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raayllum · 2 years ago

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TDP and Water Symbolism

With Book 5 all but being confirmed as Ocean, it made me want to take a look back at what water represents in the series in general. Most prominently, of course, for Rayla for obvious reasons, but also where and how water symbolism pops up for some other characters, such as Ezran and Callum, scattered throughout the show.

Water often symbolizes healing and rebirth, rivers with pathways, destiny and drowning (particularly for women, such as Ophelia from Hamlet and the Lady of Shalott) and the Ocean unpredictability, power, chaos, and the depths. The Ocean is also often the site of obsession (Ahab and Moby Dick) as well as desire (siren myths) and the struggle to find your way home (Odysseus). There are some tenets of all of this throughout TDP, but we’ll work our way through as well as discuss the limited specifics of what we know of the Ocean primal from Tales of Xadia and additional information from Callum’s Spellbook.

Water as Reflection

Lujanne: This is the Moon Nexus. It reflects the moon perfectly. When the moon is full, its light completely fills the lake.

This is the one that’s most overtly related to Aaravos, perhaps, as well as in line with Ocean and Moon’s direct connection in show. Water/ice reflects, mirrors reflect, and tether the two together. The characters who are most heavily associated with reflection in this manner are Viren and Callum, of course, with Rayla as well, although Claudia, Soren (with his sword), and Ezran (with his father’s sword and eventual crown) have their moments as well.

Moreover, all of this moments of reflection for Rayla are moments where she feels like she’s failing, or has failed. “I guess I was just afraid of being afraid” / “But you didn’t run. They have it all wrong” “Does it matter?” / “I’m not good enough and I never will be.” While many other characters are tied to reflection as noted above, Rayla (and Ethari and Callum with her) are the only characters we see be reflected by water in this way.

However, there are even more ways water is woven into Rayla’s arc, so let’s talk about it

Water as Fear, Bravery, and Shame

Rayla’s first test as an assassin takes place in the rain, but she is unable to go through with it. This is a ‘failure’ that haunts her even into season four, perhaps best summed up in how she mirrors Runaan in these conversations from 1x01 and 1x08 respectively.

Rayla: The human looked up at me and I saw the fear in his eyes. Runaan: Of course he was afraid! But you had a job to do!

Ezran: Yeah, but then you saw he was scared, and you knew he was a person, just like you. Rayla: That shouldn’t have mattered. I had a job to do.

Rayla’s relationship to fear reaffirms the idea that recognizing personhood - her own or anyone else’s - is also a signifier of weakness (laid out more directly, perhaps, in the S1 novelization), and is incredibly Moonshadow of her: “Moonshadow elves aren’t supposed to show fear, ever.” Which is why Rayla is typically confronted with the water-shame duality when she is trying to either ignore someone else’s personhood, or is having her own erased, best seen with her crossing the river in 1x02 on her way to try and be a proper assassin.

Which is why 1x05 is when the shift between what she’s supposed to be - an assassin - and who she truly is - a hero starts to transform water as only a weakness to a showcasing of bravery.

C: That was brave, Rayla. R: No, I already told you, I’m afraid of water. C: I know. That’s why doing what you did was so heroic. R: Oh... Thanks.

And why the assassin pool bearing the literal symbol of shame - the symbol of her just surviving when it was dictated that she shouldn’t have - is what justifies literally erasing her, and turning her into a Ghost. Which, we’ll return to the pond more later, don’t you worry.

If you’d like more thoughts on Rayla with water in this specific trifecta (+ bonus Callum feels), I’d recommend checking out this old but very worthwhile meta I wrote on the subject a couple months after S3 came out and back before I had a water motif tag (like a fool). Through the Moon adds some layers to this, with Rayla being driven into the portal out of fear, primarily, that Viren is still out there, as well as out of love for her family and Callum. But again more on TTM as well later, because I want to talk about the real kicker, I think, which is

The River As A Symbol of Destiny

This is something that ATLA actually used beforehand (mostly purely as a metaphor) that was then brought more directly to TDP as both a metaphorical and now literal/motif thing.

Destiny? What would a boy know of destiny? If a fish lives its whole life in a river, does it know the river’s destiny? No! Only that it flows on and on, out of his control. He may follow where it flows, but he cannot see the end. He cannot imagine the ocean.

—Avatar: The Last Airbender, 1x15, the Deserter

V: Life is like a river. R: Oh great. That’s exactly what I was afraid of. V: You can’t see too far ahead. I can’t see at all, as I might’ve mentioned before. You don’t know where the river of life will bend and turn. You don’t know where it will go at all. R: How is that supposed to helpful? V: Don’t try to control where the river goes. There’s one thing you can know and control: yourself. Look at yourself. Who are you, Rayla? What do you stand for? Once you know that, then wherever the river takes you, you’ll be right where you were always meant to be.

