#meg rewatches home alone

[redhatmeg]

So, the church scene...

Until now Old Man Marley was presented as creepy and the score emphisized it, whenever he shows up. But here, when he just sits in the church and notices Kevin, he’s presented as normal. Then when he stands up, comes to the kid and smiles, suddenly he’s not as creepy as he appeared to be.

I don’t know, while watching this movie now, I see how it nicely showcases a perspective of little kid.

Adults and siblings are presented as mean to Kevin... just how a kid would see their actions.

The supermarket and shop cashiers are shown from higher level... because it’s from Kevin’s POV.

Old Man Marley is creepy and is accompanied with creepy music because Kevin finds him creepy... but in church he realizes that Old Man Marley is a pretty nice guy.

[joethetoonfanandoutcast]

Thoughts on Scamp's Adventure

I wanted to do a script of characters watch and react to this film, but I couldn't decide which characters to use and roast this film properly, so I'll just criticize it right here.

This film might have been fun when I was a kid but as I got older and rewatched it, it became one of the direct-to-video Disney sequels I disliked.

The animation: one of the only redeeming qualities.

The songs:

* "Welcome Home" - just a standard "good morning to the whole town" song that doesn't seem to match a Lady and the Tramp setting and all to show their life in their hometown is great, that they wouldn't change it for anything and that they're getting ready for the 4th of July picnics. Not really inspiring there.

* "A World Without Fences" - I like the 'wanting to be free' theme, but it'd be better from a different character and a different perspective, and not Scamp, as...well, you'll see why, if you haven't already.

* "Junkyard Society Rag" - hardly catchy at all, and though I like Jess Harnell, he's not the best singing voice for a Chazz Palmenterri character, and it was hard to take any of the dogs serious in this number.

* "I Didn't Know That I Could Feel This Way" - I actually thought this song was touching but should have been done with different characters in a different franchise, as I'm not really into Scamp/Angel like I thought I was as a kid. Though, it's also great to hear Herc's singing voice (Roger Bart) and Meg's voice (Susan Egan) having a duet.

* "Always There" - standard sad times montage song just put in there to add length to the film under the "film must be 90 minutes or at least longer than 60" rule

And I liked the pop title ballad version of "Bella Notte" (the song from the original) though it had nothing to do with this film's plot and this film isn't really worth sitting through just to get to that as we see the names of the people involved in this film roll.

The characters:

* Scamp - he's supposed to be a role model to rebellious kids everywhere and we're supposed to find him cute, but honestly, he's rather a spoiled, annoying, cocky, deluded jerkass who's disrespectful to his own father. He may have learned a lesson at the end, but that doesn't save him from winning a "Butthole Protagonist" award, and he doesn't seem to be deserving of a girlfriend either for his actions. Also, it's weird having a grown man, Scott Wolf, voice a pup when he didn't sound young at all.

* Angel - she's supposed to be this perfect girl designed to be the main character's love interest, and while I don't hate her, I find few faults with her. For example, she looks like she could be Scamp's sister and she does end up being his sister in the end (not biologically, but through adoption from the Dears, yet people still want them to be a thing), and she has this bad girl attitude which is supposed to be charming, but it doesn't come off as charming when they're both pint-sized pups. Maybe it'd come off as charming if they were anthros, but not their canon forms.

* Tramp - sadly been struck with the "Simba Sequel Syndrome"

* Lady - The writers sadly did her dirty. She was the main character of the first one and now she's demoted to the wife/mother of main character who gets less lines in favor of the spouse and offspring, just like Nala. And what's worse, is there are no interactions between her and Scamp, to view if THEY would have any connection whatsoever. It's just Scamp and connection with his dad and his selfish dreams of running off to be a wild dog.

Her role is pretty much summed up in this scene:

"Tramp: Like it or not, you are a part of this family, and until you start acting like it, you can just get used to being out here every night!

Tramp left and went inside in anger, while Lady watched Scamp jump on the roof of the dog house. She gave a hopeless sigh, and went inside as well, leaving Scamp alone to calm down."

Honestly, it shouldn't even be called "Lady and the Tramp II", just have it called "Scamp's Adventure" or "Scamp" and regard it as a spin-off since it's his film.

* Annette, Danielle and Collette - it's kind of dumb having them just being carbon copies of each other with no individual personality or characteristics other than "we like baths" or "we're the perfect children and Scamp's a selfish brat" without even remote compassion for him. And two of them are voiced by Kath Soucie. Nothing against her, but it seemed repetitive to have Kath voice all female children in late 90's-early 2000's Disney cartoons, and I don't like her voicing unlikable girls in cartoons with that kind of voice (such as Jenna from Clifford the Big Red Dog, one of the stepsisters from Happily N'Ever After, and others).

* The Junkyard Dogs - they just come off as pale knock-offs of Dodger and the Downtown Dogs from Oliver & Company. They've got a street-smart leader (Buster to Dodger), a tall, sly, attractive female added in there for furbait though contributes little to the plot and hardly anyone talks to (Ruby to Rita), a diminutive dog with an accent (Francois to Tito), a big doofus (Mooch to Einstein), and the remaining member (Sparky to Francis). And like Fagin called his dogs "boys", ignoring Rita's gender, Buster called them all boys, as if no one cared about Ruby's gender

Disney could have tried to make them more likable and unique but this had to be all about Scamp, and we've already got Jock, Trusty, the Dears and Scamp's family having to return as supporting characters.

Of course, out of all of them, Buster is by far the one that is truly loathsome. He's like a mixture of Dodger, Roscoe and/or Desoto with the smug "I'm better than you" attitude and the jock the new kid at high school foolishly looks up to and wants to be like, even if it means getting himself killed in an initiation. And another sickening quality about him is that he constantly flirts with the lead female, Angel, calling her his girl. I just can't stand those characters who are the alpha male who thinks they're entitled to the most intelligent female among the group.

The dog cronies themselves aren't really terrible, and they have subtle sympathy towards Scamp and Angel, but they're still not charming enough. They even laughed like cronies. They seem like nice dogs, but the writers could have done better with them. And remember how I mentioned that Buster referred to them all as "boys", ignoring Ruby and Angel being girls like Fagin ignored Rita's gender? Well, someone at the studio, SOMEONE could have the decency to correct that mistake and have them correct Buster.

Speaking of Ruby, she didn't have much lines at all, as she suffers the same problem with all cartoon Salukis and Afghan Hounds: sentenced to strictly being background furbait with appealing design yet no focus or qualities to make them more likable, and one thing that bothers me is that she and Angel seem to share no positive feels toward each other or negative towards each other, because back in the 2000's, there didn't seem to be a lot of positive female relationships written in cartoons. I really want someone to write a story with them being friends.

As a kid, I oddly enough hardly noticed her myself and didn't even know she was a girl, and it doesn't help that Buster said "boys". Seriously, why do animators and writers not pay enough attention to background characters?

* The Dogcatcher - weak antagonist with an annoying Don Knotts impression given by Jeff Bennett (who did better with the impression as Jonathan the Seagull on Puppy Dog Pals). I didn't even like this character as a kid.

* Otis - a psychotic annoying Rob Paulsen-voiced character no one ever asked for and was not necessary but someone at the Disney animation studio decided to throw in just to keep Rob employed (what, Rob wasn't already voicing plenty of other characters at the time?).

The story itself: boring, lazy, tiresome, predictable, and doesn't really do the first Lady and the Tramp any justice. That's why I decided that doing a word-for-word fanmake of it isn't worth spending time over. JusSonic would be willing to do something like it, but I'm not. I gave him a transcript and summed up the sequel to his version for 2009, so that's enough.

However, it is not the worst Disney sequel ever made. It's fine to watch at least once (and maybe only once). In honesty, I prefer watching the original or the live-action remake of the original over this. And honestly, I feel this should have been remade, not for the sake of nostalgia, but to make it better.

[mobstersandlobsters]

Movie reviews!

House of 1000 Corpses - 100% Rob Zombie's baby through and through for creative range in cinema, but it just wasn't fully perfected yet in my opinion which you can almost feel the movie dragging through in the end for me personally (that and a limited budget), but still totally bonkers with some truly great scenes (particularly the scene where captain spaulding gives them a tour of albert fish, Doctor Satan, etc.) and shows one of my favorite loving psycho clowns Captain Spaulding and definitely worth watching with a group of friends for some scares (and also fun fact for a while and still now maybe I believe, they have some House of 1000 Corpses setups for Halloween that you could visit for scares as well), 7/10 movie for me overall, good, but not great in my opinion (bumped it up 1 point especially due to how creative the characters/settings were in this).

Devil's Rejects - LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this movie ..Did I also mention I love this movie? This in my opinion is really a perfect example of Rob Zombies creativity (although some of his scenes seem eeriely similar to movies like Texas Chainsaw Massacre like they did in House of 1000 Corpses sprinkled a little bit throughout), ultimately this movie really blew me back in terms of writing, acting, and pace with dialogue/action and just an overall great and entertaining/exciting movie and I rewatch this movie a lot and highly recommend it (3 from hell is garbage though I'm sorry, and I also have Devil's Rejects on DVD because why not), overall solid 8/10 movie for me subjectively (and 10/10 with 100% bias lol).

Texas Chainsaw - Speaking of Texas Chainsaw..this movie is the epitome of great cinematography that makes you feel as if you are there even decades and decades later, watching with a terrifying setting and great writing that depicts a feeling of utter terror with an entertaining twist, ultimately fulfilling, what you would want out of an edgy horror flick for it's time (1978 I believe), 10/10 movie subjectively for me.

Texas Chainsaw 2 - Good actors, setting was definitely kind of cool, overall not my cup of tea personally but I can see how some people would like it. I would subjectively give this movie a 6.5 out of 10, not great, not bad either.

Nightmare On Elm Street - Totally creative out of the box character with a sense of psycho charm and a set of great actors, when I first watched this I loved it and really truly enjoyed this movie and would recommend this for anyone wanting to watch their first horror movie as a teen, overall 9/10 film (can't think of any flaws but that's what I would rate it).

Freddy VS Jason - I don't have to say anything other than the fact that the final battle is beyond epic and I would rate this an 8.5/10 (just a badass movie when I watched it from what I can remember).

The Stepfather - Solid movie about your everyday psychopath (particularly Terry O' Quinn) with good casting, setting and writing. Overall 7/10, not too shabby and a fun and crazy watch, I believe The Stepfather was much better off without sequels and as a stand alone classic horror-esque thriller movie.

The Stepfather 2 - Although the casting was excellent (particularly Terry O' Quinn and Meg Foster), the writing felt rushed and jumbled, although some of the action scenes with the ending wedding scene and the stepfather driving around like crazy in the junkyard I believe left some excitement and fun, it fell short with corny lines such as "daddy's home!" and obvious kills that go against the original character's intellect and cunning abilities, so overall a 6/10 with great actors but a horrible and dense plot line.

The Stepfather 3 - In my opinion a horrible movie all around (although the sequels are still better than The Stepfather remakes in my opinion), the acting is almost hard to believe how bad it is, while the writing was actually decent in my opinion, overall I believe if they had better actors in this (like getting Terry O' Quinn if he was available or another talented actor) it may have worked, but alas, I find this movie to be around a 4.5/10, almost watchable but not really if you pay attention to the acting (and the ridiculous scene where the man falls and hurts himself...from a childs wheelchair that barely hits him), I digress.

Terrifier - I was actually disappointed in this movie (although Terrifier 2 left me shook and also even more disappointed not even watching Terrifier 3), I loved the throwback theme the movie portrayed with the beginning especially and the clown was scary as well as entertaining for me, but where it fell short was in execution/ending, I personally believe the girl that looks like the character in Scream (the main girl with the black hair) I believe if the movie at least kept that girl as well as her sister in the background possibly (the black haired girl's friend dies, but she wasn't much of a main character anyway although she was entertaining), but I truly believe if they kept the main girl and possibly her sister (although the disfigurement was gnarly and part of the gore), I honestly feel like if they kept those girls in the background for a sequel to get revenge or some sort of plot line where they try to figure out/stop the clown it would have been very interesting to watch, but alas, 7/10 but wouldn't probably watch again but who knows.

Lastly I have:

The New Daughter - Tempted to rate this a 0/10 but instead I will rate it a 6/10 to where it had solid potential to be a decent movie with some of the cast and the beginning of the movie/story, but the ending was so horribly memorable, I will forever curse Kevin Costner for even thinking this was a good idea lol (but that's just my opinion).

Besides the movies I have listed I also have some hidden gems such as: Halloween (1978), Stalked By My Doctor, The Deliberate Stranger, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (although it's technically not a horror movie it is terrifying at how it is a true story and how easily we can be deceived and hurt), and lastly I would also add Halloween 2 and H20 for kicks as well as parts 1 and 2 of Friday The 13th.

[ifandomus]

Translation of Lokis song

I am pretty sure Asgardian is Norwegian, maybe a little old-fashioned but not much. I thought it might be Swedish the first time I heard it, but I think that had more to do with the accent. My sources are rewatching this scene many times, and being Norwegian, so this is my first language. Overall I would say that Tom did pretty well, and any complaints would just be unnecessary nitpicking.

