#most first lines were tragically underwhelming

[stories-by-rie]

10 First Lines Tag

@byjillianmaria tagged me in this, thank you so much! i also highly recommend checking out jillian's first lines, they're very fun.

Rules: List 10 first lines of chapters, scenes, or short stories, and tag 10 people

Revolutionary Achievement! (wip; The Five Senses, 1st chapter)

Margo kicks the pebble with mathematical precision so it lands in a puddle, only for it to be swallowed by the sad excuse of water as if it fell into nothingness. (flash fiction; to keep us both warm)

„You‘re only alive because I made a promise,” she hissed. (short story; A Heart's Promise)

The silence should have been warning enough. (short story; breaking out of darkness, finding it between us instead)

The House came alive like every living being does: with another’s cry of pain, blood and too much light after blissful darkness. (wip; House in Mourning (GLMGK 3))

While, up in the north, a dragon emerged from heavy fog, Dahlia found herself very troubled to take the first step to emerge from her forest. (wip; in the land of twilight, 3rd chapter)

It is really hard to clean out your cupboards if you don’t own any cups. (flash fiction; accidental soul disposal)

“Beautiful,” my mum says as she looks me up and down. (flash fiction; Dystopian Plotting)

"Jeanne, after all this time?” The voice of her old mentor sounded hollow in the old study room. (wip; invincible)

Despite the late summer, the air had grown cold with the night’s storm. (novella; Heart of Silver, 1st chapter)

tagging (only if you want, of course): @cilly-the-writer @fourohfourrealitynotfound @soul-write @scifimagpie @somealienquill @cwritesfiction @gailynovelry @knightsofeclipse @stuffaboutwriting and @the-orangeauthor

[visenyaism]

HOTD blog post GRRM posted and almost immediately deleted under the cut for archival purposes

Beware the Butterflies

SEPTEMBER 4, 2024

Profile Pic

Back in July, I promised you some further thoughts about Blood and Cheese… and Maelor the Missing… after my commentary on the first two episodes of HotD season 2, “A Son for a Son” and “Rhaenyra the Cruel.”

Those were terrific episodes: well written, well directed, powerfully acted. A great way to kick off the new season. Fans and critics alike seemed to agree. There was only one aspect of the episodes that drew significant criticism: the handling of Blood and Cheese, and the death of Prince Jaehaerys. From the commentary I saw on line, opinion was split there. The readers of FIRE & BLOOD found the sequence underwhelming, a disappointment, watered down from what they were expecting. Viewers who had not read the book had no such problems. Most of them found the sequence a real gut-punch, tragic, horrifying, nightmarish, etc. Some reported being reduced to tears.

I found myself agreeing with both sides.

In my book, Aegon and Helaena have three children, not two. The twins, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera, are six years old. They have a younger brother, Maelor, who is two. When Blood and Cheese break in on Helaena and the kids, they tell her they are debt collectors come to exact revenge for the death of Prince Lucerys: a son for a son. As Helaena has two sons, however, they demand that she choose which one should die. She resists and offers her own life instead, but the killers insist it has to be a son. If she does not name one, they will kill all three of the children. To save the life of the twins, Helaena names Maelor. But Blood kills the older boy, Jaehaerys, instead, while Cheese tells little Maelor that his mother wanted him dead. (Whether the boy is old enough to understand that is not at all certain).

That’s not how it happens on the show. There is no Maelor in HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, only the twins (both of whom look younger than six, but I am no sure judge of children’s ages, so I can’t be sure how old they are supposed to be). Blood can’t seem to tell the twins apart, so Helaena is asked to reveal which one is the boy. (You would think a glance up his PJs would reveal that, without involving the mother). Instead of offering her own life to save the kids, Helaena offers them a necklace. Blood and Cheese are not tempted. Blood saws Prince Jaehaerys’s head off. We are spared the sight of that; a sound effect suffices. (In the book, he lops the head off with a sword).

It is a bloody, brutal scene, no doubt. How not? An innocent child is being butchered in front of his mother.

I still believe the scene in the book is stronger. The readers have the right of that. The two killers are crueler in the book. I thought the actors who played the killers on the show were excellent… but the characters are crueler, harder, and more frightening in FIRE & BLOOD. In the show, Blood is a gold cloak. In the book, he is a former gold cloak, stripped of his office for beating a woman to death. Book Blood is the sort of man who might think making a woman choose which of her sons should die is amusing, especially when they double down on the wanton cruelty by murdering the boy she tries to save. Book Cheese is worse too; he does not kick a dog, true, but he does not have a dog, and he’s the one who tells Maelor that his mom wants him head. I would also suggest that Helaena shows more courage, more strength in the book, by offering her own own life to save her son. Offering a piece of jewelry is just not the same.

As I saw it, the “Sophie’s Choice” aspect was the strongest part of the sequence, the darkest, the most visceral. I hated to lose that. And judging from the comments on line, most of the fans seemed to agree.

When Ryan Condal first told me what he meant to do, ages ago (back in 2022, might be) I argued against it, for all these reasons. I did not argue long, or with much heat, however. The change weakened the sequence, I felt, but only a bit. And Ryan had what seemed to be practical reasons for it; they did not want to deal with casting another child, especially a two-year old toddler. Kids that young will inevitably slow down production, and there would be budget implications. Budget was already an issue on HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, it made sense to save money wherever we could. Moreover, Ryan assured me that we were not losing Prince Maelor, simply postponing him. Queen Helaena could still give birth to him in season three, presumably after getting with child late in season two. That made sense to me, so I withdrew my objections and acquiesced to the change.

I still love the episode, and the Blood and Cheese sequence overall. Losing the “Helaena’s Choice” beat did weaken the scene, but not to any great degree. Only the book readers would even notice its absence; viewers who had never read FIRE & BLOOD would still find the scenes heart-rending. Maelor did not actually DO anything in the scene, after all. How could he? He was only two years old.

There is another aspect to the removal of the young princeling, however.

Those of you who hate spoilers should STOP READING HERE. Spoilers will follow, at least for the readers among you. If you have never read FIRE & BLOOD, maybe it does not matter, because all I am going to “spoil” here are things that happen in the book that may NEVER happen on the series. Starting with Maelor himself.

Sometime between the initial decision to remove Maelor, a big change was made. The prince’s birth was no longer just going to be pushed back to season 3. He was never going to be born at all. The younger son of Aegon and Helaena would never appear.

Most of you know about the Butterfly Effect, I assume.

Yes, there was a movie with that title a few years back. It’s a familiar concept in chaos theory as well. But most science fiction fans were first exposed to the idea in Ray Bradbury’s classic time travel story, “A Sound of Thunder,” wherein a time traveler from the present panics and crushes a butterfly while hunting a T-Rex. When he returns to his own time, he discovers that the world has changed in huge and frightening ways. One dead butterfly has rewritten history. The lesson being that change begets change, and even small and seemingly insignificant alterations to a timeline — or a story — can have a profound effect on all that follows.

Maelor is a two year old toddler in FIRE & BLOOD, but like our butterfly he has an impact on the story all out of proportion to his size. The readers among you may recall that when it appears that Rhaenyra and her blacks are about to capture King’s Landing, Queen Alicent becomes concerned for the safety of Helaena’s remaining children, and takes steps to save them by smuggling them out of the city. The task is given is two knights of the Kingsguard. Ser Willis Fell is commanded to deliver Princess Jaehaera to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, while Maelor is given over to Ser Rickard Thorne to be escorted across the Mander to the protection of the Hightower army on its way to King’s Landing.

Willis Fell delivers Jaehaera safely to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, but Ser Rickard fares less well. He and Maelor get as far as Bitterbridge, where he is revealed as a Kingsuard in a tavern called the Hogs Head. Once discovered, Ser Rickard fights bravely to protect his young charge and bring him to safety, but he does not even make it across the bridge before some crossbows bring him down, Prince Maelor is torn from his arms.. and then, sadly, ripped to pieces by the mob fighting over the boy and the huge reward that Rhaenyra has offered for his capture and return.

Will any of that appear on the show? Maybe… but I don’t see how. The butterflies would seem to prohibit it. You could perhaps make Ser Rickard’s ward be Jaehaera instead of Maelor, but Jaehaera can’t be killed, she has a huge role to play as Aegon’s next heir. Could maybe make Maelor a newborn instead of a two year old, but that would scramble up the timeline, which is a bit of a mess already. I have no idea what Ryan has planned — if indeed he has planned anything — but given Maelor’s absence from episode 2, the simplest way to proceed would be just to drop him entirely, lose the bit where Alicent tries to send the kids to safety, drop Rickard Thorne or send him with Willis Fell so Jaehaera has two guards.

From what I know, that seems to be what Ryan is doing here. It’s simplest, yes, and may make sense in terms of budgets and shooting schedules. But simpler is not better. The Bitterbridge scene has tension, suspense, action, bloodshed, a bit of heroism and a lot of tragedy. Rickard Thorne is a tertiary character at best, most viewers (as opposed to readers) will never know he is gone, since they never knew him at all… but I rather liked giving him his brief moment of heroism, a taste of the courage and loyalty of the Kingsguard, regardless of whether they are black or green.

The butterflies are not done with us yet, however. In the book, when word of Prince Maelor’s death and the grisly manner of his passing (pp. 505) reaches the Red Keep, that proves to be the thing that drives Queen Helaena to suicide. She could barely stand to look at Maelor, knowing that she chose him to die in the “Sophie’s Choice” scene… and now he is dead in truth, her words having come true. The grief and guilt are too much for her to bear.

In Ryan’s outline for season 3, Helaena still kills herself… for no particular reason. There is no fresh horror, no triggering event to overwhelm the fragile young queen.

And the final butterfly follows soon thereafter.

Queen Helaena, a sweet and gentle soul, is much beloved by the smallfolk of King’s Landing. Rhaenyra was not, so when rumors began to arise that Helaena did not kill herself, but rather was murdered at Rhaenyra’s command, the commons are quick to believe them. “That night King’s Landing rose in bloody riot,” I wrote on p. 506 of FIRE & BLOOD. It is the beginning of the end for Rhaenyra’s rule over the city, ultimately leading to the Storming of the Dragonpit and the rise of the Shepherd’s mob that drives Rhaenyra to flee the city and return to Dragonstone… and her death.

Maelor by himself means little. He is a small child, does not have a line of dialogue, does nothing of consequence but die… but where and when and how, that does matter. Losing Maelor weakened the end of the Blood and Cheese sequence, but it also cost us the Bitterbridge scene with all its horror and heroism, it undercut the motivation for Helaena’s suicide, and that in turn sent thousands into the streets and alleys, screaming for justice for their “murdered” queen. None of that is essential, I suppose… but all of it does serve a purpose, it all helps to tie the story lines together, so one thing follows another in a logical and convincing manner.

What will we offer the fans instead, once we’ve killed these butterflies? I have no idea. I do not recall that Ryan and I ever discussed this, back when he first told me they were pushing back on Aegon’s second son. Maelor himself is not essential… but if losing him means we also lose Bitterbridge, Helaena’s suicide, and the riots, well… that’s a considerable loss.

And there are larger and more toxic butterflies to come, if HOUSE OF THE DRAGON goes ahead with some of the changes being contemplated for seasons 3 and 4…

GRRM

[aegoneggon]

GRRM's post since he deleted it

Back in July, I promised you some further thoughts about Blood and Cheese… and Maelor the Missing… after my commentary on the first two episodes of HotD season 2, “A Son for a Son” and “Rhaenyra the Cruel.”

Those were terrific episodes:  well written, well directed, powerfully acted.   A great way to kick off the new season.   Fans and critics alike seemed to agree.  There was only one aspect of the episodes that drew significant criticism: the handling of Blood and Cheese, and the death of Prince Jaehaerys.   From the commentary I saw on line,  opinion was split there.   The readers of FIRE & BLOOD found the sequence underwhelming, a disappointment, watered down from what they were expecting.   Viewers who had not read the book had no such problems.   Most of them found the sequence a real gut-punch, tragic, horrifying, nightmarish, etc.   Some reported being reduced to tears.

I found myself agreeing with both sides.

In my book, Aegon and Helaena have three children, not two.  The twins, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera, are six years old.  They have a younger brother, Maelor, who is two.   When Blood and Cheese break in on Helaena and the kids, they tell her they are debt collectors come to exact revenge for the death of Prince Lucerys: a son for a son.  As Helaena has  two sons, however,  they demand that she choose which one should die.   She resists and offers her own life instead, but the killers insist it has to be a son.  If she does not  name one, they will kill all three of the children.   To save the life of the twins, Helaena names Maelor.    But Blood kills the older boy, Jaehaerys, instead, while Cheese tells little Maelor that his mother wanted him dead.    (Whether the boy is old enough to understand that is not at all certain).

That’s not how it happens on the show.   There is no Maelor in HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, only the twins (both of whom look younger than six, but I am no sure judge of children’s ages, so I can’t be sure how old they are supposed to be).   Blood can’t seem to tell the twins apart, so Helaena is asked to reveal which one is the boy.  (You would think a glance up his PJs would reveal that, without involving the mother).  Instead of offering her own life to save the kids, Helaena offers them a necklace.   Blood and Cheese are not tempted.  Blood saws Prince Jaehaerys’s head off.   We are spared the sight of that; a sound effect suffices.   (In the book, he lops the head off with a sword).

It is a bloody, brutal scene, no doubt.  How not?  An innocent child is being butchered in front of his mother.

I still believe the scene in the book is stronger.  The readers have the right of that.   The two killers are crueler in the book.  I thought the actors who played the killers on the show were excellent… but the characters are crueler, harder, and more frightening in FIRE & BLOOD.   In the show, Blood is a gold cloak.   In the book, he is aformer gold cloak, stripped of his office for beating a woman to death.    Book Blood is the sort of man who might think making a woman choose which of her sons should die is amusing, especially when they double down on the wanton cruelty by murdering the boy she tries to save.    Book Cheese is worse too; he does not kick a dog, true, but he does not have a dog, and he’s the one who tells Maelor that his mom wants him head.   I would also suggest that Helaena shows more courage, more strength in the book, by offering her own own life to save her son.   Offering a piece of jewelry is just not  the same.

As I saw it, the “Sophie’s Choice” aspect was the strongest part of the sequence, the darkest, the most visceral.   I hated to lose that.   And judging from the comments on line, most of the fans seemed to agree.

When Ryan Condal first told me what he meant to do, ages ago (back in 2022, might be) I argued against it, for all these reasons.    I did not argue long, or with much heat, however.   The change weakened the sequence, I felt, but only a bit.   And Ryan had what seemed to be practical reasons for it; they did not want to deal with casting another child, especially a two-year old toddler.  Kids that young will inevitably slow down production, and there would be budget implications.   Budget was already an issue on HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, it made sense to save money wherever we could.   Moreover, Ryan assured me that we were not losing Prince Maelor, simply postponing him.   Queen Helaena could still give birth to him in season three, presumably after getting with child late in season two.   That made sense to me, so I withdrew my objections and acquiesced to the change.

I still love the episode, and the Blood and Cheese sequence overall.   Losing the “Helaena’s Choice” beat did weaken the scene, but not to any great degree.  Only the book readers would even notice its absence; viewers who had never read FIRE & BLOOD would still find the scenes heart-rending.   Maelor did not actually DO anything in the scene, after all.   How could he?  He was only two years old.

There is another aspect to the removal of the young princeling, however.

Those of you who hate spoilers should STOP READING HERE.   Spoilers will follow, at least for the readers among you.  If you have never read FIRE & BLOOD, maybe it does not matter, because all I am going to “spoil” here are things that happen in the book that may NEVER happen on the series.   Starting with Maelor himself.

Sometime between the initial decision to remove Maelor, a big change was made.   The prince’s birth was no longer just going to be pushed back to season 3.  He was never going to be born at all.   The younger son of Aegon and Helaena would never appear.

Most of you know about the Butterfly Effect, I assume.

Yes, there was a movie with that title a few years back.   It’s a familiar concept in chaos theory as well.   But most science fiction fans were first exposed to the idea in Ray Bradbury’s classic time travel story, “A Sound of Thunder,” wherein a time traveler from the present panics and crushes a butterfly while hunting a T-Rex.  When he returns to his own time, he discovers that the world has changed in huge and frightening ways.  One dead butterfly has rewritten history.  The lesson being that change begets change, and even small and seemingly insignificant alterations to a timeline — or a story — can have a profound effect on all that follows.

Maelor is a two year old toddler in FIRE & BLOOD, but like our butterfly he has an impact on the story all out of proportion to his size.   The readers among you may recall that when it appears that Rhaenyra and her blacks are about to capture King’s Landing, Queen Alicent becomes concerned for the safety of Helaena’s remaining children, and takes steps to save them by smuggling them out of the city.   The task is given is two knights of the Kingsguard.   Ser Willis Fell is commanded to deliver Princess Jaehaera to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, while Maelor is given over to Ser Rickard Thorne to be escorted across the Mander to the protection of the Hightower army on its way to King’s Landing.

Willis Fell delivers Jaehaera safely to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, but Ser Rickard fares less well.   He and Maelor get as far as Bitterbridge, where he is revealed as a Kingsuard in a tavern called the Hogs Head.   Once discovered, Ser Rickard fights bravely to protect his young charge and bring him to safety, but he does not even make it across the bridge before some crossbows bring him down,  Prince Maelor is torn from his arms.. and then, sadly, ripped to pieces by the mob fighting over the boy and the huge reward that Rhaenyra has offered for his capture and return.

Will any of that appear on the show?   Maybe… but I don’t see how.   The butterflies would seem to prohibit it.  You could perhaps make Ser Rickard’s ward be Jaehaera instead of Maelor, but Jaehaera can’t be killed, she has a huge role to play as Aegon’s next heir.   Could maybe make  Maelor a newborn instead of a two year old, but that would scramble up the timeline, which is a bit of a mess already.   I have no idea what Ryan has planned — if indeed he has planned anything — but given Maelor’s absence from episode 2, the simplest way to proceed would be just to drop him entirely, lose the bit where Alicent tries to send the kids to safety, drop Rickard Thorne or send him with Willis Fell so Jaehaera has two guards.

From what I know, that seems to be what Ryan is doing here.   It’s simplest, yes, and may make sense in terms of budgets and shooting schedules.  But simpler is not better.   The Bitterbridge scene has tension, suspense, action, bloodshed, a bit of heroism and a lot of tragedy.  Rickard Thorne  is a tertiary character at best, most viewers (as opposed to readers) will never know he is gone, since they never knew him at all… but I rather liked giving him his brief moment of heroism, a taste of the courage and loyalty of the Kingsguard, regardless of whether they are black or green.

The butterflies are not done with us yet, however.  In the book, when word of Prince Maelor’s death and the grisly manner of his passing (pp. 505) reaches the Red Keep, that proves to be the thing that drives Queen Helaena to suicide.   She could barely stand to look at Maelor, knowing that she chose him to die in the “Sophie’s Choice” scene… and now he is dead in truth, her words having come true.   The grief and guilt are too much for her to bear.

In Ryan’s outline for season 3, Helaena still kills herself… for no particular reason.   There is no fresh horror, no triggering event to overwhelm the fragile young queen.

And the final butterfly follows soon thereafter.

Queen Helaena, a sweet and gentle soul, is much beloved by the smallfolk of King’s Landing.  Rhaenyra was not, so when rumors began to arise that Helaena did not kill herself, but rather was murdered at Rhaenyra’s command, the commons are quick to believe them.   “That night King’s Landing rose in bloody riot,” I wrote on p. 506 of FIRE & BLOOD.   It is the beginning of the end for Rhaenyra’s rule over the city, ultimately leading to the Storming of the Dragonpit and the rise of the Shepherd’s mob that drives Rhaenyra to flee the city and return to Dragonstone… and her death.

Maelor by himself means little.   He is a small child, does not have a line of dialogue, does nothing of consequence but die… but where and when and how, that does matter.   Losing Maelor weakened the end of the Blood and Cheese sequence, but it also cost us the Bitterbridge scene with all its horror and heroism, it undercut the motivation for Helaena’s suicide, and that in turn sent thousands into the streets and alleys, screaming for justice for their “murdered” queen.   None of that is essential, I suppose… but all of it does serve a purpose, it all helps to tie the story lines together, so one thing follows another in a logical and convincing manner.

What will we offer the fans instead, once we’ve killed these butterflies?   I have no idea.   I do not recall that Ryan and I ever discussed this, back when he first told me they were pushing back on Aegon’s second son.   Maelor himself is not essential… but if losing him means we also lose Bitterbridge, Helaena’s suicide, and the riots, well… that’s a considerable loss.

And there are larger and more toxic butterflies to come, if HOUSE OF THE DRAGON goes ahead with some of the changes being contemplated for seasons 3 and 4…

GRRM

[melrosing]

pls tell me u screenshotted the whole thing im busy with some other famfom stuff rn i wanna read it so bad

LOL I literally just copy pasted it into notes bc I still had the window open when I heard he deleted it so find below….

Back in July, I promised you some further thoughts about Blood and Cheese… and Maelor the Missing… after my commentary on the first two episodes of HotD season 2, “A Son for a Son” and “Rhaenyra the Cruel.”

Those were terrific episodes:  well written, well directed, powerfully acted.   A great way to kick off the new season.   Fans and critics alike seemed to agree.  There was only one aspect of the episodes that drew significant criticism: the handling of Blood and Cheese, and the death of Prince Jaehaerys.   From the commentary I saw on line,  opinion was split there.   The readers of FIRE & BLOOD found the sequence underwhelming, a disappointment, watered down from what they were expecting.   Viewers who had not read the book had no such problems.   Most of them found the sequence a real gut-punch, tragic, horrifying, nightmarish, etc.   Some reported being reduced to tears.

I found myself agreeing with both sides.

In my book, Aegon and Helaena have three children, not two.  The twins, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera, are six years old.  They have a younger brother, Maelor, who is two.   When Blood and Cheese break in on Helaena and the kids, they tell her they are debt collectors come to exact revenge for the death of Prince Lucerys: a son for a son.  As Helaena has  two sons, however,  they demand that she choose which one should die.   She resists and offers her own life instead, but the killers insist it has to be a son.  If she does not  name one, they will kill all three of the children.   To save the life of the twins, Helaena names Maelor.    But Blood kills the older boy, Jaehaerys, instead, while Cheese tells little Maelor that his mother wanted him dead.    (Whether the boy is old enough to understand that is not at all certain).

