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popculturebuffet · 2 years

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More Than Meets The Eye Retrospective: Spotlights Hoist and Trailcutter (Patreon Review for Brotoman.EXE)

Hello all you happy autobots and welcome back to my more than meets the eye retrospective. This month marks the first where w'ere offically doubling down as Brotoman doubled his patreon and thus we'll be doing two issues instead of one. So expect more autobot goodness every month.

You can also expect something slightly diffrent for the next few months: I'll still be here and still be doing this every month, but the next four storylines aren't your typical lost light shenanigans. Instead we have some spotlights on some minor characters, a diffrent cast entirely, an earlier transformers story that sets up important stuff for this run, and a story that while featuring our crew, is mostly a flashback to the bad old days on cybertron following up said story.

For this months features we have two spotlight issues. Transformers Spotlight was an important part of the previous era of IDW. It started as a way for Simon Furman to do stories set in space and the rest of the war, to set up the wider plot more, while keeping the main story grounded on earth. They were for the most part easily the best part of his run with Spotlight Hot Rod and Spotlight Blaster being the standouts to me. I say the most part of course because of Spotlight Arcee aka the accidently transphobic garbage fire brought about because Simon Furman REALLY hates the idea of these robots, who use male prounouns, having a gender they already have and thus hates Arcee because she makes it more obvious. That's a story to rip apart another day, the point is they were vital… but eventualyl petered out as things went, and only came back for this era because of the oldest reason in all of transformers

There was a generations toyline, so thus this followed. Robots in Disguise played ball more with it's one shots being vital to it's ongoing story or to set up the Dark Cybertron crossover that will be inflicted on this feature eventually, while these.. are just side stories starring some of the less prominent lost lighters. It's not a shock Spotlight didn't continue on into season 2 and if I had to guess it was just easier to add another ongoing with Windblade than keep doing this and was th eright call. These issues aren't bad, far from it, but there's nothing that really woudl've stopped either form just being issues of more than meets the eye. It probably helped that for future lines they instead did big crossover events which were a bigger money maker anyway… and which luckily for our purposes can mostly be mentiond instead of actually covered or are stuck to tie ins, with the one big exception we'll again have foisted upon us eventually.

For now though let's explore two tales of the lost light and two unique indivdiuals who were hardly that prominent till now shall we?

Spotlight: Trailcutter

I"ll be honest: I wasn't excited about rexploring this one. It's not a terrible issue but there's a mean spirited ness to the ending that just always rubbed me the wrong way.

Re-Reading it it's not terrible, but it's still one of the more flawed ones and that comes from the setup. See the Lost Light is built on it's humor and sometimes the characters can be dicks, it's just usually in a very in character way. And while this one is SORTA in character it takes it a bit too far.

So Rodimus has been rewarding everyone Rodimus Stars, big shiny badges with his face, aka the kind of acolade you'd expect from a raging narcisit. This I like as it's just so perfectly Rodimus to make even a good captain thing, making an award for those who do something well.. and slap his own face on it, as well as give one out to just about everyone. Everyone.. except Trailbreaker. And this is kinda where it just dosen't quite work for me: while the idea of EVERY autobot on the ship getting an award for some stupid reason against Trailbreaker isn't terrible, it makes Rodimus look worse than usual and it dosen't make sense that neither Ultra Magnus nor Drift would object, Magnus for giving them out like candy and Drift for if he's doing that NOT giving one to trailbreaker.

His reasons.. are also facepunchingly dickish but just not in the fun way it usually is with rodders or the dramatic way that crops up once or twice. Their seriously "Well you use forcefields all the time tha't snot every exceptional. " It just feels really meanspirited. It's not ENITRLEY out of character, but the trick to having a character like Rodimus is to keep him charming enough that his obnoxious traits are funny and have the moments he does something really bad come off that way, i.e. when he pulls rank on either of his command trinity when their rightfully calling him on something shitty he did. Here he's just kinda.. accidently bullying a bot who just wants a freaking shiny piece of tinfoil with his face on it for doing his job so well.

Trailbreaker himself though is a delight. Earlier on he's mostly just a "gets really drunK" award. But this spotlight shows why. While again the rodimus star thing is comically over the top, his desire to be recognized for more than the one thing he does.. isn't. You feel for the guy, as while yes his solution is to get drunk and sulk, you can't blame him when he keeps getting called in when epople need him and forgotten afterwords.

We also get a nice dynamic with our sullen hero and Whirl who tries to cheer him up. Granted it's whirl so his advice is "get a new gun" and "be an asshole like me", but it's still nice to not only see Whirl genuinely open up, but it's the first time timeline wise: these two issues take place simeltantiously and between 5 and 6, and it's nicer to see it in a more casual setting than having a giant gun pointed at his friend/therapist. Here he's just talking with a guy to first be a dick as always.. btu then genuinely sympatheizes. Again he's not helpful because.. well Whirl. The only time so far he's been helpful is keeping a gun pointed at him instead of his therapist, but points for effort.

The real meat though is Trailbreaker finds himself alone against AIM… er sorry alone against Lockdown. Lockdown comes from one of my faviorite versions of transformers, Animated, a bounty hunter and real asshole, whose really fucking cool, and is one of the few non g1 adjacent characters to make it to this continuity. Likely the fact Animated mostly uses g1 as a base helped. He and his crew are hunting titans, and have frozen the lost light. What follows is a nice game of cat and forceifled specialist as with his fiels not working normally, Trailbreaker has to rely on cunning, gile and magnetic wheels to figure things out. While the setup to this issue isn't great.. this right here keeps it: a guy we barely knew panicked out of his mind as we see just how capable he is beyond what people expect, and see him bluff his way out of the situation. We also get some foreshadowing as their after the weird thumb our heroes found earlier.. which turns out to be a piece of METROPLEX, a city sized transformer who will be relevant to our next story too. This part works well.

The ending doesnn't as cutter/breaker gets his reward.. only for Rodimus to make a new one. HAHA IT'S FUNNY BECAUSE HIS MISERABLE. Trail will get a better break next season but yeah, this isn't a terrible issue the setup and punchilne just don't.. fit with this series. It's a comedy sure.. but it also takes it's characters and their pain seriously enough that this sort of goofy punchline dosen't work for the story told. It's not a BAD issue but it's bellow what this series is capable of.

Spotlight: Hoist

I honestly forgot to read this one in either of my previous reads of this series, and i'm glad this retrospective finally got me too because it is a classic. It's not necessary for the overarching plot like trailcutter.. but it is REALLY damn good character stuff and spotlights a characte rwho won't be in this series for much longer, one of the series best, and of course Hoist. The setup is simple: a transport was sent down to explore a nearbye planet. Standard star trek stuff. On it are three autobots: Your boy and mine Swerve, Hoist of course and an unexpected face: Sunstreaker. Sunstreaker.. is a lot to get into. In short he was kidnapped early into this continuity, made into a headmaster, eventually got restored and found a terrorcon named bob who he adopted, whose naturally also present. I honestly had no idea he was ever on the LL as I hadn't read this, he seems to only show up in background bits after this, and he's only in season 1 of this comic , moving over to the sister series after this.

Oh and Perceptor's there too I guess stuck to the celing. Seriously while Percy does have a moment of importance here and there it's weird how the series puts a LOT of emphasis on him, at least early on.. and it feels like it peters off. It honestly feels like he was INTENDED to be the big science guy of the group, but Brainstorm was simply more fun to right and the addition of Nautica next season meant he simply was only necessary for the finale of season 2. Or maybe he just wanted to avoid people getting too attached for that reason. Either way Percy is just kinda.. here.

The issue is a tense affair as after going out to explore Hoist finds TARN.

Though naturally something's off here both because of all the build up for the guy.. and because having read later even ignoring the fact this encounter didn't come up, ther'es no way in hell he'd be both alone and have let Hoist escape. Even with what we have so far the fact he and the DJD aren't banging downt he doors for their transformation cogs is a sign somethign's off.

Most of the issue though is just banter, which is code for "Swerve annoys the fuck out of his two and a half shipmates" Well more Sunstreaker. Hoist remains silent until actively egged on and Percy is busy doing stuff. Sunstreaker.. is a bit more understandable to get dunked on since he crashed them into the planet looking at his own reflectoin. But hoist, as seen above, gets understadanbly pissed when the most Swerve can say about his personality is "Green?" I don't really ike his tone of "well I don't have a personality disorder" as you know, a godo chunk of the ship is in therapy for that, but it comes off later as being defensive: after Hoist bringes up a tragic past and refuses to talk about it swerve shows all the restraint he can

Before blurting about it. We find out Hoist wa son a transport that had a smaller one crash into it and was the only survivor, left wandering an empty planet thinking he'd die alone, now his greatest fear. It's a nice bit of character building and shows that even people who fucntion well enough after a war will still likely have some trauma from it.

We also get a nice characte rmoment for swerve as it turns out for once his not shutting up wasn't just his character.. but was to distract the others. He was hurt in the crash and thus was distracting them all so they wouldn't risk their lives to save him. Naturally, they do just that and after a badass pose

Our heroes head out.. and find Tarn! And Megatron! And Shockwave! and Overlord! all of whom combine into one super decipticon.. which was listed earlier as Swerve's biggest fear.. and turns out to be the problem: the planet has a phobia shield and thus feeds off someone's greatest fears, meaning the solution.. is neat as it is sad: Hoist knocks everyone else out so thre's shut off, especailly bob since his is metroplex, brought up helpfully earlier as something that traumatized him as Metroplex killed the rest of the inesectiocns. The end is Hoist left alone his worst nightmar.e. and this worried me. Turns out though he was in the ending of trailcutter, so he's fine, it just threw meo ff. And you know swerve continues to be around

Hoist is far better than it's brother, coming off like a lost light issue. It dosen't have much to do with the ongoing plot, that i'm awaare of it's been aw hile afte rall, but it's a nice character focus, and adds some layers to swerve: When the chips are down his first insttinct is to sacrifice himself to keep everyone else save. He may be mouthy and often insenstive.. but deep down he's a true hero.

Next time we see what the decepticons are up to and see what their equilvent of our guys is. Until all are one, thanks for reading.

#transformers #hasbro #more than meets the eye #hoist #trailcutter #swerve #sunstreaker

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whovianwatchingstartrek · 1 year

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A Whovian Watches Star Trek for the First Time: Part 032 - T'Pol's Repressed Memories

Star Trek: Enterprise - Season 2 Episode 7 - The Seventh

Looks like we've got another Vulcans want Enterprise to run their errands episode. Specifically T'Pol has been requested to pick someone called Menos up, and hand him over to the Vulcans. Of course, in typical Vulcan fashion, she is very vague about the details of her mission.

She also took Travis with her. I'm not sure why when it is just her who was requested by Vulcan command and she only directly asked Archer to come with her, but at least Travis is seeing some long overdue action, right? No, he's basically put to the side again. This is a repeated problem with Mayweather, the show just doesn't do anything with him, even when they decide to bring him along. He didn't even get any lines until well over three quarters of the way into the episode. He might as well have been any other faceless nameless member of the crew. It's making me start to question why they wrote him into the series at all if they're so reluctant to do anything with him. I can't even really call him a waste of a character, because they never set anything up for him either. Does the show ever get around to doing anything with him?

This is definitely T'Pol's focus episode though. This episode really shook her faith in herself with her repressed memories coming back, and her actress was really good at showing her subtly breakdown over it. The subtle cracks in her voice as she talked about killing Josen were amazing. Jolene Blalock is easily the best actor in this show, and she really got her opportunity to show off here.

The atmosphere in the alien bar was excellent. I love when sci-fi does the whole Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy thing, this was a great example of it. Everything here is so dark and grungy, which is a nice change up from the usual clean sleek ships we've been seeing so far.

There was a nice comedic B-Plot with Trip running the Enterprise while Archer and T'Pol were out. It's a small detail, but I like that Trip has picked up the captain's interest in Water Polo from back in Vox Sola. I loved this stuff. Seeing him go through all sorts of shenanigans as acting captain to prevent the Vulcans finding out that Archer went down to the planet with T'Pol was hilarious.

Parts of the episode kind of reminded me of the Doctor Who episode Boom Town, from the 9th Doctor era. You have the similar personal moral conflict of "We have prisoner, do we have the right to hand them over to the authorities if it means their death sentence. Are they lying to get our sympathies or do we believe them?" Which was a really compelling theme there, and it was here to.

I enjoyed myself here, and I really enjoyed the Character Work with T'Pol. I'm excited to see where this goes for her character arc of embracing a more Human way of thinking about emotions. Really good episode!

#whovian watching star trek #star trek #star trek enterprise #star trek ent #star trek: enterprise #enterprise #ent

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keikakudori · 2 years

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Proceeds to run directly at Aizen at a near-blurring speed, leaping into the air to launch himself into the man's arms -- regardless of, or perhaps in spite of, whether or not Aizen was currently holding his drink of choice in one hand. No announcement, no heads-up, no warning whatsoever... but it wasn't like Aizen could be surprised by it. Typical chaotic Gin fashion, this.

the only warning given to him for the sudden rushing of sound is all that he's able to hear before he finds himself moving his arms suddenly to secure the figure launching itself at him. it's by skill that he finds himself holding onto his tea and onto gin at the same time. ❝ i'm holding tea, gin! ❞

a belated scolding of words, even as he twists to help absorb and delay the momentum that's ensued, all the better to not find himself going head over heels from the impact that came with the collision of gin's frame against his own. for a slim man, gin could pack quite a lot of force in his movements. but there was a laugh beneath those words, an amusement that didn't relent easily. oh, yes -- he hadn't dropped the tea and, truth be told, it was actually entertaining that gin had chosen to do this. maybe he had been hoping that the tea would be dropped after all.

#godkilller #[ verse: captain ] he is beloved and he is feared and he walks among his people armed with cold steel and kind words.#look i just went with captain-era shenanigans

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rowansparrow · 3 years

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Juke Box Hero: A Rose Story

This is SO STUPID LMAO But I hope you guys like it anyway. I’m back on my bullshit and I am here to provide you with a little story based off THIS POST. Anon, thank you for your service, because this was very, very fun.

This snippet takes place during Chapter Seven of BAON, during the flashback when Reader is meeting Rex for the first time and Rose and Co. are stuck cleaning up the barracks. You don’t necessarily have to have read it for this to make sense, but the right context might be neat.

Also, for timeline purposes/in BAON, Tup and Dogma technically never met Rose, as they weren’t part of the 501st before he died, but I’m including them in this because I make the rules and I wanted to.

Also Denal’s here because I think he’s a funky dude and deserves more content.

The clones deserve to dance and have fun and who’s gonna write them doing that if it ain’t me?

Rating: Mature-ish? There are some dirty jokes and swearing but mostly it’s Just fun shenanigans with Rose and Bros.

(Also I spent a TON of time picking everyone’s songs so pls tell me what you think of my selections lmao).

I’m tagging everyone from the BAON tag list in case you’re interested. Enjoy!

In retrospect, perhaps Rose should have put a stop to the loth cat situation – or as Hardcase called it, Operation: P.U.S.S.Y. He claimed it was an abbreviation for “Petting Unusually Sweet Strays, Yeah!”

“You have to call it something else.” Rose had said at the time, staring at the loth cat cradled protectively in Hardcase’s arms.

“But you’re not saying no?” Hardcase prompted eagerly, already bouncing lightly on his heels.

“Just…” Rose pinched the bridge of his nose. “Just… clean up after it? And if it breaks anything, it’s on you, and for the love of Force, don’t get caught.”

Now, as the Lieutenant surveyed the disarray that had befallen the barracks, and the company of very disgruntled subordinates, he was reconsidering his earlier leniency.

“I feel as the acting SIC, you’re the one who should be taking the flak for this, not the entire company.” Jesse grumbled, glaring at Lieutenant Rose over his shoulder as he scrubbed at the floor of the barracks.

