#when the family goes on vacation in that one episode he’s nowhere to be seen

[quibbs126]

Admittedly maybe this is just because I only got through season 1 of Elena of Avalor before getting sidetracked (and right now I don’t think I have the time to continue binging), but at least from what I’ve seen there, I feel like it’s not acknowledged enough the fact that Esteban was the only member of the family to have aged a whole 41 years

Though specifically, I mean the family doesn’t seem to address this that much

Like, before Shuriki, Esteban was only a couple years older than Elena, wasn’t he? He was probably less than a decade older than Isabel. And now suddenly for them, he’s a full grown man, presumably around 60

Is this not weird for them? No adjusting period? Like okay, maybe I can understand Elena because she was semi-aware of time passing, and then maybe Fransisco and Luisa since they’ve lived a long time and saw their own children grow up into full adults, so it’s at least semi familiar, but is it not weird for Isa, her teenage cousin now suddenly being an old man? Especially because he was living with them for presumably the majority of her life

I don’t know if I’m explaining myself right, but it just sort of irks me how they seem to accept this new circumstance so quickly

I mean, I guess I get it, it’s a Disney Junior show, maybe they don’t want to deal with all that drama, especially within the first season of the show where this would be most prevalent, but you know

Hopefully there’s fanfiction of what I want somewhere

[shurisneakers]

shut in [2]

Summary: When your high profile mission goes terribly wrong, you’re forced to hide in a safehouse with a man you’ve never met before. With seemingly nowhere else to go, you’re forced to work together to figure out who is trying to have you assassinated before it’s too late. (Sam Wilson x Gender Neutral Reader, Hitman AU)

Warnings: cursing, implied violence, drama kings, and stupid tv show references

Word count: 3.4k

A/N: ayeeee, we’re back for part two. i also appreciate feedback so if you would like to, please consider dropping me an ask or comment ly guys!! also if you want to be on the taglist, it’s mentioned at the bottom of the chapter.

here’s my ko-fi if you’d like to support my writing <333

Previous Part || Shut In Masterlist

Hours were spent on the road in thick silence. 

The both of you had been driving around for a while now. You were a considerable distance away from the mansion and Pierce, but you didn’t dare to stop.

Initially you had only put the pedal to the metal without solid plan. Get the fuck away from there was the only objective you cared about. 

Hours later a signboard registered in your frantic thoughts. Familiarity struck a chord, and all of a sudden you had a vague idea of where you could go. You were unsure if it still existed, but it was a risk you were willing to take.

Darkness still coloured the sky, but the roads were deserted. No cameras along the highway was a welcomed feature. You eased your foot off the accelerator, carefully assessing the path you were taking for your exit. 

You saw a small clearing near the highway, taking a deep breath before pulling the car into a sharp turn off the road and into the woods.

“Where are you going?” your companion jolted up when the car swerved abruptly. 

You didn’t answer; just kept your eyes peeled for the structure. You didn’t have a backup plan if this didn’t go right.

It took much longer than you anticipated before you found it, pulling the car to a stop. You were deeper into the woods than you would have liked. 

You stuck your head out of the window to confirm you were at the right place. It looked like you were.

“Where the hell are we?”

“My summer vacation house,” you murmured, unbuckling your seatbelt. You stepped out of the car to assess the damage. .

Another door opening and closing told you that he had gotten out of the car as well. However, he trudged ahead, leaving you behind. 

The car was pretty beaten up. The metal gates hadn’t done it any favours.The question was whether it would still work if you needed it to.

Probably would, but not for too long.

You looked to the side to see where he went. He was standing in front of the house, arms crossed over his chest as he ran his eyes all over the building.

You trekked past him, walking up the two steps to the door. Pulling at what looked like a doorbell in any other scenario, you tugged off the outer shell to reveal a small scanner underneath.

You pressed your thumb to it, tapping your foot impatiently as it gave a beep of approval. The door gave a soft click. You let out a breath you didn’t realise you were holding, twisting the handle to let yourself in. 

“You’re kidding right?” he asked incredulously from a distance behind you.

“Hey, man, stay outside if you want. Suit yourself.” You were sure he could fashion a bed out of leaves and twigs if he was that desperate.

Fumbling for the light switch, you sigh in relief when the room is illuminated.

“Whose safehouse is this?”

“Ransone’s.” You shrugged nonchalantly, moving ahead to inspect the place.

“I have every single one of his safehouses committed to memory.” His voice was becoming fainter as he planted his feet firmly at the doorway, refusing to move. “This ain’t one of them.”

“He’s sneaky. Once watched the next episode of Desperate Housewives without telling me.” The house wasn’t as dusty as you thought it would be, clearly being maintained once in a while although not regularly. “Broke my whole heart, he did.”

“Whose house is this?” he asked once again, tone hard as steel.

“Best that you don’t ask questions, buddy.” You looked at him wearily, a slo warning in itself, ending the conversation there. “Or else you’re welcome to leave.”

The entrance opened directly into what you assumed was the living room, or a sorry excuse for one. It had a couch facing an old cable television set, mounted on a small cupboard.

In the same space was the kitchen, with a microwave, a sink, and shelves lining the wall. A small mini fridge sat atop the counter.  There was a dining table with six chairs for a family, almost like a sick joke. You found yourself letting out a short exhale at it, moving onto the next room.

It was bare except for a shelf pressed against a well. Opening it, you found yourself looking at multitudes of what looked like burner phones, microphones, cameras, some as small as a button. Regular security cameras and monitors to go with it, trackers, anything you needed was available in those four drawers.

You pocketed a burner cell to use for later, moving to the room on the opposite side of the hall.

However, unlike the rest of the rooms you had seen so far, this one was empty. Not even a shelf decorating it.

The next door you opened was a bathroom, the final being a bedroom with one bed in the centre pushed up against the wall. A wardrobe in the corner contained numerous t-shirts of black and grey of every size, tactical pants and other necessary items of clothing.

You eyed the last door at the end of the hall before finally deciding to pursue it.

It opened to the patio in the back, two steps leading down from the house into the wooded area. Pillars held up the corners of the roof. It all looked picturesque, meant to blend in as a normal house.

You stood there for a second, taking in the silence around you. Nothing could be heard for miles, so if something were to happen-

You shook your head, forcing your imagination to stop running wild. You shut the door behind you, steadily making your way back to where the guy was.

It appeared that he had caved. He had moved from the doorway, instead taking a seat on one of the dining chairs. He was observing you, eyes keen as you took a seat opposite to him.

Dropping the burner phone on the table, you looked at him expectantly. Silence ensued until it dawned on him what you were implying. 

“I’m not calling him,” the guy said, leaning on his palm. Coward. 

“Fine.” You pulled it back, snapping it open to dial the number.

You let it ring all the way until the very last second.

“Hello?” the low voice resonated from the other end.

“Ransone.” You rolled your eyes at his tone, somehow letting your exhaustion tear down any kind of filter you usually had while in conversation with him. 

“Y/N?” His voice jumped two octaves higher to his usual pitch, dropping the facade immediately. 

“Did you set us up?” You ignored the small glance you got from the guy at your name.

“What?”

“Did you set us up?” you repeated brazenly.

“What?”

“Oh, cut the shit Ransone, was this a trap?” The guy next to you exploded impatiently.

“Wilson?” Great. A name to the face.

“Answer the fuckin’ question, Vincent.” The mention of Ranone’s first name had you surprised. No one dared to call him that.

“No, Sam,” came his response almost mockingly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Sam Wilson. It sounded familiar. You’d heard it tossed around a few times at the organisation.

“Why were both of us on the same assignment?”

“I told you, I wasn’t sure if Wilson was going to show up.” You could hear his chair faintly creak in the background. “This was his mission first.”

“The hell is that supposed to mean?” you interjected. Faint memories of a passing comment he made during your briefing were beginning to surface. 

“It means,” Ransone emphasised. “I called him first. He was being a bit… difficult. So I sent you as a backup.”

You looked at Sam. He dismissed you with a wave of his hand, as if to say to ignore what he was saying.

“And you didn’t think it was important to tell me that you were sending someone else?” If Ransone had told you, he should have mentioned it to him too.

“Oh, grow up.” Ransone sounded irritated, a tone that he seemed to reserve for Sam specifically. “You’re not children anymore. You can handle a few miscommunications.”

“Bullshit. You and I both know this isn’t an accident,” Sam retorted, dangerously good at not giving a shit. 

“You better watch yourself, agent.” Ransone snarled. “I don’t like being questioned.”

“Like I give a shit about what you like or not. We were outnumbered 8 to 2. You tellin’ me you had nothing to do with this? That the stars just aligned to royally fuck with us?”

“Yes, I waited until Mercury was in retrograde to plan this hit,” he drawled sarcastically. “Don’t you for a second forget what you owe me, Wilson. You’d be stupid to believe I’d let it go so easily by having you killed.”

His voice was ice by the end. Sam’s eyebrow furrowed as he leaned back, crossing his arm over his chest.

“Then what about me?”

“Y/N,” he sighed, instantly sounding softer. “I didn’t think he would show. That’s it.”

“You’ve never been unsure of anything.”

“Which is why I sent you in. Pierce had to die one way or the other. Don’t care how.” It wasn’t what you were talking about, but it brought up something else. 

You looked at Sam. Should you tell him that Pierce was dead before you got there?

You decided against it, not knowing what his reaction would be and too tired to gauge it over the phone. If someone else had gotten to Pierce before you, it meant that Ransone didn’t get a chance to deliver a dramatic end to his life, which would tick him off endlessly. 

“How do I know you’re telling the truth?” Sam broke the momentary pause.

“You don’t.” He paused. “Distrusting me is the wisest thing you could do.”

You scoffed at his stupid Game of Thrones quote. How he was this obnoxious at a time like this was beyond comprehension. 

“Give me your location.” He couldn’t sound less interested, like a parent forced to pick up their child. “I’ll send someone to come pick you up.”

Sam’s finger tapped at the table, drawing your attention to him.

He slowly shook his head, mentioning to his ear then drawing his finger in a circle indicating his surroundings.

Disclosing confidential information over the phone wasn’t the wisest idea. You had no idea if anyone was tapping into Ransone’s calls, listening for sensitive information. For all you knew that’s how they got to the mansion before you. 

“Forget it. We’ll figure it out,” you told Ransone, eyes still locked on Sam.

“All right, stay low for a while. Keep me updated.”

You cut the call without another word, removing the battery and tossing the phone onto the table.

“What now?”

Neither of you said anything for a while. The silence rested uncomfortably between you as you stewed over what to bring up. 

“Did you kill Pierce?”

“Christ, we still on this?” he scoffed.

“It’s a yes or no question.” 

“No,” he stared at you. “I didn’t.”

“Did Ransone send you to spy on me?” It wouldn’t be the first time it had happened, although you thought he had moved past the need for that years ago. 

“No, I was there for a mission.”

“You got any proof?”

He rolled his eyes. “Scout’s honour.”

He lifted his hand up in a mock-salute. A wince flashed across his face; barely, but enough for you to catch it. His arm dropped back down again.

You examined him silently, searching for any hint of a lie or bluff. You found nothing, only an adamant set of eyes staring right back at you.

Your chair creaked as you pushed yourself away from the table. You could feel his gaze following you as you walked down the hall to the bathroom. Shuffling through the shelves for something you were sure was there, you soon stepped back out.

You had no idea why you were doing this. You didn’t even know the guy.

He had his sleeve pulled up to his shoulder, examining the wound from the bullet graze. Dried blood streaked his forearm, partially covering his tattoo.

You tossed the first aid kit onto the table, watching it slide across to where he was sitting. Sam glanced at the box, then up at you.

You just turned around silently, walking back down the hall and towards the bedroom, shutting the door behind you.

__________

Sleep didn’t come that night, and predictably so.

Whether it was the survival instinct guarding you from the stranger in the house, the adrenaline from the mission or even the anxiety of not knowing what exactly was going on, you were sure that you didn’t catch even a bit of shut eye.

Morning came around after what seemed like days rather than hours. You still stayed in bed well past the sunrise, pulling at the hem of your pillow. Your knife was still strapped to your thigh and your gun found a place on the nightstand, just in case.

When you heard the opening and shut of cabinets down the hall, you finally pulled yourself up, stretching to get rid of the weariness in your muscles. You decided against the gun but left the knife strapped to your thigh as you shifted off the bed.

You paused at the doorway, hand on the knob. Shoving aside your hesitation, you opened the door quietly. You could handle it, easily.

Walking towards the kitchen, the volume of his ruffling and filing through the kitchen only became louder. You stopped at the entrance, watching as Sam slammed a cabinet door shut.

“C’mon man,” he groaned before turning around to lean his body weight against the counter. There was a small bump under the sleeve of his arm, different from the curve of his muscle. You assumed he had bandaged the bullet graze the night before.

He was still wearing the same thing as yesterday. Dust was slightly settled on his shirt and one knee of his pants was ripped slightly.

“Mornin’.” You quickly looked back up at him, not realising when he had seen you. “Get any sleep last night?”

You wordlessly shook your head and he shrugged in understanding. 

“Did you?”

“Oh yeah. Out like a light.” He pushed himself off the counter.

“Really?” You watched as he pulled out a chair for himself, taking a place at the dining table, same place he was sitting the night before.

“Sounded like the reasonable thing to do.” He had an unnatural amount of faith in the fact that you wouldn’t murder him. Although you couldn’t judge if he was simply putting on a show, having stayed awake just as you had. 

“I'm stuck in a safehouse with a stranger, forgive me for being a little careful,” you muttered defensively, crossing your arms over your chest.

“Hey, never said you were wrong.” He lifted his hands up. “But just to make sure; are you going to kill me?”

Your eyebrows furrowed. “No?”

“And I’m not going to kill you. I’d say that’s enough reassurance to get at least a nap in.”

“Give me one good reason to believe you.”

“If you killed me, Ransone would blow the roof of this place with you still in it. I’m one of the best he’s got.”

“Bullshit.” You scoffed, walking around the table to go see what you could find to eat. Ransone wouldn’t do that for anyone, and he knew that.

He didn’t bother responding but you could sense him tracking your movement.

The first cabinet you opened consisted purely of jars of peanut butter, stacked together neatly. The one beside it had jelly arranged in a similar fashion, jar to jar and taking up the entire space. Adjacent cupboard had loaves of bread, probably the most you’d seen together in a house ever.

The next cupboard was... empty.

“You have got to be fuckin’ with me,” you cursed under your breath. “Is there nothing else here?”

Save for a few plates and cutlery, every other shelf was empty. Your frustration only grew with each drawer you opened and shut, finding nothing but the same three components over and over again.

“There’s some soup on the top right, behind the bread.” His voice came from behind you. You checked where he mentioned, finding multiple cans of tomato soup. “I hope PB&J is your favourite, ‘cause that’s really all we got. I checked twice.”

“We won’t be here long anyway. It’s fine.” You walked a few steps towards where the TV was, sitting atop a small cupboard. If you weren’t getting gourmet meals, hopefully it would be compensated with some entertainment.

Rummaging through it didn’t prove to be a major hassle since there were only three DVDs; Die Hard, Notting Hill and Megamind. Beside it sat two books, American Gods, and Pride and Prejudice. That’s all. 

“Really made sure to cover all demographics with those movies. There’s only one local news channel, everything else is static,” Sam informed you, unmoving from his position. You sighed, tossing the DVDs back and shutting the door.

“There’s a room over there with some basic shit. Burners, mics, cameras. Clothes are in the bedroom drawer. Should probably take a shower while you’re at it, I can smell you from a mile away and it’s giving me a migraine.” You pushed yourself off the ground, pointing towards the rooms as you walked down the hall. “Backyard’s all heavily wooded. If we try hard enough, I’m sure there are a few trap doors or crawl spaces or whatever around here.”

You could hear him follow you as you gave him the tour of a place you were sure he already had examined thoroughly before you greeted him this morning.

Pushing open the door to the suspiciously empty room, you stepped to the side, allowing him to observe. The both of you had the same thought process as you split up, sticking close to the walls, running your fingers across the plaster to look for any major differences.

“Got it,” he called out. You spun on your heel to face where he was standing. A small chunk of the wall was missing, a small button in the centre of the cavity he had created.

Pressing it lightly, the mechanical sound of sliding doors filled the air as the entire side of the room gave way to shelves upon shelves of weapons. Guns, knives, ammunition, bulletproof vests; enough material to last you years.

The doors slid shut when you pressed the button again, not until you had a mental note of what was available in case you found yourself in a situation where you required them.

“That about covers it. Don’t think we’ll be here long so just think of it as your three day long staycation.”

“I’ve had a better time at funerals than I’ll ever have in this shithole.”

________

“What do you mean they escaped?” Their voice was booming, dripping with slow rising anger. “Someone explain to me how the fuck that’s possible.”

“They took the car and left.”

“They took the car and left,” they said mockingly in a high pitch. “I know that, you fucking imbecile. I’m asking how they were alive long enough to do it?”

“They teamed up. Took out nearly everyone,” the agent was monotone. His arm was in a sling and his partner stood beside him, thick bandages around his midsection.

“They shouldn’t have been there together. They shouldn’t have been sent together.”

No one said a word, not even daring to breathe loudly.

“This wasn’t supposed to fucking happen. We killed Pierce. Everything was perfect,” their voice dropped as they spat out the last word. “So then how did this fucking happen?”

“Boss, we’ll-”

“I want them dead.” They interrupted, casting silence in the room. “I don’t care how you fucking do it. I want you to find them and rip them to shreds. Both of them.”

“Yes, boss.”

“And if you even fucking think of coming back without a proper update-” they brought their hand down harshly on the table. “-I’ll make you wish you were never born.”

The agents just nodded, faces pale as they shuffled out of the room silently.

“Fucking idiots.” They nursed their forehead on their palm, calming the nerve that was menacingly visible on their temple. “This wasn’t supposed to happen.”

Part 3

[waystobuild-blog]

Top 7 CN Shows That Would Work Better in Live Action than PPG

So I think everybody’s talked about why CW Powerpuff Girls doesn’t work, whether or not it’s a real thing or not? Who even knows. But while thinking about how this:

is kinda awful for Powerpuff Girls, I got thinking what shows that this style of a reboot would work for. In which it’s live action, the character is depressed and has sort of resentment towards their childhood now and that sort of thing. 

So what are the top 7 shows that I think this

Number 7:

Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends

At Number 7 we have Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends. Seems fitting that we’d start the list with another one of Craig McCracken’s biggest hits. Why do I think the premise of “Oh, life sucks now and I kinda wasted my childhood” would work for Foster’s? For the plain and simple fact that for a few episodes of the show, there was a focus on Mac growing up and whether or not he should leave his friends at Foster’s behind him. You could play a lot with that concept combined with the live action reboot thing. Maybe an older version of the character is dealing with whether or not to let go of both Bloo and the past and move on with his life. Frankie being a young adult during the time of the original show could also be a pretty instrumental character since it was a matter of living there, caring for the friends, having that job and balancing this life with the life that she had outside of the house.

Not quite a coming of age story but a sort of “Hey, my life has gone nowhere and where could I go with this now? Do I keep the friends I loved and cherished as a child or move onto other things? Is there a way to do both?”

Only thing I wouldn’t want though is CGI monstrosity friends. Those would be kinda the worst…

Number 6: 

Okay, let’s actually talk about a real superhero show this time around. Or would this count as a superhero show? Well, they certainly do a lot of cool time travelling so I’m gonna say it’s a superhero show. Of course, I mean Time Squad.

Now if you haven’t guessed, I don’t have the most experience with this show but I know enough to think that this is something that could actually work well. I mean, Otto was a kid who was basically running around all over history protecting the balance of time with a stuck up robot and a dude who is a little too into all of this. Imagine if he just sorta did this for all of his childhood and realizing as a young adult that “Crap, I didn’t really have a childhood.” With the dynamic of the squad, the potential to expand the greater organization as a whole and just all the time travel shenanigans that could happen, I don’t see a reason not to do it.

Plus, CW already has Legends of Tomorrow and that’s awesome so even less likely to screw it up if they’ve already got a model to do it off of right?

Number 5: 

The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack

Yo ho ho, it is a sailor’s life for me. And in this sailor’s life we’re coming in with Number 5: The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack. Now this is a bit of an odd choice, right? But hear me out.

Flapjack as a child kinda had only Bubbie and K’nuckles as guides for his life. While they mostly spent their lives at Stormalong Harbor, they also constantly spent their lives looking for Candied Island. What if they never stopped looking and eventually, little kid Flapjack is a grown up now and he’s like “Oh wow. I wanted adventure but I was kinda manipulated to follow this creepy old man’s dreams of candy.” I think going heavy and hard on this sort of found family between them would be kinda fun. How K’nuckles wasn’t the best role model and how they’ve still only got each other in this world, that sort of thing.

Plus, a live action Stormalong would be sooooooo cool.

Number 4:

Ben 10

As the old saying goes, it started when an alien device did what it did, stuck itself upon his wrist with secrets that it hid, now he’s got superpowers he’s no ordinary kid, it’s Ben 10.

And unfortunately in CW’s Ben 10, he’s not a kid who just wants to have fun. Nah, he’s got a lot of emotional stuff to deal with and all of that depressing stuff. Isn’t it great? Now I do think that this could work especially if you work it in where maybe Ben enlisted into the plumbers after his summer vacation and it just kinda escalated from there to the point where here he is now.

Say what you will, but at least with Ben 10, we’ve seen it hit a more grounded and emotional place with Ben 10 Alien Force and Ultimate Alien so I don’t believe that this would be too far of a stretch with how that show worked and a lot of people happened to really like those iterations of the show.

Granted, I actually do want a CW styled Ben 10, but less edgy Arrow style and more along the lines of The Flash, but I’d still take this too.

And now before we get into the top 3, let’s get into a few honorable mentions.

First up, we’ve got Steven Universe. Now honestly, this could work really well, the only issue with that is that we’ve kinda already seen this story told and that was with Steven Universe Future. Good stuff and a lot of potential, but we’ve seen it and I don’t think we need to see it again with a live action coat of paint.

Next up there’s Codename Kids Next Door. Honestly, I think the only real spinoff we need for Kids Next Door is Galactic. That’s it. Anything else is unnecessary. Still, with this sort of concept an older KND who has been decommissioned and feels like there’s something missing in their lives that they just don’t understand would be really cool. Although maybe that would work as like a movie or special or somethin’ I don’t know.

And finally for the last of the honorable mentions we’ve got Teen Titans. While I am trying to keep this list to CN Originals, I couldn’t help but bring this one up. How Long is Forever is one of my all-time favorite episodes of the 2003 series so I think seeing a series taking place in that timeline or something similar would be a lot of fun maybe for like a miniseries or something. And honestly, anything’s better than Titans.

With those three out of the way, back to the list.

Number 3: 

The Life and Times of Juniper Lee

In a world full of monsters and demons, June is the only one who sees them. This is the Life and Times of Juniper Lee and it makes number three on my list.

Now, like Time Squad, I didn’t watch much of this show. But what I do know about this show is that June is cool and she’s got this whole legacy and destiny by being the newest Te Xaun Ze, which are basically the magical protectors of her town. Only problem, and why I think that this direction for this show would actually be kinda cool, is the whole thing that the Te Xaun Ze is never allowed to leave the town at any point in their lives and oh boy, you could actually go really hard on that with this format since it’s literally built into the show.

