#Anyone who has anything negative to say about this is gonna get personally shot in the head by me đš
Alright, Iâve been sitting on this for a while and I think iâve managed to sort out my thoughts so itâs not just agonized internal screaming. Time to finally talk about Monkie Kid Season 5.
Quick Disclaimers before we get started: please keep in mind iâm probably gonna be a little negative here. Iâm not going after the animators or the writers or anything of the sort, I just need to get this out and slapping it on my blog just makes sense so people have the option to ignore it. Yes, Iâm still grateful we still have the show, yes Iâm still happy we have the same VAâs, donât come at me. Iâm not gonna get too salty cause Iâve gotten most of that out methinks and too much salt is bad for ya health, but I still do wanna talk about it and Iâm still gonna be at least a little salty. If youâre not interested in hearing anything negative about the future of season five please donât feel obligated to read. And please DO NOT take this as an invitation to bash on the new studio or anyone else in the replies, I really donât wanna see that, go make your own post if you want to do that. Iâm going to keep it under the cut so itâs easy to scroll past.
Welp, if youâre here to read, buckle up and here we go!
To start off, let's get the big personal bias thing out of the way: I strongly dislike puppet animation.
I say âstrongly dislikeâ and not hate because, while I hate most puppet animation, there is Bluey which is the best puppet animation can offer. I didnât even know it was puppet animation for a while because of how beautifully itâs animated, so, puppet animation does have potential, Iâm not gonna deny that. However, I hate that it is always used to replace 2D animation. Itâs the cheaper, faster option and I canât even begin to count the amount of shows that have started off with the plans for being 2D before being ultimately scrapped in favor of either puppet animation or 3D. Monkie Kid was the outlier in all that for me. It was 2D and it felt right. It was gorgeous and good for my brain to look at, it made me excited for animation and for art. It really was so incredibly special to me in a way it just canât be anymore without Flying Barkâs animation. I probably wonât stop watching but, because of my dislike of puppet animation, it might be a bit of a struggle to get my brain to focus on it the way it used to, (weâll see.) Absolutely no shade to Wildbrain (the new animation studio) they have worked miracles in the short time that theyâve had, theyâve managed to very closely replicate the style of monkie kid, and they are excellent at what they do, but when things are rushed (LEGO, [derogatory]) it makes it very hard to maintain a high standard, especially when we have something like Flying Barkâs animation to compare it to. And listen, please donât tell me it looks similar to Flying Barkâs animation, please donât send me shots and tell me but look how close it is! This oneâs gorgeous! Because, at least to me⌠itâs not.
Iâm the kind of person who sits in a room and I see a picture is crooked while no one else in the room notices. It could be off by centimeters but I still notice. It hurts my brain to look at and I go a bit insane until I can get up and straighten it, which usually makes people laugh and honestly yeah itâs kinda funny, but I really canât stand things looking off, and, despite Wildbrainâs valiant attempt and excellent replication of the style, everything in the trailer we got looks off to me. From the framing, to the animation, to the design of the new characters; from the perspective to the coloring, everything is off and my âPLEASE LET ME STRAIGHTEN THE PICTUREâ brain hurts looking at it. Iâm not trying to rag on the animation, I know theyâre doing their best. Off things just hurt my brain to look at.
Thatâs why I loved Flying Barkâs animation so much. From Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to Monkie Kid to Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, Flying Barkâs animation has scratched that itch in my brain that has desperately wanted things to look right. Everything is just so shaped!!! AAA!!!
Now, there are episodes of monkie kid that Iâm not as big of a fan of. Impossible Delivery is one of them. Iâm not a fan of how some scenes are drawn in it, so I tend to avoid it a lot. And that was done by Flying Bark so, this new animation for Monkie Kid is really doing a number on me.
âŚthat being said: I still aintâ about that âflying bark started out awkward tooâ
Once again, ABSOLUTELY NO SHADE TO WILDBRAIN, (or anyone whoâs said this at any point, I ainât coming for your kneecaps,) they have done a SPECTACULAR job replicating Flying Barkâs style in the time that they have and Iâm sure LEGO has been putting them through the wringer and rushing them through stuff (which Iâll complain about in a minute) but thatâs the thing⌠They replicated Flying Barkâs Style. Style and animation are two completely separate things. This same drama was used by critics to bash the crap out of ROTTMNT when it first came out; they kept saying the animation was ugly, but it wasnât, the animation was gorgeous, it was the style that they disliked because, most shows right now start off clunky and a little ugly and thatâs just how it is. (Also the promotional material for Rise dragged it through the mud. I will always be salty about that.)
The pilot of monkie kidâs style wasn't all the way there, Iâm not gonna deny that. The crew at flying bark were still figuring things out how to draw lego, BUT. The perspective, the framing, and the animation were all on point and just as gorgeous as the rest of the series. When I hear the argument that Flying Bark wasnât great at first either it makes me want to tear my hair out because it WAS great. IT WAS ABSOLUTELY GREAT, FROM THE BEGINNING, THEIR ANIMATION HAS BEEN GORGEOUS IN MONKIE KID SINCE DAY ONE. The style is what was off. With this new animation we have the opposite experience. Instead of an awkward style with a god tier animation, we have a pretty excellent replication of a good style with an animation form I personally am not a very big fan of. Itâs jarring. And even though Iâm sure wildbrain will indeed get into their own groove, it will likely never be as earth shattering as Flying Bark because Flying Bark is Flying Bark and what they did was possible because of 2D.
Onto yelling at lego here we go: 'Be grateful it wasnât canceled'
Iâma be real, this one bugs me the most.
The animation industry right now sucks. Thereâs no denying it. We have incredible artists left and right being messed over by studios and companies, entirely completed series being deleted, artists being ripped off, overworked and underpaid, outsourcing in every way they can, the disrespect of A/I, and 2D animation especially being dragged through the mud, even with groundbreaking 2D+3D movies like Spider-Verse and award winning movies like The Boy and the Heron, proving 2D is far from dead. Shows are being canceled before their second or third seasons, ideas are being recycled, so many people have watched their favorite things end too soon, and Iâm one of them. Bro I was into DRAGON BOOSTER as a kid. Do you know that show? Probably not. It was canceled after one season YEARS ago and ended on a cliffhanger that makes me hurt to this day and I was a kid back then. (Incredible show btw you should give it a watch.) This cancellation thing isnât new. I got on board with Rise only to see it sniped because Nickelodeon is stupid. Legend of Korra got messed over by Nickelodeon too. I have experienced cancellation/rushed endings before and it sucks. And it fills me with rage to see the bar is so low, that we should all just be okay with what happened because âat least it wasnât canceled.â Iâm not mad at the people saying this, Iâm just upset that this is what the reality of animation is. Heck I'm allowed to be upset about it.
And, letâs be real for a second here⌠Monkie Kid is LEGOâs product for China. Itâs making them money. Canceling monkie kid would be shooti ng themselves in the foot more than anything else. LEGO is not hurting for money. Ninjago ran for FIFTEEN seasons and is still running today in this soft-reboot with even better animation than before. LEGO has the means. They donât need to rush animators to finish things or underpay people. Flying Bark is in big demand right now because more and more people are noticing how good their stuff is. Iâm willing to bet their schedule is packed, (theyâre working on the ATLA movie which I have mixed emotions about but at least the animationâs gonna be BANGER and last I heard a stranger things animated series??) and when youâre in that high of demand you have to raise your prices, thatâs just how that works. But even with that, given enough patience, time, and proper pay, I have no doubt they could have done Monkie Kid as well. We know Lego was pushing them way too hard to animate Monkie Kid and that animation is INSANE and not cheap. LEGO can afford that. But they decided it wasnât worth that.
Okay donât quote me on that last bit. I really didnât want to start going off about conspiracy theories but I admit I get really frustrated when I hear the âat least it wasnât canceledâ thing because I know thereâs more going on behind the scenes, people just arenât transparent about it. Studios and companies right now donât really care about the quality of things, itâs the artists and the writers and the creators that care about the quality. There are other 2D studios out there but LEGO chose to go with puppet animation because it's faster and cheaper. I am always going to be upset about that. Am I grateful Monkie Kid wasnât canceled? Sure. But at the same time I donât want to feel grateful for the bare minimum. Iâm angry at the state of the animation industry that no one in the higher-ups of these industries seem to respect 2D animators or 2D animation in general, that no one seems to understand how much skill it takes to animate and how worth investing in it is. And seeing people tell others upset by this that they should be grateful they have anything at all just rubs me the wrong way.
And the audacity to change the animation is ridiculous to me because a huge part of the audience for LMK is here because of the animation. Itâs not like Ninjago, which started off with low budget 3D and slowly got better and better over time with a few dips here and there. We started off with one of the best 2D animated shows of all time, (in my monkey obsessed opinion,) animated the way it was to draw in an audience, and suddenly for no reason at all and no prior warning weâve dropped down to what every pilot of every puppet animation children show looks like these days. It feels like a crummy thing to do. Yes, Iâm aware weâre lucky we still have a show, yes Iâm grateful we still have the same VAâs and the same writers. But this is a big and abrupt change and Iâd be lying if I said it didnât suck.
Okay, onto my biggest concern: how the writing of the show will pair with this new animation.
With all due respect and love to the writers, Monkie Kid is awful when it comes to biased narration in their storytelling. It has relied so so heavily on visual storytelling to fill in the gaps and tell us whatâs actually going on while the dialogue is lying to our face. If youâre not looking, it can lead you to woefully misunderstand the characters and what is happening. Itâs a style of writing that Iâm not a super big fan of, BUT I, for the most part (aside from fandom craziness,) enjoyed it! Because the animation helped it hold up. What made the storytelling work was the nuance and incredible detail in Flying Barkâs animation. You could analyze every expression, every style difference in flashbacks, and it would tell you so much; I am a SUCKER for that kind of stuff--drawing expressions and emotions is something I love so much--and Flying Bark served it to me on a silver platter with a golden spoon and crystal clear mountain water. The scope of what Flying Bark was able to do⌠I just donât know if it can be replicated in puppet animation and that scares me a bit storytelling wise. Because I donât want to be stressed out by Monkie Kid and unreliable narrators have a habit of stressing me out. Itâs not to bad as long as itâs resolved later, but Monkie Kid has a habit of blowing over things, especially in regards to the lies told about Wukong and the only thing that tells us something different happened are the visuals, which stresses me out cause it results in INTENSE fandom bashing my favorite monkey and itâs really hard to avoid. (This is why I stepped back so far from interacting with the fandom.) I donât want something that brought me comfort in my darkest times to be twisted into something I no longer want to see.
Is this the worst possible thing to have happened? No, of course not. Itâs definitely not all that awesome either. For me itâs like eating at a gourmet restaurant having their insane mac n cheese every day for years and then suddenly youâre served KD from the dollar store and told you should be grateful because it could be worse, all the while the restaurant keeps its gourmet title. Thereâs nothing wrong with KD but bro I want my mac n cheese--
The fact that there was no prior warning is what really makes all this feel so sucky. I know this isnât the end of monkie kid, but the animation is one of the biggest things that made the show unique, itâs what drew so many incredible artists in, itâs what inspired me to create and make friends and keep living. The animation provided nuance to the characters when the writing sometimes fell flat. It gave insights and information that worked well with the face-paced storytelling and brought the incredible voice acting to life. Itâs not really going to be the same without it.
There is ofc more than just the animation that made monkie kid great. The voice actors, the SOUNDTRACK, the sound effects are all off the charts insanely high quality but man. Itâs not complete without it. Thereâs a big olâ gaping hole in the show and in my heart and as much as I love the show, thatâs really rough. Because itâs not as though this makes things better. The quality didnât drop because people wanted it to be easier for animators to animate, Wildbrain Iâm sure is having a time meeting LEGOâs crazy deadlines right now, just like Flying Bark did. There was so much reused animation in season 4 because of how hard LEGO was riding animators' tails and pushing them to get things out faster and faster and I was more than alright with the reused animation so the animators could catch a break. But instead of backing off and being respectful of the time it takes to animate, LEGO dropped Flying Bark like a hot potato and immediately went to the cheaper, faster puppet animation. (JUST A THEORY/VENT DONâT QUOTE ME.) Itâs not like there arenât other 2D animation studios out there but they picked the puppet. And that SUCKS. I would have been okay waiting another year for monkie kid easy because Flying Bark is WORTH IT. I understand how long things take and that if I want a high quality product its going to take skill and time. It hurts me to watch animators having it rough because no one else seems to get that.
Alright in conclusion: Weâve only seen a few seconds of the trailer.
Itâs hard to judge what the entire show will look like based off of that little. It could be incomplete, Wildbrain could get better, they could find their groove, I ainât gonna rag on the animation because itâs giving you exactly the quality--maybe even higher--expected of what it is. Itâs puppet animation. I dunno what to tell you man. But itâs not about that for me. For me itâs about 2D. Itâs about some of the greatest animation Iâve ever seen being replaced when it didnât need to be and that sucks. Flying Bark gave us the world and we didnât lose that for any reason other than money and greed and impatience. That is so discouraging and upsetting. It is something else to go from every frame leaving me breathless and staring and in awe over the quality of the animation to Puppet Animation. The change hurts. Honestly, I never thought I would be as devastated as I am. Iâve processed a bit but I think itâs always going to suck because of how important monkie kid has become to me. I miss flying bark so much already. Iâm still going to try and watch the show, but weâll see how my brain does with the puppet animation. Donât go ragging on the animators, guys, theyâre doing their best and I gotta respect em.
I do wish weâd gotten more time to mourn flying barkâs absence. I wish people had gotten a heads up when season 4 had ended so they could have time to adjust and then get ready for the new style, because watching everyone hype themselves up for flying barksâ animation only to be told they're gone by a trailer kiiiinda sucks. But I digress.
I do find it funny it took changing animation studios for us to finally get a trailer and poster on time before the eps drop. So in a way, I appreciate that much of a warning at least. Better than nothing! And weâve always wanted a trailer out first lol HGLKJSDF
I ainât even gonna pretend I ainât spoiled as HECK by flying barkâs animation. Honestly without it, I donât know if Iâd be as attached to the characters as I am. Real talk, I donât know if I ever would have even watched Monkie Kid without it. Iâm gonna miss flying bark with all I have in me and it's going to make rewatching and enjoying the show hard because of all this. Iâm going to miss the time when every part of this show was a comfort to my brain and soul. Flying Bark's energy is unmatched, they bring a life to things that I havenât seen anywhere else and Iâm always gonna be grateful for the time I had with them animating Monkie Kid.
This is it. No more more Flying Bark monkie kid. The end. And thatâs going to sting for a while. And probably keep stinging throughout the new season because⌠well⌠I love monkie kid. So seeing it become something else is going to hurt, especially if you hold it so close to your heart.
These new animators are doing their best and we canât fault em for that. It ainât their fault the animation industry is what it is. Itâs great we still have the show going when so many other things have gotten canceled but the fact the bar is so low can hurt like heck too.
