#not only deaf but we got to see more than one episode of him? And more than one after we learn this is the case? It's nice~)

[fdragon-art]

Jackie, my good dude~

(Redraw from S4E21: The Champion's Hike)

[drama-glob]

SPOILERS FOR HELLUVA BOSS SEASON 2 EPISODE 7!!!!

Let me start off by saying F*CK YOU MAMMON!!!! >:( >:( >:(

Okay now, I LOVED THIS EPISODE because as much at it broke my heart with how much of a gut punch it was that Fizz has been putting up with Mammon for years, the fact that he got his freedom at the end with the constant support of Blitz and Ozzie, who genuinely care about him melted my heart as well. ^_^

I knew going in I was going to hate Mammon (because with how he runs his ring, I couldn't see how he could have any redeeming qualities), but he seriously was a bigger abusive d*ck and was way more blatant about than I expected. >:( Poor Fizz right off the bat with his unhealthy work ethic that he's not good enough and that his value is tied into his work, something that many of us (me included) have been guilty of. I blame Cash for being the most likely factor in why Fizz thinks that way, along with his idol worship of Mammon playing into it. >:( Also, that creep getting in Fizz's head was so messed up because we come to see how genuinely nice Fizz is and he sadly let what that guy said get into his head. ;_;

I'm so glad that Ozzie from the start is looking out for Fizz's well being and mental health, which is also really sad because he has no doubt had this conversation many times with Fizz about not needing to please Mammon and that he is good enough, only for Fizz to insist everything's fine when it's not. ;_; I also had a feeling Ozzie wouldn't be a fan of the Robo Fizzes given that he loves Fizz so much and knows what people use them for, so most likely it's part of the whole blackmail deal/Ozzie can't break out of making them so long as Fizz doesn't call it quits. ;_; I'm also happy that Ozzie clearly harbors no ill-will towards Blitz (which we already saw in "Oops," but it's nice that he knows Blitz wouldn't like the state Fizz is in and needs to cut ties with Mammon). :)

Fizz is just so talented with his craft, but the further pressure that he had actual competition from Glitz and Glam just made things so much worse, but of course Mammon don't care. >:( One of the absolute best moments though had to be the sweet little deaf kid signing to Fizz and Fizz signing back as well as sign his picture, so it was sweet and it helped Fizz's mental state temporarily. It was unfortunate that flipping creep came back and messed with Fizz once again, only adding to Fizz's panic attack that goes into overdrive once he sees Glitz and Glam perform. ;_;

My sadness only built as Fizz spiraled and tried to make himself "fine," but my man Ozzie being there as soon as he hears (from Blitz no doubt) that Fizz is not okay and him not leaving until he can get to the bottom of way Fizz is so adamant about doing this while trying to comfort him was wonderful. I legit cried, as I'm sure many of you did, when poor Fizz admits that he feels like practically nothing next to Ozzie and that without his job and the fame, he'd eventually leave Fizz despite how many years they've known each other and how much Ozzie does to remind Fizz that he loves him for who he is. ;_; ;_; ;_; It's sad too that Fizz has put up with the year of abuse because he felt he owed Mammon for leading him Ozzie, even though that's certainly not true. It really brought it in home just how much trauma Fizz has suffered and affected his mental state. I can only imagine how bad it'd be if he really didn't have Ozzie in his life. O_O The sweet, honest words from Ozzie afterward just reinforced my belief that Ozzie is the best boyfriend and their song "Crooked" was so saturated with lovey-dovey sentiment, I went awwww so many times and shows how lucky they are to have each other. ^_^<3<3<3

Fizz's "2-Minutes Notice" was absolutely incredible, (especially considering this was improv ;) ) and the fact Mammon didn't realize it was about him until the end was hilarious! XD But Fizz certainly proved how amazing he is and I'm sure Ozzie was more than happy to provide the magical backup to really stick it to Mammon. ;) ^_^ <3 It was really cool getting to see full demon Mammon and Ozzie, but it was especially amazing that Ozzie announced he loved Fizz to everyone so that he could no longer be blackmailed by Mammon and so Fizz could be free of that asshole; plus, he already seemed tired of hiding it. ^_^<3<3<3 Although Mammon will definitely come back for revenge on this sweet couple, Fizz and Ozzie get to at least have their peace for now and will face the future of their relationship being outed to all of Hell together. Also, those giant nuzzles from Ozzie are everything to me! ^_^<3<3<3<3<3

[soulofapatrick]

Starstruck - Pedro Pascal x reader/OC

Summary: Y//N plays Eleanor Winchester in Supernatural and is on the red carpet for season 13 where she spots her heartthrob: Pedro Pascal. 

SORT OF LINKS TO Terrible at Secrets

Words: 1.3K 

Warnings: anxiety (?)

Notes: request by @princessmermaid1289​ and photos of dress and hair at the bottom. 

Y/N’s POV:

Being part of such a big show like Supernatural is always breathtaking, especially getting to meet all the other big stars and my fans. I never expected to have such an impact or make a family with J2M. Jared and Jensen immediately took me under their wings when I joined in season seven as Sam and Dean’s little sister - Eleanor aka. Nell

Being anxious and an actor is always something interesting but I have such an amazing family backing me and getting rid of any awkward questions aimed my way during conventions. I love conventions and red carpets, being able to meet my own idols of which I have plenty. I find it so much fun talking to them and getting the fans opinions on everything. My fans are my biggest critics and they’re how I improve. 

Tonights a red carpet for our season 13 with Alexander Calvert. He’s very cute and bubbly and I love him like a little brother and the fans seem to love him even more. He’s going to be big, I just know it, especially when the fans scream at him wrapping his arms around my waist and hugging me as the cameras flash.

“Heyyy Y/N,” Jensen appears at my other side, elbowing me and leans down enough he can whisper quiet enough the cameras and paparazzi don’t catch it, “Your man crush is over there, go say hi.” 

I follow his gaze to see the one and only Pedro Pascal. He guest starred in an episode but sadly I never got to see or meet him as it wasn’t with me. My character was off with Kelly and Castiel while Pedro was with Jensen and Jared and I will admit it broke my heart a little as I have always had a huge crush on the sweetheart. He looks drop dead in that crisp white suit and black bowtie. His hair is so fluffy and I just wanna run my hands through it from here. 

“Go!” Alex is agreeing and I’m being pushed in Pedro’s direction so lightly jog over, trying not to trip over my dress. It’s a beautiful thing, not my personal choice but I have to admit it looks beautiful and it makes me feel beautiful when I’m quite a rough and tough person having been around J2M for pretty much eight years. It’s black and flows, making me feel like a character from a fairytale, the sleeves off the shoulder and it sparkles in the flash of the cameras. I think it’s made from a mixture of satin and lace with how light it is despite how heavy and full it looks. It seems my stylist was going for a vintage look as my strawberry blonde hair is pinned back in light curls, it reminds me a longer version of Susan Pevensie’s hair from the last movie where Lucy becomes Susan. I feel beautiful. 

“Hi,” I place a trembling hand on Pedro’s shoulder, causing him to turn to see me. His face breaks into that contagious grin as he looks me up and down with no abash. It has me flushing a bright red, especially when he makes room for me, wrapping a large hand around my waist. 

“Hi there mama,” Pedro’s voice is like velvet and has me weak at the knees. He’s pulling me flush against the side and begin to pose for the paparazzi again, a huge grin on his face so I compose myself and do the same, putting my arm around his back. He’s a lot taller than I realise so it’s easy for me to rest my head on his shoulder and I think I’m going to go deaf at the sound that erupts from the fans as Pedro glances down at me with a look that makes me balling his jacket in the hand that’s around his back. He lips are suddenly near my ear as he whispers “Easy darlin,” while his thumb rubs soothingly at my hip. 

We have move on so Jared and Gen can take our stops and I prepare to go back to Alex as Misha has Vicki and Jensen has Danneel but Pedro grasps my hand in his calloused one. I stumble slightly but he steadies me and my mind races because this is going to be big news and everyone is going to realise I have the biggest crush on Pedro Pascal… who is leading me to the next photo spot. 

The cameras continue to blind me and I have to grip Pedro’s hand tighter as I can feel my anxiety bubbling. I usually try to do the red carpets quickly and usually Jensen; Jared and Misha there to ground me. This beautiful man beside seems to understand what’s happening and is sending one last wave at the cameras before he’s leading me towards the Entertainment Weekly interviewer. 

“Hello there mommy and daddy,” She greets us and feel myself flush again as this never happens to me. I can’t remember her name as I was meant to only talk to a tiktoker turning interviewer as I’m not as big as my on screen brothers. 

“Hey there,” Pedro sends her an amusing smile, keeping a tight grip on my waist. 

