#my major and taking honors courses and research all to get a job in the future

[yearning-butch]

starting to realize i’ve spent so much of my life longing for and working towards the future and now i struggle to just. live in the present sometimes

[siflshonen]

Hey there hope you are doing fine it is occurred to me that you are a huge lov Stan if it is not too much to ask could you give me a retrospective on your view of the lov and your opinion on them as they have grown and evolved and then your current opinion on where deku vs shiggy is headed thx.

I'm honored to be considered an LOV stan. Anyway, from the top:

Magne - Actually? Really enjoyed her for the time she was there. I think it would have been neat if her story tied into Aizawa, Hawks, or Nagant's somehow (meaning that they'd pursued her at one time or had been doing research on her specifically for a job - nothing super deep) to give her a little more focus and make the MHA cast seem more related and compact. I would have even liked her to live a little longer so she could do more LOV hijinks and show us more of that "big sis" title. I know some people don't like Magne or found it to be in bad taste that she died, but I don't feel it was a choice made in spite and I didn't have a problem with it, personally.

Kurogiri - Dark secret time: I actually do not really care about Kurogiri as Shigaraki's "caretaker" without the infusion of ambiguous Shirakumo energy and heart. I'm not a big "found family" person and I was never super into the takes of the major LOV fandom regarding this topic. Anyway, Kurogiri may or may not ever be exactly as he was as Shirakumo, but the more Shirakumo's presence is felt (even if he fights it and is like, "nooo I am loyal to Shigaraki! I don't care about these Shota Aizawa and Hizashi Yamada people!" because even then, it's still kinda the Shirakumo-heart-of-a-hero-loyal-to-his-friends OS running the show), the more I like him. I'm super stoked with the straightforward trope choices HK made for this character.

Shuichi Iguchi/Spinner - Spinner is so cute. I think Spinner is so, so cute and pathetic and sweet and wanting. God, he'll follow anything if he thinks it might make a difference. He is ready to lay down everything for Shigaraki even though he does not really understand him. He is so desperate to be a part of something, his heart is honestly in the right place when it comes to the individual members of the LOV, but every choice he makes or moment of self-doubt he has makes things worse. His heart is pure and every choice he makes takes him farther and farther from what he really wants. Please save Spinner. Someone, please save Spinner. Please love Spinner and help him do and want things independently of others and by his own direction and efforts. It can start small like getting him to grow and care for his own vegetables before he figures out what it is he'd really like to do or be.

Atsuhiro Sako/Mr. Compress - He kinda left it all on the floor when his moment came, so I don't have much to say besides I like him and of course he stole my heart when he asked me, the reader, to listen to his backstory before he bled out from ripping a hole in his own ass. In some ways, I like this a lot given that BNHA is a story-within-a-story, but in other ways I feel like this could have been more elegantly handled. I'm glad he lived and I'm excited to see him do more things outside of prison. He doesn't need to be in prison. That's just my opinion, though.

Jin Bubaigawara/Twice - Fantastic. Twice was always cute in that pesky-annoying way of any Deadpool Expy, but I think he's even cuter and softer of heart than Wade Wilson. I love how straightforwardly his backstory is told once we're allowed to see it, and I love - and hate - that his last thoughts were that Hawks had no right to pity/judge him as lucky or unlucky. His final "curse" to Hawks is powerful to me, particularly since it shows that, despite everything, Jin had people who actually knew him for who he was and liked him for it. At least, he had Toga. There's really a lot I could say about the Jin-and-Hawks situation, including how Jin's rejection of Hawks' conditions to let him live were also a rejection of Hawks and his choices, but I think those are the highlights. I really like that he got less goofy as we got to know him, but was never NOT goofy.

Himiko Toga - Dabi is a close second, but I think Toga is my favorite of the LOV. Hers is a classic female villain trope - crazy, jealous, horny, pansexual vampire blood-witch - but the story takes her completely seriously and asks what the FUCK is wrong with the situation of the world in order for her story to turn out like this. She's a classic, but better and with a human heart. So like, the thing about Toga is that she and her behavior doesn't really change - it's only the context that does as more is revealed about her. Also, her cutesy-yandere antics combined with Twice manages to actually make a funny pair rather than an annoying one. I mean, yeah, they're annoying, but it's in a charming way. If Ochako breaks her heart I'll fucking enter that manga myself and kill her. But Ochako won't do that because Ochako understands what she is doing.

Toya/Dabi - I am a big!!! Fan!!! Of Toya's dramatic ass! Pathetic! Pathetic! Pathetic! Any time I think I'm throwing a tantrum and being a spoiled brat, I think of Dabi and realize I've not yet hit rock bottom. From basically his intro, it was obvious he was a Todoroki and even more delicious that nobody in-story (not Aizawa, not Shoto, not Enji, not Hawks, not nobody) could figure it out even when he was soooooo desperate for them to figure it out and then got to reveal it! On TV! Oh, the drama! The spectacle! (Miss me with the "oooooooh it's not confiiiiiiirmed Dabi is a Todoroki" stuff, 'cause, c'mon you guys: this is the over-the-top-dramatic-irony manga.) That said, the tantrum is warranted - the thing he honestly needs is attention and acknowledgement as well as continued support. Dabi is my favorite Daddy Issues character. Cannot wait to see what his life looks like after his tantrum's over - which I think will happen. He's still alive in the manga and the Todorokis still have a long way to go even if he does kick the bucket by the end (he won't, though his lifespan might be reduced or something. There's gotta be blowback for becoming a charcoal briquette twice.)

Tenko Shimura/Tomura Shigaraki - I actually didn't give two hoots about him until we got the confirmed insight that he's a little boy in a 23-year-old body. I actually find Shigaraki to be the most boring of the LOV, but a lot of interesting things happen to him and he does a lot of interesting internal repression and exploration even with his limited understanding and context for his situation. I enjoy that his "enlightenment" is an artificial one that encourages destruction but opposes not only the status quo but any future creation. He's change and chaos, but only until the moment he succeeds, because then his destruction will be the stagnant status quo. Right now, he's got the otherworldly white hair like a Japanese demon or half-divine being and unlike Toya (who is totally a vengeful spirit and fire demon straight from hell) he's kinda suggesting a western angel, too. Must be cool to be the most significant and "perfect" white-haired anime boy in a series, huh. That's a lot of power, Sephiroth.

He's a great dragon-and-damsel rolled into one, and Izuku is going to save him with some help. It's as straightforward as that. After that, Tenko will probably want to become the definition of a true hero - not a Hero (as in the in-universe job), but someone proud of the legacy his grandmother and Toshinori tried to uphold while still desiring improvements. His destruction may be channeled into a real weapon of justice meant to meaningfully destroy the corrupt but with the goal to then make right what had been wronged. I wouldn't be totally surprised if he undergoes another quirk evolution and is able to create stuff a la Fullmetal Alchemist using the stuff he destroys/using the same stuff he would have otherwise destroyed. If so, it might be more apt to call his quirk something like "Flourish"/"Growth" or even "Improve"/"Surpass" rather than "Decay". The one thing I think Shigaraki can never really accept (though he will bide his time if needed) is stasis. Eventually, I think he'll become another intended successor of All Might, though frankly anyone in the series can and should earn that title at this point.

[popculturebuffet]

Dia de los Muertos Special Part 1: Mucha Lucha: Meet the Muertos and Banditios De Los Muertos (comissioned by WeirdKev 27)

Hello all you happy calvera's it's Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead! For those unaware, Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday celebrating those we've lost by leaving out a tribute for them, hoping their souls will come back to us. It's a holiday with a rich tradition, a wonderful message.. and of course this being america it's been largely ignored as, to put it in the words of one asshole

Thankfully it has gone up in years, with two major feature films i'll undoubtly be covering the next to days of the dead, but Day of the Dead specials are still lacking with the most recent one being the Casagrandes "Croaked!" which I covered a few years back. It's something I hope makes a come back in the wake of Coco as children's television is how a young me learned this holiday existed and how neat it could be. So to kick off this two part retrospective we're looking at an episode that taught me and Kev, who comissioned that, what dia de los muertos is... and it's sequel that was a waste of my time and his money but I was paid to cover it anyway so let's LUCHAAARANNNN under the cut for the first part of my day of the dead celebration.

Mucha Lucha was a 2002 cartoon on Kids WB! a saturday morning block that was the highlight of my week in those days, having Pokemon (for a while anyway), Yu-Gi-Oh! , and the criminally underated Xiaolin Showdown, which is high on my pile of stuff I want to cover at some point in one form or another. So it's no shock i've seen all three seasons and the movie. The fact the show was replayed a LOT on Cartoon Network.

Mucha Lucha takes place in a world where just about everybody is a luchadore, fighting for honor, tradition, family and donuts. Those who aren't either can still wrestle well enough anyway or are part of a heelish wwf/wcw style wrestling faction. It follows Richochet (The underated as heck Carlos Alazraquai) as he lives his modern life at the FORMOST

WORLD RENNOWN

INTERNATIONAL

SCHOOL

OF

LUCHA!

With his best friend: The borderline heel Flea, played by the equally legendary Candi Milo, and the straight edge Buena Girl, played by future jasper Kimberly Brooks who i'm shocked was part of my childhood but is more than welcome. The show is loose continuityed comedy, being focused more on gags and nonsense than a deep continuity but working well with it. To get around WB's gunshyness about violence, most of the wrestling is done with cool, over the top finishing moves with Buena Girl turning into a bulldozer, Ricochet turning into a pulverizing pinball, and the flea.. well whatever his finisher is we don't know and i'm just peachy with that as i'm scarred for life enough as is.

The show's known for not only being one of the few Latino focused shows of the time, even more notable given neither of the creators are Latino yet both clearly put a lot of research into this and did hire actual mexicans like Gorge Gutierz of El Tigre and Book of Life Fame as part of the crew. So the result is fantastic and still held up suprisingly well.. well at least one ep did but we'll get to that. For now let's LUCHARANNNNNNN! with our first episode

This is the main one I remembered. In fact I didn't recall it's sequel till I looked up one of the characters Wiki entry to see who played them.

This episode taught me about day of the dead and does a good job explaning it from the offset.. after the Flea, acting and smelling more like a rat, frames it as some kind of zombie apocalypse. The School's headmistress explains how it works instead, and this being a cartoon the dead REALLY do come back and visit once a year. Their also treated well, with our main undead being a bit of the jerk, but ultimately just a kid.

Since Ricochet's dog Masked Dog ate his homework...

Not hyperbole this time, but i'm glad as any chane to see this masked good boy is alright with me, Richochet is sattled with showing around the School's vistor, Calvera Muerto. Given the kind of stuff our heroes get into around here i'm suprised it's just one.

At any rate our living dead boy is Calvera Muerto, also played by Kimberly Brooks though you coudln't tell, her range is just that impressive, a play on the spanish words for skeleton and dead, and on him being a calevera. Calevera's are often used in concert with day of the dead and are mexican style skeletons, usually with some cool markings on them.

Cal is nice enough, but like any 8 year old just wants to sit around and play video games. Having two nephews and having been that 8 year old, I can releate. So while Ricochet is bored, it's no problem.. till Calevera decides he dosen't want to leave despite the day being over and the guy having already shouted "choke on them choke on them!" So our heroes try to figure out how to get rid of this squatter since Ric's parents aren't home this episode. Traditional masks don't work since Cal's a postmodren calavera and has seen all three screams. Including the greatest horror they have to offer

This is nothing to Cal but all the payback to So Ric is forced to do what all wrestlers do when they have something important on the line: bet it on a match, which ends up being a looser leaves town match: Cal looses he goes home and stops eating Ric's doritos. He wins and Ric goes in his place. This is somehow not the highest stakes wrestling match i've ever seen. There's no child's custody papers on a poll or someone's mother on a forklift. it's just life and death.

Ric thinks he has it in the bag but with his intro having established Cal is a big fan of his.. that also means he has a counter set up.. specitcially turning a pinata in his head into a counter pulverizing pinball. So our heroes have to get creative. They remember chekov's lecture I forgot to mention: that once a spirit is full they have to go. So Buena Girl shoves a sweet bread in the console...

And it does, with Ric finishing him off with a refreshing glass of lemonade. Cal leaves swearing he'll be back, our heros win and the episode closes out Meet The Muertos is a decent ride. It dosen't have a ton of jokes but the central one of a Calevera just deciding to spend it's day playing video games, which fits for what's an 8-10 year old child, is charming , it gets dia de los muertos as right as I can tell as a white idiot, and the final match is clever and engaging and stuck in my brain for quite some time. There's a reason this episode stuck. It's a decent episode in a fairly decent show... thanks for... oh right... .we have something else to cover don't we.

Now I want to go on record here. Both episodes were my idea as Kev wanted to save some money and just do episodes and remembered the first one from as a kid. This one we'd both forgot.. till it was brought up again. There's a good reason to that. While i've seen MUCH worse in my time as reviewer, not even last month I had to deal with..t his

That was a 2018 comic talking about periods. So to quote my faviorie pengy..

I did this to myself and I have no one to blame but myself. I got PAID for doing this for myself but at what cost? AT WHAT COST...metaphorically we'll never know but in actuality.. 2.50.

This one is kind of dumb.. and not in the fun way the series can be like say, having disco stu be one of the teachers in all but name. No I mean this is about a horde of candy bandits who stalk the flea for no reason other than he won't give them his candy even though there are other towns to raid. Oh and in case you feel bad for the Flea he took the candy from children.

So Ric and Buena get suddenly thrust into the underworld because suddenly the veil is thin between worlds on Dia De Los Muertos which wasn't mentioned as a thing last time.

So our heroes run into Calevera again , though this time it's all cool and he's willing to help them for no reaosn. And he dosen't betray them or anything he's just helping them

He's just a diffrent character now. Speaking of diffrent let's talk about the elephant in the room: This episode's from season 3... and during season 3 they switched from Carlos to Jason. As a kid I took it maturely. He's an artists rendering

Yeah look I love Jason. He's great at playing Max, does swell in other rolls, I like him a lot. But he was an AWFUL choice for this. I don't begrudge the creators for needing to replace Carlos: he apparently got too busy with Reno 911 and had to bow out. It happens. Voice actor changes are common. But Jason was an awful choice, making no attempt to sound like Carlos, and sounding all too lifeless in the roll. He tries.. but he just dosen't have the energy that made Carlos work as Ricochet. The fact they replaced a latino person with a white guy, one of the few actually latino voice actors in the show, does not help. I can't blame Jason for taking the check , he was just an utterly awful fit for the roll, being far too plain and straigh tlaced to fit the roll.

So the bandits end up liking Flea so he joins them. So now we know who all the bad guys are. Our heroes wnat the Flea back for reasons only known to the writers, and succesfully kidnap him, having a timer to get back before their trapped here forever. THey then fight the banditos of course, win, and the flea gets a stomach ache but learns nothing else. This episode is bad and it should feel bad. Even with that thing I sure did have to cover because of my own stupid ass finding it, I highly recommend this show. It was the first to use flash primarily , and while a bhit rough around the edges it has great character design, is fun to watch and worth checking out. Hopefully it'll stream on some service eventually though for now you can get it through amazon and apple. So see you in a bit for the next part and happy dia de los muertos.

[backstage-bucknell]

Curtain Call: Farewell Seniors

By: Katie Schadler 

As the school year comes to a close, we want to take a moment to honor the seniors who will be ending their time at Bucknell and moving onto their own new and exciting creative endeavors. Seniors, you have all contributed so much talent, hard work, and passion to Bucknell Theatre, and know that you will always have a community to call home. Best of luck.

Allure Cooper:

Major: Arabic & Arab World Studies

Future plans: Return to Baltimore, hopefully find a job in the non-profit or public sector doing community engagement and support/providing resources and support to refugees.

Something I'll miss about BU Theatre: The moment right after a show when we realize everything managed to come together amazingly.Allure Cooper Major: Arabic & Arab World StudiesFuture plans: Return to Baltimore, hopefully find a job in the non-profit or public sector doing community engagement and support/providing resources and support to refugees. 

