#i'm not that into helena because i'm not into a storyline about a kid from a mafia family.

[boyfridged]

I've been seeing quite a lot of people say Jason's characterization/personality/motives/background to just be a copy of characters like Helena Bertillini & Mia Dearden and I wonder how true it is or if people are just looking at him at surface value (cause idk much about these two to come up with a conclusion of my own)? This is a take I occasionally see surrounding Jason and I can't help but feel like this is a result of character never being given a proper place in the universe (like even with the Red Hood identity half the time DC doesn't even know what to do with him). Idk if it's just me being sensitive or defensive cause I like him but the narrative and some fans' sentiment sometimes gives off the vibe that he doesn't belong here and that he has no place/relationships that he can really call his own, like he's only being given hand-me-downs or borrowing from other characters. I guess it also has something to do with the mess that came with his robin run before. Due to external interference Jason did not find a solid footing, what with the inconsistent writing that was influenced more by bias rather than a natural narrative progression. But I'd like to think there are certain elements to his character that he can call his own and it's sad to think that even that could just be another borrowed idea. Although considering the amount of characters DC has released, an overlap is inevitable, so I'm really curious as to what extent this could be when it comes to Jason in comparison to Helena and Mia.

no, you are 100% right when it comes to it being only a surface-level comparison. and i think it's not even just a surface-level comparison, it's a terrible stretch that has its origins in fanon and modern retcons. 80s jay is not similar to mia at all, for example, and it's rewriting willis to be abusive that creates that parallel. it's also the fact that a lot of fanfic writers insist on jason being a victim of sa despite nothing in canon suggesting it outright. then with helena, the similarities start only when you consider his career as the red hood, but even then it's a completely different story.

of course, there are some alike themes and streaks in their storylines that make it plausible to claim that if you like one of these characters, you will enjoy the others. still, it's the differences that truly make them interesting.

jason's post-crisis intro and even the conflict that arises later on post-res are unique in many ways (despite the editorial doing their best to erase it.) i have talked about it plenty on here, so just to list a few; the way he was introduced and the place in the narrative it put him in (the crime alley meeting with bruce); his background (loving but neglectful due to circumstances working-class parents, homelessness etc), his grief, how he was first introduced into vigilantism, his relationship with the legacy of robin, how he sees (or doesn't see) civilian/vigilante identity, his internal conflicts... they are all so particular to his experiences. and they are often written badly, yeah, but the creative value of all these elements remains so clear in the context of wider comics.

there is def something to the fact that jay's character has always been a mess in terms of writing. + when combined with the amount of exposure that he gets nowadays, people get frustrated with him easily. but i think these comparisons do the same thing fanon does; they press all characters mentioned into stereotypes. it's probably just something that someone said once and people started repeating, that's it.

[lemotmo]

Some thoughts and ruminations on episode 5 of 911

Just finished watching the episode and I have notes upon notes upon notes to talk about.

Overall, this episode was soooo incredibly overhyped by everyone. The way Oliver, Tim, the journalists talked about it? I expected greatness. But it was just all right. Not bad, but nothing to write home about. It felt very much like a filler episode. There were a few hints at how the storylines will progress, but nothing major.

With that out of the way, let’s dive into this episode from beginning to end. Yep, I’m tackling this one chronologically.

I'm cutting it here to not attack anyone's dashboard.

The Henren drama seemed to come out of nowhere for this episode. I get why they did it. It was basically to foreshadow the Denny drama. But Karen has always supported Hen when it comes to her very demanding job. It was just weird to me to see them having this discussion.

I was sooo annoyed during that classroom scene with Athena. Why are those kids on their phones during class? And why didn’t the teacher react? She just sat there and accepted? Come on! Where’s your professionalism and authority? You are the teacher! Act like one and take those phones away.

Sorry about this rant, but I work in education and in our school phones simply aren’t allowed. They are locked away at the beginning of the day and in the afternoon the students get their phones back when they go home. Simple as that. If I see someone with their phone during the day? I take it off them and they can come get it at the end of the day.

The haunted house set up and scenes were great. I loved Eddie opening up to Hen and Chim about Chris. They’re both parents, they get it. They understand how hard it is when kids grow up and stop believing in things like Santa or start thinking how Halloween is cringe.

Still, I find it interesting that Eddie mentions his mother in this. He mentioned that his mom told him he doesn’t want to go trick or treating anymore. Once again Helena Diaz pops up in the narrative as the bearer of bad news. They are clearly setting something up there. The whole conversation about:

“You never know when a door is gonna close and when it does then…��

Clear foreshadowing! I just need Eddie to fly to Texas and get Chris back at this point. Bring him home!

The haunted house scenes themselves are so good! I love Bobby as a vampire! His voice was so good. And I love how Hen and Chim genuinely scared those kids and lame ass Eddie in his lame ass werewolf costume doesn’t even phase them. Again, kids saw him as ‘cringe’. The same word Chris used when talking about Halloween. Interesting.

The whole Billy Boils mummy scene was hilarious. Buck pulling off that arm and screaming out loud: “He’s real!” was perfection. This is one Halloween these kids will never forget.

Loooove how Buck handed Eddie the lube to get that pumpkin off the guy’s head. I know it didn’t mean anything special, but it was just so funny.

I don’t understand why they didn’t just use that little cutting device on the pumpkin from the beginning? Why bother with the lube and the pulling when you can just cut if off?

And then of course Buck slips. Of course…

The hospital scene is like a gift that keeps on giving.

Eddie is sat in that chair and he clearly isn’t going anywhere. The fact that he stuck around in the hospital for Buck is remarkable. Buck isn’t injured all that badly. Eddie probably has to go back to his job, right? But instead he sticks around.

Then Tommy comes in with a visitor badge and instead of Eddie leaving the room because Buck won’t be alone anymore, he just keeps on sitting in that chair paging through that magazine. When you think about it… that is an insane thing for the show to do. Why didn’t Eddie leave Buck in the capable hands of his boyfriend so he could go back to work?

As for Tommy. Not going to lie. I didn’t mind him all that much in this scene. He obviously still doesn’t know Buck very well. He seemed lost when Buck started talking about curses and things.

Also, there was such a noticeable lack of romantic energy. There was no quick hug or kiss or even him sitting down on the bed, holding his hand or something like that. I mean, he rushed over after his shift which is sweet, but why did he rush over? To any outsider looking in there wouldn’t be any noticeable difference between Tommy or Eddie.

Is it just me or does Eddie seem more sarcastic in this episode? I wonder if that’s a conscious thing they’ve written in to show Eddie is struggling with Christopher’s absence or if it’s just a problem with continuity in writing?

Anyway, Tommy and Eddie laughing at Buck for his wild theory isn’t all that surprising. It is quite an outlandish theory and frankly, I probably would have reacted in a similar vein. I probably wouldn’t have burst out in laughter, but I would have definitely giggled. It’s nothing new. The show has done this before. Buck goes down the rabbit hole, creates a theory and the others look on amused at his antics. I feel like this is the vibe they were going for here, but it didn’t fully work because I do think they both laughed a little too much and too hard.

There was this short line of dialogue where Buck said ‘Oh, there’s a twist,’ and the camera focused on Eddie as he put the magazine away and started listening to Buck. The thing that went through my mind was that Eddie is quite the twist in this story all right. A little bit of foreshadowing perhaps? I don’t know. I’m probably projecting!

The loft scene with Tommy was interesting as well. First of all, Tommy was very sweet there in the beginning. I like how he cares enough to adjust his pillow and stuff. But then he once again showed little interest in Buck’s descent into the whole Billy Boils saga. And why was he sleeping on the couch? Buck has a whole bed upstairs. Did he want to keep Buck company so he could help him out if he needed assistance? It’s possible.

I have to admit though… I giggled so hard when he lied down on the couch Buck had bought with Nathalia.

But all of this brings me back to the same question: Where’s the romance?

It felt like another scene between two friends. If anything, the energy I’m getting from Buck right now is that he’s really not all that interested in Tommy. I’m starting to wonder now if the novelty of a new love has worn off, if Buck will come to the realisation next episode or even the one after that he doesn’t want to go on with Tommy at all. That his romantic feelings were very much projected on Tommy because the man was interested and opened up an entire new world of possibilities for him. But now that it’s been a few month, the rose coloured glasses are coming off and he’ll realise they don’t have a lot in common and he just isn’t all that interested in him.

I get the same vibe from Tommy to be honest. Why are they even together? What is their reason to stay together? They’re both comfortable around each other, so that’s nice I guess, but where’s the romance? You know?

I’m thinking so many thoughts right now, but I really think that their breakup will be mutual and they’ll decide they’re better off as friends.

The breakfast scene was priceless. Once again, Tommy bringing Buck some breakfast was sweet, but that’s where it ended. He visibly recoiled when he saw those boils on Buck’s face.

And then of course, Eddie comes back into the picture. It always comes back to Eddie, Eddie, Eddie when there’s a BT scene.

There was a whole discussion going on between Buck and Eddie and Tommy just sat there, telling ‘Evan’ to listen to the medic. Eddie wasn’t recoiled by Buck’s appearance and came over to help him out. He literally just dropped everything and came over. I mean…

Then Eddie tries to talk some sense into Buck and Tommy tells him to listen to Eddie. Sorry, but Tommy the plot device was plot devicing hard in this scene.

I’m kinda sad they dropped the handshake. I know it was for a silly bet, but I would have liked to see it in the episode. You could see Eddie reaching for him, but then it changed to another scene.

When I tell you I burst out into laughter as soon as Tommy revealed he has an accountant cousin!🤣 How much do we wanna bet that this accountant cousin just happens to work on the ‘Hotshots’ show? Maybe they’ll even have some inside information from that set.

Josh with the moustache!!! Three people with moustaches in this episode. Gay Josh, bisexual Buck and (fill in the blank) Eddie????

I loved the scene with the crazy Halloween calls so much! ‘Werewolves of London’ was such a fitting song here.

All right, then comes the part I really didn’t like at all. I mean… listen, I love drama as much as anyone, okay? I cried when I saw Denny and when he flatlined I went a little nuts. So, there’s nothing wrong with scenes like that in a procedural show like 911. I do however have a problem with the fact that -once again- it’s Henren that get this trauma thrust upon them.

LEAVE HENREN ALONE! LEAVE THEIR KIDS ALONE! Please I’m begging you!

The scenes were great and Aisha and Tracie acted the f*ck out of it, but it’s too much kids drama for them.

I did like Buck asking Bobby if Hen should be there and Bobby’s response to that. Bobby knows what it’s like to lose a child. He wasn’t going to tell Hen to back off.

