#watching himself become a parallel to Miguel

[dirtytransmasc]

What if Miles didn't save his dad and his universe collapsed anyway.

It'd happen so fast, one minute he's rushing to his dad and the next he's sprawled across the ground, shoved off course by someone.

(Miguel is an option but I like the idea it's just some random Spiderman.)

Miles 'canon' events happens but his universe still glitches, half of it falling into the Spot's holes as it does as the villain becomes more and more unstable.

1610 collapses in front of everyone, swallowed up by the ever growing pitch black holes, leaving only Miles Morales as it's lone survivor.

to say the boy would be a mess, would be more than an understatement, it wouldn't even come close enough to smell, let alone touch, the way Miles is feeling. but he wouldn't just be sad or gutted or hopeless or even broken after losing everything; he'd be angry.

if he allowed himself to be dragged from the glitching, fading rubble of his now barren dimension, he would rip HQ apart, piece by piece. he'd scream and cry and break down, his abilities turned up to 110, his electricity flowing out him without any control, lashing out at anyone who tried to invade his space, let alone tried to touch him or stop him.

I think he would come pretty close to taking down Miguel, he'd defiantly pin him, using his enhanced reflexes and sheer surprise to get the upper hand, before just snapping. he'd let loose on Miguel, physically yes, but he would scream at him. he'd shove his stupid canon theory back into his face, begging for an explanation; if he was supposed to let his dad die, if he was forced to, than why did he lose everything anyway?

he'd leave Miguel bloody, even in his fury, he won't kill him, he can't do it, but he will make him suffer. he wants answers, he wants so many answers, answers to questions he doesn't even know he has, and he needs Miguel for those.

once he burns up his anger and cries out his sadness, he's left numb and empty, frequently returning to his dimension to sit amongst what little remains of his home. it doesn't really hit him at first that everything is gone, he knows it is, but he just can't accept it, his mom, his dad, Ganke, his friends, the cashier at the bodega, all of them, they can't be gone. he didn't even get to say goodbye.

part of him knows, deep down, that he should have saved his dad, he should have been allowed to try, that they would be here if he had just gotten to try. call it insanity, desperate attempts at coping, grasping at straws, spidey senses, intuition, some higher intervention and knowledge, he has no fucking idea, he just knows, and it only fuels his anger.

he stops coming out of his "room" at HQ, stops letting people in, not even Pav and Hobie who have never wronged him, who were always on his side, let alone the others, who at one point or another abandoned him or saddled against him. he stops in general, stops eating, stops sleeping, stops trying to distract his mind with things like music. he loses it a few more times, tearing up whatever furniture he had been given to make up for his lack of a home, before turning to laying on the floor, looking up at the blank ceiling for hours, ignoring any of the desperate pleas from outside his door.

he cringes when he realizes he's just becoming Miguel. he ignores the thought. tries to at least.

he lies there and withers away until he can no longer fight the others off, till he's forced to let them take care of him, forced to listen to their apologies and their "it'll be ok"'s. he honestly doesn't care; everything that ever truly mattered to him is gone or tainted, he's lost his world, his people, his family, he lost his friends, he lost his purpose. he just floats through life, accepting that he's just gonna turn into someone like Miguel, cold and closed off, not really living, but not dead, and he's "ok" with that, more so, he doesn't have the care nor energy to be more than that anymore. he accepts his fate, for once, cause its clear that trying to do anything else only get him and the people he loves hurt.

[cucumberteapot]

Spider-man Villains and Hands

If you're paying attention you'll notice often times in Spiderverse that villains are far less expressive with their hands than the heroes. That is unless it's to attack.

Kingpin clicks his pen to relieve rage he's only barely controlling and in Peter Parker's death scene, the only time we see his hands is to kill him.

With Doc Ock, we see her doing a lot of excited gesturing with her hands (pushing up her glasses, studying Peter, etc.).

But after her reveal, it's her tentacles that does most of the talking.

Moving on to ATSV, when we first meet Spot, he's experimenting with his Spots with (you guesses it!) his hands and it's a lot of trial and error. It's also a lot of slap-stick comedy in his first fight with Miles managing to take him out briefly by making him punch himself in the face.

However as he becomes more confident with his powers, we see him use his hands less and less to the point he doesn't need to use a spot to teleport between dimensions. Instead of attacking them, Spot starts fighting by letting the heroes attack him.

And by the end of the film, his mere presence has become such a threat to Miles that all he has to do to invoke fear is stand still. This is why after his colour scheme has been completely inverted, he doesn't fight or do anything with his hands anymore and it's why our last focus on his hands is when he watches it completely turn from white to black.

When we first get a good look at Miguel, we get a close-up of his claws before panning up to his watch. Firstly this shows us how unlike the other Spider-people Miguel is. He has claws and wears a cape. Peter says in the first movie, "Spider-man doesn't wear capes." Then we see a better look at his watch which tells us this character isn't just scary and powerful, but is powerful in their access to other dimensions without having their cells decay - which by the end of the movie proves to be another problem for Miles. Immediately this shot warns us that Miguel is an unstoppable and dangerous person and the sirens in his leitmotif only emphasise that, even if the characters don't realise it yet.

Likewise with Fisk and Doc Ock in the previous Spiderverse installment, Miguel also doesn't have a lot of hand animations outside of fighting and we see this visual language in his meeting with Miles. Miles offers Miguel an empanadas and calls him 'Tio' ("uncle" in Spanish) as an offer of respect and solidarity, but Miguel's response is to grab the box and throws it aside before resuming his stance.

Here Miguel isn't just refusing Miles, he's also refusing the subliminal coding of a heroic character and I feel this has a lot to do with how our human brains work. The way we understand people and animals is by the way they mirror us. We like patterns and to draw parallels to ourselves. When someone is excited, we're excited. When someone's confused, we're confused. When someone's sad, we're sad. And so on. However when we're faced with something that doesn't react how we expect or reacts unpredictably, like Miguel throwing the empanadas back at Miles, it's sets off a warning in our brains. It's kind of like a predator hunting prey, which is the exact dynamic between Miles and Miguel by the end of the film.

However in Miles' mind, he has no idea why Miguel is being so antagonistic towards him. Even when Peter says, "He's always like this." Miguel remains stoic when Mayday is crawling around him and only moves to catch her and hand her back to Peter. Like with the empanadas, this is another example of Miguel's lack of ability to connect with the people in his environment other than through aggression and violence. It's why Miles calls out, "You have claws? Are you sure your Spider-man?" Because Spider-man is defined by his ability to connect with people - hero or villain.

Then we get to another clawed antagonist who hunts Miles for the duration of the first Spiderverse's runtime. Much like Miguel, Prowler's movement is mostly unstoppable aggression. That is until he learns Miles is Spider-man. Aside from presenting as Aaron Davis, Prowler is most identifiable by his giant claws and the camera makes sure of it.

It's only when Aaron learns who Miles is does he take off a claw to hold his hand in his final moments. Unlike Miguel, the claws are not exclusively attached to his suit - they are removable and thus Aaron is able to connect with the people in his environment outside of his identity as the Prowler.

Which finally leads us to our other Prowler, who likewise is able to put on and take off the claws. But where am I going with this?

I feel like in this scene the lighting and colour grading is doing the most work in making Prowler intimidating. Because unlike Aaron's Prowler, Miles' Prowler design is very casual for a villain. Which works for the character but without the claws and the mask, Miles looks just as scrawny as his Spider-man counter-part. It's almost too casual without those key identifiers. Which is why I think we're going to see a lot of Miles' Prowler without the claws and interacting with his family in the next film, as well as dealing with his own identity. Like Aaron in the first film and unlike Miguel in the second, we're going to see how Prowler connects with his environments beyond serving as a antagonistic foil to Miles.

[bumpkinspice0]

Parallels Chapter 19: The Choice

Miguel O'Hara x Spider!FemReader

No use of y/n

Rating: Maure

Word Count: 4.6k

Summary: Miguel does his best to make you feel more comfortable in your new living situation and you finally tell some friends the truth

Warnings: Just like... so much angst I guess

A/N: Sooo sorry this took a bit. Finding it hard to write these transition chapters BUT this should be the last one

Previous

Series Masterlist

AO3

_______

It feels wrong to be in your space without you there. Or maybe it’s just the fact that you can’t be here that makes Miguel's stomach churn. Still, he’s here. He came here because you asked him to.

Jack’s not back yet. That’s fine, Miguel can wait. He grabs a long abandoned box that should have been recycled ages ago and starts to fill it with whatever he can find. Clothes, books, pictures, whatever he thinks you’d find comfort in.

As he makes his way through your apartment, he sees how different it’s become. A makeshift photography studio takes up half the space, more boxes cluttering the increasingly cramped room. Yet, it’s still so you. You’d told him you’d practically already given the place to Jack, and based on looks alone that seems to be true, yet your presence still lingers. You're sent. The little things that made this your home— your life. And he’s taken it away. 

It feels dirty, like he’s stolen you. He supposes he has, in a way. He’d ripped you away from all of this without your consent. It’s your life, you should have had a say, but then again who would choose their own death?

He wonders if he would have let you go through with it if he’d warned you what was to come. Would you have done it if you knew what the canon was destined to be? Yes, of course you would have. Because he would have done the same. 

Being Spider-Man is a sacrifice. 

He’s a hypocrite, he’s a liar, a fraud. He’s— he’ll think about it all later. Right now, he’ll just focus on the task at hand. He’s good at that. 

Miguel’s upstairs when he hears the door click open, quickly followed by the kitchen lights. He hears one set of footsteps. Jack’s back and he’s alone, so he can finally do what he came here to do. What you asked him to do. 

Miguel jumps from the loft, landing directly in front of the kitchen bar. Jack stands in front of the tea kettle waiting for it to boil, his posture limp and tired. He looks awful. It only takes him a split second to notice Miguel. 

“Jesus Christ!” Jack stumbles back clutching his chest. He takes a moment to gather himself, his face sorting through nearly every emotion. Miguel watches and his expression slowly changes from shock to anger. Jack expected you, instead, he gets Miguel. 

Jack marches around the kitchen counter to stand directly in front of Miguel. He’s a rather short and stout man, but somehow that doesn’t make him any less intimidating. 

“Where is she?!” Jack pushes Miguel’s chest. 

“She’s safe.” He answers blankly. 

This only seems to add to Jack’s understandable frustrations, “Is she alive?”

“Safe would imply alive.” 

“Then where. Is. she!” Jack pushes him again, a little harder this time. Miguel doesn’t move. “They all think she’s dead, you know! It’s all over the news. An explosion in some nowhere warehouse in Queens. They say they saw her swinging there. Just a few blurry pictures as proof.”

Jack starts pacing. It’d been at least 24 hours since the accident. He’s probably been running this all through his head without anyone to tell it to. Now that he has Miguel he can let it all out. He has a chance for answers, but first, he needs to finish panicking. 

“That wasn’t her. I know what her suit looks like. I know what—” Jack pauses, realization dawning on him, “It was you, wasn’t it? You were there?”

Miguel simply nods. 

Jack sighed, running his hand through his wavy dark hair, “Miguel… please, where’s my friend?”

Miguel hates this. He hates that he has to do this. Sighing, he takes a seat on the couch, placing the box of your memorabilia next to him. 

“Jack… sit down, and I’ll explain everything.” 

Your friend hesitates for a moment. He doesn’t trust Miguel yet, not completely. That’s fair, Miguel’s taken you away from him. Jack sits away. 

Miguel explains it all— The canon, the consequences, the goal of spider society. Everything. He needs to know everything just so he can understand the gravity of the situation. What could be at stake here if they’re not very, very careful. 

He explains why he did what he did the best he can… and why he’s the one here explaining all of this instead of you. 

Jack’s expression remains stagnant for the most part. Miguel’s not sure if it’s the shock of it all or just because he’s trying so desperately to understand. Probably a healthy mix of both. This is your best friend. You’re brother. He deserves to know everything until Miguel can fix it. 

When he finished, they both sat in complete silence.

Miguel doesn’t expect it when Jack grabs his hand and buries his face in the other. His shoulders shake with muffled sobs he’s desperately trying to control. 

“But she’s alive,” He hears Jack mumble to himself. Miguel just sits there awkwardly. He’s bad at this, he’s so fucking bad at this. He’d explained the whole situation as clinically as possible to avoid something like this. He’s had enough tears that he’s caused.

