#and obviously I've been watching better call saul

[to-the-head-of-the-line]

Would Saul Goodman have gotten the assassins reduced sentence/plea deal/not guilty verdict?

I think he could for most of them as long as they kept their mouths shut...

[imreallyloveleee]

ok i've finally started season 6 of better call saul (ahhhHHHHHH) so there's no better time than the present for me to vomit out all of my thoughts and feelings on this show thus far

first of all, i already want to start rewatching this show, like, right now, before i even finish it. unreal

my biggest complaint at this point is that i feel they lost the plot with Mike a bit in s5. his is a trickier needle to thread than jimmy's, i think - there's less daylight between parking attendant mike and stone cold fixer mike than there is between jimmy mcgill and saul goodman. but i'm just not convinced that this guy would agree to work for gus fring long-term. i guess we're supposed to believe that the guilt he feels, blaming himself for getting his son killed and depriving kaylee of a dad in the process, is SO overwhelming that he'll willingly do these terrible things so he can "pay her back" with this massive nest egg he plans to build up. but like...this is a conclusion i'm coming to by sitting here overthinking about it, not a conclusion that i feel is coming organically from the show. something just feels off. and i don't think it's intentional, i think they just missed the mark. that said, i liked his "bad choice road" speech to jimmy a lot at the end of the season.

speaking of kaylee, oh my god the scenes with her are goddamn annoying, and the scenes with her mom are even worse. i honestly feel bad for the woman, she's probably not even that bad of an actor but on a show overflowing with people at the absolute top of their game she really stands out as a weak link.

NACHITO 😭 i know he's not gonna make it out of here alive. poor guy. he just really loves his dad!!!!!!!!

Lalo is such a FANTASTIC addition tho. it's so hard to add a compelling character this late in the game but he's so charismatic he even makes me hate Hector Salamanca scenes like 80% less

I could have done with less Gus Fring on this show in general. he was incredible on BrBa, but he just...doesn't need to be fleshed out more? and he kind of isn't, he's just around a lot? idk, but i'll take this as an opportunity to share that one time i saw Giancarlo Esposito wearing a black cowboy hat and buying a package of raw chicken at Whole Foods in Austin TX like 9 years ago

ok now onto the lawyer-y side of things. in contrast to Mike's story, I think Jimmy/Saul's is pretty much pitch perfect. i believe his decisions, i believe his hesitations, i believe the push and pull.

(sidenote just remembered i also deeply hate the salamanca twins, always have always will, on BrBa they always felt like some lame reddit bro's idea of a "badass villain" they're just so flat and boring and i wish they weren't in this show either ugh)

anyway back to Jimmy - obviously, this show would not work whatsoever if Jimmy didn't work as a character, but it's still like, HOLY SHIT do they make him work. he's so tragic, you just KNOW that he could be better and you want him to be better and you know he wants to be better but: he can't. he won't. we know where this story is heading. and at his core he will always be this boy who really really really loved his big brother and never felt that love returned and never will and now i'm going to cry just thinking about the fucking scummy lawyer from breaking bad oh my goddddd

finally: kim. kim. KIM. having only watched 6x01 at this point - i feel like i've only barely scratched the surface on understanding who this character is. i don't know what to say, but i just rewatched this scene and it's maybe my favorite thing i've ever seen, with the exception of like 8 other kim scenes (most of which consist of her dressing down an idiot man, her boyfriend included)

JIMMY AND KIM FOREVER 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 and if you're wondering if i'm having Fic Thoughts, the answer is yes, yes i am

p.s. i've been listening to some of the insider podcast episodes and my GOD what a breath of fresh air to listen to peter gould and vince gilligan after being an unwilling prisoner of roberto aguirre sacasa for 7 goddamn years

[herafizzbee]

Little Trend Thing

Thank you to @sillylittlevulpine for tagging me!

Currently reading-

Amygdala by Sam Fennah. A wonderful book that I highly recommend, though I am getting through it VERY slowly lol

Last Songs-

Better Call Saul Theme by Little Barrie

South Park Theme (been learning it on guitar and oh boy is it strange haha)

Currently watching-

Rewatching 'Better Call Saul', such a great show with awesome writing

Also rewatching 'Trailer Park Boys' . I need some raunchy humor in my life

Current Fic

Nothin'. I haven't ever really read fics

Writing??

Marionette! It's been slow recently because of life stuff, but it's pushing along still! :']

Next on my watch list-

'The Office', I've never seen it and feel very left out lol

Current 'Obsession' (special interests time)-

Get fricken ready lol

-GUITAR. I have been saving as much as I can for a Fender Strat in Seafoam green. Preferably with a deep colored fretboard.

-Marionette (obviously) : actually to be more specific, I've recently conquered one of my greatest fears and added a cannon genuine couple in the series. I've never been comfortable enough to give characters attraction to one another that wasn't twisted somehow, it's just always been touchy, but I finally did it! To be honest, it's the only non-toxic relationship (both romantic and platonic) that exists in the Marionette universe. There's a lot of pressure on it lol

Games-

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. I'm not allowing myself to go to Ganon until I have every shrine. Nearly there lol

I've also been playing around with Minecraft again recently! It's such a nice game :] (bedrock is superior)

I didn't fill out every section that was listed before, I didn't know exactly what to write there if I'm honest

Not many people here that I can tag, but if you come across this post, feel free to do this yourself too!

