#she is literally the only friend i have who Still does the “injecting self deprecation into a convo” thing. i thought we left that behind

[blastburnt]

i need a spray gun for every time my friend says she's so ugly

[shinneth]

Gem Ascension Tropes (Peridot-specific: H)

Reference:

Primary Peri Post ▼ Primary General Post ▼ Full Article

Had To Be Sharp: If not the main reason why Peridot was such a Manipulative Bastard during her Homeworld Days, it was certainly what enabled her behavior more than anything else. The Peridot class is largely disrespected, unappreciated, and collectively the Butt-Monkeys of Homeworld gemkind. With very little in the way of personal rights, no hope for upward movement in their lives, and being routinely abused by higher-caste gems and their own kind (as Peridots are among the most common gems living on Homeworld), Peridot quickly gathered that she needed to focus on dominating her competition and care for no one other than herself. She would do whatever was necessary to get ahead, and eventually even opted to get her “competition” brutalized when it wasn’t necessary. This was the only way Peridot was ever commended for her efforts, and the main reason she was eventually promoted to head an interplanetary mission to Earth.

Hair-Trigger Temper: Mostly contained for the comedic moments, such as near the end of Act I’s first chapter when she can’t enter any of the Crystal Gems’ rooms… or when she snaps at Lion for being uncooperative in Chapter 3 (before immediately regretting it). She starts getting this way around Lapis in Act III before the Armor-Piercing Slap, but that’s mostly due to Peridot being in no mood to talk about her problems that Lapis can see plain as day and doesn’t hesitate to point out. Also noteworthy is the first chapter of This is Who I Am, where Peridot nearly attacks 5XF just for insulting Steven.

Hammerspace: Peridot’s most often-used post-ascension ability is to store various items (or fellow friends) into independent Pocket Dimensions that can be summoned at her discretion and dismissed just as easily. 

Hyperspace Arsenal: Meaning as far as combat is concerned, Peridot can easily will a weapon into existence, store it into Hammerspace when she’s done, then summon it to use again whenever she likes.

Hates Being Alone: Especially since Lapis abandoned her in canon, Peridot really does not feel comfortable being isolated. Even when she holed herself up in the bathroom to mope, she still at least had Pumpkin (and knowing other friends were very close by at all times). So, of course, Peridot had to suffer alternating between this and being with just White Diamond for nearly a week after she was stranded on Homeworld following Act I’s conclusion.

Height Angst: Although this is probably the least of Peridot’s many problems in the GA continuity, it’s significant enough of one that’s lingered since her early canon days that it plays into her post-ascension growth spurt.

Hero Protagonist: Much of GA revolves around Peridot transitioning from Plucky Comic Relief to this.

Heroic BSoD: Happens to Peridot twice in the main GA series.

First happens towards the last quarter of Chapter 4 of Act I, when her Heroic Safe Mode can no longer hold out after Peridot completes a major objective. A culmination of the PSTD from the No-Holds-Barred Beatdown she recently suffered at the hands of 9FC (and being conscious for the latter’s brutal execution) and the suffocating levels of guilt she suffers from regaining memories of her past life (also a recent occurrence) makes Peridot fully break down, though she has enough restraint to warn Bismuth and Lapis from interfering in her need to vent (although she does this in the form of a warning shot). Despite poofing an entire workstation full of Peridots (and Yellow Pearl), the only true casualty of this instance is Peridot’s old console, which is crushed into a fine powder by the time she finally comes down from this.

Fast-forward to Chapter 8 of Act III. Peridot’s life has gotten so much worse in a variety of ways, but what truly breaks her is seeing Pumpkin’s life fade before her very eyes. Being indirectly responsible for Pumpkin’s death and acting like a hysterical Jerkass when she could have been saying goodbye to Pumpkin only intensifies the levels of Peridot’s misery, which finally becomes too much for her to keep locked in. It doesn’t help that Peridot’s never suffered loss like this before, either. This Heroic BSoD includes a Brown Note-inducing Death Wail followed by an Angst Nuke that brutally tears up an already-dying Homeworld and destroys any possible way for the Crystal Gems to escape its imminent destruction. Peridot (who Involuntarily Shapeshifts to Chartreuse Diamond) nearly kills all of her friends and herself through this and is completely out of control; the saving grace is Steven (as Pink Diamond 2.0) coming in to halt the destruction with a Cooldown Hug and heal Peridot with some intensive Epiphany Therapy.

