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secret-engima · 4 years

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nyodrite

honestly i am just so curious on how Dissidia would go here because you can have teen Nox and Apollo and smol Noctis traveling with a frantic Regis

nyodrite

or have Regis not present but just watching his sons and younger brother through crystal vision and fretting

Me: Oh it would ABSOLUTELY be all four of them. Not that they know it at first, because Nox and Apollo get yoinked by Spiritus and Materia was like “he doesn’t get two when I don’t!” And she yoinked Regis and Noctis, not realizing how YOUNG Noctis was, because his soul/magic feels so much like Nox, who is le teen.

Cue Regis freaking out while holding his son in the middle of a desert, then meeting Lightning, who takes one look at this Dad and Smol Child and going “ah. I need to go hit a goddess. Clearly. Come along sir we’ll go hit her together”

WoL: “wait pls don’t. I’m sure there’s an explanation.”

The explanation is Materia staring at a wide-eyed Noctis and going “Oh. I thought you would be larger.” And Regis’s temper snapping to go on a massive Dad Rant about stealing people from their worlds without permission. PARTICULARLY CHILDREN. HE CAN SEE THE OTHER KIDS IN THE ROOM YOU KNOW. HOW DARE YOU.

Spiritus calls but Nox and Apollo are both hiding in the back so no one sees them, but THEY see Regis with Noctis in his arms and a growing gaggle of kid heroes gravitating toward his sheer dad vibes and Apollo starts grinning in the way that means he’s about to go commit genocide on something (read: the race of beings that rule this world. If there’s only two of them, then stabbing one of them counts as a massive population decrease right? He’s pretty sure that’s how it works). Nox is just staring blankly at the view screen, giving off a faint blue aura that honestly makes a few of the saner villains nervous.

They eventually get over their temper and agree to go help Regis first thing. Sephiroth tags along because at this point it’s a running gag in all my Dissidia posts and also he’s curious about Nox and Apollo.

They get there in time to see Regis’s group (which is Him, Noctis, Any Kid Hero he can find, Lightning, Y’shtola) being attacked by ... idk Exdeath, Kefka, and a bunch of the crystal copies. They’re doing good honestly, they have Regis, Y’shtola, and Lightning as the adult heavy hitters and Terra and Onion Knight are hardly pushovers and they’re guarding Noctis (Onion Knight’s pride at being Dadded has been soothed by being assigned to “guard” Noctis, who Regis has explained is a crown prince. Onion Knight immediately swore to protect him with his life, as all good knights should. Regis could have cried because Child Soldier No).

Nox and Apollo crash in and proceed to utterly demolish the opposing team. They pay particular attention to Kefka, because they got there just in time to hear him taunting Terra in really vague ways that to Terra and him refer to, you know, the plot of their FF world but to Nox and Apollo sounded Like Something Else. There Kefka is in for a world of pain. Sephiroth joins in to slap Exdeath around for the fun of it, and Exdeath is highly insulted. Which amuses Seph so he does it some more.

Regis is both a relief and a HEART ATTACK to see his other son and his half-brother here. Let alone on the opposite team. Because one, trusted backup. Two, HIS SON AND BROTHER HAVE ENOUGH TRAUMA THEY DON’T NEED TO BE HERE IN THIS WORLD OF BATTLE.

Nox: It’s fine, Dad, I’ve been here before. The worst part is the dragon.

Regis: You’ve what. There’s a WHAT.

The four Lucis Caelums team up along with their respective tagalongs (Regis is well aware that Sephiroth is a madman, he reeks of it, but he’s also got a muted vibe of Lost Child with a side of Weaponized Child to him still and Regis proceeds to aggressively Dad him while Nox braids Seph’s hair and Noctis utterly charms Sephiroth while sitting in his lap and Apollo watches on in amusement. Clearly, adopting and reforming madmen is a genetic thing that entered Somnus’s line of the family sometime after Somnus died), and they are the biggest team, so they attract the most attention of the crystal copies and baddies but they’re also a team with three combat-ready Lucis Caelums, Lightning, Y’shtola, and Sephiroth. Nothing that approaches has a chance at getting anywhere near Onion Knight and Terra as they guard little Noctis.

Regis is very done with this entire place. But he’s also wondering how to keep the kids, because clearly they need a new home that won’t treat them so poorly. Also Sephiroth can come too, Apollo and Nox appear to be courting him as a joint Sword. (Far away, watching from Crystal o Vision along with a horrified Titus and Axis, Clarus hisses: Regis I know that look, DON’T EVEN DARE-.)

So anyway, Kefka starts to develop a nasty flinch anytime he senses Nox or Apollo within a ten mile radius from all the murder attempts, secrets are unveiled, Regis and Co end up having a fight with a knock-off Astral (Ramuh is highly amused by the entire process), and the world eating dragon thing is revealed.

Regis: Is THIS the dragon you meant, Nox?

Nox, who doesn’t want to reveal his time-traveller status: Uhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Thankfully battle plans be happening and Regis ends up forgetting about Nox’s slip of the tongue later.

Regis REFUSES to let Noctis anywhere near the battle. No. Not happening. He once again recruits Onion Knight and Terra to guard him back in Materia’s tower during the Final Fight. Onion Knight is a mild pout, because DRAGON SLAYING, but he’s being asked by a KING to guard the CROWN PRINCE. Clearly his superior fighting skills are being acknowledged. So he will tolerate sitting out on the dragon slaying.

Anyway, with three Lucis Caelums (two of which is the Former Chosen King and the Former Accursed) wailing on the thing on top of everyone else, the dragon is Very Very Dead after a few hours of hard fighting and Noctis gets to cheer about how utterly epic his family is and then they all get to go home. Regis does not get to take Onion Knight and Terra along, which makes him a Sad™, but he does manage to steal Sephiroth for his sons.

Clarus could Strangle Regis when he gets back with a silver-haired psychopath in tow to serve as his son’s and brother’s sword. Regis what were you thinking.

Also as a side note- all of Materia’s heroes did such mental gymnastics in surprise when learning that Nox and Apollo are not fraternal twins but are instead uncle and nephew. Everyone looked long and hard at them, then long and hard at Regis, who just sighed heavily and said that at the time he had had the benefit of a reckless youth. His father had no such excuse and he would thank you not to talk about it further. Apollo just cackled.

#Secret Engima Rambles #Nox verse #Nox & Apollo verse #dissidia!

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buzzdixonwriter · 3 years

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The Purple Monster Strikes

Recently in an online discussion of 1950s sci-fi films, the old Republic serial The Purple Monster Strikes came up.

Why is came up I’ll mention later, but first let’s note it:

was made in 1945

was the last 15 chapter Republic serial

is awful

Not eyeball gouging / brain melting / soul scorching awful the way The Lost City or Gene Autry And The Phantom Empire or Captain Video are awful, but awful enough…

…yet at the same time, worthy of comment (as we’ll soon note).

1945 is a crucial year. Despite the Nazis last ditch Battle of the Bulge, WWII is clearly winding down to an Allied victory in both Europe and the Pacific.

American audiences feel tired of the war wand want something else in their entertainment, even low brow / low rent entertainment like movie serials.

Republic produced three serials that year: Federal Operator 99 proved surprisingly good, Manhunt Of Mystery Island (their next to last 15 chapter serial) tried some new ideas that while interesting didn’t prove interesting enough to be tried again, and The Purple Monster Strikes brought interplanetary thrills back to the theaters, only this time instead of visiting Mars, Mars (at least two of ‘em) came to Earth.

As noted in my overview of Federal Operator 99, Republic serials of that year looked…inexpensive.*

This is especially true of The Purple Monster Strikes which really needed a bigger budget, a better script, and adequate production time for the type of story it was trying to tell.

That story?

In a nutshell: The Purple Monster is a one-Martian invasion come to steal the secret of the “jet plane” (the script uses the term interchangeably with “rocketship”) from Earth and take it to Mars where it can be mass produced and used to attack our world (Why? WTF knows or cares?). To achieve this The Purple Monster bumps off the scientist in charge of the project, physically possesses his corpse by turning into a ghost-like entity, and tries to kill a nosy investigator and the late scientist’s niece. In the end The Purple Monster tries to escape Earth only to get blowed up real good (Did I mention this is silly, stooped, and trite? I did? Good).

So why am I interested in The Purple Monster Strikes? Well, for two reasons, the second and more important one we’ll save for the end, the first is that when watched with fully informed eyes, it’s a testament to the single greatest contribution the serials made to filmmaking: The production board.

Lemme ‘splain what that is.

In the old days of movie making it was a folder with slots for narrow strips of colored cardboard to be slid in. The strips were color coded for interior or exterior scenes, night or day, specific locations, second unit or special effects, etc.

These strips were grouped together on the production board so all the exterior day shots at one location could be filmed back-to-back, followed by all the night shots there before moving on to a new location.

The colored carboard strips were further broken down to match production numbers in the shooting script (“Scene 37: The bandits take the town”), key props and costumes, stunt work, but most importantly actors / characters in the scene.

You want all your most important / expensive / difficult stuff grouped together…but you also need to figure out what you didn’t need so you could pare down your budget.

For example, if you need someone to play a policeman in Scene 1 and in Scene 12 but those scenes are shot two seeks apart, maybe it’s cheaper to have two different actors playing two different policemen for one day each than keep one actor on call for two weeks.

Likewise, if you’ve got an actor in a key supporting role, put all his scenes together.

This necessitates shooting out of sequence, but shooting out of sequence is now pretty much the industry norm for any filmed or taped production.

The serials invented the production board and the rest of the industry speedily glommed onto it.

Once you know what to look for in The Purple Monster Strikes, you can pretty much break down which scenes were shot when.

Case in point: Masked heroes and villains aside, serial characters rarely change costume except to match stock footage from earlier productions. It’s not especially notable for male characters but females typically wear The Same Damn Dress in Every Damn Scene.

So when heroine Linda Sterling gets dunked in a water tank midway through The Purple Monster Strikes, you can bet that was her last day of filming since they were no longer worried about ruining her costume.

Likewise when a female reinforcement from Mars arrives, the exact same location right down to the same car parked in the same spot are used even though the female Martian doesn’t arrive until 2/3rds of the way into the story.

You wouldn’t notice this week to week in a movie theater, but they’re painfully obvious when bingewatching.

Case in point: There are never more than four characters onscreen at any time; this was all the production could afford on any given day. If a fifth character showed up, one of the others needed to be knocked unconscious (if they were lucky) shot and fall off camera (if they were unlucky), or disintegrated (if they were really unlucky).

For example, the hero and heroine could be talking to a scientist (day 1 / shot 1) when three baddies show up at the door (day 2 / shot 1). The first baddie shoots the scientist, who falls off camera then enters the frame and knocks out the heroine, who conveniently falls behind a counter (day 1 / shot 2). The other two baddies enter and a huge brawl erupts (day 2 / shot 2). The heroine revives (day 1 / shot 3) and shouts a warning at the hero. The hero blasts a minor baddie who falls off camera as the other two baddies flee the scene (day 2 / shot 3), then the heroine rejoins the hero (day 1 / shot 4).

Binge watching also reveals a lot of sets and props reused again and again. The same footstool is used as a weapon more than once, a prop valve in one chapter serves an entirely different function in another, and while serials frequently reused stock special effects shots, The Purple Monster Strikes doesn’t just use the same exploding car shot twice in the same serial, not just twice in the same chapter, but twice in the same car chase!

(Speaking of which, whenever they get in Linda Sterling’s car you know the odds are 50-50 it’s going off a cliff in a big flaming fireball. The Purple Monster Strikes has her going through so many identical make automobiles you’d think she owned stock in a car dealership.)

