Hi! I’m in love with your Gilmore Girls fics, and I was wondering if you could shed some insight into your writing process/how you write fics, such as the most recent one that was 100k+ in word count? Huge fan! Have a wonderful rest of your day!

Thank you so much! Glad to read how you enjoy them :)

Usually I’ll get an idea - either by coming up with one, one being suggested to me, etc. - and it’ll nag at me for a while, which typically involves pestering @marlahey with comments and questions and research until I inevitably realize I’m invested and need to write it out.

In the case with the Yale AU, I had a rough idea of how I wanted to start from the jump: Rory and Jess never meeting back in season 2, which helped with figuring out what that meant for the start of the story (Rory and Dean likely never break up without having Jess be a catalyst, how Jess while remaining in NYC managed to not only get through high school, but succeed enough to get a full ride to Yale). After that, and this is something I’ve done will all my AUs - Sense8, Cisgirl!Jess, Chilton, Yale - I’ll rewatch the seasons I need to in order to refresh my memory and also inspire me. Usually there's spite involved in some capacity, which I think is most evident in Yale AU in particular with changing Lane's trajectory.

I’ll form a sort of outline using canon events as a guide, write in order for a while until I inevitably skip ahead and write future scenes that I work to bridge them. Then it’s just about rereading, rewriting, and adding bits to flesh out the story. 

Then I send to @marlahey and apologize for my grammar and also, over the last few years, for the word count I dump on her.

I have been reading & watching some old cast interviews and comic con panels lately.I never really paid attention to offscreen stuff before but is it me or there was always some underlying tension among them?Either they were trolling or they could barely stand each other to be in the same room or maybe I am reading too much into it.I think the one thing that remained constant was PW relentlessly trolling the show and its below-average writing and outlandish plots.So anyway in the process I got to the part where Malarkey slipped that Enzo will be Bonnie's love interest and Dries spewing BS about Bonlaric in the interviews.This is something Plec said she came up with after their scene in 6×21(hard to believe but whatever).Caroline was the only one the writers didn't say absolutely anything about until they probably decided to incorporate candice's pregnancy.One thing that I remember about both Bonnie and Caroline's so-called future relationships is that neither were compelling enough and little to no effort were made for them before the time jump while both SC & DB were left on cliffhanger.In fact both Carenzo and Bonenzo had the same story.Enzo betrayed both.;vervained Caroline & tied her up,hit Bonnie in the head and injected her with something that disabled her magic.And then in the end got his ass handed over to him by both the girls.😎

Anyway,in one interview,julie had even said that Bonnie and Caroline were going to take centre stage but Candice called and said she was pregnant.I'm not exactly sure how Candice's pregnancy could affect Bonnie's narrative unless it was just one of her lame ass excuses which it absolutely was.So what do you think Baroline's story was originally going to be before the time jump?Baroline being lesbians,dating each other and having the time of their lives in some European city?To be honest I would rather watch THAT.I hope someone does a Tell-All Book someday unless they all signed a NDA because too much shit happened that didn't make any lick of sense.

Hey so I actually think the cast are way more fond of each other than they let on, mostly because I don't see how a group of people would do so many of these cons together if they couldn't stand each other. I think Pauls just did a lot of trolling because he knew people thought it was funny. I do however think Kat hates Caroline Dries as she should and I don't think she likes Julie much either which is also completely warranted. The thing about Dries and Kat in what would be Bonnie's LI in S7 is that Dries said she didn't tell Kat but told Malarkey because Kat wasn't ready to hear it yet and like WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN??? Why does she think she had the right to treat her like a child? I'm so glad that bitch basically got fired in S7 and hasn't had success since, it's what she deserves. Bonnie and Enzo had some build-up in S5 too but it was similar to the stuff they had in 6x21 so it just felt like something the writers were putting a pin in for the future if they needed it. I just think the writers had no idea what to do with Enzo in S6 once they decided they didn't need him as the Klaus-lite foil to Stefan and rather wanted to isolate Stefan and Caroline while they built their love story.

I can probably answer the S7 questions better after I rewatch that season (I'm mid-way through S6 now) but I like 7x04 gives a good idea of what the season would have looked like with Candice's pregnancy. I think the SV baby would have been introduced and that would have been the obstacle for Steroline, maybe Stefan would have been stabbed protecting his kid? I also think Valerie might not have had such a big role that season if Candice wasn't pregnant because her screen time really dwindled after she was about 7 months pregnant. Bonnie on the other hand might have been more involved in the heretics plot and maybe that could have been used to develop Bonenzo but I'm sure Dries decided to make Enzo obsessed with Lily because she hates Kat. Like she would rather take a character we just fucking met and give her more stuff than Bonnie because to be blunt Valerie is white and Dries is racist.

i need to do another rewatch that doesnt involve skipping to my fav episodes to solidify this but my personal ranking atm is

s3 > s5/s7 > s2 > s1 > s6 >>> s4

omg your tags dkfjsdlkfjs. i do also agree that s6 was pretty good bellarkewise. the bellamy bringing clarke back to life storyline is WILD. they were even more set up for s7 than they were for s5. for me though, s5 is just such a mess. i still think ultimately that was when they should have gotten together. i wish the bellamy bringing clarke back to life storyline from s6 had happened in s5 instead. then, between that and bellamy learning that clarke called him every day for 6 years, there's just no way they wouldn't happen in the finale of s5. and then we could have gotten two full seasons of canon bellarke *big sigh*

NO FR BC I REALLY CANT STAND S5 LMFAOO SO SAME. thats so interesting though!!! i never thought about it like that—it wouldve made more sense both story and character-wise😭i genuinely loved s6 bc of eliza’s acting and bellamy’s pure heart to get her back after he is the first to realize what was wrong. it was just so !! to see how he fought for her when everyone else was sitting on their stupid high horse 😭😭😭like hello ugh

thats such an interesting way to redo it tho omfg bc it would solve my violent dislike of season five while keeping my love of six while making season seven somewhat enjoyable LMFAO its funny how most bellarke fans ive seen also hate s5 bc just how ???? out of character all of it is??? like ur telling me bellamy (and raven, for that matter) *wouldnt* have understood madi’s importance to clarke?? like this is the child that clarke has rasied LONGER than she knew them. and they know her devotion and loyalty and love firsthand—ofc she is gonna choose her CHILD over people who blatantly ignore her ONLY wish to not involve madi like helloofodldldsk

i digress 😌 ur post made me almost cry bc i miss bellarke sm. maybe its time for a rewatch-rewatch fr

In your opinion, which are the most ridiculous episodes of New Who?

Hello kind Anon

Oooh, the first episode that sprang to mind was the Christmas special: The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe -S7

It started off well, with the Eleventh Doctor meeting young Cyril but quickly slipped into "I wanna be in Narnia" territory; with boring aliens (who seemed to have escaped from their giant chessboard for the night), and a hugely sentimental ending with the figther pilot dad (I'm guessing Moffat was playing with his childhood fantasies of being an RAF WWII pilot with this one).

It was so awful, my eldest son (my official watch-buddy) got up and stormed out the room, refusing to see any more of it.

How awful was it? Let's just say that it didn't manage to match any of the war-based dramas we have watched over the years. A decent cast absolutely wasted.

The problem is that, generally after this, I lost all interest in watching Doctor Who. And I wasn't desperate to see it until the Twelfth Doctor appeared. Not that I was avid to watch S6, please note; and I often missed the beginning of episodes so had no idea what was going on.

Let me see what else I can think of.

I wasn't keen on "Fear Her" - S2. It was a mistake to force a child to carry that much of the acting; and the storyline would have fit The Sarah Jane Adventures a lot more. There's also the much hated episode "Love & Monsters" - S2. Again, an excellent cast give a dubious script (unless you like the idea of a man having a romantic relationship with a paving slab) some life. Blue Peter may have helped choose the design of the Abzorbaloff but it was RTD who came up with the story. BUT Elton's loss of his mother did make me cry in sympathy AND it introduced my sons to the music of ELO, so I can't hate it.

