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ordinaryschmuck · 3 years

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What I Thought About "Hunting Palismans" From The Owl House

Salutations, random people on the internet who certainly won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons.

Today, I present to you reason #4,693 for why The Owl House is the best thing at the moment: It's the perfect balance of serialized storytelling with an episodic format. The story always moves forward with an exact order for how episodes should be watched, but each episode still functions as its own standalone tale. Having prior knowledge of what happened before adds more to the experience, but you can still watch whatever you want and still have an enjoyable time. Take "Hunting Palismans," for example. It adds so much more to the overarching narrative while slightly continuing other threads. But it's still something you can watch as is without remembering the past or wondering about the future.

However, to properly explain how requires spoilers. I wasn't kidding when I say that this episode adds so much, so you're going to want to be wary of that when you continue reading.

With that said, let's review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

Coven Heads Meeting: We already saw these fellow schmucks in the trailer, but that doesn't take away how cool they are! It's not explicitly stated which head belongs to which coven, but you can already tell who goes where just from their designs alone. And I love that. I love that just by showing us some excellent character designs, anybody with half a brain can already figure out the particular type of magic each Coven Head specializes in. It's a perfect example of the show-don't-tell level of storytelling that is always at its best through animation, and I'm all for it because of it.

What the Day of Unity is: Several fans, myself included, have already speculated that the Day of Unity was that Emperor Belos planned to combine the human world with the Boiling Isles and rule it all with an iron fist. That being said, figuring it out is one thing, but being told that it's true is a whole different level pants-s**ting horror that I AM NOT READY FOR! Even when it's going to happen, I can assure you that I will not be prepared to witness it ...and I am scared of when it does.

Belos Body Horror: ...Disney, I was already scared s**tless of this guy. I DO NOT NEED THIS!

That being said, seeing Belos do...whatever the f**k that was, helps explain further why he needs the magic in palismans. I always assumed because it's like fuel for a car, giving him the power he needs. Now, even though the answer is more apparent, there are still some questions to be had. Is he cursed, and the magic keeps it at bay like Eda's potions? Or did he experiment with the wrong type of magic, and the palismans keep him stable? Only the future can say for sure...and I'm also not prepared for the answers from that either.

Golden Guard is Belos’ Nephew: Gosh dangit, THE INTRO HASN'T EVEN STARTED YET, AND THIS EPISODE IS ALREADY GIVING SO MUCH!

But, yeah, the most powerful witch on the Isles is apparently Golden Boy's Grunkle Belos. That very knowledge is incredibly interesting to discuss while presenting possibilities for future narratives. I don't know about you, but I see the Golden Guard going down the path of Zuko, learning that the magic of friendship is worth much more than whatever power he gains from being Belos' nephew. And possibly earning his uncle's love seeing how he's the only family he has. It's a situation that's vastly different from Amity's because even when she defies her parents, she'll still have Edric and Emira at the end of the day. For Golden Guard, knowing that he lost a great family to wild magic, the inclination to go against Belos is a lot weaker due to him being all he has left.

Oh, and also, Belos' family getting wiped out because of wild magic. Yeah, not only does that give the best type of motivation for Belos' distaste for it, but it also explains the Golden Guard's hesitance to use it. He's inclined to so he can save his uncle, sure. It's only the fact that he knows what happens with wild magic that causes some resistance...Also, we're less than a minute in, and I'm already getting all of this from one discussion between two characters.

HOW IS THIS SHOW SO GOOD?!

Intro Changes: It's about time too. It seems weird that the crew waited to change Eda and King's designs in the intro this late in the game, but it also tells me that Amity dying her hair lavender is the last huge change this season will present. Otherwise, why change the intro at all if you were going to alter Luz, Willow, and Gus' designs anyway? It just doesn't make sense to me.

Luz Keeping the Echo Mouse as a Pet: The fact that she keeps the most important creature in the world to her as a pet...it's...it's adorable, alright? And as we established several times, I cannot hate adorable things.

Don't judge me!

Amity Staying Home: There are two plausible ways why Amity didn't go to school that day. Either she's getting punished for dying her hair or because she's trying to avoid Luz so they won't talk about the you-know-what. Either could work and seem understandable to Luz, thus explaining why she admits how "that makes sense." Although, there is something to discuss in how Luz is curious as to where Amity is. Judging from the tone of her voice, it's pretty clear that she wants to talk about the little peck on the cheek and maybe get some confirmation as to what it means. Because there is no going back from that. You can explain away saying or doing something stupid, but you cannot un-kiss a cheek. That is a point of no return, and if Amity really is avoiding Luz because of it, that means it's up to our favorite weirdo to make the first move. As for what that may entail...we'll just have to wait and see.

Frewin: We get two bits of information here for the price of one reveal here. Knowing that Frewin is a palisman is shocking enough, but the knowledge that Bump is partially blind and needs Frewin to see? That is an intriguing piece of intel that I would have never expected to get revealed. This is reason #5,279 for what makes The Owl House so good. Even when the show presents information you wouldn't guess, it's all so interesting anyways that you can't help but go along with it.

Adopting Palismans: First of all, love the fact that the Bat Queen makes a return to provide a solution to the palisman trees being rare and solving her own problem regarding the discarded palismans. It's a situation where everyone wins in a way that is so clever that I can't help but admire it.

Second, the idea of students choosing to adopt palismans instead is cute. I'd say it gives further insight into who these characters are in how they say what they want to be, but there's nothing really new added that fans couldn't figure out from the get go. But I will say that it's pretty cool to know that these characters have official staffs now. Speaking of which, if you're upset that their palismans don't match up with your headcanons...grow up.

This was a cute and smartly written scene that should not be bogged down by whiney fans who can't accept a series doing something different from what they expect.

Little Rascal: I’d take a bullet for this bird. That is all.

Luz Being Uncertain of her Future: A lot of fans offer several ideas of what the future could look like for Luz. Will she stay in the Boiling Isles? In Connecticut? Or will she go back and forth? We don't know, but one question we rarely brought up is what does Luz want? More specifically, what does she want to do? After everything Luz went through, the adventures she's gone on, and the lessons learned, what is something that Luz wants her future to be? That's an answer she doesn't really figure out, and I'm genuinely ok with that being a question that's tabled for another day. Most kids who ask that question themselves aren't always going to find an answer after a short amount of time and sometimes even need to spend their lives trying to figure it out. So having it be something Luz has to consider and probably find out in a future episode is the smarter option, as it allows time for it to simmer in her own mind and provides more insight into her character. As stated several times in this episode, she doesn't think things through, so it's nice that the writers finally allowed her some time to wonder what's next when the adventure is over.

Luz Having to Improvise Without Paper Glyphs: You want to know what my favorite Spider-Man moments are (this is relevant. Trust me). My favorite moments are when Spidey's web-shooters run out of fluid, and he's forced to improvise with that big brain of his to find a solution. That's sort of what happens with Luz in "Hunting Palismans." She didn't bring her glyphs with her (why would she), so she's forced to use the environment around her to make new ones. Plus, Luz also flexes her knowledge of the Boiling Isles by mixing her glyphs with a magical plant (which Willow certainly told her about) so that she and the Golden Guard could knock out Kikimora's dragon. It's yet another showcase of her intelligence that a lot of fans are too keen to overlook. Unfortunate to see, too, because looking at how well Luz can craft the perfect solutions by fighting smarter, not harder, is a fantastic add-on to her personality. I love characters who win through their wits rather than their raw powers, and I once again hope more people will catch onto that aspect of her too.

Golden Guard Whistling the Theme: Look, I love it when a show acknowledges its own theme song, ok? Leave me alone.

Luz and the Golden Guard: This is one of those dynamics you didn't know you wanted until you have it. And now that I have it, I DEMAND MORE!

Seriously, seeing these two interact off of each other was a ton of fun to watch. When Luz and GG are initially at each other's throats, their threats and mockery towards one another aren't out of spiteful anger between two mortal enemies. It's more like...two siblings who get on each other's nerves yet are supposed to deal with one another. It's equally adorable and hilarious, and yes, I absolutely loved that they're forced to work together in this episode because of it.

Although, while the entertainment value is fantastic, it also adds more proof of why Luz is the best character in the series. She spends one night with this guy, and that's more than what she needed to make a difference with him. I wouldn't go so far as to say that they're buddies now, but Luz definitely sowed the seeds into his redemption. He's far from willing to join her side, but he still does something he rarely does with anyone else: He told her that his name is Hunter. And this is what Luz does. Through nearly every person she meets on the Boiling Isles, she always manages to change them for the better. It'll be a while before Hunter deflects from Belos, but if Amity proves anything, Luz has a way of sneaking into people's hearts. They just need to spend more time with one another, and I can't wait to see what happens next because of it.

Kikimora Wanting to Kill Hunter: This shows a lot about who Kikimora is, but it potentially proves just how dysfunctional the Emperor's Coven can be. If Kiki proves anything, the coven must be filled with people willing to backstab and cheat their way to get on Emperor Belos' good side. Just look at Lilith. She literally cursed her own sister just to get in and received all the rewards because of it. The Emperor's Coven may be the best choice for witches to do magic, but if you're surrounded by people you can't trust, then is it really worth it?

The Guards Not Knowing Who Hunter is: This helps add to how much of a big deal it is for Hunter to reveal his name to Luz. If people can't even recognize his face, there's a chance it means that he keeps his true identity a secret except for those in his inner circle.

And the coven guards brushing off his brand is more than believable to me. They may be aware that Belos' right hand is young, but teens will be teens. Anybody with enough artistic talent can fake a brand. So it isn't too far off for those two to think Hunter was just a kid pulling a prank.

Hunter is Powerless Without his Staff: Not much to say here. It's just some more neat insight into Hunter's character that makes me wonder if even Belos' magic is real magic.

