#there better be some explanation in s7 for this choice
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hello! i was watching ian and mickey scenes through *the* youtube channel, i'm not too deep into the lore of the fandom but! i read that noel wanted to be paid more for his role which is why they wrote him off on s6 etc. reading some comments through clips from the other seasons he is not in i saw that the ''reasons'' as of why ian seems not to care of him was because of his medication and pretending to keep himself steady but with s7 it went down after seeing him again + monica's death (and that's also why he's maniac again :0) thankfully right after they're back together which makes my serotonin skyrocket! i mostly read fics that are a sort of fix it or with mickey coming back right after monica dying etc. i didn't know about these infos before so i thought it was kind of fanon that ian goes maniac because of that and that he never said ''i love you'' to anyone but mickey. i wanted to ask you what is your take on ian's feelings when mickey wasn't around? gotta say that it makes me feel way better knowing that despite their effort to remove mickey from the series they managed to make it was all about him/leading back to them together! i hope i didn't disturb you with this ask but im having feelings!!! eheh
hi there! totally valid to have ✨feelings✨ about this, especially when you first start diving into their history and relationship!! my own deep-dive under the cut:
I do believe Noel left bc of contract renegotiations, yes. and after that fans were not happy with (and were very vocal about) the show trying to 'replace' Mickey with other boyfriends for Ian and having Ian badmouth Mickey etc. anyway, if we're keeping this to in-universe explanations as to how Ian felt about Mickey during those seasons, my interpretation is this: at the start of s6, Ian was in a very, very bad place. we see that at some point he started taking his meds (despite his previous refusal to do so like during the breakup in 5x12) but he's very clearly going through depression at that stage. let's keep in mind that at the time he was dealing with accepting his diagnosis, something he struggled a lot with both bc of the comparisons with Monica and bc of how much he valued his independence, so acknowledging the need for outside help and someone to care for him when he's not feeling well is particularly hard for him. he also just came out of a long period of being unmedicated--I've seen people suggest symptoms first started manifesting at the end of s3, and might've influenced his decision to go off to the army with everything that that brought as a consequence and all the choices he made as a result of that.. his life had changed dramatically in that period (he dropped out of school, left his home and his siblings, worked in nightclubs as a minor and of course he went through all that traumatic stuff with Mickey from 3x06 onward) so at the beginning of s6 he makes the decision to basically just put all of that behind him. Ian has a tendency to compartmentalize, which means he took all the bad things that had happened to him up until his diagnosis (and everything that reminded him of that, ie Mickey) and tried to forget about them, so that he could move on in some way. of course at this point Mickey was in prison and expected to remain there for the next 8 to 15 years, so that was another thing Ian made the decision to put out of his mind, bc it all hurt too much to deal with. so he made a new life for himself. which I'm very proud of him for! I love his journey to become an emt <3 dating-wise, choices were made. not necessarily by Ian though, by which I mean he kinda fell into those relationships, going through the motions because of how uncertain he was feeling at that time, and ending up dating people that should've maybe definitely had been fuck buddies at most. anyway, let's not dwell on that ajkds and let's get back to Mickey. the whole 'out of sight out of mind' thing obviously crashes and burns for Ian once Mickey shows up again, right there in front of him. that rush of deep-buried feelings must have been overwhelming. and yeah, I do agree that Ian's manic state through s8 was probably a result of the double hit of Monica's death and losing Mickey again--for all Ian knew, for good this time. and he absolutely never said I love you to anyone but Mickey, bc he's never loved anyone but him. they were it for each other from the start!! thank god the show finally got with the program at some point lol and gave us the happy ending they truly deserved ❤️
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So jonerys was the main ship of the show according to some fans. What exactly that ship bring to the story? Nobody on show give the damn and only few people know about Jon and Dany. The main concern was Jon and Dany committed incest, Jon claim was better than her and Dany being threat to him and his family which leads him to kill Dany. She died childless with no legacy and Jon goes to wall supposedly moving on. So what was the hype?
There really was no point to it. After the finale, D&D’s choices are more bizarre then I found them while watching s7-8!
In the end, I don’t think it was necessary to the plot or the characters, and the way they chose to insert it into the story undercut so much of what they’d been building to for years.
I’d understand Jxnerys a whole lot more if Dark Dany wasn’t a thing because then Jon had to choose between his lover who wants to be queen and his family who wants to be free and killing her would have been a really dark thing to do. But that option went out the window when Dany massacred a city of innocents.
Maybe they thought it was necessary to make killing her difficult? Like, if she was just a baddie, not Jon’s lover, then maybe they worried killing her would be a foregone conclusion? But that ignores the fact that Jon would have felt horrible for killing a woman anyway, and kinslaying is a big deal. They didn’t need to be lovers to make it extra bad, it was already really bad, as bad as it can be in-world. I would say it was the explanation for bending the knee except in s8 that picked back up all the s7 stuff about sacrificing a crown/being king for the good of your people, they actually used that to contrast Jon with Dany, so that wasn’t their purpose.
The idea of Dany thinking she had everything only to lose it all (I suppose???) was meant to heighten the tragedy of her turn, but while book Dany is young and infatuated with Daario, it was really weird to make show Dany that obsessed with a guy. As a Jon fan, I was very upset about the coercion and threats she used against him, but I didn’t like making rejection by her lover play a role in her burning KL which is how a lot of people took it. To me that undercut all the buildup to Dany as a conqueror who decided to prioritize her throne over the people.
If they wanted Jon and his claim to be instrumental in her trajectory, they could have had Jon using it as part of negotiations to free the North and then we would have an understandable (evil, but logical) reason for her to burn KL which is for her to tell him, “defy me and this happens to your home and family.” That’s how I took her burning Varys, but the writing was just so confused that the threat she was to his family/the North was ignored and then denied. Since Jon didn’t have an interest in the throne and was loyal to her (and therefore she had control over the Northern army), her decision to burn KL didn’t even truly make sense as a way to prevent a rebellion and topple her, an evil but believable motivation.
Maybe the idea was to use Jxnerys to lead Jon down a dark path? But if that’s it they should have condemned him, or they should have used it to have him totally cave in on himself and doubt everything/all his decision making because he gave away his people’s freedom to a monster and fucked his aunt, but no, they don’t use it for that either because we just get nothing from Jon all season.
So, I agree that is served no purpose for the characters or on a plot level. It could have, but it didn’t. I do think it’s possible they wrote it in for fan service/to hide Dark Dany because it just did nothing. They don’t even use it as the reason Jon goes South in s8. He doesn’t do it because he wants to be with Dany or believes in her, he goes as a matter of honor, so it’s just…it served no function. Actually, I take it back, it is the reason Dany trusted Jon enough to let him be alone with her which allowed him to kill her. I guess that was the reason! 😬
I think very often creators do a better job selling their product than they do with creating their product, so, people bought into the idea of J/D because ice/fire and epic romance blah blah blah, and missed how that relationship was actually written, what it did to the characters, how it did nothing for the story (derailed it, honestly), and focused more on the idea of it that was sold in interviews than anything that actually made it into the show because you’re right, the way they wrote it made it not matter! 🤦🏻♀️
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Let's talk about 8x04
(Skipping writing about episode 3 because of obvious reasons.)
At this point, it's getting very hard to tell what is Pol!Jon and what is "oh no I fucked my aunt". Their relationship is disintegrating fast.
1) Sansa's motivations.
If there's anything this episode confirmed for me, it's that Sansa is not motivated by a desire for personal gain (not that I had doubts before).
Her line from S6 comes to mind:
"If we don't take back the North, we'll never be safe."
That's it. That's her motivation in a nutshell. Two things are important here, being safe and the North. In her mind they are inextricably linked.
I think she believes (for good reason) that for her and her family's safety, a Stark has to have power in the North. Exactly which Stark is much less important (she's ready to make Bran Lord of Winterfell, she loyally kept Jon's crown safe through S7, he's still the Warden in the North even tho she's the Lady of Winterfell). Basically, Stark power in the North means safety to her.
Another motivation for her is Northern Independence. I think a part of that is again linked to Starks being in power in the North. She doesn't trust people sitting on the Iron Throne. And a part of it is the independence part. She, her family and much of the North bled and died for that independence, and she cannot give it up so easily.
The real motivation she has in this episode tho is protecting Jon. She says as much herself. Tyrion points out that with Jon in the South, Sansa is the power in the North, but Sansa's mind is on keeping Jon North (aka safe). The moment she told Tyrion his secret kinda reminded me of Cat freeing Jaime. It's a dangerous gamble that they're taking, but in that moment they decide to fuck it because if the gamble pays off, then the people they love (Sansa, Arya, Jon) will be safe. Sansa is fighting for Jon in this moment.
2) I don't wanna bitch about Dany but....
Can't she have said any throwaway line acknowledging the whole "the man I thought is my father actually isn't my father" crisis Jon was probably having inside his head??? Did she really just make his parentage all about her?? Nobody tell me she loves him.
Honestly, I think she's a great character (in the books). Going down a dark path, yes, but still great. The show makers appear to be hurrying along her descent now. This entire scene was jarring.
Moving on from the bitching-
Danaerys is really doubling down on the "what's mine", "the rightful Queen", and even "her destiny" now. The problem is that she's technically wrong. Jon has a better claim than her, and she knows it. Saying that he could take what's hers is plain incorrect. Now if she said, "fuck claims anyway. I've worked for this Throne" I would respect that. At least it's self aware.
3) The lady doth protest too much..?
I think Jon spent half this episode saying, "I don't want the Throne", "you are my Queen", and "she'll be a good Queen". Maybe I'm imagining it, but there is urgency in his words. He's trying to convince the people he is talking to. Who is he talking to?
Dany, Sansa and Arya.
Funny thing tho, in that same conversation with Sansa and Arya, it's established that he "did what he had to" because they needed Danaerys to fight the WW. Now this doesn't contradict his tag lines this episode exactly...but they don't seem entirely congruent with each other either. "Had to" implies a reluctance. Like his hand was forced. At the same time, even tho he keeps talking about how she'll be a good Queen, he provides no reasons for why he believes that, no explanation...only these lines. It makes for an unconvincing argument (sorry Jon).
Someone does say that Dany would be a good Queen because "people follow her" (either Tyrion or Jon) but we already know that's not true. People have not followed her since she came to Westeros, and while the show makes a point of establishing that Jon is liked by his people all the more for his role in the Great War, the same cannot be said for Dany.
So here we have Jon and Tyrion both defending "their Queen" hard. It is known that Tyrion, despite his protests, is having serious doubts about Dany. It is known that he is afraid of her (Sansa establishes that in her conversation with him). It is known that he is aware of her "worst impulses".
Why then, is Jon not? Why is he not having serious doubts? Why is he not afraid of her? Why is he not aware of her worst impulses? How can he not be?
The simple answer is, he is.
4) the "stfu or I stg" look.
The look he gives Sansa during the battle planning meet where she suggests letting the troops rest. Honestly? It's a sound suggestion. Jon, who has been Lord Commander, led people in battle, and is generally not known for mistreating his troops should agree with her. So why does he shut her down so hard, and with that look?
Dany says, "the longer I wait, the stronger my enemies grow". Which enemies?
It's a safe assumption to make that Dany is including Sansa in that list of enemies. As Tyrion says to Sansa (I don't remember the words exactly) but something to the effect of "it's easier to give in to her (Dany)" and Sansa immediately catches that Tyrion is afraid of Dany.
Now Jon is forcing Sansa to give in to Dany.....you see where I'm going with this.
This, along with his insistence that Dany is his Queen and she will be a good Queen....
Here's the thing. There are three things that could be happening here.
First, Jon is afraid of Dany and is being extremely accommodating to keep the heat off himself, and forcing Sansa to do the same.
Second, he's really Stockholm Syndromed his way into falling in love with Dany and he means everything he says.
Third, he has miraculously lost his critical thinking skills, his ability to see and hear Dany making some very dark threats (itching to burn KL, increasingly paranoid about Tyrion and Sansa, only concerned with the better claim that Jon now has on her Throne) and all his brain cells.
I know which of these things I want to believe.
5) In love?
Are Jon and Dany in love?
Danaerys is not. She felt something for him, yes, but now that she's discovered his parentage....her priorities are abundantly clear. She does not trust him, she is concerned only with the consequences this reveal has on her claim.
Her reaction is a mix of legitimate fear that this may be the end of her, a more concerning sentiment of "what it will do to the people" because what exactly will it do to the people...? A fear that he will "take what's hers" nevermind that she's supposed to love and trust him and he hasn't done anything himself to prove he's untrustworthy, and a fear of what it will do to "us" (?what?).
Does this make me think she honestly loves him? No.
Does he love her? It doesn't look like it. But we've already established that it's never particularly looked like he loves her. The question now is why does he keep insisting that he is subservient to her? Where does Pol!Jon end and the breakdown of their relationship begin?
The greatest irony of Jonerys is that it's supposed to be the most epic love story, but it's the story of two people that are incapable of truly loving each other.
6) are you seriously telling me
Are you seriously telling me that Jon reluctantly gives away his crown to this woman because he felt that he was left with no choice (and the woman greatly contributed to making him feel that way) and he simultaneously falls in love with her?
Honestly? It's a bit reminiscent of Yggrite. The entire story from Jon going to Dragonstone till now is very reminiscent of Yggrite. I would just like to believe that Jon's character has developed and grown since Yggrite.
And if Dany is Yggrite, then she's an Yggrite who is threatening mass murder and the lives of Jon's family. Are you seriously telling me Jon is capable of loving that (in a healthy way)?
My god. I get what people say now about Jon's character being assassinated. Pol!Jon is really my only option if I want to keep his character somewhat consistent. I guess we have to make our own consistency in this world too.
Note- these are only my ramblings and they are filled with my personal opinion and biases. I'm only saying what I think, not that I'm right.
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We’ll find out tonight if our predictions are correct!
Responses to the written questions are under the cut.
Where is Ned and what is he doing?
No idea
Business trip
Dealing with some financial issues.
Doing business in UC or Hamilton. Nothing major
He stayed behind next episode and will be back in the finale.
I think planning something for Florence, maybe expansion for the mercantile?
I don't know
I have no idea, wth!?!?
Yo i have no idea. I'm gonna take a wild guess and say he's trying to contact Florence's daughter who wasnt there for the wedding
Maybe he's visiting his daughter? Or expanding the Mercantile somehow
With Mike. Oil pipeline
Hiding
It sure
I have no clue honestly, maybe planning a surprise for Florence?
Perhaps...expanding his store? Or ordering something new to begin to be shipped to his.
something related to factory
Sussing out suppliers
Maybe something to do with the Wyman guy?
visiting his daughter
Buying a new house or a surprise for Florence
Visiting Abigail
Planning something special for Florence
He is doing something with his daughter
No clue
With his daughter
Planning to expand the mercantile to include deliveries (Hope Valley Amazon) lol
Not sure
I really dont know!
Made out a Will since he now is married to Florence
Business in Union City
Business, but he’ll be back
I don’t Know
I dont know. This one threw me!
Literally have no idea
maybe he will come back with his daughter who will come to live at HP
some sweet surprise/gift for Florence
He is involved im some growth in HV.
Taking care of business.
He's making a business deal somewhere
I have no idea. I think it was a weird to put in o.O
Making purchases for the store.
Business stuff somewhere
I don't know
i don't know
ned things
He just took the long way home...
Adopting Flo's son
Hiding
He is picking up a surprise order gift for Florence, and it’s taking longer than expected.
Fighting attempt to take over mercantile
Talking to a divorce lawyer. Or putting a pillow over Abigail's mom's face so she can bury her already and come back to Hope Valley for his buddy Henry's sake.
Honestly I’m not sure but interested to find out!
Idk honestly. Probably actually doing something sweet for Florence but she doesn't know it.
What's up with the Pinkertons?
Not sure
A storyline to bring a change of pace to the show.
I really Don’t know
Not sure, but I don’t think it will be resolved this season, maybe it’s the cliffhanger?
I don't know
They’re hired thugs like they were in S1, just there to show Walden is a bad guy despite appearances
Factory related
Up to no good! Don’t trust them.
Yo i dont even know. They look totally sketch but they are probably the good guys actually. I'm predicting they are after someone who's been wanted for a long time. I think it may be too easy to link them with the guy who took Jesse and Clara's money
Not sure yet
Working for Waldon
Railroad
Sneakily buying land
I couldn't care less about them
Perhaps something is in the cabin/someone they don't want found.
No idea
Something to do with the mine disaster (even though it's been ages).
we will see in season 9
Setting up a good storyline for season 9
Not sure maybe something to do with the new factory that might be built
Maybe it has to do with Henry
I have no idea, but I do not like them!
No good
Buying all the land
They have Jesse. Someone wants to reopen the mine and seek revenge on Elizabeth for his son going to jail (Spurlock).
