#wylie x nate

[thefvrious]

@predatorymaniac

[gabolange]

So, let’s talk about Leverage: Redemption. In which I am medium-whelmed at best.

Spoilers below the cut.

I finished the show a couple of days ago and I keep trying to figure out why I didn’t love it. This isn’t to say I didn’t like it, because I did, but it didn’t land for me the way it seems to have landed for a lot of people, and so here I am with, like, meta. Party like it’s 2008 and all that.

2008. I actually didn’t meet Leverage until 2010 despite friends telling me for ages I should watch. It one of those moments that became a forever memory for many reasons, but the most important is this: the show was perfect. Those first hours spent watching a rerun marathon on TNT on a hot-as-fuck July 4 in Albuquerque, New Mexico came with them the understanding that this show was truly special.

It was funny, it was topical, it was sexy, and it was so fucking smart. I fell in love right away with all of them, but especially with Sophie, and with Nate, and with their complicated, complex, adult history. And then over the course of catching up and keeping up, I fell even harder, with them and those themes, with watching Parker and Hardison grow into themselves, with watching Eliot deal every day with his demons. I loved the way the show balanced light and dark, how it could have Archie’s zappy cane in the same breath as Eliot giving Nate advice about what it would mean to kill. I loved that we all loved Maggie, even though ex-wives are known in television to be evil shrews. I loved Tara’s complexity, and Sterling’s wit, and how every episode was a chess game. And oh, how I loved Sophie’s journey, how she had to decide every day not how to live but who to be.

When I say it was perfect, I don’t mean it didn’t have its duds. Of course it did. But it did the thing it was trying to do better than anyone has ever done it, with intelligence and respect, and its finale is one of the three best series finales ever filmed.

This is all to say the bar for Leverage: Redemption was both sky high and very low. When I heard they weren’t bringing Nate back, my first thought was don’t you fucking dare break my heart. If Nate was drunk off his ass in a ditch somewhere, if he had broken Sophie’s heart--that would be the ultimate betrayal (hi, I still have feelings about The Doctor Blake Mysteries). And so the bar was: don’t break my heart, while also being something like the perfect show.

They didn’t break my heart. I said early the best thing would be to kill Nate after he and Sophie had good, long, happy years together. And they did, and it was the right place to start.

They gave me that, and I am grateful, but when I look at the rest, I guess I was underwhelmed. Or at least only whelmed. Medium-whelmed at best.

There were things I loved: Hardison and Parker’s relationship. Eliot’s careful watch over Sophie. Hardison growing up to become the most epic white hat hacker ever. The idea that getting back into the game would be the thing that would make Sophie happy. Hardison’s commentary on redemption. The idea of Leverage: International. Gina Bellman is still made of magic and heartbreak and perfection.

There were things I liked: I am fond of our Mister Wilson, even if I find Noah Wylie about as interesting as plain toast. There were some truly great Eliot beats. I don’t yet like Breanna, but I like the idea of Breanna. I liked the way Nate hovered over the entire thing, because Sophie brought him with her. I think the sets were great, and I was impressed at how much they were able to do in a pandemic. I found utterly baffling but nonetheless charming that we meet Harry in the middle of a failed heist in which the team judges his technique and then adopts him. I liked Fake Nate and everything they did with that. The show had many bright spots, and I don’t in any way want to diminish them.

But. It wasn’t smart. It wasn’t sexy. Except for Sophie’s grief and Hardison’s plans, it picked up the character beats where we left them ten years ago. Has Parker been mastermind for this entire time? I would have loved to see that. Have they learned how to do this well without Sophie and Nate? I would have loved to see that. Show me the history.

Show me the history. Breanna and Hardison and Parker all say this is the worst timeline, and we know it is because we have lived it. But in the universe of the show, it doesn’t really seem that bad -- the plots of the week were silly and so small. I remember finding Damien Moreau too big, once upon a time, but this all felt too easy, the stakes far too small for this to be a show where everything has gotten worse. Nate almost murdered two guys in cold blood, folks. The show was missing any of the darkness that made the original truly compelling, and so lost the balance we loved between that and finding joy. I don’t need it in every episode, but I need a hint that there’s something bigger and meaner out there other than throwaway dialog.

