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[spoonstra]

I will forever hate how the head-and-heart dichotomy became synonymous with Bellarke. First, the head-and-heart dichotomy has always been used to describe the relationship between emotion and reason in decision-making. It's really that simple, whenever someone makes a decision, they use reason, and emotions can override reason in certain contexts, though it's not inherently hurtful to decision-making. It's an internal dichotomy; the entire point is that leaders need to be able to evaluate the situation they're in and recognize whether emotions would be helpful or hurtful in dealing with it. It's about how well a leader can balance their logic and emotions; it's not about separating reason and emotion into two people and they complete each other. It shouldn't be a metaphor for why Clarke and Bellamy work well as leaders because Clarke is the head and Bellamy is the heart, so they complete each other. That's not the point; the point is that if one's decision-making is so unflinchingly polarized in one direction of the scale, it's not as effective as it would be with a proper balance. It's an internal process, not a descriptor for the character's relationships and dynamics, and it was first depicted in the show in that same context. It was actually a prominent theme of Clarke's arc in season 2. Her struggle to define herself as a leader had aspects of that theme. She initially decided to reject her emotions and adopt love as a weakness before recognizing that that was not the type of leader she wanted to be, and she then realized that her emotions could empower her logic. It just wasn't called the head and the heart, but that's what it was. Lexa was an example of someone who firmly led with logic before deciding to take a page out of Clarke's book and trust her because of her emotions. That's why they had her say during the betrayal, "I made this choice with my head not my heart." Lexa decided that, at that moment, her emotions would not help her make the best choice for her people, so she chose to use logic instead. The entire point of their relationship in season 2 was how they each influenced the other to consider different sides of the dichotomy when making decisions, not that one was the heart and the other was the head. They had the capacity for both within them. And this isn't me saying that the true heart and the head are Lexa and Clarke because they aren't. No relationship in the show should have personified that dichotomy because it misses the entire point. Two characters shouldn't have to be the head and the heart and complete each other as leaders. It's worse for them as leaders to be like that because it means that they make stupid choices when they are separate. A prime example of that was Bellamy in season 3; his inability to make a good decision without Clarke wasn't cute or romantic, or "Aww look at the heart without his head." Bellamy shouldn't have needed to have Clarke acting as his logic for him to make reasonable decisions; that's the exact opposite of the real head and heart dichotomy: knowing when to choose what or both. The head and heart are internal leadership struggles, not a split between two characters. The internal battle between rationality and emotional impulses is more compelling and realistic than the external assignment of roles between Clarke and Bellamy, which only serves to undermine both of their characters.

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Sometimes I wish that the staff of shows would interact a little less with fans. I am curious how that would impact both the creative visions of the shows and fans' interpretations of shows. Like I wonder how so many of the shows I've watched would have played out without the creators feeling pressured into certain narratives because of fans and how people would perceive shows and form their opinions on them based solely on what is being shown on screen and not influenced by what the showrunners or cast have hinted at/discussed (because a lot of times these hints/discussion are contradictory since they try to increase people's engagement by playing into how they have interpreted the show. Like how would fandoms be like if people disengaged from other media and formed their opinions on a show based solely on that show?

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the song “The Fall” by Flipturn reminds me so much of Clarke and Lexa, especially after Lexa’s death

