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rynwritesreid · 4 months

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Mind games~Spencer Reid

Chapter two: Could have been me

Chapter summary: When you don't show up to work the morning after your argument with Spencer, Hotch sends the team looking for you as your life could be in danger.

Chapter warnings: Fem!reader. Kidnapping. Mentions of possible murders. Typically cm case stuff. Reader is bound and gagged(but nothing else is mentioned).

A/N: This is loosely based on the episodes where the team were been stalked but I have put a little spin on it. I'm going to take a little break, not for long just a week or two, but I won't be checking my Tumblr as much. I hope everyone enjoys this. If you're not on the taglist, and you want to be, you can either comment or follow the link (Which I still will be checking). Anyway, Jag älskar dig.

~mind games masterlist~

~join the mind games taglist~

“You know, she told the girls what you said to her, Spencer.” Derek interjected, his voice filled with a mix of concern and disappointment. “She looked up to you, I mean she basically saw you as a god. You and her could make an amazing team, but instead you dislike her, because she is on the same level as you.”

Spencer's face softened for a brief moment, his features betraying a flicker of regret. He hadn't realized the impact his words had on you, nor the way it would spread through the team like wildfire. It wasn't his intention to hurt you. In truth, he had been wrestling with his own demons, battling insecurities that had plagued him for far too long.

��

"I didn't mean to..." Spencer began, his voice barely above a whisper. But before he could finish his sentence, JJ interjected, her gentle tone cutting through the tension.

"It doesn't matter what you meant or didn't mean, Spencer. The damage is done," she said, her eyes filled with disappointment. "Y/N deserves better than this."

“Look, I regret what I said to her, I do. And yes, maybe she deserves better than what I said, but did she tell you what she said to me?” Spencer paused, his voice laced with a mix of frustration and vulnerability.

Derek and JJ exchanged glances, sensing that there was more to the story than they initially thought. Spencer's voice trembled with a mix of vulnerability and frustration as he continued.

"She told me that I act like I believe I'm better than everyone else, that I flaunt my achievements," he admitted, his gaze focused on the ground as if the weight of his words were too heavy to bear. "But she doesn't know the whole story. She doesn't know the insecurities that eat away at me every day."

Derek's expression softened, understanding dawning in his eyes. "Spencer, we all have our battles," he said gently. "But taking it out on her isn't the answer. You two could be an incredible team if you just gave it a chance."

“I’ll say sorry to her, but I doubt she’ll want to work with me after all I said to her.”

Derek placed a hand on Spencer's shoulder, offering a reassuring squeeze. "You won't know unless you try. Y/N is resilient and understanding. And if you show her that you truly regret your words, she might surprise you."

Spencer tried to find you to apologise but he couldn’t seem to. He asked JJ if she had seen you, but she just shook her head and told him that you most likely had taken the day off or you were just late. However, when they saw Hotch walk out his office, and look directly at your desk, they both thought something else may have happened.

“Emily, have you seen Y/N anywhere?” Hotch asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

Emily glanced around the bullpen, her eyes scanning the empty desks and filing cabinets. "No, Hotch. I haven't seen her all morning. Did something happen?"

Hotch sighed heavily, his brows furrowing in concern. "I'm not sure. She didn't show up for our scheduled meeting this morning, and she hasn't responded to any of my calls or messages."

Worry etched itself onto Emily's features as she reached for her phone, dialling your number without hesitation. The sound of ringing filled the air as the team held their breath, waiting for a response.

After a few agonizing moments, Emily disconnected the call with a shake of her head. "Straight to voicemail," she murmured.

Derek's eyes widened in alarm. "That's not like her. Y/N never ignores her phone, especially not when it's work-related."

Hotch nodded, his concern growing with each passing second. “I know. Spencer, after your disagreement with her last night, did you notice her go anywhere, or did she say anything to you at all?”

Spencer's heart sank as he realized the severity of the situation. He hadn't anticipated that his argument with you had escalated to this point. Guilt gnawed at him, fuelling his determination to find you and make things right.

"I didn't see her leave last night," Spencer admitted, his voice filled with regret. "But she seemed really upset. I think she might have needed some space."

Hotch's expression hardened; his concern now veiled with a sense of urgency. "We can't afford to waste any more time," he said firmly. "I want the team to split up and search for Y/N. Derek, you take the surrounding area and check if she went home. Emily, canvas the local coffee shops and places she likes to go. JJ, contact her friends or anyone close to her. We need to find her as soon as possible."

“Hotch, why are you so worried?” JJ asked, a hint of confusion in her voice. “Do you know something we don’t? I mean I’ll do all of this, of course, but you seem a lot more concerned than you should be.”

Hotch's gaze flickered with a mixture of apprehension and determination. He took a deep breath before finally speaking, his voice laden with worry. “There was a meeting with other unit leaders this morning, and people who joined us at the same time as Y/N have been disappearing.”

Emily's eyes widened in shock, the gravity of the situation sinking in. "You think Y/N might have been targeted?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Hotch nodded grimly. "It's a possibility we can't ignore. We've already lost three team members from that cohort, and we need to find Y/N before it's too late."

Derek clenched his jaw, his grip tightening on his phone. "I'll check her apartment first, see if she went home," he said, determination filling his voice. "If she's not there, I'll widen the search radius."

JJ nodded, her fingers already flying across her phone screen as she contacted Y/N's closest friends and contacts. "I'll reach out to everyone and see if they've heard from her," she said, her voice tinged with worry.

“This takes priority to the other case we are working. And that’s not just me stating this, the bureau want this taken care off.” Hotch declared, his voice firm and resolute. "Y/N's safety is our top concern, and we won't rest until we find her."

The team dispersed, each member taking on their assigned tasks with a renewed sense of determination. Spencer stood frozen for a moment, his mind flooded with regret and fear for your well-being. Guilt crept up his spine, threatening to consume him as he replayed the words, he had said to you.

But now was not the time for self-pity or remorse. He needed to find you, to make things right, and to protect you from whatever danger lurked in the shadows. With a newfound resolve, he grabbed his coat and joined Derek in the search.

Derek and Spencer combed through every inch of your apartment, searching for any trace of where you might have gone. They checked your bedroom, your bathroom, and even the closet in case you were hiding. But there was nothing.

"Damn it," Derek muttered under his breath as he ran a hand through his hair. "She's not here, Spencer."

Spencer stood in the centre of your living room, his eyes scanning the surroundings as if hoping for some clue to reveal itself. "Think, think," he whispered to himself, racking his brain for any indication of where you could be.

His gaze fell upon the corkboard hanging on the wall, covered in pictures and notes. Without hesitation, he approached it, studying each item carefully. His eyes landed on a picture of you, and what he assumed were people who were at the academy at the same time as you.

“Derek, do you know the names of the other people who have gone missing?” Spencer asked, his voice laced with urgency.

Derek furrowed his brows, trying to recall the information he had heard during the briefing earlier that morning. "Yeah," he replied, his voice tinged with concern. "There was Sarah Thomas, Chris Matthews, and Mark Reynolds. Why?"

“Look at this photo, could this be them with Y/N?” Spencer pointed to the picture on the corkboard, his finger hovering above the faces of the individuals. Derek leaned closer, studying the image intently.

“Maybe. Grab the picture, we will show it to Hotch.”

Spencer carefully removed the photograph from the corkboard, handling it with delicate fingers as if it held a piece of the puzzle he desperately needed to solve. He knew that showing it to Hotch would be the next step in their search for you, for answers.

As they walked into the office, their faces filled with worry and determination caught Hotch's attention immediately. He approached them, his eyes narrowing as he took in the evidence bag Derek was holding.

"What did you find?" Hotch asked, his voice steady but filled with anticipation.

Spencer handed over the evidence bag, ensuring Hotch had a clear view of the photo inside. "We found this in Y/N's apartment," he explained. "It appears to be a picture of her with the three individuals who have gone missing. We thought it might be worth showing you."

Hotch's gaze hardened as he studied the photo, his mind working through various scenarios and possibilities. “I think Y/N is danger.”

Hotch's words hung heavy in the air, the gravity of the situation sinking deeper into the hearts of Derek and Spencer. They exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with a mix of determination and fear.

"Y/N could be in serious trouble," Derek stated, his voice laced with urgency. "We need to find her before whoever is responsible for these disappearances gets to her."

Hotch nodded, his jaw clenched tightly “I think the person who is responsible for these disappearances has already gotten to her, Derek.”