But I will say this: The fact that Hunter comes from a lineage of powerless witches, well, who's to say that isn't because of a...certain ancestor?

(*Cough* Hunter is related to Philip *Cough*)

Hunter vs Kiki: A pretty well-animated fight scene that adds potential drama to the story for the future. Now that Kikimora knows that Hunter helped Luz escape with the palismans (albeit unwillingly), she may or may not hold that over his head when the time comes. Or, at the very least, decides to keep a closer eye on him whenever he makes a slip-up.

Eda and King Getting Luz her own Palisman Wood: These last two weeks have been severely lacking in the Eda and King department, but scenes like this more than make up for it. Those two have formed such a bond with Luz to the point where they would do the impossible if it meant she would feel better. It proves just how much of a family they all are and the lengths they would go for each other. After all, weirdos have to stick together.

Little Rascal going to Hunter: Hunter is right. That was surprising.

Given how much Little Rascal stuck by Luz, I was more than positive that she would be the one he chose. So seeing Little Rascal pick Hunter instead is a much nicer twist. There could be multiple reasons why, and I'm just going to leave that to the analyzers in this fandom to decide. Especially since the answer isn't really all that important.

So, instead, I'm going to go ahead and sit in the corner as I wOrRy AbOuT tHe DaY tHaT bElOs FiNdS lItTlE rAsCal!

IT'S GONNA HAPPEN! AND I SWEAR TO ALL THAT IS HOLY, IF THE WRITERS KILL HIM, I WILL NOT BE HAPPY!

WHAT I DISLIKED

First, there's...um...

Well, there was this...

Ok, as much as I liked--No, that turned out well anyways...

…

...

...I've got nothing.

I, honest to goodness, have no complaints about "Hunting Palismans" Not even the tiniest of nitpicks I would usually ignore due to how well-executed everything else was.

It's all written fantastically to the point where it's...perfect.

IN CONCLUSION

"Hunting Palismans" is an easy A+. It introduces even more plot threads, gives insight into characters, and despite being essential to the story, it still manages to be a fun episode all on its own. And, I'd go so far as to say that it's one of the best, if not the best, episodes in the series. There's nothing bad about it, and that surprises me. I rarely find nothing bad to say about any story, even the ones I enjoy greatly. I'm sure there are some flaws that others would be more than happy to point out, but why bother hunting for the imperfections when I could accept that, for once, an episode is simply perfect.

(And that’s six hits in a row...THAT STINKER IS GOING TO HAPPEN! It hasn’t happened yet, BUT IT’S GOING TO HAPPEN! I CAN FEEL IT!)

#the owl house #the owl house season 2 #the owl house reviews #luz noceda #the golden guard #hunter the owl house #emperor belos #what i thought about

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sepublic · 4 years

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Wing it like Witches!

Let me tell you- I was WORRIED this episode would make me sad and angsty, but instead it just made me happy and all warm inside! I know that sounds super-corny but like…

I LOVED this episode! I was worried from the promo pic that Boscha’s bullying would really get to Luz, Gus, and Willow, but… It didn’t! I mean, it still got to WILLOW hence the entire episode, but otherwise Luz and Gus were less “Wow I’m really being reminded of my insecurities from bullying” and more “I can’t believe she ACTUALLY did that. She wasted her entire school day doing that. This girl is NUTS, is she okay back home?”

(The more I see of Boscha, the more I have to wonder if she IS okay back home… Obviously not crippled with self-loathing to the extent that Amity is, but never mind.)

What’s really surprise to see though; LILITH IS A RED-HEAD!?!? I remember seeing that first pic of young Eda with two other classmates, one of whom was obscured and the other had glasses; And I thought, is THAT girl Lilith, could it be? Is the girl with the obscured face the one who stole Lilith’s lunch money, potentially that favorite character from Season 2 that Dana alluded to? My mind is racing, but either way young Eda and Lilith are utterly adorable! I do have to wonder if what Lilith had to say about Eda’s bad memory was just a jab, or something more… Given that the show has alluded to Eda possibly having amnesia with MORE than just her curse…!

Speaking of which; LILITH AND EDA GETTING ALONG! Well, sort of- I mean they’re technically adversarial by the end of this episode, but only technically. Lilith knows where the Owl House is, finally; And we get to see in this episode just how capable Hooty really IS as a security system, surprisingly enough! He even manages to capture LILITH; Though to be fair, she may not have been super-invested in the mission given this was her sister we’re talking about, but still! Coupled with Hooty mercilessly tearing apart those toys in Adventures in the Elements, and I have to wonder if he’s ever, like… KILLED people before, y’know?

…Maybe I don’t want that answer. Regardless, I love Luz’s little cheeky interference with Eda’s game, but Eda still manages to win by her last trick; Just pure, genuine skill and talent! That was a twist, I was expecting Eda to have another cheat or to be caught by Lilith, but as I said before… Eda isn’t humble, and for a GOOD reason! Lilith ain’t no slouch either, and I love that King willingly donned a cheerleader outfit just to offer support! I mean, maybe Eda MADE him, but otherwise he didn’t seem to have much of an issue so long as it was just at home!

And… I LOVE the little small moments between Eda and Lilith, where… Lilith KNOWS she has to turn her sister in, she’s getting desperate, but it’s also low-key breaking her heart to do this! And when she loses the match and just… FALLS on her knees in despair, questioning herself, and Eda picking her up? Giving her that signature ring, just to make Lilith look better? I… I LOVE these sisters, why can’t they make up?! Lilith isn’t even aiming to imprison Eda, she just wants her to join the Emperor’s Coven and continue doing stuff alongside her, like old times!

And Eda… Eda still needs her autonomy, but she knows that Lilith isn’t some cruel person. She knows that Lilith loves her sister and wants the best, that she’s in a terrible position; Eda knows how stifling the Coven System is, and while being beneath Belos provides a lot of power… It also provides a lot of PRESSURE as well! Sure, Lilith chose this… But Eda still believes that Lilith is deserving of kindness and compassion!

(Let me tell you, considering I don’t think we’ve seen any Eda clips past this episode, I was LEGIT afraid she’d get captured by the end… thank goodness!)

What’s also fascinating to note is that Emperor Belos was in charge since fiftyyears ago; Given the speculation that Eda isn’t as old as she looks, this indicates Belos is PRETTY old himself, by a large margin; Especially when one considers how long-lived Bump is! It’s a small moment telling us how he established the Coven Heads five decades ago, but I really appreciated it; And in general, this episode seems to be our final, light-hearted breather before we get into the REALLY heavy stuff… Keep in mind, our last two episodes were originally planned to air side-by-side, like a two-part season finale! On a lesser note, we see the Heximal System teacher giving a History lesson, confirming what I suspected earlier; That some subjects include students from all tracks, simply because the subject-matter applies across any and all covens, and History is one of them! Love the small world-building here!

Given how we don’t see anything else of Willow and Gus past that scene in Belos’ treasury, I have to wonder… What if those two get captured, and only Luz can escape? Amidst King –and possibly Eda- being taken as well, Luz might be looking at a one-man operation here! Which just makes her all the more impressive… Like looking at her now, even if she DOES lose against Lilith; She’d still have been going toe-to-toe with the Head of the Emperor’s Coven, even if only briefly! Luz has come a far way away from where she started as just a powerless human, and has amassed FOUR glyphs; Light, Ice, Plant, and Fire!

And BOY HOWDY is she good at them! Seriously, I bet she could’ve easily beaten Boscha in a Witch’s Duel if she wanted; Though it’s worth noting that according to Willow, Grudgby is apparently the only language she speaks… Given that shot of her room at the beginning, I have to wonder if that’s where her MAIN self-worth lies in! In the beginning Boscha acknowledges to herself that she’s hated, ‘so long as she is feared’; And her monologue low-key gives me, “Doesn’t know how to make friends so copes by putting herself above everybody else and overinflating her own self-importance under the impression that people are just secretly jealous!” vibes. (In some ways she’s like Grace from Infinity Train…)

That aside, I just get a sensation of pride from seeing how adept and adaptable Luz is, and the way she learned Fire from Boscha of all people –Which I called!- is both hilarious but goes to show what kind of a learner she is… I feel like Eda, like we’ve watched our kid grow and get stronger and I can’t WAIT to see what she pulls off next! Amidst her learning Magic and then defying the Coven System… you go Luz, YOU GO!

And, it seems I’m not the only person who shares this sentiment! Even after Boscha’s bullying, we don’t see anybody beyond her gang make fun of Luz and co.! When Willow gets trashed poured on her, some students are watching, but… They seem kind of disturbed by it all? They’re not outright vouching on her behalf like Luz, possibly because Boscha is watching; But still! It is SO cathartic to see Willow being beloved by the entire school like that, even if she’s keeping her friend-circle to a select few; People LIKE her, and it’s what she deserves! Like Luz, I’m SO proud…!

I’m still disappointed we didn’t get the names of Boscha’s other friends, but I really like their inclusion here! I liked how they all seemed rather uncomfortable with seeing Luz forfeit, only to be made Boscha’s target practice; And how Luz is so bright, bubbly, and infectiously-cheerful, spreading her good will to others! Like, this girl is TOO kind, and so loving… She has no bounds and I love how those other girls are even affected by Luz, genuinely enjoying her and wanting to be friends, alongside having Willow as a teammate! I have to wonder if they’ll ditch Boscha after this… Or at the very least, try to talk her down as friends of Boscha that she actually cares about and vice-versa (compared to Amity, who has always been cold towards Boscha, hence why her talking wouldn’t have made a difference)!

Speaking of Amity… C’mon, girl. Your CRUSH is showing, the way you’re getting flustered, imagining seeing Luz in a ‘cute’ uniform and everything… Gus being utterly confused, but you can tell that the gears in Willow’s head are turning and honestly; She’s all for it, likely! I think this is the first time Amity has had an ACTUAL crush on someone she can talk to, instead of some distant figure or a fictional character! It’s so heartwarming seeing her navigate it, getting to actually deal with feelings like a kid is supposed to be allowed to do! And Luz being clueless… That, or she thinks Amity is into WILLOW, which makes a lot of sense too!

