#Which means the real Moira is dead

[paradoxcase]

Harrow the Ninth audiobook, Chapter 1-4

When talking about how Gideon's sword hates her, the narrator says that Harrow "knew it to be real, even then", which is kind of an interesting look back from the end of the book when we find out that the sword was being possessed by Wake, who obviously just hates all necromancers as a matter of course

Stele was not pronounced how I expected, but I've just never heard it pronounced before and it turns out that is the correct pronunciation. Huh

John says of the 500 resurrected people in stasis that he's sending back to the Ninth that "only a third will show necromantic aptitude". Presumably, this must then be the rate of necromantic aptitude that he observed right after the Resurrection, and I guess it increased from there (if there are supposed to be an equal number of necromancers and cavaliers, presumably the rate is now around 50%). I had thought before that necromancy might have just occurred over time as a result of people living on thanergenic planets, and that the OG Lyctors were a special case or something, but it appears that something about either John killing the solar system, or the Resurrection itself, caused necromancy to occur spontaneously in about 1/3 of the people that John resurrected

I am once again wondering why John seemingly can't resurrect anyone anymore, I think it might be that only Alecto can resurrect people, but if Alecto had resurrected the initial population, I wouldn't have thought that necromancy would be a side effect of that, since Alecto's powers, and the powers she gave John, don't seem to have been necromancy specifically, so I suspect that regular humans winding up being necromancers was just an accidental side effect of something

John's discussion of planets having souls reminded me that John also says in Nona that he killed the sun in addition to the planets, and it's been said throughout the books that the sun is also thanergenic and is now powered by John. John says here that planets have souls because they have microbial life; obviously the sun does not have microbial life. But if John killed it, does it have some kind of soul anyway? Or does he just mean that he somehow absorbed all of its power? But previously in the Nona storyline, John only got power from dead things, and presumably could have gotten power from living things as well - he didn't like, photosynthesize. So now I'm wondering what exactly happened to the sun, if it was alive by some metric, and if killing it generated a resurrection beast

I love how John starts out Chapter Two by telling Harrow that her earlier decision to come with him was a decision made when she was in an emotional state and thus wasn't truly voluntary so he's giving her another option to really consider it, and then later he tells her that it's actually false decision and she doesn't have a choice anyway because if she goes back to the Nine Houses it will draw the resurrection beasts there

Harrow says that in her hallucinations after her parent died, Alecto had black eyes, like Harrow's, and it's only starting with her hallucinations now on the Erebos that she has the gold eyes that are actually Alecto's eyes (after being consumed by John). Was she not actually being haunted back then and is only now being really haunted by Alecto starting from this point in the story? This is also where she says she can physically feel Alecto, and where Alecto speaks to her, which lends weight to the "not hallucinating" thing, but if Alecto started haunting her when she breached the Tomb, why is she only properly appearing to Harrow now? And Alecto is also here talking to her and telling her to "turn around" and remember Gideon. I don't think Alecto has any special interest in Gideon. She might just be trying to help Harrow, but like, this is very far from the first time Harrow has needed help and advice

I think Moira Quirk does a different voice for child!Harrow reciting her prayers for the great-aunts, it's very good

Harrow's altered memory of unlocking the Tomb has her having "bloodied fists" when she unlocks the door, but there's nothing in that chapter that says why she had them

Harrow's parents made two nooses for Mortus. I know Mortus was supposed to be a big guy, but I don't think that's how hanging works, where you need extra nooses for bigger people, is it?

In the backstory chapter, Harrow says that there were two "womb-bearing" people on the Ninth who were still young enough to reproduce, but she doesn't say who the second one was. I don't think it can be her mother, since supposedly Harrow was her last shot to have a child. I guess this is more of the "there was another girl who grew up alongside Harrow, but she died before Harrow was born" doublethink

The episode where she is suffocated with a pillow, or maybe it was a hallucination, wasn't ever resolved, was it? It seems like it was a dream at first, but then the nails are actually embedded in the wall, and also Harrow has dried blood under her fingernails during the Ianthe kiss scene. But who would have tried to kill her here?

Harrow's letter to herself says "You owe Ianthe Tridentarius the Favor of the Chain" and I have to wonder what piece of weird Ninth House tradition that is

Harrow also says in the letter that she has withheld information about "the Work" from Ianthe specifically so that she can't undo it. So I guess in the prologue, Ianthe must have genuinely figured it out on her own, and hasn't been specifically prevented from undoing it by Harrow, because she is not supposed to know the details. Was she actually respecting Harrow's autonomy there?

Harrow says in her letter that her choice to remove Gideon was the first choice she felt she was actually able to make freely, which I think says a lot about how damn fatalistic Harrow is

I notice when Gideon has reactions to things in the narrative it does sound a bit like how Moira Quirk was doing Gideon's voice earlier? I guess this is a benefit of Gideon's voice being quite similar to the baseline narrative voice here

[chevvy-yates]

top five video games! (or movies if you got that one already)

I'll go with both :)

VIDEO GAMES:

1. Red Dead Redemption II

This game, seriously. It will take a while to beat this quality that game has. story line, characters, fights, immersive world, the wild life, ARTHUR!!!!!, the horses, the nature, all the things you can interact with and the dialogues with just random npc's — this game made me speechless. Sadly I got horribly spoiled for the story that I never ever finished the game. My Arthur baby is still healthy. I think he coughed only once. Dunno if I'll ever finish it. There's a lot of story left, but I grazed every part of the map I could reach with Arthur (except for the western part across the river). (Cyberpunk could have been like that, sadly it did not).

2. The Elder Scrolls V — Skyrim

My first game where I had to make own character (before that I only played car racing games or a few Final Fantasy :,D). I got so immersed into the world of TES that I chose to do my bachelor thesis about the dragon language used in Skyrim – so this must mean something alright? Sadly I never came to enjoy playing the game on pc. PS4 provided that mods can be used, tho but at that time I've already beaten out the entire game with my PS3 that I never really played it on PS4. But I love all the memories I've got of it — especially with my thief character. I still love him lots.

3. Cyberpunk 2077

If there wouldn't be Skyrim and RDR2, this game would probably be on No. 1. If you ask me of the story — probably not. But damn it's been a whole while since a game soaked me that deep into it. Maybe it's got to do because you can make own characters again, and I happen to develop them now, with so many head canons + the luck of having a super awesome photo mode and possibilities with mods that make the characters almost alive. It's something completely new and I'm glad I bought a motherfucking gaming laptop — I'd have missed all this. Well aside of this: The setting is just amazing, I love futurisic settings because I'm a sucker for movies like Blade Runner and a chunk of my heart is still in Tokyo (which I've visited 4x and to me is a real cyberpunk city already).

4. Assassin's Creed

The one and only real Assassin's Creed game. Altair is badass and it was amazing to get him back from a novice to a true master assassin. love the setting, love the monotone game play, love that altair can't heal himself, love that he can't swim, love that he has no money. Love the combat, Altair is super brutal. No other Assassin's Creed game could reach this master piece ever. (I'm interested in the new one tho bc back into that time and setting again but I don't like this open world stuff they did since the Egypt part).

5. Thief

Sneaky games are my specialty since I made my thief character in Skyrim. And when I learned about there are actual thief games, and a new one got to be released back in 2014 I was all bats about it. I've watched let's plays of the old Thief games, tho. but the latest for PS4 I enjoyed so much I even found a lot of lore from the old games in it and I can't understand to this day why this game flopped. It makes me still sad, the entire game studio had to close because of the flop. Old fans seemed to hate it as much as new people. For me it's a gem because of all the references to the old games — Story? what story? My soul is still captured deep down under the moira asylum, ugh. Never had a game freaked me out more than this part of it (Okay Alien was worse bc the Alien is unpredictable). But being in an empty asylum with no one but you freaks u surely out and therefore this game alone is a master piece.

______

MOVIES:

1. High Plains Drifter

No sterotypical western and therefore I fucking love it alone. It's art. The people of Lago do not know what is going to happen when that ghostly stranger rides into their town. He turns it literally into hell seeking vengeance. Watching it for the first time can leave you unsatisfied having questions or you're probably going to ask yourself: what the heck did I just watch? Because you expected a western. I'm a sucker for Clint Eastwood movies, especially the 60s and 70s ones. This one is the first - or was it the second one? - he directed and playing in it and I consider it a masterpiece.

2. Magnum Force

Yes, I'm also a sucker for cop movies since I was a kid, so it was no wonder I liked all the five Dirty Harry movies when I chose to watch them for the first time back in 2020. But Magnum Force got to be my favorite (even tho the first one is pretty cool as well). Harry Callahan kicks asses – even in his own ranks. And I love his one liners, alright? Plus the movies are all filmed in San Francisco. It's my favorite city. I'll never get enough seeing that beautiful city, no matter what decade (it used to look prettier back in the days, tho).

3. Indiana Jones 1—3* (there ain't only one sorry not sorry)

Indy is my childhood hero. He's always in my top 5. I rewatched his three 80s adventures so often that I lost count of it. And every character travelling with him is amazing. Willie, Shorty, Henry Jones Senior (aaahh Sean Connery ;_;), Marion, Sallah, Marcus Brody, Elsa – I even liked the stupid nazis bc they are so fun to watch losing all the time against Indy and his crew!!! Settings are amazing (Egypt, India, Italy (Venice my love)) — and no friggin CGI back then. Quality movies no new movie will ever reach again.

*not the 4th tho.

4. For a Few Dollars More

Ugh, I'm just a sucker for Clint as the Man with no Name, alright? But the second is my favorite bc I love love love Manco (Clint) in it. He does everything left handed, he's my hero! (there's way too less left handed characters). And the dynamic he's got with Mortimer (Lee van Cleef) is just AAA+++. Two bounty hunters on a mission. The music underlines the cinematic scenes so good, I'm always in awe (thank you Ennio Moriccone for your music <3).

5. Where Eagles dare

Another 60s movie with Clint alongside Richard Burton in the main roles. This time it's a war movie. The story follows a team of British-American special Operations Executive raiding a castle. Love the plot, fuck up all the nazi scum (probably Clint's highest kill count in a movie ever). Somehow the movie reminds me a bit of Wolfenstein, I bet it was some inspiration for the old games. Amazing action scenes with a lot of fire and explosions.

[kurtty-drabbles]

Pirate au Redone (Part 4)

N/A: I think I´ll have to make a bonus part of this au later. This was a challenge to do and I hope I got it right.

@djinmer4 @dannybagpipesarecalling @bamfoftheundead @everykurt @muninandhugin

The ship has the name " Sesame" in big letter and font very eye-appealing and one lonely woman is watching the sky- seeing the birds flying by near the ship/yacht completely oblivious to the inner turmoil she carries in regards her new life- and the contemplation only stops when the Captain of the ship sits next to her offering her a drink-nothing alcoholic as she promised with a mischievous smile and a wink- and replies. "How life is treating so far, Kwannon?" and the Japanese woman has to pound this question for a minute or two.

"Captain Pryde" she humors the other woman even if she knows that pirates, well, real pirates, don´t have a yacht or aren´t so heroic as she´s lead to believe. "I have issues with Krakoa but I´m also ...thankfully for that abomination...look" she gestures her own hands and Captain Pryde follows the motion with her eyes calmly. "I´ve my body back...I´m not dead nor in some white woman´s body. I´m me again and ...this makes me think..." she trails off and Kitty Pryde encourages her to speak freely.

"I was born with nothing, I die with nothing and now I don´t even have the ''nothing'' anymore...Kitty, does God truly exist, or is this all a cosmic joke for him or her?" Kwannon question plug´s Kitty heart and she can remember a certain mutant who aside from loving piracy (among other things) and whose faith was something Kitty and him could talk freely-even through both have different religions it was also covered with a deeper respect for each other- and Kitty only answeres "I believe there is a God or even Gods...but, trying to understand them is a null point"

Kwannon nods but doesn´t seem to be a topic well- answered for her, yet, she´s gracious enough to change the topic. " You think we can trust her...of all people?" and Kitty narrow her eyes.

