#not everything relates to it or is a callback!

[socialc1imb]

Chonny Jash fandom stop relating the meaning of every song and lyric to cccc challenge (HARD MODE)

[selkienight60]

Batman/Superman: World's Finest #27 (2022)

Absolutely obsessed when comics do this lol

(B:TAS callback for my newer DC fan friends!)

[teambyler]

"Leader Mike" and "Protector Mike" have always been triggered by WILL

Remember Will's van speech to Mike? How Mike makes WILL feel like he's not a mistake? That he's better for being different?

Will's not the only one feeling insecure who needs validation here. Mike feels insecure about being "some random nerd." In his own way, Will had to remind Mike that HE is better for being different, that he's "the heart" of the party.

Will was reminding Mike (and us!) of the Mike we knew earlier in the show. Many people loved "Leader Mike" in the first 2 seasons.

Who is Leader Mike? Somewhat aggressive, somewhat manic, thinking quickly, giving orders!

Leader Mike (and the closely-related phenomenon of Protector Mike) are ALWAYS triggered by Will.

Season 1 we observed an instance of Leader Mike determined to FIND WILL:

Even his decision to include El in the group was pragmatic: to find Will.

From the start of Season 2 we see Protector Mike:

Then, when Will confides in him that he recognizes Dart as what he might have coughed up at the end of the 1st season, Mike goes BALLISTIC and goes into full-on LEADER MIKE mode:

He trusts Will completely, doesn't want anything to happen to him, and is willing to get rid of Dustin's new friend for Will's (and everyone's) safety.

People don't think of Mike being heroic in Season 3, but he actually does shift into Leader Mike when, again, WILL is the trigger. When Will senses that the Mind Flayer is back, Mike assembles the party together. In a flash of inspiration, he comes up with the Sauna Test:

In Season 4, we don't see Leader Mike: not only because he's focused on El, but also because Will isn't in danger!

In Season 5, Finn Wolfhard says we'll see "Leader Mike" again:

Nor surprising, since the end of Season 4 had this scene...

... which was a callback to this Season 2 scene...

... a DELIBERATE choice to signal the return of Leader Mike in the final season. (And again, both prompted by Will.)

We all know what this means: since Will is not safe, Leader Mike returns. Mike will do everything he can to save him.

Again. =D

And if you all thought Mike seemed to have it bad for Will in s4, when Will was NOT in danger, that will pale to the Mike we'll see in s5.

Mike AND Will are both "random nerds," "losers," and looked down on. But with each other they don't feel that way. Will feels normal and valued when Mike is around. Mike is the BEST version of himself -- the leader, the protector, the emotionally-sensitive Mike, the apology-giving Mike -- whenever Will needs him.

Most people, when asked to describe Mike in the early seasons, will call him "the Leader." HEART isn't necessarily the first word that comes to mind. But it is for WILL. Because that's the Mike WILL SEES, because that's who Mike is when HE'S WITH WILL.

Yes, MIKE is the heart of the party. But WILL brings it out of him.

-teambyler

[the-suggested-names-suck]

Just finished it, and it was great!

(would've appreciated if I knew about the pronunciation guide in the back before I finished reading though--

I'll have you know, you've posted about the goblin emperor often enough and with enough fervor that I went and checked it out from the library yesterday.

Just thought you'd enjoy knowing that XD

HUZZAH I HAVE SUCCEEDED IN MY ACCIDENTAL GOAL that brings me great delight. I really hope you like it!!

[caldella]

SINSMAS SPOILERS AHEAD

Fan theory time!

This part of this episode had me SCREAMING because I hope they're hinting at a headcanon/theory I've had for a long time!

The way this scene was such a DIRECT callback to S1E1 Muder Family, down to looking through a window and one of them being hesitant to go through with the job because there's a happy family?

In Murder Family it was the same situation (murdering someone responsible for a marriage falling apart), but Blitzø didn't think anything of it even though he had done the same with Stolas. Blitzø and Stolas' situationship vs. Stella could've well been a Martha and Mrs. Mayberry situation, if you remove the later knowledge he and the viewers didn't have at first. Mrs. Mayberry as a client could have very well been a Stella if we didn't know the context later in the episode said otherwise. Mrs. Mayberry was more angry that the public viewed Martha as a hero for surviving being shot than anything else.

