#Fifth and final season alas!

[stomach-bugg09]

I just need everyone’s reaction to the reader graduating/going to college now in the modern day au

tags: @pinkhotdogsfr @bonnibuckets @liyahsocorro @wxnderingthoughts @itssiaaax @grierpilots @eywas-heir @historygeekqueen @missroro @hjkshshjkhklh

graduating ( sully!daughter modern headcanons )

jake

oh my goodness he is so proud of his girl

like obviously he knew she would graduate and leave, but still... it's such a big accomplishment that she made it through thirteen years of the american public school system

not only that, but she literally made it into one of her top five schools

even though it's far away

when she first got the acceptance letter, neytiri and him looked at each other and were just like "oh no," only because their baby girl would be so far away from them

when they went to visit the campus, they knew there was no way they could convince her to stay closer

didn't cry on the graduation day because he knew he had to stay positive for [y/n] since it was a big accomplishment ( plus neytiri was emotional enough for the both of them )

the day she moved out though... yikes !!

he was a wreck

suddenly he had this whole montage of the moment he first held her, dancing around the kitchen with her when she was a toddler, taking her on her first rollercoaster, her fifth grade graduation, taking pictures with her at her eighth grade dance, all of it crashed down in him at once

dropping her off hurt

so much

but nothing could diminish how proud her was that he was [y/n]'s father

neytiri

oh my goodness gracious

you know i'm about to rant about how emotional and stressful this mama bear was

she was so confusing because, while she dreaded the moment her daughter would leave them, she also wanted everything to be perfect

she wanted [y/n] to have the best senior night for sports / as the lacrosse team manager, the best senior prom, the best lady birthday while living with them, the best senior year

it was what her daughter deserved

the graduation party was amazing, but behind the scenes it was extremely stressful

lo'ak thinks he's traumatized from the entire week leading up to it

but it still ended up perfect with appearances from family members from across the country

uncle tsu'tey even showed up !!

neytiri put so much work in because she wanted the best for [y/n]

but after that graduation, it was the final moments of her enjoying the presence of her eldest child

the summer was interesting because, while [y/n] wanted to spend the last moments with her friends, with fali...

neytiri wanted [y/n] to herself

but she knew she couldn't do that

so she cherished the moments that she did have !!

they had some really epic board game nights over the summer

it was really dangerous and competitive though

but, for some weird reason, by the time they reached the date in which [y/n] moved out

neytiri was ready to let her go

she was sad, sure, but she was also so extremely excited for her daughter to adventure a world beyond her own, so excited for her daughter to make her name known

she can't wait to see what her daughter does in the world

neteyam

part of him doesn't really... realize that she's gonna leave

like he knows, but he doesn't know

for the majority of the year, he just treats it like the year before

there's nothing to make it weird or a big deal, it's just another normal year

it's only the end, as they near graduation, that he starts to panic

over the course of the last few years, he started making a box of memories being like, "oh, i'll give these to her when she graduates. that's going to be in like, a million years!" and alas...

as they get closer and closer to the moment in which he has to give her the box, he gets sad staring at it

sometimes he'll just sit there and look through, at one point thinking, "maybe i should just keep it for myself..."

but, one night at a pre-season lacrosse practice, he sees [y/n] sprinting towards him and fali

it's when she screams that she made it into her dream school that he knows he has to give it to her

( he'll never forget that night )

graduation is sad, but it's more happy than it tearworthy

they have the entire summer ahead of them, anyway! why ruin it now!

over the summer, they spend a good amount of time together, continuing to take their therapy drives as they scream music with the windows down

all neteyam can think is, "i'll miss this."

and all [y/n] can think is, "i'll miss him."

move out day is super rough

originally, neteyam was gonna fight tears and hold them in... but when he saw his big sister's sad eyes... the water works were heavy that day

nevertheless, it all just makes for an amazing time when she visits

kiri

aw man, this one is gonna be super bittersweet

they're so close, especially being the two oldest girls - they especially bonded in their childhood because they had to deal with neteyam together, and then eventually lo'ak

tuk came later, of course, but that was a good bit into their childhood

but, either way, she grew up looking up to her big sister

she wanted to be just like her

and eventually, when neteyam and kiri finally reached freshman year, they finally were able to get past the "annoying sibling" stage and just be best friends

sure, they hung out with different groups of people, but they were just happy with each other

always

and that's the only part that actually mattered to either of them

kiri isn't big on being emotional

but every time, over the past year, that kiri thought of her big sister leaving

she would get extremely sad

she refused to listen to any sort of bittersweet song with her sister ( ex. rivers and roads, landslide, vienna, etc. )

she keeps trying to be excited for [y/n] but she just keeps getting sad

kiri was eerily silent on the day of graduation, she honestly only really talked to tuk the whole day

when her big sister confronted her that night, kiri burst into tears in [y/n]'s arms and just spewed everything out

and that was when [y/n] promised, despite how far they were, despite her not being at home anymore

she would always pick up the phone when kiri called and she would not hesitate to book a flight home if kiri needed it

she was here for her baby siblings, even when she was gone

and that made kiri feel the tiniest bit better

although she was still a complete sobbing mess on move-out day, but that was more bittersweet than it was sad

lo'ak

lo'ak didn't know he was so attached to his big sister until she started applying to colleges

he began to keep tabs, noting exactly where she wanted to go, her chances of going to far away school, all that stuff

of course he wanted her to go to her dream school, but he also panicked

what if she was in danger one day? what if she was dying and she had two hours left to live and they missed the time slot because of airport traffic?

his sister assured that would never happen, but lo'ak still had an entire plan just in case it did

it was an extremely odd thing to have his sister leave after being in high school with her for only one year

it was gonna feel particularly emptier next year when she wasn't teasing him every time he hung out with tsireya at school

it was gonna be extremely sad when he didn't get anymore doordash or uber eats

but the graduation dinner she picked made it worth it, he supposes

she chose some really good food

he was sad, but he was just as excited for his time to leave so he couldn't blame her

he was more worried about just not seeing her

she's always been a constant in his life, so it's really weird when she suddenly... stops

they still keep their snapchat streak even after she leaves

tuk

ahh this poor baby

she's like a little bit clueless about it all ?? she hears her family talking about her big sister leaving, and she's like, "oh, that's gonna take forever to get here."

time just moves a little faster than anyone expected

she's more excited and happy than dad just because her sister seems so happy about it all

tuk doesn't really understand what it means

she doesn't quite get that [y/n] is actually leaving them

so, while graduation is fun and exciting, move out day is a wake up call for this baby sister

absolutely losing her mind as she hugs her sister goodbye

tears and snot all over

including on [y/n]'s shoulder after she picked her up and hugged her

will steal one of her siblings' phones and text or call her sister like all the time

[lesbianlotties]

ronance prompt: "friends kiss each other all the time, right?"

oh look it's like i had a vision of season 5!

The first kiss was a mistake, and Robin’s fault, not that she regretted it. One warm afternoon, after Nancy gave her a ride home, Robin leaned across the car toward her and she swears she aimed for Nancy’s cheek, but Nancy turned her head at the worst - best - possible moment, and just like that, Robin and Nancy kissed for the first time. As much as Robin tried to deny it during her worst moments of self-doubt, the fact that the accidental kiss had lasted a second too long without either of them pulling back remained. After the event, Robin had apologized profusely in a most likely unintelligible rant and stumbled out of the car, literally stumbled, as in, she totally ended up on the pavement. But she eventually made it inside her house, where she was free to overthink till she felt on the brink of death and then Nancy called her that night to talk as they usually did, no mention of the kiss.

The second time was inevitable. There were many good things about being friends with someone equally as smart but in a totally different direction. They challenged each other, encouraged one another to think outside the box, to turn the box upside down with questions, or to absolutely destroy the box in question until it could be assembled back again in a way that solved the mystery at hand. This, however, didn’t come without a price. As it had been obvious since their first time working together at the library, their methods often clashed. Instead of learning how to avoid these arguments as time went by, the arguing only escalated more easily, since they were comfortable with each other, knowledgeable about exactly which buttons to push without pushing too hard, and able to forgive and forget each other in the blink of an eye. Except for the time when they were arguing about something Robin can’t bring herself to remember anymore, and in the heat of the moment they ended up standing so close together that the only viable resolution to the argument had been for Robin to lean down and Nancy to lean up and kiss each other. Brief. Still could be called accidental. Still mind-blowing.

The third kiss? Well, Robin couldn’t stop rambling about one subject or another, and apparently, Nancy couldn’t figure out any other way to get her to shut up. The fourth kiss? After some grueling weeks of Nancy teaching Robin how to drive, when Robin finally got her license she simply could not not kiss Nancy as a thank you, right? Things changed after the fifth kiss though. The two girls were hanging out in Nancy’s bedroom, talking about nothing and everything, teasing each other about their past relationships, carefully not outright mentioning the fact that they were both single, and Robin simply had to know if she was a better kisser than Steve. No big deal, just a matter of pride. The problem, Nancy pointed out, was that she’d kissed Steve much more than a few pecks on the lips. Alas, Robin and Nancy entered the making out with each other territory. Probably helped by the fact that Nancy confirmed that yes, Robin was the better kisser.

After a few weeks of making out with Nancy as often as humanly possible, Robin finally mustered up the courage to ask Steve, “Hey, friends kiss each other all the time, right?”

Steve snorted when he heard her question. “Have we ever kissed?” he asked right back at her.

“Oh shit,” Robin gasped, and started picking up her things, making mostly a mess. “I gotta go. I have to talk to Nancy.”

“Wait,” Steve frowned, following Robin’s hasty movement with his eyes, “Does that mean- Wait. Nancy?! Robin are you-”

“Yeah, I think we’re dating now? I might love her? I don’t know but I’m going to find out right the fuck now. Okay, bye Steve!”

[josiesaltzmanstyle]

Hope Is Not the Goal

Episode 4 features one of my favorite Josie outfits in the entire show, so yay!

Also, hi. It's been forever. Whoops!

First off, accessories, since they're the most visible in her first appearances. These gold, threaded earrings with gold bars hanging down are some of my favorite we've seen Josie in so far! Unfortunately, I can't find the original pair, but these are a handmade pair on Poshmark, and they seem like a close approximation.

I find this pair especially notable because this is the first time Josie's wearing dangling earrings, which, so far, have been more of Lizzie's thing. This episode is one of firsts, though. More on that later.

Josie, as she is wont to do, is also sporting a detachable, white, ruffled collar. While it's not an accessory I would normally pick, I think it works well to show off Josie's somewhat preppy and reserved nature, even as she's experimenting a little more with style this episode.

I love her hair this episode, too! It's still stylistically curled, but just a shade looser than it has been. It's giving princess waves, instead of studious coils. Pictured above, we can see on her right, she's pinned part of it back, following the trend this early first season has established of Josie pulling her hair from her forehead. Interestingly, though, she keeps the other side unpinned and lets it fall to frame her face. I like this look a lot more than what she has been doing with her hair, and Kaylee Kaneshiro pulls it off really well.

Honestly, one reason it took me so long to update was because I was so frustrated I couldn’t find this Fifth the Label top. I can mostly move on when I can’t find something, but I love this outfit so much. As I was diving back into this project, I was about to give up when I finally found it? I feel like I am on drugs.

It's the first, though certainly not the last, crop top we see Josie in! So far, this season, she's been pretty buttoned up. Crop tops won't be unusual fare for Josie down the line, but in season one, it certainly stands out. She's clearly experimenting in this episode, maybe a little because Rafael is back, maybe a little because this episode is one of the first about Josie coming into her own as she stands up to her father at the end with regards to her perspective that the school needs to teach defensive magic. Josie's whole arc is threaded with this theme of Josie coming into her own and learning (messily) to advocate what she needs and believes in. Maybe it seems small, but I personally don't think the show is shy about using style to build character, perhaps especially with Josie, who, IMHO, uses it to perform quite a lot.

The cropped sweater is a bright red and looks extremely soft in that Depop picture (alas, the only place I could find it), with yellow trim above the end of the sleeves and at the hem. Both are also almost scalloped? But the valleys are slightly deeper and longer and sharper, like teeth.

It’s paired, of course, with a plaid, navy skirt—but I don’t believe it’s her regular school skirt? It’s a little more high-waisted, has a little more volume, and has some sort of zipper/buckle accessory attached? The closest thing I can find is this French Toast skirt, though it doesn't look like it would sit as high as it does on Josie.

Regardless, it’s a Whole Look (TM.)

