#I genuinely need to know because s1 has such a different tone to the rest of the series | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

simplysummers · 3 years

Text

Breaking down Hunter and Omega’s relationship: pt 4.

Hi everybody. My biggest apologies for the delay on this series over the past two weeks, I’ve had a lot of medical issues going on, alongside a big decision in my life I had to make before the end of September taking precedence. However, with a little more time on my hands and a new team of proof readers behind me, I’m hoping to be back on track soon enough! I hope you enjoy my analysis of ‘Cornered’, and please always feel free to reply/reblog/send an ask with your opinions and discussions! I love to hear and reply to them! 💛

(Pasted paragraphs: I would just like to add a disclaimer here. I am, in no way whatsoever, slating the other batchers for having differing relationships with Omega. I absolutely adore everything single one of the boys, and I think they all have wonderful and unique interrelations with her. Although I may point out these different approaches in comparison to Hunter’s, I am not stating these engages are wrong, just different is all!

I’m going to separate this into a little series- covering each episode in a separate post, which I’ll have tagged as the series progresses. Once I’ve tackled these two, as they’re my favourites, I’m going to move on to each individual Batcher and perhaps a few other dynamics such and Hunter and Crosshair, or Wrecker and Omega! Let me know what you guys would like to see!)

(Thank you to this weeks proof-reader: @very-depressing-waffel 💛)

Cornered: S1/E4

Although minimal, I absolutely love the small interaction between these two in the opening scene of this episode. While it would make sense for Hunter to take the chair, as he is navigating co-ordinates, instead he allows Omega to sit down and rest, the pure affection between them is particularly radiant in these moments. I’d also like to note that it is Hunter’s order to originally send them to Idaflor, where we can only assume he is heeding Cut’s previous advice given on the subject of ‘disappearing to start a new life’. By connotation, this essentially means Hunter was extremely ready to settle down with his brothers and both raise and protect his newly found little one. However this clearly becomes an evident concern of Hunter’s as Omega begins to whine, claiming she desperately wants to explore the galaxy instead of hiding away on an uninhabited planet. Although appreciating her enthusiasm, he insists they cannot risk it, not right now, showing he has all further plans to take her to see the universe whenever it may be safe to do so. Her safety has become his priority.

Also, another little mimic on Omega’s part is mentioned after Tech’s evaluates their situation- “Well, Pantora it is.” “Pantora it is :)”. This angel, she steals my heart.

Moving on slightly to the arrival of Pantora, Hunter’s civvies and Omega carrying his backpack for him, which is as big as her little torso might I add, makes the world spin. Notice too how her eyes never leave him for a moment, it’s a typical child trait when wanting to catch an adult’s attention for good behaviour. After Wrecker mentions the implications of sightseeing, which ultimately peaks Omega’s interest, Hunter is quick to diffuse the situation by insisting this is only a quick supply run. I strongly believe this is because although he intends to take Omega into the city with him, most likely recognising her desperation to explore, his main intention is to keep her safe and protected, I personally spy a compromise here. Finally, regarding this little interaction, when inviting Omega to join them, he calls her ‘Mega, ‘MEGA!!! Hunter is the first member of the batch to nickname her affectionately, and her little excited cheer in response says it all!

When strolling through the busy marketplace, I noticed that alongside drinking up all sights she can set her eyes on, Omega continues to perform the aforementioned ‘smile at parent because I am both well behaved and very excited’ technique, breaking away from her awestruck staring to give Hunter a cute grin, which he affectionately returns under the realisation that her purity and innocence has erupted through something as simple as a marketplace, another endearing trait his charge has displayed. I’d also like to shed light on the protective hand-on-shoulder movement Hunter uses after the squad of troopers pass by him, Omega, and Echo. His wary stare and protectiveness is an extreme diversion from his usual headstrong attitude, which we know is correlated to his need to protect his charge. (Hand-on-shoulder, AGAIN. Comforting Dad alert!!)

When offering to trade with the Gran merchant, I noticed that whenever Omega picked up a new item to inspect or show off to Echo, Hunter glances over his shoulder to observe her. I have reason to believe he might not only be watching her explore, but keeping an eye on her after the incident on Cut’s farm. I can practically see Suu’s words of advice ringing in his ears, and he wants to make sure she stays out of trouble. And after she does inevitably knock something over, although he scowls a little in her direction (as any parent would), Hunter swiftly turns his look of annoyance towards the Gran as he begins to scold Omega, once again showing his protectiveness in her regard, and in all honesty, he has every right to respond this way, we’ve already established this salesman is stubborn and conceited.

The entire plot of this episode is centred around Omega’s inevitable separation from Hunter and Echo as she ends up running off to chase a voorpak, who has stolen her new doll. We cannot fault Omega for her behaviour, it was a little juvenile at most, but we must take into account this would be her first time in such a situation, and she has never been taught otherwise. Hunter’s immediate faltering smile as he realises Omega is missing is honestly gut wrenching. He has just received 3,000 credits, a hefty sum for what they’re in need of, and now he’s lost his ward, and the pain and concern is fully mirrored through his halting eyes.

I’m moving ahead slightly to add a little character-action comparison! Now, this may just be me nitpicking, and I mean no hate to Fennec Shand (I actually ADORE her), but did anybody else notice the difference between her hold on Omega and how Hunter holds her? Fennec’s fingers lay beneath the nape of Omega’s neck, almost curling into her tunic’s collar, and so while it may seem protective, it actually holds very possessive and controlling connotations. Whereas when Hunter places a hand to Omega’s shoulder, his fingers are quite loose, and it only ever rests up her upper shoulder, allowing the girl freedom if she so much as wishes it. It’s extremely docile. Furthermore, I wanted to briefly comment on Hunter’s tenderness when retrieving Omega’s new doll, most likely using it to track her recent movement. His hold is very gentle, considering he is now clinging to the last piece of Omega he has contact with, and a noticeable shred of panic holds his upper body rigid for good measure. It’s very nicely animated.

Coming ahead swiftly to the brief ‘positive’ interaction between Omega and Fennec, I haven’t seen this mentioned before but I personally see the discussion concerning the need for protection when travelling the galaxy as a small nod to Omega’s newly found connection to the boys, and Hunter specifically. Omega insists it’s a good thing she has her ‘friends’. Noticeably, she is still very hesitant to label them as her brothers, as she most likely feels excluded to an extent (bearing in mind the boys were raised together with the exclusion of Echo, no matter her previous ties to them, Omega was always going to feel isolated to some extent), but not enough to deny she has an attachment to them, and vice versa. Hunter has already shown on multiple occasions (Kamino, Saleucami, the moon from episode 3) that he would do whatever it takes to protect her, but it’s nice to see Omega’s perspective on the newly found emotions too.

Finally, Hunter is able to catch up to both Omega and Fennec, and the sudden change in his demeanour and her aura of innocence is extremely present here. Hunter drops the worrisome parental act fairly quickly, and it’s replaced with the familiar soldier we all know and recognise, he needs to exhibit such strengths to assert the extent he is willing to go to protect Omega. Equally, upon realising Fennec doesn’t quite have her best interest at heart, Omega wastes no time jumping (recklessly) into action to save both herself and Hunter anymore trouble. Of course, being a weightless little girl, she isn’t able to do much, and Hunter ends up in a physical altercation with Shand, where he actually ends up taking his eyes off the assassin to address Omega directly, insisting she run. This not only shows just how much he cares about her, but how desperate he was to ensure her safety by putting himself at risk by not only getting into a fight, but exposing a vulnerability by taking his eyes off of her. (Her worried little face as she flees too, poor girl 😔)

(This point doesn��t have much to do with the relationship between these two, so feel free to skip over it if you want, but I did want to briefly comment on Omega’s timid exterior as she runs to Wrecker in the maintenance tunnels. It truly helps to perceive her genuine age and immaturity, the way she cowers into his neck and sits in his arms especially.)

After Tech informs Hunter of Omega’s current predicament involving the maintenance tower, it’s easily noticeable that when questioning Tech’s information, his voice mirrors the exact tone and edge it held when berating both the former and Echo after their ship was impounded in Saleucami. To me, this shows a clear connotation between the dire situations, and how quickly Hunter has taken to his new role in Omega’s life, and his job as her primary carer. Not to mention, she is literally hanging mid-traffic lane, and in desperate need of assistance. Alongside this, we see previously in this episode that not only was Hunter worried about attracting unwanted attention, after receiving such a thing and accidentally allowing Omega to hang in the balance (pun unintended), he actually steals somebody’s hoverbike in an attempt to rescue the little one, seeming to not care he is attracting even more unwanted attention. There is no hesitation on his end.

The look of absolutely HORROR that crosses this man’s face as Omega drops from the tower and just about hits the hovertruck below. We haven’t seen a look like that cross Hunter’s features since Crosshair’s ‘betrayal’, another indication to his immense worry for the newest member of his family. Equally, this is mirrored by Omega’s wide eyed, petrified stare as she momentarily watches Fennec shoot straight for Hunter’s bike, realising both she and the closest thing she has to a parent are still in serious peril. We need to take into account that this little girl has never experienced something this grim before, and the internal panic is evident for both herself, and Hunter especially.

This brings us down to the “HUNTER!!” comment from Omega as she dangles from the hovertruck. I personally believe her first initial thoughts were not to warn Hunter of the oncoming Shand, but instead a desperation to cry out for help from her guardian. This escalated as she notices Fennec approaching, and her eyes even widen as she calls out for Hunter to watch out, giving further evidence that her first thoughts might not have correlated to her eventual dialogue. It’s also important to note that despite her incredibly tragic situation, Omega is still much more worried about Hunter’s predicament than her own.

(Slightly unimportant, but I love the way Hunter leans in to take Omega in his arm before Shand knocks him out of the way. It’s very parental.)

I never noticed this before, but as Hunter catches Omega’s hand and hauls her onto the bike, he actually scans her over briefly to check for any injuries, before insisting she hold on tight. Notice how his voice isn’t scolding or harsh, he’s very calm despite the dire situation, doing his best to remain neutral for Omega’s sake, especially considering the day she’s had. It’s also important to note that this is further improvement from the situation on Saleucami, another example of their ever-growing relationship.

The WAVE of relief that rolls from Hunter’s entire demeanour as he places the backpack down in the Marauder cockpit, knowing he can finally rest now that Omega is safe, while simultaneously anticipating the flurry of issues about to storm their already hectic lives with a bounty hunter after the kid. His eyes are exhausted, his shoulders are only slightly slacked to insinuate his rough exterior, and yet he still does his absolute best to comfort Omega as she begins to get upset over the prior events and the unknown future.

And, finally, a small action but important nonetheless. I noticed that Omega’s eyes quiver slightly as she begins to get upset, and in her final moments on screen, they direct towards Hunter. This may seem unimportant, but it provides further evidence to the notion that she seeks him out for protection specifically. She’s upset and frightened, so she looks to him because he protects her. It is set up as if she’s about to toss herself into his arms, because she needs him right now.

I hope you liked my analysis of Hunter and Omega’s relationship in episode four of The Bad Batch! Of course, I’d love to discuss these two with anybody who might be interested, so please feel free to drop me an ask or a DM, and if you’re captivated enough I’d totally recommend looking out for my future posts on the topic!

As always, much love to our ‘Megs and Hunter, thank you for reading! 💛

Part One: Aftermath

Part Two: Cut and Run

Part Three: Replacements

52 notes · View notes

duchezss · 3 years

Text

Buckle in folks cause I’m about to put more effort into this than an english assignment Presenting Why Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous is actually an amazing show

Now what defines the term amazing you might ask? I’m talking about a show that goes above and beyond in plot, characters, storytelling, and overall experience. Nowadays most adult shows don’t meet my standards much less a kids show so if that gives you an idea how good this show is stop right now and go watch it if you haven’t. Spoilers ahead ofc but as an aspiring film major I will be diving into just about everything I love and this is gonna get long.

For your convince I will start with a simple bullet point list and then extend on them below, so if you only wanna see the big points and not my thoughts behind them this first parts for you.

Black mc

Diverse main cast (4/6 are poc)

Actual plot lines and a lot of suspense

Very dark for a kids show

Complex characters that develop

Fits in with the main Jurassic World series beautifully

Body language and facial expressions are top tier

Have genuine relationships (platonically and/or romantically) between all of the main 6

Phenomenal camera angles and use of special effects

Great with details

Amazing VA’s

Continuity

So the nose dives begins

Black mc: To some people this might not matter that much but holy cow this is so important and such a big step. The people complaining are just weird middle aged white people, like do you know how big of an impact a black mc can have on young black children. It’s so important and it makes them feel happy because someone actually looks like them. Clear evidence of this was Into The Spider Verse (which is also an amazing movie oml). Come to think of it the only black mc I think I’ve ever seen in an animated kids show is probably Static Shock (also an amazing show ily). Somehow representation has got swept under the rug in this day and age which is ironic really, but this show does an amazing job with tackling that and I love it.

Diverse main cast: I can’t think of any recent kids movies/tv shows, live action or animated, that have this much representation. In animation is also very easy for the show runners to make a character poc and then have a white VA, but jwcc is quite the opposite. Honestly the characters look so much like their VA’s that something tells me the animation team based the characters off them and not the other way around. Not only that but their names actually match with their ethnicities. So for reference or just anyone that doesn’t know, Ben and Brooklynn are white, Sammy is hispanic, Darius is black, Kenji is asian, and Yazmina is middle eastern. Sammy’s last name is Gutierrez, Yazmina’s is Fadoula, Kenji’s is Kon and Darius’s Bowman. Gutierrez is a common last name in Mexico and Latin America in general. Fadoula is found throughout upper Africa and the Middle East, Kon is rare name of Japense origin, and Bowman is a common last name among black folks in the US. So not only do they have a poc cast, voiced by poc people, but all the characters have realistic names. Not to mention they are very good on skin tone in the show, personally I think Yaz should’ve been just a bit darker but hey I’ll take it and run.

Actual plot lines: This seem like stating the obvious but work with me here. Most kids and even adult shows have a very episodic format, there’s nothing wrong with that per say but having a plot and conflict build up and having little things matter is much more satisfying in my opinion. Most kids shows have some conflict but its very PG which is also fine that’s what it’s meant for. But every once in a while you’ll find a show that had plot wise beyond it’s years and those are the golden ones. Easily and rightfully the most famous is Avatar the Last Airbender or ATLA. This show to this day is still one my favorites and truly nothing will ever top it, but in my years of watching kids shows after it jwcc might just be second. We can argue all day about what’s the best and it’s truly a matter of opinion, but to me atla and jwcc just achieve such a level of complexity that 99% of kids and even adult shows don’t reach.

Very dark: While this might not be exactly the best for kids it’s great for an olderish audience. Honestly it having a much darker element makes the show enjoyable for all ages while still keeping it chill enough so that children may watch. But come to think of it it’s hard not to make a show about dinosaurs dark, the show runners do a wonderful job at keeping it intense and exciting, but still kid friendly, and to me thats incredibly impressive. Not to mention since the show isn’t afraid to go dark they can do more (such as ben’s “death”, the hunters etc) which makes it go from good to great. Reminds me a lot of atla and I know I keep mentioning atla but know that is the biggest compliment ever. atla is easily the best animated/kids show of all time so the fact that a bring it up so much is huge. There have been shows in the past that have tried to replicate what atla (such as voltron..) and it just hasn’t worked. I think this show nails the boundary between too dark and not dark enough.

Complex characters: Oh yes. If there’s one thing I love more than an ensemble cast it’s a cast that grows and develops as the series progresses. Sure the main 6 might start off as typical character tropes (Darius the super fan, Yaz the loner, Sammy the extrovert, Ben the underdog, Kenji the arrogant, and Brooklynn the influencer.) but they become so much more than that. I’d say at least half of them are completely different people between the 1st episode and the latest one. An easy example being Ben and Kenji. Ben started off as a naive, timid, and terrified person and has become confident, independent, and brave. Kenji started off as arrogant, selfish, and apathetic person and became compassionate, driven, and concerned. All of them have had some sort of change even if it’s not super dramatic and that’s important. It makes the storytelling better because they grow as they go.

Fits in with JP/JW beautifully: In terms of shows connecting to movies this has gotta be some clone wars level s-tier stuff. Personally I have never watched clone wars but my sister has and she always raves about how well this show connects to the movies, and from what I’ve seen I completely agree. A youtube channel by the name of Silverscreen Edits actually put together the scenes from every time they overlap, mainly in S1 but also the cold open from Fallen Kingdom. I’d advise you to watch it because it’s just incredible. The show runners nail ever detail of these scenes and it truly feels like you’re watching the same scene from a different perspective. The set up is beautiful and I cannot rave enough about how amazing it is, my favorite easily being the dome scene because of all the small details. Not to mention this show actually connect JW and FK because it shows us that the cold open was 6 months later while the rest was 3 years later. Quite honestly I had no idea these two scenes were that far apart from each other, I thought the opening was from a years or two later not 6 months, so this show really connected the dots between these two movies and made them flow together much nicer. And I love all the countless references too old and new JP/JW movies. Overall this show is a great addition to the franchise.