Nabeel Jan:

Major: Film Studies and International Relations

Future plans: Freelance Work in Film and Theatre, WildWind Summer Fellowship at Texas Tech

Something I’ll miss about BU Theatre: Randomly catching up with Hutch in his office. Thank you for everything, this department is awesome!Nabeel JanMajor: Film Studies and International RelationsFuture plans: Freelance Work in Film and Theatre, WildWind Summer Fellowship at Texas Tech

Katherine Leschner:

Major: Theatre, Minor: Management 

Future plans: Pursuing marketing in NYC

Something I’ll miss about BU Theatre: Being on headset with Haley and Gabe, telling Hutch about working on the theatre archive with Elaine, my theatre little Yasmine

Advice: My advice to underclassmen is to enjoy all the time you have! Feel free to reach out if you need any advice or tips (classes, theatre, etc.)

Griffin Miller:

Major: Music with emphasis in contemporary composition

Future plans: I plan to release my debut album of original songs in the summer after graduation, and continue recording and performing for a long time after that. 

Something I’ll miss about BU Theatre: The wide variety of projects available for students to get involved with in Bucknell Theatre, from modern musicals to classic plays to original works. Sometimes you'll be able to do all three in a single year!

Isabel Steinberg:

Major: Biology, Minor: Acting and Directing 

Future plans: Research Assistant in Mark Connor’s lab at the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, MD (and then grad school!) 

Something I’ll miss about BU Theatre: the amazing people!!! The professors of the department and my incredibly talented peers. Everyone is so kind and always has my back :)

Gabe Gross:

Major: Markets, Innovation, & Design, Minor: Theatre Design & Technology

Future Plans: Working this summer as the Commissioner’s Intern for the Cape Cod Baseball League, then working for the Little League World Series in August, and then pursuing work in Sports Management. Something I’ll miss about BU Theatre: Coming into Harvey at any time on any day, knowing that there’s someone there who will make me smile, and of course, tech lunch corn hole and the Green Room couch naps. I’ll also always be grateful for getting slotted into my last-choice elective: Bucknell Backstage. I almost transferred out, and I’m so glad I didn’t.

Azhani Duncan-Reese:

Major: Theatre and Political Science

Future plans: Sleeping and securing a job 

Something I'll miss about BU Theatre: The people, the ghosts that haunt Tustin, and performing for Bucknell

Bethany Fitch:

Major: Theatre and Environmental Studies

Future plans: Starting in June, I’m working at Pendragon Theatre in Saranac Lake, NY as Company Manager. I am also in the process of applying for a Fulbright Scholarship to hopefully get my MFA in Acting in Fall of 2024.Something funny: The Green Room white board, Hutch yelling, the testosterone competition that is strike, dressing room shenanigans Something I'll miss about BU Theatre: All the people that have literally become my family and the feeling of place and belonging and love that this department has given me. I always leave Harvey Powers feeling better than when I came in.

C.F. Gould: 

Major: English Literary Studies

Future plans: Plan to work as a High School English teacher for the foreseeable future.  Something I’ll miss about BU Theatre: The opportunity to work with such a diverse range of directors, all of whom have their own unique style and approach.

Isaiah Mays:

Major: Theater and International Relations

Future plans: Getting an MBA at Northeastern University

Something I’ll miss about BU Theatre: Hanging out with everyone in the Green Room

Zoe Wilson:

Major: Sociology and English Literary Studies

Future plans: I’ve applied for an internship with the Kennedy Center’s Archives Department this summer (have yet to hear back), but next year I will be in my home town of Altoona, PA substitute teaching. During that time, I’ll be applying to Journalism school and honing my writing for the local paper.  Funny thing/thing I’ll miss/want to share: I always thought it was too late to be active in the theatre department after doing Cocktails my first year and then not auditioning for over two years. Bryan Vandevender’s dramaturgy class brought me back into the fold, though. I couldn’t be more proud of the folks involved in Gross Indecency this spring. I’ll miss you guys and the folks who I went to KCACTF with most of all. We rocked it. 

Bucknell Fulbright Winners! 

Bucknell graduates Julia Tokish ‘22 and Kate Cognard-Black ‘21(0.5) were recently awarded Fulbright Scholarships for master’s programs of their choice based in the United Kingdom. Each university selects only one Fulbright applicant where the winner is funded to travel, take classes, conduct research, and fulfill their master’s degree. The Fulbright Program is highly selective, and given that two of the winners are Bucknell graduates, let alone Bucknell Theatre students whose journeys began on the Harvey Powers Stage, makes the department immensely proud of their tremendous accomplishments. Read more about these amazing winners below:

Julia Tokish

Julia Tokish was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship within a master’s study program at the University of Leicester in the UK where she will be studying Human Rights and Global Ethics. One of the main reasons she chose Leicester was for the city’s artistic atmosphere. She enjoys the large presence of amateur-scale theaters that feel less commercialized and more intimate. While acting in high school, it was not until she arrived at Bucknell that she discovered her true calling was behind the curtain. She found a passion in stage managing with a love for tech theatre and dramaturgy research. As an International Relations, Arabic and Arab World Studies, and Theatre triple major, Julia developed a passion for the intersection of theatre, history, and social justice. After graduating from Bucknell in 2022, she felt that Bucknell Theatre brought her out of her shell and equipped her with the necessary communication, organization, and confidence skills to conquer her professional endeavors. While intending to work in international law, Julia continues to find theatre all around her, interested in the research a Leicester professor is conducting on how refugees are problematically portrayed on stage, once again melding Julia’s interests of the show itself and the historical context behind it. Julia continues to feel grateful for the lessons and connections Bucknell theatre gave her, teaching her not just how to be a better actor or stage manager but how to be a better person. She urges theatre students and graduating seniors to not be afraid to keep trying and putting themselves out there in a variety of ways. From failed auditions to not making it past the first round of her former Fulbright application, Julia whole-heartedly believes that you will find your place and your purpose as long as you keep trying. 

Kate Cognard-Black (KCB)

KCB will be taking her Fulbright Scholarship to the University of Birmingham in the UK where she will be pursuing a master’s degree at the “Shakespeare Institute” that focuses on Shakespeare in literature, theatre, and adaptations within the modern moment. Her program directly involves bringing aspiring actors, playwrights, producers, and practitioners together in an interdisciplinary space. While trying out a variety of roles in Bucknell theatre from acting to dramaturging, she discovered her main passion was directing. It was at Bucknell Theatre where she enjoyed assistant directing alongside Anjalee and even creating an adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew” that was eventually picked up by a prison performing arts program in Missouri. Graduating from Bucknell with a Theatre and Creative Writing degree in December 2021, KCB entered the directing world with the knowledge that an effective leader means being a strong collaborator who is constantly open to new ideas. Grateful for the life-long connections she has made with Bucknell students and professors, KCB looks forward to the future opportunity to create art with these talented people again. To the upcoming theatre students and graduating seniors, KCB advises you to drag yourself out of bed and show up to that thing you don’t know if you should show up to, go to the thing you don’t think you belong at. Because when you open yourself up to new connections, you will be overwhelmed by the amount of people there to support you. As Hutch always says, “the people who get the opportunities are the people in the room.”

“The Best Week of College”: Arts First 

If you ask any of the Arts First kids, they will tell you that the “Arts First” pre-orientation is their favorite part of their college experience. The program is packed with hands-on sessions oriented around different art forms from ink blocking to gamelan playing. Whether you are making sashes or swords out of scarfs in the woods with Bryan or learning the art of sound and movement with Dustyn, Arts First is constantly giving you the vital opportunity to exist both in and outside of your comfort zone. 

The week is long and exhausting, but nothing brings you closer to the fellow artist beside you like literally holding up each other’s weight during the “Hutch Challenge” obstacle course or making loud animal noises and crawling around on stage Day 1. After exploring various art forms, the week culminates in a final show in which the entire group creates a theme, break-out groups, programs, and performances all in less than twenty-four hours. Something about creating art with a bunch of people formerly known as strangers and artistically putting yourself out there in a way you never would have imagined is truly a magical experience. 

As cliche as it sounds, when you are actually participating in the program, you don’t realize how special it is until it’s over. Until you are at the end of your first year at Bucknell, wondering where the time went, and you forget about the exhaustion, the imposter-syndrome, the first-day jitters. Because when you reflect on that week, all you can think about is pure happiness. One minute you are walking on the Harvey Powers Stage for the first time, forced to make eye contact with all of these random people, and the next minute you are sharing a beautiful sunrise with a group of passionate, diversely talented humans who make you feel like for the first time, you have a place to belong. 

When you are sitting in that pre-orientation meeting with your family on Day 1, you would never think that your two best friends are sitting in that room. That the wildly enthusiastic man in the kilt would become a life-long mentor. That you were blessed to have met your people on the first day of college, and you didn’t even know it yet. 

You had no idea that the cool camera guy who owns skateboard shoes and can walk on his hands would inspire the art tattoo you get in six months. That reluctantly agreeing to Macklemore’s “Can’t Hold Us” as your Karaoke song would catalyze your first formative months of college. That introducing yourself to the quiet Arts First kid with the dope nails three doors down from you would forever be one of the best decisions you ever made. 

Because Arts First was not just a great first impression of what my college experience could be like; It was the experience that influenced every subsequent experience I would end up having at Bucknell. I will be returning as a mentor at the end of the summer in hopes of giving the first-year class the type of experience I was lucky enough to have. To be their first introduction to all of the growing and loving and learning they are about to do. And so it begins. And so it goes. 

Hutch is Leaving!

I got you! That sounded a lot more dramatic than it is. No but really, it is with a combination of great sadness and pleasure to inform you that Hutch will be leaving the Publicity Team to become a Posse Mentor! This news is rather bittersweet to all of us, considering that he is taking on another impactful position at Bucknell, becoming a leader for dozens of other students; nevertheless, we are sad to see him go. 

Who will bring donuts and heckle us to hang more posters? Who will be unwaveringly difficult about Clea’s sticker design and ask about Libby’s day every meeting across the zoom call all the way in Italy? Who will bestow us with endless amounts of fatherly wisdom and recruit all of his “Arts First” kids to join the team–even the ones who never stepped foot into the Bucknell Theatre up to this point and now have to write about it? 

We are excited to be joined next year by the brilliant Anjalee Hutchinson who will make an excellent coordinator and will likely be able to send more coherent emails than the current one:) 

Hutch, I will forever miss when you share your Ritz Crackers with me and when the bullet point beneath the newsletter agenda is “ideas.” Thank you for your wit, your hard work, your genuine care for the wellbeing of your students. From all of us, we could not be more grateful for all that you do for this department and all of the lives you have touched just by being undeniably you. The team will miss you. 

[w-ht-w]

Quitting While on Top (Peter Singer in Project Syndicate)

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s decision to resign, despite the support of a solid parliamentary majority and no challenge from within her party, stunned the world. Getting to the top of a worthwhile activity is an exciting challenge, and overcoming challenges can be enjoyable, but staying there is a different matter.

MELBOURNE – Last month, Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand’s 42-year-old prime minister, resigned her office, despite the support of a solid parliamentary majority and no challenge to her leadership from within her party. New Zealanders have to go back only six years to find a precedent. In 2016, John Key surprisedeveryone when, at the age of 55, he made way for his deputy to take over.

A year ago, Ashleigh Barty became the first Australian to winthe Australian Open in 44 years. She was 25 years old and the top-ranked women’s tennis player in the world for more than 100 weeks. Two months later, she announced her retirement. Likewise, Björn Borg, the Swedish tennis champion, retired in 1983 at the age of 26, and Anthony Kim, a rising star of golf, was also 26 when he stopped playing competitively.

Why do they do it? Borg and Barty have given similar reasons. At first, Borg said, he had enjoyed playing and achieving the goals he set for himself. By the time he retired, however, the fun had gone out of playing tennis at that level. “Basically, over the years, I was practicing, playing my matches, eating, and sleeping,” he said. “But there’s other things besides those four things.”

Barty announced her retirement in a video conversation with her friend and former doubles partner, Casey Dellacqua. Tennis, she said, “has given me all of my dreams, plus more, but I know that the time is right, now, for me to step away and chase other dreams, and to put the rackets down.” Her happiness, she continued, had ceased to depend on her results on the tennis court, and she no longer had the physical drive or the emotional desire to continue to challenge herself at the very top level. “It’s important that I get to enjoy the next phase of my life as Ash Barty the person, not as Ash Barty the athlete.”

In announcing her resignation, Ardern expressed similar feelings. It had been, she said, “the most fulfilling five and a half years” of her life. But “I know what this job takes,” she added, “and I know that I no longer have enough in the tank to do it justice. It’s that simple.”

Getting to the highest level of a worthwhile activity is an exciting challenge, and overcoming challenges can be enjoyable; but staying at the top as long as one can is a different matter. As Borg said, there are other things in life than tennis, and that is true of life in politics as well.

The Harvard Study of Adult Development has tracked the lives of some of its research subjects for more than 80 years, seeking answers to what makes them happy and healthy. Some of its results have just been released in The Good Life, by Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz. Although any one-word answer to such questions is bound to be an oversimplification, the authors nevertheless are prepared to say that the key to both health and happiness is good relationships.

Almost everyone who retires says that they want to spend more time with their family. Sometimes, of course, that is just a cover for less honorable reasons for quitting; but in the case of Ardern and Barty, it was probably an important factor. Ardern was just the second prime minister – after Pakistan’s Benazir Bhutto – to give birth while in office. She has occasionally shared moments with her child on social media, but she will now be able to spend more time with her daughter, and her partner, who has been a stay-at-home dad. For Barty, the desire to become a mother may have played a role, for she is now pregnant with her first child.

Social norms are changing our ideas about a good life. We are paying more attention to work-life balance than we used to do, and rightly so. We are far more open than we used to be about mental health – footballers now acknowledge facing mental-health issues, something that previously would have been considered humiliating. More people are recognizing that career success is not to be equated with living a good life. We should also ask what our career is doing for the world. Perhaps there are better things we could be doing. The website 80,000 hours has some suggestions.

Not everyone can choose to change the course of their life. Some face limited employment opportunities, with few options if they are to continue to feed and house themselves and their dependents. Political leaders may be reluctant to leave office because they believe they can do more good than those who will replace them.

When that belief is well-founded, rather than a form of self-deception fueled by the addictive nature of power, as it often is, staying in office may be what they should do. The rest of us, however, have choices, and we should frequently be asking ourselves if we are living the best life we can – both for ourselves and others.

1. https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/jacinda-ardern-not-alone-quitting-at-the-top-by-peter-singer-2023-02

[shuttershocky]

if you could pitch an original story to type-moon what would it be? in my case i would want an odd couple mage with low quality mystic eyes that let her vaguely perceive the auras of magic creatures and a one-eyed gun-slinging priest hunting down a werewolf in Australia

A story where an ordinary (not-executor) nun who runs an orphanage in the countryside is forced to honor a promise to her old classmate who is now a freelancing bounty hunter by helping her take down an extremely high-profile target somewhere inside Las Vegas.

It turns out the two women are actually going after a powerful vampire, and while bullets and simple magecraft is often enough to kill a human being, a creature of the night needs heavier, consecrated firepower that a low-level bounty hunter simply doesn't have access to, which is where our protagonist comes in. All she has to do is say her little prayers and sprinkle her holy water while the vampire's hopefully still too grievously injured to move, and job done! Her classmate will be rich forever, while the orphans will never be told they can't afford to fix the leaky roof ever again.

Of course, they would first have to race other hunters to find, identify, and defeat the Dead Apostle first, and there's no worse place for a small town nun to get lost in than THE sin city.

Alternatively

A period piece set in the Philippines under Spanish rule. A biology researcher from the Clock Tower arrives back home in Manila hoping to get leads about a large phantasmal beast that has possibly survived into the modern era, having grown up hearing tales of various tribes describing a massive serpentine dragon that swallows the Moon and must be frightened away by bells and other loud noises. While no such phantasmal beast contains the power to devour the real Moon, beings like the Flat Snark have shown that the Moon in the sky isn't always the real Moon. If multiple different tribes believe it to be so, and continue to run out into the open fields to protect the Moon in a lunar eclipse, then surely some manner of creature must be out there, and if a phantasmal of that size does exist it would be the discovery of the century.

