#i watch svu which is also a 20+ year old show and it’s the same

[whoify]

i think the thing that bothers me most about the “doctor who used to be so grimy and gritty and real and now it’s all polished looking ergo fuck chibnall and r2d” takes is that this is not a doctor who issue. this is an All Of TV issue. look at any show from the early 2000s next to any show airing now. doctor who has just been on for 20 years and you can see the change within it

[isabellehemlock]

ID. A digital collage of characters from left to right, top to bottom: Finnick Odair from The Hunger Games, Nicolò di Genova from The Old Guard, Olivia Benson from Law & Order: SVU, Phoebe Halliwell from Charmed, Eddie Munson from Stranger Things, Alice Cullen from The Twilight Saga, Aziraphale from Good Omens, Stede Bonnet from Our Flag Means Death, Ciri from The Witcher, and Will Byers from Stranger Things. The lettering imposed in the middle reads: "10 characters. 10 fandoms. 10 tags." END ID

Special thanks to @nade2308 for tagging me for this fantastic game! 🤩 I saw a mutual do this one not to long ago and was sort of itching to do it as well - was even planning on typing something up over the weekend lol - so did I go a little extra by also including my why for each, and some quotes? Yup.

tw for mild/vague references of abuse related to their respective roles/backstories/character arcs

ETA I forgot to tag 10 people OOF lol

@mostlyimmortal @lucasmileynelli @heda-of-endlesswonder @almostcanon @alllthequeenshorses @scarlet-welly-boots @spacewitchqueen @brightestmuhii @bewires @good-nightsocialite

Finnick Odair - The Hunger Games

Finnick gives me fellow ESFP/Scorpio vibes, and though he puts up a fairly convincing front of someone who does not care (I mean, fair when you got him saying things like, “Every time that cannon goes off it’s like music to my ears”), he actually he cares very, very much (but I don’t want to spoil his character arc for anyone not familiar).  In my opinion, he uses his persona, and humor to project outwards (same Finnick, same), and sharing a few things with his character, made it fairly easy for me to latch onto him once I dived into the series :]

“I haven’t dealt in anything as common as money in years.” - “Well, then, how do people pay for the pleasure of your company?” - “With secrets.  What about you Girl on Fire?  Any secrets worth my time?”

Nicolò di Genova - The Old Guard

Fairly certain it’s obvious with my whole tumblr motif and name lol - and though of course all takes are valid - but I’ve definitely enjoyed exploring a HC of Nicky remaining Catholic and writing a lot about it.  I’ve definitely projected - but actually Nicky is more like who I’d like to be, with that quiet, stoic persona - which I’m definitely not lol.  But I do identify with his kindness, “heart of the family” vibes, and doing what he can to keep their family together :]

“I believe we’re meant to find each other.  It’s like destiny.”

Olivia Benson - Law & Order: SVU

I’ve been watching the show since I was in my young 20s (after binging the first several seasons), and it’s been part of my comfort and healing for a long time now.  It’s definitely got hard subjects, but it inspires and encourages me to know there are people out there who will fight for justice, who care, and Olivia is such a force all on her own, but she truly shines with her found family.  Extra bonus points for having adopted her child - as someone who’s family has been blessed by adoption three times over, I love seeing that representation on screen.  

“You know what I’ve seen is that people who have gone through unfair, horrific experiences, is that they have this will.  And when they get support - a chance, they can not only survive, but they can thrive.”

Phoebe Halliwell - Charmed

I spent my teen years watching Charmed, and it was so phenomenal to get to see a trio of kick butt ladies who grew, evolved, and wore amazing outfits all while nurturing family.  Phoebe was the youngest, then the middle sibling, and I think she definitely had such a fantastic character arc.  I resonated with several plot lines for her, but especially when it came to Cole, as well as her hope for a family of her own.  She was so wonderfully warm, and expressive, and I really vibed with that as well.

“I know this may not sound very PC, but I want romance.  Long, slow kisses, late night talks, candle lights.  I love love.”

Eddie Munson - Stranger Things

My most recent character obsession but it’s holding strong!!  I ship him as a fellow ADHDer personally, and even my husband felt like his character and I are very similarly expressive lol.  I also vibe with his ability to feel like an outcast, but somehow finding a way to gather people together, and in many ways just doing his thing - even if others might laugh at him - who cares, he’ll just stick out his tongue and throw faux devil horns at you.  It’s not like he’s dumb and doesn’t realize exactly what some people think of him, he simply has no problem ignoring it and having fun anyways.  It’s only an issue when people falsely accuse him of murder, which like, well duh lol.  But even then, just like Dustin says, “He was never mean.”  I believe the truth comes out eventually, and will so in Eddie’s case, too (and if season five doesn’t cover it, I’ll effin write it because that’s the peak of fanfiction lol).  But anyways, yeah, I relate to him on multiple levels :D

“It’s forced conforming.  That’s what’s killing the kids.  That’s the real monster.”

Alice Cullen - The Twilight Saga

Okay so once again, there’s something about the quirky, though fully aware, but simply having too much of a good time to get pulled into it - persona that drags me in and helps me feel seen lol.  Alice is the epitome of found family because not only does she find Jasper (Team Jasper btw), but also helps them to find their family and is like the biggest cheerleader for #Belward before even Edward is haha.  Add in sprinkles of vampire awesomeness, and a psychic ability to boot, and a penchant for hosting the best parties (not to brag, but I’m the one who insists on a theme and does the work to bring it to life in our family gatherings lol), and she's too awesome imo not to love :)

“Weddings: they bring everyone together.”

Aziraphale - Good Omens

This was hands down THE fictional character where I was like, “Okay this is 99% me on screen” lol.  I think anyone who knows me for more than like five interactions tends to give me this one as the character they envision me being the most like (well, that or Penelope Garcia lol).  I’m actually going to leave this one to your imagination as to exactly why, but can probably say most guesses would be accurate haha.  I love Aziraphale, and adore his vibe, and I’m very excited to see more of him (and of course Crowley, and everyone else) in season two!

“It all worked out for the best, though.  Just imagine how awful it might have been if we’d been at all competent.”

Stede Bonnet - Our Flag Means Death

It’s now a long running joke, but worth repeating here - I never meant for me to relate the most to two middle aged white men with cool accents who are literal bottles of sunshines, but here we are.  Stede sold me on him the moment he muttered, “We talk it through - as a crew” and though boy, he definitely had some growing to do, I do think his heart is in the right place in wanting to band a crew together. And hello, he has storytime for them all.  Like, he cares, a lot. And I can't wait to see him win back Ed in season two ;)

“Polite menace.  That’ll be my brand.”

Princess Cirilla - The Witcher

Ciri speaks to my inner child/princess.  Considered not to be all that much past what her birth status suggests, she actually is able to do a lot more than given credit for, and though unassuming - she kicks butt as she gets dragged/hunted all over mutliple kingsdoms.  Which I relate to lol.  Add in sprinkles of found family, and stepping into your own, and harnessing your inner strength to balance the scales around you and yes, yes, yes - I’m stoked to see what happens in season three for her!

“I want to be indifferent to the past.  To the lies.  To the things I’ve done.”

Will Byers - Stranger Things

Oh Will, sweet, powerful, (and imo) underutilized in Season Four Will - he’s actually tied with Eddie in my my fave ST character, because of feeling different, and the trauma - but especially in Season Three, when he’s watching others date and just knows it’s not the same for him.  As someone who didn’t know the label asexual until my 20s, I just wanted to reach through the screen watching him trying to navigate those moments of seeing relationships from what feels like the sidelines, both wanting to feel the same thing (so you don't feel different), but very much not in the way you’re witnessing (and not able to express the why for a myriad of valid reasons).  It’s hard to navigate that sexuality spectrum even under the best of circumstances but yeah, I definitely felt for Will, and hope many good things for him in Season Five! 

“She’s so different from other people and when you’re different sometimes you feel like a mistake.  But you make her feel like she’s not a mistake at all.”

[sweaterkittensahoy]

Fic Asks

(I am usually super bad at tag games, but @detective-giggles managed the exact timing I need for me to jump in.)

1) how many works do you have on ao3?

688. I have been at this...awhile. (Also, Big Block of Cheese archive got added to AO3 a few years ago, and that got me like 70 fics without writing anything new.)

2) what’s your total ao3 word count?

1,822,918

3) how many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

84 on AO3. I know some fandoms never made it over from my last website, but I can’t say how many. I will just link you to my dash on AO3 so you can see the fandom list there.

4) what are your top five fics by kudos?

Revenge is Best Served @ (Jack/Bitty; Check Please)

But I Will Hold on Hope (And I Won’t Let You Choke) (Clint/Phil; MCU)

By the Book (Clint/Phil; MCU)

These are Our Friends and These are Our Foes (You’re the One I Love the Most) (Clint/Phil; MCU)

5 Scenes to Build a Team (+2 Scenes of Sweet, Sweet Victory) (Clint/Phil; MCU)

5) what’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

Oh, probably that time I killed Jack McCoy of old age. (Jack/Mike Cutter: L&O)

6) what’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

I’ve written a lot of happy endings, but I’m gonna give it to A New Mode of Living (Lipton/Speirs; Band of Brothers)

7) do you write crossovers? if so what is the craziest one you’ve written?

It’s been lost to the ether, but the West Wing/Seasame Street fic where CJ and Big Bird went on a date was bonkers and super fun.

Oh, wait, I also did a Barisi story crossing over SVU with my own original universe.

8) do you write smut? if so, what kind?

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

(wheezing)

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

(that’s a yes. a filthy, filthy yes)

9) do you respond to comments, why or why not?

I do! I enjoy thanking people!

10) have you ever received hate on a fic?

Fun fact: The only reason I have ever written ONLHY a single fic for Supernatural (one of many fics with this title) was partly because I had someone come into the comments and complain that calling Gabriel “Gabe” was wrong because “he isn’t called that in canon.”

In a fic where both Winchester boys are fucking non-canon, male-presenting angels. 

