#and even helps the viewer to understand with his interviews and stuff

[jesuis-snips]

Yeah....well it is when the actor says that "that's the beauty of star wars, there is no good or evil" while the MAIN THEME of the whole franchise is just THAT. That there is good and evil. And the sith are evil. The jedi are the good guys in horrible situations that the sith put them into it. Like be fr pls.

Idiots online: THIS ACTOR IN A STAR WARS SHOW DOESN'T HAVE EXPERT KNOWLEDGE OF STAR WARS!!! ARRGGHGH!!!! STAR WARS IS RUINED!!!! Meanwhile Harrison Ford: Who the fuck is Anakin and why are you asking me?

[gwenyn28]

Just a few thoughts. I don‘t want to excuse any development or sound condescending. I don’t want to excuse the writing because I still stand by it being shitty and it could have been better in so many ways for a lot of storylines and characters. But I just had a few thoughts that I wanted to share. So… here they are. About season 7 and season 8. And probably the Buddie of it all.

If you are still too emotional and mad about the whole development? That is absolutely valid and I would never try to invalidate it. Be disappointed. Crash out. Curse everyone and their mom. Be angry and mad and sad and frustrated.

If you are open to read about a different approach, a different opinion and some thoughts and the last two seasons and some Buddie stuff… be my guest to read the following.

Just please be respectful if you disagree with things.

Imagine the following scenario:

Fox had the show for six season but then noticed that they can‘t do it anymore. Because it is too expensive. They also shut down Buddie permanently because… omg, no way. It was visible especially in season 6 when Buddie had barely any scenes together (though there were still some great Buddie moments with the „Do more!“/lightning and the poker date). Then, all of a sudden, abc appears, wanting to buy the show. Because they have the money and they see potential there. Especially with Buddie.

And so they try to set their plan in motion, to use the potential they saw, with starting the Buddie route after the opening disaster in 7x04. And it works in their favor. The response for bi!Buck as the first one of them coming out (excluding the few homophobic idiots) is mainly positive and euphoric. For them it is confirmed that the plan is a good one and will work out for them, bringing in fans, viewers and mainly money.

But then something unexpected happens. We remember some of the interviews from back in season 7 after the opening disaster. Especially Peter. He is talking about him being „too old“ for this kind of work. That is is tiring. That it is demanding. To carry around that heavy gear, the long hours (that led to a tragic death in real life), the stress… all of that.

Suddenly they have a „problem“ here. Peter is an executive producer and one of the main faces of the show. They can‘t ignore his complaints. (Maybe there was also a fallout with some higher ups about this or other things concerning the show like work schedules in general and/or character development but since this is just speculation I will keep it out of this text. I just wanted to mention it once that there could be other reasons for this whole „problem“ as well.)

Therefore they need to find a way to help, to solve that problem. And by doing so, they put all their focus on him and his character‘s development/storyline while unfortunately forgetting about the others and sidelining them.

This is a huge problem and there is nothing in this world to sugarcoat it. Tim has a whole team of writers working on this show. If he is not able to take care of the others and their characters he could have given this task to someone else to solely focus on Peter/Bobby. So everyone would have gotten the story they deserved.

Instead of handling it that way, we get 7x09 though that was a Bobby episode (with not even a mention of anyone else). That episode calls back to the house fire with how his story began. And the suicidal tendencies which come into play in the finale of season 7. The viewer is reminded that Bobby has had these thoughts in the past. That him dying is not a foreign concept to him and his character. That it has been an issue in the past. With bringing that up again they try to plant the idea into the viewer’s mind that they could see it and understand this being an optional and logical next step. Because they might see it not as a surprise then when he dies in the season‘s finale.

But the reactions were negative. Killing him off like that? Addressing his suicidal tendencies? With one main point for that planned death being his old guilt that has actually been resolved, kind of, since season 2? They notice their mistake that this is not the right way. The right solution. Therefore, they bring him back to life even though he should have stayed dead after being gone for 14 minutes. (Because who would and could survive that?)

So, that is their first try to solve that problem. Unfortunately, it doesn‘t work out. The problem‘s still there. And not only this. With focusing on that story, they have a whole other new problem - they neglected the other characters for that. They gave them shitty storylines that led to nothing much and didn’t get resolved because they felt like Tim had an idea but got sidetracked with other stuff. It was not cohesive at all.

Therefore, the season ends with two problems instead of just one - Bobby is still alive and the rest has crappy or barely existing storylines.

Then, season 8 is on its way. They get back on track and focus on „how to make it easier for Peter“? Again. The stupid thing is though… That is their sole focus. They forget about the others. Again. There is no development for any character in season 8. They get something small here and there but that‘s it. Nothing big, nothing connected, nothing cohesive and consistent. They bring in outsiders to create conflict instead of working with what they have and what has been the essence of 911 - their family as the core story. But yeah, it tracks. Because their main story is Bobby right now. The others are just an afterthought. Their stories fall flat and are stagnant. That sucks. But they either ignore it or they just don‘t notice. Fair? No. But that is the current situation.

And if we really think about it… a lot of people were noticing that and complaining about „why does Bobby get so much attention this season?“ That is the reason why. He has been the focus because there was an issue to solve. People might have not been able to see that back then, coming up with other explanations about „he is the male lead and it‘s Peter!“. While it might not have been about him being high on the callsheet though. It might have been just because they needed to find a solution.

In then end, they are still on the „Bobby/Peter problem“ for season 8a. That is when the idea comes up with the Hotshots plot. That is their test run for the idea of „what if we make Bobby retire? What if he is not part of the 118 anymore but still on the show?“ So, they use that story to test the waters here. How the people would react to them having (and finding) a new captain, to have a new dynamic at the 118, to still be connected to Bobby though but pulling him out of the focus. That follows Peter‘s wishes and complaints about not wanting to do all the stunts and hard work anymore that is demanding for his body and health but would keep the character. Could have killed two birds with one stone, right?

So, Hotshots was never meant to be a 911 meta, to poke fun at the show or to give us callbacks. It was simply there to test changing the position and role for Bobby. Theoretically a good idea. But it didn’t work out.

People are not okay with it. They don‘t like it and want Bobby back. The result? They know now that having Bobby retire, to write him off and/or out of the 118 (while still being on the show though) won‘t work out. People would not like it and they would want him back, no matter what.

So, season 8a ends. And the problem is still there. How to make it work for Peter? A lot of conversations have to be held and things are discussed. While they still have to continue with the show because it is still on and a work in progress. They are under pressure somehow.

And then the decision is made. There is only one solution. Retirement doesn‘t work. „Demoting“ him to guest or recurring? Not working either. The people want to see Bobby.

That is the moment they just have one solution - Kill him permanently.

Is it a good decision? Debatable.

Is it a good execution? Definitely not.

Could it have been done differently? Probably.

But the point stands. Their only way out at that point is the permanent death. Everything else hasn‘t or wouldn‘t work out.

Also, somehow Ryan, Aisha and Kenny cancelling the plans for the „Saving Lives“ convention could be seen in a different light now. The original story, if the retirement idea would have worked out? They would have been done by then and could have attended. But since they had to rearrange everything and write a new story? They were needed on set. Therefore, cancelling the convention.

Don‘t get me wrong. I don‘t want to excuse that decision or say that it was amazing or great or well-done. Because it wasn‘t. It was rushed and badly executed and they lacked a lot in the writing department here to make it a cohesive story to have people get the plot. There was so much missing which tracks back to my earlier statement of Tim getting sidetracked so many times and losing the bigger picture.

If it had been done differently I think a lot of people would have accepted killing off Bobby a bit more. Easier. But we already were unsatisfied and mad at all the shitty storylines and plots happening before to all the characters so… the foundation was just not there. To have a good and solid story and then deciding to kill off a character. That would have worked. Not what we got though.

For most fans the MCD was just another shitty thing that happened in a row of shitty things. Therefore there was no acceptance. If they had handled it differently, maybe it would have been a better result. But we will never know because the damage is done.

But back to the main point. The decision is made. Kill Bobby. But now they have to do that, to commit, one way or another. I assume this decision happened around February or so.

The Texas stuff was already filmed in January, 8x11 was planned and had started. Hen‘s bus storyline was on its way as well. So, they have to rearrange the whole schedule and everything from budget to permits to departments involved - the Contagion arc is born.

A lot of us felt and still feel that this was so off and random, it made no sense in the overall story. It felt weird and forced into the main story. And it actually was. We were confused about the stuff we found out through bts about them pushing around episodes (15 being 13 all of a sudden) and other things not adding up. But the root of this chaos was the „we need to put an end to the Bobby problem asap“, not a „I have no clue at all what I am doing“.

It was said in one interview that Bobby‘s death was derailing everyone‘s personal storylines and putting them on hold. And that was actually a bad thing in that moment because they had to stop everything they were doing. So, that couldn‘t be more true. Because exactly this happened. They had a plan (not that it was a good one, don‘t get me wrong) how to get through the season. But since they had to get through with killing Bobby as well they had to change the plan and shake everything up.

You might ask „why kill him then and why not doing it differently and doing it in 8x15?“. Like I said before. The problem still stands. Peter is maybe not able to do all the heavy stuff anymore (not that I would blame him, but it might be just a fact due to his age). So, they are ripping off the band-aid and are like „Okay, let‘s get through with it and accept the shitstorm for now. We have no other way out.“

And that is exactly what happened. The backlash was and still is huge. And they got and get a lot of negative feedback. They just take it. Because they knew that this would happen. But they saw no other or better way out of this situation.

Again, I don‘t want to excuse it or defend anything. It was still poorly executed and could have been better. Because let‘s be honest, Tim got even sidetracked there again with his „action“ and „I want a four minute long helicopter chase“. Two episodes could have been enough to give Peter/Bobby a proper goodbye and death to his character if done differently. But they did it in a bad way and have to live with it now, accepting the reactions while trying to see the positive side here as well with „okay, that death shakes up things for every character and we can finally develop them further. Our problem is solved.“

Let‘s have a look at the Buddie of it all then because that is the thing that probably interests us the most. They are our babies.

Like I said in the beginning, abc saw the potential and greenlit Buddie.

They take the first step in 7x04. Then the Bobby problem appears and they loose focus, being not the main plot anymore. The Buddie development gets sidelined for now, maybe with the thought of „One thing after another, let‘s solve Bobby first, then get back to Buddie“. Unfortunately, that doesn‘t work out and the problems is still there.

They admit defeat then and are okay with with sidelining Buddie for season 7 even though both Oliver and Ryan are on board (and if anyone says they, especially Ryan, are against it… this is not a safe space for you!). Let‘s push it to season 8.

And then season 8 happens and the Bobby problem is still unsolved. Because killing him in season 7? Not happening and Buddie is still sidelined in 8a. Because there are more important matters to take care of. But again, this doesn‘t work out. Hotshots as a test run for retiring Bobby is a failure. And 8a ends with still two problems at hand - Bobby alive and characters (in this case Buddie) being sidelined.

For 8b they decide to change their approach. To finally shift the focus. The Bobby problem can’t be solved quickly. They learnt that after 7b and 8a. So, the plan is to concentrate on Buddie for now. The potential is still there and that has been their original idea anyway. Maybe they can work that out first and then take care of the Bobby problem?

That is why the beginning of 8a feels like a Buddie dream coming true. The whole fight about Eddie moving, him leaving Buck behind who can barely handle this situation, 8x11 and the two Texas episodes. Great. That is exactly what they wanted. The Buddie train is back on track and thriving. The fans are ecstatic and the GA picks up on that plan.

But then… shit. Bobby. Almost forgot about him. He is still alive and the Captain of the 118. Peter still has to work and do the heavy stuff and… damn. Ignoring the problem or pushing it back didn‘t solve it. So, the focus had to be shifted again. Abandon Buddie, put it on the back burner.

I am sure that the decision to „rip off the MCD band-aid“ wasn‘t made easily. And that they had a lot of conversations and debates about it. But once the decision was made they had to stop the Buddie train again. They were not okay with it and they probably hated it, especially Oliver and Ryan who were happy that there was finally the development that both (!) anticipated. But everyone accepted it for now. Bobby was the more pressing matter at hand in that moment.

So, the Contagion arc happened. And finally they solved the Bobby problem but had to accept the backlash on that AND the sudden Buddie stagnating.

The final three episodes after this arc were used to close this storyline and I am convinced that Bobby‘s death won‘t be a topic anymore in season 9. They let them grieve (even though poorly, still acknowledging the bad writing in some parts on my end here), trying to pull the characters out of being sidelined, getting back on track with giving them development.

Season 9 can be now used again to get to tell the stories they either wanted to tell in season 8 or had no time to even think about for this season.

But what about the press tour before the finale? Let‘s say it was… bad timing? Disney‘s upfront is a fixed date and the finale aired after it. Unfortunately. The press we saw that heavily featured Buddie… was not press for the finale. It was press for season 9. If the finale had aired before that all the Buddie hype would have been seen for its actual intention. To „hype“ season 9. To promote it. To sell their show. To finally go through with what they wanted to do for two seasons now but couldn’t do because they had to take care of something else (Bobby) first.

Was it calculating and kinda rude what the outlets did, to air and publish the stuff before the finale? Yes. Because it was misleading and a lot of people thought it was about the finale. Imagine that stuff being said next week or the week after? Completely different outcome. But them airing it before the finale gave people a wrong impression.

The problem is that a lot of people, me sometimes included I give you that, have an idea and theory because we see something or get hyped by other‘s theories… and then we focus so much on that and expect something to happen. While it just doesn‘t because it has never been the plan. And that is why people get disappointed and angry so often.

I don‘t want to blame anyone for doing that. It is just an explanation for why this happens, you know? And why people react to it the way they do.

If you put the hype aside and think about it being for season 9 and not the finale? It can be seen in a different light, especially with what I explained earlier. Buddie got sidelined and partially forgotten because of the Bobby issue. But now that they are free, they can get their focus back on that. And everything in the interviews and articles and videos is pointing towards it.

Abc still sees the potential and is still on board with it. Otherwise they would have shut it down for real, the interviews and everything that happened during that press would have been different for sure. They would have given more professional answers, more open worded. They would not have been that happy and giddy about the whole think. So, we can assume that it is still the plan for the upcoming season(s). We also know that they plan to keep 911 as long as possible, like the new Grey‘s Anatomy with a shit ton of seasons to come. Abc hasn’t given up on the show.

They just had to solve a problem first. And even if they did it in the worst way possible concerning the writing, the sidelining of other characters etc.? The problem is solved. The detour they had to take? Done. They can go through with their original plan. And that is Buddie.

Also one or maybe two important things. With Bobby gone it actually plays into the Buddie canon of it all. Why? One of the main faces of the show is gone. The male lead so to speak. That is why Oliver got so much promo work this week. Because they want to build him to be the new „male lead“ (I know it is an ensemble show but I have no better way to explain it.) He will take Peter‘s place. Not as the captain (that will be Chimney). But as the male face of the show. And Buddie? Even though it sounds weird but… Buddie is planned as the new Bathena. I don‘t want to make Bathena fans mad with this but…

Let’s be realistic for a second. Bathena was a main pull for the show. People tuning in for them. But now? Bobby is gone. And Athena? She has no house anymore so where does she live? I can see Angela stepping back as well. Not leaving the show completely but being more of a guest. To be their police connection until… she can raise the next one. A rookie. This is how these long term shows work. If an actor has to or wants to leave you find a replacement, have them interact and get them some build up. Then you can slowly pull back the old character and replace them with a new one.

