#when you think about that convo they had earlier at the crime scene.......

[tumortain]

[monaownsmyass]

A Rant about Chapter 11 (From a Zoey Stan)

Disclaimer: I talk about the racism in this chapter which might be triggering for some. I’m also not black and don’t intend on talking over black people so if anything I say comes across that way, I apologise in advance and pls feel free to correct me.

PB

Ever since day one, Zoey was treated like crap. We barely had any other interactions with her besides talking about Kingsley and her give us clothes. Zoey, despite being a confirmed LI, didn’t even have her own diamond scene until chapter 10, much later than when even Poppy, who’s not an LI, got a diamond scene.

But this is the breaking point. How tf are you gonna sideline a confirmed LI and then insert her into the bigger picture only to embarrass her, destroy her reputation, make her a laughing stock and make her publicly humiliated and not call it mistreatment??? To top it off, she’s also a black wlw. How anyone can victim blame Zoey here is beyond me.

For the benefit of the doubt, at first I thought PB was just clueless about what they did and didn’t realise it (it comes across that way in multiple books) but then, then they go ahead and put this in...

So you’re telling me, you’re fucking telling me that they knew how racist this sounded and still fucking went along with it??? If they were gonna make a subplot about how she got racially profiled, fine, good job, you know what the sad reality is like for black people. But to get publicly humiliated and embarrassed for it? That’s fucking RACIST! Idk how you’re gonna justify this when it’s clearly unjustifiable. I bet PB added that dialogue to show how woke they are but congrats, somehow you managed to do the complete opposite.

Poppy

Now let’s talk about Poppy. PB honestly never ceases to amaze me. They took a very complex character with depth and a lot of potential and just chucked all of that out of the window. It’s beyond salvageable at this point. And to make matters worse? The way PB wrote Poppy in that animal shelter scene (where we see a more vulnerable side to her) seems to be hinting at a redemption arc for her. I would’ve been all for it if this hadn’t happen. After this, there’s no way to save her character, I’m sorry but I can’t see it.

Going into detail now, I just wanna say, what. the. actual. fuck. I don’t even know where to start. Actually, I do, let’s take a look at how sad and pathetic this sounds:

Regardless of race, this shit is beyond messed up. But the fact that PB actually acknowledges it was about her race (as shown earlier), makes it baffling. I genuinely don’t understand how they didn’t see this as a problem. The way Poppy went after Zoey for absolutely no reason whatsoever makes it obvious that this is no longer a self-defence mechanism she uses for coping, this is cruelty.

And then we have the whole calling Zoey a ‘human sacrifice’. They do not only mention this once but MULTIPLE times. Poppy even labelled her folder as it. This made me the most upset. Getting a little historically literal here, actual human sacrifices were normally slaves, outcasts and criminals. I think it’s pretty self-explanatory why this was very wrong.

Zetas and Alphas

What a bunch of self-entitled, self-absorbed, low-life pricks that put others down to make themselves feel better.

So public humiliation wasn’t enough for poor Zoey apparently. She now has to endure tomatoes and wine thrown at her. Y’know how this entire scene reads and comes across as? A criminal getting stoned for their crimes. She was a young girl who was pressured into shoplifting by her peers and she was the only one that got caught cuz of her race. Need I say more? I will, that’s fucking RACIST!

Mc

MC is a little complicated for me. In my playthrough, I chose the good girl route and so my MC wasn’t as harsh as I’d assume the bad girl MC would be. I’m not excusing what she did because it was still wrong of her. She should’ve immediately gone to save Zoey. I’m just upset in a book called Choices, we couldn’t even choose between exposing Poppy’s credit cards and saving Zoey.

We’re always given the least important choices and we’re always asking for PB to give us choices that actually matter. This would’ve been the perfect opportunity. I’m playing as black!MC and even though I chose the good girl route, it still felt really... off. I can’t imagine how much worse it would be if players were playing the bad girl route with a PoC character especially if they’re playing as black!MC.

Zoey

Zoey. Poor Zoey deserves so much better. Fuck Poppy and the Zetas and even MC. The image of Zoey covered in tomatoes was so heart-breaking. MC’s convo with her... ugh.

If PB did anything right, it was making Zoey mad. She was right to be angry at MC (regardless if we took the good or bad girl route) and leave the posse. MC doesn’t deserve her. And to people saying Zoey should have known, it doesn’t matter! People are literally throwing things and publicly humiliating her so no it doesn’t matter if she should’ve known better. They shouldn’t have done that!!

I’m so fed up with PB sidelining and mistreating her and most female LIs and it’s even more disappointing that this is still happening after PB released their statement saying they’ll improve.

Idk how they messed up this badly after everything that’s happened, after all of our complaints and suggestions on how to improve. I just want to see Zoey thrive after this, with or without MC. It’s the least PB could do for her.

[wychive]

𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙨

summary // you found your pile of ‘letters’ to hyunjin that contain thoughts that have never been said and decided to write to him one last time.

pairing(s) // hyunjin x gn!reader, hyunjin x oc, slight minho x reader

genre(s) // angst, letter fic 

warning(s) // mentions of food, themes of being forgotten, vulgar wording, humiliation, overthinking

word count // 2.0k

author's note // happy birthday @noya-sannnn​ !! im sorry this was so late hhh you know how i am irl,, but i hope you enjoy this! i love you so much, jane <3 i apologize for the many grammar mistakes gn. i recommend listening to iu’s ending scene while reading this! btw y/n/n means your nickname.

[10/01/14, 3:55am]

dear jinnie,

hi there! it's y/n <3 i hope you're doing okay - i mean of course you are pfft anyways, just writing this short letter (more like paragraph)  sort of as a venting mechanism? for things i cant tell you about lol  im not so sure how you would call it, since you're so much better at words than i am. basically were like:

hyunjin: ow a brain freeze!

me: haha brain go brrrr

anyways haha yea <3 it's 4am so like,, ill see you at school!

signed,

your loser,

y/n/n

[15/02/14, 12:34am]

yo heartthrob!

im back with this kinda stuff haha it's been a whole? week? since ive written one of these so like yes..hi! i just wanted to say thanks, for today. you really know how to cheer me up huh? you really outdid yourself by setting up that little picnic for us. congrats on making the strawberry cake so perfectly <3 this day will always stay as a core memory in the back of my brain. you're too caring sometimes,,, istg you'll pay for this [maybe hugs?] >:) 

signed,

your partner in crime,

y/n/n

[30/02/15, 01:29am]

jinnie-senpai~~

LMAO you hate me calling you that, doesn't change a thing though. hehe,, nways i hope you enjoyed your birthday present :) i got you that really cool skateboard that you wanted. i worked my ass off for that in my mother's garden so like,, you gotta thank me for that a thousand times :D nah jk, its a sincere gift, from me to you. i rarely do this for ANYONE so consider yourself lucky to have a best friend like me -3- also, seungmin is like….kinda the cutest person ever. introduce me to him pls, thank!

signed,

<your bestest friend3,

y/n

(p.s. you're kinda cute too,,,, ig,,, still stinkee tho)

[13/04/15, 9:04pm]

hey 'baby' (HAHAHA ihy for this)

i hope your day was okay! i didn't see much of you today (which was sort of a bummer but wtv) so like…. uh yea. you told me you were doing okay over text, which kinda surprised me because like?? we always video call lol this is kinda the first time,, but its okay, i trust you! (i really hope youre doing alright tho, i'll beat anyone up if they make you sad >:( ) you also called me 'sweetheart' today which was like…. omg wtf haha????????? that was so weird to me for some reason… a good kind of weird :D we haven't done those kinds of nicknames in a while so…. happy to know that they're back in session <3 i talked to the new girl today, she's really cool! like she knows the bean song on tiktok so like its a total win heh, ill introduce you to her tomorrow! you'll love her a lot

signed,

your 'lover',

y/n/n

[08/06/16, 10:23pm]

hey howl (hehe go back to that movie night we had)

this spring break sucks so much,, esp because youre not here (you still couldve brought me along :'[ ) but wtv i hope youre enjoying yourself. ive been hanging out with yeonnie lately and i found out she likes conan grey too like pls i love her sm. can we adopt her?? please???? she told me you guys have been video calling too and that makes me so happy!! you two are getting along so well aaa my precious babies </3 

what if you developed a crush on her? haha…..jk unless?? (no jk dont shes all mine, stay away >:) ) anyways, i hope the three of us hang out soon. maybe go to that ice cream parlour where they serve the best cookies and cream?  

signed,

your daisy,

y/n/n

[19/07/15, 01:23am]

peepee poopoo hello

heyheyhey!! (heh, haikyuu thingz) i hope youre doing okay! i mean sure you are, with everything going so well. also i feel like you're not telling me something. maybe it's just me? is it? i hope it is because you tell me everything,, we've been talking less these days but its okay! i know how busy you are, especially with your dad always bugging you,,

also, i think yeonbin likes you :0,, she keeps talking about you whenever we hang out. don't get me wrong, its not bad that she likes you but...something doesn't feel right. i feel like i'm being the third wheeler here and like ugh idk. haha laughs yea i think its just me.. im sorry, i didnt mean to do you like this,, anyways, ill see you soon + her too ofc- yall are inseparable lmao

signed,

your moonlight,

y/n/n

[23/07/15, 01:56am]

greetings, kind sir

lol more like mean sir but like aight KSKSK,, anyways,, how have you been? we haven't really talked in a while,, our convos are always so short with it being one-sided :/ i wish you were online more. yeonnie is ignoring me,, do you know why? i think you do,,, but when i asked you just said you didnt know. did i do something wrong? pls tell me.. 

she blocked my contact the other day and she won't even smile at me when i pass her in the hallways. its,, sad and stressful especially because she was the only one that would genuinely talk to me. i hate to say this,, but i miss you. us, hanging out like the best trio we are, yknow? but i dont think you miss me the same way. sorry, im getting out of hand. i know im just overreacting. im just gonna sleep ig,, good night! sweet dreams,,

signed,

your pink lemonade,

y/n/n

[25/07/15, 03:25am]

hi there

i heard you and her got together?? congrats, jinnie! im so proud of you,, especially because you never had even considered getting a girlfriend a few months earlier lmaO you really woo the ladies huh? anyways,, i hope you've been well since we last talked,, how many days has it been?? i would say nearly a week or so but honestly it feels like a hundred years,, considering you and i used to talk every day. but you have her now to keep you company.

keep this a secret but can you possibly tell me why it hurts when i see her? or when i mention her or even think of her?? is it because she's connected to you? but.. you're my best friend, so why? is it because i miss you? is it because im alone now? is it because you left me with a simple 'i have to go now,, bye y/n/n.'? im not sure either. im being silly, i apologize. ill figure it out sooner or later. sweet dreams, jinnie

signed,

your asswipe,

y/n

[25/07/15, 04:30am]

jinnie

it's because i love you. 

signed,

your butterfly,

y/n

[??/08/??, 05:??am]

you

i miss your lame jokes. i miss your smile. i miss your laughs. i miss your funny faces. i miss the way your eyes twinkle. i miss th way you would make me happy just by doing the bare minimum. i miss the disaster you made when cooking breakfast. i miss the night when you snuck me out just to go to that pretty lantern event. i miss when you would call out my name everytime we met. i miss when we would share earbuds in train rides. dont you get it, hyunjin? i miss you.

[??/??/15, ??:??am]

asshole.

please tell me that isn't true, please. you're too kind to do these kinds of things, right? + i was your best friend,, then, why, why did you hurt me like this. i didnt do anything wrong.. you couldve just told me you didnt like me,,, why did she have to tell me? out of all people. 

youre so pathetic for this,, i thought you were brave, bold - but youre just a fucking coward. i loved you, i really did. and i realised too late… im sorry. she,, i shouldn't have talked to her in the first place, right? i bet you knew she humiliated me, in front of everyone. of course you did, you were the only one that knew. you told her. fuck, i hate you so much (yet why do i long for you on a night like this?). you know how much that'll affect me and yet, there you are, laughing about it with her.

signed,

fuck off,

you know who i am.

[31/08/15, 03:41am]

ah, jinnie

please tell me this is just a nightmare. please, please. stop just reading my texts, please answer them. jinnie. i miss you so much. i dont care bout her, please just let me be in your arms. i dont care if you love me back, please just talk to me at least. tell me what i did wrong,, jinnie,, please,,, clear these tear stains on my cheek with kisses.

signed,

your fuck-up,

y/n

[15/09/15, 04:59am]

jinnie

why do i keep crying because of you? its been a few weeks since everything has happened. please, nothing has changed. i still love you the same even with all the hatred i have pent up in this stupid brain of mine. i wish i could just walk back in time, to where it all began.

when i first met you in third grade and you pushed me while playing soccer or maybe when we took those ridiculous prom pictures, remember those? i hope you still have them,, because i do too. i hope the pictures of us on your wall still hang there,, it'll remind you of the happy times. hm,, maybe you don't need them. 

you already have millions of pictures with you and her,, i bet you printed some and replaced those with ours right? sly dog. 

signed,

friend,

y/n/n

[04/02/16, 12:57am]

hey

i went to the park today and saw both of you being happy. it's nice to see your smile again. im sorry i didnt go up to you,, i just thought it would be awkward. when i heard that adorable laugh of yours, it made me realise that i lost something special. but it's okay isnt it? as your happiness matters more than mine. 

signed,

y/n

[06/01/20, 08:00pm]

dear hyunjin,

im doing fine here. how about you? gosh,, how long has it been? years? since we last talked to each other. i havent heard from you since. i would just like to say i still think of you sometimes, when watering the plants or dancing while making pancakes. sometimes i think you're here with me too, just being the pals we were. 

sometimes i'd see you out, just reading a book in the park or buying pasta sauce at the grocery store. it's nice to see you having a stable life. im not sure if you're still with her or not, but its good to know that you still have that large friend group. also! you're never gonna guess who im dating--

it's minho! do you remember him? the one that i used to hate,, uh yeah. he asked me out the other day- you may wonder how tf,,, i too do not know how tf but he gives the best hugs ever. he gave me the love i wanted from you. he stitched my heart back together after it broke,, i love him so much, jinnie..

it's snowing,, do you remember when we would skate on the frozen lake in front of your house? are your parents well? i wonder if your mother still has those earrings i bought for her birthday. i never told you this but your laugh and hers sound so similar. 

i would just like to say thank you, for everything. you were a big part of my life, up until now. when we see each other after this, we would just be strangers. maybe flash a little smile or give a little wave whenever we greet each other but nothing more. some memories of us would flow in every now and then but it'll just be a short teaser. well, i'll be going now. smile for me, okay?

signed,

the one that loved you the most,

y/n.

taglist // @/noya-sannnn, @crvgio​ , @neo-shitty​

reply to be in my gen taglist!

