#M watches TnB

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 13 – Constant dropping wears away a stone.

This one is mostly incoherent screeching and me waving screenshots in your faces; I apologize in advance.

- Aaaaaand dammit, they're giving me feelings about the twins again and their weird little family.

- Look. Look. I am a sucker for violent, chaotic characters who 1) enjoy the violence just for shits and giggles and 2) also have someone they care truly and deeply about (e.g., Spike from Buffy, anyone??). And Fugan and Mugan very much fit that profile.

- So Ouroboros wants the world to fear NEXT. But why?

- LORD seeing Barnaby just go fucking ballistic on Fugan gave me chills. And then you have Kotetsu speaking up when the rookies want to stop him, because he trusts that Barnaby has a plan. Because Barnaby always has a plan, always knows what he’s doing, even if it doesn’t look like it to an outside observer. And Kotetsu knows that now.

- And here we are, finally back to the first scene of the season.

- I think this is actually a hint that Barnaby did have a plan and wasn’t just going batshit because Kotetsu was hurt: his power is still active when he lets out his final attack. In order to test his hypothesis, he needed to attack Fugan a lot with the Hundred Power, but he needed to make sure he had enough time left to survive the attack Fugan would hit him with. And he hits that balance, which tells me he was very aware of what he was doing.

- And Barnaby's sacrifice pays off. Fugan’s arms are broken, and they know his weakness: with the way the drug boosted his NEXT abilities, his body literally can’t hold up under the amount of power he absorbs. It’s going to tear him apart.

- And even as hurt as Fugan is, he's afraid to stop here—not for himself, but because Ouroboros could hurt Brahe. We see that they're stuck between a rock and a hard place, too.

- NO SHIT WHO COULD POSSIBLY HAVE FORESEEN THIS TURN OF EVENTS

- If we see Rosicky bite it in the next cour, I will not be terribly upset.

- Fuuuuuuck now that Barnaby and Kotetsu are basically out of commission, we’re down to just the kids.

- And we have Black and Cat working together to protect Thomas because he's the only one with a strong attack. They really are trying, but there’s so little they can do against Fugan and Mugan.

- YEAH LARA'S MOM YOU SEE WHAT THE HERO JOB REALLY IS

- I admint, I was viciously pleased to see her so horrified. I’m not proud of it.

- It does make me wonder if she’ll change her tune in the second half of the season, and try to stop Cat from being a hero, or if she’ll double down that much harder. 

- Jeez Barnaby and Kotetsu are in rough, rough shape. And the fight’s not over!

- I knew, I knew that whatever was inside Kid’s charm would be something like this, and I was absolutely not disappointed with the reveal. The drawing is so cute, my heart.

- And it’s her partner’s faith in her that gives Cat the courage to stand up and stop the twins.

- OH LOOK I'VE BEEN IMPALED

- Relatedly, boy Cat is gonna have some PTSD from this.

- I’m fine I’M FINE I’M FINE

- Okay but the way it looks like Fugan is right, that Thomas is using Kotetsu to protect himself, keeping Fugan from attacking...and then the realization hits that Kotetsu is holding himself up, and Thomas is holding Barnaby. 

- Three minutes ago Kotetsu could barely stand, but clearly he’s summoned his “I need to hold up my boyfriend” powers from the depths of his soul.

- I love that they try to get Fugan and Mugan medical help *sobs*

- And it’s Kotetsu and Barnaby together explaining how they figured out Fugan couldn’t absorb his own attacks. Even when they were lying there broken and bleeding, they were still paying attention. And it’s a reminder that Kotetsu, as goofy and reckless as he can be, is still very observant; they both are. It’s another reason they’re perfect partners.

- I’m not crying it’s just raining on my face.

- That's how they were petrifying the heroes: Brahe’s NEXT ability. And it only lasts as long as he keeps one hand in a fist, and he let it go so that he could hold his sons before he dies. And it’s for no other reason than he wants to hold his sons. I'm fine.

- I don't see how it could've ended any other way for them, but damn I kinda wanted the heroes to end up with the very chaotic murder twins as weird "violence is our first resort!" cousins. That would’ve been hilarious.

- Mr. and Mrs. Lyle getting a brand-new son-in-law. I’m sure they won’t object.

- KID’S FACE when she realizes Cat saw the silly drawing. Genuinely horrified, never expected that to see the light of day. I can’t even. XD

- I love all the hero partners so much, they’re all so wonderful.

- My thoughts exactly, Kotetsu.

- HOW ABOUT TONIGHT

- LET'S HAVE OUR DATE TONIGHT

- LET'S HAVE A TOAST WITH OUR IVS

- AND THE SEASON ENDS WITH THEM LOOKING AT EACH OTHER FONDLY AND LAUGHING TOGETHER I'M STILL GOING FUCKING FERAL OVER THIS, MONTHS LATER.

- BARNABY IS LAUGHING. BARNABY. LAUGHING. WITH KOTETSU. BECAUSE OF KOTETSU. GOD. 

- THEY FINALLY GOT THEIR FUCKING DATE IN A WAY I ABSOLUTELY DIDN’T EXPECT BUT YET IT’S STILL KIND OF PERFECT.

- And Gregory Sunshine disappears into Stern Bild with a case of the drug that enhances NEXT powers, with a look that says “I’m going to cause problems on purpose.”

Y’all honestly, I was trying so hard to keep my expectations at a minimum with this new season, and the series absolutely blew past them. I got everything I wanted and then some, and I can’t wait to see what cour 2 will bring.

I love this fuckin’ show.

[greenhearts16]

Chapter Eleven: The Gathering

"Sometimes it's a little better to travel than to arrive."― Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values

Rick and Lori stared at each other. Neither one moved; neither one said anything. The silence was deafening, filled with disbelief and uncertainty.

"Oh my goodness," Lori finally breathed, as she let out a sob. "How? What…" He stepped forward, pulling her into a hug he knew she most likely needed. "I can't believe it. I'm so glad to see you. I was so worried. I tried to call, but…Is Carl here?" She peered into the house over his shoulder. "Is he alright?"

"He's in his room," Rick said, letting her go and stepping back to let her in. "He's gonna be so happy to see you." She let out a sigh of relief.

As Rick shut the door behind Lori, his eyes drifted to Michonne who was standing near the window at the edge of the small living room silently watching their reunion. He met Michonne's eyes, giving her a small smile which she returned.

"Carl?" Rick called. "Come on out son. Someone's here to see you."

"Hello," Lori smiled, politely holding out her hand as she and Rick entered the small living space. "I'm Lori. Carl's Mom."

"Michonne," she said, shaking Rick's ex-wife's hand. She was unsure of what to introduce herself as. Rick's neighbor? Something more than a neighbor? Did it even matter?

"Mom?" Carl stood in the hallway leading to the bedroom he shared with Duane with a look of disbelief on his face. As his mind registered what his eyes were seeing, he flew across the room and bounded toward his mother. She dropped to her knees, dropping the basket she carried to pull him into her arms. "Mommy!"

"My sweet boy." Both Carl and Lori started to cry as they embraced. "I can't believe you're really here. I'm so happy you're all right."

Morgan and Duane emerged from one of the bedrooms, silently observing the reunion between the mother and her son.

"I'm welcoming the newcomers to the community and spreading the word about tonight's gathering. I didn't dream that you two would be here," she said, as she pulled away from her son. "We're all meeting in the square and there'll be food and music and other entertainment. It's going to be really nice."

"It sounds nice."

She noticed the two newcomers. "Hi, I'm Lori. Carl's Mom."

"Morgan. And this is my boy Duane. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you all." She dabbed her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt. "Who else is here with you, Rick?" she asked, looking back to Rick. "Anybody else made it? Leon? The Johnson's?"

Rick shook his head sadly. "The Johnson's packed up their car and left while we were still in King County and Leon didn't make it. Carol Peletier and her daughter Sophia are here, though," he answered. "Shane is here too. I'm sure he'll be more than happy to see you here."

Lori averted her gaze, trying to keep a neutral expression but the brief flash of guilt didn't escape Rick's notice. "Oh wow."

"Have you been here since the beginning?" Michonne asked.

"I have," Lori answered. "I was so lucky that I was running late for work. I ended up on one of the evacuation busses that were taking people out of the city. Gene – Major Gavin, stepped up as our leader once we got here and we've been surviving and sustaining this community ever since. I couldn't imagine being anywhere but here at a time like this. This is probably that last safe place left on Earth."

While Woodbury was certainly safe, Michonne had her doubts about that statement.

The reverence in the woman's voice when she spoke of their leader didn't escape her notice either. Lori obviously had great respect for the man and certainly didn't share Michonne and Rick's initial feelings of suspicion and distrust that they felt upon meeting him.

"We have a tutor here," she said looking back at Rick. "She used to be a teacher before all of this. We're trying to set up something so the children can continue their lessons. This really is a great place and it will continue to be great as long as people do what they have to do."

Rick nodded his head but offered no comment. He knew Lori well enough to know how idealistic and demanding she tended to be. It was the main reason they were now divorced. She wouldn't be the type of person to voice his feelings of uneasiness to. Especially since she was sold on this place. And while he had his reservations, there was nothing glaringly sinister about Woodbury. It was possible that he was simply being a little too paranoid.

"Sounds like a utopia," Morgan said quietly as he moved to sit on the couch. His eyes were still bloodshot from all the tears he spilled for his wife. Michonne knew that the man was probably wishing that his wife had gotten the opportunity to see this "Utopia".

Lori smiled tightly. "It's pretty close to being one." She smoothed down Carl's hair with the palm of her hand, staring at the boy as if she couldn't believe he was actually there.

"Y'all have gatherings like this often?"

"This is a little different from the other ones we've had," she said simply. "We've been very careful with food from since the beginning. The men found a superstore nearby and that's where we got most of the non-perishable food. Everything has to be tightly rationed and monitored so everything lasts and everyone to get a fair share. That's why keeping personal hordes of food is forbidden."

"Pretty soon you'll have to start looking for more long-term food sources though," Rick said. "Maybe farming. It seems like there's a lot of people here. Lots of mouths to feed. What you have probably won't last much longer."

"The Major has all of that under control," Lori said coolly, shooting Rick a strained tight-lipped smile. "He's talked about stuff like that."

"Sounds like he has everything under control then." He decided to not bring up the makeshift wall.

"He certainly does." She patted Carl's head once again. "Anyway, I should really get going. I've got to go and welcome the rest of your group to Woodbury." She picked up the basket from the floor. "These are some toiletries and stuff, so y'all freshen up. If you need anything else, don't hesitate to ask anyone around here. We also have a doctor if anybody needs any medical attention. I help out sometimes since I used to be a nurse before all this."

Rick took the basket from her. "Thank you."

"I'm just glad y'all are safe."

~TNB~

That evening, Michonne walked to the large square at the center of Woodbury along with Rick, Morgan and Duane. Rick had suggested that Carl spend the rest of the day with his mother considering how long it had been since the two had last seen each other.

"This seems to be a well put together place," Morgan said casually. As they walked, men in military fatigues would pass them, machine guns on their shoulders.

