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hitozy · 3 years ago

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ephemeral ‹ masterlist › petrichor

𝐄𝐧𝐮𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐬

She's going to leave me. Is the text that Iwaizumi sends to his friend group when the divorce papers come in.

He feels a swirl of emotions crossing invading him and can't pin point anything concrete except that he didn't, couldn't believe that she was being honest.

That she had actually gone through this.

We'll be on our way soon to talk.

Feeling too much, he pulls out a bottle from the wine cabinet and take a gulp straight from the bottle. He doesn't realize which wine it is until he's half way through the bottle.

It's the same one YN drank all those months ago, when she still loved him.

His friends find him in an drunkard mess, and if he could get rid of the depressing thoughts running through his head, he might have laughed.

He was replicating you from when you had gotten butt drunk during the first month being together, being married. Except this time, you weren't here to pick up his pieces.

You were never coming back and that though along is enough to have him sob on Mattsun's shoulder. He pulls him into a hug and doesn't say a word. Whether it be surprise or pity, he appreciates it none the less.

Iwaizumi doesn't feel like talking, he just wants to sleep and make the ache in his chest disappear.

He had thought that drinking those bottles of wine would make the memory of you, the thought of you, the feelings for you simmer and drown away. But just like you, he had realized to late that it has the opposite effect and instead of drowning his emotions away, they're swimming at full speed and he can't stop it.

"She doesn't love me." He chokes out between sobs on his friends shoulder, not caring about it getting dirty with his tears.

He feels three pairs of hands on his back, rubbing it in circular motions and it isn't until he looks up that he realizes that Oikawa is there as well.

Oikawa gives him a sad look, his mouth pulled into a frown, "I know Iwachan. I know."

They stay like this until Iwaizumi falls asleep, slumped against Mattsun and as the three of them carry their friend to the bedroom, Oikawa motions to the bed, "You two stay here. I need to talk to someone first."

They doesn't ask him questions, they don't need to. In all there years together, they had never seen Iwaizumi this beat down, this torn or sad. Not even when he left for Cali without Jae.

All three of them know who has the answer to their friends breakdown.

YN.

Oikawa is 100% sure that from all the ways YN could have answered his text, replying with an 'I don't live there anymore, but we can meet at the park close to the house in 10 minutes' was not what he was expecting. He was also not expecting her to come out of a car once she arrived, nor to see Kageyama Tobio of all people hug her and smile as he walked the opposite way from them towards the shop.

His first instinct was to yell at Kageyama for showing his face near him and as YN walked closer to him with a shy smile on her face, he couldn't help but feel betrayed by her. "What the hell are you doing with him?" He asked her, even before she sat down beside him.

"Hi Oikawa, I'm surprised to see you in Japan after so long. Are you here to visit?"

"YN, do not-"

She gave him a strained smile that cut him off immediately. "Oikawa, can you just..." she sighs and looks forward at the roses in front of them, "He is my friend, has been for a long time and he has been helping me and if you don't like that, its fine, but please don't make it sound like he's a bad person."

He wants to fight back but the way YN's eyes are clouded with sadness and her posture is curved in makes him stop. He came here to find out what is happening to Iwaizumi not to start a fight.

"Its going to be Takeru's birthday in a few days. I wanted to come and see the rascal before the season starts."

She smiles at that, "That's right! He's getting bigger and bigger every day. Maybe he'll surpass you one day."

"He wishes."

She laughs lightly at that, and he notices that YN isn't fully sad. She has dark bags under her eyes, her hair doesn't shine like it used to and her skin doesn't have the nice glow. She looks exhausted and it fills him with worry. How long has his friends been like this?

"I'm guessing you didn't reach out to me because you wanted to see me, right?"

Oikawa continues to look at her and its the way she says it that makes him recoil, "I was going to see Iwachan and well, were Iwachan is, so are you."

Her chuckle is humorless as she glances in his direction, "There hasn't been any of that for a while now."

The way she's looking at him, the way her voice sounds. He can't help feeling it, but he won't say it. He can't risk it. Trying to shake off the unsettling feeling in his chest, he laughs faintly, "Oh Ynchan! There has always been an Iwachan and YNchan."

"There's been more a Jaechan and Iwachan though."

He freezes at her words, the cold numbness of fear and guilt and worry settle in his bones and he can't look at her. He can't meet her gaze even though he can feel it burning on his side.

"I wish I could be surprised by the fact that you knew about it. But you always knew, all of you did and yet you let me go ahead and make me the biggest idiot of all time.

"Tell me Toruuchan, did all of you get together and laugh at my misery? 'Stupid little naïve YN, will do anything for Iwaizumi because of how much she loves him.' Was I a joke to all of you?"

He can't say anything, he wants to refuse her claims because they never did any of that, but the words are stuck in his throat and his eyes are staring at his gripping hands, observing the knuckles turning white. He told Iwachan not to do it, they all did and yet he did it. He married her, the cousin of the love of his life.

"I wouldn't blame you if you did though. I feel really stupid, especially after talking it all out with my therapist because it was there all along! All of the signs and talks and everything, but I didn't know about it until the day before. When Iwaizumi begged Jae to take him back."

She choked a bit, her voice full of emotion and he wanted to reach out to her. To comfort her because she was not stupid, she had been so in love with Iwaizumi that she couldn't have known. But he can't do it, he knows she won't accept it.

"I had sex with Iwaizumi. I know that you know about it, I know he's told you all about it because why wouldn't he tell his friends? And then he goes and fucks Jae, who sends me the video of them fucking just three days after OUR last time and," He lets out a choked gasp at that. Oh God no, that means... "I feel sick to my stomach for the rest of the day. When I confront him and her. Because I loved him with all of my soul and she didn't, but he still ran to her and I will never understand what I was missing for him to stay."

"YN," He chokes out barely, still unable to look at her "He- I- this was never supposed to happen. I-"

"Me finding out or him going to fuck her?"

He doesn't say it, but his face must be telling because he hears her sigh and whisper, "I'm angry at myself though. Not at any of you."

She should be, he thinks to himself, we betrayed you for him and there is nothing in this world that can change that. That can earn your forgiveness.

"I was doing good once I left the house that same day, you know? I was focusing on school and therapy and just being my best self. But then one day I'm all alone and its eating me alive because I've never been alone, not consciously at least.

"And I end up being a bigger asshole than he is, because I have sex with him and then ask him for a divorce."

This is what finally makes him look up at her, he's so surprised that he almost falls off the bench. She isn't looking at him anymore, eyes focused once again in front of her at the rose bush. He pulls himself up and leans against the back of the bench, looking down at her, gawking at her. What?

"I know I shouldn't have done that, though. I know I should have only asked for the divorce and left it like that. To be completely honest? I don't know what happened. One second I'm drinking wine at Tobio's empty apartment and the next thing I know I'm laid on our old bed, butt ass naked after three amazing orgasms."

Oikawa doesn't mean to do it, but he laughs at the way she describes it and he can't help it, doesn't filter his next words, "At least you didn't cheat."

She looks at him and there's so much sadness, so much grief in her eyes, "I hurt him just like she did, so I'm no better Oikawa."

Now he knows what happened, he understands why Iwaizumi was so broken down today and reached out to them. His life support, his YN was giving up on him and did it in a way that hurt him the most. She gave him false hope by coming back only to break it all away by leaving him.

"How long ago was this? Last night?"

"A week ago. I gave him the divorce papers this morning."

Everything has come to a full circle now, she didn't just leave him after that day with the benefit of doubt. She came today to confirm it, make it known that she was not kidding. He hurts for his friend, that is losing such an important person in his life, a life long friend and maybe, maybe something more. Iwaizumi might have been in love with YN and never admitted it.

He wants to feel sorry for him, but he's also hurting for YN. Who endured all the lies, the whispering behind her back and trying to be okay, being fine with having the scraps of his love.

He's no friend at all to either one of them.

"I'm sorry, YN."

"I'm sorry too, Toruu. But you should go back to him, he's your friend, not me."

Before he can say anything back, she stands up and walks away. Its only then that he realizes that Tobio had been watching them for a while now and as she approaches him, he gives her a sympathetic smile.

She's halfway to Tobio, when she turns around and gives him her lovely, torn up smile, "Please take care of him, Oikawa-san."

She had never referred to him that way, and as she got inside Tobio's car he felt a piece of his heart go away with her. He will always be her friend, she was the only one that had tried to heal Iwaizumi's heart.

But who will heal hers?

He found the divorce papers as soon as he got back to Iwaizumi's place and even though it wasn't his, they felt extremely heavy in his hands so he could imagine just how worse it was for his friend.

He walked into the bedroom, not surprised to see Iwaizumi awake with the other two sitting my his side as moral support. Oikawa pulled a chair on the side, that once might have been YN's but was now just a piece of furniture, and sat right in front of him.

There was no nice way of saying it, so he just said it as it was.

"YN is divorcing you, Iwachan and there is nothing you can do to stop it."

Shocked looks from Mattsun and Hanamaki were expected, the sigh of defeat from Iwaizumi? Not so much.

"I can fix, I just need her to give me a chance."

Oikawa places the papers in front of him, "There isn't a second chance, Iwa. Not in this marriage, but maybe once you are both separated for a while and come to terms with each other... maybe there might be a chance then, in a few years."

They all watch Iwaizumi holding the package, his hands shaking, "I didn't want this to happen. What if she moves on without me?"

"Then you're going to take it and be her friend. You can't mope around because of the mistakes made nor can you hold her back. She needs to go, Iwachan. You need to let her go."

Oikawa drops of the package signed by Iwaizumi a few hours later and prays to all the gods out there, that YN forgives his friend some day.

He also makes a very selfish wish, one he shouldn't make but does so regardless.

If YN ever falls in love again, please let it be with Iwaizumi. I know he can do better and he could love her as she deserves.

enubilous | \ e`nu´bi`lous \ | (adj.) : Clear from fog, mist, or clouds.

a/n! haha... ha... ha... sorry (but not really). next chp on friday :)

taglist ! @daphnxy @zukoslosthishonor @i-am-a-hoe-for-shinya @mrsdoradominguez-barnes @anejuuuuoy

#this is a bit shorter but i'm making it up for the next chapter #its hard on all of us im sorry but its gonna be OK #iwaizumi angst #iwaizumi x reader #iwaizumi fic #iwaizumi hajime x reader #iwaizumi hajime

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takaraphoenix · 3 years ago

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How Season 12 Screwed Buffy Summers Over

I don’t understand the push for a love triangle in general, but BtVS is a particularly tough one. There might have been an appeal to it once upon a time, but by season 12, it was just... unnecessary and did Buffy herself a disservice.

This has long since surpassed any “ship war”, because seriously, if you wanted Angel to be her soulmate endgame, then just do it. But they don’t. It’s just that every time Buffy is happy or seems to have made a choice, Whedon comes around the corner like “haha! but the Love Triangle!!” and it’s just not funny anymore.

Season 7 had already pretty much set Spike and Buffy up as falling for each other, but then the show brought Angel back in and with him, the neon-sign like broadcasting of Buffy still being hung up on him. At this point in time, the love triangle situation might have still been valid; Angel and Buffy had a lot of history, Buffy and Spike had only just started growing emotionally closer. Of course was she torn. I even understand her not yet being in a place of love with Spike. Still, to build all of that up between Spike and Buffy just to then go “gotcha!” and put Angel in it was less a love triangle as more of a slap in the face.

Season 8 then literally made Buffy and Angel soulmates destined by the universe. And just when you think “okay. soulmates. that’s a thing now, huh. sure, can work with that” and you start thinking they will fight this evil together and come out of it together... suddenly, Spike is back and from thereon out, Buffy continued fantasizing about Spike instead and didn’t really pay any mind to Angel anymore for the rest of the season, until Angel literally kills Giles and thus gets booted from the series for a while.

Things go a bit static during season 9, though the characters around Buffy and Spike keep already very unsubtly setting them up and pushing them closer, until they finally get together in season 10. And after two whole seasons that amounted to about three years in-universe time in which Spike and Buffy were in a working actually healthy relationship, where they dealt with their trauma, triggers, self-doubt and communicated instead of letting things fester into misunderstandings... they were just broken up in season 12 for flimsy reasons and also we bring Angel back in. But, once again, not to actually make Buffy decide between them, just to show that both options are still available to her.

What makes it so incredibly frustrating though is that this just... takes agency away from Buffy as a character? It keeps setting her back to this lost, little girl who can’t make a decision. It keeps reducing her to her romantic interests, bafflingly enough even more so than if she would actually choose one.

Because she did. In season 10, she chooses Spike. And we spent two whole seasons of personal growth. Her growth, not just the growth of them as a ship. This is her leap of faith, her moment of facing something she’s afraid of.

They have a whole arc about it. Spike wants to break up with her, because things are complicated and scary. And instead of doing that, instead of running, Buffy talks about her feelings and admits that she’s scared and admits that she is happy that he is scared too, because it means she is not the only one. She concludes that this is unusual for them both, that they are both so used to running away when things get serious. And then she declares that she things that they are something worth fighting for.

