#Man this is my last reason to never trust writers with characters ever

[gutz-radio]

Man I'm back in the Billy Hargrove trenches with this ofmd "finale" huh

[roseworth]

Wait, I’m confused do you or do you not ship Jayrose?

short answer: usually no but ill ship it when its funny

long answer:

most of the reason i dont personally like it is because i see rose as a lesbian and i dont enjoy any ships of her with men (its fine if other people do! its just not my thing), plus i hc jason as aroace so im also not very interested in jason ships unless im in a very specific mood (the "specific mood" being jaykyle lmao. every few months i get really obsessed with jaykyle for a few days then i forget about it for the next few months. then the cycle repeats)

another reason i dont like it is that i am constantly in fear of rose becoming Jason's Girlfriend in comics and online. like how babs and kory are both seen as Dick's Girlfriend (also steph and tim to a lesser degree atm) and people refuse to engage with their character not in reference to their boyfriend, so writers have them constantly mention their relationship with dick even in comics that hes not in (like batgirls having dick show up randomly/birds of prey (1999) having babs talk about dick alllll the time, or kory in the current blue beetle run constantly mentioning dick even though theyre not dating rn and jaime has never even met dick). and thats somewhat starting to happen with rose where shes only in comics that jason is in and if jasons not in it then jason gets mentioned (see: catwoman #62). and obv as a rose fan i really don’t want that to happen because she’s such a great character outside of jason and i don’t want her to be reduced to just who she is with him. this is mostly me overreacting, especially since she had a miniseries just last year that jason was not in or mentioned at all. but being a fan of a female comic character means that most people are not willing to talk about her without mentioning her relationship with a man, and its even worse when the man is a batboy so i’m constantly on alert

so basically thats why it puts a bad taste in my mouth, but i have no issue with the ship itself or anyone who ships it!

i think jason & rose are extremely compatible. i see them as bffs but i genuinely do think about them in a relationship a lot even though i dont necessarily ship it. im rotating both of them in my mind 24/7 so i think about how i think they would act in a relationship & how it would ideally be done in canon. but i just dont trust any comic writers to actually respect rose

the reason i said that jayrose is one of the only jason ships that matters is because most jason ships are soooo bad... i wont name names but some jay ships rely on one or both of them being extremely out of character for it to work at all. in terms of jason ships, jayrose is one of the best just because a) an in-character jason AND an in-character rose would genuinely get along really well and b) none of the stories that they've been in have really been THAT out of character (with the exception of gotham war imo, which i went into here so i wont beat a dead horse. dceased was pretty bad too but that’s tom taylor’s fault it has nothing to do with jayrose). also unlike many other jason ships, a good portion of the people that ship jayrose are the ones who actually read the comics so it tends to be an actual Nuanced and Accurate portrayal. ofc there are many exceptions to that but as of rn jayrose is not one of the Certified Batfam Ships (you know those ships that are the only ships that fanon fans know about so whenever they want to give their fav a boyfriend they shove em with another character they know nothing about. like dick/wally where people say "well they were friends in yja thats enough for me" and they havent read anything with wally in it besides dick/wally fanfic and they dont care about him outside of his relationship with dick), so theyre somewhat safe. but unfortunately because of titans tv its also shipped by The Worst Man You've Ever Met so. you win some you lose some ig

it bothers me when people claim that they dont like jayrose because they "dont like what it does to rose" ???? literally when has jayrose ever been bad for rose. her worst out of character moments have nothing to do with jason in any way. she doesnt get sidelined for him and she doesnt get reduced to a damsel in distress or something. its annoying to me that people feel the need to make up an excuse for why they dont like the ship so they use rose as a scapegoat and pretend that theyre doing it for her when they actually dont know anything about her. just say you dont like it and move on! you dont need to justify it you can just not like it

so for the most part i have no issue with it, which is why i tend to mention it when i think its funny. theres a lot of jayrose content that i enjoy bc theyre fun together and i like seeing them interact! i dont ship them but i think its a good ship <3

however. despite all that i still have more thoughts. im playing devil's advocate against myself and disagreeing with everything i just said

because also. its kind of not in character for them to date. i like where they're at right now because theyre kind of in a casual thing, like theyre hanging out and having sex in the bushes but theyre not Dating. theyre not in a serious relationship that we've seen (other than gotham war but im not acknowledging that), so i like where they're at right now. hanging out, rose flirting aggressively and jason giving her next to nothing in return because he cant flirt, and probably having sex off panel*. i think theyre in a good place at the moment and i dont want it to change from exactly where it is right now in canon. *inside my head theyre actually just pals that pretend to flirt because they think its funny. they do not have sex off panel and they dont want to but the insane flirting is an inside joke that no one else thinks is funny. but thats just me

because neither of them has really shown any interest in dating (when written in character! so we're not counting rhato). the most "interested" jason has ever been in someone is minor flirting with donna in countdown. but he did not make a move on her and repeatedly said throughout that book that he was only focused on the mission and did not care about anything else. he doesnt seem to actually be interested in a relationship with anyone, partially because hes extremely emotionally closed off (to a degree. he is VERY open with his emotions, but hes not the kind of person that lets people into his life easily) and also because he just has other shit to think about. no sex only vengeance.

and ROSE. she is the most closed off person you will ever see. she will have casual sex in an effort to suppress all emotions (which i could talk about extensively. but thats not what this post is about), but she doesnt date people. the only people that she was close to being in a relationship with were eddie and hosun. with eddie, it was all flirting, emotional moments, and her pushing him away. she genuinely liked him (arguably. i could go into how its comphet but that is once again not what this is about), but she was closed off and didnt want to date him because she has so many issues. she tried to make him jealous and did her aggressive flirting thing like she does with jason, but she did not want to have an actual relationship with him. and with hosun, she once again (arguably) genuinely liked him, but she did not tell him that. she MARRIED HIM and still didnt talk to him about her feelings. he liked her and was interested in a relationship with her, but she did not want to embrace that and didnt make any effort to have a real relationship with him outside of agreeing to stay married to him after slade was arrested. she doesnt have any interest in actually dating the guys she likes, and shes so emotionally repressed that she will not make any effort to even be close with them

i hate phantom-one and i hate the idea of rose dating phantom-one but. i genuinely think their "relationship" is pretty in character for her (brisson understands her so well), because at most they have some nice conversations. shes somewhat interested in him so she'll come onto him a bit (no aggressive flirting but still), and she opens up to him when shes at her absolute lowest, then she leaves. shes more focused on what stormwatch is doing and she shows little interest in phantom-one during missions, but she likes him and oscillates between ignoring him and hitting on him. so.. out of the relationships rose has in recent canon..... i could make the argument that rose/phantom-one is more in character for her than jayrose even though i like jayrose a LOT more than i like rose/phantom-one

so yeah. its in character for them to get along. but i DONT think its in character for them to be in a serious relationship. which is another part of the reason im kinda skeptical about their relationship in canon, just because i dont want it to be an actual Relationship since it doesnt really make sense for them to actually date given... everything about them.

but again thats all just my opinion! ship whatever you want we're all just playing with dolls

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Ep. 13 "Into the Breach" Review

This was another fantastic episode that packs so much into its 25 minute runtime. Seriously, the finale better be like an hour. I feel like there's so much we have to address, yet so little time. My faith in you doesn't waver Jennifer; you've guided us through thick and thin. I will say that Rampart is surprisingly a really fun character to revisit and I enjoy watching him interact with the Batch. This man doesn't learn, but he's funny now so I give him kudos for entertainment purposes. I loved the dark atmosphere as the finale draws nearer and near. This is the end of the Bad Batch. We know it and they know it.

As usual, spoilers below:

MAMA ECHO RETURNS!!! After so long, he graces us with his appearance and he serves. I loved everything from his action sequences to his sass. Watching him sneak around the Imperial ship, rolling off of crates and working his magic was awesome to watch. That's why he's the Arc Trooper. And boy was he funny too. If it were possible, Rampart would've definitely be set on fire. Between being told he was being demoted to being denied the title of "sir," Rampart was demolished by Echo. It's just so good to see Echo again. I love him so much for his kind heart, quips, and awesome action sequences. The writers delivered!

