#she shows no interest in my projects and does not take any initiative and does not help me in any way

[usetheforce]

.

[daintybrute]

WIP of my SECOND favorite rarepair from Stardew. As an opposites-attract fan, it's no surprise that I sometimes swoon for these two!

Back when I wrote "Slim to None", I had to make a brand new tag for Elliot/Maru on AO3, because they are even rarer than Penny and Seb, and I think for more reasons than the obvious ones.

It's clear they aren't alike. Left brain vs. right brain. Logical vs. Creative Scientific vs. Artistic. Straightforward vs. Poetical. You get the idea.

But the more I think about these two, the more interesting their dynamic becomes.

Because I strongly believe that people like Elliot, who are extremely expressive and artistic, tend to be easily burdened by their own deep feelings - especially when they don't know how to show these feelings to someone they profoundly care about, because they want it to be conveyed perfectly and beautifully.

While people like Maru who are more pragmatic, logical and practical, may not be very receptive of romantic expression initially - especially the elaborate and flowery kind of affection that Elliot would probably try to offer her.

But I imagine what's going through Maru's mind is 'He's just doing it to be nice.' Basically trying not to fall harder for him than she already has, because she's already done the premature damage control in her brain, rejecting herself on behalf of him, so not to get hurt.

Because allowing yourself to fall in love is scary, right? Especially in the case where it turns out the one you feel deeply for, feels nothing for you in return.

So, Maru tried to resign herself, chipping away her own fondness for him (Which only sort of worked when he wasn’t around). Love had zero applicable positive in her life. Her unearthed feelings had the potential to seriously encumber the way she's systematically ordered her life, and that is a serious problem for someone like her.

Plus, Elliot would never go for someone like me, right? She convinces herself, What gorgeous, sophisticated man in their right mind would pick the scrappy girl with machine grease spatters on her face and arms, when he could have anyone he wanted?

Little does she know (because she refuses to believe it herself), the more Elliot spends time with her, the less capable he is of stopping himself from thinking about her. His mind was consumed. Countless hours lying in bed, staring at the ceiling wondering how she was doing. If she had any interest at all in the book he was writing, or if she would find it boring and dull... What it would take to get her to not avert her eyes when she glanced his way.

"I just like her..." He whispered plainly to himself, somewhat humiliated that he couldn't formulate a better way to say it.

Not that he didn't try.

All the articulations he mustered to piece together, it seemed as if all the poetry and literature the world had to offer would fall short, unable to capture the weight that rested squarely on his heart when his mind simply drifted to her – as it so often did now. His words are far too inadequate to covey his insurmountable feelings.

This is displayed in his canon ten heart event. For a man who is usually suave and elloquant with his speech, Elliot fumbles over what he's tries to say; "Um... [Player]... How do I say this?" "N-no! I'm not saying I want to cut all ties with you!" "... Let's see, how do I put this...?"

Never had he been at such a loss for words as he was during Maru's 8 heart event. Standing in front of Maru. Alone with her in her room. Letting her carefully apply burn cream to his hand after her project demonstration didn’t exactly go as planned.

“That kind of ruined the moment, huh?” She sighed with glistening eyes and flush cheeks, clearly very disappointed in herself.

He’d said hardly anything since he’d even arrived. What could he say? He knows nothing of this stuff… Regardless, now was the time. It had to be! Even if he didn’t exactly know how he was going to say it, he couldn’t conceal his appreciation for her any longer.

Instead of gracelessly blurting out his feelings, he chokes his inadequate words down, stepping forward, aching to simply hold Maru in a perfect moment. Longing for her to carry his bursting heart in her palm. To inspect and refurbish his yearning spirit as she would a malfunctioning gadget or broken machine.

"You, uh," Maru tenses, blushing deeply as he does so, taking a small step back, "You don't have to do that." She chuckles awkwardly, knowing he couldn't possibly...

His heart palpitated wildly as he pulled away, unable to keep himself from feeling hurt and embarrassed by her unexpected rejection, "Maru...?"

"I know gadgets aren't really your kind of thing.." Maru's voice trembled as she looked away, "And I do appreciate that you're showing interest in what I do... but you don't have to overdo it. I mean, thank you for humoring me, but, especially after that… You've already done enough...."

All his hope and desire clattered to the ground. Practically drowning in his own confusion and humiliation, a small moment passed as Elliot's mind began to spin with all the details that lead up to this moment. All the looks Elliot caught her sneaking his way, the way she grew bashful when talking to him about herself, how he could have sworn she was about to ask him to dance with her at the flower festival this year, but never did. The way even just now, how blithely she invited him in to her room to show him what she’d been working on.

After all that?

Determined not to let it end here, Elliot gingerly took either side of Maru’s face, prompting her to look deeply and directly into his eyes. A single word fell from his lips...

"No." Elliot hushed, pupils dancing back and forth between hers.

Maru's brow crinkled.

He repeated himself, "No. I have not done enough." With a light shake of his head and a breezy chuckle, "In fact, I've hardly done anything for you at all."

She again averted her eyes, "Elliot, y-"

Cutting her off, Elliot insistently pulled her face back, tilting his head to meet her eyes again, firm and intentional. The words that he had were simple, yet inspired, "No, Maru... Not enough."

Elliot's soft expression and lowered voice was enough to make Maru's eyes mist. He seemed so genuine; she couldn't find any way around the cold hard fact that faced her in this moment. There was no answer key or user's manual for this kind of thing, there were too many variabls in the equations. But right now with her face cradled in his palms, Maru couldn't calculate (or re-calculate) this moment to equal anything less than the total of what it all added up to;

Elliot adored her.

A smile bloomed on Elliot's face, repeating himself yet again, “No… Not enough.” wrapping his arms around her once more, "Not even close."

OR Maybe it's not that deep and I just think they'd be cute together :) Thanks for reading my headcanon ramblings.

Side note: it's supposed to be a heart floating off of Elliot in the doodle of them kissing, but instead it looks like someone threw a pretzel at him and it bounced off his jacket 🥨😂

[artbyblastweave]

Gideon The Ninth Liveread, Chapter 18

Teacher’s order at the end of the last chapter to bring the bodies up isn’t followed by a jump cut to the parlor scene, as it easily could have been; instead, we get some insight into the logistics of getting two mutilated corpses and an unresponsive cavalier up a narrow ladder. The physical comedy implied by the process of getting Colum up the ladder is good bathos, but the fact that this takes them over an hour seems salient; whatever boogeyman Teacher was afraid of had over an hour in which to attack prone targets. And it didn’t show up for the hours on end that the houses spent attempting necromantic workings. My inclination is that either Teacher is feigning ignorance in order to scupper the investigation, or Teacher is genuinely afraid of something that still lies dormant and is projecting his longstanding anxieties onto the first blank crisis that presents itself.

Corona is very casually cited as one of the Colum liftees, alongside Gideon, which I feel like reading into a little. A quick runthrough of who’s even left reminded me that Corona actually is one of the most physically capable people remaining at Canaan house- Magnus being dead, Colum being in his state, Pro being attached to Dulcinea at the Hip, the teens being pubescent, Babs being mildly eaten…. Corona is, like, one of the taller/stronger people in the assemblage, right? But this gives off the vibe of a task that you’d assume, from her social butterfly persona, that she’d get someone else to do. And she’s doing it in her nightie, as well.  I pegged her and her sister coming down in the skimpy nighties as… not a head game, exactly, but part of their attention to presentation. This is not body-hauling attire. But she switches modes without hesitation, with only one word of textual acknowledgement that she’s the one who knuckled down. She actually spends a good bit of time in this chapter abruptly cutting the bullshit and knuckling down to try and address the situation at hand. I’m starting to like Corona.

The Second House were the ones to run and get Teacher. I’m reiterating my initial read on them; they’re there to keep up with the Joneses, with limited investment in the trial outcome or their own path to ascension through it. The Necro/Cav pair are barely visually delineated from each other, in contrast to basically every other dyad. They are not Of Necromancy, beyond its utility; they are Of The Military. They have limited respect for Teacher’s religious edicts about lines of communication off-world, and while it’s difficult to tell how much stock any of these people put in the theology vs how much they’re going along to get along, it’s telling that they lead the push to undermine the foremost religious authority in deference to military authority.

As an aside, I’m well-versed enough in this series via tumblr osmosis to know that the Emperor is, like, very much all that, and his personal power eclipses and obviates what any other house could hope to bring to the table, so usurpation as a goal is unlikely. Adherence to his religion is less like a matter of doctrine and more like acknowledging the sun’s ongoing contribution to the ecosystem. But inter-house infighting isn’t unheard of; the Eighth has it out for the Ninth, after all. I wonder if we’re witnessing an internal fracture between the military dynasty and the hardline religious elements of the empire; if this attempt by the Second to call things off and bring in reinforcements isn’t JUST a practical plan but is also them finally making the kind of power grab they actually know how to make.

“A Second captain don’t outrank a Third official.” Wait. Is Naberius supposed to have, like, a genteel southern drawl? Also, interesting that this is where Ianthe chooses to intercede on his behalf. “Prince Tern, if you please.” The Third does circle the wagons against outside threats.

Alright, Key ownership rundown. The Sixth has a key, Dulcinea’s gambit using Pro to brute-force check all the doors apparently netted her a key. It turns out that both mine and Harrow’s suspicions were correct; Silas did cue Abigail and Magnus in on the facility, using both the rationale that they aren’t NOT supposed to work together, but also under the rationale that the hated Ninth can’t be allowed to be the only ones with access to the facility. Unfortunate that Harrow does have someone ready and willing to validate her paranoia.

