#and dinah helps him realize good morality in some way | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

kitkatt0430 · 4 months

Text

So I've been watching Dollhouse again. It really was a good sci-fi show and I wish we'd gotten more seasons. Not least of all so we wouldn't have gotten the rushed reveal about who the second founder of Rossum was (it was an interesting choice but does not totally make sense, but honestly they needed someone to fill the role and it was an interesting twist)

I still don't like Paul/Echo as a ship - he's in love with the idea of her and she doesn't seem like the sort to want a white knight type to save her. Though at least the outtakes with them are hilarious.

Of course, as I seem to do when I watch stuff that isn't my main fandom... i wonder how the Flash would work in some fusion au based off what I'm watching.

And what I've got so far?

Iris as the Echo/Caroline analogue. She was a college student getting her psychology masters and an investigative journalist for the school paper. However her investigation into shady research going on in the Thawne building gets her in over her head and eventually leads to her being coerced into joining the LA Dollhouse... though whether to escape the consequences of her actions or to infiltrate the Dollhouse is unclear as Echo learns more about Iris West.

Hunter Zolomon as the Alpha analogue. A serial killer before he was wiped and made into a doll, he was meant to showcase the ability for the Dollhouse technology to 'rehabilitate' criminals. Instead the composite event has made him worse and now the Dollhouse is denying his existence even as he has begun causing them problems while on the run.

Cisco (with some Reverb's god complex thrown in) as the Topher analogue. The Active technology was all fun and games until the thing with Alpha happened and he's begun to realize that, despite his own brilliance, there may be more at work with his tech than even he understands.

Caitlin as the Claire Saunders/Whiskey analogue. She was injured by Alpha during the composite event attack and has become something of a shut in as Dr. Snow due to her scars. I'd take her in a very different (and yet in many ways similar) direction from the Dollhouse character in order to tie in Frost and maybe even Khione.

Eddie Thawne as sort of a Boyd analogue, but not really. He's a former cop who, after getting shot taking down the Clock King, has retired to the theoretically safer job of being an Active Handler. As the nephew of Eobard Thawne, founder of the Thawne corporation that runs the Dollhouse, Eddie gets looked down on at first for appearing to have gotten the job through nepotism. He's vocally disdainful of the 'engagements' Actives get sent on, but quickly becomes attached to Echo/Iris - especially as he realizes that she's starting to develop a personality that can't be erased.

Julian Albert as the Paul Ballard analogue. It's not Echo/Iris he becomes fixated on, however. He's searching for Whiskey/Caitlin, whom he had previously encountered twice when she was still an... active Active. He winds up being approached, however, by Joe West who has been searching for his daughter for the last three years. He suspects the Thawne Corp as being the backer for the Dollhouses and is hoping that Julian can help him find Iris... even if she isn't Iris anymore.

E2 Dinah Laurel Lance as the Adelle Dewitt analogue. Dinah worked hard to become the leader of the LA Dollhouse and she runs a tight ship. All that should matter is getting the engagements completed and satisfying the customers, but she is very protective of her dolls. But at the end of the day she has stricter morals than she realizes and lines she absolutely will not cross that will, no matter how good the paycheck she's promised is.

Barry Allen as sorta kinda not really the Victor/Anthony analogue. Barry was with Iris when she investigating the Thawne Corp and was badly injured. Iris thought he was dead when she went on the run, but really he survived and nearly a year later was essentially strong armed into the LA Dollhouse in a similar manner as to how Iris later was. He still recognizes Iris - and is still in love with her - even in his doll state. Unlike Iris, he's seen Eobard Thawne, the elusive and possibly missing founder of the Thawne Corp.

Eobard Thawne as the Clyde 2.0 analogue except not. Eobard was the sole founder of the Thawne Corp after he developed a number of breakthroughs in college... with Harrison Wells. However, Wells didn't like where the memory copying and imprinting tech was going and bowed out, ceding ownership of the research to Thawne if it meant getting as far away from it as possible. It was only a matter of time before Eobard started using his tech for achieving immortality of a sort and he may have started body surfing after a car accident several years earlier.

Harrison "Harry" Wells as the Clyde 1.0 analogue except also not. He never actually stopped researching the tech he initially developed with Eobard, trying to find ways to protect people from being wiped since he predicted that, one day, it would be possible to wipe and imprint new personalities remotely, with the right lighting and/or sound waves even someone without the Active Architecture embedded in their brain could be turned into a doll. He's been able to develop personal protection devices that he and his daughter have at all times - Jesse largely unaware of what's going on beyond her father's 'endearingly silly' paranoia. He theorized that repeated imprinting/wiping could lead to an immunity to the wiping process - but not the imprinting process - leading to the development of a core personality. And while he's fascinated by the concept, it's not something he was eager to see in reality. So he isn't exactly thrilled when Agent Albert and Detective West show up at his doorstep demanding to know what he knows about the Dollhouse.

I'm not totally sold on E2 Laurel as Dewitt, though obviously I think she'd work well in that position. I don't really have a Dominic analogue decided on yet. Hartley would probably show up working for another Dollhouse and act as Cisco's rival - they're both, with great reluctance, impressed with each other's work.

Eddie initially thinks all the dolls are volunteers one way or another, but learning otherwise throws him pretty firmly - and quickly - onto Team 'screw Thawne Corp'. This team also includes Julian, Joe, and Harrison on the outside, though Julian joins as a fellow mole when Eddie gets reluctantly promoted.

While Iris/Echo is still unique in that she's becoming resistant to the wiping/imprinting process waaaay faster than average, it's still implied that most people do wind up becoming immune eventually, thus the five year limit on Active contracts. However, if an Active is imprinted only a few times, then they don't develop a core personality and thus a personality could achieve immortality through body surfing.

The show also hinted at cloning coming into play with Rossum possibly cloning copies of the original body to keep downloading peoples minds into for 'immortality' with the hijacking of other people's bodies as a sort of in-between option until cloning got to where it was needed. (Adelle's former employment and a few other pieces of potential foreshadowing.) So I'd likely bring that in more, with Thawne Corp known for, amongst other things, being at the forefront of 'ethical cloning research' where organs and the like are cloned without creating a whole new human. Except of course they are actually also making whole new humans too.

This is definitely one of the more nebulous ideas in my head, though, so it's not one I really expect to ever write. But it is a fun plot bunny to play with for a bit.

#fic ideas #the flash #dollhouse #fanfiction #fusion au ideas

1 note · View note

queen-haq · 3 years

Text

Fic: A Woman Scorned - Part 17

Pairing: Billy Russo x Reader

Rating: R for language and smut.

Words: ~3300 words.

Summary: You’ve been sleeping with Billy Russo for a few months now. Knowing his aversion to emotional commitments, you’re satisfied with your clandestine arrangement until you catch him having dinner with Dinah Madani one night. Then it finally dawns on you. It’s not that he doesn’t want to commit, he just doesn’t want to commit to *you*.

Billy may think he knows you, but he has no idea what he’s just lost…

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16

Part 17

Billy couldn’t stop gawking at you, wondering how it was possible you grew more beautiful each time he saw you. The red wrap dress you were wearing accentuated all your curves, and it took every bit of willpower he had not to rip it off of you and fuck you senseless right then and there. Unfortunately, he had to behave himself. Caravan was a pretty bouji place that had recently been labelled as one of the hottest restaurants in Manhattan and he had to pull a few strings to get a last-minute reservation for tonight. But seeing the smile on your face when you realized this was where you were dining had been completely worth all the hassle.

As the hostess guided the two of you to your table, he noticed a few assholes at the bar admiring you from afar. Immediately he snaked his arm around your waist to draw you in closer. You were his. If he could he’d pluck out every one of those fuckers’ eyes so they never made the mistake of looking at you again. Better yet, he’d keep you locked behind closed doors. Of course you wouldn’t agree to anything like that because you were too goddamn independent for your own good.

“What’s wrong?” you asked, taking a seat at your designated table.

Billy’s attention returned to your face as he followed suit, his gaze inhaling you in. “You look too hot. Too many assholes staring at you,” he grumbled.

The worried look on your face was replaced with a beaming smile, one that made his cock twitch.

“You’re being ridiculous” you remarked, scanning the menu.

His eyes drifted down to your chest, the swell of your soft, supple breasts just begging to be kissed and licked by him.

“Stop staring at my boobs, Billy,” you chastised even as a small smile graced your lips. “This is a proper first date. You can’t just ogle me like that. You have to behave like a gentleman.”

He quirked his eyebrow. “Sweetheart, I’ve never been that.”

“Well, try,” you ordered.

The waitress came by with the bottle of red wine you’d requested and poured some in both of your glasses. He noticed the redhead giving him a friendly smile, her green eyes lingering on him for a second too long. Fine, yeah, she may have been hot but she wasn’t you. No one was. So while he would have happily slipped her his number in the past, now the idea of being with someone who wasn’t you no longer excited him.

Once she left, he took the opportunity to move a few inches closer to you. What he really wanted was to get on his knees and bury his head between your legs, but something told him eating you out in in the crowded restaurant wouldn’t go over very well with you.

“I think she likes you.”

Hand propped on the back of your chair, he started playing with your hair. “Who?”

“Our waitress. She didn’t look at me once, her eyes were on you the entire time.”

He leaned in, ecstatic at the thought of you acting possessive. Even though you’d confessed to having feelings for him, Billy still worried you were ready to bolt at any moment. To see you jealous meant you genuinely cared and he didn’t have to worry about you leaving him. “She’s not my type. I have my eyes on someone else.”

You made a show of looking around the restaurant. “Oh, is Madani here too?”

“Funny,” he retorted, taking your hand in his.

“Your ginger’s lucky. I’m dressed way too nice or I’d take my knife and stab her with it.”

He smirked. “You’re vicious when you’re jealous.”

“I’m not jealous. I just don’t like bad service.”

“Bullshit.”

“Billy, you’re hot. You know that. All the women here are checking you out. If I freaked out every time someone did that, I’d have a breakdown.”

He wanted to destroy the fucking world at the thought of someone even looking at you but apparently you were simply ambivalent about him. “So it’s that easy for you? Your brain tells you to turn off a feeling and your heart just does it?” Even to his own ears he sounded bitter. “Guess you’re not all that invested in me.”

Your eyebrow quirked up, apparently surprised by his edgy tone. “Do you want me to go nuts?”

“Just want you to give a damn.”

“You think I don’t?” you snapped. “Every time she looks at you I want to tear her hair out. Even though the rational part of me knows she’s probably just flirting with you because it’s part of her job or she’s hoping for big tips. Or maybe she really does want to fuck you. Either way, I want to punch her across the face. Happy?” You gulped down your wine.

Grinning, he squeezed your hand. “Then why not just tell me that? Why act like you don’t care?”

The agitated expression on your face was replaced with tenderness, your eyes soft. “Just because I don’t have a jealous fit doesn’t mean I don’t care. I just…” You exhaled a sigh, and he sensed this was difficult for you. “I express my emotions differently than you.”

“I noticed. You put on an act while holding everything in.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“But I want you, the real you, not the version everyone else sees.”

“It’s not that easy, Billy.”

He brought your palm to his lips. “I’d never told anyone about my mother.”

“You didn’t tell me either,” you pointed out.

“You found out anyway, and I’m so fucking glad you did. Otherwise I wouldn’t have realized I could be real with you.” He placed a tender kiss on your skin. “I don’t want to hide anything from you, Y/N.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Then tell me about William Rawlins.”

Your request gave him pause, his eyes roaming over your face. He’d taken painstaking measures to keep his partnership with Rawlins a secret yet you’d discovered it. “What do you want to know?”

“He gave you a lot of money.”

“I earned that money,” he said in a defensive tone. “He and I were partners for a while. Then he died.”

“You went to a lot of trouble to hide your connection to him.”

“You found out about it though.”

You shrugged your shoulders. “I’m good at what I do.”

“Yeah, too good,” he muttered. He released your hand, watching you intently. “So what do you want to know?”

You leaned in closer, your voice barely above a whisper. He was momentarily distracted by the sensation of your tits pressed against him but he forced himself to concentrate.

“What happened to Rawlins, did you have anything to do with it?”

Billy took a swig of his wine. “Why do you think that?”

You quirked your eyebrow at him. “Knifed by someone in the parking lot. They never found the guy who did it.”

“He had a lot of enemies,” he pointed out.

“Okay, so maybe I was wrong.”

He studied you for several seconds, trying to decide if he should take the leap or not. “You’re not wrong.”

Realization dawned on your face as the truth set in. “Why did you do it?”

“You sure you want to know?”

“I’m asking, aren’t I?”

So he told you, about Operation Cerberus, his role in it and the money he earned, how he’d eliminated Rawlins a year ago when the prick plotted to take out Frank and his family. To this day Frank didn’t know about Billy’s partnership with Rawlins or how close he came to dying and he intended to keep it that way.

Throughout his confession his eyes were glued to your face, gauging your reactions. The part of him determined to do anything to be a success, the one who didn’t let society’s morals get in the way of his ambitions, would never be accepted by his closest friends. Despite the myriad of reasons to have kept that side of himself hidden, he didn’t want to do that with you. Because as risky as it was to be so open with you, it was also exhilarating. There was no one in this world he’d ever been this honest with and that kind of intense connection with you was addictive. He wanted you to know everything about him, all of the dark and vicious thoughts that ran through his head, the burning ambition that kept pushing him forward. He wanted you to know him inside and out and he wanted the same from you.

Before he could prod you to speak your mind the server came by with your dishes, setting your meals on the table. The redhead took her time, all the whilst your gaze was focused on the table, avoiding his. Billy’s heart started to pound in his chest, he was suddenly filled with doubt. Had he made a mistake in telling you the truth? Did he just completely fuck this up? Every second the goddamn redhead lingered at the table felt like an eternity when all he wanted was to shake you out of your stupor.

The second the server left, he moved in on you. “Are you gonna say something?”

You finally looked at him, your forehead burrowed. “We need to do a better job of hiding your history with Rawlins. I found it, that means someone else can too.”

“You gonna help me with that?”

You shook your head ‘yes’. “Yeah, I have to. You need me.”

“What I did doesn’t bother you?”

You exhaled a heavy sigh. “Of course it does, but there’s nothing I can do about it. You’ve seen me at my worst and you didn’t judge me. I won’t do that to you either. Besides, when the universe deals you a shitty hand you’ve got to find other ways to even out your odds.”

A strange feeling of warmth flooded over him, compelling him to angle forward and kiss you on the lips.

You pulled away a second later, smiling at him as you rubbed the corner of his mouth. “This lipstick isn’t kiss-proof.”

“I don’t care.” Wicked visions of you flashed through his mind. Your bold red lips wrapped around his cock, sucking him off the way he liked it. His cum spread over your tits, your neck, your lips. The taste of your sweet, delicious cunt on his tongue as he fucked you with his mouth. The heat of your tongue against his as he rammed into you over and over-

“Stop looking at me like that,” you warned.

“Then stop looking so hot,” he snarked.

You smiled, biting down on your bottom lip.

It blew his mind how sweet and shy you were when he paid you compliments, like you didn’t expect that from him. Obviously he needed to fix that, because you deserved to know how insanely beautiful you were all the time.

“Has Anvil been okay without Rawlins?” you asked, taking a bite out of your butternut squash ravioli.

Swallowing his steak, he wiped his mouth with a napkin. “It was tough for a while but we’ve been doing pretty well the last few months.”

