#i know some adults still refer to their dads as ''daddy'' but the way john says it def makes him sound like the 5 yo he used to be | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

spn-fanfic-reblog-writes · 2 years

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So, the wonderful @marisferasiop gave, what I think, is very spot on for the Moon Knight system especially with their college education in psychology.

I love character studies. >.> I really like to understand why people are the way they are and what that means for their strength’s and weaknesses.

I just wanted to see what @marisferasiop view is on Dean, for rn.

I bring this up with their permission for discussion as they have watched Supernatural.

Dean

Dean and Sam being brothers and referenced having a very “weird” or “messed up” relationship.

When it really isn’t, it is that Dean had his father in grain into him he was Sam’s protector and caretaker. This is in addition to being “Daddy’s little soldier.” Dean as a child remembers what it means to have a home and what that feels like which is why when they discover the Men of Letter’s bunker, Dean is like I am home. He was exposed to this terrible toxic masculinity as a child thanks to his Dad, a former Marine (navy) and Vietnam veteran. His father trained him from four years old to be a soldier, truly a killer which he excels at. He also is commonly quoted for “no chick-flic moments” (or calls it gay which eventually became socially unacceptable so the show stopped) which the brothers are both terrible at when it comes to dealing with and expressing emotions in a healthy manner and hugging. Seriously, hugs. Does this mean that unless they were little kids, their Dad barely hugged them? They only seem to do hugs when it’s been a while, when it’s omg you’re injured, or something similar. He doesn’t do relationships unless wholly platonic except for Lisa Bradley which I never fully understood that.

I need to rewatch and get a better understanding of the background because it seems like it was the only time the brothers are ever happy are when they’re with a partner or each other. It’s not surprising that being alone is something neither can handle. With the way things were in grained in them, they still end up sleeping reaching out for each other, their arms hanging off the bed, since they were their only comfort growing up. It’s a lot to ask anyone, let alone a child.

He, in reality, is a complete geek; I love this about him. All of his pop culture references, including Disney, and even some of the amazing books he quotes or references, such as Kurt Vonnegut and Tolstoy. He knows Aesop and actually knows his Christian Bible. The man is extremely intellectual and intelligent, such as the first episode where the voicemail their Dad left had EMF on the background which Dean had to lean what is and how to use Goldwave in order to better identify and understand the voice leading them to the “Woman in White” case.

Dean’s mental health is wholly other issue, omfg. I was originally going to do an entire post on his mental health but thought I would discuss here instead. I think Dean has PTSD, Adhd, depression and general anxiety disorder. I’m sure could be more or something different but I am most knowledgeable with these. He self-medicates— alcohol — which is probably partially taught from his father, John. With the amount of loss/grief he has experienced, I feel he has compartmentalized his experiences as a hunter, a trauma response, to allow him to function. This would mean his brain separates the actual experience (fighting/killing) from the emotions he experiences during this which could include sadness. I do think Dean was raised, essentially poor which is why he eats so much and eats what he loves instead of what is good for him, like Sam. Dean had to sacrifice for Sam and this is how he dealt with it. As an adult, he is a glutton for what makes him feel good from food to sex to watching Scooby Doo, a leftover from his childhood as well.

He was forced to grow up to take care of his little brother who was allowed a sort of childhood, and I feel like due to network rules that what really happened when their father was away was actually worse than what could be told like the stealing and thieving. I feel like Dean is an ex-smoker. I feel like Dean should have tattoos as a form of rebellion against his Dad’s expectations of him or as a way to individualize/separate himself from his father. I also wonder if he would have taken abuse from others in order to provide for his little brother.

I mean he was physically abused by John when Sam ran away as a kid and even as an adult in his mid-20s (at the time), he was upset about it but it was never discussed further. He doesn’t deal with his mental health unless it is forced upon him.

When he was with Lisa Bradley, he still drank heavily because of all his trauma and mental health issues that he attempted to ignore. He still was paranoid that something would happen to his family. He still kept weaponry and taught his adopted son how to use it as precaution. He was always the last to go to bed because being a protector has been so in grained into his identity, it is second nature.

Sam is next

#dean winchester #supernatural #elle em bee #Dean studies #character studies #character study #spn

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gh0stguts · 4 years

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9,12, 30 - @boykingsofhell. Please tag me if you answer so I can see it <3

Hell yeah let's go! @boykingsofhell

I'm on mobile so I'm sorry for not putting this under a read more lol

9. What episodes best encapsulate the brother's relationship? Does this change throughout the series? Doesn't have to be the best episode btw.

I feel like their relationship definitely changes a bit over the course of the show, but not super significantly. Like they definitely keep that weird codependent thing throughout but their trust levels with each other fluctuate a fair bit and there's less sibling banter at times because of that.

I think any episode where one of them dies does pretty well to show that codependency, the way they just do a complete switch of "Fuck everything else, I'm not doing shit until he's back."

1.17 shows the prank wars and let's us know that they have a history of pranking each other, which is a nice little insight to an almost normal sibling dynamic rather than what we see more of throughout the show (I'm referring specifically about how Dean essentially raised Sam for their entire lives, this blog is NOT SAFE for winc*st shippers. If you ship them, block me.)

When Ruby 2.0 is brought in, that's where we really see their dynamic change as Dean starts to trust Sam less and less, and how Sam gets angrier and more frustrated with Dean because he's convinced himself he's doing this for the right reasons.

In 1.18, we get the shtriga episode, which is a good insight into both how Sam and Dean were raised, and ALSO how Sam has always been Dean's responsibility. Hell, this is set up straight from episode one when we see Dean carrying baby Sam out of their burning house. 1.18 gives us more context to John leaving Dean to take care of Sam a lot more than just that one instance of John trying to save Mary at the start. It's something that continued through their whole lives.

This is shown again in 4.13, although much less, as that episode focused more on Sam during school. We still see though that John would leave Sam and Dean alone for weeks at a time in a motel and Dean would be responsible for taking care of Sam (i.e. when Dean offers/threatens to beat up the kid that tried bullying Sam.)

Speaking of Dean's raising Sam, that also brings up the Gadreel arc. Dean's primary job growing up was always "look after Sammy, don't let anything happen to Sammy," and this persisted even when he became an adult and long after John passed. Dean is often willing to do whatever he has to if it means keeping Sam safe, I think both because Sam is the only blood family he has left, and also because even with John gone, there's still that lingering thought of "Dad will be mad." (Insert that quote about 'if there is an angry man in your home once, there will always be an angry man in your home even when there isn't' here.)

Honestly I could go on about this forever if I really wanted to look up specific episodes and really get into it, but that's a long enough answer for now haha

12. Symbolism: tell me about some cool symbolism in SPN! Your pick!

Okay I don't have a long rant about this, I just think a lot about that scene with Cas in season 4 with the light flickering above him and go absolutely feral

Like we knew for a good portion of that season that Cas would fall or rebel but that scene has me foaming at the mouth everytime, I can't do this

30. Make up a fact about a character and convince me it's true.

I think Dean really likes Ghibli movies and he will never admit it but his favorite one is Ponyo because Jack likes it and they watched it once during movie night and Dean got very quietly and privately emotional about the whole thing because he was never supposed to have moments like that but there he is, with his brother and Cas and their son having this little domestic moment and watching a kids movie with his family

He also likes Princess Mononoke but he's less secretive about that one. If anyone accuses him of liking Ponyo best, he will vehemently deny it because it's too childish and not many enough (bc y'know, toxic masculinity and all sorts of internalized phobias and all that, or as I like to call it, Raised by John Winchester Syndrome) but Ponyo is his favorite because it reminds him of his family and these little soft moments they get to have sometimes where he makes them popcorn and they can get comfy on the couch and relax and have a nice time together because despite it all, Dean isn't his father, and he isn't "daddy's blunt little instrument," and he doesn't just want to use his hands to kill, he wants to care for and nurture and protect and love and be a better man than his father ever was and raise a kid better than John ever could.

(I also think he'd like it because he'd watch it and it would remind him of watching movies with Mary when he was little and he thinks she would like Ponyo too.)

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mellicose · 7 years

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That Woman Over There

A You Me and Him Fix-it Fic

Rating: Teen, for some suggestive language

Word count: 3464

Warnings: none

Summary: ~ Set after the birth of Monty, Olivia’s baby ~ A dear friend of Olivia comes to visit for a week, and she disturbs the fragile peace between her, Alex, and John.

So, um, there’s been some drama about this wee likkle film. Maybe it will work to its advantage. There were some things that puzzled me in the writing, and this is my way to unravel the plot and weave it into something I might understand as a member of the tasty LGBT sandwich crew.

Chapter 1 | Read Chapter 2

She was still telling Alex stories of Livvie’s awkwardness when there was a quick rapping at the door. The baby bounced in his high seat - he seemed to recognize the knock.

“Uncle John’s here!” said Alex, and lifted baby Monty out of his chair.

Connie froze. Olivia grabbed her wrist as she stood from the table.

“Stay. Please. For Montmorency.”

“I still can’t get over the fact you named your little one after a cherry. Why don’t you call him Billy?” Connie said, referring to his first name, William. She sat back down slowly. Olivia stuck out her tongue. Connie winked.