[gins-potter]

Chicago PD sneak peek thoughts dump

Putting it under the cut because I know not everyone likes to watch the sneak peeks...

So the sneak peeks for PD dropped earlier (honestly I'm surprised they didn't wait until next week to really torture us but hey I'm not complaining), if you haven't seen them they're on SpoilerTV's youtube channel, and they're also just floating around tumblr and twitter.

The first one is of Adam and Kevin:

They're hiding out at some kind of factory/warehouse/industrial complex with the guy who was involved in the officer-involved-shooting

As far as I can tell Adam and Kev were going to bring the other officer in to the district (either for arrest or questioning would be my guess) when they were attacked (probably in retaliation for the shooting) and they decided to hide out until they could get the officer to the district with no one else getting hurt.

The officer's running off his mouth about how he's a good cop, and how he protects the city, and he's getting judged for one incident, and Adam and Kev really couldn't give a fuck about what he has to say.

Adam's just trying to ignore him and tells Kevin to do the same, but it's obvious that Kev is getting more and more annoyed and that's when they get into the argument we saw a bit of in the promo.

Honestly I might just transcribe the whole convo because A Lot is happening

Adam: Please, I just- please, let's just ignore him. Stay calm.

Kev: Why? Why am I keeping calm? Why are you so calm? How can you just sit there with me, listening to this man defend himself, acting like we didn't just see the same tape.

Adam: Bro- I- we- it was a bad shoot. What do you want from me? I'm just trying to get through this, okay? I just want to go home. I don't want to get involved in things that are above us-

Kev: Let me tell you what we ain't gonna do. We ain't gonna say this is above our pay grade, we're not gonna dismiss this man as one bad apple, because we are in this. Alright, we have got to stop hiding behind-

Adam: Hiding behind what?

Kev: Being white!

Adam: Being white? Really?

Kev: You don't gotta be black to know wrong from right.

Adam: I never said that anything that that man did was right. Did you hear me say that?

Kev: Think about what this white man did, and how the next black kid is gonna look at you the next time you go out there.

Adam: I know. I know. But I'm not doing this with you, right now.

Kev: Why not? Why not? We're here, we might as well, we've been shot at, chased down, all while protecting the white cop that killed the black kid, and I've gotta live with that, why not you? I've gotta be angry, why not you? 'Cause you're the good white cop? That can't understand? Who has nothing to do with any of this? That what you're trying to tell me?

Adam: Because I don't! That's not me. What's inside of him, is not inside of me. And you should be the one to know that. How dare you, man? I'm sick of you questioning me all the time. Why is it me? Why is it me who has to answer for this guy, huh? Ask yourself that question.

So a really tense discussion, pretty much, and I just want to comment on a couple of things that get said, particularly about the lines that I bolded.

First off I'm really curious about when in the episode this all happens, because the way Adam says he just wants to go home makes it sound like they've really been through it and he's just tired and frustrated and really doesn't want to be dealing with this. Which makes me wonder if that's partly what leads to this blowup.

But that line also betrays Adam's inherent privilege in the situation. Like I was saying in my post about the promo, as a white cop Adam has the luxury of going home and taking off his badge and thereby taking away that problem to deal with another day. He can sit back and not think about it for a while. Kevin doesn't have that luxury, he can't remove his blackness the same way, he doesn't get to go home where it won't be a problem any more. Which is what I think leads to the rest of the argument.

So Kev goes onto say it's not good enough to dismiss this as something above their paygrade. Because again that's a luxury he doesn't have. This is something he has to carry with him every day, on the job and off it. It's not fair that the others, because they're white, get to shrug and say well it's not really our problem. I think what Kevin wants here is for them to step up and start holding each other accountable.

Because as he says right after, this isn't just one bad apple. And he knows it's not just one bad apple. Look back at the first few episodes of the season, and the way almost the entire district turned against him for not standing with the blue wall. The only people who didn't was the Intelligence Unit and they're his friends. So he knows more than anyone else that this isn't just one bad apple.

The end of the conversation kind of circles back to what I've been saying about Kevin not having the luxury of not being angry. This is something that affects him, his family, and his community. He shouldn't have to calm down. And you can see how frustrating it is for him that Adam can be so calm about it.

That is until the end anyway, when Adam kind of loses it. And honestly his last few lines might be the most telling I think. Because, look, I love Adam, I do, with my whole heart, but when he said "what's inside of him, is not inside of me" I was kind of like, are you sure? We've seen Adam draw his weapon on unarmed black men, we've seen the entire unit be more aggressive than necessary towards black men. And even beyond that, we all have inherent internal biases that won't go away unless we actively work on them. It goes back to this misunderstanding that a lot of white liberals have where they think that because they don't say slurs or agree with slavery that that automatically makes them incapable of racism. Racism comes in a lot of different forms, and it's inherently learnt because so many of the institutions that we grew up with are built on racism. And facing that is hard and it's uncomfortable and the way Adam reacts here, makes me think he hasn't had that uncomfortable conversation with himself yet. And I think he's reacting the way he is because what Kevin's saying is making him realise that maybe he's not as innocent as he thought.

And just to wrap up, I just find it lowkey hilarious when Adam says that he's sick of Kevin questioning him, because it absolutely wasn't the writers intention but it was exactly what I was saying about these type of storylines. They've been coming up for a couple of seasons now and it's consistently Adam vs Kevin in these situations, with the rest of the team rarely, if ever, weighing in, or being forced to confront their own biases and racism. Which I why I still want there to be some type of scene or arc where it's not just Kevin vs Adam, but where the entire unit is held accountable.

Anyway so that's sort of my thoughts about that sneak peek. Less theorising and just dumping what I was thinking as I watched and my take on it. Which is why I've tried to space the dot points out a bit because they ended up long af lmao.

So, the second sneak peek is between Voight and the new deputy superintendent, Sam Miller? I think her name is:

There isn't much that happens in this sneak peek, it's really just context for the other one.

Basically Voight and Miller are at a crime scene, from context I'm guessing this is where Adam and Kev were picking this officer up from when they got shot at which lead them to hide out until they can get back to the district.

Voight mentions that he's heard from Adam and Kev and that they aren't injured, that they're transporting the officer "off-book", and that their priority is keeping everyone safe.

Voight and Miller agree to work together to do whatever needs to be done to get everyone through this alive.

Miller mentions a potential leak at CPD, presumably that's how people found out where the officer and Adam and Kev would be.

Like I said, not much happens.

My only thoughts are that I really don't understand the point of Miller's character at this point.

She was described as like this tough, fierce advocator of police reform and how she was going to come in and shake things up, and I thought she was going to come in and put Voight in his place. And we really just haven't gotten any of that. Feels like she comes in, says a few pretty words, and then Voight ends up going about business as usual. Le shrug.

[florrickandassociates]

TGF Thoughts: 3x08-- The One Where Kurt Saves Diane

I wrote this over the span of, like, a full year and it is not very interesting. I am posting it simply because I am committed to the idea of writing something about every episode of this series. I recommend that you go check out Evil instead of reading this.

I’m just not intrigued by the clips of news footage about some sort of “Unredacted Unspecified Report” that open this episode.

Diane doesn’t seem to be that interested either: she’s not watching and talks over it. 

More interesting (but, tbh, not actually that interesting to me either, because I’m losing interest in this season) is that Diane gets a letter of warning from a ~mysterious source~. 

Most interesting of all: Diane and Kurt have a normal morning together.

Kurt spots the letter first and opens it. STOP DIANE. THEY KNOW ABOUT THE HACK. So maybe it’s directed at Kurt. Or maybe it’s supposed to say, “Stop, Diane.”

I still haven’t warmed to Diane’s bedroom set, especially because it still feels like Diane lives in her bedroom and her home has no other rooms. 

Joy, Felix Staples has returned. All I have to say about this case is that the day this ep aired, basically what’s happening in this case happened in real life, because… Kings. 

Hello, it’s October now and I suddenly felt like returning to The Good Universe and writing. It’s been a while. 

My memory of this episode/arc is that Diane and Liz just did something uncharacteristically dumb and illegal, and this is the episode where Kurt secretly puts an end to the shenanigans without Diane even knowing. I remember this episode being satisfying, if only because it got rid of the aforementioned dumb and illegal plot. Let’s see how good my memory is. 

Wait why don’t I remember Roger Bart being on this show and why didn’t I note it earlier?! How could I let George The Killer Pharmacist go unmentioned?! 

On that note, how did I not use the opening scene of the season (Diane saying “I’m happy” as an excuse to ramble about how weird it is to experience happiness on a personal level in today’s world?) (I was just watching 3x01.)

I’m actively not watching the case scenes so they don’t kill my drive to actually write this. 

Oh God, I’m going to have to deal with Blum again at some point. I had blocked out his bloviating. I think this is the last of the Blum/Maia free eps? 

The weird Lucca/British actor plot is still happening!!!! I didn’t miss it during all those months in which I wasn’t reminded of it. 

The joke about how these TV lawyers aren’t like other TV lawyers, except they are, was funny the first time. 

Always great to see how Lucca, who is the head of a department at this point, gets called into other cases frequently. Definitely how things work. 

Is it bad that I’m more interested in making a mental list of all the times TGF/TGW have filmed in this little park than this Marissa/Alan Alda scene? 

I can see why this is the episode that made me stop writing these for a bit. So far, this ep is all case and a subplot I don’t care for.

You know what else was funny the first time and has hit a point of diminishing returns? The thing where a main character’s love interest shows up in court and then they get thrown off their game and it’s CUTE FLIRTING!!! Find a new, unique way to signal interest, writers! 

This gag now involves literal gagging. I’m overjoyed. 

Lucca’s monologuing at a toilet about her crush. This plot is cute. It isn’t bad. It is watchable. BUT! I know it’s a novelty, so I’m just not that excited by it or invested in it. It’s not really deepening my understanding of Lucca. 

Lucca picturing everyone in court in their underwear is just unnecessary and honestly not funny??? 

Kurt leaves the warning note out for Diane to see. He confronts her about it and she asks for a drink.

The credits are at 19 minutes in. I do love them. Have any of you watched Evil yet? I watched part of the first episode (I intend to go back to it, I’ve just been busy) and the credits resemble the TGF credits. (Update as of March 2020: I watched all of Evil and you should too.)

Diane tells Kurt about Book Club or #Resistance or whatever I was calling it. Even though Diane doesn’t tell him the full story (mostly for his own protection, and she makes it clear she’s omitting stuff), I do appreciate that Diane and Kurt don’t keep secrets from each other, and if/when they do, they talk about it openly and calmly. I love them. 

(I have blocked out Kurt/Holly almost entirely. I know it’s canon, but I still don’t believe it was anything other than a plot device to motivate some unnecessary drama in the TGW finale. God, that finale was bad. Ghost Will? Kurt cheating? GENEVA and Peter? GHOST WILL? Even the slap, which is one of my favorite parts, is more powerful as a symbol than as an actual plot development, since (1) Alicia betraying Diane is something Pilot!Alicia would’ve done to any friend to protect her family and (2) it stems from the nonsense about Kurt cheating and Peter tampering with evidence. What a letdown of a finale. The Kings are lucky they got to redeem themselves with TGF.)

(As anyone who’s had a one-on-one convo with me about the TGW finale at any point in the last three years will tell you, I will NEVER tire of discussing it, even if it means rehashing the same points over and over and over.)

I forgot about the thing where it wouldn’t stop storming in season 3. 

Don’t have much to say about Kurt devising a plan to help Diane get out of trouble, but I do find it very fun! 

OOOOH this is the episode about censorship that got censored!!! If you haven’t already, do read Emily Nussbaum’s piece about the behind-the-scenes drama of this episode. I thought the “this content has been censored” screen where the short would have been was a joke… but it was actually censored. That may be the most interesting thing about this episode.

I want more character-driven plots. I want more Liz and Lucca. I have nothing to say. 

Book Club still believes the con artist who brought them together is something other than a con artist. Book Club is not that smart for being a collection of very smart people. 

“So the whole group is bullshit?” Liz asks when Diane loops her in. Yes. But also, like, this is what happens when you do illegal shit with a group formed by a literal con artist. Liz may have an excuse for trusting the group (Diane brought her in), but why does DIANE trust them? 

“My life is simple, Diane. I have a son. I have a mortgage. I have my job. And I go from home to work and work to home. So this stuff is, this bullshit intrigue… I’m done. Too much drama,” Liz laments, about a week too late. Where was this last week when Liz was like YES LET’S DO CRIMES? 

One of my problems with the whole Book Club arc is that it makes very little sense that Liz would get involved in the first place. I understand why she would be sympathetic to their cause and willing to look the other way on their methods… if she were watching a news report about them on TV. She’s too practical, and has too much to lose, to get involved with a group like this. 

An NSA nerd is back!! He’s the one warning Diane! 

