain.

“You expect Gwen to be here instead of me,” Merlin said, so that Arthur knew he still had a friend to confide in about such things, no matter what the two of them had become to each other.

“Yes,” Arthur said softly.

“Of course you do,” Merlin assured him, ignoring how strange he felt to speak of this while Arthur was stretched out half naked at his side in the royal bed.  “Gwen was your wife, sire.  Your queen.  I’d-“  He swallowed, forced a smile.  “I’d never think of trying to take her place.  I know I never could.”

Arthur smiled at him, a small thing in the dim daylight that still set a sparkle to his blue eyes. “No, you couldn’t,” he said.  “Just as Guinevere never could take yours.”

“As… your servant?”

“No, Merlin,” he drawled out, putting overtones of ‘idiot’ into his name.  “Not as my servant.”

“Well what, then?”

Arthur pushed himself up to an elbow, his blond hair mussed and his cheeks pink with the heat of their bed.  “I did love Guinevere.  As much as I knew how at the time.  But you…”

“Me… what?”

Arthur touched Merlin’s face, fingertips sliding down his cheek before tracing his lips.  First the top, and then the bottom, and then the top again, all the while watching his own fingers with a wistful smile.  “I remember staring at your mouth.  From that first day we met.   I remember telling myself it was because you had the pretty lips of a girl.”

“I do not have the pretty lips of a girl-”

“You have seen your lips, haven’t you.”

“You’re one to talk.  Your mouth is-“

Arthur silenced him with a kiss, right where his fingers had been, before resuming his soft touches.  “Do you remember what you said our first night together?”

It was difficult to remember anything at all with Arthur touching him as if he were something precious and rare, whispering as if sharing a secret.  “I… No?”

“You said that in hindsight, it was obvious how you felt about me.  You just didn’t recognize it for what it was at the time.”

“You mean… you…”

“Yes.”

“Even then?”

“Even then,” Arthur said.  “So you see, right from the very start, before any of it, before all of it, your place was here.  In my life.  In my heart.  In my bed.   I’ll not hear of you doubting that.  Not even for a moment.  Do you understand?”

I’d be happy to talk about this scene. :)

Because I like to write in canon, I needed to keep Arthur’s love for Gwen in tact. In Season 5, Gwen’s character representation is all over the place (don’t get me started on the whole Evil Gwen thing), but in Diamond of the Day especially, which I rewatched A LOT, Gwen was smart, brave, and Arthur clearly loved her and respected her with all of his heart.

Merlin’s friendship with Gwen was really downplayed in Season 5, which sucked, but fundamentally she cared for Merlin, and he did for her as well. I also wanted to respect that in my story, especially because it added a nice layer of internal conflict and guilt for Merlin at taking her place.

So in this scene, we have Merlin and Arthur laying naked together in Arthur’s actual bed from Camelot, after they’ve just had sex the first time. As I wrote them finally talking to each other about how they felt, I could feel Gwen’s presence with them.

I wrote the little exchange between the two of them to give Gwen her place as friend and wife and queen to Arthur, and to also settle Merlin’s insecurities about who he is in Arthur’s life. I also wanted to show that Arthur has been doing some reflecting on his life back in Camelot (through his new understanding of his own sexuality), and acknowledge that he actually was attracted to Merlin all that time, only didn’t realize it, just as Merlin hadn’t either.

There are a lot of stories out there with a lot of different takes on Arthur and Gwen. I’ve read a bunch of them, but of them all, the one that I think influenced me the most — and influenced the different way I see Arthur loving Gwen and Arthur loving Merlin — is probably “Lights Go Out, Here I Go Again” by halffizzbin. Just take a look at this beautiful passage from that story:

“Arthur loved Gwen in his other life, of course, with as much of himself as he possibly could—and that was enough, at the time. He misses her, a gentle ache in his heart that eases a little when he thinks about the long life he’s told that she lived when he was gone, ruling well in his absence and surrounded by loyal friends. He’ll love Gwen forever, probably, but.

Merlin is something else. Merlin has always been more than forever (something they’ve already proven by sitting across from each other eating curry right now). Merlin is sunlight and flame and clear, rushing water, too much for Arthur to control and never enough to quench him, and maybe it took Arthur dying for him to realize it but oh, he wants. He wants things he never realized he could have, before, when his life was all planned out for him and his servant still seemed like this wild, unknowable thing even after all those years, beloved and strange and always slipping out of Arthur’s grasp.”

DAMN I love that last bit in purple. If you want a good read, hit the link up above. It’s short and sweet and rated Explicit. Still one of my all time faves.

[lord-aldhelm]

Why Aldhelm in Season 2 was the GOAT

An essay by Lord-Aldhelm

Y'all... I wasn't going to post this but I guess I will now haahaa! Thanks to that convo with @errruvande @bilbotargaryen that convinced me to post this rant.

I kind of talked about this before in previous posts but I wanted to kind of gather all my thoughts into one place and make a post about this.

These are my thought on the character so you are forewarned. Read below if you really want to.....

So I have seen *a lot* of people say that they didn't like Aldhelm in season 2, but the character grew on them and he went from one they hated to one of their beloved characters. And that is great! He really did experience a hell of a character arc and grew a lot.

But I don't believe Aldhelm was ever a villain. I know in the books he was one, and did some truly horrific things. But Show!Aldhelm is a completely different character, and even though Season 2 was supposed to follow the books pretty closely, he still was changed a lot. I won't go into any details for those of you who haven't read the books, but it will be obvious he is a completely different character.

So, I never clocked Aldhelm as a bad guy, even in Season 2. He never gave me any bad vibes, even on my first watch-through. It is easy for me to say this now since I love him to pieces, but I can honestly say that even when he was new to me, I never thought of him as a bad guy. Sure he *seemed* to be, but him making a bunch of silly faces doesn't make him a villain. He looked like a scheming sycophant, and was overshadowed by Aethelred. I honestly did not think much of his character until Season 3 when he started to blossom in his own right and really started to become someone who I fell in love with. But after rewatching Season 2 so many times, I have really come to appreciate him as an interesting character with his own depth.

1. Aldhelm is actually in charge

In rewatching Season 2, I noticed that Aldhelm was the one who did all of the talking for Aethelred, while Aethelred just stood there silently and let him do it. It was always Aldhelm who addressed King Alfred, it was Aldhelm who spoke to Lord Odda and to Aethelwold when there was a conflict. And when Aethelred was knocked out cold, it was Aldhelm who led the negotiations with the Thurgilson brothers. He really was ruling with Aethelred was making an ass out of himself, being a deviant, and getting everyone into trouble with his stupid decisions. What king would allow his advisor to do all the talking for him while he stands there without a word? It is so weird. But if he didn't, nothing would get done otherwise.

Additionally, Aldhelm had to clean up his mess and do it with grace. He was basically like "OK this is how we get out of this and not look like fools." Which comes across as scheming and manipulative, and perhaps it is. But Aethelred was totally incompetent, and someone had to get shit done. What I think goes over a lot of people's heads about their "relationship" is that Aldhelm was Aethelred's sworn oathman. In those days, and in the Saxon culture (also other Germanic cultures at the time), your word was legally binding. It was taken seriously, and you could not break it. The cost of treason was death, and if Aldhelm had defied Aethelred, he could he executed. Which amazes me just how sassy and outspoken Aldhelm was in Season 2 especially. He was *not afraid* to speak his mind, to Aethelred or anyone else, and clearly was not afraid of consequences. This speaks volumes to how poor of a leader Aethelred was, too.