“Don’t look at me. I’m not the one who brought a pregnant loth-cat into the barracks in the first place.” Rose replied, straightening up for a moment where he’d been hunched over, his back cracking as he moved.

“Well, you didn’t fight me very hard on it!” Hardcase protested. “And I didn’t know Beans was pregnant at the time! I didn’t even know she was a girl!”

His explanation only earned him several slugs to the arm from nearby vode.

“And just because I’m second-in-command does not make me exempt from the Captain’s wrath.” Rose added. “You didn’t get the dressing-down, you just have to carry out the punishment with me.”

“Hang on, I thought we agreed the cat’s name was going to be Road Rash?” Coric asked.

“That’s unladylike.” Said Denal. “And rude. She can’t help her scars.”

“And Beans is ladylike?” Jesse raised an eyebrow.

“She likes it! And her kits looked like beans when they came out too!”

Rose shook his head fondly at his men as they bickered. At least they weren’t complaining anymore.

In truth, he was surprised the situation had been managed as long as it had been. They’d lasted almost a full three weeks without anyone figuring out they were hiding a cat in the barracks. Of course, the kittens made it much harder, and they could only hide them in overturned helmets during inspections for so many days before the helmets started to mewl.

And once Beans threw a tantrum over not having her kits with her, it was game over. She’d knocked over an entire can of armor paint in her wrath, and blue pawprints and large paint puddles coated the durasteel of the barracks, and a few of the bunks had claw and bite marks in the fabric.

“It’ll take us an hour, maybe more, to clean this whole mess up.” Fives complained, looking around the barracks forlornly. He had a nasty scratch just under his eye from finally snatching Beans up in her rampage. “Kriff. I was excited to go out tonight.”

“Not to mention after we finish here the Captain said we had to go take over latrine and canteen detail from other battalions.”

“Then I guess you better get scrubbing.” Kix said absently, thumbing through medical requisition forms on his datapad and sitting cross-legged on one of the few bunks that didn’t have blue paw prints streaked across it.

“Why aren’t you helping? You’re part of the company too.” Echo said. “Fives and I are ARC troopers, if anyone here should be exempt from company-wide punishments, it’s us.”

“I’m not helping because I didn’t participate.” Kix replied, not looking up from his ‘pad.

“The kark you didn’t, you delivered the kits!” Fives snapped.

“Well, Captain Rex didn’t catch me, so.”

“That’s because you went and hid in the medbay and didn’t warn the rest of us he was coming.” Tup muttered under his breath.

“Not true. I sent Jesse a comm.” Kix said, finally looking up only to shrug and return to his work. “Which he didn’t check, and that’s not my fault.”

“It doesn’t matter who was involved and who wasn’t involved.” Dogma piped up. “Clearly, because if it did, I wouldn’t be here either.”

“We know.” Said Jesse and Fives in unison.

Rose sighed, his eyes drifting forlornly to his bunk. He spotted his footlocker sticking halfway out from underneath the durasteel, and he lit up. He opened it quickly, pulling out a beat-up radio he’d gotten at a market stall during one of his first deployments. He’d had to trade a droid popper and half his rations for it – Rex had not been pleased about it when he found out – but it was worth the two-day latrine rotation he’d gotten as punishment.

He’d already downloaded several songs off the HoloNet, along with a few channel recordings of past BoloBall games. Even if he knew who won them, it was still something to listen to on long stints on cruisers.

“What’cha doing, Lieutenant?” Tup asked, peeking around the corner as Rose straightened back up, fumbling with the little radio for a moment and propping it up on one of the bunks so the music could fill the whole room.

“No. NO! No.” Jesse jabbed a finger at the Lieutenant as he saw him set up the radio. “No. Absolutely not. I have had enough of your osik-brained, Force-forsaken, whack-ass music to last me a lifetime.”

Kix chuckled, rolling his eyes at the other trooper. “You listen exclusively to electronic dance music. Even when we aren’t at 79s. You have no room to talk.”

“This is better than that.” Rose promised, dialing up the volume. “This is the kind of stuff you’d find on the jukebox at Dex’s Diner.” He grinned. Dex was personal friends with General Kenobi, and was one of the few Coruscant establishments that was friendly to clones, as long as they behaved themselves. Rose had gone there with his brothers a handful of times, and even Anakin had dragged his Padawan Ahsoka, Rose, and Rex along once.

“You have a radio?” Dogma frowned. “Isn’t that contraband, sir?”

“Relax, it’s an old prewar-era radio, it’s not hurting anything.” Fives drawled, knocking Dogma lightly on the shoulder. “What’re you gonna play, sir?”

“Let’s see…” Rose filtered through his downloads, and grinned wider, pressing play.

Immediately, soft music rang through the barracks, and Jesse smacked his head against the bunk, groaning loudly.

“I’m begging you, Lieutenant.” Jesse said. “I’m begging.”

Rose was already swaying his hips, bending over to grab Jesse by the chin.

“On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair, warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air.” Rose serenaded him.

Jesse swatted Rose’s hand away, and Rose turned, swinging around on the side of the bunk and pointing to Fives this time. “Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light. My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim, I had to stop for the night.”

Fives grinned, joining in even as he stumbled slightly over the words.

“There she stood in the doorway. I heard the mission bell and I was thinking to myself, this could be Heaven or this could be Hell.”

Kix was drumming his fingers on his datapad, nodding along and singing under his breath.

“Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the way. There were voices down the corridor, I thought I heard them say…”

“This is too slow.” Echo griped, rising to his feet and stepping over Dogma, who was still stubbornly scrubbing away at the barrack floors and refusing to engage even as the rest of the clones began quietly singing along with the chorus.

The ARC Trooper fiddled with the dial for a moment, scrolling through Rose’s music and selecting another song, already grinning as the chanting started through the speakers and eventually rippled through the ranks of the 501st.

“STOP.” Jesse barked, trying to kick Fives as the other ARC trooper hopped to his feet, stomping his feet and chanting along. “STOP, I HATE THIS ONE!”

Rose and Hardcase were chanting too, and Coric had started clapping his hands on an overturned bucket, a few shinies clapping their hands together as Echo shook his ass, kama swaying as he climbed up onto a nearby table. He scooped up a mop, pulling the handle to his mouth.

“I can’t stop this feeling, deep inside of me.” He pointed to Kix, grinding against the handle. “Girl, you just don’t realize what you do to me.”

Kix gave him the finger, and Echo pointed to Fives, who was still chanting with the others but was now holding up his helmet, recording the whole thing. Echo amped up his performance.

“When you hold me in your arms so tight, you let me know everything’s alright. I’m hooked on a feeling!”

Tup whooped from where he’d moved to sit on one of the bunks. Dogma shot him a nasty look, which he ignored in favor of watching Echo strut on the table.

“I’m high on believing that you’re in love with me. Lips as sweet as candy, its taste is on my mind. Girl you got me thirsty for another cup of wine.”

“Wait, wait, wait, I have a good one.” Fives shoved his helmet at Hardcase, letting him take over recording as he scrambled to the radio, quickly turning the dial once again and elbowing Echo off the table as fast, loud, angry guitars shredded through the barracks.

Jesse seemed to perk up just slightly, and any of the 501st troopers who were still trying to actually clean – save for Dogma – had abandoned their supplies and had elected to dance instead, crowding the table and forming a makeshift mosh pit.

Fives was nothing if not a showman, and when he snatched the mop from Echo, he performed.

“When I get high, I get high on speed. Top fuel funny car’s a drug for me, my heart! My heart! Kickstart my heart!”

He stomped his foot hard on the table, flipping his head back and running one hand messily through his hair.

“Always got the cops coming after me, custom-built bike doing 103, my heart! My heart! Kickstart my heart!”

Rose laughed, watching as Fives looked at the helmet Hardcase was hoisting up over the crowd, singing into the camera and rolling his shoulders back.

“Ooh, are ya ready, girls? Ooh, are you ready now? Woah, yeah! Kickstart my heart, baby give it a start. Woah, yeah! Baby! Kickstart my heart, hope it never stops. Woah, yeah, baby yeah!”

The clones joined him for the chorus, and then Fives dropped to his knees like he’d seen rockers do on the HoloNet, high fiving the nearest vode. Dogma was still stubbornly trying to clean up the barracks, but had moved on to one of the far corners, only giving the rest of his battalion the occasional side-eye.

“Skydive naked from an aeroplane, or a lady with a body from outer space, my heart. My heart! Kickstart my heart.” He wiggled his hips as he straightened back up, biting his lip through a grin and dropping his hand to his hips and shaking his fist obscenely, as though he was jerking himself off.

“Say I got trouble, trouble in my eyes, I’m just looking for another good time, my heart. My heart! Kickstart my heart!”

Before Fives could do something else profane – or possibly attempt to crowd-surf and give Rose a handful of incident reports to fill out, the music suddenly shifted, and all heads turned to the radio.

Kix was smirking. He’d divested himself of the top half of his armor, instead electing to shimmy his way up onto the table in just the upper half of his blacks and lower armor plates. Fives exited, rejoining the crowd as Kix leveled a sultry look at the camera for just a moment before turning his back on the crowd.

“Clean shirt, new shoes, and I don’t know where I am goin’ to. Silk suit, black tie, I don’t need a reason why.”

He spun quickly, switching his grip on the mop handle as though he was holding a woman in his arms, dipping it low towards the crowd as he sang.

“They come a runnin’ just as fast as they can, ‘cos every girl’s crazy ‘bout a sharp dressed man.”

Fives and Echo were howling with laughter, and Hardcase wolf-whistled loud enough that Rose’s ears rang. Even Jesse had finally joined in, nodding his head along to the music and trying to bite back a grin. Tup had left the crowd to instead attempt to pull Dogma in, and Denal had rounded up a few newer members and was trying to push them closer to the front.

Kix unzipped the top half of his blacks, doing a slow strip-tease in time with the music.

“Gold watch, diamond ring, I ain’t missin’, not a single thing. And cufflinks, stickpin, when I step out I’mma do you in.” Kix shrugged out of his blacks and rolled his hips along the mop handle, dropping his ass low and slowly dragging himself back up, grinding against the handle.

“They come a runnin’ just as fast as they can, ‘cos every girl’s crazy ‘bout a sharp dressed man.”

Fives actually pretended to faint, falling backwards into Echo, who was laughing so hard that he fell over with him.

“ALRIGHT!” Dogma shouted over the music, elbowing his way through the crowd with Tup following anxiously behind him. Dogma firmly stopped the music, hands on his hips as he turned to face the rest of his brothers, who’d begun to boo.

“We have orders,” Dogma reminded them. “This is a punishment, not a party. When we finish here, we’re supposed to clean the shower block, and then we’re supposed to report to the mess hall and take over the canteen cleanup shifts.”

“We know the orders, Dogma.” Rose said, putting a hand on the younger trooper’s shoulder. “There’s no harm in having fun while you work.”

“I’m the only one still working.” Dogma grumbled.

“Alright, alright, we’ll turn it low for now, and we’ll finish up in here, then we can bring the radio with us when we move to the refreshers and canteen. Fair?” He asked, turning to the rest of the men. There were a few muttered responses, and Rose raised an eyebrow.

“Sorry, I couldn’t quite make that out.” He said. “We are cleaning this mess up, correct gentlemen?”

“Sir yes sir!” They all answered quickly, hurrying back to work.

Rose chuckled, shifting the music to something a little calmer, the gentle piano wafting through the barracks as they continued to clean up.

Denal’s head perked up as soon as he heard the piano start, and while he didn’t climb up onto the table like his brothers had, he smiled to himself, turning back towards the spot he was scrubbing and singing to the durasteel floor.

“I'm sailing away. Set an open course for the Virgin Sea.”

Echo hummed, closing his eyes and rocking back on his heels for a moment, listening to his older vod croon.

“'Cause I've got to be free. Free to face the life that's ahead of me.” Denal continued, his voice soft but steady. “On board I'm the captain, so climb aboard. We'll search for tomorrow on every shore and I'll try, oh Lord I'll try… to carry on.”

Somebody whistled, a few scattered claps ringing through the barracks. Coric picked up where Denal left off.

“I look to the sea, reflections in the waves spark my memory. Some happy some sad.” He sang. “I think of childhood friends, and the dreams we had.”

Tup glanced to Dogma, who was practically seething as he scrubbed at the same spot on the floor that he’d been working on for the past several minutes. “You like this song, don’t you, Dogma?”

“No I don’t. Shut up.”

“Join in. They won’t mind.” Tup encouraged.

“No.”

“We live happily forever, so the story goes. But somehow we missed out on that pot of gold.” Sang Coric. “But we'll try best that we can to carry on!”

The music picked up, and Jesse shot Rose a look.

“This is a deceptively fast song.” He said.

“It sneaks up on ya.” Rose chuckled.

The barracks devolved into chaos once again, the clones all screaming along to the lyrics, even the ones who didn’t know the words picked it up quickly, encouraged by their brothers.

Despite the distractions, they finally finished cleaning the barracks, and Rose plucked the radio from where he’d stashed it, leading the way down the hallway towards the refreshers. The 501st were especially rowdy in the quiet halls – most of the barracks were empty, the clones who weren’t being punished for loth-cat related shenanigans were taking advantage of the shore leave.

When they opened the door to the shower block, they encountered a few members of the 212th already in there, cleaning up.

“Pack it in, lads.” Rose announced. “We’re taking over for you.”

“What? Why?” Boil asked, leaning on a mop and raising an eyebrow. “Did you get in trouble?”

“Yes.” Hardcase replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

“All of you?” Waxer poked his head out from inside one of the refresher stalls, Crys and Wooley pausing from where they were wiping down countertops.

“Yeah, it’s Hardcase’s fault. As usual.” Jesse said, strolling over to Boil and plucking the mop from his hands. “We’re supposed to take over your shifts.”

“Good, I was hoping to get to 79’s tonight before last call. I hear they’ve got purple spotchka.” Boil said excitedly, glancing at Waxer over his shoulder.

“We can help you finish.” Waxer said, immediately raining on his brother’s parade. “There isn’t much left to do anyway.”

“You sure?” Rose asked. “It’s technically a punishment -.”

“Nah, it’s fine, there really isn’t much left, aside from the toilets.” He grinned. “But you boys can handle those.”

“Fair enough.” Rose chuckled, nodding over his shoulder to his men. Fives, Echo, Jesse, and Hardcase were in a heated four-way battle of rock, flimsi, cutters in order to determine who had to clean the toilets first.

“What’s that?” One trooper Rose didn’t recognize asked, pointing to his hand.

“It’s a radio!” Rose said cheerfully. “I’m err… technically not supposed to have it. But we’ve been listening to music while we worked.” He set it up on the countertop. “Do you have a favorite song…?”

“Spitter.” The 212th trooper supplied helpfully.

“Spitter.” Rose repeated, chuckling to himself and wondering how the hell he’d earned that name. “Do you have a favorite song?”

“I don’t know the name of it.” The trooper admitted shyly. “But – but it’s the one they play on the hits channel all the time. I hear it playing in the admiral’s quarters on the Negotiator all the time.”

“I know that one!” Waxer said excitedly, nodding to Rose. “It’s the one Commander Cody likes. You were playing it in the hangar a few weeks ago when our flight detail overlapped.”

“I remember.” Rose smiled, and turned the song on.

Immediately, every head, including Dogma’s, perked up at the familiar tune. Fives clapped his hands together, getting them started.

“When I wake up, well I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who wakes up next to you.”

The younger trooper, Spitter, lit up and followed it up.

“When I go out, yeah I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who goes along with you.”

Waxer elbowed Boil, trying to get him to join in, but the other trooper shook his head and crossed his arms, rolling his eyes even as Waxer sang.

“If I get drunk, well I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who gets drunk next to you.”

Their voices carried through the refresher’s tiled walls, and Jesse picked up where Waxer left off.