Rampart, Rampart, Rampart... what will we do with you? He certainly hasn't changed and probably never will. But honestly, I kinda hope he doesn't. Sometimes, people are just aholes who do the right things for the wrong reasons. Rampart provides an interesting moral perspective. And he's still hot. Seeing him cleaned up in the uniform didn't help either. I'm a simple woman guys. He's also hilarious and I love it. Rampart's ego is so big that he unintentionally comes across as whiny and comical. Going forward, I seriously wonder what they'll do with him because he's going to Tantiss. Will he get dropped off? Sell the Batch out? Die in the battle that is to come? Next week will tell. I'm glad he was brought back though. He did his job as a villain well. Now, we get to see him in different situations and it's fun.

Omega, my sweet bean, hang in there. This episode does so well in establishing just how much she's grown over the past few seasons. Omega's always been resourceful and clever. Seeing her scheme to escape the Vault was exciting. You can also see the influence her brothers, particularly Hunter, have had on her. Omega's become more confident and mature. She's a leader in every sense of the word. The other kids look to her for guidance as she plans an escape. I also want to give the other kids a huge hug; I can't imagine what it must be like for them. It's one of the darkest things we've ever seen in Star Wars. Also, Emerie and Scalder rivalry definitely is gonna end with Emerie's true motivations being discovered. Scalder's not gonna let her allow Omega to slip away.

And seeing the boys strip their armor of all their color... that was legitimately heartbreaking to watch. I see it as a symbol of finality. There is no going back once they get to Tantiss. Hunter's "negative" just cements that. The last 5 minutes of the episode were so tense as the boys hitched a ride. As a my discord friend put it, "all roads lead to Tantiss."

There were a lot of smaller moments I enjoyed too. Wrecker was pretty funny this episode. Crosshair and Hunter voicing their trust in Echo was sweet. It furthers just how much the Batch truly trust and know each other. It's that implicit trust that makes me love their dynamic so much.

Anyways, that's all for now. We're truly in the endgame guys. After so long, we've finally made it to Tantiss. All that's left is to get Omega, the children, and escape which is so much easier said than done. I'm so scared yet excited for what's to come. See y'all next week!

[ameliagiovanna0]

How the fuck did we get here? This is not Jay. This is not Upstead. This is not the man and the couple we know and love.

I fucking blame the writers. What went wrong? I genuinely don't understand. I've said it a thousand times and I will continue to say it until Hailey wakes up from this nightmare to find her husband sitting by her bedside. It's fucking sick and it's a disgrace to both Jesse and Jay.

Jesse dedicated ten years of his life to this show. He loved playing Jay. He loved the show, and this is what they do? They ruined ten years of character development and five years of relationship development for absolutely no fucking reason whatsoever.

They put Hailey through hell for shits and giggles and I'm over it. Hailey deserves better. The character and story they built around, the one we know and love, not this mess, deserve better. They went from Jay being the only man she ever fully trusted to him not telling her he was going to extend his contract in a war zone? And after everything Voight put Hailey through, they had the fucking audacity to have her go to him for "comfort?"

Another thing I've said before and will continue to say: Jesse wanted to leave. That's totally fine. More power to him! I can't wait to see what's next for him. But they could have had Jay move to an other unit. He could have worked for the army stateside. Almost anything would have been better than the absolute clusterfuck of a shit show that's going on now.

I know Jesse said to trust the process but God damn. How much longer is this going to last? And what process? This is hell. This process is only causing more problems.

This is not the Jay Halstead we know. This man went to the ends of the earth to protect the woman he loves. He risked his life, his livelihood, and his freedom for her. And then he leaves with barely a word and can't manage to pick up her calls? Jay would never cause Hailey pain. Ever. He simply wouldn't actively choose to hurt the woman he loves. It's not who he is.

Upstead is and always will be my OTP. I don't accept this, and I won't. I'll write a better ending myself if I have to. God knows countless other fic writers have done these characters justice when their own creators chose to destroy them.

[ride-thedragon]

I'm so tired of defending his ass

but it needs to be said the Daemon who leaves King's Landing with Nettles is not the Daemon who marries Rhaenyra on Dragonstone.

He has lost 4 kids that he either made or helped raise. His family is feeling the brunt of that grief. He lost a brother at the start of the war as well, his last immediate family member.

His wife is actively isolated in her grief.

A young girl who just lost her home and a friend is also grieving. They have shared grief over Jace and are sent away from anyone else they can connect to during such a tumultuous time in their lives. They literally have to depend on each other each day to search for Vhagar.

In the show, I don't think that Daemon, known reactionary and emotional man, will handle it well. He still hasn't processed his brother's death from the way he reacted to the news about it.

(Thinking Alicent committed regicide to crown her son while his brother was a visual representation of the fates from Hercules cutting the thread of life/ Choking Rhaenyra for rightfully implying that had her father trusted him as heir he'd have known the prophecy)

So, I don't think that well established characterization is going to change. He's grieving, he's going to continue doing it throughout the war, and when his wife isn't trusting him or going through their shared grief with him (completely justifiably) he's going to turn to someone we know is alone in her grief during the war when he's sent away with her.

Her isolation is juxtaposed with Addam's in the narrative because where he has Corlys, she has no one to go through the exact thing with.

I don't think she'll turn away from someone she can relate to in that moment.

I think there's a misguided attempt to devalue his characterization in Episode 10 in the fandom, and while I understand it because of ships, I don't think it's a good thing. It's only going to serve to disillusion viewers who ship Daemon and Rhaenyra currently into not caring for the setup, and if the writers pay the slightest bit of attention, which they seem to do, they'll push hard to make everyone understand that this is not happily ever after, or a fairytale with a perfect ending of dying as one's lover calls.

Writers , especially ones who have domain over ASOIAF lore, are going to break your hearts to draw thematic parallels to the original series. And because a lot of you seem to glide past simple themes, they'll need to double down to get their point across.

(They already had to in season one, and some of you still didn't get it. Like Nyra not being a man is the reason she's so readily usurped or Daemon not being rational in grief or Alicent stuck in a perpetual cycle of abuse that she's been conditioned to not escaped and perpetuate to others.)

This is not a fight for your favorite ship. Write fanfiction. Stop fighting character development and developing themes.

Stop making hard to hate Daemon because of misinterpretations and attempts to defy characterizations. I just want a safe space to hate him and love the women he'd have been with. (Lady Rhea safe space).

I'm not known for my Daemyra love by any means but I do understand why people like it and I'm not one to go out of my way to hate on it. (Nettles love isn't Nyra hate)

But I feel like the narrative about the show runners ruining Daemyra by doing the Nettles plotline is over done and not fair to people who like her, Daemon or their relationship. The show runners have made it very clear who this man is and fortunately have shown his selfish actions along with his good ones to show his nature.

(Laena was never the issue. Rhaenyra isn't going to be the issue. There's a common thread.)

Me to Targ / ASOIAF men.

[kitkatopinions]

Okay, so linking my last post here where I talk about how the rwby writers will often announce how we're supposed to feel and what we're supposed to think, but not actually establish it well in the rest of the story, let's talk about how that affects the character of Tai and the different interpretations of his character.

I recently saw a post asking how people like Tai and can praise him as a father when we're told he essentially abandoned his children, and... It's for this reason. What we're told in one or two announced statements (Tai essentially abandoned his children) has absolutely no baring on the rest of the story. It doesn't impact his relationship with his kids, it doesn't seem to impact the relationships his kids have with others for the most part, it doesn't even really impact the relationship Yang and Ruby have with each other, or the relationship he or his kids seem to have with Qrow.

The very first thing we hear about Tai I think is Ruby commenting on how he wouldn't approve of the co-ed sleeping arrangements at Beacon, which while an old fashioned trope, implies that Tai is a parent that worries about the girls. Then Ruby announces that Yang is 'acting like Dad' when Yang is prodding her to make friends, implying that Tai is a dad who cares about his kids' social lives and tries to encourage them (and also implies that this isn't how Yang usually sounds.) Tai takes Ruby to visit her mother's grave, implying that he's the kind of dad who a. drives his kids around places and b. encourages Ruby's connection to her mother and gives her space to grieve. When we see Tai after the fall of Beacon, he is worried out of his mind about Ruby and so relieved that she's safe. He brings tea to her room and flips out when she leaves. I always read the tense moment between Tai and Qrow at the end of V3 to be Tai knowing Qrow's about to tell her things that Tai doesn't want her to know because he's trying to protect and take care of her. Her note is addressed to him, not Yang. Tai's the one who took care of Yang when she was suffering and (however misguided I think the writers were in some of how they handled it) encouraged her to get back on her feet. Ruby and Yang have zero problems with Tai, no acknowledged or imo even hinted at resentment towards him or trouble trusting him, or even in Yang's case struggling to have open conversations with him. Ruby and Yang's relationship with Tai is a relationship of a loving father who cares about his kids and kids that rely on him when they're in need. This does not reflect the idea of a man who shut down for years and forced Yang to raise Ruby on her own and sacrifice her childhood while he was essentially an absentee father. There's even implications that Qrow has been around enough while the girls grew up that they (specifically Ruby) feel safe around him and are able to have deep conversations (as someone with multiple aunts and uncles, even the one I saw the most wasn't someone I would talk to with the ease and familiarity and trust the girls show to Qrow in the first five seasons.)