I loved how they showed Eddie in the middle of this again. He was once again being a competent medic. They keep showing up competent Eddie. I wonder why that is? Something big is coming for him. I can feel it.

And Eddie’s face when Denny died was very telling. Something about ‘not being there when the big moments happen.’ Yeah, something big is going to happen to Eddie, for sure.

That brings us to the hospital scene.

I’ve noticed that we got a lot of romantic affection between Bathena and even Henren in this episode. In the beginning Athena kisses Bobby when she leaves after the mummy is discovered. In the hospital scene they are holding hands and sitting close together. Henren have that lovely photoshoot, the shared emotional scenes when they’re trying to save Denny and at the end that beautiful talk between them at Denny’s hospital bed.

Then there’s Tommy. He hands Buck a coffee, which again… very sweet. But where’s the rest of it? Why is there no handholding or sweet affection? Instead we got more Eddie. This time Eddie was sitting right opposite Buck, sucking on a lollipop. I mean… what??? I’m sorry! Am I not supposed to read anything into that? Clearly a choice was made there. They wanted Ryan to sit opposite Oliver and suck on a popsicle. That choice was written in the script and filmed. You know???

Then they get a message in the group chat that Denny’s okay. Tommy’s remark about how it’s a beautiful thing to have a crew behind you was the thing that made Buck realise how to break the curse. Plot device was plot devicing again.

And why was there a need to show us Eddie’s reaction to Buck exclaiming that he had found a way to break the curse? Eddie is truly involved in all things BT. So much foreshadowing.

This brings me to the graveyard scene. It was sweet how Buck wanted to honour Billy by giving him a proper burial. It also gave us Buck in a suit. I’m not complaining.

When Buck monologued, Tommy looked over to him and there was this shot of him looking very concerned. I wonder what that was about.

The montage was nice. The way Buck said that people make life worth living (and yes, he looks over at Tommy for a second, but he’s also talking about his family and how they all belong together, so don’t overthink this) and how it’s one of the worst things to have to go through life alone? I cried so hard when they showed Eddie. I swear to God, I feel this man so much. I can feel him in my bones. There is so much of him that I recognise in me. There’s a reason why he’s my favourite character.

And yes, Tommy was there in the graveyard scene, but he was waaaay in the back, still afraid to even stand next to him and apparently afraid to kiss his boyfriend. He denied it, but his last comment ‘Please lift it!’ clearly showed that he was still weirded out by the boils. That comment was very jarring somehow. The show tried to show us Tommy’s sweeter side, but then they destroyed it all by giving him one single line in the end that clearly shows us that he isn’t all in when it comes to Buck.

Random thought: What’s with the excessive use of ‘Evan’ by Tommy? It was very obvious this episode. There were so many ‘Evan’ mentions. I know Lou said that he wasn’t allowed to call him Buck, but this was a lot. It was Evan this, Evan that… I wonder if it has any meaning?

So yeah, there you have it: my thoughts. I don’t know why they called this one ‘Masks’. It had nothing to do with masks, not even metaphorical. It was just about Buck’s boils apparently. And maybe a smidgen of both Buck and Tommy wearing the mask of ‘boyfriend’ while they only truly showed them as friends?

I’m intrigued by the episode 6 promo. What do you mean it’s a rehash of Eddie begins? I really hope that the promise of this being a big Eddie episode is true. They advertised episode 5 to be a big Buck episode and while he had his moments, there have been better and bigger Buck episodes for sure.

But I need episode 6 to be a big Eddie episode. One where he struggles with his loneliness and with Chris being gone. I need to see that man go through it. And no, just like I’ve been saying, I don’t expect Eddie to leap out of that closet next episode. He will eventually, but first I need him to think about his life so far and his relationships. I need him to get a sense of direction and I hope Buck will be there for him as he tries to navigate life. I then need him to hop on a plane to get his son back. It’s time!

One more thing I want to add: Remember that this was only episode 5! We've got lots more to come. So just hang in there. I told you guys yesterday that I expected this episode would end on a good note for BT. It wasn't unexpected, but this doesn't mean anything. Bucktaylor were an actual couple that kissed and moved in together, but they still broke up in the end. So yeah, keep this in mind, will you? 🙂‍↕️

[canonicallyobserving911]

Eddie Diaz's "Ghost of a Second Chance"

IMO, in 7x7, Eddie Diaz will have a chance to see or hear how the life he always believed he was "supposed" to have with a wife and kids is not the life he's been WANTING. Based on his heart eyes and the way he's used Chris as a shield for his heart, his ideal life includes a husband (Buck) and their son (Chris).

Be clear, I ONLY SHIP BUDDIE!

I waited to post this because when season 7 started, it was unclear where the show was going to take Eddie's storyline and it appears the redirection of it that happened prior to 7x4 and 7x5 was not the original plan since it's been confirmed via interviews that Eddie was supposed to be with T*mmy instead of Buck. Also, now that it's confirmed Shannon Diaz will make a return in a future season 7 episode as either a ghost or a hallucination or whatever for Eddie, I decided I was ready to post this.

At the end of season 6 when Eddie asked Maris*l out on a date, I thought about the way the narrative has always shown Shannon is the only person who can help Eddie understand Chris doesn't need another mother. He's been carrying the weight and guilt of their relationship around with him for years because he thought him going to the Army broke her when in fact, they were two broken teenagers who were in over their heads and they were so busy trying to mimic the lives they saw Eddie's parents living that they never discussed what either of them wanted out of life.

Unpopular Opinion: Eddie and Shannon were NOT this perfect high school aged Romeo and Juliet type of romantic couple some people keep trying to make them out to be because the truth is they weren't soulmates and they weren't compatible. While it's true they were best friends, they were never on the same page and they didn't know how to communicate. Instead of talking to each other, all they did was argue and have sex but matured relationships consist of more than just sex, hence the 7x5 depiction of Eddie's relationship with Maris*l. They don't know each other and the episode title, "You don't know me" confirmed it.

Full Disclosure: I'm not a Shannon Diaz fan and it has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH BUDDIE! It's strictly because she ABANDONED Chris, her biological son and the fact that she was a teen mother doesn't have anything to do with it because it does NOT excuse her behaviors. Teenage girls who were/are younger than her don't/didn't run out on their kids just because they need/needed time. If she didn't want to be with Eddie anymore that's fine but to leave and not attempt to contact her son for almost two years was NOT ok. She wrote Chris a letter that she wasn't even sure she would send but what happened to a phone call or her sending him a "Hey Chris, I love you and I miss you" email? Even back then there were too many ways she could have contacted him but the CANON FACTS are SHE CHOSE NOT TO. If Eddie wouldn't have called her to interview at Durand she would have stayed gone. Don't get it twisted because she was getting ready to leave Chris again so people should stop romanticizing their relationship and truthfully, so does Eddie. For CANON proof of these claims, all viewers have to do is LISTEN to the things she said to him in 2x17 when they were at the beach and when they were at the restaurant.

Eddie's my favorite character but he's not blameless in any of this either and by his own admission to Buck in 2x10, he left them first. But the difference is he made the DECISION to leave El Paso so he could provide a better life for him and his son even though his toxic mother, Helena (I'm not including Ramon because he had a redemption arc) offered to take Chris from him. He could have left Chris there but HE DIDN'T. He even told Shannon that being Chris' father taught him more about being a man than war ever could.

One last thing, Shannon and Maddie ARE NOT THE SAME! Maddie didn't abandon Jee-Yun, she left because she thought she was a danger to her and she went to get help. She wasn't in Boston galivanting around, shopping and partying like it was 1999, she went to a center for women to figure out what was wrong with her and why she felt like she did then she continued with therapy.

Now back to the regularly scheduled program...

While I don't like Shannon's actions, I do believe she's probably the only person who can help Eddie understand that he doesn't have to marry a "woman" to be happy. Why do I believe this? Well, they were best friends and they were married which means she knows things about Eddie that no one else does. She was the first woman he "pulled" away from and since they were separated for a long time while he was in the Army and after she left them, it's likely she figured some things out about what he really wants that neither of them was ready to confront.

Since 2x1, Eddie's story has been told in bits and pieces and while a lot of people romanticized what he had with her, I didn't because they were young and neither one of them knew what they wanted. Did he love her? He said he did but IMO he loved her as much as an 18-year-old could but I don't believe he was in love with her. Did she love him? She said she did but just like him, based solely on her actions, she didn't know what love was either.

Reminder, the only reason Eddie proposed they reconcile in 2x17 was because she thought she was pregnant again. He said he was looking for a sign and he thought her begin pregnant was it but before that he didn't want to do it. If you don't believe it, rewatch 2x17 and LISTEN to the conversation he had with Bobby. Bobby was the one who told him he would be a great dad to a second child but Eddie wasn't so sure. At dinner, when Shannon said, "I'm not pregnant", he paused then responded, "That doesn't change anything" but she rebutted with, "It does for me".

It appears she finally admitted to him that the life they were trying to live was NOT the one either of them wanted but he wasn't ready to admit it. He was using Chris as a shield like he always does and he was hoping her love for their son would be enough for them to reconcile and continue doing whatever they were doing. He said something similar to Ana when he broke up with her in 5x3. He said, "Chris loves you so much" but he never said he did and now he's trying to figure out where Maris*l fits since she babysat twice while he was flying in helicopters going to fight matches in Las Vegas and to karaoke with TK.

Believe it or not, Shannon was getting ready to leave again. If she wasn't then she wouldn't have brought up the letter she wrote to Chris. Also, she said she was still learning how to be someone's mother (notice she didn't say Chris' mother she said someone's) and she said maybe someday, she could learn how to be somebody's wife (not Eddie's wife but somebody's). Furthermore, when they were at the beach, she asked Eddie, "Is that all I am to you, Christopher's mother?" but he responded, "Shannon?" and deflected the conversation. Then she said if that's what it is then it's ok. She proceeded and asked him what he wanted and all he said was "All of this" with a hand wave out towards the ocean. He never admitted what he wanted and it appears the reason was because he didn't want to say.

In 2x7, while they were arguing, Eddie asked her, "What didn't I give you?" and her response was "You!" Therefore, Eddie always kept a piece of himself away from her and she admitted it to him but he wanted it to work probably for the wrong reasons.

REMINDER: In 2x17, Shannon was the one who said they needed to get a DIVORCE! She knew they needed to move on but Eddie was the one who said, "But we're still married". It appears he was the one trying to hold onto the life he believed they were supposed to have and I think it goes back to the example he saw from his parents.