-Men traner danser og fossene stanser

(But cranes dance and the waterfalls stop)

-Når hun synger, synger kom hjem

(When she sings, she sings come home)

-Men traner danser og fossene stanser

(But cranes dance and the waterfalls stop)

-When she sings, she sings come home

-When she sings, she sings come home

-Men traner danser og fossene stanser

(But cranes dance and the waterfalls stop)

-Når hun synger, synger kom hjem

(When she sings, she sings come home)

-Men traner danser og fossene stanser

(But cranes dance and the waterfalls stop)

-When she sings, she sings come home

-When she sings, she sings come home

-When she sings, she sings come home

-When she sings, she sings come home

-I stormsvarte fjell jeg vandrer alene

(In stormblack mountains I wander alone)

-Over isbreer tar jeg meg frem

(Over the glaciers I make my way)

-I eplehagen står møyen den vene

(In the apple garden stands the maiden fair)

-Og synger når kommer du hjem*

(And sing when are you coming home*)

-Men traner danser og fossene stanser

(But cranes dance and the waterfalls stop)

-Når hun synger, synger kom hjem

(When she sings, she sings come home)

-Men traner danser og fossene stanser

(But cranes dance and the waterfalls stop)

-When she sings, she sings come home

-When she sings, she sings come home

*(There should be a question mark here because it is a question, but it looked a little confusing with the others)

[rosstrytobe]

How i would see every Destiel season If Supernatural get them canon from the start:

Season 4 -> Dean and Cas meeting and get to know each other, with probably dates and phone calls

Season 5 -> Dean and Cas are fuck buddies until Dean decide to get with Lisa for his internalize homophobia

Season 6 -> Dean break up with Lisa for his feelings for Cas, even though Cas cheat on Dean with Crowley and Dean couldn't forgive him. But then Cas become God and legalize gay marriage but then dies because he couldn't forgive himself for what he done to Dean

Season 7 -> Dean is sad because Cas dies and keep his trenchcoat in every car he would drive with the hope that maybe one day they would meet again. Then Dean find Cas but Cas lost his memories and get married with a woman, so we have a devasted Dean that doesn't know what to do. But then a past lover of Cas, Meg decide to resolve thing between them. So Cas remember him again but become crazy for all the other thing he remembers about himself. But then with the power of love, Dean try to convince Cas that he's perfect just the way he is and Cas start to fallen deeply for him

Season 8 -> Dean and Cas spent time in purgatory, with Dean tryin to find his angel but then he fell in love with a vampire, Benny and when they find Cas, he's jealous of Benny but Benny realize that Dean and Cas love for each other is more deep of what Dean and him feel. But then, they come back to the Earth, and with Cas gone, Benny calls Dean everytime or try to get favors from him. Until Benny meet his ex, and get back with her. While Dean think to see Cas every where he go, until Cas came back and Dean just want to understand how. That he didn't failed him for trying to bring him back and he didn't because Cas just wanted to not be saved by him. But then Cas is manipulating by a superior angel, Naomi and became bad again. But Dean, again with the power of love, get him back but thing just got complicated so Cas decide to disappear. Then he come back to Dean because he understood that can't be without him but Dean is mad at him for leaving him again until he forgive him, because he can't be mad with Cas forever

Season 9 -> Cas becomes human so Dean help him in figure out human life, with all their needs and wants. But accidentally, they fuck in Baby because Dean couldn't help it anymore. Then Cas became an angel again and Dean is still turned on about him. But they couldn't be together because Cas had to help his brothers and sisters while Dean and Sam had to resolve the Metatron thing. But then Dean dies and Cas is devasted

Season 10 -> Demon Dean accept his bisexuality and fuck with others, especially with Crowley but when he meet Cas again he saw how beautiful and powerful he is and he can't control the need of wanted to be fucked by him. Then Dean becomes human again and this time they finally accept to kiss each other and maybe to be a couple. But the Mark of Cain make Dean bad and for not hurt or kill Cas, he decide to leave him in their home, in the bunker

Season 11 -> Dean became a full human again but cheat on Cas with his aunt Amara while Cas, feeling useless,decide to say yes to Lucifer and become bad again. But his jealously for his aunt couldn't help it, so Lucifer decide to help his hopeless brother and try to seduce Dean, taking his trenchcoat and his blue jacket off and Dean couldn't think straight anymore for that view. But when he discover what Cas had done, he felt hopeless and sad and with his brother Sam, he try everything to bring his angel back. And when he had to finally discover what's the strongest bond he have, he figure out that is with Cas and not with Amara. Dean broke up with Amara and when Lucifer leave Cas body, Dean is happy and finally him and Cas decide to be a couple

Season 12 -> Dean get his mother Mary to meet his boyfriend Cas, and she accept him in her family. We have domestic destiel, destiel sex, jealous Dean for Mick and Ishim trying to flirt with his boyfriend, Dean made a playlist to listen when they were alone in Dean's car, Cas becoming more a part of the Winchester family and said to Dean that he loves him and he cares about him so much as Dean need Cas so much in his life and he doesn't want that anything bad happen to him. But then his brother Lucifer decide to ruin things for them for jealousy and kill Cas

Season 13 -> Dean is devasted and hopeless for his boyfriend death and he have a son, Jack, who hates, because for him Cas died and little by little he became depress and start to kill himself. Until Jack bring Cas back from the Empty and Dean couldn't be more happier. Dean and Cas get married with cowboy hats, so later Cas could satisfying Dean sex fantasy about cowboys. Dean start to care about their son and he's grateful with him for bring back his now husband. But then the other Cas brother Michael came and ruin everything. So Dean say yes to him and Cas, sad, knows he lost his husband

Season 14 -> Cas, Sam and Jack try to save Dean from Michael. Especially Cas that with the power of love, he bring his husband back again. Dean was struggling with Michael again in his mind and decide to put himself in a Malek box, but Cas decide to dress as a doctor, so Dean would be turn on and forget about this stupid plane. Thanks to Jack, Michael will not be a problem anymore. But then Jack got really sick to the point he die but their fathers and his uncle try to bring him back to life and they do it. But then Jack lose his soul and became bad. Dean and Cas arguing because they don't know what to do with their son anymore. But then Cas father, Chuck came and ruin everything, killing their son

Season 15 -> Dean and Cas separation arch. Even though Castiel want the divorce but Dean can't move on from him. He still love him even though he still pissed at him. So they decide to go to Rowena for a couple therapy and then Dean and Cas go to purgatory for start again and talk. Dean is sorry for the way he treat him and for the way he is. Cas forgive him and they are happy again, having their son back to life and get married again . But then Cas died for save Dean, telling him he love him and he love everything about his personality, about his being, about his soul. Dean couldn't find the words for say it back and when Cas was gone, again, in the Empty, he was sad again. He start to cry and drink until he fell asleep. Rewatching that scene again and again in his mind and thinking about how it could have be different if he just was not so frozen. Jack became God but he couldn't bring Cas back because he need his dad to re-do heaven. Dean and Sam try to live a happy life but Dean couldn't be happy without his husband. He kill himself accidentally on a hunt and when he was in heaven, Cas and him were finally together and forever this time

[watchingspnagain]

Rewatching Salvation

Welcome to “Truck Size Apparently Matters Too: A Supernatural Rewatch Blog” with Lor and Mace!

 Up today, s1e21: Salvation.

  Sam, Dean, and John are hot on the trail of the Yellow-Eyed Demon and think they have a good lead on where he will strike next. But then Demon Meg issues an ultimatum: John comes alone with the Colt or lots of people start dying. So Sam and Dean take off for Yellow Eyes and John goes to deliver a fake Colt, knowing that it won't trick anyone but may buy the boys some time. Things...don't go well on either end, although Sam and Dean do have a nice brotherly moment in the car. And Dean holds a baby.

 Below is a log of our real-time reactions as we watched. Remember that there may be spoilers for any part of SPN’s 15-season run here.  Note also that the nature of our conversation is adult and thus it may contain adult language and themes.

 [and we begin:]

 Mace:

i love that they seem to think priests just hang out at the pulpit all day

 Lor:

lolol

right?

also, isn't this pastor Jim? the trappings of this church do not look like he'd be a pastor

 Mace:

yeah I don't remember

 but the catholic church doesn't call their clergy pastors, I don't think?

 Lor:

yeah

 Mace:

 poor guy, anyway

 Lor:

he could be... Episcopalian? I thiiink? their churches would look like that? but I still don't think they'd be called pastors

 Lor:

mmmm sammy's polo over a long sleeved t-shirt

 Mace:

interesting. i have no idea what their nomenclature is like

 YAS

 Lor:

oh my boys

 Mace:

 yeah

 Lor:

of course john is in front with his jacked up monster truck of penile fortitude

 Mace:

YUP

 "at Jim's place"? the church is his "place"? Weird

 Lor:

yeah

weird

 he makes "you got any better ideas" sound like "fuck you" and FUCK HIM

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

does he HEAR himself?

 Mace:

 and then the little emotional display because he wanted the boys to know how 'sad' he is? UGH

 Lor:

he dragged his poor babies all over everywhere and fucked them up and wouldn't answer their calls when they were DYING but “ooooh, Pastor Jim died. End it. no matter what it takes”

BLECK

 Mace:

YUP

FUUUUCK YOU JOHN

 omg the raised eyebrows when he sees the girl

 Lor:

YES

 Mace:

 sweet little pumpkin of a hedonist

 Lor:

YES

and just a hint of "ah. I have an in for getting info"

 Mace:

yep

 Lor:

how many shirts is he wearing?

three? under the jacket?

 Mace:

SNORK!!

it's raining and he's chilly

 Lor:

yeah

 Lor:

maybe he needs some snuggles

 Mace:

 muffin needs layers

 Lor:

LOL

 Mace:

 YES YES HE DOES

 Mace:

   Lor:

lololol

 Mace:

 Monica is adorable

 Lor:

she IS

 Mace:

CREEPY CLOWN MOBILE

NOPENOPENOPE

 Lor:

WHO PUTS THAT IN THEIR KID'S ROOM

 Mace:

RIGHT?!?!

honestly

 Lor:

go OFF, Dean

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

go off more than that, baby

"I'm not crazy about this new tone of yours" HE IS 27 YEARS OLD, JOHN

 Mace:

 RIGHT?! My god, just fuck right off you asshole

 Lor:

interesting how much Dean is (literally) in the background in this episode

 Mace:

 yeah

 Lor:

"it doesn't really matter"

 Mace:

 "so you think Meg is a demon?" HAHAHAHA that seems like such a silly question at this point

 Lor:

LOL

 "I want you to go to school. I want Dean to have a home" like the only time he ever thinks about them, right there

 Mace:

yep

like, maybe you should have thought of that YEARS AGO, ASS

 Lor:

RIGHT?

 Mace:

you want those things for them, but only after YOU get what YOU want

that's not parenting

that's not putting your kids first

 Lor:

and does he realize that HE is the reason his boys don't have those things? it's not the demon, it's HIM

 Mace:

 that's literally putting them second

 Lor:

YES

 the way Dean's voice cracks when he says "you're no good to us dead"

 Mace:

ooof

 Ugh, I hate that John's such a fox. It's annoying because I need to hate him completely.

 Lor:

LOLOLOLOL RIGHT?

 if he had a soul, he would (well, first, he wouldn't have done all this) but he would have wrapped Dean up in a crushing hug before he left

  Mace:

EXACTLY

but NOOOOO, that's not manly

 Lor:

nope

but that's what Dean wants. he wants his DAD. the dude who picked him up and asked him if they should throw the football around with Sammy

 Mace:

 yep

 not to mention Sammy, who gets to sit back and watch this angsty tragedy play out and also doesn't get any love himself

 Lor:

YEP

 "naaaah" omg Dean's face

 Mace:

 don't you have to be an actual priest to bless water?

 Lor:

a REALLY feel like you have to be a priest to do this

 Lor:

HAHAHA

 Mace:

HAAAHAHAHAHA

 Mace:

 #US

 Lor:

YES

 Mace:

 when John does it, it just turns to jagweed water

 Lor:

SNORK

 Mace:

 oh SAMMY

 Lor:

YES

 Mace:

 Dean needs this right now and Sammy knows

 Lor:

and the way Dean is completely taken aback by this

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

oh Dean

 Mace:

 I don't like Meg but I do love her haircut

 Lor:

lol YES

 Mace:

how did John not realize that they'd of course test it

 Mace:

 numbnuts

 Lor:

yeah

maybe he did though

I mean, i don't put it past him to go off on what he suspects is a suicide mission/trap and not even hug his kiddos first

little turd

 Mace:

oh yeah, that's a fair point

  omg Meg is such a bad actor: "HOLY. WATER. JOHN. REAL. CUTE."

