#method acting at it's absolutely funniest

[quackle]

i'm so obsessed with this pic like she was so ready to do a whole lot of nothin in this challenge

[damianwaynerocks]

the funniest thing about the batfamily is that they're so smart but they all have zero introspection skills.

the batfamily is smart. so smart. and they deal with the mentally ill population all the time. and most of the time they treat them good! they help them!

i find it absolutely impossible that bruce isn't educated on psychology. there's no way he isn't. no way he hasn't studied psychology, whether it was to understand the joker or any other villains, whether it was to learn how to instill fear, practice for going undercover, hostage negotiation, how to tell the difference between mental health issues and just violent criminals (because he wouldn't know which ones he could talk sense into without understanding why they were doing it), whether it was to learn better methods of interrogation, or even just an interest in how the brain works.

and i guarantee most of the other batkids are too. bruce had to have taught them that so they could learn how to go undercover or how to tell whenever violence is necessary or if you can just talk them down.

dick has a law degree, which means he had to do undergrad. i think it's insane to think that he wouldn't have taken a psychology class. he also was able to understand damian and how to handle him, and he wouldn't be able to do that if he wasn't aware of how his upbringing would've shaped his neural pathways.

tim has a genius level iq. no way he doesn't understand how the brain works. also, he was able to tell that bruce was in a terrible mental state just by observing him as batman, where bruce does everything in his power to hide his emotions. he's also, several times, shown to be one of the only if the not the only batfamily member to understand why jason acts the way he does.

damian likely isn't terribly empathetic to mental health issues. probably a little more now, but not very. but like. he might not be empathetic to it but there's no way he doesn't understand how it works. how the frontal lobe works. how the amygdala works. how to manipulate someone.

stephanie was in college, and just like i said with dick, i find it hard to believe she wouldn't have taken a psychology class.

cass is cass. enough said.

also!! they all have a pretty good relationship with leslia thompkins!! a psychologist!!

all this to say: how on God's green earth do none of them realize they need therapy.

and like i get why. bruce has suppressed his emotions so much that he genuinely think he's fine. dick is too focused on being a support for everyone to worry about himself. jason and stephanie push it all down. cass, and this is not a diss because i love her, would realistically be very emotionally stunted. damian wasn't raised to be empathetic to the mentally ill and even if he was, he's 15. his frontal lobe is so not developed. plus the trauma they've all endured? the training they've had from bruce, who probably wasn't that concerned about teaching them self care and most definitely taught them to put their emotions aside. so like i get it. but also.

they know all this stuff and??? don't for a single second (except for tim that one time) be like "hmmm i could benefit from CBT and EMDR"

except duke.

how is duke the only one who's like "yeah. you guys aren't okay." duke knows. he tries to reason with them and has several times been like "you guys are crazy. why are you chill with this."

which is all to say. i'm convinced that at some point duke is going to try to sit them all down and be like "you guys need therapy. please go to therapy. I'm begging you."

[starlightswordfight]

rescue corps headcanons because I'm insane

(there are many)

– mirror pronouns pom

– that's all I got

– man!!

– Bernard started TALKING in this specific MANNER for the BIT years and years back and now he can't STOP he is STUCK someone HELP him

– he ALSO might be doing it to try to put EMPHASIS on the words he believes should have it and sometimes HE DOES not succeed

– he reads as ADHD coded to me but it might be because I also talk like that so take that with a grain of salt

– "HEY GIRL. I MEAN ANY PRONOUNS"

– Bernard had the most normal home life by far. No contest, won by default. I have a GREAT relationship with both of MY parents because they LOVE me

– he is incredibly observant. alarmingly so. will sometimes act out of the loop on purpose, if he thinks things would just be easier that way. accidentally learns everything about everyone, the guy's an information magnet and he doesn't know how to feel about that

– do you guys think Russ has made a spacesuit with the doc ock arms because I think he has and that he actively uses it on missions

– occasionally jumpscares people and giggles about it. he got the tendency to do this from his mother, who can smell fear

– while I doubt Russ would do things "for the bit" he would ABSOLUTELY act on impulse in the name of the scientific method. this has gotten him hurt before. it's fine

– does not make coffee he just eats the fucking grounds. "it's a Giyan thing, you wouldn't understand" this is not true at all he is LYING

– Russ and Yonny get into frequent arguments (light banter) about literally everything and I mean Everything. They could work together they'd be really powerful that way, but they don't

– Russ has so many genuinely funny science puns that he makes and no one ever gets them and it devastates him

– except for Yonny, who is too busy searching for ethics guideline loopholes to acknowledge that he understands the joke

– Yonny has the most HORRIFIC life stories and will drop them CASUALLY. thought they were funny, is only now beginning to realize that it does in fact make people concerned and uncomfortable when he does that

– prefers paper books to digital because he's prone to headaches!! cites "phone bad book good" as the official reason but that's not the reason

– nonbinary and evil. presentation tends to "default" as masc but switches up often! hey girl I mean any pronouns

– knows like a hundred million dead languages for absolutely no reason

– makes art in his spare time because murder is wrong

– Shepherd sleeps with a nightlight, or at the very least can't rest well in complete darkness!! she's just like me fr !!!!

– "she snores" thank you duncan for your contribution. honk shoe

– also I think she might be autistic I can't fully back that one up do not ask me to but look at her. she cares about dogs the way I care about fish

– prone to coming across the wrong way, tone wise. very very good at giving backhanded compliments that were meant to be fully sincere and just got horribly lost in translation. this keeps her up at night. she feels AWFUL

– big fan of karaoke!! not exactly GOOD at it but we love her initiative

– as afraid as she is of the pikmin, their voices and funny little words are very catchy and she does find herself repeating them often. she will not admit this. it is embarrassing

– Collin is also autistic. I could make an entire separate post on this I'm being so goddamn serious, I have so much reasoning, I am fully confident that he is, and that he masks REALLY hard, and it enormously fucked him up

– special interest in machinery (NO ONE saw THIS coming)

– transmasculine. his name is a pun on "call in." heard the phrase and realized he had the opportunity to do the funniest thing ever

– we only hear about his grandfather, and not even from him; no other family is mentioned at all!! went no contact with like everybody else, above points might be why. people with normal childhoods don't stand like that

– adding onto the canon sleep talking with sleep movement! a LOT of it! has probably kicked someone before!!

– "he wakes up upside down" thank you duncan

– i think maybe Dingo might still have glow stick light up bones. will rediscover this one day during an expedition mishap and it will be an Experience

– not a hc but Dingo is the type of guy to get bit in a zombie apocalypse and not tell anyone until the literal last second

– "he would also say "fuck my stupid baka life"" thank you duncan

– would fight by rolling up his sleeves and jumping around cartoonishly. he would more likely talk like he's winning the fight when he is in fact actively losing. "had enough yet? (on the floor)"

– definitely games and he wins the competitive ones by button mashing. "I'll never tell you my strategy" he prays that's the strategy

– his sleep schedule is NOT normal. it's so beyond skewed. he either gets like 2 hours of sleep or he wakes up the following night not knowing what year it is

[beckmessering]

götterdämmerung’s act ii wedding is objectively hilarious.

behold the reasons.

gutrune tells hagen "rufe minnig die mannen". 'minnig' is v hard to translate, but it can be taken to mean 'lovely'. what does hagen do? he BELLOWS "hoiho! NOT IST DA!" (hoiho! EMERGENCY!). either hagen is exceptionally dramatic or gutrune knew this is hagen's method of calling gibich's men, and she's funnier than we think. i'd vouch for both.

the gibichsmannen (i do not know how to explain the hilarity of the german word 'mannen' in english. it's just funny ok. i personally refer to very much as my own 'mannen') automatically presume gunther has kidnapped someone and his new wife's angry family is in pursuit. that says a lot about marriage conventions.

we get to see a little about how mortals worship gods: by animal sacrifice. unfortunately, we have seen what those gods are up to for three operas. donner? useless. froh? useless no. 2. fricka? sure. she'd LOVE what's going on here. kidnapping women to marry them does seem to be the norm, but brünnhilde is already married. fricka would not like that. the man brünnhilde is married to is - her nephew. fricka is getting a migraine up in walhall as the scene goes on. and WOTAN? yeah SURE the god of "law and contracts" is going to help. since he is profoundly gifted at not getting roped up in bad contracts himself.