Season 10 even has the obligatory “Angel drops by” moment. Which, it figures, if Spike and Buffy are dating, at one point, Angel will learn about them and they will meet up. But there is no insecurity there, not from Buffy’s side at all. She’s already come to the conclusion that she’s happy in this relationship, that being with Spike makes her happy and she is not suddenly torn about it when faced with Angel.

And on top of all that, they are even addressing Seeing Red and how it did leave Buffy traumatized, it shows her having triggers from that. It has Spike and Buffy actually talk about it all and about what she needs from him when it comes to this.

I love them together, I love seeing their relationship, but even beyond that, I love what this does for Buffy as a character. She has so much emotional growth over this relationship. She’s never been stellar at communicating with any of her partners and jealousy was also always a huge issue in her relationships, one way or the other. Instead of letting jealousy fester, she reassures her partner and she also... doesn’t get jealous herself. When a former potential love interest of Spike’s visits, Buffy just reasons that they regularly work with her exes, so it’d be unfair to Spike if she forbade him from seeing his. Her and Dylan are even friendly with each other.

Season 10 is kind of slow, which allows more focus on the romance and also the general relationships among the Scoobies. They don’t have a big bad that constantly terrorizes them, they do have three bigger bads who pop up along the way but they go dormant for longer stretches. There’s a lot of calmer time and there is also a lot of calm time between seasons 10 and 11.

Season 11 just straight-up puts them into an internment camp where they manage to be domestic while being held captive and where their relationship survives months of kind of just... sitting on each other, with very little to do otherwise. That was a real test for a relationship and they came out strong.

All of this is meant to serve my point of this breakup being a ridiculous retcon that undoes so much of the development that happened. Because the reason given is just that they “didn’t work out” when there was peace. Which, for one, I doubt they just had a year of chill-time with zero monsters. For another, they have lived a domestic life for about three years at this point. This kind of break-up would have made sense at the beginning of season 11, when you say they broke up between those seasons, they barely had been together for a couple months in season 10. But not at this point in time. Not with that reasoning.

And this conclusion makes it so much more infuriating. Because they really manage to reduce Buffy to her romance with that. To feeling like a failure because she can’t make it work. To being insecure Buffy who can’t have a real relationship. Unhappy Buffy, who feels stuck.

That’s... That’s not the place Buffy deserves to be at in the final ending of her story. She deserved a place where she was happy, where she felt like she belonged.

The final page given in seasons 11 and 12 are incredibly similar. Both end with the Scoobies gathered together for a barbecue. So, sure, she still has her friends and all. But in season 11 she had some additional happiness; we see her say “I love you” for the first time on-page to Spike, they’re cuddled up, she is in a happy relationship. She’s in a good, emotional place.

Season 12, with the fact that just three issues and a few days ago, she was talking about being a failure and being unable to make normal things work leaves her in such a much more... unhappy and depressing personal place. Sure, she’s now a cop, like that is somehow the pay-off of her being “normal”...

If they had broken Spike and Buffy up to switch back to Buffy and Angel again, sure, it might have pissed me personally off some, but at least there would have been a reason for breaking them up then. But since that wasn’t even a thing, season 12 could have just... continued on the notes from 10 and 11 and had her and Spike still going strong and could have given her the additional happy ending of being in a happy relationship.

Because damn it all, after the past 15 years of her life as a Slayer, she really, truly deserved the full package of a happy ending.

#Buffy Summers #they really just. did HER dirty #Spuffy #Buffy the Vampire Slayer #Buffy Comics #Buffy Season 12 #Buffy Season 11 #Buffy Season 10 #Buffy Season 8 #Buffy Season 7

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ackermanshoe · 4 years ago

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March comes in like a lion, it's Portrayal of toxic & healthy relationship and how to compares rivamika + Ereh

Que the longest title everr 😌✨

So before I start on the actual analysis, I recently started watching March comes in like a lion instead of doing my assignments and I half way through season 2. For those of you who haven't watched it, it might be a spoilers so beware of that.

In this analysis I'll be comparing the similarities I found between Rei, Hina and Kyoko.

So watching any anime after being do emotionally attached to rivamika it's only natural that I compare them to the characters with even the tiniest bit similarities in their dynamic but Rei and hina's relationship jump in episode 4 of season 2 really caught me off guard and I was like omg?? Rivamika?? How do I make this about them 😩

Anyway so a little background on Rei's relationship with both girls Kyoko and Hina ( Hinata ). Firstly, i subconsciously placed Rei has Mikasa, kyoko has Eren and Hina as Levi, why? You will know on a minute. Rei is a depressed kid who has known only one way of life and that's through shogi games and after his parents death ( cough cough ) he was taken in by a old friend ( I think ) of his dad's who was also obsessed with shogi. Kyoko is the biological daughter of this man who has "adopted" Rei and later on Rei was came to know Hina and her sisters, they were super supportive of him from the start and having lost family members themselves they related to him on a personal level.

So you see why Eren and mikasa's dynamic matches with Rei and Kyoko and not only as "step siblings" it's also the fact that Rei became somewhat obsessed with her through the time he had spent over at their house, it's toxic and it's been showcased that way ever since kyoko was introduced into the series. Rei thought of her when he heard the word "love" and he even admitted to the fact that having her around is toxic and yet he can't push her away. He said he does not want to stop hearing her voice even tho she , herself is in love with a much older man who is married. Everytime she showed up to his bedroom uninvited and slept next to him my mind went "he is in love with her and their relationship is so toxic why does the author keep bringing her into his life?" Or "girl get the fuck away from him".

Without even thinking too much deep into their physical connection I already knew I would be able to related this dynamic to Eren and Mikasa. Although this series gives us much more depth into the main characters views since it's narrated from his own perspective, and the fact that he metaphorically compared his feelings of being lost and sadness helps me as an audience to understand what's happening much much easier than attack on titan. I personally feel like this kind of series are usually short ( idk how long this is) because it feels like the author knows exactly what he is going for, everything is set in stone.

Going back to Rei's ( mikasa's) relationship with kyoko ( Eren ) it's much much clear how toxic it had become for him in more than just one way. And the show isn't denying Rei of his feelings towards Kyoko and it's not even attempting to distant him from her and yet you just knew there had to be someone better right? That's when they introduced Hina and Kyoko in the same episode, meeting each other and a sense of invisible rivalry gushed over them, especially Hina. She is a happy go lucky girl and extremely sensitive to things to the point it kinda annoys me everytime she bursts out crying ( but hey you can't hate a genuinely good character ).

That's where things get interesting for me maybe because I am on that Levi X Mikasa agenda all the time but just like rivamika their relationship has been portrayed as platonic for the longest time in the seaosns. If I didn't go out of way to search up who Rei falls in love with and it didn't say hina's name I probably wouldn't be making this comparison right now because who wants to have their heart broken for the 2nd time in the same fucking month 🙄.

Anyway so in this one episode Hina comes home crying because of bullying issue at school and as she runs off into the dark streets Rei chases her and eventually catching up to her takes her hand and being able to relate to her problems, comparing his younger self to her present Rei reaches out his hand and God fucking damn it he says "you saved my life..I promise I'll stay with you" ofc I'm making this post now you know the real reason 🤡.

The unseen build up that happen between them reminds me of rivamika, the Portrayal of healthy relationship is rivamika. Hina (in our case Levi ) to Rei is the voice of emotion, she speaks out the feelings that Rei has been surpassing all these years inside of him. Just like how we talked about Levi is the voice of reason, while Mikasa has the impulsive urge to act up. Just like how Levi became the perosn who reasonably always took mikasa's side, he gave her personal reasons to take Erens side everytime have an actual meaning towards the scouts / everyone , he then became someone Mikasa was able to object & voice out her opinion towards because she knew that he would response and guide her the right way and finally he became someone she was able to fully trust.

Much like Hina and Rei, when Hina cried out her heart and Rei couldn't help but go back to his past self and imagine Hina coming to him and giving him a hand, being his saviour. It's much like how Levi saw his past self in Mikasa present ( S1 ), Levi gave Mikasa the hand she needed when she didn't know she needed.

Hina despite being much younger than him, was able to make him realise that he too was shutting out his emotions and was able to let himself be free through Hina when she cried, expressing her frustrations and very human like emotions. In the forest of the giant trees when Mikasa and Levi saved Eren for the first time he told her " we got your precious friend, didn't we?" A slight wake up call he had given her for the very first time, an attack on Mikasa's ego and evoking a different emotions within her. Like telling her it's not only about Eren and getting revenge, risking your life so easily, Levi had lost his entire squad in order to protect Eren so now that he is safe they better leave now.

So the question is did Levi and Mikasa save each other?

What can I say that I haven't said already in here about these two?

"you saved my life" Rei says to Hina as he reached out her hand and the beauty of that scene was the fact that it was delicate and soft despite it not being anything romantic. Remind me of that panel of Mikasa touching Levi's shoulder. How ironic is the fact that I'm comparing Hina, a openly emotional character to Levi who is said to be the most emotional inside?

Levi physically saved Mikasa a lot of the time however emotionally Levi saved Mikasa from being selfish and from herself. What if I said and ignoring 139, that Levi was one of of the biggest reasons Mikasa took the initiative and decapitated Eren that day?

Wait why does it feel like I already said it before lol

Through Levi, Mikasa learnt to trust more, learnt that even though they gave difference not only in height, age and in how they treat Eren ( Levi with force and Mikasa with care ), Mikasa still came in terms with Levi and relied on him, shared her burden with him. I think that's the biggest character twist Mikasa had, the fact that she was ready to draw sword at anyone who treated Eren wrong and everyone was scared of her and then came the grumpy shorty who beat her beloved brother right in front of her but eventually he became the biggest form of support she had in the end. I just can not help but laugh at all the unseen development this ship has had and all the implication of Futher interaction after season 3 between them, it's really obvious they had something going on because imagine you don't talk to someone for like 3 years and suddenly when you engage in battle against , paired up with them suddenly you become the strongest duo known to humanity. +?)!#)# make it make sense.

Sooo now you see the that having toxic relationship with a partner is only natural and inevitable but growing from that, opening your eyes to those who actually care there for you is rather healthy. So moral of the story is guys make sure stick with those who tells you to stay with them, the end.

Omg guys this turned out so much longer than I intended, anyway hopefully y'all liked it. I know it's not the strongest comparison or analysis but I feel like I'm running out of words for what I want to say about rivamika it feels like I'm recycling my sentences from previous analysis over and over again because ✨ lack of content ✨ and my inability to think of something new.

Please ignore all my spelling mistakes I have decided to embrace my mistakes instead of fixing them simply because I'm too lazy 😉

💜💜💜

#rivamika #rivamikacanon #levimika #rivamika analysis #BurnTheScarfMikasa

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twistedtummies2 · 3 years ago

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Ele-May-ntary - Number 2

Welcome to Ele-May-ntary! All throughout the month of May, I’ve been counting down my Top 31 Favorite Portrayals of Sherlock Holmes, from movies, television, radio, and even video games! Today, we cover our penultimate entry on the countdown. Who it is may be surprising… Number 2 is…Basil of Baker Street.