Jack’s sharing his pain with him. He’s showing him trust, just a little. 

There’s no getting around it. This is a unique tragedy. Sure, you’re still alive but you might as well be dead to him. He may never see you again. Your best friend may never see you again and it’s all Miguel’s fault.

Jack eventually lets go of Miguel’s hand, wiping away the remaining stray tears. 

“I’m going to fix this, Jack,” Miguel finally says. 

“Yeah, you fucking better,” Jack huffs an attempted smile to cut through all the other raging emotions, “You really fucking better.”

“She… she says the apartment’s totally yours until further notice,” God, Miguel is so fucking bad at this. 

“Not that she was here much to begin with,” Jack huffs again. His voice is back to normal. Emotions are settling, thank god. 

Another bloated silence stirs between the two men. There just simply wasn’t anything else that could be said. The only thing they had in common was you, and Miguel had stolen you completely. What is it like to have a friend like Jack, Miguel wonders. Someone so unabashedly loyal. Someone who chooses to be your brother despite everything. 

Gabe was pulled into this life practically kicking and screaming. That’s all Miguel did, drag people down with him. And now he’d done it not only to you, but the people you loved. 

He’ll fix this. He has to. 

“Um, I was grabbing a few things for her before you came,” Miguel grabs the half-filled box, “Anything else you think she’d need? For now at least.”

Jack glances through the box for a moment, giving his eyes one final wipe each, “Yeah. Yeah, of course, follow me.”

Miguel silently follows him up the stairs. Silently sits there as he picks out all of your favorite clothes from the dresser. Silently watches as he sorts through your toiletries. Silently observes this man who knows you better than he does. 

What did Miguel really know about you in comparison? He’d read your file but what were the things that made you you? Your favorite movie, color, book? What did he know besides your body?

He’s suddenly filled with shame as he watches Jack effortlessly sort out your life when he’d just grabbed whatever he could see. That’s what you deserved, someone who knew you in the small ways. The ways that mattered. Not whatever Miguel had sucked you into. You’d both tried so hard to escape, pushed each other away… and now look where it's gotten you. This is a mess. 

He’ll try, Miguel decides. He’ll try to get to know you on a closer level. You deserved at least that. He didn’t have to keep you at arm's length anymore. He wanted to dive into your mind now. Learn everything there was to know about what made up this woman that he loved so much.

“She loves you, you know,” Jack breaks the silence, sorting through your dresser one final time in a desperate attempt to find a shirt that isn’t a graphic tee. 

Miguel says nothing. Do you love him back? Could you after all of this?

“She hasn’t told me, but she does,” Jack continues, “She won’t say it first, you can count on that.”

“Why…why are you telling me this?”

“Because she’ll find every reason not to tell you. She puts herself through hell, she suffers alone because some fucked up part of her thinks she needs to. That she has to go it alone. She’s scared, though. She’s always scared for everyone else. Hell, she sent you here to check up on me when she’s probably having the literal worst day of her life. Is that how you all are? You… spider people?”

Miguel hates to admit it, “Yes, in a way.”

“Makes sense.” Miguel swears Jack almost chuckles, “You’ve shown her how much she matters to you now. She’s going to overthink everything. She’s gonna find reasons that don’t exist. She’s gonna be scared. Be patient with her.” 

Jack places his final assortment of clothes into the box with a heavy sigh. He gathers himself for a moment before looking Miguel in the eye.

“Do you?”

“Do I what?”

“Do you love her? This all wasn’t some hero's guilty conscious thing, right? You saved her, you broke the rules, you possibly ruined your life and job…because you love her.”

He so desperately wants to deny it, but when else is he going to have the opportunity to admit it? Not to you. Not yet.

“I do.” 

Jack scoffs with a smile, his own small way of saying I knew it. Miguel decides he likes Jack. You picked a good friend.

“Weird way to get the best friend stamp of approval but… I suppose you have it.” Jack extends his hand to Miguel. 

Miguel stands, hesitantly accepting your brother's hand. Jack shakes it, almost exaggeratedly before he pauses, squeezing Miguel's palm.

“Please… take care of our girl, Miguel.”

_________

Jess and Peter sit on the couch almost motionless, Mayday being absentmindedly bounced on Peter's knee. You stand in front of them almost like a scolded child just admitting to taking the cookies from the jar. You wanted them here. You needed support, and you knew that, Miguel knew it too— still, that didn’t make this shit any easier. 

You confessed. Told them everything. Told them what had been going on with you these last few months, where Miguel was right now… that you couldn’t leave. Anomaly— you're an anomaly now. You still couldn’t bring yourself to say it.

And your confidantes, the people you trusted with this big secret… are just sitting there. You’re not sure what you want them to say or do but something would be nice. 

Jess’s face remained stern and almost unreadable as it usually did, but you could just feel the disappointed mom energy rolling off of her. Peters's expression changed from its usual chillness to basically shock. Even now he sat wide-eyed and thin-lipped, his brain running on autopilot to entertain his daughter.

“I uhh…” you break the suffocating silence. “I’ll be staying here until we, umm, until we figure things out.”

“Figure things out?” Jess sneers. While at least she was talking now.

“Jess—” Peter attempts.

“Figure things out?!” Jess stands off the couch, “What—what like this is a breakup? Like your in-between apartments or something?!” 

“I mean… I technically am.” you faintly attempt to joke, praying it will break the tension. It doesn’t.

“Oh my God!” Jess’s face goes flat, “Oh my God! This is— this is absolutely insane! I would have expected this from one of the kids, but you?! You just thought this would—”

“Jess!” Peter grabs her arm. You swear it takes everything in her not to just real back and punch him out of pure reflex. They both pause there, sharing a silent look. You don’t think you’d ever seen Peter look so serious. 

Eventually, Jess deflates with a shaky sigh, running a hand over her face. In two massive steps, she comes over to you and wraps you in a tight hug, squeezing all of the shame and mortification out of you in the only way a friendly embrace can.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” She murmurs into your ear. You think you’d start crying if you had any tears left to give. There’d been too much crying. You’re done with tears, the time for them has come and passed. Now you want to solve the problem. Now is the time for action. 

Jess pulls back, her hands trailing down your arms and coming to a stop at your wrist. She lifts up your right hand, where your new bulky watch clings. 

“Pretty snazzy, huh?” you roll your wrist over in her hands. Gabe had Layla deliver new attachments to it— something to monitor you at all times. The thing was now easily double its original size. If you were becoming unstable, if your existence became a threat, they’d be alerted. What happens after that, you don’t really know. You don’t want to think about it.

“What do you need from us?” Peter asks, snagging MayDay off the couch.

“I, uhh, I don’t know yet,” You pull your arm back from Jess’s grasp, clutching your wrist to your chest. You’re not used to the weight yet. “I just wanted someone to know. Figured it was best to just tell you two. The kids don’t need to get involved.”

“How long has this been going on again?” Jess asks.

“A few… months.” You admit again. Jess says nothing back but you can see that look in her eyes. “Just… could you be there…when I need you? I don’t know what that means yet, but I’d really like to stop doing things alone.”

Neither of them hesitated, answering at the same time.

“Of course.”

“You got it.”

And the room falls silent again, dozens of questions surely being left unanswered. This was fucked. This was so fucked and still, selfishly, you’re glad someone else finally knows. 

Peter finally steps up.

“I’m not an expert in this kind of stuff, but I’ve found in times like these, this little thing seems to help me feel better.” He holds out the squirming little ball that is Mayday Parker. She reaches out for you without hesitation. You gently take her from Peter’s grasp, unable to stop the smile that spreads on your face at the sight of something so innocent. She coos, immediately grabbing for your face, hair, anything really. 

“I’m surprised you haven’t made her web-shooters yet.” You laugh as she starts to crawl over your entire torso. Oh, what it must be like to have a spider-powered baby at home— absolute hell, probably. 

“Oh trust me, I’m working on it,” Peter already has his phone out, likely already having taken a good dozen pictures. 

Jess, thank god, finally smiles.

“So… what’s the plan for now, babe?” she asks, crossing her arms as indefensibly as she can.

“I stay here and let the science boys do their thing,” you pull May off of your leg, nuzzling her into your chest. “No dimensional travel, no telling anyone else.”

“And what about Miguel?” Her tone shifts, just a little. 

“What about him?” you hear your own voice creep very close to bitchy territory.

Jess rolls her eyes, “What are you two—”

All of your attentions are grabbed by a now familiar crackling of the dimensional space-time continuum being ripped open. A portal forms on the other side of the couch, Miguel walking through with a box of your belongings in hand.

“Hey, buddy!” Peter greets him with a wave. Always the positive one, bless his heart. 

Miguel ignores him completely, turning his gaze to you.

“They know?” he simply asks. 

“They know.”

“Good,” He walks to the kitchen, the portal closing behind him. He sets your box on the counter with a heavy thunk.  

You look over and see Jess contemplating. Like whether she's gonna blow up at him or slap him. To your relief, she does neither. Instead, she gently places a hand on your shoulder.

“You want us to stay? Need anything else?”

Do you? You have no idea. Truth be told, you just want to pass out in a dark room alone. The only task you had for the day was to tell them— and that bandaid had already been ripped off. No, some alone time would be good— and maybe, finally, some sleep.

“No, it’s okay you guys can go,” you, a little reluctantly, hand May back to Peter. He was right, she did make everything feel a little better. “But um… will you be in the tower tomorrow?”

They both share a brief glance at one another. Peter is the one to answer. 

“We’ll make sure of it.”

Separate portals spring to life behind both of them. They each give you a small pat on the shoulder before stepping through, disappearing in the blink of an eye. You always felt like it was a special kind of silence that followed after a portal closed. Something eerie and cold. 

That or you could just feel Miguel's eyes burning a hole in the back of your head. You take a deep breath and walk over to the kitchen.

You’d mourned, you found comfort in friends, and now… now you don’t fucking know. Everything felt so weird, so tense. Like every movement you made was wrong. In a way, you supposed it was wrong, you're not even supposed to be here. 

Stop it. 

You rummage around the box, trying your best to avoid Miguel’s gaze. It was a hodgepodge of your belongings, clothes and books and toiletries. Hell, even your favorite tea made it into the mix. 

“Did you talk to Jack?” you finally say something.

“I did.” His voice is always so damn steady. How does he do that?

“How did he take it?”

“As well as you could expect,” you hear a heavy sigh. “He’s happy, though. Happy you're alive.”

“That’s something.” you run your thumbs over a worn tee shirt you’ve had since college, staring at it like it’s the most interesting thing in the world. What are you supposed to do now? The sight just makes all of this feel more real like there was some kind of finality to it all. He brought your things. You can’t go back— maybe ever. Why can’t you look at him? 

“Hey.”

His voice is right next to you and it makes you jump. You finally look at him, if only out of sheer force of habit. Those piercing red eyes are waiting for you— only they’re not piercing. There’s no hint of regret or pain like you were so used to over the last day and a half. There’s only kindness. His face was so soft and caring. 

He brought your things and talked to your best friend because you asked him to… because he wanted you to be comfortable in this horrible clusterfuck. Miguel cared. Amid hell on earth, he always cared. Of course he did— he saved your life after all.

You collapse into his chest, squeezing him as tightly as you can manage. His massive arms close in around you immediately. To your surprise, you don’t burst into tears. Like you said, too much crying had been done. You’re sick of it. 

“I, uh, I really like this tea,” you half laugh into his chest.

“Ah, the tea. Of course.” you can hear the smile in his voice. “Jack, um, helped pack. I can go back if you—”

“No, no this should be fine for now,” you turn your head, looking at the lowly little box that contained your whole life. “Do you want some… of the tea? It’s vanilla chai.”

“I, uh…yeah, sure.” his grip loosens. 

You fish the half-empty box out and glance around the kitchen before you realize you're still a stranger here. 

You turn to Miguel. “Uh, do you have a—”

“Oh, yeah.” He steps in front of you, opening a corner cupboard to pull down a tea kettle. He hands it to you and reaches into the neighboring cupboard to grab two mugs. The whole kitchen was so sleek white and cold, even the damn kettle.

“Thanks,” you say passively as you fill it up at the sink. You come back to the hot pad and notice there's no chord. Maybe it had the retractable kind. You pick it up and turn it over in your hands.