"Are you going to call her the pretender?"

"No...I´m just unsure of what to feel about her"

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Getting the title of the sorceress supreme from Dr. Strange is not something that will give any dark pleasure- Dr. Strange was a friend, if nothing else, and while his taste for women can be questionable at best, there´s no real pleasure in getting his tittle now- and Wanda Maximoff donning herself with the famous crimson cape is in agreement with its new master.

Tommy and Billy are working with her-Billy return from the space to learn his "twin" not only is working in a magic school but has some small traces of magic, and Billy, only respond by hugging his twin until the other threats to curse him for all eternity- and her magic school is now a real vision(sometimes, Wanda chuckles at this word. Sometimes, Wanda cries) with demons kids from Limbo and other parts of the globe or planes wanting safe heaven to learn magic.

The X-men used to be like that...or am I wrong?

The Sesame´s flag is in view and Wanda shakes her nostalgia away ("let the past in the past, Wanda") and is there watching as Captain Pryde is present and the one who is making an effort to go talk with Wanda-the rest of the crew looks unsure, she de-powered them not too long ago and not everyone is forgiving nor forgiving means friendship- and the two woman are now facing each other.

"You really are here..." Wanda´s tone is laced with surprise as she watches the yacht on the port and back to the captain. "Afraid of me?" she asked still impressed.

"I´m really here...Am I afraid of you? No, not really Wanda...Yet, I can´t ignore M day, I´d not blame you...in the full extension the others do...you were out of your mind and others try to take advantage...still, I won´t call you the pretender or any shit like that" Kitty responds with honest and while she´s never one to use swear words- and is something Terry Pryde installed on her since a young age- she feels this is an appropriate moment to use it.

Wanda only nods at her words. It is much better than she was expecting or hoping for. "Do you really want to do this? Krakoa isn´t supposed to be a paradise to all mutants?" 

"The paradise is more for horror island than anything else...and while I think Utopia is still a pretentious name...is better than a cult on an alive island...Can you help us, Scarlet Witch?" Kitty asked sincerely now. Nothing is bounding Scarlet Witch to do this task.

Wanda closes her eyes and opens with now crimson. "I´m Scarlet Witch for a reason...and I´m sorry...for what the Avengers did"

"Apologies from them mean next to nothing"

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Kurt Wagner noticed the absence of Logan, Scott, Jean, and even Ororo and is surrounded by people who in the past-and, not a too long past- were his enemies. Looking at Apocalypse gazing at him with wraith in his eyes mixed with envy does make his stomach rumble. Prof X is speaking and to be frankly, Kurt is not interested in listening any more.

"This is a cult!" Kurt shouts ignoring Raven´s look- the woman may have given birth to him, but, she´s far from being a mother in any sense- and looks in disgust to the villains on the quiet council. "There´s only villains here. What type of paradise is this?"

And Prof X put an uncanny smile on his face-still wearing that helmet and Magneto is close by. As always- as he speaks in a leery way. "And that wouldn´t make you a villain as well? I know...I know what you did in some other universes. Nate may have used you as an avatar to live his wet dream, but, in other realities, you make you with a woman in front of your dead daughter´s cold corpse" and show the image to Kurt who denies this as being a trick.

"I´m not a monster. I´m not like this. I´m Kurt Wagner...and I refuse to be on this island" and tries to attack Prof X and is only meet with vines wrapped around his waist.

"Do you miss Kitty Pryde that much or are you just lonely?" Prof X sounds different now. "Because...I never thought you´re worth her time" and his golden eyes watch as each member on the clan is nothing more but vines. And Krakoa has made her decision to reject Kurt.

Sesame managed to fish Kurt Wagner with a bit help of luck- Kurt opens his golden eyes to see Kitty Pryde staring at him with a myriad of expressions. Concern is one of them- and Kurt breaks down crying as Kitty only hugs him.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Doug Ramsey is not one to think of himself as a James Bond type of spy or archetype, yet, Captain Britain aka Betsy counts on him and Doug wants to do something, anything to help his fellow mutants. Doug uses his power unashamed and telepathically calls Betsy.

"We have to take as many mutants we can..." his eyes are watching the scene incredulous. "That story of Dr. Moira being a mutant? Well...is fake as much everything else in this island" and the call ends with Doug looking at the clones of every single X-men and the versions of Dr. Moira...It has the words written "the last clone" and it sends a shiver to his spine as the clone opens her eyes and speaks one line.

"I´m a mutant, just like you" and the others continue to do so.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Queen Lilandra is looking at the New Mutants with a stoic expression enrobing her face and body language as well- The X-men aren´t enemies, per se, but aren´t allies and Queen Lilandra has a daughter she wants to prevent the X-men to ever meet- and Karma is the one to break the silence again.

"Where is Pheonix?"

"What do you mean? Pheonix has never left Earth...."

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Captain Britan and the Neo Excalibur are working to smuggle as many mutants they can from Krakoa- Doug can only calm the island for so long as he repeats his words to Neo Excalibur-and Rogue and Remy are running from the time. "Are they the real thing or ..." Rogue will later wonder if she jinxed this rescue mission as a good part of the mutants rescued...turned into green goo.

And Betsy takes a whiff in the air and screams. "Fire!" and Neo Excalibur runs away in their ship as Rogue can swear the shape of the fire is similar to...

No...it can´t be...

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Madeline Pryor concludes her tale many days ago, yet, still feels as if is lingering on Scott and Jean´s mind and Jean is the one not taking the news well-the resistance against Krakoa is ever surprised to see Jean and Madeline in a semi civil way- as the New Mutants confirm Madeline´s tale and everything else.

"So...this is all because I´m a bad mother?" Jean asked almost laughing -not a joyful one, rather one devoid of any positive emotion- and Madeline is not taking pity on Jean.

"Is a way to see things...Look, I´m not the greatest example either...Nate became a monster" Madeline´s expression softened a little. She can feel sorry for Meggan if nothing else-she, among all the members of the resistance, can understand how cruel truly is when someone takes your ability to do anything for their own gain- and she continues not bothering to look at Jean. "You thought Nate as your own and ignored your own daughter...yet, Scott is the only one who seems to still remember her"

Jean says nothing as she watches Scott and Kitty talk -whatever is about Utopia or how to deal with Krakoa is not important right now- and she wonders why she never bothers to check on Rachel Grey.

Thanks to Scarlet Witch, Utopia is back and unlike Krakoa there´s a chance of organic change into a real country-Emma Frost is taking diplomacy like a fish to the water and all the surviving mutants have no more complaints in regards Scarlet Witch, at least, it appears so- and Captain Pryde looks at Nightcrawler who looks still befuddled by everything, yet, refuses to leave Kitty behind.

If Pheonix wants a fight...she´ll get one...but if Rachel wants revenge...can I give this to her?

[chaosintheavenue]

Fallout Opinion Survey- Results!

Thank you so much to all those who took part! We had 421 usable responses in total :D

One quick note- the nature of the data this time around means that most of the auto-generated charts are usable as they are, which does mean this post will be very image-heavy. I’d be very appreciative if someone who knows how to write image descriptions for charts could add them on!

Without further ado, let’s get into the results...

The Basics:

Favourite DLC:

Dead Money- 115 (...nice) Old World Blues- 94 Far Harbor- 76 Lonesome Road- 53 Nuka World- 27 Point Lookout- 17 Honest Hearts- 11 The Pitt- 9 Mothership Zeta- 7 Automatron- 3 Operation Anchorage- 3 Broken Steel- 2 Vault-Tec Workshop- 1

Favourite faction:

Followers of the Apocalypse- 146 Railroad- 62 Minutemen- 45 NCR- 23 Kings- 22 Brotherhood of Steel (all chapters combined)- 20 Yes Man/Wildcard Courier- 18 Great Khans- 14 Enclave- 10 Caesar's Legion- 8 Raiders (76, Nuka World and general combined)- 8 Institute- 6 Chairmen- 5 Unity- 4 Atom Cats- 3 Mr House- 3 Boomers- 3 Freeside- 2 Responders- 2 Children of Atom- 2 Ghoul settlements in general- 2 Hubologists- 2 Tunnel Snakes- 2 And the list of those with one vote each: The Family, Think Tank, Reaver Movement, Ciphers, Broken Hills, Powder Gangers, Reilly's Rangers, Acadia, Goodneighbor, Underworld, White Glove Society, Omertas, Jacobstown, post-Legion Ulysses, Cult of the Mothman, 80s, and talking Deathclaws from Fallout 2

Favourite companion:

Arcade Gannon- 75 Nick Valentine- 53 Hancock- 39 Veronica- 38 Deacon- 30 ED-E- 26 Raul- 23 Boone- 22 MacCready- 13 Christine Royce- 12 Dogmeat (all)- 11 Fawkes- 10 Preston Garvey- 10 Charon- 9 Rex- 9 Butch Deloria- 8 Goris- 8 Cait- 7 Danse- 7 Piper- 7 Lily- 6 Marcus- 6 Rose of Sharon Cassidy- 6 Curie- 5 Porter Gage- 4 Dean Domino- 4 X6-88- 3 Strong- 3 Ulysses- 3 RL-3- 3 Ian- 2 Dog/God- 2 Codsworth- 2 Joshua Graham- 2 Old Longfellow- 2 Lenny- 2 Ada- 2 And the 'list of ones': Tycho, Katja, Follows-Chalk, Sydney

-

The Lore:

(other titles specifically mentioned in the final question: Metro and Doom)

Characters headcanoned as synths: The Sole Survivor (by far the most common theory), Sturges, Deacon, Preston Garvey, the Lone Wanderer in Broken Steel, James/Dad, Dogmeat, Three Dog, Parker Quinn, Charon, Courier Six, Tinker Tom, Zeke, Arthur Maxson, Father/older Shaun, Piper, Travis Miles, Mysterious Stranger, Caesar ('cause funny'), Joshua Graham, most Children of Atom, Desdemona, Myrna, Marcy Long, Mr Burke, Vault 76 Overseer, Trashcan Carla, Cricket, many BoS and Enclave members, Reaver Movement members, Redeye, Moira Brown, Dr Zimmer, Ranger Ghost, most birds, Arcade Gannon, Elijah, Lizzie Wyatt, Kellogg, Mama Murphy, Nat Wright, and Sierra Petrovita

(please note I'm not all that familiar with Fallout 4 lore, if any of the FO4 peeps here are canon synths then I didn't know about it lol)

Fan theories/headcanons from the final question that cropped up repeatedly (in approximate order of popularity):

Vault-Tec started the Great War

Alien involvement with the pre-war US government and/or the Great War

Horses are still around

Talking Deathclaws are still around

Occult/eldritch influence (e.g. the Dunwich building) is widespread

Charon is a survivor of Vault 92

Deacon is a founder of the Railroad and his 'real' backstory was another lie

Veronica and Christine reunite

Sarah Lyons is alive

Gen 3 synths and ghouls still need to eat, drink, sleep and so on

Ghouls only turn feral in specific circumstances (suggestions include prolonged isolation and relying too heavily on radiation instead of food as a source of energy) and it is not inevitable

International travel and immigration continues

Danse and Harkness were sent to the Capital Wasteland by the Railroad together

X person is actually multiple people- suggested for Deacon, Legate Lanius and Vulpes Inculta

The US is the either the only place that was nuked or the only place that hasn't rebuilt and recovered, and the rest of the world is just ignoring them and carrying on as normal

Cass is the Chosen One's daughter

Mama Murphy is the Chosen One

No-Bark Noonan is the Chosen One (lots of Chosen One theories popping up lol)

All subsequent Dogmeats in the series are named after the legend of the original Dogmeat

Father is not really Shaun

MacCready is lying about Duncan being ill (or one person even suggested Duncan existing)

Yes Man overthrows the Courier after being upgraded

The real Lone Wanderer died at the end of the vanilla game even if Broken Steel is installed, and the Broken Steel LW is a synth

Deacon once worked for the Institute

Deacon deliberately leads people to theorise that he is the Lone Wanderer to throw them off

Deacon is or was once a ghoul (also plenty of Deacon theories)

The Mysterious Stranger is a time traveller who protects the various PCs to maintain the timeline

Appalachia was turned into a barren wasteland by the nuclear trigger-happiness of the Vault 76 Dwellers (possibly interesting aside: my brother, who buys into this one, has gone as far as to theorise that the original Great War used very low-yield weapons and wasn't that severe on the environmental level (as far as literal nuclear war goes, that is), and it was the Vault 76ers nuking the hell out of Appalachia that triggered a continent-wide nuclear winter and sent the ecology of the wasteland into the state it's in in all subsequent games)

Glory is not a synth

The (in-game) reason for lore clashes and retcons is that the plot of each game is a retelling  of the story as it's passed around in the wasteland, so some details have been embellished or mixed up

I’ll be coming back to the theories from the final question at some point, but aside from that, that's a wrap! There isn't really much potential for me to play around with the data here like with the OC surveys, so this was more just me presenting the data as it came in without commentary. Still, I hope this is somehow interesting/insightful!

