#i dunno how necessary this scene actually is

[emry-stars-art]

When the guy you’re desperately trying not to crush on even though he refuses to speak to you anymore tears into the homophobic pastor on campus and it is, against all your better judgement, kinda hot

(More modern college au floaty ideas)

[kingkatsuki]

is it completely selfish to wanna see togame and endo both tryna teach sakura at the same time…. they’d be so toxic w it….

You would not survive.

Warnings: 18+, squirting, Endo is mean, praise, degradation, Endo and Sakura finger fuck you at the same time.

“Should you even be trying to teach him when you don’t even know where the clit is?” Togame drawls from his position on the couch, hands stuffed into his shishitoren jacket as he watches both men hunched over your naked form.

“Do you have a mute switch?” Endo sneers, glaring back at him before he brings his attention back to you.

There’s something so lewd about being completely naked in a room full of clothed men that has a heat flooding directly to your cunt, your neglected clit throbs desperate and hungry for attention as you whine pathetically. They’re talking about you as though you’re not even here, and despite seeing you like this on more than one occasion, Sakura can’t bear to look at you.

“I dunno how the fuck you managed to pull such a hot girlfriend when you don’t even know where her clit is—” Endo scoffed, his thumbs spread you open as he watches the pretty webs of slick snap off between you.

“You don’t know where it is either, apparently.” Togame chuckled to himself as he shifted his position on the couch, spreading his thighs apart as his cock pulsed with need beneath his thick sweats.

“Do you ever shut the fuck up?” Endo growled, “I hate cocky backseat drivers.”

“I’m pretty certain I’d have made her cum twice by now.” Togame tossed his head back against the couch in laughter.

“With the speed you move? I doubt it.”

Endo’s fingers are rough as he strokes them through your folds, collecting some of your leaking slick on his fingers as he feels for what he’s looking for— knowing the moment he finds it when you jolt beneath him, before he gives Sakura a smug grin.

“Found it,” He practically coos, uncharacteristically so as he begins to press rough persistent circles into it, “Am I touching her here before you have?”

“No!” Sakura shouts, probably louder than necessary, “I’ve touched her — there — before too.”

“Yeah? Did you make her cum?”

Sakura was positive that he had, I mean— you seemed to like it at the time, didn’t you? And you hadn’t told him otherwise— but he was positive he’d never seen you look like this before, completely dishevelled and at their mercy.

“Yeah, of course I did—” He blushed, “Lots.”

Endo’s fingers felt like they were kneading your clit as his pressure increased, clearly trying to get you towards your climax hard and fast without trying to find out how you actually liked to be touched.

“He’s being so rough isn’t he, sweetheart?” Togame cooed as he sat down beside you, pressing a lingering kiss to your temple before pressing two thick digits against your pouty lips, watching you open your mouth to wrap your tongue around them as all three men ogled the scene, “Let’s see if this is any better, yeah?”

Togame knocks Endo’s hand away easily as he presses his spit soaked fingers against your sensitive nub, circling it gently with far less pressure compared to Endo.

“Who the fuck do you think you are?” Endo’s filthy mouth sneered, and it did nothing to satiate the heat swiftly building inside you, “Why are you even here?”

“Well, someone has to make her cum— isn’t that right, sweetheart?” Togame cooed, ignoring Endo in favour of you. His delicate touch has you writhing beneath him as you roll your hips into his touch with a whine, trying to give yourself more stimulation as your cunt continues to drool.

“I don’t think thats enough for her,” Endo smirks, plunging three thick digits inside you without warning, stealing the air from your lungs as your mouth parts in a desperate groan, “See— she likes it rough, don’tcha you little freak.”

You weren’t even sure if that was a rhetorical question as you mewled in response, toes curling as Endo continued to bicker with Togame before he brought his attention to your sheepish boyfriend.

“Have you ever kissed her down here, Sakura?” Togame smiles, watching the way Sakura’s cheeks turn a violent red as he tries to form a coherent response. Certain his heart will give out before he makes it there—

“K-kissed, what— where?”

“Her pretty little clit,” Togame splits his fingers into a v-shape to pull the hood of your clit back, showing Sakura the swollen nub as he waits for his answer. Tapping the tip of his middle finger against it as you arch your back into his touch, your body hungry and desperate for more while your mind screamed that it was far too much— too intense.

“He clearly hasn’t,” Endo scoffs, curling his fingers as you thrash beneath him. This was all becoming far too much.

“Why don’t you give it a try, hm?” Togame smiled.

And before Sakura can even decide, Endo’s hand is rough against the base of his skull as he forces his head down between Togame’s parted fingers to smash his lips against your puffy clit.

“Oh my god.” Your toes curl as your body jolts, the moan that leaves your throat is debauched as all three men groan in tandem. Sakura’s tongue peeks out to lap at your clit and it’s enough to have your entire body quivering as you feel hot tears begin to clump in your lashes.

“Calling my name already, pretty girl?” Endo sneers, his other hand still knuckle deep as he fucks his fingers into you with reckless abandon, “She’s so sensitive—”

“Bet she looks so pretty when she cums too.” Togame smiles, keeping your folds spread open as Sakura laps at your clit.

“Whoever makes her cum the hardest gets to stick it in first.” Endo’s crude words have you clenching down around him, “Oh? You like the sound of that, little slut—”

“Don’t call her that!” Sakura’s brows are furrowed as he pulls away from your clit, his hand balled into a fist and ready to swing.

“Why not? She liked it, didn’t you pretty girl?” He laughs, “Clamped down on me so fuckin’ hard when I said it too, feel for yourself.”

Endo doesn’t even care his fingers are covered in you as he reaches for Sakura’s wrist, smearing your slick against his wrist as he pushes two of Sakura’s fingers inside you.

“Show him how much you like being our dirty little slut, huh?” And this time, Sakura feels the way you throb around him at the mean words— causing him to wonder if this was something you’d always liked and he hadn’t known?

“See, she loves it.” Endo doesn’t miss a beat as he’s pushing his own fingers back inside you to settle beside Sakura’s. Curling them back up into position as he encourages your boyfriend to do the same, Togame’s fingers already poised back in place against your clit as all three men work you towards your climax.

You tilt your head to glance down at the men between your thighs as you notice Endo has pulled his sweats down just enough to free his thick, heavy cock as he fists himself in tandem with his fingers fucking into you. The sight enough to have you moaning out loud as you throb around their digits.

“I’m surprised you’re that cocky when you’ve only got that hanging between your thighs.” Togame muses.

“Oh yeah? Why don’t you come and get a closer look, pretty boy.”

You haven’t even seen Togame’s cock yet, but you knew it was big. Enough to show even when it was soft beneath the sweats he always preferred to wear, the thought of how he looked hard had your stomach in knots. You’re certain you’re gonna pass out, curling your fingers into the soft fabric of Togame’s sweats as you feel your climax chasing you hard and fast.

“Feel that? She’s gonna cum already—” Endo grinned.

An unfamiliar sensation began to build in your pelvis, as you felt a harsh throb begin to emanate from your bladder. Trying to move your fingers down to push their hands away but Togame was quick to hold your hand in his, lacing your fingers together gently as he gave you a soft smile that hid his true depraved intentions.

“Just let it happen, sweetheart,” He murmured, “Just let go.”

And you did. Your orgasm crashed through you like a freight train, your eyes rolling back as clear streams of squirt began to spurt from your hole. Made worse by Togame’s frantic hand against your clit as the stream splashed everywhere. Against wrists, forearms and faces as Sakura pulled his wrist back in shock—

“Are you fuckin’ stupid?” Endo snarled, adding another finger to make four as he resumed his rough thrusting to make up for the loss of Sakura, “Why’d you fuckin’ stop?!”

“She peed.” Sakura blushed awkwardly, and yet he sat mystified at the scene in front of him.

“That’s not pee, Sakura,” Togame grinned, “You just made her squirt.”

“S-squirt?” His heart was hammering against his chest, the room entirely too hot as he watched more of the clear liquid spill from your hole and dribble onto the floor beneath you. His cock throbbed beneath his jeans as he splayed a palm against it in a feeble attempt to satiate the ache.