We see Rayla seemingly answer this question for herself by using something Callum told her as a basis for a new worldview: breaking the cycle. “Saving that dragon doesn’t just feel like the right thing to do, it feels like the right thing for me to do. It’s where I’m meant to be.” However, this is precisely the choice we see her walk back in 4x05.

So the River is tied to Destiny as a concept and having choice and self actualization for what you can control. This is tied, then, to Callum helping to give her a path forward for the choices she wants to make, tethering this to their relationship in general and the importance of giving each other agency.

But this specific connection to the River of Destiny, per se, is imo solidified in Bloodmoon Huntress with these panels.

There’s a few in-universe reasons for this panel/callback, of course. The first is show that Rayla wasn’t always afraid of water and that nearly drowning in BH is what likely created that fear. It’s the first instance in the graphic novel of Rayla’s heroism and loyalty, her desire to protect/save other people before Suroh, a Skywing boy in big trouble, comes barrelling into her life - even if it’s just a tiny Adoraburr who is basically her best friend in an increasingly peerless childhood.

And, of course, at the time of BH’s release, we all assumed this was largely a reference and setup to Rayla’s choice to leave at the end of Through the Moon in order to, in her eyes, ultimately protect him (even at great cost to herself and their happiness together). This is because, of course, Callum is famously her best friend with a big speech in 3x01 all about it: “He’s my friend... My best friend.”

This has taken on an even deeper meaning thanks to season four, though, following Aaravos taking control of Callum, his worry over a path of darkness, and Rayla’s associations with light. Because, of course, there is every implication that Aaravos’ prison is 1) under the water in the Sea of the Castout and 2) that Callum already tends to get swept up in things unintentionally / without thinking.

All of this to say, of course, that Aaravos and his prison are the river that Callum has already been swept up by, symbolized by all of the above as well as the Ocean rune on the Key of Aaravos being displayed at particularly opportune times.

So Rayla, here, is not just speaking of her future desire to protect him in Through the Moon, but not even necessarily to keep from playing into Aaravos’ hands (which is what killing him would do) but to guide him and keep him safe, no matter what it takes. Which reflects the framing of the shots when she arrives: “Then take another path, dummy!” The River of Destiny is fast, but she won’t let him get swept away.

Even if choosing Rayla (and subsequently breaking out of the brainwashing) may not be enough to fully stop Aaravos’ plan (as he still has to get out, after all — this is one river that’s inevitable).

Drowning

Of course, alongside destiny and shame, etc. there is also the dark side to water, re: drowning. We see this most prominently featured for each of the trio, with Ezran almost dying in 1x06, Callum’s dark magic dreams in 2x08, as well as Rayla nearly drowning in both BH and TTM, anchoring her childhood and much of her subsequent present day trauma tied together with a neat little bow, ready to unravel at a moment’s notice.

The fact that Callum’s use of dark magic also ties itself to drowning, directly, when it could’ve been anything (something choking him, perhaps, to hammer home / foreshadow Aaravos’ future grip over him) is also interesting to me, precisely because it ties the two so together. And that, thus far, we haven’t seen this drowning motif extended to anyone outside of the main trio, either.

The fact that both in and outside of the dream scape, Callum smashing the primal stone is what causes him to at first metaphorically, and then literally begin drowning, is particularly apt, symbolism wise. Down to Berto, a winged creature, lifting Villads from the wreckage only for Callum to realize that he is the wing once he has a guiding presence in Sarai. This is a lovely parallel between the boys as well, with Sarai guiding Ezran under the ice in the book one novelization, and makes me think about love as a guiding force through the storm; Sarai for her sons, Rayla on either side of the storm for Callum, and Callum for her in TTM, and how this may be repeated in Book 5, whether it’s Rayla’s parents saving her somehow, Callum, both, or something else entirely.

(It should also be noted that Callum and Rayla mutually save each other in TTM as well. Callum goes in after her when she’s in danger, but loses the phoenix feather to guide them back on the way down. He manages to help Rayla grab it, and then she goes back for him, and they swim out together, toward the light.)

The Ocean Arcanum

(Almost) last but not least I want to talk about the associations given canonically to the Ocean arcanum in the series’ extended material from both the Primal Source quiz, Callum’s Sketchbook, and Tales of Xadia.

Like all rivers flow to the sea, you know everything and everyone is connected. A peaceful soul, you value friendship, love, and family above all else in life. Empathetic and outgoing, you make friends easily, and people are drawn to your personality. In life, you’re willing to go with the flow, and you can adapt to pretty much anything and keep a cool head. You wear your heart on your sleeve, and with love so easily given, betrayal and lies strike you deeply — you are icy and unforgiving only to those who dare strike at your big heart.

