#if the MCU isn't going to provide a good series of stories

[watchmorecinema]

Something I don't like about the current state of the MCU (and DCU) is just how much work it all is. Some pretentious European movie from the 70's didn't require 30 other movies to provide context. You can pretty much watch any James Bond film in any order, there's not a lot of continuity to deal with. LOTR is an incredible series with a long plot but it's still only 3 movies; you only had to watch 2 other movies before Return of the King.

But with the MCU there's just so much! I think most people were following along fine until Endgame, but then it started to branch out too much. We get a new show every week, the multiverse idea just means that there are more and more threads to deal with and I just don't feel like it's working towards anything at all. Like, is She-Hulk required viewing before The Marvels? What context am I missing if I watch Quantumania but I didn't see any of the movies beforehand? Before Endgame there was certainly an issue with too many of the movies feeling like Origin stories, but at least they didn't require a lot of context. But now I'm so far behind that it just feels like a chore to catch up.

DCU has it worse since they keep rebooting everything. If your movie is meant to setup 5 future films and those films never come, then your movie isn't even good on its own. Apparently the next Avengers movie is going to be a soft reboot the MCU, so it's like why bother?

The films have finally grown all the same issues the comics had. Too many plotlines going on at once, constant retconning, and a focus on big events instead of just telling good stories one at a time. I would be so happy if we just kept getting standalone films that didn't really tie into each other so I could just watch them whenever. If they just made a new Batman each year with no plot carrying over I'd watch them all. Why did Columbo get popular again out of nowhere? There's 70 episodes and no plot to carryover so you can just watch one and get a complete story. Literally the best comic book projects to come out recently were fairly standalone or at least didn't need a lot of context. Werewolf by Night, Across the Spiderverse, The Batman and TMNT didn't need 30 movies of backstory and they didn't spend a lot of time just introducing characters for future movies. Spiderverse of course is different in that it is a sequel and a 3rd film is coming to finish the story but 3 movies is a reasonable number of movies to carry a plot over!

And what really gets me is that I did like the MCU a lot up to Endgame. I was pretty much watching them all as they came out in theaters. It was so much easier to do then. I think there are good stories to be told in the comic book superhero genre, but I don't think Hollywood can carry a plot over 40 films and have it work.

[burberrycanary]

I, too, want to procrastinate right now so thanks @zenaidamacrouras1 for the tag <3333

Rules: Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass this onto other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💖

I’ve been on a writing streak lately and I’m usually most excited by what I’m currently working on. But, taking a look back, here are some works I’m proud of.

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Still Left with the River (The Paradox of Motion) - 14k | G | Steve/Bucky, MCU

Summary: Coming back from as good as dead to a changed world is easier the second time around. But then Steve supposes that, like with most things, you get better with practice. 

A post-The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Stucky Endgame fix-it where even if you can’t go home again, you’ve got to go somewhere.

This is part of my massive labor of love stucky end game fix-it and probably my favorite story in the series, viewed individually. As I was writing this I went: no one is going to want to read a G-rated post-TFATWS stucky fic that doesn’t provide pretty immediate shippy gratification. But I love watching Steve have to pick himself up and go on after making a huge mistake that deeply hurt the people he loves most. While it can be cathartic as a reader to watch the people Steve left behind be furious, chewing him out until Steve has suffered some amount that’s “enough,” what I wanted to focus on is how hurting and disappointing the people closest to you, who continue to love you painfully through the hurt, creates such a complicated mess of damaged relationships. Steve, re-isolated by so much death and his own mistakes, now has to deal with repairing what he put wrong, if he can and if he’s given the chance to. But as the paradox of motion title would suggest, crossing that distance isn't easy.

This story is a quiet complicated love letter to New York City while this whole series is a massive intricate love letter to Bucky Barnes. Plus, Steve quietly pining is so my jam I can’t even. Come for Steve pining, stay for Steve making things right again.

