#like not the latest episode but i'd be upset if i saw this before i saw 78

[ourskiesaboveus]

72 and Edgar :)

its name i hate to call it likes to say it's nothing / it lives and breathes and it insists that it insists that it is something

72: good day (chonny jash cover)

for this spotify ask game!

[simslegacy5083]

Today's (12/13/2024) Episode: Accessing The Damage

While Elyse and Isra were having their heart to heart, Luigi was helping Skye elevate xir ankle before checking xem in at the clinic. 

Returning to sit beside xem a short time later he saw that Skye appeared to be fitfully dozing. Luigi frowned, hating to see his child in pain. He'd hoped to gently try pressing for more information on the evening's events, but it appeared that would have to wait.

Left with nothing to do but stew with his worries Luigi decided to see if there was a wheelchair he could borrow. He couldn’t make his sleepy, injured kid any better, but at least now the boy wouldn't have to limp all the way to an exam room when the time came.

Once he'd secured his prize Luigi settled in to wait, reflecting as he did so that he was glad his "celebrity disguise" seemed to be working. The last thing Skye needed just then was the paparazzi shoving cameras in their face or fans demanding his time and attention.

Luigi had almost always been able to talk himself through even the worst situations. By contrast the smallest upset was likely to send Skye spiraling.

Glancing over he winced at the sight of Skye’s wrist. He suspected whatever was going on with that would definitely be something his boy would need help to deal with.

In a surprisingly short time, their name was being called. Luigi roused Skye, who murmured a sleepy "thanks dad" as he helped xem transfer from one chair to another. He offered his own "thank you" to the orderly when they grabbed the handles to push Skye back to the exam room. 

Things proceeded fairly quickly for a while after that, with Skye being wheeled over to X-Ray while Luigi occupied himself catching up on the latest e-sports and entertainment happenings.

When the doctor finally came in with the results of the scans Luigi was unsurprised to hear that Skye's wrist was broken or to watch the young sim break down in tears at the news. 

“This break is going to require surgery to set correctly.” the provider told them. “We can schedule that now and give Skye a soft cast to protect his arm until then. He’ll have something similar after the operation while the swelling goes down, then a standard hard cast while the bone mends.” 

"The good news is we found no fractures in his ankle. Skye, we’ll give you some instructions on how to care for your sprain as it heals, but as long as you take it easy, I don't foresee any issues there.”

Skye only shook xir head miserably when asked if xe had any questions. Luigi, who had more than his fair share of hospital experience, said "I assume we'll get paperwork outlining everything before we leave?"

"Yes, of course" the doctor nodded "for now just hang tight, the cast tech will be in shortly". 

Once they were alone again Luigi turned to his child and began the process of trying to help Skye work through xir big feelings. "So, I'm sure that was a lot to take in. For what it's worth just know your mom and I are here to support you and help you with whatever you need." 

Skye wiped xir eyes with xir good hand "I know." After a while xe surprised Luigi with “Dad, would you and mom still love me if I wasn’t a boy?"

Luigi took a second to answer. He and Noemi suspected Skye might be conflicted about xir gender, and he was going to do his best to say the right thing.

"Of course!” he wanted to be clear about THAT at least. “Your Grandpa Jack was quite the ancestry buff, and his stories about our family included several sims who ultimately decided the gender they were born with wasn’t the best “fit” for them.” He gave his…  son’s? … shoulder a squeeze.

“No one loved them any less for it. I'd be happy to share some of that history with you anytime.“ He smiled down at his teary-eyed kid.

Skye didn’t say anymore, but xe didn't start crying again either so Luigi hoped he'd done all right in his answer. 

Just then there was a knock on the door and a sim who was clearly the cast tech judging by the cart full of supplies she wheeled in entered "Hi, I’m Annie and I'll be putting on your cast today." At Skye’s worried look she added: "it shouldn’t hurt, so you let me know if you feel any discomfort, OK"?   

Skye nodded, picking a dark blue wrap and holding out xir arm so she could get started.

