#i like doing one post for a handful of eps bc it saves time

[noemitenshi]

Troy Otto x Alicia Clark s8 AU - Their first meeting

am thinking about this again

specifically though the first meeting between troy and alicia post s3. now to half-way fit it with canon, it needs to happen after s7 as i understand it, since alicia is thought to have died at the end there (though as we find out in s8 that is not what happened...).

Ok so Alicia passes out (forgive me, I have not seen the ep in question but for like story reasons it should happen in a store). Alicia passes out. Troy happens upon her while on a supply run. He sees a body lying in the aisle, he goes over to make sure s/he isn't a threat - the way in which he does that is that he kicks the body and waits for a response.

the only thing that happens is that her head lolls to the side so that troy can see her face and he goes "alicia?!"

He can't even put into words what he's feeling now. Definitely surprised (a bit also like fate is laughing at him) and it has him thinking back to the ranch and madison and nick. His brother and father and all of that. Unbalances him completely. He hasn't been thinking of that period in his life for a while now. And while his emotions have a hard time settling, he's already checking for a pulse, unsure if he wishes more to find one or none.

There's relief when he feels the fluttering heartbeat. And his hands are already busy, checking for further injuries before he can even decide what he wants to do now. So he goes 'guess i'm helping her'.

He isn't quite sure why, his emotions still all over the place. Nostalgia (both toward the ranch/that period when the clarks got there before everything went to shit/missing jake and his dad and nick) but then also still bitterness/disappointment/hurt over what madison did to him (over nick just standing by). He very much feels his lonliness in this moment, or more the missing of other people. And he isn't quite sure if he intends to help alicia as a way to get back at madison or if his intentions are more benign. he doesn't care, either.

Whatever it is, the end result is the same. he takes her with him and manages to nurse her back to health.

She's non-responsive for a long time but at some point she wakes up. Very disoriented, she thought it was her end when she passed out. And then first she sees she's been taken care of. sees troy's back and is like 'oh he must've helped me' kinda surprised someone did but also deeply thankful and then he turns around and she goes "troy otto?!" all confused. startled. just a whole world of huh what when how why and troy goes "alicia clark" very much emphasiszing every syllable and then "what are the odds, huh?" and she goes "i thought… youre dead" and the second part is very quiet. whispery and he goes "yeah your mom tried her best" with like a head tilt and maybe "guess you can tell nicky he isnt the only deathproof one…" and then alicias face does a 🥺-face and he knows thats not good "nick… he…" she stops and shakes her head. blinks maybe. "he died"

and troys face does something complicated and then he goes "how?"

and alicia isn't quite sure how to answer that. doesn't feel like telling the story (thinks troy would have *things* to say about it and she does not feel like having him judge it/mock it. not this). so maybe she just says "shot." and troy can go "and the one who did it?" with a look in his eyes. and she can shake her head again bc. she doesn't want to remember. also prob doesnt want to be remined of how shed been after nicks death and troy sounds like hes out for revenge so. she just goes "you saved me" Troy huffs a little laugh as if saying *evidently*. And alicia tells him "thank you" honestly He gets all busy then (as if a bit bashful) telling her how long she was out etc that she won't be able to travel for a while still by his estimate. And then maybe some kind of ... almost casual "Madison's gotta worry a bit longer..." (he's totally fishing for information haha without like saying it. hoping alicia will confirm whether she traveled with madison before.) And Alicia tells him she's dead too And then they sit in silence.

And this is how they start.

[linnaealyn]

Been working on again off again on a Xenogears portrait mod for two years now, started in Sept 2021 right before I actually finished the game for the first time. Some time ago I started adding upscaled (hand painted) versions of UI elements, so I guess its now a general texture pack I'm working on.

Its done through RetroArch's Beetle PSX HW core real-time texture replacer.

My goal with this is to make a texture pack that stays very true to the original look of the game. I don't want to redesign elements, impose too much of my own influence into it, and make the game look like it had an identity crisis. I still want it to look like Xenogears in the end, just upscaled, and where the portraits are concerned I want it to look as close to the original artwork as possible, with no scanning artifacts and low res quality- as if we actually had digital versions of Tanaka's original artwork.

Also, this isn't intended to be super high res 4k or anything, idc about that.

Figured I'd make a full post here going over everything I've done so far. I'm on the home stretch! Just a few more left.

⬆ Starting with UI. I replaced the red selection arrow, the red/grey spheres, save block icon, save/load text/bar, Walk/Gear icons (more about that one later), compass cardinal points (was unable to get a proper dump of the circular compass texture), and the dialogue diamond and selection diamond within menus.

I totally get it if someone wouldn't want to use something like the dialogue diamond, as you see it all the time right beside the pixelated text and it seems to stand out more in dialogue vs the one in menuing bc your attention is typically focused elsewhere while menuing. In the end, all changes are optional and to remove something all you have to do is move/delete the equivalent img file from the texture replacement folder. Within said folder I have a sub-folder titled "alternate portraits" where I keep alts and things I want to "disable" without outright deleting.

⬆ In combat UI I've replaced the HP/dmg numbers, the Time/AP/numbers, battle palette text (used for other text as well), the circle and tags of the battle palette, Time/AP/fuel bars, green Gear text and numbers, Gear attack level/♾ indicator, black Gear UI backgrounds, and combo icons. The red arrows have been replaced, but unfortunately the black arrows around the red cannot be replaced based on how the game does it; it is not a texture you can change, it is a triangular shaped box that the game fills with the black texture from behind Gear UI.

⬆ Menu/gameplay buttons. Also numbers/"points/fuel/cancel end" Someone mentioned playing with a switch pro controller or joy-cons so I threw an ABXY version together as an alternate button display option. Used the same typeface as the combo icons to keep some consistency with a typeface already in-use as well as for overall clarity.

⬆ Also, DB icons, EP/Fuel/Miss text, and "total damage". Unfortunately, the other DB icons (showing the △🞪☐ highlighted) cannot be replaced as far as I can tell. The battle UI textures (the 17 or so textures of the same thing in varying hues) shows them on it, but changing them in each one of these textures does not change the icons. It does not pull from these specific texture dumps, in other words; its just one of those that doesn't dump, like the circular compass texture.

⬆ In working on the Walk/Gear icons I wasn't sure exactly how I'd go about doing it because the original is literally just that tiny. So I had the idea of putting a little Fei & Weltall in it, outlined by the same grey. Thought it might be weird in the other party members' menus, idk, and I don't like changing things too much from the original, so I decided to just use Fei/Weltall as the grey silhouettes instead. Ill keep the Fei/Weltall one as an alt option if anyone wants to use it.

⬆ And the minimap. Kept B&W so that the colored dots (indicators of where all you can enter an area) aren't difficult to see. I do have a colored version as an alt, though. Credit to Adelinold for having ripped the 3D maps and made a bird's eye view "minimap" esque screenshot of the world map some years back because it is absolutely perfect for use here.

~~~~~

Now onto portraits, the main bulk of the work. This includes dialogue portraits, menu portraits, and gameplay portraits. I go through each one individually, find the highest quality version of the art, and clean it up manually, painting over it to get rid of any jpg rot, scanning artifacts, or print dots from scans while keeping it as close to the artwork as possible. In order to keep colors consistent across the board (because scans of the artwork can vary) I'm picking from the sprites. One portrait typically takes 2.5+ hours, not including testing them in-game. Each one needs to be tested in-game and edited to make sure semi-transparent pixels around the portraits don't result in black or white pixels in the area that should be transparent.

⬆ Direct comparison to the sprites. I'm not too strict about how I match how much of the art is shown, but in instances like this I like to show more of the character than the pixelated portraits allowed for. However, this wouldn't work for everyone as Fei's default portrait is also used when Kim is naked from the hips up.

For the Captain I specifically wanted to get his pipe within frame. Typically the portraits end just behind their ear, have the eyes at 1/2 to 2/3 height, and end just above the clavicle.

⬆ Some portraits like Kim and Elly have no artwork equivalent, but were pretty basic to make with the artwork of Fei & Elly that we do have.

⬆ Other characters have no artwork equivalent whatsoever, like Stein and Wel-Gear Hammer. For Stein I had to take the collar from Stone's artwork and paint something from scratch using Stein's sprite as reference. This one was more fun to do than I expected because its a special case, entirely different from all of the other portraits. For example, usually the artwork has 4 colors for skin- base color, shadow color, deep shadow color (usually seen directly under the chin, used sparingly), and a highlight color for on the nose or lip. But with Stein his skin had many different colors you could pick from the sprite and no equivalent artwork to limit yourself in how many there actually are. So in trying to get it looking just right it took something like 7 different shades of varying pink, red, and orange. It clearly has more dynamic shading compared to all of the other portraits.

For Wel-Gear Hammer... I did my best given what all I could see was even happening in the sprite.

⬆ I made a close eyed Elly portrait as there is no artwork of it and a bomb collar Fei and Hammer portrait using the bomb collar in Rico's art. Its fun playing around with them when there is no equivalent artwork.

⬆ Made an unsmiling Citan to mirror his unsmiling dialogue sprite vs his smiling menu sprites as well as alt Krelians to better match the expression of his mouth that the sprite has vs the artwork. (sprites are always a bit stretched compared to the artwork, btw. even when you rip them from the disc)

⬆ I'm also working on alternate versions, like a two-eyed Bart I did for fun.