Heroic Fatigue: It doesn’t take long for Peridot to start feeling this. It almost makes her collapse within the very first chapter. It comes and goes after that, but what helps Peridot pull through this is to think of Steven.

Heroic Safe Mode: Strongly implied Peridot invokes this after the No-Holds-Barred Beatdown from 9FC, as she’s surprisingly functional and casual right after this (as much as one high off from sedatives can be, anyway), and contrary to her usual demeanor, is quite the Guile Hero when she fools Yellow Pearl into thinking she’s going back to work, only for Peridot to drop a Logic Bomb on her entire station, which poofs everyone (including Yellow Pearl, who becomes the team’s Skeleton Key in this form). Peridot’s behavior after this highly disturbs Lapis and Bismuth, and when they try to call her out on it, Peridot threatens them with violence if they try to intervene. Once she’s finally given some time to be alone, she slips into full Heroic BSoD.

Heroic Self-Deprecation: While psyched to legitimately be the leader of the Crystal Gems and finds that she enjoys this position when being serious about it, Peridot’s fully aware that she could have been better at her job in so many ways, and is under no delusion that she’s anywhere near Garnet’s level. She openly acknowledges her flaws to her friends late in Act I, and several Video Wills in Act II have Peridot outright lambast herself for being subpar at best.

Heroic Willpower: Due in part to her Determinator nature, Peridot was able to resist White Diamond’s influence for nearly a week. White couldn’t even draw Peridot out of her own gemstone without resorting to dirty tactics. On both occasions, Peridot only ultimately lost due to being unfairly tricked.

Hidden in Plain Sight: Nobody, not even Peridot herself, was aware she was a randomly-chosen Unwitting Test Subject. Not only did her visor constantly cover her Mismatched Eyes as Peridot never had a reason to take it off, but she was also the first heterochromatic gem to emerge in thousands of years. And of all potential possibilities, no one in their right mind would believe a low-caste gem like her would ever be chosen for such a unique and exclusive experiment; history proves all past heterochromatic gems were much higher on the food chain and none were Era 2s.

Higher Understanding Through Drugs: The injuries Peridot sustains in the No-Holds-Barred Beatdown with 9FC in Chapter 4 of Act I are so severe that she literally needs to be injected with high doses of sedatives in order to move or function in any way; after all, Peridot is not only borderline-crippled from the incident, but was also sent into catatonic shock. Despite all this, Peridot is still expected to report for work soon, so the medic who cares for her gives her enough painkillers to make her functional for the duration of her shift. While very obviously high as hell as one drugged with sedatives would be, Peridot’s at least able to walk and talk with her friends… as well as remember her objective for her current mission while her other teammates forgot about that detail after that traumatic event. In order to truly perform to the best of her ability, Peridot’s Heroic Safe Mode slips in to take over, which brings back haunting shades of the Sociopath she used to be. While very unnerving and unpleasant, Peridot’s performance is arguably more proficient this way opposed to not being under the influence of any drugs. Even Peridot’s critical flaws like being a Bad Liar disappear while under the influence, which makes her able to fool Yellow Pearl to fall right into her trap. Only after achieving her objective does her drugged state start to cause legitimate problems…

Hostage MacGuffin: Peridot’s Heroic Sacrifice at the end of Act I leads to her being this through the entirety of Act II up until about a third of the way into Act III. However, she slips back into this role towards the end of Chapter 6 until the end of Chapter 7. Bear in mind that by Act III, everyone is aware Peridot is simultaneously a MacGuffin Super Person, so White Diamond is using her as more than just a bargaining chip to lure Steven back.