And the entire Sinsmas mission making Blitzø hesitant, because now he's realizing that he relates to his target? Like, suddenly he's examining that his revenge murder stuff isn't always the best solution, and this might be hurting someone who has been through shit and should be happy? That he could be killing a Stolas or a Blitzø? That he could be ruining a family of kids like Loona and Via who don't deserve it?

That maybe like he's been doing with his personal life, he should be asking some more questions about the impact of the jobs he's taking on, too? Add in the way Blitzø insists constantly that he's an assassin, not a bodyguard, but he is super protective of his loved ones and has proven to be really, really good at saving people...

Incoming IMP revolution theories might mess this up, but I am going to be SO, SO HAPPY if the eventual end-of-show route for IMP is that they transfer from murder to being bodyguards for hire. Like IMP is now Imminent Murder Prevention or something. Blitz is getting over his mentality that he can only make people's lives worse, and what better symbolism for that than his entire company eventually being devoted to protecting/saving people instead of destroying them?

They still get to fight/shoot/kill if needed, but to help instead of harm. The absolute symbolism. The way that would probably be really good for Blitzø's mental health once he makes that connection because he loves helping people he likes or thinks need it. Moxxie might like it, too. Just everything about this possibility.

I would love it SO MUCH.

[l-in-the-light]

Trafalgar Law on touching and being touched

It won't be a perverted post despite the title lol. But I won't stop your imagination, be free!

There's this funny theme going on with Law and Luffy in particular that picked my interest.

Luffy touched him first.

And he later returned the gesture, much more awkwardly.

Again, Luffy grabbed him angrily first.

Law made sure to return the gesture. (btw he also does it with Zoro, who was the first one to wrap an arm around him at post-Dressrosa feast. In Wano Law has no problem grabbing Zoro and shouts at him angrily. Again, it was Zoro who initiated the touch first).

Law grabbing Luffy to teleport them makes Luffy react in a curious way, you wanna know why?

Because it totally feels like this moment. Both Law and Ace, right after getting uncuffed, grabbed Luffy in same way to get him to a safer place. Ace-Law parallel in relation to Luffy kills me. The whole Dressrosa arc's plotline between Luffy and Law is just Marineford Went Well This Time. Ngl I kinda hated Oda at first for that. Now i dig it.

He didn't seem to like that. Luffy says "Let's all get along well!", but Law thinks alliances don't have to "get along".

Mistranslation here. What Law says here, being so surprised, is "nakayoshi ka?!" which means "you two get along?!" or "you two are buddy-buddies?!". It's a callback to Luffy declaring that Law and Strawhats crew should get along (he uses same word then, nakayoku-get along), Law learns here that Luffy's crew indeed "gets along well". You can interpret it whatever way you wish, but I will use it this time to put this scene into context:

The same gesture Luffy did to him before, but Law didn't return it to Luffy - that's because they're not crewmates. But he takes the lesson to heart and "gets along" with his own crew. Omg I can't believe i'm writing it, I make Law sound like this completely awkward adult who doesn't know how to be friends with people.

But bear with me, the shit is only starting. If you don't want to have feels I reccommend you just laugh at it and stop reading here. I digged up a feels landmine by accident. In-depth study starts below!

It's also a possible callback to the "reassurance" Law got from Cora-san. "I'm counting on you to escape" and Law did. He counts for his crew to steer the submarine well in similar manner.

Law's family didn't seem very touchy-feely, so please keep that in mind as well. He's got limited experience with touches and the few touches he did get familiar with were either taken away from him or brutalized.

Law getting patted on the head lovingly by his parent.

Next time this loving gesture happens, he gets thrown from like two-floor building into a pile of garbage.

And then he gets lied to that everything will be fine. We all know it wasn't.

Do you still wonder why he hates being touched on the head?

The sister touches his face gently while showing child Law support and compassion, reminding him not to despair, someone kind will help him.

Corazon doing the same gentle touch to the face while crying for him, thinking of all the pain Law had to experience. Indeed, the world sent Law someone kind. And Law lost him and blames himself for that.

Law holding Lammy's hand while lying to her that it will be alright. He never does that gesture again to anyone.

The sister holding Law's hand.

"Don't come closer! Don't touch us! We will get infected!" even doing the barrier gesture (I guess that's why Law doesn't get along with Bartolomeo). I used only few examples, there is much more, I just couldn't bear posting them all. Anyway, Law's got the message, his touch is unwanted. The body and mind remembers this.

Similar shit said at the auction in Sabaody about Fishmen, we don't see Law's reaction to that, but we can guess already that it was for sure triggering. Those people talking are sitting not that far away from him.

