#the way I squealed when he said that and now that I'm rewatching the episode!!!

[glisten-inthedark]

speaking of heteronormativity... I know a few people irl who watch stranger things too (some of them are relatives, some are friends) and there's no acknowledgement of possible byler endgame from any of them. one of them didn't even pick up on will being gay and having feelings for mike, I had to explain it to her when she asked me why will was crying in the van. then she rewatched the whole show and was like, "you were right, will's in love with mike, but mike's in love with el." another one is a big mileven shipper, I watched the last couple of episodes with her and she was literally squealing over mike's monologue, and she said to me that she likes mileven the most out of all couples because "she always roots for the main couple"; she actually picked up on will having feelings for mike in season 4 and she feels sympathetic for will, but she believes that his feelings are one-sided; ultimately she wishes for will to find love in season 5, and for mike and el to get married and have kids. there are also a few people who are raging homophobes and there was no mention of will being gay at all. and my brother is currently watching st and I believe he will not be able to pick up on byler, since I saw him skipping will and mike's scenes lolll so yeah, I have no faith in ga and am sure that majority of viewers will be screaming that byler came out of nowhere.

I'm the last heteronormativity anon. I have an addition to the last ask I sent:there's this belief that ga doesn't like mileven anymore. but it's simply not true. yeah, some people are definitely annoyed with mileven, but majority firmly believes that mike and el are in love and they root for them. it also needs to be mentioned that people are used to main straight couples being mid and annoying, to constantly break up and then get back together. it's your classical main straight couple in any long lasting show.I also think that while yeah, one of the reasons why byler is so unnoticeable to a lot of people is definitely heteronormativity, the other big reason is that the duffers simply fucked up. they wrote byler as a plot twist instead of making it more clear where their storyline was heading. plot twist is meant to make people shocked. and there will definitely be shock, but shock will cause anger. for the duffers' plans to work, people will have to actually go and rewatch the show to see the byler build-up, but let's be real, majority of people won't do that (some of them barely watched the show the first time, with staring in their phones all the time and skipping boring parts). what the duffers should have done is make it clear that mike has feeling for will and el isn't an only option. mike and el should have been left broken up in season 3 and season 4 should have been focused on mike's conflict over his feelings for will (and yeah, mike WAS conflicted over his feelings, but it isn't clear to ga). people should have been going into season 5 not knowing who mike will choose. but the way the duffers wrote the story, people are going into season 5 believing mike is head over heels in love with el. all mike and will's conversations in season 4 were about el on a surface level, and then there was this big monologue where mike said multiple times that he loves el. I love watching reactions on youtube and there were people who literally said that mike and el's relationship is blossoming right now. so yeah. that's why I have no faith in ga. I think it's heteronormativity and the duffers' fault for how they wrote byler storyline.

Hello! How are you doing? You see, that's I find it a little bit confusing if I'm being completely honest.

Because I don't really know the ins and outs of why the Duffers decided to go for this more subliminal route with Byler, however as someone that picked up on it as a first time watcher in season 2 I must admit I don't get how people don't see it.

Like, I had a hard time not seeing it if I'm being completely honest with you, so there's this weird cognitive dissonance where I don't feel like I can speak on the subject at length because there were times I had to literally tell myself I was seeing things when it came to Byler, you know. Like to me is really weird that the consensus is that people don't notice because it clicked to me very early on and I couldn't unsee it.

But regardless, I do want to see how they'll tie everything together last season.

[deuterium51614]

Boueibu Rewatch Part 5

Onto the second season! (Watched and typed this up on Tuesday, scheduled for Thursday!)

Episode One

The amount of times I audibly squealed at Kinshirou and En in this episode lol

Interesting that En's the one that didn't want to tell the council about the new monster. Normally you'd think it would be Atsushi.

Something to note... when Wombat appears, he's in fetal position then kinda jumps to attention. You know what is similar to this? His spawning in the movie trailer. So I'm really thinking that S1!Wombat and S2!Wombat are two separate entities out of the same hivemind... Like maybe the LoveMind was in a rush, and sent out an beta version of him in the first season to counteract CIDER, but for the second season (since everyone's appearances change to be more "youthful and fresh") he was able to upgrade?