"It does." Michonne still didn't trust it though. "I hope it really is as put together as it seems. I want to like it here, but I just can't shake this feeling."

The place was bustling with people when they arrived. A long wooden table with a plethora of food and drinks stood outside the building that doubled as the pantry and armory. A large platform was erected in the center of the large square and a podium stood in the middle.

It was a wonder how they were able to put together such a grand display with the current state of the world. Michonne thought it would be a long time before she saw gatherings such as this one. It made her feel slightly out of place yet optimistic at the same time. She was filled with conflicting feelings about Woodbury.

"They certainly went all out," Rick said wryly as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "They even have good booze."

Michonne looked around the crowd and as packed as it was, she recognized the familiar faces of their group amongst them. It seemed everyone was there except for Shane.

"Daddy look!" Duane said pointing. He tugged on his father's hand, trying to pull him in the direction of the food.

The crowd suddenly grew quiet, their attention elsewhere. Michonne turned to see Major Gavin positioned behind the podium. He wore a formal Army Service Uniform and stood as if he were the most important person in the world, which didn't particularly surprise her. He was an obviously pompous man. What gave her pause, was the people standing with him.

Behind him, stood a line of men in military fatigues that seemed representative of a small personal security detail. Phillip and a gray-haired man stood in front of them, a little to the right of the Major. To Major Gavin's left, the dark-haired woman who had introduced herself as Carl's mother, Lori, stood wearing a sleeveless white dress and a shimmering grin.

"Welcome," Major Gavin bellowed. "Tonight is a very special night, as you all can see." He gestured to their surroundings. "We don't usually do things quite like this. This is a far cry from our races at the track."

Michonne turned to see Rick staring slack-jawed at the overly formal stately display in front of them. "What on earth –" he mumbled.

"We already planned on a very important announcement tonight, but this afternoon when our very loyal Woodburian Otis returned, he brought back new members. So we'll be celebrating two things here. Lori and I planned on sharing some great news with all of you, but now we have even more good news to add to it." Major Gavin paused looking at Lori, who reached out and took his hand in hers. "I've asked Lori to be my wife and she accepted. Then today we were reunited with her son who came here with the newest group of Woodburians-to-be."

The crowd applauded as people looked around themselves to catch glimpses of the newcomers. Michonne couldn't help but notice that nobody seemed particularly overjoyed to be there.

"Okay, that isn't weird at all," Michonne mumbled, but loud enough for Rick to hear her.

"Reunited? He never even met Carl before today." Rick shook his head. While he was surprised, this wasn't too far out of the realm of possibility. He knew Lori. "Funny she never mentioned any of this earlier."

"By the way, where is Carl?" Michonne asked, craning her neck to see if she missed the presence of the small boy somewhere on or near the stage. He was nowhere near his mother, who stood staring at the man speaking with a dazed expression.

Rick clenched his jaw, his eyes moving around the crowd. "That's a very good question."

"So in that spirit, we would like everyone to enjoy the feast as we celebrate." He wrapped an arm around Lori's waist. "I'm in a generous mood! Eat, enjoy yourselves, and be thankful for Woodbury and your leader. Today we eat freely, with no worries about the rations. Consider this our gift to you."

"So…this is an engagement party?"

Rick snickered as they turned away from the stage. "Who ever said people can't get engaged in an apocalypse."

She saw Daryl Dixon maneuvering through the small crowd heading in their direction and looking completely out of his element. While his brother was a pain, the younger Dixon seemed like the calmer more rational alternative. He had mellowed some since his fight with Shane, but Rick still wanted to keep a wary eye on him.

"Enjoying the party Dixon?" She called, getting his attention.

"It's alright," Daryl grunted, his eyes roaming around. His face still bared the scars of his scuffle. "I don't like that guy, though. I ain't never trusted them types anyway. Think they better than everybody."

Rick and Michonne exchanged knowing a look., but kept their thoughts to themselves.

"Rick!" Lori was headed in their direction with the gray-haired man from the stage behind her. She gave a dainty wave as they looked in her direction.

"Lori," he said with a tight smile as if she was the last person he wanted to see.

Her eyes flitted to Daryl before she quickly shifted her gaze to Rick and Michonne. "Enjoying yourselves?"

"I think it's nice that you all get together and have a party to enjoy what you can of life." Michonne answered diplomatically trying not to stare at the man who stood stoically behind Lori as if he were some type of bodyguard. "Especially with how the world is now."

"Oh Yes. Definitely," she nodded. "But that's out there. We're safe in here. We have the National Guard protecting us and it's almost like how life used to be. And don't forget you're a part of this too. This is our get-together."

"It ain't never gon' be like how life used to be unless those walkers out there are gone," Daryl grumbled. "Ain't no escaping that no matter how many of them fancy uniform guys you got."

Lori slowly moved her eyes to Daryl, keeping her expression as neutral as she could manage. It was clear from her face that she didn't entirely trust the man. "Well so far we have. Let's hope it stays that way. Negativity will get us nowhere."

"Congratulations by the way," Michonne said.

"Thanks! I'm already kind of like the First Lady of this place," Lori grinned with a light shrug of her shoulders. "People look up to Gene and I so I think it will be a good thing in the long run."

"I can see that," Rick said. Michonne could hear the light sarcasm in his voice. "That was some announcement. He's like a president. That really was something. I felt like I traveled back to a time before all this happened. Speaking of before, where is Carl?""

"Carl was with Annette and the rest of the Greenes." She spun around as if she would find the boy behind her in the crowd. "They're somewhere around. I spoke to him about all this earlier. He's fine."

"I'm gonna go grab a drink," Michonne said, gesturing toward the food as she backed away from them. She could tell things were about to get awkwardly tense.

She noticed Glenn near a layout of sandwiches, taking animatedly to a young brunette woman. Carl stood beside them, loading mini sandwiches onto a plate.

"Hey Glenn." She grabbed a plate, trying to decide what she wanted.

His head popped in her direction as if she broke him out of a trance. "Michonne. Hey."

"Hi Michonne!" Carl called through a mouthful of food as he too noticed her presence. "These taste so good! I think I love it here." She smiled at the boy's speedy acceptance of their new home. All it took was delicious food and Woodbury had won his heart.

She looked back to Glenn raising an eyebrow in question. "Maggie this is Michonne. Michonne Maggie."

"Hi," Maggie said with a little wave.

The two women shook hands. "You're on of the few members of the new group that I haven't met yet. It's nice to meet you. Glenn and I live in the same building." It was obvious from the look on Glenn's face that he was completely smitten with Maggie. His cheeks were red and he kept glancing in her direction with a goofy grin.

"I see you've even met Carl."

"Yeah, his Mom left him with my stepmother, Annette sometime in the afternoon." She ruffled the boy's hair. "She's not feeling well though, so he came with me. He's a cool kid."

Michonne smiled at the boy, wondering how he felt about his mother's engagement.

"You're been here from the start too?" She wanted to get a feel for the place. How did the inhabitants really feel about Woodbury? Did they speak of it and Major Gavin with the same adulation as Lori? Was there any uneasiness? Fear?

"A few weeks after it started," Maggie said. "My Daddy had a huge farm. Otis and his wife were with us. It was pretty secluded, but somehow, it got overrun. We barely escaped. We lost some family, but we ended up here."

"Maggie was just telling me about the community garden her father wants to start," Glenn pipped in. "He's looking for helpers."

"Lori mentioned farming. Good for sustainability," she commented. "There's a good number of people here."

"Yeah. Some of them lived in the town before but most were evacuated from Atlanta."

Michonne nodded, thinking of her last conversation with her sister. They were on a bus on their way to a safe zone. Probably somewhere like this. Throughout the night, she had been expecting to run into Sasha or Bob or Noah. "Busses right?"

"Yeah," she sighed. "They had evacuation transportation ready In case of a large scale emergency. The dead coming alive seemed like a large enough emergency for them to bring out the busses and the National Guard."

Glenn blew out a breath. "This is crazy huh?"

"We'll survive," she said confidently. "My daddy says that all we need is a little bit of hope and some prayer."

"Well let's hope he's right."

"Fun engagement party tonight," Michonne said sarcastically as she plopped down on the couch in the small living room. She had changed into a comfortable tank top and loose shorts and wrapped her dreads in a messy bun atop her head.

Rick sat down next to her, having just checked on a sleeping Carl. "At least Carl got something out of it. He's the son of the First Lady so that would make him the first kid, right?"

She laughed at his attempt at a joke on Lori's earlier words. "It's like a fantasy world in here. Almost like out there doesn't exist anymore, which sounds great, but...I have a feeling we're going to have to face it all sooner or later. That makeshift tire wall will only hold for so long. They have a nice set up here with nice people and it's amazing how organized it seems after so little time, but I don't know how to feel about it."

"Same. I'm just glad Carl found his mother."

She watched him carefully, wondering how he felt about his ex-wife's engagement. He seemed surprised to hear it announced, but like Carl he seemed otherwise unbothered by all of it.

"Yeah," she said. "You know, on the entire ride here, a part of me was hoping that I would enter this place and find Sasha, Bob and Noah waiting on the inside. They would all be completely safe." She let out a sigh, pulling her knees to her chest. "That's what I get for hoping for what I don't deserve. I spent months avoiding them, so why should I get to see them?"

"You do deserve that." He reached over, pulling her hand into his. "Not knowing what happened to your family is devastating. I know you love them and I can't imagine them not loving someone like you. There's nothing wrong with hoping for the best."

"That was a lot of food out there," she said, changing the subject. "It looked like enough to feed our mountain group for a month and more. And this is just the engagement. Can you imagine the wedding? Producing that amount of food when we have the dead walking everywhere outside and still having enough left for regular days in the community is a miracle in itself. It's unreal."

Is the Major the type to put out all they have in order to celebrate his engagement? He clearly thought highly of himself. Was he selfish as well as arrogant?

"Major Gavin spoke to me at the party," he said almost too casually.

She glanced in his direction, her expression perplexed. "Really? Why?... When?"

Rick chuckled at her confusion. "After you went for your drink. He saw Lori and I talking, so I guess he came to stake his claim. I am the ex-husband after all." He shrugged. "The guy is just a power-hungry control freak and I don't think he likes me very much, but that's probably all there is to it though. Everything seems fine otherwise. The people like it here and it's safer than out there."

"And Shane called you arrogant and insecure."

"Speaking of Shane, I didn't see him at all tonight."

"Neither did I." Michonne shook her head. "Then again, that man has been a giant question mark ever since I met him."

"Things should be interesting when we join the Major and his soldiers for defense training tomorrow." He let out a loud chortle. "I'm gonna learn how to be a Guardsman. Maybe they'll teach me how to shoot a gun."

"Like you need training for that." She rolled her eyes at the thought of the Major's earlier suggestion. "Then again, who knows what you'll learn, By the way, is that training only extended to men?"

Rick let out a loud yawn. "Something tells me that it is."

"You're tired." His eyes were beginning to droop.

"And you're in my bed," he said with a smirk a he wiggled his eyebrow. "It's a welcome distraction though. I won't kick you out."

"Well I'd hate for you to be sleep deprived because of me. I need you up and alert tomorrow Sheriff Grimes," she said, sitting up straighter as she prepared to stand. "I'd hate for the Woodburians to think the newbies are lazy bums."