Body language and facial expressions: You might be thinking to yourself, hmph that is a really odd point to make, let me tell you it’s not and I’ll explain why. When analyzing films I usually tend to stick to live action because one of my favorite parts of films is how characters react to things, and we animation we really don’t get that. Most of the time even if shows get this complex they won’t use both the way jwcc. What impressed me so much was how amazing they are at this, the animation team seriously needs more praise. Jwcc is great at facial expressions which I will say other animated shows know how to do as well, but they are also so amazing at body language which is rare rare when it comes to animation. It’s because it’s so hard and often times it just doesn’t fit, but they do an amazing job with this and it makes the characters feel so life-like. When a character is sad or closed off their shoulders hunch, when they feel scared they stiffen up and cover their ears (which is another detail I love so much, I never realized till this show that hardly anyone ever covers their ears and it makes a lot of sense because these dinos are very loud) and when they feel hopeless their shoulder sag and their head drops, do you see what I mean? You can quite literally tell what these kids are feeling and thinking without them saying anything that is so impressive and it makes the show that much better. It makes it easy to analyze and if it wasn’t clear around I love to do so.

Genuine relationships between all of main cast: I will not budge at this point at all, gonna say it right now if you disagree argue with the wall. I might have some bias on this but one, if not my favorite, part of any media is an ensemble cast. It’s something I actively seek out, and when I say ensemble cast I don’t mean a trio, I mean a full cast, my favorite being 6 but 4 or 5 will do. So when I found out this show had 6 main characters I was immediately interested. Not only because I love ensemble casts but I also wanted to see how they handled it. Ensemble cast are so rare because they are extremely hard to do and do well. I will even criticize atla on this. At one point they had 6 main characters and they never elaborated on more than a handful of the duos and just focused on the group as whole. But this is typical and easiest to do without giving up individual character development so I get that. But jesus christ jwcc does a phenomenal job with this, and I mean phenomenal. Out of the 15 different duos you can get between 6 characters then have elaborated on 11 of them, and it could easily be more this is just from memory. I might make a post elaborating on this specifically because it’s just amazing. This time they take to flesh out these relationships truly makes them feel like a unit and a family, instead of just a group of people all working towards the same goal. This is easily the most impressive and rewarding of any of the points on this list in my opinion. (coming from #1 squad lover right here)

Camera angles and special effects: This shows downfall for some was that it had strange animation, honestly it never bothered me and since I’ve watched dragon prince and rwby, it’s clear that bad animation never stops me from watching a show. But I think people just won’t give it a chance, because when you do you’ll see it’s actually very good. To me the coolest part of the animation is the dinos. They look incredible and so so similar to the cgi used in JW. That’s hard to do so more claps for the animation team I love y’all. They also have to work around the PG side of this show and do a great job at implying what happens but never actually showing what happens. This is all angles, not to mention they do a great job at showcasing the park and the scenery so that magic from the movies really translates to the show. Finally my favorite scene of the show from an avid slow mo lover has got to me when Ben falls of the monorail (idk why it is cause he’s literally my fav and I was so upset) The scene is just beautiful and the set up before hand makes it that much more heart breaking. The use of slow mo is amazing I literally cannot rave about this scene enough. It builds so much suspense and they used just the right amount, to much and the scene would move to slow, and to little the scene would be to fast. I need more great scenes like this in S4 (idk if I want the angst that comes with it too I’ll get back to you)

Details: To me details, in any show in general, is what makes it go from great to fantastic. An example of this is Harry Potter, something that hooked me into this franchise was how much small details mattered and it’s the same with jwcc. There are so many throw away lines that end up coming back and all us are hitting ourselves for missing it. Such as Ben saying early on he knows where the tracker beam is and when he “dies” and the crew can’t find it it shows how important he was. Those are details I love to see. Or the three dinos, one of which Sammy released, coming back all season. Of course toro as well and he always kept his burns. Not to mention the animation team always kept Ben’s scar in and I think that’s an important detail because he shaped who he is. Keep up the good work animation and writing team because I love what you’re doing with this (also I’m 90% sure the compass is another one of these details I’m calling it rn)

Amazing VA’s: Honestly VA’s in general do not get enough credit and they really should. But these 6 are pretty amazing let me tell you. If I’m not mistaken Ryan Potter (Kenji’s VA) is the only one with a notable history of voice acting as he played the title character in Big Hero 6. (fun fact I had no idea and when I found this out I quite literally screamed). But the others have also done things as well, most of it being live action though, and voice acting is much different. Honestly I just need to make a post about the various roles they’ve had cause looking into this has been an experience. Anyway all of them do such an incredible job with this ahh. I think the times where you can really tell how different they all are is when they lash out. This happens quite often and honestly it’s expected, I mean they’re 6 teenagers in a stressful environment of course they’ll last out. But all of them have such a different way of doing it, Darius is hopeless, Kenji is nervous, Yaz is emotional, Ben is harsh, Brooklynn is stern, and Sammy is level headed. Usually everyone lashes out the same way so the fact that they’re so different in just one aspect shows you how good they are. Each character is so individual and all of them have different goals and morals which is not only realistic but it makes way for conflict which is always interesting.

Continuity: Now this could arguable go with details but it’s slightly different so I’m making this a separate point. Continuity to put it simple it basically not have the show be episodic. Honestly that completely what I expected from this show because that how most kids shows are. In this show the plot not only progress each episode but so do the characters and their trauma. Most of the time the plot will progress but anything bad that has happened to the characters will not show and is hardly talked about (COUGH VOLTRON). To me it’s something that has to be addressed because if the characters don’t grow what was the point of it. And they’ve shown that characters grow based on the events that happen and I love that. Another thing about continuity is when show runners stick a pin in something and actually go back to it (COUGH RWBY). Jwcc is amazing at this and make a point to bring back just about everything that gets sidelined in the first place. It’s so impressive and make the show that much more enjoyable. There have been countless times where I get so caught up with the pins that shows just leave there and it makes me so mad, but jwcc is good at for the most part because of course some things will slip through. But they always get back to the important things.

The conclusion: Overall this show is phenomenal and if my essay hasn’t convinced you I’m not sure what will. The show is amazing at storytelling and plot and the lovable main cast makes it that much better. It is so much better than a good chunk of kids shows and honestly part of me wishes it was rated PG-13 cause I really wanna see that. But they do an amazing job and keep it kid friendly enough while still discussing mature topics. It’s the next atla to me and something that many kids shows now days try to be and fail. It’s impressive and complex and truly one of the best shows I’ve ever watched. Film major mara out, and if you actually read all of this ily mwah.

#jwcc #jurassic world camp cretaceous #jurassic world #jurassic park #jesus why did I write so much lmao #I have issues I spend more than 2 hours on this..#hyperfixations go hard ig

40 notes · View notes

vanveronicango · 4 years

Note

if you don't mind me asking, what aspects of s2 did you dislike? bc for me, although i liked it a lot better than s1 (mainly for the increased focus on sibling dynamic scenes). i also kind of realized that it had kind of a Lot going on, that although i appreciated, didn't get enough equal attention? idk

i agree that the dynamic scenes this season were pretty great. we got some great interactions between characters that didn’t have much last season (personal fave being klaus/allison/vanya and every individual combo in that trio).

i personally love reading other peoples’ opinions on shows/movies, even if they don’t match my own, because a lot of the time they open my eyes to some stuff i haven’t seen, and i love to see work affecting others the same way it does me, even if it has a different outcome.

so, i know i said i wouldn’t, but since you asked, under the cut i’m going list out some of the stuff i wasn’t a huge fan of, and some of the stuff i really liked.

(edit warning: this shit is LONG. but please don’t take this as me absolutely hating the season - I didn’t. there was some genuinely enjoyable stuff. but, in my opinion, it didn’t have the spark and intent that s1 did. it wasn’t the caliber of the season i fell in love with. i think it’s still rewatchable though, unlike a certain godawful season of a certain hit netflix show...... coughstrangerthings3cough)

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE

1. not enough characterization/development in most of the characters (this will be the longest point, so I’ll get it out of the way first) - for one, the siblings - save maybe vanya & allison - really... did not develop much this season, and weren’t explored as heavily as in the first season. hell, even in vanya and allison’s cases, i still think s1 did a better job at delving into their characters and psyche, even though they still had a bit of it in s2. but especially in the other siblings cases, i feel like SO MUCH of this season leaned into trivial things the fans liked, that it either (at least) took time away from or (at worst) was an active detriment to the characters’ development and plots. they said oh you like banter? we’ll give you unnecessary arguing and jokes that go on for 20 minutes too long when we could be delving deeper into these interesting situations we saw on the surface. here’s some fart jokes and forgettable music when we could be seeing more of how these characters are coping with the literal end of the world/being sent back in time/facing the prospect of never seeing their families again.

in s1, we got luther’s immense internal struggles in living up to his “name” and only existing to please his father... diego finding his relationships through his jaded nature towards his siblings and himself, and grappling with feelings of inferiority... allison’s coping with the effects her powers have had on her life, and trying to become someone without rumoring everything into existence, which is a new feeling altogether that she isn’t quite sure how to cope with... klaus going through intense development as a simultaneously self-obsessed and self-destructive drug addict that gets thrown into a gruesome war for a year, only to watch the person he loves most die, grappling with his ptsd from war & his abusive childhood, and discovering new powers... five coming back home after decades of solitude and then being used as a weapon, trying to reestablish himself within the group while dealing with an eating feeling that he doesn’t belong in his body or in this group.... vanya, oh vanya, with her depression, anxiety, feelings of loneliness and betrayal, feeling invisible and utterly ordinary, gripping to whoever makes her feel special (and dealing with that fallout) before suddenly being slammed with unbelievably powerful abilities that she can’t control.

in s2... yes, we get lesbian!vanya who becomes truer to herself, and - through intense struggle - finds a way to harness her abilities so she isn’t so out of control and can finally feel extraordinary herself. but much of the latter was given up for a vast majority of the season bc she literally didn’t know who she was (there was a positive in that though, which i’ll list in my positives list), and so we lost a LOT of potential coping and learning time, which easily could have mingled with her sissy storyline! allison’s storyline i actually dug, i don’t have too much gripe with it except that i wish her throat injury didn’t just kind of magically heal, and they could’ve addressed it more. the end of ben’s story was interesting, but still lacked depth imo. as for the other siblings.... it all just felt like a TON of jokes that were funny at first, but quickly became stale and had me wishing they would take the story a bit deeper. that said, a lot of the gags, jokes, and quips were great, but they could’ve been incorporated WAY more intelligently, and allowed for characterization at the same time. loads and loads of banter, not being balanced with poignancy like s1 did very well.

we could have seen luther’s descent into the criminal underworld, and why he felt the draw and obligation to go that route. a more detailed look at klaus’ beginnings and relationship with the cult, his motivations (which s2 kept super shallow), more of diego’s life inside the asylum and even beforehand. but no, we got five and old five farting.

2. the music - man, the s1 soundtrack was iconic, was it not? effortlessly cool scene/music combos, countless iconic music moments, brilliantly and thoughtfully done. this season felt like they said “music? oh ok throw music EVERYWHERE” and it was just. not. good. instead of music that intertwined with each scene like it was a character itself, amplifying the tone and adding a new layer (like in s1), the music this season was mostly just distracting, forgettable, and felt like they were this close to just making a bunch of music videos. i even found myself hating a couple of their choices (the rest i just kinda... forgot). i did like the vanya/allison/klaus dance scene, but other than that.... eugh.

3. the handler - I HATE. HATE HATE HATE. when shows/movie franchises do shit like make a big deal of killing off a villain or lead and then just being like “hehe jk uwu” and bringing them back with some totally bs reason that they lived. a metal plate? really? and she magically awoke... how long after? not to mention how unbelievably lazy and lame it is. they could’ve done so much more with carmichael and the swedes, but they had to bring back... the villain we already had? don’t get me wrong, i LOVEEE kate walsh, but come on. it’s season 2. give us something fresh.

4. the swedes - in s1, cha cha and hazel had personalities, wants, desires that were all explored. we knew their motivations, their doubts, their fears. we liked to watch them. then the writers threw in the swedes... who were completely devoid of any and all characterization (they could’ve gone in my #1 point too heyo), personality, backstory, anything. it was so painful that when each one died, it was clear that we were supposed to feel something for the others, but did any of you really feel anything? no. because we didn’t know these characters at all. they were walking guns, pretty much. nothing substantial.

5. ben & klaus - being someone who loves these two characters so, so much (hellloooo, my old url?), this one breaks my heart. i was so unbelievably disappointed with them this season. all either of them were was horrible to the other. in klaus’ case, he just decided to keep ben’s presence a secret, not even telling the group ben loved them, or that he was there. he called him his ghost bitch, he used him as a personal pet, he lacked sympathy or compassion. we saw a glimmer of hope when he allowed ben to possess him, but that’s where ben’s issues start. seriously, possessing your brother past his breaking point, fighting him out of his own bodily autonomy, until he is in a state of complete exhaution? then saying he “regrets nothing”? and then the show playing it off as ~comedy~ bc that’s almost all they cared about this season... no... there was nothing in their relationship this season that compared to last’s. no moments of tough brotherly love, where ben tries to help klaus through his drug/alcohol desires or ptsd flashbacks, no moments of teamwork (besides the brief moments of consenting possession before that was ruined), no tender moments between brothers in general. all just REALLY FUCKING LOUD “comedy”, anger, resentment, bickering, and cruelty, all played for laughs. not about it son

6. “we’re not blood related!” - and, once again, getting played for laughs... for a show that became uncomfortably self-aware with trivial fan desires (but not the deeper stuff...), they sure do lack a lot of common sense of realizing what we don’t want

7. hazel (& agnes) - they went through the trouble of saving hazel and agnes just to have agnes die off-screen before the season started, and for hazel to die five minutes into his only appearance? lame. lame lame lame.

8. plot pace - i don’t really recall any moments in s1 that i thought “this scene doesn’t need to be here”, “this is moving so slowly”, or “this is being really rushed”. there was plenty of all three of those in s2. s1 was constant, everything was either towards the main goal or was filled with private and fascinating character moments. i love just watching characters live and do their thing if it’s done properly... but those scenes this season really weren’t very entertaining (save one or two), didn’t really seem to serve a purpose or hold weight, and didn’t give us any character insight.

9. klaus - the reason he’s listed specifically even after i mentioned him in the first point, was because of how personally saddened i was by his “arc”, if you could call it that. i know, him being my favorite (along with vanya) in s1 isn’t an original thought. but the writers, directors, and robert created a character so entertaining, charming, layered, and multi-faceted that it was hard not to fall in love with him. for all his goofiness, he then got a shit ton of characterization and development in the war, in dave, in his ptsd and discovering his power. his poignant moments were so powerful because of how different it was from his typical outward appearance. and fuck if he didn’t develop! this season, klaus felt... shallow. the cult stuff had no depth, no real reason to be there at all (the show really wouldn’t be much different without it, besides it being how five and allison found klaus), and it was kind of a throwaway point anyway, just another tool to get - shocker - more laughs. those touching, serious klaus scenes were completely absent in s2... he was just the ~quirky~ and/or ~high/drunk~ guy. there was literally no depth to his character at all this season. yeah, he crawled from behind the desk in e9.... and what else? nothing. robert did all he could this season, but something tells me even he was probably disappointed by just how one-dimensional klaus was. he was really no different at the end than he was at the beginning of the season, which is a no-no.

10. klave - this is kind of an expansion of #9, but i was so disappointed by it that it needed its own spot. the only stuff that was supposed to be serious in klaus’ story - the klaus/dave stuff - was really not good. the moment the shopkeeper said “david?” in the store, i literally gasped bc i was so excited... but that was the last of any excitement i felt for the two, which, if you know me, is BONKERS considering how much i adore s1 klave. but this new young actor had ZERO chemistry with robert (fuck if rob wasn’t trying, though. it looked painful for him, but this guy really was just not well casted) (cody and rob were phenomenal together and had a fraction of the screentime this new actor had), and klaus being 30 and this actor/character being a kid was just... weird to watch. plus... so many white actors look the same, they really couldn’t find someone who looked like cody ray thompson? c’mon now ...... also, was there any point to it? at all? dave just wound up going anyway and there was literally no differences made in that situation. i think the writers thought they were catering to the audience by adding dave, but you need actors with chemistry (cody! cody!!!) and a good plot to do so.