Anybody familiar with Republic serials is going to find a lot of reused sets and props here. Having seen Manhunt Of Mystery Island recently, I immediately recognized their ubiquitous warehouse set, the Republic Studios loading dock doubles as two different factory exteriors, and having lived in Chatsworth several years I can practically name each and every rock in the exterior scenes.**

On the plus side, bonus points for some impressive looking props, including a rocket test engine that provides the explosive cliffhanger for the first chapter, a double-barrel disintegrator that looks like a giant set of binoculars (I wonder if it was originally a military surplus training aid), and a spaceship seen under construction for most of the serial that proves to be the most striking design the redoubtable Lydecker brothers ever created (a pity it’s glimpsed only briefly before being blown up in the last chapter; Republic should have reused it for their later sci-fi serials instead of the dull unimaginative designs they went with).

Fun factoid: Mi amigo Donald F. Glut, filmmaker / NYTimes bestselling author / film historian, knew The Purple Monster hizzownsef, Roy Barcroft, and reports Barcroft had the wardrobe department sew a secret pocket in his costume for his cigarettes!

Speaking of Barcroft, he’s the best thing in this serial and he ain’t that good. A perennial bad guy in serials and B-Westerns, he normally turned in a satisfying performance, but the script for The Purple Monster Strikes gives him nothing to work with.

I mentioned previously how Federal Operator 99’s script works more often than not and gives its characters something the actors can work with, but The Purple Monster Strikes? Nada.

Every line is a clunky flat declarative sentence exposition dump of the “I’ll take this strange medallion we discovered to Harvey the metallurgist to analyze” variety.

Even Linda Sterling can’t do anything with this though she tries to find an appropriate facial expression for whatever scene she’s thrown in.

As for nominal star Dennis Moore, I won’t say he’s wooden but in one of the innumerable fight scenes Barcroft hurls a coatrack at him and for that brief moment the coatrack delivers a far more memorable performance.

Sidebar on the fight scenes: They are choreographed expertly, among some of the best Republic ever staged, but directors Spencer Gordon Bennet and Fred C. Brannon -- both serial veterans who could do much, much better -- really dropped the ball in shooting them. They’re shot almost entirely in wide angle longshots using slightly sped up photography instead of intercutting to keep the pacing fast.

The rest of the cast consists mostly of stuntmen carefully enunciating their one line before the fists start flying, or older male actors who deliver surprisingly good performances compared to everyone else.

But that script -- oh, lordie, that script! This was made in 1945 and they’ve got a damn organ grinder in it! Organ grinders vanished from the public sphere with the damn of movies; by the 1940s they were found only in comic books and animated cartoons; in other words, kid stuff.***

It’s clear the writers on The Purple Monster Strikes (Royal Cole, Albert DeMond, Basil Dickey, Lynn Perkins, Joseph Poland, and Barney Sarecky) considered this mere juvenile pablum, not worthy of even the smattering of sophistication they sprinkled on Federal Operator 99.

An adult can watch Federal Operator 99 and at least feel the story makes some kind of sense and the characters, however imperfectly enacted, at least offer adult motives and behaviors, but The Purple Monster Strikes is just insulting to the intelligence (I mean, they call the female Martian invader Marsha. Seriously?).

Okay, so why do I think this is worth writing about?

Because The Purple Monster Strikes is the bridge between WWII and the Cold War.

Most of the major tropes of 1950s sci-fi are reactions to Cold War anxieties, and those anxieties are transplanted WWII anxieties.

Before WWII, American moneyed interests waged a relentless PR campaign against communism, socialism, and labor unions (sound familiar?).

Forced to make peace with the Soviets during WWII, these moneyed interests -- now heavily invested in what Dwight D. Eisenhower called the military-industrial complex -- bit their lips as US pop culture portrayed the Russians as gallant allies against fascism (and they were; credit where credit is due).

As soon as the war ended, however, and in fact, even a little before the end (see The Best Years Of Our Lives; great movie), they were already recasting the Russians as treacherous authoritarian atheists out to conquer the world.

As noted earlier, American audiences felt weary of a relentless diet of war related entertainment and in the waning days of the war turned eagerly to non-war related stories.

Likewise studios, not wanting to get caught with rapidly dating WWII related material nobody wanted to see began actively developing different kinds of stories.

After four years of intense anxiety, the country needed to come down but couldn’t go cold turkey. Science fiction (and hardboiled mysteries and spy thrillers) provided safe decompression.

1945 marks a significant sea change in Republic serial production. Sci-fi would become a more predominant theme, infiltrating other genres such as the ever popular masked mastermind (viz. The Crimson Ghost).

Federal Operator 99 would be the last highwater mark for more plausible serial stories, but crime and undercover espionage remained serial staples to the bitter end.

Only Manhunt Of Mystery Island seemed a misfire and even in that case it only meant the masked mastermind returned to more traditional origins instead of the inventive backstory created for Captain Mephisto.

What The Purple Monster Strikes did was take a very familiar set of WWII cliches and stereotypes then recast them in a (relatively) safe science fictional context.

The closest prototype to The Purple Monster Strikes is Republic’s G-Men Vs. The Black Dragon, as racially offensive as you could hope to imagine, and turn the inscrutable “yellow” villains into malevolent purple ones (later green when colorization was added).

By making the literally other worldly alien the “other”, 1950s sci-fi sidestepped the worst implications of their own themes:

Invasion

Subversion

Fifth columns

Loss of soul / identity / individuality (personified in bodily possession by alien intellects)

Paranoia

The Purple Monster Strikes lacks the wit and wherewithal to fully exploit these ideas, but it sure could hold them up for everyone to get a quick glimpse.

As childish and as inane as the plot may be, by the end when hero and heroine realize there is literally no one they can trust, The Purple Monster Strikes dropped a depth charge into preteen psyches fated to go off six years later with the arrival of The Thing From Another World and countless other sci-fi films and TV episodes afterwards.

Did The Purple Monster Strikes create this trend? No, of course not – but as Stephen King pointed out in Danse Macabre regarding the incredibly inane The Horror Of Party Beach’s selection of nuclear waste dumping as their raison d'être for their monsters:

“I’m sure it was one of the least important points in their preproduction discussions and for that reason it becomes very important.”

King’s point is by not giving the matter much thought, The Horror Of Party Beach’s producers simply tapped into a subconscious gestalt already running through the culture and said, “Yeah, nuclear waste, wuddup widdat?”

Likewise, The Purple Monster Strikes’ producers / directors / writers didn’t sit themselves down to analyze Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four but rather picked up on the forever war current already moving through the American body politic.

War without end, war without ceasing.

And if we can’t define an enemy by name or place, so much the better! The war on crime, the war on poverty, the war on drugs…

The war on terror.

The forever war thrives on the faceless unknowable enemy with the unknown but clearly malevolent anti-American agenda.

“Them”…against…U.S.

As an artistic achievement, The Purple Monster Strikes is sadly lacking in nearly all aspects, but as a cultural artifact, it’s still a clear warning.

Only not about “them” but about…us.

* read “cheap”

** Republic’s low budget backed them into an overlapping series of sci-fi serials, loosely referred to as the Rocket Man / Martian invasion serials by fans. The Purple Monster Strikes’ costume was reused for Flying Disc Man From Mars (which featured a semi-circular flying wing already featured in Spy Smasher and King Of The Mounties) and again for Zombies Of The Stratosphere, but between those two serials the wholly unrelated King Of The Rocket Men was released. Zombies… is a sequel to both Flying Disc Man… and King Of The Rocket Men but Radar Men From The Moon introduces a new character -- Commando Cody -- who wears the same rocket pack as the heroes of King… and Zombies… but faces a lunar, not Martian menace then he spins off to become Commando Cody: Sky Marshall Of The Universe in a quasi-serial (i.e., no cliff-hangers, each chapter a complete adventure) fighting a third alien invasion!

*** Or the works of Bertolt Brecht, but that ain’t what Republic’s going for here.

#Roy Barcroft #The Purple Monster Strikes #serial #sci-fi movies #1950s science fiction movies #Cold War

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empyrealarc · 3 years

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👫

Send a 👫and I’ll write four headcanons I have about our muse’s relationship || @sugaredjoy !!

YOUTH

Ana, at least in Bubbles' native universe, grew up at the same time as the Powerpuffs! While she wasn't actively doing villain work while Bubbles and the gang were fighting crimes, she was still very aware of their presence and actively avoided confronting them until she got a better grasp of her powers. Now that they're all grown, and Ana can 'reasonably' fight the Puffs on equal footing, she's got no problem causing havoc or mayhem around them. What she's never revealed to any of them, especially not Bubbles, is that she wished she could be a Powerpuff growing up. She wanted to do good and have fun siblings and a caring dad... but instead, she had to train, and absorb the cosmos, and master herself. It's why she's so lackadaisical about being a villain now. She'd much rather hang out with her friends!

EMPATHY

It was Bubbles who first convinced Ana'Hira to not be a full-time villain. After they got into a fight one day, Bubbles just sat down and talked to her about her life goals and aspirations, and the two of them became friends! After convincing Ana to clean up her mess and release the souls of the innocent from her tummy-furnace, the Cosmic Horror spent a few days in jail before 'mysteriously' breaking out! No one knows where she went, but Bubbles' new friend Angela sure is just as cute without all the evil tendencies, isn't she? Well, until her dad calls and tells her to 'go to work' that is.

SECRETS

The Puffs know, of course, that Angela and Ana'Hira are one being. But, due to their kindness (well, except Buttercup who always seems to want to beat Ana up for being a baddie) they've accepted Angela into their lives as a friend and sometimes ally. She's had dinner with them and the professor, she's helped fight against some big threats they've encountered, she's always there for Bubbs and Bloss when they need someone to talk to, or laugh with, or experiment on. She's even taken to sparring with BC sometimes when the green meanie needs to work stuff out. You'd think she's doing this to get a secret hold on the puffs, find a weakness to exploit, but... Well, she just loves having friends. Especially ones that you don't need to tiptoe around because you're an evil test tube experiment baby or whatever.

INGREDIENTS

HIM wasn't lying when he said Ana bore his mark. She wasn't created via chemical x, her secret ingredient is darker, more chaotic and infinite. There is true evil within her, whether she wishes to acknowledge it or not, and that makes her a prime receptacle for the darker impulses of the world. Stealing, hurting, lying, they all come easier to her then virtues simply by way of who and how she is. Subconsciously, she knows this, and that's part of the reason she tries to be so close to Bubbs. She can sense the good in her friend, and hopes that such purity can help her manage the Devil within her. Recently, it's been proven to be not so effective... but she holds out hope that her best friend Bubbles can save her. Its what they do, right? Save the day, no matter what? Help me, please, help me Bubbs... All I can hear is laughter!

#sugaredjoy #hc!#feel like i forgot how to write headcanons or something...#oof I'm sorry. here are yours though

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aneomeris · 3 years

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We’re All Someone’s Pekka Rollins

Episode 2, here I am! I mean, it’s still these shitty times, I don’t need sleep. I don’t want it.

What I meant to say is Another Flashback, Yay. Wow. At least this one does some proper world building, it’s not for a cheap character establishing moment.

- the kids in the field is cute, I’m not a monster (even if I’m someone’s monster? Which, in my very humble opinion, is a lie. Edgy, catchy title line).

- Oh no, adult handholding! Interrupted! Noooo, what are you doing to me!

- Inej v. Kaz, go! Bets in the winner? I think it will be friendship!

- Despite his obsession, Kaz goes after her. Aw.

- Alina, my girl, you heard me. You are Baby again, after that disaster in episode 1 you admitted to being guilty. Girl, I forgive you. The dead maybe won’t, but that’s why they are dead characters anyway. Alina, I knew I were right to have high hopes for you.