OH! Something I noticed! Way back when, I took a screenshot of the airport exterior and posted it, because they misspelled "terminal" as "tarminal." But now, the version on Crunchyroll is spelled correctly. And I still have my offline versions, with and without Crunchyroll's subs, that has the error. So did they somehow change to the Bluray version? But they still don't have the pink and blue bars...

So I know green is Ibushi's color (aside from silver) but all I could think of was Ibuatsu. And then Kinshirou was wearing blue (En's color). Meanwhile, Akoya had his yellow and pink tie. (Could be Io and Ryuu, or it's a stretch but one of the twins since the VEPPer outfits have those colors... cough Akihiko cough)

Anyway, still think instead of having the twins talk to Tawarayama (which now that I think about it... is that actually supposed to be a flashback? Since they were on school grounds during the battle, but this shows them returning) they should've kidnapped Goura in that scene. Just outright eliminating the question of "are they after Goura?" and giving the Battle Lovers more motivation to fight during the season.

Episode Two

The Press Society were severely underutilized this season. Like I get their role was just to help the twins get popular when they started school, but they could've been shown more in the background here and there with the Apes...

Tofu Monster didn't really get a quality speech now that I think about it... Yumoto really just went "you're bottom of the barrel tofu" and left it at that. Like that's what the Tofu Monster had been hearing from all his classmates already, that he was lying about being special. Maybe he could've said "you don't have to try and pretend to be special in ways you're not--tofu has its own special qualities without needing to go the extra mile to impress someone!"

Also, now that I'm realizing it... The general consensus is we refer to the monsters as Loveless, right? But aside from Wombat's line in S1E1 about "loveless thinking loveless thoughts and taking loveless actions," I don't think it's used as a collective word for the monsters in the show itself?? What the Mandela Effect is going on? (Correct me if I'm wrong lol)

Episode Three

I'm still a bit peeved at Goura for telling Yumoto not to fight back against kids that were beating him up... Like, it's good to teach him not to start fights, but also that it's okay to end them!

Anyway, I love the Mic Monster's random English sprinkled into his lines lol

Io being banned from mentioning the toothbrush incident...

And then he bought all that equipment for the production lol

Anyway, happy Turkey Day to those who celebrate, and happy Day-After-Pretty Boy Day to those who don't!

[castlebyersafterdark]

my cousin watched ST for the first time recently and she's a huge m/leven shipper. she said that she liked them better in s1-2 but she still likes them now. I watched final episode with her and she literally squealed over mike's monologue. when mike said, "you were wearing that yellow benny's burgers T-shirt", she was like, "awww he remembers everything 🥹"

she actually explained to me that she likes m/leven so much because she always roots for the main couple. with byler, she picked up on will liking mike during the desert scene in 4x05 and she feels really sorry for him. she wants will to find love and move on from mike in season 5. she believes that mike's aware of will's feelings and that's why they "lost their connection".

I wonder if this is the way GA usually perceive m/leven/byler situation. but also, I have another cousin who watched ST4 last year and she didn't pick up on will being gay at all. she asked me, "why was will crying in the van scene?" and when I said that will's in love with mike, she was shocked (she rewatched the whole show later and told me, "will really is in love with mike. but mike loves el")

it's just, I think it's funny that we discuss the possibility of an implied sex scene in season 5 while there is a huge number of people who believe that will's love is unrequited or don't even realise that will's gay. so my question is, do you think duffers should have made it more obvious that mike has feelings for will? I'm afraid a lot of people will be saying that byler came out of nowhere.

Being exposed to different perspectives like this is so jarring, like I can barely comprehend loving Mike's speech? Truly baffling to me but I know so many people ate that up!! Tough to even sit through it on a rewatch! That's so odd that the mindset is to just root for the main couple no matter what, just because they're on screen? Weird! But is that how most casual watchers of movies/tv consume media? Consume is the key word. Maybe it's a lack of deeper thinking or caring to dive deeper into what's happening on screen. And of course there are people who in no way ever look for the underlying truth, even well-intentioned their mind never jumps to thinking anyone is gay. Straight as default. Not even straight as default, actually, just a non-thought at all.