Unfortunately for the researcher, the Holy Church holds an iron grip over a vast majority of the country, and their legions of executors refuse to let an outstanding heresy such as that creature exist within their territory. What's more, rival mages from Europe are keen to steal the researcher's work, as no European magus from an "upstanding" family could ever let themselves be upstaged by a brown man who thought himself their equal.

[annecoulmanross]

Top Ten Historical Figures Done Dirty by The Terror (2018)

So, we all know and love Dave Kajganich and Soo Hugh’s beautiful show, right? Of course. But it’s important to set the historical record straight, especially when there are real people’s life-stories and legacies on the line. 

(NOTE: this list is biased heavily toward upper-class individuals because the historical record does a better job preserving those voices for us. Was the real Cornelius Hickey as nasty a person in real life as he was in the show? Almost certainly not – which is why we’re given “E.C.” as a nod to the fact that we shouldn’t assume these characters represent real historical villains, even when the narrative makes them antagonists; HOWEVER, not everyone in the show was given the same courtesy as the OG “Cornelius Hickey.” Which is why this post exists – to show you the best sides of some people you might not otherwise appreciate for their full humanity. That being said, keep in mind the sources used – and, for instance, who has surviving portraits and who doesn’t.)

Thus, below the cut, I give you this list, (mostly) in order from #10 (honorable mention, only somewhat slandered) to #1 (most hideously maligned) – my list of characters from The Terror who deserved better. 

(Please don’t take this too seriously – I know there are reasons why choices had to be made in order to make this show work on television, and I do very much love the end product. But I also genuinely think it’s a good idea to remember the real people behind these characters, and think critically about how we depict them ourselves.) 

Bottom Tier – The Overlooked Men of the Franklin Expedition

#10. Richard Wall – & – John Diggle

We’re combining these two because they had a lot in common, historically speaking! Both were polar veterans, having served as a Cook (Wall) and an AB-then-Quartermaster (Diggle) on HMS Erebus under the command of Sir James Clark Ross in the Antarctic expedition of 1839-1843. Certainly we do get some good scenes with them in the show, but there was plenty more to explore there – for instance, Captain Ross was apparently so taken with Richard Wall that he hired him on as a private cook after the Antarctic expedition. (One imagines that Sir James may have regretted letting his friends of the Franklin expedition steal Wall out from under him.)

(If you want some more information on Diggle, the brilliant @handfuloftime​ found this excellent article on him – fun facts include the detail that Diggle’s only daughter bore the name Mary Ann Erebus Diggle.) 

#9. John Smart Peddie 

Now, I don’t think we should go as far as the Doctor Who Audio Drama adaptation of the Franklin Expedition, which makes Peddie into Francis Crozier’s oldest friend, someone “almost like a brother” to Crozier (no evidence of ANY prior relationship between the two existed, contrary to whatever the Doctor Who Audio Dramas would have you believe!) but Peddie probably earned his place as chief surgeon, however fond we may all be of the beautiful Alex “Macca” MacDonald, who was, in fact, the Assistant Surgeon, historically speaking. It’s hard to find information about Peddie, but someone should go looking! I want to know about this man! 

(If you want to know more about the historical Alexander MacDonald, there’s a short biographical article on him from Arctic that you can read here.)

#8 James Walter Fairholme

The only one of the expedition’s lieutenants who doesn’t really get any characterization in the show, which is a travesty! The historical Fairholme (pronounced “Fairem”) was, as they say, a himbo, and the letters that he wrote home to his father are positively precious. He loved the expedition pets (lots of kisses for Neptune!), and he needed two kayaks because he couldn’t fit into just one with his beefy thighs. Fitzjames loaned him a coat when all the Erebus officers had their portraits taken, and then called him a “smart, agreeable companion, and a well informed man,” and Goodsir singled Fairholme out as “very much interested” in the work of naturalist observations. Just a lovely young man who could have gotten some screen time, you know? 

(Also, as @transblanky​ discovered, four separate members of the Fairholme family gave money to Thomas Blanky’s widow when she was struggling financially in the 1850s, making them, combined, the most generous contributor to her subscription.) 

Middle Tier – Franklin’s Men Who Didn’t Deserve That

#7. William Gibson

Alright, I want to talk about how uniquely horrible the show’s William Gibson is: this is a character willing to lie and accuse his partner of sexual assault that didn’t happen. I get there were extenuating circumstances, but if I were a historical figure who died in some famous disaster and someone depicted me doing something like that? Let’s just say I’m deeply offended on the real Gibson’s behalf. 

What do we know about the historical William Gibson? Not much – but we know a little. Gibson’s younger brother served on an overland exploratory venture across Australia in the 1870s… from which he never returned. (God, the Gibson family had the worst luck?) This description of a conversation that young Alf Gibson had with expedition leader Ernest Giles only days before his death is VERY eerie: 

[Gibson] said, “Oh! I had a brother who died with Franklin at the North Pole, and my father had a deal of trouble to get his pay from government.” He seemed in a very jocular vein this morning, which was not often the case, for he was usually rather sulky, sometimes for days together, and he said, “How is it, that in all these exploring expeditions a lot of people go and die?” 

I said, “I don't know, Gibson, how it is, but there are many dangers in exploring, besides accidents and attacks from the natives, that may at any time cause the death of some of the people engaged in it; but I believe want of judgment, or knowledge, or courage in individuals, often brought about their deaths. Death, however, is a thing that must occur to every one sooner or later.” 

To this he replied, “Well, I shouldn't like to die in this part of the country, anyhow.” In this sentiment I quite agreed with him, and the subject dropped.

(From Giles’s Australia Twice Traversed which you can read here) 

Beyond that, one thing we do know is that William Gibson was probably friends with Henry Peglar – they had served on ships together before, and Gibson may possibly have been the poor fellow found cradling the Peglar Papers, according to researcher Glenn Stein. So we might imagine the historical Gibson as a much kinder man than the show’s depiction of him – this was someone who befriended the clever, playful Peglar we all know and love from the transcriptions of his papers, so full of poetry and linguistic jokes. It’s a shame we didn’t get a chance to meet this real Gibson, who actually knew the Henry Peglar whom we love so well.

#6. Stephen Stanley

Look. There’s that one famous line in James Fitzjames’s letters to the Coninghams about how Stanley went about with his “shirt sleeves tucked up, giving one unpleasant ideas that he would not mind cutting one’s leg off immediately – ‘if not sooner.’” And certainly Harry Goodsir had some mixed opinions of the man, saying was “a would be great man who as I first supposed would not make any effort at work after a time,” and that he “knows nothing whatever about subject & is ignorant enough of all other subjects,” whatever…. that means…. 

But Fitzjames also had some rather nicer things to say about him, that he was “thoroughly good natured and obliging and very attentive to our mess.” Also, the amputation comment? Very likely had a quite positive underlying joke to it – Stanley may not have been much of a naturalist, but he was actually an accomplished anatomist, who won a prize for dissection in 1836, on account of his “bend of the elbow,” which was “a picture of dissection,” according to Henry Lonsdale, who also called Stanley his “facetious friend” and “a fine fellow” (Lonsdale 1870, pg. 159). So, the real Stanley probably was rather droll, but the perpetually cruel Stanley of the show misses some of the real man’s major historical virtues and replaces them with historically unlikely mass-mercy-murder. 

#5. John Irving

Now we’re getting into the territory of characters who did get some good development, but are missing a bit of historical nuance. As I’m sure many of you know, the historical Irving was indeed very religious, but the flashes of anger (i.e. against Manson) we see from Irving in the show don’t seem terribly consistent with the Irving depicted in this memorial volume, where John seems more like a quiet, bookish, mathematically inclined young man, with a self-deprecating sense of humor and a gentle sweetness. It’s really not at all far off from the version of Irving we see with Kooveyook in the show – I just wish we could have seen more of that side of Irving. 

Top Tier – The Triumvirate of Polar Friends

So, these three DO have many good things to recommend them in the show, but because I’ve done such deep research on them, it can be quite jarring to watch certain scenes in which they behave contrary to their historical personalities, and I find myself pausing when watching the show with friends or family to explain that NO, they wouldn’t do that! 

#4. Sir James Clark Ross

First thing – we LOVE Richard Sutton. He did a beautiful job with the material given to him. (This is true of all the actors on the list, frankly, but it’s doubly true here.) But that scene at the Admiralty where Sir James tells Lady Franklin “I have many friends on those ships, as you know,” to shut down her argument for search missions? At that time (aka 1847), historically, Sir James Clark Ross was actively campaigning for search missions, planning routes and volunteering his services in command of any vessel the Admiralty even vaguely contemplated sending out. You could see this real-life desperation in Sir James’s morose attention to his whiskey glass in that scene if you’re really trying, but I think the more historically responsible thing would have been to make vividly clear that James Ross risked life and limb, as soon as he possibly could, to try to rescue Franklin and Crozier and Blanky, men he’d known and cared about and bitterly missed – and, in the case of Crozier, “truly loved.” 

#3. Sir John Franklin

The historical Franklin had plenty of flaws – his contributions to British colonial rule certainly harmed no small number of people, and we should question the way that heroic statues of Franklin are some of the only memorials that serve to honor the lives lost on Franklin’s expeditions – especially considering the steep body count of not only Franklin’s final voyage, but his previous missions in Arctic regions as well. (DM me and I’ll scream at you about counter-monuments! Is this a promise or a threat? Who knows!) With that said, most contemporary accounts agree that Sir John Franklin treated his friends, his family, and those within his social orbit with kindness, and his cruelties were systemic, not personal. In this light, the image of Sir John viciously tearing into Francis Crozier’s vulnerabilities in the show feels very off. Though there was certainly some friction over Crozier’s two proposals to Sophia Cracroft, historically speaking, there’s no evidence at all that Sir John discouraged her from marrying Francis – Sophia may have had many reasons of her own (*clears throat meaningfully in a lesbian sort of way*) for not accepting any of the several marriage proposals offered to her (from Crozier as well as from others), and we ought to keep in mind that she remained unmarried all her life. The notion that the real Sir John would have considered Crozier too low-born or too Irish to be part of the Franklin family isn’t grounded in historical fact.

#2. Lady Jane Franklin

Again disclaimer: the real Lady Franklin left behind a legacy with much to critique. Those who rightfully point out the racism of her treatment of the young indigenous Tasmanian girl Mathinna should be fully heard out. Observations of her own contributions to imperialism are important and valid. Though I tend to see her feud with Dr. John Rae as somewhat understandable – given that Lady Franklin didn’t have the benefit of our hindsight knowing Rae was correct – the levels of prejudice that she enabled and even encouraged in the writing of Charles Dickens when he attempted to discredit Inuit accounts of Franklin’s fate are inarguably deplorable. These things being said, everything noted for Sir John re: Sophia Cracroft goes for Lady Franklin as well – there’s no reason to imagine a scene where Jane would bully Francis Crozier within an inch of his life, seconds after a failed second proposal, when, historically, Lady Franklin felt the situation was so delicate that it required the quiet and compassionate intervention of Sir James Clark Ross, a dearly loved mutual friend to all parties. Tension does not imply aggression; conflict is not abuse. We know this can’t have been an easy experience for the historical Francis Crozier, but the picture is a lot more complicated than what can be shown in one small subplot of a ten-episode television show. Because of this complexity, however, Lady Franklin’s social deftness suffers in the show. (I could also write an entire essay about Jane Franklin’s last shot in the show, at the beginning of Episode 9: The C the C the Open C – TL;DR is that framing is very important, and, at the very last moment, the show reframes Lady Franklin as a mutilated corpse, a speaking mouth without a brain, which is….. a choice.)

And, at number 1, the person done most dirty by The Terror (2018) is….

#1. Charles Frederick “Freddy” Des Voeux 

Look. I’m biased here because I am fed daily information about the historical Freddy Des Voeux from @frederickdesvoeux​ so I’ve become, I think understandably, a bit attached. 

But this is very plainly the clearest cruelty the show does to a historical figure – the historical Des Voeux was a very young man (only around 20 when the ships set sail) known always as “Frederick or Freddy” to his family, and described by all parties as bright and sweet – Fitzjames said that he was “a most unexceptionable, clever, agreeable, light-hearted, obliging young fellow, and a great favourite of Hodgson’s, which is much in his favour besides,” and described him cheerfully helping to catch specimens for Goodsir. Des Voeux is named “dear” by Captain Osborn in Erasmus Henry Brodie’s 1866 poem on the Franklin Expedition (43) and Leo McClintock reported the young man’s well-known “intelligence, gallantry, and zeal” in his 1869 update to his account of the Franklin Expedition’s fate (xlii). None of this is consistent with Des Voeux’s behaviour in the show, especially in the later episodes. 

To reduce Des Voeux to an easily-detested figure, over whose death one might cheer, is not a kindness – the creation of a narrative where his death is satisfying does damage to the memory of a real person, a barely-more-than-teenager who died in the cold of the Arctic and left behind only scraps of a shirt and a spidery signature in the bottom margin of a fragmentary document. 

Television shows may need their villains, but it’s important to remember that real life isn’t like that. Surely the historical Frederick Des Voeux was most likely not a perfect person, and, as an upper class officer contributing to a British imperial project, he does bear some responsibility for the harm done by the Franklin expedition, but it’s not accurate to assume he was any less worthy of sympathy than the other officers who considered him a friend – those men whom we now venerate, like James Fitzjames. So as far as I’m concerned, Freddy Des Voeux deserves at least as much consideration, care, and compassion from us. 

[thealexchen]

One Year On: Life is Strange 2 Critique

December 3rd, 2020 marks a year since Life is Strange 2 ended. I was inspired by @smitethepatriarchy‘s text posts (here, but there are several other answered asks worth reading) and @suhaplays’s text post (here) criticizing Life is Strange 2 to write a critique about how Life is Strange 2 handled certain themes and social issues.

(tw: gun violence, police brutality, animal death, incarceration, racism. In this essay, I use the word “queer” in a reclaimed sense, as a queer person myself. Of course, spoiler warning for all five episodes of Life is Strange 1 and 2).

A year on, my feelings about this game have soured... a lot. When the game was first announced, I was overjoyed that our new protagonists would be two Latino boys. Finally, we would have a culturally meaningful, groundbreaking video game with people of color and their experiences at the forefront! 

Then the game was met with immediate backlash and I utterly exhausted myself defending it for weeks on Reddit and Tumblr. Throughout 2019, as the episodes came out I became increasingly disillusioned, frustrated, and disappointed with where the story was going. I couldn’t figure out why I felt so damn miserable while playing this game.

Then in the summer of 2020, when Tell Me Why began rolling out pre-release material, I noticed that they posted a Q&A about transphobia, gave content warnings, and discussed at length about their collaboration with GLAAD, Checkpoint, and the Huna Heritage Foundation to make the game with sensitivity and proper research. I cannot speak for trans and gender non-conforming people on whether Dontnod succeeded at doing so with Tell Me Why. But Life is Strange 2 did… none of that.

Essentially, I realized that the reason why I was so frustrated with LiS2 is because it focuses way too heavily on a trauma narrative. This comes off as insensitive to players of color without any content warnings or extensive research.

Sean didn’t have to get kidnapped, kicked in the face, and called a racial slur by a gas station owner. Daniel did not need to watch his puppy get mauled by a mountain lion for the sake of a “difficult choice.” Sean didn’t have to lose his eye for the sake of heightened drama. Sean didn’t need to get called a racial slur and humiliated by his native language/beaten in the desert for refusing to sing. Daniel didn’t need to get shot— twice. Hell, all of “Faith” probably could’ve been cut— how is a church cult that brainwashes Daniel and beats Sean half to death relevant at all to the story?

Even if not all of the game’s violence was racially motivated, the consistent trauma that Sean and Daniel endure does not make for positive representation— or even good characterization. There is a difference between sympathetic characters and well-written characters, and trauma does not make Sean and Daniel any more complex or likable-- just more fucking traumatized.

LiS2 is more grounded in reality, but that also makes plot holes that much harder to excuse (Daniel’s powers being spotted, most of the Parting Ways ending, Sean’s prison sentence). But most of all, it grounds all of Sean and Daniel’s pain and trauma in reality. 

