#this is where my brain went after the r&i s1 finale

[finehs]

the slow mo sacrifice for your gf

[tonydaddingham]

i did not break my own heart last night thinking about the missing 1941 scene and have it sat in my brain all of today spinning around like a fucking microwave in order to not make you lot suffer with me. and i somehow feel i may be right about this so buckle up and lets break it down.

so yes, following on from this post, i think that there is going to be a third 1941 scene. twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern. it's been literally set up like that by even bringing back 1941 into s2 in the first place. but we're missing a crucial detail because it does not - at all, really - explain how they went from evading danger from hell and having a cosy candlelit bottle of red to celebrate, to the bastard 1967 scene. we all know this, this is nothing new.

the symbolism of nightingales is probably going to cast a shadow on this. these two excellent analyses look at the meaning of nightingales in the context of R&J, and the relation that the song has to this point in time, respectively. in summary; it's a song that should be around in 1941 courtesy of vera lynn and others, and the nightingale itself carries the meaning of love being hidden and forbidden by way of it singing under the cover of darkness, before being replaced with reality and soberness - represented by the lark. the Dinner of '41 scene is set in the bookshop at night; this would parallel - that they are safe and concealed, and truths can be shared, but the writing is on the wall that stepping outside would be to shatter the illusion, so to speak. it might be that the song itself gets miracled up onto the record player, or a wireless lying about - whatever. note: i don't think they'll dance though, not given crowley in ep5, "you don't dance"... but then again, if there ISNT a kiss in s3-1941, an aborted dance seems like the next best option... the cowardly one, but i'll take it

this would also track with aziraphale having his epiphany after the church in s1-1941; specifically, in my eyes, that he doesn't necessarily just realise he loves crowley, but that crowley by way of saving his books loves him too. this is only supported by the whole of the s2-1941 scene of trusting in each other as the only way to pull off the trick, the subterfuge. this is then, again, also important in the context of what i think happens in s3-1941.

i do think aziraphale is going to bring the books up again, and what crowley did, because it needs to be addressed. the Nazis/furfur confrontation has scared him, regardless of whether he saved them both, more than he realised. its put things into startling perspective. i think he's going to bring up the books, and actually question crowley a little more as to why he did it. the repeated use of, and subsequent weird reaction crowley has to, the use of the term "friend" in s2-1941 would indicate that this is going to be a focal point in s3-1941. are they just friends? is crowley disappointed that aziraphale is still referring to him as that, after what he did? 'saving' aziraphale in the church, and then saving his books? or is aziraphale just saying 'friends' so hesitantly in both instances because he's not completely sure where crowley stands?

we as the audience know the answer to this, but they obviously do not. if one of the crucial themes of s3 is going to be resolving miscommunication, it makes sense for this scene to be the first, and last, time they communicate properly... at least, until they sort out the issues that culminated in the Final Fifteen.

so let's say they start getting into a very roundabout way of discussing what they mean to each other. there will need to be the sobering, ice-water-over-the-head realisation however, as s2-1941 demonstrated, that they cannot belong to each other, because they manifestly belong to heaven and hell respectively. crowley is still being spied on, and it firmly places aziraphale in their line of sight too. it's going to bring up the holy water discussion; why crowley asked for it - to protect himself, whether by taking out demons or taking out himself, as long as it means he - and most importantly, aziraphale - does not get hurt.

they actively confess that they want to be together, in a way that is more than they are now. aziraphale wants to, but says that they can't, because it's too dangerous. crowley suggests that no one ever has to know, they can hide it (there, in the bookshop, whilst the nightingale is singing), and even if they are found out, they can run. "hell won't just be angry; they'll destroy you..." // "no one ever has to know".

aziraphale doesn't want to have to hide it, doesn't want a halfway measure- is still thinking in black and white. crowley however thinks that something is better than nothing - thinking in the grey. but ultimately, as long as they are still shackled, they cannot do what they want, and it puts the other in danger. "surely the great thing about being a demon is that you can do whatever you want" // "you sound jealous, angel...". instead, aziraphale promises that the day that they are no longer tied to heaven or hell, they can be together; crowley scoffs, thinking that that will never happen, so they will never happen, "you're so clever! how can someone as clever as you be so stupid?!"

the reason they can't right now is because they could be caught. they would have to skulk around, be ashamed, feel guilty - and aziraphale is tired of feeling like that. because only having crowley in secret would hurt more. not being able hold his hand, or dance with him, or kiss him, unless it was in the bookshop. if hell were to find out, crowley would be killed, true, but if heaven were to find out, aziraphale could be cast out. and if crowley survived hell long enough to see aziraphale fall - he'd never forgive himself, and in a way, i don't think he'd ever forgive aziraphale either.

it's tearing them to pieces, but they have to stop whatever is happening between them in its tracks. it's acknowledged, but it's not named. this gives them plausible deniability; if they called it 'love', it would be undeniable. so, aziraphale asks for crowley to go; asks him to leave before they do something they can't come back from. crowley doesn't listen - crowds him, gets in close, and aziraphale is powerless to stop it. doesn't want to stop it. he's selfish by nature, a selfless kind of selfishness, but he wants this with all his being. and then - "this is too fast, crowley, please don't..." // "im sorry, angel. please... please, forgive me". aziraphale never gets to answer, to grant him that, because boom - the actual first kiss.

so. now that i've had to make you read that, i'm going in for the kill. let's look at everything that follows - and look at how the above might recontextualise it.

1967: the offer of the picnic, the Ritz? ie. the literal lyrics of berkeley square? aziraphale has caved in the interest of giving crowley a weapon to use if all else fails, to protect him, but that's as far as he's willing to progress. everything else is still too painful; he's on the brink of tears, promising that one day they'll be able to do what they want, to be open about how they feel, but not yet. they can't. crowley tries to push, "ill give you a lift, anywhere you want to go..." (him offering again to run away? a second chance to leg it?), and aziraphale reminding him that they can't, he can't... don't make him go too fast again, it's not fair. it also sets up perfectly that aziraphale and crowley don't speak for the next 40 or so years (as far as we're aware) until armageddon is threatened.

bandstand: mostly this is still centred around the apocalypse contextually, but i think with the above hypothetical scene in mind (the offer to hide, to run away, to be together), aziraphale is sent back to remembering their mutual confession that they've nonverbally agreed not to bring up, because it's not safe, and it's too painful. they've skirted around it, and returned instead to a tentative kind of friendship at the beginning of s1, but they're still not safe to address why seeing each other again, being so close to each other and not being able to touch is so painful. anyway - aziraphale refuses their side, but the above scene would re-view this as 'our side can't exist yet, you know this! you know why it can't!', and crowley leaves, again after pushing a bit more than aziraphale can stand.

alpha centauri: basically a facsimile of the above; same steps, same dance. but this time, crowley harks back to aziraphale's foolish (?) hope that they will be together, without having to run away, when the day comes that they don't have to answer to heaven or hell. and aziraphale smacks him right back, echoing crowley asking for aziraphale's forgiveness in kissing him, "i forgive you." crowley knows exactly what aziraphale is getting at, there - he's answering crowley's whispered plea to forgive him for pushing, for trying to force him, for acting in desperation. but he's also not answering that - he's skirting around that very thing, forgiving him like a knife would, slicing back at crowley for not only insulting aziraphale on something that is likely a genuine insecurity of his, but also putting him back in his place, for their safeties, because them being together just cannot happen. not yet.

and "please forgive me" in 1941 might seem out of character, but idk if it is; crowley knows that doing what he's about to do will hurt aziraphale, aziraphale has (hypothetically) told him as much, but he needs to do it - and seeks not benevolence or forgiveness as crowley-the-demon, but actually seems aziraphale's forgiveness, as crowley-the-person. the echo would certainly match the tone given here, in multiple ways:

the ritz: i mean, what is there to say? yes, their song is literally playing on the piano, and heralds the shift in their being out from heaven and hell, the day has finally come where they can - again, going by this entirely hypothetical scene that ive concocted - actually be together as they want to. and the nightingale literally singing outside, but as @shoemakerobstetrician beautifully pointed out, god remarks that it's covered up by traffic. so actually, if we again refer back to R&J interpretation of the nightingale, the love is still hidden, still somewhat under wraps, but can only just about be heard over the noise of the streets outside. the prohibition of them being together, of loving each other, is dwindling. and one day, it'll stop singing altogether. that day is coming, it will come, and then they can do what they please. so whilst the ritz scene may well be a mark of them starting the next chapter, it's slow to take hold, there's still hesitancy - which absolutely makes sense when we see that they are still very tentative with each other come the beginning of s2.