That's why it's such nonsense that within fandom there's infighting and discourse over head canons and theory interpretation and arguing whether it's ok to even imply anything sexual about characters etc. Because there's a big broad world out there watching the show that watches passively to the point of non-retention. Like the people who've sat through all four seasons and don't retain character names!? How!? I know I get hyper invested in stuff more than the average person but... come on.

I'm conflicted on how I think the show should have gone, because I love it so much and I'll admit part of me bristles when too much criticism is posed towards it, and I know that makes me a little naive or annoying and sensitive, but it is what it is. I think that in an ideal world, maybe this show would have flourished with more time. As in, more episodes per season. I've seen people say that's a bad idea, because storylines could be ruined or the lore could be over complicated and I've seen other people point out that television traditionally for years followed the longer format. The binge limited episode model is modern. But, advanced effects and more expenses over time - less episodes and runtime overall. Look at something like Lost with the characters and lore and supernatural and timelines. Imagine what we could have had with a format like that with Stranger Things. So, I think we're getting what we're getting based on the runtime we have. I think the Mike arc and Byler arc is being treated as part of a twist, part of a big reveal for the most impact the final season. I think looking back it'll be more obvious for people who care to rewatch to see the Mike journey play out. But not everyone cares to rewatch shows. And so be it, that's not who the shows are made for. In the immediate - the show is for everyone. In the long term - the shows are made for people like us.

[einaudis]

"Think about how good of a warrior you have to be to have any status in a city of wizards".

- Brennan Lee Mulligan (about Zerxus Ilerez).

[tobeornottotc]

Tharn and Type Seven Years Ep 2: Observations and Comments

Wow, what can I say except yes finally after a bit of worry about how this season was going to be especially after being scarred by A chance to love (like Tin and Can are cute but the lack of a good plot and waste of side characters still hunts me to this day), I really came weary into Tharn and Type season 2, but thing is as much as last week the editing, sound issues and some lightning issues worried me, I kind of really enjoyed seeing my couple once again. It was just a bit different to the feeling in season 1 for me (it should be we're seven years in we're meant to have maturity, domesticity, and slower less angsty relationship from Tharn and Type) but yeh because of this different feeling I wasn't sure what to say about this show. But Episode 2 took me back to my love for this couple, and I couldn't help but go through excitement, tears and also just nostalgia for how much it called back to season 1.

 As much as Tharn and Type have grown up and had their issues, the way they settle them now is different, their dynamic is still the same they're still passionate and crazy about each other but its the little things as well that shows how mature they've become, even though Type may curse out everyone including Tharn because that's his personality its the softness from him for me that warms my heart, its the way he's absolutely devoted to Tharn: he still calls out his father and says he'll be a widower without him,(already seeing himself tied to him in a marriage without the actual involvement of the law and people), its the way he ensures that Tharn is protected from being hurt when cooking and worrying about the little scars on his hands, its the way he pridefully tells everyone who he trusts that he's looking at his man and he's not ashamed to look longingly and lovingly at Tharn as he sings their song. It's so beautiful, and it's just so incredible to see his growth and see how absolutely devoted he is to Tharn despite Tharn not fully seeing so. 

Tharn, on the other hand, is the same as always 100% focused Type and making sure Type knows he's his, I just love how they talk to each other, how despite fighting all the time for seven years they find it like a comfort to expose their flawed selves to each other knowing they won't back away. I love how Tharn and Type still have those moments where they show they clearly need each other for comfort and just warmth (cuddle scene and Tharn apologising) and I love how despite having disagreements they go back to normal the next day and ensure that they don't fight for too long. It's just precious and its what I love about them. And of course, their passion which one of the reasons for why they are so great, that chemistry has just gotten better and better and that kiss blew me away in the bathroom. Mew and Gulf are clearly now used to each other, and so much more in tune with each other, their chemistry, sensuality and seductive could be felt from the screen, and I felt like an interloper watching it. It made me scream, made me laugh, but it made me blush, and I remember how much Mew and Gulf engulf the whole show with their chemistry and passion. I'm jealous, to be honest about it all.