~~~~~

It is finished! 1.0 anyway. Right in time for the North American 25th Anniversary! I just gotta get it uploaded somewhere.

I'll continue to work on the ones that I think still need more work, but for now even the ones that are in rougher shape are passable.

Ill have two versions of the mod- one with stretched and cropped portraits that work in 4:3 (much like the sprite portrait bmps in the base-game that end up looking fine in true 4:3. they kind of end up blurrier due to stretching the artwork) (with Crop Overscan set to None) and another version which isn't stretched or cropped so its as crisp as I could get them, but in order to get them to display the image exactly as they are in-game without squishing you need Crop Overscan set to Static (removes horizontal padding) which makes it just slightly off 4:3. Honestly, to the untrained eye its hard to tell it isn't 4:3. 🤷‍♀️ The only thing you might notice it really affecting would be the animated cutscenes.

I'll make a master post for the mod itself, separate from this. This'll end up being a bit of a time capsule for me.

[canonically47]

review pls

EVERYONE SHUT THE FUCK UP YUL HAD HIS ASS HANDED TO HIM AND WE GOT JAJAMES IN THE FINALE. ONC DO NOT FUCK THIS UP FOR ME.

DCAS ep 19 - review

spoilers !!!! (but you knew that.)

tom saying jake sees the best in people was so fucking funny i'm sorry like we both know He Does Not. even the line was like 'despite his anxieties he..' baby ur literally saying 'despite not seeing the best in people he really does see the best in people' you are so fucking stupid

side note tom is actually an idiot, unironically. not haha himbo idiot just an actual fucking idiot. how is he 30. how is he a fan favorite. HOW IS TOMJAKE A FAN FAVORITE SHIP nonono im not talking about this rn im NOT (claws at my enclosure)

ugh i forgot tomjake is like. a thing. and not a very bad made-up fanon ship. and they're giving them a spin-off. for a sec i allowed myself to exist in a world where ONC made good writing decisions. what a world it was

james being jake's biggest hater was amazing. almost unleashed my inner jake hater. there is still time though, trust

kinda sad to see huntess not hang out with anyone but each other. i was waiting on tess interacting with gabellie or something

on the bright side, GRETT HAVING A MOMENT WITH GABELLIE??? HELLOOOOOOOOO?????? CAN YALL HEAR ME???????????????

gabgrellie save me.... save me gabgrellie............

speaking of ellie she looked so off the entire episode. why did her eyes move like that. am i crazy. she looked so ugly

oh my fucking god they fucking burnt yul's face. that's crazy. grett the woman that you are <333 i might actually draw the prick because he looks cool now

i am also sooooooo glad they're not giving him a half-assed redemption arc. they know he sucks ass. at least we have that

krystal saying "that's the good shit" was the most embarrassing thing ever in fact her entire part before dinner was embarrassing. why did she keep. doing that and saying that. girl why are you interrupting the moment you want to get on camera are you an idiot

also she fell victim to the inconsistency bc tell me why she was bitching and moaning the entire season about 'those that really matter' and being all lpvey dovey about her friends but then derek is like 'trevor :)' and she goes 'why arent u professional' girl.

and derek. man. we all know youre lying genuinely fuck you. 'he matters to me' GIRLLL WHEEENNNNNNNNNNN HAVE YOU SHOWN THAT 😭😭😭

FIORE AND ALEC!!! ALEC SCOWLING THEN LOOKING AT FIORE AND INSTANTLY SMILING!!! HIM PROTECTING HER FROM YUL!!! HIM COVERING HER EYES WHEN YUL GOT BURNED!!! TH!!! THE!!!!!!! THE FATHER-DAUGHTER DUO EVERRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 😭😭😭

now allow me to be even more not normal

JAJAMES CRUMBS 🗣🗣🗣‼️‼️‼️🔥🔥🔥 JAMES IS HELPING JAKE IN THE FINALE EVERYONE SHUT THE FUCK UP HERE IS HOW JAJAKEDEN NATION CAN STILL WIN- [gets shot] [gets shot] [gets shot] [gets s

please god PLEASE LET THEM BECOME FRIENDS because if they do i will actually write DSVC fic about jajakeden getting together. i made a promise to myself to never write DSVC fic but if they become friends. i will be so. fucking. annoying.

JAJAMES PLEASE BECOME FRIENDS PLEASEEEEEEE PLEASE 😭😭😭

sooooo glad fiore not only did not pick riya but also GAVE HER THE DISADVANTAGE. JAKE FANS HERE IS HOW WE CAN STILL WIN

why did they bring emily back just to make her a bitch.

JAJAMES PLEEEEEAAAAAASEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE 😭😭😭😭😭

there are many things wrong with this ep (like derek existing, and also his lines, and also yul existing,,, and the stuff ive pointed out) but its ONC. i'll throw them a bone ig. i'm okay with what we got, it obviously wasn't a masterpiece and it felt fanservice-y in parts (yk that one post or ask or whatever that says season 1 & 2 DSVC was a show a fandom was built off, but season 3 is a show built off the fandom? yea some scenes reminded me of that. coigh cough krystal mildly breaking the fourth wall.) but i'm glad connor only got like 2 seconds of screentime, fiore and alec got along, and the jajames crumbs oh my.. <3

overall, an 8/10 and if my memory isn't failing me this is probably the best rating since ep 13?? but yea it was a good episode i'm fine with it. im surprised they didnt ruin.everything. bc yk its ONC. so yea!!! yay yippee yay!

i am so glad there are only 2 episodes left . istg if i watch the spin offs or new seasons i need yall to shoot me. and remember how i was talking some time ago about rewatching the entire show after DCAS came out fully? yea no. not doing that. when episode 21 comes out i will be cheering because i will finally put DSVC behind me. i fucking hate this show WE ARE ALMOST FREE!!!!!!!!! CHEERING

[magicaldreamfox1]

Do you have any vegaspete fanfic recs for someone getting into the ship?

hi! i'm so glad u asked!! i famously love having opinions and have great taste so absolutely i would love to recommend some fics!

so i don't know exactly what u're looking for and since u mentioned getting into the ship i tried to give u a wide variety of recs to choose from!

let's get started!

Plain & Pleasure (Series) by @onstoryladders

fantastic tattoo parlor au. just trust me on this it's really good

Black Velvet (Series) by @kerrikins

black velvet is a canon divergence from the ep 7 torture scene until the end of the series and it is one of the most famous works of the fandom i think. like it is to me. u can read the first two chapters of black velvet the work as a standalone but why would u am i right. don't be intimidated by the length it's amazing!

i fill you up, drink from my cup by @petes-vegas

mmmmmmm pwp? pwp. post-canon vegaspete attend an event both pissed at each other and they start trying to make each other jealous. this might have u thinking uhmmm this is getting worrying they're really doing the most is this gonna go into cheating territory? and fear not the answer is no.

in your eyes, in your arms (series) by @pressignore

great post-canon series about vegaspetemacau bonding in the hospital. very cute very fluffy 10/10 would recommend.