Derek's heart skipped a beat, the weight of Hotch's words hitting him like a freight train. He clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white as rage and fear surged through his veins. "We can't let anything happen to her," he said, his voice low and determined.

Spencer's mind buzzed with a million different thoughts, trying to piece together the puzzle that had become your disappearance. "Do we have any leads? Any idea where she might be?"

Hotch sighed heavily, the lines on his forehead deepening. "Not yet" he admitted. "But we need to work fast. Whoever is behind this is organized, and they know what they're doing. We need to beat them at their own game."

“Spencer, go chat to Garcia, see if she has found anything or been able to locate Y/Ns phone. Derek, call Emily and JJ see if they have found anything. I’m going to call the other unit leaders who have lost members, and the academy to see if they know anything.”

Spencer nodded, his mind already racing with the task at hand. He quickly made his way to Garcia's office, knowing that her exceptional skills in technology would prove invaluable in their search.

As he entered the room, he found Garcia hunched over her computer, surrounded by screens filled with lines of code and databases. The room buzzed with the sound of beeping monitors and clacking keys.

"Garcia," Spencer called out, trying to catch her attention amidst the chaos. "Hotch wants us to find any leads on Y/N's whereabouts. Have you been able to track her phone or any other digital footprint?"

Garcia spun around in her chair, her eyes lighting up with determination. "Spence! I've been trying to crack into her phone and social media accounts, but it seems like whoever is behind this has taken extra precautions. It's like Y/N vanished into thin air."

"Keep trying, Garcia. We need any lead we can get. Check for any unusual activity, recent contacts, anything that might give us a clue."

Garcia nodded, her fingers dancing across the keyboard as she delved deeper into the digital world. "I won't stop until I find something, Spencer. Y/N deserves justice, and we are going to make sure she gets it."

Spencer's phone buzzed in his pocket, and he quickly retrieved it to see a message from Derek. It read: "No luck here. No signs of Y/N or any of the other missing persons. Emily and JJ are coming up empty too."

Spencer sighed, his heart sinking at the lack of progress. They were running out of time, and every passing moment without a breakthrough felt like an eternity. He knew they couldn't afford to give up, but the weight of the situation was beginning to take its toll.

As he turned his attention back to Garcia, he noticed a glimmer of excitement in her eyes. "Spence, I think I might have found something," she said, her voice filled with hope.

His heart skipped a beat as he hurried over to her side, peering at the screen. Lines of code and data flashed before his eyes, but one particular piece caught his attention. "What is it?" he asked eagerly.

Garcia pointed to a series of encrypted messages on the screen. "These are conversations between Y/N and someone who goes by the name 'ShadowX'. It seems like they've been communicating for some time now."

Spencer's eyes widened as he absorbed the information. "ShadowX," he muttered, his mind racing to recall any mention of the name during their investigation. It felt like a puzzle piece finally falling into place.

Garcia continued to decipher the encrypted messages, her fingers flying across the keyboard with practiced precision. "It looks like Y/N trusted this person," she said, her voice filled with concern. “They seemed close. It looks like they met at the academy, but if you look at this message, it seems ShadowX didn’t do so well and didn’t get a job in the FBI.”

Spencer's brow furrowed as he read the message, his mind working to piece together the puzzle. "So, ShadowX was a classmate of Y/N's at the academy," he mused aloud. "But if they didn't get a job with the FBI, what happened to them?"

Garcia tapped her fingers on the keyboard, her eyes scanning through the messages for any more clues. "I'm still trying to dig deeper, but it seems like ShadowX disappeared shortly after their graduation. There's no trace of them anywhere since then."

Spencer's mind raced with possibilities. Could ShadowX be responsible for the disappearances? Or were they also a victim? He knew they needed more information, more pieces of the puzzle, to solve this case and bring you back safely.

“Garcia, I think ShadowX is behind all of this. Y/N is smart, she was ahead of everybody else at the academy, I even checked her marksmanship, and she was getting top scores on that too. I think ShadowX was jealous. And look at all the other people who have gone missing, all smart, all got a job here.” Spencer swallowed hard as he realized the gravity of the situation.

Garcia's eyes widened, realization dawning upon her. "You might be onto something, Spence," she replied, her voice filled with a mix of determination and concern. "If ShadowX was jealous of Y/N's success and disappeared after graduation, it's possible they've been planning this for a long time."

Spencer's mind buzzed with the weight of their discovery. The pieces were beginning to fall into place, revealing a darker truth that sent shivers down his spine. "We need to find out everything we can about ShadowX," he said, his voice filled with conviction. "Their motives, their whereabouts, anything that will lead us to Y/N."

Garcia nodded fervently, her fingers flying across the keyboard as she delved deeper into the digital abyss. Her determination was unwavering as she hacked into every database she could access, leaving no stone unturned.

Meanwhile, Derek and Hotch returned to the bullpen after making their calls. Derek's face was etched with worry, lines deepening as he caught sight of Spencer standing beside Garcia. Without a word, he joined them.

"What do you have?" Derek asked, his voice tinged with urgency.

Spencer glanced at Garcia, who nodded in confirmation. "ShadowX was a classmate of Y/N's at the academy," he began, his voice filled with resolve. "But they didn't get a job with the FBI. They disappeared shortly after graduation, and there's been no trace of them since."

Derek clenched his jaw, anger simmering beneath his skin. "Jealousy and resentment," he muttered under his breath.

Derek's words hung heavy in the air, the weight of the situation settling over them like a suffocating fog. The knowledge that someone they had once trusted, someone from their own ranks, could be behind the disappearances was both unsettling and infuriating.

Hotch's voice broke the tense silence. "We need to find out everything we can about ShadowX," he said, his tone resolute. "Their motives, their connections, any possible leads. We can't let them slip through our fingers."

Garcia's fingers danced across the keyboard as she accessed every database available, her determination unwavering. "I'm going to trace ShadowX's digital footprint, follow every electronic trail they left behind," she declared, her eyes blazing with a mix of determination and anger. "No one disappears without a trace in this day and age."

Derek's eyes narrowed, his hands bawling into fists at his sides. "We'll find them," he said through gritted teeth. "No one hurts our team and gets away with it."

The team had left Garcia so she could continue with her research, Derek and Spencer had decided to go through the files on your desk, see if there was anything there. Hotch remained in his office making phone calls, JJ and Emily seemed lost, they had come to love you and knowing you were in danger was tearing them apart.

Spencer though, he was reflecting, he had come to terms to why he had disliked you. It wasn’t just because of your intelligence , or how you just seemed to make friends with everybody, it was because he knew he didn’t truly stand a chance with you. He wasn’t just jealous of you; he was jealous of anyone who would ever get a chance of loving you.

As Spencer flipped through the files on your desk, his thoughts continued to swirl, entangled in a mix of emotions. Guilt crept into his heart as he realized how his jealousy had clouded his judgment and caused him to distance himself from you. He had pushed you away, not only because of his own insecurities but also to protect himself from the pain of seeing someone else capture your heart.

But now, faced with the gravity of the situation, Spencer's perspective shifted. The fear of losing you altogether overshadowed any lingering jealousy. He knew deep down that he couldn't let his personal feelings hinder the efforts to find you and bring you back safely.

Derek glanced over at Spencer, noticing the conflict etched on his face. "You alright, Pretty Boy?" he asked, concern lacing his voice.

Spencer sighed, running a hand through his unruly hair. "I'm trying to come to terms with everything," he admitted, his voice tinged with vulnerability. "I realized that my jealousy was unfounded and only served to push Y/N away. Now, all I can think about is finding her and bringing her back safely."

Derek nodded in understanding; his eyes filled with empathy. "We'll find her, Reid," he reassured, placing a hand on his shoulder. "We're not giving up until we do."

Spencer offered a small smile of gratitude, grateful for Derek's unwavering support. "Thank you, Derek," he said sincerely. "I don't know what I would do without you guys."

As they were about to get back into the files, they heard the distinctive clicking of Garcia shows.

“Guy’s!” Garcia exclaimed as she burst into the room, her eyes wide with excitement. "I think I found something! ShadowX has been using an alias, but I managed to track down their real identity. Their name is Ethan Sullivan, and he used to work for a private security firm. But get this," she paused for dramatic effect, "he was fired after allegations of unethical practices surfaced."

Spencer's eyes widened, his mind connecting the dots. "Unethical practices... that could explain why he didn't get a job with the FBI," he mused, his voice filled with realization. "And if he was jealous of Y/N's success, it's possible he's been targeting graduates from the academy."