“There’s no plug-in,” Miguel answers, seemingly reading your mind, “Things haven’t been made with extension cords for almost thirty years. Nearly every table is a power conductor. Just put it on and hit start, it’ll boil.”

You’re in the future… right. You put the kettle on its plate and kick down the boil lever. And, like magic, it lights up. 

Alien. It all felt alien, but you’re the only one out of place here.

“Wow, no more plug-ins. Lucky me,” you say bitterly.

You see Miguel shift next to you, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to–”

“No! No, I’m sorry,” you press your palms to your eyes, fingers clawing down your forehead to ground yourself, “Just… getting used to it all.”

You hear Miguel click his tongue before he steps up behind you. He pulls you into him again, your back to his chest. You lean into it and his chin comes down to rest on your head. Despite it all, you still loved the way it felt when he held you. It grounded you. He still made you feel safe. In the midst of it all, it felt nice to be doing something so… boring. So domestic.

It also felt ridiculous. 

“What are we doing, Miguel?” you sigh.

“Making tea.”

“No, I mean— why aren’t we doing anything right now,” you lean your head into the crook of his arm, “We should be solving this.”

“We will solve this.”

“With tea?”

“I mean… it might help.” he places a gentle kiss into your hair, “We rest, we get grounded first, then we’ll solve this. We’ll solve everything… I promise.”

You want to believe him. You so desperately do, but you can’t manage to bring yourself to that level of delusion yet. You’d always thought of yourself as an optimistic person, as most spiders are, but you’d never felt so utterly helpless. Miguel was right, you needed to ground yourself before you can move forward— but how do you want to move forward? What did you really want? What was this all for?

“What about us?” you find yourself asking as soon as you have the thought.

He pauses longer than you’d like. “What about us?”

“What are we going to do after? I know what we should do, but… well, let's face it, we’ve never been very good at that.” Despite everything, you find yourself smiling. 

“No. No, we haven’t.” You think you hear him smiling too. He sways you both, ever so gently as you stare down at the now boiling kettle. “I’ve made my choice, but what do you want, añarita?”

“What’s your choice?”

“I asked you first.” 

Typical, always baiting you into talking first, but you did the exact same thing. It was easier that way, safer. If you already know what the other person is thinking, you know exactly what to say. Manipulation some might call it, but that’s not what either of you is doing here. This is shaky territory. Your sanity is being held by a thread, every decision, every choice you make from now on has to be purposeful. You needed to stop ignoring the long-term effects of your and his actions. 

What’s your choice, he asked. He really means what do you want? Oh, if only it were that simple. 

You want your home back. You want to talk to Jack. You want everything to be normal again. You want Miguel in every way someone could imagine. You wished you’d never met him. You want a single ounce of stability in your life. 

And of course, none of that is in the cards. Here you are again, asking for the impossible amid an impossible situation. 

You must have been catatonically silent longer than you thought because Miguel releases you with a heavy sigh. 

“Sorry, that was an unfair question,” He steps back and you turn to face him.

“No— it’s just— I don’t know, Miguel. I don’t know about anything anymore.”

He nods and turns his gaze away from you. He bites at his lip, his features drooping to look almost sad. You’ve hurt his feelings, you think. 

“I told you I made my choice,” he turns around, pulling out a drawer of the kitchen island, “I can’t justify my actions, but I can’t bring myself to fully regret them either. But I made them, and we all have to live with that. I know what I want after all of this, but I only want it if you want it too.”

He turns around, and your tunnel vision focuses on it instantly, spider sense pinging an alarm in the back of your head. In his hand is that evil little pale green tube—the spider-sense cure. Your first instinct is to scream, but you say nothing.

He holds the dreaded tiny vial heavy in his hand, looking down at it with a blank expression. Did he suffer as much as you did, you wonder. Did the sight of that horrible little thing make his stomach churn too? But now he’s holding it in front of you. What on earth is he trying to say?

He squeezes the little vial in his fist. It almost scares you when he throws the thing on the floor. It cracks, the offensive liquid slowly leaking out— but that’s not good enough. He drives his heel into it, shattering it completely. God, you almost want to cheer at the sight.

Before you have time to react, he takes one massive step back over to you, reaching to cradle your head in his hands. His touch is still so gentle. 

“My choice is you. It was you before, and it will be you after—if you’ll have me.”

And he kisses you. 

There are things you’d seen in this job, things you’d done that no other single human could possibly experience in one lifetime. You’d traveled the world and multi-verse alike. You’d seen space and time itself. You’d seen the unparalleled joy on a parent's face when you’d returned their child safe and sound from certain death. You’d seen the fear in pure evil’s eyes. You’d felt pain like no other, but at the same time, there was so much joy to ease it away. 

Somehow… This kiss puts all that to shame. 

Twice now he’s declared his loyalty to you. Twice he’s broken every rule he lives by just to save you. He told you before you were worth everything— maybe now you’ll finally believe him.

It doesn’t fix things, but it’s a salve on the pain that was brewing. If anything it brings more questions you don’t have the answers to into this whole damned circus, but you can’t bring yourself to care. In a way, this is exactly what you wanted to hear. You’re not a burden. You’re not unwanted. No matter what it took to save your life and your reality, he still wanted you. At the end of this, you’d still have him. 

And you wanted him too.

________

We're gonna have a bunch of smut and domestic fluff in the next one, just to make for the pain I've put you all through haha

________

Taglist:

@ineedgarlicbread @pinkiemme @thesilenthill @bontensbabygirl @fallenangelsongwolf @raerorigel @littlefreakymunson @viriexo

@w33ni3 @del-ightfulling @radiantlyfemme @5sosuperntaural

Taglist post here!!!

[avelera]

Some slightly more coherent thoughts about Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (ATSV) now that I've had a little time to process and long to return to the theater to see it again and again and again:

1 ) Go see it. Holy shit, go see it. Re-watch Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (ITSV) before you go if you have the chance but you don't have to, they recap it well enough and I promise anyway, the first thing you're gonna do when you get home after is turn ITSV on and then scream a bunch because it is all so tightly connected from the very beginning.

2 ) ITSV is a masterpiece. ATSV is more of a masterpiece in the same way that 11 is bigger than 10. They took everything in ITSV, which is a perfect 10/10 and made it 11/10 for this film. I shit you not. It cannot be otherwise expressed with words. Everything is just bigger, faster, bolder, more.

Ok, now getting into some of the more spoiler-y thoughts:

3 ) Loved me those themes of connection and loneliness. When you go back to ITSV, you see it's right there from the start. All of the version of Spider-Man are lonely. They are tired. They're isolated and unsupported and they are all suffering. Miles makes their lives better. They make Miles' life better. This becomes such a huge, huge theme in ATSV as Miles literally breaks the canon, he is the ultimate fix-it fanfic character, every Spider-Man he interacts with gets some element of their tragic backstory fixed. Peter B. reunites with MJ and has a child that brings joy back into his life. Gwen gets a friend again. Pavitr doesn't have to watch his girlfriend's father die. They are no longer doomed by the narrative.

4) Another post commented on how tired Peni looks when we finally see her, but she's not the only one. All of the Spider-People in the Spider-Verse look tired and it is, in fact I'd argue, Miguel's fault. He appealed to their sense of martyrdom to put together an organization that helps people and saves the world(s). BUT he made "maintaining the canon" an aspect of this (a wonderful meta commentary on Miles himself, btw, and all the comic book nerds who want to rehash the same story over and over instead of transforming it into something new and hopeful). Because they had all suffered so much, it followed logically for all the Spider-People that all of their parallel universe selves must also suffer.

This is the crab bucket mentality. Miguel dragged all the Spider-People into the crab bucket with him. He taught them learned helplessness. They're all tired and worn down because they have to keep reliving their own trauma by standing by and making sure these awful things that happened to them continue to happen, over and over. It's the mirror too for any marginalized community where the past generation believes the next one must suffer as they did. But it's exhausting for them to see the misery and do nothing. That's why they're all so tired. It makes sense to them that to be Spider-People, the next generation must suffer as they did but they are also, all of them, heroes and so it wears them down to watch this happen over and over. Miles brings back their energy and joy and their hope by refusing to be doomed by the narrative.

It's wonderful fanfic but it's also fantastic storytelling and it works on so many layers of the story, Doylist and Watsonian, all the way down.

5 ) THIS is a tightly knit story. Every. Single. Element. Ties back to the central story, the central themes. Every line either reveals plot, character, setting, or themes. It is so, so tight as a writer I was gaping. In necessary, if brief, moments of exposition they make sure to keep the screen busy and moving. There's no time for boredom. It is literally so fast that even as someone with ADHD I was sometimes overwhelmed as much as riveted. The few scenes that slowed down to simply fast movie pace felt achingly slow as a result and I bet you they were maybe 30 seconds long.

6 ) I AM. SO HYPED. FOR THE ENDING AND THE SEQUEL IT SETS UP? The perfect dark mirror story, not rushed but simply introduced so we can see that the final boss for Miles is himself. Unless they subvert that expectation, which they might! But it is so ominous to see Prowler Miles, it makes so much sense, it is perfect and deep and rich. Literally every time you think, "Maybe they'll rehash old material?" they don't they just keep introducing cool new characters and concepts and themes it's mindblowing.

7 ) They never leave you with one thread. Miles is going to face himself and fight to save his dad from the Spot and fight Miguel, presumably, in the next one. No single line only does one thing. No frame does one thing. And yet everything ties back to the core story of Miles and the Spider-People both on the Watsonian and Doylist level. I want to study every frame under a microscope. It's insane.

8 ) THE ART IT'S JUST. I'm not an artist so I'll leave it at this but THE ART.

9 ) I love Pavitr and Hobie. So much. I gasped when we saw Pavitr's world.

10 ) The Spot's animation was insane just insane and I think he's foreshadowed in the ITSV and it blew my mind on the re-watch.

I need to see it again. I could talk about any single element for hours. But I just can't stop thinking about the mastery embodied in this film. I know a sequel to a superhero movie that's animated will never win Best Picture but I do not exaggerate when I say that in itself might be an indictment of Best Picture. This film deserves Best Picture. It is the best movie I've seen in an unfathomably long time including ITSV.

[catmansquad]

The Looking Glass: Alternate Miguels

Well... Here we go. The various versions of Miggy who appear in The Looking Glass. (A03) Some parallel worlds get... freaky.

The Soulmate – Iteration: 237

“I love you. With all I am. With my very soul, I love you, let us never be parted.”

Be his Soulmate, his twin flame. You’ll see the gentle man beneath the mask.

No dead daughter syndrome, a little more playful, prone to teasing and smirking.

Plays games, courting on two fronts; as himself and as his webbed alter-ego.

As himself, he tries to appear normal. Mumbles his words to hide his fangs, focuses to keep his talons retracted.

Doesn’t take much to break his focus, hold his hand at your peril.

As Spider-man, he is wild and flirtatious, behind the mask he knows the skintight attire works in his favour.

Expect to be piggy-backed across the city, loves your arms tight around him. May squirm to make you hold tighter.

Will tell you to close your eyes, and kiss you sweetly before putting his mask back before you see him.

Eventually, he either slips up or you get wise. Then you get the best of both the kindness and the flirtation near constantly.

Once that soul-bond is tied? Prepare to be loved and shown affection from every atom of him.

The Warrior – Iteration: [Unknown]

“I am of the Callisteri. I am as strong as the boles of the great-trees…”

A warrior from a lost world of magic and mysticism

A true knight in shining armour, clad in Fae Silver, with an emerald cloak bearing a majestic stag, the icon of his Order.

Per the rules of his Order, his sheathed blade is kept concealed beneath his cloak, as such his left arm is covered until battle is inevitable.

Unskilled in the arcane arts of other Orders, but his martial prowess is second to none.

If he becomes your bodyguard, you can consider yourself safe. Completely and utterly safe.

You can charm him into bed. Maybe. He’ll assure you he’s doing it to keep you safe. He’s holding you close in his strong arms to keep you safe.

This guy is ripped. Like he could break you over his knee like a toothpick then juggle cars for fun.

Silent, stoic, and watchful. With time and warmth, you can tease him out of his silver shell…

For the benefits of his Order, he is “as strong as he needs to be”. No upper limit is known.

Boasts he has the virility of the Great Stag. Will prove it if you let him.