Blood & Lust (Series) by @kerrikins

taking a dark turn after the last one this is a series abt. horny torture. honestly all u need to know. #justvegaspetethings and so on and so forth. might be ur cup of tea might not be. only one way to find out

Visiting Home by @raelle-writing

another fluffier turn. u gotta keep up here i move fast. so this is post-canon vegaspetemacau visiting pete's grandma. everyone is experiencing feelings. look me in the eyes. do u see the tears. it's fantastic. i especially love the buildup we get thru the whole fic and it pays off so beautifully in the end and it's just. an amazing fic i loved it very much

If You Had Something To Lose by @raelle-writing

now pay attention! this is an ONGOING fic. but it makes the list bc man. MAN. so it's an au. the theerapanyakuls are in the mafia, peteporschechay are not. one evening pete finds beaten up vegas in a back alley and saves his life. love at first sight? no u misheard. horny at first sight. shenanigans ensue. raelle plays with my feelings. now disclaimer i haven't read the most recent like. 4 chapters bc i'm depressed scared of sad cliffhangers i just can't deal with it 😭😭😭. but really this fic is fantastic it had me hooked from the very beginning and it just keeps going on amazingly and i have no doubts it will continue being great until the end.

discothéque rouge by @lu-sn

now i read this one recently and yeah YEAH. classic vp shenanigans it's such a good time. post-canon mafia shenanigans starring vp.

the weight of it's like hands around my neck by @wegathpete

now listen! i'm not a member of the peteporsche ride or die besties agenda but i know a lot of people like it and this fic is just so good. i hope op knows the babygirl paragraph lives in my head rent free. it's a post-canon introspection of vegaspete which also includes porn. aren't we lucky ❤️

Silly Secrets by @raelle-writing

have u ever wondered what vegas would do if he walked in on pete's preferred exercising.... routine. well u don't have to wonder any longer! it's exactly what it says on the tin! post-canon vegas discovers pete's silly secret! whatever will he do abt it!! only one way to find out 😌😌😌

Your Secrets And Lies by @kerrikins

another banger by kerri. post-canon vegaspete in the hospital. pete thinks vegas is holding back and decides to do smthg abt it. very simple very fun!

we've now arrived at the shameless self promo part of this post!

so i happen to write as well and i happened to have written some vegaspete fics!

best stranger by me

so this is more like. vegaspete adjacent but it still counts in my humble opinion. gotta promote myself! it's set post-canon in the hospital. arm visits to check up on pete. my armpete besties agenda ❤️

after the dust has settled we must pick up the pieces by me

my most recent series i've started! it's also set post-canon and contains oneshots of moments in their lives. they can all be read as standalones but in my mind they take place in the same universe (it's not an au this is just how my mind works. they're connected but they're not connected. u know?) it's not a finished series i will be uploading new fics so feel free to subscribe to it if u would like!

i hope this helped! if u liked one fic/series specifically and want more of that kind or would like more recommendations in general feel free to ask!

[buckevantommy]

alright i finally managed to get a copy of the ep and i'm watching it on my smallass iphone screen which isn't ideal but i can't wait 3 days to get access to a bigger screen so here we go:

i need to know if that rainbow flare on buck was intentional

i might be looking too hard but that hand grabbing buck's throat and then eddie's junk could be foreshadowing for you know what, i mean who's to say?

oliver deserves a fucking oscar for his nervous smitten buck performance

tommy shaved for their date which is so old school i love it but i also miss the scruff and need to see its return asap

hints of Tommy Backstory, my beloved

the convo about renting out a home with marisol and eddie but including buck is making me think of how buck is possibly being 'rented out' to tommy in the narrative for now but later eddie will be the one to buy

i understand tommy ending their date early but WHAT HAPPENED to him picking up buck from his loft?? and don't tell me he ubered for a first date when we know he drives. although i get not wanting to drink and drive ig

also: tommy was meant to pick up buck at 8pm and now they've finished dinner so wtf is eddie and marisol doing starting their dinner at like 930pm is that an LA thing bc that's insane

'oldest italian restaurant' sign just makes me think of tommy and buck's age gap and i giggle and gasp

buck's reaction to being rejected is breaking my hearrrrt. tommy opened him up to his sexuality and buck was So Excited and now this guy is just dumping him?? who is he supposed to bounce his restless bisexual energy off now??

we're not even 10mins in so i have no idea what the bulk of this ep is gonna be about

oH YEAH THE GAY MOMS pls let them be happy

BUCK COMES OUT TO MADDIE ACCIDENTALLY like a true bisexual disaster

The Guy Thing is very much The Point buck, you sweet thick cinnamom scroll

buck is doubly an ally. he's a bially.

keep talking buck i am cackling you adorable baby bi

insane thing to have eddie post-sex with his nun gf after buck was gushing about tommy

it's okay buck, false starts with difficult convos happen, you'll get there

something something buck intending to come out to eddie and eddie explaining his sex problems all while eddie gets sweaty and swole

LIKE SEAMONKEYS! buck i adore you

buck wishes he could lend eddie a hand but he can't bc he's no homewrecker and bc eddie is quote unquote straight. not bc he himself is taken, bc the hot pilot dumped him and oh now i'm sad again :(

there's some buck+guilt [re:self worth] meta glanced over here that makes me wanna delve into some introspective reads

buck giving good advice is something that can be so personal

hen saving a rescue dog after it attacked the firefighter trying to save it as a parallel to their current foster child situation. it's just good storytelling. the dark stuff is getting hopeful

HANG OUT WITH THE BOYS eddie you don't know how perfect your words are

i really love the way they chose for buck to come out to eddie. trying to do it at a certain time didn't work for him, it was too daunting. but as soon as eddie mistook buck's date with tommy for something platonic? buck doesn't want to hide anymore. it really speaks to the human and especially the queer experience - that need to correct someone's misinterpretation (someone important to buck) of who you are.

GAY TOMMY CONFIRMED

supportive eddie and 'this doesn't change a thing between us'

buck finally getting to talk to his friend about getting dumped by a guy he was really hoping for more with

eddie's turn to give good advice to buck re:his dating life and we come full circle

buck's relief at eddie knowing and accepting him. the double-back for the hug. the comfort is all there.

i want to shower the wardrobe department in love for putting buck in that slutty blue 70s polo for his date within tommy and then the sky blue sweater and now this tight stripey number i am digging the vibes

buck hearing that he didn't screw things up with tommy, tommy just didn't want to pressure him bc the feels are mutual! and buck taking responsibility for his behaviour bc he's mature like that he's a good dude

i love lou but oliver literally glows - and i don't mean from the sunshine - he lights up every scene

the way buck gushed about tommy's confidence to maddie and now he's the confident one reassuring tommy that he wants this and that it won't be weird for tommy i am so proud of him

HOUSTON WE HAVE HAND HOLDING

sad my buddy chim was barely in this ep :(

WEDDING TEASER and we've got a Hangover situation and a missing groom omg

the writers are working their magic and we are reaping the rewards.

