#reaching out to a big audience was never the reason we did these shows

[monkeys-in-games]

Hi gang! Just thought I'd let yall monkeyheads know about my new YouTube (and Spotify) channel sadshows!

sadshows is a growing collection of comedy audio shows that are sorta what the kids call..."kino". which I'm just using to say they're weird niche internet oddities made with a dear friend.

now, I wouldn't promote this without the promise of monkeys. there is a show about monkeys. it has a monkey IN the show. it is called Monkey Business and commitment to the bit is the name of the game. saying anything more would be spoiling it. that show is currently our only complete one and its total runtime is under 2 hours. these episodes be SHORT.

so yeah, if you wanna take a chance on something weird, head on over!

[insomniac-101]

So something that I often don't see people discuss is the manner in which the 9th and the 10th doctor's seasons are so intrinsically connected that it is almost impossible to understand a lot of key character arcs if you choose to skip it upon rewatch. The reason why I say this is because the moment you reach season 2, 10 is essentially the product of the development 9 achieves at the end of his season. To skip him, would mean that you also miss context as to the reason why Rose is so important and in turn, not understand the reason why their bond in particular is such a big part of the plot during the 10th's era.

Now bare with me, because I'm about to go off a bit lmao.

The first season of nuwho not only serves as an introduction to many of the key characters we see later on, such as: the Doctor, Rose, Jackie, Jack, Mickey, Harriet jones, etc. but it also serves as an introduction for the concept of the series as a whole. Prior to this, doctor who as a franchise had a reputation of being a geeky sci-fi show with no real wide spread appeal. Remaining as a niche interest to many, up until the reboot returned and reintroduced the show to a newer audience.

This is important to note because this is one of the main reasons why we see such a huge emphasis placed on the companions' lives in the reboot. Because RTD meant to expand the world of Doctor who and its audience, and by doing so, he strived to try a multitude of new plots that were otherwise never explored previously. This is why the romantic plotline of his season is so crucial to the story itself because he means to explore a facet of humanity not previously seen with the Doctor as a character. RTD essentially built this plot line from scratch, as the only other attempt at exploring such an angle was received negatively (The 8th Doctor's movie). So there's a degree of leniency that I give his writing In particular because like I said prior, he had no prior reference for exploring humanity to the degree in which the new series does.

The ninth doctor, when we meet him, is essentially a recluse. He is in a state of stagnation, implied to have been alone for some time after the war and it gives off the impression that he's no longer accustomed to being around people. He's often direct, rudely so and very standoffish to anyone that isn't immediately measuring up to his standards. This isn't to say that he isn't charming in his own way. He's sarcastic and when he tries, he can actually be very good with people. But the war still weighs heavily on his conscious and so, he views the world through the eyes of a soldier. Prioritizing the act of surviving rather than slowing down and actually taking the time to live life.

I mean, the man essentially meets Rose while blowing up her workplace and if that isn't concerning on its own merit than I don't know what is lmao.

A scene that sticks out to me the most about him in particular is when he looks at himself in the mirror for the first time. He notes that he has big ears, and from the manner in which he says it the implication that he perhaps has not seen himself in a long time is not lost to us. This coupled with the knowledge that he had indeed been seen traveling prior to meeting Rose, gives the phrase a more dark connotation that makes sense for his character.

I like to think that this indicates that the guilt of what he did to stop the war weighs so heavily on him that he could never bring himself to face his reflection. Because truly, to have gone so long without seeing yourself, not even in the reflection of a window or other surface is not something that is easy to do. Rather, it is something you have to go out of your way to do. Also it's important to note that his appearance is in fact a reflection of that weariness he feels. With his body, being older outwardly (appearing 40ish ) and his features being very sharp and serious. Even his hair is pretty short, much like how a soldier would keep it as a means of not wasting any time on worrying on something so inconvenient. His preference for darker colors and his constant outfit is also very noticably practical, not at all decorative like his prior bodies. This is purposeful, because it is what sets him apart from prior versions of the character and an easy way to visually see his most prominent traits.

Now with that out of the way, now I can discuss how 9 changes and what his relationship to Rose is like, so that one can better understand why Rose is such an important part of the Doctor's character.

From the moment the two meet, you can see he harbors an immediate curiosity towards her. Here they are, trapped in an elevator being attacked by a group of living mannequins and yet, Rose is almost unaffected.

That isn't to say she isn't afraid, she is, but her fear doesn't stop her from asking questions and demanding explanations. She doesn't shy away from him, rather she confronts him head on and even shows a level of concern for other people while she is actively the one in danger. It is enough to prompt him to ask her name, but not enough to involve her. Preferring to instead keep his distance.

It is not until another chance meeting that he gradually lets her in, allowing her to humor him with her curiosity and we see once more that he is in fact very good at socializing, but only with certain people. The reason why I stress this is because he often outwardly puts this front of coldness towards those that don't interest him. Rose was able to look past this front, and seems to look past his rather cold attitude towards other humans. He often stresses how inept they are, going on tangents about how they're nothing more than apes but she ignores it and tries to get at the core of the issue. That's why they mesh so well, because she is able to separate the fluff he inserts into his answers and take it for what it is. That isn't to say she's a doormat, she just knows when to pick her battles.

"do you know like we were saying? About the world revolving. It's like you're a kid, the first time they tell you that the world is turning and you just can't quite believe it cause everything looks like it's standing still. I can feel it. The turn of the earth. The ground beneath our feet is spinning 1,000 miles an hour and the entire planet is hurtling round the sun at 67,00 miles an hour. And I can feel it, we're falling through space you and me. Clinging to the skin of this tiny little world, and if we let go.. that's who I am. Now forget me, Rose Tyler"

He is describing the manner in which he views the world. Unlike how a kid is unable to comprehend the vast truths of how the world functions and remains naive of it for a period of time, he is a man that was never given that chance to be unaware of how it functions to an infuriating degree. He sees the world for how it is, dark, unforgiving and so direct. Everything is calculated so precisely and he can't even begin to comprehend why anyone would see the good in it as it's just that, a planet.

But that's why he finds humans so interesting. There's a part of him that holds onto that hope that it is something more, that perhaps he is missing out on a purpose behind all the darkness. That's why he is running amongst them, to find a reason behind their way of thinking. To experience the world through the eyes of the hypothetical child, rather than the adult who breaks the illusion.

Not only that, but this conversation also let's us in on how touch-deprived he is.

For it is in a moment of vulnerability that he allows himself to reach out and touch Rose physically. Grabbing her hand for emphasis on how heavy this revelation burdens him. It's a cry for help in a sense, because he has reached the point where he has metaphorically "let go". Dropping her hand, to show that he is losing that last part of him that clings to that hope of finding something that will allow him to question his view of the world. He is miserable and lonely, because when you view the world through such a cynical lens it becomes all the more apparent that life is so lonely. If everything is doomed, then why go out of your way to care?

You see this in the way he remains unaffected by the reveal of Mickey's "death." Having grown so used to it, that he finds it off-putting to see that Rose is freaking out as a result. It happens everyday to people far more important so why give it any real weight if it's inevitable? Why ascribe a meaning to something that just is?

Remember when I mentioned it is implied that he was traveling on his own for a while? What places did he visit? The Titanic, the Kennedy assassination, the explosion of Karakota. These are all fixed points of time that are associated with absolute tragedies. But all the same, they're key points in life where the world remained cruel without reason. Thus fueling his very uncharitable view of the world and how it functions.

That's where Rose becomes key to his overall development. As a human, she inevitably views the world through the lens of that child. She doesn't know the ins and outs of the universe's processes, yet she continues living without ever really seeking to understand it better. It doesn't matter to her that the people around her aren't necessarily important in the grand scheme of things, they matter because they just do. She is capable of loving others and affording care to others simply because she wants to, not because she has to. She is confronted with alien threats the moment he walks into her life, and yet her view of the world and her existence doesn't really change. She does not harden rather, she curiously grows from it. Growing wiser and more aware rather than crippling under the discovery of another threat in the universe.

She is clinging to the understanding of the tiny little world she lives in, yet her hold doesn't relent. For she is not falling, to imply so would mean that he was right in his assertion that our existence is doomed. No, instead in the place of any real meaningful explanation about the world's existence is something so innately human: hope. An illogical thing to always maintain, yet she always seems to have it.

After all, it is such a confusing notion when you think about it. We have no reason to believe that things will improve, and that we'll be met with good outcomes. It's so metaphorical, not at all tethered to something practical like numbers and data and yet, even when the odds are against us, somehow we hope things will improve.

It's that aspect that he wishes he understood.

(i would love to dedicate a whole analysis on Rose in a separate post so for now, I will only focus on the Doctor and her role in his life)

This is why he takes her to the ends of the universe on their first trip. He's testing her, seeing if this will be enough to prompt a reaction out of her that fits his narrative. He also seeks companionship, to have someone understand what it's like to see your planet burn and to have yourself remain as the sole survivor. In a way, to justify the validity of his misery and guilt. She's affected of course. It's in that moment that she realizes, the scope of the universe and is faced with the undeniable truth that everything does end. It shakes her and you can see her sort of doubt her view of the world. No longer able to remain blissfully unaware of the big picture when it is quite literally in your face.

But something she has, and he lacks is a foundation. Rose still has her mother, someone to return to at the end of the day. She can be comforted by the people in her life while his inability to let anyone in, essentially stunts him.

When given the choice to spare Cassandra, he refuses. He lacks the capability of seeing past the evil, and assumes that there is no good in her. No second chances. An act that catches Rose off guard, who in spite of personally recieving the brunt of Cassandra's cruelty, she asks the Doctor to save her.

Eventually he takes her back to her time. He entrusts her with more information regarding the war and the death of his people. People pass them by, oblivious to his presence as he is wallowing in the sorrow of remembering. It's a metaphor, of sorts. While our two protagonists are brutally aware of the doom that awaits them in the future and they remain stuck in place reminiscing, the world around them continues moving on.

He is giving her every reason to run, to leave him behind and save the very last shreds of naivety she has.

But when he asks her if she wants to leave, to no longer accompany him on his adventures, she refuses. Because his confession puts it all into perspective.

He is hurting.

He desperately craves company: to have a hand to hold onto and keep him grounded as the world falls apart. Yet more than ever is she aware of her limitations; that she cannot undo what has been done to him.

And so, she does what she knows she can do to help ease the pain even if it is very miniscule. Tells him that he has her, and that his pain is one she can now share and understand. She offers him chips, not because it will magically make it all disappear but because it will distract him from the pain of remembering. It's also her favorite food, so no doubt she is trying to share that sense of comfort it brings her with him.

Such a human thing to not focus on fixing the bigger problem and instead focus on what can be changed in the current moment. They still have time until the end of the earth, so why spend more time dwelling on it?

That is her response to his question.

I believe the episode the unquiet dead is where he realizes the extent of his feelings for her. There they are about to be pulled apart by a horde of zombies yet Rose doesn't regret coming along. She tells him so and in the end all she asks of him is that they fight for their lives. Still clinging on to that bit of hope that they could get out of this, even if it is misplaced. To stay together in spite of their inevitable deaths is all she asks for, and he in turn tells her how glad he is to have met her. Assuring her that he is glad it's her that is there by his side as he clings to her hand like a life line. Somehow, having someone there to hold made the inevitable more bearable.

For a single moment, he remembers what it is like to not regret something.

But no, they live! Again and again, even if logically it makes no sense given how the world works. All the while, he meets more and more extraordinary people. With Rose, always reaching out to others as they embark on every new adventure. Thus indirectly providing him insight on the manner in which normal people are capable of doing brave and incredible acts even if it is at the cost of their own life. Their hope in a future for the people they hold dear, motivating them to put everything on the line if it meant that there was even a slight chance everything would be alright.

There's good in people, even those that outwardly appear to not be worth the trouble. And it's that potential he latches on to, and why he tries so hard to lend a hand when he can.

