#sark my beloved

[iorepairs]

Greetings Programs,

I'm Ximonica (@aristaresident) and I've spent far too much time recently thinking about Tron '82, so I decided to make a side blog to ponder such questions as "where do Identity Discs come from anyway?", "what even is a command Program?", and "is this inconsistency just an error or did they Mean Something by this?".

I'm also making this blog to hopefully make friends w/ other ppl in the Tron community, so feel free to say hi and hit me with your lore ideas. My friend who introduced me to Tron is probably sick of me talking her ear off every time I have a new worldbuilding idea lmao.

I haven't watched Legacy yet so don't expect much of that content. I have a general idea of what happens in it and I'll get to it eventually but for right now 82 is priority one.

And yes I'm extremely normal abt Sark (lying). Not like I created a whole AU spanning 30+ years with extended lore and original characters originating from me wanting to romance him like character in Baldur's Gate III. Very normal way to be about a character, right? You agree.

End of Line.

[ninadove]

Nina reads Dracula 🦇

August 1st

Two days of fog, and not a sail sighted. Had hoped when in the English Channel to be able to signal for help or get in somewhere. Not having power to work sails, have to run before wind. Dare not lower, as could not raise them again. We seem to be drifting to some terrible doom.

😬

Mate now more demoralised than either of men. His stronger nature seems to have worked inwardly against himself.

EURYLOCHUS NO!!!!!

Men are beyond fear, working stolidly and patiently, with minds made up to worst. They are Russian, he Roumanian.

YOU’VE DOOMED US AAALL EURYLOCHUUUUUUUUUS!!!!!!!!!!

Ok now back to Mina and Lucy and the old man:

"It be all fool-talk, lock, stock, and barrel; that's what it be, an' nowt else. These bans an' wafts an' boh-ghosts an' barguests an' bogles an' all anent them is only fit to set bairns an' dizzy women a-belderin'. They be nowt but air-blebs. They, an' all grims an' signs an' warnin's, be all invented by parsons an' illsome beuk-bodies an' railway touters to skeer an' scunner hafflin's, an' to get folks to do somethin' that they don't other incline to. It makes me ireful to think o' them. Why, it's them that, not content with printin' lies on paper an' preachin' them out of pulpits, does want to be cuttin' them on the tombstones. Look here all around you in what airt ye will; all them steans, holdin' up their heads as well as they can out of their pride, is acant—simply tumblin' down with the weight o' the lies wrote on them, 'Here lies the body' or 'Sacred to the memory' wrote on all of them, an' yet in nigh half of them there bean't no bodies at all; an' the memories of them bean't cared a pinch of snuff about, much less sacred. Lies all of them, nothin' but lies of one kind or another! My gog, but it'll be a quare scowderment at the Day of Judgment when they come tumblin' up in their death-sarks, all jouped together an' tryin' to drag their tombsteans with them to prove how good they was; some of them trimmlin' and ditherin', with their hands that dozzened an' slippy from lyin' in the sea that they can't even keep their grup o' them."

… Why are you trying so hard to dispel these rumours. What is it to you.

"Sacred to the memory of George Canon, who died, in the hope of a glorious resurrection, on July, 29, 1873, falling from the rocks at Kettleness. This tomb was erected by his sorrowing mother to her dearly beloved son. 'He was the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.' Really, Mr. Swales, I don't see anything very funny in that!" She spoke her comment very gravely and somewhat severely.

"Ye don't see aught funny! Ha! ha! But that's because ye don't gawm the sorrowin' mother was a hell-cat that hated him because he was acrewk'd—a regular lamiter he was—an' he hated her so that he committed suicide in order that she mightn't get an insurance she put on his life. He blew nigh the top of his head off with an old musket that they had for scarin' the crows with. 'Twarn't for crows then, for it brought the clegs and the dowps to him. That's the way he fell off the rocks. And, as to hopes of a glorious resurrection, I've often heard him say masel' that he hoped he'd go to hell, for his mother was so pious that she'd be sure to go to heaven, an' he didn't want to addle where she was. Now isn't that stean at any rate"—he hammered it with his stick as he spoke—"a pack of lies? and won't it make Gabriel keckle when Geordie comes pantin' up the grees with the tombstean balanced on his hump, and asks it to be took as evidence!"

… Kids, could you lighten up a little?

I did not know what to say, but Lucy turned the conversation as she said, rising up:—

"Oh, why did you tell us of this? It is my favourite seat, and I cannot leave it; and now I find I must go on sitting over the grave of a suicide."

"That won't harm ye, my pretty; an' it may make poor Geordie gladsome to have so trim a lass sittin' on his lap. That won't hurt ye. Why, I've sat here off an' on for nigh twenty years past, an' it hasn't done me no harm. Don't ye fash about them as lies under ye, or that doesn' lie there either! It'll be time for ye to be getting scart when ye see the tombsteans all run away with, and the place as bare as a stubble-field. There's the clock, an' I must gang. My service to ye, ladies!" And off he hobbled.

Haha… Haaaaaa…

Lucy and I sat awhile, and it was all so beautiful before us that we took hands as we sat; and she told me all over again about Arthur and their coming marriage. That made me just a little heart-sick, for I haven't heard from Jonathan for a whole month.

The same day.I came up here alone, for I am very sad. There was no letter for me. I hope there cannot be anything the matter with Jonathan. The clock has just struck nine. I see the lights scattered all over the town, sometimes in rows where the streets are, and sometimes singly; they run right up the Esk and die away in the curve of the valley. To my left the view is cut off by a black line of roof of the old house next the abbey. The sheep and lambs are bleating in the fields away behind me, and there is a clatter of a donkey's hoofs up the paved road below. The band on the pier is playing a harsh waltz in good time, and further along the quay there is a Salvation Army meeting in a back street. Neither of the bands hears the other, but up here I hear and see them both. I wonder where Jonathan is and if he is thinking of me! I wish he were here.

STOP THIS IS SO SAD FOR SO MANY REASONS AND GOSH THE WAY MINA TRIES TO DISTRACT HERSELF BY DESCRIBING THE LANDSCAPE BUT ONLY SEES OMENS OF DEATH HELP

< Prev 🦇 Next >

[gender-darling]

hello tumblr user gender-darling !

may the princely princess request some names themed around lain iwakura ? or just internet-like or cyber-like names :3

The princely princess asks , and He of obsession and adoration delivers !

Lain Iwakura , internet , and cyber themed names for my beloved virtuoso !