(After all, Luz knows that her parents wouldn’t approve of her being Amity’s girlfriend… But Luz, you have NO idea how much she cares, she literally loves you more than she fears them! And Amity, knowing that her parents wouldn’t approve and struggling with this no doubt, but her love for Luz is really shining through over all of that!)

To put it simply; Luz is FRIEND-shaped, she’s lovable, there’s no escaping liking her! Maybe Boscha will always be a bully, and I know one might call it ‘cliché’… But honestly I’d love to see Boscha eventually warm up to Luz and HER infectious positivity as well! Also, I saw that twist with the Rusty Smidge coming from a mile away, and I love how Luz low-key gets into a genuine rant over it! Although the loss doesn’t matter, as Luz’s team was clearly more adept and Boscha’s friends don’t seem interested in forcing Luz and her friends to do all of that other stuff…

Anyhow, I love seeing Amity stand up for her friends, and when she says that her social life has improved because she’s with Luz, in spite of Boscha’s claims… I really CAN see her standing up to her parents, sometime later! I speculated a while back that depending on how her and Luz’s relationship in Enchanting Grom Fright goes, it’d really impact what Amity does later down the line, and I was right! But it IS worth noting that Amity may not yet know that Luz has to leave… King and Eda know, and the former mentioned this in front of Willow and Gus! It’s possible that Luz has laid out her plans to return every summer (and during winter break and whatnot), which would definitely lessen Amity’s angst by an infinite amount! And seeing as how she has instantaneous access to the Demon Realm, who’s to say she can’t pop in every day, after school! Sure she might not be actively living in the Owl House anymore, but otherwise…!

On another note with Amity, I love her and Luz getting to geek out over The Good Witch Azura, and it’s funny to see the show confirm what I wondered about earlier; About Amity secretly making Azura references in public, under the knowledge that nobody would recognize them and realize she’s a nerd… But LUZ does now, and the two can bond! Also, Amity getting to have fun with Luz and co. at the end, being CARRIED by Luz, fully accepted into the home… I know you also have the library as a safe space Amity, but you’ve also got the Owl House as well! And it seems Hooty bears no grudges, either!

Also, someone speculated recently that Amity has her goth-sense from Lilith… and given the implication that Lilith dyed her hair, I can REALLY SEE IT! I’m disappointed we didn’t get any interactions between the two… But the way it was set up, I feel like if Eda and Lilith were there they’d be too busy cheering on their kids respectively! Or not, we’ve seen them prioritize their feud in Covention… But back then Luz and Amity weren’t on the same team!

Back to Amity, it’s interesting that she used to be on the Grudgby team, and was good at it, even being CAPTAIN when Boscha wasn’t; But then explicitly quit when she accidentally hurt some of her ‘friends’ merely once. Even if she never cared for them in the past, even if this was before she met Luz and learned to be kind and open again… She was ALWAYS someone who was self-conscious of her actions! And sure, the issue is that Amity is a LITTLE too self-conscious, constantly berating herself, holding herself accountable for every mistake… But regardless, it says a lot how guilty she feels to have hurt her teammates, even if it was an accident and a one-time incident that resulted in victory!

I’ll probably do ANOTHER post about it later, but it says a lot; How Amity feels like she should step up as a Blight, and she DOES outshine the others… But because of that inherent guilt but also compassion, she actually quits Grudgby out of guilt! Which leads me to the idea that even if she tolerated Boscha and co., she wouldn’t have wanted to hurt them; Again, because she’s critical of herself, but also because Amity isn’t cruel and it may have reminded her of how she treated Willow! I have to respect and fear for Amity on quitting Grudgby after that…

Again, I think she has the issue of being too overtly-critical of herself, and that it’s honestly THE issue that defines her problems; But on the other hand, I feel like Amity’s parents would’ve been displeased to see their star child quit the team, just for hurting some ‘lesser’ witches? I’m scared for what may have happened to Amity, but it also says a lot that she made a potentially defiant move simply because she didn’t want to hurt yet another friend…

(That, or her parents wanted Amity to focus on Abominations and other studies, and coupled with Amity’s guilt, it was the perfect opportunity to get her off the team. Which would be sad, but not surprising.)

Anyhow, I just think it’s interesting that Boscha and co. don’t ever seem to have any resentment towards Amity until recently. It’s possible Boscha DID dislike Amity up until she stepped down… But it makes me wonder if Boscha, like, looked up to Amity and wanted her approval and attention? Given how she’s always framed as following Amity… Perhaps Amity stepping down led to Boscha taking the spotlight, and so Boscha feels indebted towards Amity for her fame (and potential source of self-worth)?

Last but DEFINITELY not least; Somebody else (I’m sorry I keep forgetting) alluded to how in Understanding Willow, there was the issue set up of Luz meaning the best for friends… But also sometimes invading their privacy, or overriding what they want, so she can live out her fantasies at the same time! And, like- A big part of her IS doing this for her friends, that much is clear… But Luz does have an issue sometimes with clearing fantasy from reality! It’s a more advanced lesson from the one she learned in Episode 2, continuing off of that, and I LOVE it!

Like, I really do LOVE how Luz recognizes in this episode that even if a part of her is motivated in helping Willow, she’s also using this as a chance to live out her underdog Azura fantasies, and how Willow points this out to her… and Luz realizes that she’s right! She actively MAKES a change to her behavior, and makes up for it by fixing Willow’s hairclip and even forfeiting on Willow’s behalf and taking all the punishment… All because she doesn’t want her friend to be uncomfortable! Man, Luz is SO ridiculously kind, I keep saying she’s my favorite but she REALLY IS! What a lovable dork, no wonder Boscha and her friends are falling for her!

(Also RIP Skara, you were the fourth one in a team of three. Although given how she helped carry Luz and Amity in the previous episode, amidst already having more screen time… I can see this as a way for the writers to give more of a spotlight to Boscha’s other friends, while subtly acknowledging that Skara likely has gotten over her bias towards Luz and the others. I wonder if Boscha also noticed and that’s why she was left out; That, or she’s the least-skilled? I dunno, but it was neat to see and I’ll overanalyze the moment regardless!)

On a lesser note; Willow’s last name is Park, which is a Korean surname! Coupled with her VA’s ethnicity and Willow/Tati Gabrielle being listed amongst other Asian rep characters and VAs, and I think it’s safe to say that she’s the Boiling Isles equivalent to Asian; Which let me tell you, is VERY nice to see!

Overall, this was an AMAZING episode! It was a heartwarming, feel-good episode that reaffirmed character relationships and love while still expanding on them, adding in more friends to the group… It was pretty much nothing but happy moments and revelations! Obviously things are setting up in the next two episodes to go REALLY crazy, especially with Luz potentially getting banned from Hexside for defying Lilith and Belos… But it’s clear to say that she’s left QUITE the good impression on the administration and students! And I can see some even vibing with Luz’s ideas even after she gets kicked out… Perhaps Luz will unknowingly start a rebellion of sorts?

#the owl house #owl house #the owl house willow #willow park #the owl house boscha #the owl house luz #luz noceda #the owl house eda #edalyn clawthorne #the owl house lilith #lilith clawthorne #the owl house amity #amity blight #analysis

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tardisman14 · 4 years

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Enchanting: Chapter 3: A Night to Remember

A novelized version of Enchanting Grom Fright, told from Amity’s pov. A look into what was going through her mind in that episode, with snippets of happenings in-between scenes. Told in 4 parts (3 main chapters, plus the prologue), rated to be safe, and obviously Lumity.

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Bits of final scene and flashback inspired by this tweet (12/28/20 update: screencap because Dana deactivated her Twitter) and this image which was cut from the episode for time

That wasn’t Eda. It appeared to be some kind of human. In fact, Amity could’ve sworn they looked quite a bit like… Luz.

Amity saw Luz start to back up nervously. Was this one of her relatives? What was going on? With all these questions going through Amity’s head, she suddenly heard Grom’s form shout something from the arena.

“...have you been lying to me?!”

All of a sudden, Grom turned into a more monstrous form of whoever this was supposed to be. Lying? What could Luz have been lying about? Could it really be so bad that she couldn’t bring it up during the training session? This was bad. If Amity was reading the look on Luz’s face right, she wouldn’t last much longer.

And she was proven right. Amity saw Luz make a break for the door. And… Oh no. Grom was escaping! All around her, everyone started piling out of the bleachers and went right for the hallway. But Amity was so in shock over what just happened, she was frozen in place.

“Hey, kid! You in there?”

Amity was snapped out of it by Eda, now standing in front of her.

“Come on!”

Amity and Eda started following the others already in the hallway.

“Yeah, that's right, so let's follow them and see what happens next.”

Apparently King and Gus were leading the others to see the rest of the battle. Amity and Eda were still a bit behind, but with one look at each other, they both had the same thought. They had to help Luz, and fast.

Once they made it outside Eda summoned her staff.

“I’m gonna follow them from the air. Try not to fall behind.”

With that, the Owl Lady took to the sky while Amity followed from the ground. Judging by Eda’s current direction, Amity figured that Luz and Grom must’ve been headed for the woods.

As Amity ran towards that direction, her mind was racing. This was all her fault. She LET Luz get involved because she was too scared to face her fear. She KNEW Eda was right about Luz getting in over her head, and she went forward with it anyway. And now because of her, Luz was in danger. All because she couldn’t face the possibility of Luz not reciprocating any feelings she STILL didn’t know whether or not even exist!

Amity had to make this right. She just HAD to.

