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the-solar-system52 · 2 months ago

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Earthspark S3 synopsis spoilers!!

Rotten Tomatoes leaked the titles and synopsizes for episodes 2-7 of Season 3 and I have opinions.

First of all, I JINXED IT??? Yesterday I was literally writing a post complaining about how little info we got about S3 compared to the other seasons before their release. I was nearly done it but got lazy and I saved it as a draft to finish later, cue 1 AM at night when I decide to check again Rotten Tomatoes for any updates, AND THERE WERE NEW EPISODES?? I just manifested them into existence with the power of hyperfixation I guess. So, you're welcome guys. (Although it is pretty cool that I discovered it myself because that usually doesn't happen to me since I don't use Reddit or Discord, it also signifies that the mainstream Transformers fandom doesn't really seem to care about Earthspark that much anymore considering the fact they aren't interested on reporting on new leaks. And that sucks, but I can't exactly blame them.)

But also you're not welcome because wtf are these synopsizes. I'm trying my best to be positive and stuff, and I know we should probably wait for the episodes to come out before we judge too hard, but these descriptions are definitely raising some red flags. There only seems to be 7 episodes which is very disappointing and doesn't seem like enough time to wrap up all the plot points from S2, plus the new S3 plot points they are introducing. Not to mention that there seems to be one or two filler episodes, which doesn't seem like a lot for most shows but it matters when you have such limited time. Filler can be good when it is well-written, helps develop the characters, and doesn't take time away from the rest of the plot. S1 filler was enjoyable because it had these qualities, but S2 filler however....... I don't think so. Not only is the writing just plain bad, but the writers almost seem adverse to developing their characters because they don't want to break their 'good guys good/bad guys bad' formula and need everything to reset to the status quo by the end of the episode, rendering the filler basically pointless. (See, the end of Togetherness) So not only is the filler getting in the way of the plot, but I'm not entirely sure it'll even be enjoyable.

I don't know if we are going to be getting more episodes after this. Some say we are going to get more batches, some say we are going to get longer specials instead, and some say Earthspark is cancelled and won't be getting any continuation. I think we probably will get some sort of finale, but either way, now is not the time for the writers to start messing around. There are plenty plot points from S2 that need to be wrapped up (The Decepticons, Terrantronus, The Chaos Terrans, The Quintessions) and yet they are already adding some more plot points for S3. The descriptions don't really mention any of the S2 plot points, and obviously we should wait till the episodes actually release to see if they do, but I'm still a bit skeptical. But these S3 plot points do seem interesting so lets talk about them.

IZZY'S EVIL?? Or a shapeshifter Quintession thing?? I'm gonna be real I did not see that coming and I don't really know how to feel. It's more interesting than her just being a designated crush character but I'm still just not really invested enough in her and Robby's relationship to care. I wonder if she's actually a shapeshifting Quintession or just a human working for the Quintession's? (I'm sorta hoping for the first thing tbh since we don't need more human screentime) I also wonder if she'll just be pure evil or if she'll be redeemed by the power of straight people or something. Imagine if some random girl gets redeemed but not any of the Decepticons, that'd be really funny.

There's this new plot point called 'The Hate Plague' which seems to be some sort of disease that drives bots into a rage. It pops up after EP4, right after The Autobot Ship (probably containing Prowl) crash lands. My guess is that the disease stems from Prowl's ship, and also probably has something to do with the Quintession's big plan. That either means the ship had a Quintession stowaway or some other substance that the Quintession's planted there that somehow caused the disease. There is also the possibility that it has something to do with The Chaos Energy from the Chaos Terrans since they are associated with rage?? But we'll have to see. I think the plot will follow The Autobots slowly being taken over by the disease, making them dangerous to the Maltos, leaving them all by themself to find someway to reverse it's affects and bring them back while also fighting the enemy that wants to take Robby and Mo's power for their own- wait a sec HAVEN'T WE DONE THIS BEFORE?? Isn't just the GHOST mind control all over again??? Sure, the Hate Plague makes them more enraged whilst the Mind Control made them emotionless, but it will still lead to them fighting against the Maltos right? It just feels way too similar. And the lines "she (Twitch) realizes she may be the only one who can help" and "Prowl recruits Thrash and Robby to investigate the source of the mysterious Hate Plague" sort of implies The Terran's can't be infected? Which seems worse since it means the Terrans won't benefit by whatever potential character development the Hate Plague could bring. But I don't want to jump to conclusions. I think it would be more interesting if the 'Hate Plague' didn't just make the bots mindless enraged savages, but instead actually make them more hateful. The plague clouds their view and makes them see the negative in everything, but they still retain their cognitive abilities, specifically the ability to talk. This could lead to interesting character dynamics being challenged since everyone would be arguing with each other and their previously-hidden opinions would come to light. This would still install conflict in the Autobot base but it wouldn't make them just mindless enemies and could actually lead to really interesting dialogue and situations. Think of The Spell of Shattered Sight from Once Upon a Time. It would put the Autobots out of commission and they wouldn't be able to help the Terrans but it wouldn't lead to them mindlessly attacking them without a reason, so it wouldn't be too similar to the GHOST mind control. But I'm not sure if they'll go for this angle since the S2 writers don't seem to be a fan of 'complicated characters' and exposing some of the flaws of the Autobots via The Hate Plague would destroy their 'good guys good/bad guys bad' narrative. It's easier to just turn The Autobots into mindless monsters to fight the Terrans for awhile. It'll also probably lead to some "i know your still in there 🥺" fights, which may be good character development if they are written well but they will probably end up being really corny. Like I said, we've done this all before.

No mention of The Chaos Terrans guys. I'm not doing well. We don't have the synposis for EP1 which would be the one they are most likely to be mentioned in, but the fact that they are not even alluded to in the other descriptions has me worried. I don't care if they stay pure evil, I also don't care if they speedrun a poorly written redemption arc, I JUST WANT THEM TO BE ALIVE 😭😭 (istfg if they try to redeem Starscream after what he did......)

The episode I'm most excited for is probably EP4. The plot of going into the Decepticon base and "friendships being tested" might mean we'll be getting some character development between The Autobots and/or The Decepticons? I have a soft spot for snow day episodes, so I'll probably enjoy EP 5 as well. The description of EP6 sort of made it seem like they would go on a full on investigation, so I think it would be funny if it was styled like a Noir Dectective film lmao (idk Prowl's character that well, is that something he would do?)

Either way, I will stay cautiously optimistic and be on the lookout for anymore leaks!

#transformers #maccadam #transformers earthspark #tf earthspark #tf earthspark season 3 #earthspark leaks #tf earthspark chaos terrans #transformers earthspark leaks #tf earthspark leaks

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friday-answers · 2 months ago

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HI first of all the last excerpt???? EXCUSE ME THIS WHOLE PLOT IS SO FUNNNN I absolutely love Solus already!!!! Can’t wait to know more about the agency and the sinkholes… Lots of love and thank you again for sharing this beautiful piece of your mind with us 🫶🫶

Secondly I’m here to discuss s3! Spoilers incoming:

What are your thoughts on Imogen and Sahar? I am actually really happy with the whole thing (even if my soft romantic heart is still kind of hoping they end up together haha, I am full of contradictions okay?)

