need to get this all out somehow, so - thoughts and general ramblings on the new eight-liv-helen audios! under the cut for spoiler purposes: 

so! general overview - this boxset was. so so good. i really enjoyed last month’s release as well, but this was on another level for me entirely and despite listening to most of it past midnight (i was busy from about 8am until 11.30 at night. tuesdays are just like that every week unfortunately) and so probably not being in the best state of... anything, really, for it, i genuinely enjoyed this set so much and am in all honesty going slightly mad not being able to talk about it to anyone irl. anyway

episode-by-episode thoughts:

here lies drax

- this was a very fun one! now i’ve listened to the full set it does feel a little out of place tonally (this was very much a comedy and the other two. weren’t), but it was definitely enjoyable and had a clever plot

- i did actually do my homework for this one and listened to “the trouble with drax” the other week in preparation! (it was the first time i’d listened to one of four’s audios, actually, which was an interesting experience.) i feel like having that context definitely helped understanding a lot of the references going on, but i do wonder if i’d gone into this cold i would’ve enjoyed it a little more because it did feel at some points like it was retreading “trouble”’s beats a bit. hmm

- i did enjoy it overall though (it was very very funny), and i did like the way it all eventually panned out with all the guest characters being drax except the one character actually credited as drax. definitely appealed to my sense of humour

- there was something so deeply funny to me about the entire funeral scene, but especially the part with eight, whose experience of it up to that point had been all the guests turning up late and one of them straight up shooting the corpse, turning to liv and helen and going “this is exactly how i want my funeral to go”. what is going on in his head <3

- also shoutout to “can you legally shoot a corpse?” i have been wanting to make an out of context clips compilation for this era for ages now and if i ever do get round to doing it that line is definitely going in there

- “i think i want to scream” helen being a mood once again. this is how i have felt for the past 5 weeks at least

the love vampires

- this is currently very closely tied with “albie’s angels” for my favourite episode of both this boxset and this era of standalone stories with the team so far. it’s SO GOOD

- while i do definitely like the more fun, adventure-based episodes, i feel like my real niche with dr who stories is ones that really dig into the characters and this is a great example of the latter category. i was optimistic for this one anyway because, from my limited experience with his big finish work, james kettle seems like a really good writer for character-based stories, but it really exceeded my expectations for it. the character work (especially for helen) was absolutely brilliant!

- CANON QUEER HELEN FINALLY!!!!!!!  🎉 🎉 🎉 🎉

- i listened to the bit where that was confirmed when i was in public and let me tell you it was an absolutely huge effort to not completely lose my shit. i’m fairly sure i was grinning like an idiot the whole way through though

- honestly this whole episode was just fantastic for helen content generally. i am biased because she’s one of my all-time favourite characters, but that 100% drove the whole thing up in my estimation

- hattie morahan’s performance in this (and the next episode) was absolutely brilliant, some of her best in dw imo

- “great. van helsing in space” i don’t particularly have anything to add here i just think this line was fun

- liv’s first love as revealed by this episode is called petko. i looked the name up and apparently it’s bulgarian, and all i’m saying is that this is definitely adding to my “kaldor and slavic languages theory” 😌

- also like. liv’s scene with her respective vampire was so sad??? like i just got this feeling of overwhelming loneliness from it, and... yeah. someone get that woman a hug

- LOTS of thoughts about the scene between eight and liv where he gets her to promise to kill him if things go wrong. it’s actually shorter than i thought it was (went back and relistened for the purposes of making this bullet point), but there is a Lot to unpack there and i think it does highlight some of the stuff that makes their dynamic so interesting. i just don’t see that same scene happening with many other doctor-companion dynamics and, well... many thoughts

- “we’ll go out together. blaze of glory.” undescribable emotions™

- cutting away from the character stuff for a brief moment to discuss a) the atmosphere. the whole vibe of this story was so well-done, including the sound design, it felt really claustrophobic and creepy in the best way, really effective. and b) i thought the becoming were neat. i just think that’s a super cool name for an alien race :)

- “i sometimes think i can be a bit too... buttoned-up... emotionally.” “no... i- i wouldn’t say that.” “why? it’s obviously true.” eight my friend you are not helping here At All <3

albie’s angels

- okay so i’ve somehow got into a mindset where every time a new audio with this tardis team comes out i am absolutely convinced that helen is going to die in it. i thought this was going to be the episode where it happens and let me tell you i am so relieved that i was wrong!!!

- (i still reckon she’s doomed by the narrative though. this is a line of thought that’s really enough for a post of its own so i won’t elaborate here, but yeah. i am still not convinced her ending is going to be a happy one)

- this episode did however utterly wreck me emotionally (affectionate)

- really enjoyed the intro scene! i just like them getting to be silly together, even if it wasn’t for long :’)

- “didn’t we do enough damage to this decade already? put it another way, didn’t it do enough damage to us?” yeah :/

- albie was absolutely lovely :’) he was so sweet and kind and had so much love to give?? he may only be in one episode but i’d die for him

- also interesting to note how genuinely similar he seemed to helen? like they obviously have fairly distinct and different personalities but there were a lot of like, small mannerisms and stuff that they shared and it just really added something to their dynamic. they actually felt like siblings, really makes me wish that dw would do sibling duos like this more often tbh

- “helen chenka” i am trying so hard to be normal about liv/helen and keep my expectations for what’ll happen with them in check and every day i am tested. what the fuck. 

- actually you know what this entire episode had a LOT of liv/helen moments??? like i kinda just assumed the whole thing was dead in the water after stranded but now... i’m having a lot of thoughts. maybe that big finish tweet from august or whenever it was was right

- the snowball fight scene. i will actually be thinking about this forever. 

- the revelation that albie had been a few miles away from helen at most the entire time she was still on earth but neither of them had known and got to see each other totally wrecked me ngl

- and also the fact that his arrest was so close in time to the events of helen’s first episode! before this i’d assumed it had happened when helen was still fairly young, but now thinking about how her grief for him would have been so new and raw during “the red lady”... god this is actually destroying me

- (given that “absent friends” probably takes place a maximum of about two weeks after “the red lady” as well, the implication there that helen basically loses her entire family in the space of a few months is heartbreaking)

- “what else did helen tell you?” “not much. i don’t know if she couldn’t or wouldn’t. but after that conversation...” “yes?” “that was pretty much it, she... shut down.” “that’s our helen.” “she means a lot to me, you know.” “to both of us.” this whole scene was a Lot in general, but the way that both liv and eight genuinely care about helen so much?? the way that they’re recognising and acknowledging the fact that she’s not okay and in a good place mentally and hasn’t been for a long time?? the bond this team have means so much to me istg

- this episode said the real villains are homophobia and capitalism and it was right

- i was not expecting the lesbian weeping angels at all but you know what? good for them. i hope they’re living their best lives now

- roy gill really just went and almost single-handedly gave helen one of her best arcs in the entire show and i respect him so much for that. i hope he comes back as a writer for this tardis team at some point because he just absolutely gets what they’re all about. 

- the tragedy of it all combined with the ray of light in that albie and bailey got to be happy together, and that helen got to see her brother one last time... it was such a bittersweet ending and i feel like it was absolutely perfect for the story and for this arc as a whole 

- song for helen broke me completely. i was sobbing at it in a dark room at 2.30 am and honestly i feel like that says everything. 

so yeah. overall really really loved these three episodes!!! genuinely looking forward to where they’re going to go next with these characters, i feel like there’s some real potential for amazing stuff down the line :)

kisses under the mistletoe and how they came to happen pretty please with a cherry on top? 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 thank you bethan!

"James, what are you doing?"

James practically jumped out of his skin as he turned to look at Remus. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Yes, desperately."

"I just thought the place needed a bit of decoration!"

Remus looked around at the common room and frowned. "You're hanging mistletoe outside the stairs to the boys dormitory."

"Your point?"

Remus shook his head in bemusement. "No point, just thought it was a bit weird, is all."

He heard James mutter something under his breath but didn't quite catch it.

"Why are you hanging mistletoe outside the boys dormitories?" Peter asked as he stepped through the portrait hole.

James threw his arms up in a fit of frustration. "Just... the place wasn't looking very Christmas-y and Gryffindor tower is throwing the Christmas party later!"

Remus looked over to the large Christmas tree in he corner of the room but refrained from pointing it out.

A party the night before the Christmas holidays began was a bit of an unspoken rule in Gryfindoor tower. The Prewett twins had started it, but once they had left the marauders had taken it upon themselves to keep it up.

Remus didn’t overly care for them, the common room was simply not big enough to comfortably hold all of Gryfindoor at the same time and it usually got too hot and too noisy for Remus’ liking.

He did, however, enjoy seeing his friends have fun. He was also quite partial to mulled wine he knew Marlene was planning to provide somehow.

“Hoping of catching a boy under the mistletoe or...” Lily asked as she entered the common room. James threw his arms up in frustration. “Screw all of you.”

At seven o’clock, Remus was placed in charge of casting the appropriate silencing charms and by half past seven the party was in full swing.

Marlene had indeed managed to provide mulled wine and Sirius had created a playlist which Remus had counted as having Elton John’s ‘step into Christmas’ on it three times already.

Lily, obviously feeling some qualm due to her head girl position, took on the role of making sure nobody under the age of sixteen was drinking alcohol because whilst most people were underage, a line had to be drawn somewhere.

“May I have this dance?”

Remus turned to see Sirius, clearly a little drunk, extending an arm. “You want to dance with me to Feliz Navidad?”

“Problem?”

Remus sighed and put down his drink. “Fine, whatever.” There were so many people jumping around already that he decided joining them wouldn’t make him too self conscious as presumably nobody would pay him much notice. 

What he had not expected was for Sirius to place his hands on Remus’ waist. “What’re you doing?” Remus shouted over the music.

“Dancing!” Sirius shouted back.

“You can’t slow dance to this song!”

“You can if you’re drunk enough. Lighten up Moony, it’s almost Christmas!”

Remus sighed. “You’re insane.” 

“I’m sure something slower will come on in a minute if you’d prefer that.” He held up a hand and as the song finished, listening to see what would play next. When ‘step into Christmas’ came on again, he whooped and placed his right hand on Remus’ shoulder blade. “Remus! I love this song!”

“I know, it’s come on four times now.”

Sirius, once again, failed to acknowledge that the song was far too quick to try and waltz to and took one of Remus’ hands, attempting to move them gracefully which was made difficult by the sea of people, the fact that he was drunk, and the fact that Remus couldn’t dance.