She made it to the woods, but lost sight of Eda. Just then, she heard some kind of blast and figured that Eda had caught up to them. She went towards the source, and came across the other students and Principal Bump gathered behind some bushes. She went to see what they were looking at and saw Luz, Eda, and Grom several yards in front of them.

Whatever thoughts might have been going through Amity’s mind at that moment, her body started acting on instinct. And right now, it was telling her to protect Luz, no matter how dangerous it might be.

Deciding to act, Amity lept out from behind the treeline and rushed to put herself between Luz and Grom.

“Stay away from her!”

Just then, Grom reached out and grabbed a hold of her. Amity knew what was coming next.

“I'm sorry, Luz. I should have fought my own battle. I-”

Right then, Amity could feel Grom going through her head, searching for what it was that she feared the most. She could barely hear Luz calling out to her. And then, Grom had found what it was looking for.

Amity had felt Grom set her down. When she came to, she had seen that it had transformed into some kind of humanoid form, roughly around age if she had to guess. It reached into her pocket, took out the note, ripped it in half, and crumpled it right in front of her.

And with that, Amity had her answer. And it hurt even worse than she could have imagined. It didn’t matter how vague Grom’s form was. Deep down, she knew exactly who it was supposed to be. And while she knew it wasn’t the real them, she could still feel her heart shatter into a million pieces in that moment.

As Amity picked up half of the crumpled note, she saw Luz run over and pick up the other half. Well, looks like the secret was about to get out.

“You were afraid of getting rejected.”

And when Amity looked up at Luz, she could see her start to… smile?

“Amity, it's okay. What if I went to Grom with you instead?”

Had Luz not seen the half that had her name on it? Whatever the case, Amity started to feel as a weight was being lifted off of her.

“Really?”

“That’s what friends do.”

In all that time Amity had spent that day worrying about the idea of her now-confirmed crush turning her down, she had forgotten about one of things that she admired about Luz the most. Her kindness. All those times. At the covention, the library, fixing Willow’s memories. It was always Luz trying to reach out to her. There was no way she could see Luz deliberately hurting her like that.

With her worries eased, Amity felt a renewed sense of determination flow through her. There was a shapeshifting fear monster that needed to be dealt with. She knew that Luz would be by her side to face it together. And given the occasion, there was only one way she could think of at that moment.

“Well, then, if that's settled, may I have this dance?”

It was now Amity’s turn to reach out to Luz. And Luz seemed more than happy to accept. They joined together, and it was as if something had clicked in that moment.

The two began their dance, taking one step after another. Throughout it all, the two were in perfect sync, never missing a beat. It was like neither one needed to tell the other what to do next. Amity used the routine to cast a spell circle with her feet, rising her and Luz atop a giant abomination. They continued from there, with Luz placing her glyphs on the abomination before they leapt off, sending the abomination into Grom itself. At that moment, the glyphs start to take effect, causing various plants to bloom from Grom’s body. Finally, the two land, finishing off their routine in a flourish as Grom explodes behind them.

In Grom’s place, a tree stood before them. The two look in awe as tiaras appear on each of their heads. They look at each other and smile as, for the first time that night, all felt right.

“Sooooooo.... who did you wanna ask out?”

“Oh, it’s… not important.”

Amity tossed her half of the note aside. As amazing as that moment was, she still didn’t feel like she was ready to tell Luz. Not yet, anyway.

“And there you have it, folks. A happy ending for this year's Grom. Let's give a big hand to our Grom queens, Luz and Amity!”

Well, Amity was certainly caught off guard. She had been so caught up in the moment that she had forgotten there was anyone there besides her and Luz. Right then, the rest of the students and Principal Bump came out from behind the bushes and started cheering the two queens. As the two were lifted up by the crowd and started to make their way back to Hexside, Amity felt on top of the world.

---

Hexside gymnasium,

Not much later

Now that Grom had been taken care of, the rest of the evening went a lot smoother. More students had been dancing than before the main event. The photo line was even longer than before. Everything was going great.

...And then, there was Amity just standing off to the side.

“Hey, kid. Why the party-of-one?”

Amity looked to her side and saw Eda standing next to her.

“*SIGH* I know I should be thrilled that Grom was defeated. But… you were right. Luz got in over her head trying to help me, and she almost got hurt because of it. I should’ve done more to keep her from doing it, but I was too scared to face my own fear to do anything about it.”

There was a few seconds of silence before Eda spoke up.

“Look, don’t be too hard on yourself. Fear can be a powerful thing. Even for most powerful witches, having to face your worst fears can be intense. The importanting thing is that when the time came, you stepped up and were willing to face yours so that Luz would be safe. The way I see it, it all worked out in the end, didn’t it?”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“Also, speaking from personal experience these last few weeks, it gets harder and harder to say no to Luz when she offers to help. The kid’s just more endearing that way.”

“Heh, yeah.”

Amity would admit, trying to turn down Luz’s help was getting difficult for her at this point.

“Plus, I won’t lie. You two look rather cute together.”

...WHAT?

“Uh- W-well I mean, I g-guess it WAS a rather impressive dance routine, and I suppose Luz’s outfit COULD’VE been way more unusual than what it already was. But, um… Is it me, or is the room getting smaller?”

“Kid, you can save it. I’ve seen the way you’ve been looking at her all night. I’ve seen it plenty of times before with many different people.”

“...Oh.”

So it was that obvious.

“Listen, I’m not gonna tell her if you don’t want me to. That’s your business, so it’s up to you to decide when you’re ready.”

Huh. That’s actually pretty cool of her.

“Although, I will say this. You can’t wait for the right moment forever. ...But for now, I’d say enjoy tonight. Have fun with your co-Grom queen”

At that moment, Eda looked behind Amity.

“Speaking of which…”

“Get in here, Blight!”

Amity felt Luz yank her towards where the photos were being taken. She was so caught off guard, she could feel herself blushing. Right then the photographer spoke up.

“Say ‘Grom Fright!’”

“‘Grom Fright!’”

Amity realized that there were two other voices there that weren’t her or Luz. After the photo was taken, she turned to see that Willow and Gus had managed to get in as well.

Maybe Eda was right. The worst part of the night was over with. Amity should be having fun with her friends. If Luz could be enjoying herself after everything that happened, then so could she.

---

Blight Manor,

Later that night

The walk home that night had been surprisingly quiet. While Amity may have had a lot on her mind then, it was rather jarring to not hear a word from the twins. Although, given what she had heard, she couldn’t really blame them. Apparently their dates had stood them up. While they could be annoying a good amount of the time, she couldn’t help but feel a little bad for them. She was just glad that HER night hadn’t been as bad as she feared it would be.

As Amity made it to her room for the night, she decided to reflect on the evening. The night had certainly been eventful. Not just for her, but also Luz, if that one conversation was anything to go by.

*flashback*

“You really think Willow and Gus will be able to convince Bump to let you back into the dance?”

“We’ll see. Looks like I at least found one thing magic school and mortal school have in common. Otter suits are a ‘no’ at dances.”

“Yeah… Sorry you got kicked out because of it.”

“Eh. I at least got a picture in with it, AND I lasted longer than my last school dance. I still consider this a win.”

“Well, I guess that’s one way to look at it. So, just in case they can’t convince Bump, you want me to stay here until Eda’s done chaperoning?”

“I’d like that,”

There were a few moments of silence. Then, Amity figured this would be a good time to ask about something that had been on her mind since the fight against Grom.

“Hey, there’s something I wanted to ask about. But, you don’t have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable.”

“Well… I guess it depends on what it is.”

“That last form Grom took when you were going up against it. It wasn’t anything you had brought up while we were training. And from what I saw, you weren’t expecting it either.”

Luz looked uneasy for a moment. Did Amity cross a line? After a bit, Luz gave an answer.

“That last form that Grom took… That was my mom.”

“Your mom? Did something happen between you two? All I was able to hear from where I had been sitting in the stands was something about lying. What did she mean?”

“*SIGH* You know how I can be a bit of a weirdo at times?”

“Um… yeeeeeessss?”

While Amity didn’t like saying it after how close they had gotten, if Luz wanted the truth, she supposed it was only fair to tell her.

“Well, back home, it was starting to become a problem. My mom had decided to send me to a summer camp to help straighten out my eccentric tendencies. While I was waiting for the bus, Eda’s palisman, Owbert, got a hold of one of my Azura books. So I chased him to this old house, which actually turned out to be a portal to the Boiling Isles that Eda had been using.

Eda agreed to send me back if I helped her and King with something. After I helped her, she held up her end of the deal. ...But I decided I wanted to spend some time in the Isles so that she could teach me magic. And the rest is history.

While I’ve still been able to keep in touch with my mom through my phone, I still haven’t told her where I am or what I’ve been up to these last several weeks. I feel bad about having to lie to her, and I know I’ll have to tell her eventually. But, I still don’t know how, when, or even IF I’ll be able to tell her.”

To say Amity was surprised would be an understatement. To think that Luz has been having to deal with this for weeks… No wonder she looked so freaked out when Grom took that form.

“...Wow. I had no idea.”

“Yeah. I know I should have brought it up during training so I could’ve been better prepared. But, I guess I thought that I could distract myself from one big fear with another. Guess we both know how well that turned out.”

It was then that Amity remembered what Eda had said to her earlier.

“Well, as someone rather wise told me, you can’t wait for the right moment forever. Maybe at least start with trying to open up to her a bit more.”

“...yeah, maybe you’re right. Thanks Amity. I felt good to talk about this with someone other than King.”

“Did he have any advice?”

“Well… sort of. But, I think yours was more helpful.”

“Anytime.”

*end flashback*

It really put things into perspective for Amity. If she had been having a difficult time trying to tell Luz how she feels, she imagined that Luz was feeling even worse. She hoped that Luz would be able to work it out somehow.

