#in charm's way

[thereadingchallengechallenge]

JOMP BPC - October 18th - Witches

can't wait to try The Witches of Thistle Grove series the next time I'm in a paranormal mood 💜

[geekgirles]

Nothing I want more than more expansion on how Kevin must’ve felt during the Dagon arc when Gwen was possessed. The ANGST potential if they expanded on that 😭

OH MY GOD, YESSSSSS

The brainwashing!

The Apocalypse Maiden Undertones!!

The potential angst!!!

How it was pretty much glossed over even though it was featured several times in Ultimate Alien!!!!

If I have to choose a favorite Ben 10 iteration, that would be UAF, and especially Alien Force seasons 1 and 2, but even they aren't exempt of flaws or missed opportunities.

For example, is it just me, or is the Gwevin angst always coming from Kevin?

Whenever the focus was on whatever kind of strain their relationship was going through at the moment, the friction always came from Kevin or was related to something he was going through.

I'd say the first time would probably All That Glitters, where Gwen was willing to try going out with him, but Kevin's hesitance kept in the way. Which combined with the hold Michael then had on Gwen, spurned her into trying to move on, while making Kevin jealous.

Then we have their season 3 drama. Which was caused by Kevin's new mutation but, again, wasn't a result of Gwen's actions or her rejecting Kevin now that he was mutated. In fact, Gwen made it clear practically every time the issue came up that she loved Kevin regardless of his outward appearance. It was never her actions that put a strain on their relationship.

It was Kevin's actions and insecurities that got in the way. Which is realistic and to be expected, truth be told. Given how heavily his original mutation back in OS hung on him, anyone would have deep-seated insecurities linked to their looks and the side effects of their powers in Kevin's shoes. But the thing is, during season 3 nothing Gwen did was the origin of the tension between the two, she wasn't the source of the drama, it was Kevin convincing himself that, either Gwen wouldn't love him now that he wasn't "handsome", or that she was taking advantage of the situation to keep him to herself.

In season 3, the source of the conflict was Kevin unknowingly sabotaging himself and his relationship with Gwen.

And then we have the first season of Ultimate Alien, where once again the main conflict between the two is sparked first by Kevin's Osmosian heritage and his relation to Aggregor, and then by another mutation. Only this time, his mutation drives him crazy and power-hungry, so much so, he becomes an even bigger threat than when he was 11.

In my honest opinion, the Absolute Power Arc was top notch in terms of drama and angst. It delved into Kevin's past in the Null Void, we went back to some Tennyson Cousins Quality Time like we hadn't had since the Original Series, the Gwevin scenes were heartwrenching... The actual end, though, is a tad lackluster.

And by this I mean the last scene where Ben and Kevin decide to go grab some Mr Smoothies while ditching Gwen felt like a huge kick in the gut. I'm sorry, but no matter how you look at it, Gwen is the real hero of the arc, not Ben. Sure, Ben had to go all serious and homicidal to highlight the how high the stakes were, but the one who ultimately saved the day was Gwen.

She believed in Kevin from the beginning, which was proven true when he revealed he was actively trying to stay away from her to protect her.

She tracked down Darkstar to recruit him for her plan to bring Kevin back to normal.

She acted as bait to lure Kevin to them.

No matter how you look at it, it was Gwen's beliefs and efforts what brought Kevin back. In the meantime Ben was planning ways to kill him! And you're telling me the two would just shrug her off like that?

Hell, no! Come back and thank my girl profusely, you morons!

Nevertheless, my point still stands: whenever the writers needed to spice things up a little with Gwevin, they went the Kevin angle, never Gwen's.

Par contrast, whenever it looked like Gwen was in danger or risked crossing over to the dark side, it was but an appetiser. The possibility of Gwen going rogue was an idea they kept bringing up, but never took the chance to materialise.

While Kevin got several arcs all about his inner conflict and his mutations and his backstory and whatnot, every single time Gwen was in any sort of danger of suffering the same kind of fate would immediately be resolved or glossed over until it became relevant again.

Literally most of the times Gwen put herself in danger all it took was for Kevin to say he couldn't afford to lose her, or come up with some sort of half-baked plan and POOF! Crisis averted.

No, Gwen will not be going full Anodite on us and lose her humanity.

You think Gwen's going to carelessly put herself in danger even though she's vulnerable to mind control? Dont'cha worry, Kevin's got ya!