Flexibility, Transformation, Flow, Awareness, Navigation, Surface Level V.S. Depth

This is reflected in the magic that Ocean mages wield: dynamic, forceful, reaching everywhere and anywhere, within and without. It can also become surprisingly powerful in rain, giving this primal a powerful synergy with the Sky primal. Ocean magic also includes ice magic, giving mages another powerful offensive and defensive tool.

All of these were released years apart (the primal quiz shortly after S1 in 2018, Callum’s Spellbook after S3 in 2020, and Tales of Xadia in 2021) but they all have similar common threads. There is an emphasis on connection, ice magic, flexibility (change), as well as tantalizing teases regarding the Sky arcanum. And of course as previously touched upon, the Moon famously affects real life tides.

But like, how do we know that this stuff is going to be consistently carried into the show, and it’s not just padding for supplementary material? Well, that’s because It Already Has.

Navigation and Transformation

Are perhaps the most direct ones we’ll see in S5, building upon prior associations with water the show has displayed, particularly in S2. The Ocean is tied to Callum’s journey of discovering sky magic, as he learns the winds from Villads on the ship of the Ruthless, and then later is directed into his own consciousness by a similar manner. He’s learning how to navigate and Villads’ advice to Callum mirrors the exact advice he gives to Rayla about the river, too.

Don’t try to control where the river winds go. There’s one thing you can know and control, yourself your sail.

This is jointly reflected by a con skit performed in 2019 to hype up S3 by Callum and Rayla’s VAs. While again this would be easy to write off, I hesitate to for three reasons: 1) we know thanks to TDP’s production schedule they were already working on S4 at this time, 2) the skit is called Written in the Stars and although silly, some of what is discussed matches up thematically and helped me call the Rayllum “light and darkness” motif months in advance, and 3) there are things from the S4 star chart referenced in the skit, such as Garlaf and his bandolier of skulls, the mama / baby banther, etc and most notably, the South Star, which Callum says:

What about that? Brightest star in the sky. A single point of light. We call it the South Star. Humans used it to navigate, you know, to find their way in the endless darkness of the night.

So it seems pretty clear that Season Five, with Callum and Rayla now getting to navigate their relationship, in addition to water’s ties to Rayla’s emotional state (the surface vs depths reflecting both her and Aaravos’ possible pasts, his watery prison, etc) all being compounded together. Either Aaravos or Rayla (or maybe both of them) will be his South Star in S5. And, in addition to Callum’s Spellbook, this is the only real time navigation is brought up in series, so I’m gonna take it.

Now that that’s ‘settled’, let’s look at Ocean / water as Transformation. This is of course seen in how Callum goes into the water in his dreams in 2x08, but then resurfaces with help from his mother and is reborn in a sense, literally filled with new breath, as he comes to understand the Sky arcanum. We also see this idea of Transformation being tied to the Ocean and Moon arcanums an equal amount in something like Phoe-Phoe, and as well as in TTM in general.

The Moon Arcanum is all about change.

Phoe-Phoe is reborn on the water. The water transforms Rayla’s fear to bravery. Rayla’s talk with Villads helps give her direction as much as he gives it to Callum, each unlocking how they are going to break the cycle; for Rayla, it’s being a protector and defender (even if still at cost to herself, but that’s a meta for another day). For Callum, he becomes a sky primal mage.

Which is to say, if you’ve been keeping track, Sky and Moon are uniquely tethered in series to the Ocean in ways none of the other primals currently seem to be. Sky and Ocean share overlap in spells and associations (drowning, navigation, breath, travel). Ocean and Moon likewise share overlap in association (transformation, reflections, depths, etc). So it would be exceedingly fitting if S5 is when Rayla and Callum end up fully reconciling, given that Ocean seems to, magically, be where Sky and Moon meet halfway. The water and experiences at the Nexus is what broke them apart, so of course water will also be what brings them together.

Water as the Cycle

More generally, due to its varied associations, Water is tied to Life ad Death throughout the series. In some ways, it is probably associated with the Cycle directly as much as Moon is, both tied to inherently cyclical things that may change, but always come back to themselves. TTM makes this connection overt

But it is there in other places as well. An assassin’s flower, placed in a circular pond of water, floats so long as they live and breathe. Rayla leaves and returns, consistently, like the tide, leaving over and over again, but also returning whenever she can (or whenever Callum chases after her to bring her back from the brink).

In a lot of ways, Callum and Rayla both do this to each other, leaving and then returning, always circling back to one another or moving in patterns.

Every time they walk away (die) they also return (live). This element of perpetual ebb and and flow and rebirth is also seen in other characters like Sol Regem, and even indeed the longstanding associations of boats and the underworld in Greek and Egyptian myth in particular, ferrying people to the afterlife (Greek myth a cited inspiration for the series, with the Egyptian mythos more sneakily woven in).