 Lor:

LOLOLOLOL

 in a SHOCK, John doesn’t answer the phone

  Mace:

SNORK!

such a twist to the story, that

 Lor:

lol

 Mace:

 Dean with a baby in his arms is peak ovary asplosion

 Lor:

YES

 oh Dean. he's gonna need a hug after this rescue. AND NO ONE'S GONNA GIVE IT TO HIM

  Mace:

 do you volunteer, Katniss?

 Lor:

I DO

 Mace:

 so many shocking twists today...

 Lor:

SO many

 Lor:

"i don't care! I DO!"

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

everybody STOP trying to sacrifice themselves and leave Dean bereft

 Mace:

 yes, because DeanDean NEVER has that notion. EVER.

 Lor:

NEVAH

 Lor:

aaaand that's the complete turn around from the pilot

 Mace:

 YUP

 how many times does Dean get slammed into a wall in this show? We should start a tally

  Lor:

YES

 "sometimes I feel like I’m barely holding it together, man" DEEEEEAN

 Lor:

(sometimes, baby? all the time. I hear angels are good at helping with that)

 Mace:

 (YAS)

 Mace:

 [in reference to Dean saying that Mary is never coming back, which echoes Sam saying this in the pilot]:

(it also makes no sense either time. They are, in fact, never coming back. Why does that make the boys so angry?)

  Lor:

yeah, I dunno

 Lor:

maybe they read it as some kind of disrespect to their memory? the suggestion that it might not be worth it to get revenge?

 Mace:

I suspect that yeah, that’s what they’re going for, but the writing is weird, then. Because it’s just a simple statement of fact with no hint that they don’t care that they’re gone. Just that nothing is going to bring them back. No hint of “it’s not worth it/their memory isn’t worth it” or whatever. I just think they could have written the dialogue better in both cases to make such violent reactions make some bit of sense

[firebunnylover]

LoSH S2 discussion

I love Legion of Superheroes. And i love season 2, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think about how it could have been improved. In terms of quality, it varies more than season 1. Some parts are top tier while others… eh.

Season 2 is darker than season 1. And there’s the inherent stigmatism that darker means better. But it’s not true.

A horror schlock film is not inherently better than an animated film.

I don’t blame the staff on all its shortcomings. Kids WB was on its deathbed, so they probably had less time to work and iron out ideas. And executive meddling.

The second season had a lot of good elements, but there are things that weighed it down. I am here to discuss how to improve said things.

Heads up: ended up editing part of this post after rewatching the episodes.

This first bit is more of a personal preference, but instead of the 41st century, maybe move the original source of conflict to a farther region of space, one that the UP doesn’t interact with, and has been growing in terms of turmoil until they finally resort to bringing the Legion over. In other words, it has just been put aside by everyone else to the last minute.

Parallel to Brainy’s relationship to Brainiac. He doesn’t want to deal with it. He never brings it up. But maybe if he did, he wouldn’t have gotten corrupted.

This place still has plenty of old documentation of the original age of superman, so Kell is disillusioned with the ideal glory days. Keep Kell Edgy.

Kell’s home and K3NT still gets destroyed - reflects Krypton’s own destruction.

SPEAKING OF KELL:

Make his story more apparent that it’s one realizing that kindness is not an inherent weakness. And neither is being soft. He was raised for fighting and killing Imperiex, and was taught to think that they were weaknesses. Have him realize his identity can be beyond the Clone of Superman made to kill Imperiex. Or rather, have him react more to realizing that he’s moving beyond his given identity.

To clarify; they do address his development in the show a few times, but I want more continuous development instead of the rapid nods we get. Have him try to interact in a more humane way with others. Especially with other members of the Legion. Where they have to take a double take in seeing him acting not that edgy. Maybe offer more flashback of him fighting Imperiex in comparison, and how he treated allies then.

Also put K3NT’s story under the microscope. I doubt Imperiex just came out of nowhere with his attacks. Plus the fact they went far enough to send a hitman after a fucking child? That screams yikes and maybe we need to double check the story.

And an overall issue to be addressed is what rights do robots have and what conditions need to be met? Because let’s face it, we make robots to do complex work for us. But Colu is a culture where the main people ARE robots. Like in Transformers. What line do we draw between non-sentient robots vs the sentient ones in the 31st century? And what about cyborgs/people who give up their original bodies for robotic ones?

Plus Imperiex himself came to be because of the perfected combination of organic tissue and robotics. This topic of robots and individuality/personhood could have been a fun topic to explore.

Don’t sideline the girls. Leave TG alone. 

Don’t put SG in a coma for nearly the whole season - seriously it’s the reason why the guys make one bad decision after the other. Although with that said, it’s because she’s not around we got the majority of s2 plots. She’s the goddamn mom of the squad. Just make her busier and unable to keep an eye on her idiot boys for the plots based on bad decisions to happen. 

Or have her deal with after-effects of what Esper did to her. Maybe after a whole season of being the emotional support character, have her be the one in need of emotional support or not being able to help directly, especially when the group needs emotional support. Emotional support paradox.

Maybe don’t make Cosmic Boy appear as much as a dick in the episodes where he does show up. He’s trying to hold this goddamn team together, and there’s a goddamn tyrant trying to conquer the galaxy. HE’S FUCKING TIRED AND STRESSED. AND IM SURE THERE ARE A BUNCH OF JERKS WHO WANT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT TO DISSOLVE THE LEGION. Better yet, throw in some more backstory with him and his little brother Pol!

And in regards to Imperiex… The dude has a lot of potential. I like his voice actor, Phil Morris. The guy voiced Dr. Sweets from Atlantis.

But his writing needs help.

In the original DC comics, he’s the embodiment of Entropy. Anyone who’s seen Madoka is probably familiar with what that is. But if you're not, here’s a definition: “ the measure of a system’s thermal energy per unit temperature that is unavailable for doing useful work...” He’s the embodiment of that energy that cannot be used for anything. And Entropy grows over time.

Another definition of what Entropy is “lack of order or predictability; gradual decline into disorder.”

In the comics, he’s more of a cosmic being as a result of him being an embodiment of unusable energy. He’s been in existence since, well, the beginning. He had destroyed the universe and recreated it multiple times. Okay, so that lines up with how the show portrays him. And technically, he does get the universe to reset itself in the 41st century when he alters the 31st century enough.

But I personally feel that making him a cosmic being is kinda… meh?

I personally prefer more personal villains most of the time. Don’t get me wrong, an Eldritch being done right makes a great character, but I can’t see Imperiex as one. At least not LoSH’s version.

Plus I like it when the protagonist sees the villain has a point and has changed as a result for the better.

You know, over a year ago, I used to think that it was impossible to make a tyrannical villain who’s presented as real evil seem complex.

And then… I was introduced to TFP Megatron.

Now for you LoSH fans who haven’t watched Transformers Prime, Megatron was once Megatronus. A low caste member who worked in the mines and Gladiator games. He wanted to fix the growing corruption of Cybertron. To make things better.

But his worse personality traits took over, and he lost that good motivation. Now he’s just fighting to win and defeat Optimus Prime. 

But despite the change of goals and ideals, he doesn’t want to simply abandon his relationship with Optimus. He and Optimus, or as he used to be called, Orion, were fighting for the betterment of society. And they meant something to each other. Megatron doesn’t want to just get it over with. He wants fanfare for his victory over Optimus. And he doesn’t want anyone else to rob him off that. But he isn’t opposed to getting Optimus/Orion back on his side. It’s because of this you can still argue that there is a remaining shred of good in him.

They were the best young lovers anD NO I AM NOT CRYING OVER THEM!

Also, the fact we know he was part of a minority group in the form of the lower cast  that was enslaved can make us sympathize with Megatronus of the past, as well as understand how he came to be.

It doesn’t mean we forgive him for his actions - and he has done a lot of shitty things. And I mean a lot.

But his history is more understandable. TFP Megatron’s a fall from grace.

OK I’m done dissecting TFP Meg’s writing.

We know Imperiex was a slave, and was originally organic, who’s from a society where his purpose is literally just to fight, and was gradually stripped of his original body. He was originally stripped of any agency before then though.

But he says this was a good thing. Calling his original body a weakness. And refers to his old self as a pathetic slave.

He gave up whatever softness he had.

Also, this is where K3NT’s story needs to be reexamined. Imperiex was made during what K3NT described as “A Time of Extended Prosperity”. That time had freaking slaves. And K3NT says that when Imperiex did rise up, they were unprepared. So… they were prosperous, but lacked defense to prevent anything like that happening? Or perhaps those who were in charge were that unpopular that it was easy for Imperiex to start the war.

What made him decide conquering the galaxy was the next thing to do after he had every bit of his original self stripped away? Why go as far as destroy it?

What I’m trying to say is that they could borrow a few pages from the Megatron book. Maybe he was once trying to better the society he was part of, but he decides to play the violent card at some point. And somewhere along that strategy, he starts to lose sight of the initial goal. With that, being the victor and in control becomes the main one.

Or perhaps he has grown cynical of the galaxy as it is and decides it just needs to go all together, and then start from scratch.

Like the second definition of Entropy, he gradually declines in predictability and descends into disorder.

Maybe to juxtaposition the fact that Brainiac became the main threat at the end, make him the opposite or foil to him. Rationality or logic do not serve as first-or-second influences to decisions under pressure. Emotions and his own perceived ideas do.

Speaking of Brainiac, maybe offer more of the OG Brainiac. Give us more of that smooth-voiced Corey Burton. 

Or TFA Megatron.

Seductive Bastard.

I’m sorry I have fallen for the shady-business-mafia-boss-but-morally-grey robot.

Also, the members of the legion that only get one episode focus? Give them more screen time. You can’t just introduce superman’s new adopted son Karate Kid and just not bring him for another speaking role again!

Actually, that brings me to another point.

As @spandexinspace​ pointed out, his episode is not the best, and is arguably the worst written of the whole series. Things that are issues do get brushed off to the side.

So a proposal on potential rewrite:

First, have the legion look over its current rules and what exceptions/changes they need to make.

Explore the subject of kids having to participate in these fights.

To clarify, kid shows are meant to be escapism for kids.

Shocking, I know.

So it makes sense that some characters would be the same age as the viewers. 

But while this is good representation, as you get older, you find yourself going “WHY WOULD THE ADULTS LET THEM ENDANGER THEMSELVES?!”

Kids having to fight at that age does have consequences. Batman Beyond certainly addressed it. So did Steven Universe Future.

Steven ended up being responsible for so much, that when he no longer needed to take care of things, he was unsure of who he was. And then there’s the fact he ended up with PTSD because of him having to fight so much. Then you have the fact that Greg and Rose never intended to raise him like their caretakers did... but as good as their intentions were, they still caused damage. Rose for… all the gem stuff. And look, Greg is a great dad, but not enforcing anything for Steven when he’s growing up still has it’s cost.

With Batman, he’s obviously going to do his damn best to keep kids safe, including the Robins. But sometimes, it’s not enough. He wasn’t able to keep Tim safe in the event with the Joker in Batman Beyond. Where he was held captive and tortured.

But the Batkids are never expected to resolve this stuff by themselves. Because Batman knows how much you can get screwed up as a kid. He fucking cares.

And to be fair, in most continuities I’m aware of, the other sidekicks came out pretty okay overall.

Except Jason Todd.

So my proposal?

Have Val originally with Grimbor, as a sort of Protege. But have the legion capture him, only to go “uhhh this is a child with no powers”. And Superman, being the good, wholesome paragon we all love, takes him under his wing.

In all honesty, I want Superman pulling a batdad for Karate Kid in his intro episode the whole time. That was the best part of the episode for me.

Plus after the events of “Cry Wolf”, the Legion should examine the no-killing rule. Because they do need to kill Imperiex to save the universe. But that goes against the code. But they can argue it’s a necessity. But Mar Londo is also a monster. He’s the everyday monster some of us have grown up with.

When do you need to make exceptions to kill someone?

And my final main suggestion:

Add more Mekt.

What the heck were you guys expecting? You all KNOW me by now. I LOVE MY GARBAGE BOY.

Joking aside, here’s what I would do.

Have the Chained Lightning episode pushed back, but have Mekt with Imperiex earlier. Most of us would yell “Why the heck would you join the guy whose main goal is to destroy the galaxy?!” But this is one of the easiest things to address.

Explore more of his past. Use the comic sources with him being outcast for being a solo on Winath. With that in mind, him deciding to side with Imperiex can make sense.

Why try protecting something that has done nothing but hurt you?

There’s actually a pretty good reason why he would side with Imperiex, as seen in Champions and Lightning Storm. Remember, Mekt was willing to cheat to get ahead of the sports competition he was introduced in. And also was thrilled when fighting Garth and was beating him on his own. He likes being in power.

Imperiex offers him that.

As for why Imperiex would bother with Mekt? That’s a little harder to answer. He knows that Mekt has a soft spot for his brother, and in turn sister, which proves to be the reason why the Tachyon Cannon fails. You’d think Imperiex would remove a huge fatality.

But he doesn’t.

Maybe he could hold another type of value for Mekt. Perhaps... nostalgia?

I’m still sold on the idea that they were sleeping together.