“Yeah, it’s hot right?” Togame slapped your clit softly as you jerked beneath him, twisting your body so your head was resting on one of his muscular thighs as you tried to regain your breath.

“Finally something we agree on.” Endo glared, deliberately moving his fingers in a way to have your cunt making the sloppiest sounds.

“Okay, new game.” Togame gives you a lazy smile, pressing a kiss to your forehead as though giving you an obligatory apology, “First one to make her squirt again gets to fuck her first.”

[iamnotshazam]

i saw the LotR films before ever reading the books and i love both. i turn now more to the books than the movies for enjoyment.

but i also feel like the three movies just. fucken. cracked it out of the park with some important things and i had NO idea how good i had it as a little nerd delving into the extended edition dvd extras. if i were a fan in the gritty-obsessed 90's hearing rumors of these movies, i would have expected at best stuff like: B-list acting that occasionally broke through with honest emotions. some skilled costuming and weaponry popping up in important scenes but mostly just knock-off viking opera aesthetic. homebrew DND imagery that made it painfully obvious by contrast which scenes they actually spent money on the set design and dressing.

and WETA and New Line and everyone on this!!! they did NOT accept lower standards cause it was fantasy! everyone else would have. This was genre filmmaking, this would have been perceived at the time as more like How the Grinch Stole Christmas than a Cecil B Demille-level epic movie. And the costuming department, composer, propsmaster and set designer all said "NO" and put their whole pussies behind it!

Jesus Christ the quality in those movies! Ian McKellan has undershirts like Gandalf the White might have! Bernard Hill has realistic quilted padding underlayers all made in the style a Rohirrim tailor and armorer would have made! Minas Tirith has a rat catcher because someone took a doodle and decided that would make sense in the lived reality of a massive city! Movie makers do not usually do this. It is NEVER about what isnt seen or necessary for the shot. You are judged professionally not by if you can cut corners in order to help production and still seem good, but by HOW MUCH.

I cannot blame anyone who worked on the Amazon series in the hands-on creative roles because the results are what they have been trained to do. Blame executives. Blame executives! Of course chainmail is going to be, i dunno, plastic or sewn into the edges of costumes if you dont have the money or time for real chain mail! And because it cannot be overstated how unusual the LotR trilogy filmmaking process must have been. It's like being given an average lower middle class family grocery budget and told to make a fancy Christmas dinner for 20 all by yourself with no help versus having a trained staff, a blank check, and Martha Stewart on retainer. That's not an exaggeration. That's the rhetorical gulf that someone (Valar BLESS them) in the bureaucracy had to wade across to convince execs to buy into the details. The Lord of the Rings movies are WEIRD.

And it shows. Bookfans bitch about the story changes, the balrog wings, the characterization differences. (Denethor was a reasonable person and even outsider Pippin could see he was very admirable to the people of Gondor, which made it sooooo much creepier when he suddenly snapped but i digress) but NEVER about the music. the filming locations. the set designs. the costumes. the props. the things that i really think count the most to help invest people in a different world!

No one ever complains about taking out the scene where Rohan is summoned to Gondor's aid with the Red Arrow, because yeah they could have made it work, they made the importance of other props like Andúril and, oh yeah, the One Ring very clear, but they had a better idea.

The beacons.

The beacons were not in the book.

Not in the same way, really, because while incredible to think about the narrative style was close third person, and you cannot follow beacons to rhapsodize about them when you're a tired hobbit getting saddle sore crossing national borders with a grumpy old wizard. Pippin sees the Beacons of Gondor at a distance when he's falling asleep and Gandalf tells him they're a mustering signal within Gondor. Which makes sense, really, they require some upkeep and would be awkward for two nations to negotiate how to handle - nevermind. That's it. That's all the beacons are in the text.

Someone adapting the script saw a moment that was ho-hum in the book but realized ! 💡⚡️That would look really great on camera! And it is now routinely listed as one of the most important cinematic moments of anything, ever.

There are so many things I still want to ask Peter Jackson, "Why???" but the original trilogy movies overall? Work. They work and they do more than work, they helped elevate an entire artform that I don't honestly know that much about and oh god i usually dont ramble about them like this im embarassed is this already acknowledged in tumblr tolkien circles? or are we just split into different little fandoms in order to keep the peace?

[neko-loogi]

Heeeyy, I'm back with a new Helluva Boss opinion post thingy

Okay so, the Mammon episode- it was alright I guess? Tbh it didn't strike me as super awesome or anything, it's just kinda there?

Anyway, let's talk about it a little bit!

So I wanted to start off with Mammon himself, I'm gonna be honest I don't hate him but I don't like him either. I'll admit I do actually like his voice, I'm sure y'all might find it annoying but I dunno, I like his accent and the way he talks is kinda funny. His design tho? Eh, it could use some work.

For instance, his eyes are weird, like every time he was on screen my first thought was always: "Wow, he looks like Robin from TTG". I also hate how he's shaped like your typical "fat" character from cartoons. But for some reason they decided to give him skinny arms but a round body. He's weirdly disproportionate, which is disappointing because they definitely could make a better plus sized character design. But oh well, knowing Viv, she wouldn't even try.

I will admit his true demon form is kinda cool, except that I actually thought he was going to be a caterpillar or something but he's a spider? I swear, Viv has some weird design choices.

Moving on, the episode was cluttered as hell. It had way too much stuff in it, which made the episode feel eternal. Not only that but the episode has 4 songs.. FOUR FUCKING SONGS- When will Viv realize that not every HB episode needs a song? Like is this shit an animated series or a fucking musical? Make up your mind Viv-

Anyway, I'm glad this episode focuses on Fizz, but his character did feel a bit off in certain scenes, but aside from that everything else was fine. (I found that scene of Fizz talking to the deaf imp child while using sign language to be very endearing).

Alright, I'mma point out a few other things real quick:

Ozzie's relationship with Fizz is absolutely adorable and I love them so much. However I don't understand why they portray their relationship as a bad thing? Like, fucking Queen Bee is dating Vortex (who's a hellhound, and they are a lower class than imps) and nobody says anything and she's a sin- so why can't Ozzie do the same??

I also happen to noticed that Fizz and Mammon's relationship is similar to Angel Dust and Valentino's- I just hope they don't completely butcher my boy Fizz, because he's the ONLY character I genuinely like from this god awful series.

Edit: I find it outrageous that Fizz apologized to Blitzo in the previous episode for the accident and claims that yes, he was affected by it but he's gotten over it. Yet here, he's super insecure about it and seeks approval from Mammon. It doesn't make sense- I swear it's like the characters are evolving backwards (as in the character development just resets and they act like nothing happened).

I also just wanted to say that this character made me feel super uncomfortable throughout the episode (which I guess is the point, but honestly they didn't need to add him.) Like, was it really necessary to include this Reddit mod, Discord user incel with an obsessive personality to the episode? He doesn't really contribute much other than to probably trigger people who have dealt with some form of harassment like this, and to make Fizz look super helpless so that Blitzo can defend him.

Blitzo didn't contribute anything to the episode, they didn't need to add him either. Like we get it he's the main character but that doesn't mean he has to be in every fucking episode doing absolutely nothing other than saying a bunch of curse words or shooting someone.

In conclusion, I didn't like this episode that much. I was expecting more to be completely honest.

Sorry if this post was a little long- I wanted to write more stuff but I don't want to burden y'all with reading a lot of shit lmao. Anyway, that's all, love ya <3

[juniperpyre]

continuation station: jily week 2024

for the last day of jily week, run by @sunshinemarauder and @kay-elle-cee this is a cut scene that will never make the published work from my ongoing fic, when i first saw you, the end was soon. it's so cute tho i want people to see it. there's a small amount of context missing but it's not super necessary. this takes place in late October of their 6th year

Regrettably, the next boy who approached her was Potter, who already had a date, so she'd have no chance to shout at him. 

“Cheers, Evans. Where are we off to?”