Another epidsode I won't rush to watch again is "It Takes You Away" - S11. Nothing wrong with the premise, but I found the pace a bit boring.

Although, looking through the list of episodes on Wikipedia, I must admit that it made me think that I ought to rewatch a lot of them, because I hardly remember anything that happened without a lot of mental prodding. For instance, I've still no idea why there were dinosurs on a spaceship, or how the Doctor survived the Pandorica purely because he did.

As you can tell, there's an awful lot of stuff I missed from the end of S5 up to the end of S7. So I'm going to end with the episode "The Name of the Doctor" - S7. It all just seemed so stupid; what with Clara becoming Supercompanion by jumping into the time stream, to become the Doctor's one-man-band-survival-motivation-trainer. I'll admit that this is the main reason why I liked Chibnall's 'Timeless Child' theory; because Clara begging the Time Lords to extend the Doctor's life would then mean f*ck all. Yes, I really hated that bit by the crack in the wall.

Was it Moffat's intention to turn Clara into a manic pixie fairy godmother? Because that's what we ended up with. As you can tell, I'm not a fan of this.

I suppose I should state at this point that I have seen many ridiculous storylines in Doctor Who over the past 60 years. The actors involved have, on the whole, been the best quality you can find. Most of the time it hasn't mattered about the cardboard scenery, the repeated running down the same corridor, the dodgy made-up science, or them finding yet another quarry. If the acting is watchable, I'll keep with it.

As you can tell, I just won't necessarily watch it again.

So now that I've finally watched The Blacklist series finale ...

... I thought I'd share my Top 15 favorite episodes out of all 10 seasons it was on the air.

What? I fangirl hard. I won't apologize for that. 😏

Don't worry. I didn't just remember all of these episodes off the top of my head. I basically did a series 3-9 rewatch last fall before the final 10th season started. Then, I did a rewatch of the first 2 seasons while the 10th season ran because I couldn't remember some of those details they kept referencing.

Enough dilly dallying. Let's dive in, shall we?

Btw, these are in chronological order, and I've pinched the brief descriptions of each episode from IMDB.com:

Luther Braxton (s2, e9)

The task force tries to save Red when he's arrested and taken to a secret detention facility. At the facility, Red tangles with a thief with whom he shared a complicated history. Guest star: Ron Perlman as Luther Braxton

T. Earl King VI (s2, e14)

A former paramour involves Reddington in a deadly game with a wealthy and powerful family dynasty whose ill-begotten fortune was amassed from an underground auction of human and material contraband. Meanwhile, Tom takes on a new mission.

Marvin Gerard (s3, e2)

As Liz pleads for her safety in the Russian Embassy, Red discovers a new plan devised by the Cabal to kill her. A familiar face reaches out to Ressler. Guest star: Fisher Stevens as Marvin Gerard

Kings of the Highway (s3, e8)

Red and Liz are separated when Red falls into a perilous situation. Elsewhere, Samar makes a risky choice to help Liz, and Tom and Cooper continue their quest to exonerate Liz.

Mr. Gregory Devry (s3, e11)

With her name finally cleared, Liz attempts to reclaim her former life. Red works with the task force to infiltrate an assembly of high-level criminals at large in a rare, risky opportunity to capture the heads of the world's most lethal organized crime syndicates. Guest star: Jake Weber as Gregory Devry

The Apothecary (s4, e15)

Red has to figure out who betrayed him when he's poisoned; Liz and the task force look for the toxin's designer to save Red's life. Note: Even though season 4 had my favorite "Big Bad" of the entire series, I could only choose one episode from this season to include in my top 15.

Abraham Stern (s5, e11)

Red goes on the hunt for a legendary treasure; Liz studies the methods of one of the Blacklist's most dangerous criminals. Guest star: Nathan Lane as Abraham Stern

The Osterman Umbrella Company (s6, e14)

Red directs Liz to investigate a secret organization of assassins hired by global intelligence agencies to eliminate former agents, a case with ramifications that will change the task force forever. Note: This episode is probably the one that broke my heart the most. If you've seen it, then you'll know why.

Cornelius Ruck (s7, e12)

Secluded on a private island, Red reunites with an old flame and a ring of thieves in a plot to make millions off of stolen art. Plans are quickly derailed, however, when guests on the island mysteriously show up dead. Guest star: Joely Richardson as Cassandra Bianchi Note: I really liked this one as a nice one-off from the usual formula the show followed.

The Wellstone Agency (s8, e6)

Red and Dembe go to great lengths to fulfill the final wishes of a dear friend; Aram goes undercover as an interpreter to a company that provides services to criminals; Park helps a friend in trouble. Note: The sweetest goodbye I've ever seen a TV series give to a recurring character since The Big Bang Theory.

Anne (s8, e13)

Red enjoys a quiet visit with a friend at her home in rural America. Note: Another great one-off with an ending that made me hate Liz even more than I already did.

Ivan Stepanov (s8, e17)

Red tries desperately to rescue an old friend at all costs, while Liz and Townsend conduct an interrogation. Guest stars: David E. Harrison as Ivan Stepanov and Rana Roy as Priya Laghari

The SPK (s9, e3)

A new case involving stolen artifacts reunites Red with a former Blacklister. Aram faces a difficult decision. Guest star: Stacy Keach as Robert Vesco

Eva Mason (s9, e14)

While searching for Senator Panabaker's missing daughter-in-law, the task force learns there may be a larger pattern of abductions. Red continues to piece together the mystery behind Liz's death. Guest star: Lea DeLaria as Nurse Binstock

The Four Guns (s10, e3)

An assassination attempt on Sen. Panabaker leads the Task Force to a group of renowned pickpockets; Red sends a dangerous gift to an old friend in custody. Guest stars: Stacy Keach as Robert Vesco and Jacob Pitts as Quentin Dodd Note: The scene between Reddington and Quentin where the latter "reads" the former on command and almost perfectly characterizes him is one of my favorite scenes of the entire 10th season.

And that's it folks! I've liked a lot of episodes over the show's run, even when Liz made me want to pull my hair out or when the writing was not as strong as I hoped.

But these 15 episodes above are probably the ones I would recommend to someone who has never seen the show, but wants to know what I liked about it so much that made me stick with it until the end.

As I mentioned before, season 4 had my favorite major villain (aka "Big Bad") but I only picked one episode from that season to add to this list. And although I think season 8 was the most infuriating in terms of characterization, it actually had a lot of great episodes that I would watch over and over again.

I think it's interesting that I didn't have any episodes from season 1 on my list. 🤔

I'm not going to review the series finale or the show overall. I just wanted to mark the occasion and say that I'm happy to see the show sunset, and I will be forever grateful that it gave us 10 years of James Spader on my television.

Yes, I hated that they didn't answer any of my questions about who Red really was to Liz, but I'm still feeling very, very grateful because this character was one for the ages.

So I was reading your post on rewatching the pilot of Gilmore Girls and specifically regarding ASP's attachment to Christopher: do you believe she favored that pairing for Lorelai or just had trouble writing a stable relationship in the series, period? My feeling was always that she was kind of stuck with Luke and Lorelai (because they were more popular and the narrative singled them out early) but always personally preferred Christopher and enjoyed finding any opportunity to stick him into the show (then again, Christopher's not in AYITL in any meaningful way, so maybe not).

One major difference I have with other L/L fans is that many of them seemed to believe if ASP were in charge of season 7, Luke would forgive Lorelai for banging Christopher right away, they would forget about that incident, and go on to get married and have babies right away. That whole thing sounds tremendously unfair to everyone involved, but it seemed to be a dominant opinion: ASP didn't want to write Christopher/Lorelai, the season 7 writers did. I always got the sense that ASP really, really wanted to write Christopher full time and relished the opportunity to do so.

Hi!!!

A bit of all, perhaps?

I remember reading that GG came to be because Warner didn't like any of the other things ASP proposed to them before. As much as ASP has legend status in the fandom, network mandates are as real a thing as studio mandates are.