Here's the thing, in 6x16, Eddie admitted he didn't propose to Shannon, he just said, "Let's get married" after they found out she was pregnant. They were best friends in high school and they started an instant family that neither of them were ready for. When she abruptly died, he didn't have a chance to discuss all the things they'd left unsaid. That's why Shannon has to be the one to tell him that it's ok for him to want who he wants. Who's that? BUCK!

Shannon vs. Buck

Please understand the show has illustrated it time and time again that Eddie wants to marry Buck so they can raise Chris together. If that wasn't the case, then Buck wouldn't have been included in Eddie's flashbacks in 3x15 while he was trapped in the well as many times as he was. He was shown with Chris more than anyone else which means Eddie thinks about the life he wants to have with Buck A LOT!

Additionally, in 7x1, Buck, Eddie and Shannon all sat on Chris' bed in the same spot to illustrate how they're his three parents while the babysitter (Maris*l) was nowhere to be found (related post linked here).

Also, Shannon's romantic relationship with Eddie and her parental one with Chris were constantly contrasted with the relationships Eddie and Chris have with Buck and Buck has always been shown to be the perfect match for Eddie. Reminder, he agreed to have Buck's back in 2x1 but Shannon told him in 2x7 that he never had her back.

Eddie needs to HEAR he can move on from the first person he married from someone other than the people who've been saying it to him. Also, in the past, someone's ALWAYS told him what to do regarding his relationships. He was "strongly encouraged" to marry Shannon because he got her pregnant. His parents and Bobby told him it was time to move on from her in season 4 (YES! His parents did too because reminder, they stopped by their house to eat on their way back to L.A. after they left Austin, TX [in the LS crossover episode, Eddie said it to Judd] and two episodes later, in 4x6, Bobby told him he needed to move on). Then in 6x14, Tia Pepa pushed him to start dating again even though he tried to tell her he wasn't ready.

The point of this post is Shannon is probably the ONLY person who can show or tell Eddie that the life he thought they should have had, wouldn't have ever been because there would have always been someone or something that was pulling him away from her the same way it did when they were married 👀.

It appears Shannon will be Eddie's "Ghost of a Second Chance" but the question is, will her reappearance as a ghost or whatever for the second time in season 7 help Eddie admit the person he's in love with is Buck? Only the showrunner, writers and producers know the answer to that question.

[morganski-19]

I'm talking about that scene with Chris' birthday party because I just have to.

Eddie is trying so damn much. He sets up a whole party for a facetime call because he can't be there in person. Brings people to celebrate with him and surprise Chris. Since Chris probably hasn't spoken to or seen Buck since he left. He thought that maybe if he brought him, there might be a reaction. There might be something.

I understand why Chris is mad. He has every right to be. Eddie fucked up, there's no excusing that. We just know the full context, so we can give him sympathy. Chris hasn't given him a chance to explain, and even then, who knows what he would believe or accept. For a moment, he thought his mom had come back, just to have the reality that she isn't here, that she left again, brought back up. It doesn't matter how old he is, that pain will live with him for a long time.

If Eddie had the chance to explain it to Chris, I would like to believe that he would understand. They have the mutual experience of believing that Shannon had come back, even for a moment. That's the whole reason Eddie entertained the idea of going out with Kim in the first place.

A part of me wishes that Chris would have said something other than "uh huh." I wish that, even just for that day, he could have said something else. No matter what, it was his birthday and his dad wasn't there. Again. Chris would probably still have the pain of Eddie not being there for the first few years of his life, all those birthdays he missed. Even if it's just from hearing stories about how Eddie wasn't there, it would hurt.

So I wonder if that is hurting Chris again now. No matter how mad he is at Eddie, he is still his dad. There is still that love Chris has for him hiding beneath the anger. A part of him was probably missing his dad, even if he refused to acknowledge it.

And Helena. Oh my god, Helena. That jumpscare of her being there when the screen froze what awful. Her jumping in and immediately going on a spiel of how happy Chris is there. How he has new friends and a new hobby that Eddie isn't there to experience. How they're thinking of putting in a pool, just for Chris. Because she doesn't see him ever leaving. Ever going back to Eddie.

All while Eddie's entertaining a smile while his heart just breaks. Knowing he's missing everything again, and this time there's only him to blame. No job, no need for money, just him and everything that's broken.

It makes me wonder what Helena is saying to Chris every day. How much she dotes on him with the snide comments of "your dad never did this for you did he?" Pushing the idea that living with her is so much better than with Eddie.

People like Helena are sweet in their words but sour in their meaning. I know many people who act the same in real life. Most of the time, not realizing what they what they were really saying until many years later. Still, as an adult, I look back on situations and realize how naive I was to not see what they really meant.

Chris is still a kid, he's only fourteen. I can't imagine how much he believes what Helena says about Eddie. How his anger agrees with her judgements, and lets it spread.

I truly don't know how their going to continue with this storyline. I don't think we're going to get any real movement in it until episode four, since the plot will mainly focus on the opening emergency now that it's in full force.

All I can hope is that Eddie works on himself the way the articles imply he will. That he will take a deep look inside himself, and no matter what he sees, tries to be better. For himself, and more importantly, for his son.

[electricprincess96]

Asking out of curiosity, but why do ya dislike Damian Wayne? I ask this not in a acussitory manner mind, as my only exposure to Damian is in non comics material such as those animated movies he popped up in. More so curiosity cause he seems to be a very controversial character among the main comics fandom itself.

He is controversial. There are a few reasons, some I could change my mind on with better writing and others would take a lot more for me to get behind him. I'll start by saying if you're reading this and are a Damian fan don't continue, you aren't gonna like what I have to say so don't both hate reading for the sake of it.

Firstly the concept of the Bat Family for the most part up until that point was about Found Family. Let me be clear I'm not saying it was sunshine and rainbows and they all got along great all the time BUT it was about broken people finding each other and trying to work together to make a difference. The very concept of giving Bruce a blood son ruins that, you need only look at most Damian fans when the debate on who should be Bruce's successor comes up, they will always say Damian despite the fact he has shown NOTHING to prove he deserves it, their only reason is he's the blood son. While yes being both biological and adopted kids is a thing that exists and most real people can do it and it works most DC writers are not adopted parents and dont know the specifics of how you depict that balance and it shows. It reeks of weird blood purist, anti-adoption vibes that just aren't good. Like the rise in "bad parent Bruce Wayne" towards Jason and Tim and some of the others (not sure he knows Cass's name anymore) conveniently corrolates with demon brats creation. Coupled with the fact on more than one occasion writers have seemed to make it seem like Damian does indeed mean more just cause he's blood related. I just don't like it. I wasn't overly fond of Helena Wayne (although she was better cause she was from another world instead of the canon one) and I don't like Damian for the same reason.

Secondly he was forced as Robin. As I said in a recent post up until Damian the role of Robin had only really been changed when it was necessary. Jason was made Robin because DC wanted Robin to be a kid again but readers liked the storylines they were getting with young adult Dick Grayson so they promoted Dick from sidekick and created Jason Todd. Likewise when Jason died there was no Robin, Dick wasn't about to go back to being Robin and Jason was dead thus Tim was created to fill a role that needed filling. Even Stephanie was made Robin due to Tim being unavailable for a long period of time (i dont remember the specifics but i think it had to do with his family finding out about Robin) so even when she lasted not even a year, she was still filling a vacamcy instead of being forced into a role that was already filled. Damian however was just created. They had not taken the proper steps to develop Tim out of being Robin naturally (and before people come at me with "oh he had plenty of time" Dick Grayson got FORTT YEARS and Damian is coming up on nearing 2 decades so shut up) and thus his creation has directly led to the problem we have right now in DC were we have TWO Robins cause they demoted Tim back to being Robin when Red Robin didn't work out (and 3 batgirls but that ones Barbara Gordon's fault). Coupled with the fact his introduction came right after the revival of Jason Todd thus basically screeching to a halt any real meaningful development that plotline could have had because suddenly DC had a shiny new toy to play with. Damian's creation was a turning point for Batman comics and not a good one, because it contributed to the derailing of multiple characters arcs and plotlines and some have still not fully recovered.

Thirdly his character upon introduction was already redundant. He's a child raised by assassins.... OK well we already have Cassandra Cain. He's a Robin willing to kill and will really test the Bat Fams moral compass. OK well as I said we'd already revived Jason Todd and he was already taking the fight to the Bat on the no kill rule. Literally the only unique thing he had upon introduction was that he was a blood relation to Bruce which I personally do not think should mean anything. But DC starting from that point going forward started to have a horrible undercurrent of blood purity. The only thing I can think that he is semi unique on is being biracial but even then not entirely his since Cassandra is biracial as well AND they never do anything with him being biracial. Plus if they really wanted to they could have reconned one of the existing Robins to be biracial without derailing multiple other characters plotlines.

Fourthly. He's an obnoxious and annoying brat 90% of the time. Like I get it, being raised by Talia (although there's conflicting information on of he was actually raised at all since the timeline does not seem to add up for his age and at one point he was grown in an artificial womb and artificially aged but that's been retconned but the timeline still don't add up if he's not artificially aged somewhat. His back story is a mess I ain't gonna make heads or tails of it) will inevitably result in a very arrogant child afterall Ra's and Talia's egos rival Lex Luthors. BUT they want us to believe at times he can back that up. And I'm sorry I don't care how skilled you are as a child assassin, you are still a child. Like in the Animated movies he should not be able to beat Deathstroke in a straight 1 to 1 fight. He just shouldn't. Both are highly skilled assassins sure but Slade is like 6 times Damian's age, double his size and at least 3 times his weight. There is also the fact that his dark, brooding, arrogant, cruel character sort of worked when he was Dick Grayson's Robin cause it was flipping the established dynamics for Batman and Robin. But when he's Bruce's Robin it doesn't work, we no longer have that little bit of sunshine that Robin is meant to bring to Batman (and don't think I haven't noticed how Batman's character has got crueler and darker since Damian became his Robin) while Batman is meant to be a guiding hand for Robin to keep him on the right track.

Fifthly. For Damian's character arc to really work/make sense ot has to be acknowledged that Talia is not a good mother. At best she's deliberately raising him in a dangerous environment and at worse she is actively abusive. It's the only way you can justify half of his character traits and why he's even here in the first place. Here's the issue for all I dislike Talia as a character... I don't believe she's an abusive mother. One thing that seems to be consistent for Talia was that she did love her family. Talia's flaws for me are in her inability to choose a side and her entitlement towards Bruce and other men (well and the whole worldwide genocide of anyone not League of Assassins). Now I am more willing to accept this one as just being how new Talia is but I don't blame some of her fans who feel miffed about this however they do have to acknowledge that there's no real way to do his story without her either being an incompetent parent or a down right bad one (but don't worry Talia fans Bruce is also awful nowadays so she's not alone there....)