“Well this is a nice surprise, I’m a little star stuck right now,” The interviewer turns her attention to me, “I have to admit I’m a huge fan of you and your character, Eleanor Winchester for those who don’t know.” She glances back at the camera and I’m subconsciously grabbing Pedro’s free hand, hoping the camera doesn’t pick up on. 

“Oh! Well, thank you.” I’m laughing nervously, “I’m also star stuck!”

“You’re the star here,” Pedro nudges me and I can just hear all the fan edits about to be spamming my social media feeds in the morning but I don’t care because I’m currently pressed against the Pedro Pascal and he’s acting like I’m the big star, not him. Somehow I feel like royalty, even when the interviewer gets on with her planned interview with Pedro and I’ve never felt like this. I just alternate between watching the way Pedro throws his head back in a hearty laugh every time the interview flirts with me and the way the cameras are flashing blindingly. I should be panicked and breathless right now but that hand on my hip is flexing every so often and somehow it keeps me grounded and this is probably the first red carpet I’ve been able to breathe.

“Well, here’s the question I think most will be asking in the morning, is there something here?” The interviewer is asking, her question making my head snapping round so fast I’m surprised I don’t get whiplash, watching Pedro to see what he says as I try to slow my breathing. 

“I wouldn’t mind having a date with miss Y/N here but we’ll have to see.” He’s sending her wink then pulling me even closer to him and I just look at the camera and fake swoon, laughing lightly in shock. 

“I think I’m hallucinating,” I tell her and it causing everyone in earshot to break into laughter as Pedro presses a kiss to my cheek, the light drag of his beard taking the air from my lungs, “Definitely hallucinating.” 

“She says yes,” Jared’s towering frame appears behind us both, patting Pedro on the shoulders, “Of course she wants to go on a date with Pedro.” 

“A date it is it seems.” Pedro’s grin seems to get wider and I’m not really sure what’s happening right now. I might have a date with the Pedro Pascal and my two older brother figures may have set me up it seems, especially from the way Jared and Jensen high five as they walk away and the way Gen sends me a wink. 

Oh my fucking god. I’m going on a date with Pedro Pascal. 

[pandasmagorica]

Disability and the Last Twilight ending

Much as I loved Last Twilight, warts and all, I was disappointed at some of the choices they made surrounding their depictions of disability and Day's path through it.

I'm writing as a person with a disability, but not blindness (or deafness for that matter).

We don't get a lot of depictions of disability in fictional media. That places a lot of our hopes that any particular depiction will get it right:

that characters with disabilities either have already found a way to live well (Rear Window, Wait Until Dark, Not Me) or learn to work within it (Moonlight Chicken, Last Twilight through the end of episode 11).

that we don't get an unrealistically perfect or heroic depiction of a person with disabilities.

that the person with disabilities' success and happiness is not dependent on a savior, although they can get help from others.

that a happy ending (if the fiction is to end happily) does not depend on curing the disability.

that if the fiction is a romance, that the person with disability ultimately has approximately equal agency with their partner, who might be abled or disabled.

that we get to see main characters that fulfill the above desires.

I think Last Twilight came through on the first two points, and one can argue about the third, but failed on the last three.

Day, while blind, opened a bookstore. While the bookstore has print books, there are also activities for blind people. (yay)

Day is imperfect. (yay)

Day's life is changed for the better by Mork's help, and continues to improve once Mork has been booted out of Day's life. (open to debate)

Day's blindness was cured. (sigh)

Day didn't have equal agency with Mork pre-break-up. He could only get his agency by breaking up with Mork, and subsequently, by regaining his sight. (sigh)

Aon, a fairly minor character, fulfilled the first three desires, but Day, a main character, did not. (In Not Me, Yok's mother is a fairly minor character. In Moonlight Chicken, Heart is one of the side couple.) (sigh)

If we had plenty of depictions of people with disabilities, most of which satisfied the first several desires I listed, and we also regularly got lead characters with disabilities, then Last Twilight's failings would not be a big deal.

But we don't.

And Day's blindness was a central part of the plot.

I'm not angry about this. I'm disappointed.

There are other failings which bloggers have raised, such as Mork's apology to Day and Day failing to apologize to both Mork and Night - seems like we just got through discussing that sort of thing about Only Friends (more sigh). So I'll focus on what I see as other failings involving disability.

Day gained additional independence by acquiring a cane. So why wasn't he using it when leaving the hotel in episode 12? Beyond setting up the plot point of Mork helping him, that is.

Lack of Thai Braille in Day's bookstore. (Although, given the technology that Day demonstrated - as when he read Mork's contract on his phone - perhaps Braille is less important than it once was.)

Actually, why wasn't Day using the cane in the bookstore so he doesn't accidentally walk into or grab a customer?

Actually, why didn't Day get a cane much earlier?

Or use tools such as a Braille embosser, something that's been around for years and years?

We don't see Day asking the blind guy if he wants help crossing the street, good etiquette for interacting with a person with a disability, presumably because the writers don't want us to know he has his eyesight back until they get across the street for a delayed reveal.

I'm hoping that, as with the increasing depiction of queers in media being accompanied by an increasing percentage of positive, layered depictions, that we'll see a similar increase in positive, layered depictions of people with disabilities.

[lionlena]

Why I think Fireflies are DUMB and Marlene is cruel

I re-watched episode 9 and this scene caught my attention

Okay, I know Marlene said the patrol didn't know them, but their behavior is still stupid to me. They didn't know it was Joel... Yes, that JOEL (damn dangerous dude). What did they see? The girl and probably her dad in the open space and yet they decided to waste the stun grenade launcher.

I'm assuming this isn't something you can buy on ebay in post-apocalyptic times. So? What should they do? They have the upper hand, they're obscured, they've got guns, and these two can't see them. In addition, Joel is not holding a gun in his hands, but has it slung over his shoulder. It would be enough to fire a warning shot in the air and shout: "Stop! You are surrounded! Put your hands up! Tell me who you are and what you are looking for!"

Is it really that hard? I'm under the impression that it is because fireflies are untrained and unorganized. I saw a similar situation in episode 7. Seriously, didn't any of the fireflies (with more than two brain cells) say, "Hey, this young girl with no experience is supposed to guard the warehouse by herself? Maybe someone older and more experienced should be with her? You know, so she doesn't do anything stupid. Like she don't go to quarantine zone and go get friend? I'm just saying"

I know FEDRA is evil anyway, but the fireflies will never defeat them. Why? Because FEDRA has a structure, a hierarchy and they are organized.

And now Marlene... She is surprised that Joel made it to their base. “We lost half our crew crossing the country. I had five men whose only job was to protect me. I still nearly died. How did you do that?"

My assumptions are that Marlene may have assumed Ellie was already dead. How long has it been since she last saw her? Four months? Half a year? She couldn't be 100% sure that Joel wouldn't abandon Ellie. Don't get me wrong. I love Joel. I love what a great father he is to Ellie, but Marlene didn't know that. To her, Joel was a smuggler who was supposed to smuggle Ellie in exchange for a reward. Any other smuggler would have decided after a week that all the hard work wasn't worth it. So what am I aiming for? I don't think Marlene was prepared for Ellie's arrival. The fireflies and the doctors weren't prepared either. The entire laboratory facilities were probably not prepared (assuming there were any at all some laboratory). And yet Marlene decided to kill Ellie. She didn't want to spend even one day with her friend's daughter. Why? Because she is cruel and blindly believes in something that has no logical or scientific basis. She stubbornly wants to save a world that no longer exists and that will never exist again.

And she's also cruel to Joel. She says, "I owe you a favor. We all are." And yet she denies him the most basic thing, which is goodbye. Anyone who, like me, has lost a loved one without being able to say goodbye to them knows how painful it is.

And she's also cruel to Anna. She promised her that she would take care of the baby, and what she did... 1/ She gave Ellie to FEDRA 2/ She gave Ellie to Joel Again, I love Joel, but to Marlene Joel  is a cruel, brutal, heartless smuggler. 3/ She gave Ellie to a doctor who shouldn't even be called a doctor (Hippocratic Oath says something to someone? "Primum non nocere") Probably this doctor could have been blind, deaf, and paralyzed in his right arm, and Marlene would have agreed to the operation anyway.

She says: Our doctor thinks... Thinks? what the fuck? He should be sure. IN 100%. Because if it's true and Ellie is the only chance to create a cure, then you can't assume anything... YOU HAVE TO BE SURE OF IT

But the peak of her cruelty for me are these words: I do understand. I am the only one who understands...

How dare you? How fucking dare you say that! You don't understand anything!!! You didn't lose your baby. For twenty years you haven't had the same nightmare that one day became true again. You don't know what it's like to be a parent again. You don't know what Ellie's been through. You didn't see her fear, her tears, her laughter. You weren't with her the first time she drove the car, the first time she slept in the woods, the first time she saw a giraffe.

you know nothing jon snow

Ok, and back to fireflies and their stupidity again.