I belieeeve she’s wearing the same yellow Aldos she wore with her yellow sweater in 1.01! Now, they're in conversation with the yellow trim on her sweater. Love a repeat item, proving her closet is more relatable than meets the eye. It also shows her skill, once again, in coordinating color very well! It reminds me a bit of how she coordinated her first outfit in 1.01, though this look is notably less buttoned-up and preppy. She does pair it with black knee-high socks, though, so that's not to say there's no preppy involved.

Red and yellow, so far, are definitely stacking up as her colors this season.

This outfit manages to be well-coordinated, trendy if a little quirky, and still lets her polished style shine through. It's certainly my favorite outfit we've seen her in so far, and it's probably in my top 5 Josie looks altogether.

We see so little of this look, I fully forgot about it until I was scanning through the episode. Yet I am pretty positive the top is this light blue cable-knit J. Crew sweater, and I think we might get some more appearances of it later on? It's pretty simple and works well with what we've seen Josie in already, as sweaters are her bread and butter this season. It's a relatively simple look in comparison to a lot of her other outfits this season, but that actually makes sense, as it's what she's changed into after she, Hope, and Lizzie get monster goop exploded all over them.

I couldn't get a good shot of them, but she also opted for simple black shorts. I can't be sure, but I think they might be the shorts she wore while serving volunteer detention in 1.03! We don't get a super great look at them, though. Her earrings are also still present, so they must have remained goop-free.

Pretty sure she’s sporting this red and white J. Crew pajama set, though the lighting makes it skew a bit blue/green. The collar (and sleeves and hem of the shorts, though those were harder to snap a picture of it) has a red trim, paralleling the yellow trim of her day sweater. We love a girl who's on theme. (She's also so busy working on her offensive magic proposal and then lightly telling her father off that she hasn't taken her earrings out for bed yet. #ambitious queen.) For some reason, I'm also noticing her makeup more than I have been so far. Maybe her eyeshadow is a bit darker, her lips a bit fuller? Hm. Much to think on.

It should come as no surprise that this was my favorite outfit:

It's very experimental, thus far, for Josie, yet still incorporates all the things that have marked her style so far! Definitely an iconic look.

[usagirotten]

The final season of Disenchantment is hitting your screens this September

The streaming giant on Tuesday announced that the animated comedy from The Simpsons creator Matt Groening has been renewed for its fifth — and final — season, which will debut Sept. 1. The series initially landed on Netflix with a 20-episode order before being renewed in 2018 for a second batch of 20 installments. Rather than calling each run of 10 episodes a season, Netflix has split the orders and billed each batch as a “part,” a tactic many networks and streamers employ to avoid standard pay raises for creatives and stars. The fifth “part” will conclude with another 10 episodes. The Matt Groening-created series debuted in 2018 with a twenty-episode first season that was divided into two ten-episode sections. The second season was also in two parts, meaning that the upcoming episodes are both season three and part five, depending on how you want to slice it.  The teaser for the season, above, gives a little summary of the hijinks so far, and just a taste of what’s to come. Here’s the synopsis:   It all endeth here. The misadventures of hard-hitting, hard-drinking Queen Bean (Jacobson), her feisty elf companion Elfo (Faxon) and her personal demon Luci (Andre) culminate in an epic battle for Dreamland in the fifth and final installment of Matt Groening’s comedy fantasy series Disenchantment. To save Dreamland from Queen Dagmar’s (Horgan) wicked rule, Bean must vanquish her mother and outrun a prophecy that foretells she will kill someone she loves. The stakes are as high as ever as our heroes face Satan, a headless corpse, an evil stientist and most terrifying of all- their true destiny. Those parenthetical last names refer to Abbi Jacobson, Nat Faxon, Eric Andre, and Sharon Horgan; the cast also includes John DiMaggio, Tress MacNeille, Richard Ayoade, Matt Berry, Noel Fielding, Meredith Hagner, David Herman, Maurice LaMarche, Lucy Montgomery, and Billy West. When the series was first announced, in 2017, Groening said, “Disenchantment will be about life and death, love and sex, and how to keep laughing in a world full of suffering and idiots, despite what the elders and wizards and other jerks tell you.” The laughter is coming to an end, at least for now; the world full of suffering and idiot, alas, remains. Disenchantment returns for its final ten episodes on September 1st. Read the full article

[crowdvscritic]

round up // APRIL 23

A selection of words capturing my April pop culture experiences:

Museum

Podcast

Amy Sherman-Palladino

Muppets

Vampire

Nike

American Girl dolls

Read on for everything that brought me joy this month!

April Crowd-Pleasers

1. Renfield (2023)

Did I write a review of Renfield, an ode to the two Nic(k)s, or analysis of the Great Resignation? Yes, yes, and yes. Read whatever, in fact, I wrote at ZekeFilm. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 7/10

2. SNL Round Up

Whether they’re spoofing my childhood toys, my young adulthood wedding commitments, or my love for the Jonas Brothers, the crew in Studio 8H has been keeping me laughing this Spring.

“Southwest Airlines Announcement” (4811 with Michael B. Jordan) 

“The Big Hollywood Quiz” (4812 with Pedro Pascal) - A great example of how no one watches the same things anymore

“Waking Up” (4812)

“Protective Mom” (4812)

“Lisa From Temecula” (4812)

“American Girl Café” (4814 with Travis Kelce)

“Bridesmaid Cult Documentary” (4816 with Quinta Brunson) - I feel seen

"Weekend Update: Co-Worker Who's Extremely Busy Doing Seemingly Nothing on Returning to the Office” (4817 with Molly Shannon) - I feel attacked

“Sally O'Malley: Jonas Brothers” (4817)

“American Girl Doll Movie Trailer” (4818 with Ana de Armas)

3. Descanso Gardens

Because I can’t resist a botanical garden! Gardens are becoming a go-to attraction for me on vacations, and the Descanso Gardens in Los Angeles did not disappoint. The day we went was not too crowded but was impressive enough to earn a huge crowd—a hidden gem for LA tourists!

4. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Panel at PaleyFest

The gardens were lovely, but there were two other attractions that were the real reason for my visit to Los Angeles. The first was PaleyFest to see Amy Sherman-Palladino, Daniel Palladino, and the cast of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel! Just before the fifth and final season started on Amazon Prime, we heard Alex Borstein and Rachel Brosnahan share their mourning process for the show’s ending, Caroline Aaron and Michael Zegen reflect on what these roles have meant to them, and Tony Shalhoub crack up the crowd. (And who knew I would be so starstruck by him? When he came on stage I wanted to scream, “YOU WERE SO GOOD IN GALAXY QUEST!”) Check out SO IT’S A SHOW’s Instagram for more highlights from when my podcast co-host Kyla and I visited the Dolby Theatre (home of the Oscars!).

4. John Mulaney: Baby J (2023)

A full year ago I saw John Mulaney on his From Scratch tour, and now you can enjoy the set at home. His joke about not being interested in science “from magnets to ducks” did not make the cut (and alas now I can’t remember the setup for that punchline), but the other 90% of a show that made me laugh so hard I cried is preserved forever.

5. The Muppets. (2015-16)

Why did this gem only last 16 episodes? In this one-season single-cam sitcom, the Muppets are working on Late Night with Miss Piggy, a setting that could’ve produced comedy gold for years. With the frazzled Kermit producing, the Electric Mayhem as the in-studio band, and celebrity guests through the felt nose, I’m glad I checked out these 16 eps even though they ended on a cliffhanger. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like for Miss Piggy to date Josh Groban or to hold grudges against every blonde actress in Hollywood, you won’t want to miss it either.

7. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. (2023)

Special in the way that the best coming-of-age movies are. I suspect Margaret’s insecurities about boys, bras, and besties will feel relatable to Gens Z and Alpha if for no other reason than this movie’s depiction felt scarily accurate to my own experience in the mid-2000s. I promise I will never start a review with the story of my first period ever again! At least, probably—at the rate we're going, it will never be apropos again. Read the full review at ZekeFilm. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 9/10

April Critic Picks

1. AIR (2023)

Is it controversial to say Matt and Ben’s collabs only get better? If we're playing Greatest/Best/Favorite, this might be my new ranking:

Greatest: Good Will Hunting

Best: The Last Duel

Favorite: AIR

Read my full review for ZekeFilm. Crowd: 9.5/10 // Critic: 9/10

2. The Academy Museum

The other reason I went out to Los Angeles: After years of pandemic-caused delays, I finally made it to the Academy Museum! Six floors of movie and Oscars history and memorabilia? You know I’m in my happy place, but casual movie fans will find something for them, too. Some of my favorite exhibits included the several-stories high Mount Rushmore backdrop used in North by Northwest, the gallery that used The Godfather to show each element of filmmaking, and the pianos from Casablanca. Fanny’s (named for Barbra Streisand’s character in Funny Girl) serves exceptional museum food, and I learned about deep cut filmmakers and movements I was only vaguely familiar with before I went. I’d give the Academy a gold statue for museum execution if I could!

3. Good Reads

A miscellaneous round up of good stuff I’ve read lately…

Final thoughts on 2022 Awards Season:

“How Avatar: The Way of Water Can Make $2 Billion and Still Feel Irrelevant,” Vox.com (2023)

“How Did We Let the Golden Globes Back In?” LATimes.com (2022)

Unexpected responses to Cocaine Bear:

“An Attempt to Define the ‘Good for Her’ Cinematic Universe,” Vulture.com (2023)

“The Case for Cocaine Bears,” Slate.com (2023)

Glitches in the Sports Industry Matrix:

“America’s Bad Bet on Expanding Legal Sports Gambling,” Vox.com (2023)

“Will Damar Hamlin’s Injury Change the NFL? Why a Safer Game Could Turn Away Fans,” LATimes.com (2023)

Watching trends that need to be fixed:

“Mumbling Actors, Bad Speakers or Lazy Listeners? Why Everyone is Watching TV With Subtitles On,” TheGuardian.com (2023)

“Television Is Going Exactly the Wrong Direction. I Know the Solution.” Slate.com (2023)

Explorations of our malaise at work:

“How to Care Less About Work,” TheAtlantic.com (2021)

“The Age of the Crisis of Work,” Harpers.org (2023)

All the ways—okay, just some of the way—social media is on the struggle bus right now:

“Why Every App Now Feels Like TikTok, but Worse,” NYMag.com (2023)

“How Elon Musk Turned the Blue Check Mark Into a Scarlet Letter,” Slate.com (2023)

“Commentary: If Twitter Finally Dies, Where Do We Find the Smart People?” LATimes.com (2023)

And even more miscellaneous good reads: 

“You’ll Feel Better if You Go Outside,” NewYorker.com (2021)

“The Oral History of Helm’s Deep,” Inverse.com (2022)

“I’ve Had It With Stunt Ice Cream Flavors,” Eater.com (2023)

“Clothes Make the Con Man,” NYTimes.com (2023)

“Hailey Bieber, Selena Gomez, and the Easter Egg-ification of the Hollywood Feud,” Vox.com (2023)

“Why Are TV Writers So Miserable?” NewYorker.com (2023)

4. Current Exhibits at the St. Louis Art Museum

My membership to the SLAM always pays off. In April I indulged in two special exhibits:

The Age of Armor, which showcases the history of armor and battle gear with an emphasis on suits of armor. The galleries did a great job explaining how the armor functioned and provided model pieces to try yourself, but you know my favorite part was the Black Panther and Star Wars costumes at the end!

Monet/Mitchell: Painting the French Landscape compares the work of Claude Monet and American expat Joan Mitchell, and it brought me back to my magical trip to Giverny last summer! 

5. The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939)

Sumptous costumes and sets, Bette Davis doing the most acting, and Errol Flynn at his handsomest. This Queen Elizabeth I costume drama from Michael Curtiz is maximalist in aesthetic and romantic at its heart. Crowd: 7/10 // Critic: 9/10

6. Under the Umbrella: A Little Women Podcast (2023-)

Little Women superfans unite! Kate and Kelsey (friends and both teachers) are analyzing the book and film versions from every angle, and if you love the March sisters, Louisa May Alcott, or Greta Gerwig, they are going to be your new best friends. 

7. Just Like Us: The Tabloids That Changed America (2022)

Last spring the Ringer Dish podcast did a deep dive into the ‘00s tabloids and their obsession with Brangelina, Bennifer, and ‘90s child stars gone wild—so basically everything I obsessed over in middle school. Bottom line: They probably didn’t make our world better, but those mags (and emerging online blogs and reality TV) sure tapped into parts of our brains that made them addictive. This eight-episode series challenges any assumption we have about about celebrity gossip being harmless—or frivolous.

Until May’s Round Up…

In spite of the current state of things, I’m still tweeting in denial as @tblake24. Come join me until this platform burns to the ground!

If you want real-time updates on what I’m watching and loving, you can also find me as @tblake24 on Letterboxd. 

