#which i both like more than 2x03 actually

[adhd-merlin]

*based on my observations and my subjective opinion!! don't come at me with data. unpopular episodes I don't like did not qualify (4x08 I'm looking at you).

[asneakyfox]

so let's talk about david jenkins saying the idea was that the crew would dump ed overboard in the mutiny before the writers changed their minds and had him kept in the hold.

he says they changed this for pacing reasons, so that the reunion could happen in 2x03 instead of being delayed longer, and i cannot argue with that, waiting any longer sounds excruciating. so i'm not complaining about this as, like, villainous interference from the WBD suits or anything, although it might be a decision forced by cutting the number of episodes. probably still the right call under the circumstances. BUT i'm interested in it because this explains a couple things that are weird about the plot structure of the whole season as it stands.

so first of all the crew throwing the body overboard just immediately makes a lot more sense because it doesn't actually require them to have failed to notice he wasn't dead. it would be pretty tough to carry the body into the hold and lay him out and cover his face with a lil washcloth and everything and not notice at any point during this that he's still breathing or that he has a pulse. and if they did notice you'd think they'd either finish the job quickly or try to treat him if they'd had a change of heart, not leave him to die slow. however the idea that they would beat him till he stopped moving then immediately chuck the body overboard, that totally makes sense, you wouldn't stop to check if he was already dead or not because one way or another he will be pretty shortly after you dump him in the ocean.

second the line from stede to izzy about "you were the one who kept his body onboard" always bugged me because it feels like it's meant to establish something about izzy but it's really unclear WHAT it tells us about him, in a way that doesn't seem like intentional ambiguity: i've seen people interpret it as a sign of his devotion and i've seen others assume it was a practical decision that the crew should keep ed's body around to claim the bounty on blackbeard. (and i've seen both interpretations from people both in and out of the canyon, so it's not even a normal izcourse divide.) i actually wondered at one point if the purpose was to foreshadow where izzy's arc is going to end by establishing that he thinks it's more respectful to bury a pirate on land than at sea, although if that was the idea it sure didn't work on the people who'd care most.

however this new info from djenks explains it pretty neatly, which is that the reason for the line isn't to establish character stuff about izzy at all it's just there to awkwardly patch a plothole. it's that someone in the writers' room was like "but it doesn't make any sense, why WOULDN'T they dump his body overboard once they'd killed him" and somebody else was like "idk uh maybe we can put in a line about how izzy stopped them or something."

now more interestingly! this also would change something bigger about 2x04. because i'm guessing the idea here would be that ed would have actually for real washed up on an island that looks just like the one in the gravy basket and just never actually gotten up off the beach, and stede would find him there, mermaid scene, and ed would wake up mad and storm off into the woods with where he meets mary read with stede already trying to follow him and the rest of the episode proceeds as normal from there. (and probably buttons would be just, like, hanging around following stede, or maybe he was already acting as a psychopomp and led stede to ed's body, idk, lots of possible ways to play that.)

this means you completely lose the beat of the crew voting ed off the ship. you wouldn't lose the idea of the crew being pissed at him; you could still have the kitty collar onesie probation stuff after he got back. but this is a BIG change.

first of all it solves a big obvious problem LOTS of people pointed out immediately when the episode aired which is that it makes no sense that stede would just stay on the ship after letting ed be exiled. reuniting with ed has been his driving goal for months and it's not even like ed has definitively told him to fuck off, he's just stomping off angry and incoherent and not even clearly in his right mind. but they couldn't let stede actually follow ed on his own initiative immediately, because it would undermine the later fisherman breakup if stede has already established that he's willing to leave his pirate career behind if that's what it takes to be with ed. so you end up with this awkward beat where he's just kind of passively standing there until buttons tells him what to do.

i think there's something even more important it does though! one criticism a LOT of people had about s2 was feeling like the crew all hated ed now and there was no clear sign they'd forgiven him by the end, and also some people had the impression that stede had just overriden the crew's decision (even though he does say he's going to ask their permission; it DOES feel weird we don't see that). now i've said before that i think there was probably going to be a reconciliation between ed & lucius, and by extension the crew as a whole, in the lupete wedding verision of 2x06, and i still think that. but regardless of whether i'm right or wrong about that. even without a reconciliation, this would seem like WAY less of a problem if the crew hadn't voted ed of the ship.

as it is, we have THREE scenes devoted to the idea that the crew as a whole (not just lucius & izzy, who both have more complicated individual relationships with ed) are uncomfortable with ed's presence on the ship - there's the initial one where stede's holding the meat on his face where they're all yelling at him, and then there's the actual walk of shame where they've just voted him off, and THEN there's the youtube apology scene where they're heckling him and stuff. and having three separate scenes like that makes it feel like the narrative is really hammering in this idea of a big dramatic rupture in the whole crew's relationship with ed. but only the last of those scenes was originally supposed to be there! the first two were just thrown into the plot to justify why ed ends up wandering around an island to run into anne & mary! if you only had the youtube apology scene, it would be much more clear that most of the crew weren't really all that mad - as it is, roach and jim explicitly saying they aren't mad feels like it's overshadowed by the weight of the earlier scenes.

(also a minor issue, but i've mentioned before that surprisingly often people think the vote was unanimous. this doesn't actually make sense in terms of the episode, because we know it was deadlocked and izzy cast the tiebreaker. but it is sort of weird, if the idea is that the crew is split on this, that we never get any sign of who voted which way; there's nobody but stede who is clearly presented as specifically not wanting ed to be exiled. which DOES end up making it feel like it's the crew as a unanimous block that wants him off the ship. but that makes sense if the whole concept of the crew wanting him exiled was sort of hastily written to patch a plot hole instead of being a fully developed idea.)

anyway. like i said i can't really complain about this as a pacing decision. but it is really interesting to me how many knock-on problems with the whole arc of the season were created by the change, and how much cleaner the original idea sounds like it would have been.

[phantomoftheorpheum]

School Spirits Season 2 (episodes 1-3) liveblog/thoughts

**Spoilers for School Spirits Seasons 1 and 2x01-2x03

note: so last season I wrote up a lot of really detailed timeline stuff as I watched, and I don't think I'm going to do that this season, because 1. it's not a murder mystery anymore and 2. since a lot of the "mystery" elements of last season didn't tie back to Maddie at all, I can't expect all the little details to necessarily come together for the main plot. There are a couple of loose threads from that which I will keep an eye out for (honestly, I think they're just accidental loose threads), but my approach this season is more just ~vibes~

2x01

ROFL I completely forget Xavier got hit by a car at the end of season 1, like it completely slipped my mind. I possibly should have done a rewatch leading up to this, but I didn't and I'm here now, so I'm gonna go with it. I am watching the recap, though.

First question remains the same- what does Mr. Martin want? He tells Janet "the only way out is to go back in" and tells her that she needs to "go in deeper" which she does not want to do. He later tells Maddie that he wishes he had never pursued "this," though we know we can't trust him, so who knows if he actually has regrets or not. However, the fact that he runs from Maddie (and vanishes to who knows where?) suggests to me that he is genuinely afraid of something. If he were completely in control, I don't see why he would run away, what are the ghosts going to do him? Kill him?

Okay, Simon, my boy, please think clearly. Maddie literally gave you information that would have been impossible for you to have otherwise. The only reason you even found out Claire was involved in the blackmail was because of this stuff.

Lots of setup, some refreshers for the start of the season, fairly standard for a season opener. The budget feels higher already.

Unsurprisingly, it looks like Janet's past is going to play a big role in the season. Her dad seems like he sucks. I guess my immediate question is- are we getting all this backstory because it's emotionally relevant to Janet's storyline, or are we getting all this backstory because there's going to be a big plot element around it? When Janet goes to the graveyard, we see her grandmother's and her father's grave. Are those characters still in play as ghosts?

So far it does seem like the ghost characters are going to get the majority of the emotional weight. Rhonda, Charley, and Wally all already feel like they've been set up for some character development, while Nicole, Claire, and Xavier (until the end) don't have particularly clear set up for anything. Simon and Maddie have always been central, so no surprises there.

Okay, tbh, I did not think the car hitting Xavier looked that bad, but I'm going to assume he suffered a head injury or like that thing where if you get hit really hard at just the wrong moment it stops your heart, or something like that until told otherwise, because otherwise I can't figure out why he literally died for a minute.

So, my big question for the end of episode 1 is- how will this tie Xavier to the ghost world? Will he be able to see ghosts now? (I can see them not wanting to do this because Simon being the only person who can see Maddie is portrayed so heavily as a special bond, but also linking Xavier to the supernatural seems like the obvious reason they would kill him briefly, so....) Maybe it's just to get him onboard with everything because Claire is clearly not going to buy this story and Nicole seems pretty skeptical, too. I guess I'll just have to keep watching to find out.

Also seems important to mention that Janet is clearly pretty messed up from both what she's been through (and possibly her life before her death) and she appears to have been locked in a basement for like a year and I didn't miss all of that, I just don't have much commentary for it other than- I can't blame her.

2x02

Okay, so far it does feel like Xavier's brush with death is mainly to get him to be more open to everything, but I think it would be cool if he has some sort of lingering supernatural effects of the experience. Having a character die and then be brought back feels like the sort of thing that majorly changes them. If this weren't a supernatural story, I would assume that would be emotional/metaphorical change, but this show is about ghosts, so I'm kind of expecting something more than that.

I hate to say it, because I adore Wally and I hate love triangles, but it's making me itchy to watch all the Simon/Maddie/Wally scenes where Wally very clearly feels threatened. It's not there for no reason.

New additions to the cast, Yuri and Quinn. I wonder why Yuri never thought it was odd that Janet could make permanent stuff? Does he also have that skill? Because if not, surely he would notice that his stuff resets and (at least some) hers doesn't? I do like Yuri so far, though. I'm about halfway through the ep, don't feel like I know much about Quinn yet.

So we now know Janet's dad definitely sucked a lot. With that confirmed, and with the scene of Janet hiding under the stairs (as Maddie) with the person going up and down, do we think that's her father's ghost? (It wouldn't surprise me at all if Janet sees ghosts even though she's technically alive now). And... How did he die? did she (or her grandmother) kill him?

Xavier, my dude, I know I was tough on you last season, but cheating on Maddie does not mean you deserved to be hit and killed by a car.

Mr. Martin is engaged? (well, was) Interesting.

I hope someone realizes how triggering the Mr. Martin & Janet stuff clearly is for Rhonda. Obviously (so far) in the flashbacks we aren't getting the impression that it's an exact reflection of Rhonda's experiences, but close enough.

Okay, I wasn't expecting the Wally conflict to directly come up so soon, but I hope this at least means that we'll get some happy-go-lucky glimpses of him this season because it's one of my favorite elements of his character and (as Maddie basically called out) it's been very lowkey recently. I understand why he's upset/struggling, I like the layers, I just hope that's not the only side we see of him this season.

Alright, they just said Xaiver has a concussion. I'm no MD, but I did do some sports medicine training (unfortunately saw my fair share of concussions, including a couple that required ambulances, paramedics, and a trip to the hospital) and I do not think if you actually almost died of a head injury that anyone would let you back in school like the next day, even if you aren't expected in class. The lights alone would be problematic. But that's probably just me nitpicking.

So what you're telling me is Yuri saw a ghost with extra abilities and he was just like "eh 🤷‍♂️"? honestly, kinda valid. I'm glad Charley is addressing that.

I just had a thought that probably won't happen, but could be interesting, since Simon & Xavier are headed to the house that Janet is burning down, is it possible that Xavier will see Janet (Maddie) as Janet and not as Maddie? That would be an interesting effect of his death that's different from Simon's ability to talk to Maddie's ghost. I don't know how it would be helpful, but it could be cool.

Also was I right and Janet's father's ghost was actually there, or was she just imagining/remembering him? Clearly we don't know the extent of her abilities, or how the other ghosts factor in, but considering Janet's love of science and all the documentation, it would follow that she was running different experiments and she needed a bunch of different test subjects to do so. The big question being- what negative effects did she know/assume this had on them, because if it didn't have any, there would be no reason to hide it and they might do it voluntarily (they have very little to lose). Is it just that she was actively keeping them from crossing over? It seems like it would be something worse than that.

Mr. Martin is afraid of something "bigger," so clocked that. I do have an idea of what the red light means from the trailer, so not going to pretend to be super confused or speculate a lot, but not gonna explicitly say here because in case people haven't seen the trailer that addresses this.

2x03

So... do we think Claire is going to get an actual storyline, or?

Ah, there's some Wally lightness I was looking for.

Just got to the scene with Nicole's brother who I do not believe existed last season & I could be wrong, but he very much feels like a character that's been introduced to provide Claire with a new love interest and I am questioning if this would have absolutely anything to do with the central plot.

Janet's quite possibly a genius, but also she managed to leave her bag in a bathroom and lose all the money she stole, so brains aren't everything. I can't even laugh at her because I left my purse in a public bathroom a few months ago and didn't realize until I had driven an hour and half away and then had to drive an hour and half back (luckily it had been turned in) and then an hour and half the other way again.

I didn't realize I wanted more Xavier & Simon detective squad scenes until just now, but I do. I think they're really funny together, the actors bounce really well off of each other.

Okay, wait, wait, I immediately take back what I said about Nicole's brother because Janet's just been offered a ride to a college, and they just told us five minutes ago that Diego is in college, so what are the odds on "Diego sees his sister's missing best friend"? High, I'm guessing.

Well. That happened a lot faster than I was expecting it to, but okay. lol.

Can someone explain to me how the hell is Mr. Anderson is not in jail?? Stealing that much money is definitely a felony.

I can't tell if we're setting Nicole and Xavier up for a legit romance or just absolute horror and hilarity, like right now I could honestly see it going either way.

I just had to pause for like ten minutes from the secondhand embarrassment of the Wally/Janet scene. I know that's not the important part of that, but omg.

I don't understand how everyone else thought what Rhonda relayed about the party made Janet look bad instead of Mr. Martin. She literally says "no more experiments" and it seems like she wanted to give back the objects taken from the other ghosts, and I don't really get why Rhonda had to spell that out for everyone, like exercise some common sense my guys. I'm not saying that I fully buy that Mr. Martin is the ultimate evil (the man is scared of something) or that Janet is the ultimate good (setting aside the whole "stealing Maddie's body" thing, she was willing to kill Xavier with a car, so not a paragon of good morals, but still), just that I don't get what they missed about Rhonda's story to see Janet as the bad guy there.

I'm back to "Diego exists as a character solely for Claire" even though they technically used him for the plot briefly.

How did five of you lose Janet? She was literally right there.

So is it (the "hellscapes" so to speak) like a "you have to confront your death before you can move past it" kinda thing, or??

Unexpected MVP dynamic Simon & Xavier! But also Xavier should not be driving either and the girls really should have dropped both him and Simon off.

I'm not sure where Janet falls on a morality scale, but approaching Maddie's mom is rough if she doesn't intend to try to give Maddie's body back, because she has been through enough and like... oof.

It took me several hours to get through these episodes because this show has the misfortune of being on the most buggy streaming platform of all time, so my brain is tired at this point. I'll start a new post if I have any additional thoughts.

[raayllum]

Ezran trailer analysis time

Specifically that one vision he has of his parents because it was framed differently than I'd expected, and I think it's all the more interesting for it, so let's talk about it.

Beyond being utterly gut wrenching, I think the framing of this scene says a lot. Losing Katolis isn't just losing his home, but losing his parents all over again. Ezran never got to know Sarai, but he knew they walked the same halls and ate at the same people, knew some of the same people. He's been constantly working towards being the king both he and his father wish Harrow had been, which is simultaneously a more true (Harrow was imperfect) and less true aspiration (Harrow could've been perfect if he'd followed these steps) to grasp, let alone understanding of his father.

Because this is how he pictures his parents, but that's never how they actually were.

Sarai never stood off to the side just holding his father's hand. We never actually see Harrow sit in his throne (unless I'm forgetting something) in any of the flashbacks we're privy to, but just in Callum's dark magic fever dreams. When Sarai and Harrow ruled, they ruled side by side, both with their own throne. But all Ezran can picture is his version of his father with his imagination of his mother; Sarai as a companion and support but not queen to the father forced to rule alone after her death, which was all Harrow had ever known.

It's honestly this scene more than anything that makes me think Callum will indeed stay in Katolis by the end of the season. While there could still be alternatives (leaving for Xadia to study/teach magic, with Soren and/or others stepping further in to help Ezran feel less alone) or characterization reasons (I don't think Callum nor Rayla would want to spend their whole lives at court), this scene coupled with Ezran ruling alone ("It's not fair you have to go through this alone") as well as the emphasis of his and Callum's bond being at odds and then repaired this season + Dreamer's Nightmare ("Think of it as being like a protector, like your mother")... I don't know, something about how Sarai and Harrow are framed, making them the uneven towers of Katolis as is, while also being inaccurate... Callum standing by Ezran's throne in a similar manner maybe wouldn't change the inaccuracy of the flashback / vision (which could be framed like that just for convenience's sake) but it would change the vibe.

You've got me, Rayla, probably Bait. We're all here for you. (2x03)

I'm here, I'm your partner, your brother and protector, and I'm not going anywhere.

[coffeebooksrain18]

Saw your post “Rhaenyra can't think past herself and her wants” and I agree 100%!

It’s a recurring theme, something that affects all her relationships.

She tells Daemon to marry her then immediately starts sleeping with Harwin, getting pregnant straight away which also means she didn’t even try to have a child with Laenor. She was with Harwin for TEN years and didn’t even wait a month before jumping into bed with another man. Daemon pissed her off so she starts cheating on him with Myseria and something tells me this isn’t even the first time she’s strayed from their marriage bed.

She wants to sleep with Criston so does, caring little that men have been gelded or even executed for sleeping with Targaryen Princesses.

She has three children with Harwin Strong, unbothered that she’s brazenly committing high treason and has put their sons in danger.

Laenor is the only shield the Strong Boys have against the bastardy accusations but she can’t see past her current desires of wanting to marry her groomer so tries to have him killed. She then gets mad when Rhaenys calls her out.

When she was pulling her holier than thou bullshit over Blood & Cheese it honestly felt like she was angrier at how damaging this was for her reputation rather than thinking about Helaena.

Jace is the only reason she has half her allies, but because he yelled at her for being an idiot she starts distancing herself from him. She then takes Addam and Myseria with her to Harrenhall because instead of Jace’s cold hard truths they’ll tell what she wants to hear.

2x03 was just another example of her arrogance and conceitedness, she genuinely thought simply ordering Alicent to give up the throne was enough.

Then in 2x08 she demands Alicent sacrifice her male relatives, it doesn’t even occur to her to punish Daemon for Jaehaerys’ execution because why should she care about someone else’s feelings?

The recurring theme in all of this is what Rhaenyra wants comes first, she lacks basic empathy to consider the feeling of others.

No because all of this is true. She has always, ALWAYS put herself first. And if she wants to rule the seven Kingdoms she needs to learn how to put herself LAST.

It is always HER wants, HER desires that come first. If you call her out on her hypothetical behavior then she shuns you. She did it with Alicent when she lied to her about her maidenhood and Alicent showed up in the green dress. She did it to Jace when he called her out on fucking Harwin and not even trying to have a baby with Laenor. She did it with Corlys and Rhaenys when they demanded an explanation for their sons death and rightfully assumed she was involved. Rhaenyra doesn't care about anyone but herself.

And I completely agree, in fact it actually says in the book that Rhaenyra and Daemon slept with other people but all their children together were His. They both cheated, so people acting like this is out of character for her truly don't understand why anti Daemyra people say it was a political marriage.

And I agree, I have made a post a long time ago about it. Rhaenyra acted like the worst part about Jaehaerys death was that it hurt her image. Not that a little boy not even ten years old died. She cared more about how it tore her further from the throne rather than actually care about the boy. And her going to Alicent after his death and then acting the victim because Alicent didn't believe her is so cruel. Alicents Grandson is dead, her own daughter watched. And yet Rhaenyra is the victim because Alicent wouldn't give up the throne to her grandsons killers? Yeah right.

Thanks for the ask Anon! Hope I covered everything I'm sleepy lol.

[serpercival]

Putting this here both for my convenience of remembering things and also because if YOU THE READER have any particular episodes or just general concepts you'd like to see get the foxtrap treatment I would genuinely love to hear it. Drop me an inbox. Disclaimer ahead of time that there's a particular late season Trapper John, M.D. episode that I will not be touching with a ten foot pole because I would feel so rude introducing people to the series with it and I'm not going into any more detail than that.

SO. Fics currently on the docket for whenever the hell it is I finish Mating Habits because I'd really like to do a bunch of episode fics:

Misc. pre-canon traphawk relationship development

MASH 1x03 Requiem for a Lightweight

MASH 1x06 Yankee Doodle Doctor

MASH 1x09 Henry, Please Come Home (weird choice I know but there's some major traphawk relationship stuff slotted to happen in this one)

MASH 1x13 Edwina (Trapper/Edwina fic :3 no really trust me. R came up with 90% of this one and hey future Percy fully deserves a co-author credit)

MASH 1x23 Ceasefire

MASH 2x03 Radar's Report (you know why)

MASH 2x06 Kim (you also know why)

MASH 2x12 The Incubator

MASH 2x16 Henry in Love

MASH 2x22 George (I just need to. Been wanting to write something for that episode for ages and this is a great opportunity)

MASH 3x07 Check-Up (again you know why)

MASH 3x19 Aid Station

MASH 3x21 Big Mac - Five-Star Expectations

General beejtraphawk and the kids stuff

Trapper gets his job as chief of surgery in 1969-70 depending on if we want to stick exactly to the TJMD timeline or not - in 1x12 Boom! he has his ten year anniversary

TJMD 1x01 Pilot

TJMD 1x17 If You Can't Stand The Heat (the children's zoo pcp explosion episode guest starring Ed Winter as a guy who gets pcp exploded. no seriously. I have no idea what I'm going to do with this I just know I need to do something)

TJMD 2x07 Earthquake (Gonzo and Trapper rent a cabin together. again no idea what I'm going to do with it but I need to do something)

TJMD 2x09 Have I Got a Girl For You (Trapper proxy-dates Gonzo by taking a girl who's interested in him on a truly weird number of dates. Coincidentally aired Feb. 1st, 1981 which is prime timing for that in the foxtrapverse. Also I made reference to it in Professional Courtesy so come on I've gotta do something with it)

TJMD 2x16 King of the Road (Gonzo daddy issues episode)

TJMD 4x02/03 Truth and Consequences

TJMD 4x08 Thanks for Giving

TJMD 6x02 My Son the Doctor (JT's introduction to the series)

TJMD 6x07 A Fall to Grace (I have not seen this one yet but it's a Big One and I'm sure I'll be able to do something fun with it)

TJMD 6x18 The Unholy Ghost (JT sees an actual real ghost. again seriously. this show is bonkers)

oh my god that's so many things. that's like twenty things not counting the fact that "general beejtraphawk and the kids stuff" is at minimum five separate things. I will not be doing them in order lmfao they'll just be as I feel like it and god knows if I'll ever get to all of them but WE TRY because with the exception of things I've noted there are very specific ideas behind all of these.

[navree]

people who got angry at the writers of 2x03 for talking about how rhaenyra didn't put any thought into her meeting with alicent and can't be surprised at the outcome because "rhaenyra shouldn't have to offer any concessions" are baffling and probably lacking in brain cells because that's literally spot on. rhaenyra went into an attempt at peace talks without any attempt to conciliate the opposing side and was surprised when the peace talks devolved and ultimately failed. it's bad decision making on her part, it's bad leadership and governance insofar as she has the ability to govern, and given that we're meant to see her as a legitimate claimant to be the sovereign, it's entirely reasonable to judge her on those standards.

because rhaenyra should have thought of concessions. she's making a big ask here, and it's entirely fair that she make offers that could actually appeal to the opposing side other than "War Bad :(" because the other side knows that, like in every conflict ever, they've just decided that the potential outcomes of winning the war matter more than the lack of war in its entirety. it is doubly important that rhaenyra offer concessions because she is also no longer the only wounded party. any peace talk to avoid the dance would need to hinge on both sides acknowledging that there has been serious wrong done to each part. on rhaenyra's end, the man whose rule is law proclaimed her heir but that was taken from her, and her son was killed unexpectedly during the negotiation phase. on aegon's end, he has the precedent of centuries of westerosi legal custom, and his six year old was murdered for absolutely no reason through no fault of his own or even aegon's. these are major grievances that both need to be dealt with fairly and with the understanding that restitution on both sides needs to be made. i mean, hell, rhaenyra only gives a passing mention to the fact that she did not, in fact, order two assassins to force their way into helaena's bedroom and make her choose which child to die. not even offering to allow daemon to face any sort of legal justice at aegon's hands is a gigantic fucking blunder on her part.

rhaenyra is no longer in the position where she can make unilateral demands because she is no longer the only person who has suffered or dealt with material consequences. hostilities are now as much motivated by personal desires for revenge as they are for legitimate succession reasons, and rhaenyra knows that because the entire reason she meets with alicent is to try and break the cycle that started with luke and then moved to jaehaerys and then the cargylle twins afterwards. i mean, hell, look at what alicent says at the end of the conversation when she tells rhaenyra it's too late. she mentions that the equivalent to armed forces have been mobilized, that one of the most personally powerful military men is actively marching to engage in warfare, and that aemond, someone who is not only ruthless but, as far rhaenyra knows, has a vested personal interest in doing things like avenging his beheaded nephew, is going to be involved. rhaenyra's thoughts, were she a competent leader/administrator, should be "what can i do to get them to at least press pause on this so we can negotiate further". the fact that it wasn't is a failure on her part, the fact that she did just think she could come in and go "let's stop fighting" when there are issues that she needs to address on her side now is a failure. it's entirely acceptable to call her out on this.

and i would have given this same criticism if a peace talk was initiated by alicent with that same mindset. if alicent had tried to negotiate with rhaenyra and been the one pushing for it, she should have had some restitution to offer her for what happened to luke, and for sending ser arryk to murder her in her bed. that would be a reasonable thing for rhaenyra to accept, since those are grievances that the greens need to address in any peace talk with her in turn. but the difference is that alicent is aware of the fact that she'd need to do that, because she already did it. she's the one who says they need to send terms to dragonstone after aegon's coronation that rhaenyra can find acceptable and agree to without feeling humiliated or losing face amongst her own supporters. she sends otto with those terms with clear messages to be conciliating, and even leverages her and rhaenyra's former emotional investment in each other to drive home that these are peace messages (in contrast to rhaenyra starting out with 'if i wanna i could murder you' which is a very bad way to start a peace talk, and rhaenyra knows that because immediately when called on it she acknowledges that it's a fuck up on her part).

there's a section of this fandom that believes rhaenyra is the rightful ruler, but then actually refuses to judge her on her merits as a ruler. she wants to be the sovereign, fantastic, but that means she's going to be held to a higher standard by both other characters and the audience, because she's now the key decision maker and also responsible for literally everything that happens on her end (i don't know if some of y'all were just too dumb to qualify for apush but i am smart so i took it and i remember when we talked about the truman presidency in that class and "the buck stops here"). it's not the writers being shitty to rhaenyra to point out that this plan was flawed from the getgo because there were serious issues in her thinking that meant it could never succeed. it's just the simple truth of the situation.

[thepringlesofblood]

Gravity Falls Speedrun

so, you wanna introduce your friend to Gravity Falls but they don't wanna watch all 40 episodes? you wanna do a re-watch but skip the more filler-y ones? I got your back.

here's a guide to which episodes are strictly necessary to watch to understand the overall continuity of the show, and which can be skipped and/or come back to later. I managed to cut it down to 24 episodes (counting the finale as 3 parts, not 4 as it is sometimes divided into).

I also organized the rest of the episodes into tiers based on plot significance and overall quality. reasons for their placement are included under the cut so if you haven't seen the show yet you're not spoiled, and if you have seen the show and are introducing a friend to it, you can modify the list according to your priorities.

disclaimer: personally i think you should watch all the episodes. we're never getting more of them, folks, enjoy while you can. its ur life though. also I consider character development to be important to the show's continuity, so even if an episode doesn't directly further the overall plot, if it contains a significant amount of character development, an important character introduction, or a significant amount of character foreshadowing, I included it.

Absolute Barebones Necessary To Watch

Tourist Trapped 1x01*

Headhunters 1x03

The Hand That Rocks the Mabel 1x04*

The Inconveniencing 1x05

Double Dipper 1x07

The Time Traveler’s Pig 1x09*

Little Dipper 1x11

Carpet Diem 1x16

Dreamscaperers 1x19 (s1 finale pt 1)*

Gideon Rises 1x20 (s1 finale pt 2)*

Scary-oke 2x01*

Into The Bunker 2x02

Sock Opera 2x04*

Society of The Blind Eye 2x07*

Blendin’s Game 2x08

Northwest Mansion Mystery 2x10

Not What He Seems 2x11 (mid-season finale)*

A Tale of Two Stans 2x12 (mid-season finale pt 2)*

Dungeons, Dungeons, and More Dungeons 2x13

The Last Mabelcorn 2x15*

Dipper and Mabel vs the Future 2x17 (pre-finale)*

Weirdmageddon pt 1, 2, 3, and potentially 4 depending on where you watch it. sometimes they split pt 3 into two parts (it originally aired as one). 2x18-20/21. The Finale.*

*skipping these is impossible. like some of these are on here because you need to get to know x character before the finale so you actually care about them and understand why they're doing things, but these are ones where if you skip them the whole damn thing falls apart, even if you watched every other episode

HIGHLY recommended (especially on the first watch through)

The Legend of the Gobblewonker 1x02

Note: this is where "but her aim is gettin' better" comes from, if that's important to you

The Deep End 1x15

Boyz Crazy 1x17

Land Before Swine 1x18

The Golf War 2x03

Soos & the Real Girl 2x05

The Stanchurian Candidate 2x14

Recommended (both for the first watch through and to come back to later)

Irrational Treasure 1x08

Note: this contains the scene that the “wow, this is worthless!” “It’s less than worthless, my boy!” meme comes from, if that’s important to you

Summerween 1x12

Boss Mabel 1x13

Bottomless Pit! 1x14

Note: this contains the clip that "Grunkle Stunkle Wins The Funkle Bunkle" comes from, if that's important to you.

Eh (take it or leave it)

Dipper vs Manliness 1x06

Fight Fighters 1x10

The Love God 2x09

Little Gift Shop of Horrors 2x06

Jail (I skip this one too)

Roadside Attraction 2x16

and my reasoning!

Absolute Barebones Necessary to watch

Tourist Trapped 1x01* (it's the pilot)

Headhunters 1x03

if you skip Legend of the Gobblewonker, it’s a half-way decent intro to McGucket, who kinda sucks in The Hand That Rocks the Mabel.

plus it's an intro to The People Of Gravity Falls, e.g. Manly Dan, Blubs & Durland, Toby Determined, Shandra Jimenez, etc. imo "The People Of Gravity Falls" is a character to get to know too, especially considering the large part they play in the finale.

establishes Mabel’s artistic superpowers & that Dipper is decently smart when he’s not overthinking things, & that the cops are funny but useless so we don't wonder why going to them for various crimes throughout the series is never considered an option

“seems like the kind of thing a responsible parent wouldn’t let you do. Good thing I’m your uncle!” honestly does a great job establishing Stan's dynamic with the kids, another thing Legend of the Gobblewonker does that would otherwise be missed by skipping to The Hand That Rocks The Mabel.

has Blendin Blandin in the background of that one shot

Stan genuinely mourning Wax Stan is Ford-shadowing

the S gets knocked off the Mystery Shack sign by Wax Sherlock

is good

The Hand That Rocks the Mabel 1x04*

introduces & establishes Gideon as a character & antagonist

The Inconveniencing 1x05

establishes Wendy as a character beyond 'chill cashier' & Dipper’s crush on her

the existence of ghosts

Wendy's friend group, incl. Robbie

establishes that Dipper is dying to be a teenager and Mabel couldn’t care less, which is important for the finale & general series theme

Double Dipper 1x07

introduces Pacifica Northwest, Candy, and Grenda.

Dipper's birthmark reveal

Wendy content, including the whole "we'll be freaks together" conversation which is important both for their friendship and for themes of the series as a whole tbh.

Dipper repeatedly outsmarting himself by accident will never stop being funny. honestly, this episode is maybe the best "making a bunch of clones of myself" episode I've ever seen, and I've seen a good few.

is good

The Time Traveler’s Pig 1x09*

i mean. do i have to say it.

Waddles is enough on his own tbh, but also introduces Blendin Blandin, time travel as a concept, how it works, and the consequences of it

plus major Dipper character development and a teensy glimpse of Ford? what more could you want?

Little Dipper 1x11

Gideon development & establishes that he wants the deed to the shack and will go way way too far to get it

the growing/shrinking flashlight which comes back several important times, including in the finale

good Mabel & Dipper relationship development, and decent 'Stan is smarter than he seems' development

Carpet Diem 1x16

you know why. The Room. The Foreshadowing. both of Ford's existence and of Dipper initially needing some space from Mabel but ultimately realizing that he still likes spending time with her. the little mini-arc here foreshadows the bigger arc in Dipper & Mabel vs. The Future thru the finale.

also more snippets of The People Of Gravity Falls w Blubs & Durland and Candy & Grenda and various people Soos runs into while out being a pig. McGucket isn't at his best this episode but he is there.

I was trying to get this list down to an even 20 so I could say I cut the series in half, and tbh this, Blendin's Game, & The Inconveniencing were all on the chopping block, but all of them are important and I couldn't bring myself to choose so here we are. I'm also a sucker for Ford as a character though so that might be part of it lol

Dreamscaperers 1x19*

s1 pre-finale. also, Bill, Stan's mindscape, a bajillion other things. you cannot skip this one and have any of the rest of the series make sense.

Gideon Rises 1x20*

s1 finale. also, defeat of Gideon, and we finally see what's in the basement.

has the 'after all these years, finally i have them all' meme, if that's important to you

Scary-oke 2x01*

s2 premiere, but also the reveal that Stan's always known that Gravity Falls is weird, and has been trying to keep the twins away from it by lying is reason enough on its own. the hot zombie-punching & intro to Powers & Trigger is just a bonus.

Into the Bunker 2x02

Wendy content, specifically establishing Wendy's badass wilderness-survival skills which will come back in the finale

euthanizes Dipper’s crush on Wendy in a balanced and realistic way.

teases the author reveal and gives us more info on him both in environmental storytelling and how the shapeshifter acts e.g. "that six-fingered fool hasn’t been himself in 30 years"

is good

Sock Opera 2x04*

Bill. need I say more.

I will though - introduces the concept of Making A Deal with Bill and him needing to take over someone's body to affect the physical world, which is majorly important.

"who would give up everything they've worked for just for their dumb sibling?" "Dipper would." is an excellent synopsis for characterizing Mabel, Dipper, and Bill. What takes Bill down? Someone giving up absolutely everything for their (kinda) dumb sibling, more importantly for their family. Bill doesn't understand that kind of sacrifice, or that kind of love - it's his blind spot, it's what leads to his downfall, and it's foreshadowed expertly here.

Society of The Blind Eye 2x07*

The memory gun

Fiddleford Hadron McGucket, who is not the author but knew the author and deserves love and respect as a person recovering from crippling addiction and homelessness.

The Cult of the Blind Eye, which explains a LOT about The People Of Gravity Falls

Blendin’s Game 2x08

establishes more about who Blendin Blandin actually is (important for the finale)

Introduces Time Baby (important for the finale) & further develops how time travel works

Soos character development, which we haven't had much of thus far

Northwest Mansion Mystery 2x10

Pretty much the only Pacifica character development on this list

The one before Not What He Seems. which is kind of important.

Fr if you want to know anything at all about Pacifica, the Northwests, or ghosts, you gotta. the themes of classism and prejudice also develop The People Of Gravity Falls

Plus shows Dipper character growth & him being more confident and better with cryptids.

Grenda's relationship with Marius shows up in the finale for a hot second as the reason why she's leaving before Dipper & Mabel's birthday

Not What He Seems 2x11*

I don't think I need to explain this one to anyone who's seen it

A Tale of Two Stans 2x12*

See above

Dungeons, Dungeons, & More Dungeons 2x13

The Rift - we finally learn why Ford was so mad about the portal being opened.

Ford character development - he just got here! let's learn more about him before he becomes central to the finale and the dynamic of the Pines family!

Ford & Stan relationship/rivalry/dichotomy development. Their complicated issues affect the course of the apocalypse, we need to understand them.

Establishes Ford’s connection w Dipper, and that while Ford tends to be kind of an asshole, he's not 100% an asshole, and he really tries not to be an asshole to the kids.

personally i think Stan winning at something Ford is good at by cheating/street smarts is extremely important to his character and to show him as a foil to Ford - Ford’s not always right/better/smarter. or, in D&D terms, Ford's got high intelligence & low wisdom *badum tsssh*

Similarly, we already kinda know that Mabel can win at things Dipper is good at, but it's a nice reminder nonetheless.

The Last Mabelcorn 2x15*

Bill & Ford's........history. sets up their relationship for the finale, and fills in some holes in the Fiddleford/Ford department too.

Bill-proofing the Shack (very important to the finale)

more info on what Bill is, and what kinds of things can affect him.

Ford's brain plate can stop the memory gun - the idea that the memory gun can affect Bill.

partial explanation for why Ford is so cagey & hyper-vigilant - the last person he trusted betrayed him in just about every way a person can be betrayed.

Bill can still possess people outside the shack.

is good

Dipper & Mabel vs the Future 2x17*

The penultimate episode leading into the finale. You have to watch it.

Weirdmageddon 2x18-20/21*

it’s the 3-4 part finale (depending on where you watch it - personally I think it should be watched in 3 parts as god intended bc that's the way it aired). You have to watch it.

HIGHLY recommended (especially on the first watch through)

Legend of the Gobblewonker 1x02

establishes McGucket, his son, his deep-seated loneliness, his mechanical genius, & his revenge-robot obsession

establishes more about Stan (specifically that while he’s a weird old man, he's a weird old man who genuinely cares about the kids and wants to spend time with them)

the Stan O’War

her aim is gettin better

tbh I find that this episode is the hurdle to get over with new people. it's a very highs-and-lows kind of episode - the highs are high but the lows are real low. if you can get em to Headhunters it smooths out a bit.

The Deep End 1x07

it’s a fantastic episode, plus Mermando is lowkey the only acceptable Mabel romance in the whole summer, and is referenced a few times in other episodes.

also develops the Stan & Gideon rivalry and Dipper's crush on Wendy

The love god, but just the “I eat kids” scene

It's honestly top 5 gravity falls goofs of all time for me at least.

Boyz Crazy 1x17

It’s hilarious & establishes Mabel’s darker & more selfish side. plus Sev'ral Timez has a cameo in the finale.

Wendy breaks up with Robbie (thank god) and rightfully rips Dipper a new one for messing with her love life, which I personally enjoy bc it's also a smackdown on the various vaguely misogynist views Stan tries to impart to Dipper over the course of the episode.

a rare Dipper & Stan bonding episode, though the bonding itself is questionable.

Land Before Swine 1x18

establishes the existence of dinosaurs underneath Gravity Falls (comes back in the finale)

waddles ^v^

shows that Stan is less good at (and feels worse about) lying to people he cares about than to strangers

decent McGucket content

Soos & Dipper’s relationship development

The Golf War 2x03

If you care more about Pacifica character development than Ford-shadowing & finale-shadowing, you can switch this one out for Carpet Diem in the Absolute Barebones Necessary category. or you could just watch both. you should watch both.

Pacifica character development, and a solid reminder that she is Also A Child.

“Pacifica is rich, Mabel, she’s cheating at life” - top 10 best lines in the series.

the tale of Big Henry is another major highlight of this episode.

is good

Soos & the Real Girl 2x05

introduces Melody

gives much-needed Soos character development

Giffany has a cameo in the finale

this is the one where Abuelita implies Soos' grandpa is in hell. also the one that many claim predicted both Doki-Doki Literature Club and Five Nights at Freddy's.

“sometimes a man has to steal an animatronic badger to stay in this crazy game called life”

Stan gets Vegas-married to a broken statue of a prospector in the credits. idk what else you need me to tell you.

The Stanchurian Candidate 2x14

Ford is only there for 6 episodes before the finale, if you count appearing in the last 10 seconds of Not What He Seems (he doesn’t appear at all in Roadside Attraction), we GOTTA establish as much about him as possible, even if it’s just small scenes like the lightbulb and him giving Dipper the mind-control tie.

further establishes Stan feeling inferior to his brother and the building resentment over not being the Cool Grunkle anymore (important for the finale.)

continues the evil Gideon plotline & updates us on how he's doing in Real Adult Prison, w the end showing him ready to make a deal with Bill.

Tad Strange is here.

Recommended (both for the first watch through and to come back to later)

Irrational Treasure 1x08

I don't think the Northwests not founding Gravity Falls comes back in any major way other than being mentioned in Northwest Mansion Mystery and maybe The Golf War. I could be wrong though. I know for sure the President's Key doesn't come back, they had to cut that scene from Not What He Seems lol

Another one to watch if you want more Pacifica content, though not exactly a good look for her.

Blubs, Durland, and more of The People Of Gravity Falls, including the guy married to a woodpecker.

good for if you're into Mabel solving things Dipper can't solve.

Summerween 1x12

continues the theme of Dipper wanting to grow up and Mabel not.

it’s a just good episode, folks. Not super plot-relevant, but a good episode.

Boss Mabel 1x13

a little bit about why Stan is the way he is and why he doesn’t use real/better attractions.

ok Stan & Mabel character development.

we get the Stan Wrong Song in the credits, which is gold.

also imo it's great characterization of the Stan twins to learn early on that Stan is allergic to saying please and then later learn that Ford is allergic to saying thank you.

is this the first episode we see the "STNLYMBL" license plate in? we do see it I just forget if there was one before this.

Bottomless Pit! 1x14

So it’ll make more sense during Dreamscaperers

McGucket-being-a-genius content

“Because I regularly commit massive tax fraud!” + lots of the stuff Stan says with Truth Teeth on is foreshadowing and/or Ford-shadowing.

source of the "my time has come" meme as well as the "grunkle stunkle wins the funkle bunkle" meme

cw: cultural appropriation/insensitive depiction of Native American-coded clothes and props. idk how else to say it but there's a Western "cowboys-and-indians" themed pinball machine that plays a major part in one of the stories. they do not address it or talk about it in any meaningful way, it's mostly set dressing/costuming, but like. still sucks. good thing to think about when showing your friends this show.

Eh (take it or leave it)

Dipper vs Manliness 1x06

the only big continuity thing is Dipper doing all of that training and thus being stronger and better at running for the rest of the show.

ok Dipper character development

the kind of thing where at the time it aired this take on masculinity would've been daring but watching it now it's just not the same, though it's still good.

The Multi-Bear comes back in the finale, but not in a huge or plot-relevant way, and I think it's the same w the Man-o-Taurs.

a little bit of Dipper & Stan bonding at the end.

Fight Fighters 1x10

the actual video-game parts are fun, it's mostly the casual sexism that makes me skip this.

Rumble McSkirmish has a brief cameo in the finale, other than that I feel like you don't really need a full episode to establish that Dipper and Robbie aren't going to physically attack each other on sight.

if it's important to you to establish that Stan used to be afraid of heights but isn't after this one, then go ahead, but otherwise eh.

The Love God (aside from the “I eat kids” scene) 2x09

only kept from bottom tier by establishing Robbie getting over Wendy & dating Tambry so we don’t wonder why that happened later

Little Gift Shop of Horrors 2x06

note: my mom has a deep-seated fear of disembodied hands and I totally forgot that this is the episode with the Hand Witch. Don't repeat my mistakes kids, if you or a loved one has disembodied-limbs-phobia don't watch this one. you are missing nothing, it's all technically non-canon.

other potential phobias that could be triggered by this episode include stop-motion animation & Neil deGrasse Tyson

Roadside Attraction

Roadside Attraction 2x16

imo the Dolly Parton spider lady is the only redeeming factor about this episode. we have Ford for less than 10 episodes, could he at least appear in all of them??

there's a million reasons why people hate this episode, feel free to look em up.

[love-byers]

for 2 years i've been wondering what the connection is between the byler scene and the max scene. like they didn't seem similar at all, but after reading this i realized something.

earlier today i was thinking about the track "Letter to Willy" and wondering why it sounded so familiar. after some listening im 100% sure it's because "Letter to Willy" is a version of "Eulogy", a song from the s2 soundtrack. i'm 100,000% sure and i painstakingly edited this to make it clear to anyone listening

"Eulogy" plays whenever the scene is related to death, more specifically a character who has died. hence the name. a eulogy is a speech written to honor someone who recently died, often times read at their funeral. which is interesting, because the first time we hear "Eulogy", it's not an actual eulogy. so clearly this has a deeper meaning.

here's are all the times the track has played, as far as i'm aware

season 2

2x01 nancy cries about barb in the bathroom

2x01 mike puts his toys in the donation box and remembers el, who is believed to be dead

2x03 hopper shows el the cabin for the first time

2x08 hopper sits with joyce after bobs death

2x08 mike tells the group about how bob founded the av club

season 3

3x01 joyce has a flashback of bob

season 4

4x03 mike and el fight

clearly there is a pattern here. (and for the hopper and el one, if you watch the scene there are multiple references to dead characters. hopper mentions his grandpa, and hides a box of sara's things right before the song plays. this could also be representative of the death of el's old life.)

"This is your new home."

"Home."

so if "Letter to Willy" is 100% directly connected to "Eulogy", what does that mean?

(i'm not sure if "Letter to Willy" plays in more than those 2 scenes, but i'm pretty sure it's just the two so i'll proceed on that)

so we can assume the two scenes are related to someone or something that has died. obviously, max is reading her letter to billy at his gravestone. unknown hero agent man is dead and there is shared imagery of gravestones, but mike and will aren't talking about that when the song plays. they're talking about mikes fight with el, again.

mike and el's fight. the scene that "Eulogy", aka the theme for DEATH, plays in.

mike and el's relationship died during that fight. even mike knows it, he keeps trying to say it in different ways. "A fight you can't come back from." go back and watch the scene, and look at el's face when mike says "you're being ridiculous" she is so so done with him. mike is right, this is a fight they can't come back from.

i also think "Letter to Willy" could be implying that the truth of the situation is being hidden. max later admits that vecna was right, she wanted billy to die and that is a source of her guilt. in the letter she implied she had just frozen and wishes she had done something, but that wasn't the whole truth. it was partly on purpose because billy made her life a living hell.

and with byler...i mean do i even need to say it? mike isn't not telling the truth, but he's not saying the whole truth either. he dances around the reason he didn't say what eleven wanted him to say, he won't even say what that thing is. and if you ask me, a byler truther, this is also indicative of mike and will not outright saying their feelings for each other because they're both closeted.

"Eulogy" plays when mike and el's relationship dies.

"Letter to Willy" plays when mike and will are talking about the death of the relationship.

Churchgate: The Dear Billy Connection

If you missed it somehow, here's the original Churchgate post. Heads up I'm going to be re-sharing a few other people's ideas here but they will all be tagged of course.

First, let me share the last of the information I've gotten since that post. The only exclusive stuff I have is that I spoke to someone who confirmed Noah is filming in Atlanta the entirety of next week when the Church set is also filming. I talk to this person occasionally and they are very reliable.

The crux of Churchgate is that Will is going to be possessed, though I'm also down for a Vecna'ing, and Mike will be the one to snap him out of it. This is very similar to what happened to Max in the episode 'Dear Billy'. And well it turns out that that episode has insane foreshadowing for Churchgate.

DEAR BILLY:

If you remember, there was a weird easter egg where the OST when Max reads out her letter to Billy is actually named "Dear Willy". The connection to Churchgate might just be the reason behind that. Let me refer to a community post made by my friend @greenfiend who was just talking about this today.

If the church scene is a confessional, Mike might finally have to share the full truth he was talking about holding back in this scene. So will Will.

2. Mentioned in the post but both scenes would be taking place in, or right next to, a graveyard.

3. A crane has appeared on the set of the church. To perform the Max levitating stunt in Dear Billy, they used a similarly large crane to hoist her up in the air. This is the only other time they've used a crane like this to film a ST scene. Remember Sadie also wore contacts and rehearsed prior in studio to film this scene, just like what's happening with Churchgate.

4. Dear Billy introduces the idea of a demon "Spawn of Satan" haunting the Creel family. This ends up being Henry, or rather possessed!Henry (in TFS it is revealed he has been under the influence of the mindflayer just like Will).

5. Dear Billy has Hopper escape the Russian Gulag into the sanctuary of a Church where he eventually reunites with Joyce.

And finally:

6. Dear Billy is the episode famously directed by Shawn Levy, director of Season 5 Episode 6, who has hinted / told us he is directing an angsty Byler scene, and is currently on set possibly for the church.

[nimata-beroya]

I was trying to answer this ask and got posted before I was finished so i had to delete it 🙈😔

So here's a new attempt to answer it

Anonymous asked:

Hi, nonnie!

Not worrying about that bastard (affectionate) is mission impossible at this point, but yeah, let's keep our hopes up.

Oh, they're not alleged. They're confirmed by Jennifer Corbett herself. And I don't know if it's good or bad to know those titles. My imagination is overworking trying to figure out what could happen in each episode, and I'm sure I'm wrong in everything I come up with, but let's see…

I think the season starts with the scene in the beach with the giant crabs. The very first scene will be Tech telling Omega to focus on her studies that was shown at Celebration back in May, then they'll meet Phee Genoa, the new lady at Cid's parlor. I think both episodes will show how the Empire is getting stronger (as in spoils of war) and how much worse things are in the galaxy (ruins of war).

For "The Solitary Clone" my first instinct was to think it is about Cody, but no, it won't be about him. I'm divided among 3 possible storylines.

A new clone. The first season we got Howzer, so it's possible that another new clone will be introduced this season too. However, of all, this is the idea I think has fewer chances of happening.

That it's about Wolffe. Also it would make sense if he, like many other seems to do, is questioning orders and deserts and go as lone wolf wrecking havoc around the galaxy. This is a more wishful thinking than I actually think is going to happen, but it fits perfectly for the episode title.

Or it's about Crosshair. It makes sense. I've always said that he's very lonely, and (even if I don't believe he had it removed) supposedly having no chip would make him even more lonely, being the only clone who stays with the empire willingly. In here, we'll see the scene where Rampart praises him for his loyalty (which is in the trailer that they also showed at Celebration). And could be a parallel to 1x03 when we saw him at the peak of ruthlessness.

For "Faster" and "Entombed", I have no idea what could happen there.

"Tribe", on the other hand, I think this is when the batch goes to Kashyyyyk (as rumor has it) and/or team up with Gungi.

The 2 mid-season episodes are where we'll see Cody at last 😁 It's an appropriate time for him to appear after they have us waiting for the moment half of the season, and It'll leave us hyped for the next episode, because "The Crossing" airs the same day of Mando season 3 premiere so now TBB will have to fight for ratings (stupid bc I'm watching both, but some people will choose one over the other). Anyway, a friend of mine (@takadasaiko ) suggested that this could be a Crosshair episode (if the episode 2x03 isn't his) and I can see why. If the 2 previous are Cody's, whatever happens there might prod Crosshair to reconsider things and do something drastic (I'm hoping it's something good, but it could be something very bad 😞😭😭😭)

Episode 10 "Retrieval" could be the mission with Rex

The next could be the one with the monster/cloned zilo beast. I mean, with "Metamorphosis" as a title, it fits 😆

"The outpost" and "Pabu" are a mystery to me 🤔

"Tipping point" could this be the one where they go to Dooku's place in Serreno? Maybe. Possibly because I think whatever they find there, it's what push them to go to Coruscant in the finale. And I'll die of anxiety when they do 😩

And there you have it, my dear nonnie. I'm pretty sure nothing of this will be as I imagined. I'll be lucky if I get right a thing or 2, but it's fun trying to figure it out anyway 😆

I hope you have a wonderful holiday season!!! 🎉

[raayllum]

ALRIGHT, time to talk about the poster in lovely HD.

First things first, I want to talk about these two ladies (?). The upper one closer to the moon looks more like an elf, and is gazing down at the second, closer woman. I've seen people speculate Ziard due to the hair, but none of this usual clothing appendages are there, so I lean towards a new character, and possibly being the human Aaravos had a special connection to. We see what looks like the arches of the Moon Nexus framed behind them, which was the case both when Rayla went through the portal in TTM and when Lujanne used historia viventum to show Callum the way things looked before. Souls of hate and love, maybe?

We see other Moon symbols throughout the posture sure as archangel lunarises, which seek out Moon magic (1x01) and can be used in illusion spells (2x03, 3x09). We also see the enchanted lotuses from 3x03, though for what purpose is unclear (more on that later).

Moving down, we have a fully celestial, quite happy Aaravos. He's in full flourish and clearly using Moon magic for someone, as begetting the moon behind him, though whether he's constructing lotuses or channeling energy into his Key (perhaps making it able to sense Moon magic) is unknown. While the lotuses in 3x03 were occasionally different colours, the deep purple here makes me think of dark magic. If he is channeling his cube, perhaps he's taking moon energy from the lotuses (or moths) surrounding him to put inside.

I don't think I need to scream much further than I already have about the Moon rune glowing on his Key and having it displayed with his usual star symbol (rune cube foreshadowing symbolism my beloved). This bodes well for theories in which 1) Callum goes too far and does something knowingly risky to free the Moon fam for Rayla's sake or 2) does something risky to help Aaravos to protect Rayla's life, each subsequently to being possessed and/or playing into Aaravos' hands. Thank you goodnight.

Then we have the book, which is deeply fascinating. It seems like a very Moon book, the fragments framing it similar to the ones we see on the lotuses and possibly evoking one of the archangel lunaris' flying around. It wouldn't surprise me if the book contains a variant of Deep moon magic of some kind, whatever that would look like. The crescent curved moon is also similar to the symbol we see on Aaravos' poem page for the Midnight Star in show (2x08). I do wonder why each side of the book looks so different though, with no actual visible moon in sight besides the tiny gemstones and the crescent moon, the other side being entirely dark (which, to be fair, is pretty moon-y).

We also sort of but don't quite see Aaravos' famous chest piece, though it is a-glowing. Whether it glowed all the time pre-Fall we just don't know, as the only time we've seen it glow/be filled in is 2x09 when he's channeling magic through Viren, but who knows. It does mean that the cube is even older than his banishment and that if it does hold his chest piece, it was placed after (if it's tangible at all, which has always been one of the biggest questions).

This is perhaps the weirdest thing that I am the most interested in, as alongside his crown and bangles, this is the biggest design difference between Aaravos in-show and out. In show, both in his mirror and even 'pre-Fall' (aka the timeline for the 1x01 shot is probably a lie anyway), Aaravos' hip thingy is a lot more simplistic.

However, Aaravos does have all his flowery (and I mean that literally, it looks like petals) adornment in his concept art.

The fact they have a lotus flower flair to them always felt interesting but ultimately like a coincidence, but perhaps not. Either way as pictured below, it seems like he's either constructing or dismantling the lotuses, which is Eyes Emoji either way.

The most... surely metaphorical / abstract portion of the poster, though, is I'd imagine the very bottom. I hesitate to read into things too literally (one of the S5 posters had Finnegrin's ship being blasted with lightning and Domina watching the waves, and while she featured in the season and played a role in Finnegrin's aims, the scene itself as portrayed did not come fully to fruition) so I'm gonna go with a more symbolic read, just as as disclaimer.

Lastly we have these two figures. I'm assuming the one in white is an elf and betting on young Aaravos or Leola, though it could be someone else connected to the Moon arcanum (the elven daughter who vouched for exiling rather than eliminating humanity?). The red and black shadow figure feels far more sinister (blood and stardust, anyone) but if you lighten the shadows, you get something even more... interesting, shall we say.

Rather than standing up straight, this figure almost seems to swoop down with a draconic like claw and a face that reminds me the most of Sir Sparklepuff's features, honestly, perhaps boasting a similar kind of blood (Viren's) and star (Aaravos) and dark magic (the staff?). It is also clearly moving toward the more humanoid figure on the bottom right, which gives a "corruption is reaching / coming for / offering things to you" sort of vibe.

[coop-of-coffee]

The Great s2 spoilers (?)

Okay, I just wanna share my thoughts on something, and that something being: ace Orlo.

So, throughout s1 there was the ongoing joke (if you can call it that ig) of Orlo being "a virgin" and some teasing about him not being into women, etc. Since then, I was very 🕵🏻 about all that, making me think that he was either asexual, gay or both.

On the first episodes of s2, Orlo's uninterest in sex was made clearer. And that's when we get to ep 3: Orlo lets Velementov know he got laid the previous night, clarifies it was with a woman and it was his third time having sex.

Later, we see him passionately making out with a guy, which ends up in them having sex, and we know it was his first time with a man bc he was "experimenting", as he put it. Then is where something particularly interesting comes up: he says it felt more or less the same way than when he had sex with a woman, which, to summarize in a word, basically says it was "meh". Plus, he added he'd rather be reading a book.

Having sex with that man didn't make him have the feelings he was supposed to have regarding sex, it didn't get him there and it's obvious he was trying to (hence the "experiment", which, given his other times with women, he was also experimenting, hoping to feel what was expected of him to feel). That scene, at least for me, was the confirmation that he is asexual.

In episodes 4 and 5, we see Orlo clumsily flirt with Katya, the teacher. And in the following ones, it is clear they started a relationship, which is, to an extent, also sexual. I was kinda expecting the writers to do something like that, because hoping that they would truly look into Orlo's asexuality was, sadly and all things considered, unrealistic.

(not that being ace = not having sex, but in a "he found someone, so he'll now have sex and that's how far exploring this will go" way)

However, I must admit the sex scene Orlo and Katya share in ep 6 kinda reinforces that he's asexual/in the ace spectrum. While he does seem to be enjoying it, it doesn't necessarily mean that he was sexually attracted to Katya (or maybe he was? I feel like that was unclear and it made me doubt a little, but only as to say "maybe he's demisexual"), and it was more of a combination of having her read a book to him, listening to the author's words and an obvious sexual stimuation.

Now, before his relationship with Katya began, I considered him either gayace or aroace, giving s1 and early s2 stuff. When he was kissing that guy in 2x03, he seemed to be way more at ease than in pretty much any other scene where a woman looked suggestively at him, where he'd look away or was visibly uncomfortable. I now think he is biace solely because he did seem to like Katya, but I'd be happy to be proven otherwise, bc I feel there's much more material to back up gayace or aroace Orlo, despite being biace myself.

In ep 9, where he calls things off between them after Catherine finds out about the money, their goodbye isn't sexual. Granted, it wouldn't have to be, but given the rest of the characters and the show itself, you might guess why I point this out lmao.

In conclusion: Orlo is definitely aspec. There's canon material, which includes dialogues, as evidence. While I'm not angry or upset about how things were handled regarding this part of Orlo, I am disappointed because, imo, it had so much potential. I would have loved to see this explored, to have some scene with Katya luring him into her room and him being hesitant or not thrilled about where that was heading. I would have loved to see a scene like the one he had with the man, but with Katya, where he'd actually talk afterwards about how he feels about sex (i.e. neutral/uninterested/nothing). It had potential to be played with, and come up with something funny like, idk, Velementov walks into them and hears them giggle and they're under the sheets or smth but they're just reading and Velementov is confused and leaves but Orlo covers himself either way even tho they were fully clothed. The show already has a lot of sex, so I do feel that not going deeper into Orlo's asexuality was a wasted opportunity.

[tomwambsmilk]

Hiiiiiii I’m continuing to go insane over my own tomgreg betrayal post, because I’ve had this idea bouncing around my head for the last couple of weeks of Logan as the closest thing Succession has to a classically Luciferian figure. By which I mean, for one thing, his uncanny ability to make people believe his lies even when they know they shouldn’t, to such an extent that characters in succession constantly have to question what is real. The fact that he’s the only character on the show to fully perceive evil things as good (what Aristotle’s ethics deems as the evilest a person can be) - mostly demonstrated by the way he values ‘being a killer’ and by the way he REVELS in chaos and sowing discord (see: "boar on the floor"), whereas other characters on the show do terrible things but express varying degrees of guilt and discomfort in doing so, and view it as a horrible necessity rather than a good in itself. The fact that he loves nothing more than he loves himself, even his children. The way in which he demands that Kendall sacrifice himself for him - an act of supreme selfishness that he frames as an act of love. The fact that he takes joy in corrupting the people around him, like Greg.

And most damning of all? One of the most famous literary depictions of Satan, Dante's "Inferno", paints the worst crime of all as betrayal, and traitors are in the lowest circle of hell. The worst betrayers, Brutus and Judas, are perpetually being chewed on by Satan. And when Logan demands loyalty, he demands it specifically in the form of betrayal. He demands that Roman betray Kendall in 1x06. He demands that Kendall betray Stewy in 1x10. He demands that someone betray the mole in 2x03, and he demands that Shiv betray Tom in 2x10. He effectively demands that Tom betray Shiv by giving up her location in 3x02, which Tom circumvents by claiming ignorance, and that Shiv betray Kendall in 3x03. He demands that Roman and Shiv betray Kendall in 3x09 and, failing that, demands that Roman alone betray both his siblings. While he doesn't demand that Tom betray Shiv in 3x09 it is what earns him Logan's favour. (ETA: When Roman refuses not only does he fly into a rage and mock the very concept of love, but reveals that he’s already persuaded their mother to betray all three of them - making “oh shit, mom, he got to you” one of the most heartbreaking lines of the series). The bonds of love that his children have for each other (and their spouses) are not sacred to him - on the contrary, they're something he has to actively root out and destroy, and we're made to understand that he's been actively pitting them against each other for their entire lives.

At some point I think I'm going to write a post that breaks it down more analytically, because I actually think Tom's journey through the Waystar ranks and into Logan's favour somewhat mirrors Dante's descent through the 9 circles of hell (Limbo, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Wrath, Heresy, Violence, Fraud, Treachery) either in acts that he participates in or acts committed by others that he enables, culminating in his betrayal of Shiv. (It's Tom specifically because he's the only one we actually see go from being out of Logan's favour to in Logan's favour over the course of the show). It's not a perfect one-to-one (because I don't think this was intentional on the part of the writers), but there are enough parallels that it's really fascinating to me.

[rinisbowen]

ej’s breakup with nini and her holding solid to her decision to end things is a huge part of how ej actually gets to the person he is in season 2, especially in 2b, and i think we kind of forget that a lot... tbh i know i did. 

like- i know gina is given a good bit of credit by the fandom for his season 1b/2a changes, and i think she likely deserves some of that, but i think 2x10 really points out how much we as a fandom forget about the fact that ej and nini had like- a relationship. and that relationship was definitely rather surface level in a lot of ways, but the impact it had on ej as a character really wasn’t. 

remember how much kourtney was gushing about his appearance? especially if you take into account the character intro promos... nini and ej both were looking for something in that relationship that wasn’t ever going to be real. 

so it kinda caught me a bit off guard in 2b how much ej seemed to have been effected by that relationship, but i’d suspect she’s the last girl of a series considering the “first valentines day without a girlfriend” and the “just because you’re single for the first time in your life” lines from 2x03 and 2x10, and is more the straw that broke the camel’s back than about nini herself. (i mean obviously ej clarifies to ricky that he’s over nini, but that’s been obvious). 

he told her nini loved her, but she couldn’t say it back for obvious reasons... and while i don’t know how much ej would at this point still call what that was ‘love’, i think the fact she was probably the first girl to NOT be able to say it back... and probably the first girl to ever break up with him... (like i can’t say this for certain, but it’s the vibe i’m getting). like- ej’s a serial dater, from what we’ve seen, but he thought that nini could be different because she makes him feel like a good person. (i don’t remember the quote but, he says something along these lines) 

i still definitely think it’s less about nini herself and more about the weight of his relationships and rejection... but it’s still kinda neat to think about his character evolution this way. his arc after the breakup, from the truth telling phase (oof) to everything else, like him getting gina the plane ticket as his like “redeeming selfless act” marking the end of ej’s redemption arc... none of that would’ve happened without nini showing him that he did in fact mess up. i don’t think he’s ever had to face these kinds of consequences before from the way it was framed. 

the aftermath of that relationship is in many ways what made ej the guy we have in season 2, which is kinda interesting to think about, because of nini, he’s forced to truly look at himself and his actions for what feels like the very first time.

[acenancy]

The Ace x Nancy x Tamura of It All

I’m here as a hardcore Nace shipper (see the URL) to throw my two cents into the Ace x Nancy x Tamura discussion.

Some of you straight up hate Tamura and that’s cool, I get it, no judgement, but I personally like him a lot as a character. And I LOVE the connection he and Nancy have. Their repartee is entertaining, they share a passion for solving mysteries which is key to being Nancy’s friend, and their very different life experiences help balance each other out. 

You know, since one of them is grounded in reality and the other is navigating through life in a supernaturally charged hellmouth.

That being said, I hope they grow closer during S3 WITHOUT becoming explicitly romantic. And I think that may be exactly what happens! At most, I think that while solving magical mysteries, Nancy and Tamura will engage in a fun little flirtationship  that will lead to genuine friendship. His partnership with Nancy would be solidified this way as well as his honorary membership to the Drew Crew. This could serve three purposes: 

Forcing Tamura to accept the supernatural elements of Horseshoe Bay, thus weaving him more intricately into the plot.

Creating tension between Nancy and Ace 😏

Exploring and adding depth to whatever sort of relationship they’re trying to establish between Tamura and Ace.

I see all of this playing out fairly simply: while Nick and George are busy juggling real life and a wedding, while Bess devotes her time and energy into researching her family history and finding love, and while Ace prioritizes Amanda, Nancy finds herself without proper backup. So! Perhaps unintentionally, Nancy gravitates to Tamura. There's crimes and mysteries to be solved and since her friends are not fully available to her, who better to turn to than the guy who’s job it is to investigate these things? And so begins the Nancy and Tamura buddy cop comedy that is both dreaded and highly anticipated depending on what social media outlet you’re using.

Though let me repeat: BUDDY COP. 

I really don’t think we’re going to have an Ed and Lorraine Warren situation on our hands with these two. Truly, if the S2 finale is anything to go by, I think S3 will allow Nancy to grow into herself outside of a romantic or sexual relationship. She’s not running from herself and into someone else’s bed anymore. She’s embracing and learning to love herself. I’d even go so far as to say Nancy’s love interest next season will be...Nancy lmao. 

As for Tamura, if they decide to give him a romantic interest, I think they would either have his ex-fiancée reenter the picture or maybe even do him dirty and stick him with Temperance for plot reasons. A doomed Tamura x Temperance romance would actually be fun to see, in my opinion, and would be a great way to open Tamura’s eyes to the supernatural. That’s just me spit-balling, though. Whether it’s because of Temperance or not, I think Tamura is finally going to have to accept ghosts and witches and magic are real this season. It’s just a requirement for working with Nancy Drew.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, we have to address the Nace of it all. Sorry to Tamura but I do believe you’re being used as an obstacle in True Love’s way next season. I think fandom’s general consensus is that the more time Nancy and Tamura spend together, romantic or not, the more jealous Ace will become. While I agree, I think Ace’s jealousy will stem from somewhere a little deeper than just seeing Nancy with another guy. 

Take Gil, for example. Ace was sort of jealous of Gil, but more than anything he was wary of him and concerned for Nancy’s wellbeing when she was with him. Unlike Ace, Gil never had anything to offer Nancy except for sex and a getaway car. He sure as hell was never her number one person. In fact, he wasn’t even Nancy’s number five person. There was never a reason for Ace to be envious of him.

Tamura, on the other hand, can prove to be just as much of an equal to Nancy as Ace is. As chief/lead detective, he also has power and influence that Ace and Nancy do not, and access to people and resources that Ace does not have (unless he can hack into them). Tamura can help Nancy bend and break the law without consequence if need be, too. And, although naive in regards to the mystics of Horseshoe Bay, he is just as smart as Nancy and has, on the rare occasion, even been one step ahead of her. Tamura is an asset, to say the least. Together, he and Nancy make a formidable duo.

That’s what will make Ace jealous. More than the prospect of romance between Nancy and Tamura, I think that Nancy finding another intellectual match is what will rub Ace the wrong way. They’ll find themselves at a brief moment in time where Nancy will turn to Tamura for assistance before anyone, including Ace, and Ace will realize he absolutely hates that someone who is not him is Nancy’s partner in crime now.

Maybe Nancy won’t notice, but Ace will probably realize his love for her is not of the philia sort. I’m sure Amanda also will. And? Maybe Tamura will see it too.

Which brings me to one of my favorite dynamics of the show: Ace and Tamura’s.

I’m not gonna sit here and spin my crazy conspiracy theory that they’re brothers. Though that idea will always hold a special place in my heart, slowly but surely I am accepting that Ace’s long lost brother really is Grant. I’m being a total grownup about it. I swear.

Nevertheless, I do think they’ve been trying to build some kind of relationship between Ace and Tamura since before Tamura even met Nancy. What sort of relationship? God, I wish I knew.

They meet each other first, which doesn’t necessarily mean a lot, but it’s worth noting that they’re on each other’s funny little shit lists before Nancy even enters Tamura’s picture. It’s also Ace and Ace alone that hears from McGuinness that Tamura will be replacing him in the same episode. Then, of course, we have that crazy Shabbat dinner in 2x03 that exacerbates their antagonistic relationship further. Then there’s their snarky banter and all of those totally unnecessary side-by-side shots of them saving Noah in 2x10. Apart from Nancy, Ace is the only member of the Drew Crew that we’ve seen Tamura develop a real connection with, even if it is an unfriendly one. And, as of now, their relationship doesn’t even have anything to do with Nancy.

So where are the writers going with this hilarious and hostile bond between Ace and Tamura? Has all of this really just been buildup for a romantic rivalry? Hey, maybe! I really can’t figure out another reason why the writers have gone out of their way to create their dynamic since the Brother Theory has been disproven. But something tells me this may be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

And when I say “this”, I mean Tamura taking a step back from Nancy once he realizes he may just be filling in the love of her life’s shoes. Because that’s where I think all of this is going. Not necessarily anywhere romantic between Nancy and Tamura, but somewhere more friendly between Tamura and everyone.

At the end of it all, Tamura is going to finally embrace the supernatural, he’s going to become an ally to Nancy, Ace, and the rest of the Drew Crew, and, when the timing is right, he’s going to hop onboard the Nace ship with the rest of us. 

I HOPE.

Side note: this is just where my head is at. I truly respect all of your opinions and ask that you respect mine too. If you agree with what I’ve said and want to talk, let’s talk! If you disagree and want to talk, we can talk too! Please, just don’t get nasty with me. This is a television show about fictional characters at the end of the day, and I am a real person. Much love to you all. ❤️

[multimetaverse]

HSMTMTS 2x09 Review

Spring Break was a bit of an odd ep but helped move some key plots forward. Let’s dig in!

Well people can no longer claim that Portwell is one sided. We finally got Gina’s pov and she starts off the ep uncertain whether the shift in their relationship means that EJ likes her but by the end of the ep she seems sure of herself and that EJ likes her back. I liked that she didn’t try to pretend that nothing had changed or that she hadn’t noticed potential signs that EJ might like her; it always sucks when tv characters act like idiots. 

Perhaps the most important reveal of this ep was that Gina has a much older estranged brother who left her and her mom many years ago. That certainly makes her backstory more tragic and is definite set up for her brother to eventually return.

The writers continue to give Portwell great tropes, capping this ep off with an airport rom-com trope that also calls back to EJ getting Gina the place ticket so she could come back in S1. Not only did Gina keep EJ’s Duke sweatshirt but she altered it to fit her better which is both sweet and bold in the assumption that it was hers to keep. Gina got her sign when not only did EJ show up to drive Gina home and take her luggage but he brought her the granola bar that she had wanted but forgot to pack. I wonder if her posting on her story that she was ubering home after her flight was cancelled was intended to see if EJ would show up since the camera focused on her posting it. Also sweet that she’s taken to calling EJ, ‘ Eej’. 

EJ’s opening was good, shows a lot of his character growth from the selfish guy he was in S1 and how he’s learned to value other people which of course leads into his feelings for Gina. We got another great use of the camera as character tonight when Gina was laughing after her facetime call with EJ until she realized that the camera was on her. 

Jack was a lot of fun. Though he didn’t really change Gina’s mind over anything like the ep description said he would.  Seemed like Gina was largely over Ricky and wondering about EJ at the beginning and the end solidified her feelings for EJ but Jack didn’t really play a role in that, it’s not like he encouraged Gina to reach out to EJ or anything. There’s a vague sense in which Jack being nomadic linked him to Ricky’s unreliability in Gina’s eyes with her craving stability but that’s a stretch. Jack mentioned that the second most dangerous part of a plane ride is when the plane takes off, a hint to the blossoming Portwell relationship where in order to take off one or both of them has to risk a confession even though they could be turned down.

This ep might seem a bit weird in hindsight. The zoom parts probably won’t age well and five years from now people might be wondering why they had Gina hang out with a manic pixie dream boy of sorts for an ep.

The path is clear for canon Portwell in the finale with EJ being Gina’s second chance at romance and her first kiss since they clearly telegraphed it out of nowhere. I’ve been impressed with the great work the writers have been doing since 2x05 to build up Portwell as a ship but also work on Gina and EJ as individual characters; they’ve been the highlight of the season so far. 

There was discourse this past week over how well or poorly Portwell has been set up. Objectively very few ships on this show get much in the way of set up or consistent writing. Redlyn and Kowie had barely any set up before getting together. Seblos had none (though in fairness that was due to Disney restrictions) and Miss Jenn and Mike Bowen didn’t have much set up either. Rini did get lots of development in S1 but that’s because they had already dated and were the main ship of the show. The show’s not really about slow burns, if Jenzzara canons in the finale they’ll count and if Rina ever got together they’d also count but neither of those ships have gotten consistent development with Mazzara not being in several eps and Gina and Ricky not even interacting for the past 3 eps. 

Is Portwell a slowburn? In a sense since they did feature quite a bit in each other’s S1 plot lines and even had a fake dating plot but it is true that they were platonic and not that close in S1 so it’s a wash. There was clear set up for romantic Portwell in 1x10 with team wonderstudies and Gina staring at EJ (which interestingly enough looked more like set up for Gina to pine over EJ). I think the main problem is that even though we saw Gina and EJ hanging out in the background we didn’t get any scenes of substance between them until 2x05. It was a mistake and there should have been some scene, like EJ and Gina commiserating in 2x03 over being single on Valentine’s Day or something like that. Hell there was even that still from 2x01 of EJ and Gina looking at each other at the piano while they were in the frame between Ricky and Nini singing and having a moment  which would have been good foreshadowing but that shot wasn’t in the ep.

Whether Tim just really wanted Portwell to be a surprise in 2x05 as a mid-season twist to throw the audience off of what looked like a Rini/Rina triangle or he was unsure as to whether he wanted to go with Portwell or if he just planned it out poorly we may never know. Regardless they’ve had great writing for 4 eps in a row now which puts them slightly ahead of the 3 eps in a row of development Rina got in S1. I’m sure if someone added up their screen time they’d find that Portwell has more screen time this season than Kowie and more screen time than Redlyn or Seblos  got in S1. 

Caswell cousins was fun and Ashlyn did in fact paint EJ’s nails. 

Set up for Seblos drama next week, it’s refreshing to see Seb being jealous over Carlos flirting with other boys that’s definitely not something you see on Disney shows.

Ricky got some healing done with his mom. Enough to cover their issues? No but this is probably the best this show is capable of. There was a brief mention of therapy sandwiched between other options which sounds more like checking off a box then setting up Ricky actually going to therapy. I noticed Lynne was smiling at odd times like when she told Ricky she knew about his breakup with Nini; whether that was poor directing or acting I don’t know. Who knows if we’ll see Lynne again. As an aside still so wild that Tim named Lynne who’s been a kinda shitty mom after his own mom who he seems to be fairly close with.

Really liked You ain’t seen nothin as a song but not a fan of the Tiktok style vid. I’ll level with you wildcats, I’m too old to really get Tiktok, it just seems like a crappy version of Vine to me. Let you go was good, seemed better fitted for Joshua Bassett’s voice than some of his previous songs. A big sign that they’re not circling back to Rini for a long time for sure. Though on that note we got a bit of a hint that Ricky was Nini’s muse which may one day come back as a way to help bring them back together. 

Looking Ahead:

If there’s only 3 weeks left till the Menkies, with only 2 weeks left for rehearsal due to spring break, it’s hard to see East High winning unless North High is disqualified or has to withdraw. 

Lily is in a promo photo so she’s likely the unexpected facetime Ricky gets which is what I had theorized. Also makes it much more likely that she’s the party crasher Ricky re-evaluates in the finale though what Tim actually wants to do with those two I do not know.

There’s little point in bringing back the Valentine’s chocolate since there’s no real stakes. Rini are already broken up, Gina hasn’t spoken to Ricky since 2x06, and it’s not like Nini and Gina were ever close so even if they stopped talking to each other it wouldn’t really affect the show in any way. 

Seems pretty likely that Second Chances refers to Gina realizing that her first try with Ricky failed but her second chance with EJ won’t and that leads to her sharing her truth and cue the Portwell confession and kiss, perhaps with an assist on EJ’s end from Mazzara. We’ve gone well past the point where Portwell can be brushed off as just a plot device to help Rina but Tim is playing with fire by getting the audience so on board with Portwell if he’s once again going to have EJ lose a girl he likes to Ricky in S3.

Gina certainly needs to talk with Ricky and I do think that happens in ep 11 or 12 and leaves them on better terms. As I mentioned last week, if Tim was smart he’d slam the door on Rina if he’s going with canon Portwell or vice versa. If he wants Rina to be a slow burn he’s really botched the writing this season, it’s been too one sided and too angsty to sustain any kind of momentum or audience interest. They haven’t even interacted for 3 eps now and not only has it not affected the show but it’s inarguably made Gina’s story line much better.  Again I don’t think he’s smart enough to not try and do Portwell and then later Rina but he’s accidentally set up the Rina story line to quite easily slam the door permanently on them by having their conversation be closure for Gina who’s moved on and an apology from Ricky who never liked her back as much as Gina liked him.

Not looking forward to seeing Nini basically live out Olivia Rodrigo’s life in future seasons

Curious to see Carlos’ apology song to Seb. Ricky helping him with it is a great way to help start redeeming Ricky’s character in the audiences eye’s. According to Matt there is a bit of a Ricky/EJ rivalry this season and if it’s really happening the sleepover would be a good place to do it though I hope it’s not about Gina. 

Until next week wildcats.