#the real stupendous yappy

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

my favorite scully and mulder moments from s3

mulder bursting into his apartment in episode 2 after actually returning from the dead, only to find scully and skinner holding each other at gunpoint. he immediately asks if she is okay and pulls HIS gun on skinner, too (yes, he WILL threaten to kill their boss for her, thank you very much)

(and then they have this moment where they reunite for real and she smiles at him- i thought they were going to kiss but they didn’t, but either way it was so precious and genuine it made me lose my mind)

this exchange in the disease center archives: “lots of files” “lots and lots of files” yeah <3

after they flee through the back exit of the archives escaping what seemed like the entire US military, they meet skinner at a little diner in maryland, with all things seemingly forgiven between them

how he holds her after she learns melissa passed away, and how they both agree that they need to get back to work in order to keep them from going mad with grief (they were both in mourning at the same time- his dad's death was still very recent- and it is so touching to me how they were there for each other at every step)

they way they glance at each other while the “psychic” stupendous yappi is making incredibly vague claims about the killer at the crime scene in episode 4 (omg... does anyone have this gif?)

(and when the psychic claims that mulder has “negative energy” and needs to leave the room, she leans in and says “i can’t take you anywhere)

later in the episode, he comes in with the news that the item at the crime scene was made of chantilly lace, and he says “you know how i like it” in reference to the song by the big bopper. she makes the FUNNIEST face!!! it's a momentary mixture of horror and disgust before she composes herself. it is hilarious, i’ll see if i can find it. then she slaps a file on his chest and wishes him good luck in observing bruckman.

also, he is nearly killed in that episode, and scully shoots his would-be murderer- then they have one of those “comforting each other on the floor after nearly dying moments” that are like catnip to me

“imagine if it were true, scully. imagine if you could come back and take out five people who had caused you to suffer. who would they be?” “i only get five?” “i remembered your birthday this year, didn’t i?” <3 (from episode 5)

in episode 7, scully noticed that mulder had been carrying dental x-ray plates throughout their whole investigation, but never bothered to ask why because they were at the point in their relationship where such things do not need to be discussed

scully learning in episode 9 that she is slowly dying from the tests they performed on her while she was taken, and breaking the news to mulder- how he softly says “but you’re fine, aren’t you scully?” because he cannot bear to lose her (AUGHHHHHHHH) (and she confesses that she doesn’t know if she really IS okay… why do they place so much sorrow on her shoulders?)

mulder trapped on a ticking time bomb of a train in episode 10, calling her to say “scully, let me tell you, you haven’t seen america til you’ve seen it from a train” “DAMN IT MULDER, WHAT HAPPENED?!” <- lmaooo he has this constant Need to diffuse tension with a quip

scully is going through A Lot of Emotions in episode 11, and when it is time for them to go, mulder holds out her jacket for her to put on <3 and then goes and does the statement by himself as per her request so she can go “run an errand” (confession for the first time in 6 years), which he obliges without question

so much of the episode 12 dialogue: “mulder, you’re not thinking about trespassing onto government property again, are you?” “it’s too late, i’m already inside” (incredibly deep scully sigh) “well, what’s going on? what do you see?” <- yeah that’s them. if you’re gonna break federal law, at least tell her about it in depth.

scully sleeping with her phone on her pillow, waiting for another of mulder’s calls. when it finally comes, he’s going on and on about bambi and she is clearly displeased. finally, he asks “scully, can i confess something to you?” and she VISIBLY winces, with pain in her voice, but pushes through and says “yeah sure, okay” (this one KILLED me because she did NOT want to hear about his love life but she wanted to be a good friend... scully is so kind)

(and all he had to say was that he hates insects lmao)

((and how the episode starts with the two of them making a planet of the apes reference, then ends with bambi and dr. ivanov flirting by making a different planet of the apes reference))

mulder is losing his damn mind in episode 14, hadn’t slept for days, and was sneaking out to a crime scene. scully is so worried she tells him to stay exactly where he is and that she will be there soon so they can “work this thing out together, okay?” trying to talk him back into being himself, making sure he is safe... that's partnership <3

in episode 16, mulder gets in a car crash, but wakes up to find scully next to him in the hospital. he has a bandage on his head looking all pathetic, and she greets him with a smile. i wanted to bottle this moment and drink it like fine champagne.

their drive to north dakota after scully confronted the man who shot skinner and her sister- how tense that ride had to have been. what did they say? anything at all? i need to know, i need 10 fics NOW

and their conversation at melissa’s grave- how they both bring flowers, how he touches her shoulder, the way she shares her father’s friend’s theory that the dead speak to you from beyond the grave, which is a conscious. and how he, the man who is always pondering the meanings of life and death and what comes between, says honestly “that’s interesting. i’ve never thought of it that way” 

her falling asleep on his shoulder during the stakeout in episode 17; how he lightly taps her face to wake her up and says “i think you drooled on me”, which prompts a very fast and very embarrassed apology (!!!!!!!!!)