Cody , Codette , Codiette , Ciana , Ada , Ananova , Coda , Dell , Pixel , Pixelie , Pixelesse , Pixelette , Dae , Daemon , Bishop , Harv , Acrona , V , Sark , Cyberbite , Bluetooth , Cyberweb , Vocaloid , Interweb , Web , Webaero , Interaero , Cyaero , Cyberaero , Bubbleweb , Angelweb , Angelcode , Bubblepixel , Pixelangel , Vixel , Vocaweb

Hope yuo like these ! ^ ^ 🫧

[rowanhoney]

travelling 2 london for a bit this summer, do you have any recommendations about neighborhoods to stay in/ things to go see etc? xx

unfortunately I didn’t see this and I’m several months too late BUT for anyone else planning a london trip or just needing to explore

Definitely worth hitting the design museum! There’s usually some interesting exhibits and you can continue your day by walking through Holland Park after! The Dutch garden and especially the Kyoto garden are so so beautiful

Classic Londoner day out is a walk along soutbank too. There’s enough tourists that there are things to do but not a major tourist trap. Along there you have the royal festival halls, BFI, London eye, OXO tower, Tate Modern, Globe theatre. The river waves are relaxing as well. By the time you reach the end cross over tower bridge and go to the Tower of London for some grim history. Then have dinner 5 mins away along st. Katherine’s docks - lovely peaceful spot with great restaurants and sparkling lights over the canals. Bit if a hidden gem for sure

Neighbourhoods to hit:

In the west there’s Richmond! Definitely cute but a bit snobby. Richmond park is huge and you can see wild deer! On the side of town closer to the Thames you have Kew Gardens which is an absolute must and needs a dedicated day.

In the East the typical spot to hit is Shoreditch. Great for record stores, vintage shops, underground gigs, 24hr Beigels, quirky fun bars, and not too much further in Bethnal Green there’s the Last Tuesdays Society; a very macabre little collection and some strange cocktails. They even have an absinthe range.

In the North everyone wants to go to Camden which is fine, lots to see and do but the alternative side to the town has become so commercialised in the past few decades. Still worth hitting but imo Bloomsbury is nicer with lots of niche little museums hidden away and one big one ! The Wellcome Collection! They always have some really great free exhibition on. There’s some controversy about the collection but there always will be in this country. Also 2 great bookshops - Gay’s the Word and Houseman’s <3

South London, my beloved forever. I say it all the time but I love Crystal Palace. It’s just a nice little neighbourhood with a lot of history. The triangle is great for little boutiques of all kinds, really good food around, there’s a 4 floor antique store where you can find all sorts of trinkets even affordable ones. The park is huge and wonderful! There’s a boating lake, a petting zoo, an athletics centre, dinosaurs! A maze! And at various times of the year there are fireworks shows, lights shows, a series of concerts in summer, frequent funfairs and other events. Don’t forget the south london Eiffel Tower (it’s just a radio tower but most kids who grew up here thought the same). Not far on in Sydenham is the Horniman Museum and Gardens which is well worth a visit but is too often disregarded for being a little out the way. Special mention to SE London. Greenwich has a few museums, a great little theatre, the cutty sark ship and the observatory! Also within a big beautiful park.

My love to everyone who comes here 🫶 please just remember to stand on the right of the escalators

[trashquisitor-shirozora]

For the send a fandom, i'm going with one i know nothing about…Tron

Oh boy. Now this is an ask I appreciate. I'm answering for Tron, Tron: Betrayal (the comic), and Tron: Legacy. Not answering for the TV show or videogame.

The first character I first fell in love with: Sam Flynn. basic, I know, but I had a great time with his struggles with his father's legacy sitting on his shoulders The character I never expected to love as much as I do now: Tron!Kevin Flynn. have thoughts about him post-first movie, but he's great as the viewpoint character helping Tron on his quest to stop Sark. The character everyone else loves that I don’t: Clu. I don't hate him. I like what he represents. I just don't care enough to do anything about it. The character I love that everyone else hates: I'm going to take "everyone else" as "people outside the fandom" and then say "A Female Character". hell, I'm sure the corporate creatives didn't care much for them either, but the Tron franchise always had great female characters. Lora and Quorra, my beloveds. The character I used to love but don’t any longer: never fell out of love with the characters, but Disney can go roast in the fires of hell The character I would totally smooch: friendly pecks on the cheek, right? because that would be Quorra. The character I’d want to be like: Lora Bradley The character I’d slap: KEVIN FLYNN POST-TRON, YOU ASS A pairing that I love: I have a life pre-Sam/Tron and a life post-Sam/Tron. I am what I am now because I spent a long time in the Sam/Tron sandbox, and it was a great sandbox. It is still a great sandbox. People who do shipping should spend more time in sandboxes for improbably ships and get some perspective. A pairing that I despise: Clu/Rinzler.

Play ask games, win ask prizes!

[believerindaydreams]

Sometimes I think about how Marc Platt loved Gormenghast so much that he ripped it bodily out of its context to make Lungbarrow, a pale and sad and pathetic thing by comparison, and I want to admire the effort and rage at him for theft, and I think about how it's only turnabout because my beloved Peake was building his fantasy castle on the bones of colonialism, and my own conception of the story as a Welsh fairy tale is sucker-punched by how Peake never even lived in Wales, preferring the lonely haven of Sark, and I want to say that proves my point because how can you set a real fantasy in the place you live?

...so how's your morning?

[juliareed]

Alias l Irina & Sark l Lit Me Up

It lit me up like a torch on a pitch black night Like an ember in the needles of a dried out pine

[interstellarsystem]

ALSO. We decided that we’re collectively spacehearted, because... I mean it just makes sense, doesn’t it? Sometimes alterhuman identities are hidden right in plain sight and you feel like morons for not realizing it sooner, I guess!

[basicallyiuploadclips]

undefined

"I hate you Evan, I hate you.”

[glimpseofwonderarchive]

@amantesmultorum sent: “  stop doing that— stop trying to hide your emotions from me.  ”

memes for that specific brand of ships

Sighing heavily, Edward turned his gaze over to the princess. But his garbled mind couldn't make sense of anything. It was all going too fast. Too much too soon...

He was still in mourning, but like his brother in law before him, Edward was being pressured to find a bride. And he couldn't even blame the advisors urging him. After all, Kit had married. He and Ella had had all the promise in the world before them. But they were snatched away, right when their happy ending was just beginning. They hadn't even had the chance to have a child yet. Edward couldn't repeat that. It would be certain disaster for Sark.

For the security of the kingdom, and to ensure that a ruler would be ready should something happen to him, he had to marry and have an heir as soon as possible. Edward knew that. Just because he understood the practicality of it, though, didn't meant he fully agreed.

It felt so wrong. A marriage of convenience, or of love... what did it matter? How could he think about starting a family when all of his was gone? How could he get married and have a baby when his beloved baby sister hadn't had the chance to really see her life grow and sweeten? How could he treat another person like a brood mare? How could he think of making that vow when he was so shattered and hollow? It would be condemning his wife to an eternity beside a shell of a man. It wasn't fair. Not to him, and not to her.

And still, Bryony had been the first one to bring even a hint of fresh air and light into his darkness. Spending time with her had made him feel almost human again. She was a wonderful girl; kind, creative, and compassionate. The kind of woman that Ella would have approved of. The kind of woman that, under different circumstances, he might have been able to imagine a future with. So, how could he ask her to sacrifice everything she dreamt of and wanted for herself, just to bring a level of safety to his people? When he wasn't even sure if he could ever feel happiness again with Ella gone?

The Grand Duke had pleaded for time. And the court had granted it. Everyone was grieving the deaths of Kit and Ella, and they all knew that none felt it more deeply than the Duke turned King. But time was running out, and he could feel it. Edward had a choice to make.