Photo credits: Good Reads, Under the Umbrella, Just Like Us. Descanso Gardens, PaleyFest, Academy Museum, and SLAM my own. All other IMDb.com. 

[terrainofheartfelt]

What fic do you really want to write but have been struggling to put any words down with?

How much time do you have? Lol but really I’ve been feeling that way over pretty much everything I’ve tried to write lately, life, both personal and professional, has really been hanging heavy on my head and shoulders so not much writing has gotten accomplished. Like, I thought I would have finished all the prompts in my inbox by now rip. 

So there’s….a few weeks back I mentioned that I wanted to write/was trying to write a s5 au in which to get away from the toxic men in her love life Blair convinces Dan to lie for her and they say that her child is his. Friends to coparents to lovers. Angst abounds. I got like, an incoherent outline, a fraction of a scene with Blair & Alison, and the big italicized oh moment for blair (which consists of Dan writing letters to their kid ala the climax in Beach Read—except nothing like that, but kind of like that, you’ll see. Hopefully. I ran out of spoons because I was tired and I wasn’t sure if, upon finishing it, anyone would even care. 

Another is I started a Hart of Dixie-flavored au that sort of aligns with the last ep of s3 and the frist 3ish eps of s4 in HoD. the central couple that has the Zade journey would be Vanessa/Nate, and there’s of course van der humphrey shenanigans and a side-helping of Dair (I’m me I can’t help it), and Serena being the AB to Vanessa & Blair’s Zoe & Lemon (the bathroom scene in 4x02 is really what inspired me). It was coming along pretty easily but I just ran out of steam and it’s been on ice ever since. I know how I want it to go, it’s a matter of timing now. Hopefully talking about it helps?

Like I told S in her ask box last week-ish, I know where I want to take the MoF series next: it involves Dair coming out as a couple over Rufly’s fifth anniversary weekend, and there’s lots of Feelings involved on all ends, plus Dan’s last year of grad school and his sophomore novel coming out, plus Dair figuring out their future, plus the VDH gang and co. going to Scott’s wedding, plus more of dilf!Nate living his Lorelai Gilmore plot, etc etc. I’ve been thinking about it forever, but have put virtually nothing down, because I didn’t know if I updated the series if anyone would care? I put a lot of soul into the last multi-chap work, and it felt like the emotional heavy lifting I did for it didn’t really match the engagement I got in return. And though I write first and foremost for ME, idk it was still disheartening.

I think I mentioned this before, which is why I’m ok talking about it now, but for the holiday season I realllllly want to finally write the nancy meyer’s Holiday AU I’ve wanted to write for two christmases now. Dair & Natessa. With some Milo on the side. After I finish the last however many prompts I may just block off the rest of fall to work on it very slowly. Because I want! To! Do! It! 

And in that vein I have mentioned kinktober but tbh I have like 3 ideas on the smut stove that I haven’t been able to take anywhere. So who knows. You’ll def get the Dan/Carter I have banked but after that, possibly nothing.

[laresearchette]

Friday, January 19, 2024 Canadian TV Listings (Times Eastern)

WHERE CAN I FIND THOSE PREMIERES?: SELF-RELIANCE (Paramount +) THE WOMAN IN THE WALL (Paramount +) CHAD (The Roku Channel) WHO’S TALKING TO CHRIS WALLACE (CNN) 10:00pm REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER (HBO Canada) 10:00pm

WHAT IS NOT PREMIERING IN CANADA TONIGHT? HUSTLERS GAMBLERS CROOKS (TBD - Discovery Canada)

NEW TO AMAZON PRIME CANADA/CBC GEM/CRAVE TV/DISNEY + STAR/NETFLIX CANADA:

AMAZON PRIME CANADA DANCE LIFE HAZBIN HOTEL INDIAN POLICE FORCE LOL: THE LAST ONE LAUGHING IRELAND SKI JUMPERS ZORRO

CBC GEM MENTEUR (Compulsive Liar)

CRAVE TV CORNER OFFICE THE EQUALIZER 2 THE EQUALIZER 3 F2 FORENSIC FACTOR (Seasons 1 - 7) FUNNY GIRL GHOST RIDER (2007) GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE GIANT LITTLE ONES HOW SHE MOVE LATE BLOOMER (Episodes 1 - 2) MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN NORTH OF NORMAL POLARIS QUEEN & SLIM REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER (Season 22, Episode 1) SAW II SAW III SO MUCH TENDERNESS

DISNEY + STAR CRISTÓBAL BALENCIAGA (all episodes)

NETFLIX CANADA THE BEQUEATHED THE KITCHEN LOVE IS BLIND: SWEDEN (new episodes) LOVE ON THE SPECTRUM U.S. (Season 2) MI SOLEDAD TIENE ALAS (ES) SIXTY MINUTES (DE)

GRAND SLAM OF CURLING CANADIAN OPEN (SN) 2:00pm: Draw #14 (SN1) 6:00pm: Draw #15 (SN) 10:00pm: Draw #16

2024 AUSTRALIAN OPEN TENNIS (TSN/TSN5) 7:00pm: Early Round Coverage Day #7

NHL HOCKEY (SN) 7:00pm: Red Wings vs. Hurricanes

INSIDE THE STATUE WARS (documentary) 7:00pm: The high-stakes battle over public memorials and statues: a historic moment that's forcing humans to re-evaluate the past.

NBA BASKETBALL (TSN3/TSN4) 7:30pm: Nuggets vs. Celtics (SN1) 10:00pm: Mavericks vs. Warriors (SN Now) 10:00pm: Pacers vs. Trail Blazers

MARKETPLACE (CBC) 8:00pm

MILLION DOLLAR ISLAND (Discovery Canada) 8:00pm: Eighty-eight contestants remain; tensions rise as food supplies dwindle; an arena result leaves a camp's loyalty divided.

THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF JERSEY (Slice) 8:00pm: Karen arranges a party for Mia's birthday; Margaret shares some shocking information about Karen.

BOLLYWED (documentary) 8:00pm: A family road trip in Kuki's RV tries to impress clients at the Montreal Pop Up.

ABOUT THAT (CBC) 8:30pm

THE FIFTH ESTATE (CBC) 9:00pm: The Smartest Guy in the Room: Cameron Ortis and the RCMP Secrets Scandal: The inside story of how the RCMP charged one of their own with leaking confidential police secrets.

TRANSPLANT (CTV) 9:00pm (FINALE): June and Novak have it out; Theo risks his life for a patient and makes a big decision; Bash rises to the occasion during an emergency and sees how far he's come.

OWN SPOTLIGHT (The Color Purple Interviews) (OWN Canada) 9:00pm (SERIES PREMIERE): Oprah speaks with Oscar and Emmy nominee Taraji P. Henson about her role as blues singer Shug Avery in "The Color Purple" and why this reimagined version is for a new generation.

NORTH OF NORMAL (Crave) 9:00pm: After being raised in the wilderness, a teenage girl moves to the city. She has hopes of finding a normal life with her anything-but-normal mother.

THE SUMMIT AUSTRALIA (Discovery Canada) 9:30pm: Twelve hikers are left on the mountain with only 11 days left to get to the summit and claim their cash prize; the group start to realize that getting to the top is about more than just physical endurance.

LITTLE BIRD (CTV) 10:00pm: Patti Little Bird is desperate to get her children back, but she doesn't know where they have been taken; eighteen years later, Bezhig/Esther, who has made her way back to the prairies, is desperate to find her family.

[juarezesdeporte]

UTEP Football Opens ’23 Season, CUSA Action at Jax State Saturday on CBSSN

EL PASO, Texas – UTEP will open its 106th season at new Conference USA program Jacksonville State on Saturday, Aug. 26 with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. MT/4:30 CT in Burgess-Snow Field at JSU Stadium in Jacksonville, Ala. The Miners and Gamecocks will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network and can be heard on 600 ESPN El Paso

The Miners are opening on week 0 for the third consecutive season, while the Aug. 26 kickoff is the earliest UTEP will open a campaign.

UTEP Head Coach Dana Dimel returns for his sixth season under the helm. The Miners are looking to be bowl eligible for the second time in three years after their 2021 New Mexico Bowl appearance.

Thirteen Miners who were All-CUSA in 2022 will suit in the new adidas gear as Praise Amaewhule, Deion Hankins, Tyrice Knight, Angelo Tejada, Marcus Bellon, Steven Hubbard, Kobe Hylton, Elijah Klein, Justin Mayers, Andrew Meyer, Joshua Sloan, Keenan Stewart, and Tyrin Smith will suit up in 2023. UTEP returns seven starters on offense, six on defense and five on special teams. Overall, 41 letterwinners return with the Orange and Blue.

Jax State finished its final campaign as an FCS program with a 9-2 overall record and 5-0 mark in Atlantic Sun Conference action. The Gamecocks rushed for over 2,900 yards, while averaging 251.0 yards per game and scored 37 TDs. JSU ranked first in the ASUN and fifth in FCS in rushing. It’s scoring offense (36.2 ppg) ranked 10th in FCS and first in conference.

“Any time a team goes 9-2, they know how to win, I mean, that's a strong season for them.,” Dimel said. “They did a great job. They're very, very athletic. They have great team speed on defense. On offense, they have their version of Frank Harris, a seventh-year quarterback coming back. So, I think he's got a little bit of experience to what he does. He's a very good player and very athletic. They got a bevy of runners in the backfield. They've got a lot of depth in their backfield. They got four of their five starters coming back on the offensive line, so they have a lot of depth there.”

UTEP came up short of bowl eligibility finishing 5-7 overall and 3-5 in CUSA play. The Miners’ run defense was something to talk about last year as they allowed the least rushing yards per game (136.0) since 1967. UTEP’s rushing attack gained over 2,000 yards for the first time since the 2016 season.

For Jax State, it’s the first time playing as an FBS program, while the Gamecocks are entering their first season in the new CUSA after playing in the Atlantic Sun Conference in 2022, and the Ohio Valley Conference the previous nine seasons (2003-2021).

The Miners will not only face a nine-win team on Saturday, the late-August forecast is calling for a high of 97 degrees and 66 percent humidity.

“We've had a very warm summer, as we all know, in El Paso, and we've run and conditioned at a higher level than we ever have throughout the summer. Our guys are very well conditioned. Our guys are very prepared to handle the elements that the first game will bring,” Dimel said.

UTEP (0-0, 0-0) at Jax State (0-0, 0-0)

Date: Saturday, Aug. 26

Time: 3:30 p.m. MT/4:30 CT

Location: Jacksonville, Ala.

Venue: Burgess-Snow Field at JSU Stadium (24,000)

Twitter Updates: @UTEPFB

TV: CBSSN

PxP: Rich Waltz

Analyst: Aaron Taylor

Sideline: Amanda Guerra

Radio: 600 ESPN El Paso

PxP: Jon Teicher

Analyst: Cole Freytag

Sideline: Mando Medina

WHERE TO WATCH & LISTEN

The contest will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network with Rich Waltz (play-by-play) and Aaron Taylor (analysis) calling the action, and Amanda Guerra on the sidelines. Fans can tune into 600 ESPN El Paso with “The Voice of the Miners” Jon Teicher calling play-by-play in his 43rd season. ‘Teich’ is joined by former UTEP WR Cole Freytag (2012, 2014-16) in the booth providing analysis in his second season and Mando Medina reporting from the sidelines. The action can also be heard on the UTEP Miners app.

SERIES VS. JAX STATE

The Miners and Gamecocks will square off for the first time ever on August 26, 2023.

ABOUT JAX STATE

The Gamecocks, under the direction of Rich Rodriguez in his first season at the helm, finished 9-2 overall and 5-0 in the Atlantic Sun Conference during the 2022 season. Jax State, in its first season as an FBS program, returns 22 starters and 50 letterwinners for the 2023 campaign. Last season, the Gamecocks averaged over 36 points per game, while yielding just under 23 points. JSU averaged 423.6 yards of total offensive and gave up 398.7 per game. Leading rusher RB Anwar Lewis returns after gaining 818 yards on 115 carries (7.1 avg.) and eight TDs. QB Zion Webb also returns after rushing for a team-high 13 scores and 647 yards (5.6 avg.). Webb added 10 TD passes with 1,737 yards in the air and nine interceptions. Webb completed 55.2 percent (111-210) of his passes with a long toss of 76 yards. RB Ron Wiggins also returns after rushing for 461 yards and four scores. Leading receiver WR Galban Sterling returns after hauling in team bests in receptions (28), receiving yards (433) and receiving scores (three). Four of Webb’s O-linemen are returning: LT Will O’Steen, RG Clay Webb, C Treylen Brown and LG Brock Robey. FS Jeremiah Harris returns as the team’s leading tackler with 68 (third on the team in ’22). DE Chris Hardie returns after leading the defense with 5.5 sacks. BANDIT (OLB/Nickel hybrid) J-Rock Swain tallied 5.0 sacks, ranking second on the squad. Nickel Kolbi Fuqua led the team with two INTs. Rodriguez will enter his 26th season as a head coach and has 172-career victories.