11. s1 fallout - there really was none. that’s it. you’d think there’d be more after the explosions in the relationships of these siblings, but everything was just kind of glossed over.

12. sparrow academy - mostly here because... does this mean 7 more characters? meaning MORE time taken away from our og siblings, who already (mostly) didn’t develop well this season? i’m not gonna lie, i’m worried/

WHAT I LIKED

1. the chestnuts - i absolutely loved ray, loved allison, and loved their and their group’s work this season. the issue of race is so important all the time, but in the 60′s the tensions were so high and it would’ve been a joke if the show hadn’t addressed it or just kind of went with little racist remarks. these two had some of the most touching scenes of the season, and the sit-in scenes/every police scene had me incredibly anxious. that was well done, imo. which is proof that they still know how to do a good storyline, which makes me even more upset that the show was overall lacking that this season. i’m also so glad they didn’t go the “oh sry ray i still love luther’ route bc i literally don’t know if i would’ve kept watching. ANYWAYS im gonna miss ray sm :(

2. vanya & sissy - lesbian!vanya is all i want and more. vanya/sissy was all i want and more. these two, much like the chestnuts, breathed so much life into an often-dull season. so in love!!! vanya connecting with harlan even in just the most human ways!!! sissy finally standing up to carl (and carl d*ing god bless).... little found family oh my GOD!!! super devastated that sissy didn’t come back to the future with vanya, but because of harlan’s ending, something tells me we haven’t seen the last of them. oh and i am so conflicted about vanya’s amnesia, bc while i think so much more development could’ve happened without it, i also don’t think a lot of what happened with her and sissy could have happened, at least as quickly, if vanya was bogged down by guilt, anger, and lingering feelings of self-hatred and anxiety.

3. sibling dynamics - okay, this one is a contradiction, kinda sorta. i know i said the ben/klaus relationship was horrid. and i didn’t dig absolutely everything with all the siblings.... but they had some REALLY strong stuff this season. i know i’ve already mentioned it multiple times, but vanya/allison/klaus was everything to me this season. i knew i wanted klaus/vanya stuff happening, but adding allison to the mix gave it a whole new layer and they all just worked SO. DAMN. WELL. i just kind of wish it was vanya with her memories getting that bonding time, because i feel like the trio really could’ve gone in with how they all related to each other, their struggles, etc. but still, just some Happy Time was much appreciated. in addition to them, i really did dig a lot of almost every sibling dynamic this season. not every relationship got the attention it deserved, but it wasn’t too bad, it would be really hard to get all of that into 10 eps. plus, the fact that almost all of them grew so much closer was everyyyything. it’s odd, because good dynamics usually come with good development but uh..... nvm im keepin this section positive

4. the humor - another kind of contradiction, maybe. for some of the humor, i thought it went too long, was extremely heavy-handed, often took away from the plot, and some of it even degraded certain characters and situations (see examples throughout my points above). however, the stuff that didn’t fall into these categories was so, so good. some favorites: olga foroga, “think of batman, then aim lower”, “you look like antonio banderas with that hair” “thanks man”, i’m t h e d a d d y h e r e, “not everyone here likes you” “sounds ridiculous but go on”, klaus’ little pop culture quips to his cult, “being smart doesn’t make you interesting” “neither does that beard”, klaus calling ben to manifest and ben being like ”...nah”... there are plenty more, but these were the first i could think of in 60 seconds off the top of my head. some of it really was laugh out loud funny, which can be hard to do, especially consistently. if only they didn’t lean into it so damn hard, and put in WAY too much heavy-handed humor that it dampened the experience

5. old five - although i don’t love all of the stuff in the five/old five scenes, old five’s actor was fantastic! he got aidan’s mannerisms down really, really well. it’s always cool to see actors do that kind of thing when they play a character at a different age, or a character’s sibling, etc.

6. time period bigotry - i’m really, really glad they didn’t gloss over the intense racism and homophobia of the era. it was mostly brought up with allison, vanya, and klaus, and all three actors did a great job in their respective roles when expressing their reactions to the hatred. the scenes were really hard to watch, but well done.

7. pogo/grace/reggie - don’t get me wrong, i still hate reggie with a burning passion. but i actually found his scenes with these two really interesting, and it gave us great insight as to why pogo was always so loyal to reggie, and how grace was more than just a face on a robot to hargreeves. (which actually makes lack of development in our mains even more infuriating... they clearly knew to put some in there, where is it for the rest of the sibs who got nothing this season!!!)

alright, i’m gonna stop here. i’m sure i can think of more for each section, but i’ve been thinking this out and typing for an hour (holy shit) and it’s 2am and i need sleep xoxo

#anon #ask #tua2 #this is the most i've really sat and analyzed the season since it came out #feels good

68 notes · View notes

what-a-messsss · 3 years

Text

1x10 rewatch

Ok, let’s get back to Walt Longmire: Disaster Boi of S1 and finish this season off with a...something. Pleading look to the heavens, maybe?

How do I keep forgetting that Lizzie is a thing, even after our decision to find her some nice Smitten Cowboy to be with? Holy hell, but why are you still keeping your dead wife’s ashes in the kitchen? At least you kept Lucian in your fucking truck. In a coffee can. What is with you and breakfast beverages?? We all know you need lots of therapy, but this seems like a kind of niche issue.

“Trust me, you don’t, uh, you don’t want that tea.” Buddy.

Poor Lizzie. She really is so nice. And he’s such a fucking disaster. “You seem weird,” she says, in reaction to him going bug eyed from having to convince her not to drink his dead wife without her realizing that’s what he was doing. Sweetie, you have no idea. And she really does like him.

This is. So. Gloriously awkward. And Lizzie’s there in her bare feet. And all we need is for Branch to show up and we’ll have a full house, and aaaaahahaha, Walt is so trying to freeze time with the power of his brain. Staring off into the Not Here place with his mouth pressed just so... Awwwww, suffer.

I had forgotten that Ferg was the one who actually did the body work on the Bronco! Even did the paint work, because that old truck has never looked so good. I know Omar loaned Walt his truck while the Bronco was “in the shop,” but I like that the writers gave Ferg the skills to do that.

“If anybody... has something they want to say, I suggest you think twice about it.” We don’t need to say anything; we’re too busy laughing at you.

Oof, and then Lizzie hearing Martha’s voice still on the message greeting. She’s really quite a good actress. Lizzie isn’t a terribly subtle character generally, but she gives her these really fine microexpressions that give you occasional glimpses that there is more going on under the surface, and she’s not just an open book. : ( Making me actually like her and feel bad, not just cringe when she comes on. Dang iiiiiiiit.

Ok, that does NOT look like Sharpie. I’m sorry, but that looks like a paint pen or lipstick more than it looks like a Shapie on the dead kid’s forehead. Even if it were one of the jumbo Sharpies, they don’t write like that, they aren’t that colour on skin, and the thickness of the lines are all off. Which is not really relevant, but it buuuuugs meeeee. Pedantic little shit that I am.

Ope, Branch is basically past the angst about Walt not liking him and straight into just giving him nothing but attitude. Which, while I can hardly blame anyone for giving Walt shit, does get old pretty fast.

Walt, you are So Bad at talking to people, even when it’s for the damn job! Yeah, it’s fine to have Ferg fill Vic in, but at least acknowledge that she’s there, damn. Honestly it would have been good for both Vic and Ferg for Walt to tell her to follow Ferg’s lead on this one. He knows the case, the local history, the players, the situation, and probably more about archery than her, and she could stand to take the reminder that working 5 years in big city homicide still doesn’t make her the senior deputy and that she needs to be ok learning from even Ferg. Shit, I keep finding more and more reasons to be annoyed at Walt. Is he even really that good of a sheriff? I’m shaking the ol’ Magic 8 Ball here, and signs point to frickin’ NO. Ugh.

Five HUNDRED dollars says that he didn’t check with Mathias before going on the Rez for official police business again. Jackass.

Can’t really blame Viho for being super bitter. And Ayasha is so sweet. This whole family dynamic is so well done.

Aw, Ferg is so excited about the gum wrapper. “Still minty!” How are you such a sparklebunny? Bless.

Detective Falessssss. His opening line is so great, but uuuuuuuhg, he’s as bad as Walt with his singlemindedness about the case.

“Talk to Ruby. She runs my life.” She runs the department, bucko, and you’d be lost without her! Lost, I say! But you treat her like your personal social secretary, and that’s crap.

In Fales’ dubious defense, you were just super weird about that whole encounter.

Omar! You creepy little lecherous jackass. Why am I still fond of you? It’s really rather galling that I enjoy your character at all, but I doooo. Thank gods he has the beard now; cleanshaven was just wigging me out. “Vickie’s never shot before--” “That is the second-to-last time you will ever call me that.” And I chortle myself to distraction to the point that I have to rewind to catch the lines that I missed. With her horrible plans when she gets drunk (I’m still cringing at that flashback of her with Travis) and her obvious thing for older men, I’m honestly kind of surprised she didn’t end up having a deeply regretted something with Omar at some point. They do have good chemistry in an antagonistic way. And he does so enjoy tugging her pigtails. ...ew. Why is my brain like this?

“A little bit of practice, even a girl can make that shot.” Aaaaaaand we’re back to kick him in the nuts. Not that we ever really left there. Such a butthead.

Boy oh boy, it sure is great the tone that all these shitty rich white people take saying “Indian.”

“That is what a normal person would do in your situation.” Henryyyyyy, I love you so much. Why can’t we spend more time with him in the early seasons? Why are you drinking a Rainier? Nooooo, please have better taste in beer than your boyfriend! You have expensive tastes in bourbon, why can’t you have decent taste in beeeer?

Walt, what is the point of practicing darts when you are FIVE FEET from the board? Seriously, you’re supposed to be like... (a google later) 7 feet 9.25 inches away! That’s... That’s an oddly specific measurement. Wtf. No quickly apparent reason for that specific measure. Resisting the pull of this particular rabbit hole to continue the ep.

Aaaah, that’s right, this is still when Walt thinks that Henry may have killed the guy for him. And BestDad Henry talked to Cady after the blow up about Branch, and he is a wonderful human being. “It’s really none of your concern.” Hoooooow dare you. It is clearly a function of being bffs with that butthead that Henry just smiles (somewhat bitterly) at this instead of tripping him into the bar or shoving his head into the cigarette machine. (Is that a cigarette machine? Wtf is that thing with the yellow lit up portion towards the top? [14:05])

“What a rich inner life you must lead. From time to time, you should consider sharing some of it with the rest of us.” The sass! Swoon. Henry. Marry me.

“I’ve got other problems.” Buddy, you are other problems.

I wonder how many people/places Ruby just has on speed dial so that she can zoom through her list of “Where the hell is Walt now” to get in touch with him.

Aaaaand we’re back to Branch getting a bit big for his britches. Whee. Better fight about it like Big Boys. Ffs. “Go ahead. Give me your best shot.” ::Pat Benatar starts playing in the background:: Oh holy shit, I wish so damn much that I had any know-how about making vids. I would be beyond amused by a spoofy hate vid of Walt and Branch being assholes to “Hit Me With Your Best Shot.” Ooo, oo, or “Hit Me Baby One More Time!” Aaaahahaha, these fucking losers and their fragile masculinity. Get rekt.

Children. Childreeeeen. Stop it, or you can’t go to Timmy’s birthday party next week.

The irony of Vic being the one who is actually calling them on their shit and getting to do their damn jobs. Well shit, they actually have a warrant this time. Will wonders never cease.

Damn, Viho is smart. Politically savy, pointing out the election coming up. He’s got the wrong end of the stick this time, but the fact that he’s seen these angles and considered a bunch of things about the consequences already is telling about how smart he is.

Ruby is so pleased to see Henry. She sounds tired (dealing with Walt and Branch and the sheer volume of bs that is accumulating in that office, no wonder) but still fond. And the look she gives him. I love her so much. She puts up with so much. And I love Henry continually calling Walt and the department on their shit and just being a dedicated activist for his community.

Fuck right off, Branch. “Woah. I know you’re Walt’s friend, Henry, but you don’t have any particular rights here.” You are sliding into being a full on trashbag of a human being so fast, Brancheroo. Reminding a young man of his rights and helping him avoid getting railroaded by your biased ass isn’t a bad thing, you rusty wingnut.

Ok, it might not be Glasses!Henry, but cowboy boots!Henry with the glow of righteousness upon him is also quite A Look.

Aaaaahahaha, for once Vic’s unholy yelling saves the day. Being able to shout over a mass of raucous teens is usually reserved for teachers, camp counselors, and stage managers. Looool and using detention as the threat. And then jail. Heeeh.

This is soooo weeeeeird: I’m starting to genuinely like Lizzie. She just showed up and I remembered that it’s for dropping off that present, and then Vic is such a butt about it, and this poor lady is just trying to date a guy that she really likes and even gave him about 5 different outs that morning and he pointedly didn’t take any of them and dammit, Lizzie deserves better, too. Fuck, Walt, you are such a disaster zone. And Vic is a whole other disaster area that’s looking to, uhhhh, share a border. Yike.

The present is definitely more Lizzie than it is Walt, with the wrapping and everything, but it’s still a sweet impulse. AND THEN VIC, who told Walt how many times that he should call her?? gets all up in her business? Poor Lizzie trying to figure out what the fuck this has to do with Vic or how it is even on the same planet as any of her business. She does have some issues from her previous marriage, but she owns them. And her BS meter is actually pretty finely tuned. Sure picks up on Vic’s awkward boner for Walt in no time flat. Not that it’s particularly well hidden, damn.

This kid is a rapist and a murderer and The Bad Guy, but at the same time, he is a high school kid, chances are he’s a minor, and Walt is talking to him alone in his office without any parent, much less a lawyer. What the fuck.

“Because Ayasha Roundstone told me so,” is a good line, solidly so. And Walt’s all in The Righteous Hand of Justice mode or whatever, with the gravelly voice and standing over the kid, staring him down. Effective. (But where are that kid’s parents?) Ah, that’s right, his dad is taking a shot at whatshisnoodle to make it look like he’s the killer.

Awww, Cady. Honey, how long have you been waiting for you FailDad to show up? Fuck. Right. This was how she found out that Martha was murdered. He lies to her so much. He manipulates her so much. He passes all of this off on it being Martha’s wish, but he even acknowledges that Cady had a right to know and he chose not to tell her. He denies Cady her own agency again and again. He makes decisions for her without ever giving her a chance to choose for herself, and punishes her when she makes a choice that he doesn’t agree with.

It’s not “protecting” her from the pain. “Protecting you from the pain,” is not a father’s job; it’s to teach their child how to manage it, help them live through it, and how to grow past it. You’re damaging her. Into the suuuuuuun, Walt! Into the fucking SUN.

But fuuuuuuuuuuuck, her delivery of that same line, “Well, let me relieve you of that burden,” is sooo good. You done fucked up, buster. And you just keep fucking up. I would say in new and exciting ways, but it’s generally in the SAME DAMN WAYS, dammit Walt.

This flashback is really difficult.

They’re right about that technically being kidnapping, too. Wyoming § 6-2-201 specifically includes defining kidnapping as unlawfully confining another person, with the intent to “facilitate the commission of a felony; or Inflict bodily injury on or to terrorize the victim or another,” with unlawful confinement defined as “accomplished (i) By force, threat or deception; or (ii) Without the consent of a parent, guardian or other person responsible for the general supervision of an individual who is under the age of fourteen (14) or who is adjudicated incompetent.” Meaning that not only could Walt charge Jake with the kidnapping of Rich, but also probably of Ayasha, since she was ruled an unreliable witness and would more than likely be legally considered a “mentally incompetent person” according to the states’ legal definitions.

Not... that I have the Wyoming State Criminal Code downloaded on my computer. >_> Certainly haven’t skimmed about 80% of it trying to figure out what charges would most make sense to be levied against Jacob at the end so that I don’t have to deal with him going in to a Federal prison on RICO charges. <_< Or what Cady probably should have been charged with after that mess with Tate and Catori. Nnnnnnope. Sure don’t, didn’t, haven’t. o_o

This is about the only time I can remember there being a legitimate reason for Walt not to have backup. Since they’re off checking other locations. Also, damn, that was some classic Old West quickdraw shit, Walt! Noice!

“Why did you stop me?” Because you have to testify, you little shit. HE is not terribly bright.