I also had someone leave me several of the same comment on a Barisi story where Sonny and Rafael watch “Hocus Pocus” with the various SVU kids and are bothered by how badly the film has aged. The summary AND my author notes flat-out said that’s what the fic was about, and that person was BIG MAD. Like, I deleted their comment rather than respond, and they reposted it no less than five times.

11) have you ever had a fic stolen?

YUP. RileyRollins, who I think has finally been fully wiped from AO3, really liked stealing my SVU femslash.

12) have you ever had a fic translated?

A bunch of ‘em! I love when people do that!

13) have you ever co-written a fic before?

Back in the day, @hugealienpie​ and I did a Without a Trace back and forth that was so much fun. We also did an Invisible Man (remember that Syfy show that deserves all the love??) one that we never finished, but I think each chapter ended with a mysterious phone call or an explosion.

14) what’s your all time favourite ship?

On the advice of my lawyer, I refuse to answer.

15) what’s a wip that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

...No one look at those two unfinished Barisi fics. Which I refuse to link to.

16) what are your writing strengths?

Complete lack of shame. Dialogue. Smut.

17) what are your writing weaknesses?

Semicolons. Writing more than one house layout.

18) what are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I look up individual words or short phrases, but the rest of it, I tend to put in brackets to show it’s a different language but not fuck it up.

19) what was the last fandom you wrote for?

Somewhat surprisingly because I’ve been moving away from it, Barisi.

20) what’s your favourite fic you’ve written?

On the advice of my lawyer, I refuse to answer.

[outofthe-underwoods]

Hi

I 100% agree with your last SVU/OC post. I didn’t look at the dates either but the events felt close together for me. I was pretty sure only a few weeks had past but 20 days isn’t even three weeks.

And there was apparently an interview with a writer and they said Elliot’s feelings for Angela are genuine. WTH is wrong with these people?! This makes zero sense. First they show us how happy and perfect their marriage was in Rome (it was never like that on SVU, but Rome was a fresh start so I get it) they show us how heartbroken he is. Which makes sense the mother of his five children is dead, his wife since he was 17/18 years old!

I had a bad feeling from their first meeting, it got really bad after 1x04 so I didn’t watch 1x05 before I knew nothing was going to happen. I still haven’t watched it and I won’t watch any episodes until this bs is over.

I get a kiss he’ll even a one night stand because he is out of his mind with PTSD but talking about genuine feelings for this woman he has known for a minute, 20 days after his wife of 40 years was murdered? Hell no I’m out.

UGH. Same here. I keep trying my hardest to look at everything through storytelling goggles and convince myself that this story as a whole will be worth it to lead to e/o as the culmination, but the more I look at the details the more I just cannot get behind it. 

The thing about it is that if it was literally any other show I’d actually think it was an interesting plot: someone develops a unforeseen and unshakeable connection with a stranger just to find out this person had something to do with their spouse’s death? I’m interested! Tell me more. But in this context—with Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson, who blatantly have more-than-friends feelings for each other, whose actors share an obscene amount of chemistry, spent twelve seasons pushing down and locking up feelings they weren’t supposed to have, and having one of the actors actually return after TEN YEARS? Nuh-uh. No, sir.

And yes, in the very first episode they made a point of letting us know that Kathy and Elliot were actually happy? Which makes his “genuine” feelings and willingness to pursue something serious with Angela make absolutely no sense. And apparently just simply hearing Liv’s voice would’ve been enough to make him stay in NY despite his own personal devastation and pain—their connection/relationship was that strong (also that’s a pretty darn romantic thing to say to someone who’s supposed to be a strictly platonic buddy, but what do I know). Yet we’re supposed to believe Liv isn’t the one he feels he can turn to/wants to move on with??

It’s like they’re purposely trying to add even more roadblocks to what’s already the most convoluted non-relationship in television history.

*sighs deeply* 

Someone fan me and loosen my corset. I’ve worked myself into a frenzy. lol 

[somethingsohappily]

1-100, beautifullll! 😂😘😎

1. When, where, and how did you meet?We met on tumblrdotcom on August 6th (babe, is it the 6th?) I sent her a message and complimented her blog, she then followed me, and I sent her another message apologizing for all the One Direction because I thought she was cooler than me. Then basically we started talking a lot/daily and here we are!

2. What did you first notice about each other?I’m gonna be real honest, i thirst followed my girlfriend, and thought she was hot. Also I liked how she thought about things, felt like I really connected with her personal posts on here. But like, I thought she was hot y’all. 

3. Who first asked the other out?She asked me out officially, but I was the one to admit I had feelings for her first. (with prompting from Sammy) Which I did when she was sleeping and then I didn’t sleep because i was panicking that I sent it in a text. 

4. Where was your first date?Babe, real question, what do we count as a date? Are we talking Skyping? Are we talking when you took me out to dinner when I visited? 

5. Who was first to verbally say “I love you”?Morgannnn, because I had basically told her before we were even together that I’d be scared to say it first ever again after a previous relationship. Which she said on October 7th btws. 

6. How did your first kiss happen? Who initiated it?Ummmm our first kiss was in her car in the airport parking lot, Morgan asked so I think that means she initiated it :) 

7. When is your anniversary?November 7th 

8. How long have you been together?Officially 6 months, though we basically were dating in September

9. What made you realize you were in love with her?It’s sounds silly to say you ‘just know’ but I guess I just kind of knew. It was just this very intense connection and very safe feeling, it was different than how I’d ever felt towards a person. Like realizing this was the person I wanted to see everyday, and share everything with, and really couldn’t picture not having in my life. I don’t know if there was an exact moment, at least for me. 

10. Where you friends before you became a couple?Yes, though we’d only been friends for like a month before feelings got admitted. But we talked a lot/shared a ton before we got together. 

11. Were either of you out before becoming a couple?Both of us were already out!

12. Have either of you dated a girl before?We both have! 

13. How does your girlfriend define her sexuality?Gayyyyyyyy, she is a lesbian

14. When is your girlfriend’s birthday (month/day/year)? Who is older?Morgan is older by five years (she’s a little old lady), her birthday is April 15th 1987 

15. Do you live together?We do not, we didn’t actually lesbian uhaul… yet

16. Have you met your girlfriend’s parents? If so, what was that like?Over Skype I met her mom! She’s very sweet, very southern, she was teaching Morgan to cook and making sure she was eating enough. I was very nervous, but I look forward to meeting her and the rest of Morgan’s family in person. 

17. How many people are in your girlfriend’s family?Immediate, 4 including her. Though I think her grandma, aunt, brother in law, and niece get to be included. (Especially Brantley :) )

18. Whose family do you hang out with more?Neither really because of that whole distance thing! Though my parents always want to Skype her and want to pass along things, so I think mine would like to ‘hangout’ more if they could. 

19. Are you friends with any other same sex couples?Sammy and Bailey! But sadley, I don’t think I have that many other gay friends in same sex relationships. 

20. What is a typical date night like for you two?Considering the distance, it’s usually watching movies. But if we’re together and I’m not dying of the plague we have a lot more plans and stuff we’d go do. 

21. How do you usually spend your time together?Usually just hanging out on Skype, talking, watching movies, doing separate activities while having Skype on (coloring/drawing, playing guitar, cooking, chores, etc) 

22. Have you ever been mistaken for sisters?YES by people at her church!

23. Have you ever experienced any discrimination or prejudice becasue you are a same sex couple?So far no thankfully! 

24. Does anyone you know disapprove of your relationship?Not because we’re gay, but I’ve had some people get weird about the distance. I think a lot of people have very little faith in long distance so i’ve felt judged for it by some/or like they didn’t view it as ‘real’. 

25, How much PDA do you do?Again, long distance means not a lot. And I think we keep it pretty low-key, we aren’t like making out in your local park or anything! 

26. What nationality is your girlfriend?Does this mean if she’s from the US? We both live in the US. 

27. What is your girlfriend’s middle name?Ashley! (babe I hope it’s cool im telling the internet this!) 

28. Who usually pays when you go out to eat?We both would like to be the one that usually pays when the other visits, however we’re both stubborn and won’t let the other one do that! 

29. What is your girlfriend’s number labeled as in your cell phone?💙 Morgan💙

30. Do you have any pet names for each other?Just the typical: babe, baby, my love, sweetheart stuff. We’re gross! 

31. Does your girlfriend have any pets?She does not, though she almost stole a cat from the parking lot the other day, and I think we’ve mutually adopted a dumpster cat that i’ve named otis. 

32. Have you ever worn your girlfriend’s clothes?Yeah, I stole her flannel and wore her shirts when I was visiting. 

33. Who is more likely to cook a meal?Definitely me! 

34. What is your girlfriend’s favorite food? Least favorite food?Favorite food is meatloaf, least favorite food is mushrooms 

35. Who is more likely to cry for no reason?I mean, usually there’s a ‘reason’ for someone crying, and we both are pretty emotional. But I cry all the time, so probs me! 

36. Can your girlfriend play any musical instruments?I almost said no and was like, ‘no wait guitars are an instrument’ so yes, she plays guitar! 

37. Who is your girlfriend’s favorite musical artist?So I’m terrible and forgot even though she’s told me. I think Mumford and Sons is one of them, though I know there are more! 

38. What is your girlfriend’s current favorite song?I don’t know. I hope it’s “Strip That Down” by Liam Payne though

39. Do you have a couple song?When she asked me out she learned that song “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran on her guitar for me. So that one reminds me of her, even though its being severely overplayed on the radio right now. But I don’t know if that would be ‘our song”?

40. Do you have a couple name?Like… a ship name… ? No, thank god. 

41. What is your girlfriend’s best physical feature?Her eyes, and smile, and freckles 😘

42. Who is more likely to forget where they put things?I think we’re both forgetful, but I think that’s probably me. She’s always reminding me to put my debit card back in my wallet so i don’t lose it. 

43. Which side of the bed do you each sleep on?I sleep on the left (if you’re facing the bed) and I think right now she’s more on the right? I’m basing this off where the laptop is. 