Weâre gonna miss flying bark for a long time. Itâs so goofy that something as simple as animation could have burrowed so deep into our hearts but it has and thatâs truly wondrous and the magic of storytelling. I love shows. I love movies. I love what monkie kid was, and I hope I can learn to be okay with what it will be now. (Even with my âSTRAIGHTEN THE PICTUREâ brain screaming at me lol.) Wishing you all the best, donât make fun of the animation needlessly or go after the animators, be kind to them and to each other. If you wanna be salty don't send it to me just make ur own post thanks ima drop this and then go try some positivity lol. Until next time! Iâll see you in Monkie Kid season 5
Knox out
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Shamesy's Declassified Fanfic Writing Survival Guide - Part 3
Help! The world is burning and everything sucks!
hi hi friends!!! welcome back to the fanfic writing survival guide!
today i'm gonna cover a bit of a "no-no" topic, if you will. its something i've been struggling a lot with here recently and something i'm witnessing other authors go through as well: writer's block... or, at least, what you might think is writers block.
today, we'll be talking about what to do when you lose interest in your fic. and, respectively (possibly more importantly), what not to do.
1) Beat yourself up
Look, I know, I know. Theres a chance right now you're kicking yourself and loosing ur marbs because your little writer peanut brain has convinced you that you are satan's incarnate and everyone hates you and wants you to die.
this is, undeniably, untrue. i implore you to do whatever it takes to get out of this headspace before you do anything at all. go outside, touch some grass, maybe eat a bug, just really get in touch with the real breathing world with no fictional dick n balls for a while. however long it takes to realize your intrinsic value is not tied to the fictional dick n balls. there are no fictional dick n balls out there, friends. only real ones.
here u go, look at this:
feel better yet? if not, keep staring until you do. it'll get funny eventually, i swear.
2) Force yourself to write the damn thing anyway
this is only gonna result in a sub-par product, and your readers can tell. no, they can, i promise. it's always evident to me when an author has lost steam.
i dont want ur poo poo writing, and neither does anyone else. i would rather you abandon it entirely than ruin it-- AHT AHT! TAKE UR FINGERS OFF THE KEYBOARD RN!!! NO!!! BAD FIC AUTHOR!! BAD!!
3) Think you owe your readers anything
another controversial statement but what am i good for if not being a big ole bitch??
look, we love our readers. we ALL do but you simply cannot pour from an empty cup for them. you come first, your mental health and general health comes first. your interests come first and your wants and needs come first. if they want superhot!chad!alphamale!jimmy neutron x reader or whatever that fucking badly, they can write it themselves.
1) Write other things!
Yep yep!!! Write a one shot, a drabble, a personal self indulgent story, some poetry, whatever floats your boat!!
Remember, this is supposed to be fun! You are allowed to indulge in whatever you want to, shocker, I know!!! the world is your oyster baby! branch out to other fandoms, re-visit old dead writings you've re-gained interest in, write a character you don't usually write, jump on a roleplay forum and just chill, my dude. kick back and remember why you enjoyed it!
2) Put it on hiatus!
"NOOOOOO!" the readers shout and then immediately explode. "YEEEESSSSSS!" I respond just as violently. Seriously, push it away from your nog for a bit. Let it rest. I would rather see a good chapter from you in six months from now then to get something soulless. If you just cant rn, thats fine!!
3) Grab a buddy and have them critique you
god, i will forever be in debt to @vallification for having this type of friendship with me.
we often think of critique and feedback as a negative, but it can often breathe a new life into your work!! message your most down to earth and honest bud, send the draft over and just say "hey i fucking hate this why do i hate this" and chances are a pair of fresh eyes will be able to point out things to you you didn't see before. nut up and quit being a baby, we all have shit we can improve on. who are you, jesus christ? if yes, could you PLEASE answer my prayers and send me a hot n' spicy mcchicken to my door via drone and/or angelic delivery?? im not asking for much, dude its the best fast food sandwich.
"but shamesy, im super hermit basement dweller core and don't have a friend thats kind of a bitch that would--" yes the fart you do. im right fucking here, rude ass <3 my dm's and asks are always open.
3A) Bounce ideas off said homie
again, val could absolutely sit on my face for this. we throw ideas back and forth constantly. you have no idea how absolutely megamind brain your dogs can be until you ask them.
4) Just start virtually sharting onto a page
this is how suguru blue AND a first time for everything were created!!
just start typing and see what happens! sometimes it doesn't work out (#shamesy's failed ficlets ) but no matter the case it'll help you loosen up a little
5) Take your writing on the go!!
ooooo I LOVE THIS ONE!! Take your laptop or phone to the park, the beach, a coffee shop or cafe and just make it feel less like work and more like play! this can do WONDERS for your creativity! the library is also a great place, because you have so much literary inspiration to quickly reference!
hope this helps!! you can check out my masterlist to find the other two survival guides as well as all my writings! stay cooch!!!
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If this isn't too heavy or anything... How would the boys react to a reader who's been dealing with so much negativity in their life for so long that they kinda just... Act like an ass all the time? (And they weren't an ass before, they changed over time.)
You are a prime target for ribbing.
Killer deals with this in stride, and will needle you into fights. He knows this intimately, this is exactly what happened to him, and he figures that getting it out of your system will either level you out or... make you a more pleasant person to be around. Your assholery gets assholery in return.
Dust claps back. your life sucked? Welcome to the club. It doesn't give you a free lease to be a dick to everyone else. If you wanna play 'my life sucks' olympics, he's gonna win. He gets kind of crabby with people who are dicks to him for no reason genuinely (not just dicking around like Killer does).
Axe is very patient, but if you are an ass to him for no reason, you're gonna wanna walk it back. He'll tolerate a great deal, but if he feels like you're getting too big for your britches, he will put you in your place real fast. Everyone here had a hard life. Everyone here has the chance to grow from it, and if you continue to be a douche, you're not gonna do a lot of growing.
Cross has a finer hair-trigger than even Killer does-- The first few times you just get a glare, or he leaves the room. Continue to push him, and he fights back, and he is not nice. When Cross has had enough, he has enough, and you might go to physical blows. He equates dickishness to disrespect, and he's not keen on letting anyone disrespect him. It's why he and Killer fight so much.
Baggs... is dangerous to play this game with. He doesn't tolerate blows to his pride or ego, and if you push beyond the short, clipped responses and stingingly accurate barbs, you get one warning to quit your shit, or you'll regret it. The threat is delivered smoothly, calmly, and lowly, and if you ignore it... what happens to you is your own fault. If you remember anything at all, you'll be lucky-- but suffice it to say, you won't find it easy to be an asshole to him anymore. The words just... won't come. You might not like him any, but... the most you can do is glare at him, for some strange reason. You also feel the compulsion to talk about your life with him from time to time. Just about once a week. How odd...
Nightmare takes none of this. If he feels like you're lashing out in anger or frustration, he'll take that away before informing you that, while he enjoys the free shots of negativity, he's not going to tolerate any disrespect, and you are not, in fact, in a position to be so antagonistic, even if you frame it as joshing around. He'll siphon off whatever negativity you have if you don't want to feel it anymore, and coax you into behaving the same way he coaxed the others into behaving; patience, acceptance, and firm adherence to the rules he sets in place.
They're all assholes, but if they perceive your attitude as disrespect, it won't go well.
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Seeing as heâs benefitted so much from this flexible working opportunity, is he going to come out and champion this for the general public? Acknowledging his privilege would go a long way here I think. People canât help what theyâre born into but they can do a lot with the platform theyâre given.
I wonder if he will do that as well. As it seems another PR fiasco waiting to happen. The Queen was dying of cancer but had all her children working full time.
Whenever articles like this come out I am reminded of what Wills was like when he actually had to work and had weeks off at a time to the dismay of his colleagues.
âHeâs hardly ever on shift. He was very enthusiastic to begin with but it tailed off. Itâs supposed to be four on, four off but with the Duke itâs more off than on. He had at least four weeks off over Christmas, which has to be staffed the same as normal weeks. Itâs fine that he gets a bit of special treatment but itâs beginning to really annoy some people. The rumour is that heâs just a bit bored of it.â â
And then the royal household shot back at claims we was lazy by saying he needed mandatory rest days for his job resulting in the Civil Aviation Authority having to shoot back and saying âWhen they are having rest days their time is their own, and they can do what they want, including carrying out royal duties.â
I canât imagine this level of unprofessionalism.
The whole thing Iâve felt about this is what a stark contrast it is to the plebs they rule over - from preventative chemo when we have people waiting months on the NHS (from personal experience experience - I had a scam last year to see if I have a form of gynaecological cancer. I was told the scan was clear. Last month I was told that the scan was actually inconclusive and needs redoing as they couldnât see the part the needed to but no one told me until nearly a year later) to partners who get punished for taking time off work to care for a loved one.
I understand that they are rich and powerful enough to do what they want. But itâs rather galling to see such a stark contrast between ruler and subject.
He really does seem like heâs not interested in the whole thing doesnât he?
He's only interested in the income and power that comes with it, he'll never give it up he's spent his whole adult life trying to do as little as possible. The moment he got access to the Prince of Wales duchy $ he was no longer beholden to his father and can now redefine expectations. The bar has been set pretty low and he has the British Tabloid Media propping him up and running PR for him, there's also evidence that they spend a fair chunk of cash employing bots online propping them up and attacking anyone who says anything negative. Between the BTM and the royal sychophants he's been getting away with it and will continue to.
Countdown 3,2,1 to one of those sycophants leaving me a comment .....
I think he should have to follow around people who have to keep working while also caregiving for sick or elderly family members while also juggling raising kids and keeping up on other obligations. Iâm sure he would be shocked â most of us canât step back to the extent he gets to do so. As the future king, he should understand the lives of the majority of the people. Read the room.
Considering their work is mostly just turning up and being âseenâ. How exactly is work from home gonna help anyone?
Heâs going to do some twitch streaming.
I just learned that 600 organizations sponsored by QE2 have not yet been taken over. Some are very important but there are no signs of any restructuring, selection and elimination plans. People criticize W for this instead of C because W is the one who shows no interest in continuing to show up and sponsor organizations. William currently only works as Chairman, managing the principality and two projects Earthshot and Housing for the Homeless. W does not take over King Charles' projects like he is PoW, so King is basically overloaded and cannot take over anymore.Â
If he wants to work without being seen, then the real question is what type of "behind the scenes work" is he actually doing? Because every time he talks about a topic in public, he only seems to speak popular talking points that even someone without knowledge can say. He doesn't speak like someone who really knows the topic of discussion in depth.
That's why Earthshot being a "passion project" is laughable. His speeches are so shallow. It's the same with Kate and Early Years and those lame five questions that took some ten years to come up with. Everything they say is like a total no-brainer. So, what work are they really doing behind the scenes?
I think people whose spouses have cancer should be able to take health leave and its v sad for people who live in a country where they can't. But I would give him a lot more grace if he and Kate weren't famously Duchess Dolittle and Workshy William. This has been a habit for years. Its not like Anne got sick and disappeared from public life
Yep. He has been on Easter holiday since March 23 to April 17. Plus, January entirely off. It doesn't look good.
My friend has breast cancer (weâre in the UK). Sheâs having chemo and is the same age as Kate. She has to have fairy major surgery after the chemo and has had to go back to work because she has to save her sick leave for the recovery from the operation. This is during chemotherapy. This country is completely broken and lacks compassion for everyone (like most of the Western World) but then expects an exception to be made for the royal family who are loaded and donât even use the NHS and have an enormous amount of monetary resources.
I have huge compassion for Kate. I think sheâs been incredible over a long period of time in a job I would absolutely loathe personally (whether people say she wanted the gig or not) - but I donât think William has had her back very much recently from what I can see objectively, particularly over the recent PR debacle. And, being honest, I wonder why that is. I think weâre fed total BS by the press over who these people really are.
I donât think you can be raised like William or Harry and have any kind of perspective. Itâs just logical that you canât. They had a terrible childhood to be honest. And there are people who hold responsibility for that.
But yes, absolutely, if Kate wants him there, he should be allowed to support his family, no questions asked. I just wonder if she really does?
Can someone who knows actually share what his duties are and how he can work while not being seen?
Can someone who knows actually share what his duties are and how he can work while not being seen?
He looks at the country with somber frowns on his face and in return the country looks back at him with approving nods. That is what we call a symbiotic relationship.
How quickly William forgets the way he and Kate were ripped apart prior to the great Sussex Split. Â He can do what he wants, but this is inevitably not going to go well and he is definitely no longer a young and handsome sympathetic figure.
Yeah that one reporter said it perfectly when they were speculating about why Will didnât go to that funeral that William feels he can do what he likes because the press letâs him get away with everything.
"Working from home"? How stupid do they think people are? waits to see the defense(s) royalists come up with
Is she sicker than anticipated? Because Charles seems to have actual cancer versus "cancer was present" and "preventative chemo," and he is "working" more than William.
Also, don't forget that Camilla has also been out and about and "working," during his treatments.
Something is weird.
The pressâs analysis of him is willfully ignorant as usual. It used to be the kids, now itâs Kateâs diagnosis. Will is telling us his approach to royal âworkâ is not and will not be the same as the King or Queen Elizabeth. This is his plan for the monarchy.
They've been doing it since he left Eaton. It's one invented excuse after another. Anything to excuse his refusal to do any royal "work" so they don't have to criticize him, and he can keep his "Golden Boy" image.
let him enjoy a normal college experience!
he's only in his 20s! He's got time!
He's an ambulance pilot, let him have fun with that for a bit!
He's not the heir! He's only the son of the heir!
he just got married!
He's only in his 30s! He's got time!
he has babies at home!
he has small children at home!
he's not the King, his father is!
His wife has cancer!
What's next?
Will is telling us his approach to royal âworkâ is not and will not be the same as the King or Queen Elizabeth.
Mmhmm well the press and royalists' response to Will telling them he' would rather be a lazy, hands off King is for him to reconsider his entitlement and privilege - reality check for this 40 something year old Prince
Bingo. Start as you mean to go on...which means doing nothing and collecting taxpayer money while you do it.
Williamâs work ethic is going to be a catalyst to reform the UK government :/ EII had to be seen to be believed - William believes in not being seen? The republicans will gain momentum with a King who does nothing.
To repeat what I said a month or so ago when they claimed William was focused on âhis work, not social media:â what work?
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Dolph Lundgren on Amber Heard and Aquaman II cuts.
Looks like Dolph Lundgren isn't following the studio line:
"Action movie icon and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom star Dolph Lundgren has revealed that Jason Momoa "got spooked" with the "Amber Heard situation," and believes that the Aquaman franchise is now over. In an exclusive interview with MovieWeb, Lundgren addressed the future of the Aquaman franchise and says he has heard "through somebody else" that Momoa wants to move on to other things.
"I don't know what's gonna happen with Aquaman. I've heard Jason Momoa thinks it's just his last one, and he wants to do something else. I heard it through somebody else. But it's hard to know what's going to happen in the future, except I just thought they had a great script, and they had a great director and good cast [for the second film]."
After praising the script, director, and cast of the sequel, Lundgren reasoned that Momoa grew concerned about the involvement of Amber Heard, the bad press the actress was getting at the time, and how this would affect the box office and audience response.