“Owlery. Sending a letter.”

“Sending a letter in the owlery? What a novel concept.”

Lily resumed her walk down the corridor at a quicker pace. The autumn cool had started to seep into the castle, but the halls were bright on the shockingly cloudless day. 

“Ha ha,” Lily deadpanned. “You don't have to join if it bores you. I insist you don't, actually.”

“Oh, don't worry, you could never bore me. I'd be happy to join you.” 

James grinned and offered Lily his arm. For a moment she considered taking it, just to see the surprise on his face. But no. Even as a joke it felt strange—especially since among her letters she was sending her reply to Fabian, her ex, along with the letters to her parents and Alice.

“Shouldn't you be planning your best mate's party?” Lily asked. 

“That's all done, of course. It's the day of, I'm not a procrastinator.”

Lily raised an eyebrow.  

“Just because the results were a bust doesn’t mean I was procrastinating,” James answered as if her raised eyebrow was a complete sentence. 

“School, then.”

“It's not procrastinating if I get an O, it's good time management.”

“How many Os did you get?”

This time James raised an eyebrow with a smirk to match. He was so arrogant, it sent a flare of irritation through Lily. 

“That's private, isn't it, Evans?”

“Never thought you'd pass up a chance to brag, Potter.”

“I'm going for charmingly humble this year. Is it coming across?”

Lily pointedly looked him up and down, intending to answer with some sort of scathing no. But he did look humble, infuriatingly normal, in belted jeans, a dark brown corduroy jacket, and a long-sleeve tee, tucked in. He looked casual in a way most purebloods could never pull off. Until he winked at her. Lily glared, her cheeks flushed. 

“Don't you have a date to bother?”

“Aw, but you're my favourite person to bother,” James said, not with a smirk but a genuine smile. 

Lily grunted in response.

“If you'd like I'll tell you my OWL results.”

They turned the last corner. James motioned for Lily to go up the stairs first, a gesture she accepted with some irritation. For a few moments, the only sounds were their shoes on stone steps and the gentle hooting of birds getting louder before James spoke again. His voice echoed up the tower.

“If you really want me to go I will. I'd thought we were both having fun, bantering, y'know, but if not… I want us both to have fun.”

He sounded earnest and not the least bit wounded. 

“No,” Lily mumbled. “You can stay. I just—I don't know. I don't know what we are. I dunno what to say or how to act. Last year—”

“We never really talked about it, yeah.” Because she’d refused when he brought it up. Chivalrous of him to pretend differently. “I hope you know, or, can tell, I guess, I'm trying. Not that it's about me!”

Lily took a deep breath. His words added to the weight of guilt, shame, and hurt she carried. 

“I know. I know you are.” 

Lily stepped into the owlery, her next words frozen on her lips as soon as James came into view. She looked at her hands, fiddling with the parchment, then back at him. His hair was messier than it had been when they started their climb. It was too hard to talk about this while looking at him. The boy who'd been the enemy, the immature, arrogant toerag. He was being too nice for her to be as mean as she wanted. 

“You have a feather in your hair. Can I?” James asked.

Lily nodded. He ran his fingers through a lock of her hair and presented her with a small bunch of fuzzy feathers and a smile. 

“It doesn't seem like you want to talk about it.”

“The feathers? Er, thanks for getting them?”

James let the feathers fall before tucking the lock of hair back behind her ear. His hand hesitated there, the soft touch of his thumb grazing under her jaw. At his touch, Lily shifted her head up, closer to James. She looked at his chest, unwilling to meet his eyes. Parchment crunched in her hand. The lightest stroke of his thumb on her skin beckoned her to look up. 

When their eyes met it became clear; she was evading, and James would let her. Lily pressed her cheek into the warmth of his hand in unspoken appreciation. He cradled her face for just a second, brief enough as to pretend it didn't happen. 

“Cheers,” he said as he pulled away. “Anytime.”

He turned to go, and Lily’s chest tightened. 

[cable-salamder]

I’ve been fixated on Ninjago for 5 months now, and I have no idea what gi to draw them in. It changes every once or twice a season and I’m like 😔. How do you decide?

Oh wow that’s a very interesting question actually

For me, I just go by what season I’m thinking of drawing them in, because that also usually influences what I’m actually drawing (For example if I were to draw, I dunno, Nadakhan, then that would dictate that everyone should wear their season 6 gis); There are also a lot of instances where my drawings are just add ons or different renditions of an already existing scene, so I draw whatever they are wearing there.

However for anything else I sometimes don’t even end up drawing their gis. They are often complicated and I am lazy, so, instead, I put them into casual clothing (especially if what I’m drawing itself is casual/ doesn’t require them to wear their suits, I think it works really well to have them wear normal stuff because I guess it makes them also just normal people? Idk maybe that’s a bit of a very deep reason for something so silly.)

Anyways the point is that I think if the drawing isn’t directly correlating to a scene from the show, then drawing the gis isn’t particularly necessary unless you want to, in which case I could just pick whichever one is your favourite and go with that :] (one of my go-tos is always their gis from DR s1), and otherwise I’d pick the one that is most often shown in that season/ that they wear in sets and such

[caramelpenguin]

S3 EP6 (thoughts + theories)

I want to get all the insane predictions out so I can look back on how much I clowned.🤡

These are ideas based on the moments that were in the trailer/teasers/stills. Or things that I feel might be addressed before the end...

Hillerska closing down🏫

We aren't directly told what Felice said in her interview. It's left ambiguous. So why wouldn't they tell us? Sure, there's a chance that she just praised the school but....

we got that very small snippet of the forest ridge boys yelling at each other. Could this be because they heard that Hillerska was going to shut down?

Simon (and his family) might move away 👋

they have the money now ig. this could be a reason why the ending, as ive seen around, has occasionally been described as 'open'.

this could be the context behind the shot of Linda's head on Simon's shoulder.

or maybe the 3 of them are doing smthn related to micke?

Abdication or King Wille? And August...👑

I think one of the reasons for August's storyline this season was for us to understand him more as a character so that if he becomes King, we know that he'll actually try or that he may not have been as bad as we thought. (my opinion of August isn't necessary here).

we really see how much the monarchy consumes Wille this season. Though I don't know how we'd approach the topic of abdication in just one episode.

wille has said that one of the reasons he wants to remain Crown Prince is bcos of Erik. Knowing what we now know, i'm intrigued as to what will happen.

will they acknowledge more of August's eating disorder?

August and Sara🤔

I think felice will (eventually) be fine with it. I don't know about Simon.

Things will work out, i'm sure.

Frederika and Stella💵

....they'll kiss in ep6. something will happen between them, anyway.

Shot of the 4 girls hugging

frederika has realises she likes stella by this point??

Roussea?🐎

maybe Roussea will get a slight mention in a conversation with August. Or maybe not. Who knowwwss

Wilmon screaming in the car🚗

is this Sara's car? things need to be okay by this point, right? is it after the lake scene??

Wilmon stare down👀

how? will ? this? fit? in?

is it after the graduation ceremony but before the neon party and the lake scene? does the shot of wille (with simon's hands around his neck) come after this?

is the lake scene not the final scene? is this scene actually the next day during the graduation?

does simon tell wille he's going to move away?

The Neon Party + Lake Scene 💧

the neon party is where they reconcile.

BUT i dont think it'll be a full reconcile. Simon's line 'Can't we just forget everything that's happened? Just for tonight?' makes sense to be here.

the lake scene with the swimming could happen because they both leave the party early, i dunno.

is this the last time they're able to hang out (bcos simon is moving away and bcos Hillerska will shut down)?

but we've all SEEN that it looks sad, which doesnt look all that great for endgame, and we've also been told that this is (most likely) the final scene. so. get tissues ready.