If Ellie was so important. Why was the operating room so poorly protected? At least three soldiers should stand by the doctor and not move even when they hears shots.

But again they showed their disorganization. Why? Perhaps the biggest mistake is not having the right leader. Imagine if someone like Joel was their leader. Someone who always expects the worst. Someone who thinks first and then acts.

That's why fireflies are stupid to me. Because first they act (throw a grenade, carry out an operation... they hand over the children to a smuggler) and only then... wait... No, they don't think. They only act.

And what do they get in return? Angry Joel in killer mode :D So seriously. It wasn't even Joel's fault. The fireflies asked for it.

[saywhatjessie]

Temper Your Chocolate You Twat

Day fourteen of the Advent calendar! Using this list. Day 14: Hot Chocolate Fandom: Ted Lasso - Pairing: RoyJamie & TedTrent .6k[Ao3]

“Coach, you should definitely be on this,” Jamie called from the couch, his eyes not leaving the screen. “You ever made a torte?”

“I don’t even know what that is, Jamie,” Ted called from the kitchen. 

Trent hummed from his seat next to Jamie. “We could probably talk to Rebecca and Keeley about a special celebrity spot on Bake Off. Get the team in on it.”

“Ooh, yeah.” Jamie grinned. “Would be dead silly. I don’t think half the team even knows how to turn on an oven.”

Ted and Trent were back at Roy's place as Ted continued with baking lessons for Roy. They’d made all the biscuits they needed to for Roy’s family biscuit exchange but Phoebe apparently still needed biscuits for her class for Christmas.

“Even though we don’t fucking celebrate,” Roy grunted. But he didn’t want Phoebe to be left out.

Jamie and Trent had gotten bored of heckling so they’d moved to the living room and turned on the latest season of Bake Off. Trent won’t stop making fun of how like Jamie one of the contestants was.

“He’s even got the tattoos all up his arm,” Trent teased as they watched the lad make the West Ham logo out of bread.

Jamie snorted. “Other arm though, mate. And I’d never support West Ham.”

Trent just hummed. a small smug smile on his face like he was just humoring Jamie. Jamie scowled, crossing his arms and turning back to the show.

He was actually having fun watching this with Trent. Neither of them knew enough about baking to really understand what was being asked of the bakers, but they were both big enough twats to judge their style and execution. Neither of them cared how Saku’s bread peacock tasted: they just knew it was dead beautiful.

They were happy for the pretty deaf girl. though, for winning top baker of the week. Jamie can admit he manfully teared up when Paul Hollywood told her she really understands bread, even though she can’t hear when a loaf has been cooked long enough.

Roy plopped down on the couch next to Jamie just as the next episode was starting. Jamie smiled, pulling his legs up so he could curl into Roy’s side. “All done in the kitchen, babe?”

Roy grunted. “Gotta get up in twelve minutes to rotate batches. But done enough for now.”

“Look at you bein’ a sexy little housewife. Don’t know why you won’t wear the apron I bought you.”

“It wasn’t just an apron, it was a whole maid costume, you prick.”

“Oh hey, I’ve got one of them!” Ted said, plopping down next to Trent. “Though I worry I don’t have the breasts to fill it out.”

Trent patted him consolingly on the thigh. “Your tits are phenomenal, dear.”

“Thanks, sweetheart,” Ted said, grinning, before leaning in to kiss him.

“See, Royo!” Jamie said, gesturing at Ted and Tent. “They’re even more ancient than you and they get it!”

Trent hummed, skeptically. “I don’t know, Jamie. Not sure Roy could pull it off. Ted definitely had better tits.”

Roy’s eyebrows were doing something crazy, like he knew he should be offended but he wasn’t sure why or how. “Fuck off.”

Jamie looked at him, regretfully. “Only one way to settle this, Roy.”

“I’m not going to put on the maid outfit, can we just watch some fucking Bake Off?”

Jamie pouted but Roy put his arm around his shoulders so it wasn’t too bad.

The episode was chocolate week which filled both Trent and Roy with visible glee.

“Tell me it’s the hottest day of the year,” Trent said.

“Always,” Roy confirmed, his grin like a shark.

It wasn’t very long into the signature bake that Ted piped in with. “You know, Jamie, that young man kind of reminds me of you.”

“HIS TATTOO’S ON THE OTHER ARM!” Jamie shouted. Trent cackled.

The lad won chocolate week.

[acacia-luna-royal]

This is why I need to stop watching the newest episode of KinnPorsche when I’m on the verge of sleep (basically me going to sleep between 4:30am and 6:30am or later) because I happened to notice only a part of something which only turned out to be a whole lot bigger and I’m pissed that I only noticed one thing out of all of the other things that was in this scene.

I’m talking about this scene:

We all know what happens in this scene; it’s where Arhtee gets shot/killed and he falls into Porsche’s arms. Vegas has his gun at the ready, ready to protect both himself and Porsche and he’s looking around for where the shot that hit Arhtee came from. Porsche then collapses due to a traumatic and pain-inducing flashback and momentarily becomes deaf to the situation around him. Seeing Porsche in this state, Vegas more or less hops over Porsche to try and get his attention; gun pointed in the direction of where the shot came from, and then he points his gun in the direction of where he can see movement coming towards both him and Porsche.

Now, I look at faces and if there is an expression change within a millisecond, it’s the first thing I’ll notice before I notice changes in the other parts of the body and the first thing I noticed with Vegas during these couple of seconds is how he’s calculated, concentrating on focusing on whoever is running towards them, ready to shoot if need be.

Vegas literally goes from this:

To then change, within a millisecond, to shock, desperation and disbelief when he realises that one of the two people running over to him and Porsche is Pete.

It’s just a micro change in his expression but damn does it speak volumes. Vegas realised that he wouldn’t be able to shoot from that distance and not risk hitting Pete and decided that running was the best option. A literal: “Porsche, you’ve got to get up! Yeah, your husband is scary, but mine is so much scarier!” And he hastily continues to try and get Porsche back to reality and back on his feet so that they can get the fuck out of there.

But it’s so much more than that.

Someone on YouTube pointed out that Vegas removed his finger off the trigger as soon as he recognised that it was Pete running over to them:

And then another thing they pointed out was Vegas looking into the wing mirror of his bike; taking one last look at Pete before he drove him and Porsche away:

I only noticed the facial expression change!! I completely missed the rest!! I am not okay right now! 😭😭

[lurkingshan]

Be My Favorite 3&4

I fell behind on this show while traveling, but everyone is saying it keeps getting better, so time to catch up!

Episode 3

A sticking point for me in this narrative is I still don’t get why Pisaeng liked Kawi in the first place. Original Kawi was very uncharming. I can buy Pisaeng starting to fall for him now that he is getting to know him and Kawi is opening up, but before? We haven’t really seen anything that explains that initial attraction for Pisaeng, and it’s a pretty important story point since so much of the plot hinges on it. Maybe we’ll get a flashback inside the flashback at some point?

Pisaeng got very aggressive with this kiss in the present day. You can see why Kawi would freak even if homophobia wasn’t a factor. Still, it’s quite a choice to have Krist of all actors play his revulsion after being kissed by a man, complete with his patented mouth wipe. As I discussed with @ginnymoonbeam @bengiyo and @kyr-kun-chan, either they’re intentionally leaning into Krist’s reputation or they’re a bit tone deaf here.

I like it when the show engages more with the time travel conceit and how hard it would be to puzzle out. Kawi not being able to figure out what he should do to change the future is so real.

I like Max, Kawi needs someone in his life who won’t let him get away with shit.

Poor Pisaeng. He has no idea what his future self did but he’s the one being punished for it.

Pear is a nice person and Pisaeng needs to tell her he doesn’t like her. It’s sad to imagine he just went along with it in the original timeline.

Not sucks. Kawi is wrong, they do not need to talk it out. Pisaeng should just be done with this guy.

Ugh, Kawi, that was mean. I really feel for Pisaeng. He didn’t do anything in this timeline and it’d be hard to read Kawi’s actions as anything other than him picking up on Pisaeng’s feelings and rejecting him preemptively.

Instead of winning small lottery prizes, Kawi should be investing in stock. Think smart!

Episode 4

I love this conversation between Max and Kawi. I’m glad Max named his fear about why their friendship fizzled and Kawi cleared it up and apologized. Max is my fav and I’m starting to respect Kawi a lot more.

This friend group kind of sucks, actually. Kawi should get more friends but maybe not these guys.

Pear is a nice person. She clearly only sees Kawi as a friend but I love that she looks out for him.

I just think we should get the chance to all line up and kick Not in the shin. Perhaps Pear doesn’t like you because you’re a nasty bully, has that occurred to you, sir??

