#just started s2ep10

[thiagodasilva]

9-1-1 has unfortunately gotten me so down bad for a blue eyed man that I found myself looking up Buckley fics. girl what the fuck.

[spiritualgoldendeer]

SEVERANCE (the tv show) SPOILERS FOR ALL OF SEASON 2!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!

Okay, so I want to throw my own hat into the ring regarding the frustration some fans experienced at the end of S2EP10. After scrolling through many posts, I’m seeing two common points brought up in the discussion.

1. people saying that the reaction to the ending shows how people don’t view IMark as his own character.

2. Shipping stuff between Gemma and Helly.

However, I think these people miss the actual reason why some people felt frustrated at IMark.

Helly and IMark choose to run back into the building that they have both experienced abuse in. Helly herself refers to it as torture. IMark has been told by Cobel that they will be killed if they stay there. IMark has been fully informed of the torture his “bosses” are capable of towards Innies. Therefore, even when only considering the information the Innies are privy to, their decision feels…shortsighted. Heck, the show itself recognizes this, contrasting the upbeat frolicking music with their looks of confusion and worry in the last shot. To the audience members who’ve spent hours building to this moment, it feels like a subversion, and not one that feels good. Instead, it almost feels…stupid.

That’s when I realized, it’s because their decision is incredibly naïve. This is most definitely on purpose, the Innies are repeatedly shown to be so sheltered socially that they veer into child-like territory. And naivety is very frustrating to watch. Especially because we are seeing Gemma, a woman who’s experienced so much trauma and knows exactly what their decision means for her and her husband, suffer the consequences of their naivety.

So, I’m not saying IMark’s decision doesn’t make sense. It makes perfect sense for this character, in fact. However, I think it is disingenuous to write people’s frustrations with his decision off as simply “you don’t view IMark as his own character” or worse “You just don’t like the Helly/Mark ship”, and don’t get me started on the weird vitriol I’ve seen towards OMark.

Just as IMark’s decision is not inherently “wrong”, it is not inherently “right”. And just because some fans don’t like the decision, doesn’t mean their media literacy is less than those who do.

[lucifertheanalyzer]

What do you think Millie would need to be seen more as her own character, rather than the bits and pieces we've got of her so far? I think she has the most potential of all the Helluva characters and wanted to know how you would improve her character!

I like Millie but she desperately needs to her own episode and an arc that has nothing to do with Mooxie or Blitz. I would love to see an episode featuring just her family and learning about her home life and Mooxie is nowhere in sight.

It is crazy looking back how S1EP5 is framed like it is going to be about Millie at the start, but it becomes a Mooxie episode. Her and Mooxie share the same ex, but we only saw how Mooxie's and Chaz's relationship was like. In S2EP5, Millie gets attention from a bunch of teenagers, and it makes Mooxie jealous (grown ass man by the way) and it is frame as a Mooxie episode. S2EP10 features Millie but it is still about Blitz's and his trauma, Millie is there as emotional support.

This is how I would write Millie; these are just free flowing thoughts by the way:

Keep that southern charm. A demon with a southern accent is cute.

Keep her being a killing machine but she will not get knocked out in one hit, she will fight until the end.

She likes being pamper and loves when Mooxie does lovely-dovely for her (like the date in Ozzie's).

I would not change that much about her roles in Loo Loo Land, Spring Broken, CHERUB. Maybe add scenes of her and Blitz being friendly with each other and how much Blitz trusts her and in her abilities.

Harvest Moon Festival would be a Millie focused episode. We will learn about her home life, mainly how her upbring affected her both negatively and positively.

Instead of being an background character, Sallie will have a proper role (maybe she can be the one how figured out that Striker was planning to kill Stolas). Millie's plot would her rivalry with Sallie and how it motivates her to show her worth to their parents who always viewed her as the 'weaker' daughter.

Keep her role the same in Truth Seekers. I think her breaking down when Mooxie got kidnapped was alright. Same with Ozzie's, she destroying Fizz with the guitar was pretty funny.

She and Mooxie would not have been in Seeing Stars. Helluva does not need C-plots.

Her and Chaz would not be exes but ex-'business' partners. Before Millie joined IMP, she started to start her own business and Chaz being the slimy person he is, saw Millie as a someone he would easily scam. He met Millie and promise to help fund her business but took all of her life savings. This event made Millie engage her and made her feel vulnerable. She wanted to put Chaz's head on a spike, this is why she became a freelancer killer to hunt Chaz down.

She kills Chaz in Exes and Oohs instead of Crimson. Give that woman a moment to shine and show the audience how when Millie has a goal in mind, she will complete that goal no matter what.

Her role in Western Energy is fine but when Striker made the ceiling rocks collapse, she would have not passed out from impact and would have tried to get the upper hand instead of her being pinned down to a rock. Her not able to remove the axe was the rock was pretty dumb.

Unhappy Campers is an episode I would just rewrite from the grounds up. Make a new episode all about Barbie and her relationship with Blitz and small appearances of IMP. After seeing how Blitz and Barbie's relationship is in the gutter, Millie calls Sallie at the end of the episode.

I will rewrite Full Moon to be about Stolas and Blitz. The Cherub and IMP fight was pure filter and added nothing to the episode.

For Ghostfuckers, Millie and Blitz being friends is great, but the show barely show them interact. I think their scenes together would have hit harder if we saw their friendship in S1.

We have no idea how Millie's pregnancy plot line will turn out, but I am sharing my rewrite idea anyway:

She takes the pregnancy test, and it comes back positive, and she is scared. Millie never saw herself being a mother, that thought never crossed her mind. Mooxie never mentioned that he wants kids, and she is a killer for a living! She cannot be pregnant on the job and IMP does not have materiality leave, she cannot afford to be out of commission for around 8-9 months. Millie thinks being pregnant will make her vulnerable and she never wants to feel that ever again.

Even after giving birth, who is going to watch her baby? Her family live in Warth, and she cannot just go a drop her baby off in a moment's notice, they have their own lives too.

What if she gets killed on the job? Mooxie will not be able to afford being a single parent and vice versa. Who will take care of their baby if both of them die?

She talks to Sallie face-to-face about her surprise pregnancy and tells her she does not know what to do, Sallie just tells her 'It is your choice' and she knows what the best is for her. She never tells Mooxie about the pregnancy.

Adoption centers for the lower class are awful, and she does not want her unborn child to live a miserable childhood. She travels to the Sloth rings and gets an abortion instead.

[koolkitty9]

I have a theory

I believe Yumoto is now able to heal monsters on his own.

HOW?

It actually hints at in s2ep9 with Yumoto's Love Sprinkle Attack

For his Love Sprinkle attack, IMO COULD Be as strong as the original Love Shower attack, but with how the VEPPer's monsters are shown to be stronger compared to the Caerula Adamas' Loveless monsters (I say this bc s2ep1, the bracelets are shattered basically instantly with the FIRST hit).

Love Sprinkle CANNOT fully heal, it just calms the monsters down and relaxes them, it is the opposite of True Love Attack, which STUNS the monster. THIS is IMO Yumoto's peaceful manner seeping into his OWN ATTACK, the ATTACK That Wombat had NO IDEA ABOUT.

Now, let's get into s2ep12, when Yumoto is Ultra More Better Battle Lover Scarlet, he not only unlocks the other's forms as well (since I believe their powers are fueled by Yumoto's in a way), he also, STARTS the healing process WITHOUT the True Love Staff. WE DO NOT SEE True Love Attack/True Love Fountain AGAIN after s2ep10.

You can see Yumoto's own light (which I KNOW, his powers are usually PINK, but it seems when Yumoto heals, his powers go into a pure white healing light), form WAY BEFORE the others join in. This TO ME, shows that he is 100% capable of healing people and monsters by himself, but it may just take an extra bit more exertion from him if he was alone. The others putting their own Love Sticks up to join him and all calling out together, IMO helps boost Yumoto's own so he will not exhaust himself.

THEN in the OVA, Yumoto is shown to throw his hand up at the end to heal the monster, and he is shown in his pink light once more (which I am starting to question too, maybe Yumoto's white healing light is ONLY reserved for when he is More Better, as we see this white light in s1's finale as the BG behind the group).