And Tori and Micheal? I literally cried every time they appeared on screen I love them SO much, I was just a little disappointed Tori did´t get to say she’s asexual like she does in the comic… hoping it will be there if there’s a fourth season

And Isaac? My baby was going through it this season, that whole journey was so beautiful and refreshing imo

ALSO Darcy this season!!!! Aaahh I love them so much, as a lesbian who’s only recently started to question my own gender seeing them discover themself like that was so so lovely

I also really loved how Charlie’s relationship to his parents was showed, I thought it was done really well! And Nick starting to realise he needs to figure out who he is without his boyfriend 🥺

Anyway I’ve yapped enough haha, feel free to answer this with as short or long of an answer as you want, and just give general comments on what you thought of the season, I just enjoyed getting to scream about this hehehehe 🥰🤓

omg first of all thank you for the hype 🤭... i'm also very excited about it too... while i have a plan for the most part, i pretty much have no clue about how i'm going to get to each point either so... y'know makes it fun and mysterious for me too!

i love yapping about season 3 i'm HYPED

imogen and sahar, obviously not a surprise. lesbian imogen also i fear we knew from season 1 but having that comphet representation is HUGE!!! i'm really excited about that.

i keep joking that imogen and sahar are finally the situationship representation in heartstopper but it is just not a joke anymore. 'better off as friends' my ass SAHAR U WROTE A SONG ABOUT HER

i fell to my knees every time michael holden appeared on screen. his appearance at the nye party GAGGED. ON THE FLOOR. they were so insane for that it was GORGEOUS.

i was genuinely so confused when tori didn't correct charlie on calling them a straight couple. i think i shouted at the screen for them to stay on the wheel because they weren't done LMAO... BUT BUT it totally means a more fleshed out sprolden sexuality arc which i am HYPED about. their relationship is so important to me im so excited for that representation to be more blatant.

everything with isaac happened so fast i got WHIPLASH him coming out to everyone at the zoo i was sobbing that representation is so important to me and just so so nice to see..... argrhfhf. though i almost just blanked out the whole tao isaac thing omg WHAT HAPPENED TO JAMES THEN??? INSANE. that was insane. glad they got past that one quickly god

no because mullet darcy HELLO kizzy looked amazing... non-binary lesbian representation ALSO huge like. GOD THIS SEASON WAS HUGE

no because episode 4 was DEVASTATING. but it was one of my fave episode of television i've ever watched. nick at the halloween party like. oh my god i feel like i still haven't digested it all yet.... charlie's talk with his parents too since they cut away in the comic me and my friend were SCREAMING through tears to cut away like my GOD. but joe did it beautifully and u could tell he really cared :,]

i also yapped incredibly hard. i could really do this for hours, honestly... i'm just so so excited fr. the way the cast was like this season is HOT its STEAMY its SEXY even though. like i've been a comic reader since about 2019. guys i fucken know we gotta get through volume 4 first SIT DOWWWNNN

so funny honestly imagine going into s3 with just THAT info then being hit with the emotional devastation which was eps 1-5. 6-8 were lit though

ok shutting up now. thank u for letting me yap you are the realest mf ever

thank u for all the love once again!!!!!

#heartstopper spoilers #heartstopper s3 #heartstopper #osemanverse #alice oseman #radio silence #aled last #universe city #frances janvier #february friday #carys last #original fiction #ask me anything #friday answers asks #universe friday #heartstopper season 3

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butterflydm · 1 year ago

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revisiting my WoT s2 speculation now that we have some more info

Okay, we know a bit more the shape of the season to come, so I want to poke at that a bit. Includes tidbits of pretty much all the season 2 spoilers that we've heard so far. My previous speculation is found here: wot speculation. Also spoilers through The Shadow Rising in the books.

Mat and Min being together on a poster feels like it adds weight to the possibility that Mat and Min are going to go to Falme together.

(Min could then return to the White Tower in s3 in the company of Verin, if the Wondergirls don't go back there for plot reasons)

Now, there was that glimpse of Min where it looked like she was standing in front of a window that has slats that resemble the ones in Foregate, where Rand is staying (I have not been able to find this again when searching the internet though!). One of my speculated paths was Siuan taking Mat to Cairhien -- Siuan, Logain, Mat, and Min could all theoretically go to Cairhien, either together or with Mat and Min secretly following Siuan because they don't trust her or because they're hoping she'll lead them to Egwene, Nynaeve, & Elayne, who have all vanished.

The big question remains of 'how do Rand & whoever else might be with him get to Falme, on the opposite side of the continent?'. Will it be the Ways again? (but they don't have anyone as a guide) Will we get the Portal Stones? (which would also mean that Rand would be able to use them in S3 to toss them all to the Waste) (the Portal Stones would also be an opportunity to show hints of some of Rand's future relationships before the show actually gets there?) Will it be a boat? (we're supposed to get Doman but... it really doesn't seem like a boat would get there quickly enough, unless a lot of time passes in Perrin & co and Egwene & co's storylines in Falme itself, which they could do)

We now know that Rand is going to start in Cairhien itself and Lanfear being an innkeeper in Cairhien is... a much better cover story than "noblewoman who just happens to be in a parallel world where no other people exist". Lanfear's cover story in the books is... so flimsy. We have to really be willing to believe that Rand overlooks all sense because Lady Hot in order for that plotline to work. So I think this is a very good change that suits the fact that Rand is being written as much more emotionally mature than Rand was in TGH (it isn't until TSR that the ta'veren boys really start to feel emotionally their canonical ages, I think? They mostly feel like they should have been 14-15 years old in the first three books, I think... definitely the first two. iffy on TDR, I guess.)

But we may get flashbacks to what happened right after the Eye, or maybe we'll just follow one character (Moiraine?) from the Eye and she gets to be Lead Detective again, like she was in the first couple of episodes of the first season. Because in some of the previews of Moiraine, it looks like she's still in a similar situation as she and Lan were in at the end of S1.

If we think in terms of relationships...

Early season -- Perrin's relationships focus on Loial, the Shienarans and his growing connection with the wolves.

Mid-to-late season -- Loial captured by the Seanchan; Perrin meets Aviendha, and we get to know Aviendha through Perrin (I like this idea a lot; they never interacted in the books even a single time, I think, but their storylines could potentially complement each other a lot). Is Perrin the one that Ingtar begins to see as a leader and lord, and Perrin the one who has a final moment with him? Perrin successfully hunting the Horn would be a good moment of victory for him. We're also going to be further setting up Perrin's conflict with the Whitecloaks.

Early season -- Egwene and Nynaeve have a rift in their relationship (mentioned in interviews) due to Nynaeve being a powerhouse in the Power while Egwene feels overshadowed by her. This may lead Egwene and Elayne to (emotionally) bond with each other?

Late season -- after Egwene has been captured by the Seanchan, Elayne and Nynaeve will spend a lot of time working together on how to free her. If Min and Mat get to Falme on their own (without Rand & Moiraine, etc), then they may be intersecting with Egwene and/or Elayne and Nynaeve's storylines at this point, much as Min did in the books. The question here is how the Horn gets into Mat's hands. It seems like the boys would need to all meet up at some point in Falme for that to happen.

Early season -- Rand in Cairhien, 'connecting' with the innkeeper Selene and struggling with his powers.

Mid-season -- Rand with Moiraine in Cairhien; we can assume that 'Selene' has left by this point, I think, since I don't think they'll want Moiraine and Lanfear's paths to cross. We know (I think) that Barthanes's party is happening and I believe Moiraine's sister has also been cast, so we should get Damodred Shenanigans.

Late season -- Rand finds out (from Siuan??? From Min and/or Mat???) that Egwene & Nynaeve are in danger on the west coast? Rand runs across and/or gets threatened by Fain, who tells him to go to the west coast? Did 'Selene' say she was going to the west coast? Is it in a dream from Ishy? Lots of question marks. But for whatever reason, Rand makes his way to Falme and confronts the Seanchan.

Early season -- Moiraine struggles with not being able to use the Power. She and Lan begin to have a rift in their relationship (mentioned in interviews). She learns that they've released the Forsaken and not killed the Dark One.

Mid-season -- Moiraine and Lan both trying to mentor Rand in opposing ways, perhaps? Making their rift worse?

Late season -- does Rand leave for Falme without Moiraine or does she go there with him?

I do like the idea of the viewers getting to know Min better via Mat (Min talking to Mat about That One Viewing rather than Elayne would be such a great change that would improve Min as a character a lot; though I'm also good if we get her talking about it to her aunt); getting to know Aviendha through Perrin; and getting to know Elayne through Egwene and Nynaeve. So all of them are full characters even before we get into future romance stuff.

But even with all the new info, it feels like there are still a lot of remaining questions (which is great!). Fingers crossed for a final trailer next week.

