#s2 goes NUTS

[caifanes]

[mossycakes]

either way and im sorry to say it but i definitely headcanon armand has eating issues. like the vampire version of an eating disorder. i cant explain it i just know it in my soul lmao. that man has never had a healthy relationship in his life, you think hes gonna have a healthy relationship with food???? when he literally hates being a vampire and definitely sees vampirism as a curse??? hell no

[angxliquel]

My hcs on the exact (exact-ish) moment each of the remaining Nublar Six realized Yaz and Sammy were head over heels for each other

In order of earliest to latest

Brooklyn

You know she had it clocked from the BEGINNING. Her gaydar is immaculate. Started getting suspicious when Yaz was defending Sammy so hard over the phone in s1. That was her "wait a minute..." moment. I think the moment she was 100% DEAD set on it was s2 ep3 "The Watering Hole" when Sammy and Yaz were giggling and shit behind her and she was thinking that entire time "they're so obviously gay for each other to the point where its nuts".

Kenji

My personal belief is that for him, it wasn't a gradual realization but more of a "hit me like a truck" one. Exact moment is in s3 episode seven "A shock to the system" when Yaz is coddling Sammy. He sees Yaz with her strange behavior and is like "Wow, why is Yaz being so soft around Sammy? Come to think about it, she's always a little soft when it comes to Sammy. It's almost like- OHHHHHHHHH"

Ben:

Second most oblivious. Probably would've been number one if not for Yaz being the one to confide in him. In s5 episode 7 "The Leap", yk that scene where Yaz drops the hint and Ben BARELY manages to scoop it up? ("Oh, you're talking about...Sammy!") Yeah thats the moment he figures it out. This is the guy who eats bugs straight from the bushes and wonders why people r a little freaked out by it.

Darius:

Finally, Darius. Don't know the exact line, but when he and Brooklyn walk in on the yassamy kiss in s5 episode 9 he goes "I had no idea!" or something like that. There was probably some conversation between him and Brooklyn after "The Long Run" that went like this:

Brooklyn: Wow, I can't believe Yaz ran across the entire island while being chased by a hybrid, killer dinasour in order to save Sammy.

Darius: I know. They're such good best friends! ☺

Brooklyn:

[nostalgicmiscellaneous]

In today's "Are we watching the same show?" episode. There is a minority but loud voice complaining that somehow Penelope and Colin's friendship is only told and never showed to us. Say what? S1 and S2 ON SCREEN Colin and Penelope discuss trust, dreams, their aspirations, they banter, dance together and talk about love, even about love. Colin exchange letters with her ( a girl that is not his family member), this a boy and a girl in the 1800s having this connection and he takes what she says to the heart to a point where it's her who inspires him to travel because she said something to him. Colin listens to her talking about her freedom & dreams in S2 in a scene where she makes him feel important and he looks at her with pure and utter admiration and it's there, all there. At the end, as still immature boy with other men around, he denies having interest on her beyond of a friend, with poor choices of words. Then we start S3 and he's upset she is not answering to his letters anymore, when even his family ignores his letters and he used to take it well, he misses her. It happens what we know and confronted with what the hurt he caused her, he apologises and clarifies it was about his own insecurities, not her, never her because she's warm, and clever and someone he admires and wants in his life, because with her he actually feels appreciated, she hears him, knows him, and she also didn't fall for the charm facade. Colin not only says things, he acts on. He tries with actions to make it up for her to give what she wants, even if he actually is not really pleased that she's seeking a husband ( and ofc it's about his own feelings for her here, but i digress) and he goes to teach her that she's wonderful, charming, attractive to any men. As i said before, his lessons is all about Colin telling her how he sees her and OH BOY, he sees her as someone wonderful for he thinks she only needs to be herself to get any husband she wants. So don't even try to say Colin was ashamed of that woman. He seeks her, He flirts with her, he remembers exactly how they met, he never was upset to be with her everywhere. When he thought her cousin was hurting her life ( let's be real, it was for Pen that he was more worried about the Featheringtons), he confronted the man and made sure to tell her he'll always protect her because Pen is special to him. When we grow up with someone, and specially someone younger that we relate in our minds to our baby sibblings it takes some mental adjustment that we even deny and supress some feelings when things start to change, to see them as men and woman take a bit of time, change, maturing and acceptance to feel it's right. Colin breaks every social rule with her because he's so close to her and she feels so much his in a sense that he doesn't see what's wrong in the way he behaves around her - that he doesn't around other women. And when his friend asks him to kiss her, he's reticent because he's afraid of losing her when he clearly is already starting to realize how he actually loves her, and because they are so in tune usually, it messes with his mind that the kiss of realization meant nothing to her, as he perceives. It drives him nuts. Again, we are talking about 1800s young adults, not 2024. Learn what friendship between Men and Women were. If their friendship had taken any further steps, they would have to end up making out in a public fashion and get marry....oh wait....

[zoozoocala]

the s2 finale of the bear only gets better when you rewatch it trying to see everything from the perspective of Daniela and Connor, the two new cooks. its literally their first ever service with the restaurant and everything goes nuts almost immediately. place runs out of forks. boss and the desserts guy are cold shouldering for some reason. other boss gets stuck in the walkin and starts screaming like a cat at the vet. other boss's gf comes in and freaks after hearing him yowling. not your business, youre on pasta. the other guy you got hired with got fired for smoking meth out back???? its been one hour.