Derek's jaw clenched as anger flared within him. "We need to find Ethan Sullivan," he said firmly. "If he's behind these disappearances, we need to bring him to justice."

Garcia nodded in agreement, her fingers itching to dig deeper into the digital realm. "I'm going to trace Sullivan's every move, leave no virtual stone unturned," she declared, her eyes ablaze with determination. "We'll find him, and we'll bring him down."

Garcia let out a triumphant cheer. "I found him!" she exclaimed, her voice filled with a mix of excitement and relief. "Ethan Sullivan is currently residing in an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of town. It seems like he's been using it as his base of operations."

Hotch, who had finished his phone calls, emerged from his office with a stern look on his face. "We need to move quickly," he said, the gravity of the situation evident in his voice.

Emily, JJ, I want you to coordinate with local law enforcement and secure the perimeter around the warehouse," Hotch continued, his voice commanding. "Derek, Spencer, you'll come with me. We're going in."

The team sprang into action, each member homing in on their assigned tasks with precision. Emily and JJ made the necessary calls, ensuring that backup was on the way. Meanwhile, Garcia continued to monitor Sullivan's digital presence, providing real-time updates on his movements.

As they approached the abandoned warehouse, tension hung heavy in the air. The once bustling building now stood as a dark and foreboding figure against the night sky. With each step closer, the team's determination grew stronger.

Hotch gave a nod to Derek and Spencer, signalling it was time to move. With weapons drawn and hearts pounding, they entered the warehouse cautiously yet swiftly.

The interior of the warehouse was shrouded in darkness, save for eerie beams of moonlight that filtered through the broken windows. The creaking of old boards under their feet echoed through the cavernous space, causing a sense of unease to settle over the team. The air was heavy with anticipation as they moved deeper into the labyrinth of forgotten boxes and discarded equipment.

Derek's eyes scanned the surroundings, his senses heightened as he listened for any sign of movement. Spencer, ever the analytical mind, was piecing together the possible hiding spots Sullivan could be using within the warehouse. They moved in sync, their training and trust in each other guiding their every step.

As they navigated through the maze of shadows, a faint sound caught Spencer's attention. He held up a hand to signal Derek to stop, his ears straining to catch even the slightest noise. It was then that he heard it again, a muffled cry for help.

Heart pounding in his chest, Spencer followed the sound, leading them towards a dimly lit corner of the warehouse. There, hidden behind a stack of crates, they found you. Bound and gagged, your eyes filled with fear and relief as you saw the familiar faces of your team members.

Derek rushed forward, releasing you from your restraints with swift, practiced movements. "We've got you," he said softly, his voice filled with a mixture of protectiveness and concern. "You're safe now."

Spencer knelt down beside you, his gentle touch removing the gag from your mouth. "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice laced with worry.

You nodded, your voice barely above a whisper. "I'm...I'm okay," you managed to say, tears streaming down your face. "Thank you for finding me."

Hotch approached; his gaze steady as he spoke. "We need to get out of here," he said firmly. "Garcia, call for medical assistance and secure an exit strategy."

“I’ll stay with her.” Spencer volunteered; his voice filled with determination. He didn't want to leave your side, not after everything you had been through.

Hotch nodded in agreement, understanding the need for comfort and reassurance. "Alright, Reid," he said, his voice softening. "But be careful."

"You're safe now," Spencer whispered softly, his voice filled with genuine concern. "We won't let anything happen to you."

You nodded; your voice still shaky. "I don't know how to thank you guys," you said, your gratitude pouring forth. "You saved my life."

Spencer smiled warmly, his own emotions raw and palpable. "You don't have to thank us," he replied, his eyes filled with sincerity. "We're a team, and we look out for each other."

“I’m sorry for what I said to you, Spencer. I just wanted your approval.”

Spencer shook his head, his eyes filled with forgiveness. "You don't have to apologize, Y/N," he said softly. “I should be saying sorry to you, I just let my insecurities get in the way.”

You reached out and placed a hand on Spencer's arm, offering a reassuring smile. "We all have our moments of doubt and insecurity," you said, your voice gentle. "What matters is that we learn and grow from them."

~taglist~

@iluvreid @bitchassbecky691 @drspencerreidsthings @amatheuni@i-heart-mgg @Liidiaaag@wyntersstuff@brilliantreid @donttrustlove@btsiguess-kpop @bellesmith628 @lunaticgurly @Oureternalbond@somethingsmart123 @ula-revolution @pleasantwitchgarden @vvampwebb @alysena2 @sujan39 @nini123 @xoxo-lyss @rory-cakes @marantha @http0kms0jpg @peppersapro @mommymilkers3000@spicycalabaza @shinixpo@dr-reidsslut@[email protected]@potatochip-111 @stars-n-stuff15 @nugget1234567@00047c@carley12041@earth2stxr@cosavuoi-me@sewmxx @bibissparkles @frgtmenotes @mdanon027 @drreidsfavwhxre @yourfavoritefangirl @sunnyyyyyyyynnus @mega-kittyglitter-1 @loliakeoghan23

red is for @ that’s don’t work

In the next chapter… will you and Spencer remain friends. Will Spencer confront his own feelings for you. Will he tell you how he feels. Will this new found friendship be pushed to the limits when an old love interest comes to visit.

#spencer reid #criminal minds #spencer reid smut #spencer reid angst #dom spencer reid #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x y/n #spencer reid x fem!reader #spencer reid x you #criminal minds x reader #dr spencer reid #spencer reid fluff #mgg smut #spencer reid fanfiction #criminal minds smut #dr spencer reid x reader #criminal minds fanfiction

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ninma · 2 months

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I just noticed a very interesting note in Alastor's ad in episode 1...

Who in Hazbin Hotel is the most associated with circus decor?

Lucifer.

Less than 5 min into episode 1 and we already get a hint that Alastor isn't a big fan of Lucifer.

Which is interesting because it implies that Alastor disliked Lucifer before he even involved himself with the hotel. They hadn't even met yet.

It's such a weirdly specific thing to add to a commercial too. Because when I think hotel, circus decor wouldn't be anywhere on my list of expectations.

It's clearly targeted towards Lucifer. An indirect insult Alastor probably had wanted Lucifer to see.

If this is the case, some of Alastor's commentary can be looked at slightly differently.

Lines like "Lucifer's delusional daughter", "Daddy issues" and the other insulting commentary can then also be partly aimed at Lucifer.

Which would probably be effective hits because Lucifer definitely wouldn't be happy about someone offending his daughter, but the "Daddy issues" line would probably make him feel guilt.

It's as if Alastor wanted to pick a fight the first chance he got to potentially reach Lucifer.

But like...why?

In episode 5 we have a reasonable explanation for why Alastor is poking at Lucifer. Alastor likes to be in control and have power over others, however even he knows Lucifer is more powerful than him. Therefore he aims at Lucifer's relationship with Charlie (which is what the dad comments are really about) to regain some of that power.

Which is why it doesn't make any sense for him to indirectly target Lucifer in episode 1.

Why pick a fight with the King of Hell when he barely had anything to hold over Lucifer?

When this ad was made, Charlie had known Alastor for only a week and therefore claiming to be close to her would be weird.

Heck, Alastor is even insulting Charlie and the hotel here, which definitely doesn't give him any favour from her.

Another point could be that Alastor is also partly annoyed at having to make a video. He probably doesn't expect it to air. But that still doesn't explain why he'd deliberately add a note directed at Lucifer.

So.....What's the deal here Alastor?

There isn't a clear reason for doing this.

The only one I can guess that makes some sense is that Alastor just wanted to feel some sense of power by indirectly insulting Lucifer, who is the most powerful being in all of Hell. Getting a chance to hit him where it hurts would probably bring Alastor a lot of satisfaction.

Another option is that it could be related to Lilith, if she turned out to be the one he made a deal with. It could be that Alastor's frustration over his deal makes him want to take it out on Lucifer (since he obviously can't take it out on Charlie). Lilith telling him to do it is possible, but I find it unlikely. Unless her real motive was pushing Lucifer out of his isolation and back into Charlie's life. Still find it unlikely tho.

In the end, it still feels weird for Alastor to be this intent on picking on Lucifer this early on. Taking advantage of the first opportunity to have a message reach Lucifer, despite Alastor neither having power or leverage over him if Lucifer had responded.

So...Alastor...

