#i'm excited to learn more about amara

[the-inkwell-variable]

Lochmallow Mystery Novella Snippet!

I've decided to write a little prequel novella to the Lochmallow Mystery cozy fantasy series I've inexplicably been inspired to write, to get myself into the heads of the characters and figure out the world a little before I throw myself headfirst into it.

This little snippet explains how Hendryk and Amara got such a good deal on their shop. Enjoy! Concrit is welcome and appreciated, just don't be a jerk about it <3

"Just one more, Hendryk. I promise."

The handsome tiefling groaned, running his hand through the amaranthyne curls between his curved horns. "We've been through three empty shops already. Must we really make it four?"

"l saved the best for last. I think this one is exactly what we're looking for."

"The 'best'," he mocked, drawing his fingers up in air quotes, "can wait until tomorrow. My contract states I'm entitled to a meal and a sit-down after four hours of work, and it's been six. Six! You may be a glutton for drudgery, dear sister, but I am not. If I don't find myself back in the tavern sharpish, I fear I shall wither away!"

Amara, hand resting on the door handle, rolled her eyes as she shot him a patient stare. "Are you quite finished?"

He grinned at her, pointed canines glinting in the golden rays of the late afternoon suns. "Would I be myself if I was? You love my flair for the dramatic." He swept her his most gallant bow, and she could not help but smile. "Shall we get this little song-and-dance over with, dear sister?"

"Let's shall."

As Hendryk slipped his arm around hers, their personas draped around them like a comfortingly familiar cloak. He pulled the door open with his free hand. The soft tinkle of a bell welcomed them and attracted the silvery gaze of an elderly half-elf woman. She clapped her leathery hands on the counter to push herself off the barstool. "Sure and how can I help you on this fine day?"

Hendryk flashed his winning smile. "We're looking for a shop to make our own, and the mayor's assistant said you might be able to help us. Rose Fenwick, I presume?"

The woman studied them, smoke-gray eyes flicking between their faces. Amara innocently twisted the thin band on her finger until the afternoon sunrays glinted off its plum gem. It seemed to catch the woman's eye, and her lips parted in a hearty, partly toothless grin of her own. "Aye, I am. And you must be that couple she warned me about. What do they call ye?"

A question like that was practically begging to be snarked at. Amara braced herself; there was no way he could resist such an opening.

"Trouble, usually," Hendryk quipped with a chuckle and an easy smile. "They call me Hendryk, and this is my dear wife Amara. We've only just moved to Lochmallow, you see, and it's our dream to open a quiet little teashop in a quiet little town. Grown a bit weary of the Verthurst glamour - you understand."

To Amara's surprise, Rose let out a hearty guffaw and slapped her hand on the counter. Yet another lesson in judging a chimera by his mane - she'd assumed the half-elf would be stoic at best, stuffy at worst. Perhaps rural folk were more chill than the other carnies had led her to believe.

Yet another piece of her to leave behind.

As usual, Amara was content to let Hendryk handle the bulk of the proceedings, choosing instead to wander the empty shop with keen eyes. It was well suited for the tea shop they claimed to desire - Rose informed them that it had previously been her family's fried fish shop, which explained the astonishingly well-stocked kitchen. The front-of-house was spacious enough for Hendryk's bookshelves and a few small, cozy tables. Tall windows let in plenty of fresh light, and the loft above ensured they didn't have to stay in the tavern any longer. It truly was the perfect place to open a cozy little tea shop.

But it was the little room just before the kitchen that caught Amara's full attention.

At first glance, it wasn't much to look at - a little supply closet perhaps the size of a very small child's room. Rose scoffed as she opened the door, declaring it "good for keeping the fish cold but naught else." But Amara's mind's eye filled in the missing pieces with ease. A candle-lit table to flicker the shadows. Faintly glowing stars on the ceiling and walls. A silver-backed mirror that cast no reflection on that wall. And in the center, a beautiful glass ball on a silver pedestal.

"We'll take it."

Hendryk and Rose glanced at her, startled out of their conversation by her sudden interjection. Her brother shot her a questioning glance as the half-elf drummed her fingers against the counter. "Ye sure? Yer man was just saying it might be a wee big for yer tastes."

Amara slipped her arm around his and stared into his eyes with the most adoring smile she could muster. "Not at all - your shop is perfect. Please, Henny?"

He chuckled even as his fingers tightened over hers in a warning. "Well... one more look through won't hurt, I suppose."

Her smile became genuine, her eyes crinkling at the corners. He had done his part - it was her turn now. She pulled from his arm as if reluctantly, her finger trailing a quick sigil the bulk of his tricep hid.

Rose's pointed ear pricked immediately. "Did ye hear that?"

Hendryk glanced at Amara, a poorly timed twinkle in his glowing coal eyes. "Hear what?"

The half-elf didn't move for several seconds as she scanned the room. Finally she shook her head. "May aught I'm hearin' things. Could've swore I heard a-"

What a perfect time to scream.

"Mouse!" Amara cried with a deceptively shrill trill as a tiny shadow darted across the floor from the darkness of one corner to the dim light of another. She clutched his arm and let out a faint whimper. "Ugh, how awful! How filthy!"

Hendryk patted the back of her shoulder a little too hard, a clear warning to dial it back. "How awful," he echoed solemnly, gazing steadily at the frazzled half-elf. "And here I thought you had a reputable establishment. What a shame."

