#once upon a time season 5b

[ladystrallan]

Once Upon a Time season 5B thoughts

I’m rewatching OUAT and I wanted to share some of my opinions on each season!

- This is my favourite season!!! (And the only one I have rewatched before)

- Awww it’s Neal

- Slay red intro

- Of course cora is the mayor

- This implies that they have a municipal government (Cora) and a federal?/realm? government (Hades)

- No don’t kiss him it’s James!!!

- Why are they wearing the same outfit lol

- Cora basically just told Regina that she’s going to hell

- THE CHIPPED CUP

- Omg rumbelle is adorable

- THE LITTLE DOLL

- Ooh Pan is back

- “The ale of Sinead from the land of Dunbroch” “That’s a mouthful” lol

- Not the jester lol

- Ooh slay Henry sr switched the hearts

- Pocket sized dad

- YASSSSS ITS HADES

- Alexa, play My Man from Funny Girl

- Fun fact: it was Greg Germann’s idea for Hades to be getting a pedicure in this scene

- Such a slay lair

- Yassss call her out for what she did to Zelena

- I LOVE HIM SO MUCH

- Every single line delivery is 10/10

- Yasssss the flame hair

- Imo it doesn’t look as bad as people say it does like there is WAY worse cgi on the show

- Hercules is my favourite Disney movie and although I love this season, Hades is the only character they got right

- They sucked all the sass and agency out of Megara, making her just a damsel in distress

- And Hercules just doesn’t have the charisma or hunk look of the original

- He looks like the guy from the maze runner, just a typical YA movie looking guy

- They also aged them down which I’m not a fan of

- It’s just kinda disappointing

- Yassss he’s back <3

- CRUELLA

- She replaced all Regina’s horse stuff with dog stuff… I’m dead

- The bloody hook…

- He’s so camp, I love it

- “The music, the gin, the glamour… the gin” lol

- Woah how did it get to the house

- The only conflict in my relationship with Hades would be that I don’t like dogs

- That is an ugly dog too

- “I want to be Snow White again” yassss

- No more annoying Mary Margaret

- “I’m not angry, I’m disappointed” ok dad

- Or should I say daddy ;)

- Ooh him realising that she’s pregnant

- The children in the underworld make me really sad :( I would take care of them

- Why is Hades so hot in this scene???

- I kinda get the homoeroticism that some people see in the Hook/Hades torture scenes

- Greg is just so sexy all the time he can’t help it

- “They had a torrid affair, which resulted in a scandalous teenage pregnancy in prison” Rumple just airing out all of Emma’s dirty laundry

- She’s looking for DANIEL

- I’m starting to find Rumple’s ‘coward face’ really funny

- Like he just looks so distressed 24/7

- Wow just flirting with another guy while your husband is out trying to KILL SOMEONE TO SAVE YOUR DYING SON

- Maybe don’t yell so loud if you’re trying to be discreet

- Milah is kinda pretty ngl

- “Tell him hello from his papa” me crying

- “Get your hands off that squiggly little thing” LOL that has to be the funniest way to describe the dagger

- Wow my man sure can entertain

- ‘Here come into my lair, would you like something to drink?’

- “Mrs Dark One” I LOVE IT

- HIS VOICE IS SO SEXY OMG (Hades)

- Is that where rumple got the idea to take babies as payment???

- The way he yells “MILAH” before chucking her into the river lol

- He really put so much into that performance

- A horse???

- He looks so disgusted as he reads that book lol

- Rumple’s real catch phrase: “no no”

- “And then, butterfingers, you dropped it” lol

- “SHE’S PREGNANT”

- I laugh every time I see Hades poof that man in

- He looks like an npc

- One of my favourite lines: “Take your baby” the delivery is 11/10

- Omg it’s Liam

- My favourite picture of Hades is from this bar scene

- The glass sliding across lol

- “What would you like to try first, the champagne or me?” David looks so uncomfortable

- Does James have a mommy kink?

- The way Liam stumbles back after seeing Hades’ hair

- Why does one brother get a boy band name and the other gets an emo pirate name???

- YASSSSS HADES

- It’s over Liam, I have the high ground

- Hades: Nooooo he’s not going to hell? Disappointing

- “Zelena… our secret remains safe” he sounds so sexy when he says that

- Our Decay is my favourite episode of the whole show!

- I recreated Zelena’s cupcake for one of my birthdays (15th? I think?)

- Ah yes, the old dog and curtain trick

- Dude just let her see her baby

- He looks so handsome in that cravat

- They have so much chemistry omg I love zades

- Where has robin been? I swear I haven’t seen him in like two episodes (not a complaint)

- “This is what, celebrating abandonment day?” Lol

- Wow Zeus is a jerk for cursing his own brother

- The way he gestures to her lol

- Marital problems

- THE BIKE SCENE

- Why am I literally Zelena??? (I can’t ride a bike either)

- THIS IS SO CUTE

- Why not me…

- Belle I love you but STOP BEING MEAN TO ZELENA

- They need a lawyer to work out this custody agreement

- The way Hades looks at Zelena >>>

- THEY WERE ABOUT TO KISS!!!

- That’s so sad you can tell she really loves her daughter :(

- You’re taking a BABY to the FOREST??? ok

- HE IS SO HOT

- The romantic dinner!!!

- Screaming

- “When we were on that bicycle, and I had my arms around you” OMG

- NOOOOO

- I would not even hesitate to kiss that man

- Even if he was evil I don’t care he’s hot

- “I love you” AAAAAAAAAAAA

- She broke his heart :(

- THIS. SCENE.

- HE WANTED TO GIVE HER WHAT REGINA HAD THAT IS SO ROMANTIC

- “But it’s our decay” MY HEART

- He really said ‘take all the space you need but I still love you’

- “But if you change your mind and decide you want me” 1000/10 delivery hot sexy romantic

- I LOVE HIM SO MUCH!!!

- “Lord legume” sorry I’m allergic

- Not skirmishes with the ogres!

- Was that an ogre in the intro???

- We love a good twister

- Lol hades what’s with the joe goldberg vibes

- Ok that time the hair didn’t look great

- IT’S AN OGRE

- “It was an arranged marriage, I was doing you a favour” rumple…

- “You mean other than that baby in your belly?” WHY WAS THAT SO FUNNY???

- Not the Rumple mannequin lol

- Why do they have that?

- Lol bye Gaston

- How romantic he gives her a little flower

- Yay ruby is back

- The episode title is the ship name lol

- “I’m afraid sometimes I’m just too clever” slay

- Not her turning into a puddle…

- Ruby slippers is cute

- WLW TRUE LOVE’S KISS

- Belle sleeping curse :(

- She doesn’t think he will be her true loves kiss that is so sad :( (marital problems part 2)

- OMG I LOVE THIS SCENE

- I don’t want to set the world on fire by the ink spots!!!

