#tho I went way overboard with it WHOOPS

[cajunfoxnight]

Happy Pokemon Day !!!!🎉

Ranger Gus and his partner Gambit are ready to go! >: D

[ladyluscinia]

Organizing my thoughts on OFMD 2x01 - 2x03

Strong start to a season. I really enjoy the black comedy aspect of the show, and the "all these people are kinda terrible" aspect, so win for me! The opening scene gave me a lot of thoughts. Actually, lots of stuff gave me thoughts that I'm gonna dump here (as I rewatch the episodes since I spent the first go around whooping and cheering more than paying attention to details lol) so I can start picking through them more coherently.

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Ok, first. OHMYGOD EDWARD AND IZZ- *I am yanked off the stage* Ahem. BlackHands thoughts will go into a different post, so as not to overwhelm the many other things going on worth discussing. (Link to post)

So. Real first point:

Kraken Era

Big thing I was absolutely wrong about was how dark Edward's Kraken arc would go. I was counting on a very handwavy resolution that would still let him do some fucked up shit, but I expected it to be mostly externally directed violence that toed up to a potential line but didn't quite cross it. Reminiscent of Flint's vengeance rampage after Miranda is killed. Self-destructive harm but only tangential harm of others in your social sphere.

That is... we did not get that. But what we did get I am very here for.

I'll be honest - I wasn't sure they were bold enough in a romcom to blast right over the line into horrifying and then be so audacious it looped back to funny, but they did. And I think the tone is working for them so far. Big saving grace is they went way further with Edward's cruelty but they counterbalanced it by going way further with the suicidal themes, which made the whole situation more extreme and sympathetic. He should still probably apologize tho.

The Breakup Boat

Frenchie my beloved! Also Fang & Jim & Archie & Izzy! Literally the breakup boat is a resounding success all around and I adore every second of their fucked up trauma bonding. Win after win after win.

Frenchie is repression king and it's hilarious. I love how he gets named first mate for presumably being the only one who sounds plausibly honest when getting interrogated, tries to turn the job down, and then doesn't follow a single order while vibing. Also the bonding with Izzy?!? He's steps in during the intervention. He hides him after Edward shoots him, and then later he's checking in on him and leaning against his leg in the cell. Please Frenchie get all up in that Edward and Izzy mess!

And I'm trying not to turn this into a breakup boat recap but also Fang sobbing through basically every scene. The wooden boy story. Jim's terrible voices. Izzy hiding in the walls. "He's our dick" to "He was your friend" holy fuckkkkkk. And the whole mutiny scene was amazing. Jim saying fuck this toxic bullshit and Izzy saving them all!!! (Sidenote: love how all the nameless extras got washed overboard in the storm. More bodycount!)

The tearing into a seagull like zombies scene - perfect. Archie recognizing Stede (did they tell her about Stede in hushed whispers or was it literally just Izzy's singular statement?). All backing each other up on the "retirement" story. Izzy taking the blame to motivate Stede in trying to defend the crew again.

Trauma bonding WIN!

Also sympathetic Izzy has been real forever despite misreads of S1 and the mistaken predictions they spawned, but once again... Izzy!!!

BlackBonnet "On A Break"

They are idealizing each other so fucking hard. Also Stede what on earth are you talking about in the first episode??? "He's just blowing off some steam." "I'm afraid that your life is better without me?" MY GUY are you reading that list of what Edward has been up to??? Denial so strong.

So we have Stede still full of self-loathing and simultaneously convinced Ed couldn't want him but also avoiding the realization that he hurt him really bad because Ed wanted him. And we have Edward actively suicidal over feeling unlovable and determined to murder-suicide his situationship and the kids, except he can't kill himself so he's trying to make everyone else do it.

(And, you know, Edward is very pointedly refusing to see how the people around him would care for and support him if he would let them - even when they straight up offer it to his face - because he is more concerned with the misery of his own twisted narrative about being fundamentally unlovable than whether or not that is a true statement. Stede doesn't want him and everyone else is just a prop for his depression's final act. Very "I don't have any friends" of him - shoutout to that flashback in his purgatory sequence too.)

Edward's self-loathing throwing him into the water, but Edward starting to save himself well before merman!Stede shows up. Because he does, deep down, want to live with or without Stede. Very strong. Like that. Also the idealization on Edward's end of envisioning Stede as a legit magical being of golden scales??? Fuck, you two need to get some perspective.