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What the Living Do - 10k and counting  | G-E ratings | Henry/Alex, RWRB

Series Summary: This story is set a few months post-film and in a better universe than ours. Henry divides his time between New York and Kensington Palace. Alex is a second year student at Georgetown Law in Washington D.C. and lives in the White House. The distance is hard, but they're making it work.

We want the spring to come and the winter to pass. We want whoever to call or not call, a letter, a kiss—we want more and more and then more of it.

The epigraph of this series is from Marie Howe’s What the Living Do, which is a poem she wrote to her brother who had died from AIDS. It beautifully balances grief and living.

I’m drawn to characters who aren’t going to immediately tell you everything they are thinking and feeling—and to performances where so much is conveyed through micro-expressions that you don’t need dialogue.

Which means this RWRB series is an interesting challenge for me as an author that’s involved writing a lot of very direct communication all the way up to out-in-out Relationship talks. And a lot of fluff. But thanks to the series being told from Henry’s POV, it’s fluff in a minor-key mood. So if you like your bantery domestic fluff shot through with slowly healing grief and the lingering impact of spending years in the closet without a supportive family only to be traumatically outed, then this is the series for you.

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The Art of the Possible - 9k | M | Sharon-centric, TFATWS/MCU

Summary: Maybe whether you’ve picked the wrong side depends on where you’re standing—but if you can’t tell who the sucker at the poker table is: it’s you.

Sharon before, during, and after Madripoor.

I had so much fun writing this with @village-skeptic though it is absolutely not a story for everyone: non-linear and less than straightforward without the hook of a popular ship. Maybe I’m just drawn to characters the MCU keeps doing dirty (cough Bucky cough), but the incoherently bad writing of TFATWS created openings to tell a story that focuses on the bleakly dark aspects of the thematic and subtextual storytelling that is foundational to the MCU. And Sharon was the right character for telling that story.

But for anyone troubled by the politics of the MCU? This is a story for you and I hope you give it a try.

The trick to telling a story with heroes is knowing when to stop and what to leave out.

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I Leave This at Your Ear - 5k | E | Betty/Jughead, Riverdale

Summary: They sort of break up again on February 17 and definitely get back together on March 15. They barely talk between “the Valentine's Day massacre and the ides of March,” he jokes later, sitting next to her in a booth at Pop’s and hoping that she’ll slide closer to rest her head on his shoulder like she used to.

Ah, the brief golden age of Riverdale when that sandbox was fun to play in. This is probably the single best expression of my style as a writer: lyrical, a lot more show than tell, starting in medias res with people talking around strong feelings that are conveyed without being directly mentioned much of anywhere. I’m drawn to focusing on the hard and messy parts of relationships without the big drama of external angst or the relatively easy knots to untie that are misunderstandings—a Marmite tendency, I know. But I love thinking about the part where you go, ok, but how do we actually live with everything that’s happened? Getting back together is easy in comparison to going forward afterward—that is what’s hard.

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Exactly the Contents of One - 6k | M | Starsky/Hutch, Starsky & Hutch

The day's smoggy and breathless, already in the mid-eighties with the weatherman promising worse tomorrow, but as long as they keep moving it's not so bad.

(Or, becoming Starsky and Hutch.)

I definitely have a type: two characters who are very different people but share common values and are fighting for something bigger than themselves—idealists who get all mucked up and worn out in the trenches while loving each other too deeply and too much, generally in ways that are at odds with the society around them. Yeah, that’s my ship type. 

This is a throwback pick for an old fic, but I’ve always been interested in how slash developed as a genre and a subculture. I ended up taking a tour of some OG ships from the 60s and 70s, including going pretty deep down a Starsky/Hutch rabbit hole (the 70s TV series and not the film remake, I cannot emphasize enough). I was nervous about signing up for this because there was a 5k minimum word count and at the time I’d never written anything near that long. So, wow, I’ve come a long way.