Juniper Lee all grown up and just straight up depressed because she’s got the cool powers and grabs all the monsters but everyone around her has moved on in their lives. Friends have gone off to college and started all their lives and she’s got nothing but her family in Orchid Bay. You’d have a story of someone who once was big on their destiny who has accepted it but wishes that it wasn’t theirs anymore. I do know the show dealt with this a bit but with a new continuity and an older version of the character you really could just go in and deep on this.

I stand by that this would actually be pretty cool and kinda want it. Honestly, I like this idea so much that I wasn’t sure whether to put this in the number three or the number two spot, but y’know what? The next show told me a little secret that gave it the edge.

Number 2: 

The Secret Saturdays

That’s right, it’s the Secret Saturdays. 

Zak Saturday went all around the world with his parents discovering ancient cryptids, protecting the world and everything. He got some cool siblings in Fiskerton, Komodo and Zon. And then to add on top of that that he’s also the reincarnation of an ancient cryptid set to rule and control all the cryptids in the world? Yeah, that’ll do it. Definitely not the type of life he asked for and kid went through a lot because of it especially after losing those powers and apparently getting them back if we’re to count the Omniverse crossover TGIS to be canon.

But having parents like Zak’s, everything with the community of Secret Scientists and not really having many friends his own age or well, his own species will do that.

Exploring Zak and maybe Argost coming back for powers he might not want anymore and learning to embrace his destiny while also trying to patch up the Saturday family would be awesome.

Number 1:

Dexter’s Laboratory

Now while I know we already have a live action Dexter and it was an incredible hit, I- Wait, not the same show.

Ahem, Dexter’s Laboratory makes the top of this list. Partially because of it being PPG’s sister series but also partially because of the whole thing of there’s a lot you could do with Dexter’s character in terms of depression. If someone with such a high intellect were to somehow lose it all or just in some way, never really got forward in life, that would do it. Dexter could be a type of character that’s too stuck inside his own head in order to move forward. Alternatively, maybe Dexter is highly successful but has found there’s something missing in life or something. I dunno.

But whichever way you decide to go with Dexter’s character, you could have Dee Dee be pretty much the opposite of that. Maybe she’s found herself a place in life that she’s content with and Dex doesn’t understand why but wants it. I think going deep on this sort of emotional aspect of his life while also having all sorts of fun crazy science stuff would be a good watch.

All in all, gimme a Dexter’s lab show but we gotta make sure he keeps some form of an accent. No accent is a dealbreaker.

Although, I think that at the end of the day, animation should really just stay animated and that we don’t need to go live action for anything. All of these ideas I’ve presented, I’d of course rather prefer as cartoons with a more balanced tone more than anything but I figured with the announcement of a PPG show, this would be a silly but fun idea to talk about rather than ranting about it like most have. Granted, I’ve got some rants of my own since I still think it’s a bad idea. Haha. But you know how it goes.

At any rate those are all the shows I think would make better CW PPG style reboots than CW PPG. When it comes to the edginess and potential for drama, I feel these shows fit the bill better than the innocent, buttkicking action that was the Powerpuff Girls.

But what do you all think? Do you have any shows in mind that I haven’t mentioned? Do you think I’ve opened Pandora’s Box and given The CW more awful ideas? 

Now, this was originally a YouTube video so you can probably see that in the way that this post, especially the ending was written, but I just still don’t really have the energy to edit stuff so have this post instead. It’s something I really wanted to discuss and just decided, hey, why not make it a Tumblr post?

[foolscapper]

Someplace Warmer, Someplace Safer - (How the Wild Things Start Universe)

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is not edited/beta'd, so please forgive any rough spots! I'll be cleaning it up and posting it on ao3 at a later time! This also takes place after How the Wild Things Start, and is based on a request sent in by @saintedjack -- thank you!

WARNINGS: PTSD responses, MENTION OF CHILD ABUSE (SEXUAL), please tread carefully if that's hard for you!

In the year of our Lord 2020, Sam Winchester didn't think that Christmas would feel so much less... sore of a spot. Maybe that's because he's practiced a handful of Christmases with Leia and Lilly now and has realized with some clarity that holidays can sometimes be about as good as the number of kids who get excited over it. When it was just him and Dean, it was a coupla beers and memories of little kids who sat in hotel rooms waiting for their parent — singular. Now Lilly is coloring pictures of reindeer and eagerly reminding Dean of what she wants for the hundredth time. ("Yeah, yeah, I got it," Dean grumbles, without even the smallest bit of heat to it, "How could I forget when you drew it on my bedroom wall?") Meanwhile, Leia's fourteen, so the appeal of a 'Santa Claus' isn't really there for her; she and Sam are too alike on that front, having lost whatever magic Christmas would've had when they were very little. But she loves that Lilly loves it. She helps her hang up tinsel and all those basic holiday ornaments around the bunker. When Sam and Dean are out to get the kitsune her dietary needs, she prays to Castiel, makes him trek all the way to Lebanon — just so she can ask him to drive her to the rental box in front of the liquor store for holiday films. Anyway, uh. Sam feels... good. He feels good about it. About Christmas. 

First time in forever, he knows, but things evolve over time, right?

Whatever makes them happy makes him happy, and it doesn't help that Dean's starting to get into a bit of a frantic holiday mood himself when he realizes Cas and Leia rented National Lampoon's Holiday Vacation. With one girl on either side of him, his brother chatters on and on about classics, movies like A Christmas Story and the Grinch, and Sam can only roll his eyes in good humor and sound fondness. It's a good day. He hasn't had a nightmare in days — hasn't slept-walked in almost as long (not that it stops Dean from keeping the front door locked, so Sam can't wander out again and scare the shit out of them). It's the day before Christmas, though, and there's plenty of cereal, boxed mac 'n cheese and canned Chef Boyardee, but absolutely nothing that rightfully belongs on a dinner table for the holidays. "I'll be back; just gonna pick up some stuff," he says, while the three are in the middle of Mr. Grinch, you're a bad banana, Mr. Grinch, with the greasy black peel-. Dean snaps out of the trance that had made him 10-years-old for a moment and looks critically at Sam; Lilly doesn't look away from the television, but Leia's sharp gaze shoots to Sam at the same time as Dean's. Dean says, "You sure you don't want us to go, too?" And Sam waves it off. Waves both of them off, since Leia's trying so hard to judge him under her bangs "I'll be fine. Just hitting the grocery for something that works for tomorrow. Please try not to feed them straight sugar while I'm gone?" "Yes, honey," Dean huffs, but there's some hesitance in the way he turns to look back at the TV. He couldn't really blame him, considering what shitty lucky they had apart. Or, well... considering the guilt that still festers in Dean like old, greenish wounds. Sam knows it's there every time his brother glances at pale scars intersecting on his arms, or when he manages to rouse him from a bad dream, or when Sam spaces out at the dinner table until something startles him to attention. Sam's screwed up, and Dean's still gnawing at his own leg for letting it happen. ... Shit happens. Sam tries not to think about it anymore than he has to, because it's not like the muscle memory ever goes away, nor those phantom smells or those reels of the monster rings. No, no, he's not going to think about it. Because today's a good day. It's a good week. He takes the keys to the truck he's kept to himself, makes a mental note to call Castiel and see if he'll stop by for visiting. The air outside is cold and bitterly unfair to the lungs, but he tugs his jacket tighter around himself and wills the old truck AC to start heating him back up. The drive isn't far, and the people at the place he's driving to know him well enough. He's not sure if that's a good or bad thing, especially now that they see him changed so drastically; he's pretty sure Dean just tells them all he'd gotten deployed somewhere and ended up hurt, or something. Sam doesn't bother figuring out the cover story, because he's not ever going to be in the mood to talk about it with Joey Behind the Counter or Leticia Stocking the Shelves, no matter how much he likes them. The bell to the store rings, they wave him in, ask him about his plans for the holidays, tell him all about their kids — he surprises himself by talking about his own, albeit vaguely, because you never know who is truly safe. And even though he has little to no skill in hearty, holiday feasts, he knows the basics from television: cranberry sauce, turkey, stuffing, eggnog, so on and so on. Despite his complaint to Dean not to overfeed the kids on sweets, he ends up grabbing two boxes of themed cookies, too. It's not until he walks out the front door that he feels something's off. He'd never claim to still have the powers he did at age 22, but — the hairs on his neck stand up, goosebumps running along his arms beneath his thick coat. It's hard to say what even caused it; there's nobody around. He glances uneasily left and right, and then makes a slow, cautious walk toward the parking around the corner. His heart thumps in his chest and his mind plays cruel games with him: what if it's a hunter coming for him? Looking for him and his family, after what happened at their old cabin? It hasn't been that long. "Hello," a little, polite voice chirps from seemingly out of nowhere. Sam nearly leaps out of his skin, teeth snapping together as he turns in a fraction of a second — ready to fight, dropping his grocery bags as his hand reaches around the back of him. (Bright lights, feral howls of pain, blood on dirt and black eyed spectators-) His breath catches at the startled teenager with sandy-blonde hair standing in front of him. He's dressed in clothes he's clearly worn for a long time, the knitting on his gloves and cap frayed. The smell of an alleyway greets Sam belatedly, and shame creeps into his face when he realizes just what he's actually looking at here: some homeless kid whose smile has faded into a look of uncertainty. Wanted a buck, but ended up with some over-sized freak having an episode at him. "S—sorry," Sam chokes out. He's trying not to let himself get pulled under, but the lights have... always been so bright. The kid seems appeased by the way Sam steps back, though, and moves to rather calmly start collecting the fallen goods from the ground; for a moment, Sam wonders if he's just gonna take them for the trouble, but the boy starts putting them back into the brown paper bags they'd come in. "It's fine. I must be scarier than I thought." It's said in such an easy way, and he looks up with a kind, gap-toothed smile. "I was going to ask if you could spare some money, but I can see now that I should have made my presence more obvious." ... That's a way for a teenaged boy to put it. It reminds Sam of a particular angel of Thursday and his straightforward, over-complicated way of talk. With a somewhat forced smile, he bends down to quickly collect what the kid hasn't. "No, no, I'm — I'm good at being on edge. It wasn't you. Sorry for... that." He's not sure how to put it. He has a hard time remembering how to talk to people, sometimes. There's something particularly distracting about this one, though. Maybe it's the fact that he's so youthful, covered in dirt and red in the nose. Looks at him like how Leia had — with the hope that Sam can help him. Or is he just projecting? He pinches the bridge of his nose, smiling tiredly. "What's your name, kid?" The boy says, almost proudly, "Jack." "... Um, well. Jack. I'm Sam. It's good to meet you. I think you deserve something nice for not thinking I'm a total weirdo, so... if you wanna carry a bag to the truck for me, I've got some cookies and dollars to offer you?" It feels kind of demeaning in a way, like he's giving the poor kid some basic task to 'earn' what Sam'll give him. But Jack just nods and walks along side him. "Thanks, Sam," Jack says. He says Sam's name like he's testing out the weight of it, forming it carefully in his mouth. Despite Jack's appearance, he radiates something... well, something. It's warmer than the weather. "Where are you from, Jack?" Sam asks, tilting his chin forward to look down. His voice is softer, more careful. "From everywhere," Jack says, and looks over at Sam. "I honestly don't know. I've just always been... like this." "... Homeless?" Sam offers. Jack cocks his head to the side, gazing ahead of them. "Homeless. Yes." It's not a long walk, so it's not like there's much more to talk about before they reach the old truck. They load up the groceries, and Sam provides one box of cookies (in this case, the box that is less crushed from falling on the asphalt). It feels like a meager kind of offering, all things considered. "Here — I mean, if you like sweets. I bought way too many, so... Um. And — " "I like cookies," Jack says as a matter-of-factly. "Thank you, Sam." Doesn't feel good enough, though. Sam gnaws his lip and feels... some sort of way about all this. Like he's doing something the wrong way, here. Leia and Lilly have ruined him for life. "Where are you heading, anyway? Do you live in town? I've never seen you here before." Jack's already got the box of cookies wrenched open, and he's eating them too fast, a lot like how Sam used to eat his rations when he lived in a cage, in the dark. Sam's already predicting that he's gonna get sick, and he can't really hide the wince as the crumbs start to collect on Jack's old jacket. Jack looks like he's unsure how to answer, not for the first time. "I'm just moving around. I have nowhere to be, as long as it's — " He struggles for the right word. "Safe." "Safe," Sam says. Jack nods with a mouthful. "Shafe," he says. Sams hands twitch nervously at the thought of sending the boy away with his 'rewards'. Whatever the hell cookies constitute as, anyway. It's not safe out there, that's for sure. It's gonna be below freezing for a while in Lebanon, and — He sighs softly. No... No, it's not smart. Not smart to being a stray into a house full of supernatural lore books, weapons, monster children. He would freak out. He'd panic and he'd know where they live, and he could tell anyone with an ear open about where a guy named Sam lives with his odd little family. But... "You want me to drive you somewhere? I mean, there should be a homeless shelter around here somewhere, if you need somewhere a little less... this." He gestures to the world around them, swathed in a fine layer of snow. Jack seems mildly uncertain, a crooked line of uncertainty to his lips. Sam recognizes maybe he looks like he's one-half a serial killer in his plaid, with his weird flinching and nervousness. "You don't have to, but... I don't want you to freeze out here." After a moment, Jack does seem to relent; nobody likes to be cold, and Sam could tell even if he was handling it well, it was not a pleasant experience he wants to endure any longer than he has to. So he nods at last, and Sam nods to the passenger seat. "Climb aboard, then. I think I remember the street and everything; you'll be warm in no time. And, uh. We can get you something better than cookies, actually." "I don't know what can be better than cookies," Jack replies, sliding into the passenger seat, "But I'm willing to consider it." The truck stutters to life, and Sam makes a beeline for the nearest Taco Bell there is. Cheap, but you get a hell of a lot with a little; he and Dean were no stranger to that particular drive-thru back in the day, when Dean was too tired to eat expired food and Sam was too tired to go buy himself a decent salad and sandwich. The Helping Hands Homeless Shelter is a good distance, so Sam learns a few things in-between Jack scarfing down burritos and soft tacos: he's fourteen or fifteen (he thinks?; Sam's mortified by the thought of him being on his own all this time), his mother died when he was born, he's not sure where his father is, and he's always been moving. No grandparents, no uncles or aunts, nobody that he's familiar with. Once the last wrapper is thrown on the floorboard as designated, though, Jack looks uneasy. "... Is this 'a trade'?" Sam glances over, brow furrowed. "A what?" "A trade," Jack reaffirms, and his eyes — glance down, towards Sam's crotch. Sam feels like he's going to puke, his stomach twisting and heart lurching. He almost slams on the brakes then and there, in the middle of the street, but he manages to avoid doing anything so fucking stupid as to scare the kid. Sam and Dean have both had their fair share of close calls growing up — Sam's had to scream at peeping toms through hotel windows, or weird men at gas stations who keep sizing them up while they read magazines, or — But. But they both had rules, and Dean always had an extra eye out on him. The thought of — the implication of it, it makes his blood boil, rushing in his ears. He thinks of Lilly and Leia and — Sam's been quiet too long. So Jack speaks up again. "It's alright. I don't do anything if they don't ask first. If they don't have something to give me," Jack says, confidently, and Sam wants to scream. "No," Sam manages, voice tight. "No, that's not okay. Anyone who asks something like that, they're monsters, do you understand me? They're evil, and you shouldn't trust them. Not for a second." Jack leans back more comfortably in his seat, confused — but glad. Sam's hands are itching for a blade and someone to hunt. A monster in a ring to rip into. He breathes out instead and looks at the road. It doesn't take long before Jack finds himself tired of the quiet, though, and his gaze moves to Sam's wrists, instead. His hands. The sliver of arm that peaks out under his sleeve. "What happened to your hands?" he asks, innocently. Concerned. Sam's shoulders sag, like the kid has gone and popped that balloon full of rage. "... Monsters hurt me, too," he says weakly, because he figures the kid deserves the truth. "A different kind of monster, but monsters all the same." Jack reaches over, and Sam startles at the hand cupping over his damaged knuckles. "I'm sorry," Jack says. "About the monsters." Sam kind of wants to cry, honestly. "Me, too." He was supposed to get a Christmas dinner, in and out of the store, nothing more to it. He was supposed to just give the kid some money and maybe a snack. He's supposed to just drop him off somewhere a little warmer and safer. (Leia looked at him like a hero, once, like he was going to swoop in and save her; Jack isn't looking at him like that, though; he's just a guy giving him a ride and cookies). Sam's phone rings. He doesn't need to look to know it'll say DEAN in white letters on the screen. Just a minute 'til they get to the shelter. (You're not a hero, you barely managed to protect your girls, he reminds himself.) "Sam?" Jack asks. Ring, ring. Ring, ring. (But Leia looks at him like he’s a superhero. A shaking, high, rabid superhero, hopped up on demon blood, with hands so tense and locked, they look like claws in the darkness. And beside her — a crying boy, a few years younger than her. There’s a burn on his leg, a shake of his shoulders. Worst of all, there’s skin sloughed off around him, and it’s only then that Sam realizes the boy looks different than he had an hour before. A shifter? A small, scared shifter. Like Glenda had been.) He pulls over on the side of the road. Reaches into his jacket pocket, retrieves the phone with a shaking hand. When he answers Dean and hears his brother asking nervously what's taking him so long, he can't help but look at Jack. Jack, who is looking at him with an uneasy amount of trust. How he has it, Sam's not fucking sure, but he feels like he has to do this. (He thinks of two little girls, holding hands as they watch Christmas cartoons.) "I — I'm bringing someone back with me," he manages. "His name is Jack, and he — needs a place to stay, for a little while." He does a u-turn, driving toward the bunker as snow begins to fall once again, soft, delicate. Jack looked awed, still looks awed. He looks at Sam like this was destiny. Fate. Something. "I thought so." "... You thought what?" Jack smiles slowly with that warm, gap-toothed smile. "That something about you, it felt like an angel."

[waterrtribe]

just here to let u kno i would Love to hear ur thoughts on katara as the mom friend 👉🏻👈🏻

lksdjfklsdfj okay disclaimer: i’m not very articulate so i don’t have a full coherent Thought about this so get ready for some word vomit and a scary glimpse of the disconnected thoughts in my brain. i promise, what i lack in coherency i make up for with my love and passion for this show and for katara herself. also this got long so...bear with me. 

i’ll start off by saying that i think about the episode The Runaway a lot. It’s the one where Katara and Toph get into it about how Katara tries to mother them all the time. at one point sokka explains that their mother died when they were so young that in his mind, Katara basically took over Kya’s place. he said something along the lines of, “when i try to picture our mother’s face, i just see katara’s,” a line which still makes me very emotional every time i watch.

anyway, i see katara being The Mom Friend with sokka, with aang, with toph, and it’s very sweet!! i love the Gaang’s dynamics and how much they all love and support each other. still, i can’t help but feel kind of....indignant on katara’s behalf?

i think it’s because i’m older now, so i’m just hyperaware of these characters’ ages. when i was watching this show in 2007 i didn’t understand quite as much. all of the weight of their trauma and responsibility really hits me harder now. so i see the rest of the gaang get to act like their age a lot of the time and just be able to be Kids (as they should!!), but with katara, it seemed to me like she gets to do so less than the rest of the gaang.

i know we can say “well that’s just because she’s the mom friend and it’s part of her personality.” still, i can’t help but focus on the fact that the reason katara is The Mom Friend in the first place is because of a combination of her mother dying at such a young age and her having to step up to fulfill that role plus the general gender roles instilled in her while growing up. i think i’ve seen some posts floating around that mention how sokka and katara ended up adhering to more traditional gender roles because sokka had to fill his father’s shoes after he went off to war and katara had to fill her mother’s after she died. so going off of that, sokka and katara both bear responsibilities and pressures that they shouldn’t have to when they’re just children.

there’s still a difference between the two, however. sokka is still a very goofy, fun-loving character who can make cheesy jokes and get into all sorts of hijinks. he’s allowed to be childish, and it’s fun to watch him be childish. katara, on the other hand, always has to be the mature and levelheaded one. when i think about this contrast, i think about The Desert episode from book 2. they’re wandering the desert and katara is the one keeping them on track. aang, of course, has his own worries about appa being taken, and toph is unable to navigate the desert very well because she’s not used to moving in the sand. that leaves sokka and katara to lead the way. but then, sokka drinks the cactus juice. don’t get me wrong--i’m aware that whole bit was comic relief and adds levity in a very emotionally heavy episode, and i love it a lot! but i still can’t help but notice that sokka is the oldest, and he’s the one whose character arc is about growing into the strong leader that he becomes in book 3. yet, katara is the one leading the way here while sokka’s allowed to check out and be our comic relief. katara’s never really allowed to let loose in the same way.

i can think of two instances where she’s allowed to let loose a little and both of them end up with her facing serious repercussions for them. there’s the part in the first episode when she goes penguin sledding with aang and she’s enjoying herself and she says, “i haven’t done this since i was a kid!” and aang replied, “you still are a kid!” which is so telling (also this reminds me of when aang basically had the same exchange with zuko later but this post is long enough without me talking about zuko lol). katara hasn’t really been able to be a kid since her mom died. and when she allows herself to be one in this scene, she and aang end up accidentally setting off a booby trap from an abandoned fire navy ship which lights up a flare that leads zuko to her village. the other instance is in the episode i mentioned earlier, the Runaway, where katara wants to have fun with Toph and pull a scam with her in an effort to stop being The Mom Friend and just be A Friend, and that ends with them being arrested. even when it was her turn to pick a vacation spot in the library episode, she picked the misty palms oasis because it sounded relaxing, but that didn’t even go the way she wanted it to because the oasis was no longer an oasis. there are so many times where katara wants to just be a kid and relax, and the narrative seems to almost punish her for it.