“Are you waltzing?” Remus turned his head to see Peter, drink in hand, watching them in amusement.

“Don’t ask,” Remus replied, flushing slightly. “His idea, obviously.”

Peter just shrugged and walked away to sit on the sofa. Remus looked around the room to see if anybody else was actually watching. He was sure they weren’t, but in that moment it felt like every eye on the room was on him.

“Moony?”Remus turned his face back to Sirius. “You’re worrying.”

“I’m not—”

“You are,” Sirius sing-songed. 

Remus rolled his eyes. “I’m fine, just... worried people are watching, you know?”

“So what if they are, hm?”

Remus opened and closed his mouth a few times. “I don’t... I don’t know?”

Sirius removed his hand from Remus’ shoulder blade but kept hold of his hand. “Come on, then.” Remus let himself be pulled out of the crowd and towards the dormitory stairs. “Less people here. Shall we?”

“This playlist really is not the appropriate tempo for—” He broke off as he heard the opening bars to Joni Mitchell’s ‘River’.

“Oh yes!” Sirius enthused. “I added this one for you! I know you love her.”

“My mum loves her, not me,” Remus corrected.

Sirius scoffed. “I think we’re good enough friends for me to know that’s bullshit.”

Remus gave him a half smile before letting himself be led in a waltz again. He couldn’t help but think it was an incredibly strange way to be spending a common room party, slow dancing to a Christmas playlist concealed by the wall of the dormitory stairway.

When the song ended and something upbeat and festive Remus didn’t recognise came on, Sirius kept them twirling and Remus finally voiced his thoughts. “Why aren’t you dancing with a girl, hm?”

Sirius stopped and stood upright, suddenly appearing far more sober. “Would you rather I was?”

“I didn’t say that, I just asked why you weren’t.”

“Because it’s a Gryffindor party and out of the four girls in our year, Lily is clearly about four seconds away from agreeing to go out with James, Dorcas and Marlene appear to be dancing together, I’m pretty sure Mary has fallen asleep on the sofa, and despite what people may think maybe I don’t want to dance with a girl.”

He suddenly straightened even further, apparently recognising what he’d said, and let go of Remus entirely. “Hey,” Remus said softly. “It’s s okay.”

Sirius held eye contact with him and Remus could practically see the way his head was working around his thoughts. “I didn’t— What if isn’t?”

Remus had no idea what he meant by that, and so he just shrugged and repeated himself. “It’s okay.”

Sirius opened his mouth to reply but his eyes suddenly darted towards the ceiling. “Since when has that been here?” he asked, and Remus followed his eye-line before remembering.

“James was hanging it up earlier. Im not sure why.”

“Remus, I didn’t know that. I didn’t— that isn’t why I took you over here I could see you were getting anxious and I thought, oh, this will be out of eyeshot and—”

“Sirius,” he laughed. “It’s okay. I didn’t think that.”

“You’d have every right to,” he muttered, “I just told you I’d rather dance with you than a girl and then pointed out mistletoe it’s coming on a bit fucking strong if you ask me.”

“Well…” Remus started, “actually, how drunk are you right now?”

“Honestly, not very…”

“Okay.” Remus ran his hands through his hair and took a deep breath. “I’d rather dance with you too, then. Than a girl, I mean.”

Sirius raised an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Remus lifted his eyes to the ceiling and then back to Sirius. “Hey, we don’t actually have to… you know.”

“And refuse Christmas tradition on the day before the Christmas holidays?”

Remus felt his heart speed up a little. “Well, you raise a good point.”

Sirius placed a hand on his face, giving him time to change his mind. When he didn’t, he closed the gap between their lips and kissed him, and Remus had never been so thankful for James Potter’s weird decoration ideas.

“Ohhhh,” Lily said under her breath. “Is that why you put mistletoe there? You knew they’d go up to the dormitory together?”

James scoffed, “Obviously.”

Adopted

Adopted

Ms. Mendeleiev was unwell, which meant the class had a substitute teaching them. They covered genetics, despite the class being physics. The substitute was sat behind the desk, lazily pointing around the board with a laser pointer.

“So, to recap, everyone in this room shares at least one trait with their parents or a family member.” Said the Sub, as Marinette frowned, “If you don’t, then I suggest you look at the local milkmen.”

“Sir,” Said Marinette, raising her hand, “I don’t resemble any of my family members and-”

“Then you’re adopted.” The Sub cut her off, making Marinette sit back, “If that’s everything, then class dismissed.”

Everyone was in a rush to get out of the room, Marinette trailing behind at the back of the group, her mind going over what the Sub said.

A

Marinette idly pushed her food around her plate, her mind still on what the teacher had said, her parent shared a look.

“Sweetheart, is everything alright?” Asked her mother, making Marinette stop and look up.

“Y-yeah, everything’s fine.” Lied Marinette, her parents silently calling her bluff, “Ugh, fine, we were learning about genetics in class and the teachers said that we all share at least one trait we have with family members,” Tom and Sabine shared a worried look, “and when I said I didn’t share any with my family members, he said that I was adopted, which is crazy, right?”

Marinette let out a nervus laugh, as both her parent looked uncomfortable, her father rubbed his eyes, while her mother sighed, “Marinette, we really didn’t want you to find out like this.”

“W-what?” Stuttered Marinette, her eyes wide and her body slowly going numb.

“Shortly after your father and I married, we got into an accident,” Said Sabine, grasping one of Marinette’s hands, “the result was that we weren’t able to have children.”

Marinette trembled, her mind swirling with what her parents told her.

“The news destroyed us,” Said Tom, “it nearly ended our marriage.”

“Then, we saw you,” Continued Sabine, “we saw you with one of the nurses at the orphanage and you were screaming your little head off, for some reason the nurse passed you off to us and you just stopped. I’ll always remember that moment, when you stopped crying and just stared up at us.”

Marinette looked at her mother, her adoptive mother, and asked “D-did they say who my birth parents were?”

“They didn’t know who your birth father was, but,” Tom scowled, clearly angry about something, “they knew who your birth mother was, and she wasn’t a good character.”

“What do you mean?” Asked Marinette, looking up at him.

“Marinette, when we adopted you, you didn’t have a name,” Said Sabine, looking in Marinette’s eyes, “your… mother was trying to sell you, saying your father was a rich man from America.”

“Why would she try to sell me?” Questioned Marinette, making both Tom and Sabine stiffen.

“Marinette,” Said Sabine, slowly, “She was trying to sell you for drug money.”

A

Marinette didn’t sleep that night, deciding to go on patrol, in an attempt to clear her head. It didn’t work. Marinette stood on the school steps, unsure if she should go in, a hand on her shoulder jerked her from her thoughts.

Adrien looked at her worriedly, trying to gage her emotions.

“Marinette,” Asked Adrien, slowly, “are you okay?”

Marinette nodded, Adrien frowned, quickly seeing through the fake smile the girl had given him.

“Are you sure?” Prompted Adrien, making Marinette’s shoulders slump.

“You know what the teacher said yesterday,” Said Marinette, hugging herself, “about me being adopted?”

Adrien nodded, “If you’re worried that you’re adopted, I’m sure your parents prove the teacher wrong.”

“Adrien,” Said Marinette, looking at the ground, “they told me that I am adopted.”

Adrien stared at Marinette, as she shivered, “They told me that my mother, my birth mother, tried to sell me for drug money, and that my father was some high flying American that stayed for a one-night stand and then jetted off for somewhere else.”

“D-do you want a hug?” Asked Adrien, making Marinette tearfully nod.

“Why?” Sobbed Marinette, into Adrien’s shoulder, “Why didn’t they want me?”

A – 12 Years Later

Damien scowled at the people at the party, Grayson had wandered off to talk to some random person, Todd was looking for something to shoot, Drake and Brown were busy introducing themselves to random strangers and his father was speaking to the host.

“I can’t thank you enough,” Said the host, Adrien, to Bruce, “after everything my father did, your contribution and assistance in this really helps all of his victims.”

“It’s the least I could do,” Said Bruce, taking a champagne glass from a waiter, “given how the Justice League didn’t take the information seriously, we thought it’d be best if we helped with the healing of the city.”

Adrien smiled and nodded, just as a little, blonde-haired girl toddled up to him. She tugged on Adrien’s trouser leg twice, making the man scoop her up in his arms.

“Emma!” Said a woman with dark hair, walking towards Adrien and the little girl, Emma, “Emma, I haven’t finished cleaning you up.”

“Mari, what happened?” Asked Adrien, making the woman, Mari, look at him.

Bruce’s breath caught in his throat, this woman, Mari, looked like his late mother, Martha Wayne.

“She spilt her juice down her front,” Said Mari, gently prying the girl from Adrien’s arms, “I managed to get it off her and to get her changed, however, she ran off before I could finish.”

“What needs doing?” Asked Adrien, as Marinette fixed a little flower to Emma’s front.

“That.” Said Mari, looking at Emma and Adrien.

“Papa, Maman told big meanie off.” Said Emma, getting a chuckle from Adrien.

“Well, that’s what happens when someone misbehaves.” Said Adrien, as Emma took a cuddly toy from her mother.

Marinette turned her eyes on Bruce and stuck out her hand, “Marinette Agreste, Founder, and owner, of MDC Designs.”

“Bruce Wayne,” Said Bruce, shaking her hand, “Owner and director of Wayne Enterprises.”

Marinette smiled, “Ah, another orphan.”

Bruce nodded, “True, but I was under the impression that your parents are still alive.”

“My adoptive parents are,” Corrected Marinette, as Adrien placed an arm around her, “I never knew my birth parents and the one time I spoke to my birth mother ended in a screaming match and a restraining order.”

Bruce winced, one of the women he’d met was like that, taking a gamble, Bruce removed his phone from his pocket, and pulled up a picture of the woman who’d turned up a few years ago and turned the screen to face Marinette, “Is that her?”

Marinette froze and nodded.

“Her name’s Bethan,” Said Bruce, putting the phone away, “I met her about 28 years ago.”

Marinette stiffened, before she turned to face Adrien, “I think it’s time for Emma to go to bed, I might do the same.”

Adrien nodded, as he passed a half-awake Emma over to Marinette. The strides Marinette took when she left the men long and fast.

Damien had been listening in on them and discreetly followed the mother and her daughter, he saw her enter the girls’ room and leaving it half-an-hour later, before she headed into another room, either her and her husband’s bedroom or a study.

Damien could hear the mother talking to someone, before a portal opened up beneath him and he fell onto a soft, plush chair, while the mother glared at him.