The exchange between Silas and Dulcinea is fascinating. Silas clearly likes Dulcinea; everybody does. When he finds out it was the Seventh Cavalier who put him out, he seemingly takes this in stride, and he’s unwilling to sic Colum on Dulcinea… but he is willing to have Colum duel Pro, which Dulcinea (and Gideon, by extension) gets predictably up in arms about. Dulcinea and Silas run parallel in that they’re both radically reliant on their cavalier to get anything useful done, more so than any other necromancer we’ve seen; Silas requires Colum for soul siphoning and general henchman work, while Dulcinea uses Pro as a caretaker and mobility device. Silas is significantly more, uh, cavalier about imperiling Colum over petty bullshit than Dulcinea is; the charitable read is that Dulcinea’s reliance on Pro gives her a significantly greater appreciation for him. The uncharitable read is that anything happens to Pro, she’s going to be in a pickle; he’s already saved her ass once by putting Silas out, and the crisis has barely started.

Coronabeth puts her foot down; “The Golden Butterfly was gone.” Her rousing speech noticeably gets everybody moving in the direction of productive action- The Second Cav passive-aggressively entertaining Teacher’s theory, Isaac committing to hunting a monster if it exists, with Palamedes putting on the brakes on his enthusiasm with a commitment to a scientific autopsy, an implied deference to Coronabeth’s call for unity, and a (not unreasonable!) entertainment of the possibility there really is a horde of vengeful ghosts in play. He even folds in Harrow and Silas’s dispute by making it clear that collaboration on the murder issue isn’t incompatible with continuing to compete in the lyctor trials. Third House’s hat, so to speak, is that they’re the rulers and governers- but Sixth house were previously mentioned to be the house with policy wonks, and there’s a synergy there! Palamedes knows how to align himself with Corona for maximum productive effect.

Ianthe admits to being in possession of the last key, distressing both Babs (who she took the key from) and Corona, who expected to be privy to this information. Something I find interesting about this is that Ianthe is pretty clearly a Machiavellian operator; if nothing else, she had the key, and kept that fact to herself. But! When it comes down to it, she’s also willing to come clean and put her cards on the table in a crisis situation. She was in the trenches necromancing right along everyone else; there are parallels here be drawn here to her sister’s willingness to drop the butterfly routine in the name of getting the situation under control. On the other hand, it’s also possible that this is a rehearsed ruse; Ianthe, as the obvious evil Twin, publicly taking the fall by positioning herself as the only one from Third House who hypothetically could have had access to the facility at the time of the murders. This is conceivable even if the Third genuinely have nothing to do with it; an implementation of a general strategy they’ve worked out amongst themselves, painting Ianthe as the heel in contrast to the Great Golden Butterfly, establishing the narrative that Coronabeth doesn’t have complete control over what Ianthe does. Campy Wickedness as a cultivated affect, overlaying a subtler, realer scheming nature. “Ianthe is a Vriska,” “Ianthe is Rancid,” all these no-context Ianthe posts have got me going full Charlie Kelly over here. 

The meeting adjourns. Palamedes works off Coronabeth’s cue to lead all interested parties to the freezer, including the Second and Seventh houses. Gideon chalks this up to Seventh Houses broadly morbid tendencies, but it also strikes me as likely that Dulcinea might have applicable medical knowledge as an outgrowth of constantly dealing with her condition, or at a minimum could effectively rubber-duck for Pal while he talks out the implications aloud. Second House I’m assuming are along for the ride because they realize they live in a universe where they have to at least begrudgingly entertain the ghost thing, but they want to be in the room concurrently with any autopsy that might reach “ghost murder” as its conclusion, to make sure there’s no funny business going on.

Pal, conspicuously, stops to have a word with Harrow. Harrow is characteristically concerning; her singlemindedness (on display in full force at the end of the chapter!) is poorly suited to such a radical shift in the circumstances. She’s the least willing to change her focus during the meeting beyond what’s necessary to avoid getting fingered as the murderer, and Pal’s word might very well be words of warning or reprobation that he had the tact not to deliver in front of the peanut gallery.

The scene with Silas starting the process of bringing back Colum is interesting; I think that Silas’s utmost confidence in Colum’s ability to make it back is the first time we see any expression of regard from Silas towards his Cav, and while it’s a strong endorsement of Colum’s capabilities, it’s part and parcel with the extent to which Silas is taking Colum for granted. Earlier I drew parallels between the necro/cav dynamics of the Seventh and Eighth houses, but there’s also a strong parallel between the Eighth and Ninth houses- each with a zealous, thoroughly stick-assed Necromancer , each of whom are paired at the hip with a Cav with a stoic demeanor and a frosty-and-best attitude towards their Necro. This line of thought is causing me to re-evaluate the lens through which Gideon has been assessing Eighth house; no Necro/Cav pairing is remotely Normal About It, but Eighth and Ninth have some parallels in their dysfunction. The key difference being that Silas routinely, habitually makes use of his Cav, and Gideon’s beef with Harrow is at least partly informed by the fact that, up until very recently, Harrow gave her absolutely no opportunity to be of use. Colum represents the path not taken, the grass that’s greener, and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Gideon pays so much attention to the Colum situation right before Harrow shows up to drag her off towards another once-longed-for stint as an accomplice. Is Harrow’s attention an improvement in her circumstances, or has she this whole time unwittingly been dodging Colum’s sorry lot?

The sequence with Jeannemary is heartbreaking. They’ve hit the hero-worship beat a couple times now, the idea that she’s looking up to/admiring/(crushing on?) Gideon. It’s interesting that the “Bad Teen,” up till now an irksome background presence, is the one to finally break Gideon’s composure in a semi-public, not-technically-a-live-emergency setting- quietly and quickly enough that the illusion is probably still largely intact, but it’s a significant break! Also significant is Jeannemary’s insight into a suspicious detail nobody else seems to have touched on in the meeting; Abigail specialized in Ghost magic. Jeannemary’s love of Abigail means that her awareness of this fact cashes out as a belief that Abigail should have been able to defeat a ghostly threat regardless of magnitude. But the unstated second truth is that whoever or whatever killed Abigail, simultaneously got rid of the necromancer best suited to the necromantic forensic work everyone else was struggling with in the last chapter. This doesn’t feel like a coincidence. 

Harrow’s barreling forward on the heels of Colum’s return to the land of the living feels like a great for-want-of-a-nail moment, and another example of Harrow’s too-clever-by-half tendencies snipping a thread that she really, really should have followed up on. Jeannemary has an important insight here! If Colum had been seventeen minutes late instead of fifteen, Harrow might have limped into the middle of a very illuminating exchange.

In closing, I’m pretty sure we’re looking at two memes in one here. Harrow’s “I’m sick of these people” bit reads to me like a reference to Dr. Manhattan’s, “I tire of Earth. These people” monologue and the resultant meme panel. “An admirable attempt at comedy in these trying times” reads like a reference to the Egg bit from It’s Always Sunny. Bonus points because the specific Dr. Manhattan line that I believe is being referenced here comes during his myopic dark night of the soul, where he’s conflating his own depression with the true meaning of the universe and letting his heartfelt belief that he already knows everything important blinker him to some important fucking details he hasn’t noticed. Just like how Harrow is overlooking potentially massively important information in her rush to capitalize on her perceived information advantage. Assuming I’m correct that this is a reference and not just random apophenia, this is, like, sliding past the point of mere pop-cultural meme reference into the realm of meaningful literary allusion. Which is a real good way to integrate your meme references! Nothing there just to convey that you’re hip and with it, everything acting as a character beat or a thematic vector. I’m going to go right ahead and adopt a hardline policy of treating every apparent meme reference as an indicator of deliberate thematic depth, and there is absolutely no way that this might potentially cause me to spill over 500 words of ink over something that just turns out to be a vaguely similar sentence construction to another work.

[mirageofadesert]

First Impression: Love is Panacea

I have just finished the first 4 episodes of the drama on Youkou. It took me over an hour to get the app to take my money, so this better be worth it.

The drama is project for Literature and Art of the Sichuan province and co-produced by Youkou and CCPTV. Therefore, we can expect a lot of national propaganda in the show, especially since it’s not only a medical drama, but also about international medical aid and foreign aid. Lou Yunxi seems to really take his nickname as Sichuan ambassador seriously! ;-)

Cast and Characters (so far)

Zhang Rua Nan as Su Weian: A medical school dropout on a quest to enjoy her life, struggling to make ends meet overseas. She becomes a translator at the local Chinese Medical Aid hospital.

Luo Yunxi as Dr. Gu Yun Zheng: A passionate but cold doctor working in Chinese Medical relief/aid in North Africa. He is Su Weian former teacher. He is initially very skeptical of the FL intentions and abilities.

Wang Yiting as Jiang Muying: Su Weian’s best friend, that travels to see her after a long time.

Li Jiahao as Fang Mingfan (Nian Baiyu!) doctor and assistant and love interest of Jiang Muying. I expect them to be the 3rd couple of the show.

Shawn Wei as Dun Yuncheng: As the CEO of a pharmaceutical company. He had a one-sided crush on the FL and is the half brother of the ML. We haven’t seen them interact in the present yet, but there is a nice build up to an interesting dynamic.

Mild Spoiler

The first arc of the show takes place in a small city in North Africa. Foreign actors in Chinese Dramas are always … something, and this is no difference. The dubbing is also noticeable different compared to the rest. I do, however, like how the show approaches different languages and the language barrier. Dr. Gu only speaks Chinese and English and needs a French translator to communicate with patients and staff – this is where Su Weian comes in.

There is a lot of unintended comedy, because of the way they are depicting the foreign country. While some is just silly – for example the way they are throwing $ bills around as if it was Yuan, other times it relies too much on exoticism. So far, they haven’t crossed the line to straight out racist stereotyping, so that’s something. It does, at times, make a lot of the scenes feel over the top and cringe. However, no matter the country of origin, very rarely do productions get other languages and culture right. China in Western media is often just horrible, so I’m not going to hold it against them. The medical stuff is also mostly fine, it’s not accurate, but it’s not so wrong, that I’m getting angry. So the framing of the show is okay, I think it will get better once they are back in China.

