#these 2 eps were better than the entire show send tweet

[gunsatthaphan]

“there’s nothing we can do anymore.”

[incarnateirony]

15.13+

This year-old tweet of Merecuda’s becomes truer by the day. 

So I’ve said I’d collect old posts I’ve made over the past few years involving perennial philosophy as they apply to our current episode, rather than beating the same horses to death I’ve been banging on for years. That way if people missed/forgot these they can find them without me writing entire-assed new essays but rather find how they’re binding into the current episode -- as well as later-down link collections of thoughtbursts I had about the episode itself.

14.10: The numerology of Billie’s Book -- reality, matrixes and more; god’s understanding of the universe through the universe and the purchase of the extant universe.

Pre-ep-300: Aesclepius -- the dreamer, the healer, the serpent, the climb to divinity

Pre-14.14: Ouroboros, Jung, the Shadow; Nehushtan, the brazen serpent climbing the tree and more. Keep in mind the crucified serpent stuff in here because we’ll swing back to it.

Pre-14.18: Hermetic Absence; the human soul is the one true good. What we call evil is the absence of it. Later the episode itself swung around and quoted it so YOLO.

14.20: 

Optimism vs Nihilism; Hermeticism vs Gnosticism; the demiurge, the Truth and the Shadow. Also, see more on the Truth at this second link (x)

A cosmic game of chicken Jack being both later script-confirmed over here. (x)

Jack as the Orphic Egg, Phanes, the golden child, son of the serpent in the garden, the Big Bounce Impending.

The Empty, the Shadow, Reflection, the Lack of Soul, “Now I’m just Empty.”

S14-15 hiatus:

Old cosmogenic theories that may or may not still work.

The Shadow, Animus, Anima, God; the dance with the serpent and the cosmic marriage post-divorce -- big yike I said it was too Destiel yet here we are. Use this accessory post (x) to see the ranking of shadow/animus/anima in the video a little more clearly.

Inner worlds, we all have them, so to whom does Eden belong? After all, compare Michael’s world for Dean to Chuck’s for the rest. And I ask you to think outside the box for this (x)

A longwinded conversation about the nature of souls (x)

The Three Principles 

...just... this to think on with the rest (x)

15.11: The return of the Son and the Sun portends the revelation that the ego itself reflects light given from the sun and the soul, including the collective soul of the above and beyond, as well as a whole bunch of other stuff (phases of paths, the goddess, and more)

Once you get this far meditate on this for a bit from 15.12, given I stole the preview of the snake for it, and remastered one of my S14 spec vids for it (x)

AND FINALLY WE HAVE REACHED 15.13

Neshamah in the garden: the manifestation of the divine feminine opposed to eve as the essence of the soul or spirit in pre-fall Eden, and her connection with the unconscious serpent.

About the cross showing the way and it’s enduring relation to all above themes -- hell, that shape of cross even has meanings (x) as well as this, to the same theme,

but focusing on the sacred marriage elements more than the elements of the soul Reflected in the first link (x) Given the divine marriage itself is a whole other topic I’ve spammed to death including my old Eucharist video from 15.09 (x)

but with a long video track backwards that really requires just navigating the playlist once the above is soaked.

Also my next S14 video to remaster like I did Grudge based on the few above links (x)

and this old chart y’all are probably sick to death of that the goddamn yellowing snake fucking asked

These collective thoughts bundled, if once you’ve read them you still have questions, feel free to send asks.

Also yet again, Cas is the only one the Empty puts on faces for. His death and inky shadow didn’t work to keep him down (Shadow, primal state). His own didn’t work to put him down (Animus, Albedo, masculine ego). Meg’s didn’t work to put him down (Anima, Citrinitas, feminine superego; a fun choice when demon-searching rather than using Dumah again despite her resonance with Sam’s anima in TMWKTM and EXCELLENT opportunity to let Rachel cameo; but Cas has been at minimum in the yellow since last year and we’re not rich in opportunities to get Rachel back so it definitely worked while Cas was stumbling around in oblivion to revisit it while the rest of the guys grow into Citrinitas). 

Or you know, the literal shadow or blockage of these things as they stand with the above material (not really too unlike Belphegor as the ruler of Thagirion contrary to Tiphareth, which that GOD DAMN CROSS from 13 literally represents.) I AM EXCITE for 15.18 to see who’s face it takes next (in Rubedo, the Self and speaker of truths). And recent on set scene/event leaks minded, I think we have a pretty good idea. So I am even MORE excite. 

I really just saw Nehushtan and Neshamah talk to Phanes in the inner garden before the fall of man asking “Who are you?” in the yellowing phase of this show with the reddening impending in 15+ and I need to be let out of this box.

When I spent more than 2 decades of my life studying perennial philosophy I wanted the secrets of the universe, not the secrets of a cult fiction TV show, and frankly, I need a refund, please pull this snake out of my ear.

BuckLeming were kinda handed the inability to fuck up with as advanced as the hermetic lore has become over the last few years, but I’ve gotta say, they handled unusually well. I’m also quite fond of the Emperor-Empress-Aeonchild imagery being incorporated with the Golden Dawn/Rosicrucian/Christianized elements rather than the more alchemical abstract deliveries that whiff over people, because maybe JESUS MARY JOSEPH will ring a few bells better than colored and only loosely gendered abstracts of development, especially since they haven’t been overtly labeling things Emperor or Empress as much as depicting them with all other associated quotes and symbolism to date. Though I don’t consider 15.02/03 subtle in its delivery of the goddess role in any respect.

This is the second time the Emperor has passed his sphere to the empress. Only this time, rather than the hermit brother choosing not to initiate it for the cost, it was passed from the Empress to the child and brought us to the inner garden to find the truth of the aeon and really, I’m not okay right now, send help

(And summore x) and even (summore about the inner garden, the soul, the proto adam and divine feminine, the symbol above and a whole bunch of hoohah x) -- Yes I just linked you an entire google book. Either you wanna know or you don’t, s’your choice.

Side semi-joke commentary with Castiel’s placement in this structure: is nobody else going to point out that Cas already brought home fruit from the Tree of Life from Syria rather than this non-eden and inner garden? I don’t think they’re quite the same place, but there’s some extra lmao there. dEAnNNn i bRoughT FrUIt fRom tHE tReE oF lIFE

Edit: while i do truly believe this boils down to an excuse to see Rachel on our screens again, I can't help but have it hit harder and harder that Castiel's divine feminine superego was appealed to in supposed reminder of him having no one in life to go back to and instead an old fling he made a connection with in death.