The same can happen for the 118. There is an open position now. So… Ravi anyone? Anirudh could become a permanent member of the team and they would have an open position for a recurring firefighter/probie. The next generation for the 118. This could also lead to new relationships because the mains are all coupled up - HenRen, Madney, Buddie. So Ravi and the new rookie and firefighter? Next generation also for personal storylines. Win-win for the show.

Also, 911: Nashville plays a role in this. Because people, mostly GA, were complaining about OG being too woke (and with Bobby dead they killed the only straight white cis male of the show). They are unhappy but like the franchise as such, the emergencies and some of the personal stories (that is their main reason to watch the show). They can simply switch to Nashville. A mostly white cast (for now), nothing „woke“ we know of yet. They can latch onto a new straight white cis male as captain with his wife and team. And OG? That will draw in more queer viewers because it is „woke enough“ with queer rep, PoCs and mainly women on their show.

In the end abc won‘t loose that many viewers. The ones that leave OG becaues of „woke“ will move on to Nashville and OG draws in more of the queers. Win-win. Again. In the ends, the numbers and the money is what counts.

Buddie brings in more queers for OG and Nashville is for the straights. To simplify it.

To come to an end (and thanks if you read until here!):

Bobby‘s death was not a creative decision, it was a problem they had to solve to cater to Peter‘s wishes and needs. They took their time and sidelined characters for it. They tried a different approach with Hotshots but it didn‘t work out. So they took the MCD out and accepted their fate. After that is done now they can go back to their original plan with Buddie and start in season 9 with a clean story. Buddie will be their flagship relationship they focus on in 9a. Buddie was always meant to happen but got pushed back because of the more urgent matter. Bobby/Peter. Now they have the time to do it.

And one last thing before you are finally getting rid of me…

I said it more than once. I don‘t want to excuse anything. I am still on board with the „they wrote shitty storylines and executed a lot of things badly“. Characters were sidelined because of too many ideas with poor decisions being made. They could have done things better. And we know they can because we got better writing in the past. So, I will still criticize the show and how they did things. I am not blindly following and praising everything they do. I still have trust issues with them really being able to handle storylines for the characters accordingly to how they deserve to be handled in the future. I am hopeful but not delusional.

How they ended things with Bobby was… underwhelming and feels undeserved after so many years. He should have gotten something better and if Tim had not been focused on the action he could have given a two-episode goodbye that would have honored Peter‘s role and character.

I simply tried to approach both seasons with taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture after they are both over now. I am not giving Tim too much credit with saying that yes, I think he had a plan. I mean he has 30+ years under his belt. He is no newbie who has no clue what he is doing. But, and that is a big but, he got lost in all his side quests that he lost sight of his main quest. He lost the red string that should have been there throughout the season, connecting episodes and characters, because there were so many other shiny objects he wanted to explore.

I am not on the „trust the process“ train because like I said. I have trust issues. I just tried to understand why the stuff that happened happened the way it did. And to me that makes sense (not only me because a lot of that stuff was discussed in a little group of wonderful people who always try to stay sane and rational). But just because it makes sense doesn‘t automatically mean that I like it. I don‘t.

I can see their plan being pushed back because of some unfortunate and unforeseen problem and I can just hope that they will get back on track with their plan concerning Buddie since that problem is solved now. That after two season they can finally do what they wanted from the beginning after they changed to abc.

[faededaway]

Pro hero reader who gets asked "who's the hottest hero?" All the time. They always answer with different names. (They usually mention heroes who aren't "conventionally attractive" or any hero under top 20)

One time!! One time they give a too honest answer.

One time they're doing a 24 hour live stream for a charity event. The event is to help civilians with unique quirks who're having a hard time finding jobs or homes because of the nature of their quirk (like Kirihito Kamachi, Spinner, or Shouji)

It's the last few hours of the stream, all the important information has been shared. They've even played 5 hours of Minecraft on survival mode.

So now, they're taking any kind of question from the fans.

Someone asks, “we know you're playing around with you answer whenever you get asked about the hottest hero. But fr?? Who's it fr???"

Reader is contemplating answering the question. They look at the number of viewers - 1032, Not a lot.

“I'm not playing around. The answer just differs on different days. I meet new heroes all the time. And everyday someone does a little something that makes me think they're more handsome than yesterday”, the reader answers nonchalantly while stretching out their tired limbs.

Still, fans are unsatisfied and keep asking the same question in 20 different ways.

“Can y'all stop asking me the same question over and over? You're making me feel like I'm in my press interview again”, reader sighs.

They quietly read the comments trying to find someone interesting when they spot something they can't read out loud, “who do you hope thinks you're hot?”

“Easy. Ingenium or Eraserhead. Those two look like they'd- ”, the reader gasps so suddenly they start choking on their own spit. They didn't realise they were answering the question out loud.

Meanwhile, the chat blows up with fans wondering which question the reader answered.

“Eraserhead?? They wanna Collab with them?”

“Tensei is hot, I'd fuck him”

“Their childhood heroes?”

“WHICH QUESTION WETE THEY READDEINNN”

“fr fr. Their taste in men popping out.”

“Easy? What easy??? Easy to beat??”

“ANYONE THINKING THIS IS NOT A S3XY ANSWER IS A DUMB*SS. IT'S OBVIOUSLY A S3XY ANSWER. THEY WANNA FORK THEM!!”

“stop sexualizing shit. They probably didn't mean that”

“Understandable.”

The reader gathers themselves and clears their throat, “guys, UA heroes! My top UA heroes. Okay? Calm down. As I was saying, these guys not only work hard on their jobs they also work hard in the community! Eraserhead is a teacher now! And Iida Tensei has built such a great network of heroes within his area that-” the reader rambles on for a while. They scan the chat to hope the fans have been swayed.

“okaayyyy. Suuuuuureeee. Totally.. your favoriiiiiiteeeeee”

"Sir- say less”

“See? I knew it was a good answer! They'd never give sexual replies.”

“I feel like they could've chosen someone else. An underground hero and a retired hero?”

“Wut? Can you give fun repliesssss. Hellooo.”

“I feel like I'm watching the news”

“We're all adults here and I'm sure the media folks are asleep. C'mon”

The reader looks at the viewer count. 5802↑

“I'll give you fun replies, if you ask fun stuff. And No! Nothing illicit. Please! You are not all adults here." The reader checks the timer on their desktop. Just 10 more minutes to go.

“Okay, last question. Take a minute to think about it. I'll take 1 question. Why don't you all discuss amongst yourselves. Yeah? I'll give you 5 minutes to discuss it! I'll wrap up after it” . Saying this, the reader shifts their attention to their phone to reply to some work emails. Meanwhile, the chat blows up.

“Omllllll.”

“Okay, how about who they're datinggg”

“ How about no dating!!!”

“Maybe their sexuality???”

“Why?? Wanna know if they'd f¢ck you??? Answer is NOOOO”

“Guyssss their childhood crush???”

“im sure they ansrd that b4”

“fuck off!!”

“Okay, listen I think we should carefully ask them about their fav hero"

"no wait, Which hero have they slept with"

“i don't think they answer that”

“Wt bout hero they d8?"

“Sounds okayyy”

“Something about their address?”

“Bruhhhh stalkerrr in the comments”

“lol”

“Just ask the dating question! We'll know their type and everything”

“Yeahh!! Dateddd”

“past hookup”

“what if they never dated anyone??”

“someone they wanna??”

“bruv they should have dated sOMEONE”

“Okay guys, your 5 minutes are up. What's the question?” The reader scan the last few comments.

“Last person I dated? Umm... Sorry to break your hearts but I've never dated anyone. Being a hero is full time job. Buttt someone I want to date? I'll tell you that! Tomorrow! I'll upload a picture of them on my story tomorrow. So, keep your notifications on! Okay guys, thanks for being here, we've raised about -” and so, the reader wraps up their live with giddy fans who will be talking about the live for at least next day.

Sadly, they don't know that the picture you'll upload is just a picture of Mori-senpai from Ouran Highschool Host club.

[aparticularbandit]

So.

Time to talk Stranger Than Fiction and Karen Eiffel and Danganronpa V3 and Tsumugi Shirogane.

Most of you have probably DRV3 spoilers, but you probably DON'T have STF spoilers, so if you haven't seen it, go see the movie and then come back because we're talking end of the movie twist spoilers, mmk?

So let's talk Stranger Than Fiction.

Stranger Than Fiction is about a man - Harold Crick - who suddenly begins to hear a woman's voice narrating his life. This is not so bad, until the woman says that something he did would soon lead to his death.

It's about the literature analysis of tragedy (Harold finds a literature professor to help him find the author writing him).

It's about a woman who is famous for writing ironic, heartbreaking tragedies (one of her protagonists was a teacher who died from a heart attack in a traffic jam on the first day of summer break; that sort of thing) but who cannot figure out how to kill her newest protagonist, Harold Crick.

And this all sounds very heavy, but Harold Crick is played by Will Ferrell and the professor is played by Dustin Hoffman and Karen Eiffel - the author - is played by Emma Thompson and her assistant is played by Queen Latifah and it is honestly a fantastic movie that deals with this stuff in an extremely humorous way. (And not like most Will Ferrell comedies which I refuse to see. This is not that kind of comedy.)

But it does come to a point where Harold Crick finds Karen Eiffel (through the power of being an IRS agent), and she is confronted with the fact that every character she has ever written is a real person. Her assistant gives Harold the manuscript - Karen had just figured out how to end it, how he was going to die, but she hasn't written it yet, just cliffnotes, and she doesn't know if that even counts or not - so that he can read it.

And while he's gone, Karen has this moment of "I killed all those people. All those wonderful people. And I just killed them. At the worst possible time, I killed them."

Because it is one thing to write a book and characters and it is a whole other thing to find out that those people are real and that you have that kind of power over their lives.

Harold reads the book and decides to let the ending stand because the book is beautiful and it's the right ending and he's willing to die - to sacrifice - because that's the proper ending.

And we, the viewer, see the death. See Karen writing the death.

See Karen break down over writing the death. Because she's killing someone. It doesn't matter that she's just writing a book; she's actually killing someone.

And then we cut to Harold being in the hospital with all of the broken bones and everything and actually he's not dead because Karen couldn't do it. She just couldn't do it. And when asked why, she says that Harold was willing to lay down his life for that, and "Isn't that the sort of person you want to keep around?"

But in the end, confronted with the fact of what she'd been unknowingly doing, Karen couldn't do it. Because Harold stopped being a fictional character the moment he became a real person.

And this is kind of the inverse of what we see in DRV3.

For Tsumugi, these people stop being people the moment they become fictional characters (and if she's been doing this for as long as it's implied she's being doing it, that makes sense).

But also - from the interviews we've seen - these people aren't Harold Crick. They're people who want to join to do murder, they're people who want to join because they've lost faith in humanity, they're people who don't understand that the premise of "the murder game is bad" is that "the murder game is bad".

And Tsumugi goes through who knows how many of these auditions every season.

Tsumugi looks at what probably, to her, feels like scum after a while (because she's hearing about all the ways these people want to kill other people probably, all the things they've thought of, and how excited they are to murder) and thinks, I will make you better.

It goes back to 3-2 - what value is a human life?

Kaito says that all lives have equal value, even the bad ones, and he sticks to that. Given the opportunity, he doesn't shoot to kill Kokichi and probably wouldn't. Because despite everything, Kokichi's life is still valuable to him. So is Maki's. So is everyone else's.

But this is only true because Tsumugi wrote a character who believed these things and was these things and had that character overwrite the very real human being who came before him who just wanted to jump in and kill someone. Who clearly thought exactly none of that.

Tsumugi takes lives that she sees have little value and writes them new lives that usually have more value because the cases and the storylines and everything say something. Mean something. To someone.

And yes, you can make the argument that Kiyo sucks, but let me tell you, despite the ending of 3-3, he is somehow still Lucah's favorite, so like. Every character has someone who loves them. Every character has a point and a purpose. And every story builds on those characters to make a point about hope - and usually about a lot of other things besides.

Tsumugi isn't right by any means. That's not what I'm saying.

But Tsumugi does the thing that Harold Crick would have let Karen Eiffel do.

She takes people who are willing to die to make a fantastic story.

And it's such. an interesting reversal and parallel. Because Tsumugi goes into it accepting this is what is going to happen. Karen Eiffel realizes and can't do it anymore.

(But Karen's character submits; Tsumugi's characters don't, even if the people behind them did.)

[gacmediadaily]

Tis the season for Christmas movies and holiday spirit, and Great American Family is celebrating with a Thanksgiving weekend full of romantic premieres. Nestled between My Christmas Hero with Candace Cameron Bure and A Christmas for the Ages with Natasha Bure and Cheryl Ladd (See 11 Photos of Cheryl Ladd Today That Prove The ‘Charlie’s Angel’ Star Doesn’t Age), Danica McKellar and Damon Runyan get into the holiday spirit with A Royal Date for Christmas.

Woman’s World sat down with McKellar in an intimate interview and in addition to previewing her onscreen romance with Runyan, she got personal about why she loves making feel-good movies like A Royal Date for Christmas, how she handles holiday stress and what helped her find herself after The Wonder Years. Plus, she reveals she’ll be live tweeting Saturday’s premiere and offers two stocking stuffer ideas!

Danica McKellar has herself a Royal Date for Christmas

Having starred in ten Christmas movies and countless rom-coms on the Hallmark Channel, Lifetime and now Great American Family, 48-year-old McKellar understands why so many of us need our fix of holiday romance — and family-friendly romance, in general.

“We live in a very challenging time,” McKellar tells Woman’s World in an interview on November 21st. “In some ways, the world seems to have lost its mind. It’s nice to help create this safe haven for people. I love these movies, and I love putting positivity into the world.”

The actress — who is also delighted to be an executive producer, involved in everything from scripts and props to editing and music — adds that films like A Royal Date for Christmas offer more than pure escapism.

“I believe we are modeling aspirational behavior,” McKellar maintains. “A lot of the stuff on television is pretty dark. These movies show struggles and dilemmas, and even frustrations, but everyone is trying to solve them in earnest. You don’t see people just trying to take advantage of each other. Nobody wishes evil or harm on anyone else. Everyone’s just trying to do their best. It’s so refreshing.”

What we can expect from A Royal Date for Christmas

In her newest holiday flick, McKellar plays Bella — a stylist who stumbles into a fairy tale romance without even realizing it. The holiday tale begins when Bella agrees to not only dress a handsome Brit who’s lost his luggage (Runyan), but also be his “official plus one” for the highbrow events he’s attending while in town. After Bella accepts with good humor, she’s stunned to realize her demanding new client “Stefan” is actually Stefan William Francis Brown, the Duke of Tangford!

