#idk if the motive was so much money as straight up revenge

[fallenangelontheceiling]

I kinda want to do a Menendez Brothers deep dive but I also know it will gut me. There will be no catharsis or certainty, only morbid curiosity.

If anyone wants to talk about this please message me.

I’m thinking of buying the Robert Rand book.

[renjunnipeikko]

Turbo Sus Vice Housewardens to Be Avoided at All Cost Rankings (Source: Me)!

1. Jade Leech - This man is so scary for obvious reasons. Other reasons probably aren’t so obvious to other people and I can’t even explain what I mean by this not only because I feel like no matter where I am nor regardless of the fact he’s fictional, he’ll be able to hear me but also because some of the things I just flat out won’t talk about. Like I straight up cannot be brought to say them. Evidence for this? None. Just- bad vibes. Bad vibes all around. Also I just can’t figure out his motives. Like Azul likes money and wants revenge for being bullied. Floyd seems like a genuinely nice guy all things aside and just wants to have fun. But Jade? Wtf does he want? He doesn’t care about money so part of me thinks he just wants entertainment like Floyd but to put up with all that? A business he’s not even in charge of, a flakey brother, a pushy boss. Nah… he’s playing some game for the long run. Highly functioning sociopath and the bogeyman that plagued your fragile mind as a child. No. Hate that.

2. Jamil Viper - Snake. Will spends years pretending to be your friend just to stab you in the back and for what? For someone who’s like the most hyper-competent guy on campus, he actually surprisingly lacks like… all critical thinking skills. And it’s because he’s so blinded by the cards he was dealt in life he can’t look beyond that. Is so convinced Kalim is his arch nemesis he can’t take a second to think about it and realize Kalim is actually his greatest ally in life. And even if he did… he probably just would not care. Lifetime of resentment and all that. He’s book smart, he’s street smart, but he is not emotionally nor logically smart. Just avoid him. He’s good at seeming mature but he’s petty and will Regina George you because you like, got the scholarship he wanted or smthng idk

3. Lilia Vanrouge - Listen. I don’t think Lilia will hurt me. I don’t think he’s planning anything nefarious. He’s nice and friendly. Super helpful. Incredibly loyal to Briar Valley and the royal family. Incredibly loyal and loving towards Malleus. That’s not why he’s scary. He’s scary because he’s hiding in plain site. He ain’t even necessarily trying to hide anything about himself, he just won’t outright dish out personal info. It’s the fact no one at NRC is suspecting he’s anything more than just a student that gives him safety to be a little reckless. I have reason to suspect he holds much more power than he lets on but everyone overlooks it because they’re all looking at Malleus instead. Meanwhile Lilia is standing directly behind him, completely hidden (not just bc he’s so short and Malleus so tall 😋), also a complete powerhouse. But no one.suspects.a.thing. And even though the player is privy to this information, there’s still so much about him still shrouded in mystery. Like, again, I don’t think he’s up to anything. I do believe he really is just trying to protect his kiddos and wants peace between all races. But I feel like there’s something about him, something big, that we don’t know yet. And it’s making me nervous.

4. Rook Hunt - I’m not as weirded out by Rook as I had been initially. Both he and Vil grew on me in chapter 6. I flat out disliked both of them before. But they really showed themselves to be loyal and caring towards each other, Epel, and MC (which was what made them stand out compared to the other housewardens and vice housewardens for me, they’re the first ones to actually establish a seemingly genuine personal connection to the player after Ace, Deuce, and Malleus). But- mans is playing The Most Dangerous Game and that story creeped me out so badly when I first read it at like 11 years old that I still think about it constantly to this day, over a decade later. I tried to justify his stalking by reasoning that he wasn’t actually interested in hunting merfolk/beastmen and rather was interested in hunting actual eels or lions, but his PE uniform vignette really said otherwise. He didn’t seem at all interested in the nature of bats as he did fae. And if it were just animals, I doubt Malleus would have nearly taken his head off with that ball as a warning. Nah, it feels like he straight up was looking to Butcher Baker Lilia and that makes me wanna vomit. Rook. You’re one of the good guys. You’ve got the light powers to prove it. If hunting animals is becoming boring for you- find another hobby. Do not fucking turn this into The Most Dangerous Game! Please!

5. Ortho - I always hated the movie Smart House.

[boop-le-snoot]

PARTY FAVOURS I CHAPTER 32

💖 first time reader click here 💖

Summary: Stephen Strange being a grown-up. Reader being a grown-up. Kind of. Revenge plot starts now - don't be like the mercenary, don't threaten reader's family. Avengers being good.. bros? Good found family idk. More smut + plot coming soon.

The silence hung awkwardly over us. Stephen wasn't the one to wax poetics, usually, and I wasn't in the mood to do anything but curl up somewhere warm, chug a bottle of liquor and fall asleep. Sleep is like death without the committment and after my little outburst, I inwardly prayed and begged for the ground to open up and swallow me whole. Instead, I was directed to sit and drink my tea by the sorcerer, who, by the way, was beginning to look like a kicked puppy.

It was starting to become unbearable. "I'm listening," I finally croaked out, shocked at how raspy my voice sounded. As if someone had forced me to choke on some nails - and I felt like it, too. My hands were shaking, all but spilling the hot tea onto them.

"Princess..." His mouth did the thing when he was worried, lips pursed, their corners upturned. "What we did was not... Right, you were drugged without your consent. I am sure Tony feels the same way."

My eyebrows rose, words bubbling up to the surface as I fought the urge to simply start calling Stephen some strong names. Had he been blind the whole time I flirted with him, had he not seen both me and Tony ogling him when we thought nobody could see? Every time I joked about the sexual tension between them - you know what they say, every joke has a little bit of truth in it.

Or maybe the sorcerer had used the incident as a convenient excuse for our little fuck-fest to be a one-time thing? I expected more, I won't lie, but I wouldn't put it above him. I knew all too well that some men tended to simply... Avoid.

I was angry, probably rightfully so, but it was not the time for me to comfort an adult man. My own life was going to shit, I had no mental energy to unburden his baseless guilt. It was selfish and it made me feel even more like shit, but it was as if someone had flipped a switch inside of me. I just didn't care about someone's heartbreak. I needed to solve another problem, a much bigger than a man that couldn't make up his mind.

I had to find that damn mercenary. It was the only real threat hanging over our heads; unlike any mission that I've seen the team go on before, they had thrown all the forces into catching the man that had gotten into their safe space, their home. That threatened to take what they thought as theirs. Long gone were the days of comfortable domesticity.

"Okay," I replied, nodding curtly. "I wanted it, if it helps any. I thought you were attractive the first day I saw you." I spoke bluntly, beginning to feel like myself more and more with each word that I spoke. "And again, no strings have to be attached. I'm sure Tony will understand it too, it's not his first rodeo."

Stephen's head shot up from where he was examining his clasped hands, to study me with furrowed brows. Cloaky moved where it was wrapped around me, attracting the sorcerer's attention - I, unfortunately, did not understand the Cloak's sign language and what it told Stephen remained a mystery to me. I was just delighted to be out of the cold and and wet clothes.

"I think you misunderstood me," Stephen eyed me with surprise. "I want more, but..." He trailed off, unsure. "I don't know. I'm surprised Banner hasn't gone green on me yet. I'm a doctor, I should have known..."

So, he was pulling a me and wallowing in pity. Is this really how pathetic I looked when I used to mope around the house earlier? No wonder my mother thinks I'm a baby. "Stephen, I'm really not in the mood to listen to bullshit. I wanted it, you wanted it, great, we can move on. Because with everything that has happened to me, I really have no energy to convince you I like you even while sober when you're sabotaging yourself." Sure, I might have ripped off the motivational speech from a self-help book my mother used to have laying around. My patience was wearing thinner with each second. "There, I said it. I like you, my boyfriends like you, you're welcome to the club if you decide to believe the fact that I am telling the truth." And if he wouldn't, well, I could get over it. I was planning to never act upon my feelings for both Tony and Bruce, it hadn't been as hard as I thought it would be. Especially with me being busy enough to just ignore the feelings.

At some point, I had grown attached to Stephen. Perhaps, if I and Tony hadn't decided to mess around with the sorcerer at the party, my feelings wouldn't have bloomed into anything more than physical attraction. Murphy's law had a particularly strong affinity on me, I noticed, because over and over I found myself falling head over heels for emotionally unavailable men. It worked out with Tony, which wasn't as surprising as one might expect, considering we're two halves of a whole idiot, but then Bruce also decided to pucker up - Stephen was bound to be the rock that I trip on.