How many of us were introduced to Sherlock Holmes by “The Great Mouse Detective”? I know I was! I knew about Basil of Baker Street before any other take on the World’s Greatest Detective. Now, some of you may call foul on this, because Basil isn’t TECHNICALLY Sherlock Holmes: it’s revealed in the film that he actually lives in the actual Sherlock Holmes’ house. But…come now. Aside from his name and the fact he’s a rodent, this little guy IS Sherlock Holmes: the look, the mannerisms, the personality, EVERYTHING about him is very obviously meant to be Holmes, just as Dr. Dawson is very obviously Watson, and Professor Ratigan is very obviously Professor Moriarty. In my book, he most assuredly counts. This 1986 Disney film is, apparently, adapted from a children’s book series…which I know basically nothing about, except that Basil apparently plays the flute in that version instead of the violin. How similar or how different the books are from the movie beyond that point? Don’t ask me, I have no clue! The role of the titular character was played by Barrie Ingham; Ingham had a long and storied career both on the screen and onstage. Musical theatre fans will probably recognize him best for playing Sir Danvers Carew in “Jekyll & Hyde,” or perhaps for his role as Herbie in the Original West End production of “Gypsy.” Prior to this movie, Ingham actually appeared in the role of the very Holmesian Dr. Thorndyke, in an episode of the series “The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes.” Coincidentally, John Neville – who played Sherlock in “A Study in Terror” – played the same character in a different episode of the show, while Douglas Wilmer – who played Holmes in the first season of the 1960s BBC series – played an altogether different character, Professor Van Dusen, in another episode. I’m sensing a pattern. As a kid, of course, “The Great Mouse Detective” is a fun animated flick; it’s a highly underrated Disney picture, in my opinion, with one of the company’s best villains in the form of Ratigan (he’s played by Vincent Price, how can you go wrong?), memorable side characters, and some really strong animation. Again, it’s more action-adventure than a true mystery, but that doesn’t really spoil much. As an adult, now deeply immersed in various takes on Holmes, what I love about this movie is the respect it has for the source material, and seeing the things that influenced it in various places. I also have to admit that, even nowadays, Basil remains – at least to me – one of the most definitive takes on Holmes. Naturally, because this is a Disney film, Barrie Ingham’s Basil is not as dark and brooding as the Holmes in the books could be; there’s no cocaine habit (Lord knows Disney would NEVER get away with that), and some of the side characters – most notably Inspector Lestrade – are missing. But I think that, for what Ingham is given, and what the movie could manage, they really created a strong depiction of the character, buckteeth or not. I love how ENERGIZED Basil is; Holmes has always had a quality to his character that’s sort of a big, overgrown kid, but I don’t think I’ve seen ANY version latch onto that idea so strongly since this version until “Moriarty the Patriot.” I guess it makes sense, since the kids would want to identify with Basil, and while the character is an adult – in fact, his client in this story is a lost little mouse girl – his attitude is often pretty childlike. He’s careless, distracted, a showoff, and above all – for lack of a better word – he’s ANIMATED. Literally and figuratively! He’s constantly bouncing off the walls, literally leaping from one idea and moment to the next, often to the point where you can’t tell if he’s entirely stable, to be blunt. He can actually be a little scary in some places with how intense he is. Just like Holmes, however, he’s not happy all the time; he has moments where he slows down, most particularly when he feels defeated. When he gets depressed, he gets REALLY depressed, all that energy and vitality just seemingly getting sucked out of him as he goes very still and becomes very, very glum. And while he’s often way too wrapped up in himself and his own mind, he’s not totally coldhearted: at first he doesn’t much care for young Olivia, but eventually he starts to like her. At the same time, he and Dawson do form a very genuine and warm relationship, despite Basil’s colossal ego. The rapidity with which his moods shift is so drastic and intense that, again, it’s a little bit startling, but you also feel every emotion and the sincerity behind it. Basil’s Holmes was heavily inspired by the version played by Ronald Howard (even more than his namesake, Basil Rathbone; coincidentally, archival audio of Rathbone is used to provide the real Sherlock’s voice in one brief scene). The film actually has a couple of references to the Howard series, but I think in some ways, this one surpasses that version. Basil is a little colder than Howard – though, again, not so cold he becomes unlikeable – while still being eccentric and enthusiastic. He gets much more frustrated and cynical, and because of the medium and the company involved, the scope of this picture is far more grand. Neither Basil nor Dawson – and CERTAINLY not Ratigan – feel like ripoffs of earlier interpretations; they are strong takes on the characters in their own right, and I think that’s the true power of this movie. It IS a legitimate Sherlock Holmes picture without being at all conventional…and while it may be PARTIALLY due to nostalgia that Barrie Ingham remains one of my personal favorite takes on the character, and perhaps the quintessential voice in my mind (I always read the stories with his voice in my head, believe it or not), I still think he deserves high marks here. One last thing before I finish…out of all the properties Disney has made sequels and spin-offs for, how come THIS movie has NEVER spawned an animated series? Imagine doing “mouse-ified” versions of some of the classic Holmes stories! Think of the fun you could have with tales like “The Hound of the Baskervilles” or “The Blue Carbuncle” using these characters! I guess one could argue that it would be difficult to manage, since most of the major cast members in this film are sadly no longer with us, but surely it wouldn’t be TOO difficult to find replacement actors! Disney does it all the time! Maybe someday this dream will come true…but till then, oneshot though it may be, this is still home to one of the best takes on Holmes I’ll ever see…cheese-nibbling and all. Mickey Mouse, eat your heart out. Well, that was a long one, wasn’t it? XD The countdown concludes tomorrow. Who will be our number one choice? Check in and find out!

#ele-may-ntary #top 31 sherlock holmes portrayals #sherlock holmes #basil of baker street #gmd #great mouse detective #basil #barrie ingham #number 2 #disney #HE COUNTS

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moonlight-breeze-44 · 4 years ago

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Hey Em! I've gone through most of your Malec fics and I really love them! (especially the autistic!Alec one but also all those dealing with Alec's mental health issues) I was wondering if you have other recs for me of fics you love, since I'm really new in the fandom and there's so much out there?

Hi there! I’m so glad you’ve been reading and enjoying my fics! That means so much to me :) You’re so sweet! <3

I always have fic recs, so I am more than happy to give you some anytime you want. Here’s a list of a few (or a LOT because I got carried away, oops) that I love with my whole heart. I’m not sure what kinds of fics you like, so I rec’d some of my faves and ones that are specifically about autistic!Alec or Alec & mental health issues.

~ ~ ~

- Walking With Death by Aria_Lerendeair. This is a fic about Malec becoming immortal husbands, and it’s angsty but so, so, so good. Death is a character and Alec buys him coffee.

- Stone Can Be Broken by lawsofchaos and the wonderful sequel Hearts Can Be Remade by Aria_Lerendeair. Both are very angsty, but Laws’ has a hopeful ending and Aria’s has a happy ending. Be sure to read the tags on Aria’s! <3

- Five Times Alec Hides His Tears And One Time He Doesn’t by notcrypticbutcoy. This fic is about Alec’s struggles with anxiety and it is such a heartwrenching read for me. 100/10 recommend.

- Violet by cuubism. This one deals with some pretty serious suicidal thoughts, so be cautious! <3 Magnus and Alec meet each other on a bridge. Or, the one where helping someone else is sometimes easier than helping yourself. Written by cuubism of the Malec Discord server we’re a part of!

- Wish Upon A Shooting Star by Aria_Lerendeair. Another immortal husbands fic, and it is so, so sweet and has a whimsical, optimistic energy that will surely make you smile. (Bonus points: written by our very own sassy moderator of the Malec Discord server.)

- “You are hurt” by sugarandspace. I’m not sure how much you like parabatai feels, but if you do, this is THE FIC for you. Jenna, who is a member of our lovely Malec server as well, does it wonderfully. It’s set post-3x18 Malec breakup and it has Alec self-harming and lots of feels with him & Jace.

- A Different Time by TK_Extraordinaire. This fic is basically a character study of Alec, a look at how he evolved over the years told from the POV of others.

- Tell me I’m perfect (but tell me the truth) by SquaresAreNotCircles. This fic is one of my favourite fluffy ones and it’s basically 7.5k of Alec talking about how much he loves his boyfriend to everyone who’s not him and then one time Magnus finds out about these secret compliment-fests.

- Brother Let Me Be Your Shelter by alistoney. This fic deals with Alec’s self-harm and it is an add-on to that scene in season 1 when Alec storms away after Jace & Clary kiss. Lots of Izzy and Alec feels, provided graciously by the amazing Zia of our Malec server.

- I will catch you when you fall by sugarandspace. Another fic where Alec self-harms, but this time it’s Magnus helping him out.

- Quiet now, you’re gonna wake the beast by EternallySilverMagnusAndAlec. This is a wonderful autistic!Alec fic that also goes into the emotional trauma that Alec has to deal with from Maryse. Written by EternallySilver of the Malec Discord server!

- Not So Unrequited by Aria_Lerendeair. A best friends to lovers AU that goes through their journey together as friends (including lots of delicious angst) and eventually leads to the confessing of feelings.

- The Lonely Hearts Hotline by Fatale (femme). I prefer oneshots to long fics, so this is one of the only fanfics I’ve read that surpasses 20k. This is the story of CEO Magnus and phone sex operator Alec and yes, it is absolutely as good as it sounds. 100/10 must read.

- Subjective by Accal1a. This fic was actually just posted tonight in the Malec Discord server, but I wanted to link it in case you didn’t see. Hannah has an amazing way with words. This is a 5+1 about Alec & dealing with homophobia. It isn’t all posted yet, but it will be soon, and the first chapter is SO GOOD.

- Autistic Alec AU by AceOnIce. This is a series of fics where Alec is a mundane and autistic, and it shows the journey of his relationship with Magnus. It’s amazing and also written by one of our Discord server members, Amelia.

- shed my skin, my scars by ByTheAngell. This fic is another fic about Alec & self-harm, written by the wonderful Elle of the Malec Discord server, with a few mentions of other ways of not taking care of himself, too. It’s set post-canon and portrays the way that people can fall back into bad habits quickly and easily very well.

- On Thunderstorms and Scared Shadowhunters by alxdrlightwood. The fic in which Alec slowly begins to accept that it’s okay to have a phobia, and Magnus is there to provide cuddles.

- And They Were Roommates by CoolStoryMatt. A roommates college AU where Malec are oblivious idiots that really need to learn to communicate better. Another of the rare above 20k faves of mine. Absolutely hilarious, with great plot and so many moments that’ll make you yell at your screen.

- Whumptober 2019 by Donovanspen. This is a series of works with Malec hurt/comfort and angst.

- No reason to feel like this by sugarandspace. A fic in which Alec deals with depression, and Magnus is there for him.

- it took me years to say the words that you did not even need said by arekiras. A series of fics about autistic!Alec and his life as a Shadowhunter, Head of the Institute, and boyfriend/husband to Magnus Bane.

- Red-Handed by Carmenlire. This is a fic about Alec relapsing with self-harm and Magnus being there for him. Like Elle’s fic above, it also portrays the way one can slip back into bad habits quickly and easily very well.

- Reasons To Stay by AceOnIce. This fic is a 5 times fic with 5 times Alec wanted to die, but didn’t.

- holding onto you by anonlymous. Another Alec & self-harm fic where Magnus is there for him.

- Once You Taste It by Carmenlire. Yet another Alec & self-harm fic, with Alec making the choice to go to Magnus before things get too far.

- An Unlikely Angel by thatnerdemilyj. This fic is a Fraywood brotp where Clary leaves nice sticky notes for Alec after being exposed to all of the bad thoughts in his mind. Bonus points, it’s written by the lovely creator of our Malec server, the other Em!

- First step after the fall by sugarandspace. A fic about the aftermath of 2x08 but Magnus has wings as a warlock mark and he used those to save Alec when he jumped. Lots of angst for both Magnus & Alec!

- Survive In That Despair by thattrainssailed. This fic is one of the only no-dialogue fics I’ve ever read, but it makes the emotion that much more potent. It’s another Alec & self-harm fic, and it’s more graphic than the others I’ve rec’d here, so please be extra cautious! <3

- We Care For Each Other by ZequoiaRose. A bad day fic with absolutely ridiculous amounts of hurt/comfort. So soft, I don’t even have words. 100/10 recommend.

- I cannot touch because they are too near by jillyfae. This fic is honestly the best fic about the parabatai bond I’ve ever read. It has a truly lovely amount of wordbuilding and is told from Magnus’s POV where he wants to know more about the bond Alec & Jace have. Extremely soft and written by jilly from our Malec Discord server.

- Between The Lines by Carmenlire. If you like pre-canon fics at all, this is an absolute must-read. It tells a heartwrenching story of Alec & his repression due to the Shadowhunters’ homophobic society, told from Isabelle’s POV.

- Starling by cuubism. One of the best fics about Alec & mental health issues, in my opinion. It’s absolutely heartbreaking in the best way. It can also be pretty intense, so be sure to read the tags and the author’s trigger warnings! <3

- Astraphobia by AceOnIce. An autistic!Alec college AU where Alec’s fear of thunderstorms causes him to meet Magnus for the first time. So, so, so cute. Like, illegally cute.

- The Breath of a Lie by Secretness. This fic is another one of the best fics about Alec & mental healh issues. Although, please be aware - it is very, very intense. This fic will fuck you up good if you’re not careful, so please take care of yourself. <3

- 11:45 by bidness. This fic is the last of my above 20k recs. It is the sweetest workplace AU you will ever read, where Magnus keeps stealing Alec’s lunch and leaving apology notes behind. Also written by the absolutely wonderful Tilly of the Malec Discord server.

- The Best High School Love Story (Maybe Ever) by Aria_Lerendeair. If high school AUs are your thing, you will absolutely love this. It features competitive Malec, best friends to lovers, and the cutest storyline to ever cute.

~ ~ ~

So I ended up giving you like, half of my bookmarks, oops. Sorry about that. I hope you find some that you like among these, and thank you so much again for reading my fics!

Thank you for the ask!

#asked and answered #emma-arthur #ask #asks open #shadowhunters #malec #fanfiction #fic recs #so many talented writers here #I'm damn lucky to know some of them #hope you enjoy these!#thanks for the ask!

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they-them-pussy · 4 years ago

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shit that happened this year according to my journal entries

JANUARY

- first entry, december 31 2019, near midnight: "Here's to a chaotic year"

- wwiii scare, happens as early as jan 3

- ‎australia wildfires

- ‎watcher debuts

- ‎corona world tour begins

- ‎death note comes back with a one shot (?)