Like Bella’s coworker, most viewers will immediately recognize the chemistry between these two strangers. Bella and Stefan, however, can’t see past their own histories and drama.

“This movie is about healing each other and how the holidays can bring up stuff that you can either ignore or you can look at and face,” McKellar teases. “I love seeing healing and redemption onscreen. It’s such a gift.”

“I felt like this movie would only work if we found a costar who is emotionally available,” says McKellar. “That’s not so common for the guys in these movies! But when we were talking about casting, I remembered working with Damon [in 2018’s Very, Very, Valentine, alongside General Hospital’s Cameron Mathison]. He was the guy I didn’t end up with and in the breakup scenes, he got emotional. So I said, ‘He’s tall, with this very royal look. And he’s the guy because he can go there, emotionally.’”

McKellar adds that once she and Runyan reunited for A Royal Date for Christmas, “it was easy to connect with him because of how big his heart is, and how he just wears it on his sleeve.”

McKellar’s secret to a merry blended Christmas

While the holidays are about cheer, we can all face challenges during this time — just like the characters in A Royal Date for Christmas. For McKellar, one of those challenges has been balancing her real-life blended family.

“My son’s father and I are divorced, I’m remarried, and we all celebrate Christmas together,” McKellar shares. “It’s going pretty well these days, but there were a few years where it was not. I had to kind of get over myself and say, ‘My ex’s wife is one more person to love Draco.’ If you keep your kids in mind, you can have a nice holiday. It’s a challenge… but it’s worth the effort to keep reminding yourself!”

During the hectic season, McKellar reveals her secret to maintaining her calm is her solitary, late-night gift-wrapping ritual.

“I don’t want to be around anyone else when I’m wrapping presents — and not just because what I’m wrapping might be for them,” she shares. “I line up my Great American Family Christmas movies and wrap my presents. It’s a meditative time for just me. It’s my quiet time.”

Danica McKellar reflects on graduating from The Wonder Years

For some fans, McKellar will always be tied to her The Wonder Years character Winnie, not to mention Fred Savage’s character Kevin — and the beautiful brunette admits that after the show wrapped in 1993, it wasn’t easy to find herself. At the time, she was a teen eyeing a degree in film. Instead, she graduated from UCLA summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, in 1998.

“I’ve always loved solving puzzles and anything that’s a good challenge,” McKellar reveals, and after one college-level math class, she was hooked. “It didn’t come easily but I loved it. And I found this new identity.

“As a child actor, when your show is over, you’re trying to figure out who you are and you think your value is attached to this thing that doesn’t exist anymore,” McKellar continues. “That’s hard for an adult, but for a teenager, it becomes, ‘Am I worth anything?’ Math was my answer to that. It made me feel strong, capable, and glamorous.”

Even as McKellar has continued to build her career in Hollywood, she’s also released 11 math books for kids of all ages – and today, that educational work feels even more important to her. “Because of the pandemic and a lockdown, kids have fallen behind,” she explains. “I like to be part of the movement to help them catch up and get back on track.”

While her books may be the perfect holiday gift for the little ones in your life, the Daily Dose of Dharma DVD that McKellar made with her mother could just work for the adults in your life. “They’re 20-minute yoga and meditation segments, and they’re just so healthy for you,” McKellar says. “They’re great stocking stuffers for women any age!”

[pokeglitchden]

[A VIDEO IS UPLOADED FROM A NEWSCAST DATED 7/9/23

Leading Kanto daytime news network, KNN's logo can be seen briefly before it pulls back to a daytime talk set up. Two reporters are seated behind a desk, Corey, a well dressed looking man in a blazer, and Diane, a platinum blonde woman with natural makeup and a wide smile.

Corey- And now for our top story this morning, we have footage of an exclusive interview with the man suspected to be behind the Glitch Pokemon rampage in Celedon City.

An image of �aver flashes on screen. The image has been cropped so that he is looking away, in an attempt to make him look more sinister.

Corey- Now I've gotta say, Diane, this really might be the most bizarre interview I've ever watched. What do you think?

Diane- You might be right Corey. I've seen a lot of interviews, but this guy seems pretty off the rails. Let's take a look.

The shot cuts to a scene from the interview. Renowned Hoennian Journalist Gabby Newsworthy. �aver's voice can be heard filtering in from a speaker. It sounds as if everything he says has a layer of static to it. As if being filtered by an old tape recorder.

Gabby- Today we have an exclusive interview with Aver, uh, do you have a last name?

�aver- I do not, actually. Also you can call me Zaver for the interview, I don't know if you can pronounce [sharp percussion sound]aver.

Gabby- For those of you out there who Don't know, Zaver's recently been accused of being the perpetrator behind the recent attack on Celadon City by the Glitch Pokémon, uh...

[there's the sound of a barely audible voice from off-screen, likely Ty]

3trainerpokedollarsign. We're here to get his side of the story.

�aver- I don't know, because I was literally in hoenn. I saw it on the news like everyone else and my friend Simon was calling to try to help while I was trying to help him help.

The interview cuts away, centering back on Diane and Corey once again.

Diane- So he can't give a last name. I mean, I don't know if that's a bad thing or not, you can't pronounce his first name anyway.

There is some laughter from both hosts.

Corey- But these are some serious charges Diane. I can't tell if it's brave or crazy. I mean he's claiming he wasn't even in the region when the attack went down, but we know it was his ID on the pokemon. The question is, what is going to make a story like that stick for him? What about this is going to clear his name?

Diane- Well Corey, we've got more clips, and I think the answer to those questions might be a shock to both you AND our viewers. Take a listen.

The cut returns to Gabby and �aver, much later in the interview.

Gabby- What about this Dr. Grant Emmerson? The one who appeared on the news. According to my research, which was all done perfectly legally by the way, there's not really evidence of him working for Silph beyond their PR team.

�aver- That is understandable because I seriously doubt Silph would want to be attached to Team Enigma in any way. I'll be honest, I think Team Enigma went rogue from them but I am starting to think Silph themselves didn't want this stuff to be happening.

Plus. He specifically runs the Team Enigma blog. I can say for certain I don't think anyone is safe from Team Enigma right now, actually.

Gabby- I've seen them around Rotomblr. They seem very opposed to Glitch Pokémon and Glitch City in general. They say they want to keep people safe.

�aver- So the literal first interaction glitch city had with team enigma is I spotted their base while remapping, stopped by to say hi, and they killed one of my pokemon and nearly killed me. I think that tells you a lot about how anti-glitch city they are...

Not to mention, they are not opposed to mass destruction to make whatever point they want to try to make. They've actually pulled a stunt similar to what happened in Kanto over in Glitch City. Destroyed the whole town...

Gabby- Skies above

�aver- this is a warning, don't trust team enig--

The interview cuts back to Diane and Corey once again. This time both are looking concerned.

Diane- Well that is all the footage we were able to see, unfortunately it looks like they lost connection and weren't able to finish their talk. What do you think about all that Corey.

Corey- Well Diane, I think he said it himself. That was a chilling way to end an interview. And to be honest, I didn't hear a lot of explaining going on there. It sounded like this was more of a Team Enigma hit piece. Those guys better watch out. It sounds like there might be a Three Trainer Poke Dollar coming to Saffron City pretty soon.

Diane- I think he said some pretty interesting things there Corey. Pointing out that a town from his region was attacked in a similar way. Is this a possible motive for revenge. Just what else is this "Zaver" not telling us about himself and about the region of Glitch City.

Corey- Well, Diane, Glitch City is still a big mystery to all of us. But the more we learn about it the more it seems like they've got a chip on their shoulder. If it wasn't this guy it's just as likely they're hiding someone else who does want to get back at our region. And unfortunately it sounds like the local government is willing to protect him for as long as possible. So far no law enforcement has been able to apprehend this suspected terrorist who is still at large. The question is, what's next?

Diane- I can't tell you that, Corey. But I do know we'll be keeping on top of this story as more unfolds. This has been KNN news, channel 8, Kanto. Back to you, Ari!

END OF BROADCAST]

So this isn't looking all that great. This was broadcasting in Kanto apparently just this morning.

We might need to be ready to make statements to the police if it's necessary. I'm really hoping not. I was hoping to have all of this solved sooner.

I don't think we should be doing any more public interviews for the time being...

-Simon

[yesthatssadirichardslove]

'Manhunt,' about hunt for John Wilkes Booth, may make you wish you paid attention in history class

NEW YORK

A new series transforms the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln into a true crime thriller that goes deeper into the story than most textbooks.

Most who studied Lincoln in school learn he was assassinated by a man named John Wilkes Booth. Lincoln was watching a play with his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, at Ford's Theatre when Booth came from behind and shot him.

What isn't as widely remembered is that Booth killed the president just five days after the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee effectively ended the Civil War. It was a pre-planned, coordinated attack on the president, Vice President Andrew Johnson and the Secretary of State. Only Booth was successful.

A Confederate sympathizer, Booth relied on a network of supporters to help him hide. Edwin Stanton, the Secretary of War, led the search by the Army to track Lincoln's killer down. He was found 12 days later hiding in a barn where he was shot and killed.

“ Manhunt," debuting Friday on Apple TV+, dramatizes the hunt for Booth and the trial that followed. It’s based on the book “Manhunt: The 12-Day Chance for Lincoln’s Killer” by James L. Swanson. Tobias Menzies stars as Stanton, who also helped convict Booth's conspirators.

“Most no one knows the details of this story unless they’ve done a Ph.D or it’s a special interest of theirs,” said creator- showrunner Monica Beletsky in a recent interview.

Bringing Stanton to life is exciting, said Menzies, because he had a close, respected relationship with Lincoln.

“A big part of Stanton’s journey is both a political loss and also a personal loss. He loses a friend. ... I studied very little American history, and I certainly didn’t do this period of history,” said Menzies. “As an actor, I’ve done quite a lot of period stuff and I find it enjoyable to get the chance to find out about a new part of these stories and this is a really good example of that.

"Truth is stranger than fiction.”

Anthony Boyle plays Booth and his awareness of the man began with an episode of “The Simpsons” where Bart portrayed him in a school play. He knew his research needed to dig deeper to understand Booth's psyche and read letters he had written between the ages of 15 until his death at 26. Boyle describes them as a “descent into madness.”

Beletsky hopes “Manhunt” underscores how Lincoln's killing was especially shocking at the time.

“That kind of murder was so uncommon,” she said. “Lincoln famously left the White House door unlocked during the Civil War, even though he had piles of death threats. It wasn’t even imagined that kind of crime could happen in our culture. My costume designer told me that Booth, wearing all black that night, is the origin of villains wearing all black in our storytelling.”

There was a boldness and conceit to the way Booth decided to kill Lincoln so publicly in front of an audience that fit his desire for attention.

“The theater was absolutely jammed,” said Menzies, a British actor who's starred in “The Crown" and “Outlander.” “And then to run out and disappear into the night and then take 12 days to find this man, you couldn't make it up.”

Booth was an actor in a family of actors, but lived in the shadow of his older brother Edwin, who was well-respected for his talent. “I'm gonna be the most famous man in the whole world,” Booth says on the show, prior to the assassination. While on the run, he reads newspaper articles about himself and loves the attention.

“It was like, Leonardo DiCaprio’s brother killed the president," said Hamish Linklater, who plays Lincoln. "I mean, (Edwin) was the biggest celebrity of his time," he said.

“This was before the internet and before television, this was word of mouth," added Boyle. "People were hearing about it (asking), ”John Wilkes Booth, the actor, killed the President? Was this some sort of farce?”

Besides telling Stanton's story, Beletsky introduces viewers to Mary Simms, a slave belonging to a physician named Dr. Samuel Mudd, (played by Matt Walsh), who treated Booth while he was on the run. She was freed by the Emancipation Proclamation. The series depicts Simms — played by Lovie Simone— as interacting with Booth when he shows up at Mudd's house to hide, but in reality, she never met him.

Simms went on to testify in the trial of Booth's conspirators — which included Mudd — and confirmed his allegiance to the Confederacy. Because there is not a lot of information available on Simms, she was written as a composite of a number of people who helped to convict Booth's co-conspirators.

“It was a real opportunity to bring some of these heroes to light, like Stanton and Simms, and also to sort of set the record straight in some ways of what happened in our past and how that still continues to affect us," said Beletsky.

“It feels like a good time to be telling this story. You know, there is a big election coming up in November. Our story is partly a story about the fragility of democracy to some extent," Menzies said. “I think that’s as true now as it was then. It has a relevance and a resonance which feels kind of rich to be telling now.”

[aksually2008]

aksel's guide to relaxing media

A lot of people have asked me to compile a list of my go-to depressing/dooming media, but I feel it would be irresponsible to give you that without an antidote.

Maybe this will be of help to you on an anxious night and instead of smoking a cigarette you'll turn to this or maybe its a nice cozy afternoon and you need something to maintain that feeling.. either way here's stuff that I consume on those days:

Film/TV

Joe Pera Talks You to Sleep

This is something I have recommended to most of my friends at this point and if you ever give me the opportunity I'll probably talk your ear off about this man. I have a very special affinity towards this video, as it randomly found me on a particularly stressful quarantine night and boy am I glad it did.

I'm not gonna talk about it too much further, but if you're feeling a little bit lost or anxious, even after my 250 watches of this, I end up feeling a little bit better. If you like it make sure to check out his show, Joe Pera Talks With You on hbomax as it's one of my favourite shows ever!! The episodes are short and easy to digest :)

How to With John Wilson

It's hard for me to exactly describe this show, it's just one of those things you have to see for yourself to fully understand the appeal of it. For the most part, this show uses street footage of New York City and interviews with average everyday New Yorkers to convey some kind of narrative, usually disguised as a tutorial(hence the "how to"). There's a lot of absurdity, laughter and sometimes it plays with your emotions a bit, but sometimes it's nice to just unwind and learn about the insane industry of scaffolding in NYC.

Come and Visit Us Again

Okay, so this is probably one of the most niche things here.. Considering that it has 205 views as of me writing this and it's in estonian with no captions available.(Maybe someday I'll translate it)

As far as I can tell, it is a documentary short made by Liis Nimik, who at the time was a film school student. It follows the day-to-day of a village grocery store cashier and her interactions with the people who visit her store everyday.

Moms, dads, scary little kids and village bums.. It has it all and serves as this kind of a sweet time capsule of one particular week in this one Estonian village. I will admit this is probably extra comforting for me as I grew up near a village similar to this that also had a store just like this one. In a small village, the people who work at the local grocery store really become apart of your everyday life and I loved to see it captured like this.

I feel like even if you don't understand Estonian, it's nice background noise.

Malcom in the Middle

Need I say more?

Youtube

If you know me, you know I'm a fiend for comforting youtube personalities. Here are some of my favorites:

Steve Wallis

Even if you aren't particularly interested in camping, you'll still probably enjoy these videos. Steve is probably one of the sweetest dudes I've found on YouTube and he really knows how to keep a conversation. All in all, just nice to throw on if you just wanna disconnect for 30 minutes

Shirley Curry

I've loved Shirley's stuff for years now. She calls her viewers her grandkids and posts vlogs & let's plays. I think that covers the gist of it.