Also, give us a conclusive answer on where Mekt stands with the LSV. In the comics, he was the leader, but that role was given to Tyr in the cartoon more or less.

OK I think this has been polished enough for me to post now. What you guys think? Feel free to add on!

[zalrb]

What were your favourite childhood movies? I was rewatching the karate kid movies and the newest version is nowhere as good as the old one.

This list is kind of all over the place, haha, because some movies are movies I grew up with meant for my age group at the time and a lot of them aren’t because I was exposed to a lot of media as a kid, haha. I’m also jumping around in time 

Lion King --- I had Just Can’t Wait To Be King on repeat, I’d rewind it again and again and just sing it until I had to go to my room because my mother had enough

Aladdin --- apparently I just went around going, “I’m not a prize to be won!”

Land Before Time --- this movie is so fucking depressing but I really liked Ducky --- like to the point that the reason why I go “yepyep” is because Ducky goes “yepyepyep” and I remember when I realized that, I was like holy shit is that why all these years I go “yep yep” and my family was like, lol yes. But then as an adult I found out what happened to that child actress and that just made the movie all the more depressing 

The Breakfast Club --- I explained this yesterday I believe 

Grease --- so my mother loved/loves Grease, she knows all the songs, can play most of them on the piano and we used to live across the street from this movie theatre that played old movies and Grease was a regular so we watched it a lot 

Sixteen Candles --- I remember thinking this was so romantic as a kid. Super problematic movie tho

Titanic - ah yes, Titanic, Leonardo DiCaprio, my first celebrity love. Oh, I can’t stand this movie now, lmao

Lord of the Rings trilogy --- lmao so when the first movie came out, I was obsessed with the elves and Rivendell and I used to write my homework with swirly letters to look like elvish and my teachers complained so I had to get a talking to about it 

Love and Basketball --- first Black love story I ever saw. 

Back To The Future  1 and 2, lmao as John Mulaney pointed out, the first movie anyway is actually REALLY weird when you think about it 

Bad Boys --- I mean Martin Lawrence and Will Smith were the shit back then so I just liked watching them in a movie together

The Best Man --- THIS is funny so the 90s and early 00s saw a lot of African American movies and my mother was all about getting me to see Black people onscreen as much as I could so she took me to these movies even if it wasn’t exactly kid appropriate, she would just make sure to have a conversation with me about the movie when it ended, anyway, so when I was a kid, I didn’t really get a lot of the nuances of The Best Man but when it came out on VHS and when the soundtrack came out we got it so we watched it a lot and there’s a song by The Roots that I really like and one day I was like, I don’t know why I like this song so much and my mom was like because they play that song when you see Morris Chestnut for the first time and I think you went through puberty in the theatre when you saw him and I just diiiiiiiiiiiiiiied

As an adult, The Best Man is fucked up and I would’ve kicked Harper’s ass as well but only because what he did as a writer was a fucking dick move.

Pretty Woman --- it took me a while to realize that she was a sex worker

You’ve Got Mail --- I remember watching this in the theatre with my mom and being SO FRUSTRATED because I just didn’t understand why Tom Hanks couldn’t tell Meg Ryan the truth. 

Liar Liar --- I related to having an absentee dad who never made good on his promises but I also liked Jim Carey’s exaggerative facial expressions but I remember there’s this joke, so the whole premise is that Jim Carey didn’t show up to his son’s birthday when he said he would (relatable!) and his son was so tired of him breaking promises, he wishes that his father will never lie again but Jim Carey is a lawyer so that causes issues, lmfao, but anyway so Jim Carey can’t lie and he has sex with I think it’s his boss, I forget, but he has sex with someone and she’s like how was it? and he goes “I’ve had better” and every time that joke came on my family would CRACK UP so I kept being like “better what? GUYS WHAT DID HE HAVE BETTER OF? I DON’T GET IT” then my mom and I had a conversation, lmfao.

Goodfellas --- I remember my cousins watching this movie in the living room and I saw the scene of the gif I posted below and was like OH WHAT’S THIS and then they told me to go into the bedroom because it was too grown but it’s like they forgot there was a TV in the bedroom and I just turned it to the channel and watched it there. And the movie came on a lot on TV so I just watched it a lot by myself, lmfao.

Twin Warriors aka Tai Chi Master --- probably my favourite martial arts movie. I know there are better ones but I really resonated with this as a kid. Jet Li was a legend with my cousins. 

Fist of Legend 

Once Upon A Time in China

Romeo Must Die --- omg I played this movie ALL. THE. TIME. 

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 

Boyz N The Hood --- a really important movie in my household to the point that I was excited to be able to write a paper on it in the same Popular Cinema from the 70s to the Present class I did my Breakfast Club paper for

same with Do The Right Thing

Jumanji -- I fucking love how mean-spirited this movie is and I did appreciate it as a child too although it freaked me the fuck out 

Clueless

Home Alone - god, Kevin’s family was terrible 

Home Alone 2 --- ah the movie/scene that changed my life

House Party --- to this day I haven’t been to a house party as live as this one 

Malcolm X --- another extremely important movie in my household

Hook --- ooooh I still love this movie so much!

Scream --- I remember when this movie was THE. SHIT. Scared the fuck out of me.

Hero --- this movie was so gorgeous

Rush Hour --- I would probably hate Rush Hour now tbh but whenever I hear “Fantasy” by Mariah Carey I think of the opening scene because I was Soo Young belting to Mariah Carey in the car, it was the best part of the movie for me as a kid because I was like I DO THAT TOO but then she gets kidnapped, so....

The Mummy --- CLASSIC

Gremlins 

Hercules - DUH

The Godfather --- I rarely talk about my dad but he was very much into mob movies because he liked the way they dressed and carriedt themselves in these movies, especially in The Godfather so whenever I was with him, The Godfather was on a lot 

He was also very much into comics, particularly Batman, so even though I don’t really care for DCU/MCU or comics, I’m more likely to go to a theatre (well pre-Covid) and pay to watch a Batman movie over any other comic movie - except Black Panther which is a huge exception because these Batman movies were a pat of my childhood

yes, even Batman and Robin, I even had the soundtrack, listening to Bone Thugs N Harmony on my bunk bed and shit.

Space Jam --- I recently watched the Movie Pitch for this and it had me hollering

Lean On Me --- I have complicated feelings about this movie now but I grew up watching it and I really liked it and the older I got the more I understood what the movie was actually about

Practical Magic --- I wanted to live in that house

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone --- because it was real finally!

Armageddon -- I still love this horrible, nonsensical, illogical, terrible movie because it’s utterly fantastic and hilarious. As a child I didn’t understand this moment and why it was such a huge ask, as an adult I’m like YES. IF I SURVIVE SAVING THE WORLD I’M NOT DOING THIS, THE FUCK I LOOK LIKE?

[redhatmeg]

Kevin: I’m not afraid anymore! Do you hear me?! I’m not afraid anymore!

Creepy Neighbor that is said to kill his wife and kids: *shows up*

Kevin: I would like to retract my previous statement.

[destieldingus]

Destieldingus' SPN Rewatch: 1x01 "Pilot"

Hey, this exists to capture my thoughts after rewatching all the episodes after more than 6 years (Season 1-7)/3.5(?) years (8-10) and the ones I just recently watched for the first time (so far 11-14). It’s not super serious (except for the serious overthinking) and just meant in good fun. Here goes nothing (this is like 1.3 K words)

- First thing I notice: the clock doing weird stuff, the lights flickering and the babyphone (Azazel you’re a demon!! Just turn the damn thing off), and I have a question that I guess has been brewing in my mind for forever : Like yeah those are all those signs of supernatural beings that are close by, but when we later have Crowley and Meg and Ruby and the guys just hanging out stuff like that NEVER happens except if needed for effect. Why did Azazel have to flex his powers? If he hadn't the thing with Mary never would have happened and Sam would have just been some dumb college kid instead of an adapt hunter and would have (probably) fallen prey to Lucifer so easily. (Given that Mary wouldn't have introduced them to her livestyle, which I don’t think she would have wanted)

- What's up with all of those old-timey pictures in the hallway/staircase. Who are those people? The Campbells? The Winchesters?

- How does the gravity of being demon-glued to the ceiling work? Why isn't her blood affected?

- Sexual halloween constumes my behated

- Sam has the pic of his mom and dad shown in the bedroom at the beginning of the episode in his dorm room. Why specifically his dad? Why not also a picture of Dean? Did he steal it from John? Did he ask for it? Later in the episode he makes it clear that Mary isn’t really that important to him. This feels like a picture that would be very important to his dad, but would it be important enough for him to take with him, instead of one with his dad and Dean?

-Yeah Sam, Jess is right, where is your sexy Halloween costume?! If she has to dress up for the male gaze, you should dress up for the female gaze. How long has it been that you puked at your crush’s Halloween party [hah! watching the newer episodes already paid off]? Ten years? Get a grip and show some skin.

- Jfc that dialogue "What would I do without you?" "Crash and burn" first of all who signed that off, second of all: that was not the height of acting

- Who directed that epsiode? I'm coming for you, don't think I didn't saw the blanket "conveniently" slip off Jess' legs while Sam is fully convered

- Get the camera off her tits!!! In this house we love and respect Jess!

- Sam.. baby.. "Whatever you want to say, you can say it in front of her." What? Boy do you suffer from alcoholic memory loss from too many frat parties and forgot what kind of lifestyle your family leads? What if it had been something like "Yeah, dad got his kidney ate by a Wendigo and needs a donor one"

- What is even their timeframe for "he's been missing for too long"?? I mean I guess "hasn't been home in a few days" is more of a code phrase... Also jeez John, if you are gone for weeks, how did your sons ever learn anything from YOU when they are usually done with a case in usually a couple of days? Why are you so inefficient?

- Exposition dialogue ... I see you.

- "I can't do this alone" "Yes you can" "Well I don't want to" Dean you sappy clingy old idiot. Also typical older sibling guilt trip move, I can attest to that.

- One thing I'm genuinely wondering about is why John gave Dean the Impala. Like.. genuinely. Why?

- "All men, all the same five-mile stretch of road." Love me some girlboss ghost getting her revenge let's be real <3

- "ran it through a Goldwave" A what now? Sure you're not just saying words, babe? Also since when did you become an audio-tech? I mean good for you... but why is this never brought up again?

- Hehe, and yet Sam had a blade and equip in his room.

- What did Sam tell Jess about his family? What kind of economic background does she think Sam has, when he says "He's at the cabin"? Jess why are you such a badly developed character I want to study you.

- "Car trouble or something?" Dude, you literally just saw her glitch, you should be calling IT support.

- This is literally reverse real life serial killer dynamics (perp female, victims male, punished for sexual desire) with this ghost and I am here for it. Get his ass.

- Dude she clearly has problems with loading her texture. Call the support hotline!!!

- Everything I know about US rest stops I know from supernatural and I'm actually okay with that <3

- Dean.. do you even have an up-to-date pic of Sam for your fake badges?

- Dean... you are literally in your street clothes. WHY do you think noone would clock you for some punk kid running around playing Marshal?

- Ohh god more cringe exposition dialogue "I lIkE yOuR NeCkLace", also Sam why are you talking to her about this? For what reason? Do you actually think you're gonna bond with her over your nerd knowledge? You literally never speak to her again in the entire show.

- Love the whole "You're too old to know how to use the computer search" vibe

- Huh, maybe the whole "gotta be back by Monday" finally gave them the motivational kick to stop slacking when they go hunting and now it's not three weeks anymore but three days. Streamlining the case solving.

- "The things you've done" Idk, killing supernatural monsters that pose a threat to the general population does not really raise any specific red flags with me?

- "Mom's gone, and she isn't coming back." Oh, sweet summer child, you just wait 12 seasons. Can't wait for the family therapy episode. Also Dean you are so a Mama's son, I love this so much.

-Dean you really are lucky you didn't just straight up break your legs jumping off that bridge or some shit. Imagine the rest of the episode.

- Nice mudmask. This the secret to your eternal good looks?

- Is that a... Geiger-counter on John's bed? SPN really missed an opportunity to have some radioactivity related angst now that I think about it.

- Oh Dean you dumbass. Good thing I love you. Why are you so happy to be arrested. When you learned that you can't let out your teenage-rebellious streak against your father, did you start picking other authority figures?

- Dudes how much trash do you have lying on the dashboard. Why are you treating Baby like this, this is shameful!

- Well Sammyboy, if you're not gonna take her home, a woman has to take the wheel into her own hands, eh, tu comprends?

- Dang, boys, you really have to work on your quick thinking.

- Can we also talk about how horribly fake-ripped her nightgown is?

- "So this is where she drowned her kids." Dean you're looking at the CARPET. I mean you definitely took a few blows to your head in your life, but that's a new low even for you. [Would it have been so hard for him to look up at the ceiling for a second to indicate that it was upstairs? Direction, I'm speaking to you.]

- "What were you thinking, shooting Casper in the face, you freak?" Actually, good question Sam. Also more important question why DID it work? It IS a ghost after all, isn't it?

- Screw up your car? Dean, US houses are nothing but breaky wood, try a stone wall, that's gonna bang up your car alright.