The Merman -  Iteration: 5002

“I will teach you to swim, walker…”

Over nine feet long, tail to tip.

Beautiful scales of red and blue

He glows in the dark, showing even more shiny scales on his upper body

Confident, charming, and cheeky

Smiles a mouthful of sharp teeth.

Might actually be half-shark

Unknown if he’s a natural Merman, or one of Alchemax’s experiments that got loose.

Utterly majestic singing voice, deep and enchanting.

His song is wordless grace, as charming as any siren’s.

If you want to go swimming with him, bring a diving suit with a big air tank.

Will give you gifts; carved stones, gleaming pearls, trinkets from shipwrecks.

His gills don’t allow him to leave the water, but he can still poke his head above the surface.

If you can’t swim, or are terrified of water, he’s just the guy to help you out.

Will splash you with his tail if you bore him.

His skin carries the salty tang of the ocean.

The Vampire – Iteration: 300

“A night out? In my finest clothes… My sweetest smile… My irresistible charms… My aching kiss…”

Literal 500-year-old Aztec Vampire.

Mortal problems? Vampiric infighting? Literally too old for this shit.

He has had many names. “Miguel O’Hara” is his current identity.

Long ago got over the nature of his condition.

Has walked the world for centuries, meeting other Clans

Charming, friendly, almost romantic.

Very rich, very influential.

Has a history of broken hearts, mostly his own.

Not burned by sunlight, but has the eyes of a predator, very sensitive.

“… I was a father. Once… Then came the plague.”

Will feed on you, but will also ensure you’re well looked after and will do everything to make sure you’re healthy.

He despairs when he realizes that he’s falling in love all over again.

“Sunlight? Irritating. Garlic? Mm. Maybe good in some dishes. Crosses? What about them?”

Hates when people ask him to whisper seductively in Spanish. If they don’t speak it, he’ll lean in, and in his slow, seductive voice will, in Spanish, call them an “Absolute Fucking Moron”.

Does speak a whole lot of other languages. Ask him to seduce you in one of those.

Hurt? He’ll lick your wounds closed. It’s supernaturally effective.

Won’t fly into a bloodthirsty hunger if he sees you bleeding- don’t mistake him for a newborn Fledgling. He’s an Elder, and he will be respected.

If you ask him to Turn you, he will sit you down and make sure you understand in no uncertain terms exactly what you are asking for. If you come away scared, good, you were listening.

The Incubus -  Iteration: 2023

“We are spirits of passion. When we love, we love with all we are.”

Will laugh at your prudishness.

Horns, tail, pointy ears and fangs.

May or may not have wings based on his mood. Or yours.  

Can read your kinks like a book. He probably wrote it.

You feel the phantom touches of his fingers on your face at night.

Once you woke up to feel the covers being pulled up over you.

Sensual, romantic, wants to be loved and appreciated.

Can also be moody and possessive.

Tell him what you want, he won’t refuse it.

At your request he once shifted through a few different forms to try and help you out.

Turned into a near-androgynous twink with sparkling red eyes.

Also went the other way and turned into a sheer mountain of mass, sneering confidently down at you over folded arms while the silver chain around his neck was swallowed between those bulging pecs.

When you told him you loved him, he asked for you to repeat yourself.

When he found you were sincere, he wept tears of joy.

Will wrap his tail around your waist possessively.

On a bus ride, someone completely oblivious to the spirit world sat in the seat beside you. The seat he was in. You had to keep a straight face as he leapt up, snarled and ranted insults in Spanish at them for the rest of their journey.

“Don’t get up yet… Lay here with me…. Just for a while longer…”

The Sociopath – Iteration: 158

“What is the point in your life? You are but an echo. A reflection of a potential that never truly was.”

Spiderman couldn’t have become a worse guy

Had a loveless marriage, found his wife had been long-term screwing his half-brother.

Flew into a rage at the merest idea that Gabi wasn’t his

Sees everyone else as beneath him/ possessions/ toys

Will take by force what he cannot win through guile/seduction.

Kiled half of Nueva York, left the other half alive to tell the story of Spider-man’s rampage.

To him, you are either a useful tool or dead meat.

Is a frighteningly good actor, able to affect the mask of a patient, gentle, and loving man.

 Very much enjoys slipping into other realities and play with/torment/unnerve the people his other self is close to.

Enjoys it even more if those version of him are regular people. It makes him feel powerful.

Enjoys singing “Dead Man Walking”, later uses it to announce his presence to his victims.

A sharp, terrifying grin forewarns him doing something monstrous.

Will refer to his victims as “my little rabbit”/ “mi pequeño conejo”

Don’t try to run from him. You won’t make it.

“I’m a dead man walking… Before I die… I’ll take every soul I can into the night… (Soft chuckle)”

[breadsticc]

I have a Fan Theory ✨

Well, part fan-theory and part over-analysis of the movie.

It is very long, but I hope you enjoy!

⚠️ SPOILERS⚠️ for ACROSS THE SPIDERVERSE 🕷️ 🧍‍♂️

So, let's establish some facts that we learned from the movies and comics. I watched the movie several times, and cross-referenced a lot of my facts with fandom pages, but this is still only based on MY understanding. The spider-verse is a little complex, so if you notice any error or have some conflicting information PLEEEEASE share it with me I will eat it up om nom gimme spider

*ahem*

Anyway, fact time:

Every version of Spider-Man has canon events that are guaranteed to happen. These canon events are what tie the Spider-Verse together.

When a canon event is disrupted or prevented, that universe eats itself

An "anomaly" is just something that is in the wrong universe (which will occasionally "glitch" until they're sent home or wear these special bracelets that stop the glitching).

A spider, along with many other anomalies, were brought to Earth-1610 from several different universes by a device called the Collider

Miles (Earth-1610) was bitten by the spider from Earth-42

Earth-42 has no Spider-Man, Miles-42 becomes the Prowler, Uncle Aaron helps him, and his dad (Captain Morales) is dead.

Earth-1610 loses it's Spider-Man and is replaced by Miles, his Uncle Aaron is revealed to be the prowler, and his dad is soon-to-be dead according to canon

When Kingpin's collider on Earth-1610 is destroyed, the scientist who operated it is consumed by it, turning him into Spot.

From the official comics:

Each dimension has a Spider-Totem, which is a term referring to a class of "multiversal supernatural entities... linked to a mystical force called the Web of Life and Destiny" - Marvel Wiki

Hobart "Hobie" Brown (Earth-616) was the prowler, who eventually impersonates Spider-Man to help Peter Parker (a crude summary), while Hobie-138 was the original Spider-Man in his world. ✨

Now, I saw someone make an interesting point in the comments of some tiktok video. They pointed out a "major plothole":

Why are Earth-42 and Earth-1610 not collapsing if Miles is the original anomaly?

The simple answer is that Miguel was wrong about some things. Obviously he's right about canon events as a whole, but Miles himself is NOT an anomaly (except when he's in other words besides 1610).

Who becomes a Spider-Totem is not a canon event, otherwise every Spider-Totem would be the same. ANYONE can be a Spider-Totem. So, when Miles is bit by the spider, the universe corrects itself by having him replace the Spider-Man before him. That world never really lost its Spider-Totem, so the canon is still intact.

I know what you're thinking here - "Okay, what about Earth-42 that lost its Spider-Totem?" I'll get to that later, bear with me.

One thing I want to make clear is that Miguel was definitely wrong about Miles - the original anomaly was not Miles. To quote Miguel from the movie:

"YOU'RE A MISTAKE! If you hadn't been bit, your Peter Parker would have lived! Instead, he died, saving you. He would've stopped the collider before it ever went off, Spot wouldn't exist, and none of this would have happened. And ALL THIS TIME, I HAVE BEEN THE ONLY ONE HOLDING IT ALL TOGETHER! You don't belong here. You never did."

Peter Parker was supposed to stop the collider before it went off, meaning none of this would have happened if the spider never bit Miles. The SPIDER was the original anomaly.

But Miguel was right about the multiverse, or at least as we understand it from the comics, the Web of Life and Destiny. It was created by a goddess of spiders, Neith (Earth 001). She also is the one who creates the Spider-Totems inside of the web. The web is kept safe inside of a great temple, guarded by the Master Weaver. This is a really fun one that I'll come back to soon. Trust me.

The movie sets up an interesting parallel with Spot and the Web. The Spider-Verse, also known as the arachno-humanoid poly multiverse (a stupid name), is what ties all of the spiders together. Spot, because of his collision with the collider, is an entity that can traverse through holes both within and between universes. He can be anywhere in the multiverse at any time.

He may claim to be Miles's arch nemesis, but he could very well easily become the main antagonist to the entire Spider-Verse. He is a threat to every single spider, because of his ability to be in the right place at the right time to disrupt every canon event and cause every universe to collapse, one by one. (god damn he's cool.) The only logical way to defeat Spot is to have every Spider-Totem work together, which is already being set up by the end of the movie.

Here's another question: What happens to a Spider-Totem when their universe dies? It's not made very clear in the movie, but it's safe to draw the conclusion that a Spider-Totem is not destroyed when their universe shatters. Miguel states that he watched his world disappear when he disrupted the canon (it was to make the point to Miles that he has to choose between saving the lives of the entire world by letting his dad die, or saving his dad and watching him disappear along with everyone else.) But if he watched it happen and he's still here... then what happens if this occurs to other Spider-Totems, and the web of the Spider-Verse falls apart? Is it just a dark end to each universe, leaving all of the Spiders to fend for themselves in whatever universe is left? Is that the only REAL way to defeat Spot?

There is also a possibility that Miguel might not even be a Spider-Totem, as he was not bitten by a spider, only gave himself gadgets and injected himself with spider-soup so that he can be a replacement for his world's Spider-Man. But, that would mean that they'd have to explain how he has canon events, if not a totem. If he IS a totem, then that means it is canon that there can be multiple Spider-Totems in a world, just not at the same time.

And what about Earth-42 with it's missing totem? Shouldn't it start collapsing?

To answer this, let's bring back the facts I mentioned from the comics. In Earth-616, Hobie is the Prowler. But, in Earth-138, Hobie is Spider-Man (also known as Spider-Punk).

As the Prowler in 616, Hobie helps Peter (that world's Spider-Totem) in several ways, mostly involving impersonating Spider-Man at Peter's request. He's a good kid, despite the life of crime he leads. There are several parts of the comics that show that he, in some way, hates the crime-ridden lifestyle, as he wasn't given much of a choice.

We see this same energy in Miles of Earth-42 in the movie, minus the part about helping Spider-Man (YET). The mirror between Hobie-616 and Hobie-138 (comics) is seen in the movie as well, with Miles-1610 being that good-hearted kid who became that world's new Spider-Totem.

Another Fun-Fact about 616:

Takeaway: Hobie Brown was the original Prowler on Earth-616, but this role was later taken by Aaron Davis (Miles's Uncle).

So, it's clear that in the same way that anyone can become a Spider-Totem with the right conditions, anyone can also become the Prowler. That clears up one part of the issue. (Note, it's not quite the same as Spider-Totems since the Prowler, like many other villains, do not appear in every universe.)

But Earth-42 is still missing it's Spider-Totem... or is it?

Thanks to a twitter post I found from reddit, it turns out that in spot's origin story, there's a brief moment where we see the spider on its way to bite Miles from Earth-42, but is transported to Earth-1610 instead.

Oh yeah. It's big theory time.

Earth-42 is still there because the Spider-Totem hasn't disappeared. There's three directions that Beyond the Spider-Verse can take this.

Miles-42's can still be bitten, can still be made into Spider-Man. His canon event was not disrupted, only delayed. This one is a bit weak though, as it doesn't explain why a captain's death cannot be delayed, since that canon event does not have to play out in the same way each time.

Miles-1610 is somehow Spider-Man for both 1610 and 42. If they went this route, they would have to find a way to explain the glitching while Miles-1610 is on Earth-42.

Since Earth-42 only exists in the movies, not the comics, and we've already seen some worlds be created as possible futures of other worlds, they may just write this as it is: a world without Spider-Man. This could be their answer to every time someone has asked "what would happen if Spider-Man never existed?"

I like the third option a lot - it opens up a world of possibilities (literally). Imagine seeing Spider Society cornering Spot into this universe, working together to turn this dark Totem-less world into a home for Spider-Society to coexist with everyone else!