Other things to notice

Phu and Cir: They're adorable, their skinship shocked me wasn't expecting the amount of PDA we got from them but I ain't complaining it makes me appreciate this show even more. Phu and Gun are the antitheses to Tharn and Type, they're adorable and soft and proud of their relationship in public, they don't seem to fight or argue, and they have a sweeter dynamic to them, but I do hope for a plot for them instead of just cute stuff because I like their characters and I like the actors. But right now I see what they're here in the show for, they keep being a reminder to Tharn about his own hopes and dreams for what he wants from his relationship; he wants what they have, he wants to be overly affectionate in public and to able to call Type his in front of everyone just like Cir does. So they do have a use, and I don't want people to see them as like just fan service.

Fiat and Leo: Fiat is spoilt, and he gets his way we can see that he goes a bit unstable when Leo is away for a while. Almost he's reliant on Leo, and he's not used to being away from him. Leo is fiercely protective of Fiat as we see his friends keep updating and worrying about Leo's reactions to them not doing Fiats bidding or hurting him. For Fiat I love this actor, he's stubborn and like he doesn't give in typically, childish and immature, and I'm guessing Leo is the opposite. Still, Fiat reminds me of how I felt about Type, he's annoying and flawed, but he's somewhat lovable and intriguing. I can't help but want to care for his character and know more about him, and that's all because of his acting and charisma. I'm so excited to delve deeper into his character, and I can't wait to see how Leo plays a part in this.

The boss: Type isn't someone who likes to be patient so that he will explode later on this person. The question is why is the boss of Type so rude, and disrespectful, he's so like hyperfocused on trying to make Type seem so weak. From what Type has said its to do with jealousy, but I'm not really if that's all it is, he's jealous about Type being so handsome, and charismatic and liked by women that he feels some kind of inferiority complex? Because to be honest just because his girl hit on Type, it's very unprofessional of him to act this way, and I am not okay with it. I cannot wait to see Type punch the living daylights out of him. Eww

Khunpol and Champ: My babies, my soft, cute, sweet babies. They probably will be angsty soon, but I love them already. Champ is one fluffball so much more gentler than he was in Season 1, he's adorable, clueless about love and I'm sure Techno is going to play a massive role snooping and trying to set up Champ and Khunpol. As for Khunpol I can see already that baby boy has a crush on our Champ (even though Champ is so clueless) but the girlfriend mention and the relief on his face when he realises there is none, the way he laughs and gets excited when he saw Champ and a bit of disappointment when he saw Type walk into their conversation pretty much already tells me what I need to know about these two. Khunpol is shy and gentle and wouldn't really try to make anything happen, but he'll probably wait longingly for Champ to recognise how he feels. And Champ is going to be very naive and very dumb about the situation. They kind of remind me of King and Ram in my engineer, Khunpol screams King to me acts innocent and sweet like he doesn't know what's happening but secretly holding and panicking about feelings. And Champ is more like Ram,  a bit distanced from that feeling but soon will realise what's happening. Either way, my babies are making me so excited the way they make each other smile, the skinship from Champ to Khunpol which is automatic apparently and something he just likes to do because he sees Khun as cute and fluffy. Squeal, my heart is about to be stolen by these 2, can't wait to see how they unfold.

Overall this episode of Tharn and Type 7 years has been a blast from the past, I have had so much fun rewatching it and its made me so happy and excited for what's to come. If we get more stuff like this, then Tharn and Type is probably going to stay my favourite show. Still, I am so in love with everything in this so far/  I also wanted to say that it's nice to see them have conversations this episode about work and how they've changed, it's genuine and also very warm to see how they had grown up and graduated from uni when in the past season we watched their immature selves act childish and young and react that way in situations. This show is meant to be a more mature version of Season 1, and I think it's doing that so far. Also can Mew please stop looking so good? Like I can't deal with it, and Gulf as well likes in that uniform like please let me breathe. Haha. I can't wait for the next episode.

[bumblesimagines]

Forever Yours

Request: Yes or No

bitCH I'M REWATCHING EPISODES AND HOLY FUCK MALACHAI GIGGLING IS SO 💕💕💕💕

(Y/N) got out of his jeep, closing the door behind him.

"(N/N)!" Isla squealed, jumping into (Y/N) arms.

"You've gotten heavier.." He said teasingly. Isla rolled her pretty blue eyes and punched his arm.