Care to spill the tea on why you're being so pissy?

(Sorry, couldn't resist-)

EDIT: I just realized how funny it is that despite saying there is no tacky circus decor, the hotel itself is FULL of it XD

Now that I think about it, that might actually be the joke behind the note.

(Admittedly, this might just be a fun bit of foreshadowing and doesn't really have any deeper meaning)

(Also, Lucifer's circus decor isn't tacky. I'd definitely be down for staying at a hotel with his aesthetic and decor. But, maybe that's just me)

(It kinda reminds me of how Vox immediately went to send a message to Alastor on TV the moment he learned of his return XD)

#Alastor is gone for 7 years and only one week after he returns he is already trying to pick a fight with Lucifer #can't wait to see their dynamic in season 2 XD #hazbin hotel #alastor #lucifer morningstar #hazbin lucifer #hazbin alastor #alastor and lucifer

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antianakin · 3 months

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I think I'm able to perhaps put a few words to why I really dislike that the Ahsoka show had her choose to come to the conclusion that Anakin was GOOD, that he was a good person and good teacher to her, rather than having her refuse to forgive him and just having to let go of him entirely.

Ahsoka is a character who has been, for her ENTIRE RUN on Star Wars, defined by Anakin and her relationship to him. She's never been able to escape that. She was created as an explanation for why Anakin "matured" over the three year gap between AOTC and ROTS, but her lack of existence in the films means she can have no greater impact on Anakin than that. She is wholly irrelevant to his character but she does not EXIST without him. In Rebels, she is only in one season where all of her appearances are fixated on her discovery of Anakin's betrayal and how that impacts her, leading up to their final confrontation where she appears to die fighting him. She comes back only so her relationship with Anakin can be used to help Ezra let go of Kanan. In TOTJ, she has an entire episode dedicated to explaining that the only reason she survived Order 66 was because of some kind of special training Anakin gave her that made her stronger, better, faster than any other Jedi. In The Mandalorian, her appearance was full of subtext about her trauma regarding Anakin and the way she reacts to other Jedi as a result of that. In The Book of Boba Fett appearance, that subtext is still there, primarily in her conversation with Luke where she even tells him how much he reminds her of Anakin. Which leaves us with the Ahsoka show itself and how it REVOLVES around that relationship, from Sabine being turned into Anakin 2.0 to everything in episode 5 to Ahsoka claiming she'll support Sabine in everything because this is what Anakin did for her to Anakin literally showing up in ghost form to Thrawn predicting everything Ahsoka will do because he has some familiarity with Anakin.

Ahsoka CANNOT escape this relationship, she cannot move out from this particular shadow and become her own person because her character seems to ONLY EXIST to be "Anakin's student." She can almost literally not stand on her own at this point. If her story doesn't revolve around Anakin in some way, it doesn't seem to really exist (please keep in mind here that I am mostly looking at HIGH CANON appearances for this because that's what I am familiar with; I'm sure that some comics have probably managed to move away from her relationship to Anakin a little bit sometimes but I haven't read any of them so they're not being counted in this analysis, especially since I don't think they're really impacting her higher canon characterization anyway).

It's even just visible in how other characters perceive her. She is constantly being COMPARED to Anakin, we keep hearing how like Anakin she is. The only time I can think of that she is compared to anyone OTHER than Anakin is when Trace and Rafa tell her that she acts like a Jedi even if she isn't currently calling herself one (bless their SOULS for this moment, they deserved so much better than the hate they got and one single appearance on fucking TBB). We never hear anyone say she reminds them of Obi-Wan, or Yoda, or Plo Koon. It's ALWAYS Anakin even though she's known Yoda and Plo Koon longer and she seems to spend almost as much time with Obi-Wan as she does Anakin.

By having Ahsoka decide to deal with her feelings about Anakin by just... setting aside all the bad shit he did and focusing ONLY on the good moments that he had and letting that define him, it makes it nearly impossible to separate her from him. If he's good, then it's a GOOD thing to compare her to him. If he's good, then his influence on her HAS to have been a good one. For me, it ruins ANY nuance that could have come from going the opposite direction and recognizing that while he had some good moments, he was in fact an overall bad person who was a terrible teacher to her. He betrayed her, he tried to kill her (and only failed because she was saved by someone else), he abandoned her. I don't care WHAT he did before this, this automatically makes him a BAD TEACHER.

And recognizing that Anakin was a bad teacher would force Ahsoka to look at HERSELF more critically, too, to recognize the places where she has made the same mistakes perhaps, where she's started leading herself down a similar path to his, and then choosing to NOT BE LIKE HIM. Anakin should be (like he is with Luke) the personification of her own darkness. Palpatine represented Anakin's greatest demons and personifications, Anakin can represent something similar for Ahsoka. He is an indisputable part of her now, but she doesn't HAVE to become him, she doesn't have to let that CONTROL her. And by making that choice, she frees herself from being defined by him for the rest of her life.

But now, the narrative has bound Ahsoka to Anakin forever. She'll never be anything more than Anakin's student because this has become what defines her as a person and a character. And it just... it sucks. Ahsoka deserved better than that.

#star wars #ahsoka tano #anti anakin #anti anakin skywalker #anakin critical #anakin skywalker critical #anti ahsoka show #ahsoka show critical

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rainydaydream-gal18 · 1 month

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I just want to say that the latest episode of The Bad Batch sealed the deal on my opinion of Phee.

She has grown on me immensely as a character, and I now have a very different view on TechPhee.

I didn't particularly like the attitude of her character at first, but I mostly clutched my pearls because literally any character they would've paired Tech up with would have had me doubtful lol. (Was I slightly jealous over a fictional man?? Apparently so).

The little comments about Tech telling her all about Crosshair got me though. The fact that this conversation took place at all gave me good feelz.

Then, just add the fact that she said, "any friend of Brown Eyes is a friend of mine."

She didn't say any friend of the Bad Batch.... She said any friend of Tech's. It was a show of her loyalty and affection for him specifically, and also, it gives a glimpse of how he felt about Crosshair despite the fact that at that point, our boi Cross still hadn't returned to the Bad Batch.

I just gotta' say. I've seen some negativity about her lately, about her demeaning them and whatnot. We saw him literally smiling at her multiple times in the last season. It didn't look like the face a guy who felt demeaned and disrespected...

Either way, you can ship or not. That is completely and entirely up to each person. Like anything else, we are all entitled to an opinion! I don't think you're a bad person if you don't like the ship. I won't sit here and assume that there must be a terrible motive for disliking the ship.

I'm just personally starting to think it's sweet. It doesn't mean that we can't all still enjoy some Tech x Reader! It's what fanfics are for. You can have fun no matter the outcome of the story.

I just felt inclined to share that!

I'm enjoying the show. I appreciate it. I'm looking forward to seeing where it takes us (also nervous, but you knowww).

There are more things about the show I want to touch on, but this was one that stuck out to me! Anyway, hang in there Batchers!!!

#tbb #the bad batch #tech #the bad batch tech #techphee #the bad batch techphee #tbb phee #the bad batch phee #the bad batch season 3 #tbb s3 spoilers #bad batch spoilers #bad batch season 3 spoilers

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scoobydoodean · 12 days

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I was wondering if you, as a Dean fan have opinions about the different writers? Mostly because I see a lot of Dean fans really strongly dislike Dabb for some reason and I don’t really understand why. I’ve never seen a concrete explanation beyond “he can’t write Dean/doesn’t understand Dean/actively hates Dean” but with no examples as to what he does that’s so bad. And I see this in every shipping lane. I don’t have a strong opinion about him as a writer one way or the other.

I'm exploring this more as I rewatch the show (currently on season 6) so I'll speak mainly from that perspective on my most recent thoughts. I am not a big fan of Dabb or Loflin, but have tried to be fair about things so far when talking through each episode. I am a fan of "Alpha and Omega"—it's my favorite finale (it's also... a finale for a season Carver started as showrunner? So I don't know what the implications are there as far as storyboarding). Also points for having demon Dean stab a guy through in 10.02.

I'll focus on the negatives you asked about in this post, but in the links you'll find me moving the narrative this way and that toward much more charitable readings... I think. (I do have a tag #dabb disk horse which you can either peruse or blacklist at your leisure). What I can tell you is something almost always strikes me as a off about Dabb/Loflin episodes so far in this rewatch in terms of character work.