Yumoto has NO trouble here, which again, I believe the others are there to just help keep Yumoto from over-exhausting himself, they are his crutch so he doesn't probably just pass out from exhaustion after healing alone

Honorable mention for s2ep7 with the reindeer monster, who AGAIN watch, he FLASHES WHITE, which is the SAME COLOR as Yumoto's healing powers in the s2 finale. I think Yumoto may have subconsciously healed him since he KNEW the student personally and he was in his class (Even if he didn't realize that OH that guy is in my class, something in him probably knew, But Yumoto is also the type who would NEVER let someone stay a monster), aND DONT YOU SAY "OH SANTA DID IT" BC no I reFUSE TO BELIEVE IT!!!

Until the movie PROVES ME WRONG, I do believe that Yumoto can fully heal monsters by himself and he just has NO idea of his secret ability just yet because he usually has his friends with him.

I think too, his finishing move can be maybe STARTED alone but he can't finish it alone bc SURE he starts a lot of these in the examples I posted, but i think the others are needed to finish it

BYE!

[arolock]

Rick C-137 timeline (+lil piece of theory in the end)

Recently I was thinking about Rick C-137 and Rick Prime's differences and similarities, and tried to tie everything that we know for sure about Rick C-137 into a linear timeline. I decided to pick points that have at least two confirmations to avoid misleads, especially since we can't fully rely on memories being intact and truthful, so that's what I have left:

• Rick C-137 meets Rick Prime (memories from s3ep1 and s5ep10, confirmed by the garage hologram in s6ep1)

• Rick Prime offers Rick C-137 something while holding a portal gun and Rick C-137 refuses the offer (memories from s3ep1 and s5ep10, the event itself was cofirmed by the garage hologram in s6ep1, but the full conversation wasn't)

• C-137 Diane and Beth are killed (memories from s3ep1, s5ep8, s5ep10, the event is confirmed by garage AI in s6ep1 and Rick himself in s6ep1, s5ep8)

• Rick C-137 meets Birdperson and Squanchy, forms a band, starts a rebellion against Federation, offers Birdperson an iterdimensional travel, first time openly expresses his infamous 'nothing matters' mindset and his opinion on dimensions being replaceable, but nonetheless admits that a certain version of a person still matters, gets rejected by Birdperson and leaves (s2ep6, s2ep10, Birdperson memories in s5ep8, Rick's memories in s5ep10)

• All Dianes are killed across infinity, which is confirmed by s7ep5. EXACT TIMING AND POSITION ON THE TIMELINE IS UNKOWN, but Beth Prime was old enough to not be sent to a foster family

• Rick C-137 meets baby Morty (memories in s1ep10, but later confirmed by a photo in s2ep5)

After this we have a time gap until Rick arrives to the Prime dimension, and then we basically follow Rick around, so there is no need to pinpoint everything, I'll just cover the basics

• Rick C-137 comes to Beth's Prime home when she's grown up and has kids (still unknown how long he has been there at the start of the s1ep1, at least a few months 'cause he already made Morty miss an entire semester of school, but not long enough to form any bonds with anyone in the family except Morty)

• Rick C-137 and Prime Morty switch dimensions for the first time, Rick never comes back for the rest of Prime family, Rick expresses his views on multiverse, dimensions hopping and everyone being replaceable (s1ep6)

• Evil Morty hacks Rick C-137 gun, sets him up, captures him and takes his memories (s1ep10) // by the way, I doubt that you can hack one's portal gun from a different dimension, so... But let's leave it at that

• Birdperson is "killed", Earth is invaded, but Rick doesn't immediately switch dimensions (s2ep10)

• Federation and Citadel are destroyed (s3ep1)

• Citadel is restored, Evil Morty gets elected as the President (s3ep7)

• Central Finite Curve is destroyed, all Rick's origin revealed to Morty via memory forcefully extracted by Evil Morty (s5ep10)

• Everybody get sent to their home dimension, Beth gets a confirmation by Summer that Rick C-137 and Morty Prime are not her original father and son, Morty Prime openly disowns Rick Prime, Rick C-137 stops his hunt for Prime to get back to the family with Morty Prime, family reunites and switches dimensions together (s6ep1)

• Rick claims that he starts to hunt for Rick Prime again and during his rant says something quite peculiar: "That's what happens when you let people in and they stop respecting you. They touch your shit, they screw things up, they kill your fucking family" (s6ep10) //uh oh, seems someone put their trust in a wrong Rick

• Prime Hunt ends with his murder and Evil Morty getting his hands on the Omega device (s7ep5).

If you have anything to add or correct, feel free to do so.

Also I'd love to read some theories on any questionable points of this timeline, especially on the timing of Diane's death.

My guess is that after Rick got rejected by BP, he went downhill and eventually ended in Prime dimension around the time Morty was a baby. In attempt to spite Rick Prime or bait him, and maybe trying to fully accept nihilistic views on the concept of multiverse and it's inhabitants that were forced on him, Rick tried to reconnect with Diane Prime, and, eventually, Beth. Rick Prime got pissed that C-137 touched his shit and tried to play home again, so he kidnapped both Rick and Diane, and then used Diane Prime to run the Omega device. Then he probably wiped Beth and Jerry's memories of Rick C-137 ever coming back, just to rub it in.

[sadquickchristmassnowman]

Hi! I follow 'the good place' tag and saw your cry for distraction. Seeing as I don't know your blog at all, may I ask: Do you have any uncommon headcanons about tgp that you'd like to share? Additionally/Alternatively, do you have a favourite member of team cockroach? Why (are they your favourite/do you not have any favourites)? Good luck on your grades!

hey! thanks for the ask dude, even though we’ve never interacted before. I don’t talk about tgp a ton on here but it is my #1 favorite sitcom. so thanks for this opportunity to ramble a little bit 💯

this is only sort of a headcannon? it’s more of a connection I made that might not have necessarily been intentional. in the scene where jason and tahani break off their casual relationship (I think it’s from s2ep10 “best self” ?) jason starts telling a super unhinged story about robbing a pet store with his mom, then finishes it off with “it was all a dream.” but then, in s4ep8 “the funeral to end all funerals” we find out that jason’s mom actually died of cancer when he was really young. as we know, in jason’s family, commiting crimes and going through with half-baked get-rich-quick schemes was an important part of his family dynamic, and that’s basically the entire basis of his relationship with his dad.

basically, now I just can’t stop thinking about a teenage jason, who lost his mom a few years back, having a dream about doing a scheme with his mom— actually being able to bond with someone who was taken from him too soon.

I have no idea if this was intentional, but it’s canon to me lmao. he just misses his mom :(

also, it’s really cool to go through all of jason’s unhinged anecdotes from his life on Earth. everything he says connects, and just. his whole backstory is So well thought out, even when we just get tiny snippets of memories and stories throughout the series. I guess you could say that for all four of the humans, but the continuity in jason’s stories stands out most to me. this show is on another level and I love it so much

and, obviously I love all the members of team cockroach. it’s so so difficult to try to pick a favorite. they all have amazing character development throughout the show (tgp has some of my favorite character work I have ever seen), they’re all funny, and all of the actors really put their entire souls into their roles. honestly, michael is probably my favorite (ted danson is phenomenal, and all his line deliveries and mannerisms are just really entertaining to me.) but, I really do love all of them and picking a favorite is so difficult. I could write an essay on why I love each of them lmao. leaving a picture of them here as a sign off :)

[midnightcowboy1969]

Hi! how are you doing? Just wondering, do you have a favourite episode of my two dads?

Also this is from the ending of an NBC promo ahfksljs

Michael & Joey, nooo, don't let them put you in jail!!! Run boys!! RUN!

And hiii, I'm doing good and I hope you're doing good too.

I don't really know if I have a favorite episode, and I have to be honest, I think I've forgotten about what happens in a few episodes because I've yet to rewatch them, and it's been quite a long time since I first saw them.

BUT, I can say that I really like "Joey's Mother-In-Law" (s1ep13). It's just a great episode. Michael's mom visits and takes over their lives, and Michael has to talk to her about how she doesn't see him and Joey as proper parents. I just really love his conversation with his mother. Him asking his mother to respect him just hits.

I also love "Say Goodnight, Gracie" (s3ep2). Joey has to babysit Gracie, the baby of his girlfriend, and Gracie only stops crying when she's near Michael. Very cute bit. My favorite moment is definetly when Michael holds Gracie and is like pretending to be immune to the baby's charm by being sarcastic but then he melts and he's very cute with the wittle baby.