Rose stamped her thick boot in the corner where the mouse had fled, but it had vanished seemingly into nothing. "Tis a coastal town," she protested, her voice husky. "Ye'll aught get mice from time to time, for certain in the autumn. Though I've ne'er seen one in me shop so soon in the year.". She crossed her arms over her burly chest and drummed her fingers on her thick coat. "Odd that. Tell ye what. I'll drop by rent by fifty bob and have the place treated on my coin. That's the best I can do ye for - that is, if'n ye still want the place?"

Hendryk pretended to think, gnawing on his thumbnail with a troubled expression. "It is the finest place we've seen today... I'm quite partial to it. Amara, dear, do you agree to those terms? I think they're quite fair."

Amara shuddered one last time. "If you think it's fair, Henny, then I'll trust you. Ugh, hopefully those awful mice are gone when we're ready to move in. How dreadful that was, and what unfortunate timing!"

"Aye," agreed Rose with a dark expression and a darker tone, "that it was."

[faustinio27]

OC Questionnaire! ft. Faustine Daemon

Thank you for the tag @boxdstars!! It's always a good time to ramble about my ocs 😙✨

1. How has your OC changed over time? Are there any major differences that have happened since their inception?

Honestly? Even after creating her over a year ago, she didn't really changed :'D I think it's mostly due to her personality being tied to my HL gameplay. If things have changed, it's because my memory is failing me and I'm forgetting elements of the game, and she's reacting in ways that don't match my choices x) I'm sometimes tempted to take her in a different direction from what I've established (make her more like a cold-blooded, for example), but I want to keep her as she is, aka a heroine with good intentions but questionable actions. I love villains and anti-hero, so it's hard for me to keep a character being "good" (with still flaws).

2. Where does your OC see themself in ten years. Now, what actually happens to your oc in ten years time?

At 15yo, a few months earlier before having magic, she had seen herself as having no future, but suddenly during her 5th at Hogwarts, she was learning all sorts of different jobs in the magical world. Although she's curious about many things (working with beasts, with books, helping people, discovering the world, etc), she thinks she has a duty to protect the weak with her ability to wield ancient magic, and thinks becoming Auror. Especially after losing Professor Fig, Logdock, and so many people who relied on her during her 5th and she failed to save. At 25yo, she's indeed an Auror and is renowned for her efficiency and ruthlessness, especially for her age, and earning her the nickname Blue-Eyed Demon. She has a house in London but hardly ever lives there, as she's always on mission in England or on the other side of the world. But at this time, she's close to burnout and is in a transition period where she's thinking of quitting, or at least taking on fewer missions, to do her dream job: becoming a librarian. She has always wanted to work surrounded by books, but has stopped herself from seeing this as a possibility with her responsabilities. Her friends, and especially Natsai for being an Auror like her, encourage her to change her path and do what she really wanted.

3. What‘s something unexpected about your OC that most people wouldn’t assume just from looking at them!

Something I've noticed when people talk to me or draw me Faustine is that they often see her as cold and inexpressive (also my fault because I love drawing her badass and cold hearted, but she's just an introvert lol). But even if she's calm and serious in her every day life, she's so much expressive when surrounded by friends, or when she feels comfortable! She can laugh at open heart to a joke, grumble and complain loudly when she's hungry, hopping around when excited, etc.

My questions!

1- If there was any advice your OC could give to their younger self, what would it be?

2- What's the thing they love about themselves? Hate about themselves?

3- What’s something your OC is often conflicted about? A choice they made, their place or purpose in the world, a relationship they have with someone, etc? How does this conflict manifest, and how do they deal with it, if at all?

Tagging: @limonnitsa @lamieboo @dwightschrute11 @siboom777 @syaolaurant @traceyc-uk @the-ozzie @boxdstars (for Amara)

[deadpool15]

O really ?

"F-fuck, wait." I stutter out, trying to rub away from the overwhelming pleasure. I am sitting on the couch of the 1 million room, trying to cover my screams. "It's t-to much p-please. I'm sorry I'll be good." I try to get out though the words seem to be nothing but mumbling in a room full of moans. "You move again. I'll gonna make sure I spank that ass raw. Now, be quiet unless you want everyone hear to know how much of a slut you are for me." "I stare down at her sitting there in between my legs with the bottom half of her mouth soaked with my juices. I didn't even know I could get this wet. At this point, I'm willing to do anything to please her. "For y-you all for you." She smirks, coming up for a second with her finger still working on my insides, "yea, only for me, glad you finally remembered baby." I sit there in a daze trying to remember how I got here.

If you were wondering how I ended up in this position, we would have to backtrack a bit. Going back to when we were being called down to the fight zone. I was so excited holding hands with Kristen. We had both been a part of the royal family for a while, and when we heard about this opportunity, we were ecstatic. It was a Korean dance TV program, though, so I can say that unlike the rest of my team, I generally didn't expect us to win, well, the show that is. Though that didn't mean we would go easy and let people make a mockery of us. Never know what the future holds. This would be an experience.

I had learned that a certain someone would be here. By that, I entirely mean my wife Lia Kim. We had just recently got engaged 2 months ago, and even though we weren't officially married yet, Lia always referred to me as her wife. When she told me she was invited to bring her crew to SWF2, I questioned it as first, I mean, my girl had the qualifications to be a judge, but just my opinion. Though, I didn't tell her about Jam Republic being on the team, and she wouldn't know until we got there. I had a feeling she would be surprised and slightly angry at the same time.