Hot-Blooded: Not quite as notorious as Ruby is, but it does show with Peridot on more than one occasion. 

Hurting Hero: A trope that has a consistent snowball effect for Peridot the further along she goes in GA and beyond. Act I’s challenges of insecurities, the burden of responsibility, being selfless, defining how she feels about Steven, and the persisting fear of overall failure seem pretty trivial to what Peridot goes through in Act III. Then there’s issues regarding her origins, coping with a new life she didn’t want but had to take to save her friends, and especially her identity when she becomes Chartreuse Diamond. Post-GA stories don’t give Peridot a break, either; with the emotional baggage she’s accrued across GA, she’s still carrying a lot of that on her back. While she’s come to terms with most of it, her role in the new Era 3 is overwhelming, to say the least.

Hybrid Power: After ascending, Peridot has roughly the same capabilities as Chartreuse Diamond, although if she’s in her Peridot form, there will be a cap on her potential due to her inherent limitations. Even feats Peridot can pull off as Chartreuse can will often result in strain, fatigue, or pain depending on what she’s trying to conjure or invoke.

Hypocrite: She berates Lapis and Bismuth in the very first chapter of Act I for expressing desires of getting revenge against the Diamond Authority when their top priority should be to rescue their friends (while also pointing out how much of a suicide mission it is to retaliate on the Diamonds’ home turf); however, Chapter 4 shows Peridot not being much better when her plan to gain a Skeleton Key to Homeworld in the form of Yellow Pearl’s gemstone doubles as a way for Peridot to get back at her former boss for all the grief she put her through. This also extends to her more innocuous coworkers, as Peridot had no problems risking their lives poofing the entire workstation just to get Yellow Pearl’s gemstone. In her compromised mental state, she even briefly considers shattering her helpless poofed coworkers, but Lapis and Bismuth bring her out of it while not hesitating to call Peridot out on her hypocrisy.

This is revisited late in Act III, as everyone can tell something happened between Steven and Peridot while they were separated from the others in Chapter 5, which is causing Peridot to act like a major Jerkass to others while Steven stays conspicuously quiet. Lapis doesn’t hesitate to point out that Peridot has a serious problem and she’s sucking at trying to hide it. She references how Peridot forced her and Bismuth to be Locked in a Room way back in Chapter 3 of Act I to sort out their differences so that they wouldn’t become an issue during the mission. Yet Peridot refuses to face her problems and resolve them as they’re on their way to directly face White Diamond. Peridot can’t bring herself to face her issues at this time, so she can’t offer any kind of rebuttal. Instead, she opts to snap at Lapis and deride her for having skewed priorities, but of course this ends up biting her in the ass hard by Chapter 7.

[magdalenes]

actually okay no i know i just made a post about how i love her but let’s talk about michelle, really talk about her, because she was incredible in spider-man: homecoming (bless you zendaya, you slayed and our cinema — four hundred people full — loved you and the whole film. we applauded at the end, i shit you not, with some even giving it a standing ovation)