Anyway, I'll probably add more to this later, but I've spent almost the entire day on it and I want to play Tears of the Kingdom (btw I drew Purah, go check it out.)

[depreshroom]

Miguel vs Spots: The Obsession Between Being Spotless and Filling The Spots Left Behind

This is fresh off of watching the movie-- which was absolutely amazing, loved it so much!! So if this one doesn't exactly keep you clinging on, just bare with me (or leave, curate your experience!)

Though different in obviously several ways, I love the parallels between Miguel and Spots: both highlighting their issues with Miles. However, it obviously digs much deeper for Miguel.

Spots' motivations and story at its core is simple: he was living his life, a completely fulfilled one, and got caught up in somebody else's mess. He was forced into somebody else's story, and then was left to deal with the outcome-- the main character's story completed and his left with jagged ends. The parts of his life he previously took pride in were left empty. He was left with spots unfilled, and took it upon himself to create a blank slate (hence his completely white skin as he discovers his own powers). As he takes reigns of his own, completely new story he flips the script on Miles--- makes this a story Miles becomes stuck in and that Spots himself owns. He takes up the dark energy, making his skin match the holes left behind. His spots are essentially left with seams, and there is one person stopping them from becoming seamless.

Miguel is a bit different, as he falls into the obsession of being spotless. He was given a bad deal, a bad set of hands. And as hard as he tried to rewrite his own story, there was no way he could stay out of the mess that was meant to be a Canon Event (sound familiar??) While he wasn't forced into somebody else's story, he was left to deal with an outcome forced upon his shoulders and to subsequently pay for it. He takes it into his own hands to make sure that his pain follows the script. He takes it into his own hands to make sure that there is order, and neatness in the millions of worlds he watches crumble much like his own. He makes sure that there are no spots to be left unfilled, as there will be no holes in the first place. He needs no seams, because nothing will ever be torn apart. Until Miles comes in, ironically because of Spots, and tries to rewrite a story Miguel has already drafted. Miles is causing holes, spots, in his perfect organization. Miguel is obsessed with keeping these issues out of his hard (though through incredibly fucked up means) work, and making sure his world is seamless.

[linkneol091]

Thoughts dump about spiderverse:

1) So, I was thinking about Peter B and his “Miguel this isn’t what we’ve talked about “ and Gwen’s “ We are supposed to be the good guys “ so maybe they just at first with him but then they figure out some truth and they question their own morals along with Miles trying to prove his own ones. Esp that relates to Peter B since it was written on his toy box. Amazing

2) Imagine Spider punk with British accent and with bruises

3) Mayday will become spiderverse Grogu. Just watch.

4)Miles and Rio’s relationship has so much accent in both trailers and remind me of Jefferson and Miles relationship in itsv that it made me think. Rio rn is in the same position as Jefferson in itsv. In first film, Jefferson, despite not wanting his son to be like Aaron so they wouldn’t part their ways, accepts Miles’s weirdness and let his son go for him to be himself. Now Rio has to accept that Miles is growing up and he can make decisions for himself and he knows his way. Rio has to let him go like Jefferson did.(I’m crying)

5) Peter B and Miguel will probably have some parallels about the way they want to protect their kids. Miguel is experienced, but probably traumatised father, while Peter is an inexperienced one who wants the best for Mayday but probably doesn’t know how to make her future better.( Let Papa B Parker exist and understand that he is a good papa ok?)

6) MJ and Rio parallels. PLEASE

7) Imagine Gwen learning to love Miles and her understanding that he can stand up for himself, even though she is worried for him since she doesn’t want to lose her bestie again.

[shayswag]

PARALLEL (pt.1)

warnings: mentions of medication (prescribed), stalking and depression

type: angst. cold hard angst.

authors note #1: i’m so sorry in advanced about grammar and if anything is incorrect. i tried my best to make this as accurate as possible

hope you enjoy!!

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

It has come to my attention that Miguel probably can’t even get through a whole night without the burdening nightmares of the incident.

What incident?

Oh, don’t you remember Miguel?

I don’t want to remember.

His world was painted blue. Not baby blue, or the turquoise blue water you’d see on your friend’s Instagram post while their on vacation.

Navy blue. He was sad. Sad because he wasn’t happy. He longed to be happy. He’d go the extra mile to be happy. And he did, but that happiness faded right out of his hands. It slipped so quickly that he hadn’t realized that it was all his fault.

My fault?

Yes, your fault.

He stood in his office alone, the dark chamber engulfing him along with the silence, almost becoming an agitating ringing in his right ear. He swiped through different dimensions on the orange holograms.

“Miguel, it’s been hours. Take a break”

Lyla, his AI assistant, had lectured him like a mother would when their son wouldn’t get off his Xbox. Miguel had been fond of her glitching in and out every hour, reminding him about him staying up for too long.

“I will,” was all he said in slight frustration but still wanting to be respectful. Lyla frowned and glitched out, deciding to give him some space.

As the night went on and him monitoring every dimension, while looking through them to find one where he was happy. One where he wasn’t wallowing in his depression. One where he wasn’t taking medication pills like they were candy to end his suffering.

Then he found one.

It was him, but not him. Same physique, face and appearance. But the only thing different was that he had a daughter. He stared into the monitor as ‘he’ tucked her into bed.

Miguel felt a chill run down his spine, trying to shake his head from these thoughts. This is what he had wanted. What he had dreamed for.

A family.

He decided to make a mental note for this dimension and crossed his arms over his chest. He smiled to himself, sighing and feeling proud of himself that he had found what he was looking for. But that protruding, unanswered question was pinned in the back of his head.

Why are you proud?

He furrowed his eyebrows a little then moved the hologram to the side, figuring out what he should do for now.

Months had passed and he was still waiting. Waiting for what? He didn’t even know himself. He kept the monitor of Earth-928B close while checking in on every other dimension.

It was like an electrical surge of anticipation running throughout his whole body. Everyday, in his office, sitting and waiting like a tiger watching its prey.

Call him a stalker all you want, he didn’t care. This was his ultimate goal. This was the gold metal waiting for him at the end of the finish line and it was all his.

But he wasn’t watching ‘himself’. No, he didn’t give a damn about his alternative. He watched ‘his’ daughter. Gabriella. She was the highlight of ‘his’ day.

Miguel was jealous. Jealous so much that he hated ‘himself’. He hated the way the other Miguel was able to be happy and that he had to watch him be happy.

But when Lyla had glitched in one day, this changed his life completely. And not in a good way.

Lyla, not feeling good about this idea, but also knew that he would be counting on her to update him on the news. She looked hesitant about this.

“Miguel?”

“Hey Lyla. Any news about 928?”

This had been a reoccurring question he’d ask for months.

“Well…Your alternative self was killed today”

This was all the information he needed. He moved every hologram away before pressing numerous buttons on his dimension watch.

But she had warned him before it was too late. He didn’t listen. He was selfish.

“Miguel-“

“Lyla not now.”

Was all he said as the orange and yellow portal opened up behind him. He looked like he meant it. His maroon eyes glaring at her, but not at her. Through her, as if she wasn’t even there.

He furrowed his eyebrows before turning his back away from her fading into the portal, it slowly getting smaller. Lyla floated there defeated.

“Be careful Miguel”

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

authors note #2: hi pookies! this took like a few hours and it’s my first angst. i’m not sure if i’m missing any warning so if yall could tell me that’d be amazing :) but i hoped you guys enjoyed and i’ll make a part two. if you wanna be tagged for it, tell me! byeee <3

[thorniest-rose]

Hi, I have the feeling that Cobra Kai portrays Johnny more stupid than in Karate Kid. I know he is the 'total loser' but he didn't seem so stupid in TKK. Do you also think that he got made into a himbo during CK?

oh definitely! I know Bal posted about this the other day, that there was such scant characterisation for Johnny in TKK, like he really is the stereotypical rich-jock-prep bully, and aside from the sliver of vulnerability we see in the tournament at the end, that's all Johnny really gets. So of course the writers had to do something else with him in the show, to expand upon the one-dimensional boy we know from the film, and also make him likeable. And that's why I think they went down the warm-hearted himbo route, they knew that would be endearing to people. And it succeeds because Billy does it so well! You can't help but love Johnny in CK.

Plus they're lucky that there was that little scene of vulnerable Johnny in TKK because they've leaned on it so much in CK as proof that Johnny was manipulated by Kreese and wasn't such a bad kid despite everything he did. Which of course they expand too by giving him the backstory of being from a broken home and having an emotionally abusive stepdad (something I actually don't think Johnny needed but you can tell the writers were trying to make him as sympathetic as possible.) And it's interesting because the Johnny we all love in the fandom is very much the Johnny of CK much more than the Johnny of TKK, because I think even when you watch TKK now you're thinking of who he becomes in CK and it makes you feel protective of him. When in reality, Johnny could have turned out to be a pretty nasty guy, like I can see a parallel universe where Johnny is still an asshole when he's older and doesn't have the warmth that CK Johnny has. Though I'm glad he does because he's such a joy to watch.

But yeah I've thought about this before too and how different Johnny is in TKK, like there's no indication that he's a bit of a dummy... if anything he seems pretty smart and conniving. BUT I do love the fandom reading of Johnny that maybe his experiences with Kreese and his PTSD stunted his emotional growth and that's why he comes across as such a big kid on the show. Like I don't think that's what the writers had in mind, but it's a valid reading. That maybe the reason he can barely look after himself, why he's emotionally immature, why he runs away from his responsibilities as a father, and why he has such strong, almost childlike reactions to things is because he didn't mature at the rate he should have. But running the dojo and his father-son dynamic with Miguel is what helps him start to heal and actually learn to be an adult.

[shrinkthisviolet]

For The Top 5 Ask Game: I’ve got three for you:

Your Top Five Storylines You Wish Cobra Kai Will Do In The Series Going Forward!

Your Top Five TV Shows You Want To Watch, But Haven’t As Of Yet

And Your Top Five MCU Characters

Cobra Kai Storylines

I’d be happy to see any and all of these, but I do have a definitive ranking, surprisingly 😂:

1. There’s my S4 theory that Robby and Tory know something’s off with Kreese and Silver and are trying to take down CK from the inside. Aisha links them up with Sam and Miguel, because they hear about the new weapons rule for the AVT and know they need to shut it down. Since this probably won’t happen in S4, they could make CK win the AVT and rework the spies plotline for S5!

2. I want the parallels between Hawk and Johnny to be explored. I want Johnny to realize that he’s let Hawk down, that maybe his behavior towards Hawk is rooted in some issues he has with himself...and I want Johnny to do better for Hawk. And to acknowledge the harm he’s caused–because guess what, Johnny? Your actions don’t exist in a vacuum, and neither do Kreese’s. Kreese tried to recruit Hawk and Miguel (and Robby!). Guess which one it didn’t work on? Hint: the one you actually tried with 💀

(Disclaimer: I don’t actually hate Johnny. I just want some accountability for the stuff he did in the movies and in the show).

3. Robby and Johnny reconciliation done right! Maybe not exactly like this amazing fic by @emletish-fish (the stuff with faeries seems too outlandish for these writers)...but the depth!! The characterization!! The way Robby’s adults are trying for him, truly and honestly!! And Robby gets to be upset and express his feelings and he’s valid!!

4. Sam, Tory, Aisha, Miguel, and Robby all becoming friends! They don’t all go to the same college, but Sam and Aisha do, and Miguel and Robby get into a different college together. Tory visits though!

5. I want Sam and Robby to face off in the final fight, for Sam to trust him not to hurt her...and then for Silver to goad Robby into breaking Sam’s knee 😭 and Daniel...oh, Daniel. He can’t handle it.

Watchlist Shows

1. Daredevil, a must after NWH and Hawkeye 😂

2. Agents of Shield! I’ve watched the first couple episodes but then life got in the way. Hoping to pick it back up though!

3. Leverage, because @blackaquokat sings its praises and it has antihero/morally-gray stuff going on!

4. Jessica Jones, mostly because I’ve heard a lot of great things and wanna watch it!

5. Manifest, especially since it’s getting another season!

Honorable Mention for Irregulars. It’s tentatively on this list...but I have a question. I heard it got cancelled, did it end on a cliffhanger?