FEBRUARY

- kobe bryant passes

- ‎corona panic, people begin hoarding

- SONIC THE HEDGEHOG MOVIE

- ‎BIRDS OF PREY MOVIE

MARCH

- quarantines begin

- toilet paper shortage

- ‎tom and rita hanks test positive for corona

- ‎an nba player tests positive

- ‎US has 1000 confirmed cases

- ‎italy is on shutdown

- ‎everything in my city shuts down on march 13, friday the 13th. i go home to my province (i never go back, for the rest of the year)

- ‎canadian prime minister's wife tests positive

- ‎plague inc.'s popularity skyrockets

- ‎US stock market crashing

- ‎SPN stops production

- ‎idris elba tests positive

- ‎gun buying in the US increases (?)

- ‎ibuprofen and anti inflammatory drugs found to worsen the virus

- ‎italy's cases surpass china's

- ‎celebrities clowning about cabin fever in their mansions

- ‎trump wants to buy the vaccine exclusively for the US

- ‎earthquake in utah

- ‎USA has up to 35k cases

- ‎trump tells people to drink bleach, one man dies, a woman lands in the icu

- USA cases over 82k cases

- ‎boris johnson tests positive

- suspected that there are more deaths in china than are reported

- ‎USA has over 2400 deaths, 100k cases

- ‎Italy has over 10.7k deaths

APRIL

- antibody treatments are being looked into

- ‎chernobyl has fires around it

- ‎apparently a lot of talk about the quarantines ending on the end of april and i just said that it's gonna for the rest of the year??? OOP -

- ‎bernie drops out of the presidential race

- ‎people in my town realize the government doesn't give a fuck about us. begin communal garden

- ‎a lot of entries about animal crossing

- ‎USA almost at a million cases and 53k deaths

- ‎"It's like watching the fall of the US in realtime. It's like that one song, Survivor Guilt, I think."

- ‎2.9 M cases worldwide

- ‎BARDCORE BARDCORE BARDCORE

MAY

- ‎lockdowns opening up, cases spiking after

- ‎USA passes 100k deaths

- ‎"I'm tired and poor"

- ‎storm hits my town, destroys my ceiling

- i take a ton of pictures of the stars, stick them all over the pages

JUNE

- pride cancelled. only WRATH

- anonymous is back

- ‎BLM protests begin

- ‎terror bill being considered in the Philippines, protests against it begin

- ‎"2021 might be a downhill year" (?)

- ‎north korea looks like it might start a war

- ‎a weird, HUGE fucking bird lands on our roof. stays there for hours. watches me while im playing with my dogs in the backyard

- ‎shawn dawson gets cancelled. jefree star too???

- ‎news of russia placing bounties on US soldiers breaks. trump: 'y'all hear smth???'

- ‎a fascist gets voted in poland

JULY

- Osomatsu-san S3 announcement, fandom rises from the dead

- Hamilton

- ‎Spongebob anime

- ‎Classically Abby ads plague YouTube

- ‎TUA S2

AUGUST

- beirut explosion

- ‎attempts to sabotage the USPS begin. Death Stranding has ascended to prophecy status

- ‎heritageposts

- ‎"2021 feels explosive" (?)

SEPTEMBER

- #answerusyoutube trends on twitter

- ‎seasonal depression starts kicking my ass

- first day of Fall

OCTOBER

- THE HORSE IS IN THE HOSPITAL

- ‎claudia conway snitches on her mother

- ‎horse goes out to see his supporters, endangers security detail

- ‎horse gets out the hospital, but everybody's sus

- ‎osomatsu-san returns

- ‎i lose my yellow highlighter and agonize over this for several entries

- ‎hetalia announced to return

- AOC among us twitch stream

NOVEMBER

- US election

- ‎no results yet

- ‎NEVADA????

- ‎destiel goes canon

- ‎rumor of putin stepping down goes around

- ‎talks of a possibility of sherlock s5

- ‎ted bundy twitter roleplayer????

- ‎a bombing???

- THE HORSE IS OUT THE HOSPITAL

- ‎Biden/Harris wins, people rejoice

- ‎unus annus dies

- ‎supernatural s15x19 is a shitshow

- ‎supernatural s15x20 is a shitshow

- ‎destiel uncanons

- ‎supernatural season 16 begins

- ‎DESTIEL GOES CANON BUT IN SPANISH

- ‎#theysilencedyou / #theysilencedus trends on twitter

- ‎rancid nuts?

- ‎heller jensen ackles / jackles long con jokes skyrocket

- ‎samantha ferris says cw never contacted her to shoot what was supposed to be the heaven roadhouse scene

- ‎hindi dub destiel canon rumor goes around

- ‎italian dub destiel canon fake

- ‎several of the cast and crew reveal they're hellers

- ‎heller obama

- ‎rest of the fandom learns that the holy water in spn is actually lube

#2020 #2020 wrapped #i forgot... that the wwiii scare started SO EARLY.....#december #is it gonna kill us #perhaps #can't wait for the meteors to arrive and cause a global blackout :')

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night-rise · 4 years ago

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Traitor

Part 1 https://night-rise7474.tumblr.com/post/633274567146848256/traitor

Part 2

Well now that we got that last heartbreaking theory out of the way, it’s time for part 2 of this traitor theory, the possible suspect NO ONE is considering it could be.

It’s been on my mind since the beginning of the season. I thought I could avoid making a theory about this but I was wrong. I have to. Especially after that last episode.

Okay, here we go:

The person I’m thinking is the traitor is....

Isabella Finch

Hear me out on this.

Finch was a legendary adventurer. Scrooge became the man he is today because of this woman. She was his hero. And I say by now he has long since surpassed her in the adventuring department.

What if that’s the problem.

Scrooge has accomplished and succeeded on more adventures than Finch has in her entire lifespan.

What if this is a revenge story.

Scrooge has undoubtedly become more famous and more well known than Finch ever was. Nobody remembers her. EVERYBODY knows Scrooge.

Finch in her jealousy could have sent FOWL after Scrooge in hopes of destroying his legacy.

With Scrooge and everyone associated with him gone, Finch can make a return on the top of the legacy scale by showing the world the missing mysterious.

She plans on making a grand return after Scrooge is eliminated by FOWL then plans to unveil all the lost missing mysterious. With Scrooge out of the way she would be the number one adventurer. Outranking him and becoming more famous than he ever was...

(But Night-Rise, you talk as if she’s still alive?)

Hear. Me. Out.

Finch was a Scrooge level adventurer. She’s faced the supernatural just as much as Scrooge has.

Scrooge is WAY past his natural lifespan. He should be DEAD. So should Goldie and Rockerduck. But they all found ways to live on past their due time. Why can’t Finch?

(But where has she been all this time?)

Retired at first. Or in a state of depression. She gave up adventuring when she couldn’t find the missing mysterious. And also depressed that she was becoming forgettable.

(But what made her act out now? Why the trigger?)

Scrooge coming out of HIS depression/retirement after meeting Huey Dewey and Louie. Becoming famous and well known again. In fact, returning bigger and more famous than ever.

That must have been the trigger

(But what does Finch have to do with F.O.W.L? How do they fit into all of this? Also, what makes you so sure she’s with F.O.W.L?)

Great questions. MAN, you guys are full of good questions today.

Let me tell you. It’s the same reason that sparked this theory:

The Third Eye Diamond. One of the missing mysterious. Currently in the possession of FOWL. Tell me, how did they get this?

FOWL is NOT an adventuring organization. How did they get this?

All the missing mysterious were logged into Finches journal. No other journal. No other book or information that would lead to it. How did they find it? How did they get it? How was it in their archives?

I’ll tell you how, Finch.

She gave it to them. It was the only mystery she found and she put it in the FOWL archives. But again, why FOWL?

(Okay, this next part is going to sound a little crazy and far fetched... but think about it for a second...)

What if...

Isabella Finch created F.O.W.L

What if she started the organization.

Maybe F.O.W.L was something else back in her time. It was an organization meant to steal to the world from those who would do harm to it, but overtime it twisted into the organization we know today. Along with Finch herself.

Or maybe not even Finch. Finch could be gone but her grandchildren or other family members has taken over their passed relatives adventuring and is finishing what she started. And is using Scrooge to do it for them.

Obviously Finch and FOWL are connected. But how deep is the connection? How does Brandford and the Buzzards fit into this? And what do they plan on doing with the missing mysterious?

I don’t know, but one thing I do know is we are READY!

Super B.O.Y.D

Final form/Bankai Lena.

Darkwing freakin Duck

And a ever growing family bond.

Like I said before, FOWL might have an army, but we have a Huey, ready to out smart the lot of them.

OHHH my gosh... HUEY! I forgot about Huey!

Dude! If this theory is true than that means Huey would have to come to terms with the woman that started the group he’s devoted his entire life to being evil.

That would CRUSH our little red Woodchuck nerd. Ohhh my gosh, NOOOOOOO.

Guys, either way, pain is coming our way. No matter what theory is right or wrong, pain is inevitable... Frank said so himself

And I am

NOT OKAY!

#ducktales #ducktales 2017 #isabella finch #fowl #scrooge mcduck #season 3

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grump-the-deer · 5 years ago

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stuff about HDM ep 8 + overall season thoughts

in other words.....

FINALE TIME BITCHES

this episode was INCREDIBLE. A+++, perfection.

this is what I expected from the get-go, and what I got a lot of the time.

we got some great exposition + bonding double time with Asriel, some excellent portrayal of Asriel and Marisa’s relationship, plenty of dæmons being cool and adorable respectively (Pan and Salcilia running around playing anyone???), some STUNNING visuals, an epic little fight scene with the fire-hurlers and the zeppelins, some great culmination for Iorek and Lyra’s relationship, good ol’ Thorold development, some more Lyra & Roger development (ESPECIALLY the tent and end scenes - Roger’s death KILLED ME OH MY GOD) - just the perfect fuckin meal.

this was exceptional. round of applause for HDM.

(except the Will being 15 thing. what? why is he so old? he could pass for a tall 13- or 14-year-old. that makes it a little weird. I hope Lyra is supposed to be like 13 now then, idk. that’s still a pretty big difference at that age.)

I really have to wonder though - if they show they can do the above stuff perfectly, why didn’t they do it before???

the Bolvangar episode still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. this episode proves that they can make intercision horrific and emotional, and make it mean something with the dæmons interacting. Salcilia and Roger had good reactions - hell, Lyra reacting to remembering almost being separated from Pan was more emotional than the actual scene itself!! Roger’s death was HEARTBREAKING, thanks to his and his dæmon’s reactions!

they put the dæmons in enough, especially in speaking roles, that even when they weren’t around you didn’t really forget about them. I could always do with more background dæmons, but I can absolutely understand budget restraints - so long as you put them in enough. we need to feel they have an emotional impact on the characters. we need to feel like they ARE characters. not accessories.

Pan was a character in this episode. the things he says and do make an impact on the story. he was not a character in the Bolvangar episode, despite the fact that that was the MOST IMPORTANT episode for him to be around and active in.

they can do it right, but they didn’t. this series would be wonderful if they cut out that episode and reshot it and replaced it with a better take. hell, even just the intercision scene. it wouldn’t be perfect, but it would work.

so, overall:

HDM season 1 was a spectacular ride. the dæmons and bears look fantastic (when they’re actually in the shots), the voices are spot-on, the actors do a phenomenal job, and the writers actually added some interesting extra material and development.

some highlights for me are:

- Iorek and Lyra’s relationship. they got it absolutely perfect, if not better than the original. Iorek is perfectly stoic and bearlike and resolute, but Lyra earns his respect and even adoration, as best a bear can. it feels organic and has plenty of development scenes. just heartwarming.

- Lord Asriel all around. really awesome take on him, James MacAvoy loves him to pieces I can tell. he’s way better than the original, and that’s saying something. he’s got a lot more heart and I feel more connected to him despite him being a complete mad genius.

- Mrs. Coulter, for the most part. she’s got a bit of shaky characterization with Lyra towards the end - I’m not really certain of her motivations at the end - but generally she’s fascinating to watch on screen and absolutely horrible. I love her and I love Ruth Wilson as her. she’s positively uhinged. they did some really bold stuff with her character and her relationship with Lyra and I enjoyed every minute of it.

- Farder Coram ended up being great. he and Lyra are always a pleasure to watch interact. he really grew on me as soon as he started getting characterization, particularly with Serafina and the story of his son.

- the cinematography, lighting, set design, and graphics. I couldn’t ask for anything more. they went above and beyond and the framing and this world and its creatures look AMAZING. 10/10. hats off to the animation team in particular, of course.

- the acting. the acting is absolutely brilliant. particular standouts include Dafne Keen as Lyra, of course, James MacAvoy as Lord Asriel, Ruth Wilson as Mrs. Coulter, the voice of Iofur Raknison, and Farder Coram. honorable mention for Will, because he gets the character down so incredibly well.

- the respect for the source material. we’ve seen it blow up once with the Golden Compass movie, but this production obviously has every ounce of loyalty to the original. well, almost every ounce. the stuff they added ended up working very well and feeling organic to the original, and the stuff they kept, especially the verbatim lines, was delivered exceptionally. it’s clear they really care about the story they’re giving us.