"And I guess he got spooked with this Amber Heard situation and the fact that people weren't gonna see the movie because she's in it. I always thought that was overrated. I mean, I think when you make a movie, you've got to stick to your guns a little bit... So, I personally wish they stuck with the original because I thought it was quite good."
Lundgren also referred to "the original," by which he means the first version of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. A version in which both he and Amber Heard reportedly had much bigger roles.
Lundgren is likely right in thinking that the Aquaman franchise in its current form is over, with Momoa rumored to be changing characters and playing Lobo in James Gunn and Peter Safran's rebooted DCU.
The Aquaman sequel was hammered with delays and negative reports from behind the scenes, with documents released as part of the Johnny Depp versus Amber Heard defamation trial even claiming that Momoa had arrived to set drunk and "pushed" to have Heard removed from the project entirely.
While his time underwater may now be done, Dolph Lundgren has plenty in the pipeline. The action star will next lead Wanted Man, a movie that he has also directed, co-wrote, and produced. Starring Christina Villa, Kelsey Grammer, and Michael ParĂŠ alongside Lundgren, Wanted Man follows the Rocky IV star as an aging detective who travels to Mexico to extradite a woman who witnessed the murders of two DEA agents. Of course, things are never as simple as that, with Lundgren soon finding himself unable to trust anyone admit flying bullets fired from every side.
Wanted Man is due to be released by Quiver Distribution in select theatres and on video on demand from January 19, 2024. You can check out the trailer below:"
Some takeaways here:
Further corroboration that Amber Heard was telling the truth about her role being reduced, that this was done to placate the hate mob.
Jason Momoa is a self-absorbed coward who threw his costar under the bus for the sake of his own career.
There was a prior version of the film (not sure if it was ever all actually shot or just scripted) that would have had expanded roles for Heard and likely also Lundgren, and was probably superior to what was released.
Glad to have supported Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (#OnlyForMera), will not be watching the reboot as things stand. Nor anything by Wan or Momoa.
#ReleaseTheAmberCut
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I know ur not gonna watch the show but I would b so into hearing ur takes on it, it's just not hitting for me rn
from what bits and pieces i've seen posted on here i would say that the cinematography seems really nice, most recent disney shows seem to have a very casual "content" style of filming. i don't know how else to explain it other than the current productions even in their filming are designed just to push more media out rather than a love for film and photography as an art form, and i think the pjo tv show from the screencaps and commercials/trailers i have seen seems to balance this nicely. disney is inevitably going to want to push out content as that is how they profit, but the camera angles and the camera details (Percy doing fortnite dances, very funny, but also very well shot! Medusa's veil, very clever and I like the "coy" way the camera plays with the viewer seeing her eyes in those gifs) have an intention and care into them that other recent disney tv shows geared towards the same age group just don't seem to have. i will say that's nice!
the only negative thing i have to say from what i've seen in the gifs and screencaps is that camp looks very... cheap... there are some cool details i seen someone make a post pointing out Percy's seaweed lamp (very cool! i like the fish skeletons I seen hanging too!) but the campers running around in the background do not have the same level of attention given. of course they are background characters and they're definitely not given full styling teams or proper wardrobe, but it is so bad imo to the point where it has become distracting to me in the background a few times on those clips, i can't imagine trying to watch the show and seeing all these background characters running around looking disconnected from the main cast by the lack of attention to their wardrobe. it's not that it's inherently wrong or anything, there are budgets shows have to stick to and cutting background characters is usually one of the first places shows cut, so maybe i should just be thankful all the kids aren't poorly done cgi but at the same time seeing Percy or Annabeth's chb shirts be very well tailored to them as individuals and then seeing the exact opposite in the background characters is just ??? to me. i don't know if it's a problem anyone else has but i tend to just pin point weird details like that.
i know they have changed some of the details of the plot and such, i can't comment much on that as i haven't actually watched any of those episodes. i hope it doesn't have any significant ripple effects down the line in terms of them having to skip entire bits of development in characters or plot because they felt something wasn't important 3 seasons ago and then they have to go "oh shit wait we needed that obscure bit" but who can say we are no where near that point.
my favorite bit of anything and everything to come out of the show though is the god awful horribly incorrect predictions people are having, people crushing on Luke, and people hoping for Percy as if he isn't the main character. if i was a more chaos driven person i would be frothing at the mouth for people's behavior in later seasons where there's a wider cast and stakes are higher and outcomes are more unknown. do i want the 2014 pjo/hoo drama rehashed? no absolutely not that sucked we should never do that again. do i want to sit back with a snack and watch other people rehash the same points and start the same fights 10 years later simply because it would be a mess? someone find me an original persassy post and sign me up. (it's like when you've worked in retail and then you're out in public and another customer is being awful and you're having flashbacks but also your nosey so you keep watching and you only intervene if it gets excessive... someone here has to understand that comparison....)
honestly i can't say too much about the actual show itself i haven't seen it, i've just seen bits and pieces of what (mostly mutuals) have posted or shared. i stand behind the fact i'm not really interested in fandoms with tv shows in the same way i am towards book fandoms and that i won't be watching the show; but i am open to staying neutral on things if people want to reach out just for someone to share thoughts with as if i am not even watching it i won't have strong opinions on most things, if any.
i know there have been more episodes dropped since you sent this so hopefully some of your tv show wants are happening, nonnie <3
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The Swamp Re-Watch
Alright, this episode was a fun spooky adventure. I enjoyed the ghostly nature of the Swamp as a setting. Loved the horror movie moments as well as the opportunity for characters like Yue & Kya to haunt the narrative a little. Grief is an ongoing theme in Avatar, & it's fun to see it presented in the form of characters who are gone reappearing as visions.
(Something to keep in mind as I write this recap review is that I have been drinking wine steadily since 3 pm & it's now 3 am soooo about 12 hours? I'm not an alcoholic or on a bender, it's just Thanksgiving & I was with family now I'm home. Uh, the point is, I am doing my very bestest to be coherent okay đ)
Anywayyy! This episode was fun. I was gonna say I think this is the first time I'll really disagree with @theowritesfiction's overall opinion on the episode as we both do our re-watches because I really did enjoy this episode & I can't say anything negative about it but then I re-read the re-watch post in question & actually I overall agree with the commentary made. I just enjoyed the episode personally.
I think this episode's main fun comes from the ghostly vibe & overall horror movie homage vibe but it's also significant for the characters.
We see Katara seeing Kya again & breaking down. I think the main issue I have with this if I'm critiquing the writing, is that we should've gotten more...not closure, but emotional impact maybe? from that interaction. I think that part of the reason Katara's "complaints about her dead mom" are critiqued in this fandom (aside from blatant sexism & fandom idiocracy when it comes to Katara) DOES have to do with the way we're never really given significant flashbacks that tell us anything about Kya herself. Even this ghostly vision has her back turned. Can't haunt the narrative if you were never really a character. Still, it's an emotional moment for Katara, & important for understanding her character & the grief she is still holding onto.
I'm really glad that we got to see Yue again, & her vision's accusations that Sokka "didn't protect her" hit hard. Unlike the vision of Kya, I think that from a writing perspective, the vision of Yue was really thoughtful & fascinating. The real Yue chose to sacrifice herself & would never have blamed anyone else for her death. This vision berates Sokka for not doing better. I think that this says a lot about the nature of the Swamp. It doesn't show you actual ghosts, it shows you your own psyche.
That said....actually now my original thesis or like, point or whatever that this episode was super well written actually is falling apart because how does that fit in with the swamp guru dude's speech?
"In the swamp, we see visions of people we've lost, people we loved, folks we think are gone. [The shot cuts to show the people that Sokka and Katara saw in the swamp, before cutting back to Huu.] But the swamp tells us they're not. We're still connected to them. Time is an illusion and so is death."
My theory about this is that Huu doesn't fully understand the Swamp himself. No other option makes sense to me, because I think that the visions Sokka & Katara had only make sense from their own perspectives as manifestations of their grief. Kya turning away & saying nothing & Yue making Sokka feel worse for not preventing her death makes no sense unless it's Sokka & Katara's own fears manifesting. This isn't digging too deep or Pepe Sylvia-ing even, it's just...true. Huu, you don't get the Swamp, I'm stating it as fact now.
Anyway anyway. Um, on to Aang's vision! TOPH MY BELOVED <3 I love it but I also hate it. Again, I'm pissed that the whole "time is an illusion" thing just does not work because Kya & Yue's presence/actions/vibe literally just do not make sense in that context, it has to be a psychological thing for Sokka & Katara BUT the "time is an illusion" thing IS a clever allusion (ahhh I love getting to use that word when we're also talking about 'illusions') to Toph's future introduction.
Okay, I'm gonna be real honest with you guys I've been drinking even more wine the entire time I've been writing this re-cap/review & I'm running out of remotely intelligible thoughts (maybe none of these make the mark) BUT I thought of a funny idea. @theowritesfiction is doing a jerk point competition right? Okay well, I'm gonna do a "Iconic Points " competition. Basically, every time a character behaves in a way that makes me go "iconic" they get points. I have been trying to think of a fun - ummm I can't think of a word other than "alternative" but I KNOW that's not the word I'm looking for? but whatever - alternative to the "jerk points" thing to do myself & here we are.
Since I'm starting this competition late, the characters are getting raw points from Book 1 based fully on Wine Tipsy⢠Rose's vague memories, which I think is a 100% Fair & Neutral & Objective (/joking) way to start this competition:
Katara: 1000 points for 'Imprisoned' & the pirate episode combined
Zuko: 1000 points for - well, I can't think of a specific instance but ILY Book 1 Zuko you depressed bastard you deserve some points
Jet: 1001 points - he gets 1 more point than Zuko & Katar for becoming one of my favorite characters in just one episode while they both took an entire season also for being better than everyone & done dirty by the Narrative⢠AND the fandom & therefore deserving for first place status thus far
Sokka: 1000 points total. 800 points for 'The Northern Air Temple.' 200 for the Northern Siege episodes for making me fall in love with Yuekka & generally acting badass
Aang: 1000 points for Book 1 as an entirety because he had a lot of iconic moments, especially kicking Zhao & Zuko's asses
Yue: 1050 for the same reasons as Jet AND for sacrificing herself for the greater good
Book 2 so far:
Gaang: 0, they've been fine I guess but none of them have won any points sorry
Azula: 2000 for...I don't know? Everything? If you have to ask you've failed some kind of litmus test
Mai: 1000 for trying to kill the Gaang
Ty Lee: 1000 for acting suave about her childhood crush trying to kill her
Iroh: 500 for my perceived fan theory that I entirely made up about him tricking Zuko into getting help from Song.
Zuko: 500 for mugging a Karen Dude who embarrassed Iroh in the Swamp Episode
Okiii that is all I have to say for now! I will be more specific about assigning points & create a document to keep track in the future, but there you have it for now. Also, sorry for low-key copying you, Theo, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery & I really wanted to do a points thingy myself too, it makes it so fun.
That's all for this episode!
Edit! I forgot that Suki gets 500 points for being a boss ass badass bitch in Book 1 but she's still not getting the super high 1000 count as everyone else for being low key forgettable. Not hate, just a noted thing about Book 1 & a further point that Suki needs more backstory
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Ratbro - đď¸, đŠš, đ¤, , đŻ, đş, đˇ, đ, đ, đĽŞ, đ¤, đ§,
đŤĄ
đď¸Â â does your oc have any tattoos? do they want any (more) tattoos?
He doesnt have any but he wants one that says FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DO NOT FUCKING RESUSCITATE
đŠšÂ â does your oc have any physical and/or mental disabilities?
for a guy who got revived from being esploded and then locked in a warehouse for 30 years hes doing pretty ok but he's quite ptsd'd and brain damaged and chronic pain'd. him and his bestie can bond over shared morphine ^w^
đ¤Â â is your oc a light sleeper or a heavy sleeper? how are their sleeping habits?
its really a mixed bag LOL generally he sleeps lightly and disturbedly. a little more scheduled at the fresk facility (not his choice) but a little less horribly overall once hes with faust.
đŻÂ â share three random facts about your oc that others may not know.
Details irt his dying and undying: he was like esploded and shot because he happened to join the military just before the once-every-20-years-severe-civil-unrest. and he died but the soon-to-be-defunct Citizens Longevity Project stitched his sorry ass back up and life supported him and tried to see wtf else would work Experimentally. it was Painful and Traumatizing for him. The project got defunded like a year or two after they realived him but long story short the founder coordinated things to where he and the others would pretty much have to just relocate but still stay in Custody. It was already pretty horrific but the quality of care obviously went steeply downhill LOL the only good part was that they didnt really bring in anyone new to get experimented upon.
2. Unlike harvey he actually graduated highschool before joining the military, but honestly it probably woulda been better for him to go earlier since he kinda sucked at school LOL. part two: i regret to inform that altho he was mainly a soldier/body to get shot at, his position during peacetime was pretty much just a junior cop.
3. He's pretty unimpressed by Faust's fancy coffee-making skills and doesnt really like coffee in the first place, but anything that isnt Facility Slop is a treat to him so he drinks it anyway.
đşÂ â does your oc know how to use any weapons?
He still remembers how to shoot *smiles* thats pretty much all tho, he'd have been a decent fighter in his youth despite his tall scrawnyness but those days are long gone. he sure can try tho.
đˇÂ â what is your oc's favorite animal?
I don't think he's ever really had pets or anything, but he'd likely enjoy a dog. i say this insultingly.
đ â what are three of your oc's negative traits?
Im gonna like.....not bring his Circumstances into it so i'll just focus on his base personality LOL. he's a Sheeple for lack of better words đ severely. Kinda in the same vein, he's quite approval-seeking. And i think he also suffers from harvey's disease in that he acts very passive and clueless while participating in (usually indirect) violence. altho i suppose he paid for that last one pretty quickly seeing how his bout in the military ended LOL.
đ â what is your oc's ancestry/genetic background?
Apart from several generations of region zeroites, i think his and harvey's ancestors are majorly like. german/british medwestern americans.
đĽŞÂ â what does your oc's typical lunch look like? do they usually eat lunch?
Faust gives him his unwanted scraps like he's a dog. He gets his own lunch when theyre living together too tho, ofc. hes a VIP. He has whatever Faust is having and its a LUXURY compared to the like. cheese sandwiches and slop he's been served at the freak facility.
đ¤Â â what are some of your oc's quirks/mannerisms?
He's often very confused or volatile Because he is confused because he was like literally reborn today and he can't catch a break. He has a staring problem.
đ§Â â is your oc more logical or emotional?
He's guided by his desire to Keep The Peace, and he usually sees that as doing what he's told. I think its an emotional response. It's hard for him to follow much logic even if he wanted to nowadays, he's only able to operate in the Non-Warehouse World off of what the extremely biased other in his life have told him since he's been out.
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Hey bestie, I've been thinking about this lately, and I really wanted the advice of a friend. And also anyone else who wants to chip in and give any thoughts on the matter is totally welcome and appreciated to share their feelings about it.