s2 general: aziraphale realises their freedom first; he gets excited by the dance, and being able to show his love to crowley, completely and without barriers, in the form of the ball - what he has read to be the best way to do so. he touches crowley more. he shares his bookshop with him, gifts it to crowley as being his as well as aziraphale's, this safe space that is so wholly theirs that crowley has the power to grant entry. the same with the bentley - aziraphale sees it as theirs, and crowley silently agrees, granting aziraphale the same power. crowley is comfortable in the bookshop to remove his glasses, has a place for them. the bookshop becomes tidier, more minimalist, to make crowley more comfortable in it (it is more cluttered in s1, im certain of it). it might just be the grading between s1 and s2, and lack of clutter, but the yellow is more prominent - his literal favourite colour. everything just screams that aziraphale is ready to make good on his promise from s3-1941.

crowley... for once, is the one not quite catching up. not realising the little dates here and there are literally poses them as a couple (although yes, the coffee shop one is to prep crowley for the goob jumpscare), that aziraphale has granted him the power to grant entry. aziraphale literally asking, practically begging, crowley to help him hide goob. the mf colour of the walls. the colour of the bentley. it's not until nina outright asks him if they are together that he realises how careless they've been - but wait, is it careless if they have nothing to be careful of? well, arguably crowley does, hell are still hanging around him like a bad smell... but this is what he wanted! this is what he was pushing aziraphale for! so, does he risk it? he's not sure, but he's certainly realising that aziraphale is ready, if nothing else. and by the time the ladies stage their little intervention, crowley finally realises that the confession he started in 1941 now can be fully aired, can come out into the open.

the Feral Domestic: *fingers at temples* i know i have been fairly vocal about my interpretation of this scene, and frankly - until we get this hypothetical s3-1941 scene, i stand by it - but let's say this speculation about the scene is true, and re-examine the key points in the Final Fifteen that would completely turn on their heads in terms of meaning:

literally, harking back full circle to what aziraphale promised in 1967 as what they would do when they could fully acknowledge their love, and what they did as soon as - on paper - they were free at the end of s1. this is however before he's spoken to by nina and maggie, so maybe this is what crowley was planning in terms of confessing fully to aziraphale, but after their meddling he realised that yes, they need to actually talk about it again. he doesn't understand why they're telling him what they are - because he's existed so long in gestures and gifts and not talking, literally dismissed it now as a viable option, that it doesn't even occur to him to try talking again.

which is why he does something brave, and tries to tell aziraphale instead (say it out loud, make it undeniable, put a name to it, "i love you", something that i think was crowley's actual intention before aziraphale interrupts him) when he comes back to the shop... he's so nervous, because it's vulnerable, and because the last time he did, they ended up hiding for 50-ish years.

next up:

now, im reluctant to think that aziraphale lied in the Feral Domestic, because i do think the key thing at work is his paramount need to do the Right Thing (ie. make a difference in heaven). whilst metatron obviously manipulates him, im not entirely convinced that aziraphale wholly sees through it. i don't think he knew that metatron was up to something, i think the shaking off of this naivety is going to be part of his s3 character development. but this sentence - again, especially in context of the hypothetical s3-1941 scene - must on some level frighten him. especially if you take this meta into account, aziraphale must realise at least that they were never safe, even when they were denying what they were and how they felt, it didn't make a bit of difference. now, metatron could have just been talking about the arrangement, not referring to any romantic elements of any kind, but the threat of it? no wonder he pushes for crowley to join him in heaven; he could keep crowley safe there. they could be together, and heaven - in his eyes - would be able to say a word against it.

then:

the fear sets in; crowley was too late in telling him, acknowledging that they could be together, realising what aziraphale was saying to him without words, and now heaven has come for him. plonked them right back where they were in s2-1941, but perversely mirrored; instead of hell coming for crowley with violence, heaven came for aziraphale with kindness. crowley doesn't have a magic trick he can just do on the fly, perform it perfectly when the need for it is greatest, and has to cling to the hope that aziraphale still sees them as the barrier to them, the reason they can't be together. and in true miscommunication fashion, i think aziraphale does see it, but what metatron said lingers, and in addition to being inside the institution, changing it from the inside out, in order to make a difference... he knows that whilst it's exactly the opposite of what they wanted, he needs to make them safe. better to be inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in.

but aziraphale doesn't tell crowley what metatron said, because instead he either deliberately tries to deny the implications of it (cognitive dissonance king behaviour), or he doesn't want to panic crowley and is trying to convey to crowley that he can't speak his concerns, not when the metatron could still be watching, and instead just needs crowley to trust him, take his hand, and join him in heaven where they can be safe. doesn't tell crowley that heaven hasn't captured him in shackles again, but he's willingly held out his wrists because it's the safest thing for him, and them, to do.

so it's one thing to look at what crowley's saying, but aziraphale's reaction? before, i just found it to be out of confusion, him not really understanding what crowley was saying, but tbh i never paid much attention to it (david stole this bit of the scene - not to put down my beloved michael here, but he did). and i know others have remarked here that aziraphale is flitting his eyes to the window and looks scared and stressed, but i don't completely think that its because he's scared that metatron is watching (although, now, i will accept with the rug thing and hypothetical s3-1941 in context it is definitely playing a part), but also because he's just starting to recognise that this is a repeat of the s3-1941 scene, "this sounds familiar, we've been here before... oh, we've definitely been here before... oh shit. i still can't do this, not unless he comes with me. we still can't be together, not in the way crowley wants. the way he's trying again, now, to ask for."

but the issue is: crowley wants to run away together. again. and i totally get why, but once again, going back to 1941: it's exactly the solution that will not work. they cannot run from this. heaven, and hell, will find them. they will come for them. it wasn't an option in 1941, it wasn't an option in 2019, and it isn't an option in 2023. aziraphale begins shaking his head - crowley is confessing, but a) aziraphale doesn't run from things, it isnt in his character, and b) it's just putting them back where they started - something that they have to hide. it defeats the purpose.

and this? yeah, im sure on neither side it was meant the way im about to interpret it, more of an unspoken thing, idk... but if the bookshop is indeed their place of safety, and is where they (as far as crowley sees it) can speak and keep their love, it makes sense that crowley is telling aziraphale he needs to stay. the bookshop can be interpreted so many ways - it represents their relationship, or that crowley means him, himself - but what if we looked at it like crowley is trying now to covet it, because it's protecting them? what if he's saying, "well, if you won't run away with me, we can't be free to have our relationship as we wanted it, not unless we stay here... heaven has come for you, has come for us, and whilst they're here we can't move. so what other option is left remain in this bookshop? to never leave it, and what we have inside it, because there's no other option in which we can be together if you won't run with me."

and what if aziraphale is saying, "no, i have an option, and that's to be together in heaven! they won't be able to do anything, not when im in the position the metatron has offered me, that can be our new bookshop... nothing lasts forever - this bookshop won't last forever, it's compromised, and we can't continue to secret away what we feel inside it, it's time to move forward."

welcome to the line that breaks my heart the most in this whole goddamn scene - and tbh i think is fairly self-explanatory in the hypothetical s3-1941 context. that aziraphale is trying, once again, to tell crowley that he is offering himself, letting them be an 'us', as crowley says shortly after - that before he couldnt do it, and these arent the best of circumstances, but they can finally do it and not have to hide in the bookshop. but crowley reminds him, "hey, i was in your shoes, remember. i wanted us to be together then, and you told me you couldn't, didn't want a halfway measure - well, now i don't either. and this will be a halfway measure, because i don't think us being together in heaven is going to go the way you hope it will. i understand a whole lot better than you do." in any case, it would explain why aziraphale choses this moment to look so devastated. this is what he promised crowley, but now crowley - to his mind, in the things left Unsaid - doesn't want it... him.

and then... back to the nightingales. they're not singing at all, not even under the rumble of traffic, like they were at the Ritz. they're completely absent - day has broken, the things unspoken have now been said, and there's no denying them anymore. from crowley's point of view, there was nothing to stop them this time, but if aziraphale won't run with him, then they have to go separate ways, because there is no other way. aziraphale knows there's the possibility that the only place they could actually be safe is heaven itself, that the bookshop was never as safe as they hoped it had been, but that crowley might actually come to see that. but the fact that crowley is resigned to just... returning to 'reality', to a world that's still turning where they aren't together? despite everything they've just said? "we could've been... us." well, that hurts.

and then... the kiss. now. im still of the mind that the kiss was an Issue. i definitely think it was meant out of love and desperation, and out of possibly being a goodbye. this would echo the hypothetical s3-1941 kiss... but it was hurtful. it was abrupt, and harsh, and not at all romantic (imo). it was possessive, and almost cruel. i do think still it was a last ditch attempt, a temptation, to get aziraphale to change his mind, before crowley leaves the shop and returns to the 'real world'. but it hurts aziraphale in many different ways - but with 1941 put in there, too? crowley is just testing his resolve, trying to push him, come around to giving in. crowley asked him to forgive him the last time he kissed aziraphale, and this time - this time, aziraphale is giving him what he asked for.