- the opening credits are the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. a beautiful tribute to the magic of this series’ themes and world.

and some notably bad stuff, a couple that almost come close to ruining it for me:

- Lee Scoresby. an absolute mess. one moment he’s true to the original character and being sarcastic and selfish, and the next he’s stealing pocketwatches for funsies, yelling out his dangerous motivations in the middle of a town infested with armed Magisterium soldiers, and cooing over Lyra like she’s his flesh and blood and he got injected with Mother Hen Juice. he’s genuinely stupid. his characterization is all over the place. his “development” with Lyra is either nonexistent or rushed, and the only thing he actually does for the plot is fly the damn balloon for about 5 minutes tops. Hester is his only saving grace, and even she can’t do it all. I’m sorry Lin, I really love your work in Hamilton, but this was really disappointing. and I have to blame the writing mainly. they wouldn’t let Lin act a character, they had to shape the character around him. and the whole thing suffered for it.

- the intercision, and dæmon relationships. the Bolvangar episode wasn’t terrible overall, but it did not build up well to the intercision scene, and the episodes around it didn’t help either - especially the previous one. Billy’s death was not sad for me, because the middle of the show did not utilize dæmon relationships with their humans and dæmons as actual characters. we didn’t see them interacting enough with their people to matter consistently to us. the first couple of episodes did this bonding beautifully, even with budget restraints to how many dæmons could be in a shot, and how frequently they could come up. they showed us just enough for us to care about them and what they mean to their humans, particularly Pan and Lyra, and conveniently kept them out of frame when they weren’t necessary to the dialogue between humans.

they can do it properly, but they chose to let it fall by the wayside towards the middle, and it really shot the show in the foot. almost irreparably, I’d wager. Bolvangar, for all its masterful horror trope usage and suspense, was not nearly horrific enough nor emotional at all, thanks to the lack of buildup. we did not care about dæmons and their humans beyond knowing the humans are basically dead without them. there was no feeling behind the threat of Lyra and Pan getting split apart, other than Lyra becoming a shell. the focus was on Lyra and Mrs. Coulter’s relationship, which I don’t have a problem with - but not at the cost of Lyra and her dæmon. you know, the very FIRST line of the books? the main theme of the entire book? arguably the whole SERIES? dæmons as souls, as a person’s sense of free will and consciousness? kind of important to develop an emotional attachment to, don’t you think?

- the Gyptian leads (sans Farder Coram). Ma Costa was passable. she did a lot of crying and a lot of being desperate and pining for her son, and not a lot of kicking ass, proportionally. she didn’t come off as a strong boat mother at the center of her family with sway in her community. she came off as a wiry and lost soul who is somewhat capable but more interested in being depressed and worried. she did get to shine when she killed the Bolvangar doctor, but that wasn’t enough for me.

John Faa was boring. he was a hardass and only every so often came across as the original jovial, caring, but no-nonsense King of the Gyptians. most of the time he was just telling someone not to do something or insisting someone do something. no real personality other than being serious.

Billy Costa had no real character. a waste, considering we’re supposed to care about his death.

Tony Costa was alright. he was kind of a loser, which I guess is okay. I liked capable Tony and his gobbler-fightin’ gang from the books better though. he had a couple good moments with Lyra, and Benjamin was a good addition.

- the themes of belonging. I don’t like how they changed the message about Lyra belonging in different groups. the point isn’t that she can “be anyone she wants to be” - that’s not how real life works, or should work. she can live with the gyptians and like them, but Ma Costa in the books asserts that she can’t be a gyptian, because she’s not part of their ethnic group. a similar message was overlooked with the bears - Iorek gave her the name Silvertongue because of his deep respect for her and what she had done for him, not because she was “one of us bears” now. she isn’t a bear, she’s a human.

the point is that she doesn’t have to be something to find an emotional home with the people themselves. it’s about what she builds, surpassing what she is - which is a product of two twisted, misguided people - taking what’s given to her and making it into something beautiful of her own volition. it’s a very nuanced theme and it’s basically thrown aside in this adaptation in favor of pseudo-colorblindness theory that origins don’t matter and you can stuff yourself anywhere you please. it’s not a deal-breaking point and most people probably won’t pay attention to it, but it’s worth mentioning anyway.

so overall, the show was really really spectacular. a ton of fun, beautifully crafted, with a few hiccups and one major major issue. the dæmon thing gouged out a good chunk of the enjoyment for me, and the integrity of the actual story too. a huge huge blunder on Jack Thorne’s part. I’d like to say they recovered from it, because they did do a pretty great job wrapping things up, but it still lingers in the back of my mind as a big blemish on an otherwise incredible work.

I have high hopes for the future seasons though, when dæmons aren’t around as frequently and less characters are on screen, so there will be more time and budget available to be devoted to them, particularly Pan as a character. they’ve shown they can handle this material skillfully, and I have a good amount of faith in them. I can’t wait to see what else they do with the concepts I’ve come to adore so much.

#hdm #hdm spoilers #his dark materials

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inazumafocus · 5 years ago

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So many characters so little time

Hello there my dearies, I’m here today to talk about one of the biggest problems we have in the current Inazuma season aka Orion: character development! Simply put, I’m going to show you in details WHEN during OG the members of the Inazuma Japan had a character development and why back then they were able to manage those while in Orion they seem to be a problem. This will be a veeery long list so you can skip to then end where I’ll explain everything further!

Endou Mamoru:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s1e1 establish base for the character, s1e2 first defined characteristics (never giving up), s1e12 first doubts showing his humanity and inner struggle, s1e15 and s1e17 interpersonal relationship with troubled friends, s1e24 we can see him doubtful and troubled about himself, s2e46 the depressed side of Endou and how he comes back to his feet. Overall in both season we follow his growth. MAJOR DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e83 bettering himself as a captain, s3e88 bettering himself as a goalie, s3e123 ultimately understands what it means the be the captain of a team. MEDIUM DEV

Kazemaru Ichirouta:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s1e2 establish base for the character, s1e15 Kaze’s internal conflicts, s1e16 his own resolve, s2e33 first big signs of distress, s2e45 peak of distress and depression showing the character’s insecurities and weaknesses, s2e63/64/65 deeper understanding of Kaze’s human and dark side. MAJOR DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3ep77 bettering himself as a defender. MINOR DEV

Kabeyama Heigorou:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s1e2 establish base for character, s1e6 character’s fears and him winning them in the end with newfound resolve, s1e16 bettering himself as a defender. MINOR DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e89 shows his helping side, s3e95 bettering himself as a player. MINOR DEV

Tsunami Jousuke:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e47 establish base for character, s2e49/50 going in deeper on the character’s difficulties and desires, s2e55 shows even better the helpful spirit of Tsunami. MEDIUM DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e70, his resolve to better himself, s3e71/72 growing stronger as a player, s3e89 more insight on his good nature. MINOR DEV

Kurimatsu Teppei:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: mood-maker throughout all s1 which establish his character, s1e15 his concerned and less joyful side are shown when a pillar of the team threatens to leave, s2e45 weaknesses revealed. MEDIUM DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e69 bettering himself as a defender, s3e89 helpful side, s3e95 self sacrificing attitude. MINOR DEV

Kogure Yuuya:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e35 establish base for character + shows lots of info right away on his behaviours, sad past and will to play for real, s2e36 conquering a bit of his fears and slightly opening up to others. MEDIUM DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e89 his helpful side is shown, s3e95 bettering himself as a player and person, s3e100 during the kappa accident we can see more of his soft side for once instead of his prankster one and get to know his wishes to be like every normal kid and not just an abandoned child. MINOR DEV

Tobitaka Seiya:

FIRST APPEARANCE S3 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: NO DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e68 establish base for character, s3e71 a bit of his past is revealed, s3e73 more insights on his lone wolf personality and ties to street gangs and to Hibiki, s3e75 more about his past and injury to his leg and also why did he decide to change his life + bettering himself as a defender and teammate thanks to Endou + starting to see soccer as a fun thing as well, s3e81 he is now willing to fight for his team + getting back to good terms with his old friends, s3e83 wanting to do good but still failing and being visibly upset by it, s3e84 finally find the power in him to unleash his first hissatsu, s3e85 he proves to have grown quite a lot since he gives supports and encourages Tachimukai to do his best and telling him that it’s ok to mess things up a bit, s3e101 his caring, helpful and intuitive side is shown, s3e113 we can see how deeply he cares for Hibiki and just how emotional he can get. MAJOR DEV

Fudou Akio:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e37 character debut not really valid to establish a base for the character given his altered state. NO DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e70 show to actually care a lot about being in the national and him training far before the others did, this establish a base as him being quite the elusive person, s3e83 debut as a player + playmaker skills + past revealed + beginning to gain trust and give trust, s3e88 him on the same level of Kidou as a playmaker, s3e90/91/92/93 revealed his loyalty to the inajapan + his complete detachment from Kageyama + his helpful cooperative side, s3e105 show his trust in others, s3e110 we can see his hate towards evildoers, s3e119 more of his helping side towards someone that isnt Kidou. MAJOR DEV

Fubuki Shirou:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e32 establish base for character, s2e33 more insights on Shirou’s character + more hint to his other persona, s2e37 Shirou opening up more, s2e38 Atsuya being less aggressive towards teammates as well as kinda protective, s2e39 Atsuya and Someoka find balance, s2e41 first signs of Fubuki being unstable, s2e42 his background is shown + his perfection complex, s2e43 first signs of weaknesses, s2e45 internal conflict + passing out due to an injury after a breakdown + his duality is explained, s2e51 nervous breakdown due to the feeling of not being useful, s2e57 more insight on his breakdown, s2e59 we learn his fear of being alone, s2e61 he is now able to control himself and becomes complete + better himself as a teammate as well. MAJOR DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: better himself as a player with new hissatsu. NONE

Gouenji Shuuya:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s1e1 establish base for character, s1e2 we can see a bit of his struggle and will to play, during the rest of season 1 we can see him grow more fond of his team and considering them friends + why did he quit soccer back in the days so a bit of his past as well, s2e30 we can see the sadness in his forced decision, hence him caring for what he’s about to lose, s2e52 we can see his new resolve to play soccer with his friends to his heart content. MAJOR DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e79 we have a clearer view of his past and his troubles with the father, s3e80 his distress is shown by him failing hissatsu during training, s3e81 he’s hasty and makes mistakes due to the pressure he feels, s3e84 he’s finally able to play and discards his worries + his father approves of him keeping to play soccer, he keeps on bettering himself with new hissatsu. MEDIUM DEV

Utsunomiya Toramaru:

FIRST APPEARANCE S3 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: NO DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e68 establish base for character, s3e73 insights on his daily life and helpful willing nature, s3e74 his past is revealed and he is now free to play however he wants because he win his fears over, s3e101 we can see him suffer again because of his mother’s health and by being homesick but also his renewed resolve to play and be a kid, he also keeps on improving himself, s3e126 he became Raimon’s ace shooter. MAJOR DEV

Hijikata Raiden:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e48 establish base for character + we can see how caring he is almost like a father/big brother figure, s2e52 shows us Hijikata caring and helping Gouenji, someone he barely knew, s2e53 his past with Gouenji and his humble and easily embarrassed selves are revealed. MEDIUM DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e113/115 we can see him helping a complete stranger again + how much he values family and to what extent he is willing to help them. MINOR DEV

Midorikawa Ryuuji:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: given his altered state the dev is NO DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e69 establish base for character + we can see Mido’s true happy go lucky side instead of his aline persona, s3e73 a bit of his insecurities are shown alongside how he seem to not enjoy soccer to the same extent as before + getting injured because of the pressure he kept his body under, s3e76 more of his insecurities and self deprecating attitude come out as he has a nervous breakdown during practice + he starts to remember what was like to play soccer for fun, s3e77 he is now able to play again to his heart desires with less worries, s3e82 he is shown to still overexerting himself, s3e101 in the letter Midorikawa states that he is now re-learning to enjoy soccer at his best and we can see him being happy with that. MAJOR DEV

Kidou Yuuto:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s1e10 we can see that unlike his first appearance he actually has his doubts about cheating, s1e11 establish base for character as we are shown a more human and troubled side of him, s1e12 actual manifestation of his will to play fairly + detachment from Kageyama’s plans, s1e13 going as far as to be injured in order to get his sister back + his attachment towards Haruna is better shown, s1e17 frustration and sadness over defeat + feeling guilty for his friends going to the hospital but him surviving + more of his backstory and new resolve, s1e18 learning more about a new type of soccer, his ties with the teammates grow into a friendship, s2e35 more of his relationship with Haruna and his soft side are shown + more of the backstory, s2e37 remorse and guilt + him bowing asking for forgiveness for his selfishness, s2e38 more about his twisted feelings for Kageyama are shown, s2e56 his feelings of uneasiness towards his former teammates and fear to not being forgiven + the difference of ties he has with Teikoku and Raimon. MAJOR DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e82 growing as a playmaker, s3e83 surpass his own dislikes in order to better himself as a teammate, s3e90/91/92/93 more of his relationship with Kageyama and his own self trust issues are shown and then ultimately won, s3e105/106 growing as a player and person, ultimately shown his affection for Kageyama despite everything and the grief after his death, s3e110 more about his affection for Haruna and the new friendship with Fudou, s3e126 is shown how he can cry and be very emotional as well. MAJOR DEV