[coredrill]

my apologies to bravern himself but my own committment to the bit is not nearly as powerful as his bc i cannot figure out how to get the number ten into the word bravern [sadface]

ANYWAYS THOUGHTS god i loved this ep............lulu.......bang brave bang bravern is abt loving ppl so damn hard you take the narrative itself into your hands and give them a better ending. when superbia said that basically verbatim i YELLED

thank god this show is only 12 episodes cause i have a feeling they are gonna explain the time travel logic of NONE of this and i am so happy about that LMAO. just do it!!! have fun!!! this is a wow cool robot show i don't care abt the paradoxes or whatever i'm having a good time lmao. i mean i'm not opposed to them explaining it but it would def melt my brain. also i feel like if it ran past 12 eps it probably would've gone for a more monster-of-the-week situation at parts and also the ~mystery~ of bravern himself would've gotten pretty frustrating so i am just. rly loving the pacing overall tbh

isami is so fucking funny. he's trying SO hard to live in an ultraserious narrative but everyone else is chomping at the bit to get on with their unhinged looney tunes antics INCLUDING THE CAMERA ITSELF. like we don't know much abt him as a protagonist but i really do adore him on the whole. peak fiction fr fr

in the uncensored theater of masami obari's mind in which this show ends with a smith/isami wedding i think that one dude (googles) Thomas J. Plumman would be the officiant cause why else is he witnessing the boxing match AND isami fucking SNIFFING THE SHIRT??????? true allyship i suppose LMFAO

on perhaps the only serious note of this whole post i am thinkign SO hard abt how like. even in the Bad Ending Timeline, isami and smith/bravern still achieved their goal! like. the world was saved! it looked fairly peaceful! the deathdrives (minus superbia but he was just kinda chillin) were gone! they'd done their job and that wasn't enough! and i am ALSO thinkin abt bad-ending-bravern's last words being abt the curry he ate while human.........i mentioned this already but i think my prediction is leaning slightly more "human smith comes back somehow" after this ep. i still think it could work with whatever route they go tbh, but those factors plus ofc bravern saying "there are things that ONLY YOU HUMAN SMITH can do for isami" are making me think that we gotta like. Get Smith Outta There or something ("you have been saying this since like ep4" AND I HAVE NOT BEEN PROVEN WRONG YET!!!! [is immediately proven wrong when the preview drops on sunday LMFAO]) i DO wonder what would happen to bravern himself in this scenario however because he is a funny guy and i do not wanna lose him either :[ but tbh i'm just excited for the ride that the final two eps will deliver :]

[honey-dont]

Despite reading all your posts abt it I still have no idea what Bigtop Burger is skfkskdk HOWEVER I would still like to hear abt your StEx AU :]

YAY ty for enabling me <3

(it's an animated show on youtube and it's super good!! it's about Totally Normal™ rival food trucks except one of them is run by an alien clown who was banished from his home planet for getting stage fright during a production of cats the musical and the other one is run by a 1000-year-old zombie bounty hunter who is also italian. there's only about an hour's worth of content between all the current eps/songs and it has me grasped by the scruff of the neck like a misbehaving kitten)

sticking this under a cut bc my god the rambling

just focusing on zomburger rn bc they're my beloveds <3 they're a short-line freight train!

-

cesare is a converted oil-burning steamer who used to be a passenger engine once upon a time before getting stuck on freight duty. he's lowkey pissed about essentially getting demoted and goes out of his way to cause problems on purpose - he's extremely petty and WILL slow down whenever he sees a passenger train so they can't pass due to freight having right of rail! has a one-sided rivalry going on with renown tourist train 'the bigtop' (they're more baffled by his antics than anything else tbh)

he got a little fucked up during the conversion process so he'll leak oil from his eyes/mouth sometimes, it's gross </3 his crew doesn't really care tho since they're freight so they're used to grime

frances: were you guys making out again

doctor, face completely covered in oil: no

he totally does NOT care about his freight so what if he makes them sleep in his stall during bad weather so he can keep an eye on them to make sure they're safe it doesn't mean ANYTHING shut up.

(he also never turns his headlight off so his eyes always glow but that's not bc of the conversion he's just a weirdo)

-

doctor is a gondola! he usually carries junk/scrap metal. he'll do that social experiment thing where if you hand someone something while talking to them they'll take it without even thinking. you're having a conversation with him and suddenly you're holding a copy of the atari E.T. game

he'll save things that he thinks are neat or that the others will like! expresses affection by giving you garbage :)

is totally unfazed by the rotary dumper (it freaks everyone else out), very skilled at heckling coaches, and will eat human food (what is wrong with him)

-

conrad is a hazmat tanker and he wears goggles for safety :) why is a short-line carrying hazardous material? don't worry about it. he's v big and v strong and a lil dumb but doing his best! will pick up frances and doctor and carry them around sometimes

he'll also drink his load if he thinks he can get away with it (he is not sneaky starlight bless him). man chugs hydrochloric acid like powerade. kind of scared of humans, they creep him out a bit

-

frances is a transfer caboose and she's basically cesare's right hand man brake van in this scenario bc she's more than happy to be a nuisance!

cesare: FRANCES HIT THE BRAKES WE NEED TO BE AN I N C O N V E N I E N C E

frances: on it boss (saluting emoji)

she was converted from a flatcar (she still has the lil fangs) but she generally tends to get along better with coaches (loves her boys tho). she LOVES having passengers bc she thinks humans are super cute <3

she'll hack into other train's radio frequencies and eavesdrop/interrupt/pass along the hot gossip to everyone else. she'll also tune into stations and sing along to songs sometimes (cesare will tell her to cut that shit out and then 3 seconds later ask if she can get anything italian)

-

last random cute thing before i am forcibly dragged off stage!! freight naturally have black nails so they all paint theirs blue to match with cesare <3

[piganatur]

THE EIGHTH SENSE EP 3

Honestly, I was a little afraid because the first two episodes blew me away so much that it felt almost ridiculous. I so wanted this to continue, and when I anticipate something to this extent the dread of it maybe falling flat, of it refuting me and my anticipation is sky high. My pulse legit rose before clicking on ep3 that’s how jittery and insane this show makes me. But I worried for nothing, the creators of this show clearly know what they want and what they are doing. Ep 3&4... all I can say is: 👏👏👏 solid follow-up

Episode 3 (and a part of ep4) is all about parallels and the contrast between these parallels: 1, like the entirety of whatever happened between Jaewon & Jihyun in ep2 vs. walking the same steps, doing those same motions but now doing it alone? Brilliant! Taking care of others vs. not taking care of them (so they have to take care of themselves) and the reason for doing all of that...it’s all about perspective.

2, another parallel is the dynamic of Jaewon/Yoonwon vs. Jihyun/Aeri Jaewon and Yoonwon are what Jihyun and Aeri could be in the future (down to the detail of one of them thinking the other liked them bc they acted so friendly, or that they didn’t like the other but found a true ally) I'm a friendship maniac I love it more than anything. Now I want to make a separate post all about the importance of friendship for Jaewon and Jihyun and their character arcs

3, Joonpyo aka the heavenly hand of fate Joonpyo being obedient for once and not saying a thing just like Jihyun asked him to when meeting Aeri vs. Joonpyo introducing himself and chatting up Jaewon in the middle of the cafeteria without anyone asking him to... both of those times, at that moment, what Joonpyo did was the opposite of what Jihyun wanted (and what he felt he’d be saved by) yet as we can see in ep4 both of those times his roommate (enter Jihyun’s voice *and menace of a childhood friend*) actually helped Jihyun

4, the evolution of Jihyun and Jaewon’s interpersonal relationships Jihyun collects people after careful deliberation or is it the other way and others are the ones collecting him? broadening his circle (a place of support and care) is, in fact, in parallel with Jaewon slowly slipping out of others’ circles whilst tightening his own. They are both treading towards the same ideal but while Jaewon has to cut ppl out Jihyun has to let ppl in to get to that place where they are seen and valued for who they are

5, the cherry on top was the closing sequence. I’m in love with the visual, the music score, all the details building up, the parallel lines and symmetry in every single shot, seemingly playing on different sides and directions but colliding in the most breathtaking and intense harmony to complete all the unsaid things in a nonverbal way. But it is a quietness that screams

[ropebunnykant]

tell me about he/she ayan

i was hoping someone that had actually finished the show would ask me 🙄 but if you're the only one who will, i'mma take what i'm given

so aye talks about how when he was first realizing he was gay, it was hard for him too, and it's easy to assume that the reason dika took him to the cafe for all the first time was after aye first came out to him, but despite that aye kind of gives the energy of someone that has just always knew they were gay, which i feel like doesn't necessarily contradict what canon tells us. i feel like he's always had an inkling, especially because he's always had dika, but because he always had dika, there had to be a time when he realized that being gay wasn't widely accepted, especially in thailand, so i kind of feel like that's what he meant when he talked about it being hard for him. and then when he did come to terms with that and understand it, that's when he came out to dika and dika took him to cafe for all etc etc

anyways, despite that, i feel like aye never looked too closely at her gender. like we all know aye is a very pretty man, so i'm sure she was told her whole life that kind of thing and while most men would take offense, she always liked it and just never questioned why. that is until she goes to cafe for all and meets p'golf

because p'golf is played by the director, who is trans non-binary, it's easy to assume the in-universe p'golf is also trans non-binary, so going to cafe for all and meeting them allowed aye to start to understand there were other options beyond being cis or even binary trans

however, he didn't exactly have a chance to think about it a whole lot because dika died and then he put his whole focus into finding out what happened to him. so, he put the gender crisis on the back burner (we've all been there)

so, i think when she really started to think about it was post-canon, probably even post os2 eps bc i think those only happen a few weeks after the end of the show, so after they officially lay dika to rest.