(quick note: i can think of some moments where katara isn’t necessarily levelheaded and is impulsive and that’s in the cases when she’s actively trying to fight to protect and help people in need, which still kind of proves my point because she’s not impulsive for herself and for the sake of acting her own age; it’s to fight oppression and injustice. and that’s not childish at all.)

this extremely long ramble brings me to my Thought about how katara is a perfect example about how quickly we expect young girls, especially brown girls, to grow up. katara is a kid just like the rest of them. she’s a powerful warrior just like the rest of them. she is a war hero just like the rest of them. but she also has to be the The Mom Friend. and i think, despite the fact that she’s able to fight the gender roles forced on her by becoming a warrior, she’s unable to escape them entirely. this isn’t to say she can’t enjoy being the caretaker and being the mom friend, but that doesn’t change the fact the writers wrote her that way in the first place.

that also leads to my dissatisfaction with katara’s life post-atla. it seemed to me that despite all of katara’s power, her accomplishments, and her drive to fight for what she believes in, ultimately, motherhood prevails. this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. i’m sure katara loves being a mom!! she’d be great at it!! and there is nothing wrong with a woman who wants to be a mother and only a mother!! nonetheless, from a narrative standpoint i can’t help but resent bryke a little for making it so.

i’ve had conversations about this and people have mentioned that the legend of korra is a show that should stand on its own so the less amount of contact with atla characters, the better, and i agree to some extent. but what strikes me is that they brought in zuko to participate in the action at one point. toph shows up as well to help her family. but we get very few interactions with katara as anything other than a healer, a wife, a mother, and a grandmother. that doesn’t sit right with me.

i can’t help but think about the episodes in the legend of korra season 1 when they’re dealing with Yakone, the bloodbender. katara doesn’t really come up at all even though the episode introducing bloodbending, the Puppetmaster, was one of the big katara-centric episodes. at one point toph mentions that katara hasn’t joined in on the action because she’s old and tired, so she’s ready to leave these things to the young ones. but even in the flashbacks to Yakone’s trial, sokka, toph, and aang are all there, and katara isn’t. you would think that when faced with a bloodbending enemy, katara would be there, but she’s nowhere to be seen. that will always bother me.

anyway, my point is that katara is the embodiment of what we want young girls to be. we want them to be mothers. we want them to be caretakers. we want them to act like grown women, and we punish them when they don’t. katara is The Mom Friend because she stopped being a child when her mother died. that’s why katara always talks about her mother’s death and why it had such a huge impact on her. when kya died, katara took over her role as a mother for her entire village and for her friends and later, for her own family. katara became a mother as soon as her own died. kya’s death forced katara into womanhood. kya’s death marked the death of her girlhood. kya’s death is when Katara became the Mom Friend.

i just really wish that the narrative gave katara more chances to be a child again and recover her lost girlhood just for a little while.

so yeah. those are my thoughts on katara as the mom friend. i hope this was satisfying in some way if u managed to get through this whole thing 😭 

[actuallylorelaigilmore]

i would love to hear a s3 rant tbh

i started writing this a few months after s3 came out, because i needed that long to sort of soak up all the feelings and changes that came along with it. now i’m used to it enough that i don’t find myself thinking too hard about s3 when i get to it in rewatches–it’s a shift, but one i’m adjusted to. and now it’s premiere day for s4! so i’m finally done writing the rest of it. 

it is a shift, though, and i think that’s why so many of us in the fandom had mixed feelings about it–we still loved it, but we didn’t come away from s3 with the same lingering mood that we did after s2. for me, s3 was the first season that ended on a truly happy note. there was no heartbroken elena at her quinces, there was no distraught family hoping lydia would wake up.

s3 left pretty much all the characters in a good, hopeful place, so why did we find ourselves more inclined to pick it apart? why did it feel different, when all the individual character arcs and plot points were in the same world we love, and clearly handled with the same amount of effort and care as we expect?

the following giant analysis is my attempt to articulate an answer to that, as a fan who has watched the whole show….so many times. so many times, guys. just so much. i don’t even have a number anymore.

to give you an idea of what you’re in for, here’s the categories you’ll find behind the cut:

each season’s focus was different

brothers and other strangers

dr. b’s inclusion minimizing other relationships

schneider being more isolated from the family

schneider’s sobriety

schneider & avery

avery + other characters

penelope & mateo

misc other gripes

feel free to reply to this and/or send me asks, i spent way too long on it. :)

each season’s focus was different:

obviously, odaat is an ensemble show. every character gets moments of their own, and most have larger arcs. but because the show needs a focus, each season arguably belongs more to some of the characters than others.

the stars of s1 are penelope and elena.

penelope is our anchor to the family and the story, the one that everything else orbits around. we’re watching her live through the end of her marriage and become more settled in her new role as the primary parent to her kids. elena is figuring out who she is, then dealing with the fallout from sharing her truth with the people who matter to her. her quinces is the topic of debate in 1.01 and closes out the season in 1.13.

lydia steals scenes a lot, but she doesn’t really have a larger arc in s1. at the end of the season, she’s the same person she was at the beginning, just changed by her involvement in elena and penelope’s stories. same goes for alex–he has stories, but they’re a lot smaller and more contained. and schneider and leslie are only involved in the season because of their friendships with lydia and penelope, then in schneider’s case, his dynamic with alex later on.

the stars of s2 are penelope and lydia.

penelope goes back to school, has her first serious relationship post-divorce, and finally deals more seriously with her mental health struggles. lydia decides to become a u.s. citizen, struggles with her feelings toward leslie, and ends the season triumphant after a major health scare.

elena plays a major role in s2, but a lot of her story is a continuation from s1, with the return of victor and her first romantic relationship, and developments like her new job as a handyma’am are awesome but not the central focus of the season. alex gets to be the star of a few episodes, more than in s1, but they’re not really tied in to an overarching arc. his first job, his anti-immigrant bullying, and his time at the movies with penelope are all standalone plots.

schneider has a larger, more serious role in s2, going from ‘you guys are like family’ during quinces in s1 to ‘now, you’re my family’ to lydia in not yet. but he’s still on the outside, looking in. and leslie’s role remains one that supports penelope at work and lydia in friendship, rather than giving him his own plot.

the stars of s3 are alex and schneider.

in s3, penelope’s story is more settled, because so is she. her job is secure, her schoolwork is coming to a close, and her kids are growing up. she has a romance, but mateo is less important to her than max was, and the plot reflects that, with mateo barely around until penelope’s neglect of him becomes part of the joke. pen’s reacting to what’s going on around her more, whether that’s alex’s drug use or elena’s anxiety and secret hotel room or schneider’s sobriety.

that’s not a bad thing! justina kills it in every episode, penelope’s still funny and a tearjerker and strong as hell while flawed…but s3 is the first season that doesn’t completely revolve around her, storywise.

elena’s story is also more settled, on some levels. victor’s return gives her a much-deserved coda, evidence that her life couldn’t be neatly tied up in a bow after a year and that emotional scars do real damage. but even that plot, like her first time with syd and her driving lessons, are part of larger episodes involving other stories rather than the main focus of all of them. victor’s wedding, the finale episode, tries to move forward five of our six main characters, compared to elena’s quinces, which was almost exclusively her show.

lydia’s s3 plot includes her fabulous bouquet list, ideas about aging and motherhood and family. but she’s back to being a scene-stealer–even her bouquet list exists as a subplot in other people’s episodes.

having focused the most on the alvarez women in s1 and s2, the show finally gives alex more room to shine in s3, a development that surprised me but pleasantly so because it turns out that the more they give him to do, the better marcel is at it. s3 shows us an alex growing up, making dumb choices and learning from them, but also being there for his family in bigger and more mature ways, schneider included.

and schneider…gosh. schneider’s arc in s3 is so important that it’s the one they foreshadowed ominously before the season was even on netflix:

he did step into the spotlight as promised, and by the end of the season, he was a full-fledged canon member of the family. not that we needed them to tell us that, even if schneider did. :)

to start with, though, that’s part of why s3 feels different: because it is. the focus widens to different characters, and the ones we’re used to following more closely have more contained arcs.

brothers and other strangers

s3 also decided to introduce new family members. a LOT of new family members. and while they all added to the story, some fit in better than others. the funeral did this well, finally giving lydia’s estranged sister a face to go with the name, and giving us more of a glimpse at the big family penelope grew up around before the military and parenting narrowed her everyday focus.

but the show’s decision to anchor an episode on brothers gave us what felt like a lot of consistency issues. they explained pen’s sudden s3 brother, tito, by making his absence during lydia’s coma a topic of discussion. they couldn’t actually include a never before mentioned sibling for penelope without creating bigger confusion, though. it just wasn’t possible.

tito is apparently the older brother that lydia idolizes, but until 3.04 she’s never mentioned him in conversation once? when she’s in a coma reflecting on her family and how they’ll go on without her, her beloved son isn’t worth a mention? i can forgive the show for deciding to give pen a brother three years in, but i can’t pretend it wasn’t jarring when odaat treated her like an only child before that.

and this is a much smaller issue, but also in s3 suddenly syd has a younger brother? who is homeschooled too? when they were telling elena their only classmate was their chinchilla the year before? like i said, a relatively small thing but it still bugs me because it’s so random.

schneider now has sibling(s) too, apparently, but his comment about not being his father’s favorite child was the first time that came up, in three years of him talking about his parents and household staff and childhood stressors. i have so many questions. hopefully future seasons will clarify some things.

anyway, hermanos was a deeply confusing episode for me because tito came out of nowhere and schneider’s conversation with leslie, while lovely, was the first time we heard schneider (or anyone actually) label his relationship with penelope a sibling-ish one. it was clear during lydia’s coma that he considered lydia a friend who was also somewhat a maternal figure in his life, but it wasn’t until s3 that the show extended that dynamic, from ‘lydia is like his mom’ to ‘therefore he and pen are both her kids.’

i’ll get into this later, but i honestly think that was meant more to tie into the episode’s theme than because it was supposed to shift his friendship with penelope into new territory. we’re watching penelope deal with tito, and elena deal with alex, and schneider makes the one comment during an important scene with leslie. it’s still jarring though.

the very fact that schneider wasn’t with the family during their vacation felt like an inconsistency to a lot of us, whose two-seasons-worth of headcanons about schneider make ‘he secretly books the room next to theirs and crashes their vacation’ more believable than him staying home alone.

it was done in service to the season’s goals of adding tito to the mix and folding leslie in more, and both goals were accomplished…it just felt a little strange.

dr b’s greater inclusion minimizing other relationships

speaking of leslie, s3 for him was what s2 gave schneider–more ties to more characters, and the first real subplots we’ve seen him have about serious subjects. for good or bad, a lot of what stood out to me in s3 as different was related to the show making more room for leslie.

schneider not being with the alvarezes on their vacation, even though he’s at every family event including funerals now? penelope made it happen by ‘entrusting’ schneider with the care of her house(plant), but really it played out that way so we could see schneider and leslie bond.

elena’s driving lessons being handled by leslie? it’s fair enough that penelope isn’t the one doing it, since she’s busy and it stresses her out, but if you want me to believe that schneider wouldn’t have jumped at the opportunity, even with avery in his life now, you’re crazy. there’s no believable canon reason in s1 or s2 why leslie would be the one doing that, but it played out that way so we could see elena and leslie bond.

even alex gets to know leslie better because he’s more involved with elena, meaning that after s3 leslie finally has connections to the whole family (which schneider accomplished in s2 once he was mentoring elena in building repairs).

by the season finale, leslie is attending victor’s wedding, mistakenly butting in on elena’s time with her dad, and finally traveling to cuba with lydia while he shares his practice with penelope.

however you feel about s3 in general, the show had to change its usual dynamic in order to include leslie more in situations like driving lessons and weddings. it just wouldn’t have worked otherwise. for example, the funeral at the beginning of s3 doesn’t involve him at all, because why would it? unlike schneider, he hasn’t spent a ton of time bonding with the extended alvarez family prior to s3. he’s involved in big moments because he’s close to lydia or penelope.

s3 is the first time we really see him get involved in the story just on his own merits. and that required less schneider in family moments, which paired nicely with the season’s other visible difference.

schneider being more isolated from the family

the schneider we know and love from s2 would have offered to take over elena’s driving lessons as soon as he realized they were stressing pen out. he would have found an excuse to join them on vacation, and he would have been present when penelope realized elena was sneaking off to a hotel room with syd.

schneider prior to s3 was always around that way, witnessing threesome porn on alex’s laptop and picking up strangers at the airport for the quinces, making it easier for penelope to go to him when she needed advice or a hug. in s1, she may have started out getting his help as a last resort, but by late s2, she was often turning to him instead of her own family, or her support group. pen was reluctantly aware of his many hookups because she was at his apartment so much.

once avery’s in the picture, though, we see less of schneider in the family orbit, and it’s really not explained. penelope pulls him (literally) into alex’s drug storyline, but after that he’s mainly in other people’s storylines, like lydia wanting to teach penelope to cook, or alex spending too much on shoes.

even in anxiety, schneider’s status as penelope’s most trusted person is one scene in an episode that shows how she interacts with everyone in her life, rather than the climax of it–the way his time with her is in hello penelope.

beyond individual episodes, it’s the relationships that matter, and we just see a lot less of that with schneider and the family in s3. in s1 we saw him bonding with alex all the time, and in s2 schneider became more important to elena. but in s3…where is he?

alex goes to his apartment because penelope ordered him to, to get a lecture about reckless spending, and that’s the only one-on-one time we see them have before the laundry room in drinking and driving. are they still close? i’m assuming they are, because alex clearly still cares about him and vice versa, but whether it’s because alex is growing up or because schneider’s busier with his first real girlfriend, they’ve stopped hanging out.

i feel the same way about schneider and elena. her support of him when he relapses (how amazing is it that elena is the first alvarez to use the word ‘love’ with schneider, when he’s been closer to lydia and penelope longer? i adore one gay cuban teenager) makes it clear that he’s still important to her, but even her building maintenance seems to be done alone now. the only solo conversations they even have are at the funeral, in the very beginning of the season.

and while schneider and penelope remain friends in s3, the nature of their friendship has changed in a lot of ways. she’s at his apartment less, he’s at hers mostly when the whole family is around, and until his father’s visit they’re less close physically along with everything else.

schneider’s absence in big moments like elena learning to drive or smaller ones like a rare family vacation can be explained as storytelling choices, but they also make it easier to understand how he started drinking again, and how it was possible for him to keep it hidden (along with his avery breakup) before victor noticed.

when penelope went off her meds, schneider was the first person to confront her about her unusual behavior, but penelope doesn’t see the change in him until she’s looking for it. some of that is the show arguing that alcoholics are really good at covering their secrets up, but it also only works because though schneider is making appearances at meals and still involved with family, he’s around a lot less than he used to be.

schneider’s sobriety

deciding to dive into schneider’s sobriety was the defining choice of s3, in my opinion, that made it feel so different. if i had to pick just one, that would be it, because so much else spiderwebs out from it. 

finally seeing more of the world schneider comes from, in the arrival of his father? a major relapse trigger for him.

penelope telling him that choosing his father over his tenants means he’s not part of their family? seemingly the last thing she said to him before he drank.

his inclusion in the alvarez family museum? a way to show how his sobriety is the most impressive work he’s done in his whole life. 

penelope (and the rest of the family, but especially penelope, once they’re alone) doing whatever they can to support him and convince him to keep fighting? the clearest sign we’ve had in three season of how important schneider really is to them.

it’s an amazing story arc for him, and as much as it hurts to watch, i love it. 

but boy does it make season three a change from the first two.

after first setting up how proud of him dr b. and lydia are (the closest thing he has to loving parents) for his years of sobriety, we then see him tempted to drink thanks to his father’s actions and just general presence. 

but because of how the show handles the reveal, we actually don’t know for sure that he’s drinking again until penelope and lydia confirm it. we can be rightly suspicious–i saw that the dangling tag was no longer on the bottle when he placed it on his coffee table, and assumed then that he’d already opened it–but we can’t know.

which means that for the first time, just like penelope, we don’t know if we can trust schneider. schneider! who has wanted nothing more than to earn and keep the family’s trust this whole time. 

it’s so unsettling. as is his visible unraveling once he realizes he’s been caught. 

and the thing is, that we’ve seen this before, just like penelope has lived it before–the worst of her fights and fear with victor happened offscreen, but when he comes back we see him lie to her, try to convince her he can handle his own problems and she should leave it alone. 

but that…that was season one. that was victor, who moved in and out of the picture often in really hurtful ways, and who we weren’t encouraged to get attached to. 

schneider is lovable, and loving, and present. and yet in season three, he also becomes a version of himself who is reactive, and dishonest, and will do whatever it takes to avoid being confronted about his relapse. including trying to hurt and push away the people he loves most.

i think part of why his relapse is so effective as an arc is because it’s as hard for the viewers to expect such a sharp turn from the sweet, laid-back guy we met in s1 as it is for penelope and her family. but that’s also why s3 leaves us shaken.

schneider & avery

oh gosh, schneider and avery. i’ve talked about them a lot before, so i’ll just say here that they brought her in with great potential, then let her stay so far on the sidelines of the show after the valentine’s day episode that it became impossible to know who she was anymore, what role she played in his life, and what their future could possibly look like now that they were reunited at the wedding. 

is she the gorgeous nerdy artist who has just enough in common with him to be a good fit long-term? is she rich and more suited to the world he comes from? is she uninterested in his life outside of what they do for fun together, so that she’ll never get to know his chosen family at all?

it seemed to change each time we saw her, and by the end of her involvement in schneider’s s3 storyline, we didn’t even know what had broken them up before we were supposed to be rooting for them to get back together. 

my theory continues to be that the people making the show were blinded by the impossible cuteness of real life marrieds todd and india, and forgot to make sure their plot threads on the show made sense. 

because avery was never going to get a ton of screen time, she was a minor character–but revolving any part of his story around her kind of gave the show a duty to at least give us a clue of what the heck was going on.

avery + other characters

my other major complaint about avery (who i genuinely adored, at least for her first couple of episodes! my liveblog of her existence in s3 is just a lot of flailing about her being so freaking cute) is that the show keeps her in a totally unprecedented bubble.

penelope’s love interests? always interact with her family. whether it’s ben getting a text from lydia, because he wasn’t around long enough for more, mateo joining an unexpected party, or max spending whatever time he could at her house…we always got to know how her guys related to her family, and that helped us understand them and the relationships better. 

syd of course spends a ton of time around elena’s family, and we’re going to see alex’s girlfriend meet the family this season. you could argue that those comparisons are different because schneider’s not one of them, his storylines are less central than say, penelope’s are–and that’s true. but even dr. b’s girlfriend got a long bathroom scene with lydia and we see/know much less about leslie than we do schneider. 

mostly though, this bugs me because avery clearly spends time in their home! she’s there for valentine’s day, and penelope also tells schneider to invite her during ‘the man.’ and she works at the kids’ school, so she’s in their orbit on another level. penelope is able to get in touch with her and find out they broke up.

and yet, the first real love interest for schneider that could be a healthy and serious relationship…and onscreen, lydia never meets her. doesn’t try to figure out if she’s good enough for the adopted son lydia has been encouraging to find love for three years. they never interact. 

elena, who developed a serious interest in alex’s love life and a taste for gossip in season one, appears to have no interest in the woman schneider’s seeing. alex, i could understand not caring, because he’s generally happier caring about what directly affects him and what he can do to help others…if schneider’s happy, i get why he might stay out of it. 

but it just sort of grates on me that none of the women in schneider’s family have a conversation with avery onscreen, beyond the moment when penelope is trying to kick her and schneider out and she pushes back. if avery is in a scene, she’s talking to and focused on schneider, or nikki, or schneider’s father. none of the family. is that because she doesn’t feel like she has to make an effort to know them? or because the show just wasn’t thinking about that? even though we see it with every other love interest brought into the house?

i mean, when you pay attention to that, then of course we don’t have a clear sense of who she is! how can we when there’s no reason to believe that anyone who cares about schneider does either? 

penelope & mateo

penelope’s relationship with mateo puzzles me almost as much as schneider and avery–and in some ways, even more. we see their friendship first, we watch them deny interest in more than that with each other. then penelope pushes the issue and they do decide to date, but just like with avery, the show doesn’t have a lot of screentime to offer him. 

so what we know about her new boyfriend is that they have some things in common that she really values but maybe too much in common to avoid fighting about it–and then we barely see him again, learning mainly through his absence that she’s just not that into him, until eventually they break up because it turns out he was more into his ex than her anyway.

there’s a karmic sort of humor in that for penelope, but for me it left mateo feeling like a waste of a love interest. we really didn’t get to enjoy their relationship much, especially if they wanted us to miss it when it was gone…so was it worth the time they spent setting it up in the first place? 

for me the answer to that was no. especially since as her ‘longtime’ school volunteer buddy, we’d never seen him before. and i feel like it’s not likely we’ll see him again.

penelope & schneider

this is a frustrating one for me because while i have complaints about these two and their relationship in s3 it was also AMAZING and i LOVED it. both are true.

the confusing part is that their dynamic is inconsistent in s3. think some of that is because the show is trying to do so much at once. fully bring schneider into the family, focus their romantic lives on other people, deepen their bond, deny the possibility of a romance between them, keep them each other’s person.

in s1 they’re landlord and tenant but also becoming real friends. in s2 they’re best friends and he’s a honorary part of the family now (though still an outsider). 

but in s3 he’s established clearly as her best friend and most trusted person, a guy who’s become deeply important to her and her whole family–so much so that after his relapse, they come together to support him much like they all did lydia in s2. 

but penelope treats him dramatically differently from moment to moment and episode to episode in s3. like an annoying brother when he’s getting cooking lessons from her mom, like a life partner when alex’s behavior has her angry and scared, like a bff when she’s considering dating mateo, and even a little like a flirting companion at the wedding.

it’s not completely unprecedented for their dynamic to have multiple layers. his relationship with lydia is complicated too. in past seasons, he flirted with both penelope and her mom–while they also laughed at victor calling them a couple and he told comatose lydia how important her mothering was to him. 

but they lean harder into it during lydia’s cooking lessons, while still hitting the beats hard of ‘are you sure you’re not dating?’ during penelope’s support group and schneider’s dad’s visit. the contrasting takes on their friendship is just a lot of whiplash in a single season.

another thing about s3 that’s different is the kinds of physical contact between penelope and schneider. you might not notice unless you’re looking for it, but penelope actually touches schneider more than he does her. lightly, casually, briefly. she makes contact in a friendly, familiar way all the time. schneider is more likely to touch her when it’s important, in big moments, as though he knows that she trusts him and welcomes him in her space but he doesn’t want to abuse the privilege.

i studied it for making gifsets, and she touches him more every season. and while he touches her a lot more in s2 than in s1, s3 is actually about the same amount. penelope grew visibly closer to him this season, but he held himself back from getting any more familiar. he was also the only one of the two of them who compared her to blood family. for now,it’s really up to interpretation if there’s a deeper reasoning behind that.

for both of them, though, more than half of the physical contact they make in s3 happens in just two episodes, both towards the end of the season. not only does schneider’s father’s visit and his relapse bring them closer together, literally and physically, but the season up until that point has them further apart. 

they spend time together stalking alex, or with schneider talking her down from her panic, but the casual dinners are less, and she’s going to him less for advice–which means there are less small touches, less moments where schneider sits her down on his couch or she nudges him affectionately. 

that makes it all the more intense when they do connect, with penelope holding his hand and them hugging twice all within the same few minutes. and then after his relapse, their conversation alone in the apartment is so tense and so much more separate than they usually are.

the last time she touched him was in the man, the most open and complimentary she’s ever been, and look what happened. this isn’t the man she knows and loves, she needs to reach her best friend who’s still in there somewhere under all the pain and self-loathing, but she tries to do so with honesty first, with bluntness, with tough love, with listening kindly but not without pushing back, and finally with his place in her family–as a role model for the kids. 

only once he’s agreeing with her about the course of action and just doubting his ability to survive it does she reach out. once he’s himself again. and then she’s more there for him physically than she ever has been before. this is a new level of intimacy between them, schneider letting her in rather than excusing himself during tough times, her giving rather than just taking support, her being his silent rock the way he always is hers.

it’s just different than the previous seasons, between them. the problem is that while you’re watching it, it’s hard to pin down what message about their relationship the show is trying to send, since they touch less but more deliberately, and they’re family but not in a way that has well-defined boundaries.

misc other gripes

elena’s world shrinking

as of s3, what exactly is elena’s life outside of syd and anxiety? don’t get me wrong, i love her relationship with syd, and the anxiety plot was good–driving lessons too, which were tied to the anxiety somewhat. 

but if we’re pulling back to look at the bigger picture, elena in season one was a lonely club leader, figuring out her identity, and navigating disagreements with her family. 

elena in season two was experiencing her first relationship, finding her first group of geeky friends to hang out with irl, confronting the fallout of victor’s behavior in s1, and continuing her academic hard work while also adding lots of political engagement.

in comparison, elena in season three exchanges ‘i love yous’ and has sex for the first time, as well as makes up with syd after their first fight. she learns she has anxiety and gets her driver’s license and continues to heal her relationship with victor, but…she has no friends anymore? no mention of josh or carmen or any of the echo park gamers? and she’s studying for testing, it seemed like, but she’s not in clubs anymore or volunteering or protesting? her whole world outside her family isn’t really syd, is it?? because i know first love is amazing, but that’s not healthy.

i said up there that less of the story belongs to elena after s1, and this is a large part of why i feel that way. the show treats her like some of her bigger arcs are settling down, rather than expanding, giving her subplots instead and making room for the other characters. it’s weird to watch though when just a quick comment here and there would have implied that she still spends time with friends or fellow social justice warriors.

lydia’s humor goes dark

when it comes to lydia, season one includes some jokes about her ending up in a home–or to be more specific, the fact that she never will. her comedy in season two revolves a lot around her identity, with her decision to become a citizen. 

and then, we go into season three after her coma. though she appears to be in good health, the family is still worried, and elena especially tries to protect her from herself.

whether it’s specifically related to her near-death experience or not, season three involves way more death jokes. things like lydia looking up, and inviting god to reunite her with her husband ‘berto, i am ready,’ she says, then sort of shrugs when death doesn’t arrive. 

it’s not unfunny…but it’s a different kind of humor. i can’t say i enjoyed the edge to it, probably because i was elena’s age when my grandmother died, and she was also a deeply religious woman who was awaiting her invitation to heaven. 

alex also has no friends anymore? does he still play baseball?

the way that s3 gives alex so much more to do, storywise, is awesome. but just like elena, his world seems to have gotten smaller in terms of socializing. we hear about his girlfriend but don’t meet her, and we never see him interact with friends, either–besides things like instagram. 

this one’s really a minor complaint because he has whole important storylines in s3 and at least the show does imply he still has friends…but it’s a little odd for the most popular alvarez teen to spend more time chatting with dr. berkowitz than any friends his own age. especially when he used to be so involved in baseball that we at least saw his teammates. 

it’s not clear to me if season three just didn’t overlap with sports season for him this time around, or if he gave baseball up–but if it were the latter, you’d think they would mention that.

scott came back but not lori

i honestly don’t know which of the show’s casting choices are influenced by availability and which are choices they make for plots they want–other than carmen leaving, because i know ariela went to another show.

but while lori hasn’t been around since season one, scott went missing after the second episode of season two…and then appeared in the second episode of season three before never showing up in the rest of the season. 

there’s no continuity problem with this or anything–i just don’t like scott and wish that if they were only going to keep one of pen’s coworkers, it would’ve been lori. i know that wouldn’t have let him do what they were able to with scott. but still.

max came back why?

i like max, for the record. he’s been my favorite of all penelope’s love interests so far, and i felt bad for them both when they broke up. but in terms of the finale, it felt really jarring the way they included his little appearance. 

in that one scene, the show managed to remind us that they truly loved each other, genuinely supported and cared for each other, had common background and went back a long time as friends–and that out of all the men penelope had been with, he was the one she was still hurting over.

and then he left, as easily as he appeared. 

besides reminding us that her major relationship in s2 was with max, what did that scene accomplish? it didn’t feel like closure, because it didn’t add anything to their original breakup. but it also didn’t change anything about how they ended–he remained someone she wasn’t going to be with, even though they loved each other a lot. 

the only explanation i can think of is that the show wanted to work with the actor again. because if their goal was to confirm that yes, she and max really were great together even though she wasn’t going to be with him…we didn’t need more confirmation of that. we got the message in s2. ed quinn is great though.