"I've been urged to ask your hand in marriage." He finally answered. "And, if the way we met had been different, I would have in a heartbeat. But... Princess, it would be a disservice in the highest manner to ask you to leave your parents, your homeland, and your dreams behind for a broken man who doesn't know if his heart will ever mend... Let alone feel again. Please, don't think that I haven't enjoyed your company. Because I have. It's... It's been the lightest I've felt since before my sister and her husband died. It's the first time I've almost wanted to smile, to laugh. But I can't take your future from you. You deserve all the best the world can offer. You deserve a prince, a real king. Not a last resort like me."

Edward swallowed thickly and tried to blink away the tears building in his eyes. "I'm a failure, Princess. I've failed my parents, my sister. I'm sure to fail these people. I don't want to drag you down with me. I want to at least say that I didn't fail one person."

[hello-robin-goodfellow]

TOP 20 DAVID WARNER ROLES (PART II)

10º Ivan Petrovich ‘Vanya’ Voynitsky (Performance: Uncle Vanya, 1991)

Warner leads in this 1991 televised production of one of the most famous Anton Chekhov plays. Ivan Petrovich (Uncle Vanya for his niece Sonya) is a more then sad and angry man, who sacrificed dreams of love and intelectual success to administrate a cottage of wich provide money to his brother in law, an old professor called Serebryakov (Ian Bannen) that does nothing but look down upon him, all the while being favoured by Vanya’s own mother. Making matters worst, Vanya is one of the two man who is in love with the professors wife, Yelena (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio). Two days of a family reunion mostly consisting of verbal fightings eventually makes all the tension that acumulates in Vanya’s mind eventually explode.

09º Konstantin Treplev (The Seagull, 1968)

The younger spiritual predecessour of Ivan Petrovich. Konstantin Treplev is an aspiring writer, who wishes to find a new style to talk about dreams, receiving praises from his mother (veteran actress Arkadina, played by Simone Signoret) and the love of the beautifull aspiring actress (Vanessa Redgrave). But the popularity of the best-selling writer Boris Trigorin (James Mason) and Konstantin’s problems to directly comunicate his feelings eventually make him fall down a tragic spiral of loneliness.

08º Bob Cratchit (A Christmas Carol, 1984)

Interestingly, when this 1984 adaptation of A Christmas Carol, Warner was first invited to play Jacob Marley. But he asked to play Bob Cratchit instead. And we all must be glad that he did, because he gives a very wholesome performance, that makes anyone wish to have him as a father figure.

07º Keith Jennings (The Omen, 1976)

In this aclaimed 1976 horror film, Warner’s character is a photographer, whose only job was to registrate the birthday party of the rich child of the american embassador (Gregory Peck) until a series of strange accidents start to kill people who knew that child or his relatives. Intrigued, Keith Jennings starts to investigate, and decides to form a duo with the american embassador, filling the role of the more proactive lancer to the mostly passive protagonist. One of David Warner’s most iconic good guy roles ever putt on the big screen.

06º Merlin (The Wizard, 2013 and The Once and Future King, 2014)

The two years in a row when David Warner played one of the most iconic wizrd mentor figures in mithology and pop culture. In 2013′s comedic short film The Wizard, Warner plays a Merlin that wakes up in modern times and is starting to adapt in a office work, while his colleagues try to adapt to his magic quirks. And in the BBC Radio 4 six episode drama The Once and Future King (adapted by Brian Sibley, the same guy who adapted the 1981 Lord of the Rings radio drama, from the novel series by T. H. White), where Merlin’s spirit sits alongside Arthur in the final battle for a conversation, we see how his Merlin could have acted in the past alongside King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, providing wise counsels with a bit of a snarky sense of humour and melancholy. Those works are two “must check out” for David Warner fans and for fantasy and arthurian mithology fans.

05º The Evil One (Time Bandits, 1981) and Ed Dilinger/Comander Sark/Master Control Program (Tron, 1982)

Yes, number five is a tye. Those two movies camed in a row, and in both David Warner played technology themed villains. In the first, Time Bandits, he is implied to be the Devil himself, and as such is portrayed as very powerfull and in control during most of the movie. In the second, Tron, Warner gives a triple performance: as the human Ed Dilinger and the program Comander Sark, he believes he is in control, but in reality is not. The real power is hold by Warner’s third character, the Master Control Program of the videogame. This transiction from a more simple one-and-all-powerfull antagonist to a more complex dinamic of a trio of antagonists was, for a lot of people, the introduction to Warner’s acting range, and for this reason it appears as a tye in this ranking.

04º The Doctor (Sympathy for The Devil, 2003 and Masters of War, 2008)

In the late 1970s, the BBC camed to search David Warner with an offer for him to play the Doctor in the main Doctor Who BBC Television series. He was interested, but unfortunally his filming schedule conflicted in working more them one season into a long-running TV Show, so he had to put the offer down. It was only in the 2000s, after the founding of the audio-drama company, that we would get a grasp of his portrayal of the Doctor, in the what-if scenarios provided by two episodes of Doctor Who Unbound: Sympathy for The Devil and Masters of War. In those audiodramas, he plays a alternate encarnation of the Third Doctor that is sent to Earth in 1997 instead of 1969, and thus could not help U.N.I.T with the Alien Invasions that happen in the 1970s. Thus, he finds a retired and pub-owning version of Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart, and has to relearn to gain his thrust, until the two become companions of adventures that investigate new alie threads indepedently of U.N.I.T 

Warner’s Doctor is a bit less quirky encarnation of the character, having instead a more pratical temperment. He sees the danger, and he goes straight to investigate how to stop it, all the while trying to keep the people around him calm. And later he will make a comment about neading more conforting and fitting shoes. 

This is a Doctor that you would surely trust to keep your life safe. 

03º Lisander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 1968)

A production that made a lot of millenials become Shakespeare fanboys, and they own this in part to David Warner’s performance as Lisander, one of the most romantic (if a bit bumbling) Shakespeare protagonists. Seeing the moments when he conforts and encourages his beloved Hérmia (Helen Mirren) and makes a mess of himself when he is enchanted to fall for Helena (Diana Rigg) is one of the most fun rides that an audience will ever get. Seriously, his Lisander was adorkable before the word ‘adorkable’ even existed.

02º Henry VI (The Wars of The Roses, 1965)

From a fun and very popular Shakespeare protagonist, to a heart-breaking and very underrated protagonist. For years i was one of several people who did not care for the Henry VI plays as it cared for its famous sequel, Richard III.

This all changed when i watched this 1965 televised production of the Wars of the Roses, that condenses the four plays in a way that makes it more accessible for audiences. Once again, this was helped in a big part by the performances of the cast.

David Warner was only 24 years old during this production, and had to cary the role of the vulnerable Henry VI from his youth to his old age and eventual murder by Richard III. 

And in my opinion, he carried it brilliantly. This was the sign that a very versatile actor would have a very long career.

And my number one David Warner role is...