Stede's Crew

Trauma Lucius I was not counting on, but Lucius going from BlackBonnet supporter to FUCK YOU STEDE was fun. Also Stede offering to be supportive and then immediately trying to nope right out.

Sea Witch Buttons!!!!!! We're going to get naked Buttons charging into a scene screaming about how he's a seagull or something, aren't we?

Confirmation that Oluwande can't read in the funniest way. Well I guess on reflection the scrolls are probably in Chinese so reading wouldn't help, so maybe this point is null.

I did like the note of Stede knowing "The Soul Reaper's" real name. Piracy hyperfixation bonus.

JimOlu vs JimArchie... If we get another poly ship then I'm calling SteddyHands real. I'm just saying.

Oluwande taking initiative to step up and flex his boytoy powers to advocate diplomatically for the crew - very Captain material of him. Also conveniently doubled as a distraction so he was essential to the plan. Go Olu!

Antagonists New and Old!

Spanish Jackie was a treat. I enjoy that she still hates Stede. The Swede literally became a new man by marrying her. AND WE SAW THE HUSBANDS!

Prince Ricky is so far just kind of a shady classist scumbag - presumably that's going somewhere.

Zheng Yi Sao on the other hand... interested what's happening with this whole armada plan she's apparently enacting. The whole Olu boytoy arc was fun. I'm not as into the whole "girlboss" approach to every single female character in this show so far, so, uh, concerned about that. Hoping for more exploration of how she's doing Stede's version of piracy but what exactly is off about it? Because so far there's no real reason to resist her, other than maybe the whole "I didn't conquer China by listening to pirates ramble about their feelings" bit.

Hornigold. Yeah, I know he was a subconscious manifestation of Edward's self-loathing but I still have hope. "Last time I saw you, you said you were gonna flay my skin and feed it back to me." Does that not sound like a great foreshadowing for S3???

[squadlessgeek]

Title: A Bruised Ego

Summary: “I didn’t really plan on any heavy character development…” Roman is feeling unordinarily out of it and reaches out to Virgil for some help — honestly tho, is it really that unordinary? 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔

Warnings: Some good ol’ Roman angst, mentions of self-hatred and stuff. I tried to avoid any speculation about what Roman’s room might look like since there’s no canon evidence of it yet so sorry for the lack of detail there, but I’d rather not include my own opinions about the universe in a fic, so until the rooms are revealed I won’t be going into much detail about them.

Word count: 1265 (i went overboard whoops)

Pairing: Prinxiety (can be interpreted as romantic or platonic)

Tag List: just @monikastec as of right now (let me know if you wanna be added to my tag list to get notified when i write since i really don’t do it as often as i should, smh @ myself)

Ever since the whole “Accepting Anxiety” fiasco, the other sides dropped by Virgil’s room much more often, though typically not for long. They would pop in, whether to give him something or take something back that he’d borrowed, or just to generally pester him, and then pop right back out. None of them could handle the intensity of the room for longer than just a few moments. It got hard for even Virgil to handle it sometimes. He didn’t mind too much when the others stopped by though, it gave him something to do, and urged him out to socialize with them much more than he used to.

The only thing he did mind was Roman’s visits. The creative side would stop by mostly to pester or ask for things; simply to be a nuisance. So it was no surprise that Virgil immediately tensed when he heard someone rise up in his room, already preparing possible comebacks to insults and nicknames. Even though Roman didn’t do those things as often as he did in the past, Virgil was still accustomed to it and found it hard not to grow defensive whenever the other side spoke to him.

What was surprising, though, was the look on Roman’s face when Virgil removed his headphones and turned to address the other side, annoyance already showing in his sneer. Virgil was taken aback, his sour expression vanished, eyes going wide, and he had to grip the railing of the stairs beside him.

The prince was a disaster. His eyes were bloodshot and swollen, and if it weren’t for the tears streaking his cheeks Virgil might have accused him of smoking something he shouldn’t have. Once the shock at what stood before him wore off, Virgil pulled down his hood and ran a few fingers through his hair, getting his bearings. Roman had yet to speak; his eyes were trained on the floor between them, his breath occasionally hitching in a way that Virgil knew too well. He’d been crying for some time now, it seemed, and though he still held composure in his shoulders, it looked too forced.

Since Roman still hadn’t said a word and Virgil was thoroughly confused (and, honestly, a little scared), the darker side decided to speak up.