(also, pusher kept calling mulder "g-man" over the phone, so when they hang up he turns to her and calls her "g-woman" <3)

their very excellent coordination between scully grabbing the fire extinguisher and mulder using his jacket to douse the flames that episode

(and all the times in pusher they lean their heads together to share a phone <3)

when mulder has to go into the hospital to catch the pusher, he leaves his gun behind so he won’t hurt anybody- and he’s terrified and so is scully, so they look into each other’s eyes while holding hands before he departs

how she runs into action when he is in danger in the hospital; how she interrupts his game of russian roulette with pusher, and how she SCREAMS when he puts the gun to his head and pulls the trigger; that visceral "damn it, mulder!" filled with so much emotion in just a few words

how he fights the pusher’s mind control to prevent shooting her harder than he fought the mind control that made him fire at himself (!!!)

and after mulder escaped, having fired every round into pusher so he knew he wouldn’t hurt anyone else ever again, he watches as he is on life support. scully grabs his hand, having seen how terrified he had become, and tells him not to let this man take up any more of his time.

in episode 20, they receive roky’s fantastical report on his men in black encounter, which mulder reads aloud while scully lies on the bed of their hotel room, looking baffled (it is so CUTE!!!)

waking up to mulder in her room soon after that, having been under some mind control influence the night before, wondering why he was in there, and mulder trying to explain no, she actually invited him in!!

walking into the bait shop together in episode 22, sharing an umbrella while she holds the dog's leash <3

mulder offering to join her walking her dog, but she smiles and lifts up her jacket to show her gun and says she’ll be fine 

the whole conversation on the rock, but some highlights include “hey scully, do you think you could ever cannibalize someone?” and how she compares him to ahab (they’re both “so consumed by your personal vengeance against life, whether it be its inherent cruelties or its mysteries, that everything takes on a warped significance to fit your megalomaniacal cosmology”, which he responds to with “scully, are you coming onto me?”)

but then he gets very serious, talking about how he wishes it were enough to just Persist Despite It All and be free of expectations, how he loathes that “you’re actually expected to make something of your life- achieve something, earn a raise, wear a necktie”, and he is the antithesis of ahab because he might be happier with a pegleg. and god, that one makes me emotional.

(and then they both quote a line from the book <3)

oh, and i could not finish this list without this banger from episode 23: “he’s lied to me from the beginning. he’s never trusted me” “scully, you are the ONLY one i trust”

(cue tears as scully collapses into her mother's arms) (cue tears at mulder's dogged persistence he could bring her back, but it took a mother's love instead) (and cue tears that such love had been extended to him by mrs. scully, so much so that she knew he would never, ever threaten her baby)

[all-eyes-lead-to-the-truth]

All Eyes Lead to the Truth | D.P.O. (3x03)

Sometimes durin’ the lightning storms, Darin liked to listen to his Walkman while sittin’ under the big oak tree out back. No one ever told him that was dangerous, but after he was struck, everyone sure liked to tell him it was his own fault. 

Darin didn’t understand how he was expected to know stuff like that if no one ever bothered to tell him. It felt like people enjoyed callin’ him stupid so much that they never wanted to teach him nothin’ and spoil their fun.

He might’ve been a slow learner, but that didn’t mean he didn’t pick up on things.

Darin could look at a car and know the name and model. If he spent enough time on a video game, he could usually get a high score. He could tell when electricity kept actin’ up wherever he went that it might’ve had something to do with him.

The first few times it happened, he just thought the wiring in the house was goin’ to shit. But after several ‘power surges’ and ‘freak accidents’ happened in the span of a month, he saw a pattern. Something would set him off, then the electricity would act up.

He spent weeks practicing. Darin was pickin’ on his Ma there for a while, gettin’ her riled up so that she’d say somethin’ mean and make him mad. That never took long, but after a while, Darin realized it was better when he didn’t really get upset. When he did that, he couldn’t control the electricity very well. Instead, if he just let his emotions build up inside, and if he concentrated real hard, he could make stuff happen. He could make flashlights with no batteries turn on, he could start a car from twenty feet away, he could change the TV station like he was a human remote — he could do anything he wanted.