01º Morgan Delt (Morgan: A Suitable Case for Treatment, 1966)

Henry VI stablished David Warner as a lead in theater and television. Now it was time to stablish him as the lead in film. And they did exactly that when casting him in the role of Morgan Delt, a painter who grew up mixing a familiar comunist education with an obsession with animals (particularly gorilaz) and is frustratred with his divorce of his socialite wife Leonie (Vanessa Redgrave), who is about to marry Jack Napier (Robert Stephens), art merchant and Morgan’s previous best friend. While trying every crazy squeam to take his wife back, Morgan must take on a journey to mature, so he can his wife go and be happy and he can recouver his career. But until this happens, transitioning from the sweet and romantic to the angry and scary, for Morgan, taking bombs home and wearing ridiculous gorila suits it is. 

For showing the range between scary villain and simpathetic hero that would be his trademark on years to come, and providing loud laughs mixed with an interesting commentary on masculine insecurity and entitlement, is that Morgan Delt is my favorite David Warner role. 

@amalthea9​ @superkingofpriderock​

[thedyingtimelady]

Falling for the Opera Cape

the dying Timelady (OC) x Third Doctor Fanfiction. The third Story of the Soul bond Saga

Summary: Catherin landed on Earth, meeting the third Incarnation of the Doctor, ready to make a soulbond with him, after managed to get her Bond with the second Doctor. Arriving his Lab, Catherin realize, that the Doctor has something on his mind: That involved her, him and something tempting~ But someone has other plans with the dying Timelady....And not only her life is threated.....

Part 1

“That’s shouldn’t happen.”, the Doctor mumbled to himself. He held the dematerialization circuit in his hand, while looking at the console of the TARDIS. Another failure. Another day waisted and another day he would be stranded here. The Doctor sigh, rubbing his neck and putting the circuit on the Time Column. Now he needed a break. A cup of tea and some biscuits would be great right now. He wanted to turn around, to leave the TARDIS, as small arms wrapped around him and someone hugged him from behind. The Doctor frowned. He didn’t hear someone coming in. Then he smiled. “Jo? Did you work on your sneaking skills? They´re are pretty good now. You should be proud of yourself.” The Doctor didn’t get an answer, as the hands starts moving over his chest, softly open a button of his sark. Now he froze, starring at the hands. That aren’t Jos. Jo wouldn’t do something like that. And that hands didn’t even had many rings on their fingers, like Jos did. “Stop it now, Please. Whoever you are. This is improper! A lady shouldn’t undress someone like that!”, he said with calm, but firmer voice. The hands didn’t stop by his words and open another button. The Doctor grabbed the hands. “It’s time over now, young Lady. We will-“, he turned around and stared at the Lady Infront of him. “Catherin!”, he started to grin and holding her hands in his. “What are you doing here? And why do you undress me?”, he asked her sceptical. Catherin giggled softly, holding his hands tight in hers and gave him a beautiful smile. Oh, this Woman owns his hearts for a couple of centuries. Adventures with her was always very fun. He wondered why she didn’t visit him for a while. Here on Earth, he felt how time passes and sometimes it was just unbearable. In this moment, he was happy to see his beloved Catherin, ready to take her out for dinner. Finally, some distraction and quality time he could spend. “I wanted to greet you a bit differently today. I hope, I didn’t shock you too much.”, she grinned cheeky at him, winking. “Taking off my clothes is a greeting for you? Maybe I should greet you like that too”, he grinned back, as her face turned red. “Y-You wouldn’t do that, right? You are a gentleman!”, she shouted, blushed even more. The Doctor laughs and put his hand on her back, leading her out of the TARDIS. “Of course, I wouldn’t do that. You should know me better. So, tell me why are you here? Not that I wouldn’t enjoy your company my dear. Maybe we should go out and eat some dinner? I know a nice restaurant, where we could eat in peace.”, he smiled at her, while leading her out of this lab. “Where is Jo?”, wasn’t the answer he wanted from her. The Doctor looked at Catherin, while they leaving the building. “She has her free day. So, she isn’t here.” “What a pity. I wanted to see her.”, Catherin mumbled, looking a bit sad. Catherin adores Jo very much. She was like a daughter for her, even she wouldn’t tell her that. The Doctor had a short thought about Jamie. She really loved Jamie. She saw him as her son and protected him always. The Doctor wondered, how many future companions will have this privilege to be called a son or a daughter of Catherin. “You will see her soon Darling”, he smiled at her, walking with her to Bessie. When both sit down in the car, the Doctor started the motor and drove off the UNIT- Area to the next city.

 Darling

I never thought, he would give me instead such a sweet nickname. While the Doctor and I drove around the city, searching for a nice restaurant, I disappeared deep in my thoughts, thinking how I could tell the Doctor, that I wanted a soul bond with him, in the best way.

I learned fast from the last time, that such a question could make a lot of trouble, if you ask it in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I didn’t realize, that we already stopped, as I felt a hand on my arm.

“Catherin? Is everything okay?”

“Oh yes Doctor, everything is fine”, I smiled at him.

He gave me a charming smile, what made my legs becoming pudding. I was melting already. Suddenly I blushed, only by the thought, laying in his arms, while dancing to beautiful music, staying so close to him. He smelled so good and his velvet suit looked so good at him.

The Doctor kept smiling, as I notice, that I stared at him.

“You are really cute Darling”, he said softly in his rough voice.

I was so done. Nobody could save me from this gorgeous man. And I didn’t want to be saved!

Like the gentlemen he is, he helped me out of the car, holding my hand, so I wouldn’t slip. When I felt ground under my feet, he still holds my hand, making no effort to letting it go.

We walked into the restaurant, still holding hands, my inside screaming of excitement because of it, looking at the waiter and smiling.

“Hello, can we please have a table for two in a quiet area? I want to be alone with my beautiful date”, the Doctor said smiling.

You know this cartoons, where one character is all silent outside, but inside they start to scream and run around in panic/unbelieve, because the one person they like, is like… all flirty and great and it´s just fucks their head so much up, because they never expected that would ever happened?

This was me right now.

I was staring at the Doctor, letting him leading us to our table, sitting opposite to him and taking the menu in my hand.

It was a very fancy restaurant. The tables were out of very dark wood, the seats with bolster, out of dark red fabric. We were sitting in the near of a big window, with dark blue curtains. Suddenly, a big curtain was pulled around us and we sat alone, isolated from the rest of the restaurant.

In a second, I looked up to the Doctor, who had his arms on the table, resting his head on his hand and watching me carefully.

I felt the warmth rising in my cheeks, knowing that I blushed, because of the bigger smile on the Doctors face.

“You are so beautiful”, he whispered, taking my hand in his, softly kissing it.

Did I told you, that I was done? Now I was it. In the best ways. He locked me with his charm and now I couldn’t escape.

“Do you have money?”, I asked him, trying to distract myself.

“The Brigadier told me to send the bill to the office of UNIT. He said, I could have a certain mount of money for a month, because he knows, that I never have money with me.”, he nodded, leaning back to watch me more, smiling softly.

I nodded too, smiling lightly. Then I study the menu, decided for some Pasta with Pesto. I loved the Italian food very much. It was one of my favourites of this beautiful planet. The Timelord never had any taste for good food.

They never have any good taste of anything.