Ever wondered why Law throws people when teleporting? Besides the fact he avoids making contact with anyone unless they initiate it first, because that trauma is still strong in him ("Stay away! Don't come closer!"), there is one other possible reason:

Wonder no more! He does it to people because that's how people treated him as well, even people who apparently loved him.

Now that I have ruined the "Law is just an awkward unsocial nerd" joke for you, let me offer something to warm your heart a bit in exchange:

Corazon made sure to touch Law a lot and hold him in his arms, despite being often clumsy about it. I think he understood Law's trauma about being touched and his fear to touch or approach anyone, and tried to help him overcome it.

Being hugged and trying to return the gesture. Corazon's efforts did bring some results! But it only works for very few people, Law is still wary of people he doesn't know well. He expects to be unwanted and acts uneccessarily cold, distant and unapproachable because of that. But if you scroll back to the beginning of this post, you can see that he is trying his best to overcome it as well, one step at a time. Some things just can't be rushed.

And hey, at least he seems to be actually relaxed and almost like he *enjoys* being carried around. You think it makes him look uncool? Definitely. But suddenly it feels like Something Important, kinda intimate in a way and not just a silly comedy moment. It's a sign Law relies on people when he lets them carry him and that's why he doesn't protest.

Sanji is like "Why are you relaxing like that?! Get off!!" Finally, it makes sense why Law makes such a sour face here. Sanji should be grateful for the rare privileage after all! Anyway, this is anime-only extension, in manga Sanji actually doesn't tell Traffy to get off and Law chooses to scramble by himself, which doesn't taint the fragile trust those two just shared.

For those who made it to the end of this post, have I ruined Law's comedy moments for you forever? Because I sure just did that for myself.

I could also add one more cute thing from One Piece World Seeker Law's dlc, but I will let those interested to discover it by themselves!

I'm also amazed by the consistency of this theme. Both manga and anime never forget that touch is seemingly a big deal for Law.

[sophianightdreamer]

Things that happened in the Official Transformers RPG's lore.

So, I've got my hands on all three rulebooks of the official TF RPG. And also the G. I. Joe RPG, but that's irrelevant right now. My batch did not include the crossover rulebook, sadly.

Therefore, notes on the lore and other details in the "basic" canon, because TFWiki did not go into the details, that grew into this list of odd events mentioned.

First thing first, the general continuity is very close to Cyberverse or G1 Fanon, having the basic outline of G1 cartoon, but with details and chunks of backstory pulled from elsewhere - Optimus is a former archivist/data clerk, Bumblebee is a sportscar, et cetera.

To note, there's a somewhat short introductory "who-is-who" list and basic character sheets with profiles both.

Well, I've already got my whiplash, so it's your turn now.

There's something very funky going on with Devastator. Prowl's introduction blurb directly states that something Combiner Wars-esque/Prowlstator has happened, and reads as implying that Autobots hijacked Devastator. By all accounts, Scrapper is alive, making it a possible genuine canonical instance of Prowlastator with Scrapper alive, but the Constructions as whole are placed with the Decepticons. But, Tergamax mentions that among people that were at any moment replacement parts of Devastator there were five Autobots, Prowl included. What happened?

The "who is who" listing for Autobots includes declarations of jobs/roles/traits. Some of these are notable: 1) Ironhide is a chemist 2) Swerve is in Public Relations 3) Rung is Psy-Ops 4) Perceptor is specifically an engineer 5) Bumblebee is noted as "Hero of the People". Must be popular.

Speaking of roles, monochromatic SIC of the day is Jazz, who is also a strategist now.

All of the people in the introductory list are implied to be the Ark crew, and there are problems regarding space travel for Autobots right now. This means that Anode, Lug, those two kids from IDW2, Elita's team and Glyph are on the crew.

Rattrap is a Decepticon.

Optimus Prime has a thick Iaconian accent in Cybertronian. It turns "Teletraan" into "Teletron".

Character sheets include a list of languages that character speaks. Some of these past the standart English+Cybertronian are completely random. Optimus Prime speaks Dutch. Korean is surprisingly popular. In what could be a nice callback, Slingshot has Arabic. The only two people who know the language of newly-introduced alien species of Catharsians are Ratchet and Wildrider. But the crown is taken by First Aid, who has both ASL and Quileute. Yes, the basically extint language of a small tribe warring legally with Stephanie Meyer.

