#it started in s1 but the dynamic drastically changed in s3

[radioactive-yuri]

technically nobody can prove timelias enemies with benefits wasn't real. it's a free country and i get to choose what i believe

[lesbianwithchainsaws]

Keep thinking about the Jeff and Annie dynamic so anyway here's how I think it should've been done (with the added bonus of me sprinkling in lesbian Annie Edison):

So s1 goes more or less the same it does in canon. Annie dates Vaughn, gets ready to leave with him, but becomes too scared and goes back to Greendale. And actually I think it makes sense for Jeff and Annie to kiss here. Especially on Annie's side. She's scared and nervous, she wants to be more okay with drastic changes and wants a whole new life, but isn't ready for all that so she goes back to Greendale and kisses Jeff to justify to herself why she didn't go with Vaughn. It's just kind of a thing that happens on a wim. And for the first like second Jeff kisses her back because of the whole confession that just happened with Britta, and because he is also confused about what's going on. The kiss is essentially nothing more than trying to do something they have control over in a point in both of their lives when they feel the opposite. But I think, once Jeff gets that realisation on what he's doing, he pulls away. He tries to let her down, but he does it so badly that Annie doesn't quite process it as a rejection. Because instead of talking to her, Jeff just makes some sarcastic comment and assumes that's enough.

So, over the summer, Annie convinces herself that she is in love with Jeff. When s2 starts, Annie thinks they have a real shot at a relationship and tries to pursue him. Jeff, however, doesn't like her that way, but he is still too asshole-ish to just properly have a conversation with her. So instead he goes to the trouble of doing literally everything else to stop her pursuit. He tries to get other guys to show interest in her and comes up with constant elaborate, weird plans to get Annie to be interested in someone else. At least once Jeff gets Abed and Troy to help him. Of course, everyone just tells Jeff to talk to her like a person, and it's not until his plans fail repeatedly that he finally does so. I think what would be cool for s2 as well is that, in the canon Jeff kinda views Annie as a kid and sometimes an adult, and I think in my mind he'd here start understanding that she is an adult. That she's taking care of herself fully and he needs to treat her like that. Jeff still isn't interested in her romantically, but he stops treating her like she's a little kid.

Anyway, Jeff and Annie have an actual conversation and Jeff properly let's her down. Annie is upset obviously, she's spent so much time on the idea of this one relationship. Maybe she lashes out initially to Jeff, idk. What she does end up doing is talking to Britta and Shirley, looking for advice from them. In short what Annie gets from both of them is that she doesn't need to be in a relationship no matter what anyone thinks or says. That there is more to her than who she's dating.

And then this starts an Annie development where she starts to try figure out who/what she really is. Because she has spent years of her life dreaming of the perfect relationship with a man that she doesn't fully know that much about what specifically she wants. She knows some things she likes, but what does Annie want to do in life really?

So then s3 kicks in and Annie spends her time trying to understand who she is. Maybe she joins every club at Greendale and starts trying wildly different things, even stuff that seems completely out of her comfort zone and incredibly strange in general. She finds that she likes some stuff and gains some new interests and friends. And, in this "figuring herself out" plot, Annie eventually realises that she likes women. I don't think she'd necessarily use the word "lesbian" to refer to herself yet, but she acknowledges that she has those feelings. This acknowledgement is maybe at the end of s3.

Then s4 and onwards would be her navigating this new realisation. It'd be her confiding in her friends about this, it'd be her getting a girlfriend, it'd be her learning more about queer history and finding she has a genuine interest in learning about that too. Specifically with the Jeff and Annie dynamic, Jeff would so totally try to give Annie advice on women. All of it wouldn't be good advice, but some of it would be useful and they could have that older/younger sibling dynamic with Annie trusting Jeff and asking him about all this relationship stuff, and he tries his best to be supportive.

Don't have anything specific or detailed for s5 or s6 but it honestly could just be her figuring herself out still. Maybe Annie learning that lesbian is the label that fits her best. Maybe her having her very first sapphic relationship and navigating that. The rest of the study group interacting with her girlfriend. And at the end of the show, there's still some things Annie hasn't figured out fully, but she now knows that's okay and overall she's just much happier and better

[danmeicoffeecat]

The point about how binging all the seasons together is so true.

Me and my mom watched all the 4 seasons together in Feb 2024. Although I have heard about stranger things and the hype during 2022 in yt and all, I didn't watch it then. Like, I could tell it was a show I would really love if I just gave it a watch, but still I couldn't start watching it (me and my watchlist have commitment issues).

Anyways, when we started watching, from the first season itself when Joyce went to Hopper to file for a missing complaint; the moment she said Lonnie basically bullied his own child for being queer, I was convinced about Will being gay. My mom also clocked in on it and asked.

I was still not sure about Mike's queerness. But it did stick out to me how emotional he was throughout S1 -- worried out his mind for Will, his outburst at how Will can't be dead, him staying up at the hospital waiting for Will to wake up. Similarly, in S2, wherever Will was Mike was there, giving his at most care and concern for Will's well-being.

I was so flabbergasted at how in S3, they became distant. We both were like why did they drastically change Mike's character?? His character was all over the place, at times being the same old Mike we knew then pulling 180-degree shift.

S4 beginning was also like this. Then after El was taken to the NINA project and Mike and Will start talking to each other, like really have a convo, things seemed back to normal. (I'm so sorry if this is all over the place).

But still mind you, although i did feel the chemistry between byler, I was not sure if it was just me reading to much into. My mom completely missed it, the romantic undertones.

When I started watching the different analysis vids and all, that's when I really felt, okay maybe I did clock in something substantiable.

We're planning to rewatch them again soon and wish me luck on getting my mom also aware of it.

Now about Mike and El's relationship, I remember being so irritated about it in S1, because up until that point their dynamic was so compatible as friends or siblings and this romantic twist completely took me out. But then I thought, maybe as a queer person myself, I was unable to pick upon it(lmao). S2, it was pretty clear Mike cared for El, but still didn't convince me it was something romantic. S3, I was not at all interested in their relationship. I could see Mike was not really putting much effort into the relationship as much as El. It felt like he had a gf because that's what they were supposed to do. Honestly, El not being Mike's gf really suited her character. I didn't expect them to get back together again. And ohboi that was one awkward kiss, that too not even adorable, just straight up uncomfortable. Second only to the airport-half-hug-fist-bump kinda situation.

Where I'm going with this is, although I picked up very few really sus moments while binging it, I did not fully register it. But as I liked to immerse myself with analysis vids and edits after finishing a show, I started to register those moments more clearly. My mom though, enjoyed it but completely forgot most stuff; she didn't check it out after watching. Also, she is kinda slow on clocking in on queer relationships. We were watching a series with a lesbian couple, and it took her 4eps to realise that. But kudos to her, becoz they were like side characters who were providing info and stuff to the mc; no scenes of them being physically affectionate, just domestic living-together-vibes. I'll take whatever win I can get.