Featureman a.k.a. Tom Willett

This is an older gentleman, who for the most part shows you different meals that he makes & tells you stories about his time as an actor in the 1980s. Every video feels like you're visiting your grandpa.

GIFGAS

I found them quite recently, but they're quickly turning into my favourite Youtube channel. Videos of trainhopping, which are so well shot and the music choices are soooooo gooooood. Every travel vlog should have a mandatory requirement of at least (1) shoegaze song.

Roger Hance

Found this guy randomly on my recommended and him only having 4k subs feels like a crime. He's a bird photographer, who vlogs his outings and talks about all the little birds he sees. super cute.

Music

Below are a couple of playlists and tracks I recommend for this occasion:

Mixture of ambient tracks and just relaxing instrumentals. There's no vocals. During the summer, I would always listen to this if I was sitting in a park or doodling.

This is just some of my favourite ambient tracks. If you've never really listened to ambient music before, check this out I guarantee you'll like it.

I have fallen asleep to this so many times that sometimes i just constantly hear it in the back of my head. Maybe thats not a comforting thought but it helps me sleep so that's a price I am willing to pay.

That's about it though.. I didn't include everything, because this is already pretty long and I have to keep some things secret, but I hope you find use in some of this. bye

[avi17]

This started off as a reblog of @hellfiredm 's post about the Duffer bros shitty interview [here], but I thought it got too long for a reblog so-

My only disagreement with OP is that I don't think Eddie didn't want to graduate- it sounds like he very much wants to, both talking at school and mentioning in the RV that he swore to make something of himself and not to turn out like his dad (who we can guess from context is a criminal, my guess is that he's in prison). Also the fact that he's repeating senior year for a THIRD time- he's already got some income from dealing and I'm sure whatever Wayne does at the plant doesn't require a high school diploma. He could just drop out, especially after the second fail, but he didn't, he wants it.

Might be me projecting but he has MAJOR adhd energy to me- partly just in his mannerisms and how he talks, but also because of the exact things you've mentioned. He is smart, but only in the things he can actually focus on. He can devour thousands of pages of books, can learn complicated music by ear in a short time, can plot out dnd campaigns and make maps and do at least enough on the fly math to run a game (if you've never played, dnd involves a lot more math than you might expect 😂). But then he's bad enough in classes about similar things- math, literature, history- to be unable to even scrape a passing grade? That's exactly adhd, where you are smart but you hyperfixate on the things that interest you and absolutely can't focus on the stuff that doesn't. And he lives in a trailer park 40 years ago, nobody is taking him in to get this diagnosed or getting him on meds. They just assume he's stupid or doesn't care. But nobody is gonna voluntarily do that shit THREE times if they don't care. He probably doesn't even understand why he can't just fucking get it together in class. Underneath all the bitching about conformity and shit, he probably feels like he's stupid and that breaks my heart. I feel like he absolutely could have graduated with the help of someone who understood what was going on and why he was struggling, and I really love the fics where that actually happens.

But yeah, those are remarkably shitty things to say about a character who more viewers have seen themselves in than maybe any other on the show. I feel like the Duffers were Mike once- they think they've been outsiders because they had nerdy interests, and maybe they were to a degree, but that's made them think they understand what it's like to be a true outsider and they don't. They've been Mike, but they've never been Will or Lucas or Robin or Eddie. That's why they've got these views that are more conservative and shitty than you'd expect, that's why this show does great with making lots of nostalgic nerdy references but then handles things like race and queerness and neurodivergency so badly.

And yeah, after Barb's "chemical toxin" and the "mall fire" and all the other craziness, you can't convince me that they couldn't have come up with a cover for this. Especially with Hopper back, and especially since the town is fucking split in half by a giant interdimensional hell crater that Eddie obviously didn't cause (even if some people thought he did with some kind of Satanic magic, that's not something you can even remotely prove in court.) He might still be guilty in the eyes of too many residents of Hawkins to stay there safely, but if he was cleared legally he could leave and have a life somewhere else. In no way was him having absolutely no future inevitable.

I'm just. They conceived him as a "tragic figure" but it's not a tragedy that he gave his life if he had no future. It's not a tragedy that he gave his life if his life didn't have worth. Fucking hell.

Let's be real, they conceived him as a sacrificial lamb for a couple minutes of tearjerking like they do every season and he totally got away from them and now they're in a dilemma because they absolutely had no plans to bring him back but they didn't realize he would be THIS loved. I think it would fuck up their preconceived story for s5 too much to have him just come back, but I am hoping for at least some cameos in one form or another. Though honestly, if they think this poorly of him, maybe they should just let him rest. :/

[mcgnussen]

Hi I have a stupid question, and I hope you can help me. So I see a lot of hate for Haas, Guenther and Gene on social media, but I don't really understand why. Sure there have been some issues in the team with Mick, bit I haven't seen anything out of line or malicious.

I've mostly seen Mick fans wish destruction on Haas and their team principal, but no real reason as to why. But my understanding is also that there is a lot of bad press from sky Germany on Haas, to the point of spreading false information to their viewers on the treatment of Mick and Kevin at Haas, eg. The recent qualifying were they said that Kevin godt slick tires before Mick, so it had to be debunked by Twitter.

Maybe I'm just reaching, but I just don't understand the need to harass a team that essentially gave Mick his first seasons at f1 and might even continue to do so.

thank you for your question! i was debating whether to make a post about it, but i really like your question, so i will use this to make the post. below is my full answer to this. i will tag mick since it's relevant but be advised, it might not be the most pleasant reading for hardcore mick fans.

long story short: haas is a no bullshit team, guenther is a very warm but also brutally honest man who expects the best from you. he has a temper. but this has been the case since 2016 with every driver the team has had. if you mess up, he will tell you. if you do a good job, he will also tell you. i know kevin appreciates this because as he says "you know where you have him", which is a stark contrast to other team principals who will tell you one thing only to suddenly stab you in the back.

i think some mick fans misunderstand guenther. because he is so honest, sometimes to a fault, they believe other teams would not treat mick the same. i can assure you other teams would likely do something even worse, which would be that they would praise mick and then drop him without much warning. personally, i would like to know where i can improve and be quite clear about my chances to keep my seat.

one of the biggest reasons kevin accepted the haas seat was because of guenther. they work well together and they understand each other. kevin has said multiple times that guenther cares a lot about all the employees and that he knows everything about everyone but in a good way. he will talk the same way to you, no matter if you are part of the cleaning staff, an engineer or a driver. guenther is not a horrible person, he is not mean. he is honest with a temper. he can say some brutal stuff in the heat of the moment, but he will always apologise for it afterwards.

i personally believe haas is no place for rookies - and i think that's alright. mick and m*zepin were their first rookies, and i think they will be their last. guenther wants people to perform immediately. which is totally fine, but not something that can be expected of rookies.

i will also say haas has been getting some unnecessary flack from mick stans. every time he does not do well, they blame it on strategy. sometimes mick doesn't get the job done, and other times the car just does not have the pace, many times it's also down to bad luck. but i understand why it can be easier to just blame the team instead of the circumstances.

haas is a small team, they have always struggled a little with strategy, it happens to both of their drivers. they make mistakes, it's annoying and frustrating, but that comes with being a small team. mick has mainly been in prema before this, a large team in the respective feeder series, so i think his fans have gotten quite a shock seeing the reality of what it is like being a driver for a small team in f1.

during the start of summer i believe, sky germany basically did an interview with guenther where they forced him to comment on mick's performance despite him not wanting to. they really went over the line in that interview and guenther got angry and then finally said his opinion about mick. this was earlier on in the year where mick was not good, so of course, he could not say positive things. he did not say anything horrible, just that they were not happy with mick crashing that much, and then all the mick stans ran with that and made it seem like guenther bullied mick. since then, it's just been non-stop both from the stans and guenther & gene. sky germany opened a can of worms that day, which probably has not been in mick's favour.

should guenther and gene have said some of the things they did publicly? probably not. have the media and fans been absolutely hounding them about mick at any given opportunity? yes. were the things guenther & gene said false? no. mick has cost the team a lot of money due to crashing, money haas cannot afford to spend on repairs when they needed to develop the car. mick's crashes caused a bottleneck to happen at the factory which delayed their upgrades, so they have had very real consequences. mick has cost haas close to 5 million dollars by crashing all on his own, kevin has cost them close to 400k. there is a huge difference there. mick also topped the sheet of most expensive damage done last year, so it's not a one-off, which is what seems to concern haas the most.

and i know, haas has cost him some points, but haas has also cost kevin plenty of points and he has still managed to get points in 9 races compared to mick getting points in 2 races. and kevin has even suffered more mechanical dnfs than mick during the season. and he would maybe have scored points at interlagos, but unfortunately, daniel ruined all chances of that.

some mick stans went way too far on social media, they even went so far that the admin several times put them in their place. like haas has not been allowed to make a single post about kevin without comments like the one you see below. haas is much more than mick schumacher. they were a team before him - and they will be a team after him. no driver is bigger than the team. mick stans have really pushed the narrative that haas never praise him, which is just not true, as can easily be proved by reading the race reports they do after the races. guenther even highlighted mick's great performance in the sprint despite the interviewer only asking about kevin.

and then there have been all the posts about them favouring kevin, which has just been such bullshit. as you pointed out, they even lied about kevin getting pulled in first to get slicks on during the qualification. haas favours the driver most likely to get points. there have been plenty of times when mick has been called in to pit first and where it has benefitted him. and it has been fair because he was ahead at the time, one of the times it even cost kevin points, but he did not complain about it even once. the mick stans have criticised haas for playing it too safe, for being too risky, for splitting the strategy etc. despite all these things being normal in a team. i think the best example of this was austin. kevin drove almost 40 laps on tyres that were supposed to last 20 laps, he was the only one of the twenty drivers to do this. it was an insane strategy that should not have worked. mick was on the strategy with the most probability of working. and yet some mick stans absolutely tore haas to shreds over it, saying they favoured kevin, but if kevin's plan had failed (yes, he was the one who came up with it) then mick fans would have been pleased. but this is the thing, no one can predict everything in formula 1. haas as a team has been so fucking unlucky, it's actually been almost comical, and of course, this has also affected kevin and mick. it's a shame but it's not the fault of haas that they have been screwed by a safety car 5 times this season, it's out of their hands. as i said, haas has made mistakes, but both drivers have suffered because of it.

and finally, no driver is owed anything by f1 teams. this sport is brutal. if you want proof of that, go read up on kevin's time in mclaren. believe me, it will show you just how merciless f1 is. but in the end, it is the team who pays them wages, the team who gives them a rare opportunity in f1, and the team who suffers from the mistakes they make. we can have opinions about the drivers, but we cannot say haas owe a driver a seat. they are allowed to choose whoever they want to fill their seats. do i think mick is a good driver? yes, i do. he has really improved throughout the season and i believe he will probably find his way back into f1 at some point. but he is not the right fit for haas and i'm pretty sure they will announce that he will be replaced by hulkenberg. and i am sad as i will miss kevin and mick being buddies. i doubt he will have as much fun with nico, but i will not miss all the undeserved hate towards haas and kevin.

[matan4il]

Let me preface this. I'm a life long shipper but I always stay away from "canon straight" characters because I saw what happened with OUAT and Supergirl. Like I reconize the signs you know. So I just wanted to scream into the void about these latest interviews (who by the way I dont believe) but I'm insulted by them. And heres why...

Of course I silently shipped Eddie and Buck because how could you not. But I was like they arent gonna go there dont waste your time on tumblr. And honestly when I would watch the show every freaking nod they gave I would roll my eyes. I even told my husband so many times it's rediculous these writers are baiting the shippers in ways I haven't seen before. It's mean. I didnt even come here till after Eddie dumped Ana and Buck and Taylor are so clearly a dumpster fire because I literally was like wait there is a chance.

So for them now to come out and pretend they haven't created this is gaslighting in the highest form. They made conscious decisions at every turn to promote them while simultaneously also not giving them female LIs.

Like 2 seasons ago that family dinner scene is something I would have been like awww at. 2 best bros having dinner with one of their girls. I can acknowledge bro besties without shipping, see Scrubs and TWD. But you did that dinner now, in an epsiode where you make Buck a cheater. Now I actually sympathize with Taylor.

Again I don't put a lot of stock into what they said I just find it highly insulting and gaslighting to the extreme that they would be so flippant to the shippers they fed for 4 seasons.

Hi Nonnie! Thank you for the ask!

TBH, I always believed they knew what they were doing since the moment they chose to make Eddie’s introduction all about Buck, and more than that, they made it all about Buck being overwhelmed by how fantastic (even physically) Eddie is (which Tim referred to in a recent interview as one of the reasons why Buddie has shippers). But let’s for the sake of argument say they didn’t intend to set up a subtextual slow burn and only later on realized that’s how some viewers saw it. In 210, Tim said the elf lady scene was a nod at Buddie fans. That means by that point, they were aware of the shipping. If it had been an “accidental” creation of shipping fodder, they could have change course at this point and make Buddie more like Chim and Eli. Instead, they chose to just keep making their bond deeper and more intense, intimate and meaningful. So yeah, I’m not buying that they aren’t aware of the romantic undertones between Buddie. But then, I never really believe TV showrunners. I’ve been burned one too many times, so I know what they say is more like what they think they need to say. But Buddie has already given me a lot of joy, shipping them and getting what we have so far, and I also believe the showrunners can choose bravery and making 911 into an actual TV historical moment by allowing Buddie to go canon. Even if they’re not there right now, they can get there before the show ends its run. So I’m hopeful that they will! And if they do, I really don’t expect them to talk about it in interviews ahead of time, you know?

Thank you again, I hope you found my reply helpful and that you’re having a great day! xoxox

(HEY, if it takes me a moment to reply to an ask, it's 'coz I'm juggling work overload and medical stuff. If I got it, I will reply to it! You can always check my ask tag. Thank you for understanding! xoxox)

[charlie-rulerofhell]

For they know exactly what they do

Today there was a pretty long article published in the German newspaper FAZ, written by Julia Schaaf. Since there were quite a few interesting topics raised in it and Måneskin talked about some new aspects (or in more detail), I translated the whole thing (it might also have helped me to procrastinate).

Full interview in English under the cut.

For they know exactly what they do

June 22, 2021

Four young rock musicians from Rome are today's hottest band. Måneskin are enchanting Europe. Why? We met them for an interview.

Every romance needs its founding myth, an anecdote from the beginning, something you can tell later in more difficult times for self-assurance.

In the case of the band Måneskin, who first had Italy and now half of Europe wrapped around their fingers, and who are now trying to conquer the rest of the world with their rock music, there is the story of the shoe box. Rome, around five years ago: Four teenagers who are meeting every day after school in their rehearsal room to make music together, and sometimes they play their songs on the Via del Corso in the city centre in front of a changing audience. One day they want to record their own stuff. They find a studio that they can actually afford and as they go there they bring a shoe box, with the name of the band written on it, 'moonshine' in Danish, the bassist's mother is Danish. In the box: around seven kilogram of coins. The things you get from playing music on the streets. Everyone searching through Instagram for photos from that time can find four hippies with children's faces, three boys in batik, the girl is wearing a straw hat.

