#their reactions are totally different

[noahtally-famous]

after publishing “hi, im dave”, the urge to write more stuff involving dave and his family (as well as him and noah interactions bc to me they’re family friends) both pre, post, and during tdpi has grabbed ahold of me

[ryllen]

"Don't u know what u're asking me with these?

'Abandon the sea, and stay on land'"

"Are you sure you know~ what u're getting into, Trey-san?"

[x] [x] [x]

[dindjarindiaries]

No way people are actually mad that Hunter and Wrecker are cautious of Crosshair

[celestialowlryx]

THE DRAGON PRINCE ↳ 1.02 "What is Done" | 4.02 "Fallen Stars"

[taiturner]

Shauna's been braiding Jackie's hair. She's been doing her fucking makeup. And you've been posing her, right? Adjusting her limbs like some fucked-up doll?

[slashthrashandcrash]

Julie told Danny what Frank's middle name was, so now that bastard can full name Frank any time he wants. He loves the expression of terrified 'Oh SHIT' every time he does it

New daddy issues trigger unlocked - idolized older male mentor scolding you with your full name

Danny has different ways of actually yelling at his stupid kids when he means it and almost always gets a reaction from them, I think.

Frank - full name, very stern, sends him away

Joey - asks what his mother would think

Julie - nothing, just ignores her which upsets her more

Susie - "I'm not mad, I'm just so disappointed in your choices"

[billpottsismygf]

73 Yards

I have slightly mixed feelings on this one, but what it did well it did brilliantly. The episode was beautifully shot with a fantastically creepy atmosphere throughout. The Welsh landscape, the close shots, the out of focus semper distans, the mystery of what was being said. Millie Gibson's performance throughout was stellar and this is the most invested I've felt in her character so far. I did miss Ncuti's presence somewhat, but it says a lot that she was able to carry the episode on her own and I do love when the format gets shaken up occasionally and we get a Doctor-lite episode.

I loved Kate's brief appearance and the way it sold the fact that this was a very serious situation. You think UNIT might be able to help here, but Ruby is once again left alone. The themes of abandonment in this one were incredibly potent and really tie into the themes of the series. Unsurprisingly, one of the most effective and upsetting parts of the episode was Ruby's mum also being affected by the mysterious woman. Her anguished screams for her mum were really quite harrowing, as was that awful comment about her birth mother not wanting her.

It also got far darker than I would expect in a Doctor Who episode. The far-right politician and the threat of nuclear war was plenty, but what was done to Marti was absolutely chilling, as was Ruby's apology for not doing anything. It gets away with it because it's all through implication, but that almost makes it more hard hitting. You don't always need to see the monster in action to know what it's doing. It also reminds me of my much younger self not picking up on the Master beating Lucy Saxon until I was a teenager.

The way time began to speed along was actually quite shocking to begin with - I actually gasped when we saw the 25th birthday cards - and it kept bringing to mind various other episodes where companions have been abandoned either in the real world or another timeline/reality, especially things like The Girl Who Waited, Turn Left, Forest of the Dead, The Lie of the Land, World Enough and Time etc. That things get undone at the end was again a little reminiscent of a few of them, but this is also where we come to my criticisms of the episode, because - while I loved the experience of watching it - the ending feels tacked on in a way that is very unsatisfying.

There were a number of things that just never get explained. For a minor example, why did the Doctor disappear? Disturbing the fairy circle released Mad Jack (I'll come onto him) and also made the Doctor disappear? And also made the TARDIS lock in a way that couldn't be opened with Ruby's key? I'm not as bothered by this as the below, but it feels messy and like an attempt to do a Turn Left without an actual reason for the Doctor to be gone.

A bigger gripe is Ruby being the following lady. That on its own would have been fine, but that combined with other elements just frustrates me. Mainly, if the following lady was Ruby, what is it she says to get people to run away? I don't mind things being left to the imagination - for instance, I quite like that we don't get an explanation for why she has to be 73 yards away; I can infer that that's got something to do with the fairy circle - but it appears that whatever she says specifically makes people think there's something horrifying about Ruby.

What could Old Ruby possibly say to that end and why would she? And why would the same thing make a Prime Minister resign? If we had never found out who she was, I would have been perfectly happy to infer that she was a force of some kind that drives people mad, but it's Ruby! Knowing who she is but not what she does or how or why she does it is the worst way round. I want to know neither or both, or possibly the latter but not the former, but this way round just frustrates me.

On that note, the friend I was watching with pointed out that, as she was dying, elderly Ruby had very short hair and suddenly has long hair when she becomes the semper distans lady. A small detail, perhaps, but one that further muddles the conclusion. Why did her hair change? Where did the coat come from? It's a different actress as well and, even at that distance, you can kind of tell. Did Old Ruby just end up embodying an existing spirit to do with the fairy circle? If so, I would have liked that to be a lot clearer. If not, why does she look so different?