If you want a cynical take on this... I do think ASP does have certain classist biases (I'm still thinking of the absolute horrified dirty eye the AYITL narrative gives to the very notion of Rory becoming a Chilton teacher, like working for some Buzzfeed knock off was scores better) besides the fatalism, so... would she have wanted an arrangement by which Lorelai ends up back in the high class life with a high class life partner? I think so. I mean, Jason does end up becoming a regular for the season he's there. But if that was the case, most certainly javajunkie was an element of network mandate, and she would not have been allowed to make anything else endgame (which would also explain the extremely petty way in which she torpedoed the relationship by the end of s6).

By the point we are in AYITL, she cannot really pretend S7 didn't happen. That ship sailed because Lorelai went as far as to marry Christopher and divorce him. It's not something you can shrug off the way you can pretend Logan regressed because he was so very young and his business imploded and he had to go home. So one way or another her hands were tied.

There's also the possibility that she just... didn't want Lorelai to marry anyone, and just keep her options open and go back and forth between whoever her fancy favored at certain points.

I think what was written for s7 is the natural progression of that outcome. Lorelai realizes, finally, that she keeps going back to Christopher because she thinks of him as the one that got away, and that she needs to see it through, either to make it happen or to be able to move on. She gives it a try, it doesn't work out, and because of that she's now able to really move on from him and really truly start a new life with someone else.

The ending of s6 makes s7, no matter who is in charge, a catch 22 situation. You either follow through with the Christopher/Lorelai relationship until it runs its course, or Luke's immediate forgiveness cheapens the relationship and basically turns him into some doormat/lamp man-toy for Lorelai, with nothing saying she won't go back to Christopher AGAIN whenever she's mad at him for having hard boundaries. That's not really a good option for a ship one loves. So even if she DID get s7 and wrote it as a shrug-off to the ending of s6, it wouldn't have been satisfying at all.

Whatever she was thinking of doing, the ending of s6 was long planned and not a last minute petty attempt at destroying the series when she was not renewed for s7. At least to me it was set up as early as s5 when Lorelai went to spend the night drinking with Christopher after his father died. So if you ask me, I'd say the Christopher/Lorelai relationship would have happened through s7 anyways with ASP in charge.

random but stefan’s character was fucked in every way and caroline was the saving grace of his character but also the doom. damon and ian won the hearts of everyone with his character and making them ship delena since s1. the writers tried to write good charachterisation especially for the past but ended up making damon better and human damon in contrast with his vampire self was so delicious especially since he was soooo pathetically in love and didn’t want to live and be a vampire but stefan makes him. stefan never stood a chance. and then we enter the whole i respect her wishes even if it kills her to damon being the bad guy just to save her like?!?!?! and then klaus and being the ripper and the whole s3 lskdjd. yes elena always loved stefan bc that was the right thing to do based on her being the main character so when she still chose stefan in that finale everyone went nuts so they had to come up with something like how stefan wants her as a human and sees her as a problem to be fixed. the only good writing is when stefan says something like i want to enjoy at being a vampire with her and join her but because of his problems he can’t. that’s the only reasonable explanation bc everything else is just out of character. also that whole he stalked her and wanted to know her and insert himself in elena’s life was a turn off even more for some which looking at it with fresh eyes isn’t something that bad. it’s just isn’t attractive. stelena being together immediately was just cliche and not as interesting as delena period. then they inserted delena meeting first ksjdj.

also stefan wasn’t really involved with anyone, didn’t have any dynamic besides caroline, where damon had with ric and liz forbes, the friendship with bonnie is just so beautiful, the occasional matt donovanism. like he just was funny and had nicknames for everyone. stefan didn’t have any besides care. they started involving him in s4 when they knew they were gonna make delena happen so they had to involve him somehow. and then make silas be a doppelgänger. like lmfaooo. That whole storyline is just nonsense written to prop Stefan’s character and importance and frankly is pathetic. They started that tid bit with caroline and some elena scenes and universe bs and he came back to life. S5 is just dumpster fire for delena too and it sucked. which s6 saved it. now we have stefan moving on with his life. I liked this season and rewatching it it was good, ofc the gemini storyline carried. stefan and caroline start to happen. honestly not a fan. and this is why he again was fckd. bc delena was clearly the romance of the show but nina left. they couldn’t make the changes they supposedly wanted to so delena became the endgame. and they make steroline kind of happen but just in the worst ways ever. and left it for s7 to become the main romance. now klaroline had huge fans so yet another situation similar to delena like lmfao it’s bad luck all around. they hated for making steroline happen bc klaroline was already sooo loved and popular. valerie was a nice touch and i liked them a lot while watching. him and caroline just didn’t work at all. stefan’s whole character was elena being his soulmate and how perfect they were for each other he never had a thing with any character for four seasons. he didn’t look at any girl any way, he had eyes for elena always. the writers were dumb man. so putting caroline with him was just not it. i get why julie wanted to have a stefan lexi thing going on. bc it’s something huge and meaningful. she helped him his entire life with vampirism and that’s why she probably wanted that to happen somehow bc what is there left? so they tried doing that with caroline but itjust doesnt work. care was a kiddie pool and shallow from the beginning. she was a self insert character, the audience’s mouthpiece and a karen later on. stefan’s character just didn’t fit with her at all. if the writers actually wrote for him something how they wrote for damon and elena in s1 then maybe it would have been possible. but they just didn’t have anyone to pair him up with so let’s go with caroline even though klaroline was much more loved. and then s8 dying as a hero ksjdndn. like this character had no chance. he was constantly that main character that needed to remind the audience he is the main character, the right best man, but it just made people turn off even more bc he was so broody and always the annoying right character and arrogant somehow. i mean ofc we have him barely treating any girl right like rebekah or caroline. especially caroline. she in s6 was desperate and in love but he didn’t have that till he supposedly figured it out later. and then the whole turning their emotions off was so annoying and boring to watch and they had s*x?! just a disaster ship. he is a tragedy character. damon didn’t struggle with being a vampire. he had a blast in fact. it was stefan who did, who struggled so much, was both the monster of the story but also the hero. who his heart was still pure. and who never stopped trying to be better. being a human again was his desire but damon got that too alongside with elena. i think people just at the end always simplify things. the writing was complicated and the fans were just going with vibes. the first season has all the moody mysterious dark vibes of vampires and that’s all stefan too. the whole red flags of how he stalked her and when he started to take blood how he changed and gaslighted elena and stuff. those are all vampiric sides. we explored everything of a vampire through stefan. the hard struggles. damon didn’t deal with that. he got to be the fun cool one. so much more but anyways

Hiya! How are you? Before the question, here's the background:

After explaining Voltron to my best friend(in an entertaining way), she grew curious about the series and we started having watch night Saturdays for Voltron. Fast forward to today, we finished S6 and and currently on S7 E4.

We do our usual breakdown of what's up so far and she also agreed the writers did Lotor dirty (because it didn't fit his character to "fumble the ball", despite being pretty lovesick at that point. But even that, he is usually good with words regardless of emotional feels).

Now this breakdown, my best friend cringed at the kiss (and I was just annoyed to the point I left her alone to watch it herself and comeback after) and we agreed that perhaps that scene wasn't necessary and the whole Altean plot is where the writing fell apart. Back to the kiss. After rewatching S6, I kinda agreed because it was like another "L" for Lotor (oof literally). She thinks the kiss would be more of an impact towards the ending of the series where they have more screen time and fighting scenes together(which come to think of it, they've never been shown how well they bounce of each in combat...)

My question is: What are your thoughts of the kiss scene? Do you think it was cringe as well? Maybe a bit out if place? Or pretty okay or something 🤔? (Sorry for making this long).

Hi, anon! Thanks for the note! Wow, good luck to your friend as she watches VLD.

Hm, yeah, I can agree that the kiss between Lotor and Allura had an unsettling spin inside the show, given that it happened just after we learned about the overly complicated plot twist of Lotor harvesting Alteans.