“Monty’s a family name. I promised daddy,” Olivia said. She heard John in the foyer, cooing at the baby. He grunted, and Monty squealed with glee. Olivia popped up.

“You better not be throwing him up in the air again,” she said, heading out, and bumped into his chest. He had a goofy grin, and his eyes were huge with curiosity. The baby bounced in his arm, pulling at his sculptured beard.

“Is this her?” he said without preamble, holding his other hand out. She stood and stared at it. After a couple of seconds, he put it down, but his eyes moved up the long line of her body. “Bloody hell, you’re a tall gay.”

Alex slapped his arm. “Don’t fuckin’ curse in front of the baby,” she said through her teeth, then slapped her hand over her mouth. Olivia’s face twisted in distress.

“Jesus, Al!” she said, putting her hand on her hips. Alex blew her a kiss through her fingers.

Connie watched all this with a jaundiced eye. She loved Livvie, but this was almost too much to bear. It was weird. And she despised John already.

John’s eyes moved appreciatively over her body. It made her want to rip his beard out. Olivia gave her an importunate look.

“The higher the boots, the closer to God,” she said. Monty squealed as he got a solid grip on the beard and pulled. John howled. The baby giggled as Alex pulled him away, clucking at him softly.

Connie finally smiled.

They sat around playing happy family for an hour or so in the living room. The baby lay on his stomach on the floor, rocking and kicking his chubby legs. They all took turns making funny faces at him to make him laugh his huge, almost adult laugh.

Connie was in love.

She took Monty in her arms and gave him a raspberry on his fat cheek. He grabbed the cloisonne rose barrette in her hair, fascinated by the gloss and color. He tore hair out of her head trying to get his prize, and still Connie kissed him.

He held up the pin to the sun and babbled happily.

“It’s a rose, darling,” she said, pulling it gently out of his mouth when he tried to have a taste of the pretty red thing. “Una rosa.” She wiggled his chubby legs. The baby squealed, as if trying to repeat it.

“It’s lovely,” John said, but he wasn’t looking at the barrette.

“She’s damn near the ambassador for the rose industry in America. I’ve seen the photos on Facebook,” Alex said. She was referring to her business - a flower artist for the crème de la crème, coast to coast. She could cover a ballroom with complex swirls of colorful flora and transform it to a perfumed dream world.

And very rich people paid her a lot of money to do just that.

“Roses are the queen of flowers - not only graceful and gorgeous, but they exude their perfume for days after they’ve been cut, giving the exhibitions another layer of beauty,” she said. “I love creating with them.”

“What do you do with the flowers after?” John asked.

Connie’s smile faded, but she took a deep breath and kissed the baby’s tiny foot.

“What makes the installations so meaningful are their evanescence,” she said, as if speaking to a child.

“The band?” John quipped.

“Their short-lived nature,” she said. “No matter how large-scale, I must work quickly to make sure the client enjoys the flower’s beauty to the fullest. And the best part is knowing that such beauty won’t last forever - that they are standing in perfect moment in time, making a a memory…”

“Poetic. Is that in the brochure?” John said. Connie flipped him the bird with both hands. His eyebrows rose.

She put her hands over the baby’s ears. “Newflash, asshole - it’s a website,” she said, and picked Monty up and walked out of the room

Olivia punched his side. “Why d’you have to be such a twat?”

“I’m just following suit,” he said, crossing his arms.

Alex and Olivia sighed, but Connie came back in and lay the baby on the floor.

“It was about damn time you became a mum,” she said, and poked the baby’s swollen belly. “but what a crazy way to go about it. I know some rad New York gays who could’ve helped you. Artists. Musicians.”

“Dirty hipsters,” John whispered.

“You’d fit right in,” Connie said, not looking at him.

Olivia’s smile faltered. Connie crawled to Alex and took her hand.

“We both know Livvie’s high strung, but she’s a blessing isn’t she?”

Alex smiled. “I’m not used to all this Livvie talk. How exactly did you two meet?”

Connie sat between them and put her arms around them both. “She didn’t tell you?”

Olivia began to turn red.

Alex shrugged. “She said you met in New York, when she was there as an exchange student. That she had a crush on you, but it never went anywhere.”

Olivia bit her lip. Connie smirked.

“Imagine it - New York in the 90’s. Everyone’s wearing baby tees and parachute pants and Doc Martens and mourning Kurt Cobain…”

“Sounds rad,” Alex said, perking up. She was only in primary school in the 90’s.

“It was appalling,” Olivia muttered. They made terrible fun of her and her plaid skirts and pearls. Everyone except Connie, the girl next door. Her dad was a Nicaraguan diplomat, her mother bored and medicated.

“But Livvie never liked Nirvana or Oasis,” Connie said, smiling at her. She preferred N*Sync.”

John and Alex snorted in unison. Olivia went crimson, but she didn’t deny it. She still had a thing for Justin Timberlake music.

“I didn’t like Nirvana or Oasis either - I preferred New Order, Depeche Mode, or Verdi. So, it didn’t matter anyway.”

“Verdi?” said Alex.

“You know, La Traviata,” said John. Alex made an I-don’t-know face. “Opera music. Fat ladies singing?”

“Eww - but not at the fat ladies. Just the singing,” she said.

Connie patted her shoulder. “Anyway, I was bored out of my mind, sitting on my front stoop when this vision in pearls walks by. I mean, it was a sight - the longest pleated plaid skirt I’ve ever seen, poofy blond hair, clutching her books against her chest so hard her knuckles were white -“

John chortled. “Sounds about right.”

“Shut up,” all three women said in unison. John went back to playing with the baby.

“Anyway, I was listening to some Roxy Music on my boombox, and as she passed, she lifted her nose at my glam rock - but it was a very cute nose indeed - and it quivered, a bit like a bunny's-“

John whooped. They stared lasers at him, and he picked up the baby. “He needs a change. I’ll be right back,” he said, and walked quickly out of the room.

Connie sighed, as if a weight had been lifted.

“Why do you have him around?” she said.

“Because we do. No use in being so unpleasant,” Olivia said, then winced. She knew why Connie didn’t like him. And she understood. But she couldn’t deprive the baby of a male role model. Although she didn’t say it, John had grown on her. He only looked, and occasionally acted like an absolute twat. But his heart was pure gold.

At least, most days.

Alex poked her side. “You were saying. Her nose quivered like a bunny's,” she said, tugging at Olivia’s pony tail and wiggling her eyebrow at her.

“Oh yes. Well, she was acting all posh and snooty-“

“-It was because I was afraid you would yell something cruel at me.” Olivia interrupted.

“Never!” Connie said. She knew all about being different.

“I was a diplomat’s daughter with a shitty Spanish accent. Everyone at school pretended they couldn’t understand what I was saying. It was a hilarious joke. Even the teachers did it.” she said. She was freshly arrived from Managua, and at the time, she still had a strong Spanish accent. It didn’t make things easy.

“Me too,” Olivia said, and sighed.

“Speak American,” Connie said, crossing her eyes and sticking out her tongue.

“I hated when they said that,” Olivia said. “Even with an accent, you still knew more English that most of them.”

Alex was in between them, with a bemused look on her face. Connie didn’t have any accent - except an American one.

“Where did it go?” she said.

“I worked really hard to get rid of it. I got sick of people calling me Selma Hayek,” Connie said. “I even changed my name to make things less awkward.”

“What’s your real name?” Alex said.

Olivia giggled.

“You shut up,” Connie said, pointing at her.

“It’s … Encarnación,” Olivia said. “It means incarnation in Spanish.”

“Incarnation? Sounds goth,” Alex said.

“It’s a Catholic thing,” Connie said. “Like Jesus being the incarnation of God?”

Alex shook her head. “I don’t do religion.”

“S’okay. Neither do I, these days,” Connie said.

“That’s a lie and you know it,” said John, walking in with the baby cradled in his arms. Monty sucked placidly on a bottle of milk. “You leave the windows open a lot nowadays. I hear the name of God often enough at night.” He gave them crooked grin.

Alex chuckled, and Livvie blushed. Connie didn’t understand it. Why didn’t they want to snatch his perfect, seal-smooth wig right off?

Connie popped up. “I’m gonna see a man about a horse,” she said.

“What the f- does that mean?” John said, but he was amused.

“To powder her nose,” Olivia said helpfully.

“Nay, darling. Take a leak,” Alex offered.

Connie pointed and winked at her. “Bingo!” Then, she disappeared.

“Well, she’s nice,” John said, putting a burp rag on his shoulder and hoisting Monty up to tap lightly at his back.

“She hates you,” Alex said, picking up some errant toys. “Stay away from her.”

“Most women do when they first meet me, but I change their mind with my irresistible charm,” he said. The baby burped loudly. He giggled.

“I don’t know whether it will work this time,” Olivia said, holding her arms out for the baby. John gave him back reluctantly. “I think you should go. We’re about to head out for dinner.”

“And why can’t I come?” he said, sticking his lower lip out. “Or, better yet, I can take care of Monty while you ladies are lesbian together as a group. What is it called … a preponderance, or a velvet box of lesbians?”

Alex laughed, and shrugged at Olivia. It had been over two months since they had some baby-free fun.