Skye’s course of treatment is based on my personal experience with a broken bone requiring surgery.

Skye breaking xir wrist is a random chance event from Healthcare Redux. I decided to go this route because the “cast” that is applied when a sim breaks a bone with the mod is just a recolor of the ace bandage wrap from Discover University and cannot be replaced in CAS.

I didn’t want to mess with the buff and this way I felt that wearing that “soft cast” for a  period of time would be realistic.

View The Full Story of My Not So Berry Challenge Here

[lizacstuff]

i'd love (if you'd like ofc) to hear your thoughts on episode 20 as a whole! i personally really really enjoyed it.. it had some very good moments not only between edser but between serkan and his dad and selin. and of course were serving that angsty, but flirty, UST that we all love! it felt like a weight was lifted off serkan and he just became even more open with her, if that makes sense? what he says to her about leaving in the latest fragman kinda shows that too.

Are you sure you want my full thoughts? Because I'm about to get long winded, like novel long winded, lol. To start off, on a superficial note, can I say that casually dressed, brooding Serkan was pretty hot? Hello, Sailor! Can we see you in pullovers and hoodies and T-shirts more often? But just happier? He was soooo sad in the opening scenes, and honestly, when you think about it, it's pretty dark that he was so messed up that he didn't leave the house or attend to any business matters for those couple of days. Very unlike him, but he's probably never been at this depth of despair before. Now, since pretty much everyone knows he wasn't leaving the house while Eda was gone, I hope someone (cough Melo cough) tells Eda, she should know that. On a similar note, Eda's friendship with the girls is so lovely. They're indeed her family. Interesting juxtaposition that she took refuge with her friends, while Serkan holed up and stayed away from everyone who cares about him. 

I agree that once we got past the dark brooding and he had the talk with his mom about how if Eda was punishing him there was still hope, he was a lot lighter. I think finally being out from under the secret did him a world of good. He can finally stop pretending to be indifferent and can just be honest about how he feels.  What the “Gitme” line in the fragman tells me, is that he’s ready to put it all out there. He’s not going to risk miscommunications or hurt feelings anymore. Which is amazing and should lead to great things in the next couple of episodes.

More under the cut (a lot more):

I absolutely agree about the scenes between Serkan and his dad and Serkan and Selin. The writing was really terrific and Kerem just knocked both of those scenes out of the park. Serkan's suppressed fury was palpable, and it was extremely cathartic to finally watch him let loose on both of them. The scene with his father went deeper in the family trauma and it was so interesting to hear Serkan say outright to both of them that the reason he moved onto the property was because Aydan couldn't leave and his dad was never there, and was never there for him as a father at all. Which we saw from the beginning when Alpteken was actually at the house but refused to attend his son's engagement party. Regardless of the fact that Serkan sprung Eda on them, not walking 50 feet to make an appearance at your son's engagement party is an asshole move. I wonder how long he's been cheating on Aydan? Years? It's interesting how she foreshadowed that revelation to Ayfer, like she knew.

Also I can't believe he was just cavorting around a luxury hotel in Istanbul. The whole Bolat family are obviously figures in the upscale social scene, anyone who knew Aydan or Serkan could have easily spotted him with that woman and gleefully spread the gossip back. Did he want to get caught? Jerkoff.

As for Selin, we been waitin' for that explosion since she sold her shares without telling Serkan!  I like that Serkan was kind to her after Ferit left her at the altar, it spoke to him taking responsibility for the part he played in trying to manipulate her out of that relationship. However, she took advantage of the new, kinder Serkan (the one that exists courtesy of Eda) and went way too far into unstable territory. I, and many other people, were so confused about why Selin was so angry about uncovering the truth of the accident, like what right did she have to be that angry over it, to stomp over to his house, barge in uninvited and accuse him of being a liar at top decibel levels? Thank goodness the writing acknowledged that it was not her place, and that was the thing that enraged Serkan. They actually allowed him to say, "How dare you come to my house, and I don't owe you any explanations." Also, I'm glad he laid out his feelings for Eda, and his lack of feelings for her. Look... that is rough. Hearing from an ex that they never loved you.  But how she could have been in any doubt, after seeing the changes in him since Eda is beyond my comprehension. She even said early on, It's like there's two Serkans, the one before you met Eda, and the one after. For whatever reason it's like she thought Eda could come in and affect him, and then she could step in and get the Serkan who was in love with Eda, not the rigid, cold one who was in a relationship of convenience with her.  DELUSIONAL.

