#2019 me did at least lets hope she was based i might rewatch

[ryolightswan]

Riku and Takeru rlly were the original kazurei huh

[the-silvr-speedster]

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Fandom: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Pairings: Daisy Johnson / Daniel Sousa

The team meets on the Zephyr for the last time before going their separate ways. Daisy reflects on the past seven years with them while trying to come to terms with losing the only home she's ever known. In the meantime, she is trying to find a way to tell Daniel about their time loop kiss, which is not such an easy task with the lack of privacy on the spaceship. Daisy also has an awful nightmare and Daniel is there to pick her back up.

Sequel to ‘About Starfish and Squares’ but can be read as a stand-alone.

Also posted on AO3.

Hey guys! 

I am soooo happy you liked my previous fanfic and since you wanted more, and I had a lot of ideas, here is Part Two. I wanted to write something short, basically, just Daisy telling Daniel about their time loop conversation and the kiss. And once again it turned out as this massive thing, even longer than Part One. I had a lot on my mind since I started rewatching the whole series again before the finale which I am equally excited and scared to watch. However it ends (and I really hope Dousy gets a happy ending) I will cry like a baby. Anyhow, thanks for the lovely comments on About Starfish and Squares on AO3, your support really helped me with finishing Part Two. I hope you will like it as well. Sorry for any mistakes. OK, so enough of my rambling. Enjoy the reading!

FYI I used a small part of the song Freaking me out by Ava Max in one section. It just felt right considering Daisy's feelings. (And I keep singing the song over and over so...)

Disclaimer: All characters are a property of Marvel and Marvel television.

Home.

What is it? What does it feel like? Is it a place or people? Daisy used to ask these questions for years. She wasn’t the only one, though. All the other children at St. Agnes orphanage were plagued by the same thoughts, the same questions. The same hopes. Every one of them hoped that one day someone would come and give them what they want. A home. It didn’t matter they didn’t know what it meant, they all wanted it. Daisy craved it. Some children believed that it wouldn’t be strangers coming through those doors but their own parents. They would open the doors, nervously step through, and explain everything. Apologize. There would be tears, there would be hugs, and hearts mended. They would take them home and forget about the past. Even Daisy imagined it, oh, so many times. She used to just sit there and hypnotize the old creaking wooden doors in the common room while other kids played. She did it so often that she remembered every crack, every deformity that could be found on them. Sometimes those doors opened and her heart leaped to her throat in expectation. Strangers came in and took her to their home but it was always over sooner than she could think of it as her home. She was back at St. Agnes and the doors were closed again. Only one time she really thought ‘this could be my home’. She had hope but even that was crushed when the family sent her back within a month. St. Agnes was her only constant. Or was she a constant at St. Agnes? Children would come and go, they would be fostered or adopted. Daisy was one of the few that would always stay. Until she had enough of it, of course.

She dropped from high school and left. No more Mary Sue Poots. How could they name her that anyway? Meet Skye, a fierce hacker. No, a hacktivist. Once again, she thought she found if not a home then at least a place she belonged to. With Miles and the Rising Tide. But now she knows that she hasn’t found a home until that day when two agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., an organization she despised for years, came knocking on the door of her van. She didn’t know home until she met Phil Coulson and his team.

She kept her eyes trained on the person in question as he was busy talking with Fitz and Mack. Well, not him, really, just an LMD version of him. She couldn’t wrap her head around it. It was him and it wasn’t him. He died. She mourned him. He was like a father to her, more of a father than her own father. No, Coulson was her dad. Or is. Or whatever. She kept coming back to their conversations during the time loops. Daisy was afraid Coulson was going to do something unexpected, like turn himself off permanently, after their mission was over. She just got him back - in a way - she couldn’t lose him again. But he didn’t and he doesn’t belong in this world anymore. Just like her, Daniel, and Deke.

Well, it’s really hard to think about Deke as someone who doesn’t belong here. He is like a tardigrade, he can survive anywhere and anytime, obviously. She is reminded of his ‘80s band, the Deke squad, again. She shakes her head, smiling. He was thriving in the ‘80s just as he was in 2019. She has no doubt he will be more than okay even now. That also has her thinking about what he’s going to “borrow” this time. First it was tech and then songs. Maybe now he will finally come up with something original. Daisy moves her eyes to him. He’s sitting next to Simmons and Diana, excitedly speaking of something, nursing a beer in a glass from Deke Squad’s official merch that he somehow managed to sneak on the Zephyr before they left the ‘80s. There were at least dozen of boxes of t-shirts, glasses, headbands, keychains, and who knows what else. Daisy has found out about it only two days ago, when Deke decided to move the boxes and managed to break the main controls panel on the bridge with one from the heavier ones.

“What the hell, Deke?” She yelled, after she reached the bridge and assessed the damage.

“It broke,” he told her innocently.

“Are you kidding me? It broke? On its own, huh? You had nothing to do with it at all, right?” Daisy stood there in the middle of the bridge, hands on her hips, scolding him like a child. She sighed. “Fix it. Before Mack comes back and sees it.”

“On it!” He called and tried to hurriedly leave the bridge but tripped over one of the boxes that were lying all around.

“Why are all these boxes up here?” Daisy came towards one of them and was about to peek inside only to be abruptly stopped by Deke. “What’s in there?”

“Nothing! Just some personal belongings,” he said maybe a little too fast.

“Oh, really?” She asked him incredulously. Daisy pushed him away and opened the box. She furrowed her brows in confusion as she saw its contents. Glasses. She moved to the next box. She took out a t-shirt. “Why do you need all of this stuff, Deke?”

“It’s Deke Squad merch! I couldn’t leave it just lying there on the base!” He defended.

Daisy looked at Daniel, who was watching their interaction with an amused expression, rolled her eyes, and then shoved the t-shirt into Deke’s hands, letting out an annoyed sigh. “Get it out of here.”

He nodded and started to move the boxes around.

“I’m going to help him,” Daniel informed her with a look that said ‘just to be sure he doesn’t break anything else’ while stepping carefully around the closest box.

“Alright,” she gave him a grateful smile. “I’m going to wake up Coulson and order some pizza.”

“Pizza for breakfast? Really?” He eyed her doubtfully. “I think I can do better than that.”

“It’s lunch already,” Deke spoke up from behind a stack of boxes.

“Why not have a pizza for breakfast?” Daisy asked with a shrug, completely ignoring Deke’s remark. “Pizza is always a great idea. Plus, you have work to do here. You can’t make us a proper breakfast.”

“It won’t take forever to put these away,” Daniel assured her while stepping closer. “I’ll be in the dining area in a few minutes and trust me I’m going to make you a breakfast sooner than they would deliver pizza.”

“Wait, did you guys just wake up or something?” Deke commented still hidden behind the boxes. But for her, it was like background noise.

Daniel was now standing in front of her fixing her in place with his eyes and giving her a small smile. She felt him take her hand in his. He brought it up to his lips and softly kissed her knuckles. Daisy could feel the so long forgotten feeling of butterflies in her stomach and tried to fight the blush creeping to her cheeks.

“Okay,” she mumbled quietly.

“I’d rather have pizza,” Deke said as he emerged from behind the fortress of boxes he just put up. Daisy quickly took her hand from Daniel’s and both of them made a step back from each other. Deke eyed them suspiciously.

“Yeah, uh, I’m going to wake Coulson up,” Daisy threw over her shoulder as she hurried away from the bridge leaving the two men behind.

Daisy thinks of that pile of lemons Deke once placed in her bunk. They really had a weird way to express affection in the postapocalyptic future he’s from, that’s for sure. Somehow that feels like a long time ago. The talk they had when she tried to explain she’s not ready to let anyone in. Not then, maybe not ever. Not after Lincoln. The pain, the guilt, and the regret she felt for so long keeping her heart locked away. Hidden and safe. The ghost of her love for him lingering deep within it. Love that remained unspoken since she never got the chance to tell him ‘I love you’. She remembers how Deke’s hope was crushed by her words. The kicked puppy expression he had on his face. Daisy didn’t want to hurt him but she didn’t want him harboring hope for something that might never be. She wonders if he still has that crush on her. ‘Most likely not,’ she told herself, a smile tugging at her lips. He moved on and somehow, she did too. What looked like an impossible thing less than two years ago, now became a reality. She has no idea how or when things changed. Maybe it was around the time she and Simmons were high on those puffies on Kitson. Maybe she needed that to happen to realize what she really wanted. To be honest with herself. She told Jemma she wants her own Fitz and the realization of what she said stayed with her even days after that, never actually leaving the back of her mind. But the planet needed to be saved again so she pushed it away and forgot about it. That memory floated back up just a few days ago. The memory of her and Jemma under that gaming table in the casino.

Daisy’s eyes flicked towards Daniel and remained on him, studying him. He and Mack took shifts at preparing the food on the grill. Now it was his turn. Meanwhile, he listened to the conversation between Mack, Fitz and Coulson and often joined in. And of course, he never forgot to send her a look or a smile, to make sure she’s okay. He was just laughing at something Fitz said, judging from Fitz’s awestruck expression they were probably grilling Daniel about his past and SSR. Daisy grinned. Fitz is going to talk his ear off. She looked at the bottle of beer she was nursing in her hands and tried to collect her thoughts. While the memory from Kitson resurfaced only a while ago, her confused feelings caught her attention during the time loops. More precisely, she realized that there is something there, that wasn’t before. There’s a heart now, where there used to be a ghost. She kissed him and remained silent about it. It freaked her out, that’s why she kept it quiet until the mission was over. She often acts on impulse and then freaks out.