- Also, love how the magic users mostly stayed alive, while the common soldiers died. Shows where the priorities are.

- Okay, so there won’t be ages, frustrating for the viewer, for the characters to discover that Alina is afflicted by the very common Main Character’s Super Powers Disease. Good.

- Oh no, right as Mal claims that he knows her better than anyone else, and surely there is no way for him to be wrong and her to have magic she goes and makes a whole damn lightshow.

- Oh no, right as Kaz went to grovel/explain himself to Inej, the baddies impeccably rolled in (I’ll show myself out).

- Soooo, me loving the scottish-ish accent? Check. Me having trouble understanding everything Male-Non-Serafina-Pekkala says? Double check.

- Both Kaz and Inej drinking and confiding in Jesper? Me thinks they are perfect for one another, drinkers when under stress, with excellent taste in confidants, all important traits to share with your significant other.

- I paused the episode to remember this nugget of an exchange.

K. “Never make decisions out of fear, only out of spite.”

J. “Greed has served me well, so far”

Says so much, so fast about both of them. Now that’s proper writing, none of that “10 flashbacks”nonsence.

- Also, Kaz acting the detective. Nice.

- Ouuuuuu, the melodrama of Mal running after Alina’s carriage! Zoya approaching him? Where is that clip of “quit playing games with my heart”?

- Inej is gaining in terms of character appreciation: tons of daggers, awesome dark hair, weapons hidden in said awesome hair? Love it.

- Varys and the little birds. Enough said.

- Is this introducing Inej and a possible deal with the devil and her conscience?

- Lady, Blodie, darling, either drop the accent, or make it consistent. I’m sorry, Critical Role spoiled me for accents and your is... not good. And I could be wrong, but I doubt that’s on purpose.

- Jesper to the rescue. Not only will he listen to his friends’ trouble, but he’ll be ready to help, be it undisclosed business or killing someone in you stead. Also, I want to know why Inej wants to avoid killing. I mean, generally good rule to live by, by why?

- Look, I might take the line about transporting Alina to safety more seriously if the characters saying it weren’t wearing literal red coats. No.

- See? Ambush. So much for safety.

- Is the cute red coat dead? I’m sure the baddie red coat is just fine.

- Honestly was sure Alina would escape. Where would that have left the plot though?

- So. The general. I love my characters dark, angsty, with the occasional edgyness, but that’s too much. Also, bad hunch for Malina. General Kirigan saved her, has her next to him, has tons of lingering shots with the two of them in focus. Clearly is supposed to be hot (I don’t know why, I don’t find Ben Barns particularly attractive myself, no hate, I’m sure he’s awesome. there, random observation over).

- Him giving her a bloodied blaAaaack handkerchief was such a faux pas on his part. Is he going to be the dark, brooding antagonist like character, saved, at the end, by the literal lightness and love of Alina?

- Keygen, why are you so surprised she doesn’t want to save the world? Haven’t you heard of a reluctant hero? Honestly, brooding possible romantic interests, these days!

- Yay, we’re onto team Crows and handsome decoy!

- Ok, that’s clever writing, having the reward for not killing, not taking the deal with the devil be also very much plot relevant. Good idea for the assassination being bad for the soul just as much as for their endeavour.

- Is Inej religious? With a brother? Oh, no, I’m having Vax’ildan flashbacks myself. Am I going to adore her too?

- She would have taken the deal. She would have killed (thinking herself justified).

- Okay, the palace is awesome. Going to google it...

- Not surprised to find out it’s Budapest. One day I’ll be back, I promise!

- That scene of Mal’s friends talking him out of stealing the horsie and running to Alina Stark(ov-a) reminded me of Jon Snow being talked out of running in aid of Robb Stark.

- Kaz gave Occasional-Accent-Blondie his bar for Inej? He cares so much. I knew he had a soft heart for his two friends.

- Mal... it’s stupid and reckless and all, but unless you run to Alina, you just might doom the whole ship. Oh, and your heart, there’s that too.

- That bed transition though, the hands reaching, the eyes almost locking. The flashback felt earned, for the first time, a memory of simpler, better times, when instead of miles apart, cold, sad, tired they were together, laying in the sun.

#shadow and bone #night watches #spoilers season 1 sab #impressions and ramblings

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hypexion · 4 years

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When is a series opener not a series opener? When it’s The Bells of Saint John, which is technically the sixth episode of Series Seven. But it’s got all the markers of a series opener, including a brand new companion. For real this time!

The main point of The Bells of Saint John is to introduce the actual Clara Oswald who is actually the next companion, and not just a mysterious arc person. She spends a lot of time being confused and annoyed at the Doctor’s wacky Doctor hijinks, which is honestly pretty reasonable. What’s slightly less reasonable is that in order to get Clara to go along with the Doctor, it goes for an Any% Clara Death speedrun, with her Getting Got within five minutes of meeting the Doctor. So the Doctor has to save her, then save her again, and then save her for a third time. It’s all a little drawn out.

We do get a bit about how Clara wants to travel around, to give her a reason for hopping onto the TARDIS, but it’s not much. It does feel a little like Clara is being push on due to plot reasons rather than actual character reasons, because the arc requires her to hop onto the TARDIS. Of the revival companions so far, I think Clara has the weakest reason to start travelling with the Doctor. It just doesn’t feel super involved, to be honest.

Moving onto the actual plot of The Bells of Saint John, we’ve got an episode that’s About Computers. Or more acurately, Magic But With Computer Words. A mysterious organisation is stealing human souls by uploading them to the Internet. This is sinister collective is not the Cybermen (yet), but actually The Great Intelligence, who is finally getting their chance to Be Back. Briefly, at the end of the episode. Mostly, we focus on the human villains, who do at least has a pretty swish aesthetic. If you’re going to be stealing human minds via evil Wi-fi, you should do it in style. They even manage to be presented as a sinister omnipresent force thanks to the power of Suggestion spells “hacking“, allowing the main villain to taunt the Doctor from afar, and also do a terrorism.

Honestly, the overall plot isn’t too bad. Clara cleverly uses social engineering to pwn the baddies, which is actually slightly realistic, while the Doctor turns their own evil technology against them. It’s all very well contained, really. But I could definitely do without the stupid “hacking“ graphics where a bunch of meaningless code wizzes by while people type rapidly. That’s not how computers work in the slightest. Mostly you sit around waiting for things to happen while reading forum threads or Tumblr posts (other social media are available).

All together, I suppose The Bells of Saint John is a decent enough episode. It has a nice flow, some slick action scenes and neat visuals, and the plot generally fits together well. The weakest link is actually Clara herself, who doesn’t really get a proper introduction. Sure, she has all these weird time-clones hanging around, but who is Clara Oswald? It would be nice to know that, instead of leaning on arc stuff to fill in her characterisation six months ago. But hey, if you can ignore the bad computing, this is a pretty fine opener that isn’t an opener.

#doctor who #eleventh doctor #clara oswald #the bells of saint john #doctor who rewatch

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thewritingstar · 4 years

Note

What’re the vest powerpuff shops in ur opinion and why?

Im going to assume ship in this. Alright here we go!

I can see really any pairing with the girls and boys and ill throw in some other ones too. But imma go down the line by my faves. Im only gonna put the ships i like so if you dont see one then i prob dont ship it hard, or i havent thought about it.

I know you didnt ask but i feel like no one is fully straight here and i love that vibe.

Blossutch- 100/10: THE FLAVOR. Amazing, perfection, just yes. I think Blossom and Butch would have a very fun dynamic. The classic uptight girl with the laid back guy. The complement each other and add to each others strengths. Also I think they are the best looking ship. They give me Roger Rabbit and Jessica Rabbit vibes. Goofy and serious at the same time. aka my wife can kick your ass and id let her kick mine too. Def my fav ship. ITS SOOOOO GOOD. BUTCH IS A SIMP. fuck it imma simp for this ship.

Reds/Blossick: Out of the matching ships, this one is my fav. The rivals to lovers complex is so funny here because its two people who try to be the best at all times and they would get so caught up in out doing each other that they don’t realize they would be perfect for each other. I think they would also have the understanding of what it takes to be a leader and have that weighing on their shoulders. King and queen vibes. Really close to number one but my fav color code ship. ALSO THESE FICS ARE SO GOOD. (and prob my fav ship growing up)

Greens/Butchercup: The counterpart ships are really nice because they reveal the weakness that they each face and the other one can relate. This is just the fun couple that likes to party but loves the other so much. It rough and gritty but pure and some people may not understand them but they only care about each other anyways.

Blues/Boomubbles: This one is like pure fluff. Its soft, sweet and simple and just a really cute ship. They are like swans. They have one true soul mate and then they die. Heres the thing. I think Bubbs and Boom Boom are meant for each other and they are prob the best ship in color code (i just like the drama of the reds lol) I perfer bubbs with him over anyone else.

Butchubbles: Classic bad boy, girl next door ship. Leather jackets and soda pop. Everyone is intimidated by Butch except for his fluffy girl who makes him watch disney movies and shows him its ok to cry. Probably the most aesthetically pleasing ship

Boomer x Buttercup: This is cute. Boomer is supportive of his strong ass kicking girlfriend and bc loves her adorable air head man.

Brickercup: They are the most stubborn ship i would assume. But still cute and intense. I vibe with it.

BlossomxBoomer: Its cute, i dont mind it. Smartest girl and dumbest boy. kinda bland but cute.

BrickxBubbles: Kinda like the bad boy x sweet girl vibe but with less flavor idk. its fine.

(me not knowing all the ship names, but to be fair none of the ship names are as pleasing as other ones lol)

Now onto the other crack ships

Princess x Brat: The sugar momma vibes this gives off. I could just imagine Brat scamming people on the internet for money and then she finds princess and genuinely falls in love with her and instead of Princess having a wimp arranged marriage of a husband, she has a baddie wife. the fucking flavor of this???? amazing. 1000/10

Princess X Robin: There was a whole discussion with friends about this and its the rich badass woman with the humble girl who kicks the rich bitchs ass and brings her ego down. Robin is a lawyer in this ship and defends her business mafia wife.

Princess x Bubbles: This is lowkey funny because the thought of Princess stopping crime cause she got whipped by the joy and laughter.

Princess X Blossom: Princess making all those plans and elaborate machines not to steal but to get noticed???? Yes please.

Robin x Mike: Cute. typical boy next door meets girl next door (wheres the flavor)

Boomer x Mike: You can not tell me the boom boom is straight. I wont accept it. Just two soft boys and one might be an ex-con but mike says everyone has flaws. SOMEONE PLEASE DRAW OR WRITE ABOUT THIS. I NEED IT. (XBOX ON SHIP)

Mitch x Mike: Mitch is gay panic boy but tries to be cool but mike is so pure and soft and loves his goth bf.

Boomer x Mitch: Because surfer boi with goth boi and the fact that their ship name is BITCH AHAHHAHAHAH.