“Connie’s not a lesbian,” Olivia said. “And I don’t think so. She wants to spend time with the baby too. She’ll only be here a week - you’ll have Monty ‘till he’s 18.”

“But not when he’s soft and tiny like this,” he said, cradling the baby’s downy head in his hand over Olivia’s shoulder.

“It’s just five days. Don’t … rile her up. She has a temper,” Olivia said, putting the baby down in a play seat.

Connie sauntered back, holding an old bronzing lotion bottle. Alex yipped.

“I’m surprised you haven’t let John take this with him,” she said, throwing it underhand at him.

He caught it smoothly and stuffed it in his pocket. “For midnight mass.” He winked. Alex and Olivia rolled their eyes.

Connie glowered.

After coming back from dinner, they sat in the garden, drinking and laughing softly.

He could hear them through his open windows. He had been trying in vain to get the G flat scale on his guitar, but his fingers were failing him. He threw it on the bed and walked downstairs.

Connie. Although he had a clever quip for all her insults, they still stung. Why didn’t Olivia stick up for him? He was good enough to take care of Monty, but not good enough to demand respect from her tall, irritatingly clever friend?

Bull shite.

It was an unusually warm night, and his back windows were open too. He took a beer out of the fridge and sat at his painfully fashionable butcher’s block table in the kitchen, listening to the feminine sing-song of their voices.

“-Damn it why’d you even come back with us?” Alex said. “In another time, I would’ve gone home with ‘er, no questions asked.”

“Al!” Olivia squealed.

“I said in another time. Right now, I’ve got my girl. With the sexy quivering bunny nose,” she said. He heard the smack of kisses.

“Oi, you too. You got time enough for that after I pass out,” Connie said, but her voice was full of mirth.

“She was really into you,” Olivia said.

“I think it was the magic of Monty,” Alex said. They laughed. John smiled in his dark kitchen.

“It was kind of creepy. How are you gonna hit on a woman holding a baby?” Connie said. He noticed that since she was drinking, her accent was different. There was a bit of something else in there. It was … nice.

“I think she knew he wasn’t yours,” Alex said. “You look far too fresh-faced to be a new mum.”

John giggled.

“Oh, that’s nice,” Olivia said.

“I adore you, dark circles and all,” Alex said. “In any case, I’ve a got a nice set of my own.”

He heard clinking glass, and smelled wine on the breeze.

“I’m not in the mood for lady love right now,” Connie said, finally. “I’m kinda drained on lesbian drama.”

“What?” Alex said.

“The New York queer scene can get really weird sometimes. Too much politics,” Olivia said, quite matter-of-factly.

“And not enough pussy,” said Connie.

John wriggled on his bar seat. He didn’t want to be aroused by the thought of Connie rooting slowly between the thighs of another beautiful sapphic lady, but he still swelled and made his skinny jeans uncomfortably tight. Jesus, not again. At least it wasn’t about Alex and Olivia. He had gotten over that a while back.

“To pussy!” Alex said loudly. It must’ve been a toast.

“Without a side of politics!” Connie said, and glass clinked again.

“Hear hear!” Olivia added. It was adorably posh, and there was laughter.

“It’s been a while since you did anything, though,” Olivia said. “Don’t deprive yourself on our account. We can do without you a night or two.”

“I have plenty of time for single serving affairs in New York,” she said. “And I haven’t seen you in over two years.”

“But this would’ve been a guilt free vacation affair,” Alex said.

Connie laughed. “Nah. Not my thing,” she said. For some reason, John’s heart dropped.

He heard the canned sound of a crying Monty - the video monitor.

“I’ll see to him,” Alex said. He heard the soft smack of kisses again, then the sliding door clicked closed.

“Have you found anything on Ella?” Olivia said.

“Not really. PI is just about exhausted every source.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. You warned me. I didn’t listen.”

He was lost. Ella? PIs? Sources? She must be an ex-lover. It sounded sordid.

“I’m sorry anyway,” Olivia said. Monty’s crying stopped, and they heard Alex softly singing to him.

“I’m so happy you made it up with her,” Connie said. “I told you to have faith. Not all artists are self-involved jerks. I knew Alex would come around. A strong woman, she is. I can’t imagine-”

The baby hiccuped, and started to sing himself softly to sleep.

“You should’ve dropped Monty off with Scoliosis Boy after dinner,” she said.

“Jesus, Con! I told you that in confidence!”

John frowned, and his eyes began to burn. He got up and sat on the counter, by the window. Although his first reaction was to walk away, he needed to know what Olivia would say.

“Squeak squeak. Squeak squeak,” she said, then snickered. He didn’t need any explanation. She was imitating the sound of a brace.

“Stop it, Connie. It’s cruel.”

“Fucker’s back is straight enough now,” she said. He didn’t comprehend her bitterness. He tried to be nice to her. He didn’t really succeed, but he tried. “He looks like a leather-clad pipe cleaner.”

The sound of Monty’s sleepy song cut out - she turned off the monitor.

“You seem more bitter about what happened that I am,” Olivia said. “And I forbid it. I’m over it. I’m happy. I’m sorry … if your life hasn’t turned out the same.”

There were a few beats of silence.

“That was a low blow, Liv. And for that affected, misogynist asshole next door? Wow.”

“You don’t know him like we do-“

“-I know him well enough!” Connie said. “He ruined her life.”

“I didn’t mean it that way,” Olivia said. “but you can’t blame him individually for what happened. It’s not fair.”

“He put it out there. He poisoned him. It’s his fault.”

“It was a long time coming, long before John. And it’s not terribly surprising. Aren’t Latin men misogynist to begin with?” Olivia said.

There was silence. He stuck his head out to hear better. The window box heavy with potted herbs creaked with his weight.

“I’m sorry,” Olivia said, so softly he could barely hear it. “Ella was a horror. You deserve better anyway. And you will find it. I know it, Con.”

“That man. He wheedled his way into your affection, and I don’t understand it. How about if he fills Monty’s head with that Mannism nonsense too?”

“I’ll eat his heart in the marketplace,” Olivia said.

John gasped. The wood groaned, and the window box fell to the patio with a crash.

The women screamed.

“Good night, ladies,” he said, poking his head out fully and waving bashfully.

“Good night, John,” Olivia said.

Connie’s face was set in stone. “I’m going to turn in, love. Thank you so much for today. Tell Alex good night,” she said, and walked into the house. Olivia walked across to his yard and started picking up the broken planting pots.

“How long were you eavesdropping?” she said, handing him an intact pot of thyme.

“Just a little bit. Squeak squeak,” he said, giving her a hurt look.

“I was angry at you when I first told her about you. But I never said anything like that. I promise.”

“I told you that in confidence. Not even Alex knows the grim tale,” he said. “Not all of it.”

“She’s beyond my best friend. More than a sister. I tell her everything,” she said, kicking loam into the bed of irises just beneath his window. She looked at him. “I know that isn’t an excuse.”

“Did you guys ever…” he wiggled his brow. He inspected the rotting wood of the broken window box.

Olivia shrugged. “Not really.”

“What does that even mean?” he said. Already, he was designing a far stronger, more beautiful box in his head.

“We were young, and didn’t know what we were doing,” she said. She leaned into his window and rested her elbows on the sill.

“Even if you don’t know exactly what you are doing, you’re still doing something,” he said. He handed her a fresh beer. She drank, then burped quietly.

“We experimented. But she was my first love.”

His eyes widened.

“It was more than sexual. It was … a deep, intense, passionate friendship. The sex was … inconsequential.”

“That’s bull shite,” he said, running his fingers through his hair. “Sex is never inconsequential.”

“You say that to the steady stream of ladies who come through here?” she said, and took another drink. “Turn on the light, will you?”

“If you’ve noticed them, then you must’ve also noticed that there are many less lady guests since Monty,” he said.

“You don’t have to curtail your activities because of him. Especially if it drives you to listening for naughty noises at night through open windows.”

“I was joking about that,” he said, throwing the broken box on the table. He would start on the new one tonight. He had too much energy to sleep.

“It was crass,” she said.

“You know I don’t perv over you ladies anymore, right? That was before I really knew you. I wasn’t gonna let her have the last word, though.”

Olivia bit her lip. “That might be a losing battle, John. She’s clever, and has a very sharp tongue.”

“By what I heard, so do you,” he said. draining his beer. “Who’s Ella?”

“Shit,” Olivia said. “It’s not your business.”

“And yet…” he said.

“What did you hear?”

“Stuff about a private investigator and running out of sources,” he said.

Liv sucked her teeth. “She’s an ex-girlfriend. Ex-fiancee, actually.”

“I thought you said she wasn’t a lesbian.”

“She’s bi,” Olivia said.

“Oh. Is Ella why she doesn’t want to be with a woman now?”

Olivia rolled her eyes. “You really got stuck in, didn’t you? Ass.” She put the beer down and walked away, but John stuck his hand out the window and whistled at her.

“Wait!”

Olivia stopped, but she didn’t turn around.

“I like a difficult woman. You think she’s in the mood for some guilt-free, vacation man love?”

“Good night, John,” she said, and walked into the house.