That’s not how it happens on the show.   There is no Maelor in HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, only the twins (both of whom look younger than six, but I am no sure judge of children’s ages, so I can’t be sure how old they are supposed to be).   Blood can’t seem to tell the twins apart, so Helaena is asked to reveal which one is the boy.  (You would think a glance up his PJs would reveal that, without involving the mother).  Instead of offering her own life to save the kids, Helaena offers them a necklace.   Blood and Cheese are not tempted.  Blood saws Prince Jaehaerys’s head off.   We are spared the sight of that; a sound effect suffices.   (In the book, he lops the head off with a sword).

It is a bloody, brutal scene, no doubt.  How not?  An innocent child is being butchered in front of his mother.

I still believe the scene in the book is stronger.  The readers have the right of that.   The two killers are crueler in the book.  I thought the actors who played the killers on the show were excellent… but the characters are crueler, harder, and more frightening in FIRE & BLOOD.   In the show, Blood is a gold cloak.   In the book, he is aformer gold cloak, stripped of his office for beating a woman to death.    Book Blood is the sort of man who might think making a woman choose which of her sons should die is amusing, especially when they double down on the wanton cruelty by murdering the boy she tries to save.    Book Cheese is worse too; he does not kick a dog, true, but he does not have a dog, and he’s the one who tells Maelor that his mom wants him head.   I would also suggest that Helaena shows more courage, more strength in the book, by offering her own own life to save her son.   Offering a piece of jewelry is just not  the same.

As I saw it, the “Sophie’s Choice” aspect was the strongest part of the sequence, the darkest, the most visceral.   I hated to lose that.   And judging from the comments on line, most of the fans seemed to agree.

When Ryan Condal first told me what he meant to do, ages ago (back in 2022, might be) I argued against it, for all these reasons.    I did not argue long, or with much heat, however.   The change weakened the sequence, I felt, but only a bit.   And Ryan had what seemed to be practical reasons for it; they did not want to deal with casting another child, especially a two-year old toddler.  Kids that young will inevitably slow down production, and there would be budget implications.   Budget was already an issue on HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, it made sense to save money wherever we could.   Moreover, Ryan assured me that we were not losing Prince Maelor, simply postponing him.   Queen Helaena could still give birth to him in season three, presumably after getting with child late in season two.   That made sense to me, so I withdrew my objections and acquiesced to the change.

I still love the episode, and the Blood and Cheese sequence overall.   Losing the “Helaena’s Choice” beat did weaken the scene, but not to any great degree.  Only the book readers would even notice its absence; viewers who had never read FIRE & BLOOD would still find the scenes heart-rending.   Maelor did not actually DO anything in the scene, after all.   How could he?  He was only two years old.

There is another aspect to the removal of the young princeling, however.

Those of you who hate spoilers should STOP READING HERE.   Spoilers will follow, at least for the readers among you.  If you have never read FIRE & BLOOD, maybe it does not matter, because all I am going to “spoil” here are things that happen in the book that may NEVER happen on the series.   Starting with Maelor himself.

Sometime between the initial decision to remove Maelor, a big change was made.   The prince’s birth was no longer just going to be pushed back to season 3.  He was never going to be born at all.   The younger son of Aegon and Helaena would never appear.

Most of you know about the Butterfly Effect, I assume.

Yes, there was a movie with that title a few years back.   It’s a familiar concept in chaos theory as well.   But most science fiction fans were first exposed to the idea in Ray Bradbury’s classic time travel story, “A Sound of Thunder,” wherein a time traveler from the present panics and crushes a butterfly while hunting a T-Rex.  When he returns to his own time, he discovers that the world has changed in huge and frightening ways.  One dead butterfly has rewritten history.  The lesson being that change begets change, and even small and seemingly insignificant alterations to a timeline — or a story — can have a profound effect on all that follows.

Maelor is a two year old toddler in FIRE & BLOOD, but like our butterfly he has an impact on the story all out of proportion to his size.   The readers among you may recall that when it appears that Rhaenyra and her blacks are about to capture King’s Landing, Queen Alicent becomes concerned for the safety of Helaena’s remaining children, and takes steps to save them by smuggling them out of the city.   The task is given is two knights of the Kingsguard.   Ser Willis Fell is commanded to deliver Princess Jaehaera to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, while Maelor is given over to Ser Rickard Thorne to be escorted across the Mander to the protection of the Hightower army on its way to King’s Landing.

Willis Fell delivers Jaehaera safely to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, but Ser Rickard fares less well.   He and Maelor get as far as Bitterbridge, where he is revealed as a Kingsuard in a tavern called the Hogs Head.   Once discovered, Ser Rickard fights bravely to protect his young charge and bring him to safety, but he does not even make it across the bridge before some crossbows bring him down,  Prince Maelor is torn from his arms.. and then, sadly, ripped to pieces by the mob fighting over the boy and the huge reward that Rhaenyra has offered for his capture and return.

Will any of that appear on the show?   Maybe… but I don’t see how.   The butterflies would seem to prohibit it.  You could perhaps make Ser Rickard’s ward be Jaehaera instead of Maelor, but Jaehaera can’t be killed, she has a huge role to play as Aegon’s next heir.   Could maybe make  Maelor a newborn instead of a two year old, but that would scramble up the timeline, which is a bit of a mess already.   I have no idea what Ryan has planned — if indeed he has planned anything — but given Maelor’s absence from episode 2, the simplest way to proceed would be just to drop him entirely, lose the bit where Alicent tries to send the kids to safety, drop Rickard Thorne or send him with Willis Fell so Jaehaera has two guards.

From what I know, that seems to be what Ryan is doing here.   It’s simplest, yes, and may make sense in terms of budgets and shooting schedules.  But simpler is not better.   The Bitterbridge scene has tension, suspense, action, bloodshed, a bit of heroism and a lot of tragedy.  Rickard Thorne  is a tertiary character at best, most viewers (as opposed to readers) will never know he is gone, since they never knew him at all… but I rather liked giving him his brief moment of heroism, a taste of the courage and loyalty of the Kingsguard, regardless of whether they are black or green.

The butterflies are not done with us yet, however.  In the book, when word of Prince Maelor’s death and the grisly manner of his passing (pp. 505) reaches the Red Keep, that proves to be the thing that drives Queen Helaena to suicide.   She could barely stand to look at Maelor, knowing that she chose him to die in the “Sophie’s Choice” scene… and now he is dead in truth, her words having come true.   The grief and guilt are too much for her to bear.

In Ryan’s outline for season 3, Helaena still kills herself… for no particular reason.   There is no fresh horror, no triggering event to overwhelm the fragile young queen.

And the final butterfly follows soon thereafter.

Queen Helaena, a sweet and gentle soul, is much beloved by the smallfolk of King’s Landing.  Rhaenyra was not, so when rumors began to arise that Helaena did not kill herself, but rather was murdered at Rhaenyra’s command, the commons are quick to believe them.   “That night King’s Landing rose in bloody riot,” I wrote on p. 506 of FIRE & BLOOD.   It is the beginning of the end for Rhaenyra’s rule over the city, ultimately leading to the Storming of the Dragonpit and the rise of the Shepherd’s mob that drives Rhaenyra to flee the city and return to Dragonstone… and her death.

Maelor by himself means little.   He is a small child, does not have a line of dialogue, does nothing of consequence but die… but where and when and how, that does matter.   Losing Maelor weakened the end of the Blood and Cheese sequence, but it also cost us the Bitterbridge scene with all its horror and heroism, it undercut the motivation for Helaena’s suicide, and that in turn sent thousands into the streets and alleys, screaming for justice for their “murdered” queen.   None of that is essential, I suppose… but all of it does serve a purpose, it all helps to tie the story lines together, so one thing follows another in a logical and convincing manner.

What will we offer the fans instead, once we’ve killed these butterflies?   I have no idea.   I do not recall that Ryan and I ever discussed this, back when he first told me they were pushing back on Aegon’s second son.   Maelor himself is not essential… but if losing him means we also lose Bitterbridge, Helaena’s suicide, and the riots, well… that’s a considerable loss.

And there are larger and more toxic butterflies to come, if HOUSE OF THE DRAGON goes ahead with some of the changes being contemplated for seasons 3 and 4…

GRRM

[targaryenstone]

George Martin's last blog post (now deleted) about House of the Dragon S02

Beware the Butterflies

Back in July, I promised you some further thoughts about Blood and Cheese… and Maelor the Missing… after my commentary on the first two episodes of HotD season 2, “A Son for a Son” and “Rhaenyra the Cruel.”

Those were terrific episodes: well written, well directed, powerfully acted. A great way to kick off the new season. Fans and critics alike seemed to agree. There was only one aspect of the episodes that drew significant criticism: the handling of Blood and Cheese, and the death of Prince Jaehaerys. From the commentary I saw on line, opinion was split there. The readers of FIRE & BLOOD found the sequence underwhelming, a disappointment, watered down from what they were expecting. Viewers who had not read the book had no such problems. Most of them found the sequence a real gut-punch, tragic, horrifying, nightmarish, etc. Some reported being reduced to tears.

I found myself agreeing with both sides.

In my book, Aegon and Helaena have three children, not two. The twins, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera, are six years old. They have a younger brother, Maelor, who is two. When Blood and Cheese break in on Helaena and the kids, they tell her they are debt collectors come to exact revenge for the death of Prince Lucerys: a son for a son. As Helaena has two sons, however, they demand that she choose which one should die.

She resists and offers her own life instead, but the killers insist it has to be a son. If she does not name one, they will kill all three of the children. To save the life of the twins, Helaena names Maelor. But Blood kills the older boy, Jaehaerys, instead, while Cheese tells little Maelor that his mother wanted him dead.(Whether the boy is old enough to understand that is not at all certain).

That’s not how it happens on the show. There is no Maelor in HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, only the twins (both of whom look younger than six, but I am no sure judge of children’s ages, so I can’t be sure how old they are supposed to be). Blood can’t seem to tell the twins apart, so Helaena is asked to reveal which one is the boy. (You would think a glance up his PJs would reveal that, without involving the mother). Instead of offering her own life to save the kids, Helaena offers them a necklace. Blood and Cheese are not tempted. Blood saws Prince Jaehaerys’s head off. We are spared the sight of that; a sound effect suffices. (In the book, he lops the head off with a sword).

It is a bloody, brutal scene, no doubt. How not? An innocent child is being butchered in front of his mother. I still believe the scene in the book is stronger. The readers have the right of that.

The two killers are crueler in the book. I thought the actors who played the killers on the show were excellent… but the characters are crueler, harder, and more frightening in FIRE & BLOOD. In the show, Blood is a gold cloak. In the book, he is a former gold cloak, stripped of his office for beating a woman to death. Book Blood is the sort of man who might think making a woman choose which of her sons should die is amusing, especially when they double down on the wanton cruelty by murdering the boy she tries to save.

Book Cheese is worse too; he does not kick a dog, true, but he does not have a dog, and he’s the one who tells Maelor that his mom wants him head. I would also suggest that Helaena shows more courage, more strength in the book, by offering her own life to save her son. Offering a piece of jewelry is just not the same.

As I saw it, the “Sophie’s Choice” aspect was the strongest part of the sequence, the darkest, the most visceral. I hated to lose that. And judging from the comments on line, most of the fans seemed to agree.

When Ryan Condal first told me what he meant to do, ages ago (back in 2022, might be) I argued against it, for all these reasons. I did not argue long, or with much heat, however. The change weakened the sequence, I felt, but only a bit. And Ryan had what seemed to be practical reasons for it; they did not want to deal with casting another child, especially a two-year old toddler.

Kids that young will inevitably slow down production, and there would be budget implications. Budget was already an issue on HOUSE OF THE DRAGON, it made sense to save money wherever we could. Moreover, Ryan assured me that we were not losing Prince Maelor, simply postponing him. Queen Helaena could still give birth to him in season three, presumably after getting with child late in season two. That made sense to me, so I withdrew my objections and acquiesced to the change.

I still love the episode, and the Blood and Cheese sequence overall. Losing the “Helaena’s Choice” beat did weaken the scene, but not to any great degree. Only the book readers would even notice its absence; viewers who had never read FIRE & BLOOD would still find the scenes heart-rending. Maelor did not actually DO anything in the scene, after all. How could he? He was only two years old.

There is another aspect to the removal of the young princeling, however.

Those of you who hate spoilers should STOP READING HERE. Spoilers will follow, at least for the readers among you. If you have never read FIRE & BLOOD, maybe it does not matter, because all I am going to “spoil” here are things that happen in the book that may NEVER happen on the series. Starting with Maelor himself.

Sometime between the initial decision to remove Maelor, a big change was made. The prince’s birth was no longer just going to be pushed back to season 3. He was never going to be born at all. The younger son of Aegon and Helaena would never appear.

Most of you know about the Butterfly Effect, I assume.

Yes, there was a movie with that title a few years back. It’s a familiar concept in chaos theory as well. But most science fiction fans were first exposed to the idea in Ray Bradbury’s classic time travel story, “A Sound of Thunder,” wherein a time traveler from the present panics and crushes a butterfly while hunting a T-Rex. When he returns to his own time, he discovers that the world has changed in huge and frightening ways. One dead butterfly has rewritten history. The lesson being that change begets change, and even small and seemingly insignificant alterations to a timeline — or a story — can have a profound effect on all that follows.

Maelor is a two year old toddler in FIRE & BLOOD, but like our butterfly he has an impact on the story all out of proportion to his size. The readers among you may recall that when it appears that Rhaenyra and her blacks are about to capture King’s Landing, Queen Alicent becomes concerned for the safety of Helaena’s remaining children, and takes steps to save them by smuggling them out of the city. The task is given is two knights of the Kingsguard. Ser Willis Fell is commanded to deliver Princess Jaehaera to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, while Maelor is given over to Ser Rickard Thorne to be escorted across the Mander to the protection of the Hightower army on its way to King’s Landing.

Willis Fell delivers Jaehaera safely to the Baratheons at Storm’s End, but Ser Rickard fares less well. He and Maelor get as far as Bitterbridge, where he is revealed as a Kingsuard in a tavern called the Hogs Head. Once discovered, Ser Rickard fights bravely to protect his young charge and bring him to safety, but he does not even make it across the bridge before some crossbows bring him down, Prince Maelor is torn from his arms.. and then, sadly, ripped to pieces by the mob fighting over the boy and the huge reward that Rhaenyra has offered for his capture and return.

Will any of that appear on the show? Maybe… but I don’t see how. The butterflies would seem to prohibit it. You could perhaps make Ser Rickard’s ward be Jaehaera instead of Maelor, but Jaehaera can’t be killed, she has a huge role to play as Aegon’s next heir. Could maybe make Maelor a newborn instead of a two year old, but that would scramble up the timeline, which is a bit of a mess already. I have no idea what Ryan has planned — if indeed he has planned anything — but given Maelor’s absence from episode 2, the simplest way to proceed would be just to drop him entirely, lose the bit where Alicent tries to send the kids to safety, drop Rickard Thorne or send him with Willis Fell so Jaehaera has two guards.

From what I know, that seems to be what Ryan is doing here. It’s simplest, yes, and may make sense in terms of budgets and shooting schedules. But simpler is not better. The Bitterbridge scene has tension, suspense, action, bloodshed, a bit of heroism and a lot of tragedy. Rickard Thorne is a tertiary character at best, most viewers (as opposed to readers) will never know he is gone, since they never knew him at all… but I rather liked giving him his brief moment of heroism, a taste of the courage and loyalty of the Kingsguard, regardless of whether they are black or green.

The butterflies are not done with us yet, however. In the book, when word of Prince Maelor’s death and the grisly manner of his passing (pp. 505) reaches the Red Keep, that proves to be the thing that drives Queen Helaena to suicide. She could barely stand to look at Maelor, knowing that she chose him to die in the “Sophie’s Choice” scene… and now he is dead in truth, her words having come true. The grief and guilt are too much for her to bear.

In Ryan’s outline for season 3, Helaena still kills herself… for no particular reason. There is no fresh horror, no triggering event to overwhelm the fragile young queen.

And the final butterfly follows soon thereafter.

Queen Helaena, a sweet and gentle soul, is much beloved by the smallfolk of King’s Landing. Rhaenyra was not, so when rumors began to arise that Helaena did not kill herself, but rather was murdered at Rhaenyra’s command, the commons are quick to believe them. “That night King’s Landing rose in bloody riot,” I wrote on p.506 of FIRE & BLOOD. It is the beginning of the end for Rhaenyra’s rule over the city, ultimately leading to the Storming of the Dragonpit and the rise of the Shepherd’s mob that drives Rhaenyra to flee the city and return to Dragonstone… and her death.

Maelor by himself means little. He is a small child, does not have a line of dialogue, does nothing of consequence but die… but where and when and how, that does matter. Losing Maelor weakened the end of the Blood and Cheese sequence, but it also cost us the Bitterbridge scene with all its horror and heroism, it undercut the motivation for Helaena’s suicide, and that in turn sent thousands into the streets and alleys, screaming for justice for their “murdered” queen. None of that is essential, I suppose… but all of it does serve a purpose, it all helps to tie the story lines together, so one thing follows another in a logical and convincing manner.

What will we offer the fans instead, once we’ve killed these butterflies? I have no idea. I do not recall that Ryan and I ever discussed this, back when he first told me they were pushing back on Aegon’s second son. Maelor himself is not essential… but if losing him means we also lose Bitterbridge, Helaena’s suicide, and the riots, well… that’s a considerable loss.

And there are larger and more toxic butterflies to come, if HOUSE OF THE DRAGON goes ahead with some of the changes being contemplated for seasons 3 and 4….

[maya-matlin]

What are all of your favorite and least favorite Degrassi episodes and why?

🤯🤯🤯

But seriously, I'm not sure where to start. :p I don't think I could possibly go into much detail about why I like or dislike all the episodes, but I'll try.

Degrassi Junior High season 1:

Favorites:

(1) The Cover-Up: good introduction to Rick, the first serious Degrassi plot, the first time Joey (one of my favorite characters) isn't the worst

(2) The Great Race: strong message about sexism in sports, Snake and Melanie play bigger roles for the first time

(3) Rumor Has It: Caitlin questions her sexuality and it's miles ahead of what the Next Class writers tried to do with Grace, surprisingly progressive for its time

(4) Best Laid Plans: It's basically The Mating Game but slightly better, the Yick and Arthur subplot with Swamp Sex Robots is funny

(5) It's Late: Spike gets pregnant and the arc paves the way for TNG and beyond

(6) Parent's Night: I like seeing Wheels' conflict with wanting to know his biological father and yet feeling disloyal to his adoptive parents, continuation of Spike's pregnancy arc, the beginning of Zit Remedy

Least favorites:

(1) The Experiment: Yick and Arthur were never that interesting when they had to carry a main plot, but the story probably should have focused more on Yick who was low key being bullied by Raditch

(2) Nothing to Fear: LD isn't one of my favorite characters and for whatever reason, this story line wasn't super interesting to me. The subplot is literally a snake being loose in the school and the awkwardness of Snake the character having that nickname.

(3) Revolution: Underwhelming finale that gets kind of flashback heavy towards the end, Stephanie doesn't undergo much character growth in season 2 making it kind of pointless

Degrassi Junior High season 2:

Favorites:

(1) Eggbert: follow up to Spike's pregnancy and a lot of Shane/Spike interaction with him starting to become a more well rounded character

(2) A Helping Hand: Lucy gets a lot more development, Wheels and LD back Lucy up 100% and are very supportive after she's sexually abused

(3) Great Expectations: I don't even like Liz, but I like the message about assuming things based on how a person dresses or presents themselves. Joey kind of sucks in this episode, but he's also entertaining and still oddly lovable. I like the subplot with Arthur's wet dreams.

(4) Dinner and a Show: focus on Shane who is a very underrated character with him wanting to assert himself while being held back by domineering parents

(5) Bottled Up: I like the main plot with Kathleen dealing with her mother's alcoholism. You start to see why she is the way she is without it necessarily excusing her prior bad behavior. Plus, Rick/Kathleen. It should have been a thing.

(6) Trust Me: Joey, Wheels and Snake spend the whole episode hanging out and it's great

(7) He's Back: Follow up to Lucy's story line with Susie now being a victim of Mr. Colby with the only real downside being that we never see the resolution

(8) Pass Tense: Spike goes into labor, Joey is forced to repeat a grade which leads to a lot of character growth and getting together with Caitlin

Least favorites:

(1) Fight: just kind of underwhelming and forgettable even though it's the first time we see Dwayne who ends up being one of my favorites in the last season of Degrassi High

(2) Sealed with a Kiss: It's fine. It's another mostly forgettable episode. I like Erica and Heather as characters, but most of their plots did nothing for me aside from A New Start.

(3) Dog Days: I just feel like Stephanie's depression felt kind of.. cliché and not a very believable depiction. When you think about how characters like Cam, Maya and even Ashley at times were written, it stands out.

Degrassi Junior High season 3:

Favorites:

(1) Can't Live with 'Em: One of the most tragic, depressing episodes of the entire franchise. Wheels was never the same after this.

(2) A Big Girl Now: I don't even know. Lucy is one of my favorites, so most of her episodes were great. She finally gets rid of shitty Paul only for it to be revealed he lied about sleeping with her.

(3) Loves Me, Loves Me Not: JAITLIN. It's the true beginning of them, and Joey was an idiot for overlooking Caitlin for Liz.

(4) Food for Thought: Kathleen's eating disorder story line was really well done. I wish more had been done with it, but I at least like Kathleen initially refusing help because it's realistic.

(5) Twenty Bucks: More Jaitlin. Snake and Melanie are cute. Shane makes the decision to spend his money on concert tickets rather than giving Spike child support which leads to his accident.

(6) Taking Off: More Wheels angst over his parents' deaths, Shane jumps/falls off a bridge and ends up with a lifelong disability; I'm basically recapping the story lines but basically it's a very significant episode that has a massive effect on the characters' futures

(7) Black and White: Degrassi tackles racism for the first time. Michelle's parents are painfully realistic when claiming they "don't see race" but that people should "stick with their own kind". BLT and Michelle were great and deserved SO much better.