[pynkhues]

Hey!! Not sure if you watch variety mash ups. The actors on actors. I think the pairings are really good and sometimes really uh interesting lol Was wondering if you have a pairing that you would really like to see ?

Hey! Yeah! I love all of the round tables and the actors on actors sessions, although I haven't watched many of them yet this year (just been a very busy few weeks!). I've been particularly looking forward to watching Kieran Culkin's one with Claire Danes, espcially because I think Kieran actually interviews other people so well - his Actors on Actors with Dan Levy a couple of years ago shows that really demonstrates that.

There are so many Actors on Actors interviews I'd love to see, but I have Succession on the brain still and given these sorts of interviews are usually in the lead up to the Emmys, I'm going to do the main Succession actors and the current Emmy contenders I'd love to see them do one with:

Alan Ruck and Henry Winkler (Barry). Two actors who broke big as iconic 80s characters (Cameron Frye and The Fonz!) who made their careers in sitcoms only to get these new career defining roles in their 60s and 70s? Love it for them and for us and I feel like they'd be a lot of fun to watch.

Jeremy Strong and Rhea Seehorn (Better Call Saul). I couldn't tell you specifically why with these two, but I do think they've had some similarities career wise where they've been jobbing actors for such a long time and are both experiencing unmatched recognition and success in their 40s. I also think they're both really thoughtful actors who have real insight both into the interiority of their characters and the themes of their respective stories, and I just thinking getting to hear them talk would be neat.

Sarah Snook and Melanie Lynsky (Yellowjackets). I almost put Sarah with Rhea, but it feels almost too obvious, haha. Yellowjackets is a really different show to Succession, but I think there's this really interesting territory between the shows in terms of female rage, repression and survival that would be super ripe for discussion. Plus Sarah and Melanie both being antipodean - - it just feels right to me.

Kieran Culkin and Bill Hader (Barry). The comedy vs drama balance! The cycles of violence and trauma and the different outlets their characters have for that! Another opportunity for comical height difference! The convo would be great, I can feel it.

Matthew MacFadyen and Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso). This would be the most British Actors on Actors imaginable, haha, but they're another one who have interesting parallels personally and professionally, particularly being the children of performers (Matthew's mother was an actress and Hannah's an opera singer), and to talk about that along with the English theatre scene, which they're both very familiar with too, would be interesting, I think.

J Smith Cameron and Sheryl Lee Ralph (Abbott Elementary). I mean, who wouldn't want this one? Their respective backgrounds in theatre, their roles in formative 90s cinema (The First Wives Club! SIster Act 2!), both of them having paid their dues in a zillion one or two ep arcs on every imaginable procedural. I just love that.

Brian Cox and Harriet Walter (Succession / Ted Lasso). I mean, obviously, right?? We were robbed of more scenes with the two of them on the show, but the fact they've been acting with each other on stage since at least the 1980s is magic. Tell me everything, and also every headcanon you dreamt up about Logan and Caroline's relationship.

[malewifemanhunter]

Tag 9 people you'd like to know better~

@aanteater-nose thank youuuu and I'm sorry it took me this long, I've had this in the back of my mind for like a week lul

Three ships: macdennis (obviously, life consuming etc), zosan (from one piece), and idk what their ship name is but Jimmy and Kim (better call Saul)

First ship: either Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask, or Hiei and Kurama from Yu Yu Hakusho

Last song: She's so heavy by The Beatles (I've been listening to this song so much, I can't believe it was my latest one too lmao)

Last movie: M3gan (recommended by @stglennfucker I fucking loved it)

Currently reading: fanfics. I'm in a weird place where I feel like I can't commit to reading anything longer than 20k words

Currently watching: re-watching Friends or Sunny

Currently consuming: myself (:

Currently craving: purpose. if it's about food, some toasted bread with zacuscă 😩

Tagging (you of course say no <3)

@headgehug @officialbillhader @stglennfucker @mcdens @kathleenbrash27 @good-realtor-bad-realtor-dynamic @emodennis @literatigeek and the 9th @ is open for whoever else wants to do it <3

[aidansplaguewind]

What shows have you enjoyed recently, plaguewind? Have you watched The Last of Us?

I did watch The Last of Us and I played quite a bit of the game. To be honest I thought the show was just okay. It was a decent watch but by no means do I think it was AMAZING the way many people seem to think it is. But I think a lot of that is to do with the Pedro Pascal bandwagon that's going on right now. I mean, he's kinda cute from some angles but really? He's no Aidan.

A show that I do think is amazing is The Handmaid's Tale. And it is straight up better than the book it's based on. I've never had a show make me feel so many different things so passionately. The story is great, it keeps you on the edge of your seat. The acting is excellent. I can't think of a single person on that show who's acting falls short.