Next Chapter

#you me and him #david tennant #fanfiction #yeah it exists #i typed it into being #watch me work #this is gonna be lit #i want to prove to the naysayers that this has good bones #it just needed...#dunno #this #the title's an acronym #*snort*#lgbt representation

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xfilesnews · 7 years

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Recap and Review: ‘The X-Files: Stolen Lives’

Another audiobook has joined The X-Files library shelf. "The X-Files: Stolen Lives" was released by Audible on October 3rd. Based on the Season 10 comics from IDW, this continues the adventures of Mulder and Scully from "Cold Cases." The stories are written by Joe Harris, executive produced by Chris Carter, and produced for audible by Dirk Maggs. Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Mitch Pileggi return to their roles, and other fan favorites lend their voices as well. As with the first audiobook, you don't need to be familiar with the comics to enjoy this audio version, but it does help. If you haven't yet listened to "Cold Cases" I'd suggest trying that first. The audio series does not follow the timeline established in the TV version of Season 10 so there are events and characters that would seem out of place to new listeners. "Stolen Lives" has some solid scares so if you're a monster of the week fan you're in luck. But it also dives into some mythology, though not quite as heavily as "Cold Cases."

Does "Stolen Lives" pass the bar set by "Cold Cases?" Hit the jump for our recap and review.

We again start with Chapter 2, as Chapter 1 is opening credits. Chapter 2 is called "Immaculate" and follows Season 10 issues 16 and 17. The story begins outside an abortion clinic in North Carolina. A young woman is hassled by protesters and makes her way inside. As she approaches the woman is also hearing a voice in her head. She seems familiar to the clinic staff but before they recognize her she detonates a bomb she smuggled inside. The girl survives and convinces the protesters to follow her.

When looking over the evidence, the girl whose name is Joni Cartwright, apparently has a halo and that's how Mulder and Scully end up on the case. After interviewing a nurse who was burned in the explosion, Mulder and Scully decide to split up and investigate more of Joni's backstory. Joni's family is religious and Scully finds Joni's mother along with a creepy pastor. Being sensitive to cases involving religion has never been Mulder's strong suit, and we see that again when Mulder questions his first suspect. The mystery of the case leads us from victims who look like they died of fright, to a cliff in the woods where the possessed townspeople meet a tragic end. The good pastor is not exactly who he seems and we learn who Joni's baby-daddy really was through Scully's investigative tactics. And as usual, it's Mulder who sees the monster for what it really is. “Stolen Lives” starts with a much more "monster of the week" tone than "Cold Cases" did, but there's no lack of controversy here. The X-Files has never shied away from religion or difficult subject matter and this is no different. "Cold Cases" featured a school shooting so tackling an abortion clinic bombing seems on par with the tone set there. The chapter reminds me a bit of Season 7's "Signs and Wonders" in that we're dealing with a pastor who is not what he seems. But "Immaculate" is much more violent than I remember that episode being. Listening to Scully dress down the pastor was one of my favorite parts of the chapter, with Mulder's interaction with a scared Sarabeth a close second. I appreciated the Frank Black joke, as I'm sure other "Millennium" fans did. I was also glad to hear them reference the missing Agents Doggett and Reyes at the beginning. We haven't heard much about them since the beginning of "Cold Cases" so it was a good reminder that part of the team is still missing. Mulder's sarcasm was about what you'd expect for any faith-based episode and I cracked up at the "moderately godless heathen requesting permission to enter." I wasn't crazy about the fact that once again, Scully being a mother and how that might affect her was brought up at the beginning of the case. This story was written in 2014, and William would be 13 by then. He's been away from Mulder and Scully for a long time now and it just seemed weird to me to have Morales say "I hope this doesn't affect you." You notice no one ever asks Mulder that same question?

Chapter 3, called "Chitter" follows Issue 9 of the comics. This was Joe Harris' first original monster-of-the-week. And if you don't like bugs, I'm sorry. At the start, we're introduced to the "Chittering God" and a gross sounding swarm. Mulder and Scully are soon on the scene in Pennsylvania but the investigation doesn't start well for Scully. After some joking with Mulder and comments about a funny smell, she passes out. But Scully being Scully, when she recovers she insists on investigating the house anyway. They find a switch that leads them to the killing room.

As always with the X-Files, things are not what the seem and the initial suspect, Mr. Keansey, isn't the only guilty party. Once again Mulder and Scully's investigations take different directions with Mulder interrogating the suspect and Scully out in the field. The first suspect, and his bug friends, indicate the Chittering God is after Scully. Scully cases the neighborhood and visits with an old woman named Mrs. Hoynes who reads her tea leaves. Mrs. Hoynes tells Scully she knows she lost a child "recently." And that the chittering god feeds on that sorrow and "both grow stronger." As Scully tries to escape it seems the woman, or the god, is trying to get her to hurt herself. Mulder arrives in the nick of time and keeps any more violence from happening.

The chapter gets points for the gross-out factor. The roaches in "War of the Coprophages" were bad enough but hearing the scratching on the headphones left me wanting to take a shower. The thought of being able to sic bugs on someone and call on a swarm makes me shiver. The story is definitely creepy and it's interesting that Keansey was just as much a victim of this crazy old lady and her "god" as Scully almost was. That Mulder and Scully were sharing a hotel room and discussing the case warmed my little shipper heart.

While I liked the story, I was again frustrated with the "Scully Mom Pain" angle. In the comics chronology, this issue is further removed from "Immaculate" so it might not have seemed as repetitive. I'd also like to point out that Scully has technically lost two children. Emily seems to be forgotten a lot. I do think it's fair that Scully is a person who has faced a lot of despair, but Mulder has too, so why wasn't he a target as well? Perhaps in the off years, he's had a little more therapy? I thought Mulder seemed like a bigger jerk than usual in this episode too. We know he can be a jerk and love that about him at times, but he's usually not mean. And there was something about the way Mulder said "you think this is all about you?" that rubbed me the wrong way.

We return to our missing federal agents in Chapter 4, aptly titled "Monica and John." This mirrors Season 10 Issue 18. Our first glimpse of Monica Reyes shows she's been in captivity for a year. Held in a tiny cell, she describes the events that lead to her abduction. She was in Wyoming paying a visit to William's adoptive parents when she was taken. She believes she's being held by John Doggett, who leaves to go to a post office. That trip triggers the FBI and Skinner and Scully get involved. Mulder is apparently off testifying to keep Monty Props locked up so he misses the action.

Of course, the Doggett holding Monica captive isn't really Doggett all. The real Doggett is also being held captive. He manages to escape from his cell and goes to free Monica. Their captor returns and seems to be one of the Acolytes we met in "Cold Cases." In a twist, he asks Monica and John to kill him. Doggett resists because he wants evidence of what has happened to them, but Monica stabs him with the stiletto anyway because she believes the FBI has forgotten them. Just as the alien melts away Skinner and Scully arrive.

This was the shortest chapter of the book and one I'd like to have seen in more detail. I was so glad to see Doggett and Reyes again and the refresher on the "new" mythology was helpful. I can't imagine what it was like to have been held like that for so long. I would have liked to have heard more of their story. And we're left hanging about what's next for the two. Do they get to go back to the FBI? Does Monica quit and record her own best selling whale song album? I found this a good chapter, just too short! I also really missed Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish voicing their characters. The woman doing Reyes was close at points, but Doggett's actor wasn't even close to Robert Patrick's memorable style.

Get ready for a little time travel in Chapter 5. G-23 follows comics issues 19 and 20. We dig up a few ghosts and Mulder gets sent on a wild trip that doesn't involve line dancing. The story begins in 1966 in Nevada at a military installation. Two young adults are smoking a cigarette laced with something called G-23 and they're getting progressively more freaked out. The young woman starts thinking she sees aliens. Shadowy men are observing the teens, none other than a young CGB Spender and Bill Mulder. In the present day, Mulder is waiting in D.C. to meet Scully for lunch but before she arrives the CSM crashes his party. After a round of 'who is my real dad?' with Mulder, the CSM presents him with a poster of the Nevada desert and a camper van with a G-23 plate. After a meeting with Scully and later the Lone Gunmen, this sends Mulder off on a wild goose chase into the desert.

Langly follows Mulder to what starts as a party in the desert but turns into a bad G-23-induced trip. In his hallucination, there’s a vamped up version of Scully in fishnets, heels, and Spender's trench coat. This vision calls herself "Red" and sounds more Spender than Scully. She leads Mulder through the remains of the old G-23 complex and on a trip down memory lane. They talk about what was the G-23 substance was really made of and of Bill Mulder's work fighting the alien colonists. In the end, the real Scully rescues Mulder but whatever proof he thought he had of the incident is gone.

I wasn't sure what to think of this chapter on first listen, and may give it another try. Anything that involves the Lone Gunmen makes me happy, and the actors always sound really in character. I laughed at Langly calling Frohike 'Jump Street' because Tom Braidwood was a first assistant director on that show back in the day. One has to feel for Mulder at the beginning that he keeps getting haunted by this zombie ghost from his past. And I thought it was interesting to dive more into Bill Mulder's background. It makes him out to be a slightly more sympathetic character that he was in the TV series. I felt like they were trying to redeem him a bit. Whether that succeeded, I'm not sure.