44. Who hogs the blankets/sheets more when sleeping together?I don’t think either of this did this, but it’s likely me because i like being a blanket burrito

45. What do you argue/fight about the most?What I’ve considered arguments/fights are not things she views as arguments/fights. But this is one of those things I don’t feel cool getting into over the internet! 

46. How do you usually get over a argument/fight?We talk about it!

47. Does your girlfriend have an angry/annoyed/you’re in trouble stare? If so, show it!Ummmm I’d call it more a ‘mom look’ and it usually happens more over me saying I’m not tired or that nothing is wrong. It’s more like a ‘are you serious?’ look vs angry/annoyed. ALSO. Time to quote my favorite video of all time, “you’re not in trouble, you’re my wife’ is basically how I feel about that statement in general when it comes to partners! 

48. How good is your girlfriend at communicating through facial expressions?She’s pretty good at it, I can usually read her mood without her verbalizing too much! 

49. Who is more likely to refuse sex?Okay, so I dont like how this is worded, because anyone in a relationship is allowed to say no to sex at anytime and that isn’t a negative thing. However, I don’t think either of us really would 😂

50. Does your girlfriend play any sports?She used to do Karate, and she runs if that counts! 

51. Does your girlfriend root for any sports teams?Babe, do you? I vaguely remember you wanting to get a new t-shirt for Football or something but I don’t remember the team or how serious that was 😂

52. Who takes longer getting ready to go somewhere?Probably meeeee just based on who takes longer to shower in the morning! 

53. Who is more likely to remember an important date (i.e. birthday, anniversary, etc.)?I have a good memory, but I think she’s still better at this than I am! 

54. What is your girlfriend’s eye color?Blue! Her eyes are prettyyy

55. What is your girlfriend’s shoe size?I believe 7? Or maybe 6.5? 

56. What is your girlfriend’s dress size?If you think my girlfriend owns a dress.. 

57. What is your girlfriend’s favorite TV show?SVU, which she just finished!

58. What is your girlfriend’s favorite movie?Okay so I’m the worst, I think Dead Poets Society is on there, but I can’t rememberrrrrrr. 

59. Who is the bigger neat freak?We are both a mess, I think I am more organized with some things though

60. What is one item on your girlfriend’s bucket list?Graduate from college! Which she’s going to do! 

61. Who is more likely to utter a curse word?AHAHAHAHA MORGAN. She says the fuck word a lot 😂😂

62. Does your girlfriend prefer coffee or tea?Coffee, but she also likes tea, especially sweet tea

63. Is your girlfriend a morning or a night person?I think she’s more of a night person, however she’s still more of a morning person than I am! 

64. Is your girlfriend more likely to save or spend money?She doesn’t spend her money on a lot honestly, but she’s not as organized with saving as I am (hi i have three saving accounts) 

65. Who squashes the bugs?Morgan, she’s very good at it! Though we live separately, so I also have to squash the bugs! 

66. Who’s better at accurately telling when the other is lying?I think we both know when something’s up, though to clarify we don’t lie to each other, the most we do is try and pretend we’re fine when we’re not. 

67. What is your girlfriend’s favorite color?Blue! 

68. Does your girlfriend collect anything?Morgan keeps basically all the sentimental things she’s ever been given, like she has every letter, and/or camp items in her possession. 

69. Who is more likely to randomly burst out into a song?100% Morgan

70. Who is more likely to randomly start dancing?I think Morgan, usually it’s accompanied by her singing along to something!

71. Have you ever taken a vacation together? If so, where to?So far it’s just been when we visit each other, though when that isn’t a thing anymore, I think we definitely will! 

72. How tall is your girlfriend?5 Foot, she makes me feel tall 

73. Is your girlfriend religious at all?She is, she’s lutheran and an aspiring pastor 😘

74. Who is more likely to spontaneously be romantic?That’s Morgan, me being spontaneous would still be me making a very intense organized plan. 

75. Who’s laugh is cuter?MORGANS

76. Who is the better driver?We both are gays that know how to drive and have good driving records, I’d like to say me just because I drive more than she does. But I also got pulled over for traveling in the passing lane the other day, so I might not be.. though I didn’t get a ticket! 

77. Who is the better singer?Morgan likes to say me, but she and my mother are biased. 

78. Who is the better dancer?Morgan used to tap dance and i don’t dance (this isn’t a high school musical moment though) so probably her

79. Who is better at math?Don’t ask us to do math 

80. Whose handwriting is better?I think hers is!

81. Who has a better sense of humor?I think Morgan is hilarious, even her puns, so her!

82. Has your girlfriend ever given you a honey-do list?What is this straight nonsense?? I make lists all the time, but they aren’t like ‘chore lists’ that she has to get done. 

83. Does your girlfriend smoke?Nope, cigarettes or pot, thank goodness! 

84. Does your girlfriend drink alcohol at all? If so, what is her drink of choice?She sometimes drinks, and usually it’s Cider or a Mike’s if that’s all she can find. I know she sometimes drinks whiskey, but I can’t remember what she mixes it with. 

85. Does your girlfriend have a job?Yes indeed!

86. Who is more physically strong?Probably Morgan, she’s always lifting stuff at work! 

87. From 1-10, how health conscious is your girlfriend?AHAHAHAHA ummmm considering sometimes she just consists of popsicles and cheerwine… definitely lower on that scale

88. Have you ever shared a toothbrush? Nooooo, I get that we technically share spit, but that’s too far for me. 

89.. Can your girlfriend speak more than one language? If so, which one(s)?No she cant

90. Who is your girlfriend’s biggest celebrity crush?Anna Kendrick or Anne Hathaway, I feel like there was a third that I’m completely forgetting! 

91. Does your girlfriend have any quirky habits?She has to be early to everything, and by early, I mean like an hour early! 

92. What is the most romantic thing your girlfriend has ever done for you?Ummmm probably how she asked me out, she dressed up and wore a tie and everything, and then played a song on her guitar. She also wrote out something to go with it, which I now have. It was very very sweet. Also her Christmas gift was a lot, and she gave me a picture album for us to start and wrote out sticky notes to fill this jar of things she loves about me 🙈

93. Who reads more?Definitely Morgan! 

94. From 1-10, how feminine is your girlfriend?She’s more androgynous, so like a 1 probs!

95. Have you ever discussed marriage?Yes we have! 

96. Have you ever discussed having children?Yes, we also have!

97. Be honest: What is one thing your girlfriend does that you don’t like?SHE THINKS SHE NEEDS A FEDORA BUT SHE DOES NOT

98. Is there anything about your girlfriend you think most people don’t know?I’m sure there’s a lot, but something like that would be up to her disclosure vs mine! 

99. Beauty terms aside, choose one word to describe your girlfriend. Why that word?Loveofmylife (I made it oneeee)

100. Pass on one piece of relationship adviceAlways communicate and be honest, honestly I think the reason that we are able to manage this big of a distance is because we always communicate and trust each other completely. Also make time for each other, we love spending time with each other and make sure to set aside time for that everyday. 

[poipoi1912]

You know, I get you hate svu and I get why. What I don't get is why would you not only keep watching it for 20 years but also make a blog and regular posts about it. Self hatred?

Anon, I don’t know what blog you’ve been visiting, but my regular SVU posts only happen once a week, and only when there’s a new SVU episode. The rest of the time I post and reblog shows I actually like :D

At this point, I’d say my blog is about 30% SVU, at best. And about half of that is my Barisi posts and my "Peter Scanavino has a nice face" posts. The rest, yes, it’s about current SVU failing to meet my expectations. Which has happened before, many times. Over the years, I'd say I actively disliked seasons 11, 12, 15, 18 and 19. That means I love 14 out of 19 seasons. Which is pretty awesome for such an old show, isn’t it? That's why I've never officially quit watching, and the reason I keep hoping the show might improve.

This season is particularly interesting, because it's not of poor quality (that was Season 18). It's a competently written season, with decently watchable episodes, and its biggest actual flaw is underusing several characters. I just disagree with the overarching message, which seems to be "everyone breaks the law if they feel they have a good enough reason, and that's okay". It's that generic "grey areas" school of writing, which is better applied to cable shows with morally grey protagonists whom we are meant to find questionable, yet compelling (The Shield comes to mind). On network shows, the leads are meant to be beacons of light, and we're supposed to root for them, and we're supposed to think they're always right. So, when they routinely exhibit poor judgment, the writers are ultimately glorifying this type of behavior.

We literally had Benson tell Rollins to use violence when Noah was missing. On a cable show that would have been a big deal. We would have taken a moment to consider the implications. On SVU, she was just being a "good mom". Same for Sonny. On another show, this week's episode would have created a moral quandary for him, maybe affected the way he looked at his job. On SVU, they won the case, and they got justice, and he was barely even reprimanced by Liv, and Stone told him “good job bro!” and he and his niece, like, went for coffee.

And don't even get me started on the show trying to justify the fact Barba pulled the plug on a random person's baby (thank God for Fin calling it like it is).

None of that sits well with me, and frankly I enjoy writing about it.

That said, I have basically stopped watching. My emotional investment is below zero, and I now watch on fast-forward, only skipping to the Sonny scenes, for the most part. I gotta tell you, most of this season's episodes have taken me about 5 minutes to watch :D

No but I honestly had to go back and look for that "Stone's abs" scene because I skipped over it the first time lol. If that tells you anything.

As for my episode posts, they're about tradition more than anything. For the sake of completion, since I’ve been doing them for so long. And you'll have noticed they tend to be much shorter than they used to. I cobble them together in a few minutes, now. Not much to discuss. I just try to include a joke or three to make them worth reading :D

Bottom line, I do still love most of SVU as a whole, and I adore the original iterations of Sonny and Barba, and I am still writing Barisi fic, so SVU still consumes my mind a lot, as well as my blog. Not as much as it used to, of course lol remember when i had a barisi-exclusive blog cause i don’t but still. It’s here. And I’m here ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Also, wait, if it’s self-hatred for me to hate SVU, does that mean I am SVU?