“And if I haver, yeah I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who’s havering to you.”

When the chorus rolled around, everyone joined in, their voices bouncing off the walls around them.

“But I would walk five hundred miles, and I would walk five hundred more, just to be the man who walked a thousand miles to fall down at your door.”

“When I’m working,” Kix began, offering a hand to Wooley and giving him a playful spin. “Yes I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who’s working hard for you.”

“And when the money comes in for the work I do, I’ll pass almost every penny on to you.” Wooley laughed, shoving Kix away with a grin.

“When I come home,” Tup piped up quickly, before someone else could. “Oh, I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who comes back home to you.”

“And if I grow old,” Crys smirked, shaking his shoulders at Fives, who punched him playfully in the arms and joined in, singing the line in unison. “Well, I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who’s growing old with you.”

The chorus returned, and they sang with even more feeling than before, dancing and tossing their heads back, shouting along to the words and nearly drowning out the music itself as they sang.

As the final verse approached, Waxer sidled up next to Boil, giving him a hopeful look. His brother sighed, scrubbing a hand bitterly over his face and reluctantly joined in.

“When I’m lonely, well I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who’s lonely without you.” He sang.

“And when I’m dreaming,” Echo called. “Well I know I’m gonna dream, I’m gonna dream about the time when I’m with you.”

“And when I go out, well I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who goes along with you.” Fives followed.

“And when I come home, yes I know I’m gonna be, I’m gonna be the man who comes back home with you.” Denal said.

Tup took a deep breath, preparing to finish off the verse, but he was cut off.

“I’m gonna be the man who’s coming home,” Dogma’s voice was shaky as all eyes turned to him, and he finished in a squeak. “With you.”

The room erupted in cheers, Fives catching Dogma under his arm and giving him a noogie as the chorus rang out once again, everyone shouting along to the lyrics together.

When the song ended, and the cleanup was done, the 212th parted ways with the 501st, the brothers patting one another on the back and jeering affectionately at one another now that the song and dance was done.

“If you finish with everything before final call, catch up with us at 79’s.” Boil called over his shoulder. “We can give the vode there a run for their money with our rendition of that song.”

“Count on it.” Rose chuckled, giving the other company a little salute before leading his men on towards the canteen.

The canteen, blessedly, was empty, and most of it was already clean. All they really had to do was wipe everything down, mop, and then make sure the kitchen was well-prepped for the next day.

“I didn’t know you had it in ya, Dogma.” Echo said affectionately, knocking his younger vod playfully in the shoulder as they walked.

“Let’s just get this over with.” Dogma muttered, his ears burning as he pushed into the canteen, grabbing the cleaning supplies from the nearby supply closet.

“Who’s turn was it for a solo?” Fives asked, watching as Rose started to set up the radio above one of the food windows so it could project into the entire cafeteria.

“I think Dogma should go.” Kix grinned. “Now that we know he’s got some pipes.”

“Absolutely not.” Dogma said immediately, not looking up from where he was wiping down tables.

“I can go first?” Tup offered, raising his hand sheepishly. Dogma shot him another stern look, but Tup was already wandering over to the radio, moving the dial and tentatively pressing play.

Upbeat music filled the canteen, and the other troopers cheered as Fives ushered Tup over to the nearest table, boosting him up on top of it and then thrusting a mop into his hands. Hardcase was already fumbling with the helmet again, trying to get a recording as Tup tapped his foot along with the beat, nodding his head as he found his rhythm.

“I get up in the evening, and I ain’t got nothing to say. I come home in the morning, I go to bed feeling the same way.”

Fives was leading other troopers in pounding the surrounding tables in time with the drumbeats while Echo was leading another group to clap in time.

“I ain’t nothing but tired! Man, I’m just tired and bored with myself.” Tup flashed the camera a grin, reaching up and pulling his hair tie out, shaking his wild curls loose around his head. “Hey there baby, I could use just a little help.”

Jesse whistled, and Dogma had stopped cleaning and was watching his brother, the slightest smile pulling at his lips.

“You can’t start a fire, can’t start a fire without a spark. This gun’s for hire, even if we’re just dancing in the dark.”

Tup shook his hair out of his eyes, tossing his head back and jerking his hips.

“Messages keep getting clearer, radio’s on and I’m moving ‘round my place. I check my look in the mirror, wanna change my clothes, my hair, my face!”

He swayed his hips again, and Hardcase shoved the camera at Kix instead so he could join in the clapping.

“Man, I ain’t getting nowhere, I’m just living in a dump like this. There’s something happening somewhere, baby I just know that there is.”

He hopped off the table, instead taking Dogma’s hand and dragging him towards the makeshift stage.

“You can’t start a fire, you can’t start a fire without a spark. This gun’s for hire, even if we’re just dancing in the dark.”

He pushed the mop into Dogma’s hands instead, beaming at him as he scurried off the table, sprinting over to the radio and quickly changing the song.

Immediately, slow guitar started but quickly escalated into heavy drums and fast riffs. Dogma’s cheeks turned a darker shade, and he looked frantically to Tup, trying to climb back down off the stage.

“No, no, come on!” Fives shouted, trying to body block Dogma from getting down. “Come on, you got this!”

The lyrics began, and Dogma sang along, his mouth barely moving, voice almost imperceptible.

“Another head hangs lowly, child is slowly taken… and the violence caused such silence, who are we mistaken?”

“Come on!” Tup called to him. “You LOVE this song! Let ‘em hear it!”

Dogma grit his teeth, his voice gaining strength. “But you see, it’s not me, it’s not my family, in your head, in your head they are fighting.”

He stomped his foot on the table, practically snarling out the words. “With their tanks, and their bombs, and their bombs, and their guns, in your head, in your head they are crying.”

He threw his head back, and for not the first time that night, the radio was drowned out by cheers.

“In your head! In your head! Zombie, Zombie, Zombie. What’s in your head? In your head? Zombie, Zombie, Zombie!”

Dogma climbed off the table quickly, his ears and cheeks burning but a small smile was on his face, even as he was smothered by Hardcase, Fives, Tup, and Echo swarming him with hugs and rubbing his head affectionately.

Jesse climbed up onto the table next, picking up the discarded mop and clearing his throat.

“I would just like to dedicate this song to the gorgeous woman I picked up at 79s last week.” He drawled, nodding once to Kix, who was hovering knowingly by the radio. He nodded once to the helmet, which was now stationed on a nearby table, still recording. “Darling, you had the best pair of tits I have ever seen in my entire life, and you had the mouth of an angel and the coochie of a devil.”

Fives whistled, and Coric snickered. Rose rolled his eyes.

“So, babygirl, this one is for you.”

Kix turned on the radio, and Jesse grinned.

“Shot through the heart, and you’re to blame. Darling, you give love a bad name.”

Guitar rang out through the mess hall, and Jesse bit his lip, rolling his hips as he leaned slightly off the edge of the table.

“An angel’s smile is what you sell, you promised me heaven then put me through hell. Chains of love got a hold on me, when passion’s a prison, you can’t break free.”

He dropped into a crouch, singing directly into the camera.

“Whoa, you’re a loaded gun, whoa, there’s nowhere to run, no one can save me, the damage is done!”

He jumped to his feet, the table shaking under him as he landed.

“Shot through the heart, and you’re to blame. You give love a bad name. I play my part and you play your game, you give love a bad name!” He turned his back on the crowd, dropping low again and slowly rising, shaking his ass. “Yeah you give love…”

He looked over his shoulder, tossing the camera a wink. “…a bad name.”

The music changed abruptly, and for a moment Jesse looked pissed. “What the hell, ‘Case?”

But his expression shifted as Hardcase rushed to the table, pushing his brother out of the way and taking the mop from him. The crowd cheered all over again as Jesse climbed down, brothers slapping him on the shoulders as Hardcase’s song started up.

“We finish strong, right vode?” He asked cheekily.

“We still have to finish cleaning!” Dogma called back.

Hardcase only smirked in response, and sang quickly to keep up with the lightning fast lyrics.

“Backstroking lover always hiding ‘neath the cover, can I talk to you, my daddy say. He said, you ain’t seen nothing ‘til you’re down on a muff and then you’re sure to be a-changin’ your ways.”

He cupped his codpiece, bucking his hips forward into his own hand.

“I met a cheerleader, was a real young bleeder, all the times I can reminisce. ‘Cos the best things of lovin’ with her sister and her cousin only started with a little kiss, like this!”

He swung his arms wide, shaking his ass in time with the music and stuck his tongue out, having the time of his life.

“See-saw swingin’ with the boys in the school and your feet flyin’ up in the air. Singin’ hey diddle diddle with your kitty in the middle of the swing like you didn’t care.”

He walked backwards along the table, rolling his shoulders back as he moved.

“So I took a big chance at the high school dance with a missy who was ready to play. Wasn’t me she was foolin’ ‘cos she knew what she was doin’, and I know love is here to stay when she told me to walk this way!”

The rest of the 501st joined in with him, repeating the chorus of “Walk this way! Walk this way! Walk this way!” over and over again, Hardcase taking over again as the next verse began.

“School girl sweetie was the sassy kinda classy, little skirt’s climbing way up her knees. There was three young ladies in the school gym locker when I noticed they was lookin’ at me.”

He ran his hands along his thigh, mimicking raising a skirt.

“I was a high school loser, never made it with a lady ‘til the boys told me something I missed. Then my next-door neighbor with a daughter had a favor so I gave her just a little kiss, like this!”

“Do you think he has any idea what he’s singing about?” Kix asked Rose, leaning back against the counter and chuckling.

He watched as Hardcase went back to grabbing his own crotch, dry-humping the air and hummed.

“I’d say most likely.”

“See-saw swingin’ with the boys in the school and your feet flyin’ up in the air. Singin’ hey diddle diddle with your kitty in the middle of the swing like you didn’t care.”

Hardcase grinned, and to both Kix and Rose’s utter chagrin, Hardcase actually did dive off the makeshift stage and attempt to crowd surf.

“I’m not patching you up!” Kix shouted over the roar of the music. Rose chuckled, turning the volume nod down as the rest of the 501st shouted in protest.

“Alright, that’s enough for now.” The Lieutenant said, taking control once more. “We can listen to it quietly in the background, but we really do need to wrap up cleaning.”

“Why? Got a date tonight?” Jesse asked with a raised eyebrow. Rose punched him lightly in the arm, and they got back to work once again.

They worked in relative silence, the occasional voice humming or singing along to the music, but they remained productive right up until one of the final songs Rose had downloaded cut through the speaker. The piano wasn’t as rich-sounding as it was through a regular speaker, but even through the tinny cadence of the beat-up radio, every single trooper in the canteen bolted upright, eyebrows raised. Rose smiled knowingly, and turned up the volume once again.

Fives beamed, sitting down on top of one of the tables and laying back, one leg bent and the other stretched flat, a hand behind his head as he sang up at the ceiling.

“Just a small-town girl, living in a lonely world. She took the midnight train going anywhere.”

Jesse leaned back against the wall on the other side of the canteen, closing his eyes as he joined in.

“Just a city boy, born and raised in south Detroit. He took the midnight train going anywhere.”

Echo kept mopping, but was grinning as he picked up the next line. “A singer in a smoky room, the smell of wine and cheap perfume.”

Kix grinned. “For a smile, they can share the night, it goes on, and on, and on, and on.”

The rest of the 501st joined in together, their voices carrying in perfect harmony.

“Strangers, waiting. Up and down the boulevard, their shadows searching in the night. Streetlight people, living just to find emotion, hiding somewhere in the -.”

“Night!” Hardcase shouted, straining every muscle in his chest and neck as he struggled to reach the high note.

Tup picked up the next verse, climbing onto one of the tables and dragging Dogma up with him once again.

“Working hard to get my fill, everybody wants the thrill. Paying anything to roll the dice just one more time.”

Dogma smiled, nodding his head along to the music. “Some will win, some will lose.”

Tup threw his arm around his brother, and the two of them sang together. “Some were born to sing the blues!”

Rose’s voice carried from over by the radio. “Oh the movie never ends, it goes on and on, and on and on!”

“Strangers waiting, up and down the boulevard, their shadows searching in the night. Streetlight people, living just to find emotion, hiding somewhere in the -.”

“NIGHT!” This time, it was Dogma, of all people, who rang out with the high note, and the explosion of shouts and cheers was deafening. They were screaming along to the lyrics, dancing and jumping and shouting and swaying in time with the song.

“Don’t stop believin’! Hold on to that feeling. Streetlight people! Don’t stop believin’, hold on-”

“WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE?!”

The booming voice was so powerful, it could be heard even over the shouts of all the clones. Echo was closest to the radio, and quickly shut it off as the song and dance stopped immediately, every clone scrambling to stand at attention.

The Jedi that filled the doorway was massive, an imposing shadow in the entrance to the canteen. He zeroed in on Tup and Dogma, who had been standing closest to the entrance, and stormed towards them.

“Who is your commanding officer?!”

“Me, sir.”

The Besalisk Jedi turned, spinning on Rose immediately. He stalked over to the Lieutenant, jabbing a meaty finger into his chest, hard enough to send him stumbling backwards.

“What is the meaning of this?” He snarled.

“Sir, we were assigned cleaning detail.” He explained. “We were just finishing up.”

The Jedi bared his teeth. “Doesn’t look like much cleaning was taking place to me.”

He surveyed the rest of the troopers, but turned his head back to Rose.

“What is your designation?”

“CT-7673.” Rose recited immediately, keeping his back ramrod straight at attention, even though the Jedi was deep in his personal space. He knew this man. General Krell had quite the reputation through the GAR, and Rose had no clue what he was doing outside of the Jedi Temple this late at night.

“Who is your commanding officer?”

“Captain Rex, sir.”

“Not a clone! Is there a malfunction in your design?!” The Jedi bellowed. A few feet behind him, Hardcase flinched at the sudden loud sound, but Rose held still. “Your general, CT-7673! Who is your Commanding Officer!?”

“General Skywalker, sir.” Rose said instead. The canteen was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop.

He turned his head, noticing the little radio on the table and picked it up, the device small in his massive hands, raising an eyebrow at Rose. “Contraband, disturbance of the peace, behavior unbecoming of an officer, insubordination.” He hissed. “That’s plenty of grounds for a court martial, Lieutenant.”

“Sir.” Fives spoke up, taking a step towards them. “Proper chain of command designates General Skywalker as the one to hand down a court martial order, sir.”

He narrowed his eyes, his voice dripping with contempt. “With all due respect, sir, you do not command this battalion, and cannot order a court martial on the Lieutenant.”

“Fives.” Rose snapped, whipping his head around to face Fives. “Stand down. Now.”

The ARC Trooper shrank back, his hands curled into fists at his sides, and the General turned back to Rose.

“Be that as it may,” he began icily. “You can rest assured this breach of conduct will not go unreported.”

“Yes sir.” Rose replied stiffly.

General Krell pulled back at last, surveying the battalion. “I want this canteen spotless, and not a word out of you in the meantime!” He ordered. “And I don’t think you’ll be needing this anymore.”

With one quick motion, he smashed the radio in his hands. Rose heard a soft, hurt sound somewhere behind him, but ignored it. He didn’t look away from the General.

“Dismissed.” Krell growled, turning and stalking towards the doors. “And as for you,” He turned, jabbing one large finger at Fives. “I’ll be mentioning you in my report as well. Pray our paths do not cross again, clone.”

And with those words, he left the canteen.

Rose relaxed, but only minimally so. The silence hung heavy over the 501st, and everyone quietly shuffled back to work.

Rose gripped the mop handle tightly as he worked, his knuckles turning white. His chest burned, a tight, constricting feeling wrapped around his insides. It was a feeling he’d never felt before – anger, sadness, humiliation, resignation – all rolled into one hateful ball, coiled in his gut.