now in thai, it doesn't seem like they have gendered pronouns in the same way that we do, but they DO have pronouns based on your gender when speaking to someone else apparently? don't quote me on this i did some very minor googling, and i do know they have other gendered words like hia/je, etc etc. but basically whatever the thai equivalent of using he/she pronouns in english is, i think she'd consider experimenting with before eventually realizing she's genderfluid

she'd bring it up with akk first, and while i'd love to say akk would be 100% loving and supportive and i'm not saying he WOULDN'T be, i also think he'd be confused tbh JDHJDF like he's only been to cafe for all a handful of times and while he knows p'golf and that they’re non-binary, i feel like he still doesn't know enough about the whole gender spectrum to understand fully. i also feel like he'd get a little tripped up on the she part because it took akk so long to be comfortable with the idea of being gay and aye is definitely his soulmate, but aye? wants to be referred to like a girl? does that make him NOT gay? but basically it'd be a conversation, and by the end of it once akk understands better and knows that aye being genderfluid doesn't effect his sexuality at all, he'd be fully on board and supportive and refer to aye however she wants to be referred to

the others are also a little confused at first, but they catch on pretty quickly. especially when aye starts experimenting with presentation, starting to wear makeup and occasionally dresses or skirts. akk nearly passes out the first time he sees her in a mini skirt that exposes her thigh tattoo and aye saves that in the back of her mind for later

[funnywormz]

TOP FIVE MANAGERBOY MOMENTS GO!

OGUGUGUUGUGH LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO

(putting below the cut bc it got long and also there are Spoilers for anyone who hasn't finished s5. much like with my lobby boy outfits post i didn't include any bonus or new crew eps here)

5: 5.1 merp and burble + 5.5 the bellhop

combining these bc i couldn't choose + i like them for the same reasons........ i love both of these episodes bc they're full of these "WHERE IS MY LOBBY BOY" moments from the manager lol. watching her desperately fight against the hotel and tear shit up trying to get to him is so sweet. you can tell she really cares abt him here which makes me very happy bc i feel like that wasn't always the case, but he's grown on her big time lol. there's definitely a sense from her here that she would keep on trying to get back to him as long as she's able to. also the way in merp and burble she continuously refers to feeling lost or like she's lost someone when she's trying to remember him......... it's rlly sweet

4: 4.3 - the habers

ik this is purely an observation by madam hotel but it counts. this is just a straight up admission from her that the lobby boy feels romantic love or something like it for the manager. it's sad as well bc i think this is kinda before the manager began to reciprocate any of those feelings, so it's a depiction of an unrequited, sad, confused sort of love. but it's love nonetheless. also the "it keeps him warm in his little closet" line is so sweet. it's so cute and a little tragic to imagine him sitting in the closet just daydreaming abt her.........

3: 4.18 - she's always been here (1)

i don't see many ppl talking abt this moment but it's one of my favourites with them. there's something so sweet and sad abt how the lobby boy just wants to help her and make her feel better even though he knows he can't. also him just straight up saying that he belongs with her auugugugh...... they're a set do not separate.........

2: 4.18 - she's always been here (2)

when they see what happens to the owner and they realise they're gonna be separated too........ MAN.......... literally heart breaking. the way they cry out for each other as they're pulled away........ the manager literally pleading trying to save him and screaming when he's gone, i think it's the most emotional we've ever seen her get abt like...... anything ever. she cares abt him so much. also the statement "i wish we were alone" from the lobby boy is so intriguing to me. to me it implies that he wants to be away from the hotel, that he wants to be somewhere where him and the manager (and maybe the owner idk) can just be by themselves without being constantly watched and tampered with and killed. it suggests a desire to be free from surveillance and maybe freedom from the hotel herself? i think it's the only time any of the staff have ever verbally expressed a desire to leave the hotel and i wonder if it's going to be revisited in s6.

1: 5.12 - the reaper's envy

they're literally holding hands........ the way the manager calls the lobby boy over telling him it'll be ok and then they HOLD HANDS............ collapses onto the floor. augh. not to get sappy but it's amazing how their relationship has grown over the seasons from the relatively cold uncaring dynamic that it was to something beautiful just tentatively growing bit by bit.......... to me this moment is the culmination of that growth so far. it was so cathartic after they'd been separated for so long too and seeing the manager's desperate attempts to get back to him :'-) man i love them so much........... it's so sweet to see the staff in general express genuine care for each other in this episode <3. the manager especially isn't good at expressing her feelings so this scene is probably the closest thing to a heartfelt expression of love that she's capable of, and i like to think that the lobby boy knows that

[clevervonskelli]

some thoughts on The Night Agent

Pros:

The real mix of male and female characters and their importance or roles within the narrative itself. It all felt so natural. 

For the most part, even the ‘villainous’ characters have so many moments where you can appreciate their complexity and flaws, rather than just dismissing them as (boring) baddies with purely evil motivations.

The relationship between Peter and Rose is nice. Could the story have worked without the romantic love angle? Yes. Could we have done without the heavy petting / possibly-alluding-to-dance-with-no-pants scene on the boat right when the intensity of the story and the stakes were very high? Most definitely. (Sorry, I usually hate that in action stories bc okay, if you could die in the next hour then why not, but also you have bigger fish to fry right now, folks!!). It was still nice though. They work as a pair and the chemistry was great. There was a sweetness to them that I really appreciated.

Enough people croak that it feels realistic, even if you’re still rooting for those miraculous, lucky saves that would end up making you think “they wouldn’t all make it if this was real” for the characters you like.

Background hints are given and there is a world outside the story (especially important for an action, conspiracy, thrill, run-from-the-gov type pieces that have the potential to feel very isolating and insular). But none of it is detailed excessively or used as a weird, unfulfilled diversion for the plot. It adds authenticity and stakes beyond the main thrust of the plot.

I cannot stress this enough: Rose essentially being like “I can’t hack EVERYTHING Peter, that’s not how the world works” and still needing to do physical, analogue, paper research. Yes, yes, YES!

Love that they didn’t take the comfortable way out and make Peter Sr’s shit be a part of this / another conspiracy and didn’t make things easy for Peter Jr. as a reward for everything he accomplished by the end of the narrative.

Every. single. time. Rose attacks someone.

**Bonus:

Rose and the Rome Tome nuts’ wallets? Perfection. The show’s capacity for quiet humour despite the action shenanigans is good throughout, but my god that early moment is never topped.

The Canada Post truck that cruises by in one of the most obvious shots I have recently seen of that happening for a show set in the US. Gotta love Canadian filming locations!

Cons:

The almost forced-feeling cursing and some overdone dialogue in the first couple eps. I’m not sure if I just got more used to it after or if it really did improve as the episodes continued.

A full emergency / med kit in the boat but they needed to crack open the liquor to sterilise the wound? What the hell?!?

Whatever the fuck was going on with the assassins in that hotel room re: her riding his hand like a rodeo participant. The impotent thing is fine, it brings something interesting to their dynamic and his character as a whole (although we certainly don’t like the possible implication that this adds to his heinousness or whatever because fuck that noise, THAT’S not why he’s a monster!) but the sex scene itself felt unnecessary AF.

Umm, on that note, creepy-eyes assassin lady? Stealing a baby and raising it rather than conceiving and birthing and raising it would still make you parents, and the kid could easily still end up as fucked-up as you’re imagining, even if it doesn’t share your genes.

Disregard my earlier comment about the benefit of so many people being knocked off; Cisco was an unacceptable loss and I want him to be not dead.