EARLY START, AGAIN

For a school-record third straight season, the Miners will kick off the year in the month of August. UTEP had previously christened the campaign in the month on consecutive seasons twice, doing so in 1985 and 1986 and 2002 and 2003. Furthermore, the start date (at Jax State, Aug. 26) is the earliest in school history, eclipsing last season’s opener (vs. North Texas, Aug. 27) by a single day.

LEAGUE PLAY TO START

For the second straight season, UTEP will be tasked with playing a conference opponent in the opener. It marks the first time that has occurred in 31 years, when the Miners had a three-year stretch (1990-92) when they were members of the WAC. The Orange and Blue will battle new league member Jax State on the road on Aug. 26, hoping for a better start than the 31-13, setback in the season opener against North Texas on Aug. 27, 2022, in the Sun Bowl.

BEEN A LONG TIME

UTEP claimed its league road opener in both 2022 (W, 41-35, at Charlotte, Oct. 1) and 2021 (W, 26-13, at Southern Miss, Oct. 9). If the Miners can pull out a victory at Jax State on Aug. 26, it will mark the first time they’ve won their first conference road contest in three straight seasons since also doing so from 1948-50.

SMITH CHASING HISTORY

Tyrin Smith reeled in 71 receptions for 1,039 yards in 2022, giving him a chance to become the first player in program history with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons if he can surpass that total again this year. He has already helped the Orange and Blue achieve something that had never happened before, teaming up with former Miner Jacob Cowing (1,354, 2021) to give UTEP 1,000-yard receivers in consecutive campaigns.

AMAEWHULE VYING TO BECOME SACK KING

Praise Amaewhule heads into the 2023 campaign with 17.5 career sacks, which is second at UTEP behind Gonzalo Floyd’s school standard (20, 1990-91, 93). He took sole possession of second place in the category last year by recording a pair of sacks, which propelled him past both Herman Whiting (16, 1979-82) and Chris Mineo (16.5, 2002-05).

SUSTAINING SUCCESS UNDER DIMEL

UTEP enters 2023 in search of a third straight season of at least five wins, something it hasn’t achieved since it did so from 2004-06. The Miners are also hoping to earn a spot to a bowl game for the second time in the past three seasons, which would make head coach Dana Dimel the first UTEP HC with multiple bowl bids since Mike Price. Prior to that, it hadn’t occurred since 1965-67.

LOTS OF ROAD GAMES EARLY ON

UTEP will play its season opener and three of the first four games of the year on the road. That’s the first time it has occurred since the 2015 campaign, which included three consecutive road contests out of the gates.

(PHOTO CREDIT: UTEP Athletics // REPORT BY: Mark Brunner)

[birdzflycom]

Luton Town's Epic Triumph: Ascending to Premier League Glory with Play-off Final Victory

Img Source: https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/230527151735-07-luton-coventry-play-off-0527.jpg Luton Town Achieves Astonishing Ascension to Premier League with Victory over Coventry City. In a stunning turn of events, Luton Town has accomplished one of the most remarkable rises in the annals of English football. Their triumph over Coventry City in the Championship play-off final, decided by a nail-biting penalty shootout, secures their position in the esteemed Premier League for the forthcoming season. The match commenced with a disconcerting incident for Luton, as their esteemed defender, Tom Lockyer, was forced off the field on a stretcher after inexplicably collapsing despite having no contact with any opponent. Thankfully, the club later provided reassurance that he was conscious and had been transported to the hospital for evaluation. Luton's Jordan Clark broke the deadlock with a resounding finish from a tight angle just 23 minutes into the game, asserting their dominance in the first half. Nevertheless, Coventry exhibited a resurgent display in the second half and duly earned an equalizer, courtesy of Gustavo Hamer's unerring strike into the bottom corner. With the scores level at the end of regulation time, the match entered extra time, and the palpable tension reverberated throughout a packed Wembley Stadium. As both teams visibly fatigued during the grueling extra period, opportunities became scarce, evoking a growing anticipation that the final outcome would be determined by the cruel fate of a penalty shootout. Luton's Joe Taylor momentarily believed he had secured the winning goal with a strike five minutes from time, benefiting from Jonathan Panzo's error. However, his elation was abruptly extinguished as the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) ruled his effort out for a handball. The shootout commenced, and the first 11 penalties were executed with exemplary precision, showcasing skill and nerve. Alas, Coventry's Fankaty Dabo became the unfortunate 12th player to step up, only to send his shot sailing over the crossbar, much to the delight of the resplendent Luton Town orange-clad half of Wembley Stadium. This jubilant moment marked Luton's return to the summit of English football after a prolonged absence of 31 years. From the depths of non-league football to the prestigious Premier League, Luton's extraordinary odyssey has spanned a mere decade. Merely a decade ago, they toiled in the fifth tier of English football, enduring a torrid two-decade period marred by five relegations, three administrations, and a harrowing total of 40 points worth of deductions. Now, a decade removed from their darkest moments, Luton Town is poised to grace one of the grandest stages in global football. As one of the founding members of the Premier League in 1992, Luton had competed in the top-flight division the preceding season, subsequently casting their vote in favor of the league's establishment, only to be relegated the season prior to its inception. Deloitte's Sports Business Group estimates that the club will receive a staggering $211 million (£170 million) over the next three seasons, a sum that could escalate to $360 million (£290 million) should the club succeed in avoiding relegation in their maiden campaign. Kenilworth Road, Luton's cherished stadium, boasts a capacity slightly surpassing 10,000 spectators and is arguably one of the most distinctive grounds in English football. The entrance to the Oak Stand is seamlessly integrated into a row of neighboring houses, rendering it a remarkable spectacle to witness the likes of Mo Salah and Erling Haaland grace its hallowed turf in the upcoming season. Luton reportedly faces an expenditure of approximately $14.8 million to enhance one of its stands to meet the safety requirements mandated by the Premier League. Nevertheless, given the monumental financial windfall impending as a result of their promotion, this outlay now appears minuscule. Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu, Luton's versatile midfielder, has remained steadfastly loyal to the club throughout their arduous journey and has now etched his name in English football history as the first player to transition from non-league to the Premier League with the same club. Radiant with joy, Ruddock expressed his sentiments to Sky Sports after the game, proclaiming, "I feel like I've completed football, man. It's been a journey. We've weathered the highs and lows, but you have to maintain faith in yourself, and here I am, man. I'm a Premier League player...These boys and the fans—I told you we would do it—and there's bound to be an exuberant celebration throughout the summer in Luton." Read the full article

[phrynewrites]

Socialite AU 🎟

Past Life AU 🏆

Blind date AU 🛒

Teachers AU 💻

Love letter AU 🐴

Fake dating AU 💐

Ok ok ok we're hitting the full shebang huh!! (Also this is the second time I'm typing this because this website is a hooligan so I might be missing some of the og details; feel free to press me for them hun)

🎟: Bosco quickly learns that part of being a well known person is being invited to a lot of stuff. Jasmine, and subsequently Bosco, end up attending a lot of galas, speeches, charity events, red carpets, award shows, and movie premieres. Bosco can't really figure out why Jasmine is invited to all these things that have nearly nothing to do with her, but has started to categorize these events in two ways: Jasmine was invited because she's relevant or the person hosting the event has a working relationship with her, or Jasmine is invited in hopes that she'll cause some sort of newsworthy scene, which reading through her history, Bosco notices happens fairly often, which will draw attention to the event. While they're at this movie premiere for a new horror film, Bosco's sure it's the second type this time. Jasmine's clearly afraid the whole time, fingers digging into Bosco's arm the whole time. And Bosco doesn't recognize this group of celebrities. And as the paranormal stuff in the film really starts to kick in and Jasmine's starting to mutter to herself, drawing the attention of those around her, Bosco makes the executive decision for the two of them to leave. In doing this, they shift the story from Jasmine causing problems, to Bosco being rude and not understanding social conventions and how Jasmine could do better than this *nobody*

🏆: For a while, the second place finish (that many fans genuinely believe should won them the season based on sheer emotion of the finale dance alone) was the best Jasmine had done. In the following few years, she typically finished fourth of fifth, and was kind of thankful for it, as her body was always dead exhausted by the end of the season and she'd spend at least a few weeks at home with Bosco recovering before staring on another project. However, during her fifth season, she and her partner, Camden, finally win. And when they do, that comedian from the first season finally conceides that Jasmine actually might know what she's doing. Of course Bosco has a little snide remark on Twitter for him: "You hear something?" followed by a video of the whole theatre erupting as Jasmine wins, Bosco yelling "that's my Jazzy!" louder than the rest.

🛒: By the time they get to the IKEA date, Bosco and Jasmine are fully aware of what their friends are doing and are getting sick of going through the motions (especially since they're both like an inch away from admitting that they have feelings for each other, but alas, that inch of stupidity matters). So to get through the heavy-handedness of Angie and Camden bringing them along as they quickly furnish their apartment, Bosco and Jasmine get drunk before the date and fully break off from Camden and Angie, wandering around the IKEA on their own. Jasmine's riding around inside the shopping cart. Bosco's taking pictures of Jasmine sat on the display kitchen cabinets and sending them to the 🍚 gc, specifically tagging Daya, they're judging the little room set ups like they're on house hunters and re-arranging the props to make them "look better." And of course because Bosoc's a bit drunk, they're being extra soft, complimenting all of Jasmine's choices, calling her a model as she lays across the countertop display, saying that they love when Jasmine's silly like this...

💻: I think we're trying to hear about Bosco and their continued issues with the IT people lol. Bosco is consistently jealous of the IT people and tries their damndest to fix Jasmine's computer problems on their own. But Jasmine has to make them stop once they suggest getting on the roof of the school to "see if the WiFi works from above" as a solution to Jasmine's room having the worst WiFi in the whole school. Hell, when Jasmine's phone is acting weird, Jasmine has to have a quick talk with Bosco about how she's not going to run off with some dork from the genuis bar, especially when she's got The Sexy French Teacher waiting for her at home.

🐴: Jasmine has a whole scene in the beginning of The Manuscript in which she's talking about love the way she did when she was in high school, like trying to be edgy and rejecting the whole "prince riding in on a valiant white horse" kind of like a Taylor Swift music video. And as Bosco's reading it, they're scoffing a bit, and Jasmine's there in their office (as someone (Daya) stole her desk chair so where else is she supposed to go), looking up at Bosco, thinking that they're not liking her writing. But instead they're muttering about how it's totally *not* cliche to ride horses because *they* ride horses. And Jasmine's quick to be like "oh no it's totally not cliche" as her high school self is like collapsing, thinking about the concept of horse riding with their crush like she's on the cover of a romance novel.

💐: When Jasmine finally gets a solo, of course Bosco's not able to come, as they've already promised they'd cover for their manager at work. Jasmine fully understands and believes them, but there's a little pang in the back of her heart that's trying to convince her that it's because things are weird now, because her and Bosco hooked up after the Christmas party. And as Jasmine's all mopey backstage, talking about how she hopes she didn't make things weird with her and Bosco, the stage manager comes in holding a potted plant, announcing it's for Jasmine. And immediately, Jasmine knows it's from Bosco "bouquets are dumb because they're a collection of already dying flowers," especially since Bosco mentioned buying her an aloe vera plant instead of a bouquet already. And the little note inside says: "break a leg, you’re gonna kill it. Not the plant please do not kill the plant). -B" followed by a little heart.

💅🏻send 🧅 me 🎟 a ship 🚢 an au 🥵 and emojis 👽 and I’ll write ✍️ headcanons 👯‍♀️ based on the emojis 🦑

[kjack89]

An Agreement Between Gentlemen (Chapter 3/?)

Continuation of the E/R Bridgerton AU that’s honestly more aptly described as a regency-ish era fake marriage fic. Because ~shenanigans~ (Chapter 1 tumblr | AO3, chapter 2 tumblr | AO3)

It appears to this Author that the most discussed couple of this season will end up not being a couple at all. And no, this refers not to Baron Pontmercy and his latest object of obsession, a handkerchief that he claims belongs to the woman he met at the Thenardier’s ball, though it is perhaps as unlikely a pairing.

The Marquess of Enjolras and Mr. Grantaire have continued spending an inordinate amount of time in each other’s company, and no one, it would seem, is as surprised as their mutual friends and acquaintances. Mr. Combeferre was overheard in discussion with the Earl of Courfeyrac on more than one occasion lamenting the unlikely union. He seems to be skeptical on the nature of this deepening friendship, a skepticism one can only assume he shares with the other important people in the marquess’s life.