With the overall framing of another relationship as the cause of his suffering, whether intent or by accident it couldn't have been more on point. Just sleep, Cas, happy or not. Isn't what you want here? But he didn't bite. Not one bit. He could have slowed to ask about her or split his focus to find her too, but instead he called out to Ruby still and moved on, still on point for his family back home. I have some posts about The Celestial Ruby elsewhere that I want to probe later about the Occultum but this will do for now.

[madzilla84]

update

Did anyone ask for one? No. Does anyone want it? Probably not … I guess there’s still some small part of me that misses having a Livejournal.

In general, things have been - better. I started going outside a bit more from late-ish July, but honestly I don’t know if I started feeling better because I started going out, or if I started going out because I was feeling better…? A mystery. But mood tracking app - surely a reliable source of mental health info lmao - seems to agree:

(woohoo, only ‘significant burden’! i think that’s about the best you could hope for in 2020. and this was a few weeks ago, and I feel better now than I did then, so.)

I’ve been off work for the last 3 weeks - nothing wrong, just 2 weeks of scheduled annual leave, which I needed very much (I think part of why I was feeling bad was because I hadn’t had a break since February), and last week I had a week of jury duty. The break was much needed and I can feel the difference.

I started exercising again in July, and ugggggggh ok fine I admit I do feel better because of it. I’m never gonna be a gym bunny, I’ll probably never *love* it but I can’t deny the benefits. I go 3 times a week which is enough for me. (Though I only went twice last week and this week - last week I was pretty wrecked after court each day and this week I am focussing on being lazy.) Going outside again was strange at first, like the previous 4 months hadn’t happened, but it didn’t take long to feel (mostly) normal again.

I’ve also had a couple of social things, which has been nice - one lunch out at an outdoor restaurant, and one bbq at a friend’s house. (She moved in recently at the end of my street; while I was sitting in her living room I could look out of the window at my own flat. Weird!) I’ve been thinking a lot about Dan’s tweet about who he realised he wants in his life after lockdown, and it’s just. Interesting.

I’m DELIGHTED it’s September and the start of the best months, the -embers and -obers; it’s still pretty warm and mostly sunny here but it’s really nice, the bite’s gone out of the warmth. Not long now until it Gs the FO entirely. \o/ I’m still playing Animal Crossing every day, (unlike some people, smh poor abandoned Pickle). 

Jury duty last week was fascinating. I didn’t even know if I’d get picked - they call more than twice as many people as they need in case anyone can’t do it for whatever reason (if one of the lawyers is a family friend or something), but I did end up being chosen. (No. 12!!) We were the first post-covid jury, and the first socially distanced one. 

I *can* talk about the case now it’s over, but I don’t think I will, because the subject matter could be pretty triggering, but it was often a tough week given the nature of it. Having said that, something about it was very satisfying. It was fascinating to see how the courts and lawyers worked, and the whole process, and it was good to work with the other jurors. (Days on end of talking to actual humans was actually pretty good, for the most part.) We were all just thrown together, and we had differences of opinion of course, but it was still a good experience to work with them. It felt good to be part of something like that, something that mattered, and to feel like a part of the community in such a real way. I can be quite good at putting aside emotion to look at the letter of the law, which in a case like this can be very challenging; some of the other jurors struggled with it a great deal. (This isn’t to blow my own trumpet or anything; many would argue it was *me* who had the problem, in much the same way they often say lawyers are heartless, which isn’t true most of the time)

The case ended up being dismissed as the jury couldn’t reach a consensus - we got slated on social media (which of course I didn’t look at during the case, I caught up after), but we all stuck to our convictions and I know it was right; there’s a lot the public didn’t know or understand. As tough a case as it was, I’m glad I got to do it, it was a privilege in many ways. (But, I wouldn’t mind if it was a long time until I had to do it again, you know? lol.)

We had our phones taken from 9-5 while we were working - it’s the law - and I thought it was gonna be the worst after being glued to it constantly, but it was actually quite nice lmao. Not that I didn’t end up glued to it again once the case was over.

Fandom-wise, I have - finally - ended up taking a step back from the phandom a little bit in the last month or two. I want to talk about that a bit because it’s a complicated topic, and I see a lot of concerning posts - mainly on Twitter - that if you don’t maintain a certain level of dedication, if you join another fandom or get into something else or aren’t sufficiently devoted and supportive you - aren’t a true fan? Or something? Lots of posts along the lines of, ‘all these people getting into kpop/tv show/whatever, smh, don’t think we won’t remember when dan’s project drops and you all come running back’. It’s just a bit - weird? Like, it’s *perfectly normal* if people get into other stuff while dnp are cooking whatever they’re cooking (or not cooking, or whatever)? Or just move on, but still enjoy D&P? 

I’m not, like, dramatically leaving the fandom or anything. Hell, I haven’t *left* the fandom at all, I’m still here every day, it’s - more of a mental shift. Because prior to July/August-ish this year I really wasn’t in a good place with it. I wrote a thing earlier this year about struggling with writing, and belonging while not being a content creator, and other things … the issue is that, as I tend to do with my fandoms, I get too overinvested. And sometimes, that’s okay - whatever gets you through the night and all that - but in this case, I wasn’t enjoying it any more. Some parts I was - I’ve made the best friends I’ve ever had in a fandom here, and I really like seeing everyone on here - but in general, I was spending a lot of my time feeling anxious, resentful, worried, angry and frustrated. I spent a lot of last year and almost all of this one waiting for Godot; hating the “new normal” and desperately waiting for - something that’s never going to come. I just couldn’t deal with it; probably for reasons bigger than just D&P but that’s how it manifested. I got more and more frustrated by the content we were getting because it wasn’t what I’d hoped, and I hated feeling like that. It took up way too much of my thoughts and every day was just waiting, and wondering, and worrying. And I got so, so sick of it.

So, where am I now? Well, it was inevitable really, but I just started to - let go, a bit. I didn’t throw my hands up and go, ’bah, screw these guys!’, my mental focus just shifted (for my own good), and I started focussing on other things. Other fandoms. Games and hobbies I can distract myself with. I’ll admit it wouldn’t necessarily have been my *choice*, you know? But reality is what it is and I’m - relieved, really, that I’m not unnecessarily tormenting myself about it any more. It took me a long time to reach this place - too long, really - and, for now at least, it’s kind of nice. I can just enjoy things if/when they pop up without the accompanying sadness and anger about how everything is changed, about what has ended and what I’ve “lost”. (And it’s not 100%, by the way; it’s still there, just - quiet, now.) I can look at, I dunno, someone’s gifs of Dan or whatever, and just smile about it rather than feeling that grief. (Or, feel it, but not to the exclusion of everything else.) It’s - nicer.