MCU Characters

1. Peter Parker! Maybe it’s the NWH talking but just...AHHH HE WAS SO GOOD IN THAT MOVIE! Spidey’s always been my favorite hero, and the end of FFH started to sorta sell me on him...but THIS MOVIE KNOCKED IT OUT OF THE PARK OMG (PS4 Spidey tho...always my favorite Spidey 💞)

2. Yelena Belova! She’s such a fascinating antihero character who is incredibly likeable and sweet 💞 but also incredibly fiercely loving! And she’s canonically aroace in the comics...and hopefully in the MCU too! 🤞

3. Kate Bishop, because she’s around my age and I respect her initiative and drive and I just love the whole vibe she has going

4. Tony Stark, because the theme of actively working against the bloody legacy he built is a compelling tale for sure! There are definitely things I don’t like about him, but honestly, his arc as a whole picture is amazing! And yes, I too wish he’d lived to raise Morgan and start his family. But...his death did serve a narrative purpose. He started the MCU off, he put it on the map and made people care about superheroes they might not have cared about. Him dying passes on that torch to a new group of Avengers–the New Avengers, if you will. Like Pepper said, he’d never truly be able to rest, not like the other Avengers–this is the closest he’d ever get to retiring for good. Doesn’t mean it doesn’t break my heart tho 😭

5. I really like MJ tbh? Like...just in general, her character in FFH and NWH (didn’t like her so much in Homecoming, but she was okay) was fantastic 🥰 tho I’ll admit, part of why I love her so much is likely due to @seek--rest (if you haven’t read their amazing fics, what are you even doing??)

Ask me my top 5 anything!

[the-kings-tail-fin]

How about a scenario where Rip Clutchgowski meets Raoul Caroule and they become friends?

If you would have told me when I woke up this morning that I'd be spending several hours writing Rip Clutchgoneski angst, I'd have gotten up a whole lot earlier XD

_

They talk about the tragedy, about the dimming plausibility of alternative fuel, and about a racer coming in last with a DNF in the first race of the World Gran Prix. They throw around conspiracy theories and pseudo-tech talk, all from cars that know nothing of real racing; they're just screen personalities hosting pity parties and getting paid a full digit or two more than he's ever seen in a bank account.

They don't talk about the pain. There's no tell of blown gaskets or severed crankshafts, nothing about fried piston rings or fractured valve covers. Heat - being on fire on the inside, they don't know what that feels like. They only care about replaying the same fifteen second video clip over and over again.

He'd turned the television off long ago - watching himself explode from the inside out time and time again wasn't particularly comforting. The WGP was supposed to be his Cinderella story - the headlines had been following him for weeks leading up to this. "Mute New Rearendian Racer Makes it Big!" and "Putting New Rearendia On The Map - How Clutchgoneski Silently Raced His Way To The Top."

This was his big break. He'd done it. Despite all the odds, he'd made it this far. For his country, for all those like him, and most importantly - for himself. He was going to travel the world! Something he never thought he'd be able to do, and aside from racing, it was all he'd wanted as a young car. This was his opportunity to do both. And he was running third - third! in the Tokyo race! Right up until the end, anyway.

Now he sits in a small, barren hospital room somewhere on the fringes of the largest city in Japan. There's the TV on the wall across from him, small and outdated, a lamp, dimly lit in a corner, and a framed artistic photo that says something he doesn't understand. Aside from the machine next to him and the wires and hoses connecting him to it, there's nothing. A window would have been nice, but he knows he shouldn't be picky. He's lucky to be here at all.

His crew chief stops in every once in a while, tells him that they're overnighting parts from Rearendia - there're just none to be had locally. They'll be here soon, as soon as someone can locate them, load them onto a plane, and have that plane fly halfway around the globe.

A few of the other racers stop by, if only for a few minutes. Carla, Miguel, and that German guy, whatshisname - Snail or something. They offer some kind words and well wishes in broken English that Rip appreciates but struggles to understand himself. He just smiles and nods. His personal digital assistant that he usually uses to communicate with others is somewhere with the race team, no one thought to bring it to him. He's now lost track of how many quiet, lonely hours he's spent in that room.

There's a knock at the door, then a pause. Slowly, the door cracks open as someone peers into the room. Rip recognizes the paint scheme immediately - they spent much of the race near each other, passing back and forth between the dirt and asphalt sections of the track. He motions for his visitor to enter.

Raoul gives his competitor a half-hearted smile as he gently closes the door behind him. What a mess. Raoul's been in plenty of crashes, they're second nature to him at this point, but never anything that resulted in something like this. Blown engine, yeah every racer gets one sooner or later but - wow, that's a lot of wires and - whatever else is coming out of that machine.

They both know there's no common language between them, Rip's surprised he's even there. But he appreciates the show of good will.

Raoul lays a few pieces of paper down on the floor in front of Rip. One's a pamphlet for the WGP that they made for the fans, like a passport that they can take with them and get stamped if they follow and attend the races around the world with the teams. The other looks like a... vacation brochure?

Raoul points to the cartoony map on the WGP pamphlet, and Italy. He then points to Rip.

"Porto Corsa?" He raises his brow as he asks the question with a thick accent.

Rip understands. Is he going to Porto Corsa after this? He nods enthusiastically. As long as the parts get here soon, there's still a few days left before they need to be in Italy.

Raoul smiles and says something rapidly in French. There's an abrupt pause as he stops himself and looks at Rip, who shrugs to the best of his ability.

"Mmmm." Raoul hums as he thinks about how best to explain himself.

He points again to the brochure, at Italy again.

"Porto Corsa."

Rip peers down at it and tries to follow along. Raoul moves his tire from Italy over to the left just a smidge and points to his home country.

"France."

Raoul then pushes the WGP map out of the way and pulls the travel brochure in front of Rip. There are mountains, and a picture of two cars racing their way up the side of one on an immaculate switchback course. One car is a rally car, the other a sports car, and they appear to be racing their way up this mountain on two perfectly parallel winding roads - one dirt and one asphalt.

"Alpes françaises!" Raoul exclaims excitedly, rapidly tapping on the picture a few times.

"Moi!" He points to the rally racer in the picture, and then to himself.

Then he points to Rip and draws his attention to the sportscar on the brochure.

"Toi!"

Rip grins. Go race in the French Alps? Is he kidding? Might as well, since they're going to be so close by anyway, right? He nods in furious agreement.

Raoul flashes a competitive smile and playfully revs his engine. He grabs the WGP brochure and crumples it with his tire before tossing it into the far corner of the room. He double taps the Alps brochure and pushes it closer to Rip as he turns and heads for the door.

He says something in French, Rip doesn't know exactly what, but he understands. Racing. That's their universal language. They'll figure out the details when they get to Italy.

It takes the majority of an entire day for the new parts to arrive, but Rip doesn't care. He's memorized the map in the brochure, and he knows exactly which roads he wants to race. He's going to go see the world whether the world wants him to or not.

[demetriandelibinaryboyfriends]

What if after the party Hawk decided to get revenge by sharing Demetri's secrets as well. Demetri's mom let's him in when he's not home and he finds his journal. What he wasn't expecting was all of the pages about he regrets saying all of those things and he's pretty sure he's in love with him

Oof ouch there goes my goddamn HEART I didn’t need it anyway

I can honestly totally see this happening though??? Like Hawk slipping into “Eli mode” the same way he does to fool the school counselor and using that to break into Demetri’s house because he’s counting on Demetri not being able to bear to tell his mom the full extent of how bad things have gotten with “good old Eli”...and Hawk’s absolutely right. The most Demetri has mentioned to his mom is that there’s been a “bit of tension” and “Eli and I have been arguing a lot.” So of course Hawk gleefully goes up to his room to find the most embarrassing dirt he can and get the most epic vengeance.

And, sure enough, there’s Demetri’s goddamn diary. Of course he would keep a diary, the lame fucking nerd. Who the hell even keeps diaries anymore??? And he reads it from the beginning, and realizing the first half or so is from when they were still best friends. It’s a lot of geek nonsense, rants about video games and Lord of the Rings and what have you, sometimes drawing parallels between scenes from his own life being harassed by Kyler and the plight of Middle Earth being ruled by Sauron. All typical nerdy Demetri. But...there’s also a lot about Eli. About some present he got for Eli that he’d been especially excited about. About how proud he was of Eli for winning that coding competition with him. About how frustrated he was that he couldn’t stand up for Eli more against the bullies. About how much he hated that Eli felt like he needed to constantly cover the scar above his lip. How grateful he really was to have Eli around because “at least someone will listen to my ingenious insight!!!”

And then comes the fateful school year everything changed. Hawk reads through Demetri’s confused delight at Miguel befriending them and seeming to genuinely enjoy having them both around. He reads through Demetri’s bafflement at the emergence of Hawk, and his barely-concealed terror that his best friend would decide he didn’t want someone like Demetri around anymore, now that more people liked him. He reads through Demetri’s concern at Eli’s anger slowly boiling up into something violent and unnerving. He reads through Demetri’s betrayal at Eli blowing him off after Demetri was assaulted by Kreese, and his worry at having his two best friends training with a man who has no issue beating up random high schoolers off the street. He reads through how lost Demetri was after Eli jumped him in the mall, desolate and spiraling and feeling like he’d never quite feel whole again. How broken Demetri had felt looking at Eli’s nearly-unconscious body on the food court floor. 

And then comes a long ramble about the latest season of Doctor Who, and--Hawk notes with an oddly painful twinge--how much Eli would love it. “He’s all about badassery now, he’d be SO into this if I could get him to watch it.” And then a long, giddy ramble about how maybe this is how he’s finally going to get through to Eli--how he’s going to get his Eli back. How he missed him so much he barely knows how to function anymore.

And then come the pages after that fateful party, the one where things almost went right and then everything went so very wrong. It’s just line after line of things to the gist of “Oh, god. I fucked up. I fucked up. I fucked up SO fucking bad. I’m a piece of shit.” Even after everything that’s happened between them, Eli feels himself getting...alarmed. Demetri is never this...concise. Or vulgar. He prides himself on being wordy and pretentious, and not having to curse to make a point. Now it’s like he can’t stop swearing, can’t stop repeating what a piece of shit he is. Which can really only mean he’s gotten so emotional and fallen so deep into devastation that it’s somehow temporarily overridden one of the most prominent parts of his personality.

The last line in the journal is “I never even fucking told him I’m in love with him. He’d fucking kill me if he knew. He’d be so disgusted. But I wish I’d said something anyways. Is that fucking stupid?” Hawk just...slams the journal shut and sits there for several minutes, having no clue what the fuck to do now.

Okay bUT IMAGINE THIS ISN’T EVEN AN AU AND HAWK ACTUALLY READS ALL THIS AND STILL HUNTS DOWN DEMETRI AT THE SCHOOL FIGHT AND LATER BREAKS HIS ARM, HOW UPSETTING WOULD THAT BE

The fucked part is I could SEE it, like this kid already projects all the “pussy nerd shit” he hates about himself onto poor Demetri, like imagine the internalized homophobia??? This kid who wants to seem like the most macho tough guy ALIVE must have??? And imagine he has/had a crush on Demetri and has been suppressing it like there’s no tomorrow and now oh god oh FUCK he has to be reminded of it??? And these feelings are just yet ANOTHER part of his past self that Hawk hates, and with the love Demetri feels for him...well, how could Demetri more PERFECTLY and COMPLETELY represent the “weak” parts of himself that Hawk now despises??? And Demetri becomes Hawk’s absolute prime target after that, because he HATES what he sees of his past self in Demetri and, most of all, he HATES that all of that is still there inside of him. By making a bitter enemy of Demetri, he figures, by alienating him and antagonizing him to the point where any connection they ever had or could ever have is completely broken, maybe he can finally be free of being that Weak-Ass Lame Gay Nerd that nobody liked and everybody mocked.

On a slightly happier note, maybe seeing that final journal entry is part of what spurred Hawk’s eventual change of heart. Like he’s just watching the destruction around him caused by the Cobra Kai kids, and remembers Johnny saying that Kreese doesn’t give a shit about him. And he just has this epiphany like “Demetri loves me.” (And he knows this has to be true, because he was never meant to see it. No reason for Demetri to lie in the privacy of his own journal. No manipulation or tricks here...not like what Kreese has learned how to pull.) “No one at Kreese’s Cobra Kai ever did.”