Namely, his mother, who has been keeping a low profile after their shouting match was recorded in this paper. Alas, her efforts will almost certainly be in vain if her son continues cavorting with the most unlikely of allies. And it appears he shall, as he is apparently set to accompany Mr. Grantaire on a visit to his country estate this week.

One can certainly speak of the restorative benefits of country air and time spent away from the city and the season. But proceed with caution, Lord Enjolras – scandal is not confined by geography. 

Nor, for that matter, is this Author. LADY WHISTLEDOWN’S SOCIETY PAPERS, 2 MAY 1831

“I still cannot believe that I agreed to this,” Enjolras grumbled as he followed Grantaire into the carriage set to take them out to the country to visit Grantaire’s home.

“Honestly?” Grantaire said cheerfully, settling in the far corner of the carriage and stretching out luxuriously across the bench. “I am as well. I half-expected you not to show up this morning.”

Enjolras scowled slightly as he sat down across from him. “When I make a promise, I usually see it through,” he said stiffly.

Grantaire just laughed. “Leave it to you to take it as an impingement on your honor to suggest that you might have had misgivings about this particularly harebrained idea. And before you somehow take umbrage on my own behalf, surely if anyone is allowed to call this endeavor harebrained, it is myself.”

“Then am I allowed to take umbrage at the idea that you cannot even bring yourself to believe in your own schemes?” Enjolras snapped.

The carriage jolted suddenly as the driver spurred the horses into motion, and Enjolras pitched forward, reaching out to brace himself against the far wall of the carriage. Instead, his hands landed squarely on Grantaire’s chest. “Careful,” Grantaire said, his voice pitched low, and Enjolras flushed as he struggled to right himself.

“It seems this venture may very well be cursed,” he managed when he was finally settled back in his own seat, still flushed and avoiding Grantaire’s eyes. “Or at the very least, off to the most inauspicious start in most of human history.”

Grantaire shrugged, glancing out the window of the carriage. “I don’t know about that,” he said. “It’s not every day one finds oneself in a compromising position with a marquess, after all.” He smirked at Enjolras. “Pity one of us isn’t the proper sex, or this entire thing would be settled already.” 

“Be serious,” Enjolras snapped, but Grantaire ignored him.

“I mean, caught in a scandalous embrace with a marquess, unchaperoned in the back of a carriage…it would be the scandal of the season, if not the decade.”

Grantaire sounded strangely wistful, and Enjolras gave him a look. “Forgive me,” he said curtly, “but I have the mental capacity for only one fictional scandal at a time, and I believe what we’re planning with your deceased sister takes precedence.”

His tone brooked no argument, not that this had ever once stopped Grantaire, but for once, Grantaire let the topic drop. “Very well,” he said instead, settling back into his corner and rapping his knuckles in a staccato rhythm against the side of the carriage. “But it is a long trip, and if I don’t have fantasy to entertain myself with, you’ll need to provide a more suitable topic.”

Enjolras blinked. “I assumed you would spend the trip sketching or painting or something,” he said, a little awkwardly.

“In a moving carriage?” Grantaire asked, a little incredulous, and as if to prove his point, the carriage swayed dangerously before righting itself.

Enjolras shrugged, feeling himself blush again. “You just seem to have the ability to sketch through anything,” he muttered. “Namely my every speech.” 

Grantaire smirked. “Can you blame me?”

“For not paying attention to a word I’m saying?”

“Now, that’s not entirely fair,” Grantaire said mildly. “I almost certainly catch about every fourth or fifth word.”

“Perhaps that’s the reason you can’t find it in yourself to believe in anything,” Enjolras said sourly.

Grantaire just laughed. “Perhaps,” he agreed with a lazy smirk.

Enjolras rolled his eyes and glanced out the window, dismayed to see that they had not even left the city yet. “Fine,” he said abruptly. “Then tell me about your sister.”

To his surprise, Grantaire’s smile disappeared and his shook his head. “No,” he said. “While I certainly cannot blame you for curiosity about your bride to be, now is not the time to speak of her.”

Enjolras looked closely at him. “You must have loved her very much,” he said quietly.

Grantaire shrugged again, looking uncomfortable. “She was my best – and for longer than I care to think about my only – friend. And that is all that I will say on the topic.”

He said it quite firmly and Enjolras inclined his head. “Very well,” he said. “Your father, then – if Lady Whistledown is to be believed, he is out of the country, correct?”

Grantaire had made a face as soon as Enjolras mentioned his father, and he shook his head. “Must we ruin this sojourn with talk of my father?” he asked plaintively. “Certainly you would not wish to speak of your mother, would you?”

Enjolras scowled. “Indeed I would not,” he said. “But need I remind you before you bring my mother into this, it was you who demanded conversation, so forgive me for trying to start one.”

Grantaire sighed, and to Enjolras’s continued surprise, actually managed an expression that at least resembled genuine contrition. “No, it is I who must ask your forgiveness,” he said. “I am not used to speaking of my family.” He managed a wan smile. “One of the benefits of not being noble – no one much cares to whom I am related.”

“They’ll certainly care a bit more after this,” Enjolras murmured.

“Well, you’re probably not wrong there,” Grantaire said with a snort. “But that is a problem for the future, so do not think you will somehow use my hesitation to get out of this arrangement.”

Enjolras rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Good,” Grantaire said, hesitating before adding, “But I apologize for stymying your attempts at conversation, so to make up for it, a promise: ask me any question, and I swear I will answer it.”

“Anything?”

“On my honor,” Grantaire said solemnly with a nod.

Enjolras considered it for a moment. “Fine,” he said. “Then answer this: why are you doing this?”

“Anything but that.”

Enjolras frowned. “Grantaire—”

“Anything but that,” Grantaire repeated, his expression and tone both as serious as Enjolras had ever witnessed. He paused and seemed to force his expression into something more approximating his normal jovial appearance. “Come now, you out of everyone should know that my honor is worth very little.”

“To you, perhaps,” Enjolras muttered. “Very well, then…” He trailed off, casting around for a somewhat neutral topic. “Tell me about your home, I suppose. After all, I should know something about where we are traveling, and besides, it’s not every day that I get to visit a new money estate.”

He said the last words teasingly, and it had his desired effect: Grantaire half-smiled and shook his head. “I always knew you were a secret snob, looking down your nose on the landed gentry,” he said, equally teasing, and Enjolras relaxed, glad for reasons he could not quite articulate that they were back on their usual footing. “But there’s not much to tell. It’s a nice enough manor, just outside a small village. My sister and I were discouraged from going to the village much as children, so I doubt any there would even remember us, which works to our advantage, of course. But there was a wood on the other side of the house, and that’s where she and I spent most of our time…”

His words washed over Enjolras like a warm blanket. Despite usually being the one giving long speeches, Enjolras was quite surprised to find that for once, he was content just to sit back and listen as the carriage ride continued, bearing them both towards the house that Grantaire was describing with considerable enthusiasm.

So vividly did he describe it that Enjolras knew without Grantaire saying anything when they approached, the winding stone drive just as he had described it. But Grantaire had perhaps undersold the manor itself, which was massive, towering over them as they disembarked from the carriage. 

“Impressed?” Grantaire asked, with a sort of put-upon boredom, shooing the driver away and offering Enjolras his hand instead to help him down.

Enjolras just made a small, neutral noise. “As my mother would say, you have done well for yourself.”

Grantaire barked a laugh. “High words, coming from her,” he said with a grin. “Though don’t think that I’m so new of money that I didn’t recognize the veiled insult in there.”

Enjolras laughed lightly. “Like I said, it’s what my mother would say,” he reminded him. “As for myself, it looks as noble a house as most I have seen in my life.”

“A mighty compliment,” Grantaire said, making a mocking leg. “Now please, my lord, let me offer the finest hospitality in at least the surrounding several acres.”

Together, they crossed to the door, where a man and a woman waited for them. Grantaire greeted both as if they were family, kissing the woman on the cheek and shaking the man’s hand. “My lord, if I may present my butler, Le Cabuc, and my housekeeper, Madame Hucheloup.”

Madame Hucheloup bobbed an awkward curtsy, her eyes wide. “Lord Marquess,” she said, and Enjolras couldn’t find it in himself to correct her on the title.

Le Cabuc gave him a stiff nod, clearly not as impressed as the housekeeper. “My lord,” he said. “You must forgive us, we are not used to entertaining gentlemen of your standing.”

“I am certain whatever arrangements you have made will more than suffice,” Enjolras assured him with a tight smile.

“In more ways that one,” Grantaire murmured in an undertone. “I have already filled Le Cabuc in on our plan, and intend on letting Madame Hucheloup know this evening.” He nudged Enjolras in the ribs, smirking again. “She shall likely stand in for my sister during the fake wedding.”

Enjolras frowned. “I didn’t realize there was going to be an actual wedding,” he hissed, following Grantaire inside. “Surely the town vicar will realize that Madame Hucheloup is not your sister!”

“The town vicar drinks more wine and whiskey than I do,” Grantaire informed him. “He will not recognize anyone, I promise you that. And we need this to look real, do we not?”

“I suppose,” Enjolras said reluctantly.

Grantaire clapped him on the shoulder in what he clearly thought was a bracing kind of way. “Chin up,” he said. “It will all be over soon enough. In the meantime, I am certain that Madame Hucheloup will have laid enough food to feed a small army. Do you wish to change before dinner?”

Enjolras looked down at his clothes, which were rumpled and dusty from the trip. “I won’t if you won’t,” he said, and Grantaire grinned.

“Deal.”

----------

After dinner, Grantaire showed Enjolras to his room, a large, airy chamber that was adjacent to Grantaire’s, and Enjolras went to bed early, determined to get a good night’s rest.

Instead, he woke early the next morning, a force of habit that was not helped by tossing and turning for most of the night at the thought of what they were about to do. He and Grantaire had not yet discussed exactly how the scandal was to unfold, but he imagined that they would figure that out sometime that day.

He woke so early that most of the staff was not up yet, and rather than inconvenience anyone by ringing them ahead of their usual wake up time, he instead slipped out the front door, taking the well-worn path down to the nearby village. It was a beautiful spring day, and despite himself, he found himself enjoying the walk.

Even though he tried to spend at least a little time in the villages that part of his family’s lands each time he visited, he could not imagine any time that he spent there would ever be like this, slipping down the winding streets as an anonymous stranger, watching the comings and goings of the townfolk.

He had just purchased a delicious-looking handheld pie from the baker when he felt a hand on his shoulder and immediately tensed. He turned, relaxing when he saw it was Grantaire. “Oh,” he said, relieved. “I thought—”

Out of nowhere, Grantaire’s fist connected with his jaw, sending him reeling backwards, his pie splattering to the ground. “What in the bleeding—”

“I do not know who you think you are,” Grantaire shouted, “but if you think that you can take advantage of my sister, sir, you have another think coming.”

Enjolras rubbed his jaw, blinking up at him as he tried to piece together what the hell was happening. “I don’t know—”  he started, but Grantaire cut him off.

“You know perfectly well,” he growled. “Meeting with her in the middle of the night with no chaperone? Impugning her honor, with nary a marriage proposal in sight? I will not stand for it, my lord – on that, you have my word.”

The passersby had all stopped to stare, some openly gaping, others whispering to each other as they watched. “Your sister’s honor remains intact,” Enjolras said, slowly catching on to where this was going, but wondering why Grantaire was doing this here and now. “I give you my word—”

“Your word means nothing to me,” Grantaire said coldly, his expression flinty, and for the first time, Enjolras realized what it must be like for any who had crossed Grantaire. It was a formidable sight, and one he hoped not to be on the wrong side of for real anytime soon. “You will marry my sister, and before the week’s end.”

“And if I refuse?” Enjolras asked.

Someone in the crowd gasped, but it was the only sound anyone made as they stared between the two men. For a moment, it almost looked like Grantaire was smiling, just slightly, but it disappeared so quickly that Enjolras could not be certain that he did not imagine it. “Then it shall be a duel. First light on the morrow – guns or swords, your pick.”

This had absolutely not been a part of their plan, and Enjolras gaped at him. But before he could stop himself, before he could end this ruse with a few simple words, his idiotic pride got the best of him in the worst way possible at the worst time possible. “Guns,” he heard himself say. “First light on the morrow, and we shall see whose honor is left standing.”

Now Grantaire did smile, an almost feral grin. “I look forward to it, my lord,” he said, his voice low, and he turned and swept away without uttering another word.

Enjolras stood still for one long minute before realizing that every eye was still on him, and the whispers were starting to grow in volume. He flushed beet red and quickly hurried away, heading back toward the manor, his head reeling at what had just happened. 