Daisy let out a long breath and looked at Daniel again. She still hasn’t talked to him about their kiss in the time loops, not for the lack of trying but for the lack of privacy, among other things. The last few days were crazy.

When Daisy walked into the dining area Daniel has already started making breakfast. She’s probably spent more time talking with Coulson in the LMD lab than she thought.

“That smells amazing,” she called from the doorway.

“Told you it’s going to be good,” Daniel said over his shoulder.

She can’t exactly tell when he decided to be her personal chef but it might have started after he caught her eating breakfast for dinner one evening in the ‘80s. Who says she can’t have cereals with milk whenever she wants to?

Daisy walked closer and hopped on the counter next to him. “Hmm, pancakes are the best,” she agreed while jabbing her finger in the pancake batter and tasting it.

“Oh, no. No eating the batter, young lady,” Daniel scolded her with a teasing grin while he took the bowl away from her.

“Hey, don’t be such a grandpa about it,” she said, pretending to be offended. “What’s that?” She pointed towards a bubbling dark purple mass in another pot.

“That’s a sauce made from forest fruit mix I found in the freezer with a few secret ingredients I won’t disclose,” he winked at her.

“Someone’s being secretive,” she teased. “It looks delicious.” Daisy leaned over the pot and took a deep breath. “I can smell some cinnamon, hmm…maybe few drops of vanilla extract…a drop of love…” She paused, opening one eye, spying on Daniel’s reaction. He was giving her an amused look.

“Now, why would I use a love potion?” He teased back with a smirk.

Daisy regained her sitting position and dramatically sighed while pretending to be occupied by looking at her nails. “Yeah, you are right. You don’t need one.” It took her a moment to realize what she has just said. Better yet, what underlying meaning those words held. Her breath caught in her throat and she carefully looked up at him. Daniel had that soft look on his face again. That look she always wants to kiss away. She had to look at her hands. “I mean you are so likable. Everyone here likes you,” she babbled quickly.

“I don’t make pancakes for everyone,” he told her softly and she had to look up at him again. Those warm honest eyes. Suddenly she’s back in the time loop. ‘And you…you’d like to…be that someone?’ ‘Not for everyone.’ Oh, God. She has to tell him. Right now.

Well, in the hindsight…She never should’ve distracted him while he was making pancakes.

“You guys are making a smoke grenade or something?” Coulson spoke up the same moment the both of them noticed the burning pancake batter on the pan.

Everyone came back to the Zephyr to say the last goodbye. And by everyone, she means even Andrew, whom May has dragged along after long hours of explaining to him why his wife is a different person from the one he came to know over the years. Telling him she has empathic abilities. She also mentioned that he is Inhuman and their daughter might be as well. It must’ve been an interesting conversation. Daisy would’ve liked to see it.

With all those people coming on board, the spaceship started to become more and more crowded. It’s not that she wouldn’t be happy to have all of them here again after a few days of it being just her, Daniel and Coulson, but she kind of misses the privacy it provided. Maybe that’s why she is tucked away in a corner alone, watching over all of them. Her team. No, not a team. A family. Because teams break apart, families not so much. They always stay together, even if it’s from afar. A family never gives up on you. Well, maybe some families do, some are messed up like that. ‘Like my biological family,’ she thinks. But not this family. They never gave up on her. Yes, there were some initial reservations after she got her powers, but Coulson has never given up on her. Not when she chose the Afterlife over her family in S.H.I.E.L.D.. Not when she broke more than just their hearts after being infected by Hive. Not when she walked away them to become a vigilante after Lincoln sacrificed for her, because of her mistakes. Definitely, not when she started to believe she’s the Destroyer of Worlds. They gave her a chance after chance. They let her grow. She is not the same person she was almost seven years ago. She is not that wide-eyed girl living in her van being obsessed with superheroes and revealing the truth to the world. Skye died in that Kree temple and Daisy Johnson has been born. Or did she? Daisy likes to believe that a small part of Skye is still left somewhere inside of her. She liked Skye. She may have been naïve, but she wasn’t burdened by that darkness Daisy has inside. By those demons and nightmares.

“A time loop?” Daniel asks her.

“Fun, right?” Daisy comments with a sigh, her eyes scanning through the contents of the drawer… ‘Wait, what?’ She looks up confused. They are back in the time storm. ‘No. No, no, no…no. Not again.’ “Daniel? What the hell is-” She starts to say but he cuts her off.

“This is why I wanted to stay with this team. Do you ever have a day when something crazy doesn’t happen?” Daniel asks a little too excited.

“It’s been a while.” She speaks involuntarily. “Hey! Daniel?!” She waves her hands frantically in front of him. He doesn’t notice it.

“Reminds me of my SSR days,” he tells her, nostalgic smile on his lips.

“We just need to get that implant out,” she says and decides to just take the scanner but Daniel stops her.

“Wait! It’s a trap,” he warns her.

“But we don’t know that yet.” Daisy looks at him confused. ‘Why would I say that? We know it’s a trap. This…this has already happened.’

“We do. You said somebody obviously went to the drawer and…,” he pauses. “Simmons was supposed to get the scanner, right?”

“Yeah, until I told her I was gonna do it.” Daisy looks around as the lights start to flicker. ‘Something doesn’t feel right,’ she thinks.

“Every attempt so far has been on Simmons. She’s the one they’re trying to kill,” Daniel says looking at her.

“Maybe, but we still need the scanner.” ‘Oh.’ He’s gonna take it. She can’t let him do it again. She reaches for the scanner but her hand goes right through it. ‘What?’ Fear starts to settle in her bones.

“Right, but if I die, I’ll just, you know…reset. No problem. If you die, you’ll lose your memories and waste all this time relearning everything. Time, we don’t have,” Daniel explains and reaches into the drawer without a second thought, grabbing the scanner.

“What are you doing? This is crazy!” She says trying to move from her place but to no avail.

“This is my purpose. I know that know,” he tells her a flicker of blue in the brown of his eyes. His voice is getting weird. Muffled, like by a static on a radio…

She tries to look around for something, anything to help her take at least one step closer to him so she could take that scanner from him. ‘Something is way off.’

“Why would you-”

“To make sure this worked. To make sure you didn’t try this yourself,” he cuts her off and when she looks up it’s not Daniel standing there anymore, but-

“Lincoln? What…” She pauses, looking at him in shock. He’s wearing the same S.H.I.E.L.D. jacket he had back then. Yo-Yo’s necklace is hanging from his fist. His face is bloody and his blue eyes are piercing through hers. “It was supposed to be me,” she mumbles quietly, tears running down her cheeks. “You should’ve let me die!”

Lincoln gives her a sorrowful smile. “I would never let you die.” His voice is echoing around her. She can feel its vibrations in her bones. “So, it’s fine,” he mutters, a little surprised, looking at the scanner in his hand.

“No! It’s not. Let go of it!” She screams hopelessly. “You can’t just die for me like this. This is wrong!”

Suddenly she hears a weird sound coming from the scanner and Lincoln lets out a groan. A shadow of confusion crosses his face. However, as he leans back against the table he fades in and out like the flickering light above them and finally changes back into Daniel.

“Sousa?!” Daisy calls to him. “Daniel!” He looks up at her with fear in his eyes, blood spilling from his mouth. “No!”

“Hey, hey, hey, Sousa,” her body finally lets her move close to him as he starts slipping to the ground. She tries to lower him more carefully until he sits down. “Hey, Daniel, look at me. It’s gonna be okay,” she tells him, a quiet sob breaking her voice. “It’s gonna reset. You’ll be fine.” She sits down next to him and let him lay down on her lap.

“Why is it taking so long!” She yells into the empty ship. Daisy cups his cheek with one hand and strokes his dark hair with the other one. “Please, stay with me,” she whispers almost inaudibly. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this. The time loop has to reset. It always does!” A stray tear drops on Daniel’s forehead. “Please,” she begs, sobbing. “Daniel!” But he doesn’t hear her anymore.

She watched hopelessly as the last light slipped away from his eyes. She could feel how his heart gave its last weak beat. He was gone. He died for her just like Lincoln did.

Suddenly she feels too much. She feels every vibration around her, but not those she needs to feel. Those of his heartbeat. It’s like her own heart is trying to beat for them both, picking up speed until everything around her shakes. But she doesn’t care anymore. Panic and pain are clawing at her chest making her breathless.

She sees her mom, lying there lifeless after Malick snapped her neck. She sees Enoch. She sees Lincoln floating in midair. Lash. Her mother again. Triplett…The room is becoming filled with bodies of those she cared about but had to die because of her.

“It has to reset,” she mumbles weakly. “It has to reset. It has to reset. It has to reset.” Daisy closes her eyes and hugs Daniel closer.

Daisy.

“Lumley said that we should stay the hell away from you.”

She looks up at the sound of that voice. It’s Coulson. The real one.

“I had a chance at healing up from this,” he points to his chest, “but I gave the serum to you.”

Daisy.

“He said that wherever you go, death follows.”

Daisy!

“He was right.”

Daisy!!

Wake up!

*******************************************************************************************

The plane was shaking. Daniel woke up in his bunk with a start. At first, he thought they are taking off somewhere but that didn’t make sense. None of the four of them knew how to pilot the Zephyr. Daisy managed to fly the quinjet on her first try back in the ‘80s, but that-

Then it hit him. “Daisy!” Those are her quakes…

He jumped out of the bed and stormed into the corridor where he almost collided with Coulson.

“Where’s Daisy?” He asked him worriedly.

