#i'm honestly not sure if i still care about season 5

[madlori]

Ok my fam, I think we all need a lil Come to Jesus moment. So let's talk about it.

"I'm disappointed Tommy wasn't in 8x02 and 8x03." That's ok! We'd all like to see him, and see our boys together. Going by precedent, we can probably expect to see him in 6-8 episodes this season (it could be more - Taylor had 13 episodes in season 5 - but we shouldn't count on it) and we've already burned one. I'd prefer not to have half of them during the opening disaster when SO MUCH ELSE is going on. I'd rather him appear in episodes when he's got a storyline with Buck, or even on his own, and especially at the midseason break or the end of the season when Relationship Events are more likely to happen.

"But the 217 engine!" I know. But as we sometimes like to say to other fans - we kind of baited ourselves with that. It was suggestive, sure. But the fact that production has MADE a 217 engine is also suggestive that we may see it again later, and they just put it in the hangar scene because they already had it and they had to fill up that hangar with as many vehicles as possible.

"An airplane disaster without using the pilot??" As others have pointed out, Tommy's not a jet pilot. And don't let anybody make you think you were nuts for thinking it was possible. It was definitely a reasonable theory, with supporting evidence, that he might be involved, but in the end, the big opening disaster is always going to be about our mains. As it should be. And honestly? It was great.

"But the whole point of bringing him back was to integrate him with the 118 more!" I'm sure that's still a goal they have, but it's probably easier said than done. Not just from a writing standpoint, but a contractual one, in that there's a limit to how often they can use him, so they have to pick and choose where.

"It's like they don't care about this relationship as much as we do." You're right. NOBODY will care about it as much as we do. They care about the main characters, about the show's actual premise (i.e. first responders encountering wild situations, secondarily the characters' personal lives). There is no universe in which ANY relationship in the show will be prioritized as much as we, the fandom, would like it to be. That's just life in the big city. But they do care, oh boy, they do. Enough to use BT scenes in off-season promo. Enough to write Tommy into a scene in the opening episode where, frankly, he didn't NEED to be. Also, consider this - to shoot that scene, Lou was probably on set a grand total of one day, MAYBE two. And they made sure to include him in the jokey "bee pickup lines" reel. You know what other relationship we haven't seen much? Buddie. They have not appeared together outside of work (and honestly, barely AT work either) except in the birthday party scene, and hey, did you notice that they do not interact at ALL in that scene? Buck spends that entire scene interacting only with Tommy. And that's a friendship featuring two mains that we know they value. That's not indicative of anything except the sheer scarcity of screentime.

"They should be promoting the queer relationship!" Should they? They've never really done that before, with the several pre-existing queer relationships. I have always sort of appreciated that they have not hung a neon sign on Buck and Tommy saying LOOK AT OUR NEW QUEER PAIRING. It's never gotten the Very Special Episode treatment - Buck never had gay panic, or much coming-out drama - and I like that. I like treating it no differently than other romantic pairings on the show. And they did actually promote it quite a bit when it happened. Now it would just feel kinda performative to me.

"Will he be in [whatever episode]?" Imma gently suggest we not do this every week. He'll be there or he won't. There'll be some we know he's in (I think 8x06 is a lock), some we won't know and will be pleasantly surprised, or unpleasantly surprised. I'd say odds for 8x04 are...20%, rising to at least 50% with 8x05 and 100% for 8x06.

And if you ever feel sad about it - go look at a still of Buck from any episode so far this season, and say to yourself, "This man is having heaps of amazing sex with his hot pilot boyfriend on the regular. Canonically."

I know a lot of us have encountered some pretty irritating gloating from people who hate this relationship (in a frankly weirdly obsessive way) about him being not there. Just remember - that's all they have to gloat about. The only "victory" they can claim is the absence of a character? Lame. And it's not even a victory, it's just the cost of doing business when your ship involves a recurring character. Sit back and enjoy your canon relationship between two men who've actually kissed on screen and ignore it. We can be generous about it.

So let's not talk ourselves off the deep end, shall we? I'd like to keep being a reasonable fandom.

[starguardianniom]

Not gonna lie I'm still really pissed above and beyond about Gabriel's wish at the end of season 5.

Especially since he's being able to do it and instead wish for something else entirely anyway.

Like, for 5 seasons he wanted to bring back Emilie so Adrien could have his mother again.

He ends up instead going to join her in the afterlife and let Nathalie take care of Adrien instead.

He selfishly decided to not give Adrien back his mom but instead make him an orphan and have someone else do the job for him just so he could be with his love, so his feelings mattered more than Adrien's I guess. Given all the talk about Adrien needing his mother, oh well he can keep Nathalie instead. He could have legit healed Emilie and brought her back in Adrien's life and given what we see in Werepapas she seems to have been nice and just wanting her family together rather than obsessing over magical jewels and getting back her health, clearly the only adult in the house with reason.

Heck, Nathalie was dead in the end, he brought her back so he could simply go without remorse with Emilie.

I kind of hope that even if he's dead, he still went in hell separating him forever from Emilie.

Because honestly I doubt that Emilie would take him back in death after knowing what he did.

I feel she wouldn't be proud, as he wasted 99% of his screentime not caring about Adrien much when she wanted him to be there for him and he screwed it up, and if he did, he later took it back, and especially in season 5 where it was more emotional manipulation than love.

Hell I will say Gabriel ain't related to Adrien, he was made from his amok by Emilie and she had him for nine months in herself, Gabriel had no participation in it, unless you count that Emilie used her feelings of love toward Gabriel to create Adrien, but still, I consider him his step dad instead of his dad because one, honestly true that Adrien was made by magic and by Emilie alone with the Peacock miraculous so Gabriel did nothing except giving the peacock to her, whereas Felix was created by Colt, and Amelie also had him for nine months before giving birth to him, so Felix really does have a dad, Adrien doesn't much. Gabriel is married to his mother but he's more like his step dad.

And you know what, after seeing Werepapas, I feel we finally had the real reason for why Adrien was homeschooled, it was to keep Emilie company while Gabriel and Nathalie were trying to find the miraculouses.

That's honestly in equal parts sweet and sad. On one hand he got to be really close to her before her death years later, on the other hand it still made him really isolated from the world and he couldn't really be a normal kid while also being alone with his ill mother and being there the entire time she slowly was dying for his entire childhood and seeing her getting worse over the years, while his dad was too busy trying to save her than trying to spend what little time they had left, that's depressing as fuck.

And Gabriel in the end just ends up prioritizing his own feelings over Adrien's, he dies and let Emilie die and let Nathalie handle the rest without a thought about what she has to say about it, sure Emilie was fine with Nathalie being there for him when she would be gone and I find it sweet, but also, also, still Gabriel's decision just comes from selfishness.

Though I still find it weird, because given season 1 Nathalie seemed like one of the most cold person around, for someone who is supposed to have been motherly to Adrien since he was young, the fact that she decides to just steal Marinette's gift to give to Adrien on behalf of Gabriel when he's angry at her for not making him remember about it, making it also look like she forgot about it and didn't care, and apparently probably also didn't give Adrien a gift herself either, well, it looks weird. Or just the writers forgot that Nathalie was pretty much more an employee and assistant than family back in season 1. Also there's the line where Adrien said that he always gets pencils from his dad so the scarf was a nice surprise, suggesting Nathalie has been secretly giving him pencils in his father's name for years, yeah, weird.

I guess that after using the peacock she tried to make the best with what little time she had left and tried to do right by Adrien.

Probably why Gabriel revived her while he went in the afterlife with Emilie, because she was doing everything he should have toward Adrien, and he knew he couldn't do that, but appreciated that she did, and felt like she deserved another chance and that Adrien would be in good hands with her. That's about the only reason I could see why he changed his wish at the end, because he knew Nathalie redeemed herself while she still had time while he was too far gone, so he decided that he didn't deserves to be with Adrien while she did and thus saved her. Possibly. It's the only selfless explanation that I could give to him for doing that, though I also feels it's still too little too late from him and makes him come across as a selfish, cowardly bastard that just runs away from his responsabilities to happily join his wife in death and let someone else clean up his messes.

[fandomwe1rd0]

Rick and Morty's dynamic for each season! I finally finished it!

THIS POST IS VERY VERYY LONG, THE WHOLE POST IS UNDER THE CUT

Heyyy, happy Easter to my followers! This is my easter gift for y’all! Don’t say I never do anything for you! Sooo, since I reached 300 followers! I love you all, by the way! Mwah! Mwah! And to celebrate, I made a poll to ask you guys what you'd like me to do, anddd you said that you'd like me to make an overanalysis of Rick and Morty's dynamic each season! This doesn't exactly surprise me; a lot of people said that they followed me because of my analysis! So this doesn't surprise me too much! And this will be the 2,000th post on my account! I honestly never expected to keep this blog going for this long, but I'm glad I did! Because if I didn't, I would've never met so many kind people! Okay, okay, enough with the sappy stuff before I turn into a tree (I stole that joke from a youtube, who did I steal it from? I'll never tell! Mwah-ha-ha- wha-? This is a Wendys? Oh uhm yeah of course, sorry) Now let's jump into it starting from the beginning!

~ Season 1 ~

Okay, let's begin with them in season 1! This was definitely their dynamic at their most exploitative, I'd say. In episode 1 alone, we see that Rick:

1. Barges into Morty's room while he's sleeping and DRAGS HIM OUT OF BED BY HIS ANKLE so they can go on an adventure

2. Drags Morty out of school so he can help him on an adventure, then pressures Morty when he's hesitant

3. Didn't care when Morty's legs broke due to Rick not telling him something, then acted like it was Morty's fault for not knowing information that Rick didn't give him, and only fixed Morty's legs when he was rightfully pissed at him

4. Encourages Morty to stick megaseeds up his uh...bottom so they can smuggle them through interdimensional customs, then didn't do anything when they dissolved, which made Morty lose his motor skills and brain functionality for 72 hours

5. Lied to Morty about the security guards being robots, so Morty shoots them, and showed no sympathy for Morty when he was horrified that he shot them

6. Used Morty's temporary super intelligence so he could get himself out of trouble, then ranted to Morty, telling him that he will keep his mouth shut about their adventures

And that was in the first episode alone, and we can clearly see that he has very little to no respect for Morty. Only using him for adventures and not caring about Morty's feelings or autonomy, outright forcing him to go on adventures when he doesn't want to. Even in Rick's worst season (season 4), he never forces Morty to go on adventures with him, even if he is mean or annoyed when Morty doesn't want to. It's pretty safe to say that for the first few episodes of season 1, he didn't even see Morty as a person but instead as a tool that is useful for adventures.

We see him again, disregarding Morty's autonomy in episode 3. Dragging Morty away from a family Christmas without making sure he's ok with it. Even insulting Morty's intelligence for literally no reason afterward. Calling his brain his "little walnut" and casually mentioning to him that he has to hold his breath before he minimizes him or his organs will collapse. He also minimizes Morty's girlfriend in this episode, keeping Morty isolated and preventing him from having a relationship with someone his age. We see him doing something similar when he drags Morty away from Jessica at the end of episode 1. While I heavily doubt that Rick is grooming Morty (For non-sexual reasons, ofc), and if he is, that's not what the writer intended; he does fit the isolating step disturbingly well. However, he is most likely doing this to keep Morty dependent on him and not to groom him. It's still fucked up either way.

Then we see him disregard Morty's autonomy yet again in episode 4, where he drags Morty out of class, speaking for Morty when Mr. Goldenfold says if Morty leaves he's giving him an F. (Granted, Rick knew that this wasn't real, but he knew that Morty didn't know that, and believed that Morty was real) 

Mr Goldenfold: If he leaves, I'm giving him an F!

Rick: He doesn't care!

Now, Rick does actually care about Morty in season one and has episodes where he shows that, but these are few and far between, and the bad in this season heavily outweighs the good, but for argument's sake, I will point them out.

1. Episode 4, he gets angry and protective when he finds out that aliens watched Morty while he was...uncovered, even attempts to lunge at them for doing so, which is sweet considering that Jerry, Morty's dad, didn't give 2 flying fucks.

2. Episode 5, comforts Morty after what happened with Mr. Jellybean, and even kills Mr. Jellybean for the sick shit he did, which is absolutely deserved.

3. Episode 9, Rick was happy to see Morty when he was alone at the Smith's house, but quickly covered it up because feelings are for losers, ig. 

4. Episode 10, Rick angrily tells the other Ricks to "leave my Morty out of this" when they take him to the council.

5. Episode 11 has cute bonding moments with Summer and Morty at the end of the episode.

Now, Rick, despite still caring about Morty, was very exploitative and saw Morty more like a tool he can use on an adventure instead of a person. A good example of this is this exchange in episode 10

Morty: Oh my god, Rick! There's a bunch of people strapped to that building!

Rick: Not people, Morty...Mortys.

Soooo yeah, that line straight up shows that at this moment, he didn't see Morty as a person, he even admitted to fiddling with the concept of torturing Mortys to hide from other Ricks (He says that he did it "On paper" but we can see when the memories are scanned that he did do this) and he took a voucher for a free replacement Morty. Again, showing that he saw Morty more as a tool that can be replaced easily, and not a real person...but that was until...

~ Season 2 ~

We're at Season 2, baby! Now, Rick and Morty's dynamic was still toxic in season 2, but Rick is finally seeing, or at the very least starting to see, Morty as a person rather than a tool. A VERY good example of this is in the very first episode, A Rickle In Time, I'm sure if you've watched the show, you know what scene I'm going to bring up, the scene where Rick, without hesitation, gives Morty his time collar. This is a huge moment. Also, in that episode, the timeline splits whenever a character is uncertain about something, and when Rick gave Morty his time collar, letting himself be stuck in a timeless oblivion so Morty will be ok. And his literal only request was that Morty be a better person than him. 

While this scene is adorable and is the only proof that you need to see how much Rick truly cares about Morty, it also shows that he still sees himself as "above" Morty in some way, due to his delusional god complex, which was still strong here. Considering that he said, "Be better than me," saying that he doesn't see Morty as above him, it could be implied that he sees Morty as equal in this scene, but considering how he treats Morty in this season, I doubt it. Now, in this season, Rick is definetily less exploitative. He still doesn't treat Morty great, but he doesn't exploit him as much as he did in season 1. 

Now, this isn't to say he treats Morty well; he still emotionally abuses him regularly, not caring when Morty is hurt by what he said. Like in A Rickle in Time, when Morty tells him, "Words hurt!" and Rick has no reaction. He also insults him a lot in Mortynight Run, even when he thinks that Morty is hurt after Fart left. Completely willing to kick Morty down, and the way he does it so gleefully doesn't exactly help. He also wasn't worried about Morty when he left in These Ricks Must Be Crazy, which will wildly contrast season 3, where they went HARD on Rick caring about Morty. Not that I'm complaining! 

Rick also leaves Morty twice in this season, adding to Morty's abandonment issues, which, uh...isn't something a good grandpa would do. He fully meant to abandon Morty in Auto Erotic Assimulation, but only came back since Unity left him. He also left Morty to turn himself in in The Wedding Squanchers, which, whether Rick notices it or not, is a common manipulation tactic for codependency. Showering someone with attention, then leaving, which will make people so desprate for more attention that they will quickly become depedent on you, which is what Rick did here, although I am pretty sure it wasn't intentional, as he did what he did out of a desire for the Smith family to have a normal life, after he heard Beth crying saying that she'll let Rick do whatever he wants because she doesn't want him to leave again. I refuse to believe that was a cold, calculated move, as I doubt that he would want to willingly relive his trauma in the season 3 premiere. But whether Rick intended it or not, he did use this manipulation tactic, which caused Morty to become very codependent on him, since I would argue that he wasn't as codependent in earlier seasons as he is in later seasons. Especially considering that Morty threatened to kill Rick in Look Who's Purging now.

This is where tension starts to build in their relationship, and we see more of Morty's seething anger towards Rick and repressed rage. Rick is aware of Morty's repressed rage, but doesn't do anything about it, making Morty believe that he doesn't have it at the end of the episode by lying to him that a candy bar he ate amplified his violent tendencies. This may seem sweet, and in a way, it is, since Rick did this to clear Morty's conscience. But Morty deserves to know about his repressed rage so he can do something about it and work on it. But Rick is inherently keeping this information from Morty, making the inherent power dynamic they have, considering it's a younger family member and an older family member, even more unhealthy. Since Rick knows something big about Morty that Morty doesn't know about himself, Rick is purposefully keeping this information away from him. Although we never see Rick attempt to exploit Morty's repressed rage, keeping something this big from him isn't ok.

Again, Rick still cares about Morty in this season, sacfricing himself to save Morty, saving Morty in Mortynight Run, although he bitched and complained, being worried about Morty when Unity blew up a town, watching a movie with Morty and Summer and happily getting ice cream with them, etc., etc.

We do get more moments of him and Morty caring about each other and bonding since Rick is seeing Morty as a person instead of a tool he uses on adventures, but their dynamic is still heavily unhealthy with a huge power imbalance, and has Rick making Morty's codependency on him worse.

So while Rick exploits Morty less and is finally seeing Morty as a person, their dynamic is still very unhealthy, with a huge power imbalance and codependency galore. Now, let's get to season 3!

~ Season 3 ~

In season 3, we not only get more tension with Rick and Morty's relationship, with Morty shooting Rick in the head and yelling "Who's stupid now bitch!?" To be fair, it was a fake gun, but Morty didn't know that. Morty also tricks Rick into taking Jerry on an adventure since he just wanted a break from the adventures. But we also see the codependency leak into other parts of Morty's life. Morty starts to have repressed rage towards Jerry, as we see him attacking people while pretending that they are Jerry in Rickmancing the Stone.

You may be wondering how this has anything to do with his relationship to Rick, while codepedency can lead to estrangened relationships with other family members (https://castimonia.org/2021/09/05/codependent-families-family-roles-whats-yours/) since family members may struggle for power, which is something we see Jerry do with Rick, another reason why Morty may have repressed rage towards Jerry is because people who are codepedent on others may adopt their opinions on the belief that it'll give them validation (https://codependencyrecovery.org/2022/11/04/worrying-what-other-people-think/) so another reason could be because Morty recogonized that Rick hates Jerry and adopted that same opinion without realizing it, causing him to seethe in anger before his repressed rage for Jerry formed. It could also be his way of getting his repressed rage out by taking it out on unrelated people, he literally said this in season 3 episode 2, "What if we...didn't do it? What if we just went back to the blood dome and kept taking our baggage out on unrelated people?"

Rick also isolates Morty more with his season 3 premiere speech.

"I just took over the family, Morty! And if you tell your mom and sister I said any of this, I'll deny it! And they'll take my side because I'm a hero, Morty! Now you'll have to go and do whatever I say, Morty! FOREVER!"

This is a common manipulation tactic. Making your victim believe that nobody will believe them, so they may as well not even bother telling anyone, also burdening your victim with a big secret, and expecting them to keep it, which allows the abuser to hold more power over their victim. He knows that Beth has abandonment issues and knows that she'll take Rick's side if Morty tries to tell her just how dangerous his adventures with Rick are. It's chilling how many manipulation tactics Rick takes with Morty, to keep control over Morty and to keep Morty codependent on him. 