The vast majority of the shows I have really enjoyed are already over. I just finished Working Moms and I think it may have been the last season but I haven't googled it to find out. I'm a hard person to make laugh but that show makes me laugh. It's definitely one of the lighter things I watch. I prefer intense dramas and suspense.

I watched Succession and it's okay but all of the people on it are just atrocious. I don't consider any one of them a good person except maybe Cousin Greg.

I liked The Last Kingdom but it too just finished up with a movie. I liked Vikings up to a point. After Ragnar dies it only stays really interesting for a bit longer. To be honest I didn't finish it. It just wasn't holding my interest anymore.

I liked YOU but this last season was a let down. I didn't like season 4 at all. Is there going to be another season? Anyone know? I feel like I read that there was but the way season 4 ended it could have very well ended there.

I watch Stranger Things and it's a fun little watch. I've watched all of Euphoria. It's watchable but not amazing. I've watched all of Shadow & Bone so far. It's not bad. I've watched Bridgerton and I enjoyed it. It's fun and not too serious. I just recently watched both seasons of Sweet Tooth. It's corny and cheesy but it's also fun and cute. I liked Good Girls but I believe it was canceled. In The Dark, if it didn't canceled is alright. It held my interest when I had nothing else to watch. I did watch House of the Dragon, it's okay.

I'm trying to think. I watch so much shit this should be easy to answer but when asked I just go blank. I'm trying to think of stuff that is still on and not old and over.

Oh! I do love Outlander. However, I'm wondering how much life it still has in it before it starts to get repetitive and boring.

Oh I watched Rings of Power. The Sandman. Lucifer. Better Call Saul. The Crown.

I really do watch SO MUCH shit and I can't even think of it all. But some things that I watched that are over and have been over for a while but I thought were really good TV are Dexter, Shameless, DARK, Orange is the New Black, The Walking Dead (to a point), obviously Game of Thrones (to a point), Weeds, Breaking Bad and....I'm going blank again.

Oh and I watch a shit ton of True Crime documentaries and docuseries. I love a good serial killer story.

Crap this is long but yeah, I watch a lot of shit. If something gets people talking and starts to get a buzz around it, I'll usually watch it just to see what all the fuss is about. Sorry this got so long.

[fereldanwench]

Tag People You Want To Know Better!

Tagged by @corpocyborg--Thank you! 💙

Favorite Color: It kinda varies depending on context. Like most of my clothes are black or dark earth or jewel tones. My home office has a lot of mint green accents. Obviously I have a fondness for blue. 💙

Currently Reading: Just started Neuromancer by William Gibson

Last Song: Oh, man, I have no idea. Would have been something from my workout yesterday. Lash Out by Alice Merton, maybe?

Last Movie: John Wick 2

Last Series: Current show? Watching S4 of Succession. Also alternating between rewatching Better Call Saul and Roswell while being a bum playing Stardew Valley in bed

Sweet, Savory, or Spicy: Savory all the way. Love those salty, umami, rich flavors.

Craving: The weekend, lmao. Work has been exceptionally dreary and unfulfilling this week.

Tea or Coffee: Depends--I like a cup of kava tea before bed or ginger tea if my tummy is upsetty, but for a delicious pick-me-up? Coffee all the way. And I do drink more coffee than tea.

Currently Working On: In terms of creative stuff, I'm taking it easy. I try not to fight my natural ebb and flow of creativity, and right now just letting my brain recharge and process some stuff feels like what I need at the moment.

I do have some shots to edit, and I've wanted to do story sets for Goro and Valerie to cover events (both revisions of canon and totally new stuff) from the landfill to Down on the Street, so I think that's probably where I'll pick up again when I'm ready. Also been having the urge to do some traditional art--Some of that might be coming up soon, too.

Tagging @corphoe, @shadesofchaoticenergy, @valsilverhand, @theviridianbunny, and @wraithcaller 💙

[liskantope]

I finally got to the end of Better Call Saul a couple of weeks ago, dragging it out so that I only watched one episode a day and inserted a one-episode-a-day rewatching the entirety of Breaking Bad in-between the 9th and 10th episodes of the last season of BCS. So I've arrived a little late to this party, but here are a few scattered thoughts.

[Major spoilers for the ending of the series under the cut.]

For the most part, people around me were pretty good about not spoiling much about the ending even though I didn't announce to anyone that I was drawing out my watching until months after the final episode actually came out (it helps that, while a very popular show, BCS isn't quite at the level of Game of Thrones about which everyone had to post some kind of vague reaction on Facebook after each episode.) I did see someone on Tumblr write "poor Jimmy" and saw a few YouTube videos pop up which were discussions of the BCS ending and which showed the main character standing behind bars, so I had an idea that things weren't going to go well for Jimmy/Saul/Gene, that he was about to get his comeuppance and almost certainly wind up in prison. This hadn't fully occurred to me as an ending for Jimmy but at the same time somehow didn't actually feel like a major spoiler or a huge shock. The Breaking Bad finale was widely praised (and occasionally criticized) for leaving each character exactly in the place it felt like they were meant to be, and I knew that if BCS reprised this trend, well, prison (as opposed to death, or further sunk into a life of crime) is pretty obviously exactly where Jimmy/Saul belongs.