- His car is so slay

- ZADES DATE OMG I LOVE IT

- Zelena, how does it feel to be living my dream

- The way he’s sitting !!!

- “Will you make chaos with me?” AAAAAAAAAA

- PLEASE PROPOSE TO ME LIKE THAT

- Hades/Greg is so hot omg

- You’re not my mom Regina

- “Because he’s a villain” GIRL LITERALLY SO WERE YOU

- Honestly Cora deserves that punishment

- It’s impressive that Zelena can use magic like that with zero training

- “Who could possibly love that man?” ME

- Slay Zelena she saw right through that

- After everything Cora did she deserves to go to hell and she should have

- I don’t think she should get to go to heaven after doing one good thing

- HADES SETTING UP THE DATE

- I love him so much he’s so romantic

- Awwww him dancing is so cute

- Noooo they kidnapped Zelena

- HE TORE UP THE CONTRACT FOR HER

- “When will you believe I’d do anything for you” Awwwwwwww

- ZADES KISS!!!

- His heart is beating again omg

- Me constantly rolling my eyes at Robin

- Rumple jumpscare

- Slay rumple take Robin’s heart

- That lady is kinda slay

- Omg it’s stealthy

- “That’s right vermin, scatter” slay queen

- He “dissolved” James lol

- “Kid eater” lol

- If I put my heart on there to weigh my love for Hades it would 100% work

- My love for Greg is true

- Awwww captainswan

- How do they give you a last name if you’re found on the side of the road?

- Oooh yikes tree cut down

- Slay Hades 10/10 plan btw

- He could’ve done a lot worse tbh

- Which only proves more that he was just doing what he thought was best for Zelena

- Why is this woman exactly like Emma???

- Noooooo them holding hands :(

- “Is she looking for me?” NOOOOO she’s dead :(

- THE ICONIC RED LEATHER JACKET

- YASSSS RUMPLE PAN BETRAYAL

- Transporting your wife home in a little box :)

- How was hook alive again??? I forget

- Not this episode… I’m dreading what I know is going to happen

- “I trust you with anything” awwwww

- SLAY HADES KILL ARTHUR

- I hated that man

- “Robin’s baby” That baby is also my girl Zelena’s!!!

- “Actually, he’s not a man. He’s a god!” YASSSS SLAY

- Yeah he’s going to hell

- How do you kill a god? You can’t they’re immortal? Bingo!

- Slay Olympian crystal

- Maybe I could think of some other uses for it ;)

- This is the messiest custody battle lol

- Rumple jumpscare (part 2)

- He’s not going to wake up his daughter??? Wtf

- Not the cane ptsd

- I can’t…

- Literally push Arthur into the river of souls

- Slay hiding place

- It’s giving antique furniture with secret compartments

- Hmmmm maybe the research would be faster if BELLE’S FATHER WOULD WAKE HER UP

- ‘Hello, this is Hades’ lol

- In my AU rumple and hades would be besties

- That spirit was a hero trying to drag Arthur into the river

- “I really hate him” you are speaking at full volume

- Babe, you walked right past them…

- YASSSSS HADES

- “No Underworld, no moving on” do not pass go, do not collect $200

- Slay

- I would say rip but he just got erased from existence

- Also I hate Robin

- “I did it for you” this is so sad

- Regina just bodychecked him nooooo

- Jail

- “I defended you when no one else did” girl when???

- “Hades won’t give up a single thing for you” he got rid of his leverage against rumple for her!!!

- Regina stop lying

- NOOOOO

- Screaming crying

- This is TRAGIC

- The way he says her name as he’s dying :(

- Wtf Regina’s smiling a little bit

- RIP to the love of my life (and death)

- I will be metaphorically wearing black for the rest of the season

- I’m in mourning

- Ugh Zeus

- He looks like just a dude

- Her putting the flask on the grave lol

- The roses on the arrows… tacky

- It would be so funny if Zelena named her daughter hades or something similar

- #depression

- They literally treated Zelena so horribly after this

- Ooh henry x violet

- “I need more power” okay what else is new rumple

- Ooh yikes

- “I can still feel the aura” lol

- I mean maybe it’s warranted Regina

- Literally that’s so dumb don’t destroy magic

- Ooh crystal in TLWM

- Zelena is slaying so hard right now

- We love a redeemed queen

- Ooh is this the land of untold stories?

- Yikes just choking him

- I love gold’s car omg

- “Do you happen to have any duct tape?” Lol slay

- “Strange name” lol

- Wtf I hate this guy

- With his stupid magic taser

- Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde!!!

- I can’t remember if I liked this plot line

- Where SHE’S taken him???

- Imagine it’s a breakup letter lol

- Maybe Robin shouldn’t have been a little bitch

- #vandalism

- You’re seriously going to attempt to fight the dark one?

- I love the crossover between science and magic it’s cool

- That is so scary yikes

- How symbolic

- Okay I kinda like mr hyde kinda slay

- The room service guy is probably like wtf is this???

- “Your best student” sorry girl that was Zelena

- “This isn’t on me” YES IT IS HENRY OMG

- The dragon???

- I thought he got killed by a taser

- That’s so embarrassing omg

- People probably think he’s a crazy person

- That one extra’s face lol

- Rumple went through the portal!!!

- How convenient that her dad is from TLWM

- Ooh kiss

- Awwwww captainswan

- The evil queen just dusting around

- Ok

How I feel about the characters this season

Love: HADES, Zelena

Like: Belle, Rumple, Emma, Hook, Ruby, Mulan, Jekyll/Hyde

Neutral: Hercules, Megara, Henry, David, Snow, Dorothy, Cruella

Dislike: James, Gaston

Hate: Robin, Regina, Cora, Arthur, Pan, that stupid orderly

Season rating: 10/10

I love this season so much! Zades is my favourite ship in the whole show, and I love Hades with all of my heart. I didn’t really like the destroy magic plot line but it was just the last two episodes. Hades and Zelena are so slay and I love them!

[victoriously-regal]

Snow: Emma, what is the ONE thing I asked you NOT to do tonight? Emma: Raise the dead. Snow: And what did you do? Emma (head hanging in shame): Raise the dead.

[happy-emmdings]

Captain Swan Vibes 2/2⚓️🦢

Seasons 5&6

[elizabethbennets]

Colin’s acting as Dark! Hook tho—some of the best acting on the show, hands down: the way he chooses to play Hook as an addict; because the darkness was always his drug; it’s always been his weakness, and he can’t just walk away from it, not when it’s pulling at his teeth and gnawing at his ribs. God, he’s so good, because every inflection—every terse movement of his mouth, his hands, his eyes—conveys someone in utter torment. Because he wants to fight it, but he’s wrenching with himself.