- Dean don't think I didn't notice your pouty sad face that Sam didn't want to go with you.

- Sam.. how long does your shower take to get warm? That's not very environmentally friendly, isn’t Stanford in like California or something? Dude, save water.

- How did Dean notice so fast that something was wrong...

My resumée: dang these really were the old days... I’m not gonna blame them for being inconsistent with this episode later on re: lore tho. Besides I’m greatly elated that later episodes actually did pick up on the recurring mentions of Sam disliking Halloween. I did enjoy however that there were a few thoughtprovoking [nitpickable] details.

[natewantstotumbler]

About Ryan Haywood

I honestly just have 1000 thoughts going on in my head, and I need to rant about this. About everything going on with Ryan. I’m not going to explain the situation because I simply do not have the energy to do it. There’s plenty of other sources out there to explain what happened. I started watching Achievement Hunter content about 8 years ago. It seems wild to me, that they’ve been a part of my life for almost an entire decade. I stopped watching for a while in 2015 when Ray left. I just didn’t know how to cope with that, and I stopped watching.

About a year later, in 2016 I was in college aka one of the worst times of my life. I was depressed, lonely and fighting some horrible thoughts. I don’t know why, but I started watching X-Ray and Vav. It was then that my love for AH was reignited and I’ve been watching consistently ever since. Though Michael was originally my favorite, it had quickly become Ryan when I started watching them again.  For the four years since then, I’ve watched AH content when I was depressed, alone, sucidal and just completely broken. When i got my heart broken two times in those 4 years, AH was there. When I was crippled by depressing thoughts, AH was there. Ryan and the gang would always make me laugh.  They helped me get through my work days, watching the newest Let’s Play Minecraft during my lunch breaks and when I got home. Being so excited every Friday. I looked to Ryan as a source of inspiration, he always seems so human and so compassionate.  Then this happened. When I saw the rumors start to circulate I didn’t want to believe it, I didn’t believe it. Then Ryan admitted to it and it completely broke me. I cried, trying to face the future and the present. I sat there thinking, why him? Why did it have to be Ryan, why did he have to do that? Why couldn’t he have just been the person we all thought he was. I found myself wanting to go back to literally any other day, to the days of the Mad King, to the days of Ryan the ____ Guy. I have so many wonderful memories of him, I’ve interacted with him on stream and given money to him. I could rewatch so many AH videos so many times, but now i feel like those videos have been tainted. 400+ episodes of Let’s Play Minecraft, Hitman, Criminal Masterminds, Let’s Play 3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures. So many of the moments that made me laugh to the point of tears are now soiled. How can I go back and rewatch them now? Knowing what he did, wondering how much of the personality he showed to us was a lie. How much of his personality was an act, a façade

I know very well that I never met Ryan, he has no idea who I am but I know I’m not alone. 

It’s so hard for me to hate him, it’s so hard for me to not wonder if he’s doing okay. I hate this so much. I so badly wish I could just wake up and realize this was all some fucked up dream. 

My heart hurts so much Laurie, I know the pain of cheating but I can’t imagine millions of people knowing about it, knowing exactly what your husband did behind your back. My heart hurts for Eli and Livvy, wondering how this will affect them growing up. The internet is forever. My heart goes out to the other members of Achievement Hunters as well as Meg. Those who called Ryan their coworker, their friend, their family member. The ones who have to say goodbye to him because of his stupid actions. I know that Michael, Jeremy, Trevor, Lindsay, Fiona, Steffie, Meg and Jackie have all tweeted about this, I hope they’re able to recover.  Achievement Hunter has to rebuild, and we know this. This is a huge blow, this isn’t like Ray leaving to go streaming. This is betrayal, and a damage to the channel. I know they will come back from this, I personally need to take a break from their content to adjust to these changes, but I will be back.  This is just a wall of text but frankly I just needed to vent about this situation because it’s been clouding my thoughts. I love Achievement Hunter so much, and we all have to move on knowing that Ryan will never come back to content. He made his choice and now so many people have to live with this. 

[mamusings]

Supernatural Season 1 Thoughts

So I'm rewatching mainly to distract myself from the dogs breakfast the show has descended into. But also because my feelings about the show as a whole are decidedly mixed. I come to it as a buffy fan. I've always been curious about spn as a successor show to buffy, but only watched thr first 13 seasons in 2020. Blame lockdown.

Anyway s1. Blinding start, blinding finish. But the middle is just too many MOTW episodes without enough season arc development. I keep wondering who the show is for. It feels aesthetically very male. Lots of blood, guns and violence. Well-realised horror feel - although I think it's hard to really feel fear when you dont particularly care about who might die. It's only when you threaten a major character death that things hit harder. Also the genuflecting to realism by drawing on urban myths feels like something for stereotypically 'male' rather than 'female'. Probably reflects my preferences that I was never to into the MOTW format some buffy fans loved and that I was always more interested in the story telling than realism or even consistency. Monsters as metaphors works better for me. But Spn is a much more cloistered universe. Two guys and their absent father is what s1 is about. But it dits weirdly between being comfort viewing and needing attention. There's much that starts to feel formulaic with MOTW episodes: Impala on the road scene, some rock music, an opener that gives you a new mystery and people to go with it blah blah. You can practically set your watch by the final denouement happening in the final 8 mins. It feels like the show is diligently checking off every myth and monster going which gets tedious. I found the need for setting up yet another family in danger was something that gets hard to care about. "Oh look a couple, someone's gonna die, shall I fast forward until sam and dean show up." And yet there are some interesting undercutting of the white working class vibe the show has. Two that stand out to me are: the 'female gazing' of the camera work off Sam and Dean. There's a lot of panning - are we getting in the boys with the guns and hardware and then offering up the handsome male bodies for women? I felt a little cheap, but they they are v cute. The other is having a black/bi racial woman play Dean's only serious love interest. The ghost truck thing is terrible but putting attitudes to race at the centre of this particular storyline was intriguing. Perhaps a counter balance to the overall wwc feel of things. (Full disclosure I am a black woman and I enjoyed seeing this - even tho I did have several moments of wondering was the predominant female look so uniform back then. All the girls have the same build (and did we all wear such low rise jeans?) plus long, wavy/curly hair...except Meg who basically has Sam's hairstyle ha ha)

What's impressive? The first few episodes give us a cluster of core lines: bitch/jerk, no chick flick moments, and the sibling dynamic This show hits its stride right in the pilot and wendigo is still one of the scarier episodes. Thats a really good opening shot imo.

It's no surprise that what's really riveting is Sam and Dean. But on rewatching I saw a lot more on why this is so interesting. Basically when the characters are introduced you first get Sam. He's your archetypal nice guy whis hot everything though for him. Stanford, girlfriend, friends, great test score but also and crucially hes likeable. Then you get Dean and hes introduced as a dick. Breaks in, wrestles Sam, comes on to/is sleazy with Sams gf. So cocky bad boy: check.

In the pilot dean is the annoying big brother to a t. So they set up two contrasting personalities. Dean is disrespectful to cops, Sam is embarrassed by it. Dean is into hunting, Sam is unwillingly persuaded. Dean is insensitive, Sam kinder and sweet. Dean plays dumb, Sam's the academic achiever. But what we witness over the course of the season essentially reverses this. Sam's the real rebel defying his father, Dean the obedient son. Dean gets a lot of scenes showing him make swift emotional connections esp with children or people in caretaker roles. Dean's very adult 'I'm 26 of course I go on hunts alone' is unmasked by the fact he gets Sam to help him because hes lonely. And Dean (often clumsily) tries to help Sam move on about Jess and open up about his nightmares. While the explicit dialogue casts Sam as the geeky loser brother what we see in this season is that the loser is actually Dean. Sam has friends, Sam has a relationship, Sam has a life he wants to get back to. Dean has no one and some of the hardest emotional hits this season are when his mask is lifted to show us just that. For instance shape shifter Dean voices his jealousy in Skin. Also Azazel taunts Dean about how he needs Sam and John in a way that they dont need him.

The closing episodes really bring some of these contrasts home. Dead Mans Blood gives us a great bonding scene between Sam and John, for me that's a moment where it falls into place that they so much in common that it leaves Dean on the outside. They both loved women they lost to a demon. For both of them (at this stage) the mission, as in killing this demon, matters more than family. Its Dean who constantly prioritises family, even while his family deprioritise him. Both Sam in Salvation and John in Devils Trap put sacrificing themselves to kill the demon as their first priority. Whereas Dean consistently argues for family, first persuading John that they are stronger together, then telling Sam that the three of us 'is all I have' in Salvation. The point gets hammered home in Devils Trap where Dean says (in case the stupid viewer missed it "you and Dad are a lot more alike..cant wait to sacrifice yourselves, but I'm going to be the one to bury you").

Much of the rest of the relationship development is about showing us the partnership Sam and Dean are developing. You see increasing ease in working together - maybe most cliched in how they toss weapons back and forth in Hell House. Plus that interesting sibling dynamic when you love someone and find them intensely annoying that feels enjoyable even if your own sibling relationship is nothing like it.

But what's interesting is that while Dean's character is revealed throughout the season. You see through the episodes the difference between his Dean presents himself and hiw he is, but dean doesn't change. Hes immature and emotionally driven I'd also savvy and brave. Its Sam who changes. Not in how he is, but in his priorities. Sam realises the good bit about Dean among the stuff that irritates him. But most importantly the final episode shows us Sam moving from thinking the mission is what matters just like John. To thinking his family matters more. He doesnt shoot Azazel inside John and when John berates him for it his look at the bloodied-up Dean in the rearview mirror speaks volumes.

It's all the more striking because thus argument has been the core dilemma for the last 3 episodes. It's also the crux of how Dean, for all his obedience, sees himself as falling short of who his father wants him to be. He cant turn his heart off. Its Dean who calls his dad sounding like a tearful little boy in Home. It's when John approves of him making the heart choice and using the colt to save Sam, that Dean realises it's not his father but Azazel speaking. I find that painful to watch it's been so well set up. You get lots of preview of Dean really wanting approval and when it finally comes and you're all ahh fsmily bonding, Dean puts it together and goes you're not my father. Ouch.

Absent fathers and eventually I guess an absent God is a big spn theme. So there is something to say for looking at it in this season. John's absence is the driver of the whole season. But it's also the foundation stone of both Sam and Dean's character. What we get most of in s1 is a sense of the impact of his fathers absence on Dean. The childhood neglect, but also the absence of approval. My European background always makes it jarring when children address their father as sir so I hope I'm not over reading this. When John gets back the way it emasculates Dean is jarring. The jumping to attention with the yessirs and the following orders is such a distance from the cocky law breaker. Its interesting that the first scenes in which I recall the boys speaking in unison are these yessirs. But the scene I remember most is a trivial one, Dean offers John a machete out of Babys messy looking trunk - hes already been pulled up by dad for inadequate car maintenance. But John pulls a bigger, better, cleaner machete out of his high spec truck - Dead Mans Blood. Sums it up for me. Dean is so eager for approval, his father withholds it so casually. Sam is less like this, because he had Dean to parent him however ineptly. Sam did not have a hoid parent in Dean, but Dean showed up. Sam starts to make that realisation in season 1 and there are a few thank you moments. Contrast Dean's only outburst against his father when hes admonished to call when in trouble. He takes a leaf out of Sam's book and notes that they did call in Lawrence and they called when Dean was dying in Faith, hes angry and rightly so. John didn't show. But its interesting that Dean's fight with John sounds like a child fighting with a parent. It even ends with 'I dont care for your tone' from John even as he accepts Dean's point. Constrast Sam and John who have a much deeper ongoing disagreement. But Sam fights his father from an adult position. He's not looking for approval or acceptance, Sam claims his ground, argues his point. Dean still just needs to be loved.

But as well as the impact of the absent parent there is also having grown beyond the parent. I feel like the final few episodes show us that 'the boys' have surpassed their father. John's fake colt idea is lame and Dean calls it. By contrast the devils trap at Bobby's to catch Meg feels like a moment of brilliance particularly as the trap is sprung on the viewer so we feel surprised too.. Sure they call in help from Bobby, but what they do is well planned and they pull it off. And calling in helo when you need it us grown up.

Theres an element of fate vs character exploration when it comes to Sam and Dean. What happens to Sam is fate. It's not related to how he is or how he behaves. We find that out more fully soon. Whereas what happend to Dean relates to his character. IMO Dean actually has the option of walking away from hunting that Sam tried to exercise. Unlike Sam, hunting wouldn't have pursued Dean by killing his girlfriend. But Dean's character means he doesnt chose to walk away because family is important to him, in a way that it isn't for Sam until the end of this season. Its interesting that Sam perceives of himself as having choices he doesn't have. Whereas Dean sees himself as having no choice, when in fact he does. But I guess we don't know that yet so maybe the argument doesn't work?

#supernatural #sam #dean #winchester

[watchingspnagain]

Rewatching Shadow

Welcome to “Demons for Dummies: A Supernatural Rewatch Blog” with Lor and Mace!