Yang and Ruby's relationship with each other doesn't feel mother-daughter/she raised me at all. The only times we actually see Yang try to parent Ruby is in the first couple of episodes (after she gets done ditching Ruby for random friends we never see again) when she is still more the 'getting in fist fights and teasing' normal everyday older sibling archetype and is notably ACTING LIKE TAI in Ruby's eyes. The only thing that suggests 'abandoned by parent' is Yang's imo badly done abandonment issues (badly done because they only ever seem to matter with Blake,) and even then her abandonment issues would imo be unchanged with Tai being a supportive father because she still would have been abandoned by Raven and lost her mother! So even that doesn't feel like it has anything to do with Tai.

Because of the characterization of Tai, the girls, and even Qrow, for the first four volumes, I was completely under the impression that when Yang says 'Dad sort of... Shut down,' she meant temporarily, for a matter of a couple of months at the most, and that she definitely did not raise Ruby. Then when I watched Yang in volume five, I was like "wow what a weird thing to randomly insert that doesn't track at all with the behavior of this family, I guess I have to come up with a headcanon involving Tai shutting down and 'leaving Yang to raise Ruby' while still balancing what's clearly the case." And I came up with the headcanon that when Summer died, Tai shut down for around six to eight months, but Qrow stepped in almost immediately after the incident with Yang and Ruby running away and Qrow was like a disaster parent but still loving and tried his best (with Yang in the role of telling him 'this is what Daddy does' 'Ruby doesn't like that food' 'we go to bed at eight' to help him get by.) Then Tai started getting better and he and Qrow co-parented for a bit before Qrow decided his semblance was too dangerous and started his habit of going on trips and coming back for a week or two at a time, while Tai stepped up again, but still relied on Yang perhaps a bit more than he should. In my head, they were a flawed family unit, but one where Tai recovered from his understandable grief quickly to try to get back to his family and had Qrow there as someone loving but messy. It still didn't completely click with Yang's insistence that she raised Ruby (added onto by Ruby announcing the same in V9 before Yang proceeded to completely ignore all the obvious signs of Ruby's mental breakdown, get angry when said breakdown was revealed to her, and was all grins and hugs five minutes after Ruby attempted suicide,) but it was the best I could do.

Because "Tai was an absentee parent and Yang raised Ruby on her own" just doesn't fit with the rest of what we've seen! It makes it feel like both Yang and Ruby have a warped and wrong idea of their childhood.

So then we get fans getting angry that people like Tai, being totally confused about why people made 'Father's Day' posts about Tai, wanting explanations, and it's like.... It's because the rwby writers did not care to actually make 'Tai was an absentee parent who abandoned his young child to raise a toddler on her own' part of the story at all and just essentially announced it without giving it any emotional weight or impact while completely ignoring what they actually did write into their story, which is a flawed but loving father.

'Tai was a single parent for years with frequent help from Qrow' is so much more applicable to the actual characterizations and storybeats and actions we get in canon than 'Yang raised Ruby by herself when Tai abandoned them.' It's just that the second one randomly got announced to us, just like 'Penny's first choice is asking Jaune to kill her' was announced to us even though it contradicted the rest of the story. It's just bad writing, bro. A lot of us just try to block out the moments where it's announced to us how we're supposed to feel if it directly contradicts what's actually been included in the story.

[khunvegas]

Have you/could you make a list of your favorite/best bl kisses?

i feel honored that someone asked me this 😩 omg ok. this is gonna be the longest post ever.

here's my list of the best bl kisses with a few of my favorites. in my own personal opinion.

IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER

●dark blue kiss

i think p'aof went very galaxy brain with the idea of an underwater kiss and for that, he is very valid because it's a very iconic kiss. the show itself could have had some work but then again, it was 2018. everything was wrong back then.

● still 2gether

NOW i talk a lot of shit about this one AND WITH GOOD REASONS. HOWEVER, gosh mantype stole the show for me WITH ONE SINGLE KISS. imagine that. it was groundbreaking FOR ME. too bad we will never gonna see them together again.

● 2 moons 2

this was the only time joong knew how to kiss. no further explanation.

● history 2: crossing the line

even though this whole scene was a dream, it was still a marvelous experience and for someone (me) that was just starting into this bl bs, this one sealed the deal for me.

● history 3: make our days count

this whole scene... you just had to be there. also they had the most happiest ending ever. for sure for sure.

● history 3: trapped

what can i say? taiwan always put their money in those workshops. their plots might be a little outta pocket with the incest and the getting killed because of some salt but i can always trust them to put on a show.

● manner of death

i have no explanations WHY this is a favorite. it's just too good. and it's not only their porn-level kisses, the show itself was a masterpiece. if no one got me, i know maxtul got me. manifesting a show with them again.

●lovely writer

the show itself didn't click with me. too many sound effects and some of the characters were very annoying to me. HOWEVER, the food was very tasteful. let's see it again.

● a tale of thousand stars

i really debated between this one and the final kiss but i had to choose this one because i feel this one is more meaningful. it was a promise that they would see each other again and i'm a sucker for promises. still, p'aof lost some points for giving us one single actual kiss for the very last minute.

● like in the movies

picture this. we are in the middle of a pandemic, unemployed, some places are starting to open back up, thailand is in shambles so they can't release anything. enter the philippines with the vision of starting business with the bl industry and they release this masterpiece. it was such a good show and they had the material for a season 2 but sadly, their time is over. 10/10 tho.

● we best love: no.1 for you

gosh, taiwan. you will always be the best.

this was a very emotional scene and they truly deliver with the kiss and the tears and the bridge. it was all 10/10

● bad buddy

I MEAN, DO I EVEN HAVE TO EXPLAIN??? like damn. now i do have some complaints here and there but this kiss right here??? it was such an experience. like the girlies that watched this while it was airing know how it felt because not a lot of people were prepared for how ep 5 would leave the whole fandom in shambles. the confession plus the kiss PLUS how it ended??? emotional damage 100. incredible.

●enchante

LISTEN!!! YOU BETTER LISTEN!!!! because these bitches, as rookies as they were, DELIVERED. see because even though enchante was a flop in terms of views and gmmtv never giving them an inch of promotion, my kings ate each other on camera and gave me the most toe-curling kiss ever. i don't care if you thought the plot was silly or you want to act funny and say forcebook look related, whatever that means, they did what needed to be done. end of discussion.

●not me

"but offgun had better kisses!!!!111!!!" i don't care about any of that. i came here because babygirl first is a homie hopper and he was going to kiss another man on camera.

the show itself was really good, a little bit draggy towards the end (and there were some Things with some characters that the fans weren't that happy with) but overall, they put on a great performance. HOWEVER, danyok will forever be famous. a tragedy too.

●to my star

GOSH. the originals. the men that weren't afraid of success. see because up until this point, kbls were a flop in terms of kisses (some even in plot) and their first kiss was a flop too BUT THEN this final scene came and robbed me at gunpoint. i was so sure we would never get a proper kiss AND THE BITCHES CAME AND SLAYED ME. not only they gave me a proper meal, it lasted for hours. i was left in shambles. 14569722/10.

●to my star 2

i have to put both scenes because what the fuck. I MEAN, WHAT THE FUCK MAN???

there's absolutely nothing i can say but enjoy??? i guess??? they said "oh, the industry is a flop. let us fix it" AND THEY DID... now the show itself had its ups and downs; a lot of people didn't like how it was made and how the plot was going; it was devastation after devastation and no one could see the light at the end of the tunnel. personally, if they had done the plot a little different, a lot more people would have been happier, including me. but that doesn't take away the fact that they killed it, amazing performance and the kisses speak for itself.