I also really like"Bye Bye Baby" (s3ep14). I don't really remember what happens in that episode except Joey having a rough time saying goodbye to baby Gracie and it's <33 also Michael stops smoking in that episode and it's pretty funny.

"Enviormental Case" (s3ep15) I remember being pretty funny. I've told you about it before. Joey ends up in court because he is an enviormentalist king.

"Kind of a Drag" (s3ep20), in which Michael pretends to be Joey's wife. God tier episode.

Also, there's an episode in season 2 I cannot remember the name of, but I remember thinking it's pretty great. Nicole's friend has a crush on Michael but it turns out that in reality she just craves a father figure. By the end of the episode Michael offers to be like a father to her or something, and they hug. It's sweet.

"In her dreams" (s2ep10) is great! Nicole dreams about what her life would be like if only one of the guys were her dad and of course with her mom. Also, I see you throuple threesome joke.

The majority of the episodes I mention here are from s3, but don't let that fool you, I think s1 is the best season (it's my favorite season).

Thanks for the ask <3

And, sorry that I started rambling. I just like the show a lot, and there's many great episodes. It's difficult to pick a favorite.

[dream-bandit]

YES YES SOMEONE SAYS IT !!!!!

The lullaby family is so fundemental to the story they have the same amount of influence on the plot as Lunia does, hell maybe even MORE

If it werent for Hannah and shins attack pushing beau to use the sword, the nightmare king would have never been freed

If it werent for Beau leaving the watch under his bed, Zoey wouldnt have found it

There are SO many times the watch alters what could have happened and the dream forge is just the start of it

You COULD argue that they still woudlve been dreamchasers without the forge trail, but then you can point to s2ep10 Where theyre all nearly defeated until beau makes zoey rewind time far enough to give them JUST enough time to escape

have.we ever thought about how without beau and zoey using the time watch most of the plot wouldnt have even happened??

like when zoey used the watch to reverse time by a few mins for the dream gang to get thru the forge. Without the forge they wouldnt have been able to become dreamchasers

OR when night hunter used the watch to reverse the doom dome by a bit so zoey could save her freinds...there was even a pulse after it happened...do you see where im going here

if this show pulled an lmk and made it so that mateo becoming a dreamkeeper was never intentional

that would mean zoey and beau both created and disrupted the entire fate of the dream world. what.

Oomf pls I have school how am I supposed to go now knowing that

But frl tho what the freak butterfly effect go crazy

[chidoroki]

Tokyo Revengers S2EP10

aka: op is no longer allowed to ship anyone. ever.

Ya know I wondered how Mikey knew to take Takemichi over to Hina’s and I suspected Emma might’ve spoke about it to him, so seeing her here now maybe confirms my guess?

Pffft Mikey looked away so damn quick when Takemichi questioned him!

Oh wow, our girl knew right away that her dad had some involvement in the breakup?

“My oldest brother used to always come here to pray on Christmas.” Hey Shinichiro and Taiju could be friends.

As much as I love to see Emma, my heart hurts a little bit because I.. unfortunately know some things happen way later, but it’s all fine. For now. I’m just gonna be a mess then, I know it.

Oh, duh. Emma told Draken to go look for Takemichi. Of course. Silly me. Also, the fact his voice seems to get lower when talking to her over the phone? Cute.

Emma is the kind of friend we all need in our lives.

“If I saw him now, I couldn’t speak. I might cry.” The way it instantly cuts to Takemichi bawling his eyes out instead of Hina is just perfect. But huzzah they both made up and happy again.

“He’s weak with women and a weak fighter. But he’s dependable when the chips are down.” Way to tell it like it is Draken.

Ohh the dad was watching the whole thing but looks like he accepts it now, or at least has no choice thanks to mom.

“I lose sight of the difference between what’s right and what’s wrong.” Yeah Mikey does not do well when he loses someone dear to him. Then again, who would really?

“Winning fights isn’t truly what’s most important. It’s not losing to yourself.” Speak those facts Mikey! Not that you eventually listen to if but still!

Mikey trusting Takemichi to call him out if and whenever he starts to lose his heart and/or way.. that’s touching. Ya know Takemichi is gonna take pride in that promise.

The twins dragons of Toman? I believe Mitsuya has the same tattoo as Draken on the other side of his head from what I’ve seen (dunno if it’s now or in another timeline) but tell me more!

OOOHH! Mitsuya did graffiti of the dragon years ago which Draken actually gets a tattoo of because he was there.. just casually eating and watching him.

Draken NO! You can’t just take sweet, innocent Mitsuya back home! Not in the kind of place you live!

Is this the day Mitsuya mentioned back in the church? When he ran away, came back and his mom got mad at him before saying she loved him?

AHH! He did get the same tattoo!!!

Oh, but it was totally not planned to match him, it was just pure coincidence they both decided on that. And since Draken “claimed” it that day, he told Mitsuya to grow his hair out. No wonder we never see it anymore. Shame because it looked good on him too.

I do want them to have many more scenes together from now on though. Draken is always gonna be Mikey’s right hand man but I wanna see him & Mitsuya too. Maybe I’ll go back and rewatch season one. Maybe I missed some.

Aww Hina looks so pretty at the festival. OH and so does Yuzuha!

Poor Hakkai still can’t speak to girls properly.

“Now I get it. No wonder you like him, Yuzuha. He was pretty badass that night.” Hello?? Hakkai calling attention to a ship I lowkey wanted more for? But seriously there were a couple moments at the church between her & Mitsuya where I thought “well yea, they’d be cute,” but I didn’t wanna put too much thought into it, but NOW? I’m in. Even if nothing else happens!

Damn, Taiju really just left home like that? At least he acknowledged his violence was wrong.

Never the fuck mind! It was Takemichi that Yuzuha was blushing at, not Mitsuya! Both Hakkai and me got it completely wrong. Oh my god, that’s hilarious.. the ship was in my heart for a minute and it’s already in rough waters.

Right, the whole seeing Mitsuya as a brother thing.. Ah well. Someone take my shipping goggles away. I fall too quick into these things that I’ve been going around too many pairings this ep!

“Nothing wrong with a one-sided crush, right?” Absolutely! So crush on whomever you wanna girl, I support you!

Yay Chifuyu is here too! As well as a whole bunch of Toman members!

Aww, that shot of everyone celebrating the new year together alongside Takemichi’s wish warms my heart.

Oh, little ending scene with Hanma and Kisaki? Up to no good as usual hm?

I’m feeling.. a bit worried, and it’s not even because of the scheming duo’s post credit scene. This episode was just too happy and it vaguely reminds me of season one after the fight with Moebius because things calmed down then shit hit the fan right after..

[inactiverandomjreader]

I've finally watched finished all 2 seasons of diary of a future president and I HAVE SO MANY EMOTIONS SO IF YOU DON'T WANT SPOILERS SCROLL AWAY

Ok first and foremost, BOBBY IN SEASON 2!!! I DID NOT THINK I COULD LOVE THIS BOY ANYMORE THAN I DID IN SEASON 1 *BUT THEN SEASON 2 HAPPENED* I love his journey with his sexuality so freaking much, I sobbed when he came out to Elena and subsequently teared up everytime he came out to someone else. Simply putting it, I love him and I will protect this precious bean with my life.

AND CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE LOVE TRIANGLE FOR A SECOND??? I'm gonna need cartero stans and cjbobby stans to come on here and tell me why their ship is superior because I CAN'T DECIDE THEY'RE BOTH SO DAMN CUTE!!! Like I went into season 2 being a full-blown cartero stan AND THEN *CJ* CAME INTO THE PICTURE. And just as I was settling into the cjbobby ship bcs they cute cute, S2EP10 HAPPENED. LIKE HELLO? THE FRENCH RESTAURANT "DATE"? THE LOOK BACK? Clearly Liam isn't just an ally, and cartero is looking very much endgame rn, but I don't wanna jinx anyth, and as much as I love cartero I have a soft spot for cjbobby now so pls lemme know what u think.

Oh and of course, we can't forget THE CJBOBBY KISS. Idc if ur a cartero shipper, THAT SHIT WAS CUTE, TOP TIER DISNEY KISS. I will be obsessing over that for days tyvm.

Now let's talk about dear Elena. I love her, and I love her storyline this season. The way it shows how she's growing up, transitioning into teenagehood. I definitely saw abit of my 13 year old self in her, I could really relate to some of the mistakes she made. She's just growing so much as a character, and we love to see it. Also, her frn grp? Girl bosses, absolute girl bosses.