So, yeah, binging all the eps together really makes it hard to pick up on stuff unless u are a really sharp viewer and is familiar with reading into subtext and cinematography.

ex milkvan ride-or-die shipper and i am convinced the majority of modern day milkvan shippers are people who didn’t watch the show until it became super popular in 2022 when s4 was coming out.

like, there is a difference between binging all four seasons of a show and having years of wait between each one.

the time between each one gives you time to reflect on what you might see next season. as a milkvan truther after watching the first 2 seasons of the show in 2018, i was super excited for season 3 because we could see mike and eleven finally be together after their sweet reunion in the s2 finale.

and then…they literally break up in the first 2 episodes 😭

all my expectations flew straight out the window. i remember sitting there like “oh…wait what?” not necessarily disappointed (probably idk i was like 13) but super confused. even when they kissed at the end i hated it because it was just such an awkward kiss omdsssss😑

fast forward 3 years then i’m 16 and in a lesbian relationship and milkvan is just not hitting any spots. can’t remember what my expectations were for them, but i hated their reunion and didn’t have high hopes for them after that. (high hopes looked at the “i love you” scene, laughed, and left forever)

it was after vol2 was out and marinated when i started to see byler for what it was, because much like milkvan itself, each new season broke down all the expectations i had for them whilst byler only thrived.

binging all four seasons completely in one go strips this kind of trial and error experience away from you, you’re less likely to have grown accustomed to the writing and predict what will happen next time. (not suggesting bingers who joined in 2022 and post cant have picked up on byler too, it’s just a bit more difficult for the average person so pat yourself on the back if that’s your experience)

hence why i see so many new milkvans claim s5 is gonna be the season where they’re finally the power couple we thought they’d be back in 2018…and they weren’t.

“they’re gonna get married and 🤫 and have superpowered babies!”…what in the muthr fokc?

the only power they ever had was the power of heteronormativity

still love their pairing, but they’d be so much more powerful as friends like they were in the beginning

[katiecomma]

Tell me the fandom deets on Macgyver, pretty please?

the first character i ever fell in love with: Jack Dalton - 100% - From the moment I first met him I was like: sassy ex Delta Force who loves everyone too much? MINE!

a character that i used to love/like, but now do not: Unpopular answer: Mac honestly. I love Mac. I love him a lot. I understand that he’s been through some shit. But some of his motivations in the last few seasons (fair warning: I’m not totally caught up on the show - this is one of the main reasons why I stopped watching) haven’t made a lot of sense to me. And the stuff with Nasha really made me mad... And I think if they would have given us the voice overs in S3 we would have been able to see more of his motivation and gotten into his head why he was doing/saying some of the things he was doing it would have helped. And from what I’ve seen... I don’t like who he is in a relationship with Desi (I don’t hate MacDesi, but I hate what they’ve done with it in the show from what I’ve seen)... so I just... I don’t know I feel like he’s not the same character from S1-2... and that’s my Mac honestly.

a ship that i used to love/like, but now do not: I actually think I still love all of my ships from this show... there’s no ship that I don’t like anymore... Huh. But I don’t tend to give up on ships... I don’t know if I’ve ever changed my opinion drastically on a ship in a fandom like that ever.

my ultimate favourite character™: Jack Dalton again... I love him too much. He’s got the greatest lines... he’s charming and witty and loves all of his little found family so much it hurts.

prettiest character: I honestly have to say I think this is a tie between Riley and Mac. I have a bigger crush on Riley... but GAH they’re both so pretty. Like... ridiculously pretty.

my most hated character: James. He’s the worst. I even wrote an entire fic on the premise of Jack getting to punch him in the face. There was some other plot... but I honestly engineered the whole plot and everything around Jack getting to punch James in the face at the end. Worth it.

my OTP: MacDalton - I’m on this ship until it hits an iceberg and sinks. I love them so much. You go kaboom, I go kaboom?! Epic ship material. Coming back for another FUCKING TOUR IN AFGHANISTAN FOR MAC?! Epic ship material.

my NOTP: MacDesi (SORRY! This is not invalidating this ship for ANYONE ELSE - this is a personal opinion and I support you shipping them 100%) - again, fair warning that I’m not caught up on the series... but from everything I’ve seen... Desi is a very abusive SO. I think they had potential, but I really don’t like what they’ve done with it on the show. As for shipping outside of canon... I personally never saw the romantic connection based on their interactions before they got together. Very-Desi centric... the pink dress scene drove me crazy because I didn’t like the idea of Desi trying to win Mac over by doing something like that. Up to that point Desi struck me as the kind of woman to be herself and just wait for a man to make a move on her, or to just be bold and make a move on him. But strutting around in a revealing little dress and playing mating games - I was sad they took her character to that place... so I never really shipped them.

favourite episode: Mac + Jack (S2E12) - as a MacDalton shipped I love this for obvious reasons... but there’s just so much in this episode... I loved seeing Jack and Mac in the army... the way they first met and totally hated each other at first... fantastic. This episode also has my favourite line of all time... when Mac’s trying to defuse the bomb under the hummer... and Jack’s bothering him... Mac: Well, you know what, there is a quicker way to do this. Jack: Really? Mac: Yeah, it involves a loud boom and a bunch of shrapnel in your body. Close second place: Skull + Electromagnet (S2E5) - Harper Hayes is so awesome and badass. I love her a lot.

saddest death: Jill Morgan. I loved her so much. I remember sitting down to watch the S3 premiere and saying: As long as they don’t kill Jill, they really can’t let me down...

favourite season: 2 - I loved Cage. I loved all the dynamics. My favourite episodes are in this season. It’s solid from start to finish. I love this whole season.

least favourite season: I will say 3... because I didn’t watch enough of S4 to name it. But S3 really let me down. I hated the way things just faded away with Nasha. I wish they’d had a better end to that. I hated that we lost the voice overs, especially because some of the stuff Mac was doing and saying was obviously because he was messed up over what happened with Jill and Murdoc and all that, and if we’d had voice overs we could have understood what he was feeling. The same way we did in S1 when all the stuff with Nikki was going on. Jack left. Gross. And he left Mac behind with just that handshake. Before Jack left I hated the way he was treated - they made him into the comedic relief buffoon... and there were several episodes where Mac was making Jack the butt of jokes. Desi showed up and it was pretty obvious when she came on the scene that they were introducing her as a new love interest for Mac. I have 0 tolerance for female characters being introduced solely as a love interest - cause: gross. I hated the Riley/Billy breakup. I hated that they killed Jill.  I hated that Charlie died the way he did, and then that night when they got together for beers Mac was smiling and hitting on Desi And let’s not forget that DESI got a phone call from Jack when Charlie died... but Mac didn’t. WHY?! You really think Jack would find out that Charlie died the way he did and not immediately call his boy!? Bullshit Sorry for the rant... but there were a lot of things in this season I didn’t care for.