Looking for some kind of hidden good
Shady dealings going on
Guarding the future factory site. But something extra at the cabin connected with Spurlock.
Trouble
?
An even bigger I dont know on this one. Like, what in the world???
Holding Jesse captive
I think they kidnapped Jesse because he found out what they were up to but I have no idea what that is
stumped on this one
That is difficult. He is apparently connected to S1 Spurlock. Is he there for revenge? Or, just a heavy hand like his relative?
Revenge? They want to take over Hope Valley.
Something sketchy, probably bigger than just whatever is going on with the cabin though.
Land grab
No clue but they'll be one of the big bads next season
They are probably the goons of the Industry dude
They are working for somebody bigger.
They want to take over the town
I don't know
i'm worried about Nathan
idk they are the bad daddys of the season
they can only be there to cover up a crime, or some valuable find
No clue
They’re wanting to uproot Hope Valley for better business by destroying the town.
Keeping identity of mastermind safe from townspeople.
Maybe looking for Ned, who alternatively is a serial killer and now on the run. Possibly for the murder of Abigail's mother?
I’m so confused lol
Creating a monopoly & doing some villain nonsense (as it would seem the show is hinting).
Any other thoughts going into the finale?
No
There will be at least one surprise- not sure what
There are too many loose ends to tie up in one episode and I just want Elizabeth and Nathan together (and perhaps quickly married in this episode!)
I’m honestly really nervous, I’m rooting for Nathan but I have a feeling she’ll go for Lucas, I really don’t mind Lucas as a character but like what storylines can they do with them as a couple? The manuscript is finished, they’ve gone on every sort of date at this stage and she’s been in his office. What else can they do? With Nathan they can do the being scared because of his job again but making it different, there’s children involved now, it’s not just Elizabeth. Jack won’t understand but Allie will 100% feel worried for him. Also Allie having a mother figure, especially at this stage in her life, how could you not want it! The blended family as the main family would be so nice for this show, I know it’s been done before but they will be fairly front and centre in the show. Sorry for the rant, I love your blog so much! I don’t have tumblr so I can’t leave comments or like your gifs but I thoroughly enjoy all your theories and opinions!!
Just ready for this stupid love triangle to be over!
I’d love to actually see Henry meet up with Abigail, but doubt it. I hope they have Clara do something heroic for Jesse, but also doubt it. Henry will definitely be putting Hickam in charge at least temporarily. I think Ned will return but we won’t get a full explanation yet. And the dramatic ending won’t be the triangle choice, it’ll be Elizabeth losing the school.
Allie’s adoption finalized and reaction to Elizabeth choosing Nathan is something we should see.
Glad the triangle will be DONE!!
I hope that Elizabeth follows her heart and not pick someone who is a safe option.
I wish Faith were leaving instead of Carson. Also, I think there will be lots of set up for problems with the school board and Elizabeth. Also, I want more little Jack scenes but i don't think we'll get much since child acting laws and covid combined make that difficult
Excited for Elizabeth to move on from her past and enter a new adventure with either of the two men and really just everything else (Rosie and Lee, Fiona, Henry.)
I hope Faith doesn’t end up with whoever doesn’t get chosen by Elizabeth.
hopefully the finale will clear up the drawn out love triangle
The triangle was waaaaay drawn out. Be done and choose.
Nathan and Faith......would be great......
No matter who Elizabeth chooses I'm SOOOO READY to get this over with!
Kindness matters - no matter who she chooses. Isn't that why most of us watch the show
I am so over the love triangle and just want to know who Elizabeth picks.
Worried about the fandom more than anything
Elizabeth please pick Nathan
It's just a TV show and no matter what , it's there for our entertainment. I do think they're setting things up for the return of Abigail in some way.
The must be a Season 9!!!
I hope Fiona does not get involved with Mike.
Hopefully things get back to normal for Elizabeth and Rosemary
Interested to see the other storylines. I want Elizabeth to choose Nathan but I think JT will throw us off. From the promo pic, it looks like they will try to put Faith with Nathan.
- I just want Elizabeth to chose so that this storyline can come to an end and we can finally get to see her marriage and functioning has a wife. - Wonder what will become of Lucas once her choice is made. - I would like Lucas to have a proper storyline that doesn't involve Elizabeth or the love triangle. - I would love to see Rosemary and Lee finally become parents however that may happen. I feel like the writer just left them in limbo about it and keep teasing but never delivering on anything.
Hopefully will end with Nathan but the very last minute. I would prefer more romance before the finale
Elizabeth will have to decide on what’s important with school.
Jack might make an appearance in a dream scene?
So excited! I hope I don't wake up my kids while watching.
I hope they don’t pick Lucas
CLARA DISCOVERS SHE IS PREGNANT
?
Just excited for this to be over. I know we needed it and I think overall it was handled decent enough, but I'm glad to finally move on.
Why is everyone so scared?
The whole season has been about getting over your fear. Elizabeth doesn’t have to deal with her emotions or real life with Lucas because school is out for the summer and she is working on her book. She needs to make up with Rosemary and get over the loss of Jack and fear to be with Nathan.
this season has been totally not what I expected...I thought the hug at end of season 7 was definitive and we'd get at least some Nathan courtship, not a complete U-turn to Lucas (with hopefully a turn to Nathan at the very end). I now think Season 9 will be what I expected season 8 to be, and I am very much looking forward to that.
Something sudden will allow Elizabeth to bring her feelings to light for everyone...Nathan. I think she will have decided by the time she takes of the rings, but will not have the opportunity to share with the man until later. Until she faces the prospect of him being in danger again? Full circle from the end of S7.
I need Elizabeth to really apologize to Rosemary. Rosemary has always been there for Elizabeth.
I’m so afraid :(
Hated the triangle
I am so ready to finally move on from this triangle!
They put waaaay too many storyline in the last 2 episodes, they will never manage to conclude them all and we'll have another weird random cliffhanger which will not tie in with the Christmas episode (If we're getting one ?)
I hope the guy who loses, has a good life in later seasons
The annoying love triangle will finally end. Elizabeth/Nathan are endgame, unless Jack suddenly comes back from the dead. But, I doubt it. I hope Lee/Rosemary are pregnant, or decide to adopt children. I just want Lee/Rosemary to have children. Can't wait to see how this season ends. Hopefully, it won't be a cliffhanger.
Nervous as hell
Elizabeth and Nathan get married
i kinda hope someone dies tbh it would make everything more interesting
Elizabeth was so tiresome this season, they could have told her story of overcoming grief in a much more relatable way. Why did they not just have her talking to Rosemary about how sad or exhausted or numb or angry she feels all the time? You know, something a widow would actually go through. At the very least she could have been stoic, instead she was just kinda bitchy.
Faith and Nathan will have some sparks; Elizabeth will choose Lucas and they will kiss twice one being at bridge one being at her home inside with baby jack present.Carson will leave; Jessie will be found; Ned will come back safely.
Lucas endgame, Nathan and faith have sparks, Rosemary paper, Jessie and Clara make up.
I think Henry will take his own advice and leave to find Abigail to see if there is still any hope for them. Though I like his character, I want him to finally be happy, and if that means staying with Abigail, then that’s what it means. I don’t think TPTB will bring back Lori soooo.... that means Henry would be the one possibly leaving. I also think some scare will happen with Nathan between him and the Pinkertons. Then it may come full circle at the end where Elizabeth runs to him like she did last season, but instead of hugging him, she’ll kiss him instead.
Hallmark execs dictated ending and will cut salaries to bring back Abigail, hence Paul leaving.
My condolences to whichever guy gets to look forward to being bored by Elizabeth for the rest of his life. Are we sure Jack's death wasn't a suicide?
Ready to see how it ends and already looking forward to next season!
I will be really disappointed if she chooses Lucas but I’m afraid that’s where it’s headed. Either way I don’t understand how they’ll end in “the healthy place” they’ve said it will be with so much left for one episode.
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Can you share how you'd grade druck, s5 and 6, wtfock s4 and Skam fr s5, 6 and 7 in the categories of effort and execution? Here's mine: Druck s5, Effort: A/ Execution: A, S6, Effort: A*/ Execution: B-; Wtfock S4, Effort: E/ Execution: U; Skam fr S5, Effort: B Execution: D, S6 Effort: B, Execution: C-, S7: Effort: D (downgraded for their failure to put up a convincing argument (thru the script/show) as to why Tiff, of all ppl, had to be the lead. Very unearned ) Execution: C
hi, Anon! thanks for your ask! ooooh ranking all the new/non s1-4 seasons?! so one threshold question is that i’m not exactly sure how you are defining “effort” but i presume it’s a combination of choice of main/themes for the season? and then writing/acting/etc. would fall under the “execution” category. generally, i vibe with your rankings, but i do feel like the letter rankings can feel a bit arbitrary without explanation so i’ve included a few more notes below:
Tier 1: (druck new gen deserves its own tier)
druck s5 (A/A): it helped going into this season with no expectations, but such a breath of fresh air. loved the introduction of the cashqueens (instas as an interesting foil to them); dissociation/mental health storyline hit all the right notes; and spiderwitz 💖
druck s6 (A/B+): i really loved this season; so many great themes (racism, dyscalculia; microaggressions; immigrant kid struggles!) fatou! 💖; a fully fleshed out love interest in kieu my 💖; non-white interracial wlw couple; sure, i would have altered some writing decisions in the back half of the season, but overall i quite enjoyed it.
Tier 2: (skam france is one of the most frustrating remakes to watch because the acting is generally good and the characters have so much potential, but they inevitably end up screwing it up in some way)
skamfr s5 (B/C-): important themes like disability and parental abuse waylaid by dramatics and multiple! cheating storylines; and of course, alexia deserved better.
skamfr s6 (B/C): i have such a soft spot for lola and her journey through grief and addiction, but the writers really put her through the ringer and the season devolved into dramatics and trauma porn. but bonus points for the intro of maya, sekou, and la mif.
skamfr s7 (D/C-): i agree with your take on tiff here - the choice of main (a bully) and her lack of earned redemption arc really doomed the season for me, and adding the racist tropes on top of it, well, not a fan. but bonus points for la mif playing a bigger role this season; max’s gender change in court storyline; and cute kids.
Tier 3: (wtfock were they thinking?!)
wtfock s4 (F/F): i still don’t understand how this season was greenlit nor do i think there was any real growth for the main by the end of the season; what was the takeaway message for the audience?; too much drone; do i need to say more?
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Sub Rosa [43]
xiv. red sky at morning
Pairing: Bellamy Blake x reader
Word Count: 5.6k
Warnings: violence, fighting, death, angst, blood, drugging for safe passage.
Summary: things don’t go according to plan on Luna’s rig, and everything you’ve been running from finally catches up.
a/n: hello lil moons, good news! I have now written and edited s6, which means we only have s7 left to fix write! also, I have a few things in the works so stay tuned for a few future announcements! okay, ily all and I hope you’re well! the taglist for this series is open! I hope you enjoy, please let me know what you think!!!
previous chapter // season masterlist // series masterlist
Luna disappears from the top of the rig before any of you can even catch her.
Instead, you’re all led into the rig and into a large room, where people are sitting around, eating, talking, listening to someone telling a story. One of Luna’s people tells you to wait here, and then they leave you alone, the five of you all staring at each other in confusion, wondering what to do next.
Jasper quickly decides that he no longer cares, and he leans back in his seat, listening to the story being told by the girl at the front of the room. Octavia sits motionless, and you start to worry that she’s in shock, not expecting that the Luna that Lincoln had told her about would turn you all away. You, Clarke, and Bellamy look around the room constantly, head turning towards the door every time you hear it open, searching for the woman who denied you.
You’re the first to spot her, Bellamy and Clarke looking the other way, and you reach out to touch each of them, getting their attention. “She's here.”
“Maybe she changed her mind,” Bellamy mumbles as he stands, and you and Clarke do the same, following him across the room and stopping in front of Luna.
Clarke opens her mouth to say something, but Luna beats her to the punch. “The boats return at nightfall. Then, you leave.” She pauses, and then adds, “Forever.”
Clarke tries again, “Luna, let us explain.”
“I said no.”
“No, you need to hear this.” Bellamy tries to reach out and grab her to stop her as she tries to walk away, but the man at her side reaches out for him and stops him. Still, she pauses, allowing Bellamy to continue, “There is something out there that is going to destroy us all.”
“Whatever it is, it can't reach us here.”
She brushes right past you, heading over to sit beside Octavia. You all stand there, dumbfounded, sure that you could convince her if you were given a second chance. Jasper gets up and leaves the two women, and you see Luna pass Lincoln's journal to Octavia, before you turn away with a frustrated huff.
After a brief conversation, Luna stands and leaves Octavia, before walking over to a couch against the wall with the man from earlier. They both lay back onto it, instantly cuddling, and you turn away, feeling like you shouldn't be watching. Bellamy leads you and Clarke back over to his sister, and you all sit around a small fire in silence, much like before. Bellamy and Octavia seem much more resigned to Luna’s denial, while you and Clarke continue to radiate anger and frustration.
Bellamy breaks the silence first, glancing over at Jasper and then back to your group with a smile. “Jasper's actually smiling.”
None of you say anything, and beside you, Clarke turns to glare at Luna. Bellamy shakes his head and sighs, “Hey, Temper Twins, let it go.”
You look up at him with a glare, and you’re sure Clarke is doing the same. You shake your head at him. “We can't just leave.”
Octavia mumbles, “It's not like we have much of a choice.”
Clarke turns to look at her, backing you up. “Maybe we do.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I'm talking about putting the Flame into her head without asking.”
You turn to Clarke in shock, instantly shaking your head, “Wait, that's not what I meant.”
Octavia gives Clarke a look of indignation before adding, “This isn't like Emerson, he was trying to kill us!”
“You think I don't know that?”
Bellamy gives Clarke a serious look. “Clarke, we don't have to do this. We can fight, we can go back to Arkadia. We can arm up.”
“Fight who? It's an army of our own people. I don't like this any more than you do. But if Raven's right and the code in this thing can stop Alie…” She trails off, and sighs, “Give me a better idea.”
Someone nearby calls Luna, and she exits the room. Clarke’s eyes follow her movements until she’s gone, and then she turns towards you, her eyes pleading. You run through the options in your head. How to stop an army of chipped people who want you dead? Can’t shoot them, because they’re chipped. And they’re your people. Too many chips to fry with EMPs. Plus, no more bracelets. And that leaves…? You sigh, knowing that she’s right, and there’s no other way. You turn to look at Bellamy, and his eyes search your face, trying to decipher what you’ve decided. As soon as he figures out you’re with Clarke, his face morphs into one of resignation, and he turns to your twin. “We'll stay here. It's the only way they'll leave you alone with her.”
Octavia mutters, “Even Alie gives people a choice.”
Bellamy shrugs, “We gave Luna a choice. She said no.”
Clarke nods at you and Bellamy in thanks, before getting up and leaving the room, following Luna’s path out the door. The three of you wait for her to return, your eyes occasionally falling on Jasper, sitting in the corner, talking to the girl that was telling the story. You smile as you watch them, his face split in a grin, the first one you’ve seen on his face in months.
You don’t have enough time to contemplate what that means for him, because Clarke is back almost as quickly as she left, and based on the pissed off energy radiating off of her, she failed. She plops down beside you, and you all turn towards her with expectant looks. She doesn’t offer much in her explanation, just a grumble of, “She took the Flame and said I'd get it back when we leave tonight. So that’s it.”
You and Bellamy exchange a look, before your eyes land on one of the couches along the wall. Realizing there’s nothing to do now except wait, you turn to the others, “If we’re stuck here until nightfall, I’m catching up on some sleep at least.”
You don't wait for them to answer, you just stand and head straight for the comfiest looking one, and stretch out on it. The stress and lack of sleep from the last few days finally catches up with you, and you close your eyes, falling asleep in seconds.
-
Your mom stands in front of you, a small, clear chip in her outstretched hand. You peer down at the blue logo, the infinity symbol, before looking back up and meeting her gaze. She smiles, tilting her head to the side. “The City of Light is so wonderful, you’re going to love it. All you have to do is take the chip.”
You shake your head, and try to pull away, but realize that you can’t. Panic washes over you as you realize that you’re restrained, chained to the wall behind you. But you don’t want her or Alie to see your fear, so you lift your chin, defiant, and tell her, “I won’t do it. Nothing you say will make me do it.”
She smiles again, and turns to look at an empty space on her left. “I told you she’d resist. Bring him in.”
You feel dread drop in your stomach at the thought of who she’s talking about, but she doesn’t leave you waiting for long. The doors behind her swing open, and Bellamy is dragged in, bloodied and bruised, barely hanging onto consciousness. But he perks up as soon as he sees you, and you both try to run to each other, you pulling on the chains at your back, as he pulls against the guards holding him tight. He is brought to your mother’s side before they push him down to his knees and chain him to the bolts in the floor. Your eyes are locked on each other, and you miss your mother’s movements until she kneels down beside Bellamy, into your line of sight.