And he decides in that moment he’s going to fight for a person who loves him as he is, rather than a person who only likes the image that he made for himself to feel like he could be something other people respected. Hawk still doesn’t love the weaker parts of himself, the more vulnerable parts, the parts that people can easily jeer at and mock and use to make him feel awful about himself--but maybe if Demetri sees something worth loving, then Hawk eventually can, too.

[petekaos]

the beautiful thing is that dark blue kiss and gaya sa pelikula go hand in hand.

this is not to undermine anything either of these shows have done — rather to simply appreciate the similarities and parallels these two shows share and the influence that they have on the lgbt community watching these shows. in different ways, in different writing styles, and in different filming, they transfer the same core messages onto screen. it’s stunning how similar they are and how knowledge and closer analysis on one provides one with more insight on the other, both plot wise and concerning the characters’ motivations.

this becomes clear in episode seven of gaya sa pelikula especially. of course we have all of these small parallels between petekao and vladkarl; for example both of them messing around by the sink and washing dishes together, or holding hands under the table as a sign of support, or transferring food onto each other’s plates in front of family as one protests, or the beautiful setup that vlad had arranged for karl, or the pink lights reflecting onto their kiss, or going underwater to kiss, etc etc etc. i could go on and on about these small parallels, but it really is the broad character strokes that got to me.

vlad and pete share so many similarities. both of them are out, are more or less financially okay, and both of them have been deeply hurt or traumatised by different things. vlad has been hurt by his father and ex-boyfriend in the past, leading him to believe he isn’t worthy of anyone staying and therefore developing abandonment issues. isn’t pete the same? losing his mother and sister and turning to violence took a huge toll on him, also leading him to develop self-worth and abandonment issues, especially after non came into the picture. both of them want to love the boys that they love loudly and proudly — neither of them are ashamed of their sexuality. vlad has had time to come to terms with it and accept that part of himself, and pete doesn’t feel the need to prove himself or compensate for his sexuality. both of them just want to live a proud life with the boys that they love without apologising, but they are ready — if you dismiss outside influence (in the case of vlad, judit and tito sants, and in the case of pete, non) — to adjust to be with who they love.

karl and kao... where to start. my heart aches for the both of them. generally, the fears that they share are the same. both of them aren’t out to family and also need to financially support themselves through their skills, writing in karl’s case and teaching in kao’s. while karl is still discovering himself, however, kao has already been in a relationship with pete for three years during dbk. while he has had time to accept his sexuality, much like karl, he isn’t ready to tell the world yet. neither of them are ready, and they panic when faced with the prospect of people knowing. there’s something different, isn’t there? about knowing yourself and putting it out there into the world. both of them get outed, essentially, and have seemingly no-one to help them through it. but the love they have for the other person is evident. it’s apparent in the way that kao sets all of that up for their anniversary, helps pete with his presentations, slips in notes for the exam, gives him medicine. it’s apparent in the way that karl stares at vlad like he’s his whole world in the mornings, how he breaks free of what he’s been telling himself his whole life to allow himself this happiness, sets up all of that for his birthday, makes a home with him. they may not be ready to love proudly yet — but they will be.

the general themes are the same. both shows are written by gay men and it is absolutely evident through the care that runs through the fine thread of both of them. pete and vlad are out, karl and kao aren’t. pete and vlad are more or less financially set, karl and kao aren’t. all of them have been deeply hurt and traumatised. it’s about growing, about learning, about adjusting and compromising and supporting. it’s about taking your time to come out, and the effect that outside influences such as characters like non, judit, and tito sants can have on a relationship, the strain that can be put on it when you’re not on the same page. it’s about taking back your own story. it’s about giving yourself a happy ending. it’s about the journey of getting there at all — the trials and tribulations of it, the falling and the flying, and the reassurance that no matter what, at the end of the day you come home. you have a space here. you belong. this is what both of these shows tell lgbt audiences, this is what it feels like watching these shows: like coming home. like knowing you belong. like finally seeing that you are the main character of your story. this is their impact, in different levels and ways.

both shows complement one another beautifully. and as juan miguel severo, the writer of gsp, said about episode seven of gaya sa pelikula in particular:

thank you, gaya sa pelikula and dark blue kiss 💛

[your-eyes-can-be-so-cruell]

What are your hopes for Johnny as a father by the time the curtain closes on the show? How do you expect his relationship with Robby and Miguel to evolve over the coming seasons and also what are your hcs for the Lawrence-Diaz clan?

Hiya!

Ooooh interesting. I think really I just want him to believe in himself more. The tragic thing is Johnny is someone with a massive heart and I think if a lot of things hadn’t happened to him he would have been a good father. I believe he still can though because he’s proven that he can be with Miguel even though he doesn’t realise he’s doing it. As soon as I found out Robby existed I said to someone that Miguel and Johnny’s relationship will be a good thing long-term for Johnny’s relationship with Robby because it’s helping to prove to Johnny that he can be a responsible and loving person. Of course we need him to recognise that he can do those same things with Robby!

I have a lot of expectations as to where his relationships with them will end up and I just hope they don’t short change us. I think with Miguel it will be pretty simple they are already best friends but maybe if he gets more involved in the family Johnny might outwardly start seeing himself as Miguel’s father, I would really like that because at the moment he just see’s himself as his teacher. I think that’s a step that Johnny needs to take. As for the more difficult relationship with Robby I’m hope I’m right that they will allow a deeper relationship to develop between them. They have so few scenes together and the ones they do have almost always end in an argument, I think for entertainments sake that also has to evolve. Johnny needs to be brave for Robby’s sake and not walk away when it gets difficult because It won’t take much for Robby to respond to him. We’ve seen how much Robby loves him and wants that relationship. For me season 4 seems to have been set up like the classic father saves son motif. Johnny has to save Robby from the situation that noone saved him from. I think it’s time to have some progress in the relationship because it’s reached the worst case scenario now of Robby being with Kreese. I think Johnny will prove himself to Robby and that will lead him away from CK. What I really need is for Robby to understand more about Johnny because it feels like at this point he just thinks Johnny lost a karate contest and has been moping since. I’ll keep saying it until they do it but Robby needs to know what Kreese did to Johnny in 84. I think that would be an important moment because not only would he hate Kreese because he loves Johnny but also because it would make him realise how Johnny became so messed up. It would maybe bring some understanding between the two of them and open the door to those deeper conversations.

I’ve said this before and it may be a longshot but I would love Johnny and Robby to train together at some point. Just because it’s been teased before with Kreese asking why Johnny doesn’t do it and Robby looking at his fathers website. It would be such a bonding moment for them and it just makes me sad seeing that flashback with Sam and Daniel, I want that for Johnny and Robby. In the CK universe training together is how people learn things about each other so that would be great way for them to become closer. It would also be interesting to see how Johnny would change his training methods because there is no way he would train Robby in the same way as his students. In fact he’d probably be pretty worried about the idea in the first place, I think Johnny has made this negative association because of his fatherly feelings to do with Kreese that you cannot be your child's sensei because you’ll hurt them. So it would be pretty good to see Robby call Johnny out on not training him properly because of his fears. It would also be nice if they did live together at some point because that was teased and then it never came to pass. So much time has been lost that I just want them to have those moments together. That scene with Johnny packing Robby’s bag for school was so cute that I wanna see more of dad Johnny. It would be interesting to see them try and evolve to living together and also the potential conflict of Miguel and Carmen coming round.

As for my hc’s/wishes/ I just want loads of bonding scenes is that too much to ask -sobs- Johnny has been such a lonely character I want him to be sitting round a table having those big family dinners with all the people he loves. I want in the future for Miguel and Robby to become friends because I think the potential for that to happen is there. It would be pretty funny to see them gang up on Johnny about things like him knowing nothing about technology. I want Carmen and Johnny going on date nights and acting like giggly kids when they come home and Miguel being like ‘what time do you call this?’. Also, can we have the Robby/Johnny camping trip that Billy said would be Johnny’s wish?! I want them going on a road trip together and listening to the bands they both like. As for Yaya she is teaching Johnny how to speak Spanish so he can surprise Carmen, their lessons mostly consist of them sharing beers and watching tv. She keeps jokingly asking Johnny when he is gonna become her son-in-law but Johnny doesn’t understand those words yet.

Final headcannon as we discussed I would really love Carmen and Johnny to have a baby. I feel like it would be a final challenge for Johnny in his development. Maybe he’ll have got to a place where things are good with Robby and he’s got Miguel and then he gets thrown this curve ball, it’s the same situation which he messed up all those years ago. He’ll probably have massive doubts all over again and having those parallels with him eventually coming through it would be interesting to see. Plus I just want all the fluff moments between Carmen and Johnny, we know he can be such a soft person and if he’s more confident this time round I bet he’d be googling stuff about babies and pregnancy nonstop. Johnny would make a big thing of saying he hopes the baby looks like its mama instead of him but when it arrives with baby blue eyes like it’s daddy Carmen is so happy. Then you have Miguel and Robby sharing this sibling and maybe that can be the thing that finally creates a situation for them to become friends? Like you said given how slow the series goes I’m not sure how this would fit in, I mean they seemed to jump from the summer to x-mas pretty quick so maybe it’s possible with a time skip. CK is one of those shows that seems like it’s building to the big happy ending for the redeemed character and normally a new start in fiction is indicated with a baby or marriage so yeah, I want both haha.

I hope this is ok. I didn’t really edit much as I went along so I hope it all makes sense lol. Thank you for asking me this I loved thinking about my hopes for Johnny and the show! Xxx

[icecreamkink]

so i watched cobra kai all in two days and i have so many -

this show has so many cool and smart angles to it, but the same time.... its so stupid oh my god everyone is so dumb literally mr miyagi held all of the braincells in this whole universe 

like i am but at the same time i am not surprised it was made like this, bc in hindsight of course there were hordes of ppl simping over johnny lawrence ....  but it still amuses me that this is like... an Actual Official Thing

ok this will get long so cut it is

how much fun this cast has is super visible and i love it

i rly enjoy how the world was expanded ! i did grow up watching the karate kid movies, so watching how they progressed the world of the movies so organically was pretty cool. it rly feels like its the same universe

i fucking LOVE stories that are largely about a Thing. dancing ,skating, sports its just so thrilling to experience this all consuming relationship people can have with this type of activity? and martial arts are just that much more intense, so yeah, grown ass men kicking each other around at the lightest provocation and a war veteran caring so much abt teen karate is Ridiculous.... but i love it all because thats the intensity i find so thrilling

was kinda surprised with how much im missing mr. miyagi. first because, like everyone is so unhinged jesus christo, it just really throws into relief how much his character grounded the narrative of the movies. but also hes just a really great character

and on that note it rly Gets Me that the show itself aknowledges that and plays that into daniels angst and all the little ways they sorta weave myiagisms into the whole show........ im not getting emotional over this dumb karate dads show OK

related - i really miss hearing ‘daniel-san’ 🥺🥺

ACE DEGENERATE oh god oh no

they really went down the down and out johnny lawrence route huh. like i was always kinda bummed we see kreese choking him and then we never see him again in the movies, and while i love dumpster fire problematic trash himbo ck johnny, its like......................... actually really sad that his life turned out like this fjngn

everytime i hear ‘babes’ and ‘pussy’ i die a little inside. i know thats the point but i am a v cringe easy person, have mercy (ehe)

loved the way they are constantly drawing parallels between johnny and mr. myiagi of all people. hes the handy man of his building that has a bullied kid asking for help and eventually steps up to teach them karate, beats up a bunch of bullies for him, creates a friendship with said kid, estranged from family, drinks his sorrows away, surprisingly one of the least quick to anger characters (which says more about everyone else really but.... Well.), no schemes or ulterior motives hes just tryna vibe here.... oh and ofc magically heals miguel of is asthma apparently. the true disciple.. meanwhile daniel is his usual messy petty self even tho he wants to be mr myiagi so bad 

also interesting about that is how miguels character is a parallel of both johnny and daniel at the same time

overall the parallels in ck are done really well, drawing comparisons and also subverting them constantly. theyre well thought out

THE PARALELOGRAMS

fr tho, the angle being explicitly the cycle of trauma and its effects and how trumatized adults in turn traumatize kids, maliciously or not, is so interesting

but! on the flip side of that, it feels like the writers are getting in their own way @ letting the characters grow. especially this last season. theres only so many times you can do "johnny and daniel are getting along but 5mins later they are (literally) fighting over some dumbass random issue" or "johnny puts in 20% of effort with robby and then gives up" before it gets on your nerves yknow?