Speaking of languages, both Megatron and Shockwave are noted passable polyglots, and both lack the Universal Translator perk Soundwave, Blaster and Perceptor have. But while Megatron has vague but limited "languages from across Decepticon territory", Shockwave has "all common languages", implying he knows at least a bit of almost everything manually.

Tracks is a triple changer, apparently.

Decepticons' thing is mass-producing sparkless drone clones of their own members.

There's a general threat level system with lists included, where 0 is a random human civilian, 24 is Optimus and Megatron, and 25 is Omega Supreme and Scorponok. Chosen numbers for some characters are thought-provoking. Jazz is 14. Ratchet is 15. First Aid is 9. Wildrider is 6. Ironhide and Starscream are tied with 17. Lord Zarak by himself is 10.

Transformers The Movie sort-of happened, with no apparent notable casualties except for Megatron, who got Galvatroned, but there is a chance that Cyclonus, while a minion of Unicron, predates those events. He is also in an odd position of formally being a part of Decepticons and not the followers of Unicron, who are technically a separate faction.

Scorponok and Deathsaurus are member of Decepticon High Command/Conclave along with Shockwave and Soundwave. Nobody trusts Starscream, so he is not there, but he has the air force.

Mindwipe is, once again, a sorcerer.

Predacons, the combiner team, somehow adopted a sharkticon.

The evil plan du jour of, apparently, pre-Unicron era is converting Earth into the second Cybertron via several colony sites.

[twinkkisserrr]

One thing I love about Armored Core is that it kinda consistently has you massacre characters who should be the protagonist. Because no matter how special you are, some rookie be it through sheer luck or through hellish undertakings one after the other, is gonna wind up beating you.

A lot of games have special people… That you inevitably kill, as some random ass mercenary. Sometimes you too are special, Masters of the Arena had their family killed by Nine Ball, damn if that ain’t an origin story, IDK what else is… Oh wait, now who you played as is the final boss in the sequel… And you just killed him…

I’m not going to pretend I know everything of the series. So I’ll go over the last 2 ish gens for the cases I know well by heart:

- Rusty (AC6): An experienced AC pilot with his own theme song, iconic mech and has a rich story with many other characters in the verse and is himself a turncoat agent waiting for the right moment to turn on Arquebus and help free Rubicon. In the Fires of Raven route, he goes against you, a new mech, his wolf emblem unmuzzled with its fangs bared and he’s coming at you with everything he has, even getting a second wind when all his repair kits are exhausted. You still kill him in the end, even when you play the role as an antagonistic extremist.

- Magnolia Curtis (ACVD): Descendent of Fran Curtis (AC5’s main operator) following the legend of the Dark Raven (AC5’s player character) and quite possibly their descendent too. Doubly whammied, first she’s crippled and loses the ability to fight after being defeated by Reaper Squad Leader, J, after many years of being undefeated. Then, turned into a digital consciousness, literally sacrificing her soul so she can fight again, a very familiar second wind occurring even with her AC’s arm blasted off and in critical condition… You still defeat her.

- J (ACVD): A soldier bred for war, very likely from genetic material from either Joshua O’Brien or Anatolia’s Mercenary (AC4’s player character), he’s even given an all powerful NEXT in the final battle where he (very edgily) states he is made solely for the purpose of warfare. And yet he falls to a lone mercenary.

- RD (AC5): Not much explicit to talk about here other than theoryboarding, RD is implied to have some degree of Lynx pilot in him as there’s suggestions his paranoia is related to AMS capability and furthermore his last name a callback to the “Dominant Theory” in Last Raven, even the AI Chief thinks he has genius talent and potential. He’s the classic case of cowardly young man who has a lot more strength than he realizes… But in the end, in the height of his ego and embracing of his special nature, the player’s character fells him one on one.

All these special characters with blessed genes, great potential or borderline main protagonist built stories are gunned down by an up and coming merc for whatever motives your player character has, your un special player character who often starts the game in a mass produced mech composed of scraps that claws there way to victory.

Unfortunately, being special does not equate to being invincible.

[multifandumbmeg]

Can we take a moment to appreciate how well-written Thunderbolts* was?