(am i crazy or is there a tiny smile on simons face in this scene? from that edmar promo we got? )

swimming happens after the sadness right? bcos (apart from the tears) they dont look wet.

if its the final scene idk what the hopes r for wilmon endgame icl

MUSIC (+Wille's birthday present)🎶

we know that 'Alice' by Rhys will play at some point. Doesn't mean it'll be a wilmon scene. it could be sara and august OR frederika and stella (?)

normally, there's a song in ep4 that's repeated in the final moments of the season. ep 4 in s3 doesn't end with a song and (from the one check I've done), i can't really hear any of the other songs used in that episode as the final song of the season. then again, i could be wrong

ELIAS SONG?? they could play 'revolution' again to make it a full circle (dont think this will happen tho). they might use a new song. i just rlly hope we'll hear an Elias song and...i feel like we will.

THE TRAILER SONG? I really pray this will be in the episode. I pray i pray i pray i-

we'll hear Simon's new song. I don't know how or when (especially if this is simon's gift to wille) but...c'mon

initially, i didn't think Redlight would appear in YR. Omar has a career outside of the show, but i do agree that the lyrics fit wilmon quite well. also, if we're gonna hear Simon's new song then I don't know how the script would work around Simon singing another song. He told Wille that his present isn't yet finished (which im sure is the song simon is currently working on), tho ig we could argue that he may sing a brand new song.

BUT then i realised that simon doesn't have to sing this song. redlight could just be part of the soundtrack ( it seems that everyone got to that conclusion before me). and the way that it's being promoted this week has me suspicious. I don't wanna get my hopes up, and maybe Omar is just being clever and promoting it during the week of YR hype, so i dont think redlight will be in s3. BUT I WILL BE VERY HAPPY IF IM WRONG❤️

ig we'll find out when the playlist gets updated

Football Field Scene

to my knowledge, we haven't got proof that they filmed there apart from that pic from Lisa (and are we sure this pic is from s3 filming?)

it would be AMAZING if they returned to this setting. ICONIC.

but idk how why they'd return here and how it would fit

it might not be a wilmon scene (could be simon + rosh + ayub, but i think theres a higher chance of it being a wilmon scene than the trio)

question- lisa said it was a wrap with a pic from the football field. which COULD mean that the last scene they filmed was there (tho it might not be the actual final scene) - was this where edmar couldn't stop crying?

💜WILMON ENDGAME?💜

they better or im going to riot

no but srsly, i dont think we'll go down a 'la la land' route. worst comes to worst, it'll be a positive open ending e.g. 'you were amazing. you'll be wonderful. we'll meet again with more freedom.' it'll be even better if there's a time skip here hahahha

like the end of ep5 gave me no hope cos idk how they're gonna get back together in one episode. but anything is possible.

arguably, the promo we've got since then leans towards endgame (?), but i dont think they'd reveal they're gonna be endgame if there wwen't gonna be more issues.

EXTRA

theres so much to cover in the final episode!! so i dont think everything will be acknowledged/addressed. things will be left ambiguous to keep the viewers thinking.

imagine if the break up at the end of ep5 wasnt that huge. that theyre still together (with tension) at the start of ep6, then they kidna ignore their disagreement. this culminates until the end, where they break up ( but very unlikely)

the future letters were there to show august's past. but could there be more to it? could we get a time skip? (again, unlikely imo. but would be sweet if done well)

a reference to the heart simon drew? maybe? probably not...

will simon give wille his orange jumper back? id love to see this on our screens but im sure we wont.

will sara's necklace make a comeback?

where does wille's 'what if I don't want to?' line come in? and the queen's line...

the shot of wille in the library (with that book in clear sight) hasn't yet appeared, right?

simon talking to sara by micke's house....hmmm. i would love a simon and micke interaction

volleyball scene + running into the lake happen as a connection to graduation?

wille with those sunglasses is a moment with felice?

do we hear anything more abt wille's birthday wish?

EXTRA .2

there are plenty of moments that happen that we don't see as viewers. so that jumper simon wears at the start of ep 2 looks like wille's. and if it is, then we didnt see the moment simon stole it wille gave it to him.

and when simon mentioned a mental health foundation, it implied that they may have had a discussion abt wille's anxiety before.

the piano scene in ep2 could have been a piano lesson that wille was giving simon, which probably means a lot more of these happened without us knowing

this makes me wonder how much wille knows about micke??

simon told august that sara's with her dad and all that- so does wille also know?

WHEN I FIRST WATCHED AND FINISHED S1 AND S2 OF YOUNG ROYALS, i knew wilmon would be together by the end of s3. like i was 100% convinced the show would end with them happy bcos that's what it had leaned towards the entire time. the vibe of it just screamed wilmon endgame to me.

i really hope past me was right, bcos the s3 promo really had me wondering. and then ep5 had me proper questioning. but netflix (and lisa) will have to pay for so much therapy if they arent endgame sooo🤷‍♀️

livelovelaugh wilmon ig

edit: ive just listened to omar's interview and now im qquuiiitteee sure redlight wont be in ep6🤷‍♀️

edit 2: will anyone else find out that it was august who posted the video?? will this prevent him from taking the throne??

[jessica-problems]

I’m definitely in that second group, the TTRPG as a primarily a story-telling medium with rules just there to guide the narrative collaboration. I definitely appreciate the in-depth rules as a DM, but I don’t find all of them necessary?

I might just be an anomaly, though. When Spelljammer got its 5e book, I was super enthused with the races, ships, monsters, and wildspace environment characteristics and didn’t really care that we didn’t get any new rules for actual ship vs ship combat.

@edgemarquess the thing is, I think *both* groups would describe TTRPGs as

"primarily a story-telling medium with rules just there to guide the narrative collaboration"

Actually, I think D&D is kind of an outlier in how unopinionated it claims to be in what kind of story it's trying to tell. (when in fact the rules are *very* specific about what story they want to tell) The reason you don't think rules are helpful for storytelling is because D&D specifically has unhelpful rules for storytelling.

A ton of very complex games with all sorts of moving parts are carefully constructed to dynamically guide the narrative collaboration in interesting directions. Off the top of my head, Eureka by @anim-ttrpgs, Chuubo's Marvelous Wish Granting Engine by Jenna Moran, or basically any game built around the Powered By The Apocalypse engine all have all sorts of interesting and complex rules specifically built to direct the narrative in interesting ways, focus the spotlight on certain characters, systematize common but boring scenes so you can breeze through them to get to the interesting stuff,move arcs to their resolution, and all sorts of other things you'd want out of a storytelling tool. The whole reason people enjoy games like that is because the rules help the collaborative storytelling happen. Like, I *could* just sit around with friends playing make believe, but there's a lot of clever TTRPG designers who've put a ton of thought into writing rules that will make for cool and interesting stories, and it feels kind of... I dunno, dismissive, or maybe naive, to write them off as if they're in direct competition with my own imagination. I promise TTRPGs make for cool stories. That's why I keep playing them.

[bumblequinn]

Hi! Medium time listener (I followed after slarpg altered my brain chemistry), first timer asker! What is your process when it comes to composing for games? Is it any different when the subject changes (personal, commission, etc)?

hehehe, well i hope that alteration was a positive one! 😋

so i think there's kind of two sides to this: there's the creative process, and the collaborative process.

The Creative Process

my creative process is actually pretty similar whether i'm working on contract or for personal enjoyment.

first, i consider:

the needs of the prompt in front of me (is it a save menu or a boss battle? is it a tense scene is or a tender one?)

how it should fit into the bigger picture of the whole project (mood/tone, genre, leitmotifs, instrumentation, production style, etc)

what tools i will need to use (subtractive synth or sampler or soundfont or live recording?)

then, i typically write what i call a "skeleton:" just the barest bones of a piece of music. i almost always do this on piano, dividing the bass, harmony, and melody into very distinct registers. i do it this way for several reasons learned the hard way:

first, by dividing parts into clearly delineated registers, i'm saving myself a whole lot of trouble down the line. i have long had a bad habit of over-crowded arrangements, which besides being weaker from a composition standpoint, are also notoriously difficult to mix. and mixing is already hard enough as it is! so writing a strong and well balanced composition from the outset is the best way to go.

second: when you jump into arranging or mixing before the whole piece is written, it's much easier to get stuck. where should i take this track next? i dunno, guess i'll fiddle with the mix. suddenly a week's gone by and i'm still working on a half-written track. if i require myself to write the whole piece out first, then this bottleneck is almost always eliminated.

sometimes you can get really excited about an idea, get carried away with arranging and producing a whole track, get to feeling really attached to it—only for your collaborator to say it's just not the right direction. by limiting myself to one instrument, i don't put in a disproportionate amount of work before confirming whether or not the piece is actually a good fit. and bonus, if it's not a good fit then i have a piece of music written that can serve another project later (or another part of the current project, if i'm lucky)!

of course, i'm not always perfect about this. even very recently, i got really stoked about a track i was cooking up for susan taxpayer and went BANANAS with it—only for punkitt to say she loved it but it wasn't at all the right vibe. a hard but necessary reminder of why i try not to get carried away prematurely!