As she took off her tiara and placed it in her hope chest, Eda’s words ran through her head once more. ‘You can’t wait for the right moment forever.’ Amity knew that at some point, Luz was going to have to leave the Boiling Isles and go back to her realm. She didn’t know when, but she knew that it was certain. How will she know if she’ll be ready by the time that happens? It looked like all she could do for now was make the most of her time with Luz and hope for the best.

But, Amity would choose to worry about it tomorrow. For now, it had been a long night, and she needed to get some rest. As she got ready for bed, she thought about everything that night had been. Intense, nerve-wracking, and scary for sure. But most of all, that night had been… enchanting.

#the owl house #toh #luz noceda #amity blight #lumity #luz x amity #eda clawthorne #king toh #willow park #gus porter #edric blight #emira blight #principal bump #enchanting grom fright #fanfiction #fanfic

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spamzineglasgow · 4 years

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(ESSAY) “One hasn’t caught a poem” – joining Alice Notley For the Ride, by Colin Herd

In this essay, Colin Herd writes from the side of dogs and car alarms and the everyday detritus of living in these ‘soupy’ times, where language draws us endlessly towards the possibility and withholding of more knowledge, more prediction, more answers and meaning. Exploring the rich, knotty and exhilarating poetics of Alice Notley’s recent book For the Ride (Penguin, 2020), Herd takes us on a jaunt through the ‘imaginative space of non-being’, zooming through windows and many portals of a rippling language, leading us into the shapeshifting realm of love, rebellion, tyranny, repeat and willowing new forms of (un)knowing.

“mebbe we’re just birds, orphic ones means, articuli of the blank” (92)

> This is an aside before I’ve even started but in my neighbourhood dogs are barking all the freaking time right now. Maybe it’s always like this and I just don’t notice because I’m usually at work during the day, or maybe it’s that they realise that stuff is screwed and weird right now… but wow… all these dogs wildly poeticise all day all night every day/night. Plus car alarms and house alarms which are of course dog-poets too as everyone knows, attuned to bewilderment as much as the next being.

> When things are trippy and scary, why not read something that’s even more so? And in the current Covid-19 crisis, I’ve been drawn to reading those poems that demonstrate an uncanny ability to know more always, to predict, to bring things into being, to foreshadow and foretell. I’ve been reading works that disrupt and destabilise, not to provide comfort in the disruption and instabilities of the present moment but to find ways of thinking disruptedly and divergently. One of those texts, a kind of prototext for that kind of thinking, is ‘On Notbeing’, one of those great lost works of presocratic philosophy that reminds us the best things in life are partial, basically unknowable & fragmented. In what we have available of ‘On Notbeing’, the poet-critic Gorgias zones out into the following elusive statements in a shadow-text, unpicking Parmenides’ ‘On Being’:

“Nothing exists; Even if something exists, nothing can be known about it; and even if something can be known about it, knowledge about it can't be communicated to others. Even if it can be communicated, it cannot be understood.”

As Barbara Cassin puts it, these statements “knot together” being and saying – existence and language – constructing politics and society in poeisis; but it isn’t just being and saying that are linked, it’s also being and non-being. Gorgias constructs the “city as an ongoing creation of language” by thinking logically through to a point where it’s impossible to imagine any stable “being”, that isn’t artificially constructed in the soupy language through which we experience it. Gorgias is on the side of the dogs and car alarms signalling their objection to any stable objective being, the “articuli of the blank”: sheer barking poetic insistence. It’s almost time for us to clap again.

> This imaginative space of non-being, this thinking-through of what it would be like not to exist, is exactly the space that Alice Notley’s new book For the Ride takes the reader, carefully lowering us down like a figure being dropped from a great height into a game, but the game is what feels like a live unfolding Zoom transcript of ghost-Gorgias-as-babysitter-to-zoom-bombing-baby-ghost-Derridas caught in self-isolation with endless versions of themselves. And Gorgias seems to be asking how many Zoom windows it is possible to open up at once to short-circuit the tech. And how exhilarating is this poem which takes poetry to breaking point! It’s a roughshod exploration of languages rippling and ripening around the questions: what might language be like if humans don’t exist? What worlds would language create if we weren’t around to limit, define them? Is posthuman talking / narrativizing / language possible?

> The actual agon / arena for these questions in For the Ride is “the glyph of chaos with willows”:

Oh but One’s not in time, what’s One in? Chaos, beautiful chaos – But, too, One’s in glyph and it’s hard; learning a new way to go, that is, Talk? proceeding on through… oh this might be round, rounded. (1)

Notley’s poem creates spaces for us to imagine coming-to language. It’s a plant-like willowy coming-to language: “There are transversals, blurry poles—no they are lines” (1). The speaking here is plant-like in the way that Cassin reminds us Aristotle categorieses poets, those who speak nonsense: “Strage plants really, since like animals they make sounds with their mouths. Homoios phutoi, you are like a plant if you speak without meaning” (68). Notley’s text grows, abundantly. And reproduces almost magically – little branches of language falling – even upside down – and generating new growth. Notley’s is a coming-to language that might open up alternative spaces for being that don’t require us to situate ourselves and our egos in the same ways we’re accustomed to. Or, as it’s exquisitely put elsewhere: ”No way to evolve without pre-existence, assholes!”

> Oh just absorb us all with poetry like that! What else is poetry for but to swallow us up and then expel us somewhere we could never have been. This is a disorienting book, spinning the reader into all these different rooms of language, orienting us around characters – One, Wideset, France, Shaker etc – characters that are also spatial. In Queer Phenomenology: Orientations, Objects, Others, Sara Ahmed asks “How is it possible, with all that is possible, that the same form is repeated again and again? How does the openness of the future get closed down into so little in the present?” Notley’s poem lets us glimpse “the openness of the future”:

By changing this here langue. Whut evir’s done’s now diffirint words to. (117)

Yes it will come to you, is already maybe seeping into. It’s like you do and more. No vocal cords? All’s a big vocal cord. (104)

And Notley’s poetry takes new shapes: calligrams of coyotes, arks, stars, bodies. This is such shaky & jittery poetry, more beautiful than I can swallow, such ground-shaking, tremulous, trembling, aquiver poetry. This is love poetry. Of course it’s fucking love poetry!... “loving it the langue” (48) … it’s love poetry because of the love that courses through every weird-ass overflowing sentence, “Step into this poem-scene, O one!” (105) It’s a love poem because it is so seeped in pleasure and because it rattles us in the s&m cords of its vocalities.

> Gorgias and Notley are scary and chilling and thrilling because they think past kill-joy-ing and administrations of bureaucratic humanity to glyphic hauntology, logocentricity, to language, to “someghost of langue” (102). Would language exist if humans weren’t around to think they made its rules up and got to police it? Maybe it would, maybe language branches would do their willow-thing. This is a poem that you want to bathe in – by cutting it out line by line and mulching them or something and wearing it around town like a mummy in a world you don’t exist in any more.

> This feeling isn’t that unfamiliar to those who are already in love with all the things a word can do when Alice Notley’s driving. And when I say driving I mean writing the most spooky, epic, eery poetry everwritten. The poet who takes us to places like this:

Where we except for those in charge are drained from giving ourselves to each other until there’s nothing left. (In the Pines)

You, dreaming about crazies, fearful of becoming one. What if your yellow enraged aspect gets activated again, screaming out your anger in a world that’s bizarre enough to have invented it. (Culture of One)

I thought of words breaking open in the mouth but also as jewels of old sexless poets, of the dead dessicated except for those emeralds or topazes I still get a thrill when I say, emeralds and topazes. (Mysteries of Small Houses)

No world is intact and no one cares about you.

I leaned down over don’t care about, I care about you I leaned down over the

world in portrayal of carefulness, answering

something you couldn’t say. (Songs and Stories of the Ghouls)

Anything that comes into my mouth is what I say. From where? I scream for you what you don’t dare know. Saying I’ll know it for you even though you don’t want me to (Negativity’s kiss)

“shifted” “& changed” “to spell Poverty” “instead of Presence” “He didn’t need” “to ride the train” “He’d made us poor” “in an instant” “They walk by” “& make you poor” “They look at you & make you poor” “Surreptitiously I began” “to remove my” “bits of jewelry” “my earrings” (The Descent of Alette)

as warriors take position thousands of them as leaves and flowers appear in their season hearts burning to break them singers without memory (Alice ordered me to be made)

Why does poetry that makes you want to ball your eyes out make you want to ball your eyes out?

> Alice Notley’s poetics always feels like what she wrote about in ‘The Poetics of Disobedience’ as “an immense act of rebellion against dominant social forces”, because her books are always so attuned to what those dominant social forces do and how they operate to delimit and reproduce the same-old same-old with all its deep political inadequacies. For the Ride feels like as well as pointing to dominant social forces also posits ways to imagine ourselves outside of them, even within the language-worlds of poems. In an interview with Shoshana Olidort in 2016 in the LA Review of Books, Alice Notley said:

“In The Descent of Alette, the tyrant is us. The tyrant is what enslaves us to our forms. The tyrant is the form of our life, the form of our politics, the form of our universities, the form of our knowledge, our thinking we know something. All of that is the tyrant. The tyrant is a liberal. The tyrant isn’t Trump. He can be part of it, but this tyrant is an extremely accomplished man who can do anything. Alette’s about the liberation of women, but it’s also about the liberation of everyone. If you keep half of humankind down, then everybody is oppressed.”

Can poetry actually be the willowlike language that grows all around and over the tyrant? Tonight (after a day of running classes and conducting meetings and participating in discussions) I joined my street clapping NHS workers. And in doing so I did the same thing that Boris Johnson is doing in Chequers. And all these weird Military-Parade like things just suddenly got started around the ritual. Police etc joined in with their gruesome show of “we got this”. I got an email from a new friend recently: “why is Britain so in love with the second world war”. This act of clapping - I should have just made car alarm noises and barking noises and so on. Or beeping noises. Or whatever noises my grandmother is making in her carehome right now where she’s not at all well. I’ll just do barking noises. Reading those statements, “the form of our politics, the form of our universities, the form of our knowledge, our thinking we can know something” basically makes me want to cry, which I know is soppy. We need to change all of these things but not in the ways that are being posited in this new Zoom Hell we’re careering towards. This by the way is also what the sophists, including Gorgias, were up to: destabilising all the certainties when we think we know things so as to suggest alternative forms of knowing and unknowing.