(8) Bye-Bye Junior High: Honestly, most of this show's season finales aren't heavy hitter episodes compared to a lot of TNG's. But because they usually wrap the season into a nice bow, I still like them for sentimental reasons. That being said, the school literally burns down in this one, so there's that. Jaitlin <3 Spike explodes due to feeling overwhelmed by teen motherhood. I wish we'd seen more of that because for such an important character, she was surprisingly pushed into the background more often than not.

Least favorites:

(1) Season's Greetings: It's a clip show about Yick and Arthur. I watch this one once a year around the holidays and it never gets better. Holiday is the superior Christmas episode.

(2) Star-Crossed: It's fine. It's definitely not a bad episode, but none of the story lines hold my interest all that much. I don't care about Clutch getting together with any of the girls.

(3) Making Whoopee: Arthur isn't a main plot type of character. It sucks that his dad broke up with his girlfriend, but we never see him again and don't have any reason to be invested in this family.

Degrassi High season 1:

Favorites:

(1) A New Start: It's one of Degrassi's strongest season premieres. Overall, I probably liked Erica's abortion story line best out of all of them. There seemed to be more fallout from what happened compared to someone like Manny whose abortion aftermath basically couldn't be mentioned again due to Accidents Will Happen being banned in America. Plus, I think the show did a really good job introducing the new Degrassi High set and establishing it quickly after three years in Junior High.

(2) Everybody Wants Something: The Zits make a music video. Joey and Caitlin broke up which hurts me, but provided good angst. I don't even know. This one's iconic and probably the first episode I think of when I think of OG Degrassi.

(3) Nobody's Perfect: I loved Kathleen's abuse story line. Out of all the abuse story lines, this more felt the most.. intense? Gritty? I'm not sure. Scott was probably the most believable abusive boyfriend of all of them which is probably low key because the actor turned out to be a real life predator and therefore had bad vibes all along. Plus, Jaitlin breakup aftermath.

(4) Sixteen: Michelle becomes more independent and starts living on her own. I just love Michelle, so I enjoyed this story line. I think this is also the episode where Joey and Snake were in driver's ed, which was fun.

(5) Testing One, Two, Three: Joey finds out he has a learning disability. More definitely could have been done with that, but Joey was one of my favorites and I liked seeing him come to terms and kind of get the help he needed from Caitlin. Also, Jaitlin <3 Caitlin breaks Claude's nose, which I kind of love. There's also a fun subplot with most of the class attempting to cheat on the test.

Least favorites:

(1) Dream On: This is another Arthur episode. I don't care about his crush on Caitlin. Caitlin also kind of sucks in this one because she's basically cheating on Joey and yet using Arthur to do it. Not my favorite.

(2) Natural Attraction: I don't dislike this one, but it was definitely a choice to focus the aftermath on Erica's abortion during the second half of the season on Heather. I don't doubt that Heather was struggling, but I'm not that interested in seeing a pro life person's trauma over her sister's abortion.

(3) Stressed Out: This was a forgettable finale. It focuses on Caitlin's relationship with Ms. Avery, but that dynamic faded away for the most part after season 1. So I'm less invested. Michelle is also randomly abusing caffeine pills, something that mostly comes across as awkward and poorly written.

Degrassi High season 2:

Favorites:

(1) Bad Blood: Lots of character development for Dwayne. It has a very strong A plot. I love that this kind of solidifies the eventual friendship between Joey and Dwayne, one of my favorite dynamics from OG Degrassi.

(2) Crossed Wires: I'm not the biggest Liz fan, but finding out her back story is heartbreaking. While I do think more could have been done with the revelation that she was survivor, I liked that we saw her begin to heal. Alex and Tessa were cute together. There's a nice Joey/Dwayne subplot.

(3) The All Nighter: It's hard to explain why I like this episode. Kathleen's character progression was really interesting. She experienced so much trauma through the years and yet you kind of forget how much of that was supposed to a secret or something that only Melanie knew. Melanie exposing Kathleen's secrets was really dramatic and just sad. This episode had one of Degrassi's more realistic portrayals of weed. The subplot with the boys playing poker was fun. It also birthed my Luke/Arthur crackship that no one likes except me. I feel like Next Class tried to do something similar with #HugeButTrue, but it wasn't nearly as good.

(4) Home Sweet Home: Ugh, Wheels. He finally hits rock bottom (at least prior to the movie) and slowly starts to redeem himself after going on a downward trajectory throughout the High years. This might be the episode where Michelle moves home? There's a similar plot with Caitlin that happens around the same time, so I'm never 100% sure if the Michelle plot happens in the this episode and Caitlin's in the next or vice versa. Anyways.

(5) Showtime: Claude kills himself and everyone is affected by it. It was a controversial choice to make the suicide victim someone so unlikable, but in this case I think it really worked. In the end, once you're gone, it's all about the people you leave behind. We see hints of that with Claude's friend, Joanne, who isn't a major character. Then obviously, Caitlin is forced to deal with a lot of mixed emotions. Plus, Jaitlin. <3 Snake gets a rare dramatic plot after finding Claude's body.

(6) One Last Dance: This is another sentimental favorite. Nothing huge happens for the most part, but it's the official end of the series. Joey and Caitlin finally get back together. Dwayne reveals his HIV positive status with his character growth finally being complete. It's just a nice episode.

Least favorites:

(1) Loyalties: This one's just kind of underwhelming. I hated that BLT and Michelle had to break up and that one day, BLT seemingly didn't care about Michelle. I feel like Michelle was treated really unfairly during that, so I wasn't happy to Simon and Alexa so flippant about Michelle's feelings. Snake/Michelle were cute, but I wasn't that invested in them.

(2) Extracurricular Activities: This one felt like a filler episode. Mostly, I found everyone except Bronco annoying in this one. Why is a supposed well known band filming a music video at Degrassi?

(3) Three's a Crowd: This is petty, but I like Snake/Spike more than Snake/Michelle and Tessa/Alex over Tessa/Yick so I'm disappointed those ships lost out. Overall, it's basically a relationship/love triangle episode and I'm not a fan.

Bonus: School's Out: There's no real category for this one because it aired like a year after the second season. But needless to say, I mostly love it. It's iconic and unforgettable. No one will ever forget "You were fucking Tessa Campanelli,", the Joey/Caitlin/Tessa triangle and Wheels KILLING A KID. I love TNG and the later Degrassi years, but the show had a tendency to conclude character arcs with hopeful endings rather than blowing apart people's lives in pretty depressing ways. This movie had the kind of ending that sticks with you.

Degrassi TNG season 1:

Favorites:

(1) Mother and Child Reunion: It's a strong series premiere and probably one of my most memorable episodes of the first season. Many characters from the original series return, which is fun. Jaitlin <3 Emma's near rape is horrifying, but it led to a good bonding moment between Emma and Spike that kind of bridged the generations.

(2) Coming of Age: I mostly like this episode for its subplot. Emma gets her first period and after initially feeling some embarrassment and shame, she ends up completely owning it. I definitely didn't know how awesome and significant that was until many years later. Plus, feminist Spike telling off the ice cream creep. It's another thing that hits differently after you become an adult. But I also (mostly) like the Ashley/Jimmy story line. It's interesting how much Ashley values her independence so early on and how that contrasts with her romantic relationships. I feel like this is something that follows her through the years.

(3) Rumours and Reputations: Mostly, I like this one because of how well it incorporates all the characters. There aren't very many episodes that find an excuse to get every character involved in the main plot.

(4) Friday Night: Sean and Emma go on their first date. This is when I'm a fan of their relationship, so it's actually fun to see the beginning of it.

(5) Under Pressure: I pretty much love all of the Sean centric episodes outside of season 6 and this is no exception. I like hearing more of his back story and seeing how his issues over that and his anger cost him Emma.

(6) Jagged Little Pill: Iconic. People shit on Ashley all the time, but this is one of the best finales and she's easily the best part of it. Unpopular opinion, but I always enjoyed Ashley's identity story lines. It was fun seeing her cut loose, even though it ended very badly. Not to mention JT and Toby thinking they're high. Love it.

Least favorites:

(1) Family Politics: This episode is underwhelming after the series premiere. It's kind of a remake of the first episode of Junior High in some ways. It's not a favorite.

(2) Wannabe: As much as I like that this is beginning of Manny separating herself from Emma and feuding with Paige, a lot of this is told from Emma's point of view. The subplot involves multiple characters trying to win a million dollars via Pringles cans. It's a plot that would only ever happen in the first season.

(3) Cabaret: This one is fine. It's probably the episode I like least from this season, but I can't give a good reason why. Maybe that's it. It doesn't inspire anything in me.

Degrassi TNG season 2:

Favorites:

(1) When Doves Cry: This is easily one of the show's strongest premieres. Craig comes in and immediately becomes one of the most complex characters, adding a lot of weight and depth to the show. Joey becomes more involved from here through the next few seasons. It's telling that so many years later, this episode would probably still be in my personal top 10.

(2) Karma Chameleon: Like I said before, I tend to like Ashley plots. It's hard to watch her get so close to gaining everyone's forgiveness only to completely blow it by the end - both for deserved and undeserved reasons. The ending with Ashley crying as her school picture is taken is painfully real. It's the beginning of Ashley's friendship with Ellie, which is super underrated. Paige starts to feel like a more well rounded character rather than just the mean queen bee of the show.

(3) Shout: This is another episode I love primarily for the main plot. Paige is raped, and it's a story line that follows her through the rest of the season, during season 4 when her case finally goes to trial, and again in season 7 when Paige feels violated by Griffin. Lauren Collins is great in this one. PMS singing "Poor Thing" still gets to me. There's classic Jiberty.

(4) Take My Breath Away: This episode is just funny. Obviously, Craig and Manny's differing memories of their date are entertaining to watch. For Manny, it was a fairy tale. For Craig, a nightmare. I'm definitely not a Cranny shipper, but their arc during the first four seasons holds up really well. Their on again/off again relationship brought about a lot of the drama. For better or worse, it all starts here. Craig's rejection kind of forces Manny to grow up and become very preoccupied with male attention, particularly from Craig who she can't seem to move past for multiple seasons. Even though Marco turns out to be gay, his story line with Ellie is very sweet.

(5) Don't Believe the Hype: This episode is so overlooked, but it's a very important one for its time (2002). Degrassi occasionally dealt with internalized bigotry, but typically not when it wasn't involving homophobia. Hazel feels as though she needs to hide the fact she's Muslim due to a previous hate crime committed against her. On the one hand, this episode can be considered a throwaway due to the Degrassi writers never investing in Hazel and outwardly being racist against Andrea Lewis. But because we see so little of Hazel's perspective and that her background is so unique to the show, an episode like this stands out. Much like Rumours and Reputations, every character has a point of view, even if their views can be considered ignorant and hateful. The JT/Liberty sewing plot is also underrated. JT is embarrassed for being good at sewing because of toxic masculinity. I'm not sure this one is quite as good. I mean, the whole thing ends with JT realizing there are perks literally because he now has an excuse to grope his female classmates. But I like the intent behind it. Plus, Jiberty <3

(6) White Wedding: This is another sentimental favorite. Even though I don't ship Semma as much as I used to and aren't even that invested in Snake and Spike, I have fond memories of watching this episode. There's so much going on with Emma being forced to kind of be a mini adult due to the way Spike raised her. So as a result, she does things like tell Snake about Spike's pregnancy before Spike has even decided if she's going to carry it to term. Personally, things work out a little too conveniently, but I still enjoy it. Sean and Emma's kiss at the end of the episode is still impactful even now. Manny is adorable. In the extended cut, Joey and Caitlin make heart eyes at each other and discuss their failed engagement. #JusticeForJaitlin

(7) Careless Whisper: I don't have much to say about this episode. Marco starts his slow coming out journey. It's always interesting to look back at how afraid Marco was to admit the truth when for so much of his run, he's an out and proud gay man. The Marco/Ellie dynamic is great. Their failed relationship paves the way for their strong, soul mate-like friendship.

(8) Message in a Bottle: It's a Sean episode involving his self worth and unfortunately, that's the kind of shit I eat up. That's about it.

(9) Dressed in Black: I don't even care. I love Ashley's independence and the fact she's adamant on being her true self. And unpopular opinion, Jimmy was in the wrong. While he wasn't outwardly trying to change Ashley, he didn't accept the new Ashley and wasn't on her level. Craig is a disaster, but it's not at all hard to see why they were so drawn to each other. Also, baby Crash <3 JT trying to buy extra large condoms. Oh, the foreshadowing.

(10) How Soon Is Now: I can't talk about this episode without mentioning the scene where Paige confronts Dean and vows to take him to court. It was the first Degrassi scene that deeply affected me. I still get chills to this day. We finally start to see Paige healing and moving forward, and it's beautiful to witness. JT is so sweet in this episode and exactly what Paige needs in that moment. Spinner and Paige become a couple. Marco finally comes out. There aren't that many penultimate episodes that are practically on the same level as the finale, but this is one of them.

(11) Tears Are Not Enough: This episode basically bookends Craig's story line in the season premiere. Craig struggles to decide whether or not he wants to let his dad back into his life. Just as he's made the decision to close that door for good, his dad dies. Craig can't win. My brain is mush at this point, but this episode is an emotional rollercoaster. It's great to see people like Joey and Ashley supporting Craig and stepping up when he needs them most. Also, obligatory Jiberty mention because they have a subplot in the first half.

Least favorites:

(1) Mirror in the Bathroom: This is basically an underwhelming episode. I'm glad Degrassi covered male eating disorders and touched on Terri's body image issues, but this one overall isn't a favorite. But honestly, any episode from this season that isn't Relax isn't bottom of the barrel bad.

(2) Hot for Teacher: This is another underwhelming episode. Season 2 is a fairly strong season, so it's only natural that some episodes will come up short. JT's story line with Hatzilakos isn't super memorable. Spinner and Jimmy's honesty pact is pretty funny, though.

(3) Relax: I just don't understand what the writers were trying to do with this episode. I'm kind of convinced they intentionally gave Liberty/Sarah a bad episode so they could justify ignoring her character going forward. They could have given Liberty any story line and chose to put her in a red cape, trying to emulate Napoleon. What the fuck? The subplot just feels mean to me. Paige and Hazel scheme to make Terri believe Paige is dying because she screwed up her palm reading. There's nothing entertaining about this episode.

(4) Fight for Your Right: Another underwhelming episode. My favorite part about it is watching Emma and Snake figure out their new step dad/step daughter relationship, but this is mostly an Emma protest episode. This isn't Mercy Street or Hungry Eyes, so it doesn't get that wild.

Degrassi TNG season 3:

Favorites (season 3 is my favorite season so it's going to be hard not to list practically every episode):

(1) Father Figure: I pretty much like all the episodes that are very connected to the original series. Emma was a really sympathetic during her search to find Shane. I liked that in the end, she was able to accept both her dads into her life. Craig's involvement was great, too. I wish we'd seen more of their friendship.

(2) U Got the Look: Manny's transformation. That is all. She's my favorite character, and this episode really set her on the path she was on for the rest of the series. This was also when Downtown Sasquatch formed, which is my favorite Degrassi band. At this point in the show, Degrassi has fully come into its own.

(3) Pride: Between Marco's coming out and Snake's cancer diagnosis, this episode is incredibly heartbreaking. This is another strong episode where the writers weren't afraid to make one of the main characters the villain. Even though this is Marco's episode, in a lot of ways it's equally about Spinner and how he reacts in all the worst ways when Marco needs his support the most.

(4) Gangsta Gangsta: This is another character transformation episode. While not as consistently written as Manny's, Sean ends up embracing his worst traits and instincts in a misguided attempt to finally belong somewhere. Somehow, he remains sympathetic even though he's kind of the worst in the second half of the episode.

(5) Should I Stay or Should I Go: Craig/Ashley/Manny. All three are messy and feeling strong emotions. All three make questionable choices, particularly Craig and Manny who end up sleeping together when his relationship status with Ashley is up in the air. I hate this episode and love it at the same time. I also really love the subplot with Wheels coming back to support Snake. It's so nice to see his character end on a more positive note after School's Out.

(6) Whisper to a Scream: This episode is beautifully shot. It's almost surprising that such a serious episode wasn't a two parter. The writers managed to introduce Ellie's problems and show her struggles very quickly, yet somehow the ending didn't feel at all rushed. I don't even know. Season 3 is so good. I don't think this season is bad for a single character.

(7) Holiday: This episode always puts me in the mood for the holidays. God, the messiness of all the triangles and Craig's fuckboy ways. I can't handle it. Joey and Caitlin finally get back together and have their sweet moment at the airport. Manny literally has no right to be sympathetic in this and yet my heart always goes out to her. Ashley dumps Craig's ass and takes the guitar back. There's somehow hope that Craig will eventually learn his lesson. Spoiler alert: he didn't. It's a good time.

(8) Accidents Will Happen: How can I not include the episode that was banned in America for the first couple of years? Obviously, Manny gets an abortion. I've read interviews and excerpts that make it clear how important it was for the show to get this story line right. They really fought for Manny's certainty and lack of remorse, and I love it. This is really the turning point for Manny's character in a lot of ways. There's also the tease of Craig's mental health problems that come into play in season 4.

(9) Take on Me: This episode is a lot of fun. I don't even care about the plot, as thin as it is, because I like seeing all the characters interact. The Breakfast Club is one of my favorite movies, so any remake episodes of it work for me. Sean and Ellie get together and everything is beautiful. The Sean/Jimmy rivalry and Toby/Jimmy friendships are given closure. Hazel actually matters for once.

(10) Don't Dream It's Over: I wish I could say I like this episode because of Terri, but truthfully it's Paige and Spinner who carry this episode for me. Anyways, this episode shows the consequences of escalating abuse and its toxic cycle. It's honestly a shame the Terri/Rick relationship wasn't stretched out a bit more because much more could have been done with it.

(11) Rock and Roll High School: I just love the battle of the bands. Ashley is amazing and gives Craig exactly what he deserves. I have no idea how I can so easily ship them in season 4, but oh well. As intense as Crash breakups and fallouts were, at their best there was a lot of love and passion. This was a fun plot that incorporated most of the grade 10's. Jaitlin were there. I don't think it's a good plot, but I love them so I can't dislike it.

(12) Our House: SEAN'S CHARACTER GROWTH. He finally starts to turn his life around. It kind of kills me that he had to come back for season 6 at all. Late season 3 and season 4 Sean was peak Sean. I also love the way Ellie kind of effortlessly inspires Sean to be better without needing to change him or push him into making the right choices. He does that entirely on his own. And I can't lie. I don't ship JT and Manny anymore, but they were the first couple I ever shipped on this show. So because of that, I always like seeing them become a couple and Manny happily accepting JT's invitation to the dance. Plus, Manny's memorable line about how no one ever talks about the fact Craig was cheating on his girlfriend - just that she was the other woman. It's been giffed multiple times and brought up many times for a reason.

Least favorite:

(1) The Power of Love: This is a filler episode. According to the episode descriptions on my season 3 DVDs, the story line was originally about Marco and Ellie clashing over the Bollywood themed dance. Presumably, this was going to be over cultural appropriation. So I have no idea how the final version ended up being about Jimmy trying to have a perfect night with Hazel with very little drama happening. It's not a bad episode. But compared to episodes 1-21, it's forgettable.

Degrassi TNG season 4:

Favorites:

(1) Ghost in the Machine: This a very strong season premiere. Paige losing her trial hurts so fucking much, but it's sadly true to life. So I can't be sorry Degrassi was willing to go there and show that not every survivor gets a win. Sometimes you have to find closure in your own way, which is what Paige does when she crashes Spinner's car into Dean's and then willingly turns herself in. I feel like I keep coming back to "development" and "turning points," but needless to say this is a new beginning for Paige. Minus the Mr. O bullshit, the rest of her high school years are probably Paige at her best. The Craig/Joey story line is controversial, but I loved seeing more of their development as father and son. Plus, Craig and Ashley reconnect, and I'm a big fan of that.

(2) King of Pain: Marco vs. Alex. This might be my favorite election episode. Marco takes another step in his coming out journey when he admits to his mother that he's gay. He manages to turn Alex's threat to out him into a win for himself when he's inspired to promise to bring the school together. As messy as Alex is during this episode, this is when she finally becomes a real character with potential to be so much more. And I love Alex, so there's that. I deserved more of their friendship.

(3) Mercy Street: Any episode related to the return of Rick and its effect on the rest of the school is automatically great. This story line is exactly the point I was making about Degrassi turning main, usually sympathetic characters into villains to prove a point and to reflect reality. The protest to keep Rick out of Degrassi quickly gets out of hand with people joining in more for the sake of bullying than out of any genuine cause. Emma becomes somewhat problematic when even she proves she isn't above conforming to fit in with the popular kids. The subplot is kind of awful with JT and his tiny penis, but it's entertaining LOL

(4) Anywhere I Lay My Head: Ellie's complex, toxic relationship with her mother was interesting to watch and 100% deserved more screen time. But anyways, Ellie decides to put her own wellbeing ahead of her mother's and finds a better home with Sean. It's very sweet and nice in the moment. I know the writers can't in good conscience have two teenagers living together indefinitely without there being setbacks, but I wish it had lasted a little longer. Or at the least, we'd gotten more follow up between 405 and 409. Sellie though <33 I love them so much. I also really like the carwash as a setting/event, but Spanny will never be a good pairing to me.

(5) Time Stands Still: This is forever the best, most iconic Degrassi episode. I don't think a single person would disagree that this is a mandatory episode to watch. The school shooting creates so many story lines going forward. Things that happen in these episodes having lasting effects all the way to the characters' graduations. Ephraim Ellis's acting is top notch. Really, everyone's is. This is a terrible description, but just talking about the episode makes me want to do a rewatch.

(6) Back in Black: This is another strong Sean episode. His character comes full circle when he leaves the show to move back with his parents. As sad as it is to lose his character and for Sellie to break up, overall Sean's ending would have been satisfying had this been the last time we saw him. Unfortunately, the show didn't do that and so season 6 Sean was mostly just around to spend half the season in jail and then hold Emma's hand once he was released. But I digress. Overall, this was a good portrayal of PTSD and how Sean sometimes lashes out to avoid vulnerability. The subplot was also pretty solid with Toby coping with the death of Rick and JT eventually stepping up to be the support Toby needs.