Dr. Gu is a typical character played by Luo Yunxi: Serious, passionate, troubled and very in love with a woman. He excels in this role, as always. His English is also amazing! Su Weian is so far the more interesting character. She is everything I want from a FL: strong, independent, witty and smart. So far, we were only introduced to 3 side characters, that have not shown any depth yet. I’m just really happy to see Tantai Jin and Nian Baiyun reunite on screen – still being master and assistant. I do miss their costume so, because the styling in this show is… different.

The cast of the show is so far the best part. While the script relies on a lot of cliché tropes, it’s the dynamic between the actors, that make the show engaging. I’m rather pessimistic about the script so far, it might end somewhere between “Lie to Love” and “Broker”. However, the acting and the chemistry between the leads is significantly better!

One of my favorite things is, how self-aware the show is at times: Be it the supporting cast admitting being the side characters of the leads' life, the subverting of stereotypes of Chinese eating strange things like insects or the nurses watching costume dramas on the Youkou apps and taking dating advice from it. So I’m holding out hope that the overly cliché romantic tropes are an attempt to mislead the audience into thinking this is just a romantic show.

I’m going to talk about the ending of the show next. Please just stop reading here, if you don’t want to get spoiled!

Major Spoiler

On a personal note, I was misdiagnosed with a deadly disease earlier this year. While I’m incredibly lucky, that it turned out a misdiagnosis, for a couple of months I had to live with the belief that I was going to die early and in a lot of pain. So this show hits on a different level and that's why it’s important to me, that the novel ending stays the same. (Spoiler!!)

I’m a bit nervous about it, because not only did they cut out 6 full episodes, they also changed the name to “Healing Lover”. I don’t want the FL to be healed. There is no cure for her disease in real life, so there shouldn’t be one in the drama. Suffering from life altering disease is part of many people's life, that affect not only them, but also their family and friends. It would feel insulting, if they change it. I want to see a drama, in which the cast has to come to terms with the FL death. I want her husband and son to find a way to cope and live on. I want maximum angst. No rainbow at night.

[lilydalexf]

Old School X is a project interviewing X-Files fanfic authors who were posting fic during the original run of the show. New interviews are posted on Tuesdays.

Interview with Lydia Bower

Lydia Bower has written some true classic X-Files fics. Do yourself a favor and dig into her collection! She has 29 stories at Gossamer and 35 stories at AO3.

Does it surprise you that people are still interested in reading your X-Files fanfics and others that were posted during the original run of the show (1993-2002)?

Actually, yes, it does. With AO3 becoming the premiere spot for fanfic (rightfully so, by the way) I assumed most of the newer fans were unaware of the Gossamer Archive and the few other sites still available for the older fics. So I was delighted to come back into the fandom and see folks reccing a lot of the classics.

What do you think of when you think about your X-Files fandom experience? What did you take away from it?

I remember how incredible it felt when I initially found people who got me, who were just as stupidly invested in this weird little TV show as I was. It was like nothing else I’d ever experienced. There were message boards and newsgroup lists and email lists; anything you wanted to talk about, you could find a place to do it. I loved the post-episode discussions and would spend hours at that. We had a week (or months) between episodes, so nothing went undissected. We were all very, um, focused. Yeah, focused is as good a word as any.

And then the fanfic started showing up. That was it for me; I was all in. I can still remember going first to Vincent’s archive and it was like achieving a state of nirvana. The heavens opened up, the birds began to sing, and all was right with the world.

What did I take away from it? More friendships and good memories than I can count. That’s something I’ll carry with me for the rest of my days. Oh, and the two best imaginary friends a person can have: Mulder and Scully. I carry them too, etched indelibly on my being.

Social media didn't really exist during the show's original run. How were you most involved with the X-Files online (atxc, message board, email mailing list, etc.)?

I was involved with all of it in the beginning. I bounced from newsgroups to mailing lists to message boards to web sites. Around the 5th or 6th season it got to be a bit much since I was also doing a lot of writing then, so I narrowed things down and got the majority of my fix from The Haven message board and the smaller Primal Screamers email group.

What did you take away from your experience with X-Files fic or with the fandom in general?

As I said before, the friendships and the good times with fellow Philes. I also took away a better sense of who I am as a writer and how to use that to hone my skills. I learned how to look at media as a whole with a more critical and analytical eye and to dig beneath the surface of what I was consuming. I learned how to better express myself and maintain a cool head while in the midst of a fiery discussion. I became more confident of who I am and the worth of my opinions. I finished growing up, basically. Most of all, I learned how to just let go and enjoy being a fan of something so incredible that still connects with people almost 30 years later. That’s a legacy to be proud of.

What was it that got you hooked on the X-Files as a show?

I’ve always been drawn to the paranormal and the strange, and when I caught an ad for TXF, I made sure to tune in. The Pilot itself was enough to hook me. It was creepy and a little scary and the two leads were incredibly smart. It didn’t hurt that they were also good-looking and had smoking hot chemistry. Like the kind that jumps in through your eyeballs and settles into a low boil somewhere below the waist.

The final act of my undoing came with the episode Conduit. By the end of it I knew the show had a firm grip on my soul. Mulder captured my heart that night, too. He still has it. He’s one of a very small handful of characters I’ve encountered over the years that I just get, at a bone-deep level I can’t even begin to explain. I am him and he is me.

What got you involved with X-Files fanfic?

I’d been writing fanfic since the mid-80s but hit the proverbial wall that is writer’s block right around the time the show premiered. I wanted to write TXF fanfic from the start, but the muse wasn’t having it. She reappeared not long after The Field Where I Died first aired. I hopped around on the web a bit and found much wailing and gnashing of teeth on the shipper front. The muse decided we needed to give my fellow shippers something to make them feel better and give them a bit of hope. So I wrote Games. And the rest is history.

What is your relationship like now to X-Files fandom?

I reacquainted myself with it earlier this year after an extended absence. I walked away from the show and the fandom after my utter disappointment with the direction the show took after the 7th season. I just couldn’t choke down what TPTB were trying to feed me in S8, and completely tuned out of S9 (with the exception of the finale). I saw IWTB a couple years after it was released in theaters and watched the revival, too. Sadly, nothing I saw there made me want to dive back in. Then one night this past spring I was poking around for something to watch and caught Paper Hearts on a broadcast channel. That was all it took. That feeling I thought I’d lost came roaring back and I settled in for a complete S1-7 rewatch. I poked around looking for a spot to call home and came back to my safe place on Tumblr.

I’m neck-deep now, for however long that feeling lasts, and devoting a lot of my free time (again) to this weird little show about aliens and monsters and two people who love each other dearly. And I’m writing fanfic again - after another bout of writer’s block that lasted almost seven years.

Were you involved with any fandoms after the X-Files? If so, what was it like compared to X-Files?

I got pretty deeply involved with the Game of Thrones fandom when the show began. I was already a fan of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Fire and Ice book series and liked what I saw the first few years. I wrote several fanfics in the ASOIAF universe, and I’m still involved, but only from the perspective of a book fan. The show went too far off the rails toward the end of its run and killed my love for it.

Compared to TXF, I think it’s a much more segmented fandom. There are several small groups built around dozens of characters there, instead of what I see in TXF fanbase as a larger, more inclusive community. I think it’s safe to say we’re all here for Mulder & Scully in one respect or another. The other characters get their share of love too, but it’s the MSR that draws us in and helps keep us here. Other than that, fangirling is fangirling. You find your tribe and take it from there.

Who are some of your favorite fictional characters? Why?

Well, let’s start with Fox Mulder, with the why of it being what I tried to explain earlier. Dana Scully, because I want to be her when I grow up, but without all the emotional and physical damage she had to endure. I’m also a fan of Sandor Clegane from ASOIAF. Stu Redman from Stephen King’s The Stand. Kevin Garvey and Nora Durst from the HBO show The Leftovers. Olivia Dunham and the Bishops from Fringe. The Three Musketeers that make up the core group of the TV show Evil. I could go on, but I don’t want to bore you. Suffice to say I’m drawn to characters who are complex, damaged, and deeply flawed, but are trying their best to do the right thing and who are ultimately perfectly imperfect human beings.

Do you ever still watch The X-Files or think about Mulder and Scully?

At present, every day. I’m very much back in over my head right now. If I’m not watching it, I’m writing about it, or talking about it. I don’t know how to obsess just a little bit when it comes to TXF and Moose and Squirrel.

Do you ever still read X-Files fic? Fic in another fandom?

Absolutely! It’s almost overwhelming how much fanfic I have to catch up on, let alone the new fics being posted daily; and all that while trying to reread some of my old favorites on Gossamer and the other OG archives. I don’t have time to read fanfics in other fandoms right now. Maybe someday.

Do you have any favorite X-Files fanfic stories or authors?

How much room do you have for this? <g> Okay, in no particular order and no doubt forgetting some folks, I’ll read anything by these OG authors: Karen Rasch, Terma99, Nascent, Jill Selby, Madeleine Partous, Meredith, Kipler, MCA, Anne Haynes (Paula Graves), Penumbra (@mashnotesofthemythopoeic), Rachel Anton, Joyce McKibben, Tim Scott, Darwin_xf (@darwin-xf), Suzanne Schramm, Prufrock’s Love, Sue Barringer, Mustang Sally, Rivkat, Dianora, Plausible Deniability, A.I. Irving, Rachel Howard, MD1016, Punk Maneuverability (@seepunkrun), bugs, Dasha K (@dashakay​), Khyber, Blackwood, and OneMillionAndNine.

As far as new to me authors (OG or not), these folks are also talented wordsmiths: leiascully (@leiascully), Aloysia_Virgata (@aloysiavirgata), audries, and lepusarcticus (@lepus-arcticus). I’m sure there are more great authors out there, but I haven’t had as much time as I’d like to dig into the newer stuff on AO3.

What is your favorite of your own fics, X-Files and/or otherwise?

