thegirlinthedirtyshirtmp3

[dailystation19]

STATION 19 | 6.09 Come As You Are

[angelsdean]

he SO happy to mow the lawn. and he's so bad at it. but it's okay. he's doing it so cutely.

[sincerity--extreme]

I watched 5 seasons of Station 19 in less than 2 weeks moved completely by the need to watch Maya and Carina on my screen, all thanks to Tumblr, I barely sleep and I get angry at some of the characters so often my stress level rised slightly but I have absolutely no regrets, just wish I had people to talk about it with now

[deluweil]

People are joking about ABC realizing why FOX put Ryan in interview jail - Without realizing the consequences of what FOX and KR have done.

Actors don't say anything that they aren't allowed to say, that is Hollywood's iron rule when filming a project.

Whatever Ryan is saying, he was given permission to do it.

ABC sees and understands the ramification of the homophobic narrative forced on the show on FOX's network they can see the bad writing and the altogether 'don't give a fuck about this' attitude the show was getting from it's showrunners.

ABC wouldn't take something that is circling the drain just to continue with the bad form of handling the show got so far.

Now Ryan, bless him, he loves Buck and he loves Oliver and thank God he loves Eddie, he understands the character better than anyone, he also knew where it was supposed to go when Murphy first hired him.

KR taking over put a wrench in that original plan but the choices made by both writers and actors on screen showed her exactly where she could shove her heteronormative narrative.

ABC is simply amplifying the obvious cast and writers cry and giving them a safe heaven to exist in peace.

It's not for nothing that the publicity and the premiere party were this big, this is a promise to the cast and crew that they will be treated better than the crap hole FOX network treated them.

Now, I don't know what will happen, but gay storyline or not, Eddie does love Buck to the core, it doesn't have to be in a romantic sense, it can be in any way possible, that saying alone does not scream gay, everything else that happened in the story up until now, however, does.

Because in CF Severide and Casey loved each other to the core in their best friend way, Vic and Travis love each other to the core in Station 19 without there being a romantic entanglement, Gibson loved Miller until he died still managing to stay straight lol and same for Cruz and Otis in CF - both had gfs both loved each other like brothers.

Eddie loves Buck, it doesn't have to mean anything romantic unless it was played into it, 911 leaned into it and failed to follow through on FOX, I am hoping ABC gives them that last shove.

After all, ABC is the home of Station 19, Home of the beautiful Marina pair, and the first male bi-character, finally, portrayed brilliantly by Eli in S6.

So stop saying Ryan is simply burning the house down, he does better PR for this show than all the anemic interviews Oliver was instructed to give so far.

Again, not Oliver's fault, KR made him, picked her favorite and dragged him down with her kicking and screaming. Shame on her and FOX.

[metabolizemotions]

The timeline is broken 😭

The structure both worked n didn’t work? I think it’s really more for Tully than Vic, cos Vic already has sufficient backstory, n buildup -only a trigger is nec. Esp that late into the last season when we’re eager to see where the characters r going, not where they’ve gone or rehash some things? 704-5 worked well cos there was a balanced focus on the main not guest characters. Also imo flashbacks work better when anchored by familiar events, not vague period of multiple timeframes while jumping back and forth to the present?

I think due to the time crunch they want to condense the indiv arcs into single episodes. Like 703 for Travis with his dad, 706 for Vic & Tully with Morris, 707 for Maya with Mason.

The non-linear structure did allow for building a sense of history with Morris n the emotional impact that came after. It was a better way to incorporate the story of the guest actors, and it allowed for the inclusion of as many of the main cast as possible. The team hasn’t been really like a team since Maya was captain. There hasn't been any sort of real, shared n lasting experiences.

Imagine if we had a format like that that tied a season together, instead of the captainship n political drama, n tonally different n sometimes inconsequential scenes strung together to make up episodes, which went on to make up seasons. 704-6 r better than 701-3 imo, in an already better season, despite some issues. Sadly only upon cancellation r they focusing their resources n efforts to make it more dynamic n cohesive... n we didn't get more much-needed fresh takes from new writers n directors sooner...