2. Aldhelm didn't really do anything wrong

This is kind of subjective but hear me out. Aldhelm literally did not do anything wrong in Season 2. There were two events that people like to point out as examples of him being "evil" or whatever, but I see it differently.

2a. Wanting to take over Wessex

Aldhelm to Aethelred, 2.06

Everything Aldhelm did, he did for Mercia. During his lifetime, he had borne witness to the Great Heathen Army invading Mercia, seeing King Burgred expelled by the Danes, the Danes installing their own puppet king with Ceowulf, the eastern half of Mercia ceded into Danelaw, and Mercia losing its sovereignty to King Alfred, who made Mercia a vassal state of Wessex. Mercia was crumbling under weak and ineffective leaders, first being lost to the Danes from the north and the Saxons to the south. He had enough.

It is hardly wrong for him to want Mercia to have its own independent king once more. And it is not wrong for him to want to take over Wessex. He didn't even suggest killing Alfred outright, just waiting for him to pass on his own accord, either from illness or injury, and then using that opportunity to take over while Wessex was weak. It is EXACTLY what King Alfred did to Mercia when King Ceolwulf died. Two countries under one king; at this point it didn't matter if it was the Wessex king or the Mercian one. The only flaw in Aldhelm's plan was that he backed the wrong horse; Aethelred was just as weak and ineffective as the kings who came before him.

It is sad to me that Aldhelm is cast as a villain for literally wanting the same thing that Alfred did.

2b. Dealing with Aethelflaed's Abduction

"My advice to you, Lord, is to rescue her by all means. But not at a price that will cut our throats" Aldhelm to Aethelred, 2.07

Aethelflaed has been abducted by the Thurgilson brothers. They will demand a huge ransom for her release; and in fact even if they get the gold and silver they demand there is not guarantee that they will release her. But even if they do, by giving into their demands, the Mercians and Saxons seal their fate, funding the very warlords that will turn around and destroy them. It is not a smart move.

Lord Odda had suggested to King Alfred that Aethelflaed allow herself to be martyred to save the kingdom from such a fate. What Aldhelm suggests is literally the same thing. "We will try our best to rescue her, but we cannot allow Mercia to be destroyed just to rescue one person." It is sensible advice, in my opinion, even if it comes across as callous.

It was Aethelred's stupidity that caused her to be captured in the first place. Aldhelm even said as much.

One has to wonder if Aldhelm tried to talk him out of bringing Aethelflaed to the campsite and he refused to listen. "It is a choice, lord, between appearing lovesick or foolish." No matter what, Aethelred will look bad in this situation. Aldhelm tried to do some damage control by shifting the blame to Uhtred. The only thing he really did "wrong" here was using a bad situation to try to be in their favor, by hoping that Alfred would blame Uhtred for Aethelflaed's abduction and thus removing his strongest warrior from the picture. Of course that didn't work. And it was a good thing too because it was Uhtred and Odda who ended up saving her without the need to spend all the gold and silver in Saxon England.

[bozoswozo]

Just finished rewatching Death Note, and though it’s completely for my personal pleasure and I would doubt if anyone would read it from start to finish, it’s rant time! *spoilers alert*

First of all, woah. The second watch was truly an experience. Everyone is always talking about ‘I wish I could rewatch … for the first time again.’ and though I’d usually agree, I don’t for Death Note specifically. I don’t really understand why, but in my second watch had a way bigger impact on me than my first. Maybe because I watched it for the first time 4 years ago and I’ve grown now, with different opinions.

ONE THING THAT DIDN’T CHANGE IS MY DISLIKE TOWARDS LIGHT‼️

This being said, the ending where he tried to run away from the police, wounded, made me feel kind of sad for him. He wanted to do good, sure. But after all, anyone who uses bad to solve bad is as bad as the bad they’re trying to solve. Evil cannot be used to fight evil :P

I understand his point of view (somewhat) but I still dislike him. How are you going to watch this man commit genocide, lead his father to his death and feel no remorse, consider killing his sister to save himself (again, no remorse), lead on the angel that is Misa in a cruel way, kill L and Mello (their deaths are enough for me to dislike him but I needed to give more reasons :3) etc etc and still root for him?

Again, no shade to Light lovers. To each their own :P.

Moving on. When I first watched Dn, I was only attached to L. And so, seeing him get killed off and be replaced by Near sparked in me a deep hatred towards that boy. But maturing is realising that Near is the third best character in the show (Right after L and Mello) and that he’s a cutie pie.

And he’s also extremely smart. Correct me if I’m wrong but before L died, he mentionned that if something were to happen to Watari, that he’d erase all the data. That means that Near had none of the informations that L had collected during his investigation.

That also means that he was able to conduct those researches by

1. Not having Light around to examine his attitude or lock him up illegaly

2. No knowledge of what had happened before L’s death

3. He was nowhere near as experienced as L when it came to solving cases (I think…)

He still was able to arrive to the same conclusion as L though, as he mentioned, it wouldn’t have been possible without Mello :)

I also happened to think about Ryuk a lot more and I think he’s the funniest character. My guy dropped his notebook into the human world because he was bored and he landed on a boy who wanted to become God of the new world. And he just went along with it, giggling every now and then. We never truly got a glimpse of his internal monologue, so we don’t know if he agreed with Light or not.

One thing we know, though, is that he sure was amused…

Light is almost as funny. Think about it. If you got a notebook that could kill people, you’d probably get rid of it (I hope so) or AT LEAST ponder on what you would do with it, or if you’d even use it. If you’re a sane human being, your first instinct would be to ‘No way! I could never kill anyone!’.

But Light wasted no time. In only one episode he went from a privileged, smart man to an absolute deranged killer, and that’s hilarious. He didn’t even think about it twice. It’s like he just had a psychotic side to him that just had to wait for the perfect moment to be released.

Also, I knew Matt didn’t have much screen time. But when I rewatched it I noticed that he really DID NOT HAVE ANY! Like they barely add up to thrirty seconds and that sucks cuz he was so cool.

Speaking of cool, MELLO!

He’s so cool like everything about him, his hair his scar HIS STYLE, his aura EVERYTHING. AND I feel like we tend to forget that he is SMART! Like he is smart enough to have been considered a good successor to L and thats crazy to me. It’s sad we didn’t get to fully experience his smartness though.

Same goes for Near. Though it is stated somewhere (I don’t remember where) that he is a little bit smarter than L (but L has a lot more experience, something that cannot be overlooked), I feel like most of the conclusions he’s made appeared from thin air. Did I just not pay attention?

Because at least with L we could see his train of thoughts, his way of thinking and we understood why he came to all those conclusions and decisions.

But with Near it just feels…rushed. (or maybe I js didn’t pay attention…) Like wdym you found that out…It feels like he was more guessing than discovering. Kinda sucks bc he is allegedly smarter than L and I would’ve loved to see it more.

Anyway,

I finished ranting. If you’ve read all this then woah pls get a life (in a nice way <3) .