(on that note: gunther's "wotan! wende dich her!" (wotan! look upon us!)? gunther, my guy, wotan is not going to do fck-all, as we know from waltraute's scene. the gods have abandoned you, my friend.)

siegfried's "gunther, deinem weib ist übel" (gunther, your wife is ill) is OBJECTIVELY one of the funniest because most unfitting and situationally awkward lines ever. no, siegfried, YOUR wife is ill.

absolutely love how both siegfried and gunther are too stupid to lie that "yeah, i just gave the other guy the ring! that's why it's on his hand now!"

"nun hört genau, was die frau euch klagt" (now listen well to the woman's accusation). i feel like at this point, everyone and their mother (read: gunther and gutrune) should have realised that something about hagen's plan is REALLY off. this entire marriage scheme was almost exclusively his idea. why is he the only one not panicking? why is he instead encouraging everyone to listen to brünnhilde's accusation? especially if he is, as gunther complimented him in the first scene, the smartest among the three half-siblings? heh?

"lasst das weibergekeif!" (quit the women’s nagging!) SEXISM, siegfried.

“dir hilft kein hirn, dir hilft keine hand, dir hilft nur siegfried’s tod” (no brains can help you, no hands can help you, only siegfried’s death will help you) - LEGENDARY line.

"sühn er [siegfried] die schmach, die er mir schuf!" (let him [siegfried] atone for the dishonour he caused me!) listen, i'm all for bashing siegfried, but siegfried didn't bring any dishonour on you, gunther. siegfried currently has no memory of this wife and that, actually, is not necessarily his fault - it's yours (and hagen's).

"uns allen frommt sein [siegfried's] tod" (siegfried's death serves all of us). what do you mean, everyone - hagen, my dear? what is siegfried's death's purpose to you? everyone wonderfully overhears this.

no humour in this but i think it’s absolutely a+ that the thing that ultimately brings down siegfried, greatest of heroes and so on, is a raging woman’s wise counsel. the moment siegfried was truly doomed to death was when brünnhilde told hagen where to wound siegfried.

i feel like hagen's only mistake in this whole scene is revealing the ring's power to gunther. he’s in a great position. brünnhilde has relatively little reason to mistrust him. but, my guy, of course your incompetent brother would want the ring too. hagen could've just emphasised how necessary siegfried's death is to restore gunther's hOnOuR or what, left the ring out of it, and seized it afterwards without much ado.

[seeingivy]

random method acting thoughts + asks

correct. you are absolutely correct. AND I THINK I MENTIONED THIS A FEW TIMES but every time I feel like method acting drama is unrealistic I remember that nicki minaj exists and sleep well at night. MEGAN DEFENDER FOR LIFE

trust. we've got a tweets heavy chapter. and her comeback tweet is so petty I don't even know how we got here but we're here

WAIT UR SO RIGHT. casual E charm around her neck and she's just like yeah what? no i'm not dating him what are you talking about (yes, she is)

thank you so much ☹️ i've been having the worst week (for two weeks in a row) and kind words like this mean so much to me. the headspace has not been the most fun space to be lately (and sometimes I worry that reflects in what I wrote) but i'm glad that it's made you happy and given you that feeling of love. that's all I could hope for and it almost makes me teary eyed that some shred of that is still there even when i'm not feeling the best 💌

here are my random thoughts:

connie has the online presence of tik tok user @/nmillz. like him single handedly reviving all in my head (flex) by fifth harmony (PLEASE TELL ME YOU'VE SEEN IT) is the funniest thing ever and even the way he talks/what he talks about reminds me of method acting connie 😭

this is so random but mentally in my head, I associate some of the characters with like real celebrities and influencers in terms of aesthetic and vibe, which i've seen some readers do which is so interesting cuz our picks are never the same

like y/n in my head is olivia rodrigo coded. like her having a specific brand (very romantic, lovey dovey) when she was on disney channel (and maybe was asked to lean into really hard) as opposed to guts/sour which is so.....emotional/ jealously/rock that's kind of the vibe I get from that character (or at least where we are headed)

historia in terms of aesthetic/character is sabrina carpenter and taylor swift. sabrina carpenter in terms of aesthetics/looks (she is very much the beauty standard, the dream girl, nonsense outros) and in terms of character is taylor swift? like she's a relatable but there's a part of her that's always going to be untouchable (for taylor that's just cuz I think she's a billionaire/very detached from reality, but for the character that just stems from being so deep in the whole industry type thing that she kind of forgets what matters sometimes)

gabi in general reminds me of billie eilish, in terms of where her character will go. I wanted to include the real life hate that gabi as a character got in the show into the story, but I also feel like that hate sometimes is given to billie eilish. to the point where when she wins grammy's she's apologizing bc she feels like she doesn't deserve it, but at the end of the day...she's one of the most talented artists in our generation? what was I made for? bad guy? happier than ever? they were all phenomenal. gabi can be a great actress but she'll never feel like it!

sukuna and y/n give zendaya and timothee vibes. eren and lana give bradley cooper and emma stone in the variety actors on actors interview.

falco and gabi are walter scobell and leah sava jefferies in terms of dynamic and vibes. I will die on this hill.

eren and y/n are andrew garfield/emma stone (ref: she was like a shot of espresso), danielle galligan/calahan skogman (ref: matching tattoos), daisy ridley jones/paul mescal (ref: undeniable SOMETHING)

hyla just has kardashians/nicki minaj level audacity. like kim wearing a purple dress and posting a story w/ speak now...nicki minaj ai generated diss track like that's her.

[drabbles-of-writing]

For the actor AU, how does Hunter feel about him and Willow and their interactions on script? I keep getting this mental image that he is just an absolute DISASTER around Willow off-screen, the poor guy can handle acting on camera with no problems but becomes a flustered mess the moment Willow is on set

Cracks my knuckles. I came up with a few different ideas around Hunter and Willow. Predictably, I chose the one I thought was the funniest.

Hunter and Willow get along very well. They're buddies! Both of them haven't been acting very long so they gotta stick together! The friendship on screen was scripted but it went way smoother than anticipated due to genuine friendship off-set. The romance arc was one planned to happen later on and something to be wrapped up near the end of the show, it just had to get worked around bc y'know. cancellation.

Hunter was prepared for this! He was! He was totally cool and not at all flustered or embarrassed in the weeks coming up to when they would get those scripts and start acting those scenes. He's never acted this before. But he figures, okay, this is fine. His method of acting is often through associating with events and emotions he's familiar with, a sort of "here's how I think I would react if this was real, here's how I expect to see how this reaction would look on another person, and now I just...amplify it" and this is already slightly veering into iffy territory, and its Hunter so, y'know, he does it to a bit of an unhealthy degree before hes knocked out of it. but right then the game plan is: think about what its like to act with a crush. act with a crush.