(7) Voices Carry: You can't go wrong with a Craig episode. At least not during seasons 2-4. The more I think about it, the more I realize that season 4 was the year that most of the characters reach the point where they either get better or worse, becoming richer characters in the process. Craig is no exception. All the hints about Criag's mental health finally manifest into an actual plot when he has a breakdown. This is also peak Crash. Jimmy weirdly provides the comic relief as he reacts to everything Craig says and does with befuddlement. Joey and Ashley are both great supporting characters. The Marco and Spinner cover of Dust is hilarious. JIBERTY. Liberty being a badass. I love it.

(8) Secret: This episode is so dark, but that's why I love it. The chemistry between Emma and Jay is undeniable. Emma doesn't want to be drawn to Jay and he doesn't have the best intentions for seeking her out, but something pushes them together. It's honestly a shame more wasn't done with this dynamic, especially considering Emma's eventual relationship with Peter. What a waste. But even beyond all of that, this episode is primarily about Emma and how she's lost her way after the shooting. I love it when Degrassi is so willing to take such big risks with their main, supposedly good characters. There aren't that many main girls that end up contracting STDs from the slimy fuckboy of the show (pre-Manny) in a misguided attempt to regain control after trauma. I didn't love every writing decision made for Emma, but I like that she wasn't pigeonholed into being one specific thing. Both subplots are great. This is the first and last time I enjoy the dynamic between Craig and Ellie. Because in all honesty, pairing them together for any kind of story line made sense and would have been a good idea. The execution was just SO bad. But I do like that Craig and Ashley grow closer and communicate openly about Craig's needs. The Jimmy/Craig/Marco trio is also great.

(9) Eye of the Tiger: This episode probably singlehandedly sets up large parts of Spinner's and Jimmy's season 5 arcs. Jimmy finds out about Spinner's role in the shooting. It's painful to watch. This is another story line where a character is clearly trash and doesn’t deserve sympathy. But because Degrassi is overall pretty well written and the writers make us love the characters, you can't help but still root for them. This story line also introduces a moral dilemma with no actual right answer. Maybe Jimmy deserved to know Spinner betrayed him, but he didn't necessarily need to know and didn't gain anything from that devastation or the loss of his best friend. Anyways, Spinner had some of the best character growth and the most consistent, believable redemption arc, so I suppose it all worked out.

(10) Moonlight Desires: As much as I hate what this episode does to Marco's relationship with Dylan and Dylan's character (who never really recovers IMO), I love it for Marco. You really see how far he's come and how comfortable he is in his identity as a gay man. I honestly wish we'd seen more of the activist side of Marco. During the college years, they mostly reduced Marco to being the boring one who obsessed over Dylan and not much else. Also, the subplot with Spinner and Jay is really strong. Spinner finally reaches a breaking point and starts his slow redemption arc. Jay also proves he has a heart and genuinely cares for Spinner.

Least favorites:

(1) Bark at the Moon: I love the idea of focusing an episode on Manny just to see where she is a year after the affair with Craig and her abortion. Unfortunately, this is mainly centered around Manny's relationship with Spinner and how she needs to commit to him in order to fully move forward. The problem is, we've seen so little of Spanny. And during the few times we did, it was never anything good. Their fling basically happened at the expense of Spinner's much more significant, far more likable relationship with Paige. The entire conclusion is them getting together which gives the impression this is going to be the new, iconic relationship. But they literally break up three episodes later. Even that is only briefly touched on compared to Spinner's friendship breakdown with Jimmy, the loss of his entire friend group, and his expulsion. So what was even the point? Oh, and Paige and Mr. O got together in the subplot. Need I say more?

(2) Goin' Down the Road: Kevin Smith. Kevin Smith becoming a self insert and the big hero of the show. Kevin Smith somehow turning Caitlin's attention away from Joey. Jaitlin, a legacy couple since the 80s, were torn apart forever over this bullshit. Jason Mewes is around and perving on the teenage girls. Craig becomes homeless for five minutes. Unlike Voices Carry, Craig's mental spiral in this episode doesn't feel nearly as well done and instead comes across as super rushed. Ashley leaves for London, paving the way for Craig to mostly be reduced to love triangle nonsense during season 5 and beyond. It's easily my least favorite finale.

Season 5:

Favorites:

(1) Venus: This episode is a mixed bag for me. It's a favorite because it's iconic and because the more times I watch it, the more Manny's struggles with body image and desire for independence resonate with me. Even though I hate everything about the lack of punishment for Peter and the victim blaming towards Manny, the parts of this episode that work really work.

(2) Turned Out: Practically every episode of season 5 that I like comes with the caveat that at least half of it doesn't work. Season 5 is a middle of the road season that mostly gets away with it because it's part of the classic TNG era and because the highs elevate it. As much as I sympathize with JT and and find him turning to drug dealing to support Liberty and their baby compelling, the elephant in the room is that there's a lot of emphasis on JT's feelings and none on Liberty's. If I ignore those issues, seeing a normally lighthearted character like JT get such a tragic, dark plot is great. Ryan Cooley isn't normally singled out as being one of the stronger actors, but I honestly think he delivered during this story line. And Jiberty is so tragic, too. Foolin' felt a lot more slanted in JT's favor than Liberty's, but this episode is what shows how much the two love each other in spite of the problems life keeps throwing at them. I can't help but love it. The subplots are trash, though.

(3) Redemption Song: Like I said before, I love Spinner's redemption arc. This is firmly in the middle of it where Spinner is trying to do good while still struggling to leave his past behind. Jay is a mess, but I love his role in this episode and how he wants to help Spinner in his own way even when that inevitably ruins things. Darcy's great, too. You wouldn't expect her to be so easily manipulated, but her throwing herself at Spinner was a strong character moment that was difficult to watch. I like the way Spinner and Darcy come together at the end. Hazel dumped Jimmy's emotional cheater ass and threw paint all over him. He deserved it, honestly.

(4) The Lexicon of Love: This is another very strong A plot with a mediocre subplot. I hate the Snake/Hatzilakos near affair, but thankfully it's overshadowed by the main story line. As much as I don't ship Paige and Alex, the way they came together was beautiful and felt really genuine. Paige's immediate panic and instinct to deny her feelings is realistic. She puts so much stock in her reputation and clearly feels pressured to be the straight kid of her family due to her brother coming out years before. I would have loved to have seen that expanded on, but the writers overlooked it. We see more of Alex's home life and see how in a lot of ways, Paige is Alex's escape and her shining light in an otherwise pretty depressing life. Seeing them explore their feelings and not worry about labels (at least at that moment) and preconceived notions feels really good.

(5) I Against I: This is another strong Spinner plot. It can be kind of tiring to see him be led astray by Linus and go against Marco right after regaining his friendship, but I really like the point made at the end of the episode that Spinner is lost and looking to find acceptance anywhere he can find it. Marco is great in this. Marco the activist is the best Marco. I like that he showed Spinner compassion and was open minded to the new Spinner. Manny is fun. I feel like I'm explaining really badly.

(6) Our Lips Are Sealed: I mean, I love this episode mostly for Emma's eating disorder story line. I have some qualms about the writing and the way it was executed now that I know both Miriam and Cassie were uncomfortable with it due to Miriam's actual experiences with eating disorders - something the writers were aware of. But it doesn't change the fact it was a powerful story line. It's too bad more wasn't done with it. The subplots are fun. Snake and Spike getting back together was very sweet. I've always liked Alex and Hazel attempting to bond for Paige's sake. They had an underrated dynamic I would have liked to have seen more of.

(7) High Fidelity: It's kind of odd that I like this episode so much since a lot of it revolves around a love triangle, but in the end I feel like I view Spinner's plot as him being torn between wanting to go back to the past where he believes things were better (Paige) and looking towards the future where he's become a better person (Darcy). Sadly, Spinner and Jimmy's friendship reunion ends up feeling kind of tacked on because of this. But I still get emotional when it happens. As problematic as things got between them, Spinner and Jimmy have always been my favorite friendship. Everything else that happens in this episode is mostly tying up loose ends.

Least favorites:

(1) Weddings, Parties, Anything: I can't stand the Craig/Manny/Ellie triangle. I don't like the idea of it. I don't like the way it plays out and what it brings out in the characters. I don't like the timeline for it. Unlike how the Craig/Ashley/Manny triangle was carefully set up, it was just like "Craig and Ellie hung out all summer and are now BFFs" and "Craig and Manny reconnect after he protects her from Peter without any acknowledgement of their messy history". It all happens so quickly, making it difficult to care which girl is unlucky enough to get stuck with season 5+ Craig. Also, 30 something Joey and the father of a teenager starts dating a woman not much older than his stepson. I just want Jaitlin back. Fuck this episode.

(2) Together Forever: The fact Toby's (because it's mostly his perspective, not Liberty's because OF COURSE) story line surrounding Liberty giving birth happens in a subplot and is wrapped up much more quickly than the average subplot says it all. The writers didn't value Liberty's character and didn't remotely care about her pregnancy once JT was no longer the central figure. There is no good reason for Liberty giving birth to be such a non event. Worst of all, what should be Liberty's big moment is overshadowed by yet another Craig plot. And not even a good one, at that. Jake Epstein wanted to go to college, so the writers had to give his character an exit midway through the season. The idea of Craig pursuing his music was fine and made sense. But nothing interesting happens. There's never any conflict or chance Craig will choose his college scholarship over his dreams. The undercurrent of Craig/Manny/Ellie and especially romantic Crellie makes me enjoy the plot even less.

(3) Total Eclipse of the Heart: This episode is mostly tainted for me because of the Marco and Dylan story line. I'm one of the rare fans that actually ships them, but what a horrible way to put them back together. Why is Marco being bullied for not wanting to take a chance on his cheating ex of more than a year? The actual sweet reunion scene isn't even earned due to Dylan's bad behavior throughout the whole thing. It's like if Zig and Maya hadn't gotten back together at the end of Next Class and instead were thrown back together two minutes after Zig told Maya it takes two people to fuck up a relationship. No one would be rooting for that and rightfully so. Marco deserved better.

Season 6:

Favorites:

(1) Eyes Without a Face: Mostly, I like this episode for Darcy. These days she's sadly more hated than appreciated, but overall I feel like she was a well written character who wasn't all good or all bad. She felt realistic. One thing I liked about Darcy is that sometimes, she contradicted herself because she was a complex person incapable of staying in a specific box. At this point, Darcy doesn't want to have sex outside of marriage, but she still wants to feel sexy and feels limited by her current relationship with Spinner. While I wish this had led Darcy to literally anyone but Peter, the two of them kind of colliding and becoming attracted to each other made sense. It was at least a more intriguing, believable dynamic than Peter/Emma. Plus, this episode introduces Clare and showcases the hardly ever seen Darcy/Clare sisterly bond. It's too bad we didn't see more of that before Shenae Grimes left the show.

(2) What's It Feel Like to Be a Ghost: I honestly don't know why I like this one. I have a lot of problems with the main plot, namely that Craig carries the entire plot with his drug addiction and yet it's all told from Manny's and Ellie's perspective with him being villainized. But by season 6 standards, it's memorable. I think I'm just glad to finally be done with Cranny and that Crellie is over for a long time after this. The constant back and forth was really annoying. I do like the subplots, though. As hard as it is to see JT move forward with Mia when he and Liberty clearly have unfinished business, these episodes show how far JT has come and make the next episode very painful. Plus, it sets up the Degrassi/Lakehurst feud.

(3) Rock This Town: This episode is the definition of "it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt." Or you know, gets murdered. The majority of the episode is very funny with most of the main cast all at the same party and getting to interact. JT and Liberty are finally on the right track and openly communicating without fighting. In spite of the tragic ending, this is easily my favorite Jiberty episode. It's also the only time season 6 Semma halfway works for me. But of course, the real reason this episode is memorable is because of the way it ends. "I'm sorry. Your brother's gone." 😭😭😭 It still hurts.

(4) The Bitterest Pill: I mean, it's the aftermath of JT's murder. Everyone is sad and grieving in complicated ways. There isn't much to say about it. I'm probably most affected by Liberty's and Toby's reactions to it, but even the smaller moments work for me such as Ms. Hatzilakos smiling while watching JT's slideshow. He was a character that had so much history. It's so sad he didn't get the happy ending he deserved. But that's life, I guess. So it makes sense for Degrassi to show that sometimes, life is unfair and tragedies happen.

(5) Free Fallin': This is the sole good college story line on Degrassi and it only lasted for as long as these two episodes. But needless to say, I love that Paige was given the panic attack story line. She'd be the last character you'd expect to struggle with university out of the recent graduates, but it honestly made sense once we saw it. Paige seemed to go to Banting less because it's what suited her and was what she wanted and more because she thought it was something she had to do. Lauren Collins was consistently one of the best actresses on the show, so she crushed all of her scenes as always. And again, I don't ship Palex, but I enjoy the lightness that Alex brings out in Paige. It's understandable why Paige gravitates towards Alex when things start to fall apart.

(6) Don't You Want Me: This is Alex's only major plot and she's one of my favorites, so naturally I overall love this episode. Degrassi very rarely delved into issues pertaining to their poor and lower income characters. It was obvious they were far more comfortable writing for characters from middle class or wealthy backgrounds. While I don't think the sex worker shaming aged well, I still feel for Alex throughout these two episodes. The subplot is pretty irredeemably terrible, but I mostly ignore it.

Least favorites:

(1) Here Comes Your Man: Ugh. This episode, or at least the main plot, feels like poorly written fan fiction. It's not totally out there that Sean and Emma would end up getting back together. Back in Black implied there were still feelings there on Sean's end. But at the same time, the way Sean kind of aggressively pursues Emma and wants only her without any real regard for Ellie, who he lived with, is ridiculous. The execution is awful. Their story line barely resembles early Semma. If you told me this was either someone's spec script or discarded YA book where the bad boy likes to race cars and the good girl has a boyfriend but can't stay away because "chemistry", I would totally believe you. I still can't believe Sean's return was so botched. As soon as he returns to Degrassi, he ends up expelled and sent to jail. Who thought that was a good idea and didn't see the obvious that it would sequester him away from practically everyone except Emma?

(2) True Colours: My problem with this episode is an extension of the one I have with the season premiere. Season 6 Semma is awful. It's a mediocre continuation of what used to be a fairly interesting, believable depiction of first love. Suddenly, Sean's entire purpose in life is Emma Nelson and he can find the strength to keep going as long as he has her. There are embarrassing things like Sean's love of honey vanilla shampoo, which Peter of course hates to prove to us that he's the wrong guy. Yes, this and Peter's actions against Sean are supposed to be the thing to make the audience realize Emma shouldn't be dating the boy who released revenge porn of a drunk and vulnerable Manny. And for some reason, Ellie starts dating Jesse, who exclusively dates barely legal college freshmen who are his subordinates.

(3) Working for the Weekend: I mean, the fact this episode upholds copaganda alone makes it deserving of being a least favorite episode. Spinner is a skilled fighter and was able to defeat the robbers, meaning he should go into law enforcement. Any time Spinner's dream to become a cop comes up, it's generally reduced to participating in police brutality. SMH. Anyways, Spinner and Jimmy open a t-shirt store for five seconds. Why is this deserving of being an A plot? Alex's plot is much better.

(4) Crazy Little Thing Called Love: Yet again, Semma 2.0 is given an A plot. Much like the others, this one is awful. Sean Cameron is one of my favorite characters. I'm even able to understand him and find him sympathetic at his worst, hence why season 3 is one of my favorite seasons for Sean. But in this episode, I kind of hate Sean. I cannot deal with Sean whining about Emma's tarnished goods because she blew Jay. It comes across as much less jealous and hurt over Emma's involvement with his best friend and more the fact Emma dares to be less than pure and good. I'm glad Sean does the bare minimum and seems to want to get to know the new Emma, but it's kind of too little too late for me. Oh, and because I'm still pissed about this years later:

This seems to be the same sexist bullshit Sean was doing during season 6. Fuck that. I'm glad she married Spinner if only because of this episode. Well, almost.

(5) If You Leave: I just don't enjoy watching this episode. I understand that grief can bring out the worst in people and cause them to do misguided things in the name of finding peace or getting justice. But Manny somehow gets shat on in all of this and is forced to easily forgive Emma. I'm just not a fan? Emma comes across more smug than I'd like her to rather than being driven by pain and grief. Marco is embarrassing himself over Dylan. It's season 6, so naturally a lot of what's happening is pretty terrible.

(6) Love My Way: This is another not-so-great college episode. I understand it's a transition episode for Paige and that she's focusing on her love life so she doesn't have to worry about things like her mental health and her academic future, but most of this episode leaves me feeling pretty indifferent. Paige is obviously going to end up back together with Alex, so the detours back to Spinner and to Jesse are kind of pointless.

(7) Sunglasses at Night: Marco gets into gambling and has money troubles for 20 minutes because he's lonely and feels insecure about being the boring, reliable one. Who honestly cares? This is the point in the series where it becomes obvious the writers have no idea how to write college story lines and are struggling HARD. Peter and Darcy sneak around and somehow think they're Romeo and Juliet because Peter is a disgusting pig, resulting in no one liking him including his mom. A lot of people complain about season 7, but thank god for all the new characters and the stronger story lines because this show was treading water for most of this season.

Season 7:

Favorites:

(1) Standing in the Dark: This is the kind of episode that speaks for itself. Darcy's rape story line is somehow darker and more haunting than Paige's. Seeing Darcy get to such lows and watching her spiral as she comes to terms with what happened to her is painful to watch. The Toby subplot is also solid and a strong way to start the season.

(2) Death or Glory: This is the beginning of what's probably Spinner's best story line. I can't quite put it into words, but I liked that the writers chose to give Spinner the cancer arc. Spinner for most of his run was pretty wrapped up in his masculinity and how it defined him, so seeing how struggle with the idea that he's "less of" a man due to losing a testicle was.. interesting? Very sad, but it worked for the character and I feel it gave him more depth and wisdom in the long run. One of the episodes also features Darcy growing closer to Snake after sharing the secret of her rape. Obviously, that story line ends up going in a very messy direction, but the moment where he reaches out to her is touching.

(3) We Got the Beat: I mainly like this episode for the main plot, but I also feel like it's really underrated. I loved seeing Manny much more independent and so willing to stand for herself to her parents. Plus, it's the beginning of Janny which ends up being not only one of my biggest couples on the show but also very entertaining and funny to watch. Jay Hogart was never the same after crossing paths with Manny. The resolution with Manny and her dad finally coming together and starting to forge a better relationship was really nice. One overlooked aspect of Degrassi is the occasions where the parents sometimes grow as much as the kids do, and Mr. Santos is an example of this.

(4) Live to Tell: Darcy is a mess in this episode, but I kind of love it. To be honest, I wish we'd seen a little more of it. That's one of the downsides of the first half of TNG. Whereas the telenovela years had more episodes and more opportunities to sprinkle in continuing plot threads spread out over multiple episodes, in early TNG things could feel a little crowded and somewhat rushed. But anyways, I'll always love that Darcy represents the imperfect victim. Not everyone heals in an outwardly beautiful way where you come away wiser and stronger. Sometimes, you fall apart in a pretty destructive way and can behave in unsympathetic ways. Even after falsely accusing Snake, I never stop viewing Darcy as a realistic character.

(5) Bust a Move: I love watching Manny getting everything she wants and finally ending up with a guy 100% devoted to her and totally on her level. That's reason enough, but mostly this episode is a lot of fun. But I also love Darcy's story line. She finally starts to heal from her rape and find some hope after an undetermined amount of time (because of the confusing timeline) in the darkness.

(6) Another Brick in the Wall: This is a rare time where one of the adults is the focus of the main plot. I feel like the general audience never fully warmed up to the OG characters having story lines in TNG, but Snake is probably an exception this rule considering Snake the teacher and stepdad is as beloved as any of the kids. I don't have much else to say about this, but I guess it's a realistic depiction of the effects of false accusations, as rare as those are. Holly J also finally gets more depth. Toby of all characters is given a rare chance to "win", so to speak.

(7) Ladies' Night: This episode is the one that proved that the season 7 newbies could carry actual story lines and weren't reliant on the longtime characters. While we hadn't seen a lot of focus on Anya and Holly J prior to this, Holly J being the dominant one in the friendship and the heavily influencing Anya had been clear in other plots and smaller moments. So Anya's eventual independence and Holly J's downfall was already fairly well set up. Samantha Munro and Charlotte Arnold were great in the scene where Anya finally confronts Holly J over mistreating her. I hate seeing Jay and Manny break up, but both clearly needed to do more growing (especially Jay) before they could end up together for good.

(8) Everything She Wants: Season 7 Mia is incredibly underrated. I think some questionable decisions were made for her character in season 8 when she was kind of rebranded as the hot model. But back when she was still a struggling single mother who just wanted to have a normal life, all of her plots were pretty great. I hate seeing Lucas let Mia down yet again, but it's painfully realistic. Mia sadly needed to learn the lesson that she can only depend on herself. Also, the brief return of Sean. I don't know what was different about his one episode appearance vs his season 6 run, but Sean felt much more like Sean than he'd been in a long time. I'm very happy the focus was on Sean's mentor bond with Snake rather than his romance with Emma. That relationship had barely gotten any attention during Sean's season of living at the Simpson/Nelson house, so it was nice to be reminded how well those actors worked together. Back in Black will always be the superior ending for Sean and there's a lot questionable about Sean joining the army at all, but I was happy to see Sean moving on to a brighter future that didn't completely revolve around Emma.

Least favorites:

(1) Love Is a Battlefield: I'll never forgive the writers for the way Alex was written off. Palex breaking up is whatever to me, though I seriously feel for their fans because neither character was written well during this episode. It's just bad. Alex was given zero understanding or patience regarding her mother literally betraying her by bailing out her abusive boyfriend instead of keeping them housed. If she needs to take a couple of weeks off and spend some time getting high, let her. Jesus fucking christ. Then of all things, Alex's stripper past gets thrown back in her face after Paige shamed Alex into quitting that job in the first place. She literally can't win during this episode. The subplot is pretty bad as well. Manny is mistaken for racist and somehow that relates to the Degrassi/Lakehurst feud. I don't even know why Manny and Damian got back together for all of two scenes. This episode was a massive disappointment after the season premiere.