We got to see the progression of how Vic came into her own as the leader for Crisis One. How it led to her emotional burnout n compassion fatigue - she truly cared for people, taking on their pain, while not being able to release her own unresolved pain or seek help when she needed it. A reality of mental health professionals, of women, esp woc.

The Travic scenes are the best scenes in a while now. It resonates the most when the writing felt true to the characters. Underneath the goofiness, they tell each other brutally honest truths. Like how they fought over their way to cope with trauma - Travis feeling the full brunt of the grief over Michael's death n struggling to really move on. While Vic quickly tried to move on after Ripley cos to let herself feel the pain fully was impossible. Or when they talked about the blatant racism/ homophobia or microaggressions each faced n how they buried instead of dealing with the pain.

Their friendship is my fav of the show and it took a backseat for a long time. Barrett n Jay have great chemistry n they always crushed it in their scenes - the emotional ones, the funny ones... But Travis hasn't been Travis, Vic hasn't been Vic, n Travic hasn't been Travic. The show tends to put relationships on hold and isolate characters n shoehorn their actions to fit the multiple new storylines they start, but don't always follow thru. A waste of the talent of the actors. When given good material like this, see them shine, case in point - Barrett here.

In a way it also felt like part damage control.

Tully thru Boris's eyes...

A rose-tinted look at a relationship built on conflicts which the show is working around instead of facing head on? Just like how OOC Vic was written in s6 when it came to Maya. It's like they realized they went too far, n now they are retconning instead of ever addressing their attitudes n actions towards Maya.

Filling in some blanks to substantiate their relationship in the lead-up to their wedding? It's valid for the shortened season - to some extent. They had been writing them as very selfish n egoistic people. Now they want to show their better sides to make people like them as a couple ... so the show can end in a big celebration of them? But just showing their good side doesn't work for me if they don't also acknowledge their darker sides.

Basically a chief n a captain ganged up to haze a junior colleague for months. An ex-battalion chief watched on n mocked - the same person who rallied the team behind him n gave him a job when he had none; the same person whose job he tried to steal. But after the extended saga, only Maya should apologize repeatedly?

I find it hard to root for Tully as a couple. The same reason why I don't find Beckett's arc fully earned. If they want to move on, yet keep making Maya be the only one addressing her own actions directly after she faced devastating consequences. While finding other ways to justify/ explain away/ minimize/ ignore/ retcon etc the actions of the others... It just makes for a very conflicting watch.

// b/w the new mayor n Ross? Also is it considered her growth? Since the brief Maya's "sit-down" of immediately shutting her down and calling her insubordinate... To when she later reconsidered and praised Andy about the "mutiny" which she jumped to conclusions to reprimand with no context... To now being okay with insubordination towards her boss cos she thought she was fighting for the right reasons... ?

Is that subtle subtext again? Is it me or is the writing for her confusing? Or is she a conflicted person who's not very self-aware?

[kpchrs]

Since Life is Strange referenced Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Victoria is a reference) and I'm a big fan of BTVS, I think if LiS characters watch it, their favourite characters would be:

(The characters are Max, Chloe, Kate, Warren, Vic, and Nathan.)

Max: I think Max wouldn't really like the vampires and dark theme. Maybe it's too fantastical horror for her cuppa. But I think she'd relate to Willow the most. (A nerd who has no self-esteem then gets a magic power and gets too powerful she's drunk in it? Hell yeah.) And she'd love Tara a lot, the kindest character of all. I think Max would be very interested in Giles too. No, it's not because he's a teacher, she swore. He was very intellectual, it was very attractive! She watched when Chloe watched. It's more fun for her that way.