You glance over at her and almost immediately glance away, until an alarm goes off in your brain, triggered by the glint of metal in the light. You swing your eyes back towards her, and you see that she’s holding up a knife, your knife, a serene expression on her face. “Last chance to take the chip before I turn to other methods of persuasion.”
You don’t need to ask what she means, and you turn to Bellamy with a look of panic. He shakes his head, hard. “Don’t do it. No matter what, don’t take the chip.”
Your mother uses the knife to rip open his shirt, and you feel your lip quiver. He gives you a reassuring look. “I’ll be okay. Just promise me you won’t take the chip.”
Your mother lifts the knife to his chest, resting the blade against his skin, and tears spring to your eyes. You shake your head, and Bellamy pleads, “Promise me!”
You whisper, “I promise.”
As soon as the words leave your mouth, your mother drags the blade across his skin. You can see him clenching his teeth together, trying to hold back his cry of pain, but it eventually bursts free, tearing right through your heart. You watch a line of blood run down his chest as your mother asks, “Will you comply?”
Your voice shakes, thick with emotion, but you keep your promise. “No.”
She lifts the knife again and drags it across his stomach, as Bellamy screams in pain. A sob breaks free from you, and the tears track down your face.
“Will you take the chip?”
“No.”
The process repeats: your mother cuts the love of your life and asks you to take the chip, but you keep your promise to Bellamy and deny her, every single time. You don’t know how long she’s been doing this when she drops the knife, the serene expression slipping from her face a fraction of an inch. She turns to the unseen figure, “This isn’t working.”
You ignore her one sided conversation, whispering Bellamy’s name, begging him to look up at you. His head dropped to his chest a few cuts ago, most of his skin stained with blood, nearly every inch of him covered in a cut. He weakly lifts his head and smiles at you, and it feels like a punch to the gut, the way he's still trying to reassure you, despite how weak he is. “Bellamy, you can’t take much more of this.”
He lifts his head, keeping it up. “Yes, I can.”
“If I take the chip, they’ll leave you alone. You’ll be safe.”
“No, I won’t. Because they’ll just use you against me like they did to your mom with Raven. And I’ll break. You’re so much stronger than I am, that’s one of the reasons why I love you.”
The tears rush to your eyes again, a new wave of emotion taking you over. You don’t get the opportunity to say anything else, because your mom is back, along with her calm demeanor.
And a gun.
You feel your stomach drop as soon as you see it, and you see the flash of fear on Bellamy’s face, one he quickly hides. She lifts the gun to his temple, and turns to you. “Take the chip, or he dies.”
You start to sob, “Mom, please. Stop, just stop! This isn’t you!”
She starts to countdown, “Three seconds.”
“Mom, stop! What would dad say? You can’t do this!”
“Three.”
You turn to look at Bellamy, panicking, but he shakes his head, mouthing, “You promised.”
“Two.”
You watch a single tear run down his face and you start to cry harder, begging. “Leave Bellamy out of this, please don’t do this!”
“One.”
Bellamy looks at you, his eyes full of love, and he mouths, “I love you more than the stars.”
You have a split second to process the words before a shot rings out, too loud in the small space, and Bellamy’s body hits the ground a second later. It takes a moment for you to process, your head stuffed full of cotton, your thoughts slow to connect, but as soon as you do, a gut wrenching scream tears from your chest and you lurch towards him, trying to reach him, despite the fact that you are still chained up. The chains pull at your body uncomfortably hard, but you don’t notice, don't care, as you drop to your knees and sob, staring down at Bellamy’s lifeless eyes.
You start to scream at your mother, yelling anything that comes to mind. “I’ll never forgive you for this, do you hear me? And I'll never give you what you want! We’re gonna shut you down, Alie! Are you listening to me, you evil bitch, you’re done! You’ll never win!”
Your mother turns away from you, still just as calm, waving at the guards by the door. “Get rid of him.”
They nod and start to walk towards him, and as they reach his body, she adds, “Oh. And bring me Clarke.”
You grow still, before the anger rips through you, and you jump towards your mother, filled with white hot rage, the intensity of it-
forcing you awake with a start.
You sit up with a gasp, looking around you, trying to gather your bearings. You almost cry with relief when you realize you’re still on Luna’s rig, and every part of that hellish nightmare was just a dream. You feel a hand touch yours, and you jump in surprise, turning to your left, and realizing that Bellamy is on the couch beside you. Judging by the sweat marks on his pants, he let you use him as a pillow. “Bad dream?”
You nod, still on edge, and he seems to sense that, because he gives you a soft smile. “You’re safe. I was here the whole time.”
You feel heat rush to your face, now embarrassed that you sweated all over him. And that he witnessed your panic. He reaches up and brushes a finger over your cheek, and the bruise on your face from Emerson, and you close your eyes, leaning into the touch. The first bit of quiet intimacy you’ve shared in a while.
He pulls away abruptly, and you open your eyes quickly, gaze lifting to his face. You can see the guilt written all over it, and it sends a wave of sadness through you. You reach for him, hands caressing each of his cheeks as you force him to meet your eyes. They lock with yours and you whisper, “I need you to love me.”
His eyes widen in surprise, and then switch to confusion before he mumbles, “I do.”
You know he does, but he still doesn’t get it, not yet. He still doesn’t realize that his guilt is holding him back from being with you fully, because he’s gotten in his head and told himself that he’s a monster, and he doesn’t deserve this, or you. But you know that he’s not quite there yet, and that’s okay, so you lean towards him, resting your forehead against his. He closes his eyes, relishing in the nearness of you, and you think of all the love you have for him, and how wonderful you think he is, hoping that he can sense it.
Someone clears their throat beside you and you pull back and turn to see Clarke, looking guilty for interrupting. “It’s time to go.”
You and Bellamy nod, silently standing and following her. You meet Octavia at the door, who’s already standing and waiting with your Grounder guide. When you reach them, he turns and leads your group outside, taking you through the oil rig and back up to the shipping container you started in. You look up at the sky as you walk, marveling in the brightness of the moon and stars out here over the ocean.
You're pulled back to the earth by the sound of the container doors being opened. You watch as the man who brought you here steps out, and Luna materializes out of the darkness to tell him, “Sorry, Cap, we gotta take them back.”
Someone hands her a bag, and she tosses it inside of the container before turning to you. “Your gear. You get your weapons once you land.”
You look around, realizing that you’re missing someone. “Where’s Jasper?”
Octavia nods back towards the room you came from. “Saying goodbye to his new friend.”
Everyone looks that way, exchanging a look, trying to decide who’s gonna go after him. When you realize that no one is moving, you sigh. “Okay, fine, I’ll go get him. But don’t leave without me.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.”
You head back towards the rig as you hear one of the men grunt to the others, “Inside.”
You turn and glance at them, watching as they step inside, before you turn back and start to walk towards the inside of the rig. You head straight for the room you just left, and stand in the doorway, searching every face, looking for Jasper. You roll your eyes when you don’t see him, and turn to the first person you see, a woman, with kind eyes and a warm smile. “Have you seen my friend? He has short hair, kinda tall and lanky?”
The woman gives you a knowing look. “He’s with Shay. They’re down below, with the storage. Taking the long way.”
You’re surprised at the amount of detail, but smile at her in thanks. “Thank you. Mochof.”
She smiles at your use of Trigedasleng, before you turn and jog off again, following her directions. You take the nearest staircase to the next level down, and step inside the room, pausing to listen. You smile when you hear voices, Jasper’s among them, and you start to walk that way. You come around the corner, coming face to face with them, and you yell his name, “Jasper!”
He looks up at you, and then his gaze focuses on something behind you as someone yells, “Shay, run before-”
They’re cut off by the sound of a loud thud, and you quickly turn around and see the man that guards Luna, Derrick, slumped in a Grounder’s arms. You glance at the other Grounder and see Luna thrown over his shoulder, and you start to back up quickly, away from the chipped men, and back towards Jasper and Shay. One of the men looks at you suspiciously, and you turn and run towards them, yelling, “She’s here, Jasper!”
He quickly turns to Shay, frantically pushing her towards the exit. “Go, tell your people to not take the chip.”
She hesitates, and he yells, “Run now! Go!”
You reach him just as she turns to run, but she freezes in place when an arrow lands in her back, and she hits the ground with a scream of pain. Jasper yells out in anger, and you turn to look at the chipped men, realizing that the Captain is lifting his crossbow again, aiming at Jasper. “Jasper, run!”
You dive towards him, pushing him out of the way as the arrow flies towards him, and he hits the ground beside you. A scream tears free from your chest as the arrow sinks into your shoulder from behind, the head of it coming out the other side. You look down at the arrowhead sticking out of you as you drop to your knees, the pain making you dizzy. You hear Jasper jump up and punch the Captain, but he’s unfazed and punches Jasper back, the force of it immediately knocking him unconscious.
You hear them coming towards you and you fall to your side, eyelids closing, hoping that they’ll fall for your deception. The footsteps come to a stop right beside you, and someone nudges you with their shoe, turning you over to get a good look at you. The movement causes you to roll over onto your shoulder, pushing the arrow deeper into your skin, and you have to work hard to fight back the scream of pain that threatens to tear from you. You keep your face neutral and your breathing even, waiting for a long second until you hear someone say, “We’ll come back for them. We need to get Luna tied up before she wakes.”
You hear the footsteps retreat and you lie there for an agonizingly long minute, waiting until you can no longer hear them before you peek an eye open. You’re relieved to find no one there so you sit up, groaning in pain as you do. You spare a look at your shoulder and the arrow sticking out of it, before you hear a soft gurgle from in front of you. You scramble to your feet, realizing that Shay is still alive, before running over to check on her. You drop to your knees beside her, sinking into a pool of blood, and you have a horrifying realization that the arrow must have hit an artery because she’s bleeding out fast.
She lets out a whimper of pain, and you look down at her, meeting her eyes. You whisper, “Shhh, it’s gonna be okay, you’re gonna be okay.”
Her hand shakes as she reaches for yours, and as you look into her eyes, you recognize them as the same eyes from the woman who told you where to find her. A pang of sadness pulls at your chest, and she gasps out, “Jasper says you’re from the sky, what’s it like?”
“It’s beautiful.” She coughs, hacking up blood, and you know the end is near. “If you think the stars are incredible from down here, you should see them from the sky. And the Earth? It’s the prettiest thing you've ever seen. So much blue, the ocean, covering the planet, kissing everything it touches.”
She smiles, coughing again, and you can hear the breath rattling in her lungs. She whimpers a little, caught up in the pain, and you try to hide your distress. She looks up at you, her eyes falling on the moon around your neck. “I thought nothing was prettier than the view from space, until I came down here. There’s so much color here. On the Ark, everything is gray, muted. But down here, everything is so bright and colorful. And the sounds, they’re like nothing I could ever imagine. My entire life I heard the quiet hum of the machines that powered the Ark, but on Earth, you can have complete silence or a cacophony of sounds. The sound of water rushing through the rivers, and the birds singing to each other every morning. The laughter and amazement of 100 teenagers and one fake guard stepping foot onto the ground for the first time in a century.”
You trail off, listening as her breathing struggles for a second, and then just stops. You lift a finger to her neck and feel nothing, and you drop your head, mourning for this girl that you barely knew. “Yu gonplei ste odon.”
You start to stand, deciding what to do next, when you hear the sound of footsteps coming back for you. You scramble back towards your earlier position, laying down on your side. Your eyes fall to the arrowhead sticking out of your shoulder, and you get a split second idea, one that you know you won’t like. Still, you grit your teeth and reach up, snapping off the end of the arrow, holding back a cry of pain as you do. You slip the sharp object into your sleeve and close your eyes, right as the footsteps come around the corner. You hear them stop near Shay, checking for any sign of life, and when they realize she’s dead, they come to you.
They stick their hand under your nose, checking for your steady breathing, before they reach beneath you and lift you, slinging you over their shoulder. They start walking and you open your eyes, watching carefully to see where they take you. They move lower and lower, deeper into the rig, until the sound of machine hum grows louder, reminding you of the Ark. And then they turn down a hallway, taking you to a single door that sits on the end. Beyond it, you can hear Luna pleading for someone to stop, and you know this is the right place.
You take a deep breath, and slide the arrowhead from your sleeve, gripping it tight in your hand. In one swift movement, you plunge it into the man’s neck. His reaction is immediate, and he drops you before he falls to his knees, dying quickly. Knowing you have no time to waste, you take off running, following the stairs to the top of the rig, and back out into the open air. You head straight for the container, looking around for other people as you do, relieved that no one is here. You unlock it the best you can with one arm, the pain in your shoulder making it impossible to use both. As soon as you swing the door open, Bellamy, Octavia, and Clarke all rush towards you. Clarke spots the arrow in your shoulder first, muttering, “Ohmygod.”
She pulls you towards her so she can get a better look, and you see the worry on Bellamy’s face, but you wave them both off. “I’m fine, but if you want to get to Luna before Alie does, then we need to go.”
You start to run off, but Clarke grabs your arm to stop you. “Wait.”
Before you can ask why, she reaches up and breaks off the end of the arrow, making it shorter. You let out a yelp of pain, and turn to her with a glare. She gives you an apologetic look. “No time to take it out, but at least this way you won’t hit it on anything.”
You shake your head before turning to run off again, this time with the trio on your heels. You run through the rig as fast as you can, practically flying down the stairs to reach P level again. You don’t stop until you reach the door at the end of the hall, past the man you killed earlier, and you rush in without hesitation, despite Bellamy yelling at you to be careful.
When you come into the room, you’re shocked at the scene in front of you. Jasper is tied up in the corner, and he seems okay, but there’s a girl, a child, crying near him. Luna is on the ground, clutching the dying body of the man she loves. Around her are the other chipped men, all dead and unmoving. You and Bellamy run to check on the child, cowering in the corner, while Octavia goes to Jasper. Clarke moves to Luna and Derrick, reaching them just as he takes his final breath. Luna’s reaction is instant, and she lets out a heartbreaking cry, clutching him close to her, and there’s nothing that any of you can do but watch as she mourns.
-
As soon as Luna realizes the rest of you are there, her tears stop. Just like when Octavia locked her emotions away after Lincoln's death, Luna does the same, putting away her sorrow in favor of anger. She agrees to take the Flame and fight Alie, but only after she gives a funeral for those that were lost.
As Luna informs her people of what happened and what her plans are, Clarke comes up to you with a knife in hand. “They have no medical supplies here, and I left everything I had in the rover. We’ll have to do it the old fashioned way.”
You grimace, but nod. “Great, sounds fun.”
She leads you outside, to where Bellamy is waiting with a torch, eyeing Clarke with suspicion. “Are you sure about this?”
“It's what we did with Lincoln, and he healed fine.” She passes the knife to Bellamy, “Heat the blade in the fire.”
He does as she asks, before looking at you. “I have to pull the arrow out before I can take off your jacket to cauterize the wound. Are you ready?”
“Do I have a choice?”
“No.”
You nod, “Then sure.”
You look at Bellamy, meeting his eyes as Clarke puts one hand on your shoulder, and one on the end of the arrow. With no warning, she pulls it out, and you groan in pain. She helps you out of your jacket, tugging your shirt down at the neckline to inspect the wound. “Okay, it looks good. No signs of poison.”
Bellamy passes her the knife and you give him a wary look. He reaches out for your hand, pulling you closer to him, and you lean against him as Clarke lifts the knife. “One...two…”
You grimace, waiting for three, but it never comes. Instead, you are met with the white hot flash of the knife as it touches your skin and closes your wound. You let out a cry of pain, the sound muffled by Bellamy’s shoulder as you press closer to him. Clarke gives you a second to recover, reheating the blade again, before turning you around to look at the exit wound. After nodding in satisfaction, she holds up the knife again. You turn away, not wanting to watch, and Bellamy holds you close. This time she presses the knife to the wound with no countdown, getting it over as quickly as possible. You let out another cry of pain, along with a string of curses, and Clarke looks over her work before tearing off a strip of her shirt and wrapping your shoulder the best she can.
She smiles at you, nodding towards the door. “All done. Now let’s go join the others.”
Bellamy puts out the torch and you follow her inside, all three of you handed cups full of an unknown liquid as you join Octavia and Jasper. You all nod in thanks, searching for Luna, watching as she prepares for the ceremony. Your eyes watch the people too, uneasy at the thought that Alie could still be lurking in someone nearby. Bellamy voices the same concern. “Any one of them could be chipped and we'd never know.”
Clarke nods. “If they are, they'll make their move before we put the Flame in Luna. Stay sharp.”
Luna comes from the other side of the room, stopping in front of Clarke. “The ceremony is about to begin.”
She starts to turn away, but Clarke reaches out for her, stopping her. “Luna, wait. I'm so sorry, but now you see that we're facing an enemy that will do anything to win. She won't stop until she has everyone.”