“I thought it was made clear, that guests are not allowed upstairs.” Said the mother, a pair of reading glasses in her hand and a massive tome in front of her.

“I thought you were hiding something.” Said Damien, scowling.

“Whether I’m hiding something or not is none of your business,” Said the mother, coldly, “what is your business is entertaining yourself downstairs, where you’re supposed to be.”

Damien felt she was like a wolf when her pups were threatened, “Why did you leave when my father told you about his stalker?”

The mother glared at him, before Damien suddenly found himself back at the party, behind his father.

“Father, the host’s wife is using magic.” Said Damien, making Bruce turn and look at him.

A small, red creature was floating in front of his father.

“I know.” Said Bruce, his voice strained, “I also know something that would change this, significantly.”

“What?” Asked Damien, as Bruce ran a hand down his face.

“Damien,” Said Bruce, looking at his son, “She’s your older sister.”

A

“Recognised: Batman: 02.” Came the computerised voice from the Zeta tube, as Batman stalked onto the Watch Tower.

Hal was on monitor duty, not trusting Lagoon Boy after his screw up with the Miraculous and Paris situation.

“Hey, Bruce.” Greeted Hal, not looking away from the monitors.

“I have a daughter.” Said Bruce, in response.

“Yeah, we all know about Stephanie and Cassandra.” Said Hal, as Batman sighed.

“Lantern,” Said Batman, making the other man turn, “I have a daughter who was living in Paris, that I didn’t even know about.”

Lantern was silent, before he uttered the immortal words of “Holy shit.”

A

Marinette sifted through paperwork on her desk, Adrien not too far away as he graded his student’s physics homework. The office door opened, as Alya let Emma into the room, the toddler going directly to Marinette and letting herself on her mother’s lap.

“I heard that one of the guests last night wanted an DNA test.” Said Alya, looking at Marinette.

“Yes, the director of Wayne Enterprises wanted several pieces of DNA from me, from hairs to body fluids.” Snarked Marinette, leaning back in her chair.

“Bruce Wayne,” Said Alya, frowning, “but why now?”

“Because he’s never met me before?” Said Marinette, leaning back in her chair.

“I can see the headlines now,” Said Alya, leaning against Marinette’s desk, “’Top Fashion Designer MDC Bruce Wayne’s Long-Lost Daughter.’”

“I hope not.” Laughed Marinette, getting to her feet, “We need to go outside, we’ve been cooped up in here all day and, quite frankly, I could use the fresh air.”

“That’s an excellent idea, Marinette.” Said Tikki, making everyone jump.

“For fucks sake, Tikki,” Gasped Marinette, as Emma looked up at her, “don’t do that!”

“What does ‘fuck’ mean?” Asked Emma, making everyone in the room go still.

“It’s a bad word and Maman is bad for using it.” Said Marinette, kneeling in front of Emma.

“Hmm.” Said Emma, frowning, “Maman, you’re told off.”

Emma skipped away, leaving Marinette crouching next to her desk.

“Did your daughter just say that you were told off?” Asked Alya, as Marinette groaned, “Anyway, where has Tikki been all week?”

“She’s been speaking to the Wayne’s on my behalf.” Said Marinette, making Adrien and Alya stop cold.

“You revealed your identity to them?” Demanded Adrien, rushing to catch up with his wife.

“I figured out that the Wayne’s are Gotham’s Heroes and, frankly, I prefer this to be on even footing where Batman is concerned.” Responded Marinette, scooping Emma up off the ground.

“Bruce Wayne’s Batman?” Asked Adrien, making Marinette smile.

“I had my suspicions, especially since Batman arrived to help us shortly after Bruce Wayne got settled into his hotel.” Said Marinette, looking at the flowers, “Besides, I had Max helping me figure it all out.”

“Didn’t you yell at him last week because your tropical fruit, carrot, popcorn and almond expresso was too hot.” Asked Adrien, making Alya gasp.

“Marinette, have you been having cravings?” Asked Alya, making Marinette freeze.

After a moment, Marinette nodded, getting a squeal from Alya and a gasp from Adrien.

“You’re pregnant?” Asked Adrien, his wife nodding.

A split second later, Adrien had Marinette in his arms and was laughing loudly, “That’s wonderful!”

“Ooh,” Said Alya, leaning back and smirking, “I can just imagine the fights those two will get into for our attention.”

Both Marinette and Adrien glared at Alya, while Emma looked at her parents, “I’m gonna be a big sister?”

Marinette nodded, smiling. Emma scowled and folded her arms, “Now I’m gonna have to share Maman and Papa.”

Marinette and Adrien laughed.

A

Bruce fidgeted as he waited to hear back from the scientist. Diana frowned, before getting up and walking over to him.

“It’s alright to be nervous,” Said Diana, sitting next to him, “I’ll admit, it was a shock to see Tikki again, but if she’s certain about her holder being your daughter, I see no reason to doubt her.”

“I don��t doubt she’s my daughter, Diana” Said Bruce, leaning forwards, “She figured out my identity shortly after I arrived.”

“She has your brains.” Said Diana, as Bruce’s shoulders slumped.

“When I attempted to broach the topic, she just shut down.” Said Bruce, staring at his hands, “After twenty-eight years of not hearing or seeing me, probably thinking that she was unwanted or wasn’t good enough.”

“She still scared the living shit out of me.” Grumbled Damien, still fuming over the portal in the floor trick.”

Diana looked over at Damien, the boy had come a long way from the weapon the League had made him. He was now a normal, well, as normal as Damien can get, teenager. Damien still had trouble getting over the fact he had a sister a decade older than him.

“Since she’s older than Grayson,” Said Damien, glaring at the ceiling, “Does that mean she’ll inherit the company and everything?”

“No, from what Tikki told us,” Said Diana, getting Damien to look at her, “She opted to dissolve Gabriel Agreste’s assets and connections, she then either sold off the remaining stocks or gave them to charities. I know the Thomas and Martha Wayne Foundation is one of the charities that has a constant supply of money being donated into it.”

“Probably because she thought she was an orphan.” Said Damien, going back to glaring at the ceiling.

“I’m a grandfather.” Said Bruce, after a moments silence.

Damien stopped glaring at the ceiling and gave his father a quizzical look, “You know, now that you mention it, you do look kinda old.”

Bruce glared, before throwing a pillow at Damien.

A

Marinette watched Emma playing with her dolls when Bruce and Damien sat down in front of her.

“I can’t stay long.” Said Marinette, looking at them.

“Why, because you hate us and don’t want anything to do with us?” Demanded Damien, making Marinette slowly turn and look at him.

“No, Emma has a doctor’s appointment.” Said Marinette, getting a frown Bruce and Damien.

“Ah.” Said Damien, getting a short glare from Marinette.

“Ah, indeed.” Said Marinette, as Emma toddled up to her.

“Maman, lookee.” Said Emma, holding something out for her mother to take.

Marinette looked at the frog her daughter dropped into her hands, before it hopped off.

“No! Bad Froggie! Come back!” Emma went to chase after it, only to trip and fall flat on her face.

Within moments, Marinette was cradling her wailing daughter, and starting to calm her down. Damien and Bruce watched Marinette, eventually, Emma’s wails died down into sniffles and the odd hiccup. Marinette held Emma, while the toddler took to sucking her thumb and cuddling up against her mother.

“We’ll have to meet up another time,” Sighed Marinette, picking her bag up, as Emma tightened her grip on her mother’s coat, “I think this little one needs to be seen to before anything else.”

Marinette gave a short whistle, and a dog bounded over towards her. Bruce watched his daughter and grandchild walk away. Damien watched something he’d never experienced.

A

Emma snored quietly, while Marinette watched from the doorway, her thumb going into her mouth as she slept. A plush toy of Chat Noir was held tightly in her arms.

“What’s wrong?” Asked Adrien, approaching Marinette with a cup of tea.

“All this time, I thought both my parents were mindless drug addicts who only care about themselves and having the fear that I’d turn out like them,” Said Marinette, taking the cup, “And in the past week, I’ve found that not only is my father alive, but he’s the biggest playboy in the world and able to buy literally anywhere and not have a dent made in his bank.”

Adrien was silent, before wrapping and arm around Marinette’s shoulders, “You know, when I lost my mother and my father started to become closed off to everything, I was terrified of waking up and finding myself like him. Then, you came along, as did Nino, Alya and everyone else. Your parents don’t define you, only you and who you are as a person can do that.”

Marinette hummed and continued to watch Emma.

“Are you going to talk to them tomorrow?” Asked Adrien, making Marinette look at him.

“I was thinking of inviting them to dinner, let them meet Maman and Papa.” Said Marinette, before downing the drink and leading Adrien to their bedroom, “But, frankly, it’s been a stressful day, for both of us, it seems.”

Adrien grinned and swept Marinette into his arms.

A

Damien felt like an intruder, as he watched Mr. Dupain and Mrs. Cheng playing with Emma, while Marinette, his sister, quietly quizzed Greyson on something to do with the circus. Agreste was ferrying plates of food from the kitchen to the table, a red husky and a black cat following him around. Bruce stared at his granddaughter, it felt odd for him to call the toddler that, he felt Dick sit next to him.

“Well, that was intense.” Said Dick, leaning back in the chair.

“She’s not much older than you.” Said Bruce, making Dick look at him.

“She’s what?” Asked Dick, frowning.

“She’s twenty-eight,” Continued Bruce, his arms folded, “and she’s practically built an empire.”

“That empire,” Said Marinette, looking at the two, “was built on the crumbling remains of Gabriel’s own company, I just took the reins, rebranded it and removed all trace of him as a final middle finger to him.”

Bruce and Dick stared at her, “The room’s built like an echo chamber, really helps when looking for a certain rascal.”

Emma squealed as Sabine tickled her. A loud thud emanated from the upstairs, making Marinette frown.

“I’ll be right back.” Said Marinette, disappearing up the stairs.

There was a silence.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?!” Yelled Marinette, making everyone jump. Marinette returned with a Vietnamese man and a young woman with pick hair, “These morons though it’d be a good idea to climb up the side of the house and in through the window.”

“The door was locked.” Said the man, making the woman hit him.

“Kim didn’t want to use the bell.” Said the woman, folding her arms.

“The last time I was here, there was a power cut that almost killed Adrien’s mum!” Said the man, Kim, raising his arms above his head.

Marinette gave a sharp whistle, making them flinch, “Kim, ringing the doorbell isn’t going to cause a power cut, Alix, you knew this and still decided to climb up the side of the house.”

The woman, Alix, winced, before adopting a hurt look.