This is actually where the trend of the importance of knowing people's names starts, because the companions often serve as his connection to the humans around them. They ground his perspective, reminding him to not focus so much on the grand scheme of things that he forgets to look at the smaller details. This is why in the episode Midnight it is so tragic that no one asked for the stewardes' name. For up until that point, he knew better than to not at the very least humanize her (by asking for something as basic as her name, her story, etc.) rather than see her as pawn in the midst of the problem. That is the principal that Rose instilled in him and yet when left alone, he finds himself forgetting to do so. Thus, why he takes the revelation to heart.

But I'm getting ahead of myself lol

It is when he is confronting the last of the daleks that he has to reconsider his beliefs of how the world had up till now functioned. He has been proven time and time again that the world is not always such a negative place, and that there is at times tranquility that could be found in the midst of the chaos. That the universe and it's inhabitants are capable of doing both good and evil.

So why is he so quick to want to kill the last of the daleks and cling to that cynicism he was beginning to reconsider? Here he is faced with a being who understands his pain, but in the form of his biggest enemy. It is not innocent, having been at one time capable of monstrous acts that caused mass suffering but...neither is he. There it stands defenseless and unarmed and yet he is the one threatening it with a weapon, just like Rose reasons. She is alive and unharmed, standing next to a dalek yet the active threat is not the dalek, it's him. He is tempted to kill it because his first instinct is to resort back to that hatred that gave him purpose for so long. The same poison the daleks used to eradicate the rest of his people. But is it truly incapable of being good, if not, then why is he any different? To give into the temptation would mean to validate that goodness could not be found everywhere. That if he followed the same mindset that once drove him to pull the trigger on everyone involved in the whole war, than he was doomed to become one of them. To repeat the endless cycle of violence and prove once and for all that he is a monster that cannot change.

Again the answer to the question is up to us to decide. But for him, there's only one clear answer.

No one else has to die. By choosing to not do anything he can live another day, without carrying the guilt of another being dying at his hands. Not because it has to be done, but because he has the option to refuse.

He can no longer assert that its existence as the final survivor of his race isn't important. That just because he hates it, doesn't mean it doesn't deserve a second chance like he got.

Really who is he to pass judgement, when there was a point in his life where he too was blinded by rage and the very narrow view he held of the world?

There is always a choice, and sometimes, the choice is to not take part in that decision.

And so that's what he does.

Rose takes on the burden for him, reaching out to the dalek in the same compassionate way he once did for him. Ordering the dalek to die not out of spite, but out of mercy because that is what the dalek wanted. A being born with the ultimate goal of surviving at all costs with hatred running through its blood, yet it's last moments are spent anguishing over all the death it caused. But unlike the Doctor, who strived to change as a result, he used up his second chance to end the pain. All it asked in return, was comfort or in other words...a hand to hold.

Or..so we think.

It's this ability to look past his biases that allows him to see the good in individuals like Mickey, Jack, and even Rose, when she inevitably screws up. He is able to grant them a second chance to prove themselves and keep them grounded, just like they did for him. His bonds to said people strengthen as a result and now he travels with a group of individuals he can trust with his life. People that can ease the burden and see the good in him.

Now the final episodes of his run is where the final test to his resolve to change is put into question. In a cruel twist of faith, history repeats itself.

Once again, he is given a choice: to let humanity die at the hand of the daleks, or end it all himself.

But alas he chooses not to give in. To not let himself become like the very thing he despises, because the alternative would mean witnessing the mass death of humanity at his hands. A group of beings he personally saw was capable of so much good, and was directly responsible for his change of heart. They reminded him that he was not above changing and that he could find meaning in simply continuing to find the good in others. He refuses, and so he seals his fate.

Yes he would die as a result, but at least he'll die knowing that he did all that he could. That he did not repeat the same cycle of violence that drove him to make the decision to eradicate all that he knew in an act of desperation.

He was free at last of the hatred that poisoned him for so long and it's due in part to the emotion that now stood in its place. Something he slowly cultivated throughout the span of his episodes: Love.

Love for humanity.

Love for Rose.

Love for himself. Because he finally did something he would not live to regret

" Before I go, i just want to tell you that you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic. And you know what? So was I!"

When he finally regenerates, it is done with the intention that his final act is not one of destruction, but love. This man, with the blood of so many on his hands, was able to forgive himself through the compassion extended to him when he was at his lowest. Rose a mere human, through sheer kindness, was able to motivate the doctor to keep going. To not hang up on the inevitabilities of life, and to find beauty in what was fleeting.

To have faith in the good of the people around him, even when it wasn't easy.

Most importantly, she reminded him that his journey was not one that had to be solitary. He could share the burden with others, and in turn, build genuine friendships that would help ease that loneliness he felt.

What makes Rose special to the doctor is not that she is inherently special. She is not someone of high status nor this faultless god that is capable of doing no wrong. No what makes her important to him is the fact that she was perceptive enough to realize that he needed help, and selflessly gave it at a time where he was at his lowest. She extended the best of humanity towards him during a time where he desperately needed a reminder that life was more than just pain. She never gave up on him, always assuring him that he was capable of doing good even when he himself didn't believe it.

This was not a bond forged on shallow appearances or attraction, no, it was a deep friendship in which both people involved grew to become better versions of themselves by the end. They just so happened to fall in love in the process.

Something I want to point out is that the reason why he has the courage to kiss Rose is because his love for her, he feels, is unrequited. He thinks this will be the last chance to show her how much she means to him in this body, and perhaps ever. He is insecure, you see that in the way he practically sneers at any man that looks at her yet he never makes a move himself. That is why he is deeply confused as to why it takes her so long to warm up to his 10th incarnation in the Christmas invasion. Going as far as to claim that she had given up on him. A behavior that to him, makes no sense as he was essentially tailored to her tastes. A pretty boy, just like the ones she showed interest in previously.

This is why he asks her upon regenerating what she thinks of his appearance and once again when he wakes up from his coma. He wants her to fawn over him but doesn't take into account that maybe, bursting into flames isn't exactly a normal human occurrence lol

But we see that that is not true. His looks were never something that bothered her. Because whenever she is made to make a choice between the doctor and someone else, it's always him. Even at the expense of what he would consider to be the safer options.

Rose loved him since his 9th incarnation. This is made evident in the manner in which she immediately asks him to change back once he regenerates into 10 (Doctor Who Born Again, Children In Need Special 2005).

"Can you change back?"

"Do you want me to?"

"Yeah"

"Oh."

"Can you?"

"No"

(note: if you haven't seen this clip, I strongly recommend doing so as it adds so much context to the conflict explored in the Christmas special)

If she had solely loved him when he was 10, then she would have accepted him easily but she didn't. It took her the entirety of the Christmas invasion to understand that he was still the same man. This is why the episode focuses so much on 10 sort of dancing around her, trying to earn her approval by showing off how he's still the same man. Going as far as to pan on his face numerous times as he wistfully looks at her direction, all while he fights the sycorax as if to make sure that she is watching him be impressive. (it's something I realized upon rewatch, just how desperately he is trying to earn back her approval lol)

So with all of this in mind, nine essentially transforms into a new man. Figuratively and literally lol. A man that finds the joy in living again and meets each challenge with a curiosity akin to that of a child. He's fun, far less burdened (outwardly) by the death of his people and more open to meeting new people. He becomes what 9 physically believes to be the ideal image of a partner Rose would want, down to the wispy hair and handsome features. Not to mention younger, as if, physically representing the the burden being lifted from his body, thus de-aging him.

But with this new man that was born out of his love for humanity and Rose, there's a conflict that is more apparent than ever. Will he be able to overcome the implications that come with falling in love with a human?

This is where the conflict shifts, because with confronting this question he is left to actually take into consideration what it means to fall deeper in love with her. A scenario he previously only humored in fantasies because he was unaware that she returned them.

Had she simply loved him as a friend, it would have been easy to ignore it but no she had fallen for him too. So now he can no longer skirt around it. To fall for a human would mean to expose her to what a Time lord's life and perspective entails. How alien he truly is and how that especially affects the manner in which they communicate. This is explicitly said in the Christmas invasion, when her whole world shifts at the reminder that he is in fact not human.

"The thing is, I thought I knew him, Mum. I thought me and him were...and then he goes on and does this. I keep forgetting he is not human"

This is what series 2's main conflict is.

But it is far from one sided.

She in return, has to confront the inevitability of her death. Can she ask that of him, to put aside the pain and let her live out the rest of her days by his side? Once she outlives those she loves, would she become someone unlike herself?

Because now it's not a question of will they won't they, they know how they feel about one another. No, it's a matter of when.

This is why series two appears to have very little conflict between the two at first glance, but that's because the conflict is within themselves. Since ten was made with her in mind, they tend to operate very similarly and so they don't get in as many arguments as they did previously. Because again, ten exists from the changes made in nine. You cannot have one without the other,as they are the two sides of the same coin.

Another tid bit that must be mentioned is that 10's desire to be human can actually be traced back to 9's era. This is because the 9th doctor always made it a point to separate himself from Rose's family life. This is what causes him to have such a strained relationship with Jackie in the first place, because his refusal to take part in Rose's personal life directly interfered with Jackie's relationship to her daughter. Jackie does care for the Doctor. He is important to Rose and so she makes an effort to welcome him, even when he refuses.

But really from a few comments he makes off handedly in father's day, one can infer that the reason why he stays far away from their home life is more of a reflection of how he views himself. Like an outsider who cannot afford to get too close to the people around him.

After all he had this to say about the importance of living a life that is ordinary.

"i don't what this is all about, and I know we're not important -"

"who said you're not important? I've traveled to all sorts of places, done things you couldn't even imagine, but you two. Street corner, 2:00 in the morning, getting a taxi home. I've never had a life like that.."

You can't always trust the Doctor's words because he often puts on this unbothered front. But in this specific instance, he says this not as a means of diminishing it but rather being rather fond of the idea. To live the one adventure he could never have, sound familiar?

It's because of this that the 10th doctor makes an effort to be more involved in Rose's personal life. Extending his care towards her mother, and even spending the holidays with them. He even goes as far as to imply they were the closest thing to family when he tells Donna about it.

This long ass essay is all to essentially say that the idea of pitting ninerose, tenrose, and tentoorose against one another is rather pointless lol because they're all essentially the same ship but at different stages of their relationship. You cannot have the existence of one without the other because they all occupy the same man. All are equally valid according to the narrative and canon so please can we lay this useless competition to rest?

There's enough Rose to go around!

[lemotmo]

Follow up to the sexuality arc

Q. When you put it in the simplest possible form like you did of course you can arrive at it being a sexuality issue but there are lots of other reasons people can feel broken. And Buck has never been the reason why his relationships didn't work out.

A. Of course there are plenty of other reasons a person can feel broken. But the show has been very particular in the way they have framed Eddie's relationships, and especially his feelings regarding them. I wasn't putting it in its simplest form. I explained Eddie's canon dating history. What facts did I leave out in order to simplify or slant things in a particular direction? I also didn't imply that his relationships weren't working out specifically because of Buck. What I was saying is the aspects of his relationships that seem to cause his freakouts are things he already has with Buck.

The show has pretty much established that Eddie dates because he thinks he needs to date. He thinks he owes Christopher a mother. It's why he introduces them to Christopher so quickly. The only reason they're there is to fill a void Eddie believes exists in Christopher's life. But the show has already made Buck the person that's filed that role. And the audience sees him in that role. With the exception of physical, in other words sexually, what other role does Buck not fill in Eddie's life? He fills the partner role. He fills the co-parent role. He fills the confidant role. He fills the best friend role. He fills the emotional connection/support role. He fills the safety role. He fills the comfort role. The show has established what Eddie is looking for he already has in Buck. The same argument can be made for the roles Eddie fills in Buck's life as well. The only thing their relationship doesn't currently have is a physical level of intimacy. That's it. Their relationship checks every other box. That's the way they are written. That's the entire problem. It's why no outside relationship works for either one of them. It's also why the leap to putting them in an actual relationship is not that big or scary because they're basically already in a relationship. All making it official would do is add the physical element. It's also why we have reached the point where legitimate articles about the show are now saying that it's odd that the show hasn't addressed the Buddie aspect. That is where we are now. Of course the show could choose to continue to ignore it but at this point it would be detrimental to their product. Because everyone, including the two actors who play them, see this the same way. It is the only long-term satisfactory relationship storyline for either character. It's time. It's past time.