As they have to pay [for the recording], frontman Damiano David, 22, says that there was this guy, Angelo, and his bandmate Victoria De Angelis, 21, is interrupting: “No, Andrea, not Angelo”, and all of them have to laugh because a rigid studio manager with the Italian name 'angel' would be even funnier for a founding myth. David continues his story: “The guy was completely dumbfounded. 'We can't do that.' We went: 'Sure we can, that's worth the same even if it's just 20 cent coins, it's still 300 euros.” Thomas Raggi, 20, the guitarist of the band, is gasping for air as he laughs, while drummer Ethan Torchio, 20, is smiling dreamily. David finishes: “And then we snuck off before he was able to count it.” [the German text says 'verdrücken' here which is just a colloquial way of saying 'we left', but it entails some sort of a dramatic exit, so yeah, let your thoughts get creative how they left exactly :D].

Four young musicians on the verge of global fame are sitting on a white interview sofa in Berlin, completely styled, babbling across each other like overeager teenagers.

Ever since the Roman band first won the music festival Sanremo and then also the Eurovision Song Contest, carried by the enthusiasm of European viewers, you could say Måneskin has become a phenomenon. “Rock 'n' Roll never dies!”, Damiano David yelled fueled by the adrenaline of winning, and the insinuation that circulated on social media of the singer snorting during the counting of votes in front of a live camera – including their strict denial followed by a negative drug test result – might have given an additional boost to their public interest, their exploding album, ticket and merch sales, and their outstanding success on Spotify.

“We think it's a shit prejudice against rock music that there always have to be drugs involved. We fully threw ourselves into our participation with the utmost professionalism. We give everything for the music. So of course we don't want people to think that we can only do that because we take drugs.” – Victoria De Angelis

Prior to Eurovision, Måneskin was more of an insider's tip outside of Italy. Handmade rock music, not creating something entirely new but paying homage to the good old times with classic guitar riffs and cracking drum beats, being a lot of fun but also quite fragile and vulnerable at times and, first and foremost, conveying a captivating energy. Finally, on the stage of Rotterdam, live after so many months of isolation and renunciation, this wave of energy spilled straight over into European living rooms. It seemed easy to (mistakenly) interpret the winning song “Zitti e buoni” (Shut up and behave) as a declaration of frustration of our youth in times of a pandemic. In fact, singer Damiano David is singing about the favourite topic of the band: the unrelenting need to, against all odds, be yourself, despite or perhaps because you are different. The message fits their provocative sex appeal, which the band uses to demonstrate their independence of gender norms at any given time. But the core essence of rock music has always been the promise of unlimited freedom.

Thus at the first moment, the meeting with Måneskin is kind of startling. It's Wednesday, we are in the top floor of the new Sony head quarters in Berlin. The four Italians have just started their two-week long promotion tour through Europe. In the afternoon there will be a live concert in a queer club [the SchwuZ, but that's not mentioned here] in Neukölln, which will be streamed via TikTok. Around one million viewers will watch the show, some of them even from Brazil, so people at Sony are pretty excited [for Måneskin to come here]. But at first, these stunningly gorgeous creatures [yes, that's the exact wording :D] are standing surrounded by an entourage of people – their management, PR team, a stylist, a photographer, people who can hold a smartphone or a cigarette if needed [this paragraph is worded a little weirdly, especially taking into account that basically their whole team / 'entourage' is just friends of them, but it seems like the journalist didn't know that or maybe they just wanted to describe their first impression]. They seem like fictional / artificial characters out of a Hollywood movie. Transparent frill blouses with blazers and flared leather trousers, even the platform boots, everything brand-new, the makeup makes their faces look like a glossy magazine cover even in person. The smokey eyes of De Angelis and Raggi make them look smug and bored. Later, on the pictures it will probably look cool.

So of course your first impression might be: This band is under contract to industry giant Sony ever since their success on an Italian casting show [X Factor] in Winter 2017. The music industry must have its hand in the game when a band is photographed half-naked by Oliviero Toscani and styled by Etro. Also, one does not simply rent a villa with a pool in Rome to produce new music there, isolated from the rest of the world. And who else went to London for two whole months, shortly before the winter lockdown, just for inspiration? After the TikTok concert in Berlin – De Angelis and David are now wearing fishnet shirts that sparkle with every move, their bare nipples covered with an X of black tape – the band is posing with a few influencers. In the world of social media you would call that 'producing content'. But what does that mean for a band who are preaching their hosanna of authenticity? How authentic is Måneskin? And is their pointedly casual approach to sexuality and gender cliches in today's pop-cultural spirit more than a marketing strategy?

We're in the interview, the recording device is running for not even five minutes, when Victoria De Angelis says: “Actually, we just try to be ourselves and do what we really want to do.” And really: The more you listen to those four how they speak about the early days of the band in their slurred Roman dialect, about the shoe box and their own experiences with being different, but most importantly about their shared obsession [with music], the more you realise that [De Angelis] is  very serious. Ethan Torchio, who got his first drum kit at the age of six or seven from his father because he was beating everything he could reach, says: “For me, music is like food. I cannot live without it.” The bassist next to him laughs at his pathos. Singer Damiano David applauds the otherwise more reserved friend for his truthfulness [it says 'klarer Punkt', meaning 'for the point he makes', but it makes it seem like Damiano is agreeing with Ethan here, although it doesn't indicate whether he agrees that yes, music is everything for Ethan or that he understands and feels the same].

De Angelis and guitarist Raggi already knew each other from middle school and they were the ones who tried to form a band at the age of only 13, a band that actually took music seriously.

De Angelis: “It's just difficult at that age to find other people who really put everything into music and who truly commit themselves and are willing to invest a lot of their time.”

Raggi: “We set strict rules and scheduled fixed times for the rehearsals, for every day.”

David: “Fever, stomach ache, there was no excuse. Even if you were feeling sick in the rehearsal room. At least you were in the rehearsal room.”

The way the four of them talk across each other, completing each other's sentences, taking turns in talking and sometimes joking about each other, seems intimate and playful. Singer David remembers how at first bassist [De Angelis] was merciless towards him when it came to her first metal band project, as she told him that he wasn't committed enough [to the music]: “Back then I was still playing Basketball. I was one of the people that Vic absolutely didn't want [in her band].” Drummer Torchio was later discovered through Facebook, even though there had already been a drummer, a close friend, but he was not good enough. It seems as if even back then music was everything for them. Even if it meant that only Raggi managed to graduate.

And why rock, why rock music of all things? Because it's great, the four of them say in unison. David adds: “Actually, it's a genre that allows you to do everything you want to do.”

When they played on the street, they were laughed at by their classmates. But not only there. De Angelis explains that she never wanted to be a typical girl: “I was always deterred by those stupid boxes that people put you in, and that are just restricting and constraining you, because something is only regarded as male or female. I always rejected that. Instead, I just wanted to do the things I enjoyed doing, I went skating and played football.” Torchio says: “Friends who are not friends anymore were already telling me at the age of ten that those“ – he grabs his long, silky black hair – “were wrong. Because I'm a boy and boys are meant to have short hair, long hair is only for girls. I was bullied a lot for that.”

“Compared to the past, people in our age became much more open-minded. It gets better.” – Thomas Raggi

Frontman David on the other hand, for whom eye shadow, jingling earrings and nail polish as well as his bare torso with the tattoos have become trademarks by now, says: “I was actually more of the average boy.” De Angelis convinced him to try out some eyeliner, which he describes as a spiritual awakening: “I liked myself much more [with makeup]. I saw myself more as myself. As if it had been a suppressed desire of mine.” On a trip to Copenhagen with the others, when he realised that it really didn't matter what people were thinking about him, he got his first fake fur [coat? the article doesn't specify that] in a second-hand shop and let his clothing style be guided by his own love to experiment: “I realised that my whole life I was just going at half speed.” When it comes to diversity all four of them are becoming almost missionary.

At the same time, their success is not only opening doors for them. Back home in Rome they are barely able to go out on the street due to all the paparazzi. “[You need a] hoodie and huge sunglasses”, David says, “the mask is quite helpful, too.” And still, none of them is complaining, and Torchio explains why: “Even if those experiences right now may have sides that are not so pleasant, we still know that for us a dream is coming true. We experience something that we always had in our minds, so we are willing to face every consequence that this entails.”

So is the band facing difficult times, is Måneskin going to change with all the success? Again, all of them answer at the same time.

David: “I'm not worried about that.”

Raggi: “No way!”

De Angelis: “On the contrary. Everything that happened to us happened because we are who we are, so we want to continue the exact same way and stay ourselves.”

Just a few hours later, they are at the stage in Neukölln, bouncing around like pinballs, hammering at their instruments, flirting with each other. “We are out of our minds, but different from the others”, David sings their winning hymn against conformism, and: “The people talk, unfortunately they talk.” Here on stage, the four paradise birds [a German word describing someone with a flamboyant personality] with their half-nude-glittering outfits are radiating an incredible energy with the utmost sincerity, and you begin to wish there was a live audience instead of the TikTok cameras, absorbing and spreading this energy. Måneskin. A cry for a life after the pandemic, a cry for freedom and a better world.

“We do what we wished for all our lives.” – Ethan Torchio

[book-o-scams]

Ed, Edd n Eddy Series Bible (1996) -Analysis-

You can all finally read/download Ed, Edd n Eddy's official Series Bible right here! Thanks again to Chuckletons for sharing this with me and to Joey/Kongiscool0518 for sharing it in the first place, the Holy Grail of lost Ed, Edd n Eddy trivia!

One of the first posts I made for this blog was the Series Bible page. It was a composite of every source we had ever seen reference the series bible so far-- storyboarders in interviews, CN's old character guides, and the biggest source, an old CN UK posting about the show. Well, I figure now that we have the official source, I better update the old page (so everyone knows it's out of date), and make this new Series Bible post using the official source! Not much new information, but I was intrigued to finally learn the true phrasings of some things we had only heard paraphrased, as well as at least one detail from the movie that I couldn't believe came up this early in conception...

Unfortunately, Tumblr has apparently updated its post system to only let me add 10 images? Gonna try and only use images for what I need since you can read the actual document above, I guess I'll transcribe it too for easier reference and so we don't ever lose some archive of this.

Quickly, let's review what a series bible is:

A series bible is how creators pitch shows to networks. They can be called “pitch bibles” as well. Bibles do not usually get posted publicly, because they are initially under a strict Non-Disclosure Agreement by the network; also the creator may simply not wish to share it because it reflects the earliest stages of development.

The pitch materials typically include early concepts for characters, locations and episodes. Sometimes it exposes secrets, in this case, Ed and Eddy’s home lives, and sometimes the stuff in it is completely abandoned because it’s so early in production, in this case, casual references to school and adults.

Alright, everybody, it's time to gather 'round and read the Ed, Edd n Eddy Bible!

THE YEAR IS 1996.

YOUR NAME IS LINDA SIMENSKY. YOU WORK AT CARTOON NETWORK. A FRIEND OF YOURS, DANNY ANTONUCCI, IS WRAPPING UP A SHOW ON MTV. YOU GET THIS FAX.

Linda Simensky immediately fell in love with this concept because as a child, she was best friends with 2 other Lindas for seemingly no reason other than the shared name.

I love how Danny decided last second to pencil in the correct names over each Ed, since they're arranged out of title-order.

"They're friends because they have the same name."

-the Logline for the series.

Fun fact: one storyboard artist for the movie observed that the movie is essentially all about challenging the series' original notion that the Eds are friends ONLY because of their name.

"A Danny Antonucci Cartuna"

-the label Danny used to use under announcements of new productions.

PAGE 1:

Ed, Edd n Eddy

They're best friends because they have the same name.

A gag laden, beat generated CARTOON bumper car ride of 3 misfit youths on a cul-de-sac in the suburbs of America.

Through summer vacation, part-time jobs, or just hang'n out at the corner mail box, they want to belong....but CAN'T.

From home chores, helping neighbors or eating jaw breakers, they want to fit in...but CAN'T.

Ed is into "B" monster movies, model kits and is quick to break out into rashes.

Lots of luck...

Edd is into chemistry, biology and prone to crushes.

Later...

Eddy is into pranks, is stylish and flaunts himself to the world.

Ya Right...

Ed, Edd n Eddy is a show about confusion and contradiction, that awkward part of youth, pimples, big feet, oily hair and... girls???.

Puberty is unforgiving.

I was fascinated by the lack of art on this page, it makes the pitch feel very focused. AKA logo in the corner, the title logo again up top, then the logline appears again below.

I really love the breakdown of Danny's vision of the show. "Gag-laden, beat-generated, CARTOON bumper ride." Very accurate, and I think "beat-generated" is the phrase that interests me the most. I typically think of "animation beats" as sort of a give-in-- technically all things fit a rhythm, so all stories are essentially just a montage of beats. But this does make me realize how important the strength of the beats and their rhythm are to the pacing of a cartoon and making you feel like "that was a good one." I feel like the "seasonal rot" viewers feel over the course of a show, and the way that perception differs from person to person, depends on the type of beats you want. Even though I am very into the experimental beats of a show in its later seasons, I can definitely see how season 1's beats are more typically appealing to a wide-audience, and how important a focus on that is to the longevity of a show.

I found it really interesting how the scams are initially conceived of here as "summer jobs." It adds to the sense that adults were originally meant to be present. Honestly a little surprised nobody with access to this bible had ever thought to mention that-- scams are not referenced ANYWHERE. Their image in the Series Bible is that they have summer jobs and help neighbors, which is certainly a much cleaner reputation than the Eds ended up with in the show. Makes me realize though, were some of the early scams, like Ed's Hive Bee Gone and their newspaper routes, supposed to be leaning into this early idea of them with almost legit jobs for unseen adults?

I was very amused by the repeated phrase that the Eds simply CAN'T fit in.

Loved to finally see the official phrasing for the confirmation that Peach Creek is in America. Not much different than I was led to believe, but still nice to have the true quote.

Also love Eddy being described as "stylish and flaunting himself to the world." The bold-print reactions to each micro-description is a cute idea too, I truly wonder who we were meant to picture saying those things in reaction. Each Ed? Kevin?

The "corner mail box" is an oddly specific phrase-- the Eds do hang around mailboxes throughout the series, especially seasons 1-3, and I believe the canon map does have a corner mailbox, but the idea that the Eds hang out at one specific mailbox went the way of Bro's supposed secret treehouses.

PAGE 2:

Ed, Edd n Eddy

Show Description

Gag laden. True cartoon style, inventive, non parody, fast paced, stretch and squash

Beat driven. (even when characters stop they hold with a bounce cycle. Adults never bounce. Music can play important part, not just fill.) But not a musical.