There was so much more about this episode I loved. It was nice to see Ayfer blossoming in her new business and getting a glimpse of Fifi's past. She comes from a society family, does she? I liked that Ferit helped them. I do agree that impressing Ceren was probably on his mind, but I like to think he's also just a nice man and he likes Ayfer and wanted to genuinely help as well. Interesting that we found out that Ferit's mom never liked Selin. Curious since you'd think she'd look great on paper, perhaps it was because of the speed at which they were moving, and I think she also stood them up, right? That made me like Ferit's mom a bit more than I otherwise would have. 

Aydan was in her element getting back to her charity work, I loved the way she plotted to put her name forward for the leadership position. She's just so savvy. That's why I'm glad she's now TeamEda!  Imagine what a formidable duo Eda and Adyan will make in this world, we saw a glimpse of it last week, but they'll be unstoppable! 

The contract was a neat device. I really appreciate how it was used. One of the things that Eda feels like she can't trust is the way Serkan has tried to control her. As I've said before, I think he's really trying to control the situation. And while that doesn't really make a difference to Eda in this instance, it does make a difference to me as a viewer. If he were being controlling in the sense of trying to dictate what she says or who she is, that would be upsetting. But that's not it, he really loves her for who she is already and he's not trying to change that, he's just, as I said, trying to control the situation. We know that he likes to think everything through and always has a plan and in this instance he was just trying to protect her, but she's right that he can't do that in a relationship. Proving to her that he can cede control is important and that's exactly what the contract did. We saw him do it willingly and blindly and it was actually really beautiful. Obviously, the Serkan apology to Erdem was hilarious, but more than how much I enjoyed how funny it was, I enjoyed how delighted Eda was by it. She loved every minute of it and it was so nice to see her relax a minute and genuinely laugh both at and with Serkan. Additionally, I think she was pretty surprised that he'd followed through with it. Lots of layers to that scene.  

The charity meeting he engineered was also pretty fun to watch. I loved how he calls Engin in to join them with no prep and then just expects Engin to reel off a bunch of good ideas for the girls education initiative. Good times. And Leyla rushing in to let him know that Melo had quit was hilarious, I love that Serkan was like "the whole situation is right here" meaning that Eda was in the room so whatever Leyla had to tell him could not possibly be important. Only Eda is important! LOL. Then Serkan doesn't even think before looping Engin in to go immediately hire Melo. You know what I hope this means!? That my crackship Mengin might actually sail!!!!  LET'S DO THIS MENGIN!!!!  Oh... I know, the show seems really committed to the mismatched duo of Engin/Peril, but I really think Engin and Melo are better suited to one another. And now maybe they'll get scenes together. Piril can dump him for being too... him, and Melo can help him pick up the pieces. They would be Serkan and Eda's big-hearted, teddybear couple friends!  

Watching Eda blossom creatively and professionally while working with Serkan has been a joy. She doesn't stand in awe of him at all as a person, but she does a little professionally, and it's wonderful to see how no matter how angry she is with him or where they are in their relationship she always craves his feedback, takes in his critiques and suggestions, and basks in his praise. While she didn't want his help with her schoolwork, I can't help but wonder if he ever comes up at school. I mean she's in the tabloids with him, and since he's extremely relevant to the field of study, and specifically to that school since he built the library, do her classmates ask her about him? Or does she mention something she did or learned working at ArtLife while in class? Inquiring minds want to know.