I dont think the punks and ruffs would go well together too much chaos. And even though i could see some puffs x punks, not my fav. I hope you liked this and im always down for talking about ships :)

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shabba-zams · 4 years

Text

INSPIRED BY ELAINE

I think it's time, we confronted the situation in front of us

And I think it's time we talk it out and forget all the fuss

And it is not me.. There just isn't an us no more like Bible class

Our time is up, like sand falling thru an hour glass, in an hour class

You always say you have no clue but surely eNCA, know more

You mad at me, the silent treatment and you call it normal

You're bad for me, I was ur biggest fan - u such a baddie

You're bad to me, I'm your only fan, love it when u call me daddy

I'm sad for you, you hid your "Onlyfans" from me, you dirty

I'm thirsty, right now you looking all sexy, girly, flirty, all nerdy

You're needy, greedy, full of pity, always eating, mouth fully meaty, too demanding, nasty lazy, bitch u crazy

I'm giving, forgiving, plain loving, still thirsty but dripping in sauce

You're tripping, I flick my wrist then flick the bean (BDSM)

You're dribbing, my dick be crippling

You be stroking my penis, asking what my pin is

Bust a nut, wipe a continent from your chest

Yeah, that's what pain is

And then I knew you're not the One

Coz you were never the only one

I don't give out many chances, you get just the one

Party on campus, ur too antisocial, never my plus one

Plus size model, thick mama, BBW, voloptuous, ur curvatious

Luv ur onion booty, it makes me cry & it's more than 1 layer

Yeah im full of games, bstill no player

Dinner for 2, right b4 I eat u up, say my prayer

Bad dream, devils hour, I wake, u staring like, Heya! That's creepy

Okay lemme be real with u, it ain't your fault

I just couldn't be real around you, I couldn't be myself

I was losing myself tryinna please U

My face was your chair, no please U.. I can't breathe

I need air, u don't care, I pull ur hair, that's not fair

Face clean, no make up, take teddy bear, then make up sex

We're role playing, you're now Claire, Blair or Nonhle

Shared my, heart and love with u

I ain't mad at u, we don't c I2I

U & I was both invested, we tested

All that loud in the air, sippin wine we wasted

Danced all night then rested

My place or yours instead

Always kept you interested, kept me well fed

It's lessons learned not time wasted

Why you making me choose between you & the booze

I know you hate how I'm hung like a moose

Getting your creative juices flowing, like your muse

Misuse my tongue, amuse ur lower lips, abuse your sleep

Team nocturnal, feeling your intestine with my external

Loving you all night and day, feels eternal

I'm sorry but I'm not ready for anal

But that pussy imma turn into a canal

You dislike my love/hate relationship with social media

I bring a home cooked meal but all you do is take away

I mean it's healthier and bonus it makes financial sense

Lemme keep my 2 cents, common sense ain't common

That's nonsense, why you so tense? We don't make sense

I still sense your anger from when I tried to fvck ur friend

Then my close friend who's my best friends girlfriend

Yeah, I fvcked up, I own up, let's roll up

That's not tea in my cup, let's go up

Talk at the roof top, "nigga just grow up"

You're yelling, screaming, bout to blow up

I'm cocky, saying shit like I was your glow up

"Hol'up, nigga please just shut the fvck up

You always say you coming but never show up"

"You're right, I'm sorry I left you sick to go drink

I felt like I was drowning until my sorrows' lungs were filled with H2O

Made it up 2 u tho, made you cum 6 times..no? 7 I think, who's counting

You a liability, I'm an asset... I mean it's just accounting

You lack reliability, for your mistakes ur never accounting

You hate my ability to feel everything and still be wholesome

Coz you just wanna feel good all the time

But my feelings be fluctuating, I just won't be faking

Stop tolerating the neglect Im getting

Get liquid with it

Happiness is the yin and sadness is the yang

Sometimes I drink gin, only when I'm with my gang

There's a burn hole on my jean, maybe a ciggie, or dank

But now I get bank, I want no skank that smoke skunk

Has that sank? Yeah I know, I'm a think tank, tick

Talk all you want, but keep it short like tik-tok

Tic toc, times up, take tsek.. tic tac 4 your bad breath

2 these beats I bring death, yeah I take life, no bring back

Break dance & break back, ahead of you like 3 laps

Brick dance coz my money grows while I nap nap

Hahaha gimme 3 claps coz my puns still slap

I'm real black, I'm bout to snap at all this crap

These niggaz decided to call rap

Lame rappers, listen up, sit down and don't talk back

Don't turn no other cheek, clap back or get ur wolf pack

Crack back, don't fight niggaz that look lyk they fap-fap

Or smoke crack crack, with eyes doing a criss cross

Came across many rappers that steal rap lines or rap names like Rick Ross to get their point across

Gamble with your life & hit crap

Lost your wife on my Whatsapp, there's that!

She pole dance in my DM's, she excels

She got a flat tummy till she exhales, but sex sells

She call me Haploid, like sex cells

She's cold like may weather, F Lloyd!

I'm a Record breaker, planet shaker, Constant risk taker

Ask the chain breaker how I stay shining

He'll answer, I stay grinding, on God!

I'm not a smile faker, just a soul snatcher in the fast lane

Wubba lubba dub dub, Rick and Morty

Life and death drive, ask Freud or Boyd

Leading a wild life like Varty, bitter sweet like chutney

I'm bored, so we party in my bed, my bad, honey!

Ass-ass-ass, she clap ass 3 times before 4(play)

Nurse-nurse-nurse, I slap ass tats when we role playin

Looking all photogenic, oops a nip slip on tape

Phat ass on my iOS, like real life

Ass flat on android, that's what they look like

No steroids, my dick big don't nje just

She look at my shoe size and run away at 1st chance

I'm an asteroid not space dust, she came fast

Then I came too, at last, she said out loud

I'm heartless at first glance, til I made her soul dance

Think fast, mouth 2 mouth ur low lips, I'm a medic

Nudes is explicit, is you a nymph or manic?

Nymphomaniac please don't panic

Your style so sick, bout to start a pandemic

We'll playback with your jeans off, relay... ground rules

No replay or pause only gonna press play once

No safewords, whatever works works, word!

Girl you a baddie, and a Pedi, go spoil yourself

Get a mani &a pedi

Dick in mouth, still out spoken, can't put words in mouth

U said I'm a keeper

Silver spoon in her mouth but I still feed her

Feel her up then fill her up, I eat her up

I feed her jollof right before I pipe her, I like her

Never gonna wife her, don't really love her

She's rude like something' crawled up her...

Foul mouth like up yours!

I know around your feelings I should tip toe

It's unfortunate coz I don't tip Joe's (askies jo)

Like excuse me waiter where should I dip those fries, french

Kiss hoes toes, mxwa, Zulu man with a foot fetish, tip toe

Articulate the truth, use tactics lyk rotten tomatoes on bad movies

I'm not perfect, I pose a threat even if a picture's moving

I'm booming, you're blooming... I'm nice nice, ur gloomy

I'm grooming u, like your cult leader

Avid reader, your soul feeder, I'm no people pleaser

I need a lady thats rooted in love and still rooting for me

Unconditional love lyk the kind that died on the cross 4 me

Is that you? No? Then miss me Miss, think I'm gonn miss ya!

Coz now it's

A goodbye to you, I'm thru witchu, it's true I confess

Wish you nothing but the best

Somebody to love you, put you first for the rest of

All the days to come, to you I

Remain a good friend, no benefits just perks

Straight facts, ex lover with strange quirks... You

Are

The

One... Who will be the godmother to my heir

So if I die, you'll raise HIM or raise HER

Erase Her memory of me if it's too painful to hold on to

Make sure he's playful, careful and joyful too

U'll be a good mom, ur delightful unlyk most step mothers

You're a good teacher that's patient but always on time

You'll know what to do if ever my daughter runs late

Scratch that, you'll be a great mother, that's fate

Becoz you're a leader, not deceitful like some bad fathers

#IWriteWhatILike #poetry #dead poets society #poets on tumblr

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arks-self-ship · 4 years

Text

The main Baby Blue Boys!

So I like to jump around AUs with my F/O N//ightcrawler, and with M//arvel’s multiverse that makes it easy! But I do have a few main base versions of my F/O that most of these AUs are built off!

Blue: Blue is the generic 6/16 base, He’s a sweet boy.

Goldy: Ultimates but if ignoring a lot of canon. Super gay and sometimes ends up leaving the x//men with my S/I so he can begin to actually heal from his tramua. I tend to use this one a lot because I like angst. Warning: due to the canon I pull from his behavior can often be considered borderline "yandere" so feel free to avoid that, but he's non violent just very possessive. My S/I knows how to deal with that and is very good at setting boundaries with him.

Three: Three is a version of Ultimates who was in the W//eapon X program much much longer. In canon it was implied he was there for less than a year (Even saying “all these months in this horrible place” and a scientist dude saying something about a few months ago too) but in this AU he was there for almost 3 years and it kind of broke him. He’s a lot tougher, stronger and scarier and often seems to be very distant and grumpy but he does have a huge soft spot for my S/I. Unlike Ulti and canon ultimates he has no problem with killing anymore, but tries to only do it if he has too. He usually has a knife made of mysterious material (not metal, but looks metallic and is as strong as a//damantium) that he’s very attached to and always has on him. The knife was sometimes given to him by my S/I sometimes it was stolen from the person who tormented him at W//eapon X. Very protective of my S/I

Nighty: Kind of a mix of E//volution and a bit of the A//pocalypse movie version. Just a really sweet goof who’s not always sure what he’s doing. Usually already struggling with his sexuality when my S/I shows up. Mischievous baby who just likes to cause (mostly) harmless problems. Very very casual best friend vibes with my S/I until whoops they kiss! (bro...) Still keep things very casual after though. Usually has a secret dating trope thrown in for extra shenanigans. Aged up, usually having just entered or about to start college but has known my S/I for a few years. (Please note I only ship with him because I was the same age as he was in canon when I first started shipping with him and he aged with me. It's the same storyline as back then)

Baddy (under construction, not available for asks): Villian AU and also kinda a Soulmate AU where Kurt works with his parents as part of a family "bussiness" that involves a lot of robberies and theft. When my S/I comes along and they finally meet he brings them into the family bussiness. They're more "be gay do crime" than world domination so it's mostly stuff like stealing from the rich, vandalism and random destruction of property, and just fucking with super heroes at random cause they get bored. They got a particular beef with the X/Men cause they were really shitty to my S/I when they first got there. VERY protective of my S/I

For Hire (Inactive, not available for asks): Kind of another Villain AU that's a combination of Three and Baddy. After escaping W/eapon X and learning it was shut down Kurt was left alone in the world with his only skills being sneaking and killing. In this AU he became a mercenary for hire, killing or stealing so he could have enough money to survive. When my S/I comes along they team up, constantly taking jobs just to meet rent each month and be able to eat. He does all the killings, but they work together for everything else. They're constantly butting heads with the X//men. In some storylines eventually get a redemption arc, joining the X//men but secretly whoever is in charge (be it X/avier, L/ogan or Scott) is having them take people who are to dangerous out (X/Force 2008-2012 style) so they can stay somewhere safe to live and not worry if they're going to be able to eat that night. Very very protective of my S/I, includes a frenzy mode where he sort of loses touch with everything around him and just kills anything that isn't my S/I.