[cataclysmofstars]

85 Questions

I was tagged by @cerulean-shark thank you very much, friend! :D

Rules: Answer these 85 statements about yourself, then tag 20 people.

last:

1. drink - water

2. phone call - to my mom

3. text message - a different family member

4. song you listened to - ‘I love this bar’ by Toby Keith (sometimes I’m in a weird mood for country music mmk)

5. time you cried - when my grandma passed away

6. dated someone twice? - never

7. kissed someone and regretted it - n/a

8. been cheated on - n/a 9. lost someone special - yesterday 10. been depressed - i’d rather not get into that 11. gotten drunk and thrown up - never been that drunk

fave colours;

12. black 13. red 14. gold

in the last year have you…

15. made new friends - i have indeed 16. fallen out of love - never been in love 17. laughed until you cried - looking at you, silm discord from hell 18. found out someone was talking about you - no 19. met someone who changed you - no 20. found out who your friends are - no 21. kissed someone on your facebook friends list - again, i’ve never kissed anyone

general;

22. how many of your facebook friends do you know irl - almost all of them; for the most part i don’t friend someone unless i’ve met them irl 23. do you have any pets - no :( 24. do you want to change your name - not really; i’m not in love with my name but i don’t know what i’d change it to 25. what did you do for your last birthday - went out with friends 26. what time did you wake up today - 1pm 27. what were you doing at midnight last night - I was at the hospital with my family to say goodbye to my grandma 28. what is something you cant wait for - dinner party with old friends 30. what are you listening to right now - the same toby keith song as above 31. have you ever talked to a person named tom - years ago 32. something thats getting on your nerves - i keep trying to write and it keeps not working. why won’t words work. 33. most visited website - tumblr probably 34. hair colour - brown 35. long or short hair - long 36. do you have a crush on someone - a little one dunno wtf are feelings anyway 37. what do you like about yourself - my height; my hair is good too 38. want any piercings? - i have my ears pierced and i’m good with that 39. blood type - don’t remember 40. nicknames - cataclysm here; not saying irl ones 41. relationship status - single 42. zodiac - taurus 43. pronouns - she/her

44. fave tv shows - law and order, law and order: svu 45. tattoos - nah 46. right or left handed - right 47. ever had surgery - also nah 48. piercings - one in each ear 49. sport - nothing currently 50. vacation - I want to go to Japan or tour around western europe 51. trainers - I wear sneakers a lot

more general;

52. eating - nothing atm 53. drinking - still water 54. im about to watch - One Piece 55. waiting for - my professor to answer my email 56. want - to get my damn WIPs written 57. get married - if i find the right person 58. career - attorney, also a wip

which is better;

59. hugs or kisses - hugs hands down 60. lips or eyes - eyes 61. shorter or taller - tol 62. older or younger - older but not by too much 63. nice arms or stomach - stomach 64. hookup or relationship - relationship 65. troublemaker or hesitant - troublemaker, but in a harmless, you-better-not-end-up-in-jail way

have you ever;

66. kissed a stranger - hell no 67. drank hard liquor - yup 68. lost glasses - no 69. turned someone down - no 70. sex on first date - also hell no 71. broken someones heart - no 72. had your heart broken - no 73. been arrested - no 74. cried when someone died - yes, my grandmother passed away last night and i cried dammit 75. fallen for a friend - no

do you believe in;

76. yourself - yes 77. miracles - no 78. love at first sight - not really 79. santa claus - no 80. kiss on a first date - *shrugs* 81. angels - not really

other;

82. best friend’s name - [redacted] 83. eye colour - brown 84. fave movie - Marvel’s The Avengers (i don’t really have a favorite tbh) 85. fave actor - Robert Downey Jr.

Tagging: @filmamir, @burdenedwithgloriousfandoms, @elf-in-a-mask, @feanoriansappreciation, @lightofthetrees, @eveningalchemist, @the-disaster-that-is-melkor, @glorfy-the-bright-haired-ellon, @fratboy-of-orome, @curufinsdaddyissues, @meaninglessprose, @animecrazy13ify, @rose-of-the-bright-sea, @lady--of--greenwood, @irreverentecthelion, @gloomycamomile, @silverphantomcat, @chiefcouncilor-erestor, @inahe, @celebbun

[scottstiles]

tagged by @lydiamartinn ❤︎ thanks babe

Rules: Answer these 85 statements about yourself, then tag 20 people.

Tagging: anyone who wants!

last

1. drink - coke (duhh)

2. phone call - mom (yep, it never ends)

3. text message - my hairdresser whom i had to cancel on because of this fufljkdklfjkgding city and its nonsense

4. song you listened to - take me out

5. time you cried - oh god, i like, just finished an hour ago finally, i cried all day

ever

6. dated someone twice? - like... gone on 2 dates? i guess? broke up and got back together no way

7. kissed someone and regretted it - probably

8. been cheated on - no

9. lost someone special - yes

10. been depressed - very funny

11. gotten drunk and thrown up - uch . yes. alcohol is a feisty lady.

fave colours

12. blue

13. red

14. silver (i dont care its a color to me)

in the last year have you…

15. made new friends - yes, but only here

16. fallen out of love - ........... hope so

17. laughed until you cried - not that i can think of but its possible, i do watch a lot of tv

18. found out someone was talking about you - nah nobody cares about me... actually wait. yes. yes i did. damn it tumblr.

19. met someone who changed you - dont think so cuz i still suck

20. found out who your friends are - yes. hell yes i did.

21. kissed someone on your facebook friends list - no. wtf.

general

22. how many of your facebook friends do you know irl - hopefully all of them but ask me when the last time was i saw or spoke to any of them....

23. do you have any pets - my baby houdini (not so baby at 15 yrs old but)

24. do you want to change your name - no, its taken 36 years to get used to this shit i hate change

25. what did you do for your last birthday - nothing what birthday

26. what time did you wake up today - 12:30.for NOTHING.

27. what were you doing at midnight last night - same as always. watchin tv and smoking.

28. what is something you can’t wait for - a new fucking life already

30. what are you listening to right now - the sounds of the street

31. have you ever talked to a person named tom - yup

32. something that’s getting on your nerves - everything. my nerves are shot.

33. most visited website - this hell

34. hair colour - NOT WHAT I WANT IT TO BE RIGHT NOW THANKS WORLD

35. long or short hair - i wish it was longer always have. i hate my hair.

36. do you have a crush on someone - i dont even remember what thats like

37. what do you like about yourself - not much. i guess i can be a nice person. 

38. want any piercings? i have enough thanks.

39. blood type - no clue

40. nicknames - div

41. relationship status - angry and bitter

42. zodiac - gemini

43. pronouns - she/her

44. fave tv shows - teen wolf, criminal minds, svu, friends, syttd, house hunters int’l, supernatural, b99

45. tattoos - nope

46. right or left handed - right

47. ever had surgery - only on my gums

48. piercings - ears/tongue (it was my tattoo compromise)

49. sport - HAHAHAH

50. vacation - another dimension

51. trainers - what?

more general

52. eating - more than usual lately

53. drinking - coke. always. duh again.

54. i’m about to watch - say yes to the dress so i can unthink

55. waiting for - the apocalypse

56. want - something to live for

57. get married - in my dreams

58. career - writing. editing, i guess. idk whatever its all stupid.

which is better

59. hugs or kisses - hugs

60. lips or eyes - eyes

61. shorter or taller - taller

62. older or younger - younger

63. nice arms or stomach - nice arms

64. hookup or relationship - relationship

65. troublemaker or hesitant - troublemaker

have you ever

66. kissed a stranger - yup

67. drank hard liquor - of course

68. lost glasses - its... ridiculous

69. turned someone down - i.. think so?

70. sex on first date - yup. but like... not a date? whats a date.

71. broken someones heart - yes. and fuck him tbh.

72. had your heart broken - too many times.

73. been arrested - pffft. theres a few stories nobody listened to.

74. cried when someone died - uh. yes.

75. fallen for a friend - dont; fuking do it im tellin u..

do you believe in

76. yourself - occasionally

77. miracles - yes. i think so.

78. love at first sight - ugh. yes. unfortunately.

79. santa claus - no

80. kiss on a first date - yes of course

81. angels - what kind.

other

82. best friend’s name - nathaniel

83. eye colour - blue

84. fave movie - romeo & juliet and so many fucking others but im too tired

85. fave actor- POSEY. but like. also so many more really good actors. like i guess he’s my fave person lets leave it at that. 

[racingtoaredlight]

Profiles in IMDb Greatness: Glenn Fleshler

I love the Internet Movie Database. was that the big boy from Modern Family working the front desk at a hotel in Almost Famous? Sure was. As such I enjoy looking over random performer pages and arbitrarily judging the scope and quality of their careers to determine if they merit entry into my vaguely defined IMDb Hall of Fame. Today’s enshrinee: Glenn Fleshler

Hello old friends, hope everyone is doing well during this pandemic and instead of protesting at state capitol buildings with the shittiest people alive you’re safe at home enjoying wholesome blog content. While riding out quarantine the mind has more time to wander and ponder the deeper mysteries, like what are the moral obligations a government has to keeping its population alive and in the nearly 50 years of HBO has there ever been a more vital figure in its programming than Glenn Fleshler over the past decade?

Much like Gus Frerotte appearing out of nowhere to be every team’s backup quarterback at some point in the last 20 years, Fleshler just strolls from one prestige television set to another covering the gamut from drama to horror to comedy. I considered writing this post months ago when I first realized we were dealing with Mr. HBO here but quarantine boredom was just the propellant needed to get this baby off the ground.

First Listed Role: While fans of the IMDb HOF may remember my affinity for these actors getting their starts in soap operas the true character actor spirit is captured from appearing in network crime dramas so of course Glenn Fleshler opening up with an episode of Homicide: Life on the Street which also featured friend of the HOF Jon Polito! The episode description is simply “The team investigate a woman who appears to be murdering her husbands for the insurance money” so I’ll assume they ripped the whole thing from the plot of Addams Family Values and Fleshler played Uncle Fester.