okay so peter obviously has the main arc in this film and i love it, the kid was endearing and wonderful and lovable and hilarious and always tried to do the right thing and i love him, but he’s not the only one with an arc. michelle’s admittedly comes off as pretty minor when considered against some others, like peter’s, but it exists. it’s there. and that’s a pretty important thing to acknowledge, when you consider what her arc’s about: friends. more importantly, having them. let’s start with who she is. by the way, if you haven’t seen the film, i would stop reading now if you’re avoiding spoilers, because i can’t promise i’ll be avoiding them. also heads up for probably confusing parentheses bc i go off on tangents so!! michelle. michelle who we first see calling out peter and ned for “we should probably stop staring before it gets creepy” — “too late, you guys are losers”. that was in the first trailer and don’t get me wrong, it was the perfect timing for that comment, and definitely introduced us, in one line, to who michelle is. but it’s the next thing she says that i want to focus on. i feel like it may have made it’s way into promotional material for the film but i don’t remember; either way, it was the moment, for me, that highlighted an important trait about michelle (her honesty, though that’s not really all it is — it’s something that would be self-deprecating in almost anyone else’s mouth, but doesn’t quite hit that note here. it’s raw, i guess, like a punch in the face, because you don’t expect anyone to say something like “i don’t have any friends” without some emotion being attached, and while there are the barest hints of emotion there, it exists as something different entirely and i just really wanna applaud zendaya on a job really well done), as well as set up her arc’s key words. “i don’t have any friends.” whilst it’s subtly hinted as the film goes on that it’s not the only reason she’s sitting with them, it’s definitely the strongest contender. (also, bless ned; i don’t know anyone else who would consider someone sitting at the opposite end of your table ‘sitting with us’ and i love you for it. ned was a blessing) anyway! michelle is this wonderful, observant girl (“i’m not obsessed with him, i’m just very observant” was wonderfully-delivered as a line, and i love michelle for managing to inject dignity in that statement when everyone is staring at her after she reveals her observation of peter (and also how many of the same extra-curriculars she and peter have lol), even if it’s perhaps not entirely true; not that i’m positing that michelle is obsessed with peter, because definitely not, but there is definitely the subtle hints of a crush and this is tangential kinda but I REALLY LOVE HOW THEY DID THAT, like she’s not the love interest in this film and it’s subtle and definitely is not the defining aspect of her character and i just love her and i love this movie) who fits in protesting around the academic decathlon (after WINNING it, my GIRL) and seems to eat toast at parties hosted by the most-popular senior in the school (seriously i’m probably seeing this again next week but if anyone sees it before me or can remember: was she making toast at liz’s house lmao). she’s dry and clever and sits in detention when she doesn’t have it because she likes drawing people in their crisis points and shows them the pictures i cannot even express to you how much i love this girl also i don’t want to understate the washington monument moment. i never actually caught their teacher’s name but to me he will always be professor cligoris from community. anyway, when prof clig turns to her, because the rest of them are heading up to washington monument, and she realises what she’s getting at and informs him she doesn’t really want to celebrate or be involved with (i can’t remember exact phrasing so if anyone does please shout out) something slaves built, and then when prof clig is like “oh i’m sure slaves didn’t—” and then the guard in the background is just shaking his head a little in the background and michelle’s matching expression, i just. i think it’s a really good highlight of a particular way race dynamics can play out: prof clig doesn’t know slaves built the monument, doesn’t even think about it, because he’s never felt he’s needed to. even though he is the adult, the educator, he is coming from a place of historical (and modern day) privilege; it’s not something he’s thought about because it’s not his historical oppression, it’s not emblematic of historical atrocities that have ramifications on his culture today — or, it is, but those ramifications don’t actively work against him, so he doesn’t have to think about it. and liz goes up, and michelle stays down; both legitimate choices, both incredible girls. i’m just still buzzing that they showed us a character making that choice.

also, marvel’s never been the best with diversity amongst its cast, and i’m not going to suggest that this movie somehow makes up for it, because it doesn’t. i’m constantly frustrated as a biracial pasifika woman that i never see anyone who looks like me in these movies i love (i’ve long since given up on seeing someone pasifika in marvel films (though i am unbelievably excited for taika waititi’s thor), but just in general, it’s so important to see more poc in these movies) but this is the first marvel movie i’ve seen set in new york that is actually populated with enough diversity to look like it could actually be new york. also, the high schoolers actually look like teenagers! i’m in awe! i fucking love this cast anyway i’m getting really distracted. all right, so we have michelle in all her blunt, smart, politically active, toast-eating, cool outsider glory. and we have her arc words: “i don’t have any friends.”

and then we have the washington monument scene, a moment that only peter is privy to, though michelle doesn’t know it’s peter. michelle, on the ground — michelle who says “can’t believe you guys are at this lame party”, michelle who is involved in several extra-curricular groups but is usually alone outside of them, michelle who voluntarily attends detention, michelle who says “i don’t have any friends” — michelle points up at the monument that’s cracking and cries out, worriedly (it’s literally the most earnest emotion we’ve heard from her all film; generally she’s dry and fly af), “my friends are up there!”