Or not? Soft lips pressed against my forehead, beard hair softly tickling the tip of my nose. I was pressed against a solid chest, surrounded by warmth and comfort. "I'm sorry, I'm an idiot," Steph whispered, voice quivering.

"Well, it's not like this... Relationship... I've got going on is something commonplace," My arms wrapped around him, a deep sigh relaxing my body into his. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. It wasn't right."

Stephen chuckled, all but pulling me bodily into his lap. "Don't worry, Princess. I deserved it." As he spoke, the Cloak carefully unwrapped itself from me, drifting away with a parting pat on my back. "Now what happened with your parents?" Large palms pushed the hair out of my face, stormy blue eyes looking at me with worry.

"I should probably assemble all my significant others for this conversation," There was little enthusiasm in discussing the incident. I was an adult and had enough money to get by for a few months, at least until I could patent one of my inventions. I had plenty of knick-knacks that should be able to interest buyers, that much I knew, and while the legal side of the process was a blank slate to me, I knew I could be charismatic enough to have someone work it out for me.

"I don't think I'll be able to take Steve seriously when he says 'assemble', now," My third boyfriend chuckled, which - wow, I didn't have boyfriends and now I had three? Should I be considering opening a factory or something? Stephen adjusted his hold on me. "Let's go, I'll portal us in."

"My car's out there with all my stuff. I'll have to drive," I protested but made no move to get out of his lap.

"Tony is a billionaire, he can pay someone to retrieve it," Shrugging carelessly, he produced a golden circle of magic, the common room couch in plain sight at the other side of it. I heard voices and then Clint's head peaked through, a curiously tilted eyebrow morphing into full fledged face of confusion upon seeing the two of us.

Yikes. I had forgotten about the state of my dress and the bruise on my cheek. "Hey, bird. I need a drink," I said the first thing that popped into my mind, causing both Clint and Steph to laugh as the sorcerer carried me into the tower through the portal.

"I'm starting to think you go out there and look for trouble on purpose," The archer sighed, pulling out his phone and texting rapidly. Mine vibrated, too, once he was done, which meant he'd called for a family meeting. Blergh.

In no time, Tony appeared, dark circles under his eyes and yesterday's shirt on, towing a worried Bruce behind him. One after the other, the Avengers tickled in, looking restless and exhausted. Loki's frown was well on its way to becoming a full sneer.

"Talk, please," He requested, eyeing me with concern.

"Good news is I got our rogue wizard back," I poked Stephen in the chest. He was blushing. "Bad news is my mother threw me out and my father didn't pick up the phone, so technically I'm homeless and parent-less," I decided that spitting out straight facts was the easiest way to go about it. I mean, there was no good way to tell what I just told them.

The storm that I anticipated didn't appear. Just a lot of disappointed sighs all around, especially from Tony, who looked twenty years older after I'd confessed to the current state of my affairs. "You're not homeless, you live here," He pointed out, rubbing his face and muttering some very strong words under his nose. Particularly, the expressions involved my mother and various methods of fornication.

"We got your back, doll," Bucky nodded, coming over to wrap me in a gentle hug. He was like a brother from another mother to me at this point, kind and goofy and sensible. "I would propose to teaching that harpy a lesson but I think she's beyond it."

"Perhaps it's for the best," Loki mused suddenly. "If I recall correctly, your mother was against your career of choice, which is idiotic. Science is a noble and prospective path." The Asgardian, too, gave me a hug.

I wasn't crying! There were ninjas, in the vents, cutting onions! "Stop it guys, I'm gonna cry. I already look like shit!" The protest was silenced by Bruce's lips on mine, his tiny smile briefly covering my mouth with tenderness. After that, everybody somehow decided it was their job to try and make me cry; like a bad bitch, I resisted, but eventually broke and started sniffling when Tony began rambling about building me my own lab and Wanda offered to help me decorate my new apartment.

No matter how much my mind screamed at me to refuse, I forced that noise down. Fighting against myself, accepting help despite feeling unworthy of it - it was probably the hardest thing I've done in my whole life.

Bruce volunteered to carry my prone body to Tony's bedroom which was quickly becoming the master bedroom for the three of us - ever since the incident, both of my scientists stuck close to me whenever possible, aggressively cuddling me whenever they decided it was time to get some sleep. Which wasn't much these days, if I was being honest. Persuading Bruce to stay with me was a novelty - usually he didn't resist, but that time, I had to repeat myself multiple times that the team could handle business even without him being present.

I had my ulterior motives, of course. Tony and Stephen needed to talk. I only hoped their egos wouldn't clash without me to mediate - having two boyfriends start a fight wasn't something I wanted to experience. I had zero experience in those matters and had no idea how to manage all that. Are there handbooks for polyamorous relationships? I stuck a mental post-it note inside my brain to check it out.

I fell asleep with Bruce wrapped around me and woke up in the same position, having been too exhausted to move even in my sleep. Voices, rough and quiet, were the first thing I heard upon syncing my brain into a resemblance of a working order, instantly recognizing Stephen's deep baritone and Tony's teasing drawl.

"Expect either Reindeer Games or Kim Possible to come and terrify you," My engineer didn't sound particularly ecstatic. His voice came from somewhere around my feet; the hand wrapped around my ankle, thumb gently stroking the skin, must've been his.

"Duly noted," Stephen's reply was equally sarcastic, sounding a little closer. The warmth coming from my side was him. I could smell the faint spices that surrounded him, smell that I'd come to associate with the Sanctum.

Bruce snored away, not a care in the world.

My body, on the other hand, felt rested for what felt the first time in years. A pleasant ache in my muscles had me begrudgingly squirm out of Banner'd grasp, shamelessly pushing up into Stephen as I stretched with a juicy yawn. "What's poppin'?" I rubbed my eyes, finding the men awake looking at me with fond amusement.

"Just watching," Tony smiled, causing me to giggle at his accidental meme-ing. Was it even accidental? I refused to believe that a man well versed in IT was oblivious to meme culture.

Stephen, on the other hand... "We've discussed some things, wanted to talk to you too." His hand stroked my hair, face expression soft unlike anything I'd ever seen him have. "But you were sleeping. So cute."

Me, cute? There was a puddle of drool the size of a dollar bill on my pillow, I was pretty sure some of it had even gotten in Bruce's hair. Banner's sleep was quiet except for every five minutes when he'd let out a snore with a force somewhere between a Mack truck and a whale in mating season.

Cute, sure.

Bruce groaned, a tell-tale sign of him waking up. I met his eyes, brown, shiny, a narrow edge of green around his irises. Huh. Do I have three boyfriends or four?

THE TAG LIST IS NOW OPEN! @another-stark-sub ​ @mostly-marvel-musings  @vozit ​ @littlegasps ​ @pilloclock ​ @shereadsinquiet @downeyreads ​ @hermione-grangers-wife ​ @individualistfem ​@sleep-i-ness @capbrie @lillsxd @agustdowney @dee-vn @justanotherblonde23 @fanngirl19 @persephonehemingway @softie-socks @schemefrenzy @letsby @romeo-the-cactus @jelly-fishy-babie @mikariell95 @gladiosamicitias

[it-sy-bit-sy]

The ending of Attack on Titan: a shallow analysis

(I don't think I should have to put a spoilers alert on a blog about the ENDING OF AOT, but in general if you mind being spoiled on a series, I advise you to refrain from attending discussions about the body of work until you've finished it in its entirety/come up to speed on the current chapter/episode. Screw hype dude, do you like being hurt? Also for the TLDR, it’s that Attack on Titan explores the cycle of hatred (Eren’s journey) AND love which is why Mikasa and Ymir become relevant at the end of the story.)

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PREFACE

Since the newly added panels of AOT’s ending have been likened by some to the ending of Naruto, I'd like to say that Naruto's end truly hurt me; the way it flows into Boruto is so contrived it burns. A story that's always centered around powerful ninja bloodlines fighting political wars suddenly introduced aliens that harvest planets for energy as the super antagonist, and additionally they're the source of all our characters' powers as well as the jinchuriki and tailed beasts themselves. Then when you look at the plot of Boruto which heavily relies on the Otsutsuki clan as an antagonistic force, their whole existence feels like the transition from Dragon Ball straight into the first DBZ arc with Goku learning he’s really part of an alien race that was meant to destroy Earth.

I didn't detect so forced a role in the ending of AOT, but it's absolutely plausible to speculate that the alternate ending was influenced for this reason, as we know Attack on Titan wasn't produced through Isayama's involvement alone. Certain compromises are made when operating as a team, though it would be wonderful if the original intent of authors were more absolute in the world of production than they are known to be.