5A is so fucking painful to watch. It’s pure pain and torment for Captain Swan and CS shipper and even though it all works out in the end, I can’t get through this storyline without sobbing; without feeling Emma’s pain as she tries so hard to cling to their future, making all the desperate choices. They fought for their love, and won, but good God—what a battle.

[leojurand]

so i'm watching the walking dead (kinda for the first time, i watched the first 3, 3 and a half seasons back in the day, now i'm on s10) and it's taking over my life and the issue with that is that i actively look for opinions, character rankings, analysis etc.

and it's an issue because i've discovered that the fandom really doesn't like maggie. and the reasons why make no sense to me like, at all, and they make me feel crazy

that means ofc that i need to rant about it

first: s1-s6 maggie. i think most people say they like maggie just fine in these seasons, or they just don't care about her that much. everyone complains about her forgetting about beth in 4b-5a but i mean. the general consensus is that that's shitty writing and not maggie being an awful sister (tho i have seen that opinion as well lol).

but the most common complaint i've seen about her character in this era is: maggie and glenn's characters are all about their romance (specifically from s2 to s4 i think). and i agree! i've always liked maggie but this is why i wasn't super invested in her character early on. the problem is when people say "maggie drags glenn down". but not the other way around? it's like they only see her as glenn's love interest, while glenn is a character on his own and he can't have more interesting storylines because he's stuck in this romance (a romance most fans love btw that's not the problem). i guess this is because glenn was introduced first and existed in the story before maggie but like. that was like 6 eps and it's not like he was getting a crazy character arc.

so yeah, it does feel like misogyny when someone blames maggie for this when it's a problem for both characters.

now, post s6 is where most of the maggie hate comes from, and they have plenty of reasons to dislike her, or her arc (and i disagree with most of them):

- "maggie isn't/doesn't deserve to be a leader, maggie's leader arc feels forced": okay this one is genuinely baffling to me because i love this arc. it starts in s7 (arguably 5b, i'd say maggie becoming deanna's counselor is the actual beginning), and that's important because s7-8 are generally agreed upon to be not well-written. in fact, most of my faves from prior seasons get the short stick during this era imo: rick, carol, daryl. that's why maggie was such a highlight to me; i was so invested in her rise to leadership in hilltop. it made complete sense to me because she started getting a more "political" role in 5b, and she was the one who made the deal with gregory in s6, and saw his incompetence first hand. it was not only compelling, but very natural for her character. it also makes sense with the trajectory the rest of the group was taking: once they get to alexandria, several of them start to get placed, or put themselves in, positions of power. it happens with rick, glenn, and abraham. but maggie is the one that feels forced and undeserving... why?

- "maggie is nothing but a widow after 7x01/maggie's character becomes all about negan": obviously i don't see the logic in this statement because she becomes the leader of a community in this era? she cares about people, she makes hilltop a better place, she calls out gregory's bullshit and gives him so many opportunities he doesn't even deserve. she does what needs to be done, but still listens to the people she loves. not once, in all of s7, does maggie mention negan or her need to take revenge. she bonds with sasha over their shared grief (something they'd already done in 5b, the arc that keeps on giving, but their dynamic started in 4b!), and sasha and enid take care of her; she befriends jesus, and he becomes instantly loyal to her because he sees all her qualities; he knows what an incompetent leader is like, and knows that maggie is perfect for the position. maggie never stops mourning, but all of these relationships aren't about glenn or negan. but no one cares about them enough to remember or appreciate them i guess ://

- "maggie betrayed rick": this is actually so stupid and definitely one of those instances when people hate on character for disagreeing with/going against their favourite character. rick was wrong when he spared negan. he was wrong for deciding that on his own, for not consulting anyone, for disregarding the feelings of maggie and daryl and everyone else negan had hurt. and rick did for selfish reasons! he wanted to honour carl, and so he betrayed his friends and he acted like that was the only choice. like what he wanted was what mattered. maggie (and daryl) had every right to go behind his back and try to kill negan. rick didn't respect her wishes, didn't keep his word after he said he wouldn't stop until negan was dead, so why should she obey him? it's crazy that there are people who feel that way. if carl had died during the line up, maggie would never have stopped him from taking revenge, even if for some reason glenn believed that to be right. it was an awful thing to do to her, right when she thought she could finally end it and find some peace of mind. team maggie and daryl for life dpmo!!!

related to that, maggie was also right about not wanting to follow the rules rick and michonne were planning to establish, and doing what she felt was best for her people. she was right when she didn't want to give food to the saviors, she was right when she suspected them, she was right when she let the oceanside women execute arat. no one has ever been more right in the history of television.

and this is kinda related too, but i've seen michonne fans boast about michonne always being calm and collected and always making the right decisions (which is not true, thankfully michonne is more complex than that). i bring it up because unfortunately i often see twd fans use their love for a female character to insult the other women in the show. which is really tragic, but in this case i also can't see why that's something to boast about. i like that maggie is angry and resentful, i like that she makes mistakes and irrational choices because of that anger and grief. i like that she doesn't let go of all those messy feelings in order to be calm and therefore more palatable. yes, fans call her whiny and say she should just move on, get over it (fucked up if you see what she went through, but whatever). but i don't want that. female characters are always expected to get over things quickly, to deal with their problems quietly, because if they don't they're whiny and annoying and insufferable. if they make bad decisions they're useless, they're getting people killed. male characters are allowed to have those ugly feelings, to snap, to be cruel and violent because they're hurting. that makes them more compelling, more layered. but not female characters, not maggie. sure, fans also blame daryl for his impulsive behaviour, but that doesn't stop him from being the most popular character. maggie has many moments when she's super cool (when she makes the deal with hilltop, when she hangs gregory) but those are never hyped like every single small moment when a man is a badass. or when they do the bare minimum tbh, people don't need much to stan a male character.

tl;dr: i absolutely adore maggie, and the fact that she has the best arc during the worst part of the show made me so invested in her story. all the hate she gets, and the reasons people give to justify hating her, are completely nonsensical to me. "we didn't watch the same show" levels of nonsense. i sincerely hope she's as unbearable as everyone says she is when she comes back. i hope she's nasty and i will love her even more for it!

[cathloves]

Mine is season 4b

[inktober-of-a-fan-girl]

Day 20: Colin O' Donoghue

This was from 2011 to 2018…it was alright, as it twisted the original story to be different.

More notes in Keep Reading.

Read this…

Once Upon a Time is an ABC television series that involves characters from familiar works of fiction, including Peter Pan. Colin O'Donoghue was a series regular in the role of Hook, who originated as Killian Jones. Freya Tingley first played Wendy in the 21st episode of the second season and continued playing the role in a few episodes toward the end of Season 3A. Robbie Kay played the main villain role during Season 3A as Peter Pan, portrayed in the series as the father of Rumpelstiltskin, and reprised his role in a couple episodes during Season 5B and the second-to-last episode of the overall show. Rose McIver played Tinker Bell during the majority of Season 3A, then one episode during Season 3B, and one during Season 6. Characters and locations from the Peter Pan story are featured in Once Upon a Time (2011–present). It is revealed that Pan (Robbie Kay) is the father of Rumpelstiltskin (Robert Carlyle) who became young again after giving up a then-young Rumpelstiltskin.