Chloe: Chloe would be that girl who is like "Yum, sista" when she met Faith and "I can't believe Faith is not gay. SHE'S DEF FRUITY AT LEAST." She would really empathise with Faith too (esp. her parental issues) and she would love her darkness. (Buffy had daddy issues too, but I think Faith resonated in Chloe more.) She'd think Spike was so fricking cool, at least in S2 when he was still a hardcore evil punk rock vampire, but not really after he got chipped. She'd be a little bit disappointed, but she'd still think he was hilarious. I think Chloe would be kinda annoyed at Angel's character, at least in BTVS. I don't think she'd continue watching after S5...? Maybe she didn't really care about the main romance plot lol (Hey, my mom's name is Joyce too! They are very different tho.) When Chloe stopped watching, Max stopped too.

Kate: I appreciate the soul and demons explanation, Warren. But, um, it's too dark for me. I don't really like vampires anyway...

Warren: Warren would LOVE this TV show. He'd be the type of person who SOBBED at Bangel. Bangel is so tragic, Max, I can't believe the universe doesn't want them together, WHY. He'd think Buffy was so hot, Spike was so cool, Giles was rad, etc. He loved almost every cool character. He'd be offended because a guy with his name was a pathetic, gross villain in S6. He'd really enjoy Spuffy too, he'd think it was so spicy ohohohohoho. Delicious, delicious. Then was kinda shocked at SR (iykyk) (but more like, "Oh, shit, they went there!"), cheered at the end of the S6, and then SOBBED again in the end of S7. I think he'd just enjoy whatever it was on the show and he'd think it's one of the best shows of all time. But my favourite is always Doctor Who, Max, always. He then would be off yapping about his analysis of each season and episode, or what he read on Reddit that he claimed as his own, and go blah blah blah bla--

Victoria: Same as Warren, Vic would be the biggest fan of the show. I think Vic would have Buffy as her favourite character. She'd be a Bangel shipper and a diehard Angel and DB fan. She'd be on Tumblr fighting the Spuffy fans. She agreed that Spike was hot, but the ship rivalry was just...yeah. But she'd secretly see herself in Cordelia. Victoria would ask, "I'm not as bitchy as Cordelia, right, Nate? Right??" and Nathan would just laugh his ass off, annoying her. Later in ATS, she came for Angel but had Cangel as a guilty pleasure. Cordelia's character development would kinda trouble her. Not because it wasn't good but because...well, she saw herself in her and could I be like that? Then she watched S4 and was so mad at them fucking up Cordy's arc.

Nathan: Nathan watched this show on and off because Victoria was watching it near him but he didn't like it. He wasn't too interested in a female main character and would be one of the people who was like: "She's hot but there's no way a girl that small can beat up people. (Stupid name, btw.)"

"She's the vampire slayer!" Vic protested.

"So fucking what?!"

He'd remember Riley and ask, "Where is that soldier guy?"

"He fucked off to Brazil a season ago, Nathan! Shut up about Riley already, he sucked!"

"Brazil again." (Iykyk.)

[matan4il]

soo true what you said. there's no way all of these choices were made by accident. they wrote it, approved it, filmed it, edited it... they know exactly what they're doing to us. and there's also no way buck and eddie would be a family like this but not a couple if they were a man and a woman. it's been YEARS of romancing

Nonnie, you're simply speaking the honest to God truth. IDK that I have anything to add, I just know the same thing you do, that if one of them were a woman, EVERYONE would expect a romance. Even a case of unrequited love. But SOMETHING where the feelings aren't just platonic. I can give you Station 19 for example. The second Vic started helping Dean with his daughter, the second they were functioning as a family (and I would argue S19 has shown that even less than 911 has shown it with Buddie), I KNEW where this was going. And indeed, Dean eventually realizes he has feelings for her.

Even if two characters aren't originally meant to have feelings for each other, if there is enough chemistry and build up, and the audience seems to react positively to the idea of a couple, show makers sometimes change course to go with the treasure they accidentally stumbled across. I can think of Emma and Hook on Once Upon a Time as an example. I'm convinced Emma was supposed to end up with Neal, everything about the build up, story structure, symbolic significance of the characters was pointing to that, but Emma's chemistry with Hook was so much better, the fans loved them. And while Emma and Hook's initial interactions were just meant to have him be a minor obstacle on the way to Emma and Neal's endgame, those scenes ended up serving as a part of the build up for Emma and Hook turning into endgame. You can read more about them and how they compare to Buddie here.