[bo-kryzze]

What do you think of fans who say June and Nick aren't bonded with Holly?

Oh I have such strong opinions on this topic.

Short answer: I think they’re dead wrong.

Long answer: With June. I think her focus on Hannah gets wildly misinterpreted as a slight to Holly. When it’s not. The reality is Holly is safe in Canada while Hannah is trapped in Gilead. I fully believe if the situation were reversed and Hannah was safe and Holly was trapped in Gilead, June would be just as focused on trying to get Holly out as she is with Hannah.

And she has, June was nothing if not determined to get that baby out of Gilead and succeeded in the season 2 finale. And was equally as determined to keep her in Canada in season 3.

June’s pregnancy with Holly was certainly complicated for her emotionally speaking. That’s not a reflection on her love for this child. There are so many moments I can point to that illustrate that June has a strong bond with Holly. To sum it up.

She’s been very protective of Holly overall. She got Rita and Aunt Lydia to agree to protect the baby after Serena told her she can't stay at the home.

The part of June that willingly got on the boat to Canada, got on at the prospect of seeing Holly again. Once there, the only thing June was remotely vocal about wanting- was to see Holly.

During her testimony, June speaks very fondly of Holly, puts particular emphasis on Holly being HER daughter. And mentions the Waterfords forbid any contact with the baby until she convinced them to allow her some time.

Her bringing that up at the testimony shows that it's 1) important to her 2) shows how painful that separation from her baby truly was. Thinking back to that scene of June lying on her bedroom floor, listening to Holly cry without being able to hold or comfort her. That in of itself speaks volumes.

In the season 4 finale, June holds her close and asks for “five minutes with her."

For better or worse, June has chosen to devote her life to a war. Before she goes, she wants to spend five minutes with Holly. Not with Luke or Moira but her daughter. For real, if June could fight a war with Holly on her hip, she totally would! That’s just not practical or safe for Holly.

Lastly, she speaks to Holly with the same inflections as she does with Hannah. She’s not remotely distant with her. She's actually super affectionate. Name a mom who kisses their child’s face more. June just can’t be a normal mom to her right now. Yeah, she’s had less time with Holly compared to those 5 years with Hannah pre-Gilead. That really doesn’t mean much.

Quality of time together vs. time spent together. Quality always wins out.

With Nick. He’s shown nothing but love for his and June’s baby from his reaction to June’s pregnancy onwards. He risked so much to get them both out. His reunion with Holly in 4x09 was so sweet and I love how at ease he is with her. Something else I really loved about that scene for Nick, was he really got to be her dad there. Something he hasn’t been afforded much of due to circumstances.

The image of him buying that doll gives me such life. That gesture says a lot about his love for his daughter. He wants her to have something he gave her to hold on to, when he can’t be with her. So in the future, Holly will know her daddy loves her. Which is so beautiful and pretty tragic.

In conclusion: They love her and the parent-child bond is very much there.

I can’t help but wonder if people project the trauma of Gilead onto Holly’s relationship with her parents, particularly her and June. Which is weird. I see no one arguing that Janine is less bonded to Charlotte than she was with Celeb. In the future, Holly will have to cope with the fact that she was born in Gilead. That’s not her fault. She's got an huge advantage over other children born there, in that her parents genuinely love each other.

[x-mencomics]

The Uncanny X-Men #133 - Wolverine: Alone!

Turns out Wolverine has NOT drowned after all. (I mean, come on, did you really think that?) The Hellfire Club’s mercenaries are searching for him. And they find him! Not that it does them any good. Wolverine goes totally insane on them, killing all but one. He asks this last mercenary for all the information about the Hellfire Club’s leaders.

Back inside the Club, the X-Men are held captive, and Jean is trapped inside an illusion created by Mastermind - she is now a leader of the Club, the Black Queen, and she believes that she is living in the 1700s as Wyngarde’s wife. She even slaps Storm, calling her a slave! WTF! Cyclops remembers back to just a week ago when he and Jean were alone in New Mexico. Jean had asked if she could create a permanent psychic bond between her and Scott, and he agreed. Cyclops hopes that this bond will help snap Jean out of the illusion.

Interlude - Muir Island

Moira is studying data scans of Jean that Professor Xavier sent to her. Moira explains to Sean the results of her research on Jean - that the Phoenix had created a series of psychic barriers to keep the Phoenix’s powers at a level Jean could control. But now those barriers are being released.

Interlude Two - Xavier’s Mansion

Angel is flying above the mansion at midnight, clearing his head. He lands on the veranda and finds that Xavier is up late as well. The Professor tells Angel that he regrets how he treated Cyclops before the X-Men left to find the Hellfire Club. The Professor says he feels helpless, and that he should be with the X-Men, mentoring them in battle. He says he fears innocent people will suffer because of all these recent decisions.

Back at the Hellfire Club, a waitress is told to bring a tray of drinks to Sebastian Shaw’s guest, Senator Kelly. Wolverine sneaks into the club, and he’s rocking a midriff because his costume was damaged in the fight in the sewers earlier. He searches for the rest of the X-Men, but ends up getting caught and another fight between Wolverine and the Hellfire Club mercenaries begins.

Meanwhile, Cyclops is still trying to reach Jean through their psychic bond. He successfully enters the astral plane and finds Jean, but Mastermind is there too! Cyclops asks how Mastermind has gained these new psychic powers, but Mastermind says that is his secret... They start a sword fight which Cyclops quickly loses.

Back in the real world, Cyclops suddenly collapses, leading Nightcrawler to scream “Cyclops is dead!”

[another-rational-deception]

So for my Overwatch/MHA crossover I really wanted to just come up with their quirks and what they can do.

This is just a list below the cut :)

Ana Amari

Quirk: Pin point

When she focuses her gaze on a certain point, she can pin point the exact coordinates of whatever she focused on.

This also gives her increased accuracy with her sniper, because knowing the exact coordinates may help her better calculate trajectory of the bullet.

Elizabeth Caledonia “Ashe”

Quirkless

Ashe was born without a quirk, and her family babied her and tried to protect her because of it.

That’s what resulted in a lot of her reckless behaviour, and what inspired her to start the Deadlock gang.

She doesn’t need no one to protect her. In fact, she’ll be the protector in her new family.

Jean-“Baptiste” Augustin

Quirk: Confidence Booster

When Baptiste flexes his arms, he can release a “boost” to those around him (and himself).

This boost will boost the confidence of all within his range, and it will also heal the impacted for a small amount.

Brigitte Lindholm

Quirk: Inspire

When she hits someone with a melee attack, she releases a healing mist.

This must raises the morale of those around her, while healing them for great amounts.

Hana “D.Va” Song

Quirkless

D.Va was born quirkless. For a long time she longed for a quirk, so she began playing video games to make up for it.

Video games made her feel like she was the one using these insane and powerful abilities.

After she was invited to join the MEKA squad, she no longer wishes for a quirk. D.Va couldn’t be happier to be a hero to her country and the world.

Akande “Doomfist” Ogundimu

Quirk: Doomfist

His quirk is a simple power enhancing quirk, named after the past Doomfists.

This is also the same quirk the past Doomfists held, though, with a different name.

Though, with access to the real Doomfist gauntlet, Akande intends to bring a new meaning to the “Doomfist” quirk.

Genji/Hanzo Shimada

Quirk: Spirit Dragon

Genji and Hanzo share the same quirk, though with different power levels.

Much like Tokoyami’s “Dark Shadow”, their spirit dragons are seperate beings. Though, they are also extensions of themselves.

Genji is more in touch and has more control over his dragon, while Hanzo struggles to control his. This is because Genji sees his dragon and a seperate, living being, while Hanzo sees them as weapons or tools.

Jamison “Junkrat” Fawkes

Quirk: Blast Resistance

Jamison’s quirk is part of what caused his obsession with bombs and fire.

But even still, Junkrat had to find out the hard way his quirk had its limits.

Lúcio Correia dos Santos

Quirk: Inspiring Vibrations

Lúcio’s quirk relies on his heartbeat.

Using the beating of his heart, he can use the rhythm to inspire the bodies of the people around him to either heal or speed up.

When his heart beats fast enough, he can release the tension all at once to create a sound barrier.

Cole Cassidy

Quirk: High Noon

Cole has unusually accurate aim, which gets more accurate the closer it is to “High Noon”, or 12:00pm.

At High Noon on the dot, his accuracy will increase to 100%

Mei-Ling Zhou

Quirk: Ice Form

Mei can manipulate ice, however only a little. She relies almost completely on her ice gun and cryofreeze technology.

Angela “Mercy” Ziegler

Quirk: Mercy

When in physical contact with someone, she can heal them by granting them her own life force and stamina

She can also raise the dead by this method, by grabbing hold of their soul and granting her own life force.

If she over uses her resurrection, she could accidentally kill herself. Though, she will pass out from exhaustion long before that could happen.

A side effect of her quirk is she can heal herself for small amounts over a period of time. If she is injured again within 5 minutes of the initial injury, her self heal will reset.

Moira O’Deorain

Quirk: Lifesteal

By draining the vitality of someone else, she can heal herself.

This quirk has its downsides, though. The more she steals someone else’s life force, the more her mental state is damaged.

Phareha “Pharah” Amari

Quirkless

She takes after her father, and was born quirkless.

She dreamed of being like her mother and the other agents of Overwatch. She never gave up that hope

Even as she flies in the Raptora System, she wishes she was born with a quirk, but she is grateful for what she can do now.

Gabriel “Reaper” Rayes

Formerly: Quirkless

Current Quirk: Black Mist

Through various tests with Moira, Reaper was given a quirk, of which Moira creatively named “Black Mist”

This allows Reaper to dissipate into a cloud of black mist and reform at his will.

Reinhardt Wilhelm

Quirk: Crusader

Majority of the crusaders of Germany have this same quirk.

Crusader is a Giant quirk, which increases the size and strength of it’s users.

Those with this quirk are trained from a young age to become Crusaders of Germany.

Mako “Roadhog” Rutledge

Quirk: Hogdrogen

When he inhales pure (100%) hydrogen, he gets a strength and health buff.

Siebren “Sigma” de Kuiper

Formerly: Caffeine Rush

Current Quirk: Universum

Caffeine Rush triples Siebren’s IQ when he drinks caffeine

After a horrible lab accident, he gained a new quirk: Universum, and Sigma was born.

He can no longer drink caffeine. When he is given caffeine, he becomes shaky and anxious. This almost always turns into panic attacks that could destroy entire countries if not stopped.

Jack “Soldier: 76” Morrison

Quirk: In Sight

When he focuses/locks onto a target, his accuracy increases to 99%.

He cannot consistently use In Sight, as it gives him intense migraines after over usage.

Olivia “Sombra” Colomar

Quirk: Stealth Hacker

She can travel through electronics by way of hacking. The technology in her spine gives her constant internet access

She can also cancel out someone’s quirk by “hacking” them, and can go into “stealth” mode.