Okay, so, Mad Jack. Who or what is Mad Jack? Is he a spirit of some kind that possesses Roger ap Gwilliam? Was he always Roger ap Gwilliam? Does Roger ap Gwilliam exist without him? If Roger ap Gwilliam does not exist without Mad Jack, how come the Doctor still mentions him? If Roger ap Gwilliam does exist without Mad Jack, what is changed by the Doctor stepping on the fairy circle?

In the version of the timeline we end up on (where the Doctor doesn't step in the fairy circle but Roger ap Gwilliam is still mentioned by him as a dangerous Prime Minister), here are a few possibilities and why they don't work for me:

Does he still become Prime Minister and get taken down another way? Perhaps, but it's not like Turn Left where we know the problems would have been stopped by the Doctor (who's not here). Without Ruby's infiltration and semper distans lady, what stops him? And why was that not able to stop him in the timeline we witnessed?

Is he less dangerous? The second time around of the opening conversation we don't get the line about the brink of nuclear war, though only because Ruby interrupts him to point out the woman, but maybe we can infer that this time he's a dangerous Prime Minister but not that dangerous? That seems quite weak and unclear, though, and seems to disregard the horror of the Marti stuff.

Does the timeline only change after the Doctor's comments about him being a dangerous Prime Minister? He does say that before stepping (or not stepping) in the fairy circle both times. I might be happy to assume that Roger ap Gwilliam never comes to power after that diverging moment has passed, except that things have already changed before the Doctor mentions him because Ruby says she's been to Wales three times. Maybe they've changed a bit but not enough until the moment she stops him from stepping on it, but that is not at all clear.

If it's any of these (or none of them), that's really confusing! It's just so messy and unclear. It would have been a simple fix, too! Keep everything the same and just add in a line as they're walking away at the end along the lines of "thank goodness he never got into power; people never found him that convincing". That would have clarified a) things have changed since a few seconds ago b) that Mad Jack is what allowed him to get to power and c) in this timeline, that won't happen and Ruby won't need to stop him.

Despite all my complaints, I did really love watching this episode. It's just so carelessly wrapped up, as if they didn't think about the implications of the otherwise very well told story. I'll be interested to rewatch it and see if my complaints bother me more or less on second viewing. I really want to love this episode because there were so many fantastic elements, but it just makes all the inconsistencies and loose threads and muddled logic particularly frustrating because they were only another draft or two away from being solved.

Misc small things

No theme tune! I feel robbed! Maybe it was meant to be part of the vibe that we're not in the usual timeline, but come on. It could easily have been slotted in when she left the TARDIS the first time or before she got to the pub!

Other episodes I thought of: Extremis with warning other versions of yourself; The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood with waving at future versions of yourself that disappear when things change; Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS with weird timelines and future selves and things being undone; Last Christmas with the companion becoming elderly; Turn Left for the vibes of "there's something on your back"; Under the Lake/Before the Flood with a silent message, since it looked like the woman was trying to sign things to Ruby; and The Sound of Drums/Last of the Timelords with the triple whammy of the companion having to 1) set off on their own to 2) take down a prime minister and 3) have time reverse.

It's also got a good old bootsrap paradox in it, which doesn't bother me in the way of the above complaints, but for the sake of completionism: How was Ruby warned about the future when that future hasn't happened? Would have loved Twelve to briefly pop his head in and explain it for us.

It's interesting that the snow stopped throughout this version of her life. It also seemed to snow while she was on her way to the pub.

Kate's comment about how "this timeline might be suspended along your event" was interesting and I wonder if it connects with the snow stopping.

For the first time I actually recognised Susan Twist when she appeared, but I'm not sure I would have done without Ruby realising she recognised her. I liked that! It felt very Boom Town and recognising Bad Wolf coming up again.

There was a little cameo from Mrs Flood.

[the-crooked-library]

IWTV characters are so real to me. my personality disorder has also caused me more angst and problems than my queerness ever did. the queerness is still a major theme though

[ja3hwa]

Hello, my darlings. With Dreamy series, which dilf other than Hongjoong and Seonghwa, would you like to see make a proper appearance?

We've already seen San and his husband Woo. But maybe the others could make an appearance? Who would you want to meet first?