Anyway, my point is that even if Buddie had been accidental at first, if one of them were a woman, I have no doubt the show would have embraced turning them into canon enthusiastically. 911 still might. For all we know, maybe 618 is NOT the finale they planned for if the show would have been canceled, and maybe the original s6 finale would have allowed Buddie to go canon. We don't know. We might never know. But I know what trajectory Buddie would have had sooner or later if one were a woman, I have no doubt about that one.

Thank you, Nonnie! I hope you have a good day. As always, my ask tag is here. xoxox

[mayasdeluca]

I'm on my s6 rewatch and omg beckett is awful. Seriously HOW did he get away with treating maya like that? And everyone in general? I hate to think how much he reminded maya of her dad it must've all been so triggering for her and people wondered why she worked herself sick?

He's the worst...it's crazy how he never really got in trouble for that or held accountable at all and they still tried to make Maya out to be the bad guy with the whole giving him alcohol thing and then it was like they were trying to justify his behavior because of his own mental health issues that he spoke about with Vic but I don't understand why these men like Beckett and Jack would get a pass for that (and even Theo because I'm sure that's coming this season and it's somehow going to be justified for how he treated Vic) but then when it comes to Maya she automatically has to make all these amends and she's the worst person ever despite going through so much trauma herself. And it's really going to annoy me if Beckett sticks around all season because there's really no need for that at all.

[il3x]

Today's take: the first half of BNHA season 6 has the same flaws as the Slaughterhouse 9000 arc in Worm.

Namely, they're extended battle/action arcs where the antagonists are literal clones of earlier villains (S9k and Nomus). This makes for monotonous fights, exactly what you don't want in an action-focused arc. Take Nomus - they all have the same strengths and weaknesses: big, strong, agile, largely mindless*. The S9k do bring new abilities to the playing field, but they bring nine of each, so later fights face the same boredom issue.

Cue the next problem: using clones as cannon fodder devalues them. When you've defeated one clone, you have precedent for defeating all the others, killing the tension. Take BNHA: the first Nomu carried an arc climax fight alone, and the first ramp-up to three Nomus gave me chills... but after that, there were diminishing returns. By S6 the heroes have defeated multiple nomus (including one smart and upgraded one) with few meaningful losses**, and Nomus no longer feel like a serious threat. In Worm, tension also suffers because each S9 member gets very little setup before being defeated (usually in the same fight). You don't have time to build dread from meaningful losses, or speculate on how the heroes will defeat established threats.***

On top of that, the Nomus and S9k clones aren't really written as people. You miss out on character intrigue, personalised tactics, and any moral weight to killing them. Not that these are required, but they did help to avoid monotony in other arcs.

And, finally, the protagonists. Large-scale battles from the POVs of many heroes, in many different locations, and cutting between these locations - runs the risk of becoming disjointed. Less of an issue in Worm, where we stick with Taylor's POV, but still present if I recall correctly. The heroes' mini-goals (for each section of focus) rarely vary beyond "defeat this lot of clones", adding to the monotony. Plus, both arcs pad out their hero ranks with side characters who the audience doesn't have much reason to be invested in. ([cough] Chicago Wards. [cough])

*Sure, they brought in the "smart Nomus"... and immediately deactivated them. Sigh. Despite supposedly being smarter, the Nomus we do face don't fight differently for it, like using tactics or tricking the heroes - they're still brute force opponents.

**I can only think of Endeavour's scar, and that's positively karmic.

***Similar patterns in Ward. The Vic vs Seir fight is one of my Ward favourites, and I think that's partly because Seir was well-established.