“You should be proud of what you’ve accomplished, Billy. You took a big risk going into business for yourself and you made it work. That’s amazing. I could never do that.”

Billy’s insides radiated with happiness. Other than Curtis and Frank he never really had people who genuinely believed in him so to have you cheering him on was exalting. Especially considering you were great at what you did and he had so much respect for you.

He poured himself and you more wine before reaching for your hand again. “I think you could. You’d make a shitload of money if you freelanced.”

You shook your head ‘no’. “No way, I’m too much of a coward to take a risk like that.” You took a sip of your wine. “Plus I get to go to Paris for work.”

“Or you could go to Paris on vacation and not work.”

“Then I’d have to pay for it,” you pointed out, grinning. “When you grow up the way I did, you learn to appreciate free things.”

Your enthusiasm was infectious, he couldn’t hep but smile back. A part of him was hoping this would be the perfect opening for you to talk more about your childhood, about everything you went through, because he desperately wanted you to trust him as much as he trusted you with his secrets.

“I’ll be there for two weeks,” you continued, oblivious to his disappointment. “We’re going to scout out locations for the new branch and-”

“We?” Billy interjected.

You cast him a quick glance. “Roger’s coming with me on the trip.”

The jealousy that struck him felt like a swift kick to his gut. Images of you and that goddamn bastard traipsing around and enjoying romantic date nights in Paris assaulted his mind. Agitated, he pulled his hand from yours. “I bet that fucker can’t wait to be alone with you.”

“Billy, come on. You can’t be serious.”

“How would you feel if I took off with someone who wanted to fuck me?”

“First of all, he doesn’t want me.”

His jaw clenched with frustration as he glared at you. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you. He’s thought about fucking you.”

“Even if he does, I don’t want him.” You reached out to cup his face, your voice so soft and tender in your attempts to placate him that he momentarily forgot how upset he was. “You really think I’d jeopardize what we have for a fling with Roger? I wouldn’t do that.”

“Then don’t go. Turn him down.”

Irritation flickered over your face, he could tell you were done coddling him. “Billy, you have no right to ask me that. I’d never interfere with your work.”

Underneath all that jealousy he knew you were right. As much as he despised the idea of you going away to Paris with another guy, he couldn’t demand that you not go on work trips. If you did that to him, it would annoy the fuck out of him. Yet despite his rational side recognizing he was asking for too much, he couldn’t help but feel bitter. “That asshole’s gonna make a move on you, I know it.”

“What if he does? What do you think is gonna happen?”

Hs eyes met yours, urgently seeking some kind of validation from you. “You tell me.”

“Do you think I’m going to sleep with him?”

He flinched. “Don’t talk about fucking another guy, please. You’re gonna make me lose my appetite.”

You took his hand and placed it over your left breast, probably to distract him from all the disgusting images that were running through his brain. “I wanted you so badly and even then it took me like a month to fuck you. Trust me, I’m not going to sleep with him when I’m not even attracted to him.”

Spotting the earnestness in your eyes, the knot in his stomach finally loosened. Roger may have had a hard-on for you but Billy knew you felt nothing for the fucker. He’d noticed that even at the night of the gala. So that meant he had to trust you, there was no reason not to. “Call me every night when you’re there,” he grumbled.

“Every night? You’re probably going to start blocking my calls,” you laughed.

He booped your nose. “Every. Fucking. Night.”

You beamed. “Fine.” A wicked glint flashed in your eyes, a seductive smile on your lips as you slowly moved his hand lower, his fingers now on your nipple. “Hey, just ‘cause you’re not there with me doesn’t mean we can’t have fun.”

He stroked your nipple over the fabric of your dress, enjoying how the nub hardened under his touch, the way your breath hitched in your throat when he continued his ministrations. With his other hand he tucked your hair behind your ear, whispering to you. “Phone sex is alright, but nothing beats this.” His tongue curved along the shell of your ear, and you trembled against him. “Right?”

The waitress seemed to come out of nowhere this time to ask how your meals were, and you jumped back. Disappointed, he sighed.

“Food was great. Thank you,” you replied, smiling stiffly at the redhead.

“Can I get you anything else?”

“Privacy would be great,” Billy muttered.

You kicked him under the table. “Dessert menu?”

“Sure. I’ll bring it right over,” the waitress said, taking your plates away.

“I’ll give you all the sugar you want once we get outta here,” he murmured seductively, caressing your thigh.

You giggled, rolling your eyes. “That’s a terrible line!” You took his hand and removed it from your thigh. “Billy, I’m not sleeping with you tonight.”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s our first date and I don’t put out on the first date.”

“Now that’s a terrible line,” he fired back, mimicking your earlier tone.

“Also, we already had sex this morning.”

“So? I’m greedy. I can’t get enough of you.” There was that shy smile of yours again, and he reached out to give you a sweet peck on the cheek. “You blush every time I tease you.”

“I do?”

“Yeah, it’s adorable.”

Your cheeks grew even more red. “I’m not used to it from you. A part of me still thinks you’re bullshitting me.”

Billy stiffened. “Really?”

“I know you’re not playing me,” you reassured. “It’s on me, not you. I just have a hard time accepting when good things happen.”

The waitress came by with the dessert menu. He briefly glanced at it before ordering a slice of pecan pie while you ordered a piece of chocolate cake.

As soon as the redhead left, he broached the topic with you again. “I’m not gonna hurt you, babe. You have to believe that.”

You didn’t look at him, your eyes fixed somewhere on his chest. “I do. You were so pissed off at me last night. I honestly expected you to hit me because you were so angry. But you didn’t.”

It made him sick to his stomach that you actually thought him capable of hitting you. It hadn’t even occurred to him that you would worry about that, but of course you would. With your childhood it made perfect sense, he was just a fucking idiot who hadn’t realized how much it still impacted you. “I’m never gonna lay a hand on you. I swear.” His eyes locked with yours, hoping you can sense how much he meant those words.

“I believe you.”

His voice was insistent, his gaze boring into you. “Why did you think I would?”

Your eyes wavered from his eyes to his lips for a long time, the atmosphere thick with tension. Your facial expressions ran the gamut of painful emotions, from uncertainty to fear to sheer panic.

It finally sank in that maybe the reason you were keeping the truth from him had noting to do with if you trusted him or not. Maybe you didn’t want to be assaulted by memories from the past that caused you so much pain. The last thing he wanted was for you to experience that hell again. Regretting his demanding tone, his hands caressed down the length of your arms. “You don’t have to tell me, It’s okay.”

Your eyes brimmed with aching vulnerability as you looked up at him. “I want to… I just… give me some time, okay?” You pressed your lips against his, giving him the softest, sweetest kiss. “I’ve been looking forward to tonight for so long, I don’t want to ruin it, you know?”

His heart felt full, his mind reeling with wonderment at the thought of you truly reciprocating his feelings. His arms wrapped around you as you sank into him, burying your face in his chest. His fingers stroked the back of your hair, murmuring soft, soothing words to you. Somewhere in the distance he heard the server’s voice trying to interject, but he didn’t give a damn. He was yours and you were his and nothing was going to ruin that. Nothing.

Part 18

A/N - I realize not much happened in this chapter but I just reallly wanted to write a dialogue heavy part where they simply get to know and enjoy each other. I think they’ve earned some fluff. LOL.

As always, thank you for your kind words of encouragement. Please let me know your thoughts.

Tumblr tag list:

@yourfavoritefruitybitch @voyevoda-thejoy @adreamemporium @queenmalhinewahine @gubleryum @galaxyjane @xceafh@maralisa124@tomhollandisabae @daybleedsintonightfa11 @lil-baby-nor @all-art-is-quite-useless @tanyaherondale @nashibirne @dour-trash @thetallassgirl @athenamikaelson @agent-jbarnes @primadonnasdream @aleksanderwh0r3 @elisemockingbird @nihilismworld @archisur@nemesis729 @lysawayne@kaqua @ladyblablabla @lemasonda@advictedtohim @24-martie @tarkanelima-blog @shinebrightlikeafanbase @krystal-clear1 @damalseer@dontjinx-it@darkishx @wanderlusting-about-life @thatguppienamedbae @happypepperdog @bat-revival @sassygirl25 @consulting–heroes @the-celestial-kitsune @mackaywhore @ablxssm @competitive-dust @red-head011 @exo-1204 @sunsetenigma @millieb-3199 @chatnain @licensedcheek @tinkertailor1212 @vertesalope @safetyhtom @acourtofglassandroses @eliwinchester-barnes @finnismyoriginalsin @weallhaveadestiny @beananacake @beauty-and-the-beast97 @smurfelle @fire-treasure-iii @charly-0 @kestrafagnor @pigwidgeonxo @damagelove @allegra-writes @pensandthings @jad3djay @batshitbarnes @kashimayuki @secretsthathauntus @odetostep @awesome-eccia @mackaywhore @stories-you-wont-hear @vvsdiamond28 @supernaturalcat7 @arieltwvdtohamflash @iknownoqueenbutthequeeninme @devs-stufff @ticosas @moodacheeks @myakai13 @carlywhomever @fvckthisbxtchup @its-evita-here @papapapadumb @talesfrommycell @bat-luna-cat @fific7 @elluvians @dailydoseofchoices @everythinghappens-love @papapapadumb @mylife-love-and-other-things @bigcreatorwombatdreamer @ancientbeing10 @natty2245 @stuckysavedmylive @kasslucilfer @simp-for-ben-barners @originaldeputycalzoneegg @bdffkierenwalker @kimoranelson03 @sadbi-hours @haushinka27 @haushinka27 @caylaxwrites @extraneousred @agentmstark @crazywitchkitty @its-an-idea-not-a-blog @partypoison00 @fictional-hooman @hoglady @helnicks @luckyfreakfishpeach @chiquitita18 @rachlovesactors @icecream50055 @doloreschanal @lupinsfavslytherin @swthxrry @wanderlusting-about-life @dreamer7black @leahnicole1219 @superawesomegeek @weallhaveadestiny @toxicenough @tiiffanym @dark-twisted-and-mechanical-mind @cap-just-said-language @edithsvoice @natashasilverfox

#billy russo x reader #billy russo #ben barnes #billy russo x you #the punisher #a woman scorned

592 notes · View notes

floater0352 · 3 years

Photo

TL;DR warning: TFATWS Ep. 6 / Finale There’s a lot to unpack in this series finale, and I sure as hell am not the expert to do this, but I thought I’d highlight some particular issues I have. Much of this, admittedly, will be coming from the high character tenors of the previous episodes, whereas this episode is really where the “MCU kind of movie denouement” kicks in. If you can call/criticize something as “Disney formula” writing, this might be it. Did it hamper/dampen my enjoyment of this series? Not THAT much, but it really stands out and suggests it could have been better. So let me do a few numbers. 1. PRO: A very acceptable execution of selling not only Sam’s first outing as ‘Captain America’, not only the affirmation of Bucky Barnes’ commitment to heroism, but the apotheosis long-denied to Isaiah Bradley. I’m getting the impression much of the gushing here in Tumblr will be focusing on that--and to an extent, I am in agreement. their characters were very well fleshed out and to be honest, I wouldn’t have it any other way. There may be still other things I would recommend as a better laid-out recognition for Isaiah (something more faithful to the Truth comic miniseries), but that’s a minor quibble compared to the others below.

2. CON: Falling into the trap of a “GOT-layout” series ending Ok, that description might be too harsh. After all, point # 1 is near perfect.

However, and this is a very big HOWEVER... A really good show does not rely solely on giving your main characters the best ending possible. Their supporting cast deserves at least a fair amount of character development (understandable motivations, a good appreciation of their character arcs, more moments which make you empathize with them especially if you are trying to experiment with moral ambiguity on their characters). The fact that the action sequence ate up more than half of the final episode’s near-50 minute runtime really prevented any further character development moments. How, to some extent, this became insufficient with Karli Morgenthau and John Walker become really apparent in the end. 3. CON: Under-served Character Denouements Karli and the Flag-Smashers, in practice, were basically given the “Killmonger” treatment: they’ll have to die, but the validity of their moral argument will be recognized. As someone with a very limited set of fandoms I follow, the only other place I’ve seen this done is Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans. The protagonist cast was left to die, but the tragedy of their situation led their world to improve things for the better. (For those familiar with this fandom, many will understand that this did not go down well.) Compare this, in turn, to how Breaking Bad gives even the supporting cast and side-characters understandable character endings.

The reason of complaint here, being, that this kind of story flow robs these characters of agency not only in their tragedy--but also how they choose to go out. Sympathetic tragic characters, to an extent, are at least given some dignity in how they go out. The fact that Karli and the Flag-Smashers are practically disposed of by a) Sharon, now fully revealed as the criminal Power-Broker and b) Zemo, whose butler is no less capable in extreme action even while he was in prison further highlights how they are basically reduced into ‘plot elements’, not a fully-realized group/faction of people.

John Walker, for his part, is also given very little to do (and indeed, what little he was able to do in the entire fight sequence is laughable). Even his one spark of “good choice” (seeking to save the falling vehicle’s occupants), even if he failed, was ultimately overshadowed by Sam’s more flamboyant rescue. One might be able to make argument, perhaps, that that is the point: Walker’s arc in this episode, perhaps, is to finally learn why exactly he can’t become Captain America: because he remains primarily a soldier, and only good at that. Witnessing Sam arguing and pontificating in front of the cameras, perhaps, is what hammers it home to him--and why perhaps his last scene in the series is him accepting his new role as U.S. Agent. If his world is going to be small and he is going to be pigeonholed into what he is good at, so be it. If he can’t be Captain America (now that he knows why exactly that symbol is powerful, and what is required of it), he’ll find his way with people who will let him be what he can be. Notice, however, how even between these two underserved characters, John Walker has a more understandable progression. I don’t think I’ll really be able to fault ‘left-wing’ viewers of the show who will be left dissatisfied by this ending (especially those who are sympathetic to the Flag-Smashers’ demands--especially as to some extent (due to my own line of work and leanings, I’m kind of one of those). And then there’s the reveal of Sharon as the Power-Broker--its own can of worms, but I’ll fold it in the next item. 4. MIXED BAG: How the show’s social layout closes

The fact that the MCU’s undercurrent politics remains to be “institutions are bad, mob/grassroots action will always be misguided, let media-chosen/private individuals and orgs show you the ‘right way’ of doing things”--it isn’t really as helpful as it could be. The show basically ends with Sam and Bucky’s individual arcs and moral world-views affirmed. It is definitely a happy ending for them. It is, however, pretty difficult to swallow that it ends well for them when the bigger picture is left unaddressed. (For those who may be interested in this line of critique, this video essay, “Imagining the Tyrant” by Kyle Kallgren / Brows Held High / oancitizen should be helpful.)

Nowhere is this better illustrated than in 2 instances: the setting of Walker’s rechristening as U.S. Agent, and Sharon’s “pardon” scene--now that we know she is in fact the Power Broker. Both events happen in the U.S. Senate Committee hearing hall--basically making the statement that even with a new Captain America that is more ‘home-grown’ and closer to the ground and common people (even as he literally flies high), the institutions of the U.S. government is still as impervious and clueless to its corruption and enabling of crime and injustice. Criminal elements like Valentina de Fontaine and the Power Broker foster the underground economy with impunity, and the U.S. government allows them to for a number of unbuilt/unestablished reasons.