[halfhappyhooligan]

a voltron au? in 2020? it’s more likely than you think

look. LOOK. i know that voltron is stupid and we hate it but lets be honest: everything up until season 3 was pretty good and had lots of potential !!

today i was rewatching voltron and a thought struck me: what if, instead of shiro being cloned, he was chipped and turned to the side of the galra?

so here it is, i did not blink since i thought of this

(warning, i have not seen voltron in a while and this is just knowledge i have stored in my moss brain and stuff i know from rewatching the first season)

au where shiro goes evil bc of what happens @ end of season one instead of the clone thing bc 1) haggar rly could not have made thousands of shiros after bumping into team voltron like what twice? its hella improbable and 2) just… weird

so instead they insert a chip in him that helps them spy and control him just like kuron (the clone) did minus the unlikely storytelling

eventually after the convo with sendak when he was in the pod trying to temp shirp, he does have thoughts about helping zarkon

(“im already infiltrated with the arm, i could just speed up the process by leaving now. save the team the trouble of investing in a leader that’s doomed to fail from the strart.”)

shiro ends up leaving team voltron in season 2 after zarkon goes crazy w the black lion n stuff

^^ this adds to Keith’s reasoning of joining the Blade of Marmora (shiro is his main stability and one of the main reasons he even stuck around with team voltron, so with shiro gone and keith questioning his place as the leader and paladin of the black lion, he decides the BoM is just.. what’s best for him) 

obviously lance isn’t happy with this (“you just told me that i’m a valuable member, now you don’t think YOU are? what logic is that?”)

ofc keith goes anyways

lance becomes paladin of the black lion

allura takes on the red lion

who has blue lion? ...idk this isn’t that thought out (maybe matt after pidge finds her family) (which will happen earlier in the plot since we can forget about the miniplot of black no longer responding to shiro)

enter lotor only this time he has a sidekick and what omg its shiro wow

shiro has that bigger version of his arm that was once offered to him

he’s stronger and scary, but his eyes aren’t the same, he has the strength of a galra but lacks the passion 

in the fight between lotor and zarkon, (and after, of course lots of self doubt and questioning) shiro comes between them and convinces lotor NOT to kill zarkon

then zarkon kills lotor

everyones like oh shit bc surely someone who’s life was just spared wouldn’t kill the person who seems to have the most power

but he did. bc he’s zarkon. and he’s fckn crazy.

shiro doesn’t go back to team voltron bc its too much too easily

instead he takes the place of lotor in the group of gals 

he convinces them all to rebel against the galra

eventually they teach him all about quintessence and all the shit lotor had planned that they can’t do anymore

(lotor wasn’t harvesting alteans in this universe bc what the heck even was that subplot that had little to no relevance to the main storyline?

instead he was trying to find a way to technologically bring back alteans (kinda like how allure’s dad was originally preserved in s1)

i know nothing about How Stuff Works and i dont remember much about quintessence n shit but the basic idea is that when tying in some of a persons artifacts with technology stuff and some quintessence then boom. a weird route from astral projection land to the team is created and ppl can come back or smth idfk

but lotor was never able to get the comet so shiro decides he and the gals will get that comet and try to bring back as many alteans as they can

^ all this while infiltrating as many galra fleets as possible + saving planets under galra empire

they personally visit every planet that lotor was in charge of and release them from galra control

they are able to bring back an altean (its romelle) and she talks abt her friend who lives on the balmera and they go to the balmera and its revealed that it was shay’s great grandmother so romelle asks where shay is and shay’s family is like with team voltron of course

so

they take her

obviously team voltron, the BoM and the Rebels r very hesitant to make contact but they decide to try it out

keith refuses to meet, instead he’s on the team that stands guard

reunions !! 

romelle and shay hit it off and hunk makes a dinner much like roselle’s past (allura and coran also hang out and they all vibe)

lance talks to shiro abt everything to do with keith and shiro is like dude do u??? like him?

and lance is like what? no ofc not—oh shit.

and keith ✨overhears ✨

pidge matt and shiro catch up n shit

meanwhile keith is like Hey Lance Uhhhhhh What The Fuck

they end up being like hey since we’re all here and we hate zarkon what if we make a plan to end the galra’s reign Right Now

so they do

and y’all.. it’s hella baller plan

except something is going wrong and in the middle of an attack zarkon is able to get the upper hand 

due to haggar’s magic and lance’s mental and emotional instability, zarkon is able to get in his head

everyone is trying to talk him down but they’re all under a lot of pressure

allura is also conflicted bc she wanted to be black lion bc she wanted to rub it in to zarkon’s face that she was stronger than he and that she could beat him at his own game

but the negativity and instability feeds into zarkon’s power and makes him and haggar stronger as they pull in voltron to finally take over the team and regain their status as the most powerful alien race

hunk realizes this and is like okay can y’all stop being negative? its clearly affecting them in a good way and it makes us an easier target

and pidge is like im literally a child pls i don’t wanna die i just got my family back it can’t end like this

shiro realizes what’s going on and he goes to save them

he uses all his energy, pulling in the positive memories (everything: first learning about space, becoming a teacher, meeting adam, meeting keith, first making team voltron, his friends and family--all of it) to push back zarkon and haggar’s powers and battle once more in the astral realm 

in defeating zarkon, shiro loses his life

afterwards keith enters the ship in a hurry and is like where the fuck is shiro where’s my brother what did you do what happened

and team voltron is like hey man.. we are so so sorry

and keith cries because the last thing he ever said to shiro was mean

lance feels like its all his fault since he was supposed to be a good leader

they talk about separately while hunk pidge and allura discuss

krolia is like keith we, ur family, are here for u

and axca is there and shes like um?? hey?? sry for trying to kill u bro

and he’s like i absolutely do not wanna talk i just lost my closest friend

they talk about it later

axca tells keith abt shiro finishing lotor’s work and abt bringing people back and well.. 

they use the methods to help keith visit shiro in the astral realm

shiro is like oh uh hey i was just having a drink w adam we r happy

and keith is like shiro u fuckhead why would u sacrifice urself

shiro sighs bc cmon keith you KNOW why “remember what i always said? we can’t focus on what went wrong..”

“we’ve got to figure out how to make it right” keith finishes

keith breaks tf down crying and screams apologizing

“i love u shiro. ur a like a big brother to me.”

and shiro is like yeah i know and ilyt but hey. everyone’s safe and happy. im safe and happy. & you deserve to be too. you don’t need me anymore.

so the galra rule is over and everyone goes to their respected planets

romelle and the other alteans as well as some galra babes hang in earth

romelle and shay r in an apartment together and have a garden

allura realizes she may not have been the strongest leader for voltron, and  couldn’t stop zarkon on her own but that physical strength doesn’t define her as a whole

her heart is strong enough to care for everyone, so thats what she does

allura starts running an inn for alteans filled with painted sceneries like altea in case anyone ever needs a reminder of home

when lance reunites with his family its a real tearjerker

rachel finally gets her jacket back and veronica is like So.. Axca 👀

the McClain’s host a huge party for everyone and it’s filled with lots of hugs and loud music and even tho lance was way too tired, he danced all night

he wouldn’t trade his family for the world—genetic and chosen

when hunk reunites with his parents they don’t let him out the house for hours, he tells them all about his new best friend shay as well as hundreds of his favorites stories from space

they are so, so proud of him

hunk spends the next days playing minecraft and animal crossing with pidge, giving their brains a rest from being on hyperdrive for 3 yrs straight

when pidge gets home she finally gets grounded by her mom, only being allowed to leave the house to see her old teammates

(same for matt and her dad)

(her mother cries so hard when they opened the door to the home)

the holt family holds movie nights filled with popcorn, cuddles, and tears

keith moves in with the holt family, and finally accepts that he has a home as well as a family

he often goes on trips with the BoM but mostly just stays on earth

after a Team Voltron sleepover in the altea inn keith and lance decide to get an apartment together and live their lives in love and in peace

everyone gets together once a year in celebration of shiro and the sacrifice he made for them

they use the ship to visit Astral Shiro and once they even met adam

everyone laughs and catches up and just... live their lives

everyone is happy

pls ignore any and all errors lmao

again, just a thought !! maybe i’ll write a fic abt it idk for sure but yeah

feel free to add anything <3

[aw-eather]

Heather Watches SG1: s1ep4 The Broca Divide

On todays episode of Heather doesn’t have anything better to do with her time and wants to re-watch episodes she’s seen 8 times/in the last 2 months, I will be rewatching Broca Divide and giving my thoughts in the form of dot points. It makes me laugh, it makes you laugh apparently and its just a bit of fun. I will try and put these all in one place at some point so we can find them all. 