We walked down the stairs amazed by the architecture of this place. "This is it girls we are here, so chin up and let the confidence run through you. We shall not be caught lacking." I told them, as I smiled and saw Kristen make a gesture for us to keep walking. We finally made it down, stepping into the center of the fight zone. Allowing everyone to get a good look at us. Making their little side remarks and comments. Until we heard the screen come on giving us our team evaluation. We stood there listening to all the absolute bullshit they were saying, I was already pissied with them called Kristen, a backup for Paris and Audrey, just a pretty face. What made me even more pissed was that my fiance said it with that irritating smirk on her face that I usually would love. Not this time. I then heard the comments about me.

Biggy - Didn't Amara create the choreography for Rihanna superbowl?

Halo - If there is anyone I have respect for, Amara, she started out in underground street battles. She managed to even become better than her teacher.

Lusher- It feels like she has lived multiple lives you know, like she has done so much for her age.

Redlic- She is nicknamed Hybe's princess with her being the main choreographer for them. She has created majority of there dances, I wanna see if it's true.

I smirk hearing that comment.

Lia- Jam Republic will be the first to go home, I don't see anything special.

Mina- She has amazing skills and good energy, and it looks like she is special. I'll give you that.

And just like that found my target, one thing about my wife is her ego is fucking huge. She will do anything and everything to prove she is the best. You see, I knew about her issue, and will Mina. So why not play into that? Besides, she literally said Jam Republic will be the first to go home. So payback is about to be a bitch. We sat, and the entire time, I could feel someone's eyes locked on me. I knew exactly who it was, so I leaned closer to Kristen, grabbing her arm and having us basically be hugging at this point. At first, Kristen looked at me a little confused. Now she is a touchy person and didn't mind, but she was trying to figure out why suddenly. Until she looked over and saw Lia glaring at us. Then she smiled, turning to look at me before whispering in my ear, "it seems your girl is quite possessive, huh?" I just smile laughing and nodding.

Now, to any other person, that reaction wasn't weird or considered flirting, but to Lia, it meant war. Eventually, we are told about the no-respect battles. "This will be sp fun." I tell my team while Ling sat there telling us how she is so down to battle. We all go in our respective rooms to change. While I'm on the way to the room, I could see Lia gesturing for us to talk, but I paid no mind. This is a competition, and I'm mad at her right now. We walk in and immediately start changing. I go put on my grey little tank with no bra and some baggy jeans with my thong slightly showing. Might as well leave in impression, Korean strict ass dress code and overall high ass morals be dammed.

We all make it back to the fight zone, and the battles start rolling in. I am simply sporting two stickers, waiting for my name to be called. Crazy how Kristen is a much better battler than me, yet no one thought of that because they were too busy calling her Paris number 2. Well, they will see. Every since I got down here, Lia couldn't take her eyes off me, though it seems neither could Mina. Well, this will be fun. After a while of battles, Kristen is called up with her picking Waackxxxy. I move to the sideline to get a better view of the battle and hype her up. Doing a little more than necessary to pisd off you know who. Then, when Kristen takes the win, I run up and hug her. Finally, I'm glad everyone can see her in her element.

More battles continue until I'm called by Mina. Of course, why didn't I gather she was gonna call me? That makes sense. I walk to the center, hearing Daniel ask for any words before the battle. "I just wanna share the stage with this beautiful woman." Mina states while winking at me, causing the crowd to go wild. I stare at her, giving the doe eye effect before stating, "Then I will make it worth your while." At this point, everyone is tuning into this battle. Mina starts off using a big of hip pop moves, making sure to let everyone be aware of her presence. She even got close to me multiple times, grabbing my grin. When it's my turn to battle, I hear nicki minaj blasting through the speakers. I start off my routine locking and then move into some hip-hop while hitting a split. Then, I get close to her body rolling a twerking until the battle is over, the judges vote in favor of me.

I move over to hug Mina, thanking her for battling me. She holds me close before thanking me as well. I move to put the win on our board and make my way over to Deepndapp, putting the loss sticker on there's. Not before Mina taps my butt on the way over. After I make it back to my team, they are congratulating me, with Kristen placing me on her lap and kissing my cheeks. After a while, more battles continued with me being called us to battle redlic, which was more so not a battle with the amount of hair flipping she did. I literally counted each flip. She made it to 11 before she ended her battle. We eventually make it to a break, with production calling for a commercial telling us to go gather our thoughts and prepare for the next segment. We ordered some food, more so me, because I'm the only one who can speak Korean. As I'm making my way outside to get the food I spot Lia, looking angry as shit. Starting to realize that I kinda went a bit overboard and now I'm low-key scared as fuck.

I grab the food practically trying to run into the Jam Republic room. Latrice opens the door, taking the food from me. Until she sees Lia, "you realize you can't avoid her forever, especially when you were wrong as fuck." I look at her before she tells me to go apologize. I hear Lia yelling, "Amara, get you ass over here." I try to make another run for it until she catches up with me. "Your ass is getting punished. Let's go." I try to apologize to her, hoping that would work, I know I'm far past acceptance. She gives me a look before pulling me in the towards 1 million rooms. Telling everyone to leave immediately and go to Jam Republic's room, they see the look on her face, some to scared to question their leader and others already knowing I'm in for it, and then they all file out. She pushes me on the couch and starts pacing around the room. "Don't fucking speak to me, I can't believe you. Completely walking around whoring yourself out. Knowing everyone in that room wants to be in my position but can't. Its OK, just gonna have to remind you how makes you feel like your in heaven, the only person that can make you cum. Let's get to work then, shall we?"