It’s a valid/backed-up argument to make, and with historical/real life basis at that, but this is the kind of plot development difficult to credibly sell within a 6-episode miniseries already crammed with character arcs--and it shows. Compare this, for example, with how the Netflix series The Punisher built throughout its Season 1 run how exactly can black market profiteering grow under the CIA in a believable way. There, you see exactly what needs to happen for a previously-established upstanding character living in a grey environment to turn grey--even full on black (be it Frank Castle/the Punisher himself, Dinah Madani, or even Billy Russo). I’d want to chalk this up to the possibility of merging/reintroducing that world--and by god, imagine Jon Bernthal’s Punisher returning in this kind of gray area--interacting with Captain America AND the Winter Soldier, as this series is now likely to be titled--should be very interesting.

---- These are the top points in my head after my first watch of this finale. I may be rewatching this again--who knows if I get to come back. Still, it’s been a pretty meaningful ride. P.S. I should probably admit to my Filipino background here again, but it’s hilarious how the closing shot of this series (Sam and Bucky having a party with their family/community near the Louisiana seaside) is basically how mosts 80′s/90′s era Filipino action and comedy films end (either a beach party or a wedding/outing near a beach/swimming pool). The presence of Pinoy shout-outs in this series (”Amatz” and “Isang Tao, Isang Mundo”) really emphasize how this might not be an accident.

50 notes · View notes

brucewayneargento-moved · 3 years

Text

Lucky I’m In Love With My Best Friend

Fic also avalible on Ao3

Summary: Lace (Wallace West II) gets tired of his wedding with Damian always getting interrupted by some apocalyptic crisis so he just asks him to marry him casually after a mission.

He looked around the rubble, trying to make sense of all the people who were there. Rose, Tanya and Avery were making sure everyone was okay while William and Jackson were using their powers to take out the rubble; He turned his head the other way and saw Wally talking to the batfamily, specifically to Dick and meanwhile his fiancé was regrouping the Titans.

He focused his gaze upon his Damian, his Redbird suit covered in dirt and blood, he probably was going to pretend he was fine for a few hours before he collapsed on bed and slept for at least two days.

That’s when it struck him.

“Let’s get married,” Lace said suddenly. But he blinked upon realizing that he said in a really quiet voice and nobody could hear him.

He ran towards his fiancé, transforming into a gray and red blur, he appeared next to Damian making him jump a little, he turned around.

“Let’s get married ” Lace repeated, this time to him “Right now”

Damian’s eyes widened, Nobody, who was next to him, took out her helmet and stared at him with her mouth slightly open.

“Did a parademon hit your head?” Redbird asked.

Wallace frowned: “I’m being serious, let’s get married now.”

“Why?”

“We’re surrounded by our friends and family, the world literally almost ended and because I’m sure we will never have this opportunity again.

Damian opened his mouth to respond, but truth to be told he wasn’t sure what to say, it seemed like his wedding was always interrupted by some sort of apocalypse level threat, so it made sense that his husband-to-be seems to just want to get over it.

“C’mon,” Wallace pleaded with him. “Let’s get married and then I can run us both to Byalia and we’ll be there for a month.”

Damian smiled shyly, Oh what the hell.

“Alright,” The man agreed. “But as long as you propose to me again.” as soon as he pronounced those words his ring was gone and his fiancé was on one knee.

“Damian Ibn Thomas Wayne Al Ghul will you marry me?” he said with stars in his eyes.

“Dude if you don’t do it, I will” Maya said

“mmm,” Damian pretended to think it over for a minute and then grinned. “Alright I will marry you, Wallace Daniel West II.”

They both laughed and embraced each other, then proceeded to kiss, as they pulled away they realized all of the people surrounding them were applauding and cheering.

“We need a priest,” Damian suddenly said. as if he was just realizing how much work came into planning a wedding.

“I can marry you,” everyone turned around and saw Djinn raising her hand. “I have the power to.”

“We also need a band, “ Wallace remembered.

“I can help with that, me and Dinah can be prepared in no time.” Emiko said.

“I can make an aisle out of will.“ Tai smiled.

“Are you getting married in your superhero costumes?” Maya asked.

“I’ve already called Talia,” Bruce said. “She will bring Damian’s sherwani.”

“I can speed to the dry clean.” Wally said winking at Lace.

Soon enough everyone had a task to do, from cleaning up the area to just simply providing moral support to the grooms. It took them practically all day but the couple couldn’t be more glad for a sunset wedding.

Damian changed quickly into a telephone booth, advised by Jon and went outside wearing a lime green sherwani. Colin, Jon, Maya and Maps were about to comment until Talia came out of nowhere and started to pass a roll brush on his son.

“No son of mine will look dirty at his own wedding.” She proclaimed.

“This is giving me League flashbacks, but the good ones.” Athanasia said, making everyone jump a little, as no one had seen her sneak in either.

Meanwhile Wally had given Lace the suit, a red one with yellow flower details, and Tanya had given him a scrunchy to tie his hair on a manbun.

“Do we have to stay in our uniforms?” Jackson asked. “Can’t we at least change?”

“We can’t look better than the grooms.” William said.

It was seven PM where the ceremony finally started. As he had promised, Tai had made an entire wedding aisle out of will. With flowers, pews and a podium included.

Djinn was in the middle of the podium with some scriptures written in arabic on the table. At the right side there was: Tanya as the maid of honour, Avery as the groomsmaid, Jackson as the Best Man and William as the groomsman. At the left side there was Jon as the Best Man, Maya as the maid of honour, Maps as the groomsmaid and Colin as the groomsman.

Bruce was attending the news and the reporters saying that he was sponsoring his son’s wedding since he was supposed to get married in secret today but it had been canceled due to the aforementioned doomsday of earlier that day. After he finished his speech he went to the first row and sat next in between Talia and Harvey. It is unknown if he survived that.

On the other side there was Iris crying with joy while holding out the video camera as Barry had his arms crossed with a sad expression on his face. Probably meditating on how harsh he had been to Damian where he first met him.’

Soon enough Emiko started to play the wedding march on her violin, followed by Dinah doing acapella, giving the whole place an angelic atmosphere.

Everyone turned around to see Damian walking down the green carpet in the middle of the aisle. He pretended as if he wasn’t wrecking with nerves and tried his best to block down his pores in order to not ruin his one million dollar sherwani. He repeated his vows in his head, praying to the New Gods he wouldn’t mix them up.

Damian arrived at the aisle and smiled at his friends on the left side, and nodded as Roundhouse made hand motions to communicate what would happen to him if he dared to hurt Lace.

The wedding song started again and the public and the people on the end of the aisle all turned around again to look at Lace.

The speedster’s mind was running at a million miles per hour as he walked probably the slowest he had walked in his life.

He finally made it to the end of the aisle.

“Join hands please,” Djinn said. the men did as they were told while grinning at each other. Even after all these years they got giddy at this motion.

Djinn made a purple circle with magic around their hands, both men felt a sorts of electric current running through their veins.

“I will be casting an eternal bond, a sign to the New Gods that you will be declaring each other soulmates,” she explained. “You shall now pronounce your vows.”

Damian went first:

“Wallace -Lace- I can’t even begin to describe how much you mean to me, ” he said, pressing his fingers against the other man. “I have made many oaths in my life but I’m not lying when I say this is the most important-

“I vow to protect you and care for you, I promise to dedicate the rest of my days devoted to you and to your needs, to love you as hard as I can.”

Wallace had tears in his eyes. He swallowed a little saliva to wet his mouth, trying to ease his nerves.

“Damian,” he pronounced every syllable as something sacred. “I don’t know if I can ever say to you how much you mean to me, but I know that I can try to show you, by small and big gestures because you deserve them, you are worthy of all the love in the world.”

Damian looked down, blushing.

Djinn spoke: “Do you both swear by the New Gods that you’ll stay together for the rest of your life? Bonding your souls to each other for the rest of eternity?”

“We do.” they both said at the same time.

“You may complete the ritual by kissing.” She said.

Wallace speeded two inches in front of Damian and kissed him, and spun him to the side to hold him. The crowd exploded in thunderous applause. Purple butterflies surrounded them both, they pulled away and looked at each other with misty eyes.

#the flash #batman #dc comics #robin #kid flash #wallace west ii #damian wayne #teen titans #my post

2 notes · View notes

newagegs · 3 years

Text

name: harleen frances quinzel

age: 34

date of birth: september 11th, 1992

fandom: dc

faceclaim: imogen poots

height: 5'4

pronouns/gender identity/sexual+romantic identity: she/they, nonbinary, bisexual biromantic

where have they been living since the return snap: between her apartment in coney island and one in gotham (mostly during the no man's land event)

what have they been doing personally and/or professionally since the return snap: harley is trying, to some extent to be an almost, kind of decent person. or more of a harley person, at least. she's working on moving past her trauma, results of which have been dubiously successful. helping in killing the joker, freeing ivy from arkham, moving to coney island (taking over an apartment that had been willed to her by an old patient), and working with more heroes (also dubiously successful, considering her penchant for violent solutions) have all been attempts she's made to distance herself from the past.

distancing being a loose term, considering harley's come running back to gotham many times, most recently during no man's land, taking territory in the city just to prove she still could. she was harley quinn afterall, still someone to be feared, even if she was doing a little rebranding.

if they are part/have ever been a part of SHIELD or the avengers team, when did they join and why: her relationship with the avengers is...complicated. she worked with them a little post snap and post suicide squad, mostly due to the fact that she'd made herself a sometimes ally of the batfam after her time with the suicide squad and having her record cleared. her time helping mostly centered around scarecrow, and it's been about a year now. she's never officially been a member of either, nor will she be.

do they currently live in the avengers compound: nada

moral alignment: chaotic neutral

dusted in the snap or not: hella nope

if they weren’t dusted, what did they get up to in those five years, be as brief or in depth as you want: the joker was dusted in the snap, and that sent harley on a bit of a...murderous rampage. she couldn't handle it, putting her entire identity into her relationship with him, despite the fact that she knew the relationship was abusive, at least on some unconscious level.

she was arrested, and put in belle reve for her crimes, not arkham, and put on death row. she wasn't there long before she was broken out, forced to undergo torture before being inducted into amanda waller's task force x, also known as the suicide squad.

she was on the suicide squad for four years, only breaking her loyalty once, when she discovered that pamela isley had been snapped, breaking into arkham and demanding that someone tell her it wasn't true. this happened early on in her time with the team, and she was forgiven for her "disobedience", eventually having the bomb amanda waller had had implanted in her neck deactivated and removed.

after four years her time with the suicide squad was considered done with, her record being cleared, every trace of her crimes being erased from every database they could be found in.

for all intents and purposes, harley was a new woman.

she didn't exactly use that freedom, going straight back to gotham, the place where her face was known more than anywhere else, not leaving until after the return snap.

ramble a bit about them, their past, what their current motivations are: harley was born in brooklyn, new york, the oldest of four children. her interest in psychology started when she was in eighth grade, and a high schooler named bernie bash decided he was in love with her, going as far as to commit murder to prove his love, killing another boy that had been interested in harley at the time. he gave harley a taxidermied beaver as a gift before he was arrested, and after he was sentenced to jail she named it after him, keeping it as a momento of her first real relationship.

the fact that she wasn't disturbed by this, but fascinated, should've been the first sign that something wasn't entirely right with harley.

in her childhood, from elementary school all the way through high school, harley was a star gymnast, winning several awards for the sport.

she did college classes while she was in high school, and graduated at only sixteen, granted a full ride scholarship to several different schools, though she eventually chose gotham university.

she obtained her bachelors by eighteen as she already had quite a few credits racked up, and had a phd in psychology by twenty four, despite originally intending to go to school for veterinary and biological science. she did her thesis on the joker, believing him to be misdiagnosed by his previous psychiatrists.

she started out her residency at a prominent hospital in gotham, though was quickly transferred to arkham asylum when the joker killed yet another of his psychiatrists. she took on the challenge, fascinated by him and his psyche, and it didn't take long before he started talking to her, harley not falling for his taunting words, and never attacked. she thought she was special.

while working at arkham she was also the psychiatrist for pamela isley, requesting for her cell to be changed so she could have more access to sunlight, kind to her in a way that others weren't, and this earned her her loyalty before she ever became harley quinn.

on her tenth session with the joker, he revealed to her that he knew about the fact that her father had been killed by a drunk driver who had had the connections required to get off without any punishment. as a gift to her, he presented her with the driver's finger as proof that the man had been brought to justice.

it was here that harley started to fall, charmed by these actions.

harley's supervisor, dr.sterano, stole her notes, intending to publish them as her own findings, and in the process discovered harley's feelings for the joker. she confronted harley, who attacked her, enraged that her work had been stolen, brushing off any other accusations. she tried to kill sterano, but was interrupted by the guards. instead of surrendering, harley attacked them too, killing one of them. she broke the joker out of his cell, and he took her to the ace chemical processing plant, something that harley believed was another show of opening up, at least until she was pushed into one of the vats of chemicals, realizing too late what he'd intended to do. her skin was bleached and her mind was warped by the toxic fumes, but she lived long enough for him to drain the vat and fish her out.

she started to terrorize gotham alongside the joker.

she played a good villain, enjoyed bringing pain to others, though she had her limits. she spoke against the joker when children were involved, for one, which he didn't like.

he didn't like a lot of things about her, and harley forced herself to be whatever he wanted her to be.

she got pregnant not long into her career as a criminal, and she was being honest with herself enough to know that wasn't safe. she disappeared for several months, not coming back until after the birth of her daughter lucy, and the joker had barely even realized she was gone.

this hurt harley, but she stayed with him until he was snapped, and she was left alone.

one plot idea, big or small, you’d like to do with them: exploring a dynamic between both jason and dinah (because please). i'd love to explore more of harley's want to be a "hero" (however loose her definition of that might be), especially as civil war part two stuff starts moving forward.

mun details

name/alias: mekayla

age: 19

pronouns: she/her

timezone: pst

#app #harley quinn app #submission

0 notes

ofmoonbeams · 4 years

Text

introducing: moonbeam

pinterest.

BASICS.

full name: noemi elara calliso

nicknames (if any): emmy, no (at least that’s what her mother always says to her)

gender / pronouns: cis female / she, her

classification: human

abilities (if any): n/a

age: twenty-six

occupation: nursing assistant

PERSONALITY.

traits: selfish, insensitive, eager, determined, ambitious, adventurous, gregarious, unreliable

mbti: estp - the entrepreneur

zodiac: cancer sun, leo moon, gemini rising

AESTHETIC.

hopping fences, staying in the shadows, black coffee, skinned knees, moonlight reflecting off a lake, vanilla and vetiver candles, your throat being raw from screaming into the void, wind in your hair, the fresh sounds and smells of a place you’ve never been before, desperately trying to remember places you have.