As the audience experiencing dramatic irony (in that you know something Allura doesn't know), you're just anticipating the inevitable train wreck as you watch them kiss...Narratively speaking, I guess a kiss at this point served to heighten Allura's sexual angst, her fury, and her self-doubt/depression that we see her experiencing later.

A kiss at the end of the show, as you mention, in a version where Voltron and Lotor were still positively allied per the show's "strength in unity" theme, would have been nice and probably more family friendly.

The canon treatment of the situation (a romantic kiss just before visceral betrayal involving a discovery of mass murder) ultimately did feel out of place for a Y7 family show.

The only other time I've seen the Voltron franchise try to tackle a similar colony concept with Lotor was in the ages 16+ Dynamite comics, where it wasn't even Lotor who killed the people. And it's oddly Allura who defends Lotor to Keith in that comic...it's just a very different situation all around.

So yeah lol, as a fan of Lotura, watching that kiss in VLD was like, Okay so they kissed, but my god, at what cost.

Luckily, Lotura fanon has certainly provided happier alternatives in fic and art! I think given the toxic lack of catharsis/closure in canon, a degree of separation from canon is ultimately healthy. Sometimes, all you can do is take the lemons that life gives you and make some lemonade a;dfjlas

Putting aside aesthetics and characterization (inasmuch as I can), I have been trying to logic out why Mando Ahsoka feels so different from Rebels Ahsoka (to me, personally; I know many other people feel fine about it), especially in terms of having a character who’s known in Rebels for her “I am no Jedi” line going to a character who is specifically introduced as “The Jedi” in The Mandalorian.  (And who is identified as “Ahsoka Tano, Jedi Knight” on merch -- merch is merch, it’s essentially meaningless, but it’s still a choice that was made somewhere along the line.)

“Shroud of Darkness,” Rebels 2.17

“Twilight of the Apprentice,” Rebels 2.21

This is strictly Doylist and not Watsonian; I don’t care what went on in the character’s life in between Rebels and Mando; I’m trying to guess what was happening in the writers room.

I was noodling through this on Twitter, in case it looks familiar.

My first thought was Dave taking a cut scene from Rebels as canon going into Mando, something he shared on Twitter back in the lead-up to S4.  Looking at this again I’m not sure this was a cut scene or a scene that he wrote that never made it into the actual script. (Certainly I can’t see how it would have fit into the episode.)

Here Bendu specifically identifies Ahsoka as “former Jedi Knight.”  This is also obviously not canon, because Twitter posts aren’t canon, Dave.  (Though that doesn’t mean that he might have taken it as part of his working backstory for the character anyway.)

I was then thinking about TCW and the unused TCW arcs as they existed in 2016 when this aired (with the rough guess that Rebels S2 was probably written in 2014).  There are three Ahsoka arcs that were written and existed in 2016 in some form (”scripts and some artwork” is what Pablo Hidalgo says, and some pre-viz and recordings from the original Walkabout arc that were shown at a couple Celebrations), but which hadn’t made it into S6 (which came out in 2014): Ahsoka’s Walkabout (in its original form with Nix Okami instead of the Martez sisters), the Siege of Mandalore, and an arc which would have taken place between those two, “Return to the Jedi.”  We know about these because of a panel from Star Wars Celebration Europe in 2016 called Ahsoka’s Untold Tales -- I was actually at this panel, but I haven’t thought about it in a while.  Here’s the SW.com liveblog of it; here’s the video.

I remember hearing somewhere that the TCW team had nine seasons or so written, but can’t find the source for that number now.  When S7 was made, there were obviously a lot of compromises made that we’ll never really know about, minus a tell-all memoir or documentary, which probably isn’t coming any time soon.  Knowing that this Return to the Jedi arc existed, I wondered if at one point Dave had tried to get all three Ahsoka arcs into S7 before having to give one up for the Bad Batch arc (especially as we now know there’s going to be a Bad Batch TV show); it’s also entirely possible that at one point in the production process there was the possibility of a full 22 episode season floated, which would have made three Ahsoka arcs in one season less unbalanced.

I went to go look up what the Return to the Jedi arc actually was, since 2016 was a long time ago and I haven’t really thought about this panel since.  My guess is that it had been intended for one Ahsoka arc per remaining season (7, 8, 9).  Pablo Hidalgo says that after the Walkabout arc, Ahsoka would have stayed on Coruscant as “an under-city vigilante of some degree, helping people who can’t help themselves,” and Dave points out that he talked about this with George Lucas, as well.  The Return of the Jedi arc would have involved Ahsoka finding out about a nefarious plot targeting Yoda and working with the Jedi to figure out what’s what with that -- this revealed that below the Jedi Temple was an ancient Sith shrine. (Some details of this were revealed at Star Wars Celebration Anaheim in 2015.)

Ahsoka would have been protecting the holocron vault from Darth Sidious, putting her lightsaber blade through the door while Palps shoots Force lightning up the blade.

“The whole purpose of that particular arc would have been to bring Ahsoka back. She’s not a Jedi, she doesn’t change her decision, but she gets involved in Jedi business again.”

The next Ahsoka arc and the final arc of the series would have been the Siege of Mandalore arc, which “reunites Ahsoka with the clone troopers, with Anakin.”  My guess is that the end of the Return to the Jedi arc would have involved Ahsoka making the decision to go to Mandalore because the Jedi themselves couldn’t get involved in that conflict at the time (especially the emphasis in the panel that Pablo and Dave put on Ahsoka as being “a responsible person” who couldn’t ignore that the war was still going on, and because Ahsoka knew Satine).  (It would be interesting to know when if this arc would have fallen before or after the Darth Maul - Son of Dathomir comics, which are based off another unmade TCW arc.)  This would probably have put as much as a season between this arc and the final arc -- given TCW’s funky timeline that doesn’t mean much, but in terms of audience expectation it helps.

(also, damn, the context of the beginning of Siege of Mandalore in the original concept vs. how it actually happens in S7 is very different -- like, on the surface identical but the emotions involved are totally different.)

Before going into the next part of the panel (post-war), Pablo Hidalgo adds “We consider it to have happened and that’s how we inform the writing in Rebels, because that’s the history that these characters carry in their heads.”

So going into Rebels, the writing team was working with the background that Ahsoka had not only left the Jedi Order once, in “The Wrong Jedi,” but had reinforced her decision not to go back to the Jedi by not returning to the Order during the Return to the Jedi arc.  That explains why in Rebels she’s so adamant about not being a Jedi or being in the Order; it’s a decision that she has made not once, but twice.

Fast forward four years to 2020, where we have the Siege of Mandalore arc in S7.

It’s heavily implied that Ahsoka was planning to go back to the Order after the end of the war, and in fact Yoda treats her as such.

Now, there’s no way to know if this exchange was in the original Siege of Mandalore scripts short of those being released at some point (which is possible but seems unlikely when the character is still in play), but because of the way S7 plays out there is no way to put the Return to the Jedi arc back into the story, which means all the emotional context and Ahsoka doubling down on not returning to the Order is thrown out of the window.  That’s a fair chunk of backstory to take into the Rebels writers room.

(It should also be noted that presumably E.K. Johnston wrote the Ahsoka novel with the assumption that that arc was still part of Ahsoka’s working canon, though she may not have seen scripts for it; I feel like I read somewhere that she had seen scripts for the original version of the Siege of Mandalore, which changed quite a lot between original concept and the eventual 2020 version, as is evident from the novel vs the show.)

Going into The Mandalorian, then, Dave Filoni is not only working without a writers room (as Mando has only had two writers, Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau), but working with an entirely different continuity than what the Rebels writers room was working with.

Trying to backtrack when various scripts were written is an exercise in futility to some extent; I usually guess anywhere from a year to two years out from when the shows air.  (I seem to remember that around this time in 2016 it came out that Katee Sackhoff was doing something for Disney, which ended up being the recording for Bo-Katan in Rebels S4, which wouldn’t air for another year, but don’t quote me on these dates.)  Dave ends the panel by saying that “After the season 2 finale for Rebels I was very adamant that that was it for Ahsoka...in Rebels...but after this reaction it might just be possible...it might be possible to see her again. She might have something to do. Maybe.”  (For those trying to run dates in their heads: the con was in July 2016, the season 2 finale aired in March 2016, WBW aired in February 2018.)  My guess is that they hadn’t recorded for that part of S4 yet (and S4 is so weirdly paced that I have questions about how it was made), but that the initial scripts for S4 had already been written at this point.