Now, for Rick, this makes sense; he craves control. This codependency is something that Rick doesn't get, he's uncertain about it, and it doesn't make sense to him, so he tries to control Morty so he can regain the feeling he likes of having everything under control. He also sees that Rick KNOWS that doing these manipulation tactics is giving him control over Morty, which makes it VERY unlikely that he's doing these on accident, as he says this to Morty when he's in his toxic form in season 3 episode 6:

"You can die when I say so! I control you! I control the universe!"

We also see just how badly Rick's emotional abuse affected Morty, with toxic Morty being HEAVILY insecure, saying things including but not limited to:

"I don't want to be on camera, I'm ugly and gross, please!" "I did it, Rick! I got the tank! I'm a piece of shit, but I got the tank!" and "I think my voice is annoying"

We also see him agreeing with Toxic Rick with everything, something that emotional abuse victims tend to do to minimize abusive events, this becomes even more apparent when we find out that Mortys are breed to be as forgiving as possible, and a lot of emotional abuse victims tend to be forgiving towards their abusers (https://psychcentral.com/health/coercive-control#recap)

Morty also being heavily insecure is another sign of codependency, as when someone is codependent, their view of themselves is heavily tied to what the person they are codependent on thinks of them. Morty also saying that he dislikes confrontation in the episode could be tied to emotional abuse, or it could be that and a mix of codepedency, as people who are codepedent have self worth tied to the person they are codepedent on, and because of that will avoid conflicts with them since they want to be liked by them. (https://www.simplypsychology.org/signs-of-codependency.html)

Another thing I want to point out is Morty’s lack of boundaries with Rick. An example of this is in Rest and Ricklaxation. Rick goes to drag Morty out of school again, and at first Morty says no since he found out that Jessica was single, then Rick is dismissive of him, and continues to pressure him. Which Morty agrees to. Also in the season 3 garage rant, Rick repeatedly invades Morty’s personal space, and while Morty is clearly scared, he doesn’t do anything about it. This is a common sign of codependency (https://americanaddictioncenters.org/rehab-guide/family-members/codependent) We do see Morty begin setting boundaries with Rick in season 7, but after years of neglecting his own boundaries when it came to Rick, it will take a while to undo this. We also see this in season 1, with Morty being able to successfully share his boundaries with Jerry about coming to his room without knocking, while we see Rick do that exact thing multiple times, and Morty just lets it happen, not setting clear boundaries with Rick, letting Rick have more control over him. Now this is NOT Morty’s fault, as Rick is the one who got Morty codependent on him, but that’s just another way for Rick to control Morty, as Rick is a control freak.

This also seems to be the season where Rick's codependency on Morty gets worse, so he desperately tries to retaliate by controlling Morty more. An example of this is in episode 4, where he gets jealous of Morty seeing the vindicators as his heroes and not him. Rick probably doesn't feel this a lot, it's weird to him, he doesn't know why he cares so much about what Morty thinks, and why he's so mad at the thought of Morty seeing other people as his heros, so he does what he knows best, he goes to drink so he can numb himsef and feel like he's in control. 

Rick seems to crave control a lot; the reason for this most likely stems from his backstory, Diane and Beth dying from Rick Prime. This was a situation Rick wasn't in control of. In the few seconds he had to gain control, he was frozen in shock. In Rick's mind, their deaths were his fault because he didn't have any control over the situation, so he wants control over everything. He hates being uncertain and confused. His dynamic and codependency with Morty confuses him. He hates caring about others, scared that if he cares about people, they'll leave him, be put in danger because of him, or die. He cares about Morty. He should hate Morty, but he doesn't. It confuses him so much that he tries to control Morty as much as he can to combat this feeling, but it doesn't work. It never does. Rick also revisits the memory of Beth and Diane's death in the season 3 premiere, he is reminded of what happens when he doesn't have control at all times, people he loves die.

While season 1 was their dynamic at its most exploitative, seasons 3-4 were their dynamic as it's most controlling. Rick can feel the codependency becoming worse and tries to combat this with control, yet it still doesn't work. Let me quickly list off moments in season 3 where Rick attempts to control Morty.

1. Rickmancing the Stone attempts to push Morty into doing stuff he doesn't want to do and continues to push Morty to do the things, even when Morty doesn't want to. An example of this was him trying to push Morty to leave, even when Morty said that he wanted to stay. Or him volunteering Morty into the blood dome and not caring when Morty was mad at him for doing so.

2. Pickle Rick. He tries to manipulate Morty into lying for him. Saying this: "Morty, I assure you I would never 'find a way' to 'get out of' family therapy." 

3. Vindicators 3: Return of Worldender. Put the Vindicators into a SAW so Morty can see what horrible people they are and hopefully idealize Rick over them. He didn't actually want to kill the vindicators, but still.

4. Rest and Ricklaxation. Toxic Rick controls Toxic Morty for this whole episode, bossing him around and straight up saying, "I control you."

5. Morty's Mindblowers. Rick literally removes memories from Morty that make Rick come off as pathetic, are embarrassing for Rick, or even a moment where Morty gets the slightest bit of power over Rick. An example of this is when Morty made fun of Rick since Rick thought that "Take things for granted" was "Take things for grainte" or when Morty won a checkers game against Rick. Then acting like Morty was overreacting when Morty was rightfully pissed at Rick after he found out the truth.

But, Rick also slightly softens up in this season, letting himself be a little more relaxed with Morty, like when he always tells himself to just have a fun time with Morty at Atlantis. This was off-screen, but in the after-credits scene, it's clear that they both had a nice time and were fondly talking about their adventure together. Rick also takes Jerry on an adventure, despite not liking Jerry, because he thought Morty was genuinely worried about Jerry and wanted to make Morty happy. Even if he tries to brush this off by saying, "You know how Morty gets when he gets emotional, it impedes my work." We also see Rick and Morty geuinely enjoy Minecraft together, without Rick making any snide or backhanded remarks towards Morty, while this was their dynamic at it's most controlling, we also see them become more like friends...but then we reach season 4...ooo boy, aren't you in for a treat...

~ Season 4 ~

So in season 4, we get another attempt at Rick trying to control Morty with him trying to control Morty as usual, but he was trying to drag Morty on an adventure without caring about if Morty wanted to do it or not, but Beth actually stops him, since now she's having Rick ask Morty, giving Morty more autonomy, sadly though, it's not nearly enough considering how controlling Rick was of him in season 3, and this season. Morty did agree to the adventure, but when Rick died, Morty chose to let Rick stay dead so he could die with Jessica. Again, this shows the budding tension between them, with Morty coming to hate Rick, or at the very least not love him. This will change, though, as it tends to with codependency, as Morty will begin to trauma bond with Rick. 

Rick did 3 VERY fucked up things in season 4. I like to think of it as the fucked up triology. So, first he manipulates Morty into hating heist movies like him, so he doesn't get too busy with it to go on adventures in One Crew Coocco Over Morty. Gave Morty a BLACK EYE in Rattlestar Ricklatica, and traumatized Morty into being terrified of ever defying him again in Vat of Acid.

There are also very few moments where he cares about Morty here, 

He shields Morty in the premiere and has a cute garage rant with him.

Tells Morty that he loves him in the ending of Never Ricking Morty (We’re ignoring the lips if you want part, thank you very much! Although it is another good example of how Rick ignores Morty’s boundaries and Morty lets his boundaries be ignored)

He and Morty have a bonding moment in Promortyus.

And uhhh that’s about it! Now, let’s talk more about the fucked up shit he did because…whoo boy, is it MESSY.

Now, starting off with the heist episode, this is another attempt by Rick to get more control over Morty’s life, which sadly works. So, a quick refresher in case you forgot (I doubt it, what Rick did here is pretty infamous for good reason), Morty was writing a heist script, and because of that was flaking on adventures with Rick, which annoyed Rick to no end. Then, when he heard from Summer that Morty could get a Netflix deal, he heard 4 words that set off alarm bells in his head.

“You could lose him.”

Rick is also codependent on Morty, relying on him far more than anyone should rely on a 14-year-old. So the thought of losing Morty terrifies him, so he said that he would “Nip this in the bud” but luckily Beth butts in. Telling Rick that he won’t be doing anything bout it, and if Morty gives up, it better be his own choice, and not because of Rick. 

Now Rick hears this, and, like the emotionally stable, well-adjusted man he is, took this as he’s supposed to manipulate Morty into giving up on the dream, so he remains codependent on him and so Rick doesn’t lose him, as he is terrified of losing Morty, since he lost 2 people that were so, SO important to him, and Morty quickly became the most important person in his life after their death, so he would do anything not to lose him. Even if it means doing things that he knows would be damaging to Morty’s psyche.

This is what I mean when I say that Rick does love Morty, just not in the correct way. He loves Morty, but in a selfish way, as he doesn’t care about how his actions affect Morty, only wanting Morty to stay with him, no matter what the cost it may have on Morty’s psyche. Now, Rick does treat Morty better and cares more about how his actions affect Morty, but this realization came a little too late; his actions already damaged Morty immensely, and I don’t think Rick realizes this. As he never even considered that Morty’s greatest fear could have something to do with him in Fear No Mort, but we will get to that, TRUST ME. I don’t think Rick is being intentionally abusive, he’s just doing whatever he thinks he has to do to protect Morty, as he believes that caring for people is basically a death sentence for them. So he tries to pretend like he hates Morty, terrified of admitting and showing just how much he cares about Morty, but this didn’t make him hate Morty; it only made Morty hate himself. And Rick’s manipulation of Morty seems to be his attempt to keep Morty around him by any means necessary.

Now I am by no means defending Rick’s actions, they are ABSOLUTELY abusive, but I don’t think Rick realizes that, as very few people are intentionally abusive and manipulative. They mostly do not recognize that they are abusive (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/invisible-bruises/202210/do-abusers-understand-their-behavior-is-wrong). Although this does not excuse their actions, it is interesting to bring up. They also tend not to realize how their actions affect their victim, as the change happens slowly. Which is also something I believe is true for Rick. He definitely doesn’t realize how much he has hurt Morty, although this doesn’t make Morty’s hurt ok. Rick truly has no idea how deeply he’s scarred his grandson. 

Vat of Acid is another VERY fucked up thing. This also has to do with Rick’s fear of losing Morty. So, Morty saw firsthand that one of Rick’s plans failed, and he lashes out at him for it. He then manipulates Rick into making an invention for him by using reverse psychology, which works, of course, since Rick has the most fragile ego known to man. But it turns out Rick didn’t do what Morty wanted, instead transporting Morty to a different timeline, killing the Morty that was originally in that timeline, eventually revealing this to Morty, traumatizing him. He also had Morty merge all of the timelines together, so only one Morty did all of the things Morty did in that episode. Take a shot for every time I say Morty in this post! I’m kidding, don’t do that. You’ll definitely die of alcohol poisoning. So Rick did this, one to preserve his ego, as he wants Morty to see him as cool, despite not wanting to admit it, because basic human emotions are for losers! And two, did this to keep Morty with him. As he says in season 6, after he believes that Morty hates him:

“This is what happens when you let people in and they stop respecting you!”

Morty didn’t respect Rick here, and Rick, being terrified of what that could mean, makes a whole contrived plot to keep Morty from ever critiquing him again. Hoping that this would keep Morty respecting him.

Rick is an incredibly fucked up indivual, but he typically does have a reason for doing the reprehensible shit he does, which makes it interesting to anaylze, and shows how complex he really is. So while season 4 was Rick at his worst, it IS a pretty interesting season to use to analyze Rick’s character.

This is also the season that kicks off Rick’s redemption arc. In the finale, Rick realizes how much of a terrible father he is, which leads him to sit alone in the garage and reflect on his behavior in this season. Unable to face the family after he realized just how horrible he is. This is a MASSIVE moment of growth for Rick, as he realized how much his actions hurt Rick, and how horrible it is to look at those actions play out. 

Now let’s get to the REAL reason why any of you are here for this post! Season 5! Rick’s redemption arc is starting, babbyyy! Let’s go!

~ Season 5 ~

Ok, so at the end of season 4 with the whole clone Beth thingy, Rick realizes what a truly bad person he is, and sits in the garage thinking about how horrible he’s been in season 4. Since, imo, he was at his worst in season 4, and Rick seems to agree since he begins his redemption arc in season 5. With the very first episode, we already see how different he acts. He tells Morty to leave him and save himself when they are literally in a life-threatening situation. Another example of how, while Rick may be a horrible grandpa, in the end, he loves Morty more than he loves himself. Which isn’t saying a lot because he hates himself, but uhhhh y’know what I mean. In this season, he respects Morty’s autonomy a lot more. For example, in the first episode again, Rick tries to drag Morty off so Morty can watch him sign a peace treaty with Mr. Nimbus. This was right after Mr. Nimbus says that this has to be someone Rick would trust with his life, by the way. But when Rick tries to, Morty yanks his arm away and says, “Rick! I did everything you asked today! Now, can I just spend some time with my girlfriend?” And Rick, instead of just ignoring Morty’s protest and boundaries again and just dragging him off, as, say, season one Rick would’ve done, he doesn’t try to drag Morty away and just says, “Your girlfriend?” Which, I would normally say that this is rude, buttttt considering how this is Morty’s 1st date with Jessica and he’s already using the “girlfriend” label, thissss is pretty fair I’d hate to say it. We also have Morty saying this line: “Y’know, sometimes you have to BE an asshole! My grandpa taught me that!”

Hell, Rick even let Morty off the hook for screwing up later in this episode, even if he’s snarky about it (“I fucked it up, ok?” “It’s ok Morty, it’s what you do, now lemme Deus Ex Machina this shit and let’s go home.”) when usually season 2 Rick wouldn’t hesitate at the opportunity to repeatedly insult Morty for it, and when he’s in the middle of an argument with Nimbus, he immediately drops it when he hears Morty screaming for help, with a: “Screw this. What am I even doing?”

We do see more of Rick’s jealousy and possessiveness over Morty in this season tho (In a platonic way to any proshipppers who are reading this, GET OUT!) in “A Rickconvient Mort” Morty ditches plans he had with Rick to hang out with Planetina (FUCK PLANETINA) and Rick actually doesn’t force the plans him and Morty had on him. So obviously in this season we’re getting more of Rick actually respecting Morty’s autonomy, which is really cool! Buttttt this is where his jealously and possessiveness comes in, he drinks a lot, calls Summer his favorite grandkid right in front of Morty to get under his skin and hurt Morty like how he hurt him (DAMN that is fucked) andddd basically ignores Morty for the rest of the episode. While Rick is a smart man, no doubt about it, he acts very immature when it comes to Morty. The best way I can describe Rick’s possessiveness and jealousy when it comes to Morty is…y’know, when a toddler has to share their favorite toy? Yeah, kinda like that. They get huffy, fussy, and won’t admit what’s wrong. Yep, that’s how our emotionally closed-off boy acted in this episode in a nutshell. He’s scared of showing how much he cares about Morty, since bad things happen to people he cares about; they either die because of him, are put in danger because of him, or leave him. Take, for instance, his original Beth and Diane, Unity, Birdperson, Squancy, hell, Mr. Poopybutthole’s life was ruined because of him. He also just isn’t really the best at dealing with his emotions, considering how much he represses them.

Now, he does slap Morty here in season 5 episode 7 (“Gr-grandpa fucked up, glasses on! Act like a turkey!” “Wha- Are you scared?” *Slaps* “ACT LIKE A TURKEY!”) But this slap was a lot softer contrasting the punch from Ricklatica, as he doesn’t leave a fucking black eye on Morty’s face. But still, hot take…slapping your younger relatives…is bad…*gasp!* I know, I know that’s very surprising and a very spicy take, but…I had to say it.

There’s not a whole lot to comment on for this season, since it focused more on Rick and Morty’s dynamic with other family members, but there are a few important things. One is…despite it being from one of the worst, if not the worst episodes of the entire series, we do get some good moments of Rick caring about Morty in…eugh…Rickdependence Spray…

Ok, this episode is completely shit, and is an abomination, BUT, there IS some good parts about it…and by “parts” I mean Rick, so, he get him greeting Morty in a weirdly nice way “Oh, hey kiddo, how’s your Saturday?”, and he also is pretty protective over Morty in this episode, telling him to step away so he doesn’t get caught in the blast, shielding him and putting Morty behind him when Sperm monsters were attacking, immidately grabbing him when the ship was going down, yeah even though this episode was absolute pure unadulterated garbage, these moments still managed to get an “Awww!” out of me…what can I say? I’m weak! I love me some protective Rick, even in a shitty episode. Also, when it comes out that Morty uh…”used”...a horse machine and because of that all the sprem monsters happened…i-it makes slightly more sense in context, ok? He does shame Morty a little for it, whichhhh is honestly kinda deserved, sorry baby, but the insult is very minor “Morty, you nasty little, lying, world-ending pervert!”, “I always knew your hormones would start a world war Morty, I just didn’t think it would be like this” and “Not really accepting apologies here while I’m stuck as handjob solo here…” but again, these are very minor, and aside from these lines, he lets Morty off the hook for it.

But oh boy, then we get to the toxic cesspool of the season 5 finale…so, in season 5 episode 9, Forgetting Sarick Mortshall, Rick is terrible to Morty, which is kinda essensital for the plot to happen and so one of the best episodes of the series can happen, but it’s still a dick move no matter how you slice and dice it. He calls Morty replaceable, had a wheel of better things than Morty, and purposefully attempted to hurt Morty so Morty will come back and, ideally, have less complaints now since he’ll believe that Rick is fine with replacing him…fuck…I absolutely love Rick, he’s my favorite without question, but he can be SERIOUSLY fucked up at times. Making this analysis made it all the more blatant. One thing I do like about this episode is that it had the BALLS to tell the audience about how fucked up and toxic their dynamic is, many shows will try to brush it off, or make excuses, like “Oh yeah, but they care about each other when it counts” it actually acknowledged the intense toxicity between Rick and Morty, I just kinda wish they directly addressed it more, since this episode didn’t really have a satisfying end to it…actually the episode ends with Rick LEAVING.

Yeah, Rick fucking LEAVES, because I guess giving one of his relatives abandonment issues wasn’t enough. (Yes, ik he never abandoned his original Beth, but he still abandoned this one multiple times) He had to do it with his 14-year-old grandson…yaaaay…

Now, it does try to say that the reasons why he’s leaving are because he’s abusive towards Morty…but if that were the case, he would work to make their relationship better, instead of continually removing Morty’s autonomy. Since now, he can’t even choose to leave Rick, because Rick has already made that choice for him. Making Morty even more dependent on Rick, since he probably feels incapable of making decisions on his own, considering how much autonomy that Rick has taken away from him. Hell, at times it’s like he’s not even his own person, he’s just Rick’s tool for adventures, he does get slightly more autonomy, but this just zaps it all away. Now, I do think Rick did have good intentions with this, buttttt now we’ve got abandonment issues as well! Which makes codependency even worse! (https://codependencyrecovery.org/2024/05/05/the-fear-of-abandonment-in-codependency-how-it-shapes-your-choices-and-what-to-do-about-it) yay….I mean, he did fix Morty’s arm and was genuinely worried when he saw Morty hurt, and gave Morty his portal gun as a parting gift, so like…that’s something, ig. Who cares about abandonment issues when you get a portal gun that you get to keep for a few days out of it!?