Thank you Nonny! Appreciate it!

Yes yes and yes. I'm just going to shut up now. Ali explained it so well. This is the way I see it as well, so I figure my own musings wouldn't add anything relevant to this post.

IMPORTANT! Please don't repost this ask and/or a link that leads straight to my Tumblr account on Twitter or any other social media. Thank you!

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If you are interested in more of Ali’s posts, you can find all of her posts so far under the tag: anonymous blog I love.

[salvagesmha]

The Curious Case of the Jailbreakers

In MHA, the concept of villain organizations having sub-groups or elite squads is nothing new in concept (albeit it rarely is it committed to for too long). For the League of Villains, they had their Vanguard Action Squad. The Shie Hassaikai, they had the Eight Bullets. For the Paranormal Liberation Front/Meta Liberation Army, they had their Base Commanders turned PLF Advisors. Lastly for All For One's army of Villains, he has his Assassins better known as just the Jailbreakers...

Who I think probably has earned the title of the most nothing group during the story's time span. Which is pretty impressive in hindsight.

(Hey, you see this group of clearly seven people - one's in the back of the dialogue box - right? Keep this group shot in mind)

So who are the Jailbreakers?

The Jailbreakers are a group of...eight(?)ish Tartartus Villains that AFO recruited for the purpose of defeating Deku to bring to him (hence them also being called his hired guns or assassins...even if the latter isn't really correct).

On paper, this is a set-up for an interesting premise as the Dark Deku arc, on paper, is also supposed to show Deku trying to reach out to better understand why people become Villains and to at least try to see if they can be reasoned with. The story also established Tartarus to be a place which has numerous human rights violations. So already you can see the potential brewing for a potential sympathetic angle for some of them. If not that, then at least it should be easy to get invested in knowing former convicts are loose and, given their location, are likely immensely strong and provide some backstory to Hero Society as well.......right?

Well........kind of? Of the two, the former was kinda the most realized...sorta? Not really.

Of the Jailbreakers, Lady Nagant easily holds the title of being the most developed of the eight(?) and most thought out of. She's the one that shows the dark side of the HSPC, its corrupt measures to keep society ignorant of issues that could threaten its image. She's the Villain that Deku manages to reach out to sway back to good. She gets her redemption in the Final War. Sounds good...on paper (again XD).

But, in practice, as much as I like Nagant and what she offers, it's still plagued by rushing her introduction and reform stint in a few chapters, and then leaving her comatose up until the final battle. She's in and out of the story just like that. What should have been foreshadowed long ago, and taken its time to really let simmer, is just suffering under a story going too fast to really want to let her stick around.

Yet, that's still way better than what her comrades got - because, wow, did the Jailbreakers run into trouble before Nagant was finised.

Starting with this damning line right here from Hawks:

From the start we're told by Hawks the Analyst that because Deku has One For All, the other escaped cons besides Nagant should be no trouble.

This right here is the start of the Nothingness of the Jailbreakers. Before we even get to see anyone else besides Nagant, a flashback says that we shouldn't be concerned if one of them runs into Deku. That sentence along along is the most damning thing one should never say in regards to a group that hasn't properly debuted.

It is a writing sin, one that makes any attempt at hyping up future villains go to waste! Because, from the very start, you got it into the audience's head that these guys are no real theat. No big deal, because Hawks the Powerscaler said so. Trading out 7ish potential for one who, admittedly, is still not given the best of their treatment is very much a bad call.

This is actually pretty strange for MHA, since Horikoshi actually got it right concerning the other three squads...for the most part XD The Vanguard he made note that these guys were 'elite' compared to the jobbers of USJ, Eight Bullets were noted to be threatening since they had nothing to lose, the Advisors (as much as the story dropped the ball with them) at least had Hawks the Tier King to say they're stronger than average. All three had the story giving an effort to build intrigue and expectation for these guys...things squandered for the Jailbreakers in favor of just one of their number. It's a strange choice, but its pretty much the start of a losing battle for the rest.

And it really doesn't get better for them since after Nagant, do you know what happens to the other two?

Yeah, no, for both the anime and manga, they just get one appearance. That's it. No real showcasing of their powers, no names, any reason as to why they worked for AFO, no real personality either. They're just...footnotes. It doesn't help both get done dirty in different ways. Gangster Fang guy gets caught no problem off-screen to really hammer in the protagonist can't be touched (which...is just a decision I never agree with - decimates the stakes for the story).

King Sharkman isn't even shown defeated. From manga to anime, he just that one still frame (Bones for S5-6 REALLY did not care consistency/extra effort with the Villains, especially the minor ones and it shows). You probably wouldn't even knew they were Jailbreakers were it not for Hawks giving the almighty report that they were enemies sent by AFO.

It's one thing for have dialogue to say these Villains won't be much, it is a very different thing to reinforce that idea. So with these showings, it's now officially solidified in the audience's mind that these guys are nothing special. Which, again, is a bad thing to be doing for your series, especially when you're in the final act and need credible villains to face (which wouldn't be an issue if over half of the credible villains from the First War wasn't shelved, but...that's a topic for another day).

Dictator, the 4th hitman, isn't much better. Sure he has an actual personality, and a cool power, with the bonus of actually using his moves intelligently (with the whole meat shield trick) and providing a boost for Crust post-mortem. But, like with the other two he suffers a lesser case of being disposed of too quickly. He's OHKO'd by Bakugo and only brought up in passing afterword. Arrived too late and gone too quick.

After that, there's a lull since Deku is saved by Class A. By now, you might think, if you haven't completely written off the Jailbreakers by this point, you would have noticed that, after Nagant, there were three of the seven(?) that went down, right? So four to go right?

...

Yeah, now here's the fun part.

???? Who the Hell are two of them?! There are clearly two extras off to the side, so what gives? Weeeelll...just forget about them.

Unfortunately, they're two things that just...don't get resolved by the end of the story. There's six of them here, Hori likely had some original plan that involved six Jailbreakers all getting stomped out during the War...but I guess he just couldn't find room to add in the two......

Okay, scratch that.

He couldn't find the room to add in four, because aside from the namedropped Kunieda and Gashly, no other Jailbreakers either appears or gets focused on, in the manga that is at the time of this writing. Despite clearly showing at least two others on the level of Gashly...they just are not shown off. This especially goes for the Dreadlock Jailbreaker that you would clearly see as being constantly in shot and is likely this guy below.

He was sent to Gunga, we see him at the start...and doesn't appear again. It's utterly bizarre and that's not even getting into the person next to him whose so vague we can't make out any real details.

But, hey, this is just the manga. Perhaps the anime makes things clearer, right?

Nope.

Instead of six Jailbreakers...they just reduced it five, even though we can blatantly see six in the original panels. On the flipside, without the text we get a better view of Kunieda, Gashly, 'Spike' (for lack of better name - also we now know his Quirk) and two of the other enemies. One is apparently bald and next to Spike, so I assume they are on the Gunga battlefield (they're the ones next to Spike in the first manga panel so the anime thought to add them back in)? As for the cloak one...yeah got nothing. I hope the anime does something with them, but if they don't won't be surprised.

But why get hung up on this?

Well, because the story now wants them to be considered important. As the 'wild card' factor that could make their attempts to stop the Villains be in danger. Or rather, it wants Kunieda and Gashly to be important (since Hori made 3/4 others that just...don't get to be shown off - still better than the Advisors situation mind you).

The problem is that the damage was both already done on top of other factors.

Like I said before, up until the 2nd War, after Nagant, the Jailbreakers were treated like a breeze to get through by Deku or Class A. Meaning their threat level is nonexistent in spite of Johnny Average saying otherwise.

Another downside to the Jailbreakers is that, unlike the other Squads in MHA, Hori was really dead set on not showing off their designs until their focus chapter. Meaning, unlike the Advisors or Eight Bullets who we can at least speculate or gain intrigue from based on their looks, speculation or potential hype for the Breakers is dead in the water since 'vague shadows' is not enough to work off of.

Even when they do show up, its not really to the story's real benefit since the focus is hardly ever on them, even as the War is under way. No one is really expecting much from them, and the story is still going along with making sure that notion isn't really defied.

And it's just sad because, when the story does focus on them, it shows a great layer of promise for what could have been.

Kunieda is the 2nd best Jailbreakers because he, at his least, does fulfill properly the roles of prior minion villains in the past. Kuneida is Aoyama's Villain - an obstacle narrative to challenge his weakness, in this case being his role as a Traitor to UA, and whether is was worth betraying AFO, with Kunieda having fierce loyalty to the Demon Lord. It also helps that he's allowd to actually, you know, FIGHT - he's not steamrolled like the other Breakers before him, he's allowed to beat others. Granted, it was off-screen but its still something that earns him his second place medal.

As for Gashly............

Yeah, I won't lie. Gashly got a raw deal. If Kunieda barely got anything, Gashly just got the scraps. Crumbs of what could have been. He's shown way, way, way too late for him to ever matter (why wait until legit the final fight to show him off). His Quirk, while just as destructive as Kunieda, suffers from taking up too much similarities from Twice and Skeptic (also people who summon clones). And, to top it off, he's worse off since not only does he not get to speak, he's not tied to any of Class A or important cast to triumph against. Tokage and Kamikiri are the ones to take him down. Not Sero, Ryukyu, Thirteen. They just do not effect his defeat and he's a little more than a foot note before the grand finale, even though he outlasted pretty much every other Villain besides Shigaraki.

And that's kind of the problem with the Jailbreakers in a nutshell:

The story treats them like nothing, even when it also wants them to be something, yet takes every avenue it can to prevent them from ever rising above 'oh, right, they're here too'.

It's a rather pitiful decision that drags down the story a bit since the final act was in serious need of threatening villains to wrap things up...and the Jailbreakers just could not deliver. Which is a shame since they had real potential behind their concept. Villains locked away for being that wicked or perhaps spouting truths the government didn't want to see the light of day. There's a lot you can do with escaped convict villains, but sadly in MHA's rush for the end, the Jailbreaker's threat level are another casualty.

[silviakundera]

"But I have my reasons."

"So does every other sinner in the world."

It's been quite obvious from the drama for a while now that the Princess Royal screenwriter feels pity for Su Rongqing and considers him a tragic figure. I recall being asked early on if I thought the writers are trying to redeem him. And I said no, not exactly. And I still stand by that!

They didn't give him any out or excuse for his hand in the bloody end of their original timeline: the dirty secrets reveal scene does not soften his actions in any way or reduce Li Rong's disgust. Ronghua still rejects his grand-standing words and his refusal to see that the noble class can't continue like this. He gets his chance to tell his perception of past events but Pei Wenxuan also gets a chance to share competing observations. Li Rong and Su Rongqing still get their philosophical face-off in the throne room. No one is completely wrong or right. There were no heroes in the original timeline.

"Let's not deceive ourselves or others anymore. I understand your stubbornness. Your heart is with the light, yet you dwell in darkness. You refuse to acknowledge your identity, so you can only disort the truth."

We see Li Rong and his brother reach out a hand to him many times, telling him he can still turn back. Li Rong was never in love with him romantically but he accompanied her for years during a dark period for both of them; she's not a heartless person (that's the whole point!), so ofc she would take his hand and pull him back from the edge if he was just willing to grab it. She wants to reach him: that's what the whole throne room scene is about. But she cannot. His last moments in the drama have both Pei Wenxuan and Li Rong calling out to him.

He may be a poisonous snake, but he doesn't have to bite the frog when crossing the river.