First of all, having the characters all meet in the burn-bag facility with the old classic "Locked Room" scenario?? Genius. It's the only way a messy group of people like this would work together, but it also provides the opportunity for them all to talk, which shows us who they all are- their character synopsis if you're unfamiliar (like I was with Ghost for example), their personalities, and their initial relationships to each other. I feel like no other Marvel movie that I can remember has the characters openly acknowledge being aware of each other prior to meeting (except maybe Black Panther to Cap in Civil War, I think?). But it makes perfect sense that they all (except Bob, who was a normie, drug addict not invested in news, and a secluded lab rat for who knows how long) would have heard of each other. Which also means they're coming in with pre-conceived notions about each other and their line of work. Except. Bob. Which means he only picks up on what other people do, and they say about each other. This sets him to get a particularly bad picture of Walker and a particularly positive one of Yelena. The first sin or poor personality trait of hers he's introduced to is her shame room, but obviously he can see her pain and guilt (maybe even feel it) which only makes their bond stronger because he relates.

When I first saw the movie, I thought the start was a bit slow and maybe it should have just begun with the burn-bag infiltration, but after thinking about it I realized why that whole Yelena mission is in there. Not just to show her reckless depression (they could have done that countless ways, if less grandiose than jumping off the world's tallest building) or give her that opening monologue. Not even to blow up the lab. It was all to foreshadow Bob. The lab, the locked back room full of secrets, and of course the guinea pig- I didn't really get this at first since we never see it again. But then I realized the whole reason it's there is god-tier foreshadowing of what Yelena's purpose in this entire film is- to rescue Bob. They had to show the lab at the beginning of the movie because it's not only the location of the final showdown, which only would have made sense to Bob otherwise, but to foreshadow the true villain of the whole affair. Not Bob, trauma.

And the parallels?? I'm just now catching up seeing all the incredible posts people are putting together of the callbacks and parallels to the original avengers and character backstories. Like Bucky showing up to join/save the group by rocking up and shooting the bomb gun which was exactly how he was first introduced as the Winter Soldier. Walker saying "On your left" like he's still trying and failing to be Cap after everything. People have made very convincing arguments about hundreds of tiny allusions tying each Thunderbolt to an original Avenger, as if specifically taking up the mantle of their position in the group.

Obviously I don't have to get into the messaging. Fucking heart-wrenching, beautifully done, and they let the metaphors speak for themselves instead of screaming the answer at the audience like we're a bunch of drooling morons, which damn-near impossible to find in non-indie media these days. The mental illness and general trauma representation in this movie were so damn good. I loved that everyone's sort of got their own brand or archetype of it- just like everyone in the real world reacts differently to trauma. Recklessness, depression, rage, self-isolation and emotional detachment, burying yourself in the glory days, control issues (I'm looking at you Valentina) self-destruction. The gang's all here.

I just wanted to get that out. Respect for the artistry. Respect for them letting us have artistry again for once.

[mexicanegbert]

post about the upd8 that is not gonna make sense -> thinking about john and dave coming to the same conclusion through vastly different routes (a common theme!!!). they need to leave the narrative and attend to their greater purpose, even if it means leaving everything behind.

likeeee dave left everything behind to escape the feeling that john has been pointing out for ages now. i think they're both stupid about it in their own ways (obviously!) but it's crazy how mirrored they end up being with this feeling. they're offered the choice for freedom of their "normal" narrative at the cost of everything, and they both aren't hesitating to answer.

just look at both of them witnessing the changes that happened in this busted ass adult timeline! they are both at their lowest here- dave's discarded dead body left with his abandoned wife (that his ex-bf didn't even know about!) and john with his realization that his friends and family all have drastically different ideas of what the game Meant. the choice to Literally reflect the conflict in their eyes is nuts. i'm goign crazy omfmg

anyway there's no real thesis here but here's some random and tangentially related thoughts. i've been pondering the truth that jegbert and dave NEED to be in the same timeline + in service to the narrative for the story to be stabilized for eons now, and this sort of gets into that a little. davesprite established this when he came back to keep john alive and stop terezi's games, or when john goes on the scarfquest and has to keep vriska alive. i wonder if this is a subversive callback to that of sorts......... something something dave is a tool again (like terezi) and egbert once again the catalyst for major narrative change (like VRISKA). WHATEVER!