These bullies clearly do not have his best interests at heart but it’s good for Kawi to get this confession over with. Time to be rejected and start moving on.

They are actually listening to him confess? I hate these dudes, get ‘em Pisaeng.

This was a great scene between Kawi and Pear. Kawi was straightforward and sincere, and Pear was honest and kind. I, too, would immediately start stress eating chips after being rejected.

KAWI! These dudes are not your friends. Why are you telling them personal stuff and giving them ammunition to mock you? I’m shaking my head with Pisaeng.

Pisaeng does need to get ahold of himself a little. He and Kawi only recently became friends and have no romantic relationship at all so the jealous bf stuff is a bit much. And Kawi is free to flirt with whoever he wants; this all feels a little unnecessarily slut shamey.

Aw yeah call him out, Kawi!! Pisaeng definitely has a bit of that toxic Nice Guy thing going on. He should let Pear off the hook, already.

Very interesting how long Kawi lets this hovering go on before he stops Pisaeng from kissing him.

Credit to Pisaeng for realizing Kawi is right and immediately acting on it. Pear took it like a champ. Is this the first drama I’ve seen where every single person who got rejected already knew it was coming and reacted calmly and maturely?

“Maybe you should start thinking more.” That’s it, I’m officially starting the Pearmai fan club. Who wants to be treasurer?

This episode really said:

You love her

But she loves him

And he loves somebody else

You just can't win

I’m in agreement with @respectthepetty and everyone else I’ve seen discussing the show - it really is getting stronger as it goes and I’m going to be very upset if it goes downhill. It’s being a lot more respectful of the characters than I expected, and there’s a real emotional intelligence underlying the relationship development (Jittirain, is that really you??). I’m officially invested and praying it doesn’t go off the rails.

[descendant-of-truth]

Maybe things have changed since I last checked the Pokemon YouTuber landscape but. why did no one talk about the queercoding in Journeys past episode 3. I think I saw a few reactions to later episodes where people were like "ha that's kinda gay" but that was it

Like, I genuinely can't figure out why there aren't video essays being made about this, either to complain about it being gay (or romantic at all) or to advocate for it potentially becoming canon. Pokemon is like, one of the biggest anime series ever, you'd think implying a gay romance with its main character would turn a few heads but there's just. nothing?? Somehow???

There's... there's no way it's actually subtle enough to go over the heads of this many people on YouTube, right?? Sure their dynamic is primarily platonic in nature, but then you've got the scene where they hold hands for no less than thirty seconds and they specifically note that Gou is embarrassed about it, which is like. a classic trope

Not to mention Gou saying "that's so you" in a fond voice about Ash before asserting that he totally doesn't want help him out or anything like every tsundere character with a crush ever, or the way both Kiawe and Gary feel the need to test Gou to make sure he's a good "fit" for Ash, or the way that Ash is way more physically affectionate with Gou than any other previous companion, or the freakin spin hug--

THEY'RE EVEN ROOMMATES LIKE C'MON

I don't think I've ever seen a show this popular with this much queercoding in it have that aspect be almost completely absent from video discussions before, it'd be impressive if it wasn't so frustrating

The only explanations I can think of for why this is the case are:

Everyone who could be making videos about it are extremely tone deaf to queercoding

They're so confident in the idea that Pokemon would definitely never do anything gay that they brush it off completely

They want to associate with Gou as little as possible because he has a surprising amount of haters

Related: they're too busy being mad about Ash not catching Grookey or something similar to care about the interpersonal relationships happening in the show

All of which, kind of drive me insane I won't lie

I can see it now: Ash and Gou get together, YouTube explodes with videos claiming that this was totally out of left field, or maybe some will admit that Gou showed signs but adamantly refuse that Ash is even romantic enough to BE gay, or (more likely) saying he should've been with a different girl instead

And everyone else who was picking up on this since episodes 2 or 3 will be like "WE TRIED TO TELL YOU BUT YOU WOULDN'T LISTEN"

A scenario which would be as annoying as it is gratifying, I assume, but like. why would that be a more likely scenario than literally anyone making a video essay about it on YouTube beforehand. What is happening

[cirixwqnd]

ST4 SPOILERS (theory)

EDIT/ATTENTION:

IT’S A PRODUCTION MISTAKE!! but still feel free to read the ‘theory’ this is such a bad start to my first theory post 😭

———

I’m actually surprised no one’s mentioned this, lol. Oh and I haven’t exactly shared any of my theories here before but bear with me. Remember this?

S4:E5: The Nina Project

“Nina’s” number. (We all already know that Nina isn’t a person). The number clearly written is ‘202-968-6161’ right? But what’s weird is that Will said a whole different combinations of numbers.

I would screenrecord it and put the video here but my goddamn screenrecorder won’t work, it won’t save the video to my phone so if you want to check, you know what episode it’s at. I forgot the timestamp but it’s around the middle but a little to the end. Back to the post; he said the first three numbers right, 202 but the rest? No. He says ‘564-9087’ instead.

Did he lie..? Did he know that this number would just call a computer? It’s like when El lied to Dustin, Mike & Lucas in S1 to keep them safe and away from the gate. And we all know how it ended, it ended with them getting into a big fight. So.. is there a Byler fight scene? Another one? God, I hope not. Maybe it’s just a mistake..?

S4:E4: Dear Billy • [link to the trailer]

Like this one! You see how the grave says “Billy Hargrove”?

Well, in the next shot we see the grave now says “William Hargrove” and not Billy. Others (including me) just think that this was on purpose, to let the viewers know that this is Billy’s grave and his full name is just William so that’s why it was also changed to William in the official episode. I’m gonna say that this is correct because so far there hasn’t been anything hinting to “Max is possessed and she is seeing Billy on the grave despite it saying William!” yk? Maybe there will be in Vol.2, I have no idea. But if that isn’t the case.. Will is lying.

He’s lying to protect not only his best “friend” (iykwim) but his brother & Argyle. But it can’t just be a coincidence that both numbers start with 202, right? Maybe it was a mistake! I just really hope there isn’t a big fight scene where Mike goes

“You lied to us! To me, I trusted you! Why would you even do this? To what? Stop us from finding El? From protecting her?!”

and Will is just speechless again, like in S3.. or maybe that’s where he confesses his love? O_O Perhaps he’ll say something like..

“Okay fine! I lied to you, is that what you wanna hear?! I lied to you Mike, to keep you safe. Because, I can’t believe I’m saying this but—I am in love with you! I love you! A-and I can’t risk being away from you again or losing you.. I can’t.”

Then he breaks into tears or something meanwhile Jonathan and Argyle are in the background looking like they’re watching an angsty romance movie. Maybe Argyle will even eat a pizza while staring. Who knows!?

Plus, lying is a very un-Will thing to do. You saw him in previous episodes & seasons, he hates lying. Will is never one to lie, especially to Mike. That scene in E2 where Will tells El that Mike’s not gonna be happy when he finds out about her lies, that’s an example! Or in S1 where Will told Mike “It was a seven. [...] The roll, it was a seven. The demogorgon, it got me.” even though Lucas told him “Then it doesn’t count!” if Mike didn’t see it.

All the party members are loyal to each other, some more than others and some less. Did Will lie? Am I stupid or going deaf that I did not hear the numbers correctly? Am I so desperate for byler scenes that I am willing to convince myself that the numbers are different?? I don’t know! What do you guys think? I am genuinely confused.

Me crying when I finish season 4 vol.2 without a romantic byler scene:

[cozymochi]

🌻🌻🌻 give us your Words

THREE CRAZY FLOWERS!??? Lets goooo

🌻- A FEW DAYS AGO me and my roommate rewatched all of avatar the last airbender. I mean, we tried to years ago but we stopped because… Ok this might sound ridiculous but we stopped 5 episodes in cuz it was too good, and we needed hardcore stupid for a while. BUT WE WENT BACK IN and wrapped it up in a few days and it’s still ballin’ as ever. I don’t have much to say beyond that.

🌻- YESTERDAY, I got a Shadow the Hedgehog plushie at a comic store because. Anyway, threw on Sonic X (subbed for a change wooo) a few hours later smack in the middle of season 3 to get some Shadow vibes in cuz he is the original scrunkly. …OKAY im actually done talking about him, If I get started on my sonic bs I never stop BUT

It’s absolutely bonkers to me how Sonic X just like…has virtually no music score????? It’s been a minute since I’ve seen Season 1-2 subbed, but Season 3 has barely any compositions at all. And everything is so….slow? You know how anime used to just…stick to one shot or draw something out for a reaaally long time? That’s pretty much every episode. I chalk that up to the mid animation (it’s crazy that this will be the same studio that would eventually handle 2019 Fruits Basket). As much as I do dislike how loud and tonally deaf the 4Kids score is, I did miss the character leitmotifs a bit. I can only imagine what a combo would’ve been like with proper atmosphere. Every now and then I’d HOPE the music would pop off but there’d be whole ass action sequences and score is just a constant low, droning wubwubwubwubwub noise. Once in a blue moon an Adventure 1 event song might play BUT OTHER THAN THAT ITS DEAD SILENCE or wubwubwubwubwub. ITs Just so baffling to me considering how peak the music in the games are, you’d think that’d be utilized in it’s anime. Tho Live and Learn playing at the end of the Project Shadow arc??? Bruh. Cinema.