About halfway back to Grantaire’s house, the man in question fell in next to him, his cold expression replaced by a genuine grin. “Well, that went well,” he said cheerfully, and Enjolras gave him a withering look.

“Did it?” he asked sourly, wincing at the pain still radiating from his jaw. “Because I was just about to ask you what in the bloody hell you were thinking.”

Grantaire clucked his tongue. “There is no need for that kind of language,” he scolded, still abominably cheerful.”

“Says the man who just publicly challenged me to a duel!”

Grantaire stopped so suddenly that Enjolras ran straight into him. “Yes, you idiot,” he said, but despite his words, his tone was soft, patient even. “I just very publicly challenged you to a duel. If you think that the townspeople won’t be telling everyone they know about that—”

Enjolras shook his head slowly. “And what if I had just agreed to marry your sister?”

“Honestly, I was mostly expecting you to,” Grantaire said with a shrug. “After all, it’s not necessary for the ruse that we actually have a duel, just that the challenge and scandal is made known.” Enjolras flushed and opened his mouth to apologize and explain, but Grantaire didn’t let him, continuing thoughtfully, “But in honesty, this lends a certain...verisimilitude to the whole affair. After all, no one would believe that you would so quickly agree to a marriage.”

“I suppose not,” Enjolras reluctantly agreed, before adding, a little sullenly, “Though speaking of verisimilitude, I don’t think you needed to punch me quite so hard.”

Grantaire rolled his eyes. “Oh, do not be such a baby,” he scoffed. “I pulled my punch.”

“You could have fooled me.”

Enjolras knew he sounded like a petulant child, but he didn’t much care. Grantaire rolled his eyes again. “Believe me, had I punched you with my full strength, you would have a broken jaw.” Enjolras was tempted to tell him that he wasn’t entirely sure his jaw wasn’t broken, but Grantaire glanced at the look on his face and sighed. “Oh, come here.”

He reached out and Enjolras automatically flinched. “What are you—” he started, breaking off when Grantaire cradled his jaw gently between both his hands, prodding gently with his fingertips, his touch almost feather-light.

Enjolras knew he was blushing, but if Grantaire noticed, he didn’t say anything. “See?” he said instead, his voice quiet. “Nothing broken. I doubt you’ll even have much of a bruise.”

His fingers skimmed lightly over his skin as he traced his jaw, and Enjolras swallowed, hard, realizing for the first time just how close they were standing. If anyone happened upon them, standing like this, the scandal in question would not be in relation to Grantaire’s sister. He cleared his throat. “You can let go of me now.”

Grantaire’s hands fell to his sides, and Enjolras wished he didn’t immediately miss the warmth. He shoved his hands into his pockets and they both started walking back toward the house. After a long silence, Enjolras cleared his throat again. “So what now?”

“Now, we make sure that one of the townsfolk’s accounts of what happened gets into the right hands so that it gets to Lady Whistledown,” Grantaire said.

“And after that?”

Grantaire smirked at him. “After that, we have a duel to plan.”

[janeykath318]

The Gardener Next Door

Darcy felt like she’d finally made it: finished her PhD and found a great job that allowed her to upgrade from her tiny apartment to her very own house in the suburbs. It needed a little work, but it had charm and personality and Darcy took several months making it her own. The neighborhood she lives in was mostly elderly people or young newlywed couples and the people were generally very friendly. Sweet Mrs. Messer brought her over baked goods regularly and shared the local gossip while Old Mrs. Richards brought her puppy over for regular visits. Before she’d lived there six months, she knew almost everyone on the block except for her next door neighbor on the left, who didn’t appear to be the sociable type.

Even Mrs. Messer hadn’t been able to find out much information, other than his name was something Grant and he liked to garden and preferred to be left alone.

“He must be one of those grumpy old hermit types,” Mrs. Messer sighed. “Never answered the door when I went to bring him a welcome to the neighborhood pie. I wonder what happened to the poor man to make him so wary of people.”

“I don’t know, but maybe you could try leaving some on his front porch with a friendly note. Once he’s discovered the glory of your chocolate chip cookies, he might just loosen up a little.” Darcy suggested.

This cheered up Mrs. Messer and she scurried off to start baking.

Mysterious Neighbor Dude clearly preferred a motorcycle as his form of transportation, but he always pulled right into the garage, so she was never able to get a glimpse of him without his helmet.

As spring went on, Darcy started spending more time outside in her cozy lounge chair, from which she started noticing her neighbor working outdoors. Even from the distance she could see by the way he moved, he was still in the prime of life and he appeared to be a workout fiend, judging by the size of his shoulders and arms.

He wore a big floppy straw hat that kept the sun off, which was probably a good thing because he was working in his garden almost nonstop on sunny days. It was kind of fascinating watching the progression from bare dirt to tiny plants. So far, their only interaction was a friendly wave when he caught her staring and Darcy was dying for more, but he’d never approached her and she didn’t want to invade his privacy.

But then she came home one day to find a big basket of lettuce and radishes on her front porch.

There was a note with them:

“Sharing some lettuce with you. It makes delicious salads. Have a nice day!”

The note was not signed and Darcy squinted at it for quite awhile like it would suddenly start talking and reveal its author, but alas, no such luck.

The lettuce did make excellent salads and she thought about her hunky neighbor with every bite.

Mrs. Messer came over very excitedly to report that the cookies had been taken and she too had been given a basket of lettuce.

“Looks like you were right, Darcy. The man just needed a little kindness. I wonder if he likes lemon bars…..”

As the weeks went by, the gifts of veggies continued, varying as different things came into season. Peppers, carrots, tomatoes, and green beans all arrived steadily and were either quickly eaten or given to Darcy’s vegetarian co-worker.

Darcy started replying to his notes on the fifth basket and soon they had a funny banter going back and forth, filled with vegetable puns.

“Lettuce be friends?” She wrote on the note left in the empty basket which had previously held plump red tomatoes and would be supplying her with BLTs for a long time.

“Yes, peas!” he’d replied on the next basket, which did contain the mentioned vegetable.

“Why are you so cute and unreachable?” Darcy murmured to herself, stashing the note away with a smile.

She laid out sunbathing in her favorite bathing suit the next day and since there was no fence between their backyards, the hot neighbor dude got a nice view. This time it was Darcy who caught him staring and waved happily, pretty sure he was blushing. Ugh. He was just too adorable. She wanted to March over there and plant one on him, pun slightly intended. He briefly took off his hat to wipe sweat off of his face and she caught a glimpse of dark hair and beard. Dang it, that was a GOOD look!!

The notes and vegetable puns continued, but now they were accompanied by cute sketches of cartoon vegetables representing the various neighbors. Darcy absolutely loved it and it proved her suspicions that the so-called hermit was much more observant than he seemed.

“So you’re an artist as well as a champion gardener? Is there anything you can’t do?” She wrote on the next note.

“Plenty,” he replied back. “I sure can’t bake and I can’t seem to be able to remember how to speak when my pretty neighbor is around.”

Darcy was floored, but thrilled, and wrote and rewrote seven replies before she finally figured out how to word her response.

“Here I was thinking you didn’t want to talk to me. Guess we’re both disasters at communicating.”

The response to this rang Darcy’s doorbell the very next evening and she opened it to see her neighbor, up close and personal, looking all kinds of shy and adorable and holding out a bouquet of gorgeous flowers that she knew came from his yard.

“Aww, how sweet!” She exclaimed, accepting the flowers eagerly. “They’re beautiful. Nice to finally meet you……….”

Her voice trailed off as she recognized the gorgeous and famous face in front of her.

“Steve,” he finished quietly, almost apologetically. “I’m sorry for the secrecy. I’ve been hiding out living the retired life and trying my hand at new hobbies.”

He looked even more nervous now, probably thinking she was going to either throw him out or go yelling to the neighbors.

“Please, come in,” she told him, heart pounding. “I’m Darcy Lewis, astrophysicist and former Avengers wrangler. I did NOT recognize you from across the yard with the dye job. It’s a good look, though. Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.”

“Thanks,” Steve sighed, relaxing a touch. “I think I remember seeing you yelling at Tony a few times. It was pretty neat, the way you made him cower.”

“I learned early on, Tony needed a firm hand or he would never eat or sleep and bad things happened,” Darcy recalled, with a pang of sadness. “You guys saved the world,” she added. “I think you’ve more than earned your privacy and a peaceful retirement.”

Steve cracked a crooked smile. “That’s very gracious of you. Some days, it’s a pretty big struggle for me to believe that, thinking about everyone we lost. Gardening’s been keeping me sane.”

“And you’re doing a fabulous job with it. I’ve never had such perfect tomatoes,” Darcy told him with a smile.

“I was pretty proud of them,” Steve admitted, then he grew serious again and looked at her very earnestly with those gorgeous blue eyes.

“Darcy, do you still want to…”

“Yes,” Darcy interrupted. “Heck yes. I like you, Steve. I didn’t really know you apart from Captain America before and I’m finding regular Steve to be more irresistible than Mrs. Messer’s lemon bars.”

Steve chuckled and started to turn pink, which was even cuter seen close up.

“Given how amazing those are, that’s high praise,” he remarked, with a twinkle in his eye. “Looks like I’ve got a lot of missed opportunities to make up for.”

They shared another long look and Steve moved into her personal space with intent-to-kiss written all over his face.

Darcy was very much down for that and nodded eagerly, wrapping her arms around him. The pent up feelings resulted in a pretty intense kiss, which left her weak in the knees and practically hanging onto Steve for dear life.

“Well that was worth it,” she whispered, when she’d caught her breath. “I’m so glad you didn’t actually go to the moon. There’s been rumors.”

Steve full on laughed at that, a joyous sight which she’d never witnessed before, but was very glad to finally see. His eyes crinkled, his face lit up and he looked so adorably cute, her heart turned into a puddle of goo.

“Don’t know where they came up with that one,” he remarked, shaking his head in amusement. “But I have no intentions of going to the moon. I’d rather stay here with you.”

“Good, because I need some more of those green beans, ASAP,” Darcy replied mischievously, barely refraining from making an eggplant joke. She didn’t want to be TOO forward.

“How about you come over and I can give you the grand tour?” Steve suggested.

“Yes, peas.” She responded, making him laugh again.

Before long, the neighbors were gossiping again, this time over the shocking sight of “Mr. Grant” making out with Dr. Lewis right in his backyard.

“I knew it!” Old Mrs. Richards chuckled, petting her dog gleefully.

“I’ll volunteer to make their wedding cake!” Exclaimed Mrs. Messer.

[beatriceeagle]

What do you think of later Veronica Mars seasons? Any advice for Rob Thomas? And (I guess about all VM seasons) anything you would change? Thank you

This got extremely long. I didn’t get into things I would change, and I didn’t give any advice; nevertheless, I have a lot to say about Veronica Mars.

The long and the short of it is that a lot of people discuss Veronica Mars as though it is a noir TV show, but it’s not solely or even primarily a noir work. It’s certainly noir-inspired; many of its characters are drawn from noir archetypes; it’s cynical enough about the status quo to be noir; you might say that it’s in conversation with the noir genre. But although noir detective fiction has plenty of hardboiled detectives (Veronica), dirty cops (Lamb), and femme fatales (Logan), where in noir do we place Wallace? Where do we put Mac? Where does Keith go? What about Meg? What about Duncan? (Poor, poor Meg and Duncan.)

By the time it exited its first season, Veronica Mars was just full of too many bright, funny, fundamentally likeable characters—characters who you fundamentally could not suspect of murder—to be classifiable as fully noir. Moreover, the central mystery that it left dangling at the end of the first season wasn’t about murder, or corruption, or betrayal; it’s about romance. Who is at Veronica’s door?  By the season one finale, Veronica Mars is first and foremost what it perhaps inevitably was going to become, when it aired on network television: an ensemble character drama.

Can an ensemble character drama be noir? Well, sure. Veronica Mars is. But in a long-term ensemble character-based show, the needs of the characters have to be served before the needs of the noir. People watched season one of Veronica Mars because they enjoyed the mystery (and the quips, and the romance). They kept watching because they connected with the characters.

Season one balanced those two needs nearly perfectly; that’s why it’s often held up as an all-time great season of television. Season two remains pretty noir (it is, after all, the season of the acquittal of Aaron Echolls), but the construction of its mystery gets overly complicated, and the personal plot—the character drama—tends towards soapy. It still balances well enough to be enjoyable, but it’s undeniable that there are problems with season two of Veronica Mars, and I think they come from trying to figure out how to incorporate the characters into an ongoing noir storyline. Wallace is simply not a noir character, but he gets sucked into a dead-end story about his missing father and a hit-and-run on a homeless guy for half a season. Duncan, once you establish that he’s not going to kill anyone in a blackout rage, is basically a bland, quiet, nice guy, and not in any way a noir character. So he has to go on the run with Meg’s (also not a noir character, therefore killed off) coma baby halfway through the season.