“Hey, guys? What’s going on?” A very sleepy Deke looked out from the door of his bunk. “Why is everything shaking? Are we going somewhere?”

“She is in her bunk,” Coulson informed him ignoring Deke completely and Daniel didn’t waste any second standing there as he hurried towards Daisy’s bunk. “I was going through the supplies when this started. I was just about to go check on her. She’s probably having a nightmare.”

Daniel stopped before her doors and faced Coulson with a concerned look in his eyes. “Nightmares cause her to quake?”

“Only the really bad ones. Actually, she didn’t have an episode like this in forever,” he explained with a mixture of sadness and worry. “I think you should check on her.”

Daniel was about to ask him if he’s really okay with it being him but the plane was hit by another strong quake and the light started to flicker above them. He gave a nod to Coulson and opened the doors to Daisy’s bunk.

Daisy was lying mostly still, the only evidence of her discomfort being her tear-streaked cheeks, the way she was grasping at the blanket and her rapid breathing. It physically hurt Daniel to see her like that. So strong and yet so vulnerable.

“It has to reset. It has to reset,” she started mumbling from the dream and another wave of tears slipped from under her eyelids. “It has to reset. It has to reset!”

Daniel was at her side in a second, wiping the tears away from her face and caressing her hair.

“Daisy,” he tried softly.

“It’s about the time loops.” He heard Coulson comment from the doorway.

“Daisy,” Daniel tried again, carefully cupping her face in his hands.

Another, even stronger quake hit the plane. Daniel heard something clatter to the ground and another distinct sound of a breaking glass somewhere in the dining area. He looked around just in time to see Coulson leaving to assess the damage, followed closely by Deke. He turned his focus back to the still sleeping woman.

“Daisy!” He tried more loudly this time.

She whimpered.

“Daisy!! Wake up!”

Her eyes snapped open with a loud gasp. She shot up into sitting position, the unexpected movement almost making him fall from the side of her bed. She was looking around in bewilderment, gasping for air.

“It’s okay,” Daniel told her with a calming voice, his hands going to her face again, forcing her to look at him. “You are safe. It was just a dream.”

“D- Daniel?” Daisy mumbled. Her brown eyes meeting his. They held so much pain and fear.

“Yeah,” he gave her an encouraging smile, his thumb gently stroking her cheek. “I’m here. But Daisy, you have to stop quaking.”

The shaking stopped suddenly. She raised her hand from her lap and softly put it on his chest, right above his heart. He saw a flash of relief on her face before it was replaced by guilt. She looked down.

“Hey! Don’t feel guilty about this. The plane survived a time storm, this was nothing,” he spoke calmingly.

“Is everyone okay?” She asked him quietly.

‘Of course, she would worry about everyone else but herself,’ Daniel thought to himself. He gently raised her chin so she would meet his eyes again.

“Yes,” he assured her. However, the moment he looked into her eyes he saw they no longer held pain or fear or guilt. They were just…empty.

“Daisy?” He started softly. “Do you, uh… Do you want to talk about it?”

She considered it for a moment but then shook her head and let her hand fall from his chest back to her lap, her eyes following.

“Okay. You don’t have to.” Daniel let his hands drop from her face and moved further back to give her some space.

She was sitting there quietly, her long hair cascading around her face, hiding it from him. Daniel realized that the silence is even worse than her quiet sobs while she was still asleep. He wanted to help her somehow but he didn’t want to push her further away by insisting on talking about it. He considered leaving, because maybe she just needed more space but he didn’t want to leave her alone. She shouldn’t be alone not if the nightmare was so bad that it caused quakes.

Daniel thought about what Coulson has said. ‘Was it really about the time loops?’ She hasn’t told him much about what happened in there. He knew only the general stuff Coulson and Daisy told the whole team about after Enoch’s sacrifice. They’ve been in there for a long time, finding a way how to save everyone almost at the last second. Nobody else remembered but the two of them, probably because of their sleeping pods. Some members of the team died during the time loops because Enoch was programmed to kill if anyone tried to remove Simmons’s memory blocking implant. Was her nightmare about that? Possibly. It would give nightmares to anyone.

“Do you want me to leave?” He decided that at least he should give her the option even if he wanted to stay.

She quickly looked at him, a flash of panic crossing her soft features. A clear ‘No’ to him. But then she composed herself and looked away.

“Yes,” she whispered almost inaudibly.

He raised an eyebrow and sighed. She is not making this easy at all.

“I think I’ll stay anyway,” Daniel exclaimed.

“I told you to go,” she looked up at him a light annoyance on her face.

“See, you tell me to leave but you don’t actually want that,” he gave her a small smile.

“How do you know what I want, huh?” She asked him, anger seeping into her voice. “I want to be alone.” Daisy moved further away from him.

“Honestly?” He sighed looking at his hands and then back at her. “I know people like you. Focused on the greater good, even at your own expense. You want people to think you like being alone, even though you always end up back with friends,” Daniel told her and met her eyes again. The annoyance was gone. She was looking at him with a mixture of shock and…surprise? He decided to push his luck further. “You all keep running at the problem full tilt until you either solve it or slam headlong into a brick wall. But you don’t have to deal with the aftermath alone, even though you think so. You should have someone there to pick you back up. Someone to help you unload that burden or share its weight.”

Daisy closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. Few tears escaped from her eyes and she frantically wiped them away. She laughed, but it was a sad laugh.

“I am trying to be angry at you but I can’t. Not after…after you say…that,” she spoke. “You know, we had a very similar conversation in the time loops.”

Daniel raised his brows in surprise but decided to stay quiet and let her continue.

Daisy sniffled. “I asked why you are always there, whether to help me or watch over me, and you gave me the speech you just did. Again.” She looked at him in curiosity. “So, uh, you want to be that person for people like me?”

Daniel gave her a small meaningful smile. “Yes. But not for everyone.”

“You said that, too,” she smiled sadly. “You are right, you know. I…I want you to stay. But I also want you to go. My life’s a mess. I…People I care about tend to get hurt…,” she took a deep breath and added very quietly, “…or worse.”

“Daisy-” Daniel started to say but was cut off.

“I have demons. My past is…” she shrugged and wiped her tears away again.

“We all have skeletons in our closets,” Daniel told her. “I am not scared of yours.”

“You should be,” she murmured.

“Let me be the judge of that. One day. When you are ready.” He decided to risk moving a tiny bit closer and taking her hand in his. He looked into her eyes so she would see that he really means every word he says. “I am not going anywhere.”

For a brief moment, he could see the fight in her eyes. But it was there just for a few seconds. New tears ran down her cheeks but she made no move to wipe them away this time. She moved closer instead and hugged him, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

Daniel’s arms sneaked around her waist pulling her close. He could feel her tears seeping through his shirt. He sighed and when she let out a muffled sob, he comfortingly stroked her back.

“They are all leaving,” she said between sobs. “I’ve never thought it would come to this. They are the only family I’ve ever known.”

His heart ached for her. “And they will never stop being your family. Families change, grow, their members go their separate ways but always come back together.” It made him think of his own family, of his home. He couldn’t even say goodbye and will never see them again. He lost it all in a blink of an eye. But he was supposed to be dead and now he got a second chance at life. As Coulson said - a life after death.

“I know,” she mumbled. “But it won’t be the same.”

“No, it won’t,” Daniel whispered into her hair.

Daisy let out a yawn.

“Maybe you should try to rest a bit more,” he suggested.

She leaned back and he could see the uncertainty mixed with fear in her eyes. She was scared of the nightmares. “Will you hold me? I promise I won’t quake you out of the bed,” she gave him a small teasing grin.

“Whatever you want, Quake,” he teased back and she caught the collar of his shirt and pulled him down with her.

*******************************************************************************************

Daisy knows now that she can’t let her demons stand in the way of her happiness. Those demons are in the past but will always be a part of her. A part she will share with Daniel one day, as well as he will share his own demons. Yes, she is scared that she could lose him like Lincoln but a small part of her has a hope that it won’t happen this time.

‘We are going home.’ Four simple words Daniel said to her in that barn. Words that kept her fighting. Back there it was just a promise to make it back to the Zephyr, because where was home? Her only home were the people on board the Zephyr, her team and family. Where was home for Daniel? She couldn’t ask him then. They plucked him out of his time, his home.

Maybe she is losing her family in some way but maybe she will gain something else. Her own Fitz. Maybe, she already has.

‘We are going home.’ It could be a promise of something else. Now those words could mean more. She can feel that warm fuzzy feeling in her chest when she thinks about it. When she thinks about him. She smiled, her eyes fixed on Daniel as she took a sip from her beer.

“Just kiss him already,” May spoke up from beside her.

Daisy choked and slapped her hand over her mouth to prevent herself from spitting the beer out. She coughed a few times and May hit her on the back.

Privacy. She misses it.

“May! What the hell?!” She exclaimed annoyed and berated herself for not realizing that May sneaked up on her. And her feelings. ‘Shit.’ She gave her a glare.

“Just saying,” the older woman shrugged. “You know, there are bets going around on when you two finally become a couple. Officially. They refused to let me participate because of my empathic powers.”

Daisy groaned and rolled her eyes. “Mack and Yo-Yo already had one bet when we were in the ‘80s. Not sure what it was exactly about but Mack won,” she shrugged thinking that it may have been about the kiss. “You guys are the worst; one doesn’t have any privacy.”

“We are just happy to see you smiling like that. To see you happy again,” she patted her on the arm. “But please, do something about it already because this…tension is killing me.”