I was talking with the Doctor for a while. We laughed and telling us stories. Because he couldn’t travel everywhere, he was desperate for hearing what kind of Adventure I had. Fighting against Daleks, running away from Cybermen. Landing on unknown planets.

As our food arrived, we started to eat, having a relaxing silent around us.

The Doctor was drinking wine, what made him look more like a real dandy. I sigh softly, watching him and blushing, as he smiled back to me.

“You like the outfit?”, he asked, while putting his wineglass on the table.

“Yes, very much. That velvet suits are just wonderful on you. I love the dandy-look very much.”

“I knew it. Better as looking like a hobo”, he marbled, finish his plate.

For me, it was a mystery, how the Doctor would despite his previous Incarnation.

“Don’t be mean to him. I just visit him, before landing here. He has his own style and looks very cute in it.”

“Ha! Cute! He is such a pain in my back. I really hope, the Timelords not putting us together again. I can´t stand him.”, the Doctor waved with his hand and looking away for a moment, but then smiling again at me, leaning forwards.

“So, I have to ask you something. Would you like to make to soul bond with me?

I couldn’t say anything as he said that words out loud.

It was unbelieving for me. I had such a hard time talking to the last two Incarnations of him, trying to make a soul bond with them, having so much trouble because of it. And now he was sitting Infront of me, asking me, If I want to have a soul bond with him.

With an open mouth, I stared at him, then close it and shook my head.

“No?”, he whispered and looking all sad for a moment.

“I-I mean… I know it´s a lot of to ask. You know by yourself, how much work this soul bond is. But I really believe, that we should be together. I believe that the other two would say yes in two heartbeats. I mean, who could say No to you?”, he grinned softly.

“You. You said No twice, as I asked you for a soul bond, even telling you, that I married your future Incarnation Number 12, showing you the ring. It was such hard work to get a yes of you, making you realize, that we are made for each other in the moment, when we hold hands for the first time, when we were in the academy, as the sunset making the orange sky even more orange. And our first kiss. Oh Doctor. You said No, it broke my heart even more. But I already started to make a bond with you, so yes. I would love to bond with you”

Now it was the Doctor who´s mouth was wide open, staring at me while I was talking.    

“Is that true? This hobo said No to you? How he dare! I can´t believe it!”, he growls, making his hands to fists.

Typical Doctor. Clearly, he tried to give the second Incarnation all the fault, even when the first one, was the hardest and the most to blame. I forgot the time, when I was fighting for a soul bond with the first Doctor, don’t trying to make myself sad. Even now I have the soul bond with the original Doctor, sometimes the sadness and the memories floating my head, making my chest heavier. It was hard to breath in such moments. My Anxiety got really bad, so I usually hide in my own TARDIS, waiting until the panic disappeared for itself.

“No… Don’t blame him. It´s okay now. I have the soul bond. That all I need.”, softly smiling, I showed him my wedding ring, what had 14 small squares engraved in the white metal. Two of the squares had a different colour. One of them was a light grey, the other one black.

“What is the meaning of the colours, Darling?”, he asked me, while holding my hand softly, admiring the beauty of the ring.

“Each colour represents one of your Incarnation. The grey one is the first and black is the second.”

“Why did you choose these colours?”

“Grey for his trousers and Black for his hair. Obviously!”, I laughed, looking amused at him.

The Doctor made a sceptical face, raising his eyebrow. But then he grins at me, giving my ring a soft kiss and winked at me.

“I wonder, what kind of colour I will get.”, the Doctor spoke softly at my hand, not letting it go.

“This will be my secret”, I smiled mysteriously, holding his hand tight.

After the dinner, we both drove back to the UNIT-Area, entering the lab of the Doctor. I walked to his TARDIS, softly touching it with my hand.

“Hey my friend. Long-time no seen. I missed you.”, I said to the TARDIS, leaning my ear against her walls.

No sound.

She was sleeping.

“I really hope, I will fix her soon.”, the Doctor repined, putting his Opera cape over his chair.

I turned around and looked at the cape, while my thoughts driven away again.

He will, he will soon fix the TARDIS. But I couldn’t tell him. It was not allowed, so I was silent and touched the fabric, rubbing it between my fingers.

I loved this cape. It was such a charming part of his style. It made his outfit complete.

I felt his muscular chest against my back, his hands resting on my hips.

“You like the cape, hm? It´s a lovely piece of clothes, don’t you think?”

His voice was rough in the near of my ear. His hands moving around my hips, going up to my waist.

I was wearing a dark blue dress, with small straps. The heat of his skin pervades through the dress, letting it felt on my own.

His lips were close to my neck, I felt his hot breath, what gave me Goosebumps.

“You know what´s lovely too tonight Darling?”, he whispers in my ear, his hand moved over my back.

I was about to turn around to him, wanting to kiss him so badly, when I heard a “click”.

The moment I turned around to him, I felt how my strapless bra was falling under my dress, landing on the ground.

The Doctor bowed down quickly, grabbing it with a cheeky smile on his face.

“Well, Hello Catherin”, he greeted me. “I still think, a Lady shouldn’t just strip people like that for a greeting.”, he told me, waving my bra Infront of me.

“Doctor!!”, I shouted. I couldn’t believe it! How he dares! I tramped towards him, trying to take away my bra from him.

He laughed, holding it up, so I couldn’t reach it. Why does this incarnation had to be almost 6 feet tall? It was so much better, when the Doctor had my height.

“Come on Doctor! That’s not funny!”, I said annoyed, going on my toes to grab my bra. “And not very gentleman-like! Shame on you!”

He laughed, stepping back, so I was falling against his chest.

I blushed immediately, when my soft chest falls against his hard chest.

The Doctor himself stopped, staring down at me. Now he pressed his hand on my back, pulling me closer to him, pressing my chest more at his.

“Doctor”, I mumbled. What a sensual feeling filled my body. My heart beats faster, I felt his two heartbeats almost losing they rhythm. The Doctor let go of my bra, careless throwing it away and then kissed me.

It was a soft and deep kiss, filling my mind with nothing, but just him. The Doctor picked me up, sitting me on his lab table and strokes my hips, without stopping the kiss.

My fingers running through his silver, fluffy hair, what I adored so much. I grabbed his collar, pulling him closer as possible. I never wanted this feeling to end.

“Doctor?”, Jo´s voice filled my head in a few blinks. Everything was forgotten. The sensual feeling, the kiss, everything.

I jumped from the table, pushing the Doctor aside.

With a highspeed, I grabbed my bra, open the TARDIS door and throw it inside, smashing the door shut.

I ran my hands through my hair, over my dress, making it look like, I just came from a nice date.

In the same second, as Jo open the door, I was smiling at her brightly, walking towards her.

“Jo!”, I grinned at her.

“Catherin!”, she shouted surprised and happy, hugging me tightly.

I hold her closer to me, resisting to stroke her head and cuddled her for a few seconds. I was sad, when I had to let go of her, but I didn’t want to bother her with my parentally behaviour.

She shouldn’t know, that she was such a sweet girl to me. Like a daughter.

Unlike Jamie, I just couldn’t call her my daughter so easily. Jamie was a young boy; Jo was a young adult.