Rick snorted. "First impressions are lasting ones." He flung an arm over her shoulder. "But I'm not ready for you to leave yet though. I want you to keep talking to me."

"Well this couch is extremely lumpy," she bounced up and down, causing the springs to protest loudly underneath her. "You sure you want to sleep here? There's enough room for two on the bed in my room. It's great for conversation."

"Really?" His eyes flitted to her lips. "Conversation huh?"

She licked her lips. "We can trash talk Major Gavin together. Enough material for a whole night of conversation."

"Can we?" He grabbed her chin as he leaned in slowly bringing his lips to hers, kissing her softly.

"Uh huh." The kiss deepened and their breathing became more desperate. Michonne soon found herself straddling his lap and silently hoped against any more unwelcome interruptions. Her hands found his hair while his caressed her lower back. "A whole lot of conversation."

She let out a moan and he reflexively bucked his hips upward in response. His hands slipped under her shirt and slowly moved up her back, sending tingles up her spine. One of the straps of her tank top lay haphazardly against her forearm. His lips had moved down to her exposed neck and was slowly moving along the length of her shoulder, licking, kissing and biting. His mouth was hot against her skin and she felt as if she were melting.

"Maybe we should take this down the hall?" she managed to say between breaths as she pulled away from the kiss. Knowing their luck, Carl or Morgan would burst in putting an end to whatever they had going on.

His hands slid down to her ass, pulling her tightly against himself as he suddenly rose to his feet. She yelped in response and wrapped her thighs securely around his waist as he all but sprinted down the hall to her bedroom. She giggled at his eagerness.

Once they were behind the closed door of her new bedroom, he dropped her on the bed, and she locked her legs around him tighter as she drew him into her. She needed more. Her eyes locked with his and the darkness and intensity she saw there thrilled her. He couldn't get close enough.

He leaned down, his lips attacking hers again. He traced her bottom lip with his tongue before it dipped between her parted lips and his hand slowly moved up her bare thigh. She felt lightheaded and her skin was overheated everywhere his fingers touched. He let out a deep groan and she felt his erection pressing against her thigh. His other hand had found its way under her shirt and had come to rest on her breast.

She lightly pushed against his chest and he pulled back, his brow furrowed in confusion. The uncomfortable feeling of rejection washed through him. This may not be what she wanted.

Michonne's eyes never left his as she reached down, grabbing the hem of her tank top and slowly pulling it over her head. He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding at the sight of her breasts practically spilling from her bra.

Teasing him.

With newfound boldness, she slowly reached behind herself, unclasping the undergarment and letting it fall away from her body before tossing it to the side.

Rick appeared dazed as his eyes followed the dark upturned globes that stood firmly on her chest as she leaned back against the bed, propping herself up on her elbows, her breasts bouncing lightly in the process. His dick twitched in response to her sensual display.

She grinned at his expression as he rose from the bed and started to unbutton his shirt with quick fingers. His eyes never left hers as he made quick work of discarding the rest of his clothes. His erection strained against his boxer briefs and she felt the evidence of her own arousal between her legs.

He tilted his head in her direction. "Take the rest of it off."

She raised a brow sliding her hands down to the waistband of her shorts. "These?" She asked innocently.

She's gonna kill me, he thought as he slowly moved toward the bed, crawling towards her. He placed his hands over hers. "Yes." He made quick work of removing the rest of her clothing, leaving her naked on her back, staring up at him with hooded eyes that fueled his need and desperation for her.

He moved to hover over her, propping himself up on one hand as the other slowly moved up her sides and up to her exposed breasts which had quickly become his new favorite thing. Every part of her was perfect in his eyes.

He cupped one in his hand, lightly flicking a pebbled nipple with his thumb, eliciting a moan from her. He leaned down, lightly flicking it with his tongue as his hand descended towards her entrance, a finger sliding inside. Her breath hitched and his lips covered hers briefly silencing her soft whimpers as his fingers thrust against her with more vigor. They needed to keep the noise to a minimum, but it was getting difficult for her to control the noises that escaped her.

Rick removed his hand, lining himself up against her, skin against skin and guiding himself between her parted legs. Her breathing deepened as he wrapped her thighs around his waist, pulling them closer together as he pushed further panting against her skin.

"Oh…my…G –"

"That's…the only kind of conversation I want to hear tonight."

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 8 – You can't judge a book by its cover.

Haha, y’all miss me? I thought I would take a little break before wrapping up these posts but then I blinked and it’s July. So let’s get on with episode 8, shall we?

- And we start off with a resounding what the fuck, Thomas?!

- I think this is the first time we've seen a hero really cross the line when dealing with a criminal. Hell, the last time we saw Agnes cut for something like this, it was when Jake was beating the absolute shit out of Kotetsu and Jake was. Uh. Not really what one would call “a good guy.” Subaru's almost too stunned to do anything at first, but at least he's able to pull Thomas off the guy before it goes too far.

- And Thomas doesn't really have a ringing defense of his actions, despite Carlotta's best efforts. I'm pretty sure saying "I was just immature" is not the excuse you want to give to the director of the justice department, especially when they're discussing your suspension and possible firing.

- I was kind of surprised that Barnaby and Kotetsu were there for Yuri’s debrief on the incident and Thomas’s punishment. Agnes and Carlotta have obvious reasons for being there, and same with Subaru, but Barnaby and Kotetsu really don’t? The only thing I can think is that, since they’re both veteran heroes and they’re the most veteran buddy pair, Yuri lets them in on stuff like this to assess how the buddy system is working.

- "I think there are people you can trust," Barnaby says, with a soft smile and to Kotetsu's visible surprise. I know I keep banging this drum in, like, every single one of these recaps, but I'm not over it and I'm not over Barnaby realizing that he used to be like Thomas. But he trusts Kotetsu now, and he trusts the other heroes, to the point that when he hears Thomas making an argument he used to make, he steps in to disagree.

- I do like that they lampshade the bits of Subaru and Thomas that are like Kotetsu and Barnaby, because watching it, that’s my first reaction. And it’s nice to see that the show follows that train of thought into the very next scene. Barnaby sees how angry and mistrustful Thomas is and recognizes how he was when he'd first started as a hero. He remembers why he was like that and that's why he wants to reach out, but he's also more aware that his overtures probably won't be welcomed.

- Also honestly Mattia, how do you spend this much time talking to Barnaby and not realize that he has a Hero Face that is very different from how he really is? I'm glad Barnaby has someone else to talk to but I kind of want to shake Mattia sometimes; he's so naïve.

- And speaking of Mattia, the amount of bad science happening here is concerning. Absolutely no way this could go wrong.

- I really like the scene with Subaru freaking out about the article he finds online and Barnaby and Kotetsu assuring him it's fake. I know it goes into the plot for this episode, but it's also another glimpse at the things the heroes deal with on a regular basis as public figures.

- Subaru really is trying to be a good buddy for Thomas but he's. You know. Seventeen. And handles delicate situations with all the finesse of a wrecking ball, which is not really a great way to handle someone like Thomas.

- Although guys, I swear to fuck, just because someone isn't home doesn't mean they've run away. Come on, I know you know this!!

- And now we get Thomas’s backstory, which is very ow, between what happened with his sister and seeing how NEXT discrimination prevented him from getting adopted. I appreciate the steps they took to make his background different from Barnaby’s, because when you’re already drawing parallels between those two characters in terms of their temperament and then Thomas’s backstory starts off with how he was orphaned, it’s hard not to side-eye a little bit.

My very first reaction was not really a great one, I admit, because there’s an instinctive wall that slams down when it looks like a show is trying to make me like a new character by making them very similar to an old character I adore. And at first glance, it looks like that’s what they’re doing here. However, that’s not why they’re giving Thomas the background they are---they really are making him his own character, not just Barnaby-lite.

- THE TWINS ARE IN THE HERO MUSEUM. And they’re are here specifically for the display on L.L. Audun. It seems like he had the Hundred Power, too, or at least the Hundred Power crops up in his museum display, which seems a little odd if it was Legend's and not his.

Was he really prevented from being a hero because his father was a criminal? Or did Maverick see the opportunity for ratings with an Audun vs. Legend rivalry? I really hope we get some more information on this in the next half of this season.

- Me @ Thomas for this entire scene in the couple's house: LEAVE. LEAVE. GO HOME. DON'T STAY FOR DINNER. DON'T STAY THE NIGHT. Nobody is this nice!! Nobody! Like yes, I want it to be the case, but my danger gauge is shrieking off the charts throughout this entire scene.

- This is the absolute sweetest thing: all the heroes with blue stress balls during their post-heroing interview, showing Thomas that they support him. And it’s Barnaby’s idea! I don’t think Thomas realizes that he has been adopted at this point---it’s a weird little family but they're there for each other, and that includes him, no matter what.

- Goddammit I fucking knew it.

- Also holy shit did Thomas actually kill these people?? Show?? Are we gonna get a resolution on that? (I feel like we have to, but still, holy shit.)

- What do you think the homeowners are going to say when they come home and find one of their bedrooms completely trashed and possibly two unconscious or dead criminals on the floor??

- The show’s done a lot with Thomas that's very different from what they've done with all the other heroes and their backgrounds (that we've seen so far). Even Barnaby never totally lost his cool like Thomas did in the beginning of this episode (and especially not in front of the cameras), and he was just a bundle of severe anger issues in the first half of s1. And it's got to be significant that we see Thomas repeating Audun's mantra in one of his flashbacks, just like the twins. I feel like there are a lot of ways they could go with it, but I do wonder if he's going to go darkside or something like that in the next half of the season.

- DATE ATTEMPT #5. They don’t even get all the way through “how about we go out tonight” before their PDAs go off and they’ve got to get back to work. I can’t. I can’t even that “five times Kotetsu and Barnaby tried to have a date” was an actual fucking subplot this season. I just. That SURE IS A THING THAT THEY DID.

- BARNABY NO

- The way Kotetsu fucking screams "Bunny!" at the end took me from "oh no" to "OH SHIT" in less than a second. Like damn there is no way to better indicate that this is not a normal hero injury than that. I don't think we've ever heard Kotetsu sound that panicked, not even when they were fighting the android at the end of s1.

- And thus begins the cliffhangers until the end of the arc. Buckle up, buttercup; we’re into it now.

- Hm, I’m sure that purple glowing stuff is in no way something to be concerned about.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 11 – Every cloud has a silver lining.

This episode is one of the absolute sexiest episodes they've ever done, bar none.

- Me @ the baby twins: goddammit show, you’re going to give me feelings for these two chaos monsters, aren’t you (answer: yes, and in spades)

- I feel like this is a slight overreaction to finding out that a small child is a NEXT, holy cow.

- Like no, you can’t tell by looking at a NEXT what kind of powers they have, and kids that young aren’t likely to have much control over their powers (see: Kaede while she’s got the Hundred Power in s1), so I can see why the guy would be unnerved when one of the kids starts glowing. But a shotgun? Really? And the hell of it is, Fugan and Mugan aren’t really surprised at this reaction, which tells you a lot about how people treat NEXT.