Sakuma Jirou:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e37/38 establish base for character because we are shown his most inner and hidden secrets aka his low self esteem and how he suffered from always comparing himself with Kidou and deeming himself not at his level + his new resolve to play for himself a good soccer, s2e56 his forgiving and friendly side. MEDIUM DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e69 despite not winning to Kidou he’s now at peace with himself and knows his self worth, s3e90/91/92/93 we can see how much he cares and actually knows Kidou + we can see him starting to trust Fudou a bit, s3e119 he is now in more friendly terms with someone he greatly disliked. MINOR DEV

Someoka Ryuugo:

FIRST APPEARANCE S1 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s1e4 establish base for character aka strong willed + not keen to changes but understanding and in the end accepting his own mistakes in judgment, s2e31/32/33 we can see how deeply he cares for people he sees as friends and deems amazing players and again is not so keen to change, but how in the end he is reasonable and can give other a chance, s2e37 ultimate acceptance and newfound happiness despite changes, s2e37 ability to adapt and growing as a player, s2e38 self sacrificing nature, s2e39 we can see that his strong will can be too much and brings him to overwork his body, s2e55 his more tender, loving and caring side surfaces when verbally trying to help a friend and we can also see how easily embarrassed he gets at his own awkward attempts to cheer someone up, letting us know he has that in him but avoids because of social awkwardness, s2e64/65 ultimately we can see his dark most insecure side, the one that deemed himself not strong enough compared to the other strikers. MAJOR DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e70 despite not being chosen he does not resent the decision nor is he angry or sad, he instead decides to work even harder in case a spot on the national will clear one day, throughout the serie he better himself as a player even when in the national. MINOR DEV

Kiyama Hiroto:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e45 establish base for character, despite him still being part of Aliea Gakuen we can see a glimpse of his caring nature since he is worried for someone he doesn't even know, s2e62 we can see again that he worries a lot for others as he didn’t want to release the limiter of Genesis’ players and ultimately understands the importance of friendship, s2e63 despite everything that he has done, Hiroto still loves his father, showing a very high level of forgiveness and unconditional love. MEDIUM DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e76 is the only one who noticed Midorikawa being troubled by something, showing us his observant eye and protective nature + how reliable and mature he is given the way he tries to comfort and motivate the friend, s3e100 his caring nature is shown again, s3e112 we can see his hacking abilities alongside his wanting to help strangers once again. MINOR DEV

Tachimukai Yuuki:

FIRST APPEARANCE S2 DEVELOPMENT BEFORE INAJAPAN: s2e43 establish base for character, a shy and intuitive kid who aspires to greatness and is very talented already on his own, s2e46 we can see he has the heart to never give up, no matter how many times he fell and how many times he failed, he kept on practicing until he made it, s2e55/56 his determination just kept on growing despite hardship + we are shown once again that his intuitiveness is very high as he’s quickly catching up on how to perform the new hissatsu, he also grows as a player. MEDIUM DEV DEVELOPMENT AFTER INAJAPAN: s3e89 we can see his determination into learning an hissatsu completely unique in order to differentiate himself + how much he is willing to train and fatigue his body in order to do so, he just keeps on trying until he succeeds. MINOR DEV

SO!

If you took the time to read aaaall this, you may have noticed how the development was redistributed throughout the three season, if you haven’t (which is totally understandable, this was an insane job on my part even if I don’t regret losing sleep for this-) I’m going to explain.

OG InaJapan had 18 players but only FIVE of them had a major character development during the FFI season. 5 out of 18 is a really low and doable amount of work to put in a 60 episode long season, you can afford to spent some time on them because the other 13 have already been covered in the previous two seasons (aka in the previous 65 episode of he whole show) or are secondary character with a simple medium need of development!

Now, if you instead look at Orion, the new InaJapan currently has 23 members (and still one free spot) and the only one already covered with a major/medium development during Ares are Haizaki, Nosaka, Norika and Hiroto because we know about their past, we’ve seen an established base for their character and we were shown their interaction with others plus some development (Hiroto starting to trust others, Haizaki beggining to open up, Norika’s will to fight, Nosaka’s understanding of what’s right and wrong). But what does this mean? It means that only 4 out of 23 players already had some more insights and development, so we are left with 19 characters who need focus to get to know them better. And if we count the OG characters off, we are still left with 10 development-less players! To cover TEN characters is VERY hard, if you want to do it well and if we consider that in 33 episodes we had almost none of them explored (Asuto and Hikaru’s plots are in motion but there’s still lack of an actual character arc and development), it’s hard to believe they’ll be able to do it in the remaining eps. Let’s remember that in OG they covered 5 people in 60 episodes and even if Orion will actually be longer than that, I higly doubt any development will feel less than a bit half-assed because they will STILL be cramped all ten of them together. And why this? Because they went for the FFI IMMEDIATELY after Ares! Think about it, OG had 65 episode before the FFI and they had only 5 characters (Endou, Kazemaru, Gouenji, Kidou and Someoka) with a major development started in s1 and only ENDED in s2 plus one medium development of Kurimatsu and a minor one for Kabeyama almost entirely in s1, only Shirou with a major development in s2 and 6 medium development during s2 (Tsunami, Kogure, Tatsuya, Hijikaya, Sakuma and Tachimukai). S1 had 26 episodes while S2 39 and 65 episodes for 6 major development plus 7 medium ones are very reasonable. But how many episode did we had before the new FFI? 26 26 episodes and only 4 medium developments plus some minors. This stats may have been acceptable ONLY if another season of maybe 40 episodes would have divided it from the FFI one. Sadly this isn’t the case.

All of this to prove a point: if you want to do an all stars season you first need to have done other seasons to explain and develope the majority of the characters you want to put there. And Orion didn’t. Which is honestly super dumb since they already did and all stars season during OG, so they should know how to handle it-

So yeah, if you’re wondering why your fave hasn’t had the spot light yet or why they were put in a corner for a while and their plot left to stagnate... this is why. They have far too many characters in need of an arc and they’re apparently not able to handle them well.

I’ve been Nene, thank you for coming to my extremely long and oddly specific ted talk, I will now go die on my bed.

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lightsandlostbells · 6 years ago

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Druck season 2, episode 10 reaction

Done with S2! Thanks to all the translators who make the clips, texts, and social media content accessible to everyone. It’s so much work to do and the Druck translators do a terrific job.

As much as I love going into Matteo’s POV, I’m going to miss Mia’s a lot. This season definitely surpassed my expectations overall.

Episode 10

Clip 1 - Slumber party

The girl crew is having a sleepover and keeping warm in Mia’s bed in their PJs. They talk about how great last summer was, which we unfortunately did not get to see. So Druck should definitely squeeze in an Amira season so we can see the summer before they graduate, eh? Ehhh???

Mia gets a text, but it’s from her mom, not Alex. Kiki says she doesn’t think Björn sent Alex the pictures or else he would’ve texted her already. Or, as Sam points out, he would’ve pushed Björn in front of a train. That option seems quite likely, to be honest. The girls are proud of Mia for standing up to Björn.

Mia says she needs to talk to Alex about it because it would be worse if he found out through someone else. Kiki gives Mia a hug and says they’ll protect her, and Sam says they beat up people for Hanna, so they’ll beat them up for Mia, too. Hell yeah. Björn needs an ass-kicking far more than Toilet Sam’s girlfriend did.

Down with pacifism! Sam punches a pillow and says down with all men! I’m sad that this is all we get of the sleepover scene that was shown briefly in those ending credits at the beginning of the season, but at least what we did see is cute.

Clip 2 - Talk to each other!!

At school, Mia seems so distracted looking for Alex that some guy knocks into her. She finds Alex at his locker. He seems pissed. PLEASE GOD don’t let it be for Björn-related reasons, let him be better than that. He can’t believe Björn. Please.

Well, he did see the pictures. And he doesn’t get it. Were they for revenge? So he thinks she went out with Björn just to hurt him.

Mia grabs him as he tries to walk away, saying it’s not what he thinks it is, and they need to talk. He says he can’t and has a test now, Mia says tomorrow, and he reluctantly nods. It’s like the conversation that was supposed to happen last week, but didn’t because Björn happened. Mia stares after him. We hear other people’s happy, careless conversations as Mia’s whole world is unraveling.

Well, she didn’t tell him it was rape/assault yet, so that still puts him above William - it’s one thing to think she’s consensually hooking up with Björn to hurt him, another to not believe her about being assaulted. And he didn’t leave her crying on the ground. It all depends how he reacts tomorrow.

Clip 3 - Fucking Björn keeps ruining things and he’s not even in the episode

After school, when most students are leaving, it’s time for Mia and Alex to talk. He’s looking out the window. She asks about what really happened with him and Björn.

He calls his parents emotionally stunted (slur according to the translations - not sure if it has the same connotations or intensity in German but :/ at its use) and it was hard for Sophie. Her depression got worse when Alex was like 12-13; she was institutionalized twice and went to three therapists until she found one she liked. She was OK after that, until she met Björn.

We see some flashbacks of Sophie and Alex hanging out in the pool as Alex talks about their close relationship, and then Sophie drifts from Alex to go smooch Björn. Alex was cool with him at first (we see them friendly in the pool) until it became clear Björn made Sophie cry (in the pool we see Alex and Björn rough-housing and play-fighting - innocent this time, but representative of how later it would escalate to actual fighting because of Sophie; notice that Sophie herself drifts out of the footage and isn’t visible except for her legs, like they’re fighting even when she’s gone). Björn tried to emotionally turn Sophie against both her parents and Alex, which is a textbook sign of an abuser, separating the victim from friends and family (in the flashbacks we see Björn holding Sophie close, like he’s trying to have her all to himself).

Björn also convinced Sophie to stop going to her therapist because he thought the therapist hated him, and threatened to break up with her if she didn’t. Which is also textbook abuse/manipulation. And frankly Björn thinking the therapist hated him could be paranoia, it’s likely, but it’s also possible the therapist legitimately didn’t like him based on what Sophie was saying in therapy and so didn’t encourage Sophie to stay in that relationship. So Sophie’s depression got worse after that, and then that annoyed Björn and he started disappearing and going to clubs for days at a time. I didn’t know I could hate this motherfucker even more.

Sophie barely texted Alexander (he’s crying as he tells this now), she started getting into drugs (not just weed as Björn had told Mia) and it was even worse because she had manic episodes. This whole story is so sad. I do have to give props to Druck because the way they’re laying this out seems so realistic in terms of emotional abuse.

Alexander spins the ring on his finger. Is that a family ring? I don’t remember if we learned anything about it. Maybe Sophie gave it to him.

Alexander’s family didn’t hear from Sophie for a while until the German embassy called them (not Björn). God, so did Björn run off when Sophie died? I can imagine him doing that, not wanting to take any responsibility. They only saw him again at the funeral, where he claimed in front of everyone that Sophie would still be alive if she had abandoned the family sooner, and Alex lost it and said he’d beat him to death if he came near the family again, Björn ran off. You know, this makes me wonder what the hell Björn was doing trying to get into Alex’s apartment those times. Was he getting a thrill out of just being there and sticking it to Alex? Or was he there to steal stuff or mess with Alex’s things?

Alexander says he had the worst year of his life until Mia yelled at him in the courtyard. I guess Mia saw right through his bullshit and that brought him back to Earth. Mia grabs his hand.

Alexander is upset that the guy who ruined his life also assaulted Mia. THANK GOD he’s upset that Mia was assaulted, that his anger is directed toward Björn and not at her. Bravo, Alexander, I know it was a low bar but I’m glad you didn’t leave Mia crying on the floor. And bravo, Druck, for taking out that part. It’s hard for Alex not to do anything about it, but Mia says he mustn’t, Björn did it to her and she wants to sort it out

Mia went to the police and Alex is like, “Do you think that will sort anything?” and she points out that beating him up again won’t help, either. True! As much as I wouldn’t mind seeing it. Not worth it for Alexander to go to jail over that scum, don’t let Björn ruin his life further.

Alex reported himself to the police, so they’re going to investigate and interview the victim. Ugh, I don’t want Björn’s sob story full of lies to get Alex in trouble, but it’s the right thing to do, and Alexander chose to do it, so that says a lot about his character.

Alexander is packing up to go, Mia wants to know about their relationship. Alex says he’s going to London after graduation. I like how they’ve positioned him so far away already; he’s far from Mia, in the doorway ready to leave, just like him going to London. He says that this thing between them hasn’t worked from the start. Mia is upset and teary as he tries to go, and tries to get him to stay by saying he’s being an asshole, but he says that’s it. Wow, so they’re really gonna string us along until the end, huh. Imagine if the one version of Noorhelm that I like is the one that broke up for good.

Mia walks out of the room, through the hall, through the shadows, crying. GOD, CAN NICE THINGS HAPPEN TO MIA ALREADY. I feel like she gets a good day or two at most and then more shit gets flung at her.