TXF: Pass You By, Light Don’t Sleep, Red Letter Day, Primal Sympathy, In the Ruins, Dance Without Sleeping, and Incomplete. I’ll stop there but please understand that they’re all my babies and I love them equally. I’m also very fond of the Let Everything Happen to You series I recently completed.

ASOIAF: These Scars We Wear, The Calling, Beggar’s Banquet.

Do you think you'll ever write another X-Files story? Or dust off and post an oldie that for whatever reason never made it online?

I’m doing both. I’ve written and posted 10 new fanfics since I came back into the fold and I’m working on another one right now. I also have a casefile WIP I’m struggling with that I began during the early part of S4 and set aside when the cancer arc reared its head.

I’m also in the process of bringing all my older stuff from Gossamer and my defunct website over to AO3. I think I still have 2 or 3 shorter pieces still to be moved and one post-Fight the Future fic I wrote that’s lost somewhere on the net. If anyone has a copy of my fanfic titled Shift laying around, please give me a holler! [Lilydale note: Fic found! I had a copy and sent it to Lydia.]

Do you still write fic now? Or other creative work?

See above!

Where do you get ideas for stories?

From the ether. Seriously. Something, whether it be a line of dialogue, a question, an image, or a scene, will just pop into my head and demand my time. I’ve written 6,000-word fanfics just to slip in a single line. I don’t know how the muse works or why; I’m just along for the ride.

What's the story behind your pen name?

I always published under my own name until I set up my AO3 account. I went with wonderland there because I’m like Alice when I’m writing: I fall down the rabbit hole into Wonderland and enter a different reality.

Do your friends and family know about your fic and, if so, what have been their reactions?

Yeah, they know I write it but not where to find it. Though I suppose a Google search would make it easy enough to locate. My family and friends have always been supportive of my writing, albeit confused that I’ve chosen to write fanfic instead of “real” fiction. Yeah, I know.

Is there a place online (tumblr, twitter, AO3, etc.) where people can find you and/or your stories now?

wonderland on AO3

@amplifyme on Tumblr

amplifyme271 on the bird app

Lydia Bower everywhere else

Thanks for your invitation, Lilydale, this was fun!

[robo-milky]

*Unhealthy/One-sided/OOC(?)

[Tag List: @v-anrouge @ashipiko @br3adtoasty @pinkrozezzz ] <3

General Love Forecast:

65% of Sun

Before Relationship:

• Epel fell for Cloche first. He always felt a strange connection to her since the first time he saw her. He’s forced to wear ruffles, she’s cursed to wear a maid outfit, he’s short and feminine looking, she’s shorter and more feminine looking, he has to hide his country dialect, she must address everyone formally— they were just so similar! Epel thinks Cloche is another boy mistaken as girl who is forced to put on a polite mask, like him. Epel’s self-projection on Cloche is what attracts him to her. Epel wanted to just-be-friends until it spiralled to him falling in love, and hoping to free Cloche from her so-called shackles. It’s questionable if Epel truly loves Cloche, or if it’s for a complex of some sort— of wanting to be the bigger person and having someone to show-off to.

• When they first met, Cloche thought of Epel as a child, someone below her. It wasn’t until he stayed in Ramshackle for VDC, did she finally have the opportunity to take another crack at his character. Even after some heavy reconsiderations, Cloche is still driven away by Epel’s definition of masculinity, and his impulsiveness. It’s hard for her to want to be around someone who would see the things she like as inferior. While she does question why Vil would make Epel hide his rural background, Cloche doesn’t feel bad for Epel’s situation— since she thinks ‘he brought it upon himself.’

• Cloche was initially unaware of Epel’s feelings for her, even in denial of it. After the first years spilled the beans to her, she set up little tests to see if what they said was true. Cloche was surprised Epel liked her out of anyone else— expecting him to fall for Jack or Sebek instead. Cloche feels like they have nothing in common. To her, it’s draining to indulge in Epel’s interests of sports, Magift, Magic Wheels, and to hide her personal interests in fashion and cutesy stuff. It doesn’t help that Epel is very far from her ideal type. Cloche believes that Epel could have chosen someone better, someone who actually appreciates him.

• From an outsider’s perspective, Cloche and Epel are almost like long lost twins. Both so sparkly and mysterious. They’re often seen eating lunch together and discussing the latest topics they’ve just learned. There are no arguments to ever come out of them— or at least publicly. The students of NRC ship them together, much to Cloche’ dismay.

During:

• Epel and Cloche are both go-getters who don’t like beating around the bush. Epel admires how Cloche keeps her cool, always unbothered and thinking of a solution under pressure. Cloche recognizes and values Epel’s grit and determination to always push through. Their relationship is generally stable.

• How did they even start dating? I can see Epel finally confessing after consulting the first years; Deuce, Sebek, and Ortho supported him. Ace and Jack are the skeptics of the relationship in their own rights. Ace’s skepticism comes from knowing Cloche the longest— he finds it hard to believe they can truly get along. Jack’s skepticism comes from his own values, since he genuinely cares for Epel and has trouble imagining Cloche as someone family oriented like they are. The biggest red flags Ace and Jack tried to warn Epel about is Cloche’ strange admiration for Rook. Epel knew Cloche liked his senior, but that wasn’t going to stop him.

• Cloche rejected Epel but finally gave him a chance after giving into his persistance. Considering the circumstances, she thought that was the best choice— as a rejection might sour their relationship and make things awkward in the first years’ circle.

“Master Epel, you’re asking the wrong person if you want true love. I don’t belong in Twisted Wonderland and I may leave at any time… Can you accept that? A relationship where we can break off cleanly without any hard feelings? I’m not going to abandon my previous life for you, …but I can share the time I have left with you.”

• Cloche doesn’t have any particularly strong feelings for Epel, since she accepted his confession on a whim, and because it seemed beneficial to her. Plus, what’s the point of chasing after someone you can never have? Epel was the safer option. Cloche knows that to make it in NRC, she needs allies and people to rely on. Ever the worst-case-scenario planner, she will go to extremes to feel secure. To her, this relationship gives her a reputation and protection. As long as Cloche can play her part, she’ll be safe. Cloche does not feel much guilt about using Epel’s feelings for her, because she was never dishonest with him. She has given Epel many warnings. Though Cloche wouldn’t personally classify her feelings for Epel as ‘romantic love’, she does care for him to some extent.

• Epel really looks up to Cloche and her mental fortitude. It does sting to know Cloche is so indifferent about his love, but if this relationship is temporary, then that just means he has the make the most of it, right? They were getting along so well as friends before— so why wouldn’t their romantic relationship be just as good? If not even better? If Epel were honest, he sometimes question the point of this romance— if it can even be called that. He’s always putting so much effort into giving, yet Cloche treats and brushes him off like she does with everyone else. Epel finds it unfair that he’s been so vulnerable with Cloche, yet Cloche never showed him a bit of her vulnerability in return.

“Why did you even kiss me if you felt nothing? All the hugs? The talks we had at under the stars? …When you cheered me on during the Sledathon…?”

“I don’t know; I can’t say.”

“Whaddya’ mean ya can’t say?! Were ya just leadin’ me on the whole time? …Ah’ don’t know if ah’ wanna continue this if ah’ feel like ah’m draggin’ ya around…”

“You are dragging me around.”

AU: Cloche Falls for Epel? *special

• This Cloche is more responsive around Epel. While she is still her deadpan self, Cloche is more accommodating around Epel— even going as far as giving him unsolicited advice or infantilizing him a little. Cloche walks by Epel, making sure he doesn’t act out of line or else Vil will give him another scolding to again. She’d go out of her way to preen him (fix his hair, bow tie, clothes), even if she knows Epel hates it. Epel can tolerate handle a bit of annoyance if it means he wouldn’t get in trouble, right? Cloche would make more of an effort to talk to Epel and ask him about his likes and interests— but her hollow tone of voice and token-sounding praises turn him away. With this Cloche, she means it when she says “tell me more, I’m listening”.

“I don’t think being compared to the Crabapple is a bad thing, Master Epel. The crabapple— Malus fusca, is a wonderful species. I don’t know about Twisted Wonderland, but there are groups from my world that cherish this plant for its medicinal properties and spiritual symbolism.”

[Notes: This was kinda fun! Kinda winged it so I hope it’s coherent?? If you made it this far- thank you!! I’d be happy to answer questions if there are any :0 Feel free to suggest a ship or even throw an OC]

[slpytired]

Watching the whole Gundam series in 2023 #14: Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn Review

Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn was directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi and released as a 7-episode OVA series from March 12, 2010 to June 6, 2014. Set in the Universal Century year 0096, the plot follows Banagher Links as he pilots the titular Unicorn Gundam in the Third Neo Zeon War, alongside Zeon princess Minerva Lao Zabi, racing against the Sleeves to find the secret of Laplace's Box.

Sorry this took so long! I was busy for awhile, but now I'm back and I hope to churn out the rest of these reviews soon. At the time of writing this, I've just finished watching G-Reco and will soon be starting on Gundam 00. I didn't accomplish my goal of finishing the whole series in a year, but I'd say it was a pretty good attempt.

The first thing I noticed about this series was how good the animation looked. For a series animated in the 2010s, that utilises CGI for many, if not all, of its mecha action scenes, it holds up very well to modern day visuals. Every detail is visually fleshed out to perfection, from the effects of the Unicorn's psychoframe, to the beam sabers and blasts used by the various combatants, to the fine details such as missile hatches opening, ejecting spent ammo, and thruster exhaust. The character animations were exceptional as well, and again, they really hold up well 10 years later.