- Uuuugh flashing to everybody as Agnes very solemnly tells them about Kid and Origami, ending with the new rules: that they shouldn't go out alone and that they should be at the training center whenever they're not working. Which means, of course, that Kotetsu will have to leave the hospital and he won’t be able to keep an eye on Barnaby anymore. 

- And Kotetsu and Mattia meet for the first time! I love how you can tell that Barnaby has clearly talked a lot about both of them to each other. I mean, we do know that Barnaby has talked to Mattia about Kotetsu, since he spent their entire dinner in episode 7 doing so, but it’s nice to see that Barnaby talked to Kotetsu about Mattia, too.

- Honestly how happy do you think Kotetsu is to know that Barnaby has someone from his childhood in his life who isn’t 1) dead or 2) an absolutely terrible human being? He wants Bunny to be happy and thriving, and I think one of the reasons he’s so quick to trust Mattia is because he knows that Barnaby does, too.

- Kotetsu looks so uncharacteristically serious when he leaves the hospital, but can you blame him? His partner's in the hospital, he has no idea if Barnaby will ever wake up, and these new villains have taken out four of the heroes without breaking a sweat. Kotetsu, Antonio, Ryan, and Karina are the last of the "old guard" left, as it were. And now they’re just...waiting to see what will happen next, doing their best to protect themselves in the meantime. And Kotetsu’s never been a “wait and see” type of person.

- Good lord I cannot with Lara’s mother. To have your mom looking at this horrifying situation as an opportunity when you don't know if you're going to live to see Christmas, when the partner you admire is petrified in the hospital, when you don’t know if you or any of the other people you’ve come to see as friends will be next. I just. GAH. Poor Lara, honestly.

- And then almost immediately after that, we get a different mother scene, this time with Ryan and Karina’s mom. Karina’s mom isn’t suspicious or jealous of her daughter’s partner; in fact, she brings him a hot beverage and keeps him company while they’re waiting on Karina. She's perfectly kind and polite, but Ryan notices how her hands shake even as she tries to claim she’s used to Karina being in danger. It is such a stark contrast to Lara’s mother’s reaction to this whole situation.

- Dun dun dun it's Gregory Sunshine that Ouroboros is experimenting on! There’s no way this can backfire on them in any way, shape, or form.

- Hey so speaking of parents, apparently Fugan and Mugan are Brahe’s kids.

- Please tell me someone has written the dissertation on Tiger & Bunny’s portrayal of parental relationships because my gosh, we see so many different kinds to varying degrees, often stacked one right after the other, like in this episode. It’s giving me emotions.

- I love, love, love Antonio taking care of all the younger heroes. Bringing food for Subaru, Thomas, and Lara, and clearly having paid attention to what they eat since he brings Thomas chicken and broccoli from an organic store. He's so good with them and so encouraging, but he doesn't dismiss how they feel, particularly Lara, who’s struggling with guilt over Origami being petrified, since he took her place visiting at the hospital. We've joked that Antonio is taking up the dad mantle since Kotetsu isn't there to do it, but it is accurate and I'm emotional about it.

- FUCK.

- Also damn this is such a good way to show that the heroes really aren't safe anywhere. With Mugan's warping ability, he can get wherever they are. Training center? Ryan's car? The hospital? The justice department? It doesn't matter. It's why Kotetsu's right when he tells Yuri they need to go on the offensive: they are sitting ducks otherwise, and at least by calling the twins out, the heroes can set some parameters of their own.

- Mattia is clearly surprised by the news about the drug and unsettled by his boss's excitement. And he asks a question that, honestly, he should've asked a long time ago: Who is sponsoring his research into this drug?

- This kind of thing is part of why I don't think Mattia himself is evil, although it's set up that he could get pushed into doing worse things very easily. He doesn't seem happy to know that the drug boosts NEXT powers, since his entire goal was to make it possible to eliminate differences between NEXT and non-NEXT, and this drug...will not do that. It will do the opposite of that, in fact. And Mattia looks very troubled by that knowledge.

- Honestly Ryan and Karina are so, so good in this episode. I love how much he obviously admires her, and he was going overboard trying to protect her when he doesn't need to. I love how he takes her to her friend’s concert, because he knows how important that is to her. I love how she grudgingly admits that she doesn’t actually hate it when he calls her “princess.” This is not a duo I expected to like at all so I’m still stunned that their scenes were some of my favorites in the entire season. 

- Okay but can we just take a moment to appreciate the way they handle Mugan showing up? We see the car bounce with the added weight, and then Ryan spots him in the rearview mirror, and the tone immediately shifts from the lighthearted teasing between him and Karina to 100% tension. I just really love some of the camera angles and perspectives that they chose for this season in general, but also this shot in particular.

- God. GOD. The whole fight scene at the training center is absolutely fantastic. The initial fight, where the heroes quickly realize that they’re in over their heads. Karina and Ryan using themselves as a distraction in order to give Antonio time to get the kids away, partly because they're kids and partly because someone needs to tell Agnes what's going on. Antonio just fucking yeets them out the window and basically hopes they'll stop themselves before they hit the ground. Subaru saving Lara. Karina and Ryan vs. Fugan and Mugan.There is not a single moment in this entire section that I do not love. Just solid competence porn.

- And the hell of it is, the heroes did win. Fugan and Mugan had to turn tail and run, or else Mugan would've been knocked out, too. It’s only when they took the powered-up drug that they were able to come back and defeat the heroes.

- Kotetsu and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day.

- Well mark me down as scared and horny.

- God, the rage in Kotetsu’s voice when he says this line. He’s so angry: angry that he wasn’t there, angry that his friends have been hurt, and angry that Yuri will not let him do anything. This man does not handle “stand back and do nothing” instructions at the best of times, and this is far from the best of times and it’s only getting worse.

- Lowkey convinced that there is only one (1) reason Kotetsu did not tell Yuri to go fuck himself and go looking for the twins on his own, and that’s because...

- BARNABY WAKES UP!! And looks amazing for having been in a coma for nearly two weeks.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 10 – Pride comes before a fall.

The angst train continues!

- It's interesting that they picked this room as the setting for these serious conversations, about Barnaby in the previous episode and now about Carl in this one. In the first season, this is where all the company CEOs, the mayor, and Yuri met, most notably during the Jake arc. Now, we see the heroes, Agnes, and Yuri in the same room; we haven't really seen the CEOs since the first episode (with a few exceptions) and we haven't seen the mayor, either. It's another sign of how the hero industry has shifted: the company owners aren't really calling the shots anymore, not in the way they used to. The only consistent person between the two is Yuri, as the director of the justice department.

- My fear upon first watching this episode was that they were going to think Kotetsu had been the one to slam Carl up in that tree—he was alone, there wasn't anybody around to corroborate his story, and Agnes and Yuri are both well aware that Kotetsu was going after this guy because he put Barnaby in the hospital. But it wasn't Kotetsu they were thinking about with that line; it was Thomas. Which, obviously—Kotetsu was in his suit and it's got a camera they could check. But I also like to think it's because they know he's not like that. Even when he's furious, Kotetsu doesn't lose control to that degree.

- Looking directly at Kotetsu as soon as they finish saying this and him just like yes I know.

- Although to be fair, like...Kotetsu spent his time looking for Carl because he needed to do something and it’s not like he can make Bunny wake up again, so he put his energy to the next best thing: apprehending the guy who put Bunny in the hospital. It is...not impossible that he would expend the same amount of energy to help out a criminal who’d been hurt, but in this particular case, I think he’s fine with letting the police handle it.

- Love that Sky High is the one to consider Lunatic as the culprit, which, y'know, fair, except that Carl is not burned to a crisp and also is still alive. Bet Yuri was happy he didn't have to try to negotiate that line of questioning for long.

- BRB I need to lay down over how Kotetsu pauses outside Barnaby's hospital room and takes a deep breath to psych himself up for being positive and happy before he goes in.

- One of the things I really appreciate this season is how we do see Kotetsu using his natural goofiness as a mask. Like, it is a part of who he is (we see that in abundance), but he also uses it to hide how he's really feeling 1) so other people feel better and 2) so they don't worry about him. And even though Barnaby can’t see him, Kotetsu is still going to be positive for him because even in a coma, he doesn’t want to worry Bunny.

- This mobile is literally the most terrifying thing they could’ve put in this hospital room, like my God. Just an immediate, visceral reminder that Barnaby is not safe, and in fact, none of the heroes are. And this is the first time they really get a glimpse of that.

- FUCK ME WE’RE INTO IT NOW

- Everybody is with their partners as Agnes breaks the news to them about what happened to Fire Emblem and Sky High. Kotetsu's in the hospital with Barnaby. Antonio and Ivan are in Antonio's van. Thomas and Subaru are working out at the training center, and Ryan, Karina, Pao-lin, and Cat are all in the lounge.

- Okay the superhero attacks in other cities have been mentioned before, so I'm wondering if what Agnes meant is that they were keeping the news that the heroes were all petrified under wraps. It is...not entirely clear.

- "I'm 5'11" and weigh 153 pounds!" Okay I know they're villains but I cannot stop laughing about these absolute chaos gremlins. It is actually really impressive how the show made me like these two, considering how comparatively little screentime they have and how much of it is them being creepy.

- Holy shit Kotetsu is on a hair trigger right now. I know we've seen it, but I like the reminder that he knows how to fight. Even outside his suit, even without his powers, he'd probably have crushed Antonio's throat if he hadn't registered who it was.

- Once again, we get to see Kotetsu and Antonio sitting and talking! Because they are friends! And Antonio is the one who brings up that this almost exactly like what Kotetsu went through when Tomoe was in the hospital. Like damn, every time I think this show can't draw a harder parallel between Barnaby and Tomoe, it goes there. It just absolutely goes there.

- Never ever gonna be over Kotetsu bringing snacks to the guards for looking after Barnaby, all the small ways they show us how thoughtful he is, even when he’s Going Through It.

- Noooooo Kid and Origami no. The way this episode starts the heroes getting picked off, two at a time, is just so like...lowkey horror movie shit we’ve got going on here.

- Will you please just let Dragon Kid zap them, Ivan!!

- Also hilarious that it is not actually a trick; Fugan and Mugan really are just having an argument because they’re Like That.

- Okay honestly. HONESTLY. How did they believe it when Mugan said his power was invisibility?? Just looking at the way Mugan moves in the fight scene, he’d have to have super speed or something as well. There is no way he moves like that just by turning invisible; I’m surprised they didn’t notice. Probably just too focused on trying to hit him.

- Thomas for the love of God will you stop being a twit and just tell them what you're doing

- I really, really like how Kid and Origami fought together in this battle with Mugan. Origami's powers aren't very good for offense, but he's really good at looking for the right time to spring a surprise attack, and they work together beautifully without even speaking. Like. This season goes hardcore on giving everybody some very solid screentime and also showing us how well the heroes have gotten at working together, and not just the ones who are partners. It’s such a beautiful way of displaying their growth from season 1.

- But lord, I cannot relax while Kid and Origami are on the phone with everyone, even though it looks like everything is good because you just fucking know Mugan is lying.

