#mended light

[girl4music]

“Love is seeing someone. Love is putting their needs before your wants. Love is being willing to sacrifice something because you care more about them than about yourself. And if the person you’re with isn’t acting that way, it’s not love. At least not yet. Like could it evolve into that? Sometimes. But even then it only evolves into that if you establish kind of like what the guidelines are, right? What the barriers are, what the boundaries are, is the word I’m looking for. We often confuse attachment for love, or attraction for love or even affection. Spike started with attraction, and then attachment, and that’s, we see that as passion, but that’s, attraction and attachment often lead to possessive behaviour, controlling behaviour, abusive behaviour. Affection is a step closer to love. Affection is tenderness and kindness and consideration, but it only blossoms into love when there is no expectation of anything in return. When you love somebody, you want their happiness. You may want that happiness to be with you, but even more than that, you want their happiness, even if it’s not. And how you can tell that this is actual love in his case, which is confusing to him, he’s never experienced this before, is that he is putting himself second. Now that can be taken to an extreme. Obviously, you can put yourself second over and over and over again in a relationship and just get walked on, but in a healthy relationship, it goes both ways. That is the difference in my mind between love and imitation love, what we often confuse with love.”

This is one of the best scenes in the whole show. Certainly the best scene in Season 7. But more than just the scene itself - for what follows after it. I’ve mentioned this before. But you have every other coupling of the episode having sex but Spike and Buffy just holding each other on the bed in an abandoned house. Very reminiscent of the abandoned house they destroyed to bits in their sex scene in ‘Smashed’. And putting those two scenes in juxtaposition with each other would reveal the striking differences between them. One is actual connection, the other is possession. It all about what one can get out of the other. But the ‘Touched’ scene as part of a montage where everyone else but them is having sex shows just how much it’s not about that anymore.

Aside from Riley, Spike is the only man to still be there in the morning when Buffy wakes up to face Caleb. And aside from Riley, Spike is the only man to tell Buffy that she’s a hell of a woman. But only when possession and obsession has left the narrative.

There was only ever two guys that truly loved Buffy for all that she was. The problem was one always put himself second and the other never did - until now. Unfortunately the other guy never stuck around long enough to learn how to. Sorry to Bangel shippers.

[tillxthexearthxstartsxtoxcrumble]

I'm gonna need Jonothan Decker to just react to every episode of Heartstopper at this point.

The Nick coming out and Charlie confronting Ben episodes and now this? Sir please just watch it all its so good

[davidtennantgenderenvy]

I want mended light to do a good omens video so badly

[phan-meme-trash]

A great therapy/tv source on YouTube is Jono(Jonathan Decker) a licensed therapist with 2 channels.

1: Cinema Therapy

2: Mended Light

Both are excellent resources for people who enjoy tv/movies and maybe could use some free therapy.

There’s a mended light community poll right now where you can vote for heartstopper to be added to his “__ gets therapized” series where he gives therapeutic advice for an entire series. Please vote if you can on the community poll, it’s a tight race. He makes great videos and id love to see him do more on heartstopper!

He’s done one video on heartstopper on mended light giving a raw reaction to the coming out scene:

[tenaciouszombiewombat]

I am so grateful that Jon and Alan created Cinema Therapy. Lately, I'm not in the best place mentally, and their channel has helped me so much.

The same goes for Mended Light. I really hope they get the channel back. It must be awful to see your work being taken from you.

[mythigal1966]

Buffy Gets Therapized | Power Speech

[andylantsov]

I need Jonathan and Alan to react to Jugjugg Jeeyo (the bollywood movie) and specially the couple of Varun Dhawan and Kiara Advani (Kuldeep and Nainaa).

I just need to see that one happen

CINEMA THERAPY PEOPLE I HOPE YOU HEAR ME

*manifesting it*

(But also be careful. Bollywood idealizers can be crazy)

[bubbas-psych-dump]

new favourite construct!!

[girl4music]

And that’s how a legend does it!

Buffy redefined what it meant to be a Slayer. Not just for herself as the Slayer but for everyone that could potentially become a Slayer and would be able to make that choice for themselves. She never backed down to the controlling methods and unfair tactics of the Watcher’s Council. She never let herself be controlled by any authority figure. She was the law. She was the leader. That’s what being a Slayer meant. To take the reigns of a vehicle very few would choose to drive because of the immense responsibility that would be thrust upon them but still wanting the power anyway. Buffy never chose this life - this role - this responsibility. Nevertheless she took it and lived with it anyway. But only under her terms and conditions. Which is how it should be. I love the character but I find it very difficult to love her arc when much of it is written in such a way where she’s made out the martyr. The heroine that sacrificed herself, her life, her childhood and her happiness to save the world. And every time she would lose out. She would be left in severe pain and trauma or just ended up dead or depressed. It’s highly disconcerting to watch that. The one saving grace of the character’s arc was that she finally turned around and said enough was enough. That I could get behind. That I could support. That I could cheer on. Before that… I couldn’t stand it. This character was just constantly suffering all for her cause - her fate - her destiny, and a supernatural war that started long before she was ever fucking born and was basically forced to become the champion for.

