#thank fuck we're back to s2 style titles

[haircoveredwriter]

Okay before anyone asks, yes I've seen the summaries of the 6 extra eps. Yes I'm excited about them, and hell yes I'm still zen and think Caryl is coming.

Let me regail you with an unsolicited word vomit about how I see things panning out. Feel free to scroll past this now if you don't wanna know or don't care. No hard feelings.

(Putting it underneath a break since it got longer than I meant it to be. And I can't figure it out of the app so here's my makeshift one)

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We good? Good.

So Kang really has put together the same formula we've been getting with Caryl for God know how long, except this time it looks like they are actually gonna hash some of their shit out. No more dancing around it or doing the Gimps special of just forget about it and it'll blow over with sunshine and rainbows. Actual talking. (Let's pick our jaws off the floor and continue.)

'Home Sweet Home' has them in their usual awkward place of not being able to deal with anything because they're dealing with Neg@n/M@ggie/Elijah (magic ninja)/the kids/did we just fucking destroy the whisperers??/does anyone have any snacks stuff??...the usual and instead of letting them heal they have become the group's caretakers. It's just a bunch of whoopie 😶 although we've seen clips where Daryl is already up to defend Carol's choices regardless of how mentally and physically exhausted he is. True love at its finest. Plus we know they talk a bit on some level and it leads us to them going off together in 'Find Me'.

Caryl. Alone. In a tiny cabin. Daryl opening up and talking about his past. Yes please. (I'll give y'all a min to laugh at Caryl having a cabin episode 😏😏)

Now the way it's worded sounds to me like Daryl has callbacks/flashbacks to a variety of things; 1- his childhood and dick bag daddy 2- his time locked in the cell at The Sanctuary which plays into Neg@n and can also link to things from the first one, and 3- how he had to just get away after R!ck "died" and Carol was in Kingdom land since it was too painful to be home. The last one I see him relating feelings more towards Carol, fearing she's gonna run since it's all over, deciding to open up about his other stuff in hopes he can delay what he sees as inevitably heart wrenching and soul destroying. Why is this important besides making him have sad puppy eyes? Because Carol learns some truths she didn't before (mostly about the whole Neg@n situation) and in true broken ZA queen style we've come to expect, she puts this issue and the self imposed guilt on her shoulders to fix they into way she thinks she can, what Daryl deserves to be distant from her and Carol is the one who decides in 'Diverged' that it's a super cool, fun idea they go different ways for reasons I can't pinpoint yet. She wants to go het something before going home....he should make sure everyone is okay while she looks for berries...she's gonna go find throw a couple rocks at the collapsed cave since she can't pour one out for Con©on...take your pick.

Any way you slice it, it leads to Caryl trying to function separately and failing like a couple of fleshing birds flipping out of the nest to waddle across the grounds, landing face first every 3 steps. Tptb ain't even trying anymore with that 'will this break Caryl forever and they'll despise the other for eternity?" Yeah, cus we all go on potentially one way road trips with a person we can't stand to be around. Come on guys. Put SOME kind of effort in.

Yes there is gonna be angst but I see it resolved by the end of the ep and Caryl fixing whatever never there crack the writer's pretended was there.

By 'Here's Negan' we have Carol "taking Neg@n on a journey to diffuse issues at home". I don't for a second see this as her leaving with him, her choosing to spend time with him, or them bonding over anything except for Carol laying down the law of how things are gonna be going forward if he gets to sticky around. If not then he has the choice to hit the road make his own way again. I hope she brings up some kind of hint as to how pissed she is about what she learned from Daryl and he's lucky she didn't know about it beforehand or he'd be walked bait by now. Give me some take no shit Carol all day y'all but Neh@n is gonna have his use in reliving his past life (Lucille) and give Carol a pep talk on not letting great things right in front her nose slip through her fingers before it's too late. He's gonna push her the same.way he made the girlfriend comments to Daryl until the light bulb goes off and her penny drops in the bucket, making her see what IDIOTS she and Daryl are being.

Basically, the ship is still sailing. Kang is aimed straight at canon Caryl and she's never waivered in her destination so we good fam. Settle in for the angsty goodness because it's gonna lead to the biggest release we've been waiting 10 damn years for. Get your popcorn and tea ready.

Caryl on.