(And, when it tried to go dark, it swung and missed. The episode with the collapsed building was timely, but as someone with anxiety and PTSD, the way the crew played on this guy who had apparently tried to do better this time around...was kinda not okay, to be honest.)

I don’t have OT3 goggles, but I think if I did, I would find Hardison’s absence a little sad--he was the glue, and they needed to do more to bring Parker and Eliot together as friends / colleagues / long-term members of the same polycue / whatever. But even without OT3 goggles, I missed Hardison a whole lot. And I am SO happy for Aldis Hodge growing up to be a real movie star, but he brought so much presence and capability to every scene he was in, even when he was just a kid. Nobody else has his gravitas, or Timothy Hutton’s.

I do have Sophie goggles, and Sophie / Nate goggles. And they didn’t ruin the ship or anything, of course not. But I missed the frisson they brought, the way they made the show just that much more adult. And I am so very, very glad they got their happiness, but I am kinda sad that sexy got replaced with grief.

So yeah. I don’t know. I didn’t hate it at all. I am willing to give it a chance, to let it grow into something I love. But it isn’t, at least not yet.

(x-posted to dreamwidth)

[st-louis]

flyers training camp roster 2020-21

FORWARDS (22) Wade Allison (RW), Andy Andreoff (C/LW), Nicolas Aube-Kubel (RW), Connor Bunnaman (C), Sean Couturier (C), Joel Farabee (LW), Tyson Foerster (RW), Morgan Frost (C), Claude Giroux (C), Kevin Hayes (C), Travis Konecny (RW), Tanner Laczynski (C), Scott Laughton (C), Oskar Lindblom (LW), Samuel Morin (LW), Nolan Patrick (C), Michael Raffl (LW), Linus Sandin (RW), Carsen Twarynski (LW), James van Riemsdyk (LW), Jakub Voracek (RW), Zayde Wisdom (LW). DEFENSE (14) Chris Bigras, Justin Braun, Mark Friedman, Shayne Gostisbehere, Erik Gustafsson, Robert Hagg, Philippe Myers, Derrick Pouliot, Nate Prosser, Ivan Provorov, Travis Sanheim, Tyler Wotherspoon, Wyatte Wylie, Egor Zamula. GOALTENDERS (5) Brian Elliott, Carter Hart, Alex Lyon, Felix Sandstrom, Roddy Ross.

[x]

[thefvrious]

@predatorymaniac said -> I was someone I don't want to be anymore. I've changed.

Wylie was hesitant to believe a word Nate Jacobs had to say. The energy between them in high school had not been good, especially for Wylie who had been nothing short of a shrimp with his nose buried in a book. The few parties he'd attended where Nate just so happened to be had ended pretty poorly for Wylie, but part of him wants to believe that people can change. Especially from their toxic youth. Pursing his lips, he gave Nate the once over. "I see. Is that your way of apologizing? Is this some sort of twelve step program?"

[thefvrious]

@predatorymaniac said -> “i’m sorry i wasn’t good enough."

"What are you talking about?" Wylie asked, looking with a slightly concerned expression up at Nate. He wasn't certain what he had done to make the other feel that way, but it hadn't been his intention. "You're more than good enough, I would never purposefully make you feel that way... tell me what I did so I can do better next time."

[thefvrious]

@predatorymaniac sent in 📜

[thefvrious]