"I'm eating for two, what did you expect?" She huffed, hopping out of his arms.

"Still as short as a gremlin." He added with a grin.

"Well, this gremlin is about to kick your ass." Isla placed her hands on her hips. (Y/N) snorted, grinning widely.

"Alright, alright, I apologize. You have a mean left hook and I don't wanna catch it." (Y/N) raised his hands in mock surrender. Isla rolled her eyes and motioned for them to head inside. (Y/N) grabbed his bag from the backseat and followed her inside.

"Mal will be here any-" Beep beep!

"There's your boytoy." Isla crossed her arms. (Y/N) chuckled, turning around. Malachai entered, eyes scanning the room until they landed on (Y/N). His eyes lit up and he darted over, kissing him. The sweet 'I missed you' kiss turned heated as they let their emotions out.

"Not in front of the children, boys!" Isla said, covering her belly. The two pulled apart, Malachai's grabby hands holding securely onto (Y/N)'s hips.

"Sorry, Issy." (Y/N) chuckled, looking at the brunette. Malachai took the opportunity to trail kisses down his neck, pulling him as close as possible.

"Alright, needy. We can save all this for later."

"Ugh, gross." Isla rolled her eyes, walking away. Malachai giggled against (Y/N)'s neck. He pulled back, staring at him affectionately.

"I missed you.." He mumbled. (Y/N) smiled, placing a hand on his cheek. He loved that he was able to make Malachai soft and sweet.

"I missed you too, Mal." (Y/N) pecked his nose earning a delighted smile from his lover.

"How's your mom?" Malachai asked. (Y/N) sighed.

"She's getting better. My aunt's taking care of her." (Y/N) replied, frowning.

"And dad?"

"Not answering his phone, as usual." (Y/N) shook his head.

"Good for nothing piece of shit." He huffed. Malachai frowned.

"Hey, hey, hey..." He cupped his face.

"Forget of that fucker... You're back and still as hot as ever. We shou-"

"How are the Serpents?" (Y/N) asked. Malachai's face fell.

"I wanna fuck and you're talking business and politics?" Malachai huffed. (Y/N) gave an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, Mal. We can fuck all you want later but right now, It's politics." (Y/N) said. Malachai sighed, moving away from him and plopping down on one of the cushions.

"Jones stepped down. His annoying kid is the king now." Malachai informed. (Y/N) chuckled.

"Wasn't his kid embarrassed of him? Now he wants to play gangster.." (Y/N) crossed his arms. Malachai looked at him.

"You aren't gonna bang neither of the Jones. I won't allow it." Malachai growled. (Y/N) looked at him.

"What are you gonna do, Mal?" Malachai shot up from his seat, roughly pulling him closer.

"I'll cut both of their dicks off if I have to. You know I'll do it without a second thought." Malachai said lowly. (Y/N) let out a breathy laugh, staring into his dark eyes.

"It won't be anything serious, Mal." (Y/N) assured, a playful smile toying on his lips. Malachai cocked a brow.

"That's what you said when we first started fooling around." Malachai reminded. (Y/N) rolled his eyes.

"We were teenagers, Mal. Teenagers with nothing better to do than screw around." (Y/N) traced Malachai's lips with his thumb.

"You were such a dickhead to me." Malachai mumbled.

"Why the hell do I have to keep an eye on him?" (Y/N) snapped at his dad. His father glared at him, roughly grabbing his shirt by the collar.

"You know damn well why." He sneered, cigeratte threatening to burn (Y/N)'s cheek. (Y/N) flinched.

"Sorry, sir." He whispered. His father let him go and stalked back to his car. (Y/N) shifted his glare onto the younger teen beside him. Malachai was only two years younger yet his father acted as if he was a baby. Malachai looked at him, gaze unreadable.

"Listen, Malachai," (Y/N) spoke bitterly.

"Don't even look in my direction, got it? I don't wanna be seen with a 6th grader." (Y/N) huffed. Malachai frowned.

"But-"

"I don't care!" (Y/N) stepped closer, noting that Malachai flinched. He felt a bit bad. It wasn't his fault. But (Y/N) was a stubborn 7th grader. He stormed off, leaving little Malachai alone.