Ooooooo, somehow I forgot that it was Branch who went to Jacob. But that makes total sense; I can’t really see Jacob seeking Branch out, but once he walks himself into his office, Jacob will certainly play those new cards for all they’re worth. Ooooooooo, and the Hotamétaneo’o headdress! I’d forgotten about Branch seeing it, too! Nice call back and foreshadowing to finish off S1!

“You will not find a chili cheeseburger of this caliber anywhere in Colorado.” And now it’s 4:30 in the morning and I want a chili cheeseburger. Thanks, babe. Some daaaaaay, I will figure out which is my favourite Henry, but it is not this day, because godsdaaaaamn, the red checked shirt with that vessssst, is *chef kiss* a wonderful thing. And the director knoooooows it = that pan down Henry’s back as he turns after saying, “I said nothing,” for noooo reason other than to have Henry’s ass on screen. Seriously. He says his line, it pans down, we get a primo shot of his jeans, and then it cuts away. Solely a pan for Henry Butt. Who directed this, and where do I send the fruit basket? Dang, it was Nelson McCormick, and this was the only ep of Longmire he directed. Huh. In S1, there’s only one repeat director, who did eps 1, 3, and 7. Interesting.

Focus, kid. You are less than 3 minutes from the end and you’ve had it paused for over 5 minutes to wander around IMDb. No wonder it takes you three flipping hours to watch one of these episodes. What a mess, indeed.

“We all process grief in our own way.” Buddy. You have not processed. You are a human <BUFFERING> screen. You’re a walking loading symbol. Walt, he gives you some basic vital statistics on the guy, but... You haven’t even asked who it was. Walt, you are so bad at this. Fffffffff--- And there’s season 1. lawd.

#Longmire #episode commentary #cady longmire #cassidy freeman #Walt #Henry Standing Bear #Branch is such a tool #Lizzie (Longmire)#How many tangents did I manage to go on this time?#Yikes

7 notes · View notes

incarnateirony · 4 years

Note

In what season and episode did you realised that Destiel went from subtext to actual text?

Difficult question really. I don’t exactly have a magic switch of some weird personal set goalpost I have, and frankly, wasn’t even really a shipper, just defended shippers, until... 13.5/6. I think I started slipping after 12.19 because I’m not a moron, I don’t live under a rock, I have eyes and know what the fuck a mixtape means to Gen X. But I kept it at arms reach because even Carver era was so totally subtextual-- atop all the stuff that got cut S10 after the S9 blowout, I didn’t exactly want to invest myself as much as point out shippers weren’t crazy for seeing what they saw, especially S8/9+ and even prior the resonance of the hero’s journey over our entire human civilization and historical othering of queerness made earlier readings or notices of it completely fair even if not really like, directional by the crew?

But to begin, Carver era was when I saw /intentful and meritful construction of the body of text, via subtext, to subtextually tell a story with classic queer coding./ Because a lot of what this fandom calls queer coding makes me want to hide my face behind a quantum hole of facepalms and is often like, pretty much the reverse of what should be advocated or considered. All those retro old “he’s been written as queer from S1″ make me want to kick puppies or something because oh my god it’s Not Good, most of the content there is Very Bad And Hugely Problematic, and it’s an attempt to retroactively prove what old canon was doing without any substance.

Carver era was the shift to substance, but silent substance. Subtext that’s genuinely thematically scaffolded into the storyline in a way that while the events themselves were largely cued on subtext, consideration of that subtext was critical to understanding the full body of text and people that refused to grow into and adapt with that text as the tone shifted are the ones that got more and more confused and angry.

Dabb era was the threshold crossing into (often low-visibility) text. Fandom intentionally arguing points that require complete removal from social structures (which is everything from regional meanings of major symbols, social codes, language, or why-letters-mean-things) doesn’t mean shit doesn’t mean what it means. A mixtape isn’t subtext any more than getting on one knee and popping open a box is subtext even if they don’t verbalize the words. We know what these fucking things mean and anyone who doesn’t is in DESPERATE need of going outside and experiencing the real world before making any kind of social commentary on a body of text.

When it comes to dialogue text, Last Call is where Bi Dean or at least Queer Umbrella Dean was textualized. Again, it doesn’t matter if people don’t understand the long argued history that was put to bed about repeat sexual encounters with men, it doesn’t matter what the gender of the other triplets were, literally none of that matters. It doesn’t matter if the person understands it. It doesn’t matter if they know their queer culture enough to know their arguments were already buried. It is what it is.

There’s this disillusionment that unspoken physicalized shit like kissing or sex, or verbalized ones like “I love you,” but “I love you, in a gay way, specifically and only you, and want to be romantic with you” because every other statement of the like so far has people crying or arguing about it as not enough either.

These things are nice, but it is not the only way to deliver a textual romance. These are things we want and deserve, and people aren’t wrong for wanting them, the only wrong comes in deleting other text because it isn’t the style of text they want. 100% unhelpful.

Text in AV is complex. No matter how decontextualized people try to pretend this all is, throwing pasta at the wall and calling it an argument worth validating, AV media study doesn’t just incorporate social codes on shit like dialogue -- though anyone that applies those social codes wouldn’t be arguing anyway, as per my old post on that -- but visual language and TV literacy are a long studied topic and are just as relevant as understanding of textual/verbal language and having textual literacy. People trying to eschew these in the interest of favoring fanspaces to try to keep them equal within the canon, which is NOT what fandom space equality is supposed to be about, is just... lol.

When that soap opera reporter that doesn’t even watch the show wandered in commenting on the full mise en scene of the 15.03 breakup being classical “Dark Point in the Romance” framing, that’s not subtext. In a book, characters aren’t running around on a blank canvas. Their environments are the text.

What people may draw symbolically out of an environment varies, and if someone’s /interpretation/ holds up, that’s fine. But being able to digest the entire presentation of a work, that is to say, to read an entire scene in a book and understand their setting and the relevance of that setting is simply a form of text. And when literal fucking randos can spot classic cinematography, it’s time to consider what the full cinematic framework is telling you both in incremental minutiae of texts and in the full body of work.

So basically, I acknowledged lowkey text based on the most basic understanding of social codes, by 12.19, even if I was still kinda eyerolling about it. By 13.5/6, Castiel returned to Dean in something later echoed by Eileen for the zoom shot, but the rest of the arrangement was verbatim identical to the original ending of Swan Song with Lisa, with the only difference being “Never too late” wasn’t a verbal line, but an entire sound track they applied to highlight the scene.

Despite the Swan Song parallel ending reactives went up in arms about the fact that they weren’t having big romantic moments anymore and kinda failed to wrap braincases around the fact that the endgame reunion that was literally the ORIGINAL endgame shot, which ALSO didn’t include physicality (in fact, the text read, “this isn’t sexual at all. He’s a lost soul, and she’s his home” in the script for Lisa), and this dumbass fandom would go “SEE PROOF THAT MEANS THE TEXT MEANS IT WASNT SEXUAL AND HE JUST BECAME BEST FRIENDS THAT WAS HER BEDWARMER MAYBE SHE HAS COLD FEET AT NIGHT” and that’s not how this fucking WORKS. Common sense is NOT removed from fucking discussion and what sense is applied needs to be levelly-- again, social codes.

So at 13.5/6 I had considered it textually paramount to the original endgame arrangement. S14 was just... blatant ass domesticity. Dean got his happy ending. He had his family. He got his win, his everything. They spoke frequently in the kitchen -- only vaguely over cases, more slapping around idioms, eyerolling over barbarous eating, and occasionally discussing how to raise their son. In fact, if you look at non-research-non-casework S14 kitchen scenes I’m gonna let you sit there and map out what all those domestic moments in the heart of the kitchen was, minding 13.5/6.

It was something gained. It was their life. And it was something to lose. 14.18 already advert framed it, we all saw it. Troubled family. People delete history of what is connected where to pretend “we” is vague or makes the romance any less of a canon piece and lmao guys

And season 15 is their year long run where they’re spearheading a huge part of the plot and will be a critical final resolution.

Speaking of 13.5/6 and social codes, anyone remember that Jack hadn’t met Dave Mather and looked at one nonphysical picture of them and recognized “he’s her boyfriend”? SOCIAL CODES MEAN SHIT GUYS.

So there’s no magic moment. There’s S8/9 coding and subtext. There’s S12′s tape and other elements -- tape is just the easiest to nail down but several through the year tbh -- there’s S13′s Never Too Late, and all things that followed that in waterfall. There’s S14′s established domesticity with Castiel having essentially moved into the bunker, something that wasn’t even entirely established in S12 yet even if he was more frequent there than Carver era.

Without social codes, I could argue that “Dean loves pie” doesn’t actually mean he loves pie. In fact, I could argue those letters mean nothing, because basic social codes are what even give words meanings. Without them these are just squiggly lines on a screen. If I eschew social codes, I could take a “love me some pie” line from Dean and say it means he fornicates with children and make long convoluded excuses around it instead of the observable fucking fact that Dean fucking Winchester likes goddamn pie.

Waiting for your perfect personally dreamed magic moment for a landmark to call text generally disregards the full body of the text and merit of the work. The amount of time and effort this FUCKING shipping fandom has put into -- even Destiel shippers -- bashing down and calling blatant ass text subtext because it’s not the text they want -- just because they want to argue with people that threw the logic baby out with the destiel bathwater they thought was dirty -- it’s fucking embarrassing tbqh. Imagine if people’s competitive fandom BS was muted how anyone here would be addressing this body of text.

Like. “After Carver directed Misha to play Castiel as a jilted lover in season 9, Cain through S10 escalated it into Castiel as Colette, which was confirmed by both the author and actors, seating him as a lover, as Sam was Abel the brother; by season 11, pining and connected hearts becomes the driving theme of the show, repeatedly denounced both in text and showrunner commentary that it wasn’t Amara that was that romance, and instead, a different one rose; by season 12, domestic arguments were many, mixtapes were shared, coming into rooms and playing people for things secretly stashed under pillows were a hinging plot moment, by season 13 he was the Never Too Late Big Win as a far more powerful version of Lisa, by season 14 Castiel moved in, by season 15 their giant sacred marriage euchartist ceremonies on repeat are driving the entire body of the season while overtly making the straight pairing a secondary parallel to the primary Dean and Castiel pairing by 15.09 such as the AU scene, or the ending where they mimicked the same phrase, truncated by physicality. But anyone viewing this text is an adult not competing for their preferred fandom playbox to be considered in the text, and had eyeballs, saw Sam and Eileen were clearly courting, flirting, and/or romantically engaged for a long time before this.”

Can we hope for the equality in that, sure. I want that, sure. That doesn’t erase all the other modes of text before that though.

But there, I just addressed 4 consecutive seasons of storytelling as its stands in the critical themes, without breaking down the dozens of independent scenes themselves that have already been analyzed to death and yall have scorched in your eyeballs by now like angels have prophet names.

I’ve seen people desperately, desperately try to reinterpret this text, or this story structure, in inconsistent ways that fall short. They’re never held accountable for their entire shit falling flat on their face, they just keep building new shit that falls on its face too and keep using it as a base. People can *interpret* ~text~ however they want. Anyone that tells you that “true text is inarguable” is either an idiot or selling you something for your subscription to their blog. Anyone CAN make any jackass interpretation of anything they want.

So sure. You can make some nonsensical explanation around every core theme their relationship is shadowed by, removing all social codes and context from basic elements understood by adult human beings natively, whatever. You can take 200 pages writing around it and degaying it. Generally when I see this, I see unhinged, incomplete writings with no central thread, just a thousand disembodied excuses that don’t even make a story. They’re just that. Desperate excuses. Years of it at this point. And they’re free to /interpret the text like that/ if they want. But that’s their /interpretation/ of a /text/ and as-above generally in /intentional, willful, conscious denial and erasure of the basic social codes we all understand./

Just because they /can/ warp the most left field interpretation doesn’t make it not text. If I pulled an “I don’t know I can’t english suddenly” and threw those codes out the window that doesn’t mean that the shit doesn’t mean the shit it means just because it’s inconvenient to me lmao

And this isn’t necessarily at you, Nonnie, I just feel the need to expand on this because any single time I don’t nail down these conversational stakes, someone breezes through and intentionally hotboxes the conversation to go down these very predictable manipulations and extremizations of the conversation that I really am far too tired to repeat the arguments raging in my mentions again, so I head ‘em off before the shit ever reblogs.

24 notes · View notes

pynkhues · 4 years

Note

Ok the last thing I care about is Dean’s storyline with Gayle, but I think you mentioned something about it not working, to which I so agree. So why did they just jump right into it instead of building the relationship up on screen. Presumably they have time. Why do you think the rush?

Yeah, it’s not working for me at all, anon.

I understand what they’re going for and I actually do think it’s a really solid way of making Dean face up to his actions and his bad behaviour, and to tease out character growth without putting the onerous of that on Beth (particularly since the show has well-established across the last two seasons that Beth and Dean are incapable of growing with each other). It actually separates their arcs and frees them from each other both narratively and thematically in a way that I actually do like, even if I’m not liking the scenes themselves.

I think there are three reasons for why it’s not working, and I actually don’t think it’s the speed of the storyline. The show’s always moved at a break-neck pace, and I don’t think it’s ever hindered a relationship set-up as badly as Dean and Gayle’s. I also, perhaps shockingly, don’t think the issue is Dean as a character either.

This show has proven it can make scenes with unlikeable characters incredibly watchable and compelling multiple times - I mean, even just off the top of my head, think about the scene where Marion calls Boomer a loser in s1 (a scene I really love, despite not loving either character), or when Mary Pat confronts Boomer at the end of s1 about the recording device, or - - well, any Mary Pat scene actually, haha.

Dean’s not the issue here, at least not as a character; the issue is a lack of story world grounding, tone, and I’ve unfortunately got to say Ione Skye herself. So let’s unpack that.

1. Lack of story world grounding.

This show actually has a lot of story worlds, and it typically does a really good job of introducing those spaces and using those spaces to inform character, and those characters to inform spaces. Think of Dean and Boland Motors and the yellow corvette - a gaudy, failing business used to underscore Dean’s incompetence, his immaturity and the way that he views himself, or even Fine and Frugal which is used very starkly to explore Boomer and Annie’s potential (Fine and Frugal being the absolute culmination of Boomer’s, while representing wasted potential for Annie).

When it comes to these characters, we have a strong sense of where they’ve come from because we know how they exist in the story, even before we know them. Mary Pat is probably the best example of this - she’s introduced not only through the secret shopper scheme - something the show established as having a very particular employee base, but through Beth’s house. It instantly positions Mary Pat as a foil to Beth, because she could be Beth - right down to the four children.

It’s hard to place Gayle within the story because Four Star Pool and Spas isn’t established enough for us to understand how it informs her character and vice versa. We aren’t grounded in that location enough to understand how she exists in it, nor are we getting enough visual cues in the location to be able to infer information about her as a character.

Think of it this way - how was Boland Motors introduced? Through that terrible ad with Dean in a pig suit clutching Amber to him in a sequined dress. It told us so, so much about not only what that business was, but about Dean - a shameless, goofy, tacky, car salesman, likely sleeping with his secretary (a fact properly established shortly after). That’s a lot of information quickly and effectively shared!

Now think about how Four Star Pools and Spas was introduced - a cutaway scene of Dean staying back at work while everyone else left, and him pausing to look at Gayle’s trophy.

There are no establishing shots, no information on the business itself, we haven’t even seen anyone actually - y’know, sell a hot tub. We know Dean places importance on the trophy, but we don’t have any context for whether that’s a deserved importance because we don’t know the business. We don’t understand how it operates, we don’t know if it’s a classier place or a tackier one, we don’t know if Dean’s good or bad at the job, and we don’t know how he functions in the space, or what that space is telling us about where and who he is at this point in the story.

Like - - even compare it to the other car dealership he worked at at the end of s2 which was established very quickly as well, and again very effectively through the bubbly, pointedly younger co-workers, cult-like chanting, and Dean’s inability to play into it. We’re getting none of that with Four Star, which means we have no context for any of the relationships or storylines that take place there.

2. Tone

All the characters on this show are written in a way that emphasises not only their characterisation and their arcs, but the specific balance of tones that they bring to the show. It’s often backed up with music and visual cues, but more than anything it’s grounded in each of the actors’ performances. Watching these different tones interact is one of the best, most fun parts of the show, embodied probably best of all in Beth and Rio’s incredibly contradictory, and yet somehow still complimentary energy.

As a character, Dean has always had a very, very specific tone about him, and it’s delivered pretty impeccably by Matthew, who - even though I dislike Dean immensely - imbues him with a lot of complexity and satisfying, human contradiction. Dean brings a constantly-close-to-hysteria energy to the show, a fractured, toxic masculinity, and delusions of grandeur, as well as a genuine throughline of real loneliness and insecurity.