Okay, picking this back up in March 2020 because *gestures at the world* I have time. Like, I have so much free time I’ve finished 9 books in the last 14 days AND finally made it to the episodes of The Sopranos with JMargs. I began watching The Sopranos in 2017.

As I write this, I have no idea if TGF is coming back on April 9th as planned or not. Unless there’s something in the works for season 4 that can’t possibly be left unfinished or air today, I think they should air whatever they have now. TGF is always timely, and while scenes set in an office are suddenly feeling weird and implausible, they’ll probably play better now than in six months. And we’d all forgive the writers if they had to wrap up the arcs through an animated recap song. 

It’s been a while since I’ve seen the TGF credits so I rewound to watch the credits. I went to 2 minutes into the episode, then remembered… they’re 20 minutes in.

Y’all. They blow up a purse with hand sanitizer in it. Did they predict this?! 

I wrote that preamble and then stopped writing. But now we know that TGF is really coming back on April 9th, which means I have to stop watching The Sopranos and write these things! 

Ah, Felix Staples. I haven’t missed you! 

Case stuff happens. Really riveting episode, this one. (It is an interesting case, though.)

Kurt saving Diane is pretty fun. But I don’t have anything to say about it and to write about it would just to be to give a half-assed play by play… and why?

Oh WOW, Lucca and Downton Abbey guy is still happening?! 

Getting to see Kurt be really competent and caring is the best thing, by far, about the Book Club arc.

Wait, I take that back, Liz’s speech about voter suppression is also pretty high up there-- as long as you ignore the context. 

V excited (!!) to get back to Maia’s bullshit in the next few episodes, not because I want to watch it but because if there’s one thing I’m actually motivated to write about, it’s how the show has handled Maia Rindell. Also, they handle the next few episodes well for her. 

Oh RIGHT Liz tells ChumHum about her dad’s sexual harassment issues! And Adrian and Liz are finally going to tell the press! It may mean losing Neil Gross, though. 

Book Club is over! Wooooooooooooooooooooo! On to more interesting things!!!

Also gone? Downton Abbey guy, who gave an interview about something new and exciting in his life. Lucca thought he was talking about her, and he was talking about some...personality test that sounds like a cult from the way he describes it? AAAAAND I Googled it and yup. It is. What a goofy ending to this arc I didn’t care about. Reminds me of the way the Marilyn arc ended (with a cameo from a celebrity who she was supposedly sleeping with). Glad the actor was so game to poke fun at himself, but is this the best we can do for Lucca? 

Diane thinks she took care of the hack and made it go away. Kurt lets her take the credit. 

The end! 

[connorissoftboi]

Tell Me Why I’m Waiting.

(Connor x Reader)

(Sad boi hours ahead. AND SWEARING.)

You cared about Connor, more than you felt comfortable to admit. Him on the other hand, he was a machine. He didn’t care for your petty, human emotions. He had a mission and he’d complete it with or without your annoyances.

Still, you held onto the hope that you could get through to him. Past the cold, calculated, programmed shell and into the person you knew he could become. You struggled with his constant need to complete his missions, his life risked at every single turn. Not that he cared, but you definitely did. You hated the fact that everytime you expressed your concerns about his well being and constant need to put his own life in danger, he switched you out and shunned you. Your pleas always fell upon deaf ears, unwilling to accept your feelings.

You were unsure why you continued waiting for him, he didn’t give a fuck about you, you knew that as a fact. You were an annoyance that had become a constant in all of his missions, holding him back. He had told you that, yet you still sat and hoped. You wished he would snap out of it and realise everything he can feel, do, see. Perhaps he just needed a little help.

It was a bitter, cold Saturday evening, everyone but you and Connor had pretty much left the precinct. You had stayed behind, finishing off the work that Gavin hadn’t, his incompetence frightened you at times, how had he become a detective in the first place? You finished typing up the details of your latest homicide case, making sure you covered all of the evidence, the state of the scene and probable motives, so far you had nothing, the case was fresh and suspects were low. It was frustrating to say the least. Gavin had been of no help in the ongoing investigation, choosing to slack off and let you do the work, claiming that you were basically an android, also saying you were “smart as fuck, do it yourself short-stack.” That man infuriated you beyond belief, but he was better than nothing you supposed.

After another hour of typing and stress, you glanced down at the time. 1am, fucking fantastic. You’d be here until tomorrow, but at least you could take the day off, that would be a bonus. You could feel your hands cramping and your legs growing numb from the lack of movement so you decided to stand and walk around the precinct. You walked around, glancing at all the desks. Senior Forensic Detective Jones was still in her cubicle, typing away at what you could only imagine was her newest case, some serial killer and it was gruesome. Her first case at this precinct, she’d only just transferred over from LA and she was already hard at work here in Detroit. You continued walking, your body thankful for the blood flow your were allowing it to finally have.

“Detective (L/n)?” Your body stiffened and you felt a shiver run up your spine, that voice was electric to you. You turned, as if in slow motion, and gazed up at the android that towered over you. “Hello Connor, nice night, huh?” You spoke softly, scared to break the somewhat peaceful silence of the precinct.  “Indeed, I brought you coffee. I noticed that you have decided to stay overnight and so I calculated that coffee, although terrible for one’s health, could help prolong your work hours.” You took the coffee from his outstretched hand and took a sip. “Thanks, I-I’m gonna go back to work.” You swivelled around and strode towards your desk, sitting in the seat that was mildly uncomfortable, but better than holding awkward conversation with Connor.

You continued typing, listing details, descriptions, witness statements and interviews with friends and family. The case just wasn’t making sense, there were no signs of a break in. None of the family of the victim lived in the country, friends were unable to get into the victims building without authorisation and no other names were authorised for access. You were stumped. The security footage had been tampered with.So, no suspects were caught on camera and witness descriptions were useless, it was too dark for them to provide a solid description.  “Uggghhhh. How the fuck am I going to solve this when there are no leads.” You groaned and palmed your face, this was an amazingly done crime. Props to the criminal.

“There has to be something you’re missing. Have you checked recent records?” You sat up, turning to the person that sat beside you, Connor. He watched you expectantly. “Not yet, I received bank records earlier but according to processing they hold no useful evidence.” You brought up the bank statements and scanned through them until you noticed it. “Connor, do you see it?” You spoke softly, the air being taken from your lungs, you were excited. A lead. “Notice what, Detective?”  You scanned the records, noticing that the victim had had an unregistered maid working for her. The bank records stated that fifteen minutes before her murder was reported the victim had removed a security code belonging to the maid, something that you must pay for. 

You opened up another tab, bringing up footage from the days prior, scanning them for facial recognition on the maid. You came up with a match, the night before she and the victim had argued, causing her to be fired from her services. To your surprise footage from a street cam also had caught her getting into an automated taxi five minutes prior the the murder, a five minute walk away from the residence.  “Connor you absolute genius! You did it, you helped me crack this case wide open!” You grabbed him by the shoulders, shaking him, tears of joy slipping down your cheeks. Finally. You had a lead!

In your overly emotional state you stopped thinking and kissed him straight on the lips, hard. It was short, too short, and ended with a small shove from the android. He looked rattled. You watched him stand up quickly and take rushed steps away from you, disgust evident on his face. “(Y/n) you kissed me, why would you do that?!” He was shaking, his LED flickering between red and yellow. “I-I, god Connor I’m-”  “Sorry?! No, (Y/n) you’re human, alive. I don’t think you understand. I am an Android, I don’t breathe, I don’t feel, I don’t love. When will you get it through your head, that this-” He motioned between you both, watching you face, scrutinising it’s every detail.  “-Will never happen. So stop trying, your futile attempts are getting in the way of my missions. Enough.” He turned his back and started walking away, shaking.

“Connor-” Your voice broke and he whipped around, his eyes glinting with what looked to be sadness before going cold once again. “I said ENOUGH. Shut the fuck up and listen for once, I don’t need you. You aren’t Important. So, stop.” 

With that he left and your world crumbled. You wished you could fix the relationship, but how do you fix something that was apparently never there in the first place? 

________________________________________________________________

Well, Hey! I’m back, I finally graduated and I have more time than ever to do this stuff! 

Do you want a part 2 to this? If so, sad or happy ending???

ALSOOOOO: Requests are open! My ask box is open (Make sure you state who it’s for i.e Gavin, Connor, rk900 (carter), Narrator/Narri (me!), or Hank! 

We also do RP for anyone who is interested in having SFW convo’s with my boys.

For now though, 

peace!  -Narri

[lilietsblog]

two of my favorite subtle narrative things about Rise from the Ashes

1) it would be very easy to sell this narrative with the guy who’d gotten convicted with fake evidence bieng, in fact, innocent. it’d be all simple and straightforward, and AA loves itself some straightforward simplicity (looking at you Farewell)

but they don’t do that

instead, nobody involved doubts at any point that Joe Darke is the murderer. he did not kill this one specific person but he sure as fuck did kill all the others! and you know what? it’s legit. it’s specifically brought up that like. personal off the record conversations can’t be used as proof in court, and you can know something 100% definitely for sure as a fact and be completely unable to prove it because the court isn’t going to just take your word for it

they made the situation fucked up with the fact that Joe Darke? most definitely deserved his sentence!

and yet, what happened was still horrifying and wrong

even when the guy really is guilty, forging evidence is still horrifying and wrong and yes it really is about the principle of it

evidence presented needs to be trusted, or nothing will work

(dark age of the law who? this narrative beats all that bullshit with a flick of its fingers)

2) ok so in early convos with Angel she insists that prosecutors consider detectives to be disposable and replaceable. that they don’t care and don’t even really consider them to be people. just some puppets

you mostly forget about it by the time you get to the resolution... but if you remember

actually, not a single prosecutor during this case considered any detective disposable (this happened in Investigations. but in RftA? no) all the firings? those were Chief Damon Gant's initiative. Lana did not make the decision. and they weren’t becaause the detectives were disposable, they were necessary for covering up the tracks. marshall was still kept on the force, too, and bruce goodman kept his position

meanwhile, who really IS considered disposable is

young prosecutors

yes, the word 'young' is there for a reason Lana is 27, Neil Marshall was about the same age I think, Miles Edgeworth is 24 (and was 22 at the time) in this profession, it’s very very very young

the thing about young prosecutors is, they are officially considered responsible for and in charge of... something they are really not equipped to handle yet. baby Miles had no idea how to watch out for fake evidence. he was 22 and he used what he was given by the police department, just putting his trust in them

this is a power dynamic that's explicitly explored in the case, both by pointing out that Damon Gant controlled the Prosecutors' Office by controlling Lana (oh, she was competent enough to run the office... but not enough to prevent someone else from doing so through her), and by demonstrating how easily he broke Miles down on the first day of trial

just by abusing that trust just by going "oh you are getting mad at us? but officially, you're the one responsible"

and it's not how it works out in practice because 24? IS NOT A REASONABLE AGE FOR BEING RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS KIND OF THING IN ITS ENTIRETY. Miles can be responsible for his own behavior in the courtroom and that's about it, he has enough trouble with that already. but formally prosecutors are in charge of so much more and I bet Damon Gant just LOVED hiring himself some kids

(I headcanon this as a universal explanation for improbable prosecutor ages in this 'verse. there was a thick layer of people who LOVED getting kids in positions of formal responsibility where they’ll make excellent scapegoats)

(and there’s maybe a reason Franziska always obsessively scours the scene of the crime personally and plants tracking devices on her subordinates. maybe she knows. maybe her brother getting burned was enough for her to say ‘but never me’)

and Gant literally considers them disposable. like oh! i messed up and accidentally killed someone! time to get my prosecutor puppet to take the blame! that's the least fucked up thing about that, btw

let us consider the body in Miles Edgeworth's car and just how close he was to getting blamed for the crime. he's actually twitchy for that exact reason when Phoenix first talks to him. people have been assuming he just got out of the murder charges somehow with a trick and might have in fact murdered someone. if Angel had just not been there! if Angel had just not been there, this could have worked out very, very differently

(there's a reason Miles is so bitter to the point of childishness: but if she cares, why did she do it in my car? they'd have found blood traces and he'd have been at least very suspicious, and with this justice system's track record, he'd probably wind up arrested too. sure, Phoenix would have gotten him out of the guity verdict, but... going through that once was already one time too many)

but that's not the most fucked up part either! sure Damon Gant needed some scapegoats and who he thought of was young prosecutors, but let's go back in time instead

let's look at Neil Marshall's death

so, there's a slight parallel between RftA and Goodbyes, in that both deal with a past case and two murders committed by the same person and when Manfred breaks down and goes on a Motive Rant, he focuses specifically on his murder of Gregory, and also brings up Miles enough that you can draw a thread with the second murder

but when Gant breaks down (in possibly the best villainous breakdown all AA ever had)

he only, only, only talks about the murder of Bruce Goodman

he is upset about it! he might not be all that broken up but he didn't mean to do it! it was stupid! it wasn’t a decision in cold blood, he genuinely regrets that this worked out the way it did, he just kind of panicked!

Neil Marshall who?

what he admitted earlier is that he saw the opportunity. he saw the scene as it was and he figured 'oh hey i can use this to blackmail Lana Skye' he just saw an aftermath of a fight and thought 'oh hey if I kill this guy and arrange the scene a certain way, I can get Lana Skye both to help me get a conviction with forged evidence AND in my perceived debt. neato!'

you know, some convenience in apprehending a suspect (admittedly a serial murderer, but its not like the killings were still ongoing. he went on a specific spree and then they tailed him for half a year without any results) and a politics/intrigue boost. all just for the cost of ah that guy

he literally considered Neil disposable enough that it's never brought up by the narrative. we are meant to understand that yes, this is indeed the degree to which he doesn't care

he apologizes to Miles at the end for using his car. he sounds completely genuine about it, too. oh sorry buddy pal old chum! you make more than we do anyway!