…Anyway all that said, the Metarex arc is still pretty peak. And I really think Sonic X would’ve benefitted hard from today’s animation standard, cuz it srsly NEEDS that sense of speed to convey the insane stuff more 😩. Though Sonic X as it was would never be made today in the “let’s be safe and squeaky bclean for the brand” landscape. Not enough hurr hurr chili dog 👹 SEE LOOK IM GOING OFF FOREVER THIS IS WHY I CANT GET ON MY BS—-

🌻- If the “talking about watching every disney film” thing ever comes out, I’m dodging copyright by re-drawing the shots we talk about or make new jokes. “But you could just use screenshots” ermmmmmmmm maybe. But what’s MORE extra than trying to go by memory AND try and show off on a thing 80% of people would only strictly listen to? ;) ….Besides, it’d be different I think. Sorta. I’d hope. It’s still in the early stages.

What if I’m not funny whaT if

[waywardstation]

Buddy System

Akari fails to perform her safety checks around a herd of Pokémon, but luckily Ingo is there with her when it happens.

Another drabble I wrote last night! Very loosely worked with two prompts that asked for a ‘beach episode’. This isn’t a typical beach episode haha, but it happens on a beach! Also partly inspired by my horrifying experiences in PLA with sealeo and walrein; not sure if it’s maybe a bug or if other people experience it, but when I’m not even in their line of sight, or hiding in tall grass, they still spot me and attack me! It makes me dread them haha.

Or, read it here on AO3!

Enjoy!

————

“See! It’s over there; that’s the one!”

Ingo followed Akari’s pointing finger through a divot in the rocky formations they were hiding behind, directed at the sandy shore leading into the surf.

Out on the brine-soaked boulders jutting from the shallow waves, a group of sealeo were lounging around and soaking up the sun’s rays, stretched out and unbothered by the gentle waves that spilled over the edges of the crags. Their younger counterparts - energetic spheal - were having fun close by, rolling in the waves that crawled up the shore.

Ingo immediately recognized the spheal she was pointing at as the one she had gushed to him about over the last few days; with folded ears and an underbite that gave its muzzle a snubble-ish appearance, it was rather unique from the rest of its group. Currently, it was doing its best to keep up and play with the rest of the spheal, rolling around lopsidedly in the damp sand to chase after a retreating wave.

“It’s so cute!” Akari whispered to Ingo excitedly, overtaken by how endearing she found its features.

It was becoming increasingly clear to Ingo that while Akari truly loved and cared for every Pokémon she met, she had a real soft spot for the more unconventional ones.

She really wanted to catch this spheal.

“And, you’re absolutely sure the mother is currently departed from the station?” The warden asked as he placed a hand on her shoulder to still her, conducting their safety checks about three times over. He inspected the stretch of coastline from under the brim of his cap, a bit more wary than she was.

Ingo was glad he was able to spend the day with Akari and assist with her survey tasks, seeing as it was too hot to man his station at the training grounds today (and the salty sea breeze was very refreshing), but he worried Akari would get herself hurt, with how eager she was to catch this spheal.

The only reason Akari had yet to catch it was because of its rather overbearing mother, roaring and charging her whenever she got a little too close; and there had been some very close calls. Being a bit overbearing himself after hearing her recall these events to him every day at the dojo, Ingo was more than willing to join her when she’d asked if he’d like to come with her on his day off, and make sure she stayed safe.

A mother Pokémon is already fiercely protective of her young to begin with. And then, to put all of that protectiveness into the hulking, frightfully powerful body of a furious alpha walrein…

“Yes!” Akari interrupted Ingo’s train of thought as she rooted through her satchel, searching for the pokeballs she had packed. “If I’ve been keeping track correctly, she should be out hunting right now! I’ll sneak in, catch it, and sneak out!”

“Well, we must make sure all of our tracks are clear, not just one,” Ingo eyed the sealeo; even if the alpha was currently away, the mid-stage forms could turn on them rather quickly. “Remember, proceed with speed, but not haste-“

Ingo’s words of caution fell on deaf ears as Akari spotted an opening. The spheal had rolled away from its siblings for a moment, further from the surf and closer towards them.

“Miss Akari!” Ingo called after her through grit teeth, but she hurried off to situate herself behind a new rock, much closer to the snub-nosed spheal.

Now only a few feet away from the unsuspecting Pokémon, Akari readied a pokeball. Shooting a quick glance to the sealeo on the left of the coast to make sure they were all still unsuspecting, she had failed to notice the mass heaving itself from the surf off to the far right, its eyes flaring with red fury as it returned from hunting.

But Ingo noticed, just as it noticed Akari.

From behind the rock, Akari’s tunnel vision on the spheal was just as stunted as her aim. It already had its back to her; now, if only it could move a little bit more to the right, away from the rock wall…

She held her pokeball back, waiting.

Almost-

“Miss Akari!”

A shout broke her concentration, as did a massive, livid shadow overtaking both her and the prized spheal, who promptly rolled away in terror.

Firm hands grasped under Akari’s arms and heaved her off her feet as a burst of intense heat suddenly warmed her left side, and a reverberating bellow rattled through her ribcage, much closer than she had expected. Her pokéball was the only thing left behind in the sand.

Akari’s hands instinctively hooked onto any part of Ingo she could grab for support as she looked back over his shoulder, her feet kicking with the absence of ground beneath her. Ingo’s machamp was beating back the alpha wailrein that dwarfed it, one of its arms steaming with the heat of a fire punch as the other three did their best to keep the living mountain of a monster in place.

The massive sea beast attempted to rear its head and heave the four-armed protector out of the way, so it could charge the two escaping intruders, but another flare of fire at the wrist swinging upwards against its jaw knocked it backwards into the surf. The sealeo, now riled up, barked from the rocks while the spheal rolled away to safety.

“You did not…perform safety checks-!” Ingo heaved, speech broken with strained breaths as he continued to make his escape back up the coastland’s hill to safer areas, Akari tangled in his arms. “You need to always…make sure you’re behind…the yellow line!”

“That’s why I’ve got you!” Akari tried to keep the situation light as she attempted to regain her footing on the ground beneath her, so that Ingo wouldn’t have to keep carrying her. She was a bit surprised he could both carry her and keep this speed, and franky Ingo was too - adrenaline worked wonders in situations like this.

For now, they retreated back to base camp, but sure enough, Akari would beg to try again within a few hours.

She was bent on catching that spheal.

[jakesuit0]

Fionna and Cake Review

Mirroring the first episode of the series, “Fionna and Cake” throws us into a new world with absolutely no context. Watching this for the first time with no outside knowledge leaves viewers dumbfounded (definitely check out some reaction videos for this one in particular). Not just from the opening scene, but from Adventure Time’s very first variation on its intro. Natasha Allegri, the creator of Fionna and Cake, sings it. There’s some cool details, like a gingerbread version of Rebecca Sugar replacing the usual Gingerbread Muto, based on her storyboard partner. “Fionna and Cake” ends up being the perfect encapsulation of what makes Adventure Time so special, a feat possibly only matched by the series finale itself. 

It’s super fun seeing alternate versions of the characters, a trend that started here. It’s gimmicky but who cares. The designs are pretty much all superb (thanks Nat!). My only criticism is the baffling decision to make Cake’s eyes white after Allegri’s original art got them right with blue eyes. The casting is just as good. Madeleine Martin (Fionna), Roz Ryan (Cake), Neil Patrick Harris (Prince Gumball), and Grey DeLisle (Ice Queen), make for the best guest voice cast of the series. They sound like the perfect genderswapped versions of the main characters, capturing the core of the regular characters while reflecting their subtle differences. Giving the characters similar but altered personalities really pushes this one over the edge. Fionna is as heroic as Finn, and gets uncomfortable being open about romance like he does. She’s a little more mature and takes situations a little more seriously, as girls mature faster than boys. Cake has the most distinguishing traits. She’s sassier and Jake’s laziness is replaced with a more unfiltered, provocative attitude (“tell Gumball you think he’s hot!”). We don’t see a ton of Prince Gumball, as it’s technically not him for most of it, but he’s the closest to his genderbent counterpart. He even has hints at a darker side, lying about the jelly kinders being alive. Ice Queen is just as creepy and perverted as Ice King, but is more outwardly sinister. When you sound more like Azula than Spongebob, that’s bound to happen. Even her ice magic created clouds are darker and more foreboding. It’s her best and most significant role to date. The characters are just as fun as the main cast are in seasons one and two. If the series was about this version of the world instead, it would still be a great series, and it would have been interesting to see how these characters would have developed differently.