[shirtlesssammy]

5x18: Point of No Return

Hey-our first request episode! It’s a good one, considering Adam might (?) be coming back this season, and then there’s the whole fathers are shitty theme. Oh, and Dean and Cas are fighting. 

Then:

Remember Adam?

Now:

In an empty bar in Nowhere, USA, Zachariah commiserates with a man about The Man. Then the walls start shaking and the other guy wonders if it’s an earthquake. The place lights up and Zach sullenly admits that it’s his boss. Before you know it, the bartender and other guy’s eyes are burned out and Zach is back in the heavenly business. 

On the alcohol train to Sad Town, Dean packs his only belongings (minus Baby, I guess) in preparation to saying yes to Michael. We say goodbye to the leather jacket (for good --well, I think we see it in Swan Song too, but --like, how crazy is it that there was a fundamental shift in the storytelling of the show when that jacket was stolen after season 5? Would Dean still be wearing it to this day? I would like to think that isn’t true.) He boxes up the jacket, Baby’s keys, his gun, and writes a letter. Oh, and he downs hard liquor straight from the bottle the whole melodramatic time he’s doing this. (Side note: he’s staying at Mike’s Travel Inn which is wonderfully fitting since he plans to become Michael’s own personal travel inn. Wanek!)

For Drama Llama Dean Science:

Sam finds Dean and confirms Dean’s own plans to him. Sam wants Dean to wait on this plan of letting Michael take him. Bobby has a plan. Okay, he doesn’t, but Sam is going to stop him anyway. Dean gets in a good dig about Sam not having demon blood to help him. Sam counters that he still brought help. Before Dean can react, Cas has flapped in and he zaps Dean back to Bobby’s. 

Urgh, those were the days. Sometimes I REALLY miss flying Cas. 

At Bobby’s we have a pissed off Dean, pissed off Cas, pissed off Bobby, and a peacemaker Sam. Bobby calls Dean “son”, and Dean counters that he isn’t Dean’s father. OUCH and a HALF. Bobby then shows Dean the bullet he wants to put through his brain. He doesn’t though because he promised Dean that he’d keep fighting.

Cas is suddenly hit with a massive wave of angel radio goodness and he’s gone. (I just love the editing of when Cas flaps away. Sigh.) 

Cas ends up in a field somewhere. 

For Side-profile Science:

In his attempt to investigate something coming out of the ground, two other angels attack him. He is an effortlessly badass angel though, and dispatches them with 

I’m sorry, what was I saying? 

He pulls someone from the ground and takes him back to Bobby’s. It’s Adam, Sam and Dean’s long lost/dead half-brother. Okay, the dramatic camera zooms and swelling music was just A+ soapy drama there. Cas engraves angel warding on Adam’s ribs and wakes him from his graveyard coma. Adam knows who Sam and Dean are --because the angels warned him about them. He demands to see Zachariah. Wherps. 

They let him clean up, give him some hard liquor, and ask him to tell them his story. He tells them that he was in heaven (or prom to him) and angels interrupt to tell him he’s going to save the world. He’s the archangel Michael’s vessel. Dean thinks that’s insane. Cas points out that Adam is also of John Winchester’s bloodline, and Sam’s brother. Dean forgets he’s with company and propositions Cas. 

Sam tries telling Adam that the angels are lying to him. Adam doesn’t believe him. Sam asks him to give them time to prove they’re right. He tells Adam that “they’re blood” and that’s why they should be trusted. (Dean’s little smile at that...like I get how that’s important to Dean, but also, I love how SO much about this show is how important these bonds are despite there being no blood between this found family.) Adam is appalled. They’re not family. John wasn’t his father (AND can we talk about how fucking jealous Dean was that John actually did things, like baseball games, with Adam, and Adam saw those baseball games as nothing? John wasn’t there for him on a day to day basis and so he wasn’t Adam’s father. Ugh, John was the woooorrsst.) (Dean’s little half-smile about John was also worth watching.) 

Later, Adam tries making an escape but Sam catches him, and sits him down with a beer to discuss John.

Sam thinks Adam was lucky to not have John around all year (Ahem, you didn’t either, Sam…) Adam was alone a lot because his mom worked. He raised himself. Ugh, kinda like you and Dean, right Sam? Then Adam makes a Family Vacation reference and we KNOW he’s related to Dean. Btw, where are Dean and Cas during this convo? 

Dean’s checking out Bobby’s safe room when Sam and Cas show up. Cas silently flirts with Dean. Dean forgets he’s in front of Sam and flirts right back at Cas. These two are killing me this season. They’re in that sweet spot of flirting before it all goes to hell. SIGH.

For the record, I’d like to point out that Cas was making that face at him the whole time they were in the living room with Bobby before Adam showed up. Also, I’d like to point out that both Dean and Cas were missing when Adam tried to escape. 

Dean and Sam talk in private about not letting Adam let Michael in. Sam lets Dean know he’s not letting him do it either. Um, then Dean lists all the people that they’ve “gotten killed”, and I’d like to give a big shout out “Fuck you” to Chuck himself. According to Dean they got everyone killed! He’s “also tired of fighting who he’s supposed to be.” UGGH. Dean tells Sam that he doesn’t think Sam will be able to withstand the devil, so he’s got to be there to fight. Sam walks away.

Upstairs, Cas watches Adam intently as though making sure he won’t sleep walk away. When Sam heads upstairs, totally wrecked, Cas makes his way back down to the basement. (To finish their assignation - right, Boris?) He hears a crash. Dean Bean’s nowhere to be seen in the safe room so Cas opens the door. Dean directs his attention to a cabinet door with a bloody angel banishing sigil on it. BOOM! Cas out.

Dean creeps out of the basement through the cellar hatch. JellyDEAN noooooo!

Sam heads out to track down Dean, leaving Bobby to watch over Adam. In his dreams, Adam chillaxes at a playground when Zachariah smarmily flaps in. Zach tells Adam that he’ll see his mom soon, but first he’s got to figure out how to escape. Zachariah warns Adam about the Winchesters, describing Sam and Dean as dangerously codependent and more interested in saving each other than the world. Which is sorta...valid? “They’re not your family. Understand?”

Outside a bar, a street preacher shouts at random passerby when Dean runs up and asks if he knows who Dean Winchester is. “Dear god, yes,” the preacher replies (for all of us).

The preacher starts to pray to the angels about Dean’s location when Cas zaps him unconscious. 

Cas flips the fuck out. “I rebelled for this?” he shouts as he bashes Dean around in the alley. “I gave everything for you. And this is what you give to me?” 

Dean, always a glutton for punishment, eggs Cas on. Cas should destroy him! Why not? Don’t you know who he is??? He’s Dean Winchester, PROM KING of Self-Loathing High. Cas stops punching out his feelings. His fist uncurls.

He zaps Dean unconscious instead.

Back at Bobby’s house, Adam’s disappeared and Sam is a leeeetle bit stressed out.

Cas flaps in with a majorly roughed up Dean and announces that he was the cause of Dean’s injuries. Hashtag Dangerbird-of-the-Lord. About Adam’s whereabouts, Cas speculates that the angels nabbed him and took him to the Beautiful Room from season four. 

Cue the close-up on baroque art, beer, and burgers. Adam’s enjoying his last meal when Zachariah flaps in to hand him a pink slip. “You’re not so much the ‘chosen one’ as you are a clammy scrap of bait.” 

“Son of a bitch,” Adam mutters, Winchesterily. 

Adam’s starting to realize that Zachariah is a pretty terrible friend. Zachariah reinforces this conclusion by making Adam cough up blood. 

Down in Bobby’s panic room, Dean’s chained to the bed. 

Sam fills Dean in on the situation: Adam’s being held prisoner at a location which is CRAWLING with angels. To Dean’s surprise, Sam unlocks Dean’s manacle. They need him for the fight ahead and Sam has faith that Dean will make the right choice - even if nobody else believes in him. Dean rewards this touching show of faith by swearing up and down that he’ll say yes to Michael at the first chance he gets. DEAN. BEAN. Sam’s faith in Dean is simply derived: “You’re still my big brother.” (*crying noise crying noise*)

Outside the warehouse, Cas flaps in with the Winchesters. 

Dean’s surprised to learn that the Beautiful Room is in Van Nuys, California and not on Jupiter or (bless this boy) in a blade of grass. Cas tells them there are five extremely good warriors inside and he can’t fight them all off. He starts to take off his tie and IS IT GETTING HOT IN HERE?

Cas tells them that he’ll take care of the angels and then they can rescue Adam. Cas BBY. 

Devastating dialogue alert:

Dean: Whoa, wait. You’re gonna take on five angels?

Cas: Yes.

Dean: Isn’t that suicide?

Cas: Maybe it is. But then I won’t have to watch you fail. I’m sorry, Dean. I don’t have the same faith in you that Sam does.

Cas whips out a box cutter. The next scene sees him striding into the warehouse alone. His spidey sense tingles. It’s an angel! Cas kills one of them and then makes his way to the middle of the room. Quicky, he’s surrounded by the other angels. He drops his blade, rips open his shirt, and blasts them and himself away with the angel banishing sigil he carved iNTo hIS sKin. 

Dean and Sam hear the commotion and when Dean heads inside, the coast is clear. Inside the Beautiful Room, Adam’s slumped by the wall. “You came for me,” he mutters, surprised. 

“Yeah, you’re family,” Dean says. But it’s too late for hugs and lollipops, because Zachariah shows up, stroking his metaphorical evil mustache. Zachariah starts bleeding out Adam and Sam while Dean is EXPERIENCING STRONG EMOTIONS. (Boris: When Dean says “Damnit, Zachariah” I only hear “Dean” from The Real Ghostbusters, and realize what a great job he did impersonating a character he had only read about.) 

Dean agrees to say yes. While Zachariah calls down Michael, Dean takes one last look at Sam. Thoughts and feelings flit past like clouds and suddenly Dean arrives at a Realization™. He smiles, then winks at Sam. 

Dean starts issuing his demands before he’ll turn over his body but number one on his list is that Michael destroys Zachariah. 

RECORD SCRATCH

Dean refers to himself as a “sweet ass” which is not wrong, while Zachariah presses close to Dean threateningly, boasting that Michael would never kill him. No worries because Dean’s gonna smite you instead. With Zachariah close, Dean whips up Cas’s dropped angel blade and jams it up into Zachariah’s jaw. 

The room shakes as Michael approaches. Sam, Dean, and Adam make for the door. Sam and Dean escape but the door slams shut in front of Adam. A bright light suffuses him and...that’s it.

Later, they recap in the Impala. Adam and Cas are in the wind but finding them is an issue for another episode. Because right now Sam needs to address Dean’s almost-yes moment. Dean explains his sudden change of mind. “The walls are coming down on us, and I look over to you and all I can think about is, ‘this stupid son of a bitch brought me here.’ I just didn’t want to let you down.” Dean apologizes to Sam for treating him like a kid. “Screw destiny right in the face. I say we take the fight to them, and do it our way.”

Battle brother mode ACTIVATED!

______________________________

Is That a Quote in Your Pocket or are You Just Happy to See Me? 

You know, eight months of turned pages and screwed pooches but tonight, tonight’s when the magic happens.

Blow me, Cas.

We’re working on the power of love. 

Maybe you could take a half a second and stop trying to sacrifice yourself for a change?

You pray too loud.

Watch your tone, boy.

Don’t piss of the nerd angels.

______________________________

Want to read more? Check out our Recap Archive! 

[calzona-ga]

Krista Vernoff, fresh off a two-season renewal and new job as 'Station 19' showrunner, talks with The Hollywood Reporter about the big cliffhanger.

[This story contains spoilers from the season 15 finale of Grey's Anatomy.]

ABC's Grey's Anatomy wrapped up its "Season of Love" on Thursday with a finale that teed up a plethora of new storylines to explore in the recently announced 16th (and 17th!) seasons.

Thursday's season 15 finale featured Meredith (finally!) professing her love for Andrew (Giacomo Gianniotti) — and doing so while he was behind bars. DeLuca was arrested (and stands to risk his career) after covering for Meredith (Ellen Pompeo), who committed insurance fraud to help a family who had been terrorized by immigration reform efforts. Meanwhile, Meredith, Richard (James Pickens) and Alex (Justin Chambers) wind up being fired by Bailey (Chandra Wilson) for their roles in the offense.

Elsewhere, Teddy (Kim Raver) goes into labor and finds support in an unlikely ally: Amelia (Caterina Scorsone). After Teddy gives birth (a girl, named after her best friend, Allison, who died on 9/11), Owen (finally!) professes his love to his former Army friend. It sets up a love triangle between Koracick (new series regular Greg Germann), who is back at home building baby furniture for Teddy. (Poor guy, Teddy doesn't bother to tell her boyfriend that she's in labor.) Then there's Amelia, who sees Owen moving on with Teddy and has Link (new regular Chris Carmack) waiting in the wings for something more serious at a time when she decides to work on herself.

As for Jo (Camilla Luddington), she (finally!) tells someone what triggered her depression as she turns the corner and fills in Alex (Justin Chambers) before getting treatment.

The hour ends with a cliffhanger that sees Jackson (Jesse Williams) leave Maggie (Kelly McCreary) alone after going out into the thick fog amid a multiple-car pile-up. Jackson fails to return, leaving Maggie terrified of what may have happened to him.

Below, showrunner Krista Vernoff — who hit pause on her well-earned vacation — talks with The Hollywood Reporter about the season as a whole and why she hopes viewers will be talking about Jackson all summer.

The episode ends with a cliffhanger, Jackson is nowhere to be found after going out into the fog. Why leave the finale so open-ended? Was this a contract decision or a creative one? He's coming back next season as a regular. It was a creative decision. It was a cliffhanger. I want people to come back [in the fall] and talk all summer and wonder what happens to him. We have not mapped it out. The writers come back June 3, I'm on vacation for two weeks and then we'll hit it. What I love about act six of our finale is we gave ourselves so much to play with for next season on all the storylines.

Will there be a time jump next season? I have no idea. It's unlikely that there will be much of a time jump because I really want to play through the consequences of what Meredith did. But I honestly might be lying to you because I honestly just don't know yet.

You described this as the Season of Love," and it ended with Meredith professing her love for Andrew. Is there a theme for season 16? That is a later conversation. We got through this season and then the writers went away. I'm really proud of the work we did this season but I don't have answers for next season.

You mentioned that you're excited to explore the consequences of Meredith's actions. Knowing that the series often takes on larger social issues, have you considered using Meredith's arrest for fraud to explore a bigger political storyline, perhaps around fighting for immigration reform? We have not. The very nature of what Meredith did here was an argument for reform because she was confronting and talking about a really broken system. The system was so broken and it was just enraging to her. The idea that this family is suffering this much and is now going to suffer more was more than Meredith could bear. So she made what amounts to a really stupid decision from a really noble place.

Meredith's actions felt very old-school Grey's — similar to when Izzie (Katherine Heigl) cut Denny's (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) LVAD wire. And there was a reference to that famed scene in the finale as well! Was that intentional? Yes. One of the things that hasn't happened lately is Meredith Grey hasn't faced consequences for the rules that she breaks. She is a bold rule breaker and we love her for it — and she always gets away with it. We felt we had laid the groundwork to shock the audience when this time, Meredith doesn't get off so easy.

Meredith, Richard and Alex have all been fired, which will have a massive ripple effect on pretty much everyone, both at the hospital and in their respective personal lives … Indeed! It is consequential AF, as the kids say. We were excited in the writer's room about that. We couldn't stop kind of laughing like, "Holy shit, what have we done?! What are we doing?!" But when you get to 342 episodes — which is where we are — you have the right to take some bold swings, you have to take some bold swings if you want to keep the show fresh and exciting and you don't want people to get ahead of you. You have to be bold. And I feel like we were really bold here and we'll see how it all shakes out.

Jo reaches a turning point and is admitted for therapy. How much will you explore how there's no quick and easy fix for mental health and depression? I think that Jo is suffering from depression born of trauma … and the idea that her brain is telling her that she should never have existed. She's been in a horrible spiral and spirals are made more horrible when they live inside your head and you're unable to talk to anyone about them. This I know to be true: talking about things is the beginning of healing them. I was really proud of the design of that story. Episode 19 was such an exquisite episode and I hope that the writer and director and editors of that episode all get the Emmy attention they deserve. When I saw that episode, it uprooted all of my plans for Jo. There was no way in my mind that Jo could be happy and playful again this season, having just survived that. … We showed the beginning of the healing process. And the next step of the healing process is getting treatment. She needs treatment and that's what we see. So, while it makes you cry in the finale to see her and Alex say goodbye to each other, I believe that it's a happy cry because Jo is getting the help that she needs.

Let's talk about the Teddy/Koracick/Owen/Amelia/Link of it all. You really put a new spin on the love triangle in this one. Owen professes his love for Teddy, who doesn't call her boyfriend, Koracick, to tell him that she was in labor. What was exciting for you about exploring that, what, quadrangle? What do we even call that?! A love quintangle! In the end, it was a love quintangle. I was excited to take that story on because it was so complicated. I'm proud that we did that for the whole season without really ever having Amelia and Teddy go after each other, without leaning into those tropes that we have seen so often in love triangles where there are two women and one man. I'm proud that it was Amelia driving Teddy to the hospital in the end and then talking about how they could be friends and maybe they should be friends. I am very excited as a writer by the complexity of Teddy and Owen having that baby and having declared their love and then panning to find Tom alone in the nursery that he is building for Teddy and her baby. That's an exciting thing as a storyteller because it leaves just great material for next season.

Amelia's journey was terrific: she's getting over Owen and winds up meeting this Link, and they're absolutely wonderful together. And I say that as someone who has loved Amelia and Owen together since their start. Instead, Amelia says she's open to something more with Link but decides to explore who she is before committing to anything serious.

I was exceedingly proud of Amelia for her growth and for her maturity and for telling Link the truth, which is that he was a rebound and maybe he's not a rebound anymore because life is complicated and he is terrific but that she dove into him too quickly and she has to figure some things out before she can decide anything permanent. It's like, if everyone could grow up that much the world would be a better place.

The balance of power between Nico and Schmidt shifted — and Schmidt just came out to his mother, having found his confidence. Meanwhile, Nico seems truly miserable. Jake Borelli was upped to series regular but there's no word about Alex Landi. Will he be back next season? What did you enjoy most about their storylines this year? Alex Landi is going to be recurring for us again next year. I am not sure where it's all going but I thought that coming out scene was just gorgeous. I just loved them.

You're going to be showrunner on both Grey's and midseason spinoff Station 19 next season. I'd imagine that means you're shaking things up there, yes? I'm not ready to answer what I'm planning to do with it because I just took this on and I've got to study it and get inside of it. It's an exciting world and the idea of merging these two shows in a way where characters from Grey's might appear on Station 19 and vice versa. The design is that Station 19 is three blocks from Grey Sloan. When Stacy McKee [showrunner and creator] decided to go it made the most sense for me to oversee the whole thing and see how cohesive I could make it.

I loved seeing Schmidt in that world, too. Is there a specific character or two you're looking forward to writing for? I loved it, too. I need a month in a writer's room [to answer that]. I'm going to have writer's rooms that are right next door to each other and I've got great teams and I am really excited to answer that question for you in six weeks! [Laughs.]

How much pressure do you feel running both series? Maybe it's just exhaustion that's not allowing me to have the anxiety that I should probably be experiencing but I am excited. I had a conversation with Chandra Wilson when I came back to the show [two seasons ago] and we had a conversation about Bailey. The question she posed is, "We've established Bailey as being an ambitious woman. What does she do with all of her ambition now that she's the chief of the hospital?" That's where we started our conversation about Bailey and that's what I feel like applies here. It's like, "She gets two hospitals!" I feel like I came back to Grey's and it has been a joy. And I think it's been a success and now I get two shows! I get two hospitals. It's like my ambition is excited and I'm excited to challenge myself and see what I'm capable of doing with this new challenge.

Grey's was renewed for two more seasons. I hate to ask, but has there been any talk about if season 17 is the end? I've heard nothing yet. I'm under contract through season 17, that's what I can tell you.

[hope-for-olicity]

Fabulous Olicity Fanfic Friday - February 1st, 2019

Happy Friday! So this is my attempt to both thank awesome fanfic writers for their amazing work and offer my recommendations to anyone who is interested. Here are the fantastic fanfic stories I read this week! They are posted in the order I read them. This and all previous Fabulous Olicity Fanfic posts can be found on my blog.