Death Note amazing anime, amazing openings, amazing aesthetic, amazing characters, AMAZING EVERYTHING‼️

[latibulater]

The Venture Bros Rewatch notes: Careers in Science

gonna start a new reblog chain every two episodes so they dont become too long. this one is a doozy to me. SO much of s7 is scraped from this one episode

I can't stop imaging the implications of Venture Industries going from being a fairly sized cutting-edge company that had over 2000 employees just on the Gargantua 1 (so way more on earth), to having absolutely zero staff and their main HQ building in NY closing (to become the impossible building (and then impossible industries crashing when he goes evil (and tHEN VENTECH CRASHING [literally!!!] after JJ dies (i just think that scraper is cursed))))

I love how Brock is in sweats and a beanie. He saw those dorky spacesuits and said absolutely fucking not

Also, the opening conversation between Brock and Baldavich is SO funnnnnnny. This woman hasn't had sex in 6 years at least and is getting off on guiding a rocket into a space station.

okay i dont care about bud as a character but he'd be a great inciting incident imagine if he had interpreted the Morse and opened the machine and saw Jonas - and THAT was why Rusty and Brock were called up to the Gargantua 1 during this episode

we know Bud was the paperboy on Gargantua 1, so he has essentially been on that space station since Jonas died, for the past twenty whole years. Not straight, literally, but still, jesus. Mentally at least. I'm actually surprised he wasn't able to remember Morse code and decipher the blinks of the Problem Machine. i imagine it was incredibly traumatic and that why he hasn't led a life in any other way, he's still a paperboy twenty years later.

Bud thinking Brock is dr. venture is hilarious it reminds me of fullmetal alchemist. if we want to be gay, he COULD

what is WITH brock's shorts over his sweatpants wtf on earth. so superman

Doc never even took the pills before he hit his head on the console after the gravity was turned back on. i TRULY think he was talking to Jonas' consciousness. the conversation between them is so funny. "youre a hallucination" "fine maybe. but even if im a hallucination im still your dad. what did you do to my space station"

the way hank and dean get so mad and upset when they think doc is dead its actually very touching and sad when you think about how at this point theyre still being endlessly cloned

"you were just flipping switch. think! cmon tiny wonder, you helped me build this thing." "i was just a kid i just wanted to play cowboys and indians, who lets a ten year old help build a space station anyways!"

hank and dean thinking brock is wrestling the phantom space man, and then fucking the phantom space man, they just took it on the chin and assumed immediately Brock would have sex with a man

"oh rusty you don't need diet pills, you just need to figure some things out. remember lad, the solution was in you all the time." either rusty is hallucinating jonas saying that or the man's bodiless head really is trying to encourage his son.

either way it speaks a lot to their relationship. i feel like verbally jonas was very upbeat and forceful optimism, and it was his actions endangering rusty and lack of emotional care that really traumatized rusty as a child

"he has a huge mushroom, does he have a smurf living in it!" i laughed

"you already took it! in the lap! from...not! me!" laughed so much

rusty's childhood toys gunking up the gargantua 1 console. there is a metaphor living in here somewhere

the way bud talks is so old fashioned even for the show. he's got to be the same age as rusty yet he talks like professor impossible or even more anachronistically. maybe baldavich has only been there for 6 years, but bud has been manning the station for multiple tours on end and has only old media to entertain himself with

i love the little zhu-zhu-zhu-zhu-zhuuuuu music its only in the very early episodes

"oh man whats it like being a giant liar"

the suit pee dripping....SO GROSS yet as an animator lover i appreciate it

overall i really do love this episode. first one without racism, thank god above. the joke of baldavich being super ugly is lame, but its tamer than in its always sunny in philadelphia with the way dee is treated like a bird.

i seriously am trying to wrap my head around what it would be like if jonas had actually been recovered in season one. so much character development not done, so much just hasn't happened yet would it even matter? would it be better for jonas jr to be born after jonas comes back to life or after?

tiny bit off track, but i keep picturing an alternate universe where rusty and jj are born at the same time and jonas is still disabled but more interested in science but stuck at home whereas rusty is terrified but able bodied and expected to follow their father everywhere. rusty being a big brother.........

[coredrill]

this post is not abt bravern but it Is abt my Bravern Feelings

i miss this show so much already SOBS. i did enlist another g roup of irl friends to watch it w me though and we are starting tomorrow so yay :] and also beware the rewatch posts

[guy who has said that i'm glad i watched this live every week voice] i'm rly glad i watched this live, but this time its bc. i think there is something so truly and genuinely special abt the way that the theories abt bravern himself evolved week to week.........like at first everyone was like Well maybe he's an evil alien who is gonna Kill isami. and then everyone was like Well maybe he's a death drive and isami is his lulu. and THEN everyone was like Well there's still some knuth in there so. but none of that was the case!!! none of that was true!!! it was literally just this one guy and all of the love he has and Absolutely Sucks Shit at expressing!!!!!!! and i just. idk. that hits me rly hard that maybe it was percieved as sinister at first just cause it was a little Off but in the end it was something really really sweet :] it also just feels like yet another way of the show doing its "we know audiences aren't willing to accept optimism at face value these days" schtick like they mentioned in that one interview and just. showing how bravern himself evolves in the eyes of the viewer. it's rly special to me :]

i know bravern speaking german in ep2 was a nod to the translator he uses on superbia later but. what if someone loved you so much they became german (if i ever mention kyouji again in a bravern context just fucking shoot me)

WILD to watch the finale and then see the isami hate train take off FKSJDHFJ cause i feel like i adored him so much in that ep LMAO. my guy really felt every emotion known to man in the span of 22 minutes and then started makin gup new ones. he's very human!!! and i love that abt him!!!!

although some takes. i'm ngl. i know we joke abt subtext and cowards but it becomes less funny when the subtext that is there is missed LMAO

sorry to keep bringing up ep4 but i think its SO interesting how like. the way that bravern seems to helps isami out emotionally in that ep actually ends up not helping him in the long run aswell? like getting to know all those ppl care abt him is good ofc but it also feeds Directly into his hangups in ep5. and i remember being a little confused as to Why that was the case on first watch cause ep4 was So abt his beef w lulu (FLSDKJFH) but w the smith being a human again thing in the end it makes. so much more sense!!!!! i can't wait to rewatch the show w it still fresh in my mind and find even more!!!!!!

and omg the beef with lulu. literally nothing is funnier to me than "we are gonna have one Rival Fight in this show and that position is gonna be filled by isami and smith's fucking KID" SOBS. LIKE. it kills me FKSLDJFHL. though i will say again that i think it is So fucking special that in ep10 lulu specifically calls out isami taking care of her after smith dies and it apparently happens to such a degree that like. he is worth her time traveling back to save independently aswell? even though there was no way that he "took care of her" for more than a couple days? which i think just says so much abt isami in the sense that like. at no point before ep6-7ish in his arc would he have even entertained that idea. uwu

i think i said this before but ikd if i included the screenshot but. the fact that while bravern is dying he sees THAT SAME FUCKING PICTURE is just evidence that men do not take enough photos i think

there is literally Nothing more onbrand for bravern than the fucking. "ep13 abema listing" (if anyone who has not heard abt that sees this. it was just a rebroadcast of ep12 mislabeled) sending everyone into a tizzy regarding like. Secret Episode Question Mark except half of everyone being convinced its an april fools joke and the other half being convinced that the april fools joke is that we didn't expect it. and then it turns out to not be interntional atall and the real april fools joke is Fry Pan. SOBS

Crunchyroll I Am Begging You If You Dub This Please Dub The Songs Too Oh My God (<- delusional)

anyways!!!!!!!!!!! again i know recency bias is the killa but god. i really loved this show a lot!!!! it might be an alltime fave story for me in general!!!!!! even if it's not it was a really special experiance and story on the whole and i'm just really really happy i get to carry it in my heart forever :]

[whomst-art-thou-whomst-whomst]

Tale of the Nine-Tailed Meta: Roleplay Therapy in Episode 11, or, What Am I To You?