Dabb/Loflin's first ever episode was 4.06 "Yellow Fever". In the aftermath, Kripke felt the need to release a definitive interpretation of their episode to the public, stating, "Dean is not a dick... he's a hero." The whole episode toyed with, to an extent, the idea that all the victims of the MotW were bullies. You can take this other directions—for example, queer meta, or meta about Sam as the real bully. However, the story a lot of fandom latched onto was that "Dean is a jerk and deserves to be humiliated and punished for that" which obviously didn't make Dean fans watching live in season 4 happy—and this theme of Jerk!Dean continues into their next episode, "After School Special", where they once again parallel Dean with a bully literally nicknamed "Dirk the Jerk" by Sam, and throw what I think is transparent shade at Kripke's issued statement from before the Christmas break (post here)... or maybe they mean to throw shade at the Dean fans who got angry. In this episode, they also make illusions to Dean wanting to have sex with barely legal high school cheerleaders, which also did not ingratiate them to Deanfans at the time. I said on my last rewatch, "In After School Special, Dean seems more unlike himself than any episode ever in the history of Supernatural up to this point" (post explaining that here). I carry similar sentiments about portions of 5.06 "I Believe The Children Are Our Future". Yes—I am aware of performing Dean meta. I just... feel like they try a little too hard. It feels hamfisted—desperate. To the point it doesn't feel like Dean anymore sometimes. In 5.06, they also have Dean (guy who is generally very protective of kids) suggest to Jesse that he'd be good to have in a fight???? I can see how they got there, but again—it just feels... off. The last episode I rewatched that they authored, 6.04 "Weekend At Bobby's", also leaves a bad taste in my mouth—not in what it's trying to do with Bobby or what it's trying to do on a meta level—but once again, with dialogue from Dean that just makes me think "he would not fucking say that" (post here). I think looking at all of these, you can probably see deangirl ire toward Dabb has a long history. It's been around as long as he's been around, whether he deserves as much ire as he gets or not.

I haven't circled back yet on this rewatch, but Dabb and Loflin also penned season 7's "The Girl Next Door"... do I need to say anything specific? Maybe I'll just link my entire #amy tag. What narrative did they want you to get from that episode? Who the fuck knows. And that's often the problem:

When you watch various episodes I've mentioned, you can work around to a meta that tells you something different than you might at first think the page conveys—something hidden and maybe contradictory. The thing is... you could also... not do that? And that wouldn't be so bad, except that sometimes the two narratives you can most easily grasp completely contradict each other. "After School Special" can be an episode that points to Sam's envy of Dean and John deep down and foreshadows Sam becoming a bully, but on a meta level, it also just as easily says Sam becoming a bully is somehow Dean's fault, and Sam is some poor captive baby. Dean is a creep and a bully and a cheater but we should all coddle him because he saw his mom die when he was a child and he's sooo sad. "Yellow Fever" can be a queer meta story and might also foreshadow approaching Bully!Sam in 4.14, but it also very much does call Dean a jerk (should we take that seriously? should we not?) and implies Dean should be punished for the outcome of three decades of reality-bending torture. Even if it's a queer meta underneath... it's just as easily one about how closeted men should be humiliated for cowardice or how being closeted turns you into an asshole.

Jumping way ahead, I have to mention 15.10 "The Hero's Journey" just because. Yes, it is full of jokes and Garth goodness, but also tries to sell you the story that nothing about Sam and Dean is real, to a degree that feels like you are being flipped the bird for ever watching this show. And again—you can make meta that it's all a ruse! But is it? Or is Dabb actually just telling you to go fuck yourself? Like he totally wasn't when, after the SPN finale when fans were Not Happy™️, he tweeted a sign reading, "Don't feed the baboons"? Yet again—we play into the motif of the "hero" who isn't a hero at all but some pathetic loser who deserves to be publicly humiliated, bookended with Dabb's opening episode in his opening season. I'm not saying that's what it is on purpose—but I am saying you can make these arguments easily, and that leaves me consistently annoyed with Dabb for being fucking sloppy and leaving me to deal with some of the most insufferable meta imaginable that carries little support outside of episodes written by Dabb or the Dabb/Loflin writing team.... Yes—I am in fact saying that Dabb and Loflin's hamfisted episodes (regardless of their intentions) are largely responsible for some of the most insufferable, loathesome fandom metas about Sam and Dean's relationship around.

Look at 5.16 "Dark Side Of The Moon", and 7.08 "Time for A Wedding!" and 8.14 "Trial and Error", 11.17 "Red Meat", and 15.20 "Carry On". Along with 4.13, while they might or might not say something deeper or contradictory on a meta level, on a surface level, every single one of these episodes sows the narrative that Dean is needy and clingy and needs Sam more than Sam needs him—something I intensely disagree with for a multitude of reasons... but I'll just link this. Many of these episodes also follow a surface level narrative of "normal life obsessed Sam" (and here I'll link my entire #sam the hunter tag and #in which sam is not a helpless little waif with his hands cast over his eyes being carried along by the tides of the immutable sea). When I look at this episode list, I also don't find it at all difficult to believe that Dabb wanted Dean to die in the finale. There is nothing at all shocking about that. And yes—you can argue he's pointing to the opposite—that this fate should be subverted and that's what makes 15.20 the dark ending, but I think you can just as easily argue that yes it's a dark ending and yes Dabb has always dreamed of this ending. A "tragic" ending where Dean dies and Sam goes on to have a white picket fence... while also leaving you little hints along the way that maybe it's all a big ruse because how could he not? He never has to explain anything. Someone else will pick up the story and make it make sense. He's already fucked off to piss all over fans of Resident Evil.

That said, when I mention what I feel is off character work, I mainly mention Dabb/Loflin episodes from my recent rewatch, which suffer from the two of them being newer to the series (coming onto the writing team in season 4) and also leave questions about whether, perhaps, they had conflicting ideas about characterization. Was Dabb the one penning these lines? Was it Loflin? Was it both? Did they trade out who took the lead? I didn't really say anything negative about "Sam, Interrupted" or "Jump the Shark"... (though "Sam, Interrupted" also calls Dean "codependent") who wrote those? Is it possible that the messiness of the meta comes down to two writers at war? I have to imagine though, that they got along, or else they wouldn't have written together for four fucking years. If they didn't get along...? My mind always comes back to their first solo episodes, right after splitting up in season 8. Dabb's first solo episode is "Hunteri Heroici"—the only episode to lend any perspective to season 8 Sam's reasons for abandoning everyone—paralleling him checking out with Fred's catatonia, which Sam has to save Fred from. It is the only episode that lends Sam sympathy in the early part of the season. He follows it up with "Trial and Error"—where Sam promises to save Dean from suicidal thoughts. Loflin's first solo episode is what I would regard as the most scathing solo episode commentary on Sam in the entire series—"Citizen Fang". Then he writes again right after Dabb's "Trial and Error"—penning "Remember The Titans" where Sam tells Dean to get over the promise Sam so passionately made in Dabb's episode and face reality.

This is why we're exploring this rewatch.

DISCLAIMER: Now I just devolve into bitching because I'm writing at 3AM. Proceed at your own risk.

It seems like these days, everyone demands an explanation for disliking Dabb (something about some sort of destiel battle... I don't know what that flamewar is and I don't give a damn tbqh.) I guess I've just been wondering what's actually so great about him. Because it feels like people have overcorrected to basically acting like he's god's greatest gift to mankind. People point to how meta his episodes can be, but I think other writers easily best him on that front on multiple occasions (particularly enjoyed by me so far on this rewatch: 3.10 "Dream A Little Dream Of Me", 4.04 "Monster Movie", 4.12 "Criss Angel Is A Douchebag"), and without leaving their meaning so up in the air that you don't even know what the hell they were actually trying to tell you because there are two different completely incongruous narratives you could just as justifiably claim were the intended one. Some people may find that duality praise-worthy. I don't. I find it sloppy—and when I add in mediocre character work, I just land on the side of him being, at the very best, mid.

Add him in as showrunner, you have... at least two of my least favorite seasons (13 and 15). Add that he's a one-trick pony in terms of the Sam and Dean conflicts mentioned above that he continuously rehashes rather than come up with anything new or fresh, and the same conflicts between Dean and Cas being played out until they both die (shut UP I'm not talking about canon destiel as the alternative—I am literally just asking for more diverse conflicts). I can't say I understand what I''m supposed to find so impressive.