Looking back at the Star Wars Celebration Chicago 2019 TCW panel where Ashley Eckstein talks about getting the news about TCW S7 from Dee Bradley Baker (rather than from Dave Filoni, and hoo boy is this uncomfortable to watch knowing that the script for “The Jedi” had almost certainly been written and Dave may have already made the decision not to talk to Ashley about it), there’s still not like...a clear way to tell when that happened.  Except that Dee talks about “wine tasting with the Rebels,” which likely puts it back when Rebels S4 was either still actively airing (2017-2018) or before it had wrapped filming (2017).  (I actually vaguely remember seeing pictures from this wine tasting but I can’t remember whose twitter it was on and going to look feels creepy.)  Probably the scripts weren’t fully revised at that point but they may have been -- still, this was certainly after S2 and could potentially be before S4 had been fully finalized.  We got the TCW renewal announcement in 2019, but the animation wasn’t fully completed yet so didn’t get more than that teaser trailer.  This is only important insofar as it involves which set of backstory was being used for WBW Ahsoka, an episode that Dave Filoni wrote and co-directed.  (Honestly? I think Mando Ahsoka matches okay with WBW Ahsoka but is a little off Rebels S2 Ahsoka, but that’s off my memory of WBW, an episode I refuse to rewatch.)  Certainly with the epilogue he knew he was setting up for something else.

ETA: I FORGOT AN IMPORTANT PART OF THIS TIMELINE AND THAT’S THE RISE OF SKYWALKER because I try not to think about TROS, frankly, but as we may remember Ahsoka is included in the “be with me” scene in the final confrontation.  This always struck me as weird given the “I am no Jedi” thing from Rebels, but she’s the most well-known female Force-user so I had just mentally written it off as easy shorthand and JJ Abrams being lazy about it. HOWEVER, presumably JJ talked to Dave about which prequel era Jedi to include (there’s a note in one of the previous SWC liveblogs about Rian Johnson being in the Rebels writers room at some point).  TROS came out in December 2019, I can’t recall exactly when they did the voiceovers for that scene (if anyone has ever mentioned it), but it was probably fairly late in the process since I believe that there were still edits being made up until fairly soon before the premiere.  (I have a completely different theory that the Lego Star Wars Holiday Special from this year was written off an earlier version of TROS.)  If Dave had already moved towards making Ahsoka more inclined towards the Jedi, with a full-on return to calling herself one regardless of the existence of the Order (as Mando implies), then her inclusion here makes a LOT more sense than it did a year ago.

Anyway this is all very conspiracy theorist, but it does explain something that was puzzling me: Rebels S2 Ahsoka and Mando Ahsoka (as well as TCW S7 Ahsoka and potentially Rebels S4 Ahsoka) were written off slightly different backstories which differed in one very key thing: how committed Ahsoka was to no longer being a Jedi.

Now, this sort of thing happens all the time in anything with an ongoing continuity; obviously TCW makes major changes to how viewers might read or write Obi-Wan and Anakin/Vader in RotS or the OT.  I was just trying to narrow it down in this particular case because until I started thinking about it I had assumed that it was all being written off the same assumed backstory. And many people read Ahsoka differently in Mando than I did or found her perfectly in character, this was for me to track references down about something that was bothering me in hopes of an explanation that would satisfy me.

When you love the show because of one character and that character eventually written off the show prematurely. Here's a few of mine.

1. Lucas Scott and Peyton Sawyer - One Tree Hill

I know it's controversial but I love this pairing. Lucas might be whiny little white boy and an asshole to Brooke but I like the way he cares for Peyton.. He is also sometimes and asshole to Peyton.. I also love Peyton because for me she is misunderstood. The good thing is Chad Michael Murray and Hilarie Burton left together and for me OTH only has 6 seasons.. Never watch anything beyond that.

2. Elena Gilbert - The Vampire Diaries

It's hard being Elena. If she's with Stefan, the other half of the fandom will hate her. If she's with Damon, another half of the fandom will still hate her. There's no win for her. That's why some people didn't like her.. They made a point about her being spoilt, selfish and always being the target of supernatural evil but the truth is people doesn' t like her choice.. I think she's not a weak character. She has multiple times trying to sacrifice herself for her friends but Stefan and especially Damon won't let her. After Nina Dobrev left, the shows doesn't feel the same. I only watch tvd s7/s8 once and when I rewatched, I never watch anything beyond s6.

3. Troy Barnes - Community

They said Britta is the heart of the group but for me it's Troy Barnes. He and Abed is one entity and one without the other is incomplete. It is so sad to see Abed trying to navigate his life without Troy who's on his own adventure to inherit Pierce's inheritance in s5. The show doesn't feel the same without Troy dorkyness. Donald Glover left the show to focus on his music career which he did and then proceed to produce his own TV show, Atlanta. Lol

4. April Kepner - Grey's Anatomy

For the show named after her, I never liked Meredith Grey. I always like April and always rooting for her. She was unfairly treated by the show. She's married Jackson and getting pregnant, lost the baby and eventually lost her marriage as well. Grey's Anatomy writer really doesn't want her to be happy. They did her dirty.

5. Felicity Smoak - Arrow

I was hesitate to get involved in arrowverse but I always wanted to watch supergirl which I did. From there I watched The Flash and Arrow. When I first watch Arrow I was like.. This is gonna be too much testosterone.. Oliver without a doubt is hot but not enough to make me hook to the show.. Then, Felicity came and change the show for the better. But, I don't like that they benched her in s8 to give the canaries more screen time. They could do something else for her. Luckily, s8 only has 10 episode and she's back for the finale.

That ask and your answer about what if Sam was out of hunting and never left Stanford because Gabriel wanted to stop the apocalypse and threw him into a pocket dimension and I’m like. Obsessed. primarily with gabriel and how Sam would go.

I think he would stick Sam in a like… you remember when Zachariah stuck sam and dean in the office job and it was a parallel universe but also it was real life? like coplanar planes, I think Gabriel would elect to do that instead of his you’re going in my alternate universe, because it’s less detail consuming and I think Sam would notice small things that were off like how he figured out it was him in mystery spot.

You said Sam deserves to have the apple pie life but if he was comfortable with that it wouldn’t like.. work he wouldn’t be ready to ever confront Lucifer or anyone. i agree but also I don’t think he would stick with his normal life. like in the zachariah episode he had a normal life and fake memories of that but he still wanted to hunt and help people and also figure out wtf was happening. I think in this scenario Sam would still be psychic because I love that but Gabriel would probably try like… suppressing his visions and such, because they would lead him back into possible angel business. I think he’d still get little snippets because that’s fun and having reminders in that that the supernatural like.. exists and ppl are getting hurt, I think that would overrule his want of complete normalcy and even his spite toward John.