****The most interesting tack I think BNHA could have taken with Nomus is leaning in to "they used to be/are people", and creating moral conflict around killing them... but they introduced "they were people" in an arc where it's open season on ALL villains, so that wouldn't really work.

[bilosan]

Hi vic :) I'm rewatching from s6 during the mini hiatus and I was thinking I haven't seen a parallel gif set of buck searching for peace and now finally finding it?

I think it's 6x2 when he's talking to hen saying someday he'll feel at ease and his fears will fall away from him, I just think it's so beautiful to see in comparison to the kiss in 7x4 and buck finally taking a deep breath of relief <3

hi dear<3 i love that, hope this is okay!

[angelsdean]

DEAN Well, whatever. Something turned him into a monster. And you know if you woulda taken out the other one there'd be one less to worry about. SAM I'm sorry, all right? I hesitated, Dean, it was a kid! DEAN No, it was an "it". Not the best time for a bleeding heart, Sam.

Once again, random line at the start of the episode that on the surface level paints Dean as overly-callous, isn't actually abt the person they're talking about and is instead abt Dean's own internal turmoil over what John told Dean before he died, as is the thread throughout this entire episode (and the season at large) which will be made explicit by the end of the ep (and into the next) when dean finally reveals what John told him he'd have to do.

For weeks (months? -- how long has it been at this point) Dean has been grappling with the knowledge of what John wants him to do. He's trying to reconcile with it, trying to understand a world where he could follow through with John's request and actually kill Sam. We know from 2x03 Bloodlust that Dean's already started questioning John's brand of monster ethics. It's Dean, not Sam, at the end of that episode who reflects on the case and how that applies to their lives and their job and it's Dean who wonders how many monsters didn't actually deserve to die. Sam just sweeps it under the rug and gives John the benefit of the doubt, saying he was doing "the best he could," while Dean feels torn up about the whole thing. What John taught them is no longer enough, not when he's got Sam's life in his hands. Not when he has to determine when his own brother is past the point of saving. And the parallel storyline with Gordon and his sister shows us that Dean wouldn't be able to do the same.

Now, in 2x09, we see he's still grappling with this issue. When it comes to monster ethics on this show, it can get dicey. Both brothers flip-flop a lot, depending on the situation, sometimes they fall back on what John taught them, but they both also have their own separate codes they follow. John's brand of monster ethics was very much = a monster is a monster is a monster and shoot first ask questions later. Dean's brand of monster ethics is: a monster is someone (can even be human!) who preys on and kills innocent people. Sam generally I think believes this too, but! he is prone to sympathizing or not sympathizing with certain monsters depending on how he personally relates to them. Max in 1x14 got his full sympathy because Sam related to him and saw him as a victim, whereas Simon in 2x05 gets very little sympathy from Sam despite also being one of the Special Children because Sam is already convinced that he's the "bad guy."

Anyways, point is, while Dean does "shoot first" in the scene they're discussing above, he does it because he sees the man harming his wife. Hurting an innocent person = monster. He's also grappling with the Sam and John stuff. He's questioning his father's ethics but also wondering at what point will Sam stop being his brother if he were to "go darkside." So he's working out these feelings by talking about other people. "It was an 'it'. Not time for a bleeding heart" is more about him telling himself that, in my opinion. It's him trying to convince himself to not let his heart get in the way of his job. Because Dean cares so much. Because Dean is often thee bleeding heart being forced into impossible situations by the narrative. He's always letting himself be vulnerable to hurt and loss. And he knows IF it ever gets to the point where Sam is the thing that's hurting people, he'll still struggle to kill him. So he's telling himself now, letting John's "wisdom" speak through him, to not let his heart get in the way.

But we know, we know it's just words. Because later in this episode when they all think Sam is infected, he can't go through with it. Would rather die himself (and right the "wrong" of him even being alive in the first place) along with Sam than kill his own brother.