“Don’t even try the wounded rabbit act with me.” Said Marinette, pointing at Alix, “I trust Kim to be the idiotic one out of the two of you, I really don’t need you deciding the prove me wrong.”

Both mumbled out a sorry and looking at the floor.

Emma stomped, more toddled, up to the two adults, “You’re very told off!”

There was a snort, before Mr. Dupain fell over, laughing.

Marinette looked at her daughter, chubby cheeks and pigtails, trying to look intimidating. Scooping the toddler into her arms and gently bouncing her, “I think someone needs a nap.”

“Nuh-uh,” Yawned Emma, rubbing her eyes, “Not sleepy.”

Marinette just shushed her and took Emma back up to her room. Kim and Alix awkwardly shuffled their feet, before Adrien cleared his throat and jerked his head into the kitchen.

“This is a big house.” Said Dick, looking around the dining room, “Not as big as Wayne Manor, but still big.”

“It’s not as big as Gabriel Agreste’s house,” Said Sabine, looking at him, “but, Adrien gave the house to the Heroes of Paris as a base of operations.”

“Considering what he did to it, I’m not surprised.” Said Tom, standing up, “He made a secret bunker underneath it and in the attic.”

“Clearly, something only someone with some serious issues would do.” Said Sabine, frowning, while Bruce and Dick shared a worried look.

“Foods ready.” Said Adrien, as he, Alix and Kim ferried the food in from the kitchen.

A

Marinette had gone to bed directly after dinner, saying she had a headache, Damien quietly followed her, believing she was still hiding something. Damien was disappointed when she got changed and actually went to bed.

“What’cha doin’?” Asked a toddler’s voice, making Damien jump.

Behind him, stood the toddler that his sister, it felt weird calling Agreste that, had been carrying around in the majority of instances he’d seen her.

“You’re not supposed to be here.” Said Emma, a blanket and toy trailing behind her.

“That’s none of your business.” Snapped Damien, making Emma take a deep breath.

Panicking, Damien grabbed the toddler and held her mouth shut, “Your family is hiding something, and I’m going to find out what.”

Emma suddenly looked scared, making Damien smirk, “You know what it is, don’t you?”

“Put. Her. Down. Now.” Came Marinette’s voice, cold and sharp.

Damien froze, before slowly turning and facing Marinette. The dog from before had her teeth bared and a snarling at Damien. Damien dropped Emma onto the floor, with Marinette quickly scooping her up and glaring at Damien, non-verbally instructed him to follow her.

She found Adrien, Kim, Alix and her parents speaking with Bruce and his crowd.

“You need to leave. Now.” Said Marinette, as she entered the room.

Bruce opened his mouth to asked why, before he spotted red marks on Emma’s face and Damien trailing behind Marinette.

“What did he do?” Asked Bruce, already feeling that any progress that had been made was lost.

“I just caught him manhandling my daughter.” Snapped Marinette, as Damien just scowled, “If the rest of you are like him, then I don’t want any of you around.”

“Mrs. Agreste,” Said Dick, standing up, “I can assure you, none of us are like Damien, we actually thought he’d been making progress.”

Damien just stood by the door, scowling at the ground.

“Well, Jason can be a bit rough around the edges, but that’s because he almost died.” Said Dick, making Marinette’s eyes fall on Jason.

“I’ll take that as an explanation as to why he has a hunting knife stuffed in his boot.” Said Marinette, making Jason take his foot off the table.

“It seems that I need to speak with Damien,” Said Bruce, standing up, “perhaps I can find out what he was thinking.”

Marinette frowned, before nodding, “In all honesty, he’s the only one I keep having a problem with.”

Bruce gave a strained smile, before walking past her and grabbing Damien’s arm and pulling him into another room.

“I’m going to grab a dressing gown,” Said Marinette, handing Emma over to Adrien, “and some pain killers.”

In the other room, Bruce pulled out a chair and sat Damien down, “What the hell were you thinking?”

“She’s hiding something!” Protested Damien, making Bruce groan, “Don’t tell me I’m being paranoid, she’s clearly moved things from their designated places before we arrived!”

“Of course, she’s hiding things, Damien,” Said Bruce, looking at his son, “do you remember what Diana called her?”

“The Guardian on the Miraculous.” Said Damien, before a look of realisation appeared on his face, “Oh. Shit.”

“If that’s why you’re creeping about the place, you should’ve just asked.” Said Marinette, making both Bruce and Damien jump.

“How do you do that?” Demanded Damien, “First your daughter does it and now you!”

Marinette froze, before waving her hand, making a window open into the other room.

“What do you mean, Emma’s done it?” Asked Marinette, zeroing in on Damien.

“Just before you told me to drop her, she appeared out of nowhere.” Said Damien, Marinette’s frown deepening.

“Emma isn’t tall enough to open her bedroom door, and I made sure to have all the Kwami accounted for tonight.” Said Marinette, just as Emma appeared in the room, giggling.

“Oh, fuck.” Swore Marinette, making Emma frown and toddle over.

“Naughty word.” Said Emma, pointing at a jar on the side.

Marinette sighed, before pulling a couple of euros out of her pocket and depositing them in the jar. Emma nodded, satisfied, before toddling over to Damien, “Naughty.” Emma pointed to the jar again, getting a snort from Bruce.

Damien looked at his father and sister, before sighing and pulling a roll of euro bills from his pocket and dropped it into the jar.

Emma beamed up at him, before running over to her mother. Marinette sighed, before picking her up and walking back to the rest of the group.

A

Clark looked at the newspaper, nearly spitting his coffee over the front of it.

MDC IS A WAYNE!

Clark groaned and hoped Bruce hadn’t adopted a grown woman. Connor looked up from his book.

“Is everything okay, Kal?” Asked Connor, frowning as M’Gann, Garfield and Bart read the headline.

“Bruce has adopted a grown woman.” Said Clark, starting to stand up.

“Actually,” Said Bart, looking up at him, “Marinette is Batman’s biological daughter.”

People from several blocks away heard the loud what coming from Clark’s apartment.

“Smallville, if one of your super friends has another kid, you don’t need to act surprised by it.” Said a groggy Lois, rubbing her eyes.

A

Ra’s Al Ghul glared at the headline; he knew of the girl. He also knew of the Great Guardians; the League had capitalised on the power vacuum that had been left in their absence. He let out a sharp sigh through his nose and started reading.

A

Marinette looked around the Watchtower, frowning at the sight of the Justice League.

“I’m not even going to start on how impractical some of your costumes are.” Said Marinette, before looking at the trees, “How’d you get the birds up here?”

“You know, we still have no clue.” Said Flash, as a bird landed on Marinette’s head.

Hello I finished my July playlist a week ago but when I went to post it tumblr was down, and then I just plumb forgot! Anyway, here it is - properly sequenced this time for a very special listening experience that seamlessly delivers you from disco heaven to black metal hell and everything in between. Also I’m thinking of making these playlists a tinyletter that people can subscribe to that comes out on an actual schedule, rather than me posting them at a random time weeks after they’re finished. Is that something you’d be interested in? Who knows. Check back next month! Anyway, here goes:

listen here

Stay Away From Me - The Sylvers: You know when you’re listening to a song and the sample is super hot but the rest is just ok, so you think to yourself well why don’t I just listen to the original instead? That’s what happened to me with Final Form by Sampa The Great. That song is good but it’s also kind of not doing enough to convince me not to just listen to this super hit by The Sylvers instead. A fun thing with this song is to try to count how many instruments you can hear because it is surprisingly densely arranged for some reason. There’s a xylophone back there going off if you listen.

Sizzlin’ Hot - Paradise: The same thing happened with this song and Sizzlin’ by Daphni. I think they were going for an Armand Van Helden style distillation of the pure essence of the song, sampling the hookiest part and speeding it up and thickening up all the percussion and all that, which can work amazingly but for me it just made me want to hear the original and so I have been all month. What’s so good about being alive now is that in most cases it’s just as easy to access music from 2019 as it is to access music from 1981 where an original copy is apparently going for $1000 on discogs. Every day I thank god for inventing mp3s and putting them on the ark.

Manaos (Canzone) - Fabio Frizzi and Crossbow: I forget how I came across this, I was going through random Fabio Frizzi soundtracks for some reason. I just love the concept of a disco song about escaping from vicious assailants. Funkily singing ‘God help us, if they catch us we all are gonna die.’ as spears fly past you.

Holding On - Julio Bashmore: I think this is one of my favourite pieces of sampling ever. The way the vocals in the background are cut they don’t even sound like vocals. They just a strange contextless textural sound that works so well before eventually revealing itself as vocals in the run before the drop. It’s just so good.

Weight Watchers - Parallel Dance Ensemble: First of all I love this disgusting bass sound. It sounds like two different indistinct bass lines playing at the same time and they both drowned. I’m also mounting a change.org petition to bring back this kind of extremely naff Tone Loc flow, it rocks.

Dance - ESG: I found this incredible band while I was looking for the rapper ESG and I’m so glad I did. Their song UFO is one of those songs that’s been sampled so many times you think of it as more of a sound effect than a song, like it comes preloaded on a drum machine everyone has or something, but it’s also a good template for ESG’s sound. Every ESG song I’ve heard so far goes like this: a straightforward beat that doesn’t change for the whole song, a functional bassline that doesn’t change for the whole song, and good old fashioned simple lyrics about dancing and having a good time that sound more like schoolyard clapping games than anything. It doesn’t sound like much but over the course of an album it adds up to this incredible sort of hypnotic post-punk funk that I cannot get enough of. It sounds like kids who have 1 idea making a whole album out of it because that’s exactly what it is and it’s great!

Crave You - Flight Facilities: I love how elementally simple this song is. The vocals are hypnotising enough so everything else just quietly supports it. The only part that stands out is the thick bass synth halfway through which makes the short sax solo at the and all the sweeter, a tiny little cherry on top.

You - Delta 5: Get a load of this band bio: “Initially inspired by the success of local heroes The Mekons and Gang Of Four, Leeds, England’s Delta 5 later emerged as one of the key figures of the feminist new wave. Formed in 1979 by vocalist/guitarist Julz Sale, fretless bassist Ros Allen and bassist Bethan Peters.” Just going to gloss over them having TWO bass players before they even have a drummer?? Absolutely amazing. I love this song because it’s such a specific, targeted fury. Imagine being the loser at your girlfriend’s gig when she launched into this one for the first time. ‘who’s got homebrew with lots of sediment?’ oh fuck that’s me ‘who took me to the Windham for a big night out?’ oh fuck that’s me ‘I found out about you’ oh FUCK

Siren - Gong Gong Gong: I love the way the bass works in this, just looping and layering different variations of this noisy, stationary riff on top of itself - steadfastly staying in the exact same place the whole song and growing in power the whole time as it sits in its stubbornness.