I don’t think he’d go back into hunting like, completely because I want him to have something good and also be semi well adjusted. but like we saw in the terrible life episode I think he’d like.. if he got bored and started looking up strange deaths well now he has to go help them!!

also it is sooo fun to me if he starts realizing something is wrong but he doesn’t know what. like in mystery spot I love that trope sooo fucking much also in s1 sam gets back into hunting through John Winchester style revenge quest and I want to give him a reason to start poking around that is like.. for himself and not anybody else. he can have a little obsession over it as a treat because i like seeing him be a bitch <3

i think initially when Gabriel found out the apocalypse was like in motion and Sam was at Stanford he’d have an opportunity there to do something without revealing to other players that he is alive because he was pretending to be a trickster. like he’s very much in this for self preservation and if he did some time traveling shenanigans, or disappearing both Winchesters and maybe even Adam out of nowhere, I think he’d worry that the angels would take notice. Randy your vessels!! But Stanford gives him a natural window to hide a key player. he needs to do away with Adam too so Lucifer can’t possibly have a true vessel to fight.. maybe he can kill him in a freak accident because I find that funny. sorry this is long and it will be getting longer

anyway I think as time went on Gabriel would pay like less meticulous attention. he’d still keep away like key players but as other people also started trying to stop the apocalypse he would become more relaxed also he’d be overconfident in himself like in changing channels. I think this would lead sam to notice more stuff that just doesn’t make any sense and maybe start looking for dean or even his dad, or going out of his way to look for hunts. maybe get involved in magic because i think he deserves to be a witch. wait actually that’s how he should find Dean. i think Gabriel would hide Dean from Sam and vice versa, and he didn’t foresee Sam using magic or anything. Also at this point it’s been years and I think Sam is more invested in this than his like… normal life. he’s more well adjusted but I can definitely see him just impulsively quitting his job to figure out what the fucks happening. Also I think he’d feel animosity at dean during this for not being there and not helping him, even though that anger doesn’t make complete sense. sorry i like the early seasons salmon dean reconciling and learning to like each other and sam realizing Your Parents Are People and I would like to see it with them having like, completely different lives and also some fun miscommunication bc of Gabriel. also sam having to reconcile dean having cas OHRHDHJ also dean and cas trying horribly to cover cas being not human is so fucking fun to me. unless this happens during a cas is dead time period which is fun in a different evil way.

I also think dean would only stop looking if he though Sam was dead, but I think… Gabriel might have hidden him but other people ARE still meeting him even with like altered memories. so I think angels or something can sense that Sam is alive but they don’t know where and I think they’d gloat and use it to taunt dean that he is like.. suffering while his brother is living a perfect normal life. Also because this adds another miscommunication that can be discussed and end in reconciliation in a way I don’t think would feel contrived and is in line with it the characters. it’d be Amelia s8 but Sam would be like (Sam voice) I did look for you!!! where were you when I needed you! also I want Sam to find out John died and he’s in absolute despair while cas is standing there like oh yes that’s so awful your father was an. absolutely a man😔😐🏳️‍🌈

idk when this would occur and i think every season offers like… different flavors of enjoyment for an audience of just me. like s7 proto widower arc?? Sam reconnecting with Dean during TMWWBK when he is not familiar with the dean and cas dynamic and has to be witness to Trying So Hard To Be Loyal. additionally that would be fun because bobby is there and dean is like, covering his ears and back talking bobby regarding cas. and if they’ve taken pains to hide cas being an angel Sam being like .who is this to Dean. is suchhh a fun concept.

WAIT post goodbye stranger. or maybe Sam can show up pre goodbye stranger to watch dean go from clingy after cas gets back from purgatory to wrongfooted to like ANGRY. well not Angry… to dean having dean emotions. when cas is off with the tablet ignoring him and he feels betrayed. and this Sam isn’t as close to him so he doesn’t know ANY details until Dean stats divulging them as they reconcile. ALL GOOD OPTIONS..

also if this happens during s6 i think it would be nice if cas started collecting allies, and at the same time as Sam trying to figure out what was keeping him away from dean and the angel business Cas could figure it out FIRST and use Gabriel as an ally against Raphael but he’d feel like he has to hide it from dean and sam. like in this scenario. actually any time I talk about s6 hypotheticals Cas’ conflict IS the A Plot. the Winchester’s were on a side quest idc. s6 is a fun time for these reasons but i don’t like it as much because Cas is still in the process of like.. formative development.

okay one last thing I’m SOOO sorry for my essay. you said if Sam was dispossessed the apocalypse would just.. not happen. i agree to like, a certain degree, because I do think they could have found another way but all of them would have been dust compared to swan song. so maybe Gabriel semi succeeded but instead of stopping the apocalypse he just… prolonged it. this changes a lot but if either Michael or Lucifer didn’t have a viable vessel I think the angels would scramble to actually for real stop the apocalypse but others would still want it to happen even if it was like.. Perfect they just want it to be over. this provides angel politics which I am in love with and we can still have like TMWWBK development for cas. I don’t know where I’m going with this sorry

op this is a lot, this is so much. i love it, i hope you have a google doc open somewhere and are typing away furiously.

now i didn't rewatch a lot of spn past s3 (surprise) in part bc i can't handle the brain damage and some scenes are seared into my cerebral cortex in a way that induced a temporary bout of eidetic memory, meaning i'll never forget the crypt scene in Goodbye Stranger for as long as i live. that being SAID, my s6-s7 knowledge is not as firmly coalesced. so because of that i'm letting your thoughts roam free as i don't know how accurate my own takes would be? but i feel like without sam there, like... hm. would dean even be the same person... would the past however many seasons even OCCUR remotely similar with sam out of the picture for literal years? we might be looking at a completely different world at that point.

my other theory is that the s2 plot of special children - we know azazel was raising a new 'crop' of psychic kids. i think that was a plot thread that they ended up dropping anyway, but if they didn't i do wonder if we'd be dealing with a lot more shenanigans like in s1 and s2 except with kids? and dean and cas trying to figure out what to do with these young psychics that might be turned into a vessel for lucifer or - whatever they wanted to do with those kids. hm.

i also question if purgatory would be a thing. like it probably would come up and be on the table, but maybe the godstiel arc wouldn't, bc if like you're saying dean and cas are together at this point, like. cas might have grown to love humanity (not just dean but like 99% dean) to the point where he might not be doing this risky gambit for more souls. and if gabriel is still around, cas may start petitioning gabe to help throw his archangel weight around against raphael while he tries to do the actual strategizing.

i think sam would still have his visions, like you said, and then maybe those lead him to dean or to a case that dean is also on? or if angels are more well-known later on, he tracks one down, maybe cas, maybe not (if it's NOT and it's one that works on raphael's side. ohoho. the possibilities...)

Tumblr has been glitching so apologies if you got this ask before.

I think Forewood should have had a respectable ending and not what was done to them in s5.I hated it.And you were right.They could have killed tyler if they wanted to in s6.What was even the point of bringing him back like that if they would kill him off?He wasn't even involved with MF gang anymore.Let him live! Trevino is so sweet.When he was asked if he would change anything about Tyler's story he said if he could he would give Caroline and Tyler a Happy Ending.

Tumblr has been so weird for me too anon, mostly on desktop it doesn't want to cooperate.

Yeah what happened to Tyler is rough, and I felt it even more in my rewatch because I really enjoyed Tyler's journey because he was the only one who wouldn't blindly follow the Salvatores. As much as I like Forwood and I really really got a buzz for them in my rewatch the break-up in 5x05 was realistic because I see both sides. Caroline is looking at is as "they found a way" to be together because Klaus told her he'd leave Tyler alone, and that's not enough for Tyler. I mean Klaus killed his Mom, ruined his life and now he's supposed to only get part of that life back because Klaus said he could? No way. And I think that's where you saw how they were going to drift apart eventually because they had two different mentalities. The KC sex was used to just completely demolish it and and I think any understanding that could have come about between them was ended with that.

In the very beginning of S7 I thought it was possible that Tyler was Caroline's fiancé in the FF because I would have finally got a Sterowood triangle and Caroline would have had an actual fiancé who we knew she loved. The Stefan and Tyler phone call kind of dashed those hopes though since he was like "no I don't want to get involved in your drama with her". Trevino deserved so much better, I think he knew the writers were doing him dirty in S6 so that's why he didn't sign on for more and then in S7 they kept having scenes or dialogue that Damon was going to kill Tyler and it's like it was written on the wall. It sucks too because like you said he had finally gotten away from the MFG and seemed to be doing well working for the Armory. If Tyler lived they could have maybe hinted that him and Caroline could rekindle their romance in the future in the finale but I think just like what happened to KC once Caroline married Stefan and they got that tragic ending with the "I love you forevers" the writers didn't feel right giving her another endgame romance.