HISTORY.

noemi was born to young human couple in district three, lucine and lee perrine. lee and lucine worked at the factory, but once lucine became pregnant with noemi, lee and her brother steven basically forced her to stop working, worrying that she would injure herself or lose the baby. so, she became a freelance tailor, repairing torn trousers or sewing buttons back on a coat. money was tight already when it was just the two of them, but once noemi was born, it was impossible to survive off of their income alone.

so, lucine’s brother steven (who was known to dabble in the black market as it was), decided to go full force, scavenging the drylands and beyond for anything that was worth anything. practically all of the money earned from these endeavors went to raising noemi, and steven loved her as if she was his own daughter.

lee hated this, he already didn’t like steven mostly because his wife always defended him (he was her little brother, after all). but it also hurt his sense of pride - the breadwinner with no bread, he hated the fact that he couldn’t support his family.

this continued for a few years, and when noemi was two years old, the callistos were on the hunt for two perfectly human babies. why two? greed, maybe. maybe so that when they wanted alone time, their children could entertain each other. maybe they just liked even numbers. anyway, lee was at dinah’s on his night off, after he got into a fight with lucine about finances, her brother, etc. the callistos, on their hunt for babies, overheard him venting to his friends about his situation, and gave him and offer: for a modest amount of money, they would take noemi and raise her as their own. lee didn’t agree right away, he said he’d have to talk to his wife about it and they would consider it. as one can imagine, lucine shot him down immediately.

the callistos knew that their main source of income and the only thing keeping them afloat was steven’s dealings on the black market. so, they tipped off one of the watchers, and bribed him to make steven disappear.

lucine waited by the window for three days after he said he would be back, but finally she realized that he was dead, and they couldn’t feed noemi. lucine was so distraught that she laid in bed for days, crying and ignoring the pleas of her toddler. lee took noemi and went to dinah’s, where he handed her off to the callistos.

when noemi first arrived to her new home, she was confused. sure, she was pampered and fed beyond anything she had ever experienced, but she always asked where her mama was. trying to dispel the notion from her mind, the callistos always shot her down, telling her that they were her parents, and they loved her. and in their own way, at least at first, they did. they never harmed a hair on her head, they gave her anything she wanted that could be bought. but what she wanted most was her mother to tell her that she was proud of her.

noemi and saffira had the same tutors, did the same extracurriculars, and were always together. no matter how hard noemi tried, she just wasn’t as good as saffira at anything. she enjoyed piano, painting, learning languages (which she wasn’t half bad at), dancing. but slowly, her mother’s constant disappointment in her performance chipped away at her enjoyment of these hobbies, until she despised them all with a passion.

her and saffira debuted at the same time, but upon seeing that her mother paid absolutely no attention to her at all (indifference is worse than hatred, after all), noemi ran away to district two, where she stayed at dinah’s all night, watching and listening to people, even engaging in light conversation with them. it was magical to her, but on her way back home, she was accosted by a mutant, and it scared her so badly that she didn’t go back until a few years later.

noemi hated being bad at everything (or not being as good as saffira), and she was desperate to have something of her own. she begged her parents to let her get a job, and finally, through their connections with the hospital, they got her the position as a nursing assistant. now, noemi is not good at this, and her bedside manner is awful because she just asks questions that pop in her head and can be quite insensitive. but still, when you’re injured, a pretty young face can do wonders for morale.

her experiences at the hospital made her want more, and soon enough, she started sneaking out again to go to districts two and three (though it took some time to build up enough courage to go to district three).

as of now, she still lives with her parents and saffira, but their lives are fairly separate. she holds a lot of resentment to all members of her family, but she still craves their approval. mostly, she just wants something that’s her’s, and that can’t be tainted by her parents or stolen by saffira.

WANTED CONNECTIONS.

the secret history: noemi’s entire life, she wonders who her true family is; of course, whenever she asks, her parents go on a long diatribe about how she was left alone, to starve and wallow in poverty, and how they saved her. but from what she remembers (which is very little, especially now that she is older), it was nothing like that at all. i think part of her doesn’t want to know what happened to her family, because she really doesn’t want her adoptive parents to be right. however, I do want her to eventually find out what happened to her family, whether they are dead or alive (could be interesting). perhaps someone recognizes her from when she’s little , or knew the family in some way? perhaps a childhood friend (who would have to be a bit older) sees her and something clicks?

radicalize me, baby: noemi has been going to district three more and more lately, and while her time is confined mainly to the boneyard and her visits with peter, she ventures out occasionally. she is incredibly curious about mutants, and wants to know more about them. i want someone to open her eyes to how awful it is to be a mutant, because all she sees is a different life than the one she has, which is incredibly restricting. it’s a bit “the grass is always greener on the other side” deal, and i want noemi to take her passion for mutants, and turn it into something more...destructive. she’ll be reluctant to at first, because her parents’ approval still (unfortunately) means a lot to her, but she’ll give it up eventually.

the parent she never had: noemi needs someone who believes in her, who sees her for her potential and her present. her mother is a master at chipping away her self esteem and making her want to do better to gain her approval at the same time. i want someone who could be a mother (or father) figure to noemi, who loves her (or will) unconditionally, because she deserves it. also someone to give it to her straight and try to make her more realistic and take care of herself, because the girl can be reckless.

teach me: this ties in to the wc above, but i want someone to teach noemi something she doesn’t know, or does know but is “bad” at. someone to really take the time to help her, and give her more confidence in her own capabilities. this could be anything from fighting to painting. i just want her to feel like she’s good at something (aside from sneaking around).

ex flames, ex friends, flames, friends, people at dinah’s she’s talked to before, someone who knows she’s from district one, someone who doesn’t know or doesn’t care. her found family.

HEADCANONS.

dinah’s is the first place noemi went to outside of district one, and the warmth and friendliness and the life she encountered there made her feel at home for the first time. it’s a very special place to her, and probably her favorite place in metropolis.

used to play “hide and seek” with her mother when her mother’s friends would come over, basically ensuring noemi was out of sight and silent. her mother would then come up and find her and tickle her and noemi loved the game because it was a special thing she had with her mother. then, one night she snuck downstairs and saw saffira was allowed to engage with her parents’ friends, and she was heartbroken. still, she wanted to play the game because it made her feel special, and she loved getting the attention from her mother (sad hours).

noemi wants more than anything to be a mutant. she has hope that her family were mutants, and that her powers are simply dormant. spoiler alert: she isn’t. she’s completely human. this will tear her apart, especially when she finds out saffira has abilities (much much later).

writes in a secret journal that she keeps under her mattress.

loves peter pan and would always play dress up with her sister where she was peter pan and saffira was wendy.

in general, her and saffira would dress up and play pretend and have little “adventures,” a memory noemi clings on to. she misses her sister, but years of (unfair) resentment towards her keep blurring that, and she could never admit it.

loves sour gummy worms.

got a tattoo out of rebellion, of course it’s a crescent moon on her hip. of course.

#2120intro

2 notes · View notes

tessatechaitea · 4 years

Text

Black Canary: New Wings #2

"How about a photo-realistic view of Downtown Seattle and then I'll just scribble in some mountains up top?" -- Dick. "Please add some Black Canary Colorforms too." -- Editorial.

Even after giving Issue #1 an "A" rating, I still can't believe this issue is going to be anything but boring. Just look at this fucking cover! This is the kind of image a D-list publishing house puts on the cover of a biographical comic book about David Faustino. Did editors at DC think highlighting the city of Seattle in 1991 was going to move units? It's not even recognizable as Seattle! Okay, okay, you fucking Seattlites. Great, you recognized your city instantly! I guess this fucking comic book was for you then, you know-it-all twats. For the rest of us, we need the Space Needle front and center, not washed out in the pink morass over Black Canary's shoulder! You never see an artist for DC drawing an image of Paris without the Eiffel Tower. I mean, maybe not never, exactly. Sometimes they'll throw in the Arc de Triomphe or the Louvre or Notre Dame. But that's kind of the point! All Seattle has is the Space Needle! I'm not shitting on Seattle for that. I live in Portland and what the fuck do we have? A big pink corporate office building?! Oh, sure, we have some spectacular bridges! I forgot about those! Portland is better than Seattle when it comes to recognizable architecture. Although we don't have a troll sucking off a VW Bug under any of our bridges or a huge black cock jutting out of downtown (Big Pink is the best we can muster). I don't really care which city has better architecture! I can't stand people who feel pride for living in a specific city and then try to emulate the stereotypical person who lives in that city. If you're wondering who the fuck would do that, just watch any local newscaster in any city and watch how they try so fucking hard to be representative of the stereotypes of people who live there. Local news stations should stop airing promos that say shit like "First. Live. Local." Instead, they should just say, "We have no dignity. But we have the news! Although, to be fair, half of it is composed of viral videos everybody but our oldest of olds audience has seen." Another reason this cover sucks is that it declares the title of this chapter is "Home is Where Ya' Live." Is that some sage Midwestern non-wisdom that people spout in reply to some other person moaning about some problem? Like how when somebody in Lincoln, Nebraska is all, "I was shot in the leg on my way to Runza's!" And then somebody else is all, "It builds character." In California, we didn't have sayings like that. If somebody said, "I was shot in the leg on my way to Taco Bravo!", you would reply, "Dude! That's gnarly!" And they'd go, "I know, right?!" And then you'd be all, "Like, is this going to affect our, like, trip to the beach?" And they'd be all, "Nah brah! I'mma go, like, run some water on it! Good as new, dude!" And you'd say, "Tubular! Gonna go get my board! Catch ya later!" This is because nothing in California builds character. You just start off as a goofy, one-dimensional caricature of a human being and stick with it until you, like, die.

No white male has ever been called uppity and we all know why.

"Uppity" is a great word by which to judge somebody's character. I mean to say, if somebody actually calls somebody else "uppity," you now know way more than that person wanted you to know about what kind of person they are. Especially telling is if somebody doesn't understand why you're judging them for calling somebody "uppity." I stopped associating with way more people than I would have thought possible when they sided against Colin Kaepernick. Maybe they didn't use the word "uppity" exactly but they sure weren't hiding their feeling that some people should keep in a specific place and be grateful for what they've been allowed to have, so to speak. Unfortunately for them, my sister and my dad fell into that camp. Obviously they thought they claimed their dislike for Kaepernick was that he wasn't supporting the troops. But we all know how flimsy that bit of moral legerdemain really is. It takes an awful lot of mental contortion to simply disregard Kaepernick's stated protest of police violence against the black community and decide to believe right wing media that has a vested interest in a continued police state backed by corporate money. The whole "I'm a patriot so I find unpatriotic acts disgusting!" is the worst shell game every invented. All those fuckers who constantly thank members of the military for protecting their freedoms support Trump and Republicans who are fucking our freedoms in the ass (non-consensually! I support somebody fucking my freedom in the ass if my freedom feels like getting fucked in the ass tonight). I would thank a member of the military for protecting my freedom if they were ever fucking used to actually protect our freedoms. As a democracy (Don't you fucking representative republic me, you asshole), it's up to us to protect our freedoms and a good percentage of us are failing spectacularly at that job. Gan isn't just battling the small time crack dealers in his neighborhood. He's got his sights on Senator Garrenger as well.

Gan doesn't realize the opposite is also true.

Senator Garrenger is a white supremacist working with white supremacists to do white supremacy. Some of us have been fighting this shit for a long time. The problem is far more of us have been pretending it wasn't a real thing for even longer. "White supremacist Neo-Nazis infiltrating our police forces? Get out of here! You sound ridiculous!" was probably a thing said a lot in the last forty years. And yet even now that conservatives have found that they don't need to resort to dog whistles because saying the thing out loud that used to cause political backlash doesn't even cause a ripple of concern now. We have learned that a large percentage of our country doesn't give a shit if you're a racist, misogynist asshole as long as you say three things over and over again: "God Bless America," "Owning a gun is a God-given right," and "Abortions are evil." Tick off those boxes and you can dispense with all the dog whistling and just say the racist shit on national television. Dinah begins to dig up dirt on Senator Garrenger so that Black Canary has an iron clad excuse to punch him in the face. Her and Gan decide to work together to stop him and clean up the California drugs in their neighborhood. Not that they believe the two problems are actually the same problem! Not yet anyway! Dinah suspects it but Gan thinks she's seeing conspiracy where there isn't any. Dinah has more experience with how comic books work which is why she sees the entire forest already and it's only the beginning of Issue #2. Gan takes his show to the streets in front of a crack house to shame them out of the neighborhood. He doesn't realize it's run by the Senator's son who murders three of his "coworkers" to make his escape when the cops show. Gan is shot in the shoulder by the white supremacist assassin while Black Canary rushes in to help. A crack addict is blamed for the murders but Black Canary listens to his chaotic rambling, leading her to discover a shell left by the Neo-Nazi assassin. Black Canary: New Wings #2 Rating: B+. All the action is basically the last half of the comic book as a seasoned reader of comic books might expect. If a writer front loads the story with people discussing actual issues, the reader is going to get antsy for some mindless violence! Too bad for some readers the violence in this was't mindless but caused by truly awful people. People think the attitude of Comicsgate is a new thing but if you read the letters pages from the past, you'll see they existed back then as well. A lot of readers didn't want to be reminded that maybe the way they think and the things they believe put them in the realm of the "bad guy." So a comic book where the villain robs the bank or attacks Batman for the hell of it is okay because that reader would never rob a bank or attack Batman. But if you make the bad guy a senator who believes foreigners are stealing the jobs of good white Americans and maybe flooding their neighborhoods with drugs as a good way to fight against their "intrusion" into "white America," some of your readers are going to look up from the comic book and say aloud to nobody, "Hey!" And since most of them aren't in touch with their feelings or have ever really done a good, close examination of their self, they don't know how to deal with hurt feelings in any way but to be angry. It's easier to be angry at the person calling some white people racist than to have a good long think about why you might be upset about somebody pointing out racism.

#Black Canary #New Wings #DC #DC Comics #Sarah Byam #Trevor Von Eeden #Dick Giordano

2 notes · View notes

jbuffyangel · 6 years

Note

Do you think they are low key assassinating John Diggle’s character to make NTA and BS look better and have a purpose? His arc last season and the beginning of this one has started to make me resent him and I hate it because he was one of my absolute favs. It kinda sounds like BS helps get Oliver out of prison because she’s the DA and I just can’t believe that even she would be more loyal to him and Felicity than JOHN FREAKING DIGGLE. I hope he starts making sense soon. I hate his storyline😔💔

This is probably not going to be a popular response, but… no I don’t think they are assassinating John’s character to help prop the Newbies and Bl*ck S*ren.

I think it’s really important not to put characters on a pedestal. They have to be allowed to make mistakes. Characters can be unlikable when they are making mistakes. I know Diggle has been the moral compass on Arrow and his behavior of late is extremely challenging. It’s okay to not like a character when they are acting in an unlikable way.

However, it’s okay for John not to be perfect all the time. It’s okay with me that he screws up. I’m also okay being angry with him over those mistakes. I have zero doubts he will step onto the right path again, but I am okay with Arrow exploring this storyline with John.

Sometimes I feel like it’s okay to get angry with Oliver, Bl*ck S*ren and the Newbies, but it’s not okay to ever be angry with Diggle and Felicity. This is just how I feel sometimes. It doesn’t mean it’s true.

Felicity and Diggle are human like everyone else. They will make mistakes. I feel it’s important for me as a viewer to leave room for those mistakes. I need to leave room for the humanity in Diggle and Felicity. They won’t always react the way I think they should. They won’t always make the right calls.

I firmly believe issues have been building with Diggle for years. Pretty much since Season 4.

The Newbies and Bl*ck S*ren weren’t even part of the show then. John quit Team Arrow when the Newbies were being total ass hats. His issues with Oliver had very little to do with the Newbies and zero to do with Bl*ck S*ren.

John is going through something else entirely. He is looking for his place in the world because he feels displaced. I’m really not kidding around when I call it a mid life crisis. So much of John’s purpose was wrapped up in saving Oliver Queen.

His question in Season 6 was where does he go now that Oliver is saved?