Changes - Antonio Williams and Kerry McCoy: This came up on my Discover Weekly and I completely fell in love with it, then I realised it’s Antwan and Kerry McCoy from Deafheaven which is extremely intriguing collaboration and fell in love even more. The vocals are so good. The pure broken-hearted anguish, and the super blunt delivery that progresses to straight up yelling by the end of it combined with the Radio Dept type instrumentation is just so powerful. This feels like it’s a song that could really be a life-changing piece of catharsis for everyone in a 5k radius done live.

Fuck A War - Geto Boys: Absolutely in love with the conceit of this song: rapping a whole song down the line to the army drafter. The incredible part being of course that Bushwick Bill would be able to dodge any draft easily, being as he was both a dwarf and blind in one eye.

God Make Me Funky - The Headhunters: I found a lot of great songs going through the samples list for We Can’t Be Stopped by Geto Boys and this is one of them. I have so much love for any song that takes its time like this: nearly two minutes to set the scene and somehow taking deadly seriously the very funny lyrical idea of desperately praying to god to PLEASE make you funky.  The way this song escalates is also amazing, moving from a hot groove that sits in place to a full-on saxophone meltdown that feels like god placing his finger on your forehead and saying ‘so you want to be funky, do you?’ in a scary voice.

Use Me - Bill Withers: Fortunately and unfortunately, because of how this song was in Anchorman and because I’ve seen Anchorman one million times I can’t listen to it without hearing the noise Ron Burgundy makes when he sees Veronica in the first few seconds. Anyway, this song is so horny. The part where he has to explain to his bro how good this shit is? Doing all kinds of weird dom shit like ‘getting him in a crowd of high class people and then acting real rude to him?’ Weird. And the escalation into the claps at BABY! is amazing, he’s just going off powered by horniness and god bless him for it.

America! I’m For The Birds - Nicolas Jaar: Unbelievably, the deluxe edition of Sirens is possibly superior to the original. It’s a whole new tracklist, new songs interspersed throughout rather than the usual ‘three new songs at the end’ and it really gives it a whole new feel. This song is my favourite of the new ones and it’s a song I had in my head for a solid week. A perfect song to sing to yourself because the lyrics are so indistinct that you just end up mumbling pleasantly exactly like he is.

Cable Guy - Tierra Whack: I’m finally catching up on Tierra Whack and everyone’s right: she rocks. The sheer restraint in these songs is amazing, they just get in and out with only the good parts and no bullshit. It reminds me a lot of To The Innocent by Thingy which is one of my favourite albums for the same reason - the economy of the songwriting just serves to amplify the feeling of it. They both have this total irreverence in the lyricism where the songs are kind of about nothing but they’re so short and heartfelt that you dig for the feeling underneath it.

No Drug Like Me - Carly Rae Jepsen: I’ve previously written that what I love the most about the Carly Rae Jepsen is how horny it is and I’d like to double down on that sentiment here. I love how slow this song is, it’s the perfect tempo between danceable and ‘fucking’.

Con Calma (Remix) - Daddy Yankee, Katy Perry and Snow: I’ve been on a european holiday for most of this month and I would like to report that across Spain, Portugal, Czech Republic, France and Germany this is the absolute song of the summer. It is completely inescapable and personally I can’t get enough. Informer is one of the greatest and strangest one hit wonders of all time (it’s also canada’s highest selling reggae song of all time and Snow is thusly named because he’s white) and I’m psyched to hear it reworked by Daddy Yankee like this. Katy Perry being on the crossover attempt remix isn’t a good sign for her new album but she kills it so maybe that’s all that matters.

Chase The Devil - Max Romeo and The Upsetters: Here’s the other half of my short lived dub phase from the end of last month. This is a good example also of how completely beguiling lyrics can still be so effective. I have no idea what he means by putting on an iron shirt but it rhymes and he’s saying it with conviction so I’m nodding!

Glass - Bat For Lashes: The new Bat For Lashes songs have got me revisiting Two Suns which is an all time great five star album and this is my favourite song from it. Maybe the most powerful opening track of all time, it does as much worldbuilding as most fantasy novels do in 1000 pages. In fact almost every line in this is a viable fantasy novel title. A Thousand Crystal Towers. The Hand Of The Watchmen. A Knight In Crystal Armour. A Cape Of Rainbow. The way she sings ‘to be made of glass’ is.. incredible. I love Natasha Khan and I cannot wait to see what she does next.

Unsquare Dance - Paddy Milner: In searching spotify for other interpretations of Unsquare Dance after getting obsessed with it last month I came across this absolutely bonkers version. It’s maniacal, it feels like you would be physically and mentally drained by the end playing it because I am just listening to it. Need a little lie down.

Gimme Some Skin, My Friend - The Andrews Sisters: My girlfriend has turned me onto The Andrews Sisters lesser known hits recently and this is the best one: a song from when high fives were a novelty that those wacky blacks over in Harlem town were inventing. Extremely odd but an undeniable banger. The thing about The Andrews Sisters is one of them was an absolute force of nature as a performer and the other two were complete wet blankets and it’s kind of funny they were together as a group for their whole career because anyone with eyes can see where the real star is. The way she sings ‘baby’ at 1:25, and that whole run really, is absolutely amazing and so much better than this extremely dumb song deserves.

Kids On The Run - The Tallest Man On Earth: The piano sound alone in this is just so beautiful. This song could be about anything at all and it would still make me cry, and luckily for me: it basically is!

King Of Spain - The Tallest Man On Earth: Good song I had in my head the whole time I was in Spain. It’s incredible that his voice is so good. It feels like if it was even the tiniest bit different, slightly rougher or tinnier he would be completely hilariously unlistenable but instead he’s amazing. Plus the fact that he leans into it with the purposefully lo-fi trebly production is just so confident you can’t help but love it.

Romeo And Juliet - The Indigo Girls: A great cover I wasn’t aware of before that I heard in this great documentary Wildwood I was watching https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOWxnh012J0. The way she absolutely flies off the handle and nearly tears the song down around her near the last chorus is pure power and I love people who can do that in an acoustic song without it feeling overblown, just getting totally swept up in it and taking everyone along with you.

On The Bus Mall - The Decemberists: Definitely the number one song about gay teenage prostitutes who love each other and are optimistic against the odds.  

White Fire - Angel Olsen: This song feels like a piece of dark magic. It feels like a 4am moment of clarity, speaking everything true in a five minute monotone and then instantly falling back to sleep with only a dim memory in the morning.  

Glass Eyes -JW Ridley: JW Ridley is a genius and I cannot wait to see what he does with an album. Every song he puts out seems to be better than his last. The central melody in this is just beautiful, and the whole thing has so much space in it it feels so much longer than 3 minutes. It’s like a song you can live in.

Nullarbor - Floodlights: I love how rough this song is, and driving across australia because you’ve got nothing else going on and want to rattle your own cage is a Huge mood.

Made Too Pretty (Audiotree Live Version) - As Cities Burn: I’m so glad As Cities Burn are back, because it means they get to do good shit like this Audiotree session where they absolutely killed it.

Dirty Hearts - Dallas Crane: I think I’ve put this on a playlist before for exactly the same reason: it’s a song I wake up with in my head fairly often for some reason and it’s a very fun slice of pub rock that doesn’t overstay it’s welcome.

Ruin This Smile - The Number 12 Looks Like You: Did you know The Number 12 Looks Like You have reformed after 10 years away and haven’t missed a step at all?? I’m salivating. This song is as good as anything they’ve put out before, and feels like it fits somewhere between Mongrel and Worse Than Alone which is fantastic news for me who always loved those a lot more than their earlier more explicitly grindcore stuff.

Nutrient Painting - Yellow Eyes: A special thanks to my friend and yours Powerburial for linking this song on his twitter. There’s something about the guitars in this song, in almost every riff, where it sounds like they’re playing backwards somehow. Like the structure of the melodies is backwards. It doesn’t make sense but that’s what it sounds like to me and it’s very disconcerting.

Jejune Stars - Bright Eyes: I think this an underrated Conor Oberst era, when he became a sort of buddhist for a while and wasn’t sad anymore but just observed earth from outer space instead. I also love the instrumentation of this song, Bright Eyes and blast beats a match made in heaven. Also the strange sample about pom’granite at the end is one of my favourite things ever. A very strange album to retire the Bright Eyes name on but a very good one too.

At The Bar - Dirty Three: When I was overseas I was thinking about cultural music, and Australia’s place in the world and things like that. I ended up thinking about Dirty Three who I think along with The Drones make the most distinctly Australian sounding music to me. Just the vastness they manage to conjure from such straightforward barebones instrumentation is incredible.

listen here

Tag game!

I was tagged by @agapaic​ in one tag game, by @i-got-these-words ​ in another tag game, and by @nightfayre ​ in both of them combined into one! I will be doing the same~ Thanks y’all <3

Watch out, it’s a long post.

Did you go to college/university (if yes, what major)? 

Yes! I just graduated in December 2019!!! I majored in music and play clarinet and piano :)

Do you believe in aliens? 

I mean, not really? but if aliens show up I’m not gonna be surprised

Deserted island - 3 items you’ll bring (that’s not in a survival kit)?

not to stereotype myself as a religious maniac (because I’m not), but I’d bring my personal set of scriptures, hoodies (does that count as one item? If not, I pick my orange one), do friends count as items or is that too weird

When did you first start reading 19 days? Who is the character that you’d want to be real the most? 

I’m pretty sure I started reading summer 2018. (Two years already???) The chapter that finally got me hooked was the tomato blood that got Mo Guan Shan rushing over to He Tian’s, and the “I don’t actually hate you that much!” line. I was curious what the heck was going on, so I looked in the previous chapter, and then after like two I went all the way back to the beginning, and here we are. Obsessed and in love. As far as who I’d want to be real.... probably Qiu? Like, I’d love to just see him on the street. Is that too shallow? He’s just such a cool dude.  BUT the exact same reasoning applies for He Cheng... They’re just *clenches fist* y’know???

Where is your dream home? 

Somewhere on the coast. Any rocky coast, though I’m picturing the Oregon Coast because I’ve been there a lot. Lots of big windows toward the coast side of the house so I could watch the ocean. Also near a forest area. There’s a fire pit near the house on the coast-side, not directly underneath the balcony on the second floor, but close. The room on the second floor with the balcony has all windows for walls and the ceiling - plants grow there and there are couches and a coffee table; no light fixtures, no outlets, just a room for enjoying the world. I know the question is where, not what, but I just got really into that.