[celestial-ninjas]

guys there's more to the "lost my sister" line than Nya becoming the ocean, I feel there's also callbacks to the first ever time he 'lost' his sister, to the Skulkin wayyy back in the pilots. Something that feels like a personal failing to him, surely. and the event that ultimately started his journey to where he is today.

obviously the water themes and everything can relate back to Nya becoming the ocean, but recalling her kidnapping at the start of the series adds whole other layers of devastation to some of the visual and verbal themes

[ladybugkisses]

this is so cute and silly oh my god, 😭 💕💙💕 i love Ari asking for Rocky's opinion on what to wear by itself bUT THEN GDSKGSDS WHOOPS!! !

i've been (for the most part) keeping track of Ari's outfits and i've come to the conclusion she's the type who has a million dresses and shoes and hats to choose from and will still say "I HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR 😭"

[ascesabo]

sometimes i want to reach through the screen and shake sabo by the shoulders because. god. there's just so much going on with him.

he's first introduced through the veil of luffy's memories- here he's just another feral jungle kid, sticking it out with ace and luffy, the 'nicer' brother in young luffy's eyes. and then boom. you find out he's a runaway noble trying to escape his abusive, neglectful family- and this changes nothing, they still get to become sworn brothers, but just as quickly as this is resolved, his asshole of a dad takes the three of them hostage. and what does sabo do? he gives up the little sliver of freedom he'd fought for, is willing to become miserable and lonely again if it means ace and luffy are spared. and then he comes home to find that in his absence, his parents have already found a replacement! great!

and he doesn't even get to address how fucked up that is, because stelly runs his mouth and now sabo's too busy trying to figure out how to stop his brothers and their home from getting burnt to the ground. he never gets to give them a proper goodbye- he exhausts himself trying to reach them, but he can't because. you know. he's ten. so where does this leave sabo? ten years old, with nowhere to go- he sets out to sea to try and start over, and for the crime of wanting to escape a terrible life, he's punished with an explosion to the face. he loses his memories, his brothers lose him- and so the cycle continues.

then the army saves him, takes him in; he's essentially a child soldier, with how prodigious of a fighter he is from the get-go. but hey, he thinks he's finally found his footing, even if his past's a blur to him- then it all comes flooding back. in the worst way possible. he sees his brother's corpse and he remembers, but it doesn't matter, does it? he's too late, ace is gone, and sabo's lost ten years of a life he could have shared with his brothers. we don't even know how (if, even) he recovers from this- except for a single passing statement from koala, asking him if he's 'had that dream again' because he'd been crying in his sleep. this is never brought up or addressed again. great!plus, we never do find out if getting blown up at the ripe old age of ten could have left any lasting fire-related trauma; and if it does, what does that mean for sabo, who's pretty much made of it, now?

both of these questions are answered at once- sabo treats the fire as if it's ace. it's ace's legacy he's carrying on, and it's ace he seeks freedom for. he copes by making sure ace lives on in his flames, and how can he ever hate the fire living in him if that fire is all he has left of the brother he never got to see again?

i just have to wonder about him, because he's got so many Issues that just. don't ever get addressed? every time we see him deal with his grief (episode of sabo, his own retelling of events in dressrosa) we never really discover anything about him. i wonder how it felt to finally remember the childhood that eluded him, just to find out he was an unwanted, replacable child. how he feels, living with the knowledge that he could have done something to save ace, that he'd failed to remember the two people he loved the most? i wonder just how terribly that guilt must weigh down on him- because where luffy's already begun to heal, sabo still sees ace in everything he does. his title of flame emperor is a direct callback to ace's final attack in his fight against blackbeard. he talks to his goddamn fire like his brother is still in front of him, which is sweet and heartbreaking and, considering his backlog of unaddressed trauma... incredibly unhealthy. i know these will probably be left unresolved for the sake of moving the story forward- but god, sabo, are you okay?

[wherevenusholdssomeofficespace]

Rapid fire season 5 thoughts:

Cloudy with a chance of Mom was good, like Summer Block Buster was a bit weirdly paced, but the payoff was good. Love seeing Buford Isabella friendship and once again showing that Candace is extremely physically capable out of sheer stubbornness when it comes to things she is obsessive over. OF COURSE she could move the big slow heavy thing at a pace that kept up with her brothers decently well all things considered. (Candace once again proving that through Dry another day as well).

I was so stressed through license to bust bc that girl was NOT obeying the law and I needed that girl to pass. But the end of the where the driving tester let her pass because he related/valued confidence and focus makes it an episode i'll probably enjoy on rewatch.

I watched this season with some of my siblings, and I'd seen the storyboards for Candace Suit so I warned them this was going to be horrifying. And it was. I loved and Hated this episode in equal measure. It was definitely the one that got us laughing so hard we had to pause the episode the most. Screenshots of this episode are now a phone wallpaper.