And as much as I don't enjoy half-hearted continuations of series for a royalty check, I ALMOST can't blame them for doing it...it creates (many) happy fans, more jobs, and Isayama gets his royalty check. The rest of us suffer but hey, artists need money I guess... 🥀 Moving on. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

#1. Eren's development as a character

I never saw Eren's goal steered in the direction of breaking the cycle of revenge or hatred. He was acting wholly in his own interests. He's intensely selfish, doesn't want to change his views, and exists in the story to further the cycle itself. According to me, Chapters 129 and 131 perfectly explain his motivations for the rumbling.

Now before I go on, I'd like to bring a particular scene to mind. I do remember him saying this once (to Historia who had just told him killing the rest of the world is unjustifiable and wrong):

Yes, he said that, but I don't think that is what he ever intended the rumbling to be used for.

After he stated that 80% of humanity was wiped out so Paradis will be safe for the time being, he neglected to answer Armin's questions in 139: "Did you really need to go that far? Are you sure you did all of this for our sakes?" We may also consider the thoughts he chose NOT to share in chapter 131:

That combined with this excerpt from 129 is pretty much all there is to Eren's convictions.

Those are the same words he said in Chapter 2 after his mother died.

So despite his brief period of self-loathing when considering 1) the countless lives in survey corps sacrificed for his sake, 2) being confronted with his and his father's involvement in the Reiss family, 3) everything he learned about his enemy--that all titans are formerly human, that the titan shifters were just children deceived by their world--he even admits to Reiner during Tyburn's speech (Chapter 100) that they are indeed in the same boat--and on top of that, admitting that the rumbling will do nothing to fix the course of history, he settled with the same conviction he held the moment he decided to do something to change the world.

Again, here's his words from 139 showing us just how angry a boi Eren was.

This was Eren Jaeger...he didn't even really know what he was doing.

As a human being, Eren was very much in the cycle of revenge as much as everyone else was. His course of action never deviated too far from that path. He knew better, but he lashed out at the world to protect the few people he cared about anyway. He took freedom away from the ones who threatened him. He was a mass murderer, and so were the other soldiers in this series fighting for their own reasons, since titans were people. Survey corps were always slaughtering these people whom they saw as monsters. Marley viewed Eldians as monstrously and with as much hatred as Eldians viewed the titans. Eren did not try to justify his actions to everyone. He simply stopped seeing the value of life in others not important to him, as humans often do.

So what did he sacrifice 80% of humanity for? From 129 again:

Them meaning his immediate friends.

No, he didn't care about their children's children and beyond because there's no way to control what happens when you're gone from this world. It wasn't his problem. Eren had 4 years at most left to live, and he wanted to do what he could to ensure his friends were happy before he left.

And as jarring as it was to see Eren become undone in the last chapter, I didn't find it completely out of character, because for one he was talking to his closest friend moments before his own death, and secondly, Eren was just a stupid human like the rest of the people in this series. Obviously, most people just want a normal life that they can spend with people whom they love. Eren was the same way, but was denied that future (and happened to be able to do something about it). Very selfish goals, but those chosen few were his world. Along with a general distaste for humanity, that's how I understand his character motivations.

*Which is to say in relation to the extra pages, Ymir's curse returning a generation or two after the events of AOT doesn't entirely void his actions. I’m assuming the power of Ymir apparently exists as a force of nature on this version of Earth period, so I suppose this points us to an endless cycle of humans eventually finding the power and using it as they see fit *

#2 Why is Romance Relevant to Attack on Titan?

I wasn't expecting a romance factor to be relevant at the end of the story, however considering that Mikasa's affection for Eren WAS her most prominent personality trait as a character, then the events that followed, I was forced to look back to a few moments in the series that could lend light to why, in the end, a romantic subplot ended the curse of Ymir. My conclusions are as follows:

1. Quite literally, the cycle of hatred never ends. Humans will always have a reason to be unkind to one another. We are animals after all; this trait cannot be reasoned through with logic, bred out, or defeated. We are a self-aware species (Eren's even aware of his own hypocrisy in Chapter 131). There will always arise those who take what they want for themselves because they decide in the end they don't care about others as much as they care about their own interests.

2. To make this second point, I'm stealing these words out of a certain machine lifeform's mouth, but bear with me here:

"But the humans...? Now THEY are interesting. Because they are an enigma! They killed uncountable numbers of their own kind, yet loved in equal measure! It's fascinating, don't you think? What could possibly drive such behavior? We have dedicated ourselves to unraveling this riddle of humanity..."

--Adam from NieR:Automata

AOT uses Eren and Mikasa as a case study of humanity. Humans hate and love in equal measure.

In Ch. 129, Zeke's piece here foreshadows the significance of those two for the story, I guess?

Now everyone reading this series as well as the characters in it had noticed how much fondness Mikasa always had for Eren, and how aloof he always was towards her in return...that's something for them to work out.

Despite never really reciprocating Mikasa's feelings, Eren told Armin at the end of the series that yes, he enjoyed receiving her attention; he would have liked to live a happy life with her. So, Mikasa just liked Eren, Eren liked her... And similar to Mikasa, Ymir just liked King Fritz. It doesn't matter whether we think these feelings were sound or not; they did what they wanted with themselves. I suppose that explains the reason she was a mega simp for Eren in the whole story. Yes, this turn in the story reads like a different plot now, not one about war and killing monsters, but I'm pleasantly surprised that this trait taken as a flaw of Mikasa’s actually served as a necessary condition to end the conflict of the titans.

Eren wouldn't let go of his hatred of the world for his own satisfaction, Ymir wouldn't let go of her love of King Fritz for her own satisfaction, and Mikasa is the only one who decided to let go of her convictions in the interest of someone other than herself. That's what moved the curse.

I think Isayama used the characters of Ymir and Mikasa to demonstrate that while there is a cycle of hatred and revenge running rampant in humanity, the cycle of love doesn't stop either.

In closing, and I truly apologize for such a lengthy post; I hope I didn’t reiterate my point too often here...I didn't think about any of this until I heard so many readers upset with the way AOT ended. I'm not personally left with any disappointment in where the story went. I didn't know where it was going to go in the first place, and I think it could have been much worse for us in different hands. 

*shrugs*

AOT is a story about the nature of humanity.

*And in regards to Jean, if that is supposed to be him with Mikasa in the new panels, all I can say is dude likes his girl. He was a simp for her and she was a simp for Eren, but the fact that they shared their lives together means a lot even if Eren was never completely buried in her heart. He meant a lot to her man, idk...

[something-tofightfor]

Since you said you’re always listening here’s some more about Curt: not only did he drop the ball with Lewis, he straight up just chooses Frank blindly in the Frank Billy divorce. Like... we’re meant to believe the three of them were all friends. Curt and Billy drink together at Frank’s grave. But Curtis keeps Frank being alive a secret while selling Billy out at every turn. But why? Until he shoots him in the shoulder Billy hasn’t done anything to Curtis. (1/2)

Answering everything in one go: 

Lots of thoughts about Frank and Billy and Curtis under the cut.

1. I’ve always wondered why Curtis was so quick to take Frank’s side in the whole thing - and part of me believes it was specifically due to the fact that Frank and Curtis both experienced significant, lasting trauma while overseas/after arriving back home, and their lives changed a great deal. Frank pretty much just talks about how they served together, but Billy flat out says that Curtis saved his ass - and from what we see, Billy isn’t someone that typically would need saving, aside from situations like that ambush, where Frank had to go into that building and clear it to save the entire squad. 

Billy and Curtis do likely spend a ton of time together stateside - both while Frank is presumed dead, and before, too. BUT I’m assuming that Curtis was helping Frank all along - which means that he lied to Billy the whole ass time but was still funding the rent for the support group. I’m actually wondering if part of that money wasn’t secretly being funneled to Frank, just to get him by when things were tough and he had to lay low. 

It truly bothers me that Curtis automatically agrees with what Frank does to get revenge, and has the same warped sense of superiority that Madani does. Frank’s gotta do the hard jobs because neither of them can or will. You’re right - until Billy shoots him, Curtis was on the fringe of everything. Billy was lying and likely dangerous, but he didn’t want to hurt Curtis, even after he found out that Curtis had been lying. Why? Because Billy knew he was in the wrong, even if he’d managed to justify his own actions in his mind ... Curtis’ actions and keeping the news of Frank being alive were also justified, because no matter how close they’d been - Frank was a liability and a threat to Billy ... which meant Bily was unpredictable when it came to Frank - and finding out anything about Frank. 