Hi Sarah 🙋‍♀️

Well, since you asked... 😉 Can you rate your favourite “Sanas”? & perhaps could you include both Imaan and Esra (🇳🇱) in the ranking? 👼 (since Esra was in a sense also a Sana and she’s soo precious! 😻)

Thanks in advance! 💐

Love,

anonacht 🌃

P.S. Yes, I’m everywhere! 😈 Only friendly fire though! 💚

P.P.S. “nacht” = the Dutch word for night! 🤓 And it’s still a shame skamNL never moved beyond season 2! 😭

Hello, Twitter anon aka anonacht :) I love you too (also thanks for putting up with me on Twitter, because I am insufferable, at least to myself lol)

Thank you for indulging me, and requesting my Sana ranking. 

1. sana bakkoush - skam

It’s kind of sad that no other Sana season has been able to top the original, at least in my opinion. But Sana Bakkoush deserves this crown, because she is a character who redefined Muslim representation onscreen. Iman Meskini was such a force in her season, and everything Sana felt, she managed to make me feel like that too. When she cried, so did I. When she was angry, I was pissed, and so on. I love her and her Yousef so, so much. She is everything, honestly. I hope Sana is out there, being a doctor and revolutionizing medicine as we know it.

2. amira naybet - skam espana

Ooh, okay. I know a lot of people won’t agree with me on this one, and that’s fine! Amira Naybet means the world to me. Like literally, she is my comfort character. As I began this past fall semester as a junior in college during a freaking pandemic, she and Hajar Brown took my heart and ran with it. I personally love that she was also the Jonas in Cris’ season, as it gave her so much depth before her season aired. Ultimately, I agree that her season was flawed, and I definitely think that her season needed actual Muslim writers involved, and not just consultants. Her season production was also hindered by the pandemic too, which sucks, because I think a whole episode was cut from her season, and there was a lot of rewriting in the back half so they could meet COVID guidelines. But overall, I’m glad the writers tried to be different with their Sana and change some things up. I still love Amira, and I do love her relationship with Dani (although I will never understand that Al-Queda joke in his first clip, it feels like a misguided attempt at Spanish humor that did not translate well at all). And I’m glad Hajar felt safe and secure with this team and was happy with Amira’s story, given the circumstances. (ps: she deserved the full nine episodes, I don’t care what Movistar thinks.)

3. amira thalia mahmood - druck / zoya ali - skam austin

AMIRA THE SECOND. I love her too. I especially liked that she was technically the first Girl Squad member introduced in Hanna’s season, instead of Miss Mia. I liked that change. I also love the friendships she had with Matteo and David, and that Matteo was saved as “idiot” in her phone. She was truly a queen. Mohammed is also a king, one of my favorites. I also liked that Druck also tried to change some things and make their Sana season more relevant, with the Christchurch references and setting her season outside of Ramadan. But sadly, like Amira N.’s season, it failed to really delve into the racism that Amira had dealt with in the GS from Kiki. If Nadia was able to apologize well, I don’t understand why Kiki couldn’t have done the same thing. Again, I feel that her season needed Muslim writers to really delve into these issues. Also, the whole eight episodes thing? Dumb. They could have delved more into Mohammed’s immigrant experience and Amira reintroducing him to Islam, etc. Why can’t Amiras just get their full seasons for once? 

Onto Zoya, who sadly didn't get her season, but I feel like she was a great character, perhaps closest to the Sana from OG in terms of characterization. She was “no bullshit,” but also the fiercest, loyal friend out of the Austin GS, besides maybe Jo, who really had Kelsey’s back at the end of s2. I feel like we really missed out on seeing her story, as she was a Muslim teen living her high school experience under a Trump presidency and a Muslim travel ban (that’s now thankfully been repealed). I loved that she got Prom Queen in s2, but I hate that literally everyone dropped the ball when it came to supporting her. The GS basically ignored the locker graffiti aka a literal hate crime? *cough cough* hire POC and Muslim writers. She was a queen though, like all Sanas who came before her.

4. esra aydin & imaan elami - skam nl

Imaan was cool, I enjoyed her entrance in s1, which I rewatched just for this ranking. Her little car? The music? I love it! It sucks that she was absent for chunks of s1, but apparently the actress had personal issues, which is why she did not return for s2. Understandable. Long reign her entrance clip.

ESRA! I loved her! I’m so glad that after Imaan’s exit that they decided to cast another Muslim woman for Linn. I love her, I loved her relationship with Ralph and the other characters, and I have a feeling that Skam NL’s season 4 would have been about her. An Esra season would have been great because it would have given us an young adult main outside of high school, and probably further depth into the Esklid character. Again, pour one out for Skam NL :(

5. imane bakhellal - skam france

Imane seems cool. I haven’t watched much of Skam France outside of s3, parts of s6, and s7, which is currently airing. I’ve been wary to watch her season, because I’ve heard about her having to apologize to the GS, and things dealing with Ingrid and her brother... and Sofiane actually dating Manon???? Like, WHAT. IS. GOING. ON. Her Yousef seems cute but dumb. But otherwise, Assa is really pretty and really supportive of her fellow Sana counterparts on Insta, which has endeared her to me. And due to that fact, I will defend Imane to the ends of the earth, and I will watch her season eventually. I promise.

6. yasmina ait omar - wtfock

Yasmina is still a bit of a mystery to the audience, I think. But I do plan to watch her season, if only for Nora Dari, who is very pretty. Bel!Yousef, treat her right!

7. sana allegui - skam italia

No words needed.

Hi, what is your opinion about Chloe Sullivan? it seems that some fans. especially Clark/Chloe shippers wanted Chloe to “become” Lois. That's insane!!!!

Thanks for the ask! As far as Chloe goes, my opinion on her has changed over the years. I had to put this under a cut because I got rambly- get ready for the essay you didn't ask for. Where I stand now is that I actually don't hate her but I also don't like her. I am just critical of her and her behavior.

I didn't watch Smallville when it first aired but I got into it during the first few seasons, and at first, I never had strong feelings on her one way or the other because I was mostly invested in Clark & Lex. And of course, Lois immediately after she appeared. I did start liking her in s5, because she had some sort of balance (fans refuse to acknowledge that she legit did nothing journalism wise in s6 and Grant was right to call out her lack of investment in s7) and used to really love her back in the day. I was very invested in the Chloe-Lois familial relationship and ended up shipping Chlollie a lot too. I am still not that heated about them ending up together, whatever my feelings are on her. It was rushed and Ollie's pining in s10 was annoying, but I preferred Ollie and Tess as friends and they didn't do a good enough job of getting me invested in SV Dinah unfortunately. And I liked her friendship with Clark, even if reflecting back, it wasn't all that healthy. I got caught up in the narrative though and I really wanted him to have a friend, since he was so lonely otherwise, and I wasn't a fan of Lana at all.

When I got getting active in fandom in early s6, I was actually surprised at how popular that ship was because as someone who read fic but was outside of it, just a viewer, it just never had an appeal. Mostly because even after the kiss in the s5 finale, I never thought it'd go anywhere and the feelings always felt unbalanced and stronger on her side. I did read fic for them because I read fic for anyone when I liked both characters involved but it wasn't my fave.

I think I got tired of her behavior around mid s8, though even when I liked her I was surprised at how annoying she could be in the early seasons when I rewatched. Her acting like she knew what was best for everyone and the way they dumbed down Clark a little to prop her up before that was frustrating and how she handled Davis/Doomsday was ridiculous. Also her demanding that she gets to use the Fortress to go back in time to save Jimmy and legit guilted him over it when she was there when Clark did the same thing and knew he lost his dad and probably was aware of how bad he felt over it? Awful. Her fans used to try to claim Clark was a bad friend who didn't deserve her, which was funny considering that if Clark hadn't been so forgiving, they wouldn't have been friends by that point in the first place. She literally hacked into his adoption records and worked with Lionel because he dared get together with the girl he actually liked. Plus some of her actions were grey and if she had been anyone else, she would have been on some sort of villain path. She put cameras in his house. You know who else did that? Lex. Honestly the only thing Clark did that was really questionable was erase her memory of his secret and that should've had more reaching consequences than it did- it would be one thing if he did it after s4 but after her life was tied up to his secret in many ways, I'm actually surprised she was able to be so happy go lucky and Oliver just brushed it off, since it would've affected her work with the League. Alas, not worth dwelling over, I guess.