(2) Got My Mind Set on You: Mostly, I just struggle to care about anything happening in this episode. It's sort of about racism, sort of about Derek being a bad friend to Danny. There's a minor love triangle thrown in. I don't think any of it comes together very well. Emma has a subplot where she's reacting to Snake's suspension from school and how difficult that is for her specifically. I'm just not interested in Emma's perspective. Another Brick in the Wall was a much better episode.

(3) Talking in Your Sleep: I haven't watched this one in a while so I'm slightly fuzzy on the details. But.. Paige unknowingly has sex with an HIV positive man because he makes the conscious decision NOT to tell her beforehand. Because of this, Paige is unable to give her fully informed consent to sleeping with him. Canonically, Paige's reaction to Griffin's violation is intensely triggered to the point she subtly references being raped by Dean. "I swore I would never be out of control with a guy again." Even though Paige's relationship with Matt was inappropriate and wrong, during their relationship she didn't view herself as a victim and him a predator. This doesn't apply to Spinner or Jesse, so that literally leaves Dean, the guy who took her virginity the night he raped her. Referencing that at all is a fucking choice considering the narrative wants us to side with Griffin and view Paige as ignorant for assuming promiscuity led to him becoming infected with HIV. Anyways, Griffin committed rape by deception, but no big deal or anything. The episode ends with Paige vowing to be a supportive partner to a guy she's been seeing for a day or two and we're supposed to not think anything of what he put her through.

(4) Broken Wings: The main plot just feels so.. soapy. Even for Degrassi. Jimmy can't access his trust fund to pay for his risky stem cell surgery, so he blackmails his dad into giving him the money after catching him having an affair. Jimmy was pretty consistently overlooked and underwritten and it's kind of unbelievable that this is the note they chose to end on minus his season 8 cameo. Also, Studz is formed and I have to listen to Peter sing. Enough said. I will never forgive the bunny masks or the shitty, privileged lyrics about being on house arrest and having a rich parent that doesn't love you.

Season 8:

Favorites:

(1) With or Without You: This episode has grown on me a lot and I'm not fully sure why. I really enjoy the main plot with Sav and Anya. They were never a major couple of mine even during the time I shipped them. I have more issues with them in retrospect, but that's neither here nor there. But I liked the focus and depth their relationship got in this episode. This is when they officially get on the on again/off again "Sav will never stand up for Anya to his parents" ride. It goes from being a cute plot about two teens who seem to be in love for the first time and potentially want to explore that through sex to a story line about sexism and double standards when the Alli/Johnny plot is tied into it. Also, the Emma/Manny subplot has become a random favorite of mine. So many episodes featuring the college kids tended to be either relationship focused or something extreme like Marco nearly prostituting himself for money, but this one was just Emma and Manny having a playful competition over Kelly that isn't being taken that seriously. The chemistry between Miriam and Cassie was always great, so it really worked.

(2) Jane Says: The main plot is very well done. I don't have a lot of thoughts about it, but Jane's slow processing over her past molestation was heartbreaking. I loved Lucas's role in it and how he finally stepped up when Jane needed him.

(3) Heart of Glass: Degrassi had multiple story lines involving consequences to sex and regretted first times, but I don't think any of them felt as personal as Alli's. It's subtle, but there's a lot of emphasis on how Alli is still a little girl in so many ways and wasn't emotionally ready to have sex. She wanted so badly to have the grand romance and to get the validation of just having her older boyfriend acknowledge her in front of his shitty friends. So when she makes the decision to go there with him and none of it turns out like she expected, I just feel sad for her. As much as I ended up hating the Alli/Johnny relationship and don't feel that it aged well at all, the ending with Johnny and Alli coming together and making actual relationship progress felt nice. Granted, that all went out the window in a big way come season 9.

(4) Danger Zone: While I think parts of this episode is kind of shoehorned in such as Holly J's sudden strong crush on Spinner that hadn't even been alluded to before, Holly J taking on a more heroic, compassionate role really worked for me. It felt good to see her undergo so much growth after being mostly unlikable for a good season and a half. Besides, even if it was rushed, the Holly J/Spinner dynamic is still one of the strongest from seasons 8 and 9. Connor schemes to get KC and Clare together, which is very cute. The Dot hostage situation was surprisingly good as far as Degrassi drama goes. It felt believable and not overly dramatized.

(5) Paradise City/Degrassi Goes Hollywood: This is almost a guilty pleasure for me because the premise is kind of ridiculous, but I always have a lot of fun watching it. I just love seeing Manny's dreams come true. I wish there had been actual setup for her relationship with Mick during season 8 rather than it being introduced kind of randomly. But I like the way she was able to pull herself out of that toxic relationship and put her ambitions first. Janny <3 Jay doing everything possible to help Manny make her dreams come true <3 Best non-Zaya endgame by far. I have mixed feelings about Ellie's story line because of the involvement of Craig, but I love that the show revisited the issue of Ellie's dad. More could have come out of that, but I mostly bought that Ellie would self destruct and run to avoid the reality of her dad's condition. Stacey Farber did some of her best acting here. I just wish the resolution hadn't felt so easy? I realize there was only limited time with Stacey due to Ellie departing at the end of the previous season, but it's really like Ellie is strongly implied to be attempting suicide and then a few minutes later she's making out with Craig in an airport. But if I overlook all of my issues with that, I enjoy her story line for what it is.

Least favorites:

(1) Didn't We Almost Have It All: Liberty's story line didn't work for me. I don't have a lot of complex thoughts about it. I think it's another episode that has multiple ideas all awkwardly mixed together. Liberty wants to join a sorority. Liberty faces racism because she's viewed as the potential token black girl. Liberty goes streaking. Liberty ends up with alcohol poisoning. It's a lot for a half hour story line. The message seems to be that Liberty should accept herself as is and be happy with that. Which is fine? It just feels a little late. As always, Liberty deserved better.

(2) Touch of Grey: Degrassi is occasionally accused of being a run of the mill, after school special type of show where the tiniest "bad" thing you do results in maximum consequences. Normally, Degrassi subverts this or at least goes into more depth. But this is a case where the show deserves all the criticism. The writers practically bent over backwards to justify a girl nearly dying because of weed. A diabetic coma that somehow happened because a girl who was already a habitual weed smoker randomly got so high that she forgot to take her insulin? None of that made any sense. Then to pile on even more and make sure none of the main characters get off scot free, Kelly is kicked out of the dorms. I'm only now getting around to mentioning that this was actually an Emma plot, but I don't think it fucking matters. She sort of has an identity crisis where she basically pulls a Marco and no longer wants to be the predictable girl with a boyfriend. Emma doesn't have to face the consequences of something she indirectly caused (no matter how ridiculous it is), making the entire ordeal pretty pointless.

It surprises me that I barely have any least favorite episodes from season 8. This doesn't make it a favorite. It isn't. But for some reason, I don't mind most of the episodes. Many of them are just "fine".

Season 9:

Favorites:

(1) Beat It: There's not a lot to say about this one. I'm a fan of Riley's character, and he takes a big step by the end of the episode when he comes out to Peter. Even though Argiris's acting is pretty terrible, I'm glad a character like Riley existed and that the show covered internalized homophobia with an intensely masculine gay guy. Anya's LARPing subplot is great. Independent, confident Anya was always the best Anya. This is around when Sav and Anya as characters, particularly Anya, start to evolve past Sanya the couple.

(2) Heart Like Mine: To be honest, there aren't that many standout episodes for me from this season, but I think KC's arc was one of the strongest and most emotional. It's unclear exactly what Coach Carson's motivations were and if he was the type of predator who was going to prey on KC himself or not, but I think the mystery of it all and the creep factor mostly worked. Considering KC's lack of male role models and strong adult figures, it's pretty realistic that he could be lured in by someone like his coach. I only wish we'd gotten more of the aftermath. Because in the long run, it somewhat felt like only the Klare/Kenna triangle lingered. I also enjoy the Fiona/Declan story line. I can't stand Declan now, but the only aspect of him I still find interesting is when he's interacting with Fiona. The movie at the end of the season goes into more detail and makes it clear how unhealthy their bond is. But in this episode, Declan wanting Fiona to be happy and kind of compromising to keep her in his orbit is sweet.

(3) In Your Eyes: I tend to like Riley story lines, so this is one of my favorite episodes. Not a lot of action happens other than Riley gradually taking steps out of the closet and becoming more comfortable living as a gay kid. Riley and Zane are adorable. Riley's friendship with Anya is solidified when he comes out to her. This story line just makes me happy. As someone who used to be a big Klare fan, this episode is complicated because KC is all over the place and not all what Clare needs. But I like that Clare ultimately put herself first and was strong enough to turn KC away. I wish so much that older Clare could have been half as strong with Eli.

Least favorites:

(1) Close to Me: The inferior Close to Me. I don't think Jane's affair with Declan was as out of character and as unbelievable as others do, but it was pretty clear it happened to break up Spinner and Jane presumably so he could marry Emma. Weird choice, but whatever. But the story line just isn't that interesting. I end up feeling bad for Spinner more than anything. KC's subplot is pretty good, but it's mainly just set up for his future story line.

(2) Wanna Be Startin' Somethin': The main plot always bugs me. I get that Holly J didn't really have close female friends, but it felt forced the way her loyalty quickly went from Spinner to Jane. I don't at all understand how she was so okay with keeping the Jane/Declan affair a secret. Basically, I don't have fun watching it. And in the subplot, it's just Dave and Bruce throwing piss at each other. I...

(3) Waiting for a Girl Like You: Declan harasses Holly J into dating him all the while he has a girlfriend. It's supposed to be very lighthearted and cute, but I hate Holly J and Declan together and can't find anything redeeming about their relationship after Love Lockdown.

(4) Somebody: This might as well be Waiting for a Girl Like You (2). Declan and Holly J are still the focus of the plot. For whatever reason, we're supposed to be very invested in Canadian Chuck and Blair exactly three minutes after they start dating. The whole plot point where the two aren't supposed to date because their moms are both against it was ridiculous. It's inventing drama that shouldn't be there to make us root for a couple that doesn’t have a lot of substance as it is.

(5) Why Can't This Be Love: Truthfully, I probably have mostly mixed feelings about this episode more than anything. Because compared to a lot of season 9 episodes, this one stands out as one of the better ones. But because of the subject matter and the fact that I'm going to inevitably end up talking about all of Degrassi's inadvertent rape story lines, I don't want to overlook this episode. Anya commits rape by deception when she lies about being on birth control, robbing Sav of the ability to give fully informed consent. It's very clear based on how horrified and uncomfortable Sav appears later in this episode that this knowledge changes everything for him. It destroys the trust he'd previously had in Anya. The first time I watched this episode when I was around 16, I was stuck on the idea that Sav of all people would keep coming back to the fact Anya "lied" to him considering the many lies he's told both her and his parents up to this point. But when you're a teenage boy growing up in a time where no one is talking about what consent looks like beyond very black and white situations, it's understandable that he wouldn't be able to put into words what was done to him and how he feels about that. The one thing I'll give Degrassi is that Anya faces immediate consequences once she confesses to Sav what she did. We the audience are meant to realize that Anya crossed a line and that Sav is in the right for ending the relationship even if Anya is still a sympathetic character. This is questionable honestly, but out of the Paige/Griffin, Sav/Anya, Holly J/Declan and Katie/Drew scenarios this one is sadly.. I hesitate to say the best but at least there's more emphasis on what the rapist did wrong and there's not a clear "actually the victim is the real asshole" or outright lying to the audience and saying what they saw on screen wasn't rape.

(6) Keep on Loving You: This is a filler episode. On most shows, I like filler episodes. But on a show like Degrassi that has a large cast, filler episodes featuring characters who already get a lot of attention are annoying. I didn't even plan for nearly all of my least favorite episodes of this season to involve Declan, Holly J, or Dolly J the couple, but somehow it worked out that way. Declan's moving away and doesn't initially say "I love you" to Holly J. There's no good reason for this to be an A plot, but Dolly J was the main couple that season. It's all mostly there to set up Degrassi Takes Manhattan. The subplot isn't any better. Danny and Chantay were both underwritten, ignored characters due to the fact this show rarely prioritized their black characters. Both of these characters had been around since season 4, but all they could think to have them do in this episode was have some drama over Chantay drinking from Danny's water bottle, thus catching his cold, because he was jealous she had to kiss Peter in a play. This isn't even a good plot by sitcom standards.

Season 10:

Favorites:

(1) What a Girl Wants: This is a strong start to the "new" Degrassi. Fiona's abuse story line maybe could have used another episode or two, but ultimately it was less about that relationship and more Fiona's character and how her past is used against her when she tries to confide in people about Bobby. It's sadly true to life that survivors of any kind of abuse or assault are disbelieved because there's no such thing as a perfect victim. Fiona instantly becomes one of the most complex, interesting characters on the show starting with this episode. The election story line was a lot of fun. The Sav/Anya angle was a lot, but I liked Holly J's involvement and how Sav was able to kind of turn the tables on her.

(2) Better Off Alone: KC's story line with his mom is very underrated. Really, KC in general is pretty underrated and misunderstood. He's a huge mess and has tons of issues relating back to his childhood that he never fully works through. The most interesting thing to me about KC in this episode is how much he wants to stay in the group home. We didn't see much of it, but it can be inferred that KC's time in the group home was the first time he'd found actual stability and a reliable home. So seeing him resist losing that and refusing to give his mom a chance is very sad. It helps that KC's mom, Lisa, is very well written and somehow still lovable and sympathetic even though KC is the character we've known longer and the one whose side we're on. I like that ultimately, it was KC's decision to move back in with his mom. I mostly liked Clare's story line dealing with her parents' marital problems. While I hate that this is the episode the cements Eclare and Eli's place in Clare's life, at this point they're just a normal potential couple starting out. Much like the KC plot, you have a teenager dealing with parental problems way out of their hands. Clare doesn't want to see her parents split up, but she can't stand the waiting and the not knowing for sure. Also, Bhandurner was cute here, even though things didn't end well for them.

(3) I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself: This is just a fun episode. A lot of lighthearted moments happen in it. The stakes are overall pretty low. But I also love that Sav undergoes a lot of character growth and finally starts being able to stand up to his parents. The Sav/Adam/Eli/Bianca group was great and deserved more screen time. Fiona's subplot was also really solid. I don't think there's a single bad Fiona plot in season 10. It keeps her issues lingering while also showing her beginning to grow and find healthier ways to cope.

(4) My Body Is a Cage: This is such a lazy explanation, but it's another episode that speaks for itself. The official reveal that Adam is trans was very well done. I hate that Adam had to be outed and that a hate crime was committed against him, but I guess the writers felt the character needed to be pushed to a certain breaking point. I do think that more could have been done with the aftermath. There was a lot going on with Adam. He obviously had gender dysphoria and a history of self harm. As a cis person, there isn't a lot I know about this. I just feel like maybe Adam needed some sort of counseling after that, but the show wrote it like all of his problems were solved at the end. But really, the fact Degrassi had a trans character at all in 2010 is legendary. I hate that I ended up critiquing this episode so much because truthfully, it's probably top 10 for me. The things that work about this episode are outstanding. I love the way Clare, Drew and Eli all step up and give Adam the support he needs and deserves. Anya's story line with her mom's cancer is kind of an afterthought in comparison, but I think it was also pretty heart wrenching. More should have been done with this arc rather than using it as a jumping off point so Anya could date the 20 something cancer doctor.

(5) Still Fighting It: Ugh, my brain is mush again. This is another strong Riley episode. This is when he officially confronts his internalized homophobia and makes great strides when it comes to accepting himself and getting closer to coming out. Riley and Zane in some ways are at their best here. Degrassi was guilty of giving them what felt like the same plot over and over again, but the chemistry between the actors really sold their relationship. There's a subplot where Wesley and Drew help each other out, which is fun. Wesley's crush on Anya is introduced in this episode, which was very sweet. If they'd gotten together, it would be Anya's healthiest relationship by a mile.

(6) Purple Pills: This was a great Fiona episode. Probably one of my sometimes overlooked favorites. It's just more of her dealing with the aftermath of Bobby's abuse and continuing to self medicate with alcohol. As I said before, seasons 10-14 had more of an opportunity to delve a little deeper into these story lines. It made them feel much more fleshed out and organic. Fiona's drinking probably lasted for several months in universe. Though Fiona still has a long way to go, I like that this episode kind of gives her a win. She's able to get in the state of mind where she's finally prepared to fight back. Riley officially comes out. It's understated, but that works. It didn't need to be a big moment like it was for Marco with his dad or Zoe to the school. Ziley is adorable. Mid season 10 is probably them at their best. I even like Adam's story line. I've never been that invested in his friendship with Eli, but I like that Adam makes the choice to hang out with the absolute wrong group just because he's being petty and bitter. Adam could sometimes be a little too perfect, if that makes sense. Nearly all of Adam's story lines revolved around him being trans and the struggles that came specifically from that, so it was always nice when the show allowed him to be a flawed character in the same way the others are. It made his much more serious, equally important story lines all the more significant.

(7) All Falls Down: This episode had to grow on me because I feel like at first, it was kind of overhyped for an episode where no one died or suffered much long term effects. That's one problem with some of the later seasons' promotion. They'd hype up these big events where lives were on the line, but very little like that happened other than the random one two punch of losing Cam and Adam so closely together. But anyways, I think all of the plots go together really well. Everything plays a role in Snake's eventual breaking point at the end of the episode. I haven't said anything about the Eli/Fitz feud, but it was one of the better ongoing arcs in season 10. I don't like Eli and can't say I like Fitz either these days, but the brain vs brawn aspect worked. At least back then, Eli was allowed to be more morally grey or outright villainous without the show pressuring us to think he was somehow the moral center. The Drew/Alli/Bianca triangle is classic Degrassi messiness. The guy's a fuckboy, and neither girl has a lot of self respect. It happens all the time. Even though this is probably the worst version of Drianca, their chemistry is still electric. I'm not shocked it was later decided to pair them up permanently. Sav and Holly J are great and deserved better.

(8) Don't Let Me Get Me: This is a big game changer episode for Alli. Obviously, this is when her parents finally find out about her "secret life" and it causes a massive fallout. But more than that, it's a significant Alli episode in the sense that she's forced to mature from this point forward. I don't know what the popular opinion is on this because it usually doesn't warrant discussion, but the moment where Alli spreads Bianca's nudes around the school is far and away the worst thing she ever did. It's beyond cold and uncalled for. I definitely don't think what happened after that was karma or that Alli deserved her parents' harsh judgment, but it's the moment where Alli's problems became a little bigger and she was really forced to deal with consequences for the first time. Seeing her so vulnerable was a big change from her usual confident demeanor. Jenna's story line isn't quite on that level, but thankfully the Next Teen Star thing is cut short in favor of Jenna being forced to face reality about her pregnancy and future. I guess in a way, this is the episode where both Alli and Jenna grow up.

(9) Hide and Seek: I mostly like this episode for Alli's story line. It was a satisfying ending after multiple episodes of Alli being in a no-win situation with her parents. It would have been easy for Degrassi to make the Bhandaris shallow characters without interiority, but I like that they had actual vulnerability and complex feelings. From their perspective, they meant well and were only trying to be good parents. When Alli finally comes home, I'm as happy for her and content with the conclusion of the arc as I am for the entire Bhandari family. I know it's bare minimum, but I like that Johnny left on a good note. He's still far from a favorite character, but there was at least a semblance of the kind of character he could have been had the show prioritized his growth and guilt over JT instead of just Jalli and being bully #1. Holly J's plot is pretty good. It works as a lesson for people who rely on self medicating rather than going to a doctor. My main issue is that in the long run, Holly J's kidney story line gets convoluted and soapy.

(10) Chasing Pavements: I LOVE Fiona's plot. It touches on every aspect of her season 10 arc, tying everything into a nice bow. In two episodes, she: wins her trial against Bobby, retains her sobriety, and comes out as a lesbian. It should feel rushed and a little bit clunky, but it really isn't. In my opinion, it's all very well written. The Anya/Owen sexual harassment story line is underrated. I have mixed feelings about Anya as a character now due to her past actions with Sav, but season 10 Anya is a lot more independent and outspoken when it comes to guys. I hate, hate, hate that Degrassi chose to pair Anya with Owen in season 11 because it kind of ruins Anya's strong moment of calling out Owen. The whole point of the story line is that Anya DOESN'T want to date Owen and isn't attracted to him due to his gross personality and sexist, hateful past actions. It taints the ending when you remember she sleeps with him a couple of weeks later. Daniel Kelly being conventionally attractive wasn't worth all that.

(11) Drop the World: As much as I can't stand Eli, his A plots were usually good. Plus, again, season 10 Eli wasn't supposed to be the unquestioned good guy. Even though Eli has sympathetic reasons explaining his downward spiral, he's still Clare's controlling, manipulative boyfriend who literally attempts suicide to get her by his side. It's a mess, but it's an entertaining mess. I rarely praise Munro Chambers' acting because I only ever talk about his character for negative reasons, but he's honestly great and one of the strongest actors ever to appear on the show. The subplots are fun. Who can forget "You told me to play basketball"? Awkward Anya revealing Fiona's crush on Holly J and being the comic relief was great. I just realized I forgot all about the Savvy J breakup. Ugh. So unnecessary, and for off screen Declan.