- GAH

- I know I say this so much during these episodes, but poor Cat, holy shit. This is her first season with Hero TV, she's a literal child, and now she's just watched the partner that she adores and looks up to get abducted and she could do nothing. She's not handling any of this well and understandably so. And when she drops to the ground and sobs...yeah, Cat. A mood.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 12 – Man's extremity is God's opportunity.

Fasten your seatbelts, kiddos, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride.

- The show’s apology for putting us through all the heartbreak of the last episode is this scene: Kotetsu literally running into the hospital room and this soft fucking look on his face when he sees Barnaby sitting up and talking to him. I’m fine!! I’m completely normal about this!

- Let's also consider how vastly different this is from the last time Kotetsu got a call about someone he loved in the hospital. He is extremely, extremely aware of how easily this could have gone the other way.

- The hug-blocking is hilarious. Poor Kotetsu; HE JUST WANTS TO SHOW HIS LOVE. Why won’t his people let him hug them!!

- Also love how he thinks that changing the position of his arms will somehow get Bunny to let him through.

- Although seriously, can you imagine Barnaby waking up like this? The last thing he remembers is the art museum and now he's seeing that seven of their friends have been taken out. Do you think he wondered if Kotetsu was one of them before he saw Kotetsu run into his hospital room? Even if Mattia could assure him that Kotetsu had been okay earlier that day, seeing that Stern Bild is down to five heroes, including himself, and having no idea which ones...

- Barnaby clearly recognizes Audun's name when the twins use it, and it's interesting that they flash to his reaction in the middle of this video. Like, is it just because he’s aware of Audun as someone who probably knows the history of Hero TV? But then, Kotetsu is the Legend fan, and I feel like he would have a better working knowledge of Legend’s exploits, including his rival. So why Barnaby’s reaction here?

- BARNABY BROOKS JUNIOR YOU JUST GOT OUT OF A TWO-WEEK COMA THE HELL DO YOU MEAN "TRUST US WITH THIS BATTLE"

- What in heaven's name does this Little Aurora and the Hope book have to do with Ouroboros's plan? And why are they trying to show how dangerous the NEXT are? Are they trying to fuel the anti-NEXT discrimination and if so, why did they work with Maverick in the past, when his goal was to use Hero TV to help people overcome their fears about NEXT? Why did they let someone like Jake into their organization, who wanted to create a NEXT utopia? What were the other stages of their plan? I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS.

- Uuuugh this conversation with Barnaby and Kotetsu as they’re suiting up is just another sign of how far they've come since they met. Before, Barnaby might have lied to Kotetsu and said he was fine, but now he's honest about the fact that he isn't okay.

- They both know this fight is going to be the hardest they've faced in a while (possibly ever) and it's just them: Kotetsu, the oldest of the heroes who can only use his power for one minute; Barnaby, who just got out of a 10-day coma, and the three rookie heroes, all of whom are under 18 and all of whom have only been heroes for about four months, and one of whom has a power that doesn't work when she's scared. They're about to go through it, but if they don't...their friends will stay petrified and their city will be at risk from criminals moving in because they know the heroes can't stop them.

- "Okay, Tiger, you outline what's going on, and Black, you just get in the camera and try to piss them off." A simple but effective plan!

- Barnaby gets out of breath running across the stadium, which is not good. But I will never be over how they manage to show us how worried Kotetsu is immediately after, even though we can’t see his face. It’s just another hint about how hard this upcoming fight’s going to be.

- This scene, oh my gosh. People get excited to see Barnaby and have their phones out to film, even when he's telling them it's dangerous and they need to leave. But as soon as Kotetsu tells them to back off because they don't want anybody to get hurt, the people leave. There’s a post on this site somewhere that says this season, people treat Barnaby as a heartthrob but Kotetsu as a hero, and that’s never as clear as it is in this scene.

- And boy, are we glad the people leave, because this is a rough, rough fight, and the heroes are Struggling. Can you imagine them trying to fight the twins while also protecting dozens of people? There’s not a way in hell.

- Okay for most of this season, they've done a pretty good job about blending the 2D and 3D animation, but the bit where the twins are kicking Thomas is one of the few places it looks a little janky.

- Barnaby gets out of the hospital and immediately goes to fight bad guys, Mattia gets out of the hospital and immediately sneaks into his workplace to figure out what the fuck Ouroboros is doing. Because they both have the self-preservation instincts of a lemming.

- Hmm yeah somehow I don't think this is going to go well for you, lady.

- Kotetsu literally picking up Fugan and running, trying to hold them back and trying not to attack. Because of course he's going to throw himself into the line of fire to protect the others, especially the younger heroes. He's got his power and his suit and he's fucking durable, he's making the gamble that he can take what they dish out.

- And he really does; he holds his own and he doesn’t throw a single punch until Fugan has him trapped and it’s literally the only move he can make.

- And, like with Jake, Kotetsu actually lands a hit when no one else has.

- And, like with Jake, Fugan makes him pay for it.

- Oh good, we haven't heard Barnaby scream Kotetsu's name Like That yet this season, we were missing that.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 9 – Have not thy cloak to make when it begins to rain.

TIME FOR ANGST, BAY-BEE.

- Love how they just show us Barnaby hitting the ground and rolling like a rag doll. Honestly it's a testament to how well-built Saito's suits are that he didn't fucking die without his powers activated. Holy shit.

- Related: How much do you think Kotetsu is beating himself up for not going with Barnaby when they split up in the museum? Because I bet it’s a lot.

- The way it focuses on Kotetsu's reaction here—specifically the way he clenches his teeth—I just. I can't. Like not even he's the focus and we see the other heroes around him; they zoom entirely in so that we only see Kotetsu's reaction to this line. His reaction isn’t just the most important: it’s literally the only one that matters. I am completely normal about this.

- Also I will be real with you, the first time I watched this episode, I shouted, "NOW YOU KNOW HOW IT FEELS ON THIS END, YOU SELF-SACRIFICING ASSHOLE." I was having a lot of emotions. I'm not proud.

- Okay look we saw Barnaby’s breakdown with Kotetsu nearly dying in his arms because his powers deactivated right before he got shot with a fuckoff giant laser gun (that Barnaby was firing), and now we’re seeing Kotetsu after Barnaby has been badly, badly injured because his powers deactivated right before a bomb went off that he was holding. Maybe this will help him take better care of himself in the future.

- Yuri “I set murderers on fire in my spare time” Petrov, calmly advising the rest of the First League not to get carried away. The irony is so thick you could cut it with a machete.

- This nurse looks like Melissa McCall and you will never take that away from me.

- "We're not sure when he'll wake up" I KNOW WHEN HE WILL, IT'S BEFORE CHRISTMAS EVE.

- Remember way back in episode 1 when I said "This kind of flashforward is one of my least favorite narrative tropes"? This!! This is why! We, the audience, know Barnaby wakes up and is back in action by December 24, because they showed us that at the very beginning of the season. So even though the characters don't (and can't) know that, we do and it takes away from some of the tension of having one half of your title duo in a fucking coma. For us, it's not if Barnaby is going to wake up; it's when.

- And now in a reversal of the previous scene, they are very notably showing us everybody else's reaction to the news that Barnaby is in a coma and may not wake up, but having Kotetsu's face hidden, as he apparently just waits for someone to notice that he's wearing Barnaby's glasses.

- I really love how all the older heroes react the way that Kotetsu expects them to with what they say, but you can see in their faces they know why he's being a dork about this: he’s trying to make them laugh and lighten the mood. And the younger heroes, of course, don't get it because they haven't known Kotetsu as long.

- And he says he's leaving to get some rest, which all the older heroes also know is absolute bullshit.

- Sure enough, the next scene is him on the street, looking for Vincent Carl. Because Kotetsu is so action-oriented, he can't just sit by Barnaby's bedside while the man who put him there is still on the loose. He has to do something, and finding Vincent Carl is that something.

- I AM HAVING SOME EMOTIONS.

- This is such a short scene but it's so packed with feelings. This is where Kotetsu shows how he's actually feeling: not in front of everybody else, where they'll worry about him, but when it's just him and Barnaby. Where he admits that it’s hard working alone, because after three years he’s used to having a partner, used to having Barnaby by his side. Where he quietly, heartbreakingly tells Barnaby that he needs to wake up, because they’re supposed to go out for drinks. And he's still hanging on to Barnaby's glasses, like it’s the only piece of him Kotetsu can touch right now.

- FUCKING NOPE.

- Y'all know what my first thought was you know what it was.

- Oh my God Kotetsu no

- I do kind of love that Yuri and Agnes figure out that he’s investigating Vincent Carl on his own in part because he lets fans take pictures with him while he’s out doing it. I love all the little reminders that Kotetsu is popular now (maybe not the most popular, but he definitely has some dedicated fans), and he hasn’t really changed anything about himself.

- THE PROBLEM IS THAT THEY'RE MARRIED, YURI.

- Aw Cat honey. She's so scared during all of this, and can you blame her? She’s getting a very harsh look at what it is to be a hero, and she’s already been nervous all season, so this is just really amping it up.

- And the hell of it is, you know that Kid’s got to be worried, too, but she’s learned how to compartmentalize and stay focused on what she can do. I really, really love them and I love seeing Kid as a senpai this season, with a younger teammate that she’s having to look out for. 

- Also the charm Kid has for her is the cutest thing.

- I know there’s a lot of focus on Kotetsu for obvious reasons, but seriously, none of the heroes are handling Barnaby’s hospitalization very well. It’s really shaken them, especially the younger ones.

- You're going to forcibly inject a dude with a drug you know nothing about yes I think this counts as harassment.

- OUROBOROS IS FUNDING MATTIA'S RESEARCH!! I feel like this should've been less of a surprise for me. XD

- Ugh Kotetsu answering Kaede's call so brightly, and Kaede sitting there with the news in front of her about Barnaby's surgery because she knows, she knows her dad isn't handling this well, no matter how he's acting. And she calls because she wants to check on him. Yes, she wants to know how Barnaby is doing, but more important, she wants to know how her dad is doing. And the latter is what surprises Kotetsu.

- Honestly I love every scene between Kotetsu and Kaede in this season (in the whole series, tbh), but this one in particular again shows how much more...equal they are now, if that makes sense. Obviously he’s still the dad and she’s still the daughter, but Kotetsu is a lot more honest and isn’t hiding as much in a misguided bid to protect her. And Kaede really sits with how hard this job is, the one that she says she wants to do.

- My gosh, how fast Kotetsu comes in and takes this guy down, and also, notably, without losing his cool. It's in stark contrast to Thomas in the last episode. Yes, Kotetsu's older, but even when he's furious (and he is absolutely furious here), he's got lines he won't cross.

Like. It would be astonishingly easy to hit Carl hard enough to kill him with a Hundred Power punch, but Kotetsu strikes him with exactly enough power to only knock him out (and, in fact, without actually hurting him enough to keep him down for more than a few seconds, since Carl escapes less than a minute after this). It is amazing how much control he has over himself and his powers even when he is facing down the person who put his partner in a coma.

Kotetsu doesn't usually wait for the cameras or anything, but he doesn't even tell Agnes he's not waiting; he only lets her know that it’s over once he's got Carl down.