Satya “Symmetra” Vaswani

Quirkless

Oddly enough, Satya is quirkless.

Her abilities come from her prosthetic arm and her headset.

Satya has never had any desire for a quirk, only the desire to make a “perfect” world.

Torbjörn Lindholm

Quirk: Molten Core

He can turn any food he eats into lava in his stomach.

It used to come out via his mouth, but he had Mercy perform procedures to redirect the lava flow through his prosthetic arm, while maintaining the ability to eat.

However, occasionally a flame will come out when he burps as result of acid reflux

Lena “Tracer” Oxten

Formerly: Quirkless

Current Quirk: Slipstream

After the Slipstream incident, Tracer gained the quirk accordingly named Slipstream.

She can manipulate time to her advantage with the help of the Chronal Accelerator.

Tracer has to be careful or she may cause a rift in the space and time continuum. Her Chronal Accelerator was specifically designed to stop her before that happens.

Amélie “Widowmaker” Lacroix

Quirk: Pin Point

The same quirk as Ana Amari. Amélie formerly used it to help her with Ballette performances, but she’s recently discovered a new use for it.

Aleksandra “Zarya” Zaryanova

Quirkless

Zarya’s strength came from vigorous training and exhausting work.

Her abilities come from her weapon, which was gifted to her by the Russian Government.

This is probably all I’m ever going to post for this crossover but I just loved the idea :)

[orangedodge]

@dannybagpipesarecalling​ replied to your text post:

I didn't realize those were Destiny's diaries either. If you would be so kind, can you explain how Emma knows? Unfortunately I haven't read enough comics to know this backstory.

I am glad you asked about this, because it gives me an excuse to post about it while hopefully not sounding like a conspiracy blog. I've been slightly obsessed with this idea since Emma first turned up in House of X, so I'm rather excited that “maybe Destiny's Diaries still exist” isn't just my weird crack canon any longer.

Emma was, in short, the last person who can be established to have control over the whereabouts of the diaries. And as one of the top five telepaths in the world, who has expressly defended that secret from the likes of Exodus and Mr. Sinister, she is capable of preventing Professor X from just taking the information from her. So barring new retcons, if Moira has the diaries now, they had to have been obtained directly from Emma.

That's not enough to say that she turned them over to Moira specifically. She could have given them to Charles or Er—okay, no, she wouldn't give them to Charles. There could be a circumstance where she'd trust them to Erik though. But in that contingency, I think there's enough context to support Emma knowing why they'd want them and for who. To be clear though, I would be less confident about making that assertion if Emma hadn't just opened the “Dr. Moira MacTaggert Memorial Public Hospital” expressly to freak out Charles and Erik, and if HoxPox hadn't already linked them by showing Moira to be worried about what Emma was up to.

(This got kind of long so I thought it'd be helpful to say the important part up front before spiraling down the continuity rabbit hole)

The origins and resulting chain of custody for Destiny's Diaries are as follows: One January, decades ago, Destiny began recording visions of the future in a series of diaries. Filling one book per month, she continued writing for thirteen months. This process was described as auto-writing, and Destiny herself did not have a complete memory of what she had written, nor did she understand the meaning of much of what she wrote.

Nonetheless, the July diary contained a recording of the events leading up to the defeat of Apocalypse, and another diary contained information on the life of Hope Summers, so they've been very relevant to the events of the modern era. It's not explicit yet that Krakoa's founding is also in the diaries, but because we know Destiny had at least one separate vision of Krakoa, and because Moira is interested in reading them, it seems fairly likely that whatever Moira, Charles, and Erik have been doing behind the scenes is also in there.

In the decades since Destiny authored them, most of these diaries were lost, except for five that Mystique kept hold of, and a sixth that Irene hid away herself. After Mystique killed 'Moira,' she sent her five diaries to Professor X, hoping that the temptation of using them would consume his life and lead him toward a ruinous fate. Destiny meanwhile had entrusted the sixth diary to Shadowcat (who Destiny met in 1936, while she was time traveling and having an affair with Moira's grandfather don't worry about it), who eventually became so freaked out by something she read in it that she vanished on a mission, let her friends believe her dead for weeks, and had herself deleted from Cerebro, while leaving the diary to Rogue for safekeeping while she was away.

(That last chain of events isn't incredibly important, I just think it becomes kind of lol in light of current canon)

Rogue went on to take that diary and the research that had been done on it to Storm. Storm and Rogue then formed a splinter team of X-Men, to journey the world searching for the lost diaries, believing Professor X could not be trusted. Along the way a seventh book turned up with a treasure hunter named Vargas (don't worry about him), and an eighth was found by Gateway and given to Rogue in a dream. Eventually Storm tried to get Phoenix to collect Professor X's diaries for her, but they discovered that they had already been stolen (Shadowcat did it).

The rest of the diary hunt isn't really important, just that Kitty eventually ended up retrieving the full set, before she rejoined the X-Men, which only happened after Xavier had left Scott and Emma to run the school. This timeline is important for establishing that Xavier has never possessed the full set of diaries himself, and was not involved in collecting the lost books at any point, nor was he present at the time the diaries were brought to the school and fell under Emma's protection. This rules out the possibility that the set of diaries we've previously seen were somehow forged by Xavier.

Xavier would not return to the school until after losing his mutant powers, whereupon he departed for space on an adventure to another galaxy. He was unavailable, therefore, to have undertaken any telepathic shenanigans, so what happens next actually happened, and is not a psychic illusion. While Xavier was gone, Mr. Sinister recruited Exodus and Mystique, and began a campaign of hunting down precognitive psychics, time travelers, and any other sources of information on the future. Scott, Emma, and Kitty meanwhile predicted that they were going to be next, and came up with a bananas plan to keep the books safe.

X-Men volume 2 no. 203 by Mike Carey (Writer), Humberto Ramos (Penciler), Carlos Cuevas (Inker), Studio F’s Edgar Delgado (Colorist), Virtual Calligraphy’s Cory Petit (Letterer), Will Panzo (Assistant Editor), Nick Lowe (Editor), Joe Quesada (Editor in Chief), Dan Buckley (Publisher)

First they hid the diaries somewhere in parts unknown. Emma then altered the minds of “all of us” (everyone who lived at the mansion at that time) to perceive a bunch of decoy books as the real thing. She then erased Kitty's memory, and her own, so that no telepath would be able to extract the information by force, before they gave each other a series of post-hypnotic triggers so they could restore one another's memories if they ever needed the books again. When eventually Exodus attacked the school looking for the books, they restored their memories, and decided to send another team to the hidden location where they'd buried a mystery box. Emma gave this location to Sam and Bobby, who dug up the box, which was never opened, and which was destroyed by Gambit during a firefight with Sinister's forces before anyone could confirm its contents.

This was intended by author Mike Carey to be the end of Destiny's Diaries, a dropped plot from a previous creative run, that was vaguely useful at building up to the Messiah Complex crossover, but was a lot more trouble than it was worth to an author who was writing about the X-Men trying to avert a bad future. But there's a lot of room in the story he wrote for the diaries to have survived after all.

I think it's actually really suspicious that the box was accessible to Bobby and Sam at all. Why not drop it under a mountain? Why not bury it under the ocean? Why not keep it phased in a tree? And it's a big red box with a big red 'X' on it. I know the X-Men love their branding and all, but that's going pretty far.

No one actually opens the box before Gambit blows it up either. It could have contained more decoys, or nothing at all. 

And when talking among themselves, Emma and Kitty never actually say that they're sending the X-Men to retrieve the diaries. They say that they know where the diaries are, and then send the X-Men to a place where they've buried something. The intent of the author is clear, but there's room in the dialogue for a later writer to decide that this just was another plan to keep the books hidden.

So for the entire period of time between assembling the complete collection of thirteen diaries, and their seeming destruction, they are never unaccounted for. Only Emma and Kitty knew the full extent of what they did to hide them, and where they were hidden. If fakes were destroyed instead of the real thing, no one would have known.

We could just be in retcon territory, but I don't think so, because it's fine on its own without any direct changes to canon. And really, faking the destruction of the books to cover up their real location makes a lot more sense than believing Emma Frost actually sent Sam to retrieve the incredibly suspicious looking red box that contained the most important object in the world, while half the super villains on the planet were chasing him.

Believing the diaries weren't really destroyed just requires the reader to accept that Emma would lie to the other X-Men, and keep lying to them for years, and that she'd be willing to put Sam and Bobby's lives at risk to protect that lie. Which she was already doing in that story anyway. She was already lying to everyone when she changed everyone's memories. And she—and Scott and Kitty—was already fine with risking everyone's lives when setting up a decoy trap in a school. So that's why I think this works better as a continuation of the existing, known, story of the diaries, and not a direct retcon to what happened.

In conclusion I think Emma knows about Moira because Moira got the diaries from somewhere, and Emma is the person she could have gotten them from. Nothing proves a direct hand-off in, like, a formal standard of proof or anything, but Emma having access to the diaries for so long, and having been wrapped up in this whole weird plot thread—which involves Moira and most of the Quiet Council—is enough to imply the connection in a story sense.

(ETA - For completion’s sake, there is also a weird story I didn’t go into called Chaos War that was published in 2011 where Moira is resurrected and finds a book in the ruins of the Xavier School that may or may not be one of the diaries, and touching it causes her soul to merge with Destiny’s, who then possesses her and guides her through a quest to destroy an evil god. This was an odd story to place in continuity at the time, and has only gotten stranger, given  1. that couldn’t be the real Moira, 2. Destiny is not merged with her soul. If this is in continuity (it’s been suggested that Moira’s golem was the character in this event), and all of the characters are who they say they are, and if the book in question was actually one of the thirteen diaries (and not some other book that Irene also wrote), then it requires Emma to have deliberately left one of the thirteen books behind for “Moira” to find, which if anything only adds to the likelihood that she knows what’s up)

[stardustpinkart]

Sooo Handmaids tale. Im rather liking were its going, FINALLY. Having une recaptured all the time is gettign repetive, we already have seen her making a disturbance in Gilead. Infact others before her really, like that one who blew up a building with herself and a few commanders in season 2?

She’s done some amazing things the biggest getting all those kids out, now we finally get to see her hopefully on the other side, the resistance(which has its problems too but), yeah, how long can we watch her just being tortured, the actress says so herself, as a red lady?

Theres other people part of the resistance who hate this just as much as the maids, like Esther? When I read about her character I thought, because of how they painted her, unhinged, messed up, she’d be a young wife brainwashed into all this, agreeing her place is as a babymaker. Like those young girls who fled england to be tterrorist wives?

But to me, she feels like in many a regular 14 year old girl :) She doesent want this, she wants what other girls want at her age. She is a lil messed up BUT in a way thats understandable. Shes victim of constant rape and abuse, passed around like a blow up doll to a bunch of filthy men, her own husband old enough to be her grandfather. And I feel also like shes trying to seek a mother figure in June. She probably feels like her own parents betrayed her. No doubt put her IN this situation(familys are the one who decide your husband for you, you have no say), and even if she said anything or cried, they would say its her godly duty or ignore her. Remeber Enid’s father, turned her in, and shows no remorse or even regret over it?

I cant help but like Esther :)

Some people are saying stuff will happen like the “Testamnets”, Gilead will exist for another couple of long years, Hannah will be there untill shes like twenty... I dont think thats neccesairly true.

I do see they TAKE obvious bits and peices from the book sequel, but its not word for word. It said Aunt Lydia was a judge for example, weve already seen she used to be a school teacher in the tv world, who it seems got involved in all this partly out of spite. Agnes who Hannah seems loosley based on had no memory at all of her real mother, etc.

Hannah seems to go through her own series of events diffrent canonly from the “book Agnes”. She seems old enough to have memories of life before, her mother, meeting June secretly in season 2, her Martha killed etc.

And as for baby Nicole she was raised by a mother and father in the book(I forget there names). But it would seem Moira and Luke would be her caretakers in the tv, mainly cuz shes June’s child. This is there way of helping her.