And it isn’t at *all* that I don’t care any more, I still love them, of course I do, and will continue to follow them and watch everything they do. I’m not going anywhere. I still have notifs on, though they don’t quite send my heart into my throat like they did. ;) In a way it’s helping me love them more, because now when I watch them I enjoy it more, appreciating the fun and the bants without laser-focussing on my own anger and sadness. I’m still attending our little daily phannie watch-alongs, where we watch a couple of eps of DAPG and an anime. I’m still on phandom tumblr/twitter on the daily. It just - has a slightly smaller portion of my brain and mental energy now.

It was a step I needed to take, but also one I’m not sure I could have *chosen* to take, not without deliberately leaving and cutting it all off completely? And I didn’t want to do that. I’d hoped I’d get to this place earlier than this - some 20 months after the fact - but better late than never, I suppose.

(Also, disclaimer - fandom and the human heart are funny things, and I fully accept I can and probably will be sucked completely back in at any time.)

Anyway! SEE YOU AT THE QUIZ :D

[tameila]

The Sun Always Rises ‘verse, a timeline

Today, February 28th, as of about 2 am, it will have been three years since I first posted The Sun Always Rises. I am immensely proud of what this story became over the years and the universe it created. One thing I always loved while writing TSAR and still love today and, let’s be real, always will love is seeing readers engage with the ‘verse in their own ways. Fics, playlists, fanart! I am continuously overwhelmed by your engagement.

listen, the most tender of my years as a writer were spent as a roleplayer, collaborative writing/world-building is everything to me. so, what better way to nurture that collaborative spirit than to release an extensive timeline of what I have in my mind thus far! I would love to see you guys add your own spin or fill in your own blanks to it. Let’s talk headcanons! Let’s make those headcanons straight-up TSAR canon!!

I’m hoping to keep adding important dates as I continue this ‘verse, because - Yes! I do have sequels planned, and yes, they will come out someday! & I would also love to hear any feedback on dates/timeline particulars that you guys would like to see. This timeline only covers the timeline of Scanlan and Pike’s story, but perhaps I should go further into the past and talk about things like...When exactly did Grog join the Trickfoot family? What’s the timeline on the twins arriving in Westruun again? Wait, how old are Kima and Allura compared to Pike and Keyleth? Anything! You let me know! 

Let’s keep the collaboration going! ☀️

to start, some basic information:

Pike’s birthday: May 1990

Scanlan’s birthday: August 1986

Grog’s birthday: October 1986 (held back a year in school due to the trial and transition of him moving from his uncle’s custody to Wilhand’s_

and now let’s begin!

Scanlan and Pike first meet at Grog and Scanlan’s orientation week for college in August 2005

Scanlan just turned 19

Grog will be turning 19 in October

Pike is 15, going into her sophomore year of high school

During his freshman year, Scanlan records a couple demos and tries to peddle copies to as many people on his campus as possible. While visiting one weekend, he gave Pike a signed copy, which she thought was funny (but she still has it) and she took a handful back to distribute around school because Scanlan bought her froyo and she promised she would

Scanlan (20) is found by a talent scout during the Winter of 2006/7 while playing small taverns during winter break and is rush-signed to the Golden Grin. He resolves to stay in school, however, for the sake of his mother. However, juggling recording and song-writing with school work proves too difficult and, in Spring 2007, as his second year of college nears an end, he drops out

Grog (20) drops out with him, throwing himself full force into the fighting career he’d been low-key building up amongst amateur circles

Pike (16) is in her junior year of high school.

Scanlan (20) releases his first single in July 2007 to lukewarm acclaim, and his label immediately thrusts him out into the touring junket to try and get him seen.

Scanlan (21) releases his second single in December 2007, after months of grueling touring, and it’s a big hit. He’s an overnight success, played across stations nationwide. As he’s fielding congratulations from left and right, he receives the news that his mother was murdered in a break-in gone wrong.

He’s allowed (barely) a month to grieve before he’s thrown back into the limelight. Press. More shows. Finalizing his freshman album.

Scanlan (21) releases his first album, Royal, in June 2008. There was one more single released beforehand. He’s touring off-and-on the entire time, mostly as an opening act with a few small venue headliners.

Pike (18) graduates from high school in June 2008. A week later, she sets off on her world travels with Scanlan’s album as her backdrop.

Scanlan begins touring for Royal in July 2008.

Pike (18, almost 19) returns from her world travels in March 2009.

Near the end of his headline tour and after her return from her world travels, Scanlan (22) and Pike (19) see each other for the “second first time” in July 2009 at Grog’s (22) first headliner fight against his long-estranged cousin, Zanror.

it’s the night that their relationship dynamic changes from “kid sister/big brother’s friend” to flirty asides and shy glances.

While still touring and adjusting to his new celebrity status, Scanlan begins work on his new album. After touring ends in late July 2009, he throws himself into collaborations with other artists within the industry.

 During Spring Break 2010, Pike (20) visits Scanlan’s (23) new mansion along with her brother, Grog (23). [please refer to this work of art by the legend, jabletown]

In between Royal and Aubergine, Scanlan releases the Wine – EP in July 2010. It showcases songs that will eventually show up on his sophomore album and includes another chart-topping single that sustains his place in the zeitgeist until his next album.

Scanlan (24) releases his second album, Aubergine, in February 2011.

Scanlan tours Aubergine (March 2011-Feb 2012). At some point during the tour, Pike attends a show. Scanlan and her have some flirtations, but it doesn’t go anywhere. Mostly because Scanlan gets overwhelmed by the fact that, “Holy shit. She’s actually flirting back with, like, equal intensity and intent” and he freaks out, and Pike finds him later making out with someone else. Nice one, Scanman.

Half-way through the tour dates (Feb 2012), at the after-party of some award show, Scanlan coked out of his mind causes a big media scene. When he goes unresponsive during the car ride back to his hotel, he’s rushed to the hospital. He goes into rehab the first time (Feb 2011-May 2011). Dranzel takes over his management.

Despite Dranzel’s encouragement for him to take a break, Scanlan resumes touring in July 2011. He finishes touring in December 2011.

Scanlan relapses again in September 2012. Pike sends him her letter. Scanlan is 26. Pike is 22. He attends rehab from September 2012-January 2013.