Can I just say that I called Elena and Emilio? As soon as I saw Emilio I KNEW it was gonna be a thing, shipped it right from the start baby. I've never been a big fan of Joey anyway, just didn't get a good vibe from him. Thank god they're not canon. My theory is that next season, Emilio and Elena will both be student reps, and will have to work together which would totally set up their romantic storyline really well.

Gabi and Sam. I love Gabi and Sam. They have such a healthy relationship, full of communication and love. It's the kind of relationship I'd want to have one day. I love how Sam had just been trying to find his space in the family, and finally found it. And not to mention how cool the kids were about it. No toxicity or anything, just love in a healthy household.

I DEMAND WE SEE CAMI AND DANIELLE'S WEDDING NEXT SEASON. I DON'T CARE HOW IT HAPPENS, IT JUST NEEDS TO HAPPEN. NO AND IFS OR BUTS.

Where did Claude go? Like, there was an explanation for Ziggy's departure at least, but Claude was there for an episode or two and poof he's just gone? And especially since the show put so much emphasis on how close Sasha and Claude were, it's a bit strange how he just dipped, even if it's stated that they are still together.

Yeah, I think that about covers everything. I did not expect to love this show as much as I did, but here I am. FINGERS CROSSED FOR A SEASON 3! Now it's time to drown myself in fanfiction while we await the renewal.

[i-love-hobbies]

Eda's reckless behaviour and overall mental health

Summary

Eda is a genius, but is very emotional when making decisions (not anger, but fear, stress ect.)

Her reckless behaviour and apple blood problem in my opinion are her ways of running from reality.

In season 1 she made a bit of progress on this issue. Then the finale happened. Then she made again progress and s2ep7 did a complete reset. And she is making progress now again.

Eda's intelligence

She's been a criminal for thirty years. She has been in the shady business for an extremely long time. Yes magic definitely helps but you also have to find a way to be on top of the game, so you can survive.

Remember Tibbles' shrinking potion. She can't really use a lot of magic if she is shrinked or poisoned and dead, can she? Not to talk about her enemies which you'd think would attack her now that she is magicless.

They haven't on screen, yet. The only ones that tried are Adegast and Tibbles and they both died without her using any magic (or close to nothing).

Now we know that she doesn't make plans a lot on screen. In s2ep3 especially she just let's Luz make the plan but that's because she is her mentor.

In s2ep6 Luz used sleeping needles which is wild magic so no, it's not knowledge coming from Hexside. Also the pickpocketing Luz mentioned.

Teachers don't do the tests instead of students.

She teaches her everything that isn't glyphs. I wouldn't be surprised if she has told stories to Luz about her best "outsmarting everyone in the room" moments.

Now we have seen some of her problem solving on screen. One of which was in ep.18 fight only using her channelled magic trough the staff (im not taking credit for noticing this, have no idea who did though) and used the bridge.

Also if she can telepathically talk to her staff. Owlbert saving Luz was probably her idea.

She had her impact on Raine's rebellion as well, without having magic or turning into a harpy.

"You are not our mom!"

"Wow, we actually helped people this time!"

"Bye, mommy Eda!"

In the back of her head she knows exactly what to do, everytime something happens.

Eda's mental health

Eda's curse and the nightmares it causes. The father incident. The fact that she probably thought Lilith was scared of her.

Lilith's hidden guilt and her taking her father's eye out don't mix well together. I wouldn't be surprised if they barely spoke even if they lived in a house together.

Her losing Raine.

Her faith in the emporer being broken.

She has seen a lot of death, that does impact people.

Season 1

At the beginning of the series she was making a lot of bad choices which don't aline with her experience.

The series starts with her getting caught by Warden Wrath. Instead of just sneaking, they were just walking comfortably in the corridors.

They are kids, one from another dimension, but her... She doesn't know better? And for a paper crown that she can replace by stealing from someone else.

Next episode we are introduced to her morning drink later on confirmed to be for adults only. And that drink didn't get a mention for the rest of the season. In that episode she is also not the most clear-headed. She didn't try to sneak, she didn't use potions. Didn't try to plan.

A list about her being impatient can go on and on.

So when does she think. When she realises it's dangerous (aka when it's right in her face). Literally in the first episode the moment she started doing stuff is when she got caught and spat on the warden's face.

In episode 2 she didn't do that because she didn't know if Luz was alive and had a hard time bottling her feelings. Like if Luz proved to him to be hard to keep tight up he could have killed her, the girl that came back for her and her son yesterday. And she proved to Eda that she is a little dangerous the previous episode with her fireworks.

Eda was rational again, after she was with both King and Luz.

As the series went on though she started to calm down a bit.

Firstly, the fact that she was so focused on fixing her card problem, after Tibbles scammed her, that she trew them away in another dimension.

I was wondering how she overcame it so quickly.

It also shows her knowledge of how to handle this type of problems which brings up a question. How did she learn it?

Secondly let's compare the first half of the season to the second.

1. Everything I already pointed out and was hiding the curse. The stuff that happened in ep.5. Her refusal to be parental in ep.7. Body swapped.

2. She gets scammed again (this time though, how do you expect that someone was digging their own grave). Didn't use a sleeping spell on the slitherbeast immediately instead was just standing there. Got caught by the fun police. Worsened King's stage fright.

In ep.15 because of her ignorance Luz and Amity almost die. Except that is not the full story. She had at this point a lot of faith in Luz and this was her friend's mind.

For Amity it's not that she hated her. Amity actually saved her in ep.12. It's because she wasn't that important for her to realise. "Omg Willow is at the very least extremely mad at her."

It's again a refusal to think, but for a stranger and not really on purpose. It was just a habit of hers.

Episode 18 and 19

At the beginning of the episode. Eda hid the curse, again.

When she learned that Lilith had kidnapped Luz. She didn't try to make a plan. She just revealed herself in all her glory while her magic was disappearing.

Shot the staff in a wall while she was having no idea, what that was supposed to accomplish.

Luz showed up and she finally started thinking.

Afterwards Lilith said we all know what and for the first time Eda's anger was the leader of her choices and Luz almost fell on to the spikes.

So then, for the very least a night, she was stuck in her mind with something, that was chasing her. She woke up to Emporer Baby the B*tch, who was telling her, he was about to go after Luz.

And no she didn't believe in Lilith, but was so overwhelmed. It was insane. So she begged. After some more running, she woke up to Luz in the Comformatoriam.

Next, she was about to get petrified and for awhile this was the calmest things have been since she got caught. Then Lilith shows up (ah yes she existed).

King jumped "She was trying to help!". Wait King was there.

Petrification beam go.

PURE PAIN!

Then she got the idea for all of them to fly away. Lilith shared the curse making the confusion even bigger. Then her magic is gone (that was a thing). She learned that the portal is destroyed. Now she was living with Lilith and might have starved to death with everyone else in the house.

After all of this she not only tried but HAD TO pretend that she was mentally stable, so they could survive this mess.

Season 2A

In episode 1 she told Luz not to go after big bounties and then tried to steal from a coven's ship.

At this point her emotions are the only thing that made decisions while they were also getting hidden. Don't get me wrong she did help and should, especially Luz but it's ALL feelings. She didn't think about consequences, which sometimes are good.

She didn't attack Lilith cause it's just not the time, she's scared from her own anger. Plus she can't really stand being with the roller coaster of emotions, that came with being in one room with her.

This didn't mean she didn't work with her and hadn't listened to the backstory, though.

The episode ends with her and everyone else not being close to dieing. Finally!

So now what? She tried to think about Lilith? Yeah, she probably preferred not to.

Then her glyph almost kills King, but Lilith showed up and helped. This is probably a familiarity she missed. So again she decided not to process it, but it definitely sticks.

She also didn't notice Luz being hurt.

Next episode, we saw Eda taking a shower which means she has healthy coping mechanisms, at least one, self-care and is not yet a workaholic.

Luz's apple blood joke is concerning.

After the events of episode 3. Luz probably told her that Lilith stayed with her and King, instead of just leaving them, get killed by Jean-Luc.

Then Eda still isn't certain where she stands about everything and Lilith just left, with her final act being, giving King mental issues.

Throughout this whole thing her mom was there with her cures/annual accidental attempt to kill her favourite daughter.