[sysig]

He’s my little meow meow, my darling, my bbygirl (Patreon)

[littlefingies]

Me, starting to listen through yet another OFMD podcast and really enjoying the vibe and the intelligent discussions

Some of the takes start to feel a little weird, like calling Ed a coward and seeing Izzy as the arbiter of competence

The only response to the kiss in Act of Grace is "clearly this isn't their first kiss"

The "Edward better watching his fucking step" scene is only analyzed through the lens of consensual kink, the threats and homophobia aren't discussed at all

The entire conversation in "Impossible Birds" is centered on rhino horn as an aphrodisiac and Izzy as an abused spouse

Anyways I love an OFMD podcast so if you have any recommendations that are actually about the show please share

I'm not trying to publicly name and shame, but if you're also a podcast person and want to avoid this one, DM me

[oceanwithouthermoon]

what teruhashi haters are you referring to, i dont think ive ever seen any here?

hardly ever on tumblr, literally everywhere else though

[marinsawakening]

Something I really love about Impa (Skyward Sword) is that she's so gentle. Like, she's stoic, she's no-nonsense, she perfectly capable of being harsh, but save for her introductory scene, she consistently displays patience and kindness to the people she talks to. This is most obvious with Zelda, because that's whom Impa is in the best position to have these kinds of interactions with, and then again most obvious in the last scene with young Impa where she gently consoles an upset Zelda. But you can also see it in shorter moments, like when she mentions she'd like to plant a tree for Zelda to see when she wakes up. And even as old Impa, who's mainly here to infodump and has overall less personality than young Impa imo, you can see this patience and kindness in the way she interacts with Groose. She's firm in her convictions and doesn't sugercoat anything, but repeatedly encourages him and helps him realize his own talents and the way he can help.

I also think her body language plays a large role as to why she reads as so gentle to me despite not getting many emotional interactions with people: it's very controlled and minimal, relying on subtle movements and expressions. This is in contrast to most other characters in the game, who are much more overtly expressive. Obviously this makes her read as stoic (her more formal language also helps with that), but it also makes her read as very gentle to me. It's a much 'softer' style of expressing herself than the other characters in the game, and it means that when she does something like sit up a little before tilting her head slightly down when Link sasses her with 'Am I late?', or smiles and puts her hand on Zelda's shoulder to reassure her, it reads as more meaningful.

The biggest break in this pattern of gentleness is, of course, her introductory scene where she rips into Link for failing to save Zelda. Her furious expression right before the monologue is probably the most expressive we see her in the game, and this scene is the closest we get to seeing her lose her composure, save maybe for when she's defeated in battle by Ghirahim. She's still controlled and methodical, but clearly furious at having to save Zelda from capture. Full analysis of this scene is a different post, but suffice to say that it stands out against a backdrop of overwhelmingly patient and kind behaviour. It shows just how serious she takes her role to protect Zelda.

It's a very strong introduction, but it's a shame that it seems to have overshadowed the rest of her character for some parts of the fandom (especially those biased towards Link, which is unfortunately a lot of people). It's notable for just how unusually harsh she is in it; it is not the baseline of her character. That baseline is actually quite patient and gentle, a quality I wish more people would acknowledge.

[reno2005]

[carefulfears]

Explain what you said on Twitter

assuming that you're talking about when i said that imo the conversations around "scully, you're making this personal" aren't aligned with the intent/impact of the scene (actually i think what i said was that the scene is very serious but y'all never talk about what's serious about it so you loop back around to being unserious) and tbh i can do a post on my own feelings about the scene sometime when i'm feeling more with it if y'all want but i just meant that people bitch about that line every single day talking about how it's hypocritical and how infuriating it is and how much you hate mulder in s6 etc etc but i literally never see anyone even think about like...the actual meaning of the scene and implications of the line and the context and where they're each coming from. it's all just a very shallow and reactionary discussion in my experience

(i ended up talking more in the tags lol i never shut up in the tags)

[yuhi-san]

rewatching stampede ep 9 for my fic and the way knives talks to luida is interesting

like he is not talking about humanity in general but luida directly. as if she was some extension or version of rem, rather than a different person (although they are somewhat alike)

and yeah obviously knives is aware that loida and rem ar different people, after all rem is dead but still

i think it would be both interesting and funny if knives had in fact trouble telling people apart.

like looking at a bunch of dalmatins or whatever.

of cours he can tell the giant dude with a beard apart from the tiny lady or or the guy rocking an afro. but put a bunch of kinda short ladies in front of him and he can probably pick out one he is quite familier with but the rest looks all the same to him

is the giant dude with a berad that threathens him the same as 2 hours erlier or just another giant dude with a beard? who knows, who cares.

the only reason he can tell the two darks skinned brothers with afros apart is that one of them wears an obnoxiously bright yellow shirt (until he doesn't and knives is back to square one)

some bold man standing around a map to discuss something? might as well be looking into an egg carton from knives point of view.

also doesn't help that he does not car about telling people apart