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I'm not sure how long this game has been going around, but if @skarabrae-stone, @sullypants, @beaarthurpendragon or @controlofwhatido haven't played yet and would like to, please have some self-rec love 🥰

[bagheerita]

Twenty Questions For Fic Writers

Thank you for the tags @lord-aldhelm and @anonmadsci and @chaniis-atlantis !! 💖💖💖

1. how many works do you have on AO3? Currently 93. I've finished transferring (almost) all of my old fics from FFN and AFF (for archival purposes, as most of them are not very good)

2. what's your total AO3 word count? 1,678,494

3. what fandoms do you write for? Formerly, 28 fandoms listed on A03. Currently, Stargate Atlantis (though I'm hoping to get some of my SGU ideas wrangled into actual fics soon)

4. top five fics by kudos: "Nemo" (SGA) "Nykteridalatry" (SGA) "One and One and One is Three" (MCU) "Regina Donum" (SGA) and "Written in Your Skin" (SGA) has (I believe recently) edged out "Your Prison is Walking Through this World all Alone" (MCU) for 5th ❤

5. do you respond to comments? Oh yeah! I've had some great comment conversations especially on "Nemo" and the earlier fics in that series, and I still try to reply to all comments.

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Gonna say "Lie Still" (Angel/BTVS). It deals with a canon character death, sort of me exploring why I felt like this ending fit the character, though it's so personal to my own feelings that I feel like it's difficult for other readers to parse.

7. what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? This is difficult to say, as I much prefer to write happy endings so there are many!! I might say "Harbored" or "A Dram of Sweet is Worth a Pound of Sorrow" (both SGA), as they both deal with the main character overcoming painful histories to find happiness.

8. do you get hate on fics? Nothing I would call hate, though sometimes I get odd comments.

9. do you write smut? Lots.

10. craziest crossover? I adore crossovers. I'm gonna interpret this question slightly differently than I have in the past and say "One and One and One is Three" (MCU). Technically this isn't a "crossover" in the sense of different properties, but in the sense of the multiverse and 5 universes of people running around and seeing what their-self is up to in another universe.

11. have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I'm aware of.

12. have you ever had a fic translated? No.

13. have you ever co-written a fic before? No, but technically Eos and I are co-authors on "Aubade," as she contributed gorgeous illustrations!!

14. all time favorite ship? I have so many fandoms and characters I love that I tend to ship whatever characters' vibes works for me in that moment. Recently, I do tend toward vaguely evil/unbelievable snark as a ship dynamic, which has manifested in me writing over 100,000 words each for inussess, frostiron, and jodd

15. what's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will? At the moment I'm fighting the pull of garashir. I do NOT need to get pulled into another fandom, especially one where I need to learn a whole new writing vocabulary that I haven't been paying that much attention to as I (re)watch the show. But I have a very specific vibe I'm searching for that I want to read and I haven't found a fic to fill that vibe yet, so I've opened a Gdoc to store some notes, and so I guess it counts as a WIP though I want it to exist as much as I do not want to write it.

16. what are your writing strengths? I haven't been writing much lately so at the moment I'm not really feeling that I'm good at anything lol.

17. what are your writing weaknesses? currently I'm gonna go with summer. it's too hot and i have no energy.

18. thoughts on dialogue in another language? Do whatever makes you happy, but if I needed to know what that said for the plot you better provide a translation.

19. first fandom you wrote in? OT Star Wars

20. favorite fic you've written? Whew, this one is hard to answer. My favorite moments that I envisioned in my head tend to not end up translating as well as I want them to onto the page, but "With Autumn Closing In" (MCU), "Oh Talk Not to Me Of a Name Great in Story" (SGA), and "Ivory Fanged" (Kiesha'ra) are probably some of my favorites.

Edit: was tired and forgot to tag people so @_yournamehere_ if you want to participate ❤

[kitcat992]

Identity Crisis  | Chapter 3: Grounded

“Beginning clinical trial 10.F—G in three...two...one...”

The liquid dropped from its contained, secured case the moment the buzzer went off, the sound piercing and sharp. The feel of it always got to him; dense, thick, slimy, and somehow worse than all the times that came before. Like a raindrop, it hit the back of his hand with a pluck.

It was hot.