He is given chances but he doesn't take them. That's why he's tragic: Because he is right about this ONE THING (Li Chuan isn't suited to be emperor), feeling desperately certain about it while it seems no one else understands the stakes and his heroic mission. But he's wrong about everything else.

This is a story about time travel and what if you could re-do your youth: better support a troubled sibling, stand up to toxic family, fix your marriage, widen your perspective... And Su Rongqing misses all his opportunities because he's not taking his chance to better connect with others, not using the wisdom of all those extra years to better understand the populace and the people around him, and handle his life & relationships with more grace. He just narrow-mindly focuses on the mission - he can't reset, can't let go of the past life and the current system.

So many other people in this tale have been shifted: Shangguan Ya, Su Ronghua, Li Chuan, Qin Zhen Zhen, even the fail emperor has a revelation about how crap he is.

His inflexibility and inability to seize the opportunity of a do-over in life and be a new Su Rongqing acts as a contrast to measure how much Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan have been growing & changing. And it shows us why they triumph and why they deserve their happy ending.

Tragic doesn't mean innocent. It doesn't mean he didn't have a hand in his own downfall.

I know not all readers found him compelling in the text, but I did think he was a neat character and tbh I think the novel would be diminished without him. I can see what the screenwriter was trying to do with him - all that dramatic music is his POV. We get glimpses of the good times & his good intentions that contrast with his failure to live up to any of it. He's given narrative importance as their foil and the writers wanted him to be a full fledged 3rd time-traveler character that the audience is interested in (hoping, like Li Rong & his brother do, that he can be saved). The promise is there in the essential character, I can see it in the text. But in the drama they failed to create investment from the audience in the right way.

imo a big misstep is that the framing early on made viewers feel he was intended to be a valid love interest. In the drama, his romantic interest in her is overt while in the novel it was ambiguous for the first 60% of the story. Writers even added a couple moments that felt OOC where we are in his head and it seems like he is actually intending to win her back romantically (which is contradicted by his novel-compliant speeches in ep 34 & 40 about how he knows they can't be together because as her betrayer he doesn't deserve it.)(now I'm curious to rewatch them, I am really wondering if it was intended to be a slight of hand where he is meaning her return/freedom/rise to power/the life he owes her and the audience is intended to misread as him saying he will become her bf again 🤔🤔) Regardless, in a romance narrative, this will make many viewers reflexively dislike him, protectively wanting him away from their otp. He is perceived as a real suitor who has a chance -- which hits different to a shipper.

The execution was flawed. I do think that casting a magnetic actor who can portray bottled up emotion & inner turmoil, such as Zhang Wanyi, would have made a big difference in mitigating the earlier mis-cues. But on the other hand, I'm fairly satisfied with his character handling from ep 30-40. And it wasn't really badly done, ep 22 and onward. The real problem in his handling was the first 50%.

[raleighrador]

The Bear S3 - Plot and Carmen

I found Carmen's storyline in S3 simultaneously sad, funny, frustrating, and rewarding (all as a viewer). Carmen himself seems to straight up be having a terrible time.

The specific thing that stood out for me with the season's treatment of Carmen was - in a show that does a great job of show don't tell - we never get SHOWN Carmen having a win. Certainly not one that he is capable of enjoying.

What do I mean by this? We get told Carmen is a great chef but apart from the flashback to Sydney eating his fish + citrus dish (+ I guess the flashbacks where Carmen shells more peas/peels more mushrooms etc than Luca) we don't get SHOWN him being a great chef, or being acknowledged as a great chef.

Contrast this with eg Sydney making Nat an omelette in season 2, or Sydney taking over the service when Carmen is trapped in the walk in. Marcus's baked good get lots of "mmm WOW delicious yummy" scenes in earlier seasons. Even Sydney offering "obvious" improvements to Carmen's meat dish in S3E5. Sydney DEMONSTRATES exceptional cooking and cheffery on screen in a way Carmen does not.

Instead we get TOLD Carmen is an excellent chef. We get shown the various reviews and profiles that Sydney enviously reads in her empty apartment, we get Luca telling Marcus (in S2) that he could never keep up with Carmen, and finally we get Chef David (Carmen's former Executive Chef who was abusive) explicitly calling out that Carmen is an excellent chef.

This is an odd dynamic from a storytelling perspective, and I personally found it frustrating. Carmen is clearly the primary protagonist of the show and yet he never gets any visceral "wins" that we as the audience can immediately recognise and enjoy. In fact, in many ways, his achievements get a treatment more typically associated with an antagonist. Think of every bad guy who has been introduced as the 3 times world champ, or most dangerous person in MadeUpLandia, or the hottest and most popular girl in High School TM.

I think this is deliberate.

Every moment where we get told Carmen is excellent is deliberately unsatisfying because it is unsatisfying to Carmen. He repeatedly gets the affirmation that he is in fact exceptionally good at this and yet it does nothing for him.

It doesn't feel good and it doesn't quiet the voices in his head. It doesn't solve any of his issues. This is most explicitly true in the interaction with Chef David - Carmen's tormentor, the man who belittled him, who did more to destroy his self confidence than any other. Chef David loudly, clearly, explicitly gives Carmen the affirmation he always withheld... and it does nothing for Carmen. If anything it just further confuses and upsets him.

I think this will continue into the next season and ultimately whatever "ending" the show as a whole reaches. Carmen will get a star (or 2 or 3) and it will fix absolutely nothing. None of his problems (maybe the monetary ones?) will go away.

The star will fall into the black hole inside of Carmen and do nothing to fill it, just like everything else he has tried to use to plug that wound.

In fact I will go so far as to say - I think this show either ends with Carmen committing suicide or at least a suicide attempt will be a major plot point. Especially if the star does solve the money problems. One of the things that keeps Carmen going is that success will solve problems for his family - specifically, the debt Mikey left. If that goes away, it removes one of the biggest reasons to keep going.

Many people have (I think correctly) written extensively about how Sydney is Carmen's narrative foil. I think Mikey is his narrative mirror.

Mikey has from the very beginning dominated the show, and Carmen. He was why Carmen became a chef. He was why Carmen came back. He was who left Carmen picking up the pieces. It is - in my mind- all for Mikey and all because of Mikey. Carmen wanted to do this restaurant with his big brother and that will now never happen.

I think a potential path for the show to take is to contrast Sydney and Carmen to Carmen and Mikey. Sydney is able to recognise bits of herself in Carmen but also some of her own limits. She, I think, will learn and grow past Carmen and those limits.

I don't think Carmen will be so lucky. Thus far certainly he has demonstrated absolutely none of the self-awareness required to make this a plausible outcome. He has none of the language or tools required to have this realisation and then act on them (very bluntly pointed out by Richie in the "non-negotiables" argument). He doesn't have the support network to spot these things for him, and he is only becoming more isolated. He doesn't ever answer his phone. He is literally incapable of saying sorry or really having any conversation outside of the restaurant. The people around him are - for various reasons - losing patience or just have other things going on.

Nat - who has been the most uncritical and productive support for Carmen - now has a baby & the restaurant so she can't be the one maintaining a one sided relationship. Cicero has (unknown to the rest of them) money issues that mean he can't be the stable, consistent figure he wants to be. Richie and Sydney have been burned by Carmen lashing out too many times. His other industry friends don't actually know him that well because he has always been distant. They also have their own lives and bluntly Carmen is too much work for too little reward.

I thought the finale illustrated this really well - Luca and Sydney see Carmen going to confront Chef David, they know it is going to end badly, and then they do nothing about it. They, along with the rest of the Bear crew + Chef Terry + Jess go to Sydney's apartment for an after party. Carmen is notably absent.

None of them seem to notice or care. I imagine it is a "sigh *eye roll* Carmen is being Carmen" phenomenon rather than malice. It is still illustrative of Carmen's increasing isolation, and the loss of people looking out for him.

Carmen is not heading for a breakdown, he is in the midst of one. He has only gotten worse since he almost burned his apartment down while sleepwalking. I think that is what we are seeing.

Literally and figuratively Carmen is sleep walking into self-destruction.

This isolation from the people he cares about is not, however, totally agentless. That is to say - while I don't blame people like Richie and Sydney, I do think they are making choices that wind up isolating Carmen and denying him the affirmation and support he craves.

Does Carmen know that he made the best meal Sydney ever ate? I don't think so. So far as I recall she never told him. She told Marcus, but not Carmen. Does Carmen know that she specifically sought him out because of the fish & citrus dish? I don't think so. She told him she wanted to work at the Beef because it was her dad's favourite sandwich shop. Sydney has all of her own issues with Carmen and has made this choice for many reasons but ultimately she has never given Carmen the sort of affirmation I believe he craves and would actually accept from her. Her praise, I believe, would mean more than any of the rest he has received.

Instead, deliberately or not, Sydney does a lot to deny Carmen that praise and increasingly denies to herself that she even thinks it. The assertion that she can "keep up" from a skill perspective is one example, the more interesting one is how she reacts to Shapiro praising the scallop dish that is "new", that is "not Carmy". Shapiro clearly thinks and is heavily implying that this must be a Sydney dish. Sydney's response is "well it's um... it's both of us, together".

I read this scene as Adam clearly giving Sydney an opening to take credit, and Sydney response is clearly a "wink wink oh I am humble but yes".

Except it's not both of them nor is it Sydney. S3E1 ends and S3E2 begins with Carmen redoing all the dishes, including the fish dish. Sydney is very frustrated that Carmen "changed all my (her) shit".

A key, repeated, point of frustration for Sydney is that Carmen changes dishes without her input (I think this is only partially true and if so only partially problematic). Regardless of what I think SHE clearly chafes under a lack of ownership of the dishes.

So while this superficially resembles the flashback of Carmen and David futzing the fish & fennel dish, only for Carmen to deliver to Sydney the fish & citrus dish, it doesn't actually fit. This superficial parallel is actually a red herring (sorry) to our ability to read this interaction correctly.

This scene therefore demonstrates 2 (maybe 3) things brilliantly (in my mind at least): Carmen is not well known by basically anyone. Chef Adam is kind of sort of a work friend, but he clearly feels he "knows" Carmen's cooking and can recognise something that is so new and different that it can't be Carmen's. What he is totally missing is how much (and how fast) Carmen is changing and improving as a chef. It also demonstrates Sydney's unwillingness to acknowledge how good Carmen is. Again multiple angles here, but she isn't willing to let it be Carmen's dish. She also doesn't ever tell Carmen that Adam thought the food was excellent.

This echoes S1 Richie refusing to really acknowledge how much better Carmen's beef sandwich is than the old version.

So there is a pattern of Carmen not getting validation from people whose opinions he actually cares about. Instead he just gets unsatisfying praise from people who don't matter to him.

The third thing this scene potentially demonstrates is that the parallels between Carmen and Sydney's experiences are weaker than implied.

I have read a few reviews that criticise this season because not enough happens, there isn't enough character growth, and there is clunky writing that makes it a frustrating viewing experience. I don't actually disagree per se, I just think they are deliberate.

I am possibly reaching, and it is possible the writers are being more ambitious than they can deliver on. It feels, in many ways, like avant-garde cuisine. The writers are deliberately breaking rules, deliberately doing things that are almost always "bad writing" and trying to do them in a way that actually makes them good.

It's like trying to make ice cream out of squid ink, or colourless, textureless cubes that tastes like ribeye. It doesn't make sense and it isn't how cooking works. Sometime you spend hundreds of dollars on terrible, unsatisfying meals. Sometimes you eat something that breaks all the rules and defies all your expectations and blows your fucking mind.

Sometimes it's in-between and I guess S3 is more that for me than either of the former. I still think what the writers are doing is cool and innovative and I like it, even if it didn't all land perfectly.

[yardsards]

if i could change one thing about the owl house, i'd change the main point of conflict in clouds on the horizon from "odalia's okay with genocide, alador isn't" to "alador is willing to listen to his children, odalia isn't"

first off, i'd make it so that odalia *didn't* know what the draining spell actually did. her knowingly participating in genocide just serves to overshadow her pre-established abusiveness, and feels like the writers didn't trust the audience to understand that she was Bad and deserved to be cut out of her family's lives on the basis of abuse alone.