- And we end with the TWINS BEING FUCKING CREEPY AGAIN. GAH.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 7 – Out of the mouths of babes oft times come gems.

I'm sorry. This one's long. It's so long. So much rambling. So many feelings. Buckle in, you've been warned.

- Y'all this episode is literally everything I have ever wanted. EVERYTHING. I've wanted stepdad!Barnaby and hero!Kaede literally since I finished watching the first season back in 2017, and the fact that the show actually gave it to me is beyond what I'd hoped for. It's also yet another time that we're shown how Barnaby is really part of Kotetsu's family now, and it's a role that Kaede accepts him in, too.

- Date attempt number three! I am never, ever going to be over how they are both literally so happy about going out to dinner together. Kotetsu is so excited he jumps out of his chair. Barnaby is actually smiling. He has a place he wants to try! Kotetsu is buying! I am curled up in my chair holding a pillow and trying not to combust with joy!

- Me shouting at the TV: KAEDE DAMMIT DON'T COCKBLOCK YOUR DAD

- I love her, I do, and I'm usually thrilled to see her but oh my gosh I knew as soon as she showed up that dinner wasn't happening and I was going to cry.

- It cracks me up that Kaede gets a freaking autograph from Barnaby every time she sees him, which has apparently been multiple times, enough so that Kotetsu comments on it. The implication that Barnaby has spent enough time around Kotetsu's family and Kaede specifically for that to be a thing brings me no small amount of joy.

- Also like, for all that it's an upset to his plans, Kotetsu is so obviously excited to have Kaede there that he's humming while he's cleaning up the apartment and washing the dishes. He loves her and he so rarely gets to spend time with her.

- All Kotetsu has ever wanted is for Kaede to think he's cool, and to find out that everybody at her school thinks that he has the coolest job—and that Kaede agrees—makes him so flipping happy. JUST LOOK AT THIS PRECIOUS DORK, LOOK AT HIM.

- And then Barnaby quietly bows out to let them spend time together because he knows how important it is for Kotetsu to have time with his daughter, even though Kotetsu tries to get him to stay (because Barnaby is part of his family, too!). Gosh I so badly wanted Barnaby to stay for this, to actually see him more with Kotetsu and Kaede.

- I shrieked to see that Muramasa is married again and has kids, especially since that's something that Kotetsu said was his goal at one point in some of the extraneous material for the series.

- Barnaby goes out to dinner with Mattia, who he called because he couldn't have dinner with Kotetsu...and he's talking about Kotetsu. Because of course he is. Because Barnaby is always going to talk about Kotetsu and it's a good thing Mattia appears to be a fairly willing audience for that.

- "What in the world could Kotetsu possibly be doing that Barnaby wouldn't be there for?" A demonstration on damage fines, which is hilariously appropriate and I am just positive that this is, essentially, a version of community service so that he doesn't have to pay some of his own damage fines.

- The Kids Law Classroom is fucking amazing, and I lost it when the kids started asking about Lunatic, although Kotetsu saved Yuri from having to actually answer any questions about it. I admit, I was surprised that we got so much of Yuri this season, but absolutely no Lunatic. Even his tie has changed: it's simply black and white now. He's clearly stepping back and letting the heroes (and really, Kotetsu specifically) take charge now, although it comes across less as retirement and more like he's just waiting to see what they'll do.

- STEPDAD BARNABY STEPDAD BARNABY STEPDAD BARNABY. TAKING KAEDE AND HER FRIEND TO HIS FRIEND'S WORK BECAUSE KOTETSU CAN'T DO IT. ALSO APPARENTLY WHILE DRIVING KOTETSU'S CAR. I'm sorry there's really only screaming here; I have no coherent thoughts, just shrieking.

- Poor Saroja, not wanting NEXT powers. And the way Barnaby just shakes his head when she apologizes for it; he knows that being a NEXT isn't all sunshine and roses and he's certainly not going to fault anybody for not wanting that. I’ve mentioned it before but it bears repeating: I’m glad they’re bringing up more of the NEXT discrimination in this season and really showing how it affects the lives of the NEXT, hero or not.

- KAEDE WANTS TO GO TO THE HERO ACADEMY!!!! SHE WANTS TO BE A HERO!! HERO KAEDE!!

- Y'all seriously the noise I made when I first saw that brochure was unreal. I didn't think I'd ever see any of my headcanons referenced in the actual show, never mind getting two of my favorites in one episode.

- Do you know how much I love that Barnaby and Kotetsu are together as a unit for this conversation with Kaede??? How clearly in sync they are and how clear it is that they are both in a parental role? Partners both inside of work and out of it, to reference Barnaby's comment about his own parents in the first season.

- Ouch damn Kaede way to hit below the belt. I don't blame her at all for feeling that way—we know from the first season that she and Kotetsu had a rocky relationship for a long time because he put his work first and hid from her what that work actually was—but it's a hell of a punch to bring it back now, especially when Kotetsu's really been trying to do better.

- I love that it’s Barnaby who goes after Kaede and Saroja while Kotetsu calls his brother to talk through this whole thing. And when the show pans to this scene, where Barnaby is sitting quietly on the bench next to them, it’s while Muramasa is telling Kotetsu that when someone makes up their mind about what they want to do, all their family can do is support them. Just another way this show is reminding us that Barnaby is part of Kotetsu’s family, now.

- Kotetsu is also really sitting with the knowledge of how his mom must feel about his job. He's heard it before, but it didn't click with him until he heard Kaede say she wants to do the same thing. And now he's feeling the same kind of fear that Anju’s probably dealt with almost every day since he decided that he wanted to be a hero.

- And on that note, let's talk about the difference in parents/parental figures in this show, because WHOA BOY are there some feelings here! I think it's noteworthy that 1) this episode comes immediately after the one with Lara's mom, and 2) that Barnaby is the one with the line "No parent would tell their child they want them to work in a career that puts their life at risk."

Barnaby, who became a hero in the first place because Maverick—his father figure—essentially manipulated him into doing so. And we just watched Lara's mother spend an entire episode pushing her daughter to stand out on the show, get more points, do better, be better, while being completely unaware that Cat's powers don't work when she's scared. And then you contrast that with Kotetsu's reaction to Kaede wanting to be a hero, and the way Anju talks to him about his job in s1, and it's just...there are feelings, okay? Like I said in the tags on this post, there’s probably an entire essay that could be written on these comparisons.

- Kotetsu saves Kaede when she falls!! BRB I’m just gonna be sobbing forever over here.

- I cannot for the life of me remember whether I’ve talked about it in these episode posts or in Discord or in the tags of another post (possibly all three; I’ve talked about this show a lot over the past month) but Kotetsu is a lot more stable at this point in the series than he was in the first season. He’s settled with his powers where they are, he’s settled in his partnership with Barnaby, he’s more settled in his relationship with Kaede.

You got the sense in s1 that he was floundering, trying desperately to stay afloat while dealing with all this upheaval in his life (grief over losing Tomoe, his company going under, a snotty new partner, his powers fading, etc. etc.), and he was fighting to keep those struggles to himself so as not to worry the people he cared about. And all of that was reflected in the show: he mistimes his powers and has to be saved by Barnaby or he's not fast enough to save Kaede when she's in danger. But in this season, he's the one doing the saving, like with Cat in the previous episode and then Kaede in this one. He's worked through a lot of his shit, he's opened up more with the people he's close to, and now instead of just wanting to be someone Kaede can depend on, he is now.

- Okay this conversation between Kotetsu and Kaede is so good though, for a number of reasons. It's a significant change from where their relationship was in the first season, where Kotetsu still treated her very much like the little girl she was when she still lived with him and Tomoe. Now, he sees that she's growing up and he treats her at the level where she is, rather than the one where he wants her to be. He acknowledges where he's screwed up and that her feelings on being neglected are valid, and Kaede really sees that he’s taking her seriously. Plus, the conversation itself is honest and they're actually dealing with what it means for Kaede to want to be a hero. It's a dangerous job, which Kotetsu knows better than most people. And I like that he promises to seriously think about what it means to be a hero and the example he wants to set.

- I can’t even with these two. I know they’re the villains but they crack me up.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 3 – Suspicion will raise bogies. - A Coda

There’s a bit in episode 3 that I left out in my initial discussion of it, but since I was asked for my thoughts on this piece specifically, read on below the cut!

First off, there are an astonishing number of closeups of Barnaby’s eyes in general throughout this episode, technically for story reasons, but let’s be real, the animators behind this show also just want to render his gorgeous green eyes as lovingly as the Netflix animation budget will allow.

And boy will that budget allow for a lot. For real, y’all, Barnaby was pretty in the first season, but they really upped their game in this one. (Look at those long eyelashes; no wonder Kotetsu was distracted by them when he was actively dying passing out from the pain of getting shot.)

Anyway! Throughout the episode, Barnaby is generally not having any of Ryan’s nonsense; he may not know what, exactly, is going on, but he’s reasonably sure that Ryan hasn’t just jumped to conclusions, he’s put on a jetpack and launched himself into Conspiracy Land.

However, it’s also obvious that Kotetsu is hiding something from him, and we all know how well that’s gone in the past. *gestures to the last 12 episodes of the first season*

So there’s that niggling question: is Ryan onto something, with this seemingly damning video he took? Is Kotetsu, the love of his life his partner, actually hiding something big from him yet again?

Barnaby says no. He is positive that whatever Kotetsu is hiding from him, it’s nothing so big as a breakup.

Ryan then tells him to look him in the eye, because the “human eye reveals every emotion.” And Ryan has before told Barnaby that he wears his emotions on his face.

We’re not told what Ryan sees, but then, Ryan’s opinion here isn’t important.

Kotetsu’s, however...

At the end of the episode, after everything’s resolved, Kotetsu asks Barnaby if he really thought that he wanted to be buddies with someone else. Barnaby says no, and Kotetsu frowns as he studies his face to see what Barnaby was really thinking.

And then his face relaxes, because he sees the truth: that Barnaby didn’t doubt him, and specifically, didn’t doubt how much Kotetsu cares about him and wants to be with him.

This is such a far cry from where they were at the beginning of the show that it makes me want to sob. I’m so happy that they’ve gotten to this point, where they’re just as in sync outside of work as they always have been during it. They truly trust each other now, and it’s a beautiful thing to see.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 1 – A word to the wise is enough

OKAY I am slowly rewatching the new season after bingeing it on Friday, and scribbling out my thoughts and feelings in a slightly more coherent manner although still very much with the shrieking because, like. Wow. I was trying to keep my hopes manageable in the run up to the new season, but the show gave me everything I wanted and then some.

As before, these will be tagged “M watches TNB”. Unlike before, these rambles will be entirely behind a cut because WOW talk about spoilers. FAIRLY BE YE WARNED.

- Okay, first off, a criticism: this type of flashforward for an opening is one of my least favorite narrative tropes. It often feels like a cheap way to heighten tension and while it can be used well, it's often not. And I...don’t think it was necessary here. I think the only reason it's here is because otherwise, the beginning of s2 is nearly identical to the beginning of s1.