@predatorymaniac sent -> wylie/nate

☀️          »        what    was    your    character’s    first    impression    of    their    partner   ? he thought nate was very handsome and interesting, though he kept space because he wasn't popular and nate was. 🍯          »        what    trait    does    your    character    admire    the    most    about    their    partner    ? his ability to just unabashedly be himself.⚡          »        who    spends    more    time    on    the    phone   ? probably wylie, he's always seeking validation. ✏️          »        who    takes    longer    to    text    back   ? feels like a nate problem tbh 💡          »        what’s    the    first    movie    /    tv    show    your    pairing    saw    ? hocus pocus, because it's wylie's favorite. 🐣          »        who    has    the    best    style    ? i think nate has a better sense of style than wylie, he kind of just wears whatever. 🔑          »        who    is    the    better    driver    ? definitely wylie. nate's a bit of a wild driver from what i've gathered. ⭐          »        what    are    three    things    that    your    pairing    have    in    common    ? they went to the same school, they both are very loyal, and they're super into each other. 🌩          »        how    does    your    character    calm    their    partner    when    they    are    angry    ? wylie's good at listening, so he just lets nate vent and tries to give him good advice on how to proceed. 🌼          »        who    was    the    first    to    say    i    love    you   ? probably wylie, he's more in his feelings. 🧀          »        who    is    the    better    cook   ? again wylie. he had to help take care of his siblings. he's very self-sufficient, where nate was more spoiled growing up. 🌻          »        who    is    the    better    listener   ? definitely wylie. he's always been a good listener, and i think nate's still learning. ✨          »        what    is    your    pairing’s    favourite    thing    to    do    together  ? wylie genuinely just enjoys being in nate's presence, doesn't matter what they're doing. probably playing video games and vegging out, though. ⚠️          »        who    has    the    crazier    family    ? probably nate with his crazy ass dad lmao. 🌙          »        what    are    your    character’s    love    languages    ––    gifts    ,    affection    ,    words    ? wylie is very much about acts of service. 🌤          »        how    long    has    your    pairing    been    together    ? just a short while. 💛          »        who    says    i    love    you    more    often    ? i think they say it equally<3 😭          »        who    is    most    likely    to    forget    an    anniversary    ? feels like a nate problem, tbh. no way in hell wylie's forgetting. 🍌          »        what    is    your    pairing’s    favourite    place    ? alone together somewhere<3

[thefvrious]

@predatorymaniac sent 🎵 and got so fast, so maybe by k. flay.

Wylie didn't know why, but he was stuck in a rut -- stuck in his head. Everything was so god damned overwhelming -- school, working two jobs, trying to breathe in between. His head got dark, and he didn't know how to pull himself back out of it. "It's all downhill from the moment that you're born to the moment that you're killed."

[thefvrious]

Wylie couldn’t imagine how much of a struggle with sexuality a guy like Nate must have had. In hindsight, the overbearing qualities of his apparent heterosexuality should’ve been indicative that Nate wasn’t entirely straight. But hindsight was twenty/twenty.

Wylie kept his eyes on Nate as the larger male shifted and leaned on the counter, explaining what had happened. “I had heard some rumors, but I didn’t know what was true. Doesn’t seem fair that you were the only one to pay for the crimes.” He said, but it was too late to fix any of that. Nate had done his time, and seemingly had turned into an entirely different person. The kind of person that Wylie didn’t seem so wary to be around.

It was refreshing to see Nate experiencing emotions, even if they weren’t exactly positive, but the nurturer in Wylie wanted to make it all better -- even after everything he’d been through with Nate and Nate’s group of friends. “You don’t have to be sorry. I’m glad you told me.” He confessed with a small smile, putting his hand on Nate’s shoulder for a moment as if to reassure him. “I used to have a big fat crush on you, too, it’s actually hilarious to think about.” Wylie continued, grinning like a fool now. “I didn’t say I wanted you to go away... I’m not sure what we could or should do with this information. I mean... I’m happy to keep talking to you, see where it goes -- see if those feelings from way back when are still there.”

nate was different since his time in jail and he learned about himself and the man he was and he tried to outrun his sexuality and pretend to be someone he wasn't and he spent his life being

unhappy and hating himself for it and just running until he couldn't do it any more.he had to face himself and he finally figured it out just who he was and what he wanted .and he wanted him and that was something that mattered to him trying to have something normal when nothing in his life is at this point in time or ever .

hearing his question Nate leaned his tall form onto the table and he looked at him wanting to be honest about the whole thing about Tyler Clarkson and just everything that happened in those years that he was locked up. "Do you remember Tyler Clarkson? I got him locked up for my crimes against Maddy and I ended up being arrested after my dad who was in jail for a few days told the cops about what

I did and I was at the park when I got arrested and I ended up having a five sentence and I had to go to therapy and find myself in jail of all places..Maddy and Jules didn't get into trouble and I did the time for all of them as for finding Jesus fuck no I found me "

he thought about how that sounded to the other I found me and yet it was crazy to think that someone could be saved by being locked away in jail but it helped him and it made him find a bit of peace in this world that he hated and he ended up alone and living without his family to support him .he was on his own and always will be .hearing what the other said Nate wanted to get something else to drink but he didn't feel much like it at this point in time .

