#periodically I ask myself if I'm continuing to trick myself because my instinct is always that I'm wrong

[chocolatepot]

I'm sort of fascinated by my own response to s2, because I started out underwhelmed but decided not to focus on it. And I framed this to myself as a kind of delusion - I wanted to find it good so badly that I was tricking myself into not being bothered by this, that, and the other thing. It helped me keep my hopes up, even when I felt disappointed by stuff in each episode.

And now, with the full season out there and rewatched multiple times, fics based on new stuff read, and, most importantly, many metas consumed and digested, I'm feeling so much better about it all! I'm really grateful for everyone talking it through and helping me to get past my "but this isn't how I wanted it to go ..." impulse.