- That being said, I like that the beginning of the seasons match. For one, the first episode of the first season makes a great intro to this world and how it works, and y'know, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And in this one, not only does it do that as an intro to Stern Bild and Hero TV, it also works for showing us returning fans how things are different. I love the (re)introduction of all the heroes, the subtle changes in the way the show is pitched at the beginning that tell us just how things have evolved since the end of The Rising.

- And nowhere, nowhere in any of the press for the show did they even drop a hint that FUCKING RYAN WAS COMING BACK. I shrieked when he came sailing up. I expected maybe a cameo, not that he’d be back as a main character.

- There are also a lot of changes in the way they treat the female characters in this series. Tiger & Bunny has always been pretty good about that, considering how anime women are usually treated, but they take it a step further now. Blue Rose isn't objectified nearly as much—her entrance in this episode is pretty much the only time in the series we see that pan up her body. Agnes has noticeably gained some weight, but it's only mentioned once and it's never made into a joke. Part of it might be the time—it's been 11 years since the first one came out, after all—and part of it might also be the influence of a female director. Regardless, I appreciate it.

- Kotetsu and Barnaby having a fight over Kotetsu drinking one of Barnaby's juices energy drinks and Barnaby refusing to talk to him over it is the exact level of petty married bickering I have craved.

-  The show does such a great job of explaining the new system in a way that feels natural to the story. There's a lot of worldbuilding they have to cram in up front to get you ready to go, and they do it so well, while still giving you little character moments with our mains. Like Barnaby's utter offense at being called "old man." XD

- One of the things I have wanted since I finished watching the first series in 2017 is a photo of Barnaby on Kotetsu's shelf. And the show gave us one that is perfect.

It's clearly just after the events of The Rising, with Barnaby, Kotetsu, and Kaede, and it's right next to the photo of Kotetsu, Tomoe, and baby Kaede. It could not be more obvious that Barnaby is part of Kotetsu's family now, and while Tomoe will always be an important part of his past, Barnaby is an important part of his present.

- And then we go to Barnaby and the entire fucking jungle in his apartment, I cannot even with this man. This is so different from their apartments at the beginning of the first season, when Kotetsu's was a total mess and Barnaby's had absolutely nothing in it. They're both making strides to taking better care of themselves, and the places they live are indicative of that.

- I love that, at first blush, it really looks like Kotetsu's going off with one of his reckless plans that don't ever work. And then you realize, no, he's making himself the distraction to give Barnaby the chance to make a surprise attack. And they did all of this without speaking a word to each other because that's how in tune they are now. It's everything I've needed.

- LOOK AT THESE SOFT NERDS LOOK AT THEM.

- I admit, I was still a little worried about how this season was going to turn out throughout the first episode. And then the end credits happened, where Barnaby and Kotetsu are camping together with one tent and drinking coffee out of matching mugs while listening to a love song on the radio and that's when I knew everything was going to be fine.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 2 – No one knows the weight of another's burden

Extended thoughts on episode 2 below the cut!

- I'm still bitter we didn't actually get to hear how everybody became a hero. We know Barnaby's and Kotetsu's stories; I want to hear all the others!

- I love how the OG First League heroes are really trying to reach out to the newbies and help them out, even if Subaru and Thomas don't want the help. It's a really stark contrast between the rookies and the veterans, but it works, for the most part. We know what all the First League has been through in the past three years—even Ryan appears to know more of it than you would think—but these kids don't, so they haven't had the chance to build up the same bonds.

- On that note, when Subaru bulldozes through Barnaby's past with all the subtlety of a battering ram, you see the change in literally every single person in the room.

They are all 100% ready to throw down right then and there because this is a topic that you don't touch with a 10-foot pole. We've seen how protective Kotetsu is of Barnaby, but now we get a chance to see that the rest of the heroes are equally protective.

- And surprisingly, it's not Kotetsu who steps up to tell Subaru to knock it off. Ryan beats him to the punch.

Which shocked me, because he was so self-involved in The Rising, but he actually respects Barnaby as a fellow hero, clearly gets that this is a sensitive subject, and is ready to rip this kid a new one over it.

- Speaking of Barnaby's past, we get the photos in his apartment this time, where all he's managed to do is turn the Maverick one around so he doesn't have to look at it anymore.

He's trying to move on, but he went through some horrible trauma at the hands of someone he trusted for most of his life, and I'm glad that the show isn't glossing over that.

- I do love that Kotetsu's first instinct continues to be to help out the new heroes, but he's less impulsive about it now. He holds back on the meddling unless it's 1) wanted or 2) will actually do the most good. And he and Barnaby actually talk and listen to each other.

- The entire conversation in Yuri’s office at the end is just so much on so many levels. You have Yuri asking Barnaby and Kotetsu, seriously, what they think about the whole buddy thing, because they're the ones who have been partners the longest.

You have Kotetsu so casually saying that it's easier to work together than to work alone, and Barnaby's visible surprise at hearing that. 

You have the second time in this episode that Kotetsu is silently checking on Barnaby, assessing how he's doing, and then casually leaving the room in order to give Barnaby space to talk.

You have Barnaby talking, seriously, about how everything that Maverick did to him affected him and still affects him to this day, even as he's striving to move on. And that's a conversation he's having with Yuri, who made the comment about Barnaby having found peace after Maverick's death in The Rising and Kotetsu absolutely reamed him for it.

Yuri is hearing now, firsthand, that Maverick's death did nothing to bring Barnaby peace, but that Kotetsu has helped him smile again.

- And then, as if that weren't enough, the scene outside afterward is just the most...quietly caring thing. Barnaby brings Kotetsu a water as an apology for keeping him waiting, and Kotetsu immediately hides the waters that he bought for them so he can accept Barnaby's. He jokes that he didn't know Barnaby ever thought about him, to which Barnaby fondly replies, "You're oblivious."

And of course, Barnaby sees the waters that Kotetsu tried to hide, and he smiles, again, because this is exactly what Kotetsu is like. He's ridiculous and bossy and also so, so caring and thoughtful and considerate of people in general but really of Barnaby in particular. And Barnaby is so much more open about accepting that consideration now and returning it. The first episode ended by showing us how well they fit as work partners, but this episode ends showing us how well they fit now outside of work, too.

- And you know, since things are going so well...

- OUROBOROS IS BACK.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 6 – Youth should be regarded with respect.

Episode 6 ramblings under the cut!

- I got excited that they were on a date for three seconds and it turns out they're making a damn commercial. Dateblock #3! Why are you doing this to them?!? And also to us?!?!

- Also how bad is this soup that even Kotetsu is noping out. This man will eat literally anything.

- Finally, we get to see more from Dragon Kid and Magical Cat, who haven’t been around much as the focus has been on the other hero partners. I just love Kid trying so damn hard to be a good mentor; it warms my heart. She was the youngest in the previous series and so it's really cool to see her as a senpai now.

- Good lord Cat's mom is a piece of work. In the Discord server I'm in, we've talked a lot about how she's like one of those dance moms who's trying to live vicariously through her kid, and boy, do you see it here with how she ascribes the worst possible motivation to everything Dragon Kid's doing. You have to wonder if Cat's even a hero because she wants to be, or because her mom forced her into it.

Also like, look at the size of this picture! It’s the size of a movie poster!

Me @ Lara’s mom: honey you very badly need therapy; it cannot be healthy for you OR your child to have a giant poster that you ripped in half in your living room.

- I also wonder if the fact that Lara's mom's former tennis partner is the Stern Bild news anchor is something that's relevant or if it's just a background detail.

- I swear to God if Mattia turns out to be evil I'm gonna pitch a fucking fit. I’ve said it before and I’m gonna beat this drum until we get a resolution one way or the other: Barnaby needs a friend who isn't Kotetsu, and it’s good that it’s someone who knew him before his parents died, who can see him as “Barnaby from across the street” instead of the famous Barnaby Brooks Jr. (even if Mattia does have his starstruck moments). We know that Barnaby is struggling to move forward, having been manipulated and controlled for most of his life, and I feel like having one normal (or normal-ish) thing from his past is a step in the right direction. I will cry if this show takes that away from me.

- Literally the second Cat said this, I gasped “oh no.” Especially coupled with the flash to Kid’s face immediately after, where she’s clearly thinking this isn’t the case. Something is going on with Cat, even if she’s unaware.

- And we find out what it is in the very next scene: Cat's powers don’t work when she’s scared. She’s fourteen years old; she’s probably never had a gun pointed at her in her life until now, and it’s not like that cute magical girl costume is going to do much to protect her from a bullet. And at this point she’s only been a hero for what, a month? Like my gosh, she is a literal child. It’s really not too different from Karina’s reaction to having a gun pointed at her in the first series, and at that point, she’d been a hero for at least one season of Hero TV. Cat doesn’t even have that much experience at this point. It’s no wonder she’s terrified.

- I love, I love that Kotetsu activates his powers to save Cat without a second thought, leaving Barnaby to handle the criminal. Of course his priority is keeping people safe, and specifically keeping one of the younger heroes safe. He’s always acted like a dad to them, even in the first season, and I’m glad that’s continued here because my gosh, he’s probably the one with the most experience in the First League (in addition to, you know, being a literal father).

- It’s also really nice to see him doing the saving this season, instead of being the one getting saved. I do miss the princess carries (fingers crossed for getting one in the next half of this season), but there’s something to be said for what it means that Kotetsu’s in a place that he doesn’t need to be rescued. He and Barnaby have reached a point that they're steady enough they don’t need to be saving each other; they can step up and be support for their friends now.

- The first time I watched this I was all “aww” over the other heroes coming to check up on Cat in the hospital, but when I was rewatching it to screencap, I noticed that it’s specifically the girls (plus Barnaby and Kotetsu) who come by. Which is really sweet. The three of them have always hung out together and I like the subtle acknowledgement here that they’ve included Cat in that now, too.

- This shot makes me cackle so hard; the heroes are sitting there discussing giving Lara, Lara’s mom, and Kid their privacy and then suddenly Lara’s mom is yelling loud enough that they can hear her in the hallway with the door closed. So uh. Guess privacy isn’t so much of a concern, huh? 

- The entire final confrontation with the arsonist is a lot more...private, I guess, than most of these climaxes have been so far. Usually it’s all out in front of the cameras, and even Origami and Bison were in a crowded bank, but here? It’s just Cat by herself, and then with Dragon Kid, dodging the arsonist’s attacks in a maze of dark alleys. It’s really tense to have the two youngest heroes alone for a good chunk of this, especially with Dragon Kid injured and Cat unable to use her powers.

- I have some feelings about the fact that Dragon Kid has known for awhile that Cat’s powers don’t work when she’s nervous or scared, and so has been trying to be supportive and protective and get her used to being out in real situations as a hero. She’s young, too, and she’s not used to looking after someone else, so she went overboard and that didn’t help Cat’s confidence, either. But my gosh, it’s understandable why Dragon Kid went about things the way she did, even if it backfired.

- Kotetsu is astoundingly quick on the uptake here, realizing that Cat can't use her power right now and goes "okay new plan" immediately. I don't think Barnaby reaches the same conclusion (he doesn't see her facial reaction to Kotetsu's question), which is why he's confused by Kotetsu's sudden shift. And I love that it’s Kotetsu's faith in Barnaby ("I believe in you") that inspires Dragon Kid to put more of her faith in Cat.