Cartoon surrealism. (viewers see the show as Ed, Edd n Eddy would, less important things tend to blend into the background, while objects of Ed, Edd n Eddy's desires are focused. Premise driven.)

The school year's over, (yeah!!!!) and the long HOT summer vacation begins (gulp). What to do?

Stuck on a cul-de-sac in the suburbs of America is the last place you want to spend summer break, especially when you find life confusing and contradicting.

Ed, Edd n Eddy is about friendship, and serves to remind us that they're no "good ole days," just smelly runners.

You can tackle anything, when your with your pals.

Their days are spent, for knowledge, acceptance and some cash for jaw breakers. Armed with pimples, big feet and oily hair the three amigos trek into the unknown.

Ed, Edd n Eddy are dying to be grown-ups, but they're kids, and attack adulthood as only kids would. Simple situations turn into a manic rollercoaster ride. (Don't forget your barf bag).

They just want to belong, and they're willing to pull off any insane stunt to prove it. First they need to figure out what it is they want to belong to.

Found it interesting that on this page, the show's logo is replaced with the title written in a jumbled font. Seems like the font from the show's end credits.

Hehe, the continued reactions to the descriptions. Allow me to be Double D for a moment and point out the increased use of parentheticals on this page, as well as one wrong "your".

I love Danny's insight that season 1 is framed by the context of how hyped everyone still is just to be out of school, but also the sense of pressure to make use of their break.

I really appreciate Danny getting further into the details of his summary of the show's style on the previous page. It only makes sense that he had this much of a vision that early.

A second confirmation of the cul-de-sac being in America! I'm also really into the repeated focus on the Eds finding the world "contradicting." I always loved how EEnE's inexplicable cartoon antics supported that sense that the Eds are highly aware of contradictions in both societal things and the actual characters.

WOW, so I'm fascinated by this dual reveal. Before the wiggling outlines, which Danny usually calls a "boiling line" and describes as a tribute to wiggling inking in early animation, the series bible instead refers to him wanting the characters to do the iconic Fleischer "bounce," which is a much more commonly recognized rubberhose animation technique. Very interesting that Danny decided not to stick to that. Did it feel too out of place? Or was the overseas team not willing to animate a weight-shifting for every single held pose? Haha, guess I can see why boiling was an easier compromise. I wonder if he had any other ideas for how to make it more of a 1930s cartoon.

The other reveal to me here is that the movie's choice, that adults don't always wiggle in the show, was an idea from the very beginning! I guess I can better understand now why it's just too difficult to communicate a stylistic choice like that overseas-- no point making Bro not wiggle, that'd just create confusion.

Also, really disappointed that my wish for a musical is officially squashed in the series bible itself. That's a tragedy. The show's over, ya couldn't let me dream, Danny!? Conversely, I love Danny's forethought to say "non parody," I definitely noticed and appreciated EEnE's avoidance of derivative parody humor.

My spouse had to point out to me that Danny probably means sneakers here, lol. Canadianisms!

The comments about the Eds wanting to grow up but needing to figure out what they want to belong to are so great and relate to the movie so well. I've heard those comments before, but the correct phrasing was cool to see.

PAGE 3:

Ed, Edd n Eddy (image of Ed in right corner)

Character Description

Ed

Attention deficiency syndrome.

He has trouble...

He can't....um...

OK, he draws all day in class.

When Eddy gets a bright idea...Ed's in.

Ed is easily talked into doing Eddy's "hard work". He has great physical strength.

Ed's happiest with his Model kits and B-monster movies. He draws his knowledge from his movies.

Ed smells. Flies are attracted to him.

Ed has sayings for all situations

ED: "you can change your shirt, and Bingo was his name..."

Ed's perpetually a slave to his younger sister's whims and whines.

Ed may have to baby-sit his sister, or let her watch whatever she wants on TV, or let her dress him up in mom's clothes.

Ed breaks out in Rashes. He's allergic to practically everything, especially Guinea Pigs.

Ed's Mom xerox's his sketches and doodles for her therapist.

Ed's Dad hopes to pass on to his son, his knowledge on "pre-owned" auto sales.

Very cute bit wasting the space at the top of the page. Danny seems very invested in Ed's personality already. The old sources we used to have definitely tried to condense these down to simpler blurbs.

Weird how Danny wants to essentially diagnose Ed with ADHD here (phrasing it very poorly, but it was the 90s and... Canada?). I don't know enough on the subject to debate it, but I still gotta point out Ed's canonical cracked skull!

Interested in the comment about Ed being most allergic to Guinea Pigs. I don't think that animal was ever even mentioned in the show. Eddy mentioned an old gerbil once....

Neat to finally have the real phrasing of the official word on Ed's parents! I saw someone comment earlier that this seems to be hinting Ed's Dad is selling stolen cars. I've never thought to question the legality of his apparent second-hand-car dealership (I imagined he works with Eddy's dad, who has received a legitimate award for his salesmanship), but those quotation marks are certainly making Mr. Ed's practices questionable! Best case scenario, Danny meant that more like italics or something, but maybe Ed's dad IS up to no good...

PAGES 4 & 5 (Ed's turn sheet and expression sheet)

PAGE 6:

Ed, Edd n Eddy (image of Edd in right corner)

Character Description

Edd

is really smart.

is really quiet.

Edd is unnaturally-- polite.

Edd hasn't been allowed to take gym ever since the Dodge ball incident. He's been excused to free study time in the library.

Edd doesn't like it when people touch his things.

EDD: "You may enter in my room, but don't touch my Lego robot. Thank you."

Edd's learning to play Peddle steel guitar. (his Mom makes him)

Edd's prone to "crushes". Girls in School, in his neighborhood, TV, anatomy books. He mails "true loves" his socks.

Edd is always ready for action, even though he can calculate the implications.

Edd constantly mumbles.

No one ever sees Edd's parents. They both work nights. They communicate to their son solely through Post-it notes. Edd's not allowed to touch anything in the house while they're gone. Anything.

Interesting how Danny slightly differentiates the barely-used space at the top here from Ed's description, to characterize Edd as more quiet and mumbly, adding an awkward "--" mid-sentence, perhaps to create the impression that Edd halts to choose words carefully.

Everything on this page feels familiar, from the character guides and other old sources. The most interesting thing to me here is that Edd's Mom forcing him to practice Pedal Steel Guitar is established this early, don't think I knew that, but I had noticed that it existed in his room from ep 1.

I love how the explanation in the beginning for why Edd goes along with their dumb schemes even though he's smart is basically just "he's always ready for action." ?!? I guess in a way???

That weirdly phrased Edd quote amuses me because it references Lego, just like the original concept background for his room before somebody nixed the copyright-namedrop.

Edd's prone to crushes thing has been reaffirmed over and over in character bios even though it really doesn't come up outside of the cupid magic in HPH and the pilot-episode heart eyes at Sarah that are barely canon. Still, I've always loved the truly disturbing statement that he mails "his true loves his socks" and how that managed to make it into canon with a comic book example, a cel animation example and a digital era example.

PAGES 7 & 8 (Edd's turn sheet and expression sheet)

PAGE 9:

Ed, Edd n Eddy (image of Eddy in right corner)

Character Description

Eddy

Exhibitionist.

Megalomaniac. (quote from his report card)

Eddy is the unofficial leader of the trio.

He's always got a plan, a stunt or a weird noise.

Eddy's the "class clown". He loves showing off. He loves being the centre of attention-- no matter how stupid the reason is.

Eddy is the only kid in his grade to have been expelled for aw hole week from school. It was his turn to set up the video for science class. He switched "Our Friend Yeast", for a video he "borrowed" from his parent's room.

Before Eddy's brother went....away, he enlightened Eddy with the "legends" of the neighbourhood. Eddy knows where all the abandoned tree houses are, which sewer pipers are safe to spelunk, and the secret recipe for the "El Mongo Stink Bomb" (it's been in the family for years).

He is the one who is most able to pretend that he knows it all... and doesn't care what anyone else thinks about him.

His genes are working the fastest.

Eddy's Dad is constantly concerned that Eddy may grow up to be a ...figure skater.

Eddy's Mom never believes his little darling was involved in such a heinous act.

Funny choice that Eddy's wasted-top-space is just two one-word descriptions, and allegedly lazily swiped from his negative report card.

Wow, we knew the report card quote and the "Our Friend Yeast" story from the UK show guide, but now we also know Ed's page says that Ed draws in class, and now I realize that Ed and Eddy have series bible school blurbs to match Edd's classic dodgeball incident blurb. Anyway, it's great that Eddy's showed his entire school some sort of sex video his parents have.

Very interested that the phrasing for the Bro/El Mongo Stink Bomb blurb even seems to suggest it's a family recipe. Eddy's Dad did have prankster stuff in his closet in JJJ... did Bro learn his prankster ways from Dad?? The neighborhood's secret tree houses have come up in other descriptions (at best, I'd say this could be related to that creepy shack the Eds found in the woods), but I think it's new info that Eddy personally learned the sewer routes from Bro. Interesting...

Thankfully, I had already heard about the Bible's awkward reference to Eddy being the most pubescent as "his genes are working the fastest," lmao.

Once again the Double D in me comes out to point out that the description of Eddy's Mom seems to switch to the Dad's pronouns.

PAGES 10 & 11 (Eddy's turn sheet and expression sheet)

PAGES 12-14 (Sarah, Jimmy, Rolf, Jonny, Nazz, and Kevin lineup of all 6, then 2 zoomed in lineups of the first 3 kids and last 3 kids)

(Funfact: the kids' designs were allegedly freelanced to an outside studio, hence why their refined later-season designs are so different from these lizardy starting places, lmao)

PAGE 15: (images of Sarah and Jimmy next to their blurbs)

SARAH

Ed's baby Sister.

It's her way or the Highway.

She has everything done for her, if NOT she'll "make" them do it.

She can be quick to judge.

Whinney.

A tatrum for every occasion.

More than a handful for Ed...or Edd and Eddy.

Thinks Edd is kinda cute.

Wants Eddy to MOVE...to another planet.

JIMMY

Sarah's best friend

He is always playing with girls, boys are just too tough.

He is accident prone, when ever we see him he has a different affliction, ie: band-aids, patches, casts, lumps...etc.

He is very clean.

The Ed's frighten him, "They're such brutes".

I'm surprised how much of the UK guide was accurate to what was really in the bible for them! Also surprised Danny misspelled "whiney" and "tantrum," one right after the other. Is this how Sarah spells them? ...Sorry, Danny, I yam what I yam.

PAGE 16: (images of Rolf and Jonny next to their blurbs)

ROLF

First generation of a landed immigrant family.

Nationality not important.

He's proud of his heritage.

He has peculiar traditions and/or customs.

He eats "weird" things.

He has hair on his back..... "yuck".

He confuses the Ed's to no end.

He confuses the other kids to no end.

JONNY 2x4

He is a wanderer and very inquisitive

From early morning to supper time, he is always outside playing, with his buddy, "Plank".

"Plank" is a wooden board that Jonny drew a face on with a crayon.

Jonny has wonderful conversations with Plank. ...Plank is a piece of wood.

Jonny makes himself very "accessible" to the Ed's.

Found it interesting that Rolf's bio is less clearly phrased than the UK bio set it up to be-- there they made it sound more like he mixes up who the Eds/kids are, here it's unclear whether it means that or (more likely) just means the obvious statement that everyone finds him confusing. If it's that, what a lame hollow bio Rolf got. This kid's based on you Danny, show some of that personal side!

Always loved Jonny's description, his life sounds so cute. Playing outside literally all day. Interesting to have it confirmed that Jonny drew Plank's face, I preferred to think the Eds drew him and sold him to Jonny, but whatever.

"Accessible" has always been an important vague description of Jonny to me. It really only applies to how chummy they could be with him in season 1, but it still sorta applies to his personality throughout the series as well.

PAGE 17: (images of Nazz and Kevin next to their blurbs)

NAZZ

She's cool, calm and assertive.

She is the most matured of the kids, or so she thinks.

She's into make-up and fashion magazines and Boys.

Sarah thinks she's awesome, wants to be just like her when she grows up.

When she enters a scene, all activity stops... boys freeze, they sweat, their hearts beat faster and faster. They lose their ability to talk. When she leaves, they recover and conclude it was something They ate.

She thinks the Ed's are funny.

KEVIN

He is cynical and sarcastic.

He thinks he knows the "routine". That's because he watches "60 Minutes".

It got a big laugh out of me that Kevin's description is only 2 sentences long. Nazz even has a more detailed character description from inception than Kevin. Love this for them.

Who's the Eds' rival? Well, he's cynical, sarcastic and he watches 60 Minutes, doesn't that tell you enough!?

I love the "mature... or so she thinks" remark about Nazz, a grounded flaw for her to have, being a little overcommitted to being mature like Eddy. It also perhaps suggests naiveté that makes it a little more reasonable that they didn't notice they were dumbing her down at the end of the series, but I do think the movie version of her better reflects the Bible's concept.

PAGE 18:

The Other Neighborhood Kids

Lineup of May, Lee and Marie.

The Kanker Sisters

These gals are tough. They bother, bully, provoke and bewilder everyone.

They live in a motor home park on the other side of the Cul-de-sac. The other kids have never been there.

They are proud of their Tammy Faye Baker memorabilia.

Their project "Cooking with Ketchup" closed down their school for a whole week.

No one likes them, especially the Eds.

They are determined to marry the Eds. They want them to do their dishes.

Amused that the Kankers are essentially being labeled backgrounds characters here, the role they mostly fell into in season 5. "Other" neighborhood kids...

I love that the Kankers have a school blurb to match each of the Eds', and that theirs has similar destructive-intentions to Eddy's video premiere story.

I believe all of this was all known from the UK guide as well, but still, neat stuff!

PAGES 19 & 20 (zoomed in Kanker lineup and their height chart with the Eds)

PAGES 21 & 22 (early promo art that used to be on CN's old Eds webpage, the art of the Eds eating jawbreakers at the end of ep 1 with the overhead text "Ed, Edd n Eddy love JAWBREAKERS!!!", and the art of the Eds all running with overhead text "Ed, Edd n Eddy see something shiny...."Jiggers." That weird "jiggers" statement at the end was normally edited out and I don't know what it means. Looked it up and it seems to be Chinook jargon (like when Ed said he was "skookum at X's and O's") usually said in the same sense as "CHEESE IT!")

PAGES 23+:

The rest of the pages in that bible download are from a 2004 storyboard test. The storyboard sample "It's Raining Eds," which we've seen some submitted samples of before, interpretations with Ed attempting to fly or chew gum and Edd making radioactive gum, I was surprised to find out the outline is just the original outline for the opening sequence to season 3's 'For Your Eds Only', seemingly Jonny was not written into the original outline (or was excised for easier testing purposes) but Kevin's brief cameo was. Now I wonder if they knew this would be used for a test when they wrote it, and if they would've come up with a less random way to include him if weren't forced to be a concise bit for testing's sake. (Your limit is typically 40 storyboard pages in my experience.)

I also noticed that in the included background references, the anonymous adult neighbor house next door to Ed's is officially just referred to as a "generic house."