In this episode, Eda fell for apple blood signs. Rationality is out of the window.

In ep.6 she decided to help, with students getting palisman. Again not thinking about all the trauma, but finally doing something against her first instinct.

In ep.7 she heard King's "Le-" and refused to fully process, where the heck is he gonna go.

She also punched someone, cause this is gonna work?

Now she has reconnected with Raine having no idea should she even think of a romantic relationship again? And decided to be useful at least for something since she "can't raise kids".

She was helping and being very good at it, but it came from fear of loneliness.

Then she heard that Belos has a plan and just is overwhelmed. What if the kids get hurt, is she powerless?

Oh, look! Raine might be dead!

Next episode she overworked herself.

In between ep.8 and 9 she was trying to scare the beast into transforming. (She is losing her sanity. Literally the previous episode told her not to do that.)

In episode 9 again it's all emotional. She wants to feel better and be stronger, so she told King to blast her (almost blasting Amity), hit fool's blood even though Amity said the lake is further ahead.

Luckily she showed progress too.

She ate voles, which was against how she was feeling.

In ep.10 she was scared of letting Luz in the portal. I'm not saying she wouldn't have before, but I don't think it was easy.

Right now, after s2ep10, I think she isn't the most mentally stable. But she is definitely working on it.

[ladesisesansdessein]

For Chen Bin, what if he helped taking care of the twins, especially Tianxi? It could explain why he wants a daughter so much. It could explain why they both felt like they failed to protect the twins (the mom from the abusive father, Chen Bin from Qian Jin's influence? Or just Tianxi being forced into using her powers to murder them?), Also, why his death specifically most likely coincide with Tianxi's betrayal (giving the picture/stealing the phone/running away).

Who is Liu Xiao indeed... he is such a weird character. Most likely will appear for the first time in the plot (and not in an exposition flashback) in S2EP10, which is quite late if you want to make him a main antagonist. There is no mention of his existence in season 1, such as no mention of Liu Min having a sibling. He most likely isn't red eyes. Pretty obvious that Qian Jin and Tianchen started killing on their own/Liu Jing's order, then started obeying Liu Min for convenience/fun, not directly because of Xiao. So, does he have a secret 4th identity as a character we already know? Or most likely they will try to make him some kind of mastermind who secretly planned everything from the start (for example, being the customer for the case of S1EP1, inspiring Liu Min to get in contact with Qian Jin/Tianchen...) but WHY?

The only hint we may have is the whole "friend" thing with CXS... is it Tianchen or Liu Xiao who wants to be friend with him? Tianchen is most likely red eyes and thus the one who said it, but he doesn't show a want of changing the past/having CXS. It's Liu Xiao who most likely wants to become "friend" with people who "evolved". Maybe he wants the power for something, but why? How did he learned about CXS? Why waiting so long to make a move? Why not just kidnapping him in his sleep instead of from a POLICE STATION? WITH A BOAT??? WITH THUGS KILLING POLICE OFFICERS????? I guess they like drama over practicality but still...

Although, maybe the hospital attack did involved kidnapping Cheng Xiaoshi as part of the plan, with the three old people being a giant miscalculation from their part. Why having so many thugs if all they wanted was the phone? Just have Chen Bin throwing the phone from a window, have someone waiting outside to grab it and drive off, then have Chen Bin commits suicide from throwing himself from the rooftop. And Ma do tells the thugs to "take care of him" or something along those lines. I assumed they wanted to kill CXS but maybe they wanted to bring him elsewhere? Which could explain why they are starting to act so "recklessly" if they keep failing to kidnap CXS and some deadline is closing in.

Link Click thoughts on episode 9

Once again, we are given more questions to ponder than answers, but I think that this episode was meant to be a huge giant red hint. We just have to be clever enough, and put in the effort to see it!

"What has happened is inevitably what will happen, even if there are countless possibilities." <- <- <-

"Lu Guang" escaping the room is a node. I think that node can be changed, but that it is also very hard to change. So long as the intent to repeat is there, nothing major will change.

The scene changes from B&W to color when Qian Jin meets the twins for the first time.

I believe this is where one node has been crossed. @mimicha-arts has already mentioned the discrepancy between the first time Qian Jin meets the twins and this scene here. I think their train of thought is right on the money. Let me add on to that: the first words out of Li Tianchen's mouth are "It was I who killed them." Then they BOTH start laughing.

It is my current opinion that this laughter signifies a node being crossed.

Li Tianchen did not kill his parents in the original timeline. This is a new development. If death is a node that cannot be crossed, then it doesn't matter who killed them, so long as they die.

Li Tianchen isn't trying to save his family. Nor is Qian Jin trying to save his wife. What they desire comes after.

Another scene where the laughter is present is where Captain Xiao tells Qian Jin his wife was pregnant when she was murdered. This scene is B&W both times.

Then there's the scene in color. I honestly did not see the neighbor being a victim coming and really should have, the clues were there damnit.

So is the conversation with Captain Xiao a node that needs crossing? or a node that was crossed? (since they showed the scene twice with the dialog cut the first time.)

Then there is Chen Bin. Sweet, innocent, naive Chen Bin who shows a desire to help his friend. He got dragged into a mess and his full involvement is not yet clear to me, but he's an accomplice. 99.9% sure on that one.

Then there's this scene.

Why is Li Tianxi remembering this. Is this from her point of view? I still think she's the one with the ability to go into the photograph, but has no control over what happens once inside.

Who are they apologizing to? One of the twins? They act as if they have failed in someway. It's not begging for life, I don't think.

The markings on Liu Lan's neck look very much like the markings on Emma. We never saw her husband choke her. (not to say he didn't but, so many things don't add up with that double murder.)

We got eye color. And hey, we know now that he is (likely) Hat Man, and that he is definitely Liu Xiao. But who is Liu Xiao. Storytelling dictates that this is a character we already have familiarity with. I'm just being a coward in saying anything out loud lol. and I don't want my first thought to be true. I need to overthink this more.

It's not 100% necessary, but our protagonists have to be related to this case in some way.

[arinaco]

Role of the Dark Entity in the VLD series

Translated and edited by @ Nadezhda932

This short meta focuses on a very important element of the VLD series, completely overlooked as a result of the changes in S8. It never received any explanation, although it appeared in S3 for the first time. Namely - the Dark Entity (hereinafter - DE). I thought about its importance when I analyzed the scenes with Allura in Clear Day episode (S8Ep8) and came to interesting conclusions. But ... let's start in order. The first time DE appears in flashbacks, in the story of Coran (S3Ep7). When Alfor comes to visit his friend Honerva, she tells him that only one creature has responded to the signal she sent to the Rift. The creature was a small floating ball that Honerva placed in a flask. Alfor already then felt that it wouldn't end well, but the cycle of events, alas, was launched, and the alchemist king turned into a passive observer of the impending tragedy. At that time, we learned only one thing: that in the Rift between realities, where there's an endless stream of the purest quintessence, such dark creatures live. That is, for them the quintessence is a natural habitat and a natural source of nutrition, since there's simply nothing else there. And this is very (!) Important. Because you need to remember that in the ordinary world, the quintessence is only inside living beings: planets, flora and fauna. Moreover, the concentration of the quintessence inside living bodies is several times less than in the Rift. Just compare. We got to know what the raw quintessence looks like in the episode where paladins get to an imperial staging post (S1Ep12), and Keith tries to steal a vessel with a purple quintessence. The Red paladin is wounded in the arm and crashes into a flask of yellow - raw - quintessence. And having already escaped from the kind, sweet druid, he looks in amazement as, thanks to this yellow liquid, the wound on his hand heals right before his eyes (however, at that moment he was more alarmed by the purple tint of his own blood than by the very fact of healing).

The yellow flask is as tall as Keith, and the resulting violet one fits in the hand... 

Quintessence is the energy of life. The yellow quintessence is the energy that is present in an ordinary living organism in normal natural concentration (someone has more of it, someone has less of it, I don’t know what the process of its extraction is). It's weak, but completely harmless. It healed Keith without harming him.