Big Blue: Based on the 2015 X//men inferno S/ecret Wars thing where N/ightcrawler gets his soul ripped out and is turned into a monster by D/arkChild. Slightly different than canon where G/oblin queen doesnt kill off his mind and at some point my S/I is able to use their empath powers to sever the control D/arkchild has over him (although for plot reasons how they break him out of the control varies depending on what I wanna do). Usually involves them helping him find his soul again, and once he gets it his mind is still kind of broken but he’s closer to normal and able to transform back and forth between his beast form and a slightly different version of his normal self (look varies, usually has horns, longer fur on his forearms and claws). But hey hes got a bunch of sweet new powers! And after kind of going feral in his beast form and killing D/arkchild he becomes basically a scabbard for the S/oulsword, which both he and my S/I can wield. Tends to be extremely protective of my S/I and in constant need of attention

Kid: based on the Kid N/ightcrawler from the 2012 X/-treme X/men series, classic kid genius and usually around 14 like canon. Non-Romantic character!!! Usually a little brother figure for my S/I! Unlike in canon he did not die in the X/termination event (only x/avier did), instead having serious injuries and losing his left leg and messing up his ability to teleport to the point even a couple teleports will completely wipe him out. His Earth’s version of my S/I was a huge hero, considered one of the big five (alongside S/piderman, Capt M/arvel, T/hor, and B/lack P/anther) so he’s very star stuck and admires them a lot. Sometimes shows up if my S/I gets knocked out of their dimension and needs to go home, othertimes my S/I is a part of their team with a romantic version of NC on the team too cause I do what I want

Red: A/OA based K//urt D//arkholme, and follows canon up to the point of X/termination, where he also didn’t die but his reality was sealed off and he can’t go home. Due to what happened with X/force he instead takes up the offer to travel with the X/treme x/men and continue to dimension hop and help other realities. Not always romantic (but it depends on the AU) and is instead usually an almost mentor to my S/I. Often also is a mentor to Kid as the two are usually coexisting in whatever AU this is and helps him with his powers. Very stoic and kind of grumpy, but secretly cares a lot about this team.

Band: Kind of a mix of Goldy and Three, having left the X//men to join my S/I’s band, reasons vary depending on what I want to do, usually its due to the severe manipulation of X//avier and just how it was destroying his mental health. Tends to kind of split from here, sometimes he ends up the lead singer with my S/I on guitar, or my S/I as the singer and him as the drummer who likes to not be seen by the audience so his drums are kept in a dark spot of the stage. I generally default to two storylines too, sometimes he stays in his original world and trying to help m//utants as best he can and refusing to talk about his time in the X-men. The other storyline is for whatever reason the band ends up reality hopping, going from multiverse to multiverse and setting up camp for awhile and playing their music there. This is the angstier version and often ends up featuring Nighty or just general E//volution Kurt cause I like angst sometimes. Generally a very casual AU that i just like to think about when listening to music. Band is very much punk/ punk rock.

Real quick, when I talk about a U/ltimate’s universe I mean my own AU of it because what I do is ignore huge parts of canon because I feel the writers were trying to be edgy and tackle a lot of social issues of the time and sadly my baby blue in that got the shit end of the stick on being nice about some stuff because he was religious. I ignore all of that because Its my F/O and I’ll do what I want. I’m honestly not a fan of u/ltimates and just like to snag certain character dynamics, backstory and design and mix it with 6/16

#Noah•shush #F/O #fictional other #selfship #self insert #•Baby Blue Boy•#•ark world lore•#•Baby blue Goldy•#•baby blue Three•#•Baby Blue Nighty•#•Baby blue Kid•#•Baby Blue Red•#•Baby Big Blue•#•Baby Blue band•#•Baby blue baddy•#•Baby blue for Hire•#•Classic baby blue•

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sayaka19fan · 5 years

Note

We see how vulnerable Ash's with Eiji so we forget this is not Ash the rest of the world gets. He's a sympathetic character but also dark and morally grey whether it's his nature or he was shaped this way. He's aware his motives and what he does to reach his goals is bad but he chooses it. He feels guilt that's why he hides most of what he does from Eiji. He can be ruthless and callous and use others in a self serving way. That doesn't only extend to baddies but to all who are not Eiji basically

Part one

Since you sent me this, anon, I assume you want me to pronounce myself in favor of or against your views on the matter.

I agree with you that Ash is a moral grey character shaped by revenge, I disagree about him feeling guilt though. On the contrary he confessed to Max that he has never repented once in his life and said to Eiji that he didn't feel anything after killing so many people. He knows he is supposed to feel something called remorse, he even plays with it to get Max's collaboration. He knows of the existence of this feeling on an intellectual level but he is aware that he can't feel it himself.

Blanca feels regrets about his wife's death and perhaps about dealing with Ash in that way or leaving Yut-lung in the end; Ibe feels some responsibility in bringing Eiji to the States with him and probably regrets it; Max regrets not to have looked for Griffin's whereabouts harder; Shorter dies full of regrets; Sing doubtes his suitability as a leader; Yut-lung is "forced" to repent eventually.

Even Frog voiced an apologise (sincere? I DUNNO) and James Callenreese changed his attitude in his last moments with Ash, on the top of this all Eiji is the epitome of remorse.

Yut-lung tried to emulate Ash in not looking back (reflect on his actions) when he got in motion the plan to eliminate his own clan. This happened because that lack of remorse is seen as a top class quality in the criminal world depicted by Yoshida sensei. Ash though came to realize that this very characteristic feature makes him inhuman and suffered from the realisation. I think that Ash didn't hide things from Eiji out of guilt: for example, about stealing Dino's money he bragged about it with Max and Max felt like something was scary about his attitude, but Max isn't a pure soul and didn't scold him, Eiji instead would definitely have done it. Ash hid it from Eiji because he knew the way he feels about it is wrong and he didn't want to show Eiji his messed up self.

#banana fish manga #banana fish meta #banana fish #anon #analysis #anonymous #Ask #ash lynx #aslan jade callenreese #aslan callenreese #max lobo #eiji okumura

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theonceoverthinker · 5 years

Text

OUAT Rewatch 4X15 - Poor Unfortunate Souls

I’ve always loved this episode, but I can’t help but wonder what kind of SOUL searching I’ll need to do as I watch this one again! XD

Eh, he got it.

Anyway, review’s under the cut!

Main Takeaways

Past

So, it goes without say, but Poseidon is the best god! He has a tough commanding voice, a method of carrying himself that commands respect, a solid character arc, and MINIONS! What god doesn’t have minions that dress in uniforms and follow his every order without lip?! Additionally, he’s egotistical, placing his need to have Ursula by his side over her desires to sing and awful in that sense that he’ll buy her love rather than earn it. Basically, this guy has the presence of a god. Characters like Nimue and Merlin would have this similar presence, but as for Hades and Zeus, the other actual gods, they really don’t.

I love the story development in this episode. I’ll get into this shortly, but what makes this episode work so well is that Killian is shown to, despite being a ruthless pirate, be someone who does have the capacity for good in his heart. He’s someone who has that potential to care for another person and to be willing to go to great lengths for them.

It’s great how Killian doesn’t go full tilt against Ursula upon getting a possibility for his revenge, but he does still retreat to villainy somewhat. The trip to Glowerhaven is now a trip not fully made out of goodness and selflessness, but also for profit as Killian asks for the squid ink before he transports Ursula away.

But the way he does ultimately go evil is interesting too. It’s not about hurting Ursula, but about hurting Poseidon. And that makes it worse -- the action that harms Ursula wasn’t made to hurt her, but out of spite. Ursula is turned in that instance from a friend into a pawn. And it’s interesting how Ursula takes agency in her own story back from both Poseidon and Killian. She stands up to both men and even takes the former’s triton to become a goddess and a villain. It’s so tragic, but also kind of badass!

Present

Killian’s development in this episode is fantastic! I like how we see the difference between the hero clan and Killian. While their first thought, as David puts it, is to “save August,” Killian’s is to find the Dark One’s secrets. And I like how this isn’t a bad plan in comparison to theirs, but different. It’s an important part of dismantling Rumple’s schemes in the long run. I also like how the episode shows subtly how Killian’s mindframe about doing good changes within the scope of the episode. When he first announces how he’ll return Ursula’s happy ending, it’s done out of a need to get revenge on Rumple after he screwed them out of the dagger. Listen to how he talks about helping her: “Now’s the time to use it [his backstory with Ursula].” He also calls her a “creature” and a “monster,” and even when she stands up to him for the name calling, he doesn’t apologize.

And look at the way Killian talks about returning Ursula’s happy ending. Normally, a line like that is given lighter and more triumphant music to accompany it, but not here. That’s because it’s not about wanting to do right by Ursula, but that is the mindset he has to learn. He’s sort of on the right trail -- he even points out to Emma how he’s taking a page out of her book -- but because his mindset is botched, he’s not in the right mindset for when things go wrong. While Snow, David, or Emma would try to take a next step after the shell doesn’t originally work and assure Ursula that they’ll help her out, Killian doesn’t think of her wants and needs and just demands the information, endangering himself.

Ariel was both a weird choice and the BEST choice to help Killian along his trail to redemption. For one thing, it allows for the real Ariel to finally get some justice after what happened with Killian and Blackbeard and her in season 3. But most importantly, she highlights that getting a happy ending isn’t necessarily dependent on you alignment, but how you go about getting it. And this prompts Killian to ask for help. That asking for help s so important because of how it shifts Killian’s perspective from wanting to help Ursula for himself to wanting to help Ursula for her own good. That’s how a hero thinks. And it turns out that when he starts thinking that way, he’s not bad at doing good at all!

“If Gold did to me what he did to Hook, I’d want to shove that dagger through his heart too.” I kind of hate a lot of this show’s approaches to anger. Killian’s pissed -- and Emma’s pissed for him -- that Rumple took advantage of the growing trust between himself and Belle in order to reclaim his power, and now the entire town is in danger because of it. This line is treated as a way to foreshadow the possibility of Emma going dark, but honestly, it’s just anger. It’s a valid emotion and in from here until the end of the series, that anger tends to be framed as something that’s not allowed to happen, and the show is worse off for it. Is the agner a touch excessive? Arguably, but given how personal this crime was, I can get that it reached that extent. And Emma even elaborates on that point immediately afterwards.

All Encompassing

Out of all of the episodes where Killian screws things up in the past, but rights things in the present, this I feel is one of the best ones. Killian’s not heartless in either segment, his actions aren’t too bad that they can’t be made right by the events of the episode, and Killian’s approach has to change in regards to his own morality and motivations, which it does.

So, let’s talk about Ursula. On one hand, we never get to see or even hear about any of her villainy and that undermines a lot of her presence in the series. Despite all of the power that she supposedly has, it’s never used to any villainous effect. Because of that, to some extent, she’s less of a villain in a lot of way and more of a vessel for Killian and Rumple. And that’s not really fair. That said, I do think that her character development in this singular episode is quite substantial and in a way, redeems Ursula’s character. She’s given a clear and concise motivation for her villainy as well as a redemption that makes emotional sense. She’s tragic and unique in a lot of ways and her characteristics in both the past and present, despite that lack of villainy, make for a three dimensional character.

Stream of Consciousness

-I love the callback in the opening to both the source of Killian’s apprehension over mermaids from “The Heart of the Truest Believer” and to “The Little Mermaid.”

-I like the design for Ursula’s grotto. Sure, it’s probably like the show’s final Rumbelle scene where it was designed in a minimalist way by painting the set all black, but just as it was there, it’s pretty!

-I like the allusion as Ursula listens to classical music instead of torturing August and only begrudgingly joins Cruella at Cruella’s behest that Ursula is not all that interested in being a baddie.

-I love the clear BS’ing yet improvising skills that August puts on display here!

-”Well it wouldn’t be the first time he lied to my face.” Regina, get Elsa back here because Rumple gave August a BURN! XD

-I do appreciate that Emma points out how fucked up it was to steal a child! It’s not as far as this conflict should have gone, but it’s a good step.

-Between the magical eye drops, giving David half of her heart, Cora’s possession, all the breastfeeding she must be doing, and now this, Snow must be SO tired of sharing her body! XD

-I also appreciate how Regina’s first bit of dialogue was to tell Emma that Pinocchio was fine and what happened.

-”Who? Me?” This is some perfect comedy right here! I love the slow buildup and the way every character’s head is given its own individual moment to turn to Killian. It is a perfect punchline!

-”Even when I didn’t think he could deceive me any more, he found a way.” I feel so bad for Belle with this line. She’s so tired of being tricked by Rumple and now even trusting in those that she wants to is dangerous.