So there's this sexy wonderful guy that I'm gonna be meeting. He's charming and funny and SOOOO CUTE FR. And he's got nothing but green flags, I know a ton about him, his past, his life, what he stands for, the type of man everyone who has met him or knows him says he is and strongly attests to. He's kinda a celeb, (doesn't really see himself that way, but he's got a highly successful TV show and a huge fanbase). Idk if that would make any difference thinking about age, that's why I mentioned it. (Which I will get to.) I'm gonna be meeting with him soon personally, and I really... wanna shoot my shot. I've known him for a while now, and I've fallen hard for him. And I really, really am into him.
The only thing I'm kinda thinking about is our ages... he's... 23 years older than me. He's basically as old as two of me (I'm 21, he's 46), and... the same age as my parents. And I know that can sound iffy or ick, but you really have to just know this man. He's charming and honestly so young at heart, in a good way. And he's aged phenomenally. He looks so hot, just as hot as when he was in his twenties, and his thirties, oh GOD. đĽ Its a bit weird for me because although I've had celeb crushes on older men, I'm not into OLDER older guys irl that I would actually want to be with. I personally want to be with guys my age for several reasons (that's just my prefference). It just feels weird about the idea of my parents and him if they were ever in the same place. He's never been married, doesn't have any kids. He's definitely in a different place mentally than my parents. He's also been dating off and on, but just never found the right partner.
I don't have feelings for him because of his age or status, I solely am attracted to a specific, rare personality in men. The way he moves, gestures with his hands, the way his eyes gaze, the way he makes expressions, the way he talks, thinks, acts. And he's just... everything. Everything I want. Everything I've ever wanted. I just... this is the first time I have ever realistically wanted to be with an older man. We love the same things, like, all of them. He's everything I have ever wanted in a man, and the man I fell for, he's just in a body that's older than mine. What do you think about this? I swear, its not a creep situation. I'm really jumpy about any sort of thing like that, and yet, I just feel naturally safe with him. He is a great man.
I talked to my mom about me theoretically being with a man her age, and she said it would be really weird and uncomfortable. Which I agree with and see, it would be if and when they would ever meet and be in the same place. But if its just him and I, we feel the same... I've never felt this passionate about any real man besides Tae, or specific fictional characters. He has CONSUMED me. I cannot get enough of his presence.
He's into me, and I am a fully grown adult. We met as fully grown adults. We met at his work, NOT through my parents or anything related to anyone else. We met, he knows no one else in my family or my friends, because we're friends. Should I do what *I* know I want, and go for it?
Sincerely, "teacup"
Hi, thanks for dropping in đ.
Tricky situation, I think age doesnât always matter. My only concern would be that I want you to be careful because you are young and there is a chance he could be using you if he likes you in the same way.
Honestly if itâs something that you both want to try, itâs entirely up to you. People will judge and talk shit but as long as you are safe and happy, itâs your life.
It sounds like you are quite self aware too, which is good because you will need to be in order to protect yourself from potential grooming or negativity.
I hope whatever you choose to do works out đ.
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I apologize for bringing up discourse that I legitimately am trying to not unleash yet again, but... Well, it hit my dash, I'm gonna clear things up and word vomit this out so I don't just get into fights with strangers on a subject I'm trying VERY hard to just... put behind me because I'm just spent on trying to understand how things shook out.
ON PAPER, maybe you could argue that TLJ is not sympathetic to Kylo, and sure, Rey and Kylo as a pairing did not spontaneously appear only after the second movie of the trilogy.
TLJ is still responsible for the massive spike of these things.
Let's start with the second point - that ship was certainly around as of TFA, sure. But the audience for it was... if not more restrained, then at least a little less... INTENSE. Y'know, with the big mystery of Rey's parentage, there was a legitimate concern that maybe she'd turn out to be Luke's daughter, or the secret second Solo child, something that gave her and Kylo a blood relation. So they were there, they were certainly annoying for anyone trying to not interact, but they weren't the overbearing EVERYTHING of the response.
But then TLJ made everything revolve around the two of them, doing its damnedest to shove Finn out of the picture entirely, after the previous film had been spend building up the Finn-Rey relationship. It spends all this time, emphasizing the similarities between Rey and Kylo... Which, honestly? Was also FINN'S place in the prior film, because Finn was the only one who had done anything when Snoke says "there has been an awakening." The events that made Finn defect from the First Order were actions outright ordered by Kylo himself. Finn explicitly came from nothing, given that he was a rank and file stormtrooper, given only a number, not even a name, by the First Order, while, of course, Kylo is the son of Rebellion/New Republic heroes. Kylo was trying to make Rey his counterpoint, but TFA plays FINN as such.
Likewise... Why does Rey even CARE about Kylo? Her experience with him is him kidnapping and torturing her, killing her father figure (and his actual father - I'll be back to this point late), and grievously wounding Finn, the first person she's had who would come back to her. And also leaving him for dead on Starkiller, a planet that exploded a short time later - why isn't she surprised he's even alive, let alone why does she decide to bring him back to the light?
TLJ was what gave the spotlight to the Rey and Kylo relationship, so yeah, it's fair to call that the spark that spurred on the worst of that pairing's attitude and fans.
And then to the first point... Again. On paper, sure, you can argue that the story is not sympathetic to him because of, say, that final shot of him having attained the highest point of the fascism and found it hollow and empty, cutting him off from those who offered him kindness...
But it doesn't change how the film still goes face first into what tends to be call the Satire Paradox, the inability for those being criticized by the media to understand that THEY are the punchline. Or the trope "Do Not Do This Cool Thing," of putting forward something negative, but in such framing that the things it's criticizing are actually things that are positive. This is a common concern for anything that centers on the calling out fascism, of how in exposing it and bringing it to light, those already inclined to it will take it as a recruitment film, rather than a warning - we see this with American History X, a film meant to put the spotlight on and show the dangers of hatred and neo-natsees specifically, but you know who love the imagery of American History X? The neo-natsees. Fascism is pagentry, it's about visuals and the appearance of the machine, so if you give them something that looks cool, it will be all they focus on, ignoring the message of how the fascism is bad, actually.
That's something I've been pointing out as of late in my other non-tagged Star Wars takes, that, up until Andor, a series it did not produce until 2022, Disney has tried very hard to soften the edges of Imperial fascism (an act that, genuinely, I do attribute to Disney wanting to make a buck of Imperial merch and utilizing the masked Imperials as mascot figures in their parks, rather than the more individualized and distinctive characters on the side of the heroes, as opposed to being intentionally and actively endorsing these things, but it is still a problem), and this is obvious in how the sequels are so much the story of Kylo, a fact that begins HERE. Where the film spends much time focusing on and caring about HIS inner conflict. It's what comes from having him remove and destroy his helmet - now he is not a faceless figure, we get to see his eyes and expressions as the film spends so much time building up his struggles and story, portray his inner struggles now that we can see his pensive glances and such (there's a reason the saying is that the eyes are the windows to a person's soul - actors often cite their eyes as a valuable acting tool to convey emotions).
It's played as a tragedy when he will not go with Rey and abandon the First Order. His fall is treated as something done to him and not a conscious choice on his part to turn on the organizations that his loving family built up, after having Luke Skywalker - the man who looked to Darth Vader and said "I feel the good in you, father," after years of him being the enemy - contemplate killing him simply because of what he might do.
The film threw out the established characterization of the legacy character, didn't try to connect the dots in how that changed, and tries to frame this all as the established character's fault.
That's what it comes to. NO ONE is calling out Kylo's actions and behavior as HIS responsibility. If I'm generous, the film is leaving it implicit... But unfortunately, when you leave it implicit, it also leaves the door open for the worst people to dismiss that message and try to take it in that direction of "but it looks so cool while he's doing it."
The movie is centered on trying to show Kylo wavering, uncertain, looking back towards the light after being immersed in the dark... And this is a decision that he made rather definitively in the prior film, when he MURDERED HIS FATHER. Why are we now, after the fact, spending this time questioning if maybe he can be redeemed? When the prequels had Anakin Force choke Padme, it was a sign that he had crossed the line. Why is Kylo impaling Han Solo on his lightsaber a sign that he really wants to be good?
If pressed, I would call TLJ a fine standalone film. The problem it comes down to, however, is that it was NOT meant to BE a standalone film. It was supposed to be part two of a trilogy, part eight of a saga. Rather than build on the elements established in the prior film, TLJ wants to go off in its own direction, tripping over the elements that it can't discard from the prior film.
And any writer who goes into this situation, knowing they are writing a middle part of a story, and approaches things as "well, [thing] introduced in [prior film] doesn't fit with the story I want to tell, so I'm going to ignore it"? Yeah, I'm comfortable calling them a bad writer and their story a bad story, because you were hired to WORK with those elements, not just discard them.
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https://www.tumblr.com/sizzlingpatrolfox/739529289657171968/the-ccompany-pushing-jikook-like-jokers-making-it
I love how you said that whatever there is of jikook 95% out there in the last decade is from company content knowing very well that these the two members who has seen hanging out the most out of their schedules except the 2 year. Although i didn't see anyone much in 2022 going out and all and half the year they weren't on hiatus.
Thing is even if they were not shown on cam there's not much to show about others too since others don't spend as much as time together even ON CAM like jimin and jungkook do cause how many times you have heard jk and other members talking about eating in hotel together after concerts? I'm sure they all do i have seen it but is it as regular thing for them as much as it is for jimin and jungkook? No.
I remember how in LA concert everyone was saying how jm and jk looks distant and jk looks more close with tae than jm cause they were hardly together on any on cam content or anything turned out jk had spend most of his free time in jm's room, doing gym together, eating together, taking night walks together and this only came in light when jm told it in live so how can you think they could have shown other pairings most when it's jm and jk that spend most time together??? They said they workout together daily and only one day was filmed and showed out of all the days they were there so if these were the two who were working out together do you expect them to show jk and tae working out together? Or jk and jin? Or jimin and rm? They did showed rm, jm and jk tho but again jm and jk were the ones who were regular in that.
I know they didn't hangout together last year like they used to so i won't sit here and make excuses for that but now people can't even be happy about what they get from their biases or ships even if im official content? Should they cry now? Or start making videos like tkkrs who were cutting out jimin from whole vminkook Hangout on the beach and that dinner after beach and call it their personal time person private tk date? I mean if you're this much attentive towards what tkkrs do I'm sure you saw how they got hit tweets cutting out jm from the whole clips and calling it tk private dinner and at the same time shading jikook? How the heck can you say you're fine with tkkrs making that official content and personal time shit tweets when it's only some months that tk hungout together but no shit Sherlock from many yrs before that? Everyone knows jm loves beach now if they filmed something for the content from that whole beach trip are you gonna say that they only did it because they wanted to put that into company content? Are you gonna say that jimin only went to the beach because bh wanted him to and not because he loves beach? Are you gonna sat it's all for official content for 3min clip from all the time vminkook spend in there?
Funny how y'all keep saying that the company is pushing jikook cause they want jk to stand out as if jimin is not known for showing his affection towards jungkook without worrying about anyone or anything? Talking about that cooking as if jungkook has never cooked for jimin at all?? Don't you think there's a reason why jimin keeps commenting under jungkook's recipes "cook for me when i come back" ?? Do u think he says that even thou jungkook has never cooked for him at all? Hasn't jin called jk jm's chef? So what if they film little bit of something out of their regular thing? So what if they shot one day Jikook working out with RM when they did it daily? So what if they shot jungkook cooking for jm once our of all the times he might have cooked?? Does that make those things irrelevant? Just because it was filmed once on cam?
You say you don't care about them but the fact is you wanna make negative out of most normal things. I wonder why bh never filmed jk going to RM's home to cook for him... Maybe because their friendship is different and RM might have never asked jk to do that but jimin did?? I know jk will cook for RM in a heartbeat but maybe they never filmed it because it's not as usual for namkook as it is for jikook. There's difference between their friendship and even if you love to call it company content.
I don't like these essays because it's so useless and that's why I never reply to them.
You didn't say any lie, but I didn't say any lie either. There's no point in going back and forth because there's nothing to "correct", all I said was true. Whether you like how that sounds or not, that's subjectivity and it doesn't really matter to me.
It also doesn't make sense that you say you didn't see anyone going out that much, so assume that they don't hang out. How do you know if maybe the company didn't include that footage?
Literally the same thing y'all say about jikook "just because you don't see it doesn't mean it didn't happen" could be applied to all the other ships. It could also be applied to friendships and romantic relationships they have that you will never find out about. It's so pointless and annoying to talk about stuff you don't see.
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a long rambly post about my very complicated feelings with sex under a read more I need to vent a bit
I think I'm old enough now to admit that sex has always been something confusing for me?? Like! I dunno. For a long time I thought I was ace but I'm not, I just have a lot of self shame that makes it hard for me to see myself as someone desirable
it took me a while to like be comfortable taking my clothes off in front of my own damn husband? I'm p sure I slept in a bra for a bit when I first moved in, too.
I thought for a while I was trans bc I had very complicated feelings about my own genitalia. I didn't like my boobs bc I could see weird men looking at them and sexualizing me when I was a teen bc I've had a big chest since I was 15.
I started writing smut bc it became a way for me to idk put myself into the shoes of a character and explore idk what I thought an ideal sexual encounter would be like.
I practically perfected how to get myself off when I was younger because I always felt like, if I have sex with anyone they're gonna focus on their own pleasure just because they're gonna figure out that penetration alone doesn't get me off and that I need something more than that. So because it's too hard to make me come, the person is just gonna focus on themselves.
Not that it mattered bc I didn't actually do anything with anyone else until I was in my late 20s, just bc I've always been awkward, strange, not sexually appealing or attractive enough for people. Fat. A lot of other very negative things.
It's hard for me to talk about this stuff out loud bc something about being inappropriately touched in the 4th grade by a classmate and having a teacher laugh in your face when you tell her...it just hurts you in a way I guess. And then the subsequent teasing it brought on by the kid who did it... It became shameful. Idk. ("See even she doesn't believe it happened because you're so ugly" lmao) And transitioned later on into me being too ashamed to talk about my wants and needs and fears out loud.
I have thankfully gotten over my complicated feelings about my bits, and I don't mind my boobs so much anymore because I'm good at wearing clothes that are slightly too big. Or unflattering. Like I would love to be one of those people who wear flattering clothes but I am simply too self conscious for it. There's like two wolves fighting in me, one wants to be hot and the other wants to be hidden lmao.
And it's like so funny that me, having written all sorts of smut over these years, have all these complicated feelings, and be unable to tell my husband exactly what I want and how I want it.
I guess that's why fiction exists lmao so I can live vicariously through characters who can say what they want and how they want it without feeling an ounce of shame.
Meanwhile if I even think about wanting to ask for something I freeze up and talk myself out of it before I can even get the words out.
Like I dunno, I was hoping 30 would bring me some sort of revelation on how to stop second guessing my needs and ask for things, but it really hasn't.
I dunno, I just felt like I needed to get this off my chest haha. But like it sucks 99% of the time because the bc shot I'm on always makes me so horny after I get it initially and I am left to suffer bc of a box I've put myself into.