“People I love died today. Needlessly, at my hand.” She lifts her hand, the one not occupied by a cup, revealing the Flame. She looks down at it as she finishes, “I can't let that happen again.”
She turns away, to face the others, lifting the Flame high for them to see. Everyone in the room stands. “As we prepare to give our brothers and sister to the sea, we honor their lives.”
She lowers the Flame and lifts her cup, “Kom woda 'so gyon op, gon woda 'so kom daun.”
As the room repeats the phrase, Octavia translates, “From water we are born, to water we return.”
Everyone lifts their cup and takes a drink, and your group follows suit, honoring their tradition. Luna turns back to you as she finishes, and Clarke steps right into business. “If we're gonna do this, we have to hurry. Alie will send reinforcements, and we have to find someplace private to perform the Ascension.”
“You believe that to defeat an enemy who will stop at nothing, you must stop at nothing. How is that different from 'blood must have blood'?”
You all freeze, realizing that she doesn’t seem to be on the same page with the rest of you. Octavia protests, “Wait a second, Luna. You can't just-”
She cuts herself off when she falls unconscious, sinking to the floor. You turn to Bellamy, worried, just in time to see him sink the ground. Jasper is next, and Clarke turns back to look at you, her cup falling from her hands in shock. You watch the glass fall, and you fall with it, going unconscious before it even hits the ground.
-
You wake up to the feel of fingers brushing over your face, pushing your hair back.
You open your eyes and see Bellamy looking down at you, concerned. You sit up, clutching your head, wishing the heavy feeling would dissipate quickly, the thick cloud too difficult to think through. Bellamy continues to watch you and you meet his eye, and smile, trying to reassure him. “That was not how I was expecting that to go.”
You hear a groan from your right, followed by, “Me either.”
You look over and meet Clarke’s eyes, as she sits up, gathering her bearings. She looks down at the container in her hand, sliding the lid back and sighing in relief when the Flame is tucked neatly inside. You find your knife near your boot, and Bellamy and Clarke find their guns beside them. You all stand, just as Octavia rolls over, picking up Lincoln’s notebook and sword. Jasper is the last to pull himself to his feet, following the rest of you as you wander to the shore, staring out at the water.
The clouds are hanging low today, blocking any view of the ocean beyond, but you already know that even if the sky was clear, you’d never spot the oil rig. As you all look out at the water, contemplating the events of the last 24 hours, Bellamy voices the thought running through all of your minds. “Now what?”
-
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I strongly disagree with the endings for the Stark Pack. Sansa and the Northern lords along with the Vale and Riverland's lords and armies travelled to what was left of King's Landing to get Jon back against a few, what, hundred foreign invaders with no leader? And just let Jon be punished for saving them all? And Arya, who had finally learned that she had family and a home to go to and protect would just leave to go sailing, something that was never really a part of her arc other than an off...
...handed comment to a stranger in Essos? And Bran, who's motives and POV have been non-existent for SEASONS is made king by a group of people who don't know him or what he is capable of at roughly 17 years old when there are other, better, candidates in the Dragon Pit and elsewhere. And Sansa, who's whole arc has been about her status as the Key to the North and how she only wants the love and safety her parents had is entirely alone at the end of the show? All of the Starks should be together.
Hi there!
One of the things I'm still trying to wrap my mind around is the Starklings ending. LBR, season 8 was a mess and it didn't make much sense narratively, especially if compared to previous seasons. It's as if D&D discarded seasons-worth of character growth and development in favor of shocking twists *pretends to be shocked*
But you asked about the Starks and their ending.
The thing about the Starklings is that they’re deeply connected to the idea of home, but more specifically, going back to that home. Some left by choice, others by force or circumstance. But the thing is that all the Starklings have been uprooted from their home early on. Their journey (and I’m simplifying the hell out of it) is about going back home. All the characters have their distinctive aspects to their journeys to set them apart. But if we were to say what their journey is about in just a few words, it’s that: it’s about coming home. But there’s also another factor: family. All of them had to be stripped of their identity as a Stark in one point (or more than once) of the story. (*) Since the moment they’re stripped from their home and identity, they start their journey on regaining both (we could make an exception with Bran since he’s tied with magic and is in pursuit of a higher calling) (**). But the themes of identity, present in their arcs trough their home and their family name, are there.
(*) I just realized that all the surviving Starks had to renounce to/hide their identity in order to survive. All those who didn’t (Ned, Robb, Cat and Rickon) ended up dead.
(**) Bran’s journey can be identified with two archetypes: the Sage and the Magician. Both archetypes are connected to the sense of self. The Sage is about knowledge and a yearning of paradise (which is connected to his fight against the Night King and the Others). Basically, his journey is to bring back Summer through knowledge and an understanding of his powers. The Magician is about power and wanting to leave a mark in the world. We can see this with him when he’s north of the Wall with the TER.
Jon
D&D screwed up Jon's character and his development, reducing him to a mere mouthpiece to justify Dany's actions. The problem with Jon in S8 (which started in S7) is that. He was no longer treated as a protagonist but as a plot device, which can be said about all of the Starks.
Jon has huge identity issues, mainly because of his bastard status. He’s automatically set apart, even if his siblings and father did accept him and treated him as a trueborn son. The fact that he’s a bastard is a huge cross he carries, and it’s because of this he makes the choice to leave his home. For him, going to the Wall is a way to prove himself, to make others see that even a bastard can be honorable, but also to escape from the name “Snow”. At the Wall, all men are equal: it doesn’t matter where they come from or who they were before. At the Wall, they’re all equal. Or at least, that’s what he thought.
Of course, he found a place where he belonged, people that made him feel like home. But all of those always ended up being taken from him. So, there was only thing for him to do: to go back to his real home, Winterfell, and be Jon Snow again. Because in the Night’s Watch he was “Lord Snow” and a brother of the NW, later Lord Commander. With the Wildlings he was “a crow” and later a traitor. But he really found himself in S6, when he took back Winterfell with Sansa and when she “made” him a Stark (by cloaking him). Of course, that came crushing down in the S8 premiere, when he finds out he’s the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. And that’s it. We don’t see how the RLJ reveal affected him, how much of an impact it had on his identity, which already was complicated, how it changed his family dynamics or his relationships with certain characters. The reveal, along with his character, were used as plot devices for another character. We never saw the conflict of his true identity and home be resolved, not explicitly.
Jon's ending (him being sent to the Wall as "punishment" for killing Daenerys) makes little sense. As you said, he’s punished for killing Daenerys, instead of, IDK, punishing him for participating in the Sack of King’s Landing. That was a war crime, and punishing him for said war crime would’ve made more sense (since GOT and ASOIAF are basically politics with ice zombies and dragons). I could understand if the lords (and Greyworm, for some inexplicable reason) wanted to punish him for kinslaying. We know it’s bad and that it’s frowned upon in Westerosi culture. If that were the reason for his exile, I could understand it (and this is what D&D went with). But they completely undermine this by basically awarding Tyrion with everything he ever wanted for doing the same and admitting to killing his father in front of the nobility of Westeros five minutes earlier. It doesn’t matter if Tyrion suddenly sees these things as burdens. It doesn’t change the fact that these are the very things he was after when the show started. If the punishment for kinslaying is exile, then exile every person that committed that crime, which is both Jon and Tyrion. If the punishment for enabling and participating in the Sack of King’s Landing is exile, then exile every person that took part in it, that means Jon, Tyrion and Dany’s remaining army. You can’t punish some and award others when they did the same thing. That’s bad writing. But it’s known D&D are huge Tyrion fans (to the point of making him a completely different character), so...
The fact that he was made to leave his home and spend his life at the Wall (even if there were people that respected him there) is underwhelming. He yearned for a home, for a family, for an identity. And what better way to give him all that than to have the people he loves to accept him for who he is, not the name he carries? If it were up to me, Jon would’ve ended up in Winterfell, stripped from all titles, both from his Targaryen and Stark lineage. I would’ve made him remain, Jon Snow because that’s who he is. Because, ultimately, it doesn’t matter who fathered him. His loyalties always were with the Starks. But in the end, he would’ve had a chance to show it, a chance to defend and fight for his family and House. All while remaining a Snow. But for that to happen Jon needed a POV; the Starklings needed their POV; their dynamics needed to be shown, not hinted at; Jon needed to be shown interacting with other characters, not just Daenerys; the RLJ needed to be centered around him, not Daenerys.
Because, ultimately, that’s why the final season failed to deliver a satisfactory end to the story: it was centered around the wrong character. Because D&D chose not to comment in-universe on Dany’s morally gray actions, they had to double down in the last two seasons, so the GA wouldn’t be caught off guard with her “turn to darkness”. And because they centered S7 and 8 around her, all of the plot points that were established in previous seasons were used as a means to explain her “turn”, even when they shouldn’t have. RLJ was never about her. RLJ would’ve served as a perfect explanation of why Jon did what he did if it had been used from his POV. But it wasn’t. It was used as a plot device for the Dark!Dany arc. And we ended up with an unsatisfactory S8 that felt off.
Arya
Arya’s complete arc was about family and how revenge and justice can blur a little bit. When she’s forced to hide her true identity, she embarks on a journey that’s related to defining herself as a person: she’s Arya Stark, then she’s Arry, then she’s No One and finally, she’s Arya Stark again. It’s a turbulent journey in which she deals with revenge and justice, and she manages to fight for justice once she reclaims her identity as Arya Stark of Winterfell. Her journey has always been about that: identity. We meet her as an outsider in her own family group, an outcast. It would’ve been reasonable to go full circle, and show Arya to the audience being with her family, show her being accepted just as she is (things that made her an outsider in the beginning). Arya’s journey is a typical Heroine’s Journey.
She starts the series with a separation of the femenine. We see her dislike for feminine things and her desire to do what her brothers do. And taking her ending to Winterfell would’ve displayed perfectly the integration of the masculine (her being a water dancer and a faceless man) with the femenine (her new relationship with her sister and playing a role in Sansa’s court). She’d be right where she started, but different. She’d be accepted and valued for who she is. But we know GRRM is going for the bittersweet ending, and that ending is too sweet an ending for George’s liking, I imagine. But in my opinion, you can always bring a bittersweet sense to the ending by showing how hard it is to rebuild their world. Because that’s what they’ll all have to do: rebuild. These characters started the series are children or teenagers, and by the end they have the responsability to rebuild what other people have destroyed. Give the audience a glimpse of the hardships to come, show them that once it ends it won’t be sunshine and rainbows, but actual hard work. But then again, that’s just my opinion.
Bran
It’s a bit complicated for me when it comes to disscussing Bran’s ending. The thing is, D&D never understood Bran’s character. That’s why his connection to magical elements are downplayed a lot. That’s why he was missing a whole season. Because D&D didn’t understand his character and ultimately treated him as a plot device, mainly for the RLJ reveal. That’s why so many people have problems accepting him ending up as King, I think. Because it feels out of nowhere.
TBH, I’m on the fence regarding his ending. Not because I can’t see him as King, but because of D&D’s inconsistent writing. From S1 he’s linked to the magical aspects of the story but D&D downplayed those aspects so hard that ultimately Bran’s story fell generic. Then you have the season in which he was missing, explained as “him training to be the TER”. But then he’s brought back because he’s important again. We see him train with the TER, understand his powers of greenseeing a bit more and his link to the Night King. But then again, his character does a one-eighty, and by the end of S6 and the entirety of S7 he turns out to be a soulless, omnipresent God rather than the boy that wanted to fly. Sure, it can be “justified” if you go with the “Bran died in the TER cave” way of thinking. But what bugs me the most of D&D’s writing of Bran is that he stated that he wasn’t capable of being Lord of Winterfell, simply because he wasn’t Bran Stark anymore. He did that twice: once in S7 when Sansa gave him the title back (his claim surpasses Sansa’s since he’s a man) and once again in S8 when Tyrion offers him the chance to be Lord and Warden if he wants to (to ensure little to no resistance from the North respecting Daenerys). He declines both times, he gives his reasons. But in the series finale, when Tyrion proposes him as King, he’s suddenly Bran Stark again and able to rule? It doesn’t make sense. The thing is that D&D fucked up when it came to Bran, and the story overall suffered for it.
Sansa
Sansa’s arc has been defined by family and belonging, as all of the Starklings. But what differentiates her arc to those of her siblings is the fact that time and time again, she was referenced as “The Key to the North” aka the future of House Stark. The fact that she starts the series as a dreamer, a feminine girl that yearns for a family of her own and a valiant husband that loves and respects her, only for those dreams to be beaten out of her almost immediately, leads you to believe her arc will come full circle in a way in the end. But since GRRM is going for the bittersweet ending, maybe it was never in Sansa’s cards for her to end up married and having the family she always wanted, but at least she could be surrounded by her remaining family or those she considers family.
Yes, in the end, she “won”. She’s home and she’s Queen in her own right. But her journey feels inconclusive. Her arc is the only one tied to the themes of marriage and family (in the sense of having her own children) in a romantic way. She was defined as a character through her womanhood, as @esther-dot said. But not once she has had a romantic partner. Which really leaves you thinking, since minor characters like Bronn and Pod had “romantic” partners. But not Sansa. She was punished by the narrative for wanting to be a wife and a mother.
She was married off twice, she was groomed and raped. We see her go from a girl with dreams to a suffering woman, all because of her name and her being “the Key to the North”. She has basically been put through all that suffering and pain because of her identity. And even after all that, she ended up alone. She has not known what a consensual relationship is, what a healthy romantic relationship is like.
Even if we abstain from talking about romantic relationships, ever since leaving King’s Landing, all she wanted was to go home and rebuild it for her family. Since reuniting with her siblings, all she wanted was to take care of her family, for all of them to be a pack. After having her isolated and surrounded by enemies, it would’ve been satisfying to know that at least she was now surrounded by family and/or friends. But no, she ends up alone, after just finding Jon, Bran and Arya, after feeling safe with Brienne.
TL;DR: D&D fucked up big time by forgetting that the Starks always were the heart of the story. They used them as plot devices to reach their ending, which is why the Starks’ endings feel hollow because it was not driven by the characters themselves but by the writers’ need to reach the finish line. So, even if they ended the Game alive and well and in places of power, it feels unearned in some ways, nonsensical in others.
Thanks for the ask!
#look who's back#house stark#Jon Snow#Arya Stark#Bran Stark#Sansa Stark#game of thrones#got#got s8#got meta#got analysis#game of thrones meta#house stark meta#anti d&d#my meta#my thoughts#my stuff#i thought i was done complaining about got#guess i was wrong#oopsiiee#asks#pigfartsandredvines#got asks
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So I'm rewatching the 100 with @jemleofan and I just keep thinking how despite many of its shortcomings, this show does one thing right. Its villains.
I can't even call them villains tbh. Antagonist? Just humans?
They are so well written, fleshed out and that's why they are believable. We never get an antagonist that are doing that they're doing just because they are evil. There are always good reasons, good motivations. The moment I think 'okay, that is a valid argument' when an antagonist expresses their POV is the moment I know the writers have done a good job with the characters.
I mean look at lexa - she was an antagonist beginning of season 2 (even season 1 cause she sends the army to kill the delinquents). But by the end, she is so ambiguous. The 100 landed in her territory, they killed her army; her culture, her mentality is an eye for an eye (blood must have blood), its how they've survived 100 years in a radiation soaked planet. She doesn't know any better. Also, her people have been kidnapped and killed for years by the mountain men (who resemble skaikru) and turned into monsters. Shouldn't she be wary of skaikru? At the end of the day her duty is to her people. That's why she leaves clarke at Mount weather. Is it a horrible choice? Yes. But isn't it the smartest when it comes to her people's well being? Yes.
Now unlike Lexa who was ambiguous from the beginning, Dante, as well as Cage is an antagonist. His motivation is the same: save my people. The ends justify the means for him. He is ready to commit these horrible acts for his people and he is ready to bear it so they don't have to. Its horrible what he's doing. But is it completely not understandable? They've been stuck underground for 100 years and they will be stuck for a lot more if they don't do something about it. Is it really living what they're doing? Isn't it just surviving forever? No end date to their suffering? It's understandable, but not excusable.
Same with Octavia. God, it would've been so easy to make her evil for the sake of evil. "She just broke and now she wants everyone to suffer with her" - so many shows, films, books, comics, etc have done this. It would have been so easy to write her off like that. But the writers didn't. They made her complex. Octavia isn't just an evil tyrant. She is a traumatised girl that took on a huge responsibility at a tender age while she was repressing her grieve, operating on anger. Octavia makes so much sense when you get the full picture. She was influenced by Jaha, by drug addict calculating Abby, by warrior Indra. She had to make an impossible choice and then was left to carry the weight of it by herself. Of course, she broke more. Of course, she repressed everything until there was only cold, ruthless bloodreina who just wanted to keep her people alive. This is how she coped. She has done horrendous acts, yes. But is it not a little bit understandable considering all she's been through? Is it not logical that she'll end up as bloodreina after everything? (I loved how in s6 we get her explanation on why she did some things - it all boils down to duty to her people).