Warning: I don’t like Daniel in this episode (or most for that matter) so if Daniel is your fave, look away!

Really pretty shot of the mountain

dress blues fuck

they look so good

like really fucking good

Sam is like “sir did you just sass the General?”

she just rolled her eyes at him and did the little grin when he joked about the names being too complicated she’s so cute and adorable

Jack looks really really good

Like they both look so fucking good in those dress uniforms 

I have a thing for uniforms apparently 

but they both look good in dark blue its not my fault

Sassy Daniel

Silly Daniel (not my perscription)

Silly Jack making Sam smile (why doesn’t the MALP have one of these?)

I love them already

She’s so young.. such a baby space hero

FLYBOY

my cuppa tea is STRONG i messesd up

Night vision cam

Whomp they got jumped 

Yeah shooting works too

They were PEOPLE, Daniel.  Come on, i was starting to like you

CREDITS

I have VERY strong memories of waking up as a kid and walking past a tv that had been left on and seeing these exact opening credits when I was a kid. 

AMANDA YOU ARE SO BEAUTIFUL

especially that shot of them coming through the gate with the purple sky, I strongly remember that. 

Does Daniel ever know whats going on/what it is/where they are/what it means? 

I also call it rape and agree we should stop it fuck you Daniel, wtf?!?!?!

I don’t care if you think its how pre historic men mate, its fucking rape you ass hole what the fuck  This isn’t a prehistoric time, you didn’t time travel, you can interfere. How Sam did not deck you at all during the last two episodes is BEYOND ME 

The Untouched. 

ooooh sun

JACK AND SAM BEING ADORABLE AND JOKING AROUND STOP MY HEART I LOVE THEM

I remember when my friends and I watched this and we were joking about how Jack went grey really quick and @allofthecaffeine said it was because he had to parent Daniel. I died

Scruffy Jack looks SO FUCKING GOOD WTF

he is so aesthetically pleasing honestly

Jack stop being sarcastic

Daniel stop

You’re not gonna find out why now either, Daniel. No body cares about the bulls.

I mean I kinda wanna know but not the point

Thats a lot of yes sir from Daniel, sto being a tit. I know you wanna look at this shit but its not what you’re actually there for babe. 

Daniel stop interupting ffs shut up

Jack wake up honey

Uh oh

Marine looks unhappy 

Sam’s little smile I love her

Jack doesn’t sound happy but he will be. He will learn to love his scientific girlfriend and their archaesologist son

“please release me, Lt. Johnson” Teal’c is everything. He’s the best. I love Teal’c. 

Makepeace being Makepeace

Teal’c just stops the punch with one hand like its nothing lol “I would prefer to not hurt this man” lol 

Daniel helping Sam out cause he’s a good friend, kinda sweet

Jesus those poor guys 

Sam rushing to help because Sam is the best

oh FUCK 

LOCKER SCENE

OH SHIT

TANK TOP

WE ALL DO

TANK TOP

NO NOT LIKE THIS JACK O’NEILL DID YOU JUST ADMIT TO HAVING THE HOTS FOR YOUR 2IC?? 

CAUSE I MEAN SAME BUT YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO

TANK TOP

HE PUT HIS FACE VERY CLOSE TO HER NECK THERE FOR A SECOND FOR NO REASON, HE WAS THINKING ABOUT IT

I wonder how many times they thought about hooking up in locker rooms after this... 

just a thought

poor Sam is always getting tied down to be... I am gonna choose not to finish that sentence

JANET

JAAAANNNNEEEEEETT

LOVE OF MY LIFE

LIGHT OF THE SGC

TINY DOC AS I CALL HER

love the explination of the iso rooms like we needed that info

she looks sso good

she eserved so much better

excellent observation hun, I would never have guessed

strongest offspring huh

JACK GETTING DEFENSIVE ABOUT SAM

SHE SCRATCHED HIS NECK MY GOD

FUCK OFF DANIEL “YOU POOR MAN” GET FUCKED

SHE’S NOT YOURS TO CARE ABOUT 

OH SHIT JACK HE DIDN’T QUITE DESERVE THAT MUCH OF A BEATING YET

LEAVE THAT UNTIL S8

JANET

SHE IS SO PRETTY STOP IT

I MISS HER

Had to pause cause my mum’s making coffee and my kitchen/lounge are one room

So how we all doing? 

My aunt has turned up to use my oven because its better than hers

I might not get to finish this yet fam 

I’m back 

I got lunch

“never seen anything like this on earth” honey you are dealing with ALIENS

Of course you haven’t!

Why you explaining the names, didn’t y’all have a debrief. 

MR TEAL’C STOP IT THATS SO UCKING CUTE jANET NO

First of many new plaugues, Hammond, don’t stress. This is just a normal day in the office for you

Janet’s hair is so bouncy I love her

Poor Jack

He’s having a rough day which isn’t unusual but its rough

Hammond stop stressing, you will be FINE

JANET’S S M I L E

I love her so much she deserved the world

Just the two of us suck it UP DANIEL 

Once more unto the breach

Thats a great episode of Sanctuary actually. One of my faves

“we dumped them in a small room” lol Teal’c you the best

Daniel ffs 

Guns again

to be fair they’d frighten me off. P90 is a big fun

so I guess it checks out

uh oh daniels been taken

what a shame

Oh Hammond poor thing

Aww even like this Jack is adorable 

RDA sure is a good actor just saying

lol neck scratches ;) 

Sorry I’ve said it like eight times but Janet is so, so beautiful. 

Permanent brain damage? Sounds like a normal day in the office for these Space Babies

Always the hero, Jack

AW he touched her face

STOP IT I LOVE HER SO MUCH I CANNOT BREATH I’M GONNA C R Y

i love the language in SG1 and all the Goa’uld words

Poor Teal’c. They were v rude to him

YAS TEAL’C BEAT SOME ASS SO PROUD OF YOOOOOOU

GET THAT BLOOD

To be honest, I would have left Daniel behind but apparently we don’t do that... so 

SAM NO

POOR BABY

LIGHTLY STABBED

POOR SPACE BBY

MR. TEAL’C JANET STOOOOOP I CAN’T 

lots of big words Janet, stop with the big words

more big words

of course he’s sure, he’s Jack, he wants to help everyone... 

well... not everyone but thats fine

LUCY I’M HOME

I AM NOT LUCY

Oh for crying out loud count is at two this episode 

the gate spinning is their entire budget lets be honest

SAMMY

As if Daniel would be d...i guess he’s usually dead, isn’t he? Never mind 

“Daniel you dog, keep this up you’ll have a girl on every planet” WHERE IS THE LIE

WHY IS EVERYONE ATTRACTED TO DANIEL WHEN JACK IS RIGHT THERE I DO NOT UNDERSTAND 

More bulls

I love this guys crop top 

also those blues are really pretty

Daniel is gonna need a new uniform, thats ones a bit ripped up

S C I E N C E 

“There’s our boy” SEE HE IS THEIR CHILD

Aww those little happy grins 

he looks so pleased

OG MY GOD

YES YOU DO REMEMBER

HOWS THE WOUND

WOUND

GOT STABBED IN THE STOMACH

THERE WONT EVEN BE A SCAR

GOOD. i WAS WORRIED YOU’D NEVER WEAR THE TANK TOP AGAIN

I N N A P R O P R I A T E 

I N S U B O R D I N A T I O N

I LOVE THEM SO MUCH JFC ITS BEEN 4 EPISODES AND I CANNOT HNDLE THEM

stop flirting with your 2IC but actually never stop

marry her

Final Thoughts

Janet is the light of my life

she deserved the world and was paid dust

fuck the powers that be

how dare they

this episode is so cute and fun

but semi-serious

but like... fun?? IDK i really like Broca Divide

prescious babies are precious

they love each other so much already

TANK TOP!SAM

DRESS BLUES!SAM

DRESS BLUES!JACK

ok i’m done

Alright friends, lemme know what you think of this episode. That was fun, I love it so much. Its so fun jumping back from s4 Atlantis (where I’m currently up to) to watch s1 SG1 Sam because she’s such a baby and so precious and now she’s a LEADER bless her 

[bombshellsandbluebells]

23, 27 , 28 for the 100 is done-dred!!! 💛💛💛

23. Which villains were the best in the series?

My girl ALIE will always be my all time favorite. I love the plot of the City of Light. I love how genuinely terrifying ALIE is - rewriting people’s brains and erasing their memories without them even realizing it is terrifying to me. I love how Erica portrays her; her mannerisms are so inhuman and work so well. She’s great, I love her, and I’m still sad she never came back.