Super apropos song lyrics at the end of the clip: “You told me to let go and all I can do is try/I'm running in circles, tired of keeping my head high/You told me to bury my feelings dead I'm alright/Oh, acting my whole life now I am losing this fight” Poor Mia is trying desperately to keep Alex but it’s getting nowhere and he’s telling her it’s over.

Clip 4 - Hanna and Jonas?

Hanna and Mia walk along talking, Hanna asks if it’s over, Mia is on the brink of tears again. It really gets me in the heart how Mia just has to cut off the subject because it’s too painful and she gets choked up so quickly. She asks about Hanna. Jonas has blocked Hanna on Insta for going to Sam’s party … dude, Jonas, get your shit together. Mia says he has no right to tell her what to do. Damn straight.

And Mia says they need to stop talking about guys all the time, they wouldn’t even pass the Bechdel test. LMAO. I’m pretty sure that Druck would pass the Bechdel test? Like Mia and Kiki talking about Kiki’s eating and fitness issues would qualify, for a start? Although standards might be different in a season-long TV show than a movie. But I do also see the irony in like ... this being a TV show where the characters’ choice of conversation topics are dictated by the writers, so Druck could have the girls stop talking about dudes whenever they want.

Also, the Bechdel test was created by a lesbian, and was specifically meant to represent a lesbian experience before the test gained a more widespread usage, so people who are unsatisfied with Druck’s handling of wlw may not enjoy this line - the de-gaying of the Bechdel test might ring too close to Druck dancing away from Mia’s sexuality.

Anyway, Mia doesn’t want to be asked about Alex anymore, so Hanna asks how she did in German, and is astonished that Mia does so well and gets good grades despite dealing with stress. Mia does this adorable hair flip of confidence.

Mia walks off, and HOLY SHIT we switch to Jonas?? And Hanna?? So that shot of Mia walking away wasn’t just random, it was ~symbolic and representing a transition of POV. I do wish we had gotten this scene after Mia and Alex got more of a conclusion to their story; it’d seem more fitting for tying up loose ends. Because I’m still like MIA’S SEASON AIN’T OVER.

Of course that mysterious person who talks to Jonas turned out to be Gereven. I love that he got the name Beanie Boy. Honestly I really love that fandom was like EVEN???? after this one brief appearance. Skam fandom goes hard with their detective skills. (Was he lending Jonas his notes so Jonas could catch up? So thoughtful.)

Hanna sits down across from Jonas and asks about a bad grade he got. It turns out that Jonas got a 0 in three subjects, and at least one of them was for an unexcused absence. Hanna is concerned. I am too. Jonas is a mess. It’s been this way all season but at some point you have to be like, dude, either get over it or get help. If Hanna is the root cause of his pain, he has to let her go (much as I root for Janna and Honas) but if it’s something more, like this guy is depressed, not to mention his substance abuse, then he needs to talk to a therapist.

Hanna wants to talk, Jonas has some work to finish, so she just grabs his pencil and finishes for him. He’s like … is that right? She nods. He jokes that it’s good she doesn’t crib from him anymore. I’m really glad Hanna has been keeping her shit together, it seems, but damn, it’s depressing that we just swung the messiness around to Jonas.

She says that she’s noticed he’s not doing well, and she somehow feels responsible. Jonas points out that she’s not. Hanna says Matteo has noticed that he’s not well, too, and that he says Jonas has locked him out. Jonas says Matteo needs a girlfriend so he can stop getting on his nerves. LMAO. Oh, Jonas. You really are a mess if you’ve missed Matteo’s big puppy eyes. But you know, the utter irony of that quote in a clip where they introduce Matteo’s future love interest, who is very much not a girlfriend.

Hanna says Jonas blocked her on Instagram. Yeah, Jonas, the hell is that about? Jonas says so it’s so he doesn’t have to see more of Hanna and Sam. Lol, she had like one picture of her and Sam. Hanna says there’s nothing happening with them. Honestly, I guess Jonas has to do what he needs to do to stop wallowing in his misery, and that might mean blocking Hanna on IG (although I think it’s extreme) but at the same time, it doesn’t seem to have done him any good.

Hanna says she wants to be friends with him, but that’s not possible, is it? Jonas doesn’t say anything but you can tell from his face that she’s right. Before Hanna turns around, he says the equation doesn’t make any sense, and she says it’d be great if it was. Jonas says he was impressed for a minute. OH KIDS. If only the equation WAS RIGHT. And by equation I mean YOU TWO. Get your stuff together!!!!

Clip 5 - Follow your heart

The girl and boy crews are smoking hookah. Mia’s the only one not there. The girls talk about Mia and it feels like they’re the audience surrogates with their range of opinions, lol. What Alex did was fucked up (Hanna) vs. yes but it was understandable (Amira). Hanna thinking Mia deserves a nicer guy, Sam thinking that no matter what happened in the past, Mia and Alex love each other and it sucks it didn’t work out, Kiki just wanting Mia to be happy. The prevailing opinion seems to be that they want Mia to be happy, awwww. And I’m really glad their priorities are Mia’s happiness rather than them just coming across as in-universe Winterberg shippers no matter Mia’s feelings.

Goes without saying but Kiki looks cute with her glasses. All the girls look great, Hanna is rocking that red lipstick.

Amira is just like, all men suck, we don’t even have a choice. Kiki points out that Mia has a choice. I mean, who knows, maybe that girl Mia dated before was just a huge mess herself. Sam says women suck, too, and Amira is like no, women don’t rape, objectify, and marginalize men systematically. My soul ascended when I heard Amira say that. I love her, we’ve got to get season 4 somehow. Make it happen!!!!

Lmao, Hanna’s example of a bad woman is Bellatrix Lestrange, interesting that she went fictional! I would volunteer Umbridge as an example myself.

But Hanna points out there are nice guys, too, and Amira points out that guys like Jonas are the worst. At least guys like Alexander don’t pretend they’re not macho. Oh SHIT I got chills hearing this. Jonas is the sensitive hipster guy who thinks he’s woke, but is capable of as much sexism as any other dude. And as Amira points out, Jonas treated Hanna like crap when they were together, and now he acts all controlling. DAMN. CHILLS. I say this as someone who loves German Jonas, and who really loves Jonas and Hanna’s chemistry together: Amira isn’t wrong. Jonas was far from the perfect boyfriend, and in this season he’s been a pain in the ass, trying to manipulate her. I love that Amira lays it out and I think maybe it clicked something for Hanna, something that she already knew, but maybe she just needed Amira’s blunt POV.

Sam says it’s no good to hate all men, and Amira says no, we have to accept some men. Still, I really liked how this conversation didn’t try to soften its feminism? It’s not about man-hating, it’s about being able to acknowledge systemic misogyny honestly.

The girls again assert they are Team Mia above everything, and it’s a nice touch that it’s Kiki leading the charge, after all their drama this season.

Mia is at home, sad over Alex. She smells his hoodie and looks at herself in the mirror, then over at her slogan: “follow your heart but take your brain with you.” But the way it’s shot, Mia’s head blocks the rest of the quote so it’s just “follow your heart” - a little on the nose, but still a good way to tie that motto back to her character arc. So she puts on her shoes and coat and heads out.

Back with the squads, it’s Sam’s birthday, so they sing to her and she blows out the candle on her cake. The girls ask what she wished for and Sam tells them, no secrets in the crew. She wants a boyfriend. Well, for her sake I hope she gets one? She deserves better than Manfred the middle-aged racial fetishist farmer. Lol, I think it would’ve been fun to see Sam with an age-appropriate version of Kasper, although I can see why the cabin trip ended up having much more drama than just Ouija board shenanigans. Would’ve maybe felt weird to have an actual guy there for some reason.

Amira gets a text and has to leave, but Sam snatches her phone and the girls see that she works as a delivery girl. Hanna makes a comment that she thought Amira was secretly married - innocent joke or microaggression about Muslim girls getting married off young? They want to know why Amira didn’t tell them, and Amira explains that her brothers can never know because they’ll tell her parents, and her parents, who are doctors, think it’s beneath them for their daughter to be a delivery girl. Man, you can’t drop this on us and not give us a season 4. That’s such an insight into Amira’s relationship with her brothers (including German Elias??) and her parents and their background. It makes sense why she has to save money to go to Australia and her parents don’t approve, they probably think she should stick to studying. I feel like you could dig so much into this material in her season.

Who will Sam hook up with tonight? She notes that Matteo is quite cute. Matteo certainly is quite cute, sitting there uncomfortably as Sara talks to him. Hanna, sensing disaster, tries to shut that shit down, but turns out she didn’t need to because two seconds later Matteo is making out with Sara! NOOOO, MATTEO. We almost dodged this S2 attempt at heterosexuality! We were near the finish line! At least we consolidated Sara and Emma into one person, so he only has one girl to kiss miserably, not two?

Mia waits for Alexander at the skate park with what looks like cocoa? Chocolate milk? Anyway, nice callback to the other times Alexander showed up with beverages. He comes outside and it’s awkward, but he accepts her drink. They talk about London and she asks why they can’t just be in a long-distance relationship, and he says for that they’d have to be in a relationship. OUCH. Fucking cold, dude.

The closeups of Mia and Alexander position each of them closer to the side of the frame, like she’s to the right and he’s to the left, and it’s a little jarring going back and forth, which is similar to that one confrontation in the first episode (I can’t remember if they used this effect in any other scenes). Makes you feel more of the tension, makes your eyes keep darting from side to side. Nice way to call back toward the beginning. This is a confrontation, too, except back then Mia wanted Alex to leave Kiki alone and get the fuck out of all their lives, and here it’s Mia who wants him to stay and Alex who’s trying to go.

Mia forbids Alex to leave. She’s trying to say it firmly but you can see how scared and unsure she is. Alex points out how it hasn’t worked, they fight and she doesn’t trust him, and that’s when Mia’s gotta put her drink down and go off on him, detailing all the drama and lies of their relationship from the beginning to present. After all that bullshit he pulled, she still wants to be with him, but it’s him who thinks it’s too exhausting to be together. She points out that yeah, it will be exhausting, but, as she reminds him, he said he fell in love with her because she knew who he was right from the start, and that’s why she knows he hurts other to protect himself. Mia says he doesn’t have to do that with her, she’s not leaving, she’s here. And I love that callback to his anxiety attack, she’s reminding him that she stayed before and she’ll stay again.

Mia pulls in Alex and like half-hugs him, it’s stiff at first but Mia doesn’t back off, and he finally gives in. When she pulls back she basically dares him to tell her he doesn’t love her, but of course he says he loves her, and she loves him too. It’s nice that he seems genuinely emotional and even choked up about it, he asks her to say it like he needs to hear it to believe it. And I like that he’s in shadow and a little subdued, while she’s in the light and is just glowing with happiness. The little whisper of “I love you” in his ear is the sweetest thing.

Mia and Alex kiss. Cut back to the party where Carlos and Kiki kiss, Matteo and Sara kiss (NOOOOO), and Abdi and Sam kiss. Three smooching couples in a row, blissfully oblivious to each other. (Well. Two out of three are blissful. Matteo ain’t having a good time.)

LMAO we cut to Hanna, Jonas, and Leonie at a table together, with Jonas in the middle (just like their love triangle!) and Leonie being like … OK. They giggle. This is hands-down one of my favorite shots on Druck, what a good moment.

Mia and Alex continue to kiss and we go from closeups to moving away from them, letting them have their happy ending. and moving away to follow another person’s story. I do wish we could’ve gotten Alex and Mia together for good earlier, with more downtime to enjoy them together at the end, but they did get together and that was a really lovely reunion.

Druck cast dance party! Truly the best season finale tradition.

Social Media/General Comments:

I feel a little deprived of that sleepover content since they were teasing us at the beginning of the season, but at least there was some SM to show us what the girls were up to. Kiki’s stretchiness was demonstrated once more, and Hanna forgot her toothbrush - seems IC.

Carmen was also a guest at the sleepover, though I don’t know if it was original Carmen or Carmen 2.0. Mia and Kiki cuddle up to Carmen, and then there is a picture documenting exactly what I was thinking, which is Kiki realizing exactly where Carmen has been...

The boy squad plays basketball. They all seem to be terrible. Jonas is absent and the boys comment on it, so he was probably off wallowing/drinking/getting high.

It’s nice that Hanna and Matteo are on pretty close terms, although much of their conversation seems to be concern for Jonas.

Sam made a post about dressing up for motto week, suggesting everyone dress up as her, but telling people not to do blackface. She gives a breakdown and history of blackface that explains why you should not do it. I’m really glad to see more educational content for youth like this. It’s a pretty concise but clear explanation of the racism behind blackface, and it’s something all non-black teens should definitely hear.

On that note, Amira did a Q&A session about Islam to clear up misconceptions people have. Very nice to have this done by a Muslim actress (I think Iman Meskini has done stuff like this on her IG), and I wonder if she improvised these answers? I feel like a lot of the SM content is improv. Anyway, of note: someone asked if she would date a non-Muslim and she said that her religion is a part of her and a non-Muslim wouldn’t be able to participate with her in a big part of her daily life, so he wouldn’t really fit. But it’s a difficult question. HMMMMM. I don’t want to get my hopes up buuuuut this would certainly be a question to explore in depth, don’t you think? Like in an Amira-focused season?