[waltwhitmansbeard]

hiiiii, i'm fairly new to CR (it saved my life during the pandemic!!1) and i'm pretty much caught up with everything but my love for vaxleth is off the charts and it's both a blessing and a curse: i love everything about them but there's fewer fics about them than i thought they ought to have. i have gone through ao3 these past few months and read a lot and also saved some for later (including yours!! i want to save it for a cozy day where i need a pick me up). having said all of that i was wondering if you have any recs (preferably of the longer type but ok if not) not just in ao3 but anywhere else as well? and preferably happy endings and some smooching n stuff bc wooooooof. these two got so much angst (i do also love it tho). any smut rec is welcome as well!! AND!!! ALSO!! do you think there's any chance this last ep can reignite the flame so to speak so we can all get more and more fics bc honestly?? i'm obssessed and they deserve it. epic love needs eternal retelling.

well hello! first i wanna say welcome to the fandom, we're all pretty nice but completely feral so watch where you put your hands bc we like to gnaw on things. (i say this like i am not also very new to the fandom; i just looked it up earlier today and my 1-year anniversary is at the end of may.)

when it comes to fic recs, i actually have to admit that i don't read a ton of fics myself (i don't have time, lol). i'll start by saying reading @romeoandjulietyouwish's au posts and drabbles is what got me back into writing fanfiction for the first time since i was a teenager, so i definitely recommend checking her stuff out. @blorbologist is, in my humble opinion, the foremost perc'ahlia expert of the fandom, if that ship also floats your boat. i have started reading her extremely famous one for joy but as i said, i really do not have a lot of time to read these days so i am extremely behind. my friend @ravendruid has recently started dipping her toes into the fic-writing realm, and i've been really loving watching her style develop as she goes, and my irl best friend and platonic life partner @runforyourshield is writing a vaxleth summer camp au called camp cloudtop you should check out! other recs you can find on my blog under the tag #fic rec. also just generally we tend to rb each other a lot so just stalk all of those blogs and you'll find some good stuff.

on ao3, i actually just today read a little three-part vaxleth happy ending style fic called with grace in your heart and flowers in your hair that i really enjoyed, and i've started reading this incredible fic called Heaven Couldn't Shake that AGAIN i started reading and then stopped having time for (!!!!!!!!!!!! i am busy!!!!!!! i am sorry!!!!!) but it is really good and i highly recommend the one chapter that i have read lol.

as for smut, to be perfectly honest, there is a dearth of smut in the vaxleth fandom, and like, i get it, it is extremely common to headcanon keyleth as ace or demisexual, and i don't have a problem with that headcanon at all. but me personally, while i also hc her as demi, i absolutely believe she and vax have fucking incredible sex and i wish i could read more of it (*eyebrow waggle* keep your eyes on the mfl space for future one-shots, jussayin). my recommendation there is to go the keyleth/vax tag on ao3 and filter by E, tbh. (also, don't sleep on vaxlethmore, bc those fics are *chef's kiss*)

(also this isn't vaxleth and idk if you've seen c2 or not but truly one of the hottest fucking fics i have read in my life—and friendo i have read a lot—is this shadowgast fic that truly gave me a nicotine addiction, bc wow)

will c3e51 reignite the fandom's fire for vaxleth? i mean, i can hope so, tho tbh, i'm keeping my hopes low. i know that, generally speaking, more people care for perc'ahlia than vaxleth (which was truly the wildest thing for me to find out when i started interacting w the fandom at large, i assumed everyone would be as fucking feral for vaxleth as i was), so i don't imagine there's gonna be a ton of new people writing them, but hey, maybe the episode will spur some people who haven't watched c1 to go watch, and they'll be the new generation of vaxleth shippers (again, me talking like i'm not the new generation of vaxleth shippers).

i hope i answered all of your questions, and thanks for being part of this community! i hope you find what you're looking for.

[forsakenmissives]

I know nothing about football but I'd still like to hear about the au :3

see bc i complain and then i don't even know where to start LOL

ok so ig i'll start with the title From the Sidelines and a little description i have, to pique interest heh

Arthur is Camelot FC's star striker and captain. Merlin is the kitman. Life is hardly ever fair.

anyway . i suppose that's. a little misleading. that being said i think this grew into something waaaaay larger than i originally planned @.@ like it was supposed to be a fun little addition to the surprisingly small amt of footballer arthur fics we have but now this fic has double daddy issues (balinor my beloved...), coming out, sports injuries, shitty coaches (aredick die by my sword) and never making the national team. HUH??? i just wanted merthur to fuck on the pitch... (joke) (just in time for fuck him on the field friday)

also there's side stories. like one is when the players get handcuffed tgt for 24hrs but they've got an uneven amt for it and merlin gets roped in

and then there's the valentine's day arwen special that i somehow accidentally made into a statement about arthur's attitude toward his sexuality?? and feelings for merlin??? through his anxiety about his date with gwen????

“All good?” Merlin asks. “Never better,” Arthur replies, then pivots and walks directly into his closet. He stares at his barren shoe rack before he feels hands on his shoulders, and Merlin is turning him around and guiding him back out. “Wrong way,” he hears him say. “Right.” This time, Arthur marches out his room then down the hall to the front door. “I’ll be back.”

i'm allowed to give this info bc i don't know if i'll ever actually post the extras. i dont' even know when i'm gonna finish the main story sjkdfhgjkf

oh yeah another side story takes place in 2007 (that might be the title for it idk) and it's about uther buying camelot fc for arthur's tenth birthday LOL dont question the legaltiy of arthur playing for his father's club. i dont know and i dont care. this is fiction SIMILARLY dont say shit abt arthur being a striker and captain. it's happened before. it's literally fine. dont even worry about it

there's like. ik i rly only talked about the side stories but u have to realize just how much has already gone into this fic and i wouldn't even say i'm halfway done. i don't think i've written out a single match which is also funny bc i've been keeping up with the prem and actually think i can do it now. i just keep dragging my feet abt it lol

i think the hardest part for me is when im gonna have to seriously injure arthur. i didnt want to but i think it's an important way for his and merlin's relationship to progress and also would explain merlin's attitude toward him in january. its less abt injuring him and more abt him having to sit out of games not for like. lineup stats/compatibility reasons

oh my god typing this all out made me realize we haven't met like. half of the guys on the team yet. i was sitting here like "i need to rewatch eps with all the knights bc i dont trust myself to write percy and elyan accurately" but now i just realized i dont even know if mordred is on the like. squad yet or if he's still with the u18s (after a brief check with my info page he is. i'm gonna be sick)

like i said there is a LOT of info on this . sorry this was so long i just needed to ramble a bit and it also made me realize some info i still need to include so yayyy :3 thank you nonny if u have anything u wanna know in specific like fr anything PLEASE ask. i'd love it so much if u asked. u saved my life <3

[ofdetonation]

oh my god guys i’m crying screaming throwing up i also took so many screenshots so i’m going to yell about them incomprehensibly in one post as to not spam the dash

MY BOY DEKU STANDING UP FOR AIZAWA AND GRAN TORINO WE LOVE THIS FOR HIM HE ALSO HIGHKEY LOOKS LIKE KATSUKI

ALSO LEGIT WHAT A WAY TO SHOWCASE FLOAT ?? GODDAMN

my boys .... oh my boys ..... how they look SO ALIKE in these two pictures, like izuku was NOT JOKING when he said he channels katsuki when the desire to win overrules his desire to save. and not to mention how GOOD katsuki looked in this episode this is only the beginning

SHUT UPPPPPPPPPPPP THEY DID THE MANGA SUCH JUSTICE HERE/ this whole sequence with all might and him talking? the way they exchange info?? the way they’re drawn so faithfully to the manga panels ??? i am in awe. he’s so pretty. i would literally kill for him.

