#its a bit of a downer but i am posting a more hopeful counterpart with this to hopefully make up for it lol

[good-beanswrites]

I think Fuuta should cry. It's good for the soul.

I love how getting asks from you is like

I don't quite know if this was good for his soul, but it certainly was for mine 😅 A bit of a hurt-no-comfort piece, sorry, but I enjoyed a character study of his thoughts immediately after his crime. He has a very particular mix of guilt and denial, and I tried to picture how that may play out in this moment...

Fuuta was sure his life was over the very same moment that he discovered hers was.

His heart seemed to stop entirely when he read her name on the dim little screen. His breathing became shallow and sporadic. His body went cold. Though under the blanket, his arms shivered uncontrollably. The rest of him was just as paralyzed. 

It was more than just the physical things. This life that he’d led to this point, it was over. He’d never be able to move on from this. Would he ever manage to sleep another night? All his friends knew; they wouldn’t be his friends any longer. He was surprised no one had messaged him yet. His father could forget any dreams of his son following in his footsteps. Any normal job was out of the question, now. The minute anyone found out, they’d treat him differently. They’d treat him like a – he could hardly even think the word “killer.”

A sob broke through his gritted teeth. 

That’s what he’d be classified as, wouldn’t he? That girl was dead because of him. 

She was dead. Because of him. 

Fuuta was still wrapping his mind around reality. A whole person, a whole life, a whole future, gone because of him. 

His breath came out wheezy, hiccups shaking his form. He curled himself as small as he could shrink, his hands tearing at his hair.

The girl’s face flashed in his mind. The only pictures he’d seen of her featured bright smiles. He used to find it infuriating – thinking it was all a part of her fake persona, her mockery of justice. Now, the thought of those happy pictures crushed him. She was just a kid. What kind of monster killed a kid?

Fuuta pressed his knuckles to his lips, smothering his cries. The dorms were loud enough tonight, but he couldn’t risk anyone hearing. A story like this could never get out. After all, what were the laws around this stuff? What if he went to prison? He was of age – which areas still used the death penalty? 

No.

He had to collect himself. He hadn’t done anything illegal. He was just overreacting, blubbering like an idiot. That was one thing his father was always right about, at least. Fuuta beat his fists against his head. There was no premeditation. No planning, no ill intent. He’d only just found out she died. That’s why none of his friends had messaged him yet. It wasn’t because of them. It was just some other crazy person online. 

His chest shuddered with an uneven breath. Even if there were no legal consequences, he’d need to get a grip and take some precautions. He ran his palms down his cheeks, wiping away the mess of tears. 

He’d clear out all traces of himself on the internet, delete all those posts that led back to him. He’d smash his phone, call it an accident. Change his number. He didn’t know what he’d do about his friends. He wanted to call them and tell them to delete everything as well. He wanted to scream viciously at them for convincing him to do all this. He wanted to beg them to say everything was going to be okay.

He shut off the phone, fumbling around with the touchscreen several times before he hit the right thing. He couldn’t call anyone. He was on his own now. And that was alright. Whatever happened to that girl, he… That girl…

He commanded himself to rise and begin. 

It proved unsuccessful. Fuuta remained frozen for another few minutes. The harder he willed himself to stop, the harder he cried. He pressed his palm over his mouth and nose, in an attempt to prevent any sound from escaping, and keep his emotions quiet for the first time in his life.

[aion-rsa]

Riverdale Creates Its Own Church Because Why Not?

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This Riverdale review contains spoilers.

Riverdale Season 5 Episode 16

“Being canonized has always been one of my life’s goals.”

And so it came to pass that Cheryl Blossom turned water into maple syrup.

Goddamn Riverdale is glorious trash.

In what is either very subtle marketing for The Eyes of Tammy Faye or just the best direction this show has taken since everyone was hopped up on Jingle Jangle, the Blossom family’s “Church of Jason” antics came into sharp focus this week. Although relegated to a B or C plot, this plotline — which works equally well as a satire on hip religions that popped up out of nowhere (see also: last week’s The Other Two) or as Cheryl’s latest brush with divine darkness.

The focal point of this episode was clearly supposed to be Archie getting justice for his fallen comrades, but how can one be expected to pay attention to military intrigue when a line like “for I am Cheryl Blossom, Queen of the Bees” is delivered by Madelaine Petsch without a hint of insincerity? Disjointed as this season is, there’s been a clear effort on the part of the writing to staff to give the show’s secondary characters more to do. (Due to Petsch’s constant scene-stealing it’s easy to forget that she was previously a supporting character before the series’ producers made the wise decision to become an ensemble piece instead of focusing primarily on Archie, Veronica, Betty and Jughead). As a result, Cheryl has shone brighter than ever.