(don't worry, the one i made to replace it fit like a glove, and the first attempt is gonna be used elsewhere. love wins 😌)

once i do have confirmation that i'm headed in the right direction with an idea though, that's where i really get into it with choosing instruments, designing synths, figuring out the production style, etc. and there's where the real back-and-forth with my collaborator begins, to make sure things are staying on track every step of the way. that leads us to:

The Collaborative Process

for starters, and probably most obviously, different people are different to work with. everyone has different strengths and challenges both creatively and interpersonally, so i try to meet my collaborator where they're at and tune in to their specific needs, vision, and communication style. within reason, i try not to look at these things as being "better" or "worse" with one person versus another, just different!

i think the biggest differences for me as far as how much time and energy i invest into a project are A) whether it's paid or pro bono, and B) my own level of personal excitement about the project.

if i'm doing something purely for fun, it's pretty exclusively because i'm really hyped about the project. because, well, it wouldn't be fun if i weren't, right? and in that situation, i enjoy giving it my all! susan taxpayer falls firmly into this category, and i'm having a blast with it.

SLARPG started out pretty similarly, but as the scope of the project grew, it evolved into more of a pro bono arrangement; bobby and i drafted up a contract and negotiated on how we would split earnings from the game once it released, and that's where i've gotten the vast majority of my income this year. it remained a passion project til the end, but i could not in good conscience put that much of my life into a project of that size unpaid, no matter how much i loved it! (maybe one day, if we collectively defeat capitalism and i no longer have to worry about such things... 🥲)

things get a bit different when you get into strictly contract work, though. when it's something i'm doing for a client who's paying from the start and it's not for my own enrichment, i have more hard and fast boundaries on how much of myself i put into the project. i have specific rates, and offer only so many free revisions before charging additional fees. sure, i can be horribly particular and will revise something a bazillion times to get it "just right" if i'm working on a passion project, but i'm not about to do that for like. a corporate commercial or whatever lol

whether it's for fun or all business, though, i always try to make something i'm proud of. because i want whomever i collaborate with to have something they're happy with in the end, of course! plus i'm kind of allergic to phoning it in, i'm too extra for that 😜

________________

i'm sure i could go on, but i think i'll leave it at that! pardon the slow response, it took me some time to formulate my thoughts for this one. thanks for the question, and take care ^^ 🎵

[tenebriskukris]

Oshi No Ko Chapter 148 - My Thoughts/Analysis

I don’t think I’ve been more disappointed in an Oshi No Ko chapter as much as I have for Chapter 148, but there’s still some stuff to talk about despite said disappointment. As always, spoilers for Oshi No Ko Ch148 below.

A beach chapter??? After the absolute gut punches that were the last few chapters? No follow up to Aqua or Ruby or Hikaru at all???

Please explain to me why Minami is showing up here after being tossed like garbage for the past few dozen or so chapters? She hasn’t even been plot relevant in this arc! I know it’s because she’s connected to Ruby in some respects but if she’s not going to do anything interesting for the narrative why the hell is she even coming back to the spotlight? Really, I could say this about a bunch of side characters on the movie set but at least they actually showed up for the arc, even though they barely did anything that we could see.

Taiki mourning his car is a running gag that is funny but completely useless in the grand scheme of things. After the horrible pacing of this arc is this bit really necessary? No, and the fact that it still got pushed through when there are several other things to dwell on irks me. This is what side characters have been reduced to—comic relief.

Oh hey Gotanda! Been awhile since we’ve seen him at least. And once again Kana’s tongue strikes the director’s weak spot. Ouch. Ruby also doesn’t help things, but at least she’s known the director for longer than Kana has in order to say such things. It’s the difference between when a friend or someone you know roasts you versus someone who you’ve only met once or twice does it.

Ack! Aqua’s black star eyes. Well, I guess it was too much to hope that he’d lost them permanently. 

Huh, so the movie arc’s finished filming? I suppose that makes sense considering what we had last chapter, but it’s still a bitter pill to swallow considering that the movie barely gave us anything about Hikaru and Ai that couldn’t have been extrapolated beforehand.

Frill is a beast, as always. She takes two months off her schedule because She Can and her popularity’s going to be fine afterwards. I dunno how accurate that is to real life, but usually big shot actors and such choose which jobs to pick, but even then they also have to follow the schedules of their manager? Though with enough pull even that’s something that can be leveraged, I suppose.

Taiki oh my god. Does incest run in this family or something? It must be something in the Hikaru genes.

And Frill in a full diving suit! The gap moe is real. Melt having mixed feelings is a sign of his bad taste! Look at her legs! 

The Akane-Kana interactions are gold as always. It’s always funny to see how they both seem to change their behaviors when the other person is around.

There is an entire page dedicated to unnecessary beach scenes, but I’d like to point out the fact that Aqua is barely in any of them and Crow Girl of all people is. It’s obvious why the former isn’t there but the latter being Here At All throws me for a loop. Oh, to be a fly on the wall to hear Aqua explain why it’s so necessary for Crow Girl to be here on this outing at all.

And then there’s the eventual Akane-Aqua conversation. For all of her talk of “I’ll stop your plan, Aqua-kun.” she never really interfered with the movie. She’s just content to stalk Hikaru and hope that Aqua doesn’t decide to stab him himself. Which feels like the wrong move—if Aqua wanted Hikaru dead by his own hands, he’d have done it by now after he knew his identity.

Akane trying to talk about Aqua’s revenge scheme and trying to persuade him otherwise is something both funny and a bit too late. She’d already thrown her shot during their breakup so it’s interesting to see why she thinks she can get through to Aqua again when there hasn’t been much change in his circumstances. The movie being produced is certainly one big change, but I don’t think that this whole “social sanctions” that she’s referring to are going to take root when Hikaru has an eye on the movie through Kaburagi. Perhaps she’s just saying that to try and convince Aqua. 

The movie in-universe feels alot like a nothingburger, really. Ai wanted to be understood through this movie and Aqua used it as a vessel for revenge. And his “attempt” at revenge only dredged up a little controversy. As soon as the next fad comes around, the public’s attention is going to drift from whatever Aqua’s put in front of them. He should know this. Even Ai’s death was eventually cast aside and forgotten by the masses. Why would Hikaru being the twins’ father be any different? 

Not to mention the fact that they still can’t prove that Hikaru manipulated things so that Ryosuke could kill Ai. The movie might lean into that direction, but that doesn’t amount to anything—even businessmen and corporate executives will look the other way at illegal and morally reprehensible behavior if it benefits them. Why does Aqua think that this movie will change anything about Hikaru’s life besides letting him know that Aqua thinks he killed Ai?

Welp, that’s Kana formally bowing out of the Aquabowl. Akane hasn’t been in the running for ages now so this conversation between them might as well be her resignation. Her giving up Aqua and asking Akane to get together with him is almost certainly not the behavior of someone who’s going to win Aqua’s hand. It would undercut so much about how everyone else has struggled for the Aquabowl since the start.