Now his arrogance and overall unlikable character can absolutely be fixed with good writing. I hated him in the Animated movies (kid you grew up in the mountains leaving to kill you SHOULD NOT BE LECTURING BRUCE FUCKING WAYNE ABOUT STOCKS) but I'm quite liking him in Boy Wonder where it's actually tackling his own sense of entitlement and showing that he needs to learn from his predecessors rather than acting like he's better than them purely because he shares dna with Bruce.

BUT the conceptual issues I have won't go away quite so easily. It's why if I'm asked if I could wipe one Robin from existence, it will always be him. He could be written wonderfully, he could get a comic run that is the best written thing ever and I will still always say him when asked that question. And I know I'm not alone on that.

[amtrak12]

Alrighty, let's go with "🍦 ⇢ name three good things about a character you hate" then, and also "🕯️ ⇢ on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that?" because that was a really interesting ask! And, to round it out: 🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

YESSSSS these are good ones! Thank you so much!!

(from the Writers Truth & Dare Ask Game)

I have pictures for the good things about a character I hate, so I'm going to save the Show & Tell for the end. I don't want my other answers to get lost in the crowd :P

▪ On a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? Why is that?

I LOVE EDITING!!! These days at least. I never really hated it in the past... but I also rarely got far enough in the writing process to reach the editing stage 😬

Because see, I used to try and combine the drafting and editing processes into one. It's taken me FAR TOO LONG to finally grasp that writing is done through layers. You can't write third draft content and quality the first time around. You just can't! And understanding the layers and having a full year (plus) under my belt of witnessing the editing process in motion has really made me fall in love with it.

And on the flip side, it's also made me love drafting more! Or at the very least made it less stressful for me because I don't have to worry about missing information or wording or capturing the emotions accurately. I can just dump the information from my brain and spend the next two weeks cleaning it up. It's great! 10/10 big fan of editing! 😄

▪ Share a headcanon for one of your favorite ships or pairings

Hmmmm......... I'm trying desperately to think of headcanons for my past ships that Tumblr cares about, but it's only Lucifer in my head right now.

My Warehouse 13 opinions and feelings haven't changed in the last decade which means my headcanons haven't either. This is a problem if I was ever going to go back and write canon fix-its like I did with Doctor Who because I still don't know how to solve the puzzle of Helena. What do we do with her after the S3 finale? What's the long-term plan for her? I can see Regent for her, like many have suggested, but that's never been my favorite option. A field agent again? Maybe, but can she ever really heal still working for the warehouse in that capacity? I'm not sure. But we can't remove her from the warehouse altogether (at least if you're a Bering and Wells shipper) because Myka's not leaving ever. She's going to take over as head agent one day when Artie (very reluctantly but also a little proudly) becomes the first agent -- possibly ever! -- to retire from the warehouse alive.

So then what do we do with Helena????

I still don't have an answer to that. The best one I have is the same one I thought of ten years ago which is to make HG the resident inventor eccentric who only goes out into the field when she's absolutely needed. Think Claudia in S1, except staying in is by choice and not mandated by Artie for being too young and inexperienced.

But I also really like HG mentoring kids. As much as Instinct otherwise sucks, I did really, really love her with Adelaide so idk what future fits her best ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

.

AND NOW FOR THE SHOW AND TELL!!!!!! Which is 100% about the TV show Lucifer and I won't apologize for that because no other show has a character I hate more.

▪ Three Good Things about Cain from Lucifer (TV) Despite Me Hating His Guts

First of all, who is Cain from Lucifer (TV)?

IT'S THIS BITCH RIGHT HERE!!! And no I don't hate his guts because he's the villain of S3. I HATE HIM BECAUSE HE'S BORING AS THE VILLAIN! Like yeah yeah yeah, the guy invented murder. BUT HIS BIGGEST CRIME IS BEING BORING!!!!

He also canonically dated (and was even engaged to) Chloe for all of four episodes total (maybe?) and it was PURE TORTUROUS HELL, but I attribute that crime to the writers more than Cain. IDEK what the fuck they were trying to do with that storyline but I want to fight them in a Denny's parking lot over it. With knives.

And now that we've established why I hate him so much, here's some good things about Cain.

1. He has a rock collection

I am not being snarky in the slightest when I say that I absolutely ADORE that he canonically has a giant ass rock collection. And when I say giant ass rock collection, I do not mean that piddly sample you can see in the screencap above. I mean, every flat surface in his house is covered in rocks. You walk into his kitchen? His counters are probably rocks. They're everywhere! But they're also nicely displayed??? He has stands for some of them to better show them off! He probably has a whole system surrounding which rocks get grouped together. And given how much he moves around since he's a cursed immortal being, he has to pack all of these fucking rocks up, move to the new place, and then re-set them all up again. THAT'S HYSTERICAL TO ME! What a fucking fixation to give him! They should've fully committed and leaned into this bit instead of just barely slipping it into this one episode.

Also 1000% fact, the rock he used to kill his brother is in that collection somewhere. I don't know which one it is or where he keeps it. But it is DEFINITELY there!

Anyway Cain's rock collection: 12/10 A++ no criticism from me XD

2. This Caincore tumblr post

I just reblogged it yesterday too. LOOK! Does it have anything to do with the tv show Lucifer? Technically, no. Is it hilarious though? Absolutely yes! Also it says Cain's name so that makes it the second best thing about Cain 😜 😂

And finally....

3. He has the hottest mother in the history of humanity

EVE!!!!!!! 😍 My beloved!! 😍 Definitely hands down one of the best things I can say about Cain? HIS MOTHER IS GORGEOUS!! *swoons*

Her son can't do anything right, but Eve? Oh Eve can do no wrong 💜💜💜 (Yes, that includes dating Lucifer and then accidentally-definitely-on-purpose starting a demon mutiny when he dumps her. LET MY GIRL HAVE FEELINGS OKAY! Geez!)

And that's all three good things I can say about Cain in the TV show Lucifer. The only other thing I could possibly say is he's dead, but I'm not sure that's in the spirit of the question LOL

[lovecolibri]

SaL anon here my friend, only mildly hung over but still severely disappointed, just coming into your inbox to share my random finale complaints that have been stockpiling.

Already been said many times but why Marisol again?? Just why??

You know what the awkwardness of the daddy talk reminded me of?? Remember in RNM 3x01 when Alex came back and told Forest "a man has needs" or some shit and we all collectively cringed away from our screens?? Its was sooo weirdly out of place and character and that's exactly what the dinner scene is. Also notably written by a former showrunner who won't stop fucking up storylines at every opportunity.

How exactly is the Chris leaving BS supposed to last more than like, 1 week tops??? When Helena (and Ramon) tried to take him 7 years ago and get their redo he was just a kid, but now he's a teenager whose been raised by Eddie Diaz. Not saying he's ready for college or to make his own housing decisions or anything 🙄, but his personality and preferences are not going to change much. He's not the moldable little kid anymore, and the moment Helena realizes that and Chris realizes that's what they wanted him for wouldn't jump on the next flight?? I know there's so much about that arc that's utter nonsense but did the writers put any thought into the characters at all??

Anyway, I probably should do my job for a few hours before I go completely off the rails, hope your own recovery is going well!!

Hey bestie! If it seems like you haven't heard from me all day, that's because I girlbossed too close to the post limit sun reblogging every petty, irritated, frustrated, what-in-the-actual-fuck-was-that post. I scheduled a bunch too do drop after the doors open on the post limit jail cells, this one among them.

I'm sitting here with my twisted peach tea, fresh off of work and a trip to the store (it was awful and full of people and only one lane open that could sell alcohol, AND they didn't have the honeycomb ice cream I specifically went there to get and try out with my earl grey tea ice cream because the universe hates me), just still so SO frustrated that once again they let KR swoop in at the last minute and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in the finale. Not even anything Buddie related, just in making literally ANY storyline all season have a good narrative payoff that felt like we went somewhere. Even the most watchable part of the episode (the Mara reunion) fell flat because we didn't see Hen and Karen putting up the fight they set up with the councilwoman, and Maddie and Chim had time all season to talk about maybe having another child, or fostering to make them able to swoop in at the last minute make sense but instead it just came out of the blue! (And don't get me started on the whole "this lesbian couple can't have a kid but the straight couple runs into no issues despite Chim being involved on scene in the death of the councilwoman's son).

ANYWAY. Let's talk about your bullet points please, because I have THOUGHTS.

1/3. Marisol was literally less than useless and if they HAD to avoid an off-screen hiatus breakup (they didn't need to, no one remembered her, it would have been fine) they easily could have ditched her in 7x05 and it would have affected absolutely nothing.

IMAGINE Buck is the one taking Chris to the movies and walks in on "Shannon" and Eddie? We get some Buddie angst with them having to talk out what happened because Buck was worried before but now he's WORRIED, and we could have gotten a more heartfelt resolution with Chris by allowing Eddie and Chris to have one single conversation this whole season, and maybe deciding together to go to therapy in a couple weeks when he gets back from his pre-planned summer vacation to Texas.

Then start s8 with Chris having delayed coming back all summer, and Ramon and Helena facilitating getting him into camps and stuff so he "couldn't" come back and Eddie starting to get fed up and maybe being ready to go to Texas himself to get Chris when whatever disaster the opening is strikes. Cue Chris seeing it on the news and panicking and demanding to go home and see his dad. It would be satisfying to watch, and would tug on the heartstrings without ripping them out for no good goddamn reason and punishing Eddie so severely while also NOT actually dealing with his issues about Shannon!! *screams into pillow* If we never see or hear about her again it will be too soon. They have drug this out past the point of any purpose and it needs to be put to fucking rest, 25ft down so it can't crawl back up. Doused in holy water just in case.

It really feels like they had a plan for Buck with the whole Natalia thing fizzling out and breaking up which I actually am glad we didn't see because as this season proved, it is LONG past time to leave Buck withering away in unfulfilling relationships he don't know how he got into in the first place, but once that was gone he got the coming out bit and....nothing much else all season and even that was one episode and then a couple minutes of screentime sprinkled throuout that used those precious seconds to show us how incredibly ill-matched they are. While Eddie, who was SUPPOSED to have the coming out arc (that was maybe more in-depth and planned to ACTUALLY deal with the Shannon of it all), was also left with a "well what do we do with him now" arc. Spoiler alert, it was NOT THIS. So no, I don't think they had the time in the shortened time frame they had to put literally ANY thought into what to do with these characters.