> Famously, Frank O’Hara poem-berated Marino Marini for not picking the rider as carefully as the horse. In this book Alice Notley suggests maybe they both got it mixed up and it’s the ride we should all be hung up on: “O ride it! Whut’s writin? Usin tentacle wavelets to scrawl these”. Maybe it’s whatever that ride is that might enable us to find willow forms of our knowledge, willow universities, willow forms of our thinking we know something. It’s not a horse we’re being asked to ride though but a ton of floating signifiers, floating poems within the poem-scene. And a harness would be a hindrance.

Cassin, Barbara, Jacques the Sophist: Lacan, Logos and Psychoanalysis (Fordham University Press, 2012)

Cassin, Barbara, Sophistical Practice: Towards a Consistent Relativism (Fordham University Press, 2014)

Dillon, John, The Greek Sophists (Penguin, 2003)

Notley, Alice, For the Ride (Penguin Poets, 2019)

Notley, Alice, Songs and Stories of the Ghouls (Wesleyan, 2011)

Notley, Alice, Negativity’s Kiss (Purh, 2014)

Notley, Alice, Alice ordered me to be made (Yellow Press, 1975)

Notley Alice, Descent of Alette (Penguin Poets, 1992)

Notley, Alice, Mysteries of Small Houses (Penguin Poets, 1998)

Notley, Alice, Culture of One (Penguin Poets, 2011)

Notley, Alice, In the Pines (Penguin Poets, 2007)

Notley, Alice, ‘The Poetics Of Disobedience’ | Poetry Foundation: <https://www.poetryfoundation.org/articles/69479/the-poetics-of-disobedience> (2010)

Olidort, Shoshana, ‘Between The Living And The Dead: An Interview With Alice Notley’ - Los Angeles Review Of Books <https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/between-the-living-and-the-dead-an-interview-with-alice-notley/> (2016)

For the Ride is out now and available to purchase via Penguin Random House.

Text: Colin Herd

Published: 24/4/20

#poetry #essay #essays #poetry essay #Colin Herd #Alice Notley

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ordinaryschmuck · 4 years

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What I thought about “Young Blood, Old Souls” from The Owl House

Salutations random people of the internet who probably won't read this. I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons. Today, I am reviewing the season one finale of The Owl House. And by the way, there are zero dislikes that I have for this episode. Any issues I could have are either petty nitpicks, or just not worth talking about. So, for the first time ever, I'm going to share my thoughts unfiltered. No likes. No dislikes. Just my thoughts on why I think this episode turned out as great as it did. And in case you couldn't guess, there are going to be enormous spoilers for the finale itself, and The Owl House in general. So consider this your last warning as we dive in!

The opening narration: I'm a sucker for fairytale esque opening narrations in stories, and that's the feeling I got when watching this scene. Sure, you could say that it's an exposition dump that tells us stuff we already know, but I don't see it that way. I see it as a technique to set the mood of the episode, while also reminding us how much of a threat the Belos can be.

And again, let's ask ourselves: How much is accurate in this small history lesson, and which parts are made up by Belos? Because who's to say that he isn't the one who wrote the book that King is reading?

No intro: This. Was a shock.

Usually shows shorten the intro to it’s first and last portions, or at the very least, flash the opening logo. Never, to my knowledge, has a series straight-up drop both the intro and the logo. To me, that is a good sign of a great episode. Because no intro tells me that the writers had so much to put in, that they didn't want to waste a single second to even flash a logo.

Not that many jokes: The jokes were another appreciated, albeit well missed, absence within the episode. Because this is the season finale. An event that, depending on what show you make, needs to be taken seriously. And while I say that The Owl House is a comedy show with drama on the side, that doesn't mean it shouldn't focus on the drama if an episode calls for it. And an adventure where Luz has to save her mentor from an emperor who turns people to stone? Yeah. That's an experience where drama has to take center stage for the time being.

Luz is serious and angry: Don't get me wrong. I love Luz for her endless optimism and her ability to find fun in whatever situation she's in. But this is not the type of episode that requires that personality. If anything, I was happier to see Luz act more seriously rather than stick to her quirky personality. Because this proves that Luz isn't some oblivious goofball who can't see the darkness in the world. It shows that she understands when to be serious if the situation calls for it. This also reveals that not only can Luz get angry, but she can get downright vengeful. Her desire to make Lilith pay is not only understandable, but it's absolutely justified. Say what you want about her now, but what Lilith did to Luz in the last episode was awful. So I can't really blame her for getting angry at the mere sight of Lilith.

Now, if Luz were to remain with this angsty personality, then I would be less than ecstatic. But it seems pretty clear to me that angry Luz is a situation-dependent side of her personality that will only come out in the more dramatic episodes. This is evident with the fact that Luz's optimism returns after Eda comes back safe and sound. So while I came to enjoy angry Luz, I'm still going to prefer happy Luz any day.

Owl Beast Eda sticks her tongue out: I love the idea that this was a part of the real Eda shining through, just because the thought of Eda fighting a curse to get under Lilith's skin is just funny to me. And Lilith sticking her tongue out too was just icing on the cake.

Belos’ is still terrifying: That's it. That's all I have to say. We get even more of a glimpse of Belos' power, and it just cements how he's the most terrifying villain that Disney has made in years. Because I saw his fight with Luz (more on that later) as Belos holding back. Which makes me wonder: WHAT THE F**K IS IT GOING TO LOOK LIKE WHEN HE'S ALLOWED TO LET LOOSE?!

And if I'm being honest with you guys, I'm a little scared to find out the answer to that question.

Eda is partially the Owl Beast: This was a cheat, but an effective one. It gives Eda a chance to have actual speaking roles, while also nerfing her, so she doesn't escape. Would it have been more tragic if Eda spent the entire episode as an unintelligent monster? Maybe. But it also means Eda couldn't give Luz the portal (the most important thing in the finale) and not get to say goodbye to Luz (the most gut-wrenching scene in the finale). Say what you want about Eda being partially cursed, but I think it was a smart decision.

We meet Gus’ dad!: This might not seem like a big deal, but I certainly enjoyed it. Hell, I always appreciate it when I get to know more about the lives of characters in my favorite media. And finding out that Gus' dad is a news reporter? That's a nice reveal, even if it's not the most important thing to happen in the show.

Petrification: Sooooo, this is basically the death penalty. Let that sink in for a second. Because the world of this show, that's aimed for children, actually has a death penalty. Sure, the writers don't actually use the d-word. But turning people into stone with no way to turn them back? They might as well be dead at that point. And I actually like that The Owl House is allowed to go this dark. It raises the stakes much higher than any episode once we find out that Eda could die if Luz fails. And that's a thought I'm sure no one appreciates. Especially Luz.

Luz and King stepping on the grass: Hey, there may not be that many jokes in this episode, but that doesn't mean it isn't allowed to be hilarious. And, yeah, this got a huge laugh out of me. Both from how King and Luz look as they commit their "crime," and because of the guard's over-the-top reaction to it. It gets me everytime.

Warden Wrath’s high-pitched scream: Not much to say here other than I just thought it was funny. Because what also gets to me is when a "big scary character" does something pathetic like what Wrath did. And if you didn't hear his scream, go back to play this scene again. It's well worth it.

“Draw me a map!”: I don't know why I love this line so much. Maybe it's because Sarah-Nicole Robles' delivery made me laugh, or because it preemptively shuts up nitpickers who would ask how Luz knew where the detention center is. Either way, this was a great line.

Willow and Gus help...sort of: In the grand scheme of things, Willow and Gus didn't really do that much when helping Luz and Eda. Sure they got a crowd to chant about letting Eda go, but that effort didn't do anything to stop the petrification. Even that brief moment of standing up to the Emperor came to an end the second he showed up. Which means that it's an issue that Willow and Gus didn’t really help Luz, right?

That would true if it wasn't for the fact that Willow and Gus didn't immediately jump at the idea of backing Luz up if she needs them. That makes these two the perfect best friends that Luz could ask for, solely on that loyalty alone. Would it have been better to see them fight alongside Luz? Maybe, but I doubt Luz would actually want her friends risking everything for her vendetta. Besides, I doubt Willow and Gus would really be that much help compared to how quickly Lilith dismissed both of them in the last episode. So while they get a C for contribution and efficiency, they get an A+ for loyalty in my book.

Eda’s goodbye to Luz: Oh, man. And I thought Eda's goodbye in "Agony of a Witch" was painful. This? This actually got me misty-eyed. And I think the reason why it's more heartbreaking this time around is that Eda is fully showing her emotions in this scene. In my "Agony of a Witch" review, I said that Eda was trying to hide how dire the situation from Luz by smiling and playing the thing off as no big deal. She fails because her eyes and her voice cracks give away all of her feelings, but she still tried nonetheless. This time, however, Eda makes it clear how serious the situation is with both her expressions and tone of voice. Probably because the last time she tried to be gentle with Luz, her apprentice threw herself into the lion's den. So as a result, it comes off as more heartbreaking, given the fact that Eda makes it clear how serious their predicament is. And the fact that she not only says a real goodbye to Luz but practically pushes her away?! Add that with the fact that they share "I love you's" to each other, and you got a scene that just tears at the heartstrings.

Luz crying again: NnnnnnnOPE!!!

I already said that the single image of Luz crying was enough to break me. So seeing her just break down and sob her eyes out is more than enough to hurt the soul, man!