Also, people have a lot of weird assumptions about hijab, things like wondering if Amira is bald underneath (???) or if she showers with it on (???) with Amira having to clarify that she hasn’t stopped showering since wearing hijab (???) But then again we saw Kiki think the same thing earlier this season sooooooooo.

Hanna documents her struggles with school. Oh, Hanna, I was so excited in that brief moment where you solved that equation for Jonas! Alas.

Carlos and Kiki eat cheesecake and I’m very happy to see Kiki eating and enjoying herself. Carlos seems very good for her, but I don’t think it’s just Carlos who’s made her happier, I think the therapy helps, and I think her self-image is just better overall. I mean, Carlos doesn’t like her glasses (poor taste!!) but she likes the way they look and she’s not feeling the need to change them because of a man’s opinion.

Hans didn’t go to Sam’s birthday party because he was nursing a broken heart. Michi dumped him. Hans, all due respect, I cannot say I blame him. Bye, Michi! Hope you find true love!

Linn had to stay home to take care of Hans, LMAO, I’m just imagining Hans crying and moaning on the couch and Linn sitting beside him staring at the TV and eating chips while occasionally patting Hans on the head.

Stuff that was missing from this season that was present in S2: Matteo being rescued by Hans, Jamilla, Kasper (well, Manfred half-counts). Probably more, aside from things that were changed or combined, but those are some things that stick out. I don’t think Jamilla will factor in at all if by a miracle we get Amira’s season, and if Sam gets a boyfriend it won’t be Kasper.

This is my favorite season of a Skam remake so far.

There have been some really good S1 remakes. But the thing is, I didn’t need a good S1 remake, necessarily. Because I already think Eva’s season is great as it is. It’s my second favorite after S3. So the great Eva remake seasons are certainly welcome, but I didn’t have this desire for a remake to come along and fix what I didn’t like about her season.

But I did have that need for a good S2 remake. Me and Skam S2 don’t quite get along. There are multiple problems I have, mostly revolving around William’s character. I felt like his character never really evolved to the point where I could root for him and Noora, I never felt like he actually regretted most of his bad behavior, and I still felt like I didn’t know who this person was by the end of this season. Who was William other than a sad backstory and a collection of bad boy tropes? We knew nothing about his hobbies or interests. Then there was the dynamic between him and Noora, which had some extremely troubling parts, and which diluted the impact of the sexual assault storyline - William’s behavior was manipulative and didn’t respect Noora’s agency, and his treatment of Noora after she tells him she was raped - shutting her out for days when she begs for him to speak to her - was so appalling that I could never ever forgive him. Additionally, there were issues with the pacing, with certain plot points feeling more out of a CW show than fitting Skam’s realism. So I really, really wanted at least one of the remakes to fix the big problems with S2.

Is Druck S2 perfect? No, not like I’d say Skam S3 is perfect. Druck didn’t fix all the problems I had with William, and Alexander still had some things that were never addressed to my satisfaction (mostly Kiki-related, or the lesbian comments). They could have done a better job with Mia’s bisexuality. I think the sexual assault storyline was a little rushed, and they should’ve gotten Mia and Alex their happy ending prior to the very last clip - it would’ve been satisfying with some space to see them as a couple at the end, and the transition to Hanna and Jonas drama mid-week would’ve been better if Mia and Alex were more or less wrapped up. However, this still was a big success as a season for me.

What’s especially remarkable is that Mia was a weaker part of S1 for me - not to a huge degree, just that in the beginning I wasn’t quite sold on her. And Alexander was my least favorite William of the first four remakes that aired (Druck, France, Italia, and Austin). There just didn’t seem to be much charm to him. But I grew to love Mia - she has elements of Noora while still feeling like her own character, someone who had clear flaws and made big mistakes, but was still someone I rooted for the entire time. Alexander? ... He won me over. I never thought that he would be the William to do so, lol. Again, he still has some big flaws that weren’t really addressed as much as I wanted, but they improved so much on William. Alexander has a personality, he has clear hobbies and interests, he has a sense of humor. His sad backstory affected him in tangible ways on screen, not just as an excuse for his distant personality. I have to give the actors a lot of credit because they were a huge part of what worked about this season.

And I like Winterberg. Dare I say it, I ship Winterberg. Who knew? They’re charming on screen together, I get why they like each other other than physical attraction, they had a lot of scenes where they were just hanging out and bonding that gave you a sense of who they were as a couple. And even with the things that bugged me, I did feel like I wanted them together at the end - I felt like they did bring out some very positive aspects of each other, they understood each other, and that their relationship would continue to improve as time went on.

I love that they mixed the Yakuza fight and Niko plots together, which made the season feel more streamlined and tight. I loved that the talk between Amira and Mia about Alexander fixed a lot of what bothered me about the original scene. I loved the development of Mia and Kiki’s relationship. And there were also just a lot of small things I loved, character moments, humorous beats. I loved the casual talk about therapy. I loved that the Druck crew obviously listened to feedback from the first season. I loved that they stepped up their social media game. I’m just really impressed with this season.

I am not German so feel free to clarify or correct me on cultural stuff and translations.

If you got this far, thank you for reading!

#druck translations #druck

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itspileofgoodthings · 6 years ago

Text

theofficestan:

Everything you write is so candid, insightful and profound...you keep surpassing even my loftiest expectations! And now I NEED to know more about why you dislike Stefan/Elena, though you can message me privately if you prefer :)

ahh thank you! I’ll write it here.

Here’s the super short reason.

“I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.” Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

This quote doesn’t apply to Stefan/Elena.

The long reason under the cut.

1. There is no build-up. like. At all. Stefan and Elena meet and I am supposed to believe that- WITHIN SECONDS- they like each other enough to start dating immediately. And it’s not framed as “hey he’s cute and I’m depressed and this will be a good distraction”. It’s framed as “there’s something about him.....” but HOW. How can you POSSIBLY know that within one meeting??? Sure, he’s cute but as I have said before EVERYONE IN THIS SCHOOL IS CUTE. That’s not a good enough reason! We know why he liked her (more on this later) but there is no reason for her to like him. And, okay. So I believe in love at first sight. I really do. It’s controversial but I do. But I don’t believe in relationship at first sight. Because- okay this will sound strange and I can’t fully explain it well either so you’re just going to have to trust me on it- even though I BELIEVE in it I don’t actually think that most of the time you recognize it as love at first sight? And even if you DO, you can’t just jump right into a relationship! You WOULDN’T. You have to give the feeling a little room to grow. And that’s because by love at first sight I don’t mean something fully formed or a full rose. I mean an instinct, a seed, a knowledge- fully love, fully real- but in a fragile, underdeveloped form, something that takes root in your heart before you even see it there. Stefan and Elena didn’t need to wait forever- they could have started dating pretty soon. But they NEEDED AT LEAST one or two moments to let the feeling bloom- to let there be a little wondering, a little questioning. And it just doesn’t happen.

This is strike one to me. I disliked them before I knew them because I never got to know them individually or as a couple before they were a couple.

Which leads me perfectly into strike two.

2. They don’t really show us any development in their feelings for each other. I’ve talked before about how the most real thing about Stefan and Elena is a certain friendship and regard that springs up between them and that we see especially in season 2 but I’m talking about romantic development here. And there is none. Elena lITERALLY says “we stayed up all night and talked and it was epic” and......this truly boggles my mind...they !!! do !!!! not!!!! show you!!!!! ONE SECOND!!!!!!! of this epic conversation!!!!!! I was flabbergasted at the appalling WASTE of this line. This is literally telling me to ship it instead of showing me. It’s almost worse because it’s ALMOST SHOWING ME and then !!!!! Because it’s indicating that this HAPPENED and then it is calculatedly refusing to show me anything that would actually make me ship this. (I love conversations, I love long conversations. I want all of them and they didn’t give me any.)

3. Stefan is a lying, lying, lying LIAR and, while it’s understandable, (I guess), their entire relationship is bUILT ON A LIE. It keeps having to be broken open by Elena, never Stefan. He lies to her about being a vampire; he lies to her about why he’s in Mystic Falls; he lies to her about, essentially, why he likes her. She has to figure out he’s a vampire- has to show up on his doorstep DEMAND it out of him. She has to find the picture of Katherine before he tells her that, yeah, my evil vampire ex looks exactly like you, yes I’ve been watching you for months before you knew I existed. In both cases Elena makes the discovery, in both cases Stefan doesn’t apologize so much as justify and it’s left as that. That’s a problem to me.

4. This is more of a personal preference/opinion that I have, but they’re not temperamentally suited to each other. AT ALL. It’s not just that there’s no spark or chemistry because there is some. They’re both beautiful and charming- it’d be impossible for there to be none- but it doesn’t grow or change or deepen- it fizzles out so quickly or turns kind of bland because they are too alike temperamentally. They’re both serious, they’re both kind of brooding, they’re both sincere. Elena is the pure version of this while Stefan’s seriousness and sincerity is rooted in age-old, unaddressed, festering problems but either way it’s the wrong formula for a romantic relationship. He feels like her older brother, he really does. They need to be with people who make them laugh and challenge them and they don’t really do either. They laugh together but it’s not with the surprise and wonder of being struck by someone who’s meeting you from a totally unexpected place. Stefan and Elena are not unexpected- it doesn’t take either of them by beautiful surprise. They are not in awe of each other. When you’re in love, you should be a little bit in awe.

At their best they have a beautiful fondness. There are some moments between them that are very soft and right and real because, maybe this is surprising considering my saltiness, I do think they come to love each other. The moment when Stefan brings Elena and Bonnie to Caroline’s house after she was tortured by werewolves etc. and he kind of steps away from the group and Elena says “I love you” and he mouths “I love you too” is? very sweet. But I don’t think that it’s a sweetness that is exclusive to a romantic relationship and I think it’s a sweetness that makes more sense when they’re not together.

5. Considering this similarity in personalities and considering Stefan’s aforementioned lying liar antics, there is something dark, dangerous, and even potentially toxic in their relationship. Stefan gets mad at her when she doesn’t do what he wants, when she shows compassion and it’s this sudden, scary lashing out that throws Elena off. His behavior is tinged with something controlling and manipulative- lecturing about how and when she’s supposed to feel compassion for Damon, telling her that she shouldn’t feel freaked out that katherine looks exactly like her because stefan says that he loves her for different reasons so she should just believe him etc. I say tinged because it’s not a fully consistent pattern with him- sometimes he’s just really lovely and sweet- and Elena remains almost totally untouched by the damage that would cause (in a way she wouldn’t have in real life) BECAUSE, and here’s the worst part, he doesn’t know he’s this way and neither does the show. And here we get to the whole root of the problem.

6. I wouldn’t really have a problem with any of this- the lack of development, what I consider the lack of chemistry, even the lies that the relationship is built on- if the show acknowledged any of them and if the show didn’t expect me to ship it- as in truly buy that this was as realistic and good an option as delena and apparently even buy that it was a better option. (Rose saying that “Stefan will always be good for her” really Rose? We sure about that) I wish they’d had Stefan sincerely apologize, framed the relationship as what it was, rushed, built on shaky foundations and then done whatever they wanted! I could have watched them try to rebuild it, have Stefan and Elena give this another sincere and better go. I would have still shipped delena but then it would have been a truly balanced love triangle at least.

Instead, the show didn’t expect me just to ship it, they wanted me to romanticize it- they DO romanticize it. In Stefan’s own mind and in the mind of the show, there is nothing wrong with how he treats Elena. He is the golden boy, the noble loving one who has to step down to let Elena indulge her “unhealthy” “obsession” with his dangerous, wicked brother. Elena tells Stefan “you never hurt me, I was never afraid of you, you were the perfect boyfriend” when that is a blatant lie and one that the show uses to drag out the love triangle drama. They bury the problems, they sweep stuff under the carpet, they refuse to ask the difficult and serious questions they should have. They retroactively try to make Stefan the perfect boyfriend when I firmly believe not just that he wasn’t but that his whole relationship with Elena has SO MUCH MORE to do with his relationship with Katherine and with his brother than it does with her. It never unpacks that, deconstructs it, deals with it. It just. romanticizes. And that’s what really bugs me.

Damon and Elena aren’t perfect- but the show always acknowledges that (and sometimes, in their mistaken pursuit of a love triangle that drags on and on and on over-emphasizes that). Nothing gets swept under the rug, everything is questioned, Damon questions himself, and they begin and continue the relationship with a clear understanding of who the other is. They talk about their problems, talk about their future, talk to each other and respect each other as equals in ways that Stefan and Elena usually did not. And I personally find it hilarious the way the show tries to spin the narrative one way when it’s clear that, if one of these relationships is “unhealthy”, it’s not Damon and Elena.

#tvd #anti stelena #just in case #I'm sorry this took so long!#at this point i've said most of it before but it's all my salt in one place #also................#we're really glad we have anon off for this #YAY

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