Not to mention some characters get more of a filled out role than there book counterparts for example. Ofglen commited suicide in the first book. Here, we know her name, Emily, and shes one of the lucky ones who escape.

SOOOOO I dont think it’s gonna be the same canon of the Testaments at all. It might be closer in some ways, it might be totally diffrent.

I think with Moira and Emily venting also, that was just it. Venting, they dont really mean it. They KNOW why June’s staying, for Hannah. Theres no real need to say it outloud. Piont out the obvious, there just getting crap off there chest. Thats my opion anyway

I am sad a bunch of the handmaids were killed but at the same time it seems sadly realistic?Casaulties of war, not everyone is gonna come out of this, or have a happy ending. How many jewish families met a sad fate in WW2? Its just a roll of the dice.

It’d be nice though if some more of the handmaids join the resistance with June and Janine, I do enjoy seeing all these fed up ladies band together where they can(theres several examples over the course of the series), to fight against this. The country looks like its preparing for war and I hope these women whos rights have been taken from them, can be a large part of it.

I also hope that season 5 is the last one. BECAUSE there getting to a climax, dont drag it out too much and ruin whats been a great show. Dont go Walking dead route(the whole whisperers things was so choppy, WHY werent the good guys more vigilante when they knew a threat was out there, already put there friends heads on pikes. The comic version was so much better). I hope they will focus on bringing down Gilead, its all bubbling up, people cant take anymore, lets see that rage there feeling turn into action.

I hope it has something of a happy ending. No doubt people are gonna be effected, cant just go back to there old lives, but can find summin im sure? It might take time but, hope. Walking Dead the Comic had a suprisngly uplifting hopeful ending, so why not this?

[jbuffyangel]

Something To Live For: Arrow 1x10 Review (Burned)

I’m back! 

There’s a significant time difference between my 1x09 review and this review. No, I did not take a six year long holiday break. It just became too difficult to complete the Season 1 reviews the summer prior to Season 4. So, I decided to complete Season 1 and Season 2 reviews once Arrow was off air.

This means I have not watched 1x10-1x23 in eight years. I nearly forgot everything. Is L*urel still in this show?

She sure is.

“Burned” is the first real snoozer of Season 1, which kind of sets up the tradition of episode 10-15 slumps Arrow suffered nearly every season.  This has less to do with Arrow and more to do with it being a twenty three episode series. There’s gonna be some filler.

This episode still holds significant meaning to me though because it contains the SOMETHING TO LIVE FOR speech. This is my favorite John Diggle speech, which is why I named my blog after it. It is also the first time Arrow declares their mission statement.

Let’s dig in...

Oliver and Diggle

The bad guy plot is the worst part of “Burned,” so let’s just cut to the chase. There was a terrible fire in Starling City years ago. The fire chief recalled his unit but one of his men, Garfield Lynns, insisted the building could be saved. The chief refused to send in any more men and as a result Lynns died. Except, this is Arrow and nobody stays dead. Lynns is alive, ticked, insane and burning firefighters, which leads to Joanna’s brother (a firefighter) getting killed.

Cool? Cool. Moving on.

Oliver is having difficulty coping with the fact the Dark Archer kicked his ass all the way back to the stone age. It was a somewhat embarrassing loss and Oliver’s body wasn’t the only thing bruised. We are gifted a very lovely training sequences of a half naked and very sweaty Oliver Queen to show he is recovered, so his hesitancy isn’t physical. It is mental.

Source: @olivergifs​

Oliver is having a crisis of confidence and is avoiding suiting up like the plague.

Diggle: This guy, the other archer, he got in your head. He took something from you … he took whatever’s in your heart that lets you jump off buildings and take down bad guys.

Oliver worked for every skill he has. It was not gifted by a bolt of lightning. He does not come from an alien planet. Oliver is a weapon honed over time, which includes his superpower. 

Oliver Queen does not fear dying. 

That’s the “whatever” in his heart which gives him the confidence to jump off buildings. This superpower was honed after five years of fighting for survival. Oliver almost died so many times he’s built some kind of emotional immunity to it. It doesn’t freak him out like it would the rest of us.

The darker side of this superpower is Oliver doesn’t care if he lives or dies. Season 1 Oliver Queen is very fatalistic. He’s not suicidal, but he’s accepted death is the price he may have to pay in order to complete his mission. More importantly, he is drowning in guilt and believes death is the ending he deserves.

There’s rigidity in everything about Oliver – from his beliefs to even the way he moves. His posture is rod iron straight and there’s very little movement in his upper body and arms. It’s a physical manifestation of his PTSD. It’s like he’s encased in a brick wall, a tomb of suffering, which makes it difficult to breathe or move. It’s like the act of living is physically painful.

The problem is - Oliver came home and it is having an unexpected emotional impacted on him. He’s been laser focused on this mission, but bit by bit, the feelings he’s long since buried are resurfacing.  Moira, Thea, Tommy, Diggle, Laurel (AND FELICITY) are chipping away at this brick wall. Oliver didn’t adopt this machine like persona because he doesn’t feel anything. It’s because he feels so much, which means even the small holes in this wall are having a profound impact on him.

This all leads to the greatest John Diggle speech in history! Yes, I say that knowing full well Diggle has spectacular speeches throughout the series, but this will always be my favorite because it’s such a universal theme. 

We all must have something that makes life worth living.  This “something” is not limited to romantic love. It can be family, or work or a cause – basically whatever makes you get out of bed every day. It doesn’t have to be just one thing either. In fact, I hope you find many things/people to live for because that means you are living a full and connected life. By that same token, if you don’t have something to live for then you’re not really living. You just exist.

Or in Oliver’s case - survive. He’s known nothing but survival for the last five years. I think he absolutely cares for Yao Fei, Shado and Slade, but that’s exactly why Oliver shut down. He did care for people and it led to nothing but heartache, betrayal and loss. So, Oliver decided to be done with all that and has worked very hard to keep his loved ones at a distance ever since returning home.

He’s been extremely successful at it in many ways because Oliver refuses to share who he really is with anyone outside of John Diggle. So, that’s why it had to be John Diggle to tell him that it was okay to feel again.

Oliver: I’ve been close to death on the island more times than I can remember and I never feared it. Because I had nothing to lose. But when that archer almost killed me, when I stared death in the face then, I thought about all the people I’ve let into my life since I’ve been back – my family, Laurel, Tommy. And that made me afraid. Afraid of what would happen to those people if they lost me. Again. And for the first time in so long I had something to lose.

Oliver may not fear death, but he does fear what his death will mean to those who love him. Like I said earlier - Oliver is not suicidal. If that was true he wouldn’t have fought so hard to survive the island, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to live. He’s far from it. But this is the first time in a long time Oliver cared whether or not he died. And that scares him.  

Diggle: Maybe you’ve got it backwards Oliver. You think the people you’ve let in have taken your edge. I think it gives you one. Maybe a stronger one even. You can stare down death with something to live for or not. SOMETHING TO LIVE FOR is better.

That’s endgame folks. Oliver’s story is about a man learning to live again. He will collect more and more people/things that he cares about as he walks this road, which means there is more to lose. Losing his life is far preferable than losing someone he loves again.  Oliver can tolerate a great deal of physical pain. It’s the emotional pain that scares the crap out of him. This is why he fights tooth and nail to keep emotions at a distance. It just hurts too much.

Opening our heart to others often means opening our hearts to pain, but that’s not the only side of love. It brings happiness and contentment too. You take the good with the bad. Diggle is trying to open Oliver’s heart to the good.

Is Oliver alive? Or is he just breathing? The answers to those questions make all the difference in the world. A difference Diggle knows will make Oliver an unbeatable weapon.

Lynns: I'm not afraid to die

Oliver: I know. You're afraid to live.

COULD IT BE A PARALLEL?

Methinks yes. It’s interesting “Burned” revolves around fire. Fire is where Oliver’s story began. Lian Yu was about purification, but it was also a rebirth. 

A rebirth we see expanding as Oliver opens up his heart. A fire is lit from within our hero and it’s growing beyond penance, justice and retribution to hope, passion and enlightenment. Oliver Queen is finding reasons to live again. And it will make all the difference for his survival.

L*urel L*nce

If you sense I have less patience with L*urel’s character in Seasons 1 and Season 2 than I did in Season 3 and Season 4 then you’d be right. My opinions on this character changed radically so I’m coming into Season 1 and Season 2 reviews with a Season 8 perspective on L*urel.

Tommy wants a drawer. That’s all. A drawer. Tommy Merlyn is a simple man. Doesn’t take a lot to make him happy. He even wrote a list explaining all the reasons he deserves and needs a drawer. We never see the list, but I’d imagine it looks something like this:

I AM HUMAN PERFECTION.

I did not sleep with your sister.

I am asking for a drawer rather than run screaming to the North China Sea with above referenced sister.

I make you omelets.

I make your character moderately tolerable which is a miracle in of itself.

I could continue, but you get the idea. What’s absolutely ludicrous is OLIVER gives L*UREL relationship advice.

Oliver: Well we're friends.

Me: Oliver, my son, NO YOU ARE NOT. 

At least she had the common sense to scoff at Oliver’s friendly attempt to intervene on Tommy’s behalf. (Seriously, dude just stay out of it. This is wildly inappropriate.)

L*urel was ready to move in with Oliver (even though she knew he cheated on her regularly), but freaks at faithful Tommy requesting armoire access. JFC this woman is a dating disaster zone.

L*urel: I don’t take things slow remember? I close my eyes and I jump just like you. 

My initial reaction to this speech is to call it nonsense. 

I thought this was a case of Arrow telling rather than showing with L*urel’s character. However, upon further contemplation I have reversed my opinion.

L*urel may be a pragmatic attorney on the surface, but we have watched her run the gamut of human emotions week to week. So much so it’s difficult to get a read on the character the writers are trying to construct. (Spoiler alert: they don’t know what kind of character they are trying to construct). One week she loves Oliver. The next week she’s condemning him to hell. L*urel L*nce’s feelings definitely control her.

She has been reckless too, working outside the law, by contacting the vigilante for assistance. A relationship she resumes after telling her father in 1x09 that The Hood is a killer with no remorse. See what I’m saying about the ever changing emotional spectrum?

I’m not saying L*urel having emotions and expressing them is bad. That’s a healthier reaction than what Oliver is doing, but she has been all over the map. It’s less about who L*urel is as a character and more about the writers needing her to react a certain way to make the episode work.

Oliver likes to present himself as a cool cucumber, but he has a rather unpleasant temper too. It may seem like he’s emotionless, but that is just a façade. It’s a cover for the torrent of emotions he keeps at bay.

Laurel: I think that’s why we spooked each other. Our feelings, our fears, they control us. Not the other way around.

L*urel’s “spooking each other” statement is a big line of bull, which we’ll find out later in the season. L*urel was not spooked by Oliver. She was the furthest thing from spooked, which is why she asked him to move in with her.

Oliver wasn’t spooked either. Anytime I reflect on L*uriver I’m reminded of a scene from Sex in the City. Oliver isn’t freaked out by his feelings. He’s just not that into you, L*urel.

The process in which we get OLIVER to realize this and admit it to himself will take much longer, but I can be patient. It’s time will come.

But do I think these two characters are similar? YES. They are too similar in fact. It’s one of the main reasons they don’t work as a couple. This is exactly why Tommy and Felicity are perfect for L*urel and Oliver.  They need someone steady to temper their emotions. 

They need someone happy to balance out their anger. They need someone with a bright light in order to find their own.

It’s also worth noting that Tommy was ready to run into a burning building to save Oliver so GIVE HIM A DAMN DRAWER L*UREL.

Stray Thoughts

Flashbacks were kind of boring. Fyers kidnaps Yao Fei. Oliver saves his own life by accident. Meh

Thea calling Moira out was long overdue. This kid needs a parent ASAP.

Everyone's fall clothing is really adorable.