In Dean (and Matthew’s) best scenes, the show balances all of this in a way that is both comedic and dramatic, ridiculous and vulnerable. Think about the exceptional “Who is HR?” confrontation at the end of 2.04, his and Beth’s fights across s2, his scene with the spaghetti at the end of 2.12, even his work out in 3.03 (which was by far his best scene this season because it embraced the tone he offers the show).

The scenes with Gayle are completely void of that tone, and as a result, you lose not only the compelling complexity of what makes Dean (and Matthew) so watchable, but also the crux of Dean as a character. With that tone sucked out of those scenes, we’re left with a dryness that doesn’t fly narratively, but especially doesn’t fly with a character that’s so unliked, and on top of that, you lose a key part of the show’s overall balance.

Character tones do evolve - just look at the girls’ - but that’s not what’s happening here. Even beyond that, the show should have, in my opinion, utilised Dean’s tone to better establish what Four Star Pools and Spas is - and they could do it as either a compliment (Boland Motors) or a contradiction (the second dealership he worked at at the end of s2). Either way, it would’ve told us a lot more about the location, how both he and Gayle function in that location, a lot more about what Gayle sees in him, and beyond all of that - it could’ve made those scenes fun.

3. Ione Skye.

I hope this doesn’t come off as too harsh, but on re-watching the series so far last night, I honestly think Ione Skye is unfortunately a big part of the issue. This is such a charismatic cast across the board - from the leads to the supports to the minor characters - and literally all of them have unreal chemistry with each other. In that sense, Ione just sort of...pales in comparison? She doesn’t command the screen in a way the rest of the cast does, doesn’t ground scenes, at least not to me, and she and Matthew just don’t have the chemistry that I think they need to make these scenes and this storyline work.

Like, she’s had as much screen time I’d say as many of the other new cast members like Jackie Cruz (Rhea) and Rob Heaps (Dr Josh Cohen), and certainly more time than Charlyne Yi (Lucy), and yet Gayle as a character hasn’t had the same presence as any of them. The setting and the tone are certainly a part of that, but...I don’t think Ione’s helping.

Particularly with re-watching her in 3.02, I think that a different actress could’ve done something different with the role and with the writing, and probably, dare I say it, something more.

#dean boland #gayle #dean x gayle #gg 3.02 #gg 3.03 #welcome to my ama #four star pools and spas

40 notes · View notes

recessoyster3 · 3 years

Text

Sarms Results Lgd, Sarms Results Before And After

Bodybuilding And Sporting Activities Supplements.

Content

Skin Concern.

Medicines As Well As Supplements.

Api Solutions & Chemical Growth

Why Are People Making Use Of Collagen Peptide Powder Everyday In The Uk?

Day Change Stacks.

The testosterone-induced muscular hypertrophy is primarily because of a rise in satellite cell and myonuclear number, in addition to increasing the quantity of healthy protein synthesis and inhibiting healthy protein deterioration. Darshan Shah is a young business owner, electronic marketing professional as well as blog owner. He's founder of TheWebReach.com and supplies Digital Marketing services like Search Engine Optimization, Guest Post, Inbound Advertising and marketing as well as a lot more. He likes to help people to expand their company worldwide via his electronic marketing understanding. He's passionate concerning developing blogs and also composes creative web content for the visitors. If you do not have energy in your body, then you can never end up being a body builder, so in the true feeling, it is vital to have energy.

Copper Peptides: Benefits for Skin and Hair Care, and How to Use Them - Healthline

Copper Peptides: Benefits for Skin and Hair Care, and How to Use Them.

Posted: Mon, 26 Oct 2020 07:00:00 GMT [source]

However, provided the potential for high estrogen side effects while making use of ligandrol UK, it is suggested that you purchase anti estrogen supplement. Where Ostarine is just one of the most effective SARMs to consist of in a cutting cycle, LGD has actually shown itself as a good bulking representative. LGD has a half-life varying between 24 as well as 36 hrs so daily application is optimum. Utilizing cardarine for females, as well as which for sarms are the most effective to underpin and natural fitness center regimen. Create fantastic tone, toughness, and also cut fat using a basic women sarms cycle, as well as discover what dose as well as cycle length you ought to be utilizing. For some history details, i have been raising constantly for 3-4 years, gone from lbs at 15% bodyfat. I am doubting whether i should run a cycle of mk-677 due to the fact that research appears to show healing impacts on injuries because of the increased development hormonal agent.

Skin Problem.

This will help increase cardio endurance in order to boost results. Take a look at our sarms pills to buy to get them before the stock ends. S1 has shown a genuine capability to help recover those with debilitating injuries and to quicken injury recuperation. The valuable effects on healing make medical usage extremely appealing. Ostarine can and also will certainly subdue your natural testosterone production in longer, higher dosed cycles, so a serm pct is needed. Ostarine can also create gyno in some customers, so it is advised that you have an ai, like exemestane, handy. The addition of ghrp or peptides in the cycle will minimize the danger of injury.

DNP is a commercial chemical that isn't suitable for human usage. It's extremely toxic and also triggers significant adverse effects, and also has resulted in at least 3 reported deaths. Amongst items that were taken off the market was a steroid product called Celtic Dragon. This product left 2 guys hospitalised with severe jaundice and also liver damage. " Building toughness takes years, not weeks or months. It's an act of discipline and also have to be gained via commitment to tough training and also a good diet." They're legally offered to purchase over the counter along with online. Illegal supplements, consisting of some declaring to be "fat loss" or "slendering", have actually been connected to a small number of deaths.

Drugs And Also Supplements.

These advantages, combined with the very little possibility of negative effects reveal MK677 to be a development medicine. Keep in mind that some comparable experimental medications (such as Cardarine/GW, Ibutamoren/ MK-677, and also YK11) are often marketed as SARMS - they aren't yet are still sometimes included right into SARM heaps. A few of these websites supply prohibited items alongside lawful weight-loss medications, making it really difficult to discriminate. Making use of DNP over a long period of time can cause cataracts as well as peeling off skin, and also might cause damage to the heart and nervous system. DNP is thought to be particularly prominent amongst bodybuilders, who are brought in to its assurances of quick-fix rapid weight management.

youtube

When one takes anabolic steroids, the cells obtain flooded with androgens, as well as all receptors become saturated. As a result, a message is sent to all the body cells that lead to their growth. This might be a benefit to anyone wanting to acquiring muscular tissue, yet it is a drawback at the very same time. In SARMs, a steroidal representative with anabolic task imitates testosterone. It increases lean muscular tissue mass, however without troubling libido as well as expanding the prostate. Additionally, you won't experience loss of hair and other side impacts that anabolic drugs create.

This is much easier than needing to room out as well as keep in mind when to take your dosage every day. Shop Oxytocin Online was initially created to treat and avoid muscle mass wastefulness amongst cancer as well as osteoporosis individuals. It has actually been taken into consideration and wished to be used for protecting against muscle atrophy, cachexia and sarcopnia, and has also been reviewed for use during TRT/HRT. Research studies conducted had a dose of between 5-25 mg per day, with 25 mg being the most common and also reliable dose. MK677 has a 24 hour fifty percent life and also revealed to be ideal endured by rats when fed to them each morning on an empty belly. MK677 has extreme advantages in regards to helping with a much deeper rest. Nevertheless, it can hinder sleep patterns if taken too late at night or too near to bedtime.

Api Services & Chemical Advancement

Dylan - what is the best sarm for recovering from an injury, particularly a reduced leg stress and anxiety crack? The most effective way to boost weight loss and muscular tissue mass is to cycle mk-2866 with an additional sarm like gw throughout the reducing phase.

The body does not know the distinction between what it develops normally or acquires from SARMs. All it knows is there is an increase is that manufacturing level and it is mosting likely to take advantage of it. On the other hand, using anabolic steroids is mosting likely to cause the body to stop making testosterone. Consequently, the user needs to pile with various other products to try to get it started up again. When they are no more taking the steroids, it is still going to require time for the all-natural production of testosterone to occur once again. Typically, your body controls the manufacturing of androgens to avoid their imbalance.

Why Are People Making Use Of Collagen Peptide Powder Everyday In The Uk?

Stenabolic + growth hormonal agent or andarine s4 + ghrp-6 + cjc-1295 dac to avoid injuries and also accelerate the recovery. 99% Purity Tb500 do not have to appear like an ordinary bodybuilder, health and fitness version or athlete; all you reached do is use a SARM. If you have actually not read about them or require some even more info, this short article will offer you with all the details concerning this medicine. They are careful androgen receptor modulators that show the exact same type of effect as that of androgenic medications, yet the only distinction is that they are a lot more selective in their activity. SARMs are chemically similar to steroids and are additionally as effective in increasing fat loss as well as muscle growth. As much as SARMs advantages are the same to those of anabolic steroids, their discerning activity makes the SARMs negative effects less. It indicates that as soon as you make a decision to use SARMs, you get to bid bye-bye to hormone discrepancy concerns, acne, virilization in females and also prostate troubles that might be caused by the use of some steroids.

Neuropeptides are the most diverse course of signaling molecules in the mind, as well as are associated with a broad range of brain features, including analgesia, reproduction, discovering as well as memory, benefit, food consumption and also more.

Drug items which resemble the results of endogenous peptide ligands are call peptidomimetics.

This on a regular basis up-dated website supplies a run-through of the artificial procedures involved in production of gastrointestinal peptides, and also law of these processes.

They differ from peptide hormones in that they are secreted from neurons and also act in your area on adjoining neurons, whereas peptide hormones are secreted in to the blood by neuroendocrine cells and act at distant websites.

Medicines which block the receptors for endogenous peptide ligands can be peptide or non-peptide particles.

Neuropeptides are small proteinaceous cell-cell signaling particles created as well as released by neurons.

Furthermore, SARMs are harder to discover during drug examinations, which, incorporated with fewer side effects, make them a much better alternative for professional athletes. In order to make the most of the extremely considerable bulking results of LGD4033, a dosage of 5-10mg should be taken daily for 8 weeks. To obtain the very best LGD-4033 results for cutting, a dosage of 3-5mg everyday is recommendedn, commonly for an 8 week cycle. LGD has the capability to bind to the AR with an incredibly high affinity. LGD is typically identified as an ARligand that is tissue discerning. It was initially created to treat muscular tissue throwing away in cancer cells patients, age-related muscle mass loss, in addition to severe as well as persistent ailment. Ostarine has a 1 day fifty percent life, so it's unnecessary to break up your everyday dose.

Day Makeover Heaps.

There are locations that are recommended if you're wanting to acquire SERMS. Since RAD140 is a relatively brand-new supplement, there isn't a great deal of information on the side impacts. Professional research studies have actually revealed that there are no documented negative effects of the supplement. Reggie Johal is the founder of Killer Nourishment, a UK based wellness and supplement shop. Reggie owes much of his comprehensive stamina and also physical fitness expertise to his former occupation as an Excellent Britain American Footballer. The average cycle length is 6 to 10 weeks at a dose range of 10mg to 25mg.

You can discover more regarding the negative actions of these steroids on this site. As their name says, selective androgen receptor modulators act upon bone and also muscular tissue tissues. By triggering receptors on them, these substances boost the development of new cells. They do not bind to androgen receptors on various other organs in the body This characteristic of selectivity is what identifies SARMs from anabolic steroids.

Yet it's difficult to say whether SARMs can have these side effects on everybody, or possibly they must be left out in only certain situations. However, the concept has actually rarely been gone over outside the USA, which may make some people think. There are those that speak out loudly versus utilizing SARMs, yet many researchers as well as authorities are only enjoying closely.

This makes your body with the ability of battling lots of crucial conditions that you can not picture. With this assistance, you have the ability to obtain even more weight as well as can do a health club properly. Nowadays, every person likes to visit the gym as a result of their principles towards their health and wellness. If your dream is to do bodybuilding, after that in the meanwhile, you require a great deal of diet plans because nutrition is a vital part of making the body. There are several products out there with the assistance of which you can quickly do muscle building as well as reach a great degree.

There are some residential or commercial properties inside this medication that assist in enhancing your power degree. After consuming it, the blood flow of your body improves to make sure that you feel energised. As blood flow boosts, the number of white blood cells inside your body boosts, which develops anti-oxidants.

Does caffeine increase hair growth?

But according to research, the caffeine in coffee can help stimulate hair growth and stop hair loss. One 2007 laboratory study found that caffeine helped block the effects of DHT in male hair follicles. It stimulated hair shaft elongation, resulting in longer, wider hair roots.

There is an expanding industry in sports nutrition supplements readily available on the high road and online. They may likewise look for ways to regulate their hunger when they're attempting to reduce weight as component of a body building diet.

MK677 can be made use of constantly for 1-2 years without any problem of a specific ending up being desensitised to it. Nevertheless, it is always important to recognize the opportunities that could accompany usage. It appears by the listing of advantages that MK677 is highly preferable.

1 note · View note

tshowtime · 3 years

Text

Fight Me

S1 E1

OK, here’s a little bit of a backstory…

Mayumi is the daughter of pro hero’s Spirit and Blackout. Her parents have been together since they attended UA together, they were the perfect match. Complete opposites they balance each other out.

Even though they’re both pro hero’s, Spirit doesn’t usually fight villain’s like Blackout does, she uses her light manipulation more for healing and defending. Blackout uses his quirk for fighting, when they get called together, they make a great team for that reason.

Their love for each other is very real, and miraculously, Mayumi has both quirks. Light and dark manipulation. She has learned her mother’s abilities and is constantly training with her father; her light quirk came almost as a more natural extension.

Her dark side she must work on a little more, only because her father’s quirk requires a lot of strength and control.

It’s easy to get tangled with the darkness and lose yourself a bit, it’s a very overpowering quirk. Mayumi is very strong willed though, she’s level headed and down to earth. Training with her father has helped shape their bond.

Mayumi takes mostly after her mother appearance wise but when it comes to her personality it’s mostly her father.

Which causes her to be a very formidable opponent for any challenger, she is realistic to know she isn’t the best, but confident enough to know she has what it takes to get there.

Growing up Mayumi was raised to be kind and helpful to others, although she is very introverted and usually quieter and observant, she has no problem speaking up when its needed.

Mayumi is somewhat acquainted with Bakugou Katsuki and Midoriya Izuku, they went to the same school but those two were in a different class than her. Nonetheless she was always friendly to Midoriya, Bakugou on the other hand she usually tried to ignore.

It’s hard especially when he needlessly bullies Izuku and challenges Mayumi all the time.

They’ve had normal days believe it or not, her and Bakugou, but those moments would end when he saw Midoriya or his other friends. Then he would start yelling and acting like an animal and she would just leave at that point.

She had a better friendship with Midoriya, but there was always a disconnect because Midoriya never got his quirk, it’s not a problem for Mayumi because she has known him for so long but he distances himself from time to time.

Anyway that’s it really, Mayumi will grow more in the future, for now she’s pretty simple. Just how she likes it.

Back story done

“So that’s it? I don’t need to take the entrance exam?” Mayumi asked her father at the table during breakfast. It was the last day of school and her parents just told her about some recommendation that allows her into U.A. for the hero course.

“That’s right, we still want you to take the written exam to make sure you’ve kept up on your studies, but you’ve been judged and evaluated by the faculty there and they recommended you.” Her father stated. Mayumi thought back to a few times when her and her father were training together she remembered seeing unfamiliar faces a couple of times, just watching for a little and then just leaving.

“So that explains that.” She mumbled to herself. “What?” her dad questioned. She perked up and shook her head. “Nothing, just thinking out loud.”

“Mayumi” her mother cut in this time, with a serious tone as well. They both looked at her and waited for her to continue. Mayumi confused from the sudden change in attitude.

“Just because this offer is being given to you doesn’t mean everything in life will work that way, you need to use this opportunity to prove yourself. Your studies come first always, and you will be expected to train harder and give more of yourself. This line of work is not easy and you won’t make it if you slack off.” She said seriously. Mayumi sighed. “When do you know me to slack off?” she said with slumped shoulders. “She’s right, people are going to come at you thinking we got this for you and that you didn’t work for it, you need to constantly show you deserve to be there just the same as anyone else.” He said. Mayumi just nodded.

She wasn’t one to disappoint her parents, not them, and she understood what they were getting at.

That’s what people do when they see someone get a boost, they assume you didn’t work for it even if you sold your soul to get there.

“Why do you want to be a hero?” her dad asked, she looked at him a little surprised and then looked down when she started thinking about it. “Whatever your answer is, remember it, hold on to it. The reason you have, is what will help you get through the hardest obstacles that you’re going to be up against.” He said.