2. We never hear that Curtis was as close to the Castles as Billy was - so that would make me believe that despite the friendship we see between F/C... Curtis took a back seat to Frank and Billy’s friendship. Maybe it was because C got hurt and didn’t keep going overseas with them? Maybe it was because Billy looked up to Frank so much, and he fit in better with the family? But we never SAW Curtis with the Castles, so we don’t know their dynamic, aside from what the three say to and about each other. That’s tough. If the roles had been reversed, and Curtis had betrayed Frank, it would have made more sense to me that F would have gone to B with the secret - so unless Billy’s grossly overstating his relationship with F... then it’s a surprise to me that Frank didn’t reach out to Billy AND Curtis to let them know he was alive. Unless.... Frank had an idea that Billy was dirty? But that doesn’t seem likely ... because his shock in that warehouse is very believable. OR, Frank’s connection with Billy reminded him too much of the family he lost? IDK. We’ll never know, and that makes it really hard. 

3. Granted - Billy’s participation and involvement in the Rawlins scheme eliminates him from sympathy via Curtis... but Frank always seems to get the benefit of the doubt and an opportunity to explain himself, which shows where Curtis’ loyalties have always been. ALSO. Frank and Curtis knew Billy so well that they’d know he’d go to Curtis...but didn’t know him well enough to see that he was a double agent the whole time? Seems fishy. You obviously know he’s capable of doing what he has to do to survive ... and Frank knew that he was in a bunch of shit in Kandahar ... that he told Curtis about ... put two and two together and save everyone a lot of trouble. 

4. Curtis’ priorities have always seemed a little off to me - the whole thing with trying to “save” Lewis, and “talk sense into” o’connor, constantly lying to Billy, and yet being SHOCKED when he was lied to in return ... it’s really hypocritical. You establish him as a true friend to Frank because of what he was willing to do/how he was willing to respond ... but you AGAIN alienate Billy, and show that no one in his whole goddamn life was straight and honest and treating him well throughout the duration of the relationship. 

5. Ow, my heart at the thought of Billy on that floor. I hope every fucking time Curtis goes into that room, he thinks of what he did and the part he played. Billy did a bunch of bad shit, yes, but in the end? He didn’t understand what he’d done or why he did it fully, and all he wanted - for once in his life - was to not feel truly alone. Fuck Curtis for not even giving him that in his final moments, and defaulting back to Frank to take care of everything. 

6. Yeah, by the end of S2, his priorities shift again. And I can’t fault him at all for wanting to live his life, but ... he agreed to help. And that means sticking it out and doing what he needs to do. (God bless Brett Mahoney.) ... not just thrusting his responsibilities off onto someone else because he doesn’t know what else to do. That’s not how it works. That whole scene with him and Frank and Dinah in that trailer just pisses me off, because ... you’re saying that Billy truly doesn’t know what he did or why (and Curtis knows the truth - not the BS they’ve fed Billy or  the public) .... and still OK with letting him die? Letting Frank finish it? If Billy had been in his right mind and actually had all of his memories, that’s one thing. But he didn’t, and the manipulation was coming in from another angle, and so... you’re doing what you’re doing to someone that isn’t really sure what is motivating them entirely. It’s bullshit. And it’s unfair, because you’re made to feel sympathetic - in at least some capacity for Billy, but then just be alright with literally everyone continuing to fuck him over in the end? 

7. You are absolutely right. There’s no absolutes here. Frank isn’t all good. Billy isn’t all bad. Frank was justified in going after the people  that  were responsible for killing his family,  there’s no question about that - and Billy is included. But Frank LET him live at that carousel for a purpose. Madani’s inability to let that stand when she realized she wasn’t going to get her way when it came to Billy is the only reason that Frank was even back in New York. Billy might have broken out. He might have still resorted to petty crime to cover himself over time, but it was krista that drove him to get revenge on the man that hurt him - without KNOWING why the man hurt him in the first place. Billy not recovering the memory of Frank being the one to hurt him would have changed so many things ...and that was only the case because fucking Dinah brought him back. Curtis withholding that from Billy was likely meant to be for Billy’s own good - so I guess I sort of applaud him for that, but that’s about all the praise I can give, because as soon as Billy found out, even though Curtis was the only one that had firsthand knowledge (Madani did too, but she would have lied through her  teeth if it meant Frank going after Billy again) of Billy’s actual memory loss - he was still OK with Frank continuing this revenge plan. 

It just blows my mind. Thanks for reading through this. There’s so much more I could say, but it’s just me repeating things in a circle. 

[sandalaris]

Saturday Sleepover! Any headcanons about Scott Fuller post season 3 and/or the Peacekeepers in FDTD?

I have a few! Not sure they’re all that interesting, but here it goes:

Peacekeepers are a little faster, little stronger, heal a little quicker that traditional humans, and are immune to culebra venom. There's a drive too, an instinct that pushes them to sniff out and hunt down trouble. Its why Freddie joined the Rangers, that itch under his skin he couldn't shake needing an outlet, and why he couldn't leave the culebra world behind when he learned of it. Its very much an unshakable calling.

The nearly-prophetic dreams (because Freddie’s dreams weren’t so much as showing the future as they were showing the present) and memory sharing are not universal though. Different bloodlines have different strengths, and individual Peacekeepers have their own proficiency with said strengths. Some can see through culebra glamour, others can walk into a room and get a feel for what happened, and even others still always know exactly who is a culebra and who isn’t on an instinctual level.

The fact that Freddie managed to find his way into Malvado's territory and then into the Twister was a surprise and gained him a certain level of fame amongst the Lords. There used to be a lot more bloodlines, but its a dangerous sort of calling and Malvado and Oculto both attempted a culling of them a couple centuries back. They didn’t like someone who doesn’t answer to them having any sort of power over their people. Most of the other Lords weren’t happy about it, there’s a basic hands-off rule when it comes to Peacekeepers as they consider them to be one of nature’s way of keeping balance, but they have no say what another Lord does in their own territory and couldn't do anything about it except allow the Peacekeepers safe travels through their own territories. The surviving families went south, which is one of the reasons all the shit keeps going down within the same basic area in the show. It’s also why Freddie went unnoticed for so long, his ancestors lost track of that branch of the family during the culling and assumed they died out.

The fact that its a gene means that Peacekeepers usually come in families over the Lone Ranger thing Freddie’s got going on. Safer to work as a group and it helps cut down on dangerous rogues. (They’re called Peacekeepers, but sometimes one of their own forget that and decide that they’re closer to hunters than protectors.) The gene itself only shows up a little less than half the time, but there’s plenty of work to go around for those who don’t have it and they always have those that decide the life isn’t for them.

Billie has the Peacekeeper gene and will be following in her papa’s footsteps.

Scott Fuller:

I don’t think Scott was ever actually planning on hurting his lacrosse team in season one. I think he fantasized about it, taking his pain and anger over his mother’s death, his father’s drinking, Kate’s distance, and being bullied and channeled it into a revenge fantasy that helped him feel better. It was an outlet, probably an unhealthy one (idk, I’m not a psychologist, and sometimes fantasies are healthy outlets), but when it came right down to it, Scott wanted to be accepted by his teammates more than he wanted to hurt them.

He brought his dad’s gun (because it’s Texas and every adult has at least one) with him on vacation because he felt his dad was slipping and that he was going to have to protect the family in case anything bad happened. (I know the show implied he had it because of his lacrosse team, but really? I’m supposed to buy that Scott brought a gun with him on vacation because he wanted to use it on his teammates who are all still back home?) By the time he sees them again in season two, he’s suffered in slavery for three months, was rejected by his family, and has his thoughts poisoned by Carlos. He no longer cared as much (because he still cared a little) about his teammates thinking he’s cool, which lead him to actually killing them.

I’m convinced Scott let Jessica see him on purpose, knowing she’d message Kate and hoping it’d bring her back home. His motivation is complicated, hurt, anger, love, worry, loneliness, all playing their role in why he went seeking Kate out. I also don’t buy Kate’s theory that it was kind of initiation for him to kill Jessica, for starters only Carlos knows what he’s up to and its not going to win him any brownie points with that guy, and Scott straight up said she was just practice. He was hungry, starved by the looks of him in the show, and Jessica was there, a perfect way for him to slate his hunger and for him to learn how to control a feeding so he can turn Kate. (I also think Carlos’ motivations for sending Scott home are tied more to his promise to free Brasa and Amaru. He’s been inside Scott’s head, knows how much he loves his sister, and he needs Kate, or someone like her, as a vessel for Amaru. He assumed Scott would bring Kate back with him and then he didn’t and refused to give more than “I don’t like the ocean.” But all that is more Carlos-Scott-Kate-Amaru headcanons)

After season three, Scott goes back on the road. He finds another band and starts up playing again. He’s always loved music, and while he knows they’ll never be able to go national, he can handle the local fame. Kate shows up to his shows, dragging a reluctant Seth and Richie behind her sometimes, and its not their kind of music, any of them, they keep showing up and he’s just as happy to see them each time.