(also it. kinda doesn't make sense why she'd be okay with it? like she is greedy and short-sighted. but the draining spell would negatively impact her personally, and while the idea of her being so distracted by greed that she acts against her own interests is extremely neat and an apt commentary on real billionaires, it's just,,, a big stretch.)

instead, i'd have her dismiss the truth with "i'm not going to put such a good business deal in jeopardy because of some unfounded suspicions" and "i trust the emperor far more than i trust a bunch of children"

next, i'd replace the scene where king talks to alador. while it was a really nice scene that revealed more about alador's situation and kinda laid the groundwork for king being helpful in the next episode, it's not the best way for alador to learn about the draining spell in my version of the episode. because in that scene, alador believes king is a coven scout -an authority figure- so trusting what he says about the day of unity is not any kind of challenge for alador.

instead, i'd make it so that *emira and edric* are the ones who tell him about the draining spell (maybe king helped the twins escape? that gives him a purpose within the episode and there's a fun parallel with him freeing the collector later).

i don't think the twins were deliberately looking for alador, but they saw him sitting out there as they broke out and they had two choices: sneak past him and continue trying to stop things themselves, or talk to him. and they don't quite trust alador to listen and do the right thing, but amity seemed so convinced when she told them he'd listen, and they trust *her*, so they decide to talk to him.

and he listens and promises to put a stop to it. and he tells them to go find safety, and emira is like "but shouldn't we stay and help/make sure amity is safe" and alador tells her that it should have never been her responsibility to handle everything (i am starving for her whole parentified older sister thing to get addressed can you tell) and promises that he's going to do better for all of them, and apologizes for being so negligent -and Maybe explains a bit of why he was like that and what odalia did to him (if i could fit it in without it being clunky and keeping it clear that it's an explanation not a full excuse)

so the twins go to take shelter at hexside (no more "wtf did he just leave them in gay baby jail???" that we had in canon) and alador and king go confront odalia/save amity like in canon

and then in that confrontation, perhaps alador brings up the abuse and overwork (since it maybe wouldn't come up in my rewritten scene w him and the twins like it did in canon's scene w him and king). and the general vibe w him confronting her is less "this is the final straw" and more "i should have done this years ago"

and overall i'd want the episode to keep the "he is also a domestic abuse victim and, at times, messed up because he was acting out of fear and trying to protect them" that it introduced in the canon version of the episode (i know some people have criticized the show's choice to make him a victim too and while i can understand some of their reasons i overall liked the concept so it stays) while keeping in mind the "sometimes he messed up because he was trying to do what was 'best' for his kids whilst ignoring what the kids actually wanted/needed" that they established in reaching out

[britt-kageryuu]

It's apparently another hot day in the studio, because the inflatable pool has made another appearance as the center focus with Donnie lounging in it this time. His model is visibly in a purple Hawaiian style shirt, purple sunglasses and his mask. He has a floating tray with a glass of some colorful juice, a pitcher of the same drink, and an assortment of snacks.

"So due to the AC deciding to die, Genius Built has put everyone into a work from home/work at your own comfort, state until the AC can be fixed or Replaced. Thus I have been working from the studio. Though some of my co-workers want to visit for some reason, not that I will invite them anytime soon." They pause to take a drink, "No matter how they keep trying to bribe me. No matter how tempting." A barely heard mutter of 'he says with much falsehood' came right after.

An animation of cartoon turtle Donnie swimming goes across the screen with:

[Thank You SneakySoftshell for the $10 donation: Why don't you play Multiplayer or MOBA games much anymore?]

Donnies model gains a slightly annoyed look. "Hmm, good question SneakySoftshell. He said with some sarcastic annoyance. And to answer your question, I kept getting teamed with toxic randoms, who when learning who I was would either get more toxic, or beg for a collab!" Splashing could be heard and kinda seen with some glimpses of the tip of his tail could be seen over the edge of the pool. "And there were a few who kept trying to pressure me to join their E-Sports teams... probably very much against protocol. Plus, I may not have predicted the decline in E-Sports, but I was not going to join a team just to probably be let go because of them cutting back teams in the big leagues."

They let out a huff with a slight hiss. "Besides being on a team is somehow more expensive than what we already do with this VTuber stuff! Yes, I did the math of how much this would all cost if everything was outsourced, and not mostly done between all of us!" Donnie then sinks into the pool with a another hiss. Bubbles could be heard along with a slight grumbling sounds.

Shelldon then floats into frame while looking down into the pool. He then lowers down, and taps, what could only be Donnies Snout, while saying "Boop!" Then zooming off with a laugh.

Donnie pushes themself back up with a bit of a blank look, not sure how to react to having his Snoot Booped.

Then in comes a number of bits, donations, and channel point redemptions came flooding in say 'Boop!', 'Boop the Snoot!', 'Shelldon Boop!', and a verity of similar messages, and animations flooding the screen.

Donnie just turns to look at the camera with a slight look of disbelief. "Why is it that my Son tapping me on the nose, is what sends you all into a frenzy?" They read the chat, "Oh sorry, my Son Booped me, and it was quote unquote 'Very Very Cute'," He leans against the side of the pool towards the camera. His tail is visibly swaying behind him. "I will never fully understand you guys."

Shelldon flies back in to nuzzle his head against Donnies with a digital purring being picked up be the microphone. Shelldon then flies back off with a shout of "Love you Dad!" Donnie stares after him.

"Shelldon, please, I don't think the audience can take much more, 'cuteness', and 'wholesomeness', or so the chat is saying."

The audience made an attempt to change the topic a few times, but kept overlapping eachothers requests.

"Well since there isn't a good suggestion, let's go over some science facts that I have memorized over the years, and you can guess which ones were proven to be false after much research~~" Donnie reaches over to a tablet to bring up a box that the science facts would show up on, along with a proven true, or false, and counter.

The audience was pretty entertained for how long this went on. Alot of memes and fanart was created from clips and screenshots of this stream.

-------------------

Masterpost

I had heard about the decline in E-Sports, and had thoughts of Donatello being on an E-Sports team, and all I could figure is that he would probably like it at first, then start to hate it fairly quickly.

[pineapplefulfillseveryneed]

Sparks tour 2023 part 4: TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht (june 14, 2023)

Show number 4 out of 5! I'll be putting more photos in this one than I've done for previous writeups as we were in a much better spot :D (I might post some of them in separate posts later on.)

@dinkydiamond and me arrived at the venue super early for this one as it was the only show with general admission, which meant... queuing time! <3 Despite the added stress and additional logistics to think about with queuing, it also added such a sense of normalcy and it was so nice to just hang out with fellow fans for a couple of hours before the show ^_^ (Looking at you, @parts-of-me-unravelling!)

When the doors opened some people made a run for it after their ticket was scanned which cracked me up - okay, running it is then! XD The hall doesn't have the best design as there were steps going down leading to the floor, and the last step was very easy to miss which led to multiple people falling... (The sound of it still haunts me to this very day.) The person in front of me had a fall which was probably the only reason I myself didn't end up on the floor. But, me and Sarah had both made it in one piece and reached exactly where we'd aimed to be: front row at the bannister, in front of Ron's keyboard! :D HELL YEAH! I'd been so nervous about it because this was the ONE standing show! (An absolutely massive consolation was that we'd always have Brussels if we wouldn't have made it. But we did it!) It almost felt scary to be so close. But also extremely exciting, it kind of felt like I'd never been up close before! Hello, Ron's keyboard - so nice to see you :D What we also spotted was that there was a small plastic figurine sitting on Stevie's drums:

(Very zoomed in photo, but look at that little dude.)

We were having some nice conversations with our show-neighbours and then it was time for...

Mr.B The Gentleman Rhymer

I was super excited, now we could sing along and vibe from the front row :D Get a load of big Sparks fan enthusiasm in your face, sir! Part of the things he said on stage at every show was how divided the response to him was, that some considered him the best opening act since Queen whereas others wished he would get off the stage and that he hoped we'd fall into the former category, and this audience was largely really having an amazing time, which I was very happy about! Mr.B remarked "much better than Paris!", which cracked me up. It also honestly was in a way reassuring that he said that as the legend of that Paris show from the previous night had spread far and wide, nothing will ever be Paris but Utrecht also had a lot of love to give :) It was so much fun to sing along to Mr.B's set and to cheer him on from the front! :D

Sparks

Lost my shit when they came on! I mean, when does a person not (it's Sparks!), but woo this is up close! There they are! :D I'll say it again, I love their outfits so much! And ahh finally able to admire Ron's shoes properly! (I've also mentioned that before, but seeing Ron wearing Jordans was a dream of mine for sure. And now I could actually see the shoes :D) Ron was grinning so much throughout So May We Start which was amazing! Russell's jump was excellent which he followed up by skipping around Ron right in front of us. The show was ON <3 (There didn't seem to be an awful lot of space on the stage for Russell to safely skip around/stand in front of Ron's keyboard as the stage wasn't very deep, so this was really nice!) When Russell sang "the authors are here and they're a little vain, a little vain" he stood behind Ron as he did every night, but it was so sweet to see it from the spot we were standing in. (I've shared a photo of it in this post, but I'll put it below as well because I love them.)

We were just bouncing and singing and dancing the entire time - everything was so beautiful and fun to see up close while having a proper outlet for our energy as well :) I'll not mention every single song as I've done that before. Plus anyone who's seen a show knows how special this tour is, and everyone who knows me will know I really am dancing and jumping and singing to everything with the biggest smile, so I'll stick to the things that stood out the most.

Have a shot of Ron's shoes before I continue typing the rest, because let's just admire the shoes:

Beaver O'Lindy was an obvious highlight because the more I think about it, the more it's clear that this song really has it all, but shouting B-E-A V-E-R right back at them where they could see it was just THE BEST!

I was going to capture It Doesn't Have To Be That Way because it's so special and seeing it up close was truly everything - it doesn't matter how many times you hear that song live, it just hits so hard! So I was standing there with my big eyes, camera out, looking at Russell, and Ron, singing along, being totally in awe and very moved by it, Sarah no doubt doing the same thing, and.. Russell noticed this and we got some "I'll pay for it, I'll pay for it" in our direction! THANK YOU T^T! <3 They for sure know how special this song is. Another very important note on the performance of this song: instead of singing "it doesn't have to be that way", Russell mostly sang "it doesn't have to be this way" throughout the song! So we got a rendition that was a little different! (Footage.)

I just about exploded when Balls started and hoped my response would make it really clear how epic I think Balls is and how much I love it, and how much I loved that they decided to play it on this tour :) We must have stood out as Russell came to stand relatively close to us (as much as the size of the stage allowed it) and sang it in our direction for a bit!! (THIS WAS THE BEST) After the song I said to Sarah I felt very tempted to shout "I LOVE BALLS!!" but that I had decided against it XD which we then giggled about and our giggling might actually have been audible to Ron sdjgjhsdfjh

During Shopping Mall Of Love it seemed like Russell was occasionally looking at us vibing and we also got a "YEAH" from Ron which was amazing! The Toughest Girl In Town got dedicated to Sandy and I have never seen them dedicate a song to anyone before. (I don't know who she is, but I really hope she's well.) One of the best things about seeing this song up close was that we now could actually hear the tambourine for the first time, which definitely added to the experience :)

Escalator and Russell's dance had been one of my ultimate favourite things at all of the shows, and we did a little synced up Escalator dance back at Russell. He noticed and smiled! <3 10/10 moment. I love that song so much and Russell's dancing is everything to me. Our enthusiasm during We Go Dancing didn't go unnoticed either as we were jumping and pumping our arms into the air at the appropriate moments :>

When Music That You Can Dance To started I let out some ungodly scream as I am still incapable of being normal about it (it doesn't matter how many times I hear it live - it is one of the live songs of all time). I had been beaming the entire show already anyway but if it's possible to smile even harder, that's when it would've happened. Being up close we now noticed Ron sang along to the lines "perhaps a little jazz", and Sarah said he also sang along to "a souvenir tonight"!