#wot speculation #wot #wheel of time #wot s2 spoilers #wot spoilers #wheel of time s2 spoilers #wot prime spoilers #wot show spoilers #wot book spoilers #the shadow rising

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raayllum · 11 months ago

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how long would you say you've actively shipped any of your favorite ships? - im curious specifically about sorvus, sorpeli, and claudiez

I wouldn't say Sorvus is one of my faves even if I do 1) love Soren and Corvus individually, 2) Corvus is one of my favourite side characters in the whole show (like top 5) and 3) I do really like them! That being said:

Canon

For the bulk of TDP ships, canon-wise, I shipped them as their relationships were revealed (aka Harrow/Sarai with the info we got in S1, Claudia/Terry with the info we get in S4, Runaan/Ethari back when he was known as 'Tinker' thanks to the S1 credit sketch, etc).

For Janaya, I shipped them from the first time they met in S2, since "rival intellectually and physically matched generals on the battlefield" along with both being very pretty is a decently long-ish homoerotic trend in literature (aka a production I saw of "Coriolanus" really leaned in on it, although I think I saw that pre-S2's release. Applies though)

For Rayllum, I shipped them pre-show even if I was also down to brotp them. They'd be travelling together, thus having plenty of time to develop an interesting dynamic / were around the same age, and the screencap released before the premiere of them sitting under the tree (Callum, distracted but eager, and Rayla, exasperated and fond) really drew me in since that's a ship type - dynamic and gender wise (I don't tend to love ships where the guy is the more grumpy/guarded one, I think, since women are so often forced to do More of the emotional labour in relationships Anyway) - I'm already Very susceptible to. I tried to hold off a little bit in early S1 cause I didn't want to ship them too hard, but then 1x05 came along with the boat scene and it was Over for me. They've had my heart ever since (5 years going on forever)

Requested Rarepairs

Sorvus

So I didn't really ship Sorvus (although I was never opposed to them) for the majority of the time post-S3. I didn't really ship Soren with anyone and preferred Gren/Corvus at that time (due to their personalities / closer dynamic to Amaya and therefore each other) as well as enjoying Corvus/Opeli. However I was also really hoping that Corvus would stay on the council/with Ezran, and figured that if Soren was going to end up with anyone, Corvus was probably the most realistic choice (shared goals, decent development, timeskip to help things, similar ages).

That said I still didn't actively ship them (like I didn't mind them but was completely impassive/neutral y'know?) until I wrote an interaction between them in "if heaven and hell decide" (a canon divergent S2 where Claudia and Soren decide to delay their betrayal of the trio, and therefore travel with them for much longer) and the fact that Corvus would see Soren at his worst in canon (S2) but also see and appreciate who Soren was becoming... I started to turn a corner and grew to ship them a lot more. I'm really excited for them to eventually be canon, it seems, even if they're not My Endgame for either character In My Head for years-post war, at least for now.

Claudiez

For aged up Claudia/Ezran, I think this post (dated July 2021) was when I started to ship these two. There was something about the interplay of Claudia telling Callum about Harrow's death, but he only seeks out comfort from Rayla, and Ezran rejecting Rayla's offered comfort about Harrow and instead accepting it from Claudia, that felt very apt to me? And then a couple weeks later I wrote my formal "I actually do ship Claudiez and here's why" meta so it's been a few years now!

Both the younger sibling uniquely given their father's mantle to carry in ways their older brother just doesn't have to; Ezran being connected to all nature while Claudia continually perverts it, thus Ezran having the relationship to nature that she needs to learn/acquire for her own healing additionally; they both see the throne as a tool to help and breaking their fathers' cycles with each other; the childhood friends to enemies to friends to lovers of an according slow burn because of said age gap; ending up as Queen of Katolis but not the way her father imagined and ending up with one of the brothers, just not the one everyone previously expected; Ezran getting to grow up and into his own and assert his independence and choices (no matter what his brother thinks about it), etc. I also think personality wise they suit each other - Terry's parallels to Ezran in personality are some of the reasons I think Clauderry works at least as a short term pairing.

It's also kinda perfect bc, since they'd only get together like 10-15 years post the end of the show Anyway, so like. they're Endgame to me no matter what and there's nothing canon can really do about it, #improvise adapt overcome.

Sorpeli

This probably started out as the truest crack ship because it started as a joke of like, Soren flirting with her at 20 and easy to dismiss and then again when he's 30 and Opeli is like "I deserve a little fun," so they start having a physical fling, and then catch feelings (Soren falls first, she falls harder). The earliest post I have for them is from May 6th 2023 but I know realistically I'd probably shipped them for a lot longer (what can I say, younger men not being put off my older women aging bc society is bullshit, and contrasting personalities + devoted man & woman who feels undeserving will always get me) before I ever had mind to say anything. Then I dragged @jelzorz into it and the rest, they say, is history. So like 1.5 years at least now?

I'd probably be even more into Sorpeli than I already am but I'm not unconvinced that Opeli won't die (I really hope she doesn't, but I do understand how it could benefit Ezran's narrative in particular) but like if all seasons pass by and she's alive? Canon crack quartet with Endgame Rayllum, Claudiez, Sorpeli, and CorTerry is a go <3

TLDR;

Rayllum before the show started, Janaya in S2, everything else when the ships got introduced, then next we have Claudiez (July 2021), Sorvus (casually since Oct 2021), and Sorpeli (late 2022/early 2023).

#shipping #thanks for asking #anonymous #forbidden op lore #requests

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punchdrunkdoc · 2 years ago

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Part 2, Chapter 6

Summary: After the events of S3, Matt Murdock is trying to once again balance life as a lawyer and a vigilante. But he’s been scarred by loss and betrayal - will a mysterious new neighbour help him heal? Or will her secrets drag him back into the darkness?

Notes: This is a slow burn romance with an original female character, told in 3 parts. There is mystery, intrigue, action/violence and angst - all the good stuff!

Also available on AO3 and Wattpad

Masterlist

Reference pics - *UPDATED*

————–

PART 2

Chapter 6

Calina rubbed the petal between her fingers as she waited for the phone call to go through. The flower Matt had given her had wilted and died after a few days of sitting in a glass of water on her bedside table. All that remained was the single blood red petal she held in her hand.

Matt couldn’t have known that the colour of the flower exactly matched his Daredevil suit - it was purely a coincidence. But during her more fanciful moments, she thought it was more fate than random chance.

The first and only flower she’d ever received was like being gifted a piece of the man himself.

And with his offering and his apology, the wall that he’d erected between them had crumbled. They were closer now than ever before. Falling asleep next to him felt natural. Waking up in his arms, even more so. And Matt no longer seemed embarrassed to find himself wrapped around her in the morning. In fact, touching her seemed second nature to him now; he was always brushing his hand down her arm or grazing her waist when he walked passed her in the apartment…

It felt like they’d entered some new phase of their strange relationship. She should have been excited. She should have been over the moon.

Instead she was feeling anxious and unsettled again.

She hoped the Widows would have news that would ease those feelings.

“Yes? What is it, Calina?” Yelena finally answered after the phone had run a dozen times. She sounded annoyed.

“I’m so sorry for disturbing you,” Calina replied. She couldn’t hide the snark in her voice. “I was calling for an update, seeing as you guys have been radio silent for the last couple of weeks.”

Yelena’s answer was just as snarky. “Well, I’m sorry that we’ve been too busy trying to find info on the man who drugged you to text you all hours of the day.”

“Well has all your busy-ness paid off? Have you found out who he was? Are there more like him out there?”

“Sort of. Yes. And we don’t know.”

Calina mentally matched the brusque answers to her questions. Then sat up straight, the petal falling forgotten to the floor. “Really? You know who he was?”

“Nicolai Aminev. A low level grunt from the research division of the Red Room.”

“Low level?”

“Yeah. Best we figure, he stole some tech during the chaos of the Red Room fall, managed to survive, and tried to make some cash out of selling a Widow.”

“If that’s the case, then there shouldn’t be anyone else after me. If he wasn’t part of some bigger operation-”

“We don’t know that for sure yet. We have a lead on some of his associates that we’re following up on. In fact, we were prepping for a recon mission when you called.”