Intro:

Okay sure it’s an elaborate act to trick Evil Baddie #2 but in episode 11, when Rang and Yeon switch places, pretending to be each other to lure the Imoogi in and get Rang out of his deal with the Evil Baddie #2?? They need to sell the family drama, right? They could have done it a lot of ways but they chose this way. Why? Maybe because it's easier to sell a lie that contains truth in it?

So I rewatched. And rewatched. And have come to the conclusion (again) that the writers are geniuses. Because this is fucking family therapy disguised as baiting psychopaths. Please note that I have not done family therapy, this is just my take.

I shall explain *starts powerpoint* So:

The latter half of this season has been about these two siblings coming back to each other, and while key actions have taken place that show they care (the forest rescue, the underworld guy confirming that Yeon is Rang's most important person), they are still lacking on communication.

This comes up twice with Yeon--first, when he's numbly enraged that Rang has shown Ji Ah her past life, and is preparing to give him a verbal (and boardgames) beatdown. He asks what Rang would want to be in another life, making the kind of idle conversation that makes Rang uncomfy because wait, what's the catch? And Yeon admits that he's realized they haven't talked, actually talked about something other than schemes or hostile banter in so long.

Later, after Rang's near death experience, Yeon takes him out to his ice cream spot and lets him steal some ice cream--again, Rang is jarred by this surprising indulgence. We don't see any of their interactions in the 600 years or so interim between The Execution That Wasn't and the present day, but we have to assume that things have been, uh, tense.

And Yeon admits it again--the thing we are all thinking, why didn't you just reach out to him? I mean this for both of them, but especially Yeon because hello, you STABBED YOUR TEENAGE BROTHER and waited 600 years to clarify that you weren't trying to kill him. All this time, you could have reached out, and so much pain and time and miscommunication could have been prevented?? How awful, on top of your existing guilt, to recognize that that was all it would have taken, and that you almost lost the chance to fix it. And yes, it's more complicated than that, but still--these two struggle a lot with communication.

The scene in question:

Which brings us to the scene where they are pretending to be each other, and act the way they believe the other one would act. It's a good cover, and yet. And yet. It’s also actually the only way they can be honest about their insecurities in their relationship.

It's not really an accurate representation of "this is how you think," because they don't know how the other really thinks about so many important things. “This is how you would act” becomes “This is what I believe you think of me, or what I think you SHOULD think of me” 

I don't think it's a coincidence that this whole arc removes the final barrier between them as siblings: after this, they speak about their feelings a lot more openly and honestly, Rang gets onboard with the squad planning to fight the Imoogi, and all it took was Yeon reaching out, Rang deciding not to betray his brother, and the two of them sitting at a table revealing what they believe the other thinks of them after 600 years of poor communication.

It's fitting that the Evil Baddie #2 is there for it--Yeon hates the guy for what he did to Ji Ah and his involvement with the Imoogi but in this context, this guy also represents Yeon's failure to protect Rang. If he hadn't stabbed his brother...if he hadn't stabbed him and then walked away...this guy wouldn't have had the chance to coerce Rang into a fox debt...

The brothers have to face each other and themselves at the same time. And if they want to sell it, they have to show the discord that is real between them, they have to use real material.

Essentially, it's an almost therapeutic exercise: here’s what you look like through my eyes.

For Rang:

Rang thinks his brother is disgusted and uncaring about the trauma he’s been through. He (acting as Yeon) brings up Ji Ah as an example of someone who "doesn't complain even though her history is as tragic as yours."

This honestly hits home--Yeon has a bad tendency, I think, to compare them as some guilty sort of avoidance, a claim that Rang should just get over it all; while Rang and Ji Ah both lost parent figures, their life experiences have been dramatically different, suffering and resilience are not competitions, and I like that Rang calls out how unfair this is (to both him and Ji Ah).

Similar to Ji Ah, Rang has likely spent the evening wondering whether to sacrifice Yeon. His life is at stake here.

(I’m still not sure how Yeon figured that part out?? Please someone explain how Yeon figured out Rang was on a deadline???)

But like Ji Ah, we will never really know what decision Rang would have made on his own. My headcanon is that one of the reasons Rang and Ji Ah are so antagonistic toward each other are because they are incredibly similar in how they love--almost feral, and ruthless if they’re desperate.

For Yeon:

Yeon (pretending to be Rang) complains about things he thinks Rang is angry about, which really reveals more about things Yeon is upset about.

It's clear during his act as "Rang" that Yeon knows he has let down Rang’s trust in him, and feels guilt for not openly acknowledging that Rang was in as much danger as Ji Ah: “If you worried about me half as much as her, I wouldn’t have done this. I couldn’t have.”

I think this also goes back to Yeon's guilt for leaving Rang and the mountains burning in his single minded focus to rescue Ji Ah. Like he’s saying he blames himself for Rang’s actions all these years.  There are so many subtle moments highlighting Yeon’s guilt. Mainly in his efforts to pretend Rang is fine or downplay Rang’s feelings. But here, Yeon expresses it the only way he can, removed from himself.

And I think Rang (as Yeon) finally releases him from the weight of that guilt by just responding, “You idiot,” you are an idiot for carrying this weight and thinking you are totally responsible.

Because Rang was influenced horribly by the things that happened to him, but he also made his choices.

“I wouldn’t say we made up, I just let him off,” he tells Yu-Ri later. Obviously they made up, but I think that’s more accurate wording. He lets go of his anger because he finally sees himself as Yeon sees him, and finally hears Yeon’s most honest expression of guilt.

Yeon still doesn’t think he "abandoned" Rang (Yeon and I still need to discuss that) but he more tellingly admits that he knows his brother looked up to him and totally trusted his brother would protect him--his heroic love sacrifice for Ji Ah was also, ultimately, a betrayal of trust for his brother.

UGH this script. UGH these characters.

I love that the writers finally got them into some therapy for five minutes. They didn't have to do the whole song and dance, because sure the Evil Baddie #2 is watching remotely but they could have had a quick "well it's shitty to see you, drink your coffee you dumb bitch" chat or sit in tense silence like the rest of us do with estranged family members and it might have been convincing enough, but they took the opportunity to talk, really talk, through a safe medium of the other.

Love this show.