And speaking of mind control, you actually thought we'd let Gwen be a pawn to the season's Big Bad for more than two minutes? Oh, you silly goose!

Unfortunately, Gwen getting the short end of the stick happens constantly in this franchise.

No, I'm serious. Even though in UAF the focus was supposed to be on the Ben, Gwen, Kevin trio, the actual focus was always on either Ben or Kevin. Gwen didn't have nearly as many episodes/plots that were indeed focused mostly on her. Even in episodes that were all about magic/mana and sorcery, most of the time she shared the spotlight with another character, if she wasn't outright eclipsed by them. It was usually Charmcaster, but Kevin and even Darkstar stole the spotlight from Gwen.

The only episodes from UAF to Omniverse that I can think of right now that were indeed about Gwen would be What Are Little Girls Made Of?, Time Heals, It's Not Easy Being Gwen, Mud Is Thicker Than Water and maybe Charm School (and even then, a huge part of the episode featured both Hex and Charmcaster more prominently than it did Gwen).

That's it.

Which is why I am so bitter over the fact that we never got an Unhinged Anodite Gwen Arc. Not only because it would have been amazing to see what an Anodite can do when they're not holding back, or even the fact that I am a certified sucker for when one of the most powerful characters in the cast of a show temporarily joins the bad guys, but because it would have been the perfect chance to finally explore the impact Gwen has had on those around her.

And yes, it would have made for some very sweet Gwevin angst.

TL;DR: we were robbed.

[wlwbookshelf]

IN CHARM'S WAY - LANA HARPER Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

In this fourth Thistle Grove installment, the series circles back to the house of Harlow. Delilah is a compelling main character, and as always, there is a magical problem for her to solve, as well as a romance to be had. The love interest Catriona is an outsider and a complex character. 

I think these books can no longer be standalone at this point in the series. Thanks to the lore/worldbuilding from prior books so, if anyone wanted to start with this book, I would say to read at least Payback’s A Witch and Back In A Spell before it for better context. 

I enjoyed this book and still find this a solid series/world and am looking forward to reading the next installment about Dahlia Abramov.

Many thanks to Berkley Publishing Group for an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. 

[red-heart-sunglasses]

my new hyperfixation (they are in love your honor)

[the-final-sentence]

'And - unless you screw things up again - you have at least one local ready to vouch for you.'

Lana Harper, from In Charm’s Way

[iscariotapologist]

today in church one of the priests referred to trans people as "those who are growing into the gender they were called to be" and i'm kind of enjoying the idea of like....divinely ordained top surgery

[bookcoversonly]

Title: In Charm's Way | Author: Lana Harper | Publisher: Berkley (2023)

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

HOT, SINGLE, UNSTUDIED SPONGES. 3000 NAUTICAL MILES AWAY. Come sail the distance and read Tiger Tiger!

[beif0ngs]

It looks like they fell asleep.

[biggest-gaudiest-patronuses]

i vote that next year instead of reading Dracula we do a Jeeves & Wooster Book Club. those two never got the rabid tumblr shipping fandom they deserved (disqualified for the sheer technicality of being published a century too soon). we must correct this injustice

[tiny-crescent]

sorry Mochi ♡🙏 

this may be my favorite Misa moment in Death Note. listen, she gets shit done. not in a safe or sane way, but she gets it done... lol

[literaphobe]

imagine marinette getting told by friends and family Hey Girl. we think you might have adhd. and they cite symptoms she shows but she accidentally connects them to stuff she started doing after she became ladybug and now shes like OH NO… if i deny this disorder they will suspect my identity… YEAH I TOTALLY HAVE ADHD YOU GUYS!!!! so she thinks she’s keeping it up for her superhero life and nods along to all the tips and tricks for adhd people her loved ones find on the internet. she flashes smiles as they hand her meds that could help and only pretends to take them because she’s Lying About It Right. but then one day at patrol chat noir tells her hey um recently a friend of mine was diagnosed with adhd. have you heard of it? because i think you might have it. and her eye twitches

[feelo-fick]

i thought the reason was obvious..??

but you dont seem to get the implication so i guess ill just keep talking and you can listen if you want to

—

that one meme but its them :] sort of a sequel to this

[haejjoon]

don't blink!

[batman-gif]

"Frank and Gerard early 2000's stage kisses" this "Frank and Gerard early 2000's stage kisses" that. LISTEN! 2022 Ray and Frank forehead kisses. In conclusion . Frank iero.

[mecachrome]

Oscar on his family's support