● my secret love

now was this show groundbreaking? no. in reality, it was more of the same stuff we all have seen but the catch with this one is that the acting is good enough and the plot is engaging, and you can actually see that some actions lead to repercussions in the show. however, i do have to talk about these two. they stole the show and they weren't even the main couple and my theory is that because they didn't have enough screentime, they decided to go all out with their scenes and god, what a time. this was just the beginning of this scene btw, there's more to it.

● golden blood

this one goes to show that sometimes you just need vibes, exceptionally good chemistry, some silly characters and a small mukbang. golden blood was a disaster in like everything, so when i tell you i stayed for them, i'm serious. they were the only reason i kept watching. the rest? i don't even remember because i skipped most of it.

● cutie pie

see, decisions were made when they filmed this. the show was very silly itself and there were some plotholes that were ultimately overshadowed by zee's tongue. i honestly don't remember much. i just remember the iconic kisses and how tonnam stole every single scene (and that's how he has his lead role now). also perth. but those workshops came through because all four of them ate this (and each other).

● cutie pie 2 you

before anyone says something about zeenunew, save it. i watched this long ass advertisement just to get nuersyn crumbs. that's it. i don't even remember how many episodes it had but it was so unnecessary. HOWEVER, tutoryim came and gave us the performance of their lives. i have absolutely no complaints with those two. would i ever want a special focused on them? yes, 100%. i also have to add maxnat also had a great performance with the little to no screentime they had. we were living off crumbs, for sure.

● you're my sky

oh, bestie. when i tell you this show made me climb my walls every saturday last year, i'm not kidding. THESE TWO, MY GOD. for the girlies that watched this show, you know what i mean. the tension was OFF THE ROOF. THE WORST PART? open ending. the most toe-curling tension right here just to get a drunken kiss and then NOTHING. the most excruciating 12 weeks.

● don't say no

this show was a wild ride. like, the toxicity surrounding leo and fiat? it was too much and the plot was nonexistent, which it was the point. basically, it was "two best friends in a room, they might kiss" and they did, so what happens next? this is the "next". how they actually act now that they are in a relationship. fiat had a lot of baggage plus being horny. those two fucked like rabbits and NOTHING was left to the imagination. the biggest surprise was smartjames. they had an awful ending but at least we got good food.

●blueming

you know what they say, tms walked so that the other kbls could run and this is a prime example. then again, it's the same director, so there's a standard these shows need to have and damn, i think they exceeded. now, the show was very different from the manhwa but it was still a good show enough that there might be season 2.

● kissable lips

compared to some of this list, this kiss is not even that good. HOWEVER, in the context of kbls, it was really memorable, especially when you have watched the show and the only thing that you can remember is that one of them was a vampire and died but died after having a good fuck... honestly, they had $5 and a dream and they made it work.

●cherry blossom after winter

the dream kisses are always the best ones.

this was a very cute show overall and i think it had the first m|m couple that gets engaged with a ring and everything in a kbl. very iconic, if you ask me. very brave too.

●cupid's last wish

listen, i'm not a fan of the body swapping trope but at least they went original with this one (at least no one died... side eyeing the shipper). and i'm pretty sure the director told earthmix to go wild with this one. pretty sure it was the pent up energy from atots. what a performance. a think there are a few kisses from this show. great food.

and that's it because tumblr only allows 30 pictures per post, so if you want part 2, let me know. i still have some that i can add.

[inkstainedhandswithrings]

S2 Ep14 of TBB Thoughts!!

oh frick, oh darn, oh heck

HOWZER HOWZER HOWZER HOWZER HOWZER HOWZER HOWZER HOWZER

I need to stop eating breakfast while I watch these eps, eventually im gonna gasp so hard I'll choke on some food (this is based on me almost choking on my food when HOWZER showed up)

So I knew Echo'd be in this one, but I was actually also a 100% Rex would be there too, so I was a little bummed about that? like why would they release Rex's poster now if he isn't gonna be in the ep? and like ik this is a show about the batch, so they wanna show off Echo and I love that for him bc I love Echo but like,,, Rex🥺 yanno?

that being said, Echo and his team infiltrating that ship, fcking GREGOR?? amazing, loving that shit, eating it up

another suicide? this is getting intense. like this season has given us deeply seeded political issues about clone rights, depictions of blood, brainwashing and two suicides?? like??? things are heating up, the writers are getting more real and I actually kinda,,, love that even though its intense

CROSS MY BOY🥺🥺🥺🥺

clone sipping coffee :)

ye :)

me @ howzer:

he knows someone, eh? THAT'LL BE MY MANS TECH :DDDD

ofc he snatched the gun, you rlly coulda seen that one coming dipstick

it struck me as really odd that Crosshair didn't shoot the female doctor. like the rest of the batch and most of the clones use stun guns ALL THE TIME whereas Crosshair has always shot to kill. again, "severe and unyielding", meaning he takes intense action, committing all the way all the while being so stubborn he hardly ever backs down. honestly, him sparing her is some serious character development. he recognised she was being kind to him and he decided that that was enough reason not to hurt her. either that, or he wanted to abuse her kindness later on

he never wanted to get out, he just wanted to warn his brothers, which is AGAIN SO DIFFERENT from the Cross we've gotten to know in these last two seasons. I actually don't think that's growth anymore. that's Crosshair standing by a choice that he knew was bad for far too long (SEVERE. AND. UNYIELDING.) and now finally admitting he was wrong and going back to what he always wanted and always knew to be right.

ALSO I JUST WITNESSED CROSSHAIR MISS A SHOT TWICE LIKE WTH??? THAT'S NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE

partially rebuilt Pabu :)))

Hunter being questioned abt being more than just a soldier lol

like sir, the answer is "I am dad, actually."

TECH AND OMEGA FLYING TOGETHER

CACKLING

HE ADJUSTED HIS GOGGLES TWICE IN LIKE 3 MINUTES

HE LOOKED LIKE HE WAS FEARING FOR HIS LIVE I AM DYING WITH LAUGHTER FCK

"Up. Up! Up, Omega, pull up!" <- im sorry but Tech's always been just,,, so cool in stressful situations, like almost dying, no biggie. falling out of the sky in a storage box and having a heavy object crush your leg, naaahh we got this. fcking staring a Zillo Beast dead in the eye as it growls at you, easy as pie. omega's flying? panic

"The Tech-Turn? really?" "Now that is not what it is called, but I rather like it. I suggest you proceed before I come to my sen-- AAAAAHHHH."

D Y I N G

did Echo only race Omega to torture Tech? yes, why do you ask?

okay listen I love him, but without his kama Echo looks half naked

TECH FCKING STUMBLING OUT THE SHIP I CAN'T

HUGGIES!!!! ECHO AND OMEGA HUGGIES!! :DDDDD

hmmm the summit huh??? interesting

Tech sounded so worried when he called Hunter over??? waaaaaahhh

Hemlock? more like Hemcock (yes I've been waiting a while to make that joke leave me alone)

YES CROSS IS WARNING YOU. NO HUNTER YOU CAN TRUST HIM GO AFTER HIM GO FIND YOUR BROTHER HE NEEDS YOUR HELP GODDAMN WAAAAAAAAAAAHGGH

Crosshair being offered his freedom and just stubbornly staring back? Severe and unyielding hero edition. I love him, Hunter go get him pls he needs you.

help why did this one feel so short

[aadmelioraa]

PLEASE tell me the context of the line, "If this fails and there is no escape for you, please tell me you'll find a man you trust to kill you softly." that is THE most intense line of dialogue i've ever ready holy shit i need to watch this show??

AHHHHHHHHH Beth it is literally SO intense, like…ok, so…Uhtred, the main character and guy who says that line, is at this point in a relationship with Aethelflaed, the woman in the gifset. I very decidedly do not ship them together, I resent how often her character is sidelined to prop him up, among other things…the historical Aethelflaed is an incredibly impressive figure, but a lot of her achievements are given to the fictional Uhtred in the show…I will stop there, just…I really really do not ship them for a variety of reasons and that is a big one lol.