“I will. I’ve got to go, I love you guys!” she said getting up and heading out the house. She always walked to school, sometimes with Izuku but she didn’t see him yet.

Mayumi was thinking about training, and what U.A. might be like when someone bumped into her almost knocking her over. “Ah!” she shouted at the sudden impact. “Sorry Mayumi!!” when she looked up it was Midoriya. “Why are you running?” she yelled at him as he didn’t stop. “There’s a villain in town! Gotta go!” he waved as he continued running towards commotion.

She just shook her head, “Idiot, he’s always running INTO trouble. He’s going to get himself in some kind of trouble. one of these days.” She mumbled continuing to school.

Mayumi was just sitting in class scribbling on paper bored. The teacher was talking to some student about quirks and different jobs and opportunities. They have already done the aptitude tests every third year had to take. The teacher said it was pointless since many people would just try and be hero’s anyway.

She decided to lay her head down and rest, she can at least fall into a light sleep until lunch. She did manage to drift into a dream state before hearing her phone vibrate in her bag. She opened her eyes and reached in her bag, it was an alert message.

Quickly getting up out of her seat she rushed out of the classroom, it wasn’t a big deal since everyone was just relaxing and talking. She went to the gym where it was empty and played the message.

ALERT:

Spirit and Blackout are summoned due to criminal activity in the east district of the city. Three villains have been reported to be causing destruction to local businesses in the area. Please assist the local authorities in apprehending the villains.

Mayumi starred at the phone for another moment waiting, then it came in.

Mom: hey

She started the response. She texted back that she got the alert as well and that she would be fine.

Dad: we shouldn’t be long, we’ll see you tonight for dinner, I’m cooking!

She smiled and shook her head. She put the phone back in her bag and turned back towards class.

Her parents set up for her to receive the same alerts they do so she always knew where they were in case they couldn’t reach out. She didn’t mind it though, some days it was lonely, but that is the worst of it.

They always made up for it, honestly, Mayumi was super grateful for her parents. It didn’t matter that they were pro hero’s they were great parents at the end of the day.

She wanted to be a hero for them, she wanted to be like them, better even. She wanted to be a good hero so they can relax and enjoy themselves, like they let her enjoy her life. She wants to make them proud.

“All their hard work will be worth it, I swear it.” She mumbled to herself.

She was in a better mood now, a small smile on her face. She was walking past Izuku and Katsuki’s class when she heard Katsuki shouting like always. ‘Does he ever get tired of his own voice?’ she thought to herself listening to the sound of yelling.

She inched forward and watched the class through the window on the door, although everyone was busy listening to Katsuki that nobody noticed her.

“That’s why I’m getting into U.A. because I’m going to be the best!” Katsuki claimed standing on the desks. The teacher cut in, “Ah yes, Midoriya didn’t you want to go to U.A. as well?” a small gasp escaped her lips.

The whole class got silent and looked at Izuku, they all busted out laughing and picking on him. She didn’t realize it but her hands balled into fists. Why couldn’t they just leave him alone?

She was fed up with the bullying and when she heard Katsuki’s voice she used her quirk to manipulate the shadow under his desk and move it causing him to crash on to the floor. The classroom erupted in laughter and she nodded in satisfaction and walked back to her own classroom.

When she got back to her seat she texted Izuku.

Mayumi: wanna walk home together after school?

Izuku jumped when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. While the class was busy laughing at Katsuki he took the opportunity to check it real fast.

It was a text from Mayumi, he blushed a little. They’ve always been good friends, but her quirk is so strong, he always felt so insignificant compared to her. Almost like he wasn’t good enough to be her friend, he would always be in her shadow because he had no quirk.

He shook the thoughts out of his head, he knew not to think like that about Mayumi. She was always there for him and genuinely nice, they were friends, real friends.

Izuku: Yeah! That would be great!

He was almost satisfied with leaving things at that, but when he looked up and saw Kacchan shouting at another student, his spine shivered at the thought of him and Mayumi running into each other.

Izuku: I’ll meet you in your classroom

Mayumi: Ok I’ll see you later

Izuku sighed a breath of relief, he thought back to when they were all friends at one point when they were younger.

“Guys! I can’t see! Its too dark!” a younger Izuku wined as he sat still crying. Then a moment later Katsuki came out from hiding and made small sparks to make light so his friend wasn’t scared. Katsuki smirked for a second but then a bright light came out of nowhere and both kids looked in its direction and saw Mayumi holding her hand out while it glowed.

She smiled and walked up to them. Izuku cheered and jumped, “Yeah Mayumi you’re so awesome!” he said making her bashfully smiled and rub her head. Katsuki just crossed his arms and pouted.

At the end of the day Mayumi was sitting at her desk packing her books and waiting for Izuku to show but after a little she realized he must have gotten held up.

She walked out into the hallway to start heading out when she heard a familiar sound…

#bnha #fanfic #bakugo #bakugou katsuki #mha oc #izuku midoriya #anime #aizawa #bnha todoroki

2 notes · View notes

allypacino · 3 years

Note

15,22,25

Thank you for the ask <3 I RANTED ranted so I'm putting all of it under the line.

I've seen up to 4x20 so far and I think my favourite episode thus far might be "What Is and What Should Never Be" in season 2, the djinn episode (2x20).

I've put some thoughts into this and I think that this might be my favorite example of early SPN for me. Although it deviates from the norm, the general premise still rests within the monster of the week format while allowing for some of the best character exploration of the series. Don't get me wrong, 4x16 lives in my head rent free and I am always thinking about rebelling against authorfathergod, the theological implications of having the work of angels be undone by a leaky pipe, the holiness that lies in fallibility yada yada but I'm aware that the precarious, dizzying potential Supernatural carried did not mean that the episode itself was perfect on paper. On that level, I thought that 2x20 executed its storytelling really well.

It was during a time where the narrative predominantly relied on Sam as the audience-insert protagonist, and having Dean be the one who we relied on was a fascinating change of pace. The show was famously dark during this period with its lighting and the episode flipped it on its head, letting us see Dean's dream world - and get this. John Winchester is dead and Dean and Sam are estranged.

This literally drives me CRAZY. Even in an ideal world John is not around. What does that mean for Dean, who idolised his dad and copied everything he did? It suddenly introduced this fascinating fold in Dean's characterisation, and allowed for the deconstruction of the nuclear family. Paradise is not just mom and dad and two dogs, paradise depends on the people. And Dean was deep down self-aware enough to know that John, as he knew him, would not fit in. He's always been aware, and even though this was season 2, where he was in throes of guilt over the death of his father, he still couldn't see a way he'd be back.

But the saddest part of the episode is how he felt distanced from Sam. His brother meant everything to him, and here they barely spoke to each other. It was clear that the Dean in this universe was a troublemaking alcoholic. Was he afraid that hunting was the only thing he and Sam had in common? Did he think that he was so awful and worthless that without their trauma that bound them together, he'd be cut out of their lives? Was he relieved that he and Sam had their individual lives? It was devastating to see. Oh toxic codependency we're really in it now!!

Apart from the characterisation, the plot was neatly done and I was genuinely kinda scared by the ghostly visions in this a couple of times. So good job on the horror for back when this was a horror show!

So I think that s1-5 are all about the legacy of John Winchester. Even after his death his shadow looms over the entire show. In many ways this show is about John Winchester, because this show is about authorfathergod. Everything is about what John Winchester left behind and every episode is about Sam and Dean dealing with the implications of John Winchester's decisions to give his life or leave them behind or teach them that they need to suck it up. Every couple of episodes Sam and Deam argue about what dad would do and what it means to be made in your father's image, what it means to have always been destined to be cursed, or carry the anger or the stubbornness. Begotten not made. Where did John come from? And is it your father's fault or your father's father's fault, and will you deal with that or will you take his lessons and pass it on. Is it your duty to honour thy father or is it your mission to rebel. Is your religion only your religion because it was passed down to you by your dad? Do you believe in God or do you believe in the fear of God your father put in you? Who is God but a negligent father. Neither of them answer your prayers.

John was in the navy and his militaristic parenting method and the ruthlessness with which he treated monsters defined the tone of the show in its early days. I read yesterday that s1-2 of spn were the most requested dvds by this military division in? Like 2007? And honestly that's the problem!!! The entire show refuses to address the humanisation of monsters and presents them as almost unambiguously evil, with the protagonists never truly confronting what it means to kill the innocent but different. That's the military! John's navy background, in this way, literally sets up one of the primary flaws of the entire show. The inability to see the enemy as worthy of life because they are inherently other. Yikes yikes! As a post-9/11 show, very haunting to see the influences of the American military here knowing what's happening in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Furthermore John was just... A really bad parent. He never celebrated christmas with his sons (let alone any Jewish holidays, I'm assuming, even though Mary had Jewish ancestors), never even took Dean (or Sam) to a baseball game. He neglected his very young children and made Dean the parent of the household, and punished him by sending him away if he strayed from his orders. He was a goddamn drill sergeant and gave his sons so many issues. He told Dean to kill Sam before he died. He never said he was proud of them. And yeah, he drove out to see Sam at Stanford and also gave his life for Dean, but the guy was terrible at raising his kids.

The thing is that John is a righteous man. He's supposed to have never broken in hell, he saved countless lives, he's like the ultimate hero that Sam and Dean can't live up to. And on a narrative level... That's such a cop out, man. This is a character written for those who can't bring themselves to care, or be responsible to their loved ones, but go "I would die for you and I would kill for you". You know the ones. And maybe they even could. But it doesn't matter, because people are in fact nuanced and sacrificial acts of love does not make up for the years of neglect he put his kids through. But yeah, he's complicated. In "In the Beginning" we see how he was such a hopeful mechanic, far removed from what we know him as, but then you think back to the pilots and you remember how the beer bottles started before any demonic activity, and you know that the picturesque family John hammered into Sam and Dean like a religion was never going to last.

I do think some writers were fully aware of his flaws whereas some loved him as a dad, but in many ways I think that that's totally in character for Sam and Dean, who loved their father regardless of everything yet knew that he was an obsessed bastard. Spn is such an inconsistent show that I feel like the story can get so thin sometimes that the secret good version of supernatural is one step away from breaking out from underneath it. I love it no I don't I do <3

I've said a lot about Sam and Dean BUT my favorite character is Castiel so i am at a direct disadvantage having only seen up to 4x20 here! I have a special love for season 2 because it has a lot of my fave motws, and also ended on a really devastating note of Dean making the hell deal, and I like pain. But Castiel Angel of the Lord is in s4 and also this season has legit been really good. I feel like s5 might be my favorite season from what I know of it though. In conclusion... Idk!!! I love Cas but post-hell Sam and Dean are so miserable. Maybe I'd love Dabb era domesticity instead.

Muchtothinkabout.jpeg I am sorry for procrastinating this for 24 hrs and i'm sorry for this long ass ramble <3 hope it's a little entertaining

#suncaptor #asks #spn #authorfathergodhood

1 note · View note

dyslexicsquirrel · 5 years

Link

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man (Movies), Captain America (Movies) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Steve Rogers & Tony Stark, Minor or Background Relationship(s) Characters: Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, James "Bucky" Barnes, James Rhodes, Sam Wilson (Marvel), Pepper Potts, Carol Danvers, Happy Hogan Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - High School, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Fluff, Schmoop Summary: Tony Stark hated jocks… or he had until the new kid transferred to their school.

Stony Bingo 2019 round 2 (square S1) Prompt: stretching

Tony Stark hated jocks. It’s a truth universally accepted at their school. Everyone knows not to ask him to go to pep rallies or football games or donate to the Get Insert Sports Team New Uniforms fund. He’ll laugh at you and go back to doing something more important, which is anything other than that.

Tony Stark hated jocks… or he had until the new kid transferred to their school. His step brother was another matter. “Bucky” Barnes was a rude, sarcastic guy and this school only had room for one of those and Tony was already filling that spot, thanks. But Steven Grant Rogers? (He might have had his friend Pepper who volunteered in the principal's office find out his name) Well, he was another story.

Steve (that’s what everyone called him Tony had found out) was the kind of blonde and blue eyed that should have been boring, but he somehow made the most attractive thing Tony had seen in, well, ever. He was tall and built in a way that usually put him off (read: hates jocks), but Tony kept finding his eyes drifting to him whenever they were in the same room.

He played football, was the damn quarterback, for Christ’s sake, but none of that seemed to matter. Tony wasn’t sure who he was anymore.

On top of being stupidly good looking? Steve was also a genuinely nice guy. He wasn’t mean to anyone, stuck up for the kids who got picked on, in fact. He said hello to people in the halls, had a laugh that was infectious, and a smile that brightens a room (and since when did he spout flowery crap like that?). There had to be something wrong with him; Tony was convinced.

“Why are you so determined to find a flaw in this guy?” Pepper had asked him a few days ago and Tony hadn’t been able to answer her.

“Because he doesn’t want to be attracted to a meathead,” Rhodey has piped up from the other side of the table at lunch.

“Don’t call him that,” Tony had automatically defended and then wanted to smack himself when Rhodey smirked and Pepper blinked at him. “Oh, just shut up both of you,” he’d snapped and left the cafeteria.

So, Tony May have ended up spending the last couple days <strike>spying</strike> investigating Steve Rogers to find out what was wrong with him. The only problem was that Tony 1) hadn’t found any hidden flaws (he really seemed to be a hot, nice guy who just happened to be a jock) and 2) he saw Steve stretching before practice yesterday.

Blame stupid, teenage hormones maybe (he might be a genius, but he was still a high school senior), but Tony’s brain short circuited. He’d been walking past the practice field, ostensibly on his way to somewhere else, reading a book for cover, when he glanced up and there was Steve, bent over, touching his toes.

The guy had a really nice ass. And in those stupid, tight football pants he was only now starting to appreciate? Well… yeah. He might have become a tad obsessed.

He watched all the scheduled practices (covertly) and he might have (not on purpose) found out what days Steve came to school early to work out and he might have, (once—accidentally) ended up at a football game with Pepper, who was dating some kid in marching band named Happy.

“Why don’t you just talk to him, Tony?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he told her, pretending to read so no one would notice him watching the game. Pepper had scoffed, but let it drop and ignored him the rest of the night. Tony had not watched Steve throw around a stupid ball in those. Damn. Pants.

Tony thought he’d been so smooth and stealthy, but if he had been Steve wouldn’t have just walked up behind him and said, “Hey,” now would he? Tony squeaked, and if that wasn’t embarrassing enough, slammed into his locker when he turned around.

“Are you okay?”

“I,” Tony started, but had to clear his throat. “I’m fine.”

“Okay.” Steve was still frowning at Tony with his perfect face, looking at him with concerned blue eyes.

He stood up straighter, pushing his shoulders back. And because he was feeling unnerved what came out of his mouth next was a snarky, “Can I help you?”

Steve blinked at him, tugging on the straps of his backpack. “Well, actually.” He started blushing. Every higher power save me, Tony thought because the guy was legit blushing. “I was wondering if you had a date for prom.”

“What now?” That sentence didn’t make sense.

“Prom. Uh, are you going? I mean, would you like to go. With me.”

“You’re asking me to prom?”

“Yes.”

“You’re asking me to prom?”

“Yes,” Steve said again, now sounding uncertain and Tony didn’t blame him.

“Why?” The question shot out of his mouth with no authorization from his higher brain function.

“Because,” Steve struggled to answer and Tony felt his shoulder start to slump. This was some pity thing or a joke and he felt stupid for even one second thinking Steve would like him, but guess what? He didn’t need Steve’s pity or him to like him. But thenSteve said, “Because you’re smart.” His head jerked up, eyes finding Steve’s. He looked so earnest. “And you’re cute.” Steve thought he was cute. “And, uh, also because my brother said you’ve been checking me out so I figured I had a shot.”

Stupid Bucky. And stupid him for thinking he had been so secretive about it. Tony rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest, but he admitted, “I might have. Once or twice.” He bit his lip. “You really think I’m smart?”

“Tony,” Steve huffed, chuckling. “You’re like the smartest kid in school. Of course, I think you’re smart.”

“And cute?” He started to smile and took a step closer so they almost touched.

“Yeah.” Steve’s hands tightened around his backpack strap.

Tony grinned, reaching out to grip Steve’s letterman jacket. “Okay, I’ll go to prom with you.”

And that was how Tony Stark, hater of jocks, ended up dating the quarterback of the football team. Prom was a big group affair. Pepper and Happy, Rhodey and Carol, Bucky and his boyfriend from his old school Sam (who drove two hours to get there—Tony was impressed by his dedication). They all met at his house and piled in a limo after his mom took a million pictures and his dad told them to make sure to be back on time so he didn’t have to pay the driver overtime. Steve bought Tony a corsage, not a boutineer, and it was perfect. They danced and laughed with their friends and maybe, Tony would admit to himself, Bucky wasn’t really that bad. And if Tony and Steve snuck off to make out in a coat closet, well, what the chaperones didn’t find out wouldn’t hurt them.