It was Richie’s idea to have Kate declared dead after season two. It wasn’t easy, you need a body for starters but Richie knows how to do such things. But Scott gave the green light after realizing its the best way to handle all the loose ends in Bethel. A simple accident in Mexico the wiped out the whole Fuller family in one swoop. They use Freddie to smooth over the paperwork and channel the money and sentimental items Scott wanted to keep back to him. He hates that they lost the necklace though, he would have liked to have kept that. (Because the necklace Kate wears at the end of season three is different than the one she has on in seasons 1 and 2 and I don’t see her replacing it unless it was well and truly gone.)

I also think Scott has some natural leadership abilities. He leads his band for six months and manages to set up a sustainable lifestyle (not a bad feat for a kid who’s maybe sixteen by then and has no outside guidance or support), and while he can follow someone else’s orders, he’s more likely to cut from the plan if it means protecting him and his. Its one of the reasons he’s a little more willing to side with Seth and Richie than Burt on the plan to stop Amaru. His priority is Kate and the Geckos are the only other ones he sees as being on the same wavelength as him in that.

He’s got a bit of fame for being one of the ones to survive both the Twister and Amaru, and whatever event follows after. Especially since he doesn’t have a prophesy or a divine reputation or some kind of strong soul to bring him into the center of these things. He’s just a culebra, and a young one at that, and yet he’s in the thick of these moments and he walks away each time. It’s a different sort of notoriety than the others have, and he doesn’t realize he has it for a long time, but its there.

Its hard, the first time Scott has to tell people Kate’s his aunt instead of his sister. (He can’t say she’s his mom, feels too disrespectful of the woman they both still love and miss.) But they refuse to break the ties of family. Her kids still call him Uncle Scott though, and the kids after that the same. It eventually catches on, becoming like Uncle Eddie’s name, where people in-the-know just call him that.

[alextriestowritestuff]

Elite S3 reactions (Episode by episode/overall thoughts +SPOILERSSSS)

So I know I post writing stuff but I have *EMOTIONS* about this show and no one to share them with so please ignore this post, if you don’t watch the show/don’t care. Includes spoilers so you’ve been warned.

Ok, I’m going to go episode by episode then do my overall feelings. I’d love to know anyone’s thoughts about the show so feel free to reblog! I just watched the show in 10 hours straight but alot goes on so I might not be able to remember every single conversation in a episode. Multiple characters have a lot going on at once. For reference, I don’t speak Spanish-I watch the show with English subtitles. 

-3x1: Carla

-Pretty solid start, we pick up a couple weeks after we left off. I felt so DUCKING bad for Carla the entire season and I understood why she lied in court about accusing Polo. Malick is introduced-am I the only who doesn’t like people who are persistent in asking other people out? Like my no is a no. Don’t annoy me, this is the kind shit people pull and pressure others into a relationship. It’s not endearing to me. So I automatically didn’t like him. 

-Lu gets kicked out but can someone tell me where she lives throughout the season? I figured she lived with her mom after her dad kicked her out but at the last episode, in the airport, she says both her parents have disowned her? Where has been living? Maybe she saved up money unlike Valerio idk. 

-3x2: Samuel and Guzman

-Samu is trying to get Carla back. I didn’t dislike them as a couple last season but I knew they were using each other, so I didn’t allow myself to get too close to them. But now I ship them. I wanted them together this season. Yeray is introduced-um, I still think he’s irrelevant. I did think for a moment that he was going to hold his money over Carla’s head so she’d stay with him but he didn’t even think for one second that was why Carla was trying to get with him (because her asshole dad pimped her out ugh) . He was only helpful when it came to the contract at the end.

-Deadass, I was going to exit out if Valerio had slept with Rebe’s mom. I thought that entire scene was pretty much sexual assault and it was creepy. He needs to go to rehab lmao.

-Polo trusting Guzman again was a dumb bitch move. So here’s how I feel about Polo. V unfortunately, I love him. He’s one of my fav characters. I know he’s a killer but Idk I think it’s the actor or something because he’s so pretty (the entire cast is beautiful) that I forgive everything he does?? Also I hated Marina by the end of S1 so he did me a favor. What I wanted from Polo was to embrace the fact that he was the villain. Like the times he threatened Lu by taking away the scholarship or (tried) to threaten Samu. Those scenes I was like hell fucking yes, no more wallowing. But noo this boy wanted forgiveness. Dude. You’re cute but you still killed someone, jesus. I would be so ashamed/guilty to be hanging out with the brother of the person I killed. He played himself there big time. The tweets were interesting way of revenge and ofc Caye used that to her advantage. She’s a leech but I thought she used the fact that she had the murder weapon (as leverage for Polo to stay with her) waaay more. 

3x3: Cayetana and Valerio

-Strange couple but eh, better than incest. So in this episode, Samu makes a deal with the worst detective ever (every season, she fails to solve a case lmao) and I don’t blame him. He’d do anything to get Nano back, it’s why he tried to get Polo arrested for an entire season. It’s shitty that he did that to Rebe but I understand why. Before this season, I thought Rebe was irrelevant because she wasn’t really fleshed out but after this season, I grew to like her a lot. It hurt watching her and Samu get close because everytime she said something like ‘you’re the only good thing in my life’ I was like girl, he’s the reason why you’ve lost everything ugh. It was uncomfy and sad to watch. 

-Ander and Omar. I liked them-didn’t like what Ander did last season but he did confess and was forgiven. So Omar’s whole cheating thing came out of left field and it wasn’t! Even! Properly! Confessed! to! Ander!!!! Oof. Ander SUFFERED this season. But I’m glad the writers chose cancer over HIV because there’s so much stigma attached to that disease and the LGBT community and I’m tired of that narrative. 

3x4: Lu

-I’ve always respected the hell out of Lu. Yes, she’s been a bitch for the past 2 seasons but she was always upfront about her actions. She didn’t like you, she let you know. This was her shining season and I loved her Valentine reversal. She looked hot, she really looked out for Nadia/Ander this episode (and the entire season). She could’ve revealed the cheating but she didn’t. I feel like S1 Lu would’ve so she’s come full circle. She said NO to Guzman which was everything. Oh speaking of which, I actually like Guzman. He’s really developed as a character in terms of temper. I like that he wanted to move on from hating Polo. But when he’s with Nadia, he irritates me. 

-I don’t have Muslim parents but I have Muslim cousins. My parents are immigrants. They’re not extreme like Nadia’s but like I feel Guzman goes out of his way to make Nadia’s home life worse. He’s knows her parents are conservative but he’s strides in the store and tells them about how their daughter can’t study. Should Nadia had said something? Yes but how could she? She has responsibilities to her parents. Her 2 other siblings have been kicked out. Nadia claims that her religion is important to her but Guzman repeatedly disrespects it. I couldn’t be with someone like that. It wasn’t cute that he offered to work so Nadia could study-which we saw him do ONCE. It’s overbearing. Also Nadia just forgives him so easily, it’s like dude, do you not care? So I like Guzman-he’s actually a good friend to Ander and formerly, Polo but my god, he’s so disrespectful when it comes to Nadia.

-Also I liked the threesome, not as good as Christian/Polo/Carla but not bad.

3x5: Ander

-Best episode this season, hands down. I loved the opening song and sequence. The scene where Polo’s parents catch him with Valerio and Caye really got my gears thinking-I was like if I were a parent (don’t want kids but ya know, if I did), how would I react to that? I’d like to think that I’d be very accepting of my kid (given they’re not hurting themselves or others) in terms of sexuality, religion, etc. But I was like hmmm, being polyamorous?? Not one I would be prepared for. But if the kid is happy, I guess. That was random but those were my thoughts. 

-Rebe finding out it was Samu who sold them out hurt like a bitch. BUT MY GOD THE BLACKLIGHT REVEAL!! Ugh the best. I had to pause, I was so shook. And Malick and Omar reveal to Nadia. Jesus. I loved her reaction but it was immediately undermined by the next episode when she forgives her brother. Like I get it, they’re siblings. But she should’ve held it against him longer. Omar got 0 consequences for cheating this season-not from Ander or Nadia. Tf.