Would I call her “my daughter” in any case, she would easily get scared or irritated from me. The worst case in my mind was, that she would say something like:

“I already have a mother. Why should I call you like that? That is so weird! Please leave me alone!”

I knew it. So, it must stay a secret and all my feelings would be locked up, deep inside a dark corner of my heart, never to be revealed.  

The Doctor came closer, smiling at both of us. His eyes didn’t have a spark of anger or disappointed in it, because I broke our kiss so sudden.

We talked with Jo for a while, then she invited me into her house.

I looked up to the Doctor, who nod softly.

“I would love to! Give a minute okay?”, I said to her.

“Alright!”, she grinned, leaving the lab.

I turned to the Doctor, who gave me a quick and softly kiss on my lips. Then kissed my forehead and gave me a warm hug. He knew what was in my mind right now.

“What should I do? I love her so much. She means so much for me. I don’t know, If I really can hold my secret.”, I whispered in his suit, shivering.

“Everything will turn out fine. I know it. Don’t worry. Enjoy your night with her. Forget the sad things. Come back tomorrow with her and we will find something, what will distract you.”, he said softly, giving me a lovely smile.

I kissed him again, looking softly at him.

“We will talk about the bond tomorrow, okay?”, I asked.

“That’s fine for me.”, he nodded again, giving my cheek another kiss, before letting me go.

When I came out of the building, Jo was waiting for me next to a big car.

Her parents are rich. I couldn’t give her such nice presents.

I shook my head, smiling while walking to Jo. She took my hand and got inside of the big car, who naturally had a driver.

We were laughing and talking, while I wanted to hold her in my arms, what was killing my soul, burning deep in my flesh.

In such moments like that, I felt my age in my weak body. I felt the pressure. I looked out of the window, darkness around us, not noticing, that a faint, green string was wrapped around my little finger, that nobody but I could see.  

My Soulmate was close. Too close for this Timing.

[draculalive]

Mina Murray's Journal

1 August. -- I came up here an hour ago with Lucy, and we had a most interesting talk with my old friend and the two others who always come and join him. He is evidently the Sir Oracle of them, and I should think must have been in his time a most dictatorial person. He will not admit anything, and downfaces everybody. If he can't out-argue them he bullies them, and then takes their silence for agreement with his views. Lucy was looking sweetly pretty in her white lawn frock; she has got a beautiful colour since she has been here. I noticed that the old men did not lose any time in coming up and sitting near her when we sat down. She is so sweet with old people; I think they all fell in love with her on the spot. Even my old man succumbed and did not contradict her, but gave me double share instead. I got him on the subject of the legends, and he went off at once into a sort of sermon. I must try to remember it and put it down:---

"It be all fool-talk, lock, stock, and barrel; that's what it be, an' nowt else. These bans an' wafts an' boh-ghosts an' barguests an' bogles an' all anent them is only fit to set bairns an' dizzy women a-belderin'. They be nowt but air-blebs. They, an' all grims an' signs an' warnin's, be all invented by parsons an' illsome beuk-bodies an' railway touters to skeer an' scunner hafflin's, an' to get folks to do somethin' that they don't other incline to. It makes me ireful to think o' them. Why, it's them that, not content with printin' lies on paper an' preachin' them out of pulpits, does want to be cuttin' them on the tombstones. Look here all around you in what airt ye will; all them steans, holdin' up their heads as well as they can out of their pride, is acant -- simply tumblin' down with the weight o' the lies wrote on them, 'Here lies the body' or 'Sacred to the memory' wrote on all of them, an' yet in nigh half of them there bean't no bodies at all; an' the memories of them bean't cared a pinch of snuff about, much less sacred. Lies all of them, nothin' but lies of one kind or another! My gog, but it'll be a quare scowderment at the Day of Judgment when they come tumblin' up in their death-sarks, all jouped together an' tryin' to drag their tombsteans with them to prove how good they was; some of them trimmlin' and ditherin', with their hands that dozzened an' slippy from lyin' in the sea that they can't even keep their grup o' them."

I could see from the old fellow's self-satisfied air and the way in which he looked round for the approval of his cronies that he was "showing off," so I put in a word to keep him going:---

"Oh, Mr. Swales, you can't be serious. Surely these tombstones are not all wrong?"

"Yabblins! There may be a poorish few not wrong, savin' where they make out the people too good; for there be folk that do think a balm-bowl be like the sea, if only it be their own. The whole thing be only lies. Now look you here; you come here a stranger, an' you see this kirk-garth." I nodded, for I thought it better to assent, though I did not quite understand his dialect. I knew it had something to do with the church. He went on: "And you consate that all these steans be aboon folk that be happed here, snod an' snog?" I assented again. "Then that be just where the lie comes in. Why, there be scores of these lay-beds that be toom as old Dun's ’bacca-box on Friday night." He nudged one of his companions, and they all laughed. "And my gog! how could they be otherwise? Look at that one, the aftest abaft the bier-bank: read it!" I went over and read:---

"Edward Spencelagh, master mariner, murdered by pirates off the coast of Andres, April, 1854, æt. 30." When I came back Mr. Swales went on:---

"Who brought him home, I wonder, to hap him here? Murdered off the coast of Andres! an' you consated his body lay under! Why, I could name ye a dozen whose bones lie in the Greenland seas above" -- he pointed northwards -- "or where the currents may have drifted them. There be the steans around ye. Ye can, with your young eyes, read the small-print of the lies from here. This Braithwaite Lowrey -- I knew his father, lost in the Lively off Greenland in ’20; or Andrew Woodhouse, drowned in the same seas in 1777; or John Paxton, drowned off Cape Farewell a year later; or old John Rawlings, whose grandfather sailed with me, drowned in the Gulf of Finland in ’50. Do ye think that all these men will have to make a rush to Whitby when the trumpet sounds? I have me antherums aboot it! I tell ye that when they got here they'd be jommlin' an' jostlin' one another that way that it ’ud be like a fight up on the ice in the old days, when we'd be at one another from daylight to dark, an' tryin' to tie up our cuts by the light of the aurora borealis." This was evidently local pleasantry, for the old man cackled over it, and his cronies joined in with gusto.

"But," I said, "surely you are not quite correct, for you start on the assumption that all the poor people, or their spirits, will have to take their tombstones with them on the Day of Judgment. Do you think that will be really necessary?"

"Well, what else be they tombstones for? Answer me that, miss!"

"To please their relatives, I suppose."

"To please their relatives, you suppose!" This he said with intense scorn. "How will it pleasure their relatives to know that lies is wrote over them, and that everybody in the place knows that they be lies?" He pointed to a stone at our feet which had been laid down as a slab, on which the seat was rested, close to the edge of the cliff. "Read the lies on that thruff-stean," he said. The letters were upside down to me from where I sat, but Lucy was more opposite to them, so she leant over and read:---

"Sacred to the memory of George Canon, who died, in the hope of a glorious resurrection, on July, 29, 1873, falling from the rocks at Kettleness. This tomb was erected by his sorrowing mother to her dearly beloved son. 'He was the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.' Really, Mr. Swales, I don't see anything very funny in that!" She spoke her comment very gravely and somewhat severely.