 Up today, s1e16: Shadow

 Something kills a young woman inside her locked apartment—no forced entry, no way anything could get in. Sam and Dean show up to investigate (in some super spiffy coveralls), and Dean does some pretty sharp pattern recognition to put them on the track of the monster responsible. Meanwhile, they run into Meg in a random bar, and Sam is sus. Eventually they discover Meg is summoning some dark stuff, reunite with John (a happyish but charged encounter), and get sliced and diced by the monster. John then dictates that he and the boys must go their separate ways because it will be safer. Dean agrees. Sammy is not happy.

 Below is a log of our real-time reactions as we watched. Remember that there may be spoilers for any part of SPN’s 15-season run here.  Note also that the nature of our conversation is adult and thus it may contain adult language and themes.

 [and we begin:]

 Lor:

 snork the editing there

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

 this is so atmospheric and I just want to BEG her not to walk home alone this late at night

Mace:

 right?!

or tell her to just follow the spiders if she has questions

 Lor:

 HAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA

if she wanted to find out some... stuff

 Mace:

 exactly. so subtle, that Hagrid

 Lor:

 lololol

 TURN ON THE LIGHTS

 Mace:

 SNORK! YES

 Lor:

 turn them all on who DOES THIS?

 Mace:

 it's all part of her punk/goth vibe, man

 Lor:

 lolol

 welp now she has a splatter vibe

 Mace:

 snork

 Lor:

 NGGGGG the blue coveralls

 Mace:

 YAAAS

 Dean, you ARE a HS drama dork

 Lor:

 RIGHT?

 "about as useful as boobs on a man" omg

 Mace:

 you know I really don't like weapons and yet the first thing I thought of when this one started is, "Oh, I think this one has a Dean Cleaning Weapons scene!"

 Lor:

 LOL

my first thought was "I think this is one of the ones where Dean gets to be super smarty"

 they put their real names on the coveralls I cannot

 Mace:

 HA!

 "knock yourself out" woman, do NOT encourage Sammy because it WILL happen

 Lor:

 HAAHAHAHAHAHA

 YAS it is this one. this bit with the masking tape and the pattern

 Mace:

YES

 Lor:

 lololol Dean

 Mace:

 the little smile when he holds up the number!

 Lor:

 YES

too adorable

 Mace:

 yep

 I'm chagrined to say that I suspect early Dean's type of flirting would never have worked on me. His later, grumpy persona would do it in a heartbeat, though

 Lor:

Dean's grumpy bit would work IMMEDIATELY

I would have been oblivious to the early flirting. I LITERALLY would be like "why is the adorable dude like this?"

 Mace:

EXACTLY. I would have been HIGHLY skeptical of his honesty

 Lor:

LOL I wouldn't even have been skeptical. just confused

 MEG

 Mace:

 Ugh Meg

 Lor:

 what is so annoying about her?

 lololol Sam's who?

 Mace:

 Ha!

YES

 Lor:

 adorable Sam getting all the info he needs

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

 "were you bitching about me to some chick?"

oh Dean, honey

 Mace:

 how many times do they actually say the word "supernatural" on this show, I wonder?

 Lor:

 not much I don't think

 Mace:

 (also, this is not the episode I thought it was)

 Lor:

 (oo, what episode did you think it was?)

 Mace:

(the one with whozit trying to be a hunter and sneaking out of her mom's bar (I can't remember her name either) and mooning over Dean)

  Lor:

 (oh, Jo?)

 Mace:

 (yes)

 Lor:

 (aahh)

 Mace:

 (but we haven't even met them yet right? I get so confused)

 Lor:

 (yeah, I think that's not till S2?)

 "poetry reading, or whatever it is you do"

 Mace:

 HA!

 "bite me" "bite her!"

 Lor:

 LOLOLOLOLOL

 Dean not telling Sam what the last book is he read...

 Mace:

 yeah because it was How to Heal Your Possibly-Demon-Seed Brother for Dummies

 Lor:

HAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

 Mace:

 Aw, Sammy trying not to look but not doing a great job

 Lor:

 haahahahaha

 Mace:

 Come ON, Sammy, this is clearly a TRAP

 Lor:

Sammy is sus though, surely

 Mace:

 I guess that's why he's climbing the elevator shaft, yeah

 Lor:

oooo, a weird cup and an altar

probs fine

 Mace:

 yeah

 Lor:

 it is interesting that we already know she's shady and at least demon-adjacent before this

 Mace:

 yeah

 Lor:

 so, like, this is all about Sam finding out

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

 TALKING TOGETHER

 Mace:

 HA!

 "Sammy's got a thing for bad girls"

Shall we talk about how you're going to have a summer of love with the King of Hell, Dean?

 Lor:

 HAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

omg

YES

 Mace:

 I LOVE that shirt on Dean

 Lor:

 YES

 Lor:

 Sammy working out his shoulder after he puts the bag down

 Mace:

 YAS

 Lor:

 oh Dean

 Mace:

 yeah

 Lor:

 "yeah, I don't want you to leave the second this thing's over, Sam"

oooof, the leaning on the dresser

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

 all he wants is his family I CANNOT

 Mace:

 right? my god, he's so insecure, the poor rabbit

 Lor:

 oooof that determined petulant face Dean makes when Sam says he's gonna have to let him go his own way

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

 "well that didn't work out like I planned"

 Mace:

 HA!

 Lor:

 I LOVE the shadow attacks in this epsiode

 Mace:

 YES

 Lor:

 clever and thematically relevant

 Mace:

 YES

 the fact that Sam is the one who figures out it's a trap for John is so interesting

 Lor:

 YES

 no he doesn't

he's completely obsessed with finding Mary's killer. he's only gonna show up bc Dean said they thought they had a lead on it

 Mace:

 YEP

 Ha! Dean still feels left out

 Lor:

LOL

 so weird for Sam to be the one getting assaulted like this

 Mace:

 the show hasn't completely shifted to being about Dean yet maybe

 Lor:

 yeah

 SAM

SO CLEVER

 Mace:

 YES

 wow the looks on both their faces when they see John

 Lor:

 RIGHT?

and the look on Dean's face when he's hugging him

I NEED him to have someone not abusive to hug him

 Mace:

 yeah

 Lor:

 and the way they "yes sir" him

 Mace:

 yep that burns my biscuits

 Lor:

 YEP

because it ISN'T the way that southerners (and maybe some midwesterners? I don't know about that) sir and ma'am their parents. it's a very different thing

 Mace:

 yeah

 that shot with Sam and John hugging and Dean looking on is fantastic

 Lor:

 YES

 Dean being practically in tears because they are making up. I can't

 Mace:

 SMARTY SAMMY

 Lor:

 YES

 Mace:

 "we almost got Dad killed in there" omg Dean

 Lor:

 oh DEAN

 he blames himself I CANNOT

 fall down a manhole and disappear, John

 Mace:

 yes, John, do that, nowish

 Lor:

 THEIR FACES

 Mace:

 YES

and John's smug bitch-ass face

 Lor:

 the grief and pain and almost tears and WITH THE BLOOD

 UG

 "Be careful, boys" because I'm sure not gonna help you out

 Mace:

 oh RIGHT that whole thing about them not showing realistic damage unless they're also super emotionally damaged

 Lor:

 YESYESYES

 Mace:

 is this the first time we see them this torn up, physically?

 Lor:

 i think it may be

 [after the episode ended:]

Lor:

it's interesting to me how much of what is awful about John is things you have to glean from what the boys say about their past and things you kind of have to think about. like, he's not actually particularly un-good in this episode? but we KNOW that he was an abusive jerk. which feels kind of realistic for a lot of familial abuse. it doesn't necessarily look so bad from the outside. I wonder if the show knows it's doing that

 Mace:

 Agreed. But I deeply suspect it was not on purpose. I love this show, but it doesn't seem sophisticated in that particular way

 Lor:

 yeah, agree. I don't think it's on purpose. also, it's possible that some of the writers were doing it on purpose and some weren’t, like in small things.

[pinelife3]

Sleepless in Seattle

I rewatched Sleepless in Seattle recently on a plane, and now I’ve crawled out of my cave to declare: this movie is not romantic!

Directed by Nora Ephron, Sleepless in Seattle, is regarded as part of the canon of great rom-coms. Ephron and Rob Reiner (who actually appears in Sleepless in Seattle with a great bit about tiramisu) are kind of the big-dogs of rom-coms in that people still talk about the films they made 20+ years ago (some together, some separately):

The Princess Bride

When Harry Met Sally

Sleepless in Seattle

You’ve Got Mail

Rom-coms are tricky to define - for example, is Shakespeare in Love a rom-com? There is romance and comedy, but the lovers are separated at the end. What about Top Gun? There are iconic romantic scenes and the lovers do end up together, but the love is really a conciliatory prize (the real prize is being the best at flying) and the romance is more of a B or C plot in the film, so Top Gun probably doesn’t qualify. People talk about rom-coms as having to posses certain tropes - for example:

A neurotic, highly mannered protagonist (ideally played by Meg Ryan or Hugh Grant)

An argument featuring dramatic irony, where the audience knows more than the characters and sees their misunderstanding unfold

A grand final gesture to win a lover back after a stupid misunderstanding: a last-minute dash to the airport, a last minute dash to a new year’s eve party, a last minute dash to the Empire State Building

But for our purposes, let’s say a rom-com is anything that:

Places the romantic plot at the core of its film AND

Has a happy ending (i.e. the lovers are together at the end) AND

Features genuine attempts at humour along the way. 

LOTR features a romance plot, but there’s a lot of other stuff going on (something about a ring?!), therefore it’s not a rom-com. Same deal with Bridesmaids. I would classify Superbad as a kind of rom-com because most actions taken by the protagonists are to secure love (or at least sex) from the girls they like. The English Patient? Romantic and HILARIOUS but the lovers aren’t together in the end.

So does Sleepless in Seattle qualify as a rom-com?

Yes, the whole point of the movie is to get Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks together. This plot dominates the film - but is it romantic? More on this to follow.

Yes, in the world of the film, a happy ending is secured because Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan are together

Yes, there are some laughs along the way. Mostly at the expense of poor Bill Pullman who is playing a man with severe allergies. There is also some precocious-child related humour

Back to point one: I contend that the ‘romantic plot’ in Sleepless in Seattle is actually anti-romantic. In fact, there are two romance plot lines (both of which fail to be romantic) because this bitch is engaged to another man throughout the ‘romance’ with Tom Hanks.

Before we get into that though I have another major gripe: at the start of the film, Meg Ryan and her fiancé (Bill Pullman) leave home together to drive to a family Christmas lunch. They leave the same location at the same time and are heading to the same location - no stops along the way. But for some reason they take separate cars. The film provides no reasoning for the separate cars. It is patently odd and really bothers me.

Let’s take a look at the script:

________________________________________________

EXT. BALTIMORE SUN BUILDING - LATE AFTERNOON - CHRISTMAS EVE

As Annie [Meg Ryan] comes out of the newspaper building with WALTER JACKSON [Bill Pullman], a tall, handsome man who wears a hat. They're carrying an armful of Christmas presents. They're walking toward the parking lot.

WALTER

The short one with black hair  is your cousin Irene --

ANNIE

-- who's married to --

WALTER

Harold, who ran away with his secretary but came back --

ANNIE

-- because Irene threatened to put the dog to sleep if he didn't --

WALTER

And your brother Tom is a psychology professor and is married to...Betsy --

ANNIE

-- who is the most competitive woman in the world --

They put the presents in the backs of their two cars and pull out together.

EXT. A HOUSE IN BALTIMORE SUBURBS - NIGHT

Christmas lights twinkling as the two cars pull up in front of a comfortable upper middle-class house and park their cars. They get out assembling presents.

________________________________________________

This whole thing with the two cars was scripted - and even in the script it’s unexplained. My suspicion is that this just a device to get her in the car alone later so she can hear Tom Hanks on the radio - and thereby fall in love with him. This is LAZY writing. Why not just write that she had a premonition and saw a wonderful widow in Seattle and knew that they should be together. That would make about as much sense as the separate cars.

People criticise rom-coms for having unrealistic premises. For example: Last Christmas, in which a woman hangs out with the ghost of a man who gave her his heart - via transplant - the previous year. A ridiculous premise made unbearably kitsch because of the connection to the WHAM song. But honestly that makes about as much sense as an engaged couple taking separate cars for no reason.

Allow that gaping goatse of a plot hole to set the scene for the other major problem with this film: our romantic heroine is already engaged. Engaged to a man she finds boring. She remains engaged to this poor guy throughout her infatuation and pursuit of Tom Hanks. She lives with this guy, sleeps with him, plans her wedding with him: all while she is falling in love with Tom Hanks. She remains engaged until the final 10 minutes of the film when she finally dumps him. She keeps telling this poor guy she loves him. It’s evil. Can you imagine what /r/relationships would say about someone who behaved this way? This is an emotional affair.