3x6: Rebeca

-Carla is on drugs. Yikes. Again, her dad was pimping her all season so I get it girl. Also anyone else think the adults are stupid in the show?? All of their parents are business people but one bad financial move, they’re on their asses and almost bankrupt? Happened with Guzman’s dad and now Carla’s. Do they not invest in other things? Idk have a savings account?

-Also Samu and Guzman being friends. Top tier content. Chef’s kiss. Full circle and character development to the max. Ngl I felt a little bit of homoerotic tones there?? Just me?? I would ship them over any other couple if they got to together for just one night. 

-Nadia sharing the scholarship with Lu. Ugh. Everything. Loved that.

-Ander lying to Omar about having an affair. Ew. I know he was trying to push Omar away but like he was the one cheating? So either call him out on that or just break up with no reason. Don’t make yourself look bad dude. Ugh but the both of them sobbing at the end of their breakup...my heart shattered. That was GREAT acting. 

-Polo saving Carla. We all liked that. 

3x7: Nadia and Omar

-FUCK Ander’s mom for expelling them. I went to private school-there’s rules in place for parents who have money so they don’t manipulate the administration. Polo’s moms needed to let their son fight his own battles. Also Ander’s mom calling Guzman to come over to talk to Ander was really strange. She just expelled him. I know he’s Ander’s best friend but idk, she just expelled him. And they don’t even talk about it at Ander’s house. Again, this is the Guzman I like-the loyal/good friend. Loved the convo between him and Ander. 

-I liked Carla’s honesty to Yeryay and that they could possibly be friends. I always knew he idealized her for standing up for him on social media so I’m glad they acknowledged that. 

-Also Lu’s comment to Nadia that she looks like a pistachio was everything. And her ‘People are watching’ line in the previous episode is great too. 

-KEVIN FUCKING MCHALE made a cameo. Hell yes. And ofc, great speech by Nadia and Lu. Polito’s last conversations really did a lot for me to symphatize with his character (He didn’t have to do much because I still liked him despite his murdering). He got his moms to face the fact that they can’t throw money at every problem and that he is a killer. This scene and the beginning scenes of the next episode is what made me at peace with his character. I knew he was going to die but like this is what he needed for some sort of redemption. 

3x8: Polo

-Not the best ending for such a good season. But the first 15 minutes which are the convos and events that led up to Polo’s death was good. I never suspected Lu for a second, I really thought Valerio (Had some decent motive-more than Nadia, less obvious people like Samu and Guzman) had done it. But when I rewatched the trailer, you see that the writers told us it was her all along. Her line about the ELITE gang being family and that she’d protect them was a clue. She had the least interaction with Polo himself throughout the season so I never had time to even suspect her. Really brilliant. 

-Them touching the murder weapon is powerful. This was the only way to end things. I figured by episode 6ish that everyone was working together based on their answers in the flashforwards. And I half laughed because no sane police force would allow the witness/potential suspects to hang out together before interrogation. At least not without police watching them. 

-I do think it’s odd that Samu asked Rebe to ask her mom to get rid of Polo because he literally betrayed her and she talks to him (although mad) despite that. OKayyy. I really thought we were going to get the Samu and Carla get-together but guess not. I feel cheated by that because they clearly wanted each other all along. 

-The endings weren’t the best. I do appreciate that Omar made the right call in the end and I’m glad Ander is in remission. Oof my gripe though was with Nadia and Omar’s parents. So Lu goes to the airport and admits hey my parents disowned me and they’re like of course, we’ll be your family. AND I WAS LIKE ‘WHAT ABOUT OMAR??’ Y’all were so willing to kick him out and they never really made amends. So like I get that Omar’s dad is trying by acknowledge that Ander is Omar’s boyfriend but I mean during Omar’s mom’s dinner, he had no right asking him about his studies. He didn’t move out. Y’all kicked him out. How do you think he’s doing, trying to find a place to sleep? Jesus. Also the mom isn’t all good. Again, if I were a mom, I don’t understand how I could live without knowing if my kid is okay since they’re not living with me. My mom is a single mom-I know there’s no man in the world, not my dad, no one that she would chose me over. If my husband kicked my kids out, no questions, the husband is going to the curb or I’m going with my kids. Idgaf. The mom should’ve stood up. It just made me so angry that they were like poor Lu, no family but they mistreated their own child. 

OKAY so overall thoughts...I thought this was a really good season. I’d say 1st was the best, then this one, and then second (Ngl I don’t remember the 2nd one too much okay). I liked that it was more angsty and more character focused then the whodunnit? part that we’re used to. The entire cast has such strong acting and I’m going to miss whoever isn’t returning for S4. I’m going to miss Polo as well goddamn. 

Best moments of the season: Lu saying/doing ANYTHING-I have feelings, bitch. Her friendship with Nadia and other characters. Carla standing up to her pimp dad. Ander being in remission (his acting was great too). All of episode 5. Kevin McHale cameo. 

Worst moments: Polo asking Guzman if he would ever be forgiven?? And I know he did end up forgiving him but like bro, just because I don’t want to harbor hate for the rest of my life, doesn’t mean I forgive you for killing my sister whatttt. Omar never confessing to Ander about the cheating. Like no consequences and his character was just demolished this season. Still don’t know where Lu lived this entire season lmao. Anything Ander’s mom did to the students ugh.

Overall, I liked this season. It felt more mature for a high school TV show. I’m not super invested into any particular ship so I don’t feel cheated like most people. It takes me a while to get into ships but once I do, I get really invested. The only ship I was really disappointed in not seeing was Carmuel because Carla went through alot this season and Samu clearly wanted to be with her. And that’s all I had to say lmao.

[ana-annotated]

128 THINGS I LOVED ABOUT CROOKED KINGDOM (WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!!) Part 1

1. It has WYLAN’S POV

2. Jesper is one of his biggest reasons for committing to being a member of the Dregs and he knows it

3. Kaz breaks into the house of a wealthy and probably dangerous lawyer in the middle of the night but first things first, he’s gotta give the guard dogs belly rubs before robbing their owner.

4. Nina is still facing the consequences of ingesting parem and yet here she is undercover, charming this lawyer out of his whistle.

5. Wylan’s dark side just gets darker

6. Kaz having a rare soft moment and telling Wylan where his mother is buried cause he knows what it’s like to lose someone suddenly and not get to say goodbye

7. Matthias trying to understand Kaz’s sleight of hand and still failing to see how he does it

8. Matthias wishing Wylan or Kuwei would wear a hat so he could tell them apart

9. Wylan blushing at Jesper’s touch

10. Wylan Van Sunshine

11. Leave my grandmother out of this

12. Jesper’s dad is so innocent and precious and must be protected at all costs

13. Are you all students? Of a sort

14. Matthias has a little sister

15. Matthias comforting Alys cause she reminds him of his mother when she was pregnant

16. Nina whining over Matthias sacrificing her biscuits to keep Alys quiet

17. Matthias jealous of Jesper making Nina smile

18. Inej laughing in Van Eck’s face for thinking he outwitted Kaz

19. Nina expecting Matthias to rub her feet from now on whenever she wants him to

20. Matthias longing for a domestic life with Nina

21. Nina longing for the comfort of family relationships like the one Jesper has with his father

22. Jesper as a kid

23. Jesper’s mom was the sweetest most badass person ever and taught him everything he knows at such a young age

24. The WYLAN’S MOM CURVEBALL WHO THE HECK DOES THAT TO A PERSON MY POOR BABY HOW DARE JAN DO THAT TO HIM AND HER?!

25. Wylan’s motivation to get revenge

26. Kaz giving Wylan a pep talk about strength when facing a weakness

27. Matthias’s relationship with his wolf

28. Matthias pretending to be a happy go lucky Fjerdan

29. Nina having to explain every single dirty joke to him and convince him they’re not insults

30. Nina and Matthias’s first kiss being straight out of a Disney movie 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

31. Everyone points guns at each other in Ketterdam it’s basically a handshake

32. Matthias going into full military general mode and leads a two-man Grisha army in a victorious mini war against the Dime Lions

33. Kaz literally CRASHING Van Eck’s dinner party

34. Dunyasha: “I am Dunyasha, a white human blade, a ruthless assassin princess, and my sole purpose is destroying you. Prepare to feel my ninja stars.”

Inej: “New phone who dis?”