Blodreina is another great villain because I’m so onboard with the aesthetic and the tragedy, though I honestly kind of wish they had committed to going full tragic villain with her in the end.

Mount Weather are also fantastic villains because they’re so human and real and you can understand WHY they’re doing what they’re doing but they’re also clearly crossing so many inexcusable lines. 

Anya as a villain in s1 was fantastic for a similar reason, in that she’s genuinely threatening but she’s also very understandable and you can see how from her point of view she is trying to protect her people from invaders, but she’s also not above killing or torturing children who barely know how to defend themselves to do so.

Diyoza is just so genuinely charming and fun to watch that it was hard for me to even root against her haha. I don’t even know that I’d call her a villain so much as just an antagonist. Her actress has so much charisma it’s amazing, and it was definitely one of the best casting decisions made on this show.

You didn’t ask the worst but Cadogan and Josephine are definitely the absolute Worst and I had zero interest in either of them.

27. Rank the seasons from 1-7. Feel free to explain or not!

Season 3 - I’m probably the odd one out with this, but I just love ALIE and the two part finale so much it puts it at the top for me. I’ve rewatched the two-part finale like 6 times.

That said, the entire like first half of s3 is so badly written and so boring, that I really am only talking about the second half of the season when the ALIE plot really starts unfolding. The rest I couldn’t care less about (expect the Memori scenes.)

Season 2 - This is the season that I think has the strongest writing and filmmaking over all, and it’s only my love of ALIE that keeps this from being number 1 for me. The visuals this season are some of the strongest, the pacing is a lot better than most of the other seasons, and the Murphy/Jaha storyline is genuinely one of my favorites in the entire show. 

Season 5 - I love Spacekru!! I love them so much! I love Diyoza! I love Blodreina! I think the writing for this season is pretty solid, though some storylines and arcs are not given really great conclusions in the end. The filmmaking leaves a lot to be desired, but the storylines are fun, the characters and dynamics are interesting, and it did something new that I felt really refreshed the show after s4. It would have been a really great conclusion for the series if it had decided to end here.

Season 1 - Has some gems along the way and sets up the world and characters well, but doesn’t really stand out to me as anything special. It got me into the show and hooked, but it’s not one I really go back to all that much aside from a few key episodes (aka...the Murphy ones lmao.) The Murphy storyline and Anya’s appearances are the highlights for me.

Season 4 - Boring, bland, and forgettable overall as a season. There ARE storylines I genuinely love from this season (Memori joining the team, Raven and Murphy’s forgiveness storyline) and Gimme Shelter and God Complex ARE some of my favorite episodes of the whole series, but the season as a whole is so BORING.

There’s so much pointless wandering in s4. It really feels like they knew where they wanted to end but had no idea how to get there, so most of the season feels like filler with no real direction.

Also this was when the filmmaking noticeable starting getting worse in this series and it has my least favorite episode of the whole series, A Lie Guarded.

Season 7 - Didn’t fully watch but followed along enough to know that it was very bad and very boring, but with a few gems sprinkled through out - at least enough to bring it ahead of s6.

It does win a few points for focusing a lot on Echo, giving Memori an interesting storyline about becoming leaders (even if that went nowhere), and putting Emori in some nice dresses, though.

Season 6 - Trash. The sets look like cardboard and are so incredibly badly designed. Half the dialogue sounded like it was spoken by NPCs in a bad video game. The music is awful. It tries to retcon all of the season before it and fails to sell any of the changes and almost no character acts in any kind of way that makes sense coming from the season before it. Eliza’s acting couldn’t sell me on the body snatching plot and Josephine was such a boring, annoying villain.

Wins the prize for worst overall filmmaking of the whole series. Wins absolutely no points for anything. I genuinely liked nothing about this season. (Except the Memori proposal and that one look between Echo/Emori.)

28. If you had to choose, what group would you want to belong to?

Floukru!! I want to chill on a boat being a pacifist and doing my best to stay away from everything happening between the other clans haha.

Thanks!!!

The Hundred is Done-dred Ask Meme

[calliecat93]

Top 5 Things I Disliked About Red vs Blue: Season 2

When I decided to do this series, I knew it was gonna be hard to do lists for Blood Gulch. Not because I can’t think of anything I like or dislike specifically, but as I said before, BGC is mainly comedic driven. The worst I can say is ‘this isn’t funny’ and critique the earlier production standards. Which that’s kinda mean since they were working with what they had and trying to learn to do the show. As such, I have to reach on Dislikes for these and S2 was a tough one in that regard. I managed to come up with five, but GOD I had to stretch haaaard on it.

But still, I did it. Just remember, take this with a grain of salt. So here we go, Top 5 Things I Disliked About RvB S2.

#5. Doc

If you asked me which of the BGC to write out and never bring back… I’d probably have to pick Doc. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate him, but I’ve also never loved him. He comes off more whiny than funny, and most of the time he’s only funny due to the back and forth with O’Malley. Otherwise, usually… he’s just there. Even here in S2, while having a pacifist medic in a cast where several are trigger happy could lead to some funny stuff, Doc was just an annoyance. The situations he got into were funny, like getting knocked into the Warthog when the Blues unknowingly made it go rogue, but he was literally just there for the ride. Something IDT later season really improved aside form 16 and 17, which tbh I think is stretching it.

IDK, I just find Doc whiny and kinda boring. Even if he’s meant to be the annoying, disrespected nice guy, doesn't Donut kinda fit that slot already? Heck, they both even have the recurring ‘disappear for seasons and then suddenly comes back’ joke. The only times that I feel invested in Doc is when he has O’Malley, which is how he re-entered the plot here. I’m gonna save more about that in the S3 posts, but on his own? Doc just… doesn’t really work and I didn’t really miss him in between the Reds dumping him and him reappearing when O’Malley infected him. It’s also a flaw IDT recent seasons have really fixed, though they are trying. Plus I don’t hate Doc and some jokes with him do work (the gag of his naming made me giggle), I'm just… indifferent. But that’s why he’s at the top of the list since the most I can say is I find him whiny and not as funny,

#4. The Cyborg Subplot

So due to losing Lopez and because he’s Sarge, Sarge decides to turn one of the Reds into a cyborg to do all the stuff that Lopez did. He settles on Simmons. Now in and of itself, the subplot is fine. It leads to a good few jokes, like Grif trying to ruin Simmons’ parts after the surgery or a few gags like Simmons shooting his own foot and of course, faxass. While IDT the season would have been hurt without it, it has plenty of funny bits. Sow hat’s the problem. Well… like I said, cutting it wouldn’t have hurt anything. It kinda is just there to give the Reds something to do during the O’Malley and Tex stuff since otherwise, they’d just be standing around and taking… well, more than normal. Otherwise, it’s only significance plot-wise is Tucker tuning into their frequency, which is important in the finale when he picks up Vic and Sarge’s conversation.