-”Then your name would’ve been written across it.” …”When you can see the future, there’s irony everywhere.”

-I LOVE this rendition of “Mysterious Fathoms Below.” It’s so soothing and beautiful. It feels both like a lullabye and what a group of sailors would want to hear after a long day, and that’s an interesting balance to hit.

-I love the costumes of Poseidon and his underlings. I like the beach-y things the cover the tops of their gold and their hats that look like conch shells!

-”It’s unwise to insult the size of a pirate’s ship.” Wouldn’t be OUAT without the occasional dick measuring contest.

-I actually totally forgot about that dream sequence Regina had. So, now that I remember again AND have the context of the Evil Queen arc, I think that arc either alluded to a fear of Regina’s evil impulses threatening to separate her from Robin or foreshadowing of jealousy from the Evil Queen and that’s Wish Robin that’s there.

-I love the absolute look of HORROR on August’s face as he’s turned back into a puppet.

-I’m starting to realize that anyone with a “code” in this series has a code that is weak as fuck!

-Thankfully, that nice swim will be UNDERcut by some FIN-terference, so he’ll SEA you later! XD

-Snow hitting Cruella over the head with a frying pan from back of the room was perfect! Not only is it so funny, but it was a great reminder of just how tactical Snow can be!

-Awww! That August and Emma reunion was soooo sweet! We really see that friendship they had come fully back and it’s honestly so heartwarming.

-I loved Poseidon’s apology to Ursula. There are no excuses and he really gets into how badly he screwed both her and himself over, and not in an egotistical way.

Favorite Dynamic

Ursula and Killian. I like the framing of their dynamic. Killian is very much a ruthless pirate and Ursula is clearly defined as someone who can break through that thanks to the peace her voice brings him. It’s an unconventional, but organic friendship. And I like how it’s not just Ursula providing Killian with things, but also Killian providing Ursula with emotional validation. Ursula doesn’t seem to have many friends (which makes sense given how she’s the daughter of a god), and that’s implied by just how much Killian’s words and promises impact her. You can see how badly she’s needed to hear that her way of honoring her mother hasn’t been wrong and that despite what Poseidon says, she’s doing the right thing. And in return, Ursula gives Killian peace and a chance at some level of redemption. Because of her voice and mercy, he’s able to see some good inside himself and offer her help. And until his revenge gets in the way, and he starts treating Ursula like a pawn, he holds himself to that.

Writer

Andrew Chambliss and Dana Horgan are in control today! And they did a good job! This is just a cohesive episode. Unlike “The Apprentice,” these guys knew exactly what they wanted to do with Killian’s character and did exactly that. They made his character consistent and kept his feelings throughout the episode clear. This is an enormous change from the Killian who didn’t even have a distinguished facial reaction to being forced to hold an old man hostage while he was sucked into a hat. And they still managed to put in nuanced discussions about what it means to think like and be a hero. Writing decisions like that make the kind of material that define a character and these guys brought their A-game to both segments.

Rating

Golden Apple. While I had my nitpicks, this was an amazing episode. Killian’s character development as he descends to and rises from villainy is really well done, the episode’s supporting characters are great, and Ursula is for the most part very three dimensional.

Flip My Ship - The Home of All Things “Shippy Goodness”

Captain Swan - “Don’t you know, Emma? It’s you.” I love these guys. I love how they value each other. I love how in this episode, Killian calls Emma his happy ending and the slow, meaningful reaction to that including the kiss. I love how Emma stands up to David when he even considers that Killian could be evil again. She really believes in him and trusts that he can do the right thing and get them the information they need.

-----

Thank you all for reading!!! Shout out to @watchingfairytales and @daensarah!!

Season 4 Total (131/230)

Writer Scores: Adam and Eddy: (34/60) Jane Espenson: (20/40) David Goodman and Jerome Schwartz: (38/50) Andrew Chambliss: (32/50) Dana Horgan: (16/30) Kalinda Vazquez: (22/40) Scott Nimerfro: (14/30) Tze Chun (8/20)

Operation Rewatch Archives

#ouat #once upon a time #watching fairytales #ouat 4x15 #ouat rewatch #jenna watches ouat

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storibambino · 6 years

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That Good Twerk: Ladies Night

A/N: I was gone for a minute but we back we back. I’m not counting this toward my 30,000-word challenge. The ladies bout to throw it byke. Enjoy per usual my lovelies.

That Good Twerk Original | Wakandan Edition

Valkyrie (Brunhilde)

Alright

It was gonna be a good night. Finally a night out with bae after a long week

When you guys got to the club everything was fine. The music was great the drinks were flowing and making you wanna dance

However, bae decided he didn’t want to dance with you.

Fine whatever you decide to dance alone.

You go to the middle of the floor and begin to dance alone

Who said you needed anyone else.

Little did you know you’d caught someone’s eye.

You felt eyes on you

Assuming they were your boo, you sought out the source

The eyes that met you were not his but a heated gaze from a beautiful woman at the bar.

She was staring at you over her cup

You couldn’t help but rake your eyes across her frame. You bit your bottom lip without realizing it

Taking this as an invitation she downed the rest of her drink and began to approach

She stumbled a bit causing you to giggle

Once she reached you, you found your rhythm again and began to sway

“Can I join you, pretty girl?”

Feeling bold you placed her hands on your hips and turned around in her arms

She had very strong hands and began to lead you rolling her hips and pulling you in closer.

Once you caught her pace you decided to put your hand on your knees and push your weight back

She snapped her hips forward in a show of dominance, being sure to catch you with her hands still on your hips

You turned around and wrapped a leg around her

She gladly took your weight with a supportive hand under your thigh

As the two of you began to grind together it catches the attention of your forgotten bae

He’s fuming and marches over to you two and pulls you away roughly

You and the mystery woman are taken aback

He puts himself between the two of you and is right in her face

She smiles, “You don’t want these problems.”

You’re sure there’s steam coming off of him “WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU!” He yells poking her in the shoulder

She lets out a sigh, “Alright.”

In one swift motion, she grabs the finger assaulting her and bends it backward. She twists his entire arm behind his back and he doubles over in pain.

“Apologize to the lady.”

He immediately sobs an apology.

“Now be a good boy and leave us alone to finish our dance.”

He scurries away while you stand there in shock

She turns back to you swaying. You’re not sure if it’s the swag or the liquor but you don’t care.

She pulls you in close to her again. “Name’s Brunhilde but you can call me Val baby girl.

Okoye

Fuck yo whip

Who said you needed a club to turn up?

All that was really needed was a parking lot, some nice cars, and a whole lotta bass

It was one of those times

You and the girls were out having a good time parking lot pimpin’

That fuck boy had pissed you off for the exact last time and you weren’t gonna let him steal your evening

you guys were making your way through the lot when the nices Escalade you’d ever seen pulled up

Black on black with gold details

Even more impressive were the people that got out

A fine ass young sir with locs and golds to match the truck hopped out the driver side

But more importantly, a goddess was riding shotgun

Clean ass fade, luscious full lips, baby girl was BUILT too

It had been a while since you had a woman in your life since the last year had been dedicated to an ain’t shit trick that won’t be named

As if the universe wanted you to live your best life the systems around you began to knock

Being a good citizen you began to bop to the beat, keeping one eye on the Escalade baddie

She was surveying the crowd keeping an eye on lil daddy with the locs

Just as you were about to assume they were together she looked into your soul

You ain’t no rookie tho so instead of freezing you put your hands on your knees and started popping that thang to the chorus

She smirked at you but stayed where she was

Momma ain’t raise no coward so you said fuck it and decided to go up to her instead

She watched carefully as you approached but didn’t seem defensive

“Hey there. I see you over here watching wanna dance?”

Before she could answer lil daddy appeared next to her

“She would love to dance ma.” He flashed his golds and gave her a little push in your direction

If looks could kill he would’ve been dead twice

But she took your hand when it was offered

You led her to the area where the music was loudest

She was still looking back at the guy she came with so you gave her hip a bump with yours

She was solid too gah damn

She looked at you as you worked your shoulders and started to roll your hips

Lil daddy was watching smiling big af

Rolling her eyes she began to dance to

Honey could move, isolating her hips, bouncing with the beat, and even smiling

As the breakdown came back around she grabbed your hand and wrapped you up against her

You rolled against her as the song was winding down.

It was perfect except at this moment fuck boy of the year decided to pull up

He wasted no time hopping out the car and making his way over to interrupt the moment.

he got in between you two “So you like bitches now huh?”

You opened your mouth to cuss his ass out when a crunching sound halted the party

You bald baddie had a spear a god damn spear and had just put it through the hood of the fuckboymobile

Calmly she removed her spear leaving it a smoking mess

She glided past his dumb ass and gently placed her arm around your shoulders, leading you back toward her friend

He was laughing and shaking his head “Aye! She took yo bitch nigga!”

Shuri

She finna

A good best friend is something to hold on to, luckily for you

YOUR BEST FRIEND WAS THE MUTHA FUCKIN SHIT!

She was smart, beautiful, a badass baddie all around

So when you found her in her lab pouting it was your duty to cheer her up

“What’s wrong?”

“I can’t get these calculations to line up for a new invention.”

She was squinting at a screen

Since the battle, she had been staying up all hours creating new ways to keep her family and her people safe

Sometimes even a genius needs to be reminded she’s human

You link your kimoyo beads to her speakers

Go best friend that’s my best friend

You begin to chant with the song

“I’m not in the mood.”

“I don’t give a fuck what mood you in. Throw that ass in a circle lil booty.”

She rolled her eyes and got up from her chair

You already had your hands up popping your chest, cheesing at her

She mimicked your movements with a straight face.

The gauntlet had been thrown

You went into a full body roll pointing at her

She countered by putting one leg up on her chair and poppin that little booty just like you taught her

Not to be shown up you put your hands on ya knees and throw that ass in a whole rhombus

Shuri opts for a milly rock pussy pop combo

In response, you prepare for your finishing move

You make it vibrate then drop into a split

Continuing to pop that pussy

Shuri squeals and gets down with you bouncing along and slappin you on the ass

You both fall out laughing and catching your breath

“Thanks bestie”

Reblog, leave a comment, talk to me

Tags: @ovoxosavage @therevolution-willbelive @mamipeachy @wakandas-vibranium @wakandan-flowerz @texasbama @randomwordprompts @@bartierbakarimobisson @maya-leche @theultimateblacknerdwithglasses @great-neckpectations @kumkaniudaku @blackgirloneshots @soldierandawar @babygirlofwakanda @to-the-water-ixazaluoh @sithlordslut @thorsthot @stevesthot @thattinycookiemonster @killmongersaidheyauntie @sunigyrl @daytimeheroicsonly @unholyxcumbucket @melaninmarvel @skysynclair19 @pocmarvelworks @wildaboutchrisevans-deactivated @palmsofgranate @non-stop-imagines @alanastormborn @6lackraconteur @tutufufuface @killmoncoochie @chefjessypooh @inlovewithmakeupcomicsanimelove

If you wanna be tagged or I forgot you or you wanna be removed LET ME KNOW!!!

#that good twerk #they throwing it #we catching it #valkyrie #okoye #shuri #StoriesbyStori #stori time #black panther #black girl magic #takin bitches and names #wakanda forever throwing that ass #thor ragnarok #QueuedbyStori

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recentanimenews · 2 years

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Spy x Family – 02 – Put a (Grenade) Ring on It

The world Loid and Anya live in is extremely paranoid and treacherous, with people fucking each other over as easily as breathing. Kind, innocent souls like Yor risk getting reported simply for being single, since its believed such spinsterism threatens the nation’s birth rate. So when one of her bitchy co-workers invites her to a party, she’d better have a man on her arm.