There is no magicking away a town-destroying storm with time travel. Sean can’t keep his dad alive by ripping up a Polaroid. After Max unlocked her powers, she was still a Blackwell student, reconnecting with Chloe, taking photos, saving lives, and uncovering a murder mystery. After Daniel unlocked his powers, the Diaz brothers lost everything. 

The game never lets you forget that Sean and Daniel are homeless, wanted, constantly in danger, and that they are never getting their old lives back. It permeates the entire game, and for players of color, just reinforces a sad, miserable, grim reality about living in the United States. It is, as @smitethepatriarchy said, potentially triggering for players of color, and it is certainly not something I needed to be reminded of.

And the representation of POC? It feels shallow and ill-researched. It would only take a Google search to find out that Dia de Muertos (a holiday to honor the dead, no less) was from October 31 to November 2 in 2016, the year the game takes place, but Daniel only talks about Halloween in episode 1. Sean and Daniel never discuss any Mexican customs, foods, or holidays. Sean doesn’t speak Spanish with his immigrant father, only during a scene when he’s traumatized (again!) by two racists, and again when talking to Mexican immigrants— in jail. Daniel doesn’t speak Spanish at all. Most of their allies throughout the game are white, including Finn and Cassidy, who appropriate Black culture with their dreadlocks.

So what’s left? Sean and Daniel’s existence as people of color is, at worst, just a narrative prop to justify everything that happens to them. They are people of color on the surface only. In a meta-sense, the game only considers the color of their skin and their last names as what is narratively important… yikes.

I don’t have anything against people who genuinely loved the game and were moved by its messages and story. But I can’t help but feel bitter that white players have the luxury of only thinking of this game as a work of fiction and not feeling any personal reliability to Sean and Daniel’s racialized trauma.

I don’t regret playing LiS2, but I do regret all the time and energy I spent defending it in the beginning. I understand now that I shouldn’t let people’s opinions get to me, nor should I feel obligated to like or defend a game for its attempts at representation. But now, I think I understand how queer fans must have felt in late 2015 when Polarized released. After following the game for 10 months, to see that Chloe’s ultimate destiny was to die and Pricefield is another ship plagued by the Bury Your Gays trope (in the ending that the devs clearly put more work into) must have been just as disillusioning and infuriating. I understand why some fans were so quick to unfollow LiS or develop mixed feelings about the series, because that’s how I feel too after following LiS2’s development from September 2018 to December 2019.

Before I end, I will admit that Life is Strange 2 arrived at a time when I needed it. I still stand by my belief that DN did a great job characterizing Sean, Daniel, and Chris without toxic masculinity, which is the best thing they could’ve done for a male-focused follow-up to a game about queer women. I love that Sean is still a canonically bisexual man of color in a major video game and that DN didn’t forget their queer audience. I love the world and characters that DN built, but I still prefer AU fanfictions of their normal lives, without all that trauma. 

So, I will continue to treasure Lyla and her 10 minutes of screentime (aka the only shred of Asian American representation I can get from this series). I still reblog LiS2 fanart to support the artists. I still support Dontnod, because as Tell Me Why has shown, they are capable of researching and writing stories with more sensitivity. And let’s be honest-- I’m still gonna be hella excited if Life is Strange 3 is announced.

But so many aspects of Life is Strange 2 were bungled that it came off as a remarkably average and forgettable experience. A year on, I don’t hate Life is Strange 2, but I am writing this to move on from it.

Thank you for reading.

[erimentary]

About a Certain Duke's Daughter (Part 2)

Translation of ある公爵令嬢について from the Hamefura Web Novel Read Part 1 here

T/N: I am using the spelling used in the Light Novels, but I would probably make an exception for Fray, if/when she appears. I'll use Randall as her last name if ever (it was Landoor in the LNs, iirc). :) Holy, moly. This part is a little longer than the previous one and took me more time to translate than I thought it would. My apologies for any typos or grammatical mistakes--I haven't given it another read through so this is as raw as it gets. xD Anyway, please enjoy, and my messages are open if you notice any translation/grammatical mistakes, or just want to talk about HameFura.

And so, a few years after I started being able to use magic, I enrolled at the Academy of Magic.

And while I entered the academy shouldering the excessive expectations of the Tucker household, I arrived only to learn that my magic was actually quite weak.

No, rather than learning about it for the first time, I already noticed it before.

The Tucker house was situated far in the countryside, and while it is a Baron household, it was quite a low-ranking house. There was no one with magical powers nearby.

Even so, from the way my magical powers activated at a later age and from what was written in books about magic, I already knew that my magic was quite weak.

However, actually entering the Academy of Magic and seeing the magical powers of the sons and daughters of other nobles, I realized once again that it was quite impertinent to even call my own magical power as magic.

I was already reluctant to go back to the Tucker household before, and now, after this realization, I became even more reluctant to go back to the estate.

Baron Tucker was so over the moon at having a magic-user in the family for the first time that he said he’ll have someone’s son marry into the family and make me the heiress but.. Honestly, from the perspective of a high-ranking house with several magic-wielding members, a concubine’s daughter with such negligible magical powers would just be laughed at scornfully.

The Tucker family, a low-ranking baron household, was, so to speak, a family of naive country bumpkins.

I am grateful to them of course, for providing for me thus far, and I was thinking about paying them back the cost of taking care of me once I start working.

However, not once had I ever thought of wanting to stay in the Tucker house.

It was not like I hated it there, but I didn’t feel at home either.

So I looked for a way to avoid going back home.

A way for the baron family to acknowledge me without me having to go back… And I found it.

That is, to work at the Magical Ministry. It is the most prominent organization in the country and admired by many.

If I am employed there, the Tuckers will be overjoyed, and they will never ask me to quit and go home.

It is said that while the Magical Ministry employs a lot of powerful magic-users, even those with almost no magical powers but have excellent grades could be employed as researchers.

And since I have insignificant magical powers, I have no choice but to aim for that.

Fortunately for me—someone who had been continuously praised for being a remarkable student by my teachers since I was but a child—I was able to remain an excellent student even after entering the Academy of Magic.

I was able to get the top ranking at the academic tests that took place soon after entering the academy. As a result, while I have very little magical capabilities, I was selected to become a member of the much-admired student council.

The student council of the Academy of Magic was a target of admiration of the whole student body.

After the Tucker household was notified that I became a member of the council, I received an all too thick letter from them expressing their joy. I was also commended by my teachers.

To a daughter of a countryside baron, this was such a great honor.

However, this also led to a lot of jealousy.

In the first place, most magic wielders are nobles, and the higher you go up the nobility rank, the greater the number of wielders.

Therefore, the majority of the students at the Academy of Magic are those of higher peerage.

This trend is especially apparent these days. Within the second years, students even include those of royal status and sons and daughters of dukes—people you ordinarily wouldn’t get the chance to meet if you live your life normally.

Under these circumstances, I could understand why the other students would not find it amusing if the daughter of a countryside baron had been selected to be a part of the widely-admired student council.

The jealousy is particularly strong this year, as the student council, starting with the royal twins, included a lot of seniors that are strongly adored by their juniors.

As far as social statuses go, among the second years, there is a commoner who wields magic—something the Academy had not seen in a while—named Maria Campbell, but… she is a wielder of light magic; aside from the fact that light magic users are extremely rare, her magical power is also regarded as top class.

In contrast to that, I am but the daughter of a countryside baron, not much different to a commoner in terms of status, wielding the not uncommon wind magic—and it’s fairly weak too. My only saving grace is my academic capabilities…….

It would probably go better for me if I had a more amiable personality, but... if you’d allow me to say so myself, I am quite twisted. I can’t even begin to spell amiable.

In other words, on top of the extreme jealousy, students in the academy despised me for being “a haughty and disagreeable girl despite her weak magic and low station”.

To be honest, though being in this situation feels terrible, there is nothing that I can do.

Ever since before, no one in the Tucker household really liked me, and even in the school I used to attend, people talked behind my back, and I was subjected to petty harassment.

To that end, the situation hasn’t really changed, just that the harassment has become a little more intense.

In other words, I should just do my best for two years, get excellent grades and get a job at the Magical Ministry.

I just have to continue to work hard on my own, as I always had. That was what I decided in my heart a few weeks after entering the Academy of Magic. That was what I intended but…..

“Hey, Ginger, you should try these sweets too. They’re very good!*

“No, thank you. I’m still working.”

“Really? I’ll just leave them here for you then~”

Saying this, she grinned and left the sweets beautifully wrapped in paper on top of the desk.

She had never responded to me in an unpleasant way even with my curt way of replying, something that is often frowned upon by others. If anything, no matter how cold I respond, she continues to approach me with a friendly smile. I can’t help but find it strange.

A few months have passed since my enrollment at the Academy of Magic and becoming a member of the student council.

Thanks to that, I’ve gotten quite used to my work here, but... There were some unexpected happenings as well.

To begin with, ever since I started being envied and harassed by the people around me after entering the academy and being selected as a member of the student council, I had intended to do my best on my own.

After all, I thought no one would involve themselves with me with any intention other than bullying.

And yet..… Most of the other first years who were also selected for the student council both had high pride and status, and I can feel their uneasiness around me, but…… All the second-year members are friendly and amicable, seemingly unbothered by social ranks.

Even the members of the royal family, Prince Jeord and Prince Alan, do not look down on me, and treat me as an equal.

And among those people, the one who is especially friendly is

———Katarina Claes, a duke’s daughter.

The only daughter of Duke Claes and Prince Jeord’s fiancée.

She, who stands on top of the social hierarchy, goes in and out of the student council every day, having completely integrated herself with the other student council members despite not being an actual member herself.

At the very strong request of the other second-year members, she was allowed to enter the student council room—

A place that is off-limits to the general student populace.

Lady Katarina is called “The Benevolent Saint” within the school. When I just joined the student council, I was also a little surprised by her kind and amiable smile.

However, after a little while, I realized.

Katarina Claes is————simply a dumb weirdo…...

[lahyene]

Lone No More.

Pairing: bucky barnes x reader ft. shuri

Summary: You find yourself falling for the “White Wolf” when he moves to Wakanda, where you’re currently studying abroad for your major.

Themes: romance, fluff

Word count: 1283

You brush a strand of your hair behind your ear in the light breeze, eyes focused on the mysterious one-armed farmer in his home slightly further away. You have heard all about the legendary Winter Soldier, or “White Wolf” as the Wakandans have taken to calling him, but you have yet to get to know him. You wonder if you can possibly connect with him- both of you are foreigners, seeing that you are an environmental studies major from the US completing research in Wakanda. You love the people here, but it sometimes feels a bit lonely not having anyone who can share at least a little bit of your background. Maybe a man born in the 1910s and trained to be a ruthless assassin isn’t particularly the most relatable, but you figure it’s worth a shot to get to know him anyways.

“Hey! Y/N! You are staring again.” Shuri looks at you with amusement and you quickly snap back, clearing your throat. 

“It wasn’t staring, I was just… observing! We don’t really ever have new people here…”

“Just go talk to him. He won’t bite. Not anymore, at least, thanks to me.” She teases, referring to her little job of returning his brain back to normal. “He could probably use a friend. Or… something more…” She gives you a smirk, eyebrows lifting and you laugh, immediately nudging her. 

“Quit it! It’s not like that!” You watch him feeding his goats outside, barely biting your lip. “I would like to at least be friends though. Do you think maybe you could…”

Shuri chuckles, rolling her eyes playfully and grabbing your arm already pulling you towards his humble home. “Come on, come on. But you have to let me embarrass you just a little.” You whine half playfully, starting to regret wanting her to come along, but it’s too late now. She approaches the pathway going up to his house, calling out, “Oi! White Wolf! I have someone I want you to meet.” 

You blink, somewhat blushing slightly. “Shuri! You don’t need to make it sound… I don’t know, like I have other intentions or something!” you hiss quietly, but when the lone man looks up and makes eye contact with you, you’re momentarily distracted.

Wow.

He definitely looks like he’s seen some things- bad things- and your heart already hurts for him. However, at the same time, he has a sense of confidence and optimism in his brown eyes that makes you feel an odd sense of pride and respect despite not even having made formal introductions yet. You’ve never felt so impacted by someone.

“Hello,” he greets, coming down the pathway- one arm by his side while a shawl drapes over the other side. You force yourself not to stare. “Bucky. Nice to meet ya.” He extends his hand and you immediately smile, placing yours in his. 

“Y/N. You too, I’ve heard so much about you. I hope you’ve been settling in well.” 

Shuri watches with a mischievous smirk, crossing her arms. “Of course he has. He’s had the best caretaker in the galaxy. Even though he is incredibly high maintenance.” She makes a playful face at him and he scoffs softly in amusement, a slight twinkle in his otherwise dark eyes as he just barely smiles. You wonder how often he’s even been able to do that within the past decade.

Before either of you can respond to her remark, she suddenly drops her mouth open in exaggerated concern. “Oh, no! I just remembered that I was supposed to meet my brother. You know how he is, just as needy as you are.” She nudges Bucky before looking to you with an innocent smile. “You two have fun though!” 

Your eyes widen as you spin around, watching her practically scamper off. “Shuri- '' you call, but there’s no use- you stare after her fading figure for a few moments before turning back to him, laughing awkwardly. “I’m sorry, she’s a piece of work…”

He laughs quietly, raising an eyebrow. “Yeah. Believe me, I know. But she’s a good kid.” He looks at you for a few moments and you find yourself having no idea what to say- you’re getting slightly anxious because it’s becoming more awkward, but he suddenly breaks the silence.

“Want to come inside?”

_

“Come here, Steve! It’s dinner time!”

The tiny tan colored goat looks up from having been angrily headbutting the fence, looking slightly annoyed to be interrupted but reluctantly coming over nonetheless due to the fact that you’re holding food. Bucky comes up behind you, wrapping his one arm around your waist and clucking his tongue. “I can’t believe you named one of our goats after my best friend.”

“What? He’s exactly like how you described pre-serum Steve! The little guy, always fighting everything. He’s even blond!” you pointed out in protest, leaning over slightly to give the goat some food. 

Bucky can’t help but chuckle, eyes flickering over the scrawny runt. “Alright, alright fair.” He kisses your cheek, peering at the other goats eating their food. “I just think Steve is a ridiculous goat name. But you’re lucky I like you enough to let it be.” He glances down at you with a smirk and you roll your eyes fondly, though happily hold his arm around you. “What a relief. I feel so honored,” you reply playfully sarcastic.

You and Bucky have been together for nearly six months now. You clicked right off the bat upon meeting that first day- after inviting you inside, the two of you had talked for hours and hours. You felt like you had known him your whole life, and now, he’s your best friend and partner. Shuri constantly teases you and jokes that your relationship is all thanks to her, and in a way, it's true- you wonder if you would have ever had the courage to approach him yourself. You laugh at such a fear now; back then, he seemed so intimidating and aloof, and now, you know him as a little flirtatious goofball who loves to tease. You’ve noticed a significant improvement in his mental health, and you couldn’t be happier that he’s becoming healthier each day.

“Mm. That’s right. Now come on, sassy girl, it’s time for our dinner.” He takes your hand and leads you inside the hut, sitting down with you at the small wooden table where the food is already laid out. Fresh bread, cheese, and warm stew- you barely even find yourself missing food from back home now that you have such an amazing partner to eat farm fresh food with.

He notices you looking at the food with a little too much fondness in your eyes, and he reaches over to poke at your side playfully. “Hello? Anyone in there? I know you love food but I’ve never seen you space out over it.” You blink and giggle slightly, poking him back. “Yeah, I was just… thinking about something. You. And that I love you a lot.”

He looks at you and smiles softly, eyes gazing at you lovingly.

“Well. Isn’t that sweet of my little doll. I love you too.” He leans in to peck your lips gently before pulling back. “Now eat up. It’s a lot of work cooking with one arm you know, don’t let it go to waste.”

You laugh softly, lifting his hand to kiss his fingers cutely before nodding your head, serving yourself.

It’s a dangerous world the two of you live in, and he’s had an unfortunate past. You don’t know what’s to come, but you’re confident that as long as you’re by each other’s side, everything will work out in the end.