Rick does come back in the very next episode when the crows…I don’t wanna use the weird terminology that the show uses…soooo I’ll just say stop adventuring with him. Annnndddd just about nothing has changed, with Morty being ready to go back to how things were before, even when Beth tries to get Morty to tell Rick that he wants his respect, Morty refuses…my poor baby. It’s still nice seeing Beth take a more active role in Morty’s life, though, even if a lot of what she does is the bare minimum, it’s still nice to see. Especially since it shows that her love for her son is stronger than her abandonment issues. Beth is a LOT of things, but she does love her son.

Now, Rick is actually treating Morty like…*gasp*...a human being! He agrees to a dinner with Evil Morty despite not wanting to, since Morty wanted to. Let Morty find out about his past, even picking Morty up, even though Morty chose to do it at like the most inconvenient time. And gently put Morty down. And he AGAIN tells Morty to leave him for dead when Evil Morty offers Morty to come with. And Morty, being the codependent bby he is, chooses to save Rick instead, despite Rick admitting that he only came back because he didn’t have the crow anymore. He was too guilty to admit it, but his silence was answer enough, and after Rick admitted that he didn’t have a plan to get out…damn codependency is crazy, now obviously I do believe that they genuinely love each other, but you have to admit that there is a LOT of stuff that’s done due to codependency.

And the ending that I hate to admit brings me to tears, when Rick is handing a ship, he sees a booster control that says that it will only work with a partner, he takes Morty’s hand with a fucking SMILE on his face and they work TOGETHER as equal PARTNERS instead of the usual Rick being the leader and Morty being, for lack of a better word, a sidekick. This, to me at least, is when Rick consistently starts respecting Morty as a person, instead of only respecting Morty when he acts like him.

Nowwww, let’s see the moments Rick cares about Morty in season 5!

Rick tells Morty to leave him in Mort Dinner Rick Andre, drops an argument with Nimbus to help Morty when he hears him screaming for help, and lets him off the hook for screwing something up, instead of dogpiling on him like usual.

Genuinely wanted to have a good time with Morty with no ulterior motive in Rickmancing the Stone, even if Planetina ruins it (FUCK PLANETINA)

Being very protective over Morty in Rickdepedence Spray and mostly letting him off the hook for screwing up

Fixes Morty’s arm and gives Morty the portal gun in Forgetting Sharick Mortshall

Trusts Morty with his past, carries him, tells Morty to leave him to save himself, AND works with Morty as an equal partner

Woo! Ok! That was season 5! I had a LOT more to say about that than I thought…what can I say? I love yapping about my boys! Now we’re onto the 2nd to last season…for now, I mean Rick and Morty will be getting like, 12 seasons, so we don’t gotta worry about it ending for a while, season 6! And we get more of Rick’s redemption arc here, baby! Ohhh, this will be fun!

~ Season 6 ~

We’re almost at the end! We’re at the home stretch! Keep reading this for just a little bit longer! Even though at this point, assuming you read it all in one go, you’ve read for abboooutttt…25 minutes?! You could’ve watched an episode by now…fuck…uhmmm but you’re a fast reader! I’m sure you took a shorter time…HAHAHAHA! Please don’t stop reading. You don’t know how much time I spent on this…I actually…RESEARCHED and…LEARNED SOMETHING! EUGH! Alright, moving on, sorry, Wendy’s waitress.

First, we have Solaricks! GOD, I love this episode! I love it so much! Now this whole episode is great…butttt that’s for the episode ranking…that’s coming soon, I PROMISE! For this analysis, we’re just focusing Rick and Morty here, but DAMN is it good! So, the cold open show Rick and Morty about to die, since the ship they escaped on is out of gas, and get this, when Rick and Morty were legit about to die, Morty’s FIRST instict was to go over next to Rick, curl up, and cling onto his arm…and Rick, instead of shrugging Morty off or doing an asshole move like that, he actually lets Morty hold onto his arm, and leans his head on Morty’s.

Rick is gentle and vulnerable with Morty in a way he NEVER is with anyone else. He never lets anyone else in the series touch him in such a close way. All Morty wanted was to die while holding onto Rick, and Rick actually let that happen. I honestly, honestly couldn’t see season 4 Rick doing this, but since season 6 Rick is finally letting himself be vulnerable, he’s letting Morty do this. And, more importantly, he’s letting himself do this, he’s letting himself be close with someone else without pushing them away. Because he’s FINALLY beginning to trust himself. Also, in this episode, we find out that Rick Prime was our Morty’s, Morty Prime’s, original Rick. Do you have any idea how big this is? To let a relative of a man you despise, the man who killed your family and ruin your life, to not only not hate them, but to love them, more than you love yourself, for them to be the only one you can trust with your life, to be close with them in a way you never let yourself be with any else ever since your wife and daughter died by that same person’s realitive? THAT’S one of the reasons why he considers his attachment to Morty so irrational, because this is the grandkid of your enemy, and even if you know they can’t control who they are blood-related to, realistically, you should have some resentment towards them, right? I mean, logically, rationally. And Rick, being a very logical and rational person, just can’t get why he holds no resentment towards Morty at all. Holding him in very high regard, even if he’d never admit it, since uhm…feelings are for people who want their families dead, ig. 

Man, I REALLY yapped about that for a WHILE, huh? What can I say? I love my boys, I mean…of course I do, this analysis is nearly 8000 words as I’m writing it right now. Hell, I’m writing this instead of sleeping…it’s 4 in the morning and I just have ICP in my other tab and writing about Rick and Morty in this one…what is my life?

Okay, enough with that existential crisis, you came here for an analysis about an abusive grandpa and his anxious grandson! …You weirdo. 

Now, later in the episode, we have one of my favorite scenes…I-I think in the whole series? Oh, you think I’m overexaggerating?! …Maybe. But this scene is really great, I made one too many posts on it. I’ll just show you the exchange.

“Get outta here! [When Morty was about to do something stupid and dangerous…awfully hypocritical of you, Ricky] You did this last season! You’re like a suicide bomber!”

“Takes one to know one!”

“Yeah? Well, you get it from him [Rick Prime], not me!”

“I don’t know him! You’re my grandpa, Rick! Rick and Morty, 100 years!”

This scene is soooo good, I CAN’T! I love how Rick lost his anger at hearing that, I love Morty immediately disowning Rick Prime, I love the found family, I love the callback to the pilot, GOD! I love it so much. Seriously, that callback was so good, even though Morty was literally rendered immobile because of Rick when he said that, and Rick had zero care about that, it still meant SO MUCH to Morty! Ugh, I need to stop gushing about this scene and carry on with the analysis already…ok, so this is a pretty good example of the genuine (I shouldn’t even have to specify this, but whenever I say “love” I’m talking about PLATONIC and FAMILIAL love! Ok? Ok.) love between them, there is a LOT of codependency between them, but they both do genuinely love each other a lot, Rick just isn’t in the right mental space to show it in the right way, he’s getting there, but he still has a WHILE to go, due to all of his trauma and a whole buncha self loathing! Ahh, THIS is why I relate to you, Rick! I hate myself, too! …That’s not concerning, right?

This is also what makes Rick go back and help the girls, who are in trouble. Morty is the ONLY person who’s able to talk Rick out of doing stupid and self risking stuff, since he’s aware of Rick’s self-destructive tendencies, that just shows how well they know each other, and how much they DO genuinely love and care for each other, even if it can seem hard to believe at times with all the emotional abuse, codepedency, and toxicity.

Also, a bit before this scene, when Morty was stuck in his original dimension, despite him saying “I knew you wouldn’t leave me!” to Rick when he came back, thissss isn’t exactly true. You see, he was talking with Jerry Prime, and, if he actually believed that Rick was coming back when he was talking to Jerry about it, he would say “When Rick comes back,” Butttt well…I’ll just show you what he said.

“If Rick comes back”

If, despite everything, Morty’s abandonment issues are still strong, of course they are, he’s terrified of losing the most important person in his life, the only person that gives him consistent attention, and now he knows that Rick would leave him on a whim, he knows that all of that could be ripped about like, *snap*, that. Who wouldn’t be terrified of losing the only person who actually pays attention to you after you’ve been lonely your entire life?

And it doesn’t help that when Rick came back, Morty was so overwhelmed with relief that he ran to Rick with outstretched arms to hug him, and Rick, being uncomfortable with physical touch, takes Morty’s shoulder and gently pushes him away, leaving Morty feeling more alone than ever.

That’s all I have to say about this episode, but damn, it’s even better than I thought, it reveals SO much about Rick and Morty’s dynamic in one episode…Or I could be overanalyzing this silly drunk grandpa cartoon….nahhh, that’s not it! This was all intentional, and I’m NOT crazy or obsessed, who said that!? 

We also have Rick: A Mort Well Lived, and I’m…split on the episode, I WILL give credit where credit is due, it DOES say a lot about Rick and Morty’s dynamic. It sets the stage for the best episode in the series by showing that Morty thinks Rick doesn’t care about him. This was first introduced as a throwaway line in the season 3 premiere (“Because he doesn’t care! Because nobody is special to him, Summer!”), So it’s nice seeing it expanded on in this episode.

So, basically, Morty was split into a lot of little pieces because of a Roy game…it makes just as much sense in context. I gave you the context. And this, as multiple lines showing just how badly years of Rick’s abuse affected Morty, they straight up just don’t think Rick cares about him…or…them…? I dunno, it’s confusing, the truly heartbreaking thing is, you can’t really blame him, after years of emotional abuse, of course, he would start to believe that Rick doesn’t care about him. We have to remember, we are watching them on TV. We can go back to the moments where Rick cares about Morty and gush about them all we want, but Morty can’t. For Morty, these moments are just that, moments, quick and fleeting. Then after this, he just goes on with his life like normal. So why would he think that Rick cares about him, if all he hears is negative things come out of his mouth 90% of the time? I mean, put yourself in Morty’s shoes for a moment, your grandpa constantly insults you and made it very clear that he considers you 100% precent replaceable, he does have moments where he cares about you, but these are very quick, yeah, you probably wouldn’t think he cares as well. 

Also, while Rick is getting better, we have to remember that Morty is 14, and again, he isn’t watching this on TV. He can’t go back to different episodes and analyze the differences in how Rick treats him, the change is slow and gradual, it makes it all the more realistic, but also makes it all the harder to spot. Of course, a 14-year-old isn’t going to pick up on this, how would he? The Rick he knows the majority of the time in the manipulative, sarcastic, rude Rick, not the kind, gentle, loving Rick that we can see over and over again. 

Also, the one piece of Morty that Rick admitted was a good grandson, was going to admit that he loves, AND was the only one to challenge him and demand that he shows affection towards him…or…uh…her…? If he…she…? Is going to follow what he says. And guess what? She’s the only one who gets left behind on her own request. The only part of Morty that could challenge Rick is gone forever, set to die in a video game. Morty again loses more autonomy, he straight up says: “You know best, Rick! I trust you implicitly!” I swear, he’s becoming more and more like a lifeless husk with no personality that Rick just drags around.

There is also JuRicksic Mort. This doesn’t really reveal much about their dynamic, but they have a really cutesy dynamic here. Hell, Rick even tells Morty, “Give me a hug!” and playfully ruffles Morty's hair when he finds that piece of the asteroid. He also gently elbows Morty and asks, “Get it?” after he tells a joke, and actually attempts to defend himself to Morty when Morty is bitter about Rick not laughing at a joke he made. Which is…weirdly adorable? Rick also takes Morty to Boobworld with no hesitation after he fixes portal travel. Happily saying, “Figured my guy deserves a vacation.” Also, him calling Morty “my guy” is adorable, shut up. Also them gently punching each other’s arms is so fucking cute. MY BOYSSSSS ARGHHH! Also, this has literally nothing to do with the analysis…but I can’t NOT mention Rick absolutely failing at skateboarding, I’m sorry that’s too funny not to mention.

We also get Full Meta Jackrick. And DAMN. This episode is good! It might seriously be S-Tier for me, it is SO good! This episode is a great example on how much Rick changed. He’s physically gentle with Morty, gently holding his arms and hands, helping Morty up, hell, this is also a great protective Rick episode! When Rick thinks Joe Campbell got Morty…uh…pregnant…which, considering how Morty is amad, I…don’t know how that’s possible. Rick’s first reaction? To kill the only other male who could’ve done it,  Joe. He did it by drowning as well, a surefire way to make it as painful as possible. Hell, even when Morty says, “It wasn’t him, Rick!” Rick angrily asks, “Then who?!” Clearly wanting to deal with the man who did that himself. Also, you are INSANNEEEE if you think I won’t mention him putting his lab coat on Morty when Morty was cold. That was legitimately adorable, especially since we rarely see Rick give someone else his lab coat. This was the first time he did, actually.  He did it a second time in Mort: Raganrick (I thought it was called 90s Fad Toys for the longest time bc the site I pirate Rick and Morty from got it wrong, but shhh, that’s a secret between us) was when it threw it to Bigfoot in Summer’s body butttt I thinkkkk that has more to do with the fact that Summer was naked…

Ok, next up! Anaylze Piss, Rick and Morty don’t interact a whollleee lot here, we do get a pretty empowering scene for Morty setting some boundaries with Rick, not agreeing to keep a secret of a man’s suicide for Rick and telling the rest of the family. Rick also goes to therapy! Which is something season 3 Rick turned into a pickle to try to prevent. So yeah, Rick has grown a LOT from season 3, and I’m really proud of him!

Alright, so that’s about it for season 6, Rick and Morty has a much healthier, more cutesy dynamic, sure Rick can still be emotionally abusive, and manhandles Morty when they are running away from others, but he’s a lot gentler now, and treats Morty like an actual person instead of just a tool for adventures that vast majority of the time, now onto season 7, the final one! Then we’re done with this analysis that took way…WAYYYY too long. Wait- what!? No! I don’t want to talk about the last 2 episodes! I don’t want to, I’m not gonna, you’re not gonna make me! Wait…you’ll buy me a Rick plushie if I do…? 

…

Damn you comfort characters. (I say despite making an entire analysis on how abusive Rick is, yes, he is still my comfort character. Meeseeks and Destroy. That’s it. That’s my reason.)

Ok, so, in A Rick in King Mortur’s Mort, damn these long titles, Rick straight up abandons Morty...again. He’s tryna win the Olympic gold medal for how many times he can traumatize this kid, istg. Give him DOUBLE the abandonment issues, why not!? He did make a robot designed to literally make Morty happy, which, y’know, is sweet in that special Rick way. But he still abandoned his grandson for months because he couldn’t pull himself out of his obsession with Prime.

Why is this?

Because of Morty.

Morty insulted him once, and it caused him to spiral.

Rick never really cared about Morty’s insults, but now he’s finally starting to respect Morty, so now those insults actually hurt, insults are a lot harder to brush off if you actually respect the person they are coming from.

It actually broke Morty that Rick would do this, he cries, and it’s heartbreaking. “He’s [Rick’s] busy…and I hate him, and I lost my lightsaber, and now it might destroy the earth, and it’s the worst Christmas ever!” Hell, after Rick lashed out with the most victim-blaming speech I’ve ever heard in my life, he immediately feels bad, and starts to blame the president, even now he’s incapable of holding Rick accountable, that’s how bad his codependency is.

And Rick still doesn’t see why what he did was wrong, why would Morty love him? He insulted him, that must mean that he doesn’t care, shouldn’t he be happy that Rickbot is nicer and more thoughtful than him? Why did Morty even care? Rick felt like a victim because he assumed Morty didn’t care about him, at least in Rick’s eyes. He probably thought Morty just finally realized how shitty of a person and didn’t understand how Morty could still love someone like that, forgetting what Morty said in Solaricks.

“You’re my grandpa, Rick.”

That’s why he hated Rick replacing himself with Rickbot; he loves this Rick, Rick C-137, his grandpa, and he just replaced himself with an impostor for months, not the Rick he chose over his biological grandpa, but a robot. He straight up tells Rickbot this.

“You’re not my grandpa, you’re a fucking robot.”

Morty is so terrified of being replaced, and Rick replacing himself terrified Morty that Rick got sick of him, and was going to replace him and leave him, again.

By the time Morty insulted Rick, Rick thought Morty truly didn’t care about him, so he just replaced himself with a better, nicer version of himself so he could focus entirely on finding Prime, thinking that that’s why he’s no good to anyone. That if he could get rid of Prime, everything would be fixed. 

Also…Morty was the reason why Rick stopped hunting Prime, but Morty was the reason he came back to it. Sound familiar?

“The corrosion of 2 personalities that reshape each other until they’re incompatible”

…

And with that, we move on to season 7

~ Season 7 ~

Season 7, baby! We’re in the home stretch!

After spending hours on this and continually getting sidetracked because Depression is a fucking BITCH, we did it! So, sadly, we don’t get as much of their dynamic in season 7, since Morty got sidetracked a LOT in this season, butttt, we still got a lot to talk about, because this season has Fear No Mort!

This season is when their dynamic is at its healthiest, they seem a lot more like friends, which is nice to see. Rick, of course, still insults him, because this is Rick, of course, he’s still going to be emotionally abusive, ya can’t just erase that overnight, but like before, these insults are a lot less harsh, making him seem more like a rude friend than anything. He only insults Morty, like, 7 times throughout the whole season. Which, while it isn’t uhm…great, it still is a massive improvement. Morty is also more of Rick’s level, snapping back at him more than once, which makes their dynamic seem a lot more equal, than it just being a poor kid getting emotionally abused by his grandpa, which, don’t get me wrong, that still is definitely what’s going on, but it’s more equal now than it was before, the power dynamic is still there, but it’s not as unequal as it used to be, which is a definite plus.

Also, Rick actually lets Morty hug him! Contrasting season 6, where he lightly pushes Morty away when Morty tries. In Unmortricken, Morty hugs Rick, and Rick stiffens up, but lets him. And again in Fear No Mort (Oh, we’ll get to you later) Morty hugs Rick, and Rick, despite being obviously very confused and stiffening up again, does albeit awkwardly and half-assed, does try to hug Morty back, butttt Morty does pull away, and Rick, instead of being upset, looks more worried that he did something wrong, although he quickly returns to his resting bitch face afterwards. I love this man so much.

Rick also has a pretty good handle on his anger here, mainly in Mort: Raganrick, when Morty messes up things again, and Rick, instead of showering him with insults as usual. *Cough* Mortynight Run *Cough* He seems a lot more like a frustrated parent, more mad at the situation rather than Morty. He does insult Morty, but it was pretty tame and only once. And to be fair, it was after Morty insulted him, and he does reassure Morty afterwards, despite being stern about it. (“You’d rather stay dead until you win than live as a loser, Christ, maybe you belong here with these idiots.” “Yeah, I could probably teach them how to hit a red button!” “...I said I was sorry….” “And I said keep killing them, while I finish the relay, and I will find a way to get us back home, ok?”) We also see them being equal here, when Morty complains to Rick to get them back home, Rick, instead of hand waving Morty’s concerns away, actually explains his point to Morty (“You need to find a way to get us back to life!” “Without my infinite energy, Morty? I don’t think you’re understanding this, Morty…if I get back, we won’t have another shot at this, you think next time these idiots see an old guy on the battlefield, they’re going to give him a beer?”)