Well, that's how I ended up in this position. Legs are being held open pressed against my stomach, feeling extremely vulnerable in this position. Just how she likes it. I've lost count of how many times I've come. This break seems like it's been forever. My legs have cramped up so badly. "B-baby please I can't cum anymore." I try to beg her hoping she will have mercy on me. She claimed she accepted my apology after I came for the 3rd time in a row. But she just keeps going. "Yes, you can, my pretty flower. I know you can. Just one more." She says while placing 3 fingers back inside me all at once, the stretch feeling the like the first time. I start to cry and thrash around, causing her to grab my face soothing me. "Just one more time. I promise, ok? Do it for me. Make me proud."

With rhat I try my very best. Do lost in pleasing her. All I want to do is make her proud. And she knows this. She has broken me down, orgasm by orgasm to the point that all I can think about is her. She starts to move her fingers faster, moving her head back down in its previous position to suck on my abused clit. I scream out loud. "F-fuck, yes... please... right there." She hits that sweet spot inside of me again, smirking. "Right there, huh? I know baby just cum for me." My thighs clench tight around her head screaming out her name completely forgetting where we are. Though, I'm too fucked out to care. All I see is white, my limbs going slack on the couch. She stares up at me, her chin dripping with her shirt as well. I look confused until she says, "You squirted baby." She seems so happy and proud of herself. All I can do is throw my arms out, grabbing her. "My precious little flower, all mine." I hear her say will looking at me lovely. "All yours, only yours."And don't you ever forget it."

(Request brought to you by @thegayassbit-ch)

[winterproductions]

CHAPTER TWO

Disclaimer: This is an idol!Jungkook and OC fanfiction, preferably for my POC queens but anyone who reads can envision themselves in the character, if they like

Word count: 972

CHAPTERS: 01 02 03 04

___________________________________________

Amara vented to her mother about her discovery the next day, she was beyond intrigued at the kpop musical culture. It differed so much from the western but simultaneously, it was the same. She used a cake analogy, everyone has the exact same ingredients but their techniques differ. "There are bad cakes, good cakes and questionable ones" she explained and her mother laughed. She pouted at the laughter and her mother reassured her that her laughter was directed at her passion on the topic.

"When I'm out after new years, and we get situated in our new home, I will let you show me all your Korean boys. She nodded as her thirteen hour day almost come to a close. Amara mom health had an improvement, but she's still fragile considering the heart pacer, spirometer and the dozen of pills she has to take.

Another lonely night turns into another night of an internet adventure. Her spiral into this new world happened so quickly, wanting to simply learn names and remember faces became more than just that.

Her phone rang and she stared at it for a moment before answering. "Hello? Who's this?" She heard an overexaggerate gasp before the voice she knew all too well finally spoke. "I know it's been a minute but how could you!" She giggled softly at the voice of her best friend. "Emmy, your parents finally allowed you to get a new phone." Amara asked and Emerald subconsciously nodded before realizing she can't be seen "yeah, girl you should see me nodding like I'm in front of you." They laughed and caught up on each other's lives.

"Oh BTS? I saw them on the twitter and fell in love!! They are so cute!" She felt Emerald's excitement through the electronic device as they spoke about the foreign entertainers. "I'm so happy you like them! No one at my school seems to appreciate their greatness. I mean I've seen some people listen to kpop and speak about k-dramas but I'm nervous to approach them. They always have earbuds on or a very standoff aura." Amara vented and she realized Emerald has the same experience at her school.

"Do you want to spend the day together tomorrow?" Emerald suggested. "You sure your mom will allow that?" Emerald looked at her closed door then her window. "Whether she does or not, ok coming to see you. We need to catch up more and I need to see our mother. I'm happy to hear she's doing better."

The two hour long phone call came to an end and the research she suddenly attach her happiness to continued as she watched their variety shows, performances and skits.

•∆•

The girl chose to meet at the central mall and the moment they saw each other they both collapsed at the tackle they both attempted at the same time. Their hug tightened as they rocked side to side. "Never again will it take for me this long to see you." Emerald commented and got a nod in response from Amara.

"So, three months until our graduations. We should visit south Korea during summer break." Emerald suggested and Amara side lip frown as she liked the suggestion but was unable to fulfill it. "I'd love to but...you know, mom." Her friend understood and nodded. "One day, one day." Emerald held out her pinky and they made a silent promise before eating their food they ordered from the Mall's cafeteria.

"Amara?" The female turned her head in a 360 motion as she heard her name being called from somewhere around her. She heard a small laugh before seeing her crush, a boy name Daniel, whom she shared music, literature and language classes with. "H-hi Daniel" she stuttered in a soft voice as the male stood in close proximity to her. "It's nice to see you here, how's your mom? May I sit?" She shook her head then nodded, "you can sit, and my mom is getting better."