[thadelightfulone]

All I Want... 25 Days of Christmas Challenge, Day 14

December 14th

DeeDee walked into Dr. O’s office and looked around. In the center was a big wooden desk, a couch on one side and a table in the corner. She swept her hand across the table as she made her way to his desk. There were plenty of late nights and early morning study sessions held in this office. She set down the research papers for his classes and took a seat in front of the desk.

And it was all coming to an end. This was the last time that she would be here as his mentee and graduate assistant. 

Dr. O was seated behind his desk as DeeDee took her last walk around the office. 

“Hey DeeDee.”

“Hey Dr. O.”

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m excited and nervous. I am ready to get it over with it already.”

“You know you got this.” 

“I mean, I know my stuff but it’s the normal before a major presentation anxiety that is kicking it right now.”

“Well, you know you can always picture everyone naked right?”

“What am I, ten?” She laughed, “I prefer to look over the top of their heads and focus on a point in the back.”

“Ok then.” Dr. O stepped around the desk with a wrapped gift. “So, I have something for you.”  

DeeDee hesitated before taking it and gave it a good shake. “You didn’t have to get me anything, Dr. O.” 

“Just open it.”

DeeDee pulled off the wrapping paper, to reveal a medium sized box with a lid. She uncovered it and reached inside. She lifted out a brass nameplate with her full name and her future title on it. 

“Dr. O, you really didn’t have to do this.” 

He waved off her comment, “There’s more, go on.”

DeeDee looked inside and pulled out three books. She recognized the top two. A blue basic chemistry workbook by Dr. Bell and an orange organic chemistry book by Dr. O. She opened the front covers and found signed personal messages from them. 

“Awwww, I am gonna miss you guys, too.” 

She set the books down and picked up the third book. A thin green book that looked more like a manual, ‘Real World Science Applications’ by Dr. Erik Stevens. DeeDee looked up at Dr. O. 

“I know that you recently reached out to him regarding an article he wrote while he was here. So, I figured you might want to take a look at some of his other work.” 

“I don’t understand the books.”

“I was given the most popular works from my two mentors and one to grow on when I earned my doctorate.” He paused, “So, I am honoring the tradition.”

DeeDee looked at Erik’s book sitting on top of the pile and shook her head. The man had already grown on her, but not from a professional standpoint. This isn’t gonna do anything more then build up the crush she already had on him. She stood up and gave Dr. O a hug.

“Thank you for all your help over the years. I truly appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome, DeeDee. I am excited to call you a colleague and not just my student anymore.” He put the books back into the box and covered it. “Now, that concludes our final meeting as mentee and mentor, let’s get a drink.”

“Shouldn’t we wait until it’s official?”

“It usually is when you are given your defense date. It’s kind of hard to mess up work that you spent years doing.”

“True.” She looked at her watch. “I have time for one drink tonight, but we can go big on Friday.”

“Deal.” 

---

DeeDee sat at her laptop and opened the document that would seal her future. She hadn’t looked at it all weekend and like she told Dr. O over that drink, her anxiety was kicking up again. Fall classes ended last week and she took the next three weeks off from her job, so she doesn’t have to be anywhere until the beginning of the new year. But the biggest thing looming over her head is her defense this Friday. The presentation is done and she has practiced as much as humanly possible, but she still felt off. 

She picked up the gift box from Dr. O and pulled out Erik’s book. So, Dr. O doesn’t know about her conversations with Erik, that’s interesting. She picked up her phone and hit redial.

“Hello Miss DeeDee,” Erik breathily answered.

“Did I catch you at a bad time?” 

“Nope, just getting my evening run in. What’s up?”

“Guess what I have in my hands?”

“DeeDee, let me get inside before you start this.”

“Excuse me? What do you think I am talking about, nasty?”

---

Erik hung up and called her right back on video, all he saw was a book on screen. He took a closer look, “How did you get that? It hasn’t been printed in years and that looks pristine.” He sat on a park bench.

“I would ask your friend, Dr. O about that. He gave it to me.” DeeDee moved the book away. 

Erik was greeted by a blue hoodie and black glasses. “Why did he do that?”

“He said it was tradition. I was given 3 books total and a nameplate for my office.”

“Oh yeah, two books from mentors or favorite professors and then one to help with future research.”

“You know about that?”

“Sure, Marquis told me about it when he earned his doctorate. I think that’s a great --” Erik looked away, “Why would he give you my manual?”

“You’re the one to grow on.” DeeDee’s face ran hot when she thought about what she just said. 

“I’m the one for you to grow on?” Erik smirked into the camera. “I dig it. Maybe, I already have.”

DeeDee avoided his intense gaze.  

“Miss DeeDee,” he waited until she looked at him. “Have I?”

“Have you what, Mr. Erik?” She asked in a small voice.

“Have I grown on you?”

“Yes,” she nodded into the camera, “yes, you have.”

---

DeeDee watched as Erik’s eyes flickered in the sunset. She shook her head so she didn’t have to focus on them. She was afraid of what she would see in them, something she wasn’t ready to admit.

“Do you think you can sign my book when I see you?” She asked to lighten up the situation.

“Of course, I can. But wouldn’t you prefer a picture with the author?”

“I mean that would be nice, too.” She smiled.

“Whatever the lady wants, the lady gets. I told you that.” 

She closed her eyes, “You did.”

“And I plan to deliver that and more.”

DeeDee took a deep breath.

Taglist: @teakturn​ @ghostfacekill-monger​ @shaekingshitup​ @nahimjustfeelingit-writes​ @woahitslucyylu​ @ladymac82​ @bugngiz​ @eyeknowmywrites​ @ajspencer1892​ @arafatih​ @issimplyaamazinggg​ @tchallasbabymama​ @killmonger-fics​ @beautifullmelodyxx​ @raysunshine78​ @fd-writes​ @ljstraightnochaser​ @just-peachee​ @kaleidoscopeofsoul​

[freckledacademic]

hello everyone!

i had someone request a breakdown of what my medical school/MSTP application looked like, so here we go!

FIRST - a disclaimer! this is my application, and it worked for me. it doesn’t look like the application of my classmates and other medical school friends who also got in. one of my friends got a below average MCAT, but her clinical experience and extracurriculars meant she got into (and is going to!) a highly-ranked medical school. on the other hand, my application was weighted fairly heavily in the direction of academics, since that’s my strength!

also, keep in mind i was applying to medical scientist training programs with the goal of getting an MD/PhD -- my app is also pretty research heavy

onto the specifics!

general

i went to a small liberal arts college with a focus on research. nearly every student does a senior thesis, and science senior theses usually involve lots of lab work/data generation done by the student.

i double-majored in mathematics and biochemistry & molecular biology, and between those classes, gen eds, and music, i was generally over full-time but just under the credit limit per semester.

i took the MCAT in May of 2018, and applied that summer. my AMCAS was in July 9th, and I got approved ~August 10th. this was between my junior (17-18) and senior (18-19) years. i matriculated at my med school in july of 2019.

numbers

GPA - 3.97 (ish? i got two A-s, and everything else was As)

MCAT - 519 (130 on three sections, 129 on one. i don’t remember which one though whoops)

clinical experience

shadowing - shadowed with two different doctors - an oncologist over the course of a semester, and a clinical pathologist for a day. total # of hours - relatively low, maybe 15-25.

clinical volunteering  - i volunteered at a free clinic near my college for one afternoon every week or so during most of junior spring and senior year. total # of hours - ~60 hrs

medical ethics program - related to the longitudinal oncology shadowing. once a month, throughout the spring semester of my junior year, we would meet to discuss articles we’d been assigned to read on a topic eg: end of life care, malpractice, etc. total # of hours -  ~10 hrs

research experience

research assistant, yeast genetics lab - i worked in this lab during the spring of my first year and during the summer after. it was my first lab/research experience, and it taught me a lot regarding lab techniques and lab mentality. garnered me my one and (still) only publication! total # of hours -  400+ hrs

research assistant, computational biology lab - i worked (and went on to do my senior thesis) in this lab during my junior year. it was partially an excuse to get started with my thesis coding early, because it was going to take a lot of time, but it also helped me get acquainted with my thesis advisor! total # of hours - ?

research intern, cancer research center - this was an internship i applied for that was specifically for students with a year left in college that occurred the summer between my junior and senior year. i worked with a biostatistician on developing a machine-learning model to predict disease risk based off of demographic data. i learned a lot about R, statistics, and regression models. i also learned that i don’t like R, statistics, and machine learning models lmao. note: this didn’t technically go in my AMCAS iirc, because i applied while i was *at* the internship. i did talk about it at interviews!

senior thesis - this was another thing that wasn’t in my app itself, because at the time it hadn’t been written lmao. it was something i was able to talk about at interviews, but it being ~still in progress~ did complicate it

on-campus jobs

peer tutor - got recommended by a professor my first year for a different tutoring program, but my schedule was a mess so i ended up as a one-on-one peer tutor! i really enjoyed it, but i had to drop it with how busy i got junior year, so i only did it for two years (freshman spring --> junior fall). total # of hours - 210 hrs

laboratory course TA, cell biology - again, got asked by a professor to do this. specifically TA’d 2/3 sections junior fall, and then 1/2 or 1/3 sections every semester after that. also held office hours, maintained longitudinal lab experiments, and supervised students performing experiments. total # of hours - 800 hrs (TAing this class was absurd and i did it for four semesters)

extracurriculars

collegiate choir member - i adore singing, and part of the reason i went to the college i did was so i could still partake in music while pursuing a science degree. i was a part of my school’s auditioned choir for all four years at my school, and it involved 1h15m practices 4 days a week, regular concerts, and an annual spring tour. total # of hours - 500 hrs

chorus manager - i was a manager of the chorus as well for three years (sophomore through senior). i was very much in charge of the organization - making sure everyone had uniforms, that those uniforms were on for concerts and that everyone was wearing shoes. shepherding people on trips, solving problems, taking attendance, etc. etc. total # of hours - 250 hrs

i also took voice lessons, though i don’t think i put that down on my app? iirc there’s a limit to how many activities you can add?

other

honor societies 

Phi Beta Kappa - general undergrad honor society, inducted junior year

Mu Alpha Theta - mathematics honor society, inducted sophomore year

Beta Beta Beta - biology honor society, inducted sophomore (?) year

awards

Barry Goldman scholarship - honorable mention

Dean’s List - all 8 semesters

various prizes specific to my undergrad

academic merit scholarship, minor voice scholarship

------------

to sum it all up....

i think the pros of my application include a strong academic presence, proof of my interest in research, and the existence of significant interests outside the STEM pathway - namely, music!

i think the major con of my application was a really weak clinical experience section, tbh. i also feel like some schools on the other side of the country from my undergrad like. hadn’t heard of it lmaooo.

everyone’s application will be different!! and that���s good, and okay, and you’ll be fine. you want to think about the things that make you you, and potentially the things that reflect on the kind of doctor that you’d like to be.

[synnefo-nefeli]

I really love the scene in Heard Your Heart Beating when Apollo and Klavier sleep after drinking and Apollo wakes up at some point and looks at Klavier and thinks about him and Daryan and Kristoph. Idk I really like the vibe of it and also Apollo is really fond of him and you can see it lol

This is for the DVD Commentary Author Ask if there is a scene from any of my works you’d like to see a DVD commentary on, send me an ask!

Yesss this one of my favorite scenes so far in HYHB.

So there are two things going on in this scene- one is a payoff moment when Apollo figures out the significance of Valentine's Day is to Klavier, and the other is the emergence of the theme of " Safety". This chapter also functions as a transition point from Klavier and Apollo moving from work colleagues into a closer friendship. There is still a giddy nervousness at the beginning of this chapter that is usually associated with moving to the next step.

I wanted to express that almost frenetic nervous energy when inviting a new friend/date/etc into your personal space for the first time. And Apollo, despite him stating repeatedly that the hangout is platonic/feeling guilty about appearing to move on from Clay /trying to keep that boundary that’s existed so far between them, allows that boundary to fall.

By the end of the chapter there is now a comfort and deeper trust between them so that their relationship can continue to develope organically over the next few chapters without Apollo being constantly flustered every time Klavier teases him or there still being awkward feelings between them. They’re still in the “getting to know you” phase of their friendship but they’re at the point where coffee breaks and after work drinks no longer suffice. They now want to hang out as much as possible.

More under the cut so I don't spoil people for this chapter

Before I get back into the Safety theme I want to reiterate the meaning of the story’s title. It comes from Florence + The Machine’s song, “Cosmic Love”. The lyric goes:

“ I heard your heart beating, you were in the darkness too-So I stayed in the darkness with you”

This lyric aside from Comic Love being a big mood inspiration for the story, this lyric refers to Klavier and Apollo finding eachother after going through a really shitty and traumatic year and a half.

They recognize that the other is a source of some comfort as each of them understand what the other is going through a little bit better than the others around them.

This scene is the first confirmation to the reader that yes, Klavier is actively seeking out Apollo for comfort.

So far in this story we know *something* is bothering Klavier- he’s actively avoiding someone and he’s been kinda timid in reaching out to people without having his glimmerous persona constantly on. In the following chapter, Klavier mentions that he’s been asked to be in Edgeworth’s wedding.

Apollo attempts to commiserate with Klavier about this as Phoenix has just asked Apollo to be his best man.

Klavier tells Apollo that Apollo shouldn’t be shocked about being asked to be Phoenix’s best man- considering how much Apollo means to Phoenix. He has to point out to Apollo how much Apollo means to Phoenix and Trucy as well as how Apollo impacted Klavier’s choice to return to the legal world full-time.

And while Klavier is honored that he’s been asked by Edgeworth, his being asked is more of a surprise than Apollo being included in the Wright-Edgeworth nuptials. There is no way that Apollo wouldn’t be included after all he’s done for Phoenix and Trucy and how close he is to the WAA. Klavier had a different dynamic with Edgeworth. Part of this because, well, it’s Edgeworth. But Edgeworth has formed close bonds with Gumshoe and Kay...but Edgeworth just spent the last few years chasing down a Phantom Criminal in order to save Simon from Death Row. So Miles and Simon had a closer dynamic.

Klavier unfortunately comes with a lot of baggage-most of it being from things beyond his control. It was his debut that resulted in Miles’ partner from being disbarred and disgraced. There is everything with Kristoph. Combine the canon stuff along with this story establishing that the Gavins and the von Karmas have a bit of a family feud going on, it’s no wonder why Klavier admits to feeling that he’s still needs to figure out if and where he belongs.

He’s always looked up to Phoenix and Miles and wants to spend his career under them, but he thinks he needs more chances to prove himself to rebuild trust.

Of course- the obvious signal Klavier is missing, is “Hi, the Chief Prosecutor has asked you to be in his wedding party. If the grooms didn’t like you, you wouldn’t have been invited let alone asked to be IN THEIR WEDDING PARTY” ...and he misses it right after he’s finished telling Apollo, “how could youthink you’d wouldn’t be included, Herr Forehead. Jeeze.”

Like I said- Klavier is shit at taking his own advice. I’m not being mean to Klavier, but because Klavier is anxious about trusting people and letting people in, he prefers to do things on his own terms and under his control just in case he needs to get out if he gets rejected.

And even though he reached out to Apollo first with his condolences for Clay’s death he didn’t expect anything more than a thank you note, but Apollo not only acknowledging him, hunting him down to his apartment and even offering his company to Klavier, was a happy surprise to someone who has been very lonely.

He’s been wanting to get to know Apollo but he’s felt awkward due to the fallout with Kristoph and the continuing dark age of the law of which he was apart of the two major catalysts.

Apollo over the last few weeks is appearing to be a safe space for Klavier.

However Klavier wants more confirmation and a chance to suss things out (re: Kristoph). So when Apollo says he doesn’t have plans and was oblivious about Valentine’s, Klavier pounces on it. He spent Valentine’s alone the previous year and it spiraled his depression so he was not in the mood to again this year.

This scene was meant to be that very comfortable state between two people with a budding friendship. Once you get drunk with someone while having deep conversations, it tends to push you more into the friendship category.