Calina winced at the not-so-subtle rebuke. “I’m sorry. I know you guys are trying. I’m just feeling…trapped here. And useless.”

“It was your choice to stay.”

“I know. And I don’t regret it. I’m just going a little stir-crazy, Yelena. I can’t stay cooped up in this apartment much longer.” She rose from her chair and stared out of the windows, subconsciously counting down until the moment the billboard outside changed display. She knew the timings and the pattern down to the second. She knew every crack and mark in every window pane. She knew every dent and scratch in the floorboards and every frayed thread in the rug.

She never thought she’d get sick of being in Matt’s apartment, but she was fast approaching that point.

“I hate that they did this to me, again,” she continued, her voice rising with anger as she paced. “I hate that they took away my choices - again. I’m trapped again because of those…those fucking bastards, and I hate it!”

The rage and the frustration and the helplessness that had been simmering inside her for weeks suddenly boiled over, until it had nowhere to go but out. She lashed out and punched the wall between the arched windows. The hard brick scraped her skin, causing it to split.

A warm, strong hand suddenly covered hers. “Don’t do that,” Matt whispered, stroking the damaged skin of her knuckles.

She gazed up at him, surprised. She hadn’t even noticed he’d come home from work.

How much had he heard?

He took the phone from her other hand and put it to his ear. “Yelena? It’s Matt. I’ve got this.”

She could hear Yelena’s tinny reply. “I warned you this would happen.”

“I know. I’ll deal with it.”

He hung up. “Go get changed,” he said to Calina.

“What?”

“Put on some workout clothes. We’re going to the gym.”

———

“She’s going to get angry. Not tonight. Not tomorrow. But at some point, she’s going to snap out of her numbness and her fear and she’s going to get really, really angry. And you need to be prepared for that. You need to give her an outlet.”

Matt remembered Yelena’s words vividly. She’d taken him aside as the three Widows were leaving that Friday night weeks ago and issued her warning.

And Matt had been waiting ever since for Calina to snap.

It looked like tonight was the night.

“Are we allowed to be here?” Calina asked, as he ushered her into Fogwell’s with a hand on her back. She sounded curious, but there was still a tension in her voice. The muscles in her back were taut, as if she was wound tight.

“It’s been abandoned for months,” Matt explained. “I come here all the time. It’s fine.”

He dumped his bag on the floor and shrugged out of his jacket and sweatshirt, leaving him in a sleeveless T-shirt. He sat on the bench beside the ring and started wrapping his hands as Calina wandered around the disused gym.

She flipped back the hood she’d worn to disguise herself as they’d left his apartment. The move sent a wave of her scent towards him, clearing the musty smell of the gym from his senses. The dust on the floor swirled about her feet as she inspected the old equipment, and he heard a punching bag swing as she gave it a light tap. The wooden stand by the lockers creaked as she picked up one of the dumbbells resting on it.

“‘No Pain, No Gain’,” she murmured, reciting the mantra painted on the wall. “We have a similar saying in Russia: ‘Without effort, you won’t even pull a fish out of a pond.'”

Matt laughed. “Not quite as catchy.”

That would have made her smile a few days ago. But now there was no response. She just moved on to the Wing Chun dummy in the corner. Before the gym had closed down they’d started hosting Kung Fu classes to try and generate more income. The dummy was a remnant of that failed plan.

He heard a muffled whack as Calina hit one of the wooden slats. Then another. And another, the pace increasing until she was executing a fast series of blocks and strikes against the dummy in a practiced routine.

Matt winced as the force of her hits increased. He could hear her breathing heavily beneath the rhythmic sound of her attack.

“Hey.” He came up behind her and pulled her away from the dummy by her shoulders. “You’ll hurt yourself.”

She shrugged out of his hold and viciously kicked the wooden statue. “No pain, no gain, right?” she sneered.

“I didn’t bring you here to hurt yourself-”

“So why did you?”

“Yelena said you’d need an outlet. This is the one I use.” He handed her some wrap for her hands and a pair of gloves. “I thought it might help.”

“I’m not much of a boxer.”

He remembered the way she’d fought against him before, all balletic grace and lithe deflection. “No. But the gloves and the bag will be less painful than the dummy. Just try it.”

While she prepped her hands, Matt tugged on his own gloves and started hitting one of the bags. By the time he’d slipped into his own rhythmic routine, Calina was next to him, jabbing forcefully at the other bag.

Her form was good. She may not favour the style during a fight, but she was obviously well trained in it. She was light on her feet and swung from the hips, and her gloved hands connected with the swinging bag with satisfying slaps.

Matt tried to concentrate on his own bag - wanting to give Calina the space to process her anger on her own - but after a while it became hard to shut out the signs of her distress. The more she punched, the more erratic and harsh her breathing became. The faster her heart rate. He could taste the salt from her angry tears and her grunts of effort transformed into cries of rage as she pummelled and kicked at the leather target in front of her.

He wanted to pull her away from the bag and into his arms where he could hold her close. But she needed to work through this. She needed to let her anger out. So he continued with his own workout and waited for the moment she exhausted herself.

Luckily, he didn’t have to wait too long. After one last vicious roundhouse kick, Calina staggered back from the bag and braced herself on her knees, panting. When she straightened up, he finally got the chance to wrap his arms around her. He held her firmly from behind and rested his head against the side of hers.

Her breathing started to slow and sync to his, just like when they would meditate together. Her heart rate levelled out too, and eventually she relaxed back against him.

“Are you okay?” he whispered.

She nodded.

“Do you feel better?”

Another nod. “Yes, thank you.” Her voice was hoarse from her cries.

He reluctantly broke the embrace. “I’ll grab you a drink.”

He ripped off his gloves and dug through his gym bag for the water bottles. When he returned to Calina she was studying something on the wall.

And he knew exactly what it was.

“Here,” he said passing her a drink.

“Thanks.” He heard her twist off the cap and gulp down the cool liquid. Then she started played with the half-empty bottle, rolling it around between her palms, making the plastic crinkle. He knew her well enough now to recognise the meaning behind her uncharacteristic fidgeting - she was debating whether to say something.

“You can ask,” he said, gesturing to the poster he knew was on the wall in front of her.

“‘Carl Crusher Creel vs Battlin’ Jack Murdock’,” she read. “That’s your Dad? You said he was a boxer.”

“Yeah. This was his local gym. I practically grew up here. I used to sit on that bench over there and do my homework while he sparred.”

She took a seat on the bench he mentioned and he joined her. His eyes swept around the room, as if he could see its contents. And in a way he could. This vantage point was so familiar to him - it was one of the clearest memories he had from when he still had his sight. He could easily overlay the details he remembered onto the impression his senses gave him of the room - the black shine of the floor; the silver duct tape holding the punching bags together; the beat up looking grey lockers and the rich golden yellow light that would flood the room at dusk.

“Do you want to tell me about him?” Calina asked. “About your Dad?”

Matt sighed and leaned back against the wall behind him. “There’s not much to tell. He died when I was nine.”

“I’m sorry.”

Matt shrugged. “It was just the two of us growing up, and I idolised him - so much. I knew he wasn’t invincible, not like some kids see their dads. I had to stitch him up after enough fights to know that he bled and bruised just like a normal person.” Matt let out a hollow laugh at the memory. “Man, could he take a beating. He could get hit all day long and never got knocked out. That’s how he won his fights - outlasting the other guy. Never giving in.”

Matt could hear his Dad’s voice, clear as day in his head. ‘It ain’t how you hit the floor, Matty. Its how you get up.’

He continued speaking, his voice wistful now. “I wanted to be just like him when I grew up. Even though he hated that idea.”

“What do you mean?”

“He didn’t want me to be a fighter. He wanted me to get an education and get out of Hell’s Kitchen. He’d be proud of me for being a lawyer. I’m not so sure he’d be proud about the Daredevil thing.”

“But you’re helping people.”

There was that acceptance again, Matt thought, remembering his internal battle the other night during the storm.