We also get a lot of protective moments between both of them, not only in this episode, but in Unmortricken as well. With Rick wanting Morty to stay away from Rick Prime, since he’s very dangerous, and actually getting angry at Evil Morty when he brings Morty Prime along. (“You brought Morty?” “I’m not worried about him, I’m evil.”) And with Morty getting mad at Evil Morty when he insults Rick (“Reallyyy learned your lesson about chasing this guy…” “Hey, man, you can leave now.”), There is also, of course, the ending, with Morty’s lips trembling when he was waiting for Rick’s response after asking Rick if he was ok. And when Rick says yes (Rick, you fucking liar.) Morty hugs Rick, and Rick, instead of pushing away, lets Morty hug him, just giving him a weird look and stiffening up, I mean, hey, baby steps. Rick also pretends to be happy for Morty which is just…so fucking sad.

And in Rickfending your Mort, we get to see Rick spoiling Morty, and them having a genuinely good time together, hell, despite them arguing here, they actually get over it pretty quickly, and the insults they hurl and each other feel a lot less personal than usual. Just basic ones like bitch and stuff. And even then, Morty still didn’t like the observer talking down to Rick. We also get Morty calling Rick “Grandpa” instead of “Rick”, which is always nice to see. (“It’s some weirdo Grandpa hired to prove I’m a bad person.”) And we get Rick encouraging Morty when he comes to talk to the observer (“Yeah, get ‘em Morty!”) and not being angry when he sees that Morty steals money from his wallet. We also get an adorable ending. (“Rick and Morty! We’re back, baby! Check the glovebox!” “Woah! Another gun!”) Now, despite this episode being adorable, there issss a downside. This is another example of Rick relying too much on Morty, I mean, he literally relies on Morty to keep him mentally stable, which is something you should never put on anyone, much less a 14-year-old. 

There’s also Wet Kaut Amortican Summer. Buttttt we don’t get much of their dynamic here, but we do get confirmation that Rick now regularly spoils Morty, which is adorable, and Rick is actually able to take criticism from Morty without traumazing the poor kid. *Cough* VAT OF ACID *Cough*

Anddd now we get to the one! You know the one. FEAR NO MORT BABBBYYY!

Now, I could gush about this episode till the cows come home, talk about how it’s funny, a great character study on Morty and Rick, how the ending scene is the best ending and twist in all of Rick and Morty…buttttt that’s not what you’re here for, so! Let’s just explain what it means for our boy’s dynamic!

So, in Fear No Mort, we find out Morty’s greatest fear is Rick not caring about him, which is so fucking heartbreaking. And Morty’s realization of the fear is awful, also yes I memorized this scene (“I’m afraid that if I jumped into a hole, you wouldn’t even bother jumping in after me! You’d just stay there and watch! This entire thing has been about ME! YOU’RE NOT EVEN IN THE HOLE ARE YOU!?”) And holy hell, the voice acting is wayyy better than it had any right to be. Harry fucking KILLED it! What hurts the most about that line is that Rick actually DID jump into a hole for Morty in A Rickle in Time, but Morty can barely remember it since he had so many memories of that same moment where Rick didn’t jump in for him, and it’s absolutely heartbreaking. He forgot one of the biggest acts that shows how much Rick really did love him, where he gave his life for Morty’s. AUGH FUCK! 

What also hurts is when Morty gets out of the hole, Rick was just waiting for him. He did just sit there and watch. To Morty, at the very least, his greatest fear was confirmed. Morty jumped into a hole, and Rick didn’t bother jumping in after him. He just sat there and watched. And that breaks Morty’s heart, you can hear him begging that Rick did try to jump in with the amount of pain in his voice (“Oh no…aw jeez no…you…you didn’t go in at all…?”) and Rick said that he didn’t breaking Morty’s heart without realizing it.

But there is something Morty didn’t realize, when Morty woke up and was safe, Rick happily said “Morty!” with a smile on his face, clearly happy to see that Morty was ok, but Morty of course wouldn’t realize a small detail after the overwhelming terrifying experience that he just went through, and to the overwhelming belief that Rick truly does not care about him at all. 

Also Morty asks Rick, just to see if he was still in the hole “Rick…am I…irreplaceable?” Since irreplaceable was the very word that set Morty off, the one word that caused Morty to realize that Rick wasn’t even in the hole, and it was “You’re irreplaceable!” He truly believes that Rick would just replace him at any moment, and when Rick answers that question with: “I mean…define ‘irreplaceable’” This, this fucked up sentence, Rick being a dick, is what caused Morty to realize that he wasn’t in the hole. This made Morty so happy that he hugged Rick, he loves Rick for who he is, for being the asshole that simtaniously ruined and changed his life forever. Rick is single-handedly the reason why Morty can’t have a normal life, and Morty still loves Rick despite this. And Rick stiffens up and looks confused, but actually hugs Morty back. And this terrifies Morty, causing him to break apart and scream “NO! I won’t know if I’m out!” He’s so accustomed to receiving negative attention from Rick, that even the smallest amount of affection from him feels alien, it doesn’t feel real. Now, let’s get something straight, Rick is changing and is getting better, this doesn’t take away from the fact that Rick has deeply traumatized Morty, and Morty is still dealing with the trauma that Rick has put on him after 6 years.

We also see something else, in the hole, Morty was terrified that if Rick had to choose between him and a fake version of Diane, he would choose Diane, but guess what actually happened in the end, when Rick gets that choice?

He rejects it. 

He rejects the ability to see his dead wife again, and instead just looks at the hole, takes a deep breath, takes a picture of Morty that was carefully folded in his wallet, mind you, and puts it on the wall of people who went into the hole and successfully came out, then walks away with a smile, clearly proud and happy of Morty, content with walking away from the past to spend the rest of his evening with his grandson. Fuck, I hate how just describing this scene is making me tear up.

~ Conclusion ~

Now, season 8 hasn’t come out yet, but it will come out soon! But according to staff, Rick and Morty will have more of an equal friendship, sooo this should be the healthiest we’ve seen of Rick and Morty yet! 

So, what did we learn from this? Well, Rick and Morty, despite everything, do genuinely love and care for each other, although this mainly gets overshadowed by their codependency and the general toxicity of their dynamic. And while Rick is getting better and is treating Morty a lot better overall, this doesn’t erase all of the trauma Rick has put on Morty, Morty is still very deeply traumatized from the, at fucking BEST, 6 years of consistent emotional abuse, that even sometimes turns physical. (Rickstar Ricklatica, I’m looking at you) And despite the fact that Rick is changing for the better and does love Morty, and Morty loving him back, Morty still has no obligation to forgive Rick for all of the trauma Rick has dumped on Morty. 

Their dynamic is so insanely complex and layered. I love how it shows that abusers can love their victims, but just not in the right way. Honestly making this analysis of their analysis made me respect the writing of this show even more, as they did a legitimately awesome job at show what can happen to someone with codependency. And it is legitimately so insanely interesting to anaylze, and I absolutely love it! Ok, after multiples months, multiple hours of procrastinating and getting distracted, so SO many spotify songs, and nearly 12k words, this analysis is finally finished! I really hope that you did enjoy reading this analysis. I know it’s long, but I hope it gave you a new understanding of their dynamic! I know it did for me, and I did actually learn a lot when I was researching for this analysis, so it was legitimately an educational experience for me! I think I need to stop saying legitimately- But yeah! This was a very long post and analysis, but I did genuinely enjoy making it! And I hope you enjoyed reading it as well! Thank you!

[zluty-spendlik]

WAKFU REDESIGN SERIES PART 3 - ADAMAÏ

Hiya, Im back lmaooo - took me long enough

I have been struggling with Ad's and Am's design so much. I dont know why. With Amalia, Im going to have to start over- again- 4th times the charm Im sure - but I finally finished this little guy!

ADAMAÏ IS MY FAVORITE CHARACTER GUYS IM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS I LOVE HIM SM

But anyway, here is the final (human form) design:

Im aware he has multiple forms since hes, you know, a shapeshifter, and Im going to add them i promise but im like super tired and burnt out from the rest of my mortal life rn

Anyway, to the DESIGN.

Honestly, Adamais og design kinda sucks. Im sorry (not rlly). He doesnt look similar to Yugo at all - YES I KNOW HES A DRAGON - which bothers me a lot, even his color scheme is a lot different from his literal twin...

In my version, I wanted Ad to look deer-like at first, since I gave Yugo deer features, but then I drew him over and over again until I got this fusion of a moth and a lamb or smthing..

I don't know, but I really like it!

The outfit he's wearing is actually what I plan to be an official eliatrope/dragon robe? Both Grougal and Qilby will be wearing it and - potentially - Yugo in season 3. It has some portal imagery (the spiral on the back), and I don't know I just think it's neat!

ALSO WAKFU FRECKLES-

Season 1

Ad has been raised by Grougaloragran (least complicated name ever, wtf Ankama :3) and with Eliatrope/Dragon traditions, so hes very knowledgable of the now dead culture and values it very much. He loves talking to Yugo about it (he gets almost bored sometimes, but he would never admit it to Adamaï).

He, just like Yugo, is extremely curious and loves studying the way Wakfu works and its limits.

And mainly, he loves Grougal, whom he sees as an idol and a father figure. Which is why hes so hurt when he gets killed by Nox.

It feels like the whole world is collapsing on him. His mentor, care-taker, father, LITERALLY THE ONLY OTHER "PERSON" HE EVER INTERACTED WITH AND THE ONLY OTHER DRAGON ALIVE, is gone.

Adamaï has noone. Well- almost noone. Theres this little 12 year old Eliatrope, his only hope, his only anchor.

And he asks you: "Uh, sorry, whats your name again?"

Season 2

HAHSHA LETS TRAUMATIZE THE BOY!! (Even more than he is) Like I said, Adamaï values his culture and people very much, so I assume he would get very, I mean extremely attached to Yugo. However, Yugo is not actually interested in the same things Adamaï is interested in, which makes him a little bit more avoidable of Ad than he should be, given his emotional state.

Not that we blame him. So instead Ad seeks out a new anchor, a new mentor, a new... idol. Who is that you may ask?

Well, it's Qilby of course. Now here's where the funny trauma part happens, because Adamaï starts blurring the line between Grougal and Qilby.

Qilby's mistakes suddenly don't matter as much because Adamaï cares about him as much as he cared about Grougaloragran even though they don't know each other that long (which is the core of the problem).

Anything he'll be does that is morally questionable suddenly isn't bad, because that's not the mentor that Adamaï was raised with ‐ he trust Grougal completely, so why should Qilby be aby different?

So when Qilby betrays him, Adamaï is all the more surprised and hurt. It doesn't help that he really doesn't want to hurt Qilby: Even though he finally realizes that Qilby is a bad person, Adamaï still sees him as an anchor. He might be bad, but other than Yugo he's the only other person Adamaï has.

So of course he loses the fight, of course he gets captured – he doesn't actually want Qilby to get hurt.

Season 3-4 (5?)

Okay let's make one thing clear, I'm a bit of a hater.

Like I genuinely really dislike season 3 and what it has going on with making Adamaï a villain? I really don't think it fits his character, and I would much prefer for the story to have Yugo and Ad grow closer and revive their culture despite all the horrors and terrible things that have been bestowed up on them - But the writers have decided to go the obvious evil twin route which honestly makes my blood boil..

so I don't think I will be even considering rewriting season 3? I think to make it likeable for myself - as this is a self-indulgent project - I would just have to make my own season 3?

If that makes sense?

Art dump!! (Seriously my sketchbook is filled w this lil guy, these r hand picked) And- woah, is that Cleophée redesign? Maybeee~

@saturnyukaa i was looking forward to ur reaction 👉👈

[mongrel-mage]

A Spoiler-free review of Edge of Sleep

Fucking incredible. Like...9/10 and the only reason I say so is because there were only 6 20-ish minute episodes and I wanted the show to be longer and give us more backstory on the characters and such. It'll be a bit longer of a post, but rest assured that there are no spoilers under the link.

Main differences from the podcast, but still minor: the character of The Trespasser does not feature in the show, nor do Dave's story about the Moobles and the ensuing hallucinations he describes. However, I was satisfied with how they used the information from The Trespasser's subplot in the actual TV show, and there was a little reference to him at the beginning of Episode 5 that made me smile, so I'm really not that fussed about those things being missing.

I'm going to take a minute to rave about Eve Harlow, who plays Linda. What a goddamn POWERHOUSE of an actress, honestly. Perfect casting. She nailed a character who is tough as iron, focused, determined, and intelligent without making Linda come across as unnecessarily cold or unlikeable--I'll go so far to say that Linda was my favorite character (by a slim margin, but still there). Eve Harlow has an incredibly expressive face and eyes that convey complex emotions without relying on the same few expressions or overacting what she's feeling. I really want to see her get some sort of awards or accolades for her performance because she carried damn near all of her scenes.

Let's talk about Mark. I already knew that he could act well because I'd watched his other projects, but most/if not all of them have at least some level of comedy, humor, or character who lightens the mental load at least a little bit. We all know that he's a giggly bitch and likes to have fun, and there's nothing wrong with that. That said, I'm comfortable saying that Edge of Sleep is easily his most ambitiously dramatic project--there was a lot of raw stress, grief, anger, and pain that Dave Torres went through, and I was impressed at how well Mark portrayed it. It's obvious how much he tries and how hard he cares; it's so clear that this wasn't some celebrity vanity project. You can really feel the love and the energy and the care that he put into this, and I was, like I said, impressed at his range as a drama/horror actor. There were some moments and expressions he had in the show (namely in the first episode, when the people at the party are giving Dave a hard time about his sleep disorder and past episodes) that hit me unexpectedly hard. Amazing performance, Mark. I'm proud of you.

I also want to take another moment to rave about the makeup and hair department. Standing ovation. The gradual increase of the characters' exhaustion and general levels of dishevelment (the thing that stuck with me the most was Linda's makeup and hair, SO good) looked very real and read well on camera. Anyone who knows me irl knows what a freak I am for good practical effects/makeup, and I want to make sure that those artists are acknowledged and appreciated. I'm also going to throw in some kudos for whoever was behind the Elephant Monster--that thing was FUCKED UP (/pos). I love a Creature and it was sufficiently more disturbing than I had expected it to be, since The Elephant isn't given much of a description in the podcast. I'm not sure if it was practical effects or something computer generated, but whatever it was it was amazing. Hats off to the Creature Crew!

Lastly: I WANT SEASON TWO. GIVE IT TO ME. I WANT TO RIP IT APART WITH MY TEETH. I HAVE BEEN GOOD AND COHERENT FOR THIS LONG NOW GIVE ME MORE.

Also. I promised no spoilers and there shall be none. But that last shot of the last episode? fucking HAUNTING. Here's hoping that us catapulting Edge of Sleep to the TOP FIVE, BEFORE THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH, will seriously throw some weight to whoever can decide to give us a second season.

[aakaneeee]

ALNST: WHAT'S NEXT, MY PREDICTIONS, MY IDEAS.

(art by me)

We know technically nothing about what will follow, except that one of our contestants is becoming the human he never got to be, and the other is completely losing the humanity that made her, her.

But, I've had this idea of a frame that we could see, and I couldn't stop myself!

I feel like there will be a break in-universe between Wiege and what is next. I mean, Luka will probably need some medical procedures done, because I cannot imagine him being able to move on without his health suffering. Which makes me even more upset, because what if Heperu will see it as "disobeying", and punish him in the way only he knows?

I see him becoming a lot more human after Wiege, as I've said. I don't think he'll really want to do what Hyuna told him: I don't even see him wanting to live after this. I've had a small idea of him trying repeatedly to commit, but being "saved" by Heperu, but again, I have no basis, so these are just assumptions. It wouldn't be far off of Vivinos' alley, that's for sure.

I'd love for him and Mizi to team up, but honestly, I'm extremely 50/50 on whether it would happen or not. I have 2 ideas: either they do team up, somehow manage to get along, which would make sense for the "mizi loses everyone she loves" trope (if Luka would simply die without her caring, it wouldn't make so much sense for him to be the only one left with her), and possibly dies in an accident (I tend to believe in the "Mizi will blow everything up" theory, according to the Patreon post from while back), or because of his illnesses, or they don't team up, Round 5 is redone, and it's Mizi's time to mock him (which im not sure if she'll have the energy for).

I am hoping for the first one though, because I want Luka shown in a good light before he isn't alive anymore.

Another theory that I had, but it's not very likely, is that they don't end up killing Luka off because let's be honest, he'd be doing worse alive than dead. Again, it probably won't happen, but I think it would be a really painful route to take, to show that the worst possible outcome, at this point, isn't even death.

The thing is, I don't think we have to worry about Luka's death too soon. I am not sure about the probability of the others coming back. I'd rather be pleasantly surprised if it happens, than be disappointed if they are truly gone. So, if they don't come back, we'd have about 4, 5 episodes with the 2 characters left, so I don't think they can afford to kill him off yet. (Considering Round 6 was approximately the half of the series, and the Vol. 1 album's number of songs, that's the amount I calculated we'd have left.)

Honestly, this is the factor that makes me doubt most of my own theories: I don't know how they would be able make any of these possibilities that long.

Which brings in the idea we might have some videos about the Actor AU, or Modern AU? I don't really believe this, but it would be interesting. Anyways, whatever they have planned for these next episodes, is going to be huge.

I really liked the structure of Wiege: openly centered on Hyuluka, but shows the other pairs multiple times (which, again, ties to my analysis of Hyuluka representing all of them, from before and from what will follow.)

I think it's more plausible we'll get flashbacks from Season 49, like Hyuna's loss and how she went past the system, or Luka's absolute win and how he reacted. Anyways, I'd love to see more of them, since they are still very mysterious (but I'd say they are more known than Sua now).

I personally want to see the exact details of Hyunwoo's death. It's been insanely hyped, in my opinion, we see clips of it both in All-In and Wiege (I'd like to add how fond I am of the fact that both episodes that have Hyuna as center don't have a 'Round' name), but never outwardly shown, so it must be a pretty big plot twist, or revelation. I'm still a believer of the "Hyuna killed Hyunwoo" theory, albeit a bit more reserved now, but we do have that frame in Wiege where Luka is crying, clinging onto Hyuna, and Hyunwoo trying to break them apart. (I love the small showcase of his humanity.)

I might have more to say, so I will probably add onto this if I do, but for now, I can only say I cannot wait, and that I'm terrified for this week's ALNST friday.. I actually tried my best to finish this way before the ALNST friday, so I could say what I have to say completely blinded, and I'm excited to see what of this will be valid in the end :)

[d1xonss]

Desert Rose

Chapter 66 ~ Just the Beginning

✧ Pairing : Daryl Dixon x Rose

✧ Era : Season 5

✧ Word Count : 6.7k

In this chapter ~ The search continues as the small group ventures out to make sure what Aaron claims is true. After taking every precaution in the books, they head out at nightfall to this so-called community. But the question remains; is this really the safe haven they've been hoping for?

We all stayed relatively silent for most of the journey trying to track down the vehicles in question. But even when the others started having a discussion, I didn't pay them too much attention. My head continuously turned to watch our backs, Abraham right by my side doing the exact same thing with the gun he brought clutched tightly in his hands. I was just glad I wasn't the only one that was paranoid. Everyone else seemed like this was just a casual Sunday stroll as we approached the unfamiliar area, while the two of us seemed to be the only ones that remembered what went down only moments ago.

"How ya doing, Missy?" Abraham's voice asked suddenly.