It was also important to get some of the serious topics out rather than dragging it out. Having this quiet evening is something they both needed, and it allowed them be vulnerable. Especially since Apollo was already upset from the phone conversation he had with the Terrans earlier in the chapter.

Apollo needed a night in with the only person who has never treated him with kid gloves, even before Clay’s death. And Klavier needed a night in with the only person who has never put him on a pedestal.

When discussing Kristoph, it was important to remind the reader that Kristoph is a human being- it’s what makes him a compelling villain and why his betrayal of both Apollo and Klavier’s trust strikes an emotional chord with the player. Before the events of AA4, there was a time where Kristoph gained Apollo and Klavier’s love and loyalty, where he was a normal boss, a dog-dad, a good older brother. There were good times and happy memories- which is why when Kristoph is exposed, Apollo and Klavier are disillusioned- Klavier moreso. But another reason as to why Klavier finds Apollo to be a safe haven, is because, Apollo knew the Kristoph Klavier loved. They both wanted Kristoph to be proud of them. They respected him and wanted Kristoph to be proud of and acknowledge them.

Klavier has been wanting to talk to Apollo about this for awhile and I believe so has Apollo. Apollo is never going to say to Phoenix, “hey Mr. Wright, Mr. Gavin was a good mentor to me too-“ it wouldn’t go over well, even though Kristoph was a good mentor to Apollo-his only flaw was thinking that Apollo would happily be a lickspittle and easy to manipulate. So when Apollo gives Klavier that reassurance that Klavier can talk about those happier moments of his life involving Kristoph, Klavier sees that Apollo wants to take that awkward stress away from Klavier but also Apollo wants to get to know Klavier better.

Klavier is so used to people researching his celebrity persona and forming opinions based off of his former lifestyle, that it’s refreshing to find someone who wants to organically grow their relationship without preconceptions.

Yes, Apollo initially wrote Klavier off as being a fop and glimmorous- but those thoughts were due to Apollo being self-conscious. By the end of Turnabout Serenade, Apollo admits that Klavier is pretty cool and in DD, Apollo remarks that Klavier is different than most prosecutors and how dedicated Klavier is towards his job.

It was also important in this chapter to allow for Apollo to discuss Clay and his relationship with Clay’s family. You’ll notice in this story that Klavier is the only person Apollo will share anecdotes about Clay with and freely grieve about Clay. It’s not that Apollo hides it from The WAA, he does share some things with them, but right now, Klavier is the only close peer Apollo has, and this comfortable vulnerability they’ve trusted eachother with allows Apollo to express himself with out him fearing that he’ll appear fragile. He’s tired of people walking on eggshells around him, but Klavier hasn’t and never will.

Likewise, I made sure to have Klavier fish for information about Apollo. Yes they’ve been hanging out for weeks at this point and worked a case together (sorta), but those coffee dates have been more talking about work, general topics like Trucy’s shows, etc.. they’ve been light in topic. So dinner and drinks at someone’s home gives way to deeper conversations about value-systems, love lives (even though Apollo isn’t entirely truthful lol), etc. And it works really well to the point they get more comfortable than either had anticipated.

I loved writing the discussion about how Klavier will never ever do a performance of “The Guitar’s Serenade” where he’s singing Lamiror’s words. It was such an organic moment while writing too- Klavier just started talking about how he’s feel like an imposter to sing those words because he’s never experienced a lost true love...and he hopes that he’ll never know what that feels like. It’s an honest moment that puts to rest any assumptions Apollo may have had about if Klavier is just a flirt not to be taken seriously in the romance department.

Hearing that Klavier is pretty private in his love life, isn’t a player, and has pretty much admitted that he tries to date with the intention of marriage, shows Apollo more into Klavier’s serious and introspective side. A side that Apollo’s only known in the context of their work. It makes Apollo realize that Klavier is human and is wanting of things like love and companionship. More importantly, Klavier will take those things seriously should he be so lucky to receive them.

There is also a bit of humor here- because c’mon Klavier lives to be playful when he can, and he wants to know more about Apollo’s views on love and relationships. Apollo is adorably flustered because he doesn’t want to admit he’s still a virgin. But in this portion I wanted to start laying down the idea that Apollo is demisexual. Part of the reason he hasn’t fallen in love or felt desire is because he’s fullfilled by his relationships with those he holds dear, but also no one has been interested in Apollo and stayed long enough to bond with Apollo in a way for desire to to bloom.

Because they’re starting as friends-particularly a friendship made as adults- this is going to give Apollo that chance to realize he wants more from Klavier. And for Klavier who wants a true friend and companion after the betrayals he’s suffered, Apollo is a perfect match for him.

The most important thing for me while writing this scene was to show Apollo and the reader that Klavier is suffering and grieving just like Apollo is, (and to establish early that Klavier is super bad at taking any of his own advice) and for Apollo to start drawing parallels to himself while wanting to dig into what’s going on with Klavier.

Apollo is interesting because he’s more likely to say what’s exactly bothering him but fails to realize his feelings about others.

Whereas Klavier is very aware of his own feelings but will hide what’s bothering him from others.

They’re also two people who now need reassurance about where they fit in and how others consider them in their lives.

And if you were wondering: yes, at this point Klavier does have a crush on Apollo haha. So getting invited to sleep over was a bonus for him...despite it being labeled as a “platonic sleep-over”, because at this point in the story, it is a platonic sleep over. Klavier is good at reading the room (even when drunk) to know that Apollo isn’t making a move on him and neither should he.

The comment Klavier makes about Apollo’s bed’s size is a homage to my favorite BL manga, FAKE. In the manga, Ryo who has just started as a detective at a new precinct and met his new partner, Dee- has Dee over that same day for dinner and Dee winds up staying the night. Ryo has a large bed for a single guy (according to Dee) and Dee makes a comment “that’s a big bed you got there, do you have a girl to go with it?” because Dee the little shit that he is, is trying to see if Ryo is single (and yes, they sleep in the same bed that night. How is that fir team building haha...it’s totally platonic. It takes Dee 7 volumes to get that. Please read it it’s a classic). Klavier is totally asking to get a rise out of Apollo because Klavier suspects that Apollo exaggerated his experience because Apollo’s pivot was not smooth at all XD.

Finally the last aspect of showing safety is them sleeping in the same bed together. We know from descriptions of Klavier that Klavier has not been sleeping well. Something is keeping him up at night and his mood has been less glimmerous. When he arrives at Apollo’s that evening; he wasn’t able to really conceal the dark circles under his eyes. Apollo has been missing Clay, who would usually sleep over and share the bed with Apollo,’s company.

Sleeping next to someone, especially falling into a deep sleep in a bed that is not your own, is a sign of trust. Yes they were sleepy from the alcohol, but they went to bed together easily, slept for hours, had brunch, and went BACK to sleep. Neither minded, nor did Klavier feel that he should leave after they ate. They are comfortable and too hungover to even think about anything except getting more sleep XD Also it’s not as if Klavier is in a hurry to get home when he eventually saw the text from his land lady.

Sorry if that was a rambling response but I have a lot of love for this scene in particularly and I’m so excited to give a behind the scenes look at it!

[kuramirocket]

undefined

In the grand cosmos of her life's journey, Ali Guarneros Luna discovered early on, the path to the stars is not a straight shot - but a winding course that sometimes skirts peril and disappointment.

As an engineer at NASA, Luna knows what's involved in navigating space. Her engineering fingerprints are all over numerous satellites currently orbiting the earth. And as project manager for NASA's Small Satellite Program she's worked on projects aimed at deepening understanding of what lies beyond. But her trajectory was definitely not a direct line.

"I was born in Mexico. My mother was born there. Being an immigrant in this country," Luna said, "having a harsh beginning, being a woman, it’s difficult, right?"

Luna's passion for space travel touched-off when she was seven-years-old living in her native Mexico City.

Unlike others who gaze up at the stars contemplating the meaning of the universe, Luna wondered about the machines that would make the trip possible.

"I was just so captivated at seven -- that I was like 'I want to do that!'" Luna recalled. "That’s exactly what I want to do and at that age I was like, 'I’m going to be an aerospace engineer.' My upbringing was different, I want to say, from most girls because I was never told that I had to fit certain roles. I guess it was because I was the oldest one of four. I had to step up. And the two youngest ones were boys. And I was a hyperactive child. So I never had that actually being a situation where I felt that I was not good enough in math or science. Because I had to be the boss. So it just happens that in that environment, even though I was only one of two girls within a bunch of young kids, mostly boys, I was doing what I wanted to do. And it was very exciting. So I never really had that. So with me going into aerospace engineering, I think it was an easy thing.”

After the 1985 Earthquake in Mexico City, her life changed. Ali and her mother immigrated to California and settled in San Jose, CA. With only two pieces of luggage, they left everything behind, especially close friends and family.

During the anti-immigration efforts like California Proposition 187 in 1994, school was the only thing Ali was allowed to do as her mother feared deportation. Her new schedule was limited to traveling from home to school and back, with no room to do the sports she loved. So school became her outlet — it became a safe place for her to grow up, where she could continue to learn and grow.

“So within six months of working full-time, my mother lost her job. So I became the one that supported the whole family. And I did it for about five years. It was tough because being so young and understand that my mother needed my support. And my brothers, being they were looking up to me -- it's something that's heavy when you're so young. You don't understand. But when I was growing up, I always moved on the opportunities that presented in front of me, and I did what I needed to do without looking back.”

Despite being a single mom, Ali’s mother worked hard to make sure Ali had every opportunity growing up. Ali was very athletic and participated in many sports and gymnastics, track being her favorite. When she wasn’t playing sports, she was reading the encyclopedias that her mother bought for her.

“My mother loved encyclopedias. My mother had so many. I would just sit in the living room reading about space shuttles after school because I really wanted to understand what they did.”

On the cusp of adulthood, she graduated high school and went straight into the workforce. Although she loved school, she wanted to support her mother and her family. She attempted to go to community college while working full time, but the emotional stress was overwhelming and she dropped out. In the next few years, she had four children, with two who had special needs. While caring for her children at home and researching their disabilities, she realized that she needed to go back to school.

“I saw my kids who were born with special needs, and I asked myself ‘How I can help them?’… it was clear to me that I needed to go back to school. I wanted to give them a stable life.”

Back-to-school, together. After her youngest child enrolled in kindergarten, Ali enrolled at San Jose City College and transferred to San Jose State University majoring in Aerospace Engineering. In this transition from stay-at-home mom to full-time student, she became a single parent. She was a full-time student while being a full-time mom, taking care of four children. 

"I was too old, I was not as young as any of the students, and I definitely was not in that mold of students," said Guarneros Luna. "I had four children. I didn't think of myself as someone who was going to contribute something special."

“I went and applied for an internship without thinking that I was ever going to come and work for NASA. I did have a bachelor's degree, but I was old. I was not a young person. The internship was only going to be for three months.  Because of the internship I have to leave one job and then be here. I knew it was only for three months, but the opportunity was too much to pass up. And then I became a contractor. And then it was important to apply for a civil servant. And I became a civil servant. ”

Ali has managed ten interns, introducing them to aerospace engineering through several projects including building three satellites and researching the design for return capsules for the International Space Station. Commercializing ISS has been a difficult problem for NASA and the process to ship products back and forth from the space station has to go through large space vehicles like Falcon, which takes three to six months. Space is limited on these vehicles and launching them gets very expensive. She and her team are paving the way to redesign return capsules with small payload returns so that astronauts can get the products they need for experiments in three business days rather than months later, allowing for more research to be done more efficiently.

Here is a part of the conversation with Ali Guarneros Luna, NASA Engineer and Deputy Project Manager at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley:

Host: When you became a civil servant you were working on some safety aspects?

Ali Guarneros Luna: Yeah. Safety mission assurance. So when I started for this small set of projected, specifically the TechEdSat, you're going through the space station. And you're dealing with humans inside. So everything you put inside the space station, you have to be careful of what you put in there and understand what are the consequences if something goes wrong.

So I was one of the group of engineers who started that process and started learning and setting it up for the following satellites that are going to be deployed from the space station. So I ended up doing all the safety data package, which is like documentation about your hardware that you put into space where you analyze all the hazards that you present to the space station or to the astronauts and then how are you going to control them and how are you going to verify them. So I was doing that. I became so good that I ended up doing every single one from the one first one to now, right?

Host: You do it right once, then they keep coming back.

Ali Guarneros Luna: Yes.

Host: This is my job now.

Ali Guarneros Luna: Yes. I was an engineer. I was part of the engineer group like two years ago. But there was an opening in safety mission assurance. Just for me to learn, I just say, "Why not? Let me go in there." So when you're an engineer and you go to school, nobody teaches you anything about that. You learn it on the job.

Despite her unique circumstances, Ali believes the challenges she experienced guided her to make the right decisions for her future. “I am resilient, if there’s a problem, there’s more than one solution”, she states, “To overcome difficult decisions, you need to plan for them…educate yourself so that you have the tools to make a plan of action.”

Every summer, Guarneros Luna gives back to her community. She goes back to San Jose State as a professor. "It's important for them to hear from somebody who did not come from a privileged background and did not come from parents that were educated," she said. "In my mind, I have that 'semillita' of education, that I wanted to get educated. A seed planted in me to go and get an education early on." The next time you look up and think your dreams like the moon are too far to reach, Guarneros Luna wants you to remember: 238,000 miles is actually closer than you think.

As an aerospace engineer, Ali is an advocate and actively promotes Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education. She is registered with the NASA Ames Speakers Bureau and is an active participant of this program. Ali also supports yearly programs like, Girls Scouts Go Tech, SWE Get Set, Soles Science Extravaganza, Society of Women Engineers (SWE) “WOW that is Engineering”, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE )“Noche de Ciencia” by providing hands-on activities and tours of the labs at SJSU. In 2012, Ali had contact with the Mexican university,, Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, UABC. She hosted a 6-week workshop at SJSU for the UABC students to build and launch an armature rocket. The success of this project was greatly broadcast in Mexico and as a result the Agencia Espacial Mexican, AEM, is interested in organizing a similar program but with the involvement of more universities.

Ali is committed to encouraging young people to pursue science, technology and engineering careers. In recognition of her achievements, the Hispanic Engineering National Achievement Awards Conference (HENAAC) named Ali Guarneros Luna as one of the 2013 Luminary Honorees. In October 2015, Ali was awarded the NASA Honor Award - Equal Employment Opportunity Medal., She also received the ISS Space Award in 2014 for her contributions to SPHERES, Modular Rapidly Manufactured Small Satellite (MRMSS), Nodes and TechEdSat Series Projects:

SPHERES: For dedication and exceptional performance in the development and operations of free flying robotic satellites inside the ISS testing autonomous satellite maneuvers.

MRMSS: For dedication and exceptional performance in research and development of modular design and manufacturing processes for spacecraft systems.

Nodes: For dedication and exceptional performance in two nanosatellites that will be deployed from ISS to demonstrate networking and advanced multi-spacecraft operations

TechEdSat Series: For exceptional performance and dedication in the development, test, launch, ISS deployment, and operation of the TechEdSat Nanosatellite spaceflight mission; launching the first NASA CubeSat from the ISS. TechEdSat-3p: For exceptional performance and dedication in the development, test, launch, ISS deployment, and operation of the TechEdSat-3p Nanosatellite “Exo-Brake” spaceflight mission; launching the first 3u NASA CubeSat from the ISS.

Ali Guarneros Luna currently works with the Office of System Safety & Mission Assurance (SS&MA) at NASA Ames Research Center. Prior to her work in the SS&MA, Ali worked in Ames’ Engineering Directorate as a technical authority for small satellite development and payloads bound for the International Space Station (ISS). In the Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites (SPHERES) National Lab, she worked as the system and safety engineer. In the Edison Program, Ali served as the system engineering, mission and ground operations, and launch vehicle service expert for multiple CubeSat projects including the Technological and Educational Nanosatellite (TechEdSat). Ali functioned as the Deputy Project Manager, ISS expert, and launch vehicle interface for the Small Spacecraft Technology (SST) program’s Nodes project. In the Sub-Orbital Aerodynamic Re-entry EXperiments (SOAREX) Series of suborbital experiments, Ali has performed in multiple engineering roles to include design, building and testing engineer. Ali is currently the deputy project manager and co-investigator for the SOAREX 9 and SOAREX 10 missions.