“I was going to, but as I said, there is no privacy on this spaceship with all of you here,” Daisy defended her lack of actions. She really wanted to tell him the morning after he stayed with her because of that awful nightmare but Mack and Yo-yo were already back and they probably heard about that nightmare from Coulson because they both wanted to go check on her which ended up in Coulson calling after them: “I strongly advise you not to go there.” She could hear their ‘Why?’ followed by a surprised ‘Oh!’ from Mack. She remembers as she quickly shot out of the bed, Daniel’s confused ‘Daisy?’ following her. She rushed into the corridor with ‘I am fine, thank you’, closing her bunk behind her and added: “No weird assumptions are needed.” The three teammates were looking at her in amusement.

“Yeah, everyone is here, as in here and not there,” May pointed at the bridge since they were all in the cargo bay with the ramp lowered down.

Daisy considered what May was proposing but quickly refused the idea by shaking her head. “Nope.” She could already see the faces of everyone after she and Daniel would be seen leaving the bridge together.

“You can’t wait to get rid of us, can you?” May teased.

“Maybe,” she snickered. “At least I’ll spare him from the if-you-ever-hurt-her threats from you guys.”

“Mack already beat us to it,” May gave her an amused smile.

“Oh God,” Daisy facepalmed.

“While you were on the way to save Simmons and Deke,” the older spy added mischievously.

“What?! But that was a week ago… Oh,” she sighed when she realized that Mack was very quick to do it after she told him about the time loop kiss. But she wasn’t even sure what to do about it back then. Or was she? Why everyone around her seems to know her better then she does? And more importantly - what else did he say to Daniel? She looked towards where both men stood, chatting over the grill.

“Uh, I should probably go check on what they are discussing now,” Daisy said and finished the rest of her beer.

“Go mingle. After all who knows when we get the chance to be together like this,” May smiled sadly and she, too, went to join the others.

Daisy watched her go for a short moment, set the empty bottle on a table, and walked over towards Daniel and Mack.

“Hey, guys. What do you have there? I’m starving.”

*******************************************************************************************

The team spent the rest of the evening and the beginning of the night by sharing their memories, laughing and teasing each other. They remembered their fallen friends and maybe even cried a little. Nobody wanted to be the first to leave. They all knew that when they do leave, it will be the end of their journey as a team. Eventually, Fitz and Simmons decided to go first since their daughter was already sleeping curled up in Jemma’s lap. Fitz said his goodbyes and took still sleeping Diana into the car.

“You know, this isn’t a goodbye,” Jemma told Daisy with shaking voice, tears running down her cheeks. “It’s see you soon.”

“I know,” Daisy sniffled and wrapped her best friend, no, her sister, in a bear hug.

“It would be lovely if we lived close to each other. Diana needs her auntie Daisy,” Jemma mumbled into her shoulder.

“Yeah. That would be great,” Daisy smiled through tears. “I am so happy for you, Simmons. You have Fitz and Diana, your little family,” she moved her hands to Jemma’s shoulders to look her in the eyes. “I know you’ll be okay and that makes this all a little less painful. You won’t be alone.”

The scientist chuckled. “You won’t be alone either,” she said and looked sideways at Daniel, who hovered nearby watching over Daisy, to make her point.

Daisy let out a soft laugh.

“It’s so good to see you this happy again. So, what are you guys planning?” Jemma asked her with a grin.

Daisy shrugged. “I thought that maybe I can take him on a small trip to show him how the world changed. After that…,” she sighed, “I honestly don’t know. I guess we both need to find out where we belong in this new timeline.”

“You’ll figure it out. Together. I’m sure of it,” Jemma told her comfortingly and hugged her again. “I love you, Daisy.”

“I love you too, Jemma.”

After Fitz-Simmons departed, the others left one or two at a time. Mack and Yo-yo were the last ones, leaving almost in the morning hours. Coulson decided to go with them, which really surprised Daisy since the possibility of him leaving too didn’t cross her mind. But as he said, every one of them needs to find a place in this new world and he is not an exception. He assured her he won’t be gone for long.

“It’s just a trip,” he said. “And take care of each other,” he added over his shoulder as he was walking down the ramp.

She stood there, looking after them until she could no longer see the lights of the car. Just like that, they were all gone.

A fresh morning breeze played with her hair. Daisy shuddered. She has heard Daniel walking down the ramp before he put a jacket around her shoulders. She didn’t even realize he went inside to grab it for her.

“Thank you.” She wiped at her tear-streaked cheeks and smiled, not yet looking at him.

“It’s nothing, but you are welcome,” he replied as he stood next to her.

He was so close she could feel the warmth of his shoulder on her own. She could feel the vibrations of his heartbeat. Her hand brushed against his and he took hold of it, their fingers intertwining. That touch grounded her in the moment and place. It assured her that she is not alone. Daisy let out a long content sigh. She knew that now was her time. They were finally alone.

“I need to tell-” she turned to face him but was cut off midsentence after Daniel crossed those few inches between them and pulled her in for a soft kiss. It was short but it caught her off guard. His right hand was still holding hers and his left cupped her cheek. She briefly opened her eyes to look into his and she thought she’s going to drown in that dark chocolate. Whatever she wanted to say was long lost with only one thought on her mind. Daisy leaned in and kissed him back, both her hands grabbing at the collar of his shirt to pull him closer, while his arms snaked around her waist. This kiss was different than the previous one. It was like finally getting a glass of water after dying of thirst in a desert. It was urgent and it left them both breathless. They remained close afterward, trying to catch their breaths. Daisy was beaming and Daniel was looking at her like she was the most precious beautiful thing he has ever seen.

“That was much nicer than our first kiss,” she told him quietly with a playful smile tugging at her lips.

Daniel frowned in confusion. “This was our first kiss.”

“Hmm, not for me,” she hummed, moving her right hand from his neck to his chest. She could see the moment when it hit him.

“The time loops. You kissed me in the time loops,” he said with a light chuckle and shook his head in disbelief.

“Why do you think it was me?” She asked with a gasp and smiled at him teasingly.

“And am I wrong?” He smirked smugly while he stroked her back.

It sent shivers down her spine and she had to force herself to concentrate. “Nope. But you, Mr. Sousa, kissed me back,” Daisy disclosed and pinched him in the chest.

“Hmm, that’s not fair. I don’t remember that,” he gave her a sad look.

“I can make you remember,” she whispered as she caught his face in her hands and brought it down to hers to kiss him again, exactly like in the time loops. Daniel responded to her kiss by pulling her even closer. One hand cupped his cheek and the other sneaked around his neck. She pulled away too soon for his liking.

“It was like this,” she whispered, her hands dropping to his chest.

“Nice,” he smiled. “But short.”

“Oh! So, that was too short for you, huh? We were plummeting towards certain death and needed to trap Enoch,” she told him exasperatedly. “You, Danny-boy are lucky I found the time even for that short kiss.”

Daniel laughed and eventually, Daisy joined in.

“You were so cute. With that soft expression on your face after the kiss. It took everything within me to stop myself from kissing you again,” she admitted while playing with a button on his shirt.

“Were you going to tell me about it?” He wondered.

“I was about to tell you before you kissed me, so…” Daisy shrugged and smiled at him sweetly.

“Hmm, I can do that again,” Daniel offered and his eyes darkened a bit.

“Yes, please,” she breathed.

*******************************************************************************************

Daisy and Daniel were sitting on the cargo bay ramp which gave them a nice view of the horizon. They weren’t really that tired and neither wanted to move from that spot after they exchanged a few more kisses. They sat down and Daisy cuddled into his side. It’s been so long that she watched a sunrise. A start of a new day. The beginning of something new.

“We can’t live on a plane,” Daniel said thoughtfully. “We need a proper place to call home.”

Daisy smiled and slowly looked at him, her eyes roaming over every small detail of his face lighted by the rising sun. His features were relaxed and peaceful. She wanted to imprint this face into her memory to keep it forever.

The words ‘we’ and ‘us’ and the meaning they held used to freak her out. But with Daniel, it’s somehow different. She is not scared of them, on the contrary, hearing them warms her heart. She sighed.

“What?” He asked her, a questioning smile playing on his lips as his eyes melted into hers.

Daisy leaned in and planted a short but sweet peck on his lips. Then she pushed herself back to look at him again, enjoying the soft almost dazed expression on his face.

“I like the sound of that,” she said in a low voice, giving him a lopsided grin.

“Sound of what?”

“Home.”

How am I gonna live my life without this TV show? Without Dousy? I guess we are all gonna meet here to scream after the finale, so see you then! I’ll have to wait until Thursday evening, though.

[littlemisssquiggles]

To anyone who believes that Oscar is going to be completely erased by the Merging of the Two Souls with Ozpin then I encourage you to go back and rewatch the conversation between Ozpin and Blake from V2CH2. 

I’m pretty sure that this has probably been a point of discussion in the past but I personally didn’t realize this until I did my recap and I’ve been meaning to talk about it for some time.

In rewatching that particularly scene knowing what I knew about the true nature of Ozpin at the time, it’s only then when I realized that we’ve already gotten a clear example of what it’s going to be like with the Merge.

It’s not so much one personality eclipsing the other while the previous soul disappears. As a matter of fact, if I had to describe it based on my observation from V2, it feels more like it’s going to be one person embodying personality traits from both original souls that they can switch between while still being the current soul at heart?

What I mean by that is, when Ozpin inevitably merges with Oscar and becomes a part of him; as Oscar inherits Ozpin’s memories, a part of Oz will still be retained in Oscar’s personality. But it will still be Oscar who you mostly see.