JUST UNBUTTON THE FRACKIN BUTTON OLLIE.

Merlyn kidnapped Walter right? Or Moira? I seriously don't remember. I don’t think I care either. lol

L*urel: I am not the best example of healthy grieving.

LL has a rare moment of self awareness, which is lovely.

Oliver: I heard what you said to your father. That I'm a killer with no remorse.

L*urel: Do you?

Me: You impertinent little snot.

I like Joanna much better than L*urel and I wished she stayed, but removing Joanna from the show is the first step the writers took to limit L*urel's role. The shift is upon us.

  Not to be unsympathetic, but Moira is starting to rack up the dead husbands.

Thea fantasizing that Walter is cheating on Moira with a stewardess as the hopeful pitch is YIKES. Goodness this show could be dark.

Musings of the Kiddo  

Kiddo: Yeah! He's actually putting his family first!

Me: Settle down. It doesn't last long.

Kiddo: I thought L*urel was gonna find out.

Me: Oh my sweet summer child.

Disclaimer: Any gifs on the blog are not mine. If you would like a gif removed from my reviews, please message me.

If you’d like to support the blog, please buy me a cup of tea!

[cogentranting]

Oliver’s Brothers: Tommy

Oliver has multiple people whom he refers to as his brothers. And I think that designation means a lot whenever he gives it, but I think it holds the most weight in reference to Tommy. I think Oliver and Tommy truly considers each other brothers. 

In a lot of ways Oliver was really more of an only child; Thea is ten years younger than him (it seems likely that it was Moira and Robert’s intent to have only the one kid) so he would have spent the first ten years of his life without siblings, and even after, the relationship between a four-year-old and a fourteen-year-old  or a twelve-year-old and a twenty-two-year-old is not going to be the type of relationship that you think of when you think of siblings. But Oliver did have Tommy, who was also an only child. 

There are multiple conversations where Tommy references seeing Robert like a father. The most significant scene is the conversation at the Chinese restaurant in 1x16 where Tommy talks about his issues with Malcolm and starts listing the things that Robert did for him. But one of his main points with that is that Malcolm left for two years when he was 8, and then after he returned basically froze Tommy out. And because of that Tommy spent most of his time at Oliver’s house. In a way, Tommy was adopted into the Queen family (which is really interesting from Moira and Robert’s perspective considering that the Malcolm affair must have happened right after his return from Nanda Parbat, and that the Robert knew about this or found out at some point. But that’s besides the point). Ever since his mother died, the Queen’s have been the main source of Tommy’s familial relationships. For Oliver’s part, he doesn’t seem to even really remember the time before Tommy’s mother died. Tommy is just a constant presence in his childhood. 

Before the island, Oliver seemed to have had a fair number of people he spent time with, from conversations we see him have with Samantha, Laurel, McKeena, Max Fuller and more. But apart from his family and Laurel, the only person he sought out after coming back from the island is Tommy. Or rather, Tommy is the only one who sought him out. All those people Oliver partied with are nowhere to be found. But Tommy is right there. And Tommy is the one who went all the way to Hong Kong when there was something going on with Oliver’s email--- not even Moira did that. But Tommy did. And Tommy tried to look out for Thea while he was “dead”. And Tommy is present at multiple family only events in the first few episodes of the series. Tommy is firmly a part of the Queen family.

It’s sometimes hard to see what the real core of their relationship is because Tommy is so bad at being emotionally vulnerable (especially at first, and then as he gets better at that, they’re fighting so that affects things), and Oliver is lying about literally everything during that time, but it seems like there’s something really unique in the way they connect, in what they bring out in each other. Oliver is a grounding influence for Tommy, a source of stability during the worst point in his life. And throughout season 1 you see Tommy wanting to connect with Oliver and be vulnerable and talk with him. But with his own struggles, and Oliver’s issues, and half of the stuff they would talk about being Laurel, he just can’t. 

But for Oliver, Tommy is this link to the best parts of who he was before the island. With Tommy, Oliver is more able to have fun and enjoy himself. Oliver never really gets back the part of him that we see even up through the season 1 flashbacks-- the person who jokes around and laughs a lot and is relaxed around other people and who trusts easily-- but there’s glimpses of that person when he’s with Tommy. (I might go so far as to say that Barry reminds Oliver of Tommy in some ways). 

Even years after Tommy dies, his is always among the first deaths that Oliver mentions when he talks about what he’s lost. This was Oliver’s oldest friend, for a long time his closest confidant, the person who knew him best, the person who never judged him (even when he deserved it), the only person from before the island who stuck with him through everything, the person who welcomed him back from the dead without any expectations. And the one person who he had just a completely uncomplicated comradery with.  That’s why at some of his lowest moments in later seasons, it was Tommy who pulled Oliver through. In both  “Three Ghosts” and “Living Proof” Tommy is the one Oliver imagines there telling him to keep fighting-- not his mother, not Laurel, not his father or Yao Fei or Shado. Tommy. And more than that Tommy tells him in “Three Ghosts” “you’re a hero” and then in “Living Proof” tells Oliver that his best traits are “loyalty, selflessness, courage and compassion”. Both these moments are huge in influencing Oliver’s concept of himself. And it’s Tommy’s voice that he allows to make that impact. Tommy is the one who’s faith in him means so much. Tommy is the one who he trusts to tell him that he’s worthwhile. Tommy he trusts to call him a hero. 

And in the finale, when Oliver gets the chance to set the world right, it’s his family members who he bends time itself to get back: his mother, his sister, Quentin who is like a father to him, and his brother Tommy. 

[docholligay]

Fic Prompt: the first time someone kissed Winston on the forehead (Overwatch)

The patient was, to use the words of the board Winston had to stand in front of, “functional.” 

Lena “Tracer” Oxton was expected to die of her injuries, and then didn’t. She was expected to spend the rest of her life catatonic, but she neglected to do that, as well. Four months out from her return from the stream of time itself, she was a bit quiet, a bit shaky, and there was little doubt that she would never be able to return to field work, but she was far more alive and far more engaged with the world than was ever expected of her. 

These are the things Winston reported, along with his progress on some manner of equipment that would allow her to leave the containment unit. Dr. Zeigler--Winston had only recently gotten the slightest bit comfortable calling her Angela, no matter how she insisted--was in charge of the greater medical specifics, only some of which he understood. They presented every other week, and every other week, no matter what Winston said about his chronal device, no matter what Mercy said about Tracer’s improving tremor and complete seizure control, there was nothing but a frown and a question: 

“When will she be able to tell us about the Slipstream?” 

Winston had made a thousand excuses for why she couldn’t go before the board. She had bad days, sometimes, where she couldn’t do much more than lie on her little bed with her eyes closed. There was a large possibility that in trying to recount it, she could have a flashback so violent that it would steal her ability to speak again--did they not remember when she was told her father was dead? She may not remember anything at all, given how aggressively being slipped through time had attacked her nervous system. 

He, of course, left out that Tracer had taken to cheerfully trying to decorate her little ‘bug jar’ with a bright duvet cover, and painting the little desk, asking to have some of her little tin airplanes sent with scraps of other decor from London, that she’d begged to have Winston ask if there was any chance at a window for her. He left out how she excitedly bounced and chose what to dress for the visit her family was allowed every few weeks, and that she chattered with them, full of life, the light in her eyes not even dimming when she tired, and leaned back against the pillows of her bed. He hadn’t lied, exactly, about her limitations, just made them rather more prominent than they seemed to be. 

Winston was protecting her, was the truth of it. 

It was a little stupid, he knew. Tracer greeted him brightly and talked to him all day because he was the only one nearby. She was kind and cheerful with Mercy, too, wasn’t she? She didn’t care to speak to Moira, but in fairness, Moira had suggested that letting her die and studying her body was far more valuable than expending the effort to rehabilitate her, so it was only natural there be some antipathy between them. It was silly to get too familiar simply because Tracer was a friendly person. 

 We’re friends, Win. ‘ope you don’t mind if I call you Win, us being such firm friends and all.”

She’d said that only last week, as they’d shared a fairly dismal Thanksgiving dinner brought over from the cafeteria. Friends. No one had, not really, ever declared themselves as such, and certainly not with a bright smile and an excited little rock of her body that he was learning meant she was quite happy. He tried not to let the threat of losing her get in the way of developing the chronal accelerator so she could leave. She had been so kind to him. 

He walked into her bug jar, letting one door close behind him and the other open in front of him, preserving her time lock. She was sitting at her little desk, leg bouncing against the floor as she wrote a letter, but looked up quickly as Winston walked in, and smiled all the way into the corners of her eyes. 

“Win! Afternoon, love!” 

He set down a little plate in front of her, some small sandwiches and cookies that hadn’t looked too bad over in the cafeteria arranged as neatly as he could. 

“Just some lunch.” 

“Oh, thank you, love!” she jumped to her feet and headed over to the little electric kettle in the corner of the room, “Forgot what time it was altogether. You haven’t been in yet this morning!” 

“No, I had a meeting.” 

“When will she be able to tell us about the Slipstream?” It had been so impatient, the growl so evident. 

She laughed. “And you sound like it was just lovely. A cup for you?” 

He nodded. “That’d be great. Lena--” 

“Yes?” She turned around, leaning against the tiny table she’d assembled to give herself the look of having a kitchen, more and more trying to make a tiny studio of what had only even been meant to something akin to a hospital room. 

“The board...the one overseeing your...well, you--” 

“Oh!” she jumped up and clapped, and then caught the edge of the chair, having made herself  swoon a bit, but closed her eyes and took a deep breath, looking up and smiling again, “‘ave to be a bit more careful, but, Win, did they say I could ‘ave the window? Enrichment, right?” 

He shook his head. “They didn’t say anything about the window.” 

Her kettle went off and she poured two mugs, bringing over her little tin of tea bags and sugar. She gave one to Winston, then sat down on the bed and patted the space beside her. Winston stood there for a moment, thumb rubbing at the edge of the mug. He must have considered it too long, because she patted the bed again. 

“Come ‘ave a sit. Something’s wrong.” 

He worried for a moment about breaking her bed, but she didn’t seem inclined to take no for an answer, and she would ignore her lunch until he told her what was going on. That much he had learned, over the last weeks she had been coming into herself. 

“What is it?” she looked up at him, and gently placed a hand on his knee. 

Did she have any idea how strange and disarming it was, that she never flinched from him, no matter how he moved? That she touched him with as much gentleness and friendships as other human beings touched each other? Even people who respected him never looked at him like this, like they were simply having a chat and a cup of tea with a friend. She was such an unusual person, scatterbrained but bright as a penny, her sense sensitive but her will strong as iron. Winston loved her, he realized, very dearly. 

“They want to talk to you.” 

“Good! I’d like to have a chat with them, as well.” She took a sip of her tea. “I’d like a window, you see, even if there isn’t much to watch, and I think I’ve the right to have at least as often a call ‘ome as any enlisted, right? Not as if I’m giving away secrets or nothing, just would like to see me Nan more than once a month.” 

Winston shook his head. “They want to know about the Slipstream.” 

Tracer thought for a moment. “What about it? Not as if I’m ‘iding it somewhere.” 

“What happened, where they can find it,” He took a drink, “How you managed to make it back.” 

“Already told Ang everything I know. It’s in me medical records. Isn’t much.” 

“I know. But they think...I’ll tell them you can’t, don’t worry about it.” He sat back and looked over at the grey steel wall Tracer had tried to cheer up with a few inelegant but colorful drawings, made with the colored pencils he’d brought to her. “I’ll just keep telling them the same thing.” 

“Really on you, are they?” She didn’t wait for a response, but sat poker-straight and nodded. “I’ll do it. At their earliest convenience, no less. Ask me whatever they want, and I’ll answer with everything I don’t know till they’re satisfied.” 

Winston shook his head. “They’ll interrogate you I think--they want to find it so badly--and then what if they….I mean, your health, they could throw you into...I don’t want you to get hurt.” 