[low-budget-korra]

My comments on Arcane s01

-Vi is the sister I wish I had, fr. And as an lesbian older sister myself, it wasn't hard for me to connect with her from the very first episode.And now that I've watched the show, I don't understand how some people blame her for wherever she did to Jinx. Yeah, Jinx was just a kid but guess what, so was Vi. Jinx lost everything? So has Vi.

"but Violet abandoned Powder" No! She was protecting her lil sister. And she just saw her sister murder their entire family, how y'all think she feels? And she was about to save Powder before she was kidnapped.

And the fact that she manages to be so soft and good besides everything she went through... Vi is THE exception.

-Powder/Jinx was just a kid and all but damn. Vi forgives it all she has done, and in the one time Vi needs her forgiveness, she's so quick to hate her for good. Did she really realize what she had done?

Well, now I see why some people compared her to Azula. The difference is that Azula never had anything like Vander or Vi, Jinx had that and still went nuts. And also, Azula never goes for the murder, not really when it was expected (like when she was betrayed by Mai and Ty Lee). While Jinx would give 2 shits about kill people for funzies.

Yes, I feel sympathy for her, just as much as I feel anger towards her. She is a complex character that's for sure. And mentally ill

And my hate for her is mostly for the way she treats Vi honestly

Anyway, there's this joke on Brazilian fandom that Jinx is homophobic and that's why she can't stand Caitlyn and can't stand seeing her with Vi, and I think it's honestly hilarious

-CaitVi is a wonderful ship. Nothing against the explicit and big gestures such as kissing and all but damn, I missed the subtlety. The minor and meaningful touches, the gazes...it reminded me so much of Korrasami

-I loved Jayce and Caitlyn's relationship. When united, gays and lesbians are strong.

And I still don't get why people keep pretending Caitlyn actions on s2(as far as I saw in the trailers) aren't justified. Her mom was murdered by the people she tried to help, if it was me, I would also raise hell upon them. Anyway, let's talk about s1 Caitlyn and she is just so adorable.

She really wanted to make a difference, to help. She got out of her bubble and got a taste of the real world, and I bet it hurt. She just wanted to help and to do what's right but she paid the high price and has all the right to me mad at s2

And from the way she flinched at Jinx during the "dinner" scene, at bet the hours she spent under Jinx mercy weren't nice

-Im sorry, I didn't care much about the hextec plot. I know it's important and it's what makes the character on the road but their inner struggles and their subplots are far better to watch.

The only interesting part of them was Jayce cuz he is such an interesting character. For the way I've seen people talk about them, I thought he was gonna be the worst but no. You can see he struggles with some decisions. He ain't bad, he just does bad decisions

-Ekko is such a G man. If something happens to him in s2, I will riot. I like how he is the exact opposite of Jinx.

Ekko also lost everything and everyone, but instead of Jinx, he turned his pain into something good, into helping others the way Vander and Benzo helped him and the other kids.

I wasn't expecting him to be friends with Heimerdinger but I love that for him

-Lets talk about something serious, Jinx was right in her anger towards the upper class but blowing things up was not the answer. Vander knew and saw things how it was, making deals is better than having innocent blood in the streets.In fact, I saw a lot of simplified comments about the politics and social aspects of Arcane and now that I've watched the show I see how damn immature and naive a lot of them are.

Do not get me wrong, we should rebel every time we need and violence is a part of that. No revolution happened without it. But we should be wise about the battles we pick.

Let's look at Caitlyn for example, she is born rich and a good person. It's naive to expect someone born with everything and disconnected with the lower class problems and needs, to all of sudden be an ally to social causes. Born rich and privileged doesn't necessarily mean you are born a bad person, just as much as born poor doesn't automatically make you a good person.

Now, do you think Caitlyn deserved to lose her mother like that? Do you think she deserves what Jinx did to her just because she was from Piltover? That's when you lose potential allies and gain strong enemiesIt's not that simple. Social problems such as class differences, poverty, violence...it's not something that you can fix that easily. Oh man, I wish it was but it ain't.

With all that said, Jinx, Vi, Caitlyn, Ekko, Vander...none of them are evil and most of their actions (if not all of them) have a solid reason behind it, but this doesn't mean they were the best thing to do.

-Fuck you Silco. He is what happens when you put a "wherever it cost" mentality, cuz sometimes the cost is high. Too high. Also, he doesn't want justice or revenge, he wants power

-The animation and sound design is a masterpiece too. And the fight choreography? Damn shit was fire

[bucketbender]

Analysis of Tervo throughout the seasons

I think the reason why I love SO so much is because the romance is not the reason you watch the show, at least at the beginning. For 3 seasons straight, the two characters who have so much chemistry aren’t in love. Or technically, they’re not together. Which makes sense, because they’re not supposed to be in love. They are shlorpians with teammate affinity.

(Note that I think the whole Valentine’s Day plot was a bit of a stretch, with teammate affinity being something that’s literally never been mentioned once. But you know what ? I can look past this. There are worst stretches in cartoons. Like the Simpsons.)

