#mcu next generation

[sinvulkt]

I’ve recently been confronted with how differently everyone approach stories. This made me curious. So guys, I’m counting on you for data, we need to reblog.

(Calling upon the strenght of my (i hope) fandom friends so we get proper statistics)

@cinderfeather @yatsukisakura @bluntblade @tramp-fiction @purpleopossum @starmahgalaxies @purple-iris @tonhalszendvics @retciwrites @vandervoiz @insertmeaningfulusername @pebblish @pat-the-togorian @linzerj @kgjhk @fanfictasia @kefalion @doctorgeekery @asteral-feileacan @dreaminghour @beewaggle @dirtkid123 @ravenite-void @kuraiarcoiris @angst-buritto-wips-writing @mamashenanigans @fancyfrey @hylianengineer @silvercaptain24 @silvereddaye @omaano @piroporopi @mina-jamsin-derulo @doctorgeekery @ash--00 @trickstress333 @kittonafoxgirl @salparadiselost @charlottevader @ravenstakeflight @starr234 @sarcasticfirefighter @numerousbees1106 @akizumy @25centsoda @udekai @unlikecharlie @beguilewritesstuff @lusseia @azzzryel

I apologize in advance if I bothered anyone! (Warn me in dm and i won’t tag you for this kind of stuff again). Hopefully you’re curious as well and want the answer as much as I do. 🎶

[visenyaism]

you used to wear newspapers in your shoes.

[buckys-arm-and-rios-dagger]

In light of Agatha Coven of Chaos FINALLY getting a release date I just want to say that every Marvel villain should get a banger villain song.

[greensparty]

RIP Connie Chiume, Charles Cyphers and Patti Yasutake

Three actors passed away and here is my combined remembrance:

Remembering Patti Yasutake 1953-2024

Yasutake as Nurse Ogawa

Actress Patti Yasutake has died at 70. She was well-known to Trekkies for playing Nurse Alyssa Ogawa on numerous episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation between 1990 and 1994, in the underrated passing-the-torch movie Star Trek: Generations, and Star Trek: First Contact. Other notable performances included Gung Ho, Drop Dead Gorgeous, as George's mother on Beef (which I named my #1 TV Show of 2023).

The link above is the obit from Deadline.

Remembering Charles Cyphers 1939-2024

Cyphers and Donald Pleasence in Halloween

Actor Charles Cyphers has died at 85. He was well-known to Halloween fans as Sheriff Leigh Brackett in the 1978 original Halloween, the 1981 sequel Halloween II, and David Gordon Green's 2021 Halloween Kills (the middle of DGG's trilogy). In addition to Halloween, he worked with John Carpenter on several films including Assault on Precinct 13, The Fog, and Escape from New York. Other notable performances include Roots, Hal Ashby's Coming Home, the 1995 Seinfeld episode "The Hot Tub", and an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The link above is the obit from Hollywood Reporter.

Remembering Connie Chiume 1952-2024

Chiume (left) in Black Panther

South African actress Connie Chiume has died at 72. She was well-known to MCU fans for playing Zawavari in Black Panther (which I included in my 10 Best Movies of 2018 list) and returning Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

The link above is the obit from Hollywood Reporter.

[sobeautifullyobsessed]

Proof that I'm a forever ride-or-die MCU Stephen Strange Stan ~

My first thought when learning of the return of RDJ to the MCU was: WHAT ABOUT DOCTOR STRANGE??? Isn't he closely tied to Doom as adversaries in the comics? Why wasn't he mentioned in connection to Avengers: Doomsday? Has Feige/et al, decided Stephen has no further value to the MCU?

Second thought? FU Feige/Waldron/et al.

[paulinawoodpecker]

Marvel next gen 🗡️

Lyra: (9)

@loki104-uwu

[thegirloffans]

My WF Heavy/Lightweight HC's

Alright, I have Wakanda Forever brain rot especially with my concept of my new Found Family Hyperfixation and the Wakandans wanting to show the Talokan Trio the ways of surface dwellers.