She received her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Aerospace Engineering from San Jose State University (SJSU) in 2010 and 2013, respectively. Upon completion of her undergraduate degree, Ali obtained an internship at NASA Ames with the Office of the Chief Technologist. During her time as an intern, she led and helped develop education and outreach programs for SJSU. The first program was called System of Networked Autonomous Positioning Satellites (SNAPS) followed by the TechEdSat Series. As a professional engineer, Ali has lead various projects affiliated with the ISS.

During her internship at NASA Ames, Ali supported the SNAPS project, which is an evolution of the SPHERES program which aims to demonstrate the practical applications of a network of autonomous probes. SNAPS was a test bed for guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) capabilities to enable probes to navigate without human interference or the need for external control.

As a professional engineer, Ali was mission manager for TechEdSat-1. In this capacity, Ali had managerial and oversight on all technical and programmatic aspects of the NASA Ames- SJSU project. In particular, Ali provided technical contributions to both speed the development and avoid ISS define hazard that could stop the mission, through innovative design, lab testing, and qualification methods for the TechEdSat flight hardware. She also developed and engineered the Auxiliary Lateral Inhibit (ALI) Switch for safety deployment from the ISS. Ali has co-authored technical papers for the TechEdSat structure and payload including the project plan and Safety Data Package, among others. 
Her efforts enabled the project to successfully meet both ISS program and Ames Engineering Requirements. Developed, built, tested and certified for flight to the ISS in only 9 months, TechEdSat-1 was the first American CubeSat deployed from the ISS as well as being one of the first CubeSats deployed from the Station overall. TechEdSat-1 completed a life cycle with over 1000 beacon packets and 208 days of service. The TechEdSat-1 deorbited May 5th, 2013.

As a result of TechEdSat-1’s enormous success, an opportunity was presented to develop, build, test and certify TechEdSat-3P which ultimately launched to the ISS in 2013. For this mission, Ali served as a mentor to the other students and engineers as well as performed the role of safety engineer. For TechEdSat-4, launched in 2015, Ali was a radio frequency, safety and system engineer.  Currently Ali is working on TES-5 as the quality and system engineer.

Ali is the deputy project manager, liaison and lead for ISS requirements for the Network and Operation Demonstration Satellites (Nodes) mission.  This mission was deployed from the ISS in May 16th, 2016.

Developing new technology, Ali currently works with the SOAREX Series team. SOAREXserves as a test bed for a variety of re-entry and supporting technologies for use in automous sample return and other applications. Within the SOAREX team, Ali has multiple engineering roles from designing, building and serving as a testing engineer. She is also the deputy project manager and co-investigator for SOAREX 9 and SOAREX 10 missions. Ali supported the Orion Thermal Protecsion System (TPS) as a S&MA lead for the sensor on the Heat Shield (HS). She oversees the quality and safety of the design, build and testing of the sensor that would be installed in the HS for the next flight back in 2018.

In 2011 Ali was a member of the Plug-n-Play Mission Operations (PPMO) Workshop organizational committee at NASA Ames and helped organize the workshop held at SJSU. In 2013, Ali was on the student committee for the 10th International Planetary Probe Workshop (IPPW-10), which was held at SJSU the week of June 17th 2013.

Sources: (x) (x) (x) (x) (x)

[third-generation-female-warrior]

The Path we Walk

Talbott x Ravenclaw!Alexus oneshot

I just wanna see if anyone wants to read my writing (4,318 words) They’re idiots in love, you’re honor, with one count mutual pining in the 1st degree, and multiple accounts of angst/comfort in the 2nd degree.

Talbott Winger had never been an emotional person. Ever since he lost his parents when he was a child, he had no need nor want for emotions, or attachments to other people for that matter. He didn’t want that pain again.

So when Mr. Winger found himself feeling a romantic pull towards Alexus Johnson, a Ravenclaw girl in his year, he was torn perfectly between fear and annoyance.

He hadn’t initially thought there wasn’t anything remarkable about Alexus when he first met her when she was inquiring about being an animagus. Now, he knew otherwise. She was determined and clever, almost dangerously so. She had an annoying determination to be his friend, a dedication to him that had become endearing over time. He looked at her, and he saw someone he actually trusted, someone he let himself care about before he realized he cared about her. He furiously reflected on remarkable Alexus as he trudged up the snowy steps to the Owlery.

‘She’s annoying,’ he thought. ‘She’s insufferable, persistent. Too persistent. She’s quiet, comfortingly so. Clever. Too clever and too kind to the point where she seamlessly weaved through the obstacles and barriers that I had put up to keep the rest of the world out. Clever to where she could match wits with me, I didn’t even know I admired that…’

Talbott nearly screamed in frustration. As much as his head told him to resist, as much as he was reluctant to allow it, he’d only get hurt again, Alexus had definitely become one of his best friends before she became someone he was attracted to. Her closeness to him only intensified his feelings and he wasn’t sure if he hated it.

He shoved his hands into his pockets as he reached the entry to the Owlery. He looked forward only in time to see a face right before he collided into that person, chin first.

He stumbled back, clutching his jaw, brief yelling muffled into his palms. He glared down at the person who had stumbled back opposite to him. Then his expression softened when he saw that it was, of course, Alexus Johnson, like his life was a cliché novel that he himself wouldn’t bother to read.

But he didn’t let her see the waiver in the mask he wore, hardening his expression again into that of annoyance.

“I should have known it was you,” he snapped.

“Oh, sod off and watch where you’re going,” Alexus retorted, holding a hand to her forehead. That must have been where his chin collided, which made sense, since, not only was he considerably taller than most students, but she was rather shorter than most their year. This had led to more than one occasion of him daydreaming about holding her in his arms so she could tuck her head perfectly under his chin.

He let a small smirk cross his sharp face as he looked at her.

“Come here to sulk?” she continued.

“Only if you are,” he replied, earning a small laugh out of her.

“No, I was actually sending a letter to my mother…” she muttered the last bit, knowing the topic of mothers were rather touchy for the both of them.

Talbott imagined it was a rather large possibility that he was the only person who knew that her mother was almost totally despondent, ever since the infamous Jacob Johnson disappeared. There was also the mysterious fate of her father she grappled with. Though, what that fate was, Alexus still had not revealed to him. Her mother was a topic that Alexus had not divulged to him so easily, only in a moment of softness, when he revealed the tragedy of his parents. It was solid grief they felt for each other that night. Missing their family was another thing they had in common.

He gave her a slight nod of acknowledgement, the silence between them that of a knowing air that no more words of the topic needed to be discussed.

“So, any new information on the Vaults?” he asked, changing to a topic that he knew she had no qualms talking about.

She shifted on her feet, thinking about her answer. “No. Not really. Cold leads, for a majority, but there is something promising that Jae Kim is looking into for me.”

“Yeah? What sort of things?” he asked.

“Oh, it’s… it’s probably for the best if you don’t know. The less you know, the safer.”

He scoffed at her words, but he didn’t press more. He had heard a rumor or seven about Alexus and Jae Kim’s exploits to spots with dark wizards. “Do you have anything you’re doing in the meantime?” he asked.

“Just regular student activities. Gotta do something to make the professors think I’m normal. Friends as well. Valentine’s is in a couple days and it seems some of the Circle is rather concerned. I should do things to take my mind off the Vaults, you know, and romance seems to be their answer.” She spoke with a hint of disdain at the prospect of her entire scenario, and Talbott wished he could sympathize, but no one was particularly interested in his own dating habits enough to berate him. But he would still imagine it was annoying.

“I’m sorry,” he said, grimacing at the prospects of forced social interaction.

“It’s all fine, but the worst of it is that they seemed determined to find a date for me rather than ask me whom I would like to be with.”

His heart faltered for just a second before fluttering. He swallowed before he spoke again, hoping nothing about him was betraying his internal eagerness. “Any likely candidates?” he asked, voice even.

“Actually, yes. For them, they seem to think Barnaby Lee would be a good distraction.”

Talbott heard glass shattering in the distance, but he knew it was just in his head. “Oh?” he pressed.

“Yes. I admit, he would be good at lifting my spirits, but… he’s more a brother to me than anything else. Well, he has been something of a brother to me, since Jacob… you know. Barnaby is sweet, he’s kind and funny, but… I just don’t feel anything romantic for him. He’s a bit too energetic for me. I like someone more…” she trailed off for a second before focusing on Talbott. “Someone more… calm,” she spoke, resolved.

Talbott swallowed again, his throat drying up rapidly right now. “Seems like you have an unlucky lad in mind already,” he remarked.

She smirked and folded her arms over her chest. “Actually, I do.”

He was hoping his blush was not so visually obvious as he felt it was, his face was burning. “Anyone I know?” he asked.

She stared up at him for a second, her emerald green eyes meeting his piercing scarlet ones.

“You are… so daft!” she shouted. He jolted back, her voice resounded across the snowy sky, muffled by the weather, but still loud enough to shake the nearby owls, the fluttering of many wings resounding through the air like a shaky echo of her exclamation.

“I’m describing you! I’m thinking about you! It’s always been you! Merlin knows why, you’re thicker than a brick wall!” She threw her arms up in frustration as he slowly processed what she was saying.

Then, a slow, mischievous smile crossed his face. It was a relief that she felt the same way, but it was also a sense of victory that he had over her. She admitted her feelings first.

“You fancy me?” he started as Alexus realized the ammunition that she had handed over to him.

He almost laughed. “You call me thick, but you’re the one who just confessed from pure frustration!”

She pulled out her wand and made a quick job of knocking him down onto his bum. He just laughed, out loud.

“You’re the worst! You’re insufferable!” she yelled again before walking past him, disappearing down the stairs of the owlery.

He watched her leave, the smile never leaving his face. He will talk to her later today, apologize, maybe confess his returned affections, but for now, he felt like flying. Someone liked him. Someone whom he himself liked very much.

~    ~    ~

Night came, and so did curfew. Talbott waited in the corner of the Ravenclaw common room anxiously, waiting for Alexus to return. He had not seen her since their encounter earlier that day, but she was bound to return. Though, he did consider the idea that she might not. Her disregard for the rules and intellectual prowles had led to her spending the night in the library in secret, doing research on a miscellaneous number of things all throughout their six years at Hogwarts. He hoped that this was not a night where she needed to be gone.

Talbott almost had an overwhelming instinct to apologize for laughing, but they both knew it was the nature of their relationship. Chiding wits and quips, mixed with heavy sarcasm. It has been that way since they’ve known each other. He took another deep breath as he waited. He looked up every time someone came in, but none of them were Alexus.

Slowly, the number of students filing into the Common Room started to dwindle until no one was coming in anymore.

Talbott was feeling uneasy when Badeea Ali and Tulip Karasu came from their dorm room, the same dorm Alexus would be in. He stood up and silently made his way over to them. He almost felt apprehensive when they stopped talking as he approached, but he persisted nonetheless.

“Is Alexus in her dorm?” he asked tentatively, “I have something I need to tell her.”

“I haven’t seen her since dinner,” Badeea replied, almost in a contemplating way, some subtle emotion in her voice, and Talbott did not miss the small gleam in Tulip’s mischievous dark eyes. He remembered Alexus storming off, so it was not an illogical step that she told her friends a filtered version of what had transpired between them. Then he remembered the whole complaint about her friends in the Circle trying to set her up with someone for a date, Tulip would definitely be one to tease Alexus about her romantic quests, especially with Talbott.

“Oh, sorry, I’ll just… head up, then,” he started to excuse himself, making his way to his own dorm, but they stopped him.

“At dinner, Jae Kim came to the table, told her that his “contact” or something was ready to meet her,” Tulip recounted.

“Uh… did he happen to mention where this meeting was taking place?” he asked, but the fact that it was Jae, the fact that she told him it was safer if he didn’t know, it wasn’t hard to draw a conclusion as he had done earlier.

Alexus was a smart girl, one of the brightest students in their whole year. But she could be the thickest person in all of Hogwarts when the Cursed Vaults were in her mind.

“It’s hard to say, she’s rather secretive when it comes to her exploits with Jae. But for specific locations, she did not say a word. She just took off,” Badeea explained.

Talbott pursed his lips and gave them a nod, collecting himself without another word before he went upstairs to his own dorm. No one was in there, which was what he needed before he opened the window. He took off into the night sky as he assumed his animagus form, an eagle. He had a strong idea where Alexus currently was, and that gave him an educated guess as to where she was going to end up before the night was through.

He flew through the castle, elegantly, weaving between the highest walls with practiced ease, navigating the way to the Hospital Wing, or, at least, the outside of it. If Alexus had gone exactly where he thought she had, he imagined that the smartest girl in their year would have said something just as smart, more than likely to the wrong wizard. Or, maybe she was pursuing one of the dark wizards of ‘R’. It wasn’t so long after she was attacked by the black lake, she could very well be attacked again. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense to Talbott that she was going to be turning up in the Hospital Wing.

He circled a small thicket of trees outside the wing before he landed on a branch, perching close enough to the windows to where he could see a majority of the interior.

He waited now, every person moving had his head turning, every sign, any sign, he watched.

For an hour, there was no sign of Alexus, however, and no sign of anyone really, and the moon was slowly crawling higher into the sky. Talbott entertained the possibility that maybe Alexus would seek alternative help for healing, if she needed it, maybe to avoid the suspicion of the teachers. If that was the case, he would bring himself to inquiring Chiara Lobosca at breakfast.

For an hour, he waited,  not quite ready to go back to the dorm yet, when the doors of the Hospital Wing were thrown open, and three people came in, one of them unconscious, carried on the back of another while the third urgently enlisted Madam Pomfrey.

Talbott immediately recognized Alexus being carried by Ben Cooper, Jae Kim running to Pomfrey. He watched as she was carefully lowered onto a bed. From what he could see, she was not bleeding, but the finer details were a bit harder to make out, and no blood wasn’t a definitively better sign.

Ben and Jae stepped back, and after some small exchange with Pomphrey, they left.

Talbott watched for another second of Pomfrey caring for Alexus before he resolved himself and flew away. He was worried, yes, but he knew Alexus. She was strong, and was bound to be okay. She had to be okay, it wouldn’t have made sense otherwise. He would be there for her, when she wasn’t okay, he would see to it himself that she was okay.

~    ~    ~

Alexus’s eyes shot open and she gasped, moving to sit up and whip out her wand to send a quick spell to the nearest danger, but was pushed back down when an explosion of pain raked through her body.

“Easy, easy,” she heard a soft voice next to her say as she was slowly pushed back down.

She took a calmer breath and looked around. Hospital Wing, not Knockturn Alley. Daytime, the morning judging by the position of the shadows being casted by the natural sunlight fluttering in from the windows. No dark wizards inflicting curses on her.

She blinked a bit, focusing her vision before slowly turning to the person at her bedside.

“Talbott,” she whispered, her throat sore, unable to speak much louder at the moment. But it was unmistakable, the sharp-featured Ravenclaw boy whom she fancied, his red eyes filled with concern and worry.

“Yes, unless you were expecting someone else,” he muttered as he reached over to the nightstand. He did not miss the strain in her voice, and grabbed a small glass of water perched there. She took it carefully, hands shaking, but grip not so weak. She took the water in small sips, drinking enough before handing the half-empty glass back to him.

“Better?” he asked.

She nodded and let herself relax into the bed. It was hard to relax, being tortured for an indistinguishable amount of time by the Cruciatus Curse in a dark alley could have that effect on a witch.

“You were actually  one of the last people I expected, after you laughed at me,” she muttered.

Talbott smiled softly, despite himself. “It was a laugh of relief, Alexus.”

She had half a mind to tell him to leave. “What would you possibly be relieved about?”

He leaned back into his seat, and she looked up at him. “You mean it’s not obvious?” he asked, “It’s a mutual feeling. I… fancy you too.”

She sat up abruptly again before pain pushed her back down. “I ought to hex you!” she whispered harshly, unable to raise her voice into a proper yell.

“You’re in no right shape to do so,” he chided.