Also a link to that one weird musical episode…

This is mentioned in my @music-meme-of-365-days.

And also a link to the first season on Youtube…

Colin O' Donoghue plays a dashing version of Hook…

The only thing that is correct is the right-handed Hook and his eye color of blue. But his hair is short and in truth, Captain Hook of the book would never wear such an outfit. He is portrayed as a naval officer in the beginning but turns into a pirate after his brother's death.

[dinneratgrannys]

Gifset per Episode: 5.15, The Brothers Jones The day you push your sailors too far is the day the mutiny begins.

[swanprincessswift]

Captain Swan : Season 5 & kisses - Part 02

[once-upon-a-ouat]

Am I the only one who thinks they should've included Persephone in 5B? 'Include' isn't even the right word. They could've just mentioned her and it could have made everything better. Like this:

The original myth about Persephone and Hades still took place (but maybe was a bit tweaked) and they fell in love. But when Zeus stopped Hades' heart, he also took away Persephone which would be possible since no one seems to be trapped into the Underworld after eating food from there. That was the bigger reason why Hades hated Zeus.

When Orpheus managed to bring back Euridice, Hades was so mad because the two lovers were reunited even when it shouldn't have been possible while his True Love was forever lost to him. He cut down the ambrosia tree to make sure there would be no more happy reunions to spite him.

His meeting with Zelena though showed him that there was still hope for the future. And even when she rejected him, he still didn't give up on that love. He'd waited for thousands of years; he could wait a few more.

Eventually they're reunited as the events of 5B take place. His heart starts beating when they kiss and he can finally be happy again with the woman he loves but he still tricks Emma and Killian with the ambrosia. He still wants to make Storybrooke his kingdom to show his brother that he will have it all even despite Zeus' best efforts to stop him. And so Zelena is still forced to kill him.

Those are some super minor changes that I think could've made the story better and Hades more relatable and sympathetic. I know Persephone wasn't in the Disney movie but the show is literally about twisting the Disney movies and putting a more original, fresh spin to them, so I really think they could've mentioned her as a part of his backstory.

[ladystrallan]

Just started 5b and I was so happy to see him you have no idea

I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM I LOVE HIM

[senseandaccountability]

Hey, did you get a chance to watch season 6 of Lucifer? What did you think of the finale?

This is going to be salty (sorry) so I put it under a cut for people who prefer joyous things in the feed.

I didn’t like the final season.

To be brief: It felt like a story where the writers knew how they wanted it to end, and therefore the plot ruled over the characters. It wasn't a main plot I enjoyed at all, and it was told in a way that made it difficult for me to appreciate even the small bits I liked. (Ella reveal. Ghost Dan.) I thought it suffered from a jarring tonal shift and when it comes to several overarching themes, I felt it negated/trivialized previous seasons. In many ways it also managed to be both cheesy and cruel, often at the same time. I had the impression it was a compilation of (unfortunately rather boring) fandom wishes and tropes more than authentic storytelling.

To be anything but brief:

I dislike the season in part because it undid a lot of great things about Lucifer as a character.

By the end of 5B Lucifer had come full circle. I think that season finale is great. The Lucifer vs Michael fight was so well done thematically - he fought himself, and unlike the first fight in 5A when he wants to hurt his twin he had now reached a state of personal growth, of compassion. Not even when Michael kills Chloe does he deserve death because everyone deserves a second chance. And then the funny and pitch perfect “Oh, my me”. Ambiguous enough about the details to fuel the fandom, clear enough about the themes and the lore to offer closure. (No, Deckerstar didn’t have a date or much of a snog but I can fill in the blanks there though I am aware that many fans were disappointed by the lack of on-screen love.)

Excellent way to end the show.

Except they didn’t. S6, I feel, tried to tell the same story all over again, only not as well or even coherent.

Over the seasons it’s been pretty clear that while Lucifer can be caring, he mostly cares about the handful of people in his life. S6 even touches upon this, has him trying to care for random people in their hell loops. But S5 already did this, but better, with Michael. The family dinner with God was excellent, it showed broken people all around and had Lucifer, the self-centered drama queen of the family realizing that he’s not the only one that’s been hurt. It showed the best and worst of them all. Sparing Michael, considering Michael worthy of redemption, was peak growth for Lucifer as a character because in that moment he also considers himself worthy of the same thing. That’s when he truly forgives himself. I thought. And then season 6 shows Michael as a prisoner in Hell, just once, never to be mentioned again. Is that a second chance? Is that redemption? Is that really the symbolism they were going for or just a spiteful and stupid little addition because LOL SOME PEOPLE DESERVE HELL. (Do they? Says who? The show doesn’t answer that because the show that focuses on the neutral character the Devil and the totally untarnished place Hell doesn’t much care about such divisive matters, but more about that soon.) I dislike the season, in parts because I wasn't satisfied with the moral/quasi-theological backdrop. The system is wrong, Lucifer concluded by the end of 5B. Season 6 has him return to the system, as an Afterlife Coach of the Damned. Is that really the best they could do?

I mourn all the cool possibilities of what Lucifer, the advocate for free will and defender of desire, could have done with hell as a concept. Blown it apart, closed it, tossed the keys to someone else and rode off in the sunset. At the very least he could have altered it so that it’s no longer solitary confinement but a collective of doomed souls trying together to achieve redemption but hey, never mind me, I’m a bleeding-heart socialist and I don’t believe in revenge and I don’t believe in God but if I did, God would forgive. Otherwise, what the hell is the point?

I parsed through the season with my husband, a real-life minister who doesn't think anyone deserves hell and who gets to suffer my long-ass questions about the theological themes of popular culture a little bit too often. Because we both felt slightly insulted after watching. "Is this bullshit what they offer me?" my husband asked me as the timey wimey time travel plot unfolded. But timey wimey bullshit aside, we concluded that the real reason we were both so annoyed and frustrated with the season is because it highlighted how flat the background lore really is. I mean, I guess they wanted to be yay, neutral and non-divisive themes galore! It’s good to be good, folks! If you’re not, well, I guess you might have your spine broken by the Devil or sent to a never-ending hell loop but let’s not talk about religion! The main issue, for me, with the whole system of heaven and hell and earth on the show is that for every equation, there’s a part missing. The show has borrowed the character from the comics verse but left the entire lore and its internal logic behind. It borrows a bit of moral philosophy, but cuts away the troublesome bits otherwise Lucifer can’t both be on a redemptive path and happily slaughter people in fits of vengeance; it uses Heaven and Hell and vaguely also the concept of sin but never answers any questions about it, apart from the central message of course: it’s up to you. In fact, the show discourages questions about the lore because it has no answers. It doesn’t care. The ending of the show brushes off the much needed systematic changes of heaven and hell like it’s just another joke. (Want to know a show that has compassionate writing about morality while managing to be very funny? The Good Place. And you know what, morality should be serious. I’m a softie and again, a bleeding-heart, but it’s important to be a good person and it’s important to get a chance for redemption. It matters. It’s not just a minor detail.)