Agent Teen for Teen was good. As was Stacy petsitting Perry. Everything I could have wanted… which is good but since the fandom was hanging on that plot thread for the past 10 years… it also means that there wasn't really anything this episode could do to make it something i haven't seen before by the fandom. The Stacy knows reveal to Carl and Monogram WAS unexpected though.

Tropey McTropeface

Seeing Candace happily wash Perry was super cute… but also why did she get that chore?? Like Phineas and Ferb wouldn't have jumped at the opportunity. Anyway, Candace growth.

Happy to see the talking Zebra. (Still HC that Candace subconsciously knows Perry's secret with all the plot development)

The therapist episode was NOT what I was expecting. That poor man. Though Linda being so distracted was… odd. She's never paying attention to what Candace wants her to sure but it seemed a bit dialed up in this episode.

the fact the couch from Cloudy with a chance of mom came back.

Bread Bowl Hottub is the new Canoe isn't it. (I loved the Canoe)

Baljeet getting to be violent is always great. Baljeet growing from generic nerd to nerd with aggressive tendencies is fantastic.

Say what you will about Meap Me in St. Louis but I appreciated finally meeting Meap's Significant Other and Candace's strong sense of justice being recognized for what it is and her getting to become an (honorary) officer. The main plot of Meap going to Candace for assistance/Candace having a notable position of authority in space is something I've headcanoned and a natural followup to the first Meap episode.

Complaints (non-comphrehensive):

Need more Jeremy. He's the other half of Candace's obsessiveness so I need more peak couple (could also use more Phinebella but whatever, Isabella calling Linda her future mother in law got me though).

Need more Baljeet. I know he can be weirder.

I have mixed feelings on Lord of the Fireside, fun but I want more of the girls ACTUAL personalities. I called immediately that they were out of character for some reason.

I mean, I don't think the show needed to be too samey… but I kinda wish there were a few more callback episodes…. like things that happened. I know it sounds boring but it can be someone's birthday again with a totally different plot. The midsummer festival again, or the summer solstice again. We can do different plots with the same dates. Make it actually FEEL like a new summer.

They need more space. Like going to space. Also more travel. The only example this episode was the cruise… but it might as well have still been in Danville for all the Danville characters present (it was nice to see pnf playing with OTHER kids though). What about the cabin in the woods? Or England? Or the Moon?

Phineas and Ferb is a show built on running gags and callbacks so the presence of them doesn't bother me… but it is kind of disappointing that the call backs are mostly of things that are memes.

I need more Candace and the Backyard gang.

Actually I need more of the Flynn-Fletcher's too.

Chip to the vet could have used more overlap in storylines… which is weird to say about a season that otherwise has had a lot of overlap in storylines… but PnF were right there. Are you telling me they didn't try sending Perry through the pet wash???

Carl was promoted to paid intern in the where's perry specials. Still literally unpaid of course, but still.

Could use more MML callbacks.

Sleepover episode such a disappointment tbh. The casual drop of Vanessa's awareness Perry, but Perry not even being at the house. Also they could have at least namedropped Jenny. Like. I want the kids to have fun together. I know Candace is suffering but she deserves to be happy sometimes. :(

St. Louis is not pronounced like that. Also, you can go into the Arch. There are windows at the top because there is a visitors deck. The visitors center is literally underground, under the arch. Lifting the treasure would also lift the visitors center. IN fairness... the portrayal of the Mt. Rushmore is also inaccurate. But like. St. Louis arch is a building you enter. It's kinda laughably bad. Though, the actual best part of St. Louis is the City museum imo. Phineas and Ferb would love that place.

[lastoneout]

The thing about Lower Decks is that it was in fact a love letter to Star Trek as a whole and it shows that in the variety of references and callbacks and tropes they used, but also, and this is crucial, it was a good show all on it's own.

Like yeah it is full of references that are clearly made out of a deep love of the source and not shallow mockery, but on top of that Lower Decks was just a good Star Trek show. It wasn't perfect, I have complaints for sure, but the characters are well written and diverse and funny, the plot is engaging and mysterious and fun, you want to see what the crew does next, you want to see the cast grow and change and improve, you care about the ship!!

You take the references OUT of Lower Decks and it STILL stands on it's own. Lower Decks, at it's best, was never about what Star Trek could do for it, but what new stuff it could bring to the table. Star Trek as a franchise is richer and more complex and beautiful because this show exists. Hell the image for an Orion on one of the wikis used to be a sexualized woman wearing almost nothing, and now it's Tendi, a character that doesn't get sexualized for an easy joke, who wears a full Starfleet uniform, who has friends and family and ambitions and quirks and everything!! That's incredible!!