Least favorite:

(1) Love Lockdown: It's almost hard for me to include this because in retrospect, I think Degrassi got a lot about this right. Most definitely unintentionally, but still. The entire episode has a very ominous tone to it from the start. To begin with, Declan talks about winning back Holly J in a very calculated sort of way where if he just does xyz, she'll fall back into his arms. It doesn't help that he looks at Holly J like this the first time they cross paths again:

Throughout the first part of the episode, Declan does all he can to orchestrate a scenario where he can be alone with Holly J. Finally, he gets his chance when Fiona intentionally gets drunk and insists that Holly J stay at her loft to help out. The minute Holly J lowers her guard, Declan initiates sexual contact even as Holly J expressly says "no" and indicates both in body language and the fact that she never consents to anything. Part 2 picks up immediately afterwards. Holly J is uncomfortable and clearly not happy, but manages to keep it together until she's out of Declan's sight. But, this isn't Holly J's story. Holly J was the victim of coercive rape, but this story is more about Declan and how he and his sister place pressure on Holly J to say Declan did nothing wrong. To be fair, I don't think Fiona means to do this. Fiona is clouded by the idea of Dolly J as a closeted lesbian who views them as the ideal, attainable love she wants for herself. Possibly, Fiona wants to keep Holly J "in the family" as a way of being with Holly J without being with Holly J. When Fiona tells Holly J Declan is transferring back to Degrassi and wants to discuss the previous night, Holly J is withdrawn and almost looks distraught at the thought of her rapist transferring to her school. Whatever thoughts she's having about Declan during this episode, they're nothing good, which she implies to Fiona. All Holly J is able to vocalize is that she didn't want things to go that far and that Declan made her feel pressured. When Fiona attempts to prevent Holly J from walking away by touching her, Holly J pushes her hand away. Fiona gently questions Declan about his actions and whether or not he had Holly J's consent, which ends with Declan questioning if Holly J thinks he raped her. Holly J is next shown at work where she still looks very down and nowhere close to okay. I'm sorry, but this shit is not simply intense guilt over cheating on Sav. Holly J, a proactive, always in control person, is doing her best to go about her day as though nothing happened and that her thoughts aren't consumed with her assault. Yet again, Declan tramples all over Holly J's boundaries when he shows up unwanted AT HER PLACE OF WORK DURING HER SHIFT to guilt trip Holly J about how they were supposedly on the same page the previous night. Declan claims he'll only go away if Holly J reassures him that she wanted to have sex. Holly J yet again reiterates that she didn't want to have sex and that Declan insisted. She expresses confusion as to whether or not she "changed her mind". Declan recalls that she kissed him, but the scene clearly shows Declan forcing Holly J's face to turn towards his. He's the one to kiss her with it being ambiguous whether or not Holly J is kissing back.

Anyways, in the last eight minutes or so, the script almost completely flips as though the writers changed their minds much like they seem to think Holly J did. Now, Holly J wants to talk to Declan and is upset at the thought that he's out of her life forever. Even now, it's all being framed like "you think it was rape" and "he thinks that you think it was rape". It seems like the blame is kind of all put on Holly J? It's like Declan didn't actually do anything, but Holly J is causing all this unnecessary confusion when he's just trying to play Romeo or whatever the fuck. Somehow, this ends with Holly J rushing to see Declan before he can leave town. At this point, Holly J doesn't want to classify what happened as rape. Keep in mind that this is all taking place over the course of not even 48 hours. Holly J and Declan both got accepted into Yale and because of this, it somehow erases Declan's disgusting actions and it's still back to "you think I..." and Holly J having to reassure Declan that she doesn't think he raped her. I understand that situations like these can be complicated and that it takes time to process what it means when someone you trust violates you. But at the same time, this is the end of the story. Degrassi wrote a clear cut rape, called attention to it, and then told their impressionable audience it wasn't so. Every future reference to Holly J/Declan is positive. I'm sorry, I know this was ridiculously long. I just hate everything about the message this episode sends.

[notgoingwell]

(And I'll say this before I dive in: I've been wary of this show ever since it got announced. I dearly love this game – singular, as there is only one Tlou game. I was frightened this IP was just the next in a long line to suffer tragic death and deconstruction, as has become daily life in Hollywood today. -> embed unwarranted messages and twisted morality and turn every character into something they're not until there's nothing left to recognise. The point is: it would take a lot for this to convince me, even more so with the bad taste Tlou 2 left in my mouth.)

And with that being said, let's get to it: I am thoroughly underwhelmed by HBO's The Last of Us. So far (and I'll happily eat crow should it change), it feels like they're throwing member berries at us. They added tons of new scenes, cut others, and made changes that deviate from the game, yet when familiar scenes play out, sometimes even shot for shot, they, somehow, fall flat. And herein lies the problem: If you consider changing something that has worked perfectly before, then you'll have to do it with good reason, and beneficial to the story. Most of the additions thus far (and within a run time of 1:30h, they merely depicted the first 10-15 min of the game) felt like fleshing out on the wrong ends. Filler more than anything else. Some things took more screen time than they did contribute to storytelling, bringing no substance, no extra characterisation, whatsoever to the table. At one point, a few of those extras started contradicting themselves, and even lore. Ultimately, they don't enhance the story.

They began to lack emotional weight and significance, 'cause they were either missing scenes leading up to them occurring or feeling out of place altogether. To me, they felt like ticked-off boxes to justify it being a Tlou product. The watch? Check. Sarah? Check. (added bonus if we let her wear the exact same shirt as in the game, even though she feels like a different character in the show and the only indicator she's who we're supposed to believe she is, is because the show says so.) Recognisable outfits for respective characters? Check. Car driving sequence with rotating camera? Check. Death scene? Check. Quarantine zone? Check. Smuggle job from Marlene? Check. All these moments are depicted in the show, and yet they change how we get from point A to point B, or how a situation comes to pass and expect the story to follow and flow as it has in the games. A disruption, no matter how small, will affect the outcome and should be accounted for. "Why are you angry they adapt game sequences?" – I am not. I get angry when they change the context in which these sequences occur, and then expect the same payoff to work. I also do comprehend that sometimes you need to change a story to adapt for Tv, which is acceptable as long as characters are still recognisable and act as they're supposed to.

The first episode felt rushed, and none of the emotional beats stuck the landing thus far (for me).. which is not a promising start given that Sarah's death and her relationship with Joel play a significant role in his characterisation and development. Part of it may come down to, what I thought, was a mismatch in dialogue and acting. For example, when we were presented with the family dynamic between Sarah, Tommy and Joel: What they were saying – the snarky, familiar, insider-ish banter felt fitting – but it did not match their character's behaviour or body language. (and, I mean no offence here, but none of them had chemistry, much less enough to be considered family.) Hell... if the show had not shouted from the roof that Gabriel Luna embodies Tommy, Joel's brother, one never would've guessed so. They look nothing alike, a miscast as far as I'm concerned. And, am I the only one who thinks Sarah, as well as Ellie, look too old? Sarah, especially, was such a young, innocent soul in the game who woke up from her nap only to witness the beginning of the apocalypse. She had no idea what was going on. Utterly frightened, she observed what fell apart around her, until the tragedy of it all caught up with her, claiming her life before she could fully comprehend what was happening. Even more tragic considering how young she was, and how little time we got to spend with her. And it's in her age, innocence and behaviour that Joel sees Sarah in Ellie.

So, yeah. It felt rushed, big time. Some moments were not granted enough time to "breathe", and others were cut short drastically. (eg. Bite reveal) Makes you wonder what all this rush is for. What else will be shortened, or even dismissed? What content will take precedence going forward? Will they lean heavily into certain themes, and embed messages? Or, worse, are we rushing to get to part 2 as fast as possible? (Already scared about how we'll proceed, seeing how Tess' actress is scheduled for 5 episodes total when her game counterpart dies within the next 30 or so minutes. What else will we drag out or redundantly flesh out?)

That intro, too, was pretty average... okay... I'm jumping all over the place, so, I guess, I'll just tackle whatever comes to mind. For a series that is produced by a streaming service known for its high-quality, detailed and unique intros, it felt lacklustre. They were clearly imitating the game's intro, yet after rewatching it on Youtube, I kind of prefer it to its TV show counterpart. (it encapsulates the feeling of this world better: dark, gritty, black-and-white) and I'm left thinking: is it just another member berry? If you weave so many "new" perspectives and scenes into this, why not be consistent all the way through and create something creative that lines up tonally and in favour of said changes? And, where was the music in this episode? Whether you're familiar with the game or not, Tlou has an identifiable score, predominately, subtle atmospheric background noise with certain standout tracks, but it's there. Here? Not so much. I believe I've heard 1-2 tracks. That's it.

Random tidbits floating through my head:

-What was the point of Robert being there when his "segment" got cut from the show?

-Why IS Robert scared of Joel, exactly? See, this is the problem I mentioned earlier, if you cut out scenes and go forth unbothered, you'll come across issues. In the game, Joel brutally takes out a bunch of guys and thus proves his tough, threatening personality. (which also, I believe, grants him to take Marlene's job since he's the only capable person left?) Here? We've not seen him do anything that would indicate said reputation and validate Rob's fear. Where do we get the impression he's tough and has a threatening personality not to be messed with unless other people simply state it as a fact?

-Why is Sarah first displayed as a smart, know-it-all character and later turns into the most oblivious person, walking around like Shaun of the Dead, not acknowledging any signs? Felt almost comical.

-Sarah takes up more screen time than she contributes to the story, literally doing nothing. Why change the beginning and add neighbours, school, etc.? If you were to change anything, add more father/daughter moments and to their dynamic -> loss will be more devastating due to the increased emotional impact

-Why did they remove the spores? They presented additional threats and challenges, were part of the world and influenced its inhabitants. Now we're left with TWD but a fungus version... why? Weren't spores responsible for certain mutations? 

-Why did they force the flashback as Joel was about to attack when we clearly know what he'd associate it with? And why would he already see Ellie as a daughter-like figure? Why rush through what's, essentially, the point of the game? That felt massively unearned.

-The execution was weird and out of place, but maybe that's just me. To display how harsh and ruthless the world has gotten, you could've easily just included the firing squad executions from the game. Remember? The ones where they coldly disregarded human life on the pavement 'cause they tested positive. Aiming for cruel conditions rather than a spectacle.

-How does Ellie know 80s music when she's born after the Outbreak? I vaguely remember (it has evidently been some time since I've played it) Joel educating Ellie on various cultural tidbits from before.

-Why is Ellie also depicted as a genius, smart, know-it-all? Her decoding of that radio signal was unneeded. She's always been a snarky, endearing youngster you felt the need to protect – here, and this is what I perceived from one episode, she's an obnoxious brat, amped up in aggressiveness

-Why did the showrunners insist on making TV Joel a softer, more vulnerable person? (Modern Hollywood sure does hate masculinity) In the show, Joel is not an assertive presence that makes decisions. Other people decide for him, or command what he does (Tess, Marlene, Ellie, Sarah) -> only action out of his own volition is when he beats up a soldier (due to flashback, which was hamfisted in to remind everyone, in case they forgot the last 30 minutes.) In this world, tough guys survive that make tough decisions. Joel's one of them – always has been. (just look how the game ends...)

-Why is Joel not acting up when receiving no answer to Tommy's whereabouts? Why waste the trip to the office and precious resources? Also, isn't this going against lore? I thought Tommy and Joel were estranged, and later in the game, we learn that Tommy was part of the Fireflies, which drove them apart.

-Is there going to be a reason why they decided to make Joel and Tess an exclusive, today thing-y? As far as I remember, it was merely vaguely implied they had something going on in the past.

-I may be butchering details here again, but wasn't Marlene the person Ellie already knew and trusted? The one she was hesitant to leave? That feels more believable than her listening to Marlene as a voice of reason, due to her spilling that she knew her mom, and thus forming a bond. 

-Is it just me, or did the quarantine zone leave little impression? It did not even feel like a real place with people in it. This would've been the perfect opportunity to rip some things from the game, in order, to breathe some life into the place. (eg. like adding the market where Joel and Tess walk through, etc.)

-How did Tess get out of the explosion relatively unharmed? -Why did the lady in the shop not warn Sarah properly, and cautioned her to interact with other people, when she knew something was up? -Why did they burn their dead with clothes on? Clothing, shoes, etc. are valuable limited properties that are no longer produced.

Verdict after one very lengthy episode/first impressions: 

Generic, mid, apocalyptic-themed show, that wears the skinsuit of Tlou. When the show syncs up with the game is generally where pace and interest pick up, but otherwise, we're left with unnecessarily dragged-out extra. Some characters are not recognisable, neither in appearance nor characterisation, which is kind of a bummer. (Also noting, I thought Joel was acted a tad flat and non-emotive...) 

All-in-all, it did not turn out to be as disastrous as I feared, but we've still got a long way to go. Plenty of time to mess up. And no, I don't go into this wanting to hate it. I would LOVE for this to be a faithful, realistic masterpiece of a take on a beloved game, which also happens to be a favourite of mine, but we've seen it numerous times before. (Cue: Halo, Wheel of Time, Rings of Power, Moon Knight, etc.)

[renaerys]

22. for reds 🤡

This is 100% not what you asked for (yet...👀), but I give you part 1 of what we're calling the Weird King AU. I'm turning this into a proper multi-chapter High School fic because I love you and I'd jump on any bandwagon for you.

xxx

Like most young, conventionally attractive Supervillains, Brick had made a bit of a habit of failing upwards. It was pretty easy in a town full of simpering morons content to project their own narrative assumptions onto him, and who was he to crush their dreams when they made his life a little easier?

For example, dating.

“You can tell me, you know.” His cute date, Tracy, sipped her milkshake across from him.

“Tell you what?”

She softened and reached her hand across the table. “Your tragic backstory. I’ll listen without judgment, I promise.”

Brick tried to think of something tragic, but it all seemed pretty underwhelming as far as Supervillain origin stories went. “You mean like how I was born in a toilet?”

She made an oh shape with her lips. “We all have those days where we feel like we were born in a toilet, Brick.”

He’d dated Tracy for three months before she broke up with him out of the blue in tears: sorry she couldn’t fix his baggage, she just wasn’t strong enough to handle all that tortured darkness, but she wished him nothing but health and happiness. Brick deleted her number from his phone and spent twenty whole minutes staring at the toilet in his bathroom, wondering what the lesson here was.

But everything changed when Mojo got out of prison and moved Brick and his brothers back to Townsville, where he enrolled them in the local high school alongside their former arch nemeses, the Powerpuff Girls.

Suddenly, everything Brick did pre-supposed ill intent. These people remembered him as the pest who had graffitied their local monuments and blown up their cars and endangered their children. They held no love for him, and at best they feared him. This was not Citiesville, where he’d been a tall, cold glass of Voss water in a sea of recycled Dasani.

He found himself thinking about his birthing toilet again as he stepped into the cafeteria alone and the conversation quieted down as his new classmates watched him from the safety of their tables. His next moves here were critical. He was no longer at the top of the food chain, but fear and mystery surrounding his origins and character gave him a certain power over his peers.

“Yea, though I walk through the valley of social suicide, I will fear no cringe,” he said to himself.

The jocks were out. Capable though he may be, Brick was not much of a team player unless there was a blood contract involved requiring his participation on pain of satanic torture. The drama kids were also a hard pass, not because he thought drama was lame, but because they had barely noticed him walk in, and Brick did not have the energy to deal with people more self-involved than himself. Some of the unaffiliated tables could be safe, but without a good understanding of the nuanced social dynamics in the high school, he could be heading toward irreversible doom, and that was a risk he was not willing to take.

He saw his salvation just ahead. It was the only option, all else being equal. In an environment where he couldn’t be certain of his baseline status and potential for upward mobility, there was greatness to be had only by association and certainty only in the devil he knew.

Brick helped himself to the empty seat directly across from Blossom Utonium to a chorus of gasps and staring.

Blossom did not startle like her table mates had. She watched him critically behind a head full of bangs as she balanced her soup spoon in her hand. “Really.”

Brick unwrapped the burrito he’d purchased in the lunch line and brandished it before him. “Really.”

He took a bite of the burrito. It was not hot enough. The two girls to Blossom’s left whispered to each other about that bad boy and he’s hot, though.

Blossom daintily spooned soup into her mouth without spilling a single drop as she continued to watch Brick for signs of his imminent dark side transformation.

The guy next to Brick was brave enough to ask him what his next class was. Brick had a mouth full of disappointing burrito, so he passed the guy the printout of his class schedule in lieu of answering.

“Wow, all APs, huh? Hey, we’re in U.S. History together next period, nice. I’m Mike Believe, by the way. Brick Jojo, right?”

Brick didn’t answer him immediately on account of the burrito currently occupying his mouth hole, and Mike took it the wrong way.

“Oh, yeah, we all know who you are. Blossom sort of filled us in.” He winced like he’d inadvertently revealed a terrible secret.

Brick swallowed his food and washed it down with a gulp of water. “Saves me some time.”

Mike looked super relieved. “For sure! Hey, I could lend you my notes if you want to catch up. Gershwin’s giving a quiz on the Progressive Era on Friday, and she’s a hard-ass who definitely won’t care that you just transferred…”

Brick chewed on his lunch as Mike continued to talk at him about classes and other vaguely helpful, albeit uninteresting, information. But Mike seemed normal enough, a little chatty but not in an overeager sort of way. Blossom was no longer clocking his every move and seemed to be absorbed in her friend’s latest swim team cheating scandal, until Brick reached for his water bottle and she suddenly laser-focused on his wandering hand.

Her keen attention to him was honestly flattering, if expected. It was in his nature to be noticed, and in this narrow respect she was no different from anyone else whose head he turned. If she chose to feed her interest with the flames of suspicion, then it was no difference to him.

But if she was anything like him—and on a chemical level she was probably the closest to him that a person could get—he suspected it took tremendous effort to hold her full and sustained attention. The world they inhabited was as vapid and mundane as the humans that surrounded them, and even the most gracious of gods grew bored of worship. Which explained all the smiting and fucking and generational curses upon entire households in everything from Greek mythology to the Old Testament.

Brick was pretty deep into a fantasy of Blossom going full Ixion and the Wheel on the swim team when Mike tapped his shoulder. “You ready to go?”

It took him a moment to realize the bell had rung and he had a class to get to—AP U.S. History with Mike, apparently. Brick gathered his tray and his bag and followed Mike. When he looked back at the table, Blossom was already gone.

xxx

That whole first week was painfully boring. No one bullied him, or pranked him, or picked a fight with him, of course. But no one really approached him, either. His brothers were more determined to make an effort. Boomer announced he was trying out for the soccer team because there was no rule saying a Super with extremely well documented ties to active criminals and the forces of Hell couldn’t kick a ball around a field. Butch had gotten himself invited to a midnight screening of Snakes on a Plane in some rich kid’s home movie theater, but only after that same kid had accidentally spilled milk on Butch and burst into tears in front of a cafeteria full of Juniors and Seniors. Brick declined the invitation Butch extended to him. He had that AP U.S. History exam to study for on Friday, anyway.

He shared all of his classes with Blossom. Even in the classes where her assigned seat was behind his and he couldn’t see her, he could feel her lobotomizing stare at the back of his head whenever she glanced up from her notebook. And while Mike’s notes were perfectly adequate and the friendly gesture counted for more than the content (a gesture Brick would not soon forget), there was a far more efficient way to accomplish his goal of murdering the class averages while also taking the edge off his loner doldrums.

“Can I borrow your class notes?”

Blossom rose from her seat and pulled her hair tie out to re-do her extremely long ponytail. She held the elastic between her teeth as she worked. Her teeth were very straight, he noticed. Some pretty nice girl-teeth, generally speaking.

“Which class?”

“All of them.”

He watched her wind the elastic around her hair with quick, adroit fingers. “That’s a lot of notes.”

“You’re the top of every class. No point in asking anyone else.”

She moved toward the hall. He followed her out. “Why would I help you?”

A legitimate question delivered without venom. Unlike her sister Buttercup, who’d “run into” Brick after school on Monday and told him to watch his back, Blossom didn’t have to do anything but maintain a general proximity to make her superiority complex known. Which was the kind of flex he could fuck with.

“Isn’t helping people sort of your mandate?”

They had arrived at her locker, which she opened with enough force to rattle the hinges. “I help the helpless. Are you helpless, Brick?”

Brick smiled at her baiting. Had she ever actually said his name at a normal volume before? It sounded good even in her baseline bitch timbre. “Critically helpless. I’m the new student who transferred in the middle of the semester, and you’re the only person who knows me.”

A couple other students clearly trying to get to the lockers Brick was blocking hovered just out of reach. They whispered to each other, but neither of them actually worked up the courage to ask Brick to move. He ignored them.

Blossom rummaged in her locker for the binder she would need for the next class. “Make friends.”

“Working on it.”

The locker door slammed and she faced him. There was something confrontational in the way she held herself before him that kicked him in the nuts back in time thirteen years to their more uncouth days when all he wanted to do was destroy her so he’d be the only one. Now they were older and wiser and he actually did need her notes to study, so destroying her was not high on his list of priorities.

“You want to be my friend.”

“We have so much in common.”

“So do lions and hyenas.”

“Both are apex predators, so.”

She took a step closer and peered up at him. Brick did not move, although he wondered what was so interesting about his face. She probably just thought he was hot. She was probably as bored as he was. She probably—

“You have lettuce in your teeth.”

Brick pulled back and covered his mouth on instinct. God fucking damnit.

Blossom was already walking away from him by the time he’d picked the food from his teeth. “I’ll expect my notes back in mint condition before first period tomorrow morning.”

Brick pressed a fist against the lockers and quietly fumed. “Dumbass…”

“Um, sorry, but do you mind…?”

The student who’d been waiting for her locker space to clear up had her palms up as if to assuage a feral stray. Brick pushed off the lockers, but his fist left a dent where he’d unleashed some of his impotent self-pity. He looked back at the girl, and she shook her head.

“It’s fine! It, uh, it happens sometimes.” She pointed a couple lockers down to Blossom’s, which was dinged up worse than the others.

Brick stared at Blossom’s locker, and then back at the girl. Her narrow, dark eyes were wide, but not out of fear. She was waiting for something, and like an idiot it took him a moment to catch up. “You’re trying to make me feel better about fucking up your locker.”

She laughed nervously. “I mean, it’s really fine! You just looked so miserable for a second there, and I just thought…”

Great, he was moping so hard he had an audience.

The five minute warning bell rang, and a flood of students rushed past them on their way to fourth period. Brick stepped aside so the girl could get to her locker.

“Hey, you’re the new guy, right?”

The new guy, yeah. How quaint. Except, she was waiting for a response, which wasn’t the absolute worst thing that had happened to him all week.

“Brick,” he said. But of course, she already knew that, and she was just being nice.

“I’m Kim. Kim Chan.”

“Okay.” He didn’t have anything else to say to her, so he decided to get his shit and get to his next class.

“Welcome back to Townsville, Brick.”

Brick shoved his hands in his pockets and stalked off. It didn’t occur to him until later that Kim was the first and only person who had properly welcomed him back home.