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Unpopular Opinion: Zukoâs treatment of Mai is deeply toxic.
Mai is a character who is often maligned in the fandom, with it even occasionally being claimed that she was âabusiveâ toward Zuko. Any objective analysis of Maiâs behavior in her relationship with Zuko will instead find that she was, in fact, a shockingly good romantic partner, generally treating Zuko very well and being loyal to him far beyond reasonable expectation. Â Claims that Mai behaved toxically toward Zuko seem to be instead founded in misogynistic expectations that women be perfect caretakers for the men in their lives.
That is not to say that the Zuko-Mai relationship isnât still deeply toxic. However, its toxicity stems from the manner which Zuko badly mistreats Mai, often in ways which devalue her. Much more under the cut.
Our story begins in the first half of Book 3. Â The vast majority of episodes there donât show anything particularly toxic going on in the relationship. The most you can say is that they suggest that Zuko tends to dump his problems on others and doesnât have best understanding of his girlfriend.
However, inevitably we must turn to âThe Beach,â the episode which, by far, gets the most into the Zuko-Mai relationship. To say that Zuko doesnât behave well toward Mai in this episode would be an understatement. I donât speak here of Zukoâs unsuccessful attempts to please Mai early in the episode, but instead how badly he starts treating her beginning at the party:
Ruon Jian:Â Hey, first ones here, huh?
Zuko: (cut to shot of Zuko and Mai walking side by side) Pft. He thinks he's so great. (to Mai) Well, what do you think of him? (they stop walking)
Mai:Â I don't have any opinion about him. I hardly know him.
Zuko:Â You like him, don't you?
(Mai sighs and walks away, as Zuko looks angrily in the direction of Ruon Jian. The camera zooms in on Ruon Jian)
And
(Cut to shot of Ruon Jian leaning over Mai. Zuko rushes toward them angrily and pushes Ruon Jian away from her. Cut to shot of Ruon Jian straightening his hair.)
Ruon Jian:Â Whoa. What are you doing?
Zuko:Â (close-up shot of Zuko, angry)Â Stop talking to my girlfriend!
Ruon Jian: (Ruon Jian approaches Zuko) Relax, it's just a party. (Zuko pushes Ruon Jian hard, sending him flying across the room, breaking a giant vase.)
Mai:Â (Mai stands up and grabs Zuko's shoulder. He turns towards her.)Â Zuko, what is wrong with you?!
Zuko:Â What's wrong with me?!
Mai:Â (angrily)Â Your temper's out of control. You blow up over every little thing. You're so impatient and hot-headed and angry.
Zuko: Well, at least I feel something...as opposed to you. You have no passion for anything. (raising his arms is the air) You're just a big "blah".
Mai:Â (turning away from him)Â It's over, Zuko. We're done.
 And:
(Zuko follows her and the camera pans down to the handprint, left alone on the porch. Cut to wide view of the camera panning down Ember Island Beach. Zuko and Azula are walking side by side toward Mai and Ty Lee. Close shot of Zuko looking toward Mai and then looking away. Close shot of Mai looking angry and a bit sad.)
Mai: Hey... (Interrupted)
Zuko: (close shot of Zuko) Where's your new boyfriend? (Mai turns away angrily. Zuko comes and sits next to her) Are you cold? (he puts his arm around her, but she slaps it away)
Zuko is acting in a massively controlling fashion toward Mai, motivated by his violent and rage-filled jealously. Â She literally canât talk to a boy without Zuko flying into a jealous rage, trying to separate her from the person sheâs talking to, and accusing her of emotional infidelity. In real life, this is considered a warning sign for an abusive relationship(although I donât think Zuko has crossed the line into abusive yet).
âThe Beachâ also gives us this:
Mai:Â Oh, well, I'm sorry I can't be as high-strung and crazy as the rest of you.
(Cut to over-head shot of the four teens. Zuko walks closer to the fire and Mai.)
Zuko: I'm sorry, too. I wish you would be high-strung and crazy for once, (Close shot of Mai looking away and Zuko standing over her) instead of keeping all your feelings bottled up inside. She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?
Zuko tries to provoke Mai into having a fight with her best friend Ty Lee just so he can watch her express strong emotions. Â Zuko very much wants to Mai to be and act like someone sheâs not, which has its own issues.
Overall, Zuko treats Mai quite poorly in âThe Beach.â The episode ends with this:
Mai: I know one thing I care about... (Cut to shot of Mai smiling at Zuko) I care about you. (Mai and Zuko kiss. Azula claps, causing them to separate and turn toward Azula. The camera pans left to include her.)
Mai forgives Zuko and accepts him back without him acknowledging his behavior was wrong, apologizing for it, or giving her any guarantee that he will treat her better in the future. Thatâs unfortunate, as Zuko soon ends up treating her far, far worse than he ever did in this episode.
Zukoâs disregard for Mai cumulates with the manner he commits treason on the Day of Black Sun. Let us start our understanding of what he did wrong from the beginning. Breaking up with Mai via a letter which didnât give her a real explanation was a real asshole move, but itâs not at the core of what he did wrong. Â For that, we need to turn to this conversation from âThe Headbandâ:
Zuko: Can't you see we're busy? (He and Mai resume their "business".)
Azula:Â (not to be put off)Â Oh, Mai... Ty Lee needs your help untangling her braid.
Mai: (complaisantly) Sounds pretty serious. (She gets up and leaves. Walking past Azula, towards the camera, she shoots the princess a quick, poisonous glance behind her back.)
Azula:Â So...I hear you've been to visit your Uncle Fatso in the
prison tower.
Zuko:Â (standing, incensed)Â That guard told you.
Azula:Â (smugly)Â No, you did. Just now.
Zuko: (sitting back down) Okay, you caught me. What is it that you want, Azula?
Azula: (solicitiously) Actually, nothing. Believe it or not, I'm looking out for you. If people find out you've been to see Uncle, they'll think you're plotting with him. Just be careful, dum-dum.
Zuko has proven his loyalty to the Fire Nation beyond doubt, yet Azula is still very worried that him spending time with Iroh will get him accused of treason, because having a close association with traitors puts oneself under almost automatic suspicion of treason.
âDay of Black Sun, Part IIâ:
Zuko: First of all, in Ba Sing Se, it was Azula who took down the Avatar, not me.
Fire Lord Ozai: Why would she lie to me about that?
Zuko: Because the Avatar is not dead. He survived.
Fire Lord Ozai:Â (alarmed)Â What?!
Zuko deliberately throws Azula under the bus, hurting her and reducing her status with Ozai as much possible while effectively accusing her of deliberately committing treason. He also deliberately pisses off Ozai as much as possible.
So where does this leave us? Mai is Zukoâs known girlfriend and extremely close associate. Automatically, the suspicion of knowing of Zukoâs treason ahead of time or being involved falls upon her. Sheâs in grave risk of being imprisoned, tortured, or executed, especially since Ozai seems not the type to be strictly concerned with ensuring those he punishes are guilty beyond reasonable doubt. The Fire Nation seems like a society which might have collective punishment(as historical East Asian societies, Nazi Germany, and the Stalinist Soviet Union did), and Mai might be under risk from that direction. Â Finally, Ozai might hurt her simply as way of retaliating against Zuko.
Normally Azula would almost certainly be able to protect her friend, even under these trying circumstances, given Azulaâs prestige and accomplishments. Â However, Zuko has deliberately undermined Azula as much as possible and effectively accused her of committing treason herself, dramatically reducing the probability that she will be able to protect Mai. Â In fact, Mai stands risk of being accused of being involved in Azulaâs effort to âconceal the fact that the Avatar survived,â given Maiâs close association with Azula and her close involvement in the events where the Avatar âdied.â Sheâs thus under danger from two different directions.
âBut Zuko had to betray his father and become good through aiding Team Avatar.â Yes, itâs a good thing he did so. But Zuko had other options than the course he adopted. He could have avoided confronting Ozai at all and instead focused on rescuing Iroh(interesting AU idea right here). Â He could have confronted Ozai but not thrown Azula under the bus, and that alone would have vastly reduced the risk to Mai(and also made Zuko out to be a better person, because deliberately throwing your younger sister under the bus and then abandoning her to the mercy of your abusive father is not a good look). Â Zuko could have killed Ozai right then and there during the eclipse. Â He even could have tried to lead Team Avatar to the bunker and tried to end the war right then and there.
âZuko didnât understand that he was placing Mai in danger.â Quite possible, but Zuko being so self-centered that he is unable of understanding that his actions can have negative effects on other people is a mark against him, not for him.
Now we turn to the Zukoâs behavior toward Mai in the rest of the third season. Â Let us start with âThe Boiling Rock, Part 1â:
Sokka: (emphatically)Â I think your Uncle would be proud of you. Leaving your home to come help us, that's hard.
Zuko: It wasn't that hard.
Sokka: (Cut to a side view of the basket) Really? You didn't leave behind anyone you cared about?
Zuko: Well I did have a girlfriend. Mai.
Sokka: (He goes closer to Zuko with a surprised look on his face) That gloomy girl who sighs a lot?
Zuko: (Cut back to show Zuko grinning goofily) Yeah. (his face turns serious) Everyone in the Fire Nation thinks I'm a traitor. I couldn't drag her into it.
Sokka: (Cut back to Sokka who leans back on the basket) My first girlfriend turned into the Moon.
Zuko: (looks up) That's rough buddy
There are two things to unpack here. First, Zuko claims he âcouldnât drag her into it,â yet he already did, as Iâve illustrated above. Second, Zuko seems to expect that Mai would have followed him into treason if he asked her, that she would be willing to betray her nation, ideology, family, and friends just for the sake of her love for him. Thatâs an insane and pretty toxic expectation for Zuko to have for her relationship with him, especially since he wouldnât do the same for her.
We also get more confirmation that Zuko doesnât care at all about Ty Lee or Azula.
I donât have a lot to say about the Zuko-Mai conversation during Boiling Rock, Part 2. The only things I would like to note are that Zuko is not very sorry for what he did, not very empathetic toward Maiâs pain, and doesnât give Mai a real apology for his actions.
Of course, Mai proceeds to save Zukoâs life through committing treason in front of dozens of witnesses at Boiling Rock, something which places her own life in serous jeopardy. How does Zuko react to this?
Zuko: (Cut to a shocked Zuko) It's Mai.
Azula: (Cut to a furious Azula) What is she doing?!
(Cut to the backs of Azula and Ty Lee as Ty Lee shrugs and makes a "I don't know" noise.
Cut to the gondola as it reaches the outer part of the crater. Cut to the inside of the entrance tower as the door opens and Suki rushes out followed by Sokka, Zuko, Hakoda and Chit Sang. Hakoda turns towards Chit Sang and points to the inside of the gondola. Chit Sang proceeds to throw the warden back in.)
Hakoda: (Cut to the back of Hakoda's head looking at the warden lying on the floor) Sorry Warden, your record is officially broken.
(Hakoda walks off screen while the warden continues to struggle on the floor. Cut to a front shot of the group as they run up a rocky incline.)
Suki: Well, we made it out. Now what?
Sokka: (Sokka stops and looks back at Zuko who pauses in his tracks, thinking) Zuko, what are you doing?
Zuko: My sister was on that island.
Sokka: Yeah and she's probably right behind us. So let's not stop.
Zuko: What I mean is she must have come here somehow. (He runs to the edge of the rocks and looks down) There. (Cut to an area looking up at the edge of the cliff)Â That's our way out of here.
(Camera pans down to reveal a Fire Nation zeppelin docked at the shore.
Zuko says Maiâs name once and then abandons her (to die?) with zero hesitation. Â This is probably objectively the correct decision. It would probably be extremely difficult and dangerous if not outright impossible to save Mai. Â The prison-break crew do have access to an airship, but itâs difficult to fly an airship over the lakeâs thermals.
Yet thatâs not my point. Zuko abandons Mai with zero hesitation, with zero anguish, with zero angst. He doesnât even to seem consider the possibility that he should save her. Â Something tells me if Iroh had just saved Zukoâs life under identical circumstances and then was in imminent risk of harm, Zuko would act very differently, that Sokka, Suki, and Hakoda would have to drag him off that island.
Zukoâs complete disregard for Mai continues for the rest the series. Remember this exchange from âThe Cave of Two Loversâ?
Zuko:Â (losing his patience)Â We're not taking any more chances with these plants! We need to get help.
Iroh:Â But where are we going to go? We're enemies of the Earth Kingdom, and fugitives from the Fire Nation.
Zuko:Â (musingly)Â If the Earth Kingdom, discovers us, they'll have us killed.
Iroh:Â But if the Fire Nation discovers us, we'll be turned over to Azula.
Zuko considers being captured by Azula a worse fate than death!
But do we see Zuko worry once about Maiâs fate? Do we see angst about what might have happened to her? Do we see him make any effort to even discover her fate, much less rescue her?
No. In fact, Zuko launches a sophisticated operation to infiltrate a Fire Nation information center so that he can gain intelligence in order to help Katara murder someone so that sheâll like him, but he doesnât even consider doing the same to find out about Maiâs fate so that he could potentially rescue her. Zuko doesnât even mention Mai once after Boiling Rock until the very end of the series finale, even though she sacrificed herself to save him. Remember this exchange(âSozinâs Comet, Part 3â):
Zuko: Sorry, but you're not going to become Fire Lord today. (jumps off Appa) I am.
Azula:Â (laughs)Â You're hilarious.
Katara:Â (standing beside Zuko)Â And you're going down.
(The fire sage motions to crown Azula, but she raises her hand, signalling him to stop.)
Azula: Wait. You want to be Fire Lord Fine. Let's settle this. Just you and me, brother. The showdown that was always meant to be. Agni Kai!
Zuko: You're on.
(Katara turns to Zuko, surprised. Cut to a close up of Azula's lips as the curls into a smile. Cut back to Katara and Zuko.)
Katara: What are you doing? She's playing you. She knows she can't take us both so she is trying to separate us.
Zuko: I know. But I can take her this time.
Katara: But even you admitted to your Uncle that you would need help facing Azula.
Zuko: There's something off about her, I can't explain it but she's slipping. And this way, no one else has to get hurt.
(Fade to a shot of the courtyard from the side. The camera pans from Zuko kneeling on the right end to Azula kneeling on the left end. Cut to a shot of Zuko rising and turning around, then cut to a shot of Azula rising. Each can be seen behind the other. Cut to a shot of Azula from the front turning and removing the Fire Lord robes.)
Azula: I'm sorry it has to end this way, brother.
Zuko:Â (in his stance)Â No, you're not.
Notice something? Zuko doesnât demand to know what happened to Mai! Itâs almost like he forgot she existed!
Now we turn to the final infamous exchange(âSozinâs Comet, Part 4â):
Mai:(off screen) You need some help with that?
(He looks up surprised and moves aside to reveal Mai leaning against the doorway. Cut to a close up of Mai as she walks towards Zuko.)
Zuko: (Cut to a delighted Zuko) Mai! (Walks off screen) You're ok. (Cut to an area behind Mai's back as Zuko opens his arms out in a hug) They let you out of prison?