It was always hot, burning against his skin, sizzling at the touch. He had lost count of the chemical burns that scattered along his body, scars that told stories of the many attempts he endured in the pursuit of health. Life. A chance.

The irony wasn’t lost on him. No, never in the battery of tests he subjected himself to was it ever lost on him. He was destroying his body in the attempt to heal it.

It wasn’t ideal, and certainly not his first choice in the grand scheme of things. But they didn’t have time — he didn’t have time. There was no animal testing or research studies that could be done before reaching him.

Not if he wanted a chance.

So he closed his eyes, tight. Tight enough to feel the muscles in his face twitch and scream and beg for the release that he wouldn’t give until he heard the word ‘success’. He held his breath and bit his tongue through the searing pain that spread across his skin, rendering his fingers numb and his wrist rigid with immobility, all as he waited.

It always felt like an eternity. He would often think of Emily in these times. Deep, mahogany hair that countered her smile of pure sunshine, one he’d still picture every night before going to sleep, accompanied with the purest, brightest blue eyes he’d ever witnessed before. Even now, decades after becoming nothing more than a memory to him, she kept him calm. As long as he had her memory —

“Host organism Symbiote cytoplasm results produce...another failure for organisms protoplasmic material in binding with subject.” The voice, albeit calm, professional and tame, was nails on a chalkboard to his ears. “The changes formulated to the cell structure from clinical trials 9.E—G appear to be unsuccessful.”

His eyes stayed closed, though the pressure on his eyelids lessened greatly. He could feel the burning begin to fade on his hand, the tell-tale sign that the liquid had dropped off, running down and off his skin like water in the shower. It would fall down into a drain placed beneath his feet, where the earth shattering disappointment made it feel like his legs had wavered despite the ground staying still.

His heart beat heavily and he fought to control the emotion, taking in three deep breaths to remain composed. Each lifted his chest high, pulled his shoulders back taunt. He kept those blue eyes in his mind, fighting to remember exactly what shade they were. Always close to sky blue, but never quiet so pale. Vivid, like ice.

“How would you like to proceed, Mr. Osborn?”

And with that, he opened his eyes to the world around him, no longer able to stay in the memory of a better time and place, a memory of warmth and content. His environment was sterile and cold, a lot like the expression he wore on his face. Because if twenty-eight years of owning and running his own business had taught him anything, it was to never show weakness.

“You are...highly credentialed, Doctor Frye.” Norman grabbed the towel offered to him by one of the many scientists standing nearby, slowly but confidently wiping his hands with it. “I have the upmost faith that you will figure it out.”

The towel was damp, saturated with a cooling gel to ease the burns that blistered on his skin. He smeared it generously across the back of his hand, stepping down cautiously from the platform where he stood. The other techs began to scatter, leaving all but one white-coated doctor standing amidst the departing crowd.

“Sir, with all due respect,” Doctor Frye started, “I have been surveying the progress on this project since day one. And since we’ve discovered that this Symbiote bio-structure won’t bond without the DNA markers of it’s original conception, you continue to try and change the cell nucleus of the genetic make-up with no success.”

Norman approached him with long strides, confident steps that spoke more than his words ever could. He cocked an eyebrow high in the air and discarded the towel to the side.

Doctor Frye held his tablet firmly in his grip as he continued, “This is the tenth failure, and the tenth time my team has played God to the membrane of an organism that cannot thrive without the mutation markers of its birth host.”

“And as we are both aware,” Norman was quick to respond, his tone smooth yet firm, “the birth host perished two years ago with an autopsy report that showed no remaining embryo fluid in the sack. Is that a fact you fail to recall or do you simply prefer that I remind you the cause behind our perennial struggles?”

There was something unique in Doctor Frye that Norman respected. For starters, the man was never afraid to stand up to him, talk science with him, throw equations back and forth. He had intense grit, a dedication to his craft, dare he say an unhealthy need to be present at the job at all times. It played greatly in his favor, the unfortunate passing of Frye’s wife, leading him to divulge all his time into his work. It kept the good doctor focusing on the cure Norman so desperately needed.