Amara didn't miss Emerald's coy smile as Daniel continued conversation with her. "I'm going to the bathroom, Mara I'll be right back." The look Emerald gave her gave her the insight she needed, she's giving them alone time. "We barely speak in school." You chuckle and he blushed "I always wanted to speak to you but you were very quiet and to yourself, then I found out about your mom and the situation you're in so I never wanted to bother you. You seemed to want to be unbothered."

Her jaw dropped as he categorized her as one of the people she described to her best friend earlier. "Oh my gosh, I'm sorry. I'm just very introverted." She explain before continuing "well that's what I've been told." He smiled and sat closer to her as they suddenly became friends. "so, see you at school Monday?" She nodded as he left and headed to his brother who was waiting on him.

Emerald sprinted back to the table and leaned over to her friend "who is that and give me all the details, now!" Amara blushed and explain to Emerald who the boy that approached her was. "He wants to Major in Music, and is an amazing musician." She ended her description and explaination of her classmate, crush and now friend. "Eep, get that sis!!" Emerald screamed gathering attention before calming down.

"Let's go see mom, visiting hours soon begin."

A/N: you guys just met Amara's best friend, her love interest and witnessed the renewal of a missing friendship and a new potential relationship! Hope you guys continue, the introduction of BTS isn't too far now.

[i-am-shepard-commander]

Sucks that Gearbox did that exclusive with Epic Games because that means I won’t be playing Borderlands 3 for another six months, but I’m hoping that during that time period they’ll release DLC or something that has Sasha and Fiona in it because WHERE ARE MY GIRLS, GEARBOX, WHERE ARE THEY????

[pigstepmp3-moved]

am i the only one who didnt rly. like. flaks character trailer? i mean, dont get me wrong, i LOVE them, and i'm so excited to play as someone whos nb like me. but i feel like we learned less about them than everyone else? i mean, we got more insight into zanes personality and we learned that his only friends prior to this found family was his digi clone. we learned more about mozes military past and her survivors guilt and her companionship with her iron bear. we learned more about amaras personality and we learned more about how far her fame reaches on her home planet. but with flak, we... learned they like shooting things? and we learned more about the personalities of their pets? i dont know. i wouldve liked to learn more about their past, too. it wouldve been cool to gain more insight into how they met their pets, but i guess all i can do is hope we'll learn more later

[elizabethrobertajones]

I'm behind on meta so please feel free to ignore this if it's been already talked about, but I thought it was interesting how - as weird or sort of unusual that fight scene was with dean and the demon, or at least i don't recall anything like it - by making it look sexual and obviously violent, it kinda parallelled Mary's struggle with that asshole hunter. What weirds me out is that it puts Sam & Lucifer in the same role of saviour which is never good, but maybe they just wanted to connect them

like that bc they both want a connection w/ Jack, maybe even see themselves in Jack, who knows lucifer;s side, since they were unable to provide dialogue 4 him besides repeating how Mary is weak bc she gets tired & is all humany and they need to get out and he might need her. ANYWAY, shitty writing aside, do u think it was a parallel and if so what are they trying to say? Was it to show that maybe Sam’s intentions aren’t the purest either, not in an evil way but like bc he’s so intent on gettingMary back that he might be blind - for different reasons than Dean - to Jack as a person? He’s trying so hard & almost doesn’t even entertain the thought that Jack might be corrupted by his power at some point, or by Hell which we see almost happens bc of lack of info. Sam seems to hold on to as much hope as he can, while Dean is at the opposite end of the spectrum (hmm I wonder who could balance it out?). But what do you think of Sam having been weirdly aligned w/ Hell like, he even unwittinglygave the info to Amodeous about how powerful Jack is, while Dean, without even trying, seems to be Jack’s role model for Good (& I love how Jack has a Dean decoder built in) and he even throws him a Bible to read (which, if presented without commentary can be risky, he’s better off reading the Supernatural books, but still, it’s the Holy Book).

Hi! What an ask :D Also I am ALSO so behind on meta so I’m just going to answer this like it’s all new to us, sorry everyone who has already been over this, me and anon are going through this together ;)

To go through chronologically because I’m super tired so I need to break this down…

Yeah, awesome weird fight scene. I loved it - Tink said something about them having a new fight coordinator? There’s been 2 incredible fights back to back for Dean so far and I’m loving it. This one was great I think with the director as well - I feel like he of all of them takes liberties with BL scripts and puts in extra nuance and missing implications that their writing didn’t pick up… He’s 99% responsible for the crypt scenes for example, and in 11x21 included ALL the nuance that made the longing retcon magic happen between Amara, Cas and Dean, just by visual implications. He also super digs the prison imagery and bunker porn and generally using the locations really well… I don’t know much about all the different directors but I’ve learned that seeing his name means it’s time to get excited and nerdy about what I’m going to SEE :D

So yeah, good combo. It made a great parallel with Mary’s fight which I liked first of all just for the Mary and Dean paralleling, especially as she needs connections back to the main storyline just for asserting she still exists, because as you say it was pretty bad writing especially around Mary in that episode, where she just dragged herself around after Lucifer and needed saving. Putting Dean in a parallel situation somewhat defuses it in overall handling of the nonsense, even if I don’t like that it was written this way in the first place. I have still not had time to explore my dash much but I hope people have been making posts about the parallels to female fight scenes, especially Black Widow in the marvel movies… In my notes I just commented he was straddling people to death and left it at that (even though that obviously wasn’t what he was doing - it was a shorthand for the fight style :P) but really it also mirrored 10x15 and Dean in that weirdly charged scenario with whatisface, where he got straddled and had the worm coming out Cole’s throat while leaning over him etc and it put Dean in a very submissive role to all that. In the same way, having Dean fight back by getting his legs around the guy and ending the fight literally *cowering* on a bed with the demon standing over him with the phallic knife, was a fascinating staging of power dynamics where he actually looked more vulnerable than Mary did.