My brows furrowed in confusion, and it took me a second to realize he was talking to me, "Missy? You do know what my name is right?" I asked genuinely.

He let out a hearty laugh, "Yeah, I do...but I just have a thing for nicknames. Makes it more interesting."

I nodded slowly in understanding, "Okay, sure...but why Missy?"

"I don't know..." he said honestly with a simple shrug, "Just kinda suits you."

That only made me more confused, but I decided to just go along with it. I never really cared much for my name, so maybe this was a bit of an upgrade. "Alright, Missy it is...but I think it's only fair that I give you a nickname too."

"Go ahead." he nodded.

I thought for a moment while my eyes scanned him, before a small smirk was brought to my face, "I think Red suits you...for obvious reasons."

He laughed again at my smartass comment, "That sounds about right...Red and Missy, seems like a good pair to me."

"I have a feeling we will be." I replied with the smallest of smiles.

He returned the gesture while snorting a little in amusement, "You still didn't answer my question."

"I'm okay..." I reassured, almost as if I was reassuring myself as well, "At least...I'm trying to be okay."

"Hey," he said seriously, "That's all anyone can ask for these days; that you're trying. I'm proud of ya." he claimed before he clapped a gentle hand on my shoulder.

A smile made its way to my face once again, wrapping an arm around him in return as our steps seemed to fall in sync, "You're a pretty great guy, you know that? I'm glad I met you." I told him honestly.

He gave my shoulder a squeeze, "I'm real glad to have met you too."

After that we walked the majority of the way side by side, our arms now wrapped protectively around each other. It was nice to know that he would have my back, and I just hoped he knew I would have his; even though it was painfully obvious he could handle himself. I mean this man is a tank and could probably break someone's nose with his fucking pinky. But still, my offer still stands. It was crazy to remember in the beginning I didn't trust him one bit, thinking he was an absolute fool for believing in something so far beyond our reach. But now here he was, offering me comfort and reassurance when I needed it the most. And I apricated that more than he even knew.

A hand being placed on my back is what caused me to turn around, seeing Michonne over my shoulder as she tried to get my attention. "You mind if I talk to her alone?" she asked the man.

He nodded and gave my shoulder another squeeze, before picking up his pace toward the others to give us some space. I watched as she fell in line with me, something clearly clouding her mind, "What's up?"

She shook her head slightly, "Look...I know you don't trust Aaron, okay? I get that." she explained, her words causing me to sigh before she even finished, "But threatening him the way you did, not taking the gun away from his head...that was a lot."

"Chonne," I said warningly, "I don't know what to believe anymore...who I can put my faith in. Taking a risk like this, especially when we have kids with us, it's something we have to be cautious of."

She nodded her head, "I know that. But there's also risks with everything we do. Like helping a priest, or taking in a girl who was with The Governor...or when you helped a crazy lady with a sword." she smirked.

I scoffed, "No, that lady wasn't crazy...she was insane."

She nudged my shoulder with a small smile, "Ha ha." she said sarcastically, "My point is...we all took a chance with a stranger at one time or another, so how is this any different?"

I kept my eyes forward at the people in front of me, pondering over the question she clearly wanted a real answer to. How was it different? It was different because he wasn't alone out here, even if it truly was just one other person. It was different because he had a whole community waiting for him to come back, and who knows how dangerous those people really were. And it was different because they had been watching us for days, possibly weeks. That fact alone made me more weary.

So that's exactly what I told her. "It's different because he's not alone, and they've been watching us for...God only knows how long."

"To see if we would be a threat." she pointed out, "To see if we were good enough people to bring back to the community, maybe they did have a good reason to keep an eye on us. We don't necessarily look friendly and approachable walking mindlessly out here with guns in our hands."

I huffed softly, "Okay, that's fair. But we've been through so much, you know that. So, I'm sorry if I wanted to be extra careful about the whole situation...I can't lose anyone else."

"You don't have to." she reassured, her hand reaching down to give mine a comforting squeeze, "Just trust me on this. We're going to be okay."

I stared at her for a moment, reading her eyes to see that there was nothing but sincerity behind them which only caused me to reluctantly nod my head in agreement. She smiled at me, and we continued to walk together, filling the silence every once and a while when it was starting to feel too quiet. Though a part of me wanted to pick up the pace, knowing in the back of my mind that Rick was counting down the seconds until we came back safely, and I myself was also just as anxious to see if Aaron was really telling the truth.

It didn't take much longer venturing down the long road before we came across a single car and an RV parked off to the side, with fallen trees blocking them from moving any further. I mentally face palmed once I saw the sight, almost wanting it to be some kind of trap just so I could've proved my point. But instead, it just left me looking like the paranoid psycho of the group right alongside Rick.

"He was telling the truth." Michonne announced.

I rolled my eyes, "Yeah we got that, Captain obvious, thank you." I muttered before nudging her and moving forward to walk next to the rest of them.

But before we were able to make it up to the vehicles to check them out, sudden rustling was heard from the bushes just to our right, causing all of us to quickly be on guard. We all collectively assumed the worst as we raised our weapons in the same direction, jumping out of our skin at the sudden noise.

"Not one step closer asshole!" Glenn called out.

But the sounds only grew louder as the figures approached, only to see it was just a couple walkers that emerged from the greenery, and we all seemed to sigh in slight relief that it wasn't more unknown people just beyond the trees.

"I got 'em." Abraham muttered as he grabbed his knife.

"We got 'em." I corrected while sending him a knowing glance, pulling out my silenced weapon as well from around my hips.

He nodded once before moving forward, easily taking down the walker that had its dead eyes targeted on him, while I killed off the one trailing farther behind the first, ripping my blade back out of its forehead.

"Quite the duo we are." I muttered as I cleaned its disgusting blood off of my blade.

"Damn right." he agreed, before cautiously followed me up to the RV to look inside.

I quickly stepped up to the door, ignoring his protests from behind me about letting him go first as I tugged the door open harshly with my gun raised. My eyes moved frantically around the place, moving down towards the other end of the narrow space to see if there was anyone inside, but was left with nothing. The only thing we managed to find were a lot of canned food items in the cabinets right above our heads.

Abraham didn't hesitate to rummage around through the stash, suddenly gasping as his fingertips brushed something towards the back. "Oh, hell yeah." he muttered as he pulled it out for me to see, reading the label to see it was chocolate pudding.

I laughed lightly with a nod in approval before we packed it back up, informing the others waiting outside that it was safe. None of us hesitated after that to pile into the vehicles to head back towards the barn, wanting everyone to know that we were all still alive.

It wasn't long before we pulled up to the destination without any problems, though we were all faced with a bunch of guns aimed in our faces the moment we stepped through the doors. But the group visibly relaxed once they saw it was just us, relieved to see we had made it back safely with seemingly no problem. One by one we brought in the many food items that were stashed away in the RV for the others to see, to which Rick quickly jumped on the opportunity to inspect every little thing. But in the end, nothing looked like it had been tampered with.

Rick then stepped forward, looking to where Aaron was now tied up, "This is ours now." he said matter-of-factly while holding up one of the cans in his grasp.

"There's more than enough." he assured.

"It ours whether or not we go to your camp." he said.

Carl made a face like he was dumbfounded, "Why wouldn't we go?" he asked suddenly.

"If he were lying, or if he wanted to hurt us; we wouldn't go. But he isn't...and he doesn't. We need this... so we're going, all of us. Somebody say something if they feel differently." Michonne spoke up.

There was a moment of silence before Daryl scoffed from beside me, "I dunno man...this barn smells like horse shit."

I nudged his side to silence him, hearing him mutter a small "ow" as he rubbed the sore spot on his arm. I was having trouble deciding if I should speak up or not when Michonne gave us the chance. He was telling the truth about the cars and the photos were actual proof that this place existed, but who knew if we were ready for this. Ready to commit to something so serious, and ready to meet a bunch of new people that may or may not be a threat.

But then I looked over at Carl holding Judith tightly in his arms and my heart instantly knew what it wanted. It wanted a safe place for everyone, but especially for these kids who deserved the whole world; and believe me I would give it to them if I could. Which is why for once in my life, I kept my mouth shut. For them.

I scanned everyone's faces around me and saw that no one seemed to be making an effort to protest and claim we shouldn't go, before my eyes landed on Rick. He looked to be deep in thought, seeing as everyone else was more than willing to explore this new opportunity, his eyes then meeting mine from among the others. The look on my face must've given him some type of reassurance because then next thing I knew, he was agreeing.

"Yeah." he muttered, "We're going."

Daryl squeezed my hip lightly when the decision was finally settled, looking up at him with the best smile I could muster. Although it was clear I wasn't fooling him in the slightest as he furrowed his brows a bit in concern, but he clearly knew that I was still weary of this place, unsure about everything as a whole. I just had to remind myself to be ready for anything, to not let my guard down for a very long time. At least not until I knew for sure that this community could keep us protected.

"So, where are we going? Where's your camp?" Rick asked.

The man looked a little unsure, "Every time I've done this, I've been behind the wheel driving recruits back. I believe you're good people, I've bet my life on it...I'm just not ready to bet my friends lives on it."

"You're not driving." I spoke up, "So if you want to get home, you'll have to tell us how."

He looked up at me with clear hesitance, but the look I gave him caused his shoulders to slump in defeat before glancing back toward Rick. "Go north or Route 16." he muttered.

Rick began marking up the map in which direction to head, circling the road in question, "And then?" I pressed.

"I'll tell you when we get there." he said calmly.

I tilted my head a little at his stubbornness before getting down to his level, "You know, for a guy who desperately wants people to trust him, you sure are being pretty vague about where you're taking us." I said lowly.

He didn't have a chance to respond before Rick spoke up, "We'll take 23 North, you'll give us directions from there."

"That's– I don't know how else to say it, that's a bad idea. We've cleared 16 it'll be faster." he assured.

"We'll take 23." Rick argued casually, "We'll leave at sundown."

Sasha spoke up from the back, "We're doing this at night?"

"Look, I know it's dangerous, but it's better than riding up to the gates during the day. If it isn't safe, we need to get out before they know we're there."

"No one is going to hurt you." Aaron slightly snapped, probably fed up with the constant accusations towards him and his friends.

"We don't know that." I clapped back, "We don't know anything about this place other than what it fucking looks like."

He shook his head at me, "I know you're trying to protect your group, but you're putting them in danger."

Rick stood to his full height and walked right up beside me, "Tell us where the camp is, we'll leave right now." he said simply.

Aaron just slowly shook his head and looked back down to the ground. I scoffed before standing back up from my hunched position while Rick addressed the others, "It's going to be a long night. Eat, and rest if you can." he nodded, before slowly walking outside to get some air.

A long night...that was a mild way of putting it.

All of us tried our best to get at least a little sleep before we headed out for the camp, but it was proven to be more difficult than we anticipated considering the amount of stress and anxiety that weighed heavily in the space. We could all feel it, how much it was affecting us. And it was safe to say no one got even a wink of rest within the few hours we sat there doing absolutely nothing.

I couldn't stop overthinking even if I tried. Daryl tried numerous times to reassure me of my worries, even trying to get me to lay beside him so I could sleep, but my mind just wouldn't stop racing. My restlessness only influenced his own as he couldn't seem to settle either. The time passed by incredibly slow while we talked with one another to try and ease the obvious worry, but it didn't help much. Nothing seemed to. Now I only wished Abraham had saved that whiskey.

The moment the sun began to dip in the sky, we all gathered our things to pack up and head out for the journey ahead. It was then Rick pulled me aside and asked if I would ride in the separate car where Aaron would be just in case things went wrong. And I agreed; anything that would help put his mind at ease. Daryl was obviously hesitant to let me go alone, but he did nonetheless, knowing that I could handle myself if need be. Even if he wasn't around to protect me.

I kept my weapons on me securely as we rounded everyone up, starting up the engines to head off once it grew dark enough to move without being spotted. And though it was a cautious idea to stay out of sight, it was proving to be more difficult to see.

My body was leant against the passenger side door while Rick drove through the night, Glenn and Aaron just in the back. Right then and there I found myself wishing I had ridden in the RV along with everyone else. Not because I suddenly felt unsafe, but because of the God awful awkward silence the filled the car. Rick was tense as he drove, gripping the steering wheel tightly, the rest of us clearly playing it safe as to not say a word at the feeling of his energy.

Out of my own boredom, I eventually reached for the glove compartment to see what was inside, pulling out a few license plates that laid comfortably inside. I flipped through the few that were in my hands, noticing that they were all from different states, each unique and colorful.

"Oh, I'm trying to get all fifty to hang them up in my house." Aaron said, glancing over my shoulder to see what I had grabbed.

I turned around to look at him, "You have your own house?"

"Mhm." he hummed with a nod of his head.

My eyes instinctively glanced back toward Rick to see I had caught his eye, having a silent exchange before I put the license plates back where I found them without a word. It didn't really surprise me anymore that he and I could just give a certain look and instantly seem to know what was going through one another's minds. I didn't know how we did it, but we did. Like twin telepathy or some freaky shit.

Though Aaron seemed to quickly catch onto it, his eyes darting back and forth between the two of us to catch the small act before quietly clearing his throat.

"So...I might be totally wrong here, but are you- are you guys...together?" he hesitantly asked.

I quickly looked back to see him gesturing between Rick and I, and we both instantly shook our heads with disapproving noises. "Oh, hell no." I muttered a little too loud.

"Hey." Rick spoke a bit offendedly.

"Oh, come on," I scoffed, "Don't get all upset, it's just...you're..." I trailed off as I looked at him, trying to find a good explanation, "You're Rick." I said simply as I gave him a pat on the shoulder.

He nodded slowly with a huff, "Alright, yeah fair enough."

Aaron chuckled a bit awkwardly whilst Glenn tried not to laugh at all at the assumption. "So...you're with someone else?" Aaron asked again, clearly just trying to make conversation.

"Yeah..." I said cautiously, "I thought it was kind of obvious."

"The guy with the crossbow?" he guessed.

I thought for a moment if I should really commit to the truth, knowing he could easily use it against me if he wanted. But realistically what could he do? His hands were currently tied behind his back as we had control of the car we were riding in; safe to say we had the upper hand. So, I simply nodded my head to confirm, not wanting to get too deep into that hole.

"He looks like the guy you would want to have around...seems protective, and...scary."

I snorted softly at his honesty, not being able to agree more as I stayed quiet once again, the car falling back into a silence that was a little less tense than before.

My gaze kept panning back over towards the side mirror, making sure I could still see Abraham following close behind us in the RV with the headlights almost blinding me every time I looked. And then that's when it hit me. When Rick was looking through the many pictures Aaron provided, I didn't recall seeing one single person in any of them.

I turned back around slowly and made eye contact with the man, "How come you didn't have any pictures of your group?"

"Oh, I took one. But the exposure wasn't right." he said casually.

My suspicion only grew as I stared at him before turning back to Rick, sharing another uneasy look, "Did you ask him the questions?" Glenn asked.

"No..." Rick sighed.

I turned back to him again, "How many walkers have you killed?"

He shook his head at me, confusion creeping onto his features as his brow furrowed, "I'm sorry, what?"

"Did I stutter? How many?" I asked again.

He shrugged, "I don't know...a lot."

"How many people have you killed?"

This was the question that most people seemed to hesitate on, and he clearly wasn't any different than the rest as he paused for a moment and thought, but didn't break my gaze. "Two." he stated.

"Why?"

"Because they tried to kill me."

I found myself nodding in understanding, seeing he looked to be telling the truth as I turned back to face the road again. His answers made sense and he didn't fumble on any of them. Maybe this could all work out.

"What the hell is this?" Rick asked suddenly, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I looked down to see some type of machine, not fully understanding what it was used for upon first glance. My brows furrowed as I picked it up to inspect it a bit better than before, my eyes slightly widening when it clicked in my mind.

"You were listening to us?" I asked, not taking my eyes off the object in my hands.

He sighed, "I already said I was watching you...so, yes I was listening too."

Rick's head snapped over to me, "This means his people could have one too. They could've heard our plan, this isn't safe!"

In the midst of all the yelling and panic, I glanced up just in time to see the sudden large group of walkers ahead on the road, "Watch out!"

"Shit!" Rick cursed, not having enough time to swerve as he started to plow right through them at an intense speed.

Blood splattered all over the windshield and I cringed at the sounds of the snarls mixed with the crunches of their decaying bones. But to my surprise, he didn't slow down or stop at any point, his foot only pushing further on the gas as we continued to hit one dead body after another.

"Rick!" I yelled.

"They were right behind us! They would've hit us, now they can get out." Rick said as he nodded behind us toward the others.

The growls never subsided as he continued to fucking send it through the herd, their blood now coating the car to the point where the headlights were now tinted red as they illuminated our surroundings. All of us flinched every time he ran over one after another, silently wondering how the hell we were going to get out of this if they just kept coming. But the numbers slowly dwindled down once we got through the worst, Rick managing to find a clearing near the grass where he harshly pulled the car over, shoving it in park before suddenly getting out. It was confirmed; he lost his damn mind.

My eyes widened as I quickly hopped out alongside him, peering at him over the car, "What the hell are you doing!?"

"I don't see them!" he yelled back as he looked behind us for the RV that had seemingly disappeared.

I followed his line of sight and noticed that I couldn't see any other set of headlights coming our way. A pit formed in my stomach at all the possibilities of what could've happened to them, and it such a short span of time.

"They had to have gotten away. Let's go circle back and find them." he announced.

I just nodded my head and got back in the vehicle, watching as he attempted to clean off the windshield from the disgusting blood and guts as much as he could before jumping back in the driver's seat. Glenn frantically handed him the map as he gave him directions on where to go, Rick nodding his head to confirm he heard as he tried to turn the key to bring the engine to life. But of course, it refused to start, only managing to sputter pathetically.

"Son of a bitch." I cursed.

"Come on!" Rick yelled as he hit the steering wheel, trying to turn the key again but was just met with clicking when the scrap of metal didn't budge.

Glenn cursed from the back as he then rushed out of the car, trying to see if he could fix whatever was happening while Rick aggressively kept turning the key over and over again. The sound of the herd was growing nearer with the more attention we drew to ourselves, opening up my door to peer out and see how much time we had before they were on our asses. The group was large and unescapable if we continued to just sit here, being at war with myself as I considered the possibility of outrunning them instead.

"We need to leave now." Aaron said with a crack of panic in his voice.

"Yeah, no shit." Rick sneered as he tried again to start it up again.

I sat back in the seat with a breath, raking my brain for anything that would help us, when a flicker of red light suddenly caught my attention from above the night sky. "Look!" I said as I pointed to the flare.

"Shit..." Aaron muttered.

Rick looked back at him, "Who did that?"

"I need to leave. This is over, let me out. I need to get out of here." he muttered frantically as he tried to exit the car with his bonded wrists.

Rick and I continued to press him for answers, but all it was doing was making his panic grow, avoiding every single one we threw at him as his sole focus was getting out of the car as fast as possible. But he quickly realized he wasn't getting anywhere on his own. It wasn't until Glenn opened up the back door to see if we saw the same flare that he did, and Aaron didn't waste the opportunity. In an instant, he kicked Glenn backward and onto the ground so he could stumble out of the car clumsily and take off toward the woods.

"Fuck no." I muttered under my breath before swiftly exiting the car to run after him.