I think some of his fatalistic approach to Oliver being lost to them forever is, in part, because John feels like he lost Oliver long before prison.

We can say, “John you are crazy and Oliver still needs you. PARTICULARLY NOW THAT HIS WIFE AND CHILD ARE UNDER THREAT,” but it doesn’t mean John knows that. It doesn’t mean John is in a position to truly understand it. I think the character is really lost without Oliver in a lot of ways. I think John has been lost for a long time.

I wrote a meta on this not long ago called the “The Ascension of Oliver Queen and Descension of John Diggle.” I encourage you to read it Anon. I map out the direction I think these characters are going, but I’ll go through some of it here.

The show is slowly going through a monumental shift. It’s no longer going to be entirely about Oliver’s screw ups and saving his soul. We are watching Oliver retain all his goodness, all the lessons he’s learned over the past 10 years, during his time, at Slabside.

Old Oliver would spiral into darkness after being cut off from Felicity and Diggle for a day. He’s not killing in prison even though he’s absolutely justified to do so. He isn’t skinning men alive.Oliver has mostly solved problems with his morality in tact. Oliver retaining his light in prison, on his own, without Diggle and Felicity holding his hand, is unbelievably important.

The whole show is about OLIVER becoming a superhero. Well… we’re pretty damn close. He’s not a full cooked turkey yet, but we’re getting there! If Oliver is nearing a fully realized superhero then it means the moral compass on the show is HIM. It’s not about Diggle telling him right from wrong anymore. It’s about Oliver knowing right from wrong.

This gives John’s character a freedom he’s never had before. Diggle couldn’t screw up because Oliver was a disaster zone. John had to reign Oliver in or else there’d be corpses up and down Star City. Diggle had to be on a righteous path in order to direct Oliver there. Otherwise, Oliver would have turned into Prometheus.

But now Oliver is doing a damn fine job taking care of himself on his own. A lot of that is causing John’s spiral. That said, Diggle can screw up without Oliver becoming a disaster. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. The more Diggle screws up, the more lost he becomes, the more he needs Oliver Queen’s help. It’s a reverse of their relationship. The bond remains the same. However, it’s Oliver’s turn to save John. I think Diggle has earned that.

So, it means I have to give his character the same room I gave Oliver. If I allowed Oliver to screw up massively and do stupid things, then I have to allow Diggle the same humanity. If Oliver didn’t always do the right thing then Diggle doesn’t always have to either. They start at opposite ends of the spectrum, but Oliver and Diggle’s journey is ultimately one in the same. They’ll end up in the same spot, but it doesn’t preclude either character from messing up along the way.

John’s reaction to Felicity and Diaz is frustrating. But in Diggle’s defense he believes A.R.G.U.S. is the best way to capture Diaz. He’s not prepared to go off book like Felicity is. Is he wrong? YES. But Diggle’s decision is backed up by a lot of of his previous actions.

John left Team Arrow because he no longer had purpose. He thought his new purpose would be Green Arrow. He wanted to slot B (be Oliver) in for A (save Oliver) and boom he’s good to go. Oliver didn’t give up the hood though and it triggered quite an angry reaction from John. One that’s been brewing since Andy died.

Diggle walked away from the team then too. He re enlisted in the army. When John is feeling lost he doubles down on rules, regulations and structure. He leaves the world of living outside the law, the world of Oliver Queen, behind.

It’s the same with leaving Team Arrow. John left vigilante life behind and doubled down on being the good solider only this time at A.R.G.U.S. His hesitancy to go outside the rules of A.R.G.U.S. to help Felicity are extremely in line with where his character ended last season. This isn’t something the Arrow writers are going to drop. John’s arc isn’t over.

John admitted to Felicity he’s scared. He knows everything being a vigilante cost Oliver and Diggle doesn’t have it in him to risk the same. John isn’t prepared to go to prison, be without his wife and child, for the sake of the hood. Diggle is merely admitting he doesn’t have the same drive as Oliver.

The writers aren’t trying to cast Diggle in a bad light for the sake of the Newbies and Bl*ck S*ren. The writers are drawing a distinction between Oliver Queen and John Diggle. What makes Oliver Queen a superhero? Why is Oliver Queen worthy of the hood? Oliver is prepared to lose everything and John is not. It doesn’t make John a bad man. It makes him human. Superheroes are next level human. They do things and sacrifice things most people in their right minds would never do.

Does that mean John won’t be a superhero as Spartan? No. John admitted his fears wearing the hood. He said no. It also has to make him question if he’s really cut out for vigilante life at all - including Spartan. However, simply because this is where John is at now doesn’t mean this is where he will end up.

I don’t agree Diggle would never turn his back on Felicity Smoak. He’s left the team before. Diggle has isolated himself from both Oliver and Felicity. He was prepared to spend his life in jail, separated from his wife and child.

If Diggle can walk away from his wife and son then he can walk from anyone. But we have to look at his state of mind when he made those decisions. Diggle wasn’t in a good place mentally.

I don’t believe he’s in a good place mentally now. Maybe he’s keeping up appearances better under that A.R.G.U.S. uniform, but I still think he’s on a downward slope. More importantly, I don’t believe John is looking at it like he’s turned his back on Felicity. He’s trying to catch Diaz same as her, but Diggle doesn’t want to do it Felicity’s way.

Yes, he’s wrong. Yes, he’s Pod Diggle. Yes, I am angry at him. Yes, I will drag him in reviews. I’ve done all of that with Oliver too. But do Diggle’s actions seem out of the blue or out of line to me given where I see the character at this point? No. This feels like the next progression in his arc.

As far as The Newbies, yeah we have some helping Felicity and some not. Rene has to help Felicity. If he doesn’t the writers might as well kill him. Rene refusing to help is full character assassination. The only way for Rene to remain on this show is to help Felicity. But I’m not giving him points since he caused the problem.

I really don’t see that having anything to do with Diggle. In a lot of ways, John believes he’s honoring Oliver’s sacrifice by playing by the rules. He’s still helping the city, but legally. This all fits with where John’s mind is at regarding vigilantism.

Curtis and Dinah have helped sparingly, but not to the level I think both characters should help, since they are also a large part of the reason Oliver is in prison. Nothing they’ve done has really secured any significant redemption in my eyes. By the same token, those actions have neither positively or negatively impact Diggle’s character.

As for Bl*ck S*ren, she’s out for herself. She wants revenge on Diaz. She’s not helping because she wants Oliver and Felicity to reunite and make all kinds of babies. Diaz killed Quentin and she wants to kill Diaz. I say, “Faster pussy cat kill kill,” but I don’t think her motivations are purely focused on helping Felicity. So again no points from me.

If the stars line up and Bl*ck S*ren’s motivations and Felicity’s motivations meld then great. I’m Team Help Felicity. Is there a chance I’ll be happier with Bl*ck S*ren’s character than John’s? Yes, we are living in the Upside Down because John himself is upside down. He’s going to need Oliver’s help to see the world clearly again.

#asks #john diggle #oliver queen #arrow #arrow spoilers #john diggle meta #oliver queen meta #oliver and diggle #Anonymous #anti black siren #anti rene ramirez #anti newbies #anti dinah drake #anti curtis holt

76 notes · View notes

austencello · 5 years

Text

Past Sins - Arrow Music Notes 7x11

Oliver is seeking to move past his father’s sins and be a better man but the past continues to follow him as he aims to convince both his sister and the city that he can be trusted. Meanwhile, Lyla and Diggle put together a version of the Suicide Squad to Curtis’ horror and concern and Laurel thinks she is being stalked by a man she killed on Earth 2.

Oliver and his Father

The episode opens with Oliver and Laurel in a TV interview featuring former vigilantes now public servants. As Oliver is asked about living up to his father’s legacy, he flashbacks to his conversation with Emiko, aware of yet another way that Robert had been less than a hero. While the scenes go back and forth, Oliver trying to convince Emiko that he is different while still protecting his father’s name and image to Star City, “Honor Memory” plays. This theme first appeared in 1x02 as Oliver speaks to Robert’s headstone, apologizing for appearing to disrespect his memory in order to honor Robert’s request to right his wrongs. This theme also came back when Oliver was confronted with the horrible things Robert and then having to tell others about it. From telling Thea that their Dad cheated on their Mom “Dad cheated” (1x12) to the video of Robert murdering the councilman in 5x21, asking Felicity how he missed it “Leave past in past” as she told him to live for himself and not his father, it is the theme when Oliver has to reconcile the sacrifice Robert did for him and the ways he had deeply hurt others around them. It is Oliver wrestling with the fact that his father who sacrificed his life for him was also a liar, a cheater, and a murderer.

The sins that comes to haunt Oliver is the murder of Hackett, Robert’s bodyguard. It wasn’t until his sessions with Dr. Parker in Slabside that he admitted Hackett was murdered by his father. Hacket’s son Som finds this out and is determined to make him pay. As Oliver looks into Sam and his apartment with Dinah, he tells Dinah about why Sam might be after him as a version of the first half of his Arrow theme repeats. The rhythmic aspect of his theme (3,3,2) also plays as they discover the weapon Sam is making. While he may not be in fully Arrow mode and gear, the part of him that looks for clues and seeks to stop crime is in motion.

Later on, Oliver offers to diffuse the situation by being fired by the SPCD. He recognizes that for all his talk about transparency, he never became clean about his father’s sins since he was trying to remove himself from them. Dinah reminds him that while his past may come back what matters is how he moves forward. The melody that plays was first introduced in 7x06 with a version of “Returning Home” (1x01) mixed with a new melody in the harp. It was used there as bookends as Oliver refused to see Laurel as anything but an imposter looking out for herself and at the end she tells him to stop putting her and others in boxes. It is a theme of growth from the man who returned home with a mission that was black and white to save the city but lying left and right. A man who recognizes that his Father was both a hero and a murderer at the same time. He was showing compassion for Sam even when he was trying to kill him as well as seeing the possible redemption and good that still resides in Black Siren as she seeks to become a better person for Quentin. This theme was used against the end of this episode during his speech to Star City, confessing what his Father did to Hackett and promising never to lie to the city again. He has come to realize that to have the trust of the city means to be open and not hide in the shadows. He has returned home from prison now ready to show Star City who he really is as a man and hero.

The Ghost Initiative

Regardless of whether creating the Ghost Initiative is a terrible idea or not, one of the fun parts of this episode was hearing all the returning themes of the villains selected. Three times, the music alternated between each person: China White (electronic theme at the very end of “Try Roy Try” - 2x02), Cupid (bells “Petals” 3x06) and Deathstroke Jr (the same music as his father - “Like Father, Like Son” 6x06). First in their interviews, then as they were in the chairs about to be knocked out and then again as they were fighting. Interestingly, Diaz’s theme was not present in the move from one theme to another even though that plot was mostly revolving around him. The only time his theme played (low bass going down “The Dragon” 6x19) occurred as he “killed” Curtis.

Another theme returned from the first half of this season, this time with Diggle. Diggle has changed a lot over the last season or two, making some questionable decisions arguing that it is for the greater good, from taking drugs to stop nerve damage and hiding it from the team in Season 6 to reinstating the Suicide Squad to help and hide their pursuit of Dante. This season, three people have confronted him about changing: Felicity, Lyla, and now Curtis. In this episode, Curtis is quite upset about putting bombs into people’s heads (in a very similar way that Diggle was in Season 2) and asks how Diggle can be alright with this. The same music plays that occurred in Felicity and Diggle’s scene in 7x02. The theme begins with strings (including a little chromatic dissonance) followed by repeated high electronic notes. In that scene, Diggle told Felicity that their old life was over and Oliver was not coming back. Felicity replied that the old John would have done anything to bring Diaz in, asking how he could move on with his life forgetting the past 6 years, not doing what he had been asked in continuing to be the Green Arrow. Both Felicity and Curtis recognize that this is not the same Diggle that they trusted as a leader and friend. In Felicity’s eyes, he gave up on fighting for Oliver and in Curtis’ eyes (and Lyla)), his moral compass is no longer pointing north, even though Diggle does admit that it bothers him but he cannot see another way to get Dante. While Oliver is stepping into greater light and transparency, Diggle is sinking into greater lies and secrets.

Extra Notes:

- The lack of Black Siren themes even when she screamed in the Flashbacks was interesting. In giving her a redemption arc, it means that they have to save the villain music for when she is a villain. However, it also means this Laurel doesn’t have any themes outside of that so the rest of the scenes were reflecting her being stalked with unsettling music. There was a nice flute (used for previous Laurel as well) and harp theme as she told Felicity about feeling guilty for her father’s death. This may be a new theme for regretful and vulnerable Laurel or it could be just for this episode. We shall see!

- There was a little moment of lighter fun strings, often used with Felicity as she meets Oliver at the end of the episode, catching up over the events of the day: Laurel being stalked, Oliver and his second press interview. It gave a lighter sense that these two give each other, reconnecting in the midst of the craziness.

@smoakmonster @academyofshipping @ah-maa-zing @herskirtsarentthatshort @scu11y22 @almondblossomme @dmichellewrites @pulpklatura @mel-loves-all @jorahandal @green-arrows-of-karamel

#arrow 7x11 #arrow music notes #oliver queen #john diggle #robert queen #ghost initiative

10 notes · View notes

dagenspear · 6 years

Text

Arrow Season 6 Rewrite

Lian Yu main character Deaths: Quentin. Samantha. Diggle.

Black Siren: After the island blows up, Oliver finds Siren kneeling over a dead Quentin, crying. She then blasts him away with her cry and escapes. Siren is the villain of the first episode. She commits crimes, stealing files and stuff and then allows herself to be captured. At the end of the episode, Oliver asks her why and we see a flashback to Quentin dying to save her life and as he's dying, Siren expresses her tearful gratitude and tells him that Laurel's still alive, that her death was faked and that she knows this because Laurel and Siren have a mental link and share eachother's memories due to being on the same earth for so long. That's how Siren knew about the legends and all that. Siren has now found God and promised the dying Quentin that she'll find Laurel.

Laurel's death was faked by Lady Shiva. The reason for this being that when Laurel was younger she'd gained minor self defense training from Shiva's former master named the Dragon, who'd been killed recently by Ricardo Diaz, and Shiva took it as her responsibility, out of respect for her former master, to look after his students. Shiva's contacts informed her that, after Laurel had been stabbed by Darkh and didn't die, Darkh had sent an assassin to finish the job, so Shiva faked her death and has kept her hidden, against her will, ever since. Due to the assassin's persistence and belief that his target is still alive. Shiva has, in her mind for her own good, forced Laurel to train more efficiently to better protect herself.

Siren is able to find Laurel, but as a consequence leads the assassin to her. Laurel's hurt badly and begins bleeding, so Siren gives her a blood transfusion to save her, which causes Siren's meta DNA to activate Laurel's same meta gene, giving her a canary cry as well. Siren either dies saving Laurel or lives and goes back to e2 to accept responsibility for her past crimes.

Laurel remains in hiding for the rest of the season, especially after her dad dying, uncertain if she wants her previous life back. But she becomes the Black Canary again, changing her costume to be more of a cross between Siren's outfit and her previous one, more comic accurate, with no mask.

Dinah Drake is uncertain about her place as a hero, wanting to branch out and find her own identity as a person, instead of taking someone elses. Part of this disconnection with her purpose is apart of her issues with the team. She wants to find her place and thinks she can by helping Vince, whose Vigilante, turn to heroism, but Vince dies because of a call Oliver made, placing her in resentment against Oliver.