Prince Gumball, like Princess Bubblegum, doesn’t view Fionna as a romantic interest. He invites Fionna to the ball as his “pal”. The age gap is just as much a roadblock as it is for Finn and PB. Ice Queen attacks Gumball with a slush beast. She has the ability to create water and foam, in addition to ice. Ice King lacks this ability, although he probably could conjure liquid water in a hotter environment. This could be tied to Ice Queen’s backstory as a water nymph, explored in Natasha Allegri’s dubiously canon Fionna and Cake comic miniseries. After Fionna seemingly defeats Ice Queen, Gumball flirts with Fionna and asks her out. Cake pushes her to pursue PG, more so than Jake ever does. Cake tags along on the date, as Jake does in “Burning Low” and “Ignition Point”.

They meet with Prince Gumball and Lord Monochromicorn. In addition to having a sick design, Monochromicorn speaks in morse code instead of Korean. I headcanon him as deaf. Too bad it’s his only appearance in the series. It’s funny that the series never acknowledges him as Gumball’s pet/best friend again, like how the PB/Lady dynamic was mostly dropped after “What Have You Done?”. Gumball gives Ice Queen a badass crystal sword. I love how it's just as cool as any of Finn’s swords. They really make sure to put these characters on equal footing to their counterparts. It’s hidden inside a bouquet of flowers, showing that Ice Queen knows what Fionna really likes. I like how it subverts the gender dynamics. Girls can like swords too! She also picks up Prince Gumball a few times which is cool! I did think to myself that there’s no way she has the upper body strength to do that, but realized neither does Finn at this age and I never questioned that! Fionna assures Gumball that she’s not thinking of butts after saying she’ll kick his in a race, meaning that she definitely likes his ass. I’m glad that Cake points out that they were the ones doing the actual work in the race. 

It would be a huge missed opportunity to not get to see this version of the characters sing, especially when they have Neil Patrick Harris. It’s a simple song, but the best of the series so far. The background of the sky with the fireworks, as well as Fionna and Gumball’s hair blowing in the wind, make it truly beautiful. It’s reminiscent of “A Whole New World”. Unlike the scene in Aladdin, Fionna gets to fight during it! I love the blend of action and romance here, it would have sucked for a story about girl Finn to just be a straightforward date. No wonder these characters became so popular. It gave girls a great character to see themselves in and showed that girls can be just as badass as Finn. 

Fionna returns to the treehouse after being asked to the ball as Gumball’s girlfriend. I like the detail that BMO still looks exactly the same, considering he’s genderfluid. Fionna straight up puts on Princess Serenity’s dress. It’s not my favorite Sailor Moon inspired outfit she ever wears, but it’s still gorgeous. There’s some new genderswaps at the ball, most notably Marshall Lee. He was originally going to have a few lines here, but they were cut for time. Rebecca Sugar begged Pendleton Ward to let her work Marshall into the story elsewhere, but he didn’t let up. If this was the only Fionna and Cake episode, I definitely would not have cut his lines. But, I think it’s for the best that they saved something that fans so desperately wanted for another episode. Lumpy Space Prince is there too and it’s funny that he looks exactly the same besides the mustache stubble. We’ve also got Cinnamon Bun with a green dress, a bow, and boobs. I assume CB would have the same name.  

Trigger Warning (Sexual Assault, Feel Free to Skip the Next Two Paragraphs)

The next scene is really intense and I’m glad they somehow got it past the censors. Prince Gumball takes Fionna to his bedroom, locks the door, and starts undressing. It’s a mislead that he’s about to sexually assault her, which is so dark for this show. She backs away and is clearly uncomfortable. They really didn’t shy away from the intricacies of the different gender dynamic, and the danger that girls face from predators. If it were Finn and Princess Bubblegum, it would be just as predatory, but I don’t think Finn would have the exact same reaction. I think he would be shy and embarrassed, but not fearful.  

Ice Queen reveals herself. It’s a great twist and I like that it sidesteps the problematic nature of Gumball dating Fionna. Fionna’s dress being torn in half is great symbolism for Fionna. She can be feminine and wear pretty dresses if she wants while still being a strong, badass warrior. Both sides are Fionna! Cake hears Fionna shouting “get it off me” from downstairs. She also senses that Fionna is in danger. This plays into both the instincts of a pet as well as the duty women feel to protect each other in situations like this. Fionna defeats Ice Queen and frees Gumball. This leaves Cake to find Fionna and Gumball alone in his room, with Fionna’s dress ripped off and his hand on her. Cake immediately jumping to the obvious conclusion is pretty reasonable, even if it is hypocritical that she spent the episode encouraging Fionna to go out with an adult. 

Cake tries on Ice Queen’s tiara, which Fionna knocks off, saying she might “catch her crazy”. It’s interesting because it suggests that Ice King is aware of the effect the crown has on him on some level. Part of Ice King must also see himself as a villain, so there is some amount of self-awareness in him somewhere. I’m trying hard not to address the elephant in the room, but I do like to think Ice King is indeed the one who came up with the finer details and specific lines of dialogue, which is supported by the ending. The real Gumball asks Fionna for a date, which doesn’t make much sense, so I also think that’s just Ice King’s input. Fionna’s mini-speech about not needing a boyfriend and already knowing herself is a really nice ending to her arc in this story. 

Seeing Fionna and Cake profess their love for the Ice King is really jarring on a first watch. (Lord Monochromicorn says “ice” in morse code here!) All of this being fanfiction from Ice King makes the character even more creepy and unsettling. He’s forcing a young boy to listen to his story of a girl version of himself falling in love with him. I don’t think he’s actually a pedophile (“Mortal Recoil”), I just think he’s a fucking weirdo. He put a lot of innuendos in, like Fionna and Gumball emphasizing how large his ball will be and Cake’s tail sticking out at Mo-Chro, in addition to the sexual undertones of the bedroom scene. The episode tosses aside the whole “Land of Aaa” name, an early idea, with Ice King mentioning Ooo in the context of the story. It’s corny but I do wish they stuck with Aaa instead. A lot of the fandom uses it anyway. And yet another episode that ends with Finn and Jake frozen!

This is the most experimental the show has gotten and it’s cool to see them branch out. It’s also the first time Finn only gets a cameo, although his analogue is still the lead. Putting a twist on this world gives the episode license to tell a simple story focused on classic Adventure Time tropes: Finn’s crush on Bubblegum and thwarting the Ice King. Changing the genders of characters is a popular thing for fandoms to do (rule 63), so getting an actual episode with the concept is such a terrific gift for fans. This is one of those episodes that only Adventure Time would do. It paid off, being the highest viewed episode of the first three seasons, and spawning its own massive fandom and line of merchandise. The episode’s outline was much easier and more boring than it ended up being. It called for Fionna going on a date set in a restaurant and didn’t even include Ice Queen. Adam Muto and Rebecca Sugar, who storyboarded the episode, strayed away from the outline to make something much more interesting. 

This episode being Ice King’s fanfiction is pretty ingenious. I understand the disappointment some people felt at breaking the world of a story they were invested in, but this is fixed later on anyway. It also cleverly ties into the backstory behind the episode and the themes of the series. Natasha Allegri, who was the lead character designer for the first two seasons, remaining on the series as a storyboard revisionist for season three, essentially created these characters as fanart, drawing them for fun and uploading them to 4chan. Just like the episode, her comics were a little more adult than the series. They’re hilarious and I consider most of them canon! Her comic of Fionna getting her period is a must read. Even the names of Fionna and Cake were suggested from 4chan anons! Pen liked the drawings enough to want to make it into an episode. There’s so many writers who have worked on the show with their own interpretations of Ooo and its inhabitants, and there’s even more fans with their own headcanons and personal versions of the series. Adventure Time can be whatever someone wants it to be. The series is a success because of all the different ideas brought to the table from a collaborative storyboard-driven show and because it can speak to so many different people. It’s great to have an episode celebrating that. “Fionna and Cake” was born from and is a celebration of fanfiction!

Grade: A+

[blue-chimera]

What S15:E20 "Carry On" Did That S15:19 "Inherit the Earth" Couldn't

Before the finale, some of Supernatural's most resonant themes centered on found family ("Family don't end in blood" and "it doesn't start there, either") and anti-suicide messaging (with "Always Keep Fighting" standing as the official/unofficial motto of many in the SPN family).