This is my idea of them under the influence 🙂

Riri❤️: Starting off, I know in the movie Riri is 19 but come on you guys, we all had a drink or two in college bffr..., the point is to not get caught.... That being said, M'Baku, Okoye, and Nakia would most definitely be on little girl duty and watch Riri like a hawk to make sure she's not drinking behind their backs. (of course she is, and Shuri and Aneka are the ones slipping her a shot or two here and there 🤭she appreciates their bravery and sacrifice). She would get herself into trouble by masking her intoxication as best as she can, but her dead giveaway would be the goofy grin on her face and her never-ending chatter. She would just talktalktalktalktalktalktalktalkTALK and then Okoye would pull her to herself and smell the liquor on her breath, leading to her AND Shuri being cut off for the night...

Shuri🐈‍⬛: I can see her not really liking drinking because she always likes to be focused and aware. Even when she's hanging out with friends, she doesn't necessarily need a drink to have a good time but bc everyone else is having a glass or two, she doesn't see the harm in it. WRONG. Princess Shuri of Wakanda is a lightweight to the fullest. Give her a White Claw or two and she'll be out like a light. She would definitely be a flirty drunk, like we all already know she has a sense of superiority and pride, so her being under the influence would definitely bring out her cocky side, and she would shock everyone at how she equally goes after both men and women. and the kicker is that she would only do like little playful flirtatious teasing with her friends, and they all know not to take her seriously, but she seems to do it with everyone BUT Namor. He's sick about it lol it really hurts his feelings...

Okoye👩🏾‍🦲: Again, not really a drinker but due to experience and life in general, Okoye is actually quite the heavyweight. She prefers a nice sparkling wine or maybe a merlot, or red wine bc it definitely mellows her out. She can be sedated on about 3-4 glasses but when she's had a rough day, that woman can take an entire bottle to the head and still be asking for more. Now when going out, especially with Aneka, Okoye doesn't really have much of a choice but to take a few shots to get the party going (and to keep up with her energetic friend). Wine never really has the effect on her like straight liquor does, but when she's well inebriated, the woman is a TALKER. She's the kind of drunk where if you were ever wondering what she really thought about you, give her a few shots and she'll tell you. That's why she never messes with the stuff! She gets all sentimental and emotional, telling her closest friends just how much they mean to her in a way that makes her subconscious self squirm! And Bast forbid Attuma is around bc then things start to get interesting...

Nakia💚: She's actually quite in the middle! Depending on the alcohol content and ingredients is a huge factor on when the spy chooses to cut herself off. She's had tastings of different mixtures from all around the world and sometimes can be alright from a single cup or will find herself pouring up all night long. How she knows that she's proper drunk is when she starts to slur her words and stumble. It takes a while for it to travel through her body so Nakia always finds herself having her drunkenness sneak up on her. And when it hits, it HITS. She finds it hard to keep her body upright and when she tries to speak, it sounds like alphabet soup to her ears, so she mainly just stays quiet and only reacts with facial expressions or laughter. Usually, M'Baku or Okoye are the ones to carry her back home 😅

Ayo😶: Ah yes, the quiet one out of the group. Well give this lady a few drinks and watch that cold exterior melt away! Just like Nakia, she has a pretty average tolerance, only needing about a good number of drinks, whatever they may be, to get her wasted. She still remains pretty quiet when she's drunk, but everyone will start to notice that when she is, she gets really touchy. Aneka notices as soon as she feels her wife's body pressed against her backside, warm hands sliding around her stomach to hold her close. Ayo is all strict and expressionless, but when she's drunk, it seems like her entire being has been cracked open and is exposed for Aneka and Aneka only to see. She never has eyes for anyone but her beloved as she hangs herself over her lover the entire night, never taking her hands off of her.

Aneka😁: Quite the opposite of her wife in every aspect, Aneka is the Leader of The Lightweights. She's a delusional one too, because if it wasn't for her wife or Okoye, she would drink herself into a coma. She thinks she's a heavyweight but gets a heated blush across her brown skin after just 2 shots. Get her started off the Henny and this woman becomes a personified Energizer Bunny; dancing, talking, socializing with just about everyone in the club, eating everything in sight, taking more shots- she's just the grind that won't stop! She knows it's time to wind down when she feels her wife's hands on her more than usual, leaning into the woman's touch and letting her lover's presence calm her down. A few touches and kisses later and they're definitely the couple who leaves early to go fuck.✌🏾

Namora🧡: Oh man...first of all, in Talokan, Namora is considered a heavyweight. She can even outdrink Ku'Kul'Kan which is a fact that burns the older man up... but surface world liquor puts her on her ASS. The first time they went out with the Wakandans, they shared some kind of alcohol containing "sugar cane" as they called it and Namora was expecting it to taste sweet, but not only did it not, but it seemed to have no flavor at all. The next thing she knew, she was singing pop songs at the TOP of her lungs, hanging out the window of Riri's very red and loud vehicle as they sat in the parking lot together. She laughed along with the young girl and enjoyed the feeling of fuzzy emptiness in her mind. All she was focused on was having a good time and concentrating on not throwing up in her new friend's pretty car...