Which brings me to the damn therapy theme. I know a lot of people like it and I have also liked it a lot in previous seasons. I have. It’s been quirky. (Also highly unprofessional, but hey.) But as the key to your afterlife/redemption/second chance it’s just not good enough.

It is so very, very individualistic that it makes my skin crawl. It’s the ultimate American solution to systemic injustices and suffering - hey, it’s up to you, man. You decide if you deserve hell. You decide if you deserve Heaven. You make the difference! You can do it! Live the afterlife dream, achieve all your goals, get a hell loop that no longer loops but… stays in one static place where at least you’re moderately happy. Navel-gazing into your soul is certainly one way to get some insights into your mistakes. But it’s not redemption. Redemption is an active choice to be a better person. You don’t have to earn redemption or deserve it. And redemption isn’t the same as forgiveness either. Redemption is the opposite to pointless, everlasting punishment. It’s hopeful and it’s ugly and it’s full of purpose and the chance to be better and add something good to the world. Even Lucifer doesn’t get to do that on the show. He deals only with the already doomed. The here and now on Earth fades into the distance as Deckerstar, too, gets their happily ever after in Hell. You’ll get pie in the sky when you die. Or you get to shag on a throne in Hell. Either way, life on Earth doesn’t matter. (Here the show lean into some really dodgy Christian themes, I’d argue, but hey, it’s not about religion! It’s just a fun romp about a reformed bad boy!)

“Hell is just revenge porn for fundamentalists and other people who believe in eye for an eye. I just want there to be a level of collective forgiveness and hope, you know?” I told my husband whilst chugging down beer. As you do when you watch crap that makes no sense. “A level of hey, I’ve got this, I forgive you, you can do better. Go and do better. And then the actual opportunity to do so, even if it's just reliving your life as a ghost again and again until you figure out what went wrong.” “Honey,” my husband said. “I hate to tell you this since you’re an atheist but that level you’re talking about? That’s Jesus.” Well, screw that.

I really don’t want to need Jesus to make sense of a story. I just want decent bloody storytelling.

[msgenevieve447]

Hi, I’m @msgenevieve447​!  You may remember me from such fandoms as Once Upon a Time, Prison Break and La Femme Nikita.  I have been AWOL for a very long time, and because 2020 was going to be my writing year, I continue to be AWOL, because 2020 is a scourge sent straight from Satan’s bottom.

HOWEVER.

Today, I wrote 200 words of Walking in a Straight Line, and I’m stupidly pleased with myself because damn, it’s been a long time. Anyway, the timeline in that little fic is coming up on Christmas (albeit Christmas a gazillion years ago when I started writing it) so I decided I’d best read any old Christmas fics of mine to make sure I don’t plagiarize myself. LOL. 

So I assembled them for my own convenience, and while I have no new Christmas fics to offer, but I need some fandom interaction to spark my writing soul I’m so sorry to be so shameless perhaps there are some new CS readers who might enjoy a festive story or two, so here they are, and be warned, most of these are NSFW. *pretends to be shocked*

Do You See What I See? -  Summary: The screeching cries of small creatures rise around him, seeming to almost rent his eardrums in two, and Killian decides that this place is indeed Hell on Earth. And he should know.  He’s been to Hell, after all.   (Set in the not-too-distant future and contains very vague spoilers for 5B.)

A Merry Little Christmas - Summary:  It’s nine o’clock on a Sunday morning, he’s been gone for less than an hour, and he’s quite sure that the kitchen (and his wife) hadn’t been in this state when he’d left to go for his run.  Note: Set in the Freaky Friday universe, this takes place a few months after our lovebirds have tied the knot.

Smoke and Mirrors and Hot Buttered Rum -  Summary:  When the tap on his shoulder comes, he’s tempted to ignore it.  Commuters have so little sense of personal space, he’s found, and he’s certain the person sitting behind him has just clipped him with the corner of their bag. Then again, he thinks as he turns to see the blonde gazing at him hopefully, maybe not.

‘Tis the Season -  Summary:  He does so hate to be predictable, but why is the rum gone?

In Case of Emergency -  Summary: All traditions have to start somewhere, right?   Note: scribblecat27 drew something gorgeous HERE, then made puppy dog eyes at me. This is the result. 

Muddle Through Somehow - Summary:  She always knew Henry would leave home one day. She just didn’t think he’d leave home for another realm, okay? (Starring Emma Swan and Killian Jones, featuring cameos by Henry, Snow and Charming, mention of Regina and others.)  Notes:  This is probably the schmoopiest Christmas fic I’ve ever written.  Completely and utterly self-indulgent, TBH.  It starts off during 702 but then continues with the Storybrooke timeline and our Captain Swan, completely ignoring the hodge-podge of a timeline created in Season 7, because that makes no sense whatsoever as far as I’m concerned.  Your mileage may vary, of course. LOL.

And one honorary Christmas fic, because in my head, this one is set in December/January, LOL. 

The Weather Outside - Summary:  She’s stuck in an empty bar with both him and an ingrained work ethic that won’t let her close early until she knows for sure she’s not throwing away a night’s takings. Crap.  Prompt: Bartender AU where Emma and Killian are working during a blizzard, so no customers come in… They find creative ways to pass the time.

[worryinglyinnocent]

Once Upon A Different Time - The Notes for 4B through 7

Here we go! These notes are nowhere near as detailed as the 4A notes and are very rumbelle-centric, but hopefully they’ll give you a good idea of what’s going on nonetheless. 

Under a cut because this got super super long. 

Season 4B - Queens of Darkness and the Author

General notes:

Maleficent is a major character this season, but only in flashback. Dead is dead, she’s not coming back.

In the past. Aurora’s parents (Stefan and Leah) made a deal with Rumpelstiltskin, the price being their first-born child. Stefan has a trick up his sleeve, as prior to his arranged marriage to Leah he had been in a relationship with Maleficent that resulted in a pregnancy. He plans to take his and Maleficent’s child and give it to Rumpel as his first-born. 

Stefan attempts to take Maleficent’s child (Lily), and goes up against Cruella and Ursula. In the scuffle, Lily, Cruella and Ursula all end up in the Land Without Magic, scattered. Lily is taken into care (where she will later meet Emma, call back to season 4A), Cruella and Ursula separately vow to find each other and Lily and return to the Enchanted Forest. 