“With great power comes great responsibility.” - Said Spider-Man. Another hero who unwilling became one. But also - like Buffy - decided to accept it anyway despite never choosing the life of a warrior and hero either. The super powers were just given to him. He never outright earned them. He never grafted for them. Well, of course not. He never wanted them. But if not earning them or grafting for them meant he didn’t deserve them… then he should have a choice. Ultimately both Spider-Man and Buffy took the reigns of being the human world’s hero. But it wasn’t until half way through their arcs that they accepted them.

Take away choice and there is no point to any of it. The world does not get a hero. They get a martyr. They get someone who died as a saviour for it only. For they neglect their own autonomy in the process. Controlling, abusing, manipulating, radicalising, gaslighting is what it inevitably becomes. Until the one with all the power takes full possession of it and uses it to help and inspire the innocent to save itself. To be their own warrior and hero. To have autonomy. That is ultimately what Buffy did and it’s the only real reason why her arc stands the test of time. The moment she gave this ‘power’ speech to her controllers was the moment she truly grew up.

Buffy is a legend because she made herself one.

Learn from her example.

[slavicviking]

Yellow

@steddiemicrofic December prompt: pine | wc: 508 | G | cw: none | tags: misunderstandings, pre-Steddie

“Looking good, Nance. Did you do something with your hair?” Nancy did not. She knew for a fact her curls looked worse for wear thanks to the raging wind outside. Steve knew that, too – had to, with his in-depth knowledge of maintaining hair, curls or not. Eddie stiffens next to her. “I’m here to return this,” Nancy pulls out a Breakfast Club tape from her bag with a forced smile. “Great movie choice,” Steve trudges on with otherwise admirable perseverance. The ugly green Family Video creases inelegantly as he leans forward. “I think it sucks,” Eddie jumps in. He grins but Nancy knows him well enough to tell how tense he really is. And isn’t that a wild thought in itself? Nancy would never expect to get along so well with Eddie Munson and yet here he was, dare she say it - her best friend at the moment. Steve lets out a nervous laugh, red dotting his cheeks as his hand ventures out to rub his neck. Robin’s bright eyes keep darting back and forth between two boys, an unreadable look on her face. “This is getting ridiculous,” Nancy says once she slips into the driver seat of her car. Eddie joins her on the other side, uncharacteristically quiet. Her eyebrows drop lower. “He’ll get over it soon. You’ll see.” “I don’t know, Wheeler. He seems pretty dedicated.” The thing is, Nancy’s observant. She pays attention to her close circle of friends, and that includes Steve. Something about this isn’t adding up – the compliments, the showering with attention. And it’s not only because she’s usually left with a morose Eddie, unfairly pining away, in the aftermath. It’s been going on for weeks now. Something’s got to give, eventually, she’s sure. It does, a week later, when Steve Harrington knocks on the Wheelers’ front door in the middle of the day, clad in an ironed shirt and beige khakis. “Here,” he hands her a bouquet of yellow roses. “They’re for you.” She makes a point of not taking them. They hang awkwardly between them until Steve drops his hand with a grimace. “We’re not getting back together,” Nancy tells him bluntly. Steve’s a good guy, he is, but he can be a bit obtuse sometimes. To her surprise, Steve doesn’t deter her. Instead, he blinks. “What?” “It’s sweet that you’re trying,” she tries. “But we wouldn’t work out. We just wouldn’t.” He blinks again. “I don’t-uh. This is awkward.” Understatement if she’s ever seen one. “I don’t want to date you, Nancy,” Steve finally says. He winces before adding. “No offense.” “Then what’s with this?” she points to the flowers. “The compliments? All of it?” He sighs. “I know we didn’t really end on good terms. And your opinion matters to him- I mean, he's just so-” “Him?” Nancy questions before realization dawns on her. “Eddie?” “Wait, does he think I – shit!” Steve’s eyes grow wide as he shoves the flowers into Nancy’s chest and backs out towards the car. “Shit! Sorry, Nance. Gotta go!”