I do, however, ship Aethelflaed with the bowlcut dude, aka Aldhelm, our favorite morally flexible Mercian who at this point is ride-or-die for Aethelflaed. Their storyline makes me feral, which you know at this point given my unhinged posts. But like…Aldhelm is canonically in love with her and has been for a while (he confesses it during the s3 finale while bleeding out in Aethelflaed's room, having been stabbed by her abusive and nefarious husband for siding with Aethelflaed's leadership tactics over his, after he'd spent many years being loyal to the husband, scheming on his behalf, etc).

It's a GREAT scene, his s3 arc is just him slowly shifting to her side entirely and it is so FUN, the actor (James Northcote) is excellent and provides so much depth to what, in s2, had been a fairly straightforward characterization (though still very fun, I loved him in s2 also). Anyway, Aethelflaed never reciprocates Aldhelm's affections (which I personally think is a great writing choice) BUT they are like…functionally a team, very much operating as partners, he is supportive of her and she can rely on him fully in her function as a leader but also in a personal capacity. 

So the thing with that find a man to kill you softly moment: they're about to fight in a huge battle with the odds stacked against them and there is a risk that Aethelflaed, as Lady of Mercia, might be taken as a political prisoner and be tortured, used as collateral, etc. Uhtred, her love interest, tells her to be sure she won't be taken alive, and then Aethelflaed reveals SHE ALREADY PICKED SOMEONE TO KILL HER SOFTLY and that THAT MAN IS ALDHELM because OF COURSE IT IS!! BUT THE ACTUAL THING IS when it comes down to it…ALDHELM CAN'T KILL HER. HE HAS A KNIFE TO HER THROAT AND THEY'RE SURROUNDED AND SHE'S LOST HER SWORD AND HE'S WAITING TIL THE LAST SECOND but HE CAN'T KILL HER!! LOOK AT HIS FUCKING FACE WHEN HE REALIZES IT!!

They're only saved by the last minute archery intervention from her brother, their ally, who shows up with his army in the nick of time. This is a mere season and a half (though this does include significant time jumps, tbf) after Aldhelm suggested to Aethelflaed's husband that he HAVE HER ASSASSINATED. And a season after ALDHELM WAS SENT TO BE THE ONE TO ASSASSINATE HER! He has a knife to her throat there too, though he doesn't intend to actually kill her, he's just a lowkey dramatic bitch. There is so much fucking knife kink in their storyline, I swear to GOD. 

Also, back to the original question (sorry)…the writers made the choice to have Aethelflaed be in a battle couple with Aldhelm during this ep, not Uhtred (her canonical love interest), and it FUCKS. The whole sequence is just FLAWLESS. I have my issues with that season (season 4 out of 5 total) as it relates to her storyline, but the ship moments are so good. I can't recommend watching the show on the basis that it's good but I can recommend watching it on the basis that those two have burrowed into my brain and live there permanently. I have never written so much fic for a ship as I have for those two, they make me insane, I love them. The show is very much not about either of them (they both appear in s2, also), but they have a really satisfying joint arc for the most part. It's the perfect recipe for shipfic, for me: I am dissatisfied with enough that I have plenty of canon-based ideas, and that pairing has an extremely compelling relationship that's never consummated. Plus it hits all of my kinks: loyal advisor/queen, enemies to lovers, pining, angst, repression, and there is sooo much fic potential for secret relationships, and of course my beloved sexy paperwork feat competency kink as they tackle administrative duties together.

Thank you for letting me yell at you about them, I hope this answers your question hahaha.

[cacw]

fatws rewatch thoughts

bucky breaking zemo out of prison was unbelievably dumb. bucky had no real reason to break him out it could have been ANYONE but bucky and it would have worked better. i don't even dislike him being there really it just doesn't make any sense whichever way you look at it. zemo didn't contribute anything worthwhile to the story at all unless you wanna believe that sam and bucky are complete idiots and couldn't manage this themselves. i mean i wouldn't blame you considering that's what the writers themselves seem to think

bucky tells his therapist she's bad at her job (true) but then when sam tells him the exact same shit he eats it up (get better friends bruh). sam down at the VA would not be saying any of this bs man. i can't even believe this was written in. bucky did not have to go and give everyone closure. that is the absolute last thing he should be thinking about. what good does that bring? does that improve any one of these peoples' lives? why is THAT the thing that's supposed to make him feel better? what the hell is wrong with all of you

sam and bucky are both done so unbelievably dirty. how do you fuck up so bad with only 6 episodes

no one is nice to each other and almost every line and character interaction feels so mean spirited. it should have been focused on sam and bucky's relationship and trauma and learning to grow and move past it and be there for each other and Be Kind but it seems like the writers were just trying to wrap up sam and bucky's storyline together as fast as possible

sam obviously does not like bucky. which is fine. but he doesn't trust him and that's the issue i have with it... you've known this guy for years you're not close but he was close with your best friend. he was your best friend's best friend. you put your life on the line to help save this guy. you have fought the same battles. you should KNOW he's trustworthy by now. has this spellman guy ever watched a cap movie because my bet is on no

bucky is never given a chance to breathe. why is bucky not allowed to be upset over what happened to him? why is the only thing in his mind the things he did as the winter soldier? of course of course it's gonna be so hard and it's gonna tear him up inside and that will never go away, but what about the rest. what about the years of brainwashing and torture and constant endless abuse. it's like he's not allowed to really feel

bucky is the show's punching bag for all 6 episodes. he's belittled and made fun of for the winter soldier shit all the time even though timeline wise it's been 9 YEARS since he was active. but it's all anyone knows him as for some reason. why is sam joking about this in front of his family. why is everyone treating him like a wild dog. why is this supposed to be funny

that isn't even mentioning how ooc bucky himself is. freeing zemo/damaging his relationship with the wakandans/rushing into fights/etcetcetc. it never ends. he's powered down both physically and mentally and once again it's a case of Bad Characterization Outside of Cap Trilogy

sam is such a good person. he's incredible. and he could be so much more if the writers had ever given a damn about giving him any real substance at all. does that make sense... it's the same problem they've always had with bucky. they don't know what to do with these characters they're too afraid to commit to anything and they end up neglecting to make their characters Actual Characters

i don't really think i hate john walker as a character as much as i dislike the way he's written (which is a problem i have with every character in this show). he is a product of his environment. it can be interesting. but it's not interesting enough to warrant making bucky look like the resident dumbass in order to make john look more sympathetic in turn

episode 5 (the boat episode) is the only one that's worth anything at all and even then it doesn't get the relationship between sam and bucky right. it's as close as they got but it wasn't enough

everything about this show is so shallow. it's so contrived it feels so pointless in the end because it doesn't REALLY feel like we saw anyone grow. the more i think about this the more i think it should have JUST been about sam. this is supposed to be about him growing into his title but it doesn't feel like anyone actually gained anything from this experience at all

the power broker stuff was dumb

i don't even know where to start with karli

you need to do better feige

[gutz-radio]

Man I'm back in the Billy Hargrove trenches with this ofmd "finale" huh

[baronessblixen]

I think the Essence script revealed a few things:

CC had tried to build up a Scooby Doo gang-- Skinner closer than ever to Scully and Mulder, no longer bound by fears for his job and acting on their emotional behalfs, etc; Doggett the new recruit who goes above and beyond the call of duty and wins Scully's then Mulder's trust enough to justify Mulder's actions in Existence; and Reyes wedging in last minute to win an irreparable trusting part of this dynamic by delivering William.

...All of that didn't happen because:

The material S8 explored was cheap in comparison to the HUGE new dynamics and moral quandaries/questions it constantly posed.

S8 is all about the human element of The X-Files: characters confessing fears, crying, clinging and leaning on each other, etc. outside of the bubble of Mulder and Scully. The PROBLEM is that would require greater shifts in dynamics that would bleed heavily into the plot once Mulder came back.

To all of these actors' credit, they made mountains out of script molehills: they work their tails off to emit the emotions that aren't written down or spoken. This bleeds into the crucial point:

The season finale hinges, strangely, on Mulder and Doggett's relationship: which isn't surprising, really, as this is about the new recruit getting trusted by the established veteran on the files. Add to that Mulder's caustic distrust, PTSD, and a host of other complications and that could have been a JUICY dynamic. But... for each opportunity the ensuing episodes present, the circumstances never GROW their relationship like Skinner and Scully's grew: instead of understanding and learning to trust each other's judgment (like Scully did in Within/Without and TINH w/ Skinner), Mulder and Doggett just... rotate around each other while solving the plot. And they were given AMAZING opportunities: Empedocles, Doggett comes around to a Mulder belief that affects his son and Reyes; Vienen, Mulder gets to see Doggett's street-style cop methods work in tandem with his X-Files edge then has to hand the files over (which is never touched on but that would be HUGE); and Alone where Mulder ditches his family man routine to save Doggett. All of this only softens Doggett to Mulder but never changes Mulder towards Doggett except for some professional respect... ish. And because of that, his extreme and sudden blind faith in Existence with Scully's location makes NO sense, especially because he arbitrarily decides this guy he tolerates should know where his partner and son are and not him and for no real reason.