"You already know what I'm gonna say, (Y/N). Keep an eye on him." His father told him, lighting his cigeratte. (Y/N) nodded and watched him get in the car and drive away. (Y/N) looked at Malachai. The curly haired male kept his gaze on the ground until (Y/N) grabbed his face, making him look at the older teen. Fear and something else flashed in Malachai's eyes.

"I don't even care at this point.." (Y/N) pushed him back.

"Go talk to your friends or something." He said, glancing over at Isla.

"(Y/N), can we-"

"Later." (Y/N) grunted, walking away. He jogged over to the female.

"You're such a bully." Isla mumbled. (Y/N) rolled his eyes.

"I haven't bullied him since sophomore year." He crossed his arms.

"It's our first day of junior year. Wow, so much process." Isla shook her head, looking over at Malachai.

"He looks up to you, (N/N)."

"Oh, so I haven't told you yet." (Y/N) grinned. Isla shot him an odd look. (Y/N) leaned in and whispered.

"Heard him saying my name in the shower, I think-"

"No way!" Isla gasped, eyes wide. (Y/N) snickered, nodding.

"His ass was lucky that dad wasn't around." (Y/N) leaned back.

"Guess he's not a kid anymore. What are you gonna do about it?" Isla asked. (Y/N) shrugged.

"Haven't figured it out yet but I wanna make his life a bit miserable." (Y/N) grinned. Isla slapped his arm.

"Don't be mean!" Isla scolded. (Y/N) rubbed his arm.

"Okay, fine. I'll confront him later." (Y/N) didn't expect that by confronting him, it would lead to the two banging in the janitors closet.

(Y/N) chuckled at the memories. He sat on the couch, pulling Malachai down with him.

"I never apologized, did I?" (Y/N) looked at him, bringing him closer.

"Don't worry about it, (N/N). I knew you felt guilty." Malachai assured, leaning in and smiling when their lips brushed. (Y/N) hummed.

"Let's head upstairs. Don't wanna anger Isla." (Y/N) whispered. Malachai laughed softly, nodding. He stood and grabbed (Y/N)'s hand, taking him upstairs and into the bedroom. They were quickly all over each other, falling onto the bed and laughing against each other's skin.

"You know I'm forever yours, right?" Malachai asked, staring up at him. (Y/N) smiled, leaning down and kissing him.

"Of course, Mal." He replied, leaving a trail of kisses and love bites from his jawline to his collarbone.

Jughead turned his head, looking at his dad and an unknown male.

"This is (Y/N). He'll help us with the Ghoulie issue." FP explained. Jughead furrowed his brows.

"How?" He questioned. (Y/N) chuckled.

"Malachai listens to me. Sometimes anyway." (Y/N) shrugged. Sweet Pea crossed his arms.

"Why? Who are you?" He asked, stepping forward.

"I'm Malachai's older half-brother, babe."

[cliquestitsandicks]

Tracking Kat

Episode 1: Kat is mourning the end of her relationship with Adena. It has been 5 weeks since the breakup in Paris. She's still looking at old pictures of them and posted one. She still hasn't sent Adena's equipment to her, even though Adena has been texting her asking for it. By the end of the episode, she's admitted to (in order) Alex, Patrick, and Jane & Sutton that she is not okay. She is still sad about the end of her relationship. Alex tells her "you're so hard on yourself. You got your heart broken. There's no expiration date on heartbreak. You move on when you're ready to move on and when you *are* ready, you will find someone amazing. Someone who will never leave." Then Patrick is an entitled, invasive dick. She told her girls she wasn't ready for it to be real yet and that's why she hadn't told them... but she broke down in front of them. She'd finally accepted it was over. End of the episode, she makes an instagram post exposing her vulnerability to the world and packs up Adena's things for good.