Never Far Away multi-chapter by @onceuponanolicity - When Felicity Smoak moves to Starling City and attends a new high school, she expects things to be hard on her, she is twelve after all. But then she meets new friends and life becomes easier. What isn't so easy is growing up. Oliver Queen met Felicity when she was twelve and he treated her as nothing more than a friend, well, except for when his big brother tendencies kicked in. Until one day, something in his life changed. He looked at Felicity as she was growing up and began to realize that he didn't want her as a friend anymore. By the time, Oliver was man enough to admit his feelings for Felicity, he went away on the Queen's Gambit only for it to sink. Now that he has finally made it home. He has to win her back. This is a multi-chapter au fic that follows Oliver and Felicity through high school and into season 1. http://archiveofourown.org/works/11293257/chapters/25265796

With the Speed of an Arrow multi-chapter WIP by @academyofshipping - Oliver Queen’s elite and silver-spoon life has taken some blows in the past few years, but he is still the carefree billionaire everyone knows of and loves. When his role in the family business is in jeopardy and he is introduced to a motley of new people, his status quo is threatened. With a changed perspective, Oliver realizes his feeling for his best friend and anchor-in-life, Felicity Smoak, may be more than just platonic. OR A modern adaption of Jane Austen’s Emma with a gender swap* and no island. *Knowing that gender is not binary https://archiveofourown.org/works/16559846/chapters/38799857

Hard To Find Love multi-chapter WIP by Mellowyellowdiamonds - Through a tragic twist of fate Felicity finds herself left with an orphaned young William Clayton. Keeping her promise to her friend, Felicity raises William diligently, loving him as if he were her own child, only to have Moira Queen storm into their lives several years later demanding custody of her grandson. Locked in a war with Moira Queen, things get complicated when Felicity finds herself developing unwanted feelings for William's biological father, Oliver Queen. At the same time she must try to manage her meddling 13 year old son, who has it in his head that if Felicity would just cooperate and fall for his father, everything would be right in the world. https://archiveofourown.org/works/15941786/chapters/37173917

Snowed In from the Of Monsters and Men series by @imusuallyobsessed - Felicity finally convinces the team to let her go on a supply run with Oliver. Things go awry. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17531819

Home To You multi-chapter WIP by @the-shy-and-anxious-fangirl - Oliver Queen has never done what his family expected of him. He took a gap year after high school instead of going to college right away. He quit his fraternity sophomore year to join the student newspaper, switching his major from business to journalism. He became a photojournalist for a wire service instead of taking a place at Queen Consolidated. He went missing after six months instead of coming home for his sister’s twenty-first birthday. He survived five years of captivity in a war zone when everyone thought he was dead. He came home. But home didn’t have a place for him in it anymore. His parents were both dead, casualties of their own mistakes and a city they had turned against them. His sister was all grown up, the CEO of Queen Consolidated with a fiancé and a dog and a life of her own. Oliver didn’t belong in his old life, but there was nowhere else for him to go. He was a man without a home, without any way of finding one, until he stopped by the IT department of his sister’s company to get files off an old, battered memory card, and found a woman with curly blonde hair and bright, intelligent eyes chewing on a bright red pen and swearing at a computer screen. https://archiveofourown.org/works/12613188/chapters/28734552

The Emerald Umbrella multi-chapter WIP by @arrowgirl20 - All it took was a little rain and a emerald umbrella for Oliver and Felicity to take their relationship to the next level.http://archiveofourown.org/works/8752441/chapters/22096217

Charmed I'm Sure! multi-chapter WIP by @christinabeggs - What happens when three witchy sisters take on the evil in the world? https://archiveofourown.org/works/15852249/chapters/36922482

Love and Little Cupcakes multi-chapter WIP by @christinabeggs - Felicity loved sweets so much that she paid no attention to her lovelife. Until Thea Queen came into her store wanting fabulous cupcakes for her sixteenth birthday. SO ADORABLE! http://archiveofourown.org/works/12400539/chapters/28216053

Overwatch multi-chapter WIP by @it-was-a-red-heeler - A burglary attempt convinces the Mayor of Starling City to hire Smoak Technologies to strengthen his security. But between the sassy AI watching him 24/7 and the personal trainer with his own reasons to kill him, Oliver may wish he’d stuck with his baseball bat for protection. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17500640/chapters/41221793

Do You Remember multi-chapter WIP by @smkkbert - Eight years after Oliver and Felicity became teenage parents, they have everything they could have ever hoped for and more. They have a good life in a nice house. Their marriage is happy, and a second baby is on its way. The calm they have settled in is interrupted abruptly when a stalker starts terrorizing Felicity. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17409059/chapters/40978307

P.S. Hong Kong: Was it Real?!? multi-chapter WIP by @cruzrogue for Olicity trope-tastic award: Fake Marriage - This is off season 3 Flashbacks. When Tommy goes to Hong Kong he doesn’t go alone he takes his friend Felicity as the best information system being to help him locate Oliver Queen. Tommy may leave empty handed but Felicity gets to be a bride… https://archiveofourown.org/works/15025697/chapters/34832747

From Somewhere Within multi-chapter WIP by @smoaking-greenarrow - Their connection has always felt natural to them, safe and secure. But others tend to fear what they don’t understand, and as far as their enemies are concerned, the world isn’t ready to accept two people who can know each other the way that Oliver and Felicity do. https://archiveofourown.org/works/16009244/chapters/37356257

Get Down Tonight by @laureningall - Oliver is having second thoughts about agreeing to chaperone a dance at William’s school with Felicity. Will some unexpected Green Arrow business keep him from ‘Dancing through the Decades?' https://archiveofourown.org/works/11759589

While You Were Sleeping multi-chapter Complete by @lou-lou26 - Felicity Smoak, an IT expert at Queen Consolidated, has a little bit of a crush on her boss, Tommy Merlyn. The problem? He doesn't know she exists. After she saves his life, Felicity is mistaken for his fiancee as he lies in a coma. Suddenly thrown into the welcoming arms of the man's family - The Queens, Felicity soon finds herself falling in love with his brother, Oliver. But when Tommy awakens, Felicity also finds herself in the worst predicament of her life. http://archiveofourown.org/works/3286841/chapters/7172570

Summer Vacation: Family First by @dmichellewrites - prompt: Impaired Judgement  https://archiveofourown.org/works/11074743/chapters/26550411?view_adult=true

Pieces of Always multi-chapter WIP by @so-caffeinated and @dust2dust34 - Life continues after Forever is Composed of Nows. Ongoing non-linear collection of family moments for the Queens. http://archiveofourown.org/works/8220479/chapters/18840356

Re-Airrow 2x16 by @lostolicityscenes - The following two short scenes take place before and after the first scene in the episode. I couldn’t find a scene or gif of it but basically, Oliver is asleep in the loft, he awakens from a nightmare. He turns to Sara and finds blood on his hands, but the person next to him is a bleeding Shado; she calls him a murderer. He wakes again, for real this time. The scene below takes place before the first fake out waking up and the second scene takes place some time afterwards but before he leaves to meet with the Bratva. https://lostolicityscenes.tumblr.com/post/182385188466/re-airrow-2x16

Will Fate Allow? multi-chapter WIP by @mindramblingsfics - Seeing her parent's marriage dissolve at a young age made Felicity yearn for a healthy marriage of her own. She thought she'd finally found what she was looking for when Billy Malone showed up offering her what her heart desired. She thought she was happy and had everything she could want, but things began to unravel. Slowly she turned to someone who had become an unparalleled constant in her life...Oliver Queen. Oliver and Felicity are the definition of polar opposites. He is the mob boss that strikes fear in the hearts many, while she is seen as the sweet girl next door, but there is more to both of them underneath the surface. Along the way, they become connected to one another leading to their lives being intertwined forever. https://archiveofourown.org/works/16521596/chapters/38699951

Shades multi-chapter WIP by @geneshaven - Felicity is preparing to spend the holidays with her guys Chapter 1: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/181215821029/shades Chapter 2: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/181291236319/shades Chapter 3: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/181398973624/shades Chapter 4: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/181513399444/shades Chapter 5: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/181607993734/shades Chapter 6:  https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/182028355089/shades Chapter 7: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/182214818554/shades Chapter 8: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/182265990139/shades Chapter 9: https://geneshaven.tumblr.com/post/182394286309/shades

Re-Airrow 2x17 by @lostolicityscenes -Oliver wants to talk about Felicity and frat boys. https://lostolicityscenes.tumblr.com/post/182410161881/re-airrow-2x17

Time for a Story multi-chapter WIP by @smkkbert - This fic shows Olicity and their life as a (married) couple with family. Although Olicity (and their kids) are the protagonists, other characters of Arrow and Flash make appearances. YOU NEED THIS STORY IN YOUR LIFE. https://archiveofourown.org/works/3912157/chapters/8757172

There's a Hole in My Soul multi-chapter WIP by @felicityollies - Felicity Smoak is the daughter of a powerful and dangerous mob boss. Oliver Queen, who had been an associate until recently being promoted to bodyguard, was given the job of protecting Felicity. Neither of them are very happy about the arrangement. https://archiveofourown.org/works/5827837/chapters/13431532

// @emmaamelia95 // @mel-loves-all // @oliverfel4 // @green-arrows-of-karamel // @coal000 // @miriam1779 // @memcjo// @captainolicitysbedroom // @tdgal1 // @spaztronautwriter // @lalawo1// @quiveringbunny // @wrongshipper // @thebookjumper // @vaelisamaza // @myhauntedblacksoul // @lovelycssefan // @laurabelle2930 //  

[moviepitpodcast-blog]

My Most Anticipated Movies of 2019

2019 is here! So you know what that means – NEW MOVIES!

Of course, there are a lot of movies coming out this year, and while I’m looking forward to many of them, there are some that stand out among the rest. So here I am, give you my most anticipated movies of the year. It should be noted that of course things could change. For example, movies get shifted around, pulled off the schedule or new movies are put on the schedule that I end up really looking forward to.

So with that said, this list is based off the current schedule that’s out, and they’ll also be done by release date, because it’s just easier that way. Let’s get to it!

 Captain Marvel – March 8th

Yes, this list will include Marvel’s big three movies coming out – deal with it! Okay, now that that’s out of the way, Captain Marvel is something I’ve been looking forward to since it was announced. Not only is the movie Marvel’s first female-led superhero movie, it has a pretty damn great cast. Brie Larson plays the titular hero, aka Carol Danvers, an army pilot who gets caught in the middle of an intergalactic war between two alien races – the Kree and the Skrulls. The movie will also be a good introduction to the character to a lot of people who don’t know anything about the character, and that said, Captain Marvel has some good stories to tell. Captain Marvel co-stars Samuel L. Jackson, Jude Law, Ben Mendelsohn, Clark Gregg, Gemma Chan, Lee Pace and Annette Bening.

 Us – March 15th

Jordan Peele is back behind the camera with another terrifying story, and this time he’s not hiding the creep factor like he did in the trailer for Get Out. Us follows a family (Winston Duke, Lupita Nyong’o, Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex), who while on a family vacation with friends run into some unexpected visitors. Everyone was talking about the trailer when it dropped on Christmas Day, and it was well worth it, because the trailer starts off innocent and slowly gets weird and creepy until it goes full-on “what the hell is going on?” and just like that, Us, has gone on a lot of people’s Must-Watch List. Us co-stars Elisabeth Moss, Tim Heidecker, Anna Diop and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

 Hellboy – April 12th

As hard as it might be for some – including myself – let’s move pass the notion that we will no longer get a third Hellboy movie directed by Guillermo del Toro. That said, the first trailer for the new Hellboy movie actually had me pretty excited. Directed by Neil Marshall (Dog Soldiers, The Descent), the new movie has Hellboy (David Harbour) facing off against an ancient sorceress (Milla Jovovich) named Nimue the Blood Queen bent on revenge. It looks like a Hellboy movie, and seeing Harbour get a lead role in a big movie like this is great. I was a fan of his before Stranger Things and seeing him finally get the recognition he deserves should be awesome to watch. Hellboy co-stars Sasha Lane, Penelope Mitchell, Daniel Dae Kim and Ian McShane.

 Avengers: Endgame – April 26th

Arguably, the biggest Marvel film to date, Avengers: Endgame (yes, it’s called Endgame, you figured it out, good for you) finishes the story they started in Avengers: Infinity War. Honestly, I don’t know what to expect from this, and I like it. The story could pretty much go anywhere, and even though we’ve seen set photos, without that context, we’re just talking in the abyss. I always keep my expectations, hype or what-have-you at the door when watching big movies like this, but I don’t think I’ll be able to contain myself watching this in a theater with all the other fans around.

 Detective Pikachu – May 10th

Loosely based – maybe – off the game of the same name, Tim (Justice Smith) meets an intelligent talking Pikachu (voiced and also apparently motion-captured by Ryan Reynolds) who help each other as they look into the mysterious disappearance of Tim’s father. I, like many probably reading this, grew up with Pokemon and have a special place in my heart for the property. However, I had my doubts about the movie, mainly because it was going to be a CGI-Live Action hybrid, and those tend to not be that great. But DAMN did the trailer change my mind. The world looks great, the designs of the Pokemon look great too, and might be unexpected; because I know I didn’t envision Pikachu with fur. Detective Pikachu co-stars Kathryn Newton, Karan Soni, Rita Ora, Suki Waterhouse, Bill Nighy and Ken Watanabe.

 John Wick: Chapter 3 – May 17th

John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is back again, and this time he’s being hunted down by everyone. At least that’s the impression we got after the ending of John Wick: Chapter 2. The first movie came out of nowhere, and now John Wick is one of the best action series out there. Are they simple (plot-wise)? Sure, but damn there are a lot of fun. John Wick: Chapter 3 co-stars Ian McShane, Halle Berry, Laurence Fishburne, Lance Reddick, Jason Mantzoukas, Robin Lord Taylor, Mark Dacascos and Anjelica Huston.

 Godzilla: King of the Monsters – May 31st

The gigantic sequel follows the agency Monarch trying to control the chaos that is to come when Godzilla battles three new monsters that have been awaken in Mothra, Rodan and the three-headed King Ghidorah. I know the first new Godzilla didn’t get a lot of love, but I personally enjoyed it. Now, not only do we get a sequel, but one that has all of the well-known other monsters we’ve come to know and love/hate. It also helps that the trailers are also great, and it looks epic! Godzilla: King of the Monsters stars Millie Bobby Brown, Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, Ken Watanabe, Sally Hawkins, Ziyi Zhang, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Thomas Middleditch, Bradley Whitford and Charles Dance

 Spider-Man: Far From Home – July 5th

The last Marvel movie of the year, Spider-Man: Far From Home follows Peter (Tom Holland) and his friends on a summer vacation to Europe, where Peter is recruited by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) to stop a powerful threat. Of course, there have been a lot of set photos to come out, and it’s also been revealed that Jake Gyllenhaal’s Quentin Beck aka Mysterio isn’t a villain and will be working with Spider-Man. Other than that, we don’t know much, but given that Homecoming was a great new addition, Far From Home should be good too, right? Spider-Man: Far From Home co-stars Zendaya, Cobie Smulders, Jacob Batalon and Marisa Tomei.

 Fast & Furious presents: Hobbs & Shaw – August 2nd

A spinoff of the Fast & Furious franchise, Hobbs & Shaw follows Agent Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) teaming up with once again with Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham). Despite how you feel about the Fast & Furious franchise – I personally think they are the ultimate turn-off-your-brain/have fun with it movies – the addition of Johnson’s Hobbs and Statham’s Shaw added a much needed boost to the franchise. Plus, the chemistry between Johnson and Statham was one of the best things about The Fate of the Furious, so a spinoff announcement had me onboard. Add on the fact that the movie will be directed by David Leitch (John Wick, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2) and have Idris Elba as the villain. Come on, I’m getting in line opening night. Hobbs & Shaw co-stars Vanessa Kirby, Eddie Marsan and Eiza Gonzalez.

 Honorable Mentions

Glass – January 18th

The Prodigy – February 8th

The Curse of La Llorona – April 19th

Brightburn – May 24th

Men in Black International – June 14th

Toy Story 4 – June 21st

The Lion King – July 19th

It: Chapter 2 – September 6th

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark – August 9th

Zombieland 2 – October 11th

Are You Afraid of the Dark? – October 11th

Star Wars: Episode IX – December 20th

 So, what movies are you looking forward to this year?

[rxnningfreetoday-a]

A Series of Nice Things bc We Deserve Them

Set in Eliot's 'I got drunk married to a sports superstar wat do' verse, co-starring aftg's Kevin Day but honestly if you’re just looking for some Nice Eliot & Quentin content after that dumpster fire of a finale, i welcome you with open arms;; verse tag is here, the tl;dr is el accidentally marries a Very Famous Sports Guy while drunk in vegas and shenanigans ensue and they fall in love for real. dedicated ofc to @im-possiblelimits ♥

The 'what am I fucking doing for the rest of my life if magic never comes back' fear comes creeping back on him. 

He and Kevin have multiple important conversations. 

Kevin Day gives the best fucking pep talks ever. Eliot walks away from every hard conversation with him wondering how he got so lucky. 

 Eliot becomes a fashion designer 

 And hes fahcking BALLER at it !!!!!!! 

 He collaborates with Margo for a few collections; they become instant classics. 

 Margo models in like every show. 

Eliot watches in Absolute pride. 

Frankly???? El designs all his dresses for her specifically. 

Routinely he either flies Quentin and Margo out to Chicago or goes to New York and crashes on Margo's couch. 

Obviously Margo and Q stay in The Condo, in Eliot's old room which still houses a good portion of his stuff. 

 Once he starts raking in that Goöd designer cash, he gets them both stupid expensive gifts just cause. 

 "Eliot this bikini top is made from Swarovski fucking crystal" 

"Eliot I CAN'T accept this case of Moët" 

 ........"please just let me love you :( " 

Of fuckin COURSE he gets box seats to a T Swift concert & takes Q along. 

"How did you...?" "I'm making her a dress. Oh yeah, we're meeting tomorrow to consult and you're coming with." " .O." 

 This hurts extra good and cozy bc when Eliot moves from NY he makes Q promise him to always text him a singular emoji if he feels Bad(TM). 

Eliot tells him that he doesn't care what time it is or what he has going on or even how bad Q feels, he'll drop just about anything. 

El always texts back asking if hes up for a phone call. Usually he is; cue Eliot gently asking about what he ate last, how much he's slept, if he's taken his meds. 

One time Q's completely despondent and Eliot starts racking his brain on what the next question should be when it just.......comes out of his mouth;; 

I stay out too late. Got nothing in my brain. That's what people say... 

 "...I had no idea you knew that song." 

 Kevin totally hears him but thinks better of ever saying anything about it. 

 Margo however razzes the hell out of him (only lovingly) 

Suddenly its Eliot taking Kevin to events instead of vice versa and everyone loves him 

Eliot does some of his best sketch work at Kevin's practices. 

Just practices tho, games are too high stakes and theres too many people around.  

He always makes jokes at the end of the season about it being the end of the season for him too bc of that. 

Eliot does try very very hard to balance attending exy games & practices and his own shit. 

He's way more willing to go to a game than go to an event alone; he'd so much rather go with Kevin especially as he cuts his drinking back to almost nothing. 

The exceptions tend to be when Margo (and Q) are in town. He's been known to bring them both. 

 Since its years later and his romantic feelings for Q are p much buried he gets a special kind of resentful about the fact that he can't just take Q to an event without it being An Issue(TM). 

Even when it's the 3 of them, rumors fly. Eliot's extra conscious of his body language at that point and hates that he has to be. 

He gets completely mortified one day bc of a hickey-slip that the press asks Kevin about. 

 "We think Q left it, what do you have to say?" 

 Kevin, raising his eyebrows: "No that was definitely me...." 

Eliot, putting his head in his hands: "Ohhhhh my god....." -Can we get back to politics (please?)- 

Q thinks the rumors are kind of funny He gets asked about it and hes just like "you've SEEN Kevin, right? Like......there's no competing with that, El's a lucky guy." 

Really who doesn't think Kevin's hot?????? ofc Q’s not immune

Idk how but through sheer force of will Q and Kevin become friends 

(or at least friendly-ish, which for Kevin? Fucking huge.) 

Like obviously its nowhere near the level of friendship between Eliot and Q but Somethin noice happens there however many years later. 

Q goes thru a bad breakup sometime down the line. Eliot asks Kevin if it's okay to fly him in. 

Kevin patiently tells him that he doesn't need to ask that anymore. 

 Eliot's floored bc hes never actually been with a guy who was so secure????? It gives him a lot of feelings about being trusted and loved and accepted for who he is and how he expresses his affection. 

 Idk all I can think of is it being like Friday night and the 3 of them are on the couch together. 

Q's sad and sleepy, his head on Eliot's lap, barely registering the Buffy episode El put on. Eliot's leaning against Kevin's shoulder, one hand holding his and the other absently playing with Q's hair, snarking lovingly every few minutes about the campiness. 

 Q apologizes to Kevin privately later on because oh god his head was just in his husband's lap and that's Super Weird, sorry.... 

That's probably about the time Kevin decides earnestly that Q's alright.   

Idk how but SOMEHOW Eliot's left with a toddler for a minute and we all cry together in this chili's 

 I decided its Q's, let Q be a dad tbh. He's together with Eliot's makeup artist who was a single father before Q came into their lives. 

 Anyway Eliot’s sketching--like always. He hands over his notebook for color palette planning and a few colored pencils. "You wanna color with me?" 

 Everything's fine until bab starts Screamin.   

 (Gentle voice) "What's wrong?" [Screaming] "You hungry?" [No.] "Are you thirsty?" [No] "Are you tired?" [Soft affirmative noises] "Let's take a little nap then."   

 Eliot just picks bab up with so much care and love in his eyes, holding them gently and off on a mission to find either a guardian or a soft reclining chair. 

Kevin witnesses all of this and is probably pretty sure he's never seen anything more wholesome in his damn life. 

 Kevin's most likely the one who suggests kids  (I'm guessing he's retired) 

Eliot probably would have but he just doesn't even think about it?? And then Kevin says in so many words that he'd be a good father and Eliot just about loses it 

 I can't decide if their kid's definitely a jock or definitely not a jock. Maybe they're a dancer? 

Regardless, they're both endlessly supportive 

 Eliot of fucking Course joins the PTA. 

His gym buddies flip their collective shits. 

 He's really out here advocating for good sex ed & preserving arts in schools bc hes a fuckin hero 

 Also family vacations to Everywhere but especially beachy places!!

[maychorian]

Weekly Voltron Fic Recs #54

A little shorter this week. I took some vacation days and did a lot of other stuff besides reading fanfiction, because yeah, ironically, I read the most fanfiction when I’m at work.

Rules: You can find past weekly rec lists here, and non-list recs in my general fic rec tag. Also follow @maychorianrecs for individually tagged posts, the easier to search and reblog. This is stuff I like, and I have a huge bias toward Lance, hurt/comfort, and general fluff, in that order. Gen unless otherwise noted. Please comment on the fics if you read and enjoy them!

Know Yourself by exclamation Words: 28,139 Author’s Summary: In trying to reconnect to the black lion, Shiro makes a worrying discovery: he might not really be Shiro. Suspecting that he might be a clone, Shiro decides to go on a mission back to the Galra science base where he was held captive. He’s not ready to tell the others what he suspects yet, but when Matt catches him sneaking out of the castle, it’s clear he’s not going on this mission alone. Shiro has to find out what was done to him, and if there is another version of him out there in need of saving. My Comments: Excellent exploration of the Shiro clone theory with some awesome plot twists, great characterization, and powerful action scenes. I really enjoyed this a lot.