So yeah, the subplot isn’t all that important. But it is still funny, so I don't mind it being there. But nowadays… how much so we see this come up? I mean Grif got mutilated by a tank and got another guy’s body/organs haphazardly stitched on. Simmons, while he possibly gave up those parts to Grif willingly, was otherwise forcibly converted into a cyborg. This… hasn’t really come up again. I mean the only time I think Simmons mentioned it in-show was as a brief joke in S11. Nine seasons later. I don’t think Grif’s side of it has come up at all ever again. Though… considering you can only get so many jokes out of this setup since everyone is always in armor, I do understand why. Though I feel with Simmons’ side at least, they could play with it some more, both comedically and maybe even storywise. But that may be my need for Simmons content talking…

So yeah, the subplot was okay. It’s at Number Four since I don’t hate it and it was funny. I just feel like nothing would be lost without it, especially since it pretty much never comes up again. Maybe one day though, who knows? At least the fanfic writers keep it alive XD

#3. The Caboose Forgetting Church Thing

Okay this is brief, but it does annoy me. During the whole trip into Caboose’s mind, Caboose’s memory of Church gets shot. As such, Caboose forgets who Church is. Makes sense, O’Malley killed the personification of Church in Caboose’s mind, so his mind would forget it. It also explains why Caboose got, well… for lack of a better way to put it, intellectually challenged later on due to having three AI’s in his brain and all the chaos that broke out. But Caboose forgetting Church lasts like… one episode? Maybe two? Anyways, Burnie explained on the commentary that it was just too hard to write out so they did one joke with it, and then just dropped it. Probably for the best... but then we have to figure out how this works in-continuity... damn it.

Really this is only on here because it forces me to try to figure out how this is possible in a show sense. Which yeah I probably don’t need to, but I am a continuity loser who tries to piece together these things. If I had to guess, maybe the memory of Church fixed itself somehow or Caboose was able to recall after being around Church for a little while. But I honestly really don’t know, and trying to think it through hurts my brain. It also did little to nothing either story-wise or comedy-wise, at least we got a few jokes out of the cyborg subplot. IDK, I feel like they gave up on it too soon. But then again this is the saga where they’ll break/ignore continuity for the sake of a joke and that’s just how these seasons worked. Hence why I put it smack-dab in the middle.

#2. Some Holdover S1 Issues

You can tell that there was a mass improvement in terms of production for Season Two. Pacing felt stronger, more was going on, characterizations began to settle in, and they even began to form more of a plot. They clearly had a much better idea of what they were doing now that they got through Season One and I think things like Matt becoming more involved in writing and production as well as Gus moving back to work on the show really helped as well. That being said, not everything got resolved. Most did, but there are still a few holdouts.

Audio mixing is a LOT better, especially when it comes to effects. The filter is still a little distracting, though better compared to S1. Not all the characterizations really set in. Grif and Donut are about 75% there and Simmons and Tucker are probably the least set in stone. The traits are there, like Simmons clinginess to Sarge and Tucker actually showing some competence when forced to, but nothing set in stone. Donut’s also on the right path with his hobbies and tendency to babble into TMI territory, but the voice is still off and his personality isn’t quite there yet. There’s some other, but I’ll touch on it in the Likes list. Some jokes could also still drag, like the whole switch joke where some of Church and Tucker’s back and forth went on a little too long.

We’re clearly making progress, but the mark hasn’t quite been hit. It’s still an improvement over S1 though, the pacing especially. This is nitpicky, but still it’s there. But hey it’s progress, and that is never a bad thing. So yeah, RvB is still evolving here, but the progress bar is loading steadily and trust me, by S3 I think we’ll be settled in… well, for the most part.

#1. Some Outdated Humor

The BGC was made from 2003 to 2007. Obviously, there’s gonna be some stuff that is outdated. Take the graphics themselves for example. Halo has evolved, so the game can look a little outdated, especially when you compare the original footage to the remastered footage. Let's put it this way, VIC is uncanny in the remaster… and is utterly horrifying in the original version. Thank God that the DVD is the remaster and I was spared of looking at that monstrosity. Visuals aren’t the only thing though, some pop culture references can also come off as outdated, like Creed joke in the RL vs Internet PSA. So can some of the humor that shows how stupid we were back only two decades ago.

There are… some jokes that are uncomfortable to listen to. For example, there’s the Grif shaming himself joked by saying he’s a girl and likes ribbons in his hair. It’s not the worst joke and clearly, it isn’t made to offend… but nowadays I think it could look offensive to certain individuals. It didn’t necessarily offend me, but it did kinda make me feel uncomfortable when I first watched it, but it could be me thinking it over too hard. There’s also the casual usage of the R word. Last season it came up a bit, but I noticed it came up more frequently here. Not excessively, but there were quite a few instances where it was treated as a casual curse word. Obviously back in 2004 we didn’t realize this was an offensive term, and I think they’ve even said that they regret the casual usage of it during the early years. You certainly would probably not hear that word used unless maybe to emphasize how terrible a character is, but even then I think they’d be more careful.

Now obviously RvB uses a lot of adult and offensive humor, especially in this era. I guess you can kinda call it the web version of South Park, only RvB has never really resorted to shock humor. It puts it above many, /many/ animated adult comedies in that regard. Still, when you run for this long, you’re gonna have some outdated elements. It’s not necessarily their fault, it just shows that times has changed. Still, it does make some stuff hard to look back on without cringing, and I imagine that the Founders would agree. So yeah… there’s just some stuff that wasn't fun to look back over and S2 isn’t the only offender, but this was where it stood out to me and took me out of the moment. As such, it is Number One.

(Top 5 Likes)

[ladyshinobi]

So, I watched the S2 Premiere of Killing Eve and...

(VERY FEW AND VERY VAGUE SPOILERS AHEAD) 

I’m not gonna lie, as soon as the credits rolled on the exhilarating and completely open-ended Season 1 finale, I was absolutely on board for more tales of globetrotting-international-conspiracy, hunter vs hunte(d)r madness, but, as time went by and trailers and sneak peeks were released I wasn't so sure. I started wondering to myself the very hipster-y but very valid question:

"How can you better something that was pretty fuckin' (almost) flawless already?"  

I feared the typical sophomore slump 98% of shows fall into, the trailers and the heavy hinting at a "calmer" more still Villanelle made me think they could sacrifice her trademark ruthlessness in service of a more forgiving plot (typical-bad-guy-redemption-arc territory), a plot where her and Eve could become closer in more twisted and wicked ways than one.

Also the "will they won't they" dynamic seems to be heading in a way less ambiguous territory this season which, could bring more complications on its own, namely figuring out how to make it work without the characters losing their essence or agency in the process (for an example on how this went terribly wrong eventually? CASTLE lol)

The High-Level Conspiracy (The weakest,but still effective plot line from last season IMO) could unfold in a contrived non satifing ways as well.

So, as you can see, I had my fair share of concerns regarding this second season not living up to the (very well deserved) S1 hype...

WELL, after watching the (masterfully executed) S2 premiere I can gladly and safely say most of my worries were immediately laid to rest.

The show picks up right away from S1, keeping the sense of urgency and unpredictability that made the previous season such and addictive watch, another thing that quickly jumped to my attention is how visual storytelling is used brilliantly in the first sequence (and the show in general), so much information is given (specially to the most attentive eyes) without a single line of actual dialogue, we find our favorite antiheroes scrambling for survival in completely different but SO TRUE TO THEIR CHARACTER's ways.

There's a particular scene (that I wont get into here 'cause...SPOILERS? I'm tempted to MAYBEEEEEEEEE start recapping this show tbh lol) that IMO plays as a perfect parallel between our main characters, and how they are both distorted mirrors of the other, my fear of the characters being softened or changed for the sake of plot had dissolved at this point, one thing is clearer than ever after Eve leveled the play field with her game changing-move from last season:

There are NO VICTIMS, only casualties in this story.

Another thing that makes this such an amazing viewing adventure?: 

SPECIFICITY

Unburdened by the typical exposition dumps that first seasons require this season feels leaner and meaner in the best way possible, the show RESPECTS its audience, they are sure we KNOW (or think we do ;) ) the characters by this point, and waste no time on the superficial, even the ICONIC location TITLES reflect this, It helps the story by making it feel more intimate and unique.

The episode unfolds by giving us clear glimpses that solidify who these characters are and how they're both crafty, smart and unique individuals in their own right, all while laying the ground for all the new settings, characters and situations that will follow.

One thing in particular that got my attention, was Eve dealing with a "new" casualty of the 12, and since the presence of a new assassin showing up this season has been confirmed I think Eve and Co. are in for a big surprise on the next EP. Seems like Villanelle could have some equally-deathly-but-way-more-discreet-competition? Can't wait for Queen of EXTRA to find out and react in her typical over-the-top-murderous fashion.

The mix of incredibly dark/incredibly funny moments was present and better than ever too, everything with Villanelle and her medical stay has pure gold, including that shocking (but not really?) kill.