But now he was worried that she was a little too accepting. That she’d romanticised what he did and turned it into something more noble than what it was. She’d never seen what he did in the suit, after all. She’d never seen him when he truly became the Devil

“I don’t think he’d see it that way,” Matt tried to explain. “We both have this…thing inside us. This rage and this darkness that’s always trying to claw itself out. ‘Beware those Murdock Boys. They got the Devil in ‘em.’ That’s what my Gran used to say. She saw it in my Grandfather. And in my Dad. During his fights…he would occasionally snap. His eyes would go dark and he’d just start wailing on the other guy. I think Dad would worry that I’m just using the suit as an excuse to let that rage out.”

“Is that what you believe?”

Matt leaned forward and rested his arms on his legs. He tugged at the fabric wrapping his hands as he debated how honest he should be. “Sometimes. Sometimes I worry that I’m kidding myself that I do this for any other reason than to hurt people.”

“You’re wrong.”

He sighed. “Calina, you can’t say that. You haven’t seen me out there. I-”

“Yes, I have.”

Matt sat up straight and faced her. “What?”

She bit her lip and looked away.

“Calina?” He prompted, starting to get worried. When had she seen him? What had she seen?

“When I first found out about, um, you being Daredevil. I followed you. At night.”

“You followed me?”

“Yes. I was curious. I was trying to reconcile this person that I knew from this tabloid news story character.”

“How often did you follow me?”

“Just a few nights. Four at the most.”

“Jesus.” Matt sprang up from the bench and started pacing. He didn’t know what he most angry about. That she’d kept it a secret from him? That she’d seen what he was like as Daredevil, or that he’d been followed that many times without suspecting a thing.

No, that wasn’t right. He had suspected something. He remembered back to that time period, and the vague sensation he’d had of being watched. But it had gone away after that incident by the docks.

That incident…

“It was you.”

“What?”

“That night, with those kidnappers. It was you, wasn’t it?” She’d been the one who'd taken out the thugs while he was lying incapacitated on the floor.

She tipped her chin up. “Yes.”

Matt raked his hands through his hair as he thought back to that night. And to the next morning, when Calina had come to his door.

She’d been checking up on him. She’d known he’d gotten beaten up, so she’d come to check on him. He’d let her back into his life that morning. Everything that had brought them closer together since had started that day.

And it was all based on a lie.

He’d never suspected that she’d had an ulterior motive that morning. He’d just accepted the care and attention she’d given him while he’d been sick.

God, every time he was reminded of how good a liar she was it hit him like a suckerpunch.

He forced down the betrayal that he felt. They’d both resolved to start fresh and discard the lies that had tainted beginning of their relationship. By introducing themselves to each other after their fight, they’d wiped the slate clean. Then they’d sealed that unspoken deal with a handshake.

He needed to let it go.

So he focussed on something else that he’d been wondering about from that night by the docks. “What did you use? To take those guys down. I remember hearing something odd, like an electronic device…”

“It’s called a Widow’s Bite. It’s an electroshock weapon. Standard kit on a Widow’s suit.”

“Wait, you were suited up? As a Black Widow? Jesus, Calina! Did it ever occur to you that that’s how you were found?”

The stubborn tilt of her chin edged up a notch. “Of course it did. But I don’t regret it. You needed my help. And that little girl needed you. Just like the other people you saved that week. When I followed you, I didn’t see someone revelling in violence and enjoying the pain he was inflicting. I saw someone helping his community. You showed mercy towards the people you stopped, Matt. Not needless cruelty.”

He took a seat beside her again and shook his head. “There’s still something dark inside of me. You need to understand that-”

“We all have that, Matt. Parts of ourselves that we’re not proud of. Dark aspects of our soul.”

It was her turn to sound self-loathing. He rested his hand on top of hers on the bench between them. “Hey. Whatever darkness you think resides in your soul was put there by the people who trained you and controlled you.”

She laughed bitterly. “I’m not the innocent victim you think I am, Matt. I’ve made choices - since I was free of the Red Room - that I’m not proud of.”

“But those choices were informed by the life that they forced you to live. By the person they forced you to become. Could you still say you’d have acted the same if you were allowed to be raised by your family, in a loving home, far away from the Red Room?”

She turned her hand over to grasp his, as if it was her turn to offer comfort. “The same could be said for you, Matt. If you hadn’t had your accident, and lost your Dad, would you still feel the same about the man you are today? We’re all at the mercy of chance. We’re all shaped by our experiences.”

He shook his head. “But that’s what I was saying before, about me, and my Dad. This is nature, not nurture There’s something inside us-”

“No. I don’t believe that. You make it sound like there’s something fundamentally wrong with you-”

He gave a hollow laugh. “Calina I dress up in a devil suit to go beat up criminals at night. That’s hardly the picture of a normal, well-adjusted human being.”

��“It’s no measure of health to be well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society’,” she quoted.

“What?”

“I moved on to philosophy books this week, and came across that quote from Krishnamurti, an Indian philosopher,” she explained. “I think it means that most people go about their lives not seeing the sickness and corruption in this world, or not caring about it if it doesn’t directly affect them. But people like you - who’ve experienced it, and gained empathy from it - they don’t conform. They fight. They fight to make the world a better place. That’s how I see you, Matt. Not as some rage-filled monster.”

Matt sat in silence for a few moments, humbled by Calina’s opinion of him. He tried to absorb the words, to make them his truth…but he was fighting against thirty-odd years of dogma. Thirty-odd years of believing there was something wrong with him.

It would take more than a few words…but he was still grateful. “Thank you.”

She squeezed his hand in response.

“And thank you, for before,” he continued. “That night with those kidnappers. If you hadn’t been there…you probably saved my life.”

“You’re welcome,” she said. “Thank you for saving mine the night with the serum.”

“I didn’t save your life. All I did was hurt you.” He could still hear the crack of her knee impacting the floor. He could still hear the pop of her elbow as it was wrenched out of his socket. He could still feel the heat rising from the bruises littering her skin...

It didn’t feel very heroic.

“You stopped me from having to live that life again, Matt. I consider us more than even.” She stretched her arm out in front of her. “And look, good as new.”

He took hold of her arm and moved it around, feeling the joint as it flexed, wanting to assure himself that she was telling the truth.

And she was. There was no evidence of any lingering damage.

He ran his thumb down the delicate skin of her inner arm, and reluctantly let go when she started talking again. “I think that’s why I’ve been feeling so antsy lately,” she said. “And why it all came to a head tonight. I feel ready to go back to my life, but I’m still at the mercy of whoever’s out there.”

“Did Yelena have any leads on that?” he asked.

Calina explained about the identity of the man who drugged her. “But Yelena’s being cautious - she’s worried there’s more to it than a low-level lackey trying to make some money.”

“What do you think?”

“I think what I’ve always thought - that there’s no danger here. Not anymore.”

“Does that mean…are you going to move back into your place?”

There was a beat of silence. Then another. And he felt like every muscle in his body went tight as he waited for her answer. “Calina?”

“Is that what you want?” she finally said, turning his question back on him.

“No,” he replied.

And it was the truth. He knew she’d have to leave eventually. He just hadn’t let himself think about what that would feel like - watching her walk out of his door. And he didn’t want to think about it now.

He wasn’t…ready.

“You can stay as long as you need, you know that,” he finally said.

“Then I’ll stay a little longer. I, um, think Yelena would feel more comfortable that way.”

Matt smiled, recognising it as an excuse.

She wanted to stay.

With him.

“Then stay.”

————–

Chapter 7

Taglist: @hollandorks, @yanna-banana, @stilldreaming666, @tearosearts-blog @chezagnes, @freckledbabyyy, @acharliecoxedfan,

If you’d like to be added, let me know!

#Daredevil #daredevil fic #daredevil fanfic #daredevil fanfiction #marvel's daredevil #daredevil x original female character #Matt Murdock #matt murdock fanfic #matt murdock x oc #matt murdock x original character #tabula rasa

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sharkneto · 1 year ago

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I’m convinced you’re the only person with a correct view on tua season 3. Even though it wasn’t as good as s1 some people have no reading comprehension and it drive s me crazy

Ah, Season 3. Like, I get it, I think, where people who don't like it are coming from. It's got some wack choices (...just like s2. And s1 but we didn't have anything to compare it to so it's my Beloved Golden Season). I'm not going to force anyone to change their minds on it - if you like it you like it, if you don't you don't. People like what they like.