He wanted to just be close to someone and have it mean something not just sex

." I'm sorry for dropping this bomb on you and just saying how I feel about you after all these years . But I wasn't sure what I wanted and who I should be and I just hated everything about myself and I tried to deny it and push it away but I can't and I just wanted you to know I always had feelings for you. You don't have to want me back I just had to say it and stop hiding it inside myself. What do you want to do ? I could leave and never come back if that's what you want "

his voice was low and filled with defeat and pain as he looked down at the ground and not at the other . He felt lost and in pain and he just wanted to be honest and find love someday .

[thefvrious]

Wylie studied Nate curiously, like he was some wholly new person standing in front of him and not the jock Wylie had known in high school. His eyes narrowed slightly as the other man spoke. "I heard a rumor that you were in jail, never would've guessed it was true." It felt too brazen to ask Nate why, so he didn't. Instead, he lifted his own drink and took a tentative sip, trying for some appearance of calm and normalcy even though he was freaking out on the inside. "what do you mean you liked me?" Wylie asked, arching a brow. The way Nate had acted certainly hadn't been indicative of having any good feelings toward him whatsoever.

it was funny being here and if he was honest with himself he wasn't that boy he was before and the truth is he lost everything that was normal since the play and his dad's arrest. Nate Changed and he got into trouble and he spent most of his good years in jail five years of his life locked up. So he wanted to start over and make amends with the people he hurt in his life and he would do it starting with Wylie and it is what it is as they say . Taking a swig of his beer Nate looked at him and he heard what he said ..he did change but not because he wanted to because he had to ."let's just say that I ended up getting locked up and having my life changed for the better or worst. It's me being sorry for everything and I was a dick back in school and I liked you and I'm sorry .now what ?" His voice was low and caring as he looked at him and he thought about everything that he did and that he was before . everything changed and so did he and that is different for him .

[thefvrious]

Wylie could tell that Nate was carrying a heavy burden. There was something weighing down on the other man’s heart and soul, and Wylie could see it in the hurt in Nate’s dark eyes. He felt sympathy for the other man, wanting to offer solace, if he could.

“No, life isn’t fair.” Wylie agreed, shaking his head. He’d seen his own fair share of heartaches and tragedies which only made him work twice as hard. From the outside, it had looked like Nate had had everything growing up, but the grass wasn’t always greener on the other side. “I think seeing a therapist is a really good idea. It can help you to move passed the shit that you’ve been through.” It could help him deal with all those emotions he had ignored in his youth, too. “What kind of work are you looking into?” He asked, curious. He was in school himself, working on a degree in molecular biology and working two jobs. “Both places I’m working are hiring right now...” They weren’t the best jobs in the world, but they were guaranteed income, and that was nothing to sniff at.

“No! No... I don’t have to go home.” Wylie said with the shake of his head and a brilliant smile. He could spare a few more hours for Nate. “I’d love to talk to you... to get out of here. Doesn’t seem like the right environment for you, anyway.” Wylie had only had two drinks, so he wasn’t even tipsy. “I drove here, do you wanna ride around with me for a little while?”

He could never look at himself and see someone good and someone who was able to have someone to love him and see him as a person and the idea that someone might want him only made it even more painful for him considering everything he been through since getting out of jail and coming home to a place that never felt like home to him .

if hell could be home this would be it .picking at his arm Nate listened to what he said and he thought about it..no it wasn't fair that he had to be locked up and everyone else moved on and have everything they want and should have but not Nate he didn't have anything to come home to only the feeling of being alone and shunned by his family. And he just wanted him and he wanted love ." Life isn't fair and you know that but I'm trying to just have a life and try and start over again . If that could be possible. I plan on getting a job and working with a therapist about my problems and see where I end up. I always wanted to sing and do that someday ."

when he admitted this to him he felt a bit better about things and not so broken as he was before .and the touch of the others hand on his arm gave him a rush and he felt at home and seen by someone and that was scary for him even after he admitted it he still felt scared of it of being himself and being what everyone saw him as all of his life " I would love to get to know you better if that's what you want .we can get out of here and just go and talk..unless you have to get home and sleep for work we could do it some other time . I just am happy to see you and I missed you so much " he admitted that and it felt good being honest but he did know that the other might not want him and he should let it go and move on .