Akane’s face as Kana says all this is just brilliant. She must feel so poleaxed by Kana, especially with her previous thoughts leading her in the direction that Aqua likes Kana even though at the time Aqua was in a relationship with Akane herself. Who’s in the right here? Both of them and none of them, really. Aqua likes both of you, but romance hasn’t ever been his priority since he’d been focused on his revenge plot. Trying to fix him by pushing someone else to get together with him isn’t the way to go.

This chapter was not necessary. I think the presence of a fucking beach chapter wasn’t necessary just to set up these Akane-Aqua and Akane-Kana conversations. This conversation could’ve been around the movie set, or done through a variety of flashbacks—it’s not like the manga isn’t shy about doing that sort of thing. Though maybe we’ll be getting a followup on this scene in the next chapter, but with the manga’s garbage pacing right now I doubt it.

Of course, all of this is just avoiding the elephant in the room—Ruby’s confession. I’d mentioned previously that if Aqua pushed Ruby away she wouldn’t have reacted the way she’s been multiple times after Ch143. Leaving that up in the air when both Akane and Kana are making their own plans to help Aqua and try and help him just makes this entire love triangle garbage feel even worse than it already is. 

Realistically speaking both of them have already shot their shot and failed for various reasons—so attempting to string the reader along by dredging up the love triangle angle is such a tone-deaf narrative decision. Yes, Akane wants Aqua to be happy, yes, Kana wants Aqua to be happy too. But laying it out narratively Like This just serves as a proxy to serve up this love triangle plotline that we’d already got stuffed with earlier in the manga. Bringing the spotlight back on this topic when there are already so many other more relevant topics in the movie arc that weren’t explored for some godawful reason is a kick in the teeth. I’m just hoping that we don’t get anymore screentime for these girls meandering around Aqua and instead do something that’ll actually affect him in some manner.

[chaifootsteps]

I dunno how it took me this long to realize it, but I've come to believe Adam and Viv both want to go completely different directions with Helluva.

From the three episodes Adam has written I've noticed a trend of maintaining a pre-set "status quo" per se, ignoring any sort of development that might've had an inkling of existence.

Loona is unreasonably flippant and abusive towards Blitzo as if completely throwing out all her nicer moments in Season 1 and doubling down on her Pilot depiction. Blitzo shits on Moxxie constantly and unprompted like their drugged heart-to-heart, half-baked as it might've been, didn't happen. The whole idea of maintaining the status quo and not deviating is kinda visualized by both nonstop running gags, like Moxxie being fat, and basically re-treading the same ground again and again; Seeing Stars and Exes and Oohs feel like bootleg versions of Loo Loo Land and Harvest Moon, following similar beats, arcs, and concepts.

Meanwhile Viv wants to go with an actual long-spanning serialized saga with development, but she keeps floundering with that last part since she's far from a writing god like people think, so a lot of the intended revelations and advancements with the characters fall flat. Mix them together and the series is just confused about if it wants to be deep or not.

TLDR: Adam seems to want to write an episodic series of one-offs with minimal development and consistent characters, Viv wants to write a serialized story with all the development, and neither is good at their respective visions.

Yeah, I think this is a reasonable read on the situation.

I don't get the sense that Adam cares about developing the characters, and I think Vivzie does, but that she also doesn't want to do any of the hard, necessary work that comes with characters developing. She doesn't want outside feedback, doesn't want to take criticism, doesn't want to sacrifice jokes or fanservice. We know from Erin Frost that Vivzie absorbs/steals ideas she likes from people around her and implements them even if they're clearly a bad idea or it's too late to do so -- Stolas and Blitzo meeting as kids was a big one that happened because she liked a piece of fanart -- and that she's got a problem with wanting to skip the serious development and just get to the fun stuff.

I think both Adam and Vivzie will give up even a single Moxxie fat joke or Stolas sexualizing Blitzo scene over their dead bodies, and that's why nobody in this show ever grows or learns anything.

[watchingspnagain]

Rewatching Fallen Idols

Welcome to “Okay So It’s Not a Loki Episode, but I’m Still Super Magnanimous and That’s the Biggest Takeaway Here: A Supernatural Rewatch Blog” with Lor and Mace!

Up today, s5e5: Fallen Idols.

Our boys get intrigued by a case that involves James Dean’s car as a murder suspect, which turns into a series of murders, all seemingly by famous dead people. It’s…weird, to say the least (and can I get an “amen” to the idea that it sounds like something Loki would do? Thank you.) The culprit is Leshi, a pagan god from the Balkans who has found a new feeding ground by transforming into the likenesses of famous people and feeding off their fans. It takes the form of Paris Hilton in the end and wails on both Sam and Dean before Sam can kill it. Cut to an end scene in which the brothers actually…talk? About their feelings? This, too, is weird.

Mace:

maybe open the garage door first?

Lor: 

naaaaaw

Mace:

absolute banana loafs

oh GROSS

Lor:

RIGHT?

mmmm Baby engine

Mace:

yeah

Lor:

"back"? where's "back"? they are IN the only home they have. there's no "get back" from anywhere they ever go pets them

Mace:

YEP

Lor:

omg Dean's "you are so stupid" face

Mace:

HAHAHA

Lor:

down, Dean

Mace:

RIGHT?!

Lor:

"oh we are definitely checking this out"

Mace:

how his little face just lights up talking about it

Lor:

YAAAAAS

OMG ROLLED UP SHIRT SLEEVES

Mace:

YAS

Lor:

AND NOW HE'S ON A CREEPER I CANNOT

Mace:

HA

OMG SAMMY

Lor:

haaaahahaha SAM

YES

"don't even look at her or she might not like it" I love him

Mace:

YES

Lor:

he needs someone to gently massage his neck and give him little temple kisses

Mace:

okay, if it disappeared, then there’s no research to do, and surely someone else has already done it

HA

Lor:

RIGHT?

Mace:

esp THAT car

Lor:

DEAN WINCHESTER stop lying to girls to get laid. for one thing, it's not necessary

Mace:

right?!?! Jesus, honey, just smile at them

Lor:

RIGHT?

he's mad at you for correcting papers in red ink

Mace:

HA

Lor:

i love that their "this cop is an idiot" faces are different

Mace:

I CAN UNDERSTAND HER

Lor:

"she's not making any sense in Spanish either" like he would know

OMG THAT'S AWESOME

Mace:

HAHAAHA

Lor:

well done!

Mace:

thanks!

omg Sam’s FACE

Lor:

YES

Mace:

i don’t remember this ep at all, but it’s got to be Loki, right?

Lor:

I know nothing, Mace

Mace:

sigh

Lor:

lol Sam's face when he says "that look like James Dean" he's so done

Mace:

LORE

EVERYBODY DRINK

YES

Lor:

YAAAAAAS

Mace:

omg Sammy you are so hot when you’re correcting language

Lor:

yeah, Sam, well, say it in Latin, buddy

LOLOLOLOLOL

Mace:

HAHAHAHA

Lor:

nnnnnggg henley and leaning

Mace:

YES

Lor:

that Ghandi one was really good. looks just like Ben Kingsley

Mace:

I’m pretty sure Gandhi was a dick, wasn’t he?

HAHAHAHA

Lor:

I dunno maybe?

Mace:

I feel like I vaguely remember that he was hugely racist or misogynistic or something

Lor:

i know someone in the history of my schooling made me watch that movie but I remember like NONE of it

Lor:

lol Dean's "aaaaah THERE it is" look

Mace:

YES

I’ve never seen it

Lor:

who's... Gen Y? isn't that what they called millennials before they called us that? because they mostly wouldn't be kids?

Mace:

no idea

Lor:

OMG DEAN

Lor:

he and I are the same person, I swear

Mace:

HAHAHA

dude, don’t lean into the jumps scare, christ

Lor:

RIGHT?

lol even a hunter raised in the life first thinks it's his big brother being a jerk when something goes bump

Mace:

“wanna see my Gandhi impression?”

HAHAHA YES

Lor:

lol

"couldn't've been a fan of someone cool?"

Mace:

HAHAHAHA

omg Dean laughing at Sam

Lor:

YES

"that is good. even for you, that is good"

Mace:

yeah

Lor:

iiii feel like there's a little revisionist history going on there, Sammy, hon

Mace:

huh

Lor:

lolol this poor sherriff

Mace:

right?