She shook her head and smiled, standing up in front of him. “And every time I got into the air might ‘ave been me last. I’m a fast-jet pilot, Win, risk is part of life, innit? Sides all that, Ang’ll be there. I go down a bit too, ‘ard, she’ll give me a bit of ‘elp. And you’ll be there,” she raised her mug, “Always an ‘elp to me, you are. Won’t let them keep bullying me friend, even if ‘e’s ‘appy enough to do it.” 

There it was again. Friend. No prompting, no nothing, just her wide brown eyes sparkling, no sense of deception in them. 

“Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. Can never truly repay you.” 

She leaned forward, on her tiptoes, and kissed his forehead. 

He’d never felt anything like it. Not from Dr. Harold, not from any of the techs or scientists who had raised them, not from anyone. It was such a casual bit of throwaway intimacy that Tracer seemed to already be moving on to the next issue at hand, picking up a ham sandwich from the try and inspecting it. 

She’d forget this in the next few minutes. But Winston would remember it for the rest of his life, what it felt like to have a human being’s lips on his forehead, with no hesitation, her hand brushing back his hair, simultaneously so thoughtless and so loving, and loving because she put no effort or thought behind it. Because she simply did it and moved on to her ham sandwich. 

He was glad he wasn’t built to cry, in that moment. 

Tracer was his friend. He had a friend, and she was not afraid of him, and even if he built the best medical device in the world, she would leave this room but never him, not forever and not for real. 

Because he had a friend.

[scrapyardboyfriends]

It feels like the producers just come up with a story idea and start it without coming up with the conclusion. I feel like they just meander and eventually just fade into nothingness without any resolution at all. Other than Robert's storyline pausing with him in prison, because Ryan left or took an extended leave, all the other storylines just seem to keep going until they decide to just stop. It's beyond bizarre. There's never a culmination it's just dragged on and on until they decide they're done. It's so not the way things are supposed to be done.

I think that’s probably a fairly accurate statement. 

I mean under this team we’ve had...

The “Is Joe dead?” saga which dragged on for way too long and only stopped because Kim finally arrived back and ended up with Joe not even dead so all of it was really for nothing. 

The “Billy’s Backstory” saga, which was...a mess. Certainly the lack of any kind of real resolution with the Aaron part. Also the fact that there was this whole thing with Jessie not believing he really did what got him sent to prison in the first place only to find out that he did and then she had basically no reaction to it. Well, she did, but it lasted for about an episode. Plus the brothers at war element fell pretty flat too for the most part. And just the whole thing with whatever his name was that was getting him back into crime was just a lot of meandering nonsense. 

The Maya story, which worked for a while but then had one too many “twists and turns” that went nowhere, a lot of very sloppy writing with David’s reaction to it all and Maya only ending up in prison for what? 6 months all to result in a baby that ended up being David’s? And the follow up with Jacob, I thought was pretty poor because I don’t think they ever really did a decent job of making it clear he understood what really happened. I mean he said he did later but I feel like they could have done better. 

Victoria’s rape story. The Robert’s exit portion of it worked fairly well in and of itself, particularly because it had a finite end and somehow the power of and history of Robron made it all work in the end. But the rest of it was a bit of a mess that started well and then got massively derailed by Robert’s exit, which routinely threw Vic under the bus and then what was Vic’s resolution in all of it? To end up dating her rapist’s brother and letting her rapist’s mother who spent months harassing her and calling her a liar be a grandmother to her son. Every once in a while there was a glimmer of dealing with her lingering recovery that was fairly well done but otherwise...

The Nate/Moira affair saga, which did have a decent climax structurally, but prior to that just meandered around with all of us in the dark and not in a fun way where we were really trying to figure something out because it went on for too long with no real legitimate clues that you weren’t sure anymore if you were supposed to be trying to figure something out. And then it was like they didn’t really know what to do with Nate once that story was done because they were like “well...fuck...now we have to figure out how to make him and Cain have any kind of relationship?!?!”. A mess. 

The Frank’s death story. They couldn’t be bothered enough with his character when he was alive to properly give him any kind of real set up for his exit other than a few vague scenes where the audience didn’t know what was going on. And then they dragged Amy and Kerry into things in the most random set of plot points about Amy’s latest backstory needing money just to get them to the factory to start the fire. And then there was all of that panic with them for so long and Tracy determined to figure out the truth and then she did and it all gets vaguely resolved because Kerry got knocked on the head and they decided to just call a truce??! But then Tracy still gets to hold it over Amy’s head and not let her date Matty? 

The Millie paternity saga that went absolutely nowhere because Graham turned out not to be the father anyway???

The current Jamie saga. The most random and meandering of them all, which may or may not still be going on?? I’m really not sure. Cause Jamie became super mean for a while and everyone hated him and he ran Moira over and then Belle very oddly screwed him over and tried to get him sent down only her him to frame her and Nate and have Nate take the fall after she had a mental breakdown but now she’s....fine? And Nate didn’t go to prison after all? And Jamie is off the hook and is suddenly nice again because Kim’s back to be the mean one and now she’s trying to get revenge on Cain cause????? Also a mess. 

The Gabby/Leyla/Liam saga. As discussed in a previous ask, a mess with no real conclusion and with the Jamie/Home Farm obsession...may still be happening???

The Dan’s paralysis saga. I did miss some of this thankfully when I wasn’t watching but I feel like it also went on way too long and went around in circles that felt very unnecessary and then just sort of abruptly ended and they were never seen again until Dan was suddenly perfectly fine and healthy and getting turkey deliveries....?

The Paul/Mandy/Vinny saga. We’re still suffering that one and I feel like it should have a decent climax and perhaps resolution because eventually Mandy has to find out and presumably Paul will face some kind of consequences but at the rate they’re going, who knows when that will ever happen. 

The extremely minimal effort put into Ben as a character and anything between Aaron and Ben. I’m still baffled that they decided to make Ben the guy Aaron bullied in school and then resolved all of that in one episode. And who the fuck knows where it’s going now because it’s never on screen long enough to develop into anything but if it does...where does it even go? 

The Malone saga. Entirely too long and had definitely had a fair few meandering sections. Had a decent climactic scene with killing Malone but then went right back to meandering. And I’m still sort of like “Dawn reported him to the police and she killed him in self defense” so I don’t know why they’re even going through all of this in the first place and if in the end they just get away with it, then truly...what was the point?

Wow it’s really depressing to list everything out like this. Safe to say...the show needs to make some changes, preferably a new producer. 

[knives-out20]

Magnetic Push - Erik Lehnsherr x Male!OC - Part 1

Fandom: X-Men: Days Of Future Past (2014)

Pairing: Karmel Rosenstein (OC) x Erik Lehnsherr

Warnings: Swearing, Spoilers for Days Of Future Past, Magnetic Pull spoilers,

Notes: Hi! Welcome to the sequel of Magnetic Pull, titled ‘Magnetic Push’, it is advised you DO NOT READ this if you have NOT finished Magnetic Pull. But that is an obvious given. Grimm, as you all may remember, is an OC of mine. Enjoy!

Logan and Hank sat in front of Charles' desk in his office.

Charles bent over sluggishly, looking at Logan under a big desk lamp. "So, you're saying...that they took Raven's power, and, what? They weaponized it?"

"Yep." Logan nodded.

"She is unique" Hank commented.

"Yea, she is, Hank" Charles agreed, standing up properly.

"In the beginning, Sentinels were just targeting mutants. Then they began to identify the genetics in non-mutants, who would eventually have mutant children, and grandchildren" Logan explained, watching Charles walk over to sit on a big couch at the side of the room. "Many of the humans tried to help us, but it was a slaughter. Leaving only the worst of humanity in charge. I've been in a lot of wars...I've never seen anything like this. And it all starts with her."

"Now, let's just say that, for the sake of...the sake, that I- I choose to believe you, that I choose to help you, Raven won't listen to me" Charles sighed, smiling sadly. "Her soul belongs to someone else, now. Hers isn't the only one."

"I know" Logan admitted, standing up. "That's why we're gonna need Magneto, too. And Climber."

Hank looked up, as if he hadn't heard those names in ages. "Erik? A-And Karmel? You do know where they are?"

"Yea."

Charles grinned in disbelief, laughing to himself. "Could you give me that one more time, please?" He rhetorically asked.

"You heard me" Logan replied, promptly standing his ground.

Charles continued to laugh as he stood up. "He's where he belongs. Him and Karmel both" he told, facial expression rapidly changing to one of disdain as he passed by Logan.

"Well, that's it? You're just gonna walk out?"

"Ooh, top marks" Charles raised his eyebrows, sassing Logan. "Like I said, you are perceptive" he pointed at Logan, walking backwards towards the staircase.

"The Professor I know would never turn his back on someone who lost their path" Hank noted, watching Charles walk away. "Especially someone he loved."

Charles stopped at the foot of the stairs. He took a step back, then one more before speaking again. "You know...I think I do remember you now" Charles said, walking back over to Logan. "Yea. Tall, angry fellow with the contentious hair. We came to you a long time ago, Erik, Karmel, and I, seeking your help. And I'm gonna say to you, what you said to us then..." he leaned in, getting right up in Logan's face. "'Go fuck yourself'."

"Listen to me, you little shit" Logan growled, grabbing Charles' shirt. "I've come a long way, and I've watched a lot of people die. Good people. Friends. If you're gonna wallow in self-pity and do nothing, then you're gonna watch the same thing, you understand?"

Charles searched Logan's eyes, confused at the audacity this man had.

Logan let go of Charles.

"We all have to die sometime" Charles walked away, for real this time.

"I told you there was no professor here" Hank reminded.

"What the hell happened to him?" Logan asked, turning around.

"He lost everything. Erik, Karmel, Raven, his legs" Hank sighed. "We built the school, the labs, this whole place, then, just after the first semester, the war in Vietnam got worse. Many of the teachers and older students were drafted. It broke him. He retreated into himself, I...I wanted to help, do something, so I designed a serum to treat his spine, derived from the same formula that helps me control my mutation" he shook his head. "I take just enough to keep myself balanced, but...he takes too much. I tried easing him back, as did Grimm, but he just couldn't bear the pain. The voices. Grimm tried countless times to- to help Charles, to slow him down to the dosage I take, but like I said, Charles, he...couldn't be helped."

"Grimm, uh...blue-haired guy, talks to and controls the dead?" Logan arched a brow.

"Yea. Grimm didn't want to waste away trying to help someone who couldn't be helped, so, he broke it off with Charles, and thus, Charles lost him. The treatment gives Charles his legs, but it's not enough. He's...He's just lost too much" Hank concluded.

Charles lay on his bed, eyes shining on the brink of tears. He looked over at his bedside table, specifically at a framed photo of Raven. Charles' chest went up and down with his restrained breathing, thinking back to the first time Raven and him met, as kids. His vision glided over the photo of Raven, to a tie. Not any tie of his own, or Hank's, but...an old friend's tie. 

Karmel's tie. He had forgotten it at the X-Mansion back when he resided in it, and Charles kept it with the underlying hope of seeing Karmel again and returning it to him.

Charles knew how much Karmel's ties meant to him, and why they meant to much to him; all of Karmel's ties belonged to his father. He groaned softy, thinking back to when he first met Karmel.

"Uh, Karmel" Karmel repeated, outstretching his hand, "Karmel Rosenstein."

"Charles Xavier. Friend of Moira's?"

Karmel shrugged.

"Acquaintances, actually? Mutual friend" Charles corrected.

Karmel furrowed his eyebrows. "Yea...How did you- never mind- you?"

"Very recently acquainted. She brought me here to meet you."

Karmel's eyes went wide. "Uh- w-why? Why'd you need to meet me? What's happening? Moira, I- I don't like boys, but it's fine if you do Charles, but I-"

Moira raised a hand, putting back the book she was holding and cutting Karmel short. "I didn't bring Charles here to set him up with you, I know you like girls. I brought him here because I feel that you both have something in common."

"An obvious interest in girls?" Karmel insisted, hands on his hips.