And Russel. Russel is a little different from all the previous ones because unlike them he doesn't do it for his people, but for his family. It's love (and guilt), not duty that guides him (and unlike the rest, he takes it very far, way past the justification). Wouldn't you do everything for your family? Wouldn't the means be justified when the end is your family alive and well? And what I love is that we see him trying to do the right thing a couple of times, albeit, it's after he's done a thousand terrible acts. He is not all evil, he does have (a semblance of ) a conscience. And I'd love to see what happens with him in s7.
I got carried away with this. 😂
What I'm trying to say is that the reason this show works is because their antagonists are as good as their protagonist /heroes.
#the 100#The 100 villains#Lexa#dante wallace#cage wallace#octavia blake#I just realised I missed diyoza#oh well#Russel lightborne#I missed Josephine as well#Dammit 😁
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Arrow 7x14 brain dump
I loved this episode!! I think I hadn’t really hyped it up too much in my mind so that undoubtedly helped, and sure, there was a lot of superfluous shit, but I feel like I just have to come to terms with that now, and overall it delivered on some areas I’d hoped it to, and also in lots that I hadn’t expected it to! As always, succinctness is not my speciality, and I think this one is at an all-time record length (*titters*), so get comfortable…
Olicity
SHE TOLD HIMMMMM!!!! I think that was just my minimum requirement for the episode, which is probably why I ended up loving it; we got lots more than that!! Olicity didn’t get as much air time as I would have liked for the episode immediately following the Olicity Baby Reveal, but I think the episode delivered quality, where quantity was definitely lacking.
I loved the parallel of Felicity’s nightmare with Oliver’s from 7x01 respectively. In the first half of the episode we could see that she still was doubting herself and her ability to keep the baby safe, which although wasn’t stated explicitly, was clear to me at least, and I am so glad we saw that and not just immediate baby-bliss. This lead into poor Oliver trying and failing to get in touch with William 😭 by filling up his answering machine (to which we later find FF William discovering an answer machine-style cassette…subtle as ever there arrow writers).
The next time we saw Olicity was in an OTA scene (at long last), which I will delve into later, but special mention to Oliver’s little Felicity Smile™ when she cracks her OTA joke 😍.
Source:olicitygifs
Continued under the cut
The most wonderful Olicity scene for me wasn’t the big reveal, but the sofa scene. I loved this so so much. For the first time, Oliver really acknowledged Felicity’s pain from when he was in prison, and acknowledged that he hadn’t acknowledged it haha. This in and of itself made me tear up…Oliver the GROWTH 😭😭
Source:oliverxfelicity
But then he continued!! He told Felicity that he thought there was a better way than killing Diaz, but that he had no right to make that call for her. He would back any move of hers and have her back “no.matter.what” *ugly crying*.
Source:feilcityqueen
Furthermore, he wants her to make her choice so she can get closure on Diaz, allowing Olicity to move forward!!!
This recognition and support are what Felicity has needed from Oliver for months!! He has likely only just been able to come to these realisations himself recently, after dealing with his own crap, and losing William etc, but he came to them on his own, before knowing about the baby and knowing he would have to ‘do better’. He knows there has been a distance between him and Felicity and he will do his part to allow her to help herself so they can come back together, and it is glorious!!!
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This scene could have only been improved by some hand holding or other canoodling, but I am more than happy with the scene as we got it!!
Then at last we come to the big reveal. I must say I think they could have and should have given more time and attention to this scene; I can only hope that they didn’t because of all the fluffy parent-to-be-ness that we are about to see unfold over the coming episodes??? Let a girl dream for now at least! Stephen and Emily, as usual, killed it with what they had to work with. From Oliver’s gentle acknowledgement of Felicity’s go-to comfort food, mint chip, to Felicity’s explanation of why she didn’t need to kill Diaz; she needed her family to live in the light and their children to know that they would do anything for them….wait, what??? *cue Oliver’s gorgeous confused puppy face* Your children, because…
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Felicity’s beautiful smile when she told him, and Oliver’s sappy happy face when he realised….YAAAAAASSSS!!!! My heart exploded!! Then, *end scene* 😡. But you know what, at this moment in time I’m still so floaty-happy for them that I can live with this!
Flash Forwards
Oh my wow I love the Clayton-Smoak-Queen siblings!!! You can clearly see Oliver and Felicity in both of them; but Will is still obviously a mini-Felicity, whereas Mia is SO MUCH OLIVER, which is so bittersweet, given that she seems to have been raised by Felicity alone (WHYYYY?!?! *sobs*).
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Mia, it seems, has a somewhat typical love/hate relationship with her Mother, which I’m sure lots of us can identify with. On one hand she clearly resents Felicity’s paranoia, her insistence on ‘bonding’ with things such as the Rubik’s cube and tech, which she doesn’t seem to have an interest in, but then her love for her shines through with her insistence of going after her alone (hello mini Oliver) and the line “my Mom is the only person I care about” 😭😭😭
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Then our gorgeous grown up Will 😍 is all Felicity in his belief in Oliver as a hero and his techy geekdom, but HELLO OLIVER in the way he instantly loves and sticks up for his sister (even with them arguing, he just softened, and even turned on Dinah when she questioned Mia) and talks about family, despite how he has come to feel abandoned by Olicity. That last line in his scene with Mia where he says “Well did it work?” could have been spoken by Stephen himself; his expression, his intonation…perfect Oliver impression Ben, well done, A+! They work so well together on screen; I loved their back-and-forth in their scenes. I can’t wait to see them interacting more, especially, I hope, in the all FF episode. I think they will be a force to be reckoned with!
The bro-sis Rubik’s cube solving champions discover the mini answering phone cassette, which Mia can’t even comprehend; “can you hack it?” lol (makes me feel suuuper old). This has surely got to at least contain some of Olicity’s attempts to contact William, to let him know he wasn’t abandoned, and at most, another of Felicity’s clues. I just can’t wrap my head around the blatant plot-hole that is Olicity not ever managing to get in touch with William, even with the crazy tech skills on both ends of the dynamic?? I call bullshit! I need to know what’s going on guysssss!!!
Elsewhere, Connor supposedly didn’t know about Mia’s heritage (so no baby OTA growing up together *sad face*), except he secretly did cos his adopted father Dig asked him to watch over her! So Connor isn’t JJ?? Where is JJ?? ISTG Larry if you erased another baby Diggle I will travel through time and kill you myself!! Connor and Mia are clearly super close (shipping them already), and the hurt on Mia’s face when she found out Connor had lied to her the whole time broke my heart!! I also need a scene with Roy and Mia soon; did anyone else notice how as soon as Mia revealed her parentage, he dropped his bow from pointing on her…YAAAAASS UNCLE ROY!!! But why does no one but Dig know about Mia’s existence???? Did Olicity go into hiding?? Is this why they never managed to contact William again? Whaaaat??? Je suis confuse!!!
Bonus: Future OTA, or FTA, if you will, is totally going to be a thing I’m sure of it! The actors seem so much fun and are always interacting on social media/live tweeting etc. It is so nice to have cast so actively participating in promotion this year. It’s at a point now where I would definitely give a next generation series a watch, and I can’t wait for the all flash forward episode now, even though the whole future set-up seems harrowingly disparate from what we would like to imagine. I need to know more damnit!!
OTA/Delicity
OTA has finally (just about) reunited!!!! It’s only been 6437280462308 years guys!! Dig finally realises he’s been keeping the Diaz secret from Olicity for too long, so he offers them up the truth, in a “SPONTANEOUS OTA MOMENT”. Honestly, Felicity’s sass in this scene and all the Dig scenes to be fair is just a beautiful thing to see. Felicity rightfully tells John that this is the second time he has prioritised his ARGUS work over his friends’ safety and he looks rightfully ashamed of himself. Oliver naturally doesn’t agree with using Diaz, but has suddenly become official OTA reconciliator, and trusts Dig to get shit done, eventually offering his help with Felicity’s blessing and assistance.
With OTA officially back in the field and like 57 things going on, Felicity takes her chance on taking out Diaz, confronting him with a gun again, and finally telling him that she is in fact stronger than him, and hence doesn’t need to kill him…Dig is ultimately left to decide between helping Oliver capture Dante, or Felicity stop Diaz and praise the salmon ladder he chooses to help Felicity!!
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I loved Felicity realising her own strength, and maintaining her ‘light’, seeing and knowing that her teammate finally had her back!! Dig tells her that although Dante was the mission objective, Diaz (and by that he meant Felicity) was his priority!! My Delicity heart!!!!! Dig has one last ace up his sleeve, later telling Olicity that he realised how letting Diaz go last time had hurt Felciity, and that the most important thing should be to just protect his OTA family!!! And just like that, OTA RISES FROM THE ASHES!!!
Bonus: OMG I just realised that the Brothers and Sisters theme of the episode relates to OTA as well!! 😭😍😭😍😭😍
Felicity/BS
When did I become a BS stan?? Who even am I? What do I believe in? 😱 🤷♀️🤯
I love Felicity’s relationship with BS. I want to be friends with both of them. I want to drink wine with BS whilst Felicity grumbles about drinking de-caff coffee. I think I need more sleep. Forgive me fandom friends for I have sinned 🙈😂😂
I see people saying that their friendship doesn’t make sense, and no, if you look directly from S6 to now, it doesn’t. But if you watch S7 episode-by-episode you can totally believe that they got to the place they are in now. They’ve grown from reluctant allies, to gaining a mutual respect, to growing to like one another. And the shade is still totally there on both parts from Felicity’s “fake lawyer” (CLASSIC LINE), to BS calling Felicity out on her chocolate consumption haha.
So BS knew about the baby before Oliver did. I am not majorly angry with this because…she just guessed!! Felicity didn’t tell her. Felicity was mortified that she’d put it all together and begged her to not tell anyone. Our girl was just coming to terms with it herself, and working out how to tell Oliver, which she is perfectly entitled to do.
The scene where BS brings Felicity food and gives her a pep talk was totes adorbs 😍 Do I wish it was the type of conversation Felicity had had with Oliver instead? Sure, and I’m sure we will in the future, and we got different Olicity goodies in this episode in its place.
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BS is all over Felicity being preggers…I’m wondering if maybe she lost a baby or lost someone with a baby on E2?? She just seems to be all about looking after Felicity, and the baby, to almost an excessive point, with random pregnancy knowledge thrown in there too 🤔
Side-note: I am all about Felicity eating ALL OF THE FOOD in this episode hahaha! “I ate that much choc before I was pregnant” LOOOOOL!! She continues to be the cutest.
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Emiko/Oliver
Oh Oliver. I feel for him so much with Emiko. He just wants to get to know her, and make up for lost time and poor choices by Robert. He misses Thea. He is blinded by his love for his new sister. This is why whenever they try to tell us ‘Oliver doesn’t trust people’ I’m like HUH?! I see Oliver as probably the most naturally trusting person on the show, only his experiences have proven him wrong so often. He has to believe in others, so he can believe in himself after everything he has been through/done. He gives almost everyone the benefit of the doubt, especially family, even when it’s blatantly obvious that they don’t deserve it. Oliver has such a big heart, and loves his family so deeply and at times, blindly. And here, with Emiko, that is what he is doing (when he should have been at home celebrating baby-making with some more practice baby-making 😉). I don’t like Emiko…oh she’s working with the Big Bad, shocker! I thought that she would turn out dead or a villain, given as she isn’t part of the ‘mark of 4’ gang in the future. I’m not convinced she’s full-on evil though, not yet at least. But the concept of her being a baddie kind of makes sense as to why they’ve made her so unlikeable. That said, I really enjoyed the ‘sibling rivalry’ scenes they shared. Oliver in her personal space “do you have to stand right there?”, Oliver critiquing her arrows, “don’t touch my things!” 😂😂 I do think they spent too much time on them in this episode (even though it was called Brothers and Sisters, I know). I just can’t be bothered to get too involved with her storyline, for the minute at least, as I think it will be temporary.
ARGUS/Diaz
This is my let-down of the episode, (and every episode) but you can’t win them all! Suicide squad blah, Diaz blah, Virgil (isn’t he a Thunderbird??) blah, Dante (Highlander!)….kinda blah! The shame is, I think Dante could’ve been a far better villain if they’d made me know/care about him earlier in the season? Maybe they can rescue him? I mean, Prometheus didn’t really come into his own until the last few episodes, so I guess there’s hope???
But Diggle quit-yaaaay!! Bye bye ugly security guard outfit!!
LIZARD BOY GOT LIT UPPPPP!!!
Burn bay burn!! Bye bitch!! I’m pretty sure this is the episode that the actor tweeted his goodbyes after? What a sorry exit if so *evil laugh*. There’s a fair bit of speculation over who killed him, but unless it was Felicity sneaking in in the dead of night to do so, I struggle to care 🤷♀️
Massive thank you to the gif makers; you have made this long-ass post more colourful 😘
#arrow#arrow 7x14#olicity#arrow season 7#OTA#FTA#beccie's brain#sorry this is so long#but I had to let my thoughts escape
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let’s just leave this here
so let’s see how quickly I can get through a bunch of these, just so they don’t languish for the next month... here we go. behind the cut: why the opening never changed, why DW is deploying Josh again, a few about Iverson & Hedrick, is a reboot possible, staying in fandom vs leaving... and some others in the same vein.
why did they keep the same opening for all of vld seasons, considering the line-up was never supposed to come back to the original from s3?
Every indication is that originally, the team would return to the original lineup. Keeping the opening was probably meant to remind audiences of that inevitability. Or you could believe LM, who said the opening cost 20K to make, and thus was too expensive to do more than once. She’d rather spend that money on a vacation.
So I've heard that Josh Keaton is doing damage control for S8. Do you think Dreamworks sent him in because they know that he's the one guy that no one can get mad at? After what some of the fans have done to him this past year [...] I’m amazed that he's willing to stick around and try to make his fans happy for as long as he can. I can see why people say "We don't deserve him."
Josh has somehow managed that sweet spot between charming the fandom and gaining its trust. Doesn’t hurt that he’s got the chops, voice-wise, to take written dross (no, really, some of those lines are horribly clunky) and spin it into gold. More than anything else, he comes across as genuine, and that adds a certain credibility to his words.
But... Josh doesn’t really have a choice. Playing Shiro is what catapulted Josh upwards, and the last thing he can afford to do is piss off DW by refusing to play ball. He’d only be damaging himself (and his reputation among potential employers) if he didn’t snap to attention when called. Plus, I think he really does sincerely love the character, but it’s got to be a tough spot for him right now.
When you get down to it, the only one on VLD’s (former) staff who seems to believe Shiro belongs in the story and should be respected as part of the story... is Josh. Who else can Shiro’s fans look to, if Josh stops speaking?
So, yeah, Josh is it. And I bet he knows that, and knows it’s just part of signing up for such a major role. This is part of his job.
So I came across a pic of Mitch Iverson from SDCC 2018 where he and Tim Hedrick weren't in the panel ... and [Iverson] was wearing a SHIRO BLACK PALADIN top ... while the EPs & Hamilton were in the panel promoting S7, Iverson supported Hedrick & his story, and Shiro.
Hedrick was actively involved in every script as the story editor, and reportedly conceived of Shiro as an astronaut returning after his capture by aliens. Iverson got his start thanks to Hedrick, thus it makes sense that Iverson would be simpatico with Hedrick’s vision of the story.
On top of that, by SDCC Iverson already had his next gig lined up. He continued to write for VLD, so he had to be subtle... but a t-shirt was a good way to make his sentiments clear. Can’t blame the guy, seeing he probably knew what was coming and chose a quiet protest of his own.
As an American, how would you take it if someone, that is, Iverson, called himself a redneck? From what I know thats derogatory term & for people not exactly inclusive & supportive of minorities. He also retweeted an art of Allura with a quote: ‘Laters’, which I found in really poor taste...
Redneck is another slur adopted by the in-group. My guess is that if you called Iverson a redneck to his face, he’d be offended. But if you introduced yourself as a redneck, and then called him one, it’d be different. And yes, as a term, redneck has a complex history, and it changes subtly in terms of how each generation defines/uses it.
As for retweeting things in poor taste... eh, most people don’t have any training in social media. Jokes are the hardest; it’s so easy for them to go so wrong. Until VLD, I’d bet Iverson was lucky to have a few hundred followers. How many follow him now? It takes time to find your footing in striking the right balance of humor and dignity.
Sometimes the best course is to ignore the stumble. They’ll either learn, or they won’t. Either way, it’s their problem, not ours.
Will Tim Hedrick be allowed to continue the voltron universe the way he planned it?