character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but i hate: I guess Desi... though I wouldn’t say everyone else loves her. I just... there was so much potential with Desi as a character. Strong asian-American woman who’s the badass strong arm of their team... and they made her a love interest and made her kind of an abusive SO... and I just didn’t care for that. I think her and Mac as characters were both treated badly as a result. In conclusion: I really wanted to like her... I even have a huge crush on her... but I still just... don’t.

my ‘you’re piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: I guess Murdoc?... Cause I love Murdoc a lot. And I was sad that they ruined the dynamic between him and Mac when he killed Jill. Killing Jill made it so their dynamic can never be the same. Mac didn’t like Murdoc before, but now he hates him on a personal level and will never forgive him.

my ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: Riley - she deserved for Ellwood to stick around. She deserved for Jack to stick around. She deserved for Billy to STICK AROUND. And she deserves to have Mac treat her his found sister and not try to get into her pants the way he seems to every other woman he’s EVER around. (AGAIN: I am not in any way saying MacRiley isn’t a valid ship. I can see the potential - ship to your heart’s content). All this talk of love triangles upsets me... I think they’ve waited too long to pull the trigger on MacRiley... because they’ve always very much had sibling vibes to me.

my ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship: I had originally written that I didn’t have one, but I TOTALLY DO!!! Jack/Harper Hayes!!! I have this series of fics where she’s basically his Murdoc and is totally stalking him and stuff... and I just... everything I’ve written around their sexual tension is very non-con... but I love them a lot and I DON’T KNOW WHY.

my ‘they’re kind of cute, and i lowkey ship them, but i’m not too invested’ ship: Mac/Jill - I kinda love them. I love the idea of them being nerds together. I think they would be adorable. Jill is into the spy life but not a field agent so there wouldn’t be as much stress for Mac about losing his girl to the life... etc... So I love them. I think they could have been happy together. And seeing Mac have a happy little home with someone he can still talk about spy stuff with I think would have been great. And yet as much as I love them I just still sit back and dream about it, but I haven’t written much for them. Thank you for the ASK!!! I love doing these!

[floralovebot]

Hey you're the resident specialists expert do you think they're are as close as the winx are?

Hmm, yes and no! TL;DR: they aren't for the first three seasons but are starting S4.

For the first three seasons, the specialists are definitely not as close as the Winx are. Sky and Brandon kept a huge secret for around two years and while the main show glosses over Timmy and Riven's feelings about it, we do know they aren't exactly happy. Timmy canonically doesn't like Riven in the first season and Riven is yknow.. Riven. So yeah they definitely aren't that close.

S2 is slightly better but they're honestly taking baby steps at that point. Riven just realized that he likes being their friend, they're still recovering from the switch, and Timmy still feels left out. Then Helia gets added and it's a weird mix of "how does this new guy fit into the pre-established group/dynamics" and "actually the pre-established dynamics suck can we change them". Not to mention, they're a lot more preoccupied with the Winx than trying to be besties.

S3 is again, slightly better, but also not quite there. They're still trying to figure out their dynamics with each other. Even though they would die for each other at this point, there's a lot of things left unsaid that they don't feel comfortable talking about. Like Riven's deal with Darcy still leaving an impact on how they trust him or the switch leaving them mostly feeling yucked out by royal stuff. Timmy also still feels left out because sure they're getting close but Sky and Brandon are already besties, Riven considers them all besties, and Helia is in this weird state of "I'm out" for most of the season (show and comics!).

Season 4 was actually the biggest turning point for them! I genuinely think that in S4, the specialists were just as close as S1 Winx were (which is pretty big for them!). I think the biggest reason people have trouble seeing them as that close is that it really did start in S4 and most of the fandom hates everything after S3. Personally, I think the biggest factor is the change of environment! Red Fountain and Alfea have drastically different environments; one is a military school while the other is more of a prep school. The specialists spend their entire day training, sometimes going on missions, and being on call whenever the Winx need help. It's... stressful! One of the biggest reasons why the Winx got so close is because their environment allowed them to. While they obviously were in danger a lot, a good portion of the season was them just,, bonding. They lived in the same shared space, they had the same classes, they didn't really know anyone else, and the more encounters they had with the Trix the more they felt the need to be around each other.

The specialists had a very different environment for the first three seasons (and pre-s1). They had roommates and some of their classes didn't match. The first episode of S1 was also their very first mission together. Besides being a team, they didn't really have a lot of time to bond as friends? And outside of team stuff, they didn't feel the need to constantly hang out. Add in all of their issues and it's just,, bad! A big disaster disguised as petty arguments. I think the biggest reason why they didn't get as close in S2-3, despite them all trying harder, is that their environment didn't actually change (plus they're still working around that bad blood from S1 and before). But that's why S4 was so huge for them! It was a completely different environment, one that encouraged them to become closer.

In S4, they live together in a much smaller space, they work at the same job (minus Timmy but he still hangs out there so he counts), and while they still have to deal with evil villains and general danger, a lot of their day is made up of having fun, helping each other, and their work getting interrupted by random band sessions. Like,, S4 was practically a dream! Timmy literally buys clothes for them and they go grocery shopping together. They make each other smoothies and give each other advice (that's actually listened to!). S4 was literally the best season when it comes to specialist bonding/friendship time and it was the start of them being just as close as the Winx. Obviously, at that point the Winx are ahead, but,, it's a good start for a group of guys that practically hated each other at first.

Nabu's death,, was glossed over a lot imo and how it would affect the specialists wasn't handled properly in S5+. It wasn't even handled properly with Aisha so that's really no surprise. I barely consider the later seasons canon if we're not talking about a multiverse thing and the specialists especially get retconned a lot in them so,, even besides the Nabu stuff, it's just not great. While the specialists absolutely function as just love interests (which was on purpose don't forget what Winx was originally about), their bonding wasn't actually skipped over? It just wasn't as explicit as the Winx. But I think with the time allotted for them, and all of their issues, them getting closer in S4 makes a lot of sense. It was a completely different, much easier going environment and by that point, they had gotten comfortable with each other and considered each best friends. Because like,, they do consider each other friends, even as early as S1, they just,,, also have a Lot of issues that they often don't feel comfortable talking about. S4 encouraged that though and it did wonders for their friendship (not just Riven and Nabu! All of them!).

So... yeah. The specialists imo have a very unique relationship. They definitely have their issues and I don't think they were anywhere near as close to each other as the Winx were in the early seasons. But they are still friends and they do still care for each other. Them constantly risking their lives is proof enough yknow? S4 gave them the environment to actually talk about their issues and live relatively peacefully though and that's why it was their best season in terms of closeness. And I genuinely think that if Nick hadn't gotten involved, we would've seen a very different relationship with them in the later seasons. One that focused more on being truthful and sharing their feelings. That's where they were headed and it's a shame S5+ retconned everything so badly :(

[kuronekonerochan]

Cdramas I enjoyed and ranty rambles... (spoilers)

Apparently I have a new favorite cdrama ML type, and it's genius mastermind bastard on a scheming backstabbing world that is likely created by the same novel or scriptwriter. Ning Que (Ever Night), Fang Xian (Joy of Life) and Zhong Xin (Young Blood) are a joy to watch and I loved these dramas on the same "spirit" and their characters. 