Seen perhaps most prominently in Callum reckoning with his stepfather’s death and reading Harrow’s letter in the belly of Villads’ boat.

Conclusion

Book 5: Ocean is gonna Slap, and I cannot wait, thank you goodnight.

#tdp #the dragon prince #tdp rayla #rayllum #tdp callum #water motif #tdp meta #analysis series #analysis #multi #the cycle #parallels #might honestly be some of the most fun i've had working on a meta #bc they surprisingly/unsurprisingly worked their way in #personal fave #every separation is a link #devil and the lovers

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dpromophotospal-blog · 7 years ago

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Siren Season 1 Episode 1 (1x01) "Pilot" Promotional Photos & Synopsis

#Siren #Season 1 #Episode 1 #1x01 #Freeform #Pilot #Promotional #Photos #Synopsis #Cast #Air Date #Eline Powell #mermaid

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writersblockedx · 3 years ago

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Protector of the Party: Chapter 1

Chapter One: The Night Will Byers Disappeared

PAIRING - Steve Harrington X Reader BASED OFF - 1X01 WARNINGS - Drug abuse, very small implication of sex WORDS - 1.7K A/N - This is more of a prologue than a proper chapter as the others will be much longer. And also, welcome to my first re-write on Tumblr, I hope you enjoy reading :)

Read on AO3 / Wattpad Masterlist

On the night of Will Byers disappearance, Y/n Henderson, the local outcast of Hawkins High School, had been about to get arrested.

It must have been around eight before her peaceful tranquillity by Lovers Lake was interrupted. She had told her aunty Claudia that she meeting up with a few friends. A few friends that didn't, in fact, have names. Y/n did have friends. Well, she had people she knew and she had Johnathan Byers. But Johnathan certainly wasn't one for smoking.

Sat next to her at the lake, was a small tin box. It's lid flicked over to expose the packets of unlabelled herbs and a load of rolling papers. The setting was dark but the light from Hawkins reflected back onto the ripples in the water. For what had been an hour now, Y/n had been alone to it all.

She spotted the red and blue first.

The water she had been starring at was infected with the flashing lights that glowed back at her. Following it, the sirens that blared loud enough Y/n thought her ear drums might have popped.

There was only one cop car that pulled into the dirt space that was situated behind her. Y/n sighed as she flicked the half-smoked joint into the lake before pulled herself from the ground. The lights dimmed and the alarms finally stopped. Hopper got out of the car first. His expression was one Y/n would have imagined a father would send as to silently scold their child. An expression Hopper was used to wearing in the presence of the young girl.

"Got nothing better to be doing on a Sunday evening, Hopper?" She quirked as she threw her bag back over her shoulder.

"I have actually, got a nice date." He spoke as he slowed a few meters from the girl. "Which is why I'm going to take you home."

Y/n smiled a devious smile which made Hopper wish he had never said anything. "Oh, a date, what's her name this time?"

He huffed; he never should have said anything. "Sandra." Hopper walked over to the girl, gently trying to push her into the direction of the car. "Now let me go on that date after I drop you off home, huh, kid?"

The devious smile never dropped. "I didn't know the cops had enforced a curfew now?"

"No, but smoking cannabis in the state of North Carolina is illegal so I'm going to have to ask you to leave." Her smile dropped and they dead panned one another.

It was a stare off. Which may be childish, but as a police department which experienced little to no serious cases, Hopper stared back. "If I don't drop you off home, Callahan will just have to take you to the station. And, when I tell you these officers, they can barely work a 9-5 sitting on their asses all day. It's your pick."

Y/n broke first.

She huffed as she blinked, already beginning the wonder up to the cop car. "You know Claudia's going to kill me, right?" Y/n yelled back to him as he followed.

"Yeah, you said that last time." Hopper commented, more to himself than it were to Y/n.

Hopper jumped back into the drivers seat and Y/n into the back seat. "Can you just promise me you won't have the lights and sirens on? It'll scare Mews." She told the Chief as if he were one of her peers.

"For Mews? The hell is a Mews?" Hopper replied as he settled in the leather seat.

"A cat." Y/n answered as if her cat were local town knowledge. Which to be fair, with how much Claudia banged on about him, it probably was. "Idiot." She said under her breath.

Callahan glanced at her through the rear-view mirror. The girl stared back so piercingly that he broke eye contact all together with an awkward cough to fill the silence. "You alright?" Hopper questioned his co-worker as the car engine started again.

Callahan nodded through a stiff neck, "Yeah." He dared to glance back at her again. "Seatbelt." He instructed the girl through clenched teeth and infrequent case eye contact.