I doubt it. He’s got a new project. If you’re now an EP finally getting your name at the top, would you really want to go back and fix someone else’s story? Sometimes it’s just better to leave it behind, and make sure the next thing you do is something you can have pride in.
...why do you keep saying the last episode Tim Hedrick wrote was The Feud? A lot of people keep repeating it, like it was his last 'fuck you' to the showrunners. But official sources all say 'The Journey Within' was his last episode.
All we can say for certain was that tJW is the last Hedrick episode broadcast. That doesn’t mean it was the last one written.
Here’s why a lot of us peg tF as Hedrick’s last written episode: the story editor credit. Hedrick's the sole story editor on all his other episodes; tF is the only one in which both Hedrick and Hamilton share credit. The simplest explanation is this episode was edited in that window during which Hedrick had one foot out the door, and Hamilton had one foot in. iow, Hedrick put it into the queue, edited half, and moved on. Ergo, last written.
I can’t believe how they just managed to anger literally everyone no matter your favorite character or ship.
I recall a quote from early on, where LM said they had a feeling they couldn’t please everyone. The problem (which I noted at the time, and has remained true) is that the answer isn’t to just piss off everyone.
It’s to figure out who you want your audience to be, and to write the best damn story you can for that particular audience. If you end up with a story only old-timer DotU fans love, and kids are lukewarm about, fine. If the reverse is true, fine. You can’t please everyone, especially in a reboot/remake. So you pick your battles, and write your story accordingly.
Looking around social media, most people I'm seeing are either rightfully upset, or they're hyperfocusing on the one single scene they liked because they just don't have the energy to deal with the show's bullshit right now. How can they fuck up the last season so badly that it seems like the general reaction is disappointment and denial?
I think there’s a common cause for the fandom reactions: exhaustion.
In American broadcast television, a 26-episode season runs from September to May, then a summertime lull, during which people digest and discuss. Binge-watching is changing this, but it seems one thing hasn’t changed: no matter how fast we watch a show, we still require processing time.
What did we get? A half-season, two months’ break, another half-season, two months’ break, a full season, three months’ break, and a final full season. If every season had provoked a spike equal to S1/S2, we might’ve been begging DW by June to just freaking chill. Fandom had barely begun to process one season and a new one was already landing on our heads.
On top of that, S3-S6 weren’t exactly walks in the part, post-release. In terms of controversy, S7 dwarfed them all. That made an awful lot of people (across the entire spectrum, from almost every sub-group in the fandom) disengage. Those who remained dialed back on their expectations (”as long as X happens, that’s all that matters”), or they hung in there, insistent it would turn out alright.
So either you’re exhausted from not being able to fully disengage with the final season still in the wings, you’re exhausted from convincing yourself this one specific thing would be enough, or you’re exhausted from defending what turned out to be indefensible.
Frankly, disappointment and denial is a fairly soft landing, compared to what might’ve been. But any way you cut it, the fandom’s worn the hell out.
Do you think LM and JDS are gonna address this or are they just going to ignore the complaints, wash their hands and move on?
They don’t need to do anything. They don’t work for DW anymore. If someone has to address the complaints, it’d be DW or DW’s chosen spokesperson. I guess you could call that washing their hands, but the simple fact is they’re not on the payroll. They’re not responsible for VLD anymore.
do you think it's possible for dreamworks to rewrite season 8? i've never heard of a show doing that before and i'm afraid that we'll be stuck with what we got, but damn, i really hope that we will get to see the characters get the endings they deserve, if nothing else.
I’m not sure why anyone would bother. S7 was rife with problems; S3-S6 meandered back and forth. If I were to do a soft in-series reboot, I’d go back to the end of S2. That’s the clearest break, story-wise.
But if you’re going backwards 50+ episodes to the 26th, just keep going and start over. More to the point: not a lot of creators would sign on to inherit problems not of their own making. Same reason new directors on a property will want to rework the script in some way (if not start over from scratch).
Do you think this is truly the end of Voltron: Legendary Defender? I know that a lot of the cast and crew wanted to continue on with a sequel, and there's so many possibilities and things they can do in that universe, not to mention that Voltron is (or rather, was) a money bank...
Your guess is as good as mine, really. Hopefully we’ll get at least hints when the SACanime panel rolls around in early January.
There's a change petition for the "original s8" to be released ... [people] believe that LM and JDS are NOT the ones who ruined the last two seasons and that it was "exec meddling." Like, no, sorry, exec meddling appears to be what made it good in the beginning.
If we consider Yoo an exec by virtue of being CEO of Studio Mir, then I kinda wish he’d meddled a bit more.
...I'm wondering if the original version exists, completed. In one post, you said DW picked Tim over L/J so surely that got animated? What do you think? Be real. I don't want to get my hopes high thinking there's some buried treasure out there to find.
Ah, no, sorry, I wasn’t speaking in the sense of VLD but in the overall corporate sense. Here’s how the scenario often plays out: manager A and employee B do not get along. The longer they clash, the greater the chance A will find an excuse to fire B. The project is literally not big enough for the both of them.
B could resign, quit, or do a preemptive strike: go over A’s head and ask for help. If B leaves the company shortly after, it means the higher-up said: “I’ve heard A’s side, and I think A is right.” The exec might offer a good reference, or blame it on a no-fault bad fit. Doesn’t matter; the exec’s chosen A’s side.
Now, consider what actually happened: B gets transferred off the project, and gets a major promotion -- basically up to the same level as B’s former manager. Either B has some of the most amazing dirt ever, is phenomenally good at twisting reality to seem like the wronged party... or the higher-up reviewed the situation and decided that of the two, B was the one worth keeping.
Having decided that, the exec made an offer B couldn’t refuse, which would be to run a show that’s practically tailor-made to fit B’s dream job. That’s what I meant by losing the battle (how VLD would go) and winning the war (being the party seen as in the right, by the execs).
The only way for A to turn things around is to have a blisteringly successful final product. It could literally kill two careers with one stone: the (former) employee, B, who spun such a good story, and the exec(s) who believed B.
Given the numbers I’m seeing for S8... that exec did choose wisely.
ETA (sorry forgot this part): There might be pieces, but it really depends on what version control is in use (if any). For that matter, even if there were saved copies, who’s to say those didn’t get, whoops, deleted at some point? I’d put my bet on there being nothing, now, except what we got. Sorry.
I could understand if you never want to have anything to do with this show ever again.
Oh, jeez, I was here before VLD and I’ll be here after. Once we all get over our mutual exhaustion (and the holidays, bloody great timing, there), it’ll be time to roll up our sleeves and get to work. Fandom’s got a lot to do, putting things back together in all the shapes that’ll make us happy. This is the best time to be in a fandom, if you ask me. Everything’s just getting started!
#vld#voltron#come for the sugar stay for the salt#wrapping up a bundle of asks#sol thinks about stuff
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I was tagged for this game by @blodreina-noumou - sure, I’ll dive in!
MY SHOWS (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER) *:
The 100 (obviously)
Shadowhunters
Once Upon A Time
Leverage
Lost
*I am monofandomous. Which means I can only do one fandom at a time. I have a tendency towards hyperfixation. Obviously, #1 is that current hyperfixation, the other four are my ones before it.
Come take a look, if you dare.
QUESTIONS:
1. who is your favorite character in 2?
Magnus Bane. Has been since the books, and Harry plays him so well on screen. I love his loyalty, his take-no-shit attitude, his everything.
2. who is your least favorite character in 1?
Marcus Kane, wait he’s dead. Abby Griffin, wait she’s probably dead too. Okay, then we’ve come to Bellamy Blake. I don’t want to hate him, see, but he’s been so cruel to Octavia since 5x04, his joking with her now is unearned since he hasn’t apologized for his cruelty, and thus I cannot stan like I used to. Sorry not sorry.
3. what is your favorite episode of 4?
"The Big Bang Job”. Eliot backstory and Eliot being awesome. Love him so much.
4. what is your favorite season of 5?
Season 3. Ish. Latter half of season 3, more specifically.
5. who is your favorite couple in 3?
OutlawQueen. Regina was my absolute favourite, and Robin was just so perfect for her. And then, of course, as always for characters that are My Type™, she lost him. That’s pretty much where my love affair with the show ended.
6. who is your favorite couple in 2?
Malec (Magnus/Alec). Before my Octavia hyperfixation started, I had a fine career as a mid-list Malec fic writer, and then gave all of that up to, well, love and write about Octavia instead. No regrets.
7. what is your favorite episode in 1?
Episode 4x10 “Die All, Die Merrily”. Does this even need an explanation? Honourable mentions to 4x07 “Gimme Shelter” and 5x10 “The Warriors Will”.
8. what is your favorite episode of 5?
A tie between episodes 3x16 “One of Us” and 5x08 “LaFleur”. Yes, I love Juliet. She’s My Type™. As is Sawyer. And of course, Suliet, which was one of the first times my heart broke in fandom.
9. what is your favorite season of 2?
Season 2, even if it was heartbreaking for poor Magnus.
10. how long have you watched 1?
I started watching The 100 in February of last year, so in the hiatus between seasons 4 and 5. Then watched 5 and now 6 live.
11. how did you become interested in 3?
I can’t quite remember, actually. I think I’d heard about it, then started watching it when my ex-fiance’s sister shared it with me. (Obviously before the “ex” part happened.)
12. who is your favorite actor in 4?
Christian Kane (Eliot Spencer), always.
13. which do you prefer, 1, 2, or 5?
1. The 100. That’s why it is my current hyperfixation :D I love all of the moral and ethical dilemmas, I love the intensity, I love the depth, I love the “no good choices” and then “how do you live with it after?”. That’s why I watch. Which is why I hate that the more recent seasons aren’t holding to this and are deciding we should dislike some actions and like others, even if they’re similar.
14. which show have you seen more episodes of, 1 or 3?
3, only because OUAT had 22 episodes per season instead of 13-16.
15. if you could be anyone from 4, who would you be?
Parker! Parker and I have a lot in common, actually. I’m not a world-class thief, but I do have trouble relating to humans like she does, so acquiring an awesome skillset to go along with that would be cool.
16. would a crossover between 3 and 4 work?
OUAT and Leverage? .... no.
17. pair two characters in 1 that would make an unlikely but strangely okay couple
Octavia and Murphy. I know, you’re probably going “WHAT?! They haven’t spoken to each other since season 1 and have rarely shared a scene since”, but hear me out. They both know what it is like to be seen as the bad guy, when they didn’t do anything so different from other characters, they just got on The Leads’ bad sides. They’ve both spent large portions of the show physically and/or emotionally isolated from the rest of the main kru. They’ve both had complicated relationships with Team Adults, Jaha and Abby in particular.
This season especially is FULL of Octavia/Murphy parallels - Murphy dives into the water on the new planet (as Octavia did in 1x01), Murphy’s life is in danger from the water (see Octavia in 1x01, except this time it is a snake that saves his life rather than threatens it), Octavia is banished for stupid reasons (like Murphy in 1x04), and Octavia and Diyoza’s quest for Gabriel and the Anomaly parallels Murphy and Jaha’s quest for the City of Light in season 2 (especially relevant since we know the Anomaly will be a big plot point for S7, like the CoL was in S3).
So with all of that, if you still need some convincing... they’re both incredibly loyal. They help their people even when their people have done little to nothing to earn that loyalty, and even when their people think the worst of them. Also, Octavia is too selfless, and I really want some of Murphy’s selfishness to rub off on her. He’s not as selfish as people often think, but Octavia doesn’t have a selfish bone in her body, and she could use one.
So yeah. Murphtavia. CockroachQueen. Whatever you want to call the ship. It’s happening.
18. overall, which story has the better storyline, 3 or 5?
Well, these two are based on the same principles, and created by a fair number of the same people, with the same actors. So the storylines have fair numbers of similarities, but I have to say 5, because Lost wrapped things up at the appropriate time instead of going for a victory lap half-reboot like OUAT did.
19. which has the better theme music, 2 or 4?
2. Shadowhunters. Without a doubt. This is where I first heard Ruelle and Fleurie, and they’re both amazing artists and you should all check them out.
I’m not tagging anyone, but feel free to steal and do it. I don’t know where this thing started, but does anyone with these things, really?
#tag game#multifandom#murphtavia#because that's really why I did this#so I could wax poetic about my (not so) crack ship#still prefer niytavia though
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Things I expect/hope for in season 8
Resolution between Keith and James. I’m kinda surprised we didn’t get it this season, but I hope they have some kind of coming to terms in the future. They’re both stubborn hotshots who ended up taking the mantel of leadership--give me cool teamup stuff!
Resolution between Allura and Lance. I don’t think it’ll be romantic. We’ve been told already that Lance won’t be a rebound and will be someone’s first choice (PLANCE what who said that?). We’ve also been told that they’re growing relationship will help Allura notice that she’s surrounded by good people (KALLURA wth is there a draft in here?). Hopefully they can resolve to be friends without anyone hurting anyone’s feelings. (gosh pls no awful love triangle drama neither of them deserves that)
Explanation about Shiro. We STILL don’t know what Haggar meant about Shiro being their greatest weapon, and we’ve been given teases about the white lion not being done with Shiro, whatever that means.
Lotor’s return. Is it even physically possible to die in the quintessence field? Nah, he’s gonna come back, probably crazy like his father. He and Keith didn’t have a SINGLE duel in all those seasons, and their rivalry was a hallmark of the original series. It’s gotta happen....please....
Keith’s “sixth sense.” HOW is he able to do that thing with his bayard? And sense the druid teleporting? And why didn’t his wound from the druid glow like it does on others? AMERICA EXPLAIN. (yall if he’s part Altean i’m gonna flip)
Keith and Lance bonding. They work together a lot better now, but I think they need to clear the air on some things. They were best friends in the original and I WANT THAT HERE.
Shiro in Blue. I have no reasoning for this other than the OG series but I’ve been waiting for the creators to sneak it in so I SHALL HOPE FOR IT. I feel that Shiro’s role in the greater conflict outside of being a paladin has been solidified enough that borrowing Blue for a spell wouldn’t be a disservice or embarrassment to his character please don’t @ me.
Allura gets a NEW CROWN. I suspect that her giving up her tiara in s7 was setup for something down the road--possibly a coronation featuring the new Altean colony?? PLEASE MY GIRL DESERVES THE WORLD
More about the MFE pilots. Unpopular opinion but I really liked the new MFE pilots and I would really like to see them bond more with each other and Team Voltron. Leifsdotter and Pidge being nerdy together? Rizavi and Lance racing (ft. referee Romelle)? James and Hunk making comprehensive lists about why Keith’s Most Recent Reckless Plan is a bad idea? Gimme.
More about Allura’s Mom. We have so many great moms in this show--is it too selfish to ask for another? We have so little info on Allura’s mom that I’m starting to suspect it was intentional, which begs the question: what happened to her? I suspect that untimely death was very unusual for a peaceful Altea, as they had such amazing healing technology. Not to mention that the mom’s white hair suggests she also had magical abilities. So what could’ve happened in young Allura’s life to take her mother? We’ve already been told we’ll be getting more flashbacks of the Days of Old, so it’s possible we’ll learn more.
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Wow... remember the s12 Hellatus Meta Wank-A-Thon? Remember how toxic and awful it was? If you’re not in the mood to relive it, you probably don’t want to click the read more.
Or: the one where Mittens picked on an innocent crack post because I was sick of reading Dean Character Assassination.
AKA: That one where Mittens goes spare defending actual meta from wanky crack that completely misrepresented Dean Winchester.
i.e. That one where Mittens explains the difference between Dean’s instincts and the quality of information those instincts supply him with, and the fact that Dean’s instincts really are never wrong per se but also don’t imbue him with the power of Omniscience.
also, read at your own risk... there’s a reason this is under a cut. However if you’re an unapologetic Dean girl you’ll probably enjoy it.
From this post (which I do understand as crack, due to the fact it pulls random scenarios entirely out of context to support a headcanon that contradicts pretty much every bit of meta I’ve ever read... including this post and the attendant photo/gif set that also went around recently, which I can’t seem to find on my blog but essentially proves the opposite of this-- and honestly y’all can’t have it both ways just because the opposite interpretation is convenient):
Dean: Cas would never say 'no' to me, it's not Cas. Trust me, I'm the Cas expert
Sam: Hold on
Dean: What? Get the Holy Fire!
Sam: *Pulls out list, puts on reading glasses, begins reading from list* Won't acknowledge Castiel gone dark side, when he was working with Crowley. Although all the signs were there. Made up false memories from purgatory because you couldn't accept Cas choosing to leave you
Dean: Shut uppp
Sam: Didn't realise Cas was possessed by Lucifer
Because yes, Dean IS the Cas expert, even when he doesn’t understand the fact.