“Finished with the kitchen, sir.” Came Tup’s small voice. He’d put his hair back up, the tight bun back to regulation standards. Dogma was standing stiff beside him, still not entirely relaxed yet. “And the um – the canteen area’s just about wrapped up as well.”

“Very good.” Rose said with a small nod. “I’ll report back to Captain Rex, let him know we’ve finished for the night.”

“Sorry about your radio, sir.” Hardcase murmured, rubbing the back of his neck.

“It’s alright, ‘Case.” Rose smiled, but his eyes were sad. “It was – it was old, anyway. Just a silly thing.”

Fives bristled, his jaw setting as he tossed the bucket he’d been holding back into the supply closet with far more force than necessary.

“We aren’t supposed to leave base for the rest of the night, right?” Denal asked, arms folded across his chest as they finished the last of the cleanup. “Guess we could play Sabacc or something back in the barracks?”

There were a few murmured agreements, and the 501st shuffled back towards the barracks. Rose was still thinking about the General, and had a bitter taste in his mouth. They hadn’t been doing anything wrong, really.

Was it such a crime to enjoy oneself? To simply exist?

Fives and Echo fell into step on either side of Rose, the ARC Troopers bracketing their Lieutenant. “I bet Echo and I could rebuild the radio.” Fives offered. “Might take a little bit, but even if we can’t, Kix is real good at bartering stuff down in the markets. Remember when he got us those HoloDisc movies for just a tube of bacta?”

“We could find another radio for you?” Echo suggested hopefully. “Or maybe,” he lowered his voice slightly. “Maybe Y/N could find you one?”

“Let it go.” Rose said, picking up the pace and pulling away from the ARC Troopers. They reentered the now far tidier barracks, and Rose gravitated back to his footlocker, starting to close it up and push it back under his bed. The metal clacked slightly against the edge of the bunk, and he paused, the tinny sound echoing in his ears.

He knocked the footlocker against the bunk again, listening to the little noise again.

Kark it. He was more than just a mindless flesh-droid. He was a person. A human being. And he liked music.

And he wasn’t about to let anybody take that away from him.

“I never got to do a song.” He announced, straightening up and putting his hands on his hips.

“You can’t be serious, sir.” Dogma said, shaking his head at him. “Haven’t we gotten in enough trouble?”

“I’m sure the General’s slithered back to the Temple by now, where he belongs.” Jesse replied, turning back to the Lieutenant. “We don’t have a radio anymore, sir.”

“We don’t need one.” Rose said, pulling his footlocker back out and propping up one leg on it. He tapped his foot against the metal, the rhythm settling, nodding his head along. He took a deep breath.

“Standing in the rain, with his head hung low. Couldn't get a ticket, it was a sold out show.”

Fives recognized the song, and started tapping his foot along, drumming his hands on an overturned weapons crate.

“Heard the roar of the crowd, he could picture the scene. Put his ear to the wall, then like a distant scream.” Rose climbed up onto the table. “He heard one guitar!”

Jesse slammed a bucket from earlier down against the supports of a bunk, the loud clang mimicking the strum of a guitar.

“Just blew him away. He saw stars in his eyes, and the very next day, bought a beat up six string in a secondhand store. Didn’t know how to play it, but he knew for sure, that one guitar!”

Another clang, this time from Kix repeating Jesse’s motion, and Echo, Denal, Coric and Fives were all drumming on overturned buckets and crates.

“Felt good in his hands! Didn’t take long to understand, just one guitar, slung way down low, was a one way ticket, only one way to go.”

Tup and Hardcase had picked up a brush – typically used for scrubbing their blasters and armor down – and were knocking it against the durasteel wall. Dogma had rounded up the others, a look of sheer determination on his face as they clamored around the bunks and tables, smacking their fists in rhythm with anything they could get their hands on.

“So he started rockin', ain't never gonna stop. Gotta keep on rockin', someday gonna make it to the top!”

Rose stomped his feet, and the rest of the 501st joined him for the chorus.

“And be a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes. He's a juke box hero!”

“He took one guitar,” Rose sang, while the rest of the battalion echoed “juke box hero, stars in his eyes” around him. “Juke box hero, he’ll come alive tonight.”

The singing quieted down, listening for a moment to see if anyone was coming, and Rose grinned, starting again and pitching his voice low.

“In a town without a name, in a heavy downpour, thought he passed his own shadow, by the backstage door.”

The clones took position, preparing to resume their makeshift instruments as Rose picked up in volume.

“Like a trip through the past, to that day in the rain. And that one guitar, made his whole life change! Now he needs to keep on rockin', he just can't stop! Gotta keep on rockin', that boy has got to stay on top!”

Once again, shouts rang out as his brothers joined him for the chorus, their voices louder and more determined than ever, refusing to be silenced.

“And be a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes. He's a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes. Yeah, juke box hero, stars in his eyes. With that one guitar, he'll come alive, come alive tonight.”

As they finished the song, Rose panted softly, glancing down at his commlink again. He decided he was going to go off base after all. He wanted to see you, and nobody, not his Captain’s orders, and definitely not some karking General like Krell, was going to stop him.

“Dismissed.” He said curtly, and took off out the door without another word.

SONGS USED (because they’re all bangers and you should listen to them):

The 501st (introduction): Hotel California Echo: Hooked on a Feeling Fives: Kickstart My Heart Kix: Sharp Dressed Man Jesse: You Give Love a Bad Name Coric and Denal: Come Sail Away Dogma: Zombie Tup: Dancing in the Dark Hardcase: Walk This Way The 212th and 501st: I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) The 501st (Canteen finale): Don’t Stop Believin’ Rose and the 501st: Juke Box Hero

TAG LIST (Aka everyone on the tag list for BAON): @fat-zygerrian @ladydiomede @pro-fangirls-unsocial-life @threevie @cheesemachine44 @bubblyacey @fivedicksinatrenchcoat @loverofclones @starwarsgarbage @hockeyjedi13 @crazygirlwithasword @dar-manda-rjct @gotomarvelgal @baba-fett @whore4rex @bubblegumcat229 @generalcannoli @hellothere501stlover @in-the-crosshairs @vaderthepotater @for-the-love-of-clones @babyhowzer @imrealatedtothe501st @chewychewyque @bobafettuccini @baba-fett-writes @chromia7567 @coffeeandtodd @thedomesticatednerd @kirinpl @djarrex @a-c-lee @embarrassedauthornerd @kaorikoizumi @the-girl-of-rain-and-shadows @sammi9498 @theroguesully @salaminus

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b0rista · 4 years

Text

— 𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐄 𝐒𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑.

WARNINGS: light angst & swearing.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: he's one of my ultimate favorite snk characters, and i needed to cleanse my page of the heavy ass warrior content djjfjf.

"you're either a blessing, or you're a lesson. either or, you and i met for a reason."

with all of the gore and the misfortune that comes with your livelihood, it's connie that gets you through it.

as expected, you first fell in love with him for his humor. not for the humor itself, but for how it shed the smallest flicker of joy upon a heaping tower of despair— as soldiers, you needed that. fortunately, he was the one that brought it to the table. even during your days as cadets, connie lived to make you laugh. hearing a chuckle flutter from your core served as a form of therapy for him, and with time, he grew addicted.

with that being said, he does the stupidest shit in order to get your attention. even when you're together, he'll do what needs to be done. for example, one time, he tried to impress you by doing a trick while saddled up on his horse. in an attempt to twirl like a jackass ballerina, the horse decided that it deserved better, and kicked him clean off its back. at the sight of his 5'2 ass being hoisted eight feet into the air, you nearly choked.

prepare yourself, he's a cuddler. after a particularly hard day's worth of work, connie finds solace in bedding up with you, knowing that you're safe, and with him. he asks that you don't tell anybody, but he actually really enjoys cuddling as the little spoon. to have his head pressed against your chest, his ear to your heartbeat, brings him comfort. of course, he'll never detest to being your big spoon, either. he absolutely loves the feeling of you buried within his touch.

^ if you ever want to go an evening without cuddling, he'll be immediately offended. never, ever, ever will the two of you fall asleep back to back. he simply won't have it, it makes him feel as if something's wrong. and if that is the case, nobody's falling asleep until you've talked about it and successfully sorted it out.

at the beginning of your guys' relationship, everyone worried for you. did he coerce you, y/n? are you being forced? has he threatened you, has he threatened your family? nobody could grasp the fact that connie motherfuckin' springer had managed to pull you.

if there's any sort of sour talk regarding you, no matter how little it is, this man will leap to your defense. one time, jean called your bedhead ugly, and connie propelled a moldy roll of bread into his forehead. in the end, a massive food fight erupted, and you were just standing there with your bedhead like 🧍‍♀️

HOWEVER, there was an instance that actually led to a genuine, real fight between you two as a couple. you'd managed to scuff up your leg during the battle with kenny the ripper and his associates, and when it came down to who was and who wasn't going to tag along for the eren & historia rescue mission, connie belittled you to the team behind your back. not because he actually felt that way, but because he'd do anything to maintain your safety— even if it meant hurting your feelings. telling captain levi that your abilities were inadequate for that particular mission hurt him, but he did what he felt was necessary.

in the end, though, levi saw through the charade. to connie's dismay, you came with to save eren and historia. and during the entire journey, you didn't even utter a word to him. of course, though, during the battle, you put your frustrations aside. once you saw your lover's head nearly get kicked in during combat, you understood his intentions, and you forgave him. as expected, he replied to your forgiveness with humor,, his go-to coping mechanism.

"considering how sexy i looked on the battlefield, i knew you wouldn't be able to resist."

whenever his hair starts to grow out, you're the one that gets to cut it back down! he's able to do it himself, but he really likes it when you do it. you're typically propped up in his lap, sitting face to face as you file down his edges. he always loops his arms around your waist, intently staring you in the face— seeing you so concentrated on his hair, he can't help it.

you wouldn't expect this from connie whatsoever, but he likes it when you read to him. pick a literature of your choice and let him kick back and rest his head onto your lap, pleasE. he'll close his eyes, and for the first time in forever, stay still. the only time he and books ever coexist is when you're reading one to him. he'll also make fun of you whenever you stumble over a sentence,, so get ready.

the day you realize that this motherfucker is nearing six feet tall, you're ready for the holy spirit to whisk you away. literally, you measure his height on the weekly once you realize he just keeps gaining inches. that, and when he starts growing more into his face? lawd, take you now.

"connie, you're getting seXY-"

"what the hell does thaT mE A N-"

many, many proposals. none are meant to be taken seriously, which the both of you know. still, there are far too many proposals between the two of you. one time, you killed a fly midair, and he thought you were the baddest bitch on the block.

"marry me."

another time, he swooped you into the air with his maneuvering gear, and as you held onto him for dear life, you looked him dead in the face: "marry me, you baldheaded bastard."

it can be a reel, how many times the two of you say that bullshit. somehow, it's cute.

he doesn't really take basic boundaries into consideration. like, one time, you caught him using your toothbrush because he couldn't find his. it wasn't fun, you had to give him a serious talking to.

he is, without a doubt, constantly prepared to lay down his life for you on the battlefield. during his time as a soldier, he's grown significantly strong— and once he fell in love with you, he's felt even stronger. not only do you give him drive, but you lend him strength. with that being said, you're somebody he'd die for without even an ounce of hesitation. and knowing him, he's probably made that more than obvious.

when connie's village was destroyed and it was discovered that his entire family was turned into titans, you were one of the only ones to actually comfort him. you were absolutely enraged at how nonchalantly your lover's loss was set aside, and although he'd tried his hardest to conquer the grief alone, it was you who sat at his bedside at night, cradling him in your arms as he wept. never in your life had you seen him so distraught. after that period of time, your relationship with him only deepened in its seriousness.

as expected, you and sasha spend quite a bit of time together! after all, that's your boyfriend's best friend. given her easygoing nature, it didn't take long for sasha to absolutely adore you. naturally, she wonders how the hell you manage to operate with a boyfriend like that, but she tries not to ask questions.

speaking of the wonder twins, they love getting you in trouble. whenever the two of them think up an astonishingly moronic shenanigan, there's a solid 50/50 chance that you'll be looped into it, too. one time, they purposefully dulled jean's razor, and when he went to shave, it only ended in him splitting his face open due to placing too much pressure. as a joke, those two jackasses carved your initials into the handle. when jean decided that he'd murder you, connie tried playing the hero, lEapiNg to your defense. it was stupid, and it didn't work. you still laugh about it, though.

there have been several jokes regarding starting a family and growing old together— secretly, though, connie doesn't want them to just be jokes.

he stole a stray cat for you. yup, yes he did. the two of you were walking about the city, and you saw a gray-haired sleeping beside a trash bin behind a local vendor. you compared its fur to the color of his hair, calling it cute. out of impulse, connie went back to that exact same vendor later on that day, trapped the cat in a box, and brought it to your doorstep.

his forearms and fingertips were covered in claw marks, but to see your face light up the way that it did, any amount of pain was immediately worth it.

after the nickname that shadis had given connie on the first day of cadet training, you named the kitty q-ball. 🥺

during the season four era, the two of you share a house. at first, captain levi argued against it— "put a pair of horny teenagers in a home together, what do you think is gonna happen?"

y'all said fuck it, and lived together anyways. it's you, him, and your lovely child, q-ball. occasionally jean, too. some nights, he doesn't want to be alone.

eskimo kisses. during the prepping of every single mission, you'll get eskimo kisses. it's a small, loving gesture the two of you do before heading into the battlefield. as a sign of your love, you'll press your foreheads together and rub noses, weapons holstered and ready for combat. it's a serious tradition, and it'll never be ignored.

and after a mission, connie has this habit of pinching your cheeks immediately after rushing towards you. it isn't to be cute, either. it's so that he can scan you, and check you for any harm. basically, it's him squeezing the life out of your face while bombarding you with questions.

expect supremely cheesy pet names! bae, biscuit, buttercup, baby thing, sexy bitch, and so on. if it were anyone else, he would 100% make fun of them. but it's him, therefore adorable.

#attack on titan #aot #shingeki no kyojin #snk #aot scenarios #aot headcanons #connie springer #connie springer x reader #aot x reader #connie springer headcanons

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milfbenkenobi · 3 years

Text

Star Wars Fic Rec List Part 3

All of these are complete, some may be part of an incomplete series.

Face the Music by CrystalShard

Word count: 3933 Chapter count: 1

Thanks to a slight mishap while communing with kyber crystals, Anakin can hear music that he's never noticed before. And his personal orchestra has Very Definite Opinions on some of his choices. Especially when it comes to Chancellor Palpatine.

Anakin gains a soundtrack for his life and has an crisis

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Better as a Team by Ontologicialmoki

Word count: 1203 Chapter count: 1

Jedi Masters Obi-wan Kenobi and Aayla Secura run into trouble on a joint mission, and Obi-wan cares more about his sister than the bureaucrats he's supposed to be negotiating with. Not enough to abandon the mission, but they can certainly handle a little delay. Especially when they go and put Master Secura in jail.

It occurred to me that the Jedi are probably legally siblings under the Republic, and this probably comes in handy sometimes.

A short little fic about Obi-Wan bailing Aayla out of jail using a legal loophole. Super funny, plus a bonus confused/affectionate Mace

——————

what hides behind dusty windows by freelancestargazing

Word count: 32724 Chapter count: 4

“Do you have any stories, Captain?”

“I do.” Rex settles his hands on the table, fingers entwined and holding a fist. “I’d like to tell you the story of Echo and Fives, two of ours who went missing earlier today while on mission, CT numbers Twenty-One-Zero-Four-Zero-Eight and Twenty-Seven-Fifty-Five-Fifty-Five.”

The cadets frown, a synchronous motion that might’ve made Rex laugh under other circumstances.

“Sir?” One of them asks hesitantly. “I- I don’t understand, how- how could they be Twenty-One-Zero-Four-Zero-Eight and Twenty-Seven-Fifty-Five-Fifty-Five? That’s—” he gestures at his vod, “that’s us.”