The basic construction of season two of Veronica Mars is that the cast from season one, now cleared of all suspicion in Lilly Kane’s murder, encounter a new noir mystery, populated by new noir characters: Woody and Gia Goodman and Jackie and Terrence Cook on the one hand, and Felix Toombs and the Fitzpatricks on the other. The main cast are organically enmeshed in this new noir set-up to varying degrees. Logan (who is perhaps the most naturally noir character of the show’s early seasons, above even Veronica) is fully integrated in the murder of Felix Toombs; he’s an obvious suspect, and although we don’t believe he did it, it’s understandable why everyone else thinks he did. Logan’s drive to clear his name (or at least stay out of jail) takes him to believable, if unlikeable, noir depths—which the show engages with! If the murder of Felix Toombs were the main focus of season two, it would probably be a pretty great focal point. But it’s not. The main mystery only touches Logan’s storyline for about one episode, where it’s a red herring, and the rest of the time Logan and the Fitzpatricks mostly operate in a parallel track, at best distracting from and at worst confusing the real plot.

The rest of the cast are involved in the main mystery, but their involvement is a tricky thing. Most of them weren’t on the bus when it crashed, or before it crashed. Most of them aren’t directly connected to the Sharks, or to the mayor’s incorporation plan. (Wow, season 2 has a lot of plates in the air.) Their connections are, by and large, second-hand. Wallace is dating Jackie. Mac is kind of dating Cassidy. Keith and Veronica just really like solving mysteries. And also Keith is running for sheriff I guess?

The thing is, those second-hand connections work to keep the show in the realm of noir. We don’t need Wallace to get involved in a hit-and-run, okay? He can just have a tempestuous and heartfelt but ultimately doomed relationship with a girl with a mysterious past. Duncan probably didn’t need to go on the run with Meg’s coma baby; he could’ve just like, gone to boarding school in Connecticut.

Season two is very aware that some of its characters are noir and some of them are not, because it leverages that fact to make the mystery work. Cassidy is on the bus, and then leaves before it crashes; Cassidy alone of the main cast is heavily connected to the incorporation storyline; Cassidy basically has a big red arrow pointing at him for five episodes leading up to the finale saying, “Hey, SOMETHING’S GOING ON WITH THIS GUY.” But Veronica never seriously considers him as a suspect, and the only reason that the viewer doesn’t (if they don’t) is because... it’s Beaver! Beaver’s not a murderer! Beaver’s not that kind of character. It’s kind of like how season one shows you Aaron Echolls beating a guy half to death, but plays “That’s Amore” over it, and you don’t realize you’re looking at a clue—or how The Good Place hid its first season twist simply by being a sitcom. If you don’t know what genre you’re operating in, it’s hard to be genre savvy.

But there’s a risk that comes with that kind of writing: No one was invested in Aaron Echolls, but I can imagine that someone might’ve been invested in Cassidy. I wasn’t, but someone might’ve been. He was in the main credits. He was dating Mac. In order to make season two’s mystery noir, and meaningful, and keep it connected to the main characters, they had to burn a character with some real work invested in him, and do so in a way that potentially broke faith with viewers who really liked that character and his relationships. (And that’s not even getting into the really unfortunate implications of the specific motivation and backstory they gave to Cassidy.)

Season three is just kind of a mess, for a lot of reasons. It’s not particularly noir; they’ve lost the overarching mystery, as well as the show’s central setting; they lean heavily into the character drama, but although Veronica Mars is an ensemble character drama, it’s not just an ensemble character drama, and it can’t and shouldn’t function without a mystery to sustain it. But more importantly, everyone’s a little out of character, so even if character drama were enough, I wouldn’t be all that interested in watching almost!Veronica get in her fifth fight with almost!Logan. That said, I think that leaning into character drama is a safer way to jump the shark than leaning into noir; at worst, the show is going to get messy and boring, which is basically what happens. And the ending of season three is a pretty bang-on noir ending, and falls out naturally from the weird, messy character drama. It’s not a good season of television, but there’s a reason that it didn’t destroy fans’ love of the show.

This is ~*unconventional*~, I know, but I like the movie, both as a fan and, when I try to step back and approach it somewhat objectively, as a critic. It is extraordinarily fanservice-y; I don’t think that’s a bad thing. There are, perhaps, fanservice moments that I find a little over-the-top. (One of them, alas, is the repetition of the “lives ruined, bloodshed” speech; Logan was drunk the first time he gave that, he doesn’t remember it, and that’s half the point!) But on the whole, the movie gets it. Logan and Weevil (and Gia, may she rest in peace) are inherently noir characters who you can insert into a mystery or a story about corruption or cynicism, and although we don’t want them to have done the big bad thing, they will operate smoothly within the confines of the system. Wallace and Mac are visitors from another genre; the make connections, they comment, their lives are sometimes affected, but they are not noir, and their stories should not be noir. Veronica and Keith are the pivot, constantly drawn into Neptune’s seedy network of crime, trying to root it out.

It’s basically the Logan-and-Fitzpatricks storyline from season two, but updated so that a) Veronica and the rest of the cast is actually involved, and b) Logan is a much more likeable person. And it turns out that that’s a totally solid engine for a movie! And because it’s so fanservice-y, we spend time with all of the characters, even the ones who aren’t really entangled in the noir plots. Mac gets stuff to do. Wallace gets stuff to do. Piz... gets... poor Piz.

Season four leans heavily on the noir. So heavily, in fact, that the characters who aren’t natural noir characters are virtually nonexistent within the season. Wallace doesn’t have a storyline; Mac doesn’t appear because Tina Majorino refused to be in the season, since she wouldn’t have a storyline. Weevil, whose noir tendencies have put him on the outs with Veronica in between the movie and season four, has a story, but it’s not one that’s heavily tied to the main plot, and he’s not around much.

Structurally, season four is similar to season two, in that the main cast encounters a new mystery full of noir characters: Patton Oswalt, Matty the mini-Veronica, that politician and his family, those cartel hit men, Veronica’s bartender friend Nicole. The difference is that in season four, the main cast has functionally been pared down to three people: Veronica, Logan, and Keith. Oh, and Dick. Dick’s still hanging around, I guess.

Because of that, we spend virtually all of our time in season four with Veronica. Sometimes a little with Logan, sometimes with Keith, but mostly Veronica. We see her making friends with Nicole; we see her taking on Matty as a protege. We see her fight with Weevil; we see her fight with Logan. 

Oh boy, do we see her fight with Logan. Because there are so few subplots to distract from it, Logan and Veronica’s relationship is, in many ways, the story of season four. For a show trying so desperately hard to cling to noir and run from character drama, season four isn’t really about corruption; it isn’t about power; it isn’t about cynicism or brutality or the ways that Neptune has been and always will be bad. It’s about a relationship, and what happens to it when one person (Logan) is trying to move on to a healthier place, but the other person (Veronica) is still stuck in old, toxic patterns of behavior.

Nearly everything in season four is in some way about the Logan/Veronica dichotomy, or about their relationship with each other, or about the way that Veronica is pathologically stubborn and guarded and suspicious, and how that kills her relationships. It’s the thematic underpinning of the Matty storyline; it’s what the Nicole storyline turns on; it is, whether the show understands it or not, the devastating backdrop of the few scenes in which Weevil appears.

This is all fine and noir, but again: It comes to its fullest fruition, it finds its highest stakes, the season’s arc reaches its climax, in a romantic relationship. Which the season is, fundamentally, devoted to the psychological exploration of. And when Veronica decides that she can commit to marrying Logan, that is a key moment of character development, in a show that has historically been an ensemble character drama, in a season of television that has been, at least for Logan and Veronica, at least partially a psychological character drama.

And then Logan blows up.

And look, I am not opposed to killing characters. I’ve defended the death of Lexa on The 100 on this here very blog. But Logan’s death is 1) stupid, 2) at a stupid time, and 3) for a stupid reason. He dies moving the car across the street, just at the culmination of a major psychological arc about toxicity and moving on and opening yourself up to others... so that Veronica can stay toxic and guarded, I guess?

It renders any character development we’ve seen from Veronica in season 4 pointless. It cuts the character development we’ve seen from Logan for over a decade tragically and meaninglessly short. And it does it all in the name of taking a hard turn into “pure” noir, so that Veronica can go investigate mysteries in other towns, unencumbered by a troublesome cast that viewers are unwilling to suspect of murder.

The problem is that that cast is a lot of what’s good about the show. Maybe there are people who watched season four of Veronica Mars and came out of it thinking, “Ah, yes, what this show needs is even less of the ensemble cast,” but I was not one of them. The Veronica of season 4 is not a particularly likeable person. Veronica, on her own, was never all that likeable; what she was was funny, and understandable, and righteous, and decent. She had people around her to be likeable, to provide you with an entry point into her mind, to show interesting sides of her you might not otherwise see, to call her out when she crossed a line, and to give the show a lightness that made it fun. The bomb that blew up Logan may have made the loudest noise, and had the most final impact, but it wasn’t what killed season four; that happened when the writers sidelined Wallace.

It is, I’m sure, difficult to balance being an ensemble character drama with being a seasonal noir mystery. (Jane the Virgin ran into similar trouble, in the long run, balancing being an ensemble character drama with being a telenovela.) Nevertheless, Veronica Mars is both of these things, and blowing up the ensemble to service the noir is inevitably going to alienate viewers, because viewers have a reasonable expectation that the shows they’re watching will continue to be the same general kind of show. And because many viewers were drawn to Veronica Mars at least as much for the characters as for the mystery.

So my very, very longwinded opinion on the later seasons of Veronica Mars is that I think the show has an identity crisis, and I don’t think it’s going to resolve it any time soon. It may not be resolvable; honestly, television might not be the best medium for ongoing Veronica Mars stories at this point. But I have very little interest in watching any further seasons produced, so it doesn’t matter much, from my point of view.

[chuchuprecureart]

Hello I’m back with my top ten favorite pretty cure side character! Now this my top ten favorite and these are my opinions, so please keep that in mind and without forewords let’s get started

10. Yui Nanase

Now! Now! Put down your pitchforks and torches that Yui is number 10! The reason why is that she didn’t become a Precure, but she was significant in that she kept the secret until near the end of the series and is was vital into beating despair been that she slowly learned how to avoid the villains spell later on in the series and because of that she was in later half of season to break out of the spell. Because of that when despair try lock all of them she was able to break out and gave the girls a key victory that would help the cures on defeating the big bad of this season!

9. International Precure ( the Hawaii pretty Cure and Cure Tender)

Now sadly they didn’t what I wanted and I wished that we could explore more about international Precure because it really interesting to other Precure besides the Japanese pretty Cure and hope in the future we get explore more of it because it is really interesting. Now they might do it sooner, because of the last season having the first international precure on a main team that Star Twinkle and the adding that more people from other nations are starting to more into Japan with the new empire and new minister they might do international pretty cure later on in the season! But this was the first steps on introducing people especially Japanese viewers to other Precure besides good old Japan, but hope they do a season explore more maybe in a different country such as Britain or France. I mean they have two movies where two teams were in France, so maybe having a season with a French pretty Cure team would interesting. Plus it won’t that hard to do that since they almost had one, besides it a familiar region to them so it wouldn’t that hard to that.

8. Cure mofurun ( Mahou Precure)

I wish this was in the official season, because I loved her as Pretty Cure and plus she one of the best mascots. My personal favorites one out of all theme besides Candy and Tart from Fresh Precure! Besides in the movie, she showed that she is a decent fighter having experiences from her allies and seeing transformation was beautiful! I loved her theme song transformation sequence being the best one out of all them, while also showing that she can hold up on her own! I wish they had more characters like her and not like Milky Rose or Cure Pekorin because then I would be more invested in watching those series if they had something similar like Cure mofurun.

7. Cure Flower (Heartcatch Precure)

First of all, I love that there was relationship between the main character being Tsubomi and the grandmother, being that once that grandmother was a pretty cure in the good older days. It was interesting to see this relationship and how the grandmother was a mentor figure to Tsubomi and the other Cures before Cure moonlight joined the team, she gave advice on how to approach things and also help them out on several occasions,even freeing them from the villains. She was extremely important to the series as she help out the cures and even gave the vital information when needed; while also having a role to Tsubomi growth as a character and helping her out when she needed the most. That’s why is number 7 on this list!