(Mai walks behind Zuko and lifts up his empty robe sleeve.)
Mai: My uncle (Zuko puts his arms through the sleeve) pulled some strings, (she proceeds to fasten his robe) and it doesn't hurt when the new Fire Lord is your boyfriend. (She walks in front of Zuko and places a hand on his chest)
Zuko: So does this mean you don't hate me anymore?
Mai: (she blushes) I think it means... (Cut to a close up of the couple) I actually (places a hand on Zuko's cheek) kind of like you. (They lean in for a kiss and part a fewseconds later, looking into each other's eyes happily) But don't ever (She jabs a finger into Zuko's shoulder and Zuko's eye traces the movement of her finger) break up (She lifts her finger into the air and Zuko's eyes still follows it) with me again.
(She jabs her finger into Zuko's shoulder one last time and Zuko smiles goofily. They embrace and the camera zooms out slowly.
Zuko seems surprised to learn that Mai is OK, almost like he made no effort to find out her fate once he took charge of the Fire Nation. And indeed, his first acts as leader of the Fire Nation were not to find out what happened to her or, if he actually knew, to get her released from prison. Â Mai only got released from prison when her uncle and his connections got sufficiently confident that Zuko had been completely accepted as the new leader to release a massive traitor completely on their own initiative. Â This was quite possibly weeks after Azula-Zuko Agni Kai, yet he made no apparent effort to get her released. Itâs almost like Zuko completely forgot about Mai, even though she sacrificed herself to save him.
And, of course, Zuko doesnât accept responsibility for any of the awful ways he treated Mai, much less apologize to her or offer any guarantee he will behave better in the future. Mai still forgives him anyways, just like she did in âThe Beach,â only for Zuko to continue to screw her over. There is something deeply depressing here, as thereâs every reason to believe that Zuko will screw over Mai over, devalue her, and disregard her well-being, desires, and interests again the moment itâs convenient for him to do so. He certainly has not recognized that his toxic behavior here is something he needs to stop doing. Ironically, the comics get this right by having Zuko try to use his power as Firelord to order Mai to stay his girlfriend.
Ultimately, Zuko loves Mai and cares about her deeply, yet he still treats her as a tool and acts like she exists to serve him. It reminds me how show! canon Ozai genuinely loved show! canon Ursa, but still used her as a tool and threw her away. Honestly, I doubt 16-year-old Zuko is really ready for any romantic relationship at all, given his often toxic behavior, his trauma, and the incredibly stressful position heâs placed in at the end of the series.
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I definitely think itâs a possibility for Lucy to get her own show and for it being her like I guess overcoming her family and showing she can handle punishment for her wrongdoings and can be her own person and whatnot
But I also think because of the interviews and them doing those so soon especially with the first episode we see her in (the first episode of 5b) also just put them in a bad spot where if no one warms up to her throughout the rest of the episodes itâs just not gonna happen. They didnât make anyone like her, they just made people dislike her more and more.
Not even for buddie. Itâs because she genuinely got the attitude of a cocky person who thinks and is saying sheâs here to stay. Her character is part of a cheating plot that no one wanted even if we didnât like TayKay. Sheâs already shown to be reckless and put others in danger.
If they want people to warm up to her soon theyâll need to fix this and fast
Hey, nonnie! I hope you're having a peaceful weekend! đ
I think the cheating storyline COULD have been received better if KR, AK, *and* Oliver didn't decide the best course of action was to make it about Buck's lack of feelings for TayKay and make sure the audience knew BL would still be dealing with ~sexual tension~ even after Lucy finds out about her coworker's gf.
As I said not too long ago, the fandom is giving more excuses as to why Buck behaved that way than the people who came up with/carried out the scene. And then we had KR/AK talking about how Lucy & TayKay weren't going to meet "yet", meaning this soapy-ish entanglement just might be getting dragged out even longer for the sake of drama. (I've heard that the news van has been around on set in the later episodes? So even if BT is bones at the of 5x13, there will be some sort of awkwardness in the future? Maybe?)
I honestly think KR (and AK and Oliver) thought Buck's infidelity would be shrugged off because fans were BEGGING for TayKay to go and if this is how it had to happen...so be it! But they also seem to have forgotten that a lot of viewers didn't want Lucy to be brought in as a romantic partner of any kind because, in their minds, a man and woman who aren't canonically gay are bound to get together. It's what the average viewer expects to see! đ
I have different theories in my brain for why AK was allowed to speak about her character's future throughout 5B - KR wanted to promote the storyline SHE built // the hope was that if they teased Lucy's storyline the fans would clamor for more of her // AK is in talks to star in a third series and is speaking as someone who believes her spot in the 911verse is secure no matter where she works - but the bottom line is that she gave two interviews *with* Kristen, and when the showrunner who brought you on board is trotting you out in front of a reporter...why wouldn't you think it means good things re: your time on the show? I don't know anything about what AK was like before booking this job, but KR's approach would probably give anyone an inflated sense of self, IMO.
TPTB appear to have heard the backlash almost immediately after 5x11 and those first couple of interviews. Four days after the 5B premiere, AK goes from talking about BL's flirty behavior to assuring the fans that everything her character does is not about Buck. She hasn't spoken since.
The folks behind the scenes, meanwhile, are suddenly careful to avoid any *obvious* shots of her in promos (besides what we saw prior to 5x11) so we don't really know when she's gonna pop up again, and the content with her on set has been damn near nonexistent in the aftermath of the kiss - just the one video/pic of her with the harness on for a rope rescue in the finale, I believe? It's a copy/paste of how BT was handled after the GP reacted negatively to the make out scene in the 5x01 sneak peek. In a way, I take this as a "good sign", because it shows *someone* in charge actually does care about public perception and just might switch up some things in the editing room - we already saw it happen during the Speed-esque rescue when the "looks like they're gonna kiss" moment was cut, and that was BEFORE people decided how they felt about her, so...the possibility is even stronger now, tbh.
Idk about "warming up to her", but I think the only way people move past their negativity in the immediate future is if Buck acknowledges he should have never gotten involved with her because it turned him into a person he didn't want to be (again) and KR sends her self-insert away (like, outside of L.A. away) to emphasize that there is physical distance between the two moving forward.
Here's hoping! đĽ
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Match made in Hell : Chapter Twelve
A/N : Chapter twelve is here. Ah only one more chapter left. Hope you like this chapter. Let me know what you think.
Pairing : Mob! Tom Holland x Reader
Summary : you always wanted a simple life but to be born as the daughter of a dangerous mobster turned out to be a curse for you. Everything changes when your father gets your lover killed and forcefully marries you off to another mobster as a part of a deal. You hate your father and your husband the only thing you seek is now revenge. Will you ever be able to fall in love again or this burning hatred inside you will consume you?
Warnings : fluff, pregnancy, misogyny, mention of blood, violence, language, missed typos.
SERIES MASTERLIST
âWhat's wrong?â Vanessa looks at you questioningly.
âI think I might have had skipped for a couple of days,â you admit, scrunching your nose.
âCan you be less vague? Cause Iâm not getting itâ she deadpans as you scowl at her for not getting your implication.
âOkay so I got shot a month ago I hope you remember that. I was on medication right? Well a lot of medications actuallyâ you half shrug âso with all that going on I may or may not have forgotten to take the pills during that time and we got caught up in the moment at one time and things just happened you knowâ
âWell you guys are literal horndogs I have no doubt in thatâ she rolls her eyes âbut you need to take the testâ she states out to you.
âWhat? Now?â you looked at her stunned.
âYes and right nowâ she stresses on her words.
âBut I don't have any test kits at this momentâ you mutter
âThen I'll ask someone to get them from the storeâ
âNo! donât tell anyone especially the boysâ you give her a panicked look and Vanessa scoffs.
âOK relax I'll go and get it for youâ saying so she left immediately. It took half an hour for Vanessa to make a trip round to the store as you waited for her in your room anxiously.
âHereâ she hands you the pregnancy test kit. You nibble on to your bottom lip glancing back and forth between the box and her face.
âC'mon go onâ she urged you on. You finally stood up and went inside the bathroom. Closing the door behind you let out a deep sigh taking one last glance at the box before opening it. After reading the instructions carefully you proceeded to do accordingly. When you were done you placed the stick on the marble counter and opened the door for Vanessa to come in.
âDoneâ you inform her.
âOK, now we wait,â she says, glancing at her watch. Five minutes appeared to be five years for you as you paced back and forth while Vanessa chewed on her nails leaning on the counter in anticipation.
âOK itâs timeâ she announces and you feel your heartbeat quicken. You took a deep breath and stepped forward to have a look but immediately backed off feeling anxious.
âOh god I can't look at itâ you wrap your arms around yourself.
âWhat?â Vanessa looks at you puzzled.
âYou check it for me please I canâtâ you gave her an earnest look.
âYou're so dramaticâ she rolls her eyes and goes to check the result and falls silent taking the test in hand.
âWhat? What is it?â you ask impatiently.
âNegativeâ she answers.
âNegative? Really?â you weren't convinced with the result as you looked at her with doubt in your eyes.
âYeahâ she confirms again.
âOh that's a relief hehâ you chuckle lightly âI told you before only it's just a stomach bugâ
âYou're upset that it's negative, arenât you?â Vanessa gives you a knowing look.
âWhat? No I mean⌠yeah a little it wouldn't be bad you know but nevermindâ you fiddle with your hands fumbling on your words.
âSo you wanted a baby?â she raises her eyebrows questioningly.
âI mean yeah I love kids and wouldn't mind one of my own specially if itâs a cute little version of my husband running around the house on his little feetâ you expressed your little desire.
âYou sure?â she reasserts, raising her eyebrows as the corner of her mouth picks into a smile.
âYeah but it doesn't matter anyways cause the test is negative as you saidâ you shrugged letting off the thought.
âWell then good news sissy it's actually positiveâ Vanessa smiles at you widely and you were taken aback.
âWhat?! You serious?â she nods, holding out the stick in front of you to see it yourself.
âOh my god you bitch!â you gasp âwho's dramatic now huh?â you scowl, hitting her arm lightly.
âOw! At least I helped you figure out what you actually feel about the whole thingâ she places her hands on your shoulders âcongratulations sister youâre gonna have a baby!â
âIâm gonna have a babyâ you repeat that to yourself. You still couldnât believe that this was happening as you placed a hand gently over your stomach
âAnd I'm going to be an aunt. Iâm so happy for you guysâ she hugs you tightly but soon your face drops as you pull away from her with a worried expression.
âWhat happened? Why again the gloomy face?â Vanessa nudges you.
âI donât want my baby to be part of this bloodshed. I have been trying to run away from this and here Iâm again pushing my child right into that same hell holeâ you rant with tears in your eyes.
âI think you need to first talk to Tom and then make a decision. You understand?â you nod âeverything will be fine donât worryâ she pulls you in her embrace comforting you.
It was almost a week that you got to know you were pregnant but still you couldnât break the news to Tom, you just didnât have the nerves to do it yet.
****
You stood by the mirror glancing at your reflection though there wasnât a visible bump but you still rubbed your hand over your belly. The thought of a life growing inside made your heart swell with warmth. Somehow you felt more livelier than you have ever been a certain glow emanating through your features. Maybe this is what people meant by pregnancy glow. You felt happy and content from inside out, you felt complete as if you had found the missing piece of your life. But you still had to tell Tom and the only person you could think of for some advice was your mom as you finally called her.
âHi sweetieâ your motherâs sweet voice comes from the other end.
âHey momâ
âSo what reminds my daughter about her old mother?â she snickers.
âMom! you really think that I called for another favorâ you grimace.
âWell you don't call much for me to think otherwiseâ
âC'mon mom you know my situation with dadâ
âYeah, yeah I'm just messing with you now, whatâs the matter? you sound stressedâ she observed.
âI... just really miss youâ you sigh
âSweetie, is everything alright?â she asks with concern.
âYeah just wanted to hear your voice thatâs allâ
âI'm your mother Y/N, I can totally feel that something is bothering my little girl?â
âMom, can I ask you something?â you say taking a deep breath.
âAnything honeyâ
âWere you scared when you first came to know that you were pregnant with me?â
âWhat?â
âI mean to say that I was totally unplanned and for my sake you had to marry that man so were you scared thinking about what your future will be in a crime family?â
âWell honestly I had little choice in that matter. I was stuck in the middle of the rivalry so in order to keep you safe I married him. But honey the day I held you in my arms all my fears went away. The only thing I know is that I can spend the rest of my life looking at you. You were never a mistake you were the best gift given to meâ
âThat's nice to hearâ you smile
âBut why after so many years you are bringing this up?â
âNothing I just have somethings in my mind going on right now and it feels a lotâ you try to shrug it off.
âSweetie, what are you hiding from me?â she prods.
âNothing mom I swear!â you exclaim.
âI know very well what this ânothing momâ means c'mon tell meâ
âWell I'm pregnantâ you inform as you hear her gasp.
âWhat?! Oh my god I can't believe my ears, is this really true? This isnât a prank right? Like you used to do when you were littleâ
âNo mom it isnât a prankâ you reassure her lightly chuckling.
âOh god I'm so happy for you honey. My little girl is going to be a mom herself? When did she grow so big?â she shrieks eyes welling up in happiness âDoes Tom know?â
âNot yetâ you inform.
âNot yet? Why what's wrong? Does he not want it?â
âNo itâs nothing like that⌠actually I myself donât know. This just happened so suddenly though I was thrilled initially but now Iâm worried actually scared I-I don't think I will be a good mother. I mean my life is already a mess. I don't want to give this life to my child. They don't deserve thisâ
âListen to me Y/N no one is perfect even I made mistakes too and thatâs how we learn. How much ever you want to plan your life Y/N, it will always have a way of surprising you with unexpected things that will make you happier than you originally plannedâ she makes you understand âTom is a nice guy Iâm sure heâll always be by your side. And I know my girl too and how much strong she is you have got this Y/N just believe in yourself and Tomâ
âThanks mom really needed to hear this from youâ
âAnytime honey now take some rest and then tell everything to Tom, speak to you soon, love youâ
âLove you too momâ you end the call feeling lighthearted as if a weight has been lifted off your chest. You grew up in a very dysfunctional family which made you yearn for a perfect happy family and when you have finally got it youâre not going to let anything mess it up at any cost.
****
The basement of your mansion was kind of Tomâs personal hell. He had particularly made it to held people captive for whoever dared to cross him and torture them to death. You were actually never allowed down there but today you got to join him. As you approached the room in the basement you heard screams and groans of a man in pain. Tom opened the door and you both stepped inside to find Ethan tied up in a chair beaten mercilessly barely conscious groaning in pain. His body was pale and face bruised with a black eye, nose bleeding, jaw swollen from the right temple down the cheek. Harrison was standing in front of him in a black tank top and jeans all worked up heaving in anger as you noticed his bloody knuckles. Two other lackeys were also present to help him with the interrogation.
âHaz anything so far?â Tom asks, lighting up a cigarette.