Also, I think this is the only time he calls Barnaby by his name in this season, to get his attention when they’re changing up the plan.

- I'm so glad we know from season 1 that Barnaby's and Kotetsu's suits can withstand a hell of a lot of fire because otherwise them running up to put themselves between the girls and the arsonist would've been a lot more terrifying.

- Uuuuugh this scene was so good. Dragon Kid stepping back from trying to protect Cat and just supporting her instead, letting her know wholeheartedly “I believe you can do this.” And she does and it’s amazing.

-  Cat's mother remains a piece of work, holy shit. And I think Cat’s reaching the point that she’s realizing her mother really isn’t right about this, even if she can’t fully say so out loud.

- NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 4 – Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.

Ramblings below about episode 4!

- Kotetsu is so irritated about Fire Emblem and Sky High being billed as the top hero duo in Stern Bild, and not surprisingly. He and Barnaby have been a duo the longest; they're the ones who already have this stuff locked down while everybody else is still trying to figure out how they best work together. As selfless as Kotetsu is and as much as he believes points and such don’t matter as long as they’re helping people (and he does believe that!), he does get a little miffed when his contributions or experience are ignored or dismissed. 

- Also, Kotetsu genuinely loves helping people! He likes to be a dad to the younger heroes! He says it himself in the second episode: he is a bossy old man. It can cross the line into meddling if he's not careful—Barnaby is much better about helping him find that line, now—but it's understandable that he's bummed about everybody going to Fire Emblem and Sky High for help instead of him. I love Barnaby gently teasing him about it, too.

- Plus, let's be honest: Barnaby and Kotetsu have always worked well together, even as early as the third episode, when they neither trusted nor liked each other. They had a lot of interpersonal shit to sort and had to do that on an expert mode speed run, but in terms of their jobs? They've always understood each other on an instinctive level; it’s one of the things that makes them such effective partners. The other heroes, even as friendly as they are with each other now, don’t really have that. So it's not surprising that Fire Emblem and Sky High are the ones advising the other duos; they're also having to put in the work to understand each other.

-  I had to pause and laugh for a solid five minutes the first time I watched this episode because of course. Of course Keith got another dog and named him Johnjohn. Why did I ever think, even for one moment, that he would choose another name?

- I think this may be the first time we ever see Fire Emblem coming to anybody for advice, which is such a switch, because he always seems to be the one who has the advice or who knows everything. It's interesting that this is what Nathan's struggling with: being partnered with someone who is, from his perspective, perfect, and Nathan is very aware that he is not. And it wears on him that he doesn’t get to see any of Keith’s vulnerabilities.

- Then, of course, the worst possible thing happens when you're venting about another person and asking friends for advice: the person you're venting about overhears everything. Poor Nathan. Poor Keith.

- I love, love, love that the girls are still hanging out and getting dinner together on a regular basis. I enjoyed the new buddy pairings a lot more than I thought I would at first glance, but I love that we're still seeing the same friendships we've seen in earlier episodes/the movies. And this time, Karina and Pao-lin are the ones giving Nathan advice!

- "I bet you guys never keep things bottled up until the next day." Nathan. My dude. My gal. My friend. Sweetheart. Honey pie. Barnaby and Kotetsu have empirical evidence that hiding things from each other is a Very Bad Thing. They’ve each hidden a lot from each other, and it came back to bite them in the ass virtually every time. So no, they don’t really keep things bottled up anymore, and thank heaven for that. 

- One of the things I'd kind of wanted from the first season was a little more about the discrimination that the NEXT face, and I'm glad we're getting to see that in this season. Even though the heroes are popular, they're still NEXT and their popularity doesn't necessarily protect them from assholes. (Did I mention I’m an X-men fan from back in the day? Because I’m an X-men fan from back in the day.)

- I love how this show has, like, truly emotional and important conversations happening while, for example, Fire Emblem is literally riding Sky High through the air bathed in the glowing light of the sunset (and, you know, that he got in that position in the first place because Barnaby and Kotetsu used Good Luck Mode to literally launch him into the air). It absolutely cracks me up to have such a genuinely sweet, vulnerable conversation happening in a situation that is designed for us to read it A Certain Way. THEY KNOW WHAT THEY’RE DOING. (And it also cracks me up that Keith starts listing his flaws and the first one is “I don’t like celery.” Honey I’m not sure that counts as a flaw.)

- It also gives me feelings that Sky High asked specifically for Barnaby and Kotetsu to be at the event because he didn't want the event to be a lie. For him, Tiger and Barnaby are, still, Stern Bild's top hero duo. Even if he and Fire Emblem may get there, they aren't there yet.

- And thus begins the "five times Barnaby and Kotetsu try to have a date" subplot. It’s so sweet to me how Barnaby is the one to ask, after Kotetsu reminds him earlier “hey, I’ve asked you for drinks and you’ve always said no.” And Kotetsu is so excited to get drinks with Barnaby until he remembers that he already had plans.

- Barnaby's "dinner with a friend" turning out to be his plants; oh my God honey you desperately need a friend who is not Kotetsu.

- I really appreciate that each of the hero duos get an episode that focuses on them and gives them a chance to shine, while Barnaby and Kotetsu are a connecting thread between all of them. We know why Barnaby and Kotetsu were paired up, and now we’re getting to see why the others were, and how they’re learning to work together. I love these first 7 episodes so much.

[mad-madam-m]

T&B2 Thoughts: Episode 5 – Live and let live.

Once again, the fifth episode of the season murders me with secondhand embarrassment but at the same time contains some of my absolute favorite scenes of the series. And I like the focus on two characters who don’t usually get much screen time.

- I admit, at the end of episode 4, my initial reaction to Kotetsu having to bail on Barnaby was "INVITE HIM WITH YOU, YOU TWIT!!" But that wouldn't work for two reasons. One, it wouldn't be drinks with just the two of them, which is clearly what Barnaby intends with the invitation. And two, Kotetsu actually has a good reason: Antonio wanted to talk to him about the fact that he and Origami might split up, a conversation he's obviously not going to have when Barnaby's around.

- We're told in season one that Kotetsu and Antonio are best friends and have been for awhile, but this season we actually get to see that, and more than once. In the first season, yeah, we saw them go out drinking together and Kotetsu did ask Antonio to look after Kaede if anything happened to them, but we didn't really get anything outside of that. This season, we get several moments like this: where they're checking in on each other, seeking advice, actually being friends. It's wonderful.

- I mentioned in my discussion of the last episode that even though Kotetsu and Barnaby have been partners the longest, they probably aren't very good at explaining how to be partners. Sure enough, when Antonio asks Kotetsu, essentially, what it means to be partners, Kotetsu’s response is...not very helpful. He and Barnaby are friends, of course, but there is so much more to their relationship. And we don't really get a clearer explanation of what that "more" is.

- Just, y'know, Kotetsu being a little hesitant to tell Antonio that he's in love with Barnaby when he hasn't even told Barnaby he's in love with Barnaby.

- Edward!! I'm so excited to see Ivan is still visiting him. This was a very welcome surprise.

- It's so lovely to see a Tiger fan showing up so regularly throughout the series, especially because throughout season 1, Kotetsu really didn't have any fans that we saw. Everybody liked Sky High or Barnaby or Blue Rose or...you get the picture. But in this season, we're more regularly seeing Kotetsu get recognition. It may not be as much as some of the others do, but it's a lot more than he had when the series started. It makes me so happy to see, because heaven knows the man deserves it.

- I think the entire fandom had a collective coronary the first time we saw Mattia outside of the post-credits scene in episode 3. Who is this man? How does he know Barnaby? What is he up to? Barnaby is so happy to have reconnected with him that he's literally humming about it; oh God please don't be evil I'm so afraid you're evil.

- Barnaby takes over talking to Origami so that Kotetsu can talk to Antonio. The couple that meddles together stays together!

- Finally, we find out how Origami got his hero name, something I have wondered for years at this point because, at first glance, it makes no sense. But now it does, and wow, it’s so much more emotional than one would’ve thought.

- Seeing the discrimination he dealt with from his classmates because of his powers, and then seeing him still step up to protect them when they were scared shows us so much about the kind of person he is. You can see why he made the decision to be a hero when he was only 8. (And bb!Ivan is so very adorable.) 

- One of the things I'm really appreciating about this season is how Barnaby is much less “together” in many ways than he was in the previous season. He spent twenty years of his life being so angry and seeking revenge to the exclusion of virtually all else that he didn't ever really learn how to people, and he spent most of the first season hiding that by 1) being kind of a dick or 2) falling back on his Super Polite Public Persona. Now that he's actually friends with the other heroes and more secure in his relationship with Kotetsu, we see him being more vulnerable and awkward in a lot of ways. But we also see him being kinder and reaching out far more than he used to, actively trying to build those relationships that he eschewed so early on. It's a wonderful progression of his character and it's such a far cry from where he was early in the series.

-  Antonio is so, so bad at apologizing to Ivan, but he really is trying. He wants this partnership to work out! He likes Ivan and feels genuinely awful that he was so insensitive about his hero name. And he's completely out to sea with how to handle it, and Barnaby and Kotetsu (and Subaru) are absolutely no help at all.

- "Toilet Paper Soft Breeze" This child is absolutely ridiculous.

- The scene in the bank is one of my absolute favorites in this season. I love how good Origami has gotten about using his power to distract and disorient. I love seeing Antonio dive to protect him from the bullets (and losing his hat, and then his shirt in the process). Every minute of it shows that they do actually work well together and why, how the difference in their powers and methods really complement each other.

- It's also great to see Antonio's power outside of his suit! (I...did not know what Antonio’s NEXT power was for the longest time because the first season never actually says it, and we never saw him use his power outside of his hero suit.)

- And we also see how Ivan is great at thinking on his feet. Seeing his opportunity with the woman to get close to the bad guys and get the kid to safety, and then recognizing immediately that the people are too scared to move and changing into someone that he knows they’ll trust without question to get them out. It’s such a change from where he was in the first season, where he wasn’t even sure he was cut out to be a hero with his powers.

- I cannot get over this show once again is having an emotional heart-to-heart while Antonio is just. Standing there. Shirtless. Because his shirt got blown off by bullets. This frigging show.

- Look at these nerds I love them.

- And date attempt number two! Kotetsu asks Barnaby out to dinner this time, instead of drinks, but Barnaby has to decline because...

- He is having dinner with an actual person! I want to be excited about this but I am also absolutely terrified! Please don't be evil, Mattia, please.

- I was disappointed that this episode didn’t give us any backstory for Antonio but I am holding out hope for the next 12 episodes. Just one scene with him and Kotetsu as teenagers, that’s all that I ask. Please, show. I’m begging.

[mad-madam-m]

Me: Oh yeah, since I just started the second arc with Kalira, I should probably pick up the “M watches Tiger & Bunny” posts again; I can do a few before we finish this weekend.

Me: *watches first 5 episodes*

Me:

[mad-madam-m]

For the...third or fourth time in as many days, my godson is sitting in my lap watching Tiger & Bunny episode 2, aka “watch green statue, Aunt M?”