Pike (23) graduates from college in June 2013. She worked at the temple throughout her studies but, with the addition of her degree, Wilhand increases her responsibilities.

After exiting rehab, Scanlan jumps right back into working. He releases a couple of stand-alone singles, as well as a couple of collaborations with other artists. He makes his rounds around the music world, as if showing off that – Look! He’s clean and back again! Probably stars in a movie while, in the background, he writes for other artists.

In his personal life, he’s thrown himself full force into the recovery program. And everything’s great! He’s so busy that he has no time to think about drugs!

During this time, there is more back-and-forths between Scanlan and Pike. Nothing substantial but little somethings, nonetheless. This is when Scanlan makes a lot of promises to Grog about visiting, but he never falls through, always too afraid that he’s not ready to face Pike yet. Not yet.

In June 2014, he tweets ‘#E6E6FA’, the color code for Lavender. He follows the tweet up with more cryptic social media posts that hint of his presence back in the studio.

Scanlan releases the first single to his upcoming album in late September 2014. It is included on an EP in February 2015, the EP includes previously unreleased B-sides from Aubergine. Scanlan releases it with an apology for the long wait.

Wilhand suffers an accident in early November 2015. Grog leaves competitive fighting to be close to home. Pike takes over as Head Cleric at the temple. Pike is 25. Scanlan is 29.

November 15, on the night before her first sermon, Scanlan and Pike have late night Skype call. This is when Scanlan writes ‘Late Night Angel’, a last minute addition to his album tracklist.

Scanlan releases his third album, Lavender, in May 2016. The touring is far less intense than for Aubergine. He plays primarily within the US with a few big shows in big-ticket international cities. The Lavender tour runs from late May 2016-December 2016.

Afterwards, Scanlan goes radio silent. He’s beginning to run out of steam. Recovery feels repetitive and pointless. Pike never made it to any of his Lavender shows. His grand plans to woo her were never seen to fruition. Though they communicate regularly, he feels more alone than ever. With no drugs or parties or touring to distract him, Scanlan begins to spiral again.

The Sun Always Rises starts in March 2018.

Chapter 17 takes place in March 2019.

Scanlan does a small, “farewell” tour from April 2019-September 2019.

[dykecadence]

A Dissertation to Prove that Alice Quinn from The Magicians is a Lesbian Experiencing Comp-Het

some of my twitter friends requested i post this on here so @alicequinnlove i hope this is good! (keep in mind this was written before the second half of season 4 so some things are out of date)

1. Her attraction to Quentin as compulsive heterosexuality

Alice only expresses attraction to Q once he has expressed attraction to her

Jumping into a relationship with the first guy to show interest in her despite knowing they don’t necessarily work (and that she is better than him)

Never feels sexual fulfillment in their relationship (until that one ep) but not saying anything about it

Rebounding quickly with another guy after Q cheats as if she is trying to prove something to herself/him

Every time she talks about sexual encounters before Q she says they were all uncomfortable and very impersonal

Look, as someone who struggled with comp-het for a LONG time and has dated guys because of it… Q is exactly the type of soft, nerd boy that is perfect for closeted lesbians to try and date as a means of making themselves seem straight. He’s non-threatening and when you don’t want to confront your sexuality it can be easy to trick yourself into getting crushes or turning friendships into something more.

Not entirely supporting my point because I do think opposite sex friendships are very important but; the fact that Alice was far more upset about her trust being broken and losing one of her best friends than the relationship ending

2. Her inherent unease around other women

Alice is uncomfortable around other women but not because she feels threatened by them. In fact, we don’t really know why she’s so uncomfortable with them at first.

Alice has no close female friends thus the way she views her interactions with women is skewed through Hetero Goggles

She would have no frame of reference for determining if there is a difference in her feelings toward women/patricular women

With Margo in particular, Alice is uneasy which I would chalk up to:

Margo compliments Alice/her body often

Margo being so comfortable with herself

Margo blatantly flirting with her at times

They have tension

I mean…… Margo/Alice Rights!

3. Magic often functions as an allegory for The Gay

Alice has always felt out of place

She fears her own “magic”

Her family didn’t teach her any magic she had to find it on her own

Magical found family narratives are for the gays only

Unaware of her own potential, still hasn’t unlocked it

She holds herself back in her magic, just as she does in every other aspect of life

4. Sex in this show is barely ever just sex

Basically everyone in this show uses sex as a coping mechanism

Especially Alice

Alice sleeps with Q because she’s stressed and worked up in Brakebills South

People had also been telling them to sleep together or speculating the would for months

She may have felt like it was what she was supposed to do

Her immediate distrust of the truth of her feelings once they get back is not something you would expect from someone who is getting what they want

She often says, “I love you” to Q but never says that she is “in love” with him. An important distinction as this show displays many different forms of love.

Alice sleeps with Penny when Q cheats. Why does she do this? To get back at him presumably but I don’t think she’s that petty. I think it was insecurity. Her trying to prove herself to herself.

Alice kisses Q/has sex with Q post-break up only in emotionally intense scenarios where she is overwhelmed by grief, power, or both.

Kissing him at the tree

Having sex with him when she gets back from being a Niffin

Carriage ride to the fight with the Beast

5. Alice has never really had friends

Her experience with comp-het and her inexperience with friendship would very likely lead her to misattribute close feelings of friendship with attraction.

I have personal experience with this so I feel this assumption is justified

Since she knows so few people and Q is the only one she has a close/friendly relationship with she clearly feels the strongest connection to him

She instinctively distrusts everyone and doesn’t let people in easily so it would be hard to know her true feelings

If we could see her in a close female friendship in this show I think she would bond quickly and strongly (as she did with Sheila)

It’s not that she doesn’t want friends, it’s that she has a hard time letting her walls down which ~gay~

It would be invaluable to see her have a close female friendship as we could compare that to her season 1 interactions with Quentin and decipher her behavior

Her few friendly interactions with Margo had a lot of tension before she and Q got together

6. Alice has not expressed attraction to anyone since her last encounter with Q in (I think) late season 2.

This encounter was an instance of sex not just being sex. It was her being overwhelmed after coming back from being a Niffin and seeking comfort/distraction in something familiar i.e. Quentin

Since then she has:

Not expressed in interest in getting back with Q

Not had sex with anyone

Not mentioned an attraction to anyone

Made no insinuation of lingering romantic feelings for anyone she has previously been involved with (with the exception of Timeline23!Alice but as she is not Our Alice she is not relevant)