What makes their relationship so interesting is that, not only do they absolutely work even though they’re complete opposites (I know, that’s the point of the show), but they have been sharing that braincell ever since the first episode. Terry shows something Earth-related to Korvo, Korvo actually takes an interest because it fascinates him, they have fun and bond, it goes to shit, Korvo goes back to working, and repeat. They don’t have the best dynamic, yet their bond is strong enough to make it work. And it works because even in the first Season, they like spending time with each other.

S1 :

In season 1, Korvo spends most of his time on the ship. Half of the time, Terry is here to keep him company. He doesn’t do anything, he just sits there with a magazine or a Tiki drink and blabbers about human culture. And his inattentive and forgetful nature sometimes gets Korvo hurt when he fixes something. But still, he remains. Even though Korvo could and probably should banish him from the ship for their own safety. But the thing is, he actually likes having him around. Despite all his faults, Terry is sweet, and cares enough about him to stay in this boring ship to talk to him. That’s more than probably anyone has ever done for him, from what we’ve seen of their past.

As for Terry, he sees this guy who works literally all the time, and even if he usually shuts out anything fun, when Korvo does indulge him, they get into some crazy sci-fi action. He also knows his friend works hard, and does all of the chores, and cares for the whole family, even if he never expresses it directly. If you headcanon that he’s sapiosexual (« It is sexy when you know about the ship »), that also explains why Terry had some interest in him as well.

Even in the first season, even when they hadn’t shared a single kiss, they liked each other. (big up to the dumb ray episode that made people go nuts when it came out. We’ve come so far)

They’re not in love, but you can already see that Korvo will be the one to fall for his opposite first. Terry annoys him so much - and by grey gods, he endured more stupidity from his friend every day than my parents in a year. But he knows Terry genuinely chooses to spend time with him even though he could be boning humans literally 24/7. He chooses to stay in this boring ship with him to talk and just spend time together.

S2 :

They pretty much share the same dynamic in Season 2, except that now, they also share kisses sometimes. It’s not exactly a love kiss, at least not yet. It’s more of a way to say « I’m sorry » and « thank you ». It’s not often and it’s treated as a treat. Other than that, everything is the same. Terry keeps going around to have intercourse with humans and comes back in the ship to eat and hang out with Korvo. And… I have a theory. A SO theory. Remember this ?

It’s barely a 1 sec image of Korvo squinting while watching Terry vibe with a random human. It’s from the red goobler wedding episode.

And I think half of the reason Korvo… did what he did in that episode, was because he was frustrated with his relationship with Terry. Or rather, the lack of relationship he was wishing for. And so, there was this other being, that had a deep connection to him, and who he vibed with and who wanted him… and they boned. And Korvo told him they should get married. And their relationship worked for a solid 2 minutes.

I wholeheartedly believe this whole thing was much more about Terry than it was about anyone else. And if this has already been explored in like, 50 fics, I am sorry, and proud that I realized this by myself.

S3 :

Anyway, let’s keep going with Season 3. This one marks a huge change in their dynamic because it’s the year Korvo finally decides to put down roots on Earth. No more fixing the ship all the time, just occasionally. Thus, he spends the rest of the day with Terry or his family.

… Which makes him realize just how much time Terry spends with other humans, with whom he shares more than just hobbies. And it really frustrates him. Along with the Gladwell episode, he openly voices his jealousy this season. Maybe he even realizes that the "smooch on the lips" wasn’t just their thing, but that Terry did it with random strangers in the street ? In any case, he hates it.

(Small detail that even though Korvo craves something more with Terry, he’s the one who shows it the least. He tries to keep this "authoritative and strong and awesome" persona even when he just wants to rip Terry’s shirt off. My proof : « And then after that, we make out ? / Maybe. / That means no. / No ! It means… maybe. »)

This season also doesn’t show Terry having sex with anyone. In fact, it shows him being abandoned by his lovers who turned out to be psychos. Instead, he gets to share more of what he likes with Korvo and spends more time with him (the line, the skull bullet, tacos bell). And he’s obviously very happy with this new dynamic. Not only does Korvo listen to all of his stupid ideas, but now he actively participates in them. Gradually, he spends more time with his teammate and therefore, less with humans.

S4 :

Season 4 is the second best after Season 5, and not just because Dan Stevens joined the party. In season 4, Tervo don’t just smooch. They completely kiss and moan like sexy savages. They have sex twice on camera, even though we only see it once. Everything changes, but they still have the same chemistry they had in Season 1. Do stupid things, get upset, make peace, repeat. Then make out. That’s the difference. Korvo saves Terry in the stock-a-verse with « the power of love » and stabbing, and Terry tells a stranger he can’t have sex with her because he’s in love with his partner. *squint at the Valentine’s Day episode*

But then, after they "finally realize that they have love", they immediately get married. As if what Shlorp told them about their species was the only thing holding them back.

And then… oh boy. That’s some loving, horny rollercoaster we get on for Season 5. I had as many « awwww » moments watching it as I did watching WOY, but not for the same reasons.

S5 :

This time, their dynamic actually shifts. Korvo is more than ever the one doing the silly, stupid shit. And when he’s not spending his time beefing with a human, he’s with his family and/or lover. Tervo don’t argue about stupid shit anymore. They let it slide. And they truly, deeply love each other.