One of the major themes of Unicorn is Newtypes and the role in the Earth Sphere. By the in-universe time where this series takes place, the existence of Newtypes is well-known, most particularly by the Earth Federation, who view them as a threat. As evidenced by the event that ended the Second Neo Zeon war in UC 0093, Newtypes possess significant power that, if not kept in check, could pose a serious threat to humanity. Apart from being highly effective pilots who dominate every battlefield they appear on, they also represent the supposed evolution of humanity as a result of its expansion into space. This threatens the Earth Federation government as the unchecked power of enemy Newtypes could spell the end of their seat of power in the Earth Sphere, with the evolved Newtypes taking over as the new governors of humanity. As such, the UC Project was initiated to combat Newtypes and their accompanying weaponry. How ironic it is that the one who ended up in the cockpit of the Unicorn Gundam, the UC Project's flagship, was a Newtype himself.

However, the thematic role of Newtypes and their analogues in the Gundam series goes far beyond superior piloting, and it is in fact their deep empathy for others and ability to understand other living beings that sets them apart from the other characters in Gundam, and their central role in many of the UC timeline's major turning points shows just how empathy and understanding is what is needed to change the world, not colony drops, asteroid attacks, or any other form of violence and oppression. The message of the Laplace's Box points to this: calling for Newtypes to be given stewardship of humanity in the future of the Universal Century. Banagher embodies many of the quintessential Newtype qualities the series is known for, caring deeply for the lives of both his allies and enemies, trying to avoid conflict as much as possible, and acting to save lives as much as he can. Marida Cruz, one of Elpeo Ple's clones from the ZZ Gundam era, is also a (Cyber-)Newtype and acts as a mentor to Banagher throughout the series. Though she is killed at the end, her words and emotions are able to reach many people, not just Banagher, but also Riddhe Marcenas, her killer.

Speaking of Riddhe, he's an interesting character because he takes a roundabout path as a Newtype, though he does eventually get there. Initially an optimistic young soldier, when confronted by the twisted truth of the world that he lives in, he chooses to defend the status quo of the Earth Federation in order to keep the peace. During his battle with Marida, he is once again confronted by a hard truth as his Newtypism surfaces, and he experiences the various emotions of the people around him. He realises that he is exactly what the Earth Federation was trying to destroy, and was trying to use him to destroy his fellow Newtypes in order to keep their status quo. Think of the tragedy if he had succeeded in defeating Banagher, allowing the truth of the Universal Century Charter to be destroyed and covered up, allowing Spacenoids and Newtypes to remain oppressed. (I would like to believe that he would have realised his error and made up for it later, but I digress.)

In the end, the truth of Laplace's Box is released to the whole Earth Sphere, revealing the truth of the Earth Federation's deceit and giving hope to Spacenoids and Newtypes for a better future, for an overturning of the status quo that the Federation has upheld for almost a hundred years. Of course, the Federation tries to cover it up with a really big laser cannon, but with the power of the Unicorn and Banshee Gundams, Laplace's Box is preserved.

Overall, this series is an 8.5/10.

[mahoushoujotechsupport]

episode 6, here we go again... lmao i literally... had this post open, was writing up my final thoughts and my cat jumped up on my laptop and i fuckin lost everything. no ctrl-z to help me i have no idea what happened gdi lmao

so i will try to remember what it was i wrote initially

cowardly belmeria winston. i do wish she'd received some punishment for being literally in charge of human experimentation at peil. i'm so glad prospera uses her guilt against her

so like this is the line that made everyone go what the fuckkkkkk right? assuming they werent speedwatching and just ignored the fact suletta is 17 and belmeria is referring to the vanadis incident here

all the double take lines in this show are so amazing. like yea this doenst mean anything on first watch because of course suletta is her daugher but hohoho

honestly love the idea that suletta went to earth house for comfort after they found out what happened with el4n and his unknown (to them) 180 towards suletta. and part of that group of people comforting suletta includes miorine even if she does have to be all tsundere about it

i do wonder how angry she must have been that el4n was a dick to suletta though. imagine if shes playing her little shooty game on her phone to blow off steam here just like she did in ep 2 in the bathroom

random note: once chuchu calms down a few episodes back, miorine just is a staple at earth house just like suletta

god fuck you tumblr for ruining my og post. i had written a whole thing about this frame and how i appreciated that gwitch never let miscommunication/misunderstanding tropes get in the way of anything (i know some people would argue otherwise because of the break up arc but i dont agree with them).

miorine couldve stayed quiet about this but she brings it up so suletta knows it doesnt only concern her. theyre a team.

also like how even though shes a little socially awkward goober, she knows el4n's about face is weird and doesnt make sense and pretty much immediately begins questioning if there was anything she might have done

we never really got to find out much about el0n did we? like what does he do? does he still learn the school things that el4n and his predecessors would have presumably been learning at asticassia? where does even come from? iirc we only learn about the whole peil AI used to pick the next ceo but where does the selection pool come from?

i really really hope that by this point in the story people werent still mean to suletta at school. she just sounds so fuckin dejected over her potential new friend turning on her so suddenly that it's hard not to imagine that people would pretend to be nice and then just make fun of her like those 3 girls did in episode 1

our tsundere bride won't be having any of that though

bless you nika for calling out this dumbassery

interesting to think about how shaddiq is the only one of the big three guys that doesn't just project their weird insecurities on suletta. both guel and el4n immediately think that her genuine honest-to-goodness kindness is some sort of backhandedness

this got me thinking back on sophie basically saying the same thing to suletta during their fight. and yea, makes sense considering sophie and whoever el4n originally was are part of the oppresed class in this universe

she was probably freaking out a little bit just like the rest of earth house right here huh?

i've seen enough posts calling the permet score gay thing an asspull but if we go back to this episode, it's literally the same thing but on a smaller scale since aerial hadnt even hit permet score 6 here yet

all of us where el4n when this happened

i can't really do this scene justice because when the replichildren silhouettes are on screen its only one at a time, but i just love how it transitions out from the silhouettes to the gund bits with their laugh as the only thing we hear

its weird and confusing on first watch but man is it great once you know whats up

smug bride

👀

how did people deny the eri/aerial theory?????

i know this is kinda played up for laughs because it isnt really until you rewatch that you realize that miorine's definitely smitten with suletta at this point. but i'm glad nika exists for being the sole person who saw past miorine's cold facade and noticed it too

i'm also happy zeonic is translating the light novels in full now instead of the LN only chapters because everything ive read up on about LN2 regarding this whole el4n arc sounds so good. yeah she was jealous as hell, but here she is being supportive while mistakenly thinking this is a romantic interest

such a fucked up callback lmao

i can't believe there were people who outright refused to watch the prologue. imagine just missing the emotional gut punch this scene is supposed to mean without that context

also god fuck belmeria for trying to argue with the peil hags over keeping el4n alive after failing. you know what you were getting yourself into. you shouldn't have done it at all in the first place

right so, i hope i managed to write up more or less what i had originally written before losing my post

episode 6 definitely marks a turning point for the series i think where we finally start leaving behind the slice of life school stuff we've been seeing and all the mysteries begin to pile up reminding you that the beginning of this whole story was a tragedy

excited for episode 7 because miorine rembran girlbossing is just great

[phtalogreenpoison]

MBS WIP Part 5! Final part everyone!

Meanwhile, as all of this is happening, life is just going on.  Milligan goes to work, Kate goes to school and writes her friends, and Moocho helps around the house and does his commissions online.  Another side thing that happens during this time is that Milligan sees Moocho’s workout routine, and he takes a calming breath and says to himself boy oh boy.  Then they do actually share workout tips (lol), but at the same time, Moocho is hesitantly putting feelers out there. Because, hey, he’s being paid by the man, even if it is a very family like setting, and he doesn’t know for sure what Milligan’s sexuality is, though he knows he’s supportive and open.  On the other hand, Moocho sees this incredibly kind and funny man who is trying so hard to be the best dad he can, which is really sweet.  So sue him, sure he had soft feelings because of that and also thinks Milligan’s competence at work is highly attractive, and while maybe it’s not love yet, he would not mind trying something out with Milligan.  Both of them do know they are putting Kate first and that her well-being is important in this situation, but you know, they are both mature adults and they act like that.  Because of this setup though, Moocho is waiting for Milligan’s cue after his initial interest, so Milligan is definitely the one to start the more serious flirting.

Now when it comes to love languages, Milligan is an acts of service kind of person as well as words about the people he cares about, whereas Moocho likes to show he cares through food and quality time, especially if it’s just quiet vibing together.  So, sure Moocho said flirty compliments here and there just because it made Milligan get shy, but he wasn’t going to go much further than that until he saw how Milligan responded.  And does Milligan respond.  Like he starts helping Moocho with a few of his projects, like cleaning the kitchen when Moocho was too tired to clean up for the night, like making each other breakfast or just any meals for the week with care.  They also start leaning into each other’s ways of showing affection, and they’re just genuinely trying to get to know each other or surprise each other with funny antics.

Now while this is all going on, Kate of course has already noticed them being domestic and trying to be subtle, though their affections are as clear as day to her.  And being the person she is, she’s like hey Milligan (because they totally are the first names of parents kind of family), why don’t you ask out Moocho yet?  Cue Milligan’s Pikachu face, while Kate just carries on talking, saying, I know you guys are trying to be considerate of me, which is great – (because they want her to have stability after years of uncertainty!) – but look, you’re both my parental figures, you know?  I don’t care if you have a relationship especially because you’re balancing all the other stuff really well, and I want you to be happy too!  Don’t just live for me, ya know, grow as a person?  You’re both going to be in my life either way.  Milligan is surprised and pleased but also nervous, because what if the relationship doesn’t work out, to which Kate responds well I trust both of you would figure something out because you’re both thoughtful and considerate people.