All these dramas had stronger and weaker points, if I could pick and choose, I liked the world and ruthlessness of NQ from EN S1, the OTP that is NQ and SS and the Us against the World vibe, plus the incredible soundtrack and the breathtaking panoramic shots, but S2 was such a production mess...it’s a pity bc I loved the theological turn of the novel and it doesn’t seem likely that after that trainwreck of s2 we’ll get a s3 to end the story (although yes, I admit it would always be difficult to translate to screen from where s1 ends in the book onward bc it’s such a drastic change).  Having read the novel, it was funny to see people reacting to the events of s2. 

The shift in the focus of the drama from the traditional wuxia, young martial arts lead and his wifey traveling the world, encountering new allies and foes and getting powered up, to religious and spiritual journey about the meaning of life, god, the world and different ideologies clashing in both literal fights and discussions as well as physical manifestations of divinity, mixed in with human subversion of values for petty personal goals...well although people seem understandably confused and not very happy about this 180º thematic turn, it’s not what they hated about the new season. From the comments I saw, what most ppl couldn’t stand were the same things ppl who read and liked the novel also hated: the horrible pacing, some of the cast changes that failed to convey the feeling that they were the same characters, and even though the budget was evidently lower than s1, the choices made where 80% of the scenes were pointless carriage shots, meeting shots, and most pointless of all Long Qing riding horses. Endless set ups of people talking boringly and then when the event that all that talk was leading up to happened, it was off screen and the result was told by some character in a conversation. You couldn’t care less about Tang and the war because all the characters that lived there and could die, like SS’s friends from the brothel, the gang, and even the generic ppl on the streets, none of this was shown...only 2 or 3 ppl talking alone somewhere at a time, talking about events that the viewer would never see. And it was confusing. I read the novel and even so I could barely follow what was happening (they did change a bunch of stuff). Enemies from 2 episodes ago were now allies and they were asking favors without any explanation and key plot points of main story arcs like Ye Hong Yu’s were just thrown out so casually it didn’t even register for me that THAT was happening.  The whole Haitian part was also a mess. It was one of those concepts that is indeed hard to translate to screen, but as they did the whole SangSang being present but powerless thing well, the casting of Haitian was a fail. She was supposed to be an uncaring, poker faced goddess, but she also had to have a presence that made her feel powerful and frightening. This lifeless doll couldn't scare a fly, so the whole thing just felt pathetic and weird(er). (Also in the novel there’s this intense mental fight thing going on between her and NQ where she hardcore tortures him and slashes his d*ck off and he in turn keeps torturing her with erotic dreams and all this bc the natal bond means they can read each others minds and can’t keep each other out even if they wanted so it’s a constant exhausting mindgame between them. The drama tried to include some of that in like 2 eps near the end, but toning it down bc of rating and taking the mindreading concept out of it made it very disappointing to watch).

I love the witty sarcastic humor of Joy of Life, I’m not into tragic period cdramas but after so much cheesy lazy slapstick  wuxia/xanxia dramas, one with the intelligent, non-stop sarcastic humorous dialogue and an ensemble of god damn talented actors, especially the older cast, headed by an absolutely brilliant performance by the main lead and a script and plot that is compelling, fast paced and never misses a beat...well this is a true gem and one of the best executed cdramas, on every aspect from technical aspects to directing to acting, that I have ever seen. I usually don’t like palace dramas, and this is not one of those, it is adventure and family and transmigration and a lot more, but it retains the core elements of those palace dramas, which is the scheming politics, the intrigue and the constant tension of being surrounded by enemies by all sides and having to mind every word and action because a single faux pas will get him killed. It’s in line with the kind of cnovels I love and would like to see drama adaptations for like Husband Be a Gentleman or Golden Stage, which isn’t much of a surprise since this is also a novel adaptation.

 It is nearly perfect imo, but the harem aspect (even if tuned down from the novel) still drags it down and the (main) FL is a bore and honestly the least interesting of all the females in the drama (it doesn’t help that ZRY has better chemistry with one of the other actresses, which in the novel, since his character hits ALL of them, it would be fine, here, meh). This is also one of the rare situations where I like the drama better than the book (even with the issues regarding the lack of chemistry with the FL), bc Fang Xian in the novel is scarily ruthless...it’s the same author as Nightfall (aka Ever Night), but NQ is likable because of his bond to SangSang, the irrationality of the persecution they face from the zealots,  and also the world, despite being harsh, features loyalty and unconditional love in the members of the Academy, for example, that make all the anti-hero/antagonist traits more bearable. FX in Joy of Life it’s a much more cynical and cunning character, scary even, and the environment is a pit of backstabbing snakes. He is the hero bc he’s the main character, but from any other perspective he can easily be the villain. Add to that my distaste of harem and him getting it on with like 6 or so ladies (to give them credit some of them are pretty awesome characters), the novel just wasn’t for me. But ZRY as FX? He’s just so cheeky and likable, and this drama has an amazing supporting cast. I enjoy watching them all interact with each other.  I’m glad it’s getting a season 2 and so looking forward to it.

Young Blood I didn't even like that much in the beginning, it started out interesting but confusing and some of the cast (both acting and characters) were kind of weak, but it got better and it had a power couple as leads who were both smart and a joy to watch, plus the bromance dynamic between the smartass bastard and the righteous straight-faced dudes that Handsome Siblings wishes it had (that’s a whole other story, why HS didn’t work for me, but trust me, no offense to the actors in that, I found them charming in other things, but perhaps bc this script was just better, the boys here just did it better, it just flowed...I watched both dramas at the same time and it was weird thinking that those two should be what Handsome Siblings was trying to do). What annoyed me until the end was that out of the ensemble cast, only 3 of the characters (the smart ones) were given enough material to shine. Eventually the other 2 guys got their piece as well, but the girl from the second couple is unfortunately a waste of a character. They eventually tried to give her an arc, but she’s still mainly “the cute doll” and a foil for the 2nd male lead to have a romantic interest. She is given less screen time and she has no presence. I didn’t need her to be a “strong” woman. They do state that her strong suit is that she is so charming that ppl easily trust her, but I wanted to see her evolve, become smarter (the other two dumb-asses eventually get better from the beginning and grow as characters, but she seems stuck in her shallow one trait personality of “cute/kind”). This has nothing to do with the actress, she was perfectly fine, my issues are with the character and how she was utilized.