The Christmas Episode by FunkyWashingMachine Words: 1,422 Author’s Summary: It’s Christmas on the castle ship, and no one loves it more than Lance. To his slight dismay. My Comments: Sweet and funny and just a little angsty. Lance deserves a happy Christmas, for sure.

Precious Cargo by LightPinkTheColorOfMyAura Words: 5,315 Author’s Summary: The team is tasked with rescuing an alien princess. Pidge and the others are not very excited to watch Lance fall all over himself for a pretty girl, so they decide to keep him…busy. When their plan falls through and they find someone unexpected, Lance pulls through like they should have expected. My Comments: Sweet, a little angsty, very cute. I don’t wanna spoil the twist, but it’s good. I enjoyed this very much.

Beacon by glitteringconstellations Words: 21,863 (6/?) Author’s Summary: An emergency mission to answer a distress call wasn’t unusual. The urgency in Allura’s voice wasn’t necessarily unusual, either—she was very much of the mind that Voltron was obligated to answer every single distress callbrought to their attention. Being the defender of the known universe came with a certain number of responsibilities, after all. But seeing the pinched, pale look on both Allura and Coran’s faces when they converged on the bridge was unusual. “The universe is vast even in terms of those planets still yet beyond the grips of the Galra. But…. the distress call came from the Terra Firma Quadrant.” Earth. My Comments: This story is absolutely harrowing, evoking all kinds of horrific things from Earth’s past, but on a global scale. Really, really, amazingly good. Very suspenseful and exciting, and it’s very cool to find a story not quite like any other Voltron fanfic I’ve read. Highly recommended if you can stand some pain.

Breathe by SuperKat Words: 2,192 Author’s Summary: The first wave of panic hits Keith out of nowhere. One second, Lance is “catching him up” on everything that’s happened since he left Voltron, and the next second Keith has a flash of memory – the two of them, walking through this hall, talking and bantering, just like this – and suddenly his breath leaves him. My Comments: I have a soft spot for someone having a panic attack and someone else talking them through, as anyone who has read my stuff will know. This was a great one.

Christmas on the Castleship by slowbronite Words: 1,939 Author’s Summary: The team raids the Space Mall’s Earth store for Christmas decor and subsequently freaks Coran out with the concept of Santa Claus. My Comments: Very cute fic with a slight focus on Coran that I really enjoyed. Happy paladins are always good to see.

War Games by FunkyWashingMachine Words: 2,160 Author’s Summary: The paladins build opposing pillow forts and declare war. Shiro is both liaison and collateral. My Comments: So cute and funny, gah, it’s wonderful to see the kids enjoying themselves. I’m pretty sure Shiro was pretending to be neutral just play off both sides, though, sneaky.

fight in the ring by ebonynightwriter Words: 2,605 Author’s Summary: When a rescue mission goes south, Allura and the team find themselves in a hard situation. // “Wait, Shiro’s the Champion?! Since when?” My Comments: Very cool little action fic.

Geslorp’s House of Terrors by AmnesiaticRoses Words: 6,815 Author’s Summary: Lance is excited when Hunk agrees to visit a carnival-style space haunted house with him. The haunted house should be fun, and Hunk’s reactions should be funny. But Lance forgot to account for the power of technological curiosity… My Comments: Cute fic with my favorite boys having an adventure together. It kind of backfires on Lance, haha.

Plundered Plumage by Quiddity Words: 5,374 Author’s Summary: Something odd crashes to the deck of the ship during a sudden storm. An avian. More common than their siren cousins, but stil rarely seen and never captured. Until now. Captain Sendak wastes no time in securing the exhausted avian, Shiro, intent on handing him over to the Pirate King Zarkon for his own gain. However, Keith, sold to Zarkon as a slave as a child and forced into a life of piracy, just might have trouble sitting back and allowing that to happen. My Comments: Really fun Pirate AU with Keith taking a big, big risk to save Shiro. The fic is short, but the world feels fully realized, and I loved the cameos from the other characters.

Rebuild all your Ruins by BossToaster (ChaoticReactions) Words: 6,074 Author’s Summary: There are consequences to Shiro’s refusal to kill. Pain hasn’t worked on him so far, but another tactic might. My Comments: This is hurt with no comfort, so know what you’re getting into. Awful stuff, but very well-written, as always.

Where the Heart Is by SmolGooDragon Words: 5,153 Author’s Summary: Lance has graduated from the Garrison at the top of his class, and will be leaving for a mission to space in a few weeks. He’s happy to be with his family and everything is going perfectly, but he feels like there’s something he can’t quite remember… like something’s missing. My Comments: Starts out as Lance going home to see his family, but there’s a twist! A good one! I don’t wanna spoil it. Just read the fic. If you like the hurt!Lance recs I typically post here, you will love this story.

Don’t Forget to Call Home by isabeau25 Words: 8,827 Author’s Summary: Just because Keith has decided to join the Blades of Marmora, doesn’t mean the team is going to let him disappear from their lives. My Comments: Absolutely beautiful fic about the other paladins keeping in contact with Keith while he’s away in Season Four. I especially loved Lance here; isabeau25 always writes Lance so very, very well. But everyone else was wonderful too. The end scene, after Keith’s nearly disastrous decision, is especially warm and comforting. So, so good.

Burning Bright by IcyPanther Words: 9,693 Author’s Summary: Last chance, they told him. If this family didn’t work out then it was back to the group home for him. And as much as Keith disliked the foster system, he hated the group home. He’d endure anything life threw at him to avoid going back. But when he meets Shiro, Keith realizes that, perhaps, there’s more to life than just enduring. His world is about to become a whole lot brighter. My Comments: Heartbreaking and heartwarming backstory for Keith and Shiro that matches up with my personal headcanons very nicely. I really felt everything Keith was going through, from the despair to the pain to the dawning pleasure and ultimate joy. So good, so satisfying, I just love it.

Seven Vargas by VelkynKarma for buttered_onions Words: 18,006 Author’s Summary: Shiro has a bad habit of disappearing unexpectedly. But the team really should have anticipated it this time, with him being the most wanted person on the planet. My Comments: This is a thrilling read of the action/adventure type, but with a healthy dollop of pathos, too. Shiro has a really rough time of it, but it was great to see him constantly fighting to get himself free by whatever means he could, and of course the others’ frantic need to find him and rescue was lovely.

Signals From Space by Eastofthemoon Words: 3,814 Author’s Summary: Fame spreads farther than anyone could have known. My Comments: Lance’s family is sweet and funny and perfect, and this is a delightful way for them to find out that Lance is alive. The final chapter was especially heartwarming.

reprise, refrain by obstinateRixatrix Words: 8,180 Author’s Summary: When the castle picks up an Altean distress signal, Allura desperately hopes to find surviving Alteans. She does - just not in the way she was expecting. My Comments: I like the canon version of this episode just fine, but this is also a very fun alternate take, and much easier on Allura’s heart, I think. All of the OCs are delightful.

What Happens Under a Full Moon by imperiality Words: 9,136 Author’s Summary: When Lance accidentally partakes in a new planet’s ritual under their greatest full moon, the paladins have to find out how to reverse his spell. Or, he could have just taken off the mask to begin with. My Comments: Fantastic worldbuilding here, very immersive and enjoyable to read. It’s like taking a journey, traveling with Lance through this exciting festival he enjoys so much. And the solution to the trouble he finds himself in made me very, very happy.

Previously Recced Fics That Updated:

The Purity of Sin (22254 words) Home and a Half (109291 words) As Color Fades Away (217819 words) Gate Keeper (119177 words) Why it sucks to be a snake in space(59933 words)

[littlemisssquiggles]

RWBY Musings #15: After seeing the title for Chapter 8 of RWBY Volume 5, I’m seriously hoping that part of the episode focuses on Ruby and Oscar.

I told myself I wasn’t going to share another musing for this week til the next episode premieres. After my last musing, I said I was done for the week but damn, the title of that Chapter 8 brought me back. I gotta talk about it.

Speaking of which, before I get into my usual spur of words, I’d just like to humbly thank all the awesometastic people who liked, commented on and shared my ♦last RWBY Musing. Thank you guys so much! It truly means a lot that you take the time to read my jibberjab for real so thank you bunches.

I especially want to give a shoutout to @miraculouscorazone who shared my post with AfterBuzzTV via Twitter. It was quite a pleasant surprise (and by that I mean holy-shizznuggets was that a shocker) to learn that my musing was briefly mentioned and even discussed a little bit in this week’s episode of their RWBY AfterBuzz show. If you tuned into the podcast and remember the part with the hosts mentioning a shared tumblr post with a theory about Oscar’s outburst from Chapter 5 being intentional. Surprise, that was my post they were talking about!

So that’s one of the highlights of my week. Thank you precious star kids and fellow RWBY lovers so much!

 Okay, on with the musing now.

Guys, the title of Chapter 8 is ‘Alone Together’. Where do we even begin with this?

Whenever I see a title like this one, it can only mean one thing: A story with two characters who don’t normally spend that much time together suddenly thrust into a dire situation where they only person they have to depend on is each other.

It’s the perfect set-up scenario to force two characters who don’t normally socialize to socialize. It can also be the ideal way for a story’s protagonist to learn more about a centric secondary character whose story is still a mystery to them and the audience after the two suddenly end up...well alone together.

And if RWBY is doing this kind of story, I’m really hoping it’s an Oscar and Ruby focused episode or at least, an episode where we finally learn more about Oscar as instigated by Ruby. I can’t see what other two characters this title can allude to.

Unless it’s involves Blake ending up alone with Sun or maybe Illia as she is separated from her family, then this episode has to be Ruby and Oscar. It just gotta be this time.  

I’m worried I may be gearing myself up from some bitter disappointment in that department. I know not everything in RWBY is about shipping but this is one of those moments where I’d like the CRWBY writers to make an exception.

Purely for the fact that they began the season strongly hinting at something between Ruby and Oscar.

You can't give us four episodes of them socializing and then stop. The well has to start flowing water again at some point and I’m eager that this episode will provide an opportunity that they will take. Plus there really needs to be an episode where one of the focus in on Oscar and getting to know more about him.

It would be interesting if we get the reverse of Chapter 5 and have Ruby ask Oscar some deep questions that enlighten us more into his character. If Ruby and Oscar are alone together where it's just them I can definitely see the potential of this happening. We only got 7 more episodes left.

I’m starved for the precious farm boy to get some well-deserved development. I’m starved for my ship to get some development. Don’t start something you don’t intend to continue, CRWBY, especially within the same volume.

I’m hoping this episode presents a case where Weiss and Yang probe Ruby for details on Oscar, probably out of curiosity for the young farm boy but mostly as a means of teasing her about possibly having a crush on him.

They do this only to discover that despite being together for several weeks, Ruby still honestly doesn’t know that much about Oscar.

According to Ruby, other than training together under Ozpin’s watch and what happened in Chapter 5, she and Oscar haven’t exactly gotten any alone time to truly get to know each other.

This will then give a mischievous Yang an idea and long story short, she hatches a plan which results in Ruby and Oscar ending up alone together.

Whether it’s somehow managing to get everybody out of the house for the day so that it’s only Ruby and Oscar alone in the house by themselves or gives them the ole parent-trap and tricks them into meeting each other in the same spot in Mistral and Ruby and Oscar enjoy a day of exploring the town together.

Do you know what would be funny and cute at the same time? What if...Ruby and Oscar bonded over videogames, of all things? Books would be a worthy second choice but videogames is the definite first.

I remember way back in Volume 3 after Qrow was first introduced, we got a scene where he was playing a fighting game against Yang using their scrolls as controllers. It’s been a while since we’ve seen something like that in the show.

Since Oscar was given a grand-spanking new backpack (as evidenced in Chapter 5. Don’t think I didn’t notice the new duds for our little stud muffin in the baking), I wouldn’t be too surprised if he was also given his own personal Scroll. After all, how else was he supposed to communicate with everyone? So if Oscar has a Scroll, Ruby can introduce him to the mystical world of videogames and the two can converse over a few rounds.

Like imagine, Ruby asking Oscar what to do while the two were alone. Oscar, being the diligent bean he is, suggests they should possibly continue their training regiment and spar together in a rematch however Ruby denounces that option by slyly encouraging the farm boy to join her in a spirited round of *Insert RWBY-verse videogame*.

Oscar is, of course, skeptical as he’s never been one to be good at videogames nor has he ever played a videogame before (he strikes me more of outdoorsy, all work and no play book-worm type). This only excites Ruby more as she eagerly exposes Oscar to the fun of videogames.

Not only do the two have their rematch on the gaming platform but the hype and distraction of the game disperses any initial awkwardness between them and the two are actually able to hold a decent conversation between them, discussing everything from their favourite hobbies to foods to family; no talk of any impending wars at all.

Just a nice tête-à-tête between two teens with zero interruption from Ozpin.

We have yet to see Oscar just relax, have fun and truly be a kid. As a matter of fact, the first time fans saw Oscar debut to the story was with him waking up early in the morning to work.

If Oscar’s life was a song, it’d probably be Work by Rihanna. All he does is work, work, work, work, work, work.

He went from working on a farm to working to become a huntsman. Not a day’s rest.

Hard to believe he’s only fourteen.

Can I just have one episode or at least a moment in an episode where Oscar can just be a kid? I want so many things for this precious young avocado bean.

One of them is for him to just be a kid for a day or at least an afternoon and just have FUN. Enjoy the good ole fun times before everything goes to shit in the coming episodes.

And if Oscar can have fun while spending it with Ruby; opening up to her about himself and his life before Mistral, that would be beyond amazing. Let’s face it, Ruby is closest thing to a best friend Oscar has at this point, minus Ozpin (that ancient fart) but he literally lives inside his head so I don’t think that counts. At least if Oscar learnt to genuinely like Ruby and forms a true bond with her, it’ll be of his own choice (the first one he’s made since he became Ozpin’s successor).

I’ve had this cute little idea in my head of Oscar describing his past home life on his aunt’s farm to Ruby, who’s never been on a real farm and the young huntress is surprisingly fascinated by it all, practically bombarding Oscar with questions about what it’s like growing up on a farm. Because Ruby loves the idea of his aunt’s farm so much, in a spurt of confidence, Oscar sort of blushingly invites her to spend the summer with him on his aunt’s farm after making mention of how much more beautiful the farm is in the summer (y’know with flower fields and shit).

Of course, he only meant it as a shy joke at first, not expecting Ruby to take him seriously. However when she does, happy accepting his offer with a flushed face of her own, the two then make a promise to each other; a cute little pinkie-swear pact to spend the summer together on Oscar’s farm after defeating Salem.

I know this will NEVER happen in the show (cause my poor shipping Oscar Pine development pining ass is not the one writing for RWBY) but damn, oh how I wish Miles and Kerry could see this and at least consider tossing it in for us RoseGarden fans.

Do you know what would be interesting?

What if...Volume 5 concludes with the Mistral gang being forced to vacate the citadel and go into hiding somewhere out of Lionheart’s view after that they’ve learnt of his full alliance with Salem?

They can’t go to Atlas because they still need to stay close to Mistral in order to safeguard the Relic of Knowledge and prevent the Fall of Haven Academy.

So what’s a good place for them to lay low and come up with a better plan of action? A place that’s not too far from the city but still pretty far enough and more likely to be in the middle of nowhere where the chances of Lionheart finding them are quite slim?

I’m not making any big speculations here. I’m just saying. Oscar’s aunt sure did look like she had a lot of land on that farm of hers...with a lot of big trees...and two barns...probably more than one which would be the perfect cover to house a couple of people hiding from the law.

I’m just saying. The Walking Dead did an entire season and story arc where the main characters were refugees on a farm. Not saying the CRWBY writers are Walking Dead fans either but...we never did get to learn more about Oscar and his family background now, did we?

Volume 4 gave us some good insight into Ren and Nora’s past, though. Blake and Weiss too. We finally got to meet their respective families in the last volume as well. I’m just saying. Oscar does house Ozpin’s soul. He’s practically a main character now, right? Right.

Sure would be swell if he got some development that explored his family ties just like Ren and Nora...and Weiss...and Blake...and Ruby...andYang...and Qrow! We also got to see Qrow’s family ties last season too. So, when’s Oscar due for his, huh? Jusssst saying.

If Chapter 8 is to be all about Oscar and Ruby bonding but still end on more grim terms, then let Salem send Tyrian to exact his revenge and collect the girl.

May I remind everyone that Tyrian Callows has been surprisingly absent this volume? The last mention of him was in Episode 2 when Salem ordered Watts to create a new tail for him.

As revealed at the end of the last episode, Watts is currently with Cinder and her squad on a mission to attack the Branwen Tribe for Spring Maiden which means that Watts must’ve finished his work on Tyrian’s new tail.

They wouldn’t send Hazel after Ruby since he’s busy babysitting High Leader Adam Taurus. While he may be in Mistral and could offer some assistance if Salem saw him to do so, still, the point is that he’s on his own assignment at the moment that has nothing to do with crossing paths with the Mistral gang.

This only leaves Tyrian and seeing as he has his own personal beef with the silver-eyed girl, I wouldn’t be surprised if Salem has been saving him for now to strike Ruby at her most vulnerable.

Things have been pretty comfortable for the crew during their stay in Mistral so far. And I find it oddly peculiar that we haven’t heard or seen anything new from Professor Lionheart in some time. Since the second episode actually. That’s an awful lot of time to be quiet and quietly waiting lions can be quite deadly. Lionheart must know where these guys are staying in Mistral and wouldn’t be surprised if he would be involved in a sudden staged attack on them.  

Oooh you know what? Remember back in the first episode, how Oscar showed up on the gang’s doorstep asking for Ruby cause of Qrow? Imagine a parallel of that same scene where Lionheart surprisingly shows up, all nervous-looking on the gang’s doorstep asking for Ruby Rose and it’s Oscar who answers the door. Of course, he and Ruby are all alone and Oscar becomes especially suspicious of the Headmaster’s sudden presence at the group’s home, even more so when Ozpin warns him to be on his guard like he did with Hazel.

Turns out Lionheart was just the decoy/distraction as Tyrian suddenly comes out of nowhere and goes after Ruby off screen while Lionheart takes care of Oscar. It’d be funny to see Lionheart attempting to subdue Oscar, thinking he’ll get the upper-hand over the boy given his experience even with his rustiness. Much to Lionheart’s surprise, Oscar holds his own pretty well, putting his training to good use.

I want Oscar to fight Lionheart but only in a brief moment for two reasons.

One, I want to get a glimpse of Lionheart’s weapon of choice or at least his fighting style/semblance if possible and two, if a scene like this is done then we can get a sneak peak of Oscar fighting in addition to the look of complete shock on Lionheart’s when he realizes that Oscar is Ozpin.

Admittedly I like Lionheart. His character design is a favourite of mine from this season.  However while I’m wondering if there’ll be a chance for him to be redeemed somehow, I can’t help the part of me that believes the CRWBY might be shaping him up to become the Peter Pettigrew/Wormtail of Ozpin’s so-called ‘most-trusted lieutenants’.

Imagine if...Tyrian attacks Ruby during his and Lionheart’s assault on their threshold and though she fights back valiantly,  Ruby ends up getting captured this time around as a result of Tyrian’s newly improved tail which come with an added upgrade---A venom that renders its victim unconscious, perhaps?

What if...part of the build up to this volume’s epic conclusion revolves around Ruby being abducted by Tyrian who escapes with Lionheart to be taken to Salem.

I can actually see the build up to the finale of Volume 5 going three ways:

In Menagerie, we could have the ultimate showdown between Blake and Illia as she and Sun fight to protect the Massacre of the Belladonna Household. I figured this moment is too important to Blake’s side of the story and the side of the Battle of Haven with the Faunus for it to be glossed over in just one or even two episodes.

In the Branwen Tribe, it’s Cinder vs. Raven as she attempts to protect Vernal. At first I pegged Vernal and Raven’s relationship as a secretly romantic one.

Not really my ship but the thought did cross my mind. But then I thought that maybe Vernal and Raven have a mother-daughter type of bond and Vernal is Raven’s substitute for Yang, to make up for the fact that she missed out on her own daughter’s life for whatever unexplained reason in the series.

Someone theorized that Raven is bonded to Vernal so that’s how she’s able to teleport back immediately to the tribe campsite with her semblance. So if Vernal and Raven are close, it’d make sense if Raven might sacrifice herself to protect Vernal. Like perhaps Raven is captured by Cinder but before she is taken away, she uses her semblance to send Vernal to Qrow in Mistral.

In Mistral, it’s Vernal who informs Qrow of his sister’s abduction by the enemy around the same time the team learn from Oscar that Ruby has also been captured by Lionheart and Tyrion. This forces the gang no choice but to divide and conquer.

While she would much rather do it herself, Yang entrusts Oscar along with Team JNR to go after Lionheart and Tyrian to save Ruby (my guess is that she’d be held captive at Haven Academy) while she, accompanied by Weiss, Qrow and Vernal would go after Cinder and her forces to save Raven.

The intro did tease Yang fighting Mercury. If Raven was captured by Cinder to lure out the Spring Maiden, it would make sense if we got a rematch between Mercury and Yang after she comes to rescue her mother.

It would be cool to see all these things happen in the series. But, I’m no psychic so who knows how the next few episodes will play out.

One thing’s for certain, I’m really hoping that Chapter 8 is about Ruby and Oscar this time or at least have them be a vocal point at some instance in the episode. Seriously. Then again, while I want to remain hopeful, the CRWBY have stood me up at this dance before.

*shruggity shrug* I guess we’ll see tomorrow then.

~LittleMissSquiggles (2017)

[zach-the-fox]

Tribal Furs Episode 2: Our Own Place

The glowing ball rises above the ground, spreading rays of light across the land. Light stretches among the trees, touching them and everything below their canopies. The orange fox emerges from another room, separated by a thin layer of leather curtain. He stretches as he stands in the middle of the doorway. He looks around to see he’s the only one in the main room of the hut. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zach sneaks over to the entryway, where it is divided from the outside with a leather curtain. Just as he’s inches away from the divider, he’s interrupted when a paw grasps at his arm. The blue-painted fox turns around to see behind him is the owner of the hut, the leader of the tribe, who shoots him a mean look; dipped eyebrows and gritted teeth. “Where do you think you’re off to, Boy?” Zach keeps his gaze on the older fox, not moving his lips in anyway. “Well?!” The tone of his voice is raised, showing agitation and impatience.

“I’m going out,” Zach responds, breaking his silence. “Into the jungle to gather food.”

“You plan on running away and crying again?” his father remarks. “You’re just an embarrassment to the family. A mistake made by your mother, that’s all.”

“I never asked for your comments. I’m just picking fruit and collecting nuts.”

“Whatever you say, Wimp. The more time you’re away from me and this village, the better.”

Zach exits the hut and steps out into the open air of the village. He treks his way across the village center and makes it toward the gate. Before he reaches the defenses, he bumps into another fox; the blue and orange one.

“Oh, I’m very sorry!” says the other fox. “I-I didn’t mean to hit you in any way! P-please don’t get me in trouble!”

“What?” Zach utters. “Why would you think I would do such a thing?”

“Y-your father is the chief… I did a bad thing hurting you…”

“Relax, I’m not going to do anything… It was only an accident. I just have to be more careful next time. Good day.”