[startistdoodles]

How would you rank the Pokémon Villian leaders from least favorite to favorite

(Feel free to include the Orre games)

I actually haven’t played the Orre games (YET... though I very much want to) So I’ll just rank all the team leaders from the main series 👌

Also I’ll give Rose an honorable mention since I haven’t finished SWSH yet and so I don’t really have a full sense of his plan. I do think he is delightful so far, though. Love his energy.

Another honorable mention is Colress, he’s not a team leader, he’s more of a high-ranking admin, but I still want to come out and say that he is wonderful and I love him a lot.

SO here’s the actual list, from least favorite to most favorite: (under the cut because this gets long)

Lysandre: Poor Lysandre...it kills me because I think he had so much potential as a villain, but his scheme is honestly really forgettable to me despite him having a really cool design and aesthetic. I love the orange and black color pallet, but it can’t really save him from being kind of an underwhelming villain to me. (Honestly, I think the entire X and Y plot had so much missed potential but I’ll probably save that for a different post some other time.)

Giovanni: Now from here on out, I actually really like all of these villains so it was a bit tricky to order them :’) But Giovanni is a really good team leader, and one of the scarier ones I think. Team Rocket is really threatening and shows that Gio really just cares about money, even when he has to hurt people or Pokémon to get it. His dynamic with his son Silver is really heart-wrenching and his involvement with the Mewtwo project is so despicable. And his role as the last Gym Leader is definitely one of the best plot twists in all of gaming. He’s intimidating, he’s ruthless, he’s honestly really great.

Lusamine: Yeah, I’ll include the Aether foundation president here despite not being a “team” she is the main antagonist of SM/USUM. And she is a delightfully cruel one too. She’s so self-absorbed that she had no problem pushing her own family away, including her two children who she practically disowns because they’re not “beautiful” enough for her. She’s honestly so despicable, but somehow manages to still be such a fascinating antagonist whose actions really did hurt me while playing the game. And bonus points because she has an awesome fusion with the Ultra Beast and it really shook me to my core when I first played. Her story (and honestly the whole plot of this game as a whole) is so rich and deep and underrated imo.

Archie and Maxie: I’ll put these two together since in the context of the games they’re mostly the same just a different coat of paint (ORAS made them a lot more individualized though, which is really nice and appreciated ) but they were the ones to kick off the “Harness the power of the ancient legendary Pokémon to accomplish my goals” series of plotlines, and though I think theirs is a bit more underwhelming than the other goals of leaders I’ll talk about soon, I do think it’s super iconic. They’re also one of the few leaders to actually show remorse for their actions and want to stop the mess they created. I don’t think I can pick a favorite between the two, they’re both very enjoyable in their own ways. I also love their rivalry and how they tend to dig at each other from time to time, it’s really entertaining.

Guzma: GOSH I adore this boi, he is SO delightful. Despite him not really being “evil” per se, he does have a good amount of chaotic energy and he just gives me a great big smile whenever he comes into the scene. I love how he is such a softie deep down, adopting all these misfits to be a part of his team and clearly considering them to be like a big family. They’re like a canon found family and you have no idea just how much pure joy that gives me. He’s also probably the most quotable of all the villains, giving us gems such as “It’s ya boi, Guzma” and “Y’all are stupid!”. He’s honestly such an absolute delight and I love him so much.

Cyrus: So Cyrus is one of the villains I only recently started to appreciate once I started getting back into replaying the main series and realizing just how deep his character goes. Game Freak gave this man a tragic backstory and you know I had to go and dig into it as much as I could. You can learn so much about him just by reading in between the lines of how he talks and how others talk about him. He’s sad, lonely, cold-hearted and wants to create a world lacking in spirit so that no one has to ever feel the pain of sadness ever again. But by doing that, he is getting rid of all emotions, even the positive ones. So he’s really willing to stop feeling happy if it means he won’t get to feel sadness anymore either. It’s insane and really something that stands out to people once they grow up. I know I certainly didn’t realize this as a kid. I just really feel for him and want him to be happy,,,

Ghetsis: And finally we arrive at my absolute favorite evil team leader, and the one probably no one expected! I hate him so much, and I think that’s why he's just so great. His writing makes him so devious, so twisted and terrifying that it really makes me feel so strongly about the already genius story of BW. He is admittedly one of those villains that’s mostly evil for evil’s sake and I wouldn’t go so far as to say he’s as complex as Cyrus. But darn it, I can’t feel anything but absolute loathing for this man and his twisted ambitions, the way he raised a child to be nothing more than his human puppet...the way he manipulated the whole region to nearly go against us and separate humans and Pokémon from each other for good... the way he was so close to actually accomplishing his goals...the way he was so bitter about losing to the hero of BW that he actually goes out of his way to try and murder the hero of BW2...this man is just absolutely insane and probably the most terrifying villain Pokémon has to date and I will always get such enjoyment out of beating the crap out of him whenever I go and replay BW.

WHEW this took me nearly a whole hour and a half to write, hope you enjoyed my ramblings :,)

[mrs-tsunderemeitantei]

Do you have anyone that you ship Shiho with?

Can I just say, I love how straightforward you are! And for that, I thank you 😂💛

Ok so there are two Shiho ships that I am honestly obsessed with. They're both not popular, but that's just my opinion...

The first ship would be GinxSherry. Now let me start off by saying this is not a ship I support for the current timeline, BUT it's a ship I think made sense before she escaped the BO.

So many people will disagree and I get it.

Isn't it a toxic ship? Yes.

Isn't it based on extreme unhealthy obsession on Gin's part? Yes.

Isn't it full of betrayal, pain and mind games? Yes.

So how?? Look, I'm crazy and I know it. I'll be honest, one of the reasons I like this ship is because it's different from all the other love plot lines in the manga. They're all lovey-dovey and cutesy, and well, it's over-done. This dark, more adult version is more my style.

There were a few hints and teasings about the GinxSherry pairing being canon but I still need the confirmation because I'm dying to know more. They don't just know each other on a professional level, they KNOW each other very well. They know intimate details about each other; he knows her favourite colour, she knows his favourite car model, he can identify her from just a single strand of her hair and they both can predict how the other will behave in certain situations. Like come on, they know each other way too well for just 'work colleagues'. Also that's another thing I find interesting. She's a scientist and he's an assassin. They work in two completely different departments, yet they know each other so well.

So, yeah I can't help but think they got caught up with each other in a whirlwind romance (as cheesy as it sounds). And there are multiple reasons why I'm convinced they were in an actual relationship before she escaped the BO:

Let's be honest, betrayals hurt way more when the person you love does it to you. And I can't help but sense the palpable bitterness they have between them.

Also his unrelenting jealousy when he thought she is now running away with another man after the Haido City Hotel incident. You can't be that worked up if you were just work colleagues.

His reaction to her 'death' when Vermouth told him Bourbon saw her burn up in flames at the end of the Bell Tree Train arc, was not that of someone finally relieved his enemy was dead. His reaction was underwhelming and it seemed too indifferent.

The suggestive things they said to each other at the rooftop of Haido City Hotel was more that of scorned exes and not ex colleagues.

And finally which is the most obvious, he always imagined her nude whenever he thought of her, soooo they must have gotten intimate at some point.

When I think of this pairing, I can't help but think he thought of her as the light to his darkness. But because they're different people at their core, who share different views and morals, their distrust of one another got the best of them which lead to the tragic end of their relationship. If there's one spin-off, I'd pay to watch, is one that's about their history together. I need to see it unfold all the way to their downfall. Yes, I crave tragedy , don't judge me 😂

The second ship, I've not really been shy about. It is ReixShiho. This ship has sooooo much potential and I've already prepared myself for the disappointment that it won't happen because of the Reishipthatshallnotbenamed is more popular 😒 but anywho 😂

Why do I love it? I spoke about that multiple times but I think the ship I love so much, deserves a proper post so here we are.

First off, if my gut feeling is right, I think they'll have great chemistry. Their personalities would fit sooo well, I just see it. She is calm, cool, reserved, and he is warm, friendlier and more outgoing. And it goes without saying that they're both as some have said are 'intellectual equals' because they're both intelligent.

Secondly, their past experiences are not just connected, but they're also similar. It would be easy for them to understand and relate to what the other is going through as well as find comfort in one another because of the following reasons:

They both know what it's like to lose all your loved ones (she lost her family, he lost all his best friends and idk why but I think he was an orphan since nothing about his family has been disclosed yet).

They were both high-ranking members of the BO. They were forced to do things against their will, so they know how dark and twisted the world can be.

They're both mixed kids who had a hard time when growing up to be accepted by people because of it (she was shunned in the States and was forced to eat alone and he quarrelled with children who made fun of how he looked).

They both feel wronged by Akai who they believe is the main reason for the death of Akemi and Hiro.

All those reasons make me believe they would get along really well. That is not to say she'll welcome him with open arms at first and he'd probably be hella judgey at first but once all is revealed and the misunderstandings cleared, they'd be one badass pair. I know so many Shiho fans are mad at him for planning to sell her out but I already talked about it in a lengthy post. And while I was initially shocked and angry, it all made sense. Also an enemies to lovers archetype...are you kidding me? YES PLEASE!! 😭😭

So, there you have it my friend. These are my thoughts. And whatever happens, all I care about is for her to have closure and a happy ending. It doesn't necessarily need to entail a relationship for her to be happy. She is an amazing character as is with or without a love interest, but if I had to choose, these are the pairings that I like for her.

[appleb18]

Why Modern Cartoons is Not Great as it Used to be in this Decade

As 2010′s draw near to the end and begin a next-generation, cartoons have changed from being a fun episodic adventure with a meaningful message and can get dark sometimes to a story-driven show with deep messages. While cartoons have a great start in early 2010s such as Adventure Time, Regular Show, Gravity Falls, and My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, however as time passes cartoons are becoming less interesting and not many aren’t talking about it. So what the hell happened with modern cartoons? Let’s get to the bottom of what happened to this decade of cartoons and why isn’t anyone talking about it anymore 

The Animation Quality 

The quality of the animation of cartoons back in 2000′s were amazing, so many variations of animation styles that look very appealing such as 

Samurai Jack 

Avatar: The Last Airbender 

Fosters Home for Imaginary Friends 

Recess 

Proud Family and so many more

But now in modern cartoons, most cartoon shows are using a similar style of animation which many people called it “Calarts style”. Most cartoon shows are using because it’s cheap however it takes away creativity, more detail nor being organic. Look at Infinity Train, compare from the pilot to the release 

It looks very boring having most cartoons look the same. Then there’s artistic freedom where creators let them draw whatever they want such as Steven Universe and OK KO. That sounds good but really though it just looks lazy and unprofessional. This is very distracting that most characters go off-model every scene like why Rebecca and Ian-Jones Quarry think it was a good idea! 

Great to Below Average

So now let’s talk about the three shows that were once popular Steven Universe, Voltron, and Star vs The Forces of Evil. The trope I’ve been seeing as of late about these shows that it was pretty hype and they deliver on that. All they need to do is conclude it and call it a good cartoon but then crash and burned in later seasons. 

Steven Universe didn’t get popular until “Jailbreak” and that was when everyone was watching it. It had character development, an interesting world of gems, a gorgeous background and has one of the best soundtracks. This isn’t surprising because the creator is the same person who wrote Marceline episodes in Adventure Time which was Rebecca Sugar that created the series. Then season 4 and season 5 happened which the show drop in quality like mostly the show prefer showing filler which makes the plot go too fast and made arcs underwhelming, crystals gems and Lapis Lazuli and Peridot aren’t being used that much in the show and having each villain being beaten by simply talking to them. While there is Steven Universe Future but that hasn’t gotten interesting in my opinion. 

Star vs The Forces of Evil is a show used to be interesting for the two seasons and “Battle for Mewni” arc but then shipping drama got out of hand and that resulted to fell from grace 

Then there’s Voltron and we all how that turned out for the last two seasons

What these three have in common that they set up this interesting premise and world in the first few seasons but they all went downhill. Awful character writing, insane plot twist, and terrible pacing. I did wish that those shows would get better like how Adventure Time and Regular Show had one bad season but after that, they both got better but they didn’t and it went from being great to disappointingly average. 

Comedy Over Messages

Now that’s got the most hype shows, let’s talk about shows that not many people talk about because the premise and world aren’t engaging enough to watch and which they are We Bare Bears, Craig in the Creek, Clarence, OK KO, and The Loud House. While I’m not saying they aren’t bad but it is just not interesting to watch, it's just that it’s too tame and too comedic. The main issue I have it doesn’t really teach viewers like they used to anymore 

OK KO was about to talk about gun violence but they turn it into a comedy. In “Let’s Not Be Skeletons” people overuse the gun and resulting everyone to turn skeletons and KO tries to stop it but fails. By the end of the episode, it was a dream and calls Congress to stop it from happening. I really hate how writers of this episode of making a serious issue turn into comedy and that’s a pretty awful way of doing it. 

Look at Static Shock and Fat Albert, instead of making Gun Violence a joke, they talk about how serious it is by having someone shot and that devastated the characters a lot 

Then there's Hey Arnold, it really dives into serious issues such as 

“Pigeon Man” showcases that some people are meant to be with other people while others like Pigeon Man are just different and can’t be with other people. 

“Helga on the Couch” showcases Helga's anger issues and those issues manifest because her family ignores her because of her sister. Never truly cares for like no makes her lunch for school and no one brought her to school when she was a young girl. The only person that cares for was Arnold.

Then there’s my personal favorite, “Arnold Christmas”. Mr. Hyunh is always sad at Christmas and this episode revealed that he had a daughter and all he wanted was to see her grow up but there was a war coming near his village. In order to do so, he had to give her up so she can have a better life. It took 20 years to get out of the country and he almost gave up hope to find her until Helga helped Arnold to search for her and be reunited with her father. 

Modern cartoons don’t show those kinds of messages anymore and there’s something worse than that and I hate how cartoon shows keep doing this. 

Today’s Villains

I” ve been seeing a lot lately that the main antagonist isn't handled well in cartoons as of lately. Most villains have been getting redeemed lately and not paying their crimes. While show creatures try to make them sympathetic and the victim however it doesn’t excuse them for their crimes. 

White Diamond who caused multiple mass genocide on worlds, brainwash any gem that stands in her way and shatter gems gets easily defeated by simply getting talk to and just not gonna do it anymore because Steven said so. 

Mina Loveberry and her Mewni soldiers wanted to destroy monsters. When her and her army magic depleted, she just goes in the wilderness and no one stopped her. 

Moon Butterfly helped Mina create her soldiers so she can retake the throne from Ecipsa. Instead of having the monsters and her surrendering the throne that she was attending to do, however, her plan backfired when Mewni Soldiers and Mina wanted to kill all the monsters. Why didn’t Moon saw that coming, they were clearly racist against them. Then by the end of the show, she never once apologized for what she has done. 

Starlight Glimmer created a cult that no one has cutie marks until the mane six defeated her in “Cutie Map” She returns and her revenge on Twilight by going back in time and making sure Rainbow Dash doesn’t perform the Sonic Rainboom. After multiple going to multiple timelines, she finally catches up to her and then her tragic backstory been revealed and it was very disappointing. The reason she caused all of this because her friend moved away and that’s it. That’s not all, instead of her facing her crimes like most villains such as Tirek or Queen Chrysalis, she gets off the hook and she became friends with Twilight in a matter of minutes 

A good example of a good antagonist is Aku from Samurai Jack. When he first appeared in the show, he’s pure evil, destroying anything that stood in his way and ruling over the weak but as the show progresses, the serious villain became more comedic villain but that doesn’t mean he’s a silly character, he’s far from that. He’s still all-powerful and should be taken seriously. This is what I want from a villain.  He’s powerful, he’s truly evil and has a personality. 

Villains can be sympathetic and relatable however shouldn’t be forgiven so easily. When a character crosses the line by taking multiple innocent lives should never be redeemed, even if they have a sad backstory 

Cartoons lately have become less popular in this past decade, the glaring problems about cartoons are its animation, comedy over messages, messy plots, and terrible villain. People will only talk about cartoons from the late ’80s to 2012. I’m afraid that this day of age that it isn’t appealing anymore than in previous years. The only animation that people will talk about is anime shows which I can’t lie, is far superior to cartoons as of now. I feel that the only way it can make it back on top is it needs something like Adventure Time or Gravity Falls moment that reinvent it more relevant and view to modern audiences. I really do like to watch cartoon shows for animation, message, and characters but I keep seeing issues in modern cartoons and I hope that it will change in the future. 

[mc-critical]

I was curious since you were just talking about Suleyman sisters. Which one is your favourite and what would you change in their storylines? (Me: I would Sah being in love with Ibrahim and her and Hürrem being enemies, because I truly someone from the imperial family liked Hürrem)

I honestly love all of them. Even though they all share a similar purpose in the narrative on the outset (that is, being antagonists to Hürrem), they have distinct motivations and personalities that always succeed to make them so interesting to analyze.

Despite of that, I have to say that my favourite is Hatice. She's the one who felt most fleshed out, with the widest arrays of personality and relationships and I sympathize with her in nearly every level. While I know that S03 Hatice could turn people off and I could understand why in theory (good flanderization is still flanderization after all and her "Heel Face Turn" could feel underwhelming after Hü's huge E63 victory and it lowkey makes for kind of a soft reset of the show's status-quo, but not only I haven't seen this actually being used in arguments against her, but this is solely a writing problem that didn't even originate from her and wasn't totally fixed until the end.), I felt this was the most logical step in her arc and her development made complete sense, no matter how flanderizing it was and how tragic it ended up being. [poor Hatice :(] I have analyzed her character and why I love her so much as well in more detail here.

The one thing I would change is, again, her spending more time with Osman and Huricihan. The need of having kids was set up as a very important part of her character from the beggining and Osman and Huricihan's birth could've felt as a new wave of hope after the devastating child losses. It felt like they were the start of an entirely new chapter of her life where she could enjoy the company of her kids the way she so wanted to, but the birth of Huricihan and Osman ended up being only the finale of Hatice's worries over her children, a satisfying end to these arcs of hers where she could finally find happiness at last and with this it was over. It wasn't built on at all and this whole angle of Hatice's character was seemingly dropped just like that. While I get that her storyline was very densely packed and they may not have had time, they could've given us a few scenes at the very least, especially in S03B where they would play part in empowering even more Hatice's tragic arc, being a reminder of Ibrahim. Not to mention that Huricihan would've been a much better character if that set-up existed.

I adore Şah Sultan, as well and I actually enjoy her dynamic with Hatice even more than her dynamic with Hürrem, because it tells us much more about who she is. It was so enjoyable to watch these two sisters confront each other on not so few instances, while still loving each other. I love how Şah's ambition contrasts so well with her genuine care for the people she loves (like Hatice and Esmahan) and how her pragmatism could actually get in the way of that care, while we could still see that the two coexist in her regardless. It makes her motivation so interesting to figure out in a way we haven't seen before or after with any other character. Her love for Ibrahim.. while yes, I get that it may seem a little weird, putting so much stuff in their past into another context that could draw the line between "this makes sense" and "how exactly did that happen?", it explains why Şah may have this deep seated resentment to Hatice, it is a nicely used plot-device to drive conflict between them (the conflict set-up in their past that is outside of their clash of ideals and philosophies in the present and near future) and her and Lütfi later. It makes her more interesting, too, because it shows her ability to let go of her feelings when she sees is necessary. Her approach is also very interesting and unique (at least at first) and while I find most of her scenes with Hürrem generic, she was a formidable and effective antagonist. I also find interesting that in rewatch, you do see that out of her and Hatice, it's Şah who is more elitist, interestingly enough. (because while Hatice mostly pulls rank out of ignorance or when she's challanged outright, Şah pulls rank not only in confrontation, but in casual conversations with people around her, as well - E87 is a perfect example of this. She also views the dynasty as something even more valuable that shouldn't ever be touched - her not wanting to fight Mihrimah in the end, even though I'm sure she could've outsmarted her if she truly wanted to, she wanted the most out of anyone in S03B for the dynasty members to have each other's backs and support each other no matter what and she was as ready as Hatice to stand behind what the dynasty represents, but not on a more personal level like Hatice, rather on standing behind its laws and traditions, like Ayşe Hafsa.)

What I would change with her, is that intrigue of hers that succeeded to have Hürrem be exiled for the third time. There's nothing wrong with the intrigue neither writing-wise, nor with Şah's character in it, and I kinda appreciate Hürrem's overspending there as a parallel to Mahidevran's overspending in S02, showing that they're not so different after all in a bunch of cases. But otherwise, the whole thing felt like pointless filler that only repeats some aspect of previous storylines. Yet another harem riot, though not as large in scale, and that almost contrived exile, which served nothing in the end (except for showing how Hürrem has gained a decent network of political allies, but that was shown before the exile, too). I would probably make it a far more complex, but still to the point intrigue, the outcome of which sure wouldn't be another exile for an episode. This also wouldn't have been the ending culmination of Şah's careful plans against Hürrem, either. (Ayaz Pasha's death afterwards was relatively quickly planned in comparison! Like.. c'mon..)

Fatma is my least favourite sister of the sisters, but she certainly has her moments. I love her debut and I love how fun loving she is, I sorta wish we saw even more of that. I actually don't recall a moment where Fatma ever pulled rank on someone in the way Hatice in E26 did and Şah so casually does and if there truly isn't any moment like that, then I love her even more for it. What is even more interesting is how her motivation is a promise made to Mustafa (even though this whole motivation is kinda strange writing-wise, since she's an entirely new character and the devotion to Mustafa could look like something the writers only came up with in the heat of the moment for S04A's bad use of flashbacks and to make yet another antagonist for Hürrem... Fatma could've been next to Mustafa when he was a child in Manisa and she liked him as a child, who knows? That coupled with Mahidevran probably reminding him of Fatma's existence, as well.) and how far she's going to go to fulfill it, even after his death. It all showed a side of hers that is willing to put the dynasty members in intrigue (the way she put Selim and Bayezid against one another and even when she played that game on Mihrimah), an interesting contrast with the other sisters, who would do anything but, at least not so consciously. (I'm referring to Şah's very first scheme against Hürrem, in E85-6) I love how she scolded Mihrimah in E121 and I love how they showed her sorrow for Mustafa's death. (that little scene where she said: "I failed.." was so touching, honestly... It shows how devoted she was to it all) Her relationship with Kara Ahmet is also pretty great.