Yellow Roses are the symbol of friendship <3

[saragrosie]

Are you normal or did Disco Elysium make you like the color orange

[arc-hus]

Pinacoteca del Estado, Sao Paulo - Paulo Mendes da Rocha

-

[sweetfridays]

♡ the ladies of venice film festival ( gala.fr )

[transformersbrainrot]

MegOp is making me crazy as usual, but now I have some new, specific inspiration!

So it started with @that-fanperson-meg saying this under a post I made about the Transformers account posting a TFO MegOp edit.

I recognized the name of the song but had never actually listened to it, and hooooo boy, it activated something in the part of my brain that thinks about MegOp... So, I'm listening to this song, and I have the clearest vision that it's about Megatron's mindset/thoughts during his mental health's lowest point in the worst depths of the war. (fair warning, my analysis/brainrot is based on my own personal continuity/au, so there are some minor references to that, but it's all fairly standard, and I explain it a bit, so just go with it, and you shouldn't be confused.) Ok, preamble over. Time for the lyrical analysis:

I hope that our few remaining friends Give up on trying to save us I hope we come up with a failsafe plot To piss off the dumb few that forgave us I hope the fences we mended Fall down beneath their own weight And I hope we hang on past the last exit I hope it's already too late

Megatron assumes that Optimus is in just as bad of a place as he is. He's wrong, of course, OP certainly isn't enjoying himself, but he has an actual support system that he feels comfortable leaning on. On the other hand, Soundwave is the only thing even approaching a friend for Megatron (and he is waaay too closed off at this point to admit it). Starscream is a backstabbing, power-hungry sycophant with his own heap of baggage (I really gotta make a post about my version of all that sometime); Shockwave is purely logic-driven as usual, only interested in advancing the Cybertronian race via the Decepticon cause. By this time, Megatron feels like both sides are too deep into the war to even consider peace. He honestly can't fathom it.

And I hope the junkyard a few blocks from here Someday burns down And I hope the rising black smoke carries me far away And I never come back to this town again in my life

Megatron has always wanted to escape the path that was decided for him. But now, after losing what he and Orion had and the resulting fallout, he won't go quietly into the night, not before causing some irreparable damage first. And the war will do just that. He hopes the destruction the great war causes keeps pushing him forward, even out beyond Cybertron. At least then, he won't ever need to face the past and who he used to be. He couldn't recognize himself now if he tried, so he doesn't even try.

I hope I lie And tell everyone you were a good wife And I hope you die I hope we both die

Even though it's clear to him that they hate each other and are not good for each other, Megatron still has some form of loyalty to what he and Orion had. If somehow, someday, someone were to ask him about them, he wouldn’t tell them about all their problems, but instead that they were good together. Maybe if this hypothetical future version of Megatron doesn't mention all the pain their split caused, then maybe it was a little less real. He knows that as long as Optimus is around, he won't be able to stop fighting; he's just too hurt and angry. He wishes Optimus would just die, that they both would.

I hope I cut myself shaving tomorrow I hope it bleeds all day long Our friends say it's darkest before the sun rises We're pretty sure they're all wrong I hope it stays dark forever I hope the worst isn't over And I hope you blink before I do And I hope I never get sober

Soundwave, the only even semi-positive influence on him right now, is the one telling Megatron it's darkest before the sun rises. Soundwave is a true believer in the original cause of the Decepticons, probably the last one in High Command; everyone else is either using the cause as a means to take out their pain (Megatron and Starscream) or as a means to an end (Shockwave). Megatron is finding it harder and harder to believe Soundwave with each passing day, and yet again assumes Optimus is doing the same. He's starting to hope it never ends. He's comfortable with it now; the war fills the hole that his old life left in him. All he really knows is that he can't bring himself to yield to Optimus and doesn't think he ever will. If he did, he wouldn't know what to do with himself.

And I hope when you think of me years down the line You can't find one good thing to say And I'd hope that if I found the strength to walk out You'd stay the hell out of my way

Megatron is hoping that Optimus is suffering too, since he is, and doesn’t want him to feel anything positive through this since he cannot. But at the same time, he’s trying so hard to be a bastard so that it won’t hurt as much. He does still want to speak well of their past if he gets the chance, so some loyalty or fondness remains deep down. If there were good times to look back on, there would be sadness that those times are over. If Optimus has nothing good to say about him, all he would feel is relief that that part of their lives is over.

I am drowning There is no sign of land You are coming down with me Hand in unlovable hand And I hope you die I hope we both die

Megatron can't see any way out of where he's gotten them. To him, there's no path to peace anymore. The only solace Megatron can find is the hope that Optimus falls with him. Even now, the two of their fates must be interlocked, as if it were a universal constant to him - simple common sense. He just wants it to be over, even as he can't bring himself to stop.