Korvo clearly shows it more, as he’s been dying to express his feelings (the skirt, the endless honey moon, the desperation to keep the what if device away). But he didn’t know if it was normal or even allowed to do before the Valentines Day episode. Now that he knows they can be in love and are, he doesn’t count the seconds, the pennies, the attention : it all goes to Terry.

I’m telling you, that pupa specialist is spoiled as hell every day. But he doesn’t love Korvo for his ways of always going the extra mile. He loves him for the same reasons he liked him at first : he cares for the family, he’s smart as hell, he’s dedicated. Yet he’s still so emotionally stupid. But it’s fine, he can be the emotional intelligence for the both of them.

I honestly wonder if we’ve reached the peak of their relationship or if there will be much more. Maybe in Season 6, we’ll see Terry sacrifice some things for Korvo. Maybe Zarck will kidnap one of the duo and they’ll spend three episodes getting him back. Maybe we’ll finally have the episode that explores Korvo and Terry’s past to understand their daddy issues. Or maybe we’ll have more Gravity Falls style shenanigans with the replicants. I don’t know which idea I’d like more, honestly.

Anyway ! Thanks for reading. That was some long analysis. I’m going to eat breakfast now. Toodles !

[evenmoreofadisaster]

Hi, it's me again, I left a note in my reply, but now I have another question or request<3 Can you tell us a little bit more about Kendrtwollo? Like how did those two meet? What kind of dynamic and relationship do they have? How does it evolve until it becomes romantic? And what is their dynamic or relationship like when it's romantic? How does his family (Especially One) react to their relationship? (Please tell me he becomes jealous and overprotective XD) While we're at it, how does the rest of the family react to One and Usagi's relationship? (I already read the post about how Two reacts, and I love it<3) And anything else you can tell us about Mikey's future daughter? Having said all that, if there are things you can't tell because of spoilers or because it's not fully planned yet and you'll change it in the future, I'll understand, thank you very much for your time<3

Lol, yes! Response is under the cut bc it's a bit long lmao

This is a minor spoiler for s2 chatper 3, but Kendra and Two actually meet off-screen, when Two enrolls in April's school as Donnie. He joins the purple dragons before moving into April's class. By chapter 3, Donnie is no longer associated with the purple dragons and knows Kendra's just as deceiving as One.

I imagine Kendra and Two's relationship is kind of like enemies to lovers, but they never quite reach the lovers stage. They're kind of like in an endless game of cat and mouse, where Kendra gives Two the attention or validation he needs, then uses his tech (either with or without his permission, depending on what her angle is). She plays him. Two knows this, and, depending on how Two is feeling depends on whether or not he lets Kendra get away with it.

I don't think they'd ever be lovey-dovey or have an official relationship, but Kendra genuinely thinks that Two is a genius which is probably why Two goes back to her. I wouldn't say they develop 'feelings' for each other, but I’d more of an unhealthy attachment.

I don't think Raph and Mikey would know the full extent of Two and Kendra's relationship, but they're not big fans of her. She's thrown Two under the bus and has gone under his nose to steal from him, which they don't appreciate. One KNOWS. He knows Kendra is a bad influence-- this is how Two got into vaping-- he knows Kendra is using Two for his tech and he doesn't like it. I don't think there's anything for One to be jealous of-- since this would most likely happen in the time One goes to Japan with Usagi (post movie arc), therefore isn't around often enough to be jealous-- but One does get super overprotective.

My version of Kendra does kickboxing, so she can beat Two in hand-to-hand. Against One, though, she'd die without her tech.

For One and Usagi's relationship, everyone is pretty much chill with Usagi except for Two and Raph (at first). Raph knows that Usagi is unpredictable and dangerous, so he's definitely on the fence when One hangs out with him post s2. When Raph sees how One can handle Usagi going nuts (more info about that here) and how he calms him down, Raph knows that there's nothing to worry about. Usagi frustrates Raph sometimes, but not any more than his brothers do. They get along. This drives Two insane. Mikey, generally, is just happy that One can be happy and himself around Usagi. You can read about Draxum's thoughts here.

Yes! So far, I'm thinking that Mikey's adopted kid will be EMD's version of Renet. Mikey finds her as he travels the world to help people in need. The details are still fuzzy, but the idea rn is that Renet lost both her parents. Her mother was the apprentice of a time lord, who's either exiled or imprisoned. The mother stole the time scepter that is now in Renet's possession. Renet has no idea what it is or why people are after it, until Mikey finds her and helps.