honestly, it didn’t occur to me until after, because i was so swept away in the moment, but she says it. my friends. and peter — peter hears it. spider-man does this odd stumbling double-take at her words, and at the time i thought it might be his surprise at seeing her there, or his concern at what she said regarding the whereabouts of their team, or just his general panic. and honestly, i still think that. peter parker is smarter than me, but i think even he would be too caught up in everything to realise what she said. but she still said it. i don’t know if peter would click or remember later — honestly, he had a lot of stuff going on. but she still said it, and he does know that, even if she doesn’t know he does.

we see michelle with the gang other times, of course — with peter in detention, with ned and the others at the dance, etc. — but it’s her final scene i want to draw you to, the academic decathlon meeting after liz leaves. michelle is named captain, and they’re all clapping for her and it’s so pure and ned looks honestly excited for her and peter looks earnest and it’s just so pure — and then she says, “my friends call me mj”. (i’m gonna revisit that in a moment, but i need to finish the scene). ned turns to her, like, “i thought you don’t have any friends” and she pauses, then says, “i didn’t” and i fucking died.

we go from michelle at the beginning, on the very end of the table, alone and away from even losers peter and ned — because they may be losers, but they’re together. michelle is alone. we go from that michelle, saying “i don’t have any friends”, to michelle at the end, surrounded by her decathlon team, clapping for her, happy for her, acknowledging her deserved captaincy, saying “my friends call me mj”, saying “i didn’t [have any friends]” but now i do.

i just !!! i love michelle so much and maybe it’s not a hero arc, or learning about the importance of looking out for the little guy, or even learning to listen (which was probably happy’s), but it’s still important. it’s still meaningful. i went into that film being sure i’d love zendaya’s character. i came out of that film not only loving her, but rooting for michelle “mj” jones.

aaaaaand let’s talk real quick about the mj thing, because it’s not the point of this post but i still want to. personally, i love mary-jane in the comics, but her film presence has been pretty lacklustre, and michelle is quite different to her but i also really really love michelle, like holy shit, and i think she’s an incredible mj. i don’t know what role she’ll occupy going forward. they said she’s not mary-jane watson, that she’s a completely new character, and technically, that’s true. she’s mj, but she’s not mary-jane. they also said she wasn’t a love interest this movie; that’s also true. liz was. however. she’s not mary-jane, but she is mj. she wasn’t a love interest this movie, but she was nursing a well-hidden crush on peter. so maybe in spider-man 2, who knows? personally, i’m rooting for it, but more than that, i’m rooting for her. as a character. spider-man: homecoming gave me so many wonderful things, like a wonderful cast, the best use of donald glover since community (”i like bread”) which also snuck in a miles morales reference, a great ferris bueller’s day off homage, my favourite film incarnation of peter parker, the wonder that is liz allen, an a.i. named karen who is more supportive of peter than most adults are in general, high schoolers that looked like high schoolers, an updated version of a bully instead of a jock meathead and ned wearing an awesome cowboy hat because it gives him confidence (ned is such a fucking blessing) (also i hope he one day meets groot wearing that because groot’s reason for not liking hats gives me life), but michelle “mj” jones might be the gift i appreciate most.

[magdalenes]

actually okay no i know i just made a post about how i love her but let’s talk about michelle, really talk about her, because she was incredible in spider-man: homecoming (bless you zendaya, you slayed and our cinema — four hundred people full — loved you and the whole film. we applauded at the end, i shit you not, with some even giving it a standing ovation)