Her attraction to and intimate interactions with Q have been nothing more than physical since season 1

They have slept together again multiple times but it was always because of some bigger emotional turmoil and not love

She said she didn’t want to get back together with him after the threesome and I think (in terms of a real relationship) she means that

But she used sex as a coping mechanism since Q was familiar/her closest friend and it made her feel like herself

I don’t think either of them have had genuine romantic feelings for each other for a while but U believe Alice’s went away faster (because she never really had them due to comp-het)

7. Gay Coding

A lot of aspects of this show are unambiguously queer-coded

There is no such thing as gay panic in this show so there is no need to be weirded out over gay stuff and if you are you are portrayed as the weird one (ex. Hymen)

Alice’s cold intelligence and manner is pretty lesbian coded

Her style is high femme and I will not be told otherwise

8. This doesn’t fit into a particular spot but… 

When Q mentions the dream that Penny walked in to involving her and Julia kissing, her problem was not with herself kissing another girl or even that it was a kinda gross fantasy for Q but rather that Q was thinking about his former crush alongside her.

She doesn’t dwell on the gay of it all just the fact that Q is subconsciously thinking of his old crush

9. I would argue that Alice’s inability to find sexual pleasure with Q (until that one ep) is a ~problem~ on both of their parts.

Partially due to Quentin having no clue what to do

But I think mostly due to the fact that she doesn’t really feel sexually attracted to him

The one time it is “fulfilling” to them it is because they are trying to get Penny back

Alice is determined to get shit done so I’m sure she is capable of…. Fulfilling her part in getting Penny back even if she didn’t really feel as much as she should

As I’ve said, they never really have sex just because, there’s always an external factor (as far as we the viewer are aware)

10. She had more chemistry with Penny than with Q despite “loving” him

11. Her previous experiences

She was standing up and at a party for all of them according to her

These interactions are:

Impersonal

Likely the result of alcohol

Clearly not fond memories

12. Niffin!Alice and Dark!Willow are Very Similar in quite a few ways, enough said

13. Her feelings for Quentin feel like the “I’ve decided to have a crush now”

As I said, she only expresses interest in him once he has expressed interest in her

Crush comes out of nowhere

She seemed very professional with Q at first

She skips friendship and goes straight for crush

But the crush was really friendship

Her romantic feelings for him are contingent on how emotional she is

14. Alice awkwardly avoiding talking about the Incubus’ penis

She doesn’t wanna say penis lmao

15. New Addition: “But she and Q got back together!”

I felt the need to address this additional point and why it doesn’t effect my theory.

Once Alice left The Library she was a prop for the rest of the season.

Logically they have no reason to get back together as they’ve both been growing far more on their own than they did together.

I think her going back to him only serves to prove she is only with him because she desperately wants to feel loved even if she doesn’t quite understand her own feelings

Alice is reaching out to reconnect with Q in an attempt to gain some of her old self back

She knows she cares for him and that he cares for her and she automatically assumes that romance is the logical answer for those feelings

It’s comp-het babey

Them getting back together was a cheap ploy to add more emotional weight to Q’s death

If anything I feel it supports this theory

In conclusion, Alice Quinn is a lesbian. Send tweet

[ptw30]

VLD Season 7 Reactions

My inbox has been busy non-stop since Season 7 dropped, and I thought I’d share a few with you, @dreamworksanimation and @voltron, just in case you’ve missed the fandom’s reaction to the new season. 

It's sad that we've gradually gone from being excited to new seasons to feeling worried and skeptical. There was a lot of dread in the fandom instead of anticipation for s7 and the interviews fueled it. People used to make intriguing theories but now it's all "how s7 would have been better" and "this is a crack theory but knowing vld it might be canon" We are supposed to be right before the grand finale of a space opera but people can't wait for it to be over. What a great way to end a series!

The grand space opera became a space tragedy in one season. We’ve waited for a payoff that will seemingly never come - including the end of the lion swap. An introduction of a new mecha should have exciting but was overshadowed the permanent demotion of Allura from commander to foot-soldier and the banishment of Shiro from Voltron and his lion, the latter with whom Shiro shared the strongest bond. This also ended Shiro’s internal struggle of “can I be worthy of the paladin mantle” with the answer, “no, you can’t be.”

Season 7 could have the fandom’s resurgence, after a strong Season 6 showing, but from the standpoint of almost everyone in my inbox - the fandom is just tired and ready to move on.  

More under the cut. 

I commented on a Youtube video how I didn't like the Atlas consolation prize, and someone replied saying I need to stop because they “clearly“ aren't trying to bench him or anything. It took everything I had to not respond with a rant. 

Wanting to rant is understandable. I’ve had this conversation a few times - messages, on my blog - about why Shiro being in Atlas isn’t a satisfying conclusion to his character’s arc. It’s not about him being benched, per se - though he is. Shiro’s internal struggle was deciding if he was worthy to be a paladin after everything that happened to him - and what he had to do to survive. By putting him in Atlas, the show is saying he is unworthy of the Black Paladin mantle. 

Sending this demoralizing message in the same season that we learn Shiro is also LGBTQ+ representative is reprehensible but perhaps ignorant. Saying that Shiro is also unworthy of the Black Paladin mantle as a multiple-minority, LGBTQ+ character with PTSD and a disability, is unconscionable.

I honestly think the dream works execs weren't told the full story on what they were planning with Shiro. The way they speak about the Atlas, the DreamWorks execs seemed to be left out of the picture as to how much distance they put between Shiro and his team - or how he goes half the season being nothing more than a background prop. The way they say “the Atlas does something really cool“ makes me think they never gave the impression Shiro was going to be next to irrelevant.

Could be! But now it’s DreamWorks’ job to correct the issue. They need to come out with a statement, say that recognize there is an issue, and that they are taking steps to correct it. However, the only communication we’ve gotten from DreamWorks was JDS’s apology (and subsequent tweets by LM), and that letter was ineffective. It addressed queerbaiting, not what the EPs did to Shiro, a LGBTQ+ character, or even to Adam, Zethrid, and Ezor. 

So I’m not sure if DreamWorks’ execs have acknowledged that there are offensive and harmful messages in Voltron, especially Season 7. 

My deepest wish was that after they came back from Sven's reality, they actually went to another reality, very similar to the original and never realized, and in the end of season 8 slav will tell them that and they'll go back to their own reality, and continues on s9 with Shiro being actually alive, just captured again by haggar, then rescued and he is the bp for ever and keith is back to red and allura is back to castle and lance is like blue i missed you and blue is like [expletive deleted] me too the [expletive deleted] 

Duuuuude. Can we make this canon?