Namor🐉: The Feathered Serpent God of Talokan...can't hold his liquor for shit lol. Not in Talokan and definitely not on the surface. He actually doesn't even like the taste of alcohol; it burns going down and always leaves him with a nasty hangover the next day, so he usually stays away from the stuff. But of course...not being one to show weakness (and also trying to impress the Princess) he takes each shot or drink handed to him to the head. He's actually good at masking his inebriation, his only dead giveaway being the rosy red tips of his ears and wide blush across his cheeks. It's also super cute to everyone how he will just get fed up with fumbling around walking and start to hover around instead. He's also an honorary member of the Chaos Clan along with Aneka, Riri, M'Baku, and Attuma so more than likely if everyone starts drinking and hears something break, you will see those little winged feet getting tf out of there.

Attuma🦈: If anybody's the heavyweight champion of the group, it's good ol' Sharkboy himself. He's the same as Namora in Talokan, being deemed a very heavy drinker, but where they differ is that he can also hold his own against surface world concoctions. Liquor, wine, spirits, seltzers- it almost seems like you have to drown this man in a tub of alcohol before he starts feeling the effects. Literally the only person out of the group that can rival him, is M'Baku and they have many drinking contests between themselves to see who is the one and only true Heavyweight Drinking Champion of them all. They always end up tied up 🙂Now even if Attuma does find himself pretty under the influence, he is definitely a flirt just like Shuri. He's actually almost gotten close to getting the shit beat out of him because the Princess would come up to him and start playfully flirting with the man and he would simply match her energy! But one look from his God King from across the room has him deterring the Princesses' teasing (that TikTok sound: "let me stop playing around before I get my ass delt with" 💀) but that only makes her call over Okoye, the Talokanilian warrior growing rigid as his crush glides her way over to him...

M'Baku🦍: This man is definitely one to hold his liquor down, okay? He can keep going all night long (👀...) and almost seems to have no stopping point. We've all seen how this man acts on a regular day, just know that when he starts drinking, that boisterous, prideful, enthusiasm gets cranked up to 100. Just like Aneka, he is a force that can't be stopped, dancing with all the pretty ladies on the dance floor and letting them marvel and gush at his outstanding display of raw masculinity. I don't care what anybody says, I know for a fact this man is leaving the club with at least two beautiful women on each arm by the end of the night.

Ross🕶️: You know we gotta include our token white boy! This man worked for the CIA, I think by now he would work up quite a tolerance for alcohol (especially after being married to that witch...). It actually surprises the group that after watching their tiny friend down drink after drink, he's still standing! The girls would be cheering him on to keep going and take as many shots as he can and not wanting to be the one to disappoint, he keeps throwing back shots like it's nothing. Now out of everybody in their group, no one has the cutest drunk blush like Ross. He's white lol so of course his entire face all the way down to his neck is flushed. He definitely seems like a silly drunk to me, cracking jokes and telling stories to everyone and even though he tries to keep the Chaos Clan from doing any further damage, someway somehow he finds himself in the midst of their misdeeds lol.

So those are my headcannons of my WF Friend Group when they're loaded!

Thanks!✌🏾🙂

[mrs-sherlock-holmes]

My four fave captains 🫡

[wildestheart4ever]

Got into Tumblr looking to see if there were any additional content on the post I subscribed to and found someone has commented on my old Tiny Stink posts

The gist of it is that there are still people who greatly enjoy character butchering a la Not Steve Rogers/Team Cap Friendly and see nothing wrong with needless bitching in properly tagged fics

An obnoxious thing to see at the start of the day but whatever.

[miitopiaoutofcontext]

[squids-comics]

I just watched an episode of Star Trek with my boyfriend featuring a man named Berlinghoff Rasmussen. That is incredible. That is the single greatest name I have ever heard. I am awful at making up names in my writing. I can only hope to one day be good enough to come up with something like Berlinghoff Rasmussen.