I also wasn't particularly thrilled with the "Scully as vixen" bit. If Scully herself makes the choice to don that outfit and say "sweet dreams baby" I'm all for it if it's her idea. But for that to be a fantasy and not her personal choice gets old. In this version, at least, it's insinuated at the very end that CSM was dressed that way himself all along, but that's not the case in the comic. There's no doubt Scully is a beautiful woman but we love her for her intelligence and what her brains bring to the case. This struck me as more of an excuse for the guys to write her as sexy than as something meaningful to the plot. It also strikes me as funny that once again Mulder gets himself into trouble because he runs off on his own.

It's back to the mytharc in Chapter 6 with 'Elders." This is the longest of the chapters and covers issues and ground from New York to D.C. to Cuba and finds Mulder in a whole new mess of trouble. We start with Prime Elder talking to the CSM about the ability to read minds and the scars on his head. If that doesn't tip you off to who he is, it should have. He meets with the Syndicate group who are all clones like the CSM. Elsewhere in Virginia, Scully and Mulder are playing hooky at a county fair that turns tragic. A woman claiming to be someone from Mulder's past shoots three people and turns the gun on herself. This launches an investigation of Mulder that digs deep into his past involving something called the Chilmark Project.

As part of the Chilmark project, Mulder spoke with a woman named Caroline Ross who looked oddly similar to the woman who attacked him at the fair. But it's not possible because Ross hanged herself in 1991. As they leave the FBI Mulder is hounded by reporters. Scully stays behind to defend him but as soon as Mulder clears the pack he's abducted by another group of men.

Mulder ends up a prisoner in a cloning facility hidden in the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba where Prime Elder reveals himself as Gibson. While he's at the facility Scully is working with the CSM who hints to her that Gibson is the one who has taken Mulder. But he's not the only CSM in this episode. Another version is helping Mulder at the base in Cuba. Skinner also finds himself in the crosshairs of the Syndicate, who kidnap him and torch his apartment.

Back in Cuba, the CSM helps Mulder escape and gives him a memory stick with evidence of Gibson's treachery. Not only has Gibson created this facility but he's been working to frame Mulder as well. No sooner does Mulder escape than Scully ends up in Gibson's clutches herself. With some help from the Lone Gunmen, we learn more about what exactly Gibson was up to and how he plans to move his creepy clone creating operation back to the U.S. Yet another CSM clone this time helps Scully escape. A quick meeting between her and Mulder sends Mulder looking for a way to escape and Scully heading back to deal with Gibson once and for all.

Gibson claims he was only protecting Mulder and that he will only be hunted further even after the allegations are cleared. Scully fears Gibson continued to do to himself what the Syndicate had in the past. While they argue Gibson tries to lead a ship into port using telekinesis. That's the ship he will use to move his cloning operation and continue the project. Scully dispatches the threat and races off to find Mulder.

Mulder and Scully reunite just as he's about to board a smuggling ship. Scully is rattled by her encounter with Gibson but Mulder reminds her they will get through whatever Gibson did together. Scully encourages Mulder to leave with the smugglers and that she'll go back to the FBI to clear things up. And just when Scully thinks she can get a drink to clear her head, she realizes she's surrounded by multiples of the person she thought she killed just moments ago. And there, we end. This also marks the end of the Season 10 comics series.

I love mytharc eps and was glad to see it back in this new form again. And poor Gibson Praise makes for a great villain. It was interesting to see how they expanded on what was done to him, and the flashbacks of the time he and Mulder spent together back in 2001. I also loved how often we got to see Scully fiercely defending Mulder. After all this time she knows him like no one else does. I got a particular thrill watching her tell off A.D. Morales at the beginning. I would have loved to see Skinner more in on the action instead of being pushed around by the Syndicate or Morales. But I'm glad he was included in a smaller way at least.

A few overall thoughts now that we've finished the series: I feel like Mulder and Scully spend way too much time apart in this series. I know they split up a lot in the TV show but it felt like they were working without each other most of the time. I did enjoy that Scully got to be more of an active investigator than in "Cold Cases." She wasn’t stuck doing autopsies as much. And clearly, Mulder has never learned that when he runs off on his own bad things are going to happen. Mulder’s dry humor is captured well and the banter when Mulder and Scully are together is pretty funny in parts. As far as the stories themselves, if you find them hard to follow at times, paging through the comics again can help with that. The audio version does work to flesh them out a little more but they're close to what we saw on the page. I made the comment after finishing "Cold Cases" that the acting can come across as a little wooden at times and that's also the case here. Though I do think it was a bit better this time.

Overall, I do think the series is worth your time and an interesting listen. There's no perfect substitute for the TV show but these audio adventures are entertaining and make the wait for a new season a little easier. While we've now made our way through the Season 10 comics, we don't yet know if they'll continue the audiobooks with the Season 11 series from IDW, which is also different from the upcoming TV series. We'll keep you posted as soon as we hear something!

#The X-Files #XFiles #Stolen Lives #Audible #IDW

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middleeasternpromises · 7 years

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The Hate U Give - A Study in Tupac Shakur - Book Analysis

I wrote this analysis/review as spoiler free as possible but it does contain excerpts from the novel and discusses the book at length. Reading this review will inevitably spoil minor details but purposely tries to avoid any big reveals.

I just finished The Hate U Give, which isn’t my usual fair, young adult. After reading reviews the premise caught me: a young black woman is with her friend when he’s tragically fatally shot by a trigger happy police officer. From there, it follows Starr Carter’s life between the family dynamics of her father, mother, older half brother, Seven, and younger brother, Sekani.

The novel is set in unnamed city other than Starr’s neighborhood of Garden Heights, set in present day. Other than the “every town” setting, it’s meant to exist in our world, where 2pac existed and current rappers Drake, J.Cole, Kendrick Lamar and various other celebrities reside. That said, real events are mostly non-addressed except in closing and I’d argue for the better.

Only in the closing passages does Starr mention real police shootings, letting the reader explore the parallels without drawing any connection one particular event.

“It would be easy to quit if it was just about me, Khalil, that night, and that cop. It’s about way more than that though. It’s about Seven. Sekani. Kenya. DeVante. It’s also about Oscar. Aiyana. Trayvon. Rekia. Michael. Eric. Tamir. John. Ezell. Sandra. Freddie. Alton. Philando. It’s even about that little boy in 1955 who nobody recognized at first—Emmett.”

I didn’t know going into this this book was that it draws heavily off Tupac Shakur, to the point of what I’d dub “Tupacian”. Tupac casts a large shadow over the entire book. Despite how obvious it seems to me, I haven’t read any reviews connecting this story directly to Tupac so here’s my argument as to how deeply connected the book is to Tupac Shakur.

I’ll fully admit some of the points I’ll make are likely happenstance and/or simply reflective of the realities of racism in America. The phrase “the black experience” exists for a pretty clear reason, the white majority of Americans do not experience America the same as African Americans. Simply by writing a book that deals with racism will overlap with thematic issues covered by Tupac and by an even greater extent, hip hop at large.

That said, whether by conscience choice or simply happenstance, They Hate you Give is a hip hop novel where Tupac Shakur’s work is at the core of the tale, and is deeply entrenched with hip hop references and Tupacian thematic archetypes.

While the archetypes aren’t inherently limited to Tupac or even hip hop, but when stacked together, I believe that The Hate U Give affirms a deep study of Tupac and is much a homage to the better aspects of Tupac.

I’m also convinced that The Hate U Give also will be a better 2pac movie than the biopic after seeing the trailers for All Eyez On Me but that’s another rant aside.

Tupac used as narrative device:

At several key points of the book, 2pac’s works are used to both foreshadow and create exposition:

“Mind your business, Starr! Don’t worry ’bout me. I’m doing what I gotta do.” “Bullshit. You know my dad would help you out.” He wipes his nose before his lie. “I don’t need help from nobody, okay? And that li’l minimum-wage job your pops gave me didn’t make nothing happen. I got tired of choosing between lights and food.” “I thought your grandma was working.” “She was. When she got sick, them clowns at the hospital claimed they’d work with her. Two months later, she wasn’t pulling her load on the job, ’cause when you’re going through chemo, you can’t pull big-ass garbage bins around. They fired her.” He shakes his head. “Funny, huh? The hospital fired her ’cause she was sick.” It’s silent in the Impala except for Tupac asking who do you believe in? I don’t know. My phone vibrates again, probably either Chris asking for forgiveness or Kenya asking for backup against Denasia”

Tupac’s song “Who Do You Believe in?” is a paranoid exploration about psychological toll of urban decay and death.

So I'm askin', before I lay me down to sleep Before you judge me Look at all the shit you did to me; my misery

- 2pac, Who Do You Believe in

At the beginning of chapter ten, Starr decides to join her dad on errands for his story. During the trip, 2pac’s song, “Keep Your Head Up” is used as exposition again and mild foreshadowing as Starr struggles with her friend’s death.