IT HURTS DA SOUL!

“Talk to the glyph, WITCH!”: You know for a FACT that if Luz was allowed to swear, she would use a very similar sounding word to describe Lilith. And I love that implication!

Luz can’t do magic in the human realm: Woah boy! It was one thing when we all predicted it. But to now have visual confirmation that Luz cannot, in fact, do magic in the human realm? Let's just say that adds a whole new level of heartbreak for when Luz has to go home. As well as an overflowing amount of angsty fanfics that plays with that idea.

Lilith’s backstory: ...

*DEEP INHALE*

I will hold off Fredrick Ulisinsburg for now. For. NOW. Because while Lilith's actions are nowhere near justified...it is clear that she does regret her actions. Lilith said it herself. She thought the curse would last for at least a day, and in no way intended for it to be permanent. It's still crappy of her to willingly curse Eda at all, but at least she didn't want her sister to live a life of torture. Plus, there's a sense of tragedy given the fact that Eda wasn't going to fight Lilith anyway. Lilith underestimating how much Eda truly cares must have made the guilt set in even more. And I hope that the show explores that in season two. Because while I think Lilith is on the right track towards redemption, what she did was awful, and I want her to actually earn her forgiveness. Not just hand it out because of a few acts of kindness (more on that later).

(Also bonus points for that foreshadowing with the sharing-the-pain spell. I did not think it would come up again in the way that it did.)

Baby Eda: Must. Protect. Baby. Eda.

Amity’s parents(?): It's yet to be officially confirmed (to my knowledge) that those students in the bleachers are Amity's parents. But if they are, then it's awesome that The Owl House crew snuck this reveal in the finale. They didn't need to do that, but the fact that they did just make schmucks like me happy.

Luz briefly looking out into the forest: So much is said about Luz with just these few short seconds. The fact that she hesitates going back to the Isles tells me that she's wondering if she should. Because right now, Luz has an out. She could say goodbye to her problems and run home to mami, especially given the fact that that's what Eda wants her to do. Except Luz would never do that. Because Luz has proven time and time again that she will not back down when it comes to helping the people she loves. Eda, Willow, Amity. These are all characters that Luz would do anything and everything for if it meant they would be safe. But that doesn't mean she won't briefly get tempted to escape. So while this moment of hesitation shows that Luz can have times of selfishness, her almost immediately running back proves that she will always choose the path of selflessness.

Lilith willing to be a double agent: This was the first sign of Lilith working her way towards redemption. Her willingness to still work for the Emperor's Coven, and to change it from the inside, is pretty admirable. It's almost a shame that she gets caught almost immediately. Because I would have loved to have seen Lilith's attempts to work against the Emperor to protect Luz and Eda from getting arrested. Not only for character growth reasons but because it would actually strengthen her redemption by having Lilith willingly risk everything for the right people.

Luz vs Emperor Belos: I could have never expected this. At least, not so soon. I always assumed Luz would fight Belos at some point, most likely in the series finale. Never would I have expected this confrontation to happen in the first season. And man, oh, man, what a fight! I'm sure some people are gonna complain how easy it was for Luz to fight back, but to those people: I have a few things to point out.

First off, Belos' line of, "I'll play," tells me that he's going easy on Luz. Nothing he does really looks like it would hurt Luz too badly-at least by his standard. And to me, it seems like Belos is treating the fight in a similar way a teenager lets a toddler "challenge" them. Because when you compare Luz's frantic movements to Belos' calm and calculated ones, it is clear who's the better fighter in this battle.

Second, Luz doesn't do that much. Sure she chips his mask with an ice spell. But that's the equivalent of how Iron Man's finishing move on Thanos only resulted in "a drop of blood." Every other glyph Luz uses during this fight was to protect herself rather than fighting back. And the fact that she barely got a chance to fight back, when the Emperor was going easy on her? Let's just say that it makes me even more terrified for Luz's safety when round two inevitably happens.

Lastly, Luz is someone who has what I like to call: Percy-Jackson-Syndrome. A character who's a bumbling idiot seventy-five percent of the time, a surprisingly good strategist for fifteen percent, and terrifying when angry in the last ten. And Luz has shown in the past that she has a sense of quick wit and strategy when fighting powerful foes. Her plan to beat Willow's inner-self, as well as Luz's plan of escape from Otabin, are two examples that come to mind that prove this. So it's not too much of a stretch that Luz is still alive after fighting Belos, because the one time she got the upper hand was by outsmarting him.

So again, good fight, and I'm terrified for round two.

Luz destroys the portal: This was a heroic sacrifice I didn't see coming, even though I really should have. If you've been paying attention to the episode titles, you'll notice that the first letter of each title spells out the phrase, "A witch loses a true way." A lot of people have been speculating what this phrase could mean. Even I dipped my toe in theorizing the right answer. It turns out the people who thought Luz would lose a "true way" back home were correct. But I don't think anybody could have thought that it would be Luz who would take away her only way back home. Not only is Luz being the one to destroy the portal tragic, but this sacrifice shows how much Luz cares about Eda. Luz is willing to say goodbye to everything she knows, for who knows how long, just so Eda can be safe. Plus, it's another moment of Luz defeating her enemy by outsmarting him. Which teaches kids that you don't need to fight harder. You just need to fight smarter.

Lilith shares the curse: This is another sign that Lilith is on the right path. While I still wouldn't say that I forgive Lilith, I will say this sacrifice makes me want to at least consider it.

Belos is fixing the portal: You want to know what makes a villain even more terrifying? The fact that every victory our hero has is more of a minor inconvenience towards the villain. Which is what this scene is. Because while Luz definitely won the battle, it looks Belos is planning on winning the war.

Eda looks different in the outro: I like this. You know why? Because it tells me that Eda being half cursed is not going to be fixed any time soon. Case in point: Willow was wearing her Abomination Track uniform during the intro and the credits, so as not to spoil the ending of episode three. For every episode after, Willow remained in her Plant Track uniform, and it looks like that's not going to change. So the fact that the crew is committing to Eda's design change, to the point where they change the credits as well, shows a great attention to detail. That also hints at a dynamic shift that will remain for the foreseeable future.

The finale makes me want more: To me, the best finales are the ones that resolve most stories but still opens up more for the next season. Because every narrative and conflict season one opened up has been closed. Lilith wanting to arrest Eda? Closed. Who cursed Eda? Closed. Amity's redemption? Please. That got closed, like, three episodes ago. And yet, this finale left me with more questions that I can't wait to get answered in season two.

How will the dynamic change now that Lilith is added into the main crew? What's the day of unity? Why does Emperor Belos want the portal to the human world? Who's that hooded figure that Belos sends to spy on the Owl House? How is being half-cursed going to affect Eda and Lilith? Can Eda still turn into the Owl Beast? Is Lilith going to turn into an Owl Beast now? Are we going to have an episode where Luz and King are going to deal with TWO Owl Beasts? And most importantly: WHEN THE HOLY F**K ARE LUZ AND AMITY GOING TO KISS ALREADY?!?! DO I SERIOUSLY HAVE TO WAIT DURING ANOTHER SEASON-which I'm totally fine with-TO SEE THESE TWO IDIOTS GET TOGETHER?!

I doubt I’ll ever know the answer to all of these questions, but it sure makes me more excited to see what happens next.

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

So, yeah. "Young Blood, Old Souls" is a definite A+ of an episode. It had excellent drama, astonishing character moments, some closure to several stories, and even a few well-timed jokes on occasion. However, I wouldn't go so far as to say that it's the best episode of the season. It's definitely in the top five, for sure, but not the best. I'm more than willing to give that title to "Enchanted Grom Fright" just for the importance of it alone. Hell, I'd say that I enjoyed "Agony of a Witch" a lot more than "Young Blood, Old Souls." But, I'm willing to blame that on the same reason why Avengers: Infinity War is seen as the better movie than Avengers: Endgame. Whereas the first part did a great job at lifting up the stakes and tension, that part two pales in comparison from doing its job of giving closure. But that doesn't change the fact that "Young Blood, Old Souls" is a damn-near perfect episode that both hurts and heals the soul.

(And that’s it! It’s going to be another few months ‘til season two hits, and in turn, months until I’ll have to review episodes again...Unless I want to do something crazy like review the episodes I didn’t talk about. But that’ll never happen!)

(...)

(...Alright fine. I’ll review them. But not until The Owl House comes onto Disney+!)

#the owl house #the owl house review #what i thought about

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tardisman14 · 3 years

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Wing It: Chapter 3: Game On

A novelized version of Wing It Like Witches, told from Amity’s pov. A look into what was going through her mind in that episode, with snippets of happenings in-between scenes. Told in 4 parts (3 main chapters, plus the prologue), rated to be safe, and obviously Lumity.

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

One bit from this was inspired by this pic from Dana’s Twitter

This was bad. This was very bad. At the rate Boscha was going, there was no way Luz was going to last long. Amity needed to get help, fast. Hopefully she could find Willow and Gus and convince them to rejoin Luz’s team.

Amity figured that the most likely places they would head to would be either the homeroom for the Plant track or Illusionists track. The outdoor entrance to the Plant homeroom wasn’t too far from where she was on the grounds, so she decided to check there first. As luck would have it, she could see both Willow and Gus through one of the windows, so she wasted no time rushing to the door to get their attention.

“Luz needs our help! I know she pushed you guys, and she always gets in over her head. She can be so stupid, which I love-”

Wait. Did she just say that out loud?

“I mean hate!”

Alright, back on track.

“In any case, she needs you right now, which is sweet-”

Again?!

“I mean, I hate it, and it’s dumb!”

Did they notice?

“...”

“You lost me.”

Okay, at least Gus was none the wiser. Although going off of Willow’s facial expression, Amity couldn’t be too sure. Especially after Grom.

“Just, here.”