Rene is angry about Diggle's and Quentin's death. The loss of a parental figure for Diggle's child and the loss of a father figure in Quentin hits close to home and he blames Oliver. He's hesitant to take Oliver's orders because of this.

Curtis has no life outside of being a vigilante on the team now. He's made this is whole life. This causes problems among the team, because he's grown rash and seeks a more lone wolf status, which Oliver fears might get him killed. Oliver tries to control the situation more and more and Curtis lashes out at him for it.

The resentment between Oliver and Rene Curtis and Dinah hits a crescendo with episode 12, where they all reject Oliver's leadership and break off to be their own thing.

Dinah grows to find herself. Starting off with feeling the burden of following in the footsteps of someone who was very different than her, then understanding her after meeting her and finding herself through some form of kinship with Laurel. Drake goes to LOT at the end of the season.

Rene grows to realize that he can't be comfortable in being a vigilante anymore and quits, deciding to instead be a dad.

Curtis cuts all ties to his life as Curtis and decides to just be Mr. Terrific and leaves to go be in another city.

Thea wakes up with a renewed sense of purpose. She plans to take back the Queen family's livelihood and works to, using the funds given to her by Malcolm, undergo a takeover of the former Queen Consolidated. Malcolm's death made her realize that her true family, however flawed, is what she wants to keep true to, the people that raised her: Robert and Moira. She tells Oliver that they were flawed, but they loved them and that's what she cares about, that he's wrong about her becoming like their mom being bad, because Moira died for her and helped turn Malcolm in and in her worst actions, acted out of fear for her family's safety. Thea states that she isn't afraid anymore though and she's gonna build the company back up in their family's name, in honor of Moira and Robert.

Felicity/olicity: After the loss of Diggle, her and Oliver bond more and become a couple (you have to do this, it was hinted in season 5 too heavily). But Felicity starts to fall apart. We reveal that Felicity has been dosing herself with extensive drugs over the last year, ever since Havenrock, but it started with being paralyzed by Darkh. This explains her upbeat attitude after nuking Havenrock and her getting over Billy's death so quickly. Felicity suffers from massive PTSD and Diggle's death, due to the Lian Yu explosion was a trigger that made her snap. Her relationship with Oliver deteriorates rapidly. Her character arc is about seeking help, trying to make herself feel human again, partly by stopping helix. Felicity goes throughout the rest of the season trying to balance herself as a person. Eventually leading to her quitting because she feels that she's compromised her morals so much, she shouldn't be a vigilante hacker anymore, then trying to put to work her knowledge about her spine chip to help people.

Oliver: He, because of the loss of Diggle, Quentin and Samantha, tries to pretend to be happier for his son, tries to be better, but William is afraid of him. Oliver's arc is about the admittance of his mistakes. Oliver's resigned as mayor to try and take care of William. After he helps Slade find his son, Slade tells him that he can't be a father to his son anymore, with how damaged he is, that he's not fit for it. Slade tells him that if he really cared about his son, he would give him up too and not damage William further with his brokeness. Oliver realizes that instead of pretending to be the man he wants his son to think he is, he actually commits to it and turns himself in as the Hood, Arrow and Green Arrow, confessing to all his crimes. When he does this, William hugs him for the first time and says that he's proud of him. Oliver changes his ways for is son. William is left with Thea to look after.

Richard Dragon: He's a highly skilled, efficient, unstoppable killing machine. He doesn't want revenge or anything like that. Born Ricardo Diaz Jr. he was abandoned by drug lord father and raised himself on the streets without the comfort or privilege Oliver was born into and had to fight, scrape and claw his way to gain anything. He was brought under the wing of a martial artist named the Dragon, when his already formidable fighting skill was witnessed by him, trained in the most harsh ways and when he was able to defeat the Dragon himself, killed him, seeing no point to him as he'd learned everything he needed to know, and stole his name for himself, seeking out all those who were formidable to kill and prove his superiority. He just wants to wipe the Green Arrow clean off the map to tear down the false idol he's presented, publicly.

Dragon uses Cayden James to get control of the city and out Oliver as the Green Arrow to the public incurring a manhunt against the team. This happens at episode 17. This forces the 2 teams to work together and face off against Dragon. Oliver loses the fight, is beaten badly, but does the one thing Dragon doesn't expect: Turns himself in.

Please review!

#laurel lance #anti olicity #anti arrow #nolicity #anti felicity smoak

28 notes · View notes

hiredassault · 6 years

Text

@sonicanary Contd.

Rolling under the sheets with a light moan, she finds herself wrapping her arms around her husband unconsciously. That was how it worked with them ; she was the big spoon && the man was the little one, despite him being bigger than her. But since the day they met, almost fifteen years ago in high school, it had always been him for Dinah. Even though she had to work hard for her man, she knew she couldn’t live without him.

Things had been difficult at times. They chose different paths after the bleachers, the stolen kisses && the prom nights that led to first times. It broke her heart in million of pieces, && a couple of years later she was married with a flirt from college. A dumbass to be fairly honest, but she had needed Greg to forget about Floyd. It didn’t last, && she drowned her sorrows in saving the world recklessly, following her mother’s steps. Then, they met again && despite everything going on in their respective lives, they adjusted their schedules && morals to make it work.

&& now ? They were very much in love.

Her hold around his chest tightens. Dinah just wants to feel close, even closer. She’s always a little afraid he might have to leave suddenly. Their timing was a mess but they fixed it as much as possible. They made it up for lost time for sure. She smiles in content && leans against his bare shoulder to give it a soft kiss, as naked legs are interwinding with his. “ ‘morning…” Rusty voice is enough to turn the other on, they both know it && they both experience it the previous night. A smirk curled at her lips as she slowly opens her indigo eyes to meet his &&she can’t help but feel lucky when his look is staring back at her into her soul without any word. He wasn’t a very talkative man, && Dinah learnt to appreciate the small gestures he offered her instead. Actions && proves were better than empty words anyway.

Eventually he opens his mouth with soft eyes, && delivers the message. Yes, it’s her birthday. She didn’t really forget, but it wasn’t as important right now. “Thank you Lawton.” && nicknames had it hard, even when Dinah was now wearing the same name. She grins, && chuckles when she turns around to notice the giant bouquet of flowers set on her nightstand. “You’re crazy.” She leans in against his lips, index tracing a small caress along his jawline in the process by way of thanks. Her teeth catches on his lower lip lightly, only a second to tease him, her forehead against his.

Suddenly she moved around, her fingers picking on a red rose that she immediately rushes to smell, burying her nose in the scarlet petals. “These aremy flowers, from my shop…” she answers playfully, “You’re a thief. I should call the police. Oh wait, I’m kinda the police too, right?” Soft laugher mixed with joyful chuckles resound around as she straddles his waist, holding the flower above her lover. “He loves me… he loves me not…” she starts while picking one petal off the rose with mischievous smile. “He loves me, he loves me not…” she keeps going until the last petal goes off, “He loves me,” joining the others on the top of his chest. Dinah leans down to capture his lips passionately but without any rush, her bony fingers placed against his fine torso. “She loves you back.” A wide gin follows, suddenly interrupted.

“Mommy ! Daddy !”

Brows raise in unison, hands grip on covers faster than the F.lash && up her own naked body until it reached her shoulders. “I think we’ll get back to this later tonight, or for your own birthday, who knows ?”

PLANS had been made by the blonde’s husband, first was that BOUQUET && then a surprise at breakfast (which he didn’t disclose yet to her). Last night had been SPECIAL, for her certainly. Her phone kept on vibrating && Floyd realized her INBOX was pilling up with greetings and wishes as soon as the minutes hand crossed twelve. Well, she was unable to response since the man had OCCUPIED her both mentally && physically for the night to be remembered. It was true that they PULLED off time for themselves (after they confessed regarding the MUTUAL feelings)------ the cafe was the usual spot. The man’s could have been COLD but inside it was fresh && HONEST. && some warmth from inside melted the organ that eventually lead them to declare themselves a MARRIED couple. From high school she was the only one with whom he USED to hang out, a little portion of infatuation but more of a crush. STUBBORN boy wouldn’t admit that. The memory lanes weren’t as good as those of high school moments. Their professions were different since TIME changes everything. They went on their separate routes && after so many years (it felt like decades) these two people meet.

But now? They were much in love.

Time also changes more things. Like how glamorous && ATTRACTIVE she had become (thousand times more than what she used to be) ------- with increasing AGE, the blonde’s BEAUTY was increasing. On the other hand, the man was LOOKING like a hipster (too much facial HAIR!). With the sunlight sneaking through the curtains of the window to announce the START of the day, Floyd woke up with a lazy smile (that was an automatic response when his wife SNUGGLED onto him delivering morning kisses). Her whisper, very purposeful, was seductive indeed. “ Morning Mrs. Lawton.” He addressed with formality && with a whispering tone to return the seductive favor. SMILES were exchanged when she started toying with their naked limbs (as a matter of fact, the couple were actually MELTED against each other and actually the whole anatomical LUMP was NAKED).

Lawton’s hands embraced her presence, both exploring around her mesmerizing waist------- a finger moving a thread of blonde HAIR && move it behind her ear, he was romantic undoubtedly. Her surprise of the FLOWERS were followed by a quick passionate kiss that the man severely enjoyed by accepting and returning the SAME affection, with foreheads comforting each other his lips exchanged the feelings.

Her movements to fetch a RANDOM flower were enthusiastic. Floyd chuckled sheepishly at her remark of him stealing FLOWERS from her shop. “ Did I? ” He would simply blink at every response of the lady. “ Are you going to arrest me? ” A silly tease. Although he kept looking at her eyes, her tired cheeks, her nose, her LIPS, her jawlines while Mrs. Lawton plucked petals slowly. Soon again, affections were exchanged, the man WRAPPED his arms more to indulge in the blissful rhythmic MOTION of their lips, it was then is opportunity to give GENTLE bite over her lower lip.

The moments were dragging them into a more serious TURN on events but the SUDDEN sounds of amusement SPOILED everything, they were parents after all. Floyd blink and in the next fraction of a second found the bed sheet covering them------- that was quick by Dinah.

“ Hey kid. ”

“ Daddy it’s ready! ”

“ You sure? ....” --------- a nod.

“ ...Happy Birthday Mommy! ” && the little exciting being ran away to double check the baked PIZZA which Dinah’s husband made an attempt to prepare (while she was asleep) && surprise her in the morning.

#sonicanary;#this is so pure;#reply;#v; main;#i needed this <3 #and he finally makes pizza which dinah doesn't know yet;#another surprise incoming!;#okay i tried to reply after 3 week hiatus i might be rusty pls forgive me

12 notes · View notes

cogentranting · 6 years

Text

Arrow 6x10 Liveblog

All in one post for no particular reason.

-I like Thea advocating for Rene

-So like.. Dinah and Vinny are kinda cute together? I want their weird morally ambiguous and violent hallmark movie love story

-Being forced into working with the Bertinellis is fun. As are all the Helena references. Aaaaannd the Bat signal reference.

-I like chilling at Argus

- ZOE!!!!

-This is why Rene is awesome. Looking at him trying to make things right and help Oliver even after all this.

- wait why did the FBI toss Oliver’s case back to the city DA?

-Did the mayor’s office just go like six months without a Chief of Staff? is that an optional position?

-Okay I’m not mad and I know there’s a lot of stress... but Oliver and Felicity need to act more married

- that was the shot that the trailer made it look like Felicity was keeping William from seeing so now I”m wondering what she actually hides from him

- Who’s this extra villain team member?

-In addition to being effective that trick arrow for Black Siren is pretty brutal and i love it

- Anatoly calling Oliver “Kapiushon” makes my heart happy

-pfft you thought you had Oliver trapped. This isn’t his first day.

-I like that each of the team members is responding to the split differently. Like Dinah’s clearly the most angry. Curtis is more hurt and awkward and is also the most willing to have a friendship with OTA still, although he and Oliver have never been close so that one is awkward. And rene feels he deserves it.. cuz he kinda does (still love him)

I like the lighting of that scene and I’m curious about the decisions- Felicity in the light, Oliver doused in blue, Diggle half and half.

-Enough talk about ‘can Siren be redeemed’. Let’s get to the bigger issue: can Anatoly be redeemed? He’s the villain who matters.

-AH! Quentin and Oliver father/son moment last time. Quentin and Thea father/daughter this episode my heart!

- Dinah they weren’t pointing fingers at anybody until you started throwing shade at Oliver, and even then they only pointed fingers at Rene and frankly he did everything they said he did. FIght me, the surveillance was justified.

- I’m really glad we got Diggle and Felicity really getting in on the argument not maintaining some kind above the fray status. I like that it’s really OTA vs. NTA not just Oliver vs. the newbies.

-Everyone is really in character in this feud and I love it but also I’m frustrated but in a good way. I really like this arc so far and I think it’s so cool that we’ve come to the place that we can do an arc of this sort

- Yesss so glad that Dinah’s smart enough to realize that Oliver wouldn’t just make that up about Vince, even if that’s what she snapped in the heat of hte moment

-oooh I like that they’re rooting at least part of Oliver’s anger in that he was arrested in front of William

- nice ‘this started with the three of us’ callback.

-The super villain team is a really good choice because its big enough to make be truly believe that OTA might not be able to handle it on their own. If only for pure numbers. Its a really nice pairing of arcs.

-”I’m already in charge” Yeah you are Ben Cayden. ... I might start calling his club the Others. its shorter than “the villain team”

- None of the other shows can come close to matching Arrow’s fight scenes- this warehouse fight tracking Oliver: superb

-I repeat: pfft you thought you had Oliver trapped. This isn’t his first day!

-Awww look at Oliver expressing his emotions. He’s doing so good. I’m sure he and others are gonna blow it soon but that was a good speech. Especially the part to Rene.

-Ok now the newbies are in the wrong- that was definitely not Oliver blowing it. That was Curtis and the other two followed him off a cliff. “he didn’t create an environment of distrust” ummm okay Oliver spied on you because someone REALLY DID BETRAY him. they keep acting like Oliver just got paranoid?? But there was a real betrayal?!

-Also, much as I love Rene and Dinah (and kinda like Curtis) it’s really cute that they think they’re a match for the Others without Oliver.

But once again can express how much i love what oliver said to Rene about “as a father i know why you did what you did but I also knew you were taking me away from my son and i got angry” because its perfect

YAY SPARTAN IS IN THE HOUSE.

Original Team Arrow is now, truly, back in action.

#arrow #arrow spoilers #arrow liveblog #cogent liveblogs #i really really like everything that's going on but also it hurts and i feel like the newbies are being a little irrational #because oliver was definitely betrayed worse than they were

18 notes · View notes

ablogthatishenceforthmine · 4 years

Text

A Re-Evaluation of Laurel Lance: Season 7

Intro

Season 7 Laurel is one of the better Laurel’s, if not the best Laurel. She is self-possessed and has agency. She has her own storylines, most of which are well-written. She has a distinct personality and distinct relationships. But maybe, most importantly, she develops female friendships, and most of her screen partners are other women. Unfortunately, there was too little of that in other seasons. But in this season, she is surrounded by other women, and wow, does it do wonders for her character.

Fun Personality

This Laurel is also a lot of fun! She is dry, sarcastic, and witty. Her awkwardness is a lot of fun. She gives sly comments. She’s blunt. She just has a great personality that fits into the show well, while being something different. She provides a new type of energy to the show, one that bounces well of the others.