Charles held back a chuckle. He knew Karmel had been locked up in Erik's heart for the past ten years or so- and vice versa. Charles thought that surely, today, Karmel was more embracing of his sexuality than he had been back then, when he used to live in fear of it.

"Karmel, Karmel-" Charles called, putting a hand on Karmel's shoulder. "It's okay."

Karmel slowly dropped his hands, raising an eyebrow. His vine art of Erik grew purple flowers, which bloomed quickly. Karmel's breath hitched at that.

"It's okay now, remember? I know, you know, we both know here. And I'm a hundred percent okay with what I know. As of our quick trip to Russia, so are you. It's okay, you're safe here. You can be who you truly are."

Karmel took slow, deep breaths, nodding. "Yea, I- I just...I guess I'm gonna forget sometimes, that it's okay. But it's hard to forget that on a scale of one to ten, he's a certified twenty. I'm...I love Erik, man."

"Which is okay" Charles cracked a comforting smile. "I'll be around to remind you. It's a slow process."

Charles could still vividly remember the way Karmel's vines looped around the wall of the mansion to form Erik's face, the pure detail of it all- Karmel had Erik's entire being memorized. He moaned in annoyance, getting out of bed and passing right by the tie and framed photo.

Back downstairs, Hank was organizing the study while Logan tried thinking of what to do next.

"I'll help you get her" Charles stood right outside the study. "Not for any of your future shite, but for her."

"Fair enough" Logan quickly replied.

"But I'll tell you this, you don't know Erik, and you definitely don’t know Karmel. No one knows them like they know each other. Karmel follows in Erik’s footsteps, his pain and anger pushing him to go faster and faster. Erik, that man is a monster, a murderer. You think you can convince Raven to change? To come home? That's splendid. But what makes you think you can change him?" Charles scowled.

"Because you and Erik sent me back here, together."

Charles stared deep into Logan's eyes, determined. "And- And what about Karmel, huh?"

"Listen, Professor. What Karmel does or doesn't do in the future isn't important. What's important is that we can change Erik, and that means him, too. Y'just gotta believe me."

***

"The room they're holding Erik and Karmel in was built during the Second World War, when there was a shortage of steel. So the foundation is pure concrete and sand. No metal. The walls are too thick for Karmel to grow vines out of, and the glass ceiling, he isn't strong enough to break his vines through" Hank described.

"They're being held a hundred floors beneath the most heavily-guarded building on the planet" Charles added, the three men looking over an aerial map of the Pentagon.

"Why are they in there?" Logan inquired.

Charles looked up at Hank, then over at Logan. "What, Erik forgot to mention?" He snickered.

"Uh, JFK" Hank timidly answered.

"...They killed-" Charles cut Logan off.

"What else explains a bullet miraculously curving through the air? At the perfect level from around some trees? Erik's always had a way with guns, and Karmel's always had a way, for the way Erik has a way with guns" Charles chuckled.

"Or just, Karmel's always had a way with Erik" Hank shortened what Charles said, down to its bare minimum.

"Are you sure you want to carry on with this?"

"This is your plan, not mine" Logan reminded.

"We don't have any resources to get us in" Hank complained, Charles chiming in by chirping "or out. It's just me and Hank."

"I knew a guy. Yea, he'd be a young man now. Grew up outside of DC" Logan giggled, shaking his head. "He could get into anywhere, I just don't know how the hell we're gonna find him."

Hank tore his gaze from Logan, to Charles. "Is Cerebro out of the question?" He whispered, Charles silently hanging his head as an answer.

"If only you guys had internet."

Charles looked up at Logan, eyebrows raised in interest.

"What's 'internet'?" Hank furrowed his eyebrows.

Logan sighed, shifting where he stood and turning back down to the map.

"We have a phone book" Hank then suggested.

[nellie-elizabeth]

The Handmaid's Tale: Nightshade (4x02)

Well dang!

Cons:

I honestly can't think of anything, other than maybe a slight lack of subtlety, which I mentioned in the last review as well. This show can get away with being in your face, but every once in a while it tips itself over the line juuuust slightly. The example I'm thinking of this week is the one where June is poisoning everybody in the brothel while music plays. Her maniacal expression as she becomes a crime boss lady... I don't know. Laying it on a little thick. Gilead makes it hard to be good. We get it.

Also just... logistically, I wish the ending of this one had been a little clearer. Are Janine and Esther and the others... dead? Taken? Nick is there, trying to protect June, but we don't know the fates of the other characters. I get it as a plot hook, but it made the ending of this specific episode a little muddied. The impact of Nick being there was lessened because I was thinking about the other characters, wondering at their fates.

Pros:

But also... omg it's Nick! That ending was so chilling, with Nick forced to play the part, to keep June alive, but the two of them not being able to communicate... I'm definitely excited to see them interact more.

And talking a bit more about June's plot in this episode, her growing relationship to Esther, this sort of mother/daughter, savior/saved thing, while on the surface Esther is the Wife and June is in her household... it's all very compelling. It's why I'm really curious about the fates of Esther and the others, since I want to know if there's more to come. I like that June is taking ownership, and wanting to be the one to make the tough calls and make things happen, although I'm already ready for that to break really bad for her, really soon.

Moira even alludes to it when talking to Emily. When we check in with the Canadian contingent, we see that Luke, Moira, Emily, Rita, and many other Gilead escapees are working together to try and place children into homes with family members or others who want to adopt. But it's not easy. It was so moving and tragic to see one little boy struggle to adjust. He misses the only home he can remember. The only parents he can remember. This is a very real tragedy and complication, and I can understand how hard it must be for Moira and the other adults to see, when they have a better grasp on how their rights were stolen from them. To these children... what do they remember from the time before? Moira handles it wonderfully, bringing Rita over to the boy's house to give him a sense of normal.

We also see that Moira has a new girlfriend. Not much to report here yet - so far seems quite cute, and I want them to work it out. We didn't get checkups on Luke and Emily's personal lives, but I'm sure we'll see that soon!

And then the Waterfords. I know some people find them to be the least interesting aspect of the show, but for me... the performances are strong enough, and the icy chill of these two people and their fucked up personalities are compelling enough, that I just can't look away. I loved Serena trying to manipulate Fred, and Fred not having any of it. I don't feel any sympathy for Serena in the traditional sense. But I do find it fascinating to watch her rationalizing away the things that happened to her in Gilead. Because if she had to recognize the horrors for what they really were... what would that mean for all the people she put through much worse?

The bombshell reveal that Serena is pregnant has me shook. Definitely was not expecting that. Have no idea what it's going to mean going forward.

So there you have it. Going to have to save my review of the third episode for tomorrow. Definitely eager to see the season picking up some serious momentum...

9/10

[randomestfandoms-ocs]

Follow-up question: how is their first encounter? Does he come to her, does she go to him? Does she mention what happened with her former fiancé . . . what does Oliver say?

oof this became a lot longer than it was meant to (should I admit that I’ve sort of started writing the prologue even though I’m supposed to be working on Aurora?) so I’m putting it below the cut so no one kills me 😂I’m not actually sorry though bc like seriously these scenes have been playing on loop in my head like a movie since yesterday

also ugh i need to find good Oliver Queen scene packs so I can make a gifset for them

okay so their first encounter is accidental!  Ivy is at the mansion, working with Walter on the latest press releases regarding Oliver officially returning home, and she’s trying to head out before Oliver gets back because like... she doesn’t really think that “getting home for the first time after being dead for five years” is exactly the best time for their reunion.  But her last conference call took longer than expected, because one of the reporters kept trying to ask about her relationship with Oliver, so finally she hangs up and grabs her coat and is all ready to storm out, typing furiously on her phone and paying no attention to her surroundings, only to bump right into Oliver himself, approximately five seconds after his hug with Thea, and drops everything she’s holding (which is a lot, she has a huge stack of papers under one arm, her coat and purse hanging on the other, and her phone in hand)

Oliver immediately drops down to help her pick stuff up, and it’s at that moment, with both of them kneeling picking up her shit, that he actually looks up and sees who it is

and they both freeze

like yes, full blown dramatic movie freezing, his hand hovering over hers where they both reached for the same paper, prolonged eye contact and barely breathing, freeze

Ivy reacts first because “pretend to be okay when everything is falling apart” is her normal (Laurel jokes that she minored in repressing emotions), and pulls away, grabbing her stuff and quickly being like “hi welcome back I’m glad you aren’t dead but I have to go”

and Oliver is just like “wait, can we... catch up?”

and Ivy is so not ready for this, and so aware of everyone else staring at them, and is just like “sorry wish that I could but I have like 83 more interviews and statements to give about your return and I might need to ruin someone’s career and I just really don’t have time sorry welcome back”

but Oliver just... he loves her so much and in his time being not-dead one of the things he realized is that he never stopped being in love with her, so he invites her to dinner, with a joke about Tommy being there too so “it’ll be like old times” and it’s painfully awkward but he’s trying

and Moira is immediately like “oh yes how wonderful” and Thea is just like “please please please please please” and Ivy hsa never been good at saying no to either of the Queen siblings so she says yes.  She’s just starting to say her goodbyes again when Oliver hugs her and she just melts into his arm (ft. dramatic quote about how it felt like coming home, like her first breath of fresh air since she got on the plane to England all those years ago) and he very quietly tells her that it’s good to see her again and she, just as quietly, tells him that she missed him

and then she’s rushing off and already on the phone threatening to castrate someone and Oliver is so in love like yes that is exactly the girl he fell in love with

Fast forward to dinner (I know the question was about the first meeting but this is sort of a continuation) and okay so Ivy arrives and she hugs Oliver (she’s still repressing all the emotions but now she can actually breathe and enjoy the fact that he’s alive) and Tommy enters with “now that takes me back” and laughs and pulls them into a group hug, before pulling back and having his “I told you, yachts suck” moment and then his hug with Oliver, and then they go to dinner snd it starts off sort of the same but Ivy is much more chill than that morning, although she still keeps checking her phone and texting bc work never sleeps

and things go off track when Tommy talks about taking Oliver out on the city and Ivy chimes in with a reminder to not go too crazy “I’m paid to handle their messes, Tommy, not yours” and Oliver chuckles and rolls his eyes, and Moira is kind of emotional because like it’s just such a flashback to when they were younger — most specifically to when they were eighteen and Tommy was talking about needing to have the Best Summer Ever before Ivy left them for Europe and Ivy would always remind him not to plan anything too crazy and Oliver and Laurel would roll their eyes at each other watching Ivy and Tommy debate over what counted as too crazy.  Tommy calls her a buzzkill, but fondly, and then Oliver asks what she means about her job and Ivy just kind of explains the publicist situation and Moira (affectionately) says that having Ivy is like having their very own press secretary and really she’s been so helpful and Tommy, not really thinking, makes a joke about how she probably spends more time with the Queens than her fiancé

and silence.

and then we get Oliver awkwardly doing a combined “oh you didn’t break up/oh you aren’t married yet” bc he hoped for the former but expected the latter.  So Ivy explains that you know, work is so busy she really doesn’t have time to plan a wedding let alone go on a honeymoon and there’s just always so much to do, and Tommy makes a pointed comment about how she could hire someone to help with work or wedding planning and hasn’t, and Ivy just glares at him because she knows that Tommy thinks that that’s just an excuse and the real reason she isn’t married yet is because she’s still in love with Oliver (Tommy is right, for the record) and it trails off into an awkward silence which is when Oliver then brings up going to the office and it goes back into the canon scene, and Ivy is definitely surprised by the Oliver Speaking Russian thing but is trying to stay out of it and is awkwardly fiddling with her engagement ring and trying to avoid looking at Oliver.

And as Oliver is leaving the table, Tommy tells him not to forget about tomorrow and Oliver pats his shoulder and then reaches over to grab Ivy’s hand and go “you’d better be there, Knight”, and she smiles up at him, squeezes his hand, and promises that "I wouldn’t miss it, Queen” and he leaves, and very shortly after she gets a work call and excuses herself to handle it