The last year of high school was so different from the previous three and not just because he was wearing his boyfriend’s letterman jacket, his boyfriend who happened to be a jock. He was happy in a way he couldn’t remember being before. It wasn’t all Steve, a relationship hadn’t suddenly fixed all his problems, but he definitely helped. Steve still blushed when Tony kissed him in the halls and it was just too cute.

Tony was going to MIT in the fall and Steve got a full ride to Boston College cause sports. They’d only be like four miles away from each other (Tony might have Googled that).

They were sitting in the bed of Steve’s pick up one night, Tony cradled between Steve’s arms and legs, his back against Steve’s chest. “I was thinking…”

“Hmm?” Tony prompted when Steve trailed off and didn’t pick back up.

Steve propped his chin on Tony’s shoulder. “I was thinking that maybe, at some point, we could move in together.”

Tony shifted around until he could see Steve’s face. “What?”

“In Boston.” Steve hesitated, biting at his bottom lip. “Not right away, but eventually. Maybe. If you wanted.”

Tony turned until he was on his knees and looped his arms around Steve’s neck. He kissed him, playing with the hair at the back of his neck. When he pulled back it was just enough to speak, keeping his tone light and teasing. “You’re asking me to move in with you.”

Steve did smile or joke back. He looked Tony dead in the eye and said, “I love you.”

Tony blinked at Steve for a moment then leaned back and smacked him on his chest. Steve looked at him with wounded eyes, hand pressed to the spot Tony had smacked even though it couldn’t have hurt because Tony barely tapped him, but Tony felt a goofy smile trying to break through the frown he tried to keep up to make a point. “You’re telling me this now?”

“Yeah, why?”

“It’s not exactly that romantic m. We’re sitting in your truck which is parked in my parent’s driveway and my mom is probably watching us from the window.” Tony gestured to said window and there was a tell tale flutter of a curtain.

“Anywhere with you is romantic, babe,” Steve declared, hands coming to rest on Tony’s hips under the letterman jacket which Tony was wearing even though it was summer and it was hot. He didn’t like taking it off cause it was Steve’s and they couldn’t be together 24/7 for practical reasons.

“That’s nice, but this means I can’t kiss you the way I want.” Tony poured and let himself be pulled in to Steve’s chest and wrapped in Steve’s arms. “I love you, too,” he said softly into Steve’s neck.

They sat like that for a while, wrapped up in each other, but of course Tony couldn’t just let it rest. He sat up. “And of course I’ll move in with you. Maybe sophomore or junior year. I want to take advantage of that meal plan my parents are going to buy me—”

Tony broke off with a shout when Steve started tickling him and he ended up flat on his back, panting laughs, with Steve braced above him. Steve nipped at his lower lip. “Your mom can’t see us now.”

“Give it a few minutes,” Tony said rolling his eyes. “She’ll come out to check on us because she probably think we’re having sex and the neighbors will be so scandalizes.”

There wasn’t a lot of light out here, but Tony knew that Steve was blushing. He huffed a laugh, pressing their foreheads together. “Just shut up and kiss me.”

So Tony did.

#stonybingo #cap-ironman bingo fill #stony fic #stony #stevetony #high school au

12 notes · View notes

yszarin · 6 years

Text

see below for mostly incoherent thoughts on I Guess You Had To Be There

- “I woke up, and... ghost.” She’s wonderful. I hope she isn’t a monster. Also all this going back to sleep? excellent.

- well, I was fully expecting her to turn into a monster, but she didn’t? and now I’m just Deeply Suspicious. of all of it. why would we have a nice thing.

- I’m worried too, “John Smith”, but mostly about Tim at the moment. He sounds, well, very good with the statement giver at the moment, but also Tired.

- oh, we’ll call him Jeremy, will we?

- Robin, I am very much a dog person, please tell me all about your dog, any dogs you know, and any dogs you may have seen. Basira, I fear, may not be a dog person, or, at the very least, is concentrating on doing her job.

- I would like to congratulate Jackie for being what I think is the podcast’s first named dog! very proud. and even if she isn’t. congratulations. good dog.

- so there’s no coherency because Jon isn’t there? turns out this maybe wasn’t a nice thing.

- moving out, an excellent decision.

- so it turns out the real horror was awkwardness all along.

- please don’t pay her. wouldn’t that upset the academic whatsit? guess it doesn’t matter so much in TMA because if it’s not real it’ll go on the laptop but in general.

- Martiiiin. I would die for you.

- Is this why he couldn’t get a job in retail? too much of a giant awkward puffball.

- help me I’m too overcome with love for Martin Blackwood to feel any of the second-hand embarrassment that should, by rights, be flattening me.

- it’s possible that he got to pet Jackie though? assuming that Robin brought her to the Institute. he could really do with petting a dog. they probably all could, but I feel like Martin would get the most out of it.

- imagine if we’d had Martin taking Robin’s statement. we could have had a five minute conversation about Jackie. that’s probably why he didn’t take the dog-walker’s statement.

- “I would have been late for dinner, so I got out of the spiral, and went to dinner.” What an icon. These statement-givers are all icons.

- “There’s tea there” is the best comforting phrase ever, I love this episode, it’s so shiny.

- oh. abort. what a nice cheerful polite monster (and I was just wishing we’d get to meet an Isolation monster the other day, and here one is!)? also poor Brian. at least there might not be spiders in the alone?

- Peter Lukas’ static-y thing is... different? to Jon’s static, it’s screechier? but maybe not as screechy as Michael’s, or Michael’s has more of one tone where as this is different ones? Jon’s is more crackly. Not sure what this means or if it even means anything, I just quite like it. Someone please tell me things about static.

- I am now fully expecting that everything in this episode will turn out to be Very Relevant and Important later.

- I want to Analyse but I’m not sure if I’m supposed to be Analysing? they’re all being recorded on-tape, so are presumably Genuine Happenings but they’re also not the way we expect them to be? Presumably this is because Jon isn’t there, and that an Archivist needs to be In Place for story-mode, which would link nicely to the episode title. How long has he not been there for, since someone hasn’t had the decency to date either his own kidnapping or his recordings? (please, Jonathan, if you learn nothing else from Gertrude, learn “committed to tape [date]”)

- Georgie’s statement was given on 29th April, Brian’s is from the 26th May. But Jon has recorded three statements since Georgie’s, including a trip to Newcastle, one to the Trophy Room, a visit from Nikola, and enough time for Georgie to change all her lightbulbs. So it could have theoretically taken him all that time to reach the end of Dust to Dust, especially as, according to Elias, his recordings are inconsistent. Melanie says he’s on leave, Martin says he’s not in, but this could be about his staying at Georgie’s or being off with Daisy, as much as it could be about him being missing. I suppose we’ll see if we get an abduction episode with the date? It seems like the Archives breaking down without the Archivist is The Thing, but Martin’s recording on the 2nd May, three days after Georgie’s statement, doesn’t seem to leave enough time for the intervening stuff, unless the breakdown started before he was taken?

- But, if they are Genuine, and we’re Analysing - the spiders in Brian’s statement seem almost Spiral-y? as in, I would say they were a Spiral Entity if they weren’t, well, spiders; they're messing with his perception and driving him to his current state. But they are also spiders. No reason why they couldn’t be both I guess?

- Anyway. I loved this episode, and I loved it as Episode 100 - it reminded me somewhat of Stargate SG-1′s e100 and e200, in that, rather than do something like rip all our souls out and stamp on them etc etc (as I was very much expecting), it was a bit more lighthearted, and involved taking something of a look at itself (though admittedly the awkward!Institute skews a little more serious, seems to have more underlying meaning than Wormhole X-Treme!). The statement-givers are a little closer to Jonathan’s original attitudes towards them in S1, as the Institute would be if it weren’t Genuine, and it was lovely to hear some more of the rest of the RQ crew. All in all a lovely episode, at first taking away some of the sting from last week’s cliffhanger as we go into the midseason break, and then quietly giving some of it back. Also there was a dog.

#the magnus archives #so anyway Tim and Martin survived e100 and I am super proud of them #nice going guys #everyone else survived too but we've not had them as long #so I'm less worried about them dying #Jon may not still be alive I guess?#but if not he's doing it off-screen #for now #and is thus still fine

12 notes · View notes

annavolovodov · 7 years

Text

So I read Keep the Home Fires Burning Part Two and I have a few thoughts...

...and when I say a few I mean 2825 words worth. You can probably guess whose storyline most of them are on.

The thing is, the vast majority of this instalment was incredible with two character’s storylines in particular standing out as real highlights for me. Yet the fact that the quality of the rest of the book is so high makes those chapters so glaringly disappointing.

Spoilers under the cut!

Starting with the positives and one of my two favourite characters in the books so far - Pat. Her scenes have been utterly engrossing and I am so, so proud of the way she’s developed since 1x01. She may still be stuck with Bob but she sure as hell won’t let herself be trapped by him. She knows her worth and she’s biding her time.

As I predicted, Pat’s using the Mass Observation columns as an outlet to keep her sane. Since we know she has a literary background and has worked in publishing before, I am PRAYING that the observations she’s been detailing of her life will take off and the series will end with her as a hugely successful writer. Think about it: would it not be the ultimate vengeance against Bob, for her to achieve what he lacked the skill to? Of course I would love Bob to die but that seems a tad contrived for Home Fires and forcing him to watch the woman he’s abused for years moving onto bigger and better things would be both a satisfying victory for Pat and would fit with the tone of the show.

Side note: I find Pat’s insistence to stick solely to the truth when writing to be an interesting contrast to her husband’s technique. Bob has a tendency to overdramatise aspects of his life and portray himself to be heroic and exciting when in reality, he’s the exact opposite. There’s probably a good meta in there for someone smarter than I am.

I can’t forego a mention of Pat’s quite frankly iconic dragging of Bob for almost a whole chapter. The revelation that she almost straight up murdered him a couple of years ago was unexpected but totally relatable. And some of the quotes from her writing?

“In my experience, men often like to sit around talking about doing great things, but it’s the women who get on and do them.”

“It makes me ashamed that we can be at war with fascist Germany yet exhibit the same base impulse to discriminate against people who simply don’t look like us.”

Pat is a great character.

AND THAT CLIFFHANGER. MAREK’S BEEN WRITING TO HER. HE’S ALIVE. THEY WILL BE TOGETHER AGAIN. FUCK YOU BOB.

As for my other favourite? Erica has been an unexpected highlight in the novels. Of those involved in the crash, I was pretty certain she’d make it. She never quite acquired her own storyline in the show, instead largely popping in and out of others plots as needed. I already had Will marked for death since he'd be killed off sooner or later with his illness so it was a nice surprise when he made it out (after saving Vivian!!! I still cry).

Or at least I thought it was a nice surprise right up till we found out his cancer had worsened and he had mere weeks left to live. When Dr Mitchell explained to Erica and Laura that he was nearing the end? When they went home and Erica decided she had to shoulder the burden and remain strong for the girls? Erica finally breaking down whilst the women of the WI held her? I full on sobbed at every single one of those scenes.

I think a lesser series would’ve killed Will instantly when the spitfire hit the house for the sake of drama and words can’t express how grateful I am that Home Fires didn’t, instead choosing to leave us with a poignant and painfully relatable exploration of terminal illness and grief.

I did appreciate the touches of humour in the Campbell’s storyline. Will literally pulled a “Surprise, bitch. I bet you thought you saw the last of me” on Erica like 70 years before the meme was invented. Incredible.

Dr Rosen is... intriguing, I guess. I don't dislike her. I think she has potential, even though I’m sceptical at the addition of yet another character when we have mains from S1 who have yet to make a significant impact in the book.

OH AND THE BATTLE OF WILLS BETWEEN HER AND MIRIAM??? The sort of content I paid 99p for. Poor Erica, getting caught in the middle of that. There were many great lines in this book, but I think this might just be my favourite:

“Erica felt a sudden rush of adrenaline, knowing Dr Rosen might get away with a comment like this with some patients, but not with Miriam Brindsley - a woman the rest of the village knew could single-handedly hold off a horde of invading Nazis with a gutting knife for a solid half-hour.”

If that doesn’t sum up Miriam as a character, I don’t know what does.

Speaking of the Brindsleys, do you know how satisfying it is to see them alive and flourishing after spending 15 months mentally preparing yourself to lose at least one of them?

I do.

I mean, they still have a huge target on their backs (Mim’s words in part one about how they’re blessed and are defo making it through the war? Yikes. An omen if ever I saw one) but considering their lack of page time I’m gonna gamble that we can quit worrying about that until Book 2 at the very least.

Moving on, I really did not go into this book expecting to care so deeply about Frances and Noah’s growing relationship yet here we are. Frances excessively calling to check on him every day was adorable. And this entire exchange with the head teacher was legendary:

"Frances didn't want to have an argument. She never wanted to have arguments with all sorts of people she eventually had arguments with; it was simply in her nature to be more challenging of other people's positions than they were used to. It put them on the defensive, and an argument would inevitably ensue. ‘I don’t wish to be confrontational –‘ There was a sudden snort at the other end of the line. Like the sound of someone choking on their tea, perhaps.”

I laughed.

However, despite the many, many positive aspects of this most recent instalment, there is one storyline in particular that singles itself out as Home Fires’ most glaring weak spot.

Of course, I’m referring to Teresa’s story and the awful place she’s currently occupying in the narrative.

Back when the whole Nick debacle began mid-S2, I figured I might as well give it a chance and see where it went. Simon Block was adamant on Twitter that Teresa’s endgame was not a man and what would be unfurling over the coming episodes was a historically accurate depiction of the trials lesbians faced during such time periods. It wasn’t ideal, nor was it what I expected for Teresa based around the promotional material released for S2, but the show hadn’t let me down yet.

And so I have waited, I have given it a chance, and based on the back half of S2 and the two instalments of KTHFB available so far, I am SO disappointed in what Simon Block has done with Teresa. Sure, things may improve in future novels, but right now I’m not sure I can adequately explain how much I hate this goddamn marriage.

Simply put, it is totally unnecessary. Every single aspect of it. Teresa’s chapters in Part Two were awful. I’m pretty sure we’ve established at this point that she is not into men. We do not need to read about her trying and failing to repress her attraction to women whilst having sex with Nick. Even if we absolutely unavoidably had to hear about Nick and Teresa’s sex life, we do not need aforementioned sex scene spread across the whole chapter.

I know this might be hard for Straight Guy Simon Block to understand, but I’m pretty sure exactly zero lesbians are going to want to read about a lesbian character who is struggling with compulsory heterosexuality having sex with a man. I’m bisexual and I found it sickening so God knows how that chapter is going to make lesbians feel. I strongly suspect that some are going to find it triggering, and if the storyline is triggering to the group it is supposed to represent you really have to ask yourself why you are even bothering to write the representation in the first place.

Teresa’s arc in the books so far has consisted of getting married, blaming herself for the crash because she feels like she isn’t taking the marriage seriously (seriously what the fuck was this???), Teresa having conflicting feelings about Annie, Teresa stuck at home worrying about her marriage, Teresa feeling awful whilst having sex with Nick, Teresa worrying about having children, Teresa having more conflicting feelings about Annie and Nick... Do we see a pattern here? Do we get any meaningful scenes of Teresa at school? Do we get any meaningful scenes of Teresa with her canonical close friends Alison and Steph, who she spent S1 and S2 building strong relationships with? Yeah, she occasionally gets a throwaway line in a group scene at a WI meeting, but what does Teresa really get to do outside of being emotionally tortured about her marriage? The change in format to the books has led to characters being isolated in their individual stories whereas the series could allow them to interact more freely, but it genuinely feels like Teresa is stuck in some sort of heterosexual hell and is allowed no reprieve.

And all of this feels completely divorced from S1 and the first half of S2??? S1!Teresa didn’t appear to have any sort of desire to marry a man in order to cover up her sexuality. From the limited screen time we had with them, the main reason the relationship between Teresa and Connie failed seemed to be due to interference from outsiders (aka the headteacher that blackmailed Teresa) and the simple fact that Connie and Teresa wanted different things. Nothing in the series suggested that Teresa was unsure or struggling with her sexuality. Nothing. When the synopsis for 2x04 came out and mentioned Teresa would be asked on a date, everyone immediately assumed it was Annie involved. The prospect of it being a man never crossed our minds because it just seemed so ridiculous.