He has no fucking idea how to act like he has a crush. Not a one. Gus finds him losing his mind over it in the breakroom. Never had a crush! So, he has zero idea what the hell he's doing. Every time he tries to follow the exact script it feels robotic to him, and when he tries the ol' "act like those other characters on tv" it never feels like it fits. like its a bad kind of awkward or clumsy or what have you. mans doesn't know how to act like he has a crush on his cool friend and even before he realized this he was a mess over it. Willow is very nice but she also bullies his ass into the ground about it. He expected nothing less.

So, he researches. Lottsss and lots of research. Digs around a bit. Goes on a full like week-long spree of trying to get this down. He can nail practically every other role, he can do this. It's weirding him out that he can't. Something just out of reach that isn't clicking and he Needs To Find It Right Now.

This is how Luz finds him, a week later, laying on his back in the dressing room, script strewn out around him, phone abandoned on the floor, staring blank-eyed at the ceiling. She sheepishly asks if he's okay. He slowly turns his head to her, the eyes of a man whos gone through the depths of hell to find something precious to him only to realize that precious thing was just hidden under a box in his bed and he went through the horrors for reasons he truly did not have to do. He stares at her and says, slowly; "I think I don't like....people"

And that is how Hunter realizes hes aroace, thank you and goodnight

[gallopinggallifreyans]

I saw your tags on the arrow post and I would very much like to learn about the eye surgery thing but from your words bc I feel like I’ll learn in a more fun way than from googling it would u mind sharing?

Absolutely I will share thank you for asking this is one of the funniest things I've ever experienced in this particular class actually, which is really saying something because this was a class on archaic and classical Greece taught by a millennial, so you already know it’s wild as hell.

For a little bit of context, Phil loses his eye between 355 and 354. Up until that point, it’s been about 150 years of near constant tension, save for the 20 odd years between the end of the Persian War and the start of the Peloponnesian War (which is really just two wars strung together by a joke of a detente—I can tell you more about it another time). Athens lost the Pelop war, Sparta won, Sparta starts a hegemony, Lysander of Sparta installs oligarchies, Sparta Does Not Like That, Thebes comes in and starts their own hegemony, Macedon Does Not Like That, and Phil goes on a campaign to conquer Greece, and he’s got a preeeetty strong claim.

So there’s a whole lot of fighting. As you might figure, war comes with injuries, and if warriors wanted to live they had to figure out how to fix themselves before the infections got them. At this point in time, they're using missile weapons. Not like, actual modern style rocket missiles—I'm talking stones and arrows. One of these arrows found its way into Phil's eye, and this happened around 355–354, so like, ten years before Macedon's rise to real power in the Greek world, during Phil’s campaign around Greece.

There was this guy called Diocles who was a surgeon in Phil’s army, and surgeons didn’t actually do the surgeries themselves (sometimes they did but I can’t point out specific statistics, it’s not my field and I never went looking) but most of the time they would just hold the patient’s head and shoulders and direct assistants in the surgery. I can’t remember the actual reason for this and I could also have some facts mixed up, so don’t quote me on that specific bit.

Anyways, Phil had an arrow in his eye. Diocles had a spoon (pictured below). Phil was probably drugged up with unmixed wine and some other fancy plants used to get high because their version of anesthetics was alcomahol and weed (or alcohol and weed adjacent). Fast acting pain relief and all, except it doesn’t relieve pain it just inhibits like, all your pain receptors so you don’t feel anything until a day later and then you’re cussing out your surgeon.

^that’s the spoon, it was meant for removing arrows. The hole in the middle is where you’d stick the shaft of the arrow through, so you’d press the back of the spoon against the wound, and then lever the arrow out. It sounds a little impractical and there’s not a whole lot of information but from what it looks like you can infer pretty well how it’s supposed to work.

Diocles removed the arrow from Phil’s eye with that spoon, and along with the arrow, he removed Phil’s eye. There’s some mention about an eyestalk in some text somewhere, I’d have to double check in my copy of Arrian, but I won’t go into that because it’s irrelevant and kinda gory.

So now, there’s about fifteen of us in this class, and, keep in mind that we’re all or mostly in our early twenties, which means we have verbal filters made of single ply toilet paper, and our professor is this millennial guy who regularly dresses like Charlie Swan from Twilight. Flannel and all. Truly one of my favourite professors.

We’re all so morbidly curious about ancient surgery, so we derail the class into a nice long discussion about known surgical methods and hypothetical surgical methods. Someone picks up on the fact that quite a few tools looked like modified cutlery (see: the spoon of Diocles). Someone else suggests unconventional methods of surgery, like a pneumatic contraption for bloodletting. A third person suggests combining the two into a straw, and then proceeds to detail how Diocles might have used a straw to yank Phil’s eyeball out.

My professor hears this, acknowledges this, and in true millennial new dad fashion goes, “Oh, like a boba!”

And I lost it. I told my entire family that story and received varying degrees of approval.

And that’s it! @androgynyispunkashell I’m sorry for taking so long to answer but I hope this was funny and (at least somewhat) informative!

[fitzembarrassingmoments]

Stretchy x Stripy headcanons because it's my blog and I can be as self indulgent as I want <3

(Proshippers/NSFW/minors dni pls)

Stretchy

He doesn't really have any sort of alignment either way, but he's definitely on the receiving end of tickles more often than not, and he usually prefers that

He gets lots of cheer up tickles because of how grumpy he gets >:]

Also usually has to be tickled into taking breaks since he tends to overwork himself

His worst spot is his neck. He usually risks getting a knot in it again because of how bad he squirms sometimes

The fact that he's 90% neck doesn't make this any better lol

Stripy absolutely takes advantage of this and gives him neck kisses just to hear him laugh >:]

His sides and under his arms are really bad too

His laugh varies so much!! He can go from just giggling to full on cackling and wheezing in under a minute lol

Stripy is always telling him how adorable he is and that his laugh is the cutest thing he's ever heard

He tries so hard to deny it though (but he absolutely melts at being told he's cute)

Also his antennas are hyper sensitive and he has an absolute giggle fit if tickled there and Stripy thinks it's the funniest thing ever >:]

On the rare occasion that he does get revenge on Stripy, he's such a playful ler despite the way he acts normally :D

He's never rough with Stripy though since he knows he can't handle rough tickles (also he's just never rough in general because he doesn't want to hurt anyone on accident)

Teasing is so hard for him to do because he's usually too busy laughing along with Stripy lol

His go-to method is to stretch his neck around and nuzzle Stripy from behind (his normal go-to method in my opinion is raspberries but, again, he doesn't like to be too rough with Stripy)

After he's finished he's quick to make sure Stripy's okay and that he didn't go too far with him (Stripy always assures him that he's okay tough <3)

Stripy

He also doesn't have any sort of alignment, but he's usually on the giving end rather than the receiving end

He loves seeing Stretchy smiling and laughing!! He does everything he can to see and hear it (which is mostly achieved by tickling him lol)

He compliments Stretchy a lot when he's tickling him. He just goes on and on about how adorable and handsome his husband is

Meanwhile Stretchy is a giggling mess lol

He's such a sweet, gentle ler :] He's gentle with Stretchy since he doesn't want to hurt him or stress his out

If he wants Stretchy's attention or thinks that he needs a break, Stripy will sneak up from behind, wrap his arms around him and then slowly start scribbling along his stomach and sides (and it works every single time >:])

As soon as Stretchy says he's had enough, he's quick to stop and make sure he's okay. The two usually end up cuddling afterwards

He's also happy to be on the receiving end from time to time!!