“I’m always down to hang out with him. We roll through the streets, Tupac blasting through the subwoofers. He’s rapping about keeping your head up, and Daddy glances at me as he raps along, like he’s telling me the same thing Tupac is. “I know you’re fed up, baby”—he nudges my chin—“but keep your head up.” He sings with the chorus about how things will get easier, and I don’t know if I wanna cry ’cause that’s really speaking to me right now, or crack up ’cause Daddy’s singing is so horrible. Daddy says, “That was a deep dude right there. Real deep. They don’t make rappers like that no more.” “You’re showing your age, Daddy.” “Whatever. It’s the truth. Rappers nowadays only care ’bout money, hoes, and clothes.” “Showing your age,” I whisper. “’Pac rapped ’bout that stuff too, yeah, but he also cared ’bout uplifting black people,” says Daddy. “Like he took the word ‘nigga’ and gave it a whole new meaning—Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished. And he said Thug Life meant—” “The Hate U Give Little Infants F---s Everybody,” I censor myself. This is my daddy I’m talking to, you know? “You know ’bout that?” “Yeah. Khalil told me what he thought it means. We were listening to Tupac right before . . . you know.” “A’ight, so what do you think it means?” “You don’t know?” I ask. “I know. I wanna hear what you think.” Here he goes. Picking my brain. “Khalil said it’s about what society feeds us as youth and how it comes back and bites them later,” I say. “I think it’s about more than youth though. I think it’s about us, period.” “Us who?” he asks. “Black people, minorities, poor people. Everybody at the bottom in society.” “The oppressed,” says Daddy. “Yeah. We’re the ones who get the short end of the stick, but we’re the ones they fear the most. That’s why the government targeted the Black Panthers, right? Because they were scared of the Panthers?”

“Uh-huh,” Daddy says. “The Panthers educated and empowered the people. That tactic of empowering the oppressed goes even further back than the Panthers though. Name one.” Is he serious? He always makes me think. This one takes me a second. “The slave rebellion of 1831,” I say. “Nat Turner empowered and educated other slaves, and it led to one of the biggest slave revolts in history.”

Again, we have the content of Tupac’s song reflected in the story. Below is the hook, literally as her dad is comforting his daughter by trying to normalize her life after the shooting. In his own way, he’s also placing the pivotal title, THUG on the book.

Keep ya head up, ooh, child Things are gonna get easier Keep ya head up, ooh, child Things'll get brighter Keep ya head up, ooh, child Things are gonna get easier Keep ya head up, ooh, child Things'll get brighter

- 2pac, Keep Your Head Up

When Seven is driving with Chris, Kenya, DeVante, and Starr, after the pivotal moment where DeVante is rescued from an already dangerous situation, Seven realizes his mother helped Chris, Kenya and Starr rescue DeVante. Seven wants to go back to try and get her out of the situation, but Starr sees the futile logic, and tries to reason with Seven not to go back.

2pac’s Changes plays when Seven ultimately is convinced to u-turn and not to go back to King’s house and the choice inevitably leads the group to the protests at the end of chapter 24.

“A Tupac song on the radio makes up for our silence. He raps about how we gotta start making changes. Khalil was right. ’Pac’s still relevant.

“All right,” Seven says, and he makes another U-turn. “All right.”

2pac’s Changes is to-date, 2pac’s highest chart topping song, originally released as a B-Side on Brenda’s Got A Baby but re-release on his greatest hits, remixed and remastered to its catchier version that most listeners know today. Changes centrally covers police brutality, racism, the rise of black incarceration, drug dealing, and gang violence, ultimately with 2pac asking listeners to make changes, while over an interpolation of "The Way It Is" by Bruce Hornsby and the Range. The entire song feels as urgent a quarter century later as it did in 1992 and could be quoted in its entirety.

youtube

I see no changes. All I see is racist faces. Misplaced hate makes disgrace to races we under. I wonder what it takes to make this one better place... let's erase the wasted. Take the evil out the people, they'll be acting right. 'Cause both black and white are smokin' crack tonight. And only time we chill is when we kill each other. It takes skill to be real, time to heal each other. And although it seems heaven sent, we ain't ready to see a black President, uhh. It ain't a secret don't conceal the fact... the penitentiary's packed, and it's filled with blacks. But some things will never change. Try to show another way, but they stayin' in the dope game. Now tell me what's a mother to do? Bein' real don't appeal to the brother in you. You gotta operate the easy way. "I made a G today" But you made it in a sleazy way. Sellin' crack to the kids. "I gotta get paid," Well hey, well that's the way it is.

2pac - Changes

I could spent paragraphs unpackingChanges, but its best simply listened to after reading the book.

Lastly, when Starr finally moves into up into her new room, Tupac is used to reflect on Khalil in the closing of the book.

“Momma leaves with the phone, and I turn onto my side. Tupac stares back at me from a poster, a smirk on his face. The Thug Life tattoo on his stomach looks bolder than the rest of the photo. It was the first thing I put in my new room. Kinda like bringing Khalil with me.

He said Thug Life stood for “The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.” We did all that stuff last night because we were pissed, and it fucked all of us. Now we have to somehow un-fuck everybody.”

References to 2pac

1) I’ll start with the most obvious. The Hate U Give, is “THUG”, such a direct reference to 2pac that not one but two characters explain the meaning of 2pac’s love of acrynomistic interpretations of words. Tupac was hardly the first rapper to lift acronyms, as the 5 Percent Nation slang infected hip hop in the late 80s and early 90s. For examples, see any rhyme that involves the phrase Arm Leg Leg Arm Head (Allah) orPete Rock and CL Smooth’s “They Reminisce Over You, T.R.O.Y.”

Tupac once explained Thug Life as “The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody”, an exposition of the black experience according to Shakur. Tupac doesn’t single out just whites or blacks or any other single sect of society but rather points out the normalization of racism hurts white people as well as black people and any other ethnic group. It’s a very progressive argument to be made by man in his early 20s back in the early 90s (lest not forget 2pac was another young black man gunned down at 25).

“Khalil drops the brush in the door and cranks up his stereo, blasting an old rap song Daddy has played a million times. I frown. “Why you always listening to that old stuff?” “Man, get outta here! Tupac was the truth.” “Yeah, twenty years ago.” “Nah, even now. Like, check this.” He points at me, which means he’s about to go into one of his Khalil philosophical moments. “’Pac said Thug Life stood for ‘The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.’” I raise my eyebrows. “What?” “Listen! The Hate U—the letter U—Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody. T-H-U-G L-I-F-E. Meaning what society give us as youth, it bites them in the ass when we wild out. Get it?” “Damn. Yeah.” “See? Told you he was relevant.” He nods to the beat and raps along. But now I’m wondering what he’s doing to “fuck everybody.” As much as I think I know, I hope I’m wrong. I need to hear it from him.”

2) The second most obvious 2pac reference is both Starr Amaru Carter shares the same middle name of Tupac Amaru Shakur. Also notable is the Starr’s last name is the same as Jay-Z, which also is referenced when Starr jokes about the wishful possibility of being an estranged relative relationship to Jay-Z. The spelling of Starr could be also taken as homage to Black Star (Mos Def + Talib Kweli) or Gang Starr (Guru + DJ Premier).

Bonus:

Both groups pay homage to fallen rappers, such as on Black Star’s most famous track “Definition” which features the chorus of:

“One, two, three, It's kind of dangerous to be an MC, They shot 2Pac and Biggie, Too much violence in hip-hop, Y-O” - BlackStar, Definitiona

In the case of Gang Starr, DJ Premier especially being responsible for exposing a wider audience to Big L, or songs like on their classic album Moment of Truth on the song “In Memory Of...” which calls out a large cast of fallen hip hop pioneers including ‘Pac and Biggie.

Also notable, Mos Def performed Panther Pride as spoken word by 2pac on the tribute album, The Rose That Grew From the Concrete, further deepening the Tupac connection to Black Star.

These are loose tangential connections to Tupac. Even Sean Carter (Jay-Z) was called out as the ring leader of East Coast rappers looking to tarnish 2pac’s namesake on Tupac’s Makalevi album, The Seven Day Theory.

In a more literary sense, Starr literally is the star of the book, akin to over-the-top literary naming conventions like Hiro Protagonist in Neil Stephenson’s classic, “Snow Crash”.

3) King is a Suge Knight-esq character even described as a physically imposing 300 pound bearded bald man, standing just above 6 feet and always carrying a cigar. Knight’s kingpin image as a villain has become the standard bearer of the evil gang affiliated record exec and the archetype of the hip hop villain, (see Def Jam’s Vendetta/Fight For NY character, D-Mob, or Lucious from Empire) .

King isn’t a studio exec nor does he manage musicians in the The Hate U Give, but his demeanor is a distilled version of Knight.

Bonus:

A laundry list misdeeds have been attributed to Knight and his cronies. Many fans of 2pac believe that Suge Knight orchestrated the hit on 2pac in Las Vegas. Lead Investigator of the Christopher Wallace murder, Russel Poole, believes that Suge Knight was behind the murder of the Notorious Big.

4) Colors play a part in the gang culture, grey and green are substituted for the real life crips and blood affiliations, a throwback to colors and gang life of the early 90s. Tupac often referenced M.O.B., Money Over Bitches but for those who knew Suge, M.O.B. was a menacing endorsement of the Mob Piru Bloods. The divisions of even the same gangs by regionality like the divisions of Bloods are reflected as King Lords has divisions within the same gang, akin to the world that Tupac lived in. Notably the reality of gang life isn’t unique to only 2pac but the the dedication to gang colors was originally a west coast phenomenon but spread.