After When Do I Get To Sing “My Way” there was so much applause that Russell shielded his face for a bit <3 (Audience knew how to party :D)

^ Photos from during Gee, That Was Fun :) We got a little wave from Russell when they left the stage before the encore :D

Before the band intro Russell said how they always have fun playing in the Netherlands and he ended up wondering out loud if they'd played any other cities than Amsterdam and Utrecht. My mind completely blanked (despite having BEEN at a show in a different city myself!) and no one else in the audience seemed to have an answer either XD Russell then said “No. I think it's only the two cities that we've done. Or…maybe some other. I don't know.” (I really appreciated the way he said that.) He later on came back to this and said they were informed they had also played in Hilversum way way back in the dark ages, "that's the Netherlands right? We bet you never heard of it before”. (I was cracking up as I've lived close to it most of my life and it's also where all TV and radio gets recorded so actually a lot of people *will* have heard of it XD)

Ron was applauding everyone with a big smile during the band introductions which was awesome :D Russell used the words “over yonder” in his introduction of Ron! (!!!!! OVER YONDER - can't believe I got to hear him say that in in person with my own ears! Yeah, more things I am normal about. Russell says words, brain go brrr) One of our friends in the front row joined the band in bowing to Ron, so we joined in as well. Ron smiled but gestured that it was a little bit much so I quickly went back to clapping.

During All That when Russell sang “hey help me out I can't find my left shoe” he actually lifted up his left foot to illustrate the lyrics! (I love him)

@parts-of-me-unravelling has also written about this in her write up but I am going to write about it as well because it was great :) Before the audience photo Eli sat down on the stage and Stevie then sat down with him and they sat there smiling for a bit - I've been enjoying their friendship so much throughout the tour! When the audience photo was about to be taken Eli dove down onto the stage, and honestly this is one of my favourite audience photos from the tour (and maybe ever), and we're in it!

Someone in the audience had made a poster which was passed on to the front and Ron was the one to reach out and take it! (First time I witnessed Ron taking a gift :D) He had to lean over quite far to grab it though which looked a bit risky and Russell half-grabbed Ron's jacket just to be sure. I don't think I saw what was on the poster but Ron showed it to Russell (see @part-of-me-unravelling's post) and then signed if that person wanted their poster back, but they signed he should keep it. It was a sweet moment and they were smiling so much ^^ Me and Sarah had also brought letters and Russell came over to collect them :) Mine was small so I jumped onto the banister, poking out my tongue and going “hng”, while looking Russell straight in the face (... I am so graceful) to avoid him having to lean over too far. (Here's a video someone took of All That, the band intro and the audience photo.) Things had been so very nice :)

~

I'd missed A Love Story on the setlist as we hadn't realised yet some songs had no longer been on the setlist since the UK and I had really looked forward to hearing it at the front. Eaten By The Monster Of Love had also gone but for the rest the setlist had remained the same utterly incredible setlist.

We hung out with @parts-of-me-unravelling for a bit after the show which was great. Also I could finally buy merch now! (My bag had been too full when in the UK and it haunts me to this very day that I wasn't able to get the poster that was exclusively sold at the RAH.) I got a Latte shirt and the socks ^^ I also bought one of Mr.B's CD's, had a little chat and told him that we'd see him again in Brussels. He was cool with taking a photo. I was a total dork. Luckily he is a very nice man and fellow Sparks fan, he gets these things :)

(A playlist of the footage I made during this show can be found here.)

[authortobenamedlater]

E3 deep dive, brought to you by illness and cold medicine, you are warned.

I maybe should start just doing the highs and lows of each episode, because these take forever to write and I’m not sure how interesting they are for the rest of you. I was going to do highs and lows at the end of this post but it got too long.

We open up with Silver Team going rogue at Visegrad Relay, looking for their Cobalt comrades. It’s becoming increasingly clear that not only is this mission off the books, but John hasn’t told his team this. Not great for unit cohesion, Master Chief.

The base is eerily empty and there’s a rhythmic thumping sound. The Covenant? No, just a door opening and closing. Somehow that doesn’t feel much less scary.

Instead of the Covenant, we meet a swarm of Marines led by an impressively gutsy and likely ONI officer who puts herself between Silver Team and the ominously thumping door. She accuses John of stealing a Condor and falsifying a flight plan. This is news to the rest of Silver. John doesn’t care and barges through the door expecting to find Cobalt. He finds a whole lot of nothing. This doesn’t look like a cover-up at all, nope.

Next we whiplash to Ackerson having a touching and mundane moment with his father, who’s senile but not so far gone he doesn’t know he’s senile. Evidently Ackerson has been spilling classified information to his dad. In light of everything else going on, that’s pretty far down on Ackerson’s list of misdeeds. We also learn that “Julia” the mysterious flash clone was Ackerson’s sister. Why did he clone a bunch of her for Halsey? Ackerson Sr. reminds his son “You promised not to let them [the Covenant, presumably] take me alive.” Once again, nothing ominous here.

Then we have Dadmiral Keyes dressing down his overgrown children for ripping through the UCMJ like it’s wet toilet paper. You also get the feeling Keyes is getting squeezed into this and has information he should have shared with Silver, but was ordered not to. John asks if Ackerson is behind this, and everyone knows the answer but can’t say it.

John’s team is rightly furious with him for lying to them. Kai at least tries to reason with him but John’s not hearing it. The audience knows John is right and the UNSC-ONI machine is gaslighting him into thinking he doesn’t see what he knows he’s seeing. However, he’s still being a jerk about it and turning his own people against him. He doesn’t help his case when he mops the floor with his ONI babysitters like Steve Rogers taking out the Hydra guys in The Winter Soldier elevator scene.

Laera is trying to escape the Rubble and go after Soren, only to get wrapped up in Soren’s crew’s plot to steal the “Madrigal money.” Kwan continues to prove herself both useless and useful. With Madrigal glassed now, one has to wonder what role Kwan has to play. At the same time, she’s tough and resourceful, I have to give her that. She also tries to do what’s right. She knew Laera would die and went to rescue her, probably thinking she could reunite mother and son at some point but mom has to be alive for that to happen.

Laera, too, shows herself to be more than just a pretty face, resisting Antares’s interrogation even with a gun to her head. And the part where she says “I can usually reason with my husband” 🤣 it takes a real woman to hang with Soren-066. Plus, Laera always looks fabulous! I want to look that good if I ever get shoved in an airlock.

Got ahead of myself there, but some things work best tackled as a big chunk.

Riz seems to be increasingly disenchanted with Spartan life, not that I can blame her after how John treated her last week. Never mind that she’s been in constant pain for six months. She ends up at Louis’s place where we learn he and Danilo the PT are married. Riz asks Louis what “other things” there are to be besides a Spartan. We don’t get the rest of the conversation, but it looks like Riz might be getting ready to jump ship. She may find her options more limited once Reach falls, though.

Back at the ranch, we discover what actually happened to Cobalt. They were in fact at Visegrad, and ran into the Covenant. We don’t know if this happened before or after Silver Team showed up, but it confirms what we all thought: There’s some conspiracy to keep Covenant activity on Reach under wraps.

Keyes is clearly distraught over the four (remarkably intact) bodies in the morgue. THE DADMIRAL LOVES HIS OVERGROWN EMOTIONALLY STUNTED SPARTAN CHILDREN I am not taking questions on this. The exchange between him and Ackerson here is top-tier. When Ackerson tells Keyes to leave and Keyes says “I won’t run”? I don’t think you’re going to be in season 3, Jacob.

Kai goes to Ackerson, who admires her for defending her “CO.” John isn’t her “commanding officer.” He’s not an officer. I don’t know what they’d call him, though. “Your team leader”? I won’t bug you all with nitpicking terminology. Kai is so stir crazy that she asks to be deployed alone until John is cleared for combat. This, I suspect, is how she ends up with the S-IIIs.

John takes his concerns to Parangosky, who to the surprise of no one, has not really left ONI. He tells her the Covenant is on Reach and no one is listening to him. Parangosky doesn’t give him the help he’s looking for. She tells him to go back to FLEETCOM and lay low, and she’s brought a cadre of spooks to ensure his compliance. This does not placate the increasingly agitated Master Chief.

Ackerson visits Halsey in holo-jail and gives her a speech about how she made the Spartans “fragile” by implanting those pellets. He tells her that “these things [she] made, broken as they may be” will be the foundation for something greater. I suspect this is the Spartan-III program. It’s also what Adun says to Halsey’s clone right before he kills her and dissolves her in acid.

Then the bomb drops: Julia, Ackerson’s sister, was a Spartan who died from the augmentations. Suddenly everything about Ackerson makes sense.

But the bombs aren’t done dropping. Ackerson leaves, then walks back in with none other than Soren-066. He tells Halsey “I didn’t want you to be alone” and walks out. Halsey looks legit TERRIFIED when she sees Soren.

Finally, John goes to see Talia and finds her in church. I’m going Gaga over the religious references this year, you all don’t even know. Talia has a recording of the “interference” on Sanctuary, which we find out is also a prayer offered by the Arbiter not named Thel ‘Vadam, stating his intention to offer Reach as a burnt offering and place the Demon’s head on the altar.

While Talia is translating the prayer, we see a montage that notably shows us Ackerson giving his father a pill, probably cyanide, reiterating his promise that he wouldn’t let the Covenant take his dad alive. He tells his father “I have to go away” which is the third time he’s said as much in two episodes. As he’s walking out, Ackerson brings in a final Julia clone, and his dad thinks he’s seeing his little girl one last time. A teary-eyed Ackerson walks out, and the next time we see him he’s strapped into a troop transport. Going where, we wonder?

Then an explosion shatters the church’s windows and the episode ends.

All this sets us up for…next week it’s all going down.

[mainstoryarchive]

Ensemble - 112: Anomaly

Souma: Oh? This sure is mysterious…

[Read on my blog for the best viewing experience with Oi~ssu ♪]

Location: Outdoor Stage

Souma: Oh? This sure is mysterious…

I wonder what it is, why is there a crowd? This place is supposed to be one of the most remote and unpopular places in Yumenosaki Academy!

The amount of people isn't inferior to the other stages—not only that, there seems to be an even bigger crowd!

Does that mean the aidorus performing here are that excellent? Is it even possible for there to be another reason…?

Perhaps it's war. I see, it's war! I'm itching to participate, it makes my blood boil!

Kuro: Calm down, Kanzaki. You're not a dog, there's no reason for you to get excited like this. Also, stop unsheathing your sword.

Keito: Yes. We are supposed to be the ones maintaining the order. So it would truly be like putting the cart before the horse if we were to cause panic by losing our composure. You should reflect on your actions, Kanzaki.

Souma: I got double-chastised!? But this is an irregular situation!

Keito: I agree. Hmm… We went out of our way to overlook the circumstances and send him off, but I'm worried if Isara can even reach the stage.

Well, it might be due to Isara that this situation came to be.

Kuro: I wonder. You can't see the stage from here so you can't be certain.

Nonetheless, you sure were kind there, mister vice-president. To think you would so easily let go of the fighting power you generously took in.

Keito: Never call me 'kind' again, Kiryu. I just made a logical decision.

AKATSUKI is a unit that works with a select few. Adding a wanderer would only mess up our rhythm.

I have countless reasons, both big and small. Even if you needed an explanation, wouldn't it be too stingy of me to express my opinions precisely?

Kuro: Aah, how irritating. Your talks are always way too long, can't you just tell me vaguely?

You must have just 'wanted' to do this. Isn't it fine to leave it at that?

Keito: Hmph… If you think like that, you shouldn't have asked me in the first place. I need Trickstar to be in a perfect condition, I won't allow them to run away after winning.