[handless-horseman]

The same is true of the last 10ish years. The most recent year when franchise movies don't take a majority of the top 10 was 2000 (or 2001 if you say the first movie in a franchise doesn't count):

is it me or like, have movies been getting worse?????

[keycomicbooks]

Generation Next #1 (1995) Chris Bachalo & Mark Buckingham Cover, Chris Bachalo Pencils, Scott Lobdell Story, 1st Appearance of Generation Next, Age of Apocalypse Tie-In

#GenerationNext #1 (1995) #ChrisBachalo & #MarkBuckingham Cover, Chris Bachalo Pencils, #ScottLobdell Story, 1st Appearance of Generation Next, #AgeofApocalypseTieIn "From the Top" Enter now: The Age of Apocalypse A new team created by Magneto and led by Colossus is about to embark on a suicide mission, but one that has grave importance for the future of this world. https://www.rarecomicbooks.fashionablewebs.com/Generation%20Next.html#1 @rarecomicbooks Website Link In Bio Page If Applicable. SAVE ON SHIPPING COST - NOW AVAILABLE FOR LOCAL PICK UP IN DELTONA, FLORIDA #RareComicBooks #KeyComicBooks #MCU #MarvelComics #MarvelUniverse #KeyComic #ComicBooks

[rootedinrevisions]

Unforgettable

SUMMARY: Based on the song Unforgettable by Thomas Rhett. You're at a bar enjoying a game when you meet Ben, and your night takes an unexpected turn.

A/N: I actually wrote this earlier this year during the summer right after I watched Anyone But You. But I didn't love the final result. I got a couple of requests about writing for Ben so decided to revisit this one and made a few tweaks to the original story.

I'm still working on other requests, the next tone that will be up is a longer one, so here's a little something for you guys in the meantime!

WARNINGS: Alcohol Consumption. I think that's it?

WORD COUNT: 2.4k

TAG LIST: IN COMMENTS

If you would like to be added to any of my Tag Lists please feel free to comment, send an ask, or send a DM and I'll be happy to get you added! Below are the fandoms I currently write for.

Glen Powell: Himself (RPF), Characters He's Played

Twisters: Tyler Owens, Boone, Scott, Javi

Top Gun: Maverick: Rooster, Hangman, Bob

Marvel/MCU: Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers

WWE/Wrestling: Cody Rhodes, Corey Graves, Damian Priest, Drew McIntyre, Finn Balor, Jimmy Uso, Jey Uso, Kevin Owens, L.A. Knight, Pat McAfee, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins (if there is someone you're thinking of from WWE and they aren't on the list feel free to ask! There are so many guys on the roster that these were the ones that came to mind.)

The bar buzzed with energy, a mix of laughter, shouts, and clinking glasses filling the air. The scent of buffalo wings, fried food, and draft beer hung heavy, mingling with the faint chill of the air conditioning battling the warmth of a crowded room. You sat perched on a stool at the bar, a plate of wings in front of you and a Mang-O-Rita sweating in its can nearby. The first quarter of the football game played on the flat-screen TVs overhead, the crowd erupting in cheers or groans with every snap of the ball.

Your team was down by three, and you muttered under your breath as the quarterback scrambled and barely avoided a sack. A half-laugh, half-growl escaped you when the ball soared through the air, only for the wide receiver to drop it. 

"Oh, come on!" you yelled, your voice rising above the general din.

You picked up your drink, taking a long pull to soothe your rising frustration, when a flash of movement caught your eye. A guy had just taken a seat a few spots down the bar. His hair was tousled slightly, his smile easy as he exchanged a few words with the bartender. 

You noticed him only in passing at first, more focused on the game. A cute face in a bar, but nothing to write home to mom about. But when your team fumbled the ball and the crowd groaned in unison, you glanced his way again. He was watching you this time, his beer halfway to his lips, a faint grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Your gaze met his for just a moment before you turned back to the screen, pretending you hadn’t noticed. Still, your pulse quickened slightly, though you weren’t sure if it was from the botched play or the weight of his stare.

The game pressed on, and so did your attention, though every now and then, you felt the pull of his gaze. When you turned your head again, this time intentionally, his smile was still there, playful and just a little intrigued.

You tipped your drink back, holding the empty can up as if showing it off, then raised your eyebrows at him—a silent challenge. His grin widened, and before you could lower your hand, he was already on his feet. He weaved through the crowded bar with confidence. His gaze never left yours, and when he reached your side, he glanced at the empty can in your hand before gesturing toward it.