It speaks to how dark and unpleasant this world is that even otherwise decent people like Loid and Yor are spies and assasins, respectively. Yor in particular really sells the “Thorn Princess” persona with an absolutely killer costume. Indeed, Yor’s penchant for wearing elegant headbands, along with Hayami Saori’s soft, warm voice, instantly endear me to her.

Obviously, these two kids simply have to meet; their interests and departure from the norms of shitty society align too perfectly. It’s just a matter of when, and sure enough, it’s at a clothier. Loid needs to buy fancier clothes for Anya, while Yor needs her only nice dress, torn during her killings, repaired for the party.

Loid is struck by how easily Yor sneaks up on him and how she can feel his gaze, while Anya uses her mind-reading to clear Yor’s misunderstanding about Loid being married, thus facilitating an arrangement between the two. Loid will attend the party as Yor’s boyfriend, while Yor will attend the meeting at Eden as Anya’s mom.

Unfortunately, the party is on Saturday night, the same night Loid is ordered to steal art from some smugglers. He tries to fit both obligations in, which is a recipe for disaster, and while he’s able to take out 38 thugs without too much trouble, a 39th and 40th ram him with their car. Meanwhile, Yor has to endure the party all alone, exposing her to her co-worker’s scorn and mockery.

When Loid shows up at the last minute and accidentally introduces himself as Yor’s husband, he’s bloodstained from a “violent episode” from a patient, saying he’s a psychiatrist. Camilla is so pissed that Yor has such a hot partner that she tries to toss piping hot gratin on Yor, only for Yor’s catlike reflexes to kick in and not only avoid getting burned, but saves the food.

When Camilla brings up rumors about Yor going to the hotel rooms of gentlemen for “massages”, Loid simply says it’s splendid for someone to endure such trials and sacrifice for the sake of someone they love—in Yor’s case, her little brother Yuri. He may not know she’s an assassin, but she knows she’s better people than trash like Camilla and her ilk.

After taking their leave from those preening assholes, Loid ends up getting Yor tangled up in the leftovers of his art-stealing mission, as the smugglers try to kill them both. When Loid is nearly stabbed by one thug leaping down from a fire escape, Yor saves his damn life and impresses the hell out of him by kicking the baddie into the next zip code.

Reveling not only in how well they “work” together but that this Loid fellow clearly understands what it means to not be “normal” (i.e., what everyone else is and expects them to be), she ends up asking for the very thing Loid needs: marriage to a woman to seal Anya’s admission.

It truly is a mutually beneficial partnership, and it’s commemorated in the most spy/assassin-y way imaginable: the diamond ring Loid nicked fell through a hole in his pocket, so he uses the ring of a grenade on her finger instead. And just like that, we’ve got ourselves a Spy Family.

By: braverade

#Anime #News #RABUJOI – An Anime Blog

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thefauxfox-blog · 7 years

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A Catastrophe

(Alternate title- Purr-plexed. Alternate title 2- Meow What? Alternate title 3- Pawzzling. Alter-someone stop me)

Summary: Fluffy (literally) Sanders Sides fic where the Sides suddenly have a kitten and nothing makes sense anymore. but who cares, have you seen that kitten? cute. so so cute.

At this point, they'd all heard Patten scream enough that they didn't tend to hustle to his side anymore. Spiders, hot coffee spill, jelly staining his polo, existential crisis, someone using foul language, an especially cute birb video- they just didn't drop what they were doing and show up.

So when Logan heard Patten shriek, he finished his chapter, placed his bookmark, set the book down, and then made his way to the mind palace commons. He gathered a roll of paper towels on the way- useful for both killing spiders and mopping up stains.

When he arrived, he stopped dead.

Oh.

He opened his mouth. Then he closed it. Then he opened it again, and paused.

He… he was at a loss. Well. That was new. He'd never experienced this severity of perplexity before. The situation wasn't merely improbable, it was impossible. He would’ve briefly wondered if he was dreaming- but he didn’t really do that, Roma was the dreamer. But then how…?

“That is sooooooo cute!!! What's their name?” Patten was cooing, crouched over where Virgil and the…. other thing… was.

“I was thinking Ursula. Cause she's mostly black. And she's a total baddie,” Virgil said. “It's a girl.”

“Ursula?” Patten repeated,wrinkling his nose. “Isn't that an evil squid woman? Son, you are just such a dark villainous soul, and it’s frightening yet charming. Ursula it is!”

“Octopus, not squid,” Virgil corrected absentmindedly. He was staring down at the tiny thing.

Data. Logan needed more data. He approached cautiously, observing. Mostly black with brown tortoiseshell pattern. Calico, female. Short haired. Polydactyl front paws. Probably 9-10 weeks old. Comfortable with Virgil as demonstrated by the tucked in position, eyes closed, purring loudly.

“Great Odin’s beard, is that a kitten?!?!” Roman had finally joined them, and was dramatically pointing, arm fully outstretched at the thing.

“Yeah. It's a kitten. Her name is Ursula,” Virgil said protectively, petting the small creature.

“Virgil,” Logan finally managed. The anxiety avatar hummed to indicate his attentiveness, so Logan continued. “Virgil. Where- why- how do you have a cat?!?!”

“I dunno. I just woke up and she was curled up on my bed with me,” he said carelessly. “Jealous?”

“Technically, it would be envy, not jealousy, as envy is to covet while jealously is to hoard- and no, I am not either jealous nor envious. I am… Virgil, this can't happen.”

“I'll take care of her, don't be such a party pooper,” Virgil scoffed. “I'm the embodiment of worry and over thinking and stress, as if I’m ever going to neglect her. I’m like, the ideal cat owner.”

“Ohmigod. So you're a cat mom now! Except- you’re male, so cat dad? Is that a thing? We both are dads! High five, kiddo! So I get to be the cat granddad?” Patten said excitedly.

“No, I'm not your kid, and the cat isn't my kid either. She’s not my baby. We’re bros.”

“I can't believe you named her Ursula. Don't you think she looks more like an Aurora, or Tiana?” Roman grumbled, approaching to better appreciate the kitten.

“No, she's totally going to be a mischief cat, not some princess.”

“Like- there's this adorable cat I follow on instagram, his name is Oreo, and he steals bread, like, all the time. And it's so cute and naughty, the owners are like making a sandwich and they turn around and he's in the bread bag and has a slice-”

“Ursula is going to disrupt everyone's sleep and steal their socks and act cute but just be luring you in, and bite you, because she’s ferocious and terrifying and the coolest cat ever-”

“Or what about Mulan? I think she looks like a Mulan. She's not a water creature or a witch, and I've become well versed in both identifying and killing witches, I have been known far and wide for my prowess-”

“-but Oreo is running off with a whole piece of bread, half dragging, and they get to chase him, and-”

“She's my cat, so I'm naming her and she's going to take after me-”

“If she does turn out to be a witch, I will be forced into the terrible dilemma of killing evil but also killing cuteness-”

“HOW IS THERE A CAT?!?!”

Everyone went quiet at Logan’s exclamation. They all looked surprised.

“Whoa.”

“Loud much?”

“Rude.”

“You okay, son? That was just a liiiittle aggressive.”

“This doesn't make any sense. We are all- this can't just wander in here! We're not in reality, we're in Thomas’s head! He can manipulate our environment and we can manipulate the forms we present with, but to introduce a new creature that is a) not human, b) not an aspect of his personality, and c) not consciously created, is simply not possible. I do not understand and that is not okay,” Logan said, starting to get a little breathless and alarmed at the end.

“Look, I don't know how she got here. But here she is. I have a cat now. That's a thing, you can see and feel her, she's really here,” Virgil said. “That's reality. I don't know anything about cause, history, any of that, but I know present and I can give a pretty good guess at future stuff. History is your department. So if you wanna try and figure it out, sure, but I'm happy with her.”

“This doesn’t- this doesn't make any sense!”

“But it's happened.”

“No, no, no, no,” he said, pointing at each of them to emphasize. “We are figments of Thomas’s personality, and this is a created reality of consciousness, but we still have rules!”

“We also have a cat now,” Patten said delightedly.

“My cat,” Virgil grumbled.

“Let her be the judge of who’s cat she is, and may the best side win,” Roman said impetuously.

“Doesn’t this bother you? Does this bother any of you? This. Is. Not. Possible. We can’t just magically appear a cat!”

They ignored him in favor of coddling and cooing at the kitten. He let out an irate breath and sank out.

“Thomas,” he said, dropping in on him. Thomas yelped and smacked his keyboard.

“Oh! Jeez, you spooked me. What's up, Logan?” Thomas said, frowning at his screen and backspacing all the keyboard smash he'd accidentally put in.

“Virgil has a cat.”

Thomas looked unreasonably unbothered. Why was nobody else perturbed?

“That sounds pretty cool. Can you guys like… dream up cat food? Where does your garbage go? Am I going to be dealing with imaginary cat poop-,”

“No, those are all the wrong questions. Because Virgil can't have a cat. Because you are not a cat, and you don't have a cat side of your personality-,”

“I dunno, I like having my head scratched, and I've bit people before. It's certainly not a manifestation of any gracefullnes, though-”

“Can we please be serious for a minute!?!?”

“I'm not putting a tie on.”

“Oh, for- mmmmmm. Mmmm-mmmm. Okay. I need you to try and-” he pulled his flash cards out of his pocket and flipped through them for a moment before selecting something he hoped would convey the preponderance of the situation. “Be ‘hella legit’ for a moment.”

Thomas blinked at him.

“Was- was that not good? I thought if I combined two, it would have a multiplier effect on the level of colloquialism usage. No?”

“...no.”

“Okay. Alright. I’ll just take note of that. Won’t happen again. I am a work in progress,” Logan said quickly, scribbling himself a note on the back of the cards.

“Good. Okay. But- I’ll be… serious… for a minute. Why is it important that Virgil has a cat?”

“Because this is breaking the basic rules of our existence. I know that your reality has rules, of course- gravity, conservation of mass and energy, particle resistance and friction, colloid rules, etcetera, etcetera. Your world exists in a framework of parameters that simply cannot be crossed. Our reality is the same- though there are some different rules, because we are apparitions of personality traits and exist to your consciousness, on a different plane of perceived reality than ‘reality’, for lack of better terminology. Now, our mind palace can have temporary sprites- I believe they’re similar to a video game NPC- that are usually created by Roman, as he is creativity, but they’re not properly real. And our inanimate environment is subject to change at will as well, it doesn’t have to stay the same, as your reality does. And we can change our own appearances at will. But this- a real, live, sentient creature? It can’t have come from anywhere, it can’t exist, it can’t- it’s impossible.”

“But it has to be possible. Because it’s there.”

“It- well, we should say ‘she’, it’s a female calico kitten that Virgil deigned to name ‘Ursula’, to Roman’s horror- it is there. I cannot deny that. But I also cannot deny the rules of our reality. I have two directly opposing true statements that cannot exist simultaneously, but they do. The cat cannot exist. But the cat does exist.”

“This is like that Schrodinger thing, a little. But way cooler, because there’s no death.”

“The only similarity is the species of the subject, Thomas, this isn’t an existential paradox of the same manner as that. Try and keep up,” Logan said impatiently. “What could’ve created this cat?”

“I dunno.”

“Perhaps we need a new angle.”

“Wait- you said right when you showed up- ‘those are the wrong questions’. We need to trace it back to the start. So instead of asking what created this cat, what can we ask and answer? Something that exists now, or will exist eventually.”

“Why was this cat created? Perfect, Thomas, that’s exactly where I need to start. If I can divulge the motive, perhaps I can better understand the origins. What are cats good for?”