I know being salty helps nobody least of all myself, but I'm so irked that the EPs pat themselves on the back for making Shiro gay, when a)they don't get that Adam's death is an issue that goes way beyond OTPs, b)they did kill Shiro, c)even though Shiro eventually got back, Kuron didn't, not in any piece of actual canon, and presumably Kuron was gay too so that's 2 dead gays (4 if you count the implied lesbians), and d)apparently Shiro being Asian, mentally ill and disabled doesn't matter as rep

Being salty helps. Really. It helps DreamWorks to determine what worked well and what didn’t in their latest season.

Though I understand how some fans felt queerbaited by VLD, the fact that it is the only thing addressed in JDS letter tells me DW is waving a hand over all the other implications. DreamWorks didn’t want to address all they did to Shiro, so instead, they apologize for the least offensive issue and hope people will be satisfied. (From my ask box, they are not.)

melissa18999 said: So even the execs thought that shiro was an interesting character. I can see why. The writers wrote him to have one of the saddest backstories ever and he’s the only human on the team that has experienced the galra’s bullshit first hand. The other 4 paladins pilot voltron because they’re told to. There doesn’t seem to be the same drive that shiro had. Sure there’s Pidge but she was the one trying to quit voltron to save her family. removing shiro exposed the others lack of a call to action.

It exposed that practically none of the other characters had any stakes in Voltron. We can say that Hunk received his stake in Season 1 when fighting for the Balmera, and Keith’s stake was Shiro. Lance? Nope. Never really had one and really never got one, considering his family was safe and sound on Earth. You could make the argument that he cares for Allura and wants to be a better paladin because of her, but...we don’t actively see him trying to do it for her. We saw him trying to be a better paladin before she and he connected.  

And now they’ve removed the aforementioned motivating character from Voltron. Yeah. Not cool. 

The thing about the execs liking Shiro and demanding that he gets a better role... is that we always hear about creatives who want to get rep on screen but the EEEBIL executives say no. And here we have a case where the creatives saw a mentally ill disabled poc character that broke all stereotypes, and they could see no place for him in the cast, while the execs recognised his incredible potential and wanted him to shine. So I have zero sympathy for the EPs here. The execs were RIGHT, damnit!

The reason I liked VLD S1/2 so much was because it broke tropes. Shiro is strong leader but also needs help. Allura is a warrior princess and isn’t scared to go toe-to-toe with the emperor of the universe. Keith and Shiro hug. Look, no matter how you view their relationship, hugs just don’t happen in cartoons, especially between men. So I just loved that part so much. and it made Voltron progressive. (You can share and show your feelings and not be scorned for it.) 

Oh, and Lance was originally the heart of the team, not Allura. She became so after moving into Voltron, but having a male character being the heart? That was groundbreaking, too. 

Sure, VLD had its issues, but the show was empowering to so many marginalized groups - until Season 3.

perhaps the worst part of Shiro's placement is that he's effectively become the side character of an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT SERIES. I've started watching robotech, and CANNOT see the atlas as anything but the ship from that (down to the transformation), or the MFEs as a mix of Vehicle Voltron and the robotech fighters. 

I would argue that the worst part about Shiro’s placement is that Shiro is no longer a part of the eponymous character, has no family, and is a multiple-minority character who proved that he can not only be a part of the team but also be the strongest part. 

And then Voltron decided to show people who identified with Shiro - that’s not the case. In fact, you can’t even be a part of the team or win your own battles. You have to rely upon others to do so. 

But you have a valid point. That part’s bad, too. 

Please note: I received more asks with VLD Season 7 reactions. I’ve answered some on my blog, but I’ve also deleted a few that were too harsh to post.  

[junker-town]

Andre Drummond on breaking up with the Pistons, being the best rebounder ever, and his new rap album

Cavaliers center Andre Drummond.

A career-spanning Q&A with the Cavaliers center.

Heading into the 2019-20 season, Andre Drummond’s NBA career was metronomic. Just 26 years old, the two-time all-star had spent seven seasons with the Detroit Pistons as, for better or worse, a model of consistency.

Before the season ended, Drummond’s relatively calm NBA journey was flipped upside down when Detroit traded him to Cleveland for John Henson, Brandon Knight, and a second-round pick. He only played two games with the Cavaliers before head coach John Beilein was let go. Then Covid-19 shutdown the NBA.

Since, Drummond has donated $160K to support Cavaliers arena staff and healthcare workers, while also helping supply over 10,000 headphones to schools in the Cleveland and Detroit areas. Drummond has also spent almost all of his free time working on his second album, which is set to release on May 1.

In a phone interview with SB Nation, Drummond spoke about his whirlwind season, his upcoming album, why he’s the best rebounder who ever lived, and so much more.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

SB NATION: Where are you right now?

ANDRE DRUMMOND: Miami. We’ve got some family down here.

SB: What has the past month or so felt like, having to adjust to a totally new routine?

AD: The past few weeks, it’s been crazy. Just not doing anything, locked in the house and really not knowing what’s going on. So I think the unknown is probably the most crazy thing for me right now. I’m getting a ton of time to spend with my family, which is really good for me. Obviously you don’t normally get to spend so much time with loved ones, so that’s been good. But other than that it’s kind of just a waiting game right now.

SB: Are you following the latest developments with the season, whether it’ll come back or not?

AD: I’ve seen different things and gotten memos and things like that but it’s still all up in the air.

SB: Can you describe an average day from sunup to sun down?

AD: Seven in the morning I’m awake, I ride my Accell bike. Then I’ll do some workouts with my best friend. We use gallons of water as weights. So we use those to workout a little bit outside. Then the rest of the day I’m sitting here listening to beats and writing songs.

SB: How hard is it to stay in shape?

AD: For me it hasn’t been difficult at all. Like I said, I have the bike here and a pretty long runway in the back of my house as well, where I can go right outside. So it’s not that hard to stay in shape.

SB: Do you have access to a hoop?

AD: No, I don’t, actually.

SB: When was the last time you touched a basketball?

AD: Whenever our last practice was in Cleveland.

SB: A few players have said that. Would you have participated in ESPN’s televised HORSE competition a couple weeks back if someone asked you to?

AD: Yeah I would’ve did it.

SB: I saw you were shooting threes in Cleveland towards the end of the season.

AD: Yeah, letting them go.

SB: How would you describe the year you had before the season ended?