[im-out-of-it]

season 1, episode 8 “bad blood” discussion list

I just want to make a small note:

in TID, they say that hunting downworlders without cause is against the accords as is keeping spoils. the show never did state they were going to make things accurate as the books and I’m thankful for that- but when I was doing my rewatch, I noticed something odd. when Magnus is fighting that circle member in episode 4, he stated how he just killed that weakling with the horns (Elias) and said cat eyes would be a nice addition to his collection. I know that circle members aren’t part of the clave but they are still keeping spoils and it kind of makes you wonder if these regular shadowhunters can become the circle, what other shadowhunters are still doing it? I just found it interesting because we know the circle is already evil but keeping spoils as some kind of trophy for killing downworlders is even more vile. and the clave only seems to be concerned about Valentine when there are thousands in valentines circle who are committing these atrocious acts. it’s just another stupid thought I had lmao

1. ayyyyy let’s get to it. Clary and Jace are staring at each other and acting like no one else is there, while Izzy steals the cup, and gif was posted in last post 💓

2. the cup= can control demons but clary: but this is the only way I can get my mom back 🙄 (I sympathize with her wanting Jocelyn back but THIS ONCE AGAIN AFFECTS EVERYONE.) once again putting her needs first like she did with bringing jace back. alec and Izzy are the only ones with some common sense apparently. I don’t trust the clave but I trust them more than I trust clary and jace

3. if you asked me who would I trust to protect me? I vote alec and Izzy. they actually plan things out and use their damn brains. Jace and clary almost gave the cup to Valentine so no, they shouldn’t have it. and of course jace is like “I agree with clary” yeah when don’t you? that’s the only sentence you know 💀

4. “you have her word.”- jace. oh because we are supposed to trust the girl that doesn’t think, runs off without telling anyone, and threatens the safety of others? we feel so assured

5. “Alec, I realize I couldn’t have done this without your help. I wanna thank you.”- clary. yes because if it were any of us, we would’ve sent your childish ass to idris 👏🏼 “don’t misread this as friendship” okay alec go off 🔥🔥🔥

6. oh, look who cares about Simon now that he’s dead and about to become a vampire. see ya soon Simon

7. my beef with clary and Simon is that when it comes down to simons needs and wants, it’s never about him. it’s about clary. she ignored his many calls and voicemails and when he’s either being kidnapped or is dead, now she starts to worry. she ignored Simon all this time but only cares when’s he’s dead 🙄 that’s not a true friend. she could’ve made time for him while chasing the mortal cup but jace is more important to her than Simon is.

8. this whole decision of keeping Simon dead or having him come back as a vampire is the most selfish decision Clary made. I love Simon, he’s great but this choice is obviously taken away from him. clary never thinks about what Simon wants, just what she wants

9. is she seriously blaming Raphael for Simon being dead? yes Raphael did kidnap him but it’s on clary that she included him in the first place. everyone assumed clary had the cup so this is on clary but you’ll never see her hold herself seriously accountable

10. and Raphael actually seems as though he feels bad for Simon, while jace is speaking ill of vampires because of course they’re all terrible and evil. yes they are predators but I’m on downworlders side for most things 😌

11. Valentine talking to sleeping Jocelyn as if they’re still together lmao she can’t stand the sight of him and he’s talking to Jocelyn of past memories. this man is so delusional

12. “there are shadowhunters interfering with downworlder affairs. you two wouldn’t know about that?”- Maryse. “Alec: no/Izzy: nada” 😬

13. Alec: why are you asking me? I told jace to stay out of downworlder business even if there is a warlock I may be attracted to 😭

14. Alec is like downworlders business? how would I know? I’m the competent and responsible son 🥲

15. kind of ironic how Maryse is like don’t do anything to make the clave lose trust in us when her ass was in the circle. girl do you remember your own history? now you need your son to repair the damages you were once involved in

16. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there. this is all my fault.”- clary. ok so she’s kind of taking responsibility but she was still only more concerned with her own stuff and is just now caring because Simon is dead. would she still be acting this way if Simon was having visions of Camille and vampire concerns???? because I don’t think she would care

17. Jace: please don’t bring your friend back online because I want you and he inconveniences me

17. Lydia has arrived

18. I know some people don’t like Lydia because of the arranged marriage situation (mostly book fans) but I actually hold a lot of respect for Lydia. she’s just who the clave brought and she’s here to do a job. is Lydia wanting to take control? no, but she’s here to repair damages clary brought on the institute. and also, she never forced anything on Alec. Alec proposed to her and she’s totally okay with him being gay because she respects his family duty and being a shadowhunter. hate her if you want but she’s not a bad person

19. “part of our job as shadowhunters is making sure mundanes don’t know the truth about the shadow world”- jace. yet y’all didn’t care when Simon knew??????? (I mean Alec did but jace was more insecure about Simon)

20. not that falcon story 🙄 “to love is to destroy” this was cringe in the books, must it be repeated?????? (my face hearing that story)

21. Lydia’s story is heartbreaking. she didn’t do enough and the love of her life died. you kinda feel bad for her

part 2 coming in a hot second

[coraniaid]

I don’t think the mere fact that Angel comes back necessarily undermines the ending of Becoming, which I can attest myself still holds up on rewatch even knowing how the rest of the show will unfold. And I think the writers will do some interesting things with his character after his return, both in Season 3 and more generally.  But I do think the manner and timing of his return does leave a lot to be desired. 

Just three episodes into the new season, and Angel’s back for no obvious reason and indeed no clear reason will ever be provided.  “Somehow, Angel returned,” the writers tell us, and aside from a few vague and contradictory hints from the First Evil later this season that’s pretty much all we ever get.  (Please don’t tell me to go and rewatch Season 4 of Angel for more answers: watching that season once in my life was more than enough.)    

Furthermore, although we’re assured Angel likely spent “centuries” in a hell dimension (which, given his age, means that for the rest of his run on this show and on his own spin-off, more than half his life must have been spent in hell), the lasting long-term psychological effects of this horrific experience are, being as generous as I possibly can be: absolutely none. By the end of this episode he’s speaking Buffy’s name.  A few weeks after his return he’s come entirely to his senses and acting just like he was before, and (as far as I can remember) he’ll never really refer to this little sojourn into a demon dimension again.   So, while I appreciate the way Anne lays the groundwork for the idea of time passing more quickly in other dimensions, it ultimately feels a bit hollow.  It appears to be a fairly transparent attempt to assure the audience that Angel’s time in hell matters in a way it evidently doesn’t. 

I think the one thing the show does right here is having Angel come back only after Buffy starts to persuade herself that she’s come to terms with his death – by making Angel’s return something that serves to disrupt her efforts to rebuild a more normal life, rather than something that happens while she’s still dreaming about Angel and refusing to move on – but even then I think it would work a lot better if there was more of a delay.  If Angel had come back in the second half of the season, rather than the end of the third episode.  If he’d come back only after we’d seen enough of Scott Hope to make the possibility of the show pairing Buffy with him ever feel like it could be real, like we weren’t just spinning our wheels while we pretended we hadn’t spotted Angel in the opening titles.  Or if we’d even seen enough to make anything about Scott himself seem real (mid-way through this episode Scott jokingly assures Buffy that “I hope you realize I don’t actually know these people” in reference to his friends Debbie and Pete … which, given that we’ve never seen them before and they’ll never be mentioned again after their deaths, seems a lot more plausible than it should).  While Scott won’t break up with Buffy until the next episode, it seems that the writers have already lost whatever interest in him they had.