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While I agree that the plan was working, there was no guarantee they would have won the battle inside Mount Weather (And if she hadn't taken the deal, they wouldn't have been able to sneak the grounders out through the tunnels since MW had recaptured them). Realistically, Mount Weather would have had the homeland advantage, and they had superior technology to the grounders. They also likely had more ammunition and resources than Skaikru, another advantage. And it's a lot easier to mow down the grounder's numbers in a closed-in environment (It'd create a choke point where it'd be difficult for the grounders to overwhelm them. As long as MW kept a fortified position from a range away from the grounders, they could get through a large amount of their people. There's also a lot less mobility for an army that huge inside of a confined space). Lexa chose the option that guaranteed some form of victory(even if it wasn't annihilating MW) over the opportunity with some chance of success. Lexa also had to consider the political implications of her actions when she returned to Polis. Her thought process was, "If I take this deal, I get my people out of MW and the Mountain have no need to capture my people again. If I don't and proceed with the attack, there is a chance we could lose and more of my people are killed for nothing." Politically, Nia (Lexa's greatest political threat) would have used this entire situation against her regardless of any of the outcomes. Lexa was in a very precarious position. 300 of her warriors had been slaughtered by 100 Skaikru, and even after one of their people murdered 18 more of her people (an action they never really got proper justice for since Clarke mercy-killed Finn), she chose to enter an alliance with them. Then she loses 250 more people to one of MW's missiles. She had been going through loss after loss. Imagine how much worse it would have been if they had lost against MW (and Lexa had no guarantee they would have won). Lexa also couldn't have known that Clarke would have won against MW, so she didn't consider that was something Nia could have used against her. At least by taking the deal, she could save some of her people, allying with Skaikru more understandable to the other clan leaders. Another thing is that the alliance with Skaikru was tenuous at best. Skaikru could still have become a threat in the future had they won against MW since they wouldn't have a common enemy to unite them. So, while it wasn't the most brilliant move to antagonize them with the betrayal, it wasn't a damning decision. I think Lexa reasoned that the remaining Skaikru would have been much more focused on regrouping and planning another attack on MW than attacking her people. So, she probably figured that while MW and Skaikru were busy fighting against each other, she could use that time to strengthen the people she saved and prepare her army for conflict with whoever won the MW vs Skaikru conflict. Whoever was left would have been highly weakened, whether MW or Skaikru and she probably thought she could have called on her army and dealt with them pretty efficiently. (Again, this is what I think Lexa assumed when she took the deal since she had zero idea that Skaikru could have killed MW so quickly; she was probably expecting a war.) And after her deal with MW, she could have had scouts watching their movements to ensure they wouldn't attack her people. If MW did become a threat, it would have been easier to win now that they are outside the bunker since Grounders would have the homeland advantage, and it's a less closed-in environment. MW was also really weakened. They had no power, no acid fog, and I'm guessing that no power means no missiles, so the reason why MW was so powerful and feared was already dealt with. Lexa would have had a lot more variety of tactics on how to deal with MW if they were out in the open compared to an attack inside of their bunker. One thing I will say is that they definitely should have developed the reasoning behind her decision more in season 3.

I just got to 2x15 and I used to be an ardent defender of The Betrayal™️ like “well DUH it was OBVIOUSLY the right decision to make, Clarke would’ve done the same thing!” which yeah I still kinda stand by canon-wise but like… writing-wise is it just me or is the whole thing kind of dumb 😭 Like they were already winning??? There was no point in not just killing Emerson and Cage and all the others and freeing the Sky People and civilians??? The Sky People have made powerful allies, can cure Reapers, and are the only reason they’ve made it this far and she just leaves them to die??? I don’t know, unless Lexa was like, really fuckin sure that Clarke could handle things just fine on her own, it doesn’t make any kind of logical sense to me if I really think about it for more than a few seconds.

It feels kind of out of character for Lexa too, like the Grounders inside Mount Weather are an army waiting to be set free to defeat the Mountain Men, are likely willing to die for the cause and the greater good (which Lexa literally said in the previous episode that you should be able to tell your people to die for you!) — like, bad thing: many of the Grounders inside the Mountain die fighting. But good thing: the Mountain Men are defeated and in the long run the Grounder suffering under their oppression which has lasted 97 years finally ends. It seems like a worthy sacrifice to me and I just think it’s an odd, contradictory heel-turn for Lexa to suddenly make.

I don’t know am I making any sense here or am I literally the only one overthinking this 😂

Oh bby I have talked about this before

And I'll do it again 🥴

No it really did make no sense beyond juat setting up the adversarial plotline between Clarke and Lexa and furthering the dynamics between Skaikru and the clans.

Realistically, logically, strategically - it made no sense. None. Cuz, even beyond just what you're saying, Lexa taking the deal in turn means the MM keep the skairats. Whom they were harvesting bone marrow from. Which allowed them to walk freely outside.

Considering???? That they had every intention of wiping out the Grounders, whyyyy in god's fucking name would Lexa "I got a phat ass and love stinky blonde bitches" Kom Trikru willingly provide the very key that would allow them easier ability in the future to annihilate her people??

It's? Illogical? And fucking nonsense?