But, because you're asking me so my opinion is most important in this instance - it's not bad! I do like it! It's got fantastic character moments (Five and Lila, Five and Klaus, Luther and Viktor, Diego and Lila, Allison and Viktor, Klaus and Sparrow Ben...). It's got Reggie being a lil weirdo. It's got Sparrow Ben. I love the wedding at the end of the world with my whole heart - it's such a human thing to do it makes me ache. I love that Five's song choice when facing the actual end of the world is to sing "I've Had the Time of My Life" because he's with his family! I actually really like Allison's spiral, I think it makes perfect sense for her as a character and where she was at and my only regret for it is the backlash Allison and Emmy got from it. The characters are what I'm here for, and I can be very forgiving as long as I get to hang out with my guys more. And I don't even think I need to be that forgiving to S3!

There are like... four specific things I don't like in S3 (Founder Five plot, Sloane, Lila pregnant, Oblivion Guardians). Aidan is so fucking good in the Founder plot that I'm happy to logic my way into an interpretation of it that I like better. Sloane is... there. She's rather two-dimensional so that makes it also easy to not be that bothered by her. She's there! Luther likes her! I don't need more! Which is good, because they don't really give more! The last two are just things I wish they hadn't done, or had done differently, but they did and so that's just how it is. I can focus on that and be mad or I can look at the stuff I liked and have fun.

I think my biggest strength coming into S3 was I didn't have too much for expectations, good or bad, which is a thing I'm trying to repeat for S4 by avoiding spoilers. I think the maddest I got about S3 coming in was finding out Diego was a dad - I hated that Stan was his kid. It didn't make any fucking sense. And! Look what good being mad about that did for me! Stan wasn't even his kid! I got mad over nothing! Like, still mad Lila is pregnant so Diego will be dad, but that at least will make sense - I don't dislike Dad!Diego, I dislike SuddenDad!Diego with a teen. But, what I'm trying to get at with that example, is I did that to myself. I made myself mad based on info promos gave me and I extrapolated to a conclusion rather than actually waiting to see what the show was going to do, and it did color my enjoyment watching until the Stan Reveal.

You cannot extrapolate what the fuck TUA is going to do. It's too bonkers, the writing isn't consistent enough. It's gonna do its own thing. I think trying to dig into the promos and BTS content for S4 to predict what it will be is setting yourself up for failure. If that's your jam, do not stop! You do you! I, however, am combating this by actively just Not Thinking About It. I love this show and its characters and I want to give myself the fairest chance to enjoy and love what its finale will be.

Like S3, S4 is going to be what it's going to be. I might love it, I might hate it. I'm probably going to love some of it and hate some of it. All I can hope is I love more than I hate and me coming in with concrete ideas of what it's going to be only gives me more things to hate when what actually happens inevitably doesn't align. Why do that to myself?

#i think the bonus other thing to enjoying media #is to ignore everyone else's opinions on it until you've had a chance to watch the whole thing yourself #i've def been in the middle of somethign #enjoying it #and then read some opinion online while in the middle of x or y they didn't like #and then while finishing watching thinking about that complaint and going ''oh yeah... they are right that's not great''#and i enjoy it less for it #watch it for you #enjoy it if you enjoy it #it's all about balance and if there's enough good for you to focus on to outweigh the bad #for me there definitely is #is s3 as good as s1 or s2? no #is it awful garbage? no!#it's the umbrella academy :)#ask response #sharkneto speaks

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mysteryloversbookshelf · 1 year ago

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The Afterparty: Feng

I don’t feel very well so I’m not going to do a long post, but this episode explained a lot. We finally figured out who the skeater and snorer are and even got a lot of funny moments. This episode has made me feel even more sympathy for Feng because the man has been through a lot and just wanted his daughter to have a great wedding. Spoilers ahead!

Last week’s clue was “Not the DJ” which doesn’t help us out at all. But we at least know now that the snorer is Auntie Ruth and Kyler is the skeater. All of the edits and footage were so gen z it was hilarious to watch and I love the idea of things being shown to us rather than told. The Urkel jokes were so simple yet so funny and Roxana alone was the breakout star for me. Between her floating in the pool and her shaking her head no at the baobing, I was very entertained 😂

This whole season there have been theories that Edgar was secretly drugging Isabel and now we will finally have the truth next week. The big question though is why? Is it to control her finances or did she witness him do something and he doesn’t want to be ratted out?

A few weeks ago I had the theory that Ulysses might be full of 💩 because of the whole koumiss thing (camel vs mare milk) and although it did turn out to not be a misdirect there, it looks like he really is sus. People have been pointing out for the past week on Reddit that his story had missing info and that the long shower was never explained. And there’s a strong theory that he accidentally killed Edgar because he was trying to kill Feng. After tonight’s episode I believe it 100%. Someone pointed out in the Feng episode discussion post that Feng never took a sip when he took the glass from Ulysses and another pointed out that during the accidental glass switch at the end, Feng got Edgar’s adderall laced whisky. Their reasoning is Feng being up all night working on business ideas which makes perfect sense. That’s actually so cold blooded and makes the whole situation sad because if it is him he ruined his niece and potential biological daughter’s life all because he couldn’t get over an affair over a decade ago.

At this point I’m just enjoying watching the rest of the mystery play out and then I’m going to sit back and enjoy the rest of Only Murders in the Building S3. I hope that next season they go back to 8 episodes because it’s starting to feel like it’s dragging a little bit 😬 What are all of your last minute theories?

#the afterparty

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battendownthewhatsit · 1 year ago

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I have now seen the OFMD finale! Under the cut for spoilers/ mild unplussed opinions

mild spoilers/ mild negative opinions..?

--I liked the first several eps of this season just fine--basically to the point of Ed and Stede agreeing to take it slow it was really solid. And then it felt like we hit Skip on one or two episodes and missed a lot of CRUCIAL character development (and maybe some plot but Eh, this is OFMD, not Black Sails. The plot is Whatever). That was really intense here.

I didn't feel Anything about Izzy dying because it felt like I was watching a totally different character than the Horrible Creature I enjoyed for the first season and a half. I LOVED the show's intro of the Pirate Queen and her crew when introduced but there's so much about the two crews' relationship with each other AND within them that really felt like it needed more development?? like how Auntie is suddenly supposed to be an Izzy analogue and...no?? Auntie is not a traitor, Auntie is not selling her captain out to the English,Auntie is incredibly patient, actually, about her captain's chosen boyfriend messing up all her Actually Very Important sailing info and tools.

...also I was really ...well , having some kind of emotion about how the Pirate Queen's fleet is apparently fine to be a complete write off? We couldn't pick up some nameless extras on the way to the ships? And how did the Revenge crew survive but almost none of the Fleet?? they had to be hundreds if not thousands of people!

I'm not trying to Cancel OFMD or whatever, I'm saying I think this is part of the Short Season, Short Budget issue-- we never get the time to know more about the Fleet crew. I understand but it's such a wasted opportunity! all the drama they set up there with the escape of the Revenge and it goes BOOM and vanishes in a burst of clocks thanks to Nose Boy. it was... honestly it was kind of annoying??

this season was trying to do a LOT of intense emotional work, for a pirate romcom, and I feel like it got undercut by, I'm guessing, crappy streaming budget choices and it is AGGRAVATING bc it's So Close to totally pulling it off, if it just had a liiiiittle more time!

Anyway I am arguably not really the audience for this show-- I don't like romcoms, as a rule, but I DO love Comedy Pirates, so it's amazing this show has charmed me as much as it has. But I hope S3 gives us a lot more Crew Shenanigans (and MORE FRENCHIE!! my star! my hero of scams!) and especially a few more episodes!