“Another Mang-O-Rita?” he asked, his voice smooth but carrying a hint of mischief.

You tilted your head, considering him for a moment before offering a small, amused smile. “Sure, why not?”

He motioned to the bartender, ordering you another drink and a fresh beer for himself. As you waited, he turned back to you, extending a hand. “I’m Ben.”

You slipped your hand into his, his grip firm but warm. “Nice to meet you, Ben.”

The bartender set your drink down, and Ben handed it to you before motioning toward the empty stool beside yours. “Mind if I join you?”

You gestured toward the seat with a casual wave of your hand. “Be my guest.”

He settled in, the faint scent of beer and a hint of cologne reaching you as he leaned his elbows on the bar. Up close, you couldn’t help but notice the slight flush to his cheeks and the easy, lopsided grin that suggested he might not be entirely sober.

You raised an eyebrow, taking a sip of your drink before meeting his gaze again. “So, be honest—are you drunk right now?”

Ben scoffed, sitting up a little straighter as if to prove a point. “Sober as a judge.”

You snorted, giving him a skeptical once-over. “Yeah, right.”

“Hey, I’m serious,” he replied, a touch of mock indignation in his voice. “I’ve had, like, two beers. Three, max.”

“Uh-huh,” you said, rolling your eyes but unable to hide the grin tugging at your lips.

He leaned closer, his smile widening. “You’re still talking to me, though, so I must be doing something right.”

You laughed, shaking your head. “I guess I’ll let you stick around—for now.”

The game played on, but it barely registered in your mind as you and Ben fell into an easy rhythm of conversation. You found yourself laughing at his jokes, the way he could turn even the simplest things into something absurdly funny. It was clear he was a natural at keeping things light, and it didn’t take long before the laughter between the two of you became effortless.

You didn’t even notice how much time had passed until a voice broke through your bubble.

“Hey, is this seat taken?” He asked motioning to the empty bar stool on the side opposite of you from Ben.

You turned to see a guy standing a few inches away, a drink in his hand and an interested look in his eyes.

You glanced at Ben briefly, noting how he still had a half-empty beer in front of him. Before you could say anything, the guy took a step closer, his attention fully on you now.

For a brief moment, you froze—unsure of how to handle this new development. But then, on impulse, you reached over, your fingers brushing Ben’s as you laced them together, bringing his hand firmly into yours. The guy raised an eyebrow, looking at your clasped hands, then back at you with a confused expression.

You met his gaze with a polite but firm smile. “Actually, I’m here with my boyfriend.”

Ben gave him a slight nod, still with that easy confidence, but there was a protective edge in the way his hand tightened around yours.

The guy hesitated, glancing between the two of you before mumbling a quick, “Oh... sorry,” and backing off. He turned and walked away, disappearing into the crowd, leaving you and Ben in a moment of relative peace.

You looked over at Ben, who was still holding your hand, his smile soft and amused.

“So I’m your boyfriend now?” he asked, his voice playful, but there was something almost curious in the way he said it.

You grinned, shrugging one shoulder. “Guess so. You’re doing a great job so far.”

Ben’s eyes sparkled with amusement, but he leaned a little closer, lowering his voice as if sharing a secret. “Well, if I’m your boyfriend now, I better get to know you better.”

Ben leaned back slightly, a mischievous glint in his eyes as he tapped his finger against his beer bottle.

“Alright,” he said, suddenly serious, “I’ve got it. Your middle name—I'm gonna guess it.”

You blinked at him, a little surprised. “Uh, what? Why?”

“Why not?” he replied with a playful grin. “I’m just trying to get to know you better. You can’t blame me for that.”

You rolled your eyes, unable to stifle the smile tugging at your lips. “Okay, go ahead. But you’re probably never going to guess it.”

He looked you up and down as if carefully studying you, then made a dramatic show of thinking.

“Hmm... I’m gonna say... Rose?”

You raised an eyebrow, laughing lightly. “Rose? Really? No, but nice try.”

He shook his head, feigning disappointment. “Alright, alright. I’m just warming up. How about... Grace?”

You chuckled, shaking your head. “Nope. Keep going.”