Newest Role: Of course after calling Fleshler Mr. HBO I’m immediately served up a role on Showtime’s Billions. I didn’t get into that show when it premiered since I don’t trust Showtime original programming anymore and when I tried to start it up a couple weeks ago I made it five minutes before realizing that a show about rich assholes talking about the stock market wasn’t what I was looking for in 2020. I’m sure it’s delightful.

CSI/Law & Order/NCIS Guest Spots: Three episodes of Law & Order and three more of SVU, six different characters. This is legendary stuff. Let’s go in chronological order where I play my favorite game of trying to guess who the character was in each episode.

Don Hamilton, 2/6/02 - A former aide for a state senator has turned up missing and it’s revealed that she was having an affair with the senator and was pregnant. My money’s on Fleshler as the murderous, fertile politician.

Dr. Noah Kamens, 11/1/02 - Yikes, child sex ring episode here. Fingers crossed that Fleshler was just appearing as a child psychologist and not as a predatory pediatrician but as we’ll visit later he can pull off menacingly creepy well.

Rick Kawalchuck, 4/20/05 - A porn star is murdered, safe to assume Fleshler is the corpse and this light-hearted episode is filled with wisecracks about how with his rigor mortis they won’t be able to close the coffin.

Jimmy Curren, 12/3/08 - A man from upstate New York is found dead in Chinatown, a realistic crime based on my knowledge of midupstate New Yorkers and their appreciation of a good Chinese buffet. This crime leads all the way to the governor’s office and since Jimmy doesn’t sound gubernatorial I’ll guess Fleshler is an adviser who kills the victim over the last potsticker.

Corrections Officer Kravitz, 10/7/09 - This game isn’t fun if you do all the work for me, character name.

Phillip Altshuler, 12/6/17 - A true pro still doing these gigs when at this point he’d been in some truly great TV. this episode is about the rape of a social media star so he’s the venture capitalist funding the app and trying to keep the story under wraps.

One of these days I really should watch an episode of Law & Order.

Hall of Fame Ballot Submissions: Just from the HBO division we got Sex and the City (he looks like Charlotte’s type based on the schlubby lawyer she ends up marrying down the stretch), Boardwalk Empire (not the best show but I did love him as George Remus who always referred to himself as “Remus”), True Detective (hope everyone’s working from home in case remembering the “Making flowers” scene gets you understandably horny), The Knick (technically Cinemax but I always thought they were owned by the same crew, if not when a show has a guy taking a shot of cocaine to the dick it gets in here), The Night Of (kind of became a mess at the end and there entirely too much John Turturro foot picking but the pilot was great), Barry (fantastic show, Fleshler should do more comedy) and then he turned up in the best episode of the incredible Watchmen season.

What a run, when Glenn Fleshler passes on down the road I hope this kicks off his funeral.

Miscellaneous Credits: I didn’t think Joker in any way deserved a Best Picture nomination and the conversation around it was embarrassing all around since in the end it was a mostly entertaining Taxi Driver ripoff but hey, Glenn Fleshler can say he was in award nominated motion picture.

Highest Rated IMDb Entry: Kinda surprised that the True Detective finale landed here since I remember there being disappointment with it even though I thought it and that whole season were fantastic (his relative/ladyfriend Ann Dowd would be a good one to cover in the next post so keep that in mind for the next pandemic) but here it is at a robust 9.6. Fleshler is the right kind of unnerving after a season of buildup to who the killer was. I can see how a fella like that would catch on in multiple Law & Orders universes even if he’s appeared enough times for people to question why everyone in New York City looks like Glenn Fleshler.

Lowest Rated IMDb Entry: A 2016 film called The Rendezvous where Fleshler’s the only name I recognize on the cast list. Let’s learn about this movie together, shall we.

Oof, I was rooting for armageddon to come take me less than a minute in to that. My only intrigue in diving in further is to see if the “we work for a higher power” sticks with that Steel Magnolias accent all throughout the movie. And the quips, my god the quips. The “you think?” line is what happens when Marvel movies are oversold for their witty banter, everyone wants a taste of jokes they don’t have to work on.

IMDb Fun Fact: The only three I had to choose from

Off-Broadway, he has appeared in such plays as Measure for Measure and Pericles, Prince of Tyre.

Fleshler studied acting at New York University's Tisch School of the Performing Arts, from which he has an MFA.

Fleshler's Broadway credits include Death of a Salesman, Guys and Dolls, Arcadia and The Merchant of Venice.

Neat.

IMDb HOF Members: Looking for a Mother’s Day gift for the special ladies in your life? Just send her this list of links and they’ll wish quarantine would never end so long as there are more to read!

Bob Balaban

Jim Beaver

Clancy Brown

W. Earl Brown

Reg E. Cathey

Gary Cole

Keith David

Cary Elwes

Noah Emmerich

Glenn Fleshler

Jami Gertz

John Hawkes

John Michael Higgins

Toby Huss

Allison Janney

John Carroll Lynch

Margo Martindale

David Morse

Joe Morton

Robert Patrick

Bill Paxton

Jon Polito

Alan Rickman

Stephen Root

Matt Ross

Alan Ruck

Peter Stormare

Daniel von Bargen

Next Time: If the pandemic is still ongoing, the monkey from Outbreak. If not, the monkey from Outbreak.

[takaraphoenix]

Sherlock?

I’m not big on it. Like, I watch it, but it’s a casual watch for me like Navy CIS or Law & Order: SVU. It’s not something I get even remotely invested in.

I mean, the only reasons I got into it were three in particular:

1.) I watched Detective Conan as a kid and that was the first time I even heard the name Sherlock, because he was a “modern day Sherlock”, so to me when I was later confronted with the actual Sherlock for the first time, it was “oh, an old-fashiony Shinichi Kudou then” to me.

2.) The RDJ movies. That’s how I was first really confronted with Sherlock and I mainly watched those because of RDJ, that precious bean. And when I started watching the show, I was like “Oh, I liked that movie, why not try the show”.

3.) The fandom is terrifyingly big. Like. All the memes. All the Sherlock everywhere. All the quotes. All the Bernard Cucumberbear. I gotta admit, the buzz it got alone was enough to make me tentatively curious (that does not work for every huge thing. Nothing will ever make me watch The Walking Dead because I am terrifyingly uncomfortable with zombies).

So yeah, that much for the intro. That’s how I found the show and why I started watching it, with those three things in mind. And, what can I say, it was a huge let-down for me personally?

First of all, the sheer number of episodes. Nine episodes? You people throw such an intense party about nine freaking episodes? Half a season of basically any other show is already longer than that, for heaven’s sake, you barely get time to get invested, how did you people get that invested?

I mean, seriously now, I’ve heard so much of how awesome Sherlock is for literal years at that point and I braced myself for like at least 50 episodes to be watched, for like at least five season. But... three seasons and... a total of nine episodes?

That brings me to my first complaint. Apparently, it doesn’t bother many, but it bothers me. It’s a fucking ridiculous schedule, is what it is. I know that Moffat, because he’s been doing fucking ridiculous schedules on Doctor Who too and I know it’s the combination of “Whoops, both our main leads are kiiinda popular and keep making movies instead of solemnly focusing on this show. Damn it”. But to me, it just doesn’t compute to wait literal three years for a new season - and fuck that Christmas special they put in between there, it was still a three year wait for a new season.

With a standard waiting time of two years. Two years to get three episodes. That doesn’t compute with me at all. If I had been there from the beginning, I would have stopped watching after season two when it became apparent that they don’t give a fuck about delivering seasons in a reasonable time-frame because I ain’t got the patience for that.

It also never did anything to get me hooked. Plot-wise, sure, it was a cool different approach to solving crimes but not any more special or fun than say Psych or Mentalist or literally any other show who did the consultant thing. Which, yeah, people who read and loved the books may crucify me for because obviously, Sherlock did it first. But show-wise and for the way I met them, Sherlock kinda did it last.

And Sherlock himself is in no way or shape a likable or relatable character, so that’s where it lost me too, I suppose. He brings nothing to the table that justifies his attitude and behavior and all I do when watching the show is mainly feel bad for Watson. Also no, I do not ship them. At. All.

I like Sherlock’s brother Minecraft Microsoft. He’s oddly fun. And I do mean odd, because I don’t really understand my self why I find him so funny.

And Irene Adler. Really like that lady. She brought something new and intriguing to the show - and I’m not just talking about the BDSM element there.

I don’t understand the fascination with Moriarty. I don’t know, he’s not exactly an exceptional villain with an intriguing story or anything, I just... somehow, I expected more and then there’s the other thing but we’re going to get into this later on.

Ironically, the first time I actually got hooked on it was the second last episode that was available at the time. The wedding of John and Mary. Personally, I thought that was the best episode, closely followed by the one about the puppy of Baskerville.

I did not like the late pseudo-Christmas special The Abominable Bride. Not at all. For the first two thirds, it was just a confusing untill it became Not What I Like by being revealed as a drug-inducted fever-dream. I don’t approve of drugs at all and to use them to tell a very weird time-shifty story was... strange. Bringing back Moriarty, very weird.

Which brings me to the Moriarty-thing I wanted to get back at!

Season 4 was an abomination. I hate it. I hate it so much. I like to not use the word “hate”, but there just isn’t another way to describe my feelings for that pile of stinking garbage that they wrote there.

And by “season 4″, I namely mean Mary-Sue Holmes and how she was shoehorned and retconned into the plot.

Honestly though, literally naming her Mary-Sue would have at least been fun self-awareness and a better name than the Mary-Sue-esque name they picked for “sudden sister of the main character who was kinda there all along but we are right now figuring out how exactly that works but she’s also a genius and suuuper duper important and her name shall be Moonshine Emerald Potter-Holmes Eurus Homes”.

I’m sorry, but it is physically impossible to see her as a proper character because she is such a bad, bad, bad Mary-Sue. This is the kind of plotlines in fanfiction that make me scoff and keep scrolling. The sudden sister of the main character who was never mentioned before but is just as super-duper special in the same aspects as her brother (you know, like Jason Grace for The Heroes of Olympus...).

I have a problem with that kind of writing. If it’s fanfiction, I can scroll past it. I can even respect it, because let’s face it every fanfiction author started off in some kind of way with those self-insert Mary-Sue characters, even if it was just in your head as a kid.