Sooner or later AKATSUKI will defeat Trickstar fair and square, after they all showed their best performance.

I would be troubled if they disappear before we can. That's all.

Kuro: Hehe ♪ Nice, you're also a man at heart.

Souma: As expected of Hasumi-dono! You properly understand the meaning of the code of chivalry…☆

Keito: You're noisy. What's more important right now is that there is too much of an audience in such a cramped space.

If someone even just trips a little, it might very well turn it into uncontrollable chaos, so patrol with caution.

Good preparation reduces the coming difficulties. Although Eichi and I differ in that aspect.

(Why did Eichi organize the DDD and throw away the largely desired representative title for the SS?)

(What are you scheming? Where is the meaning in all of this?)

(You are causing unnecessary uproar and having everyone make a big fuss for no reason. If that's really the case, you would be a tyrant, you know?)

(Could it be he… No, for now I should avoid thinking about it.)

(I will just solemnly complete the work in front of me. I am Eichi's right hand. A right hand doesn't think, regardless of what results this DDD may bring.)

(I'm sure you must have foreseen this as well, haven't you, Eichi?)

[ ☆ ]

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[thefloatingstone]

Sailor Moon Questions: Why is Mamoru the worst part? Is it a Kaiden Alenko sort of thing or did you inherit Kunihiko Ikuhara's dislike maybe? Also, what about PGSM gets past your dislike of live action remakes?

Mamoru is the worst part of Sailor Moon because he is BORINGGGGG. He is literally just a prize for Usagi. And I mean that's perfectly fine because, to put it bluntly, "this ain't about him". Mamoru is only important because he's important to Usagi. We only care about him because Usagi does. If she didn't care about him we could kick him out of the group and never think about him ever again.

The problem is just that sometimes, although very rarely in the 90s anime, the story makes a big drama over him and Usagi's relationship. Honestly the ONLY reason is works in the anime is because we're always seeing it from Usagi's perspective. So we care because she cares.

But whenever we have to spend time with Mamoru it's just so incredibly dull and uninteresting because the guy has no personality. And what little personality he DOES have isn't particularly enjoyable. In the manga he's a bit of a sarcastic bitch which is at least SOMETHING I like about him. But in the anime and in PGSM... he's just a anal retentive jerk most of the time, brooding and aloof to make him ~*mysterious*~ and desirable to the preteen audience because he is uncomplicated and therefore nonthreatening. But in the anime especially, as soon as he and Usagi officially get together he is all but a blank slate. Just passively nice in a way that forgoes any individuality. He's literally the opposite of Bella Swan. A sort of reverse Y/N where instead of being a self insert for the audience, he's an insert for the audience to project whatever they think would make for a cool boyfriend because he has no describable traits. Hell we barely even know what he's supposed to be studying!

This is why a rather big group of fans, especially back in the day, preferred Usagi with Seiya in the anime. Because at least Seiya had SOMETHING resembling a personality. I don't like Seiya but they at least are a CHARACTER.

And then because Mamoru has 0 personality it brings up a lot of questions the source material isn't built to address which is "why are these two together?". Because without actually having a personality, they don't seem to have anything in common at all. And that brings up a lot of uncomfortable questions regarding fate, and destiny, and whether the only reason they are together is pressures from a past life and pressures of a Utopian future they are obligated to fulfill.

None of this is something the story is equipped or interested in discussing, however. Because it's a story for preteen girls (except for the final Stars arc, especially in the manga, where Naoko decided to go off her shit and make the entire thing about philosophy regarding the self, static death versus dynamic life, the acceptance of chaos because it is the only way good can exist even if it means the possibility of evil, self love, the universe as organism etc etc).

Mamoru isn't like Kaidan at all tho because Kaidan is an actual character. I can tell you things about Kaidan, both good and bad, about his personality, how he sees things and how he thinks about things. Mamoru is literally just the male version of a sexy lamp.

I clown on Kaidan and make fun of him because I really appreciate his role in Shepard's story and his importance to the games as a whole. He enriches the world and plot, especially as a foible to Shepard. I think Kaidan's clashing with Shepard makes her personal story BETTER. kaidan ADDS to the narrative specifically because of who he is, how he thinks and how he responds to things, and how he and Shepard have to work out their shit to reach equal grounds and overcome their past issues and mistakes with each other. Kaidan also humanises Shepard in a way that I adore. Because Kaidan and Shepard's messy relationship shows that Shepard is just a human being. Which is immensely important to Mass Effect as a whole.

Shepard isn't space Jesus. She's a human being. Which is why she makes me so emotional.

Mamoru is just there so Usagi can give the preteen girls watching their wish fulfillment of a cool older boyfriend.

And that's just incredibly dull. Especially when the canon within the story itself, in all its incarnations, has other really great relationships which are complex and nuanced and actually interesting.

[chirpsythismorning]

Has anyone theorized why the Duffers chose to focus on Ten (10) specifically at the start of season 4?

Because looking back, how he was framed at the beginning of s4, compared to the end, makes it obvious he was a red herring.

In 4x01, we get our first (less detailed) recount of the massacre at Hawkins Lab, with the focus singling out Brenner and Ten. While I think there could definitely be important ideas hidden in the subtext during those scenes between them, Ten doesn't seem to hold any importance to the overall story, as his own character, beyond what's given to us in that premiere.

Because in 4x07, when we get a more detailed recount of the massacre, we're now viewing this moment from El's perspective at that same time Brenner and Ten first come into view. But it's at this moment the audience realizes that it was never about Ten.

By the end that same episode, Ten is merely canon fodder. He was given almost all of our focus, and then he was gone. And that was it. But I think that's because it's obvious he was never meant to be important to the overall story in the first place.

Ten was placed at the start of the story, not only as a distraction, but to also act as usable early promo footage.

No, but seriously. It's quite common for shows to post the first 10 or so minutes on YouTube before the actual premiere of a new season. In fact, Stranger Things has done this with the first 8 minutes of s1 & 4.

Planning for marketing and advertising is so fucking essential to Stranger Things roll-out, they would've probably wrote and filmed those scenes, knowing that it could, and very likely would, be used early-on in the promotion circuit (because later scenes in the season are usually filled with spoilers), which meant whatever they focused on couldn't give too much away. If anything it needed to make you think you were getting a lot in the foreground, when in reality the true answers were tiptoeing in the background.

What I think makes the choice to focus on Ten at the start of the season so interesting though, is that he's the number right before Eleven.

Our focus, right from the jump, is specifically on the number that has proximity to Eleven...

And so why do that? Why focus on Ten and then drop him into obscurity?

Maybe to distract us from the fact that the number we should've really been focusing on also has similar proximity to Eleven (literally and figuratively and numerically)... Mayhaps Twelve??

I promise you guys, I was minding my business, doing research for a completely different post, when I noticed a detail that expanded on my curiosity in regards to Ten.

Now, I'm not the kind of byler that tries to add up a bunch of numbers and say that it means something, and that's honestly mostly because I suck at math (and so no hate to the bylers that do that bc that's more of a me problem). And yet despite that, I really don't think this is even reaching. I think they made the choice to focus on the numbers they did and the way that they did, for a reason.

Although Ten didn't give us much of a purpose beyond s4 misleading opener vibes, he still started off the season with a fleeting, but still larger focus than the rest of the numbers besides El.

And so besides Ten and Eleven, which other number played a big role this season?

Two.

Though that's not to say Two operates as a red herring. I would say he actually plays a substantial role the entire season. He has a beginning, middle and end to his arc that stretches the entire season and feels layered in ways that make it clear he was more than just a blip to keep us busy.

And so, for the first episode of s4, these specific numbers were credited first before the rest, as they apparently played the biggest roles. And so, I just find it kind of ironic that:

Do you see it?

Okay, if you're still stuck I'll help you out:

The Duffers have admitted since s4 premiered that a lot of the surprises/answers they're saving for the end of the show, can likely be found within the show itself. This is because, a lot of the choices made, especially in season 4's case, were with the end in mind. And so details that maybe even seemed meaningless or ended up going nowhere, probably had a purpose that went beyond what we assumed when we were first confronted with those ideas. And that was probably the intention. Otherwise the surprise element wouldn't even be there.

Although it might seem like nothing is here, and maybe there isn't. Maybe I am reaching.

I still can't help but feel like these Hawkins lab scenes specifically hold the truth to what is going to play out in season 5.

Because the brothers have also admitted s5 is going to delve into the origins of Hawkins Lab and how Brenner's program went from involving Henry, to evolving and including multiple kids...

Honestly that alone should be enough of an admission that the s4 lab scenes probably hold more answers than we realize. All those choices they made, were made with the truth about Hawkins Lab in the back of their mind.

And so if they're going to make those revelations about the lab in the final season, and s5 is apparently going to also spend a lot of time telling us about Will's disappearance, whatever this all entails has to fit nicely with those scenes of the lab in s4. Because those scenes were extremely recent and also presumably written and talked about beside their outline for s5, meaning that they had every chance to hide the answers in the details... which they've literally admitted to doing by saying the answers to the ending are hidden in the show already... why am I even rambling about this in long form. This isn't a reach if you're actually considering what is in front of us.

That's not to say that we have the full picture yet to comfortably support Twelvegate as a full blown guaranteed theory. Because even though the evidence is astounding, there's still so much missing.

I think the imagery of time/clocks over the seasons being built up, going into the end of the show, and still without really delving into the time/clocks aspect fully, is maybe why I'm so open minded to how they could go about Twelvegate.

What we know about the past regarding Will's childhood along with what happened to Will when he went missing, for all we know might not even be the full truth. And there is some evidence that the facts surrounding Will's disappearance were changed between season 1 and season 2 and so... why was that? Back then fans thought it was just a copy/paste error, but now within the context of twelvegate... it's quite fascinating...

There's also theories Will himself created the upside down? And so, if that were to be the case, in any capacity, I imagine that his role in everything is a lot bigger than we imagine. Like that would make him equally as well known at Hawkins Lab as El.

It's not like we've gotten any imagery like that before, with Will being the center of interest at Hawkins Lab... Oh wait--

It's not like Will has ever been 'the boy who lived' level well known or anything...

But maybe that's because he's literally 'THE BOY WHO CAME BACK TO LIFE' well known!!

WILL BYERS IS THE CHOSEN ONE? WILL BYERS HOLDS THE ANSWERS TO EVERYTHING WE'VE BEEN OVERLOOKING AND MISSING FROM THE BEGINNING???

Then there's the fact that Will himself could play a role in how time is going to impact the last season and presumably our perception of the past itself, specifically in relation to Will and his time at Hawkins Lab (possibly).

Lots of fans predict time travel will be involved in some capacity. Though there is a lot of pushback both in the byler fandom and even in the ga at the possibility of this, because I think a lot of people associate time travel in storytelling with entire story resets and so they're scared that time will just start over and everything that occurred over the seasons would become meaningless. And I guess I could see why that would be disappointing.

However, even if time travel plays a role, and I do think it likely will in some way because the foreshadowing is too extensive to not have been intentional, that doesn't mean I think they'll do it in the most conventional or predictable way possible. I think it would have to be way more complex than what most people expect, and it probably wouldn't erase everything they've been through, assuming what they've been through is even the full truth to begin with...

[brsb4hls]

They're doing Sylvi really well though so far.

I'm a Loki fan first and watch for him obvi, no point in denying, but there's also no arguing with the actual storyline.

I know a lot of people are reading 1x6 as Sylvi betraying Loki, but he did betray her first.

From her perspective at least.

She never had any real connection to anybody, was completely traumatized and couldn't trust. All she had was her mission.

Loki wanted to help her and she tentativly started to trust just for him to change his mind the moment she was about to reach her ultimate goal.

That is betrayal right there.

From an outside perspective we as the audience know Loki has a point. His actions make sense.

Sylvi can't see that though. She is not outside of the narrative.

She's seen HWR being responsible for countless murders and he was the reason she was on the run her entire life. How could she possibly believe a word he said?