I don't have the time or the energy to write a full essay on it, but when Lower Decks pulled away from direct references and cameos and reused set pieces and focused on it's own story, it's own characters, and their own unique place in Starfleet and the universe of Star Trek, is when it was at it's best. It doesn't need references to tell a good story, the characters don't have to be related to ones we've seen before or in a ship we recognize or going to planets we've seen a dozen times, they can do their own thing with the tools their medium allows for and it fucking worked so goddamn well!!

Lower Decks deserved so much better, and it should not be boiled down to a show that's just making silly references and nothing else, because it's also one of the most unique Star Trek shows we've ever seen and Star Trek NEEDS new, unique stuff, and I can only hope the possibilities Lower Decks has opened up for Star Trek as a whole get carried on to whatever comes next.

[pftones3482]

The Good

All right - I've had time to collect my thoughts on the new season. I'm going to split them into two posts: The Good and the Not So Good/Bad, just because I know some people don't want to focus on the negatives for shows.

If you want to read my "Not So Good/Bad" opinions, you can read this post.

But for the things I loved about this season, in no particular order, click the "Keep Reading!" Under a cut for spoilers, obviously (and featuring some screenshots)

The voice acting was impeccable. Every single person who came back for their role did an amazing job (but we knew that would be the case)

I was so SO happy they kept in their trend of putting things over the end credits - I was really worried they wouldn't continue that because it's not really a thing anymore, since people don't tend to watch end credit scenes on streaming platforms

Literally everything Stacy and Perry related. I expected "Agent T for Teen" would be my favorite episode, but it was so fun and silly and I'm so happy with how it ended up overall. I loved the Stacy lore drop, and I am SO BEYOND PLEASED that they made them friends. I genuinely think I would have hated this season if they hadn't made the Teal Duo besties

I really enjoyed the amount of Buford content?? It felt like he played a more prominent role in this season

Same thing as above but with Linda - I'm glad they didn't just give her the whole "I want to spend time with my family" spiel in the first episode and then ignore it. She's clearly trying to spend more time with her kids.

Finally acknowledging that Carl definitely has another job(s), and letting him lay into Monogram. I do think there's more to be said for that situation, but I'm glad we got something

The animation overall! There were some parts that felt a little off to me, but for the most part I enjoyed that they kept the character designs the same and stuck with the simple charm of the show

The Haberdasher. Full stop, I want him to come back. I love that he's a spoof on the Mad Hatter, his energy was fun

The episode "License to Bust" is now up there in one of the most solid episodes of all time. It hit all the right notes in a satisfying way. (Also also did anyone else notice the instructor smile after Candace told him to buckle up? It took me four tries to get a screen shot it was so fast lol)

(he's smiling I swear, go back and look at his face for the rest of the driving test)

Ferb food critic was COMICAL (and again with the spoofing of Disney characters, there was a lot of that in this season!)

"Apparently his mother didn't teach him........well, a lot of things. WHICH is why we all have a job!" - I laughed for a solid minute after that line

On that note: "And I thought you were crazy for putting tank treads on a Whack-a-Pest!"

The kids all supporting Candace this season was really cute (she literally didn't make the 'sand castle' but they still cheered for her lol)

"He has a hard out at noon" and then Perry going home and smiling contently while Candace gives him a bath, please they're so cute

Continuing the trend of lines I liked, "I forgot Agent W was missing" in regards to the agents getting de-wormed fucking KILLED me (and was a great callback to earlier in the season when Doof was like "Maybe he has worms!" in the vet episode)

Setting Candace up to be a lawyer in the future

Carl and Brittany's beef (I love Brittany I've only had her for 27 seconds but I want to keep her)

Every single scene with Lawrence, actually. Love that silly man

I genuinely really loved "The Aurora Perry-alis." I've seen some conflicting thoughts on it from folks, but I think it was a nice way to reintroduce Montnessa, it let them tell the audience "hey, we didn't forget about Stacy and Perry," and the animation was really pretty. It also felt like it could fit nicely into Season 3 or 4, which was kind of how I was judging the episodes individually.

My Overall Favs:

Agent T for Teen, The Aurora Perry-alis, and License to Bust

And finally, also in no order, some of my favorite screenshots I took (minus the ones with Stacy and Perry together bc I already posted those and Tumblr has it's limits lol)

Anyway, if you want to know my thoughts on anything specific, you're more than welcome to shoot me an ask!