(Before anyone so much as breathes this near me, Berens also sucks and I am going to tear off your nose hairs if you start bringing him up as if disliking Dabb for some reason means wearing rose colored glasses about Berens. Berens can eat a whole cactus raw over "The Trap" alone.)

#writer disk horse #dabb disk horse #mail

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ireneaesthetic · 2 years

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Pointing out little moments and details of scenes that need to be remembered.

"what will happen to us?" scene • episode 5 | part 2

here's part 1

wilhelm's active role in leading their motions. it's something we are used to see from all their previous intimate moments, reflecting his need to not be controlled, but to be the one in control for once in his life.

then roles reverse, it's simon who takes charge by guiding them on the bed and wilhelm letting himself be charged. he chooses to be vulnerable in a way.

highlights: wille's hands on simon's waist when he sits on his laps and them making out in front of the royal speech's cards hanged up on the wall. iconic.

wide shots that emphasize them sharing the same little space and being so affectionate, living a moment that's only for them to remember, are truly a gift.

intimacy always meant growth in their relationship, by exploring together and creating a comfort zone. they also know their bodies way much better by now, what the other likes and dislikes, how to turn each other on.

so this is not only simon's eagerness, but them feeling extremely safe and comfortable too.

my fav shot of the scene: simon's hands cupping wille's face, fluid movements and eyes closed from melting into the kiss. they fit so perfectly.

this is exactly what i meant writing that wilhelm chooses to be vulnerable and let his guard down under simon's weight, hands and kisses on him. he is completely carried away by the pleasure he's feeling.

there's not even need to say that wille closing the curtains is one of the most powerful and meaningful moments of all.

their smiles right after drives me insanely happy.

closing the same curtains that were left open at that time feels like closing that heartbreaking chapter of their story too. it doesn't mean forgetting about it, but being ready to move on and not allowing it to ruin what they have anymore.

this is the image we're left with: the sound of their chuckles in the background, the darker room, them finally having the privacy they should have gotten the first time and we also, as an audience, are not supposed to see any further.

it's their moment. and for them only.

#young royals #prince wilhelm #simon eriksson #what will happen to us scene #wilhelm x simon #wilmon #yr2 spoilers #yr s2 spoilers

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theaxolotlkween · 2 months

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Some Nanite Project headcanon doodles and their explanations, going from left to right:

I doubt that Rex would say this exact thing but the idea is that, being a fairly lonely kid and someone who was probably easily bored even back then, Rex would’ve pestered the people around him a lot, which you know. Fair. I hc him as being a lot like he is now, but obviously more childish. Because literal child. So very inquisitive, curious, trusting, and empathetic, but easily bored and reckless. I feel like he would play on his own (or accidentally injure himself climbing on industrial equipment which just seems like something he just. Did. It also makes him currently being an adrenaline junkie make more sense) until he got bored (or injured) and then pester all the scientists around him that would tolerate him for long periods of time.

Next up is that Van Kleiss and Violeta Salazar (Rex’s mom) had similar or complimentary roles on the Nanite Project and thus worked together a lot. Judging by how Van Kleiss talks about Violeta in Written in Sand, they probably had a similar dynamic to Rex and Van Kleiss in that episode, except with a lot less sand and threat of imminent demise. This would be really funny to me. Also pictured Rex just hanging out, because he seems like he would be a momma’s boy. He is acting out a very tense and dramatic romance between these two cars and they are finally about to kiss. I also feel like current Rex would love K-dramas.

I honestly don’t think Van Kleiss hated or disliked Rex when Rex was a young child. I feel like he would’ve found him amusing at best, annoying at worst, and sort of weirdly endearing, but never being outright mean to him. Based on the tolerance he has for Rex’s shenanigans in the show while he has almost none for anyone else, even his own allies, this had to have started somewhere. If Rex was a chronic botherer, then someone who doesn’t get easily or outwardly annoyed would be the perfect target. Van Kleiss also still is not explaining shit, his favourite activity.

Finally, Rex naming ZagRS. This is actually one that I’ve had since I was about 14-15 because there’s no reason given for her name to be what it is. Like it’s not an acronym like GLaDOS (Genetic Lifeform and Disc Operating System), and it sounds kind of like Zagreus, an ancient Greek deity that I cannot find anything on except for who his parents might be and that he might have some connection to Dionysus. In canon, Caesar mentions that Rex speaking Spanish makes him laugh because he has trouble with pronunciation. This recently led to a whole-ass rabbit hole where I came up with the theory that Rex has just always had trouble pronouncing words because of ADHD, which fed into my already existing headcanon of Rex having named ZagRS. Also I think that Caesar was another person Rex bothered a lot because Caesar has a tendency to be pretty chill. I kind of wonder if they had to keep Rex away from ZagRS because she was designed to destroy any nanites that got out of the holding tanks.

I honestly love making these theories and headcanons so if you want to see more or have questions just pop me an ask.

#i am so disappointed that no portal references were made in a zagrs episode #you can tell i was recovering from a migraine just by seeing how slanted some of these drawings are #generator rex #generator rex headcanons #nanite project era #rex salazar #van kleiss #violeta salazar #caesar salazar #zagrs #theaxolotlposts #theaxolotlart

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digitalafterlife · 3 months

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i know this is like. minus fourth world problems + autism, and maybe other fandoms have similar issues — i’ve never gone too deep into fandom spaces before and regret doing so — but. why are doctor who fans such incurable haters. i started watching in november after the specials aired and although i’ve been severely critical of certain unfortunate writing choices (as is my right. episodes that suck are… bad) i couldn’t fathom hating an entire series, an entire doctor’s/companion’s run let alone an entire showrunner’s tenure. you mean you can’t stand any of it??

it almost feels like… whenever i come across a person that loves to talk about nine and ten and donna and how much they loved wild blue yonder or w/e, they end up being a shallow moffat hater harping on about misogyny and one-dimensional women as if later series didn’t exist. whenever i find a fellow twelveclara understander who posts about missy and defends hell bent etc. suddenly i come across a post about how they hate rose? what could possibly compel you to dislike the character of rose tyler? i say this as somebody that isn’t a huge fan of tentoo. for more batshit examples saw a post along the lines of “don’t say you think tenmartha is interesting and then post about timepetals” like these are Characters bro. they’re not going to get sad. they are vehicles for the story they’re not people. tenrose was the carrier of the narrative in s2 and tenmartha in s3 and saying i enjoy the complexity of both of these relationships as they progress isn’t contradictory because that’s… the direction that the story takes????????

i don’t even hate chibnall era. even s11 has some redeemable bangers. what i mean is i fell in love with the show as a WHOLE . which means EVERY part of it is important to me and i don’t discount it. every next development builds on the previous. the timeless child ruined a lot of things but opened up many new avenues for exploration! i like the flux i like thasmin i like dhawan master i like the fugitive doctor i love dan and karvanista

you are all allergic to fun. sorry for getting mad about people getting mad it will (not) happen again. im going to go touch grass now

#jamie.txt #dw #doctor who #not adding any more tags this post is not a discourse starter in fact it’s the opposite of that

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melancholiaenthroned · 12 days

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ok ive slept on it i feel like i can talk about the ep better now... basically whats craziest to me is that if any of it was intentional it could be so good. i dont think wed ever actually get a season where the bad kids r protrayed as in the wrong, but if they were a little more self aware the ways that theyve also been overtaken by rage could be seen. gorgug especially, and especially because it was channeled through porter's mentorship, who the bad kids can conceptualize as manipulating gorgug but not the rat grinders. its interesting because esp w/o their favorite npcs this season the bad kids have rlly closed in on themselves and become a lot more codependent, seeming to constantly suspect anyone new of possibly betraying them. which in a meta way makes sense, cuz its players v brennan, but in universe it comes across as crazy paranoid and cliquey and theyre just so unaware of it that any way it could have come across as interesting comes across as frustrating instead. like a lot of what they do and say to the rat grinders comes across as straight up bullying, and they genuinely seem to derive pleasure from putting them down. which again, in a meta way makes sense, but in universe it makes u wonder WHY were meant to find the rat grinders dislike of the bad kids so horrible when the bad kids hatred is justified. even kipperlily at her worst thoughts -- those are thoughts she shared in therapy. are we meant to begrudge a 17 year old girl speaking to her therapist about her feelings? not even actions, literally just thoughts in her head? that she was again sharing, and probably couldve worked through if not for magical interference, confidentially in therapy? were meant to hate ruben, who doesnt even LIKE kipperlily either, who didnt start becoming the person the bad kids seem to hate until AFTER he died and was magically resurrected changed. why? oh because hes an enemy and this is a battle episode and hes on the field. ruben acting in what is quite literally self defense and being told "you were a waste of time" and having no idea whats going on and responding "what do you mean? youre killing my friends!" i swear to god if that insight check on buddy hadnt been a nat 1 i think we honestly would have gotten a whole different episode

#poison.txt #fh #d20 #fhjy spoilers #erm. anyway

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absolutebl · 4 months

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This Week in BL - I'm Late, I know

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

Feb 2024 Wk 2

Ongoing Series - Thai

The Sign (Sat YT) ep 12fin - we waiting 2 weeks I guess? Bah.