Lor:

I mean I feel like Dean does treat him like his little brother, but not like he's not an equal?

omg his ARM

Mace:

I disagree. Dean still thinks Sam’s being away at college and rejecting The John Cause makes him lesser

Lor:

huh. interesting

Mace:

that compounds with his Big Brother Knows Best business

Lor:

well he certainly has that

maybe it's the characterization of "dragging me around" that I disagree with? Sam always chooses to come back? and it's not like Sam never picks the case or directs where they're going to go

Mace:

letting him make some of the decisions is not the same as treating him as an equal

Lor:

I can't get over the fact that Paris Hilton agreed to do this

mmm, fair

Mace:

I can’t believe they wanted her to

Lor:

LOL

it's so meta. I really hope she gets it

omg the wink

Mace:

huh. I really don’t care if she did or not.

YES

Lor:

I sense that you do not care for PH

Mace:

i do not think about her at all, in fact

Lor:

very good. I think watching this episode is the only time I've ever thought about her. except for the times I had to read persuasive essays about her from students

Mace:

ha!

Lor:

awww, Dean offering to let him drive

Mace:

indeed. LETTING him drive. but sure, he totally sees him as equal.

Lor:

Dude it's HIS CAR

Mace:

it’s their father’s car.

it’s THEIR car

Lor:

he gave it to Dean, though

Mace:

fine, but making a big deal out of LETTING him drive it is my point

Lor:

grumble mutter whispers maybe you have a point

Mace:

graciously lets you joint the correct side of the argument

Lor:

LOLOLOLOLOLOL

it's always been your magnanimous spirit that's drawn me to you, Mace

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: "Kindred"

Do you think Filoni has hit peak wolves yet? Lol.

Live reaction version.

Soft Kanera moment is Soft.

And brings up some interesting questions that don't really get fully answered. What was the inextricable pull that kept drawing them back to Lothal again and again, even before they met Ezra? Was it the Lothal Temple, and by extension the gateway within? Was it some kind of connection Kanan had to Lothal? Was it his planet of origin too? He was able to manifest through the Force as one of the wolves after his death after all.

It's not something that's fully played out, this plot thread, I think perhaps owing to the writers having to shorten the last season down to 16 episodes, more akin to Season One, so it's ultimately left an ambiguous mystery.

Pryce having the realization that she's not actually Thrawn's Favorite lol.

Ruhk is accompanied by appropriately menacing drums and woodwinds. Fun fact: Warwick Davis apparently bullied Filoni into giving him this role lol.

You don't even know it's him the voice is so good.

Ruhk's movements are also excellent. He hunches, only straightening when he needs to smell, easily goes down on all fours to lope across the plain like an animal. His run cycle is like some kind of perverse feline or gorilla. There's a bestial quality to him. Unlike his Legends incarnation, which depicts him as more hulking and burly, this version is deceptively small but stocky, solid and almost wirey-looking. It's a great creature design.

The Noghri assassin is also immediately, extremely competent, identifying Zeb in the area by scent at once, probably detecting it lingering on Ezra's scout trooper armor and launching immediately into a surprise attack. He has Ezra flipped onto the ground in a leglock within seconds.

He then charges Jai, forcing Ezra to reveal himself as a Jedi with a hefty Push.

I'm sorry I'm cackling at Zeb sneaking around literally behind Pryce's back. This is why Thrawn replaced you, lady.

<333

The chase scene is brief and kind of basic but does the job. And OH BOY now we're at another Weirdass Kanera Walkback Conversation, with Kanan suddenly pushing for reassurance about what kind of future Hera wants after all the fighting and whether he's a part of it and what her feelings actually are towards him.

Right, so the way I reconcile this one is that Kanan is starting to sense the stirring, growing life inside Hera and is trying to roundabout confront her to think about what this means for them. And at this point she knows, but she doesn't know he knows, and is still trying to hold him at arm's distance while she mentally processes the discovery and how to tell him.

Because what do you mean, "Do I [know how you feel]?" this was clearly already a settled issue! WHY ARE YOU ASKING THAT QUESTION LIKE YOU DON'T ALREADY KNOW? YOU GUYS ARE SPACEMARRIED AARRRRHGKJHGJ.

So yeah, moving on.

There's a great moment where Ryder almost shoots Zeb that makes me lol and then after we've installed our hyperdrive the Empire makes a hasty exit from the area necessary, again, owing to Ruhk's incredible competence.

Hera, perhaps feeling the need to reassure Kanan of her affections and devotion since he's acting so rattled, finally plants an onscreen one on him.

This is clearly not the first time they have kissed. Possibly the first time they've done it this publicly, as Sabine immediately nudges at the others to look, but this is practiced and comfortable, seasoned, if you will.

:))))

Like I said the previous rewatch, I don't understand being secretive to normies then but being okay guiding them all out of danger now. I dunno, maybe it took Ezra befriending the one for the others to decide, "Oh okay, they have Jedi, they're cool. Let's help them."

"How have you people stayed alive so long?!" The literal will of the Force, Ryder, lol.

"We're going to finish them my way." Which is, per Pryce tradition, bombing the living shit out of things.

~ANYTHING TLJ DID, REBELS DID BETTEEEEEEERRRR~

The chiming from before continues throughout this sequence, so now we have something in the score to musically denote the wolves.

Kanan, come on, you should know by now this is his "thing".

Yeah so this is one of the sequences where the wolves just kinda DO things and the show doesn't really explain why because ~mysterious~. Why did they want Kanan? Were they checking to make sure there was a Master/Padawan pair? Do they recognize him as one of their own kind since they keep repeating "Dume"? How do they know Kanan's former name? What do the cave paintings mean?

*shakes writers*

ANSWER ME DAMMIT!

Kanan and Sabine inexplicably switching places so that Ezra can hold Sabine's hand again. XD

As frustrating as the mystery of the Loth-wolves can be sometimes, this sequence is hella cool. Blue light igniting the depths of the tunnel, Ezra's eyes reflecting it like the hyperspace eyes he got with the purrgil...

Soft white footsteps on inky liquid blackness. The muted sound, as if from far away.

The only truly trippy part that throws me is the little grassland shot in the middle of it all, with the white Loth-cat.

But whatever the wolves did, it worked. Our heroes have now been literally teleported out of danger. The Force Theme rings out to confirm the wonder of it all.

There's even some kind of actual structures here, an abandoned mountain village maybe?

It's also really pretty. Per standard for this show lol.

"Babe, you are holding back on me."

The chimes again, I'm pretty sure that's a specific instrument but for the life of me the name of it is escaping me, but it's denoting the wolves again, as they move back into the cavern. I do recognize the harp glissando there, though.

*sits on hands, sighs, bites lip about how I hate mystery boxes, especially ones that don't open*

Kanan dropping the first hints that the wolves are the guardians of Lothal, Force entities specifically assigned to protect the planet because of the gateway to the WBW, whose energies they can also tap into and use, which is now under threat by Palpatine personally.

...Yeah you know what, we'll go with that.

And of course after hearing Kanan express faith that Hera made it out we confirm that ourselves.

Good job love.

So. This episode gets weird. The kind of anime mind-trippy weird that used to be way too dense for me to parse through. (Still have a hard time of it, in fact, I dunno what it is Japanese directors just kind Do They Thing and don't bother explaining much, they just vibe.) But on the rewatch it does seem clearer that--aside from the elements in the wider plot they were going to explore about Kanan that Freddie Prince Junior hinted at in interviews that probably got severely cut out with the episode trim--most of the weirdness is actually misdirection in order to set up the wolves as Special Force Entities who need Very Specific Jedi Help to save the World Between Worlds.

The wolves don't come out and say this yet, probably very cautious and testing Kanan and Ezra out to see if they're worthy, but the implications are already there.

Oh, and I guess this episode made Kanera shippers happy too, or something. Happy for y'all, enjoy it while it lasts.