[genericpuff]

this is driving me nuts and i don't know if i'm off my rocker, but demeter's son is implied to have died when he was about ten. the great divide lasted ten years. is rachel seriously saying that demeter IMMEDIATELY got with the king and had a kid within the first few WEEKS of the divide? like, she's got a SHORT time frame if he is indeed ten. she's banished and made mortal, her daughter has to run the mortal realm, and demeter - who is obsessed with her duty - just. gets pregnant? wtf rachel?

k but they also claim that he's 12-

so yeah rachel really isn't even planning anything out anymore, she's definitely trying to save face in her interviews that she's 'planned out' what's currently happening for a 'long time', but evidently not long enough for her to notice the plotholes that are happening in real time lmao (so no, I don't think she's 'planned out' LO as much as she says she has... and if she actually has planned it out this far, then it goes to show how little thought went into said planning.)

love the idea though of Demeter being separated from Persephone, turned into a mortal, and just IMMEDIATELY shacking up with another mortal LMAO Rachel could have just as easily gone for the route of having Demeter be taken in by Theseus and Phaedra in her time of need and then become the nursemaid for their child Demophoon, but nah just- just forgo that entirely and make Demeter the biological mom, even though you've literally Demeter sitting with who we can assume to now be Phaedra in the S2 finale-

sigh

[chaifootsteps]

saying it's just about blitzstrike is really dumb, especially since I've seen you spend way more time unpicking the show's bad writing like most other critcal voices have. it doesn't make someone an automatic Blitzstrike shipper just because most of the bad writing centres around Stolas

also like - it kind of drives me nuts when people get their cart-horse order the wrong way around.

like they always phrase it as 'you just criticize X ship because you wanted Y ship instead!'

when sometimes it's more like 'the reason why someone prefers Y ship is because X ship is badly written or there's better chemistry/support for Y ship in the text'

like they always assume people ship out of some arbritrary bias and it can never be because they critically engaged with the text and realized there was more to chew on with Y ship or that X ship is would be deeply unhealthy and unpleasant if it became canon

like I have a soft spot for Blitzfizz as well as Blitzstrike. and that's mostly because while I like Blitzstrike for the matching enthusiasm over horses and eat the rich Bonny and Clyde thing they have, I think when I stop and analyze the text Blitzfizz is the ship that's actually satisfying.

and that isn't because I came into the show wanting to ship Blitz and Fizz. I didn't think much of it through all of s1 and liked Flitzodeus instead, back when they both had more attitude

it's only when s2 hit and Stol1tz moved into the category of 'completely unrecoverable and unshippable' for me that it made me think more about how Viv had accidentally written it so that Blitzfizz was the ship I actually wanted to happen, because of all the thematic mirrors and unresolved tension between the two characters. that it was the true childhood friends ship, unlike stol1tz

sorry if that's rambly, I hope it makes sense? it just annoys me because besides the fact that saying criticals are just bitter about ships being dismissive, the ones who do want something other than stol1tz aren't immediately wrong just because it's about a ship

same with people who ship Blitzo/Verosika or even Blitzo/M&M. sometimes there just is more to work with there while the main ship is drier than unseasoned chicken

and for a fandom who loves to cry 'homophobia' at people, they should probably stop and realize this exact argument - 'you're just bitter your ship didn't become canon!' - is levelled at people who ship m/m and f/f pairings all the time. they're told to sit down and shut up because their ship that probably has more chemistry than the official pairing never had a chance in the first place

but in this case the show does have a lot of m/m ships, but the ones that never had a chance are just the ones Viv refuses to explore because she can't have anything get in the way of Stolas being rewarded with the 'love' of his favorite sex slave

Just goes to show that none of these toxic people actually think about the sounds coming out of their mouths. They just say whatever they think will do the most damage in the moment, regardless of whether it's based in fact or whether it makes sense.

[murfpersonalblog]

IWTV S2 OST - Hella Spoilery

Daniel Hart woke up and chose violence, I see. (Link)

I don't wanna hear any of the tracks until I actually see the episodes they're in--the emotional impact will hit so much harder that way. But the titles alone have me like 👀👀👀

Ep1: What Can the Damned Really Say to the Damned?

We were already devastated by the strings in Ep1, such beautiful tracks, and my favorite scene in S2 so far, as Louis just cried his eyes out over knowing his baby girl could dream. It was such a perfect nod to Merrick, and Louis thanking her for showing him Claudia's diaries.

EMMY. 👏 WHEN? 👏

Ep2: Do You Know What It Means to be Loved By Death?

These definitely look like they're going in episode order--this is all Theatre stuff we've seen bits of in the teasers. I'm unsure about Ep3 & Ep4 though; I'm just going off of my hunches ATM?

Ep3: No Pain | Ep4: I Want You More Than Anything in the World

WOAH. 😲

I see you Mr. Gentleman Death, but hold on a sec--

Welp, it's official, Tale of the Body Thief is definitely cooking; the Raglan James leaks weren't lying! I am SO happy! And terrified!

If they're going by the order in the books, not the teaser/promo, then rule #4 is about Lestat, and "killing your own kind."

I have no idea why this track is way at the bottom of the playlist

But I suspect it's also related to this episode, and whatever goes down with the Coven/Theatre vs Claudia & Louis.

We were told in a recent review that "I Don't Like Windows When They're Closed" is the song Claudia performs as Baby LouLou; I am SO excited for this! It's gonna be WEIRD, I can feel it. 👶🏾🎼

These tracks are way at the bottom of the playlist and IDKY, but it's obvs Claudia as Baby LouLou, and that's just French for "I Don't Like Windows...."

Ep5: Don't Be Afraid, Just Start the Tape

The backstory we've all been waiting for! ^0^

And they already warned us that Ep5 was gonna be effing NUTS, so I imagine Armand will tell his story to DANIEL--in SanFran????