What I would change with her, is her part in the menopause plot. The episode itself is such a weird and tonal mess, but Fatma there was at her worst and I don't agree with her making fun of Hürrem like this. I get the purpose of the episode and scene, but it still sits wrong with me and since that was our first episode with Fatma, it rendered her a little petty for me when I was first watching. I wouldn't have had Fatma tell it out loud for everyone to hear, I would've probably made her show Hürrem she knew in a confrontation similar to Hürrem and Mahidevran's (hey, a part of their formula could work for once!) between both of them during the entertainment. I would have also given her a little more balanced screentime. In some episodes it was very fine, but in others, it felt like she was more shoved into the background.

About Hürrem having at least one dynasty member to like Hürrem - I agree, it would be a breath of fresh air, to say the least, there should've been this kind of variety. If there is one I would make a friend of Hürrem's (at the most part), that would be Beyhan.

I would have given her more screentime, especially in S01-2, she could be there to advice and support her sisters even more and for them to calm down from the games and intrigues. She wouldn't play such a big role in the story, aside from an arc or two that would be different from working against Hürrem. Her and Hürrem would be usually on good terms, since her emotional maturity would let her understand at least a bit of her side of the story and wouldn't be so quick to accuse her. (as she wasn't when she learned of how Hatice learned about Nigar and Ibrahim) Beyhan can't be fully on board with her, of course, because moments where Hürrem tramples on Hatice's happiness directly or indirectly could put them at odds, but I feel Beyhan's personality and shtick would be the best suited for a friendship with Hürrem of sorts. Since she still wouldn't be part of the throne war, Hürrem would have no reasons to act against her personally, either. (now, S03B could be a problem, but then we could... have her return to her castle permanetly?) It would've been epic if Şah had only her dynamic with Hatice in the story, but I don't think that alone would be enough for the writers, because they sure were searching for someone to replace Ibrahim as a more prominent antagonist until S04's switch of focus and enrichment of storylines. 

[wuzzupketchup]

UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN

This drama came out in 2019 but it’s only now that I got the time and energy to watch it. I’ve had a lot of recommendations from a bunch of people to check this one out. Finally, I did. This is gonna be a full-on review so brace yourselves. Warning: Spoilers possibly ahead.

Time and again, I’ve told people that I am a sucker for great storytelling. Toss me a line in your opening sequences and if I like it, I’m gonna grab on and sink into the story with you. What happened here was that I kept tugging at the line and wasn’t able to sink until about Episode 4.

Okay. The show actually has merits. I’ll list them down one by one.

1. Great concept. Right off the bat, it is nice to see a BL defy the norm. The soulmate/reincarnation theme was something that we normally get to watch on heteronormal media. Really refreshing to see it incorporated into a BL series to separate it from the “usual” themes we have in this genre.

2. Cooking/cuisine. I love the fact that we are introduced to Thai cuisine, specifically, desserts. My knowledge of Thai food is just basically limited to pad thai and tom yum. So it’s nice to get educated in this area especially international viewers like me.

3. Soundtrack. The series has pretty decent music. It’s not the most outstanding, but it was enough to put you into the mood to watch the scenes/episodes. The upbeat song they used for the more cheerful scenes was my favorite.

4. Dean/Pharm relationship. I’d have to say that this was in fact a very healthy relationship. I liked that boundaries are explicitly established and that even if they were together, consent was still a major factor.

5. Side couple supremacy. I’m sorry but I was really more interested in the Team-Win duo. Eventhough they had such limited screentime, they actually managed to steal my attention. Every single frame that Buon is onscreen, he effortlessly grabs the attention. Prem, on the other hand, was so natural that I had his character as my most favorite. The way he was overprotecting Pharm like he was a baby was just so endearing to me.

6. No girlfriend to ruin the story. I’m so done with stories that incorporate a girl just to stir things up. That being said, the female support in this series was so good to watch (well, maybe Manaow can be a bit irritating most of the time lol).

Now, where do I begin for the not so positive points? For the record, I was meaning to drop the entire show after Episode 3. It wasn’t doing anything for me. But thankfully, I chose to stick it out. Although, I don’t recall watching another BL show where I had to fast forward scenes more than this one. I’ll talk about it later. Here goes the list of minus points:

1. Opening sequences. Good Lord. I wasn’t prepared for it. Like, it literally shocked me I had to stop watching after just 5 minutes in. Once I got over the initial shock, I came back and just started shaking my head. The entire opening was devoid of logic and badly executed. But hey, I can forgive this bit because the whole story is hinged on it.

2. Korn and Intouch. Pivotal characters but sadly, falls short, by a long shot. I should say first and foremost, they were miscast. Not the actors’ fault though, more on the production’s side. There was literally no chemistry between Kao and Earth. Now here’s one major problem for me. I didn’t feel connected with the supposedly OG couple to even care about their reincarnated souls. I had to fast forward their scenes because I found them borderline disturbing and cringey. I was looking for clues as to why Korn fell madly in love with Intouch but I didn’t find any. Intouch, to me, was annoying and creepy. Emotional investment was really hard to come by with this series.

3. Pharm. Oh Pharm. You were cute with your shyboy demeanor at first, but I was mildly irritated once the series progressed. I felt like he had a rather boring personality. Had he not been the reincarnated Intouch, would Dean even bother? That’s a question I was waiting to be answered in the end but I think I’ll just draw out my own conclusion.

4. It’s awfully long, to the point it has already become dragging. Literally, it was a struggle to finish the whole thing. I mean, 17-45 minutes-ish episodes are nothing compared to your normal dramas but from a BL standard, it’s rather long. Some scenes could have been chopped off but still would push the narrative forward. Was this fan service? I don’t know really.

5. Dream sequences. Okay. These were important to the story but midseries, I was so done with them because it seemed like nothing was coming out of it. Fine, Kao and Earth story arc was the focus. And that it was to establish that Dean and Pharm were the reincarnations. But other than that, what was accomplished? Just have some random nightmare and then hyperventilate? At least Dean made a move by having Korn and In investigated but Pharm? What did you do about your nightmares? Me thinks it was just a ploy to have Dean by his side.

6. The final revelations were anti-climactic. Imagine building up the events of the tragic past, only to have a resolution that seemed too convenient. Why say so? Was it just me or did any of you feel like all the obstacles that were supposed to be in Dean and Pharm’s way were consciously removed? This was where I felt super underwhelmed with the writing. The OG lovers had hell to deal with but the reincarnated lovers seemed to have a walk in the park. I’m not saying that they should also go through hell but seriously, there was no real conflict to resolve by the end. Hence, it was a let down.

7. Switching families. Korn being reborn into In’s lineage and In being reborn into the other. I didn’t actually get the point here. I was predisposed to the notion that reincarnated souls tend to come out in the place where they felt they were most loved. Or did I not get the memo it has already changed? Lol. But yeah. It didn’t make sense for me for the OG couple to be reborn in the other side of their respective families. I mean, where’s the familiarity there? It wasn’t even shown that each one had a deep seated connection with members of the other’s families to merit such occurence.

Overall, I enjoyed the story for the most part. I’m sorry if the points I raised in here differ from yours. But the thing is, I watch not only to be entertained. I was constantly trying to find logic to what was happening onscreen especially towards the end when the revelations started coming out. The writers, I have to say, had a penchant with creating unnecessary moments.

Kudos to LineTV and Wabi Sabi for coming up with this very out of the box series. Although I had a lot of reservations, I was still able to appreciate the effort. There were moments of brilliance, but sadly, it was inconsistent.

Would I rewatch it? Hmm. Maybe Team-Win sequences only.

I’d give this a 6.5 out of 10 stars. ⭐️

[baelatargaryen]

im pissed they say "after endgame" but it's literally after avengers loki who the show is focusing on... love the mobius and loki dynamic tho

IMO, Marvel was always going to run into problems with the time travel. It's a particularly difficult device to use without running into logical fallacies (which Endgame does, and attempts to disguise by admitting it outright (Tony saying time travel doesn't work like that, Bruce saying they can't travel back in time to kill Thanos, etc, etc).

I think it was a good twist for the climax of the story, in that it gave them the opportunity to fight Thanos and his armies again, from another timeline (ignoring the glaring flaw in that that entire writing decision disregards the established rules of time travel within the movie and creates an alternate 2014!timeline but like...whatever), but Marvel ran into problems pretty quickly following Endgame as to aftereffects of the Snap.

With the Loki show, it's a particular struggle b/c audiences remember the most recent iteration of Loki as Ragnarok/Infinity War Loki, but the writers have taken us all the way back to 2012 Loki, who is drastically different — partially b/c, yeah, this is a younger Loki in a different part of his story, but also quite obviously because of Whedon's characterisation and so, pretty quickly the writers were gonna quickly have to establish Whedon's Loki in the show (which like....don't even get me started on the entire mess surrounding the first Avengers movie regarding characterisation).

I don't mind the post-Endgame thing, because I understand they are referring to the Endgame scene, but it's frustrating because I never felt like Loki's arc was truly finished, especially in regard to what really happened in Thor (2011). It's like, the major turning point for Loki's downfall is finding out the lie of his heritage and family, and yet it's literally never given the conclusion or mention it deserves ever again? It really does drive me crazy how it's essentially The Reveal for Loki and then it's like, (dead silence) for the next two movies. Also, his death scene always gave me mixed feelings. As a movie opening, I think it's actually shockingly brutal for Marvel and it definitely makes for a sinister beginning and gives Thor heartbreaking motivation to defeat Thanos (although, whether he needed that in the first place is questionable). On the flip side, there is an element of disbelief there because Loki has died twice and survived, and his death was so underwhelming in displays of power that it I can understand why fans were convinced he survived.

I also do kind of miss the fact that this Loki hasn't had any closure with any of his family — not Thor, not Frigga, not even the argument with Odin, and I do think that Loki was most in character under Kenneth Branagh and Alan Taylor's direction. Like, for me personally, the Avengers!Loki only works because of Tom's acting and the potential ambiguity that certain lines and Loki's appearance offer as to why he is doing what he is, but some of the dialogue still makes me cringe and it's obvious that the Loki show is attempting to emulate some of that writing in an attempt at clinging to continuity. But for me, Loki worked a villain best in Thor (2011), because his story essentially followed a tragic hero structure, and Kenneth really played into the Aristotle/Shakespearean concept of tragedy which made Loki's descent into villainy so multi-dimensional and sympathetic.

Send me your Marvel/Loki TV opinions!

[a-sleepy-reader]

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov: an Analysis and Review

Foreword

Trigger warning for themes of paedophilia, sexual assault, stillbirth, manipulation, violence, and tragedy as well as gruesome descriptions of death. If you want a review free of spoilers, please scroll to the section labelled ‘Conclusion/Review without spoilers.’

Introduction

Calling Lolita a controversial novel is a safe bet. Some readers revolt at its topic, others still protest it as the inspirational romance of the century. Both give Lolita a bad name. I will say it once very clearly; plot-wise, Lolita is a book about a paedophile who grooms, manipulates, isolates, and rapes a twelve year old girl. It is disturbing subject material to say the least, subject material that has to be given more thought than its protagonist’s ramblings of adoration for the book’s namesake. 

For instance, despite its fluctuating reputation, Lolita has found itself to be a playful and humorous novel to many, a “...comedy of horrors” according to the San Francisco Chronicle. So what is Lolita, exactly? A comedy? A thriller? Both? It is time to examine this twisted novel and see just how tangled its thorns are.

Plot synopsis

Humbert Humbert is a typical man by most standards: a handsome, French writer and professor with a soft spot for road trips… and little girls. 

Humbert categorises the sexes into the male, the female, and the nymphet, the latter of which describes peculiar young girls Humbert feels an intangible attraction to. It is with such a nymphet that Humbert self-describingly falls in love with; rambunctious twelve-year-old Dolores(whom he dons ‘Lolita). He cannot keep his mind off of her; ‘light of my life, fire of my loins.’ In however poetic a prose he may choose to describe it, Humbert feels a physical bond to young Dolores like to no one else since his dead childhood sweetheart. Humbert goes so far to pursue the girl that he marries her mother, whom he plots to drown in the blue depths of a lake to have Dolores all to himself. However, what Humbert describes as a work of fate led to the day Dolores’ mother’s brain lay strewn about the road, smeared by an incoming car. She didn’t need to be subject to Humbert’s schemes to die.

From there on, Humbert has legal custody over the twelve-year-old fire of his loins. Raping Dolores becomes a routine. Though she does initially say yes, she is a minor incapable of consent in the imbalance of a grown man with everything to lose if she is to either escape or stop the affair; she will lose her only family if she reports him, and risks breaking his heart if she cuts off the affair altogether-unfortunates only know what people do when they have nothing to lose. Orphaned and trapped, Lolita agrees to Humbert’s ‘love.’ As he described it, ‘she had nowhere else to go.’ 

Two years pass before Dolores falls ill during their second road trip and is taken out of the hospital by an uncle aware of Humbert’s affairs. By way of escaping with this newfound relative, Dolores is finally free from Humbert’s possessive grasp. Depressed by his separation from the girl, Humbert lives a miserable life for several years before receiving a letter from Dolores herself saying she is married and pregnant. Though Humbert suspects the man behind both titles is her own uncle, Dolores refutes this by saying that, though she was in love with him, they did not settle because she refused to be in his pornographic film.

Enraged with the uncle, Humbert arrives at Dolores’ uncle’s house and murders him before being arrested. It is here that we learn Lolita is Humbert’s autobiography of the events surrounding his ‘love’ for the book’s namesake. Though he wishes for the girl-turned-woman to live for a great many years, the victim, escapee, and survivor dies in 1952 during childbirth. Her offspring is a stillborn.

Analysis

It’s a curious thing, really. That so many interpret Lolita as a romance, I mean. Of course, it often presents itself in its writing as a summery romance to read on the beach. A handsome man meets a female. An attraction is felt. Male and female confess an attraction for one another which leads them on a series of road trips following the female’s mother’s incidental death. The language is no exception to this tone-just read the first paragraph: 

“Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta.”

It’s made up of beautiful, flowery sentences, language suggestive of the pure romance of a man ‘in love.’ With a twelve year old girl he rapes. Yes, Lolita is one of those novels that wears many outfits, its outermost lining being that of a tragic love story of one traumatised man and his ungrateful lover. This perspective is especially interesting when taking into account Lolita’s exquisite writing; could the flowery language have prompted so many to interpret this book as a romance? Could Lolita be representative of how so many wield words to distract or deceive those trying their best to disapprove of them? Either way, few deny that Humbert is lying, to himself or to the reader, of exactly how the events of his fascination with Dolores occurred. Digging further into the book, Lolita becomes  an unreliable narrator’s documentation of the rape and manipulation directed toward a naive minor trying to cope with her mother’s death. Further still, it is a comedic satire of a paedophile’s attempts  to justify his crimes... and failing miserably. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I wasn’t even her first lover.” Deeper still and it’s one man’s search for his childhood sweetheart(dearest and deadest) he never finished loving, so he seeks, endlessly, to shower her lookalikes with unwanted ‘love.’ Without end. Without fulfilment.��

Lolita is a story of infinite stories.

Review

What first struck me about Lolita was its beautiful writing; its eloquent prose, imagery, and metaphors hopelessly hooked me from the first paragraph. Nabokov never ceases to use amazing similes, description, and personification to amplify the reader’s experience of the goings-on of Humbert and the girl. This is especially striking in contrast to its tragic subject material; Humbert will rape, and he will manipulate, and he will scheme a murder, and he will hurt so many innocent lives, but he will do so with seemingly effortless grace in the scribbles on a paper. 

Despite this, I did not find Lolita to be a difficult read regarding comprehension of the text. True, many a word I did not understand, but, despite this, I could always tell what was being communicated; the language is certainly not as dated as Hemingway nor Shakespeare. It may even be a calming read for those with a strong stomach, and will certainly teach a thing or two to those wishing to learn more about poetic writing styles done well. 

Some may find the book to be lacking in terms of plot and overall excitement, but I feel this is a subjective view rather than a relatively factual one; Lolita is not an action book. Nor is it a drama. Humbert sometimes spends pages describing the exact locations of a road trip, or exactly how he earned money in the 50’s, and so forth. Some may find this mundane; I will admit that I was, at times, bored by it myself. However, what Nabokov sacrifices in brevity he makes up for with a profound understanding of Humbert’s emotions, environment, and thoughts. 

One slight criticism I do, however, have, is that I found all of the characters in Lolita were fairly bland for me. True, Humbert is unique in his attempt to beautify the macabre, but beyond the initial shock factor of his morale and the revelation that he is seeking the love of a girlfriend from his childhood, Humbert can be mostly summarised as ‘quiet, manipulative, scheming, and possessive of Dolores.’ I was not invested in him as a character, probably due to a lack of good qualities within him; it is true that by one perspective, his story can be interpreted as tragic for him, though through the more common lens of Lolita being a 336-page manipulation of the severity of the atrocities of an evil man, Humbert loses all good qualities beyond his capabilities as a writer.

The same goes for Dolores herself, as I found her to be fairly two-dimensional; she is very sensory and seeks goods of food and adventure and she has a rambunctious heart unconcerned with how others’ feel nor how others perceive her. She is what many would call a ‘wild child,’ and though she becomes more withdrawn later in the book due to the numerous abuses she endured, I did not see much depth to her beyond face value. 

That being said, I certainly do not think the characters are bad, just that they are underwhelming in comparison to the rest of the story. 

I recommend Lolita to those enthralled by character-driven stories of nuanced emotions and traumas, a sort of story of the broken attempting to break the whole. If you are not put off by very thorough descriptions nor by a purposefully thin plot, I have the impression Lolita will revolt, horrify, hypnotise, and seduce its readers into its soft, macabre pages. 

I give Lolita a rating of 90%.

Conclusion/Review without spoilers

Lolita is a vile, endlessly layered story of trauma and the endless search for lost love, horrific abuses, of humorous wit and smirking irony, and of one man’s endless destiny of deceit. I suppose Humbert’s own initials best summarise the smile and wink this book will deliver as you holler at Humbert, weep for Dolores, or perhaps even vice versa. They do say Russians are witty, and Nabokov does not fail this reputation even when we analyse how Humbert Humbert’s initials sound in the author’s native language: 

Ha-ha.

[kitkat1003]

The Owl House Season Finale was...meh

Like it begins with the narration of history, which I feel like could have been put earlier in the season.  Belos as a character is brought in at the last second, and he’s not that interesting.

Luz’s emotional stance is so...dull.  There’s no impact.  We see her cry later, but we don’t get to see her red eyes, to show she’s been crying like she did when she came home.  Agony of a Witch gave such a swell of emotions, with raw lines and strong emotions, but Luz has her typical gung-ho and righteous attitude, with some added anger at Lilith and the Coven for flair that doesn’t really leave an impact.

Speaking of emotional impacts, why the hell is King so...boring?  He barely has Any sort of reaction to Eda being taken.  We don’t really see him upset, even though he’s the King-pun intended-of overreactions and emotional outbursts.  But he’s very blase when bringing up Belos capturing Eda

Most of the ep is very predictable.  Belos doesn’t come through on his deal, Lilith is *shocked*, Eda isn’t healed and is sent to prison.  Belos’s animation presentation is top notch, but his actions are hardly anything to write home about.  Typical one note villain.

I do like seeing how far Luz has grown with her magic.  It’s very cool to see the applications and the way she uses her glyphs strategically.

The scene with Eda and Luz is good, and it has the emotional punch I wanted far more from the episode, but a huge thing the episode doesn’t address is the question of *does Luz want to go home?*  No part of her seems to miss her home.  She misses her mother, sure, but she’s getting an education in the Boiling Isles, has friends, and is able to be herself with little reproach.  The human world pales in comparison.  Seeing Eda try and shove her back to the lackluster place Luz *used* to call home for her safety seems...awkward at best.  Luz has made an effort to learn about Eda, but has Eda really put in the effort to learn about Luz?  Maybe that was on purpose, maybe next season we’ll see them both learning about each other, but whatever.  As is, the lack of understanding on Eda’s part makes the scene a bit off.

Lilith vs. Luz is great, the battle was fun, but I liked Lilith far better in Agony of a Witch.  She turned so quick to Eda’s side it gave me whiplash.  Lilith was easily hateable in Agony of a Witch, but she was interesting.  She has mystery-why did she curse Eda?  Did someone make her do it?  What happened as she grew up with Eda?  What was their relationship?

We got a sappy backstory with a foreshadowed spell and then a sob story about her wanting to get into the emperor’s coven.  Honestly it makes Lilith very boring as a character.  She acts very reserved and flat, save for her moments of silliness, but I liked her when she was emotional, had a temper, and had a sinister vibe.  Plus, she doesn’t acknowledge her actions towards Luz, that being *using her as bait and also trying to kill her.*

Honestly the rest of the ep isn’t that interesting.  Willow and Gus “help”, but not really, and while I’m sure it’s to set up a plot to have the townspeople/the witch world revolt against Belos eventually, they seemed to be there to just be there.  And there was so little Amity content that like why did they even bother with a cameo?  She barely had any reaction to the shit happening???  The motley crew of friends Luz made were essentially there to be there, and the time spent with them I feel could have been used to strengthen the core story, which is rushed.

Belos, again, very boring as a villain.  He has the look and the animators make him seem interesting, but his voice doesn’t have the edge to make him sound villainous and his “I know everything” attitude was done better in She-ra with Horde Prime.  And Horde Prime became well loved/hated for the stellar writing of him within his first appearance, soooooooo.

Luz giving up the portal to home, again, has no impact bc she’s never seemed to want to *go* home.  What was there really to lose?

Lilith halving the curse is literally the *least* she could do.  Eda is *magicless* because of her, and not *just* because she cursed her, but because she pushed her past her magic reserves by *threatening a child’s life* to get Eda to do what she wanted.

The episode ends with a *gasp!  portal!* moment which isn’t very like...mysterious.  Belos goes on about Unification Day, and he wants a portal to the human world.  The audience can put 2 and 2 together pretty easy.

All in all, I think the main issue is time.  This episode should have been an hour long.  I want more moments of Lilith’s doubts, more character moments, not as many action scenes that have little impact.  Agony of a Witch balanced story, character, and action perfectly, but this episode falls far, far behind, and as a result simply was underwhelming, which is a bit tragic for a season finale of a show I love.