Or: as the newest additions to the 501st, Echo and Fives are desperate to prove themselves worthy, but being Forced back to their cadet selves is not quite what they had in mind.

Echo and Fives are deaged and the 501st accidentally uncovers a kaminoan plot

——————

Shenanigans by MissTeaVee

Word count: 2417 Chapter count: 1

You'd THINK that clones can tell each other apart. But apparently all it takes to fool even your best buddy is to dye your hair to the regular brown and wear shiny armor.

Rex has a laugh, Ponds can't believe these dummies.

Rex pulls a prank on the CC clones

——————

Rainfall by kckenobi

Word count: 1408 Chapter count: 1

The first time Anakin sees rain, and the first time Obi-Wan dances in it.

Baby Anakin and Obi-Wan have some bonding time

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A walk on part in the war by Victoria_p(musesfool)

2 work series. Word count: 10394

Vader presents Ahsoka with an ultimatum.

Luke considers this family reunion far more successful than the one in Cloud City. At least this time, no one loses a hand.

Ahsoka is taken prisoner a few years before A New Hope, Luke breaks her out, family drama ensues.

—————

The Honey Between Our Shadows by amphrite

Word count: 13721 Chapter count: 1

A decade after the dawn of the Empire, Purge Trooper CC-2224 discovers a former Jedi general hiding on Tatooine. But the traitor isn’t what he expected: wisecracking and magnanimous—and heartbroken. And then there’s the unnerving way he looks at CC-2224, like he’s seen his nightmares and been acquainted with every blaster scar on his body.

Or: a roundabout justification for why Darth Vader never finds Obi-Wan and Luke on Tatooine.

Oooooooh boy this is an angsty one fellas. Super good, Purge Trooper!Cody stumbles across obi-wan on Tattooine and Does Not Shoot Him

——————

I thought I spent this war alone by stonefreek

Word count: 3783 Chapter count: 1

Obi-Wan is thirteen years old, just about to start learning Ataru from his Master.

Obi-Wan is sixty-one years old, dead and one with the Force since four years back.

Obi-Wan is both, and neither.

Time traveling Ben Kenobi finds himself back in his padawan body, with the memories of both and the confusion of twelve.

——————

Shades in the Desert by loosingletters

Word count: 10806 Chapter count: 1

Not even from a certain point of view did Darth Vader kill Anakin Skywalker. He wished he did, but the specter of the Jedi’s light escaped before he could finalize his fall to the dark. Meanwhile, Anakin is raising his son on Tatooine.

It would be easier if:

1) he weren’t a Force ghost nobody but his toddler could see and 2) Obi-Wan would stick around so somebody could teach Luke about the Force.

When Anakin falls, his soul is yote (yeeted?) from his body and he proceeds to haunt his son on Tattooine. Luke has no idea that a magic invisible dad isn’t normal, by the way.

——————

A Tale of Two Ahsokas by ilenya_sith and merfilly

Word count: 11270 Chapter count: 1

All Ahsoka (either of them) wanted in life was to make it all better. Sometimes, especially when a Force Avatar can bend the rules, wishes can be pushed through. Maybe.

Rebels-era Ahsoka swaps places with Clone Wars-era Ahsoka. Amazing fic, lots of “oh dear lord you’re tall” and “Jesus Christ you’re short from the two sides”

——————

I would link parts one and two, but tumblr’s tagging system decided none of my posts exist anymore. Sorry about that.

#mads posts #mads recs #Star Wars #Star Wars fic recs #Star Wars fic rec

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thebibliomancer · 3 years

Text

Essential Avengers: Avengers #242: “EASY COME... EASY GO!”

April, 1984

“Okay Avengers, the party’s over!”

Being a buzzkill, party-hating Cover Vision!

Hmm. Something about this cover makes it feel like from an older era. The returned Mighty Avengers logo or maybe the inking? Or perhaps the Silver Age DC superdickery energy to it? I can’t put my finger on it but this feels like a cover you’d see in the 70s instead of the 80s.

Last time on Avengers: Well, they went to San Francisco for a two-parter where they fought Morgan Le Fey to save Jessica Drew’s soul. As ya do.

Vision has also been a tube boy after he walked into a null field. Starfox hooked him up to the Titan supercomputer and that didn’t fix him, it did overclock his robot brain and let him broadcast giant holograms of his own head. That’s almost as good.

This time:

Some guy: “HOLY GEEZ!”

An interesting note, this guy has only ever seen Quinjets in pictures and never thought he’d see one in person. Tells you how often the Avengers hang around Ottumwa, Iowa.

We start with the Avengers in mid-return from California.

In one of the Quinjets, She-Hulk is telling Starfox that she wished they could have spent more time before returning to New York so she could have shown him LA.

Starfox: “Ah, well... I’m sure another opportunity will present itself, She-Hulk! Besides, the scenery around her has plenty to offer!”

Wanda looks like she’s trying to astral project away from Starfox putting his hand on her shoulder but she’s really just distracted thinking about Vision.

The Avengers on the Jessica Drew mission radioed back to the Mansion that they were bringing Hank Pym home but Wanda suggested that Hank could examine Vision and maybe fix him. But Vision rejected the idea and Wanda is at a loss for why he’s determined to overcome his robo-paralysis on his own.

I’m also a little confused why they didn’t call on Hank Pym sooner to examine tube Vision but then again that would have been super awkward for Wasp and Reed Richards, that hack, said Vision should have recovered quickly.

Speaking of super awkward, Hank and Wasp are alone together in the other Quinjet.

Hank is also baffled that Vision turned down his help. He repaired him once before! Remember? He got super tiny and had a fantastic voyage inside him? In Avengers #93?

Jan comments that she hasn’t heard Hank sound so confident in years and he confirms that devoting his time fully to SCIENCE and taking superheroing off the table as an option has done wonders for his emotional outlook.

He also reiterates that he never felt cut out for the superhero life. Aw, enjoy it while it lasts, bud.

And he thanks her for calling him Hank instead of “Dr. Pym” like she did at the hospital.

Wasp: “Oh... That. Well, when you flew out at my request to help save Jessica Drew’s life... after all we’d been through... the divorce and all... I’m afraid I slipped into my stuffy Avengers chairwoman voice. I thought it might make things easier, but it didn’t... For either of us. I’m sorry, Hank.”

Hank Pym: “That’s okay, Jan. I understand. Your ‘stuffy chairwoman voice,’ huh? Heh-heh. How often do you have to use that?”

Wasp: “Wellll... Most of the time the others will go along with ol’ ‘dingaling Jan’ -- but sometimes, I have to get tough. That never fails to grab their attention!”

Hank Pym: “No doubt! Once, I was the only Avenger who knew how tough you really were! I’m glad the others are learning.”

Wasp: “I guess that none of us are ever too old to learn, Hank.”

Feels like Hank is rewriting some things in his memories since Jan often had to diminish herself to make him feel better but then again it didn’t always work so maybe the idea is that he knew all along how strong she was?

Either way, nice to see these two interacting so amiably.

Also, I like that she’s able to be an effective leader while still being ‘dingaling Jan’ since it doesn’t change how smart and capable she is. And the contrast if she has to get serious only helps.

I think overall I like that her leadership style is so uniquely her and that when her character was retrofitted to operate outside of being ‘Hank Pym’s partner’ she still remained recognizably her.

We have a whopping several women on the Avengers at this time (glorious) and Wasp, She-Hulk, Scarlet Witch, and Captain Marvel all feel like different characters.

Since Vision declined Hank Pym’s help, Wasp drops him off back home in Central Indiana.

Once these two were husband and wife, friends and lovers. But they were very different people and, without meaning to, they hurt each other very much. Today, they have perhaps put a small bit of that hurt behind them. Today, they have again become friends.

Daaaaw. Friends.

Wasp returns to Avengers Mansion to discover there’s a full-on party going on. There’s even streamers and a Captain America who seems incredibly enthusiastic about streamers.

(In another fun bit, Monica knew about the party already because she flew ahead to the mansion before joining Wasp in the Quinjet after she dropped off Hank. And she was bursting to not tell Wasp what was going on as they landed.)

Wasp is even more surprised when she learns that the party is celebrating Hawkeye’s marriage.

Wasp: “Barton? You mean Hawkeye? Married?!?”

Hawkeye: “‘Fraid so, Jan! I’d like you to meet my bride... Mockingbird.”

Mockingbird: “How do you do?”

Wasp: “Oh... fine. You’ll have to excuse me. This is... quite a surprise.”

A reaction that Mockingbird says she’s getting used to because she’s seeing it from all of Hawkeye’s friends!

Hah!

Hawkeye asks Cap on the sly whether he made the right move, getting married, but Cap is very supportive, saying its the most responsible thing he’s ever done.

Hawkeye: “What?! Cap, you cut me to the quick! Haven’t I always acted in a mature, responsible manner?”

She-Hulk: “Look who’s talking... the man whose proudest achievement is the invention of the water-balloon arrow!”

Provided She-Hulk isn’t just making stuff up, there’s some serious off-screen shenanigans that we didn’t get to see, possibly involving Hawkeye shooting water balloons at She-Hulk all day.

But... CLINT. YOU INVENTED AN ANTI-GRAVITY ARROW!

Why am I the only one who remembers that?

Thor shows up at the party next, back from his own solo adventures, and offers his own congratulations to Hawkeye.

Mockingbird is undergoing some culture shock here, as she’s astounded that Hawkeye calls Thor “Goldilocks.” And when Thor turns his Thor charm on her, and blesses their wedding, she’s rendered briefly speechless.

Its fun that we get this side of her. I think she was similarly blown away when they met Cap on the subway.

But even though she was a SHIELD agent and then a freelance superhero, she doesn’t seem to have a lot of exposure to your Avengers types so Hawkeye pulling her into those social circles is a lot of fun.

She’s going to get used to it though. I know that she Avenges herself in the future.

Also, look at Thor’s flagon of mead. Holy shit. Its as big as his whole torso.

Jarvis is really dedicated!

Over in a quiet corner of the party, Wanda tries to convince Vision to let Hank Pym take a look at him but Vision dismisses the idea.

Vison: “Please, Wanda, let’s not spoil this happy occasion! Surprise parties are all too rare, and few of them are party to as many surprises as this one!”

And instead of explaining what he means, he turns his hologram off.

Well, okay.

AH HA HE WAS REPAIRED AND JUST DIDN’T MENTION

For reasons of surprise.

What a whimsical turn for the Vision.

Aw, that panel of them kissing and everyone cheering is sweet. That’s how I like to remember them. Not, err, later developments.

(I also like Mockingbird being confused whether or not he’s still a hologram because of his intangibility)

Everyone congratulates Vision for being bipedal again.

Vision: “It’s good to be moving, Jan. But my recovery shouldn’t come as that big of a surprise. As I told you a few days ago, it was just a matter of time before I isolated the cause of my body’s motor dysfunctions -- and initiated the proper repair systems.”

But he tosses some sweet cred to Starfox, for hooking up to an alien supercomputer. It’s like matchmaking but with networks.

The surprise of his surprise recovery pales compared to his next surprise, as he announces (without consulting Wanda at all, geez) that its imperative that she and him stay with the Avengers full-time.

All I’m saying is communication is important, Vizh.

And maybe you should have brought this up with Wasp too? She is the chairwoman and as Cap points out, the team is already pretty packed, especially with Hawkeye and Thor back.

Vision: “Yes, the ‘chairman’s privilege’ limit! But you’re not the leader now, Cap... the Wasp is! And she’ll just have to change that limit -- or the membership roster -- to include Wanda and myself! We will be needed in the upcoming emergency!”

Kinda dropping a lot of surprises on this surprise party, Vision! I don’t know if you really get the concept wholly? You’re not supposed to save up all the surprises for this one day.

Also, Vision’s speech bubbles have changed. They’re still rounded rectangles but they’re not yellow anymore and the font is a bit italicized. Hm. Wonder if that means anything.

Anyway, Vision announces that while he was a tube boy, he detected two major fluctuations of Earth’s electromagnetic fields by some “unknown energy of near-infinite power.”

He’s secretly been working with Reed Richards on this and neither of them have been able to track down what this nonsense is. But until this malevolent mystery is uncovered, he and Wanda as two of the more powerful reservists must obviously be active Avengers.

But how does he know its malevolent if he hasn’t been able to uncover what it is? Deductive reasoning and intuitive presentiment!

Pffffft.

I think this might be my favorite recent punchline from this book.

But Vision has more than just bad vibes to be given a frighten by this upcoming ominousness!

Vision: “The energy I detected goes beyond the limits of any known to man! The power flux showed on our screens for a mere fraction of a second, and then disappeared without a single trace. That concerns me... And it should concern all of us! If we cannot discover the source of this energy, there could be catastrophic consequences!”

And to show how seriously he’s taking this, he makes this horrifying face.

He looks like he’s trying to eat Wasp.

I do not care for this. Either the specific panel or the overall idea of someone eating Wasp.

Anyway, Vision and Scarlet Witch goes off to check the super advanced equipment he installed in the monitor room without asking anyone. He’s doing that a lot lately.

Wasp is both annoyed that he went over her head and impressed with his initiative in doing so.

But she has other matters to attend and asks Thor and Cap(tain America) head down for a private meeting with her.

And now the party is kind of over!

Yeah, you ruined it, Vision! You put too many surprises on the surprise party! You could have saved some for later!

Vision and Scarlet Witch went off to the monitor room. Wasp, Cap(tain America), and Thor went off to have an executive meeting. And Hawkeye and Mockingbird slipped away from their own party not long after that!

Leaving Captain Marvel, She-Hulk, Starfox, and Jarvis to stand around awkwardly wondering where the party went. They didn’t even cut the cake yet!

Dammit Vision!

Hawkeye snuck out to the garden behind Avengers Mansion that’s been there all along. And Mockingbird followed to see what’s bugging him.

Hawkeye: “I’ve always loved this spot. Great tree, isn’t it? Ya know, it’s not easy to get an apple tree to grow this big in the city!”

But Mockingbird sees through that and asks what’s really his beef.

Hawkeye: “Aw, it’s just that I can see another membership shuffle in the works!”

Mockingbird: “So?”

Hawkeye: “So, I’m the one most likely to get bounced!”

I like the range of Hawkeye emotions here.

Hawkeye says that since he has a life (marriage) outside the Avengers now, he doesn’t mind so much being cut from the team. But if they’re going to be facing the latest and greatest menace of all times, he wants to face it with them!

Mockingbird: “That was pretty profound... for a guy who’s supposed to be a butt-head!”

Hawkeye: “Well, thank you, Mrs. Butt-head!”

Aww.

This is a fun bit too.

Mockingbird asks if Hawkeye wants to go inside and get some cake but he shoots an apple from the tree and offers Mockingbird one.

Pretty slick, Clint.

Over at the monitor room, Vision is really into monitoring whatever is upcoming. Super into it. So Wanda has to ask a question.

Scarlet Witch: “Darling... Are you sure you’re all right?”

Vision: “What sort of question is that?”

Scarlet Witch: “You’ve been acting so peculiar lately!”

Vision: “Wanda, how do you expect me to act? I’ve just recovered from spending what seemed like an eternity in a life support tube, able to move about only as a holographic image! Before that, my body was possessed by the dying sorcerer, Necrodamus. And that was almost immediately after I’d gone through the agony of losing an arm. Thankfully, the Inhuman scientists of Attilan were able to restore my limb. But you must admit we’ve both been through a score of trails these past few months! And now, I’ve detected something which could be the biggest menace we’ve ever faced! All things considered, is it really so surprising that I’m acting this way?”

Huuuuuh. I mean, he has a point. That’s a lot of shit in a very short time frame to endure.

This could very reasonably be a reaction to it all.

That’s a very unnerving smile though.