It's... bizarre. This is my favorite season of all time; and the writers really, really worked magic with what they could. But the directionless steering post Without-- which had established a tighter narrative than previous seasons because it bled directly and daily into the characters' lives in a way that mytharc eps that happened, concluded, and moved on didn't-- and especially post TINH was a mad scramble, imo.

I don't blame anyone; but Essence (and probably Existence) scripts reaaaaaaally highlight the poor handling of those juicy, complicated, and more important than ever character moments that were left on the cutting room floor, sadly. (Though I'm so happy @x-files-scripts is uploading them; because I can overly dissect them~.)

I agree. I think he built up that Scooy Doo gang knowing season 9 would have to be different with DD gone.

Like you said, the season has so much human element in it, and therefore so much potential, but for the most part it remains potential. CC likes to remind everyone that the show has never answered questions and remains vague. That's all great and fine when it concern a government conspiracy or the mytharc in general.

Mulder coming back from being dead and him just being like he always was, Scully turning into a passive bystander who has things happen to her and decided for her, needed more. The fact that we got anything remotely emotional fulfilling is thanks to the actors. It seems as though CC sees his characters as static. They're a certain way and no matter what happens, they remain that way. And that worked in the earlier seasons maybe, but in season 8 it's ridiculous.

Like you said, we could have had so much witj Mulder's PTSD and him and Doggett, but that was never anything that CC was interested in telling. Which- fine. But then don't turn it into an emotional story for the characters.

[theangrypokemaniac]

Thank you for your kind words, @iloitse, and your thoughts, with which I agree.

I also see Brock with Suzie. When I used to plan out my own region, it finished with them together.

To me she's the one girl receptive to his attention, perhaps not in a loving sense, at least not yet, but no other lady ever treated him so well.

Vulpix will always connect them, meaning Brock has a lasting relationship with Suzie, and a reason to find her again.

If Suzie handed Vulpix over within hours of meeting Brock, in that short period she'd recognized him as a kind, caring young man worthy of her trust, someone to keep Vulpix safe, and he did, repaying her faith in him.

That's the sort of lad any girl wants to marry, and, as Vulpix is one of my favourite Pokémon, both can own it if they're together, which is my main motivation.

Vulpix for everyone!

I understand Tracey's true dream being to meet Professor Oak, but that's almost more useless than aiming to be an artist.

Drawing is dull viewing, but it keeps him occupied, and may lead to a career, but what did he want from Oak?

Yes, you've seen him. Very nice. And what are you intending to do now?

If I think of it too much, it gives me the idea Tracey naturally assumed Oak would be so impressed he'd take him on immediately, and so he needn't plan further into future than that, which brings me back to his arrogance.

As for getting there, the only direct progress he makes is in three epidodes:

• The Lost Lapras, his introduction, by encountering Ash and Misty.

• A Tents Situation, his penultimate appearance, when he meets Oak.

• The Rivalry Revival, his exit, when he becomes an assistant.

Between the first and final two, there's a hole of nothingness.

I suppose each step he takes puts him closer, but plot-wise, it's an abstact quest of no use at this exact moment.

This wish of his won't motivate him into any action in individual episodes, nor does it affect how he behaves throughout.

He should've had a task in the meantime that combined both interests, if say Oak directly asked him to make detailed illustrations of all the tropical Pokémon varieties.

As in, he must purposely go out and find them, not just the few he sees passing through.

There'd then be scenes when Tracey led the team, racing off into the woods as he's heard rumours of oddly-coloured Pokémon on the island, having to traverse caves and cliffs to find it, and maybe the Pokémon wants a favour before it complies, leading to another search.

It might encourage him to colour the sketches in for a change.

As a trope, 'The Quiet One' works, but not so much in a trio. There's too few members for it to be a recognizable role.

It looks more like you're not doing enough.

I'm not certain it's what Tracey's supposed to be either, because he speaks often, but just doesn't say anything memorable.

Usually 'The Quiet One' is portrayed as sensitive, emotionally intelligent and highly perceptive, spotting the tiny details the loud mouths miss.

They'll sit on their own, or stare silently out to sea, in picturesque scenes absorbing their surroundings.

Whilst watching Pokémon encompasses this, I doubt he was deliberately designed to fill the spiritual or philosophical model, but that's the best interpretation of a flat, undeveloped personality.

He certainly doesn't behave as The Quiet One when he has the major part in the story, so given the show credit for making a calm, laidback yet deep character, isn't something I can do.

It's so ridiculous. These writers put effort into creating Tracey, and cared enough to include him in the series, and then never took it further.

As soon as he was in, they gave up!

If however I accepted him as intentionally reserved, perhaps to counter the wilder edges of Ash and Misty, we still come back to Brock.

Tracey as The Quiet One would only ever be well-received had he been there from the outset, his relaxed, or withdrawn attitude given greater focus and serving as integrel to its beginnings.

By coming in late, no one will ever judge him on his own terms, or for himself.

He'll be held up beside Brock, and found to be not as interesting, and the longer the comparison persists, the less consideration he'll get, until fans lock him out of their minds and feel nothing but resentment.

With regards to Pokéshipping, Tracey was seen as an obstacle to any theoretical romantic moments simply by being there.

When Pokémon started, shipping as a concept, plus the surrounding fandom 'culture' didn't yet exist, as least not fully, and the only fellow fans available for discussion were those you knew in real life, which limited the sharing of ideas.

Therefore, children watching the very first episode weren't conditioned to see everything in terms of pairings, obsessively analysing each scene for clues etc.

By the time Pokéshipping began, Brock was already there, so part of it, in a sense, and the ship fitted around him.

Whilst Tracey is also the 'third wheel', and technically, any allowances shippers made for Brock could also work for him, it will always come back to the ill-feeling Tracey provoked.

What people overlook or ignore in their friends they will hate in their enemies.

It's not particularly rational, but then human nature isn't rational.

Some fans take against Ash and Misty. Some dislike Team Rocket. But no one hates Brock. He holds both sides of the divide together.

Therefore, Pokéshippers will accept him, as he was there almost from day one, but not Tracey, as he's not built into the foundations, neither of the anime nor the ship.

The writers didn't help matters by hinting at what might have been, fully knowing they'd never deliver.

At the close of Pokéball Peril, as soon as Brock's gone, Team Rocket tease Ash and Misty as 'lovebirds', as if that's the obvious conclusion to them being alone.

A lot of shippers at home, still smarting at losing Brock, might've got over it had this continued, in that, whilst missed, Brock's absence is tolerable if it leads to more focus on Ash and Misty as characters, and greater detail on their emotions and thoughts, especially for each other.

Then Brock leaving means something, and can be justified as crucial to the coming story arc, but adding a replacement erases all that potential.

Removing Brock is pointless if we 'need' three Twerps, thus the writers squandered the opportunity to go in a new direction, which is, frustratingly, straight after they implied the opposite.

I forgot to say before that Tracey is also hindered by his and the Orange League's perceived lack of legitimacy.

Ash, Misty, Brock, Gary, Delia, Oak, Joy and Jenny all come from the games.

Jessie and James, whilst not specifically featured, represent the villains of Red and Blue, which is a necessary invention as there were no named Team Rocket members besides Giovanni.

Pokémon Yellow had also come out by then, retroactively adding them to the game world, so that's alright.

Tracey however was the first main character to exist inside the anime alone, so not someone we were eager to see onscreen.

Back then, the branches of Pokémon: games, cartoon, cards, manga and merchandise, were much more connected and cross-referenced than they are now, and for the anime to adapt the game was considered very important.

When Tracey, with no roots in Red and Blue, comes in, and takes the place of Brock, who does, there was a feeling he hadn't 'earnt' his right to be there.

Who do you think you are, coming over here and acting like you belong?

