#i love this little danger noodle he's so precious and watches tv with you

[thesimplicityofchance]

Everyone stop what you're doing and look at my little dude all coiled up on his favorite tree. He's a sleepy boy after eating yesterday 😴.

[beauleifu]

Hello! Can you write a oneshot or a headcanon (platonic, ofc) about Macaque with a reserved but also very outgoing child? (like those kids that are calm and reserved but if you mention something they really like they just go off and start rambling all happy and excited)

I had this idea in my head for a little while, I think it'd be really funny and wholesome if he just appeared at Pigsy's Noodles w/ his child and everyone's like "wh- YOU'RE A DAD??? WHEN??? HOW????" and he just watches with that Tired Parent Look™ as his kid stares directly at MK and goes "YOU'RE THAT MONKIE GUY ON THE TV!!!"

Sorry for any errors! English is not my first language, I apologize for the long text aswell, I'm just an absolute sap for the "tired but loving dad" trope also you can totally delete my ask or skip it if you don't want to write it!! Thank you either way, your writing is wonderful :) !

All right! *cracks fingers, snaps neck- whoops-*

You got it anon! Sorry for not answering this ask sooner, I realized headcanons are easier to write than an actual oneshot considering the limited time I have to write nowadays. But I hope you enjoy, and thanks for the ask! <333

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MACAQUE X CHILD!READER

Lego Monkie Kid

Context: Long ago, a wise old monkey had taken you under his wing, to train you and teach you the ways- okay, let's save the theatrics for later, that's Macaque's thing. Your father figure. Honestly, he's growing on you, and it's starting to show now that people are pointing it out.

TW: None!

HEADCANNONS

‧˚₊꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶꒦꒷‧₊˚⊹‧˚₊꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶꒷꒦︶︶︶︶︶꒦꒷‧₊˚⊹

Macaque doesn't normally take you somewhere where conflict is bound to arise. He'd prefer someplace more peaceful, like a park/museum/theater. Unless, of course, he's in the mood for adventure and will literally take you skydiving without a permit.

Totally the irresponsible dad. He's protective as FUCK, let's make that clear, but in the end he trusts you to take care of yourself

perhaps a bit too much, and even you think that

He'll encourage you to pet that snake

He'll give you the thumbs up if you wanted to climb to the top of the weather tower during a thunderstorm

Like "Go get 'em, (Y/N)! Make your father proud!"

With such a dramatic character when it comes to encouraging you, Macaque will become insanely tired. He'll be snoring on the couch and won't wake up even if you stacked all the furniture in the house on his back

Speaking of the house, he and you live far away from any danger

This guy didn't know jack shit about being a dad at first (you kind of hat to teach him, oh how the turns have tabled) But once he understood the basics, he took the reins, eager to impress you and earn your respect. Macaque isn't usually a sucker for developing any relationship with Earthly figures, but you were the only exception. He'd lay awake at night thinking if he's making the right choice, then slapping himself for even considering abandoning you. You are too precious.

Which is why he's totally, utterly wrapped around your little finger

So when you ask to get take-out at Pigsy's Noodles, it doesn't take much effort to sway his stoic resolve

"Dad. Pops. Papa. Father of mine," you say, grabbing his face, looking a lot older than you actually are. "Please!"

Since Macaque can't turn his face to the side (squished as it is), he sighs dramatically and closes his eyes. You catch the faint, irritated twitch of his tail, but that's about the only hint of Fed-Up Parent you can detect.

"(Y/N), Megapolis is miles away."

"You have shadow magic!"

"You can't just abuse my powers, especially now that you've decided to abuse yours," he grunts, albeit grinning at you. He' loosing.

Triumph fills your chest. "I can handle it! Uncle Pigsy would love to see me!"

"Uncle!?" Macaque splutters, finally escaping your grip. Shocked eyes blink down at you. "Sweetheart, you haven't even met Pigsy, you've only seen him from afar."

You blink up, flaunting those devil-may-care puppy eyes.

Oh, he hates it when you do that.

"Puh-lease! I'll do anything! i'll scratch your back! Do my chores before games! I-I'll stay out of your secret stash of peaches!" You gasp, flopping down on the soft carpet lining the floor. You consider the intricate pattern for a moment, then mutter under your breath; "Even though you said you hate those. . . ."