Ep6: Like the Light by which God Made the World Before He Made Light | Ep7: I Could Not Prevent It

👀👀👀☀️🔥💀🔥🎭🔥⚰️⚰️⚰️🔥💀🍿

Who TF is Francis? Francis of Assssi? XD

PLEASE let this be Lestat's POV when he first got to NOLA--I wanna know why he went there, and where he was BEFORE! Was he asleep? Is he STILL asleep in 2022?!

👀👀👀☀️🔥💀🔥🎭🔥⚰️⚰️⚰️🔥💀🍿

PLEASE let this be Louis discovering the Fire Gift as he lights those mofos up! 🙏🙏🙏🙏

The Garden of Satan is giving me Children of Satan/Darkness vibes--maybe this is about Nicki ALSO dying in a fire? 👀 Jfc this is too much.

Ep8: Unannounced Mystery Title

I'm gonna take a stab in the dark and assume the PLETHORA of songs left on this list are from Ep8, cuz I literally have zero context for it--all we know is that it will supposedly segue into S3 TVL.

The crooner is back! But will it be REAL Lestat? in 2022? Rockstar!Lestat!? Flashbacks to 1900s!Loustat? Or more DreamStat?

Yeah, I got nuthin.

Lestat mentioned Le Bucheron before about dogs vs lambs--

--so I'm wondering if this has anything to do with Les feeling like he's still being "herded" by lesser vampires?

Or perhaps GREATER vampires (Armand.... Magnus.... TWMBK?)

This is all giving me heavy TVL vibes!

HOWEVER--

"Followed Closely By My Madness" could be for Nicki, but we all know it could also be referring to LOUIS, a la Merrick. ☀️💀🔥⚰️👀

I am SO STOKED for this season, they better stop playing with me!

[sarucane]

Why didn't Ed always protect Stede?

I'm a bit late to the party and only really got into OFMD with S2, so I've started watching S1 really thoroughly only recently. And I've noticed that there's this narrative in the fandom that Ed and Stede are super protective of each other, particularly Ed--but as I've gone through S1 (number redacted) times, it's been driving me nuts how much Ed doesn't protect Stede.

Sure, there's the meme we all love when Ed stands in front of the firing squad--but for most of the scene before that, he's been standing and watching Stede beg for his life. He's upset, but he doesn't intervene until it's nearly do late. And before that, Ed doesn't say or do a thing about Calico Jack treating Stede like shit--sure it's believable that he just doesn't notice the passive aggression, but not even catching the "Steve" thing? That's something that isn't even intervening, Jack could be making an honest mistake. But the thing no-protection moment that's really driven me nuts is this moment

In the scene before this, Ed and Stede have just had an incredibly emotionally intimate conversation. Ed is clearly at least half in love with Stede at this point. This is a relationship that means something important to him, this is a person he cares for deeply. And…and Izzy almost murdered Stede in front of him, because of him, and he just looked away.

But at the same time, Ed does love Stede, he does intervene to protect him from the English--at great personal risk and cost. By the end of S2 Ed's much better about this kind of thing (though I'd argue he's never as super-protective as I've seen suggested).

So what was going on here? Ed's a total softie inside, especially with Stede, so why was he like this?

And I've got a theory! Here goes:

Mr. "greatest pirate who ever lived" is, in fact, an overachieving rule-follower (cough teacher's pet cough).

Ed doesn't intervene to help Stede because Ed conforms himself to the rules set by whoever has the strongest personality in a room, or whatever "code" is being pushed on him/is easiest to follow.

I think this is part of why Ed often struggles to identify what he wants, or hold onto a firm sense of his self-identity. And I think it's a lot of why he's so attracted to Stede, and why that relationship is so important to his development: Ed is much less likely to follow the rules when he's one-on-one with someone, and spending a lot of time alone with Stede gives him much more mental space to understand what he wants.

And just like Stede is most successful when he doesn't try to follow the traditional rules of pirating, Ed is most successful--in his relationship with Stede and outside it--when he doesn't obsess over bending to the rules, and instead picks and chooses which ones to follow and which ones to discard.

I have a partly-written super-long version of this where I go episode by episode looking at how the rules theme works with Ed's character mechanics, but I'm just going to focus on the topic question here (I might get around to posting the long version, but I also might be distracted by something shiny;) )

So let's start with The Art of Fuckery and the thing that was driving me crazy.

Ed's core conflict in this episode was whether he'd going to send Stede to "doggy heaven." Why would he follow Stede to doggy heaven? Because according to Izzy, Stede is categorized as a pet, and Ed has "a policy regarding pets aboard your vessel." It's a rule. Ed has to follow it.

And Ed fully intends to follow it, right up until the kraken turns up and the rules go out the window. And then he's in a safe space with Stede, drowning in memory of the good rules he broke (don't kill people you love). But Stede rejects the idea that Ed breaking that rule makes him a bad person. He appeals, instead, to friendship. And offers his own rule: that they could pretend the murder thing never happened.

Because that's the amazing thing about Stede: he lives at the intersection of aristocratic and pirate rules (which isn't supposed to exist, and which drew Ed to him), and he makes up his own rules.

When Ed's with Stede, he can follow different rules, unlike anything he'd imagined. Can even sometimes make up his own rules. Can actually pay attention to himself, think about what he wants, what he likes and fears.