I mean, I looked up prosecutor salaries in Japan, and I can testify: yes, Miles does probably make more than Chief of Police Gant, possibly combined with all detectives that appeared in this case. that is in fact a thing

and I guess he's resentful enough over this fact that the lives of these children? are spare change for him

and that's the irony. Angel insists that prosecutors think of police as disposable... is that really what’s going on?

(and what took Gant down? it was having Miles on our side. he was so used to bossing children around, he did not expect one to say 'welp I'm done' and turn on him. he did not expect Miles to be broken down to the point of suicidal ideation and consequently complete lack of fucks to give about his career... but just enough rage and desire for truth to turn around and take him down. he did not think anything of young prosecutors, and he did not expect Miles Edgeworth)

[kiss-my-freckle]

Rederina Rewatch: The Freelancer

“Tastes like spring, doesn’t it?”

Soundtrack -

Pleased to meet you Hope you guess my name But what's puzzling you Is the nature of my game

Well, it’s not Raymond Reddington. Only other name that would be big enough to make Lizzy famous, is Katarina Rostova.

Safety first, happiness second. Speaking as Red would - what good is happiness if you’re not alive to be happy. 

Hatch: Have you ever been convicted of a crime? Red: Convicted? Not yet.

Red was framed, not yet convicted. I believe the same can be said of Katarina, except that whole following Red and Masha to be a family business ...  lol

I would love to know what question Red answered “yes” to, but they don’t show it. Perhaps the same question Fowler spoke of about Liz’s adoptive father having a criminal record. 

They mention at least two crimes here, not including those leaked documents Ressler spoke of in the pilot. 

Woman: The man sold secrets to the Hofstad Network, to the Syrians.

Cooper: Remember, he’s been off the grid for over 20 years.

“Off the grid.”

Red gets the lie detector test. He fails at one question. 

Hatch: Before Monday of last week, did you have, or have you ever had personal contact with Elizabeth Keen? Red: No. Ressler: He’s lying.

“Personal contact” I wouldn’t consider attending her wedding and graduations as personal contact, but I would consider raising her daughter for four years as personal contact ... lol. 

Red: Anyone asks, you’re my girlfriend from Ann Arbor. Liz: Absolutely not. Red: Fine. You can be my daughter.

Technically Katarina is no longer Katarina, Katarina is Raymond Reddington. So she can either play his girlfriend or his daughter. 

I’m going to skip Liz’s dialogue in this scene and stick to Red’s. 

“It’s from the ’20s. Tastes like spring, doesn’t it?”

Spring. Rebirth. A woman walking into the ocean and returning a man. 

“How close to the truth do you think you can really get?”

I think she got that truth in season two and had it wiped from her memory. Though I don’t think it was wiped by Red. 

"You’ve heard the debriefs. You’ve read Ressler’s book reports. I so want to know how you see things."

Red wants Liz to tell him his profile. He wants to know how she “sees” things. 

Her point of view will speak to who she is just as much as who she thinks he is.

I find it interesting that he asks for the profile of his imposter self, then questions what she knows of her imposter husband. This gives the impression Red wants her to view things differently. Because he wants her to see her husband for what he is, and he wants her to see himself for what he really is. 

“Tell me about your husband. Does he know you as well as you know him? Does he know about you as a child? Does he know about the fire?”

This line if dialogue is the very reason I believe Red turned himself in. He was there that night, he has a connection to her that’s obviously biological. We get into how he spoke of “elements from Katarina’s past” and it all but leads me to believe that the mark on Tom’s passport box is what brought him to kneel on the seal. 

I believe Red actually answers her question here.

“Why am I so important to you? Did you know my parents? I asked you a question.”       “What if I were to tell you that all the things you’ve come to believe about yourself are a lie?”

For Liz to be asking this question in episode 2, he’s already sending her that familial vibe. Knowing she’s so important to him, she thinks it’s in knowing her parents. 

Red: Watch yourself with her, Donald. She hates men, and cops most of all.

There isn’t much to speak of in this episode other than the dinner convo. But I found it interesting, how quick Red took off when he saw others in the restaurant. Perhaps trying to avoid their facial recognition software. Like the retinal scan post I put up earlier. 

He’s got his back to this camera. 

Only a side view. 

And he rushes out. 

Side view of his face. 

Red: She preyed on the weak and the innocent while dressed in the wings of a savior. I detested everything about her. Liz: I had no idea. I mean, I just - I should have known. Red: We never really know anyone, do we?

Imposter all around. 

But he’s speaking more to Tom than himself ... lol. He wants her investigating Tom. 

 Red: What are you gonna do, Lizzy? About this situation with Tom?

Rederina fits The Freelancer episode.

[theclacks]

Buffy Season 7 Thoughts

Current Emotional State:

So yeah. That is it. After starting in March 2017 (thanks to the 20th anniversary), I officially finished the series Jan 1st 2018.

And hooboy. Straight out the gate, I’d say it its now in my top three shows of all time (i.e. Doctor Who, Stargate, and BtVS). That’s right. It beat out ATLA. (Sorry ATLA but you never ripped my heart out like the others.)

IDK, a part of me is still kind of like “why did it take me this long to watch this show” and another part is glad, because I watched DW, SG1, and ATLA all around the same year or two of my life, and to get completely walloped by something a decade later... well it’s wonderful. Completely and truly wonderful.

BtVS & AtS Recap Master Post located here

So, starting with predictions that I made during my S6 recap...

On predictions that I made during my S6 recap:

- Spike comes back to Sunnydale and becomes tentative friendship bros with Buffy with continual underlying UST that’s never resolved again because of the attempted rape and also because none of my ships can ever be happy It was resolved. It was fucking resolved. I don’t care that they never kissed on screen and Spike didn’t believe Buffy when she said she loved him (still crying forever, Spike you idiot), there was a confession. And even before that, Buffy telling Spike that she believed in him, and that she wasn’t ready for him to leave, and sleeping beside him for those final nights. THAT WAS MORE THAN I’D EVER BEEN EXPECTING. IT WAS BEAUTIFUL (NO CHECK AND I’M HAPPY FOR IT)

- Dawn and Spike eventually work through his attempted rape and become bros again Yeah, their relationship went up in flames (NO CHECK)

- Dawn takes a level in badassery, will fight things Aside from the first episode or two when Buffy’s giving her training, Dawn pretty much got shafted when the potentials arrived (NO CHECK)

- Buffy’s perma-death/rebirth will be addressed re: slayer chain of dead slayers leading to new slayer (CHECK... SORT OF?)

- Anya stays a vengeance demon because fuck Xander (NO CHECK)

- Willow finds a happy place between using no magic whatsoever and trying to fry the earth (CHECK)

- Giles hangs out in Sunnydale again because Giles (CHECK)

- Anya stays in command of the magic shop because it’s her magic shop… even though Willow kind of destroyed it She stayed in command but the other characters stopped visiting, so... (CHECK?)

- Clem continues to have cameos because he’s Clem and he’s awesome (HELLA CHECK)

On Spuffy:

I’ve written enough about these two in my earlier posts. I might make a completely separate post where I talk gush about their development over the course of the series but yeah. In this post, all I’ll say is that I thought Seeing Red would be the official end to their relationship. I thought even with the soul, their connection would be like a giant white elephant that’d never be directly addressed again... and then I got S7, aka the giant, canon, hurt/comfort fic.

Also, I didn’t cry during Chosen, but “No, you don’t. But thanks for saying” kept playing through my head over and over and over again, gutting my heart into numbness, and then sometime during the next day, it morphed into “Quite right, too” and I was so confused, thinking where did that dialogue come from, and then I remembered:

And it’s ridiculously bizarre, since Doctor Who’s Doomsday has been a traumatic thing that’s been a scar on my heart for the last decade, so I naturally think of it as the older, original traumatic “I love you” DENIED scene, but then I look at when Chosen actually aired and Chosen came out first? So if anything Doctor Who cribbed off Buffy? (And both cribbed off Star Wars and “I know” but that one doesn’t count because there wasn’t actually a failure to communicate between Hans and Leia, just Hans being Hans.)

Oh, and then the day after I watched Chosen, as I was getting ready in the morning, I made the mistake of listening to Sarah Brown Eyes which is about a guy reminiscing about the first time he met the love of his life after she’s already died. And then the song ends with “come, let’s dance” and there’s a sad instrumental section and I STARTED BAWLING. STRAIGHT OUT BAWLING.

So, thanks BtVS for that. I haven’t done that for a fictional couple since 2008. I appreciated the jump start to my heart.

Okay, officially moving on.

On Andrew:

AKA the best reoccuring character. I loved his arc in this season, going from a comic puppet of the first evil to a still-comic, yet emotionally redemptive who can’t hide behind “i was just following other people/didn’t know better”. He was the best, and Storyteller was one of my favorite episodes

On Buffy’s relationship with Giles:

I really wish they’d had the time to wrap a bow on this, but I can understand why they didn’t. As it is, their relationship kind of ended in Lies My Parents Told Me with Buffy shutting the door on him and his tendency to decide what’s best for her. But I’m not sure they held to that? Or rather, in Chosen it was kind of back to situation normal re: Willow, Xander, Giles, and Buffy being in the final pow-wow together. Either way, I liked that Buffy stood up for herself, that Giles was finally acknowledged as fallible as opposed to the savior woosh he got at the end of S6.

On Anya, Willow, and Xander:

I feel like the three of them got kind of shafted this season? Xander didn’t really have an arc or purpose other than “fix Summers house when monsters break it”. Oh, and his convo with Dawn in Potential. I really did like the episode Potential... I just wish the whole “you still have purpose” extended past the boundaries of that episode? Which honestly is the subject of another post I’ll write, entitled Xander vs Sokka: Giving Purpose to the Powerless.

And then yeah, Willow intentionally stayed on the backburner for the majority of the season (her best moments were in AtS), and Anya... oh Anya. I understand why she was un-Vengeance Demon-fied, but I still wish she’d stayed a Vengance Demon. Mostly because as soon as she lost her powers, the show for the most part ignored her.

Which is a crime.

Actually...

On Anya specifically:

I’m gonna let some time pass before I do a “thoughts on BtVS as a whole”, but I want to say right now. Anya was my favorite surprise of the series. Every other character or major, major plot development, I’d been warned, or hinted, or inadvertently spoiled for.

Anya (aside from her name) was a complete unknown. When she appeared in S3 as Anyanka the Vengeance Demon, I thought... no, that can’t be “Anya the eventually reoccuring character.” And then she was. And was amazing. And continued to be amazing for the next four seasons.

I love Anya. She is everything I aspire to in life.

Now that I’ve talked about minute character stuff, let’s go to major S7 plot stuff:

On the Potentials:

Honestly, everything I’m gonna say is not groundbreaking thoughts re: fandom. I actually liked the potentials, but I didn’t like how there were so many of them, and how some of their actress were not that great. I didn’t like how Chao Ahn was the one who couldn’t speak English and was the butt of language jokes. They could’ve easily had a French or German-speaking potential.

On the First Evil and other villains:

The mark of a great villain (for me) is how much they reflect and/or personally tie in with the heroes. It’s why Angelus remains my number one fave BtVS villain (and why S2 is still my favorite season from a plot standpoint). It’s why I’m still super pissed that Maggie Walsh (unpowered, rigid, military-backed, older woman to Buffy’s powered, improvisational, rogue, younger self) was killed off in favor of Adam (generic evil dude)... even though I now understand it was because of behind the scenes actor stuff.

So yeah. I started off with high hopes re: the First Evil... and then got let down a bit when psychological enemy was pushed aside in favor of the Turok-han and then later Caleb. Though, honestly, I was more fine with the Turok-han than I was with Caleb. Caleb was... meh. (Sorry, Nathan Fillion.) If I had to guess, I’d say the writers couldn’t think of a good way to keep the First a constant threat without relying on minions that could physically attack the heroes. IDK.

On Spike’s soul:

Once again, this is a topic I’ve talked about before in my per episode recaps, but overall, I really like how they ended up handling it. It makes sense that he’d more easily adapt to it and wouldn’t do an abrupt personality shift like Angel because he voluntarily got his. I still hold to my S6 theory, that (if it hadn’t been for the First tormenting him) he could’ve returned to Sunnydale with no one (except Anya) being the wiser.

BUT! At the same time, it did make him a lot more mellow and self-reflective. Gave him self-doubt as well. And Get It Done and Lies My Parents Told Me were excellent episodes that showcased that.

On Sunnydale getting sucked into crater, Buffy being one of thousands of Slayers, and ending the show with a “well, what happens now”/“possibly anything” kind of feel:

I loved it. It was a great ending. And together with Spike coming back in AtS, and the comics, and whatever, it makes for a ending that fans can play around with however they want. It’s an amazing launching point for new stories, and honestly...

I’d take that open ending over a 19-years-later, “All was well”, ship-killing epilogue any day.

So... thanks, BtVS. It was one hell of a ride.

(PS: If you liked these thought posts and wanna see more inner workings of my mind, my current BtVS fanfic is over here.)

[clonerightsagenda]

The arc review continues.

Someone had to do the Chris Pratt velociraptor meme. We were willing to take on that burden if no one else was.

Deciding to be honest and doing it are two different things. You’ll notice Jade mostly avoids her biggest victims during the Derse plaza sequence and first talks to her partner in crime.

Fun fact: Although I handled Roxy when she talks to betas, other logs between an alpha and a beta were drafted via msparp between me and Gill. This led to those logs being, on average, longer and more tangent-riddled. The worst offender is the Dave and Dirk convo. Often I sliced a lot out for the final version. We also often went off script on weird tangents (including me once threatening Gill while she was in the bathroom when she kept sending me metal gear memes). This log’s text file is referred to as jajane charades.txt because of one said tangent, which I will repost for your entertainment. This is the dvd commentary after all.