He doesn't like rough tickles. Thankfully Stretchy is always gentle with him

His worst spots are his stomach, around his ears and his hips

His laugh is very pleasant sounding. It's usually so quiet and deep sounding you can't really hear it, but when it is audible, while it is still a bit quiet sounding, it just sounds genuinely happy :]

He doesn't squirm, but he does cover his face sometimes when he laughs (Stretchy thinks this is the cutest thing ever btw)

Him and Stretchy do have small tickle fights from time to time

Stripy usually wins them btw

Stretchy get so flustered at seeing Stripy laugh!! <:]

When Stretchy starts getting scared that he'll accidentally hurt him, Stripy assure him that he's okay that he did good <3

[shkrimpies]

Family Gae

This movie really was something.

I feel like the humor was something I did not really understand, maybe because of social differences in Japan and the United Sates or because of the differences in humor in different generations.

That is not to say I did not intensely enjoy this movie, however I cannot confirm if what I found humorous was intended to be humorous, or I just thought was goofy.

I thought the dynamic between Shigeyuki and Yoshimoto was particularly poignant, Yoshimoto acts as a father figure and also (possibly) as a figure of another type of "love" and I feel like not directly distinguishing the two not only intensifies the overall emotions felt by both the characters and the viwer, but it also gives nuance and ickyness of the movie. Shigeyuki never addresses his sexuality until after he meets Yoshimoto, but because it is ABSOLUTELY forced it makes it really nasty nasty, but I belive that's an intentional action made by the directors to criticize the objectification of younger people.

I found it interesting that each character had a distinct way of eating, synonymous to how they act in the movie. Ms.Numata, the mom, eats very quietly and methodically, much like how she is in the movie when she is making her crafts, or when speaking to people. Shinichi takes up a lot of space, often bumping into his younger brother, similarly to how he is always in his brother's business. Mr.Numata, the father is just always consuming, never satisfied. He is also never satisfied with his children or wife, constantly complaining about the job they do and expecting more. Yoshimoto eats with lots of intensity and noise, just how he is in the movie. Shigeyuki eats very quietly and slowly, just like how he acts around his family. Shigeyuki is the only person to really change the way he eats throughout the movie, excluding the scene where they all go crazy. In the scenes where the family eats together, Shigeyuki's eating habits begin to show him as more pronounced and present the more he begins to internalize the "lessons" his tutor is giving him.

I like how they personified the family dynamic falling apart by having the family throw food at each other, and by having the tutor start this event was also intentional, and a very interesting decision made by the director.

Also the scene with the two of them learning to fight and the telescope was the funniest scene in my opinion.

[destiniesfic]

Okay, y’all. Let’s talk about the role the Starless One played in Rule of Wolves. Spoilers follow:

To start off, as a disclaimer, this was written with people who already like the Darkling in mind. (I’m not up for litigating whether you should or shouldn’t like him; he’s a very fun, very bad man and I make no apologies.) I was talking to a couple of people in a Discord who said that they wished he’d never been brought back in the first place, and I disagree! But to explain why, we’ll have to dive into...

~*~his arc~*~

Now, an appropriate reaction to that is really, well, “What arc?” The Darkling is extremely static from the time we meet him in The Grisha Trilogy through his resurrection—in fact, the only time we see him make any major change is when he drops his pretense of seduction, and that’s just the removal of a mask. His goals and his methods are always consistent, they escalate, and then he dies for it. There is no arc, because this story isn’t his, it’s Alina’s. Alina has an arc, and it’s tied up very neatly at the end of Ruin and Rising.

Rule of Wolves gives him a little more to chew on, because Rule of Wolves, for a brief moment, realizes a fear that Aleksander has had for a very long time. It’s one of the first things that he says to Alina in Shadow and Bone: “The age of Grisha Power is coming to an end.” And finally, he sees that it’s happened. He gathers his followers, goes to the battlefield, and plans to stage his grand return, only to find that, as he predicted, the day has come when technology has outpaced him and he is powerless.

Except! That actually doesn’t mean the age of Grisha Power is at an end. It is a Grisha who saves everyone, just a different one. He ends up throwing his weight behind the people who can ensure that Grisha Power will be feared and respected, even though they’re from the band of plucky heroes that assembled to defeat him, and that’s gross. But a Grisha queen now sits on the throne of Ravka. Aleksander fought a war for that. It isn’t him, but, shockingly, that doesn’t matter. He is very old and it’s hard to move the needle with him, but it has moved very, very slightly—enough for him to take that macro win without sabotaging it because he’s not the one in charge. 

And then because he absolutely must remain the center of attention, he saves the world.

During their conversation, Alina tells him, “It’s not too late for you.” He dismisses her out of hand, not just once, but again in his POV chapter. And although he has no interest in making amends on a personal level, although he is acting in a way that he claims is internally consistent with his ideology, although he is trying to preserve his legacy, although he won’t be saved, he does something we haven’t seen him do.

He steps aside, so everyone else can live.

(And it is the funniest non-redemption arc I’ve ever seen, so I’m into keeping it for peak comedy alone. Imagine being dragged to your own redemption screaming that you’re not sorry.)

[mooshys]

I will forever and always regard tendou as the funniest hq character because he just seems like the kind of person who goes to the extreme for any joke or punchline. like, he will methodically plan out these month long jokes for his friends, string everyone along, and accurately execute them... for example... tendou would tell you in september about so-and-so's halloween party and that he needs a plus one. you agree. another week passes and he suggests that you two wear some sort of cute matching costume situation. he says "how about I be an angel and you be a devil! super easy!" and you're like "oh that would be so funny and cute since people would expect you to be the devil!" (yanno, cause he's a menace to society)... after that, you two go shopping for costumes and he tells you to buy an all red outfit with generic horns, a pitchfork, and a tail. though, he doesn't buy anything for himself. he justifies this by saying that he's going to make his costume at home. you don't question him. the day of the party comes and and he knocks on your door to pick you up. you open it. your jaw drops. tendou is standing there dressed as an angel. a biblically accurate angel. he's got interlocking golden hoops with millions of realistic eyes etched onto them along with two pairs of black wings intertwined and, to make things worse, he's wearing an all black morph suit. he's absolutely horrifying. you're unable to say anything and you can't really scold him because... he technically is an angel. his first words upon seeing you are "DO NOT BE AFRAID" in a deep doomsday voice. but this does nothing because you are afraid. very afraid. and you aren't the only one. children on the street shriek and cry upon seeing him. the rest of the people at the party actively avoid him except for ushijima who came in his volleyball uniform. he tells people that you and him have matching couple's costumes. no one believes him. you're mad because you've been bamboozled. tendou teases that you should have been more specific with the costumes, but really he knew what he was doing all along. you're a fool in his eyes. every time he looks at you he's got a "ha got 'em" glint that makes you seethe.

and, to act as the cherry on top of his entire plan, tendou ends up winning scariest costume of the night.