But when Ed's in a crowd, or alone with someone trying to impose something on him, he conforms. So when Izzy invokes Pirate Rules and steamrolls Ed ("no you're not doing this,") Ed lets him.

It's a character flaw, and it's a serious one...but it's also one Ed works on when he stops complaining about the treasure hunt business. And when he and Stede discuss the idea of co-captains, and arrangement that would break the rule that "a ship has only one captain."

Which Ed is able to do because he's in a safe space. Calico Jack disrupts that, and introduces a succession of games with clearly defined rules, which Ed follows one after another. And Ed has so little self-awareness, is so easily swamped by Jack's personality, that he doesn't notice how Jack's treating Stede, let alone defend him, and he bows to every hint of pressure.

And all that culminates in Ed having to make a decision: follow pirate rules, where everyone's just at "various stages of screwing each other over," or do what he wants. Go help his friend, the guy he loves.

Which just ends up with him being absorbed right back into the pirate system of rules. He tries to use this at first, faking a confession on the grounds that he's a "life is cheap sort of guy." But Izzy's outsmarted him, and Izzy invokes pirate rules again: that Ed told him the rule for a first mate was "above all loyalty to your captain."

Ed doesn't call out for the Act of Grace until the last minute. He could have done it at the trial--he didn't. This is a hard thing for him to do, because he's surrounded by rule-following pressure, from Izzy and from Chauncy. The last time he was in a situation like this, Ed just looked away and let Stede die (he thought).

But the thing about Ed is that he's "half insane." For years, he used the combo of being considered "mad" and also having Izzy around to have his cake and eat it too with rules, to be the world's greatest pirate and also hang onto his own authentic self.

As a result, Ed got good at finding loopholes. Places where you can follow the rules and break them, at the same time. Getting run through, but in a place that missed "all the important bits." Being sentenced to death, but asking for an Act of Grace.

It's a big deal when Ed steps in front of Stede like that. He's acting against pirate rules, risking being absorbed by the rules set by the English.

He does it for Stede--and that starts to set him free. After that, Ed's never just following the rules again. He actually can't, even when he tries: his going kraken at the end of S1 and start of S2 is doomed from the start and full of contradictions, starting with the fact that he's on Stede's ship, the ship with hidden passages where rule-breaking can be hidden until it's needed.

Ed struggles a lot to figure out which rules to follow ("I will abide by the guidelines"), which rules to set aside ("Can we take it slow?"), when to make up his own rules ("So we're innkeepers now."). And Stede helps him, telling him things like "This can be whatever we want it to be," and "you're not a dick, life's a dick."

I don't really have a clever conclusion to this particular meta. It's a messy thing, and individual figuring out how to their life does and does not intersect with society. This theme doesn't resolve neatly, it just stops at the end of the season, like the tension between Ed/kraken/Blackbeard.

But there's a lot of hope here, I think. When Ed acts to protect Stede, and to fight alongside him, he's not just being a protective partner. It's a learned action, the physical manifestation of a decision Ed's made about who he wants to be in the world. Rules be damned.

[bringthekaos]

I am SO sad about S2 being it for Arcane. I'm guessing the season will bring us to League canon, allowing the characters to evolve into their League counterparts and ending there. Which breaks my heart, because that means we'll get the Divorce Era but we'll never get to see Jayvik making amends. I had really hoped that Arcane would take the story further than what's in League lore and we'd get a couple seasons of Viktor and Jayce as enemies but then maybe a final season of them mending their relationship. Alexa, plat Rolling in the Deep 😭

I too am really sad that it’s only 2 seasons of Piltover/Zaun. They’re my favorite regions by far, with all of my favorite characters. I know that the show takes a LOT of resources, both time and money, and that they are excited to go elsewhere in Runeterra. And I fell in love with the characters due to the show, so I’m sure I will love whatever they give us next. (I’m assuming it will have a different name, because Arcane was meant to encompass this specific region. Although I would argue, since magic is so prevalent throughout their world, that every new region could be called Arcane and then just have a subtitle. That way you keep the association to the award-winning show and keep the general audience following who don’t realize that this is just the end for this region, not this world.)

That said, I’m both sad and tentatively excited for an open end to Jayce and Viktor’s story. Like yes, it would be a dream come true to see a canon reconciliation of some kind between them. However, that kinda cements one path that they can take, and limits what fan creators can do with them afterward (at least canon-compliant creators like myself). Personally, I’d be okay with an open end. That means all of us can go nuts with what happens next, and all of us are right. That gives me endless possibilities to write their messy, complicated, love-hate-anger-grief story as it progresses. I just really hope neither of them are killed off. And I’m not just saying that because they’re my favs, I just… I think they’ve done Viktor dirty in the past (*cough* Convergence *cough*) and it’s about time his character was done some justice. And what would be the message behind showing us the absolute hell Viktor goes through in order to live, only to kill him off. You can’t run away from death? We fucking know that, we see it every day in the real world, and we don’t need to be reminded. Show me something I haven’t seen before. Show me that you can outrun death, but it comes at a cost. Show me that you might regret that cost, but there’s no going back, so now you have to come to terms with what you’ve done. Show me the agonizing and painstaking process of learning to forgive yourself.