NYC underground legend, OC (of the D.I.T.C.)’s Memory Lane illustrates the division of New York vs Los Angeles in the 80s.

I recall one of my cousins goin out to California Comin’ back tellin us niggas dyin over colors He told me 'bout, khaki wearin, jheri curl brothers Doin’ drivebys in cars with machine guns bustin’ I found it farfetched, thinkin his story is stretched Findin’ out later on about the West coast sets Let me fast-forward the story and tell ya how it ends They moved to start a new life for his life to end Come to find out later on he was Blood inducted From the same set he claimed was the Blood who bucked him - OC, Memory Lane*

The link has the track label mislabeled.

5) Seven’s name toys with the numerological side of hip hop.

I rarely-to-never put credence into numerology or anagrams as both are logical fallacies as it flirts with enthymemes and is an exercise in confirmation bias.

Most of the post-humorous “2pac is alive” theories had to do with seriously large jumps like “Makaveli = Mak alive”. I could easily connect the number to 2pac.

Example: Seven isn’t exactly limited to any one sect of western society due to its prevalence as a “lucky” number but 2pac’s Makaveli - The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory, has seven in the title. Seven also happens (more coincidence than anything) to be the number of official 2pac’s post humorous albums.

While many theories circulate around the meaning of the Makaveli album’s title, quite literally the album was recorded a single week, hence the “Seven Day Theory.” In the context of a Tupanian world and as someone familiar with the importance of numerology among 2pac fans, I’d argue that simply using a number (any low digit number) would allow fans to make tangential claims about said number. This logical fallacy is known as “Attempts by gamblers to see patterns in random chance”, where coincidence is chalked up to some convoluted pattern, that often requires significant hurdles to arrive at.

While I’d wager that Seven’s name isn’t a direct reference to 2pac, I can see Angie Thomas toying with the reader, looking to make numerological connections to any (bad pun) number of things as numerology factored quite a bit into post-humorous Tupac conspiracies.

6) Big Mav, aka Maverick, Starr’s father, is constantly tending roses in his garden (and talking to them) despite being a fairly traditionally masculine character. The affinity with roses is shared with 2pac. 2pac’s autobiographical poem is “The Rose That Grew From the Concrete” which also is the name of his collected publication of his poetry. “Mama's Just A Little Girl” and” I Ain't Mad at Cha” both feature the iconography of roses pertaining as a metaphor for raising children in the urban ghettos. Big Mav struggle to raise roses in his urban environment is an allegory for his own careful attention to Starr (and all his children). Roses to my knowledge, are the only flower ever mentioned by variety in any 2pac song.

7) Khalil is potentially named after the actor that played in Juice, one of Tupac’s best friends, Raheem. Raheem is shot dead by Tupac’s character. While there isn’t a greater metaphor here, Tupac’s portrayal of Bishop, the antagonist in the film is widely regarded as Tupac’s defining film role, and a center of Tupacian lore as its his first film role. As the story goes, he landed it on an impromptu reading while hanging out with Treach of Naughty By Nature.

Also, police violence towards young black men is central to the Tupacian universe. This shouldn’t come as any surprise as Tupac confronted the reality of growing up as black male from a very early age.

Cops give a damn about a negro Pull the trigger, kill a nigga, he's a hero Mo' nigga, mo' nigga, mo' niggas Rather I'd be dead than a po' nigga Let the Lord judge the criminals If I die, I wonder if Heaven got a ghetto

- 2pac, I Wonder if Head Got a Ghetto

8) ) Golden Era references are aplomb in this book. For those unfamiliar, the Golden Era is usually cited as roughly between 1987-1995, marking the rapid rise of hip hop in public conscience era and of the most rapid evolution of hip hop in both lyricism, and production. While the exact years are often debated, the golden era is never extended beyond the deaths of 2pac and Biggie in 1996. The throwback references are largely to cultural references that existed when 2pac was alive. The obsession with Jordans is a 90s sneaker head theme. Shoe fetishism has been deeply entrenched with hip hop, especially in the indie rap scene as of today. This could easily be a book worth, but Jordan represents the shift from Adidas to Nike, which happened during the Golden Era.. While Tupac wasn’t explicitly a sneaker head, fans and publications have noted Tupac wearing Jordans.

More indicative of the throwback references, are with Starr and Chris’s obsession of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Jordans, and references to NWA and the movie Friday. Notably, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is set in the in LA, NWA is from LA, and Friday is a movie set in LA. 2pac is most closely associated with Los Angeles despite being from NYC and also residing in Oakland.

DeVante is named after DeVante Swing, directly referenced to 90s RnB group, Jodaci, DeVante Swing even produced a song for Tupac, although not really affiliated. For a bit of unrelated trivia, Jodaci is where Sean “Puffy” Combs got his start in the music business as his first major act to break. Puff Daddy (as he was known) is a central figure in 2pac’s beef with the Biggie.

Lastly, even the phrase” Westside is the best side” uttered in the book, and is a throwback reference to the West vs East hip hop beef, prominently between Tupac and Biggie and whoever else Tupac threw under the bus in diss records (Nas, Jay-Z, Mobb Deep and even The Fugees).

9) Starr’s childhood friend, Natasha, died of gang violence. Tupac often recorded odes to fallen friends, most notably Kato who died of gang violence who’s referenced in lyrics on “How Long With they Mourn Me”, “So Many Tears”, “Ready For Whatever, “Only Fear of Death”, “Where do we go from here”, “Ballad of a Dead Soulja”, “Life Goes On” and “White Man’z World”. While the repercussions of gang violence is hardly new territory for hip hop, it follows the Tupacian thematic tone. This may be grasping at straws Natasha’s death reads quite a bit like Tupac’s description of Latasha mentioned in “Hellrazor”.

Dear Lord if ya hear me, tell me why Little girl like LaTasha, had to die She never got to see the bullet, just heard the shot Her little body couldn't take it, it shook and dropped And when I saw it on the news how she bucked the girl, killed Latasha Now I'm screamin fuck the world,

-2pac, Hellrazor

Notably, The real LaTasha Harlins was shot when a store manager assumed LaTasha was stealing liquor and a conflict arose where Latasha was shot, in the back of the head, attempting to leave.

10) The reactions to the police verdict result in a full blown riot resembling the the LA riots in depth and scope. This is as much about today as it is thematically 2pac. Tupac several times references rioting, (as the LA riots happened in April 29, 1992 - May 4, 1992.

First you didn't give a fuck, but you're learnin now If you don't respect the town then we'll burn you down God damn it's a motherfuckin riot Black people only hate police so don't try it If you're not from the town then don't pass through Cause some O.G. fools might blast you

- 2pac, I Wonder if Head Got a Ghetto

I must reiterate that this alone isn’t inherently Tupacian as the LA Riots have had a long standing hold the public conscience, and any riots resulting from unfavorable outcomes circulating police brutality automatically welcome a comparison to the LA Riots.

While I’m sure there’s other relationships other readers can make connections to 2pac, these were the most easily recognized for me.

youtube

Recommended listening from 2pac:

Changes

HellRazor

Me Against The World

I Wonder if Heaven Got A Ghetto*

Trapped

Holler if You Hear Me

Brenda’s Got A Baby

Keep Your Head Up

Until the End of Time (RP Remix)

My Block

Do For Love

*I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto borrows several lines from Changes (or vice versa) as Changes was originally a B-Side that was never released on an album. The remix I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto I personally like

#the hate u give #2pac #tupac #tupac shakur #Hip hop music #political rap #political hip hop #book review #book analysis #black lives matter #hip hop #westside #west coast #thug life #angie thomas #ya novels #literature

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mylockholmes · 8 years

Text

Reclaimed Crown ~ Part 4

Authors note: the text post are @deepsexts

Part One Part Two Part Three

she sat staring at him “this is so awkward. we are both intelligent people and you can’t even figure out how to be comfortable with the sex talk.”

“Before i get to that i wanted to thank you for being patient with me. this....has all taken a lot of adjustemtn for everyone involved. and of course last week we dealt with Eurus.” he sighed when he mentioned his sister. “Yopu seem to be the least troubled one in our family.”

“You are not going to convince me to work for the government i want to to do somethign where i can work with Molly and Charlie. I don;t want to be professional dancer it is just a hobby.”

he looked at her and sighed “I wish i had been so sure of myself when i was your age most of where i am today i fell into by chance due to protecting sherlock from his addictions. Part of the reason i am glad you didn;t come to london until last year because Surelock may have done thigns that would have indirectly harmed you.” he caressed her cheek.

He stammered his way through an explantion of human reporduction “Sex isn’t to be taken lightly. One can hope if you ended up in the same situtation you were created from. that young Mister Msdaniel would take responsibility.”

“You’re the anonymous benefactor that paid for me to study in Copenhagen for three months.” he smiled at her “Daddy, i am not an idiot and Charlie isnlt either. we are waiting until it feels right.”

“How about we go somewhere for dinner. my flat is sadly in need of food and i need a change.”