So armed with his daughter’s approval (Kate also had to have a similar conversation with Moocho), Milligan amps up his game.  His repertoire includes heavy looks, flirty compliments, and also stuff that he know he did when he was looking at a more serious relationship with his wife.  And oh isn’t that a thought?  Time has made that bittersweet with grief, but also joy because he knew that his wife had accepted this part of him and he’s moving on for their whole family.  So finally, when Kate is out for whatever reason, whether that be friends, school, a cool idea, or lessons, Milligan and Moocho are basically having an unacknowledged date that they planned but were too shy to officially declare it a date.  Maybe they listen to a record while they cook at home and then have a nice dinner, and maybe they watch a movie after dinner, a romantic one of course.  And as it gets to a kiss scene, Milligan is like wow wouldn’t that be nice to have?  And this is the first time they’ve addressed this directly except for when they had a very layered conversation about putting Kate first, so it’s kinda a big deal, sharp inhale and all.  So Moocho holds his hand or shifts up next to him, and Milligan tips his chin towards him and asks is this okay?  Are you sure?  And Moocho responds please.  They then start gently kissing each other, and honestly, they’ve worked towards this for a while.  For various reasons, it’s been a while since either of them has kissed anyone, but they’re learning each other and it’s really good.  And maybe then one of them accidentally brushes a tit or ass and they’re like oh my god yes, and here there is a fade to black (because I won’t be writing that part lol).

Their relationship then grows, making them both incredibly happy.  For the time being, they decide to stay as employer and employee until their relationship is stable for a solid amount of time, and then reevaluate, maybe just being boyfriends, to moving in completely, to being a family solidly with Kate, and finally adding on the role of husbands to being fathers.  They are honestly falling in love, accompanied by their lives with things like frantic phone calls or expeditions when Kate and her friends are in danger.  But it’s something they grow with, despite having disagreements or worries, especially when Kate decides to follow in Milligan’s footsteps for her career.  As they explore all the different aspects of their relationships, they work through their issues into being a really strong family.

Additional notes:

moocho is a house husband with his lil apron and baking and strongman tendencies

Milligan – working through grief – especially about his wife – going to Mr. Benedict

also them having a really cute date and Kate trying to interfere to make sure it is the best and it going wrong but it’s all just endearing

Milligan remembering being bi and being like wow I can’t believe I forgot that lmao (credit to milk I think? please remind me where this post is someone 😭)

grill dad milligan versus baker moocho and kate being the judge – and she invites all of the gang over for recipe tasting (courtesy of the fandom's belief in grill dad milligan, again please remind me who the credit goes to)

Grill dad milligan versus baker moocho as a silly at home date, and then kate comes in from outside to see her dads being ridiculous, so she of course has to be the judge – and she invites all of the gang over for recipe tasting

Anyways, if you've read this far or are just skipping to the end, I just wanted to let you know that now that I am done with the major plot outline, I will hopefully doing some one shots in this universe!! Stay tuned, but it may take me forever because I am a slow writer! (Bods can attest to this, I messaged them forever ago when i was new like ooh do you think i should post my au? and I also initially wrote the outline in December of 2022) Please let me know any constructive feedback if you feel like sharing, and if not, I hope you have a lovely day. :)

[crystalelemental]

Did you know that sometimes I write for stuff that isn't Pokemon? Unbelievable, I know. I'm back on MagiRevo. I've been reading the light novels, specifically got through the first three and finally received book 4 today, and listen. Listen. I am well aware that Lainie/Ilia is the canon pair. But Book 2 provided me crumbs, and I am a scavenger at heart, so consider: Lainie/Tilty.

First point! The crumbs in question largely come from how Tilty is presented, and how she acts in Book 2. This is somehow who is effectively a shut-in, does not like to interact with others, and only expresses interest in curses and the occasional Anis shenanigans. This is contrasted immediately when Lainie joins the villa, as Tilty is the one most directly helping get her powers under control, then starts showing up regularly at the villa just to check in on her. For someone who never leaves, and apparently never bothers going to Anis, this feels like a big deal.

Second point! Similarities do exist between their respective histories. Tilty has tremendous magical power that causes her to go wild when she uses it too much, the only solution to which is "never use your magic ever," making her exceedingly bitter about her own life and loss, and being the one most adamant about living for oneself. On the other hand, we have Lainie, whose powers have been a life-long curse that made people either adore her unconditionally, or loathe her based on the perceived slight of her not returning their attentions. Tilty receded into her manor due to her powers, but also out of choice. Lainie wants nothing more than to be left alone, but initially feels duty-bound to do what she can in service of others. Which is why she goes maid route. But like. You see where I'm going with this?

Third point! Okay come on, be honest with me. Tilty's basically the medical expert of the group and is super gloomy and dresses all in black and lives how she wants, while Lainie is a vampire that dresses all in white and is super mild-mannered and feels obligated to give back to people. That's a nice contrast, right? Do you feel what I feel? Are our hearts beating as one?

Probably not. I dunno. This is my first foray into specifically non-canon pairings. No all the Pokemon stuff doesn't really count; nothing is made canon so nothing is hardline unconfirmed either. This is the only time I've gone in defiance of canon for a ship. In what is, admittedly, a fairly small fandom space. I feel like if one person likes this one, I'd consider it well received. I wrote this for me. And that...might show a little. Look, I tend to write my relationships very PG, and while I wouldn't really call this anything serious, I aimed to make their engagement a little spicier than my usual fare. Which is like. "Mild curry made in the northeastern US" level spice, but I am prudish by nature and I have to build up the tolerance. I need you to understand, the first actual pairing fic I wrote where people kissed? I could not let this go while talking about it to my wife. Wife, do you understand? They're going to kiss. On the mouth. No, not with tongue, that is way too much, what do you take me for? I am a particularly repressed victorian maiden, I have to fan myself writing something like this and they're fully clothed. I'm trying my best, okay?

[millennialgrandma]

15 Questions/15 People

Rules: answer these 15 questions and tag 15 people

Thanks for the tag, @schmem14! This seems like an excellent way to put off the last few tasks of my work day 🙃

Are you named after anyone? Nope! My name has no familial significance. My parents just liked the names together.

When was the last time you cried? Two nights ago when I finally watched the third season of Derry Girls - those last two episodes took me the fuck out. WAIT. This is actually a lie. I cried last night watching Vir Das' covid comedy special on Netflix.

Do you have kids? No, but I have no shortage of little humans in my life that leave their smudgy little fingerprints on my heart 💗

Do you use sarcasm a lot? Honestly, yes. Though incrementally less as the years pass.

What's the first thing you notice about people? Oooohhh this is a thinker. Now I'm going "oh my god, when was the last time we saw people? Do we? See people?" 😂😂 I'm thinking back to a meeting I had a couple days ago, and I'd say the first thing I noticed when I walked in the room was what color of clothing people were wearing (there was an inexplicable amount of red in that room). This makes it easier to find them again after the initial noticing 😆 I'd say this is typically followed by their facial expressions/mood, so that I can vary my approach to how I interact to put the other person most at ease.

What's your eye color? Listen, this is actually a very big point of contention for me. At first glance, they appear brown. Just regular, run-of-the-mill brown. But CLOSE UP and IN THE LIGHT it becomes evident that around my pupil is a ring of honeyed brown, and then a lighter golden green, and then a darker green around the outside. The point is, there is GREEN in my eyes, and my entire family has been playing a game the last decade where they refuse to acknowledge the existence of any bit of green in my eyes and they are EVIL FOR IT.

Scary movies or happy endings? Give me a happy ending, but make me suffer so hard for it. I categorically do not like to be scared. That being said, I once went to a showing of Jaws where you float in tubes on a giant lake at night with the movie projected on a screen on the shore. Legs dangling, not touching the bottom, in the dark while watching a shark movie. There is only one explanation for the decisions that led me to that moment and that explanation is demon possession.

Any special talents? Yes, and that is my ability to make a disaster out of literally every kitchen I've ever set foot in. If I make something, I also make a mess. Those are the rules.

Where were you born? In the heart of the U.S. Midwest.

What are your hobbies? Does collecting hobbies count as a hobby? I'm actually so good at getting really interested in something, going balls to the wall, and then losing interest for 6-72 business months because something else caught my attention (see knitting, creative journaling, paper crafts). Reading is the one constant, and I guess writing belongs on this list now.

Do you have any pets? I like other people's pets, but I just don't think I'm a pet person myself, you know? We never had inside pets growing up. And I travel for work, so it doesn't really seem practical.

What sports do you play/have you played? I'm far more creatively than athletically inclined. Growing up I played softball and volleyball. I was a social tennis player (read: ya girl was Not Good™️). But I was more of a band/choir/theater/speech kid, and carried the choir and theater aspects forward into college.

How tall are you? I am 5 ft + 4.75 inches (or about 164.5 cm). Shortest one in my family. The only reason my mom and I are the same height now is because she started shrinking.

Favorite subject in school? Honestly, I loved every subject. I just loved to learn. Even in college, I don't think I could give an answer. I loved taking history courses. And I loved my finance and accounting courses because I adore financial analysis.

Dream job? I'm living it: a job where I get to interact with coworkers and the public; where I get to constantly learn new things; where assignments and teammates rotate; where I can apply for special assignments; that pays me a comfortable salary; that has great health and fringe benefits; that keeps me from getting bored.

Tagging 15 people feels exhausting, so let's go with a smaller multiple of 5 and say 10. Please feel free to ignore or participate as you are able (or please join in if you'd like to and weren't tagged): @akorah @eveningstruggle @whimsymanaged @echoesofmyfootsteps @juls99 @roseharpermaxwell @pia-bartolini @petalsfordraco @they-call-me-megs @sunlightdaydream

[thewhitefluffyhat]

State of the Blog 01.01.23

Taking a quick break from queues for an announcement: Happy New Year, all!

For this state of the blog update, I’ve decided to show my hand a bit and list every one of the many projects I’ve been kicking around. Think of this as a kind of New Year’s Resolution, perhaps? I certainly won’t get to all of these, but I’m making it my goal in the coming year to at least finish a few!

(And yes, if one of these piques your interest, feel free to reply/message/reblog/etc. No guarantees, but it would certainly move it up in priority!)