“Roman?” His voice was soft, but it got the creative side to look up, meet his eyes. “Are you okay?” Virgil had been asked the same question himself by the other sides so many countless times, and most of the time he’d answered with a sarcastic response or lied and said something more positive than the reality was. He just hoped that Roman wouldn’t give in to deception like he himself so often did (though he was learning not to) and instead tell Virgil the truth.

Virgil’s hopes were met, though he immediately felt terrible for hoping. Roman’s shoulders dropped, no more composure, all life seemed to drain out of him as he shook his head; slowly at first, though it quickly grew aggressive and insistent. The tears fell harder and faster, and quiet, choked sobs tore themselves from the prince. It was the most heart-wrenching thing Virgil had seen in a long, long time—someone who usually held himself in such high regard, someone who was always composed and ready to fire back at anyone who questioned him, now reduced to this.

Before Virgil could think, he pulled the prince close to him, wrapping his arms around him (tight, but not too tight, exactly how Patton hugged Virgil). Roman buried his face into Virgil’s shoulder and immediately returned the embrace, though his arms felt weak around Virgil.

“I know,” Virgil sighed, one hand moving (hopefully not awkwardly) up and down the other’s back, comforting him the only way he could think how. “I know.” And he did, he did know, he knew exactly what this was about. It was no secret that most of Roman’s obnoxious confidence was a front. Thomas had openly talked about his own struggles with confidence and self-image several times before, so it wasn’t like everyone expected him to be this perfect, arrogant, knight in shining armor all the time. So the same couldn’t be expected for Roman.

They stayed like that for a while, Virgil let Roman cry it out in silence, ignoring the growing soreness in his arms the longer they held each other like this. Eventually, though, even as Roman’s sobbing subsided, Virgil could feel his limbs trembling and his breathing growing quicker.

Right. The room. Sure enough, when Virgil pulled back from the hug, he saw dark smudges almost matching his own underneath the prince’s eyes, which were wide and full of growing fear.

“Hey, hey,” Virgil whispered, taking the prince’s face in his hands, staring into those big eyes. “In for four seconds, hold it for seven, out for eight, remember?” Roman nodded and followed the instructions, closing his eyes and visibly trying his best to calm himself. “Good, just like that. You can’t be in here for this long, especially not when you’re upset. Sink out, get some rest in your room, alright?”

Roman’s eyes shot back open and he stopped the breathing exercise for a moment as he gripped Virgil’s wrist and looked in his eyes again. “Come with me,” he said, softly, his first spoken words since he rose up. Virgil sighed, but nodded. He took Roman’s hand and the prince continued the rhythmic breathing while Virgil closed his eyes, until the aura that came with the anxiety room faded. Virgil opened his eyes to see himself and Roman in the creative side’s room, the dark eyeshadow gone from Roman’s eyes. He breathed a sigh of relief and squeezed Roman’s hand. Roman opened one eye, then the other, his grip on Virgil relaxing.

“Thank you,” Roman said, his eyes set on the ground once again, his thumb lightly grazing over the back of Virgil’s hand. Virgil cleared his throat and adjusted his weight, flush on his cheeks as he mumbled a “No problem.”

“Please don’t tell the others.”

The request shocked Virgil, though he thought maybe it shouldn’t have, and he stayed silent for a few moments before nodding in agreement. It wasn’t his place to decide when or where Patton and Logan or even Thomas would be aware of the mess that Roman can be on occasion. If Roman didn’t want them to know, then they wouldn’t know, until he told them himself or they figured it out. There was just one question Virgil still had.

“Why did you come to me?” Roman looked unsure, pursing his lips and avoiding Virgil’s gaze.

“I don’t know. Just… Felt right, I guess,” he said, breath shaking. “Patton would just try to cheer me up, Logan wouldn’t… Understand. I just needed someone to-... to—”

“To be there,” Virgil finished, swallowing the lump in his throat. “I get it.”

Roman nodded, and they fell into a mutual silence again.

Virgil realized that he was still holding onto Roman’s hand and cleared his throat as he let go, shoving his hands into his pockets. “You should get some rest,” he repeated himself, and Roman nodded in agreement.

“You should too, when was the last time you got a good night’s sleep, in that gloom room of yours? Stay here.”

Virgil couldn’t help but smile, lifting a hand to cover it and averting his gaze; an unconscious habit. He wasn’t used to being treated like this (especially not by Roman) yet, but it was a nice change, for sure.

“Alright. I’ll stay. But I want the Dragon Witch plush.”

“Deal.”