My analysis ends here, but be sure to download that sometime and enjoy all the raw storyboard sketches at the end of the document!

[svnflowervol666]

An interview during self-isolation with Zane Lowe (Harry Styles x fem!Reader)

Word Count: 2.2k

Author’s Note: I’ve gotten a ton of asks to the tune of this scenario - about what a quarantine video with Harry and his family would look like. I put as many of them together as I could for you all! Hope you enjoy and it’s not too confusing, as this isn’t my typical writing style, but I tried my best to make it worth your while! Take care and TPWK.

“Harry, can ye’ hear me alright?” Harry heard Zane Lowe’s voice fill his right ear as he readjusted his headphones.

“Yeah, I can hear ya,” he responded, running his fingers through his hair once everything was situated and his laptop was balanced perfectly on his knee.

“I’ve just been video calling and chatting it up with everyone on how they’re navigating the pandemic, so I’m very thankful you’ve agreed to join in.”

“‘S no problem. Thank you f’ having me.”

“Oh!” Zane interjected his own strain of thought, “I see you’ve brought a special guest for us today,” he said when Harry’s screen finally focused and he was able to see everything on Harry’s end.

Harry chuckled, the dimples on either corner of his mouth growing wider at the mention of the sleeping body on his chest that’s got a fuzzy blanket tucked into their sides and draped over Harry’s upper half.

“I have,” Harry agreed, “Though he’s not gonna be worth much. Being a two-year-old is exhausting apparently.”

He gave the toddler a few gentle pats on the back and continued to look at Zane through the webcam.

“This is your son, right?” Zane asked.

“Who? Him?” Harry asked, nodding his head in the direction of his child, “Nah. Found him on the street.”

Both men laughed, but Harry tried to lower his volume as to not wake up his son.

“Well, he looks an awful bit like you t’ be a stray, don’t ye’ think?”

“I suppose the curls are quite convincing, aren’t they?” Harry sighed, playfully rolling his eyes.

“What’s brought your bubs along with you for this interview?”

“Erm,” Harry thought, wondering if he should be talking this much about his personal life but ultimately deciding it wasn’t too invasive, “Y/N’s been pretty tired lately, so I’m just trying to keep him out of her hair so she can rest. He’s going through a phase where he’s very clingy right now so he’d probably be crying f’ me at some point if I left him in his room.”

“Oh, that’s right!” it suddenly dawned on Zane, “You two are expecting again, aren’t you?

“We are,” Harry smiled softly yet proudly into the screen, “‘s kinda scary for us right now, but we’re hoping everything is cleared up before it’s time.”

“Yeah, yeah. I was just about to say right now’s probably not the greatest time to be havin’ a baby.”

“Well, the baby’s not due for a few more months so I think everything’ll be alright, but it’s still just kinda nerve-wracking ye’ know?”

“Absolutely,” Zane added, “This has all got t’ be tough on your guys; having to self-isolate with a toddler plus having one on the way.”

“Ehh, it’s not so bad,” Harry countered, rubbing his eyes with his knuckles as he spoke. “We’ve been spending a lot of time t’gether, which is pretty great. I just got done with all of the album promo, so I’d already been gone for a while. Plus, I was about to leave for tour for like a month so we were kinda sad about having to say goodbye before, but now I don’t have to. We talk to our families a lot and keep in touch with everyone pretty regularly so we don’t feel like we’re going too crazy.”

“Good! That’s good.”

Harry nodded in agreement.

“I was going to ask you about tour actually. You’ve pushed the European leg of your Love on Tour to next year, is that correct?”

“Correct.”

“That must be hard for you, I’m sure. I bet you were so ready to get back on the road and to have it all pulled out from under ye’ was probably not the greatest feeling.”

“I mean, it’s obviously disappointing, but like, in the grand scheme of things, it’s not the most important thing in the world. But I think everyone kinda understands that there’s not anything you can do about it and ye’ have to do what you can to keep everyone safe, ya know?”

“For sure,” Zane nodded, readjusting the hat on his head.

“Plus, it gives you time to practice doesn’t it?”

Harry’s belly shook as he laughed softly.

“Definitely gives us plenty of time to be prepar-”

Harry stopped in his tracks and looked down at his son who was still napping away, lifting his hand up from where it had been rested on his tiny bum.

“Everything alright?” Zane asked Harry after he was still quiet for a few seconds and his eyes were as wide as saucers.

“Uhh, yeah,” Harry stuttered as a noticeable heat climbed to his cheeks, “Think m’ son’s just farted on me in his sleep.”

This made Zane laugh even harder than he had before, clutching his chest while Harry remained embarrassed that his son had just passed gas on him during his first interview.

The commotion seemed to stir Harry’s son from his sleep. His pudgy legs began to stretch against Harry’s chest and his balled-up fists reached up to rub at his closed eyes. Harry seemed to sense some trepidation, like his son was going to start fussing at any given moment, so he quickly began bouncing his small body against his knee to soothe him and shushed him quietly in his ear. Zane didn’t draw much attention to it, but he couldn’t help but swoon over how easily Harry’s son settled back down.

Harry whispered, “’s alright, bubby. You’re alright,” before kissing the top of his curls gently, no doubt making the viewers lose their minds at home with how gentle he was being towards his boy.

“So your boy farts himself awake, huh?” Zane joked.

“Wouldn’t be the first time. He’s an absolute mess,” Harry added.

“Does he take after you or Y/N?”

Clearly, neither of them were interested in talking about music or tour anymore. Harry’s son had stolen the show, and he wasn’t even conscious.

“A little bit of both I’d say. He’s extremely kind and caring like Y/N, but loves to mess around like me. Can’t really say he got any of Y/N’s looks, though.”

“Absolutely not,” Zane chuckled into his mic, “That one’s all you.”

Harry laughed again, rubbing the tip of his nose with the palm of his hand out of habit.

“Is he excited to be a big brother?”

“Ehh, I think he kinda gets the idea, but not really,” Harry tilted his hand back and forth to symbolize the fact that his toddler could just barely come to grips with there being another baby in his mum’s belly.

“He knows there’s ‘something in mummy’s tummy,’“ Harry noted using air quotes, “And he like, gives Y/N’s stomach kisses all of the time because we tell him to and he sees me do it, but I don’t really think he’s come to grips with it.”

“Well, that makes sense,” Zane responded, “He’s only two.”

“Right, right,” Harry agreed, “But he’s, like, super cuddly and loves his stuffed animals and stuff, so I don’t think he’s gonna have a hard time at all really.”

Just when Zane was going to try to get back on topic with his prepared list of questions he had written up for Harry that didn’t involve his son, there was a commotion on Harry’s end that occurred somewhere beyond the view of the camera.

It was the sound of a door shutting a feet padding against hardwood steps.

“Harry!” a voice called out.

“Have you seen my laptop charger? I’m trying to FaceTime Gem- Oh,” the voice stopped.

“Sorry, baby,” Harry spoke above the laptop screen to whoever had just walked into the room, “Couldn’t find mine and I had t’ talk t’ Zane.”

“Which Zane?”

“Is that Y/N I hear?” Zane asked Harry.

Harry laughed at his wife’s words, quickly specifying that it was Zane Lowe and not his former bandmate.

“Yes, it is Y/N. She’s awoken from her beauty sleep it appears.”

The camera wasn’t able to pick up the way Y/N rolled her eyes at Harry.

“Gimme one of those,” Y/N demanded, holding her hand out for the other earbud that Harry wasn’t wearing so she could join in on his conversation with Zane.

Harry swung the free earbud around his chest with his free hand as to not disturb their son, smiling smugly at his wife while she settled onto the sofa next to him and cuddled into his side.

“Hello, gorgeous,” Zane greeted her.

“Hello, handsome,” Y/N responded, “How come you never call to talk to me anymore? Why do you only care about this nobhead?”

She playfully shoved Harry’s shoulder, but not hard enough to actually knock him sideways.

“He does have the number one album in the country right now. Kinda makes sense to check in on him now, dunnit?”

“And I’m his baby mama, so where’s my praise for carrying his little spawns?”

“You truly are a saint for tha’ one. I won’t lie.”

Harry feigned offense but failed to hide the smile that tugged on the corners of his lips.

“I’m sitting right here!” he scoffed.

“We know, love,” Y/N cooed him as she looked over at him and brushed his curls that had fallen onto his forehead back into his mess of hair. 

“How are you doing, though, Y/N? We talked a bit about you while you were away. Harry said you’re strugglin’ a bit?”

“Umm, I mean, it’s just normal pregnancy stuff,” she dismissed his qualms as she absentmindedly stroked her protruding belly that was just barely in the frame, “I’m at the point where everything hurts all of the time and everything Harry does annoys the piss out of me, but other than that I’m pretty much normal.”

“Goodness. He didn’t tell me that part,” Zane chuckled, “Please elaborate.”

“Okay, well first of all-,” Y/N started.

“Why are you acting like you were just waiting f’ someone to ask you that question?” Harry forced through laughter.

“Because I’ve got a lot to say!” she exclaimed.

“You don’t pick up your dirty clothes, you leave your tea mugs all around the house, and you and your son eat all of my bread!”

“I do not eat all of the bread!” Harry started to playfully argue with his wife.

“I caught you sneaking into the pantry at midnight eating bread right out of the bag, Harold.”

“Well, what were you doin’ awake in the kitchen at midnight anyway, hmm?”

“I’m pregnant. I’m allowed to be hungry every twenty minutes. You’ve got no excuse.”

Harry sighed in defeat, meanwhile, Zane sat back and enjoyed listening to the two of them bickering like children. 

“Sounds like the quarantine might getting t’ the both of you, huh?”

“Oh, no,” Y/N dismissed Zane, “We’re always like this.”

Just then, Harry felt the weight distribution on his chest shift, and saw a pair of emerald green eyes identical to his open and look back and forth between him and Y/N. His pudgy cheeks were flushed a warm, crimson color and the t-shirt he had taken a nap in was tugged over to the side from how well he had slept.

“Well, hello there, bubby. Nice of you t’ join us,” Harry spoke calmly to his son that was in the middle of waking up, gently brushing his fingers along the side of his face.

“Dear god. He looks just like you, Harry,” Zane said in disbelief.

This made Harry blush and hide his face in his son’s plush blanket, and Y/N looked lovingly down at her two boys.

“I know he does,” Harry confirmed, “Poor thing.”

Y/N rolled her eyes at Harry’s comment. As if that was meant to be an insult.

“Hung-y,” the three of them heard the toddler mumble.

“What’s that, lovie?” Y/N perked up.

“I hung-y” he repeated, his arms outstretched for his mother to which she happily accepted.

The boy crawled right over Harry towards Y/N, his foot sinking deep into Harry’s gut and making him grunt in reaction. 

“You’re hungry?” Y/N asked, “You want some lunch, bubs?”

He nodded into Y/N’s shoulder where he had tucked himself away, clearly still in the mood to be loved on and cuddled.

“Well, let’s go make you something to eat then. What do you want? A banana?”

“Bread!” cheered the two-year-old, which earned a laugh from everyone in the room and an eye-roll from Y/N.

“Of course, you want bread. Wouldn’t expect anything less from your father’s child.”

“Why are you bullying me?” Harry fired back.

“Because you’re eating all of my damn bread!” Y/N yelled before scooping their son up from the couch and teetering out of frame into the kitchen.

“Alright,” started Zane, “Seems like it’s time for me to leave you three alone. Thanks for stopping in t’ chat.”

Harry chortled, readjusting his headphone one last time to sign off.

“Thanks again f’ havin’ me. Sorry my family crashed your interview.”

“It’s no bother at all, mate. ‘S actually quite refreshing seeing ye’ like this. I’m sure everyone watching would agree. Reminds us all that you’re human and not some robot with perfect hair and the voice of an angel.”

Harry hid his face in his hands, blushing for what felt like the thousandth time during this video call. 

“I hope you lot continue to stay safe and healthy through all of this.”

“Thank you so much. You as well,” Harry added.

“Of course. Tell Y/N I’ll ring her up soon.”

“Will do,” Harry nodded, “If she doesn’t kill me f’ asking her t’ make me some toast first.”

[beepboop358]

The problem about the actors misleading the watchers by saying things like Mike and El being in love, even if it's to keep endgame Byler as a secret, and so on, is that it further helps to when/if Byler is endgame make people say it was a plottwist cause "even the actors said Mike and El would be it and all of a sudden it's not", I dont know I just figured if you want to keep Byler a secret it doesn't mean you have to hype up Mileven, they'll end up having everyone call Byler a plottwist, when if it is endgame it's definitely been there developing since the beginning.

In other words, if at the end it bothered the ST writers/directors (which ofc did an awesome job at creating ST) that people are calling the endgame of ST a plottwist, then I'm thinking perhaps they kind of asked for it? Because a lot of people completely look past the subtext, and only take into a count what they literally hear or see. And if they're all purposely measleading then ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Hi anon!

Yeah I completely understand this :( It could definitely end up backfiring on them. You’re right most casual viewers don’t look into subtext, so hearing cast members hype up Mike & El could lead them to say things about how Byler actually is a plot twist (even though we know its not) because the cast said stuff like this. However, I’m hoping this backlash won’t be too stong, and that season 4 & 5 will really explain to those casual viewers the subtext they missed in plainer terms, and show them byler has been developing all along. And hopefully the Duffers or some cast members will gove interviews saying how the kids were instructed to say stuff like that, etc. to help explain why they did it to those viewers as well, just to hide the ‘secret’. I think they’re partially doing it to throw people off the scent of byler as well.

thanks for the ask! Hope you’re well xx

[duuhrayliegh]

Fuck Misogyny

request: Bucky uses his newly gained knowledge of feminism to squash misogynistic interview questions. @ptrs-prkrs

warnings: language, creepy men, feminist!bucky

a/n: hey babes!! i hope this lived up to what you wanted! i couldn’t find the exact video you were referencing but i know what you’re talking about, so i drew inspiration from a few others.

p.s.: my requests and tag lists are open!!

xoxo ray

full m.list

The set up was simple. A long row of fold out tables covered in black fabric, microphones in front of each seat. Black papers were taped to the backs of the microphones with each team member's name. Bucky had told Evie that he wasn’t going to be able to work out with her today because of this so it better be worth it. The PR manager for the team, Amanda, had set everything up. Hired the mediator, notified the press, everything. Ever since they announced that they were going to be hosting an Avenger’s Q&A Panel, the internet quite literally broke.

Of course Bucky had been doing lives on TikTok with the group of five for the past couple of weeks now, so he was becoming quite comfortable in this format. He’s become increasingly active on his social media accounts, gaining more and more followers everyday. Granted, there were still haters, as Freddie called them, but Bucky ignored them for the most part.

Bucky was actually excited for this press meeting. He was finally gaining traction in the media and he knew how to correctly answer their questions. As Amanda had explained, there was going to be several questions from the mediator, tons from the press that they had invited, and then some fan questions as well. They apparently were going to be live streaming the conference on YouTube allowing them to read the comments and questions as it went on.