Who is She Now?

Laurel’s main arc this season is her redemption and her path to becoming a hero. She is trying to find her own way, find who she is now that she is no longer Black Siren. One of the best things about her redemption/hero arc is that it is done realistically. She’s been a villain for most of her life, she just can’t slip into being a hero just like that. There is a lot of awkwardness and fumbling in Laurel’s journey to becoming a hero, and that’s one of the reasons the storyline works so well. The awkwardness is just so real, and shows a level of nuance not present in Earth 1 Laurel. It’s just...really great, and makes the audience feel Laurel’s struggle and lack of ease in trying fit her new role. She is outside of her comfort zone, and the season does a great job at showing that.

She makes many missteps in her quest to be good, and has a major backslide in "Lost Canary.” She still has trouble figuring out what is right and wrong. Sometimes she tries to do good by doing bad. For example, in "Inheritance,” we find out that Laurel coerced a witness to turn on a kingpin. Dinah gently lectures her about this, but Laurel has trouble understanding why this action was wrong; she was trying to do good, to help the people the city. She makes a similar mistake when she goes to attack the judge who didn’t grant her appeal to overturn Oliver’s conviction. Again, her motivations are good, but she has trouble finding the moral line when it comes to actions.

Laurel’s path to becoming a hero can be seen her her gradual changing views about revenge. Early in the season, she tries to find Diaz, to kill him as revenge for killing Lance. She fails, but later works with Felicity to try to find and then kill Diaz. However, when Diaz is in custody, Laurel stops Felicity from killing him, when she tells Felicity that she had made a deal with the feds: Diaz for Oliver’s release. Here, Laurel is choosing helping Oliver (who she doesn’t even like), and Felicity over getting revenge. She still believes in revenge, and killing people for revenge, but she chooses that helping her friend and her friend’s husband is more important. Later in the season, she has given up on revenge completely; she likes her new life, and doesn’t think killing Diaz is worth the consequences. She is even able to talk Felicity out of killing Diaz, showing how far she has come.

Laurel’s arc of the season comes to a head when she becomes Black Siren again in “Lost Canary.” Emiko makes Laurel doubt the support that she has, and her ability to be a hero. On the support front, Emiko is not entirely wrong. When Laurel tells Oliver about Emiko killing Diaz, Oliver doesn’t really believe her, and they get into a fight, where Oliver accuses Laurel being incapable of understanding loyalty. He eventually agrees to look into Emiko, but demands Laurel not be involved. When one of the witnesses in Laurel’s case is killed, Dinah accuses Laurel. Laurel is deeply hurt and says she has busted her ass being a good DA, but no matter what she does, Dinah will always just see her as Black Siren. Dinah says she’s right about that, and that she’s sorry, but that she doesn’t know who Laurel is and doesn’t think Laurel knows either. These interactions reasonably makes Laurel question the support she has, and whether Team Arrow will ever consider her to be a good person. When Emiko leaks photos of Laurel with Diaz to the press and tells Laurel that she was ridiculous for thinking that she could be a hero, it’s the final nail in the coffin.

She becomes Black Siren and goes on a robbery spree with an old friend. Even after Felicity lets her know that they have proof she didn’t kill the witness, Laurel continues to be Black Siren, telling Felicity that Emiko is right, that Black Siren is her true self, and that she’s just been pretending this whole time. But when it comes down to it Laurel isn’t that person anymore. But she’s not completely the person she’s been pretending to be either, Earth 1 Laurel.

Sara later confronts Laurel at Quentin’s grave, and teaches her some things about being a hero and redemption. Laurel explains that she tried to be good, but then everyone turned on her. Sara says that Laurel doesn’t get a medal for being good for five seconds, and that “redemption isn’t a destination, it’s a journey,” which is what Laurel’s journey this season shows so well. Sara relates to Laurel using her own experiences, telling Laurel that she spent a lot of time running away from herself and the bad things that she had done, but that the only way to become a better person was to come home, and own up to the things that she had done. This is a great scene and is pivotal in Laurel’s journey this season. This is the point that Laurel learns and accepts that being a hero and finding redemption is hard, but it’s worth doing anyway, despite the struggle.

But it takes until Laurel’s next confrontation with Sara, Felicity, and Dinah for this to come to fruition. Confronting Laurel as she and Shadow try to steal a weapon, Felicity tells Laurel how much she believes in and cares for her. She tells her to forget living up to Laurel’s legacy, and forgot who Lance wanted her to be, that she should figure out what she wants and who she wants to be. Felicity inspires Laurel to try to figure out who she is now, and to be her own person, and to not live on the expectations of others. It’s a great scene, and a great culmination of Laurel’s arc, an arc about how she shouldn’t try to be Earth 1 Laurel. This Laurel has had so much placed on her: expectations, (good and bad), goals and desires of others, and the baggage of Earth 1 Laurel. At the end of the season, with help from Felicity, Laurel has cast that aside, and decided to find out who she is on her own terms. To do that, Laurel has taken Sara’s advice, and decides to return to Earth 2. She has to go home and right her wrongs in order to become a hero, doing things her way instead of trying to be Earth 1 Laurel. I love how the season is also about her shedding Earth 1 Laurel. For a lot of the season, she keeps trying to be Earth 1 Laurel. She even dresses like her. But by the end of the season, she realizes she doesn’t need to be like Earth 1 Laurel to be a good person. She can be herself, but just a better, more moral, and heroic version. And at the end of this episode, she has vowed to find out just who that is.

We see a little bit of what this heroism looks like. In the 2040 flashfowards, Laurel shows up in the Black Canary suit with other canaries and saves Mia. Laurel tells Mia that Mia has a ways to go before she’s a hero, and that she knows how hard that can be. In the season finale, Laurel shows up to help the team save the city, fighting as Black Canary.

Female Friendships

Maybe the best, and definitely the most refreshing, part of Laurel’s character this season (and the season overall) is the focus and development of female friendships. It’s probably not a coincidence that this newfound focus on relationships between the female characters happened when a female showrunner took over the show.

Laurel’s relationships with Felicity and Dinah are a highlight of her character this season, and of the season as a whole. Her relationships with them feel specific, and we actually see them hanging out together. Each pairing has a well-defined and distinct dynamic. With Dinah, Laurel’s relationship is a lot more precarious, and sharp edged. They often trade barbs back and forth, some serious, some fun banter. Laurel has a fun, but different, dynamic with Felicity. The contrast between Felicity’s babbling and adorableness and Laurel’s stoicism and no nonsense straight talk is a lot of fun. There interactions and friendship feels distinct in a way that Felicity and Earth 1 Laurel’s didn’t.

Another great thing about the interactions between Laurel and Felicity, and Dinah a bit too, is Laurel’s awkwardness and reticence. Similar to being a hero, Laurel doesn’t know how to have friends. She often seems ill at ease with the process of making and having friends. And this brings such a great energy to her scenes with Felicity, as well as a great deal of realism. We see this when she won’t admit she is asking Felicity out on a friend date. When she asks Felicity if she wants to get pizza, it’s with a forced casualness that belies how new this friendship experience is to her. She pretends as if its not a big deal to her, but it is. We see this with her confusion when Felicity takes her out to drinks to celebrate Laurel’s interview; she assumed Felicity had something serious or Team Arrow related to talk about. We also get to see Laurel and Felicity just hanging out, being friends, with is not anything we got to see with Earth 1 Laurel and Felicity, or even really Earth 1 Laurel or any member of Team Arrow. We see them going out for drinks, and hanging out in Felicity’s apartment. After Laurel finds out that Felicity is pregnant, Laurel buys and brings her a bunch of healthier pregnancy foods. A nice, kind act for a friend, and it’s just such a sweet and normal thing. These events also show that they have a friendship that exists outside of doing Team Arrow stuff.

But the season doesn’t gloss over the history between all these characters. Felicity isn’t immediately on board with Laurel. In the beginning of their interactions, Felicity does throw some shade at Laurel. But Laurel is able to prove herself to Felicity pretty quickly, and soon, Felicity believes in and trusts her. They grew a friendship, and develop a really strong bond. Felicity seems to really understand Laurel, and sticks by, supports, and defends her throughout the season. She defends and sticks up for Laurel to the rest of Team Arrow multiple times. In “Lost Canary,” Felicity is doubtful of Laurel’s guilt, and defends and believes in her, even though Laurel has become Black Siren again. Felicity believes they should be trying to help Laurel rather than bringing her to justice. Felicity also wants to repay Laurel the favor. Laurel stopped her from killing Diaz, and now Felicity wants to help Laurel in the same way. Felicity says that they should give Laurel the support that they’ve all gotten, and the second chance that Team Arrow gave Dinah. At the final confrontation, Felicity tells Laurel that she believes in and cares about her. She tells Laurel to stop trying to live up to Earth 1 Laurel’s legacy, to stop trying to be who Lance wanted her to be, and to figure out what she herself wants and who she wants to be. This is at the heart of Laurel’s character this season, and it’s great that it’s Felicity who really gets her and what she’s struggling with, and who inspires her to figure out who she is own her own terms.

Laurel also opens up to Felicity more than anyone else. She tells Felicity about the death of her father, killing the drunk driver who did it, and her feelings of guilt over her dad’s death. Felicity assures her that it’s not her fault. She also tells Laurel that if anyone on this earth or any earth is trying to get Laurel, they are going to get him. It’s an extremely sweet and fierce declaration of protection, and shows how much Felicity cares about Laurel.

Dinah is even more wary of Laurel than Felicity is, for good reason. Early in the season, when Laurel rejects Dinah’s pleas to do things the right way in regards to Diaz, Dinah accuses Laurel of just pretending this whole time, saying that Laurel hasn’t changed and is the same lying murderer that she was before. This wounds Laurel, her eyes even get glassy, and she insists that she’s not that person anymore. This is a nice scene that doesn’t ignore their history. Dinah doesn’t ignore that Laurel killed Vince. Dinah has let it go, in that she doesn’t want revenge, but at the beginning of the season, she is no fan of Laurel’s. She doesn’t have the fierce hate she did in Season 6. In the beginning of the season, their relationship is barbed and on edge, They aren’t friends, but aren’t enemies either. Early in the season, Laurel tearfully tells Dinah about her grief over Quentin’s death and says she truly apologizes for killing Vinny. Importantly, she says she isn’t expecting Dinah to forgive her. Laurel is completely sincere and it’s clear she is full of remorse and regret for killing Vinny. She says she hopes she can show Dinah that she’s not that person anymore. After this, they eventually grow a kind of uneasy friendship. However, Dinah is still quick to think the worst of Laurel, to distrust her. She accuses Laurel of killing a witness in one of their cases. Laurel, thinking that she had earned and been given Dinah’s forgiveness and acceptance, is deeply hurt. In “Lost Canary,” Dinah, in opposition to Felicity, doesn’t want to help Laurel, but rather wants to bring her to justice. But by the end of the episode Dinah comes around, and believes that Laurel has really changed.

Felicity, Dinah, and even Sara, are instrumental in Laurel’s journey to becoming a hero. They challenge and inspire her. And it’s just so great that she is inspired to be a hero from the women around her. Best of all, they do it in a way that isn’t patronizing, or treating her as lesser than them. In their scenes together, all of them truly feel like equals, and not just in terms of power dynamics, but also in how much the writing cares about them. When Laurel goes to attack the judge who wouldn’t overturn Oliver’s conviction, Dinah inspires her not too. Dinah echoes Laurel’s own words back to her about how it’s harder to be a hero when no one expects you to than it is to be a criminal. Dinah says she now finally believed that Laurel’s changed. Felicity inspires her to give up Black Siren for good, and to find out who she is on her own terms. Sara challenges Laurel on what redemption means. She inspires Laurel to be a hero and to go to Earth 2 to confront her past and right her wrongs.

Not only is Laurel inspired and challenged by the women around her, but Laurel does the same for Felicity. Laurel talks Felicity out of torturing The Silencer to the point of almost killing her. Laurel talks from her own experiences, telling Felicity if she does this, there is no going back. Laurel says she knows what its like, but wishes someone had warned her before she got her hands dirty. It works, and Laurel inspired Felicity to use her smarts; they formulate a plan where they can track The Silencer to Diaz. Later, Laurel successfully talks Felicity out of killing Diaz, despite how determined Felicity was.

Further, I don’t think we’ve ever had so many scenes just between female characters in Arrow before. There are just so many scenes between two female characters. There are also multiple scenes of three female characters interacting without any male characters present. In “Lost Canary,” we even get scenes with four female characters interacting (Laurel, Felicity, Dinah, and Sara)! Have four women, with no men, ever shared a scene together in Arrow’s history? The fact that the season is so focused on the relationships between its female characters benefits not only Laurel, but all the female characters, and the season as a whole.

Asserting Herself

I think what is also great about this season is that Laurel asserts and defines herself. Laurel fights for herself, and pushes back on others who try to tell her who she is. In my opinion, one of the best scenes of any Laurel in the series comes from this aspect and journey of her character this season.

When Laurel goes to visit Oliver about his case in prison, he doesn’t want her help. He tells her that they only reason that she would help someone else is if there is something in it for her. He tells her she is not Laurel and will never be Laurel, and then orders her to stay away from Felicity. This is a scene of Oliver telling Laurel who she is, and while his anger for and dislike of her is justified, and she is not entitled to his forgiveness, he has no right to tell her who she is or who she can be. This is especially the case as Oliver, throughout the series, has believed so strongly in redemption. There is the sense that he can’t believe that Laurel can be redeemed because he can only see her in comparison to Earth 1 Laurel.

When Laurel returns to visit him later that episode, she fiercely and reproachfully tells Oliver that she is not the old Laurel; that she is herself, a person, and that people have both good and bad inside them, and that you can’t put them in a box of one or another. This is the moment I really fell in love with Laurel. It feels like she’s saying everything other Earth 1 Laurel never got to say. She is standing up for herself in a way Earth 1 Laurel never EFFECTIVELY did. The show is clearly framing her as in the right. Oliver has always put both Laurels in a box. To him, the previous Laurel was all good, while he refused to believe that this Laurel could have good in her, refused to believe that she could have redemption. Which is very hypocritical of him given his relationship with himself, Moira, Robert, and Slade. All of those people he can view as morally complicated, and can see both the good and bad in them. He has never been able to do that with either Laurel. It is a great scene because Laurel is asserting who she is, and asserting that Oliver can’t tell her who she is. It’s my favorite scene of any Laurel. And it’s even better that this self-possessed assertion is directed at Oliver, who has always had trouble viewing either Laurel as their own person. It feels like this scene is righting the wrongs of Laurels past

Laurel also asserts herself and her self-worth to others throughout the season. In a Team Arrow meeting in which Laurel is in, Diggle asks Felicity incredulously and accusingly “You’re’ working with her?” In the same scene, Rene talks about Laurel like she’s not in the room. Both times Laurel asserts herself, her personhood, and her agency.

#arrow #laurel lance #felicity smoak #dinah drake #oliver queen #sara lance #black siren #earth 2 laurel #arrow season 7 #ablogthatishenceforthmine #My posts #bitch with wifi

1 note · View note

melyaliz · 7 years

Text

Good bye

Sort of Sequel to Hello

This is the first part of the end basically. Also, remember when I said stuff get’s sadder... Yeah, I’m not joking.