[hekatekun]

Hi again!! How did you come up with Atsushi's personality and what got you interested in him?

hiii 💖

I 100% blame @hjarnrota and @boooooooooooooooooehbaaaa for any atsushi-related decisions in my writing. I'd wanted to write a todomatty/atsutodo fic for a hot minute but I just couldn't find any inspo on atsushi and nothing I saw of other fanwork got my attention until they altered my brain chemistry with this and this and then anything involving todomatty being a bitch I 🥰 ESPECIALLY the 1st oh my god. i wrote a scene of the final chapter for that 1 fic bc of it. legit ruined me. also i love fat atsushi (fatsushi) my beloved absolutely amazing. so not to quote myself but

1.) I don't feel like pulling it up but the episode in s3 but that kinda jokey skit where he's gonna jump off a building i think bc of life pressures? which is like. ok well that can be anything i won't lie but like he's a well-off (probably) office worker with a girlfriend? anyway

for a bit of my own fun (I need to double check this) I'm pretty sure the very very very tiny christain population in japan is often upper class so *inserts catholicism* and well there's also this i found

AGAIN need to double-check but atsushi I Believe is also a term used ironically for those types of "nice guys." And I'm soooo sick of the "nice rich guy is secretly an evil heartless bastard" trope like yes we get it everyone making at least 6 figures is a snake. However instead of being another bitchy high maintenance gay man what if he was just. Depressed. Felt compelled to be a nice guy/good boyfriend because of the need to meet expectations/make up for shortcomings (#gay). He's got rich only child written all over him to me. Not that he can't be bitchy but it's less about making a scene and just rolling his eyes to himself 🙄 babygirl what goes on in your office politics I need to know

TLDR: acting as a foil to todomatty in a sense of internalizing all his negative emotions/experiences instead of the patented "I'm making my problem everyone else's" matsuno method. And some catholicism on the side purely for my own amusement

2.) Any introduced ososan characters need to be at least a little bit insane to keep up a the energy of the rebooted osokun cast. If todomattys a high maintenance bitch at first glance but is just Some Dude Who Wants To Dick around I think atsushi is a normie who's actually a bit off his rocker and also earnest about his interests. And he has money to support them! Gundams ain't cheap. Also being a nerd would piss off todomatsu and that's what I find funniest of all

3. Again what with the fanart and all and also yet another dude performing comphet 🙄 rich only child = expectations = wouldn't it be funny as hell if he was a mommy's boy? Imagine going out with all the nice daughters your mom's rich friends have. Something ente blew my mind with is that he plays lavender husband with aida they're just longtime bffs who don't wanna be gay 💆💆 alsooooo I think todomatty would have a thing for bigger guys and it'd piss him off. Imagine being a stereotypical effeminate gay man and it pains you that you also have a thing for bigger seemingly normie dudes. Genre self awareness he knows the bitch well and he'll still play into its traps <3

[onepickyreader]

Favorite DekuBaku fanfics (32 fanfics)

HELLO. SO. I did a list of my favorite doujinshi here. Just know that I usually read only complete stories, so these are all complete! I also tend to love angst mixed with fluff, long stories, and protective!Izuku (and BIG SPOON IZUKU). 

I also love LOVE gen fics, so I am going to add gen fics that have some interesting interactions between Izuku and Bakugou at the end of the list. 

ALSO, please, check the tags and the ratings. Many of these stories might be for a teen up audience, or be directly nsfw. 

The AWWW fics (school edition)

be loved: after Kamino, Bakugou doesn’t like people touching his neck, so Izuku decides to help. This is one of my favorite stories, also because of all the other characters that appear in it and try to understand what is going on between Izuku and Bakugou.

the floor ain't so bad (when you're looking up): Bakugou and Izuku start to train together almost every night. This has so much angst and fluff and adorable feelings.

everybody wants to be a cat: I adored this story because it uses the “Bakugou gets hit by a cat quirk” so well. This is tagged as KiriBaku and DekuBaku and can also be read as gen or pre any of those relationships. Some adorable misunderstandings in the story as well!

(more under cut)

the great katsuki bakugou textmergency: This story is hilarious and adorable. Bakugou figures out he is in love with Deku, and decides to text it to Kirishima for support, except that he accidentally sends it to Izuku. Featuring, the Bakusquad trying to delete the text from Deku’s phone, and the Dekusquad helping!

katsuki bakugou is incapable of love. or so they thought: the whole class starts to see some weird things happening between Izuku and Bakugou and they decide to investigate.

diversion tactic: Deku and Bakugou are following a villain, and Deku pulls the old “kiss as a diversion tactic”.

too much at stake but too late to change: the classic “test turned bad” (in a snowy mountain), where Izuku and Bakugou have to work together to get back to safety.

izuku midoriya’s ultimate plan to woo kacchan: featuring a lot of misunderstandings, and a less than helpful All Might, this story is the funniest thing!

dry lips: this is adorable (also it is explicit) and funny at the same time. Established relationship, where Izuku doesn’t know how to tell Bakugou that kissing doesn’t have to be a fight.

izuku has a crush on the hot guy in class: Izuku is hit by an amnesia quirk and he forgets Bakugou. Now he has to find out what the relationship between them used to be (also at the end he gets his memory back, no worries!).

the art of saying you’re sorry: Bakugou tries to find a way to apologize, Izuku is just convinced something is wrong because Bakugou is acting weird.

The AWWW fics (pro heroes edition) - established

flats, thigh straps, and bdidge-wide gaps: Bakugou and Izuku start dating and end up moving together. (featuring adorable domesticity and Izuku misunderstandings)

with loving hands: Established relationship, nightmares and panic attacks.

once upon a time an instagram story: established relationship, where the public finds out about the relationship between Ground Zero and Deku.

okaeri: adorable fluff and domesticity.

take care: Izuku figures out Bakugou’s love languages (to quote the story:  Emotional constipation manifested as over-the-top housewifery)

The AWWW fics (pro heroes edition) - getting together

volume: this can be also read as gen. Bakugou starts to loose his hearing. Izuku starts to learn sign language. Also, they are the action wonder duo of hero society.

the scientific method: GUYS. This is my all time favorite, I reread it like once a week. It has so many feelings mixed in it. Izuku’s pov, where he has a thing for tears and in particular Bakugou’s tears. Mind the tags, this has d/s themes.

i just can’t pretend we were lovers first: because of a misunderstanding, Deku has to ask Bakugou to pretend to be his boyfriend. This is a series, with the first story complete (and can be read as a stand alone). It also has explicit scenes, so read the tags and rating. Plus, asexual Bakugou, which is one of my favorite headcanons.

and it all keeps coming back to you: Bakugou is still a virgin because he never really cared for sex before. Now he has decided that Deku is strong and worthy enough to be his first time. Features: the bakusquad, accidental dating, feelings.

percentages and probabilities: now pro heroes, Bakugou and Midoriya end up accidentally becoming neighbours. 

four times bakugou katsuki doesn't intend to sleep with midoriya izuku (and the one time that he does): The title says it all. This has a lot of ignored feelings and trying not to talk about feelings, and sex.

Heroes action and violence

abscod: this can also be read as gen! Where Bakugou finds himself kidnapped once more, and really just needs to see Deku again. Check the tags, this has blood!

the absolute truth: Bakugou is kidnapped by a hero with a truth quirk, and his bullying of Deku (plus All Might secret) risks getting out to the public. This has a lot of violence, and just read the tags before starting the story (it’s not exactly DekuBaku). But the good thing is that it has the comfort part of h/c as well.

Some OT3s

jack of all hearts: TodoBakuDeku. Bakugou doesn’t really believe he fits very well in this relationship him, Todoroki and Izuku are sharing, plus he insists he doesn’t love Todoroki.