Over at the not-secret but private just Wasp, Thor, and Cap(tain America) meeting, Wasp, Thor, and Cap(tain America) are meeting.

Well, really, its more that Thor is recapping the tale of Beta Ray Bill for the other two. But we, the readers, just get an editor’s caption telling us to read Walter Simonson’s Thor (and I don’t need to be told twice) and Thor summing up to the salient point that Donald Blake is gone forever and is definitely never going to come back multiple times.

What Cap takes from this is ‘hey i hope that means you’re back on the team then!’ which Thor affirms.

Thor: “Aye, Captain America! Some of my finest hours have been as an Avenger. It would be the greatest honor to continue my service in your company... if you will have me!

But Wasp isn’t going to dump Thor from the roster!

Problem being, what the heck is she going to do with the roster? She doesn’t want to dump anyone off it, she doesn’t want to tell Vision to eff off, but she doesn’t want to lead an unwieldy team either. Six is a good number of Avengers!

I love Wasp’s note paper where she’s scrawled various roster ideas, clearly getting more and more frustrated with the exercise.

Cap suggests that maybe a temporary expansion would be the best move, if there even is a menace!

He’s somewhat doubtful of Vision’s story but wouldn’t you know it, as soon as he says that, the priority alarm goes off because Vision has detected the Ominous Energy Readings again.... IN CENTRAL PARK!

And lest anyone doubt Vision this time, an enormous and blinding flash lights up the Manhattan skies.

Cap: “I... believe you, Vision.”

Hah.

The Avengers head for Central Park with devices that Vision has created that will help them trace the energy but he could have saved the time.

There’s a big obvious structure that wasn’t there before. Odds are pretty good that that’s the anomaly.

Hmmm... Y’know, that structure looks familiar. As if I’ve seen it somewhere... But wheeeeeeeeeerre. I guess its a secret to everyone.

The sudden appearance of a large structure right after a massive flash isn’t even the weirdest thing going on. As Reluctant Science Guy Starfox waves around the detecting device, he realizes that the Ominous energy isn’t coming from the giant structure. It seems to be coming from everywhere. But it dips as you get closer to the structure.

Starfox posits that the energy is being focused on the ring from another location.

Curiouser and curioserer.

The Avengers poke around some more. Hawkeye calls attention to an arch built into the wall of the structure. It’s just real interesting. It’s super, incredibly interesting. Plus, the air is nice in the arch.

And it’s an arch. It looks like it’d be a doorway or tunnel to the middle of the structure but it doesn’t go anywhere.

Huh.

How fascinating.

She-Hulk, Cap(tain America), Captain Marvel, Wasp, and Thor join Hawkeye in the arch and agree that it’s a pretty interesting arch.

Perhaps this arch was made for them.

As soon as they join Hawkeye in it, there’s another blinding flash of light and those Avengers vanish in a curl of smoke.

Wow.

I can’t believe Hawkeye, She-Hulk, Captains America and Marvel, Wasp and Thor are dead.

Huh. And Wasp was just complaining about having too many Avengers!

Everyone is appropriately shocked by this, especially Vision because there were no energy emissions coming from the thing so it should have been inert.

Scarlet Witch and Starfox wonder whether the missing Avengers have been teleported somewhere, into some other story... or destroyed.

But before they can investigate the structure for clues, or see if it’ll strike again?, the whole thing vanishes as quickly as it appeared.

The plus side is that it makes Starfox lean toward ‘teleported’ which still doesn’t answer where the Avengers have been taken or who would do it.

If it’s the Collector again, I swear!

Here we go... Follow @essential-avengers because I thought I had more time! Oh geez, I don’t know how I’m going to handle this... Also, like and reblog because I like to think I do good work.

#Avengers #Ominous Energy #the Wasp #Captain America #Captain Marvel #monica rambeau #the Vision #Scarlet Witch #Thor #She Hulk #Hawkeye #Mockingbird #Starfox #Vision ruins a party but not how you'd think #Jarvis is the world's best butler #Everyone's shock and alarm that Hawkeye got married #frequent culture shock for Mockingbird #Essential Avengers #essential marvel liveblogging

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theplumsoldier · 6 years

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SPELLBOUND [2]

Summary: its the day where steve explains himself

Pairing: steve rogers x reader

Word count: 1544

Warnings: eventual smut, explicit scenes, vulgar language.

“You don’t understand–”

“You’re not giving me a chance to!” You cut off his calm voice, having trouble why he was ending the relationship. Admittedly, he had been acting rather odd the past few days, however, you had not believed it would lead to this. You sucked in a ragged breath and did your best to calm yourself. “Please just tell me what is going on, Steve. I promise I will be better.”

“What? No. No, Y/N, that’s not–you’re not the problem, it’s me. You couldn’t be better,” explained he vaguely and you could not help but let out a laugh. It was not bitter nor hateful, it was sad and longing, puzzled and bewildered. “This is about me. There’s something I have to do, you can’t be part of that.”

A good two–perhaps three months passed living in deep dole before Steve made his first try to reach out to you, but at that time you had nothing left for him. He had left you vulnerable, pathetic even and your mind had been occupied with the wondering question of why for so long, you had found yourself slowly becoming numb to not just the particular matter, but all others as well.

When you were fired from the museum, your world should have fallen apart, only it did not. You had been there for several years and always believed it would be your last place to work as well, but for some reason, it did not seem important when you were without job. Neither did losing your apartment and having to move back home to your parents. Nothing seemed important anymore and the calls appearing on your cell display every now and then, were brushed off just like the first call you received from an unidentified caller.

This mystery man later turned out to be the one and only Nicholas Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and should anyone come asking, six feet beneath the ground, too.

He came with a job offering and solid paycheck; one you could not deny for, in spite of living with your parents for your whole childhood, you suddenly remembered why you had moved out at a young age.

So in your new home, with your new job, you were free from heartache and disagreeing, nagging voices and you managed to clean yourself up too. You looked better than ever or else it was only because you had looked like something the cat had dragged inside for so long.

For you, it was a new era and one you met with your head high, accepting no negativities in your life, including men’s shenanigans.

So when you were sat outside a café with a contrite face and a cigarette burning between your fingers, as you waited for your ex-boyfriend to meet up. You scolded yourself for ever agreeing to this, feeling completely and absolutely stupid for waiting for him to finally show up so that he could get what he had off of his heart.

Inhaling the filtered air, you shook your head and hurriedly got up from your seat in the mild sunlight and stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray. What a fool.

Right then, as you stood up on your feet and swung your purse over your shoulder, your eyes caught Captain America coming your way. A sight left your lips, knowing very well there was no way out now and your work and wine would have to wait for later.

“Y/N! I’m sorry I kept you waiting,” apologized he as he approached you. Humming lightly, you sat back down, letting him know he could expect no politer greeting from you. He nodded at the ashtray and sat down before you. “Smoking now?”

“Is it me or you that’s gonna do the explaining today?” asked you, your face blank and voice hostile. You crossed your legs and waiting for Steve to kickstart the conversation.

Steve looked a tad bewildered but thought no more of your behavior. He figured he had it coming. So he dove right in, starting from the beginning and going on until the end of the story. He was convincing throughout the whole charade, and how his eyes never left yours only subsided his saying.

It had been a terrorist organization, apparently. He never seemed to be relieved of those and this time it had not been H.Y.D.R.A. but someone with just the same power and more, crueler in methods. He had already lost his best friend–he saw no reason to lose his best girl, too.

So that was why he separated himself from you doing the organization’s peak, he did not wish to have your blood on his hands. In spite of both his mind and heart telling against him, he made the choice and decided to keep you distanced until his involvement with the people were done.

Frankly, he had been hasty in the break-up and more secretive than needed which had left you with a broken heart, while he was out wiping terrorists, and when he returned months later to reclaim you, it was revealed that you had in fact moved on. Even moved away, and so when this came to his attention, he concluded with a heavy heart that you had left every remembrance of him behind.

“Why did you not come to find me, then? Had you showed up on my doorstep I would have listened,” said you, your voice unstable but you did your best to hide it. It showed pointless, however, for a tear had already been shed and people on the table beside you were staring.

Captain America, the heartbreaker.

“You had moved and were dismissing my calls; I thought the last thing you wanted was to face me. And after what I had done, I thought to just come barging into your life and demanding you to listen would be wrong.”

“So what made you think now was a good time to explain?” asked you more belligerent than intended.

The timing could not have been worse and especially if all he wanted was for you to accept an apology. You had finally sorted yourself out. Him coming back this unexpected was not fair. Now you would have to deal more sorrow and your liquor cabinet at home was nearly empty.

“When I saw you, I. . .” paused he and you looked at him with a gloomy expression. He had expected words to flow, but he had no way to explain the feeling he had been overwhelmed with and he never was good with words concerning delicate matters.

You noticed how it made him uncomfortable to speak about feelings and in public, with eyes on him, that should not be. This was a private thing and should only be discussed in fitting surroundings. This was not fit.

Clearing your throat and shifting in your seat, you wet your lips. “What do you expect from this?”

“Expect?” said he perplex and you nodded, awaiting his answer. “I don’t–I am not sure what you mean, Y/N.”

You sighed inaudibly for what felt like the hundredth time. “Now. After this. What will happen? I can forgive, but forget? I. . . Gee, that’s gonna be hard, I mean–if you’re all of a sudden gonna be a part of m life again. It does sound good, I’ll admit, but there will be some trust issues don’t you think? I will fear you will leave again–I’m not sure I can bear to lose you again.”

“I know, I know. I haven’t even thought that far but I–if you would allow me to, I would love to be with you again. We could start out slow. I can prepare dinner for you tonight if you want?” His voice rambled whatever went through his mind, which made you suppress a smile as you knew it was what he did when he was relieved.

Steve had just been insanely frightened you would decide you two had no future together. Had you declined him even after he had laid it all out and pretty much poured his heart out, he was certain his life would be over.

“Not tonight,” said you and offered him your best smile while still feeling a tad heavy-hearted. Truth be told, you had no plan for the night. The reason for you declining was that you wanted to allow yourself to think this whole matter over before committing yourself to a man you might not trust with your whole. “This Saturday, around six. Are you free there?”

“Yes.” There was no wondering to that question.

“Then you can cook me something nice. You’re still in that scrappy apartment?”

His lip curled upward and Steve nodded his head. “I am.”

You reached for a napkin from the table beside you and got out a pen from your purse and began scribbling. “Then we eat at my place. Come with whatever you need and my kitchen will be at your disposal.”

With that, you stood on your feet and grasped your purse, handing over the napkin with your address. Giving him a final nod you set marching and were then on your way, fingers fiddling to dig out a cigarette from your purse.

PART THREE

#Steve Rogers #steve rogers smut #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers imagine #Chris Evans #chris evans smut #Avengers #avengers smut #the avengers smut #captain america #captain america smut #captain america imagine #theplumsoldier

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purgatoryandme · 5 years

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I just saw Endgame. I don't like how marvel treated Tony compared to Steve. Steve got the happier ending which is unfair. Tony has given up so much and worked through a lot of his issues and finally has a life with his family. Tony had to give up that to save the world. Steve did not give up anything he got to live out his life with Peggy. Really makes me mad.

There seems to be a pretty sharp divide in fans of both characters in how they see their respective endings. I think the best way to look at it is in looking at how the Russos view each of their character arcs. It shows best how both of them were done dirty…but also weren’t. Their respective endings are basically the same even if they are on opposite sides of the spectrum because of what they did to the character’s arcs.

For Steve, yes, this was their idea of a happy ending, made obvious in how many loopholes they were willing to allow to make this ending happen + the fact that this IS the end to an era. However, they chose to give him this ‘happy’ ending because of how they see him and not because they prefer him over Tony. They’ve always seen Steve as displaced and miserable in the future and have written him as such, even in stories that should have otherwise given him hope in the future. He’s never had a home here and they weren’t willing to give him one. They literally made him ‘a man out of time’ to the degree that they took a future in which he HAD support and moral character and treated that future like it wasn’t worth it.

Steve was never going to be given a complete character arc by them, because remaining stuck in the past WAS their character arc for him. Every time Steve took a step forward the narrative forced him to take a step back. And that was doing him dirty - they really gave his ‘complete’ character a lot less love than they gave to Tony’s because of how much they emphasized Captain America over Steve Rogers. So he got the happy ending, but it was so much less emotionally satisfying than Tony’s miserable one.

Steve and Tony’s endings are deeply connected in this - and happened the way they did specifically because of this: Tony was the future, Steve was and always will be the past.The future was done, Tony was dead, and so Steve went back to the past. At the end of the day, the Russos GET that Tony is the heart of the MCU and have allowed RDJ a lot of leeway in making Tony seem genuine and fully realized. They gave us his complete arc at the end of the day. Some of their writing decisions may be forced, but Tony as a character in their films is always complete. Steve is the face, though, and is the opening and closing chapter of the /Avengers/ as a franchise. He has to be played against Tony, despite the Russos failure to really let them develop a tangible relationship. And he had to go second. His arc had to be done second.

Future, past.

Tony had to die for Steve’s ‘happy’ ending to occur. Steve’s ‘happy’ ending also HAD to happen because Tony died. In the MCU, as constructed by the Russos, one of them can’t be in the picture without the other, but they also couldn’t go out the same way because the Russos insist on them being two sides of the same coin.And Tony had to die. I think that’s really the decision that started it all. Because look at how the Russos treated arcs that started in REDEMPTION. They ended in death. Death as the final penance instead of acts representing selflessness that had always existed. Nat, Nebula, Tony. If your heroic journey started in guilt and penance, you died. Tony is the poster child for that arc to the bone. He was the beginning and ending of this phase of the MCU, too. He had to die with it. Besides, he’s Tony Stark. And this is a VERY Tony Stark thing to do - gauntlet and all. It fit too well for them to pass up the finality of it all - to drop the invincible Iron Man, the man reborn over and over, the one whose death has been foreshadowed from his very first film.

Note here that I’m not actually mad that Tony died. I’m grateful. I wish they had’ve done it differently. I wish, in a way, that we could’ve had a happy ending, too, if only because Tony got SO CLOSE to it at last. And that, as you’ve pre much said, is where I think the problem lies beyond just contrasting with Steve’s own end.

They gave Tony everything he wanted only to take it all away without much sensitivity, ultimately, to the consequences of that. I think Tony fans wouldn’t have been as angry - sad for sure - if he had’ve had more choice, if what he finally had and was giving up was really fully acknowledged, and if the reason he had to do it was better written. A lot of the conflicts in Endgame were……………………not the finest work of the script writers. Contrasting that with the emotionally genuine nature of Tony’s arc makes his loss feel like a bit of a sham? A cop-out? Even though it was the only decision the Russos could’ve made, even though it was RIGHT in a way, the events leading up to it were dumb. And then it gets contrasted with Steve, who on paper gets to have everything Tony had wanted. Two sides of the coin, though. Past, future. Tony had to die, Steve had to NOT die, but both of their arcs needed to be ‘closed’ in emotionally similar ways. So Steve, who has consistently in Russo-ville had nothing in the future worth as much as his past, has to give up a piece of his past in the future + the only good things the future has held.

Their writing of Steve is a problem here, because they refuse to let him be as emotionally rich as Tony. What have they attempted, though? Steve values Tony as a piece of the future worth having - he sends the phone, he clings to it, he puts Tony above everything EXCEPT for Bucky, constantly talks about him. Tony is a piece of the future Steve can’t have because he clings to the past. Steve wants to have some kind of relationship with him and, when he finally does, what happens? He loses Tony. Not just once, but twice. In the beginning, he loses Tony to the family Tony has finally made for himself (something Steve has consistently failed at doing and can’t even IMAGINE for himself despite wanting it - two sides of the coin). In the end, he loses Tony, who he has finally reconnected with, to the kind of ultimate sacrifice Steve always imagined himself doing. This is the SECOND time that this has happened in their relationship (re: first avengers film). Steve loses his desire to be Captain America right then and there.