And she did not try to kill or actually hurt Loki (physically), she got him out of the way.

And to safety. Kinda.

Then she finally gets to experience a real life with actual human connection and is building that for herself, while working through the grief and dissapointment the fight with Loki must have caused her.

And then he shows up in full tva gear. That must have stung like hell.

She still reasonably talks to Loki, argues her point (while being pissed off of course, which is valid) and helps where help is needed without making a big deal.

And she's justified for wanting to live her life, same as Brad (X 5).

She's clearly not the asshole here.

Loki isn't either! He also has to work through his emotions regarding Sylvi and is convinced he's doing the right thing.

They're both justified in their actions.

And it's complicated and the tension is intriguing.

I enjoy that dynamic.

I'm pretty convinced they wont be endgame, but I hope it still gets resolved in a satisfying (more like not too frustrating) way.

.

[bardic-inspo]

Writer Interview

Tagged by the wonderful @electricshoebox 💜💜💜 Thank you, friendo!!

Tagging forward @vixstarria, @littlejuicebox, @ravnloft if you'd like to do this, too. No worries if not! 💜

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

16 (and counting!)

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

351,099

3. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Red Heart indicates smut included somewhere in the fic (or will be included in future chapters)❤️

All are Fallout 4 fics except the last two, which are Baldur's Gate 3.

Bring the Gasoline (MacCready x Sole Survivor Longfic❤️)

No Rest for the Wicked (MacCready x Deacon X Sole OT3)

We Never Go Anywhere Nice (MacCready x Deacon x Sole OT3)

Worried Sick (MacCready x Deacon x Sole OT3)

Midnight Chimes (Astarion x Cursed!Tav longfic❤️)

Honorable Mention: Blood in the Mortar (Ascended Astarion x Vampire Bride Tav❤️❤️❤️)

4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I'm sometimes (very) fashionably late in doing so. But it's really important to me for a number of reasons. I don't ever want anyone who takes the time to read/comment to feel like I take that for granted (I absolutely don't). It is so incredibly motivating to know there's someone out there enjoying what I'm writing. I want any/all commenters to know I just appreciate them so much.

I've also stumbled into friendships through commenting back and forth on fics before, which was wonderful and unexpected and just opened a new dimension of fandom/community for me. Compliments are wonderful, but I mostly share my writing because I want to feel connected to that sense of community and enjoy that mutual love of whatever universe sprouted the fics in the first place. Responding back to comments makes me feel more in tune with all of that.

5. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I tend to follow a "more hurt more comfort" motto, so most of the angst I write is followed up by comfort (or at least, a comforting note at the end).

I'm gonna say Warm Bodies. It's an angsty Fallout 4 smut fic featuring Deacon x MacCready x Sole Survivor in an established (somewhat domestic) OT3. A close call with death rattles them and they have emotional sex about it. Although there's a lot of comfort with the angst, the ending note is slightly melancholy. It implies that either a) a pretty significant lifestyle change is in order for all of them, which goes against the grain of their characters or b) they'll have more close calls until, one day, it's really too close, and they lose each other for good.

6. What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

I almost always go for a happy/hopeful ending. It's hard to pick one, but it's probably gotta be one my fluffy domestic MacCready x Deacon x SoSu oneshots, Hungry Hearts. Ends with a big happy family moment.

7. Do you write crossovers?

Not yet, at least. I did once thoroughly outline and started drafting an AU that was basically the plot of Casino Royale with Deacon as Bond and MacCready as Vesper and other Fallout universe characters (like Mr. House) inserted in. I don't see myself going back to finish that one at this point.

8. Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Nah. I think I'm too small fry for that in terms of my audience size/reach and that's just fine with me. I'm cool tending this cozy little campfire over here.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yeah! I mostly enjoy writing smut with a ton of feelings/history to it, (Warm Bodies is a super emotional comfort sex OT3 fic; Blood in the Mortar is an evil power couple with an established dynamic relishing in some power play and spicy use of their telepathic bond). But I've also dabbled in some kink exploration in Follow Suit, which plays a little bit with dom/sub dynamics and very light bondage.

I'm really looking forward to writing upcoming smut scenes for Midnight Chimes. Astarion's relationship with sex is such a huge part of his arc, and I'm looking forward to writing the smut scenes in a way that shows his own individual progression with that, and also how his relationship with Naomi deepens/changes over time.

10. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge.

11. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Also not to my knowledge.

12. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope! I am so feast or famine with my writing process/preferences, I don't think I would make a great writing partner at this point. Maybe someday!

13. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Ahh that's tough. It's really going to be, whichever is at the forefront of my mind at the moment. Currently, that's Astarion x Tav (especially my own Tav, who I'm doing a lot OC work/development for). But MacCready x Sole (Natasha) feel like, nostalgic, warm and fuzzy friends to me. I think my heart will always get soft when I think of them together (and with Deacon!).

Really, any ships I used to be more fixated on are just dormant and still have a space in my head/heart.

14. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

I could very well come full circle and feel the pull to deep dive into Fallout again (especially if the TV show turns out to be good, or if they release a new single-player game in the series), but the only further Fallout 4 fic I see myself finishing at this point is Bring the Gasoline (most likely by hermit drafting the rest of it and waiting to share further until I'm done). I think the amount of ideas I had, unfortunately, outmatched my motivation/hyperfixation on that universe. I had a lot of ideas for fics showing the actual OT3 relationship "negotiation" that I've had vivid daydreams about, and lots of wild notes for, but I don't have plans to pick up again at this point.

15. What are your writing strengths?

I get a lot of positive feedback on my action scenes. Also a lot of feedback that my writing is really vivid/visceral/immersive. I think I'm good at putting the reader in the character's shoes/in the heat of a moment, and wrapping them into the character's thoughts/feelings right off the bat. I also feel like character work, generally, is a strong suit of mine (character voice, mannerisms, individuality).

Something that has been really touching to hear is how well people respond to my OCs. I've done a lot of work to make unique/compelling/flawed original characters that readers can get invested in. I am still absolutely floored by some of comments I've gotten re: Natasha (my Sole Survivor). And although Naomi (Tav) is a newer character in my arsenal, I've gotten to play with some alternate (evil) versions of her, and folks seem to be intrigued by both.

16. What are your writing weaknesses?

Echoing Riss on the crutch words and phrases. I do have some editing steps I use to try to mitigate this. In the past, I've also had a bad habit of transposing/mingling words from different fantasy universes (mirelurk vs. mudcrab; Storm Coast vs. Sword Coast) without even realizing I'm doing it. I'm hyperconscious about that, now.

I also struggle to be concise. I made a commitment to work more on this this year, and in doing so, am trying to strike a balance with it. Ideally, if I have a lot of words, there should be a certain density of ideas/information being shared. So, if a fic gets long because it's packing a lot of punch that way, I don't want to cut it off unless it's too much to share at once. If it's long just because I'm being wordy, well, maybe that comes down to self-confidence, and me needing to let my words stand on their own without so much hedging/propping up.

17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I've experimented with this (and now cringe about it in retrospect), but hey, I think it takes some trial and error to figure out what works. My general preference is to write the lines in the language being used for the bulk of the fic, but then add a phrase like "X character said in Elvish" after. I think the less the writer knows of the other language themselves, the more they should err away from writing a lot in it. I think short phrases or single words in a different language can also be to great effect (as long as they're properly researched/understood).

18. What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Warrior Cats as a kid loose on the internet 😺

19. What’s a fandom/ship you haven’t written for yet but want to?

I want to write some Shadowheart/Karlach smut! I'm a little intimidated as I've yet to add F/F to my smut fic punch card, and I wanna get a free sub but I think they have so much angsty sweet potential and I already have a little outline for it!

20. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

Bring the Gasoline will always be my baby. It's my first real fic, and the thing that got me through a lot of ups and downs. I poured so much of myself into it.

But for now, I have to go with Blood in the Mortar. I just had an absolute blast writing it. It gave me confidence back in a way I really needed. It made me feel like I'd grown in skills I'd been working on for a while (particularly with writing dialogue and smut, and character work in general). I got to write villains, really for the first time, and was surprised I had so much fun with it. It was the perfect blend of challenge and getting back into my element, and writing/sharing it felt really uplifting. Felt like letting my hair down, hehe.

[onceuponalegendbg]

Alright, so. I've had some time. Let's see if I can gather my thoughts.

I always have this problem with series finales. This feeling that I wanted so much more than the show was able or willing to give. I think it's because I just don't like the idea that shows have to end, even if I know that they obviously should. I had that feeling with most shows I've watched that did end up reaching their natural conclusions. So trying to separate that knee-jerk response from my genuine feelings is a bit of a hassle.

I think a lot of my complaints really just boil down to the old tried and true 'we needed more time' honestly. Or things I'd rather have spent time on than what they did. I understand, for instance, that the hextech/arcane was central to the main plot, but honestly I was way more invested in the personal dramas than whatever was going on with that. And that's not really the shows fault, that's just my preference.

This one might be divisive but I think there were too many music video segments. Don't get me wrong, it was all great but... it also just felt like maybe we didn't need two in every episode. I think in the first season only eps 7 and 9 had more than one song (technically episode 1 as well if you count Powder singing at the beginning).

I still don't like Jayce. ....I couldn't tell you why I'm so apathetic to him, I just am. Every time he's on screen I can feel myself checking out. It's wild.

Let's see.... I think that's it....

Okay, so on to the good stuff. Honestly it's more of the same from season 1: The animation, the music, the characters, the story, the way each act was designed specifically to hurt me personally for some reason.

Jinx's arc especially was so fascinating to watch over these two seasons. They really took some turns with her I couldn't have called and I think they nailed it. She's not dead, by the way. I'm willing to bet money on that.

I love Vi and Cait, both together and as individuals. As someone with younger siblings, Vi's relationship with Jinx was enthralling. Imagining being put in any of those scenarios really just broke my heart and made me want to hug all of my siblings. Vi in a lot of ways was cursed like Jinx. Every good thing she tried to do, every attempt to fix something, to hold on to something, was usually violently torn from her. Vi has such a big heart, and watching it get stomped on over and over was not fun.

And Cait. Oh my girl Caitlyn. She is definitely an element of the story I think needed just a bit more time. I'm not gonna sit here and say that the writers handled her return from hell perfectly. There's definitely some hurdles we jumped two at a time, but I also think they left enough for the audience to pick up on that it's not entirely jarring. As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, her having a few months to distance herself from the immediate fallout of Cass' death probably did help with perspective, and then it was just a matter of finding a way to break off from Ambessa without getting killed all while still wanting Jinx dead. There's a lot of complicated emotions and logistics that needed to be juggled with her storyline this season but overall... I think I'm okay with it. It's not my favorite storyline this season (despite being the one I was most looking forward to going in) but it's good. I see it. I get it.

Ekko, my underappreciated king and ultimate best boy. I love this kid so much. He's never done anything wrong in his life, ever, and I will die on this hill. ....No but for real, I love Ekko and I wish he could have been in the show more.

Mel was also a surprise hit for me. I liked her in season 1, no doubt, already in the first act of this season I could not wait to see how it was all going to play out with her mom. While her storyline was obviously setting up for future installments in this world, I got to say, seeing her go all out was fantastic.

You want to know who I genuinely did not expect to fall in love with so much this season? Sevika. My girl. Again, I liked her in season 1, but she really stepped up this season and every scene with her (and Jinx) had my rapt attention. Sneaky fav of the show goes to Sevika.

I don't really have many thoughts on Viktor. I'm not apathetic to him like Jayce but I also just... wasn't entirely interested in his plotline. Like I said earlier, the hextech/arcane stuff wasn't my focus and that's essentially a lot of what his story was. The visuals with him were gorgeous though.

So, yeah. I really loved this show. It's not perfect, not even season 1 was perfect, but with how much time and effort and ambition was put into this thing, I'd say the crew have something they can truly be proud of. I had a good time, and for me that's all that actually matters.