Macaque fixes you with a stern look. "You know about that, huh?"

"Mayyybe."

Like I said, not that much effort. The guy may be invulnerable to harm at best, but his immortality falls short under your tactics. Persuasive skills that he taught you to use.

Sucks how plans backfire, huh?

When you two do get to the shop, however, Macaque goes into full parent-mode

He doesn't care if you think it's uncool, you're holding his hand and that's that. He'd get you one of those child harnesses but thank the stars you'd convinced him you're worth more than such a humiliating child-control device.

So in you go, holding hands, Macaque glaring at anyone who spares you a curious glance.

When Macaque sees who's at the counter, he almost does a 180 out of there

It's MK.

Of all people.

He hasn't seen the two of you yet, though. You feel Macaque's paw tighten over your small, nimble fingers, and you can't help but squeeze back in return, asking a silent question.

It's times like these where you don't know what to do. You're still a child, even if this was your idea.

But then you spot who's at the counter

and At the same time, Pigsy comes 'round the corner with a giant tray of noodles- fit for the exact number of people surrounding the Monkie Kid. Suddenly, Macaque realizes who all is there.

This guy

Parent-Panic-Pro

The literal Monkey King is the first to turn head, eyes landing on Macaque first. You can tell instantly his fight-or-flight response just kicked in; shoulders tensing, teeth baring, eyes widening (oh yes, typical ex behavior- HAHA)

Then, all heads are turning.

And Monkey King's eyes land on you

Macaque steps in front of you, form tense and on high alert. "Heyyyy," he says, awkwardly.

The Monkey King tilts his head, perhaps confused as to why his old friend is protecting a little kid. Then he realizes. Poor guy connects the dots, lets out an unholy gasp of astonishment, and points and the both of you

"YOU. YOU- AND THEM- MACISTHATYOURKID-"

Pandemonium.

At least, in the most gentle context. MK and his friends do a double take, the Monkey King is gaping and trying to figure out who could ever love Macaque to result in this- and your dad just completely gives up. He gives you this look, like 'see why I was against bringing you here'

And you know. And your eyes say sorry, that you'll make it up to him later

Typical silent father/child communicating

(you guys are really good at that, communicating through your eyes or expressions. it helps in crowds)

That is, until your eyes fall on MK and realize for the first time that he's actually there

And Macaque's face falls into an impossibly disappointed facade (really, he's happy you're socializing) as you let go of his hand and prance right up to MK, eyes literal stars.

Thank goodness for MK, for he's kind and patient enough to let you blabble and gush on about how cool he is and how you've stayed up to date on the latest chaos he's incited (poor dude looks a bit downcast at that)

Funny how you went to such a well-behaved, shy kid to an energetic hyper-fixated gremlin in two seconds

All the while, Pigsy is listening, Monkey King corners Macaque and quietly demands answers (the two of them talk in the background for awhile as you socialize)

Noodles are served

There's just so many people in Pigsy's Noodles that the owner himself couldn't keep track of who ordered what, so everyone just got the same thing- and lots of it

In the end, you're all sitting down at the table (everyone had worked together to gather as many spare tables/chairs as possible to sit together at one huge-ass table)

You insisted you sit with Mei and MK in order to interrogate them about their adventures

OF course, you mean well, and they know that. And Macaque never pulls you aside because he likes seeing you like this, it makes him happy knowing you're indulging in the things you love, and he deosn't have the heart to tell you it's almost time to go home.

So you stay there for awhile, chatting with Mk and his friends

You get to know Pigsy (he doesn't mind being called your uncle, said at this point he's practically everyone's uncle or dad)

But alas

You're bit a child

And towards the end of the night, aftter everyone is stuffed full of noodles, you're conked out in your chair, slumped and snoring softly, eyes fluttering from dreaming

Everyone glances at you, how fucking adorable you are

Macaque straightens, clears his throat, says it's time for him to leave

Sun Wukong stops him for a moment, just to say

"Keep them safe, Mac."

Of course, like the #1 Dad he is, Macaque snorts. "I think I know more about raising a kid than you do, Wukong. I'll . . . see you out there."