“That spider was our last chance at finding success with this project, Mr. Osborn,” he reminded, his voice going so far as to pitch with unnerve. “Without injecting the mutated cells directly into your bloodstream, there’s no way this Symbiote bio-suit will bind to your genetic DNA. It requires the mutated markers of that radioactive spider.”

As the doctor spoke, Norman began to roll down the sleeves to his white button-down, taking care in buttoning the cuffs back together on each arm. He never once looked down during the task, keeping his eyes focused intently on Frye, frowning a bit as he digested what was said.

“Your vacillation is disconcerting to hear, doctor. It seems you’ve forgotten that sitting beneath my entrepreneur credentials lays a scientific genius with doctoral degrees in chemistry and electrical engineering. So when I say this can be done, I say it with more than just words,” Norman’s words were even, clinical, nearly emotionless. “I say it with the knowledge and ingenuity to substantiate the matter.”

Aggravated, Doctor Frye shook his head with animated exaggeration, spinning around as Norman began to walk past him.

“You aren’t listening. You don’t — !”

Norman calmly turned to face him, so close that it physically startled the doctor, his muscles so tense it showed in his lips.

“This Symbiote is a living organism. And like all living organisms, you can work with its biology,” Norman insisted, his tensely knitted eyebrows the closest thing he had shown to frustration so far. “I would advise that you not allow any defeats to keep you from pushing forward onward to success.”

Deliberate to linger on a hard stare that created a sheen of sweat across Doctor Frye’s forehead, Norman gave a curt nod when the time felt right. Only then did he walk passed the man, careful to avoid bumping shoulders.

He made it to the door before a voice was heard again. It wasn’t unexpected. Norman would have paused there in anticipation regardless of what sound came his way; the doctor had grit, after all.  

“You have to give me clarification here, Mr. Osborn. Why can’t you lend my team the formula for the OZ Experiment Arachnid No. 00? We’ll create it from scratch, we’ll give the Symbiote the DNA markers it requires to bind and latch onto it’s subject matter,” he paused for a beat, his throat constricting as he stressed,  “You, sir.”

There was enough hesitation from Norman to make it seem like he had been pondering up a response. In reality, he had one ready to go long before the man had ever asked the question. It was a sore subject. It had become the bane of his existence. The loss of all his files, the OZ formula, the records of the arachnid experiment from years ago that could easily save his life — gone. And why?

“Because, Doctor Frye,” Norman said, swiping his badge to gain access out of the laboratory, “those records were recently loss in a very unfortunate...water-logging incident. Now carry on. I expect progress by the morning.”

The heavy weight of the door closed loudly behind him, an echo that shot through the air. Norman was walking down the halls before it had even slammed shut.

— — —

Can I just say...I’m really going to enjoy writing this character?

(¬‿¬)

[supermoviemaniac]

We still doing this huh?

It's okay not to care or be invested in the franchise - it may seem overbearing or unappealing from the outside if you're looking at a 26-film franchise, but you're going to get laughed out of the room for thinking the MCU should stop.

This isn't me getting butthurt as a fan, but more of a desperate plea for journalists to take a step back before they write slow-office-day articles like this. How many times have we seen this article... but how many times has an MCU movie broken its own previous records and gained more and more fans?

I feel like a stuck record now, but the best way to look at the MCU is as a series (partly because it is); the Avengers movies are season finales, and with the Infinity Saga ending, it's time for the MCU to direct us toward the next big stories. From Iron-Man 1, to Endgame, the MCU had been an ever-growing smash hit, with the greatest cathartic ending in cinematic history. You can watch the whole Infinity Saga and check out there if you wish, but you're going to look a fool if you think they should stop after sticking their first landing.