Amity handed Willow her hair mended clip. Luz obviously wanted her to return it to Willow. After a few moments, she started to see a smile form on Willow’s face. Hopefully this meant that she understood that Luz wanted to make things right and that they were back on the team?

“Can we resist the call to action? No! May the flags be raised once more.”

That sounded like a yes if Amity ever heard one. The three of them started to rush back to the field. Hopefully Boscha hadn’t burned Luz to a crisp yet.

Once they saw the field ahead of them, it looked like they hadn’t gotten there a moment too soon.

“Having fun yet? ‘Cause I’m just getting warmed up.”

Amity was about to summon her abomination to block the flaming ball hurtling toward Luz, but it would seem that Willow beat her to it.

“Boscha. Your issue is with me, not Luz. Leave her be.”

“Willow!”

Amity was relieved to see the two of them make up. However, she also knew that they still had to deal with Boscha.

“The game is back on.”

“You need three players on your team. Where’s your third?”

At this point, between Gus not looking up to the challenge and him, Luz, and Willow not having any proper experience anyway, Amity knew what had to be done.

“Right here.”

After what happened that morning, she knew that she and Boscha were all but done. Why not go all in and actually stand with the people she actually saw as friends?

“You just ruined your social life.”

Maybe that’s how Boscha viewed it. But just one look at Luz and Willow reassured Amity that the opposite was true.

“Nah. I think I’ve made it better.”

“Ugh! Game on!”

---

Banshees Locker Room

10 minutes later

After last season, Amity never thought she’d be playing again. Yet there she was. Gearing up, along with the 2 people she really saw as friends. Getting ready to go up against her former teammates, lead by possibly the worst “friend” she’s ever had. Turns out she just needed the right motivation.

“Alright, I think I should be good to go. You two finish up. I’m gonna double check that Gus is ready to act as our cheer section.”

As Luz left the locker room, Amity felt that moment would be a good time to talk with Willow before the match.

“Hey. So, uh… sorry for not getting as involved earlier.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I should’ve been more clear with Luz when I mentioned that Boscha only speaks in Grudgby terms. ‘Cause this definitely wasn’t what I had in mind. Also, if I had originally agreed to be on your team from the start, maybe I could’ve helped keep Luz more grounded during practice, and she wouldn’t have pushed you and Gus so hard.”

“Look, Amity. As far as Luz challenging Boscha, that was likely more a case of Luz’s tendency to dive head-first into certain situations. I’m not really sure if it’s possible to talk Luz out of something once her mind’s set on it.”

Willow did have a point there.

“The way I see it, you telling off Boscha this morning and joining our team right now tells me that you are trying to put the effort in. So don’t beat yourself up too much over it.”

Words could not describe how relieved Amity was to hear that.

“Just try not to focus too much on Luz’s cute uniform”

“Wait, what?”

“Nothing.”

Okay, the way that Willow mentioned that definitely made Amity suspicious.

“Alright then. Just about ready. Seeing as you’re the one with the experience here, any tips?”

“Well, apart from avoiding showing off like I did, just try to keep your guard up. Especially with Boscha.”

As Amity finished getting ready, she figured some reassurance wouldn’t hurt either.

“But don’t worry. I know how talented you are, and Luz and I will have your back.”

With all that said, the time came for them to meet Luz on the field.

---

Both teams stood ready. 10 minutes on the clock. Gus could be heard cheering from the stands. At this point, Amity just hoped that she wasn’t too rusty after her time away from the team.

The ball went up in the air, signaling that the game had begun. Willow was first to get it and, within seconds, scored the first point of the game.

A minute in, Luz got a hold of the ball. A giant axe popped out of the ground, but Amity manges to summon an abomination to hold it back, giving Luz just enough time to score another point.

Not a bad start.

2 minutes in, Boscha’s team was up, 6 to 5.

“Amity!”

Amity looked behind her and saw Luz toss a now-flaming ball towards Boscha’s team. After they dodged it, she took the opportunity to use an abomination to score another point, tying the score.

“Yeah!”

Not only did it seem like they had a real chance of winning, but it seemed that in the process, Luz was also able to learn another spell. This was already turning out better than Amity had hoped.

After an intense game, the score was tied, 9 to 9, with just 30 seconds left on the clock.

“There’s time for one more play.”

“And this play could determine whether us underdogs win or lose.”

“Here’s what I have to offer.”

Alright then. Amity started to consider their options. However, it seemed that Willow made up her mind.

“I think we should try this one.”

That’s when Amity noticed that the glyph Willow had pointed to meant that she wanted to go with…

*GASP* “The Thorn Vault? Are you sure?”

“I’m ready this time.”

As they took their positions, an odd feeling came over Amity. As if their luck so far in this match was about to run out.

During her time as captain, the team usually had a solid lead by this point in the game. However, on those rare occasions when it really came down to the wire, she remembered Boscha not being one to take any chances, and usually resorted to that play. Amity felt as if that kind of situation was about to happen.

The ball went into the air. Luz managed to catch it and-

Oh no. Amity saw Boscha going right for Luz. She had to act fast.

“Watch out!”

Amity managed to push Luz out of the way just in time. Unfortunately, this meant Boscha got her, instead.

“Amity!”

There wasn’t time. Amity saw Cat and Amelia moving in on Luz.

“Luz!”

As Luz went to set Willow up for the Thorn Valt, Amity felt Boscha moving off of her. If she was right about what was about to happen next, she had move quick and-

“Ow!”

Amity felt a shooting pain in her right leg. Not good.

Not much later, she heard the clock run out. Amity looked towards the score board and saw that Luz and Willow managed to score that last point.

...And saw that the score for Boscha’s team rose exponentially. Yup. Boscha went for the Rusty Smidge.

It even went down like the last time that happened. The score was close, and Boscha tackled the Glandus captain so that she’d have a better chance at getting the Smidge while the other players were focused on the ball. While it tended to be an effective strategy, Amity herself was never a fan of it, as it tended to make the team look desperate.

Amity then looked towards the other players and-

...And they, apart from Boscha, were actually congratulating Willow on the game. Huh. Hopefully this meant that they would drop the bet. Amity tried to get up and-

Nope. Leg still in pain.

“Amity!”

Amity then saw Luz and Willow run over to her, worried expressions on their faces.

“I think- I think I hurt my leg. But, I’ll be okay.”

While she may have been in pain, she didn’t want them to worry about her too much.

“Are you sure? I could help carry you if it really hurts.”

Aaaaaaaand Amity was back to the same nervousness from an hour ago. Maybe she could try to play it cool this time…

“I’m fine! Who’s Amity?”

Or maybe just make a fool of herself.

“Aaaaand, scoop!”

And now her crush was carrying her.

“Oh. Wow. Sports.”

Aaaaaaaand there went the last of Amity’s brain cells.

“Can we have another montage?”

“Yeah! Montage, activate!”

But before that could happen, Willow spoke up.

“Uh, Luz? Maybe get Amity to the healer’s office first?

“Oh, right. Probably a good idea.”

With that, Luz started carrying Amity towards the healer’s office.

Wow, Luz is strong.

“Thanks, Luz…”

“O-of course, girl!”

About a few minutes inside, they still had a ways to go before making it to the healers office. So, Amity decided to break the silence.

“So, you and Willow did really well out there today.”

“Thanks! Considering we didn’t really have any experience, that means a lot coming from the former team captain.”

“I am curious. How did you learn that fire spell?”

“Oh, that? Well, after I managed to block one of the flaming balls that Boscha hurled at me, I noticed what looked like a glyph burned into the ball. So I used it to burn the markings onto one of the papers I had on hand, and BOOM! Instant fire, baby!”

Huh. Luz continued to be just as resourceful as ever. Amity would be lying if she said that wasn’t one of her many qualities that she admired so much.

“The healer’s office should be down this hallway, right?”

“Yeah. Third door on the left.”

Soon enough, they arrived at their destination and Luz managed to set Amity down on the nearest cot.

“Alright, then. You should be good from here, right?” Luz asked, still sounding a bit concerned.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. You go enjoy your montage with Willow and Gus.”

“Well, okay then. If you’re sure. After you’re done, meet up at the Owl House for a little celebration?”

“Wouldn’t miss it. Just… make sure that bird tube doesn't get too close this time.”

“Noted.”

And with that, Amity saw Luz rush out to meet back up with Willow and Gus. She had to admit, she had more fun being on a team with them than she had playing Grudgby in a long time. And who knows. Maybe the injury was just a sprain.

---

Woods outside Bonesborough,

20 minutes later

Alright, so it wasn’t just a sprain.

Amity couldn’t believe she’d have to spend at least 2 weeks on bed rest because of a broken leg. Mainly, she wasn’t looking forward to the talk she’d be having with her parents when they got home, which, based on the healer’s reaction when talking to her mom on the crow, wasn’t going to be anything but pleasant. Especially considering this meant that she’d have to miss the upcoming field trip to the Emperor’s Castle. She was definitely gonna get an ear-full from them.

Fortunately, her parents wouldn’t be getting home for another few hours because of work. So that gave Amity at least some time to spend with the others at the Owl House before she had to be home. Although that time would definitely have to be shorter than what she wanted due to having to walk around with a crutch.

Soon enough, she was coming up on the now familiar house and proceeded to make her way to the front door. The door opened and Amity walked in to see her friends, along with Eda and that small demon, chatting in the living room. She gave a small wave and- OKAY THE TUBE WAS NOW LIFTING HER UP.

As Amity was set down on the couch between Luz and Willow, she couldn’t even find it in her to be annoyed with the house demon. At that moment, she was just glad to be surrounded by the first real friends she had had in a long time.

#the owl house #toh #luz noceda #amity blight #lumity #luz x amity #willow park #gus porter #boscha toh #eda clawthorne #king toh #hooty toh #wing it like witches #fanfiction #fanfic

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