okay so peter obviously has the main arc in this film and i love it, the kid was endearing and wonderful and lovable and hilarious and always tried to do the right thing and i love him, but he’s not the only one with an arc. michelle’s admittedly comes off as pretty minor when considered against some others, like peter’s, but it exists. it’s there. and that’s a pretty important thing to acknowledge, when you consider what her arc’s about: friends. more importantly, having them. let’s start with who she is. by the way, if you haven’t seen the film, i would stop reading now if you’re avoiding spoilers, because i can’t promise i’ll be avoiding them. also heads up for probably confusing parentheses bc i go off on tangents so!! michelle. michelle who we first see calling out peter and ned for “we should probably stop staring before it gets creepy” — “too late, you guys are losers”. that was in the first trailer and don’t get me wrong, it was the perfect timing for that comment, and definitely introduced us, in one line, to who michelle is. but it’s the next thing she says that i want to focus on. i feel like it may have made it’s way into promotional material for the film but i don’t remember; either way, it was the moment, for me, that highlighted an important trait about michelle (her honesty, though that’s not really all it is — it’s something that would be self-deprecating in almost anyone else’s mouth, but doesn’t quite hit that note here. it’s raw, i guess, like a punch in the face, because you don’t expect anyone to say something like “i don’t have any friends” without some emotion being attached, and while there are the barest hints of emotion there, it exists as something different entirely and i just really wanna applaud zendaya on a job really well done), as well as set up her arc’s key words. “i don’t have any friends.” whilst it’s subtly hinted as the film goes on that it’s not the only reason she’s sitting with them, it’s definitely the strongest contender. (also, bless ned; i don’t know anyone else who would consider someone sitting at the opposite end of your table ‘sitting with us’ and i love you for it. ned was a blessing) anyway! michelle is this wonderful, observant girl (“i’m not obsessed with him, i’m just very observant” was wonderfully-delivered as a line, and i love michelle for managing to inject dignity in that statement when everyone is staring at her after she reveals her observation of peter (and also how many of the same extra-curriculars she and peter have lol), even if it’s perhaps not entirely true; not that i’m positing that michelle is obsessed with peter, because definitely not, but there is definitely the subtle hints of a crush and this is tangential kinda but I REALLY LOVE HOW THEY DID THAT, like she’s not the love interest in this film and it’s subtle and definitely is not the defining aspect of her character and i just love her and i love this movie) who fits in protesting around the academic decathlon (after WINNING it, my GIRL) and seems to eat toast at parties hosted by the most-popular senior in the school (seriously i’m probably seeing this again next week but if anyone sees it before me or can remember: was she making toast at liz’s house lmao). she’s dry and clever and sits in detention when she doesn’t have it because she likes drawing people in their crisis points and shows them the pictures i cannot even express to you how much i love this girl also i don’t want to understate the washington monument moment. i never actually caught their teacher’s name but to me he will always be professor cligoris from community. anyway, when prof clig turns to her, because the rest of them are heading up to washington monument, and she realises what she’s getting at and informs him she doesn’t really want to celebrate or be involved with (i can’t remember exact phrasing so if anyone does please shout out) something slaves built, and then when prof clig is like “oh i’m sure slaves didn’t—” and then the guard in the background is just shaking his head a little in the background and michelle’s matching expression, i just. i think it’s a really good highlight of a particular way race dynamics can play out: prof clig doesn’t know slaves built the monument, doesn’t even think about it, because he’s never felt he’s needed to. even though he is the adult, the educator, he is coming from a place of historical (and modern day) privilege; it’s not something he’s thought about because it’s not his historical oppression, it’s not emblematic of historical atrocities that have ramifications on his culture today — or, it is, but those ramifications don’t actively work against him, so he doesn’t have to think about it. and liz goes up, and michelle stays down; both legitimate choices, both incredible girls. i’m just still buzzing that they showed us a character making that choice.

also, marvel’s never been the best with diversity amongst its cast, and i’m not going to suggest that this movie somehow makes up for it, because it doesn’t. i’m constantly frustrated as a biracial pasifika woman that i never see anyone who looks like me in these movies i love (i’ve long since given up on seeing someone pasifika in marvel films (though i am unbelievably excited for taika waititi’s thor), but just in general, it’s so important to see more poc in these movies) but this is the first marvel movie i’ve seen set in new york that is actually populated with enough diversity to look like it could actually be new york. also, the high schoolers actually look like teenagers! i’m in awe! i fucking love this cast anyway i’m getting really distracted. all right, so we have michelle in all her blunt, smart, politically active, toast-eating, cool outsider glory. and we have her arc words: “i don’t have any friends.”