"Rose, just leave him! We have to find our people!" Rick yelled after me.

I turned back briefly, "They saw that flare, they think we shot it! This is how we find them!" I yelled, taking out my gun before rushing through the dark forest.

I sprinted quickly through the woods, squinting to see which way he turned, but it was far too hard to tell what direction his figure turned off in. I heard heavy footsteps following behind me, seeing Rick and Glenn hot on my heels trying to catch up as I continued to move with ease. The three of us mindlessly searched, continuously watching our backs for the walkers that managed to follow behind. But apparently there was a lot more than we anticipated.

My heavy steps came to a sudden halt when a number of them had somehow surrounded us in the pitch black, leaving us with no kind of opening as we made out their figures. I aimed my gun to fire at the ones near, backing up simultaneously as they followed with every shot I gave, being drawn toward the noise. My breathing was heavy as I killed them off one by one, unaware of how much distance I was putting between me and the others. Just focusing on staying alive long enough to pinpoint them again.

Eventually once the last body fell to the ground, I whipped back to see if I could spot them, but instead I had completely lost sight of where they had gone. I listened carefully for any kind of indication of which direction they escaped, but I was only met with the sounds of my own heart racing, everything turning oddly quiet.

Though a sudden scream tore through the silence, causing me to immediately take off toward the noise. All I could think as I ran was the worst case scenario, not knowing if a walker had somehow gotten them, if they had ran into more trouble with strangers, or if someone just tripped. The possibilities were endless. But I slowed to a stop when I came across the victim, seeing Aaron pinned up against a tree as a walker was trying to grab him, pushing it away desperately with his feet while his hands were still tied.

I debated in my mind for a moment, wondering if I should just leave him to fend for himself after the stunt he just pulled moments ago. But my conscience managed to get the better of me in the end. I groaned to myself in frustration, jogging up the rest of the way to take out my knife and stab the walker in the head harshly. The moment I pulled my weapon back and the walker fell limp, his fearful eyes met my own, sputtering to try and say something. But I didn't give him the chance before I was turning him around forcefully.

"Don't make me regret this." I muttered before cutting the rope that held his wrists in a death grip, tearing it apart.

He turned back towards me and opened his mouth to speak, but the sound of gunshots from a distance cut him off and caught both of our attention, and I knew I had to follow them. "Run if you want, I don't give a shit anymore. I have better things to worry about."

"Wait." he called out just as I went to walk away, "We...we can make it together, but we can only make it together..."

I looked him over for a moment, "So, you're with me?" I asked genuinely.

He nodded shakily, seeming to be sure of himself. I gave him a nod in return, allowing myself to put my trust in him for once as I told him to keep up before we took off again. We ran side by side trying to pinpoint the noise of Glenn and Rick now calling my name and the gunfire that followed. Though it was difficult to find, everything feeling like it was bouncing off each other in every direction. But finally with the little once of luck we had left, the two of us managed to catch a glimpse of them fighting off the remaining lone walkers around the area.

I quickly ran up and aimed my weapon towards the few they hadn't gotten yet from behind, the sudden noise making the both of them whip around, relief washing over their features.

"You can tie me up again, but you have to hurry." Aaron said.

"No time." Rick grumbled, "We have to go."

We didn't need to be told twice, quickly making our way back toward the road to try and figure out where the beam of light originally came from. Rick mentioned that it was near the water tower, one that seemed to be further down the long and windy road. But none of us hesitated to pick up our pace down towards the giant thing sticking out high above the trees to find our people.

Once we were finally close enough to the structure, I began to follow the tire tracks that they had left behind. The thick black marks were only growing closer as I followed them through the small town that was nearly completely run down, tracking them all the way until we hit an alleyway. The RV was parked on the side, and I let out a single whistle, waiting for a response before any of us took another step closer through the dark and unfamiliar place.

Only seconds passed before we heard the same whistle tone calling right back to us, that being all we needed to hear to spring forward again, wanting to make sure they were all okay. The door to the bricked building right beside the RV flew open as everyone seemed to pile out at one time to make sure we were okay after the disaster that followed. I made a beeline toward Daryl the moment I spotted him, falling into his opened arms in exhaustion while letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

"You alright?" he asked softly, kissing the side of my head.

I nodded slowly against his frame, "Yeah...yeah, I'm good."

I looked around to everyone else once we parted from each other, hugging whoever I could reach as I saw there wasn't a scratch on any of them. But I managed to catch out of the corner of my eye, Aaron quickly disappearing into the building they all came out of just moments ago. Like it was almost familiar to him.

I managed to sneak off and follow him hesitantly, the main space only being lit up by the moon just outside the windows, before seeing an orange light dispersing from the room around the corner. Peeking my head inside, my eyes widened as I saw Aaron fully making out with another man who was laying down on an old mattress, his foot wrapped up like he was injured. I subtly held my breath as I didn't want to intrude, obviously seeing the moment I was about to interrupt before slowly backing up to head back outside without a word.

Everyone's eyes snapped to me when the door creaked open, and I just shook my head. "We should give them a minute."

But Rick was fast to stalk up toward the door behind me, "No, let's not." he said before entering anyways despite my disguised protest.

I clicked my tongue in annoyance, "Okay." I muttered before turning to follow everyone else back inside the building.

We all piled into the small dim lit room just outside of where Rick vanished, waiting patiently as the group spread out to sit or lean against a nearby wall. Though it wasn't very long before the two men came back outside, Aaron looking more than grateful as he stared at all of us.

"Thank you." he said sincerely, "You saved Eric. I owe you, all of you. And I will make sure that debt is paid in full when we get to our community."

Oh yeah. Tell me why I completely forgot our whole agenda just because of a minor bump in the road.

"Now, I'm not sure about you but I'd rather not do any more driving tonight...maybe we can hit the road tomorrow morning." he continued.

"That sounds fine." Rick said from behind him, "But if we're staying the night here, you're sleeping over there." he pointed to a corner, far away from where Eric was staying.

Maggie stepped up, "You really think we gotta do that?"

"It's the safe play; we don't know you." Rick argued.

"The only way you're going to stop me from being with him right now is by shooting me." Aaron said, his eyes full of seriousness.

A small smirk played on my lips at his determination, but it quickly fell when I saw that Rick wasn't budging and was probably contemplating shooting him for real.

"Rick," my voice caught his attention, "Come on."

"You trust him?" he asked me.

I sighed before stepping a bit closer to close the gap between us so I could lower my voice, "They're both unarmed and one of them has a broken ankle. He's just worried about him...and I know I would be the same way if it were Daryl in there. Just take a breath."

He searched my eyes for any sign that I was unsure, "One man." I said simply, "Just like he said."

Rick exhaled heavily as he silently knew I was right; he was telling the truth from the very start. Why lie now? "Alright." he agreed, letting Aaron pass back into the room.

Everything then began to quiet down. The others managed to spread out among the small room, finding a good place to rest for the evening before we would be on the road again the first thing in the morning according to Rick. The night was peaceful. It was moments like these where I missed Beth the most, how she would sing a song that everyone fell absolutely in love with. Her soft voice echoing around the prison cells in the most beautiful way, leaving us all smiling. My back was leaning against the wall with my knees to my chest, as I fiddled with her bracelet on my wrist.

My fingers tugged at the material while my gaze was glued to the colorful yarn, only looking back up when I heard Daryl's familiar footsteps heading toward me. I smiled faintly, watching as he wordlessly handed me a bottle of water before taking a seat beside me.

I thanked him quietly and took a swing to quench my dry throat, before passing it right back to him, "What do ya think?" he asked.

I looked at him, "About what?"

"Bout the community...ya think it's as safe as it seems?" he spoke a bit hesitantly.

I shrugged, "I don't know...I hope it is. But that still doesn't mean we should completely trust it no matter how it looks. Looks can still be...deceiving."

"That's okay," he reassured, "Bein cautious is okay."

"I know..." I nodded, leaning my head back against the surface as I stared at him, "Just...know that whatever happens tomorrow...I'm still with you till the end."

A growing smile was brought to his face, nodding firmly in agreement, "You 'n me, baby." he promised in return, reaching down for my hand to leave a gentle kiss against my palm.

The following morning was nerve racking...dreadful. Leaving us on edge for what we were going to see walking into this unfamiliar place. Rick drove the small car once again, glancing down at the map every once and a while to be certain he was going the right way. My hands fidgeted anxiously in my lap once I knew we were getting closer, feeling Daryl gently intertwine our fingers to get me to calm down, even for just a moment. But he was nervous too; I could sense that clear as day even if he wouldn't admit it.

To be honest I didn't even know if he truly wanted to come here, at least not for himself. It felt as if his reasons for agreeing only matched my own, so everyone else could be protected. And nothing else mattered.

My attention was then drawn to the front as I felt Rick slow down the vehicle, seeing we had made it up to the front gates, rolling down his window to take a listen to the surroundings. I watched as his eyes shifted from stern and cold, to soft and hopeful at the sound of children laughing and people talking about behind the large walls before us. His demeanor instantly shifting.

He set a gentle hand on his son's shoulder from the passenger seat before looking back at us with the smallest of nods, shutting off the engine so we could all pile out. The remainder of the group slowly emerged from the RV as we all came to stand in front of the giant gated place before us, almost in disbelief that this somehow wasn't a dream. I chewed my lip anxiously, and automatically reached for Daryl's hand to give it a nervous squeeze.

Without taking his eyes off the gate, I felt him squeeze my hand back three times as I subtly held my breath in anticipation. All I could do in that moment was hope, which was something I thought we lost long ago. But maybe, just maybe, we didn't.

Maybe this was just the beginning.

~ Thanks for reading!

Taglist ~ @justareader95 @hayley1998 @ryoujoking @sipsthecoffee @winterassassin1804 @marsmallow433 @catlalice @writingstreetspirit @silentlysurffering98 @mystictf @remuslittlesister

[bluginkgo]

Another Nuzi rant. Don't mind me

Spoilers, duh

Since I've already done a quick character study/nuzi rant from N's side. Here's one from Uzi's side!

This is probably gonna be just me repeating things people have already said... again. But I love Uzi. (Just like every other character in Murder Drones, honestly.) But Liam did a wonderful job of making an angsty, emo girl, borderline maniac that we know as Uzi. Her character, to me at least, never became the annoying overdramatized and overused stereotype that follows her style. She has real reasons for being the way she is.

A loner, whose dad loves nothing but doors. School is not different, as her classmates pretty much forget about her existence on a day to day basis. No one to talk to, no one to connect with, gives her the angsty side that I absolutely adore. Because underneath all of that toughness is just a lonely little drone who was left by herself since early age. But guess who comes in and busts down those walls (literally and figuratively)?

Our good boi N! Despite their rough start, N never really gave Uzi a reason not to trust him. Their chance encounter, and a broken sensor, allowed them to have the talk that might have never happened. Their beginning might have been a lucky accident, but for the rest of the season, we can see how both sides had to work to make well... Nuzi work!

For Uzi, asking for help is like asking for a death sentence probably. After being on her own for so long, she doesn't expect anyone to help. With that information in mind, the first time she let's that wall crumble was episode 2, Heartbeat.

"Uzi, shoot! Or give it to me!"

Granted, we all know that was not our N. But in that moment, when Uzi was in an enough distressed state, she sought help in N. We all know how that ended, though. Absolute Solver took advantage of that and almost killed her, before N once again sweeped in to save her. The one and only notorious Nuzi misunderstanding was, for better or for worse, cleared up pretty quickly. Seeing as glitchproduction only has so much money at their disposal, they can't really drag this ordeal out. Personally, I'm glad that it didn't. The long drama that is just a misunderstanding after misunderstanding gets quite tedious to follow.

So, moving forward in The Promening, Uzi once again seeks out N when she's in distress. When she sees and hears about what Doll and Lizzy were gonna do, she books it to the only person she knows can help her.

N! Now don't get me wrong. Uzi, by herself is plenty strong. She's shown off her fighting and capabilities, and would have probably been able to take V on. She's taken J down before, aaaand Uzi does technically also take V down in Cabin Fever. But she still went out of her way to go find N. So they could work together and get this mess sorted out.

And then there's this. God I love Cabin Fever, and surprisingly no, not for the Falling.... for you? scene. No, I loved the entire Uzi going on murder spree because she can! The music was such a banger too. But back to Uzi. She recognizes V and briefly snaps back to her usual self. Curious isn't it? N and Uzi both tried reaching out to V, but because V is so untrusting (and we all understand why from ep 5, Home). Here Uzi tried to ask V for help... in form of N.

I find it interesting how ever since Uzi met N and V, she's been getting better at asking for help. Sure, V shot her down because, once again, V was scared. Uzi was turning into the monster that only Cyn has been capable of creating. This soon leads to N yeeting Uzi into the f*cking stratosphere and the two have a chat.

I love how the animators included Uzi hiding behind her bat wings.

Her metaphorical walls were back up. And guess who broke them yet again.

The bestest boi N! And ever since this moment, N and Uzi are way more open.

Episode 5 was taking place in N's memories. But episode 6 is where their trust and care shines. Yeah, sure, there was the hand holding. And it was a big moment! But I enjoyed the little things more. Uzi checking in on N, nodding at his little comments and jokes.

Summary: I love Nuzi. Send help they're on my mind 24/7.

[idea-less-author]

I'm rewatching Doctor Who, and first of all, I forgot how much I not only loved this show but also Rose Tyler as a whole. Also nine needs more love. Anyway, I just finished episode 1×6 Dalek, and all I could think was how interesting it would have been if the Dalek survived and joined the time traveling duo. Walk with me a second.

We all known the Daleks, what they're like, what they are, what they've done, what they're capable of. But, this Dalek has spared 2 human lives. It's just kinda meandering with Rose questioning everything. It just wants freedom, but what does that mean really? The Doctor comes in and threatens it, sees that it's changed due to Rose's DNA, and is feeling something other than hate for the first time in it's existence. It's no longer a true Dalek, but it's still alone. It asks Rose for it's final orders. And, what if, she says no. And doesn't change her mind.

This is the first time the Dalek has ever felt the full spectrum of emotions. Of course it's over whelmed. It's neever felt anything more then maybe anger and hatred and now there are so many new things to feel.

Grief for what it once was and for all it once knew, fear of all of the unknown ahead, I'm sure some guilt for not only what it has done, but for even allowing itself to be changed in the first place. It gained human emotions for the very first time, moments after finding out that it was alone, and after being tortured for who knows how long. It's standing with the being that ended the time war by massacring both of their people, and the woman who' s DNA changed you so fundamentally that you know longer know what you even are. You're feeling sunlight for the very first time. That does not sound like a being that should be making life changing/ending decisions at that moment.

So, what if Rose refuses to give that final order. She recognizes all of the above. She's a lover, she's compassionate, she's emotionally intelegent. She doesn't like the suffering of anyone, including her enemies, but death would not be her first answer. It hasn't been before, it wasn't after, so why this time?

No, what if instead Rose chose to be kind to the Dalek by being a bit crule, and refusing it's request to die. Instead she convinces the Doctor to bring him aboard the ship. She picks the Dalek up, right out of the exoskelton, and not only gives the Dalek, it's first ever physical contact, but a new home. (I understand that the Dalek is squid-like and slimey but honestly I don't know how much Rose would care about that when trying to show compassion. Hell she tried to show compassion by carressing the Dalek earlier in this very episode.)

Nine would not be thrilled with these developments. You want to bring one of the creatures that helped end his people, terrorized the Universe, and is the reason that his alone, onto HIS Tardis? Are you mad? And they would bicker a bit. Shouting would happen, and the Dalek might even be on the Doctor's side. But I think in the end Rose would look at Nine with her big doe eyes, passionate about life in the way that she always is, and he would cave. He would be upset and cross (with himself mostly), but he would let Rose bring it onto his ship. I mean the Dalek has changed, and let's be real, he's the reason the Daleks alone, as well as himself. He had his reasons, but do they even matter at this moment? With this Dalek?

Now the next episode does take place near immediately after this one on station 5 and whatever, but even with the Dalek I think that the adventure with what's his name (I can't be bothered to look it up atm but you know the guy) can go much of the same as it did. The Dalek get's let on the Tardis recovering from it's ordeal, rethinking everything, and what the implications for it are now that everything is different. I think all of the Canon episodes for this season are much of the same too, just add a couple of new adventures showing the Dalek what life can be now with a full sectrum of emtions. And because it got these emotions from Rose, probably a shit-ton of compassion. I also think that it would start to build itself a new mechsuit, or whatever you want to call it. But this time, it has more uses then just death, destruction, and conquering.

The Dalek and the Doctor would have a whole frenemies thing. The Doctor doesn't trust the Dalek because it's a Dalek, and the Dalek knows that the Doctor should be it's number one enemy. But, they are cohabitating. And Rose wants things to work out, so they try to not be hostile. But every now and again, they find themselves... talking. Specfically when the Dalek is working on it's new suit, the Doctor will, help? Tbh it starts out with him being extreamly suspicious of the Dalek and wanting to keep an eye on it. Which leads to helping, segestions, being a sound board. And if I'm being honest, if it were a someone other than Nine I would say that this would be the time he notices what's happening and go and skulk around for a it before the cycle happens again, but I honestly think Nine would notice, and just continue on. Get to know the Dalek. Trust in Rose. At some point I do think that the Dalek chooses a name for itself, at Roses prompting. No idea what, but just another way that the Dalek changes and differenciates itself from the rest.

Now while this is all happening, they are still going on the rest of the adventures in the season. Jack joins the T.A.R.D.I.S. team. I think he'd kinda love a Dalek that's no longer a Dalek, who wants to live life, and maybe do some good for once. He joins the building sesions. Rose is there, it started off as her chaperoning The Doctor and The Dalek, but it just became hanging out and providing commentary fairly quickly. They're all having a grand time. It's strange, but it's theirs. Then Station 5 part 2 happens. The Doctor, Jack, and Rose get yoinked into their respective game shows. Rose gets disitegrated. Their Dalek and the T.A.R.D.I.S. are found and The Doctor and Jack are mourning. Their Dalek knows something is off. They figure out that the Daleks are back. They go to the Emperor.

Now I can't quite decide if Our Dalek would even be tempted by the emperor or not. Maybe at first? but It's changed so much. The Emperor likely wants nothing to do with It anyway because It's no longer a True DalekTM. And Our Dalek has changed so much. SEEN so much. Has been cared for by Rose Tyler, which we all know is a life chaging experience.

Once again I'm not entirely sure how the fight against the Daleks end for Their Dalek. It gets sent with Rose to protect her while everyone else fights and dies against the Daleks. It help Rose get back. Or It stays behind with Jack and The Doctor, completly fine with sacrificing it's life to save humanity as long as Rose is safe. If we go that route there are several ways you can go from there. It dies fighting what it once had been a hero. It dies, and comes back like Jack. In that case I think that It would continue on with Jack as a companion. Or maybe It goes It's own seperate way from Jack after resuraction. It lives, no need to be resurected. It could continue on with The Doctor and Rose. It could be left behind with Jack. It could stay behind with Jack. It could decide to go separate ways from the Doctor and Rose (I don't think Ten would be as tolerant of Our Dalek and It would sense that, so It goes on it's own adventures. Or maybe it goes and finds Jack after The Doctor becomes Ten.) Idk So many ways that it could go and I like a lot of them. I think bringing It back like Jack and letting them Travel together is my favorite.