âNothing till now this bastard won't speak upâ he mutters, grabbing a fistful of Ethanâs silky black hair and tugging it harshly. Tom stalks towards him and bents down blowing the smoke on his face
âWell mate you have to speak up some or the other timeâ he smirks with a condescending tone.
âOver my dead bodyâ Ethan grits under his teeth glaring at him.
âSooner or later you are gonna end up dead anyways but not before you tell us everything you know about the rest of the viper gangâ
âYou think you can torture me to disclose everythingâ he snickers weakly ânah you have got the wrong man dude. You gotta do lot more than thisâ
âYou know what Ethan? I'm not good with patience so the sooner you speak up the sooner you get your sweet deathâ
âAnd I think Iâve got the time of the worldâ he laughs tauntingly âwhy donât you ask your wife to do it? Maybe she can seduce everything out of me like the pathetic whore she isâ he slurs at you with a mocking tone. Tom clenches his jaw as his hands balled into tight fists and in no time he lands a punch right at his jugular as he coughs up blood.
âWatch your bloody mouth!â Tom growls, grabbing him by his collar âyou really donât know how tempted I am to cut you into pieces one by one as I watch you slowly bleed to deathâ he mutters, looking at him with malice in his eyes.
The scene in front of you wasnât that pleasant though youâre used to it but with the raging pregnancy hormones everything seemed heightened for you. The room began to feel stuffy as you found it difficult to breathe adding to that the raunchy putrid smell of blood mixed with the smell of nicotine in the room swept through your nose which made your stomach churn and you tasted bile. The urge to throw up grew strong for you to hold it any longer. You grabbed your mouth, letting out a muffled "excuse me" you ran upstairs to your room.
âY/N?â Tom lets go of Ethan and calls you back worriedly as everyoneâs attention turns to you.
âYou go check I can handle thisâ Harrison assures exchanging glances with Tom as he nodded and sprinted off to your bedroom. He finds the bathroom locked as he hears gagging noises from inside.
âY/N, love you alright?â He knocks on the door
âYeah I'm fineâ you answer before throwing up again. When you were sure that thereâs nothing left for you to throw up you stepped out of the bathroom face flushed and exhausted. Tom hastily went to hold your hand.
âOh my god are you ok?â he gasps lightly
âYes Tom Iâm fine donât worryâ you tell him
âYou don't look fine to meâ he drapes a hand around your shoulders and slowly walks you towards the bed and makes you sit down.
âTom it's okâ
âY/N we need to go see a doctor nowâ he insists.
âNo, no itâs fine a little rest will be enough for meâ
âIâm not listening to anything, wait I-Iâm calling the doctor at home onlyâ he fumbles pulling out his phone from his pocket to make a call.
âTom, relax! It's totally normal in the first months of pregnancyâ you exclaim
âWhat?!â Tom frowns as your eyes go wide realizing your slip up  âDid you just say pregnancy?â he reiterates.
âYesâ you sigh standing up âI'm pregnantâŚ.with our childâ you reveal placing your hand over your belly and Tomâs expression changed into a mix of shock and happiness.
âWhat? You're serious? You-you aren't kidding right?â
âDo I seem to be in the state of joking?â you raise your eyebrows unamused.
âYeah, yeah rightâ he mumbles to himself as he processes the news and soon after excitement takes over him âOh god Y/N this is such great news!â He lifts you up and does a little spin.
âOh my god Tom put me down!â you squeal
âOh Iâm sorryâ he puts you down âIâm just so excited. When did you get to know?â
âA week agoâ you said meekly.
âAnd you didn't tell me? Why?â you felt a little intimidated under his questioning gaze. Even before you could say something he made his own assumption.
âWait, you don't want this, is that why?â he looks at you with dreaded eyes
âNo, No, no that's not what it is?â you shake your head vigorously in disapproval âyou have got it all wrongâ
âThen what is it Y/N?â he asks you softly.
âIt's actually the opposite. I was just scared as it was totally unplanned and with all this going on with my father you are already tensed. I wasnât sure how you would reactâ you rambled.
âOh darlingâ he breathes out cupping your face gently with his broad hands âyou don't know today you have made me the happiest man on this fucking world. This is everything I wanted honey. You, me and our perfect little happy familyâ you smiled at him as he carefully placed his hands on your belly.
âHow far are you? Is everything normal? Are you both ok?â he badgered you with questions.
âI... actually thought you would come with me on my first checkupâ you looked at him bashfully âit's-it's just I wanted you to be there with me if you aren't too busyâ
âOf course love, no work is more important than you and my little oneâ he beams with joy. Tom didnât waste a second to call at the hospital to schedule your appointment.
âMr. and Mrs. Hollandâ the nurse calls out
âYes?â you both respond standing up from your seats.
âDr. Martin is ready to see youâ she informs and leads you inside the room.
âPlease lie downâ she instructs and you follow by lying down on the examination chair while Tom sits on the chair beside you. The nurse then leaves the room and soon after the doctor arrives. She was a middle aged woman and looked quite experienced as she greeted you warmly.
âHello Mrs. Holland, Iâm Dr. Martinâ
âHello doctorâ you smiled courteously.
âSo how are you feeling today?â
âI feel fine, doctor, just a little bit tired...â you were quickly cut off by Tom
âNo doctor she got really sick and nauseous the other dayâ he puts forth his concern.
âMorning sickness is normal at this time Mr. Holland. Thereâs nothing to worry aboutâ she reassures him.
âSee?â you whisper with a knowing glare. Tom still wasnât convinced but let it go for now.
âReady to have a first look at your baby?â she asks cheerfully as you nod, lifting your shirt up. She rubbed the cool gel on your lower stomach while Tom held your hand tightly. Then she switches the monitor on and runs the tool on your belly. A hazy black and white image appears on the screen as the room fills with the rhythmic beeping of heartbeat. You and Tom stare at the monitor in awe.
âYou see right here?â the doctor points at the middle of the screen with a pen.
âAwww that's our babyâ you squeeze Tom's hand gently, a stray tear of joy rolls down your cheek. Tom was himself brimming with emotions, he knelt down and kissed your forehead with adoration as you noticed Londonâs most feared mobsterâs eyes wet.
âI can already pick the heartbeatsâ she reveals further as you both give her a puzzled look.
âHeartbeats? As in pluralâ Tom asked in shock.
âYeah two heartbeatsâ she confirms âyou're going to have twins Mrs. Hollandâ she adds. You gasped and smiled instantly feeling giddy and overwhelmed at the news.
âWe're gonna have twinsâ you looked up at him with a sparkle in your eyes.
âYes we are, loveâ a wide smile spread across his face âyou gotta admit I did a really good job in there thoughâ he whispers cockily and there he was back again in his usual self.
âTom!â you glared, squeezing his hand tightly.
âOw! Sorry, sorryâ he chuckles when you both were interrupted as Dr Martin began to speak again.
âYou are approximately 8 weeks and all parameters seem to be normal. The babies are growing fine, nothing to worry about. After 10 weeks we can identify the gendersâ she elucidates âBut you have to be extra careful as you are a new mom and with twins. Everything will be doubled for you so maintaining a proper diet, getting a good amount of sleep is very important. No heavy lifting and most importantly no stress at all as it directly affects the babies. The expectant mother should always be happyâ she advises.
âWeâll keep that in mind doc thank you so muchâ Tom acknowledges her.
âWell then Iâll see you on your next check up. Do you want the prints of the ultrasound?â
âYes pleaseâ you both said together.
âOk Iâll get it right awayâ
On the way back home the whole ride Tom kept rambling about how everything needed to be baby proofed and keep everything ready as if you are going to labor tomorrow itself. He even suggested that he shift your bedroom downstairs so that you donât have to climb up the stairs. You had to literally ask him to shut up and relax that you have seven more months to go.
****
You were about to get off the bed when Tom came in with a huge tray of food.
âGood morning loveâ he went and sat in front placing the tray on his lap as you looked at the amount of food which was double than you usually have.
âWhat's all this Tom?â you ask frowning.
âBreakfast in bedâ
âI can see that but is this a breakfast for a giant? What's with these enormous portions?â you pointed out.
âIf I may remind you, you are now eating for three so you have to eat accordinglyâ
âIn no way I'm going to eat that muchâ you stated firmly
âBut darlingâŚâ
âNope, not happening. I said no means noâ you shake your head side to side âI donât want to get fat because after a few Iâm gonna be all big and round anyways and then you wouldn't look at meâ your hormones getting the best of your insecurities as you rambled without much thinking.
âHey look at meâ he holds your chin between his index and thumb fingers making you look at him âyou seriously think that? You. will. always. be. the prettiest woman for me do you understand?â he asks as you nod âI bet you are going to be the most beautiful mom. Our kids are lucky to have a fearless, confident woman like you as their motherâ he says looking deep into your eyes âand I canât wait to see you all big and roundâ he adds smiling.
âBut Iâm still not gonna eat all of itâ
âOk you can eat as much you can no pressureâ he assures you as you take the fruit bowl in your hand and start to munch on the fruits one by one going into a deep thought.
âNow what is going on in that mind of yours?â he asks breaking you out of your thoughts.
âI think we should tell everyone I mean your mom and dad then the boys they would be thrilled to knowâ
âSo you wanna invite them over lunch?â he offers.
âYeah that will be really niceâ
****
Tomâs family arrived on time, after lunch all of you gathered in the living room as you and Tom stood in the middle. Everyone looked at you both expectantly though Tomâs dad had a disinterested look like all times.
âSorry for the short notice but this was kind of important and we were really excited to share this news with youâ you started.
âDid the police catch your father?â Harry asks out of nowhere
âThat would have been really nice but unfortunately noâ
âThen what is it?â Harrison asks impatiently.
âWellâŚ.weâre pregnantâ you both announce.
âWhat?!â everyone collectively gasped.
âIs it true?â Nikki looked between you two
âYes mumâ Tom confirms bashfully wrapping a hand around your waist and pulling you closer.
âOh my god this is such good newsâ she gets up to you and takes your hands in hers âIâm so happy for youâ she cradles the side of your face lovingly.
âFinally I'm going to get to see the face of my grandson, my heir. That's some good news after all huhâ Tomâs dad remarks with gruff in his voice as Nikki looks at you apologetically.
âActually dad, we're going to have twins,â Tom added.
âWell thatâs good, can't wait to meet my grandsons as theyâre going to take over our business in futureâ he said still emphasizing on having a son and honestly neither you nor Tom wanted your twins to join the mob.
âOh dear now thatâs something bigâ Nikki tries to lighten the mood âI remember when I was with Harry and Sam it was a lot of cravings and mood swings get ready for it Tomâ she snickers as she starts to give you some helpful tips to make everything a little easier for you as this is your first time.
âCongratulations broâ Harrison goes and hugs Tom tightly.
âThanks manâ
âSo Iâm gonna be the godfather I assume?â he asks.
âWell weâre yet to decide thatâ Tom snickers.
âWhat? Câmon man Iâm your best friend and Iâm going to be the godfather, thatâs final. I know Y/N is still angry at me which by the way is your fault but Iâll manage herâ he states confidently
âGood luck with that,â Tom laughs. Everyone left after sometime leaving you both all by yourselves in your house. Tom turns to smiling.
âWhat?â you ask.
âClose your eyes,â he says.
âWhy?â you look at him skeptically
âYou still donât trust me donât you?â
âNoâ you quip with a smirk.
âJust close your eyes please I have something to show to youâ he pouts with puppy eyes
âOkayâ you close your eyes âhappy?â
âYes now come with meâ
âWhere are you taking me?â you ask again.
âYouâll see soonâ he takes your hand and carefully guides you up the stairs. He brings you in front of a room with a large wooden door and slowly clicks the door open.
âNow open your eyesâ he whispers softly into your ears. You flutter your eyes open to be awestruck as you look inside the room. It was a nursery for your twins. You looked at everything with wide eyes, two twin cribs situated in the middle with cute plushies in it, the walls painted in soft pastel gender neutral shades, the lighting of the room well coordinated making it look warm and cozy. An armchair for you to take rest.
âHow is it?â Tom's voice breaks you out of your thoughts.
âTom, itâs-itâs beautifulâ you breathe out âbut when did you?â you looked at him quizzical
âWell as soon as you told me I called in some favors and had this room renovatedâ he reveals to you. Â
âIt's-it's really beautiful Tomâ you walked further into the room towards the cribs. Brushing your hand over the wooden railings you picked up the baby towel and rubbed it against your cheek feeling the soft texture.
âSorry I don't have much idea about all this stuff, I just tried my best to make it as comfortable for you three. If you want anything else just tell me I'll get it doneâ he says scratching the back of his neck.
âTom, it's perfect. You did a great job. I love itâ you take his hand and place it over your belly âand they are gonna love it tooâ you reassure him.
âI installed a music system tooâ he adds, turning on the music as he wraps his hands around your waist and sways gently to the music âit's said that listening to calming music helps during this timeâ
âSomeone has been busy reading I seeâ you tease.
âWell I just want to be there for you guysâ he shrugs nonchalantly.
âAww where did this softy come from? What did you do to my terrifying ruthless mobster husband?â you joke laughing.
âHaha very funnyâ he scoffs when you finally notice the lyrics of the song.
âIs this our wedding song?â you ask with a knowing smile.
âYepâ
I know you haven't made your mind up yet
But I would never do you wrong
I've known it from the moment that we met
No doubt in my mind where you belong
âDid I ever tell you how bloody gorgeous you looked that day? Just like an angel from the heavensâ
âOh shut up!â you blushed, hitting his chest playfully.
âWhat? Iâm seriousâ he laughs âcouldnât take my eyes off youâ
âWell you didnât look bad eitherâ you snicker resting your head on his chest âthat was such a long time ago isnât it?â
âHmmâ he hums
âIf anybody had told me that we will end up like this I would have never believed it at allâ you chuckle at the memories of the numerous heated arguments you had with each other. But now you find solace in each other's arms.
âWe have come a long wayâ he sighs as you feel him tense under you. Something was still bothering him, you knew it for sure.
âWanna sit down?â you posed
âNo itâs fine Iâm not tiredâ
âWell I am pregnant with twins you know hehâ he lets go of you and you go and sit on the floor near the cribs back resting against them. You pat on the empty spot beside you urging him to sit down too. He comes and sits down tilting his head on your shoulder as you run your fingers through his soft brown curls.
âI needed to say something to youâ he finally lets out.
âGo on Iâm listeningâ
âDon't mind my dad's words I don't care if they are girls or boys I just want you three to be healthy and safeâ he says as you go to kiss his forehead lovingly âIf you ask me personally I would be thrilled to have two mini Y/Nsâ he add.
âCareful what you wish for Mr. Holland you donât want thrice the trouble do you?â you chuckle.
âGladly Mrs. Hollandâ he laughs before turning all gloomy again âdo you think they would like me?â
âYou are their father Tom they would always love youâ
âBut what if they don't? What if they hate me when they come to what kind of man their dad is and everything he has done in his life?â he rambles.
âTom as the eldest son you didn't have a choice they would surely understandâ you try your best to make him understand.