His power was too cool to keep to himself, but Darin knew he needed to practice before showin’ it to Zero. If he performed a bunch of magic tricks or hocus pocus mind games like the Stupendous Yappi, Zero would think he was lame. 

It had to be somethin’ cool.

After a while of tinkerin’ with his powers, Darin stayed after closing time at the video arcade and said he had a surprise. Zero was disappointed when the surprise wasn’t beer or bud, but after seein’ his name spelled out across all the machines, watchin’ a bolt of lightnin’ strike right outside the windows, and hearin’ any song he named come outta the jukebox — he was impressed.

“So… this was from you getting zapped in the field?” Zero asked, in between swigs of his soda.

“Yup,” Darin nodded. 

“That’s sick.”

“I’m like that fast guy from the Justice League,” Darin chuckled.

“Barry Allen became The Flash because he huffed too many fumes, dumbass,” Zero replied, always feelin’ the need to correct him.

“Still was lightning wasn’t it?” he spat back.

“Sure, dude.”

It was times like these he couldn’t tell when someone was just agreein’ with him ‘cause they didn’t wanna hear him talk no more or if they actually thought he was right. It made him feel stupid he couldn’t tell the difference, but he didn’t wanna feel even more stupid by asking and lettin’ someone else know he couldn’t tell.

“Whatever, man. My powers are way cooler than the Flash’s anyway. If I needed to go fast, I’d get a McLaren F1,” he shrugged.

“Well technically, the Flash has more than just super speed. He has super strength, time travel-”

Darin’s frustration built as Zero kept rambling. He hated feelin’ like an idiot. If he had the comic collection Zero did, he would’ve known all that too. His Ma refused to get him any when she realized he was mostly just lookin’ at the pictures. They wouldn’t have pictures in them if they didn’t want ya to look at ‘em.

Darin felt a surge of indignation burn through his body, and at the same time, the power in the arcade shut off. The suddenness of it all caused Zero to stop talking. When he realized what he’d done, he felt embarrassed for lashin’ out like that and quickly turned the machines back on.

“Hey, I’m real sor-” 

Darin faltered when he looked over at Zero. He was starin’ at Darin with a funny look on his face. It was the same face Zero made when their homeroom teacher caught them lookin’ at the March ‘93 Playboy. It was the same look he got whenever his Mama knocked on the door while they were smokin’ reefers. 

His friend was scared of him, and it made Darin feel powerful.

“Bet the Flash can’t do that, can he?” Darin laughed, every hair on his body standing straight.

It took Zero a moment to respond while he waited for his balls to drop, but when they did, he shook his head firmly, “N-no, dude. No way.”

Darin was grateful that his powers made him run hot, ‘cause Zero’s hands were trembling as they checked on the machines throughout the arcade. “S-so, are you going to show anyone else what you can do? I bet you could get a special on Jerry Springer.”

That brought a smile to his face. His Ma would probably keel over if she saw him standin’ next to Jerry. “I think I need to tell Mrs. Kiveat. I keep callin’ her every time I pick up the phone. I think I’m scarin’ her.”

“Have you tried maybe not doing that?”

“No shit!” he snapped, causing Frogger to hurl himself into the road. “It’s like the phone knows when I’m was thinkin’ about her.” Probably because he was always thinking about her. Maybe he couldn’t stop it because his love for her was the one thing he couldn’t really control.

With his new powers, he could have anything, but all Darin wanted was Mrs. Kiveat.

Read the rest of All Eyes on Ao3

@gaycrouton

[aion-rsa]

Evil Season 2 Finally Indulges Creepy Doll Horror

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This Evil review contains spoilers.

Evil Season 2 Episode 12

Pinocchio, your strings are showing. Creepy dolls don’t have to walk, talk, or wet themselves to capture paranoid attention. Chuckie, Annabelle, Talking Tina, and the Killer Krusty Doll from The Simpsons’ “Treehouse of Horror III” all bring solace to some, and torture to others. Eddie graduates from recurring character to monster-of-the-week in Evil season 2 episode 12 “D Is for Doll,” but will he live on in future episodes, or become another loose string in the fabric of the series?