"Ye don't see aught funny! Ha! ha! But that's because ye don't gawm the sorrowin' mother was a hell-cat that hated him because he was acrewk'd -- a regular lamiter he was -- an' he hated her so that he committed suicide in order that she mightn't get an insurance she put on his life. He blew nigh the top of his head off with an old musket that they had for scarin' the crows with. ’Twarn't for crows then, for it brought the clegs and the dowps to him. That's the way he fell off the rocks. And, as to hopes of a glorious resurrection, I've often heard him say masel' that he hoped he'd go to hell, for his mother was so pious that she'd be sure to go to heaven, an' he didn't want to addle where she was. Now isn't that stean at any rate" -- he hammered it with his stick as he spoke -- "a pack of lies? and won't it make Gabriel keckle when Geordie comes pantin' up the grees with the tombstean balanced on his hump, and asks it to be took as evidence!"

I did not know what to say, but Lucy turned the conversation as she said, rising up:---

"Oh, why did you tell us of this? It is my favourite seat, and I cannot leave it; and now I find I must go on sitting over the grave of a suicide."

"That won't harm ye, my pretty; an' it may make poor Geordie gladsome to have so trim a lass sittin' on his lap. That won't hurt ye. Why, I've sat here off an' on for nigh twenty years past, an' it hasn't done me no harm. Don't ye fash about them as lies under ye, or that doesn' lie there either! It'll be time for ye to be getting scart when ye see the tombsteans all run away with, and the place as bare as a stubble-field. There's the clock, an' I must gang. My service to ye, ladies!" And off he hobbled.

Lucy and I sat awhile, and it was all so beautiful before us that we took hands as we sat; and she told me all over again about Arthur and their coming marriage. That made me just a little heart-sick, for I haven't heard from Jonathan for a whole month.

[mimeparadox]

My Big Damn Irina Derevko Post

(Note: Spoilers for Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and The Americans ahead. And for Alias, obviously.)

I’ve never understood why Irina Derevko is so beloved.

No, scratch that. I do understand why she’s beloved. What I don’t understand is the belief that the character on-screen actually had anything but the most superficial likeness to the character than exists in the better-than-the-actual-show fandom headcanons.  Like, season 2 is overwhelmingly considered the best season of the series, and Irina is often credited as one of the main reasons, and…I can’t see it? [*1] 

Similarly, I don’t understand the hate for Irina’s final story. Yes, the missiles and mass murder specifically were stupid, and the final fight with Sydney is seriously lacking in “oomph”, but these are execution problems, and most of the complaints appear to be about the concept—as in, fans believe Irina wouldn’t put her ambitions above Sydney, especially after season 4. To which I say…really? 

Sure, I can buy that Irina loves Sydney, and Jack, and Nadia, in her own, destructive way; what I can’t believe is she cares for them more than she does her agenda, whatever that is at any given moment .  Like, I don’t believe anything she does in season 2 actually works, if the idea is that she’s somehow doing it for a greater good. Maybe if she were operating from a position of weakness, but that’s not the case—she remains the strongest piece in the game throughout the season. [*2] Why, exactly, is all this convolution and emotional manipulation of the people she allegedly loves needed, if her goal is a sympathetic one?  Furthermore, the series glosses over, if not outright ignores, the various details which indicate that Irina was not on the level—first and foremost: why go to the C.I.A., i.e. the United States, in the first place, unless she wants something only they can provide?  She’s not American!  Her work as the Man was global!

(Speaking of agendas, I know that it’s taken as gospel by at least part of the fandom that everything Irina did in season two was in order to be able to find Nadia again. Fair enough: even if it’s not quite canon—I don’t think they ever explicitly say this was actually the case—there’s enough actual in-show evidence (a rare thing, in some respects) to make it plausible [*3]. That, said, I’m not sure “trying to find my daughter” justifies much of anything she does—not enough to make her more sympathetic than, say, Sloane.)

I also don’t think Irina’s presence does a whole lot for the series’ larger narrative, as evidenced by the fact that, for all her importance, she doesn’t actually change a whole lot. It feels like she should, but between the SD-6 take-down being way emptier than it should have been, and the fact that neither Sydney nor Jack end the season any different than they started it, she ends up feeling largely inconsequential. [*4] It is also equally hard, if not impossible, to say how the events of the season have changed Irina, given how opaque everything about her is designed to be.  Later, Irina ends up being largely incidental to Nadia’s discovery, and Nadia’s story is arguably better with Irina as the unsolvable dead mystery, in part because it helps differentiate her from the possibly evil possibly repentant figure that already exists in SpySkipper’s life.

And that’s one of my other issues with Irina as a character: while there is in theory a lot to distinguish her from the rest of the cast—her upbringing alone!—the way the show uses her de-emphasizes those differences and emphasizes the similarities to such a degree that she often ends up feeling redundant.  The “whose side is she on” beat, in particular, had arguably already become overused when it came time to play it with her, and by the time SD-6 was done and she explicitly joined Sloane, there were too many similarities between the two to make the dynamic between them compelling, particularly since the show made it verboten for either of them to speak about their motivations.  Furthermore, if one believes that Irina did it all for her family, then what is there to distinguish her from Jack, who’s already ready to torture as many people as necessary for that very thing?  

To be clear, there were ways Irina could have realized her potential to be Alias’ version of Metal Gear Solid’s The Man The Boss or The Americans’ Elizabeth Jennings—or rather, a version of those characters that actually works as well as they do.  That’s certainly what her fans seem to want. Unfortunately, those ways rely on Alias being…not like itself.

I am not the first person to note the similarities between Irina (a.k.a. Laura Bristow) and Elizabeth Jennings (a.k.a. Nadezhda): they’re hard not to notice, given that they’re both KGB spies and assassins embedded in the United States and operating under cover during the Cold War, and forced to select between loyalty to their country and the family they’d made (although it’s worth noting that Elizabeth’s husband, unlike Jack, is in on the scheme and also a KGB spy/assassin) [*5]. The Boss, meanwhile, parallels season 2 Irina: at the beginning of Snake Eater, where she appears, she betrays the C.I.A. without explanation and defects to Russia, and she spends most of the story running rings around everyone, including her protégé Snake (the game’s protagonist, who’s been assigned to kill her and stop her sponsor, a Russian colonel named Volgin) until her actual motives are revealed. She also exists in a universe which combines semi-realistic espionage with frequent batshittery, including psychics, hornets as a weapon of choice, impossibly old snipers with the power of photosynthesis, and a ridiculous amount of reversals and double-crosses.

That said, despite the similarities, there is one chief difference between either work and Alias, which is crucial to making their stories work: neither is naive about the world they’re presenting, both understand, in a way Alias does, that one can’t be a spy and keep one’s hands clean. Being a spy, for the Boss, meant betraying her old friends and everyone she ever loved, allowing herself to become an international pariah, and ultimately dying, because that’s what the mission required.  Elizabeth Jennings killed innocent people, ruined friends’ lives, blackmailed countless people, manipulated her daughter into following her footsteps, and ran herself ragged for years, all because she believed in the cause.  It’s not a great life, being a spy. 