The Orange Islands aren't a bad series compared to what follows, but when judged only by Kanto, it marked a step away from the original purpose of animating the game, and that wasn't a popular move.

We 'knew' the Indigo League as players. We'd walked through the towns, battled there, and been the hero, but this place, this brand-new, never-before-mentioned archipelago, with little relevance to the mainland, held no such significance.

It's a bonus round before Johto, as if not worthy in itself, merely a stop-gap edition, just to have something, anything even, to keep the kids occupied until the real stuff arrives.

It didn't seem to matter as much because of all of the above, and the sleepy, drifting tone of wandering the seas, sailing wherever the currents go, amplified that.

If it doesn't care, why should we?

Brock experienced blizzards, deserts, shipwrecks and eruptions like a proper adventurer.

He'd been through it all with Ash and Misty as a true companion.

Tracey meanwhile, had really nothing but blue seas, clean beaches and fruit groves to worry about.

Overall, and visually, it's just one long summer holiday for him, with no hardship to test his mettle.

How could we even tell if he was worth our investment, when we never saw him deal with serious situations?

It's another circle: no one likes Tracey, because they associate him with the 'false' Orange League, and no one likes the Orange League, as that's the one with Tracey.

Hating him is a very time-specific reaction.

You need to have been a child then, watching Pokémon in order, with no knowledge of what's to come, to feel it.

I wouldn't expect any fan outside that to join in if it's not part of their experience.

My younger self would never forgive me for mellowing with age, but then, when innocent enough to think Tracey was the worst thing that could ever happen to Pokémon, I didn't realise how lucky I was.

Because he most certainly isn't.

[mypage4sure]

Okay I wasn't going to make a post on Order of the greenhand but I changed my mind, first of I'm going to get into the "Catelyn crapped in my bedroom" videos, and I'm honesty both dreading and looking followed for it!

I just finished the Doran Martal videos, and honestly, beforehand I heard of them treating him like he's a psychopath and the face of the Strangler, so I was accepting them to be worse, but apart from him Euronizing (murder) his unborn siblings, they kept his motives as "I want to avenge my sister" that said I still have some thoughts.

1: Something OOTGH always said that people are complex, but again something I noticed, is that they appear to lump ethnic/nationality/species into "good" and "evil", the Dornish/Rhoynish are now in the "evil" side, though they did say reasons, I think it's because apart of the Rhoynish history, is them merging with the Andals of Dorne, since the Andals/Yitish/Ghiscari are in the evil side.

2: Another thing I noticed, is if something doens't match the real world, it was intentional on the writer's part, not that GRRM just makes mistakes sometimes, and this case it's gout, where Doran is taking magic potions to make it appear he has gout, since the amount of stuff he does shouldn't be possible with his severe gout, in that case I can also see them explansions on why he does that (like gout not being as severe with his hands, or he does it on low pain days.) The funnest thing is that they bought the woman's older brother who has first grade gout in his one toe, and he said he wouldn't not be able to put blanket on his toe ectl, and the man narrator "before you start making assumptions about how tough and not tough her brother is" and it's just like no I wasn't making assumptions, I was just wondering why you where comparing him to a fictional character.

3: Another thing is, they think if characters don't like a religion or ethnic group, it's for good reasons other then just simple prejudice, like with Melisandre saying the Seven where apart of the Other, or people not liking the Dornish.

4: They simpifly past wars in the "good vs the bad", like with Aegon's conquest of Dorne, it's just lore, but they turned Dorne into being a sadistic slave holding kingdom, I honestly think if Cersei's fight with the High Sparrow, didn't take place in her POV, they would have turned her into being morally grey, like they did with Maegor.

5: They have a bias on which part of the AWOAIF they believe based, they doubt everything on the Andals yet they took AWOIF saying on Dornish torture knights and playing a game on which one lives the longest, without a hitch.

6: They whitewash the Targaryensas anti Slaverly, though AWOAIF directly say their had slaves. ("The Valyrians learned one deplorable thing from the Ghiscari: slavery. The Ghiscari whom they conquered were the first to be thus enslaved, but not the last.")

7: They believed one of the possabilities that AWOAIF give, was that Rhaenys was being tortured by Ullers, and the letter said they would take her out of her miserly if he stopped the conquest, which is honestly the most boring boring possablity, and Aegon would destoy them if that was the case, but it show their anti Dorne bias. (*I think it's more likely that the letter was about her being treated well.)

8: Any of the Dorne war crimes is shown to be evidence that Dorne is evil, yet they either don't adress Tywin's war crimes, or said it's Machiavelli.

9: That Dorne still having war despite the peace and occasional bandits is proof that you can never make peace with Dorne, which on the war part, is not really flair since to say the entire kingdom is evil, and on the bandit part, is the most insane take ever, it's like saying you can't trust Ireland because despite the fact that IRA made a cleasefire, some people still bomb cars.

10: I was pleasantly surprised that they did not whitewash Aegon IV, I guess he's too much of a mess for even them.

11: They did however said Dorne peacefullly entering the Seven Kingdoms, was bad, since this along with other stuff, lead to to the Blackfyre Rebellion, so their gifts are poisoned.

[ailelie]

In posting, I realized that I've not really talked about How to Disappear Completely here on tumblr. So! Here are some copy/pastes from Dreamwidth.

from November 2011

Kilbey and Nero's friendship, they are the last people you'd expect to be this good of friends (and if you've any doubt, do listen to "Bury My Past in London Fields").

Theo, she is prickly and vulnerable. She sticks up for herself, but is also unsure of herself. She has so much she wants to be, but doesn't quite trust it is possible. This is all more prominent in HtDC than YDaN.

Flawed characters

How they handle time travel

How they handle history

The writing, this writer definitely knows how to turn a phrase

Nero. Nero. Nero. Nero.

from September 2009

I love all the characters, the writing, the story setting, plot, and so on. Plus, this story features an excellent example of time travel (something I'm rather picky about).

Theo moved to London so that she could start her life. Only, she hasn't quite made it that far yet. Her hand has stopped itching for a pen and her boyfriend is cheating on her. Then she gets a strange phone call that leads her to a one-night adventure. She can't give up that thrill, though, and so finds herself falling further and further. Eventually she has to decide between falling and stability.

Nero Dusk is a former addict with a penchant for poker, when he has the money. He loves his old taxi cab, rockabilly music, and a good drink. He grumbles and puts up with Kilbey, his long-time business partner, and dreams of one day finding his way back to regular society. He cleans up after Kilbey time and time again.

Kilbey Salmon is a smooth-talking charmer who once wore a suit. He risked everything-- even stuff not his to risk-- for a girl. And made it. Only, Kilbey has never been good at the daily domestic. He faded from that life and found work as a detective of sorts. Along with Nero and a corner of a special map, Kilbey finds whatever's been lost, stolen, or hidden. He has fun with his life and makes messes. He's never serious about anything. But now-- maybe-- he has a reason to be.

Order. Chaos. London and the Dream of London. History. Being real. Mystery. Noir. Friendship. Love.

I love this book.

June 2009

This is just-- this hits so much of everything that I love. Cities-within-cities, well-done time travel, hard decisions, history, becoming someone you'd never imagined you could be, cleaning up your own mistakes, secret wars fought when no one is looking, quirky characters overflowing with personality, etc etc etc.

from Yuletide 2010

How to Disappear Completely or Salmon and Dusk I want Nero's story. How did Nero fall? What does Nostalgia make him remember? What about when the drug goes bad? What does he yearn to forget and never relive? What are his regrets? Triumphs? When did he learn to play poker? Who taught him? How did he meet Kilbey? How did Kilbey coax him out of the bottle and into a job? Did they ever argue over music? How did they become friends? If Nero is so full of potential, who else has he followed into trouble? What events have made him into the man we hear about in the podcast novel? // If you decide to listen to Salmon and Dusk instead (and I love them both), then I'd love something around Yesterday Came Too Soon, which is one of my favorite stories from the series, mostly because it is all Nero. Or happy!Nero. Or case!fic. Ooh, case!fic would very awesome.