Multichapter Fanfics

-If the Fifth Found Out: AU in which the Reverend Parents invite a Fifth adept over to exorcize Wake’s revenant. Abigail and Magnus then proceed to discover a war crime, report a war crime, and adopt a war crime in the aftermath. (Or they try to, anyway. It’s complicated, they only manage to get Gideon at first.)

-The Mysterious Curse of Castle Drearburh: Rumor has it that any suitor who seeks the Reverend Daughter’s hand in marriage is cursed to die soon after. Cam and Pal therefore put on their detective hats to investigate… by using negotiations for Camilla’s marriage to Harrowhark as cover! A Canon Divergence/Fake Arranged Marriage/Mystery AU, where determining the divergence event is part of the mystery. Also featuring: my aroace Cam headcanons, and eventual Griddlehark.

-Butterfly Daze: Seemingly typical Griddlehark Modern/College AU with a supernatural twist. But is Kiriona’s new roommate a vampire? A cryptid? A ghost? Or just a normal, if traumatized kid? Turns out the answer is none of the above… and John, the loving father who has always been part of Kiriona’s life, may know more than he’s letting on.

-Puella Magi Nonagesimus 💀 Magica: Crossover with the setting of magical girl series Madoka Magica, and a continuation of this snippet. TL;DR: magical girls as an excuse for a Time Travel AU. The story is split  between the present day survivors in the wreckage of Canaan House, where Harrow and Gideon learn the ins and outs of being a magical girl while bodysharing, and Harrow’s wish-induced dreams of the past, where she and Gideon try to forge a better timeline.

Fanfic Oneshots, in order of more silly to more serious

-harrowhark nonagesimus does not like pizza: God orders pizza for the Lyctors on the Mithraeum. (Somehow.) This goes over exactly as well as you’d expect.

-Effervescent: In which Abigail is very confused as 200 dead Ninth children (led by a handful of shitty teens among them) attempt to crash Harrow’s River Bubble AU party.

-Growing Pains: Character study of ~13 year old Harrow, in which Gideon gets her first period and assumes (quite logically) that it must be another of Harrow’s attempts to kill her.

-All That Glitters: Harryanthe Arranged Marriage AU, where Harrow is running the riskiest puppet show of her life on the Third, Ianthe is initially pissed her dad is marrying her off to some weak-willed nun, and Yakety Sax is probably playing in the background as clueless narrator Coronabeth keeps dragging both of them off to various social events.

-Reverend Daughter for a Day: Back in their bodies and on the Ninth for [insert vague handwavy reasons], Harrow proposes that she and Gideon switch places. For one day, Harrow will be the servant and obey any orders Gideon gives her. No refusals, no limits. Naturally, everything that can go wrong, does go wrong.

Misc Projects

-Keep a Consistently Active Tumblr: For whatever reason, actually posting things as opposed to lurking is a major struggle for me, but let’s see how long I can keep this up! I’ve still got a few more analysis rambles on the backburner, and plenty of material for themed queues… the trick will be crossing that last step and actually putting them up.

-Gideon: The Last Bonebender: You know those “if TLT was written by a straight, cis dude, what would be changed?” satire posts? Imagine if instead, Gideon the Ninth was adapted for Hollywood by a straight, cis director. Just how bad could it be? Note: this is the closest project to being finished, but needs reworking to be less cynical and depressing. Oops...

-Gideon the Ninth for D&D 5e: A homebrew module that uses GtN as a jumping off point for a spooky dungeon and murder mystery adventure. Try your hand at the other Lyctor puzzles! Play out a full cavalier tournament between all the Houses! Attempt and probably fail to save Jeannemary and Isaac from their fate!  …And yes, someone’s going to have to become a Lyctor at the end. Not happening while the owners of D&D are being jerks, that’s for sure.

-TLT Fanfic Rec Lists:  At the moment, I’m up to August 2022 in my chronological journey through the AO3 TLT tag. And once I’ve caught up, I’ll have recs to share! Not sure if it would be better to do longer / broader topic lists, or lots of weird and hyper-specific themes like “Gideon Joins the Cohort AUs” or “Life on the Sixth” or “In Which Ianthe Is There.” Maybe a mix of both?

[forcebookish]

Hi! I just want to say that you seem really cool and I agree with a lot of your takes on only friends so far and I’m quite grateful for them (as a forcebook & topmew truther😅). There have been some things I realised that have relatively gone unnoticed by a lot of viewers that I feel like sharing if you don’t mind and I’m curious about your thoughts on them. 

I came across one of your posts about how Mew is actually not done with Boston yet after EP7, and I agree but I’m nervous about it. After Mew let Boston off easily in EP7, I was thinking “that felt like a pre-game to me😅”. Book also said that Mew was going to support Nick with something in one of the interviews. I don’t think the talk they had in EP7 counts, but the way the convo was set up was actually interesting to me.

My theory is that Mew and Nick knew each other way before than what the show presented us with (in EP3). That meeting they had in EP7 - it looked like Mew was the one who arranged it, which is kind of strange? In EP1, Boston gave Mew’s number to Nick for his phone number. There has not been any scene that has revealed Mew has Nick’s contact info (unless it’s a given since Nick works for them for the CCTV and stuff). When Nick and Mew were introduced to each other in EP3 by Chueam, she only said Nick was in charge of CCTV (she didn’t mention audio recording…). But Mew started off the convo with “Nick. I knew you were the one who recorded that audio clip…” - How does Mew know?

Someone on TikTok mentioned in the TopMew ice cream scene in EP1, Mew was so oddly specific about what he would (theoretically) do if he fell in love and got heartbroken - he would stalk his instagram, check his messages, listen to sad songs and cry. Initially I was like yeah that’s a textbook romance troupe. But oddly that was what Nick did. The way Mew said those things with certainty, could be based off someone’s experience🤷🏻‍♀️? 

I also want to point out in the beginning and ending of EP5, there were a lot drawings - which could be from Nick, since he majors in animation and visual design. Someone else theorized that Nick was probably watching the friend group from the sidelines for a long time, given that Nick mentioned he was ostracized often when he was younger. This is where I think it might lead into the next phase of Mew’s revenge against Boston.

Nick is likely doing a project at his internship company - which is doing CG work for a film production company. Imagine if Mew is feeding him information about the friend group - which leads to something similar to Lexi’s play in Euphoria? I’m also curious if that’s how we’re going to find out how this friend group got together in the first place. The way Mew can still have a similar psychological warfare on Boston and expose his misdeeds, but with something that’s not illegal or explicit like Boston’s tape. I can be wrong but this is something I had in mind. 

intriiiiguing🤔

hmmm, i'd just assumed that mew found out from ray who the recording came from since sand told him nick recorded it - although going back through it doesn't actually come up in their scenes together🤔 and the wording here makes it seem like he figured it out, rather than was told...

but he could be bluffing to protect ray? he is kind of coaxing/lying throughout this scene. or it could be a translation quirk, idk.

whether nick's been watching the gang or not is probably not as straightforward as that, although it does seem like perhaps he recognized boston from school:

it IS interesting to note that nick and mew had each other's phone numbers before officially meeting and might have kept in contact. there are a lot of interactions we don't see, so mew's comment about nick being nice could just be from them chatting while working on the project so 🤷‍♀️ however, i do believe that mew's comments about how he'd be "so into" top are more coming from personal experience and, you know, he is flirting lol so i wouldn't read too much into it.

i never put much thought to the opening/ending drawings in episode five, i kind of just figured it was one of the unique styles for individual episodes but there has been a lot of importance put on visual art throughout the show so🤔 i hAVE had a feeling that nick's animation subplot would have something to do with the rest of the gang or mew's revenge, especially if it's to avoid actually releasing revenge porn. (i haven't seen euphoria, but i'm assuming it's a play based on the real events of the group of friends?) although with how nick seems to still be trying to stay with boston, idk... unless they have another falling out? hm.

the last two episodes of mew spiraling out and even skipping classes have made me question if he really does have something more in store for boston, since it seems like he'd postpone revenge so he could stay an honor student but... i could also see why he'd get sidetracked by the actual heartbreak too.

i am actually extremely uncool but i'm happy you're here and enjoying my blog, anon!�� verrrry interesting ideas, thanks for sharing!💗💗

[hypnohumanoid-blog]

time for my tardis is a radio station au

TARDIS is a radio sation. doctor's companions fit perfectly as co-hosts, so that's what jack and rose are. after rose's disappearance, jack is a regular guest who captivates the audience's hearts. doctor: you're on air! a caller: finally! can you say hello to jack for me? no one sees it, but jack has such a victorious expression that it's painful to watch. "no rose we will not invite him to the show and yes he has a lot of great stories and a charming smile you met while he was selling you a non-existent antique relic at my request and yes he is a specialist rose no" when jack runs in with two coffees as an apology and a martini for himself, the doctor gets him on air and even though he kicks jack out when it's barely over, rose calls back the next day the fact that episodes with jack's appearance are getting more views than any of his hits the doctor to the core every time he sees the stats doctor: who drank all the coffee? rose: oh, it was jack. he worked overtime last week. doctor: he's getting fired. rose: we can't fire people just because you're too lazy to fill the coffee machine, doctor.