But I'm supposed to believe that she made that choice? I'm supposed to believe that someone who won her conclave at the age of like 11-12, who beat and bartered 12 warring clans into submission, who found her lover's severed head in her bed and then still accepted the murderer into her alliance for the best of her people... I'm supposed to believe she would take such a short-sighted, lopsided deal? Really? Really?

I mean when you look at it from just a narrative perspective, yes of course it makes sense. Sacrifices have to be made yada yada, my people or yours blah blah blah, she loves her but had to choose her people bing bong balsjdjslk. I get it, I do, and it was a very compelling moment to watch. Truly, I love that episode, it was devastating and shocking and they acted it so gd well it still holds up. Like every rewatch makes my lil gay heart clench, and I'm not kidding. But take even one step back and look at the entire picture of the situation and actually who Lexa is as a person and leader, and the whole fucking plot just falls apart

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Dean English spit in the faces of all the fans (and the original team) who dedicated their time and/or money to save the show. They're taking advantage of the traction the fans built and are trying to manipulate them into supporting this trilogy to push their idealized view of the universe/concept without having to put in any work -- a fact that is made abundantly clear with this halo designing contest. They want the fans to do all the work. People like this are why the writer's strike is necessary. Do not support this contest, especially without knowing how you will be exploited.

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honestly whatever is going on with this new trilogy is so much more evil than what Netflix did

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Honestly, this new "announcement" just confirms for me more than ever that these Warrior Nun movies are focused more on the Warrior Nun universe created in the original comics, and has absolutely nothing to do with the television show.

None of the original cast/crew appear to be involved, everything we've had announced so far seems to reference the comics and not the show... they're even redoing the design for the Halo, which would not be necessary if it was within the realm of the TV show because like... the halo wouldn't just change?

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wdym new halo?! 🤨

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Octavia deserved SO much better than how everyone(especially Bellamy) treated her in seasons 5-6. She was instantly being judged because of the bunker without anyone trying to understand what she’d been through and what she’d had to sacrifice or even just showing a little bit of empathy. She was cast aside in season 6 like she was worth nothing with barely anyone caring. And what’s worse is that Bellamy, after he abandoned her, had the audacity to act all sad about it and use that as an excuse for treating Echo like shit. And the only thing Octavia did wrong in season 5 was burn down the farm and even that was understandable. Like a lot of people view it as a decision she made because she was power hungry and I disagree. The bunker is the source of Octavia’s greatest trauma, it represents all the darkest parts of her and it’s the place that forced her into becoming something she never wanted to be so that her people could survive. Of course she’s not going to want to stay there. Octavia needed Wonkru to reach Eden and she needed to be the one to lead them there because if she didn’t then her sacrifice was for nothing, she turned herself into Blodreina for nothing. She needed her sacrifices to mean something good for her people, that she didn’t suffer and that her people didn’t suffer in the bunker for nothing. Ever since Octavia became Osleya, people had been telling her that she was going to be the one to lead them to salvation after the bunker (Gaia in the dark year episode) and Octavia believed that and internalized that and she used that to drive her through those years in the bunker. Octavia was hurt, and she had lost her way, but that didn’t make her evil. It didn’t make her undeserving of redemption or sympathy or understanding and I hate that they treated her that way in season 6.

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please bagel

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I'm still thinking about how when Cindy couldn't get the red moss off, it meant that Sarah and Hannah's love would never fade.

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This is my favorite thing ever. LOOK AT HOW SOPHIE IS LOOKING AT RYAN. I can't do this. My heart can't take this.

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Everyone needs to calm down and just wait for season 2 to air before you start hating on it. The boys are probably going to be wonderfully written without their arcs taking away from the girls’ arcs. And I for one am excited for what the boys will bring to the show.

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Had a math quiz this morning so hopefully this works

somehow I got 95/20 on an assignment

I hope they never fix it and leave it this way forever

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I like that our problems on Batwoman are quite literally the opposite of queerbaiting.

We've just got TOO MANY options. TOO MANY directions the writers can take TOO MANY canon queer women in TOO MANY potential canon relationships.

Our problems are on the level of that person being overwhelmed by TOO MANY kittens at feeding time.

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Mere words cannot express how much I love wildmoore.