Y/n took a moment as her brows knitted but, nevertheless, she pulled the seatbelt across her body and clicked it into place. Then Hopper started reversing and headed down the empty roads towards the Henderson house.

At this time, everything was quiet. A Sunday evening meant catching up on homework due to the next morning, or salvaging what remained of the weekend snuggled up on a sofa watching reruns. When Y/n had left the house, Claudia was doing just that, with Mews sat in her lap purring - of which, Y/n doubted she had moved from. Dustin, her equally nerdy cousin, was at the Wheelers, finishing a 10 hour long campaign. But, by now, he should have returned home. Just in time to watch his cousin get dropped off in a cop car.

Hopper parked, and switched the engine off. The living room light still glowed. A small part of Y/n had hoped maybe Claudia had gone to bed by now. Truth was, she never got mad at Y/n for incidents like these, it was the disappointed glint that lingered in her eyes. And, usually, that glint was followed by a comment, something about how Y/n got her recklessness from her mother.

Still, the girl opened the car door. "See you soon, Hop." She forced a smile and exited the car and wondered towards the front door.

Hopper then too exited the car, leading for Y/n to speed up, thinking if she got to the front door first the man would somehow disappear too. "Please, this was not apart of the deal." She begged with her puppy dog eyes as the two stood on the porch.

Now, Hopper wore the devious smirk. "Just doing by job, kid." Y/n crossed her arms and shared an expression similar to a toddler in the midst of a temper tantrum.

Hopper knocked on the door and they both waited patiently as the voice from behind the wall came.

"Did she forget her keys again?" Yelled Dustin.

"Mews," Cooed Claudia, bypassing Dustin's question. "It's okay baby."

Then the door swung open and Claudia's expression fell. And there it was: that disappointed glint. Y/n swore it would haunt her forever if she weren't careful. "Sorry to disrupt you at this time Mrs Henderson, I'm just bringing Y/n home." Hopper grinned. A grin of which Y/n noted was the same one he used when trying to impress some of the women that walked into Station. The same one she was sure he'd use on Sandra later tonight.

Claudia sighed, "What'd she do this time?"

Hopper glanced down at her. Y/n didn't look back. "We suspected her of smoking cannabis." He informed. "But rather than taking her to the station at this time, we thought it best to bring her home."

To be fair, Y/n should be grateful to Hopper. Had it not be for him, she should currently be sat in some christen, youth, rehabilitation camp, learning about the consequences of drug use. Alas, the man had avoided every law, taken every loophole and looked the other way for everything he could.

"Thank you, Hopper." Claudia gently dragged the girl back into the home. "I appreciate it."

"Keep an eye on this one." Y/n deadpanned the man as he still smirked. But, with that, he said his goodnights and left.

And before Claudia even started, Y/n was already throwing her hands up in surrender. "I know, I know, I'm very much irresponsible just like my mother." Y/n was taking her jacket off as she spoke, throwing it back to the floor where it would stay until she left (probably late) for school the next morning.

"I was just going to ask if you were okay." The women corrected.

The girl came to a halt before spinning on her heels to face her aunt. "Oh." That was the only thing to slip out from her mouth.

She tiled her head as she went on, "Grab some food as well, me and Dusty already ate." And with that she went back to her seat on the couch and cooed Mews back to her lap.

A delightful surprise.

Y/n wondered her way into the kitchen where Dustin was leant against one of the counters. He had been previously searching for a drink after his cycle home from Mike's. But Chief Jim Hopper returning his cousin home certainly provided a kind of entertainment his science project couldn't.

The girl reached around the cupboards, finding two slices of bread for herself. She popped them into the toaster and leaned against the counter, Dustin still lurking. "What's up with you?" The girl questioned with knitted brows and crossed arms.

Dustin stumbled and shrugged. "Nothing..." There was definitely something. The longer Y/n stared the more likely Dustin became to break. And he did. He broke every time. "It's just, on the way home, me and Will made a bet."

Her brows raised, "A bet?"

"You know, as kids do." He spoke as if he were a full blown adult. "And in that moment I made a stupid, stupid decision." This conversation was beginning to sound all to familiar for Y/n.

"The hell did you bet on Dustin."

"It was just...you know..."

"Dustin."

"Your X-men 134!"

The toaster popped.

"Are you shitting me!" Y/n snapped at her younger cousin whose face was beginning to grow head.

And from the comforts of the living room, there came a loud, "Language!"

Y/n huffed and shook her head, turning to tend to her dinner. "You know Will's not taking it." She said as she took a knife that made Dustin somewhat nervous.

"It was a bet, I have no choice." Dustin attempt to defend.

The older girl scoffed, "I don't care, Dustin. You need to say sorry to Will and explain that you betted on something this isn't even yours." Y/n turned, plate in hand that emitted the scent of fresh toast and cold, strawberry jam. "Give him your talking iron man action figure instead."