BRO THIS JUST LOOKS SO GOOD ... does it meet the art of the manga, well no, but this is anime and the fact it looks as good as it does is AWESOME

AND THEN THE NEXT THREE CAPS .... BRO I CANNOTTTTTTT

I WAS NOT PREPARED. I SAT THERE GASPING AS IF I NEVER KNEW THIS WAS GONNA HAPPEN. I LITERALLY SAT THERE ABOUT TO FUCKIN CRY AS THOUGH I WITNESSED THIS FOR THE FIRST TIME. (i knew this shit was coming bc i read the manga and it still moved me so violently anyway. bro. i cannot with this show bro i was in genuine shock despite being a manga reader)

also shut the fuck up the way they added the scene where an older katsuki reaches for baby izuku’s hand ?? EXCUSE ME ??? THAT WAS NEVER IN THE MANGA IT WAS JUST THE VOLUME COVER, HELLO BONES, I’M HERE TO REPORT A MURDER ???????

and then the end credits. THE END CREDITSSSSSS

SOBBING SCREAMING CRYING COMMITTING A WAR CRIME AGAINST MYSELF IN THE BACK OF A CLUB RN .... BITCH !! BITCH !!!!!! THEY DID NOT HAVE TO COME FOR ME LIKE THAT DUDE HELLO ??????????????????

and then finally the one (1) part that has me ready for the next ep. the ONE WHOLE SCENE that’s got me hyped. feral izuku midoriya on the fuckin way i’m SO READY

“and i forget myself in anger as i face shigaraki” THAT YOU DO KING. THAT YOU DO

if i wasn’t on data and literally wrestling the shit out of my bandwidth i would rewatch this episode in a HEARTBEAT. so much was in it and so much was so fucking good, and bones out here feeding me so well tonight, i might be grossly sobbing but DUDE. I JUST ... MAN.

also. honourable mention:

PONYTAIL ‘CHAKO AND TSU + KATSUKI WRESTLING FOR THE WATER IN THE BACKGROUND KSDNVFBJLDKCNSX

[idealisticrealism]

TCL 3x12 thoughts

Lol look I got there in the end. I actually wrote this in June but intended to do a read through before posting... then got on a plane and promptly forgot about the entire thing til now haha.

But here it is anyway, a very belated 3x12 recap with a random assortment of my thoughts about the finale.

Ugh poor Thony, seeing a woman in a blonde wig and green shirt playing with Luca and having that split second of thinking it was somehow Nadia, only to instantly know it was impossible. It must have felt like she was being haunted by Nadia’s ghost ugh, and no wonder she immediately goes and downs a huge glass of whiskey

Are we sure Ramona’s been cured of the lead poisoning? Bc her plan to ‘eliminate’ the Feds is ridiculously irrational. Jorge offers her a perfect, clever solution and yet she turns him down because ‘Derek’ wants her to take out the Feds. Who the hell is this guy? Is he the one who suggested she set Jorge up to be her fall guy, or did she come up with that on her own? So much for ‘family’ being everything to her– Jorge was everything to her until he started outgrowing her and defying her, and now she wants to move on to Violeta, to take her and mold her and make her into a copy of herself, and if she has to get Jorge out of the way to make that happen, she will

On one hand, dumping Nadia’s body on Russo’s doorstep is so awful, but on the other, I’m actually kinda glad that Ramona did that? I’m glad she was delivered directly into the hands of someone who would genuinely mourn her loss, who would treat her body with care and respect, rather than her body being just left in the desert to rot. By sending this ‘message’, Ramona ensured that Nadia could be cremated and reunited with Arman, and that means so much to me. (Yes I haveindeed  made myself cry multiple times wondering about what is going to happen to both of their ashes now– I had a fic idea of Thony asking Jorge to take her to Curacao to spread their ashes together on some beautiful beach somewhere, to honour them the way they deserve. Ughh.). 

Also I just realised that as far as the FBI knew, the last Thony saw of Nadia was when she escaped from Jeremy’s lair. They just think that Nadia tried to make a run for it and that Ramona found her, killed her, and dumped her. Even when Thony’s van shows up with the blood in it, they would probably have assumed Ramona had the van stolen and used in the transport of the body to point the finger at Thony. But idk, it seems like Thony tells the Feds the truth of what happened at some point anyway.

Omg Chris banging on the door was so stressful, what if ICE was still there?? Like yes Camila needed treatment for her infection, but not so urgently to risk her (and himself, and all those other people) being deported!! And then him having to fight his way out?? Like damn son you got your protective instincts from your mama. It must have been such a relief to see her in that kitchen– remember he’s only 16! He’s in way over his head, and then his mum appears and protects him like she’s done his whole life. Honestly though MVP of this ep goes to the chef who immediately clocks the situation and tosses the carrots on the floor– what an ally! Love it.

“If you can’t do your job, I’m gonna do it” I really love how Thony talks to Feds haha. Zero respect given, which is exactly as it should be. It must feel familiar for Thony to hear the Feds going after the right-hand man rather than the head of the crime organisation yet again– just like with Hayak and Arman, it was only her stepping in that prevented Arman from bearing the brunt of the FBI while Hayak walked free, and now she’s trying to do the same for Jorge. The conversation between her and Jorge in the warehouse is definitely similar to the one she had with Arman in his office in 1x10 (aka where she was trying to convince a man she cares about to save both himself and her by turning on his boss) though with two major differences: one, Arman already knew about her involvement with the Feds, so rather than feeling betrayed, he felt worried for her; and two, he was already in love with her, so she was more important to him than Hayak. Jorge cares for Thony, but in this moment he’s reeling not only from the news of Nadia’s murder at Ramona’s hands, but also the realisation that someone he trusted and let into his home helped bring the FBI down on him, and now she also drops this bomb that the person he’s closest to in the world intends to betray him and ruin his life? Poor guy is definitely in a much harder situation than Arman ‘Protect Thony At All Costs’ Morales. I love that despite his opposition to Thony’s claims, Jorge still ends up making a plan to keep Violeta safe, because clearly some part of him knows that Thony is telling the truth, that she is genuinely trying to protect him and his family as well as her own. Truly hilarious that he’s like ‘nope no way I’m going to have a meeting with the Fed’ and she’s like ‘yeah you are’ and literally the next scene is him coming to her house to meet with Jeremy haha. Again, definitely very reminiscent of 1x10 when Arman meets with Garrett for her. I could totally understand some viewers being annoyed by the similarities and calling it repetitive writing, but I think it’s actually kind of cool to see her getting caught in the same situations repeatedly, because it really demonstrates the theme of how Thony walks the line between light and dark, good and evil, law and crime… she is the bridge between the two, never quite able to escape one or the other, instead always pulled back in, always balancing it out. But ugh anyway I’m not over when Jeremy asks Jorge “Which side do you want to be on?” and Jorge turns and looks at Thony. Hers. He wants to be on her team– not part of Ramona’s crazy empire, not a FBI rat, but the team of morally grey parents doing whatever it takes to keep their kid safe. Yaaaass.

And then later the similarities to the heist with Arman appear again when we realise Jorge used the FBI to get the fingerprint, allowing him access to what he wanted– just like Arman using the FBI sting to steal Hayak’s money. With Arman, though, she had the trust in him to know that he would protect her no matter what. She can’t trust Jorge like that, not yet… but maybe one day. I appreciate that even after the trauma of what just happened with Ramona being arrested, Jorge goes to Thony and puts an arm around her, the two of them united, each other’s stable ground as their worlds crumble around them. I love that they walk out together, the survivors, and he tells her that not only is she safe from repercussions from the cartel, but that there’s also a place for her within his new empire if she wants it. I love her answer, quoting Arman and how he used his power to protect the ones he loved, whereas Ramona used that power to hurt others… and how she wants to do things her own way. To me, her way is using power to protect those who don’t have the power to protect themselves– her family, yes, but also the vulnerable, the undocumented, the poor and sick and disabled, the people that the system leaves behind or even persecutes. The fact she’s even alive right now is a gift from both Arman and Garrett, and she’s not going to waste it. She’s going to make it count by helping as many as she can, because every life she betters honours those who gave theirs for her. 