But if canon, particularly a popular franchise that has come a long way, suddenly reverts back from intriguing and detailed story-telling into the most basic elementary school level of story-telling, that’s just pathetic.

And, to bring back Moriarty, she completely undercut him. If they had literally brought back Moriarty and he would have been behind it all, that would have even been cool and would have also sold me on him more. Instead, he was just a... better pawn for Mary-Sue Holmes and it, to me, made his plotline worth so much less than before.

The fact that we had to turn it all around and have Mary-Sue Holmes be a “misunderstood character in need of love” was just another overused, cheap trope that fell in line with the fanfiction cliches they were working into that one.

The fact that it were Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat writing it just... shocks me, to be honest?

I mean, I’m not a Moffat fan, personally I think that his plots are too convoluted and messy and go on for too long but let’s safe that in case anyone sends an ask for Doctor Who. But, despite all that, his stories have an amazing pay-off at the end of it all. He’s brilliant at that, I’ll give him that.

Mark Gatiss, not a fan of his writing. His episodes on Doctor Who are some of the weirdest, strangest, most boring and forgettable ones. So I’m very tempted to blame him for that one because with Moffat, I had at least expected a good pay-off for all that drama?

But that’s just my personal opinion on the matter. I guess it just didn’t bring any of the key-elements I’m looking for in a show to the table. Maybe that would have been different if it, ya know, would be a “proper” show that by now already had like seven seasons, each with 10 to 20 episodes, giving the whole thing more development. I just didn’t click with the characters, the format or the story and that last “big surprise reveal” just completey ruined it for me, so I’ll not be tuning back in if they ever in ten years get around to making a new season.

[sugirandom]

365 days of writing: day 188

Day 188: Imposing

           Good afternoon, this morning was the same as usual. I spent some time online and did a little bit of walking around the house before I watched some YouTube videos on my watch later queue. I finally got a hold of the foot doctor that gave me my antifungal medicine or at least their office and the secretary told me to wait and talk to the doctor before I continue my antifungal medicine. I watched an episode of Law and Order SVU at lunchtime and then played the Sims 4 for a little while. My main sim became an old lady and I actually played till the end of her life span. Her son, Franklin is now a teenager and sadly is now living alone but I’m pretty sure once your sim is a teenager they won’t have child protective services take them away. It seems like a sort of dramatic situation now but he’s 10 days away from being an adult so it shouldn’t be that bad.

   I’ve also been talking to Lara off and on but I think she’s probably at work now and I’m sure she’ll message me back in the evening. I found out she likes playing the Sims as well so it’s good to know we have another thing in common. I don’t think she currently watches Anime even though she said that she used to but at least we both like traveling and watching TV. I don’t remember if we have similar interest in music or not. Since I listen to so much foreign music I’m kinda used to not finding many people with similar taste.

           Of course, I watched two episodes of Dragon Ball just now and I have two more episodes left of the King Piccolo Saga. At this point Goku is pretty much OP and I get to watch everyone’s shock and I don’t really feel any shock at all lol. Oh well, I’m still entertained by it and I’m forever waiting for Jr. to show up.  As I’m writing this I have Spotify on shuffle and it was playing a recording from one of the Ayumi Hamasaki concerts I saw back in 2013 which was actually her 15 year anniversary tour so it made me pretty nostalgic. I don’t know if I’ll be able to make her 20th year anniversary at all but I certainly want to try and think it would be unreal to have been to both the 15th and 20th anniversary. If I don’t make it I’m sure I’ll be able to make another milestone anniversary concert of hers one day. The fact that she invites Gackt to her concerts every now and then means I might actually get to see Gackt on stage one day too. I honestly have no idea how to get concert tickets for his shows so Ayu might be my only hope of seeing Gackt on a stage in person lol.

           Well, I have to go to mom’s house to feed the cats again after Poppy gets home from work and it’s rainy out so I’m not really looking forward to it. I also have to bring their mail in and roll the recycling bin back to the house but she assured me it would be light. I’m on lifting restrictions for a few more weeks unless the doctor says otherwise on Monday. I still get into feeling moody or a bit worried but I try to push that away and remind myself that I’ll feel back to normal soon enough. I’ll try to focus on my goals for after I’ve recovered from this whole thing and not get bogged down. I’m going to get another T shot tomorrow so I’m hoping that helps with the drop in mood and maybe that might even help me feel a little better since I’m probably low on hormones in general at the moment.

           I’m not really sure what we’re doing after that point. Poppy has to take me grocery shopping either tonight or tomorrow night since she’ll be going away for a week starting Sunday morning with the person she might have spending the night on Satuday, which she still doesn’t know for sure by the way, I’m not really over that but I don’t really have any choice in the matter and I keep trying to tell myself it’s only for a few more months. I have a friend from online who’s curenttly in Japan and says she might come stay at my place when she visits the Kansai region but I don’t really feel like I know her well enough for that so I might just have to bite the bullet and tell her no since we’d be meeting in person for the first time so the idea of her staying at my apartment is horrifying. She claims to be an introvert too but doesn’t seem to realize how much anxiety she caused me by stating that. Yes, not asking but stating that she might stay over. What the hell? I realize it’s probably a lot cheaper for her to do that but like…really? It sort of feels like I’m being used.

           Anyway, I guess I’ll figure that out when the time comes. I don’t know why people can’t just let me live my life comfortably. When I get into that thought I almost fall into thinking I’m better off alone than with a partner since there are so many people who just impose like that but I’m trying to fight the urge to get into that frame of mind. I just think people aren’t as respectful as they used to be. I guess I sound like an old man right now ha ha. I’m done for now…I’ve already written a lot.

[fantasysuiteleague]

Week 2 Recap: The Three Ds

Is it just me or does it always seems like The Bachelorette gets a shitty draw of contestants? Each year there are at most 3 guys I would take home to meet my parents, maybe one worth actually marrying, and the rest are all that terrible guy you see on TV and hope you never meet in real life. They only care about themselves and what makes them look good or what will get them the most screen time. This season, with its new colors and Blachelorette, is no different. At most we’ve added an extra amount of swagger, but with that swagger comes an added level of douchebaggery that leaves a bad taste in your mouth. 

D is for Doggo

This episode highlighted 3 of the worst people we’ve met since Chad, and one precious angel who is too pure to be around any of this mess. That’s right, I’m talking about Copper. That precious baby with the broken toe who stole Bachelor Nation’s heart. Not only did he get his own limo entrance, but he also went on the first and best 1-on-1 date of the season, accompanying Rachel and Peter to a DOG PARTY. I can’t say I paid much attention to Rachel and Peter, as I was focused solely on Copper and all the ways I could pet him and be his best friend.

The only thing I took away from the 1-on-1 date was that Peter and Rachel bonded over the gap in their teeth, and that Rachel doesn’t seem to mind that Peter is dead in the eyes. Something’s off about him, but it looks like he’ll stick around for awhile so I’ll come back to him when the meat isn’t as fresh.

D is for Douchebags

The first group date of the season is very on-brand for the Bachelorette: a low key picnic with ... an obstacle course and celebrity sighting. The picnic is set up in what I assume to be a vacant lot three spaces down from the Bachelor mansion, where everyone takes turns grilling and playing touch football. Right off the bat it’s hard not to focus on the douche of the century, Whaboom. Everything he does is for attention. He pushes other guys around so he can be the “first” to say hi to Rachel, he obnoxiously dances around the football, shouts constantly, and even picks Rachel up at one point and spins her around like a Disney Princess. It’s not hard to see that Lucas is, in the words of Blake: garbage. The other guys question his personality traits and whether he’s here for the right reasons simply because he is TERRIBLE.  He’s not even trying to fight with anyone, he’s just being himself, which is absolute garbage. Fun fact: My friend was in the same frat as Whaboom at Berkley and said that he is, hands down, the absolute worst person he has ever met in his life—next to his twin brother.  That’s right, there are two of these assholes. 

He also told me that Lucas was constantly trying to be the center of attention and was always making loud obnoxious jokes or trying to steal the stage but NO ONE thought he was funny. Some quick sleuthing on the interwebs brought me to his IMDB page, which honestly says it all. I mean, a 2012 Spanish dating show? God what a fucking loser. But his “rival” Blake is no better, and we need to unpack both of these shitty bags of garbage to really get down to their trash core. In a voice-over, Blake mentions that he knows Whaboom and is the only person that can “ruin this” for him. Well first of all, Whaboom doesn’t need anyone’s help ruining anything. Second, Blake knows the true garbage nature of Whaboom because they were both on a trashy reality TV dating show hosted by Carmen Electra. Yep, that’s right. Garbage, meet Garbage. Oh, you already met on the Ex-Isle? Perfect. Let’s skip the pleasantries, and the entire obstacle course while we’re at it. That way we can also skip over Blake whining the entire time that Lucas is cheating and not following directions, and Lucas winning then attempting to get Ashton Kutcher to yell “whaboom.” To literally everyone’s relief, Ashton politely passes on the offer, as he should have with My Boss’s Daughter / Just Married / Killers / basically all movies he’s ever done.

No really, name a good Ashton Kutcher movie. You can’t, because there are none. Anyway, since Whaboom won the competition he got the first 1-on-1 time with Rachel. Blake takes this opportunity to let everyone know that, to the extent they hadn’t figured it out yet, Whaboom is a douchebag. Blake, it is the first fucking week. Chill the fuck out man. When Lucas gets back to the perfectly stirred pot, he’s confronted with the question of our generation: how do you identify yourself? The correct answer, of course, was garbage, but we would have also accepted trash. Speaking of trash, Blake continues his crusade against Whaboom by informing Rachel that, to the extent she is both blind and deaf, Lucas is just a clown here for TV exposure. Like any guy NOT trying to get TV exposure, Blake then goes and tells Lucas that he just spent his time with Rachel letting her know that Whaboom is wearing makeup and is here for the wrong reasons. 