Episode 2: Kat injects Jane for fertility treatment. She is very familiar with Jane's reproductive system at this point - best friends. She learns the Wild Susan, a club Adena took her to that became a safe space she frequents and which happens to be 1 of only TWO lesbian bars in the city, is closing. She learns the only reason it's happening is because developers want to gentrify the neighborhood. We learn Kat has a lawyer (not sure how that may come up later) that she met through the #BeReal campaign. Anyway, Kat throws a queer prom as a fundraiser to help save the Wild Susan. It ultimately fails because $42,000 in one night from poor people is a bit much. But it was a valiant effort and, as Kat learns, the gentrifiers were well aware of its impossibility. This episode is leading up to her political career. "I've been so into my feelings lately, it feels really good to challenge my energy into something that really matters". I am so proud of Kat. In Season 1, I would have worried she was avoiding her feelings, but the writers made a big deal of showing she's done the exact opposite of that in the prior episode.

Episode 3: Kat has been researching councilman Reynolds and he's a total piece of shit - helping gentrifiers, cutting funding to parks, and voting against paid maternity leave. She's fired up. Our girl is P A S S I O N A T E & informed! We meet the councilwoman for whom she plans to volunteer and her campaign manager, Tia. Tia's a tiny, bubbly boss with natural hair and a bright smile and we see Kat brighten up. We later learn she and Kat have more in common, both being NYU grads (actually overlapping while there) and both brilliant. Tia, however, is not from a wealthy and connected background. In their initial meeting, Kat tells Tia "I'm just looking for something to channel my rage and depression". Kat enlists her besties to help get the councilwoman to unseat problematic Reynolds. Sutton clearly sees something between Kat and Tia because she does a friend's background check (checking the social media) and tells Kat she looks very single to which Kat responds "it really doesn't matter because I'm still getting over Adena" and Jane seems skeptical of Kat's protestations with her silent smirk. We learn Kat has really soft lips. Kat is the voice of reason for Alex, being the first one to acknowledge the hypersexual "dangerous" Black man depiction that will likely be projected onto him if he admits he is the man in his friend's story. Then we see her naturally command the crowd at the rally. Again, I am so proud of Kat. She isn't holding back when she knows she should speak up. She's taking control of her narrative. She's fighting for what's right in a constructive manner. And now Tia, who has way more experience with this than Kat, is recommending she run for office.

Episode 4: We start the episode with Kat describing what would be her district and job description to her best friends. She's looking excited about the potential to do something that matters and really help people. In her conversation with the Toby (?. don't know, don't care), we get to see more of Tia being supportive of Kat and Kat being confronted with whether she's motivated to actually run or just wants someone to beat Reynolds. We learn Kat had an abortion in 2013 when she was 20 AS IS HER GOTDAMN RIGHT BECAUSE IT'S HER BODY, but it's something she's felt some sort of shame/concern over seeing as nobody close to her knew about it. Then, and this is so great, after telling her friends she has the conversation with Tia. Tia shares that she's had one as well and completely understands not wanting it to be public knowledge, but in sharing her experience educates Kat on yet another way vulnerable people are having their rights stripped, this time through manipulation and "crisis centers" that shouldn't exist. Tia remains supportive and doesn't pressure Kat at all with her decision. "I am by your side if they come for you, but you gotta do what's right for you". When we get that great speech from Jacqueline we see Kat being moved my the statement that you'll never know what you're capable of if you don't take a leap faith to face challenges that frighten you, then you'll never know what you're capable of. [i'd like to pause right now to say Jacqueline is fucking wonderful and i love her like my white auntie. also Sutton needed to hear that again just as much as Kat and i really appreciate this entire moment.] When Kat leaves Jacqueline's celebration, she passes by one of those "crisis centers" Tia told her about and decides to use her voice to help others. "I like to think of myself as a pretty strong, empowered, forward-thinking, open-minded woman. But, up until now, I haven't been able to talk about my abortion. If me putting myself out there helps even one woman to feel less alone, less ashamed, and less guilty then it's worth it." And just like us, dear Tia is blown away. She actually exhales a breath she didn't know she was holding and biiiiiiiitch (!!!! excitedly). and then they're dancing! This is the episode, upon rewatch, when i recognize how often Tia touches Kat unnecessarily.