Let’s go point by point:
1. in 6.20 Dean refused to accept that Cas had gone “dark side” until he had evidence to prove that Cas could do something so horrifying. Just the same as Dean has spent basically the entire series giving SAM the benefit of the doubt. Dean is not quite so eager to condemn his loved ones without undeniable proof that they’ve betrayed him, you know? Let’s look at 2.05 for evidence of this, because that example also conveniently includes a form of mind control:
Andy: Tell the truth!
Sam: That's what I'm -
Dean: We hunt demons.
Andy: What?
Sam: Dean!
Dean: Demons and spirits. Things your worst nightmares wouldn't even touch. Sam here, he's my brother...
Sam: Dean, shut up!
Dean: I'm trying. He's psychic. Kind of like you. Well, not really like you, but see, he thinks you're a murderer, and he's afraid that he's going to become one himself, 'cause you're all part of something that's terrible. And, I hope to hell that he's wrong, but I'm starting to get a little scared that he might be right.
Or perhaps we should look at Dean’s low-level suspicions of Sam’s “demon powers” in s4, carefully noting that he refused to prematurely make accusations against Sam until he had evidence to base his ~gut instinct feelings~ on.
Despite months of suspicions, despite NUMEROUS attempts at practically BEGGING Cas to let him help, to at least listen to what Cas was involved with, Sam and Dean spent most of s6 entirely in the dark. It’s not that they didn’t CARE about Cas, it’s that Cas REFUSED TO INVOLVE THEM. From 6.03:
CASTIEL: I can explain later. Right now we have to --
DEAN: No, not later. Now. Stop, all right? Too many angels, Cas! I don't know who's on first, what's on second.
CASTIEL: What is "second"?!
DEAN: Don't start that.
CASTIEL: It is simple: Raphael and his followers, they want him to rule Heaven. I -- and many others -- the last thing we want is to let him take over. It would be catastrophic.
and
DEAN: Why does Raphael want to bring back all this crap?
CASTIEL: He's a traditionalist.
DEAN: Cas, why didn't you tell us this?
CASTIEL: I was ashamed. I expected more from my brothers. I'm sorry. Now I need your blood.
At this point Dean has been out of the loop on EVERYTHING for near on a year, and Sam is currently soulless (but we don’t know that yet, aside from the fact that Dean is side-eyeing Sam and having uneasy and wary ~feelings~ that something is not quite right with Sam). Dean’s playing a game of Cosmic Catch-Up set to the highest difficulty level. He’s not about to go flinging around accusations that he can’t back up with evidence. His ~gut feeling~ isn’t enough to condemn his loved ones. They’ve earned better from him than that.
Even Death warning Dean in 6.11 about Cas, and the dangerous road he was traveling down regarding “the souls” (despite it being so vague as to be entirely unhelpful to Dean, other than to give some credit to that gut feeling of ~wrongness~ about Cas’s behavior, without giving him any direct evidence to bring to Cas and confront him in a way that Cas can’t wriggle out of yet again).
Like the end of 6.15:
SAM Cas, what the hell? Wait, wait, you were in on this, using us a diversion?
CASTIEL It was Balthazar's plan. I would have done the same thing.
DEAN That's not comforting, Cas.
CASTIEL When will I be able to make you understand? If I lose against Raphael, we all lose. Everything.
DEAN Yeah, Cas. We know the stakes. That's about all you've told us!
CASTIEL I'm sorry about all this. I'll explain when I can.
As we learn in 6.20, we understand that even in 6.15, or in 6.17, or 6.18, or 6.19-- all episodes where Cas had an opportunity to come clean to Dean and Sam and yet CONTINUED to hide the truth from them, not because he was short on time but because he knew what he was doing was morally wrong and that he would lose their support, yet he was far too deep in his web of lies (can you see why this “reimagining” of canon is infuriating yet? And how horrifyingly painful s6 is when you look at it honestly as the narrative presents these cold facts?)--
CASTIEL I had no choice. I did it to protect the boys. Or to protect myself. I-I don't know anymore.
or
SAM Castiel...This is really important, okay? Um...We really need to talk to you.
DEAN Castiel...Come on in.
CASTIEL But I didn't go to them...Because I knew they would have questions I couldn't answer...Because I was afraid.
or
CASTIEL Wonders never cease. They trusted me again. But it was just another lie.
Or the fact that Cas asked God for a sign, to let him know he was doing the right thing... and despite it really being too little too late, God sent him the sign. Dean literally told him to stop. That was the sign. Cas plowed right over it anyway.
And it is clear REPEATEDLY throughout s6 that Dean KNOWS there’s really important stuff that Cas has not told him, but again... he still TRUSTS Cas to be honest with him. That trust doesn’t break until 6.20, and it breaks so horribly that he doesn’t even know who or what to trust in again. That’s essentially his entire s7 arc, after all. Cas’s betrayal practically destroys him.
But sure, he refused to accept Cas’s betrayal without actual evidence in 6.20 because he’s an idiot with bad instincts.
On to point the second: Dean creating a false memory of his escape from Purgatory because he couldn’t bear the thought that Cas wouldn’t want to leave with him.
When he first arrived back, one of the first things Dean tells Sam in 8.01 is this:
SAM: What about Cas? Was he there?
DEAN walks a few steps away and speaks with his back to SAM.
DEAN: Yeah, Cas didn't make it.
SAM: What exactly does that mean?
DEAN: Something happened to him down there. Things got pretty hairy towards the end, and he... just let go.
SAM: So Cas is dead? You saw him die?
DEAN: I saw enough.
SAM: So, then what, you're not sure?
DEAN: [turning back to SAM] I said I saw enough, Sam.
SAM: Right. Dean, I'm sorry.
This is the first and last time he admits out loud in words that Cas LET GO. That it wasn’t HIS fault that Cas didn’t make it out. He does honestly admit it here, when the wound is so painfully raw. And when Sam presses him for details, for clarification, he shuts that conversation down, but the wound’s been poked at now.
Yet life goes on, and Dean’s back in it but Cas isn’t. The reality of that takes a bit to settle in for him, the fact that Cas DID let go, and the only explanation he can think of for WHY he’d do that was because Dean himself wasn’t worth holding on to. And dear me, without being able to ASK Cas about it, all the while spiraling into a horrible guilt and depression, grieving the loss of the best friend he ever had yet again, Dean began to turn that memory into something that wouldn’t drive him straight to the bottom of a bottle. He knew the truth of it, just as well as he was suspicious of Cas from the MOMENT he arrived back from Purgatory, but for Dean Whiskey-And-Denial Winchester the only way to keep going is to shove all that down.
Nobody said that was a healthy response to horrifying loss, tragedy, and grief, but it was all Dean had back then.
So no, that’s not a valid point either.
On to point the third: “Didn’t notice Cas was possessed by Lucifer”
Except what basis did he have to believe that was even a remote possibility? As far as EVERYONE knew at first, Rowena’s spell sending Lucifer back to the cage had been a success. Sure, Cas didn’t return to the bunker like he told Dean he would at the end of 11.10, but Dean knows how this goes. In his mind, Cas has better things to do than hang out with him and Sam (because Dean’s self-deprecation is one of the longest running themes in the whole series), and at the beginning of 11.11, only a day or two post 11.10, we have this as proof:
SAM: And what about the Darkness? What about Cas? We haven't heard from them.
DEAN: Okay, first of all, we've got zero on Amara. And Cas -- Cas will be fine. He always is.
What was he about to say there? In that stuttering blank? “Cas does what he wants, why would he suddenly think I’m more important than whatever he wants to do?”
But right from the start, he’s wary of Cas and his sudden appearance at the bunker. Go rewatch all of his exchanges with Cas(ifer) in 11.11. He has no reason to suspect that Cas had said yes to Lucifer and currently WAS NOT CAS, but he’s confused by Cas’s unusual behavior. I think we spent that entire week between episodes screaming about Dean’s discomfort and confusion and WRONG SHOULDER OMG, Everything about that scene is jarring and uncomfortable and awkward... But again, Dean doesn’t lob unfounded gut-instinct accusations at his loved ones. He gives them the benefit of the doubt until his suspicions are confirmed.
Not to mention the fact that Dean is only just then beginning to come to grips with the fact that Amara is exerting some sort of control over HIM, and he doesn’t really know how to deal with HIS OWN MANIPULATED FEELINGS.
(seriously, do ALL of these references actually mirror directly to possession and mind control? Hmmm, I’m sure that’s entirely coincidental...)
That doesn’t mean he’s NOT suspicious when his SOMETHING’S WRONG alarm bells are going off... from the end of 11.11:
SAM: Is Cas gone?
DEAN: Yeah, I guess so.
SAM: What was he doing here anyway?
DEAN: He was looking for lore on the Darkness. Something a little off about him, too.
SAM: Something always seems a little bit off about Cas. [Scoffs] Yeah, you know, being so close to Lucifer probably wasn't easy for him, either.
DEAN: We'll just keep an eye on him.
The VERY NEXT TIME they interact with Cas(ifer) in 11.14 the entire truth comes out. And they are shocked and horrified by it.
The exact same way they’re ALL shocked and horrified to learn that Lucifer is still at liberty in 12.22, and Cas is equally shocked and horrified to learn that fact in 12.23. Dean had no reason to even believe it was a possibility in s11 until his uneasy feelings about Cas’s odd behavior were revealed to be Lucifer possessing Cas.
Doesn’t mean he didn’t see the odd behavior and react accordingly.
Okay. THIS is meta. The other is crack. That’s the difference.
#oh DEAN#seriously though why doesn't everyone just trust dean's gut instincts it's like he's got an uncanny magical gift here...#MMMoRDOR#mittens wanky drafts dump
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Guide Us Home
Title: Guide Us Home
Fandom: Shameless, Mickey/Ian
Rating: T
Summary: Ian has never regretted anything more than walking away from Mickey that day at the border. All he wants is to find his way back to the man he loves.
Notes: I have not watched s6 or s7 yet, with the exception of the episodes with Mickey. I’m new to the series and just haven’t had a chance to finish it yet, so forgive any mistakes in the details here. This is just something that came out. I had the general idea and was planning to wait to write it until I’d finished, but late night inspiration took over and now here it is, so I’m just going to post and hope it’s not too far off the mark.
Ian Gallagher has made a lot of mistakes. More than most. More than he’d ever imagined possible, really. But none worse than letting the love of his life walk away—than pushing him to go and refusing to follow him. Ian had been doing well. He’d believed, truly, that letting go was his only option.
He’s regretted that choice every goddamn day since Mickey had crossed that fucking border.
There are letters. One for every day Mickey’s been gone. They’re mundane, mostly. Work. Family. Quiet I love yous hidden beneath the domestic bubble they’d once shared.
Others, though, are all sorrow and loss. Empty apologies Ian thinks he’ll never get to deliver. Broken I miss yous that leave him shaking and cold.
He’s nothing without Mickey. He knows that now. Knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that he’ll never be truly happy without the man he’d let go.
The only thing that keeps him going is the hope that maybe, someday soon, he might hear from Mickey once more.
Ian just needs one more chance to show Mickey how much he loves him.
Ian goes to Mandy seven months and two weeks after he’d let Mickey go. He figures if Mickey’s had any kind of contact with anyone at home, it’s going to be Mandy.
Ian’s desperate. Been crying for days.
He had spent months hoping to hear from Mickey—to hear something, anything. But he can’t say that he blames Mickey. It was Ian who’d said goodbye and left Mickey on his own. Ian had made a choice that day at the border. It wasn’t fair to expect Mickey to come crawling back to him. Mickey had done exactly that too many times and every time, he’d been hurt for it.
Ian thinks, sometimes, that he doesn’t deserve Mickey.
In the back of his mind, he knows it’s true.
When Mandy opens the door, Ian’s eyes are red-rimmed and swollen. He knows he’s a mess. Can’t really hide it. Figures if there’s anyone he doesn’t have to hide for, it’s Mandy.
The moment she sees him, she smiles sadly and pulls him into a hug, whispering a quiet “hey” into his ear as she rubs little soothing circles into Ian’s back. It only takes Ian a moment to break down completely, clinging to the woman who had once been his best friend and who was now the only link he had left to the man he loved.
When he gets himself together, finally, she leads him inside and hands him a glass of water to help calm his nerves. He feels shaky, on edge, and he hates for her to see him like this. Especially after so much time.
Mandy has Ian set up on the little love seat in her living room, and she’s settled herself nearby in an old overstuffed armchair. Ian thinks for a moment that she seems to be doing well for herself. He wishes he’d known that. Wishes he’d been a better friend. He misses her. She’d been family once, just like Mickey.
“How’ve you been?” He asks quietly. And even though he’s sincere in the desire to learn about her life now, they both know why he’s really there.
“Just ask me, Ian. We both know why you’re here,” she tells him carefully. Her voice is soft, soothing. She understands. Always has.
His eyes raise to meet hers, and there’s a hint of desperation under the facade he’s trying to keep in place. “You heard from him?”
“No.” She says it confidently, forcefully, but Ian catches the way her eyes drop away for the briefest moment.
“Are you lying?” If she’s going to be so direct, he figures he might as well do the same.
Mandy sighs, relenting in the slightest and dropping her guard. Her gaze is soft, and the corners of her lips tip up a bit in a sad smile. “Ian, he doesn’t want to see you or hear from you. He doesn’t want you to know where he is.”
Ian looks confused for a moment, the hurt evident in his eyes. “What?“ he questions, and it’s barely a whisper, the pain choking away his voice.
“That can’t be a surprise to you, Ian. You broke his heart,” Mandy insists with a shake of her head. “You got his hopes up. You showed up, Ian, and you pretended like you were going with him. From the moment you got in that car, he was imagining forever with you. He thought you were going to be there. That he was finally going to be truly happy again. You made him feel that again, and then you left him. Everyone always leaves him, Ian. He thought, in that moment that you were different, but then you abandoned him and cursed him to a life on the run, forever alone. You fucking broke him, and it was the last straw. He can’t hurt like that again. He won’t survive it.”
“Mandy—” Ian starts, voice desperate, but he loses his words as the tears gather in his eyes. He swallows hard against the pain and blinks away the tears. “Please.”
“Ian,” she shakes her head again, and crosses her arms defensively over her chest, “I get it, okay. I understand why you couldn’t go through with it. Why you had to let him go. But that was your choice, Ian. You made a choice, and now you have to live with the consequences of that choice. I know you love him—I know you always have—but you’ve hurt him, over and over again, and there’s only so much a person can take. He doesn’t want to see you or hear from you. That’s his choice. And he has every right to make it. So just, please, Ian, respect that. Let my brother live his life. Let him find some semblance of happiness again. Without you. Please.”
Ian takes in her words, nodding slowly after a moment. She’s right, he knows. Ian never should have gotten in that car unless he was sure. But then, he’d believed he was, at the time. And even if he hadn’t been, he never could have let Mickey go without that final time together; without those carefree hours in that little car, the smiles and happiness. Ian doesn’t think he’ll ever feel that again. Not without Mickey.
“Do you know how to contact him?” Ian asks softly, averting his eyes because he knows it’s not fair of him to ask.
“Ian—” Mandy warns, her voice tight with frustration.
“Mandy, please,” he begs, eyes still wet with unshed tears. “I won’t contact him myself, I just—I need to know. Please.”
Mandy takes a deep breath, eyeing Ian cautiously before sighing softly with a tiny nod of affirmation. “Yeah. I know how to contact him.”
Ian lets out a breath, tension rolling off his shoulders. As long as Mandy knows, there’s still a chance. “Can you do me a favor?” Ian asks softly. “I won’t ask you where he is or how to find him or even how to contact him myself, but could you—could you send him something for me?”
It’s another three months before he hears from Mandy again. She calls while he’s at work, and he doesn’t get the message until late. It’s short. A town. An address. And a quiet plea that Ian not break Mickey’s heart again.
He won’t this time, he knows.
He’s at the Gallagher house before he knows what’s happening, dropping off a letter for the family. It’s supposed to be his goodbye, but he doesn’t quite make it out so easily.
When he turns around to head back for the front door, Fiona’s there, blocking his path and looking terrified.
“Ian?” Her voice is full of worry with a hint of fear hiding beneath. She thinks he’s manic, off his meds, he knows. He’s not. He’s just finally decided it’s time to put Mickey first.
“Hey, Fi,” he offers quietly, a little smile touching his lips.
“Whatch'ya doing?” The question is cautious. She’s afraid he might bolt.
Ian watches her carefully. He wants to be gentle, put her fears at ease. “Going away for a while. Need to find myself, you know.”
And, okay, maybe that wasn’t the best way to put it after his last few little adventures.
“Ian, please. Where are you going?” Fiona’s worried. He can hear it in the tremble of her voice.
“Fi, I can’t tell you that,” he explains gently. “I just—I have to go, okay? I’ll try to be in touch when I can, but it won’t be often, and I don’t plan to come back. At least not anytime soon. Just. Just don’t worry.” Ian knows it’s not fair. Knows she’s worked her ass off to keep him alive for his whole goddamn life, and she deserves an explanation, but right now he needs to be selfish. He needs Mickey.