I like to think of Villanelle as one of those majestic Wild creatures that are so mesmerizing and impressive to admire at the Zoo, at a safe distance ...behind a thick AF sheet of glass....get close and well...you're dead? lol, Also she's hands down the best antihero on TV since Walter White IMO, Jodie better get some (all the) awards next year.

What would Villanelle spirit animal be? a Tiger , a Shark? ....I vote for a Fancy, Deadly AF Python, I mean she does like her bold patterns doesn't she? ;). Also the apples they're putting everywhere? even in the promo material?, hard to argue with a millenary metaphor am I right? lol.

To summarize: The show is STILL amazing, can't wait to enjoy the crazy ride once again (I would prefer binge watching but there's no way I wouldn't get spoiled If I waited 8 weeks XD) and it seems that one of my fave shows from 2018 is going to join the same list again this year.

S2 ...Bring it!

PS: Based on this EP and the trailers and my brain theorizing-Eve-Style I think the plot of the season will unfold more or less like this:

I think Villanelle will have no way back into the 12 pay roll, cornered and desperate she’ll accept (probably Carolyn but more directly EVE’s offer, since she’s gonna be looking out for her) to work as a double (triple?lol) agent for MI6, I bet a certain presumed dead previous handler will share a similar fate btw, and toward the end of the season the 12 plot will take over and force these two idiots to work together (and try not to kill each other in the process lol)  ...

Will I come back to this and have a good laugh by the end of the season? PROBABLY....Time will tell XD. 

[valeriemperez]

Why do you dislike Ralph so much? I personally don’t like the character because of his powers, he’s exactly what another superhero is only with a different name. Other than that he’s ok, I get where they’re going with it and I doubt that he’ll be a permanent fixture on the show. I can see him make guest appearances but not much else.

I dislike that he was clearly created for and by a sexual harassing misogynist. And then when they dropped that side of him, he still took over the show in both tone (juvenile body humor rather than character-driven heart) and plot. If he remains alive and only makes occasional appearances in the future, that’s one thing. But I won’t know that’s the case - he’s a guest star this season, after all - until several episodes have gone by.

You don’t think these writers are trying to make Iris into the strong black woman trope who doesn’t need an apology, do you? She has a lot going for her such as beauty, brains, a loving family, leader/co-leader with her husband, who just happens to be the lead character. But, no apology from Caitlin for s3 and so far, not one from Barry. That part may come later, but she’s always the forgiving rock to everyone else. Is her rock in the cut scenes?

I don’t think they’re trying to, but that may be the unintentional result given the make-up of their writers’ room. This is why they need more black women behind the scenes.

That being said, Iris has gotten to speak her piece more this season than in previous ones, and Barry did apologize to her at the start of the season over his leaving her. She expressed her pain there, and he responded accordingly. I wish he had explicitly apologized for 4.18 & 4.19, but I don’t know if his scheduling the therapy session was meant to be an implicit apology or if the writers just didn’t see those two scenes as a big deal.

Caitlin not apologizing is bullshit, though, and the writers are never gonna live that one down.

I have a feeling Ralph will be back next season if only because today Hartley was hinting at the the unexplored friendship between him and CS lol. For real tho we don’t know if off the bat Hartley signed a two year contract thus they are obligated to keep him in the show. Todd might not get to choose what he does. I will say since Todd took control he didn’t let Ralph dominate the whole show which I think will be the same in season 5.

I’m hoping that’s him reminiscing and wishing he could be around longer, lol. I’m going off Todd saying that his story is done, as well as the casting call saying it was one season with the possibility of becoming a regular later, but you are right that we don’t know which way it went.

I know people have latched on to that interview, but It’s not like he could come out and say R is coming back tho. That aside, don’t leaaaave uuuuus! You wouldn’t stay even for Dawn? :( Maybe if people stopped dumping all the negativity in your inbox? (but I get it. There r things I don’t like about this season, but the echo chamber of this is the wooooorst here makes everything worse)

You’re sweet, but my inbox isn’t the issue. Y’all are pretty understanding of the kinds of messages I respond to and the kinds I don’t, lol. I meant more the general unhappiness in fandom, which everyone has a right to feel, but which I need to step back from.

I’ve seen another blogger who got lots of asks do this, and I thought it might help: Only have your inbox open on certain days and tell people which days those are. That way you can partially control and you don’t have all of the negativity (when it’s there) the entire week.

It’s not about what comes to me, it’s about what I seek out. Following fellow fans on twitter and tumblr, looking through tags, etc. The latter is way easier to stop doing, as I’m already not checking the tags on Twitter and only checking the Tumblr ones if I need to reblog/post something for Candice. As for the former, I gotta set up my muted terms or whatever you call it, haha. 

If you’re struggling with returning for s5 then i know it’s bad. The season has been poor. so poor.

It’s funny, because I feel the need to defend parts of the season. It’s really only 4B that I want to throw out, with the exception of the excellent 4.15 & 4.16. And it wasn’t until 17-19 that things started feeling really hopeless. But yeah, the over-emphasis on Ralph and the total lack of progression with Devoe is really killing my show spirits.

I’m over CS/KF/DP and her unimaginative fans. They want everything that IWA has. The latest thing I saw - she should get her hair cut (like Iris 🙄). IMO, she’s served no real purpose past S1. Both Barry and Wally have speed healing. SB is never happening and the shows ambivalence towards KF is annoying af. S3 was all about getting rid of her cold powers. Supposedly that’s why she teamed up with Savitar and tried to help him kill Iris. Now she misses them. Miss me with all that. Girl, Bye! ½2/2 Watch S5 be her full blown KF evil, and the return of RF. S4 is almost over, yet they’ve never addressed Two-face apologizing to WA for her BS in S3. Only Joe (not even Cecile) in a half-ass way. Harry needs to go too. Every version of him!!

It seems like they’ve finally found a direction for Caitlin, so we’ll see if it works out. I have a feeling they like all their actors too much to willingly let them go.

[insert-witty-comment]