One large flask of yellow quintessence produces a small flask of purified violet quintessence. And I think that even less is the more powerful blue. And in the Rift, the quintessence was in an absolutely pure - white - form, completely intolerable for normal living beings. Yes, the quintessence is the energy of life itself and can't kill (that is, according to the logic of the series, Lotor just couldn't die in the Rift), but this doesn't mean that its overdose will lead to good consequences. The purple quintessence made the warden at Beta Traz (S2Ep10) swell like a balloon; with the help of blue quintessence they created a real monster (S5Ep5); the pure stream burned Honerva and Zarkon's brains in just a couple of minutes, and melted Lotor like cheese in the microwave.

Nothing from our universe has been able to survive the passage through the Rift.

Because they deformed so much that they ceased to be themselves.

In some way it was lucky, because next to it was a delicious Altean alchemist. As we know, even an ordinary Altean produces quintessence more than other races, and a powerful alchemist turns into a walking battery. In addition, Zarkon visited his wife periodically and became an excellent addition to the main course.

As a result, when Alfor came to check on his friend, he was surprised to notice that she had lost interest in him and was overly enthusiastic about research. And even Zarkon, who was initially wary of research, now also supported it.

This is because the quintessence diet wasn't the only feature of the entity. Remember how it got to Honerva in the first place: the entity responded to the signal sent to the Rift, sent to search for intelligent races, which means that DE is in a sense a kind of intelligent creatures (which "predates time itself", S8Ep8). And due to the lack of material organs, most likely, the entities communicated with each other through telepathy. The entity possessed mental abilities and, seeing a stable source of power in Honerva, tried to keep her close to itself, and also influenced Zarkon so that he fully supported his wife's aspirations.

I thought we've discussed this. We must exercise caution. 

Alfor, belatedly realizing that it's not very smart to investigate an incomprehensible thing, tries to urge his friends to be careful. And it seems that at that particular moment he could have succeeded, because the DE's reaction to this statement was comparable to the reaction of an indignant cat - it immediately released the needles and hissed. And then, almost immediately, a whole wave of the entities poured out of the Rift. I think, it didn't like the new living space in the flask, and feeling a threat to life, the entity used its mental abilities and called for help.

Yes, if you think about it, then a fairly clear logical chain is built: Alfor showed aggression towards the entity - the entity was frightened - a whole wave of its relatives poured out of the Rift. They didn't just attack Daibazaal - they responded to the call for help. The entities clearly had a mutual mental connection, and maybe something like a collective intelligence. They even knew how to merge into a single organism that works no less harmoniously than Voltron.

As a result, literally a stone's throw from the capital, the planet was invaded by an army of dark creatures. Yes, Alfor and Honerva managed to stop the main stream, but who said they were able to trap all entities? Zarkon later stated that if urgent measures weren't taken, his people would be exterminated, which means that the entities had a chance to demonstrate their abilities. Perhaps only the security of the complex suffered, or maybe some of the creatures escaped from its borders, because there was a large lively city nearby. Having lost their natural source of food, the DE infiltrated the first victims, and the Galra died from exhaustion, since they didn't have a high level of quintessence like the Alteans. They literally turned into mummies in front of the doctors. The only thing that saved from the general pandemic was that it seemed that the entity couldn't leave the host itself and died with them, otherwise the DE would have jumped between the victims until they completely exterminated the Galra people (I'll explain a little later what led me to this idea). But not only the Galra were among the victims. Honerva said that Kova suffered from the influence of DE, and she had to treat him with quintessence. It was thanks to this that she discovered that the quintessence is the energy of life, capable of even giving immortality, and after such processing, Kova himself was able to survive even in outer space (S8Ep2). At that moment, Honerva believed that the entity simply hurt/badly affected her pet. No one could have imagined that DE isn't just an intelligent species, but capable of inhabiting living beings and even influencing their minds.

He revealed the truth to us.

Kova became unexpectedly aggressive towards Alfor in the absence of any clear reason.

And that was very bad, because Honerva herself became a victim of the parasite. She was an Altean and also an alchemist, and therefore at the beginning didn't even notice the "tenant". It ate hearty, almost without harming its feeder, even helped in some way - for example, it suggested to Honerva that the quintessence could save Kova from "illness", otherwise why would she even think of treating her beloved cat with a source of energy for ships and equipment? But. Just because an entity found a stable host doesn't mean that it was content with its position. The entity wanted to go home back to the Rift and began to influence its host to help in this. And therefore, after the death of the monster, despite all the troubles that it had caused, Honerva suddenly announced that she wanted to continue research. And Zarkon's behavior looks absurd at all: first, he demanded from Alfor to urgently use Voltron to save his people, and then almost immediately didn't care of Daibazaal's well-being and supported Honerva in her desire to continue working on the Rift.

My planet, my people ...

You would risk your entire planet, the entire solar system? For what? 

And all because the entity tried to take control of him too. It no longer just sat in a flask, as happened with its predecessor. It had a feeder in the form of a powerful alchemist, and it was able to draw energy from her in sufficient quantities to spread its influence. And although the influence on Zarkon was weaker than on Honerva, it was still present enough for the Galra emperor to blindly agree with his wife.

Unfortunately, Alfor never understood what was happening. He thought that the prospect of owning the quintessence had simply overshadowed Zarkon's eyes, he didn't notice how dramatically his friend had changed. And even after whole years, the alchemist king realized that something bad was happening only after visiting Daibazaal years later. Apparently, away from his wife, Zarkon behaved quite adequately, because he got rid of the influence of the essence. But next to her he became blind and deaf, repeating the words of his wife like a dummy. As a result, the paladins continued their heroism, and the entity continued to eat Honerva and influence Zarkon. And at first no one noticed the changes. After all, the Alteans in S8 also didn't notice that the entities were harming them. When Honerva informed Zarkon that she was expecting a baby, she looked gray-haired but still as young as when she first appeared on screen. The body of the great alchemist more or less coped with one parasite. But when the fetus grew and began to draw all the juices from the mother, Honerva's health deteriorated. And the mind too, because the entity, sensing the critical state of the host, began to worry and increased its pressure.

A huge difference with a timeline of several months.

Remember what Lotor said about his mother's logs. According to him, at the very end, the recordings were made... as if by another person. Feverish, insane and disorderly. Fear and paranoia appeared in them.

She's frantic, paranoid, erratic, her reason and intellect have gone.

But what could Honerva be afraid of? Where did she get paranoia? She was expecting a child and was happy with the thought that she would give the empire her son, knowledge and a bright future. And all because it wasn't her emotions. The entity sensed that its host was dying and panicked. DE was afraid for its life and was afraid that it would be revealed when the host became very bad. It panicked and at times even subdued the body, trying to write something itself.

Therefore, when Alfor received disturbing news about Daibazal's condition and decided to visit a friend, he saw Honerva aged and... not quite in an adequate condition. Not realizing that Zarkon and his wife were under the influence of the DE, the alchemist king quarreled with them and left, slamming the door, although he was probably the only one who could help them in this situation.

After the conversation, Honerva faints as her condition reaches a critical point.

Remember what Honerva said when Zarkon desperately asked how to help her? She said she needed quintessence. Because the entity sensed that the host wasn't doing well and broadcast signals for help. Honerva asked to open the Rift not because of a clouding of her mind, but because DE really wanted to return home and save its life.

Quintessence is life.

For Honerva and DE - literally.

If we collect all the scraps of her phrases together, then we get this:

"We must... we must have it...we must have it... get back, get back, get back... quin... quintessence... quintessence is life... into the R... into the Rift. We must... we must have Voltron. Voltron! Voltron! This is the only way"

And it can be understood approximately like this:

"We must return to quintessence in the Rift. The quintessence is life. We need Voltron, only this can help"

And... who are "we"? Zarkon, of course, thought to himself, but who said that Honerva was talking about him?

If Alfor knew what was happening, if he tried to help Honerva, he might have saved both the mother and the child, as Allura saved Tavo (S8Ep8). In our situation, events developed in a sad direction: Zarkon deceived his friends in a desperate attempt to save his wife. And look: when Zarkon climbed out of the Lion with Honerva in his arms, they were immediately surrounded by entities. Because they were waiting to take one of their kind home. They didn't attack the paladins first, they were just going to take Honerva. 

But one way or another, the DE's plan fell through. It remained inside Honerva, while Zarkon returned from the Rift with a burnt-out brain and a parasite inside. Actually, then even Lotor got the DE. The doctor noted that the child had the same strange energy background as the parents, and expressed concern that it wouldn't be possible to save the empress. Now there were already two entities and a child sitting inside - no wonder Honerva was getting worse and worse. And the poor nurse Haggar died simply because even the charge received from the Rift wasn't enough to survive Honerva. No alchemical gift was enough to cope with such a burden.