While Jared was the face of "Always Keep Fighting" IRL, it was Dean, who struggled with depression and low self-esteem for years, who represented the fight against suicide to many viewers of the show... [spoilers below the jump]

So, when Dean dies in the Supernatural finale – and urges Sam to accept his death – it's more than understandable why fans might take that as a tone-deaf repudiation of the show's own message. But I would argue that a deeper, more nuanced message is being communicated to us here: one that embraces & enhances lessons that came before.

Throughout 15 years of Supernatural, Dean frequently devalued his own life. His actions veered from courage into recklessness and even suicidal disregard, and he regularly voiced doubt that his life was important. See: his suggestion in S2:E21 that his life was only meaningful if he sacrificed it to save Sam; his attempt to trade his life for Sam's in S11:E17 "Red Meat;" when he says to Billie, in S13:E5, "I don't matter;" or to Sam (in that same episode), "My whole life, I always believed that what we do was important. No matter what the cost, no matter who we lost... I kept on fighting because I believed that we were making the world a better place. And now, Mom and Cas... And I – I don't know. I don't know."

However, by the time we reach the finale, we've seen Dean turn a significant corner on valuing his life and the difference he makes in the world. This turning point is made explicit in S14:E13 "Lebanon," when Sam laments that they can't change the past, and Dean replies, "We've been through some tough times. There's no denying that. And for the longest time, I blamed Dad. I mean, hell, I blamed Mom, too, you know? I was angry. But say we could send Dad back knowing everything. Why stop there? Why not send him even further back and let some other poor sons of bitches save the world? But here's the problem. Who does that make us? Would we be better off? Well, maybe. But I got to be honest... I don't know who that Dean Winchester is. And I'm good with who I am."

This is a remarkable break from Dean's prior attitude and a clear, concrete step towards self-acceptance. Dean actively choses himself as is over a hypothetical do-over... even a do-over that would mean John & Mary Winchester getting to live long lives away from hunting demons & monsters. It feels like Dean has gained a certain amount of wisdom, perspective, emotional maturity, healing – whatever you want to call it – and he's come to view the culmination of his life's experiences (both the joy & the pain) as positive. In learning to accept pain as a part of life, in learning to face it and avoid letting it overshadow the good things, Dean has come to a greater acceptance of his life and of himself.

However, like everyone, Dean is susceptible to backsliding. Most notably, he experiences sharp regression on this front when Mary dies. Once again overwhelmed by pain, he lashes out, turning against Jack and nursing a grudge against Cas, seemingly poised to bury himself in bitterness & despair. But he eventually overcomes this knee-jerk response. Despite his anger and pain (and even pressure from God himself), Dean steps back from the edge, refusing to shoot Jack. In Purgatory, realizing that Cas might die – that he might already be dead – Dean lets go of his anger against the angel, as well, tearfully apologizing for holding a grudge, offering forgiveness of his own, and acknowledging that he struggles with anger issues. And, importantly, this isn't something Dean names once and then forgets. Dean goes on to acknowledge the problem of his anger again in the penultimate episode, suggesting that he's gaining self-awareness & getting better at taking responsibility for his reactions.

Whether he's aware of it or not, Dean's anger issues are almost certainly rooted in feelings of anxiety & helplessness stemming from his parentification as a young child. Dean was aware of the existence of monsters (and the finality of death) and tasked with protecting Sam from these things long before he actually had the skills/capacity to effectively protect his brother. As a result, on at least one occasion, young Dean fails to protect Sam, incurring blame from his father & leading to feelings of worthlessness. Dean reacts to these feelings by manifesting a need for control – convincing himself that the key to protecting his loved ones lies in controlling every variable in their lives, trusting only himself (and, before John's death, his father) to make the necessary decisions to keep their loved ones safe – and by externalizing blame (in an attempt to escape the crippling self-loathing that follows when he blames himself after people he loves get hurt).

Hence, Dean's anger when people deviate from his plans or expectations or fail to disclose information to him, especially when someone gets hurt in the process. Seizing control is an attempt to protect himself from loss & the accompanying pain/fear/grief that's dogged him since the violent death of his mother and the subsequent upending of his world. Anger is his sword and control is his shield.

So, it makes sense that Dean essentially loses his mind when forced to confront his (apparent) helplessness in the fight against God. It's his deepest fear come to life. Dean's inability to face his fear of helplessness (and the loss that goes along with it) makes him vulnerable to Chuck's influence. He can't think clearly past it. It's what drives him to participate in (and make excuses for going along with) Jack's would-be suicide bombing. It's what allows him to be whipped into a frenzy of anger that almost ends in him shooting Sam.

And it's therefore extremely meaningful that Dean acknowledges his anger issues in S15:E9 "The Trap" (while praying to Cas) and then again in E19 "Inherit the Earth." In "The Trap," Dean recognizes that his anger is a problem, but he's still making excuses for it. But by E19, he sees that there are other paths – that he could've chosen to do something different. He's finally come to understand his anger as a reaction to pain & fear, a reaction that he's allowed to control him, and not as just a fact of life.

The seeds of this lesson are planted in E9. We see them take root in E19. Then, E20 rolls around. Months pass in a montage, and the Winchesters appear to have fallen into a comfortable routine: daily chores & exercise, gun-care & research. It looks like life has achieved some level of normalcy for them. "Normalcy" for a Winchester still seems to include hunting, the bunker, and bachelorhood, but now it also includes a dog, smiles, and a notable lack of apocalypses.

And then we get to the pie festival. Here, we finally see what's bloomed from those seeds: while Sam's enjoyment of the event is momentarily marred by thoughts of those they lost, Dean has learned a healthier approach. He's learned to neither avoid his pain nor use it as an excuse to lash out or lean into despair. Instead, he acknowledges it – saying, "That pain's not gonna go away" – and then uses it to affirm his choice to live & experience the joys of life: "But if we don't keep living, then all that sacrifice is gonna be for nothing."

In Dean's calm, contemplative assurance, we hear echoes of that earlier "I'm good with who I am." His pain no longer overshadows his joy. It no longer makes him doubt the value of his life, or whether it was all worth it. Somewhere in the months between defeating God and this moment, these lessons have matured to full growth, and Dean's found peace.

The rest of the episode puts this idea to the ultimate test – whether Sam & Dean are able to actually follow theory with action when it comes to each other. Again, Dean leads the way: as he's accepted the deaths of others in their lives, he accepts his own death. He reminds Sam that it was always going to be this way, suggesting that he was never going to willingly step back from hunting, and he knew (as we did, as we saw and heard again & again) that hunting was inevitably fatal, if you did it long enough. Dean's death throws into stark relief the immense danger of even a "routine" hunt, underscoring his immense courage in dedicating himself to that path. His death isn't flashy. It isn't a fairytale or action movie ending. It isn't there to entertain us, as if we were Chuck. It's just a death. It provokes the same feelings of helplessness & loss that Dean himself struggled with... and eventually learned to face.

Here, it's useful to reflect back on the themes of the show. Now, it's true that one of the points of the show was the importance of fighting on without being deterred by despair. But, balanced against that, we also saw the dangers of refusing to face pain & loss head-on (being unable to accept natural consequences). Dean makes a deal & goes to Hell because he can't cope with the idea of Sam being dead. In doing so, he sets off a chain of events that leads to the apocalypse. Sam forces a witch to cast black magic (and sacrifice a man's life) to save Dean from the Mark of Cain because he can't cope with the thought of Dean's eternal suffering. In doing so, he sets off a chain of events that leads to mass death at the hands of the Darkness. (We also see this lesson emerge in smaller plot points, such as when Dean is forced to be Death for a day.) And this is the point Dean is driving at in "Lebanon," as well: about learning to accept the bad alongside the good.

Thus, one of the big overall messages of the show comes out to something less like "always keep fighting" and more like the Serenity Prayer: it's about the courage to keep fighting even in the darkest times, when the odds are slim and hope is faint; but also the serenity (or perspective, or emotional maturity) to accept things you can't or shouldn't fight (when fighting would do more harm than good, or it's not your choice to make); and the wisdom to know the difference. Without Dean's death in 15x20 [or Sam's], we can't see that crucial character growth in terms of wisdom & perspective. If we fade to black while both boys are still alive and pretend to ourselves that no one ever has to die, we lose that nuance. Likewise if they died together (allowing both to avoid facing a life that includes the other's death).

So, far from being tone-deaf or antithetical to the message of the show, Dean's death in 15x20 carries one of the largest pieces of ongoing tension (Sam & Dean's struggle to process/accept the pain of loss, esp. loss of each other, even when failing to do so risks destroying the world) to a satisfying conclusion.

And this lesson isn't limited in applicability to stories where supernatural forces can intervene in matters of life & death. In the real world, it looks like accepting a relative's decision to move to hospice care when they're finished fighting a terminal diagnosis & they're ready to seek improved quality of life, even if it costs them the chance for a little more time. It looks like putting down a beloved pet to spare them great suffering you can't otherwise alleviate. It looks like all sorts of hard but necessary choices people make in end-of-life care.