Jorge bringing Violeta to Teresa… omg I can’t. First, it shows he really heard and listened to Thony, and that he truly doesn’t trust Ramona to be the one to raise Violeta. But ugh I was so hoping we could see Eduardo meet Violeta… I would have loved seeing him be all sweet with her, then share a wordless nod of understanding with Jorge, like a sign that their family might just begin to heal… but still, I loved that Teresa was immediately ready to go up against Ramona to protect Violeta. She couldn’t prevent her son from being pulled into the world of crime, but maybe she could save Violeta from the same fate, and that makes me wanna cry a bit 

Would using a 16 year old personally connected to Thony’s family to identify criminals really work, in like a legal sense? Also how likely would she, a ‘lowly’ worker, have been to have actually seen the boss guys? Meh idc I’ll roll with it

Thony was so terrified about Ramona finding out about her helping Nadia, so sure she would kill her for it, and yet Ramona’s response is literally like ‘eh couldn’t blame Thony for defying me, she’s not a killer’ lol. And then later at the gala she is pleased with Thony simply for confirming her own suspicions about Jeremy, which they really didn’t need Thony for anyway? They clocked him as a Fed themselves just from the way he was acting lol, but whatevs, it gave Thony an excuse to be there and for us to enjoy that white dress lol

“She’s never going to tell you anything! She’s too smart!/ “Well I got you to tell me you were mixed up with Sin Cara”  Yeah Jeremy, she told you that when she was half in shock after you guys both nearly got violently murdered (during which she literally saved your life btw), and also after like 2 weeks of you manipulating her when she was at her most vulnerable, and grieving the man she loved? Her slipping up once in that high-stress situation is not the same as you smooth-talking Ramona for 5 minutes buddy. Also, fuck you. And lol your attempt really didn’t go the way you hoped, did it? Ran away with your tail between your legs lol. Can’t believe Thony actually goes to the effort of saving your dumbass life, again!! You better pay her back for that one or I swear

“Let’s burn it to the ground” loved the inclusion of this line between Fi and Thony, given the conversation between Jorge and Nadia at the wake of wanting to burn everything down after losing the loves of their lives. Looks like it’s a sentiment that they all share

Ngl I enjoyed Jorge coming up to Thony immediately when she arrived at the gala, not only telling her she ‘cleans up well’ (lol punny) but the little moment of camaraderie they share with an almost-joke about Ramona planning to bury her in the dress– they both know the risk they’re facing but they’re facing it together, and that makes it just a fraction less horrific. I wonder if Ramona questions why Thony and Jorge are sticking together all night? Maybe she just assumes Thony feels safer around him, which I suppose would be true haha

Literally how does Jorge get all the way from the gala to their underground bunker and back in time????? Some TV magic happening there for sure lol

Thony and Ramona’s showdown on the roof is kinda funny… like how did Thony know to go up there? How did she walk around with that gun without being noticed? But no matter. And ugh Thony shaking and crying as she tells Ramona she deserves to die for Nadia and Arman… my creys. Plus it was definitely satisfying to see Ramona realise that Thony and Jorge had allied against her (which was her own fault! If she hadn’t betrayed him, he never would have betrayed her! Consequences, baby!). I do appreciate that Jorge told the FBI exactly where to find her, saving Thony from having to take Ramona out and then potentially go to jail for her murder… though  it would be very cool if in S4 Ramona somehow weasels her way out of prison, and so Thony has no choice to take the matter into her own hands once and for all– for herself, for Nadia, and for Arman. 

Haha awww the family all at home, celebrating, doing karaoke? My heart. “How about a love song for you and Camila, Chris?” lollll Jaz is such a little sister and I love it. JD suggesting Beyonce for him and Luca, Thony and Fi looking relaxed and happy, Chris getting his kiss and Luca accidentally cockblocking…. This family deserves to have some simple happiness after everything they’ve been through! 

“Not this time” oh Thony, you know that escaping ~the life~ is not so easy… like Arman told you a long time ago, once you’re in, you’re in… Looks like Derek will be an issue for both Thony and Jorge to have to contend with next season. Tbh I thought that this final scene could have been shot better though, like instead of Thony’s “Not this time” and then a cut to black, they should have had her say that and then walk away, and the camera pans past the phone (which stops ringing and goes dark) and follows her to the lounge where we see her rejoin the festivities with a grin on her face, choosing joy and light in defiance of the dark that’s trying to pull her back in. But nvm I guess lol, sadly the writers don’t consult me on this stuff so it’ll just have to stay in my head haha

[charlesdesvoeux]

terror rewatch time!!! i'll be using this post to comment on ep. 3 "the ladder" block the tag terrorwatch2 if you'd like :-)

just throw silna's father into a fucking fire hole huh. god these fucking people. the utter contempt and disrespected for anything and anyone who is of the place that they plunder and destroy and exploit and pollute with their very presence.

"if that's how they punish one of their own how will they deal with-" imperialists? plunderers? what word were you gonna use, ned? how would you describe your mission and your effect upon this land, now that the blood of an inuk man is in your hands?

"if the arctic bedeviled him, why should it open up to you, that's his thinking" and he was right lady jane........ sorry your hubby's hubris that you also stoked killed him (not really sorry though!!!!)

the way jirv quickly looks around to see if anyone is watching billy enter his room.... "do other people know of his vices? will i be taken for one of them if they see him entering me my room?"

goddddd the way franklin dooms them further by not allowing the sled party to go find rescue.... man..... sir john ross was mean to me and i'm gonna doom myself and 100+ men about it

"you're the worst kind of second" bc you don't fawn and throw yourself at my feet jesus fucking christ john franklin die challenge. "you'll never be fit for command... the vanity of your outlook" he's describing himself and attributing it all to crozier!!!! that is quite revealing

he's sooo fucking harsh to crozier. and obviously croziers not perfect but like. bringing the sophia thing into it is just cruel. perhaps deep down he feels a sense of inadequacy, and he knows crozier was more deserving of commanding the expedition, and he was only appointed bc of his being more "respectable" and not more competent, and that's why he puts so much emphasis in performance, in the "your demeanor should be all cheer" of it all.

dundy and jfj eavesdropping lolllll

the offer to lead the party is quite selfish as 1) he's pretty sure they're on the vortex of doom and he's trying to save himself and 2) he finds franklin's presence impossible to tolerate and wants to distance himself from him, even if he finds way to rationalize the choice to have him lead the party himself. but also pls imagine poor lt. little having to take command of terror at this point in time (any point in time really) it would be a DISASTER

ok so it's The Scene (jirv + hickey)... the way jirv looks away uncomfortable after hickey says he was hoping they'd meet...

"separated from the temptations of the world... find spiritual benefit in the collective... man's worst urges can be satisfied through christian pleasures..." the way he has a list at the ready!!!! tell me: what are your worst urges, john irving?

"god sees you, mr. hickey, here more than anywhere" now that's an interesting one. bc we know hickey wants to be seen, in a way; he wants to be recognized as somehow superior, and better. especially at this point by captain crozier but also in a metaphysical sense as well. this culminates in his arrogance in trying to bond with tuunbaq in the end.

his slight little smile in the end!!! he clocks that irving is scared of him. and if irving is scared then that means hickey has power. and he wants power, power over his circumstances, power over other people, power over nature.

I HAD ENTIRELY FORGOTTEN THE "DO YOU KNOW WHAT COPULATES IN THIS SHIP? RATS" THING. CORNELIUS HICKEY RAT MOTIF FOREVER.

billy argues that he has to keep himself in good standing with the command which is why they have to break up (it's a power thing and hickey has this obsessive relationship to the idea of power) hickey tries to argue that he's croziers specialest boy (power thing again; being liked by someone might mean having power over them and who wouldn't like to have power over the most powerful man around, the captain?) and billy just fully!!! laughs!!!! in his face!!!

also hickey's "it could lead anywhere ;-)" he wants to fuck that old man sooooo bad

"educate this creature as to the dominion of the empire" GODDDDDD TUUNBAQ DOESNT CARE ABOUT YOUR GODDAMN EMPIRE IT SIGNIFIES NOTHING TO HIM YOU ARE SIMPLY MEAT TO EAT AND SOULS TO CONSUME

unceremoniously dumped by tuunbaq in the same hole they unceremoniously dumped silna's dad. rot in piss <3

"you don't think it's strange how it started killing as soon as we took down the [slur]?" babyboy whose name I do not know you are SO CLOSE to getting it.

this very genuine grief over their fallen comrades expressed through singing was very touching to me.

I like how in the eulogy crozier gives (written by franklin) we tie back to the themes of power developed earlier through the imagery of the ladder; how you can climb up or down in the rungs of power...

GODDDD hickey shitting on billy's bed. babyboy I love you forever <3 also him finding out about croziers attempted resignation!!! having someone's secret also means having some measure of power over them- even if they don't know it

oh and that is also where he kind of gets the inkling of how truly fucked they are. and then the gears in his mind really start turning...