Don't get me wrong, I would have been content if Endgame was the actual ending, and it's always a concern when a franchise/series is doing well, there must come a time when it either ends with dignity or doesn't stick the landing... but if Marvel Studios are continuing to make quality, justified, game-changing movies (which are clearly building up to something far crazier than Thanos and 6 stones), then why stop now? Do we suddenly have no faith in these clearly passionate directors/storytellers and producers that have delivered the most entertaining franchise in history yet? I'll hold my hand up honestly and confess myself: sometimes when they've announced more and more Disney+ shows, I initially think "Oh god, another one?!", but so far, they've all been great in their own ways, and my apprehension is always squashed. Because Marvel play the long game, we care about each and every character and their development, so when we reach larger ensemble movies, they're genuinely incredible to watch, due to revelations and each film before it being somewhat of a building block.

Without the 'simplistic' origins of the MCU, we wouldn't be able to have the crazy things we saw in Shang-Chi, Eternals, Loki and WandaVision for example. You don't have to like the movies or the shows... no one is asking you to watch them, but with dumb articles like this, you're turning a blind eye to millions of fans with justified passions.

Are we going to get articles like this whenever a Marvel movie doesn't perform as good as the previous one? We've got substanceless brain-candy movies like Sony's Venom 2 getting rated higher than Eternals, because Eternals delved outside of the main MCU formula and provided a great character driven sci-fi with 10 unfamiliar characters... whereas Venom 2 was a bad comic book movie but painted by numbers so got a higher score. If Eternals delivered the same generic story as Venom 2 had, would it have gotten a higher score? Subsequently, would we then not have dumb articles like this? Because right now it seems the writer is trying to capitalise on Eternals' mixed reception. If that's the case, I advise they check out the audience score, because it'll be the audience that are actually invested and care about these movies. The writer even confesses he really loved Shang-Chi, which is post Endgame, so what's his issue? It feels like they want the MCU to fail if anything.

Note: my Eternals review will be coming soon, and yes I did like it a hell of a lot. I've seen it twice now and it's just outside of my top 5 MCU movies. I'll be talking more about the mixed reception and critics' hypocrisies whenever they complain about a Marvel formula but then dissaprove of something for not feeling like a standard Marvel film.

[worstloki]

Isn't it exhausting this whole discourse on the Loki series? On one side, those of us who didn't like it are defending our opinions and each other, on the other it feels like swimming against the current since so many people bash and criticize and attack us and it feels useless at the end of the day. So thanks to you and everyone else who keep up the fight and makes the ones like us not feel alone in the struggle.

signed: an ace, bullied, neurodivergent bookworm who saw themselves in the original Loki and wished for him to be treated better and find real friends and closure (and not whatever it was the series)

I think the main issues with this tend to be that:

- Many people conflate liking something to it being objectively good, so even when admitting it has flaws or seeing them acknowledged they do not like to see them listed or think about why they are not good, or what implications the bad things in the media could have. (It's how military propaganda and bad messages and racism in the MCU can completely go over people's heads)

- People wind up meshing canon and fanon (perfectly fine to do for fun, but perhaps not the best thing when canon is being discussed)

- A majority of the audience is casual! The general target audience is just watching for plain old entertainment! Which is valid bc I watched it with no expectations and enjoyed it greatly, but, most people are not going to sit around and ponder over how loosely the plot is strung together or care if a character is acting different! Not everyone is invested or attached to the story being told the same amount! (The Loki series does a great job of spoon-feeding the audience what they should be getting from different scenes, and in itself isn't complex and has really simple concepts spoken aloud so it's real easy to get tricked here in what we're shown vs told)

- People rely on others to know canon they mayn't recall for themselves... this is especially evident in claims of 'what the show did' in interviews and when people argue on larger meanings in the show without providing arguments/evidence of how such things were portrayed. (Sometimes even when provided the examples are so loosely strung together it reminds me of writing essays without reading the text - but it's not like everyone remembers the show perfectly or looks into the context of lines to make sure they make sense and are consistent with what is being argued... this also includes retcons which can, for all the MCU's consistency, go unnoticed at large)

Things get a bit repetitive, yes, so I try to avoid discourse... people are going to see things differently, and that's fine. As long as no one is harassing others for what they do/don't like everything is chill. People shouldn't have to defend their opinions, and discussing things from different angles should be encouraged if we're looking at interpretations.