Then he picks you up, carefully, so you stay sleeping, and walks out

but not before turning around to thank everyone for dinner

For once, they offer smiles (some are weaker and less meaningful than others, but props for trying. Macaque is kinda responsible for a lot of pain in their lives, anyways)

You don't register any of it, too full of noodles and new information regarding your idols

Macaque knows he'll never hear the end of it

Perhaps that's a good thing, considering the fond smile on his face as he gently carries you home, lays you in bed, and pulls the covers over your snoring form. He eagerly awaits the morning to which you'll wake him up excitedly ranting about tonight, about how you want to do it again

And he's wrapped around your little finger, so if course he'll listen to you

this guy would move the world for you

[thoughts-on-bangtan]

I’m just a little overwhelmed? I didn’t expect for us to get so much vmin among all the other amazing things that Let’s BTS just gave us. But, like basically everyone else, I, too, want to scream just a little about Tae and his message to Jimin because honestly, my guy, on national TV? You can’t make this up.

Even more so since, apparently, he said he wanted to say it in such a situation/setting since he normally doesn’t say it so often/well which just...no words. The sheer sincerity on Tae’s face when he said it, wow. He’s just the purest and kindest soul.

But also the way that he said “Jimin-ah...I like you the best/most” and Jimin replied either “thank you, I like Taehyung-ssi too” or “I like Taehyung-ssi a lot” or “I really like Taehyung-ssi” depending on which translation you look at, though the sentiment is the same. Truly whenever someone now comes into our ask doubting vmin and their sincerity and bond with each other, I’ll just direct them to this moment, it says more than enough.

Also the way, when Jimin pulled out the message from his envelope, was I the only one who noticed that Tae’s message was the only one that was blurred out? Not that I expect there to have been some grand romantic declaration, I’m not delulu like that since that wouldn’t be realistic in any kind of way ever, but it’s still curious. Even more so because of how nervous Jimin turned immediately upon reading it and quickly put the message back into the envelope, nervously giggled, and declared how they should end the segment here because it’s getting dangerous. Park Jimin, would you like to elaborate on that?

To be honest that entire segment was just one big Bangtan mutual love fest and yet that vmin moment stands out between them, no? Also, Admin 2 mentioned how Jimin’s tight lipped facial expression reminded them of Jimin's facial expression when Sweet Night was brought up in a Japanese interview last summer and Namjoon turned around to look at him. And yet, a moment later as Tae says his message, Jimin’s expression turns more serious, making it obvious that while some may think this was a joke or just BTS being BTS, which sure that may be part of it, we all, and especially Jimin and the members, know that Tae really means it when he says these things.

Also the members reactions? Between screaming and laughter and Seokjin looking mildly done with vmin, his reaction reminded me of that video from the 5th Muster MAKING VIDEO where he sits next to Jimin and Tae and eats his noodles while vmin talk about how Tae always looks cute, according to Jimin, and Seokjin is also just done with them.

Regardless how you look at it, this was a very sweet gesture with some interesting reactions but still it was a wonderful affirmation of how much Tae and Jimin mean to each other. Admin 2 mentioned how while last time they were at KBS Jimin was the one who raised their intertwined hands toward the cameras as they were entering the building, this time it was Tae who loudly highlighted his affection for Jimin.

It’s all even more so touching/creazy when you also add all the other small moments across the show to it, like Tae saying that while ARMY are his precious friend, Jimin is his one and only friend (chingu) while holding his hand?

Or when he read the complements that ARMY sent in, he basically said half the complement/pick up line meant for him toward Jimin. "Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long shot. (turns to Jimin) But V’s is a blessing.”

Or when he touched his thigh. 

Or how about Jimin’s relay message to Tae? It was so genuine and honest.

Truly this whole episode was amazing so I can’t wait to watch it again tomorrow with subtitles and then make a more proper post about it than this, but I just needed to let out my emotions lol.

[almaasi]

reaction post typed while watching SPN 13x23 “Let The Good Times Roll”

idk what you guys thought but I LIKED IT and here’s why!!!! (EXCEPT THAT THING WITH THE KNIFE??? WHAT THE HELL???)