At this point it’s pretty clear that Blake is also here for the wrong reasons and obsessed with Lucas, who may or may not be totally wasted. It’s hard to tell, because he’s just that terrible. In the end, Whaboom walks away the winner of this confrontation after he tells Blake he’s going to do “him” and that Blake is “dismissed.” Point, Garbage. I can’t really tell you what else happened on this date due to the overpowering stench of Garbage, but everyone else was so boring that the 20-year-old Ricky Fowler look alike, Dean, got the group date rose. Good for you, Dean.

D is for Drama

The second group date the guys get a considerably better draw with a game of pick up basketball monitored by Kareem Abdul Jabar. DeMario is the focus of this date, which I wanted to attribute to his charisma fuckboi charm and casual ability to dunk a basketball. But something doesn’t feel right about this spotlight and even though deep down I know why, I think and hope that maybe, just maybe, it’s not him. It’s like when you’re watching a Law & Order SVU episode and it’s definitely the dad, but it feels way too obvious to actually be the dad, so instead you convince yourself its the neighbor but like, it was always the dad.  It was always DeMario. Always. You don’t get this kind of attention in a group date when there are previews of a scorned lover confronting her man unless it’s your scorned lover. Enter Lexi, the girl who DeMario was allegedly fucking days before he went on ATFR and met Rachel. Before she even opened her mouth I could tell from her eyebrows that this girl was trash and was ready to shamelessly take down the Big D. The build up to this drama is great. After being summoned by Rachel, DeMario is convinced he’s getting the rose and walks gleefully back into the gym talking about what he learned playing the game until he saw cash me ousside girl waiting for him.

DeMario’s face quickly goes from happy to freaked out to “confused.” He immediately launches into fuckboi defensive mode and makes a series of moves that only digs him deeper into the pit of despair.

Move 1: Pretend like you have no idea who this girl is and that you’ve never seen her before. Obviously this is NOT the right way to go, but you have to give him partial credit if only because I would also deny knowing (let alone fucking) someone that trashy. This obviously doesn’t work as she’s tracked him down, so it’s on to the next move.

Move 2: This girl is fucking crazy, and we met “many many times ago.” Um, what? Thankfully Rachel is smarter than to buy into the “she’s crazy” excuse that’s constantly applied to women by the patriarchy. Instead, she asks for clarification on what “many times ago” means, and at this point the Big D starts to sweat.

Move 3: Claim that this is personal stuff that we should handle off-camera. This was an obvious misstep that sent Lexi into a rage about unanswered text messages and fucking her 2 days before he went on ATFR. Rachel keeps it classy, however, pointing out that this is also her personal life so DeMario really needs to explain himself.

Move 4: Admit he dated her, but claim that he broke up with her because she was “too much” to handle, circling back to the old “she’s crazy” thesis. DeMario tries to suggest that he broke up with Lexi face to face, but then Lexi starts shouting about how he still has her keys... 

Move 5: Keys? What keys? I don’t  have your keys..... Oh, wait. I actually mailed them back to you. As if this mother fucker has ever been to the post office. At this point DeMario has to know that he’s totally fucked and should probably just leave before he says anything else. But he doesn’t. Instead, he continues trying to downplay what Lexi is saying until finally Rachel tells him he’s not making any sense and she just wants to know when was the last time he saw Lexi.

Check: Lexi stops swearing on her kittens’ lives long enough to offer up the receipts to prove not just her side of the story, but the exact date and time when Demario was last in and out of her...apartment. Before Rachel accepts any documents into evidence, she gives DeMario one last chance to say literally anything that isn’t a lie and asks if the dates on Lexi’s phone will match his story or hers....

Move 6: It depends on the dates...

Checkmate: Finally at the end of her rope, Rachel takes Lexi’s phone (which I imagine smells like cigarettes) and reads the standard fuckboi texts we all knew DeMario sent. Rachel calmly informs DeMario that she is not here to be played or to be made a joke of, so he can get the fuck out.

In the aftermath of the DeMario drama everyone starts whispering about how DeMario was obviously not there for the right reasons when, in reality, they are all there for the same reason: fame. DeMario was just sloppier about it. The remaining guys on the date all use this as an opportunity to let Rachel know they’re there “for her” and will “protect her” from this kind of behavior. Josiah flexes his protection muscles the most with his... creepy side eye stare and ends up getting the group date rose. We don’t get too far into the cocktail party before the ghost of DeMario comes knocking at the gates of The Bachelor mansion to prove once and for all that D is for determination dumbass.

Did you notice . . .

Ashton knew when he “first saw” Mila that they would get married ... after he married Demi Moore and played dad for a few years, of course.

“This is not a show. When I want to turn it on, I turn it off. When I want to turn it off, I turn it off.” - ummm that’s a show, Lucas.

Curious that Lucas and Blake hate each other so much yet look like pals in this picture from 2016....(also, the hastags...)

“I check my mailbox every day.” - Lexi, lol.

OF COURSE her name is Lexi with an I.

I could do without Alex’s singing, especially as it’s likely a trigger for the Russian Manchurian Candidate, Jared Kushner.

Minority Report: The most embarrassing part of the whole DeMario saga is that before the Bachelorette he was dating white trash like Lexi.

[newstfionline]

I gave up TV, then qualified for Olympic marathon trials and got my PhD

By Teal Burrell, Washington Post, March 25, 2017

There’s a scene in “Friends” where Ross’s colleague admits she doesn’t have a television. Incredulous, Joey asks, “You don’t own a TV? What’s all your furniture pointed at?”

Americans are obsessed with television, spending an average of five hours a day pointing ourselves at it even as we complain we’re busier than ever. It rules our lives, whether we admit it or not. A friend of mine claims to not watch much TV, but whenever I visit her--morning, noon or night--it’s on. After my husband admitted we hadn’t watched any while on vacation, a family member was floored: “A whole week without TV?” And when I showed off my new house, visitors were most excited about the cable outlet on the back porch; now I can even point my outdoor furniture at a TV.

But for all the time we spend with it, TV doesn’t repay us very nicely. People who watch more television are generally unhappier, heavier and worse sleepers, and have a higher risk of death over a defined length of time.

Studies have found links between children and teenagers who watch a lot of TV and worse attention spans, lower grades and structural differences in brain regions associated with intelligence. One study found that people in their 20s and 30s who watched at least three hours of TV a day did worse on tests of cognitive focus and speed when they reached their 40s and 50s than those who had watched less TV as young adults.

A few years ago, I realized--despite feeling constantly frazzled and busy--that I wasted hours clicking through shows I barely liked or bingeing on series I’d already seen. I had big aspirations for the near future--I wanted to defend my PhD thesis, launch a freelance writing career and qualify for the Olympic trials in the marathon--but they seemed overwhelming, things I had been working at for years.

I needed more time to read, research, write, run and rest. What if I gave up TV ... for an entire year?

Despite a lifetime of failed New Year’s resolutions, I started on Jan. 1, 2014. On the second day, I found myself in a bar discussing the latest shows. Already, talking TV felt wrong, as though I were a recovering addict walking by an old supplier’s place. But not wanting to seem like a pretentious ascetic, I didn’t mention my resolution.

In fact, for the rest of the year, I told few people what I was doing. It became an experiment: Would anyone notice? Do we need to watch television to be social?

But banning TV didn’t seem to affect my social life. Water-cooler discussions don’t revolve around the previous night’s must-see TV as they once did; streaming means not everyone is watching the same episode or even the same season. I could just say I hadn’t gotten to that episode and no one thought twice about it. The only times I felt I was missing out were retellings of late-night talk-show jokes. I figured I’d watch some programs I missed when the year ended, but reruns of “The Daily Show” would just be dated.

Almost immediately I noticed I was enjoying my weeknights more. I didn’t automatically collapse on the couch only to look up hours later, surprised so much time had passed. My husband, while supportive of my mission, wasn’t particularly eager to adopt the same resolution. He agreed to wear headphones while he watched TV (mostly sports, which I didn’t find particularly tempting anyway), so some nights would find us both on the couch--me reading and turned away from the TV, him silently cheering on the Nationals/Redskins/Wizards. Sans TV, evenings seemed longer: I got more chores or work done, spent time piddling on the Internet or read. And I actually got to bed on time.

But in March, not quite three months into my effort and exhausted from running a half marathon and battling a cold, I nearly caved. All I wanted to do was spend an entire Sunday lying on the couch and resting, but I couldn’t plop down in front of some mindless TV.

Surely there’s some good to television, as stress relief or to give our brains a break, isn’t there?

“That’s one of the most debated questions in television studies in the last 40 years,” says Michael Grabowski, a media studies researcher at Manhattan College and editor of “Neuroscience and Media: New Understandings and Representations.” “Does television help us be more relaxed and is it kind of a cathartic experience, or does television feed into addiction and make us more anxious?”

Studies seem mixed depending on the genre, but TV can color how we see the world.

“The more television we watch, the more it influences our understanding of the real world and how it operates,” says Grabowski, citing a theory originally developed by communications researcher George Gerbner. One aspect of this well-established cultivation theory states that if we watch programs with lots of violence, we think of the world as a more violent place--not exactly an anxiety-reducing perspective. Watching “Law and Order: SVU” is hardly a way to make you sleep better. But comedies comfortably reinforce social rules, Grabowski says: The guy with the harebrained scheme usually gets his comeuppance. A small study found that comedies may also decrease levels of stress hormones in the blood, while another found that laughing may increase endorphins.

But more research needs to be done, as better understanding of the neurochemistry of TV watching might shed light on whether it’s habit-forming. Although “there’s no consensus on [TV watching] being an addictive behavior,” says psychologist Steve Sussman, who has written a textbook on addictions. Based on the available research, he says, “I think TV addiction is probably the first addiction that people experience in life.”

People can become preoccupied with television, spending more time watching it than they intended to despite negative consequences on their relationships, schoolwork, happiness and health.

And, as with taking an addictive drug, consuming more TV may leave us worse off. One study found that people who binge-watched TV (defined as watching two or more episodes in one sitting) reported more depression and loneliness than those who didn’t binge.