JANE: YOU SEE ]] JANE: WHEN A YOUNG LASS HITS YOUR AGE SHE STARTS GETTING... URGES ]] JANE: MY DAD TAUGHT ME THESE URGES MUST BE SUPPRESSED UNTIL MARRIAGE. ]] JADE: i have a cloning machine i am unstoppable ]] JADE: also jane sweetie we are going to have to talk about other orientations someday ]] JANE: I like men!! ]] JADE: yes but you see there is a whole broad world of orientations out there ]]] JADE: it is very simple ]] JADE: for example i am JADE: flails arms randomly ]] JADE: and john is JADE: crosses arms firmly over chest ]] JANE: Ohhhh. JADE: it is the all or nothing option] JADE: and the salad bar is calling your name ] JANE: And jake is... ]] JANE: Stares blankly into space. ]] JANE: Emits confused noises. ]] JADE: i dunno he had fake dates with dolls ] JADE: i have no word for that one] JADE: or gesture ] JANE: He did what? ]] JADE: lmao ] JADE: i suppose he had urges ] JANE: Well. ]] JANE: He is a strange, silly boy. ]] JADE: and a strange silly old man ] JANE: And the more things change the more they stay the same!! ]] JANE: Hoo hoo, and Dirk is quietly staring at Jake's rear end from the corner, while Roxy is rolling around on the floor laughing at everything, I guess. ]] JADE: dave: slightly different flailing motion ]] JADE: rose: waggles eyebrows at all women in the vicinity ]] JADE: ok i think this log is officially dead ] JANE: This is all bonus content ]] JANE: It must be seen I demand it ]] JADE: ok]

Ok now let’s get back on track

JADE: i dont know what it was like for anyone else JADE: but i guess for us that meant JADE: it was just?

Jane and Jade have no way of knowing that Aranea rigged the clock, poor things.

JANE: Of course, my death wasn't permanent after I died this time under similar circumstances. JANE: So perhaps we were victims of a Skaian clearance sale? JANE: Doomed timeline, everyone must go!

Tbh I feel like this would help explain some of the honestly sorta sketchy clock rulings. They’re already doomed, might as well keep ‘em down. That’s our justification about why Jane didn’t die in a similar situation in TLC. 

JADE: do you ever worry you dont feel the right way about your friends?

The core difference between John and Jade, at least in my interpretation, is that John represses a lot of things unconsciously, and Jade is doing it intentionally. Jade is fully aware of all her bitter, angry, or jealous impulses. She considers them all personal failings, and she tries to squash them. Unfortunately that just made them more nasty when they came out. I think if Jade hadn’t demonized every ‘bad’ aspect of herself so much, grimbark Jade wouldn’t have been so aggressive... she would have been more resigned and ‘guys if we just cooperate maybe fewer people will get hurt’ rather than ‘i’m gonna kick my brother in the gut’.

Speaking of kicking her brother in the gut, let's get to the first of those uncomfy conversations.

From Karkat's perspective, he got angry, sent some nasty messages to the humans for a few hours, and then cooled off. No real harm done. But from Jade's perspective, he bullied her for years of an already crummy childhood. Considering her typical attitude versus how hostile she is when he contacts her, he must've really gotten on her nerves. She had no real reason to kill him for a "demonstration". She did that out of vengeance, and now she has to admit it.

JOHN: i know you grew up alone for a while, and you let us see your house, but whenever we tried to ask questions you changed the subject. JOHN: what were we supposed to do? JOHN: i didn't want to pry! if you said it was fine, i thought it was. JOHN: and now you're mad because i didn't assume my sister was lying to me? JOHN: i guess i won't make that mistake again!!

The other kids on the ship must have learned at least some details of Jade's childhood. Again, it seems kinda unrealistic that they didn't ask *any* questions, but that's what I have to work with. John feels betrayed and frustrated that Jade is now punishing him for not magically knowing the things she tried to hide from him, which is an entirely fair reaction. Maybe he didn't pay as much attention as he could have, but she deliberately made it harder for him to notice, so they both have been contributing to damaging this relationship. Jade eventually admits that she fucked up. She felt they would like her more as the peppy, supportive friend, and maybe that’s true, but that has only made this revelation harder to swallow.

Karkat is bewildered in the background, because since Jade was pissed at him, she didn't care enough about his opinion to hide herself. Ironically, it's the people she doesn't respect who know her best.

KARKAT: SHE LITERALLY TOLD ME TO TELL HER WHEN I WENT TO HELL SO SHE COULD SET UP A REMINDER TO THROW A PARTY. KARKAT: THAT IS AN ACTUAL THING THAT HAPPENED.

That log is a riot.

There's an emphasis on everyone admitting that this happened and dealing with it rather than sweeping it under the rug. In canon, the implications of grimbark and crockertier kinda get glossed over, partly because it's unclear how much of their actions got retconned away. That suggests all that stuff is still festering. We wanted to make sure it gets talked about so it’s less likely Jade and Jane snap on their own later because they simply can’t take holding it in anymore.  

Jade and Jake! Another combo log that had to get sliced down quite a bit. This conversation is a lot more heavily tied to Jake's arc than Jade's so I won't spend a bunch of time on it.

JADE: i deserve some sort of update

I made some joke about this being @Andrew Hussie but considering the kinds of updates he finally gave the poor girl (get sexually harassed and stabbed! every girl’s dream) I take it back.

JADE: is the xenon inert?

If the girl's supposed to be a science genius I'm gonna bring chemistry into the story, ok? I HL’d in chem. I miss it a little. Plus, chemistry is directly relevant to the Alpha session. Noble gasses are inert and have trouble forming bonds without outside influence. It takes the addition of the Beta planets to create an octet of eight electrons around the Skaian nucleus, making a stable atom. Everyone hanging out on Jane’s planet probably got a chipmunk voice. The possibilities are endless. 

JADE: i think you have taken quite enough punches for the day JAKE: That one to the solar plexus really did smart... JADE: how about the villains take a turn for a change? JADE: that arrangement sounds good to me

In the future, Jake will get to punch himself as a villain. So best of both worlds, I guess.

Moving on to Davesprite... Jesus christ, this conversation. The one good thing I can say about it is it did generate this gem.

I used to test the text color code before we put it up on mspfa (these days I just say fuck it and we fix the errors when we see them). This effect doesn't happen on the mspfa page with the smaller text box, but I think it's a pretty good summary of the log as a whole. In fact I opened this log to look at it again, saw the wall of orange, and felt my heart quail within me. But this is an arc commentary which means I don't have to read it line by line if I don't want to. 

Anyway, this was a pain in the ass because Homestuck does not like to let people who are dating talk to each other, a phenomenon I tongue-in-cheek call the Homestuck relationship curse. Current couples almost never speak, unless it's part of a group conversation or they're breaking up. Go back and check if you don’t believe me. These two are even worse, because although Dave pre-split talks to Jade and Davesprite talks to Jadesprite, Davesprite-as-Davesprite never talks to Jade-as-Jade ever. Which makes it really fucking hard to write a whole thing about how stuff broke bad, let me tell you. I had about three sentences to go off of and so mostly relied on piecing best guesses together from general character analysis, which I won't go into in depth because no one asked for a DVD commentary for this scene in particular. This is another conversation that got overhauled once or twice - in earlier drafts Davesprite was a lot more passive, but I figured he's had a long day and is ready to snap back, and I needed him to because I was, after all, trying to call Jade on some of her shit too. This conversation essentially serves the same purpose as the one with John for Jade - she lets people know what's going on with her but is also faced with the fact that it's partly on her that she kept her mouth shut for so long.

The fact that he's lurking in the background of a bunch of panels is because I should never make idle comments around the artist. I made some joke about being afraid that your recently evil ex will just fuckin shoot you for talking shit and Gill took it upon herself to make that a reality. Same with John hiding behind a rock, or the entire existence of Janerezi in this household. I've learned to stop making jokes.

Then John fucks up with his power of mental association powers and teleports Jack Noir along with Jade to the green sun. Good job, John.

Jade's closure with her traveling companions mostly caps off the messiest part of her 'be honest with your friends' journey, although she still has Dave and Rose to talk to. The next bit is more focused on her working through the way she finds self-worth through being powerful rather than simply being, represented in her Green Sun quest. And that seems like a good place to break for a new post to ME.

[canaryatlaw]

Sigh. I didn't *mean* to stay up this late....although I never really mean to stay up till 4:30 am. Ugh. My room is currently filled with various flies and other bugs which is very irritating so we're gonna have to deal with finding how that's happening tomorrow. But today. The last 24 hours have been pretty nuts and intense, for some reasons I'll share and some I'm going to keep to myself. I could NOT fall asleep last night, and kept tossing and turning because I was sure I took my meds, only when I finally went to take another melatonin around 5 am I discovered I took the meds from the wrong fucking day, which did not include the Xanax I'm now apparently dependent on to fall asleep (and that's fucking wonderful). Even from there it still took a while, I think I finally passed out shortly before 7. Luckily I got to sleep until like 11, so that's something at least. Everyone was pretty much waiting on me so I got ready quickly and threw my stuff together, since we were gonna go to the "downtown" section of the town my cousins live in and go to the airport from there. So we head down there and end up having lunch at this cute little brewery place, I got a kind of curious burger that had shrimp on it but was really good! I appreciated that in the women's bathroom stalls they had a specific note about if you're date isn't going well or you're uncomfortable with who you're with for any reason, go to the bar and order an angel shot and they'll get you out of there safely. That has been floating around the Internet of course, but I very much appreciated them putting it there as I'm sure there are many who don't know. From there we went to some of the little shops and mostly just browsed, looking at the touristy t-shirts and such. I wanted to get a pirate themed sign that says "wenches" for my sister and I to hang out our door but my mom was dead set against it and wouldn't let me 😂 lol. There was one store that had a bunch of funny things and I ended up getting two bumper stickers and two magnets from there, the bumper stickers say "well behaved women rarely make history" which I gave to my sister, and the other says something along the lines of "those who say it can't be need to stop getting in the way of those who are doing it." I couldn't resist the magnets because I knew my roommate would appreciate them, one of them says "Jesus would kick the shit out of you" which is great because that's how I feel about many people who call themselves Christians and then do terrible things to people, and the other has a picture of Trump and it says "days without being a national embarrassment: 0" and I just couldn't resist. From there we made a final stop at a coffee place and then headed to the airport. We said our goodbyes and got through to the gate extremely quickly because the airport is ridiculously tiny, it's literally one hallway with like, 8 gates total lol. Earlier when we were driving my aunt had asked if I was planning on staying in Chicago after law school, and since I made up my mind yesterday that I won't be I said no, and of course my mother was like "this is the first time I'm hearing this" and I was like "yeah well that's because I made the decision yesterday" 😂 lol. But while we were waiting at the gate I mentioned I would really miss my church in Chi more than anything, and she was saying how there are plenty of good ones and I started voicing my objections with many churches which then led to a bit of a political fight and me getting frustrated because she like just doesn't pay attention to anything that's going on and thinks everything is sunshine and rainbows with Trump and I'm just like UGH. But whatever. I'll probably send her news updates now 😂 though idk of she'll read them. Oh well. Got on the plane, and I spend probably a solid half hour defeating the "hard" sudoku puzzle in the back of the airline magazine. I'm out of practice, or it would've been shorter lol but I was still proud of myself for getting it done because there were a few times I thought I was gonna be stumped but I got creative. After that I started a long CC fanfic that had been on my marked for later list but I REALLY wanted to start reading it and it's soooo good so far I just want to read it all the time lol. So I got like 30 pages into that (out of 120) before we landed. Got our bags, then had to take a shuttle to another lot where they were making the cars wait which was irritating, but I guess it's better than the mess it was trying to get through beforehand. Drove home, and are Chinese food with the family. I felt randomly inspired to kick around a soccer ball after, but the soccer ball I had last year had since disappeared, so I ventured into the basement to see if there were any in there. I found 4, two were deflated and two had something else wrong with them that they were like, rock hard, and I swear one of them I bought when I was like six. But I took those two up and tried to play with them, but they did not function as actual soccer balls so I'm gonna have to make a trip to a sports store at some point to remedy that situation. I went back inside after that and decided to watch a movie with my sister, I said she could pick and she chose "the space between us" (I think that's what it's called? Something like that) which I hadn't heard of but was pretty cute, as per usual we only got like halfway through before my sister bailed because she apparently has a very short movie attention span (sigh). We'll finish it tomorrow. I stayed in the back on my laptop for a little bit before joining my dad and brothers in the den, where they were watching an episode of house of cards, which I haven't seen any of but of course recognized Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright from their appearances at the Tonys the other night. After that my brothers bailed, and my dad went to watch where he was up to in season 2 of Supergirl, episode 7. We're watching and they have the scene where Maggie is talking to Alex about still being friends after she initially turned Alex down, and I went to needle my dad about it like "oh aren't you just so mad to see them shoving their gay agenda down your throats???" (totally sarcastic obviously) which then led to a political debate which was endlessly frustrating, but it eventually gave way to a really good conversation about the future and such, and I told him about my decision not to stay in Chi post school and of course he was thrilled, though I made no promises that I'd be returning here the goal is still the job in NYC. I did happen to stumble upon another nonprofit law firm I'd be interested in working for today, except this one is based in California (not an improvement from Chicago). They focus on more than just foster care for broader youth issues including juvenile justice reform, which is definitely something I could get behind. But I really don't want to have to take the California bar exam (you probably don't know this, but it's by FAR the hardest of all the state bars, and the last passing rate was like 49% which is ridiculously low) or really be that far away from everyone when the goal was really to be closer. But I mean, we'll see. Of course my dad immediately starting making his pitch for all the things he has going on here that could draw me back, and I'll admit he did make a compelling case in several aspects. I said that if I did end up out in this general area of Long Island (in a temporary position at least, probably for the government in some capacity) I do not think it would be good for my mental health to move back into this house, which he seemed to understand but said you know we'll deal with that when we get there, so *shrug* I guess we'll see how that works. It's a lot more inconvenient to want such things when you're still asking your parents to finance it because you don't have any money since you're a full time student. But anyway. I also told him something I've been musing on lately, just because it seems like I've been seeing an influx of stories of abuse against children (which it's possible is entirely due to one or two Facebook groups I'm in, but still), especially child deaths, and it's made me want to work as a prosecutor for a crimes against children unit. It's hardly the first time I've considered the idea, I've always said that is the only way I would consider being a prosecutor. But it would be another option at least. But yeah, it was a really good convo and it reminded me why I do love my dad so much, even when his political views frustrate me to no end and I don't think I can ever forgive him for voting for Trump (sigh). But yeah, that's it and it's 5 am now so I REALLY need to get to bed. Goodnight my darlings. I hope you get more sleep than I do.