In the end, S15:E20 "Carry On" elevates the overall message of Supernatural from something solid but not particularly noteworthy (as far as shows of this type go, "keep fighting" is a pretty basic message) to something outstanding, the kind of powerful & nuanced message you can only get from a show that keeps taking risks right up until the very end. Time/budgetary limitations forced the seams to show ever so slightly more than in past episodes (would I have loved a better wig, or more shots establishing that that barn was in the middle of nowhere? Sure), but this is, overall, an ambitious episode that sticks the landing. Grounded in reality and true to the seasons before it, "Carry On" is a bittersweet masterpiece... and a fitting end to 15 years.

[nycnomad]

We’ve had such fun NYC-y moments lately! 

1) Our friend invited us to Queens the other night for Thai food, but we first stopped at this new secret cocktail bar he’d heard about. We were the only people there, so I started talking to the owner purely to not make him awkwardly stand around with nothing to do. Well, seven hours later, we were still at the bar, the owner had been making up new cocktails for us and then topping them off over and over again, his husband came up and also became our best friend, a deaf guy came in and I asked him if he’d seen the deaf guy episode of “Dahmer” because I was drunk but then he also became our best friend, J left to go get takeout with the owner’s husband and can’t remember how he managed to order anything, and I remembered later that I threw up in the bathroom at some point but am not sure if it was before or after the takeout. Good times!

2) We early voted, and I look absolutely terrible in this photo, but look how pretty the city looks behind us. I really hate having to go to bed so early so I can wake up early when I’m a natural night owl, but our morning walks just get the day going so perfectly.

3) We went to Staten Island to visit our friend’s favorite Spanish restaurant. The picture above is of the tapas platter J and I got. It was amazing. That’s all.

4) J and I shot a wedding reception on Saturday deep in Brooklyn, and it was mostly Irish people who had actually come over from Ireland for the party. They got SO excited when the DJ played Chumbawamba. 😂 I wore my Chuck Taylors that day for the first time in a LONG time to see if I wanted to bring them on our next vacation, but they’re too small and ended up hurting me. So on our walk home from the subway to our place, we stopped at a shoe store and got me bigger ones. And I don’t know, it just felt really New York-y to me. Walking from the subway, passing by a store that you can just pop into because you’re walking, carrying all of my camera gear because we’re photographers. I don’t know if that makes sense. But I liked it.

We’re leaving for that trip tonight with my new shoes! It’s TWO AND A HALF WEEKS in Europe. What kind of person am I that I had the guts to ask for more than two weeks off from work?! We totally just did it on a whim because J’s parents were going to Poland. So yes, I’m taking an 8-hour flight to Poland with my in-laws tonight. Pray for me.

[katsukikitten]

Episode Six - The one where you and Denki try to play cupid

The bell overhead the glass door jingles, causing you to turn around from making fresh coffee.

"Welcome to…oh hi Kay! Bakugou bun delivery!" You shout, coming banging on the metal window between the bar and the kitchen.

"Hey." Kay smiles, setting down the first tray of homemade brioche buns. She runs the best bakery in town, according to Bakugou who dragged you and Denki out to find local merchants. Bakugou hated the chain shit that was half expired by the time it got here. Sure homemade and local cost more but it made for a damn good burger.

"I ain't deaf." Katsuki hisses from the kitchen, "What about Denki?"

"Denki isn't super anal about where the fuckin buns go." You say as you grab a tray of the buns to set them on the far side of the counter as Denki grabs another tray that Kay sets down.

"Yea!" Denki calls, winking at Kay as he does while she rolls her eyes.

"Ugh yea cause y'all let the buns get fuckin crushed when they get put away."

"Ignore him." You say to Kay rolling your eyes as you move another tray, "You're early today. Got time to wait for an iced coffee?"

"Nope, got a tight schedule today, sadly."

"Cause of the summer love festival?" Denki asks, grabbing the last tray as Bakugou comes from the kitchen with the metal trays from the last delivery. Refusing to let Kay carry them to her box truck.

"Yea I think so. That and Mama Mia's fired their baker so I had a last minute order of knots and tiramisus to make." She shrugs her shoulders, "Stupid move on their part though I hired him right away. He makes the best tiramisu in town."

"I can't believe they fired Sato!" You exclaim as Denki settles back in his seat in the corner rolling silver.

"Dumbasses." Bakugou mumbles as he returns to his domain in the kitchen.

"Thanks Bakugou, Oh before I forget. I brought you something to try." She comments, dusting her hands on her apron before stepping out to her truck, only to return with a giant cookie.

It was gorgeous, one of the best cookies you've ever seen. The edges were obviously crisp but not to be mistaken for burnt as the middle looked perfectly gooey.

"Oh fuck." Your mouth waters and your sweet tooth grows, "What is it?"

"Kitchen sink. It sells out super quick so I thought I'd save you one." She passes you the plastic wrap cookie as you squeal.

"I'mma marry you one day I SWEAR!" She laughs at your hundredth proposal, used to them by now. Kay, normally shy, became quick friends with you. Chatty and bubbly, never making Kay feel pressured to speak. And when she brought you a cupcake when you mentioned your birthday in passing you nearly cried and claimed her as a friend for life.

"One day."

"Speaking of marriage…." You give her this wide eyed look that says you're up to no good, "We've got a special going on tomorrow, we match up singles…"

"No." Kay says instantly to which you pout. You'd been bothering her about it since you and Denki thought it up. Hoping to match make the locals.

"Come onnnn. Come onnnn! I'll buy your end of day leftovers for a month if you do."

Oh boy was that tempting. Even though Kay donated what she could, there was only so much profit to be had when the rent was insane.

But the location of her bakery was perfect, that and she made the cookies for the ice cream shop next door's sandwiches.

"Fine. But I'm not staying more than ten minutes and if I hate who you match me up with I get to leave and you still have to pay!" She looks at her watch as she waves goodbye before bumping fast first into a tall dark haired man at the door.

Kay looks up at him to apologize to the patron and sees it's only hot the butcher down the block. He's heavily tattooed, from his wrists, torso and even up his throat to under his chin. Not to mention his piercings made him extra tasty.

"O-oh sorry." She smiles, a bit of blush to her cheeks that you catch on quickly, hitting Denki with a menu to make him look. In unison devilish smiles form on your faces as you watch the exchange. A faint blush creeps on the butcher's face too.

"Hey Kay. Been awhile."

"Y-yea, Touya, it has…well I've uh, gotta go, lots of bread to deliver." The two awkwardly shuffle in the doorway. Both stepping in each other's way before Touya turns to his side so Kay can slip through. He watches her safely shut the back of her truck before rushing into the driver's seat pulling off from the curb.

"Heeeyyy Touyaaaa." You purr, catching his attention and he's back to his normal self, flirty but not flustered.

Bored even.

"Hey brat." A smile twitches on his lips as you lean your elbows on the counter batting your lashes as if that would help.

"Ya gotta type?" Shameless questions as usual.

"Maybe." He winks and you wave him off.

"Not me silly. I mean K-" Before you can finish Bakugou interrupts as he comes out of the kitchen.

"Oi, mind ya business." He growls to you making your face instantly resting bitch face, "Ya pay the man yet?"

"Do you do the books, Bakugou? No? I didn't think so. Besides dumbass." You hiss his favorite insult as you go to make Touya his normal to go soda as he tries to hand you a five that you push away.

"If I hadn't paid him or Kay then they wouldn't have made deliveries."

"Tsk." Is his only reply as he walks towards the door with Touya in tow. The two rerun with large crates with freshly ground beef and a few pounds of steaks for the summer love festival special you and Denki begged to host since the lot of you were single. Denki and you share a look before you pipe up.

"Hey Touya, ya doing anything the night of the festival?"

"Hah? Tomorrow?" He asks, setting the crate down at the far end of the kitchen by the door for Bakugou. His red eyes give you a sharp look that you ignore, "Not really. Probably drinking at Hoots."

"If we give you free meals for a week, would you come to our special summer love match up dinner?"

"OI! Quit fuckin with our margin!" Bakugou hisses from the kitchen before he goes into the basement to the walk-in cooler. Touya thinks it over toying with the lighter in his pocket. It wasn't that he couldn't pick up any chick on the street himself but this would make things even easier. Women looking for love, he could do that. At least for the night besides Bakugou was one hell of a cook. Actually cook was the wrong word, the couple who ran the breakfast only diner on 5th were cooks. Bakugou was more like a five star chef stuck in a town with seagulls and dying folks for locals.

"Aight I'll bite. But if she's not my type, I get to leave no questions asked and I get my free meal ticket." Touya grabs his soda before he starts to make his way to the door.

"Deal." You say formulating your plan as you watch him walk away, "Denki, it's our time to fucking shine!"