Alternate Universes (no quirks)

room 1217: college au + soulmates. I usually don’t read AU for BakuDeku because what I like of this pairing is their angsty history. Thankfully, this story keeps their history! Bakugou used to bully Izuku for not having a soulmate mark. Now in college, they end up becoming roommates after years apart.

bluebird: modern au. Bakugou calls a friend to rant about his job, and accidentally calls a stranger (Izuku). They start a friendship and flirting made of texts and calls. This has misunderstandings and angst and it is absolutely lovely. Plus, poetry,

Gen stories (be mindful of the tag, most of them have violence/blood)

scortch: Bakugou is captured by someone who wants to make him pay for his pride at the Sport Festival.

our hero: This starts with the class finding out about Bakugou and Izuku’s past, and ends up in villains attacking, and Mina and Bakugou finding themselves trapped and wounded under the ground.

put on your war paint: Izuku and Bakugou working together against a villain.

it’s so easy (to leave me): Izuku and Bakugou stop some robberers and end up trapped underground, with an injured Deku.

your hands protect the flame: this has hints of KiriBaku, and a lot of Deku and Bakugou as their weird friends/enemies thing. This has STRONG TRIGGER WARNINGS (r*pe. assault), so read them before deciding to start the story. Bakugou is assaulted by a villain when he chases after him alone, the story is about his recovery.

[needs-to-stop-looking-at-yigas]

But consider this: Kohga and Sooga DO cook together and it’s romantic as shit

I can't relate, i don't want any bitch in the kitchen with me, but fuck it, I'll try.

"This is oddly sweet if you, Master Kohga."

"Up up up, don't you start."

Von had caught a NASTY cold during a recent mission, and as such, he was bedridden. He was going to live, but not without some suffering. And Master Kohga decided to be just a sweetheart, making him his favorite pork dumpling soup. Sooga chuckled.

"But it's honestly...cute. You act so tender-"

"Will you SHUT the fuck up?"

"Depends, can I help you?"

"No, no, god no. Just. Stand there."

Sooga wanted to laugh as Kohga pointed a finger at him. Such anger on such a pretty face. He leaned down to his level, hands on his hips.

"But all I can do while standing, is talk. If I was busy COOKING, I'd be far more silent."

Kohga grumbled bitterly, before throwing his arms in the air.

"OH MY GOD, FINE. Get a goddamn apron."

Kohga was just embarrassed to show he cared so much for one of his blademasters. Sooga slipped on his apron, and gave his hands a good washing, before looking at the spread before them.

"Many ingredients here. Where do we start?"

"Cut up the green onions, the chestnuts, mushrooms. Cut the mushrooms nice and thin, same with the chestnuts."

"Like...this?"

"Oh my god no- that's thick you fuckhead, let me show you."

Kohga held onto his hand, helping him maneuver in order to show him how to cut.

"There. Thin. See?"

"...You’re SO handsome, Master Kohga."

"Oh my fucking god."

Kohga smacked his forehead, shaking his head as he turned on the stove, and started the broth. Sooga started to chop like he asked, occasionally watching him make the soup. Fish sauce, white pepper, chicken broth, chicken bullion, sesame oil, salt, and Shaoxing wine. He watched as he added things, tasted, added things, tasted. It was incredible, being able to watch the process.

"Master Kohga?"

"What?"

"I know you act defensive, but...I think it's very kind of you, to do this for him."

"Yeah well. Makes me feel less guilty, sending him out in the snow like that. So it's selfish, all thing's considered."

Sooga finished cutting everything, before turning to his Master, head cocked.

"The way you think is as pessimistic as it is fascinating, Master Kohga."

"What are you going on about?"

"I just. I like hearing you talk. You don't hesitate in your thoughts. I...wish I had that kind of courage."

Kohga took another sip of the broth, before pointing his spoon at Sooga.

"Hey hey hey. None of that shit. You're brave, especially given what you've been through. You talk shit about yourself again, I'm gonna yell at you for life."

Sooga grabbed the spooned hand, pulling Kohga close to his chest.

"I welcome that VERY much, Master Kohga~"

Every once and a while, KOHGA was the one to act all bashful. And when he did, he was truly a sight to behold. Not liking being swooned like this, he smacked Sooga on the head with the spoon, making him let Kohga go. Sooga rubbed his head as Kohga pulled out the dumpling sheets.

"Just. God, shut up, help me fill these. Remember, tablespoon, and-"

"Oh wait wait wait! I can do this, I remember!"

Sooga eagerly gathered a tablespoon of the mix (the ingredients he cut up, alongside ground pork), added it to the sheet, dipped his finger in water, and carefully shut it. Sooga looked at his dumpling, then at Master Kohga.

"I did it! Look! Master Kohga look!"

"Congratulations. Took you five minutes to make one fucking dumpling."

The disappointment must've been evident on his face, as Master Kohga reeled it back a bit.

"Er, I mean. Good job. You're getting a LOT better at this. Soon enough you'll be making pork dumplings till you're sick of 'em."

"With you as my teacher? Never. Not in any lifetime."

Kohga rolled his eyes, before snatching the dumpling from his hand. They sat in a comfortable silence as they made dumplings together, letting the air waft with the scent of the delicious broth.

"And last one. Okay, now, we're gonna boil these in this pot of water next to it."

"Why not in the broth?"

"It'll taste too much like the soup itself. Its already gonna soak in there, boiling it is overkill. And I add super special spices to the pork as it is."

"And they are?"

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you."

"Do I get to pick my method?"

That made Kohga chuckle. He nodded as he added the dumplings to the steaming pot, covering them, and putting a timer on his slate.

"You know what, sure. What WOULD be your method?"

"Sitting on my face till I suffocate."

Kohga picked a bad time to take a sip of wine. He spat it out, covering his mouth right after. Sooga reacted as if he was hurt, immediately looking panicked.

"Master Kohga are-"

"No, shut up, you don't get to fucking be that funny, go to hell."

Master Kohga planted himself face first in his chest, banging his fists against him. Sooga snorted, finding the abrubt reaction just the absolute funniest thing."

"Master Kohga you're wheezing-"

"I'm going to kill you. They're never gonna find the fucking body."

They both sat there like idiots, wheezing and shaking and tearing up. Sooga leaned against a counter, using himself as support for Kohga. It wasn’t until the timer went off, that they FINALLY pulled away from each other. Kohga wiped his teary cheeks, shaking his head.

"Oh my god. Fucking shit, everything hurts. Let's finish this, I fucking hate you."

"I love you too, Master Kohga."

Kohga spooned the broth into a large bowl, added a good amount of dumplings, and added green onions. It was a beautiful bowl of soup. Kohga sighed.

"There, done. Von should be here any second to get it."

"You're wonderful. So kind, so vibrant, so beautiful. I see it in your food."

"Shut...up."

Kohga chuckled. Somehow Sooga had pinned him between him and the counter top. And SOMEHOW, Sooga had found his lips onto his, with his hands caressing his sides. Total slip up. Kohga giggled, about ready for Sooga to eat HIM up, when they both heard a groan. Von, covered in his blanket, looking SO tired and done with life, gestured to them, then his dinner.

"Are you serious? Right in front of my soup?"

[authenticdesperation]

A Review of Every Single Episode of Inside No. 9 [2/2]

Disclaimer: my opinions are not definitive but they are bloody good. There may be spoilers so read at your own risk. This is the final part of my pointless little project. You can see the first part here.

Series 4

1. Zanzibar

This is my mum’s favourite episode. I read about it being written in iambic pentameter and was initially worried that it would feel gimmicky, but it’s done so seamlessly it feels like you’re enjoying a modern Shakespeare play. It’s funny and lighthearted with some great references peppered around. The colour scheme of the set is so aesthetically pleasing and the directing was, in my opinion, impeccable. 