6. Cure Echo (all stars pretty cure)

Yep busting that bubble out of the blue! Number 6 is Cure Echo from the all-stars series and part of the Smile Precure! I wish that she was part of the smile team and I believe that she was on meant to joining them particularly being that this was the only season, where there wasn’t a sixth member. I know that there are some of you who are saying that Candy is kinda a sixth member but, I don’t count her because it was near the end of the season that she became helpful to them. Plus, technically it would Echo besides it was Smile Precure that we’re the newbies and it would make logical sense that she would joined them after defeating Fusion. Also it also makes sense, since technically she is sixth member on their team and besides they represent a rainbow in a way and technically she would the part of it. Mostly represent that she is the light of it that it the light from the sun and the water that makes the rainbow, that’s I believe that she was meant to be the sixth member and I wish she was because she is my favorite out of all the smile team!

5. Kiryuu Michiru (Cure bright) & Kiryuu Kaoru (Cure Windy) Splash Star Precure

Number five is Michiru and Kaoru from Splash Star! It was interesting to see these two slowly become allies and eventually become pretty cure at the end of the season, plus they were prequels to villains becoming good guys and before it was cool to become pretty cures before Sestuna, Ellen, Towa and RuRu came on the series. I wished to see more of a due of sisters pretty cure team, but alas it never happened and I wish it would. It would interesting to see one in the future term, I would invest in watching that series and see how Toei would approach something like that.

4. Kuroki Rio ( Cure Waffle)

Yes, number four is Cure Waffle or Rio; I am counting on him as being a pretty cure; it been confirmed in the early days of the show. The reason why was that he was the first male character to become a Precure (𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐮𝐠𝐭𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐂𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞) Cure waffle was technically first, not the other way around! Plus I love his ship which is Ichika x Rio, which is one of my favorite ships in the series besides Daruizen x Nodoka! I wish that they would expand on that!

3. Himenojou Sakurako ( Star Twinkle Precure)

Surprised! Should be, because number 3 is Himenojou Sakurako from Star Twinkle Precure! I really wished that she was the seventh member, I am not counting Fuwa because that’s only in the musicals and not the series! Besides that, I believe that she was supposed be on the teams why dedicate entire episode on her when she wasn’t on the team! It doesn’t make sense unless she was original meant to be on the team with the other cures and there some theories suggesting that original there was supposed to be a plot line to be discovered to be an alien from a different planet that just like earth but in dire need of help. However, they had scrapped it due to many rewrites of this season from the higher ups and my beliefs that she meant for that but because of poor rates of Fuwa, it was scrapped among the other ideas. I feel really bad for her and situation that writer was put in, I would love to see where plot line went and I heard that supposed significance!

2. Higashiyama Seika and Nishijima Waon (suite Precure)

Number 2 is Seika and Waon tied for number 2 place of the best side character! Yes, another surprise and original they were meant to be pretty cure, on the suite Precure team but alas they were scrapped as well because of rewrites of the script after the 2011 Tsunami that was from the earthquake in Japan because of it the entire script was changed! We lost Cure Symphony and Cure Pitch from being official, which really upsetting because I would like to seen how Toei would done the face reveals! My best guess is that it would been similar to what happened in episode that noise was having steals the modules from their friends while finding out that their friends were pretty cure and having to coming Precure at the end of episode would really been interesting to see and would a really interesting idea!

And for number 1 is

1. Chinen Miyuko (fresh Precure)

Number one is Chinen Miyuko from fresh Precure! The reason why is for many, the first that orginally there was supposed to a fifth member on team instead of a four member team, however it was ultimately scrapped from production, however the one tiny problem was that the cure was in the final stages of development so they had to scrapped it but they couldn’t scrap everything so they decided to keep the character and have her as one of mentor figures for the Precure. That’s why she looked different from all the characters including the main cast, she was meant to be with main cast from the beginning instead she became a mentor figure but a very important one! She keep the girls in check while helping them while having a career on top of that! That’s lot of work for person let alone keeping a secret from her job which can really hard given that her team won the dance tournament before the season started! Though I wish I could seen the plot line, it was unique for them to do that! I hope one day they do that!

Well those are my top ten side character my next list is my top ten favorite villains from Precure series! Until next time!



[owl-with-a-pen]

Alas we are getting some Brainia in the latest episodes!! I really liked this weeks episode, very well made and it wasn’t as cheesy as the rest of them.

If you go in expecting cheesiness, you’re far less disappointed, trust me! 😂 

But I enjoyed this episode, too! It felt like we finally got to see the Super Friends working properly as a unit. I adored that little scene near the beginning where Nia was showing Lena around and Brainy just zips past Alex in his chair. It had a real family dynamic feel to it and I honestly missed those little interactions so much. (Also the little back and forth about Ghostbusters between Lena and Brainy was just so cute and dorky!) With all the action that’s been happening to get Kara back, little moments like that just make me so happy.

I loved seeing Nia and Brainy using quips in the coffee shop when they were fighting that Phantom, and I adored seeing them partner up again! I know we’ll get to see even more of that in next week’s episode which I’m super excited for. 

Also, just, Brainy and Nia checking in on each other over the course of the episode! The way Brainy was so gentle with Nia when she kept getting the vision of Midvale, how he comforted her after she astral projected. The way he takes her hand and tells her “you have me” -  I just, I need a minute, okay?? In the same breath, Nia noticing that Brainy is comfort eating immediately and picking up on how he must be feeling without his inhibitors, how she tells him he can talk to her about anything. I loved seeing that care for one another being so prominent and I’m hoping we’ll get a proper open conversation between the two in coming episodes, especially after how Brainy nodded along when Nia said “we have each other”. I think it shows he might finally be willing to open up to her in more depth. So, like, fingers crossed!!

The Lena and Alex interactions were very interesting. I love seeing them working together, and Lena trying so hard to prove herself made a nice change of pace for her character. Old habits die hard, of course, and it’s obvious there’s still an element of ego that she has to fight against. Even when she knew the world was at stake, she was still insistent on putting her own interests first to save Supergirl in a way to absolve herself of her own guilt. It’s a very human decision, and I’m glad we actually got a conversation between Alex and Lena to resolve it in the same episode, especially because I think it was an excellent learning opportunity for Lena and hopefully a step in the right direction for where her character is heading. Also, I love that they bonded over scotch. It’s a friendship that I definitely want to see flourish over this season. 

J’onn and M’gann are such a sweet couple and I love that we’ve been getting more content between those two. The concept of souls that the Phantoms brought about is really intriguing to me, and I’m glad we got to explore it a little through M’gann’s experiences. Although, I have to admit all I could think about when the souls got released from Prime Phantom’s egg was that one scene from the Scooby Doo movie. (You know the one I mean!) 

The Phantom Zone scenes still feel a little lacklustre to me, but one thing that irked me the most was how they dealt with Nxy’s character. I had a feeling they wanted to line her up as a villain, but I had hope that maybe they wouldn’t go that route. Regardless, how they got there felt a little off to me. Nxy feeling abandoned by her own father and therefore seeing other father figures as enemies, especially those who abandoned their daughters, I can understand somewhat - but the escalation of Nxy not taking no for an answer and then immediately jumping to the conclusion that she wants to terrorise Earth felt like it almost came out of nowhere. I get that fifth dimensional imps are temperamental and mischievous by design, but I just feel like it could have been handled a little better. Regardless, I liked Nxy’s character and her dynamic with Kara and I hope that if she does return, which I assume she will, there might be a chance for a redemption arc for her in the future, especially if Kara is there to help guide her. 

Having the characters slowly get picked off one by one by the Phantoms was cliché but also the exact kind of cliché I go crazy for. Having Alex witness J’onn getting his soul ripped from his body, followed by Nia screaming for Brainy when he’s dragged out of sight by another Phantom was harrowing, but I’m so here for it! (I also liked that instead of seeing a soul leave Brainy’s body, we saw his life projectors flicker. It gives an interesting perspective on what a Coluan soul might represent.)

 Also. Nia. NIA. My GIRL. Creating a tunnel for Alex to safely get through to break open the egg and save everyone’s souls. Holding it up even when she’s been scratched by a Phantom. The dream energy against her eyes once they’ve changed colour. God, I loved that scene. SO MUCH. And having that end result of everyone coming together to take the Prime Phantom down... now that’s why I watch superhero shows, goddamnit! 

All in all, I’d say I certainly enjoyed a lot of what the episode had to offer and I’m excited to see some dorky Brainia next week!

[dansnaturepictures]

26/04/2021-Lakeside and sunny and sky scenes at home: 10 different pictures in this photoset to those tweeted tonight 

I took the first picture in this photoset of some flowers in the garden at lunch time in more great sunshine. I then reached Lakeside and having not been here since the Friday before my week off 16th April apart from a little walk along the northern path before a further afield trip on Thursday I wanted to see if much had changed as spring has rapidly progressed. As I walked across the southern fenced off nature reserve meadow area I didn’t spot too many differences, the landscape still going a delicious green colour as I have noticed so much elsewhere too the past week especially I took the second picture in this photoset showing this area in the green and I was interested to notice there were still snake’s-head fritillaries about which looked great I tweeted a picture of two of those today which I took on Dans_Pictures. These flowers have been around for over a month now so I just wondered if many would be about but there was still a decent few. A Speckled Wood flew along the path here as it had done just over a couple of weeks ago when I saw my first of the year. 

But as I reached beach lake the easternmost one that I took the third picture in this photoset of I did notice something different this year when I saw a lone House Martin gliding high over and occasionally skimming low over the lake. It was a pleasure to watch this beautiful blueish springtime visitor floating through the air, I got lost watching it for a minute. Such a beautiful moment and a key spring first as my first Lakeside House Martin this year I have seen them elsewhere so far. This was a key part of my 2020 working from home days when it all started as it allowed me to reconnect with something I used to see at Lakeside years ago but hadn’t really in recent years mostly due to not being here as much. But I first noticed them here last year in a group, a group that would frequent the area around our house too. I hope others may be joining this one after safe passage here. An exciting sign of spring. 

As I walked on I took the fourth and fifth pictures in this photoset on another stunning day. Walking back along the northern path and approaching it I loved taking in some more precious Orange Tip butterflies we are really in the peak time of year for them now. I had an impossible choice with my big lens fixed on as a female Orange Tip settled in the grass below something it was just so nice and beautiful to see but I hadn’t photographed for years but then at the very same time a loud and beautiful singing male Blackcap showed tremendously in a tree. I didn’t know which of these key species of my spring already and any spring to try and photograph, and with my big lens on I suppose and also maybe because I felt the Orange Tip may be more likely to stay put to try and get a photo of both I went for the Blackcap to no avail. And then the Orange Tip flew off before I could change lenses to my macro which I had with me, but it would have been an ask still for this flighty butterfly to stay put for long enough to change the lens especially as it was fairly windy. Alas I’ve set a record for myself already I think by photographing three male Orange Tips this spring already, not a butterfly I had the best record for photographing before last year. But potentially my perception of them being flighty butterflies that don’t seem to land often to help with photos in the 10 years I have been seeing them was heightened by in normal years limited time with them in their habitats once I’d seen them in a year. And I have come to realise now having two years of the space and time to see them created by working from home and having the right plants and area at Lakeside to see them, seeing them so consistently during their season that the law of averages state you’re going to have to see them landed and get photos at some point and I have had the time to see you can. 

To make the most of the warm weather generally and also in case I could see a Small Copper one of the next butterflies I need to see which I can at Lakeside locally and did so much last year I had an evening Lakeside walk, which was a very gorgeous walk in the bright late afternoon sun. I took the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth pictures in this photoset during that walk and I really enjoyed seeing some singing Robins which was beautiful to hear and hear a Chiffchaff calling too. This evening at home some thin bits of interesting looking cloud that had bubbled up a bit throughout the afternoon made for great sky scenes with the lowering sun and sunset including the tenth and final picture in this photoset as I hoped which looked amazing. I was also thrilled to notice the very prominent super pink moon in the early night’s sky and take a picture of it another very special moon for me to see over the last year or so. I hope you all had a good Monday. 

Wildlife Sightings Summary: (Lakeside) One of my favourite birds the Great Crested Grebe, one of my favourite butterflies the Orange Tip, Mallard, Moorhen, Mute Swan, Greylag Goose, Canada Goose, Black-headed Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Blackcap, Robin, Woodpigeon, House Sparrow and Starling well, House Martin, Speckled Wood and I heard another of my favourite birds the Green Woodpecker and a Chiffchaff. 

One thing I enjoyed about being back to working from home was more chances to see the garden birds today I perhaps didn’t notice them as much last week being in less whilst we were obviously safely doing amazing things further afield for wildlife and photography during the week off. Key birds I saw in the garden and around today were Goldfinch, House Sparrow, Starling and Collared Dove.