I think Lucifer nice guy’d it - he said he needed Mary and when she wouldn’t go along with him, immediately started whining more and hurt Mary just to make her complacent and remind her that he was still in charge and more powerful than her. Sam of course has no such dynamic with Dean, but I think overall he’s going to be more assertive this season and carrying on - according to the PR - with having more of a leadership role in the dynamic. He’s definitely making the better choices right now while Dean urgently needs a personal day or six. So I think first and foremost it’s a compare and contrast rather than a direct parallel. There’s a great gifset I reblogged somewhere or other about Lucifer in 12x23 saying hurr blurr I can’t raise my son from a prison cell, and then Sam in the cell with Jack just captioned “HOLD MY BEER”, and Sam currently is the only positive father figure - and actually the ONLY father figure *on the board* for Jack, since the pool is Cas - dead, Lucifer - in the AU, Dean - not interested right now… Meaning Jack is pretty much Sam’s sole responsibility and the Lucifer vs Sam stuff may be being played as an oppositional thing. So Lucifer being a dick to Mary after saving her but doing it conditionally and in an attempt to make her go along with him (and that he only wants her to trade for Jack anyway) vs Sam just saving Dean because they love and trust each other already forevers and there being no terms and conditions except for not wanting his brother dead for well duh reasons is… nice. 

But yeah it does also put Sam in a weird place where he’s being paralleled to Lucifer in any way and he has that long history with him. And I think by and large this is supposed to be positive for Sam and all but I agree with you that Sam can and maybe will fuck it up, and being oblivious to the dangers is the main way. In the “Donatello” conversation he doesn’t notice that Donatello switched from “Jack’s nature wins” to “let’s try moulding him” which was Asmodeus’s idea (and Sam’s) - but because Asmodeus was AGREEING with Sam and Sam was assuming he meant for the better, then he didn’t notice that Donatello was suddenly agreeing with him.

I think it’s pretty inevitable Jack’s going to have some sort of wobble - we’ve seen Lucifer is a tiny bit in his head even if he already picked Cas as his father and it’s clear he has a good heart, Asmodeus showed how easily some trickery and the path of good intentions can open a portal to hell (aww season 4 Sam) and that is something Sam himself has to deal with and his his hugest character thing overall - his arc led to that, and then on the other side of it has been about repenting for it and feeling awful that this was what he was basically raised to do >.> He should hopefully be a good influence on Jack to guide him away from repeating his mistakes but only if he can see the problem in the first place.

(Also yeah I love Sam and I’m excited and positive for his relationship with Jack but like you I think we do need to think about the problems, Sam’s lack of experience, this being a complicated time for him to take charge of a thing when historically almost every time he has been in a position of responsibility or strength he’s fucked it up when handling things himself, or else gone down some really dark paths… I think he CAN help Jack and ultimately WILL but that doesn’t mean it might not be rough along the way and I think people need to be prepared for that if they’re getting invested in it… Maybe even more so than the people who want Dean to be good with Jack and are getting upset about how hard it is because in a way that is a much more obvious problem and we were warned about it from the start, while Sam and Jack seems like such a good and pure thing it might be easy to let your guard down that the show can easily insert trouble and darkness into it…)

I wonder if there will be some tension to come between Sam and Dean about Jack kinda latching onto Dean though? Because I’ve wondered before that he is the moral centre of the show and Jack was mimicking him because he’s sort of needing Dean’s approval too, not just in a survival way but because Dean is so SURE of what is right, so being like Dean is default being right. (I think Sam has said something similar in 3x07 about always following Dean around trying to be like him when he was young? In that “i know when you’re scared” argument) And of course Dean being so sure of what is right and Jack not meeting that standard by default has been a massive part of why Jack levelled up in Winchester self-doubt and self-hatred in just a few days. Took less than a week to ruin him and Dean’s standards are probably a large part of it >.> So yeah, I hope Sam understands all the nuance of why Jack might have been mimicking/idolising Dean when Sam is the one trying to be the positive role model to Jack, just because he knows the force of Dean’s personality. I hope he doesn’t take it as a bad reflection on himself, ESPECIALLY if/when Jack fucks up as I feel will inevitably happen. 

I think it does sort of reflect Sam and Dean’s long-standing alignments though… I just remember the season 6 poster where Sam has the snake and Dean has a literal freakin’ halo because subtlety? What is that? :P

[cupidsbower]

I'm still living the life where you get home and open the fridge and there's half a pot of yogurt and a half a can of flat Coca-Cola. ~Alan Rickman

Supernatural 12x08 LOTUS, and 12x09 First Blood.

Okay, I’m just gonna be right up front with this -- I’m not a huge fan of either of these episodes. I thought maybe the slight feeling of meh I felt for 12x08 was just end-of-year tiredness, so I held off on the review and had a holiday. But I found 12x08 similarly meh, and also sexist and racist which needless to say I’m not keen on.