i see daniel no longer talks like macchio ingested 15 shots of espresso before every take and idk how to feel about that tbh

interesting tension in daniel, as in, in tkk mr miyagi was there and daniel was frankly, kind of a lil shit, this messy petty spitfire hot tempered sassy kid,(johnny lawrence voice: just... stop being so annoying) but now hes the adult, and he wants to be mr. miyagi... but hes just not, and never will be to his very core and it shakes him and in a way hes trying to find who he is now that he sees himself in a position to be a not! cobra kai figure. i kinda really like that 

plus how that relates to his cobra kai trauma. idk if the writers thought abt it Like That, i think so, but in any case, its interesting bc it seems like daniel has told everyone whod listen about johnny lawrence his Pretty Boy Karate Rival and high school and 84 cobra kai... But. no one seems to know what went on in 85 (or 86? idk) which was just so much worse

like ye og cobras were shitheads, but tkk iii is just two hours of daniel being emotionally and physically tortured. 

like, the third movie is.............chaotic, to put it nicely, and many people ignore it, but the writers clearly didnt. daniels actions are, in a way, responding so much more to the events of tkk iii than to the first movie ie. johnny himself, AND. daniel doesnt rly seem to have dealt with that trauma? he never told sam? doesnt feel like hes ever told amanda? he doesnt even say terrys name out loud? freaks Out over kreese ? the way he reacts to robbys deceit? his FACE when he walks past the new "fear does not exist in this dojo" paint or kreeses photo? hmMm i sense Pain

his fashion tho........... disappointing. where are the flower shirts daniel huh we had one (1) shirt what a tragedy STOP WEARING SUITS ALL THE TIME . also the band ts/grunge bi are a look for johnny but part of me longs for the preppy lovable 80s bully chic johnny lawrence getups

weird that they never used that last moment of karate kid where johnny kinda... snaps out of his anger and hands daniel the trophy almost in tears. like “youre alright larusso, good match” “thanks a lot”  that being their last direct interection seems like itd be perfect fruit for cobra kai but... they just dont. weird. 

especially when, the FIRST SCENE they see each other, suposedly in 30+ years, the first thing to come out of daniels mouth is QUOTE "u still got those golden locks huh?" WHO SAYS SHIT LIKE THAT DANIEL FUCKING SAN 

also amandas immediate reaction "your pretty boy rival?" like. can we talk about the fact that daniel had to have imparted to his wife the very important information that his high school bully/karate rival was like Really Cute and Fucking Hot Actually

 the writers Knew exactly what they were doing and honestly.............. power to them

tkk director voice: and billy was just so cute  

also I was thinking that daniel sounded strangely fond in that first scene, and i wonder if he developed a weird affection for johnny on the grounds that of all of his Karate Rivals johnny was actually the only one who didn’t actively tried to literally kill him

i was actually delightedly surprised with how great the chemistry between them is, like from the get go i am Invested. their rl friendship totally bleeds through and its fantastic

. granted, idiots enemies to lovers friends is my Thing so i am biased  

johnny lawrence: i am down in the dumps, i fucked up my whole life and my sons probably, largely in light of the trauma that the father figure sensei and the philosophy of my karate inflicted on me and all my friends. u know what i should do, as a traumatized, unreliable mess of an adult? teach that same philosophy to some other kids! what could go wrong! 

but really i enjoy the setup of it. i kinda like that i watched it late because, season 1 was johnny setting himself up for failure in a way and it was exciting to watch it all go to shit sjfn

Like. his heart might be in the right place, but theres just.... not a way to teach something like ‘strike hard, no mercy’ and not have it fuck up a kid 

case and point: aisha, miguel and hawk become annoying as all hell over that bullshit in the end of s1, even before shit gets truly fucked up

billys subtle panicked eyes when he sees hawk and miguel fighting dirty in the all valley was SO GOOD especially in parallel with the panic that is so visible in his face in the movie when kreese tells bobby to injure daniel and in the sweep the leg scene 

seen people question wether kreese should have returned and i absolutely think he needed to. johnny needed to realize that cobra kais fundamentals are flawed, at the root, beyond kreese himself being a toxic piece of shit 

also who are we kidding? we are here to see the tkk characters play on new playgrounds!

i get what they're doing abt kreeses backstory, ( also. cobra kai. pq eles caem nas cobras djjs sorry) but did it need to take up that much time? feels like they couldve  done it in half the run time and developed some other stories better 

martin kove has such an evil eye. i love it

love that we get a good follow up to kreese breaks johnnys trophy and tries to CHOKE HIM in the parking lot, which happened in the movie and then....................... was never mentioned again

“the gang is all back together again” aaaa u piece of SHIT 

also. terry silver is definetely appearing ha ha ha PAIN i cant wait

seen ppl say kreese was too much of a cartoon villain like..........................oh......... sweetie........... u dont even Know

interested how johnny will fit into that bc kreese was simping rly hard for johnny here. like i did not expect him to be so adamant to have him with cobra kai ... under his control, sure, but he really wants johnny by his side despite already having control of the dojo and how will terry silver self appointed jon kreeses forever simp going to feel abt that? 

like bitchs dropping by every episode like ‘joooooohnny ..... come bacc to me joooonny......... this ur last warning! for real this time johnny! i wont say it again! watch me ! im leaving johnny! im rly leaving ! im dragging a chair” and johnny is just like. dont let the door hit ya bitch it was so funny pls

and on that subject oof, johnny! doesnt! Know! he doesnt get that side of daniels cobra kai trauma. and i kind of.............. cannot wait for ck 2021 johnny lawrence to meet terry silver like. what a shit show i need a front row seat and popcorn (imagine terry tries some greasy charm and johnny just roundhouse kicks him in the teeth bc he just doest Not Have the Patience for This. glorious)

feels like we, as a society, should acknowledge that cobra kai will never die................ bc their sense of design is just chefs kiss. their name is COBRA KAI. they have sexie sleeveless black gis. theyve sneks. colorful leather jackets with embroided naja insignia, the get ppl thru the aesthetics. evil geniuses

the flashback cuts : masterpiece behavior

the other takes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! of the movie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! the differente angles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! of the FIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE CLOSE UP ON JOHNNYS FACE AT THE KICK 

that scene of daniel and johnny vibing to 80s music in the car. just. oh my god. the fan wish fullfilment. no thoughts head empty.

the new characters! theyre .... good. but. idk. i really like miguel (save for the annoying phase mid s1 - end s2) and amanda, who is a damn riot and has some functioning braincells, but everyone else is       

like dont get me wrong, i dont hate anyone,its not a jane and rafael from jtv situation,  and i am interested and invested in their arcs, but i wouldnt say i like   Like them, as in, personality wise 

like, sams grappling with ptsd was rly gutting and i enjoyed that plus her slight rage issues, 

which nicely parallel torys rage issues. torys background is all over the place tho so im pretty on the fence abt her so far

robby deserves better in every way, and i like how smart and cunning and surprisingly sweet he is

hawk............... is there i guess,

 demetri is annoying in the best way possible,

 carmen is sweet but. i just feel like her character is blunted to make the johnny relationship easier. like when shes furious with him after miguels injury but then forgives him like an episode later? and then convinces him to fight for the tournament bc she had a karate epiphany off screen even tho she was always against it? meh. feels like with the plot thiccening she was swallowed and now shes like a crutch for johnny mora than anything, which is disappointing.

aisha was cool and im kinda mad she wasnt in s3, especially bc a storyline with her tory and sam was like RIGHT THERE , but also... cant say i was super super fond of her... doesnt feel like we ever spent enough time on her

moon the bi icon, 

overall its a good cast but the main draw for me remains the og cast 

the tory/sam miguel/robby Thing. enjoy how theyre Narrative Foils and i like how their stories were so dramatically entangled but oh god give me a break with the teenage love square for the love of god. if u gonna put us through that at least have the decency to not make it so straight

and honestly some sam/tory        miguel/robby romantic tension would even make more sense. just saying! 

also im not sure how i feel abt the cobra kai: red miyagi do: blue theyre going with since some of daniels most iconic looks in tkk are also red. like it was a color they (johnny and him) sorta shared. i get it, opposite but complementary but idk... a little too fire nation and water tribe for me .

 and like the cobra kai kids are so funny abt it bc their outifts grow progressively more ridiculously coordinated. its like do they group chat every morning before leaving their houses? 

robby still sticks out like that tho. he went thru an athleisure/daniel san tsleeves phase and now hes back in the bandts grunge, but his color scheme doesnt fully blend with the other cobra kais. hmmmm.

LOVED LOVED LOVED both the okinawa episode and the cobra kais easy rider episode just such good good heart aching fun

bobby is an icon. he was in tkk and he is now ck hope appears more and more

 tommy is like the most iconic background character. all his lines, freaking gold then and now. sigh :( 

the framing in the okinawa trip was so good everything was so good

i stand by the fact that kumiko was the love interest daniel had the most chemistry with and shes is overall such a joy to watch, loved to see her again, idola, fashion icon

also tkk ii is good u guys are just mean

also really enjoyed chozens role in the episode, his evolution; i love that they introduced the pressure points (ty lee the blueprint) and! the honk + karate! cousins! absolutely iconic

when kumiko reads mr miyagis letters........ oh my god, my eyes FILLED with tears, it was so heart wrenching :(( tamlyns delivery was so emotional and lovely and its so obvious everyone involved in ck has so much love and respect for pat morita and mr miyagi as character, and i adore that it exists like this electric current through the show

when we were watching i told my sister i thought that ali would be miguels big shot surgeon and ngl i am so disappointed that didnt happen. hire me cobra kai writers

also the johnny ali daniel amanda chemistry? off the charts

AND the sassy retconning of daniel and alis breakup! LMAO ‘I HOPE U DIDNT TELL MR MIYAGI IT WAS MY FAULT’ HFDJJGNKFKSD

i am preeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeetty sure back injuries dont work like that    but oke

daniel and johnny are so good together whenever, like they never actually help the kids or get shit done and end up fighting anyway but its just so much fun when theyre hanging

JOHNNY LAWRENCE AND DANIEL LARUSSO FIGHTING TOGETHER

daniels “plan” on how to get robby to juvie was so stupid. literally were u TRYING to make him hate you. dumbass

parents at those hearing rly brave for ppl that did not do ANYTHING as their kids got involved in a karate gang war until now

“bullshit i heard u were the real bully!” i mightve screeched

this s3 ending was SO DRAMATIC omg

everyone is such a MESS go to THERAPY u unhinged motherfckers

also im sorry but uh. a richass neighborhood in california doesnt have some type of neighborhood watch? the larussos rly dont have any security at all? neighbors wont hear the sound of a damn karate brawl happening next door??? also wasnt tory all like ooo i cant go to juvie, my mom yada yada yet shes always running around town getting into fights even at the rich girls house she was kicked out of school for fighting??   ?  ??    ??        ?                ?    ?          ??                  ?    ? girl??

stop destroying the larussos house, its so pretty :((((

sam finding her center looking at mr miyagis picture...  uwu maybe

robby yelling ‘U ARE WEAAK’@  johnny \as he is easily blocking him is like.... so funny and so sad to me. sweetheart. 

also i know it was meant as ‘oh johnny pushes him and HURTS HIM’ but it just looks like robby runs himself into the lockers and IM SO SORRY I FEEL SO BAD BUT IT WAS SO FUNNY 

i like that he and tory are the cobra kai kids now. we need ppl we care abt there to not revert to a good vs evil schtick, and this is the most engaging it could be... tho it hurts that these kids cant catch a break

ah yes "lets bet some real shit on the result of this teen karate tournament bc that is always a great idea" is BACK

so daniel saves johnny from kreese..... maybe johnny will save him from terry 🧐

and dojos unite ohohoho. lets SEE how that’ll work out 

miguels face of Despair when the ck defectors and the md kids are bickering like 'this is never gonna work' : gold

also. Johnny Lawrence is gonna learn some myiagi-do karate AHAAHSJAKDFH

 ive been waiting for this moment all my lifeeee oh lawrd 

final thoughts! there are def things i hope the writers will improve on the next season, but i am very excited for it either way AND i feel like it has made me enjoy the movies even more and that is a win for a reboot/sequel to me!!