[celebritylive]

Lindsie Chrisley is ready to leave her family drama in the past.

After months of public feuding, Lindsie has decided that she will no longer publicly discuss the behind-the-scenes drama between herself and the Chrisley clan.

“For all of the people that have been messaging me, just the support for things going on, that I’m going through and the media, I decided yesterday that I’m just not going to talk about it anymore because when you feed negativity, you’re constantly surrounded by negativity,” she says on Wednesday’s episode of her Coffee Convos podcast with Teen Mom 2‘s Kailyn Lowry.

On the episode, during which the co-hosts announce that they will be recording with Teen Mom 2 this upcoming weekend, Lindsie, 30, goes on to explain that she “scrubbed anything that could be negative” from her social media accounts in an effort to create a more positive environment.

“I don’t have anything to prove to anybody other than myself and my kid and my husband. So I’ve just decided not to feed into that anymore,” says Lindsie, who shares 6-year-old son Jackson with husband Will Campbell.

Although the family drama is ongoing, Lindsie only wants the best for her father Todd Chrisley, his wife Julie Chrisley, and her siblings.

RELATED: A Guide to the Chrisley Family, the Reality Stars Currently Embroiled in a Tax Evasion Scandal

“I wish everybody the best. And I think that we all need to move on with our lives in separate directions,” she says. “I pray for them and I’m moving on from that part of my life.”

In August, the tension between Lindsie and her family made headlines after she accused family patriarch Todd, 50, of attempted extortion after he and Julie were indicted by a federal grand jury on Aug. 13 for tax evasion and other financial crimes, which the couple denied.

Lindsie alleged in a Georgia police report, obtained by TMZ in August, that Todd and her brother Chase Chrisley harassed and threatened her over an alleged sex tape. She said in the report, which was filed on July 16, that her two family members “wanted her to lie about an incident and if she refused to do so, they were going to release the sex tape involving her.”

Chase denied his sister’s claims in a statement to PEOPLE at the time, saying, “I love my sister and I don’t understand why she’s doing this to our family. Not only am I heartbroken over these false allegations by my sister — and they are totally false — but so are my parents and the rest of our family.”

RELATED: Lindsie Chrisley Claims Her Dad Todd Chrisley Accused Her of Having an Affair with a Tax Official

Todd also denied his daughter’s claims, but in his denial alleged that Lindise had “extramarital relationships with Robby Hayes and Josh Murray,” who are both alums of The Bachelorette.

“Sadly, for reasons we can only guess at, she ran to the sheriff’s office to accuse her brother of buying a sex tape of her and Robby, which was a complete lie, and now she’s telling more lies about me,” Todd added. “Although our hearts are broken, Lindsie is our daughter and we will always love her.”

In response to Todd’s claims that Lindsie engaged in two extramarital affairs and appeared in a sex tape, her attorney Ghanayem said in a statement to PEOPLE, “Lindsie would like nothing more than to be left alone and go about her own business,” adding, “Unfortunately, certain members of her family will not let her live in peace. We are flabbergasted at the audacity of Todd and Chase Chrisley, who are more focused on attacking my client rather than defending themselves against the allegations of criminal conduct. … Lindsie prays for a just outcome so that she can go forward with her life safe from those who are looking to do her harm.”

Murray, who won Andi Dorfman’s season of The Bachelorette in 2014, said in a statement to Access, “They should probably focus on how not to be imprisoned for 30 years rather than spreading gossip to try and hurt their daughter.“

RELATED: Lindsie Chrisley Posts Loving Photo with Her Husband After Dad Todd Accused Her of Affairs

Earlier this month, she seemingly continued to further squash any rumors about her marriage to Campbell. (Lindsie and Campbell have been married for almost eight years. The couple decided to elope for their January 2012 wedding, which created waves among the Chrisley family, particularly with Todd.)

View this post on Instagram There's a rumor going 'round about me & you Stirring up our little town the last week or two So tell me why we even trying to deny this feeling I feel it, don't you feel it too? There's a rumor going 'round & 'round & 'round What d'you say we make it true? We make it true Oh, we make it true Well I can shut 'em down, tell 'em all they're crazy I can do whatever you want me to do, baby Or you could lay one on me right now We could really give them something to talk about

A post shared by Lindsie Chrisley Campbell (@lindsiechrisley) on Oct 6, 2019 at 5:32pm PDT

//www.instagram.com/embed.js

In an Instagram post, the reality TV star shared a loving photo of herself and husband gazing into each other’s eyes at the North Georgia State Fair.

Sharing part of the lyrics of country star Lee Brice’s “Rumor” as her caption, Lindsie appeared to deny any rumors about the pair’s marriage being in any way fractured.

“There’s a rumor going ’round about me & you Stirring up our little town the last week or two So tell me why we even trying to deny this feeling I feel it, don’t you feel it too? There’s a rumor going ’round & ’round & ’round What d’you say we make it true? We make it true,” she wrote. “Oh, we make it true Well I can shut ’em down, tell ’em all they’re crazy I can do whatever you want me to do, baby Or you could lay one on me right now We could really give them something to talk about

.”

The newest episode of Coffee Convos with Kail Lowry & Lindsie Chrisley Podcast on Wave Podcast Network is available Wednesday, Oct. 23 at 9 p.m. PT.

from PEOPLE.com https://ift.tt/2PfHFAu

[comicteaparty]

November 9th, 2017 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on November 9th, 2017, from 5PM - 7PM PST.  The chat focused on Infected Blood by Infected Blood.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

RebelVampire

Good day everyone~! This week’s Comic Tea Party is now officially beginning. Today we are discussing Infected Blood by Infected Blood~! (https://infectedbloodcomics.com/) For those new to CTP, discussions about the comic are freeform, so please feel free to bring up whatever you wish. However, every 30 minutes I will be dropping in a discussion question to help those who would like a prompt. These questions are totally OPTIONAL to answer so pay them no mind if you wish~! Remember, constructive criticism is allowed, but the primary focus here is to have fun and appreciate the amazing comics that the community makes~! Each chat a top comment will be picked and featured on an ad for this chat, so let’s have a great discussion~!

With that said, let us begin with this first question~!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite scene in the comic so far and why?

Draco Plato

I liked the introductionary pages the best so far, they really allude to the importance of the story about to come

snuffysam

I wouldn't exactly say I "liked" it, but Karen

's death was a big one

really sets the tone of the story

RebelVampire

i really enjoyed how unceremoniously the death occurs too, assuming it is definitely a death. idk how much i trust the pulse checking here. but either way i like how sort of undramatic it was. just a really quick thing which is often how accidental death occurs.

the intro pages were definitely told in an intriguing way

for me im taking the opposite position and putting my chips on the group hanging out together outside. i liked having a dose of happiness

MathTans the Pun Prince

Hiyo. I rather liked when Alex realized that she'd kinda dissed her girlfriend and told the others to stop it and apologized and all.

RebelVampire

yeah although im still torn on how heartfelt i felt the apology was

MathTans the Pun Prince

Yeah, I tend to give the benefit of the doubt.

Infected Blood

hello and thanks for the opportunity to hear your honest opinions on my comic

MathTans the Pun Prince

I'm pretty sure the death was an actual death btw. It would explain the 'Murderer' thing from the prologue, possibly.

Hello author!

snuffysam

There haven't exactly been many scenes so far, but we've gotten a lot of good stuff in that space.

Hi!

MathTans the Pun Prince

Slash artist! (I tend to forget that.)

Infected Blood

Hello Math, snuffy, Rebel

I was planning on having over 30 pages for you by the time this chat would happen, but I had to take an unexpected hiatus, alas

MathTans the Pun Prince

Happens to the best of us. I'm on hiatus too.

Draco Plato

no worries~

snuffysam

It's all good, no worries

Infected Blood

the next couple of pages are really something - spoiler alter We get to see Stephanie's reaction to what's happening

*alert

RebelVampire

i dont think thats too spoilery. more like an enticement.

MathTans the Pun Prince

Yeah, things escalated real quickly.

Infected Blood

Good, then

@MathTans the Pun Prince I don't like beating around the bush. I'm always trying to compress as much as possible in as few pages as possible, but also doing my best to avoid rushing

MathTans the Pun Prince

Nope, that's fine, stuff like that does escalate quickly. Just that's why it takes time to process all the reactions.

Infected Blood

That's true

snuffysam

Yeah, the events after Karen got hit really felt like they were happening in real-time as I read those pages.

Infected Blood

Thanks, @snuffysam That's what I was hoping to convey

MathTans the Pun Prince

Regarding the classroom stuff, speaking as a teacher, I feel like the prof and the priest were portrayed well to start. Like, I didn't get a sense they were evil or anything (despite what I saw some commenters say) until the stress aspect came up. The priest has severe racism issues and rose coloured glasses, while the teacher, uh, needs a lesson in conflict de-escalation.

They seemed like regular folks until push came to shove is what I'm saying.

(Is that good or bad? I dunno, it's an observation.)

Infected Blood

Awesome! Thank you. I taught myself, so I have a it of experience. Maybe that helped

I agree with you, things escalated because of a combination of the teacher's and the priest's personal issues. Neither one was really looking to hurt anyone in the first place

MathTans the Pun Prince

Hah. That's neat. (I'm Canadian too.)

Infected Blood

Oh Canada!

MathTans the Pun Prince

I think at the heart of it is this crazy fear of the AIMS. Be interesting to see how that plays out in the broader society.

Infected Blood

You are very much correct, Math

RebelVampire

so far ive felt that the pacing is just dandy. cause when things go bad, they go bad very quickly

Infected Blood

Rebel, they're going to go even faster and worse

MathTans the Pun Prince

She loses her girlfriend too?

Infected Blood

Well, I can answer that, if people are okay with spoilers

MathTans the Pun Prince

(Don't feel you have to answer direct quesitons btw)

Infected Blood

you will see that exactly in the next page

MathTans the Pun Prince

Remember these get archived and put on the web, so might be better to keep quiet about some things.

Infected Blood

that's fine, my next page goes live on Monday

I don't think I can avoid spoilers much, anyway, since the comic doesn't have these many pages up, yet. It may help stimulate the convo here

MathTans the Pun Prince

I dunno, I read some of the info page stuff too. Also some of the earlier comic.

snuffysam

you'd be surprised...

Infected Blood

Okay, I will keep quiet, then

If you read some of The Green-Eyed Sniper, then you'll know about Sekhmet. That comic was just a pilot for Infected Blood

My way to practice drawing a comic, since it was my very first comic ever

MathTans the Pun Prince

nods Yeah, so part of me being quiet is not being sure if I want to speculate based on what I saw from that.

Infected Blood

And to practice my writing

RebelVampire

spoilers are up to you. weve had chats that are ridden with them, and some creators just hold their tongues on everything. so self choice on that one but as math said these chats do get archived and the chat history is available too so anybody can come by and read it.

Infected Blood

Well, you

Oops, my finger slipped

Thanks, Rebel

You saw Sekhmet carving MURDERER on her chest in the prologue - Karen's death is not why she did it

snuffysam

So is Infected Blood a direct prequel to Green-Eyed Sniper?

Infected Blood

After all, she's completely innocent. She didn't killed Karen, she just dodged the reverend's hit... which hit Karen

MathTans the Pun Prince

She is innocent, yes, but I thought maybe it was a penance that she'd been forced into doing. For her freedom or something.

Infected Blood

No, @snuffysam , it's the other way around

snuffysam

Ah, ok. I didn't read GES, so I didn't get that

MathTans the Pun Prince

I thought "Infected Blood" came first time-wise? Alex is younger.

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince It will be about something she actually did and which is much worse

Yes, Alex is 16 at the beginning of Infected Blood and in her early 30's in GES

MathTans the Pun Prince

Feels like one of those things where "If everybody's going to blame me for doing 'X' whether I did it or not, I might as well just do 'X'."

So "IB" is the prequel then... ne?

snuffysam

I imagine this current scene in school is a flashback, no?

MathTans the Pun Prince

Ohhh, maybe.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 2. The prologue of the comic shows a scene that occurs 5 years after the events happening in the first chapter. In this prologue, there are a number of uniformed people, and it ends with Alex carving “Murderer” into her chest. How do you think this future comes about given current events? What do you think will happen that causes Alex to do such a thing?

snuffysam

^ ^ ^

Infected Blood

It's more like IB is the main comic to a story that I have told only in a tiny little part

Ha. Nice question... @MathTans the Pun Prince already suggested an answer

MathTans the Pun Prince

Well, as I said, I thought Alex was given some sort of penance, like she had to do that to go free. Like a Scarlet Letter kind of deal. (But on the other hand, everyone already seems to know she's an AIMS so... dunno.)

snuffysam

uhh i suppose she kills someone. But it'd have to be someone she feels guilty about (so, not the priest or her teacher). Possibly her girlfriend? Or one of her other friends?

accidentally, i imagine

MathTans the Pun Prince

She kills her favourite potted plant. (j/k)

Infected Blood

Hahaha @MathTans the Pun Prince You never know!