#that other pirate show

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girlfriendsofthegalaxy · 2 years ago

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tuesday again 1/17/23

this was written under some duress bc my cat refused the sacrificial animal cracker and wanted The Whole Box. no, these are mine, go eat your camel on the coffee table. i have always hated the "pet parent" stuff but mother DOES want a cocktail and some benzos, run along now

listening

peel me a grape, anita o'day's version. this popped up on a premade jazz standards spotify playlist

youtube

this is going to pop up on my spotify wrapped bc i am trying to memorize the lyrics, which include

Send out for scotch, boil me a crab Cut me a rose, make my tea with the petals Just hang around to pick up the tab Never out think me, just mink me Polar bear rug me, don't bug me New Thunderbird me, you heard me I'm getting hungry, peel me a grape

MWAH. love it. ideal.

reading

Dreamships by Melissa Scott. i don't like ragging on an alive, queer author, but this one did not grab me. let's talk about why!

the premise:

now, i'm not in the publishing industry. but maybe consider. if the jacket copy tells you "and this is the issue upon which the novel turns!" and then tells you the next two twists. maybe don't include that in the jacket copy. i have a bad habit of only reading the first half of jacket copy and didn't see this until i took these photos but i am retroactively annoyed on scott's behalf.

character work: i bought this bc i was very excited for a grouchy misanthropic lady pilot. reverdy jian isn't that. i still don’t know much about her from reading a third of the book. she is remarkably incurious and while this is an excellent trait if you are a freelancer or doing any sort of client work, it would have been nice to care about the protagonist of the book or feel like she has emotional or monetary stakes in taking/not taking this job.

pacing/structure: this book is like looking out over top of a layer of fog and i’m making it sound more exciting or appealing than it is. it’s very even in both pacing and emotion. the first hundred pages take places over about thirty six hours, bc there’s a rush pilot job, but it’s very laid back and relaxed. there’s no real sense of urgency or mystery, despite the author trying her hardest to set up a mystery about the almost complete lack of information about this ship. when the characters can’t find any info they just kind of shrug and move on. it’s also just a little obtuse, despite being very polished in all its tenses and word choices. i wonder if it maybe needed one more clarity pass. i had a lot of trouble figuring out who a whole extra character was bc there were too many men in one room.

where the pacing/structure/character work collide: this book reads like a travelogue, and i do not mean that as a compliment. again, we don't get much of reverdy's perspective--things simply happen to her or she sees things and just kind of absorbs them without much commentary. things happen one by one like beads on a string without really tying into a bigger picture of the city or her goals. the main premise (huge mostly underground city on a planet being stripmined) was not presented interestingly enough to make up for the lack of character work. for me. in my opinion. i'm not a writer (or at least not a serious/professional/one who puts a great deal of thought and planning into her writing)

i have a limited amount of time on this earth, i gave it a solid hundred pages, this does not earn a place on my shelf. back to the thrift store it goes. sorry ms scott i hope you're having a good day anyway

watching

still rewatching adventure time. s3 is full of solid bangers, i think this is the season i remember best bc it was one of the first Appointment Television things with my siblings the year we got cable. this is when they start drip-feeding you more of the stuff about the great mushroom war

i really really love when a post-post apoc setting thinks about the impact of a nuclear war on playground culture, like this hide and seek variant you see in s3e21:Marceline's Closet.

Over the mountain, the ominous cloud Coming to cover the land in a shroud Hide in a bushel, a basement, a cave But when cloud comes a-huntin No one's a save… no, safe!

how i found this: this show ran from 2010-2018, and was absolutely impossible to escape as a cultural juggernaut, especially during the peak le epic bacon style times when i was in high school. it also had a limited series in 2020-2021 and a spinoff is supposed to happen next year, which i am cautiously optimistic about.

playing

there will be light spoilers for the first two acts of wolfenstein the new order, a game that came out in 2014. i do not feel the need to rot13 early spoilers for an nine year old game.

despite enjoying the soundtrack for many years, i have never previously made into the castle in the first level of wolfenstein: the new order bc i always got bored and wandered off irl. i do want to get to a part (again not sure which one) where it will let me dual wield shotguns. why can't i find a second shotgun. i'm out of the asylum, they made me give the chainsaw back, and im about to murk some 1960s fascists at this checkpoint. one of these fuckers better have another shotgun.

blazkowicz is an enormous slab of unseasoned american beef. this man is SO large holy shit. i wish i cared about this big man. something about a dead female love interest? this nurse i kidnapped is going catch a bad case of the plot and be dead at the end of this level i think.

as previously mentioned this game was released in 2014 and boy does it look it, right down to the stupid macho gamer difficulty and exit screens. it's a pretty competent shooter. do wish ppl would stop shooting at me for five seconds so i can wander around and read all the propaganda and signage. why put it all up if you don't want me to look at it????

this was recently free on the epic store and the soundtrack came up on my walk today, which made me go "let me try this again". stay tuned.

making

made some quiche and fucked it up in a different way from last jan's quiche fuckup. still looking for hearty vegetarian soups, made some soup, which is very good but very texture. aash-e jow, a persian rice/bean/lentil/barley soup, is a soup you gotta chew. "kay isn't that a stew-" no. come to my house and eat this soup and i will show you.

other notable notes: doesn't really taste like much which could be continuing post-covid weirdness, and i think i should at minimum triple the amount of spices. fuck of a lot of prep. lot of chopping. hands hurty. called for a bunch of things i do not normally keep as pantry staples. i think it would be far easier to buy a block of frozen chopped spinach and refloof it in a saucepan like i did for the quiche, but i had some arugula/spinach mix that was about to go.

the caramelized onions really make this soup imo but i do not always have the fortitude to caramelize onions. i don't think this soup will stay an acceptable texture when frozen, so next weekend i have to make another giant batch of the red lentil soup to freeze for lunches.

you're correct i really don't want to do dishes

#tuesday again #tuesday again no problem #Youtube

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markantonys · 1 year ago

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apart from all his other various trauma (and his past life experiences as lews therin), the show is setting rand up with a much darker history in terms of relationships and sex than book!rand ever had. i really hope they don't shy away from that and actually show the consequences of that long-term manipulation and sexual coercion/assault. i've been very curious about how they intend to approach the polycule in general, and this adds a whole other layer.

yeah!!! so far the show's been doing a great job of letting trauma play out rather than trying to rush it along or sweep it under the rug (with the best example of course being perrin with laila's death) so i have hopes that we'll be seeing some emotional fallout for rand going forward.

definitely intrigued as to how they're going to proceed with rand's romances because boy, we thought there were obstacles in the book version, but now we've got 10x as many obstacles! i will say with tentative hope that this could be a good sign for my previous speculation that the polycule will be arranged more intentionally in the show and we'll jettison most of the Forced Miscommunication and rand being run around in circles because rj wanted it to be a secret from rand that he's getting roped into a polycule lmao - with rand now having HUGE romance/sex-related trauma he didn't have in the books, that will provide more than enough hurdles for the relationship(s) to overcome and we do not need to waste time with the various hurdles the books had (which were largely more manufactured & less character-driven than something like rand, and also min too with her new backstory, having past trauma that makes trust and intimacy difficult. and show!elayne i could imagine being more wary about people potentially faking romantic interest in her to use her for her position, and who knows whether aviendha might have any new depth/backstory to affect her approach towards relationships.)

so my proposal (which will be repetitive since i've said this a few times already haha but i want to muse on it a little with the new context of randfear. or should i say, randfear-induced Rand Fear!) is that aviendha is rand's first post-lanfear romance, and it takes them the majority of s3 to get together due to The Trauma. we can still have our avirand slowburn without needing to use poor elayne as a wedge between them! then they simply stay together, and elayne joins in s4 and min in s5.

it's also very interesting to me that we haven't yet gotten min alluding to The Viewing (beyond her quick joke-but-not-really mention to rand in 1x07), and i honestly don't think we will this season since she's gotten a different character arc to keep her busy. and i like that! i always hated the Fate Said So angle, so while min of course has still had that viewing in showverse and it will probably be relevant to her individual journey of falling for rand, i'd be thrilled if the audience, elayne, and aviendha don't learn about it until much later than they do in the books. especially if min is last to join as in the books, then avirandlayne could potentially develop COMPLETELY naturally without any foreknowledge by any of them (seems likely since min may not even meet elayne or avi by the time they get with rand) and maybe without any foreknowledge by the audience either (depending on how long it takes for min to make her viewing known to us), and the Fated Romance angle could be saved specifically for min/rand rather than for the entire polycule (i mean the entire polycule will still be a Fated Romance, but all sub-relationships but min/rand would develop without that as a known piece of info, in this scenario)