For the next half hour, Ben threw out an endless stream of guesses. “Lily?” “Scarlet?” “Charlotte?” You shot each one down with a grin, keeping the mood light. In between his increasingly absurd suggestions, you both watched the game, commenting on plays as they unfolded, laughing at the terrible calls, and groaning at missed passes.

“Okay, last guess,” he declared dramatically, holding up a finger. “I’m going with... Claire.”

You stared at him for a second, before leaning back slightly in your chair and grinning. “Not even close.”

Ben leaned forward, his face full of mock offense. “I’m telling you, I’m one guess away from cracking this code. I’ll get it.”

You shook your head, amused at his persistence. “You know what? You can keep guessing all night, but I’m not telling you. You’ll have to find out another way.”

The bar erupted in cheers as the final whistle blew, sealing your team’s victory. You jumped to your feet, arms raised, and let out an excited whoop. Ben was grinning beside you, leaning back against the bar with an amused expression as he watched you celebrate.

“You’re really into this, huh?” he teased, his voice cutting through the noise.

You shot him a playful glare. “Of course! That win was huge. Don’t tell me you’re one of those guys who sits quietly through a game.”

He held his hands up in mock surrender, laughing. “Hey, I cheered plenty. Just not, you know…” He mimicked your exuberant fist pump, grinning wider when you rolled your eyes.

Before you could fire back, the music shifted, the upbeat tempo vibrating through the bar as people began crowding onto the makeshift dance floor. Ben’s grin turned mischievous as he straightened up, holding his hand out to you.

“Come on,” he said, nodding toward the crowd.

You raised a skeptical brow but took his hand anyway, letting him guide you off your barstool. “Wait,” you asked, your voice filled with playful suspicion. “Do you even know how to dance?”

Ben’s grin deepened as he turned back to you, pulling you into the throng of moving bodies. “Guess you’re about to find out.”

He wasted no time proving it, immediately syncing with the beat as he started moving with an ease that caught you off guard. His hands found their way to your waist, guiding you effortlessly. You swayed together for a few beats, and then, without warning, Ben spun you out.

You gasped as your feet slid across the floor, twirling in time with the music. But then—just as quickly—you stumbled, your balance faltering as the sudden movement caught you off guard.

Before you could even think about crashing to the ground, Ben’s arm shot out, his hand steadying you at the waist. He grinned at you, his eyes gleaming with amusement. “You good?”

You laughed, steadying yourself in his grip. “I think you just gave me a heart attack.”

Ben just smirked, clearly pleased with himself. He gave you a playful look, and with a swift move, he spun you out again, this time more confidently. You twirled in a perfect arc, the lights above casting shadows that made it feel like you were dancing in a movie. When he pulled you back toward him, he did so with an easy elegance, seamlessly pressing you into his chest as you melted into the movement.

It felt effortless with him, like you were caught up in something bigger than just the moment, the way he made it all feel so natural. The dance continued, full of spins, twirls, and moves that made you laugh and spin more than you ever had on a dance floor.

At one point, Ben pulled you in close, his arms wrapped around you in a secure embrace as the song slowed again. You were still grinning, breathless from all the dancing, but there was one question you couldn’t shake. “Where did you learn to dance like that?”

Ben’s eyes flickered for a split second, like he’d just been caught in something unguarded. But he didn’t hesitate long. “My mom... she used to teach me.” His voice softened, but only for a moment before he pushed you out into another twirl, this one more dramatic than the last.

The sudden movement made you laugh, and before you could ask anything more, you were spun away from him again, lost in the rhythm and joy of the night. Ben seemed to shift effortlessly from playful to graceful, making everything feel so easy while still keeping a little distance from that brief, vulnerable moment he had just shared.

You couldn't help but feel like there was more to him than he let on—more than just the carefree guy who danced with such confidence. But for now, you let it go, swept up in the music and the way he moved, feeling closer to him than you ever expected.

The bar had emptied out a bit, and the night was winding down. You glanced at the time on your phone, the evening slipping away faster than you'd expected.

You leaned over, giving Ben a soft nudge. “It’s getting late... I should probably head home soon.”

Ben’s smile softened, but there was a hint of reluctance in his eyes, like he wasn’t quite ready for the night to end either. 

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He motioned toward the bar. “I’ll get the tabs.”

You raised an eyebrow as he stood up. “You don’t have to—”

“I insist,” he cut you off, his easy grin back in place. 

After he paid, he turned to you, taking a step closer as the two of you started toward the exit. “So, uh… I guess I’ll see you around?”