I was just overtaken with this idea and had to share. I have no idea if this had been done broe, I'm sure it has, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. I just started rewatching and it's over taken me. I'd love to hear other people's thoughts.

[castlebyersthoughts]

Dude those Reddit posts—Yikes! The mindset of some people is startling. At this point I’m not sure if I want to laugh or scream. I know ST is just a show or whatever but we’re talking about possible queer representation and we’re getting called out. They really don’t understand how groundbreaking it would be. There’s so much straight rep out there and you don’t have to look hard at all. In any other instances you could have theories going back and forth in a fandom and people would be open about it or at least be like “hmm…that’s interesting now that you mention it”—but the second you try to imply that a character could be queer all hell breaks loose. Why? Does that threaten their favorite ship? If they’re so confident in them they shouldn’t have anything to worry about? It’s so stupid to call us delusional just for hoping for some queer representation. We want to be seen too.

The audacity to say “if they wanted it to be obvious they would have done it like all the other couples” you mean all the straight couples who can live openly and be comfortable with who they are and fall in love with who they want to without fear of judgement or shame. I swear people watch this show with their god damn eyes closed and their fingers shoved in their ears. Do people seriously not understand that it’s set in the 80’s at a time where there was zero positivity surrounding queer people. Every tv news program or newspaper article was filled with hate, death, slurs or quoting some bullshit bible verse.

I hope Milkvan’s enjoy their time living in blissful ignorance cause come season 5 that shits going crash down real hard.

Oh my god, anon, I know. You're trying to find excuses for them but let's face it, the ones I posted here were pure homophobia. Because they wouldn't react this way if Will was a girl, it wouldn't be seen as such an unthinkable thing, especially in season 3 out of a 5-season show. It's a normal and even basic progression of the story to slowly reveal another love interest for the protagonist who's been struggling with his relationship, especially when it's the best friend who's had feelings for them the whole time, it's like every romcom ever.

To be completely honest I did select the worst comments for that post, some people actually agreed with Will possibly having feelings for Mike, even if they all thought it was going nowhere. But Mike not being straight is just never a possibility for them, I guess because he had a girlfriend at age 12? It's either ignorance/heteronormativity or homophobia. Which is why representation is still so important, especially with a character like Mike, who's seen as the "normal" character, the audience stand-in.

And yes you're absolutely right about queer couples in the 80s not having the luxury to just be open like the straight ones, it's just completely crazy to think they could ever write Mike and Will like they did Jonathan and Nancy. I also don't know why those people are not considering the simple fact that the writers are taking their time writing a careful, coherent story? It's like everything is about instant gratification these days and people forget what a piece of fiction even is. They don't realize a story needs to have a beginning, middle and end, and characters need to go through a journey and grow. But somehow since Mike and El kissed in season 1 they have to end up together, no question about it. It's like these people have never read a book or even watched another tv show? It's truly baffling.

I guess in the end people who react this way are either: 1) M*leven shippers who use any excuse they can to stay in denial about Byler, 2) homophobic people, or 3) casual fans who don't pick up on the little details and queer subtext and aren't used to seeing that type of storyline in their "monster" shows, so they just don't register Byler as a possibility. Honestly the ones I'm most shocked by are definitely the M*leven shippers, because these people are absolute fans of the show, have watched it many times, and know how the writers and cast talk about it. Maybe they're just skipping all the Byler scenes on their rewatches, I don't know, but it just amazes me how they can convince themselves that Byler is just a fan-made crack ship and their beloved couple that's been terrible together for the past two seasons is the only possible endgame.

Like you said, there's going to be a big crash down from them after season 5. Because even if for some reason Byler doesn't happen, I am absolutely sure that Mike and El aren't ending up together. They're ET and Eliot, they're gonna have to part ways at the end of the story. Fortunately there don't seem to be many M*leven fans left, so I guess if the season is good this won't affect the global reaction to season 5 too much. Like the Duffers said, "You just can't please everybody"!

[pink-ninja]

Dragons rising s2 part 2 spoilers and a bit of a rant about arin

Honestly I could rant about it for a long time but to me Arin acted just so selfishly this entire half of the season, I get it, he wants to find his parents, but he's not the only one who lost someone important to them.

It made me so mad that he threw a fit and ignored Sora for half the episodes cause she "lied to him about his object spinjitzu" like no Arin, the world was at stake and nobody could afford for you to miss that throw, she didn't tell you about it because your self confidence in your skills was low and she didn't want to make it worse. And don't get me started on him thinking that Lloyd promised Arin they'd find his parents but haven't yet after he heard Lloyd promising Nya they'd go look for Jay after the tournament.

I get the ninja are arin's idols, but sometimes it seems like he forgets the ninja are way more than what the public sees, etc all the stuff they did before they got famous, how they were super young when they became ninja. And Lloyd from the very start told Arin he couldn't be their master, that he wasn't good enough to be one, he agreed to be their teacher but constantly insisted they need master Wu, obviously he couldn't give them the best training from the start because he'd never trained anyone and was just trying to use Wu's old teachings because that's how all the other ninja were taught. Lloyd never lied to Arin and gave him false promises (like Wu telling Morro he'd be the green ninja) he told Arin he has amazing potential, Lloyd never said he was some amazing teacher, he was transparent about his doubts from the start. But in my opinion Arin is still idolizing the ninja, and obviously they can't do everything at once like finding arin's parents, Lloyd mentioned from the very start they still didn't know everything about the new merged realms or how the merge happened. Plus Arin isn't the only one who lost someone, Zane is still missing pixal, wyldfyre misses Kai, Nya is clearly distraught over Jay, I'm sure they'd want nothing more than to go out looking for the people they care about, but they don't because they know they a responsibility to keep the world safe (as asked of them by a source dragon who went down to the mortal world specifically to ask them)

My other beef with Arin is after the ghost of sensei Wu appeared, he asked if sensei Wu was responsible for the merge, Wu said yes, Arin then proceeds to tell Lloyd in the middle of a pretty chaotic fight where one of the five has pretty much all the elemental powers, we can tell Lloyd is shocked by the information, but he quickly burries those thoughts because he knows he has to focus on the current situation. Even Zane tells Arin it's a lot to process, Arin should know that they have to stop the 5 and protect the source dragons but instead he chooses to hold a grudge against Lloyd for focusing on their current situation instead of something nobody can change, especially at the current moment, and then chooses to side with Ras, even after everything Ras had done to them in the past, just because Ras told him part of the truth, Arin didn't take a moment to wonder if Ras was hiding something else, because he's after the source dragons and then says he only trusts Ras now. Like I get it Arin wants to find his parents, but Lloyd never forced Arin to become a ninja, Arin started calling Lloyd his master, Arin was the one that wanted to train to be a ninja first

And maybe I'm a little biased cause Lloyd is my favorite (but I also love jaya so if Nya could pause her search for Jay because she knows she's needed elsewhere) Arin should be able to understand that the ninja's first priority is to keep the world safe, one of lloyd's biggest priorities since a bunch of things about the merge are tied to his grandfather and the source dragons (plus he's the conduit) and that even if they wanted to the ninja can't just drop everything and search the entire merged realms for arin's parents.

Like I want nothing more than to give Arin a well needed lecture about how he is the one that wanted to join the ninja in the first place and honestly he could've easily told Lloyd "hey I'm leaving on a journey to go find my parents because unlike you, finding my parents is my top priority, not saving the world"

I know I've got a long rant but ever since I finished the last episode of season 2 it's been on my mind, and of course this is just a personal opinion

[pedripics]

Pedri via Residency - May 28, 2024

What is something you still want to accomplish in life? - " A lot of things. I am still very young or do you already want to kill me?"

Favourite teammate at Barça? - "I am close with the group in general but Ferran"

Do you play any instruments? or would you like to learn how to play one? - "Better not for the sake of the rest of the people. I like to listen to music but not much else" Favourite series or movie? - "Mi reno de peluche and the one about chapo guzman; favourite favourite is Prison Break and La que se avecina"

Do you know anything about Armenia? - "not too much, to be honest… but recently a very nice driver took me to a shooting was from there. His name was Ara"

Favourite moment of the season? - "It wasn't the best season. On a personal level, I would say the brace."

How do you deal with criticism? - "I try to stay out of it, although it's not always possible, of course... you have to try and keep going and keep believing in yourself"

How do you feel about being able to play for Spain after such a long time? - "Very happy. I haven't been able to play for Spain for a long time. Hopefully we will have great EUROs and also a great 24/25 season with Barça"

How did you feel after the brace? - "crazyyyyy"

"I always try to stop and sign, because I remember when I asked for signatures as a kid"

Plans for the summer? - "I hope to go on vacation, but in a month and a half… that will mean that we go far in the euro with the national team"

Have you eaten German food before? - "Yesss... a member of my marketing team is German and he made us German food a long time ago, with sausages and so on"

How is your English? - "I still have to improve a lot. Give me a few months and I will answer in English"

Do you miss doing anything in your daily life? - "I can't complain. I like to live in peace"

Would you like to go to China? - "Of course, yes. Althpugh in the season there is not really time for anything and during holidays I prefer to stay close and rest. Let's see if we ever have a tour in China"

How many trophies have you won? - "With Barça, La Liga, Copa and Supercopa"

Do you feel ready for the EUROs? - "Siiii"

5 UCL Trophies or a World Cup? - "I don't want to choose. I would like to win it all"

Would you like to play against Portugal in the EUROs final? - "Sure. As long as we play in the final, I don't care against who it is"

Pele or Maradona? - "Maradona... Because he played for Barça and my father told me about him when I was younger. I remember the day he died very well because it was my 18th birthday"

Have you been to New York? - "Yes"

Favourite team to play against? - "Obviously Barça" (he did NOT understand that question lmaooo back to duolingo it is)

Visit Uruguay? You have a lot of fans here - "Ronald also told me once... We'll have to listen to him, because otherwise he gets angry"

How was it going to the Spanish GP in 2022? Are you going this year? - "It was a crazy experience. I don't think I can go this year because it clashes with the EUROs"

Do you like going to concerts? - "I haven't been to many, honestly... I have yet to go to one of Quevedo's. And last year they invited me from Spotify to see Coldplay in Barcelona but in the end I didn't go and I regretted it a little. Teammates went and they love it" (who tf turns down coldplay tickets??? 😭)

Your dad is a great person. - "The best"

How do you feel about receiving so much love? - "Very proud and privileged"

Do you want to score for Spain during the EUROs? - "Clarooo. Let's see if I can make it happen, because I haven't scored for Spain yet"

Red or blue? - "Azulgrana"

Do you like to cook? - "I'm not very good at cooking... My brother and mother are much better"

Pedri or Pedro? - "Pedri... Pedro sounds strange to me. From a young age they already called me Pedri, because there was another boy in the team whose name was Pedro and it was to differentiate us... and everyone calls me Pedri"

What do you think of Alexia, Aitana and Marta? - "They are top footballers!"

Is it difficult to have a 'normal' life? - "It's not easy, but mine doesn't change that much because I really like to be quiet and at home"

Only fish or only meat? - "I prefer meat... but for nutrition, fish"

When you were a kid did you make trouble in class? - "I was more of a quite kid"

Who do you think will win the Golden Boy award? - "Well, I hope a Barça teammate. Lamine, and if not Cubarsi"

What inspires you to perform at such a high level on the field? - "I do what I like the most"

What do you think of your season at Barça this year? - "I was saying this the other day. It hasn't been an easy season and I hope the next one will be much better in every single way and we will win titles"

Have you ever wished to have a sister? - "My mother always wanted to have a daughter, but in the end she had to settle for Fer and me hahaha"

How do you feel for the EUROs? - "Very good. Better and better"

Blue or Black? - "Blue"

[ilikekidsshows]

Let's be real, what weight does being called a salter by most Marinette stans even hold anymore? I'm not trying to be a bitch, I'm serious. What does that even mean anymore?

Marinette stans are more often than not very transparent with their priority being defending their made up version of Marinette. So their arguments barely ever hold up when put to the test because they don't care for what actually happens in Canon.

So why should I be offended by being called a salter and awful person by people who switch the moral approach of their argument on a dime flip every time a new episode drops? One day prior they chew you out for saying that Marinette will act jealous and sabotaging again because she never learned shit, and next day with the new information they turn around bending over backwards to justify why Marinette still acting that way is actually totally realistic and no problem at all.

Excuse me? How am I supposed to take you serious after that?

Or the way Marinette stans before Kwamis Choice swore and yelled from their self claimed moral high horse that Ladynoir will totally get fixed in season 5 and that Cat Noir was only sidelined so much because now season 5 will have Marinette dedicated to making it up to him and returning the partnership to one of equals again as Ladynoir becomes canon as pay off. Only for that to NOT have happened at all, so suddenly Marinette stans pulled a 180° and suddenly go on bout how there was nothing to fix anyway, and that accountability shouldn't always require immediate communication and effort to fix the unfair treatment. It's fine if that only happens in season 8 or 9, that's "realistic" and its what makes Adrien's support so "great". Because he understands that redeeming oneself shouldn't need to include... accountability... though of course only when it MARINETTE. Everyone else and Adrien in particular taking all accountability is just him being mature and fair to her uniquely stressful and soul crushing circumstances that make it unbearable for her to do the same in return.

She cries about being awful once or twice so no need for her to apologise or acknowledge or fix what she did wrong if she isn't comfortable with it yet. Don't you see how awful and cruel you are for saying that redeeming yourself needs of you to redeem yourself now? Dont you see that Adrien understands that Ladybug can't give anything right now and that his love language is selflessly serving her and wants nothing in return because that's the right thing to do in his position? She still loves and respects him so much, he just understands that she shouldn't need to show it if she needs to heal first through Adrien taking care of her.

Do you even understand the beautiful DEPTHS of redemption? And how long it takes sometimes to do so for a broken complex individual like Marinette? Seriously, in my made up season 10 all of that will have played out in a way where non of that will ever have been a problem, just stfu you don't GET it like I do 😒

This is an actual paraphrased conversation I had with a person who's opinion I once respected a lot and I wished my paraphrasing made it worse but honestly, that's exactly what they said. And I'm still taken aback that they said that. But they sure weren't the only Marinette stan I found saying things like that.

What the FUCK am I supposed to take from that besides the revelation that they just do not apply any kind of moral baseline to Marinette's character? What is there for me to respect?

Marinette stans say they are against bullying until Marinette does it or benefits from it. Then they openly romanticise and defend it with the only argument being "that wasn't bullying, Marinette wouldn't do that!" as if that changed what happened on screen. All it reveals is that Marinette stans' words don't mean anything, their moral standards are entirely dependent on who is doing it and benefiting from it. Thats not a moral standard, that's a biase you don't owe up to.

Marinette stans say they are against violence and abuse of power until Marinette does it or benefits from it. Then they will defend hypocrisy with whatever random excuse they come up with in that moment that more often than not is either "that doesn't count cuz I said so" or "it's fine that Marinette benefits from sexist double standards and a clear main character biase bc it is her show". Once again showing that they don't actually draw any kind of line moral wise for Marinette's actions and the writing, their opinion of said morality entirely depends on what works best for Marinette. And then they get angry when that gets called out.

I won't lie, I do think that some people in this collective therapy group here ARE to harsh sometime, but I can definitely respect that alot of them make it clear where they simply draw the morality line and they won't budge on their core beliefs the show is shitting on.

There is a massive difference between simply salting Marinette and angrily speaking up against something you think is genuinely morally wrong or harmful in a kid's show like this.

Alot of people I see around here say that they wished they could go back to liking the show, Marinette (or whatever character) the way they were once used to but simply can't because the show keeps on making whatever problems they had worse.

I don't necessarily always share the points of no return but I can fuck with the reasoning because it's a consistent angle they always stand by that goes beyond the complaint that their fav is simply not getting the special treatment or has hurt feelings. I can trust most Adrien stans I see who dislike or salt on Marinette to form a proper argument and a whole pov that stays consistent when you bring up other parts of the show.

I can't say that I've had the same experience with Marinette stans and for me it's obvious why. Marinette stans were never forced by the show to take a step back and lay down their core principles they won't budge on because Marinette always gets put first and that's what they care about the most.

They can say however they like that they don't support bullying, ableism and abuse, they are absolutely doing so with full chest voice for their Marinette biase, they are just not willing to reflect on that bc that would reveal to them that their made up Marinette isn't real.

They have no coherent moral baseline in their arguments, they're proudly hypocritical, and then get angry when you call them out for going back and forth on their moral "standards" in a discussion about moral principles.

What is there to respect anymore? Being called a salter by them has long started feeling like a compliment because for me it became synonymous with "isn't changing their option on a fucking whim the second a new episode dropped". And if that makes me a salter, then so be it. I'm not throwing my moral principles out of the window for a cuddled protagonist who's became the poster girl for harmful white feminism on kids tv.

---

The irony, when I went to my inbox to read this message I saw that a Marinette stan had also sent me an ableist insult. Some Marinette stans have no convictions or moral standards even for their own behavior, and the extreme individuals in the Marinette fandom never fail to prove the criticisms of them correct in a single harassing message. Like, of course they’re gonna excuse Marinette bullying people, they themselves would most likely do the same for petty reasons. I can be petty too, but my pettiness takes the form of me feeling immense moral superiority whenever I delete one of these little hate messages. Like, I might be a jerk about a fictional character, but at least I’m not a pathetic anonymous troll in someone’s inbox.

Marinette stans lie when they say they don't support bullying, because they excuse it when Marinette does it as well as when they themselves do it. Like, I’m not saying they’re all like this, I get these messages so rarely that there’s no way the entire Marinette fandom is full of assholes. Still, this isn’t the first time I got an anonymous message from some random hater right after I posted something spicy about Marinette and it isn’t the first time such a message included at least one example of ableism. It's just a fact that a lot of Marinette stans are hateful liars who spout ableism as soon as they can do it anonymously, so, like, why should we take anything they have to say seriously anyway? Every time a Marinette stan says: “I don't support bullying or harassment” there’s a high chance they actually mean: “until someone says something spicy about the flawless queen Marinette, then I’ll use bullying and harassment without hesitation”. We really shouldn’t care one bit what these people have to say, because they’ll say whatever suits their agenda of the day.

When I say I don’t support bullying or harassment, I mean it and I live by it. I don’t do it, because I don’t think anything can be solved by sending people hate mail, nor would I get any satisfaction from it. I don’t even want to encourage anyone else to do so. That’s part of the reason I invite people to send their gripes to me; this blog is already a Miraculous-negative space, so here people can put their grievances into words without anyone who’s just minding their business getting harassing messages, even when people send me stuff clearly inspired by a specific person or group. Like, Marinette stans can make a fuss about how we’re terrible people for discussing our gripes amongst ourselves, but we aren’t the ones harassing other people here.

Although, since I’m being honest here, I have to say I do agree on the harshness. I don't always agree with everything the anons who message me say 100%, but I try to focus on the parts I do agree with or have something to add to. I’ll even admit I sometimes look over a response draft and wonder if I’m being too harsh, but often I’m just not motivated to watch my tone. I know from past experiences that Marinette stans don’t care how you’re wording your criticisms, just the act of criticising Marinette makes you the bad guy.