Meanwhile, Maleficent swears revenge on Stefan and Leah and goes to Rumpel for a sleeping curse. He tells her that it’s best administered straight into the blood, and on seeing his spinning wheel in the corner, Maleficent gets an idea. 

In the present. Cruella and Ursula have found each other in New York, and have recognised Aurora there (call back to season 3B when Aurora and Mulan were hiding in Neal’s old apartment in New York). They track down the apartment and break in, surprised to find not Aurora (who is back in Storybrooke at this point) but Rumpel (he and Neal are staying in the apartment whilst trying to find a way to reverse Rumpel’s darkening heart). The three of them have a discussion about the idea of the Author controlling everyone’s fates, and they make a plan to try and find the Author. 

Neal and Rumpel return to Storybrooke, and Rumpel sneaks Cruella and Ursula into town. (Belle and Neal are aware of this going on and whilst not entirely happy about it, are also intrigued by the idea of the Author.) 

Cruella and Ursula also want revenge against Aurora for Lily. Aurora points out that since Stefan and Leah are both now dead, hurting Aurora will not cause them any pain and their vengeance mission is pointless. 

Regina infiltrates the QOD Squad, also intrigued by the idea of the Author; but her cover is blown when Cruella and Ursula threaten Roland and she jumps in to save him. 

Cruella and Ursula want to rewrite the story so that they stay together and stay with Lily. Regina wants to rewrite the story so that she never killed Marian and she and Robin can be together. Rumpel wants to write out the darkness. 

Being back in Storybrooke, Rumpel’s darkening heart takes a turn for the worse and he ends up hospitalised, much like canon 4B but without Zelena (who is definitely 100% dead). 

The Author creates a new story which creates a brand new Enchanted Forest (foreshadowing for Season 7). Everyone except Henry is transported there, as Henry was never a character in the first storybook. Henry and the Author fight it out over the quill, with Henry gaining the upper hand and becoming the new Author. He writes himself into the story so that he can go and rescue everyone. 

In the new story. 

Cruella and Ursula are living happily with Lily. 

Emma is a mad witch living in the forest; Neal is the anti-magic witchfinder determined to destroy her. 

Regina is a bandit princess a la Snow, Robin is the Sheriff of Nottingham type figure tasked with bringing her down.

Snow as the evil queen and Charming as her henchman.

Belle is the Dark One, Rumpel is the light knight destined to kill her. 

Henry convinces them to fight back against their assigned roles, ultimately allowing them to come back to Storybrooke. The New Enchanted Forest is not destroyed, and Henry decides to just let it develop as a new world naturally. After they are all back in Storybrooke, he destroys the quill, vowing that everyone has the right to choose their own fate and the Author is no more. 

Back in the present, everyone remembers Rumpel is in the hospital and they rush there to find him flatlining. Belle gives him TLK, which pulls him back from the brink but also untethers the darkness from him. The Dark One heads towards Neal as the next in the bloodline, but Emma jumps in to save him. 

Emma vanishes, and Belle sees the name on the dagger change. End season. 

Season 5A - Camelot and Dark Swan

Not gonna lie, I have NOTHING for the Camelot arc, other than Merlin arriving and being badass and not dying, and some Dark One history. 

Dark Emma is increasingly unstable and goes to Rumpel for help with controlling the darkness. Eventually she does something catastrophic but unintentional that sends Neal to the underworld (he was saving Henry) and triggers the march of the dark ones. Rumpel takes back the darkness from Emma with Belle’s blessing - he’s taking it back to save Emma and make sure no-one else experiences the pain of being the Dark One, not because he wants the power. (This is the moment when Rumpel becomes the Guardian although this is not revealed till season 7.) 

Together, Merlin and Rumpel stop the march of the dark ones (combined power of the Dark One and the Light One). 

The usual suspects decide to go on a road trip to the Underworld to find Neal. 

Season 5B - Underbrooke

Hades is not a villain. Persephone’s a bit of a trickster (she’s a bit bored and wants to liven things up a bit), but Hades is a neutral overseer sworn not to interfere. The drama comes from the characters trying to get to grips with things, there’s no real villain in this half-season. 

Although I do want to have an episode entitled ‘Ghosts of Villains Past’ guest-starring Cora, Pan, Zelena and Maleficent (all the villains who died in Storybrooke so far - potentially also Cruella since I don’t know what happens to her and Ursula at the end of 4B...).

Hades gives them a compass to help them navigate the underworld and find Neal. It will point to Rumpel’s son, he says. It immediately points to Belle. “It’s not wrong, it just takes the path of least resistance.” This is how we find out that Belle is pregnant with Gideon. 

Neal is found and everyone is returned to Storybrooke safe and well having done a lot of character introspection. 

During this season, Neal and Emma and Robin and Regina get their act together and couple up properly, and there are various relationship difficulties to be worked through in...

Season 6 - Gideon and Black Fairy

In the Past. The Blue Fairy, seeking to become the ultimate Good Being, uses a spell to separate her light and dark halves. The dark half, the Black Fairy, is banished to a realm of Darkness, but Blue wants to destroy her completely. Likewise, Black wants to destroy her light half. Both realise that the key to destroying the other is the sacrifice of a child born of both light and dark. This child is Gideon. (This also leads to some hilarity as the Blue Fairy is very concerned to know when Gideon was conceived - if he was conceived during the brief period when Rumpel wasn’t the Dark One back in 5A, then he’ll be of no use to her.)

In the Present. Black Fairy escapes the Dark Realm, bringing Hyde with her. Hyde begins to recreate the serum that split him off from Jekyll. 

Regina uses Jekyll’s serum to split off her dark half, the Evil Queen.

Belle is visited by a strange figure in her dreams who warns her about the darkness. Belle thinks that the darkness he refers to is Rumpel’s darkness, but she actually, you know, talks to him about it. Rumpel and Belle dreamwalk to meet the strange figure, who reveals himself to be Gideon and that this is the only way he can speak to them freely. 

Blue accelerates Belle’s pregnancy in the hope that Belle will give birth at the convent and she can steal Gid for her own purposes, but it backfires - she ends up giving birth in the pawnshop with only Rumpel and Henry present. 

Black steals Gideon and takes him to the Dark realm to prime him as her weapon of mass destruction. Shortly after Gid’s birth and kidnap, he returns as an adult and starts wreaking havoc.

Belle and Rumpel travel to the Dark realm to save baby Gid before he can grow into evil adult Gid. Regina and the Evil Queen go with them. Whilst in the Dark Realm, Regina realises she can’t separate herself from her bad deeds, she can only try to atone for them, and she rejoins with the Evil Queen. In the Dark Realm, Rumpel and Belle are confronted by their own Dark Halves (Dark One and Lacey), but emerge triumphant and save baby Gid. 