“Is it Mickey?” she asks quietly, her voice resigned as she watches Ian carefully.
Ian nods with a little smile and huffs out a laugh. “Of course, it’s Mickey,” Ian admits, watching carefully for her reaction. “I can’t live without him anymore, Fi. I have to find him. Have to be with him. I love him, Fiona.”
Tears are collecting in her eyes, but she smiles, and it looks genuine. “I know,” she murmurs softly, stepping closer to press a little kiss to Ian’s cheek, her fingers brushing the hair back from his eyes. Ian lets out a shaky breath—he’d been sure she was going to blow up at that confirmation. “Mickey has always been good to you, Ian. He’ll take care of you. He loves you, and I trust him. Just—be careful, okay. Don’t get caught. And be good to him. Let him love you. Let him care for you this time.”
Ian feels like he’s breaking. He’d never imagined he might get Fiona’s blessing, and yet, here they are. “Thank you, Fi. I love you.”
Fiona smiles again and pats his cheek. “Love you, too, kiddo. Now go get your man.”
When he arrives in Mexico, it somehow feels like coming home. He steps off the bus outside the little apartment building with nothing but a backpack slung over his shoulder. He doesn’t have much, but he hopes he’ll have Mickey, and Mickey will always be enough.
When he reaches the door with the number Mandy had given him etched beside it, he swallows hard and hesitates a moment. He’s not sure whether Mickey’s here. Whether he knows. Whether he’d gotten the letters.
But he has to try, so he reaches out and knocks gently. The latch gives way at the pressure and the door swings open a few inches. When no answer comes, he pushes the door the rest of the way open and steps inside hesitantly.
The room is small, mostly empty, not much in the way of furniture. Just open space.
And there, in the center of the room, back to the door, and surrounded by open envelopes, sits Mickey. Ian’s breath catches in his throat, and he feels like he’s dreaming. Could this all be real?
“Mickey?” Ian breaths out, voice so soft he’s not sure the word ever actually leaves his lips.
It takes a moment, but he finally sees Mickey’s head lift, his hands falling to his lap. Ian can see the paper that dangles from Mickey’s fingers then, Ian’s own scrawl clearly visible. “You came,” Mickey whispers, and Ian thinks maybe the words are more for Mickey than for Ian himself.
Ian smiles a bit, still a little wary because he’s not sure how to read the situation. “Sorry I’m late,” Ian murmurs quietly, pulling them both back to those moments all those years ago when Mickey had chosen Ian. Because Mickey is Ian’s choice this time. Now and for the rest of his life. Ian won’t turn away again, and he knows, even all those years ago, that that was exactly the promise Mickey was making when he’d murmured the same.
Mickey’s still for a moment, and it’s like they’re frozen in time. Ian doesn’t know what to think. He’s not sure Mickey’s still willing to give him a chance. Not sure if maybe Mickey’s moved on.
It’s only a moment, though, until Mickey’s up and in Ian’s arms, eyes squeezed tight against the tears that threaten to fall. And Ian feels like he’s flying. Because they’re both here, and Mickey’s smiling through his tears and holding on for dear life, and Ian has never felt happier or more complete.
And on the floor, abandoned with all the others, sits Ian’s latest letter, the only words scrawled on the surface read simply, I’m coming home.
Ao3 Link
#shameless fic#gallavich#mickey/ian#gallavich fic#canon compliant#post-s7#ian gallagher#mickey milkovich#mandy milkovich#fiona gallagher#shameless#my writing#not spn
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Hyde’s Core Characterization
The writing and characterization on That ‘70s Show is inconsistent, but one can come up with a core characterization for each of the main characters based on a selection of episodes that define and depict them consistently. The characters’ personalities, goals, and feelings can -- and should -- be complex, as long as those complexities are substantiated by consistent actions and subtext.
I often write about certain behavior and choices I consider OOC for the characters. I do so because I’ve formed my understanding of their core characterization from a specific set of episodes. I write my T7S fanfic from this understanding, too. When a character acts contrary to previously established beliefs/feelings/behavior without a proper grounding for that contradiction, I consider those actions OOC.
My understanding of the characters’ true natures isn’t the only valid one. People can form their own understanding from a different selection or interpretation of the episodes.
But below the cut is a list of S1-S4 episodes, with explanations, from which I’ve formed my version of Hyde’s core characterization. I don’t list episodes from S5-S7 because they either confirm, further, and deepen what’s already been established -- or they evolve/devolve Hyde’s character based on his core.
“That Disco Episode” (1x07) = Not for the Hyde/Donna stuff, but for how Hyde interacts with Red and Kitty. He clearly has a trusting relationship/history with both of them.
“Sunday, Bloody Sunday” (1x10) = We learn some significant info about Hyde’s political beliefs. We also learn Hyde smokes cigs.
“Career Day” (1x18) = We see Hyde’s unhealthy relationship with Edna, learn about their history together, and see how both deeply affect him. We also learn that Eric’s the one he trusts the most. He seeks Eric out when he’s on the verge of tears after Edna’s latest berating of him.
“Prom Night” (1x19) = The first ep where Hyde’s compassionate, noble, self-sacrificing, protector-of-the-vulnerable nature is depicted. Also where he experiences/sees Jackie as more than an annoyance the first time but as human. And as beautiful. Once he agrees to go to Prom with her, he does everything he can to make the night special for her and to make her feel better … even getting her back together with Kelso after all those eps Hyde wanted Kelso to break up with her.
”Punk Chick” (1x22) = We get more about his relationship with his mom and how oppressive it is to him. We also learn that he’s attracted to a girl’s personality first when it comes to someone he’d actually consider a relationship with (and not just a screw).
“Hyde Moves In” (1x24) = We get a lot about how Hyde deals with trauma, his survival instincts/abilities, and his relationship with Eric. We also see how he cares about his friends and people, in general (he brings everyone to his house when they’re all naked and lets them wear his – and Edna’s – clothes). He’s concerned when Jackie can’t find anything to wear. We also see how much Hyde fears/respects Red.
”The Good Son” (1x25) = Hyde’s gratitude. He doesn’t have an entitlement issue, which he could have, considering his background. He shows himself to be the opposite of the lazy good-for-nothing his mom always claims he is. (I totally believe he continued to do chores without complaint after this ep.)
We also get more of his self-sacrificing nature. He tries to take the blame for the busted TV, even though it could mean he gets kicked out of the Formans’ -- whereas for Eric it would just be a grounding. But Hyde got to live at the Formans’ because of Eric. He feels gratitude toward Eric, too, and obviously feels responsibility for Eric’s jealous and idiotic behavior. So he wants to protect him from Red’s wrath.
”Garage Sale” (2x01) = Hyde’s impish nature. Making and selling the special brownies. But also attempting to make up for his mistake (letting the parents eat his second batch of special brownies) by helping Eric get the Vista Cruiser back. Hyde’s also got a bit of an ego on him. “I rule!” he says after Eric tries to teach Hyde about consequences; but since Hyde had helped get the Vista Cruiser back, the consequences were nullified.
“Halloween” (2x04) = We learn a lot about Hyde’s childhood and his intelligence, etc. Also, the J/H interaction is golden.
“Vanstock” (2x06) = We learn that Hyde isn’t happy about Kelso cheating on Jackie, his conflict about ratting him out, and his solution (“laying traps left and right”).
“Sleepover” (2x08) = Hyde gets a job and gives Red and Kitty the money from his paycheck. Even though he claims he wants to be lazy at work, he’s the one who gets Leo to stop slacking off. This episode reveals a lot about Hyde’s true nature, same as “The Good Son” does. He doesn’t want to be a financial burden on the Formans, and he takes action to be less of one. He could’ve kept his money for himself (and I’m sure he kept some to pay for his stash), but he gives the majority of it to the Formans.
“Eric Gets Suspended” (2x09) = Further proof Hyde smokes cigs. We also get confirmation that personality trumps his physical type when it comes to dating girls.
“Red’s Birthday” (2x10) = Hyde listens to Donna’s parent woes, shows her compassion, and shares his own experiences and feelings about when his parents’ marriage was breaking up.
“Burning Down the House” (2x15) = Hyde’s treatment of Kat Peterson. He’s rather sweet with her, considering she’s just a fuck for him and vice versa. He could’ve slapped her ass outside his bedroom door and sent her on her way, but instead he walks her to the basement door and gives her a goodbye kiss/hug type-thing.
We also see his low self-esteem (which will eventually get better during his relationship with Jackie). He calls Kat choosing to be with him “slumming it,” and he also continues to be with her once he learns he’s a secret she’s keeping from her friends. He clearly doesn’t have a lot of respect for himself during this point in the show.
“Eric and Kitty’s Night Out” (2x18) = We learn about Hyde’s emotional process. Hyde’s initially rattled that Patty chose Fez over him. He resents it, in large part because Hyde “taught [Fez] everything he knows “ He clearly likes Patty (beyond just a screw) and doesn’t understand why she doesn’t like him back the same way. A person’s self-concept can be rather complex. Though Hyde does have low self-esteem, largely thanks to his parents, he also considers himself “a real catch” on some level – at least in comparison to Fez.
(One can reasonably theorize that Hyde spoke to someone (maybe Kitty) after “Eric Gets Suspended” and/or “Burning Down the House” about dating, and maybe she called him, “A real catch.”)
Hyde doesn’t take long to leave his resentment behind, however. He says, “Maybe I should just be happy for Fez. I mean, it's the first time in his whole life that he's ever had a girl, you know?” His friendship for Fez ultimately trumps his ego and resentment, and that takes a measure of emotional maturity and compassion.
Hyde and Leo’s connection (they were both abandoned by their families) and relationship is solidified in this episode, too.
“Kelso’s Serenade” (2x21) = Hyde’s compassion is in full-effect here. He finally understands how hurt Jackie is by Kelso’s betrayal. It’s no longer amusing to him, and he chucks his loyalty to Kelso out the window and tells Jackie she can do better than him. He comforts Jackie both verbally and physically (not sexually). He puts his arm around her and strokes her hair—Jackie’s hair. This is a significantly characterizing moment for her, individually and in terms of how he regards/treats Jackie.
This is also the third episode where Hyde’s depicted as someone for whom personality trumps looks when it comes to romance. After rejecting her romantic advance (i.e. kiss), he tells Jackie, “See, I myself don't like you. I find you abrasive. But if I didn't know you, and I'd never talked to you, I'd think you were totally hot.” He doesn’t find her attractive because (what he’s experienced of her personality (thus far) rubs him the wrong way. But by the end of this episode, he accepts a kiss from her and characterizes her as nice to Kelso and Fez.
“Jackie Moves On” (2x22) = Hyde is protective of Jackie, even when she’s not present.
“Holy Crap” (2x23) = We learn Hyde’s views on organized religion.
“Cat Fight Club” (2x25) = If one wants only one episode to base Hyde’s characterization from when writing him, this is it.
He’s depicted in this ep as someone who is perceptive about other people’s emotions and how they operate. We learn about how he protects himself from people trying to invade his boundaries—and by teaching Jackie how to do the same, he makes himself vulnerable to him. His compassion for and protectiveness of her—and for vulnerable people, in general—is again evident. He makes himself less safe to help her become safer, which reconfirms his self-sacrificing nature.
“Moon Over Point Place” (2x26) = More Hyde complexity. Jackie’s begun to idolize him, thanks to the events of “Cat Fight Club”. Hyde rejects her friendship to protect both himself from her and her from himself (I explore this in Welcome to Hydeville). He gets arrested on her behalf because a) he’s protecting her from an experience he doesn’t think she can handle or should go through and b) she wouldn’t have felt compelled to prove herself to him by bringing him pot if he hadn’t rejected her, so he’s taking responsibility for a situation he believes he caused.
This is yet another episode where his self-sacrificing nature and his protection the vulnerable is depicted.
“Reefer Madness” (3x01) = And another episode where his self-sacrificing nature and his protection the vulnerable is depicted.
Hyde continues to protect Jackie, even though it means becoming homeless (i.e. Red kicking him out of the house). He could tell Red and Kitty (and Eric, etc.) the real reason why he’d gone to jail, but he doesn’t. He accepts his fate, and he also doesn’t want Eric getting in trouble on his behalf.
“Hyde’s Father” (3x03) = Hyde’s anger at and relationship to his (step-)father. Bud neutralizes Hyde’s eight years of anger by offering him a beer and taking him to a strip club. Bud spent years narcotizing his own pain, and he reinforces this unhealthy coping mechanism in Hyde. This is the start of a toxic relationship, and Bud hitting Hyde up for rent money cements it.
Red sees the problem and warns Hyde, but the wounded part of Hyde who’d been abandoned by both parents needs to try a relationship with Bud, regardless that it’ll probably be toxic.
The love between Red and Hyde is also depicted in this episode.
“Baby Fever” (3x07). Hyde’s emotional maturity is shown in this episode. Jackie damages Kelso’s van, and Kelso wants to calculate how much he owes Jackie monetarily vs. the cost of repairing the van. After the results are hugely in Jackie’s favor, Kelso isn’t happy, and Hyde says, “You could’ve been a man and forgiven her, but no. You wanted to do the math.”
Hyde’s dialogue in the circle characterizes him significantly as a feminism.
“Jackie Bags Hyde” (3x08). This episode furthers Hyde’s characterization as a feminist.
He’s very protective of Jackie. He tries to vet Chip, to make sure he’s safe for her to date. He finds out Chip doesn’t respect Jackie at all but views her only as someone to serve his sexual desires. Chip also calls Jackie a bitch, and Hyde knocks him out.
Of course, we also learn definitively that Hyde has developed romantic feelings for Jackie at this point, but the show doesn’t explore this fact afterward and doesn’t acknowledge it once Jackie and Hyde’s romantic relationship begins in S5.
“Kitty’s Birthday” (3x17) = Hyde’s protectiveness of the vulnerable. Caroline is stranded at the Hub at night. Hyde barely knows her, but he offers to drive her home and does it.
“Eric’s Depression” (4x02) = Hyde’s compassion and love for Eric. Eric is too depressed to go to Funland, so Hyde says he and their friends will hang out with Eric in his room. Fez doesn’t want to do that, but Hyde frogs him as a message that Eric needs them more right now than Fez needs to go to Funland. Hyde leaves only when Eric rejects the company.
“The Relapse” (4x06) = Hyde comforts Donna about her mom having left the family. He holds her lovingly (not romantically) for quite a while listening and talking to her—and also while being silent. He makes a few jokes, too, in an attempt to make her laugh. This is a significant scene that shows his true heart.
“Hyde’s Birthday” (4x23) = We learn more about Hyde’s extended family. We also learn that Hyde believes the Formans’ support is temporary and that his prospects for the future are limited. Red disabuses him of both beliefs, and Hyde starts to accept that he’s part of the Formans’ family.
“Eric’s False Alarm” (4x25) = This episode shows Hyde’s loyalty to Eric and, perhaps, protectiveness of Donna—if one goes by what Hyde tells Donna in the next episode. It also characterizes Hyde as someone who doesn’t like exposing his heart and as someone who lies about his true motives to protect himself.
“Everybody Loves Casey” (4x26) = Hyde tries to talk sense into Donna about Casey.
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ok, dear fellow johnlock shippers, here is the thing I haven’t understood from the start:
Why on earth would you include the line I love you in a teaser?!? A love declaration is almost always a vital part of the plot, a turning point, a twist, a resolution, something like this. Good trailers wouldn’t include such a scene, not even a glimpse like here. Of course, there are a lot of really bad trailers out there which give away a huge part of the plot of the story they are advertising. But I can’t even remember any bad trailer which does this.
And what’s more, in a johnlock-reveal-scenario this would make even less sense because this way they spoil the surprise.
To me, there is only one idea that would explain this odd choice: Moftiss know, of course, that an important part - important bc deeply invested - of their fanbase loves johnlock and want to see them become canon eventually. But they themselves don’t want to make this subtext text. So this teaser teases us the worst way possible: it points in the direction of canon johnlock, only to reveal that Sherlock says it to somebody else (maybe his siblings) or, maybe even worse, Sherlock says it in the context of some kind of plan or trick and doesn’t really mean it. This way we stay invested til the end without them giving us the outcome we hope for.
I felt reminded of the teasers for the season finale of Doctor Who s7 (one of the weakest seasons in general imho) where Clara says that Clara Oswald has acrually never existed which sounds so exciting and in the actual scene she’s just lying her way out of a Dalek chase...
Plus, to come back to Sherlock, the hug was beautiful and all but so much framed by no homo statements (them talking about women all the time, that Mycroft-Smallwood-thingy etc) ...
oh wow the next ep of Sherlock could be so bad, I think it’s really easy at this point to fuck up the entire series.
Sorry for all the negativity, please encourage/correct me if you have other, better explanations!
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