As much as rom-coms celebrate the pursuit of love and marriage, they also caution against bad or inadequate love: it is not romantic to settle. A classic example of this is Charlotte Lucas in Pride & Prejudice: she marries the ridiculous Mr Collins to secure her future and avoid spinsterhood - but she doesn’t love him and won’t ever love him because she doesn’t respect him. Readers in Austen’s time may have been more sympathetic to Charlotte’s decision since the nature of marriage was quite different back then and spinsterhood was a seriously undesirable outcome, but contemporary audiences commonly interpret Charlotte settling for Mr Collins as a weakness of character. That decision and her life with Mr Collins only serve to reflect further radiance on Elizabeth Bennet: wistful, bitey, beautiful, beloved for centuries. That’s why no one writes fan fiction about Charlotte Lucas. 

So, in Sleepless in Seattle, the audience sees that Meg Ryan is settling for the wrong guy. This is communicated to us primarily through the visual gags around Bill Pullman’s allergies: he uses a huge number of tissues, he’s allergic to everything from strawberries to bees, he has a special respirator machine to help him sleep. This guy can’t get the girl! He can’t even breath properly. It��s clearly isn’t meant to work out between them. No, no this won’t do at all. 

What is the function of the unsuitable fiancé as a plot device? Why couldn’t this be a romance between two single people? Is it to make her cross-country pursuit seem more whimsical and fun? If it to demonstrate that she can get a guy? I actually think it’s meant to create stakes: it’s so she has something to hold her back from ‘following her heart’. This is a way of adding tension so she’s risking something (normalcy, comfort) by making the last minute dash to the Empire State Building to meet Hanks (who represents the possibility of windswept romance). Never mind that they’ve never actually spoken to each other. He’s a single parent? Um sexy! He’s a widow? Swoon. Seattle is rainy? I’m already wet.

If it’s important to the plot that she is already in a couple when she falls for Hanks, and that she casts aside an unsatisfying relationship for the mere possibility of passionate excitement, then we have had it wrong all along: the grand romantic gesture of Sleepless in Seattle is Meg Ryan dumping her fiancé. Forget the Empire State Building. It’s her telling him that she’s had an emotional affair. It’s her taking off her engagement ring. It’s her blaming him for being boring rather than working on their relationship. It’s her leaving him sat in that restaurant alone so she can go and pursue a stranger.  

This movie is not romantic. 

[luiletulip]

Little Women.

I’ve always wondered what my purpose in life is.

What does it have to do with the things I like? Are we born into this world equipped with passion, interest, talents to fulfill our purpose? Or are we simply lying to ourselves, thinking we might actually have meaning to live? 

Faith tells me it’s the first option, but most times my darker side whispers and believes it’s the latter.

I rewatched Little Women last night. I’ve always been fond of the book, as well as the 1994 movie starring Winona Ryder. However, the one I watched last night was the modernized version that premiered last year in 2018. 

I’m surprised at just how many Little Women movies there are, seeing that they’re going to be releasing another one this December, and well, where was I going with this? I had a story to tell.

Ah yes.

Little Women.

Out of the four March sisters, Beth has always been my favorite.

Growing up I didn’t really have a specific reason as to why I find her the best sister other than, “She’s so kind, so gentle,” (as I would tell my mama). My mama was more of a Jo fan, she says she sees herself in Jo March one way or another. 

This got little Luika thinking, “Which March sister am I most similar to?” 

Obviously, it wouldn’t be Beth, no matter how much I hoped I would be. She was basically an angel, and I am not that kind, patient, supportive sister I wish to be if I’m being honest.

I’ve always thought that if Beth was out of the options, then perhaps the best choice would be Meg? 

I tried identifying with her in my teenage years in a sense that I too wanted a family, I too wanted to fit in, I too wanted to live a simple life. I wanted to value tradition, home, and everything else that would fit perfectly in our society. 

Only to later find out (as I matured and grow and heal) that I couldn’t, I wouldn’t want to live a life like Meg’s.

There’s nothing wrong with it, obviously. It’s a beautiful dream to have a family. It’s a wonderful thing to fit in and be accepted. It’s all good, all valid. I used to think it was all I’ve ever needed and wanted as well, which is why I sided with Meg all those years every time I watched the scene where Jo confronted her about her life choices. 

In a way, I still do, the way Jo forced her opinions and values on her sister wasn’t the right thing, but I’ll admit that now I somehow do understand where Jo is coming from. 

Could it be because I feel the same way?

I’m a dreamer. There’s no one in my life (if they know me really well) who would say otherwise. I’ve always been, and most probably always be a dreamer.

When I was in the ninth grade, I’ve mapped out my life in the happiest, “quirkiest” way I wished to live. Owning a beautiful house by the beach? Happily married to the love of my life? Living lavishly off my art and writing? Having adorable twins at the age of 26? 

Now that I’ve reached 26 years of age, all I could say to myself was, “Dude for real, what were you thinking.” 

In short, I felt like current me was in a way criticizing ninth grade me the way Jo did to Meg. But there’s nothing wrong with Meg’s dream (or mine back in ninth grade)! Nothing wrong at all. It just wasn’t my dream, at least not anymore.

The more I grow (mentally and spiritually as well as physically) the more I start to accept myself; my flaws, my thoughts, my feelings, my struggles, my strengths, my faith, and the more I start to become myself.

See, I have this tendency to please people. I’m a people pleaser. It’s not even about making people like me, it’s more about having people not disappointed in me. 

As good as this tendency might be in certain times (like when it motivates me to do better in everything I do or putting others first in decisions always) it is just as toxic when I have no control over it.

And so I do believe that ninth grade me, trying so hard to fit in and conform into what my friends, family, and society wants me to be, buried my bigger dreams, because younger me back then had huge plans of saving the world. Literally.

There was a shift in my heart, and even if it sounds fake, I really do still remember the feeling.

As a child, I was imaginative, sensitive, and already overthinking things. You can most definitely confirm this with my mama who noticed this first. 

She told me I’ve always been a future-oriented kid, telling her, “When I grow up… Later in the future… A few years from now… Once I’m able to… Older me would…” and all those kinds of talks.

My mama, a person who also loves to talk about the future, saw a little bit of herself in me, but she added, “You were already so idealistic about things. You were a kid. You didn’t need to be, but you were.” 

I suppose she referred to where I started talking about changing the world for the better and saving people at a young age.

Not here to praise my “idealistic” and “unique” personality as a child (because I know I’m not alone, there are so many children out there who think this way) but to show that I was born with this kind of personality. 

I grew to be an idealist, a dreamer.

Back to discussing the shift in heart and burying my “bigger” dreams.

I thought I just “grew out of it” and began to accept reality, when in truth, I was just adapting and changing myself, accommodating to society. 

The need and want to fit in was so strong in me that I remember getting nervous every time my school would make us take personality tests. I tried so hard to score a Sanguine, a type I believed to be popular and well-liked.

But as I was taking the test, halfway through I realized that I can’t lie to myself. This isn’t who I was. I’m not the energetic and sociable Sanguine I wanted to be. Nor am I the strong and confident Choleric I wish I was. I stopped halfway and decided to just be honest. I got an invalid result.

Curious me began to learn more about these personality-related things, and it took me a couple of years to finally settle and accept myself as a Melancholic-Phlegmatic.

Not the most exciting type or combination, I guess, but it’s me.

Now that we’ve established that about my personality, I’ll bring this back to Little Women.

Jo March. I’m not much like her. I’m not assertive, not as brave to speak up my mind, and not confident in myself as she is. I am, however, as passionate and as idealistic as this character . . . and I find myself relating to her a little more than ever.

I came to understand that it’s okay for me to dream big, to feel like I have a different purpose, a different path than what the general public does. It doesn’t make me “special” or “weird” or “unique”. It just makes me, me.

Studying MBTI and personality traits (some psychology in general too) helped me see that no one is the same in any way. Alike, maybe, but never the exact same. 

Everyone is different.

Everyone has their own character, their own dreams, goals, struggles, pain, strengths, weaknesses, stories, motives, nature, nurture . . . I can go on and on.

The point is that I think no one should change to fit in. Because sure, we’ll fit in in some cases, but are we ever truly who we are? 

My friends who are in the MBTI community online (yes, there is such a thing) have this “joke” where we say, “We live in an extroverted world, where everything is trusted in senses.” 

Basically, if you’re an introverted intuitive, you’re screwed. Great.

Some might embrace the weirdness, having a sense of pride being “different” and “unique” and “special”, some others (like me) feel burdened. 

Feeling like you don’t truly belong to any social group or even in this world isn’t a pleasant feeling for me personally. Having to shift and change and morph into someone different other than my true self is uncomfortable.

I’m not saying I change a good 180, but I’ll admit I tweak my actions and behavior here and there to adapt to the person I’m with. I’m only ever truly myself when I’m alone. That shouldn’t be the case. My people-pleasing tendency gets the best of me most times.

You shouldn’t change your personality to fit in. Not saying change is bad, in fact, change is very good depending on what your motive is. 

So I guess what I’m saying is that if there is change, it shouldn’t be for society, it would be best to change for the better. The better version of ourselves. For ourselves.

Changing for the better is also known as growth, healing. 

I’m really trying to do this, taking it one day at a time, finding my purpose in life. Which is it again? Wait, I’m back to square one with the whole life purpose and all. 

I guess to summarize: 

I feel like I’ve gotten to know myself better through learning about personalities, I’ve accepted the way I am and now learning to better myself to fulfill my life purpose, in which I have always thought to be something else. 

I feel like I’m not made to walk down the road most people go, not in the pace society sets for me, but that’s the thing: I shouldn’t. 

I should go in the pace God set for me, fulfilling the purpose He has for me, and being my true self that He has created me to be.

Sigh.

This post isn’t even about Little Women anymore. It’s a great book, please read it if you haven’t.

Anyway, yes. 

This is just a little rambling, a little journaling for me to sort out some of my thoughts. It may not reach anyone, but I’m glad I did it. I’d love for it to be some sort of help or comfort to anyone reading this, but most importantly it was to me. Healing, growing, taking it one step at a time.

(This post is a mess, but so am I haha)

Lord, let me live my life the way You want it to be. Use me and my life for Your good. Help me change the world even by the littlest things. Amen. Soli Deo Gloria!

See you sometime, maybe. Here’s to all the dreamers. All the love.

[avalonsilver]

Supernatural questions

SPN Questions Game!

I was tagged by @lovedsammy

Thank you! I appreciate it. Sorry this took so long. It was fun answering the questions though. :-)

1. When did you start watching Supernatural? The night the show first premiered on Sept. 13, 2005 (according to Google). I knew Jensen and Jared from other shows (more recently at that time, Jensen's recurring role on Smallville and then Jared on Gilmore Girls) and was curious. Sci-fi/fantasy is a fav genre for me, so Supernatural seemed right up my alley (the horror/gory aspects sometimes was a little much for me, but the character dynamics keep me watching). I watched the show regularly for the first five seasons. What got me to fall in love with the show was a small scene in the first episode.  (rest under the cut)

That was when Dean answers Sam's belief about Dean doing this alone [find their Dad] with a "Yeah, well, I don't want to." The way this line was delivered by Jensen... it just showed a vulnerability in Dean. It showed what sort of character Dean was -- that he needed, wanted his brother by his side. That moment left me wanting to learn more about Sam and Dean, and I cared about their journey in each episode. After the Season 5 finale, I stopped watching the show regularly. I watched the first few eps of Season 6 I believe, but they failed to hold my interest. Not enough Cas I guess (I loved him in Seasons 4 and 5 and his character development in those two seasons). I randomly watched a few Season 7 episodes when they aired (the one with Charisma Carpenter & James Marsters (7x05) and the Eliot Ness episode (7x12)). I was wondering where Cas was at as I didn't really know then what had happened to him. Finally, about five years later, when Season 13 was airing, I fell back into watching the show. I saw War of the Worlds 13x07 live without much of an idea of what had gone on in the show in the last few years. So I had no idea that Sam and Dean now called this bunker their home. It was certainly an experience watching that episode being pretty confused about things. The mid-season finale/"The Bad Place" really peaked my interest that I should catch up with this show again. Jack got me curious. I ended up watching the Season 13 finale live. 

Over the summer, I binge-watched the seasons I missed post-Season 5. I watched the episodes I missed in Season 13 first. Then I went through Seasons 6, 9, 10 and 11 (still working on Season 12- finished through 12x08). With Seasons 7 & 8, I mainly watched the episodes where Cas appeared (with S7, that made the season go fast for me since he was only in five episodes... I did see 7x03 though because of Colin Ford. He is my favorite version of "young Sam"... and catching up with the show, it was a nice surprise that he returned in Season 7). I am planning to see those S7 & 8 episodes I skipped over-- feel kind of bad for not watching those seasons completely.