[thefvrious]

Wylie had changed since high school, too. He wasn’t as shy, he cared more about his body -- hell, he made money off of it -- and he tried a little harder to put himself out there. He still had to work hard -- juggling school and two jobs -- but he made sure to make time for himself, too. Maybe he should give Nate more than the benefit of the doubt. Jail could definitely change a person, Wylie had seen enough documentaries to believe that.

Surprised by how bold Nate was, Wylie’s brows rose. “Okay, so... uh, what did you do that was so bad that landed you in jail for five whole years?” He asked, arching an eyebrow. Couldn’t have been too terrible. Five years was no slap on the wrist but it wasn’t some long-term sentence, either. “Did you find Jesus?” He asked, only teasing -- testing the waters, seeing if Nate was even okay with that.

Wylie went to take another drink from his cup when Nate confessed his high school crush. It was enough to have Wylie sucking in a breath when he shouldn’t have and choking on the cocktail of vodka and juice. “You what?” He asked, though he really didn’t need to have it repeated. It was stunning, enough to make him look at Nate like the man had just crossed in from some alternate dimension.

Had Wylie had a crush on Nate Jacobs? Sure. Who didn’t? He was attractive and popular and charming, even if he was a dick. But Nate... he was like, super straight, right? Apparently not. “It’s okay.” He said softly, wiping his face off on a napkin. “You can talk to me about whatever you want... I’m just, wow, I’m stunned. I didn’t think someone like you could like someone like me. Especially then.”

being locked up changes a man and makes them think about the past and who they were before and Nate thought about it all the time and the things that lead him here to this dark place and to this point in life where he was on his own and forced to live in a world that he didn't know anymore things changed he wasn't a teenager anymore he grew up hard and he grew up fast .it was different now and yet it felt like he did when he was a teenager and in love with someone he couldn't have .

" It's okay you can ask me what I did to land in jail for five years. I'm not going to hide from the questions or the looks that people give me since being gone and out of jail. They say the past comes back to haunt you and ruin you and that happened to me with being locked up "

he looked around and he didn't feel the need to drink again and the truth is he wasn't ashamed of what happened to him and where he ended up because it was his life and he learned to deal with the gossip and with everything else that came from this .he didn't always act nice to the other male but he wanted to show him that he did want him and that is something scary in all of this ."I mean I had a crush on you and I thought about you all the time .fuck it it's stupid I should shut up now and just not dug up old ghosts . because it's better in the past and in the darkness. .unless you want me to talk about my feelings. Fuck if I know " his speech was slurred clearly he had too much to drink and he shouldn't be drinking it would be against the rules of his parole and he hated this so much. Being out of jail but never being free from the prison of your mind .

[thefvrious]

Wylie knew that Nate had been through a great many travesties, and he sympathized with the other man, but he wasn't Nate's family. He wasn't the friends Nate had had before. He was himself, Wylie -- the person who had decided to give Nate a chance even after how dickish he had acted in high school. "Nate, I'm not going anywhere." He promised, looking at the other man with sincerity in his dark eyes. "You do deserve me... you need to forget about everyone else. Just think of me -- think of us."

"it's just me I don't want to fuck this up and cause you to leave me like everyone else in my life does and it just is something I deal with all the time from my own family .they left me when I needed them to be in my life after getting out of jail and having nothing " he thought about when he went home to see his mom and brother and how much it got to this point where they were screaming at each other and telling Nate to leave and just never call or come over again .he didn't want that to happen with him and it was his biggest fear that the other would throw him away and just not care that he did such a thing to Nate that was his worst fear in all of this . "You didn't do anything wrong it's just I need to know that you won't leave me please just tell me that . Show me that I deserve you "