She only seems to become aware when we administer her Quintessence. 

From this it's possible to draw conclusions about how the “illness” proceeded in other people, and it's weighty to assume that the entity couldn't leave the host of its own accord, dying with them. Otherwise, the DE would have left Honerva as soon as she began to fade.

Honerva only survived because Zarkon took care of a constant supply of the quintessence for his wife. Now he himself turned into a feeder and needed nourishment from the outside, since he was neither an Altean, nor an alchemist. The entity inside him, like all its relatives who fell into this world, wanted to return home, and therefore gradually a manic desire developed in Zarkon not only to get more quintessence, but also to return Voltron, as the only weapon capable of opening the Rift again. That's why he considered the creation of Alfor so special and necessary, despite the fact that the empire itself perfectly coped with the spread of its influence in the universe.

Moreover, in this situation, it's worthwhile to clearly distinguish between the change in character of Zarkon and his mania. Since the change in character was due to irradiation with pure concentrated quintessence, and mania appeared due to the presence of a parasite.

How the entity influenced Lotor remains questionable. The statement that it's DE who made him extract energy from the Alteans can be dismissed at once: first, as a prince of the Galra, he could receive the quintessence in the official way in any quantity and even take a bath of quintessence every day; secondly, even before birth he was irradiated with pure energy, which not only endowed him with immortality, but also awakened the sleeping gift of the alchemist. That is, Lotor didn't need personal consumption of the quintessence. On the other hand, his quest to end his mother's research may seem a little intrusive... but only slightly when compared to Honerva's obsessive research. Lotor was cold-blooded and non-fanatic about development, believing that research could solve the empire's energy issue. Therefore, the most stable theory is that, having settled in an unborn child, the entity simply fell asleep and slept peacefully for ten thousand years, signing with the energy of its immortal host.

But let's get back to Honerva, as her postpartum changes affected the future of the entire universe. Having given birth to a son, Honerva got rid of two parasites at once and, thanks to the influx of quintessence, gradually returned to normal. She didn't remember her past, but at some point she managed to realize that "a guest worker" was sitting in her body. Perhaps this knowledge came to her during a crisis, when the entity tried to contact everyone and asked for help. Being a great alchemist, Honerva no longer just put up with the intruder and obey it, but, on the contrary, set her own rules. From a parasite, the entity turned into a subordinate symbiont and shared its abilities with Honerva. It was from DE that Haggar received the gift of influencing other people's minds and drawing energy from living beings, which led to the creation of the Komar. Before her, none of the alchemists possessed such talents, and only Allura showed similar skills after a Clear Day episode. Haggar ceased to be just a feeder, she began to purposefully use the entity for her own purposes, and it had only to obey. As you can see, Haggar supported Zarkon in everything, but at the same time she was inclined to destroy Voltron rather than use it, and this is a consequence of the fact that the DE lost its control over her, turning into a humble servant.

One of the questions I asked myself while watching the show was who the druids of Haggar were and why they worship her so much. The druids had similar abilities, and I couldn't help thinking that Haggar was conducting experiments on the Alteans and turning them into her minions. But in the light of these considerations, everything turns out to be much simpler: Haggar gave dark entities to her subordinates/laboratory assistants and taught them to use them. For them, it became a revelation and a special gift, and therefore they treated their high priestess with such respect, and the needs of the essence were easily satisfied with the quintessence available to them.

And by the way, the real Lotor couldn't know about all this, since he was born much later than the events on Daibazaal. Lotor was aware that Haggar was able to read other people's minds and therefore became a real paranoid, but had no idea about the nature of this ability.

Entities like this gave Haggar the ability to conquer the worlds...

Lotor just couldn't know about it either.

What does Lotor's degree of falsity have to do with it? And here we need to move on to the events of Clear Day episode and the scenes with Allura, which made me think about the importance of the DE for the plot. And yes, on Clear Day we meet a different prince than the one who accompanied us throughout most of the series. Remember the moment Tavo was saved. Sam put the entity in a flask, and the first thing the entity tried to do was to take control of Allura. But the fact that Sam interrupted the process doesn't mean that DE stopped there. It's hungry, it lost her host - well, how can you resist a walking battery right in front of your nose?

And all of Allura's dreams, all visions didn't just appear out of thin air. DE really wanted a new host for itself, it aimed at Allura and wasn't going to stop. And note an interesting point: the longer Allura was near the entity, the closer she was to it, the larger the DE became. How small it was after being removed from the Tavo, and how huge it became by the end of the episode. First, the DE dug at the very top of her consciousness, and saw regret for her motherland and mother, because Allura just turned off the hologram with her parents before going to bed. Then it dug a little more and saw Lance. And then it dug in the very depths, saw Lotor and realized that yes - it would work. 

Look at this frame and remember the frame with Honerva that I inserted above.

They (who edited S8) tried to show us that the terrible ghost of Lotor inclines Allura to something bad, but in reality Lotor didn't send anyone or anything. Lotor doesn't know alchemy and doesn't know how to control entities. How does he even know what kind of creatures they are? After all, he's a very proud man and will never beg anyone for himself. Why would he come and ask for help a woman who actually betrayed him and left him to die? The entity just wanted to eat and get a new host. And this whole performance with visions had one specific goal - to get Allura to free the parasite. And in order to achieve what it wanted, the DE showed Allura what she wanted to see. With these scenes, we were actually shown to whom at a given moment Allura had the greatest trust and affection, whom she wanted to see, and therefore they tried to either cut out or alter the scenes, because they clearly showed that memories of her mother became the main hook for Allura, and most importantly - Lotor. ...however, they didn't succeed. The scenes still look like Allura chased Lance away and indulges in  erotic dreams of Lotor... 

And laughing Lotor at the very end of the episode is the joy of the very DE that it achieved its goal. And it said to Allura "Follow me!" because in some way it decided to fulfill the desire of the new host. Want to chat with Lotor? I'll deal with it - in the end, my relative is sitting in him, and we have a mental connection with each other. And it was the understanding that such a connection between entities exists that allowed Allura to then penetrate into Honerva's mind. But first, Allura had to figure out that yes - there was a connection. And she could only figure out, only realizing that it was thanks to the presence of the DE inside that she was able to connect with Lotor. Does it look logical? It is logical. And I can easily imagine the beginning of their conversation, when Lotor is surprised at the appearance of Allura in his mind/dream, and she exclaims in amazement that he himself called her. A situation will arise that requires a retelling of the events that have taken place, which will make Lotor understand that now Allura is ready to listen to him and is capable of a reasonable dialogue. 

On the other hand, Alfor's worries becomes more justified. He was frightened not just by the self-will of his daughter, who decided to play with an unknown force. Before his eyes the example of his own best friend, who suffered from a parasite, arose, and after all, Honerva was an experienced and powerful alchemist. He was afraid that Allura would also become a victim of the entity, and therefore began to persuade his daughter to abandon the dangerous idea. Yes, Alfor was prone to hyper-custody, but he wasn't as bad a father as they tried to show us in S8.

But at what cost?

And after all that has been described, only one question remains: how did the history of the DE come to an end - but alas, it's no longer possible to find out, since the end of this storyline was simply cut off. Perhaps the entities managed to somehow come to an agreement with Allura, and she helped them return home, because in the end this is exactly what they wanted most.

Personally, I'm simply glad that, despite the flair of alchemy aka magic, Voltron turned out to be much closer to science fiction than to a space opera, and the events have a more weighty explanation than just a magical plot twist that arose at the behest of the screenwriter. A parasite from another reality, a higher mind as the last stage in the evolution of an intelligent being - these are quite classic elements of this genre, very elegantly blended into the outline of the series.

[joshhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]

Alright, I won’t deny that she looks cute as a midcard.

Also haha what if I, like Teio, was properly fucking ugly crying this entire scene, in fact from as early as when Trainer started shouting “I want to see you run again” I was already tearing up, and then just fuckin it all came out, tears all over my face, nose running and shit, I was a pure mess. Wild.

So yeah Uma Musume s2ep10 was, really fucking good. Holy shit. I can’t believe how unenthused I was going into this season versus how much I’ve actually been enjoying it. GG horse girls.