There's something that felt a little underwhelming for me about the last four episodes of BCS, taking place in the post- Breaking Bad black-and-white timeline, a sort of new simplicity to the story and a restriction in the creative possibilities for how everything would be wrapped up. This is understandable given that Howard is now gone, and between S6E9 and S6E10 of BCS, most of the interesting characters (including Mike, Gus, and the remaining Salamancas) meet their fates, and we're left really with only Kim as a character in Gene's life (or actually, no longer in it until he eventually manages to draw her back). I'm not sure what more the writers could have done; I certainly don't have any better idea. But something about the final part of the story pales in comparison to the intricate and meticulously-crafted ending for Walter White and the complex array of characters around him.

The ending of Jimmy's character arc can be summarized as follows: anti-hero gets in major trouble one final time; anti-hero displays the amazing powers that made him so enjoyable to watch, enabling him to come out victorious (i.e. Saul uses his arguing power to get his sentence down to 7.5 years); anti-hero redeems himself by surrendering anyway. This is satisfying in terms of watching Jimmy wind up where we want him to end up, but less so in terms of keeping us at the edge of our seats watching a less trodden-on path unfold for our anti-hero. I'll just say that it feels like this type of path has been done quite a bit before, although the only example that comes to mind right now is Luke Skywalker, hardly even an anti-hero, showing us that he's attained enough skill with the Force to defeat Darth Vader in battle but then giving himself up to the mercy of Vader and the Emperor -- we get to have our cake and eat it too, by seeing Luke demonstrate being a total badass but then morally rising above it so that the good in him ultimately triumphs.

In the case of Jimmy, I found it slightly predictable (I knew something was up as soon as he declared that he had something much juicier to testify to about Howard Hamlin's death, and I guessed that maybe somehow he was setting things up to flip things around by redeeming himself), and I wish there had been some kind of bigger, cleverer, more elaborate set-up where we might have a concrete idea of Jimmy being up to something even more evil to get himself out of even the reduced sentence, only to find that we the audience were tricked. It also came across, in some aspects of the dialog, that Jimmy was confessing mainly just to impress Kim, or to get her back in his life and on his side, which doesn't feel quite like true redemption (although shouldn't having good people in our life and on our side be something each of us value highly as part of a virtuous life? One can still argue that).

My biggest criticism of the last season has to do with Jimmy's final transformation into Saul just before the old timeline breaks and the Breaking Bad timeline begins: in Episode 9, I just really didn't like how abruptly we switched from Jimmy/Saul pleading with Kim not to break up with him to full-on-Saul in full Saul mode. It felt like one moment he's protesting that Kim shouldn't break up with him and then next moment he's paying a hooker. I wanted to watch that final stage of the transformation happen -- Kim was the main thing tying Jimmy to humanity, the face of the best side of Jimmy's character, and it was more or less literally stated (in the Season 5 desert sequence) that she was the only thing he lived for. So we should have gotten to see how utterly broken Jimmy must have been with her gone and exactly how this led him slipping down a path to becoming completely heartless and soulless later on. Instead we cut straight from very-corrupted-but-still-basically-human-and-a-protagonist Jimmy to completely-empty-and-unlikable Saul with literally nothing given to us in between, leaving me to have to speculate on what Jimmy went through in the wake of the break-up and to infer what made him go from man to zombie.

This bothered me a lot after watching Episode 9 and, months later when I went back and watched the final four episodes, I was glad to see that this was very briefly addressed by Jimmy's confession in the final episode: "I'm the one who ran away", although I needed to see that scene a second time to understand in this line he was referring to his choice to sink blindly into his Saul persona at the end of Episode 9. Vince Gilligan also explained it very well at this point in this linked interview. But I think we should have gotten to see it for ourselves, to acutely feel his pain and emptiness. It's arguably the single most important, pivotal point in his transformation, even more significant than losing his brother, and I still hate that it was completely skipped over.

Another minor point: when a fictional character has a change of heart, I'm used to being able to directly see the moment when this change occurs; maybe I missed something and just need to re-watch, but in the finale of BCS I'm just not clear on when this happens (is it when Jimmy/Saul is on the plane, between the two conversations with his lawyer about Kim and Howard?).

But, while I can criticize as much as I like, it was still a great ending to a great show. I don't think I'll ever quite fall into the "Breaking Bad was the best TV show ever made, but Better Call Saul turned out to be even better!" camp, but BCS sure did manage to hold its own.

[laufire]

Have you watched breaking bad?

I've watched... circa three and a half seasons? I got back into it after I started watching Better Call Saul with my father (I haven't finished that one either). I can't remember what last happened in either of them, if I'm honest; it's been months. they're obviously well-made shows on all the technical levels, I appreciate them a lot while I watch them, and there's a handful of great character in each show. but I don't continue thinking about them when I'm done, so you'll rarely, if ever, see much about them here.