#anonymous #answered #wot #wot show spoilers #wot book spoilers

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fox-guardian · 2 years ago

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So 1) info dump me on the stoker swap au plz. Share the shenanigans. The drama. The Memes. And 2) Is the time travel au done for? I started following you for your art for that ages ago, and I honestly wouldn't blame you for not doing it if you didn't want to, but I've kinda been holding out hope to maybe see an update on that? Please? 3) Your Version of Danny my beloved

I'm gonna answer these in reverse

3) thankies he means so much to me <3 I'm rotating him in my brain regularly <3

2) I don't wanna say it's "done for" but it is definitely on the backburner. I had wanted to rewrite it since the show ended to rework a few things. Ultimately it'd be the same story, but in more of a "somewhere else is the past" type of thing. I may not finish writing the fic, especially since I write So Much but not very often so it makes it hard to want to rewrite a fic that already has 30k words and not much has happened yet plot-wise, but I may still make art/comics for it. Or even post what I currently have anyway if anyone would want that. But idk if it'd be worth it rn since there's so little plot. We shall see.

I do still think about it often, though.

1) YEEHEEHEE

In my brain I'm already on s3 and trying to figure out how all that would work out since Sasha being alive (because danny saves her with the power of the buddy system) changes things if you can imagine. Like a butterfly effect, so many things are now changed. But I still want Jon to run from the cops so leitner needs to die, but that'll be hard to initiate if Jon isn't running from not!sasha.

God I can't wait to get to the archive era. I'm still writing research, but hopefully I'll be done establishing everything I need to in a couple chapters and I'll be able to timeskip to Jon's promotion. I'll probably have to cut a few things out of the main fic but know that I WILL make stuff for them anyway, like a spin-off fic with missing scenes and whatnot or comics. I just REALLY want Jon and Danny to infiltrate a drag show for followup reasons with Danny as a drag queen and Jon as his little buddy/assistant/whatever, but I don't think that'll fit into the main fic aksjsksjd If I wrote every little field work adventure I want them to go on I'd never finish it.

I also can't wait for Tim to meet everybody. He's gonna become besties with Sasha so fast. He is GOING to adopt Jon. He's going to be Normal about Martin most likely. And he is GOING to punch Elias in the face AT LEAST once.

And wtgfs.... ough. I can't wait for Danny to meet Melanie because I already had him make a GHUK reference and I just. I can't wait to write that. He's gonna be normal I think. And Georgie and the admiral.... oguohugoh

Also I love Danny. I do. But I can't wait to cause him pain <3 he's gonna get so very wormed and also kidnapped <3

#fg's answers #asks #the magnus archives #tma #stoker swap au #tma time travel au #i think that was my tag for it

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aprillikesthings · 9 months ago

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ugh my wired headphones are still hurting my head >:(

anyway

s3 ep2 huntara

ahahah I love this one

(if you're new here: i'm rewatching She-Ra for fic-writing purposes, and live-blogging my way through them making commentary and jokes and side notes about random shit. bc this is a REwatch there are many references to later plot points)

is that the Beta Kindergarten

(man I've been making a lot of Steven Universe references in these lately, but yeah I can't look at sandstone slot canyons without thinking "hrr hrr where's Jasper")

(wait has a Jasper cosplayer actually taken photos in one of these in like Utah? a quick image search says no. damn.)

how many times did I look at this establishing shot before I realized this part of the Fright Zone is the ruins of a ginormous spaceship

ALSO "day 135"? I noted yesterday that someone working on the show said sOMEWHERE that each season is about a year and I was like "ehhhh" but I guess that's not far off.

That makes the whole catradora arc even more angsty tbh. For some reason I thought the whole show took place over like a single year or so. But FOUR OR FIVE YEARS?? they pined for each other while trying to murder each other for MULTIPLE YEARS????

awwwwww

Listen. I love this ship. I'm always weak for "complete asshole with tough act is soft for one (1) person"

(tho lemme tell you. do not actually date those dudes irl. *sigh*)

why did so many 80's cartoons have extremely unrealistic quicksand scenes tho

gdi adora

The Crimson Waste is actually just a western bar full of furries. But seriously designing the characters in the bar must've been hella fun

AAHAHAAHH Adora being so, so blatantly gay for Huntara is one of my fave things

Did they need to establish that Adora is into women? Pfft, no. Did they still decide to show us Adora being absolutely smitten on sight for an older, big, buff, badass, butchy lady? YES.

Doesn't hurt that she looks likes this lol

like it's the least subtle thing on EARTH i love it so much

oh no now I want to look up fics

18 of them are explicit. well. I'm just gonna. leave that tab open.

ADORA. YOU COCKBLOCKED HER. RUDE.

lol there's a moment where Glimmer and Bow are like "ha ha we need to talk amongst ourselves" and turns around and Adora is still just staring at Huntara with googly eyes without noticing what Bow even said and lemme tell you, I've been that fucking obvious and oblivious

Huntara literally is like "oh my god you kids are gonna end up DEAD without me. FINE." Meanwhile, Adora:

Plot plot Huntara leads them to a trap and they get hit with tranquilizer darts and dropped into a pit.

that's just a nice shot tbh

EAT SOME DAMN SOUP your girlfriend spent TIME on that

she just refuses to be afraid of him

Anyway yeah this is when we find out he's just a clone of Horde Prime the Big Baddy of the series, Hordak is a "defective" clone, he was sent to "the front lines" to die and fell through a portal into Etheria. "with nothing but a broken ship, I built an empire..." the whole point of the portal is to bring Horde Prime through, which means that's what he was doing when he tried before and ended up with A Magic Baby (Adora) instead.

The animation in the flashback is clearly inspired by Lotte Reiniger which is super cool??

Back to the Crimson Waste, they've gotten themselves out of the hole, and Adora's upset because the whole point of this mission is her getting more info about Mara with the hopes of understanding her own past better

she's RIGHT

"...at least to me..."

LISTEN TO YOUR CUTE NERDY GIRLFRIEND YOU EMO BASTARD

She makes him a nice techy exoskeleton armor thingie

that's a start but c'mon I know you can do better than that

lolol the recorder baby critter KICKS HIM in an obvious "dude really????"

look at him!!! AAHAHAH

i'm gonna go over the image limit and tumblr's gonna cut me off and make me reblog this any minute now but this episode is jUST TOO GOOD

"I like being friends with you, too" ;_;

Huntara's "friends" make fun of her for being a softie while she swings the She-Ra sword around and then Glimmer drops in wooo

yeah I know this is a fight scene but eheheheh

and then they banged

okay they kept fighting but like, c'mon

the "sword point under the chin" thing is just so good and I loved the way they did the angles here

OH SHIT I forgot Huntara had heard of She-Ra

OH HO HO HOW THE TURN TABLES

Anyway Huntara does her little speech about how she also used to be a Horde soldier but left because Hordak was such a dick to his soldiers. "you would know, you were one of us."

called THE FUCK OUT

Huntara does her little "you can't defeat the Horde alone even if you're She-Ra" and she responds with "yah I'm not alone tho"

but also that shot is unnecessarily hot

....i've hit the image limit with two minutes to spare so I went back and deleted one because

hggghh

(not gonna get into how Shadow Weaver's face-touching thing is what made Adora do it here but yeah)

Huntara tells her minions to get lost, admits that the war scared the shit out of her and that's why she ran, but she knows that's bullshit and she promises to help Adora stop the war :D and then leads them to the place they were originally looking for: the ruins of Mara's ship!

AND EPISODE OVER

(gonna...see if any of those fics are any good 👀)

#april rewatches spop #huntara

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