AD: I think it was going well. I was playing really well, added a few things to my game. Obviously the three-point shot is something I’ve been working on, and I showcased it this season a lot more. The trade obviously happened so we’re all aware of that. It was definitely a different environment and a different feel. But I’m definitely enjoying it so far. [The Cavaliers] did a great job getting me adjusted, getting me acclimated to the city and the team, and it’s been really fun. It’s just kinda sad that I didn’t get a chance to finish the year out with them.

SB: You said something this year that caught my eye: “I think I’m definitely the best ever when it comes to rebounding. I don’t think there’s anybody who’s even remotely close to the things I’ve done when it comes to [rebounding].” When did you first think that?

AD: I’ve always thought that about myself. I’ve just never been vocal about it. I’ll never put another man before myself. I’m always gonna think I’m the best. Even if I’m wrong I’m still gonna say that I’m right. I’m still gonna find a way to try and prove it.

SB: Did you catch any flack for that statement?

AD: No, I mean, everybody has their opinion. I don’t really read into it.

SB: Throughout your entire career you’ve been one of steadiest, most durable players in the league. But then the year you’ve had would feel bumpy for any player. First you’re in trade rumors with the Atlanta Hawks. Then you’re dealt without any forewarning from the Pistons — as you tweeted — and sent to a lottery-bound Cavs team with a loaded frontcourt. You play just two games for John Beilien before the team lets him go. What was the strangest part of it all for you?

AD: I just think that two-week span, with all those things happening. Just between the trade, and Coach B getting [fired] and then all of this happening. It’s just a crazy stretch. You just gotta let it happen. There’s not much you can do. You can’t fight what happened. I just try to be the best professional I can and try to help my team win.

SB: I assume some of you wanted to stay in Detroit for the rest of your career, but was there ever any part that said “Hey, maybe this breakup is the best for the both of us? We didn’t really have any postseason success and weren’t showing progress.” Where was your head before the trade happened?

AD: For me it was just a part of the game, a part of the business, and I just happened to be falling into it, so it was definitely a different experience for me. Do I have any hard feelings for Detroit? No. Do I have anything negative to say about it? No. Because at the end of the day that was home for me. And they’ve always been good to me, so I have nothing negative to say about that. I’m in Cleveland now so that’s all I can worry about now.

SB: I know there’s obviously a lot more important things going on but have you thought about your own future, and where you’re leaning with the player option in your contract?

AD: For me I haven’t really thought too deep into my next decision yet because obviously we can’t really do anything yet.

SB: I know you just said you’re spending more time with family during this downtime, but are you doing anything else now that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to do?

AD: I’ve really taking the time to work on music and finish my album so that’s been the biggest thing I’ve been working on thus far. Spending time with my family, getting to see my daughter down here. That’s really about it.

SB: When you say “working on your album” can you be a little more specific?

AD: More time to write. More time to really sit down and pick what kind of beat I want to use instead of just picking a random one and going in. I’ve taken my time with it and think it’s gonna be really good.

SB: How many songs have you already recorded?

AD: I’ve done 14 in less than a week.

SB: Do you have a release date?

AD: May 1.

SB: You put out an EP in 2018 called FYI. I believe your new record is called FYI 2. What are some differences between the two?

AD: The first one was just my coming-out party. Me sharing that I do make music and I take this seriously and I’ve taken the time to really perfect my craft. That was obviously my first project and what I thought was really good. And when I listen to it now, I’ve come a long way. My sound, my beat choices and my lyrics. So I’m excited to share the new version of me.

FYI was all over the place with beat choices and more just having fun with it. Just trying to get a project out to let the world know. But now the process I took with FYI 2 is more in depth, and the meaning behind the songs are definitely more meaningful because they actually come from a place.

SB: When did you first know that you wanted to make music and actually put out a project?

AD: I’ve been making music since 2013 and I had over 2,500 songs I’ve made. Those were all just trial-and-error songs. And over time I kept making more and more. Some of the songs from my project in 2018, I made in 2013, 2014, so those were some songs I made a while back and decided to put out.

SB: Do you write your own lyrics, and if so how long does it take to put a song together?

AD: For me, it doesn’t take too long. Once you get me out of my seat when I hear a beat, then it’ll be a good day, but there’s always days where I’ll go through beats and say ‘this doesn’t sound too good’ but I’ll listen to it anyways. It’ll take me maybe an hour to come up with an entire song. Sometimes I just go in and start making the melody and start placing the words while I’m in the booth. I don’t even write it.

SB: Who helps in the collaboration process? Are people just sending you beats?

AD: I have my team of people that I bring with me to the studio. The beat-picking process is pretty easy. I have a wide variety of beats from different producers all over the world. You know it’s just whatever I come up with, whatever idea I come up, we’ll hear a beat and start shooting ideas. It’s a really fun process. I just started working with Rico Beats, Pop Smoke’s producer. RIP to Pop Smoke. Other than that I used a beat from Gigahurtz, he’s out of Portland.

SB: Dame Lillard and Iman Shumpert are two NBA players who’ve shown legitimate ability as rappers, too. But sonically I wouldn’t really throw you in that same category. Is it fair to say your sound isn’t like theirs?

AD: No, I’m more commercial.

SB: [Laughs]

AD: That’s not even a knock against them! I’m just not a rapper [laughs]. That’s not me. I don’t have a rapper’s mentality. I don’t have that sound. When you hear them rap it sounds good. Whenever I rap … that’s just not my sound.

SB: Which musician out there would you compare yourself to, if you were telling someone who’s never heard your music before about it and wanted to get an idea of what it was like?

AD: I just have my own sound. I don’t think anybody should compare themselves to anybody.

SB: A couple years ago you said in an interview that Jay Z, Biggie, Tupac, Nas and Kanye were your five favorite rappers. It’s strange for me to call someone who has those five on their list an old soul but I also feel like there aren’t too many people in their mid-20’s who’d have that type of list. Has it changed? Is anybody new catching your eye?

AD: That’s still my top five. That’s just the music I listened to growing up. I love the way they rap. I love their music. And I love what they were talking about, which drew me to them. There’s all kinds of stuff [being played] in my house so it depends on who’s the DJ that day. We were listening to Afrobeats yesterday. [I listen to my own music] all the time.

SB: I read that Candy Rain is your jumpoff record as a DJ. You’re 26. How is this possible?

AD: That was my go-to! [Laughter]. Whenever I felt like the crowd was dying I was like ‘let me go to the 90s real quick.’

SB: When did you start DJing?