[onyxisnotuniqueenough]

i wasn't tagged in anything and will not tag anyone - partake if you want :)

(i saw @pastafossa 's post and just. removed the questions i didn't want to answer)

do you use sarcasm a lot? yes. more so irl i guess. am i sarcastic on here??

what's the first thing you notice about people? their teeth, skin/makeup and their hair

what's your eye colour? not-pools-of-honey-in-the-sunlight brown

scary movies or happy endings? i really like old horror movies because more modern ones are just. sad. and disgusting. like i'm not scared i just get sad for the people who die or whose lives get ruined.

and as for happy endings, depends on the movie - if it's a rom-com or a drama happy endings make me sad too, because. i am me

but i like them in corny comedies or animated ones. i don't know. sorry but this kind of a stupid question just ask for a favorite genre ( i don't have one)

also no one asked but what i hate the most in the horror genre is when a character gets zombified or gets controlled or literally reduced to slavery. like human centipede, tusk or something. probably why i hate what happens to jesse pinkman as much as i do. there is nothing more sad and nauseating and horrible than that

any special talents? my special talent is always finding a way to ruin my own life for myself for no reason

what are your hobbies? drawing, writing, sculpting, posting as an rp account of characters in one of my fav shows...

have any pets? i have had multiple cats in my life but currently no

what sports do you play/have played? let's not dwell on the past

how tall are you? what height am i giving. do i post like a tall person?

favourite subject in school?  french system so i guess french is the equivalent to when other people say "English". like literature. and PHILOSOPHY AAHHH. does theater count as a subject

dream job? none of these are realistic but actor, writer, film/tv writer, creating my own animated show...there's a lot of things i wish i could do.

but if i get realistic? i hope i can get away with being a lawyer maybe? but that obviously takes a lot of dedication and it's, from what i know, that kind of job that become your entire life. if that makes sense

honestly even a 9-5 job would be okay if i have enough free time to do something cooler on the side.

i have no idea where my life is going and yes, i am terrified

three ships: i've never shipped anyone i think

last song: heart attack (rock version) - demi lovato. this song is really cool and nostalgic but i just wish that it wasn't about having a normal crush and how you want to hold their hand. with this kind of drama and power in your vocals it would've been better if the subject was a little deeper

last movie: Scooby-Doo! And Kiss: Rock and Roll Mystery (not kidding)

currently reading: my own tumblr posts to cringe at myself (i miss having the time and attention-span to actually read)

currently watching: better call saul (yk i'm on my brba - bcs rewatch. i talk about it too much)

currently consuming: not consuming just watching that unfinished cup of coffee from afar. i could grab it and finish but

currently craving: finishing my very-late assignments

[llycaons]

The way I literally made a post about how catholic people are and how they talk about Jimmy and Kim's endings on Better Call Saul... people truly and honestly think that the show that constantly criticized law and the judicial system to the point of showing Kim and Jimmy at their best when they helped people getting out of sentences...

Like, people honestly and truly only see punishment as the only way! When the show was obviously hinting at Jimmy and Kim going for redemption of the mistakes they made... even more with the Better Call Saul scene with the other inmates...

People should be going to pray a rosary instead of watching shows with complex views of morality...

oh I completely believe that. I've seen a lot of posts myself that I don't really agree with...I do not want to hear a single thing catholics say about morally complicated media. or (unrelated) about non-western or non-christian media at all tbh. the handling of morality/guilt/redemption in cdramas is so refreshing to me in comparison. if you have that post of yours handy, I'd love to read it

I was a little let down that the show didn't do more, and I definitely would have liked to see more of saul helping others with their expertise rather than attaining personal redemption by confessing, but I agree that the show has been nuanced about the prison system so far...still think the evidence for saul himself helping people in the inside was a bit weak compared to kim

but the other inmates cheering on saul was very heartwarming (even if I definitely did not understand it the first time lol) and kim volunteering at the free legal office was such a wonderful step forward for her character compared to how she's just been forcing herself into this dull life where she does nothing and helps nobody and has no opinions at all, and I actually do agree that confession was the right step. not for kim, but since cheryl deserved to know.

it's also such a tragedy that kim stepped away from the law at all when she helped so many people. arguably she did more harm than good by leaving the law, but she really felt it was the only decision she could have made, huh.

[ponett]

are you caught up on better call saul? if so, what do you think so far?

yeah, i've been watching it as it comes out and still enjoying it a ton. this season has definitely been a slow burn so far (aside from a certain plot thread in the first three episodes, obviously - my mouth was agape at how that resolved), but i think that really serves to build up this sense of dread for what's coming. everyone's constantly looking over their shoulder waiting for lalo to act, and you know that whatever happens it's not going to be good for anyone involved. and of course it's a beautifully shot slow burn, as it always has been

i also find it interesting that jimmy hasn't really felt like the main character driving the story so far, but that feels intentional to me, at least right now. he's certainly still a key player, but it feels like aside from helping out with the big scheme to take howard down a peg he's kind of coasting along while events happen around him. he's not even taking all that much joy in the scheme compared to how he'd act in previous seasons. it's like after everything that happened last season he's just given in to his sad fate. meanwhile kim's been the real key player against howard, and i'm naturally very worried about what's gonna happen to her. (not worried in a "the show is going to get bad" way but in a "oh no this is going to hurt" way)