35. Colm Fahey adopting his teen gang member son’s five gang member friends

36. Nina finally getting her waffles

37. Only to realize Matthias Helvar is possible better than waffles (just barely, but still)

38. Matthias believing waffles is Nina’s one true love instead of him

39. What’s new? Nm, Nina can raise the dead to do her bidding, Inej plummeted 20 stories and nearly died at the ninja stars of some assassin chick with a huge ego, and there’s a huge gaping hole in Jan Van Eck’s dining room ceiling. Hbu? Who wants waffles?

40. They’re all crazy but Wylan realizes there’s nobody he’d rather have by his side cause the Dregs are HIS CREW

41. Kaz Ankle Breaker Brekker sliding past a pair of Van Eck’s guards and knocking them off their feet at once with his cane

42. The Crows trying to outdo each other with the highest rewards offered for their execution or capture.

43. Kaz winning that contest in a landslide

44. Nina flipping off their Wanted posters

45. Nina changing out of her Fjerdan costume with Matthias’s “help.”

46. Jesper and Kuwei’s haunting the Dime Lions

47. Little Inej stopping hearts and scaring her family to death on the high wire but wanting to keep going back on no matter what

48. Inej only falling when a net is underneath her

49. Wylan’s first impression of Jesper

50. Jesper’s flair for neon fashion

51. “Mother, father pay the rent! I can’t my dear the money’s spent!”

52. “On a dare I ate a literal trough full of waffles doused in apple syrup and almost went back for seconds.”

53. Kaz treating Jesper like a brother, even yelling at him and calling him Jordie because he’s so protective of Jesper and wants to keep him from making a mistake too big because of his gambling addiction. Seeing Jesper get carried away with his best worries him and he just wants him to be smart and not make the same costly mistakes Jordie did.

54. Kaz and Jesper arguing like brothers and then proceeding to fight like brothers while Inej, Nina, and Matthias sit around bored, waiting for them to snap out of it cause they’re definitely not going to kill each other with their bare hands, and there are bigger things to worry about.

55. Jesper’s dad breaking up the fight with a single threat

56. Jesper Llewelyn Fahey

57. I KISSED THE WRONG BOY

58. Inej and Jesper’s friendship

59. Matthias being very okay with PDA with Nina

60. Colm’s presence making the Dregs feel like kids worn out from a rowdy birthday party

61. Kuwei being a straight up savage and lying about his language barrier

62. KANEJ WOUND BANDAGING SCENE DESTROYED ME EVERYTHING ABOUT IT I HAVE NO COMPLAINTS NOR DID I EXPECT HIM TO EVEN GET HALF AS CLOSE TO HER AS HE DID

63. Kaz trying so so hard to push away all memories of his trauma to be in the moment and touch Inej and just show her how much she means to him

64. She followed him anyway

65. Kaz reclaiming his rightfully EARNED Dregs throne

66. Inej watching him kick out Haskell and kick traitor Dregs ass with pride

67. “I suggest a cane”

68. “What’s wrong with him?”

“Same thing that’s always wrong with him, he’s Kaz Brekker.”

66. Nina constantly trying to get Kaz to warm up a little, whether by joining a group hug or letting someone help bandage him up post-fight for his life

67. Colm willing to do anything to help the gang without question

68. Wylan’s cute anger at Jesper for mistaking Kuwei for him (let’s be real tho he was pretty mad at himself too for not being more upfront with his feelings since he had no Tailor to fix him)

69. Wylan getting mad at Nina for failing to mention she found a refugee Tailor that could change him back

70. Colm feeding into Nina’s waffle/food in general addiction

71. The politics in the story are so intricate and it just continues to be built upon in Crooked Kingdom. It’s detailed enough that honestly, Leigh could probably write a whole Grishaverse history textbook. It’s pretty interesting to read from everything we get from the Dregs discussing their home nations, their histories, traditions, and relations with other countries. Leigh put in so much effort to build not just an authentic country in Kerch, but an entire alternate world. Really fun to read about.

72. Wylan’s offense for Jesper not being able to tell him and Kuwei apart in that moment

73. Jesper stealing a portrait Wylan’s mother painted of him to help them reconnect once Wylan’s features are returned

74. “I told you, I like your stupid face.”

75. Jesper helping Genya tailor Wylan’s “stupid” face because he remembers it quite well

76. Jesper nearly losing it when he returns to find the boy he had fallen for at first sight has returned to his original appearance

77. JESPER KISSING THE RIGHT BOY

78. “I really hope we don’t die”

79. Colm giving an award worthy performance in front of Van Eck to rope him and the Council into falling for Kuwei’s fake indenture auction

80. Nina’s underlining threat to Van Eck for messing with Kaz, only a fool would try to scheme against Brekker

81. Colm telling Wylan that he’d be good for Jesper ☺️

82. Wylan taking an actual beating from other Dregs to make Jan Van Eck believe the Dime Lions were going to kill his son for him

83. Wylan’s on point acting making everybody in the chapel believe his father was a conniving scumbag all along

84. THE FACT THAT JESPER CAN ACTUALLY USE HIS POWERS TO AIM HIS BULLETS

85. Kaz lying like nobody’s business to the Merchant Council and everyone bidding on Kuwei to throw Van Eck under the bus

86. Kaz freaking BLOWING UP THE MENAGERIE IF THAT’S NOT A DECLARATION OF HIS LOVE TO INEJ IDK WHAT IS

87. Kaz and Inej hand holding

88. Nina pretending to be pregnant

89. Matthias believing Kaz could fake a birth

90. Genya teaming up with Kaz and Nina to fake Kuwei’s death

91. I haven’t even read the Shadow and Bone trilogy yet but I love King Nikolai and his alter ego and I can’t wait to read more of him in the series and in King of Scars!!!!!

[poipoi1912]

Barba Theories Part 2

(i.e. a looooooong rundown of your theories, thank you for sending them <33333)

To recap, here is the original teaser/spoiler, and here are my original theories/Part 1:

professional misconduct for political gain

a straight-up political/work scandal 

an inappropriate personal relationship

financial misconduct 

dick pics on his iPhone 

membership to the Pirate Booty Treasure Chest  

Here are some of the responses I got (some via replies, some via reblogs, and some via asks):

Personal Secret

First of all, many of you agreed it’ll be the Pirate Booty thing, which, d’oh. But is that really a secret?

Secondly, the tags used by @lambnoire speak to me:

#barba's secret is giving me anxiety tho #idk what im going to do if they compromise his morality as a character

Thirdly, most of you feel it will be a personal secret. Which might be wishful thinking, because we all thirst for more details about Barba’s personal life:

sunshine-and-the-catsuit answered: I’m kinda hoping for the relationship thing, personally. Maybe he kept emails that he shouldn’t have…or something like that. Or hid information he shouldn’t have..to help a friend.

I feel this might be accurate. Barba bending the rules (more on that below) for a lover or a friend (say, Alex Munoz or Eddie etc), out of loyalty. That would compromise him somewhat, but his motives would still be relatively pure. Depending on the rule/law he broke, of course.

revolutionarynerd answered: A sexual secret. Even in NYC a bisexual ADA for instance would raise eyebrows. My money is on Barba’s personal private life getting spread all over the news/internets in the course of a hacking operation targeting someone higher up.

@leaper182​ said: That's a really good point. Hmm. I wonder if maybe Rafael had an affair with a politician who's married or something. I can't see Rafael himself being in the closet -- he comes across more as someone who doesn't advertise that he's bisexual, but he wouldn't deny it if he were asked point-blank about it either. But maybe if he made the mistake of having an affair with a married man or something, and it's this big ~shocker~ because this guy was all about straight marriage or something...? Hmmm. :\            

an anon who likes to toy with my emotions said: Barba theories/plot bunnies; 1. It's a revenge porn ep and when the suspect('s allies) find out Barba is prosecuting they threaten to leak sexts/nudes/dating profiles b/c they do not know who they are fucking with. Barba goes ahead, out for blood & maybe even using it to score some points in court. But then after sentencing we see his private self; humiliated, confidence wilting. Not helped by the media hi-lighting his humiliation rather than his victory.

Re; Barba being in the closet: there are valid arguments on both sides. If Barba is not straight (just for speculation purposes, of course, because we’ve never seen him with a romantic partner) it’s possible he would be out and proud, because he seems like he doesn’t give a fuck about what people think of him. But it’s also possible he’d be in a glass closet, just for the sake of his job (and/or his future aspirations. I touched on this in my fic Running, btw, which involves Barba running for the DA position). So he may, in fact, want his “secret” to stay a secret.

I must say, the idea of forcibly outing Barba is interesting, because it would allow for an intense but not necessarily preachy Very Special Episode, plus we might get some awesome Raul acting in the process, but would the current writers care enough to do that well?