2. Who is your favorite in TFW? Castiel -- I looked forward to his scenes back in Seasons 4 and 5. His journey since then has been interesting to watch. While his development in Season 6 was hard to see unfold, I see it as the unfortunate fallout from averting the apocalypse. It was a win that TFW stopped the apocalypse particularly through Sam's sacrifice. But sadly, Cas's desire to prevent Apocalypse Take 2 from happening caused him to go to dark places -- leaving TFW fractured. I think his experience as a human was one of the best things that happened to him-- it really helped him be more compassionate and understanding-- or just really bring out what Cas already had inside him. I still prefer him to be an angel though (I have a weakness for "superpowers"...like the glowy eyes/healing...). But I appreciate that Cas did experience being human and learned something valuable from that.

3. Who is your least favorite in TFW? Dean, although it's hard to choose a least favorite. Each one has their good and bad traits. Dean's harsh treatment of Jack in Season 13 is not something I can brush aside completely. So that's why Dean comes to mind. Dean has gotten better with Jack, true, but his early S13 handling of Jack while Sam pleaded with Dean to give Jack a chance is still hard to forget.

4. Tag your top 5 Supernatural blogs. (I think most everyone has done these questions, so below are just the Supernatural blogs I like checking out) Let’s see… I tag: @hallowedbecastiel, @lovedsammy @flightoftheseraph​, @soluscheese, @castielisourhero, @sastiel-daily, @canonspngifs

5. Who is your favorite character (not including TFW)? Bobby Singer, although I guess he can be considered an honorary member of TFW. I have not seen the episode where he dies (7x10), but I plan to and I know it'll leave me teary-eyed I'm sure. But seeing the episodes where he returns in some capacity (10x17 "Inside Man" -- so much love for that episode, and 11x16 "Safe House") got me really emotional. That letter to Sam in 10x17, and Dean figuring he and Bobby were there at the same time in that house thanks to some time-wimey explanation... it just made me wish Bobby was still alive. He was really like a father to Sam and Dean and it'll certainly be hard to watch those early seasons with Bobby -- knowing now that he's gone. At least he's in Heaven. I want to add Jack too-- even if he is a part of TFW, but technically it's TFW 2.0 for him, so he does sort of count I guess (I'm reaching here, I know, but couldn't resist). Mostly because his character got me curious and led me to watching all of Season 13 and motivating me to finally catch up with the seasons I've missed of the show. Seeing all the crap that Sam had been through with Lucifer post-Season 5 made his willingness to help Jack, Lucifer's son, all the more compelling.

6. Who is your favorite woman in Supernatural? As far as a female character who's currently still alive, Rowena is pretty awesome -- some of her outfits have been gorgeous. And there's the 13x19 scene on the phone where she flirts with Cas --"oh is the handsome angel there with you? Hello, Tweetie Pie." was amusing in how it left Cas a little flustered and off-footed in his response. Considering back at the end of Season 10, Rowena cursed him with that "attack dog" spell causing Cas some considerable misery... it's just so like the show for the pair of them to be sort of chill with one another now. Cas still doesn't quite know how to take flirtations-- it's endearing. Also, due to my summer rewatch, I really enjoyed Meg 2.0's character. I loved her dynamic with Cas and was sad when she died. I love that she saw Cas as "her unicorn." Rachel Miner did a great job with the character of Meg. I'll never forget that moment in 6x10 when Meg made out with Cas.

7. John or Mary? Mary (I haven't seen all of Season 12 and did hear her storyline had its issues, but from what I know about her, I prefer her to John). Watching the 300th episode caused me to warm up to John again. I'm glad Sam and Dean got some closure with him. I think I blame the background music sometimes used during the John moments... it got me all nostalgic and emotional. I enjoyed Mary in Season 13 and being protective of Jack -- to where she decided to stay with him even if it meant needing to leave the camp because AU! Bobby was suspicious of Jack's half-angel status. So I'll stick with Mary on this one.

8. What were your first opinions of Sam, Dean, Cas, and Jack? Sam: I thought he was a compelling character. He was like the "regular guy" character at the beginning helping to introduce the audience into the strange world of hunting the supernatural his family was a part of. I took a television course back in college, so this kind of stuff was discussed, bear with me. lol ... as the show went on, it was ironic that he was the one with psychic powers, the demon blood and was the "true vessel" for Lucifer. After playing catch up with the show post-Season 5, I feel so bad for the crap Sam has gone through particularly with Lucifer. It has been a long time for me, so I can't exactly remember my first impression of Sam. After seeing Jared on Gilmore Girls, I think I just automatically decided to find any character he played likable since I generally liked his character on Gilmore Girls. It was sad how badly Sam wanted to live a normal/safe life with Jess in the pilot but that wasn't in the cards for him.

Dean: I found his "devil may care" attitude kind of cool, but as brought up earlier, I liked that he cares about family. That he came to get Sam because he needed him by his side to search for their Dad. Even despite the big fight that was close to John disowning Sam, Dean wanted to make the effort to mend bridges. Dean took the chance that Sam would still care about their Dad's well-being despite the big fight. Or maybe Dean knew that deep down, Sam would agree to help -- as after all, Dean practically raised him so he obviously knew Sam pretty well (even if he didn't quite understand Sam's strong desire to head to university and try for an "normal apple pie life.")

Cas: He was a big part why I was excited for Seasons 4 and 5 when they were airing. Although in retrospect, he didn't really have a lot of scenes in S4 &5. I just ended up being grateful for what we did get back then. I liked how though seemed alien in his first appearance and interaction with Dean, there were hints that Cas did care and wasn't a cold, unfeeling angel. Like I couldn't quite hate him completely for burning out Pamela's eyes even though I wanted to initially. Cas just seemed a little regretful about that, so I could see sparks of opportunity for character growth. I need to rewatch the scene again, but I vaguely recall Cas looked sad/regretful about Pamela's fate. And when he told Dean, "You don't think you deserve to be saved,"-- the way the line was delivered got me even more curious about Cas. Then his end of episode appearance in 4x02 freaked me out a bit because he was intense there. But honestly, during most of that 4x02 scene, I was bothered by his lips being dry/cracked... why I still remember this after all these years, IDEK. Still wish someone had given him some chapstick or something then. lol 

Jack: The first episode I saw him in was the mid-season 13 finale. I was interested in Jack and learning more about him... I'm sure it would have been better if I'd seen those earlier Season 13 episodes to understand Jack better. I really enjoyed how everything went down in 13x09 and how climactic it ended up being. The last shot of Jack in "Apocalypse World" with him looking up at Mary in a cage was a well-done shot. After seeing 13x01, I liked Jack's curiosity about the world and his love of nougat. He seemed like a sweet and caring person and eager to please.

9. What’s your favorite season? Season 1. It was when I first started watching and was just a pretty solid season overall. The cliffhanger was evil, but hell, that really got me on the board to continue with this show. Plus, the memorable lines --"driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole", "hope your apple pie was freakin' worth it!" and I loved the moment of Dean bringing peanut M&Ms as one of his provisions in 1x02 "Wendigo" (and they did prove useful in the end in tracking him down). It's tempting to say a season with Cas too because I like his character. With Cas, probably Season 10 since I enjoyed his interactions with Claire. Also, I love 10x17 so much (just made me miss Bobby and that end montage is an automatic rewatch for me). Although Season 4 was good too with Castiel's introduction. I like how his character developed to the point where he was prepared to fight off archangels to stop the apocalypse. Even if this defied the other angels wanting the apocalypse to come to fruition. Honorary mention to Season 13 mostly for the journey of Sam and Jack's father-son bond. I always love seeing tributes to that bond and the support Jack received from Sam.

10. What’s your least favorite season? Season 7, but then again I haven't seen the entire season yet. From what I saw of the Leviathans, I didn't like them as villains. But Leviathan!Cas was pretty awesome-- he definitely freaked me out for the brief time the Leviathan took him over. Just a shame that the Leviathan after that were just kind of meh... For a season I saw entirely, I'd have to say Season 6. Though Castiel had some great moments in this season (6x20 of course being a highlight), it hurt to see Cas turn against Sam and Dean. Yes, Cas was doing all that to stop Apocalypse 2.0, but I hated that he resorted to breaking Sam's wall (leaving Sam a mess into Season 7). Also, the first half of the season with soulless!Sam was weird to watch... since Sam wasn't himself and knowing that was sad. I enjoyed the episode 6x11 where Dean made a deal with Death to get Sam's soul out of the cage. So yeah, I liked some parts of Season 6, but overall, it's not easy to rewatch knowing this is the unfortunate fallout of averting the apocalypse in Season 5. Back in the day-- for just Seasons 1 through 5, I'd say Season 3...the season had its moments, but it just ranked lowest for me in terms of the first five seasons. Although S3 gets points for one cliffhanger of an ending.

11. Opinions on Destiel? I used to be big on Destiel, or just Dean and Cas's friendship/strong bond in Seasons 4 and 5. Maybe my enthusiasm for them just faded away over time... after catching up with the show recently, my perspective has changed. I can't completely get over Dean's treatment of Cas at the end of Season 7 after he'd taken on Sam's hell trauma leaving him broken and not mentally stable. Dean yelling at Cas more than once was frustrating to see during this time. I just can't get into Dean x Cas as much as before... though Cas sticking around and still being Dean's friend, helping him and Sam out, does speak a lot to Cas's ability to forgive... not to stay angry with Dean after some of the things Dean has said to him and put him through (such as kicking him out of the bunker in 9x03 without any offer of assistance so Cas wouldn't continue to be homeless... I can understand why a lot of people didn't like 9x03).

12. Do you believe Supernatural queerbaits? No. t's nice that Dean can have a solid, meaningful friendship with someone who isn't Sam... so it's good that he has Castiel. But the moments where it seems like it's leading to something more than friendship for Destiel... I think it just shows the strength of their friendship.

13. Seasons 1-7 or 8-14? Seasons 8-14 -- mostly because I liked Cas's character development in the later seasons. That he's more compassionate, maybe more human -- his short time as a human influencing him in a good way for the most part. Even if his angelic powers were diminished in the later seasons. 

I miss his teleporting (I had grown used to the "rustle of wings" sound effect in Seasons 4 and 5), and to learn he'd lost that ability for a few years already by the time of Season 13 -- that was sad to know. Despite that loss, I like that Cas has become more expressive -- like in the 14x12 scene where he's discussing "Rowena's remarkable command of profanity" on the phone to Sam -- The line delivery and his facial expression was on point there.

14. Favorite villain (plot wise)? Crowley. He had some great moments on the show, and it was great to see his journey on the show. From full-on antagonist to sort of being on Team Winchester. I don't like that he killed Meg 2.0 (I miss her :(), but he was a compelling character and it's sad that he's not on the show anymore.

15. Do you think they should end the Lucifer plot line? Yes!

16. Who do you think has gone through more trauma (Sam, Dean, or Cas) Sam. They all have gone through their share of trauma, so it's not easy to just choose one. But Sam has been tortured by Lucifer himself, and still suffers PTSD from that every time he has to deal with Lucifer.

17. What’s your favorite Supernatural episode? 1x12 - "Faith"  -- I have a fondness for some Season 1 episodes. Asylum was another fav for me along with Home and Something Wicked. At the time that “Faith” aired, I was big on hurt!Dean, and this episode delivered. I loved how determined Sam was to save his brother. This was still back when some great classic rock songs were used. The "Don't Fear the Reaper" song playing while Sam and Dean carried out their plan to stop the reaper was pretty epic. And looking back, boy, do I miss those days when iconic songs like that were used on the show. 18. Do you like case episodes? Yes -- I like seeing how the mystery unravels, and finding out who the culprit is in the end.

19. Who do you relate most to in TFW? Sam. Mostly due to his love/appreciation of research. I like to research too and learn new things. Also, he's the younger sibling, which is the same for me. I can relate to his frustration with his dad -- though it was for different reasons, I've felt similarly-- just different personalities and perspectives clashing, I would say.

20. Why do you like Supernatural? I like Supernatural because of the brotherly bond between Sam and Dean. Sam and Dean was what first drew me to the show and I still enjoy seeing the twists and turns they go through -- and I appreciate the moments that strengthen their bond and get emotional and heartbroken when they're divided. At the end of the day, I feel Sam and Dean are the heart and the soul of the show -- my hope for the end of the series is that the brothers' bond is as strong as ever. I would be so sad if they end the show with Sam and Dean at odds with each other-- I have faith the writers wouldn't do this -- it would be hard to watch (like back in 4x21 where they fight each other and go their separate ways... it was painfully heartbreaking to see).   Also, I love Team Free Will -- it's nice that Sam and Dean have Cas now as a long-time friend and confidante. I like Jack and the more recent Team Free Will 2.0 that formed to include him. Though the original Team Free Will is more iconic, I guess, for me since it formed as the apocalypse approached in Season 5. And the name really had a meaning: that Sam, Dean and Cas weren't going to fold and follow what the higher up angels wanted... that their free will mattered more than following their long foretold destinies.

21. If you could bring back one character and kill off another who would they be? I'm torn between bringing Bobby back or Meg 2.0. I'd kill off Lucifer (if he is really woken up in the Empty -- he needs to be put down again. :\). I'd like Kevin Tran to come back. I would be okay with killing off AU! Bobby if we can get the old Bobby back. And Meg 2.0 being brought back would be great-- I miss her interactions with Cas.