I’d also like to think this is adamant on how others perceive Oscar as well. Like I’m imagining the people who knew Oscar personally like Ruby Rose and the JNR trio for example will wish to continue to see him as only Oscar. But for folks like General Ironwood and even Qrow Branwen, that will be a coin toss for them since they mostly know Oscar as Oz. So it wouldn’t surprise me if they continue to talk to Oscar as Oz. So when it comes to them, Oscar will channel the side of himself that he retained from Ozpin but when it comes to her own confidantes---his own Inner Circle of most trusted allies, he’ll more be himself.

I’d like to think that Oscar’s eyes and tone of voice might change to indicate the difference between when he’s channeling himself and when he’s channelling  the persona of Oz---the previous culmination of the souls.

In reviewing the scene from V2, I noticed that Oz’s eyes sort of changed colour at some point during his talk with Blake.

For the sake of rationalizing myself, I’m going to refer to the original Ozpin as “Oz” (since he was his own person before) and the other soul with him at the time as “The King” as in the King of Vale.

In watching the scene, from the start of the conversation---Oz’s eyes were their natural brown colour and he maintains a warm, welcoming tone with Blake.

However at some point---the moment where the Faunus are mentioned--- Oz switches to a more serious tone. His eyes are still their natural brown colour but there seems to be a more, icy haze to it. This is the point where I interpreted The King intervening to talk to Blake. So Oz is channeling his predecessor's persona, not his own.

The King’s persona is maintained for the remainder of Oz’s talk with Blake until her leaves. But before departing, Oz looks back at Blake to assure her that she could’ve talked to him at anytime. At this point, Oz is back to his original self and it’s indicated by not only his gentler tone of voice but also by his eyes returning to their original dark brown colour.

I’d like to think, only the people who really knew the two souls individually on a more personal level would be able to spot the difference. But I guess the point I’m trying to get at here is that both minds will be there even after the Merge occurs.

Ironwood’s remark to Oscar in V7CH7 definitely made me consider this thought:

“It feels strange, knowing a part of me helps come up with all of this.” “You’ll get used to it, I’m sure. Eventually, you wouldn’t know who’s who anymore.”

Seriously each time, Ironwood briefly mentions the Merge to Oscar, I can’t help but thing that there is an unspoken history between Ozpin and the General that transcend two lives. Like I’m imagining that James must’ve met Oz when he was once in Oscar’s shoes---sharing a body with his predecessor and the shuffling of the minds was still evident to tell them apart.

Until one day, that stopped being the case. You can tell that Ironwood is talking from that experience of being an ally to both souls and I sincerely wish we could get a full conversation of Oscar just probing James with more questions of how much he knew regarding the Merge and what his history with Oz was life both pre and post Merge was like. 

I’d like to think that Oscar and Ozpin are going to blend together so seamlessly, that you really wouldn’t be able to tell that they were once two different minds from differing walks of life. However I’d also like to believe that at heart, inspite of this big change that is to come to him, Oscar will always be himself. He’ll just have a part of Oz there with him forever that only he can tell.

And for the people who knew Oscar and got to know him outside of Oz, for them it will be a choice on who they continue to see him as. Himself or Oz?

So yeah, I definitely do encourage folks to go back and watch the talk between Oz and Blake from V2.  Even though it was Oz talking to Blake, you can’t help but get the impression that two personas were talking to her---one that was more firm but still respectful and another that was compassionate and understanding.

I’d like to think that back then, the more serious side of Ozpin’s personality was what he retained from Wizard before him---Phadrig: The King of Vale. Whereas the more compassionate side of Oz, the one who brought Ruby a plate of cookies during their first meeting and the one who also advised Blake that she could always come to him for advice, that’s the side that was Ozpin himself. The man he was and has always been pre-Merge.

While I still believe that Oscar’s experience with the Merge is meant to be different and more unique from all  the other Wizards, I’m open to this concept.

As a matter of fact, I kind of have this idea of Oscar and Oz kind of coming together pre-Merge and agreeing to always work together as one regardless of the outcome.

Like let’s say…by the end of this volume, Oscar reconciles with Oz within his mind and rather than the two resume their original partnership of switching back and forth, both souls agree to remain together and work together so that Oscar will never feel like he’s going to lose himself ever again and Oz would never have to feel like he’s let anyone down again because with Oscar at his side, he was never alone exactly as the God of Light envisioned.

So it’s this thing where Oscar and Oz work in sync from henceforth. No more switching. Just as one. So basically it’s a fusion of the two but... it’s not the Merge. It’s more so a choice between both souls to always work as one until the Merge happens, if that makes sense?

And from there, whenever Oscar spoke, you never get the impression that it was just him talking to you. There was a bit of Oz being channeled into his personality as well since Oz is there with him, refusing to leave his side again and the same for Oscar. If that makes sense?

I’m just curious to see what it would be like for Oscar and Oz to work as one without the Merge, y’know what I mean? I know the Merge is something that is ultimately expected to happen, but until such time, we haven’t really received any opportunities for Oz and Oscar to work together. It’s always been one mind in control while the other stays back.

So...how would it be if Oscar one day turns to Oz and is all like “Don’t fight for me or I fight for you. Fight with me so we can fight together as one!”

If Oscar is to do anything remotely bad-ass for later in this season---I hope part of it is him and Oz finally fighting as one. 

Not Ozpin taking over and fighting for Oscar. Not Oscar being badass all by himself while Oz stays back.

But Oscar fighting with Ozpin channeling himself into his movements so it looks and feels like the two souls are fighting as one soul; even though they’re not merged. 

That’s what I think could be interesting. Oscar and Oz choosing to work together from now with Ozpin promising to never leave Oscar’s side again. At least until the Merge happened and even then, I don’t think either will know the difference since by then they would’ve grown accustomed to working in harmony with one another. So it becomes second nature.

In a way, this also helps play into my longstanding Pinehead headcanon of Oscar being the one true Ozma. If it is revealed that Oscar is Ozma’s original body while Oz is the current version of Ozma’s soul, then the two of them coming together---body and soul---has always been in the cards.

Only this time, unlike other lives; Oscar and Ozpin’s merge would be as different as Oscar’s experience as a Wizard of Light. Instead of their union representing another life in the cycle being taken, it would be return of a hero are “Ozma” is finally made whole again for the first time since his very first life.

Buuuuuuuuut....y’know, these are just my theories. For now, I’m just going to safely place my bets on Oscar and Oz coming together to fight as one. That’s something I’ve been hoping for since V6 so who knows? Maybe it might happen for this season’s finale. We’ll see.

~LittleMissSquiggles (2019)

[reylo-love-theme]

Post TROS Meltdown

Disclaimer: these are my personal feelings for the series and may not reflect your opinions. I just need a space to say them. Thank you.

I went into TROS completely blind and with no doubt that Ben would live (due to reading hundreds of fan analyses and predictions based off TLJ and TFA) and I have to say I'm emotionally unsalvagable. Anticipation for this movie got me through the roughest year of my entire life and this heartbreak and loss is what I'm supposed to end off on?

Like the entire movie came out of the left field and body slammed me into the ground.

They did so many fake deaths that I stayed waiting long into the credits for Ben to come back.

I kept hoping for an final scene...

COME ON EVERYONE and I MEAN EVERY mainish or even side character GETS a HAPPY ENDING EXCEPT THE TWO PEOPLE THAT NEEDED IT THE MOST. THE PROTAGONISTS.

What is supposed to be the moral of the story here.

Star wars is a space fairytail about HOPE and LOVE. IT was supposed to be reverse anidala!!! THE BIG THING ABOUT THAT SHIP WAS THAT IT WAS A TRAGEDY.

THE MOST SIGNIFICANT IMPACTFUL REVERSE IS TO GIVE LOVE AN HAPPY ENDING.

DO YOU SEE THE HOPE IN MY LITTLE EYES. DO YOU?!? *incoherent sobbing*

(Please don't read if you are just going to counter it in the comments. This is solely a personal opinion meltdown and not an attack on anyone or anything. I'm not a words smith and this might come out like senseless rambling but this is a meltdown post hahaha *cries* )

The cinematics and the fighting choreography were incredible. But I went to see the HEART of SW. I went solely to see that happy reylo ending.

Don't even get me started on what they did with Rey (the whole point of her arc was that a nobody can still be stand tall, love, and be a hero)

And Kylo/Ben (can redemption is rewarded with non-death for once?!?) It wasn't even a necessary death! He didn't have to die saving Rey!! They didn't even get like 5 minutes together without fighting?!? Like TLJ set it up perfectly! (Ben defeats Palp with Rey's help and Rey is by his side as he turns back to the light)(How come she called him Ren the entire time until the last scene?! Wasn't she the one who believed most in him?!?). His death had little impact on the audience!! Because there was no previous set up of romance!! There wasn't even happy moments like anidala or hanleia had... There was just...an end in death.

And it wasn't even mourned properly. We only see Rey grieve for all of 2 seconds?

The kiss scene was amazing! The way Ben crawled back to his love was so emotionally powerful! HIS EYES WERE IN SUCH PAIN. Rey grinned! He GRINNED BACK! THEY KISS! HE DIES!! How come no one cared about him afterwards?!? Why is Rey just being like "eh alright thats cool dude".( in the theatre I was so ticked off when someone laughed when he was legit trying to crawl back with broken ribs and a leg) I think it came out so left field for the people who weren't reylo! There was like barely hints that they loved loved each other. (Literally Poe and that girl had more romantic time together!)

