thesecondsideblog

[thesecondsideblog]

ds9 fans, what are yall favorite longer ds9 fics (from 10-60k, or in that range?) can be for any ship. would love your recommendations. thanks :)

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more food (loki edit)

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Sam Wilson Appreciation (and kinda character analysis)

anyways time to speak about sam wilson as a character himself (this is a very long post be warned):

so many people STILL discredit him and his new role as captain america because he doesn’t have the serum, or because they won’t accept anyone other than steve, or because they’re just racist (which if we’re being honest, is the main reason people are not accepting of him).

So many people only focus on his character post-endgame, during tfatws and ca:bnw as a way to criticize him and list all pf the ways he’s not steve, and will never be cap. and half the people who say they like him only do so because they want him to serve as a therapist and support for Bucky— they don’t see Sam as his own person with struggles and growth separate from Bucky.

Starting from ca:tws, when Sam is first introduced into the mcu as a character, you can see just how kind and loyal he his, while also being reckless and firm in his own beliefs. the man follows natasha and steve into battle against the WINTER SOLDIER, just because that’s what kind of person he is. and at the end of the movie when he says “so where do we start?”— that is a decision he made of his own accord. throughout the film, he’s given plenty of chances to back out, because honestly, no person should be expected to fight hydra and the winter soldier, and then go on a wild goose chase to find the man— and yet he keeps on fighting because he is a fundamentally kind and loyal person, who knows that this is the right thing to do.

And even before all of this, the first thing we really learn about Sam is that he is a trauma counselor for veterans. We also learn about his own past trauma and experiences with Riley, which he still feels guilty for. And he takes his experience, and uses it to help others, so that they can also move on from the horrors they’ve witnessed.

In civil war, Sam is the very first person to speak out against the accords— so many people reduce him to Steve’s yes man, when he very clearly has his own beliefs that he sticks by. He’s sent to prison and made an enemy of the state, and still has an unwavering belief in his own principles.

These are all thingns that make him the perfect choice for captain america- he’s a fundamentally good man, serum or not, who continues to fight for what he believes is right.

Moving on to tfatws, so mich of the show’s focus is on his struggle with accepting the mantle of cap. This is not because he’s insecure in his own abilities, but because he doesn’t want to be a symbol for a country that won’t support him. It is an incredibly heavy role to take on, especially as a Black man in america. The show takes its time to show us the everyday racism he faces, even as the falcon. He knows that becoming captain america will only worsen this experience.

This is further reinforced after he meets Isaiah Bradley, who is a Black man that was given the super soldier serum after Steve. Unlike Steve, he was completely erased from history and imprisoned. He has every right to give up the shield— he did not ask to suddenly carry the weight of captain america’s entire legacy, especially to represent america.

His internal struggle with what accepting this mantle means, both for himself, his community, and the entire country, is incredibly complex and poignant. He recognizes that Walker is the wrong choice, and actively works against him during the show— because he understands that being captain america is not about being the most athletic, or bending to the government’s every whim. It’s about standing up for the people and what you know is right.

We can see also see his kindness when he interacts with people like Karli and even Bucky. He spends so much of his time with Karli actually talking to her and understanding why she does the things she does. and with Bucky— he had every right to be more angry with him than he was. I understand Bucky’s motivations and reasoning for constantly trying to push the shield onto Sam. But he does not understand the weight of this role for Sam, and doesn’t even try to for the first few episodes.

In the mcu (and honestly, in the real world as well), the government and a lot of the country believes that captain america has to fit a certain mold: blond haired, blue-eyed, athletic, and a perfect soldier. Sam chooses to pick up this shield not because he’s going to try and fit this mold, but to redefine what the shield should stand for. Over the course of the show, he comes to accept this responsibility, knowing full well what kind of challenges and scrutiny he’s going to face. He knows he won’t be accepted when he picks up that shield— but he’s going to pick it up anyways, to fight for himself, and for the people who have constantly been overlooked and need someone to fight for them.

And he’s not Steve Rogers- nor should he be. He’s his own person with entirely different experiences and an entirly different personality. Sam is fighting a different fight than Steve did, and it does not make him any less worthy of captain america.

Sam Wilson is not captain america because Steve gave him that shield. He is captain america because he chose to accept that role.

I haven’t watched brave new world yet (am very busy and also will be pirating it— not giving any money to a movie starring an idf soldier), but i’ll likely have more thoughts when i do.

anyways this was kinda all over the place but rant over please tell me if i said anything at all that was wrong or in bad taste. i love sam wilson so much. i’m going to sleep now.

[thesecondsideblog]

btw childish in an unattractive way is an absolutely insane thing to say!

for context this is someone talking about that new vid that came out of erika recording lines for charlie

[thesecondsideblog]

i have never loved stolitz more than in this episode. their relationship flows so well when they’re not forcing it and being unhealthy.

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hazbin hotel minecraft save me

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me (sex/romance repulsed aroace) when radioapple:

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me when i read every single huskerdust fic under the overlord husk tag

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am deeply in love with camaro carfight

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lilith fumbled

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the way i almost missed voxval making out because i was too busy admiring velvette(velvet?)’s hair

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rip alex brightman

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objectively is hazbin hotel very good? no! the pacing is pretty much awful due to the low episode count, some of the more emotional moments don’t really hit, and the characters aren’t really given enough time to breathe.

subjectively however they are my little fucked up found family and i will never stop watching the show.

this isn’t a show that needs to be super good for me. i just need enough content so that i can go on ao3 afterwards and read whatever the fic writers cooked up.

[thesecondsideblog]

ALASTOR AND LUCIFER HAVING A DAD-OFF HELP MEEE

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me when i’m in a lack of media literacy competition and my opponents are people who think husk is victim blaming angel.

[thesecondsideblog]

if you think that the huskerdust duet was victim blaming i need you to please gain some media literacy

but for the record there 100% should have been a content warning for SA

[thesecondsideblog]

guys i swear i'm trying to hate vox but unfortunately he's voiced by christian borle and i just finished watching falsettos for the first time so-