You paused, a grin tugging at the corner of your lips. He was fumbling slightly over his words, clearly trying to figure out how to ask if he could see you again without sounding too forward. You could tell he was the type to keep things light, but maybe this moment called for a little boldness.

You glanced at him sideways and raised an eyebrow. “So, are you going home… or are you coming to mine?”

Ben’s stride faltered, his eyes widening slightly as the words hung in the air between you. For a second, he seemed speechless, clearly caught off guard. Then he quickly recovered with a low laugh, running a hand through his hair. “Uh, I walked here… from my place.”

You gave him a playful wink, leaning against the door of your car. “Then it looks like you’ve got options, Romeo.”

Ben stared at you for a moment, clearly unsure of how to respond. The air between you was thick with unspoken thoughts, and the playful challenge in your voice seemed to linger in the night.

After what felt like a beat too long, Ben gave you that signature grin—the one that made you feel like you were the only person in the room. Without another word, he stepped forward, following you to your car.

[burst-of-iridescent]

well since i can already tell that we’re all going to be subjected to the same old tired mai & mai.ko discourse for the foreseeable future, let’s get it clear right now that the atla comics have never been, and will never be acceptable mediums of character development, and here’s why:

1. the comics are given the benefit of hindsight, which impairs organic character growth.

it’s become extremely clear over the last few years that many of the comics are made as, or include, direct responses to criticisms of the original show — especially when it comes to katara, mai, and the canon pairings. aang didn’t ask katara for consent? look, he’s checking if he can kiss her! mai doesn’t care about fire nation imperialism? here, she’s an anti fascist! iroh was a creep to june? don’t worry, here he is apologising!

many of the things the characters do or say in the comics feel unnatural because they are not written as characters, but as mouthpieces for the creators to address fandom complaints from the original show.

“but that’s good, right? they’re trying to make it better!” i mean… sure? it still doesn’t change the fact that it’s damage control, and that no matter what stories span the middle, the arcs of these characters still begin and end with avatar: the last airbender, and the legend of korra, both of which are fixed and immutable. the comics cannot retroactively fix the issues of either show, because they’ve already been defined as the goalposts of the characters’ lives, and there is no way to undo that.

it’s like if you eat a meal that isn’t to your satisfaction, and maybe the chief makes you another dish, which is all well and good — but it doesn’t fix the fact that the original meal still sucked! sometimes, accepting criticism means accepting that there’s no way to go back and fix it but to do better next time, with the next story you wish to tell.

if the legend of korra didn’t exist, and the arcs of the characters were left open after atla, then maybe there would be for the room for the comics to function as character development if not for the fact that…

2. the comics are intended for a very different audience than the show.

it’s obvious that the audience for the original show vastly outnumbers the audience for the comics, likely by thousands, if not millions. this isn’t the mcu, where the installation of any atla property is vital to understanding the next, and so on. you can skip the comics and miss nothing whatsoever (and honestly your life would be far improved by doing so).

those who read the comics are likely only the real diehard fans of the show — and the creators know this, which is why we have the whole issue of point one above. but this difference in audience matters, because it reflects the significance of the story being told, and how important it is for the audience to know it. this is why, if the characters’ development and storylines in the comics truly, genuinely mattered, it would have been in the show already.

i’m not saying that the gaang wouldn’t have continued to grow and change post-atla, but generally stories exist as closed circuits, self-contained within themselves. when you end atla, you’re meant to believe that those arcs are finished. that’s the whole reason the comics deal mostly with fun silly adventures, or with quick, temporary conflicts instead of grand, overarching narratives, because they are not truly meant to function as a continuation of the story of atla, or its characters.

(if you ask me frankly, they’re meant to be nostalgia cash grabs, but that’s neither here nor there.)

creator intention matters with the atla comics (or any atla property, in fact), because creator intention was the subject of criticism for the original show in the first place. why must we rely on the comics or the cookbook or avatar legends to tell us that katara did things with her life outside of aang? why do we need to turn to something released nearly two decades after atla to find any evidence that mai denounced the fire nation’s imperialist indoctrination, when she’s romantically involved with one of the show’s most important characters? why are these stories relegated to a medium with far less reach, far too late?

the answer is that the writers didn’t find those stories to be originally worth telling, and that is the real problem fans have been pointing out since 2008.

so, tldr: