#with an obvious fakeout of him being there because he thinks he is a terrible father

[deadnatura11]

9-1-1 SEASON 8, EPISODE 6 "CONFESSIONS"

What if it's called that because the entire episode takes place at church, with Eddie speaking with Hot Priest through the confessional...

And all the calls and everything else are "flashbacks" related to the reason that brought Eddie to the church, to Hot Priest, to the confessional...

And either the last scene is of Buck and Eddie after Eddie gets back from speaking with Hot Priest and he helps him shave...

OR...

Buck helps Eddie shave and it sparks the reason why Eddie runs to the church in the first place.

And the entire time we've been hearing Eddie’s voice but haven't seen him, until...

"Forgive me father for I have sinned."

"What is your sin, my child?"

Eddie leans forward, out of the shadows and into the light to reveal his freshly shaven face. "I've fallen in love with my best friend."

Episode cuts to black. Roll credits. Preview for next week.

[dazais-guardian-angel]

alright I've thought about it for a while, and I'm fairly confident that is in fact Bram, and that Aya isn't hallucinating/seeing an illusion.

The biggest thing casting doubt, aside from the obvious different outfit, is the fact that the chapter ends on this reveal, suggesting it could be a cliffhanger bait. However, BSD's cliffhangers always involve something terrible happening that gets rectified in the next chapter(s), to scare us before giving us back hope; there's never been a case of the other way around, where something good happens to get our hopes up, only to have the rug pulled out from us at the start of next chapter to show that we were foolish for hoping. Asagiri is never that cruel. He loves his death baits and his dangerous situation baits before letting us know that everything is okay, and he'd never suggest that it was wrong for the audience or the characters to have hope, when BSD is quite literally about having hope even in the most absurd situations.

But more specifically, just.... what would a fakeout like this accomplish? The only way I could maybe see it was if this is Fyodor, and we think Aya is safe but she's actually not, but there's no way it's him, because we see him with the singularity and Kunikida/Tanizaki at the same time as this, he's wearing Bram's outfit and not the one this person has, and we've established that he wants to protect Aya, not hurt her. Granted, he obviously doesn't care enough about protecting her since he let her escape and get hurt all on her own lmao, so that's exactly why I ask what would be the point of him suddenly showing up just to save her from the rubble, only to then just hurt her anyway? None of that is logical.

And then, if it's Akutagawa, then that means we had our emotions played with for a twist that is just.... mildly disappointing but also not outright bad for the characters? Disappointing because Bram isn't back after all, but also not a net negative because Aya is still being rescued by someone we know and trust. If that were to happen, Aya hallucinating Aku as Bram, I just can't see it happening as a chapter cliffhanger fakeout at all; it would just feel cheap and cruel, playing with our feelings (not to mention Aya's feelings!) regarding a character we want to come back, for a reveal that isn't really worth it and doesn't change the status quo (because she's still safe regardless if it's Bram or Aku).

Aside from the lack of narrative justification, I also believe that if Aya were to hallucinate Bram, she would see him exactly as she knew him back when he regained his body — I mean, she basically does see him like that when she's remembering his last moments with her in this chapter and in the previous one when she's yelling at Fyodor; sure they're just repeated panels as flashbacks, but they're still her memories of how she sees him. I was unsure for a while about the figure's identity, but it was seeing it pointed out that Bram no longer has his nails that was really the final nail in the coffin haha get it, it's a multilayered joke, please laugh- for me: why would Aya hallucinate Bram not only not in his own outfit, but with his body altered from how she knows it? There'd be no reason why she would, and no way she could. She's never seen him in a different outfit, with different nails. Note that every other instance we've gotten of characters hallucinating significant figures in their lives (Atsushi, Mushitarou, Dazai), they're always wearing the clothes they're most known for and what the person knows them to wear. There's no reason to assume this would be different for Aya, and that she'd imagine him wearing a completely random outfit from the one she associates with him, and randomly without his signature long black nails.

This closeup panel of Bram's collar right when he first begins speaking pretty much proves my point. It's inconsistent with the new outfit (Aku's outfit) we see him wearing on the last page, but with the framing of this, with him being entirely in shadow in the rightmost panel when he first appears, it's clear to me that Aya can't see him clearly yet, so she's imagining him the way she remembers him. And then he gets closer/lifts the beam higher so that the shadow starts receding from him, and his feet and hands and different outfit become visible. The tone of this moment and the way it plays out is exactly as I've seen in numerous other visual media, where a character thinks they're on the brink of death and has lost all hope and is ready to accept it, before the slow, grand reveal of the person they thought they'd lost rescuing them, often with them posing a philosophical question to challenge their current despair or their belief that their loved one couldn't possibly still be alive, just as Bram does here. If you've seen enough movies and TV, you can probably imagine exactly the kind of scene I mean, and exactly how this moment would play out if it were animated I say "would" because it's never a given that Bones will adapt it with the right tone like I imagine.

This is framed as a triumphant, hopeful scene, of a knight coming to rescue his princess after he was thought to be dead. Aya has hurt her leg here, she's trapped, she's realizing she's about to die, and she's at last fully convinced herself that everything she so staunchly believed in was wrong and that everything she fought for all that time was for nothing; firstly, why would she suddenly hallucinate Bram if she had already lost all hope, but most importantly, why would the narrative have Bram defy death and return to her and challenge the idea that all her ideals and actions were meaningless, only for it to turn out that it isn't really him, when she misses him so bad? That just.... wouldn't be right at all, that's not the feeling this scene gives at all. This is their moment, Bram has to be the one to say these things to Aya with their history together, not anyone else, and I can't imagine Akutagawa saying something like what Bram says to her here, about royalty carrying out their pledge to protect someone without fail, even if he has inherited Bram's protectiveness towards Aya like Fyodor has. No, I'm 90% certain that is indeed Bram. It can't possibly be anyone else.

...And so, all that to say that yeah, I believe that Bram has Fyodor'd himself into Akutagawa's body, since he's wearing his outfit. We don't really know the extent of Bram's powers, but it's looking likely that he can bodysnatch any of his vampires for himself if something ever happens to him, or perhaps Aku might be special since he was the first vampire Bram created at the start of all this. Needless to say I'm not at all worried about Aku though; this is probably the beginning of why he ends up with that suit of armor later on, since Bram has his clothes... I just have no idea how we get to that point. But Aku will be fine, I'm sure; this may even be the only way he can come back from being a vampire.

[tinky-dinky]

Les Mis 2018 Live Watch: Episode Two

- Lil Cosette is tres adorable.

- Is that Olivia Colman as Madame Thenardier? Interesting.

- Lil Eponine and Azelma are tres adorable too.

- I like that they included Azelma. She gets left out in every other adaptation.

- Don’t do it, Fantine, I see you considering leaving Cosette. Do not.

- Is Gavroche born yet?

- Adeel Akbar is a great Monsieur Thenardier and Olivia Colman is growing on me.

- Don’t do it, Fantine. Poor little Cosette.

- Monsieur Madeleine time!

- They call him Pere Madeleine? That’s adorable.

- Oh bless him, he looks so uncertain of what to do with all these people praising and cheering him.

- Oof, that was an awkward speech.

- Fantine, just tell him. He won’t care.

- I wish it was that easy to get a job these days.

- I wonder why Valjean decided to make necklaces in his factory?

- Love seeing him being so generous with the kids. Almost makes up for him robbing poor Petit Gervais in the last episode.

- Candlesticks!

- Tiny Gavroche! I want to cuddle him. He deserves so much better.

- I almost feel sorry for Madame, but she just admitted to hating her son and is abusing Cosette too, so I got nothing.

- Javert! Ooh I can feel the tension. See, this is the kind of Javert I like, who can almost be a likeable person…then he begins talking about criminals. So close.

- He doesn’t recognise you, Valjean, you can relax. Unless that’s not why you’re tense, hmm?

- Interesting motivation for Javert there. Something related to his past? Did someone do something to him or someone he cares about and get away with it?

- ….uh oh. How does Javert know about Petit Gervais?

- The long coat works better for Javert, but still gives me Cowboy/Western vibes.

- Are they changing why Fantine gets fired? I would like it if they made her smart enough to not bring an incriminating letter to work.

- This is why you shouldn’t have left your daughter with a random couple you barely knew.

- What is Valjean’s forelady doing?

- They have been taken advantage of?!

- Thenardier you are a liar and a terrible person.

- If Gillenormand hates Napoleon so much, where did Marius get his love for Napoleon from?

- Dear lord, what did they do to little Marius??

- Gillenormand, you absolute piece of shit. I loathe you. (Once again, though, got to give props for David Bradley’s ability to portray loathsome people so well.).

- Nicolette, you superstar. I want her to take Marius and run. Raise him as your own. Or find Baron Pontmercy. You could raise him together.

- Do I ship Nicolette/Baron Pontmercy?

- I think I do.

- Ooh runaway cart time.

- Javert seems very interested. Because he recognises Valjean…or for other reasons?

- Is that Maester Luwin?

- Oh bugger off you judgemental old bitch.

- Valjean, watch yourself.

- Is it not obvious why she lied? Look at how your forelady is treating her!

- Valjean, what are you doing?

- Why is this show so insistent on making Valjean a bit of a douchebag? He’s supposed to be almost supernaturally kind!

- Poor Fantine. Actually feeling sorry for her now, and kinda liking Lily Collins’ performance.

- I hope you feel guilty, Valjean. You done fucked up.

- What are you doing?

- Oh no, don’t do that!

- Oh, wait, it’s Javert? I thought it was Valjean.

- Ah, it’s the fakeout. Never understood that, doesn’t the false Valjean not have his prison brand?

- Oh wait Valjean is there. What is going on?

- This seems risky. What if someone finds them? That pile of rocks is a dead giveaway that someone was doing something.

- I like horses. Just an aside.

- Oh good, they are letting little Marius see his dad.

- I thought this was supposed to happen later? I thought Georges died when Marius was a teenager/early twenties?

- Oh is this why Marius loves Napoleon?

- Also, no, you’re utterly wrong about Thenardier. Don’t listen to him Marius.

- Eww old man postie is a bit gross.

- Here comes the downward spiral. Poor Fantine.

- How does Fantine have white teeth?

- Oh my god old postie man stop being such a creep!

- Baldy? She clearly still has hair.

- Why are they acting like Lily Collins isn’t gorgeous, even with short hair and missing teeth?

- Fantine, they don’t care.

- They’re playing with you, you idiot.

- Look, as much as Javert is being a hardass, Fantine did attack that man. And having a child isn’t a excuse to get out of consequences.

- Uh-oh, Valjean, is that consequences for your actions? Oopsy daisy, you fucked up and you’ve got to deal with it.

- Here’s supernaturally kind Valjean again.

- Javert, you are neither a judge nor a court. You cannot sentence anyone.

- No fault of her own is a little exaggerated. She blindly ignored the glaring red flags around Monsieur Dickhead. Her friends warned her. She has a little fault here.

- Yeah, I don’t think praying is doing anything for anyone, Valjean.

- Please save Cosette, Valjean, and save Gavroche too. Two kids can’t be much harder than one.

- Javert, you self flagellating fool. At least he holds himself to the same standards as everyone else.

- Still don’t get how the false Valjean thing works.

- Surely, again, he doesn’t have the right brand?

- Uh-oh, there’s the consequences for one’s actions again. Justice for Petit Gervais.

- Is it just me or does Javert actually sound a little sad to no longer be chief inspector?

- What the hell is that wimple?

- No need to snap, Valjean.

- Guilty guilty Valjean.

- He kept the coin? Or is that the coin from the town?

- It seems he’s given himself another brand. It’ll be interesting to see if they remember to give him this brand in later episodes.

- No, Valjean, don’t trust the judgmental bitch to fetch Cosette! That’s a bad bad idea!

- Ooh pretty landscape shots.

Final Thoughts:

I don’t like that they keep making Valjean douchier than he was in the books, especially post redemption. Lily Collins grew on me as Fantine, though I doubt I’ll be seeing much more of her. Loving David Oyelowo’s Javert. The Thenardiers are good too, though jury’s out on whether or not Monsieur Thenardier can pull off being an actual criminal type ala Dog Eats Dog.

Got to go to sleep now. Will watch more in the morning.

[its-a-branwen-thing]

“We Can Kill The Man Who Put Us Here...”

[Hey! it’s my first discussion of RWBY season 2020 and guess what? It’s totally about Qrow and Ironwood and Robyn, who’d have thunk it?] Also I promise it isn’t that long...

I know we’re being lead to believe that Qrow is talking about Ironwood here, and I totally think that may well be the case BUT I also think there might be a bit more at play in the narrative than what we’re seeing. The scene transitions directly to an image of Ironwood after this and it seems the most obvious target of this anger is definitely Ironwood. These two have been set up for a fight since V3, and I think that confrontation is a long time coming but--and this is important--Robyn says something earlier that makes me think the threat of murder might be a red herring of sorts.

“He didn’t kill anybody.”

Because Qrow clearly blames himself for Clover’s death and I think they’re going with “everyone will believe he’s a murderer” as his new scarlet letter. If we have, once again, Qrow believing that he’s this awful person that got someone murdered, having him throw himself down the path of revenge seems more tragic than redeeming, even if his opponent is a despot who we’d very much like to see thrown from his perch. The thing about terrible people is that getting rid of them sometimes involves good people having to resort to terrible things, but it’d still be tough to watch Qrow pull that particular trigger. 

And yet there’s something that got me stewing after I thought of all of this and it has everything to do with a past fake-out in V3:

I don’t think this scene will necessarily repeat itself, although that’d be a cool callback, but I do think it planted some seeds in my brain for what would happen if the writers decide to take that track. Ironwood mistook Qrow here for coming after him but, really, Qrow knew Ironwood didn’t call the attack, and he knew the grimm were a bigger threat. He didn’t say anything because he’s just that kind of ass he probably didn’t think he needed to. Now, obviously, things have changed, but not enough for me to think Qrow is going to straight up murder Ironwood like the general did with the councilman. I predict this going one of three ways:

1. Qrow actually landing the blow this time. No fakeout, full fight. Oof. outcome TBD, cool fight song, lots of yelling

2. Ironwood being the one to defend the team when they think he will attack them as a last showcasing of his humanity before he ultimately perishes ala Ozpin’s V6 nugget about Lionheart being remembered for who he was leading up to his fall rather than his fall itself. But...I think that’s too kind.

3. A repeat fake-out of the same kind--all season we’re built up to think Qrow has it out for Ironwood, perhaps even cheering him on as the pieces fall into place, only for him to focus on a greater threat at the last minute and show little care for getting revenge on Ironwood. In fact, forgoing it totally in order to focus on their single greatest threat: Salem (or he’ll finally 1v1 Tyrian, not to the death though, because reasons I have stated and also I hate/love Tyrian and don’t want him to die yet). This is my favorite little theory.

Because instead of being responsible for passing judgement on Ironwood himself Qrow will instead, at the end of the season, offer him up for his due process punishment to those who now hold the people’s loyalty--Robyn and the Happy Huntresses. And that punishment might not be death. It might be mercy.

Not dissimilar to a reverse Tin Man, just as we saw with Lionheart’s fate to die as a coward, the great general would be frozen in place, ensconced likely metaphorically but maybe also physically, in his own rusting morals, unable to do anything as the world and his people move on without him. A chess piece taken off the board.

Ironwood’s fate could be death, but he could also very well be left alive knowing what he has done, the good and the horrible, so that his reputation never has a chance to become legend. He’ll never be a martyr like he seems to want so desperately to be, likely because he thinks it will help remediate some of his bad choices. By living he doesn’t get the chance to die in glory and his actions gain less nuance; the last few decisions will be a burden he has to bear. For the rest of his life.

[undertalethingies]

Self Indulgent Self Insert Fanfic, Part One

I am sitting in my room, not doing much of anything, (as per usual) when I look up and notice that my mirror has apparently transformed into a solid wall of inky darkness as I’ve been spacing out.

And well- it’s not like I can not poke it, right? There’s a high chance I’ll seriously regret it, if my life has become the isekai it appears to be, but there’s a 100% chance I’ll regret it forever if I don’t touch it, you know?

Everyone always assumes I’m risk averse, that I like to play it safe, but the truth of the matter is I’ve just never found something I really want to take a risk with.

So, I push myself out of bed with a hand and go grab my shoes, because there’s no way in hell I’m touching something that might be a portal with no shoes on. Thankfully, I’m actually dressed for once, rather than being in my bathrobe like usual. 

Once I’ve got my shoes on, I grab my coat from where it hangs by my dresser and walk straight into what used to be my mirror. I hope my parents aren’t too worried by my disappearance. Maybe I’ll be lucky and this will be the kind of isekai that retroactively erases me from existence? That would be kind of nice, to exist without tethers.

The portal (because that’s what it is, I’m pretty sure) feels cool, but not unpleasantly so. Like when you first put on a fleece sweater and it takes a moment to warm up.

If this were a stereotypical isekai story, things would quickly become very unpleasant in this dark void, and some godlike being would reach out to grant me power beyond my wildest imaginings.

I’ve never been one to cave to expectations, though. Not even my own.

The darkness remains cool and comforting, and I continue walking forward because there’s no chance I’m going to turn back now, with so much possibility awaiting me if I only continue long enough.

Eventually, I feel as if I’ve passed some threshold, and something definably changes within me. Can’t say what, though. I’ve always kinda sucked at interpreting what my body is trying to tell me, so I’ll probably have to figure it out on my own.

At some point the darkness and walking grows boring, and so I do what I often do when bored, and curl up to go to sleep. This place isn’t cold enough for me to need a blanket, and I’ve got my coat with me anyway, so I’m fine. Sleeping on hard surfaces isn’t unpleasant, in my opinion, merely a bit annoying, since if you pick the wrong position you’ll inevitably wake up sore.

As always, consciousness takes a while to fade, so I occupy myself with grand imaginings about all the wonderful (and terrible, I’ve got anxiety okay, I can’t help it) things that might await me.

==

When I wake, it’s immediately obvious that something is different. There’s light now, for one, and for two I can feel something soft and organic beneath me. Judging by smell alone… Flowers? Waking up on a bed of flowers in a lit room… Well, I’ve always wished I could live in Undertale, if only so I could chew out the characters for bottling up their feelings so damn much. Hey, maybe if I’m lucky, that one headcanon I have about Sans secretly being a teenager will be right and I’ll be able to flirt with him without it being creepy.

Oh come on, like everyone attracted to dudes and not overly hung up about species concerns doesn’t want to kiss that guy, are you kidding me? Plus, I love puns and I’m depressed, surely we’ll get along.

Oh boy, I’m definitely going to die, huh? Thank fuck for my high pain tolerance and ridiculous resistance to trauma, am I right?

Finally, I open my eyes, because I like to wake up slow and I see no reason to alter my existing routine simply because I’ve apparently been yeeted into my favorite video game. Hey, speaking of favorite video games, will I get to visit Hollow Knight next? No, wait, that would probably suck, wouldn’t it. Ah, well.

The cave is just as beautiful as I always imagined it would be. Though it looked lovely in the game art, there’s truly nothing that can compare to seeing the sight in person, those marble pillars in a half circle around me, that single spot of sunlight in the ceiling far (far, far) above. Not to mention the lovely flowers I’m laying on at this very moment and- there’s a dead body under me, isn’t there. Is Chara going to show up, or am I left to be alone in my head?

Though their narration doesn’t actually start until you meet Flowey, in the game, so I suppose I’ll just have to wait and see.

Wait.

Wait wait wait.

Which human soul am I taking the place of right now? Because I read a fic once where the protagonist wasn’t the seventh, even if it was a fakeout, and I very much do not want to be saddled with the fate of those poor bastards.

Though, maybe I’d be able to talk my way out? There’s no one who’d call me diplomatic, for sure, but I’m pretty great at knowing exactly where to aim an insult to utterly break someone’s spirit. (Unusual skill, I’m aware, but in my defense I was bullied growing up)(I say “growing up” like I’m not still doing it, like I’m not fourteen and trapped in a world where it’s an accepted fact that the protagonist will die, and several times over, too)

My first order of business is Flowey, before I can take the time to freak out, to hold myself tight and weather the sheer panic that Toto, I am not in Kansas anymore.

I get up. I give a last fond look to the beautiful cave I’ve “fallen” into, and I walk to the next room, hoping all the while that I’m not signing my own death sentence.

Once I’m a few feet in, there he is, in all his fucking glory.

Flowey the flower, the soulless remnant of prince Asriel Dreemurr, former hope of the underground, possibly still holder of the ability to control time itself.

Yeah, I’m definitely going to mess with him. Self preservation is for losers.

“You’re a flower with a face,” I say before he can start with his usual greeting. I have it memorized anyway, so it’s not like I’m missing out on anything.

He makes his T-T face, so I know this isn’t how he thought this would go. 

“Wow, human! What gave you that impression?” Ooh, sassy. Literally his only positive trait.

“Well I have eyes, see,” I was planning  to ask him probing questions, but honestly this is just as good. His expression doesn’t change as he says his next sentence, nor does his ever cheery tone, (and holy fuck his voice is just as vaguely creepy as I’d imagined, all that childlike innocence paired with the fact that he’s a mass murderer)

“Well howdy, human with eyes! I’m Flowey, flowey the flower!” He says. I don’t interject.

“You’re clearly new to the underground, and it looks like I’m the only one around to show you how things work around here! Are you ready?” 

…

“I’m really not, to be honest. I’ve got no idea what’s going on,” So my plan here, basically, is to stall until Toriel gets here. Mostly because I’m hoping that if he doesn’t get the chance to do his betrayal, he’ll keep pretending to be nice, which will be hilarious since I’ll know he’s faking the whole time.

Admittedly, this significantly increases the likelihood that Toriel won’t come to save me when he inevitably finds a secluded place to murder me, but if I think too hard about the long term right now I’m going to scream, so.

“Well you see, human, you’ve fallen into the underground, a land inhabited by monsters! Don’t worry though, we’re quite nice,” Oh right, conversation. I wonder how much info I can get out of him…

“What’s a monster? Like, I know what it means on the surface, but that definition is pretty vague, and I don’t want to be accidentally racist,” 

His face pops back to the usual smile. (Side note: his face looks like it was drawn on with sharpie and it’s totally messing me up)

“A monster is a being made of magic!” Ok, that’s… a bit vague, but not really inaccurate. I guess he doesn’t want to get into the science, which is a damn shame, since he probably knows it backwards and forwards due to all his reset shenanigans.

“Woah, cool. Magic is real? How does it work without breaking thermodynamics?” Finally, the question I’ve always wanted to ask. If energy can’t be created, how the fuck does Toriel shoot fireballs from her hands? What is she drawing on, what is the fire burning, how hot is it, how does it keep being on fire, etc. etc. repeat for every magical display in the game.

“Well, a lot of it isn’t super understood. Scientists have mostly been pinning it on ‘dark energy’ like they do with every other phenomenon they don’t totally understand,” I wonder why he’s so willingly entertaining my time wasting antics. I know, in game, he didn’t realize he’d lost control over the timeline until after his first talk with Frisk, so maybe he’s just waiting it out to see where it goes? And then of course he must be planning other things to do with me before he takes my soul and goes to the surface…

“God, I hate dark energy in science. I know they just call it that because not much is known about it, but I’m thirsty for knowledge, you know?” Actually ‘thirsty for knowledge’ describes my mood like 90% of the time. Huh, actually, I have that in common with Flowey, right? Even if his knowledge thirst is just due to boredom.

“Hey, human, me too! Learning new things is great!” There’s a loaded sentence if i’ve ever heard one. When was the last time he learned something new? He’s supposedly read every book in the underground, but how much information from that did he actually retain?

“Isn’t it? It’s why I love Youtube so much. Free information for anyone who cares to make a few clicks!” Wait, he probably doesn’t know what Youtube is, actually.

“What’s Youtube?” He asks, cocking his head.

“It’s a service where you can upload videos or watch videos other people have uploaded,” Not the most nuanced explanation, but it’ll do for now. Before Flowey has a chance to respond, a fireball manifests next to him. 

I don’t smile because I’m pretending to be shocked, but I’m laughing my ass off on the inside. The face he makes is even more ridiculous in person.

Enter Toriel, queen of the monsters, mother of no living children.

[pilfered-words]

Queen’s Play reread

My Queen’s Play liveblog, as I put it on discord, is under the cut

Reading the second Lymond book now. I forgot the O'LiamRoe fakeout gets revealed this early I'm only on page 55 

[Later] back to lymond right, I had stopped at the part where archie gets properly introduced I can't believe I forgot archie was turkey mat's brother

"all sense and no wits" that's a scathing indictment right there

first mention of the dame of doubtance!

"Where The O'Liam Roe had an obstinate humor all his own, Francis Crawford of Lymond had genius"

"In that company wholly spoiled, wholly self-centered, ruthless, neurotic, worldly-wise, more than one woman bit her lip to avoid tears and ridicule”

I hate it when dunnett says "the implication was obvious" there are always at least three ways to interpret the whatever-it-is

...ok, how is lymond hiding his fat suit he presumably just stripped for medical care "under the supervision of the Duchess of Valentinois herself" who, let us not forget, is Diane de Poitiers, the king's mistress [later in the book, we get told that he doesn’t actually wear the fat suit anymore]

Margaret Erskine :)

"He turned, unnecessarily expansive, interested in nothing as yet except being difficult"

francis, please don't attack your friends

‘“I am tired,’ said Lymond, ‘of funerals. Show me a project, and I’ll promise you that before it is ended half my so-called friends will have thrown their illusions, their safety and their virtue into the grave.”‘ oh honey we're only about a fifth of the way into the series

"this is habitual. Mother flutters her wings, and every institution within sight tumbles flat"

“Why should I suffer moral blackmail and The O'LiamRoe escape unfettered? He is an educated man. He has a brain. He shall be made to use it. I shall make him drunk on the palm wine of power,” said Lymond sweepingly, “until he falls out of his tree.“

"anyone can seize a child's interest for a moment. to keep it needs rather more than one trick" True facts.

A rare scene from Lymond's own point of view Hypothesis: it's because he's sick and drunk and isn't as tightly self-controlled as usual It's amazing how rarely we get a direct look at what he's thinking Oh, nope, did I say a scene, I meant a paragraph

Oh God, I forgot what happened in this scene [the race that ends in a tripwire] ...I actually don't remember anything else that happens in this book, we're already past all the points I remember, and I'm only halfway through

OH Right, we need to get to the dame de doubtance's house That's still a thing that needs to happen

(technically I read that last night, but I didn't want to stop then)

“Oh-Stewart," said Lymond. "He'll bustle in with a knife and a bloody lecture, both wide of the mark, when it's all over.” ...I suppose it's good for lymond's soul to be wrong now and then but aaaaa

aaaaa, fire

aaaaaaaaaaaaaa explosions

but also "Lymond's unthinking, professional pull" I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE

robin :( :( :(

"we cannot all think of nothing of ourselves" OUCH I love Margaret Fleming

...clever, sir george

"A mind responsive to beauty is a storehouse with many rooms, words, sounds, textures, all the nobler exercises of the senses leave some image filed and folded to be summoned at need. "

"Remember, some live all their lives without discovering this truth; that the noblest and most terrible power we possess is the power we have, each of us, over the chance-met, the stranger, the passer-by outside your life and your kin. Speak, she said, as you would write: as if your words were letters of lead, graven there for all time, for which you must take the consequences. And take the consequences"

margaret  [”She had sat by the hearth, as she had promised, but the other promise she had made to Lymond she had never meant to keep.”]

And that's book 2!

I think I might liveblog book 3 here directly, but we’ll see. 

[shelvesofgold]

This fakeout would make more sense because originally Caleb decided to possess nick solely because he thinks Nick and Julie are a couple (him bringing her flowers after her big performance) so he would think possessing him would be the perfect way to get closer to Julie and therefore the boys. (Caleb hasn’t seen any of the jatp gigs or even Julie before so he would have no idea about the bond between Julie and Luke, he just knows the boys really care about her, as far as he knows the most important things to Luke is his music not his girl). After interacting with Julie through nick he would quickly realize at the very least that Julie only sees nick as a friends and if he tried to push that Julie would obviously not be about that and stay away from him. At this point in the story Carrie would prolly be trying to approach Julie to try and reconcile with her (that would be kicked off after her tears at seeing Julie perform at the orpheum) and Trevor would be trying to approach Julie for obvious reasons. Since Carrie and Nick dated for so long (long enough that Flynn was convinced they’d get married and have “demon babies”) they would prolly have a lot of mutual friends and Caleb would quickly see Carrie through nick and realize that she is much better host than nick (Carrie being a fabulous mean girl with a similar temperament and style to him compared to white bread boy nickypoo) and that she has much more access to the boys and Julie and Trevor would also be willing to help him (in carries body) in his efforts to realize how his dead band mates are performing again. This would also be great way to kick off carries and trevors redemption arcs because as it is Julie and the boys don’t really have any reason to interact with them. Julie is classy toward carrie but it’s undeniable that carrie was out of like in her treatment of Julie especially considering they were once best friends and a simple “I liked your performance I’m sorry I was a bad friend” is not enough to prompt the kind of change that needs to happen for Carrie and Julie to come back together as at least acquaintances. The same goes for Trevor, what he went thru was terrible but it does not excuse the absolute betrayal of stealing his best friends legacies. The kind of interactions with the boys that would be prompted by Caleb possessing his daughter would be much more impactful than just him chasing the ghosts of his band mates out of paranoia. Basically nick as Caleb is funny, but Carrie as Caleb would make me say ✨wow✨

i think carrie should’ve gotten possessed instead of nick and yes i’m being dead serious 

[tumblunni]

AH FUCK I REMEMBERED IT AGAIN I swear its like clockwork, i keep making this post like once a damn year

OKAY SO THIS SCENE

now i like i never actually cried at persona 4, its actually my least favourite persona game cos it has so much bigoted stuff you have to ignore to get to the actual plot. At least those sorts of moments were sidequest only in P3 and P5 BUT THE ANIME ADAPTATION I knooooowww that the anime has a load of flaws but like I think I’m the only one who preferred it to the game. or at least this ONE SINGLE EPISODE was great, and SO GREAT that it was better than the anime and the game combined! and I never cried at anything in the game but this one damn anime scene made me sob like a happy equivelant of P3′s ending scene sobs... and now i end up associating this one particular remix of the boss battle theme with that scene instead of the game and GAH i cant hear it without being hyped!!!

so yeah TO EXPLAIN THE CONTEXT FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVENT SEEN IT In the game: shadow mitsuo is a tough boss fight but has no emotional story stuff around it, also is not very climactic at all cos its obvious from the start that he’s a fakeout final boss In the anime: THE OPPOSITE OF ALL DAT In the game: protagonist has no dialogue and no canon personality In the anime: THEY GAVE HIM A DAMN GOOD ONE In the game: protagonist never gets a Shadow and thus never gets any doubts or fears or triumph over them which unlocks super extra power and makes you cry like a damn bitch In the anime: GUESS WHAT THEY ADDED

And FUCK it is SUCH a good plot and I am SO angry that it wasn’t in the game cos now I have to tell people to watch a terrible anime adaptation just to see this one uncharacteristically impossibly universally good bit that somehow snuck in! It’s so great because they establish Yu’s personality as ‘the comically serious guy’ and he’s just so much more loveable when he’s quiet but not silent, and only pipes up when he needs to break his own badass rep with a really silly comic relief moment. I will forever imagine his anime personality as canon, it makes the game so much better! And like once you’ve got so attatched to him you get the surprise awesomeness of him getting a Shadow episode, which you weren’t expecting cos its just Game Rules that the protagonist is always infallable and voiceless.

And I love how they pulled off that surprise, too! They show the gang about to fight Mitsuo before the opening credits, and then afterwards it seems like we’ve flashed forwards to after the fight. And like, it being a bad adaptation somehow makes it work even better?? It wouldn’t seem out of character for them to have skipped some minor fights in a montage sequence. And then the episode just continues, and you’re expecting that any second everyone will find out that Mitsuo wasn’t really the real villain, but instead it just keeps rolling into a happy ending?? And it just keeps going AFTERWARDS, and shows it all turn sour and scary and Yu has to face his demons And its so relateable what his troubles are! his biggest fear is losing his friends and finding out the people he cares about don’t care as much about him, or that he’s useless and could be easily replaced by someone better. His bad ending isn’t anything big or supernatural, it’s just the ordinary anxiety of finishing high school and wondering how long you’ll be able to keep in touch. And it works so well as a love letter to the game?? Cos you see him struggling to get the words out, you see him slowly becoming actually silent, and becoming actually superfluous in his own life. You see him fading into the background as everyone else leaves and nothing would even be different without him. if anything IS different, its them being HAPPIER without him! So its a deconstruction of his original gameplay limitations, and also a dark subversion of the game’s happy ending of everyone finishing high school, etc.

And then its just SO GOOD and SO CATHARTIC in the end HOLY FUCK Cos you find out they’re ACTUALLY STILL FIGHTING MITSUO And Yu is trapped inside an illusion of his own shadow and you never even noticed it happening! And then he has his big triumphant moment of facing himself and moving forward and you see his friends reach through the illusion world and pull him back to reality and then he unleashes THE MOST WELL COREOGRAPHED BEATDOWN IN ALL OF HISTORY God, this gives me the same sort of feels as Garnet vs Jasper in Steven Universe! Its a similar moment of a normally unflappable character being defeated, then coming back stronger after an emotional sequence and winning in a rematch that’s synced super well to an awesome song! (tho an instrumental here, not as cool as having relevant lyrics!) But MAN the fight is so fucking cool even with the anime’s sometimes terrible animation and tendancy to have the friend characters not actually do anything, lol. That’s still a problem here cos it’s unintentionally comical how they stop fighting and step back to let Yu deal the final blow, but I mean it works cos its A REALLY FUCKIN GREAT ONE, and they still contributed more than usual by holding bac mitsuo offscreen while Yu was trapped, yknow? BUT ANYWAY THE SCENE AND WHY ITS MY FAVOURITE THING EVER AND I REWATCH IT WHEN I’M DEPRESSED TO KILL ALL SADS Yu does an epic rolling thunder of Every Damn Move In His Moveset All One After Another In An Animation Train (Holy Fuck This Explains How Every Other Episode Had Zero Budget) And cos of how the magic works in this setting he gets to dramatically call out all the names to the beat of the music and the english voiceactor fucking nails the exact nuance of the original and I am SO HAPPY cos he barely got to say two words in the original game! its just Good. its just Really Good.

anyway have a link its probably not as cool out of context or maybe its not as cool if you dont relate intensely to anime Yu’s neuroses or have a dumb bunni brain that’s easily manipulated by Cool Musics And A Guy Yelling Ara Mitama but have it anyway and now i am gonna shut up about this until probably twelve months later when I remember it again

i cry evertiem

seriously man i know that feeling of like.. the triumph of realizing a certain negative thing you believed about yourself is wrong, or standing up to an abuser, or conquering some part of your depression, or just generally a triumph over self hate against all the odds! And I really wish that i could get an awesome theme tune and gloriously animated boss battle actually blowing up those negative feelings and then they never return. But I guess that just means that real life people are even more badass, cos we don’t get one big epiphany moment, we keep fighting and defeating all those self doubt boss monsters throughout our lives. I’m like twelve yu narukamis! :D