Unrelated, there is a weird thing in the last episode where a character just disappears, but not like, on purpose, it seems like the drama just forgot about him, or they forgot to shoot the actor near the other ones where he was supposed to be, lol.

Honestly, story wise and even in terms of production Young Blood is inferior to Ever night S1 and especially Joy of life, which was a tight drama, but since it ended up so much better than it started I really wanted to see what they could do with a 2nd season.

P.S: You know what is also my cdrama type? Genius himbo chaotic mess cutie pies, with “rage issue�� but deep down caring relatives... and their “straight” faced besotted partners, I mean...

[norgestan]

You mentioned that you didn't know Skam had a Spanish remake until s2, so I got super curious. Did you watch Skam back in the day? Had you watched any remakes before eskam? What made you start watching eskam, and what were your thoughts on Nora and Alejandro (individually and as a couple) before s3?

oh i will put a read more on this because it got too long

i watched skam before, yes! i got to know about it in 2016 and the first clip that i ever watched on real time was the speech eskild gave isak about pride. i really loved s3, so i watched s1 and s2 and kept up with s4 for about half of the season - i can’t remember why i stopped watching but it probably had something to do with the little time that i had back then and the work that one had to do to search and watch every individual clip subtitled on dailymotion.

when i came to know about the remakes idea i was like, fuck no. lol, because i thought og was pretty good on its own and the idea of having the same show in so many other versions is just so weird to me? i still kept up with some remakes via seeing their tag whenever it trended on tumblr, like skamfr and skamit. those were the most popular ones, and also the ones with evak seasons, ha. that is why austin, wtfock and nl were the ones i knew about the last.

i tried watching skamfr to see what was all the fuss about, i remember i chose that because i like the language and i was trying to learn french. you can imagine how that went lol i gave up on like, episode 8? because i was honestly bored and watching the super unnatural, fast delivery of the actors made me miss og SO much (i still watch og s3 every once in a while, it’s for me what the kids call now a comfort show).

i only came to know about skam españa when the trailer for cris’ season dropped and everyone started to freak out because a) finally another evak season, and b) it’s about two girls! i was pumped bc the wlw rep and THEN i realized it was a remake in my first language. if i had known about it before i definitely would’ve watched that one first. i kept up with the remake because it was super easy with the clips dropping in youtube, and though i wasn’t the biggest fan of cris back then and it didn’t resonate w me the way og had done, it was well done and i didn’t need subtitles to understand it. after i finished it, i watched s1 and found it way more compelling than skamfr s1 had felt to me, but i really didn’t have any desires of watching every single remake, until i made this sideblog.

i never really cared that much about nora on s1 and s2. i think josefine’s portrayal of noora was so charming and iconic on s1 and nicole didn’t get to those standards, but she def was a really good friend to eva. my problem is that her actions seemed way too... performative? in previous seasons. a highlight of that would be nora telling eva about her “joan of arc” nickname in s1. having s3 to close off her development makes it all really nuanced, but at the time i just didn’t buy her feminist rhetoric - although that’s more of a noora problem. it also reminded me a bit of myself, the kind of things i’d say because i read them on tumblr and how there was always a challenge to stand my ground whenever i tried to pull that with my family or my classmates, that helped me to shape my morality. and i think skames got a bit of that, too: the whole pansexuality thing, nora telling cris that she didn’t have to put up with joana’s MI, etc. i think it was refreshing to see a character that thought so highly of herself and her morality, be put on her place by people who knew better, and she never took it hard or got angry because of that. because there wasn’t a lot of depth to her in s2 and just kept on being the cool, supportive friend, i was okay w her but didn’t like her as much as the others. with s3, of course that drastically changed for me.

i think i summed up my impression of alejandro really well on my s1 review, and because i watched s2 first i immediately assumed he’d be the typical william and i was an anti noorhelm when i watched og, so i was super wary of him (there’s also my tags here that sum up how i was feeling about him at the time). rewatching og s1 and s2 made me really appreciate some of the changes: small things like alejandro wearing a condom to have sex with viri, inviting the girls to his halloween party as an apology, being invited to cris’ house party where she came out to her friends, and big things like him not gifting girls he slept with hoodies to mark them, instead causing a (hilarious and skames’ best choice in s1) std outburst that only talked about his promiscuity and status as a fuckboy; apologizing to viri because he realized he was in the wrong and not because nora “promised” him a date if he did it; despite his william-esque “i won’t stop until you say yes” line in s1, effectively stopping to try to creepily hit on nora in s2 and instead becoming friends with her and the girl squad; and then everything that happened in s3.

about norandro, i was never a big fan of them. i had the same concerns about their relationship that i had with alejandro, and i thought they would be the annoyingly toxic token straight couple of the show. during s2′s airing i was pretty pissed that skames kept shifting the pov to develop their relationship, because i thought (and still think) that they could’ve squeezed more growth out of cris, although looking back it’s fine, really. before s3 i saw what they were doing to build them up and i was pleased and VERY curious about it - until i learnt about miquel’s existence and realized that skames would go for the toxic relationship route. absolutely nothing would’ve prepared me by how charmed i was by their dynamic and how they became my favorite couple in skames, lol.

[38sr]

I wanna know everything

WHERE DO I BEGIN, VULPES????

Okay okay, I’m just gonna list off the things that I’ve already written for this AU and hope I don’t get into spoilers for the Undercut DJ. To make things clear, this AU is like a mix of canon divergence/fix-it since I’ve been taking the time to rewatch VLD and analyze the story as a whole. So let’s start at the beginning~

Voltron 2020: A canon divergence/fix-it AU based on the 2016 VLD series. I only call it Voltron 2020 since the stories I’ve written/drawn for it so far wouldn’t be out in the public until next year haha.

Where does it start?

V2020 (I’m just shorten it to this) keeps S1 and S2 in canon and kicks off in S3. There’s only one small change I would make to S1 but I’ll get into that when I talk about Shiro in this AU.

These haircuts??? Explain please???

Haha, yes I’m a fan of the idea of Keith, Lance and Allura (yeah you heard me) having shorter haircuts. More so Lance because compared to the rest of the cast’s original designs, his hair maybe be simple but lacks a bit of flair. Lance is the one who get’s his undercut first and the story behind how it happens is covered in a fan comic called undercut that’s slated for release this year.

How Keith and Allura get their haircuts are part of the story as well but doesn’t come until maybe S4 or after (I have to figure out the details on that). But for now, I just wanted to see how Keith looked with short hair and it looks pretty good! 

Keith is in BP suit and Lance is in RP suit?

Yup, one of the things that drove me bonkers in VLD was how they didn’t match their lions. This is more of an OCD thing because I prefer matched colors over mix-match. However, once again changing their suits also has a reason behind it in the story. You can sort of call it…truly stepping into their new roles in the Paladin team. For Keith, becoming the leader Shiro always saw in him. For Lance, becoming the right-hand man and gaining confidence in his skills as a pilot (also becoming Keith’s rock haha).