i do feel like the writers are pushing how cute they can get with the overt breaking bad prequel stuff, though, but only a little. it's always been an element of the show, but i think it stands as a truly great prequel because of how much of it stands on its own, rather than trying to explain things you remember from breaking bad that didn't need explanation. (the amount of time spent on the construction of the superlab in season 4 gets brought up a lot as the most egregious example, but i'm expecting there to be more payoff for that given how much it and the werner ziegler stuff are coming up again this season.) but as we get closer and closer to the events of breaking bad that's inevitably happening more and more. usually little things that make me roll my eyes, like kim coming up with the "i fight for you, albuquerque" slogan, although other times they surprise me with something clever, like the thing with the vet in the latest episode that i didn't see coming. but a more charitable read is that the breaking bad nods contribute to that sense of dread, that even if it's seemed like there's still that faint glimmer of hope for jimmy to escape his fate you still know exactly what's coming for him, which they've been playing off of since the very start with the flash forwards to omaha

overall i'm very excited to see where this is going, especially with all the stuff with howard looking like it's gonna come to a head next week at the midpoint of the season

[septembersghost]

my beloved @fancykraken tagged me! 💖

1. Why did you choose your url?

so, i've technically had six urls through my tumblr history, but the most consistent and important one sits in quiet mausoleum-like reverence because i was only going to be here temporarily (lol), and didn't want to reclaim it, and didn't feel right going back to that blog. alas, here we are. (and now there's an added weight to it because we exist in a world without stephen sondheim.)

when i secretly made this blog in early 2020, i was on a Romantics kick and had borrowed "melodious" from Keats in Ode to a Nightingale (thou, light-winged Dryad of the trees/In some melodious plot/Of beechen green, and shadows numberless/Singest of summer in full-throated ease) because i wanted something music-themed, and "ghost" obviously from my constant theme of being a ghost girl who is herself a haunted house, but it never felt "right," and for some reason i didn't like the way ~melodious~ looked the longer i sat with it, so i switched it to "septembers," because almost all of my urls have begun with an -S, and because it's my birth month, and tied subtly to dean (my birthday being pilot anniversary day on the 13th, then the significance of september 18th). i am quite attached to september in general outside of that, and thus septembersghost felt very much like an accurate depiction of me.

2. Any side blogs?

not here, no, though i have a couple of urls saved despite the fact that i'd never use them.

3. How long have you been on tumblr?

off and on since 2011.

4. Do you have a queue tag?

the very boring "q," i used to always have cute personalized ones (almost all were musical theatre lyric-based) but was too lazy to do that here asdsajkfdh

5. Why did you start your blog in the first place?

i started my original blog literally because of bonnie, whomst did tag me in this post, and because so many people from LJ were migrating here (hilariously, i also started my LJ in 2004 because of bonnie...alexa, play "every breath you take." BLAME HER FOR MY INTERNET PRESENCE! 😂). this one i started in 2020 "just in case"/to lurk (interestingly, for taylor and penny dreadful and better call saul, not at all for spn), but then 15x18 happened and i had...a bit of a hard time...and realized i couldn't handle enduring the last two episodes of that alone after suffering and engaging for fifteen years. (little did i know how MUCH i wouldn't be able to handle it?) so i crept back to spend those final weeks here and never left.

6. Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

because i love her and she IS SO IMPORTANT TO ME and i wanted to mix it up a little. something yet remains.

7. Why did you choose your header?

"are there still beautiful things?" is like...the eternal beating question of my heart. seven in general, with the themes of haunting and memory and the sorrow in nostalgia and grief in love and stories being passed on even when you can't recall every moment or detail. that's my whole essence. also, pink.

8. What’s your post with the most notes?

that quote of jennifer carpenter's...you don't understand. she was talking about haunting HIM? but now she haunts ME. the intensity of the irony now considering that i posted it for my own reference, it was the very first dexter-related post i made here (i didn't even have a tag for the show! i didn't think i'd ever be able to watch that show AGAIN! i'm happy i was wrong, paul rudd look at us.gif), i thought it would be relevant to like three people so i didn't source it in the caption, and the gothic horror tumblrinas got hold of it and it took on a life of its own. i like to pretend that revival never happened and was a very poorly constructed bad dream, and i have to ignore the rest of that interview by extension, but girlie really tapped into the other side when she said that.

9. How many mutuals do you have?

i have no idea but 💛💛💛

10. How many followers do you have?

354, i was at like 395 but then the great bot clearance happened. i am teensy, but once upon a time i had over 1200 and that was a lot. seeing the number bon put on this gives me anxiety omg

11. How many people do you follow? 133

12. Have you ever made a shit post?

maybe? i'm not sure what qualifies as that.

13. How often do you use tumblr a day?

sometimes a lot, even if i'm only here for like five minutes at a time. sometimes i'm not here at all and it's just my queue running ghostily for me, it depends how i'm feeling illness-wise from day to day.