But, that being said, in the context of this episode we don’t know that that’s how things are going to play out – we don’t know that Angel will recover quickly, or that Scott Hope is about to break up with Buffy, or that Angel’s mysterious return will ultimately never be satisfactorily explained –  so I don’t think that’s really why I don’t like this episode.  

Nor, on reflection, do I think the problem is with the episode’s obsession to keep introducing more suspects for the latest string of Sunnydale deaths (first Oz, then Angel, then Debbie, then Pete), or with Mr. Platt’s untimely death (just a week after Mr Trick pointed out how overwhelming white Sunnydale is), or the fact this seems to be the first time since Season 2’s Phases, half a year ago, that anybody in the show has remembered that Oz is a werewolf, or that so much of the plot depends on a string of unlikely coincidences and random meetings, or that the werewolf costume/prosthetics themselves look terrible, or that Pete himself seems thoroughly unlikeable even before the big reveal, or the slightly bizarre decision to have the episode framed by Buffy reading fromJack London’s Call of the Wild.  

It’s not even the fact that this episode ends with a teenage girl being beaten to death by her abusive boyfriend – Debbie here playing the third alternate Buffy we’ve seen this series, after Lily in Anne and Faith in Faith, Hope & Trick – after our heroes conclude that she’s “broken” and not worth wasting time saving.  All these things are bad, yes, but I don’t think fixing them would make me enjoy watching the episode any more than I currently do.

No, I think the problem is more fundamental than that.  This isn’t something like Dead Man’s Party, where you can point to a specific point of failure or suggest simple, specific improvements that would make the episode better.  Beauty and the Beasts just sucks.

(However, the good news is that from here on out this season is pretty thoroughly great.)

[malice-death]

RWBY: Song Analyis

Team JOYRide vs. The Sky is Falling

After rewatching Volumes 1-9, I decided I'm going to be talking about the amazedness that is Rwby Music.

Now to be honest I read many people talk about this song as if it is a Oscar or Ozpin song in some regards, but I think that it suits this one-time only team for the fact that the lyrics serve their purpose.

Of course, that is just pure speculation.

Now most people know what scene is tied to the song "The Sky is Falling", and that is the Oscar gets kidnapped scene.

Where Ren, Jaune, and Yang risk life and limb to get back their fourth teammate, because they don't want to allow him to fall to Salem's hands or get anymore hurt than he did last volume.

Now of course The Sky is Falling is only played for a short time in the scene and than the full album gives us the rest of the song.

And after listening to it to many times to count to get a good gist of it.

Its clear to see why it fits JOYRide, in the fact that they had to handle one of the biggest confrantions of the volume.

Even in the end, this was one of the hardest things to face in the series.

A talking grim that would later on be good by Ruby and the gang, but not before taking its toll on everyone.

But onward to speaking on how the song speaks about this team.

"Here comes another nightmare, another fever dream."

"The horror just won't stop, an endless scream."

The song starts off very bleak, cutting straight to the point, considering that they were facing a challenge that they couldn't just leave alone. A fight that they couldn't quite understand, making it feel like a nightmare, considering that they were losing someone close to them again.

"This is not subconscious, we're not imagining."

"We're wide awake this is reality."

The fact that they started off on a rough note, in facing the talking grim, they knew the closer they got to saving him, the more terrible their situation would become.

A reality they truly didn't think that they were about to face.

"Our world, lost without a soul. We're losing all control."

"Not getting closer."

The first part applies to the gang not having Ozpin there to help guide them, the second part refers to the fact that the world they thought they knew was falling apart.

And of course that they were not any near as close as to defeating any kind of high end villain.

"Everyday is just another source of torture."

Honestly, this one was kind on the noise, considering that since the start of Volume 8, everyone who sits on Team JOYRide, sort of already kind of suffer enough.

I mean they spend the most time actively fighting the force of evil, and getting really close to death several times even before they fight Salem.

"Now we pay the cost, the race is lost. This nightmare's our real life."

Oscar is the payment, because at the end of the attempted resue, Yang, Ren, and Jaune are all feeling defeated, and are feeling the effects of failure.

Yang thinks about Blake.

Jaune can't help but feel guilty about Oscar.

Ren still is trying to come to terms many things in his heart and mind.

Really this part marks the things that the trio face in their minds.

"Better cover up your eyes my friend, the sky is falling."

"Can't out run the ruin of our lives."

To be honest the song line is kind of a oxymoron in a way.

On one hand its telling you to cover your eyes, while on the other telling you that you can't out run what the effects of things you've done.

In other words, its talking about the fact that besides them losing Oscar, they have now brought a closer end to the world, in a way.

"Be prepared the final days are calling. Hold on now."

"The Sky is Falling Down."

This one pretains to Oscar in my opinon, because its really him whose days are numbered, and he wants to hold on to the future that he thinks could have.

But in the end, he still falls.

"A curse that's never ending. A plan with no escape."

"No sudden death, we're trapped in slow decay."

This is line goes to Ozma and all his people. They are cursed, can't escape through death, the slow decay being the merge.

"These words are not symbolic. The torment's all too real."

"Eternal enemy, our fate is sealed."

Back to the full team again, knowing what must be done, and seeing the grim aka Salem's inevitable arrival, they must make haste, knowing that the danger lays right int their paths.

"We slide, further down the hold."

"Damage takes its toll."

Like I said before, each single person in the team is suffering from many different things, and they know that it harms them.

But they can't help thinking this way.

Considering how life treats them in some matters.

"Helpless and Broken, failed to stem the tide of pain."

"The floodgate's open, now its one more sin as evil wins, and misery steals our lives."

The moment that Oscar is in the whale, is life is a joyride of pain and suffering, something that he can't help but take the beating.

While Ren and the rest wish to save Oscar, but Winter tries to fucking blow everyone up.

Goddamn it Ironwood, anyway the fact is that evil was winning and everyone was suffering in the process.

Didn't matter who it was.

"Lost all my hopes and dreams. Watch my life flash by in scenes."

This part is really Ozpin, he had lost everything, and through Jinn he saw all his/Ozma's failure all over again, the fact that there seemed to be nothing that they could do about the future.

"And it seems there's no soul on the video screen."

"But I'm green trying to figure out what all of this means."

And we're back to Oscar, who is sickened and scared of his future, the fact that his life was slowing going away from himself to someone clearly new. It seems like a good refernece to fear, which is I consider to be Oscar's song.

"Staring at the casket, hoping to move past it."

"Knowing things will never be the same, and that's it."

This one I can see is in reference to maybe Jaune and Ren, considering that death is a huge part of their lives, and that moving past other people's deaths seems to be something common in the series.

"Cold soaked as I'm standing in rain."

"Feeling nothing, but pain until I see you again."

This goes for the whole gang, since they all are missing someone important to them before the team JOYRide mission even begins.

For Jaune it was worrying about Nora's condition.

For Oscar it was everyone, Ironwood, Ozpin, Ruby, the list kind of goes on.

For Ren it was his anger at Jaune and his hurt about Nora.

Like man someone give these guys a break.