[pixelcurious]

I've figured out what it is that doesn't work for me with Wandavision. It's that there's nothing sympathetic about Wanda. They introduce her as this flat, two-dimensional sitcom character, and for the first few episodes she doesn't develop beyond that at all. There's the mystery of what is really going on, but that's just background stuff at first. Then when they reveal she's controlling the illusion and all these people's lives, they still don't give her any depth. She's the protagonist, but it's other characters who develop the story around her.

With Agent Carter there was background story I didn't know, due to not having seen those movies, and so I didn't have the full picture. But it didn't really matter because the character was engaging, and the writing was mostly good. Even though Peggy Carter's entire emotional arc in the first season relied on a guy who wasn't even there, I still cared about her and wanted to know what happened to her.

With Wandavision, again I haven't seen the prior movies (edit: the ones with Scarlet Witch) or read any of the comics but I don't know if that would even help. The problem isn't lack of context; they're providing enough exposition to make up for that. It's that the main emotion Wanda conjures up is vague annoyance. I don't give a rat's ass about her or her stifled grief. There's just nothing engaging about her. She's mayonnaise on white bread.

It says a lot when the best thing about the series so far is the gleeful musical number revealing the show's antagonist.

(I'm also not super fond of the whole "woman with powers goes mad with grief and must be stopped" trope but that's another topic)

EDIT: Just block me if you can't stand my opinions on mcu stuff. When I get around to watching Loki you're not going to like it

[plasticnightmaredoll]

I thought I'd make some comments about the first episode of "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier," kind of in the same way I made a post about my thoughts on the "WandaVision" season finale. I don't plan on doing a post with my thoughts, opinions, and theories for EVERY episode of TFatWS because a) I don't have that kind of time or patience, b) Things are probably going to change left and right as the series progresses, just like in "WandaVision" so I don't see a need to document all of this, c) I ramble enough as it is lol

Of course, there are spoilers under the cut, so if you haven't seen the first episode, then I suggest you...don't look under the cut! If you have seen the episode and just want to see what another MCU/Marvel fan thinks, or if you don't care about spoilers, then have at it.

I will say that the first episode of "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" (I'm going to refer to it as TFatWS from now on because that title is long af) was good and brought forth lots of mystery and intrigue, but it didn't grab my attention quite as much as the first episode of "WandaVision." But this may be due to the fact that WV was just so bizarre right from the start, and there were tons of questions right out the door. So, the mystery (and confusion) was more intense than for TFatWS.

I still plan on finishing TFatWS, but I hope it picks up a little more in the next episodes.

Another thing I will mention that's really not much of a spoiler: Poor Bucky! Just like Wanda, he needs a damn break already 😭

And lastly, I haven't read any Marvel comics because I just don't have the time, energy, patience, sanity right now to devote to them. That, and I have always preferred manga (Berserk is still my favorite manga/graphic novel of all time. Hell, it's my favorite fictional story of all time! And the 90s anime is one of my favorite series ever). My Marvel knowledge is heavily based on what the MCU has provided, but I do know things that happen in the comics because I do read up on various comparisons between the comics and the MCU entries and people's theories based on the comics. So, I'm not completely clueless.

Ok, spoiler time!

I don't really have a list of things I liked and disliked for this first episode of TFatWS because it's just way too early for that kind of stuff, and who knows where the series is going to go from here. I'll just make a list of thoughts and opinions:

James "Bucky" Barnes/The Winter Soldier

POOR BUCKY! I mean, goddamn, this man can't get a break. We see just how much his time as a Hydra agent affected him, causing him to have nightmares about those he killed while brainwashed. He's closed himself off from others because he's depressed, burdened with immense guilt, and probably feels like he's not worth helping at this point.