âI don't know Y/N, you know my dad wasn't that present for us. It was just us and mum. And when time came all of a sudden I was accompanying him killing people and beating them to death. I want to change that I want to be there for them, for you in every step of your life and most importantly I donât want that life for themâ he rants out.
âHoney, you wanting to do things right has already made you the best father in the world. They are gonna be so proud of their daddyâ you cradle his face affectionately.
âYou know what, I'm going to stop doing all the illegal tradesâ he blurts out.
âWhat do you mean?â you frown at him.
âMeans no more shark loaning, extortion, gambling, contract killing everything, everything that's against the laws. I have already made a lot of enemiesâ he places a hand on your stomach âand I'm not gonna let them inherit this curse too. I need to cut off my ties with the underworldâ
âBut what about your dad I don't think he would agree with and your brothers then Harrison?â
âDad will be angry I'm sure of that but Harrison, Sam and Harry would understand. I want to make sure that you all are safe and no more hiding skeletons in the closetâ he gives you a determined look as you smile.
âDo whatever is necessary I'll always be there by your side cause I love youâ
âI love you tooâ he says back as your lips meet softly into a chaste kiss.
I could make you happy, make your dreams come true
Nothing that I wouldn't do
Go to the ends of the Earth for you
To make you feel my love
To make you feel my love
****
You woke up the next morning hearing some commotion outside your room. You could hear Tom yelling at his men judging by the tone he was furious.
âWhat?!â he was shocked âhow did this happen?! And what were you morons doing at that time?!â
âSir-sirâ the men stuttered in fear.
âI don't want to hear a fucking word from your mouths! Go and find him now or I'll kill youâ he threatens ânow get out of my sight!â meanwhile, you slip off the bed and put on your robe before stepping out of your room.
âTom is everything alrightâ you ask with a worried expression.
âOh I'm sorry darling did I wake you up? Itâs nothing, go back to sleep there will be no more disturbanceâ he pretends to act like everything is ok.
âTom, stop lying, what is it? What has happened?â you enquire.
âNothing darling I promiseâ he tries his best to convince you but you werenât buying any of it.
âYou're not gonna tell me? fine! I'll go and find out myselfâ you glower at him.
âY/N no wait youâ he stops you, catching hold of your hand.
âThen tell me what it is?â you demand with a serious look on your face.
âEthan escapedâ
..................................................................................
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the one where tsukishima and sakusa go too far with teasing their crush
anonymous asks: Hiiiiii I LOVE ur writing, and I was wondering if I could request the haikyuu boys (whoever u think fits best) who constantly tease (borderline insult) their crush, who one day just breaks down from their harsh words and say to them something along the lines of âwhy do you hate me?â, and how the the haikyuu boys react to that. If possible, end with something fluffy đĽş? (Like a confession) TYSMMM â¤ď¸â¤ď¸
a/n: hello! aww im glad you do :D wait i just realized you said to have the boys react to their crush saying why do you hate me- fuuuuu- ahem please forgive me for not reading the ask correctly ;w; i hope you still enjoy, nevertheless! and why did i write these long-
tw: mentions of self hate, kind of toxic behavior from sakusa
đđđđđđđđđđ . . . đ
 ➠heâs gonna be meaner the more he likes you
 ➠like if heâs only realized he developed a crush on you, heâd treat you the same, but if itâs been weeks and you havenât picked up the hint, heâs gonna be treating you like trash
 ➠you find him staring down at you with a dead eye stare
 âžÂ âwhatâs up, kei?â âyouâre so short you look like a toddlerâ â..iâm the average height for a high schooler though-â
 ➠his comments about your height never got to you, but then he started to target other regions of yourself
 ➠like heâd give a rude remark about a low score you got on the quiz, or how you always look dead inside well he isnât wrong
 ➠whenever he said something negative about you, you just shot back a counter and brushed it off
 ➠after a month of this going on, though, his words started to sting a bit
 âžÂ âhey kei-â âcanât you stay quiet for one second? itâs like you blab out words every chance you getâ
 ➠imagine your surprise, since it was unusual of him to comment about you talking
  ➠and one of your biggest insecurities is being annoying to others; you knew you tend to ramble about things, and a nagging voice in the back of your mind was always telling you about how people around you would get fed up with it
 ➠did tsukki mean to say it like that? of course not; he was meaning to have a bit of humor in his statement
 ➠he just said it in such an annoyed tone and way that it made it seem like he was bothered by you talking
 âžÂ â..sorry, kei. my mind wandered for a bit..â
 ➠you figured that he just had a bad day, and you were over it after a full night of sleep i could really use that
 ➠the voice inside your head grew louder, however, and tsukishimaâs comments didnât help at all
 âžÂ âstop bothering me about the homework; cant you see iâm busy? ugh, fine, take my notes if youâre that stupid-â
 âžÂ âif you want attention, listen to this playlist. it should satisfy your longing for voices; i need to study for a test nowâ
 ➠it got to the point where your mind was yelling at you about being a nuisance, and the final piece you needed to break just so happened to be during a practice match..
âYou did great, blocking them all, Tsukki!â You exclaimed, flashing him a grin as you pass him his water bottle and towel. In all honesty, you were forcing your smile so hard, it began to hurt your jaw.
âI couldâve blocked better if someone wasnât screaming the whole time,â the middle blocker said, wiping sweat off his forehead. You had been passing out water bottles to the other players, but you stopped dead in your tracks when his words hit your ears.
âY/N-chan..?â Shimizu asked worriedly, eyeing your expression that Tsukishima couldnât see.
The said blonde took off his goggled to switch them out with his regular glasses. âIt was just a practice match; getting hyped up wasnât exactly the brightest idea your mind conjured up.â Putting his glasses on after wiping the lenses, he looked down at you to see your tear ducts brimming with your sadness.
â..huh..?â You touched your face as a tear slid down your cheek. The other club members looked at you in concern. âAh- donât worry, everyone..â You wave your hands frantically as Daichi and Sugawara stare disapprovingly at Tsukishima. âItâs nothing to worry about. Iâm just gonna.. step outside for a bit.â You forced another smile out onto your face, then quickly scampered out of the gym.
The silence was so thick, you could slice it with a sword. Four-Eyes clearly didnât expect you to be that emotional over his statement, as his face was filled with a small mixture of concern and confusion. He ran after you, shoving his things in his hands to Yamaguchi and leaving the rest of the team shocked into standing still.
You had fled to a nearby bench, where you collapsed onto and shoved your face into your hands, desperately trying to stop your tears from shedding.
How stupid, you thought. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Look what you did; you made the team worry about you, and theyâre all going to resent you the moment they find out the reason behind your crying.
âY/N.â Jolted out of your thoughts, you looked up to find Tsukishima staring down at you with an unreadable expression.
Almost immediately, your face became flooded with streams of tears. You quickly looked down at your lap, fidgeting with your hands. âI-Iâm sorry for talking so much, Tsukki, Iâll try to keep my thoughts to myself-â
âShut up, Y/N.â He interrupted. You sighed and calmed your breathing.
âThis is what Iâm talking about, Tsukishima.â You muttered, putting your face in your hands once again. âIâm just a pest to everyone; anyone I encounter will automatically hate me-â
âStop insulting yourself, dammit.��� The middle blocker clenched his fists in anger. âYou arenât a nuisance, and you most definitely arenât one to be hated on- I know I can be a bit of an asshole sometimes, but did it really affect you that much-â
You slowly took your face out of your hands to see the blonde crouching, staring up at you. â'Did it really affect you that much?â What do you think?! God, it really seems like you donât consider my feelings at all, Tsukishima! Iâve been suspecting that you hate me, but why-?!â
Said boy quickly clasped your hands in his, surprising you greatly. His usual expressionless face was morphed into one in a slight panic. âItâs because I like you, idiot!â
Taking a moment to process his words, your whole face flushed a scarlet-red. âWhat?â
The tips of Tsukishimaâs ears were dusted with a soft coral-pink hue. âYou heard me. I wonât repeat myself.â He averted his eyes from yours, squeezing your hands in nervousness.
âI-â You were internally melting inside; who wouldâve thought the salty beanpole would like someone like you? âBut you would always push me to the side! Telling me you were busy and such!â
Tsukishima stared at you like you were the biggest dumbass in the world. âI gave you my notes because I knew you didnât have the energy to take them in class, and the playlist was a collection of songs I thought would suit you. Are you that dense?â
âWho are you calling dense?!â You replied hastily. âAnd for your information, I havenât given you my answer yet! Let go of my hands, and Iâll tell you, okay?â
The middle blocker leaned in close to your face with his dead eye gaze. âItâs an agreement or disagreement, Y/N. What is your response?â
You leaned back into the bench, but Tsukishima followed with your movements. âUm- I-â Your words crossed with each other, the lack of personal space making your head spin. âYes?â
Satisfied, the lamppost removed his hands from yours and flicked your forehead. âSimple as that, shortcake. If you want to freeze to death outside, thatâs fine by me.â He began to walk back to the gym.
âWha- Iâm not short!â You exclaimed, running after the four-eyes. âAlso, Iâm not the one whoâs been sweating profusely for the past hour, so speak for yourself!â
Tsukishima gently smiled as he heard you rapidly firing back at his comment. Looks like sheâs back to her usual self.
đđđđđđ . . . đ
 ⤠obviously heâs gonna be commenting about your hygiene 24/7
 ⤠the fact that heâs developed a crush on you doesnât help, either; it means that you should be extra clean if he were to date you
 ⤠and of course he has to remind you almost every hour of the day; whether it be by text or in person
 ⤠now, you didnât mind him checking up on you every couple of days, but every hour??
 ⤠youâre convinced that sakusa has had some sort of trauma in the past, fighting with germs ever since he was a child okay not really.. unless?
 ⤠he doesnât even do this to the other people heâs acquainted with; youâve asked koromi about it, and he says sakusa just sprays him with holy water a disinfecting solutionÂ
 ⤠now youâre confused as to why youâre getting special treatment from him, when you two arenât as close as him and his cousin
 ⤠so you personally went to his class to ask him about it
 â¤Â âhey kiyoomi, why do you remind me to be clean every hour that youâre awake?â âbecause you shouldnât have a single germ on you.â âbut itâs literally the same message every time; at least make it seem more interestingâ âcleaning yourself should be simple, not complicatedâ
 ⤠you got fed up with it as another week went by, which is understandable, since this clean freak was spamming your phone hour after hour without missing a single text
 ⤠the fact that sakusa was willing to put effort into reminding you about your hygiene was kind of sweet, but the same message every. single. damn. time. was annoying you like hell
 ⤠and when you tell him to stop and that you already know how to get rid of germs, he gave you a disgusted look
 ⤠this had to be one of the most nasty expressions he had ever made, because you stood paralyzed to the floor
 â¤Â âi have been reminding you for your own good, y/n. why donât you just appreciate what i do for you, instead of complain about it?â
 ⤠your mouth stayed shut, your tongue feeling as though it was glued to the top of your mouth
 â¤Â âdonât mention anything like this againâ
 ⤠you meekly nodded, and he strolled out the classroom
 ⤠the moment he was gone, you collapsed onto the floor out of fear, shivering as you replayed the scene again and again in your head
 ⤠the main question that circled your head was: why was he acting so controlling?
 ⤠the night after, you texted sakusa, and asked him to meet up with you at your favorite spot
 ⤠surprisingly, he complied. and you were waiting for awhile by the time he got there..
âSakusa, hi!â You greeted your friend with a small but warm smile. The ace frowned; it was unlike you to call him by his last name. In fact, it had been months since youâve said his name with such coldness in your voice.
â..why did you call me out here?â He questioned in a low tone.
Your eyes grew dark as you thought about what to say to him. âI wanted to talk to you about what happened yesterday. I feel as though we need to.â
Sakusaâs own eyes narrowed as you spoke each word. âAre you still going to complain about my reminders to you?â
Shaking your head, you stared at your feet while hugging your arms to your chest. âOf course not, I heard what you told me to do. I just.. wanted to know why you got so angry, is all.â
The jet-black haired boy stared down at you, furrowing his eyebrows as he tried to remember what specifically happened the day before. âI donât know what youâre remembering, Y/N, but I wasnât angry in the slightest. Are you sure you arenât thinking of another memory of yours?â
Your head snaps up when he said that he wasnât angry. âYes, Iâm very sure.â You firmly say. âMaybe you donât think you seemed angry, but you were downright furious. It was.. kind of terrifying.â
âAre you saying I was out of control yesterday?â
âNo, just..â You subconsciously hugged your arms tighter to your body, trying to make yourself as small as possible. â..intimidating.â
Sakusa tilted his head, his eyes narrowing. You found him intimidating? Just from a little conversation that happened because of youâre questioning ways?
âIâm tired, and Iâm sure you are, too,â you continued, not catching on that your friend was becoming annoyed with your talking. âWhich is why I want to end this quickly. Sakusa, I have a life, too. As much as I appreciate what you do for me, I can take care of myself without your help-â
âYouâre repeating the same words you stated yesterday, just in different phrasing.â The germaphobe harshly cut in. âI said this once, but I will say it again, for your sake. I am doing this for your own good-â
â-and I know whatâs good for me and what isnât, Sakusa!â You exclaimed, your arms no longer crossed. âI can make my own decisions! Iâm not some dumb little kid you have to look after-â
âY/N-â
â-so just drop this already! It doesnât help anyone; it doesnât help me, it doesnât help you-â
âY/N.â Sakusa lost all patience. He towered over you, his hands clenched tightly into fists. You slightly shrink at his actions, your arms up in defense. The ace didnât seem to notice your fear as he took a step forward. âYou are crawling with so many germs, I can practically see them all over you. You are in no condition to be deciding on your hygiene, when you canât even rid of the many dirt particles covering your skin.â He took another step forward, and you step back, unsure of what to do. Sakusa broke out of his anger when he heard a slight sob leave your lips.
âWhy do you hate me so much, Sakusa?!â You asked, pain laced into your voice. âIâm perfectly capable of not being dirty, canât you see?! Why canât you just leave me alone-â You used your sleeves to start wiping the tears away, although they doubled to replace the ones you removed.
The ace hesitantly enveloped you in a hug, making you break down even more.
âSakusa- no- youâre gonna get germs on you-â You stammered, resisting the temptation to bury your face into his chest.
â..I made you cry. I need to pay the consequences.â Said boy murmured, rubbing shapes onto your back. You continued to cry for a good 5 minutes, before slowly pushing him away.
â..thank you.â You sniffled. âI know consequences has nothing to do with that. Why did you-?â
âI like you, Y/N.â He cut you off, making your eyes widen. âThe reason why Iâd been constantly reminding you to wash up is because I thought I should date someone who was clean to the touch. That was wrong of me, so very wrong. I apologize, and itâs fine if you reject-â
You shut him up with a kiss to his mask. âAre you traumatized yet?â You asked, trying to crack a smile. âThatâs my revenge from yesterday.â
Sakusa blinked multiple times before realizing what you did. â..I guess I deserved that. So is that a yes..?â
You broke out into a beautiful, radiant smile this time, the moonlight making you glow even more than you already were. âOf course, Kiyoomi!â
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