Pit Babe (Fri iQIYI) ep 13fin - I wasn't impressed by the last ep at all. Trash watch happened here.

My final thoughts:

Based on alittlebixth's omegaverse novel #พิษเบ๊บ’ set in the world of car racing omegaverse. Thailand brought us the world's first omegaverse BL but then failed to lean into the courage of its a/b/o convictions by not emphasizing the difference between our world & theirs, adding & subtracting characters & allegiances + a weak ending. With earnest performances, enthusiastic sex scenes, a fantastic side couple, and some delightful scenery chewing - the actors tried… poor things. It's just the story failed both them and their parent genre. Frankly? I just wanted it to be more outrageous and trashy, since I never expected it to be good. Instead, it was just… meh. 7/10

(Imma remind all the newbies that this is not unprecedented from me with hugely popular BL.)

Cooking Crush (Sun YT) ep 10 of 12 - I like it but there’s a high % of this show that doesn’t interest me. Anything to do with the side couple, or the friend group, or the cooking competition drives me into a comatose state of UGH. That means that in this episode, I paid attention to about 5 minutes worth.

For Him (Thurs iQIYI) ep 11 of 12 - I'm ready for this to be done. I think they were trying to be this year's Big Dragon, but they just aren't good enough. I really didn’t need a third couple.

City of Stars (Fri iQIYI) ep 2 of 12 - I'm warming up to FueangKrom a bit. It’s cute. I am finding the pacing interesting. That pacing might be bad, but right now it’s simply different.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Love For Love's Sake (Korea Weds iQIYI) 5-6 of 8 - I still love this show a lot, but this 2 ep installment felt a little disjointed. I’m not sure if that’s the narrative structure or the subs. The captions are shockingly bad for a KBL and I don’t have enough Korean to make up for their clear failings.

Although I Love You and You AKA Sukiyanen Kedo Do Yaro ka (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 5 of 10 - Oh the return of the manic pixie dream ex. This is all very high school drama for purportedly grown-up adults. But them both being jealous and then kissing was sweet.

AntiReset (Taiwan Fri Viki/Gaga) ep 3 of 10 - They remain adorable and the sunshine robot is very sweet. But it is a little slow.

Perfect Propose (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 3 of 6 - I prefer the episodes when we get more of them onscreen together. But this was fine.

Happy Ending (Korea Tues YT) 3fin - The ending disappointed me (are you surprised?). What can I say, not Strongberry's best as far as I’m concerned. High school besties that many could be sweethearts. I don’t like an ending that’s left up in the air. 6/10

It's Done but...

What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Gaga) 10 eps - will binge when I have any spare time. 2024 is crazy busy for me so far.

The Servant and the Young Master - from Vietnam, it's on YouTube. I will give it a try when I have a window of time.

Began Beginning (Myanmar YouTube) - A Burmese BL? @heretherebedork vouched for it, so I will give it a watch.

It's Airing But...

[NO INTERNATIONAL] Cherry Magic (Sat YouTube) ep 3 of 12 - yeah Japan put the smack down on our boys. Sadness. You can use a VPN if you like. Read all about it here.

Ossans Love Season 2 (Japan Gaga) - 5 years later, will anything have changed? This is Japan so… probubly not. I won't be watching this. I disliked Season one and actively hated the follow ups. No thank you.

Playboyy (Thurs Gaga) 14 eps - Dear Playboyy, it's not you, it’s me… I hate you. You’re about as deep (and as palatable) as a shot glass of cum. While I'm sure you’re someone’s kink, you're my weakest link. Goodbye. I DNFed this at ep 5. Frankly I'm impressed with myself for getting that far.

7 Days Before Valentine (Weds WeTV) 12 eps - Gave me Luminous Solution vibes. It finished, is it worth it?

Dead Friend Forever (Thai Sat iQIYI) 12 eps - finished, horror, supposed to be very philosophical, I think I'll give it a go.

Time the series (Tue Gaga/YT) 10 eps - dropped it at ep 4.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Starting Up

2/16 My Strawberry Film (Japan Gaga) - not quite sure how much BL this one is, because... Japan, but we shall see.

2/17 A Secretly Love (Thai WeTV) - Khonprot, a third-year head hazer of the engineering faculty, has a secret crush on Pluem, a tsundere fourth-year head hazer. Over the years, he's seen Pluem cycle through many girlfriends. Recently, after a public breakup, however, Khonprot thinks maybe a boy has a chance. Unless this is really good I probably won't I hate the WeTV interface...

Still Coming in Feb

2/24 Unknown (Taiwan Youku) 12 eps - Older brother tough guy criminal breadwinner looks after his sister and defacto adopted little brother. Little bother falls in love with him and is sent away after a stolen kiss. But when he comes back…

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

We gotta talk about LFLS this week. Look at Korea go!

Talking about a dead fish kiss, how meta! This will end up on one of my best of the year moments. I could not have been more gobsmacked.

Also something rarely directly addressed, particularly for same-sex firsts.

And then, a claiming trope, a personal favorite of mine.

Thank you Korea!

I just love them. (Pit Babe)

(Last week)

#pit babe the series #pit babe review #alanjeff #cooking crush #thai bl #love for love's sake #kbl #korean bl #Perfect Propose #Although I Love You and You #Sukiyanen Kedo Do Yaro ka #japanese bl #AntiReset #Taiwanese bl #cherry magic thailand

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luckthebard · 1 year

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So this is a very niche rant that is probably only something I've noticed or been annoyed by, but:

The longer Critical Role has gone on and the more changes they've made/content they've created, there's been an increase in weird people who are desperate and determined to prove that changes or content they don't like are "an objective failure" - but often lie or deliberately misunderstand viewership statistics to do so.

There are a few big "facts" I see repeated by people to argue that CR has "gone in the wrong direction" that are just plain wrong, and I think what annoys me most is seeing so many people engage with those "facts" without bothering to double-check them or push back against the certainty with which people state them. An example of one I keep seeing now is "twitch streaming numbers are down" and it's like, yeah, sure, in comparison to when they didn't simultaneously air on YouTube. If you add up the YT and Twitch numbers these days it's about the same as mid-late C2, but people love to act like YT streaming doesn't exist to make a point that "people don't like C3". And I tbh don't care if people like or dislike C3 but why this determination to falsely quantify and validate a personal preference?

The earliest I saw this was an intense agreement on reddit that Exandria Unlimited was a "failure" for CR, "unlike Undeadwood," because viewership numbers were lower. And it was tbh baffling to not see pushback against that narrative, because it's just objectively untrue. Original EXU's VOD streaming numbers are higher than every single episode of Undeadwood, and it premiered literally years later. It also has a lower "drop-off" in viewership (comparison of how many views episode 1 vs the finale has) than Undeadwood, despite frequent claims to the contrary. And don't mistake me here, I really enjoyed Undeadwood, but it actually was a viewership misstep for CR to the degree that they didn't try anything like it again for a while after and significantly changed how they approached marketing and airing miniseries. (A big one being: don't air a long miniseries simultaneously with the main series, it's too much content for most people to invest in during a week.)

(Sidebar, but another great miniseries CR did that didn't get a lot of viewership love is the Elder Scrolls Online trilogy, so I'm going to plug it here. It has some weirdly low viewership numbers on episodes 2 and 3 and I promise you they're both well worth it.)

The other one I keep seeing is "4 Sided Dive has lower numbers than Talks" which is also just not true. Most 4 Sided Dive VODs have nearly twice as many views as Talks VODs (and I'm using the ones that aired directly on the CR channel as a metric here, not the ones re-uploaded from G&S which lost numbers in the change-over). And I'll tbh chalk that up to the fact 4SD airs much less frequently - people are more likely to think it's necessary to watch whereas with Talks if you weren't interested in the guests you might skip a week. I'm not making any claims about the quality of either show, but the use of false viewership statistics to support "one of these sucks" is so rampant and so weird.