Point 2. My friend. Not only are you EXACTLY right about the tonal issue matching that cringe AF scene from RNM, but I will raise you that, AND everything about 2x06, including fandom swooping in to claim everyone who didn't fall all over themselves about that scene being amazing was a) homophobic and b) puritanical, pearl-cultching, and uneducated. Oh! and c) just needs to learn how to fucking multi-ship and be happy with whatever is on screen because it couldn't POSSIBLY be better, and you should just accept it now. 😒😒😒

It's gonna be a loooooong fucking hiatus but here's hoping Timmy got all the Lone Star brainworms out and can not just pack a punch in the disaster opening (RIP to everyone who didn't like the cruise ship disaster, I had a great time and it was the best opening in YEARS), but can actually follow through on storylines and emotional beats all season. And maybe get more calls??? On the weewoo show?? It was always and issue on LS too which I thought was Rob Lowe syndrome an all the "Owen things firefighting is boring" stuff but maybe it's budget constraints? Yo! ABC! Give us the cash for good emergencies! And of course, they need to get Kristen the FUCK out of the writers room. Please, literally ANY cop show out there, we are literally BEGGING you to take her off our hands!

Bright side, I have been working on my Countdowns fic (I posted a little bit last week and I want to try and work on it more now that all my shows are on hiatus), and while *I* may be the worlds slowest writer, I just know the Buddie fandom is going to come through with some BANGER canon-fix-it fics. So cheers to that, and lets pray the muse smiles on me astronaut!Buck/medic!Eddie so I can actually contribute something. I'm gonna go make a flatbread spinach and artichoke pizza, watch something, literally ANYTHING else, and oggle my d20 Bad Kids dice that arrived today, my Ayda pin, and my Jawbone quote mug and not think about 911 for a little bit. (until I'm allowed out of post-limit jail and can go back to being a petty bench on main).

Take a breath, we can get through this hiatus together! At least we know we have Oliver and Ryan on our side, so let's make some Buddie content for them to send to each other to help THEM through this rough time.

[bookaddict24-7]

REVIEWS OF THE WEEK!

EVERY WEEK I WILL POST VARIOUS REVIEWS I’VE WRITTEN SO FAR IN 2024. YOU CAN CHECK OUT MY GOODREADS FOR MORE UP-TO-DATE REVIEWS HERE.

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111. Where We Go From Here by Lucas Rocha , Larissa Helena (Translator)--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed WHERE WE GO FROM HERE and the important messages it had for the reader. I think this is the first book I've read where some of the characters are HIV positive and it was interesting to learn more about how care works now, and how the world's perception of it has either shifted or (in some instances) remained the same.

The dynamic between the characters was great, although I think one of the characters was given a little bit too much of the benefit of the doubt. I find that sometimes in order to have a "happy ending" some things are sometimes compromised and some characters are pushed to react in a way expected by the adults writing the story themselves. Granted, I'm a stubborn and sometimes petty person, so I'm probably not the best judge of character here.

I liked seeing the different families (or lack thereof) because it was such a realistic portrayal of the differing reactions families (especially Latine ones) have when they learn that their son or daughter is queer. In some instances, it's heart breaking, but also sadly realistic.

From the very beginning of the book, I was pulled in and I couldn't stop listening to the audiobook. I think that even though this is a translation, Rocha's writing was addicting and powerful. Will definitely want to check out their future work! I'm finding that I have a soft spot for Brazilian YA authors.

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112. Delinquent Daddy & Tender Teacher Vol. 1 by Tama Mizuki--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

There were so many great layers to this manga. Not only was this a sweet romance between the dad and the teacher, but also the dad and his son, and the teacher and the little one.

The dad and sons' relationship was adorable, especially as the son slowly comes to understand how much his dad loves him. Seeing him go from telling his classmates that that isn't his father, to calling him "daddy" by the end of the volume was stinking adorable af.

Also, the progression of the love story was heartwarming. I want only the best for them, especially since one essentially saved the other. I also loved that they had that past connection!

Can't wait to read more of this one!

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113. The Bride by Ali Hazelwood--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

While there may be some tropes in BRIDE that are in the usual Hazelwood book, this book presented a story that was so new compared to the STEM series that I didn't even focus on the popular tropes. I enjoyed BRIDE so much more than I was expecting. I went into this with zero expectations and I'm so glad I did.

Since we mainly see the story from the perspective of a vampire, we don't really get the "running through the woods" moments we usually see when werewolves are involved, but it was still a fun experience. I actually liked it because we very rarely get an outsider POV when werewolves are involved.

I liked the romance between the MC and her love interest. It was one of those slow build ups that even though it's clear where it's going, the MC is still ignorant of the fact. They had some great sexual tension, but keep in mind that this isn't an overly sexy book. I'd go in hoping for a cute and tense romance, not an overly spicy story.

Anyway, I enjoyed this and had a lot of fun while reading it. Definitely impressed with Hazelwood's dive into this genre!

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114. The Promised Neverland Vol. 1 by Kaiu Shirai , Posuka Demizu (Illustrator)--⭐️⭐️⭐️

I had a mild idea of what I was going into when I started THE PROMISED NEVERLAND, but it wasn't entirely THAT. That reveal was nightmare inducing.

The artwork was gorgeous and incredibly intricate. The storyline was interesting and I had to remind myself that these were incredibly intelligent kids, since sometimes they acted a little bit like mini adults--which granted is fair considering their situation.

While I was interested a few times and I do have that level of curiosity of where the story is going, I don't know if I care enough to read the next volumes. I'm lucky that I enjoy a lot of the manga I read, but this was one of those rare ones where I was counting down until the last page. I just thought it was a bit drawn out, but nothing felt like it was happening. Maybe I WILL read volume two, but it's not with that same level of urgency I've had in the past.

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115. Mindy Kim & the Trip to Korea by Lyla Lee--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mindy Kim continues to be adorable af. Her family goes to Korea in this one and I loved seeing the country through her eyes. I also enjoyed seeing the interactions between the family members, even if they were somewhat wary of Mindy's dad's GF.

These books are wholesome. They explore family, the ways life could change, and the curious mind of a young child who is just trying to find her place in her world. I love the life lessons always presented in these books and I hope the little ones reading these books are also learning from the experience!

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116. Graceling by Kristin Cashore--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

After having GRACELING on my bookshelves for over a decade, I knew it was time to check it out. I listened to the audiobook alongside the physical book and wow, what an experience. It's a full cast and they have music that plays on occasion (which, admittedly, made me think of the NANCY DREW audiobooks, lol).

I'll admit that I almost DNFed this book a couple of times because I was having a hard time connecting or falling into the story. A friend encouraged me and so I kept going. Thankfully, too, because I ended up really, really enjoying this one. I loved the character growth and the romance between the MC and her love interest. His interest being obvious from the beginning, while she was unaware is one of the best romance tropes out there.

I also really liked the adventure. I love a good road trip type adventure where the FMC is a badass that people sometimes underestimate.

The one thing that was very different in this older fantasy book from more present ones is the tone of voice of the narrator. This one was very straightforward, no quirky dialogues or over the top situations. Although, I will admit that sometimes the full cast threw me off--especially when the FMC would literally yell at the love interest with a bit too much gusto.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this and I'm glad I gave it a shot! It's not a favourite, but it was a very fun read. If you want a FMC that knows her mind and is steadfast in her decisions, then I think you'd like this one.

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117. Hooked by Emily McIntire--⭐️⭐️

In my opinion, HOOKED started out strong. I loved the few tropes being introduced and the jealous friends-not-friends thing was very early 2010s romance era. I was even a bit into the dark MMC and how he didn't give a shit about going for what he wanted. He knew who he was and he didn't shy away from that.

And then we hit a moment where this book just lost all seriousness for me.

The FMC is the innocent protagonist that wants to prove to the world that she isn't this naive child. A great way of showing the reader that was by the insta-lust and insta-love with this admittedly dangerous man and the lack of a backbone when he did a big no-no and she immediately gave into him again. I expected her to be that not-naive girl she claimed to be, but there was no grovelling and close to no anger. She made allusions to HOW she knew she should react to him, brushed it off so quickly that it left me nervously giggling. Absolutely zero backbone.

Also, I just want to say that it was super weird that Peter was her dad when he was always a love interest. Although, the inclusion of names and the twisting of certain things was very clever.

This book often also felt like a badly scripted telenovelas with revelation after revelation--by that point I was rolling my eyes so much, I feared they might get stuck to the back of my head. Also, how many times will we be reminded that Hook's dick will split women in half? I just. Yeah, I don't know.

I'm glad I read this one because now I know that the rest of this series might not be for me. Not because of the adaptation aspect--that part is cool--but the writing is just very much not for me.

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118. Sasaki and Miyano, Vol. 1 by Shou Harusono--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

These two are incredibly adorable, but I definitely need to read more of their story to fully gage if I'm truly interested in continuing.

I did like how the one guy is the one that's chasing the pretty one, when it's usually the other way around. It's weirdly refreshing and adorable. I can't wait to see how the character growth looks on them. LOVED the artwork, especially with how the characters were presented (how the one looks innocent but secretly loves BL manga, and the other looks like a scary bad boy, but is actually a sweet cinnamon roll).

Will read the next volume to fully make my mind up!

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Have you read any of these books? What were your thoughts?

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Happy reading!

[romanyeva]

op leaving gold in the tags

Here's the panel where the law degree comes up:

Nightwing (2016) #80

Pre-N52 Barbara Gordon had both a JD and LLM, but DC had to speedtrack her education so that she could be in her mid-twenties as Batgirl and then Oracle. She graduated from high school at 16 and completed her undergrad at Gotham U in record time. The JD she did through correspondence school.

Dick, on the other hand, went to Hudson University but got kicked out due to poor attendance (not bad grades) pre-Crisis, but I'm not sure if he ever went to college post-Crisis. He did, however, go to the Blüdhaven police academy and became an officer but then got fired and refused to take back his badge later. Taylor references that too in the same issue:

So yeah, when did Dick have time to get a JD?

Well, this Dick didn't but the original one DID. That's right, Golden Age Dick Grayson became an attorney.

Batman Family #18 (1978)

During the 70s, DC published several storylines about the Golden Age heroes. The then-current canon was set on Earth One and the Golden Age continuity was set on Earth Two. The original Huntress was Helena Wayne, who also became an attorney, and went to work at DICK GRAYSON'S LAW FIRM right out of law school and after passing the bar.

So Helena gets named a full partner right away - which sportscoat dude regular attorney doesn't like very much: "Helena's a POOR SUBSTITUTE for Richard Grayson," he says. Well, why isn't Dick there? Because, at this point he's a freaking AMBASSADOR. That's right, he's a Foreign Service officer. But he's still a full member - as ROBIN - of the Justice Society of America.