RebelVampire

or maybe she just kills a lot of people and has remorse over it later

Infected Blood

Well, hint hint, she's a soldier and she just got a promotion...

MathTans the Pun Prince

"Congrats on your genocide, have a new rank." "I suck."

Infected Blood

It is said in GES that she's a military officer on the run, wanted for war crimes

That's pretty close to the truth, @MathTans the Pun Prince

MathTans the Pun Prince

I was more reading for the romance in GES.

Infected Blood

There will be romance in IB, too

snuffysam

Alex is already in a relationship, after all.

MathTans the Pun Prince

So, the new hypotheticals are (1) how's she get into the military in the first place, given where she's at now and (2) what group of people does she end up killing.

RebelVampire

im gonna take a theory stab in the dark that is partly influenced by GES knowledge but maybe for this karen incident shes forced to join the military as "punishment" and thats what starts her on her path

MathTans the Pun Prince

I'm guessing (1) might come from being sent to military school or something, away from her friends.

Infected Blood

@snuffysam She is, even if she forgot about it at the very beginning of chapter 1

MathTans the Pun Prince

Oh, I like Rebel's thought too.

Draco Plato

yeah that's a good theory

Infected Blood

Awesome theory, yes!

MathTans the Pun Prince

We know from the priest that she doesn't get along with her parents, but they might not factor into the decision at all.

Infected Blood

We're definitely going to see her parents, too.

snuffysam

Also, she doesn't necessarily have to kill a group of people to get that promotion. It could just be one very important person.

RebelVampire

to be fair, alex is a tough gal so seems like good military recruit material

MathTans the Pun Prince

Maybe there's an AIMS unit to boot.

I wonder how many admit to being of that heritage.

Infected Blood

@snuffysam True, although her country is in perennial war and promotions tend to come for very special performance of duty

@RebelVampire @MathTans the Pun Prince If you read between the lines, Reverend Jones says that AIMS were created as soldiers

snuffysam

How easy is it typically to tell AIMS apart from humans? Are they all as big as Alex?

Infected Blood

And @MathTans the Pun Prince you hit the nail in the head - they have a hard time admitting to being AIMS

RebelVampire

the only thing i read between the lines was the reverend saying plz punch me i am a jerk

Infected Blood

@snuffysam They tend to be rather big, yes. They look like humans, though

MathTans the Pun Prince

Though Jones also said that the records were lost due to politics (a nice touch btw) so the guy could be talking through his hat based on rumour.(edited)

Rebel: Hah. yes.

Infected Blood

@snuffysam But they have an AIMS form that hasn't been revealed fully, yet. The only thing you can see (from GES) is that their eyes become black while their pupils remain the same color

And they get circuits surfacing on their skin

snuffysam

Right, yeah, but they can turn that on and off at will, correct? So that shouldn't affect them trying to hide as humans.

MathTans the Pun Prince

They've got advanced reflexes either way. Alex sensed the attack coming before it reached her. That might make it harder to hide.

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince Jones is referring to a political decision that saved AIMS from being sent to war with no option to opt out

Correct, @snuffysam

MathTans the Pun Prince

Wait, wait, so politicians made a humane decision?! Must be an alternate reality.

Infected Blood

I left hints here and there about AIMS... For example, one cop calls Alex a "good kitten" Big hint about why they have such great relfexes

@MathTans the Pun Prince It was more AIMS who convinced politicians to do so

MathTans the Pun Prince

Now I just want to see her cosplay with cat ears.

snuffysam

Wait, @MathTans the Pun Prince , are you suggesting a if-she-floats-on-water-shes-a-witch test would be used? Shoot a gun at a suspect, and if they die, they weren't an AIMS?

Infected Blood

hahaha

So, another spoiler: AIMS' DNA is impossible to map

MathTans the Pun Prince

Snuffy: If the shoe fits! ... Actually, I wasn't entirely suggesting that. But if they're at SpiderMan-Catching-Mary-Jane's-Lunch levels of reflex, I'd be suspicious.

Infected Blood

if you want to make sure a woman is an AIMS, just try to take some tissue from her and analyze her DNA - it will turn into a blob

MathTans the Pun Prince

What about a man?

snuffysam

AIMS are only female tho

Infected Blood

AIMS are an all-female species only

yep

MathTans the Pun Prince

That's just what they WANT you to think. It's all propaganda!

snuffysam

i mean that would be one way to go about it. disguise yourself as a man. trip up anyone looking for you for a bit.

MathTans the Pun Prince

(Yes, I am silly sometimes.)

RebelVampire

ya know now im really curious if anyone ever tried that, disguising themselves as a man

MathTans the Pun Prince

Huh, interesting point, snuffy. I guess hormone treatments wouldn't work on DNA-Blobbishness though.

RebelVampire

in the story that is

MathTans the Pun Prince

You'd need a cloak and hat.

Infected Blood

There are reasons why AIMS are only females, but that's too many spoilers

MathTans the Pun Prince

Because lesbian power. ^.^

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince That, too, I personally want to have stories with believable lesbian characters

snuffysam

nah, i'm not talking hormone treatments or anything. good old fashioned suit and false mustache.

Infected Blood

So, I tend to prefer to portray them to other characters

@RebelVampire Not in my stories, no

RebelVampire

darn, no fake mustaches :"D

Infected Blood

@snuffysam No mustaches

They only try to pass as humans, which is hard to do

Because humans are very suspicious of any large woman

MathTans the Pun Prince

They have a hard time being racist enough, like Jones.

Infected Blood

So, in Kemet-Ra, any group of big gals is seen as something bad

Even smaller women, by extension

snuffysam

does this world not have a WNBA?

Infected Blood

There are so many rumors around AIMS... the gist of it is that women have a hard time gathering in groups

@snuffysam Yes, and all athletes are tested to prove they're humans

MathTans the Pun Prince

Makes orgies difficult. (I can say that right? The comic is rated mature?)

(Nevermind that I'm immature?)

Infected Blood

Orgies are good

There will be orgies in my comic. No porn, but clear enough

snuffysam

that's a good question though. hey, @RebelVampire , what are the rules for saying mature stuff in these chats? if the comic is rated mature by you, are we good?(edited)

MathTans the Pun Prince

Uhm, we'll fix it in post?

Infected Blood

Hahaha

RebelVampire

nah you can say much mature stuff. im not that heavy on policing language. just uh dont write a full on porn scene in the chat. but you can mention sex and all that jazz.

snuffysam

ok cool

Infected Blood

There, @MathTans the Pun Prince , you won't have to do any editing. And neither will I!

MathTans the Pun Prince

sings songs from "Chicago"

RebelVampire

no thats too mature math. youve gone too far now. XD

MathTans the Pun Prince

Should we all guess at what AIMS stands for next?

snuffysam

i bet that's the 9:00 question

Infected Blood

Anyway, my comic is rated mature not so much because of sex scenes, but because it's supposed to make people feel uncomfortable and, you know, think a bit deeper below the surface(edited)

RebelVampire

Artificial Interesting Mysterious Stuff

snuffysam

also, all the blood

MathTans the Pun Prince

Autonomic Inhuman Matriarch Specialist

Infected Blood

Nice one, @RebelVampire !

Hahaha

RebelVampire

i might have given up after artificial O_O

Infected Blood

I can't reveal what the acronym means, but these are cool guesses

snuffysam

Artificial Its Mbig Sperson

Infected Blood

@snuffysam The blood is definitely not infected!

No matter what humans claim

MathTans the Pun Prince

Amphibious Intergalactic Mystery Superhuman.

Or not.

Infected Blood

Spoiler spoiler spoiler... AIMS have nothing in common with humans. Zero

RebelVampire

Artificially Infused Master Soldier

Infected Blood

Except for looking like them

MathTans the Pun Prince

Oooh, I like that Rebel

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire Infused with what?

RebelVampire

i have no idea XD

MathTans the Pun Prince

Artificial Sweetener.

RebelVampire

thats the only I word that came ot mind XD

Infected Blood

hahaha

snuffysam

I feel like, from the information we know, they're sort of cat-robots? That look like people?

Infected Blood

I need to set up an extra page to tell the history of AIMS

snuffysam

Not sure what the acronym has to do with that though

Infected Blood

@snuffysam Very close, congrats!

RebelVampire

A cat robot I aM Surely

there we go

MathTans the Pun Prince

Anthropomorphic Identities Meowing Sometimes.

RebelVampire

made it work

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire

Mat

RebelVampire

QUESTION 3. Insofar, the story has dealt with very heavy themes of speciesism. In the most recent page, it’s shown the title itself alludes to the inherent prejudice against AIMS. Where do you think this hatred for AIMS comes from? Was it started by someone with malicious intent? Was it a misunderstanding that spiraled out of control? Or, do you think it was something else entirely? Are there any other related theories you have about this theme or AIMS in general?

Infected Blood

gets popcorn

snuffysam

I feel like AIMS were created as artificial supersoldiers... and people got scared because there are giant supersoldiers walking around? kind of ruins the themes though, because thats not how bigotry irl works

Infected Blood

@snuffysam Right, it didn't work that way

MathTans the Pun Prince

Well... not to make this politicial, but there's a lot of hate for particular backgrounds by some individuals out there even in the present. I feel like it could come from some of that, a misguided feeling that AIMS were taking jobs when they were no longer being used for war, or maybe a couple of them went rogue into terrorism and so all of them are bearing the brunt of it.

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince Closer(edited)

MathTans the Pun Prince

Aha, gotcha.(edited)

No need to confirm or deny, of course.

Infected Blood

Minor spoiler: Jones's religion sees AIMS as abominations (he calls Alex that, too)

snuffysam

or maybe the thought that because AIMS are artificial, they don't deserve to integrate into society at all? like, sort of the "it's unnatural" crowd starting that up?(edited)

yeah that

MathTans the Pun Prince

They might have just been politicized for the gain of an election or something.

Oh maybe.

RebelVampire

id assume it was a complicated combo of everything. AIMS being super soldiers (thus fear), AIMS taking jobs or something, AIMS being artificial

MathTans the Pun Prince

That whole thing with attacking the Pope because of acting out a Dan Brown novel, as you do.

Infected Blood

Let's say there are a lot pf politics in the mix

RebelVampire

although i assume regardless of origin the prejudice is perpetuated by rumors as fuel

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire Close

MathTans the Pun Prince

I wonder what the percentage of them in the population is.

Might be less than people believe.

Infected Blood

That is a great question, @MathTans the Pun Prince The number is currently unknown

Which makes for even more fear

RebelVampire

are there AIMS who are prejudice against humans?

MathTans the Pun Prince

I would imagine some get driven into it.

What are their goals? Or put another way, what are their AIMS?

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire Yes! Alex is actually pretty good toward humans, but there will be another AIMS (can't spoiler) who really hates them

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince

Their goals is to simply have a regular life

snuffysam

something interesting regarding the priest's bigotry- all the stereotypes were pretty much true when applied to Alex. but... it would also work if Alex's personality was completely different. he'd just use different stereotypes. e.g. "you're super docile- that proves AIMS were meant to be obedient servants" that's the thing about bigotry, i suppose. bigots will say whatever it takes to justify themselves.

RebelVampire

math i get the impression you feel the need to earn your pun prince title every chat O_O

MathTans the Pun Prince

Yeah, good point snuffy. They pick whatever truths they need to fit their narrative.

Rebel: It just comes out naturally, I swear.

Infected Blood

@snuffysam Alex is not exactly a good person. She's emotionally oblivious, as you could see with Stephanie

MathTans the Pun Prince

(I'm not even sure who gave me the title...)

Infected Blood

But yes, her personality is just what it is. The real issue is that... everyone knows she's an AIMS, which is rare

Since AIMS tend to live in hiding

MathTans the Pun Prince

Yeah, that was an interesting risk btw. Going with a protagonist who's rough around the edges. (I've tried it myself, it can be a turnoff for some.) I think it was good that she backpedalled a bit with her girlfriend, so she still could get some sympathy points.

Infected Blood

I can't spoiler why everyone knows she's an AIMS - you will find out later in the comic

@MathTans the Pun Prince Thanks, that's going to be a challenge, indeed

MathTans the Pun Prince

Huh. I figured it was an inherited thing.

Like, either her parents were carriers, or did it deliberately or something.

snuffysam

wait, carrier of what?

MathTans the Pun Prince

Of DNA Mushiness.

Infected Blood

Can't spoiler, sorry

snuffysam

i... can a human have an AIMS child? their species isn't similar at all

MathTans the Pun Prince

Not by accident I would imagine.

Infected Blood

They can't, @snuffysam

MathTans the Pun Prince

But yeah, I dunno.

(Word of God has spoken.)

Infected Blood

Yikes, I need to rein in more spoilers

MathTans the Pun Prince

So how do they have parents?

Adoption?

Infected Blood

takes her hands off the keyboard

You will find out in a few pages, that's all I can say

snuffysam

i mean sure, her parents probably adopted her, but Alex physically had to come from somewhere

MathTans the Pun Prince

The hands off the keyboard thing didn't last too long there...

That's why the "I" in AIMS stands for "Interstellar". Alex was fighting in an Alien War.

Infected Blood

At least they came back without spoilers (edited)

hahaha No aliens, sorry

MathTans the Pun Prince

She's actually from Venus. Hence the girl love.

Infected Blood

Her species was created in a cold lab in Kemet-Ra!

But she was born at a regular hospital

MathTans the Pun Prince

(For a moment I read "Kermit Ra" and thought she was a muppet...)