Episode 5: Kat's entire recap includes Tia, ending with Sutton saying "she seems to be very single". Her very first scene, Tia is complimenting her walking out of some campaigning event we later learn was a Town Hall. Can we just talk about Kat's blazer for a second? First of all, i want it. Second, how did they find something so perfectly her? It's colorful but still semi-professional, fun, but still about her business. Heart-eye inducing. ok. So the next time we see Kat, she and Tia (whose last name they finally mention as Clayton) are reviewing campaign platform and doing debate prep at Kat's apartment. Tia's complimenting Kat almost continuously at this point. Clearly she's impressed, borderline gushing. and Kat tries to brush it off. Tia's not letting her. And there's this moment when Tia forces herself to break eye contact with her (around 5:40 of the episode). The show tells us Kat still hasn't dated since Adena, but Sutton brings up the "stupid smile" she gets whenever Tia's mentioned. She's making better decisions than Patrick and her being compared to Patrick is lowkey happening a lot. I'm starting to wonder if they're setting up Kat taking over digital if she doesn't win the campaign. Ok, the song choice as they pan to Kat and Tia... "I never normally check my phone 10 times in a minute. I'm not the girl to be kept on hold 10 miles from the finish." Again, Tia is very touchy with Kat, never anything inappropriate of course, but the hand is always on the back or the arm. and their interaction is just.. lovely. I squeal. it's so cute. they're so comfortable. Kat invites Tia to the dinner BEFORE (i got the timing on that mixed up before) Tia says she's "a boring straight girl" [the test determined that was a LIE... nah, my good sis Tia is dealing with some internalized homophobia which is no joking matter, but we don't learn that until the next episode]. Apparently, Kat can cook now? So she just liked Adena's food better i guess? idk... anyway. I get why some of the things Tia said can be taken as flirting, but i still believe that you accept what someone says is their sexuality until they say otherwise. yes, that's even when they're saying things like "when i see what i want, i go for it" and "Annndd she can cook. it's hot" and looking at you like that. Kat telling Jane to apologize because he's her boss and she got suuuper disrespectful and would absolutely deserve getting fired makes me proud. She's the mature friend now. She's the one with a level head on her shoulders. Kat finally makes her feelings known to Tia, but this is after Tia has already stated she's straight. Tia reiterates that this is a professional relationship and apologizes for Kat getting the wrong idea. I'm reminded of when Alex Danvers told Maggie Sawyer she was into her and she was rejected... but in that example i was floored and heartbroken for Alex because ugh, i just didn't see that coming. With this, however, it felt like Tia was clear in her words even if it shocked the hell out of me what the words were. So i didn't feel heartbroken for Kat. I thought... tbh... she brought it on herself for refusing to respect Tia's "no", however soft it was. But the writers did let us know it wasn't over with the music selection... Kat looking at "You and Tia make a great team :)" as "I'll go to war for you" plays.

Episode 6: All the emails have been released and Kat has no worries at all about that because she's a professional. And we get to see her be a boss addressing the entire group. Patrick isn't there this episode (YAY for our sanity!) and i think Kat being a boss so often when Patrick isn't around is intentional. When we see Tia, she says last night is forgotten but she thinks it's a bad idea to remain Kat's campaign manager... which is clearly a hard rejection. One can argue that it's too harsh for someone merely admitting they were into you. But it's just as easy to argue that it's appropriate after telling someone, very clearly, that you are not into them romantically and them ignoring that and saying that you were flirting with them on this date they never called a date before you were already there?? so i'm not mad at it. At the end of the episode, we find out that Tia was rejecting herself, not Kat. Turns out, Ms. Tia Clayton has known she's attracted to women since she was in high school, but she "didn't want to want it". Tia is so TINY AND ANXIOUS ABOUT HER SEXUALITY AND MANY OF US HAVE BEEN THERE. But... and i say this in jest... for someone who is really trying not to be out in the open with her gay, she sure was comfortable kissing Kat all outdoors for anyone to see. My good sis is smitten. I'm excited for the story. Again with the music during their scenes though... "I cannot fallll in love with youuuuu. I cannot feeeeel this way so soon, so soon." Also, my girlfriend and I have watched the gifset of the kiss over the phone and swooned (we live in different states for now). This episode, we also got the flashbacks (i missed Lauren so much). Kat's got red streaks in her hair, is a friend to strangers, has regrettable sex with men who taste like pickles, and is cute as a button. She also called Jacqueline "Mama Jackie" and that's it; that's her name now.