“as long as you eat a slice of cake i know it is one of your guilty pleasures.” she said as they went to his “By the way for fouture reference i was hte only one who was fully paying attention during human reproduction the only part of the biolgy classes my mind wandered durign was disection.”

“You found the false panel in the back of the cabinet?”

“six weeks ago. you are an adult you shouldnlt pretend you don;t like cake. by the way why did you take charlie to the Diogenes Club.”

“it is where i go to relax i figured he needed a quiet place that wasn’t surrounded by death.” he was also debating admitting younger members to the club and changing things up a little because having his daughter around made him realize he didn;t have to pretend like he didn’t matter.”I spent so much of my life creating a comfort zone. and I didnlt even let anyone in the family into that often.”

“Ifigured that otu the first timei saw your flat it is a lirrle more closed in than 221B.” she said

the next day at Charlie’s flat “I think in his way Dad has accepted you into his inner circle.” she started giggling when he kissed her neck

“he really had the sex talk with you i am trying to Imagine Mycroft Holmes.” he said “is this because i am five years older than you and he thinks that since i m guy i bug you for sex.”

“he;s just trying to be normal dad which is hard considering he controls assassins and is datign hte prime minister.” she laughs as he kisses her neck “at least let me put my phone in the table drawer before you start cuddling it took me an hour to find it last time.”

He nuzzled his face into her neck “I passed my architecture finals.” they both knew Mycroft was the reason reporters weren’t hanging out outside the building he lived in. “My anatomy finals are next week and i think my professor thinks of me as a fluke.”

“Charles Mcdaniel, listen to me. you are beign taught anatomy by one of the most brilliant women in England. You will be able to pass anatomy finals. After your semester is ove r we can go to Italy for a few weeks.”

“Why not next week.”

“Because i convinced dad to clear his schedule for a few days so we can go to paris. we havenlt gone on trip at all since i came to London.” she looked at him and giggled as he kissed her nose “Maybe when we go on our trip i will be ready for that next step.”

“are you sure?”

she nodded.

a week later in paris

“So the real reson you have absolutely no peoper way to act when sherlock shows you pictures of Rosie is it reminds you of all the moments you missed with me?” Lucy said as they stood on the balsony watchign the night life of paris go on below them

“Yes. In part. and it also makes me wish i had lived my life a little more. I love your uncle. But sometimes feelign obligated to watch over him feels like a burden.”

“I figured htere was reason that John is almost the exact same age you are. you needed someone you knew you could trust to balance out sherlock and become his friend withut making him worse.”

“i suppose so. By the way you speak french better than i did when i was your age.”

Meanwhile i nthe St Bart’s Morgue ”Charlie i know you can get this right. we need a break.” lets play some music

“You’re right We’ve been goign ovet the information for my exam for 8 hours.” the turth was he missed Lucy and he knew he could call her but he didnlt want to interrupt her bonding time “i am kind of hungry i forget to eat when LUcy;s not around.” he takes off his rupbber gloves and washes his hands

“I think sherlock is goign to ask me to Marry him but hels waitign Until Lucy and Mycroft get back. I am sure Lucy is goign to take you the Anniversary party for her Grandparents’ wedding anniversary.”

“Mrs. Holmes invited me. It is hard to believe such sweet people raised Mycoft.” he said

“well if you want to be tchnical Sherlock and Mycroft were what americans call latchkey kids.” Mycroft said as she entered. “I was bringing Rose to the pedtrican for a check up and decided to see if you two needed somethign to eat.”

they both laugh “I fact we were about to take a break. this young man is having hard time focusing on his studied with Lucy in Paris with Mycroft.” Molly said “here is my little god-daughter?”

“She;s being fawned over by the nurses upstairs. they still have hard time beliieving that sherlock Holmes delivered a bab y in the back seat of a car. let alone that I asked him to the be the baby’s godfather.”

Molly “have i ever told you about hte day of Rosie’s christening?” she paused “t a was few months before Lucy came to London and Sherlock was tryign to keep his mind occupoed and he wouldnlt stop texting for like two weeks. I hade to keep tellign him to put his phone away! he finally quit when i elbowed him.”

Charlie laughed ‘Good grief that must have been a sight.” he paused “xan we go somewhere where can get soemthign a bit stronger than tea. and i am not talking about coffee.” he respected Lucy;s rule about not drinkign aroudn her but he needed something like scotch or something “Before they left to go on their trip Mycroft invited me to be the first of new genration and new chapter in the History of hte Diogenes Club.”

“I think it means hels taking Lucy;s advise on broadening his social circle the way she described that place to me it is depressing it is all bunch of men who could be sittign around having intelligent conversation but they all just sit around reading and being antisocial in a room together.”

“we could go to my house. because I am not taking Rosie to a pub.” Mary said.

In Paris......Mycroft looked at Lucy :Ican see that looks in your eyes. it is okay with me if you make a Quick Phone call to Charles. He probably misses you. you;ve been apart for three days.”

Lucy goes into the next room and texts charlie

Shrlie reads the text and grins “I’ll be right back.” he steps outside and calls Lucy :”I miss you baby. how is hte trip going?”

Lucy smiled “I love you, Charlie. I miss you.” she paused “the trip is goign fine Dad saw i was missing you and said it would be alright if i called you.”

he laughed “I was avoiding callign you because I didnlt want to itnerrupt your time with your father.” he texts him a picture of Paris “Maybe someday we can go to Paris together.”

“I havenlt even discussed hte fact that his girlfriend toffered me a Job as an intern in her pr department. i will pay well it and it involves photography.” before the battery in ehr phone die she sends him one ore text

“Thanks for understanding Dad. I wanted to devote my time to you but seeing the couples along hte river posing for chracatures amd kissing made me think fof Charlie.”

In London......

“Ack, Molly is it insane that i want to marry Lucy. i even know what i want to say to her.” he pauses “Frget a hicky i want to mark you with my name.”

they squeeled a little “that’s so precious. “

“Lucy is very special person. i am not just saying because her mother is a semi retired CIA agent. she’s a clever per.” Molly said

Mary comes into the livign room with Rosie “Rosie is being too stubborn to sleep so i brought her in.”

Charlie “It surprises me that you chose Sherlock as a God father.”

“He is John’s best friend. and Molly and greg balance out Sherlock though.”

Molly “I think it is partly to get Sherlock to spend more time with me.”

“Maybe.” she loved being Mary Watson more than she liked her life as an assassin.”

In Paris

they sit on the couch in their suite. “tell me what Quentin was like as a father. I know you adored the man before you realized i was your father.” lucy rested her head on his chest.

“i remember whenever i was sick and couldnlt leave collinwood he would have the servants take me to the grand dining room andlet me rest, on the chaise, he would play classical music on his piano until i fell asleep. on my 13th Birthday he took me to Florida. not to the well known theme parks but to out of way museums.”

“Did he ever compose and original tune for you? Sherlock mentioned you asked him to compose somethign for your 21sr Birthday.”

“He never really brought it up but i think he wanted for my 18th Birthday. because found blank sheet music before i met you that said for Lucy, on it.”

“He did have a point. He knew i would never talk to you. i regret not having the nerve to talk to you sooner. Anastasia was name i suggested..” Mycroft said

“How are things Going between you and Lady Smallwood?” she said grinning, she knew he would never bring it up “I figured it had to have been suggested from Someone because Olivia was her Grandmother’s name.”

“i am not sure what to say about MY relationship with Lady Smallwood. it is all new to me i;ve never been in a relationship before. I’ve spent most of my life since age age 13 taking care of Sherlock. I need to do somethign for myself and let Sherlock be Sherlock.”

Lucy stands up “I’m going to order Cake from room service you need to Indulge. we are on Vacation.” she said as she called room service and ordered two slices of cake and two glasses of milk. “Merci.”

An hour later “I need to remember to indulge once in while it will always be enriching. You should take hte Job with lady Smallwood. It would be good on future resumes. It will be a good way for you to stay in London while Charles is studying Medicine.”

“You knew about that?”

“she asked me if i thought it would be a good idea. Not many americans get chance to work for the British Government.” he smiled, for the first time in his life he had somethign to be proud of. “You are remarkable young woman. i only wish i had taken part in raising you sooner.”

“You are doing just fine dad. stop dragging yourself down.” she looked at him “You are an amazing personand you are doing your best. I am honestly amazed that all of Sherlock’s friends accepted me.” she said as she started to yawn. she goes itn othe bathroom to brush her teeth and get ready for bed while Mycroft places the tray out i nthe hall for housekeeping to pick up.

a few days later when they return to London Charlie is waiting there

“I;ve done some stupid shit. But asking you out was one of the best decisions in my life.” he said as he kissed her “Your dad’s car is waiting outside.” he smiled “I’m here. I intend to stay.”

Mycroft decided to give them space as they walked out to the car, he honestly liked their energy he spent so much time around serious people

“I missed you so much, Lulu Bell.” he said as they got to the car and he helped the driver put the luggage in the trunk

“I missed you too, Charlie.” she smiled “How did you do on your final.”

“I don’t know it will take the professor a week to grade everything/ but i was able to study better after i talked to you.”

Mycroft rolled up the window after he got in..

To Be continued......

#daddy! mycroft #part 4 #reclaimed crown #the holmes family #sherlock fan fic #1/12/17

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