04:02pm

so it only took 45 minutes to an hour to find somewhere to watch this, my thanks to @trisscar368 for helping me out!!!

eventually found it streaming rather than downloading, would not recommend but HEY IT WORKS (for now) [http://gorillavid.in/zbtu97hfei65]

this feels like it’s 2008 all over again, trying to watch doctor who after school

OKAY LET’S GO

i’ve seen a bunch of major spoilers but i know cas doesn’t die so i’m good. apparently it’s A Boring Episode but also MICHEAL and LUCIFER so

idk idk let’s just watch the thing and find out what happens

-

04:04

rowena: is there, i dunno, music? CARRY ON MYY WAYWAR---

fuck

-

04:09pm

feels good having bobby there

-

BOBBY’S REACTION TO TRUMP IS THE BEST EVER

“and you call where WE come from ‘apocalypse world’?”

-

04:11

cas: “they’re talking about whether kylie jenner would make a good mother. consensus is no”

hey give her a chance

i mean i know nothing about her but she seems... teachable?

-

dean: “yeah well, that’s why i’m a chloe man”

WHOOOOOP dean loves his girly trash tv i see

-

brown werewolf: “now that is why i’m a chloe man”

dead brown person alert :|

how naive i was to think he might be left alive because he got a speaking line and made himself a dean parallel with that single line

-

04:16

mary: “do you really like the rain?”

bobby: “when it’s this beautiful, i do”

lest anyone forget bobby is a gentle down to earth sweetheart

soft papa bear

-

“rowena and charlie are road-tripping it through the south-west”

WOULD WATCH THAT SPINOFF

but #savewaywardsisters first

-

04:19

dean: “can you imagine? you, me, cas, toes in the sand, couple of those little umbrella drinks, matching hawaiian shirts, obviously”

PLEASE

“....some hula girls“

mmmm *squints at how that part was said after a....... pause, off-screen with the camera on sam*

-

04:24

dean to jack: “it’s not about being strong....... i don’t know what you went through over there... but i know you came out the other side. because you ARE strong”

good papa dean words

much love for him and his emotional avaliability

-

04:26

dean: “whatever you’re dealing with, whatever comes at us, we’ll figure out a way to deal with it. together. we’re family, kid”

sam said it to dean, dean said it to jack

i guess the next step is ...jack saying it to cas?? SOMEONE’s gotta say it to cas

but also WOOOO DEAN’S CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT REGARDING JACK SINCE THE START OF THE SEASON

-

04:32

um

is it just me or is this a seriously unfortunate racist-looking coincidence

desperately hoping this wasn’t the guy who killed maggie

(i don’t think it is, which means maybe this is a “don’t jump to conclusions” kind of storyline which has a race-relations subtext??? i wish it meant nothing besides jack’s need to protect others, but given the lack of living characters of colour on this show, the minute a person of colour shows up, it BECOMES about the fact they’re not white, bECAUSE they always die, invariably)

anyway, my point is: this is problematic

also the red shirt. as in “red shirts always die” ??

edit: thank goodness....... RED HERRING

-

“3 sheeps” poster in the background

i remember this symbolism from something earlier but can’t remember exactly what

i’m thinking lambs to the slaughter, or being part of a flock, or being herded into something they’re wrong about, being naive, following each other one by one into the unknown

wow reading tarot has improved my “make a list of all the obvious symbolism” skills

-

04:39

the fact cas is suffering with the angel language whistle is interesting?? i thought it hurts dean because he can’t understand it

which means.......cas isn’t understanding this noise?

or maybe he is understanding, it’s just real loud

-

04:42

enjoying sam being protective of cas

-

lucifer: ........”the three amigos.... sam, dean, and the other one”

that’s probably how a lot of people see team free will tbh

how sad

-

lucifer: “you want a lightsaber?”

jack:

vroom

we mAY HAVE LONG SAID HE’S TOO PRECIOUS FOR THIS WORLD BUT WE NEVER MEANT FOR HIM TO LEAVE

-

04:50

that awkward moment when you’re trying to solve a murder and your adorable magic grandson comes home with the devil

:o

-

the face you make when the devil makes an ableist joke about your son and then says “no offence”

(the ”i would murder you but there’s enough dead bodies in here right now” face)