[alyssaforevermore]

I’m so glad I put off finishing S6 after that cliffhanger… Can they please let Jack be happy for more than five seconds?? He’s been through enough and he better not die 😭🤚🏻

Also final thoughts on S6: I really adore Sullivan/Ross, even as a (somewhat) former die hard Sullivan/Andy shipper. Ruiz is dead to me. Vic is the sweetest soul ever, never giving up on Beckett and getting him to go back to rehab so he can heal. I always had a little soft spot for Beckett, I knew he wasn’t a horrible person, just struggling. I can’t stand Eli. Andy getting Captain made me so happy. I’m glad the Dixon storyline is over. Maya and Carina being happy makes me happy. Ben getting that award was very much deserved.

[horta-in-charge]

Content Warning: Contains 18+ Content MINORS DO NOT INTERACT, spoilers for Start Trek Deep Space Nine S6, sex with holograms of ‘real’ people (think that episode where Tiron wanted Major Kira as a program), Dominion War mentions, things that haven’t been written yet and may never will be, implied foursome, human/accidental, time limited!human virus infected aliens, human/Cardassian(s) (Damar and Dukat) and human/Vorta (Weyoun 5), drinking, alcohol, Damar making a holoprogram for sex, self doubt.

Author’s Note: I tried to list everything I could think of for content warnings, if I missed something, please let me know. This is from Damar’s perspective (sort of?)- it’s third person really. @deepspacedukat really got me to write this because of discord conversations. This was not originally on my WIP list but here you go! Oh and one other thing- Damar has no idea she’s only half human... possible angst later if Vic can read holosuite use codes... but that’s not in this fic! Big thanks to tinsnip’s (AO3) ‘Speculative Cardassian Reproductive Xenobiology’ for the terms! As always, if I use your gif, and you would like it removed, please tell me!

Fantasy

It starts as a simple project to ease his mind on nights when he can’t relax with a glass or two of Kanar. Just a little programming, just to see if he can do it. In reality, it isn’t simple at all. It’s a slow and tedious process, but the results will be worth it. Some nights he thinks about what would happen if the Dominion captured Starbase 375, if she would be unharmed, if he could take her for himself. Sometimes he shakes it off because the risk is too great, and sometimes he thinks about his wife, the one he didn’t want to marry even though the state demanded it. 

It hurts thinking how much time he’s spent on it before he can even use the program in the holosuites. How much more time he spends trying to get it perfect, he’s not sure, but eventually he can’t make it any better without a full holoscan, and he has to work off of his memories- his perfect memories of that night. A night spent in bed with her, and two other human men. They were all human that evening and in the morning, there was just her. 

He likes to think about how willing she was that evening, when he was human too. He tries to erase the memories of Weyoun and Dukat, but he’s never successful, even when he takes his pleasure into his own hands in the sonic shower. 

He programs her personality, based on what he knows and the way she acts whenever he’s had the opportunity to watch her, which is rare. The first time he uses the finished program, at least every part of her is finished, it doesn’t go as well as he planned. She’s reluctant, just like she had been the morning after, with two Cardassians and a Vorta in her bed. She accepts him, of course, just like she had that morning, but then she was outnumbered, and in this, it’s part of her programming. So he makes himself a human skin. 

It’s not perfect, and maybe he’s still a touch too gray to be considered fully human, but she doesn’t care. He can feel her arms when they wrap around his neck ridges, but she can’t. She doesn’t know he’s a Cardassian, he’s just her partner, who’s a little chrome colored, but still acceptable. Still just humanoid enough to warrant her time. When he takes her, she feels a human cock, not his Cho’Ch, and while he loves being with her, there’s still the ache that never eases. 

Some nights, he likes to have her on all fours, pounding into her mercilessly from behind, so she can’t see him and he can pretend she wants the real him, not a holoskin. Other nights, he likes to have her take charge and ride him, her tanned, toned thighs gripping him while she bounces on his Cho’Ch, her clear crystal necklace bouncing between her breasts. Sometimes, he rips it off and throws it off the bed, not wanting anything to touch her but him. Other times, he likes to grab the crystal and use it to pull her to him for a kiss. 