As for Eda's resolve to keep things professional, that pretty much was DOA. She definitely challenged him to break the contract there in that room, and I think she actually wanted him to do it, though I’m not sure how she would have reacted. she wants him, but she wasn’t there yet. She knows resistance is futile, deep down she recognizes her own feelings and his and knows they'll never stay away from one another and it's only a matter-of-time, but I think she needs this. She needs for him to understand what it means to be in a relationship, she needs him to know that he can't make decisions without her, and she needs to be sure he's ready to be a partner. Thankfully, he made a lot of headway in demonstrating all of those things in this episode. He signed without reading, he was willing to do anything and everything she asked, and while he's still him (asking Leyla for intel) he respected her wishes while still being there for her in a real way throughout the episode.  

Poor Eda fainting, but it's really romantic that he's always there to catch her. I assume this narcolepsy or whatever it is, like her claustrophobia, is related to the trauma around the retaining wall collapse and her parents' death. It was sweet the way he convinced her to let him be there when she met the contractor, and then during the confrontation he didn't intervene, he let Eda say what she needed to say and was there to move the guy along when it was time. He was pretty much perfect. I know we all NEEDED him to hug her, both Eda and Serkan NEEDED it as well, but she wasn't ready to ask for him yet and he was smart enough not to push it. But the loooooooooonging. 

It's a small detail that she asked him to deal with the paps and he went home and set about doing just that. Hopefully whatever he was doing will lead to the revelation that Selin is the one who planted the story in the first place. I need that, we all need that. And just when you think it's too late at night, he does their "thing" and shows up at her place with Sirius. So dang sweet. I like that he was respecting her pretense about colleagues while at the same time just outright saying, "I'm worried about you. Are you okay?"

The next day's car ride left me in a puddle. Serkan just out there telling her that he would do anything for her. But he didn't push it on her, he waited until she asked. He did a great job of pacing himself through the episode. I find it so romantic that she told him that he couldn't watch her speech. If they were together and settled and happy, I'd think she'd want him front row, center, but in their current state he just affects her too much. She'd be focused on him, worried about what he thought, distracted by him, he just sends her mind whiring and her pulse racing.

Though, it's pretty telling and super sweet that the first thing she wants to know when he approaches her afterward is what he thought of the speech. Oh, Eda, you're not fooling anyone. His opinion is most important to you, pretty much in all things. This scene gives us something that rarely happens, Engin being tone deaf and not reading the room!! WTF was wrong with him? Interrupting like that? Dude knows that Serkan is in a situation here, you don't interrupt for really no reason like that! Get your head in the game, son! Your his wingman, you help, not hinder!

The way Eda blushed and looked pleased every time he complimented her this episode was something else. She's trying to keep emotional distance, and he's breaking the rules when he does it, but still it makes her day. She's never portrayed as a vain character, at all, so it's just so sweet how his words and his compliments affect her. No one else can make her feel like that. 

Serkan was pretty sly in making his case as well. He gets her a bit mushy telling her she lights up the room and then brings up her speech and how it might apply to him. He was right in that she probably hasn't considered things from his perspective. How devastating it must have been for him to learn the truth. I want her to go back and piece together the timeline. She knew something wasn't right with him at the mall when she gave him the robot. Maybe it will help her deal with this if she realizes he had just learned the secret. She knew there was more to the story with the cut on his hand. Knowing he was so upset he put his hand through a coffee table might give her some perspective on his state of mind and why he acted the way he did.  But mostly I want him to tell her he overheard her conversation with Ceren. I think it's important for them both to confront how things unraveled if only to help prevent future miscommunications. 

Poor Eda having a good time using her powers of persuasion to tease Serkan into helping his mother only to find out that she had convinced him to auction himself off for a dinner date! I enjoyed her momentary discomfort at that. Welcome back, jealousy. Strictly work colleagues do not get jealous when one goes out to dinner with someone else, just saying, Eda.  And that smooth bastard bid on himself so he could go out with her only. We should have known! 