2. Bernie Clifton’s Dressing Room

I love seeing Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith acting opposite each other with such an intimate storyline. The ending is bittersweet and appears as another lovely examination of grief, but in a far less bleak way as it has been seen before. Among much more complex storytelling methods, this episode is more paired down and that is far from a criticism. 

3. Once Removed

Now this is a clever one. The reverse chronology is a fascinating setup that is initially quite confusing but truly genius. Shoutout to Reece for playing an assassin that probably could have quit while he was ahead at some point. It’s also one of the most creative locations of the “No. 9″ as the final ten minute segment shows.

4. To Have and to Hold

I am probably the best audience member for Inside No. 9 as I do not think, I just let Steve and Reece drag me around with the stories and I try not to predict the endings. As a result, this episode hit me like a freight train. Initially, I felt like it was an episode that was moving fairly slowly and was simply a look at an unhappy marriage; I did not expect a Josef Fritzl situation. The marriage vows are a creative way to separate the scenes that lull you into a sense of security to begin with. Honestly, I can’t look at Pot Noodles in the same way. 

5. And the Winner Is... 

Okay. This is my least favourite episode of Inside No. 9. While it’s not necessarily a bad episode, it’s one I often find to be rather unremarkable. However, on the far more positive side, there are some great funny moments and Zoë Wanamaker is a particularly delightful presence. 

6. Tempting Fate

And we are back on the comfortable praise train from the mild criticism carriage. My mum and I decided to actively look for the hare that is in the background of every episode during the first time watching Tempting Fate. Imagine how irritated we were. Mild bitterness at the hare placement aside, I think this episode is brilliant. It’s funny and clever and the setting of the flat truly feels like the home of a hoarder. There’s something genuinely sad about the setting: a council flat filled with miscellaneous crap (it must have been fun to dress that set). A final note is that the sound of the rat made my cat want to fight the TV.

Bonus: Dead Line

Watching this episode on BBC iPlayer does not make it hit as hard as seeing it live would have been, but it did not stop me falling for it hook, line and sinker. I am, to this day, completely furious with Steve and Reece for baffling the living shit out of me the first time I watched this episode. The whole thing is absolutely glorious and it’s always nice to see comedy veteran Stephanie Cole.

Series 5

1. The Referee’s a Wanker

I do not understand football and nor do I care to, but I do enjoy this episode. First, I have to give credit to the costume department for making Mitch’s mascot outfit look like all animals and none at the exact same time. Then I would like it to be noted that I live for gay shit and, as a result, love this episode. I think this episode is one of the funniest with a nod to genuine issues of being openly queer in sport. Though somehow Reece Shearsmith seems to be playing the gayest character in the room, but more on that later. 

2. Death Be Not Proud

There are two things I love: Psychoville and John Donne poetry. This episode has both of those things. It also has terrifying hoover placement, a dreadful pun about babies and bathwater and references to serial killers that I understood to a disturbing degree. Watching this episode with people who haven’t seen Psychoville is interesting: they understood it, but the sense of humour wasn’t to the taste of my dad who found it too dark at points. I, meanwhile, think the episode is fun and ridiculous. Extra points for the dance number. 

3. Love’s Great Adventure

A blink-and-you-miss-it twist. I blinked and I missed it the first time but happily I’ve watched it another two times since the first so I now fully understand the plot. The use of the advent calendar is another clever visual choice, and Guillem Morales’ (a director I expressed my admiration for in the last post) choices in this episode feel ever so slight Ken Loach-esque. There’s a familiarity among the cast that makes them incredibly believable as a family. Simple and deeply effective.

4. Misdirection

Reece, your magic nerdiness is showing. The setup of the flashbacks early on really settle you into the style of the episode as a viewer and I think that Misdirection holds the record for the earliest Steve’s character has been killed off (and in quite a brutal way as well). The entire concept of the episode is a real winner and I could rant about the directing choices for hours - which my friends and family can attest to. 

5. Thinking Out Loud

Do I have some dubious feelings on this episode due to the stereotypical portrayal of dissociative identity disorder? Yes. Do I feel that Maxine Peake’s character is completely justified in her crime? Absolutely. Steve directed this episode solo and an impressive job he made of it as well: making what is essentially a series of talking heads interesting is no mean feat. Shoutout to the character of Galen for making me jump so much; Inside No. 9 is not good for my blood pressure.

6. The Stakeout

At no point while watching this episode did I predict the twist. It felt so out of left field it took me a while to appreciate The Stakeout for what it was. Now, I appreciate the peppering of clues you get throughout and the dynamic between the characters. Bonus points if you caught what the name ‘Varney’ is a reference to before I did, which was about thirty seconds ago when I started writing this review. 

Series 6

WARNING - The reviews for this series will have excessive use of the words ‘fruity’ and ‘camp’. As a gay man, I feel confident in my assessment of characters as such.

1. Wuthering Heist

Right, when I first saw this episode I was right in the middle of studying Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights and when writing an essay kept spelling ‘Heist’ instead of ‘Heights’ so I’m annoyed about that. Otherwise, I love this episode. It’s funny and it’s clever and it’s stacked to the gills with dreadful puns. Furthermore it begins the trend of series six: Reece Shearsmith exclusively plays the fruitiest characters in the room. 

2. Simon Says

Somebody watched Stephen King’s Misery recently and it shows. I am absolutely terrified about the fact that Steve and Reece clearly did a lot of research into fandoms for this one, mostly for their sake. The whole episode had an uneasy sort of edge to it that was incredibly compelling. There are also some brilliantly framed shots in this one, all the sort of things that I find dead exciting. The character of Simon continues the fruity trend.

3. Lip Service

I think this episode might have actually given me whiplash. The twists in this one made me so happy and the atmosphere of the whole episode was so beautifully curated, it was the perfect sleazy hotel. I have to give Steve some serious credit for his performance which was both sympathetic and slightly unsettling at all the right moments; as well as a special mention to the moment with the phone call, in which Sian Clifford’s character gives voice to Felix’s wife. And though we don’t see much of him, the hotel manager appears as both untrustworthy and slightly camp.

4. Hurry Up and Wait

This one is interesting because I honestly thought I was going to be incredibly underwhelmed by the ending. Thankfully, I was not. This is the episode that made me the most uncomfortable of the whole series: it had a genuinely strange mood to the whole thing and that is not a criticism. By no means is this my favourite episode of the series, but I think it has it’s merit as a mystery perpetuates throughout that, as a viewer, you want to get to the bottom of. Bhavna Limbachia gave an excellent performance in what was really quite a small role but one that reminded us of the context of the situation. 

5. How Do You Plead?

In this episode the lighting gets darker as it progresses, something I didn’t notice until I had to shut the curtains because I couldn’t see. It’s a little detail from Morales that is so satisfying. Every single aspect of this episode is what I love about Inside No. 9: it has comedy, mystery, intertextual references, and Reece playing the fruitiest of fruits. It is also worth noting I was completely right not to trust Steve playing a seemingly minor role. 

6. Last Night of the Proms

I mean...I can’t work out what to say about this one. I don’t mind saying that I do not fully understand what was happening here. If I’m being honest, the few times I’ve watched this episode I’ve been distracted trying to repress memories of terrible family gatherings. Reece with a beard can absolutely get it. I think that might be all of my feelings.

[monstrousgourmandizingcats]

{{ WIP Excerpts ask! 🌹 🗣😂💔🤯👤🤔 (Let's get a eclectic grab-bag going here! Bonus question because I'm curious: What parts of your WIPs are your favorite part to write? One of these, or is it something else entirely?)

🌹 Share your most poetic line.