"Feel the waves crash, loud and hard."

"Oh God, lost control, I think I'm going to lose it."

The heavy weight of them facing the whale and grim around them, knowing what the cost was going to be in the end.

Considering that Oscar and Ozpin alike were slowly losing it.

"All my sanity's slipping away, Oh Lord, press record."

"I'll die without the music."

Back to Oscar and Ozpin, the "music" probably talking about the magic that they hold on.

Oscar was feeling worse, and decided to find the little things that would stop him from going crazy.

Talking about Jinn, trying to get someone to listen to him, him reciting the story of "The Girl who fell through the World".

"Each breath is closer to my death, in which is this life."

"There's none left."

This one is Oscar and crew.

Since every breath they took in that whale was close to their death, though sadly Oscar was closer to death than most.

"Let my demons live on through my legacy."

"Study my pedigree, I need therapy."

To be honest this final part, of the outstanding lyrics in this song is the fact that it ties to both Salem and Ozpin.

Because Salems live on with spreading demons.

Ozpin on the other hand feels guilty about helping create such a legacy due to who he is.

==============================================

The final verdict is that team JOYRide's arc of facing each other, facing Salem.

Teaming up with Emerald, all lead to being the most meat of the volume that would help us prepare for the future of these characters and the offical fall of Atlas.

In the end, thank you for listening to my rambles.

Always open for discussion on anything regarding RWBY.

And of course

Thank You Team JOYRide for allowing this post to be possible!

[calliethetrekkie]

Star Trek TOS S01E04: The Enemy Within

Original Thoughts

"So The Enemy Within was a legit tense episode of Star Trek. I’m a sucker for the whole good/evil sides of a person being split into separate beings kind of scenario, and the contrast of the Kirk's is interesting and freighting. The Good Kirk struggling as he slowly loses his ability to be decisive without his more assertive half was also compelling and helped give more insight to his character, which again I’m a sucker for. The final breakdown of Evil Kirk was also intense and helped give some personification as well. A well-played scenario all in all. However, the episode is bogged down by one big factor: the outright tasteless treatment of the attempted assault on Yeoman Rand, or at least the aftermath. It’s unfortunate, but the story and conflict with Kirk was still a worthwhile watch."

(Original Post, edited from original)

Rewatch Thoughts

You ever had an episode that you like about 95% of, but there's a moment or two that really bogs it down? Yeah, as my original thoughts alluded to, this is one of those cases.

I'm going to avoid going into that scene. I did it before, and I was able to at least tolerate it this time (though fast-forward also helped). I also don't want to risk triggering anyone on a topic that I myself don't feel qualified or comfortable talking about from a show that took place in a different time. That being said, the scene still made me uncomfortable, and even moreso how the aftermath was handled. That is all I'm going to say about it, let's move on.

Thankfully, I have nothing but good things to say from this point. Even despite what I said above, this was one of the episodes I had really enjoyed the first go around, and I'm happy to say I still felt that way. This one has so much that I can go into concerning the plot, the philosophy, and Kirk himself and how his relationships with Spock and McCoy are showcased here. I don't know where to start... but I guess we're gonna try.

I love the concept of having Kirk split. His good half and his bad side as separate entities. The good Kirk seems like how Kirk would normally be, but as time goes on he deteriorates into being indecisive, lacks any ability to assert himself, and just seems to be becoming more meek and insecure. The Bad Kirk is, as Kirk so elegantly puts it, more like a wild animal. Aggressive, violent, easily-provoked, and while by no means unintelligent, he's prone to being driven by fear and instinct. He does, however, have the strength, assertion, and ability to act that Kirk needs to be an effective captain and leader.

We tend to look at our worst traits and try to lock them away. It's terrifying, the thought of having this potential ugliness inside you. An ugliness that could drive you to doing unthinkable things. The Bad Kirk, with the lack of morality, threatens McCoy, is willing to harm other crew members, and what happened with Rand can speak for itself. Kirk would sure as Hell never do anything like that unless he had a good reason under any circumstance. But without the good half to balance it out, the bad half is in its most raw form. Unable to be tamed or controlled, and without that self-control, who knows what a person could be driven to do.

But in the end, without any darkness, what are left with? We lack a certain will-power. A certain assertion. A certain strength that can only come from feelings such as fury and desperation, for example. Anger can be a powerful motivating power, as we've seen in real life for both good and bad reasons. It's as McCoy told Kirk, we need the darkness. It doesn't make you automatically bad, it's a part of what makes one human. Makes one whole. Without that darkness, the good Kirk cannot be the captain that he needs to be and he can't afford that. He still has the traits he needs, such as his logic and morality, but without the balance he is giving into passiveness and uncertainty. Neither the good nor the bad can exist and function apart. They need to exist together, no matter how unwanted one may be.

The episode handles it incredibly well. Honestly, I think that this was the episode that really sold me on Kirk as a character. Up to that point I had only the pop-culture depiction of Kirk to go on. Which came off as a reckless, womanizing, arrogant hot-shot. I could not have been more wrong. This shows Kirk in one of his most vulnerable states. He can't perform the duty that defines his identity. Yet, as Spock points out to him, he can't let it show because otherwise it will cause unrest among the rest of the ship. He sees himself at his worst, and the fact that he has to merge back with it is terrifying. Why would he want that? How can he accept that such a feral being is a part of himself? Is himself? And what is he himself left as without it? Seriously, I just wanted to hug the poor guy through most of the episode. And despite it, he still shows his dark side so much empathy and care.

I think what most helps represent this struggle is his interactions with Spock and McCoy. I detailed a lot of it here, but here's the brief version.

We have Spock with Kirk as his second-in-command and trusted friend, having been asked by Kirk himself to speak up if he feels that he is slipping. He has to remind Kirk of what happens if he tells the ship the full scope of the situation. He's the one that Kirk trusts to help him face the Bad Kirk in the lower decks, unwilling to let anyone else see it. He's the one who has to inform Kirk of what he is losing and what the end result will be. He's not doing it to be cruel, but it is the reality, and it can't be ignored. That's Spock's job as First Officer, to be able to keep the captain on track and step in when needed. He's also ultimately willing to take the risk of merging Kirk back when it could kill him, certain that such a thing will not happen and even if so, it must be done so that they can rescue the landing team. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one.

Then we have McCoy with Kirk. We don't get it as much as with Kirk and Spock, but it's very much still present. He tries to assure Jim that he can still act as captain, seeming almost offended that Spock would seem to question him. But he does ultimately admit that Spock is right, comforting Jim and talking with him to help him find the self-assurance he needs to go through with it. Then he refuses to allow Jim to go through the transported, utterly against risking his life despite the lives of the landing party in the balance. McCoy is worried about what is of concern at that moment, as we already saw in The Corbomite Manuever, and in this case it's Jim.

Kirk is left in the middle. He sees both sides, but in his current safe that's as far as it can go. He can't make a decision on what to do. He can't make any command decision, even needing Spock to take over talking to Sulu at one point. Thus, Kirk's left with the two and can neither choose nor compromise, ultimately just having Spock keep working on the transporters and McCoy conduct an autopsy. It shows how important both perspectives are, but as his role is to normally mediate it, we also see how it is when he can't. The two sides are left unresolved. It ends well enough with Kirk ultimately going through with the transporters, but it still shows how much Kirk both needs Spock and McCoy and how much they need him.