With that, the girl finally escaped into her room for the night. In that moment, she couldn't have thought anyone else could have had a worse night than hers.

#stranger things #stranger things 4 #steve harrington #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x you #steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington imagine #steve harrington fanfiction #steve harrington fanfic #steve harrington fic #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things fanfic #stranger things rewrite #stranger things x reader #rewrite #x reader

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suchanldiot · 3 years ago

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More thoughts about Swan Queen no one asked for in 2021:

in 4x15, when emma is running around like a crazy person because Regina has went undercover with the Queens of Darkness, Emma asks her parents why no one informed her and that she could have helped. “I could've helped. I was a bail-bonds person. Pretending to be someone else was part of my job.”

I came across this line while editing clips for videos I was making, it’s been years since I’ve watched the show in full and don’t really want to outside of clips. Maybe one day…

But that line struck me and I think it’s funny that our introduction to Emma in 1x01 is her pretending to be someone else. Before Emma turns the corner in the restaurant for her “date” there’s a brief moment of discomfort and then it’s gone until she breaks character to bring the guy in. We see that this is who Emma really is. A little rough around the edges, tough, not as polished as the woman in the dress wants people to think. She gets home and immediately deflates and kicks off her high heeled shoes, her costume.

Emma see’s being The Savior as a job, also. She even says so to Regina. "Henry brought me to Storybrooke to bring back the happy endings. My job's not done until I do that for everyone... including you."

The savior is a costume for Emma. It’s who everyone expects her to be… she’s responsible for breaking the curse because she’s the savior. She’s responsible for bringing back happy endings because she’s the savior. she’s supposed to be good because she’s the savior.

Being an orphan and growing up in multiple homes and orphanages I just imagine the amount of times Emma was told to be good or how to act to appear “wanted” and “good enough.”

When she finally did meet her parents they had all these expectations and regrets. They missed out on so much with emma and emma tried to make up for it in the present. It was apart of her job.

Live up to parents expectations: ✅

Hook told her she was his Happy Ending. Up until that moment she didn’t know. So Hook’s HE: ✅ Easy enough.

Emma was her true self around Regina. We saw that rough around the edges, clumsy, goofy, and for lack of a better word, idiot, around Regina. It’s why the more vulnerable scenes were between emma and regina and ultimately why there was (and still is) such a big divide in the fandom because we saw two different Emmas.

I have seen the last scene of season 6 and I feel like this backs my train of thought up. We see Snow and Charming at home with baby Neal, Emma and Regina seeing Henry off to school, then we see Emma and Hook in the bug putting the siren on top of her car which she has because she’s Sheriff. It’s her job. Then we see Snow teaching. Which is also….her job.

Being with Regina and Henry is easy. It’s natural for Emma. It’s not a job. She doesn’t have to pretend. She’s accepted as a whole in that family unit.

i feel like i lost where i was going with this but does this make sense? yes? no? maybe? I should shut up.

There’s a lot to dissect in OUAT and almost 10 years later i’m still here picking at it.

How this connects to s7 I have no idea, the only scenes of s7 i’ve watched was Regina “waking up” and the coronation scene.

In conclusion to this nonsense, Emma and Regina were in love and were the modern love story that only smart people could see :)

#ramblings #this really went off the tracks #swan queen #sq meta #ish #swanqueen #emma and regina #help it’s 2021

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tommysbrat · 5 years ago

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JATP Characters as John Mulaney Quotes

Julie and her himbos The Phantoms:

Julie anytime she deals with the Phantom’s Ghost Shenanigans:

Sunset Curve/The Phantoms whenever they talk about how street hotdogs killed them right before they could play The Orpheum:

Alex in general:

Also Alex:

Alex when Willie calls him “Hotdog” for the first time:

Willie when he messed with the police sirens:

Carrie about Trevor:

Trevor/Bobby when he took credit for all of Sunset Curve’s songs:

Carlos talking about his Ghost Hunts:

Ray when Carlos wants to make the french dip in order to set the apparent chef’s ghost’s soul free:

Reggie having crushes on the Dirty Candy girls and other Lifers Julie’s Dad but can’t do anything about it bc he’s a Ghost:

Also Reggie:

Reggie @ Caleb when they first leave the Ghost Club or alternatively Reggie @ Ray:

Alex and Luke whenever Reggie is being a himbo or alternatively Julie @ all three of them being the himbos that they are:

The hotdog vender @ Alex when he says that he got pickle juice on the radiator:

Sunset Curve/The Phantoms talking about their lives in the 90′s:

Sunset Curve/The Phantoms as they keep up with current events:

Sunset Curve/The Phantoms when Carlos confronts them:

Caleb probably @ Sunset Curve/The Phantoms about Bobby/Trevor if he wasn’t so focused on controlling their souls/wanting them as his band and all:

Sunset Curve/The Phantoms at the Hollywood Ghost Club:

Julie and her himbos The Phantoms whenever something bad happens to them yet again (or alternatively when the boys get zapped):

Julie trying to tell Flynn about the band:

Julie and Flynn talking about The Phantoms/Sunset Curve:

Flynn whenever Julie mentions literally anything about the band:

Julie whenever she talks about the Phantoms to her dad:

Julie when Flynn accused her of having a crush on Luke:

Julie when Flynn tells her that Luke’s a ghost and doesn’t want her to get hurt:

Flynn to Julie about her feelings for Luke aka a ghost who’s literally dead air (in the kindest/most supportive best friend way possible):

Julie to Luke in the backyard at the end of 1x01:

Luke asking Julie what was in the box:

Luke talking about Julie:

Luke about Unsaid Emily:

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opalsiren · 3 years ago

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full moon episodes of h2o: a directory

season one:

1x01 'metamorphosis'

1x07 'moon spell'

1x12 'the siren effect'

1x18 'bad moon rising'

1x26 'a twist in the tail'

season two:

2x01 'stormy weather'

2x13 'moonwalker'

2x17 'moonstruck'

2x21 'and then there were four'

2x26 'unfathomable'

season three:

3x01 'the awakening'

3x08 'kidnapped'

3x16 'the dark side'

3x22 'mako masters'

3x26 'graduation'

#jonathan shiff at the halfway point of season two: oh we better do another full moon episode since we haven't in like twelve episodes #the way each season has five full moon episodes exactly <3 #i thiiiiiiiink these are all correct? but feel free to sound off in the replies i didn't like do a rewatch or anything esp wrt season three #h2o just add water #.txt #h2o #queue

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mermaidsandsirens · 7 years ago

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#siren #sirenedit #ryn #ben #rynedit #benedit #siren 1x01

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richardmaddendaily · 5 years ago

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#richard madden #sirens #rmaddenedit #sirens uk #sirens 1x01 #ashley greenwick #*#*gifs #jackie #his whole face situation here is...very pleasing to my eyes #the curls too

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bleulone · 4 years ago

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Can we talk about about how Colin looked in ep 1 when he first saw Marina compared to how he looked when he saw Pen in ep 8. Almost the exact same look! Of course his look to Penelope is probably more about his guilt because he brushed her off when she tried to warn him but still..progress! Lol and then when he's getting ready to leave for Greece, he glanced towards Penelope's home. I think they're having Colin's feelings for her grow gradually in the show instead of all of a sudden like in the books.

Hey! Thank you for this insightful ask of yours :) Sorry for the late answer, I took a long time to write this— without further ado, here we go!

Indeed, Polin is first and foremost a story of gazes, those gazes being of many natures. Whether they are love ones, friendly ones, admirative ones or lustful ones, looking imposes itself to be a huge parameter in Penelope and Colin’s love story.

In order to understand that on screen, film-making has at its disposal a very rich and smart langage of its own. Sometimes, comparision helps to underlines the differences between one character’s relationship with person A mirorring person B. I feel like Shondaland and Chris Van Dussen wanted to introduce the audience to the evolution of our Bridgerton men’s perception of Love. For instance, while Anthony views attachement— to Siena— as a way to escape his responsibilities before becoming his villain (...until our queen ma’am Kate Sheffield comes to the picture), Benedict doesn’t comprehend this universal concept and prefers to enjoy the many physical pleasures life can offer. In other words, the older brothers already explored their sexuality here and there, making them the infamous rakes that they are. As for Colin, it’s a complete other thing.

Colin is young. Very young. At 21, he’s just left Eton College and barely knows anything of the world nor women. Like Anthony said in 1x06, Colin hasn’t been taken to brothels which is a very important step in the building of young men’s sentimental and sexual education during that time period. Since he missed this essential step, our sweet/immature boy has no clue about how to deal sagaciously with his feelings and his “foolish” impulses, baring his naivety. At this point of the story, we can easily come to the conclusion that Colin is a virgin who can’t drive XD. He’s just a child overcame by his passions, a hopelessly romantic who rushes things without taking the time to properly court or know his significant other. And his off-screen flirtation with those supposed numerous girls in London isn’t of any help to justify his (oh so little) experience. So when he sees Marina, he’s so struck by her... mainly by her alluring appearance. And he doesn’t seem to let his eyes nor mind go beyond her exquisite beauty.