And listen, it falls flat, but Cap is all Steve had in the future other than Bucky. He should’ve had more, but constantly rejected it, despite that ALSO falling a bit flat because of the presence of Sam. But here’s the thing: when Steve gives up being Cap, a direct consequence and contrast to Tony giving up family for heroism (TWO SIDES OF THE COOOOIIIN), he also gives up Sam and Bucky. To go back to the past, he has to lose literally everything in his future. Which, if there were ANY proper acknowledgement of the fact that he was going to have to let Bucky suffer with Hydra, would actually have some emotional resonance in proving that his ‘happy’ ending is ultimately just as bittersweet as Tony’s death. They both died in a way, they both definitely lost something, and they both also gained something, too.

They secured the safety of the future. Do I think the writing of it was executed poorly? Yes. Do I think Steve’s ending was happier than Tony’s due to favouritism? I would’ve said yes once upon a time due to Infinity War shenanigans, but it stands to reason that Tony’s writing is consistently better than Steve’s, so I’d say the difference in ‘happiness’ is due to the Russos placement of Tony in a constant redemption narrative that, to them, had to end like this. To them this is a bittersweet happy ending for Tony and Steve.

Past, future. Two sides of the same coin. I think their endings were ‘fair’, even if the execution of it all annoyed me, because at least Endgame finally made the Russos full idea blatantly obvious. That said, though, Tony and Steve stans are both totally welcome to their opinions and justified in their upset. It’s the end of an era that has been frustrating and rewarding (mostly frustrating) and Tony fans lost their favourite character, someone who has changed their worlds. It’s awful that he’s dead and it’s even more awful that he’s dead after finally getting to be who he always wanted to be. At least there’s always fanfiction.

#endgame spoilers #a4 spoilers #reply #anyway here is my essay on why Tony and Steve's ending were both inevitable because of how the Russos built their universe #it's not excusing the writing bc frankly i do think that the writing is bad #especially in how contrived certain events are #but it is...explaining so to speak?#I'm hoping an explanation can help fans on either side see eye to eye #and to have everyone join hands in either being upset or loving it #i know the whole plot of the movie BUT actually still haven't gotten to fully watch it yet #see me for maybe taking this whole thing back or screaming forever on tuesday #endgame meta #stony meta #kinda?

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truthbeetoldmedia · 6 years

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Shameless 9x14 “Found” Review

It’s the end of an era, Shameless fans. After nine hilarious, gut-punching, heart-wrenching seasons, Emmy Rossum has left the show for good. For the past eight years, her portrayal of the eldest Gallagher daughter has left viewers in fits of laughter, fits of tears, and everything in between. In her send off episode, she reminds us and her siblings just how much she will be missed.

In her penultimate episode, Fiona came into a large sum of money, $100,000 to be exact. Just as she had accepted her fate and gotten a job at the local gas station working nights, she was lifted from rock bottom and given the chance to start anew. So now, she must decide what she wants her future to look like. This is understandably difficult for Fiona because, well, she’s never really had that choice before.

She decides not to tell any of her siblings at first, but observes what their lives would look like without her in it. She’s raised each of them as best she could, and as she watches them get ready for their day the next morning, she realizes she’s done a better job than she ever knew. As nice as this is, it’s a bit of a gut punch when she begins to see that they don’t need her anymore. Debbie even asks if they can switch rooms so that she has more space for her and Franny, and asks Fiona what her future plans are. It’s as if they’re giving her a reason to leave without even knowing it.

And then there’s Lip, who kicked Fiona out of the house a few episodes back. While Fiona has cleaned her act up and gotten Lip off her back, it’s likely that his threat still lingers in her mind. It’s not just about if Fiona is needed in the Gallagher house, but does anyone want her there anymore?

As Fiona tries to decide what to do, the rest of the gang are up to their own shenanigans. Frank has been released from the hospital and is camping out on the couch. He needs around the clock care and complains relentlessly about need more Oxy, causing the family to consider dumping him under a bridge. Realizing they could get in serious legal trouble for that, given Frank’s age and poor health, they instead discuss getting him a caretaker. After all, their lives are too busy to be dealing with Frank, of all people.

Across town, Fiona’s hearing actually goes well. Her public defender tells her she must pay a few thousand dollars in fines, which she definitely has now. While out, she goes to visit Ian in prison to ask for his advice. After telling him she’s thinking about leaving, going someplace warm, he tells her to do it, that he’ll always be there for her. Fiona is a bit taken aback, but takes her brother’s words to heart. She knows she can’t stay in the Southside forever.

Ian also briefly mentions what’s going on in his life, how he’s working in the infirmary, got lice, and, oh yeah, is bunking with none other than Mickey Milkovich who works in the laundry room (Is anyone else getting serious Alex Vause vibes?).

Fiona supports her brother, and it’s clear that he supports her too. It seems like this is just what she needed — to be really, truly heard. And perhaps because Ian has spent some time away from his family, he knows how trapped one can feel in the Gallagher house. So with that, Fiona’s mind is made up.

While Fiona plans to distance herself from her siblings, Debbie and Carl grow closer. After butting heads over Kelly and both having their hearts broken by her, they bond (and vandalize her truck). So when Carl accepts a job as the manager of a nearby Captain Bob’s location, Debbie refuses to let him give up on military school. Unable to get through to him, she calls in Kelly for help, blaming her for her brother’s sudden lack of confidence. Together, the pair are able to snap Carl out of it. And after a brief time apart, Kelly and Carl get back together.

Continuing her maternal streak, Debbie goes to get Liam and bring him home. When she finds him at his friend’s house, he reminds her that he asked the whole family the previous night if he could move in, and they said yes. Liam, not willing to be ignored anymore, gives Debbie a list of demands the Gallaghers must meet if they want him back in the house. Most notably, he wants to be surrounded by black culture, which he feels he’s been robbed of living in an entirely white household.

Across town, Lip once again goes on a wild goose chase when Tammi’s BRCA test comes back positive. She has the “baby good” kind, leading us to assume she’ll want to have the baby, but Tammi is hesitant to bring a child into the world when she knows she may still die of cancer at a young age. While Lip tries to tell her he’ll stick around, Tammi refuses to believe he’ll be a good father. She jumps back and forth between decisions about the unborn baby’s fate, first wanting to have an abortion, then deciding she’ll have the baby, then opting to put it up for adoption. In the end, we’re left wondering right alongside Lip what she’s going to do.

When Lip finally gets home, he finds Fiona packing her stuff. She reveals to him that she’s leaving and asks that he take care of everyone for her, metaphorically passing the baton. Lip agrees but insists they throw her a going away party. Fiona knows that if she stays for the party, she’ll never leave. And so, when everyone has left the house again, she sneaks out to the train station and then onto a plane, bags in tow. The scene beautifully parallels the Season 1 finale, in which Fiona almost left Chicago with then boyfriend Jimmy/Steve. The only difference is that this time, she goes through with it (and sadly, Jimmy/Steve is nowhere to be found).

Back at the house, the party goes on. As everyone drinks and dances, celebrating Fiona and the role she had in their lives, Debbie finds an envelope stuck to the fridge. In it is $50,000, half of the money Max gave Fiona, and a note that simply reads, “Love you.” And Veronica says it best when she reminds Debbie, “Yeah, she does.”

Looking back at this season, I realize I expected it to be like the earlier seasons — more outrageous, more dramatic. What I failed to realize is that Shameless can never be what it once was because the characters are no longer the same. They’re still Gallaghers at heart, yes, but they’re adults now and while they’re the same people, they aren’t the same family.

I think we started to see this shift in dynamics when Ian, played by Cameron Monaghan, went to prison and was no longer a regular on the show. He was barely mentioned by his siblings, and it seemed as if his sentencing had little to no effect on them — because it didn’t. I’m not saying that the Gallaghers are inherently selfish people, but they have their own separate lives. If it wasn’t for their monetary hardships, I think they’d all be living on their own right now, not in a shared house. As Fiona realized in this episode, they just don’t need each other anymore.

However, this doesn’t take away my frustration with the way Fiona has been treated for the entire second half of this season. Because in this episode alone, Debbie noticed Carl getting down on himself and refused to let him be upset for more than a day. And mind you, Carl was going through heartbreak, not being cheated on, cut out of a huge business deal, and a sudden alcohol dependency. The more I think about it, I feel like Fiona turned to alcohol because she couldn’t lean on anyone in her family.

This is why Fiona’s send off is so bittersweet to me. I’m ecstatic that she’s finally getting out and making a life for herself, but I’m heartbroken that she was pushed to do it because her family seemingly didn’t want her around anymore. Too bad she didn’t take Liam with her — he sure knows how she feels.

I hoped that this finale would be something unexpected and jaw dropping, but as I said previously, Shameless just isn’t that show anymore. Instead, Fiona left with a quiet and understated notion that this is her happy ending. She doesn’t need all the chaos and the trouble she thought she was addicted to. You can take the girl out of the Southside, and maybe, just maybe, you can take the Southside out of the girl too.

So what is Season 10 going to look like? Well, Fiona left half her money to her siblings. So maybe they’ll use it to get far away from each other and start their own lives too, as best they can manage with a little over 10K each at least. With no mention of Xan and Tammi constantly changing her mind about the baby, it’s hard to tell where Lip’s storyline is going. Debbie and Carl were left in relatively stable places at the end of the finale, and while Frank needs to be off his feet for the next few months, we all know that being the cockroach he is, he’ll come out the other side just fine (as fine as Frank can be, that is).

Perhaps the only promising aspect of the coming season is that Cameron Monaghan is set to return as a series regular, after only half a season being gone. Whether this means we’ll see him in prison with Mickey is yet to be revealed, but either way, I’m excited to see where his story goes.

For now though, I’d like to appreciate Emmy Rossum and her beautiful portrayal of the delightfully complex woman that is Fiona Gallagher. I’ve never seen a character quite like her, and I’ll forever be thankful for the smiles, laughs and tears she caused me while watching her on my screen. Truthfully, I’m nervous to see where this show goes without her. But regardless, there’s nine seasons telling the captivating story of Fiona to look back on. And though its on-screen end was quiet, I’d like to think it wouldn’t stay like that for long.

After all, if there’s anything we know about Fiona, it’s that she brings the party with her wherever she goes.

Jessica’s episode rating: 🐝🐝🐝.5

#Shameless #Found #Season Finale

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robedisimo · 7 years

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Black Panther [SPOILER-FREE REVIEW]

[Disclaimer: this review is based on the Italian dub of the film. As such, all opinions on the quality of dialogues and acting are subjective and partial.]

So, it’s been a while since my last review and, to be completely honest, I didn’t expect Marvel’s Black Panther to be a hard one to come back on. I went into this movie expecting to enjoy it thoroughly, and in many respects I did, just... not as much as I thought I would. To cut a long story short, I spent the better part of a week trying to make up my mind about whether I walked away from this movie impressed or disappointed. Here’s what I’ve got so far.

First of all, let’s address the mini-skirted elephant in the room: in more than just a few coincidental ways, Black Panther is a retread of last year’s Wonder Woman. Both films star characters who were introduced as supporting players in a previous movie, in both cases big tentpole cross-over films – Batman v Superman and Captain America: Civil War, respectively – revolving around a conflict between the two main figures within the respective mega-franchise universes. Both act as more self-contained tales, in terms of cross-franchise elements, than previous movies in their narrative universes, and both feature different but thematically contiguous settings in the shape of secluded, secretive, mythology-laden kingdoms ruled in utopian perfection by a fictional society reflective of one of America’s mistreated social minorities.

On the production side of things, both were surprisingly helmed by directors known for poignant, socially-involved projects – Monster’s Patty Jenkins and Fruitvale Station’s Ryan Coogler – and, on the promotional side, both sailed towards theatres on a wave of sheer hype, being hailed as the beginning of a new era for Hollywood blockbusters and propelled forwards by baffling headlines – born, I assume, either out of stunningly poor memory or else a frankly understandable wish to forget that Steel, Supergirl and Catwoman ever happened – about how they were the first female-led, or black-led, superhero movie ever made.

Neither film, it goes without saying, rises to meet those unrealistic expectations. Though entirely enjoyable in its own right, Wonder Woman was an uneven and ultimately formulaic film that tried to juggle too many things and be too many different movies at once, and Black Panther certainly falls into the same category to a lesser degree. Part James Bond instalment, part Lion King and in part also Thor rerun, what we got on our hands in the end was a fairly mundane genre flick with a number of highs but also a handful of lows.

The good: the film looks amazing. Where its DC equivalent was content with just a few opening minutes of generic pseudo-Greek utopia, Black Panther instead realises its fictional setting to a much deeper, richer degree, to often impressive results. The mythical kingdom of Wakanda is most definitely a kind of spectacle not before seen in theatres, a bold vision of African futurism that meshes hi-tech sci-fi with tribal spiritualism in oftern stunning fashion. Its setting is easily the film’s best aspect, brought to life on the shoulders of the great conceptual design work done by Marvel’s art team.

On top of that, Black Panther is energetic and well-acted, perhaps with less overt humour than most recent Marvel projects but certainly fast and action-y enough to satisfy genre fans. The story is emotional and poignant, and Michael B. Jordan definitely shines – although I feel a pang of white guilt in reporting that Andy Serkis, for once appearing with his own tribal mask of a face, steals away the trophy for most enjoyable performance in the film – as one of the MCU’s most complex theatrical villains to date... if not, like Cate Blanchett’s Hela before him, one that truly and definitively manages to buckle well-established Marvel villain trends.

The soundtrack – if a touch obtrusive at times – is another of the movie’s high points, way less hip-hop-heavy than trailers suggested and much more genuinely African in its tones and beats. For a film that’s obstensibly about identity, the fact that its visuals and acoustics come together to form such an original, easily-identifiable cinematic brand is certainly Coogler’s, and everyone behind him, greatest achievement here.

The bad: the film looks amazing, except when it doesn’t. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is definitely developing an overreliance on CGI lately, and even Black Panther’s rather sizeable budget can’t do much to distract from some of the film’s worst effects – no spoilers, but you’ll know when you see it – and its general overabundance of green-screen shenanigans, especially in the cliché-laden climax.

The action itself isn’t especially praise-worthy either, despite a couple brief highlights: much like in Creed, Coogler blows his best action scene midway through the film and it’s all downhill from there, with a few missed opportunities along the way. The film’s focus on hi-tech gadgets, for example, sort of fizzles out without much fanfare after a while, with the same two or three tricks being repeated throughout the movie.

Other issues may be found in certain aspects of pacing, although in that area your mileage may vary. Black Panther starts off a tad slow, and then unfolds as a series of self-contained vignettes that take too long to develop a coherent throughline. When the plot finally kicks in it works in fairly satisfactory fashion, but there’s one big twist that honestly could’ve been dropped earlier in the film’s generous runtime and, generally speaking, I feel that the script could’ve stood one more round of polishing.

So make no mistake: on my personal scale, as far as enjoyment of my theatrical experience is concerned, the verdict at the bottom of this review should not rise above “MOSTLY POSITIVE”. It gets knocked up a peg for two specific reasons:

Black Panther’s impact on the American public is undeniable. In the United States, the film’s themes resonate in a way they simply can’t anywhere else, and as such this is the one Marvel movie that is perhaps the least designed for, and the least accessible to, foreign audiences... even if it is frankly quite mystifying that Wakanda’s core values would end up being framed in the context of the plight and struggle of people of colour in America, rather than pretty much anywhere in the surrounding African continent. Ultimately, I think, it’s not even a matter of said themes being satisfactorily addressed or resolved, and indeed Coogler’s film presents challenging ideas that are entirely unexpected from a superhero movie, but – partly because the script starts dealing with them too far into its runtime, as I mentioned – there’s not really the proper time for them to breather. Other critics have written that Black Panther is more interesting to think about than it is to actually watch, and I tend to agree: the ideas behind this movie are impressive, but their execution is not always the best. Despite that, Black Panther most definitely is an important film, at least in the here and now. Its missteps are easily overlooked in light of that, just as I imagine Martin Luther King, Jr.’s historical speeches would’ve still be commended for their convention-buckling message even if the reverend himself had been saddled with a comical stutter. This movie’s heart is in the right place, and it’s easy to see why that is being rewarded above all else.