and then we have the washington monument scene, a moment that only peter is privy to, though michelle doesn’t know it’s peter. michelle, on the ground — michelle who says “can’t believe you guys are at this lame party”, michelle who is involved in several extra-curricular groups but is usually alone outside of them, michelle who voluntarily attends detention, michelle who says “i don’t have any friends” — michelle points up at the monument that’s cracking and cries out, worriedly (it’s literally the most earnest emotion we’ve heard from her all film; generally she’s dry and fly af), “my friends are up there!”

honestly, it didn’t occur to me until after, because i was so swept away in the moment, but she says it. my friends. and peter — peter hears it. spider-man does this odd stumbling double-take at her words, and at the time i thought it might be his surprise at seeing her there, or his concern at what she said regarding the whereabouts of their team, or just his general panic. and honestly, i still think that. peter parker is smarter than me, but i think even he would be too caught up in everything to realise what she said. but she still said it. i don’t know if peter would click or remember later — honestly, he had a lot of stuff going on. but she still said it, and he does know that, even if she doesn’t know he does.

we see michelle with the gang other times, of course — with peter in detention, with ned and the others at the dance, etc. — but it’s her final scene i want to draw you to, the academic decathlon meeting after liz leaves. michelle is named captain, and they’re all clapping for her and it’s so pure and ned looks honestly excited for her and peter looks earnest and it’s just so pure — and then she says, “my friends call me mj”. (i’m gonna revisit that in a moment, but i need to finish the scene). ned turns to her, like, “i thought you don’t have any friends” and she pauses, then says, “i didn’t” and i fucking died.

we go from michelle at the beginning, on the very end of the table, alone and away from even losers peter and ned — because they may be losers, but they’re together. michelle is alone. we go from that michelle, saying “i don’t have any friends”, to michelle at the end, surrounded by her decathlon team, clapping for her, happy for her, acknowledging her deserved captaincy, saying “my friends call me mj”, saying “i didn’t [have any friends]” but now i do.

i just !!! i love michelle so much and maybe it’s not a hero arc, or learning about the importance of looking out for the little guy, or even learning to listen (which was probably happy’s), but it’s still important. it’s still meaningful. i went into that film being sure i’d love zendaya’s character. i came out of that film not only loving her, but rooting for michelle “mj” jones.

aaaaaand let’s talk real quick about the mj thing, because it’s not the point of this post but i still want to. personally, i love mary-jane in the comics, but her film presence has been pretty lacklustre, and michelle is quite different to her but i also really really love michelle, like holy shit, and i think she’s an incredible mj. i don’t know what role she’ll occupy going forward. they said she’s not mary-jane watson, that she’s a completely new character, and technically, that’s true. she’s mj, but she’s not mary-jane. they also said she wasn’t a love interest this movie; that’s also true. liz was. however. she’s not mary-jane, but she is mj. she wasn’t a love interest this movie, but she was nursing a well-hidden crush on peter. so maybe in spider-man 2, who knows? personally, i’m rooting for it, but more than that, i’m rooting for her. as a character. spider-man: homecoming gave me so many wonderful things, like a wonderful cast, the best use of donald glover since community (”i like bread”) which also snuck in a miles morales reference, a great ferris bueller’s day off homage, my favourite film incarnation of peter parker, the wonder that is liz allen, an a.i. named karen who is more supportive of peter than most adults are in general, high schoolers that looked like high schoolers, an updated version of a bully instead of a jock meathead and ned wearing an awesome cowboy hat because it gives him confidence (ned is such a fucking blessing) (also i hope he one day meets groot wearing that because groot’s reason for not liking hats gives me life), but michelle “mj” jones might be the gift i appreciate most.