[candied-cae]

I've Rambled About Our Flag Means Death Once or Twice

This is going to be an ongoing masterlist for all the OFMD stuff my brain does - it's somewhat organized by its subject/style with little descriptions! But if you wanna check out my fics or drabbles... Click Here!

Art: Ed has a big Kraken Tattoo on his back Fanart + Mitski's A Burning Hill

Stede diving into dangerous waters to save Ed from the Kraken Fanart + Mitski's Pearl Diver

Edits: Lovers? Partners in Crime? - a BlackBonnet edit of scenes from Eps. 8 & 9 to FINNEAS’ Partners in Crime

Clips: Look at Roach being the cutest crewmate ever, please

Wee John Playing the Piano - god I love him so fucking much

Proper Thoughts:

Their Flag Means Death, Because They May Begin Again - a short comparison between the title of the show and Lucius's line in ep 10 and what they mean thematically for The Revenge operating as a safe haven

Ed and Stede didn't believe they were really allowed to love until it happened

How Ed and Stede learned about Love - long post analyzing how Ed/Stede's lives affected their perceptions of love and how they realized they loved each other

How Ed and Stede Mask themselves - long post analyzing how Ed/Stede's lives have shaped how they walk through the world. Ed learned to mask through his personality to survive while Stede learned to mask through his actions to survive.

Stede was so Traumatized, can we not bully him please? - I know Stede leaving Ed hurt, and I hope we're all just being silly, but bestie went through a lot over the course of the show.

Why Stede believes he breaks beautiful things - short summary of all the bad things Stede blames himself for in Ed's life, aka why Chancey was so easily able to convince him to stay away even after he died

What if Stede told his crew he was worried he was cursed in S2? - Frenchie and Buttons are going to assure him it's not as silly as it seems. It's very serious.

Mary's Painting and Stede's Model Ship - a comparison on the gifts they gave each other on their anniversary and what they meant

I think Stede got dressed to leave a long time before he left - a smaller analysis on all the building stresses in Stede's life that led him to wear his day clothes under his pajamas (which I believe he did for many nights before) the night he left.

Who is Stede as a Father? - an analysis on how Stede behaves with his bio children in contrast to his crew children

Stede Bonnet is Bound by Duty - analysis + headcanons of Stede's relationship with responsibility and how it lead to him and Mary having Alma and Louis despite their lack of affection

What would happen if Ed tried to call Stede his "baby"?

Ed mentioned dying to a jungle cat, and maybe he'll hear about Stede and worry it was his fault he died like that

Let's not compare Ed to an Abusive Ex, thanks - a response to someone saying Ed becoming Blackbeard post-Stede/Izzy was like an Abusive Ex, they also compared OFMD to GO which- no

If only Ed had asked Buttons for Advice before Izzy broke him

Why Ed thought he had to kill Lucius

Izzy Hands was what really broke Ed - Stede leaving Ed really hurt him, but among his crew he was actually healing, until Izzy threatened him. That's when he spiraled.

Izzy Hands and why he's willing to break Edward to secure his hold on Power - a long analysis specifically comparing the interactions Izzy has with Ed in Episode 4 vs. 10 and why he does the most detestable things in the finale

Ed x Mitski's Francis Forever and Remember My Name - a messy analysis of Ed's character rollercoaster compared to two beautiful Mitski songs

I want Ed to have a "You're a Bad Friend" Moment with Izzy

Izzy called him "Ed" as a power move, Stede calls him "Ed" because he loves him

Izzy doesn't love Blackbeard, he loves controlling him - long analysis about how I see all the different scenes between Ed and Izzy, and it looks more and more like Izzy barely even cares about him and is just trying to gather as much control as possible.

Anyone else notice Izzy being racist in Ep 9?

Silly Stuff: Voltron Rhys Darby is why I started OFMD

What are Ed's Tattoos?! I NEED TO KNOW!

I thought Ed was gonna fuck Lucius in that one scene tbh

Black Pete's going to go from Blackbeard #1 fan to his biggest hater when S2 drops and I'm so excited

The Crew of The Revenge has called Stede "Mom", you can't convince me otherwise

Rhys and Method acting for Stede Bonnet? Fucking Never.

I love Stede making sure Bridgetown leaves Ned alone after his fuckery