In this perspective, the whole Colin/Marina storyline can be perceived as a parallelism to the Pen/Colin’s one. In 1x01, he is immediatley smitten with a dancing Miss Thompson, which happens to be ironically the same case with a 17 year-old Pen but with him. We got to see her, a few moments ago, dreamily looking at him from the back of the dancefloor (echoeing the episode where she fell madly in love with him after he fell off his horse at Hyde Park). She’s charmed by his dashing look and his kindness, yet she doesn’t seem to know anything else about him considering the rare conversations they share. Her burning gaze fits the original story from Julia Quinn’s books because in Romancing Mister Bridgerton, the 28 year-old spinster Penelope do realize later on that Colin is more than a good looking man : he’s a human who possesses a temper and flaws.

Either way, both of our boos are portrayed as hopelessly young people in love who childishly idealize the objects of their affection.

In 1x08, it’s the other way around. It’s Colin who sees Pen first, her who appears to wear the yellow dress’ lookalike from the pilot—what an interesting call back ^^. With his mouth slightly agape and his eyes wide open, we can catch sight of the timid spark of a change in his gaze : Colin Bridgerton notices Penelope Featherington. He‘s touched by the realization that she cares about him. It would be rather inappropriate of me to say that Colin is already in love with her. However, in the finale, I do believe that he’s more struck by her high level of deep care for him than her beauty.

We are thus able to spot two big differences in Colin’s relationship with women in this season : when his attraction to Marina was purely physical and rushed, his attraction with Penelope is more emotional and slow. And for now, he comes to cherish his special bond with her, especially after she tried to warn him of the dangerous trap he was about to fall into. Even if he just sees her as his younger sister’s best friend right now, Pen matters in his life. And it’s still a little yet important progress for sure.

Speaking of which, I agree with you that this look of awe as well as realization is mostly mixed up with guilt. Since he didn’t take into account her words, he felt the strong need to apologize. But bear in mind that guilt formulates a considerable part in Colin’s feelings for Pen... and it’s only the very beginning. In the future, he’ll blame himself for not seeing her as the beautiful goddess and siren that she is in the first place. He’ll blame himself for not reciprocating the feelings for her.... Though at the moment, due to his lack of experience with women, Colin is oblivious to Pen’s obvious signs of sorrow when he told her he’s leaving for Greece/Cyprus. Next time, he’ll detect her sadness and won’t let her go, I’m sure of it (if he doesn’t I’ll riot).

Furthermore, I’m so glad you brought up the scene where Colin glances at the Featherington house. I had the same thought as well. When you put this still and the one where Pen is crying while looking at her window side by side, it even seems like they’re looking at each other. In a way, it implicitly confirms Pen’s key role in his final decision... After all, she’s the one who inadvertently inspired him right ?

The act of traveling has always been seen as cathartic since leaving home to discover yourself allows you to heal your broken heart and soul. It’s natural for Colin to do this. To make his first real steps into the world. His choice is quite relatable more than it is essential for his arc in the series. I can’t wait for him to come back all changed, hot ^^ and mature. I think, like you said, they are planning on making him progressively falling in love with her. Colin’s feelings will gradually leave the platonic zone to explore and officially stay in the intimate zone throughout the seasons.

Overall, the Colin/Marina and Colin/Penelope parallel in s1 mostly helps viewers to compare the way Colin evolves from being a stubborn naive boy to a heartbroken young man who’s aware of his crutial need for Experience. His coming of age, just like Pen’s, has just begun. And they will surely lead to our boy changing himself into the true charming rake that he’s meant to be and our girl into a more confident woman. Consequently, I think their story won’t take 10 years but rather at the very least 5 years perhaps to fit the TV timeline. Once Polin will finally be able to discuss, we’ll hopefully get to see more interesting nuances and shades added to the portrait they painted of one another over the years. They’re indispensable to the slow build up of their emotions/attraction as well as the shattering of their childish idealization/perception of each other.

All in all, I’m so loving the fact that season 1 beautifully sets up the importance of the gaze in Polin’s love story. This first installment is like an expository scene of a play. It leaves a trail of clues and pieces of information here and there at the reach every viewers who can pick them up and analyze what can be the main themes which will determine one character’s story arc/romance. With Polin we have : admiration, wit, love and friendship, desillusionment. (I know they are more but it’s all I can think of rn lol).

If we’re already emotional messes just with the mere power of them looking at each other, imagine when they’ll actually talk and share real conversations. It’s going to be a long way to canon but luv me some good fluffy angsty steamy slow burn :) ✨ I hope this long of mine answers your ask ahah, even if I talked about many things other than just Polin’s looks. Also, sorry if you spot some grammatical mistakes, English is not my first language.

#bleulone answers #anon #ask #meta and gush #polin #polin meta #colin x penelope #colin bridgerton #penelope featherington #julia quinn #romancing mister bridgerton #bridgerton #shondaland #chris van dusen

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