Despite my unhappiness on that TV-less sick day, I stuck with my resolution and, in early spring, I completed my PhD. One major accomplishment down.

I was feeling proud until I realized I had started to transfer my TV time to Twitter and Facebook. How was that better?

As an aspiring writer, I had hoped to spend my extra hours reading. I doubled my efforts, but the desire to shut off my brain again nagged at me. Reading fiction and watching a fictional show seem similar, but television fills in more of the blanks. “With a novel, we get to participate in imagination of what these characters look like or what the settings feel like,” Grabowski says. Sometimes that felt too exhausting, and I missed having the TV do the work.

In August, my sister invited my cousin and me to a friend’s beach house. Soon after we arrived, my cousin discovered the TV was broken, and she wasn’t happy about it. But my sister was relieved, glad to be free from TV for a few days. We spent the days at the beach and the evenings talking, TV-free.

Not long after, as the new fall shows debuted, I remained blissfully unaware; without commercials, the previews weren’t drilled into my head. Neither were endless plugs for fast food and mouthwatering snacks. I wondered if I’d achieved a better diet by not being tempted by manipulative commercials or fast-paced shows, which some research suggests can increase distracted eating. I wasn’t sure: I had lost weight, but I also was training to run a marathon. Either way, I certainly didn’t miss commercials.

Did I miss any of it? As the year neared its end, my husband said he doubted I’d tune back in. I agreed.

In December of 2014, I ran my fastest marathon ever, qualifying for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials and accomplishing all of my TV-free-year goals: I defended my thesis, started a writing career and made it to the trials. In my newly discovered spare time, I also read 35 books, a personal record. Could I have done all that without giving up TV?

Maybe, but I’m doubtful. Regardless, I decidedly kicked my addiction. (And my husband also admitted he watched less over the year.)

Two years later, I haven’t stayed entirely away from TV. But now I watch only a few shows, with intention. I discovered TV is better in small doses, not turned on instinctively to channel-surf or to fill the silence.

A few days into 2015, proud of the only resolution I’d ever kept, I told a friend what I’d done. She laughed it off and said it was easy: She’d just watch Hulu.

[poipoi1912]

Carisi-centric thoughts on Ep 18x18

The last fifteen minutes really ruined what was, until then, a perfectly serviceable episode. It really flew by, up until that point, and I kinda liked it. It was dumb but fun :D

I even liked the hypnotism angle, but I must say, I think the problem persists; yet again, the episode had an interesting premise, but it failed to take advantage of it. Why not go into the practicalities of hypnosis? Where was Huang to get on that stand and explain it in detail? Speaking of, wouldn’t Barba talk to an “expert” during the trial? Why not make a show if it and demonstrate hypnosis? Wouldn’t that be fun to watch?

Warning

OK, guys, I’m going to be honest. I’m of two minds, when it comes to this episode. Sonny-wise, the episode was fantastic (and let’s be honest, that’s always my main concern lol), the premise was fun, we got Barba working with the entire team, not just Liv, and the case itself (the investigation of it, at least) was twisty enough to remain enjoyable.

BUT.

From a legal standpoint, this episode was laughably bad. It honestly left me baffled. Who wrote this? The last fifteen minutes were ridiculous. No way would Barba ever get a conviction based on what we saw. I’ll expand on that in a minute (in EXTENSIVE detail), but first let’s start with the good.

Sonny and Continuity

A lot of great stuff in this episode! Sonny pulled a classic Sonny, and looked into the case thoroughly, going above and beyond and finding information about out a crime which was committed out of state. He even dug up a civil suit. That’s absolutely consistent with the Sonny we know. It’s what he’s always done. He never gives up, he finds smart ways to work around the obstacles and solve the case.

I also appreciated that Sonny showed real empathy when he heard the first victim had died. Peter played that little moment so well. Both the surprise and the sadness. What I loved most about it, was that it didn’t feel like he was thinking “oh shoot, there goes our witness.” It felt like the old Sonny, the one who used to cross himself when he found a dead body. The Sonny who’d take the time to grieve, just for a moment, when confronted with the death of a stranger as opposed to last week’s Sonny, who dismissed actual death threats like he didn’t give a shit lol.

And I do always love it when Sonny cracks a case with his research. Even though he didn’t actually crack it, because what the fuck? But, again, more on that later.

Sonny’s Love Life

Wait, Sonny has a legit girlfriend that’s been mentioned more than once? Can we meet her, please? I’ve always wanted to see him happy and in love :D and making out with someone lol. I just wish we knew more about her. A name, even. Wouldn’t Amanda know her name? She and Carisi are obviously buddies. So far, the info we got on her is a) her bra size (classy, SVU writers) and b) that she’s into that raw food trend. I like that, actually. It fits Sonny. He seems like he’d totally be up for trying new experiences food-wise and otherwise, and this could be their thing, going around random restaurants and trying to convince each other to eat weird dishes, lol.

I love it when our characters are shown to have lives outside the “show”, but can we actually see it? Can we see Sonny all flirty and cute? If they don’t want to cast anyone new (because they seem averse to creating new characters), can’t we at least see, like, Sonny smiling as he talks on the phone, or as he reads a text, with Fin teasing him about it? Or something? Please? :D

Barba Thoughts

I was surprised Barba was the one to suggest hypnotism. Way to think outside the box! I’m not sure he was the best person to do that (he seems like a total skeptic who’d shoot that theory down immediately), but I bought the excuse of him having come across it before. Plus, I loved that he was the one who got to solve the case, for a change. And I also liked how the entire team, Barba included, spent several scenes brainstorming together. I had missed that. Barba in the precinct, with the entire squad.

Aaaaand that’s where the fun ends, and the pedantic/annoyed part of my post begins, lol.

Why on Earth would Barba take legal advice from Liv? Why would he ever play that tape for the jury? If that’s not reasonable doubt, I don’t know what is. Why would he follow Liv’s actual instructions? She’s not a lawyer! She directly affected the case, in a way that could have been detrimental, even though Barba seemed like he knew better (since he tried to talk her out of it, before folding as always), and the way the episode chose to resolve that was by having Liv and Barba drinkin’ it up at a bar.

Liv’s mistake was never identified as such, and it took Sonny “deus ex machina” Carisi and his random discovery to save the day.

Even though it shouldn’t have. Which brings me to:

The Law

Me for the first like 45 minutes: OK BUT WHERE IS RITA???

Me when Rita appeared: YASSSSSS QUEEN

Me at the end of the episode: NOOOOO QUEEN 

Where do I begin?

Why was Barba acting like hypnosis was sure to be accepted as 100% real and effective by a court of law, let alone a jury in its entirety? Why did he seem to “suddenly” realize he had no case (which, d’oh) at the halfway mark, only for Liv to wrongly convince him otherwise? And, even if Barba did manage to stumble upon a group of jurors who all believe in hypnosis, why didn’t he bother actually proving anything?

To get a conviction, Barba would have to prove that:

hypnosis is real,

hypnosis can be powerful enough to make a woman consent to sex against her will,

Trask has the skill to hypnotize people,

Trask actually hypnotized this specific victim, and

Trask raped this specific victim.

None of that was ever proven. None. Like I said, no expert was shown explaining just what hypnotism entails. No proof was given that Trask even knew how to do that (so what if his mentor taught him, does that mean he now knows how to do it perfectly?). There was an actual tape with the victim’s ‘consent’ that was played but not actually debunked.

And oh Lord. That old case Sonny dug up. WHERE. DO. I. BEGIN.

What defense attorney, hell, what judge would allow a totally random arrest from over 20 years ago to be brought up into a totally unrelated criminal trial? Not to mention, no one even bothered to point out that the defendant was a drug addict at the time (22. YEARS. AGO), and he had since “changed.”

To be fair, the writers tried to make it work, with Barba asking Trask if he had ever been arrested, to “open the door” to bringing up the previous arrest (and also to get Trask to lie on the stand). Problem is, Trask only lied about the arrest itself, not about the specifics of it. With that in mind, Barba would only be able to mention the arrest itself, to contradict Trask’s testimony and present him as a liar. But he’d never be able to introduce the actual details of the arrest, the actual facts of that old case.

Barba would need to ask something specific to open that door. Something like, “Have you ever been accused of anything like this before? A man in your position, wealthy and surrounding himself with drugs and beautiful women,” blah blah. If Trask had lied about that, then Barba would have been able to bring up a similar case from the past (even the case of the dead woman mentioned previously). 

Unfortunately, there was nothing similar about the case Sonny found. No relevance, no probative value. A drug addict, ill and scared, letting someone die? Over 20 years ago? An expunged arrest, no conviction? That was prejudicial as fuck. Rita would have it thrown out in 3 seconds. Many times, prosecutors can’t even mention actual (and relevant) convictions, because it would be prejudicial, unless the specific convictions have a significant probative value relating to the case on hand.

Same goes for that half-assed “confession” to Trask’s mentor-slash-friend. Trask never mentioned this specific victim. That was circumstantial as fuck. I'm embarrassed on Rita's behalf for losing this mess of a case. The old Rita would never.

Legally speaking, this was a total circus. Barba proved nothing. No way would the jury find Trask guilty. No way would Rita Fucking Calhoun let any of that fly. This is Dana Lewis levels of character assassination, in my book. 

Stray Thoughts

Is Liv working reception now? Didn’t she used to have an office? Where her subordinates could reach her, if a victim wanted to speak to “someone in charge”? You’re a Lieutenant, sis! Let someone else man the doors!

Declan? 👀

Amanda didn’t judge a victim, for once, and the case involved drugs! Progress!

Fin listening to that lady for like 5 minutes? YES. His face was the highlight of the episode. Fin himself was the highlight of the episode, actually. So many great lines, and Ice-T was clearly having fun.

Speaking of, we got Fin joking! And Carisi joking! And Amanda laughing! Who are these people? I don’t recognize them :D

Seriously though, I really appreciated the attempt for a more ‘lighthearted’ episode, but the writers should have stopped themselves riiiiiight before giving Rollins the line, ‘look deep into my eyes, you’re under arrest.’ Because no.