“Okay, everyone. You have two minutes until we start.” The team was in an empty board room in the Hilton hotel. Tony didn’t want everyone on the compound’s grass because he just had it fixed. Bucky scanned his fellow teammates. It was impossible for everyone to dress for the same event. Steve was wearing a shirt that was almost bursting at the seams with a pair of jeans and sneakers.

Tony was wearing a lovely Tom Ford, three piece, two-button, of course. Natasha and Wanda were wearing ripped jeans and casual tops. Vision was wearing a sweater vest and slacks, Bruce was clad in slacks as well a jacket covering his shoulders. Sam was wearing a button-up shirt and pressed jeans and he couldn’t find Clint anywhere, probably hiding in the rafters again.

Bucky had his iconic leather jacket donning his shoulders, a pair of slightly ripped jeans. His outfit was picked out by Cassie and Penny. “You need to look like you care but like you don’t at the same time.” Is what they said, the phrase made Bucky shake his head. His hair had finally started growing back and he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it.

He had gotten help from Evie before he left Cassie’s apartment. She had pulled back the top half, braiding back two sections into the bun at the back of his head. There were pieces dangling in front of his eyes, “to accentuate the facial features, trust me they’ll love it.” Was Evie’s explanation as they pushed him out of the apartment, so he wouldn’t be late.

“Alright guys! They’re calling your names!” The team filed out of the board room and into a large ballroom. Bottles of water were placed beside each placemat. Tony went out first, followed by Steve, then Bruce, Natasha, Clint, Wanda, Vision, Sam and ending with Bucky. They all settled into their seats, Bucky peeled his jacket off himself, placing it on the back of his chair. His black short sleeved shirt highlighted the gold inlays of his vibranium arm.

“Oh, I see we’re showing some muscle today huh, Buck?” Sam teased as Bucky took his seat next to him. Bucky groaned in realization, covering his microphone so it didn’t pick up what he planned to say.

“Good God, is this what it’s going to be like the entire panel? You just bugging the shit outta me?” They shared a laugh making the rest of the members look at the pair. The audience clapped as they were introduced and continued clapping as they assembled before them.

“Thank you. We would like to welcome everyone to the first, of hopefully many, Avenger’s Q&A Panel.” The female mediator, Stacey, read the assigned lines off the sheet on her podium. “We are going to start with questions we curated for the team and then open it up to the members of the press. After that we will turn to our live stream and answer some viewer questions.” The press rustled in their seats, pulling out pens and journals as well as their phones to record. “Okay, starting off with a question directed at the Avengers in general. How are you feeling about coming before the media in this type of format?” Glances were exchanged between the members, not sure on who was going to start.

“I feel that this is a great way for the general public to learn a little bit more about each individual team member.” Vision was the first to respond and Steve added on.

“Yeah, I definitely think that there’s a common misconception that we don’t want to engage with the media or the general public. We do, unfortunately due to the amount of research and training that we are doing behind the scenes, it just goes to the back of our minds.”

“Right. So Tony and Bruce, we all know that you two are geniuses. What are your feelings on expanding the teachings of STEM courses to not only high school, but as far back as elementary school or even kindergarten?” The pair thought about the question before answering.

“Well, I definitely think that offering STEM-based classes at a younger age would be beneficial, especially if we were to allow the kids to continue to switch what they want to focus on.” Bruce started. “It’s incredibly anxiety-inducing for teenagers to have to decide what they’re going to do with their life right before they are thrust into an unforgiving world.”

“Yeah, I’ll never understand why we do that to our future leaders, it’s honestly baffling. Why do American schools wait until high school to require our children to learn foriegn languages, they aren’t going to retain that information. The same applies for such comprehensive courses like STEM-based ones. If you wait until their brains are already developed so far, then they’ve already decided what they think is interesting and if they don’t find those courses interesting then they aren’t going to pay attention.” Tony finished Bruce's thought before nodding to each other smugly, obviously proud of themselves for answering the question so well.

“Interesting that you see it that way. This last one goes out to everyone and then we’ll open it up to the reporters. How do you deal with the stress and anxiety that comes with being an Avenger? Do you feel a certain amount of pressure to always do the right thing?” Stacey shuffled her papers, tapping them twice on the podium.

“We all have our own routines and ways that we decompress after missions so that really just depends on the person. Like I think that Bruce listens to opera music, and Wanda mediatates, Tony tinkers. It depends on the person.” Natasha answered concisely, making Bucky nod his head. He could recall all of those things to be true.

“Oh definitely, and it doesn’t hurt that we have a former VA Trauma Counselor on board to help us work through the harder stuff.” Steve added a gesture of his head to Sam.

“Speaking of that Sam, just a quick question before we open it up. How difficult was it for you to transition from regular Air Force missions to Avenger level missions?” Sam made a face at Stacey before answering.

“Um, I mean, it’s not that different. You’re always fighting one of the Big Three-- aliens, androids, or wizards, no matter what department you’re working with. The only transition I had to deal with was the Tony Stark-erized suits. Now that I think of it, Tony, can we make it tighter?” Sam quipped making the room laugh with ease.

“Alright, well now we’re going to open it up to the reporters. Starting with this gentleman in the front and then if we could also give a microphone to someone on that side of the room. Okay, thank you.” The first reporter stood up, holding the microphone in one hand and his phone in the other.

“Hello. John from Huffington Post. The Avengers inspire almost everyone around the world, so we would like to know who inspires you? Who do you look up to in terms of your idols?” He sat back down as the team contemplated their answers.

“Gandhi.” Bruce said, Tony snapped his fingers and pointed at him then added. “Pepper, she’s so amazing.” Steve looked down to Bucky, who shrugged.

“I would probably have to say that my sister, Sarah, inspires me. She raised her two sons, Cas and AJ, by herself after the Blip and was able to keep the family business going.” Sam’s answer made Bucky smile. Sam had brought him to their house in Delacroix, he remembered waking up to Cas and AJ playing in the kitchen, happy giggles filtering through reminding him of his time in Wakanda. By the time that Bucky had refocused on the conversation they had moved on without his answer. Several different questions went by, all directed to the team at large, until Chad.

“Hi, I’m Chad for the Daily Mail. My question is for Wanda and Natasha.” The pair of women perked up, excited to have a specific question. “Do you find that your equipment hinders you in doing your job as well as your male counterparts?” Stunned expressions settled over the womens faces, then annoyance. Bucky’s brows shot up to his hairline, appalled that someone had the balls to ask that. Wanda and Natasha handled the question with grace and much more restraint than Bucky would have.

“Well for me, I am able to move things with my mind so I can throw things randomly at people even if I’m not in the room. I’ve been very fortunate to work with Natasha who has Widow training, so my hand to hand combat is improving immensely. And being able to work with Princess Shuri in Wakanda to learn how to fully control my powers. It’s an ever evolving process that I’m always excited to take on.” Bucky nodded and turned his attention to Natasha.

“My favorite thing is training with either Steve or Bucky because they push me to do my best. We all have our specialties here and it’s nice to learn new skills or improve old ones with people who support you.” Natasha sat back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest, throwing daggers with her eyes at Chad in the audience, waiting for him to say something else. Chad stood again, yelling so he could be heard over the crowd’s commotion.

“That’s great, ladies, but forgive me, you didn’t answer the question I asked.” Bucky pushed forward in his seat, leaning into his microphone.

“I’m sorry, I think I misunderstood what you asked them then. I would like for you to clarify what you mean by equipment.” Chad balked, not expecting a male’s voice to respond.

“You know what’s implied by equipment, sir.” Bucky’s jaw clenched at the man.

“Did you just ask two of the most capable women that I’ve ever known, if their equipment, which I’m assuming you’re referring their breasts, made it to where they couldn’t do their job as good as the rest of their male counterparts. Just to be clear, that’s what you’re asking?” Chad stuttered as he answered yes.

“Right, well first off that’s disgusting. Just a bit of background for you, Wanda is the strongest Avenger here, plain and simple. As for Natasha, she’s the smartest woman I’ve ever met and she can take down every single male here.” Bucky took a breath before continuing. “So, what I think you really want to know is how they encourage their teammates to keep up with them.” He dropped his head to look at the two women down the line.

“Don’t worry Chad, I’ll ask them the right question, since you can’t quite seem to understand how to respect women.” The team was holding back snickers at Chad’s reaction. “Wanda, Natasha. Chad wants to know how the hell you push your male teammates to be just as good as you are. What are your strategies to keep us on our toes while training?” Claps sounded from the women press members and Bucky awaited the pair's response. The next press member stood and asked a question.

“Hi, I’m Chloe from Vanity Fair. This question goes to everyone on the panel.” Bucky settled in for another question that didn’t matter. “How do you continue to be aware of things happening in our society today? Do you keep up-to-date through new channels, or social media?” The answers were rather generic from the team, all of them rather uncomfortable from the tension that Bucky and Chad had created. Stacey interrupted after Chloe’s question.

“Okay, we’re going to open it up to viewer questions from our live stream.” An iPad was placed on the podium in front of Stacey and her eyebrows rose. “Okay, there’s quite a variety here. Here’s one for Steve and Bucky.” Bucky perked up, nervous to answer because his adrenaline had worn off.

“One viewer asks, ‘Steve and Bucky, being from the 40’s, women were treated like second thoughts and were talked about like objects. Now, you’re in the 21st century, not much has changed. What have you been doing to support feminist causes?’”

“I just want to say that everyone should be answering this. It’s true that during the 40’s women were not treated the right way, and they still aren’t today. An 18 year old can’t walk down the street at nine o’clock at night without being catcalled. I am a proud feminist, as everyone should be. I think that as a team we are doing pretty well in that department. As far as what I’m doing to support feminist causes, I’m doing as much as I can. I actually recently enrolled in online classes to expand my knowledge on many subjects, seeing as how I am from the 40’s and all.” The crowd laughed along with Bucky.

“Almost all of my classes have to do with either psychology or gender studies, it’s a fascinatingly haunting subject. One book that I’m reading right now was suggested to me by my friend Cassie, it’s called Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women that a Movement Forgot. The author doesn’t let up and I’m only halfway through it. Look, I’m still educating myself, but I’m a strong believer in doing what is right for everyone, so I’m trying. Thankfully I have a few people keeping me in check as far as my actions.” Bucky thought his response was well thought out for being an on the fly question. He was new to the concept of feminism but that didn’t change the fact that it made total sense.

“I’m with Bucky on this. The 40’s were a rough time. I remember the first time I met Peggy Carter, I was astonished that a woman could be in such a powerful position. One of the first things she did after I met her was punch out someone who made a sexual comment to her. I’ve been supporting feminist causes ever since working with Peggy.” Steve added, a sad smile spreading on his face reminiscing Peggy.

“This one says, ‘As a total fan of all of you, I love seeing what you post on your social media accounts. When are the rest of the Avengers going to follow Bucky’s lead and download TikTok?’” Bucky’s head flew back into a full body laugh. Tony shifted forward in his seat, pointing his finger at the laughing man down the table.

“I would just like to say he didn’t get that approved before doing it. However, it did go over really well, so we’ll consider it.” Wanda’s mouth rolled inwards, stifling her laughter.

“We’ll consider it, you’re such an old man. Most of us have TikTok already, we just don’t make content on it like Barnes over here.” Sam said, tossing his head in Bucky’s direction.

“I’ve got like three videos on there!” Bucky and Sam began bantering back and forth.

“Yeah and one of them is dancing to a Cardi B song! Who even showed you that? I thought you only like 40’s music?” Bucky made a face at the man.

“Uh, just because I didn’t like your suggestions for music doesn’t mean I don’t have taste. My Spotify playlist is filling out quite nicely, Wilson.” Bucky and Sam didn’t quit fighting from then on, just little jabs at each other under the table.

“Here’s a good one,” Stacey had a smile on her face, “Are you allies of the LGBTQ+ community?” Bucky responded quickly with no hesitation.

“Yes, many of my friends are members of the Alphabet Mafia. Why wouldn’t we be?” Wanda nodded at his question, laughing at his use of the phrase Alphabet Mafia.

“Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I’m dating a fucking android, I’d be pretty hypocrictal if I wasn’t an ally. Nat, Clint what about you?” Clint bobbed his head in response.

“Oh yeah. We all are, even the Star Spangled Man with a Plan.” Steve’s shoulders shook with laughter at Clint’s nickname for him. The team broke out into laughter, joining Steve. Stacey cleared her throat, commanding the attention of the room again.

“Alright, everybody! That’s it for today.” She glanced down at her papers. “We would like to thank everyone for coming out today and joining the Avengers Q&A Panel. At this time we are unaware, if we will be conducting another one of these, but the odds look good based on the response.” The team filed out of the ballroom and into the empty boardroom. Bucky was the last to get into the room and he was approached by Natasha and Wanda immediately. Wanda wrapped her arms around him in a bear hug.

“That was so sick, Bucky!” She stepped back and Natasha offered him a side hug as well. “Where’d you learn all that? And since when are you taking online classes?”

“That guy was being an asshole, he needed to be put in his place. I hope you guys didn’t feel like I overstepped or anything.” Bucky hung his arm over Wanda’s shoulder, leaning his weight on her. “And I started about two months ago. They’re going really well, I’m learning a lot and enjoying it surprisingly. It’s a good thing to do in my free time since I’m not always on missions.”

“I’m proud of you James, that was impressive.” Natasha complimented him, she wasn’t usually a woman of many words so that was a lot. Bucky smiled at her, nodding his head. His phone began buzzing in his back pocket, so he excused himself from their conversation. His screen displayed one of Evie’s senior pictures, signalling that she was calling him. He pushed the green button and brought the phone to his ear to answer her call.

“Hello?” She ignored his greeting with a squeal.

“Check your Twitter! Bucky, you’re trending! Here I’m putting you on speaker, we’re all here Buck!” Shuffling noises were heard through the speaker as Evie began reading the tweets to Bucky. Laughs from Cassie, Freddie and Penny could be heard behind Evie’s voice.

“Oh my gosh Eve! Just let the man get back to what he was doing!” Freddie yelled at an excited Evie, who retaliated with a scoff.

“Okay, okay! Just remember we have a movie night tomorrow! It’s Penny’s turn to pick so we don’t know what to expect.” Evie mumbled the last part into her phone speaker. Bucky heard the impact of a pillow hit Evie, causing her to grunt in pain. “Okay! We’ll talk to you later, Buck! See you soon!” She hung up the phone before he could get a word in edgewise. Bucky shook his head as he shoved his phone back into his pocket. Amanda approached Bucky asking to speak with him privately.

“So we’re getting a flood of interview requests from networks and papers. We would like to start running with this. We’ll have to go over everything with our PR guy, Ryan, but it should work out. As long as you’re comfortable with all of this.” Bucky smiled and nodded, following after Amanda as she continued explaining what would happen going forward.

He was nervous, of course, but he could tell these nerves were coming from a place of excitement instead of fear, which was a new sensation for the man. It wasn’t unwelcome, it was the same as when he first started hanging out with Cassie, Penny, Freddie and Evie. It was the same when he went on his first mission with the team. Bucky was ready to tackle this next adventure, whatever it would entail.