As a favor to Kristen’s (Katja Herbers) therapist, the team is watching a man whose son is being pushed around by what might be a demonic infestation, or it might just be a doll which has seen too many Twilight Zone episodes. After a search of the house, a doll is found wrapped like a mummy, in a box which is secured by chains, which has water damage not caused by weather or pipes. The entire attic where it is found smells “like something died” in it, according to Ben (Aasif Mandvi). The object doesn’t breathe, move, or talk. It appears to be an inanimate, hand-made creation, but it communicates with its owners. The now-deceased mother of the battered fifteen-year-old gave the doll treats, and did whatever it wanted. Until she didn’t, and died.

The little boy who Kristen’s daughter Lynn (Brooklyn Shuck) babysits also follows his doll’s instructions. He doesn’t even want to play hide and seek in his own house, because his Eddie doll doesn’t like to share, and doesn’t play well with others. All this seems to mean the doll communicates, but it can also be something communicating through the doll. During one sequence Sheryl (Christine Lahti) finds herself in possession of more than one of the porcelain-faced figurines she makes financial sacrifices to. They are not the only Eddie dolls on display during the episode, but while Sheryl seems genuinely surprised by the extra toy friend, she knows exactly what to do with it.

Having two dolls present at a ritual appears to add power to the proceedings. The sequence reminded me of the film The Ninth Gate, where the real directions for a true satanic ceremony is spread out among three books, and knowing how to decipher Lucifer’s cipher. Edward (Tim Matheson) is playing a dangerous game with Sheryl. For himself, of course, she gets a little slap-happy towards the end. Edward thinks he can teach a Pavlovian dog new tricks, but Sheryl’s bark has more bite than he can chew. He does leave a nice parting gift – a family heirloom which doubles as its crest on the tablet of sigils. We don’t yet know the significance of the cryptic scroll, but it looks like a pre-digital Ancestry.com for demon spawn.

The generational specimen, kept in a mason jar, interacts very well with the two Eddies.

“D Is for Doll” opens with Sister Andrea (Andrea Martin) pouring the aggression into passive aggressive power plays. T is for trouble when the good sister is doling out the sugar cubes. She and Leland (Michael Emerson) have been performing graceless duets since their first pirouette at knifepoint, and are highlights in any episode. Leland is trying to make headway with Monseigneur Matthew Korecki (Boris McGiver), desperately squeezing his attention between his job as a hellcat and the interloper standing in his way. Leland is pressuring the Monseigneur into giving him a full-time position at the church, overseeing the recently possessed and offering counsel and consolation for their continued contrition. Sister Andrea is such a force in the room, she is basically cast out by the most superior official. It is a perfect beginning, comic, tense, and conspiratorial.

Sister Andrea’s scenes with David Acosta (Mike Colter) are no less spectacular, though far more intimate. The two characters are truly in a world of their own, separated from even their peers by a real calling, and a true mission, and the actors who play them leave emotional restraint at the door. Each has been more vulnerable, but together they are able to examine the root cause and determine personal responsibility. Martin and Colter allow doubts, recriminations and defiance full reign in their immediate consciousness, but never once lose perspective or make a false reach. They say twice as much because they make apparent the ideas they are biting back. In a sense, it’s as much fun as watching Kristen in the wine barrel during “S Is for Silence.”

The other unsung fun moment comes from a very unsuspected character, Kristen’s therapist Dr. Kurt Boggs (Kurt Fuller). He’s decided to follow the team around on their latest investigation. It’s part of his finder’s fee, he brought the case to their attention and is owed bigtime for being bashed by Kristen’s paranoiac outburst. He wants to write a book about it, he tells Ben as the Magnificent one is listening to walls creak. Is he annoying? Yes, but it is all worth it for the way Boggs says “no” after Ben asks if David approved of his kibbitzing.

The countdown to ordination is running down and David is playing the field. But he’s not one for ex-priests who think the Catholic Church is too much like the mafia. David has more of a problem with Gregory Biel, the layman expert called to exterminate the demonic infestation, but who is really there for comic relief. His performance recalls both The Stupendous Yappi (Jaap Broeker) from The X-Files, and Mr. Bookman, the library detective from Seinfeld. If Leland gets any say in the investigative team’s personnel, Gregory is the obvious choice to replace Kristen. It’s written in his book, the “Gospel of Gregory.”

The “D Is for Doll” page in the Pop-Up Book of Terrifying Things MMXXI comes late in the episode, because Evil is toying with us. Eddie may correspond to the sigil or counteract its hierarchy, but it might be in need of a full set. Sheryl should try Etsy.

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Evil airs Sundays on Paramount+.

The post Evil Season 2 Finally Indulges Creepy Doll Horror appeared first on Den of Geek.

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