All this to say that yesterday I saw a weird viewer-hungry YouTube clickbait video titled "Midst a FAILURE for Critical Role!!" with a truly absurd confidence on what the VOD streaming numbers for the Midst YouTube videos mean for the series mere days after the premier and snapped.

tl;dr, people just make shit up and say whatever on the internet all the time and we hopefully all understand and expect that BUT (and here's the more annoying thing) 9 times out of 10 people just engage with that WITHOUT LOOKING INTO IT THEMSELVES

#rant #critical role #long post #cr discourse #I guess?#as always I am begging people to fact check and question stuff that's just stated as fact by randos online

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the-music-maniac · 7 months

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I haven't watched that much of One Piece yet, so feel free to disagree with me on this analysis, but there's one thing about people's general interpretation of Sanji as a character that drives me a little nuts. And I'm saying this because even though I'm not very far along, I got spoiled for his backstory (because I refused to stop reading fanfiction even though when I first started I was like, on episode 3).

So before you continue, there are spoilers for Sanji's past.

I think people tend to ignore that the differences between Sanji's demeanor towards men vs towards women likely partially stem from severe trauma. I don't believe his actions are entirely intrinsic, its not like he was born acting like this - nor is it an unchanging immutable fact of his character, despite what a lot of people seem to believe.

And for some context on what prompted this - I'm a sanzo/zosan shipper, so I tend to crawl through the depths of the internet looking for fun little videos and fanarts, and one consistent protest I see with this ship is "Sanji DESPISES men and WORSHIPS women, there's literally no way he could EVER be attracted to men or want to date a man he HATES them."

Which bothers me outside of any arguments about Sanji's sexuality or even about any ships - which I will get to in a second - because that interpretation of Sanji assumes his actions are just there for no reason. Sanji hates men, therefore he hates all men with no exceptions, and he will always hate men. Sanji loves all women, therefore he will always worship every single woman he meets. I dunno, I think it's just a very surface level understanding of who he is, and relies on setting a rule for no reason and just sticking to it, as if it's just a mere quirk of his character with no backing to it.

Sanji's first interaction with any people, was in the form of his biological family, as is the case with most of us. Specifically, his father and brothers, who abused him and didn't even treat him like a person, and his mother and sister, who were the only people that treated him with kindness and saw his humanity. Tbh, he reminds me of the way women who have experienced trauma from men act - a general dislike/disdain and distrust for them (for good reason). And I don't doubt Sanji's overall elevation of women was only hammered home by the fact that his first ever father figure - arguably the first man who's treated him with kindness - teaching him the lesson to always respect women. His very illogical need to never fight women probably partially comes from the events in his life, and because it's not just a two dimensional arbitrary rule established for his character - there can be exceptions and growth.

We already know this, because despite Sanji's general disdain of men as a whole, he is capable of caring/loving men that he personally knows. He loves Zeff, and he loves his nakama - some of whom are MEN. Like, it's right there??? In the same way a woman who has experienced violence at the hands of a man probably still has family and friends or even a significant other that they love and care about that are men.

Like if you're using his demeanor towards the different genders as an "aha got you" argument for why Sanji couldn't possibly be queer, its not as strong of an argument as you think it is.

And if we're operating under the assumption that Sanji partially acts like this because of trauma, it brings up quite a few interesting arguments about his sexuality and potential romantic partners.

Which segways into sanzo/zosan, since admittedly I got into this entire debacle because I was looking into fanart (non-shippers feel free to click away now if you wish, I get that not everyone likes the ship, which is valid).

I don't think Sanji's actions means he couldn't be bisexual. Cause I'm bisexual, and you know what would make me very very keen to ignore all my attraction to one specific gender? If I had multiple instances of that gender hurt me severely. In fact I'm not so certain I don't experience that, because while I haven't had anything super bad happen to me, I hear about things in the news, about friends and family who have been harmed, interacted with men who have talked down to me, and I definitely went through a phase in my younger years where i just refused to consider men as a possibility for a romantic partner, because I was just so so angry. And I'm not saying Sanji doesn't like women in truth, because he absolutely does. He's both attracted to them and likes them. But that doesn't eliminate the possibility that he might also be attracted to men, or other non-binary genders. In fact the more he doth protest, and puts on a show when he sees a pretty woman, the more I'm sure he's in denial. Internalized homophobia can also be a bitch. Contrary to making me think Sanji is absolutely straight, the way he acts in the show actually puts me the opposite way.

I've heard Sanji also has an interesting relationship with gender and may be genderqueer but I don't know as many details about that yet, so I'll skip it for now. But regardless, I look at Sanji and go "I don't think this is a traditionally cishet character."

Of course, this is by far not the only interpretation you can have of Sanji. It could be that he's traumatized and also heterosexual. That's absolutely fine. But my overall point here is that I don't think what we see in canon negates the possibility that Sanji can be queer.

As to why I like Zosan in relation to this:

1. First, a relatively minor thing, I enjoy the sheer amount of bickering/fighting. People hold that up as a reason to not like the ship and I'm like, my dude that's one of the only reasons why I'm here. My love language is annoying the people you love and occasionally having homoerotic battles. duh.

2. Zoro is one of the aforementioned men that Sanji cares about, one of the exceptions to his "men are horrible" thing. Like they argue and fight a lot, sure, but you're not convincing me that they don't love each other. In whatever capacity - platonic or romantic - is up to your interpretation. Sanji loves all of his nakama, that's not really something I see as up for debate.

3. I honestly believe that until Sanji gets a less extreme viewpoint of the different genders - he won't be able to be in a healthy romantic relationship with a woman. For one thing, I know Sanji has self worth issues for days. For another thing, his hero worship for women as a whole - his refusal to fight women, even when they're actively trying to harm him - I don't see that translating well to a relationship. Moreover, I can see it being exhausting for the woman he ends up with, to always be treated like she's made of glass or agreed with, regardless of what she says.

Essentially, he wouldn't really treat that relationship as a partnership between equals, and I think when that happens, you run the risk of the individuals hurting each other, even on accident. Of course, we can also see this as a facet of his character with exceptions and possibility for personal growth. Maybe if he gets with a girl he'll grow and learn and still end up in a good relationship. You could also just interpret his demeanor as over the top flirting that he'll reign back in for an actual serious relationship. Sky's the limit when it comes to fandom interpretations.

But because of this, regardless, I just don't see any potential between the female characters I've met and Sanji. What I do see potential in, is Zoro. Here is actually a character Sanji not only trusts to watch his back, is on equal footing with, but is also unafraid to speak his mind and fight with. He doesn't walk on eggshells or worship the ground Zoro walks on, he has no qualms about defending himself if Zoro crosses a line. That is what a relationship can be built on.

4. Zoro has a contrasting way of interacting with women that I find super interesting. He comes off as the kind of character that doesn't actually care about the gender of the person he's fighting or interacting with - he cares about their ability. Which kinda explains his reactions when he hears Kuina's thoughts about being a girl - and I think Tashigi as well if I'm remembering correctly. There could be a clash of beliefs there that might be quite interesting. I know Zoro and Sanji do fight about how they talk to women, but I meant like something not just played off for laughs. Maybe there is something like that later in the show, who knows, I'm still early on.

5. Again the entire reason why I like enemies to lovers is the need for personal growth. I heard someone say that Zoro would be fine with being in love with a boy if it wasn't Sanji, and Sanji would be fine with being in love with Zoro if he wasn't a boy, and man do I think that's accurate. And here's the crux of the matter - in order for them to get together, they need to get over their hang-ups. Sanji needs to unpack the ten million tons of trauma he keeps repressed under his curly noggin, and Zoro needs to figure out why Sanji rubs him the wrong way. That shit is INTERESTING. People forget that the reason why this trope is so popular is BECAUSE it's a fixer upper - there's work to do. Nothing is perfect. It may even be a little toxic. That's the appeal.

Anyways this is getting TOO LONG. Thanks for reading!

#sanji blackleg; trauma; and his relationship to men and women: an essay #one piece #sanji blackleg #analysis #roronoa zoro #sanzo #zosan #sanji x zoro #zoro x sanji #bisexual sanji blackleg #potentially genderqueer sanji blackleg #zoro and sanji's differing interactions with women are just quite interesting #i headcanon zoro as gay cause that man has never shown interest in a woman from what I've seen so far

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