-

04:56

maggie: “kinda seems like you have... you know, bigger.... satan-y... problems”

bless this girl

-

05:00

dean: “as shakespeare once said: eat me, dick-bag”

tbh shakespeare probably did say that at one point or another

add shakespeare to the list of dean’s bisexual heroes

(follow up thought: what if when cas could time-travel, he and dean and sam went to go explore shakespeare’s town and dean made.... Friends)

-

05:04

lucifer’s talking to jack about their future space travels

i mean i think it’s fairly obvious, lucifer was the one who killed maggie, so he could bring her back and impress jack

maggie said “i didn’t see their face but i saw their eyes” and that means it was either lucifer or michael with the glowing eyes, and micheal said to dean “you’ll be the first life i take in this world” which leaves lucifer

stinking nasty manipulative trash angel

-

05;07

micheal, while strangling dean: “could’ve done this quick, but i wanted to enjoy it, that moment when the soul leaves the body”

yeeeah okay sure, speak aloud your reasons you’re stalling for time while jack figures out how to get back

-

05:10

jack to lucifer: “you’re not my father. you monster”

HUZZAH

-

for the record i’m... reaLLY ENJOYING THIS episode so far

it’s all big and mighty and magical but the core of the story is a boy trying to find his family and figure out the truth behind his manipulative father

i’m so glad it led to this because i am HERE for this kind of story

the world hangs in the balance, but it’s not dean, cas and sam trying to save everyone, it’s jack trying to find his place among loved ones, and by following his desire to help people he’s learning what he needs to know

i fucking love this okay

-

05:14

lucifer: i just need your power--

OH NO I SPOKE TOO SOON

OH NO

-

05:17

michael: “this is the end. of everything”

I SEE DEAN’S COGS WHIRRING AND I WORRY

nine years of not saying yes to micheal and now it’s happening isn’t it

-

05:20

jack’s pained little whimper :c :c :c

-

05:21

dean: “i am your sword”

CHILLS

-

05:22

dean: “CAS I DON’T HAVE A CHOICE”

cas: D:

PERFECT MOMENT FOR AN AGGRESSIVE KISS but nope that would be too much like goodbye

-

05:24

third option rather than sam or jack trying to kill each other: they pick up lucifer’s blade and kill lucifer with it

-

05:26

WHAT 

NO

??????

BAD IDEA????

JUST STAB LUCIFER????

-

jack:  i love you

NOO ;;A;A;A;A;A;A;A;;A;A

DJSGJD

I’M NOT ENJOYING THIS 0/10 WOULD NOT RECOMMEND 

PLEASE STOP

-

05:27

WELL FUCK

hi there

WHHHOOOOOOO

meanwhile back at the bunker: cas has the weirdest traumatic boner

-

05:29

THE WINGS KEEP GETTING BIGGER

-

05:31

interesting angel flying physics here

dean flails while sailing slowly backwards

i mean i know he’s on a suspension wire but technically waving his arms about ought to affect his position

-

05:33

LITERALLY SAM COULD’VE DONE THAT TO BEGIN WITH

WHAT EVEN WAS THE POINT OF THIS

HE COULD’VE ACTED LIKE HE WAS ABOUT TO STAB JACK AND THEN GO WHOOSH AND STAB LUCIFER

SAM HAS FUCKING NOODLE ARMS HE COULD’VE DONE IT WITH HIS EYES CLOSED

JEEZ

-

05:35

okay but i’m laughing right now

are you telling me this is what happens if lucifer accidentally trips and falls on his knife

where did that golden blade come from anyway

has lucifer just been carrying it around this whole time?

COULD ANYONE HAVE PICKPOCKETED THAT KNIFE AND STABBY STABBY >>> EXPLODING FLYING FLAME DEVIL ??

WHAT BRAIN CELLS WAS LUCIFER MISSING TO HAND THAT BLADE TO SAM WINCHESTER IN THE FIRST PLACE

OR GO INTO BATTLE WITH MICHAEL WITHOUT THE KNIFE

OR TO HAVE THAT BLADE ON HAND IN THE FIRST PLACE ??????????