The idea of a forbidden affair (with a woman or a man who’s married or otherwise problematic) seems a little more likely. Especially if it’s someone else at the DA’s office, and they both get exposed. Maybe Barba would choose to fall on his sword to protect his partner? This could give us some juicy moments for sure.

At any rate, I’d love to see Barba with a crack in his armor. Either because he feels exposed, or because he’s willing to be exposed to protect someone he cares about.

Professional Secret

its-bucky-bitches said: Hi just looking at you questions & answers about what the potential threat to Barba could be & I know a lot of people are saying it's a hack like they took something from his life & released it but what if he's being set up? Framed in some way? // Like what if the "secret" is something incriminating the hackers planted into Barbas computer and that the team find & then in the end use Barba to lure them out of hiding to capture/kill them?             

I love this. It might not necessarily fit with the concept of a “secret” (i.e. something Barba has been hiding) but I LOVE the idea of a frame-up. Barba would be indignant, and the squad would be supportive, they’d reassure him they don’t believe the hackers and they’ll do anything in their power to restore his reputation. That would give us a much needed glance into the SVU team dynamics, and it would show us just how much Liv and the squad value Barba. So it definitely won’t happen.

OH HELL NO Secret

an anon who likes to toy with my emotions said: (I'm paranoid it might be something like this) Barba commited/is accused of commiting a sex crime & evidence points to him doing so. If he did, he defends himself, saying he knows now it was wrong, it was long time ago, he's a different person, he's grown since then - but it alienates him from the SVU squad when they find out. The hacked info is used to discredit him and his work with SVU, & by extension squad themselves.            

NOPE.

I do like the idea of a secret which would compromise his work/the convictions he’s managed to get in his career, BUT NOPE. Like, you might be on the right track re; a secret which would paint him, the DA’s office and the squad in a bad light, and that’s the reason they all need to solve the case, if not make sure the secret stays hidden, but HELL NO.

More Hell No Secrets

an anon who likes to toy with my emotions A LOT said: Turns out he may have actually killed his Dad. 4. Barba is in fact innocent (excluding withholding of evidence) and it's information that somehow threatens his mother. Or else, shows him burying something harmful to his mother. 5. The hacking reveals something with his health - I'd bet on psychiatric, maaaybe rehab of some kind.       

On another show, I might appreciate topics like these being explored delicately. On SVU, nah. I would love a reference to Barba’s mother/family, but the fact the DA’s office is hacked, and that’s how Barba’s secret is revealed (via his work email, basically) probably means it would involve either Barba’s work or his personal life (because he may have foolishly used a work account for something non-work-related). 

Actual Secret

@webbgirl34​ has what is probably the most likely theory, though:

With the way this season has gone, I’d be willing to lay money it ends up being something to do with Liv. Like him covering up for something for her or him doing something on the gray side to help her out.

I can just see that happening. Barba will reach out to Liv, not to reveal a personal secret which might give us some insight into his character (God forbid!), but to tell her something she already knows. Like, “Hey, Liv, remember that time I helped you with (X)? It’s back to bite us in the ass. We need to fix this, or both we could both lose our jobs.”

Imagine if Barba’s secret involves, like, Johnny D (remember, lol?) i.e. Noah’s paternity, i.e. the time Barba was perfectly willing to bend the rules to help Olivia? Or, if the writers are unwilling to rewatch their own show and revisit actual past events, what if they come up with another instance of him possibly even breaking the law, just to help Liv?

Last season, we did see a Barba who followed the rules and ratted on Liv/Tucker, but arguably that was because he was mad/jealous. Or, because he really was that stringent about the law (lol). Maybe we’ll go back to rule-bending Barba? In a ret-conned way (since we won’t actually witness said rule-bending)? We’ll hear about a made up past incident, a plot contrivance, to better sel the “secret” angle?

Again, I can totally see this happening. I just hope it doesn’t. Even though it would likely be better than a potentially compromising, salacious and deeply personal secret.

Lastly, my own tags:

#omg now that i read the barba spoiler #i feel like it'll be totally anticlimactic #the da's office is hacked #so like barba's work email #watch as his secret is totally boring 

Fingers crossed it’s something which showcases Raul's talent.

[isaacathom]

ok remember that pokemon story i had. i think the idea of a spy group is cool but doesnt fit. i think i better idea is a more Security Guard feel, or even emergency services! since the motivation of the group, on the face of it, is that theyre helping make the region secure and keeping people safe. which puts them into conflict with the gym leaders, both as part of Rhia’s drive for personal revenge, and as the gym leaders are supposed to be the community leaders! which then goes into the few ideas i had about Gym Leaders slacking their duties or even outright failing their communities in times of hardship.

emergency services actually might be really good. so ambos, fireys, police. AND that actually gives the Doctor a reason to be there! he runs the ambulance division.

the issue with the fact that theyre the three separate ‘groups’ within the team is that they dont cleanly fit in with the three admins. the doctor clearly fits in as, yknow, the doctor. but then there was the big boss man and his profit driven right hand, as well as Rhia’s revenge ambitions and that young kid who idolizes the boss. which doesnt fit in with the three divisions. i wouldnt want to, yknow, portray the emergency services badly, like saying fireys are in it for the money and that the police are influenced by petty bias..... even if that might be somewhat apt......... hehe, oh dear. i wouldnt even dare make the firey link if dan andrews wasnt a fuck. but i imagine IN GENERAL that fireys arent profiteering cunts, lol.

and then the kid is just... idk. a first responder? not in the actual sense in that cops and fireys are typically the first at a scene regardless of what it is, but just a grunt. the first response. the roving. the ones who are out just in CASE something happens. and thats where he slots in. 

though, with Rhia and the police, the important thing is that Rhia isnt actually in charge. Rhia is simply ridiculously prominent and well respected amongst grunts (and with Doctor, who has basically adopted her as his daughter. the whole ‘Rhia Stanton’ thing. very funk). like in terms of battle screens, she WOULD still be an Admin, just for simplicity, but shes not actually in direct command of the entire police sector, unlike how Doctor is in charge of the medical division. and the profit hungry higher up in a broad hiher up, not specific. which means i might need some more admins? like one for the fireys, at the very least. which then throws the whole ‘differing ideals’ thing outta whack.

like. the group is there to protect people. this is done in three ways - helping people in the aftermath of disaster, improving general security, and improving legislation to make their operation more efficient (as a non-profit, theres a few legal hurdles). this is represented by three key individuals - the doctor, Rhia, and the money hungry higher up. bearing in mind the organisation as a whole is ACTUALLY trying to create a monopoly in the region by becoming the Big Cheese. the doc is the only one with wholly genuine philanthropic intent, with no bad ideas. rhia does genuinely want security and justice, but she also wants to pursue her personal justice by dismantling the gym leaders and elite 4, as revenge for them leaving her to die (especially fucking Elliot, who shes going to personally destroy). this, on the public face, is done because the gym organisation has been failing to adequately protect the people. the power lady wants, well, yknow, power n shit. i honestly cant remember much of the specifics on her. i dont think she had any. im gonna have the read up.

and then the boss is the Big Man and hes in it to rule the region as a dictator and create his Utopia, where everything is under his thumb. this does include security and health and shit, hence his hiring of Doctor (who im positive had a name, fuck) and the whole emergency services thing.

i mean like. it works? having no rep for the fireys is a little weird, though. unless you bundle their responsibilities into either the medical or the security, which IS totally possible. both make sense, too. id have to think more on that. theyd have different designs and itd slightly change the design of the doc and especially of Rhia (though rhias outfit design needs to be changed regardless since the undercover motif isnt really here anymore since the spies are out). but that could work. so rhia champions the security, doc champions medical, one of these groups (or maybe both in tandem) handle disaster relief, and they are overseen by the CEO and the big boss man. actually, right, yea, the power hungry lady was the CEO of the public facing company, while the Boss was in command of their more nefarious division. if the spy motifs out it might make more sense to keep him in, though i also like the idea of him being the ‘bogeyman’, the big bad that the public company positions itself against and accuses the gym leaders of failing to stop. still works, i think.

point is, Fuck. emergency services is a nice angle, makes the organisation generally sympathetic and likeable as many would be in it for philanthropic reasons. the only assholes are CEO and Boss. Rhia being an asshole would be up for personal question because shes torn. Small Fry is sort of an asshole but in a ‘im clearly emulating someone i admire’ way, and not out of any genuine maliciousness on his part. right, and hes the other big bad of the shadow company. that, or hes positioned as the big bad of the shadow company, and the Boss is straight up shadows on both. yea. yeaaa.