Okay the real question: Does Shiro die in this AU?

Here’s where things get…a bit interesting? I have two versions of this AU where Shiro does die in his battle with Zarkon and the other where he does not die. So a divergent…within a divergent haha. I have to preface this with I don’t hate Shiro by any means and love his character with all my heart, which is why I made a version where he doesn’t die. Shiro as a disabled, LGBT and PoC character has so much potential that killing him off would be a waste for storytelling. Since the AU takes off in S3 where it was implied that he died, that’s where I took the story and started writing how his death affected the team, mainly Keith. The main point I want to get across is that Shiro needs to lose his connection to Black Lion in order for Keith, Lance and Allura to grow as characters.

In the case I choose to have Shiro die….

As per usual, Keith reluctantly becomes the Black Paladin, Lance becoming the Red Paladin and Allura is the Blue Paladin. We see how Keith is struggling with his loss of Shiro and how he feels incompetent being the leader of Voltron. This would then lead to into the undercut comic and spark a more genuine, supportive friendship between Keith and Lance. I would also keep how Shiro’s conscience remains in the Black Lion, which only Keith knows about cause he’s BP now. This would be great thread to connect Keith and Allura who have lost someone dear to them and rely on technology to keep them alive (when in reality they will always live in their hearts). 

I would also keep the Kuron idea but instead of him joining team Voltron, Honerva and Zakron use the Shiro clones and make their own version of Voltron with the Robeasts we see in S7-8. That way, we could keep The Black Paladins fight since that’s a very emotional and groundbreaking moment for Keith having to face someone cares deeply for. 

In the case I choose to have Shiro live….

I wouldn’t have him be BP again since that prevents Keith from growing into a leader, which then prevent Lance growing as a character and then prevents Allura from growing as a character. If anyone has noticed after watching the series, the character development kind of gets wonky when they decided to bring Shiro back as BP. If anything, it really hindered Keith, Lance and Allura’s character development since S3 focused so much on the dynamics in team Voltron shifted (which would have been super interesting to see as time went on). Since this idea is fairly still new I haven’t quite figured out how I would write the story if I went this route. But, I’m not opposed of having Shiro being involved with the Altean colony…again gotta workshop some stuff here but killing off Shiro is such a waste of potential!

ALSO, if Shiro stays alive, then we need to address Adam in S1 E1. It can be simple like when everyone is at Keith’s shack and Adam’s name gets dropped casually like this:

Shiro: How did you get all this information? This is classified stuff from the Garrison…

Keith: I had someone help me.

Shiro: Someone….?

Keith: …it was Adam.

Shiro: Oh…

Not exact but my point is that could have been a great moment to tell the audience Shiro and Keith have a connection with Adam (more so Shiro because we all didn’t know he was gay until much much later in the series). But lemme move on before I get too into Adam cause so much needs to be written out before I spill it all haha.

Next big question: which ships are canon?

Y’all don’t burn me at the stake but….

Allura and Lotor. 

I KNOW I KNOW! BUT WHAT ABOUT KLANCE!?!?!?!?!??!

Y’all know I will ship Klance until the end of time but right now I haven’t gotten to a point in the story where confirming Klance as a romantic relationship feels natural and right yet. If anything, in V2020 I really want to build Keith and Lance’s relationship as friends and teammates which in turn can lead into something more. But the groundwork needs to be done in order for that to happen.

But yeah Allura and Lotor are confirmed in V2020 cause that feels right and Lotor deserves so much more than what we saw in the show. I’ll leave it at that for now.

Is the ending the same?

HA. NOPE. FAR FROM IT!

This is probably biggest change I made in V2020 but when VLD did this it made me worried for the show as a whole:

Zarkon remains as the main villain and final boss for the entire series.

I would have not killed off Zarkon as early as they did in VLD simply because Zarkon was made out to be such a big threat in the beginning. Don’t get me wrong, Honerva and the war factions are a cool idea as opposing forces but they could have happened first and left Zarkon for last. 

Honevra regaining her memories and going on her rampage could have happened first. Lotor could have found out that she was his mother  and had to confront his abuser. Allura would have to face the fact someone of her own kind was doing horrible things and that evil isn’t determined by (alien) race. All of that could have been presented before killing Zarkon and would have pushed Allura and Lotor’s character development. Also, having Honevra written off first would give Zarkon even more incentive to do what he’s doing cause well, that’s his wife and love makes you do crazy things. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The war factions could have happened after Honerva and that’s where we learn more about the Galra empire and society. Where are there are cracks in the system? How are half breeds like Keith and Lotor viewed? How do factions like the Blade come into play and help team Voltron? All of that could have been explored! Honestly, the war factions arc(?) is an opportunity to further develop Keith and Lotor characters and their relationship since they are both half-Galra. 

As for the final battle and ending of it all, Allura doesn’t die and Voltron (the robot) is the one to be sacrificed.

I wrote a whole theory on it after watching S8, so if you wanna read yet another long post you can check it out here haha.

The point of keeping Zarkon as the main (and final) villain in V2020 is to keep the overarching story simple. Think of ATLA, the story as a whole is really simple: 4 nations based on elemental powers are under the tyrannical rule of a dictator and only one person can stop him and save the world. By keeping the objective of the story simple, there’s room for character development and world-building. Instead of a dark, broody space epic (if that’s what you wanna call it), V2020 focuses more on the characters and world-building that are affected by the main opposing force known as Zarkon. A lot of the stories I have in mind are more episodic but I think that works best for a show where the stage is as grand as space haha.

Pidge and Hunk??

As for Pidge, she kind of….gets everything she wants in the show?? There isn’t really anything drastic I would change since the show fixed her issues…

As for Hunk my baby boy sweet cinnamon roll, don’t worry. I’m making sure he’s more than just a scaredy cat who loves food. I really liked how in the show Hunk learned about Galra diplomacy so maybe I can work with that! 

___

Yeah, I think….that’s everything I can tell you about this AU and I’m so sorry, Vulpes, that I made this answer so long! ^^; Thank you showing interest in my AU!

[julibf]

QUEEN OF THE ASHES

I have been re watching the show from season 1, making notes in every episode and paying attention every time they change from one scene to another and its just unbelievable how much foreshadowing there is about Daenerys burning down KL. I believe that both Cersei and Daenerys will destroy Kings Landing fighting for the Throne, but the show has been pointing out to Dany pretty much from season 1. 