I’m sorry i just find this hilarious

i mean good fucking riddance to this trash angel but wow what a way to get there

all of this was so easily avoidable ?? i seriously don’t understand what possessed sam to think “aw yeah let’s pick up this magic devil blade to KILL MY OWN SON and/or HAND IT TO HIM SO HE CAN KILL ME” instead of “umMMM the devil just gave me a magic knife and is trying to tell us to kill each other maybe we should kill him with it”

I HOPE SOMEONE IN THE WRITER’S ROOM HAS A REALLY GOOD EXPLANATION FOR THIS

-

05:45

HAPPY RELIEVED SAMMY

why do i feel like everything’s about to go terribly terribly wrong, worse than before

-

05:48

i mean micheal!dean looks good though

despite everything i think dean would approve of the outfit

-

like he actually looks a little bit TOO attractive

definitely not to be trusted

you know when people just look TOO handsome and shiny and perfect and they’re TOO charming and you know something’s up

this guy’s got danger written all over him in sleek & elegant calligraphy

-

05:50pm

mmmmmmmmm okay, it’s over

i liked it ?

felt old-school, kinda like a buffy episode or an x-files episode

things i’m happy about: everyone lived and lucifer died!! this is a pretty cool progression of events and i’m interested to see where it goes (not EXCITED, i’m not EAGER, but i am interested). that black dude was not the one who killed maggie. maggie survived!!!

things i’m not thrilled about: the fact sam didn’t just stab lucifer in the face when he was right next to him holding the magic knife?????? i don’t get it and i don’t think any kind of meta is actually gonna be able to explain how ~UM EXCUSE ME JUST ONE SECOND~esque that moment was

no bechdel test pass

jack’s personal arc this season was great and i love him

as always, this show is riveting to me only because i care so much about the characters, and i cannot tELL YOu how fucking pleased i am that this show’s universe is now a universe where bobby, charlie, mary, rowena, dean, cas, sam, jack, jody, donna, claire, the other wayward girls, and billie ALL EXIST AND ARE ALIVE

seriously could’ve done with some kevin too, i’m still bummed that he’s died TWICE now and isn’t back permanently yet

but HOLY SHIT THE REST OF THEM ARE ALL ALIVE 

GIVE ME A TEAM-FREE-WILL-MAJOR SEASON WITH ALL THE SQUAD ALIVE AND KICKING ASS AS A GROUP

like... save dean as a group, then one by one discover that dean and cas have been locked in a room without clothes for three days, then save the world and retire forever as a happy, healthy hunter squad with their gay dads

FUCK YEAH

overall, this episode is maybe a 9/10 just because that FUCKING KNIFE man. i dunno what to think about that.

like .........why

i also want cas to have a season arc!!! a positive one!!! where he actually accepts love and expresses affection and receives AUDIBLE AND VISIBLE AND TANGIBLE affection from others!!!

and for fuck’s sakes stop killing people of colour, give us more women of colour who are good and don’t die, pass the bechdel test more often

AND ABOVE ALL GIVE US WAYWARD SISTERS I WANT THAT SHOW SO BADLY AND EVERYTHING IT REPRESENTS

IT WOULD FILL IN ALL THE GAPS THAT ARE MISSING FROM THIS SHOW

PLEASE

[theonceoverthinker]

OUAT 1X13 - Whatever Happened to Frederick?

Hi! Hope you’re having a good day! Want to hear me yammer on about this episode for three pages? 

Sure you do! Right under the cut!

Press Release With their love for each other growing stronger, David finally agrees to tell Kathryn about his relationship with Mary Margaret and put an end to his loveless marriage. Meanwhile, in the fairytale land that was, while runaway groom Prince Charming searches for Snow White, he agrees to aid Abigail on a dangerous mission to recover something precious that was lost to her. General Thoughts Past The story in the past works, but I felt that for all the screentime Charming go, his character got very little out of it, for the story refused to engage with the conflict he was given. Snow rejected him, and while he feels sad and hurt, we don’t get a sense of what that action was driving him to do. He left Abigail, but what was he planning on doing next? What did this adventure do to re-route his journey so he’d go back to Snow? Look at “7:15AM’s” flashback: Snow is intending on going back to Charming, but a threat makes her ward off. Here, we have the event that changes, but because we don’t know what his plan was, there’s a loss of balance here. It’s not the most important thing, but for the big moment at the end of the flashback being that Charming will keep fighting for Snow, the contrast to what he was going to do should be wide and because this was undefined, the big moment doesn’t hit home with quite the same force.