Or there were hints on Kylo's side but NOT ENOUGH ON REYs. She juat attacked him and attacked him for the whole movie. (Yes I get that she was "struggling with the dark side" or whatever but Kylo was struggling too and he physically never hurt Rey (beyond unintentionally emotionally)) it made me question if Rey even loved him anymore and that was a huge blow. I couldn't sense this girl at all. Like I thought her tears were for Leia and Not BEN who she Literally Just stabbed. That was how shocked cold I was.

(WHY WAsnt he allowed to "love" rey from the begining of TROS instead of just going back to TFA Style KYlo) (It felt so forced and awkward from how he was in TLJ, I kept feeling like Adam tried to salvage it but he had so few lines it was sooo hard (he did a great job with showing his love and redemption of Ben even with the lack of lines though))

NOW HERE IS WHERE IM TRUELY MAD.

What message am I supposed to take away from their love story?

That broken characters do not deserve love? That trying to change results ultimately in death? That you can only been redeemed in death? That your family is willing to help a random member from their enemies bloodline but not their own kid who still loves them very much he literally dropped his saber when his mom died and gets stabbed and he still turns back because of his dad's last words even though he's been mistreated and neglected by his family and manipulated and abused by palp! What was the point of Leia putting down her lightsaber if not to save her son's life?!? Not end it by letting Rey pick it up?!?

Its 2019! Stop making redeemed villains die because you are too cowardly to give them the hard recovery journey afterwards!

As an abuse victim I related personally to his character and I felt cheated because of how cheap his death was treated. The message I had hoped to take away from this work was that it's not too late to save yourself! You get to decide who you want to be, not destiny, not family, not a skywalker curse! You can change your life! Recover from your abuse and heal your damaged heart. Find your found family in someone who believes in you and loves you even when you are flawed. Your bloodline is irrelevant to how you are. You don't have to pay the price for your family's crimes because you are not an extension of your family's will. You are your own person. Keep your love even in dark times because your heart will save you. (Wasnt that the whole point?! Ben solo had a heart! HE HAD A BIG HEART. That was the cause of the whole internal conflict!?? What does it mean that his love for rey killed him(I dont care that its symbolic or whatever, he still died. Thats not a good ending because he literally wasn't shown with his family or even with Rey, he just disappeared ?!?)

Like okay maybe there is a "tenth movie" or book to revive him. Like the openness of the movie leaves that space. But it was a hurtful move because no one would expect that since the trilogy has ended. Everyone fully expected a happy ending to wrap up NINE MOVIES OF TRAGIC LOVE. I mean I'm all for redeemed Ben solo and I'm so glad they at least gave him that and Rey's kiss. I'm only going to rewatch those parts from now on. For me the movie ended when he smiled.

[millennialdemon]

Summer 2019 First Impressions, Round 2!

Premieres the past few days have mercifully been better -- but that’s not saying much considering how awful the earlier releases were...

-- Dr. STONE

To be honest, I had already developed a bad taste in my mouth for this just based on the trailers I had watched weeks before the premiere. I thought the protagonist was wildly unappealing and unrelatable, not just because the art/design style is not my favourite, but because of his personality... I was crossing my fingers he wouldn’t be as insufferable as he was in the trailer clips, but alas...

The “novelty” of a shounen where “Science Trumps Magic And Fantasy!” is completely lost on me, because the first episode honestly didn’t feature much science, at least not in a meaningful or interesting way? Sure, the protagonist rattles off some chemistry terms and has fucking E=MC2 on his shirt collar in the post apocalypse (I wish I was kidding...), but him having survival skills enough to build a primitive hut isn’t a display of Genius Intellect, and even at the end when he finally “figures out” how to crack open the shell of stone covering the birds he collected, we didn’t really see him... figure it out. He just did the same thing a bunch of times over a long span of time. Because science is doing the same thing over and over again until it works and not experimenting...?

I assume though that that will be explained in episode 2. I assume. I hope. Or maybe I could rewatch it and see if I missed some pivotal detail of genius realization, but I’d probably still be distracted by Taiju yelling constantly and Senkuu looking at the camera and smirking about #Logic. And some story things that seem glaringly wrong to me even with the hyped up shounen tone, like teenage boys being trapped in stone with their minds aware of it for thousands of years and still having the same personalities as they did before when they finally escape it... 

...I guess what I’m saying here is that the comedy/adventure mashup tone is not terribly appealing to me, and that I think it comes off as a bit pretentious when it tries to lay off the Shounen Shenanigans. The characters range from nothing to sneeze at to actively irritating, and for a story trying to make a statement within a genre, it felt super run of the mill. But I will stick around and see how it goes, I suppose... 

Tepid 5/10. 

-- Fire Force

Probably the best premiere so far, but it still didn’t blow me away, and had quite a few problems just in episode 1... fanservice is the number one turn off of course (and on this note, not just the exploitative visuals of it, but also how it changes the perception of the characters reacting to it... protag boy was alright in my books until the script begged him to look at a co-workers chest, sigh), but I also found the writing very clunky, which is a shame because if it took its foot off the gas re: Flashbacks And Repeated Declarations Of Intent, it could have been more compelling than not at all. You almost had me, protagonist boy, but alas... Anime Bullshit Got In The Way, As It Tends To...

The animation was beautiful (the fire animation! Wow! Cool "firefighting” scenes too) and I actually ended up really warming up to the character designs and weird firefighter-but-a-bit-fantasy aesthetic. I tend to like the shape of over-sized clothing and the modifications to some of the fire fighting uniforms were charming (even though they were pretty silly and unnecessary) like the mage’s witch hat and the nun’s outfit. Other than the outfits, I thought the actual character designs were pretty good too. (Shout out to the protagonist’s mother, who looks like a completely generic, normal anime mom, but she just has pointy teeth! Obsessed with that for some reason)

That’s pretty much all I have to say about it so far. It has potential, I think, but it could easily be squandered with perverse slap stick at the wrong defining moment. 

... Like most anime...

7/10 for now. 

-- GRANBELM

Hmm... I’m not sure what to say about this one. It actually wasn’t as bad as I was expecting based on the super moe art. But it was certainly messy and wore its inspirations on its sleeve with a bit too much pride...

Let me put it this way: Have you ever wanted to watch a slightly dark and serious magical girl anime, except they also have mechas, and once a month they all fight each other in epic mecha battles on an alternate plane of existence for some reason, while wearing frilly dresses or absurdly ugly bikini/frog hoodie combos, because they are mages who can access magic that was sealed away by seven legendary sages hundreds of years ago because humanity was using magic for evil?

I hope the answer is “No, that sounds ridiculous.” Because it was. 

But beyond a few very questionable magical girl outfits, there actually wasn’t any pantyshots or leering cameras, and this is the first show this season to feature an all girl cast that wasn’t completely reprehensible and severely misogynistic.

And I think that counts for something. So 5/10 for being bizarre and average but not making me gag. Yet.

-- Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon? Season 2

Alright, I know the “premiere” that dropped a few days ago wasn’t actually episode 1 of the new season, it was a recap episode for the previous season (it has been a few years, I suppose, but I’ve never seen an anime hype itself up so much by releasing a recap before a season premiere)... but I’m glad I watched it anyway. So that I could remember all of the memories of terrible ecchi I repressed when I was 19 (SERIOUSLY forgot about Lili and Hermes existing!!! I wish I could forget again!!!), and could better brace myself for another Godforsaken season. I already watched one season for Bete Loga, I can do it again...

Preemptive, like, I don’t know, 3/10? for being inherently bad, but nevertheless being something I am going to watch and complain about and wish was better the entire time.

and! Thankfully my beloved partner warned me about If It’s For My Daughter I Would Even Defeat a Demon Lord -- which I might have checked out because of positive reviews -- because they had heard that the manga apparently has an Usagi Drop trajectory which is tragic and vile. So anyone sighing in relief and happily reviewing that it’s Unexpectedly Not Horrible!, I recommend holding your breath...

It’s literally the worst, to see an anime about a little girl being adopted, or just existing in general (Dragon Maid...) and having to think “Oh no, this is going to be horrid”, and then being relieved that it isn’t p*dophilia. Only to find out: Actually, it might be! 

The bar is under the ground. It’s in hell. 

See y'all in a few days with the next batch of probably not great anime premieres, maybe!

[miss-mollys-ballet-blog]

Misc. Bolshoi Asks

I was rewatching the Bolshoi's broadcast of World Ballet Day 2019, and Ratmansky's acting class of Giselle left me a bit confused. Obviously, Krysanova, Ovcharenko and Vinogradova were all scheduled to dance the main parts. But why were they paired with Soares, Denisova and Poddubynak respectively for the purposes of the acting class? Denisova danced Zulme, Poddubnyak was in the Pas de Paysants. I don't understand why they were taking part in that class?

Every cast has at least one set of understudies backstage, so even if they aren’t cast directly they would probably be the understudies.  It also could be that the theatre is keeping them in the back of their minds or that their actual partners didn’t want to take place in WBD.  

Me: depressively eats cheesecake to drown my sadness about Ruslan. Now, to take our collective mind off of Ruslan, what did you think of Smirnova and Belyakov in Giselle, ugly choreography aside? Despite knowing full well that Smirnova is an adagio dancer, I actually didn't expect her to fall behind the music at times.... I don't understand why she was the one performing in the opening night plus the Pathe recording, while Krysanova was left to dance in the second night...