[mushyposts]

I've just started jjk yesterday (i think i'm on episode 8 or 9), AND I'M QUITE OBSESSED AND SUUUPER EXCITED TO READ YOUR FIC ONCE I'M DONE WITH IT ALL!

Thank you for bringing this to my dashboard 🙏 all hail mushyposts

HHAHHDGHFH YEAAAAHHH DUDE IT ONLY GOES DOWNHILL ITS SO FUCKING NUTS. Remember to watch the movie between s1 and s2!! Or u will be just SO beyond lost. trust...... The movie honestly was what sold me on it. Completely obsessed.

Im SUPER excited to eventually get around to posting it!! I've got two in the works rn, one is super non-linear and fucky and the other is pretty straight forward.... Im excited!! Im so happy u like it omg.

[sidecharactersdomatter]

Thoughts I had during TGCF S2 Ep 9

Previously on TGCF…

-There goes everyone, ghost and human

-Even Baby Guzi!

-That smooth transition shifting from San Lang to Hua Cheng

-I’ll give one plus on Qi Rong, his eyeliner’s decent and also his long braid

-He is pissed

-Hua Cheng’s a master of stealth and the bad cop!

-And XL’s the Good cop to HC’s Bad cop!

-Spoilers If you read Book 2, you’ll fully know why Hua Cheng is enraged at Qi Rong

-QR’s hackin up a lung there

-Just like qi blocking!

-Qi Rong’s crawling like a tide pool crab

-He paralyzed and muted XL!

-Oh you know well what you did to HC all those years ago (spoilers)

-Another face plant!

-That eye glow!

-Dude you mean scrolls, Ling Wen’s office has plenty

-Qianqiu killed him!

-The bu dao weng jumped out!

-He is hoppin up and down!

-Xie Lian’s still frozen!

-Qianqiu’s back!

-His friend!

-Qi Rong’s confessing!

-Qianqiu controlled his anger and roasted the S outta QR

-There’s the reason

-He shook his head

-Gross, Qi Rong’s kissing sound

-Qi Rong has an alibi

-Preceptor Fang Xin mention

-There’s the truth and the nail’s been hit again!

-That was the fate of Fang Xin?!

-He still can’t move!

-It took Qi Rong that freaking long to notice who’s behind Tai Hua???

-HC unfroze and unmuted him

-I’ll take that advice

-He knows him!

-Xie Lian confessed!

-It took QR that long to realize who XL actually was???

-Another flawless transformation!

-And now XL roasted his cousin

-QR finally realized!

-QR’s apology wasn’t sincere at all

-QR’s a real piece of work

-Thank you Hua Cheng

-He’s gonna make a hole in the ground

-Xie Lian deemed his own cousin worthless 2024

-You gotta love Bad Cop Good Cop! Hualian

-Touchstarved Hua Cheng!!! Season 2!!!

-He’s not pretending at all

-He’s laughing like a jackal

-His reputation’s already ruined man

-Roast!  Him!  Good!

-Hey I worship this guy and he’s been an inspiration to my own art!

-Not exactly man

-I wonder why

-“Did you blind him with your ‘holy light’ or was it some other ‘holy’ part of you?” Yep, there it is, that’s another slipped in innuendo

-That slap had the energy of what happened in a previous award show (i forgot which one on purpose)

-That slap just surprised Hua Cheng in a good way!

-Right in front of the statue again

-Yeah you totally deserved that slap man

-I mean, living in a cave 800 years would totally cause someone to go nuts

-Now he’s asking Hua Cheng’s question

-Don’t even picture Qi Rong doing an autopsy, just don’t

-There’s Qi Rong’s alibi

-Gross

-That slow jingling

-He reached for his sword

-They didn’t even perform a lie detection test

-3 swords have crossed!

-The truth’s still coming out

-Yong’An in the past

-Hi Mengyou!

-Dragon Dance!!!

-Mengyou’s still concerned!

-The Hualian masks!

-Oh no!  The most common crime you’ll see in any setting!  A purse snatching!

-He was still selfless

-Qianqiu was fast!

-Oh no the acrobat!

-Not the fine china!

-His kick was higher than my current GPA, if I even know the score, and this calls back to TGCF S1 Ep 3

-That sounded like Female Qingxuan

-The Naruto run!

-Ooh cool weaving, music and face painting 

-And those men were just calm while playing Go!

-He’s on the rooftops!

-Fang Xian’s teachings!

-The sword throw!  If only Sokka could’ve learned that in Book 3

-He used the prejudice to try covering his tracks

-No not his walking stick!

-This elderly man should’ve been a member of the White Lotus

-I like to imagine Iroh was great friends with the Elderly Yong’An man

-If only people came together like this in the present…

-That came full circle!

-Man, I wish I’d get to celebrate like that every Lunar New Year

-Fang Xin smiled

-Xianle and Yong’An were once in harmony…

-He mentioned the Common people!

-It’s the same scene from S2 Ep 7

-And he never forgot

-Thank you Mengyou

-Best day trip ever

-Oh no Qi Rong’s in Yong’An

-That’s An Le and with the same crazed expression

9 down 3 to go!

The Scrap Immortal and the Avatar will official start in 2025!