MSG 3 images obtained from Metal Gear Solid 3: The Movie, a re-edit of the game’s cutscenes by KefkaProduction. It can be seen here.

(Sydney, meanwhile, often just has to lie a lot.) [*6]

The thing about this sort of work is that it breaks down one’s ability to claim the moral high ground. Once you’re doing terrible things on the regular, it’s easy to see enemy spies are just other people who are also doing terrible things for their mission—potential comrades who just happen to be on the other side. Snake, The Boss’ protégé in Snake Eater, develops a relationship with Ocelot, a Sark-like soldier working for the Russians.  Elizabeth and Philip Jennings develop a friendship with Stan Beeman, an F.B.I. counter-intelligence agent living right next door, which turns out to be every bit as genuine as it is an effort to cultivate a source. 

Alias, however, spends much of the series unable and unwilling to strip Sydney of her moral high ground, once she obtains it by working for the C.I.A.  What should have been the beginning of her moral journey—after all, how different is SD-6 from the C.I.A., if the people working for the former can’t tell they aren’t working for the latter, and their missions largely work out the same way?—is instead treated as the end. As terrible as U.S. intelligence proves to be, it never actually makes Sydney question her loyalties, or even her feelings about it all. This, in turn, utterly undermines Irina’s potential as a storytelling element.  What good is a temptress if there’s no potential for the person being tempted to change? 

(Similarly, if we’re not allowed to know what Irina Derevko wants—a key element of character-building, as many people will tell you—how are we meant to know how she herself is being changed?)  

Given what we got, it’s no surprise that Irina’s season 4 return is so uninspired, consisting largely of fan service moments, and very little in terms of character progression, or sense that the Sydney’s relationship has moved forward in any way that feels natural—what else was there to do? [*6] It’s inoffensive to the point of being really annoying. 

While Irina’s season 5 appearances are in a way a step backwards, Irina was always more interesting the closer she got to villainy. Her appearance in “Maternal Instinct” is a hoot, and allows her and Sydney to play roles only they could play.  Their final battle, while not really satisfying—in part because it’s the fourth ladyfight in as many finales, and none had come even close to matching the original—feels necessary for Sydney’s story, which had finally begun progressing again after seasons of stalling: there is catharsis to “I am through being disappointed in you” that feels utterly necessary. Could it have been better?  Sure, but then, so could 80% of everything having to do with Irina. 

Footnote footnote revolution!

[*1] I remain convinced that season 2 is actually the worst season, is the one that irrevocably ruined Alias, and that Irina actually had a fair amount to do with that. But that’s a different TED Talk, and I’m willing to fight about it, if anyone wants.

[*2] Well, it depends: the status of Irina’s organization following her “defection” is…unclear. If we accept the idea that the organization is in shambles, as the season suggests, then there’s really no reason why, exactly, the C.I.A. actually needs her cooperation, given that they…uh… didn’t need it in order to actually grievously ruin it in the first place.  And yet, here we are.  

[*3] To a degree, anyway. The Nadia story gets us as far as explaining why Irina would need The Telling, but doesn’t tell us why she’d need The Circumference, even if we ignore its eventual canon purpose.  

[*4] No, their season 3 belief that Irina can be worked with doesn’t count, as it is spun out of whole cloth, and can’t be directly tied into anything that occurred the previous season.  

[*5] The Americans also features an enviable wig game, which should feel very comforting to Alias fans.

[*6] I’m being mostly glib here, but also accurate: while they were a million reasons why Sydney could justifiably consider her double agent status to be  hellish, having to lie to everyone was consistently treated as the absolute worst part of it all.  Fair enough, in a series ultimately about identity, except Alias never really made the attempt to explore that element, either. The closest it got was Julia Thorne, and that was aborted before it could really get anywhere interesting. 

[*7] Although to be fair, that’s partly because, again, the series isn’t really concerned with having Sydney evolve as a person since season 1.

[kedreeva]

Just personal life updates.

I had a neighbor watching the baby birds while I was in NC visiting my little sister, and I just got them back today and I was kind of afraid they would forget me, but although Artemis was hesitant to come out while I was over there, once they were back here, she hopped right into my hands as soon as I opened the cage door again. I’m so pleased!!

The rest of the babies and most of the chickens are going to their actual or new homes on Saturday. I’ve been raising babies for a friend and I also decided to cut back majorly on the chickens I have, both because I want to focus on peas and because I only really have a couple chickens that I actually LIKE as opposed to having them for eggs for other people. So, I will be keeping the marans (my beloved children), Sour (the best chicken in the world), Eagle (the worst chicken in the world), and the 2 d’uccles Dottie and Spottie (the smallest and best). Everyone else has either found a new home or will be going to friends that wanted chickens, and they will get far more attention there.

I have one more out of state trip this weekend, and once things settle down from that, I will be putting in my Low Boy(tm) aquarium order for the axolotls. It provides the floor space of a 120g tank but is only 10 inches tall, which means they can get to the surface easier and the overall setup is only 50 gallons so it will still be fairly light and easy to cool. I’ve still got to locate someplace that can drill and seal the tubing inserts for the chiller. It’s going to be a process.

Next weekend will hopefully be the weekend we get the roofing and final walls up on the last 2 pens, and maybe cut the doors/windows out. After that it will be a matter of locating about 8 people (including me, sark, and my brother in law) to come to a fence raising. Putting in the fencing for the final pen will take about that many people to hold and stretch and staple the fencing into place, especially the roof fencing since it has to be held aloft and stretched 8 feet in the air. That, and we have to dig a 32 foot long trench that is a foot deep before we do any of that. I will probably start the digging myself over the course of the next 2 weeks.

I’ve got the 3g nano tank set up and running for the first of the dwarf shrimps. It’s just got snails in it right now, and a TON of java moss. I will hopefully be adding a couple of shrimps within the week- I’m thinking cherry shrimps first, since they are so bright and easy to find. The quarantine tank is nearly done with its cycle, it’s been about 3 weeks since i brought the new mollies home and I haven’t seen any ich spots in over a week now. It’s a super small, bare-bottom tank and we’ve been doing daily 50% water changes with a vacuum and salting/treating the water daily, so if I don’t see any spots for another week, they’ll be ready to join the big tank!! That male is really something else, I can’t wait to introduce him to ladies!!

The superworm breeding project is going super well (*wink*). I set up separation containers for about 50-60 worms, expecting some loss, but so far I’ve only lost 3 of the worms to transformation issues and almost all of them are beetles now (just a few left that are worms or pupa). The rest have become adorable giant black beetles. It’s been a few weeks since the first ones went into the breeder cage, so it’s gotta be getting close to the time when I need to remove them to the next one. Hopefully they will have laid some eggs and I will start seeing baby superworms by next month. That is the dream right?

I finished my submission for the apocalypse anthology. It’s pretty good, I think, and came out approximately how I wanted it to. I’ve been over it several times, I had 2 beta readers go over it, and I’ve had 2 people who know nothing about it read it and understand it, so that makes me feel better. There are still 3 people in real life that have copies that are reading for coherency, and as soon as I hear back from them I’ll submit it. That, or I’ll do it monday. Whichever comes first!

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“*chuckles* That laugh..”