Preferred way of getting around town? 

Driving. Although I did enjoy taking the bus (before I got a car) when I got over the minor anxiety I get when I think about taking the bus.

Favorite… 

- Type of animal? 

llamas. Thanks to The Emperor’s New Groove.

- Holiday destination? 

Oregon Coast. I’ve been there a lot, but I love it. Especially when I go with my family around my birthday (which is 90% of the time when we go).

- Way to spend a Friday/Saturday night?

Sitting at my desk trying to be creative (write, doodle, etc) or playing gigs. Making music with people you love is soooo rewarding and fun (also it’s nice to get paid to do that).

- Item of clothing? 

HOODIES. Beanies in close second.

- Alcoholic drink? 

None

- Mythical creature? 

ooooo dragons probably?

- Superhero?

I don’t think I have a favorite superhero. Never really got into superhero comics or movies or tv shows. Though I did write a set of poems about Superman and Batman for my first poetry class. It was about Batman calling Superman because he was depressed, and Batman ultimately realizing that recovery starts small.

~~~~~

Are you named after anyone?

RHIAAAAAAAAAANNOONNNNNNNN, NOT the Fleetwood Mac song, but the Welsh Goddess the song is about.

When was the last time you cried? 

Sometime in the last week, trying to go to sleep.

Do you have kids? 

I am a kid (I’m 22)

Do you use sarcasm a lot? 

yeah, I’d say so.

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

Hair. then smile.

What’s your eye color? 

mostly brown, but slightly heterochromic? also a bit blue and green, in a concentric circles kind of shape, and I have “eye freckles” (brown dots in my irises).

Scary movie or happy endings? 

Happy endings all the way. Give me the sappy love story.

Any special talents? 

no?

Where were you born? 

Boise, ID

What are your hobbies?

listening to music, doodling, writing (mostly poetry, but I do write little 19 days drabbles I’m too scared to post literally anywhere, and also have a half finished Voltron fic on ao3 I want to finish but probably won’t).

Do you have any pets?

My household has 7 chickens, but they’re not mine, and they’re not pets, they’re livestock, but I like to include them when people mention pets.

How tall are you?

5′8″ (~173 cm)

What sports do you play/have you played?

Basketball, and track and field in 6th grade. would have loved to continue with both but got caught up in music 

Favorite subject(s) in school?

MATH (specifically Calculus!!), music - counterpoint & orchestration. Also loved my computer music class.

Dream job? 

professional musician. I just wanna gig all the time. But also I WOULD LOVE to be a car mechanic. I’ve wanted to be a mechanic for as long as I can remember, and still do.

Fay’s right. Both of those in one go was a lot! ( a lot OF FUN )

THANK YOU Bethan and Fay and Zack for tagging me! They are each amazing, amazing, amazing, content creators (all fantastic writers, and Zack’s edits are to die for) and blog-post curators. Check them out and give them some love!

I’m not tagging anyone! But if you see this and want to do it, DO IT. If you feel awkward about not actually being tagged, but still want to, let me know and I’ll edit this post. I’m not joking. I’ll tag you if you ask. It’s not cheating.

Featuring: Gareth David-Lloyd, Bethan Rose Young and David Shields

Set Between: Season one and season three

Stand alone? : Yes

Marks out of 10: 9/10

*Jump on point*

Summary of the plot

Ianto Jones investigates an empty office block where strange things are happening.

There’s really nothing more I can say to that synopsis without spoiling the story. Like with most big finish stories, the less you know before listening the better it will be.

Review

This is Torchwood meets haunted house type thriller, and why it’s taken this long for us to get a story like this is beyond me, because this is exactly the kind of material that the Torchwood series should have been incorporating. Right from the get go there’s a sinister vibe. I think the reason I enjoy James Goss’s writing so much is not so much the concepts and ideas themselves, but the detail in his world building. In true James Goss fashion, there's some unexpected twists and turns and each time you think you are going to receive answers you are left with another question. Goss defiantly keeps the listener on their toes and I love that. 

Rather than portraying that loveable coffee boy side of Ianto, this story explores a different, darker side of him. We are somewhat aware that Ianto at least has a slightly darker side from episodes of torchwood such as Cyberwoman and giving a character new layers is never a bad thing, but this doesn’t quite feel like the same Ianto we know.

Whilst Gareth David-Lloyd is brilliant as ever, I have to say I was glad when another actor was brought in. When you have a one hander audio, you’re often left with someone simply talking to themselves, there's really no way round it. Sometimes that works well, but often it seems forced and unrealistic. Both Bethan Rose Young and David Shields did an excellent job with their charecters.

Buy it here

The Tides of Time, number 41 - a new issue of the long-running Doctor Who fanzine

The latest issue of The Tides of Time, number 41, was published by The Oxford Doctor Who Society in June 2018. It’s printed in colour throughout its 80 pages and is edited by James Ashworth, who is studying biology at Worcester College, and society veteran, its historian Matthew Kilburn.

Copies of the print edition can be ordered within the UK for £3.50 via PayPal. Contact us for information about overseas orders.

A PDF of the issue (compact, just over 5Mb in size) can be downloaded from this link.

Features include

Farewells to the Twelfth Doctor

‘Once Upon a Time, The End’: The Twelfth Doctor and the Duties of Narrative. William Shaw examines Peter Capaldi’s Doctor’s control of his own story

The Doctor Falls No More! Ian Bayley on how Paul Cornell’s novelization of Twice Upon a Time comments upon Steven Moffat’s depiction of the Twelfth Doctor’s end

Poetry

Haiku for Smile by William Shaw

The Space Museum by William Shaw

Paradise Lost by John Milton as discovered by Ryan Bradley

Terror of the Zygons by William Shaw

Bedford CharityCon 4 reports

The Bedford Boys Ian Bayley and Adam Kendrick meet Colin Baker

‘I am the very model of a model-making pioneer!’ Ian Bayley discovers the small world of Mike Tucker

The Bedford Tales. Adam Kendrick reports from the Battlefield and Weeping Angel/K9 panels

Discussion

The Mysterious Case of Gabriel Chase. Andrew O’Day explores the allegory of Control in Ghost Light

‘Nobody here but us chickens.’ Bethan Hughes finds there’s more than nostalgia and motherhood in The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances

Jodie Whittaker is the Doctor and the World is a Wonderful Place. Georgia Harper on the emerging era of the Thirteenth Doctor

Xenobiology Special Edition: The Science of Whittaker. James Ashworth on gender change in fungi and fish and what this might mean for the Time Lords

Running Towards the Future. John Wilson looks at the revival of the Target novelizations by BBC Books

Looming Large. Stephen Bell and Rogan Clark debate the idea that Time Lords are woven on Looms introduced in the Virgin New Adventures novels

Big Who Listen: The Sirens of Time. In association with the Big Who Listen blog, John Salway, Rogan Clark, James Ashworth, Ian Bayley, Michael Goldsmith, Jonathan P. Martindale, Adam Kendrick and Philip Holdridge discuss the first Big Finish Doctor Who release

Fiction

A Stone’s Throw, Part Three by John Salway, featuring the Fifth Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan, and a bescarfed fellow and his dog.

Oxbridge

Mad Dons and TARDISfolk. James Ashworth’s Who on Earth series continues with the Doctor’s visits to Oxford

Varsity Quiz 2018. Questions, answers and results from the 2018 Oxford-Cambridge Doctor Who Varsity Quiz written by James Ashworth and Matthew Kemp

TDP 688: Torchwwood 17 - The Office The Never Was from @BigFinish

Synopsis

This title was released in July 2017. It will be exclusively available to buy from the BF website until September 30th 2017, and on general sale after this date.

"Ianto really shines in this story and Gareth David-Lloyd gets to play him with a range I think was only started in the TV show. 10/10" Indie Mac User

"‘The Office of Never Was’ is a welcome return of Ianto Jones to the Big Finish world. Gareth David-Lloyd has turned in an excellent performance of a challenging script. Goss has taken a daring move with the character and crafted the perfect environment for it. This is an essential Torchwood story for your collection. – 9/10 " Blogtor Who

"This story goes right to the heart of what Torchwood are and what they do, it deals with the consequences of those actions almost like no other story before it and lays Ianto’s soul bare – Ianto always was the softer side of Torchwood, this explores how he deals with the contradictions in his job and how those contradictions can devastate the lives of those who Torchwood sometimes only think of as all in a days work." Planet Mondas

"For me, Ianto was always the unsung hero of Torchwood Cardiff. From his humble beginnings serving tea to Jack and the gang, to being a badass, to being murdered in Children of Earth, Ianto was always dependably brilliant; and James Goss makes sure you know it in this story." Gallifrey Archive

There’s an empty office block in Cardiff. That’s nothing special – plenty of businesses go under, clear out, cease to exist. All that’s left behind is an empty building. But there’s one office block that refuses to be forgotten about.

There have been stories about that building - strange lights, funny goings on, faces pressed up against the glass. Enough to get the locals worried. Enough to ask Torchwood to get involved.

It’s Friday night. Ianto Jones has better things to do with his time than look round a haunted building. But he goes anyway, and it turns out that The Office has been waiting for him.

Torchwood contains adult material and may not be suitable for younger listeners.

Written By: James Goss Directed By: Scott Handcock

Cast

Gareth David-Lloyd (Ianto Jones), Bethan Rose Young (Girl), David Shields(Oliver)

Producer James Goss

Script Editor Steve Tribe

A new Tin Dog Podcast