Blue and Black are forced to merge back together and are defeated. The series ends with a bunch of happy endings - Belle and Rumpel are happy with little Gid, Robin and Regina are together and Regina is pregnant (with the baby who will go on to become Margot in season 7), and Neal and Emma are happy together. 

We end with a flashforward to 20 years later with Lucy arriving on Henry’s doorstep. 

Season 7 - soft reboot

This season focuses primarily on the next generation alongside adult Henry making up the main cast. Regina and Rumpel are the only recurring characters from the previous seasons, but most of the others will guest at some point. 

An eighteen year old Henry decides to travel to the New Enchanted Forest that was created by the Author in season 4B, to see how the new characters are getting on. He meets and falls in love with Rapunzel (still Jacinda, she’s just not Cinderella in this setting), and the Rapunzel-Gothel story takes centre stage. Tiana and Tilly are also here because they’re awesome. Rounding out the rest of the main cast are the now adult Gideon, Roland, and Margot. 

Gothel casts the curse to bring everyone to Hyperion Heights from the New Enchanted Forest. Everyone in other realms is unaffected. 

Robin, Regina, Rumpel and Belle are all in the NEF at the time of the curse being cast - they were called in by Henry, Gideon and Margot to help with the Gothel problem. 

The curse splits up the couples - Regina and Rumpel are in HH, but Robin and Belle are elsewhere in the Land Without Magic, so we don’t see them as regularly. Lucy has to convince everyone to go on a road trip to find them.

(There is NO. TIME. TRAVEL.)

During this season the idea of the Guardian is mooted - Rumpel is already the guardian after the events of 5A, he just doesn’t realise until the powers are at rest and he’s mortal again. Belle and Rumpel have been travelling the realms to find the Guardian. At some point during their travels, they find Tilly.

Tilly is Hook’s daughter in the Land of Untold Stories (call back to season 4A). She is in the care of an unscrupulous guardian after Hook has been presumed drowned. He’s actually gone through a portal to NEF. Tilly is the Little Match Girl. Rumpel and Belle rescue and adopt her and she grows up alongside Gideon. 

(Gideon’s traumatic pregnancy and birth mean Belle and Rumpel are unable to have any more biological children.)

At the end, Tilly meets up with Hook and has a Railway Children ‘MY DADDY’ moment after the curse is broken. She still sees Belle and Rumpel as her parents, but she’s glad to have her birth dad back in her life as well. 

Gideon is Weaver’s detective partner which leads to much hilarity when Lucy tries to convince them that they’re father and son.

The curse is broken, everyone is reunited, and everyone gets a happy ending.  

Gideon and Roland end up in a relationship together, as do Tilly and Margot, and Tiana and Hook look like they’re headed that way too. (Got to pair the spares!)

And... that’s all folks! That’s all I got. Thanks for sticking with me to the end of this rollercoaster!

[scviorswan]

“How many times have I told you to not go there?” - from Gold [or even Rumple~.]

RP STARTERS: CONCERN.

                                    there had to be something in gold’s shop that would bring him back . it was her fault that he had been a dark one , her fault that he was now gone . she had snuck in , in the back room searching through all the old knick knacks and magical objects . but she had found nothing .                    “ don’t test me , gold , ” emma couldn’t help but hiss out as she spun her head around to face the one who had all his power again , sure she had her magic , but not the extent she held when she was a dark one for six weeks . “ i need to bring him back , now are you going to help me or be an ass like usual ? ”

[buddha-in-disguise]

I have so much to unpack from last night's Supergirl episode. Since it ends at 3am UK time, I often tweet a little before I finally fall asleep. But it is now midday, so here goes on further thoughts on it all. I know this is going to be pretty rambling but I hope it makes sense.

First. Up until this half of the season, not only did Supergirl consistently trend in the UK, so did other words associated with it, most notably Kara and Lena.

Since 5B began, the trending has failed to materialise in the UK. The hiatus of two those blocks almost immediately on top of each other hasn't helped, but it is still a salient point.

Now for the rest. I'm not even sure where to start, but I will try my best.

The opening scenes in the bar.

No Nia. No Kelly. Where were they? Nothing was even mentioned. It wouldn't have taken much to have Alex say if Kelly was working, or running late. Anything. Hell, they had Kelly/Dansen and Nia meet up in a bar scenario in 5A. Why suddenly are they not there? They wouldn't necessarily need dialogue (I mean, Kelly has barely had any since Crisis anyway, so what's new?)

Yet in walks William and suddenly Alex is teasing Kara about inviting him. Winn is also there saying, hey it's okay. You barely know the guy, you had a shitty relationship beforehand, but go ahead, date the dude.

We had a prime opportunity for the Danver sisters to do karaoke together. Instead it was with William. At the expense of sister time (so many would’ve loved the sisters singing together).

So much here is wrong for me as a viewer.

If you have a show about female empowerment, yet the lead of that show is having to be told by others that dating a guy she has barely shared any positive moments with, let alone any romantic feelings for beyond a really awkward moment the episode before; that is not empowering a woman.

All too often Supergirl (as the lead in the show) is looking at dating, but not being capable of making her own romantic choices without the interference from others around her.

The only one I can think of who didn't need that was S1 James and to some degree Adam. Kara showed interest, but ultimately made the decisions on her own. Kara also recognised that with Winn, they were better off as friends. Yet S2 began and inexplicably Kara and James had broken up, and the need for Kara to get told to go for it by others began.

Mon-El was extremely problematic. As is William. Both were allowed to lie, to treat women like garbage at times with immunity. Yet here is another double standard. Kara and the Superfriends lied to Lena for 3 years, yet Lena is a bad person for reacting. I will repeat what has been said I don't know how often about Lena's reaction. It isn't without issue in how she is dealing with it. She isn't evil, but she has handled it badly. Her own emotional trauma, that was partly unpacked in 5A helps though explain why she behaved as she has.Yet, Mon-El faced no consequences for his actions. William can be a complete nightmare in how he treated Kara in 5A, but all is suddenly forgotten about or forgiven because of the reset? That is a cop out if ever there was one.

This hypocrisy is what annoys me the most, and frankly it is misogynistic all too often.

I actually pity any woman who believes it is okay for a man to behave as many do towards Kara. The message it sends is awful. I know the men in my family would be horrified by the actions of these love interests. I know of some men watching the show who feel the same way.

As for Lena and Kara. The trauma both have faced has shaped them. Yet Kara appears unaffected by losing her world a second time when Earth 38 was destroyed. On losing Argo. Sure they got it back, but as a changed merged World. You expect us to believe having to watch an antimatter wave destroy those you love has no effect? That being trapped for months with only the other paragons and Lex didn't cause trauma, even with a positive outcome. That seeing Krypton destroyed the first time wasn’t traumatic enough. That’s not something that just goes away. Add in losing Jeremiah, losing Astra (again), the trauma Supergirl must face when she can’t rescue everyone, that has a lifelong impact.