While Penelope clearly sees the Church of Jason as another shady enterprise, for Cheryl it has become a, well, bona fide religious experience. Since breaking up with Toni she has become, in the immortal words of The Lemonheads, “a ship without a rudder.” The Church of Jason gives her a purpose, even if it is only to satisfy her carnivorous desire for validation. Although this has some unexpected side effects, namely that her false divinity unexpectedly gave rise to an actual miracle when she controlled the bees and use them to dispel Penelope from the Church. “Something inside me has shifted,” she tells Kevin afterwards, “something powerful.” More than just quasi-literally becoming a Queen Bee, Cheryl has undergone a true religious awakening and tapped into a power inside of herself. How will this manifest? And what ramifications will it have for her and all of Riverdale itself?

Cheryl has always been more of a persona than a character, reliably outrageous with hints of an inner depth that go undeveloped as the series’ tears through its storytelling. I’d like to think that whatever is happening here is going to correct that wrong and give Cheryl the ability to be fleshed out more. Seeing how self-aware Riverdale has been of late (i.e. Josie’s takedown of the entire gang last week), there is a renewed effort to strengthen sidelined characters. Let’s see how Cheryl benefits from this in the few remaining episodes of the season.

Speaking of sidelined characters, there is none more so than Casey Cott’s Kevin Keller. Five seasons in and Kevin can be boiled down to “loves musicals and cruising for anonymous sex,” which doesn’t exactly befit the character’s GLAAD-award comic book counterpart. The continual lack of depth for Kevin and the show’s reliance on stereotyping him remains an absolute downer. Where are his multitudes? At least by pairing him with Cheryl he isn’t out in Fox Forest all the time. Again though, he remains sidelined without any clear definition. I give the series credit for not following the cliched “Bury Your Gays” trope, but by continually mishandling Keller the argument could be made that his lack of dimensions are a fate worse than death. I’m hoping that the show finally figures out what to do with him, as Cott and Keller — who was Archie’s first openly gay character — deserve much better.

The Church of Jason’s actual goals are unclear, and the miracles on display here were pretty much sacrilegious. Now that something has shifted in Cheryl, expect her to transform the religion into something based on her past trauma (and her mother’s scheming) into something entirely different, and perhaps dark. For now though, I’m willing to go on faith that the Church of Jason, and Riverdale itself, has some entertaining miracles up its gloriously bonkers sleeve.

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Riverdale Rundown

Like last week’s excellent installment, this episode was directed by Robin Givens, who is rapidly becoming one of this series’ best helmers.

I for one would have loved to have seen Cheryl and Kevin’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat medley. Thanks Penelope.

A nice bit of meta humor appeared when Jason was referred to as “a man of few words” as we have yet to see the character utter even a pre-death flashback syllable.

K.J. Apa’s hair seems to be rebelling against the red hair dye more and more each week.

This episode’s main plot was about Archie’s attempts to bring General Taylor to justice, but it is so disconnected from the other storylines that it ultimately results in a major shrug. Even the show seems uninterested in this, with the climatic tribunal — which would have at least provided some A Few Good Men pastiching — happening off screen.

Before it was cancelled, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina‘s next season was supposed to be a massive Riverdale crossover involving witches. One can only wonder if Cheryl’s new abilities are somehow tied into this abandoned event.

We learn that Reggie and Hermosa had “a thing,” and one that Veronica seems both revolted (and perhaps a bit jealous?) of.

Hiram Lodge storing his palladium in model of So-Dale is very on brand.

The book Jughead initially passes off as his own before coming to his senses is “Rules of Distraction,” (an obvious riff on The Rules of Attraction) written by the very Riverdale-named Cora Carter.

Jughead’s agent is named Samm, and this is perhaps not so coincidental. One of the greatest-ever Archie artists was Samm Schwartz, who has best known for his work on the Jughead solo comic. By giving the character fluid movement and hilarious facial expressions, Schwartz’s gag-packed panels remain the most pleasing take on the character in Archie’s 80-year history.

Copter Cab, a rideshare company that takes one-percenters to exclusive events via helicopter is such a douchey idea that I’m generally shocked it doesn’t exist in real life.

Jughead gets one of the best lines of the week when he remarks to Betty that she “solved like eight mysteries in high school and were still valedictorian.”

What with Archie’s crusade for justice, Veronica generally kicking ass in her battle to detach from Chad and regain her She-Wolf of Wall Street Mojo, all the aforementioned magic of Cheryl and Kevin, and Jughead’s attempt to get his life back on track, Betty’s search for the Lonely Highway Trucker didn’t get much screentime until the end of the episode. By pairing with Tabitha Tate on the road, she has a new ally, and I can’t wait to see these two trying to solve crimes together.

Speaking of, the Lonely Highway Killer has to be TBK, right?

It’s interesting that the past two episodes have worked overtime to make Mr. Lodge seem small and foolish. I’m not quite sure where this is leading, but it’s satisfying to see him get some comeuppance at last.

Fake brands this week include the Boysenberry pager and The Wall Beat Journal.

Now that Jughead’s The Lost Weekend-ing seems to be headed towards the backburner, I’m excited for next week’s installment which promises the return of Mothmen. Finally.

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