So with all that said, my final thoughts? This is a great episode. Great plot and concept, great pacing, great character moments with Kirk especially, it's all very well done. I guess Shatner's acting isn't going to be for everyone, but I think it worked alright, and I think he did pretty well with Bad Kirk's breakdown at the end. The only thing holding it back is that one part that unfortunately bogs it down enough that I can't give a perfect rating still. But all that said, this is one I'd very much revisit if I felt like it. I had a lot of fun coming back to this one, and I'm glad I did.

Original Ranking: 4.5/5.

Rewatch Ranking: 8/10

[My TOS Reviews]

[TOS S1 Reviews]

[Previous Review] / [Next Review]

[mothman-rewatches]

Rewatch: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "Welcome to the Hellmouth" (S1Ep1)

Summary: In this episode, we meet Buffy Summers, a teen girl with a secret - she’s the Slayer, someone destined to fight the forces of Evil. As she tries to navigate being the new girl in town, she learns that Sunnydale is not as it seems. 

Written by: Joss Whedon, Matt Kiene, Joe Reinkemeyer 

Directed by: Charles Martin Smith, Joss Whedon

Aired: March 10, 1997

WARNING: This post contains spoilers.

It’s here!! The first episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, not so eloquently explained as I break it down and share my thoughts. 

As a pilot episode, there is a lot to cover, so let’s jump in. 

Recap (What happened this episode? In two minutes or less): Buffy starts her first day at Sunnydale High School. After one of her classes, she goes to the library where she meets Giles - a creepy librarian who tries to give her an ancient looking book. She goes to lunch and meets Willow, Xander, and Jesse before Cordelia approaches her and informs her that gym is canceled because of a dead guy in a locker. Upon investigating it, Buffy goes and confronts Giles, who reminds her of her duty as the Slayer. She tells him she is retired and leaves, and it is revealed that Xander has overheard the whole conversation. That night, she goes to a local club called the Bronze. On the way, she encounters a mysterious man who warns her of “the Harvest” and gives her a necklace with a cross on it. When she gets to the Bronze, she chats with Willow, encouraging the girl to seize the moment. She gets distracted by Giles, who tells Buffy to use her natural abilities to find vampires. She spots one, and he turns out to be talking to Willow. As they leave, Buffy rushes after them, running into Xander who reveals that he knows Buffy’s secret. They follow the vampire and Willow to the cemetery, where the three of them and Jesse are attacked by vampires. Buffy fights a big one as Xander, Willow, and Jesse flee. 

Overall Thoughts (Literally anything. Thoughts, questions, grievances. Basic commentary): First and foremost, this episode does not give you a good feel for the show. It gives you the general idea - one girl in all the world, blah blah blah - and gives you shells of the characters, but fails to feel like it belongs with the rest of the show. The show is finding it’s footing, though, and there are plenty of good episodes to come.

Funnily enough, despite this episode not feeling like Buffy, this episode gives us two very significant images to the rest of the show - the Vampyr book, and the cross necklace. These two things become part of the iconography of the show from this point forward. 

Tropes, unsurprisingly, are a large part of of Buffy, even in this episode. Famously, Buffy as both a character and the show, is based on the damsel in distress meets big bad monster trope, albeit turned on it’s head. Buffy would go on to be the fore-bearer to a lot of tropes that come up in YA media today (thank you to my friend Kay, who pointed this out during a conversation we had about the show). This episode plays around with a few tropes, notably in the scene in which Buffy awakens on her first day at a new school. It’s young adult in a way that forces me to remember this is a show about teenagers, for teenagers and young adults. Other tropes include Xander’s immediate infatuation with Buffy despite not knowing her, the obvious crush Willow harbors for Xander, and the whole reveal that Xander has accidentally overheard a very private conversation. 

Speaking of, I just have to point out that there is no reason Xander should have been able to overheard that conversation. Giles comes out from the stacks, which could imply that he was helping Xander look for a particular book. You’re telling me that Giles had no idea that Xander was in the library? And even if he did, he and Buffy could have had their conversation in his office, not out in the open where anyone could walk in and hear something they weren’t supposed to. 

Also, the way that Buffy’s “transfer” to Sunnydale feels very poorly handled. It is the 90s, but it doesn’t stop me from wondering why Joyce wasn’t included in the meeting with Principal Flutie and Buffy. At first, Joyce is very concerned with Buffy’s education and her successful transition to the new school, so the fact that she isn’t there at the meeting is surprising. 

Finally, my last comment is on how the Buffy and Giles relationship is handled. It is odd to me why Buffy and Giles are just meeting, rather than having a professional relationship prior to Buffy’s move. It could have been much more interesting to see them already know each other, and it would have made the scene where Giles reminds Buffy of her duties and she tells him she’s retired much more impactful. As the series progresses, we learn that Watchers and their Slayers have personal connections, have formed bonds in their time of knowing each other. Buffy and Giles do end up forming a bond, but I think these first few episodes would mean more if they already had one. 

That being said, season one is going to be a journey. The show is trying to get on it’s feet, and tonally it might not be like the rest of the show. It will be interesting to look at it through this lens, and I look forward to it. 

Fashion Corner/Costuming (Comments about the clothes): Really the only comment I have on costuming this episode is laughing at what Buffy says about the vampire at the Bronze. She points out that the outfit is “carbon dated” and no one dresses like that anymore, but if I remember correctly, Xander starts dressing like that at some point. 

Characterization/Dynamics (Comments about the characters, especially as they grow or change, and relationships between characters): The characterization in this episode is a doozy. I mentioned earlier that the characters are shells of who they really are, and I stick by that. The show fails to find most of it’s characters’ voices in this episode, leading some of them to be unrecognizable. 

On one hand, Xander is painted to be somewhat of a cool guy. He’s not popular, no, but in comparison to the character he becomes, they are worlds apart. He is dorky and a little awkward, but if you didn’t see those parts of him, you would genuinely believe that he fits in. 

In comparison, Willow is a ghost. She is given an almost childlike quality in this episode, one that makes you think she’s fresh out of middle school. She’s innocent and shy and awkward, which are qualities that our Willow has initially, but she’s basically a kicked puppy in this episode. 

Because of this, it’s hard to believe that Xander and Willow are actually friends. It feels more like they were friends when they were kids, but grew apart, and now Xander only hangs out with Willow because he feels bad for her, or because he feels obligated to. I wish I could see their genuine friendship, because without it, the show feels a little lacking. 

Facts (Things I know about the show or calling out specific things): For those of you who don’t know, the high school used for Sunnydale High is also the same one used in Beverly Hills 90210. 

Xander is shown skateboarding in this episode, but we never see him skateboard again. 

The Vampyr book has, as mentioned before, become an iconic image throughout the series. However, we never see it again, aside from the credit sequence. 

Quotes (Things that were said that were funny, iconic, or overall interesting): “What is your childhood trauma?” - Cordelia Chase. 

Apocalypse Counter (Is there an apocalypse that the characters have to try and prevent?): 0

Final Notes: Please feel free to leave comments, suggestions, and questions in the ask box!