“Careful, Winger, I won’t be in this bed forever.”

His face blanched at the smug look that crossed her face, but he steeled himself. “You’re uncharacteristically temperamental right now, emphasis on mental.”

“You get tortured, see if that doesn’t make you a little mental.”

He sighed and watched her face. She looked cross, brows furrowed, lips tugged down, but in her eyes, it was different. He’d seen that look before, the look of frayed terror and exhaustion. The ordeal weighed on her more than she was willing to admit, and he understood. The pride, the expectations, the appearance. She’d been through too much before she stepped foot on Hogwarts, they both had. But her life had not gotten easier, not with the betrayal, the death, the attacks. She found Jacob, but at what cost? She had lost him, and she was looking for him again.

Talbott knew that Alexus’s pursuit of the Vaults was no longer just the pursuit of knowledge that no one had obtained before. In her heart, in her pursuit was all just for the chance to see her brother, one more time. Talbott would give anything to see his mother just once, if only for a second.

He slowly slid his hand over hers, gently linking his fingers with hers, a gesture that she reciprocated.

“You know… it’s… it’s not the torture that was the hardest part. It’s not the hardest part of this journey, of this path that I’m walking. N-not by a long shot,” she whispered, faltering at her words, lacking the strength to speak, but not for the reasons that were obvious.

He just tilted his head in a silent inquiry for her to say whatever she needed to say. He would listen.

She took a shuddering breath. “It’s… it’s hard finding people, finding friends who will still want to walk with me, once they realize how serious my path is.” She let go of his hand, slowly moving it away. She turned away from him, not able to meet his eyes anymore.

He kept watching her. She spoke vaguely, she spoke seriously, and he read between the lines, maybe the rehearsed speech she prepared for him, prepared for anyone who dared to get close. She was asking him if he would be someone who still wanted to walk with her. Not just in a path of friendship, but if he liked her, she was terrified of him getting hurt. Worrying about him, making him relieve the one thing he wanted to and had been trying to avoid for a majority of his life because of the choices she made.

This was something he thought about, often. More often than he cared to admit, wondering what his feelings met in the long term, knowing full well that Alexus may walk out the door and never come back. She could very well die in front of him, and he knew that.

“Everything… is with risk in life, Alexus. I know that. It’s just a matter of knowing which risks to take, the one’s you’d be willing to take. I know which ones I want to take unwaveringly so.”

“That doesn’t mean that I should risk the lives of others in my own pursuit of knowledge.”

“No, you shouldn’t, you shouldn’t even be risking your life for that matter, but here we are. That said, I know why, Alexus. I know why you’re doing this. And I hope you realize that I’m not the only one who thinks you’re worth the risk.”

Alexus looked back at him, mouth agape, eyes wide, trying to speak, but nothing came out. Eventually, she closed her mouth and looked down, hiding her face. “I can’t abandon the path I’m on,” she whispered. He noted her fists clenching the bedsheets, the slight shaking of her shoulders.

She was crying.

She was crying, and she didn’t want him to see.

Soft sniffling came from her before she looked up at him, eyes glistening. “I’ve come too far. I can’t give up on him…”

Ordinarily, he’d be looking for any excuse to leave immediately the second anyone gave any indication they were about to have a heart to heart, but Talbott felt an even greater pull to Alexus, a compelling force to comfort her, to make the tears disappear.

“I know you can’t. If I was in your shoes, I know I wouldn’t be able to either. So the best thing I can do is stay by your side. Walk your path with you, because you are someone I can’t walk away from. Not anymore.”

Her expression relaxed before she furiously wiped the tears away with her thumb. “You’d do that?” she whispered.

“I would.”

“Thank you.”

He looked at her, his eyes piercing at her with a certain sharpness, almost calculating. Then, they weren’t calculating. Every so subtly, his expression softened, a quiet admiration, still easily mistaken for something steeled. He did have a reputation, afterall.

She smiled, finally. He felt some pride, having contributed to that.

“So,” she started, her smile turning into something a little more mischievous, reminding him of Tulip’s persistent presence at breakfast that morning, and he had a sneaking suspicion she had correctly guessed his emotions for her.

“So…?” he repeated, quirking an eyebrow.

“So, would you be willing to walk the path with me… on Valentine’s Day?”

His face heated up immediately, and he pressed a hand to his mouth, trying to hide the blushing. “I’d love to,” his muttered utterance stifled by his hand.

She grinned more. “Don’t worry, Winger, it’ll be somewhere quiet. Hopefully, the Hospital Wing is quiet enough for you.”

“Oi, I didn’t think you’d stay here for that long!”

“No, I plan to be out by tonight, but… well, nothing is certain in the future.”

“Well, I’ll have you know, the Hospital Wing is plenty quiet, but don’t you go and take that as an invitation to go and get trampled by a hippogriff or whatever you do in your spare time.”

“You’re stupid,” she said, almost laughing. “But I take risks, as we said.”

“You’re the stupid one,” he shot back. “Take risks, but just be fine. For three days, be fine. Okay? You need the rest.”

She gave a small nod. “Okay.”

He gave a small sigh before leaning down and pressing a kiss to her cheek, only for a second, but a good and soft second.

He pulled away, and they were both satisfied to find that the other was visibly flushing red.

It was pride that made them blush. A sense of things such as reputation and unfamiliarity to vulnerability and fear that created that pride.

It was a display of affection that was tremendous to him. Unfamiliarity in the sense that it had been years since he had done like that. Talbott had not kissed anyone on the cheek since he was kissing his mother goodbye. That memory brought fear, and he couldn’t show anyone he was afraid. That was his pride. He could be afraid in front of her. He could display tremendous actions to her.

It was warmth in her chest and the secure feeling the action signified to her that was unfamiliar to her. Alexus had not been kissed on the cheek since her mother was coherent. The memory, to her, was a bittersweet rage that was more bitter than sweet. No one had cared for her, no one to care about her, to give her comforting gestures, to make her feel safe. She had to let the world know she was unflappable, perfectly in control unlike the speculation of her maddened brother. That was her pride. She could be vulnerable to him. She could let him get close enough to give her a sense of security that she had feared would never envelope her again.

He slowly slid his hand over hers again before he reached into the bag at his feet. “Would you be bothered if I read to you?” he asked as he pulled out a blue-leather bound book. He held up the cover so she could read it. A collection of poems from a particular author. She was familiar with the book, actually on the waiting list in the library to check it out, poetry being something she was very fond of.

She looked at him, and he flushed again. “I-I have imagined reading allowed to someone I cared about. Something about sharing the feeling of a good poem always attracted me.”

She smiled. “I would love that.”

He returned her smile, and, with one hand, flipped to a page he had marked previously. “There’s a few I thought you would enjoy,” he muttered before clearing his throat.

“The sun was hot You were cool My mother's flowers were beautiful My mother's flowers were safe Your flowers were new Your garden a gift Your love is mine My love is yours

You're a winter husband I'm the summer's daughter My mother's flowers were safe My mother's flowers were a cage Your flowers were a life Your garden a haven My love is yours Your love is mine

You were strong I was helpless My mother's flowers bloom for me My mother's flowers are a gift Your flowers are ours Your garden is ours Our love is ours Our love is life”

He looked at her when he finished. Alexus had a soft smile on her face. “That’s Persephone’s Husband, isn’t it?”

He nodded.

“That’s one of my favorites. Any poems about Hades and Persephone have a place in my heart.”

He almost snickered. “I never took you for being romantically inclined, you’re so logical.”

“Just shut up and read, Winger.”

[peterstanslizzie]

Reacting To: Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (Season 3 Episode 10)

This is it people! The series finale of Kipo; Let’s get to it.

Episode Title: Age of Wonderbeasts

Spoiler Warning: Kindly proceed if you’ve already seen the episode or are able to handle spoilers

Hopefully she’s getting dressed for her funeral lol

1. Continuing on from last episode, the fireworks rigged with the cure goes off and a bunch of embers start falling from the sky. One of the Humming Bombers got into contact with one of them while attempting to flee and immediately de-mutes. I thought the cure needed to go into their bloodstream? Unless, the ember actually burned through their skin. It that’s the case, wow that’s dark....

It’s awesome that Earl and Lily are helping Molly since Molly saved their children awhile back. 

2. With her quick thinking, Kipo asks everyone to find shelter underneath her as she transforms into her Mega Jaguar form. However, that’s still not enough to protect everyone but luckily, the good humans step up to shield them with table cloths, which was heartwarming to see. 

The mutes are thanking the humans for their act of kindness

OMG. Lio and Song hugging Scarlemagne? I’m here for it.

3. Thankfully, the fireworks ended and Kipo then pleads with Emilia one last time to stop what she’s doing. Emilia, hard-headed as ever isn’t one to back down at all and makes a drastic decision to inject herself with the mutagen she sourced from the Mega Walrus, transforming herself into one ugly Mega Mute. 

Imagine seeing this in real life...shudders

4. I thought she was going to use the Mega Walrus’s DNA to make another cure that would affect Kipo. I didn’t think she would do this to herself. Kipo transforms back to her Mega form to take on Emilia before she could potentially hurt anyone. 

How many Troyson kisses do we want? Yes...hehe

5. Troy and Benson are directing everyone back to find safety inside the old burrow while Wolf joins Kipo to assist her in battling Emilia. Kipo has the upper hand at first because Emilia isn’t used to being a Mega Mute. However, as the fight progresses, Emilia is starting to get better and is landing some solid hits on Kipo. But I feel like Kipo shouldn’t be losing to Emilia since she has much more experience fighting as a Mega. I guess they want us to feel like the stakes are high.

Man, this fight is actually pretty brutal. Emilia is whooping major jaguar ass here.

6. During the battle, Wolf notices Greta nearby and thinks that she has the cure to turn back Emilia into a human. So, hopefully they can steal the cure from Greta and use it as leverage to get Emilia to stop. They split up with Wolf going after Greta and Kipo continuing to fight off Emilia. 

7. After taking a couple more punches, we see three of the Mega Dogs, the Mega Pigeon and the Mega Beaver heading their way towards the fight, with Jamack, Molly, Hoag, Amy, Zane, Label, Lio, Song, Scarlemagne, Dave, Benson and Mandu riding on them. I stan such supportive friends!

8. They each take turns kicking Emilia’s butt to buy Kipo some time to recover. Side note: It’s so cool that Jamack tells Emilia to do some “soul searching”! That’s literally the same line Kipo used on Jamack in Season 1 when he was an antagonist back then. During all of this, we see Emilia beginning to have some inner turmoil; It looks like she’s starting to lose herself in her current form.

9. We get to round 2 of Wolf vs Greta and it looks like the tables might turn in favor of Wolf but Greta is just too beefy for her to take on. While being held down in a pin, Wolf tries to butter her up with words by telling her that she’s not an idiot and she can think for herself, without the influence of Emilia. She also bribes her with all the pancakes she can eat if she hands over the cure to her and just like that, she agrees to hand it over. It’s so ironic that Greta is one of Emilia’s last followers but she’s so easily influenced to switch sides. 

Again, I don’t get why Kipo is losing to Emilia so badly

10. Kipo is down for the count and Emilia turns her attention to her friends/family. As she’s about to crush Lio and Song, Kipo charges in last minute to take the devastating blow for them; She then falls unconscious. However, Emilia’s not done yet.

Scarlemagne’s death in 3...2...1

11. Oh no...here we go. Scarlemagne decides to play hero by making his attempt at saving Kipo. He basically gives his swan song to Lio and Song. I have a bad feeling he’s going to die and I’m not at all prepared to watch. He takes off on his favorite Flamingo vehicle from Season 1 and 2 and flies towards Emilia to distract her.

We haven’t heard this laugh in ages. Also, did anyone get chills when he tells Emilia to “leave her sister alone”?

12. He crashes his vehicle into Emilia causing her to lose focus and it sets off her ‘losing herself to the mega mute’ phase. This in turn, causes Scarlemagne to crash land somewhere in Skyscraper Ridge. Was it necessary for him to crash like that? If that’s the way he goes out, I’m gonna be honest here and say I would be very disappointed with that. 

13. Emilia, who clearly is out of it runs off somewhere and Kipo, Wolf, Dave, Benson and Mandu all go after her with Lio and Song heading towards where Hugo/Scarlemagne crash landed. We then see the artistic representation of Emilia losing her mind to the mute, where her human form is quickly sinking deeper and deeper into the ocean. 

14. They catch up to Emilia and they could see her being distraught. We also know the reason why she’s this way and it’s because she doesn’t have an anchor. I love it how whatever explanation we’re being told by the characters is something that the audience should know based on past episodes. Now that’s good storytelling. 

15. Anyways, Kipo makes the decision to cure her because she thinks she doesn’t deserve to be punished this way. Really now? After all that she’s done? Maybe what Kipo means is that she deserves get whopped in her human form lol. After curing her, Kipo makes ANOTHER ATTEMPT (for the 3rd time) to convince her to make a change but of course this bitch isn’t going to change; She takes a shard of glass and tries to stab Kipo:

16. But our girl, Mandu quickly reacts and bites Emilia’s arm. She then loses her balance and falls stories high in the exact burrow her lab was located because we then see Fun Gus capturing her and taking her in as her “playdate”. Emilia is basically history. 

17. Yesss! And this punishment is fitting since she will probably be Fun Gus’s plaything till she goes insane and dies. Not to mention she despises mutes. So, it’s a great way for her to go out. Bye!!! That’s what you get for killing your brother, you heartless monster. Can I also point out that once again, Mandu is the one to take out Emilia. She did beat her in season 2 when Wolf, Dave and Benson couldn’t and now in season 3, she’s the one to finish the job. Don’t mess with Mandu lol. 

18. They head back to find where Scarlemagne, Lio and Song are but it’s almost too late because Hugo is dying. Kipo is in tears and I’m in tears too. Again, was it really necessary to kill him off? I felt like he’s more or less already redeemed as a character before this. He didn’t have to commit such a heroic act, which had cost his life. Ugh....And just like that, Hugo dies.....UGHHHHHH. I really don’t think he needed to die. If Catra (who committed just as many heinous acts, if not more than Hugo) got to live in She-Ra & The Princesses of Power, Hugo deserves to live too. I’m sorry...

19. Now it’s time for the epilogue set 5 years later, as told by an older Kipo. Let’s break it down:

Wolf’s Mega Corgi gave birth to a litter of puppies. Awww cuteness...

Wolf let her hair grow out and she looks AMAZING!!! Dayummmm

Benson and Troy own a successful restaurant together and they’re living the dream. Such domestic goals!

I got chills seeing Wolf and Benson walking side by side like that. They’ve grown up so much. It looks like they’re own their way to a picnic

Label and Zane is also running a gym together. Sweet!

Jamack is conductor for Las Vistas’s new transport system. 

Dave is now a guest lecturer at what is seems to be Lio and Song’s new research lab, where he talks about some of his research findings and theories. Well, mostly theories.

I love Kipo’s new do’

20. We find out that Kipo is updating Hugo (spiritually) what has everybody been up to on his birthday. 

Hugo gets a statue made in his honor, which is very fitting and Mandu...WOW MANDU has grown into an ADULT boar, with tusks and everything just like Bornak and Webber. 

21. Kipo meets up with her besties and her family and they have their wonderful picnic in commemoration of Hugo’s birthday. 

22. The scene cuts off to all of them having the time of their life riding on their Mega mutes. And that’s the official ending to the series. TEARS...

23. This has been an amazing show to watch, react and review. I can’t believe it only had 30 episodes but the story was so cohesive and felt complete on the most part. So you could say that this show wrapped up nicely. There are some loose ends that weren’t addressed/resolved at the end like the vaccine that Song and Lio were working on but I guess that could be something that’s explored further in future films hopefully. 

24. I will also be making a couple of video essays that will be posted to my YouTube channel, PeterSaidWhat; The first one will be my full spoiler review of the final season and the second video will be Troyson-focused. I can’t wait for all of you to watch them. And finally, I want to thank you all for reading my episodic reviews and going on this incredible journey with me. It’s been a pleasure to have Kipo be a part of my life and I’m sure yours as well. 

Much love,

Peter