“I will follow you like Toy Soldiers” - Toy Soldiers

I got too excited and just decided to post this tonight

tagging: @royslittleharper @guns-n-lilies @daisyboobear @nightwing-rules @coffee-randomness

We were all young, so young. Filled with dreams and excitement. We thought we could change the world. We thought we were invincible.

Jennifer sighed as she looked around at the large white building. She came here too often. Being a psychiatrist meant going where people needed her. With her specialty being with super powered kids places like this. Places there they locked up powered people, she frequently came to help.

But today she wasn’t here for work.

-------

“Oh, there’s my team, got to go beat the baddie” Turning Dark giggled flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder “See you later Kid Flash” Skipping over to her team Dream rolled her hazel eyes.

“When are you guys just going to fucking make out and get it over with” the dark haired girl asked inspecting one of the many knives she hid under her long dark coat. Jennifer had ofteren wondered how heavey that jacket was considering her teammate always seemed to have an endless suply of sharp things. Their blonde friend let out a gasp dramatically putting her hand over her heart.

“Whatever do you mean Dream!” The pretty blonde girl asked smiling at her own private joke, “It’s all in jest, besides...” she faltered as Artemis walked in “He has his eyes on someone else. Not to mention I’m WAY too good for him”

Jennifer, known as Falcon back then, smiled at her two teammates. The blonde, Dark was endlessly flirting with anyone who would talk to her. However, she had a small place in her heart for the red-haired speedster who had saved her from the mob boss who had tried to use her powers for evil.

Next to her Dream rolled her eyes putting away the last of her weapons. She was a foul-mouthed girl who said it like it was no matter who she was offending. She tended to offend a lot of people.

As Dark ran off to make sure her hair looked good before their mission. Falcom laughed shaking her head “Does she realize your power is directly linked to people’s emotions?” Dream shrugged

“I think she just forgets. Moron.”

----

Those were the days. Filled with laughter and joy. The three of them just helping eachother and learing where they belonged.

Before the girls Jennifer had never quite felt like she had fit in. She had never good at that hero life. Too connected with the people around her. She cared too much.

Yet that was how she had met those two.

Dark being brainwashed to kill and Dream pickpocketing to make ends meat.

She had talked the girls into using their powers for good and in return, they taught her how to belong in a world that was just too magical for this mortal girl.

As she walked the halls of this large establishment filled with such people. She couldn’t help but feel sorry for them. Many of these people locked up behind those steel doors were so dangerous to others that they may never see the light of day again.

While some…

Some were more a danger to themselves than anyone else.

--------

“Did you really just throw your phone at Dinah?” Jennifer asked pure horror written on her face. The rest of the Young Justice members stood in equal shock.

“What? She was pissing me off.” Dark said folding her arms over her chest, “Because of this stupid debriefing we missed the party on the boardwalk.”

“You threw your phone at her because we couldn't go to that party?” Wally asked, “I don’t see why you care it’s just a bunch of jocks and stuff.”

“Maybe it doesn’t matter to you but…”

“You want to be one of those vapid brainless bitches?” Dream said, more of a statement than a question.

“No! I want to go to a real party, with real kids our own age.”

“Well…” Wally paused looking around for a moment, “I could sneak you out.”

“Really!?!” Dark asked

“Sure.”

“Can we?” she turned to her two friends. Falcon shrugged why should she stop the girl? They had the rest of the night off anyway. Besides a little normal fun might be good.

“Sounds like fun.”

“You’re not getting me in any of those fucking slutty outfits you have, but I’m down.”

----

They were too young. No matter how powerful they had been. They were being exploited for the greater good.

But what had that greater good done? It had left three girl’s lives destroyed.

Some would argue that a girl like Dark could never be anything but a killer with her powers yet Jennifer had seen more. She had seen a girl who just wanted to be normal. Just wanted to go to school with other kids. Go to parties, meet boys, maybe fall in love.

Being with girls like Dark and Dream who had spent their whole lives running from people who would use her powers made Jennifer realize that there were kids out there who didn’t have the life she had.

A normal life where your biggest concern was passing a test or that your friends would think you were a freak for taking college classes at 12.

While her friends had to worry about whether it was morally right to make someone so happy they give you everything they own.

Or that people would think you were a freak because your best friend was a hound from hell.

-----

He stood there holding her by her hair. Blood dripping from her nose as she looked up with half closed eyes. She was in pain, she was going to die if he kept this up. And Falcon couldn’t do anything about it.

“Please,” she begged, her whole body unable to move after enduring her own beatdown, “you said it was me you wanted.”

He shook his head “You weren’t good enough, none of you were good enough. Honestly, you shouldn’t even be heroes. And here’s why” He pulled out a gun and shoot Dream in the head. No finesse, no second thought. Falcon watched in horror as one of best friends die before her eyes.

He tossed her limp body aside as if it was nothing but a bag of trash he’s eye never wavering from Falcon’s “I always liked guns, quick and to the point. Why waste time goofing around, giving monologs when you can just pull and trigger and be done with it.” He leaned down toward Falcon so close she could smell his breath sour and sickly, “Now go home pretty little one, and know, you were too weak to save your friend.”

-----

She was playing pretend. She thought if she put on a mask and ran with the big kids she could be a hero too. So many times she had been proven wrong. Shown that this wasn’t her life yet she had kept going, kept fighting, kept trying to prove her worth.

Until it didn’t matter anymore.

----

“Where’s Dream?” Wally asked scanning the room as the two girls stood in the Young Justice HQ in stunned silence. Pulling herself together, barely, Falcon pushed her way through them walking up to Kaldur. Taking off her mask she hands it to him. For a moment Aqualad's eyes flicker to Robin who stands in stunned silence.

“I quite,” Jennifer said looking straight into the team leader’s eyes.

“WHAT!” Wally said next to him M’gan took a few steps closer to her reaching out. She knew, she already knew the pain the girl was going through as tears formed in the martian's eyes.

"Falcon?” Robin took a step closer to his friend but she couldn’t face him, she couldn’t face anyone.

“She’s dead… oh, my GOD! She’s dead!” Dark’s voice cut through the confusion. Everyone turned to the blonde. She looked around the room, her eyes so dark they could kill. “That maniac killed her!” darkness swirled around her as the sound of her hellhound let out a snarl curling her ready for a fight. “I’m going to find him and rip his limbs one by one from his body until he’s sorry he killed Dream” as her voice grew deeper and deeper echoing the snarls of her dog, eyes glowing blood red. Dark mist slowly enveloping them, “And not even the pits of hell will save that man from the wrath I will bring down on him.”

“Dark wait...” Wally said yelled running toward her. But even the speedster was too late, she had already disappeared.

It was too much for Jennifer. The world seemed to be tilting, spinning. It felt so warm, suffocating. She was going to throw up.

“Falcom wait!” she heard as she bolted from the room. Everything seemed to be closing in on her. The walls, the floors, she had to get out, get away. She didn't’ even know where she was going until she locked herself in a closet. Falling to the floor clutching her chest as her body racked with sobs.

“Fa… Jennifer? Come out… Jen?” Dick’s voice was saying on the other side of the door, “Please just open up… talk to me”

---

So I quite, it really wasn’t for me. That kind of hero work. I found something else, helping people one at a time. Counseling teen heroes like Gigi and anyone else who isn’t sure how to fit in this world with their powers.

Trying to help kids who suffer like I did.

The way Dark did.

We spend weeks trying to find her. Hunting her down after the death of our friend. But when we found her it was too late.

-----

“I found her” Kid Flash said over the intercom. Falcon turned Robin’s motorcycle toward where he was. While she told them she had quite, given up the costume she had put it on one more time to find her friend. Not giving up until Dark was back to safety.

The sight that greeted them wasn’t one that they had expected. Bodies lay in tatters around the girl. The air was so thick with the smell of blood Jennifer almost gagged. Dark's blonde hair streaked with the sticky crimson blood as she sat in the center of the carnage. She was softly whispering to one of the men stroking his face.

“Oh my god” Kid Flash whispered next to Falcon as he looked over the carnage. It was like something from a nightmare.

“Stacy?” Falcon asked hoping the sound of her own name would bring her friend back. A flicker, the blonde looked up at her old teammate. However, her blue eyes had a vacant look to them, as if looking right through the brunette as she walked closer.

Falcon’s hand was outstretched as if approaching a wounded animal, unsure what the broken girl in front of her would do. “Stacy?” she asked again, “It’s me… it’s Jen,” slowly she took off her mask.

“They all die” the girl whispered, “they all die.” She kept whispering over and over again. Her once bright blue eyes were dead to all the world not seeing anything.

“I’m here, Stacy I’m here,” Falcom said gently taking her friend’s hands in her own.

“They all die,” the blonde said again slowly laying her head on Falcon’s chest “my dog, Dream, Falcon,” She turned to Kid Flash, “You…”

------

Jan looked through the small window into the stake white room. Stacy, the once great Dark, sat on the bed. Staring at the white wall opposite from her. Her once bright eyes, always so full of life, were now dead. Jennifer opened the door slowly walking in. “Hey Stacey, how are you doing?”

“They all die,” the pale-haired girl whispered rocking back and forth slightly clutching a small stuffed dog Plastic-Girl had gotten her. Her head slowly turned toward Jen, looking right through her former teammate “They all die”

Somedays Jennifer could get some coherent words out of the girl. Some days she would talk about her food or the sunshine. But some days (most days) were like today, she was stuck in a loop.

Jennifer sat with her for about an hour gently talking to her about how the team was doing and about her life. How her sister had joined the hero world. She was worried for her but she knew her sister had to make her own choices. (Jennifer may have threatened Dick to keep an eye on her.)

Stacy didn’t say much just looking vacant as she rubbed her thumb over the small stuffed dog.

Finally, Jennifer left taking one last look at the stark white room where her friend sat. She helped kids who didn’t have anyone else. Tried to make them feel normal, comfortable in their own skin. Keep them sane in this crazy world.

She did this because there was one girl she could never help.

"Have you gone in?" Jennifer asked glancing at Wally as she left the building. The red haired boy was leaning against the wall of the building tapping the sole of his sneaker against the brick. Letting out a long sigh he shook his head.

"I know it's selfish but I don't want to remember her like that... like how we found her." He laughed scratching the back of his head, "I want to remember her as the girl who threw her phone at Dinah when she had told her to grow up."

Jennifer laughed at the memory, "she told me later she wasn't even that mad, she had just wanted to throw something at someone... see what would happen"

Wally laughed, long and hard. "She was so strange sometimes!"

"Yeah," Jennifer said nodding.

Wally's smile melted slowly as he glanced at the setting sun, it was getting late and Artemis was waiting for him. This was going to be one of his last nights with her before things... changed. Yet here he was, looking back at the past.

"Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if we hadn't had her join the team"

Jennifer sighed, "I spend every day trying to never forget."

#Jennifer #Feathers #Kid Flash #Kid flash fanfic #dick grayson #Dick Grayson fanfic #dark #dream #Stacy #my fic #my writing #hello fic

9 notes · View notes

geneshaven · 7 years

Text

Crossing Lines

There was a lot of good stuff in last night’s episode. Storylines and character arcs and one great big hug. But in my mind, and it was obvious, this was a Felicity episode, and a great one.

As I was watching her move further down the rabbit hole, I was reminded of what she said to Oliver in 502, how she was in awe of him at the beginning, how she never met anybody so passionate and dedicated in making a difference. Felicity showed me last night that she was the same as that earlier version of Oliver. He was anger. He was violent. He was in pain. And every time he crossed a name off his list, he moved further off course. It was only after Felicity and Diggle came on board was he able to utilize their moral compass and find his way.

Felicity is the one who is off course now (and for a moment, Diggle too.) And Oliver told both of them they are better than him, then and now. It was their guidance and love that enabled him to refocus and really start to make a difference. It is a wonderful parallel and reversal that Felicity is on that same journey that brought Oliver to that realization she is the reason why he is becoming the hero and man he is now.

When Felicity walked in on John’s torturing of that guy, she was not shocked or disturbed as she would have been before everything she’s gone through. What was happening in the room was something Oliver always wanted to protect her from. It was that part of him that he was afraid to expose. It was fear and rage and violence. It was what he became whenever he put on the hood. He tried to tell her this early in Season 4, how he felt he had to become dark to fight the darkness. Felicity dismissed this and told him that he wasn’t alone anymore. That he had become something, someone else. Essentially, they were stronger together.

Felicity threatening that Russian official and his family was pretty ruthless, and it was the first of what I’m sure will be several more “morally questionable” lines she is going to cross. The look on her face was chilling and it totally reminded me of Season 1 Oliver. The whatever-it-takes- mentality of going after Walker and the nuke was consuming, and like Rory, I could see Havenrock in her eyes as she moved through the episode. Rory recognized it as well. No one else could have deterred her from not allowing another nuclear tragedy from happening. This wasn’t about Billy or Prometheus or Oliver. This was about her own redemption. And god help anybody who gets in her way. I did see a couple moments were Felicity seemed to soften, and the precious unicorn looked out of her darkness---with Rory, with Diggle, the smile on her face when Anatoly greeted Oliver at the airport, just before he threw that punch, which kind of set the tone for the rest of the episode. There was some light banter with Curtis. But as I said, only moments. When she implied that Oliver slept with Dinah, it was another clue that she did not really care. No jealousy or angst or hurt. She was focused and determined to make a difference by bringing down Walker. Felicity has gone off the rails (and there is a part of me that thinks---it’s about damn time.)

However, Oliver is another matter. He really made some great strides in this episode. Involving himself back into the Bratva, his speech to John and Felicity, his disapproval of John torturing that guy---but most importantly, recognizing that there was something seriously wrong with his wife and paying attention to it. When he found Felicity and Rory in the back of the van and asked them if everything was alright, and then when Rory outed Felicity and told Oliver she was crossing lines that she shouldn’t be, the look on Oliver’s face showed his worry and need to climb into the van with them and delve deeper. But, as the writers of Arrow have done time and time again, there is always something else that pulls him away from those chances to really talk with Felicity. She was pissed when Rory told Oliver she was crossing those lines. I don’t think Oliver suspects that she is keeping secrets from him (not yet, but he will find out and that scene is going to be so good when the inevitable confrontation comes.) But, for the most part, Oliver was making connections with his past and his present. He is lightyears away from the person he was five years ago. It was good to see him growing and changing and finding a different and better way.

The hug. That moment was a big gift from the writers. It gave us all who still believe that Olicity is still endgame hope. When Felicity threw herself into his arms, Oliver was at first hesitant and unsure if he should hold her like his whole being wanted to. But when she wrapped herself around him, that hesitancy went away and he folded her into his embrace. He wasn’t sure why she was in his arms at first, but it was something he was denied for a year or so and he took that moment in fully. It was a beautiful thing to see.

And then he went to Susan. What! I was with Oliver through the whole episode until that moment. Thank god it wasn’t a scene like 320. I think if it had been, the show would have lost a whole lot of fans. But as I forced myself to watch, there was some actual relief. Susan, once again showed us that she was operating with different motives, more than just sleeping with our hero. And it really didn’t look like Oliver was having that great of a time. He had the look of someone being held at gunpoint while being mugged and demanding to give up his wallet and watch.

But overall, this was a good episode of Arrow. It set up what is to come over the next few episodes. Oliver and Felicity have traded places morally and personally. Felicity has gone dark and is falling down that rabbit hole. And eventually, Oliver is going to be her safety net and gather her back in. And I am going to be so there to witness it.

22 notes · View notes