[cinnamontails-ff]

October Fic Recs

Another round of fic recs, inspired by @shewhowas39' format! Sorry they're not particularly seasonal, but I'm a coward and don't deal well with horror, soooo :D

1) Death and Taxes by @pyrekite

For everyone who loved seeing Astarion embrace the power of taxes in Accountant's Guide, look no further than this! Absolutely incredible concept of post-canon Astarion returning to his magistrate roots and coming to Rolan's aid as he's struggling to pay all the taxes Lorroakan & Ramazith have been dodging for centuries. The idea is a 10/10, but really, it's Astarion who makes it as fun as it is. He's so competent when it comes to the bureaucracy of Baldur's Gate, yet every bit as sassy as we know him, and it makes for such a fun read. Only 1 chapter so far, but boy, do I hope for more.

2) The Scientific Method by @obsessedwhyyes

I am convinced that this was written for me and me alone (but I want everyone to see it, so I will gush). It has all my personal favorites: 1) A main character who is a scientist as well as a chronic overthinker, 2) Astarion realizing the target of his nice simple plan is a virgin and going "Hell yes!", 3) the two of them exploring intimacy in a way that's soft and caring, but also really, really hot. Seriously, the smut in this is absolute god tier, and the way it's woven into the MC's worldviews and the way she struggles with opening up and letting herself feel is just absolutely superb. Two parts are out so far and a third is on the way! We have been blessed!

3) Don't forget you love me by @canon-in-too-deep

This is not just any old Gortash fic. No, this is the Gortash fic. The one that finally makes you understand what the heck people find so charming about the raccoon man. He's an absolute delight in this as the exasperated, yet patient and loving husband to a post-canon Tav who suffers from selective amnesia, causing her to nearly fireball her husband to death when she wakes up to him one morning, thinking he's still her sworn enemy. The writing is incredible, so fun and light, with beautiful parallels between their initial courtship and married life now. Honestly, if you've ever been curious about the whole Gortash thing or if you're just looking for a sweet, incredibly well-executed rom-com, this is it.

4) Invisible Strings by @slothquisitor

A gorgeous modern AU where Astarion is a failing social media influencer who doesn't know that the girl he's talking to/falling in love with on a dating app is actually his geeky roommate. I'm not completely caught up with it yet, but the character writing is stunning, the prose so effortlessly cute. Astarion's struggles have been translated into a modern context beautifully and his love interest is set up to be a complex, well-rounded character with her own backstory and issues to work through. I cannot wait for the two of them to get closer as the story unfolds!

5) Say yes but only if you want to by @amoremagnificentbastard

Fascinating take on a rather shy, inexperienced OC wanting to take care of Astarion with some good old-fashioned oral love, and how the offer affects him and his trauma. The dynamic between these two is lovely and I'm always stoked to see stories that seamlessly combine mature, honest conversations and intense horniness. And once we do finally get to that blowjob, I am sure it'll be well worth the wait :3

[happy74827]

Lost On You

[Rick Grimes x Female!Reader]

Synopsis: Drawn to his strength and resilience, you've secretly fancied the widowed sheriff turned leader. But with recent events turning his smiles into forced fake ones, all that's on your mind is to make it known that he's not alone {Takes place in Season 5}.

WC: 2067

Category: Hurt/Comfort, Slight Angst

This is officially my first Walking Dead fanfic, which I'm honestly surprised hasn't happened earlier, but I've recently rewatched season five, and it made me remember just how much I love Rick. So, here we are.

『••✎••』

The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a warm glow across the makeshift camp that had become a haven for the group after their escape from Terminus. The tension that had gripped them during their ordeal was slowly easing, and a sense of normalcy was tentatively settling in. Amid the camaraderie and relief, one person's heart was beating just a little faster than the rest – yours.

Ever since the days at the prison, you had found yourself drawn to Rick Grimes. His strength, his resilience, and the way he cared for his people… it resonated with you deeply. You found yourself admiring him from afar, with feelings growing with every shared moment. And now, as you sat by the campfire, watching Rick with Judith nestled safely in his arms, those feelings were impossible to ignore.

He changed, though. It was apparent in his eyes. Andrea had mentioned long ago how he was becoming “colder,” but you never saw it until now. Until you’ve (quite literally) were face-to-face with evil.

After the incident with Gareth and his people, Rick rarely smiled. And when he did, it was faker than Daryl’s chupacabra claim. Even when Judith giggled while tugging on his beard, or when Michonne and Carl had random competitions, he never smiled like he used to. The last time you saw him “happy” by definition was back when Hershel was still around.

Rick was no longer the man who gave you hope. You didn't know if it was the guilt of his past actions, the stress of the group's survival, or a combination of the two, but Rick Grimes had been lost somewhere along the road, and you wanted to find him.

Your gaze drifted down to your lap, where the remnants of a half-eaten dinner lay. You weren't sure what Carol had made tonight, but it was good. She was always an amazing cook.

Carol.

She was the only person who knew how you felt about Rick. It had been hard not to talk about it. You two were close, and it wasn't like you were a master at keeping secrets. Carol was, though. She had a talent for reading people and knew right away when you had developed a crush. She always teased you about it.

You were glad she didn't tell anyone, and you were glad to have her as a friend.

With the fire beginning to die down, and the food finished, the others began drifting back to their respective tents. First Michonne, then Carl, Daryl, Carol, and Tyreese. Sasha lingered for a bit, and eventually, Abraham and Rosita. Eugene and Tara had been gone all day scavenging for supplies, and Glenn and Maggie had disappeared into the woods an hour before. They had just recently returned, hand-in-hand, and were giggling and whispering as they headed for their tent.

As for you? Well, you were just waiting. Waiting and watching Rick. You didn't know why, exactly. Maybe you were hoping he would suddenly break out of this new, serious-all-the-time character he'd been portraying. Or maybe you were trying to figure out how to talk to him, how to tell him how you felt.

That thought sent your heart racing again. You took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before letting it out slowly.

You couldn't help but feel like the entire world had been waiting for something to change. Waiting for a spark. And when you looked at Rick, you knew. You just knew.

There was something about him. Something special. Something you couldn't explain, but it drew you to him like a moth to a flame. He was the spark you had been waiting for, and the feeling was so strong you could hardly contain yourself.

Rick turned, and you met his eyes. They were a clear blue, a striking contrast to the dark hair that framed his face. His beard was starting to get long, and the curls atop his head were a bit wilder than usual.

Your eyes met his. The smile he gave you was weak, forced. You were tempted to stand up and give him a hug, just to make him feel better. But you didn't.

After a few moments of awkward silence, he stood up, adjusting Judith in his arms as he did so. She stirred, her eyelids fluttering a few times before falling shut once more.

"G'night."

"Night."

And then, he was gone.

You watched as the tent flap closed behind him. He had disappeared so quickly that you barely even had time to register what had happened. You felt like a part of you had just left with him. Your heart was beating a mile a minute. You had been sitting there, watching him, for a long time, and the sudden silence was deafening.

As you headed for your tent, the last of the campers called out to you.

"Night!"

You stopped in your tracks, turning towards the voice. Carl was smiling, waving at you. You raised a hand in response, flashing a brief smile before turning away.

"Night."

You were asleep almost instantly. The day's events had left you exhausted, and it didn't take long for sleep to overtake you. It overtook you to the point that you had slept in until after everyone else had gotten up.

Morning came and you exited the tent, squinting as the sunlight hit your face. The sun was high in the sky, and the others had begun the morning without you. You didn't mind; it wasn't the first time this had happened, and it probably wouldn't be the last.

As you made your way to the main area, you were greeted by several friendly faces.

"Morning, sleepyhead," Glenn teased. "We were starting to wonder if you were ever gonna get up."

You flashed a sheepish grin. "Sorry. I was just exhausted."

You scanned the area for a few minutes, noting that a couple of people were missing. Rick, for example, was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, Glenn, where's Rick?"

Glenn glanced around the campsite. He scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "Not sure, actually. I haven't seen him this morning. Not since breakfast."

That was strange.

"I'm gonna go look for him," you said,

As you left, Glenn gave you the thumbs up in encouragement before his eyes flashed back to Maggie and Tara. Most likely retelling the events of the previous day.

You soon wandered through the trees, searching for any sign of Rick – or anyone for that matter. Both Daryl and Carol were also missing, but you weren’t concerned about those two. It was more concerning for those who stumbled upon them. Now Rick, on the other hand, he was different.

As of right now he wasn’t the man to mess with. Seeing how he handled those at Terminus, and hearing what had happened the night before from Michonne… you weren’t concerned about the possibility of him getting attacked or injured. Your concern fell towards his mentality.

He was “technically” the leader that everyone had listened and looked up to. Abraham made arguments, mostly of the importance of taking Eugene to DC, but Rick was the one who had the final say. That kind of power and responsibility to lead an entire group to their survival has heavy effects. And now, after so much loss and failure, it finally took its toll.

The sun shined brightly through the trees as you walked, and the air was warm. It was the kind of day you would have spent reading on your back porch, or maybe going for a hike. Before the world ended, anyway.

As you started walking, you couldn't help but notice the quiet. There was no sign of life anywhere. No birds, no insects, no Walkers. It was almost like the entire world had disappeared, leaving you all alone.

The forest became more thick and dense the further you walked into it, with the trees growing more close together. The sun still shined through the branches, but it was still early, and the shadows were deep.

You started your trail back towards the temporary camp when you noticed a noise coming from behind you. You spun around, heart pounding. It sounded like footsteps.

"Rick?"

There was no answer. Just the sound of the wind whistling through the trees.

"Rick?" You tried again.

Nothing.

The silence was unnerving. The sound of footsteps had stopped, and there was still no sign of life anywhere.

Then, suddenly, you heard a branch snap and everything that was peaceful turned into a war zone. You spun around fast with fists clenched. You didn’t even process what it was before you struck it in the face.

Your face fell once you opened your eyes to peek at the danger.

Ah, shit.

Rick straightened out, his hand running over his nose where you had accidentally struck. He seemed a little dazed, but otherwise was fine.

"Oh, god, I am so sorry," you said, wincing. "I didn't know it was you. I thought you were a… I don’t— oh, geez.”

Rick blinked a few times, regaining his composure. His hand fell from his nose, and he gave you a slight smile. Fake, again, but this time you didn’t blame him.

“What are you doin’ out here?” Rick’s voice was low, and he sounded tired. He didn’t look directly at you, instead choosing to gaze past you at the forest behind. It was almost as if he didn’t care to hear your answer.

And it was clear he wasn’t bothered by the fact that you had just punched him in the face.

You found yourself sighing at his words. It was a difficult question. One that had multiple answers.

What were you doing out here?

What was he doing out here?

Why were either of you out here instead of being with the group or resting up after the chaos of yesterday?

The questions buzzed in your head, but the answer was clear.

You were out here because of Rick. You were out here to find him. To talk to him.

You opened your mouth to respond, but nothing came out. The two of you stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity, and the awkwardness was palpable.

"You should be with the others.”

The words hung heavy in the air. They were simple enough, but the weight behind them was crushing.

"You should be with them, too," you countered.

Rick's gaze shifted to you, and you met his eyes.

The sun's rays broke through the treetops, illuminating his face. He looked tired. So tired. Rick had always had dark circles under his eyes, but the ones you were seeing now were new. They were a deeper shade than you'd ever seen, and they seemed to have grown bigger.

He was worn down, exhausted, and there was a hollowness to his stare. A dullness that had replaced the fire. And yet, despite all of that, there was still a warmth there. A sense of caring, of love, that was still present.

It was that warmth that gave you the courage to continue.

"I'm worried about you," you blurted.

His expression shifted slightly, his brows furrowing.

"You're worrying about me?"

You nodded, your eyes still fixed on his.

"Yeah. Yeah, I am."

He shook his head.

"You don't need to worry about me."

"Yes, I do. Because I care about you."

Rick stared at you for a moment. He seemed stunned, and the look on his face made your heart ache.

He let out a small sigh.

"You don't have to," he said, his voice quiet. "I'll be fine."

"You don't have to be the hero all the time, you know," you said. "You can let the rest of us help carry the load."

His eyes searched yours.

"You can't save everyone," you continued. "Sometimes you just have to accept that there are some things that are out of your control."

Rick became silent. You could see the pain and conflict swirling in his eyes. He wanted to accept your words, but the guilt was still eating away at him.

He closed his eyes, and the tension in his body seemed to ease a bit.

"I'm just… tired," he said. "I'm tired of seeing people die. Of losing people."

You placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"I know," you said. "I'm tired, too."

[coraniaid]

Btvs season four and/or seven for the reverse unpopular opinion

Just for the challenge of it, let's go with Season 7.

I'm not sure how unpopular these takes are, but i think they're probably not shared by the majority of Buffy fans and I know for a fact that there are vocal proponents of the opposite point of view for all of them.

Anyway, seven things I genuinely like about Season 7:

As I've said before, I like the decision to go back to high school for this season. I think Lessons and Help in particular are really good, solid episodes. Giving Buffy a counselling job at the school is a really nice idea and it feels like a natural progression from her getting the Class Protector award in The Prom and being forced to act as her sister Dawn's surrogate parent after The Body. After three seasons of Buffy in high school, and three seasons of Buffy struggling with adulthood in various ways (college, the death of a parent, having to get a job and pay bills on her own) it's really fitting that the last season gives us the idea of Buffy as a young adult working in a school. Getting to play the part of Dr Gregory or Mr Platt to the various young people in school who are struggling with unknowable problems of their own, while still protecting them from the vampires and demons the way she's always done. Honestly I'm only giving this as an unpopular opinion because I've seen more than one person argue (utterly bizarrely, in my view), that the back to school stuff is actually a boring distraction from the compelling fight against the First Evil, which is ... uh. Well, it's good that people are allowed to have opinions, I guess.

I quite like Kennedy and I think the amount of hostility she gets from the fandom is pretty baffling. She is a fun character: not exactly one of my overall favorites but certainly not one I have any animosity towards. She's stupidly brave for somebody with no actual superpowers and kind of charmingly protective of all the other Potentials. And it's nice to have somebody around who can offer a critical outsider's perspective on Buffy and her reasons for not immediately warming to Buffy make a lot of sense. I miss Tara too but I don't think the show would have been improved if Willow spent the reason of the show in mourning. Honestly, she should have been in this season more. She's going to be a pretty major part of my S7 AU, if I ever get around to properly writing that. I do wish the show cared about her enough to decide how old she was though (she is somewhere between fifteen and nineteen depending on what source you trust and what parts of canon you care about).

I also like Robin Wood. While I am a firm Lies My Parents Told Me hater, I think having one of the relatives of Spike's former victims show up and confront him after he got a soul was a good choice and I think explicitly tying this back to Fool For Love in the way the show did was a great one. Making him the high school principal was a good call as well: again, I only wish that this season had done more with this.

More generally, while the show obviously made some pretty ... uh, odd choices this season (First Date, Get It Done, the previously mentioned Lies My Parents Told Me..., the running joke about nobody bothering to learn how to communicate with Chao-Ahn) in ways that make it pretty clear how overwhelmingly white the writers' room still was, it is nonetheless (on balance) ultimately to the season's credit that those writers belatedly realized that "hey, maybe not everyone in Sunnydale has to be white?". I read an article a few years ago that put numbers on how many Black or Asian or Hispanic named characters ever appeared on Buffy and it is very notable how many of that small list first appeared (or were first named) in Season 7. Limiting ourselves to characters who appeared in at least four episodes (i.e. at least one more than Kendra managed), there's Mr Trick (5 episodes in Season 3), Forrest Gates (12 episodes in Season 4) and then nobody until Season 7 when we have Robin Wood (14 episodes), Kennedy (12 episodes), Rona (9 episodes) and Chao-Ahn (7 episodes). And all four of these characters survive the season, too, which is more than you can say about Forrest or Mr Trick.

I think Storyteller is genuinely a very good episode. Yeah, Andrew Wells is in this season far too much. Yeah, the lessons he learns this episode don't stick at all, which is a real shame (I kind of hate the "Dark Slayer" / killing a vulcan bit he does in Dirty Girls for this very reason). Yeah, of the Trio, Jonathan is by far the more sympathetic character (and not just because we've known him for longer) and maybe it's not fair he died and the guy who killed him got to join the group. But that's sort of the point, isn't it? Life isn't fair. The writing of Season 7 often feels a bit weird, with characters acting oddly for the demands of the plot and not in ways that feel organic or natural to them, but the brilliance of Storyteller is that -- by framing this all from Andrew's perspective -- it's able to make that work in a way it doesn't in a lot of other cases. And it manages a nice mix of humor ("why can't you just masturbate like the rest of us?" or "here's something you'll find interesting, gentle viewers ... look at the fine work Xander did replacing the window sash" and all the little mythology gags like Andrew calling Xander "the heart" or wondering out loud why vampires show up on film or Buffy slapping a girl to stop her turning invisible) and some genuine pathos (Andrew's tearful breakdown at the end when he admits to killing his friend Jonathan and being scared about dying and his final message to camera at the end when he admits he thinks he doesn't deserve to survive are really good!). Actually, as much as I love Faith and as much I enjoy her return to the show in its last few episodes, and as well as I think Chosen works as a series finale, I honestly think Storyteller might be the show's last truly great episode.

I like Buffy's cookie dough speech in Chosen. Saw a bit of second-hand discourse on here recently about whether we should believe Spike or Buffy about whether or not Buffy meant her final "I love you" to Spike, but -- whatever side you come down on on that -- I think it's good that the show realized that the ending didn't need to have Buffy pick her true soulmate forever. That we could have some ambiguity about what Buffy truly felt about Spike at the end; that this wasn't a question that needed to be definitively resolved either way. That this is first and foremost Buffy's story, and that she's more than just a participant in her romantic relationships. That you don't need to have your whole life figured out by age twenty two in order to be happy. And yeah, obviously, I also like the fact that if you're willing to do a little mental gymnastics you can read this scene as Buffy slowly beginning to figuring out she's a (deeply, deeply repressed) lesbian, sure. We even get a fun nod to Season 3's "Slayer pride parade" bit, when -- after Buffy explains that she's starting to realize that she used to think there was "something wrong with" her because she couldn't ever make "the guy thing" work, but "maybe I'm not supposed to" -- Angel nods like he gets it and says "because you're a Slayer?".

And, yeah, Chosen is a really good series finale. Is it a great episode in its own right? Does it do a good job of tying together all the different narrative elements this season offered up? Do I care about the big CGI fight against supposedly super-powered vampires who now seem to die awfully easily after all? Do I understand why Sunnydale is suddenly landlocked (a crater in the middle of the desert) after previously being shown as having docks and a beach? This is a post for positive opinions, so of course I cannot answer those questions. But -- as an end to the story of Buffy the Vampire Slayer -- I think it is pretty close to perfect. I will never understand people who think Season 5's The Gift would have worked better as a series finale. Buffy wins! She doesn't have to die or sacrifice herself or the people she loves or lose her powers or move to San Francisco and join the police force. She rewrites the rules of the show and gets to live her own life! That final shot of Buffy slowly smiling as Faith reminds her she's not the only Chosen One anymore and Dawn asks her what they're going to do now is so, so good. Honestly just that moment alone is almost enough to redeem the whole season. And thank goodness nobody's planning to ruin it all by rebooting the series.