Infected Blood

hahaha

Kemet is the original (Middle) Egyptian word for "Egypt"

Ra is the Egyptian Sun God

MathTans the Pun Prince

That reminds me, interesting having the hyroglyph words in there. Adds an, I don't know, futuristic sort of feel. Like slang terms that don't exist yet.

snuffysam

are there any straight AIMS? or are they all lesbians?

Infected Blood

Thanks! I studied Middle Egyptian for a couple of years, so they actually mean something

There are straight AIMS.

MathTans the Pun Prince

Oooh, when learning languages comes in handy.

Infected Blood

Most of them are

@MathTans the Pun Prince Yep!

MathTans the Pun Prince

They're not playing gayAIMS.

Toranekohybrid

with your heart

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire and anyone else who've read GES - So far, do you have a preference over one comic or the other?

Hello @Toranekohybrid

Am I even allowed to ask questions?

Toranekohybrid

Hai, sorry, I couldn't help but finish the song lyric I saw in that statement. |D

MathTans the Pun Prince

You can totes ask questions!

Infected Blood

Thanks, @MathTans the Pun Prince

snuffysam

what was that? i couldn't read that sentence after you said hello to toranekohybrid

jk

RebelVampire

you can ask questions, thats fine

omg LOL

man

that joke almost went over my head cause ive had less than an hour of sleep

Infected Blood

Yikes

snuffysam

lol ok

MathTans the Pun Prince

For me, it's a little tough to choose, because they're rather different. IB has more of an ensemble cast and is buiding to something. GES (from what I read) is more of an intimate thing with more of a mercenary thing to boot.

I caught it.

RebelVampire

anyway question......ummm rn GES but if only because GES has more story to it and is done. i think Infected Blood will overtake that long term

Infected Blood

Thanks @MathTans the Pun Prince I realize IB is much shorter and... well, it will last years, as you an probably tell

MathTans the Pun Prince

I like the more intimiate nature, because that's the sort of personality I have. But I also like the broader world building of IB.

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire I won't abandon GES! I will just catch up to it

@MathTans the Pun Prince There will be a lot of intimate stuff in IB, I promise

snuffysam

so GES is still going to be canon within IB?

Infected Blood

Only up to a point, @snuffysam

MathTans the Pun Prince

I won't lie, the suicidal nature thing kind of speaks to me too. For reasons. It'll be interesting to see how that comes about in IB, but also interesting to see how it plays out with GES.

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince I can relate to that

MathTans the Pun Prince

Take care of yourself. ^.^

Infected Blood

Oh, I'm a very happy person, now

Thanks!

MathTans the Pun Prince

That's good. The hiatus occurred to me was all.

Infected Blood

That's also why I can write this stuff without drowning in it

Take good care of yourself, too, @MathTans the Pun Prince

MathTans the Pun Prince

Working on it, thanks.

Superjustin of Time and Space

Oh snap we doing a CTP?

MathTans the Pun Prince

SJB, your time and space is out of alignment again. ^.^

Infected Blood

Hello @Superjustin of Time and Space

Superjustin of Time and Space

Hi there Infected!

RebelVampire

QUESTION 4. The comic has presented numerous conflicts that involve other characters, from Alex and Stephanie’s relationship to Karen’s potential death. Do you think these conflicts will be addressed in the future? If so, how do you think they’ll be resolved? Are there any characters you’d like to see more? What other predictions or desires do you have for the story at large?

Infected Blood

You missed all the spoilers! And we edited all of them, so now they're gone

Superjustin of Time and Space

lolol

Infected Blood

grabs more popcorn

Superjustin of Time and Space

My bad for hopping in so late

MathTans the Pun Prince

Pretty sure the relationship thing will need to be dealt with. I have the suspicion that we won't see much of this particular classroom setting for long, if nothing else because the teacher doesn't seem like he'll be calm enough to ever have Alex back in his class.

snuffysam

gee i sure hope those conflicts will be addressed. it would really suck if this flashback that's happening abruptly ended here and was never brought up again.

RebelVampire

nah thats ok SJB, never too late to join (edited)

Infected Blood

While you're getting into conspiracy theories, let me just say that I am sorry I had to pull IB out of StartFaire, but I'm overwhelmed with my regular job, so I couldn't keep up. I'd go back, if I could. If I could pass the selection, that is

MathTans the Pun Prince

It could be that Stephanie leaves Alex once she hears about Karen. That could be dealt with without even having her there.

Infected Blood

And if I had time to catch up

Not to worry... I don't leave conflicts hanging

RebelVampire

@Infected Blood nah thats cool we totally get it. sometimes real life gets in the way and you gotta prioritize.

MathTans the Pun Prince

I almost want to see more of Jones. Just so that he's kicked around a bit more, the jerk. (They're in the future, his back could be healed for all we know.)

RebelVampire

i feel like stephanie would leave just because i remember them mentioning her father was a speciesist or something

Infected Blood

Jones is one of those characters you love to hate - so said a reader

Superjustin of Time and Space

lol

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire Steph's family will definitely have an influence on her decisions

Superjustin of Time and Space

Sorry if I don't contribute anything meaningfull to the chat, kinda don't bother really to binge-read the comics announced for CTP ^^;

MathTans the Pun Prince

Actually, one thing I'd kind of like to see is a sympathetic adult character. Like maybe a principal who wants to help but his hands are tied or something. Could just be my profession talking, so far the education system has looked terrible.

Superjustin of Time and Space

(I will say though this comic has an intresting art style and plot direction at first glance)

MathTans the Pun Prince

Could just be the school.

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince Understandable! there will be someone of that sort. But the school system and the entire country are plain awful

MathTans the Pun Prince

The art is unique. It's got that sort of realism look going for it.

Superjustin of Time and Space

Like a half realistic half american comic vibe?

Infected Blood

Thanks, @Superjustin of Time and Space It's less than 30 pages, if you feel like binge-reading

MathTans the Pun Prince

I mean, Alex had to get into the school somehow, there must be someone on her side. Maybe.

Superjustin of Time and Space

lol thanks

MathTans the Pun Prince

I guess? I don't know comics as well as I do writing.

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince My art is unique, because I have no training!

MathTans the Pun Prince

Heh, me neither.

Infected Blood

Took like 4 courses, most of them in how to do comics

MathTans the Pun Prince

I noticed you said you transitioned to doing it on computer.

Infected Blood

I didn't feel like dealing with an artist, so I decided to draw my own comics

Yes, just last week

MathTans the Pun Prince

Kudos. Easier for you that way?

(I hand draw all my stuff, so curious.)

Infected Blood

I used to do everything traditionally, except for coloring

Superjustin of Time and Space

I mostly do everything digital now

though I know this doesn't pretain to me so

Infected Blood

It's easier just because I got a Cintiq, so I can draw directly on it, without looking at a separate screen

So, I'm definitely going fully digital, now. Saves time and, in the long run, money

Superjustin of Time and Space

yeah

It definitely saved me a lot

as well

Infected Blood

Anyway, I hope you want to see more AIMS, because Alex is not the only one There will be another AIMS character coming in in the next chapter

MathTans the Pun Prince

Back on the predictions side of things... yeah, it'll be good to see more.

Superjustin of Time and Space

I'd be scared to see how much money you'd be using if you illustrated th ebook using copic markers

Infected Blood

She's going to be... very controversial

MathTans the Pun Prince

I wonder if there's a secret society.

Infected Blood

Let's say not everyone hates AIMS @MathTans the Pun Prince

MathTans the Pun Prince

Here's a random thought. Do AIMS menstruate?

Infected Blood

Sure thing they do

RebelVampire

yeah i definitely want to see more AIMS if partly cause i feel its needed to flesh out the world more anyway ;3; im interested to see more of the world in general but thats just personal preference cause im very into world building

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire You'll see plenty of world building! That's just a tiny fraction, so far

MathTans the Pun Prince

So does that mean they can get pregnant? But only to have another AIMS I suppose... unless it would be a half breed?

Superjustin of Time and Space

World building is always good~

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince I asked a biologist friend of mine for help defining AIMS' biology. I wanted something realistic, even if sci-fi

MathTans the Pun Prince

Oh, hey, much kudos on the research there then.

Infected Blood

They can get pregnant, yes, but not like the Asari

snuffysam

Alex was apparently born in a hospital. AKA someone gave birth to her.

RebelVampire

you mean therell be no embracing of eternity O_O what

Infected Blood

Thanks, @MathTans the Pun Prince

hahaha @RebelVampire

Correct, @snuffysam !

MathTans the Pun Prince

So they don't turn blue.

Infected Blood

Nope

The AIMS page will be long!...

So many details

MathTans the Pun Prince

It would be hard to blend in as a smurf.

Infected Blood

I like reference pages. They help avoid giving too many details in the comic about world building

snuffysam

now, there are a few more specifics that aren't yet covered. Like, Alex's mother was definitely an AIMS. Does she have a second mother? Do AIMS reproduce asexually? Or is she a cross-breed (with an entirely different species that has no genetic similarities to AIMS)

Infected Blood

They're too big, @MathTans the Pun Prince

MathTans the Pun Prince

You might want an index page, by the way. So it's easier to jump to Page 11 or something if you want to.

(It could exist, and I'm not observant.)(edited)

Infected Blood

@MathTans the Pun Prince I am in the process of redoing my website. Hard to do, in a way, because WordPress.com has limitations, but I will do that

I had it for GES, it's not hard to do, just takes time

@snuffysam Now, THOSE are very good questions!

MathTans the Pun Prince

True that.

Infected Blood

All I can say, @snuffysam , is that there are cross-breeds inside AIMS

MathTans the Pun Prince

Now I'm picturing AIMS breeding with cats.

Infected Blood

But not outside

That's not going to happen, @Math

MathTans the Pun Prince

The orgies will be normal orgies, okay.

Infected Blood

All will be revealed soon... in the next few pages

MathTans the Pun Prince

...when the clothes come off...

Infected Blood

The orgies will be between humans and AIMS, for sure

RebelVampire

i feel like cross-breeding opens up quite a few social issues. like how ppl generally view them and such.

MathTans the Pun Prince

Yeah, maybe there's even other breeds out there aside from humans and AIMS? Ones that were less successful, or maybe better hidden?

Infected Blood

@RebelVampire AIMS' creators did not want cross-breeding

MathTans the Pun Prince

Breeding with a cross is painful.

Infected Blood

Every newborn stays inside each species

I'm sure it is, just look at... stops there

MathTans the Pun Prince

Just ask Jones.

Infected Blood

Jones is actually enjoying his injury, in a way

MathTans the Pun Prince

The stick up his ass?

Infected Blood

I can spoiler that: he will use it as a godly weapon(edited)

His back is broken

MathTans the Pun Prince

That too.

Infected Blood

But his back being broken brings him closer to god...

MathTans the Pun Prince

So, I wonder what kind of weapons there are in this future? Tasers don't seem to work too well, have they developed other things?

(Flying cars?)

(Those might be an interesting weapon if you drop one on somebody.)

Infected Blood

Sure. Regular guns are still used, but there are other weapons that are gaining popularity, especially among criminals. Like lasers

The military has the most interesting weapons, but spoilers, so...

All I can say is that this story is set in the future, but not so much ahead of our time(edited)

MathTans the Pun Prince

"Where's the stun setting?" "...stun?"

Also, with the Egyptian, is that the region of the world where it takes place?

Infected Blood

Space has been colonized at a very minimum, for instance

@MathTans the Pun Prince Kemet-Ra is a country in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean

MathTans the Pun Prince

(I knew there were Aliens.)

Doesn't sound like a great tourist destination.

Infected Blood

It's like a very large platform, floating there, moving to avoid hurricanes, for example

MathTans the Pun Prince

Interesting though.

Infected Blood

Or invasions... or even immigrants. There is virtually no immigration, there

MathTans the Pun Prince

That makes it even harder to hide out. I wonder how Alex ended up there.

Infected Blood

She was born there, @MathTans the Pun Prince

RebelVampire

hmm makes me wonder how large their population is tho in general

MathTans the Pun Prince

Huh. And she hasn't tried to leave? (I suppose you need funds for that.)

Infected Blood

It's about 30 million people, @RebelVampire

MathTans the Pun Prince

VERY large platform. It's own country.

Infected Blood

Where would she go to? It's war everywhere else, except for a small number of countries

Yes, huge one, @MathTans the Pun Prince

MathTans the Pun Prince

Space? ^.^

RebelVampire

dang thats a lot of ppl. that must be one huge platform

Infected Blood

It's not common to go to space, @MathTans the Pun Prince

MathTans the Pun Prince

Canada?

Infected Blood

Hahaha @MathTans the Pun Prince

Yes, it's enormous, @RebelVampire

And it has interesting quirks...

MathTans the Pun Prince

Well, here's hoping Alex doesn't get too beaten up over things that aren't her fault.

Infected Blood

For example, when a hurricane comes and it's not too dangerous, Kemet-Ra raises a barrier so that people can see the hurricane passing over their heads without incident(edited)

RebelVampire

Unfortunately, the scheduled Comic Tea Party is now complete~! Thank you everyone so much for joining this week’s chat~! That being said, if you would like to continue discussing the comic, we encourage you to do so~! We want to give a big thank you to Infected Blood, as well, for volunteering Infected Blood for our reading queue. If you liked the comic, please be sure to support Infected Blood’s efforts. If you have questions, concerns, or suggestions about CTP, please feel free to PM me, or e-mail me at RebelVampire@startfaire.com.

With that said, next week’s Comic Tea Party will focus on Ovum by Fervorcraft (“The Schilderich” and “Vanja Bajohr”). Also, please note that this comic is on the more mature side. Please use this week to read as much of the comic as you would like. Hope to see you next Thursday (November 16th) from 5PM to 7PM PST~! Until then~! Comic: https://tapas.io/series/Ovum