“Memes,” Thomas said without hesitation, confidently.

“Great. No. I mean- yes, but why would a cat be good for your mind?”

“Uh… cats are… pets? And they’re something you need to be responsible for.”

“Why would your mind need additional responsibility?”

“Becoming an adult?” Thomas suggested with a shrug.

“No, no… I don’t think that’s it. I don’t think a cat would exist to create more responsibility. I suspect that the existence of the kitten isn’t to create something, but to modify. Within minutes of us discovering it, our entire relationship dynamics changed. Our usual patterns were broken and we all- or, the others did- began to focus on the cat. Why?”

“Diversion,” Thomas said excitedly.

“Diversion! Of course! The cat is distracting us from something.”

“Cats are also comforting. Usually. People go to cats when they’re sad or lonely. The stereotype of the lonely single person with a cat exists for a reason- it doesn’t represent every case, but it does represent some. Cats aren’t useful like dogs are, they’re just cozy and soft.”

“Do you require additional comfort?”

“I don’t think so. I don’t. Wait- the kitten… she appeared to Virgil?”

Logan could feel the realization starting to form, like a half forgotten song or a sense of a coming rainstorm. It was just there, just…

“Virgil got a cat. A comfort creature that is distracting and creates additional responsibility.” He rubbed his chin, thinking, alternately chasing the idea and trying to just let it come on it’s own. “Comfort, responsibility, distraction… Oh. OH! Oh, we’re- I’m an idiot, it was right in front of me, we both knew- it’s all for him. It’s all for him! Your anxiety!”

“What?”

“Thomas. You’ve been working harder with your friends to understand and manage your anxiety, through diet change, meditation, cognitive behavioral changes, and self-monitoring. You created the cat- the cat is your efforts to placate your anxiety without putting him off completely!”

“I’m not following. I made the cat?”

“You made the cat, yes! Look- people can often get a doctor’s note for a landlord or a college room assistant if they have mental health issues and need a cat. Because cats create responsibility- a person is much less likely to commit suicide if they have a cat, because they know that if they’re gone, nobody will care for the cat. Just that small responsibility is frequently enough to help people push forwards and keep living. Cats are also distracting- stressors like work, classes, homework, socialization, home maintenance, etcetera are all lessened when you have a cat. People tend to spend less time thinking about their problems and worrying, replacing those negative thoughts with thoughts about their cat. And cats are comforting, for when someone is upset or anxious.”

Thomas’s mouth had opened slightly. “Whoa. Whoa. Okay, so… so you’re saying that my anxiety management techniques manifested in the mind palace as a cat?”

“Precisely! Now, this doesn’t get rid of your anxiety, but it keeps him from bothering you. He might be distracted by the cat, or caught up in his cat-caretaking responsibilities, or be too comfortable and at ease to bother you.”

“That’s… that’s actually super cool,” Thomas said, starting to giggle.

“Your subconscious did it, obviously, or else we all would’ve known. Your subconscious recognized your attempts to placate your anxiety, and drew upon the information that cats can help with mental health, and manifested that as a cat. Fascinating. You make some very odd leaps of logic, Thomas.”

“Well, you’re me, and you’re my logic, so that’s on you,” Thomas laughed. He suddenly gasped. “Can I- can I see this kitten? Can you guys bring her out with you?”

“I’m not sure. I don’t have any precedents to draw upon. Give it a try.”

“Virgil! Ursula!” Thomas called. Then he gasped delightedly. “Ohmigod. That. Is. So. Cute.”

“It worked,” Logan concluded as Virgil looked around, holding the tiny black and brown kitten protectively.

“Oh hey. Figure out the mystery yet?” Virgil said. He nodded at Thomas. “Check it. I got a kitten. Sick, right?”

“Is the cat sick already-?!?”

“Stop. Taking. Me. So. Literally,” Virgil said with a groan. “Dude. Seriously-”

“He’s wearing a tie, he’s always serious,” Thomas said. “That is the cutest kitten ever. My subconscious is awesome.”

“Your subconscious needs to stop pulling this strange and unexpected hokum because it’s wasting my time to figure it out. I’ve got more important things to do,” Logan scoffed.

“But Logan. Look at this kitten. Just- just look at her. Tell her she wasted your time.”

He looked at the kitten. “You….” Her eyes were big and round, the fur around them appearing to be improbably soft, and her nose was so tiny…

He tried again. “You, cat, are…” Virgil was giving him a wide eyed stare that was somewhat analogous to the look the animated deer, Bambi, often wore in the Disney film about the creature and his woodland friends. Somehow, the cat was also wearing a look similar. He cleared his throat. He could do this.

“Cat. You are wasting…”

He couldn’t.

“It’stooadorableIhavetogetoutofhere,” he said in a rush, sinking out. He could hear Thomas laughing, Virgil laughing (Virgil?! Laughing? Anxiety was LAUGHING!? What kind of miracle kitten…?) and the stupid adorable impossible cat purring.

Author’s note: This was supposed to be short. I started this on my phone last night after getting home at 10 from watching IT. I don’t know where this idea came from, but there you have it. It happened. And I’m absolutely taken by the Sanders Sides, if anyone wants to send me requests or prompts, I might very well write them!

#sanders sides #fic #sanders fic #lamp #fluff #cute #cats #drabble #virgil sanders #logan sanders

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the-desolated-quill · 7 years

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The Bells Of Saint John - Doctor Who blog

(SPOILER WARNING: The following is an in-depth critical analysis. If you haven’t seen this episode yet, you may want to before reading this review)

Yeah, that was an okay episode, wasn't it? I mean The Bells Of Saint John had the potential to be a truly great episode had Moffat put the effort in, but after some of the crap I’ve had to put up from him recently like Bullshit Of The Daleks and The Angels Take The Piss, at this point I’m prepared to settle for okay.

First of all it’s nice to have a threat that isn’t alien invaders trying to take over the world for a change. Snatching people’s souls using the Wi-Fi is an inherently creepy idea that Moffat uses to great effect. It’s not in your face like a Dalek or a Cyberman. The threat is actually far subtler as you realise just how vulnerable we really are. Wi-Fi has become such an integral part of our lives and 24 hour surveillance has become so commonplace that it’s easy to imagine some malevolent force using the Wi-Fi to take control. That’s what makes it so chilling.

While this is all revealed at the end to be the work of the Great intelligence (did you catch the Classic Who reference? The Web Of Fear? The world wide web? Nice!), the focus is exclusively on the humans behind the plot, and again it’s really refreshing to see human baddies for a change. Celia Imrie does a marvellous job as Miss Kizlet. She has such a great presence on screen and has so many memorable lines. My favourite in particular was when she was comparing what she was doing to working at an abattoir:

“No one loves cattle more than Burger King.”

Also bonus points to Moffat for finally writing a female character that isn’t a dominatrix that speaks only in sassy putdowns and sexual innuendo, a mother figure who’s entirely defined by her reproductive system, or a one dimensional cardboard cutout that has no life outside of the male protagonist. See! I knew you could do it!

Miss Kizlet is a woman who clearly enjoys the power she has over people and has benefitted a lot from working with the Great intelligence, hence why she’d be willing to throw her morals to the side. And the final twist at the end when she’s restored to her factory settings and reverts back to the mindset of a child was undoubtedly the creepiest part of the episode. The Great intelligence has effectively ruined her life for his own ends and he presents a very different kind of threat from previous Who baddies.

The plot itself is fairly decent overall and there are some great set pieces like the scene with the crashing plane and the Doctor riding his anti-grav bike up the Shard, but, as I said at the beginning, this episode had the potential to be so much more and there are some areas where The Bells Of Saint John kind of trips up. First of all, the idea of something living in the Wi-Fi is pretty much the same premise as The Idiot’s Lantern with the Wire stealing people’s faces through the televisions (although to Moffat’s credit, The Bells Of Saint John is far more enjoyable to watch than The Idiot’s Lantern was). In fact Moffat recycles a lot of ideas here. The data cloud stuff is similar to the data ghosts in the Silence In The Library two parter, and the Spoonheads seem to be a cross between the Nodes from the Library two parter and the Smilers from The Beast Below. In fact I really wish Moffat had cut out the Spoonheads altogether. As I said, the reason why the episode works is because of how subtle the threat is. Adding in random robots just tramples over the creepy atmosphere. Why couldn’t they have stolen people’s souls through the webcams or something instead? That would have been far scarier, playing into people’s paranoia about how someone can hack into your computer and spy on you through the webcam.

There’s one idea I don’t think Moffat does nearly enough with and that’s the idea of hacking people. Miss Kizlet uses her iPad to change her employees’ IQ, paranoia, conscience, can upload new skills and knowledge into them and can even control people directly. That has the potential to be really scary, but it’s sadly left by the wayside. Also there are bits of it that don’t really make sense. We see Miss Kizlet change her henchman’s conscience and paranoia levels when he starts asking too many questions and raises another’s IQ in order to find a way of killing the Doctor and Clara, but what I don’t understand is why she doesn’t just lower the conscience and paranoia levels completely and max out the IQ. Wouldn’t that be more effective?

Let’s quickly talk about the main characters. In the previous episode, the Doctor vowed to find Clara. Here we see him sitting on his arse in a monastery, painting pictures of her and only finds her when she just happens to ring him on his phone. That’s an interesting way of looking for someone. I must admit I’ve never tried that one before.

Yeah, if I had to pick a weak link, I’d say it was definitely the Doctor. I know I must be sounding like a broken record, but Matt Smith’s goofiness really does just grate on my nerves. I think what exacerbates it even more in this episode is Murray Gold’s soundtrack over the top of it trying to make the character seem more whimsical as opposed to really, bloody irritating. (Also, no Doctor. You haven’t invented the quadricycle. Quadricycles have been a thing since 1896 and were first developed by Henry Ford, so do be quiet, you silly little man). It’s not all bad I admit. His new outfit looks nice and I liked his confrontation with Miss Kizlet near the end. Matt Smith can often do serious really well. It’s when he tries to be funny when I suddenly feel the urge to reach through the screen and strangle him with his own bow tie.

And then there’s Clara. I remember at the time dreading this episode because of how much I hated the character in her previous two appearances. The very thought of her becoming a companion just made me want to tear my hair out in frustration. When I did finally watch the episode, I breathed a sigh of relief as Clara is... I wouldn’t go so far as to say she’s likeable now, but she’s definitely more tolerable this time around. Jenna Coleman seems to have toned the smugness down a touch, although there were still some moments that annoyed me, like when she called the TARDIS a snogging booth or when she and the Doctor were fighting over the laptop. (Moffat, I know it’s difficult, but can you at least try to write her as though she’s an actual human being?). I also don’t buy that anyone could be this clueless about how to work a computer. I mean I’m technologically illiterate and even I know how the Wi-Fi works. Unless she’s Amish, i’m calling bullshit.

That being said, I must confess it’s nice to have a companion that’s slightly more skeptical about the Doctor and isn’t immediately bowled over by him like the previous New Who companions were. It’s just a shame that the only reason Clara is joining the TARDIS is because of some bullshit mystery surrounding her. Remember the good old days when companions were fully realised, three dimensional characters that had their own lives and hobbies and motives and desires, and decided to travel with the Doctor through time and space just because it sounds like a fun thing to do? Sigh.

Overall, The Bells Of Saint John is a fairly decent episode that’s occasionally very creepy. It’s frustrating that Moffat didn’t explore the premise to its full potential, but I suppose you can’t expect miracles. Just be grateful this episode is even vaguely watchable.

#the bells of saint john #steven moffat #doctor who #eleventh doctor #matt smith #clara oswald #jenna coleman #the great intelligence #bbc #review #spoilers

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