What is this fandom? This is a podcast novel and series. You have two options here. How to Disappear Completely is the novel. It is about 30 chapters long in segments ranging from 20 to 60 minutes in length. Salmon and Dusk is the series and is a collection of five short stories (and one bonus Christmas tale). Each story is one to two episodes in length with each ep ranging from 30 to 60 minutes. S&D is shorter and would likely be easier to get into. The author designed it so that either one can introduce you to Kilbey and Nero's world. Some details, like Theo's last name, do change between the two as the series came several years after the novel and are sequels to a revised (and unavailable) version of the novel. The series deals with the aftermath of the novel and many features of the novel no longer exist in the series. Even so, listening to the novel is not necessary to enjoy the series. Both novel and series are available here [Broken Link]. Why do I like it? I love the characters. They are all a wonderful collection of quirks, strengths, and faults. Also, I love, love, love the world Bartlett has created. The novel has a city-within-a-city setting, which is one of my fiction kinks, one of the things that will get me to read a book/story/etc every time. The series deals with aftermath and how these characters cope and survive once everything has changed.

[shipsandlattes]

So I know everyone has already dissected this scene to its core, but it’s taken me a good 48 hours to digest this and I just needed to get it out.

I’m an aspiring actor, I’ve been training for a long time, with a lot of amazing teachers. I’ve watched a lot of shows and shipped a lot of couples. Some of them beautiful and canon, others, well, let’s just say waiting 22 years and counting for acknowledgement, closure, anything, it’s a damn challenge. I’ve seen a hell of a lot of will-they-wont-they’s, baiting, purposeful ignorance, deliberate fake outs, zero explanations, storylines that basically caused canon disintegration, the works.

In saying that, Dean and Cas were right up there on the list with the other “impossibles” because honestly, I didn’t think the writers would have the guts to do it, but I am so f*cking proud they did. It’s safe to say I’ve watched the scene a good hundred+ times already. 

I’ve seen a lot of “controversy” around Dean’s reaction/Jensen’s acting choices and whether or not Dean reciprocates Cas’ feelings, and obviously, I needed to add my own views to the mix.

Just work with me for a minute here.

Dean Winchester is an emotionally repressed trainwreck, and ironically enough, the one that is so full of emotion it hurts to watch. When Cas first starts his speech, he’s confused, really confused because why on earth would Cas start off on a rant now? Billie’s waiting to kill them, he just said he knew something that was more powerful than she was, something that could save them. That’s where he thought this speech was going.

The confusion turns to realisation that it’s a goodbye when Cas starts telling him how incredible he is, how his entire essence is love. Go back and watch the scene again, when Cas says “you’re the most caring man on Earth”, you physically see Dean look down, his eyes searching, he’s actively trying to make sense of what’s happening, he knows what’s coming and you can see him coming to terms with the shock of the words being said to him. He then looks directly at Cas. That look, that was pure shock.

Also, notice how he doesn’t stop Cas from talking? He doesn’t interject, make a joke, doesn’t talk about how there is no time for this now, they’ve got to at least try and stop Billie. He. says. nothing. He listens, he listens like I’ve never seen Dean listen before. Because it’s sinking in now.

When Cas really starts crying, when he says “you changed me, Dean”, you can actually see the pain in Dean’s eyes. He’s no longer in control of his emotions, he’s crying too. He’s never seen Cas like this, so raw, and vulnerable and human. This is the hardest, most emotional conversation they’ve both ever had. They are talking about the one thing that everybody knows, but is never addressed. When it wasn’t talked about, they could deny it, live in the lie. Once it’s said aloud, it’s real and they can’t turn back.

This above series of interactions is the part that kills me the most. The moment Cas says “because it is”, that’s the exact moment of realisation. Look at that last GIF, really look. He’s just worked it out, that he is Cas’ true happiness. He knows what’s coming before Cas even says it. Go back and watch the scene again, they pulled that off so well, the way the music swells at this exact moment. Jensen is giving us everything here, you can see what’s happening in his head - he is Cas’ happiness. He is the one thing on Earth Cas wants and thinks he can’t have. He is the reason Cas is about to die. He knows what Cas is about to say and he’s not sure he’s ready to hear it, not now, not like this. It’s almost a silent plea not to say it, because he knows. Of course he knows. It’s like he can’t quite believe Cas is really, after all this time, finally going to say it.

And because obviously Jensen decided that that wasn’t enough to break us, the loaded reaction when Cas says “I love you” has me nothing but convinced that it’s reciprocated. Because Dean knows. He’s always known. Those tears, that head tilt, that gulp. He’s so genuinely confused that they’re really having this conversation. It’s like he can’t quite believe that this is the reality before him because he’s been living in that denial, in that self-loathing and unlovable layer he believes to be true. He’s been under the ‘what if... but it could never be’ umbrella for so long. 

What also makes this real is that there isn’t anyone else around this time. When “I love you’s” have been said before, they have always been able to deflect it, with other people or other words. Now it’s just the two of them. No deflecting, no running away. Dean is forced to hear it, to absorb it, to realise it’s for nobody else but him.

Now, I don’t know if you guys felt this, but when Dean says “Don’t do this, Cas”, he wasn’t just referring to Cas sacrificing himself to the Empty, he’s telling Cas that he can’t just say this, not now, knowing he’s going to die, knowing that Dean won’t get a chance to think, to process, to say what he needs too. I keep staring at that GIF above, Dean is breaking down, I’m almost convinced that Jensen was using an “I love you too, please just stop this” inner monologue for this bit. Look at the way he’s looking at Cas before he realises the Empty has started materialising and turns around. That’s a look of pure heartbreak. Trust me when I tell you, it’s really hard to keep those inner thoughts inside if you’re so in the moment - actually, don’t just take my word for it, read any acting book, ask any actor, it’s so hard to keep that in and sometimes you don’t, and sometimes you do - it’s in both the resistance and the letting go that the gold happens. This my friends, is gold. 

Did anyone else hear “Cas, I-”, well, regardless of whether or not it was an “I” or a very sharp breath, the outcome is the same. Dean’s gone into immediate panic mode. The Empty at one end and Billie at the other, and all poor Dean wants to do is gather his thoughts on not what to say but how to say it. I don’t think he comprehended just how little time he had, he was so focused on what was being said that the reality of the situation caught him completely off guard.

Also, I know this post was about dissecting Dean’s reaction, but can we sidebar a minute to talk about Cas as he pushes Dean out of the way? He’s sobbing, he’s fully crying. That hit me really hard, I’ve never seen Cas cry like that, I’ve never seen Misha get to play that level of emotion before and it was the most heartbreaking thing to watch since The Doctor and Rose and Buffy and Spike, to which by the way, I find many parallels between those couples and this scene.

Speaking of crying, that brings me to this: Dean slumped on the floor, ignoring a call from Sam, sobbing his heart out knowing he’s lost everything. Dean-I’m-emotionally-unavailable-Winchester is sobbing. Maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t recall ever seeing Dean cry like this before either, the sobbing was so evident and piercing in that silence. The look around the room, the burying of his head in his hands, that is a classic writers romantic love trope if I’ve ever seen it, they really pulled out all the stops with this one.

So, to summarise, I think Jensen’s choices and Dean’s reactions were absolutely and utterly perfect. They both did it so well that it didn’t break from character that these two emotionally distant and repressed men are in love and finally voicing it. Jensen barely said two words and still managed to cause mass coronary’s across the fandom. That my friends is what you call a brilliant actor. I bow down to the talents of these two amazing human beings.

Before I leave this novel, I have to say there are now a few things I’m going to need from the powers that be to not screw this up, help me manifest this:

1. Dean gets to reciprocate his feelings to Cas in person. So, I’m gonna need Cas back and a very emotional Dean.

2. Dean to be actively dealing with heartbreak in the next episode (unless they decided to bring Cas back that soon, which I wouldn’t put past them at this point).

3. Sam to confront Dean about his feelings for Cas, because out of everyone, he’d be the one to hit Dean with the truth of his fears. Sam knows. Sam is supportive. Sam sees it all.

4. I’m gonna need some physical affection, cause after 12 years of nonsense, we damn well deserve it. A hug, and not just any old reunion hug, a proper, this is different now hug. A kiss because hello, in love out loud now. Forehead touching, handholding, really gonna need the works here.

5. A happy ending for the two of them, one way or another. We’ve never had one, it’s time.

Okay, have at it now, let’s speak these into existence please.

Note: GIFs are not mine, I did not make them, credit to owners who I’m not sure of, but they’re beautiful, thanks for making them. EDIT: I’ve just been informed that these gorgeous gifs belong to @michaeldean​ and @inacatastrophicmind​!