Lena has shown her emotional trauma has also been lifelong, albeit in a different way. To dismiss the emotional abuse Lena has suffered to attack her actions now is pitiful. Winn even suggests to Kara, that in the future, Lena does come through this, and isn't evil personified some want to make her out to be.

Yet Mon-El gets excused, William gets excused. Ugh. I’m sick of the double standard.

So, let’s unpack this further. Kelly Olsen was in the military. She wasn't just trained, but had an active role in the army. She recounted an event at a checkpoint where she was serving in S4. So she had active service, and it was in that moment when Kelly decided she wanted to help others more.

Kelly also knows the stress of keeping an important part of your life secret. She then also fell in love with a woman, someone who was her Sergeant, who was then killed on patrol (another reason we know Kelly was on active duty). It devastated Kelly who hadn't even told James of her relationship.

Later, upon completing her service, Kelly became a psychologist specialising in trauma.

Nia is also someone facing problems. Not only did her becoming Dreamer lead to discord with her sister, as well as the tragic loss of her mother, she has problems with Brainy. Nia offered to be there for Kelly when she was upset over watching Alex get hurt, but we saw nothing to suggest they had a heart to heart. Azie posted something that suggested they filmed a scene that did this, but it never made it on the final edit. Instead, once again we had William taking screen time.

So anyway, the point of all this is: guess who is placed to actively help Lena and/or Kara with the problems?

Kelly. Who apparently doesn't know Kara is Supergirl yet. So while Kara wonders if she should tell William, she could have the exact same conversations with Alex, only substitute Kelly for William. Overall, the plot could easily be maintained, and the established cast get good solid and plausible screen time. She could even talk to Nia about it, yet doesn't.

Another thing I find hard to understand is why haven't they used the link of Kelly, working at Obsidian North, where they could establish the Leviathan link.

If Lex has made the connection to Leviathan, you are telling me, even without Brainy helping them, Alex, Nia, J'onn and Kara haven't made the same connection? C'mon. Two investigative journalists, one who has won the Pulitzer, two DEO trained agents, and if Kelly was brought in, someone military trained; aren't able to make the connections? J'onn has all those computer banks in the tower, and while none of them are Brainy or Winn, he can't use said computing power? Why bother having it, if they are only props in the background. They could even ask Lena to help, since she has shown willingness to work with them if the reasoning was good enough. Leviathan is someone she knows (after all, Lena could have her memories returned by J’onn too). She knows the danger Leviathan poses. She could use the leverage to still get the lens from Obsidian in a similar way to now, but through Kelly if needed.

Actually, if they are using the tower, how does J’onn afford to pay for all this? I can only assume being as old as he is, he made some great investments over time, allowing him to be independently wealthy? But again nothing really suggests this.

Oh as for Alex leaving the DEO, great. After all, she was the Director but hasn’t been able to lead the DEO in all that time. Let alone some of the morally grey areas the DEO skirted around all too often. Still, where will she get her income from? Does she get paid as part of J’onn’s PI firm? Kara barely makes rent and food costs (at least she says her apartment is rent controlled so wouldn’t be able to afford it otherwise), so no way can she afford to help Alex out financially. Kelly might be able to support her, but again I cannot imagine it would be sustainable.

I feel like banging my head against a brick wall.

Onto Nia. I've said this a few times now, but here I go again. Back to William. I get the reason he came along in regards to Russell and so the Andrea connection. That story made sense. What hasn't made sense - William being used as a journalist, when Nia is right there! Nia has barely had any screen time, and virtually none as a journalist; you know - her actual job. I'm not sure what the minutes on screen ratio has been this season between the two, but it has felt completely slanted towards William as a viewer.

Instead of Kara and Nia investigating Leviathan after William was 'exposed' in 5A, now Nia is sidelined again, because they want Kara to team up with William to investigate Lex. Why do they need that journalistic pairing of William and Kara, when Nia - who as a Superhero, is better placed if danger from Lex occurs. But no, they're making it about Kara having to work with William because Lex threatened to kill him. Plus Nia was being mentored by Kara. Is she no longer being mentored by Kara? Are they a team? Even if the mentoring has ended, Nia is still not being utilised as a journalist. As the saying goes, make it make sense!

As for Lex. I love Jon Cryer. I’ve loved his version of Lex, but once again I feel Lena is just as well placed to take on his role in bringing down Leviathan. Why add another villain to this plot? We were told it was Leviathan who were the bad guys for this season, but once again we barely have a glimpse of them, but all the screen time on Lex, also to the detriment of Lena. We could be using this time to begin to mend Lena’s relationships with not only Kara, but the Superfriends. Instead we are getting bit and pieces, that seemingly bear little resemblance to the ‘fight for Lena’s soul’, or the ‘Stronger together, weaker apart’ tag lines the SG team used to market the series in 5A. (See attached photo). So again, this is frustrating for us to watch, as there is absolutely no cohesion to the storytelling. We know it is the ‘nothing is as it seems’ season, but to have no really coherent storylines so far this late on? It is baffling for me.

The sidelining of Nia and Kelly also brings to the fore the way the LGBTQ characters are being treated.

Dansen feels like a long lost legend from the mists of time. As I said earlier, there was a perfect opportunity for a Dansen scene in the opening part of the show, yet we might as well watch tumbleweeds fly past, for all the screen time Dansen or Nia have had. Well, rather haven’t had.

It seems we shouldn't ask for justification as to why William is on the show, but when we say the LGBTQ characters are being sidelined, that it doesn't matter one jot how diverse a cast can be; if said cast are not being given credible storylines or screentime, and if we say as much, we have to continually justify why that is the case. We get told to take what we are given. To insist on better, is oppressing white CIS men (in some cases CIS women have argued the same). This isn't oppressing anyone, but asking that if we get given relationships, given characters we want to invest in, they get the storylines to accomplish that. Supergirl is failing the LGBTQ audience so badly at the moment. So many have the same complaints it is ludicrous to suggest this is just one section of a fandom or trolls.

What I'm taking from all this at the moment is that 20% of the main viewing demographic as per GLAAD figures (and more besides, as I've seen straight viewers recognising the problems as well), have serious concerns with Supergirl.

But keep telling us we are overreacting. Or we should take what we are given. Or that we are delusional. After all, it is the kind of crap we have sprouted at us continually away from Supergirl, why shouldn't it be the case here.

I look at S4, heck even 5A, to what the show is doing now and it feels like an unmitigated disaster. Episodes are running out fast, so even if they increase Dansen, or Nia's screen time, it won't be enough to make up what has been lost. They're running out of time to give us a solid ending that ties up the mess they've created.

I really don’t know where this will end? CW Supergirl - do better. You have some phenomenal actors and actresses in your cast. Do them and your audience justice. Because right now you aren’t at all.