I wish the siren would have preyed more on Charming, rather than just asking the audience to believe that Charming’s resolve would plummet so much based off of just seeing her and saying a line or two. While he does fight, I get the sense that we’re supposed to be seeing Charming, on the edge of despair, possibly giving in to something he knows is a lie because he has nothing to live for. However, Charming’s desperation wasn’t built up enough earlier on for that payoff to work. Present I like how we see how even though Emma has arrived and things have drastically improved, Regina’s curse is still very much intact. Everyone is still in this loop of misery, most notably the main players. The storytelling here - while a sad story - is still solidly told, apart from a nitpick or two that I touch upon in my “Insights” regarding Regina and Kathryn. David is still less sympathetic, but for the first time, I get the sense that I’m supposed to believe that because the episode is about him making a wrong choice and feeling the consequences of it. And Mary Margaret is so strong here. She is at once both a hero and a victim. She has the good sense to tell David the right thing to do, hold to her values, even as she’s being attacked, and let David go when he lied to her. At the same time, she received the harshest of blows and it was so sad to see her friends turn on her, and that acts as perfect build up for the next episode. Insights -Unpopular opinion time right off the bat: Holy fuck. Abigail gets the hardest freakin’ time from this fandom (More the GA, but still)! She’s done all of nothing in terms of evil shit and was rude for maybe a full minute of screen time at most! AND we know that she’s grieving! I bet when she’s not grieving, that wit becomes sass the likes of which at least match out other leading ladies and would be adored for it! All the love, Abby! All the love! -Kathryn’s putting in so much effort and is treating herself by following her dreams! You go, sweetie! <3 -Charming, did you hear that “despot’s” speech about how this marriage is going to save a fuckton of people? Like, I know King George is a baddie and his actions totally follow suit, but when I think about that speech and his motivation, I just can’t help but think of everyone who would suffer if Charming just ran off with Snow. Sure, they get the kingdoms anyhow, but he hasn’t thought that far right now! All I’m asking for is just some acknowledgements of his points. -Going back to positivity, I love the way Charming looks at Abigail as she says, “how charming.” He’s like, “that’s my name, don’t wear it out!” -That hat looks so cute on Mary Margaret! Season 1 was just the season of cute hats in Storybrooke (Sans Moe) -”I don’t know if I can.” David, work with me here! I’m trying to like you, here, but you’re not makit it easy! Thank God Mary Margaret is having none of it and is being the kindest version of blunt as fuck here. She’s such a boss! I gotta say, I’m going to miss this more practical side of her once the curse breaks. -August trying to subtly not make this a date is cracking me up! He’s like, “I say you in diapers. Let’s not go there.” But if he wants to talk to be understood, he’s got to pretend to want to show her his wood! XD -I’m reminded of something from TV Tropes: Charming asks Abigail if she’s tried True Love’s Kiss with the same casualness as he would ask about trying chicken noodle soup for a cold! XD -Even before “The Return” airs, we see these little fakeout bits of August’s personality in his physical mannerisms as he handles the pages of the book. He’s meticulous, and of course, that’s so close to Rumple, but it’s like Gepetto, too! - I actually paused as August was adding to the book, but the story bits didn’t look familiar. -I know Regina gets flak for trying to replace Henry’s book with video games (And I won’t pretend that it’s undeserved, circumstances are circumstances, after all), but I think that it’s also a nice gesture to see her trying to give Henry something that relates to his desires for heroism. It shows how on some level, she knows him (Although go on Wikipedia and look up a little company named Nintendo, Gina, kay?) and she wants to take a genuine step towards his happiness in a way that doesn’t endanger her curse. That said, the genre’s all wrong! Come on, Gina! Fantasy and Sci-Fi are two different things (Then again, considering season 2, I can’t blame you for blurring the lines) XD -Regina, what did you expect would happen when you told Kathryn the truth that way? Had you told her earlier, of course she’d be on your side, but right now? No, and why would she? I’m not sure if this scene was written to show that Regina is bad at friendship or that she was trying to steer Kathryn in Mary Margaret’s direction, but either way, this was a weird writing choice! Why not just have her break the news in the first place? And along those lines, why say she buried them if they were just in her office. Saying