 S1 E3 – King Robert calls Jaime Lannister and asks him about the time he killed the Mad King Aerys. He asks Jaime what was the Mad King’s last words and Jaime says the king repeated what he has been saying for hours. **Burn them all**. The next scene its Daenerys in Essos riding with the Dothraki ordering them to stop the horde. Jorah comments that she is starting to speak as a queen and she corrects him: not a queen, a Khalessi. I have been re watching the show from season 1, making notes in every episode and paying attention every time they change from one scene to another and its just unbelievable how much foreshadowing there is about Daenerys burning down KL. I believe that both Cersei and Daenerys will destroy Kings Landing fighting for the Throne, but the show has been pointing out to Dany pretty much from season 1.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6GW03WsFgU&t=1s

S1 E10 – The sorceress Mirri Maz Dull tells Daenerys she killed her son because he would be the Stallion who Mounts the World, who would burn cities to the ground. The show is very precise about prophecies due the lack of time, they only show what is absolutely necessary. They left this prophecy because it will have relevance in the storyline. We now know that it was not Dany’s son, but Daenerys herself who would be The stallion who mounts. The prophecy says that the Stallion is the "khal of khals" who will unite all the Dothraki under his single khalasar and ride to the ends of the earth. That’s what Daenerys did in season 6 and 7. If the prophecy its confirmed, she will be the one burning cities and trampling nations into dust.

 >Daenerys: My child was innocent.

>Mirri: Innocent? He would be the Stalion who Mounts the World, now **he would burn no cities, now he will trample no nations into dust.**

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLpvLlrlFgc

  S1 E10  - Dany decides to kill Khal Drogo and burn his body next to her dragon eggs. She lays next to him and promises to reunite with him one day "When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east".

The next scene happens in Kings Landing Kings Landing with Maester Pyrcelle and Ross in his room; he is remembering the Mad King and what likeable and charming man he used to be in his youth, before madness took over him.

 >“Aerys Targaryen, of all the thousands and thousands maladies, the Gods visits us, madness is the worst. He was a good man, such a charmer. To watch him melt away before my eyes, consumed with **dreams of Fire and Blood**”

https://youtu.be/wHJTYqLtRms

 The episode ends with Daenerys entering the fire pyre to eventually hatch the eggs and give birth to 3 dragons. She had this idea from a dragon dream in the early nights.

 S2 E4 - Dany arrives in Qarth and they dont want to let her in, thats the first time she threats to burn down a city and destroy completely. Daenerys is not mad or insane. Her pride its her weakness, she is a very arrogant woman and when her pride is hurt she loses her head and makes drastic and terrible decisions. This wont be the last time Daenerys threatens to burn a city to the ground.

 >Daenerys: Thirteen!!!!  when my dragons are grown, we will take back what was stolen from me, and destroy those who wronged me, we will lay waste to armies, and burn cities to the ground. Turns us way, and I will burn you first!!!

 https://youtu.be/In7YGhGt9Dw?t=3m9s

  S2 E5 – Tyrion finds out all the wildfire that its under Kings Landing, he mentions that its enough Wildfire to destroy all city.

**“The contents of this room could lay Kings Landing low”.**

The very next scene is Dany is Qarth, teaching Drogo to obey to her Dracarys order for the first time.

 https://youtu.be/YqMrgvy9uMA?t=2m

 S3 E4 – In this scene, Varys tries to alert Lady Ollena of how dangerous Littlefinger is. Pay attention at the words he uses to describe Littlefinger, those are the exact same words Tyrion used to describe Daenerys when he met her in Meeren.

 >Varys: **"Littlefinger was born with no lands, no wealth, no armies.** He acquired the first two, how long before he has the army?" Peharps you laugh, but I know him better than most and this is the truth."Littlefinger is one of the most dangerous men in Westeros.... he would see this country burn if he could be **King of the Ashes**

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFZen-XO5II

Varys was afraid that Littlefinger would destroy the realm trying to get the Iron Throne, so he decided to bring Daenerys to Westeros, ironically, she will be the one turning the kingdom into ashes.

 And here is something even better, this episode S3E4 ends with Daenerys literally acquiring her **first army**. She sacks Astapor and leaves with the Unsulied, getting her first army in order to invade Westeros. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGRyZSMzRyo)

 S3 E7 – In the Throne room Joffrey asks Tywin about Daenerys and wonders if they should do something about her. Tywin dismiss his concerns and tells him that “Curiosities on the far side of the world are no **threats** to us. Westeros continues to ignore Daenerys and her dragons.

Westeros continues to ignore Daenerys and her dragons. George RRM called Daenerys and the Army of the Dead, much bigger threats that could destory the kingdom, but people were so worried about the selfish politics in Kings Landing that they ignore the danger. Joffrey was the only one who saw it the real problem but everyone ignored him.

>You know, one of the dynamics I started with, there was the sense of people being so consumed by their petty struggles for power within the seven kingdoms, within King’s Landing — who’s going to be king? Who’s going to be on the Small Council? Who’s going to determine the policies? — **that they’re blind to the much greater and more dangerous threats that are happening far away on the periphery of their kingdoms.**

https://youtu.be/tk5hKomP4MA?t=1m40s

 S5 E10- Right after the scene where Stannis burns down Sheereen at the stake as a sacrifice for the Lord of Light, they cut to the scene in Meereen where Daenerys and Hizdahr are presenting to the reopening of the Fighting Pits. During their conversation Daenerys explain that destroying an entire city it may be ncessary in order to acheieve something great.

 Hizdahr - That is a vital part of the Great City of Meereen, which existed long before you and I and will remain standing long after we have returned to the dirt.

Daenerys - One day your great city will return to the dirt as well.

Hizdahr - At your command?

Daenerys - If need to be.

Hizdahr - And how many will die to make their happen?

Daenerys - If it comes to that, they will have died for a good reason.

Hizdahr - Those men (in the fighting pit) think they are dying for a good reason.

Daenerys - Someone else reason.

Hizdahr - So your reasons are true and theirs are false? They don’t know their own minds, but you do?

 https://youtu.be/xszXpZfsd7w?t=4m30s 

This dialogue pretty much sums up Daenerys as a character. She is starting to rationale the idea of burning cities to the ground in order to achieve an objective, as something necessary, while not realizing that she is losing her humanity, just like those men who are fighting in the pits. She is using excuses of a greater cause to justify the deaths of millions.

 S6 E6 - Bran Stark has a new series of visions and one of the visions include a dragon flying over Kings Landing. In the DVD comentary the producers D&D made sure to observe that the image of the dragon flying over Kings Landing it was one the most important image of the whole show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuBpz6iVEIk&t=3s

 S6 E8 – Cersei shows up at the Throne room for a Royal announcement, Tommen declares Trial by combat forbidden in all 7 Kingdoms. Cersei then asks Qyburn about the rumor of wildfire under the city, he confirms that the rumors are true and is much bigger than they expected to be.

 >Qyburn: “Your grace, that old rumor you told me about it. My little birds investigated.

>Cersei: And? Its just a rumor or something more?

>Qyburn? More, so much more….

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmqQo37R3As

The very next scene? Meeren being attacked by the rival cities of Slavery Bay. Missandei tells Tyrion: “The Masters have come to collect their properties”. That’s how Daenerys sees Westeros, something that belongs to her and her alone.