'Well,' said Kwartz, 'you humans have something you can do, I mean like when we slow right down and catch philosophy, only you just fall to bits —' 'Dying, it's called!' screamed Rincewind. 'That's it. They haven't done that, because they're not here.' 'Unless they were eaten!' suggested Jasper excitedly. 'Hmm,' said Kwartz, and, 'Wolves?' said Rincewind. 'We flattened all the wolves around here years ago,' said the troll. 'Old Grandad did, anyway.' 'He didn't like them?' 'No, he just didn't used to look where he was going. Hmm.' The trolls looked at the ground again. 'There's a trail,' he said. 'Quite a lot of horses.' He ooked up at the nearby hills, where sheer cliffs and dangerous crags loomed over the moonlit forests. 'Old Grandad lives up there,' he said quietly. There was something about the way he said it that made Rincewind decide that he didn't ever want to meet Old Grandad. 'Dangerous, is he?' he ventured. 'He's very old and big and mean. We haven't seen him about for years,' said Kwartz. 'Centuries,' corrected Beryl. 'He'll squash them all flat!' added Jasper, jumping up and down on Rincewind's toes. 'It just happens sometimes that a really old and big troll will go off by himself into the hills, and – um – the rock takes over, if you follow me.' 'No?' Kwartz sighed. 'People sometimes act like animals, don't they? And sometimes a troll will start thinking like a rock, and rocks don't like people much.' Breccia, a skinny troll with a sandstone finish, rapped on Kwartz's shoulder. 'Are we going to follow them, then?' he said. 'The legend says we should help this Rincewind squashy.' Kwartz stood up, thought for a moment, then picked Rincewind up by the scruff of his neck and with a big gritty movement placed him on his shoulders. 'We go,' he said firmly. 'If we meet Old Grandad I'll try to explain . . .' Two miles away a string of horses trotted through the night. Three of them carried captives, expertly gagged and bound. A fourth pulled a rough travois on which the Luggage lay trussed and netted and silent. Herrena softly called the column to a halt and beckoned one of her men to her. 'Are you quite sure?' she said. 'I can't hear anything.' 'I saw troll shapes,' he said flatly. She looked around. The trees had thinned out here, there was a lot of scree, and ahead of them the track led towards a bald, rocky hill that looked especially unpleasant by red starlight. She was worried about that track. It was extremely old, but something had made it, and trolls took a lot of killing. She sighed. Suddenly it looked as though that secretarial career was not such a bad option, at that. Not for the first time she reflected that there were many drawbacks to being a swordswoman, not least of which was that men didn't take you seriously until you'd actually killed them, by which time it didn't really matter anyway. Then there was all the leather, which brought her out in a rash but seemed to be unbreakably traditional. And then there was the ale. It was all right for the likes of Hrun the Barbarian or Cimbar the Assassin to carouse all night in low bars, but Herrena drew the line at it unless they sold proper drinks in small glasses, preferably with a cherry in. As for the toilet facilities . . . But she was too big to be a thief, too honest to be an assassin, too intelligent to be a wife, and too proud to enter the only other female profession generally available. So she'd become a swordswoman and had been a good one, amassing a modest fortune that she was carefully husbanding for a future that she hadn't quite worked out yet but which would certainly include a bidet if she had anything to say about it. There was a distant sound of splintering timber. Trolls had never seen the point of walking around trees. She looked up at the hill again. Two arms of high ground swept away to right and left, and up ahead was a large outcrop with – she squinted – some caves in it? Troll caves. But maybe a better option than blundering around at night. And come sunup, there'd be no problem. She leaned across to Gancia, leader of the gang of Morpork mercenaries. She wasn't very happy about him. It was true that he had the muscles of an ox and the tamina of an ox, the trouble was that he seemed to have the brains of an ox. And the viciousness of a ferret. Like most of the lads in downtown Morpork he'd have cheerfully sold his granny for glue, and probably had. 'We'll head for the caves and light a big fire in the entrance,' she said. Trolls don't like fire.' He gave her a look which suggested he had his own ideas about who should be giving the orders, but his lips said, 'You're the boss.' 'Right.' Herrena looked back at the three captives. That was the box all right – Trymon's description had been absolutely accurate. But neither of the men looked like a wizard. Not even a failed wizard. 'Oh, dear,' said Kwartz. The trolls halted. The night closed in like velvet. An owl hooted eerily – at least Rincewind assumed it was an owl, he was a little hazy on ornithology. Perhaps a nightingale hooted, unless it was a thrush. A bat flittered overhead. He was quite confident about that. He was also very tired and quite bruised. 'Why oh dear?' he said. He peered into the gloom. There was a distant speck in the hills that might have been a fire. 'Oh,' he said. 'You don't like fires, do you?' Kwartz nodded. 'It destroys the superconductivity of our brains,' he said, 'but a fire that small wouldn't have much effect on Old Grandad.' Rincewind looked around cautiously, listening for the sound of a rogue troll. He'd seen what normal trolls could do to a forest. They weren't naturally destructive, they just treated organic matter as a sort of inconvenient fog. 'Let's hope he doesn't find it, then,' he said fervently. Kwartz sighed. 'Not much chance of that,' he said. They've lit it in his mouth.' 'It'sh a judgeshment on me!' moaned Cohen. He tugged ineffectually at his bonds. Twoflower peered at him muzzily. Gancia's slingshot had raised quite a lump on the back of his head and he was a little uncertain about things, starting with his name and working upwards. 'I should have been lisshening out,' said Cohen. 'I should have been paying attenshion and not being shwayed by all this talk about your wosshnarnes, your din-chewers. I mussht be getting shoft.' He levered himself up by his elbows. Herrena and the rest of the gang were standing around the fire in the cave mouth. The Luggage was still and silent under its net in a corner. 'There's something funny about this cave,' said Bethan. 'What?' said Cohen. 'Well, look at it. Have you ever seen rocks like those before?' Cohen had to agree that the semi-circle of stones around the cave entrance were unusual; each one was higher than a man, and heavily worn, and surprisingly shiny. There was a matching semi-circle on the ceiling. The whole effect was that of a stone computer built by a druid with a vague idea of geometry and no sense of gravity. 'Look at the walls, too.' Cohen squinted at the wall next to him. There were veins of red crystal in it. He couldn't be quite certain, but it was almost as if little points of light kept flashing on and off deep within the rock itself. It was also extremely drafty. A steady breeze blew out of the black depths of the cave. 'I'm sure it was blowing the other way when we came in,' whispered Bethan. 'What do you think, Twoflower?' 'Well, I'm not a cave expert,' he said, 'but I was just thinking, that's a very interesting stalag-thingy hanging from the ceiling up there. Sort of bulbous, isn't it?' They looked at it. 'I can't quite put my finger on why,' said Twoflower, 'but I think it might be a rather good idea to get out of here.' 'Oh yesh,' said Cohen sarcastically, 'I shupposhe we'd jusht better ashk theesh people to untie ush and let us go, eh?' Cohen hadn't spent much time in Twoflower's company, otherwise he would not have been surprised when the little man nodded brightly and said, in the loud, slow and careful voice he employed as an alternative to actually speaking other people's languages: 'Excuse me? Could you please untie us and let us go? It's rather damp and drafty here. Sorry.' Bethan looked sidelong at Cohen. 'Was he supposed to say that?' 'It'sh novel, I'll grant you.' And, indeed, three people detached themselves from the group around the fire and came towards them. They did not look as if they intended to untie anyone. The two men, in fact, looked the sort of people who, when they see other people tied up, start playing around with knives and making greasy suggestions and leering a lot. Herrena introduced herself by drawing her sword and pointing it at Twoflower's heart. 'Which one of you is Rincewind the wizard?' she said. There were four horses. Is he here?' 'Um, I don't know where he is,' said Twoflower. 'He was looking for some onions.' 'Then you are his friends and he will come looking for you,' said Herrena. She glanced at Cohen and Bethan, then looked closely at the Luggage. Trymon had been emphatic that they shouldn't touch the Luggage. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but Herrena's curiosity could have massacred a pride of lions. She slit the netting and grasped the lid of the box. Twoflower winced. 'Locked,' she said eventually. 'Where is the key, fat one?' 'It – it hasn't got a key,' said Twoflower. 'There is a keyhole,' she pointed out. 'Well, yes, but if it wants to stay locked, it stays locked,' said Twoflower uncomfortably. Herrena was aware of Gancia's grin. She snarled. 'I want it open,' she said. 'Gancia, see to it.' She strode back to the fire. Gancia drew a long thin knife and leaned down close to Twoflower's face. 'She wants it open,' he said. He looked up at the other man and grinned. 'She wants it open, Weems.' 'Yah.' Gancia waved the knife slowly in front of Twoflower's face. 'Look,' said Twoflower patiently, 'I don't think you understand. No-one can open the Luggage if it's feeling in a locked mood.' 'Oh yes, I forgot,' said Gancia thoughtfully. 'Of course, it's a magic box, isn't that right? With little legs, they say. I say, Weems, any legs your side? No?' He held his knife to Twoflower's throat. 'I'm really upset about that,' he said. 'So's Weems. He doesn't say much but what he does is, he tears bits off people. So open – the – box!' He turned and planted a kick on the side of the box, leaving a nasty gash in the wood. There was a tiny little click. Gancia grinned. The lid swung up slowly, ponderously. The distant firelight gleamed off gold – lots of gold, in plate, chain, and coin, heavy and glistening in the flickering shadows. 'All right,' said Gancia softly. He looked back at the unheeding men around the fire, who seemed to be shouting at someone outside the cave. Then he looked speculatively at Weems. His lips moved soundlessly with the unaccustomed effort of mental arithmetic. He looked down at his knife. Then the floor moved. 'I heard someone,' said one of the men. 'Down there. Among the – uh – rocks.' Rincewind's voice floated up out of the darkness. 'I say,' he said. 'Well?' said Herrena. 'You're in great danger!' shouted Rincewind. 'You must put the fire out!' 'No, no,' said Herrena. 'You've got it wrong, you're in great danger. And the fire stays.' 'There's this big old troll —' 'Everyone knows trolls keep away from fire,' said Herrena. She nodded. A couple of men drew their swords and slipped out into the darkness.

Honestly think one of my all-time favourite War Doctor moments has got to be that scene in his first audio story where all the Time Lords think he's died and hold a funeral for him, so when one of the War Council's agents finds he is, in fact, alive, and tries to conscript him he just flat out goes "i'm legally dead you can't make me do shit" and refuses to go back to Gallifrey. Absolutely iconic.

okay! stranded 4 thoughts, can’t guarantee they’ll be coherent but i can say there’s gonna be a LOT of them:

so, base thoughts to start off - loved it!! i was. uh. apprehensive going in, but overall i really, really enjoyed the vast majority of it. episodes 1-3 were right up my alley personally, and while i’m more conflicted on the finale, there were definitely still many things about it that i liked. and, most importantly, HELEN DIDN’T DIE!!! all is right with the universe etc etc

the ending also gives me hope that the audios in november/december might be with the eight/liv/helen trio (or at the very least eight and helen), which will be something nice to look forward to!

anyway, thoughts on each episode - 

crossed lines:

- after stranded 3, which i did enjoy for the most part but which i also felt sidelined helen a lot compared to the rest of the team, it was really nice to see her getting more to do in this one! she felt a lot more actively involved in the plot, which i appreciated (i *promise* this won’t all just be me talking about helen, but she is my favourite, so. be warned.) 

- i actually really enjoyed colin baker’s interpretation of the curator! it was super neat how, while still very much being the same character as the one we already knew, he took on bits of six’s personality and behaviour and kind of became his own thing in many ways? it was definitely a gamble, but one i think they pulled off well

- “i’m from the future! and it’s not often i get to say that!” helen was so excited about getting to tell someone that haha. bless her <3

- i’d had some suspicions that mr bird might have been future robin before, so i wasn’t totally taken by surprise by that revelation, but i have to admit i didn’t actually pick up on the whole “robin”-”bird” wordplay at all until they made it clear in the episode lmao... it was so obvious and yet... 

- liked how trippy this episode felt, shifting between times and locations - it’s something that always feels very “doctor who” to me in a lot of ways and i think it was used cleverly here

get andy:

- i was, on reading the synopses for each episode, expecting to enjoy this, but also expecting it to probably be my least favourite of the bunch. how wrong i was. this episode owns my soul now. it’s looking very likely to be one of my favourite stranded episodes, if not my outright favourite. (which, considering how much i love “unit dating” and “wild animals”, is saying a lot)

- to put it simply, i’m an absolute sucker for the found family trope, and the eight/liv/helen team have it in spades, which is a big part of the reason i fell for their era so hard when i started listening to it last july, and why the hyperfixation that started then is still ongoing. this episode really got to the core of their dynamic, and the way that this era is above all built on the love they have for each other, and it just did everything for me <3 

- all the scenes with eight and the tardis projections of liv and helen just got to me so much. and the flashbacks too??? i just loved all those snapshots of adventures we never actually saw (well, heard. whatever), they were just wonderful 

- the flashback where liv and helen gave eight a surprise birthday party actually made me cry, not because it was particularly sad (it really wasn’t!!) but more because it just really hit home then how much this team love each other. just... i adore them. i absolutely adore them. i’m losing it even just thinking about this

- also, getting to the other main point of this story for a brief moment, andy! love that guy, i’m *so* glad they got to save him... i was devastated when he was originally killed off in stranded 3

- the andy/bird dynamic was so funny too

- “i’d rather die sooner, in your company, than live a little longer, all alone. to have you here at the end is everything.” THESE THREE ARE EVERYTHING TO ME. EVERYTHING

- god the scenes at the end between liv, helen and andy were so good... i really liked how andy brought a bit of the more grounded torchwood perspective to things, and how that clashed with liv and helen’s “ready to die at any moment” mentality? there was some super interesting conflict there

- and expanding on that, helen’s stuff in that scene was particularly heartbreaking!! “you’ve got tania to stay for, i’ve...” was especially painful tbh - i always get the feeling (particularly in her earlier audios, where her self-esteem problems are more of a plot point) she doesn’t quite realise how much she matters to her friends, how much they care about her?? like she sees herself as more disposable than the others, and seems to think her own sacrifice is more acceptable; it was definitely interesting to see that get brought up and explored a bit again

- i also genuinely thought she was gonna get killed off during that scene, for a brief moment. i’m still not sure i trust big finish to let her see her run on the show off without killing her :/

- on a lighter note, did really love how this ep had the team back at their dysfunctional best again!! love when they’re in “trying, but clearly have no idea whatsoever what they’re actually doing” mode haha

the keys of baker street: 

- honestly think roy gill might have been my favourite writer for the stranded arc? he may have only done two episodes but what a two episodes they are

- the concept of each room containing a different flashback, and the house’s keys each unlocking one was so clever, and so smartly executed. it was great as well how it meant all the main trio could face up to some of their darker sides, secrets and regrets, it was a neat device to unlock some of that character drama (no pun intended)

- canon football fan tania?? this is a win for me personally 😌 (outing myself as a football fan here sorry :/ i just think there should be more characters supporting mediocre club teams yknow)

- i’ll admit i’m more of a liv/helen fan than a liv/tania one (though i like both!!), but that scene with liv looking in on tania and robin’s conversation and realising she can’t do/say anything to make tania feel better... ouch

- the analysis of eight’s privileges and the way he doesn’t always acknowledge them... interesting stuff... (i feel like i have more to say on this but i can’t quite get it into words right now? it’s something that will probably come more with a relisten i reckon)

- got a LOT of thoughts abt helen’s particular flashback. there were a lot of things in the preceding episodes, but this one in particular, where it was indicated that there was something going on as regards her coming out arc (the way she goes “i wouldn’t know” when andy mentions things couples do... the way she seemed almost angry or jealous when liv talked about having a girlfriend she “loves very much”... HMM.), but that scene was a whole lot in that department tbh. not only bringing up albie again for the first time (and *god* when she talked about having tried to make up stories where he got a happier life ripped me apart emotionally), but there was very clearly more to it than that, and the other characters noticed too??? i am. having a lot of thoughts. 

- “i worry about that girl. i wish she could find some peace.” a) same, b) glad the characters in-universe are taking the view that helen needs to get therapy or something too

- all the language/linguistics references!! yes!!! (i’m a languages student i’m allowed to get excited about this)

- the curator back again too - loved getting to explore his involvement a bit more, and how exactly he fitted into the story!! 

- was a big fan of how the day was saved, in the end, by forgiveness and people helping each other to be better. it seemed appropriate for this arc, somehow. 

- something something the curator and mr bird fading away together as the story ends... the last parts of the aberrant timeline slipping out of existence... there’s something kinda poetic about that

- jesus christ they really just made the pandemic happen huh

- the whole “the gang lives through the pandemic” thing, while i can understand why they did it, felt kinda off if i’m being totally honest? it’s just. uh. not sure i’m really on board with characters dying of covid and stuff tbh. the pandemic is still very much going on (however much the govt wants to pretend otherwise 🙄), and it felt really weird - and not in a good way - doing the whole thing like it’s something that’s been and gone?? idk man. there were some bits about it i quite liked ig, but it did all feel slightly strange

best year ever:

- honestly, while there are definitely things i liked about this one (it was nice in some ways to have some time with the characters just hanging out and being domestic... i did enjoy that), this is kinda where things fell apart a bit for me

- andy’s shitty zoom quiz was fun though. loved having a bit more reference to the team having No Idea about current cultural references

- the toasting to “absent friends” - that *was* a reference to the doom coalition episode, right?

- also. that intro. “the real 2020. how bad can it be?” EIGHT NO

- the ending. so, positives - nobody died! there’s a possibility for more eight/liv/helen adventures together! it was left open-ended in a nice way! negatives - while i do like liv and tania as a couple, the way their story had been structured throughout this set didn’t do much to convince me that them staying in 2020 was the natural end to it? if this was the end of stranded 3 (which had given a lot more emphasis to their relationship, comparatively), i could’ve maybe seen it, but as things were with the story at this point, it almost didn’t feel quite strong enough for this to be how it ended? i’m hoping this isn’t the last we see of liv too - i love her as a character and this tardis team won’t be the same without her :(

- also, in terms of characterisation, i find it hard to believe that liv “refuses to stay anywhere for an extended period” chenka would be happy to stay and live in the 21st century for the rest of her life? especially not after she was so determined to go and travel in the tardis again

- i’m also really disappointed that, after really building up, especially in episode 3, they did nothing at all with helen’s arc. i was hoping there’d be at least a scene about it somewhere, but there just. wasn’t. it felt like a letdown to be honest :/

but anyway! overall really loved this boxset, and aside from the last story it felt like a really strong ending to this arc! here’s hoping there’ll be more adventures with the team come the autumn :D

(sorry for talking about the audios again! anyway.)

i've been thinking about eight, liv and helen again, as you do, and uh. came to the realisation that there's never any indication made in canon that eight and liv have ever actually told helen about anything that happened to them during dark eyes, before they met her? off the top of my head, i can only think of about 3 direct references to dark eyes in their audios together (2 of which are made while helen is elsewhere, the one where she is there being liv's "you think i've forgotten molly? martin? any of them?" in ship in a bottle), and i'm just. hm. i get there's a gap in the narrative between dark eyes and doom coalition, but even then... eight and liv both suffered a lot, and had to watch their closest friend die, and i don't think they magically got over it. i don't think any of that pain disappeared.

and they're sitting on all this pain and grief and they just. never tell her. helen doesn't know.

Stranded 4's out today, and it's pretty likely I'll end up posting about it once I've listened through, so just putting it out there that any posts I make will be tagged with "#stranded 4" and "#stranded spoilers" in case anyone wants to avoid spoilers and blacklist those!

Not to post about Doom Coalition/Stranded again, but like. I am absolutely fascinated by the in-universe implications of the "theft" of the Red Lady artefacts?? I mean, if you go off what Helen's brother said in Absent Friends, it's the biggest theft of artefacts in the National Museum's history, and, seeing as Stranded is only set about 20 years later, it's likely that's still the case then. Then add in the fact that the lead suspect for the theft (Helen) literally disappeared without a trace within a few hours, none of the artefacts have ever been found, and that multiple people connected with the artefacts themselves died in mysterious circumstances? While it's probably not going to be something everyone knows about, it's still the biggest theft in the history of one of the UK's biggest museums, so it's got to be pretty well known as a Weird Unsolved Mystery, enough for there to be documentaries or youtube videos about it and stuff like that. Helen probably has a Wikipedia article. She probably has no idea. She doesn't even know what Wikipedia is.

Anyway I just think the concept of her, Eight and Liv watching TV while they're stuck in 2020 and getting completely blindsided by a documentary about this event they were all involved in is incredibly funny. (Bonus points if someone else in the house was also watching the documentary and the three of them have to spend the rest of the week trying to deflect questions about why Helen is being listed as a lead suspect for an art heist that took place 60 years ago because that was Definitely her on the TV and Does She Actually Know Where The Red Lady Artefacts Are)

God I'm just like... going insane over here about how much Eight, Liv and Helen care about each other. Was thinking about "Wild Animals" earlier and how they're all struggling in their new lives on Earth in some way but they've all still got each other's backs and are supporting each other ("I won't [give up]. Not as long as you and Helen don't give up on me." "We couldn't do that if we tried."). And the way they all think of the others as their family as well? How they've each lost most (if not all) of their original families but they've built a new one with each other... They all just love each other so much and it's wonderful

finished another doom coalition relisten recently, and i’m absolutely fascinated by the implication in “songs of love” that liv has no idea what a bicycle is despite the fact that she lived in the 1970s for literal months. surely she must have at least seen one before?? this is literally so funny to me idk why