when the doctor vindictively doesn't fill up the coffee machine on precisely the day jack needs to work overtime, jack swaps sugar and salt and the doctor angrily spits the rest of the day jack is like "how do you like my new recipe" and the doctor is this close to kissing/hitting him doctor: you add alcohol to your coffee? jack: right now are non-working hours! doctor: sharing is caring doctor: jack, there's milk in my coffee jack: and? doctor: i don't drink coffee with milk jack: oh yeah! well, you'll remember this the next time you do your coffee yourself. jack, watching the doctor add 7 cubes of sugar to tea: someday you'll get diagnosed with diabetes. doctor: not before you'll drink yourself to death. a caller: hi, this is TARDIS? jack: it sure is! i'm jack harkness, and what's your name? ;) doctor: STOP IT

the TARDIS is the only workstation of the Gallifrey radio company after a massive disaster (including notable losses and blowed up buildings) initially, the doctor worked on a completely different project and almost forgot about his internship inTARDIS, but because of the disaster, he returns and is given almost absolute creative freedom which allows him to drastically change the station’s schedule half an hour before the broadcast, chat about anything of interest and somehow get access to news and songs that should be released at least half a day later jack, thanks to a murky past and an education suited for running and fixing things like components of the TARDIS, becomes a purveyor of on-air prep, fresh gossip and credible commentary rose thought the building abandoned, but after a brief explanation and assurance that no, this is not a drug den, she joined the TARDIS has an entire floor dedicated to the studio, with no rooms other than for recording and equipment, where the jack regularly fumbles and delights in somehow one hundred percent working ancient exhibits somewhere in all the rubbish, jack finds a gramophone and becomes delighted with the fact that someone else keeps such junk. rose and doctor dance to the music from it, once the gramaphone is repaired. after a tense scene, when jack is recalled to cardiff for a showdown (which took place, among other things, because of the doctor), the doctor changes the lock and when jack returns a couple of years later, his key does not fit, and neither music nor voices echo from inside he, of course, like any reasonable person, picks the lock and waits for the doctor for a year - becoming the host of another radio station, TORCHWOOD, because of course doctor took the spirit of the TARDIS with himself. i don’t know what to do with the timline, but i really want jack to be in a war for those two years, maybe taking place not in cardiff bonus if the doctor has experience as a war survivor (you can hear me sigh in ukrainian) bonus 2.0 if doctor and jack fight and then bond because of it bonus 3.0 if the doctor was helped survive the war by working in gallifrey and when the company collapses before his eyes and possibly because of him, it fucking hurts in short, i want the doctor to fuck up and get fucked up because of this, to fuck up jack. yet jack continues to cling to him until the Confrontation happenes and carefully, dancing on broken glass, they try to coordinate in a new cracked relationship without rose, because that rose is no more and they both mourned.  still, when music from an old gramaphone plays like on that very evening, they dance to the quiet rumbling of mechanisms, to soft sighs and unspoken lyrics, they dance and something shatters between them, letting them breath

[wikipediafag]

NBC Hannibal and *the Will Graham situation*

@two-captains im just gonna link your post here for future reference lol it was just wayy too long w both our shit so (HERE) thankss <33

We have basically the same character conclusion abt Will Graham so let's start there. Yeah, WG seems like he's autistic with frequent hyper/hypoempathy flip-flopping. It makes him capable of good projection (which the show heightens to Magical Abilities, to steal ur words lol) as well as prone to "turning off" his empathy when distressed. FOR HANNIBAL this is honestly not too hard for me to believe. Like they've asked us to roll with weirder. I'm autistic and a lot of my friends are, many of us have a similar but less drastic empathy problems/abilities coupled with projection skills. Unironically, Will Graham has the sad emo version of Abed Nadir's Dreamatorium HAHA

Side note: Unpopular opinion perhaps but I really like the way they visualize how Will runs through a crime scene in his mind, pulling the details away and then adding them back in order. Idk! I think it's a good idea to ground the nonsense in Something thats easier for the understand compared to Hannibal Lecter Literal Supervillian. And it's a great way to visually represent bottom-up thinking. It gets off-course as the show goes on, but that pilot intro???? At very least I'm so glad it wasn't Sherlock style LMFAO

They definitely go too far implying from the JUMP that Will is ~off~ hes soooo Spooooky like. Hello. That man is shitting bricks in every scene. They rlly just... started saying that and prayed we wouldn't argue. It's definitely weird, they almost always go wrong when they rely on tell-not-show and everything they showed us was Will being abused so..... very much not him being evil lol.

But, like you said, the part that REALLY rubs me wrong is the fact that we're just supposed to be okay with how much blame he's taking for insane amounts of coercion. I have no idea how we were supposed to believe that any of that was malice from him. AT VERY MOSTi would call some events, like the initial Garrett Jacob Hobbs overkill, negligence or reckless endangerment. Like, it's fucked up, but so much more of it is the fault of everyone else who put him in those situations knowing from day 1 that he wasn't mentally stable enough to be FBI. If it's negligence, it's on the part of Jack and whoever else signed off on him being in the field knowing he is not stable!!!

Every character uses it against him. Jack's abuse of it is probably the most egregious, second only to the guy who literally tried to saw into his skull so. Yeah. I really love the character tho. Lawrence Fishburn totally sold it imo. I think Jack's character doesn't get enough praise because.. well hes a shitty guy lol. Great character tho. Jack really does tie a lot of the emotional parts of the show together in a way that is FAR more believable. His dismissal is realistically selfish and he's very obviously in over his head. The C-plot with his wife was really interesting and emotional! Jack's treatment of Will is more condemned by the show I would say, with Alana pushing against him from a compassionate perspective. And there's what bothers me. Alana Fucking Bloom. oh my god. (sorry this is long lol)

Alana Bloom is a good character. I like her. Let's establish that, but I think the show regularly mishandles or misrepresents her characterization.

I'm of the opinion that Alana being with Margot Verger is weird and uncharacteristic bc she literally spent two seasons scared of Will like wtf. YOU CAN TRUST HER AND NOT HIM???? I think it's very weird they try to play it like she's an angel-turned-girlboss when her ACTUAL character as presented is incredibly interesting without all of the random details added later! See: "professional curiosity". It feels like they we're trying to "prove" she'd changed since S1.

There's a lot that could've been done with her gray morality that gets tossed just as quick as it's mentioned, leaving all of her main plot moments feeling.... off. I feel like they wanted her distrust of WG to make us legitimize the claim that he's Evil or whatever, but it really misses the mark, at least for me. She's kind and caring, but often picks professionalism above both. Her character was a debate on judgement and boundaries, if you're justified to be prejudiced if you're compassionate and/or correct. She just seems selfish with an extreme embarrassment about it. Then her character arc FULLY derails and she randomly stops being ashamed and Boom. Verger Baby. wtf. The Alana we see is far more like Dr. Chilton than the writers seem to think. At least when it comes to prejudgement in a psychiatric, moral, or social context.

I feel like you summed it up best w/ "It's like the show wrote two characters, will Graham in the dialogue of how everyone including himself sees him which is how we seem to be supposed to see him". It reminds me of the Midsommar arguments everyone was having back when it first came out, about weather or not it had a happy ending. I have the same opinion i do about Hannigram and Midsommar, that its awfully reductive to equate a character being pleased or satisfied or happy or whatever with a net-positive "good ending". I'd say Will is happy in his last scene, but he's certainly not sane or healthy. If you score based on protag's mood in their final scene, both Midsommar and Hannibal end on "positive" notes, but I don't think I have to explain why that's sort of irrelevant if you look at their plots for a second lol. It can be moving and passionate and your protag can be happy, but if there's serial murder and double suicide idk what to tell you kekw. Probably not The Good Ending, just a satisfying one.

I'd say Hannigram, as a whole, is a thematic departure. In my opinion, they never link it back around to fit in with the whole "psychological diagnosis is not an exact science" thing that Hannibal Lecter media tends to play into. just because Hannibal The Character believes that. It's here nor there imo, but it does feel like two concepts with similar enough emotions and aesthetics mushed together rather than weaving them together neatly. There is the Real Adult Life mental illness and trauma plotlines and... the Hannigram ones. idk. Both are interesting shows to watch! I'm a horror nerd lol I fucking love the romantic insanity shit, but together i think it loses whatever message they were trying to carry over from the Hannibal books.

Like listen. If you wanted it to be Super Fucked Up Murder Husband Show then why do they make it seem like Will actually harbors deep unresolved hatred for Hannibal until the end of S3??? like, he should. that's the sane thing to do. But if you don't want sane Will, then you have to commit to that and make that mf evil!!! They have thee most random catharsis moments, if you look at it based on characterization and plot. I think it's super easy to ignore if you're watching because the emotional beats land pretty often because. well. These actors are amazing. There's not much else to say. Its brilliant because of the cinematogrophy, og concept, and acting. Unpopular opinion perhaps but the dialogue is high-level mid, B+. It's only brilliant because we're used to TV being atrocious with dialogue.

#like it sucks in the way that. the way Hannibal is always superior always getting out of stuff is such bad main character syndrome

and ^ honestly i have this complaint of every single Hannibal Lecter media. they literally gave this dude superpowers lol wtf do you MEAN you can name the smell of Clarice's perfume from YESTERDAY through a WALL??????

anyway ya those r some thoughts and uhhhh Beverly stan club

[daylighhtrry]

Hi! I don't know if anyone has mentioned this already, since I haven't been much online lately but DWD was supposed to be released in Q4 2021, and holivia's initial end date was December 2021, just one year contract. When DWD got pushed back to this year, Harry decided to stop caring. He knows he will get money anyway, and his tour + US residency shows are the biggest source of income for him and his team. But Olivia is really invested in the success of the movie, because not only money is on the line but also her reputation and potential future jobs.

She's trying to milk this PR as much as she can, and she's desperate because the end is near (beginning of December is the time frame for the break-up announcement) . Harry's team want to distance themselves from her because they are already noticing how this circus is having an effect on Harry's image, and is destroying his fanbase. Hope they take this mess into consideration the next time they agree to a new project that requires PR.

-M.

I can't confirm what you wrote at the beginning, but I can completely imagine it, and it all seems realistic, even how much they overerestimated themselves, because now it's the subject of the whole joke and it does more harm than good, the film doesn't seem professional and convincing in any way , I don't think it's gonna be, it will end at any time, I think my calculations are close, one of them will definitely come out of this badly and it will probably be O, I don't feel sorry for her in any way, but you have to take into account that after the movie and after the relationship it's quite a steep slope you can count, Harry can be more comfortable again and have a freer hand, you write particularly interesting things, if you think so, write a dm !!