How often does he yearn for those kisses, the ones she gave him, the way she rolled her tongue in his wanting, eager mouth. The way she kissed him on her knees, taking him fully into her mouth, doing things with her tongue he’d never felt before. The way she’d rolled back his foreskin with only her tongue before taking him in fully, bobbing her head with abandon. The hologram loves doing this too, but there are times he grabs her head and forces her down farther to his irllun, making her gasp in surprise and grab his hips, but she still enjoys running her tongue along him anyways. Occasionally, he’ll blend the knowledge of her being a hologram into it and won’t let her stop to breathe until he cums down her throat, which she loves. She is however, only the holographic version of the woman he wants, his good luck charm, as she isn’t fond of being called, and he would never treat the real her that way, so he rarely gives into the temptation.

They’ve only done anal once, because the prep took too much time, but he enjoyed that too. Would she ever let him have her like that? Even if he saved her from a Jem’Hadar’s phaser rifle? He tries not to think that she would say yes only because of that, while he sits in his room, or at the bar with a full glass accompanied by a half full bottle. 

Afterwards, when they rest, limbs tangled together, he likes to kiss her birthmarks. They’re tiny and too dark to be freckles, and they aren’t in quite the right spots, but he kisses them all the same and enjoys the look on her face when he does. She strokes his cheek with her thumb, and she likes to kiss his chufa, but when she lies down next to him, she gently rubs her free hand and thumb over his chula before lying her head on it softly, curling into his body. She has no idea what her forehead kisses really do to him, or how much deeper he falls in love with her when she touches his chest like that, but she finds contentment in it. He’ll never stop her from doing it either. 

On the nights he takes her missionary, she reaches up and softly grabs his long, black hair, gently kissing him while he takes her slowly, over and over again. How beautiful she looks, splayed out for him on the blue silk bedding, it’s almost as soft as the touch of her skin on his. Oh, the way she looks at him, into his eyes, he almost dreams she can see the real him, and accepts him the way he wants the real her to. But it never happens, never will happen, not now. Not during the war. Not after either, no matter if the Dominion wins, or not. 

He never leaves the data rod with Quark, and if he comes out with his hair a little ruffled, Quark knows better than to ask about it. Maybe he spends a little too much on holosuite time, but for an hour, once a week, she loves him. And that’s enough. 

[metabolizemotions]

This season has been steeped in irony and parallels. The mental health arcs of Maya and Jack, addiction, the captaincy drama, Dixon's villainy // those in s3 esp. They made things more extreme and took them further.  

I understand the choice to isolate Maya and the team’s lack of support or compassion for her since her demotion, and the non existence of the union were plot devices for her mental health crisis storyline. But they supported Ross wholeheartedly, no questions asked? And what was the actual point of the union again?

Ross is a flawed and complex character, just like Maya. But the framing of their actions were different. They both made questionable decisions but there was only acknowledgement of what Maya did. Not Ross. Not Beckett. Their part in Maya's mental breakdown?

For the long build up since s4’s finale of Maya's demotion and the aftermath in s5 & s6, this feels like a cop out non-resolution. And this whole storyline ending with Ross's scandal framed entirely as feminist triumph is self-contradictory for me.

I liked the slow burn of Marina’s storyline - the breakdown and reconciliation and the many //. Though I didn’t necessarily agree with the characterisation entirely, the performance of D & S were emotionally resonant for me. But I thought they dropped the ball in 617. Carina's scenes were more for the benefit of Ben and Ross. It didn’t help with the way they phrased the locker room conversation as a direct causation. It was a clever use of symbolism to encapsulate so much in ~ 1 min of screen time. But I hope they don't spoil the finale in wanting to tie up the loose ends. (Also, does that mean they won't ever change their duvets now that they are probably not moving?)