He went outside. A few stars were visible—Arcturus maybe, or what remained of the Summer Triangle this time of year. Once in his IDF days stationed for a few weeks in a remote area of the Negev he had gotten very interested in charting the skies and had watched past midnight night after night as the clear cold night unveiled the sea of stars to him. In Jerusalem things were not as clear; or, rather, some things were, but the stars were not. In airplanes also many times flying far above the clouds and far above the lights of the waking world he had seen night come on in full profusion above him. He would not be surprised if, should he look back in detail on his motivations when he had first become a flight attendant, wanting that experience of wind and moon and stars and space had been a large part of the appeal. It was similar to what the French called l’appel du vide; he wondered if Fatima would recognize that term, and, if so, what her thoughts on it might be.

A blinking reddish thing passed overhead—a satellite probably, something related to communications or collective security that would have seemed science-fictional forty years ago when Shlomo had been a child. Almost certainly that was what it was, but Shlomo liked to imagine that it was a starship from some galactic alliance reconnoitering Earth from afar.

🗣 Share your favorite dialogue exchange.

“There absolutely is something intrinsically wrong with Christianity,” Rivka was saying to a stiff-jawed, stiff-lipped, agonizingly polite Cosgrove. “Every devout Christian I’ve ever met, present company excepted, has been somewhere between insufferable and downright pathological. It’s interesting to remark that people focus like a laser these days on Christian attitudes about sex, when really nothing sex-related is even in the top ten list of things wrong with the religion and how it’s practiced.”

“I admire that you’re so freewheeling with opinions like these, Rivka,” said Cosgrove, and appeared to mean it. Shlomo noticed that at some point in the past ten minutes Cosgrove had pulled her hair back into a poofy reddish ponytail with a lacy dark green hair tie. It made her look younger and a little like the way Shlomo tended to picture girl prefects in British boarding school stories. She was gripping the stem of her wine glass less tightly than he would have expected given how the conversation was going.

“Of course, I’m one to talk,” Rivka remarked, apparently to nobody in particular. “The synagogue I don’t go to is Orthodox.”

“There are some beautiful synagogues in Vienna,” Hildy remarked to her, seeming to have paratrooped her way into this conversation topic from some other layer of the atmosphere entirely.

“I’m sure there used to be more,” Rivka said. “Now there would tend to be, of course, fewer.”

Hildy blanched and gripped her wine glass about as tightly as Shlomo would have expected Cosgrove to a minute or two ago.

😂 Share your funniest line (or dialogue exchange).

“So, you did acting in high school?” Cosgrove was asking G.T., by way of making conversation.

“Sure did,” he said. “Probably the most fun I had was this stab we took at making a school play out of Dune. I got the title role.”

Cosgrove thought for a second about whether or not she wanted to pursue this line of inquiry, then said, “You played the dune in Dune?”

“Yup,” said G.T. “I mean, someone had to, right?” Not really, thought Cosgrove without saying anything; Ostrogova would have thought the same thing if she had ever read Dune. “I think I did a pretty good job of it,” G.T. said, scalding the conversation with his sincerity. “Method acting. Had to figure out what motivates a dune.”

“What does motivate a dune?” Cosgrove asked him.

“The spice, I guess. It must flow, as the fellow said.”

“That’s fair enough,” said Cosgrove. “Here, this is another file on that Yusuf Anwar person; put it with the others.” She handed G.T. a crumbling manila envelope filled with citations of dBase files from twenty or twenty-five years ago.

💔 Share your most heartbreaking line.

. “I’m generally on the side of unpleasant people; having a bad personality is as upsetting for people like me as it for those who have to know us,” she had remarked to Shlomo, whom she knew socially by this point. “Some of these people though…I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that people are likelier to resort to violent extremism if they aren’t smart or charming or charismatic enough to sell extremist views peacefully. But it’s still disillusioning.”

“I don’t think you need be disillusioned,” Shlomo had said to her. “I don’t think you’re much like those people at all.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence,” said Rivka, “but I don’t agree.”

🤯 Share a surprising line, or one where a character realizes something.

“What forces do you have?” asked Rivka.

“Well, for example, I have access to information showing that your pivot from looking primarily into Muneo Hasegawa to looking into almost everybody who was in that dining room is admirable but misguided,” said Miss Henderson, “or at least unnecessary. Hasegawa is absolutely our number one person of interest here and I am of the belief that you would be well-advised not to die on the hill of maneuvering the police out of taking that stance as well.”

“You have access to information demonstrating this?”

“Yes.”

“May I see it before I make a decision as to letting you into this little private investigation of mine?”

“Of course,” said Miss Henderson, and Rivka’s universe suddenly expanded, as abruptly and enormously as if she had been having a personal Planck Era to call her very own.

👤 Share a line that shows a character’s personality.

“How do I look?” Cosgrove asked.

She and Sayaka were in a department store on Rothschild Street in Tel Aviv. Cosgrove was posing at the door to a changing room, wearing a narrow-strapped jade-green one-piece swimsuit; Sayaka was looking at her appraisingly with one hand grasping her chin.

“You look excellent,” Sayaka said. “It flatters your figure and the color contrasts nicely with your hair.”

“Better or worse than the blue bikini?”

“Better. Get this one.”

“Will do,” said Cosgrove, and closed the changing room door to get back into her khaki shirt and capris. When she came back out, she smiled invitingly at Sayaka and made her way back out into the womenswear department. “Do you have a swimsuit?” she asked Sayaka.

Sayaka shook her head. “I’ve told you about the beaches in Kagoshima. Taking advantage of nice beaches here isn’t an opportunity not to be missed for me the way I assume it is for somebody from England, especially since I’m here on business. I do think I’ll get a scarf while we’re here, though, for if my work takes me into a mosque for some reason.”

Once they were back out on the street—in the still-baking heat of an Israeli early evening—Cosgrove set about looking for somewhere to eat. “You’re so interested in food and clothing,” Sayaka told her. “It’s almost intimidating.”

“Intimidating how?”

“Well—femininity as an issue of power between women. I assume you have some idea of what I’m talking about.”

“Maybe a little,” said Cosgrove, “but I indulge these interests with people I’ve just met because my other interests are a little bit—if you’ve heard this word—anorakish.”

“The word sounds familiar. I’m not sure what you mean by it in this context.”

“I mean, I’m interested in things like train schedules, castles and battles and military history, philosophy of course—I’ve spent quite a bit of time in Boston, in the United States, because I wrote my dissertation on a philosopher named Alfred North Whitehead who spent much of his career at Harvard. I had a whole term bouncing back and forth between different libraries in Boston and meeting with professors from Harvard and from Boston University. It was interesting to me, but not to anyone but me. I got home and told my dad about it and his eyes glazed over. He runs a high street shop,” she said plaintively to Sayaka, expecting this to mean something to Sayaka; it did not.

🤔 Share a line where a character makes a decision.

[warning: some gore in this passage]

“Really, what is it?” Hasegawa asked.

Rivka sighed as if she couldn’t believe she had to talk to this jackass for a second longer. “It’s called the World Wide Web,” she said. “W, W, W.” Then she drew the Desert Eagle from inside her long road-cone-orange garment and, standing behind Hasegawa, put a single chaste, unfeeling bullet through his brain stem. Red and grey spewed uncontrolledly over the black and white of the Wall Street Journal Marketplace section. “That was easy enough, it seems,” Rivka said.

Bonus question: In the specific WIP that all of these are from, my favorite things to write are comedic dialogue and pretentious worldbuilding tidbits. That varies from project to project, though!

Ask Game: WIP Excerpts