AD: I started in college actually. I didn’t really take it seriously until I got to the NBA, when I could afford a DJ set. I’d use the DJ set at the bars. When I got to the NBA I started DJing for real and had a lot of fun doing it.

SB: Have you thought about starting your own Club Quarantine?

AD: I’m actually planning on starting something really, really soon. Probably in the next week or so. I’ll start getting on Instagram Live and start DJing. Look out for Drummond Quarantine Radio!

I have my equipment in storage. I just have to get it. I don’t know how many records I have, there’s a huge box full of them. Maybe a little less than 100. It’s hip-hop, and some oldies that my mom gave me.

SB: On your new album, are there any guest stars people might know?

AD: Yeah but I can’t say them. We all agreed on a day when we’re gonna announce that.

SB: Do you know what day?

AD: I will not tell you that either [laughs]. You just have to wait and see.

[jbuffyangel]

Oh yes. I heard.

So let’s talk about it.

What do I think? Well... I’m not thrilled that’s for sure. 

I am perfectly happy without any version of Laurel on Arrow. I believe the show is better without her, but L*urel is still dead. 

L*urel is the character I had problems with. L*urel is the one I reached a deep level of apathy toward. They aren’t resurrecting her (thanks be to Jesus), so I am grateful for this small bit of silver lining.

Unpopular opinion: I didn’t hate Bl*ck S*ren. 

I’m not going to pretend KC is on my nifty top 50 list of favorite actresses and she probably will never be. I’m diametrically opposed to basically everything she’s ever said about Arrow and the characters. However, I did enjoy her performance as Bl*ck S*ren. Weirdly enough, we were talking about KC at HVFF as we waited in line for food. We discussed how most of the roles we liked her in she played a villain (Melrose Place, Supernatural, etc). I said those are the kinds of roles she should go after. So, if they have to bring her back then I’m glad it’s as Bl*ck S*ren. But let’s keep her as a villain. I’d prefer if they avoided any redemption arcs. Let KC play to her strengths.

Let’s talk “series regular.” That, my friends, is a broad term. 

Technically, KC was a series regular THIS season. How many times have we seen her thus far? Three. Her contract was supposed to include all DC shows. She has yet to show up on The Flash and I think she’s filmed one scene for Legends. John Barrowman is a series regular as well. You don’t have to be in every episode to be considered a series regular. Since Katie is playing a villain I find it highly unlikely she’ll be in every episode. Will we get a handful? You bet. Can I survive it? Sure. I did this year. I may even hold out hope I’ll enjoy BS’s appearances, but time will tell. 

I believe Marc confirmed that D&nah Dr&ke is staying put, which is nice because I really have enjoyed her. Although, I have to agree with those tweeting out images from The Birds. #whereisthelie We are reaching max capacity on versions of Canaries. Maybe there’s a tax deduction they can take. Is there a Canary group rate?

Stephen confirmed Emily isn’t going anywhere (not that we were worried, but still nice to say). 

But... why?

This is where things get muddy. Why are they bringing KC back? Well... I have three ideas.

1. They really like Bl*ck S*ren and have more story to tell.

2. Ratings

3. Behind the scenes shenanigans we don’t know about.

They could be doing this because of the ratings decline. The problem is... we don’t know why someone watches a television show. Nielsen ratings are an archaic system and it sure as hell can’t tell us that. Also, Arrow isn’t the first established show to take a ratings dive. That hardly ruffles the CW network’s feathers, primarily because they have an entirely different business model that focuses more on back end & international sales. As Stephen said, live ratings account for about 5% of Arrow’s overall total value. That’s not a number worth losing sleep over. While Arrow’s live ratings drop is significant, it’s certainly not in the CW’s “danger zone” either. 

One way to look at this is, Arrow is reuniting Olicity and bringing back Katie in some capacity. Each fandom gets something they want. The problem is, I believe we were working our way to an Olicity reunion regardless of ratings. Olicity was going to get back together at the end of the season whether we were at a 1.0 or a 0.3. I don’t think ratings impacted the timing at all. You don’t have to like the journey there, but this was always the season long plan. So, I’m not entirely convinced ratings sent Arrow scrambling after KC either.

But sure... maybe?

As for #3 that means knowing about behind the scenes shenanigans that I don’t know about (and probably never will). Maybe someday there will be an Arrow E! True Hollywood Story. Who knows? Feel free to Nancy Drew this one if you are so inclined.

It would be wonderful if it’s #1 because that means Arrow will be invested in the storyline and they always tell better stories when they are. We’ve seen the mess it leaves when they aren’t invested.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any definite answers for you. It could be any one of the three. None of the three. Some combination of any of the three.

Which leaves me at a big old “meh.” 

I’m not thrilled it emboldens those in the LL fandom who send death threats, make misogynistic comments, message hateful & threatening comments via any social media platform. This teaches them that behavior works. Although, the same can be said for the Olicity reunion emboldening Olicity fans who do the same thing (if there are some). I suppose no fandom is entirely innocent. That said, I’ve already received multiple hateful tweets, so it’s like the good old days again. 

The good news is, these people never impacted my viewing experience before and they won’t now. It’s more or less like a gnat you have to keep swatting away. 

This feels like more same crumbs Arrow always doles out to the LL fandom. I envision BS having as much impact to the plot as she did this year, which was very little. Although, if we get more scenes like this:

I could be a very happy camper.

At the end of the day, the aspects I truly care about on this show (Olicity, Oliver’s hero’s journey, OTA, Felicity & Diggle’s individual arcs, Thea Queen) are moving in the right direction. Well... except for Thea. I need more Thea. So, if the LL fandom can find joy in the eps KC appears in, while watching Olicity have sex, get married and make babies, then I suppose I can deal too.

But please, for the love of Zeus, do not worry even for one second that Bl*ck S*ren will, in any way, be a threat to Felicity’s or Olicity’s storyline. I raised you better than that. 

And for those LL fans who INSIST this means there will be a GA/BC romance once again well... you do you. Sometimes the need to go down with the ship is strong. I’ve offered a life raft now and then, but at the end of the day, you gotta save yourself.

I think there’s a lot to look forward to in these final episodes and Season 6, so this in no way dampers my excitement for the remaining season. Right now, BS is a blip on the radar for me, which is where I’ve been at with any character KC has played on Arrow. So, not all that much has changed. What would be nice is if Arrow achieves with BS what they achieved with D*nah Dr*ke - they write a character I enjoy. Upside? My snark filled LL sections in the reviews can make a glorious comeback with triple the amount of snark, because VILLAIN.