There seemed to be deliberate comparison b/w Maya and Theo - their demotion, initial captaincy, single-minded obsession and mental health issues. Also some similarities about how their partners have been affected. Although Theo's behavior was more flipped-switch than organic transition and it was mainly directed at Vic. With what happened to Beckett and the toll it would take on Vic, would she have her breakdown and Theo his wakeup call? Vic needs a hug.

Did anyone else find the kisses b/w Travis and Eli awkward? Or was it cos I think Travis had much better chemistry with Michael and Emmett?

It is interesting to see Brooke, a sort of nature/ nurture comparison to Jack. Similar DNA, dissimilar upbringing. Brooke seems more emotionally mature. Jack lacks boundaries and his way of caring is to impose his values on people and help them on his terms. While Brooke’s trying to meet him where he is - like finding Lila instead of springing their bio family on him. 

Since they made such a big hoo-ha about the forbidden love affair b/w Sullivan and Ross and Dixon’s villany this season, and both storylines are not resolved, I suspect the finale would have something to do with Dixon and the two lovers. But why should we care about Sulky & Tash again? They aren't even on the same page. Sulky has been consistently w/o much growth. Ross has been consistently inconsistent. Sulky is so much like Derek and Owen. Tash keeps pulling a Meredith with her "pick me, choose me, love me" speeches...

They love to hand Sulky the redemption arc he doesn't work for and somehow frame him as the hero... Maybe he pushes Tash away from falling debris and something happens to Dick in the process. Poetic justice. Or something something…?   

Somehow I feel that Andy still wouldn't be captain. Stay tuned for another season of captaincy musical chairs...?

[mcdevinpants]

Tag! DS9 for the series ask :D

Bolding my answers because I don't know how to be brief in case you want a tl;dr

Favorite Character: Jadzia Dax, easily. Jadzia is Goals and Gender and a;leavpeoavweiubnasger;oaseg;oianvswe she's one of my favorite characters in anything ever.

Second Favorite Character: fuckin'...Gul Dukat. I love him. I hate him SO MUCH. I love to hate him. He's such a huge asshole it's a miracle people don't think he's the wormhole.

Least Favorite Character: You'll need to check under the Read More for this if you've finished the series, because someone hasn't finished it yet. Someone who asked me this question. @helloallec.

The Character I'm Most Like: I can't answer this without it being somewhat aspirational. I'd like to say I'm most like Jadzia because that'd be rad, but I'm definitely not. I think I'd have to go with Doctor Bashir. We have a lot in common, including a lot of our strengths and weaknesses.

Favorite Pairing: Jadzia/Worf. ICONIC.

Least Favorite Pairing: Garak/Ziyal. Nope. Nope nope nope nope nope. I'd much rather have seen Jake/Ziyal (can you imagine the problems that would've caused between Captain Sisko and Gul Dukat??), and I'm Garak/Bashir all the way. Literally from Garak's first appearance.

Favorite Moment: Yeah you'll have to check under the Read More for this one too. FINISH SEASON 6 ALLEC.

Rating out of 10: 15. Ask me what my favorite show is, it's DS9. It's my favorite Star Trek, it's my favorite show. I get hit by feels just listening to the theme song. Any version of it (either version they used for the show and also any cover of it).

Least Favorite Character: Vic Fontaine. They did some interesting things with him and his holosuite program (I loved It's Only a Paper Moon, just rip my heart directly out of my chest why don't you), but the whole concept felt disjointed at times and I'm also extremely lukewarm on the lounge music genre which I can't pretend doesn't influence my feelings on Vic.

Favorite Moment: Can I just pick all of S6? No? Fine. Sisko's personal log in In The Pale Moonlight. So much of DS9 was about bringing Star Trek a little closer to reality. And I know Roddenberry would've hated that and he was wrong. That moment brought the series full circle on this concept, and connects so very well back to The Maquis Pt II in S2. It's easy to be a saint in paradise. And well...Sisko has been away from paradise for a long time. This is one of those pieces that I keep coming back to think about, and every time I do I want to re-watch the episode.