From a purely technical standpoint, my viewing of this film was crippled by an adequate, and just adequate, Italian dub. I’m perfectly capable of recognising when a mediocre localisation gets in the way of a film’s original underlying richness and this was most certainly the case, with the whole English-language cast providing an array of diverse – and, I’m sure, memorable – performances, many of them in fictional African accents, that got “flattened” to an unvarying standard inflection in the version I got to see. At least in that respect, I expect a second home-video viewing in the original language to elevate my opinion of the performers’ work.

So in the end we’re left with a pretty tough question on our hands: is Black Panther a movie that exploits the genre to draw attention to relevant political themes, or one that exploits those political themes to justify its run-of-the-mill script? It is perhaps both, and that becomes a rather large problem when the film can’t make up its mind as to which of its two identities deserves its full commitment. Nonetheless, I’m eager to see how this franchise, and the larger Marvel machine whose gears grind around it, carry forward what’s been put in motion here. For the time being, Black Panther is perhaps not as good as it could’ve been... but even then, it seems to be good enough.

[Verdict: POSITIVE]

#KenAtTheMovies #Black Panther #Marvel #MCU #review

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jayleeg · 7 years

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What's going on with Marvels comics this time?

Okay, so this guy who called himself “The Whisperer” who claims to be a Marvel Comics employee dumped a crap load of company dirt onto reddit. Once those rumors surfaced Bleeding Cool ran an article about how it was all crap. And then the rumor leak guy fired back that Rich, the administrator of Bleeding Cool, got paid by Marvel to write the article debunking his rumors. Honestly the entire thing is like a soap opera.

I mean I shouldn’t find this stuff interesting, normally I don’t, I stay away from gossip sites for a reason (and that reason is most of it’s torrid and exaggerated) but as someone who’s worked in the market of business data and trends for twenty years I *have* been wondering why Disney hasn’t intervened with the comics division of Marvel when a) it’s going under, sales are way down and b) they’re ruining their brand with crap storytelling. So out of all of these ‘rumors’ the one I can actually believe is that Disney is staging an intervention and also toying with the possibility of moving Marvel Comics to Burbank, California in order to keep a closer eye on them all.

Anyway, the rumors that started the drama are copied and pasted under cut (and by pasting them here I am no way claiming or endorsing that they are in any way valid, they very well could be a bunch of crap) and I linked the Bleeding Cool article debunking some and taking credit for others above…

Editorial is miserable. Understaffed, under experienced and overworked. The direction at the top corporate level is a mess of politics and in-fighting. They all look the fool to Disney because of Feige’s split and the bad PR & constant gaming of their declining sales is wearing on them. Top brass want to make a hard left back to what worked with Steve, Thor, Tony, Banner and other recognizable faces. Editorial knows how bad it’s going to look to push all their diversity celebrations to the side. Reality is those books didn’t sell. A lot of it had to do with Marvel’s chincy practices finally reaching a breaking point with fans but the internal editorial spin is that comic shop fans aren’t ready to embrace change.

>The terrible reaction to Hydra Cap/Secret Empire forced a change in plans. Originally it was going to end with a quasi-Dark Reign scenario where Hydra is vanquished thanks to Kubik shenanigans and the World Security Council from the movies steps in to assume power over super heroes and everything has Civil War-era overtones with registrations, boot camps, the idea of an Inhuman ban. The Vanishing Point would be a way to bring back Steve, Tony, Thor, Banner; sort of like Hickman’s “Time Runs Out” jump-skip but in reverse, it would rewind the characters to before the Hydra subversion stars. The classic heroes realize that they have lost touch with the people and need to learn how to fight for them again. In the meantime, the new generation of Miles, Kamala, Riri and other Champions would form “the resistance” against the WSC state. (“Generation” was also planned to be the transition from the classic guys taking a step back and letting the new generation lead the charge).>>>Legacy is a rush-job. They can’t afford to take the classic characters off the table like that for so long but they also don’t want to piss off the new diverse audience they’ve been trying to court. They’re trying to have their cake and eat it too, and please all masters. It’s a scattershot way to buy time while they right the course on several books. It’s not going to be about “new number 1s” but milestone 500, 600, 800 issues. A lot of these big volume numbers are really stretching the definition but the constant relaunches have started to seriously damage the trade department’s ability to plan out long-term marketing.

>They’re bringing back the Ultimate line for the teen heroes. Miles will become Ultimate Spider-Man again. Siri becomes Ultimate Iron Man. X-Men Blue becomes Ultimate X-Men. Champions becomes the Ultimates. The only “adult” character that will be a regular presence is Captain Marvel because they want her to be seen a prominent character to the overarching power structure of the WSC/SHIELD and other elements that will factor into her movie heavily. They’ll still make guest appearances in the “main” books but don’t expect them to anchor anymore franchises. Bendis staying on Miles and Riri. Hopeless is still on Ult X. New Ultimates writer is Amy Reeder

>Waid is a stop-gap on Cap to bridge the Legacy launch, then takes over Iron Man with 600 (Doom will be the main villain). Coates is taking over Cap with 700. They want him on the book to endorse the image rehabilitation. There’s a lot of face-palming internally about the “cap is a nazi” talk. He’s on both that and Black Panther as long as his schedule allows.

>They got lucky with Greg Pak and Hulk. It leads into a Planet Hulk revival pretty seamlessly.

>Jane Foster dying was always the end-game with the storyline, but the positive response with female fans means they’re trying to find a way to make her stick around. Tentatively planning to make her the new Valkyrie as the movie version is a blank slate and no one cares about the 70s Defenders character.>Classic Thor will be space-bound for awhile. Definitely through “Ragnarok.”>>

>Slott is off Amazing Spider-Man. They’re going to move him over to Friendly Neighborhood; the fear is he would sign exclusive with DC if they took it away from him completely. Plus he struggles with deadlines and there’s less risk with him off to the side. They can’t ignore declining sales anymore and it’s time for a refresh.>Spencer was earmarked for ‘Amazing Spider-Man” for awhile but he’s “earned it” after taking the heat for Secret Empire. Plus there are fans of his “Superior Foes” book in editorial and the plan is to emphasize tech-based criminals, go smaller scale, focus on NYC. Yes, like the movie. No, they’re not going to de-age him to a teenager. (Although it is a corporate synergy idea that has been floated; editorial has been able to argue that there’s no great way to do it … yet. They’re hoping Tom Holland ages up and they give up on that idea. The time-displaced X-Men are an albatross brought on by First Class synergy).>No major plans for MJ beyond guest spots here and there. The marriage isn’t coming back ever. Renew Your Vows will stick around until its a money-loss. It’s just a spin-off that had some legs, like Spider-Gwen. Silver Sable/Black Cat plans are being developed. Big plans for the Venom series to have a central role in Marvel events.>>>The X-Men are still in a tight spot. ResurrXion was itself a rush job after the Inhumans movie push was officially kaput and there was no future for family of books. Because of the Fox issue, they still can’t create new ideas that could go toward the movies so its literally just nostalgia retreads. Uncanny will be back next year with Xavier. Old Man Logan is sticking around for the foreseeable future with X-23 becoming his sidekick, the book will be called “Wolverine.” They burned out Deadpool fans with the price gouging, so no plans for spin-off series, but there will always be mini-series on the side to line out trades.

>Seriously, don’t expect the classic Fantastic Four anytime soon. Ike has seemingly dug his heels in; even though Fox will probably never figure out what to do with them, he’s spiting the brand because of how bad the negotiations went. Sue & Reed and the kids are seen as “boring” enough to sacrifice. Two-In-One is basically a containment book for people to get their F4 fix. It’s an inventory book, no set writer, it’s like “Avenging Spider-Man” or “A+X.” Different writers will get to use different pet characters.

>Ms. Marvel is in a funky spot because most at Marvel are aware that something organically special happened with her book. She’s basically the new “Runaways,” a special project with a special writer’s connection. It will last as long as Wilson wants to writer her, with a focus on the bookstore market while she pops in and out of other books when relevant. They want the audience to have enough familiarity with her because it’s inevitable she’ll be adapted sooner than later; it’s way too soon for her to be introduced into any Carol Danvers sequels so the TV division might snag her for their Hulu/Freeform teen show pitches. (Moon Girl is saved by her trade sales but the threshold is much lower for if sales drop any lower.)

>Wilson is also taking over Captain Marvel. They need to make it work and she’ll do the best job tying the legacy together. Kamala, Monica Rambeau, SWORD — its all part of it.

>Runaways is just a mini-series. They just want the trade out in time for the Hulu show. They can’t seem to get readers to care if it’s not BKV but they know people still love the franchise.>Cloak & Dagger and New Warriors series are coming. Squirrel Girl is wrapping up and North is moving her storylines over to NW where she’ll be the main character.

>Elektra, Bullseye, Kingpin tanking so hard shook them. They need the “Marvel Knights Netflix” corner to be sustainable, so they’re relying on Bendis on Defenders & Jessica Jones for awhile. Say what you want about his other stuff, everyone here thinks its still his sweet spot.>Brian Buccellato is on Daredevil with issue 600.>Justin Jordan is on Moon Knight; big hope that he can give Marvel their “mature” critically acclaimed book that juices up that corner of Marvel.

>Secret Warriors and Royals are already wrapping up. Rosenberg is moving over to one main Inhumans book. Quake/SHIELD will be background characters until “Agents” wraps up (everyone knows this is the last season).>They’re going to give Ahmed a shot with Black Bolt until sales drop.

>No plans to take Duggan off Guardians. Gunn is moving full steam ahead with Adam Warlock weirdness and they want to make sure those characters/ideas are “accessible” but still fun.

>Punisher War Machine is just one storyline involving Stark tech. They want to pull the character back from some of the real-life darkness and imagery; Nate Edmondson’s rep + Secret Empire has made him “ugly” (plus no one cares about Cloonan’s run). They want to scale him back to the Spider-Man/Defenders side of street-level, with less focus on real guns and more emphasis on comic book-y tech.

>Al Ewing is on Spirits of Vengeance. Editorial likes him, but he can’t sell a book to save his life. They just want someone with a love of Marvel lore to write the magic/horror characters to have them prepped for future Movie Phase exploration with a Blade reboot. They know that corner of Marvel horror needs its own “Annihilation.”

>It’s just like … a Spencer plot device. It could have been WeirdWorld (oh boy that was a failed plan). It’s just Spencer’s take on a “place out of time” a la Morrison.

>There are no plans for a Spidey reboot like that. They can’t get readers to pick up a teen Peter Parker since Bendis killed off Ultimate.

They wrote themselves into a corner because no one cares about kids books like Marvel Adventures or that “Spidey” book from last year.

There has been some discussion about an “Untold Tales of Spider-Man” relaunch with teen Peter and the high school cast but they don’t want Busiek and there’s no market for “prequel” books.

There’s a thought (and I agree) that once the animated Miles movie comes out, they’ll have their “Spider-Man for kids” so we want to keep him strong in the comics and cartoon merch. The Sony deal is kind of closed off but in terms of brand direction, we’re all about synergy. The Gwen revival talk is dead now that the Emma Stone movies are done.

We’re just kind of waiting to see Sony’s next steps but there’s kind of like a prep for nostalgia for the Raimi trajection in terms of MJ & college.

We’re in the dark about a lot of the post Infinity War plans now but the overarching brand direction we were looking at was scaling it to revolve around Spider-Man even though Marvel can’t make a solo Spidey film.

I think Tom Holland is going to be the new lynchpin for the MCU. They’re not going to have a new “Iron Man” franchise but they’ve got Holland locked into a deal where he’ll teaming up with characters in their own stuff.

The original plan was to mirror the Civil War to Secret Invasion to Dark Reign arc.

There’s a reason this is called Secret Empire. The next step was “Nomad”‘ing the entire Marvel line-up. There was a lot of editorial excitement about saying something about Trump’s win and the baby boomer backlash.

No one was expecting the backlash to cap hydra and they probably could have kept the original plans intact but I think it was the sales/marketing push that buried it.

Not everyone is an idiot here; we are aware of how we price gouge comic shops. I think that was more the issue and once all the online fan political arguing started happening around the book, retailers just finally threw their hands cause it wasn’t worth the outrage.

Jason Aaron is off doing his own thing. His Avengers BC thing is just a Morrison mini series idea he has.

Spencer “made his statement” now that Captain Sam won’t be the status quo (that was the original plan while Steve goes back to the maskless “Super Soldier” identity).

I think everyone agrees it’s time to take teens away from Waid.

But the senior editors had big plans for that push and now there’s nowhere else to put it. But we can’t just get rid of it forever.

There was no plan to replace all the “white men” its just how the pieces fell into the place. Honestly, the Riri thing was the tipping point. It was Bendis’ idea, no one in editorial had a big plan for it and it hurt the big post-Secret Wars push to make Tony Stark the franchise of the MU.

Since it’s basically a book for his daughter, we’re kind of stuck keeping her in print.

Edit wants to have a fresh voice on a Miles book in time for the Sony cartoon. David Walker apparently had a pitch that got people excited.

But there’s just no way to take Miles AND Riri away from Bendis without burning a bridge with him forever.

I’m not kidding: the Slott FNSM run is going to marketed like Joss Whedon on Astonishing. It’s its “own thing” “unrestricted by the monthly continuity but still taking place in the MU” which is code for “if its late, its late.”

It’s going to be sold as “separate but equal” to Amazing. I have no idea how long it will last, but it’s to assuage his ego apparently as he was not interested in other books.

I don’t think anybody wants anyone else to jump to DC. The real fear is Disney seeing that Warner had success moving the comics office to Burbank and lining everything up under one roof.

Moving Marvel Comics out of NYC and onto the Disney lots is a real possibility. A lot of us will get downsized or just not relocate if that happens.

not surprised. just our typical variant trick that’s been meant with diminishing returns while contracts get lined up for new last-minute books to replace post SE plans.

shitty day for me because i had to handle a lot of the online damage control until like 8:30

This is how Marvel corporate works under Ike: we don’t give the fox and sony movies anything but we will milk the cash in on comics.

After X3, the plan was to do a teen focused reboot, so we were going to cash in on that. Not literally the movie cast, but remove the baggage and make them streamlined and accessible to younger demos.

Claremont is like the “Spider Man wedding” of X Men. Its this unwieldy thing that none of the senior editors like that they want to rewind but because of the movie deal we can’t make new IP.

X-Men has been a micromanaged mess since I started here. AVX was a sales team gimmick to replicate Civil War, which messed up Schism. Remender’s plans got hijacked by the time displaced O5 which was a pretty shameless Bendis pitch to corporate. There’s no central architect guiding the franchise, just big plans that get derailed by the next sales gimmick.

Then the fox talks started going really south and it wasn’t just “don’t give them new ideas” but actively scale it back.

Yes Ike and corporate really thought they could replace X Men with Inhumans. They don’t actually care what it is, just as long as they own it.

The 05 was seen as a way to scale it back and might as well “House of M” the last vestige of Grant Morrison’s run and just make Scott & Emma straight up super villains. But its been a mess cause no two writers are working together on the bigger picture and Gillen and Aaron and Remender all had different plans.

IVX was a mercy killing to a character that had been written into a corner

Carnage: big villain for the Venom plansPower Pack: early early development for a freeform show, comic would follow obviously

i’m writing this on my personal laptop out of the office. no one at marvel checks this place. and if they did, they just see 4chan as a bunch of trump trolls.

#marvel #comics

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