As Zach wanders off, the blue fox says, “I’m sorry for you.” Zach pauses for a second. His ears twitched with the sentence of his counterpart. Without hesitation, he presses on, passing the opening of the village guarded by foxes armed with spears.

 ***

 The orange fox runs across the branches, jumping to the next to stay above the jungle floor. He makes it across eighteen branches before using the vines to slide down. As his feet touch the mossy surface of the flora ground, he walks forward ten paces before stopping in front of the tan-dressed blue-jay, who rests under a small tree, enjoying the hard-shelled fruits hanging above her. “Morning, Navy.”

Navy ceases her beak and looks up at the fox. “Oh, morning, Zach! You’re just in time for some breakfast. Care for some cocoanapples?”

“Uh, sure.” Zach sits next to her and receives the fresh drupe from her wings. “Thanks.” The fox picks up a rock from his side and bashes the fruit open, revealing the red core and chocolate milk that surrounds it. He takes a bite out of the core and drinks the chocolatey liquid from within the shell. “Mmm, this is pretty good.”

Navy turns to her friend. “So, what have you been up to lately?”

Zach swallows his food before facing her. “Huh? Nothing really…”

“Did your father yell at you for being out?”

“Not really. I mean, he did yell at me and he did insult me, yet he doesn’t care. We don’t really talk or do anything together. Ever since my mother disappeared, I’ve had to deal with his ways for a very long time. I’ve been trying for so long to win his attention, aiming to get better at things, only to be knocked down by his criticisms and pushed away.”

“We’re two of a kind.” Navy takes another bite out of the apple part. “Do you think fate brought us together? Or could it be just coincidence that we happen to stumble upon each other at the right moment? All because of our dads?”

“It’s hard to tell. Either way, I’m actually happy we’re friends now. I’ve been struggling my whole life to try and win my father’s love and attention. When that didn’t work, I sought the attention of others, but my father has told everyone that I’m a bad influence, further distancing me from everyone.” He looks toward his ally. “You’re a good girl, Navy.”

Navy’s cheeks turn red. “Why, Zach, I’m flattered. Your kind words really know how to make a woman blush.” She stands and tosses her breakfast aside. “So, what should we do now, “friend”? Have some adventures in mind for us?”

Zach gets up and meets her eyeline. “Beats me.”  His ears twitch, causing him to turn his head to the side. “Hey, did you hear that?” Navy faces the direction he looks in, asking what’s wrong. “Somebody’s coming!” He drops the fruit to the ground, grabs the bird by the wing, and pulls her out of the area. As they vacate and seek safety from nearby thickets, a blue wolf with a male build, rainbow hair, and a blue loincloth comes into view. He holds a long spear in his paw, walking through the grass. Noticing the cocoanapples on the ground, he kneels to the ground and examines them.

Lifting one of the cocoanapples in his paw, the wolf holds it close to his snout and sniffs it. “Fox Faction,” he utters, straightening himself as he drops the fruit and readies his spear. The blue wolf scans his surroundings while pointing the spear tip around. “Where are you? I know you’re hiding somewhere! Come out now!” As he searches around, ruffles in the bushes catch his attention. With ease, the wolf sneaks over to the shrubs, then parts it with his weapon. “Aha!” To his surprise, nothing is there. “What?! Hm… I’ll find you Fox Farts, wherever you may be!”

From afar high in the trees, the bird and fox watch as he disappears from the area.

“Phew, that was close,” Zach spurts. “Imagine if he actually caught us.”

“What do we do now, Zach?” Navy asks. “This isn’t very safe, and we can’t hide from the other tribes forever. We need to-” She jumps as the spear lands beside her, lodging herself into the trunk next to her. “Yeek!”

“Found you!” shouts the wolf, running toward the tree. The two friends head across the branches to avoid him. Zach runs along the tops while Navy flies. “Come back here now!” The bird and fox continue to across in an effort to get away, but the rainbow-haired wolf is far from giving up. “You can’t outrun me! I will- Whoa!” The blue canine trips over some roots and slams his entire body face-first into a fresh mud puddle. As he picks himself up, he continues along the path of his two prey. After some time running, he stops to catch his breath. “You can’t… You won’t… I will… find you…”

Zach and Navy continue onward down the jungle. Zach looks back at his chaser, who is nowhere to be seen.

“Did we lose him?” Navy questions.

Zach stops on the next branch. “I-I think so. That wolf is fast. Perhaps we should-” With a snap, the branch beneath him breaks, causing him to fall and land on the ground below. The fox grunts as his body lies against a cracked, stone surface.

“Zach!” Navy flies down to him, landing on her feet and rushing toward him, aiding the fox up. “Are you okay?”

“Ow,” the fox replies. “That hurt…” With his friend’s help, he stands. As he picks his head up, Zach takes notice of some stone structures strewn about the area. Moss and vines hold the empty buildings hostage, claiming them as their own, while trees grow from the stone roads, creating cracks within the pavement. Distorted, broken statues of monkey-like creatures adorn the broken roads. Freshwater spews into the fountains as fruit grows on the trees. Zach stares in amazement as Navy looks to see for herself. “What is this place…?”

“It looks like some old abandoned city,” replies Navy. “Something that could’ve belonged to the precursors.”

Zach turns his head to her. “You mean from the story of the lost civilization?” Navy nods. “I’ve heard about those stories… It fascinates me how the precursors of the jungle knew more than we did… How they settled in peace and harmony… But it’s mysterious how they vanished…”

“Yeah, we’ve all been told those bedtime stories. I never thought to be standing in the same place the precursors did. It’s so eerie…” Zach scans the ruins again, taking in the natural beauty of the dilapidated buildings. “I actually kind of like this. I say we put this place to good use.” The fox turns to her and asks what she means. “We should use this old city as our means to hang out.”

“Use old ruins as a hangout place? I don’t know if this place is good for that.”

“It’s good, believe me; hidden from view in the jungle, supplies fresh water and fruit, nobody ever comes around here, and we can do whatever we want here with no one telling us what to do!”

“Well, I do like what you mean by that last part.” Zach takes a deep breath in and out. “Okay then.”

Navy smiles. “Let’s go see what our “friends” left us, shall we?” She goes off to explore their new claim, walking in and out of empty structures as Zach tails her. @pink-unicorn-blood​

[papermoonloveslucy]

LUCY TAKES OVER

S2;E23 ~ February 23, 1970

Directed by Jay Sandrich ~ Written by William Raynor and Myles Wilder

Synopsis

Lucy finds her great grandmother's diary with an IOU from one of Harry's relatives tucked inside. With interest, Lucy estimates Harry owes her thousands and soon she's taken over his business!

Regular Cast

Lucille Ball (Lucy Carter), Gale Gordon (Harrison Otis Carter), Desi Arnaz Jr. (Craig Carter), Lucie Arnaz (Kim Carter)

Guest Cast

Lyle Talbot (Harry's Lawyer) was a ‘B’ movie actor who made several films for Ed Wood, including what is considered one of the worst films ever made Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959). This is the first of his two appearances on the series. He was previously seen on two episodes of “The Lucy Show.”

Sid Gould (Mover, uncredited) made more than 45 appearances on “The Lucy Show,” and nearly as many on “Here’s Lucy.” Gould (born Sydney Greenfader) was Lucille Ball’s cousin by marriage to Gary Morton.

James J. Casino (Mover, uncredited) was a professional boxer who turned into a screen actor and stunt man. He previously played one of the singing and dancing teamsters in “Lucy Helps Ken Berry” (TLS S6;E21) and will appear in one more episode of “Here's Lucy.”  

Orwin C. Harvey (Mover, uncredited) was an actor and stuntman who played one of the singing and dancing teamsters in “Lucy Helps Ken Berry” (TLS S6;E21). This is one of his six appearances on “Here’s Lucy.” Ron Nyman (Mover, uncredited) was an English-born actor who played a passenger on the S.S. Constitution when Lucy Ricardo sailed to Europe in “Bon Voyage” (ILL S5;E13).  

Alberto Morin (Mover, uncredited) was born in Puerto Rico, and appeared in some of Hollywood’s most cherished films: Gone with the Wind (1939), Casablanca (1943), and Key Largo (1948). He was Carlos, one of Ricky’s “Cuban Pals” (ILL S1;E28) and the Robert DuBois in “The French Revue” (ILL S3;E7). His many background appearances on “The Lucy Show” and “Here’s Lucy” were all uncredited. 

This is the only episode written by William Raynor and Myles Wilder.  From 1953 to 1983, the writing team collaborated on nearly 200 scripts!

In this episode we learn that Harry comes from Sinclairville, New York, and he is the fourth Harrison Otis Carter in his family. Sinclairville is a real-life town in Chautaqua County about 12 miles from Jamestown where Lucille Ball was born. Harry claims his great grandparents had 17 children. 

Fiction enters the narrative when Harry claims his great grandfather was one of the founders of Sinclairville, which was established in 1809 by Major Samuel Sinclear as "Sinclearville".  Even today, the tiny village’s population is barely 700. 

Lucille Ball's real-life grandmother's name Flora Belle Emmaline Hunt, is used as Lucy Carter's great-grandmother's name in this episode. The promissory note is made out to Lucy Carter's great-grandfather Frederick C. Hunt, which was the name of Lucille Ball's grandfather. After the death of her father, Lucille was raised by her grandfather Hunt.

At the start of the episode, Harry is having a phone conversation with the office landlord, Mr. Praskins. Praskins was the surname of Ann Tyrrell's character Vi (above right) on the CBS comedy “Private Secretary” (1953-57) starring Lucille Ball's good friend Ann Sothern. Critics often said that she was the “Ethel” to Ann Sothern’s “Lucy.” There was an “I Love Lucy” / “Private Secretary” cross-over on the first episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” in 1957, although only Sothern participated. Tyrrell later played Olive on Desilu’s “The Ann Sothern Show”, one episode of which featured Lucille Ball as Lucy Ricardo. 

To save $9.40 a month on his rent, Harry appoints Lucy janitor, presenting her with coveralls, a feather duster, a mop, and a bucket! 

LUCY (to Harry): “You make Scrooge sound like Diamond Jim Brady.” 

Comparisons of both Harrison O. Carter and Theodore J. Mooney to Diamond Jim Brady were frequent.  James Buchanan Brady (1856-1917) was a real-life millionaire and philanthropist who was fond of jewels (hence the nickname). Although often the comparison is to cheapskate Jack Benny, here it is to Ebenezer Scrooge, the fictional miser at the center of Charles Dickens' famous novella A Christmas Carol.  

It is revealed that Harry opened the Unique Employment Agency 29 years ago. That would mean it was established in 1941. The name was based on an employment agency seen on “The Lucy Show” (left). 

At the start of scene two, Harry is dictating a letter to a Mr. Rylander. This name has been used by Gale Gordon many times on both “The Lucy Show” and “Here's Lucy.”  

Lyle Talbot gets entrance applause from the studio audience. The un-named attorney gets $50 an hour and (apparently) makes house calls.  

In her new role as President of the Unique Employment Agency, Lucy hangs up on a call from an important client named Charles Druten. Charles van Druten was a character played by Boris Karloff in the 1947 film Lured starring Lucille Ball.  

When the movers try to take away the water cooler, Harry grabs the bottle and - of course – ends up all wet!  It wouldn't be “Here's Lucy” if Harry stayed dry!

When the moving man (Alberto Morin) brings in Lucy’s new modern sculpture, the show gets close to a ‘dirty joke’.

MOVING MAN:  “What do you want me to do with this?” HARRY: (pause) “Oh, don’t tempt me!” 

Before giving his withering response, Gale Gordon pauses just long enough for the viewers to fill in the logical reply - had this not been primetime TV in 1970! 

When Kim says the cobweb-filled attic looks like something out of a Frankenstein movie, Craig jumps out to scare her by pretending to be Bela Lugosi as Dracula.  As Mr. Mooney, Gale Gordon played Dracula in a monster-themed episode of “The Lucy Show.”  In the same episode Lucy's son Jerry dressed up Dracula and Viv's son Sherman as Frankenstein.

The abstract metal statue held by the mover (Alberto Morin) was previously seen in Van Johnson’s office during “Guess Who Owes Lucy $23.50?” (S1;E11). 

This is the first time viewers have visited Lucy’s attic. The attic of the apartment building at 623 East 68th Street was also only seen once; in “The Saxophone” (ILL S2;E2). Coincidentally, it too references Lucy’s hometown and county. 

Similar framed “Home Sweet Home” samplers were seen above Fred and Ethel's bed in “Vacation from Marriage” (ILL S2;E6), as well as on the wall of One Oak Cabin in “First Stop” (ILL S4;E14). 

FAST FORWARD!

Lucy also named her bag lady character in Stone Pillow (1985) Florabelle after her grandmother. In an interview during filming she said about her grandmother 

“She was a pioneer lady, and I just wanted this bag lady I played to be independent and have her own little survival kit, her own way of doing things without begging.”

Flora Belle Orcutt is also used as Lucy Carter’s great-grandmother’s name in "Lucy, the Sheriff” (S6;E18) in 1974. 

Props! When Harry goes to tear up the IOU, Lucy warns him that it will do no good because it's a photostat [copy]. The document Harry is reading, however, is on yellowed parchment paper!  The paper has a small black mark in the same place as the document Lucy pulled out of the diary in the attic in the previous scene. Is Lucy fibbing to Harry? 

I’ve Got a Date! When Harry opens the door of the closet, there is a wall calendar that reads JAN. The year appears to be blacked out, but since the first of the month falls on a Sunday, it is likely from 1967 or (less likely) 1961.  Confusing matters even more, there are students in cap and gown on the calendar, indicating it might be May or June!

Doppelgangers! The framed painting of Harry's great grandfather hanging over the fireplace is actually a ‘doctored’ black and white photo of Gale Gordon that hung over Mr. Mooney's mantle on “The Lucy Show.”  The same photo, now, colorized, was used for a gag on “Lucy Protects Her Job” (S2;E14).  

Sitcom Logic Alert! Out of nowhere, Craig comes to the realization that the interest is compounded annually (although it doesn’t say that in the note itself) and that Harry owes Lucy $138,000. It takes Kim and Craig an entire episode to read further to see that the debt was already paid!  Oh, well! 

Sitcom Logic Alert II!  The premise of redecorating the office with antiques from Lucy’s attic doesn’t make sense since the office is already decorated with antiques!   

The Eyes Have It! Actor Lyle Talbot rarely makes eye contact with Gale Gordon in their scene together. Perhaps he was reading off cue cards?  

Floor Plan! Harry's home and living room are differently configured than in previous episodes. (photo by Brock Weir)

“Lucy Takes Over” rates 3 Paper Hearts out of 5

The fun thing about this episode is watching Lucy take the upper hand. Her display of self-confidence and superiority are a refreshing change of pace and must have been what Lucille Ball the executive was like.  

[ask-the-phan-site]

Phan Cam: A Horizon Holiday

WARNING: IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THE LATEST EPISODE OF MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN, THERE ARE SPOILERS AHEAD! ALSO, SORRY IF THIS MIGHT GET POSTED A LITTLE LATE. WE WERE TRYING TO FIT A LOT IN HERE. THIS WAS SUPPOSE TO BE POSTED BEFORE CHRISTMAS EVE.

>Flashback.

(imagine it snowing)

>New York City is usually quite festive this time of year. Holiday decorations were hanging everywhere. The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center was already up and glowing and the ice rink was filled with skaters happy that everything was bright and peaceful... Even the supervillains were nowhere in sight. Yes, it was the most wonderful time of the year... For most.

>A cemetery is not usually a place to go during the holidays. However, Peter Parker, his Aunt May, his boyfriend, Harry Osborn, their friends, Miles Marales, Gwen Stacy, Anya Corazon, Max Modell, Hector Baez, and most recently, Anna Maria Marconi, were standing before a couple of graves.

Merry Christmas, Ben.

You, too, Otto.

Despite his faults, Otto was indeed a good man. If only I had reached out to him sooner...

It’s not your fault, mi amour, Otto’s father was a wicked and uncaring soul.

I definitely know.

I can’t believe there’s someone who’s even crueler than Norman Osborn... Sorry, Harry.

(the drink he’s holding is for Otto) It’s okay... But choose your more words wisely next time. They might be your last.

Relax, you guys, if you make you feel any better, Torbert Octavius didn’t get away with it... It’s just a shame how it happened.

How did it happen?

Gwen: Occupational hazard. He was a construction worker.

Anna Maria: I think we get the picture.

>With that, they put the Christmas trees on the graves and Harry puts the smoothie on Otto’s grave.

May: So, when do you all leave?

Peter: (confused) Huh?

May: To Japan? Harry said that you, him, and your friends would go to Japan for the Fight Before Christmas to support your Soul Taker.

Peter: (starting to look down) About that... We’re not going.

May: (surprised) Not going?

Peter: Well, with everything that’s happened, I don’t think it would be appropriate. I just got back into Horizon and I have a lot to catch up on.

Max: Peter, you know I can excuse you for the holidays. I’m not some Scrooge.

Peter: Okay, but what about you, Aunt May? F.E.A.S.T. is going to get real busy for the holidays.

May: It’s alright, Peter, I already have a lot of volunteers. Including Anna Watson and her niece, Mary Jane. Why, even Robbie, his father, Liz, Flash, and even Miles’s parents are helping. I think I can manage without you for a while.

Peter: I know, but still...

May: Peter, what is it?

>Peter, Harry, Miles, Gwen, and Anya just look down.

Peter: It’s just... We can’t go because Otto just died. Should we really be going on vacation at a time like this?

Miles: He’s right. We should be like mourning for him.

Gwen: We know it’s almost Christmas, but what’s the point of being so merry knowing that the guy who helped save New York is gone?

Miles: That would be like... Dishonoring his memory by having fun like this.

Anna Maria: I see... But I don’t think Otto would have wanted you not to have fun at this time.

Anya: Are you sure? I don’t think it’s a good idea.

Harry: I had my doubts about him, but I still have to respect his memory for everything he’s done for us.

Anna Maria: I know that, but...

???????: You should listen to her.

>The group was surprised by three new faces.

Peter: You’re Vincent Hauser, aren’t you?

You know about me?

I’m gonna go on a limb here and say that Japanese schoolboy with frizzy hair and glasses told you.

Miles: ... Maybe.

That kid must know a lot of people.

Peter: (smiling a bit) Yeah, he’s that kind of person... So what brings you here?

Vincent: For him.

>He was pointing at Otto’s grave. Then, he shows he has a bouquet of flowers.

Anna Maria: You’re here for Otto?

Vincent: ... Let’s just say we were a quiet acquaintances and I’m well aware of what he did for this city. So I thought I’d come with Tunnel Rat to New York to pay my respects.

>Vincent goes over to the grave and places the bouquet on it.

Harry: So, Vince, it’s alright if I call you Vince?

Vincent: Usually my family calls me that.

Harry: I see. So, about what you said about taking Anna Maria’s advice about leaving for the holidays, you really think we should?

Vincent: You can pretty much do whatever. It’s your life. And who knows, maybe she’s right. Maybe Otto Octavius wanted you to leave. I know your friends were really looking forward to it.

Anna Maria: That’s true. I’m surprised you knew I was thinking the same thing Otto would be thinking at a time like this.

Vincent: ... Maybe it came to me in a dream.

Tunnel Rat: That’s been going around lately... Actually, I have been dreaming about a guy in a Japanese mask who met that Amamiya kid.

Peter: (smiling a bit) Yeah, I know the feeling.

Anna Maria: Still, you shouldn’t be spending this holiday moping around. Go, have some fun. Support your friend. For me? For us? ... For Otto?

Peter: ...

>Peter looks to his friends. They knew Anna Maria, Aunt May, Max, and Vincent were right.

Peter: ... I guess we’re going a fight before Christmas.

>The others agree.

May: That’s good.

Peter: Anna Maria, would you like to join us?

Anna Maria: As much as I like to, I think I’ll stay and help your aunt. I think she could use one more volunteer.

May: Thank you, Anna Maria.

Max: We’d come, but me and Hector are off to San Francisco to spend the holidays with his family.

Peter: What about you, Vincent?

Vincent: Pass. I promised Duke and our parents I’d come back home to Missouri for the holidays after seeing Dr. Octavius’s grave. My transport leaves soon.

Tunnel Rat: And me and Teddy got a kosher Chinese restaurant to run. So, see ya.

Teddy: But first, we promised Mom and Dad we’d visit Gramps and Grams while we’re here.

>With that, they leave to a large grave with the Chinese characters for Lee on it. Aunt May, Anna Maria, Max, and Hector also leave.

???????: I think you’re doing the right thing.

>They quickly turn to see the McGee Family.

Peter: (surprised) Oh hi, Mr. McGee.

You can call me Bonesaw.

Gwen: What brings you guys here?

Lily: We’re just here to visit Booth’s parents. They’re buried here along with his mentor, Crusher Hogan.

MIles: (surprised) Is everyone buried here?

Diane: It’s a big city. A lot of people die and get buried.

Lily: (stern) Diane!

Diane: Sorry.

Bonesaw: So, you’re going to Japan to support Soul Taker? What a coincidence. We’re going, too.

Peter: You are?

Bonesaw: My mentor was always there for me. It’s only fair if Soul Taker’s was there for him, too.

Trish: Plus, we actually get to see a city in another country.

Dennis: (unimpressed) I don’t see why you’re excited. My friend, Katie Power, she’s been to Tokyo and she says it’s no different than New York.

Trish: That’s because she’s more interested in the animes, like Pokemon and stuff. I’m in the same class as her older sister, Julie, and she says that Japan is great... Just watch out for guys in black pajamas.

Diane: Tch! Like we’re going to run into any ninjas this time... But I hope we get to see the Phantom Thieves. They’re awesome.

Bonesaw: (smiling) I’m sure you will, honey.

Harry: (also smiling) Well, with that out of the way, we should get packing. I’ll book a flight for the day after tomorrow.

Bonesaw: Make it after today. That’s when we leave. We’ll go together.

Miles: Really?

Bonesaw: (getting fired up) To really show our support!

Lily: (trying to calm her husband down) And we want to avoid a lot of air traffic from those also going to the tournament.

Harry: Okay. Guess we better start pack... Like now.

>With that, they leave.

>End of flashback.

>The present...

(Since the Wilton Hotel is basically the Persona series’s version of the Hilton Hotel, our other admin decided to have us use this picture. The only two differences are the name and that, while the Hilton is in Shinjuku, the Wilton is in Shibuya. Sorry if we used this.)

>The Wilton Hotel, Shibuya. The Horizon party and McGee Family checked in the day before yesterday. The Opening Party for the Fight Before Christmas was starting now.

You know after all this time, you’d think I’d finally learn how to actually put a bowtie on.

Like I said, Pete, a dying art. Clip-Ons are the future.

Yeah, that one’s way better than the red-

(please don’t flag for this dress) Miles, ix-nay on Orman-nay’s owtiebay.

>Miles sees Peter and Harry unimpressed.

Miles: Sorry.

Lily: (wearing a simple white dress with a holly pin with the letters ST for Soul Taker) Don’t feel too down. These things happen... Then again, this is Norman Osborn we’re talking about.

Miles: (frustrated) Not. Helping.

By the way, Harry, what did you do with your father’s bowtie? I know you don’t want to talk about it, but since it’s red and it’s almost Christmas, I thought it would be appropriate.

Harry: Eh, I have it a good home.

>The Raft... The name on the building says it all.

S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent: Yo, Osborn! You’ve got an early Christmas present.