The conversation prior to the runway show was priceless, Eda's animosity and reserve sort of disappear and she's just unsure enough of what she's about to do that his reassurances are exactly what she needs.  And how Kerem Bursin can blush on demand, I don't know, but Serkan be red during that conversation, lol. 

I really loved all of Serkan's reactions as the ladies walked the runway. For Selin he was stone-faced and bored looking, for Fifi he gave a sly smirk as she passed as an acknowledgement of how different, and nice, she looked all cleaned up, Melo got the huge grin, we didn't really see Ceren since the camera was stuck on Ferit, but for Piril he gave her the fond, encouraging smile like he was proud of his friend. And then Eda. I don't even know what word to use for it. Enraptured? Dumsquizzled? Fuckstruck? Yes, let's go with fuckstruck. I'm not sure he remembered to breathe while she was walking, he was so affected by her.  This boy has it bad for this girl, ya'll. 

After that, the end was a punch in the gut. Our poor babies have been through so much, they really deserved to have that nice dinner.  Damn you, Selin! Obviously this was a delaying tactic, because once they sat down to dinner, you know they would have worked it out, so we wait. But the reconciliation is coming, don't you worry. I'm feeling it within the next 2 episodes for sure. 

[actuallylorelaigilmore]

do you think odaat has a good chance of being renewed for s5? I'd genuinely be so upset if it doesn't happen, it's my comfort show and I was really hoping for at least s6 with Pop

honestly, i’ve thought about this a lot and i...have no idea. there’s so many variables, even more this year than there were back when netflix cancelled it! i can’t begin to game it out in a way that feels predictive. but here’s what i know:

cbs saving it and putting it on pop, where schitt’s creek had a nice long run, seemed good reason to hope. they saw its first three seasons as a worthy investment, even with streaming restrictions putting a hold on cashing that in.

then staff changes at pop started leading to changes in the network’s plans for pop’s original programming, mainly cancellations of other shows that had been previous priorities. which was concerning. 

i think, pre-pandemic, i would’ve given it at least a 50/50 chance of renewal based on that--not a guarantee, but decent odds for a show that had been dead the year before. 

now we live in THIS 2020 though, and the pandemic cut off s4 halfway through. if the show was heading for a big arc at the end of the season, the way it did every other season, we didn’t get that. what would s1 be without elena’s quinces? or s3 without schneider’s recovery? a good show, still, but not as emotionally anchored beyond standalone episodes. 

so that’s all we got for s4, really, was standalones meant to reintroduce all the characters to new viewers and tell entertaining stories. for people starting with s4, will that be good enough?

cbs has made it clear that the show’s chances of renewal are based not on how it did on pop when s4 originally aired, but on how those same episodes do on cbs now that it’s running them this fall to fill a content hole caused by the pandemic.

this latest season did feel to me much more like a ‘standard’ sitcom you would find on cbs (which is why i had less fun this year--i don’t enjoy cbs-style comedies unless they have allison janney in them) so that might bode well for the show’s renewal. if twitter is any indication, the show found lots of new and old fans happy with s4.

and if there were any justice in the world of television, it would matter that odaat offers representation that barely exists on tv these days...but on network tv, i really can’t say it does seem to matter. so i’m not sure that carries much weight.

finally, there’s the fact that the pandemic has scrambled renewal/cancellation/filming considerations all over the place. at this point, even shows with firm renewals are getting UNrenewed and then unceremoniously dropped over cost concerns. 

a show like odaat that films live onstage is risky even compared to other tv shows while we’re still living through the pandemic (and california is being really careful with restrictions compared to other states where productions might resume), so if they do renew it, who knows when it could film...which probably doesn’t give them a lot of incentive to make an advancement commitment to renewal. 

i hope that it does get renewed! for your sake, for all the fans who’ll be sad to lose it, and for the cast and crew that want to be able to come back to it when it’s safe. 

but i think the only deciding factor now is how much cbs cares about it. and there’s no way for me to measure that--while i wish i had insider info about corporate programming decisions, alas, i do not.