This becomes an issue later on for complex plot and please-buy-this mini-series reasons:

America vs. the Justice Society of America #1 (1985)

Due to some strange evidence that Bruce left when he died, the Justice Society of America is accused of high treason. Dick is the special counsel for the United States and Helena Wayne is lead defense counsel. Battle of Bruce's kids in front of Congress, basically.

(And oh no, Dick, South Africa? Really? This was at the height of apartheid and definitely at the height of divestment protests against the South African government worldwide. DC!)

So yes, Dick Grayson DID have a law degree, but that law degree and that Dick Grayson ceased to exist after the first Crisis. I have no idea if Dick's reference to it in Taylor's current run of Nightwing was an homage to the OG Dick or just completely nonsensical.

And since Taylor drops plot threads and references that go nowhere all the DANG time, we may never know.

I still can’t believe Tom Taylor gave Dick Grayson a law degree.

[mc-critical]

hey, it's been a while, hope you're doing fine!

your unproblematic faves in mc/mc:k and why?

mine from mc would be mihrunissa (she's the queen of s4, and also my 2nd favourite character from the franchise overall), cihangir (the king of s4), mehmet ( a non-existent character imo, was loving to everyone from what i could tell & was pretty so why not), nergissah (ik she didn't have much of a character but she was extremely loving, even towards mihrunissa who wasn't her biological mother, adored her relationship with mahi and she was the only family mahi had left after musti, nissa & mehmet died apart from fidan & yusuf), atmaca, yavuz, taslicali (musti's loyal friends; and i adored taslicali w/ mihrimah, the only guy i shipped her with tbh), and i guess that's it, i may be missing someone considering there were several characters.

from mc:k it would be geverhan (the queen of s2, i love her so much and she's my second most favourite character from the franchise overall, such a kind & sensitive soul, she truly deserved a better ending, i just wanted to see her happy), zulfiqar (one of the most loyal people in the entire franchise, deserved a better ending, dying in the place he spent his blood, sweat & tears was definitely a tragic death but also ties into his character, had a sweet relationship w/ humasah who also deserved a better ending), mustafa (my boy! he's just so adorable in the series, the baby & the adult, the joke he played on halime had me in tears, davut's reaction to him sending the table for a walk; i'm sorry but he was the mvp of s1 and deserved so much better than mu/rat killing him ((fuck mu/rat)) but i guess it's kinda cool that he got to sail a ship before dying considering he always loved ships? idk but he's just fantastic and such a cutie + the english subtitles w him were hilarious), and i guess that's it, most characters were kinda problematic in the series, even humasah who i adored but i definitely don't appreciate for trying to put iskender on the throne which would cause the death of kosem & her children. i would've added ibrahim, who i think is such a cutie and i don't understand any hate towards him; i understand the things he did in s2 ending were problematic but he was just having a severe mental breakdown and what he needed was therapy, not that turhande dethroning him. honestly, fuck mu/rat & turhande.

(also mustafa from mc though i don't think he would be considered unproblematic? )

sorry for the rant lol just, unproblematic faves are so good to talk about because you aren't conflicted with them like you are with characters such as hurrem, mahidevran, nurbanu, kosem, nigar, selim, bayezid, etc.

i hope you're having a great day!

Hey, I'm happy to see you back! 😻

We share a lot of unproblematic faves! I love almost everyone you mentioned!

In MC I love Mihrunnisa, because, as you said she's an absolute queen and the best match for Mustafa for me. She suits his level of maturity and they had a very deep, pure, truly genuine bond you didn't see with anyone else from his women. What's most unique about her character is that they didn't put any opposition around her, her story wasn't overshadowed by a love triangle and that helped the relationship between her and Mustafa shine all the more and we saw her have more agency as a character. Cihangir is such a cinnamon roll and cutie pie and yet he's so smart and perceptive of his surroundings. Neither his love for Mustafa, nor his deformity define him and I love what they did with him in the span of a little more than a half-season. Taşlicali, Atmaca and Yavuz are the best trio ever and I loved watching them in action. How loyal they were to Musti and how they wanted to protect him. 😍😍 I loved Taşlicali's moments with Mihrimah and Mahidevran as well as Mustafa, I loved how Atmaca put Rüstem in his place (we stan!) and Yavuz was so cool and they killed him too soon. We should've seen more of Nergisşah, tbh, but her relationship with Mahi is everything and like all of Mahidevran's relationships with the people she loves, she brought the best in her. And she also seemed like a loving and caring human being to everyone else she interacted with, too, she's just... lovely. Screw SS for marrying her off like that, this piece of trash should be killed with fire.

I would also add Helena to my list of unproblematic favourites, because, writing-wise, she's one of the better handlings of a tomboyish girl in the franchise, a mash-up of both Armin's plot and Aybige's character done much better. Yes, just like all the girls with tomboyish personalities (Aybige, Diana etc.), that trait of theirs was either diminished or gone, but with Helena the blow wasn't as hard as with the rest and you could definetly say that this is more a side of hers allowed to show from her completely new environment and is probably the one most restrained by it. The girl clearly deserved better than what they put her through and I loved how much she cherished her own freedom, rights and family. Her relationship with Rita was great, too.

I really want to say and Mustafa and Gülfem, as well, to be honest, because while they're flawed and far from perfect, they're overally consistently positive characters in the eyes of the narrative and their questionable actions aren't as drastic for me to put them in the "problematic" category.  I mean, compared to everyone else.... Okay, they still technically don't count, but I love both of them too much to refrain from mentioning them at least hehe 😅 Gülfem should've gotten much much more in the way of storylines of her own, but the moments where she shone really scream potential. She's such a loyal, patient and understanding person and her strenght to listen to other people's sorrows, be considerate of them and seemingly being able to forgive people because from whom she suffered (Mahidevran apparently) or made the people she loved suffer in a way and involving her in this, too (Hürrem), is extraordinary for me. And she tried to kill SS, about time someone did it, I stan, she left the show like a queen! And my adoration of Mustafa is pretty much endless, so I won't delve too deep into it. His relationship with his mother, his resilience, his intuition, his still firm hand contrasted to his loyalty to his father that crushed him, but I can't help but respect... yup.

For MCK I have the exact same favourites, as well, only I would add Meleksima, because she was pretty harmless, deserved better and loved Osman and their kids. Gevherhan is my favourite dynastic sultana in the whole franchise (followed by Hatice) and I love her selflessness and humanity. She subverted all the sultana tropes, basically, I don't recall a scene where she was ever elitist to someone below her, she didn't intrigue or scheme and she didn't have an agenda of her own. Her suicide was her breaking the ties she had with her environment and her deciding to finally be the selfish person for once, to do what she wanted, to decide her own destiny. Deserved to be happy with Silahtar more than anything else ever. Zulfikar was so understanding and noble, I'm surprised that the palace didn't devour him, his death was so heartwrenching. Mustafa is a precious bean that also got sucked by his own environment and by the horrible Fatih law and game of survival, his psyche was soo destroyed you can't help but feel sorry for him, at the very least. The same goes with Ibrahim who is also a product of his own environment and even the conflicts of his brothers, I get why he would turn his back on everything and everyone and fixate on the only thing that could bring him a bit of peace and escapism - his harem. He and Mustafa were put in roles they had no capacity to play anymore and I'm sobbing. And yes, Ibo didn't deserve to be so screwed over by Turhande, screw her and Murat. (and also Atike, what she did with her sister because of her selfish, unrequited love and she was told about it by Sil himself! was disgusting, interesting character, but so were Murat and SS and even Turhan in her thematic utility.)

[bigskydreaming]

I'm not sure if you got my request because i didn't had internet when i sent it, so i'll write it again xd Do you think Dick (and the batboys in general) are famouse like Bruce? Because in the comics there's not any clue about it, i've never seen anyone say something like "oh look! Its Dick Grayson!, y'know, Wayne's first ward/son And its a shame, because reporters would make such a hard life to all of them, it would maka a good narrative tool

Honestly, this is a prime example of that inconsistency I rant about, and also DC’s refusal to just COMMIT on even the most basic aspects of their universe like….uh…how many kids does Batman have. 

afhsahfklahsklfhal

Like, you would think that would meet the MINIMUM requirements of “shit you should probably have figured out and make sure everybody’s on the same page with” but DC’s like….nah, that’s not important.

So I mean…..I’m reasonably certain - like this is just my personal belief, but I’d put money on it being right, lol - but I think the primary reason there’s so little mention in the comics of how Bruce’s kids are viewed in the public eye/how much the public are aware of them (in the New 52, at least, as pre-Flashpoint there was a lot more plot around that kind of thing, especially back in the 80s and 90s)…��

…is because 90% of the writers and editors have no clue either, and nobody wants to be the one to ask, and like, open that can of worms. I 100% think you could ask five different writers at DC which kids Bruce has OFFICIALLY adopted in this current continuity, and get five different answers, lol.

There’s been so much handwaving about Dick’s status ever since Spyral, and again - I think its because nobody bothered to think through the logistics of the Hypnos/global-mindwipe machine BEFORE writing it into the story, and then once it did occur to any of them to like….wonder just how specifically it worked, they were like, fuck it, better just be as vague as possible. So, according to Grayson, everyone Helena didn’t program into the exclusion list before the satellite was activated should have no recollection of Dick Grayson, which is why he was able to ‘go back to his old life’ and be Nightwing again, without worrying about his secret identity having been unmasked…..

But what does that mean for his official identity as adopted son or even just ward of billionaire Bruce Wayne? People can’t have NO memory of Dick Grayson and still remember that Bruce Wayne took in a kid named Dick Grayson. I mean, as far as I can tell, the overall consensus in the comics seems to be that after the satellite was activated, Dick just kinda started from scratch as ‘Dick Grayson’ like, he was free to be himself again, but it was like he was a blank slate/came out of nowhere as far as everyone else was concerned. But again, that means as far as anyone outside of their close circle of family and friends know….Dick Grayson is a non-entity to Bruce Wayne and the two have no history. 

Which I mean, is fairly shitty and you’d think if nothing else, there’d be massive story potential there for delving into Dick’s character and his relationship with Bruce and examining how he felt about ‘having his old life/identity back’….except with the caveat that as far as the world is concerned, his life and identity don’t and have never included his father.

Cut to DC: Naaaaaaaah.