LOTUS

I thought having Lucifer possess the President was a fantastic concept, and I loved all the scenes with Lucifer acting that part -- they had some lovely resonances with current US politics that didn’t come over as trying to hard. I loved the nephilim plotline too, and look forward to seeing where it goes. Typical that a man-shaped being should take credit for creating life -- I laughed a lot at Lucifer’s hubris on that. He didn’t fall far from the tree, so to speak. That whole attitude fits in well with the gender themes that have been developing since Amara’s return. It also reaffirms my suspicions that Toni’s child is not-quite-human, and I hope that plot thread is picked up again soon too.

I was less thrilled with the stock-standard, “I can’t abort my baby,” thingo. I really wish an American show would go somewhere new with that and actually consider the option of abortion with some seriousness that doesn’t automatically default to it being unthinkable, even if the choice is then made not to. The default of “I can’t” is just so useless as a storytelling device. Why bother to have a nephilim plot and not actually wring all the drama out of it? (I know why, I’m just tired of it.) Anyway, this plot still has potential to rise above that moment of church-sanctioned sexism, so I’m in wait-and-see mode.

I also really liked the potential of the Winchesters ending up in government hands, given their history and the records that must still exist. But more on that when I get to First Blood.

There wasn’t much else I really liked. I suspect we’re seeing the consequences of so many new writers on the show this season, combined with Supernatural’s comparatively small budget. But the final act of the episode just felt off to me in subtle ways -- the action felt lackluster, there were too few agents checking things out, I didn’t buy the convenient timing of the arrest, or the splitting up of the team when it wasn’t really required. Little things in themselves, but they all added up -- a stronger writer could have masked them better. Meh. It had potential to be good, but it was just a bit wishy-washy instead.

First Blood

I will admit, I was pretty damn excited by this episode’s title. There’s so much media and political history associated with the Rambo movies, and so many ways they could have been invoked in the episode to excellent effect.

For a start, the very first film, First Blood itself, is about post-traumatic stress disorder in a combat vet, social isolation and poverty as a result of that, persecution at the hands of biased and totalitarian authorities, and the toll of toxic masculinity. It’s rich stuff, and a surprisingly good film all things considered. There’s a reason it spawned big-budget sequels, and the character of Rambo was co-opted in the Reagan era as a kind of masculine fantasy ideal.

There’s a strong resonance between all these things and the ongoing themes in Supernatural. Hence my excitement.

Sadly, though, the allusions to First Blood stayed at a pretty superficial level. Yes, we had persecution at the hands of totalitarian authorities, and we had Sam and Dean taking out a squad of soldiers in a forest. But... ugh, I don’t even really know where to start.

Okay, lets start with the taking soliders out thing. It’s meant to show us that Sam and Dean are actually hardened soldiers too, who have been fighting in a war since their twenties, and against opponents who hit far harder than any human soldier. Not only that, they have consistently won despite the odds being against them. It was on point that Crowley reminded us that he’s the only villain who has ever taken them seriously, and that everyone who doesn’t ends up dust. The Winchesters are scary, and the version we viewers see is the “fluffy” insider perspective, so it’s easy to forget just how hard-core they are.

It really isn’t out of the realms of possibility for Sam and Dean to take out a squad of special ops agents, and even to do it without actively trying to kill any of them, and for them to be chillingly efficient as they go about it. But as with the last episode, these agents came across more as Keystone Cops than what they are meant to be -- the cream of America’s secret ops working directly for the President. Are Sam and Dean hardened soldiers who can take on demons and angels and punch well above their weight, and so are far more competent than special ops agents once their paths do cross? Or are they just lucky to be fighting poorly trained also-rans? Mixed messages, show, very mixed messages.

I think I was so frustrated by this, because the episode didn’t start off quite so obviously making the agents ridiculous -- the “sit and stew in isolation” thing was genuinely solid, and made me wonder how long before the Winchesters cracked. So to fritter that tension away on a pretty ordinary action scene just felt unsatisfying. I was expecting something a bit closer -- uncomfortably so -- to Dean’s action sequences in Purgatory. That would have really rammed the message home that the Winchesters are serious business.

But that’s actually small potatoes as gripes go -- some writers just aren’t that great at action. It happens.

My biggest gripe for this episode came at the end. It was obvious from early on that Sam and Dean had made a deal. Okay, fine. I could have gone with that as an interesting complication. I was even interested to see the escalation of Mary throwing her hat in the ring of Winchester-self-sacrifice. We’ve all been expecting developments along those lines, so some foreshadowing here for a greater test later on was expected.

Mind you, I would have been super-astoundingly angry if they had fridged Mary again in this episode -- frothing at the mouth angry -- giving up the show angry. Her place in the myth-arc is too central to end her return in such a light-weight way. I’d honestly prefer if they never fridge her again, but at the very least, she deserves an actualised death that’s about her, and not her sons.

Like I say, I could have been interested in this set-up -- the complication of another deal, made in full knowledge of the price, and Mary showing us that Winchester self-sacrificial streak that has caused so much harm. But instead I’m just disappointed and cross. What the fuckety fuck are the writers thinking with this whole Billie and Castiel bullshit?