Next time, our last little bit of fun before shit hits the fan.

[thealogie]

Do you think DT actually has a process which he doesn’t like to explain because he doesn’t want to sound too pretentious or can he just do that?

(I personally think it’s secret third thing which he doesn’t have a fancy process and he can’t really explain what he does)

I also think it’s a secret third thing (some of it he’s already told us on the acting podcast): he just learns the lines and makes decisions about what they mean/how to read them ad he goes and then (according to Michael sheen) he reacts to other actors in the scene when the time comes and adjusts his performance as necessary.

The difference between him and, say, Michael Sheen is that Michael Sheen is like…in constructing Brian Clough I studied cult leaders and here are the other 10 references I brought into it. And David Tennant is like “oooh I dunno really. You start with the script I suppose” like I know his brain is full of stuff he’s bringing in (even unconsciously) but he’s never gonna do that navel gazing in public

[willel]

Contradictions

As some of us guessed, it seems the play has a handful of contradicting information. The same kind of contradictions you see when the novels and comics. Stuff that directly conflicts with the show itself.

What makes this more frustrating is the show runners insist this is canon despite the contradictions, so once again, I think the only thing one can do is take SOME of the information as useful and the rest of it as being dramatic for entertainment sakes.

Once again, my thoughts will be below a read more because of spoilers.

Contradiction #1: Henry's Coma

Apparently in the play, Henry does not go into a coma after killing his family......... he goes to school the next day or something. All for the purpose of allowing Joyce to confront him and say Victor Creel did all of it.

Why was that necessary? There could've been a scene of Joyce saying it was Victor Creel's doing without needing Henry to come to school after what just happened???

So pointless. I think Henry being kidnapped by Brenner and Victor being accused of killing both of his kids and his wife is pretty important to what they set up in the show. Why contradict that?

Contradiction #2: Communication through the void

Apparently in the show, Henry can willy nilly just speak to people through the void whenever he wants.

Either this is a direct contradiction to El's experience in the void or it's just something Henry can do since we've seen him easily mess with peoples heads and whatnot.

El has only communicated with someone through the void 3 times. Once with Will when he was in the Upside Down. Once with Terry who also has powers. Lastly, once with Billy when he was possessed by the Mind Flayer.

There have been plenty of instances where she's in the void and no one can hear her no matter how much she speaks or yells.

Contradiction #3: Henry's already been to the Upside Down

A friendly anon sent me a message related to this, but apparently it isn't the Upside Down that gave Henry powers, he already had them by the time he got there. I guess due to the run away scientist's machine? I dunno.

It's a bit of a relief to hear that. But this presents another problem. Henry has already been to the Upside Down. It's not "somewhere new". All it does is confirm El didn't create Dimension X. Still don't know how to feel about this.

Contradiction #4: Barely any symptoms of possession

Apparently they made it pretty clear in the play that Henry was possessed by the Mind Flayer in much the same way Will was. Through special effects, they show the Mind Flayer entering Will much the same way it did to Will in season 2.

I don't know if this is the viewer's interpretation or the play said it, but Henry liked to be in the attic because "it's cold". But.... usually the attic is one of the warmest places in the house. Heat travels up out the main house and into the attic. Depending on the attic, it can get really hot actually. Henry hanging out in the attic "because it's cold" makes no sense. I guess if the play is taking place in the fall or winter and the attic is not insulated whatsoever, THEN it would be closer to the temperature outside than the temperature in the house, making it cooler than the house?

I don't mind recentering the Mind Flayer as the main baddie, but making this a direct possession is just... an odd choice imo.

I would expect the show to have depicted things way differently if this was all just a possession story line.

Contradiction #5: No gates, but still alive?

Something that totally slipped my mind. When no gates are open, the Mind Flayer is completely cut off from the real world and everything it is in possession of dies.

If Henry was possessed and no gates are open, how is he still alive? How can the Mind Flayer communicate/influence him?

I suppose the show contradicts this itself a bit with the Demogorgons, Demodogs, and the Mind Flayer smoke being alive and well all the way in Russia without a gate.

Conclusion

So far, here is what I will be ignoring and what I will be accepting in my world view of Stranger Things. Keyword "my". If you're reading this, you're free to believe and accept whatever you want, I'm not telling you what to do. Just wanted to make that crystal clear, sometimes I feel like people think I'm speaking as some kind of authority and they couldn't be more wrong. Lol

#1: Henry does not go to school after killing his family. He is kidnapped and kept secret by Brenner, just like the show depicts.

#2: Only Henry can easily communicate with anyone through the void because of his telepathic mastery displayed in season 4. If he can give people waking nightmares, then he can have conversations with them too.

#3: Unless the show is going to show more, I choose to believe Henry was not fully possessed like Will or the rest of the Flayed. But some secret third option. My brain will decide what that secret third option is later.

#4: I guess I can accept the blood transfusion thing. But, I also want to acknowledge that I still think powers exist naturally in the world, it just takes a lot to make it happen and they might not be very strong. So, I'm thinking a combination of natural aptitude, MKUltra and Henry's blood is what made El is the person she is today.

My opinions will likely still be changing, but this is where I am for now.

[sorrelpaws]

s6e5 spoilerz!!

actual post talking about the episode YIPPEE!!! I LIKED IT!!! for the most part! i’m gonna start with the junk i didn’t like, cause there’s not much of it and i need to get it out of my system. for starters the erm. incest plotline. i’m honestly not sure why the writers have such a tendency towards this stuff. usually they seem to be pretty smart with reusing jokes or plot threads, but this just. like aside from being uncomfortable and weird to watch it just makes me think “do you not have anything better?”. why is this the safest plot line to fall back on in these recent seasons? i also hated the tiktok references at the beginning. i think i generally just hate any sort of pop culture references because they tend to become dated very easily/quickly while also doing nothing for the episode, aside from ruining any kind of immersion. AND MORTYYYYY justice for my boy. they are excluding him on purpose !! WHY!!!! i can understand he wouldn’t have worked very well with this episode, but this season seems to really favor either Rick or Literally Any Other Smith. but ummm next week’s promo had morty in it so im holding out hope guys! here’s how morty can still win!

ok anyway now that i’m no longer harboring any deep rooted hatred... THE ANIMATION!!!!! it was very cool, especially in fight scenes. something i noticed a lot was rick’s hair and suit/tie moving as he twists and turns, and i thought that was such a nice detail. it’s really simple but it added lots for me. AND THE JUMPS!!! i love his extending limbs, especially near the end of the episode where he jumps around on a bunch of boxes and moves kind of like a slinky, SOO neat. my only gripe is with the cold open, where he eats his noodles with tube arms. i dunno, felt kinda weird and unnecessary. small thing though. summer and morty in the beginning were also surprisingly endearing, and it has made me realize my desperation to see more of those two hanging out.

OH BUT JERRY AND RICK’S DYNAMIC!!!! i loved them in this episode, and i liked how it was kind of continuing s5e5′s development(kinda of neat that they’re both the 5th ep of their respective seasons). they’re both kinda warming up to each other, and it’s cool to watch this petty, sarcastic and, at times, surprisingly functional friendship. like when they talk in the vent, jerry is genuinely upset and rick offers some mild level of comfort by trying to crack a joke. and when they find the monster and jerry says he’s not sure what’s going on, rick just explains it!!!!! which okay yeah is also just to feed the audience necessary info, but i think the fact that rick doesn’t throw any insults really shows his development(also autistic infodump moment teehee). kind of off topic, but the scene w/ jerry’s second transformation made me wonder what his parents think of rick. like they see/ know he does some weird wacky shit, but like ... how much do they really know? or care? from what we’ve seen of them, they appear... pretty neutral. “oh well our son’s father in law is a scientist, no biggie,”. which is interesting to me. kinda wanna see some proper lengthy interactions between the grandparents. also rick joking(???) about fucking jerry’s mom made me laugh. okay alsooo i’m pretty sure i saw someone mention this, but in order for rick’s “you will make a friend” fortune to come true he would also have to consider jerry his friend as well B)) very cute.