But even WITH that, plot holes persist, and abound, because…..why didn’t the satellite erase the Court of Owls’ knowledge/memory of Dick? Even before Luthor gave Cobb those goggles and files to help him with bringing Ric into the fold, Cobb clearly was already stalking Ric and knew exactly who he was….the Court obviously already had that doctor in place while he was still in recovery…so, whoops. I mean, you could probably come up with an explanation about the Court, via their own tech and resources, having had some protections in place 24/7 that kept the satellite from affecting them even though they weren’t on guard for it specifically…..but again, Occam’s Razor….I feel like the real answer is DC just didn’t care enough to think things that far through. Especially since the average Bludhaven citizen, like Bea, at least didn’t seem totally blown away when Ric revealed to her that amnesia aside, he was supposedly some rich billionaire’s adopted kid….which again suggests that as far as the writers were thinking, people in general are familiar with the idea that Bruce Wayne has more than one kid.

Then you’ve got Jason’s whole situation, and to be honest….I really only have the vaguest idea what’s going on there, because reading Lobdell books is against my religion, and I am a devout and deeply spiritual person, as you all probably can tell. I mean, I know that there’s something going on where like, Jason had himself legally resurrected in the public eye and is openly referring to himself as Bruce Wayne’s formerly-assumed dead foster kid……but like, is that the official official word, or would other writers if you asked them say they’d been operating under the assumption Bruce had adopted Jason too at some point in the Rebirth timeline, or….idek, man.

I…..honestly don’t have the faintest fucking clue what to make of the many back-and-forth retcons about Tim and his parents and his official place in the Batfam/relationship with Bruce, and am actually slightly terrified of even trying to make sense of that clusterfuck of a Gordian knot, so my official stance on Tim is to just like….back sloooooowly away from the anthropomorphic-migraine-masquerading-as-a-backstory, without like….agitating it and accidentally setting off another multiverse Crisis birthed wholly from just that one all-consuming black hole of a retcon.

I mean, there’s a reason I basically just shoehorn all the kids’ official pre-Flashpoint family statuses into anything I write in Rebirth continuity, and that’s not just stubbornness and my refusal to play the “now this kid is adopted…now he’s not…now he is again….except he’s not….oh he’s adopted again…..oh wait now he’s not again" game. 

Its like. Also for the sake of my sanity and stuff.

(And also hahahahaha fuck you DC times infinity, every time you use the words “blood son,” or “real family” in a comic, or have one of Bruce’s other kids refer to Bruce as “your father” when talking to Damian, as if that’s not an utterly bizarre and roundabout way for any sibling to refer to their mutual parent and thus I j’ete REFUSE to acknowledge it as valid….ahem, anyway, my point is, every time they do that in a comic, I double down and headcanon Bruce throwing a random as fuck gala for literally no other purpose than to remind all of Gotham that he has half a dozen kids and they’re all better than everyone else’s. Ugh. Kill it. Kill the “blood son” nonsense with fire and lightning and also lots of stabbing maybe).

Anyway, that’s my official stance on DC’s stance on Damian in the books.

Then as far as Cass goes….ugh, her origins were pretty much utterly butchered by the New 52, which IMO has also failed to give us Cass and Bruce bonding and dynamics sufficient to Sate Mine Ire™, sooooooo…..I mean, my perception of the current canon is that Cassandra’s official status is “secret mystery foster child that nobody really knows about,” but because I do not care for that and there’s the whole not sufficiently sated ire thing I mentioned, I officially reject this canon and willfully replace it with pre-Flashpoint Bruce and Cass love and adoption. DC’s welcome to kiss my critically acclaimed hiney if I’m doing it wrong.

Which brings us last, but certainly not least, as its only this way because I go sequentially and Duke is still Shiny and New comparative to the others and will be until the next inevitable fostering/adoption/clone hi-jinks bumps him up the sequential ladder (except I randomly switched Damian and Cass around this time because LOOK I DONT MAKE THE RULES, THERE ARE NO RULES i hvea Adhd hiccup sob leavem e aloooone soooooob)…..

Duke’s official status, much like the rest of the Batkids, can be summed up as Honestly, I Really Don’t Have A Fucking Clue And Am Just Winging This Whole Thing.

I mean, there’s less inconsistency with him, due mostly to the fact that so few writers other than Snyder use him (boo, hiss, and not just because I hate having to give Snyder credit for stuff - look, I love his Duke, but I loathe how he writes Dami, its a thing, I just…don’t get me started). But what inconsistencies there are….well….they’re a bit glaring.

Basically one major storyline showed Duke as being an official foster kid/ward of Bruce’s and living out of the Manor with Bruce and Damian and occasionally Tim when he’s not off road-tripping around the multiverse….and then Batman and the Signal had Duke in the care of his uncle, who was stated to be his legal guardian and Duke was constantly sneaking out in order to meet Bruce in the special Signal-cave he built specifically for Duke to operate out of so he didn’t have to like, drive all the way out to the Manor to change just so he could then drive back into the city and patrol. And then Batman and the Outsiders just said fuck all that, here’s Duke and Cass hopping hemispheres with the Outsiders every other issue, so apparently nobody’s making unscheduled visits anywhere back in Gotham to make sure these two are where they’re legally assumed to be, which again, for the record is…..*error, source not found*

LOLOL and the really fun thing about this little back and forth is I’m pretty sure allllll these conflicting takes are all the work of the same writer. Like. GET ON YOUR OWN PAGE, DUDE.

Also, again I have to assume the “Can’t Be Bothered To Give A Shit, Or Maybe They’re All Just Really Bad At Logic” curse has struck again, because….uhhhh…..

….at no point anywhere in Duke’s stories have I seen Bruce or literally anyone else express concern about the fact that Duke living with Bruce as his official foster, like he definitely and clearly was at some point at least…..means that literally every single one of his We Are Robin friends who knows that he was taken in by the Batfam (and there’s several of them who know this)….like, by the transcendent properties of You Can’t Honestly Think They’re That Dumb, that’s a good five or six civilians out there who probably took all of five seconds to play connect the dots and figure out the Wayne family, having officially taken Duke in on paper…..is pretty likely the Batfamily.

I mean, I like all of Duke’s friends and would definitely headcanon/write them as all being trustworthy and able to keep this knowledge to themselves for Duke’s sake, if nothing else, but I mean, its pretty unprecedented for Bruce to out himself and all of his kids/allies by extension, to like, that many civilian teenagers all in one swoop….

…sooooooo, you’d think, AGAIN, logically, maybe, perhaps, this is the kind of thing that should be brought up in a narrative somewhere as a plot point worth delving into, y’know, just for shits and giggles and maybe a little bit of that whatchamacallit - oh right, character development, but.

Cut to DC: Naaaaaaah.

 *throws up hands and does the I Can’t Even Shuffle all the way home*

In conclusion:

DC is a mess. The official/public status of each and every Batkid is a mess. Except for Damian, the blood son, but we have that pencilled in on the schedule to be killed with fire and also stabbing, so he can get filed under ‘just a fucking mess’ with the rest of his siblings. Hashtag Solidarity.

I mean, I say just write or headcanon their official status however you damn well please, and it’ll STILL be more effort than I believe DC has put into organizing and staying consistent with all of this, and thus STILL make more sense than what we currently have to work with.

*Shrugs* If they don’t care enough to provide a clear canon blueprint to follow when mapping the Bat Family Tree, I can’t be bothered to care if the one I make up myself happens to contradict one single mention of one kid’s official status as claimed by one issue of one book.

Especially if it was written by Lobdell.

Jason’s just a foster son my ass. grumble mumble bitter vengeful swears and a pox on all DC’s houses. WHY DO YOU PEOPLE HATE ADOPTION SO MUCH, INQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW AND ALSO FUCK YOU.

[karolina-in-the-wonderland]

Girl, i am TERRIFIED Robert is gonna die. mostly because i still don't rlly know what they're trying to do with him this season. & of the main cast he's probably the most expendable because he's the newest character. Good to know I'm not the only one thinking it, or bad to know, lol.

Don’t even get me started, because I’m freaking out here!

Seriously.

To quote Helena: “Don’t joke. I’ve lost you once already. I cannot bear the thought of going through that again.”

It felt a bit like a foreshadowing. NOPE, I’m not going there!

I’m trying to console myself with some hard logic, so here’s my attempt at proving that we’re wrong (dunno how it works, arguing with yourself).

1. Max and Genevieve are promoting the show. Both together and separately. Killing him off when he’s the face of your show, actively rallying up the fans and gaining their sympathy, is not just risky, it’s plain suicidal. This is not Game of Thrones, they cannot just chop off his head and hope for the ratings to remain steady, because our ratings suck. And I doubt that they’ll get better once you off the most charismatic character on the show.

Which brings me to..

2. He is not just a main character, he is one of the leads. And while it didn’t stop the writers from getting rid of Ophelia, it’s worth pointing out that if anyone, Liam seems like a more likely candidate for dying (for the record, I think he’s 100% safe). Am I the only one who noticed that Liam had less screen time this season than Robert (well, I haven’t counted it, exactly, so I might be wrong)? And no strong storyline on his own? He’s been sidelined this whole time, while the writers put Robert front and center. It was, of course, on purpose, as Liam is supposed to be staying in Robert’s shadow. But still. The show is revolving around Robbie, and if he died, so would most of the plot.

3. He’s died already. We’ve seen everyone’s reaction, grief and growth and pain. Do we really need to go through that again? What would it bring to the show? How can the writers surprise us this time around?

4. We’ve seen proper!Robbie, dictator!Robbie, but we’ve only glimpsed unhinged!Robbie. I want to see him getting his hard dirty, and not in a political sense of the word.The real him, without his family’s expectations and the Crown sitting on his neck. Hell, I’d like a journey of self-discovery (preferably with a certain Wilhelmina) and him getting to live a life of freedom to become whoever the hell he wants. That’s more interesting than seeing him, you know, die. And we also want to see the repercussion of his so-called evil deeds that we’re yet to find out. Plus he’d probably need to make amends with the public.

5. Max gave an interview in which he talked how he wanted a redemption arc for Robert. You don’t kill a character as complex as Robbie without a proper sendoff, and if they turn him into a villain, it’d mean that everything we knew about him was a lie.

6. They spent the whole season trying to make us feel attached to Robert. Mark was writing OTH for 10 seasons, he knows how the audience reacts to romantic gestures and speeches, and he could probably predict what kind of reaction it would cause on the social media. Same with the network. Would they really let him kill Robert off? Because let’s not kid ourselves, the writers might want A to happen, but if the network wants B, it’s B.

So there. This is an attempt at arguing with myself.

I feel better already ;p

[heroicadventurists]

That's why I loved Black Panther, Luke Cage and Black Lightning. They hold no punches.