Let’s consider the best possible light first. Sam had his demon-blood arc, and Dean had his Mark of Cain arc, and a lot has been made of Castiel being a Winchester, so yes, alright. I guess. His previous dark-side path was made for the right reasons, as Raphael was about the re-start the apocalypse, and the Leviathan thing wasn’t really an active choice on his part. So there’s an argument to be made that Billie’ death is Castiel’s first blood, as it’s a murder for personal gain, instead of being the best of a bad lot of choices. In the best possible light, this is the first step of Castiel’s demon arc, and within the show we’ve learned that kind of path can really only be stopped and redeemed by love. It’s also an escalation of the plotline about Castiel’s post-traumatic stress disorder and isolation, which I’ve been waiting for. The show has never really dealt with the fact that angels run on faith, and Castiel is an angel who has not only rebelled against Heaven for Humanity, but has lost faith in his father. I’m as keen as the next person to see it acknowledged that he has an unhealthy dependence on his faith in Dean as a result. There are potentially good things being set up by this development, if it means we’re going to delve more into Castiel as a character.

But! But. But but butbutbut...

It felt like a cheat. Tell me it didn’t. You can’t right? It felt like the writer had written themselves into a corner and decided shock value was the best way out of it. I know, they thought to themselves, I’ll have Castiel murder someone because he’s feeling unloved! I bet they sniggered, deus ex machina, as they wrote the stabbing.

Ugh. I hate that kind of writing.

And if it were any other secondary character but Billie I might still be okay with it. But it was Billie, so I’m not. Billie offered the Winchesters a straight-up deal that they asked for. It’s been pretty clearly established ever since she was introduced that she’s a neutral supernatural force -- not someone like Zachariah who played fast and loose with the rules, or a demon like Ruby with her own covert agenda. Yes, her bailiwick is death, and that’s intrinsically scary, and she made no secret of being irritated by the Winchesters cheating it, either. But she was a straight-dealer despite that. SHE DID NOT DESERVE TO BE STABBED IN THE BACK.

Which isn’t even getting into the fact that she was a recurring black woman character. Killing her in such a way was just as shitty as Charlie’s death, and for many of the same kinds of reasons.

Even if they revive her (they fucking better) and bring her back pissed off and an antagonist, it won’t really make up for yet another black woman being killed off for plot convenience. Ugh.

UGH.

I’m also not really all that keen on this as a path for Castiel, despite my best-case reading above. It just feels like more of the same-old, instead of finding a new story to tell. :(

In short, I haven’t yet hit my NOPE limit with this move, but the show has some brownie points to earn in the next few eps in order to keep my interest. It’s officially on notice.

Not fridging any more women or other minorities would be a fucking good start.

Previously:

The Ministry of Information vs Wayward Sons Carrying On (12x01)

My, my, how can I resist you? (12x02) and follow-up about Bohemian Raphsody

So what am I so afraid of? (I think I love you) (12x03)

I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy Down in my heart (Where?) (12x04) and a follow-up about the codependency and about Dean’s self-flagellation and issues with space

There can be only one! (12x05), and a follow-up conversation with elizabethrobertajones on Freud vs Schwartz.

They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes (12x06)  

Presenting the Immaculate Heart Reunion Tour (12x07)          

[tinkdw]

You know Dean's confession scene? Do you think they're ever gonna come back to that and tell us explicitly what it meant? Maybe have it in a recap before an episode? I know for me, it was a reference to his sexuality. But I'm wondering if they'll ever talk about it again for the more general audiences.

Here's my main meta post on this confession scene.

Well, basically it has been coming back up over and over again throughout all of seasons 10-12 as it thematically is just a part of the overall Performing!Dean narrative which has been key to the whole show since then culminating in 12x22...but yeah perhaps they will make a reference that is more explicit.... idk!

I mean... we got this in 11x20-23...

Then:

“What if I said I... I didn't want to die...yet, you know, that I wasn't ready? .... I guess I just thought sooner or later, I'd go out the same way that I live -- pedal to the metal, and that would be it. But now? Now, um... Recent...events, uh... make me think I might be closer to that than I really thought. 

And... I don't know. I mean, you know, there's -- there's things, there's...people, feelings that I-I-I want to experience differently than I have before, or maybe even for the first time. 

Go a little deeper, perhaps, than with Gina. 

Yeah. Yeah, I'm just starting to think that... maybe there's more to it all than I thought.”

*TINK LOOKS INTO THE CAMERA* 

This is basically setting up for the massive build up of Dean’s self awareness / self acceptance arc for the whole of seasons 11-12. A huge part of this is deciding that he deserves more, that he deserves to be saved, to live, as he has learned now and is also a big part of why I was so excited to see Dean’s reaction to Mary in 12x14, because he is saying HE DESERVES MORE. HALLELUJAH! That was the moment that swung me to being SURE that his arc was coming to a climax in season 12 and wow did it, it was amazing.

This confession also blatantly refers to Cas as the person he has feelings for that are different to ever before, and his wanting something more with him, a relationship, no more one night stands, especially when you add in all the aspects of said self awareness / self acceptance arc with Amara revealing his love for Cas is stronger than her own bond with him, the wise woman figure telling him that he is pining for Cas, how the waitresses he’s settling for are no longer cutting it, it’s almost like it never happened, the fact that Cas is now dead and he has to face it now....

Then also later... let's not forget:

I don't think he WANTS to quit the life but it is so interesting that he even contemplates it at this point...

And yeah, now this arc that kind of kick started at this point in 10x16 has come to a climax in 12x22, it’s now time for a change in how they do things... 

Dean Winchester DID die in 12x22... metaphorically, so it’s time for a new chapter :D