14. Did you ever have a fight/argument with another blog?

an actual fight, no. minor disagreements, yes, being falsely accused of something and having to defend myself to complete strangers, yes, and the zany hate messages which were all one-sided beef from anons who think hating on my faves is a power trip? 🥴

15. How do you feel about the ‘you need to reblog’ posts?

Hate them even if they’re something that is important and with good information. If you add that then I will not reblog them. <- this. it's an unnecessary guilt trip and distracts from whatever information or message is being given.

16. Do you like tag games?

I do! Even if I forget to complete them I still appreciate being thought of. <- this too!!! 🥺

17. Do you like ask games?

i never do them because i'm shy and anxious and also think no one will send any of them to me lol

18. Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

i don't know if any of them are tumblr "famous"? (are any of you secretly internet celebrities and holding out on me?! 👀) but one of the nice things about tumblr is how that absolutely does not matter here. we can support each other and enjoy one another's content whether we have 12 followers or 12,000 and that's cozy. you're all stars to meeee

19. Do you have a crush on a mutual?

i do not, but i'd hold your hands and kiss your foreheads and wrap you in blankets no matter what.

20. Tags!

i am not tagging anyone because this is long and i talk too much, but please feel free to take it and tag me in it if you do so that i can see your answers! 🥰

[sob-dylan]

Do you think Vince and Peter will address stuff like Saul harassing Francesca in BB or they will try to ignore it? i've read a theory that he knew he was being watched so he tried to play a part (also i noticed that BCS has way less racist and sexist jokes than breaking bad which. good)

That’s a really good question, and the answer is: I have no fucking clue. I hope they do! As much as I love him, I’m a little worried about Vince Gilligan being back in the writer’s room for season 6, (he hasn’t been all that involved with the show since season 2). Vince seems more willing to let things go unanswered. He’s repeatedly told Peter throughout the run of the show “you don’t have to answer every question, ya know!” e.g. Who’s this guy Saul’s so afraid of when Walt and Jesse kidnap him? Vince pushed back for a long time on introducing Lalo. (Ironically, I think El Camino answered too many questions, but that’s a whole other diatribe). 

What makes these shows great is that they’re so character-driven. I think the fact that there are fewer racist/sexist jokes in Better Call Saul than Breaking Bad has a little to do with the times in which they’re written, but more to do with the fact that there’s no one to tell them in BCS. Who’s gonna tell them? It wouldn’t really fit for any of the "villains” of the show. In the legal plot lines, Howard and Chuck certainly wouldn’t. The cartel is pretty homogenous, so in those plot lines the only opportunity for shit like that has come in the form of Hector and Lalo making homophobic remarks about Gus. The two characters that were primarily responsible for all the off-color jokes in BrBa were Hank and Saul. It’s uncomfortable to watch, but I think that Hank’s racism/sexism was significant to the narrative because it’s one possible answer to the question “what makes a man?” (That being said, they didn’t have to do as much as they did). Obviously a major theme throughout BrBa is masculine pride. When Walt’s ready to pack it in in season 4 (?), Gus gets him to stay by appealing to his sense of masculinity-- “what does a man do? A man provides.” Hank’s ostentatiously vulgar brand of masculinity is meant to act as a foil to Walt’s. Walt regularly feels threatened by Hank’s machismo and his ability to provide when he can’t (specifically when Hank acts as a strong male role model for Walter Jr.), but Walt is able to maintain a sense of superiority because Hank’s overt prejudices and crass attitude allow Walt to paint him as provincial and uneducated. Of course, Walt has plenty of his own prejudices, but either he doesn’t recognize them or sees them as completely justified. 

The point of Saul’s attitude, however, is a little harder to pin down. I don’t think it initially had much of a point. I think they liked the idea of a scumbag, ambulance-chasing lawyer so that’s exactly what they wrote. The fact that they cast a comedian like Bob Odenkirk just meant they could lean even harder into those attributes. They were having fun writing a scumbag, and illustrating that Walt was really getting mixed up with the wrong people at this point. It wasn’t that deep. But now, because of BCS, it is that deep! Jimmy’s still got a long way to go before he becomes Saul Goodman. The tricky thing is, we don’t how much of the Saul Goodman we see in BrBa is a performance (check this out). The idea of Saul knowing he’s being watched when he harasses Francesca sounds far-fetched to me. I also think it’d be very unsatisfying to learn that most of Saul’s despicable behavior is just an act. The whole series is based around the question “how does Jimmy become Saul?” They can’t end it by saying “jk he never actually became Saul he was just doing that all for show.” Saul has to be more than a mask that Jimmy wears.

TL;DR: I’m not saying anything remotely new here. I don’t think they’ll specifically address Saul harassing Francesca, but they’ll show how he becomes the kind of person who would do that. 

[breatheeasyart]

6-20-22

Though I've only made two posts thus far, I've spent several days wondering exactly what I plan to do with this page. I know I want it to be a journal--obviously-- but I wasn't sure what sort of content I want to post.