I also like how we got to see just how negatively he was affected by being at war for so long. He'd be put into hibernation by Hydra, and awoke every time to go kill some people. Rinse and repeat. That was his life, which isn't much of a life if you ask me. The same happened when he was freed from their control and while it's understandable why he had to fight in "Infinity War" and "Endgame," it was clearly a lot for him to handle. He didn't get a lot of peace, and even now that things have settled, he still has no peace.

At first, I was wondering why Bucky was going out of his way to befriend his elderly neighbor, Mr. Nakashima since he wasn't associating with anyone else, not even Sam. Then we find out that Bucky was the one who murdered the old man's son why under Hydra control. He can't bring himself to tell Mr. Nakashima because it's too painful and he's too ashamed. He's trying to prepare for it, I suppose, by befriending the man, but at the same time, I don't think it's going to be less unpleasant to deliver the news.

I literally felt heartbroken for Bucky when I realized that he had killed Mr. Nakashima's son. Like, omfg, Bucky, this poor guy...he has to live with these painful memories of things he was forced to do and it's depressing to witness.

I know it seems weird that no one recognizes who Bucky is, but I have a theory on that: Those that do are people who actually know him or those who have seen his face at the Smithsonian. Those who don't recognize him may never have been to the museum or simply didn't remember his face. I mean, Captain America was the main focus of the exhibit, and he was in the public eye all the time, so Bucky could easily be forgotten. Also, after the Blip, people clearly have had a lot to deal with after being missing for several years while the rest of the world put itself back together. Bucky is the least of their concerns.

Sam Wilson/Falcon

Sam, our good boy Sam. I was expecting him to keep Captain America's shield, even if he didn't use it right away. I mean, I know in "Endgame" he said it feels like it belongs to someone else, but I thought he'd change his mind and keep it. But he ends up donating it to the Captain America exhibit, which was unfortunate. I mean, I understand why, and I thought, "Well, he can just go grab it later" but then...well, that's going to be discussed later.

I was glad Sam kept trying to reach out to Bucky despite how things seemed very tense between them before. I can understand why he didn't just visit in person because that would have overwhelmed Bucky. I am suffering from severe depression and I know how difficult it can be to have a surprise guest attempt to make chit chat. Not fun.

We find out how Sam's sister has been trying to make ends meet during the Blip. Things aren't going well financially for her, and she is considering selling their father's boat to bring in some much-needed funds. Sam tries to help by convincing her to go to a bank and take out a loan. He hopes that his status could help influence the bank's decision as well.

But that isn't in the cards. The bank can't approve the loan because now there are regulations post-Blip regarding such matters. Not even Sam's status as Falcon -- an AVENGER -- amounts to much. Then the accountant awkwardly behaved like a fanboy during the whole meeting, even going so far as to ask for a selfie from Sam during the most inconvenient moment. This scene shows, to me, that being an Avenger doesn't change everything, yet, they're still famous and loved (for the most part). It's a strange feeling: "We love you guys for all you've done, but yeah, we can't really help you out."

I'm glad Marvel is choosing to show the negative effects of the Blip. It's great everyone returned but...everyone literally popped back into existence. We saw some of this chaos in "WandaVision," and we're seeing more in TFatWS. It's a realistic approach because, like, yeah, people being gone for several years, presumed forever missing then suddenly reappearing out of thin air is pretty extreme. Not to mention, those who returned didn't always find their loved ones and friends waiting for them (i.e. Monica's mother died during the Blip)

Flag Smasher

Not much to say here other than we have a new villain to watch out for who clearly has superhuman abilities. The cause that his group stands for threatens to make things even worse post-Blip than they already are, and geez, give people a break already! But you always have fanatics that will terrorize others for a cause.

Captain America 2.0

Who is this random white boy and why is he the new Captain America? I know who he is from the comics but that doesn't make it any better. It just makes it worse! This guy's going to be a disaster, clearly.

Sam realized at that moment he fucked up by giving the shield away, but this can only mean he'll find a way to retrieve and -- hopefully -- take up the Captain America mantle. Captain Falcon? Captain America Falcon? Captain Falcon America? I suppose you can have fun with that.