that she’d never use them would’ve made so much more sense! -Is it just me, or is Charming super cynical and dark in this episode? Like REALLY cynical! I guess i can interpret it as a reaction to Snow’s rejection. -”If you don’t, I will.” Granny, you are too adorable! -Wow, Charming, you have NO resolve! She literally transformed to Snow before your eyes. ...Never mind! -Really? Charming was the first to not give in? Your schtick seems pretty easy to beat. The warriors of the Enchanted Forest must SUCK! -I feel like Kathryn’s apology would’ve come across as so much better if we saw just a little bit more of them together as friends. -Awwww! Swan Believer cuteness!!! That is one excellent surprise tactic on your part, Emma - taking it out juuuuust as Henry’s not looking! I love it! -”I hope you’re right, kid.” That’s a profoundly sad line. Some of the optimism Emma’s been building up has been tarnished over those last few episodes after the Town Hall incident -I love that little smile Red gives as Charming tells her he’ll find Snow. He’s definitely won her approval! -Warrior King George! I really wish he showed up more, the more I watch him! Arcs David and Mary Margaret finding each other - I really didn’t have a problem with the writing of this part of the episode. David comes off as such a shitty person, but he gets the consequences of that behavior and it works really well. Snow and Charming finding each other - There’s a sting to Charming throughout the episode from Snow’s rejection back in the “7:15” flashback, and while that makes sense from a character standpoint, it’s a little confusing from a point of conflict. Charming has all the darkness of someone who is giving up on love (Or at least feels the pain of unrequited love), but he’s still just as strong in his efforts to find Snow as he was before she rejected him. There’s a weird dissonance in that respect. At the end of the flashback, Charming going after Snow is supposed to be this big and epic decision, but I never believed that he was actually stopping his pursuit of her. The Mystery of August Booth - We see the payoff of August having the book, and his mystery develops as we now want to know not only what he added to the book, but why it was added. Kathryn Nolan Abduction Arc - We’ve started here! Gold, you little shit! Don’t abduct people! Favorite Dynamic Emma and August. Their dynamic made me smile so hard and it was a relief in a very negative episode. Once again, their banter is like watching two master swordsman spar. August always knows just what questions to answer and just what quips to make to get Emma to go along with his schemes. Meanwhile, Emma learns more about August with every word spoken to her and uses his as well as her own lines of logic to learn more about him. It makes for something really fun to watch. August’s use of language is...not exactly flowery (I’d reserve that word for Rumple and Killian), but at the same time, there’s this weary wisdom to it with a touch of pomp and circumstance. But at the same time, Emma’s lines don’t come off as static or boring because she builds off of what he says in her own way. Writer We’ve got David Goodman at bat once again! So, I noticed a pattern, In both “The Price of Gold” and “True North,” I discussed the lack of strength in the story coming from one character in the past. And once again, as I’ve said earlier, I find the writing for Charming a little lacking in the past. We see bitterness, but it’s directionless bitterness without a point of contrast, and that’s really sucky. That said, his work in the present is very solid. The stories are told simply and well with moments to establish character and conflict. Rating 8/10. This was a really unpleasant episode to watch, for some pretty obvious reasons. Watching people be harsh with each other is never appealing and there’s little charm in this story where one can take a breather, apart from Emma and August’s scenes and Emma and Henry’s scenes. It’s also a little boring at times. That said, is it bad? Well, no. Unpleasantness doesn’t necessitate badness. Mary Margaret and Abigail/Kathryn come off as amazingly sympathetic and the fallout for David’s bad choice is so strongly shown. However, my problem lies in the past, as I stated before, and I know it may not be a big point for you, reader, but for me, this is like watching “Dumbo” and never being shown Dumbo’s mom being taken away: A crucial piece of the story is missing. ()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

Thank you all for reading and to the fine folks at @watchingfairytales for putting this project together! Come back next time to see whether or not that episode is a dream come true! Season Tally (109/220) Writer Tally for Season 1: A&E (31/70) Liz Tigelaar (17/20)* David Goodman (24/50) Jane Espenson (26/60) Andrew Chambliss and Ian Goldberg (19/40) Daniel Thomsen (8/10)* (* = Their work for the season is complete)

Operation Rewatch Archives