I don’t like Smirnova and the main reason I dislike her is her arms.  Arms are everything in Giselle, especially in act 2.  I agree she was behind the music, the choreography didn’t suit her at all, and in general it was just ugly.  It’s difficult to separate the choreography from the dancer.  I thought Belyakov was much better, but even he suffered with the atrocious production.  

re: the Bochkova ask, I really hope she gets more opportunities in the future. I know Vaziev likes VBA but I don’t think he’s a tyrant. I’ve read interviews where dancers say he allows “auditions” and they can ask to do a piece, if he likes it he would let them perform. that’s how Zhiganshina got Aurora and Shrainer got Jeanne, the rest is history. I think that’s how Bochkova got Swanhilda last year too, she’s been doing small soloist roles and suddenly got a title role. 

I’m not even asking for much. I definitely hope she gets promoted to at least first soloist. I think she would make an amazing Gamzatti, Jeanne, Kitri and Gulnare but that might be too ambitious. Anything would be great, at least give her the Bright Stream! He let Sevenard do Kitri at what? 19? I love her and she’s amazing but I can’t believe he only gave Bochkova Swanhilda after 10 years. She must stick out like a sore thumb in the corps :/ (2)

Vaziev might not be a tyrant and he might hold auditions, but that makes it even worse in my opinion.  It shows just how bad his taste in dancers is, especially when it comes to Shrainer, Marchenkova, and Stepanova.  I would rather have confirmation he takes bribes because that would at least prove the bad dancers didn’t actually earn them.  His obsession with VBA is horrific and is leading to bad decisions and he needs to go.  I cannot STAND the man.  I also think Bochkova deserves more opportunities, I would love to see her Kitri based on a video on YT.  I also think she would make a very charming Princess Florine.

[lady-griffin]

Birds of Prey and The Not So Fantabulous Opening Weekend

Birds of Prey did not do well at the Box Office.

I’ve seen some people disagree with that…but it simply didn’t.

$35 Million (Domestic) is not a strong opening for a Superhero Hero movie that cost between $85 – $100 million to make (not including marketing).

It’s Worldwide Total Opening was $81.6 Million, which is also bad.

Birds of Prey is the lowest opening for a DCEU film. It’s about $20 Million below Shazam, which made $53.5 (domestic) its opening weekend.

Not a good sign, since Shazam/Captain Marvel (DC) is not a character known by general moviegoers, while Harley Quinn is an extremely popular character and was made known to many people through Suicide Squad and was one of the most popular things to come out of that movie.

Now, I’m of the personal belief that the first two weekends of movie really tell you whether it flopped or not, as well as the movie’s entire box office earnings. 

But it’s not looking great for Birds of Prey.

So, I wanted to talk about some of the reasons why it might’ve suffered over the weekend and also what are the chances of it making a comeback. As well as what the movie will likely have to make to earn its money back.

Title Confusion

Talking to some of my friends and family, I realized that the title did not do BOP any favors. 

A few of them didn’t realize Birds of Prey was the a Harley Quinn movie, let alone a Superhero/DC flick. They knew a Harley Quinn movie was coming out, but they hadn’t realize the two were one in the same. 

Birds of Prey and Birds of Prey (and The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) are not exactly eye-catching or gripping titles.

I personally, thought Birds of Prey (and The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is not a good title and annoying long. 

Which leads it to be shortened to make it easier, which is how people are going refer to the film, and Birds of Prey doesn’t indicate to your casual audience what it is or about.

Especially, when not many people know who the Birds of Prey are, while a known superhero group for comic book fans, it’s not a well-known hero group.

And the studio seems to agree with that, if you go online to look up the film, it’s now Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey.

That was not the title on Box Office Mojo on Sunday (Feb 09).

So the studio is definitely trying to fix the title problem.

Personally, for me, I think it would’ve been better if the movie was titled Harley Quinn and The Birds of Prey from the very beginning. For a few reasons, but mainly -

I think that’s more accurate to the actual plot of the movie and the importance of the characters in the film

You know it involves DC and Harley Quinn

And it has a more Girl Vibe to it, to the likes of Josie and The Pussycats

However, I am honestly curious if this title will change anything for the movie, especially with the box office this upcoming weekend or if it’s simply to late.We shall see. 

What is this film even about?

Going off my own personal conversations with other people, a lot of people don’t know what this film is really about. Which is think is connected to both the title and trailers. 

I was super-interested in the movie and I was actively seeking it out on my own. Looking up fan theories or speculations as well estimates for how the movie will do and I recognized who the character were in the trailer. So, I knew what it was going to be about.

But, if someone is more casual about this kind of movie or movies in general, than I can see where they felt lost or didn’t know all that much.

One of my friends had no idea that Black Canary and Huntress were even in the movie and once she learned that they were in it, her interest increased. 

Especially, when I told her that this version of Black Canary and Huntress our second to my favorite from Justice League: Unlimited. Which is where she knows Black Canary and Huntress from. 

Suicide Squad PTSD

Or, as two friends put it, the trailers reminded them so much of Suicide Squad that it turned them off from wanting to see this film. 

That’s interesting to me and I think provides a unique problem for Birds of Prey in the DCEU, but also something I don’t think some reviewers focus on.

Overall, a telling of a movie’s success is (if it has one) its sequel’s success. Sequels are often expected to do better than the first movie, because they are going off the good will of said film. Now that’s not always the case, but that’s what Hollywood is hoping for.  

And while many, many people saw Suicide Squad, its opening weekend being $133.6 million (domestic), a lot of people did not like the movie.

 Including myself.

I liked aspects of it – Harley Quinn, Dead Shot, and Amanda Waller and two scenes that I thought were excellent.  

People not wanting to see Birds of Prey because it looked too much like Suicide Squad, might seem less like a BOP problem, but I would disagree.

The movie still went with many style choices that are from Suicide Squad or similar enough. 

And beyond style, the movie does have Suicide Squad elements. While I thought those aspects were done better, I wonder if that matters enough in the long run.

The Trailer

I personally did not like the trailers. I thought the music choice was not the right pick and made the movie feel like it was going to be slow and low-energy, which is the opposite of what you want for Harley Quinn.

When I think of Harley Quinn, I think of high-energy and I think a movie starring her should be a fast-moving and high-action movie with lots of energy.

One problem, I found with the film was its pacing. Sometimes it was too fast (with jumpy editing reminiscent of Suicide Squad) and other times it seemed liked molasses.

So, I thought the trailer was not the best marketing that could’ve been done for this movie. Especially when I thought a lot of the posters were really good and the music choices in the film were well-matched and worked with the film. 

I personally love Joke’s On You By Charlotte Lawrence. 

R-Rating

One of the reasons Birds of Prey struggled was because of the lack of teenagers.

An R-Rating makes it difficult for teenagers to see this movie. And from the “leaving cinema” reviews audiences gave, those under 17 had the most positive reaction to the film. 

So, if the demographic that liked this move the most can only see this film with someone over 18, then BOP shot itself in the foot.

Not only does the rating make it more difficult for them to see the movie in the first place, but also multiple times. Especially with theatres being stricter with R-ratings from what I’ve heard. 

This movie did not need to be R as it didn’t really use its R-Rating to the fullest extent. I even wondered what the point of the R-Rating was when I was watching. 

Honestly, some edits and it could’ve easily been PG-13 and that would’ve opened it up to a larger audience.  

One of my favorite parts of the movie, was the Police Raid Scene, where Harley uses non-lethal (movie-wise) force. And while that makes Harley more appealing to audiences (not killing people) it also feels odd and kind of makes the R-Rating pointless.

That was a major problem. Especially in comparison to the Joker, which I though utilized its R-Rating fully. 

Also, DC clearly was trying to have Harley Quinn be their Deadpool. Which could work in theory, but they didn’t really commit to it and honestly it didn’t work out as well as I thought it coud’ve. At least with the execution.

So, maybe the R-Rating was not the best choice for this film and maybe it should’ve gone with the safer PG-13.

Theatre Rewatchability

How many people went to see this movie two or three times over this past weekend?

I’m going to hazard a guess and say not many, if any at all. And that is an interesting point in the huge box office success of big blockbuster movies.

How much of their monetary success is due to moviegoers seeing a movie just once vs. seeing it 2-3 (or even more) times?

Now to be fair, I wonder what the demographic of moviegoers who go to multiple viewings. I’m assuming male, 20s-30s. But honestly, I have no idea and I could be completely wrong, since I don’t do that. 

Seeing movie multiple times in a theater is not something I personally get. There are very few movies where I’ve actively wanted to see it for a second time in the theatre, let alone actually went to see it a second time. 

I can remember 6 movies in which that was the case - Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Aladdin (2019), Avengers: Infinity War, Wonder Woman, Captain America: Civil War, and Avengers.

So, while I am actually likely to see this movie again (with my dad in like two weeks), I can’t say over the weekend I desperately needed or wanted to go see it again. And I liked the film and had a good time.

Of course, that should be taken with a grain of salt, since again I’m not the type of person who does that. 

I have to wonder, if the people who go to see (blockbuster) movies multiple times (especially on opening weekend) were simply satisfied with seeing this movie only once or simply didn’t like it or didn’t see it at all. 

Alienating Comic Book Fans?

I don’t know how true this is and as a comic book fan, I went to see the movie and I enjoyed it.

But I have seen a few people say they aren’t planning to see it (at least not in theatres) as they are tired of the oversaturation of Harley Quinn in everything, don’t like that Cassandra Cain is there in name only (which did annoy me), and that while being Birds of Prey there is no Oracle/Batgirl who is a main member of said team.