I post a lot in here. Lately I noticed that I leave a lot of criticism of Stranger Things 2 (or Season 2 if you prefer). It's true that I like the original season better than the second for a pile of reasons I went into previously. However, I realized I left so much criticism and comparisons to season 1 that I'm coming off as a bit of a negative Nancy (tehehehe)!The truth is I loved and do love Stranger Things 2. I was so excited to watch it and left it feeling very satisfied. I felt it surpassed my own expectations for a sophomore season by a long ways. So I think given the amount of criticism I leveled at this season in comments on this sub, I may as well explain why I loved it if even just to keep it as a link for myself for later! So here we go!The continuity of the party!Right away in Season 1 we see all the boys together in some perfectly shot scenes in perfect sets. That arcade is so damn beautiful it makes me nostalgic for my real life history where I played games at the arcade (I'm now old enough that I remember the 90s, in which arcades were still awesome!). These four boys are a blessing to viewers and could not have been better cast! They are always entertaining!Noah Schnapp!If you pay even the slightest attention to Stranger Things 2, you can't miss Noah Schnapp's considerable contribution. Almost a stranger to us in the first season, Noah blows it out of the park in ST2. We meet him in ST2 as a kid kind of boxed in, with his life being dominated by others. That could be his mother's understandable preoccupation with his safety, or his need to report every episode to the people at the lab. He plays the role of an outsider - Zombie Boy - so perfectly. You see it on his face as he walks in and out of the school knowing people are talking about him.Then he has to portray possession. It's not just the task of actually portraying the act of possession itself on the field but the actual possession later as the shadow monster learns to slowly take over his brain. He has to portray both the evil and good side of Will and probably doesn't even know where the balance is scene by scene. Then, they asked him to portray a seizure. I have a sister with severe epilepsy, I can say that the out of control muscular spasms he shows as well as the expression on his face are scarily close to somebody who is experiencing a bad seizure.If that wasn't enough, they added in his exorcism scene where he has to portay a total lunatic, if as possessed by a demon exorcist-style. Yet, he manages it all. The boy out of shot all of the first season grabbed ST2 and made it his own.Noah Schnapp... the heart and soul of Stranger Things 2. Kudos young man, I've never seen a performance like that from someone so young!Winona and HarbourThe two adult leads on the show picked up right where they left off. Winona Ryder was a serious crush of mine as a kid (lol) and it's rare that when you become an adult and get into your 30s (which unfortunately I am) your crush can still be relevant. Well, it is. Winona is so damn talented and natural it is RIDICULOUS. I buy Joyce Byers. I buy that she would knife you to save her son, even though she's a small, almost frail looking single Mama. Her strength comes from the best place of all.. love.That face she had when she is embracing Will and looks at the picture of the Shadow Monster is just perfect. It is almost like she is daring it.. COME AT ME! Come at a Mama when you are threatening her cubs, I dare you! There's nothing like a mother's love and Joyce is a real mother, she'd walk through HELL for Will. I mean.. she did!David Harbour is proof that the best are so often overlooked. Even by his own admission his career has relegated him to being part of the background. He was in big productions, like The Equalizer with Denzel, but he is always the villain with the gun or just the extra guy. In the first season he showed the depth he truly has as we went on a journey from hating this terrible cop, to being glad this "asshole" is on the case because he is at least competent, to being heartbroken when he tells Joyce about his grief over Sarah, to being TOTALLY invested in his fate right to the end when he saves a little boy.In ST2, he comes back and does it again... by...Hopper and Eleven!I love that they showed us Hopper and Eleven's backstory to some degree. The small details can mean so much. When Hopper hears her behind him and turns to see her there, in the flesh, his immediate reaction is to take off his hat. This may seem like a small thing, but it is everything.If the cops show up at your house and they remove their hats, it likely means you aren't in trouble. It is done for respect. They are not there to enforce the law against you, rather they are there to inform you of something, probably something not good. It is respect, they are no authority in that moment, they are public servants there to help.When Hopper sees El his immediate reaction is to take off his hat. This is so adorable because she can't know what this means but it is everything to him. It is a signal to her that he is here to help. He is a friend. She is in no trouble at all. It is also clearly a relief to him having told Brenner where they are that she is still breathing.But they didn't keep it rosy and overload us with the MOMENT that is the "Hopper Dance", instead they show us conflict. In that conflict we see both sides of the argument. We see it from El's side and Hopper's side. She is cooked up, lonely and sick and tired of spending every day there. He cares only about her safety. They are bound to clash and they do, and when they do it isn't pretty. Both of them come across badly. She accuses him of being like Papa, and he acts rather childishly with the "wanna go back in the lab?" line. I do appreciate though that he stands up to and faces her power, he won't let her win by just being more powerful. In any case, it's a hard scene to watch and that's why it is good. It is honest!Their redemption scene in the car is also.. everything. El is only the second person we see him even acknowledge Sara's death with, after Joyce. I also adore that he gave her the bracelet.Oh and that shot at the end of S4 when he is in the tunnel with the flashlight and we flip upside down. God damn!!!Bob Newby, Superhero!I loved the Goonies as a boy and I loved (and still love) the Lord of the Rings as a teenager. To see Sean Aston join the the cast was awesome. On screen, he was perfect as Bob Newby, the nerdy guy who clearly loved Joyce and the boys and wanted to help whatever the cost. While the show made him almost seem a bit silly or maybe even pathetic in early moments, it showed his strength in Episode 8. In that episode, the strong stereotypical male lead, Hopper, was powerless to enable them to escape the lab. Instead, "Bob the Brain" was the one who could turn the power back on and use his programming knowledge to get them the hell out of there.I still won't say I liked the manner of his death, but his death at least was understandable. He undertook a serious mission and it was a success, except the part of coming out alive. The people he thought of first and foremost.. namely Joyce and Will.. left the lab alive and in good physical health.Bob may have been a character introduced to die so that they don't have to kill a main character.. but they pulled it off!Steve Harrington and Dustin Henderson!I just... I love this. I love how much Steve ends up liking Dustin. Clearly reluctant to help Dustin at first, Steve went way above and beyond the call of duty later. When he realized Dustin was right about Dart, he didn't run off. Just like he walked back in that house in the S1 finale and saved both Jonathan and Nancy, Steve stayed by Dustin's side right to the end.One little moment I love between them is when Steve pats Dustin on the head after putting the demodog in the Byers' refrigerator. He's "his boy" now. Dustin grew on Steve like he grew on all of us as we watched him in S1. Dustin could grow on anyone to be fair!The fact that they kept their budding friendship and "big brother / little brother" thing going right to the end is wonderful. I love that Steve saw this young boy who was struggling in some aspect of his social life even though he is clearly a smart kid, and decided to take him under his wing. I hope it continues into Season 3.I also love that while Steve's advice seems to have failed, it "sort of" worked. We see Dustin crushing on Nancy in the opening minutes of Season 1 and we get the impression he tries to get her attention every chance he gets. In the meantime, he has turned his attention to Max and isn't showing any outward interest toward Nancy. Then, while not chasing after his friend's older sister he ends up dancing with her at the Snow Ball. Which is no small deal! Did you see the look on the girl's faces? They are intrigued.. why is she dancing with him? WHAT DID WE MISS? Indeed Steve, "act like you don't care" worked in part for Dustin... except it was for the girl you are crushing on :PEl's refusal and Kali's portrayal in Episode 7So I am critical of Episode 7 for reasons I won't go into because this is about what I liked! Eleven's refusal to commit murder is HUGE for her character. She has killed before but in immediate defense of her life and freedom, or of those she cares about. That's reasonable! Kali wanted her to kill a man who hurt her mother for revenge, but upon seeing the children she would be depriving of a father figure she can't do it. She cannot do to them what he did to her, she is too good. She even stops Kali from doing it.This moral compass is a direct result of the people who influenced her in Hawkins. This includes Benny (RIP gentle bear!), the boys (especially Mike) and Hopper. She escaped and won the lottery when it comes to who to influence her. Mike berates her when she does wrong, like throwing Lucas across the field. Hopper resists her powers in an argument even though she could snap his neck in a rage. When she does wrong, it is not excused, she is told! She is yelled at. She also learned small, seemingly insignificant but important things like "friends don't lie". These are all part of the moral compass she has developed in the previous year.Unfortunately Kali doesn't seem to have benefited from similar influence. In fact, Kali comes across VERY badly. Not only does she kill at will, she has recruited lost people to do her bidding. They depend on her for survival, for protection and everything. They talk about her with the same reverence uttered about Marhshall Applewhite, David Koresh, Jim Jones, Charles Manson and so on. All of their followers believed them to be saviors. "We were dead. All of us. Kali saved us here, and in here".Those cult leaders also sought to manipulate their followers to believe the world was against them. Kali does this to Eleven directly. She even tries to poison the relationships Eleven made already, insisting they can't help her, even though they already have. There is a feeling of "only through me is there salvation and peace" about it.Kali has saved NOBODY. She has put her gang on an inevitable path toward death or imprisonment. It is only a matter of time. She also doesn't hesitate to use her power to try to psychologically influence Eleven. She shows her Brenner, understanding that El has been brainwashed to see this man, her handler, as her savior and protector. We also hear Axel tell Kali "I told you to stay out of my head" or words to that effect earlier, suggesting she doesn't have a problem using her power against the people around her.While I don't like episode 7 and make no bones about that... I appreciate they left Kali's true nature up to interpretation and redeemed Eleven before it was over!Max MayfieldI'll say it.. I like Max. At first I didn't see the point but on re-watch and thinking about it, she is no mere introduction for a love triangle. Instead, Max introduces real drama. She causes a rift with the boys because Mike doesn't want her there. She also dumps the boys as friends when she feels she was being mistreated.. and I respect that!She also is the person besides Eleven who makes Mike really SMILE. And I mean really SMILE. You may have missed it if you were focused on El finding Mike, but when Max is skating around Mike she breaks down his phony tough shell easily and he is smiling at her. He is moments away from accepting her as a friend and fellow party member until Eleven's jealousy interrupts them. This is probably the first time Mike smiled properly in a year and it's to her credit, because she under it all is a good person.She also plays a major role at the end potentially saving Steve's life (and Billy from life imprisonment?), but she manages to get herself and the boys to the tunnel to lure the demodogs away from Hopper and Eleven, which almost certainly saved Hopper's life and maybe even Eleven's.I'm looking forward to finding out what happened in California!The "pull out" line and the cookie eating!...... what can I say? There will always be an inner 12 year old in me who appreciates a little inappropriate innuendo etc. :PSo that's just some more positive thoughts on S2 from someone who constantly seems to be criticizing it. The way I see it, I wouldn't be criticizing so many aspects of it if I didn't care about it at all! But still, it is good to remember that I enjoyed it a lot.. and why!If you read all that.. god damn.. well done and thanks :P via /r/StrangerThings