I'm finally starting to figure it out though. Get this-- I'm going to talk about the feelings I'e had throughout the day. Crazy thought, isn't it? A real eureka moment for me. I think what I really mean, is that I understand the point of a journal. Of course, you're supposed to write about your day so far, but more specifically, you're supposed to write about events and how they made you feel-- and whether you want to experience them again or not; what you would do different if you could. Anyway, time to get into it.

--

Today went surprisingly well. When I look back on today, the first thing that boosted my mood was the fact I woke up at ~945am. Considering I usually wake up at 1pm due to my night owl schedule, I was pleasantly surprised to wake up during the morning time-- well rested no less. No dreams tonight, but I'm sure my brain was working over time.

I finally made some progress on my art work. As it turns out, burdening myself with these marathon 3 to 4 hour drawing sessions isn't very good for my brain chemistry. I really only need about 15 minutes at a time to get things going. In truth, I think I've been desensitized to how long 15 minutes actually is. I managed to completely one piece of art, and draw two decently polished sketches over the course of three fifteen minute sessions. Furthermore, I feel like the day was extremely productive, even if I spent much of it watching 'Better Call Saul'. Fantastic show by the way, I really hope that some friends in my circle settle down long enough to watch it.

--

I'e noticed myself enjoying ideas that my girlfriends offers-- ideas that I previously shut down as silly or not very good. I hate that I did it, especially considering I'm just as creative and eccentric as they are. I need to work on building up their ideas more, it would be nice for them to hear that they aren't being silly sometimes. I don't know why it's hard for me to be supportive, not just to them but in general.

=

The housing situation has been pretty good too. The house is mostly clean for when my girlfriend will come down, though I'm a little uncertain about the relationship I have with one of my roommates. It feels divided for some reason. Perhaps it's my fault? Theirs? I can't be quite certain.In truth, the friendship is no different than any of the others I have in the house-- though perhaps that's why it's so odd. We've known each other for over a decade now and it doesn't feel any more or less friendly. In retrospect it's not worth dwelling on much, if it's ever a problem I'm sure it'll get addressed at some point.

--

Father's Day was yesterday. I indifferent to the holiday. My feelings baout my father always seem to bounce back and forth between 'apologetically nice' to ''melancholy'. It doesn't feel like it's a relationship that'll ever get solved. In part, it's because I'm not really sure if it's my mother or my father who's at fault for how things turned out. I really don't seem to have either of them in an intimate manner. Life feels like it's about monetary progress or accolades more than it is about family-- not to say that the latter attributes are bad things... I want those things too. I just don't know how I wish to go about it. Art is my obvious choice-- but will it really make them proud? Does it really matter if I love art anyway? I suppose it doesn't.

A part of me just wants a group that I can enjoy these holidays with my own way-- hell, perhaps we can make our own holidays to celebrate; that would be nice.

-B Easy.

[ocalaghan]

Just my usual end of TV show round-up, this time for Better Call Saul. <3

Better Call Saul was better than Breaking Bad for me. The only downside being no Jesse. But it was just soooooo fucking good and I'm so sad it's over (and sour asf they never won any Emmys!!! THEY WERE ROBBED!!!).

I think it ended pretty perfectly. All the years I've been watching it, I had no idea how I wanted it to end or how it was going to end but it makes the most sense that Jimmy finally got caught.

My boyfriend thought he was going to die in the final episode, especially after the foreshadowing of his silhouette in the grave in the episode that Jesse and Walt guest-starred. But I thought that, combined with the final episode being called Saul Gone, was more a hint that Saul was going to die, not Jimmy. I'm really glad I was right because I would've been mad if he died lmao. Watching him put Saul to bed in the courtroom with Kim watching was just... chef's kiss. Admitting his guilt in his brother's death. Absolving Kim. Just. YES. Obviously his fellow inmates referred to him as Saul, knew him as Saul, but the Saul we knew and that Jimmy carefully crafted was gone.

I was also scared I was going to hate Jimmy by the end, much like Walt, but thankfully it didn't go that way.

I like to think that Kim will continue to visit him. Not all the time, but now and then. I love her so much, just want her to be happy. And hopefully she is happy in her very mundane life with her new man... and that Jimmy's input in the courtroom means she won't get successfully sued to within an inch of her life lmao. I think she'll be amazing volunteering at the pro bono legal firm. I had fears that maybe she would die in the final season but I kept thinking it hopefully can't be true because I think Jimmy would have lost the will to live if Kim had died. I would've rioted if they killed off Kim too tbh.

As for Jimmy, I guess the options are die in prison or submit an appeal and maybe he gets out early. Maybe he gets out on good behaviour. But his life in jail didn't look like it was going to be too awful for him; the other prisoners seemed to have a lot of respect for him so at least he's got that going.

The final season was just excellent in every way. I loved every second of seeing Mike. Lalo was an incredible villain. Nacho was BEAUTIFUL and I am so sad he died but I knew it was going to happen. And I fully screamed when Howard got shot, didn't see that coming.

Literally want to talk about this for hours but FUCK WHAT A SHOW.

Perfect conclusion to the Breaking Bad universe.