I think what helped those 3 properties stay authentic was that the creative teams were headed by black people.

Black Panther-Ryan Coogler, Black Lightning-Salim Akil and Luke Cage-Cheo Hodari Coker

I don't follow Kamala but I know she was co-created by a woman of color and written by a woman who is a converted Muslim so I can see her story being authentic in the comics compared to Marvel Rising.

Sana Amanat and G Willow Wilson

When Static was dealing with issues affecting his community, he was written by Milestone.

I honestly feel like nobody can tell your story like you can. We need more diversity on these creative teams. When you have people trying to write your culture without experiencing that culture it can become watered down or stereotypical. Honestly I'm not mad if they decide not to write a character's culture if they don't fully understand that culture; because when they try and fail you end up with situations like Halo in Young Justice Outsiders.

Also, I agree with you 100% about the Miles Morales and Peter Parker relationship in fandom. I have seen way too many posts trying to paint Peter as Miles' Father figure when Miles had a Father and Uncle who loved him. And while his Uncle was a villain, there was no doubt he loved Miles and laid his life down for him. Trying to replace Jefferson and Aaron with Peter is so disrespectful. Peter mentored him on how to be Spider-Man; nothing less and nothing more.

As far as the batfamily; Luke, Tiffany, Duke and Cass would need some major development in comics and a push on other media platforms before the fandom starts including them in art/fics on the level of Dick, Jason, Tim or Damian. Luke and Tiffany aren't currently in the comics but Luke is about to be in Batwoman so we'll see if the show revives his character in comics. Duke and Cass are in Batman and The Outsiders; and Cass will be in Birds of Prey and she will get her own graphic novel so that might work in her favor. Duke needs a really strong storyline in the comics; something to really get people invested in him. I feel like Dick, Jason, Tim, Damian, Babs, Cass and Steph all have a signature story and Duke is just missing the mark. He has "We Are Robin" but I feel like he needs something iconic like Death in The Family, The Killing Joke, No Man's Land etc.

This is my hot take. Batman has way too many partners. Logically, after Jason was killed, Bruce should have been done with teen heroes. I can see how Tim wormed his way into Robin with Bruce grieving; and he had no choice with Damian; but to take on 7 other people (Cass, Steph, Luke, Duke, Helena, Terry and Matt) after Jason's death is lunacy (doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result). Even with Terry (and more than likely Matt) being his biological kids, he didn't have to put them in the field. This is a huge failing on Bruce's part IMO. Tim should have been his last partner until Damian showed up with his League Training. They mainly focus on those 5 anyway (Dick, Babs, Jason, Tim and Damian). I like all of the characters but from a storyline perspective it makes no sense that Bruce would continuously take on teen heroes. He's literally the only character in DC that has taken 12 teens under his mantle. Even 5 is high. That's my unpopular opinion about Batman and his partners.

People don’t realize how bad fandom racism is in comic books when you literally have to stop people from making Miles, a black kid, being Peter’s little sidekick when the character has been independent from the get go. When you literally expect almost every Batfamily post or content to exclude Duke Thomas, Luke Fox, And Tiffany Fox. Or not even mention Luscious. Or when characters of color get adapted into other mediums, their origins if deemed too political are immediately erased or changed when Kamala’s struggle with Islamophobia is omitted in every adaptation of the character. Or Static’s origin dealing with the Drug War just changes.

Like it gets exhausting dealing with white fans or creators who are way too willing to make a character be favorable to the white audience.

[cogentranting]

I'm curious what you think of the Billy/Susan storylines. I didn't understand F getting a bf, and then having Oliver abruptly kill him off? Was it to propel Oliver/Susan? Susan also seemed oddly developed. For the majority of her episodes, she was painted as someone with a motive sinister to Oliver (investigating while in a relationship with the subject seemed unethical as well) then her role flipped. Was she supposed to become an antagonist or was she supposed to be a girlfriend?

Short answer: I thought both story lines worked well and served their purpose effectively. I really liked the 5x09 death, thought it made for a great episode. And Susan investigating Oliver’s past really excited me.  Billy was to show Felicity had moved on, Susan was that + a red herring of sorts. 

Long answer:

Billy served multiple purposes and people get most confused by him by trying to put everything under one unifying umbrella. First, he was to show Felicity moving on. This had to happen for several reasons. One of the most important is just that it makes sense for Felicity’s character. Felicity wants to be with someone- when she’s not with Oliver/pursuing Oliver she’s typically pursuing someone else and she’s made it pretty evident that a partner of that type is something she wants. She’s also a beautiful, smart, kind, successful woman, who- through her relationship with the team- has grown exponentially in her confidence, so if she’s looking for a relationship…. she’s probably gonna find one. She also has a distinct tendency to respond to trouble in her relationship with Oliver by getting involved with a specific type of guy. Oliver has his thing with Isabel- enter Barry for the first time. Oliver tells her they can’t be together- Felicity and Barry come close to getting together. Mad at Oliver for not living up to who she thinks he should be- she and Ray get together. Oliver breaks her heart with the lie- right to Billy. Billy, Ray and Barry are all very similar people too. When Felicity is disappointed by Oliver, she tries to find what she’s looking for in a relationship with an OliverLite guy who she thinks will give her the partnership she’s looking for without all the complications that come with Oliver. So it would actually be much stranger for Felicity NOT to have a boyfriend. 

Felicity also has to move on to show where she is in her mindset on the relationship with Oliver- she doesn’t have hope for it. Felicity isn’t waiting to see if Oliver will change and/or make it up to her. She’s not looking for a way to fix that relationship. In her mind, that door is closed. Billy shows that in a way that is far more convincing than anything she could say. And this ties into the idea that I’ve been talking about recently, that on Felicity’s side of things, the problem in the relationship is that she doesn’t believe Oliver can change. A new relationship shows that. 

So Felicity has to be in a new relationship, but before her relationship with Oliver can start to rebuild that relationship has to end. Option 1: Billy and Felicity breakup. Billy leaves. relatively little impact. Also might put Felicity further in her progression back towards Olicity than the writers wanted her to be. or Option 2: the writers can give Billy additional purpose to make the most use out of their characters. So Billy gets to die. 

The plan to have Oliver tricked into killing someone probably came before Billy. It fits with Prometheus’ plans and is a really great twist, has a wonderfully devastating effect on Oliver. (I love it). The question is just- who does Oliver kill? It could be a random civilian. But that doesn’t pack much punch. It would be seriously underwhelming, even if they got teased earlier. It could be Susan but she still had quite a bit of story left (we’ll get to that, don’t worry). It could be a main character but the writers clearly didn’t want to kill off any of their mains. It could be one of the newbies. But that is harder to arrange, and more importantly, means killing of a character the writers weren’t done with or introducing a new character specifically for that purpose. But why do that when you already have Billy who is well known (and likable) enough to make the moment shocking and sad (for the characters at least) and is already leaving anyway. It gives the exit (which I think would have been at that time anyway) meaning instead of just being about moving Billy out of the way. 

It ALSO allows for an added dimension to Felicity’s dark arc. Her arc was already in place and Billy’s death adds grief to the guilt of Haven rock and trust issues from Noah and Oliver. And it adds to those well so that Felicity’s arc can be the most interesting for her, and do the most to let her gain insight into Oliver (cuz hey guilt grief and trust issues are Oliver’s big things he took away from the Island). 

(Also Billy gives a face to the ACU, which isn’t necessary but is nice. And he’s actually very likable when you don’t view him as a threat to your ship). 

Susan! I actually posted a really long play by play of Susan’s scenes here. And a briefer note on why Oliver likes her here. And there’s some other scattered Susan thoughts floating around if you care to dig for them but eh. 

Susan is Oliver’s natural response to Felicity moving on. Her being with Billy gives him the message that she doesn’t want him to pursue her anymore. And so he decides, if she doesn’t want to be with him, he isn’t going to ignore that and sit around waiting for her. Oliver, like Felicity but more, wants to be with someone. He always wants to be with someone. Whether or not he decides he can. Especially having come so close to marrying Felicity, having a kid out in the world that he can’t be involved with, being into his thirties and now with a stable job- Oliver is liking the idea of settling down (in terms of love life). So he decides to move on and Susan is someone who was interested, had a lot of traits to attract him, and seemed capable of being an equal. 

But Susan isn’t just a straightforward love interest- because as we discussed with Billy, doing that isn’t using your characters to their fullest potential (every love interest has multiple roles- Shado is LI and mentor, McKenna LI and police presence, Helena LI and villain/temptation, Sara LI and family drama + co-superhero. Isabel LI and villain. even for other characters’ love interests- Ray is LI and business rival and new superhero, Roy is LI and sidekick for Oliver, Lyla is LI and face of Argus. To put it all simplistically). So Susan is also conducting an investigation into Oliver. She’s never meant to be an antagonist, but she’s meant to be a potential one. We’re supposed to wonder about her. It’s not so much that they showed her as having a sinister motive- they made us question IF she had a sinister motive. It creates tension, it leads to some great character building for Thea as she wrestles with her darkness, it leads us to question what Oliver will do if his secret comes out, it addresses the question of whether or not there is evidence of him off-island, we see how Oliver deals with a love interest finding out his identity. And I think it serves another important point- it rewards Oliver’s trust. The show is adamant that Oliver has to start trusting people. His team is one thing and they build on that a lot. But Oliver also needs to start trusting people in his day-job two. And he does that with two people: Adrian and Susan. If Adrian is the only person that Oliver lets into his trust during the season, then the season will end up being about how Oliver was right and he actually can’t trust anyone because people end up being serial killers with a vendetta against him. But Susan comes in and rewards his trust by being trustworthy. Because ultimately we’re shown that our suspicions about her weren’t found- despite her investigation she never intended to publish it or expose Oliver and she is loyal to him and ends up being supportive and reliable. Which would mean nothing if the trust wasn’t first tested by something like her discovering his secret. If the only aspect of trust is that “hey this love interest is not a serial killer or working for the bad guy”… that’s a low bar and the connection to the idea is probably not going to be made in the first place. So Susan’s investigation is there to affirm Oliver’s growth. 

(As to the ethics of digging into the past and secrets of a man you’re dating– noting that she didn’t intend to publish it– it’s not very ethical. But also… her boyfriend is lying to her about lots of stuff, and we’re watching a show where the main character used to sorta kinda be a serial killer. She’s shouldn’t do it but is that really the line we’re gonna draw? “I’ll support a murderer and torturer but someone who invades their boyfriend’s privacy is too much.”

So yeah. I think Billy and Susan were well-written and used in very effective ways to the betterment of the main characters and the season arc as a whole.