>The agent loads the package into Norman Osborn’s cell. He opens it to find his red bowtie with a note.

Clip-on bowties are way better.

Merry Christmas

Love, Harry

Cute, Harry. Really cute...

(The following image... We thought we should add it.)

Merry Christmas, son... By the way, young man, did something else showed up in the mail?

Agent: What do you mean? I think that’s all.

Norman: Really? ... Check again.

>The agent looks in his bag and finds... Some papers. Curious, he looks at them... and is shocked.

Agent: Th- These are...

?????: Yes, they are.

Agent: (shocked) Huh!? How did you get here?

?????: I have my ways.

Norman: Indeed. It took you very long to come visit me.

>The stranger comes to Norman’s cell.

What could I say? After all, we’re both very busy men.

>Back at the Wilton.

Peter: (shivers) Thought I felt a shiver down my back.

Harry: Same here.

Miles: You think it’s something to do with what happened to you the other day?

Peter: No, this feels more... (smiling) Actually, it’s probably nothing. Right now, this night is all about Soul Taker and Christmas.

Miles: I guess you’re right.

Lily: Well, if you’re feeling out of place, I brought these.

>Lily started handing out holly pins that support Soul Taker.

Gwen: Thanks, Mrs. McGee.

Trish: (wearing a magenta dress with pink stripes and the pin) She and Dennis made them to support Soul Taker.

Dennis: (wearing a light blue dress shirt and black pants with the pin) All I did was put the hot glue on them. Mom put the other stuff on.

Diane: (wearing a long red dress with one strap where the pin is) Come on, Dennis, you’re one of the best crafters we know.

>Dennis just says quiet.

>We arrive with Admin and Shiho and greet our visitors.

Hey, guys, you made it!

Harry: (smiling) I thought we weren’t coming. But we did.

We’re glad you did. It’s so nice we could be together. For New Years, the Dream Festival, and now this.

(wearing a dress similar to the Saya from Blood+ wore in Episode 11) It’s just a shame you weren’t here for the End of Summer.

Yeah, it would have been more great if we were all there.

Anya: I know. We’ll see if we can come next year.

Then it’s a date.

Anyway, I’m also glad you’re here, Bonesaw sensei.

Bonesaw: (basically wearing a black tuxedo jacket over his wrestling costume, but still has the holly pin) Well, have to check in on my best student and show support.

Lily: And from the looks of it, you might need it.

Bonesaw: Yeah, you might have to go up against two fellow wrestlers.

You mean Tiger Mask and Tiger the Dark?

Bonesaw: Yeah, They’re fierce legendary warriors. Be glad you didn’t have to fight them last year.

I think I can get by if all of you were there cheering me on.

Bonesaw: I hope you’re right.

Anya: Speaking of wrestling, you know about Animal Mask and MAO?

Skull: Yeah, we were talkin’ about ‘em the other day.

Trish: Then, you also know about how they disappeared. She’s asking if the Detective Prince found anything.

I’m afraid Naoto Shirogane is on that case. You’ll have to ask her.

(wearing a Midnight Blue Tuxedo, his mother insisted since it goes with his hair) She’s right over there if you want to ask.

>He points over to Naoto, who was in deep conversation with with fellow detectives, Conan Edogawa, Heiji Hattori, Columbo’s sun, Baranko, and Miwako Sato.

Looks like they’re gonna be a while. In the meantime, why not have a look around. We might meet some interesting people.

Diane: You mean check in on the competition to find their weaknesses?

Bonesaw and Lily: (sternly) Diane!

Diane: Sorry.

Anyway, let’s see who’s here tonight. Look there, Adrien Agreste, his girlfriend, Kagami Tsurugi, their friend, Marinette Dupan-Cheng, and her boyfriend, Luka Couffaine. We should go over and say hello.

>We agree. We go over to them.

Skull: Yo! Adrien san, Kagami chan, Marinette chan, Luka kun!

Adrien: Konichiwa! It’s nice to meet you.

Kagami: Hai, same here.

(imagine him wearing a tuxedo which he is uncomfortable in, but is trying to hide it with a smile) Hey, you’re Ryuji Sakamoto from KUROFUNE. We saw you at Dream FES.

Skull: (happy) For real? I’m glad you remember.

Personally, I think you should have gotten 1st Place.

Hey, there’s always next year.

Luka: We’re also glad you brought friends with you. We saw you on the second day when we, Kitty Section, were performing.

Oracle: Just some stuff we first did for Dancing in Starlight.

Adrien: Ah, I thought I recognized you! You did those dancing videos.

Marinette: I was actually inspired by those videos to make a few designs... Though, I wish I knew where you got the stuff to pull off those videos. They seem almost... Out of this world.

We get that a lot.

Kagami: It would seem that way, Soul Taker... Ren Amamiya.

Shoot, I revealed myself.

Kagami: Yes. I also know of your other friends as well. Apart from track runner turned idol, Ryuji, there’s Ann Takamaki, model who wishes to be an actress, the art prodigy, Yusuke Kitagawa. Makoto Nijima who participated in last year’s tournament. Futaba Sakura, daughter of the late scientist, Wakaba Isshiki. Haru Okumura, daughter of the late Kunikazu Okumura of Okumura Foods. The Detective Prince, Goro Akechi. And I believe there were two others in your group.

Queen: They have their own plans for the holidays.

Kagami: I see. I also know of your American friends. Peter Parker, one of Horizon High’s most brilliant students and is also the superhero, Spider-Man. Harold Osborn, CEO of Oscorp Industries after his father, Norman Osborn. Gwendolyn Stacy, niece of Dr. Raymond Warren, aka the Jackal. You were also known as Spider-Gwen during the Spider Island Incident. Miles Morales, whose knowledge in robotics is matched only by our friend’s.

Miles: Yeah, how is Max Kante doing these days? I haven’t seen him since the robotics fair in Abu Dhabi.

Marinette: He’s doing fine. I’ll tell him you said hi when we get back to Paris.

Miles: Thanks.

Kagami: Then we have Anya Corazon, Horizon’s top student who has won more awards there than any. And last, but not least, Booth “Bonesaw” McGee, the star and champion of So You Want To Be A Wrestler, along with his family.

Bonesaw: Glad to see I’m known more worldwide.

Lily: Well, you are that kind of person, Booth.

Kagami: Yes. We’re pretty much in the company of celebrities. We should be honored. (does a small bow)

>We bow back.

Soul Taker: So, Kagami san, what brings you back to Japan with your friends? Are you in the tournament?

Kagami: I was going to. But when I learned that Yasuchicka Haninozuka would not be participating this year, I pulled out at the last minute. But I thought I would stay to see who the new champion would be... Personally, I hope it’s Sho Minazuki.

Trish: So, you’ll be rooting for him?

Kagami: I have mutual respect for him as a sword fighter. I wish to test his skill with mine.

???: Well, tis the season for wishes. But be careful of them.

>We turn to see Sho Minazuki coming to us.

Surprise, bitches! Long time, no see!

Miles: (a little nervous) Is he always like this?

You don’t know the half of it.

????: But I do.

>Then, Chie Satonaka comes to us. She was wearing the same dress she wore last year.

Seriously, Sho kun, ever heard of decorum?

Sho: Decorum deshmorum. If the “dragon chick” wants to fight me, she’s gonna have to wait. There’s already someone I have in mind. Speaking of which, where is he?

Chie: Yu’s not here. He was gonna come, but Yosuke came down with a cold. So Yu, Rise, and Teddie are at Yu’s parent’s apartment taking care of him.

Sho: And the others? Like that girl you’re always hanging around?

Chie: Yukiko’s in Hasetsu helping some relatives and Kanji and his mom are visiting their own relatives in Osaka. So only Naoto came with me.

Sho: I see. Well, when you see that silver haired bastard... The Sho must go on! (laughing)

Give it up, scare face, those puns will never catch on.

Sho: Tch! Whatever. Well, just tell him. In the meantime, there’s a nice bass with my name on it at the fish table.

>With that he leaves.

Chie: Sorry about that.

Peter: I’ve dealt with his type before.

Adrien: Yeah, I know.

Chie: Hey, it’s glad to see you guys again. Makoto chan, are you entering this year, too?

Queen: I’m afraid not due to winter finals. Besides, my aikido sensei already gained enough money to keep his school open for a long time.

Chie: That’s good to hear. And now that we’ve paid for Yuta’s operation, the beef bowl feast is back on. By the way, how is he?

Joker: A friend of Yuta’s told me. And...

It was a success.

Chie: It was? That’s really good.

Queen: Well, there were a few problems. He even almost died. But he came back and he pulled through. Last month, he felt pain for the very first time. He said it felt bad... but good at the same time.

Chie: Well I’m glad for him. Maybe his mother will be more at ease now since her son can now tell if he needs help. Especially if his stepdad and Big Bro Joe are there for him.

Joker: That’s true. Joe told me now he’s just entering this tournament to do something between boxing tournaments.

Chie: Which makes me wonder... What will Sho do with ¥900,000? His dad already left him an inheritance to last him a lifetime.

I’d rather not find out.

>With that we laugh and Chie makes her way.

Adrien: We better go, too. I promised Father and Kagami’s mother we meet them before they make the opening speech.

>With that, they also leave.

Queen: Let’s see who else is here.

Crow: I can see Kaldur, Wyynde, and their friends over there. About time they made it. Let’s go over to them.

>We go over to Kaldur, Wyynde, and their two friends, Asami Koizumi, and her boyfriend, Tye Longshoadow. Kaldur and Wyynde were wearing their usual hero uniforms, Asami was wearing a blue kimono with designs that match her personality, and Tye was wearing (though a bit cliche, a little inaccurate, and even... stereotypical) a light brown buckskin jacket over an orange dress shirt, a green bolo tie, blue jeans, and brown shoes. He kept his headband.

Sorry if we kept you waiting. Tye was having a hard time.

Well what did you expect? Almost everyone here are wearing weather has a tuxedo or a kimono. It just makes me feel a little... out of place.

Neither me or Kaldur are wearing such things and we are just fine.

Tye: Easy for you to say. Being from an undersea kingdom, you can pretty much wear whatever. Asami?

... Uniqueness is beautiful.

Tye: (groans in defeat) Fine, you win.

Noir: Well I think you look great, Tye kun. I especially like your bolo tie.

Tye: It was my grandfather’s. He gave it to me.

Noir: How is your grandfather?

Tye: ... I’d rather not talk about it.

You mean...

No, you’re right, we shouldn’t talk about this. This night is about the tournament and Soul Taker.

Tye: It’s okay.

Yeah, no harm done here.

Thank you. 

Tye: I guess meeting you here, maybe what I’m wearing isn’t so bad after all.

Diane: Tell me about it. (turns her gaze to her father)

Bonesaw: Hey, if it ain’t broke.

Tye: Now I just have to worry about those entering.

Gwen: Why, are you entering, too?

Tye: No, I’m just here to watch. I’m just worried about those with powers. Meta-humans, Inhumans, mutants, NEXT, you name it. Won’t using their powers in the tournament be, I don’t know... Cheating?

Peter: Don’t worry, this year, they’re prepared. Fighters can use their powers, but only three times per match. And to ensure this, they are to be fitted with special collars that will count how many times they use their powers. They use their powers more than three times, the collar will send an alert and that fighter is disqualified.

Kaldur: I hope you’re right. I hear some people can be sneaky.

Asami: But isn’t that what heroes are for?

Peter: That’s true.

???? ??????: Yes, heroes are necessary for even things like this.

>We quickly turn to see who had just came to us.

(wearing a black tuxedo) Though, from what I’ve heard, Asami chan, you and Longshadow are not much of heroes these days.

Asami: (a bit surprised) You’re... That me from the other DC world. Wind Dragon, wasn’t it?

Wind Dragon: You know it, Asami Koizumi.

Asami: Funny you should say that. Because from what I’ve heard... You’re dead.

Wind Dragon: Yeah, funny story. I’ll gladly tell you over some punch.

Are you serious?

Wind Dragon: Relax, I was only kidding. I wouldn’t even dream of hitting on Asami. If she’s a version of me, that sort of makes us related. Best not to even joke about it.

Asami: (unimpressed) That better be true.

Tye: (more upset than Asami) Not cool, man. Not cool.

Wind Dragon: My beef’s not with you, Fake Longshadow... But I will be saving my “breath” for him.

>He was pointing at me.

Soul Taker: I take it you’re in the tournament?

Wind Dragon: You bet. What better way to show everyone that Wind Dragon is back. A new life. And even a new name.

Wyynde: A new name?

Wind Dragon: A hero is all I ever wanted to be. But it never hurts to have a life outside of that. Toshio Eto is the name I chose. Though, I still like being called Wind Dragon.

Well then, Toshio Eto, I look forward to doing battle with you.

>We shake hands and we part for now.

Miles: He sure is full of himself.

Skull: Sure seems that way. And I thought Mona’s like that.

Bonesaw: Yeah, I’m a little guilty of pride myself. That’s also a weakness, so be sure to watch for that, Soul Taker.

Alright.

Kaldur: Well, we’ll see you later.

Asami: Yes, I’m hoping I would get to meet Chung-Li while we’re here.

>With that, they leave.

Diane: I’m bailing, too. I’m getting hungry and I really want to try one of those chocolate fountains.

I know. The Wilton Buffet is to die for.

Shiho: I know. I can’t believe we’re here now.

Panther: Sorry we didn’t invited you that time. You were in the hospital then. But now, you’re here.

Shiho: I know. Thanks for inviting me here.

Panther: Hey, Diane, is it alright if we join you?

Diane: I don’t see why not.

Lily: Me, Trish, and Dennis will come, too. It’s almost about time for dinner. We’ll make plates for you, too.

Queen: Right, see you soon.

>With that, they head off to the buffet... I hope I don’t get stuck with beans again.

Anya: I think that’s Maddie Stone there. I think those other kids with her are the rest of the Blazing Team.

Gwen: I think we should talk to them, see what they think of this tournament.

>We agree and go over to Maddie and the other four members of the Blazing Team.

(wearing a simple blue dress which she doesn’t look happy to be in, but covering it up) Hey, you’re Soul Taker, right? And his mentor, Bonesaw McGee.

Soul Taker: A pleasure to meet you, Maddie san.

(wearing a simple brown jacket over a red shirt) And you’re Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man. Cool.

Peter: I’m usually called that while I’m in the mask. Right now, I’m just Peter. Or Pete if you like.

(wearing a green sweater and a black kippah and look a little awkward being here) Yeah, I guess.

NOTE: Keep in mind, not much as been about the Blazing Team’s background, including their religion. So sorry if Wilson is Jewish when it may not be his actual religion. Also sorry if the next part may sound a bit offensive.

Oracle: Feeling a little self-conscious?

Wilson: Maybe a little.

Queen: You’re not alone, you know. A lot of people here have their own holiday traditions due to religion.

Harry: She’s right. I usually celebrate Winter Solstice apart from Christmas with my maternal grandparents. But after a while, I was forced to stop.

(wearing a yellow tux) Sounds like you had it tough, poor little rich boy.

Harry: You don’t know the half of it... But Pete was always there for me. He helped me through it.

Peter: (happy) And I always will be.

>The two young men smile and embrace.

??????: Oh, go find some mistletoe already.

>Someone else joins us.

Maddie: (almost upset) What are you doing here?

Wilson: And doesn’t that suit make you look a bit like a pimp?

(wearing a suit similar to his regular outfit) So you’re saying I shouldn’t support my sister in the most neutral time of the year? And I happen to like this suit. It reflects who I am.

Scott: Whatever you say.

Maddie: Well, as long as you don’t cause any trouble.

Johnny: This truce is only until after New Years. So don’t worry.

>The Blazing Team just stared worryingly at their former member.

It looks like it’s going to be an interesting transition.

Wilson: Don’t encourage him. Well, I’m off to the buffet. I wonder if they have corn dogs.

>The Blazing Team and Johnny just groan.

>We leave the Blazing Team and their former teammate to speak.

Queen: Speaking of which, we should be meeting the others at there as well.

Skull: Actually, I gotta jet. See ya on stage.

>I nod and Skull walks off.

Bonesaw: What’s that about?

Noir: Normally, the Ouran Host Club does the opening ceremony. But due to some of the members having plans for the holidays, not to mention Tamaki Suoh is on hiatus for the time being, KUROFUNE was asked to fill in and Ryuji is a member.

>We meet with Panther, Shiho, and the rest of the McGee Family. Lily, Diane, Trish, and Dennis were talking with another family when they noticed us.

Lily: Booth, you’ll never guess who’s here. Margaret Power and her family.

(wearing a while suit with a skirt) Mr. Bonesaw, it’s nice to meet you.

Bonesaw: Same here.

(wearing a light blue dress shirt and tan pants) Actually, I’m sort of a fan of yours. I’ve watched So You Want To Be A Wrestler now and again.

Bonesaw: And I suppose you want an autograph.

Dr. Power: ... Maybe a little.

(working on a last minute gift) You’re actually making his holiday here. I’ve never seen him so happy.

Bonesaw: (signing a picture of himself) That’s good to hear. A Merry Christmas to you, too.

Dr. Power: (a little embarrassed taking the picture) Th- Thank you.

Hey, don’t forget, we’re here because of me.

We know, Jack, you’ve told us like a bunch times.

Soul Taker: You’re in the tournament?

Jack: (smiling proudly) You bet!

We were a bit surprised at first. We didn’t even know such thing happens around Christmas. And they even let someone as young as Jack enter.

Queen: Ken Masters and Ryu needed something to do between Street Fighter Tournaments. And the minimum age to enter is 8.

Jack: I just turned 11. And I sorta... Wanted to meet Iron Fist.

Julie: Are you sure, Jack? You know you might have to fight him.

Jack: (starstruck) I know. To have a chance to face off Iron Fist in the ring?

???? ????: They say confidence is key, but do not let it cloud your judgement.

Jack: (surprised) Holy smoke, it’s him!

>No doubt about it, right next to us is the legendary hero, Iron Fist.

It is alright, right now, we are equals in this tournament. Jack Power, am I correct?

Jack: Y- Yes, sir. Er, Mr. Iron Fist.

Iron Fist: Just Iron Fist is fine.

Katie: Iron Fist, I want to ask you something.

Iron Fist: What is it, little one?

Katie: Well... Why are you in this tournament?

Julie: He does have a point. What do you need ¥900,000 for? Isn’t your family already rich?

Noir: She’s right. Under the mask, your real name is Daniel Rand and your family owns a major company. Almost as big as Stark Industries.

Iron Fist: True. I have no need for the money. The truth is... I needed an excuse to come to Japan.

Katie: What for?

Iron Fist: ... I like to keep that to myself.

Jack: Aw c’mon, you can tell me.

Alex: (unhappy) Jack!

Jack: (defeated) Fine. Never mind. I know you have your reasons. But, you know, just in case...

Iron Fist: ... Thank you, I will think about it.

Jack: (happy whisper) Yes!

>It is then that I notice Iron Fist... turns his gaze to me... Is here in Japan... for me?

Crow: It looks like Naoto senpai is almost finished with her meeting. Shall we speak to her now?

Soul Taker: I guess we can.

Queen: I’ll come too, just in case.

>With that, we go over to Naoto who was finishing up with her fellow detectives.

I have to admit, this is a most unusual case. Two big strong wrestlers just suddenly disappear without a trace.

I know. It’s almost like... Magic... You think Kaitou Kid might have something to do with this?

That doesn’t sound like something he’d do. What would he do with a couple of wrestlers?

I agree. But still, it is rather odd. Almost like... Like they’ve been taken to another world.

Now Detective Shirogane, you know as well as I do that other worlds is just a theory.

Heiji: And what about Thor?

Balanco: ... But I’ve been wrong before. That’s still a possibility.

(Talk about a quick recovery. Guess this kid’s more arrogant then we give him credit... Kind of reminds me of Kogoro san.)

I quite agree with Naoto senpai. That might be possible.

Naoto: (surprised) Akechi kun? You’re here.

Baranco: Ah, Detective Akechi. I thought you’d might be here.

Crow: You knew I was coming?

Baranco: Yes, I was told you’re a fan of Soul Taker here.

Conan: Say, Detective Akechi, I know you’re not on the case, But I was wondering what your take on the missing wrestlers is.

Crow: That’s what I was hoping to talk to Naoto senpai about. You said you might have an idea about who would know where Animal Mask and MAO are.

Because, me and my friends know someone who might know the same thing.

Naoto: Yes, I had a feeling you would.

Conan: And I think I know who you’re talking about.

You- You do?

Conan: Yes.

>This could be bad.

Conan: (smiling) You’re referring to the fortuneteller in Shinjuku.

Precisely.

>What a relief.

Heiji: What’s with the relief look?

No reason.

Detective Sato: I think I know that fortuneteller. She predicted that my soulmate was real close to where we were... I wasn’t sure what she meant. But whatever she said... Detective Takagi was real nervous about it while we were with her.

>Conan and Heiji just laugh. Detective Sato was just confused.

Baranco: I don’t put much stock in that kind of stuff, though this might be right up her alley. Because from what witnesses have described... Both men vanished in glowing sparkles. In a way, it probably was magic.

Conan: (with a determined smiled) You never know, Baranco san, that might be true.

>Then, Ran Mouri comes to us.

Conan kun, the opening ceremony is about to start. Let’s meet us with the others.

Conan: Alright, Ran neechan.

Ran: Alright. Soul Taker, good luck in the tournament.

You, too as well, Ran san.

>With that, we part ways for now and rejoin the others.

>The time for the opening ceremony began and KUROFUNE came on stage.

Welcome everyone to the 16th Annual Fight Before Christmas Tournament! We are KUROFUNE! I’m Yuto Kuroishi!

Keigo Kazama.

And I’m Ryuji Sakamoto!

Yes, welcome. I’m Ken Masters. And this is my fellow co-founder of this tournament, Ryu, who I finally managed to convinced to come to this.

Only because the house I normally stay in for the holidays had its roof fall in and I need a place to stay until it can be fixed.

Ken: Also with us are my lovely wife, Eliza, and our son, Mel.

Happy Holidays, everyone.

(art originally by AznBlaze) Dad says I’m now officially old enough to enter the tournament. But don’t go easy on my just because he and Uncle Ryu founded this tournament.

Ken: Also with us are Japanese sword master, Tomoe Tsurugi and her daughter, Kagami.

I can tell that this year’s tournament promises to be one of the biggest yet.

Kagami: Indeed it does.

Ken: Their guest, Parisian fashion designer, Gabriel Agreste and his son Adrien.

I look forward to seeing how well this tournament turns out.

Adrien: So do I, Father.

Ken: Also, Adrien and Kagami’s friends. Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Luka Couffaine.

>They just wave.

Ken: We also have, (groans) at my wife’s insistence, the Guile Family.

Guile: Happy Holidays.

Ken: Either way, this tournament is to remind us of all the struggles we had to endure this year. To celebrate who we are, who we were, and who we will be. Good luck, fighters! May the best one win!

>Everyone applauded.

>After the party, we meet up with Skull, Yuto, Keigo, Kaldur, Wyynde, Asami, and Tye.

Anya: I’m not ready to go to bed yet.

Oracle: So am I. Wanna grab some coffee? Our favorite diner is nearby.

Lily: I could use a drink, too. I’m so glad we can stay for New Years as well.

Miles: Lucky you.

Queen: You’re not staying, Miles?

Miles: I promised my folks I’d be home for Kwanzaa. So you guys better take pictures for me.

Peter: Don’t worry, we will.

>With that, we make our way to the diner.

>I wonder who will win this year’s tournament.