 S6 E9 - Daenerys returns to Meereen and finds the city being attacked by the Masters of the rival cities. She then tells Tyion about her plans against the attack.

>Daenerys: “I will crucify the masters. I will set their fleets on fire, kill every last one of their soldiers, and return their city to the dirt.”

 That’s the second time now that Daenerys threats to burn down a city and turn into ashes. The third time will be Kings Landing and no one will be able to stop her then.

  S6 E10 – The scene where Jon Snow is crowned KITN, Lord Cerweyn tells the room that they need to go home.

>The Boltons are defeated, the war is over, winter has come, if the measters are right it will be the coldest one in a thousands years, we should ride home and wait for the coming storms.

>Jon Snow: The war is not over, and I promise you friend, THE TRUE ENEMY wont wait out the storm, he brings the storm. 

https://youtu.be/AXAnxAA73xM?t=37s

Daenerys nickname that she likes to repeat is Stormborn. We all were led to believe that The Army of the Dead would be the greatest threat to Westeros, but its Daenerys and her dragons that we should all be scared of.

I now believe the Night King and TAOTD was a redherring for the real threath that will devastated Westeros and the way George did was kinf of brilliant. The very first scene of the book and show its the rangers going North of the wall and fiding the White Walkers and we were all so scared and terrified of them. Then the last scene of the book 1 and season 1 its the birth of the dragons and we all celebrated!!! We were soo happy and excited, DRAGONS, thats amazing. But Now I believe that it will be the dragons that will bring  misery to the Kingdom.

  

 They did the same on season 7. In the first episode Daenerys finally arrives on Westeros and we are all so happy, finally!!!! Dragons again flying over Westeros, thats amazing!!! we have been waiting for this for decades, then in the final episode the Army of the Dead breaks down the wall and finally enters the Kingdom and once again weare terrified!!1 They are here, oh my God, what will happen? But it was the dragons, again, in the first episode thatwe should have been scared of.

[insert-pun-here-now]

Falcon’s commentary on their rewrite part 3

Finn deserves better. Periodt.

Also Finn and Marley friendship/she looks up to him.

THEY ARE ALSO ADORABLE DUO I CANT

Clueless Twins™️

Finn deserves more bros.

Jake is ultimate little brother. Kurt is little shit brother. Sam is cool brother. Finn is brother brother. Puck is the brother that lets you do whatever you want and covers up for you.

Finn needs more female friendships without it ending up in a ship tbh.

Jake is so awesome. He’s literally a saint, and in the background he’s like fistbumping people on a job well done like, “HEHEHEHEHEHE.”

I actually really dislike my characterization of Jake in All or Nothing, even though that universe isn’t too far from my initial concept of the rewrite (in fact, the basis of the rewrite is based on All or Nothing) but I wrote Jake’s character much better in the rewrite because he’s less bitter per say? I mean, in All or Nothing, everyone’s much more grizzlier and bitter in general, but Jake has probably the most drastic change between the two stories, ie how he behaves, how his relationship with Marley starts and ends, his mindsets.

Jarley fans please don’t attack me sob I really love Jarley too but I wanted to rewrite it so that Jake ends it without being an ass. I don’t see them as endgame, but they were so cute while they lasted and I love them but pls don’t kill me for the rewrite.

That being said, Jake has some interesting story arcs. I will say though, till the very end, he loves Marley very much as his first love. The story I want to tell with Jake is loyalty and acceptance and learning to love others not just for their bodies, as well as coming out from under someone’s shadow.

Finn’s arc is about learning how to be kind, being a true leader and finding out what lies in your future. He also pretty much learns what it’s like to have a real family, but I think that extends to everyone, cause not everyone had a fully functional family.

Burt and Carole adopt everybody. That’s just canon.

Finn is so adorable trying to figure out if he liked Rachel pre-Finchel. 🥺🥺

Okay now this is the controversial bit I guess. All the characters have their problematic moments. Even Marley, even Jake, even Finn. Yes, Finn will inadvertently out Santana in the S3 rewrite, but he’ll confront her in an empty hallway where they think they were alone. It’s still wrong, but he’ll apologize to her, just as how Santana will apologize to him about all her comments.

Yes, Jake will make some questionable decisions in place of the canon Jarley breakup instead. He’ll still sleep with Bree who’s actively bullying the New Directions at the time and he’ll feel lonely after he realizes Marley loves someone else. He’s human too, and if he can’t hate Marley or Parker, he’s bound to feel something else. But he’ll apologize, do some soul-searching and do the right thing.

Yes, Marley might say or do hurtful things to other characters out of insecurity, even though she doesn’t actually mean to hurt hurt or she doesn’t realize she’s hurting the other person (like the whole thing with Jake performing Chris Brown on the Guilty Pleasures episode or her standing Parker up on a friend date in lieu for another date with Jake) but she learns and realizes and apologizes for it.

Not gonna lie I kind of hated how Marley acted in the entire Dynamic Duets rewrite because she throws herself into picking either Ryder or Jake while Parker is just there,,, in the background,,, like bitch please woman I get you’re lost and hurt that Parker turned you down but at the same time you’re both not in the right place for a relationship pls. Parker’s too insecure you’re also too insecure and it’s not right- okay BUT the scene I wrote with Marley calling Parker her hero is too cute kzgbksak

TEACHER FINN RIGHTS

Also bromance Finn and Parker.

Bromance Sebastian and Marley singing “Super Friend” from the Duets episode on the Flash in costume!

Parker sings “Superman (It’s Not Easy)”, Jake sings, “One Call Away”. Lowkey Jake bashing Parker.

actually that entire episode is Parker, Finn and Blaine being sad.

Blaine feels better in the end because BLAM! Finn feels better at the end because he has the best friends and kids. Parker… feels better because… idk. I don’t think she actually feels better lol.

The entirety of Dynamic Duets is actually super frustrating to rewrite because it’s so… P A C K E D. Also a lot of characters were at their peak annoying at this point, like Kitty, Jake (Jake and Kitty lowkey bashing Parker makes me angry ngl, especially Jake, that’s YOUR BRO COME ON), Brody (Brody’s nice ngl but at the same time he probably has some sus friends and Rachel will hang out with them if Brody stays with them. Trust Brody, don’t trust his friends).

I have a lot of feelings about the Dynamic Duet rewrite, don’t mind me.

Nerd Blaine is my aesthetic

No Bram, instead have more of Britt’s POV of the breakup and how she feels and how she grows on her own in the wake of Santana.

There IS Blam haha

BLAM FTW

I need Klaine to talk more though.

MOAR LAUREN KICKING ASS YEAH

Can… can I just say that some characters went from absolute badass to absolute marshmallow? Like Puck and Parker used to kick so much ass in S1 and now Parker’s like the ultimate Marley simp and Puck’s like, “pls i miss my brother…”