Also the theory was batshit. Journalism and that one throwaway line which was clearly intended to show that Lois Lane did exist in the universe really spawned some nonsense. Especially after they cast Lois. Everyone said that it wasn't happening (even Gough had interviews in the early seasons where they talked about bringing Lois in so it was literally never in the plan) and they clung on to their theory and actually acted betrayed when it didn't happen. Just really gross behavior, especially how they treated Lois and more importantly, Erica Durance.

I don't care if they have their faves and ship what you want- not my problem- but the theory existing will always piss me off and those theorists especially definitely acted like the characters = actors, and propped up AM as a feminist icon while bashing ED, and her looks, and insisting that the rest of the cast definitely hated her, etc. It was really gross behavior. Considering what happened with AM, and who she turned out to be, it didn't age well either.

Anyway, she had plenty of good moments but also really bad ones and it's a shame that AM's actions also colored my perception of this character, but if she had been held responsible for some of them rather than being made out to be the hero of the show, even over Clark at times, I think I would look back on it more kindly.

I hope that answered your question!

COVID THERAPY VIEWING

It’s been a year indeed and a struggle, but when I’ve needed an escape I’ve found solace in some brilliant tv series this year that I want to take a moment to remember. Immersing myself in characters, online discussion, podcasts and more, has kept me going and allowed me to block out everything that 2020 has been when I’ve needed to. This is my first and possibly only Tumblr post but here, the place where I’ve found so much great conversation, fan fic, gif sets and more to add to my enjoyment of my favourite things to watch, seems the best place to leave my own thoughts. So here goes from the year’s beginning to its welcome ending:

TURN - Washington’s Spies

I’ve got a thing for moody Jamie Bell (The Eagle 😍) and discovered TURN last New Year looking for other historical dramas he’d appeared in. These characters completely captured me and drew me into a historical period I’d done my best to avoid since flunking it during A Level history. Abe made quite the most useless spy but his passion and compassion sold him to me. The Culper Ring story is fascinating and the show brought to life the real lives and conflicts of those involved. Intriguing portrayals of morally corrupt characters (Simcoe, Andre etc) who surprise you at every turn kept me gripped and props to some extremely fine acting and characterisation. The found family dynamic of the Culper Ring was a real joy and Brewster will forever be one of my most favourite characters. I wanted more personal development and not really being able to ship Abe with anyone especially was a let down but it was a fine series that really kept me company.

PEAKY BLINDERS

I’ve no idea why it took me so incredibly long to watch this series but having eventually succumbed I was hooked from the very first episode. Brooding, oppressive, threatening yet full of charm and humour with characters that jump out of the screen and take your heart without asking, made it addictive viewing for me this year. The next series is light years away but I’m waiting for you Tommy.

THE 100

Thank all the stars that we had good weather during lockdown because the final series of this post-apocalyptic drama almost ruined my summer. I’ve followed every twist and turn over the past six years, had my Bellarke heart broken time over time, shared the pain and angst of an array of brilliant characters and watched through my fingers when the creators treated legions of fans of all factions, worse than mortal enemies. But the end was coming and I stuck with it - despite my misgivings since the overturning of the Writers Room - buoyed by some hopeful S6 content, but I should have listened harder to my guts. Despite some flickers of promise in S6, it was beyond clear to me that the new writing team simply didn’t have the same connection to the characters and history of the show. Instead of wanting to resolve arcs and reunite characters we’d become inexorably entwined with, the lure of the new and an opportunity to reinvent and take a detour sparkled more brightly to them - something I will never ever be able to fathom. Fans forgotten, long running storylines dropped and characters - including our leads - essentially abandoned and made for a horror show of a final act. S7 broke my heart and I should have seen it coming. When I’ll feel ready to rewatch The 100 again I don’t know, but I’ll end my run when the show should have at the S5 finale and save the CPR scene for an occasional treat. Farewell and May We Meet Again.

THE MUSKETEERS

Salvation comes in leather and 18thC lace. I ADORED this so much! Again I was incredibly late to the party because it seemed such a frivolous show but a Youtube fan vid drew me in and I’m so thankful for it. The plots are mostly light but tackle some important issues, the tension is chest heavingly dramatic and everyone looks astonishing and oh my was this the antidote to an anti-climactic apocalyptic obsession that I needed. There’s humour, kindness, compassion, daring do and a huge dollop of care and an emphasis on the value of friendship too. Clever dialogue, confident female characters, wry humour and some seriously good acting healed my heart. And yes the outfits helped. I loved it all and was transfixed by Tom Burke’s Athos.

STRIKE

...which led me to Strike. I don’t do whodunnits and crime fiction as a rule is just not my thing, usually because the core cast is always too small and I miss the found-family dynamic and they often feel claustrophobic, plus the predictable focus on difficult but supposedly fascinating men in the lead can be dull. In some regards, Strike is no different but Tom Burke’s performance and more significantly Holiday Grainger’s skill in playing Robin and how she transforms the usual “gritty detective with attractive sidekick” dynamic on its head, is really superb. I’ve read the books now too - my first JKRs. Honestly, parts are overwritten and a little indulgent but elements are breathtaking and as she’s so involved in the series too it’s a tie up I became incredibly invested in and the actors on screen are the characters on the page for me too. One does not lose out to the other, which is often the case with dramatisations. I can’t wait for the next instalment.

THE LAST KINGDOM

#TeamUhtred #TeamUhtred #TeamUhtred that’s it, that’s all there is to say, although it’s not obviously. TLK has been a slow burn for me and I began it several times when it was first aired by the BBC. The early series felt small, focussed on a pretty hateful hero who I failed to connect with, but I loved Aethelflaed and her story with Erik and Uhtred’s growing maturity was intriguing too. And then Netflix came in and the show exploded! Better scripts, more than the same 3 locations, impressive costumes and set-piece battles with characters that grew and grew. I rewatched S3 in preparation for S4’s release which I binged in style in lockdown 1 and cried when it ended. Utterly brilliant and a cast of characters that came closest to replicating the joy of my first fandom experience with the outlaws of Robin of Sherwood. Uthred has become a leader, has had to reckon with his responsibilities and shows a tenderness as he’s aged that the young callous warrior lacked. But if it weren’t for his bunch of faithful arselings I wouldn’t be watching at all. Without Finan there is no TLK for me. He’s my favourite character to have emerged in years. It’s the humour, the humanity of him that makes me cheer for him every time - as well as the arms 😍 Long live TLK. Or a final season at least.

VIKINGS (*spoilers for S6b)

2020 ended another long standing favourite series that I’ve followed for years. Unlike The 100 I’m not as deeply invested in this saga but Vikings has kept me company for so long now that the show feels part of me. It’s certainly lost it’s way over time but my favourite characters still shone brightly and those we lost were sent off triumphantly. I’ll forever miss Ragnar and the show lost a lot of its appeal with his passing, but the homage paid to such a talisman of a character was always done well. Later series did feel repetitive and the drama between the Ragnarsson brothers diluted. But Ubbe - my love - stayed true and the ending for him and Hvitserk (I always felt so heart sick for him) both felt fitting. And Bjorn’s final climax was awe inspiring (I do wish the tomb had stayed closed though). I’d have absolutely loved more time to have been spent on Ubbe’s future adventures instead of the endless hours in barren wastelands and storm lashed ships, but what we got was good. As for Ivar... an utterly unforgettable character (performed superbly) who became human again was a journey to behold. I’m glad it went that way but honestly I lost touch with him with all the time spent on the Rus storyline that repeatedly ate its own tail. Getting back to Wessex brought the show full circle and I loved it for that. Farewell Vikings. I hope Ubbe and Torvi are still doing ok in their new Valhalla.