[bravery-sought-a]

Michael & Alex’s Conversation (s2ep10)

Their conversation in the Bunker from s2ep10 “American Woman” was a very interesting one and they way Alex and Michael interacted just proceeds to explain how well they actually know each other.

The conversation between both of these characters is just so enticing and it brings up some REALLY interesting points with their entire relationship. They know each other so PROFOUNDLY well that it’s almost ridiculous.

Michael’s sense of humor has always been very coarse. “No, I sold it on Ebay.” (s2ep10). We’ve seen how Alex reacts to those comments; a slightly sarcastic smirk and a turn of his head. However, this time he actually directly responds with words “Funny.”  Michael  takes out the alien glass fragment and Alex explains his plan, “I’m gonna give it to him. I wanna see what he does with it once he’s got it. Look, if it didn’t it on your console, then it fits somewhere else. My dad could lead us there.” He’s confident in his plan and has obviously had time to think about this in its entirety.

Michael brings up some doubts he has, “Your father hunts aliens, Alex.” He squints his eyes as if also saying, ‘Hey, look, you’re fucking nuts. I can’t believe you just said that.’ Alex gives an annoyed sigh. Michael doesn’t know Jesse as well as Alex does. “He’ll lead my family right off a cliff.” Alex’s deduction is that Michael is worried about his family and its valid, but it’s almost as if Michael is questioning Alex’s motives, but the Captain makes it clear. “I’ve protected you so far. That’s not changing.” His eyes soften slightly and he continues to establish his point, “Besides, he’s different these days.” Alex is letting his barriers lower again, as he does with Michael. He’s expecting maybe some agreement.

“You have to be kidding me.” Michael’s voice and body language says everything. The laugh that he gives is out of astonishment. He truly cannot believe that Alex is willing to go to his FATHER, of all people for help. Alex feels a little deflated, but apart of him had anticipated this. This is Michael Guerin after all.

“I don’t trust him, Guerin. I just,” He doesn’t even meet Michael’s eyes as he speaks, lowering this eyes as if trying to find the words, which is actually quite easy to him. He knows that Michael trusts him and this is never going to change. ALEX is so aware of it that he’s trying to get Michael understand his point of view, by trusting him. “I’m asking you to trust me.”

Michael turns around and walks to him, “When we were kids, you believed people were good, despite humanity doing everything to prove you otherwise.” Alex has faced… an overwhelming about of homophobia and abuse in his life because of his own sexuality. That can easily taint someone’s view of the world. And Alex has faced the consequences of trusting people too easily in the past when he was little, but he still held onto that faith.

“And God I loved you for it.” Michael’s admitting the truth that we all know, expect in past tense. It’s almost like he’s using the comment to fill the silence, but it is honest. Alex lowers his head in slight defeat. “But what was charming when we were seventeen is just stupid now. How do you not see that?”

Michael’s view of the world has been destroyed over the years. When he was a kid, he grew up in foster care and bounced around to various families, suffering at the hands of abuse as well. He’s only been able to see the brutal parts of the world and everyone he trusted ended up backstabbing him in some way. He only trusts a handful of people for that reason. He’s so guarded and close-minded that he lacks the empathy to understand what Alex is trying to propose. His past experiences have made him who he is.

Alex clears his throat and knows that NOW is time for him to leave. He doesn’t want this to escalate ;  he knows it’ll end badly. His brain is in slight panic mode and he’s frustrated with Michael for not being able to understand him at all. He’s swallowing his emotions and just holding them in so he can let them out later.

Michael continues talking, obviously too wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice the distress. “You believe that there’s some good in your father?”

Alex’s eyes roll and he has to react to Michael’s jab, “Yeah. Yeah I do.” Michael nods his head and hums, like ‘You’re fucking joking.’  Alex chooses this moment of expose Michael, “God forbid I have faith in people who don’t give me a good reason to.” He’s so tired of Michael’s BS and lack of ability to move on from what happened in the past. Everything that happened to Michael is difficult to let go of, but he hasn’t even started to make an attempt to want to heal from the former damages, and Alex is sick of it.

Michael recoils as if Alex just slapped him. Wide-eyed and shocked that he just heard that, “That’s not fair.” Michael’s pulling up his own walls.

“No?” Alex continues to just rip the bandage off of Michael’s BS. “Why is your hand covered?” Michael exhales, and he knows that he’s receiving a scolding that apart of him knows he deserves. “You miss your injury because you want to hurt. Your anger made you feel safe.” Michael has lived in the world of his own pain for years and it’s made him blind to the concepts and possibilities around him. This just confirms how well Alex KNOWS Michael as a whole.

“I will always hate my father for what he did to you. But I don’t want to live in that toolshed for the rest of my life.” The usage of the toolshed is an interesting metaphor. Alex is done being that frightened boy in the toolshed. He’s tired of being so scared of his own father. He’s also exhausted for being closeted and giving into his self doubt. He’s done with shutting people out and not giving them chances to prove themselves to be a better individual. “I don’t want to walk around thinking people don’t change that one day everyone is just gonna let me down.” Michael’s been let down his ENTIRE life and its made him develop trust issues. He’s afraid to put his trust in people, who will let him down in the future.

Alex isn’t just letting his emotions out. He’s trying to get Guerin to see his point… and what he sees.

“Because I am not building a damn rocket-ship in a hidden lair.” Alex’s raise voice indicates anger and exhaustion. Michael feels so attacked right now and insulted. His self-confidence has taken a very brutal blow; he lowers his head, refusing to meet Alex’s eyes.

And then, Alex delivers this bittersweet line. His tone of voice changes to something a bit more softer. “There’s one way for me off this planet and I need to believe in a reason to stay.” His eyes slightly shift as if he himself cannot believe that he just admitted, but he’s sure that he’s ready enough to share this. It’s difficult for anyone to admit to something like this and it hits Alex hard. There are tears across his eyes and looks at Michael, who’s eyes are also coated with tears. It’s a very difficult pill to swallow and Alex is expecting for Michael to say something, ANYTHING. But nothing comes.

Alex just feels like he wasted his own breath again. He’s felt like this so many times in the past. Tearing his heart open and showing his vulnerability to Michael, only to be met with a sympathetic look but silence. He gives a little head shake, but rather than yelling at him, Alex says, “I promise I’ll keep you safe.” He takes the alien glass piece and heads towards the exit of the bunker.

It’s at this moment in which Michael seems to finally understand a little of what Alex is internally dealing with, but he doesn’t want him to leave and put himself in more trouble. “I can’t let you leave with that.”

Alex is fed up and turns to Michael with a look of annoyance. Michael squares his shoulders and Alex asks, “What’re you going to do? Fight me for it?!” Alex’s line is actually… pretty clever. He knows Michael would never intentionally hurt him and just wants to leave so he can clear his head. He’s getting Michael to back down without physical confrontation. Alex is feeling cornered and he doesn’t like it at all. There’s no use in trying to further explain himself because he knows Michael’s not going to listen.

Michael turns his gaze away as if to say, ‘Forget it.’ And Alex takes that as a confirmation to carry on. Despite the emotions that are bubbling through him and the hurt that eats at his heart, Alex manages to find some softness, “Goodnight Michael.” We’ve only heard him call Michael by his first name a few times. For Alex, it signifies his mindset and a force of habit. Michael is left to process everything and he wipes a tear from his eye.

[nj-redmond]

So, I’m currently going through yet another series rewatch and it seems that, every time I come back to From Out of the Rain, I have more and more questions.

Why did Tosh pick up the sea in the middle of Cardiff?

What does Christina mean when she says the traveling show “touched” Ianto as they passed by?

Are the Ghostmaker and Pearl a couple? Or is there just some creepy closeness between them? Why were they the only two to escape the film to begin with, and why did it take so much more work to bring the others into reality?

Why and how does the piano at the Electro play itself?

Why is Owen out of breath after the Ghostmaker tries to steal his breath but can’t because he has no breath?

Where is the silver flask from if it isn’t from the original film, due to it still existing after Jack exposes the film?

(This could just be a coincidence or be debunked with a simple “they sometimes look the same” but it still really others me) Why is Bernard’s film cutting workshop inside of the Torchwood One warehouse? And why is there a bath in there? Did Pearl take it with her just to spook Bernard so they could get the film?

How does this episode have so many lingering and unanswered questions but I’m still able to like it? (Though, a lot of that is down to hoe aesthetically pleasing the entire thing is)