And I say I don’t know how true this or even accurate, but Birds of Prey didn’t do itself any favors by not appealing enough to a mainstream audience nor its niche audience who know and love the material it’s based on. 

Oscars

While the actual Oscars likely did not take away any audiences from BOP, as the Oscars aren’t exactly a huge audience magnet itself. 

I think a lot of people (or enough) went to see an Oscar nominated film this past weekend over BOP. 

My theatre was showing Oscar-nominated movies and had two theatres dedicated to an ‘Oscar marathon’ for both long and short nominated features.

In this past weekend’s Box Office results (Feb 07-09) , 1917 was 3rd, Little Women was 8th, Parasite was 11th and Jojo Rabbit was 12th. 

And Marriage Story, The Irishmen, and The Story of Two Popes are all available on Netflix.

So, I wonder how many people went to see an Oscar Nominated film before the Oscars and decided to see BOP another day or weekend.

Man Hating...depending on who you ask. 

This is probably longer than it needed to be, but I wanted to talk about. So feel free to skip to the Conclusion.

I’m sure plenty of people will disagree with this and be angry I suggested it, but a lot of people, both men and women thought this movie was hating on men and did not like that. 

And according to the opening night or weekend demographics the breakdown of the audience was actually 55% Men and 45% women. So it’s not like men refused to see the movie, some probably did, but apparently so did some women. 

Honestly that’s not a bad split of male and female demographics, but the movie was probably hoping for a larger female turnout, if not a larger turnout all together. 

While I’ve seen several men dislike the movie for its lack of sexiness (and the hating on men) a lot of those men still went to see it. So, whether or not they hated it, their ticket still counts.

But a negative opinion on any movie can turn away who knows how many future audience members. 

Now my impression of the movie was not so much Men=Evil and Women=Good, but more of the idea that this movie and its characters are dealing with the underbelly of Gotham City and the less than upstanding citizens.

Thay being said, I am only one ticket.

And when I thought about it, there are really only 3-4 male characters who weren’t straight up sexist or evil (which is a low bar) and all of them were extremely minor roles.

Spoilers Below

Male Assassin/Goon, who saw Helena was alive and saved her 

A non-speaking minor role and to my knowledge he didn’t have a name, so not exactly a great representation of a good man. 

The assassin thing is just neutral, given all the other characters.

Guy at Roman’s club, who was force to undress his friend/girlfriend out of fear of dying

You get why he had to do it, but he still did it. So again not great.

 And once I thought about it, I feel like this scene could’ve easily been done differently. The guy could’ve refused and Zsasz could’ve beaten him or kill him and the main point of the scene is still there, that Roman is unstable and very, very dangerous.

Doc, the man who knows everyone in the criminal world and sold out Harley for money

Here is where things get interesting. I honestly didn’t think he was a bad guy.

I got why he did it. It made sense to me and I think he made the right decision there. And Harley Quinn, basically did the same thing to Cassandra, so at the very least he’s no better then Quinn.

So, while I saw the Doc example as criminals being criminals. Many other people, saw this as another example of men being shitty. And even though I’m aligning him with the ‘good men’ of the film, that kind of proves people’s point of there being no good men in this film. 

Finaly, The Police Captain and Montoya’s former partner -  Captain Patrick Erickson. I had to look his name up, so that’s not good. 

Here is where I think you honestly get the narrative of the film being against men and unfairly so. 

We don’t see him do anything in the actual movie that is that bad or even sexist (or at least I can’t recall it). 

So while none his choices or actions in the film were bad, the narrative and the tone of his scenes (especially since their from the perspective of Montoya) he’s clearly meant to be seen as a ‘bad guy’ or at least an antagonist. 

We are literally told he took the credit for Montoya’s big case in a voiceover by Harley Quinn. And that’s it. 

A dick move to be sure, but again, nothing he does in the actual movie really shows him being a dick. 

So, for me it felt like his character got the short end and unfairly so by the movie. Especially since that voice over primes the audience to see him as an antagonist, despite what he does in his actual scenes.

So, thinking about that, I am liking it less and less. And feel like the movie could’ve made some simply changes. 

And while not my take away, I did consider this opinion after seeing it more than once. And I think that argument does have had a leg or two to stand on, especially when I consider how the movie handled the Police Captain Character.

However, for me I never really felt like this movie hated men, because while a villain and a complete psychopath who was sexist, I absolutely loved Ewan McGregor’s Black Mask. 

I thought he was such a fantastic and engaging villain and I absolutely loved his scenes and was hooked everytime he was on screen.

Far from a good guy to be sure, but to me that didn’t matter so much, because he was such a fantastic character. And he was such a fun and gleefully evil character to watch.

For me, having a male character that’s was so goddamn fun and enjoyable mattered far more than whether or not he was good or bad, morality speaking. 

Unfortunately, the movie wasted his character at the end.

So, whether or not you agree or disagree that this move hates men. 

I would say that having at least one male character who wasn’t a bad guy or at the very least as good as the main characters would’ve helped the movie, given how it’s done so far.

If the movie had done amazing or met expectation, I would say you might have a different argument. 

Conclusion

There could’ve been many reasons why BOP did less than great at the Box Office (to put it nicely). Some of the reasons could’ve been the main reason or not the reason at all, but most likely it’s a combination of several different factors. 

However, if it has a good hold this upcoming weekend, then well the narrative of BOP’s success will change. 

And that doesn’t seem impossible for it. 

Despite some vocal negativity and it not being everyone’s favorite, Birds of Prey overall got a postive reaction from a lot of the people who saw it. It has done well with audiences and critics and while not a guarantee of anything, that’s something.

6.7 out of 10 on IMDB.

83% and now 80% on Rotten Tomatoes. 

B+ Cinema Score.

Google says 83% of its users like it. 

Google Audience’s score is 3.7 out of 5.

60% on Metacritic

So while not the most amazing reviews of all time, they are not overtly bad and even some of them are decently strong. 

The real questions is BOP capable of expanding on the moviegoers who liked and saw it. 

BOP needs a good hold this upcoming weekend in its box-office numbers.

Basically movies that drop 60% or higher from their opening weekend to their second weekend, show that said movies are not going to do well (box office wise) and that they have no legs to continue on (not likely to make a lot of money in theatres). 

They simply didn’t have a good hold. 

Blockbusters are a bit of a different story, as most have a drop rate of 60% or higher, but that’s because so many people went to see it the opening weekend (they’re front-loaded films).

Also, if your movie made 100+ million (domestically) it’s first weekend, well your movie is likely going to be just fine. Actually, that depends on how much the movie cost to make and what were the expectations for it, but you get my point.

Birds of Prey did not have a Blockbuster opening, so a drop of 60% or higher would be awful for it and the movie will truly be dead in the water.

Second Weekend Total:  $13 mil or less would be bad to very bad (60% drop)

Less than 59% is (technically) okay to even good.

Second Weekend Total: $15 million (55% drop) not great, but certainly better than awful. And I think people could spin this to being good or bad result. 

Less than 50% is very good.

Second Weekend Total: Around 18.5 million (45%) would be very good.

Less than 40% pretty darn great and an excellent hold.

Second Weekend total: Around $21 mil (35%) would honestly be so good for this movie, I don’t know how likely that is to be honest.

Birds of Prey’s hold for its second weekend, could easily make or break this movie.

Of course, while the first two weekends of a movie are important, a movie’s final box office total matters just as much, if not more. 

BOP cost $85-100 mil (not including marketing). So to find out what the movie would have to make to earn it’s money back for the studio. We are going to do a bit of movie math. 

I am going to say the budget cost $100 Mil (to be on the safe side) and since marketing budgets are not public information, we need to guess that element. 

To figure the marketing budget we just need to cut the production budget in half to make a safe assumption for the marketing budget (a good rule to follow for any film). 

Birds of Prey cost $150 Million to make. ($100 Production + $50 Marketing) 

It would have to make $300 million to make its money back. I say $300 not $150, because theatres get half of that money. So even if it make $150 Million, the studio is only seeing half of that.

That’s the simple version of that, as technically there are more complications to consider, but were not going into that. 

Whether or not the second weekend is a good hold or not, if Birds of Prey makes $300 million in its box office, it has made its money back and was not a loss for the studio. 

That doesn’t mean it’s a success, but salvaged its theatrical run. 

Now of course, just because a movie doesn’t do well at the Box Office doesn’t mean it’s a bad movie. 

That’s always important to remember. Especially, if you liked the film.

And while the Box Office is a very good indicator of a film’s success and its future (sequels and franchise), there is also the factor of the Ancillary market (non-theatrical markets for feature films) this includes streaming, renting, television, airlines/hotels and so on. 

So, a movie like BOP if it does badly Box Office wise can always find a second life in the ancillary market world. 

And the sad truth is that Female-Centric movies do have a harder road to go down. If a male-centric movie does badly, no one’s take away is going to be that movies heavily featuring men are box office poison.

And yet, unfairly so, that can easily become the take away for this movie. There is simply more pressure when a female-centric film does badly.

And I think female-centric movies that are just okay, don’t invite in a lot of success either. Female driven movies simply have to be more than just okay and while that’s not fair, it’s true.

And there are going to be men (and probably some women) who don’t want to see a movie because they think it is too female focus or too feminist and that can always hurt a movie. 

But the good news is while some of those people have loud voices, they are rarely the majority of people.

I think I’ve lost my point.

Basically, BOP did not do well in its opening debut and there could be many reasons behind that, but there is always a chance it can salvage itself (if not do very well) in its second weekend as well as in its overall run in theatres and out of theatres.