Another aspect I’m struggling to comprehend is why Alison pushed Teresa towards Nick. There’s no logical explanation for this. Alison knew about Teresa’s sexuality. Alison was fine with it and explicitly wanted her to stay because - and I quote - she “enjoyed having her around”. So how on Earth did we get to this point, with Alison encouraging Teresa to marry a man she barely knows and can never love? The fuck did that come from? The reasoning was murky enough in the show but it’s even worse in the books. Chapter 17 is essentially Alison sitting alone in her house feeling depressed, missing Teresa, lowkey regretting telling her to go but consoling herself because “at least Teresa is in a happy marriage now” or whatever...

In what universe does any of this make sense?

Yet another person being screwed over by this whole shitshow is Annie. Marek was also introduced in S2 as a love interest for Pat yet he’s somehow obtained significantly more screen time and development than Annie. Despite appearing in four episodes and two instalments of the book I feel like we (and Teresa) barely know her, which is absolute bullshit if they’re seriously intending for her to be Teresa’s endgame. They’ve had three conversations! Any romantic relationship between two women should get equal, if not more focus than the hetero ones especially if they’re the only f/f romance on the show. One of the central themes of Home Fires is relationships between women so I cannot understand why the ball has been so spectacularly dropped here. It’s not fair on Teresa to get all this suffering and a half-baked romantic subplot, it’s not fair on Annie to be essentially non-existent as a character beyond her possible relationship with Teresa and it’s certainly not fair on any wlw reading/watching, desperate to see themselves represented and being given scraps.

Even if Teresa's marriage is over soon (which I'm not holding my breath about), I can't see how she'll get a happy ending with Annie in the village. I highly doubt Nick would be okay with her continuing to live with him whilst she was in a relationship with Annie. Getting a divorce and moving in together would arouse a ton of suspicion and defeat the purpose of Teresa’s marriage in the first place. The only way for them to be able to live as a couple would involve moving away and starting afresh... Exactly what Connie proposed in S1, only for Teresa to turn down because she’d feel much more comfortable living a quiet life in the village than going off to a strange place. Having her suddenly change her mind now after clearly explaining her decision to Connie would result in everything post-1x04 feeling utterly redundant.

I just... this whole plot was totally avoidable. It didn’t need to happen. In a more logical universe:

After the First Aid course, Steph notes Teresa’s discomfort at the casual homophobia, and when coupled with her Meaningful Look at Annie as she cycled away, Steph promptly puts two and two together (remember Steph noticing how quickly Teresa wanted to get away after that comment? Remember the close friendship Steph and Teresa have? Simon Block sure doesn’t).

Once she hears about the impending wedding, Steph gently asks Teresa if she’s sure she wants to do it. Teresa half-heartedly assures her that she loves Nick, so Steph - because she’s a good friend and this show is supposed to be about women helping each other - decides to go and speak to Annie.

Annie and Steph end up staging an intervention and in an important and touching scene, tell her she deserves better than having to hide herself in a marriage to a man.

Teresa, feeling supported and loved by her friends, calls off the wedding.

Nick fucks off and becomes irrelevant.

Steph and Annie’s intervention forces Alison to consider why she pushed Teresa away (spoiler alert: it only really makes sense if it was because she was trying to push away feelings of her own).

Teresa, Annie, Alison, Steph and later Joyce start a wlw group during which they talk about how gay they are and how straight people suck. Nothing bad happens to any of them ever.

See how easy that was? The evils of heteronormativity are depicted in a way that doesn’t cause a lesbian to suffer for months trapped in a horrible loveless marriage.

I really can’t express how disappointed I am in this storyline. Home Fires has handled numerous other sensitive topics well but this marriage plot is an absolute mess right now. I do apologise for going on such a rant about it and I hope my comments make sense. As a bisexual, I’m not as qualified to speak on this particular matter as others in the fandom may be and I hope I’ve not stepped out of turn, but I felt that something needed to be said about what’s happening with Teresa right now and I wasn’t sure if anyone else was going to say it.

Miscellaneous things I’m not going to elaborate on because this is far too long already:

I badly miss Sarah, the Farrows, the Brindsleys, Claire and Spencer, and everyone else who is currently out of rotation. Hope you’re all doing well, folks.

Also missing some of the best dynamics of S1/2. As mentioned earlier, everyone is kinda stuck in their own bubble interacting with the same people over and over again. I particularly want more Frances/Joyce, Teresa/Alison and Teresa/Steph interactions.

Of all the random secondary characters in the show, of course it’s Mrs Talbot who returns for the books. I groaned when I saw her name.

Maybe in some ways I’m glad the show got cancelled because at least I don’t have to witness the Teresa/Nick sex scenes with my own eyes. It was bad enough having to read it thank you very much.

If you’ve made it this far you deserve a medal for your stamina and, as ever, my inbox is always over if anyone else wants to discuss/theorise/rant with me.

See you all again on September 21st for what I’m sure will be another 2000+ word rant!

#home fires #home fires itv #itv home fires #home fires spoilers #spoilers #keep the home fires burning #keep the home fires burning spoilers #seriously this contains all the spoilers #also I hope it makes sense #its 2:25am ive spent five days on it and I can't look at it any longer #@ simon block: why. why are you doing this.#why are you ruining an otherwise good book with this shitty plot #anyway goodnight/morning everyone I hope at least one person reads this + I hope no one on mobile accidentally gets spoiled

16 notes · View notes

nettlestonenell · 7 years

Photo

2017 Fandom Feels Update

(in no particular order)

Peaky Blinders - I probably don't quite know how to talk about Peaky Blinders. It's a show that both fascinated and repulsed me. It's definitely unforgettable. But I think it also overly takes advantage of the fact it doesn't air on US network television (in the sense that I absolutely believe it is far more graphic far more of the time than it needs to be). Cillian Murphy is mesmerizing, an anti-hero (of which there are just so very many right now) created in the belly of poverty and the tunnels of WWI, he has very few illusions about himself. He's a man who says very little, and as frustrating as that is at times narratively, it works for me. I fall into what tumblr lets me know are the rare ranks of those who really enjoyed the character of Grace (to be specific: S1 Grace). As with many shows that I prize, it made choices and went in directions opposite of what I expected, which always gets my attention if the writers and actors can pull it off, which here they did many times.

TURN - June 17. I have no idea what to expect. S3 seemingly terminated so many at-play plots for the show (Andre, Arnold, Rogers, Simcoe, Hewlett), I found it personally to be the weakest of the 3, but will definitely tune in to S4 and what may come. Frankly, I am disappointed the Arnolds will still be in the mix, because I had hoped that uncomfortable plot had been put to rest last season. Also, I am a little allergic to tumblr's deep fascination with Robert Townsend on the show, who as far as I can see has done little so far in his few scenes other than pout.

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries - I watched S1 of this about a year ago, but found the S2 opener altered in tone and production values and so I walked away for awhile. Recently I watched and enjoyed S2 and S3, but S1 will forever be my special baby. It's the rare show that really is everything tumblr wants to tell you about it. And as far as I'm concerned the genius will-they-won't-they could have gone on forever and a day. It didn't matter. I never genuinely wanted them to in-story. And that's a rare show, where creators know what's just right, and what might be too much. In many ways, this show is Robin Hood-ish. The found family that just also happens to be made up of people whose exact skills you need to accomplish your ends. Maid Marian as Jack Robinson, on Robin's side but not yet ready to fully join the gang. I just love the beats we get with Miss Fisher's gang of unusuals, we know things about them, we understand them. No one's a caricature.

The Musketeers - Let me say first that I never watched ONLY for Athos' and Milady's plot (no matter what my tumblr might convince you). I would have watched this show even without her being included. I went in to S3 hopeful on a number of fronts, and wanting to see something like what S1 had given us. And while I don't think the loss of Capaldi broke the show (no, I don't, I really don't--though of course it was a harsh, harsh blow), and think something internal (after all, the creator/writer WALKED OUT before S3 was finished, which frankly speaks to cracks in the show/network/creatives relationship starting in S2) DID, I watched what I think were three episodes of S3. This was about the time my system and couchtuner stopped getting along. Those three episodes convinced me I didn't need or want to watch the rest, and that retreating into S1 and what I liked of S2 would make me far happier.

BBC Robin Hood - Look, it's never going away. (Coincidentally, I did a similar thing with this show's S3 as to Musketeers, and watched two episodes and gave up. In the long run, it's allowed me to continue to love the show and "my" seasons of it without reservation. Knowing when to quit a show really can be key.)

Marvel's Agent Carter - This is a rough one. S2 was appreciably 'off' from both the tone and look of S1 (which I will claim among top 10 TV shows in my viewing lifetime, no doubt), which was disappointing. Peggy's narrative goal was less focussed. The show tended more toward that 'everyone Peggy encounters is super/special' and less toward an environment like that at the Griffith, where we see Peggy, who knows from strange and super, living in a mundane world, among normal people. The ending (particularly the romantic reveal) was rushed, and a huge disservice to the two excellent actors it was given to. I really liked how they didn't redeem Thompson, and want to know what happened to him in the cliffhanger. On the whole, though, a disappointment after a stellar year-one of very tight, extremely stylish storytelling. Yet I'm deeply dismayed it's not available on DVD (only Blu-ray)

Victorian Slum House - I wish the cast had their own confession cams, like they did on 1900 House, because I'd like to know each of them better than the show allows.

Daredevil, Season One - I did not know I watched this for Claire Temple. Look, I'm not a depressive person, yet I struggle with sustained bleakness in fiction. Couple that with hyper-violence (ymmv as to what that means for you), and I don't sleep well. I watched S1. And I can say it was a high quality. I enjoyed the cast. I really liked the Russians. And Madame whatever her name was that disappeared. But I got to a point where I was fast-forwarding every fight scene (and as you know there are a lot). I made it through to the end. But the payout was not (for me) worth the viewer anguish, and S2 and on will never be my flavor of enjoyment. Yet, send me all the Matt/Foggy gifsets.

Jessica Jones - I watched this for Claire Temple. Man, that was NOT a wrong choice. This show was (if possible) better than what even tumblr thought of it. Which is not to say there weren't portions I had to watch on fast-forward, or through my hands. I love that it takes place in the same world as Daredevil, and yet it's depiction of Jessica's section of New York is aesthetically so different than that of Matt's. Also, Malcolm. And Carrie-Anne Moss.

Harrison Ford - With all this Star Wars revival stuff, you know, despite my original deep affection for HF I often find myself feeling grumpy about him, about his talents, about what he meant to me in the 1980s (yes, I was alive in the 1980s, and long out of diapers). And then Netflix gets Working Girl, and I remember again that I forgot, that my personal trifecta of HF roles (Han Solo, Indiana Jones, Witness' John Book) is actually...whatever you call a quartet of charming effortless awesomeness. *Please go watch Working Girl. But don't even watch it for HF. Watch it for Melanie Griffith who proves she is a Grade-A Star.

Arrow - I removed my Season Pass on TiVo. Thing is, the show got caught (it's a common enough problem in long-running shows) constantly dragging Oliver back to having issues we had been shown he'd overcome. (This is so Emma Swan on OUAT, btw) I watched Arrow b/c I loved Oliver. But someone's trapped him in character development limbo, and also reduced his show to The Love Boat (in the sense that it exists now largely to introduce characters that springboard off into their own shows, rather than to move its own plots forward). Also, I have never been a fan of 'everyone in the world AND IN THIS NARRATIVE is super! No room for regular people here!' (see my comments about Agent Carter) Oliver vs. the occasion super villain was okay. Oliver in a world 99% (at least who he comes into contact with) super? No.

the 100 - If there is something in the first seasons of a show that you like, what the show turns into later you will despise. (This goes for nearly every show I can think of, not just this one. Shows change, often around season three. Non-procedural drama shows run out of the story they originally set out to tell and have to redevelop and redefine themselves. Sometimes the show finds itself. Others, it founders. Frankly, this is the subject of a longer post.)

#fandom feels #peaky blinders #miss fisher #turn #arrow #fandom feels 2017 #nettlestonenell

5 notes · View notes

side-blog-on-ice · 7 years

Text

Stuff I want to see improved in S2 (if we get one)

So before I start I just want to say that I genuinely love Yuri on Ice. It’s one of my favourite anime, not just from 2016 but just in general. (Because of all the recent “discourse” I feel the need to clarify that when I say “favourite” I don’t mean “objectively best”. I just mean subjectively and biasedly favourite. Like, for comparison, my favourite anime ever is probably Durarara, and I could write an entire thesis on the problems with that show. Now with this disclaimer out of the way on with the rest of the post.)

But even though this is one of my favourite shows, there are some changes / improvements which could make it even better (in my opinion anyway.)

Dot point list of the main stuff which I would like to see done better/changed: 1. pacing / tension 2. animation (I’m not even going to bother elaborating on this one)

Dot point list of stuff which was okay in S1, but I would like to see expanded on: 1. side characters 2. Yuri (Plisetsky) 3. the LGBT+ representation

I’ll elaborate on these points under the cut. (This got a lot longer than I wanted it to. Sorry)

So probably the two biggest issues with the show was the pacing / tension and the animation. I’m not going to talk about the animation. Since the Crunchyroll awards that has been cover to death. And there are also plenty of great posts talking about the pacing issues.

But I am going to talk about an episode structure which I think would work better than what was in S1. Because it would be a second season a lot of the introductory episodes at the start could be reduced. The first two competitions from S1 (the Onsen on Ice and the local competition) would be unnecessary. Once those two competitions are out of the equation then there would only be three competitions. So potential episode line up could be:

Ep 1 & 2: training in Russia and getting to know the Russia skaters better. Ep 3: Arriving at the first competition. No actual competing just introduction of the character who will be in the event. Ep 4: First competition Short Program Ep 5: First competition Free Skate Ep 6: Break episode. Moving on to the second competition. Character introductions for that event. Ep 7: Second competition Short Program Ep 8: Second competition Free Skate Ep 9: Break episode. Moving on to final competition. Character introductions for that event. Ep 10: Final event Short Program Ep 11: Final event Free Skate (Part 1) Ep 12: Final event Free Skate (Part 2) + winding up the series

I think most of the logic behind why I think this would allow for better pacing is quite obvious. The biggest problem with the final episode, in my opinion, is that it was rushed. They couldn’t have all of the free skating and give the series a proper wrap up in the time that they had. Also having break episodes between the events would allow for a couple of things: more fleshed out side character introductions, more lengthy conversations/interactions between Yuuri and Victor, it would allow for more variation in the shows tension, and it would give the animators a break.

I also think it would be good that if Yuuri and Victor are both competing that they are in the same competition for two of the events. Preferably the fist and the last. The the middle event could focus on Yuuri (and maybe Yuri as well) and then we just briefly check in to see how Victor’s second even went in the Ep 9 break episode. By this episode the majority of the finalists would have been introduced anyway so some of the time could be used for other stuff.

...This bit got longer than I wanted it to (sorry).

Now on to the stuff which I thought was handled okay, but I would like to see either expanded on or done even better:

1. The side characters. I thought that with how little time the series had to introduce side characters they did a remarkable job. Like, I can remember all of them without any difficulty. Also I think the last time I saw an anime which represented this many nationalities it was Hetalia... and if that doesn’t say everything about the state of diversity in anime I don’t know what does. They could have been more developed though and I’ve already kinda talked about how that could be achieved in the series layout I suggested.

On a related note: Yuri on Ice, I will give all of my money if you introduce a trans or X-gender side character. (okay maybe not all of my money, but a large portion of it.)

2. Yuri Plisetsky. He is amazing. How could he be done better? More screen time... That is all.

3. The LGBT+ representation. So I actually thought that the LGBT+ representation in this series was really good. Earth shatteringly brilliant? No. But still better than 99% of other anime. The two criticisms I’ve seen are about the fan service and the fact that it didn’t address prejudice/homophobia.

Firstly, about the fan service. I’m the type of person who would be happy if nothing ever had fan service. But still, I don’t think that the fan service detracts from the representation. (I’ve actually made a post about this before.) I don’t think that there was fan service because there were gay characters. I think that it was more a case of there was fan service and there happened to be gay characters. (I’m never quite sure how to word that but hopefully that explains the distinction?) Basically I think that the fan service would be exactly the same even if the characters were straight. Which is why I don’t think it is overly relevant to the quality of the representation in the show.

Secondly, the lack of dealing with real world issues. This argument I do somewhat agree with. I actually keep going back and forth on my position with this one. Because on the one hand I love that this show exists in an ideal world without homophobia. But on the other had I agree that the representation would be more impactful if it reflected real world issues. And so I’ve thought about this a lot and I think I’ve come up with a way to kinda have both:

Imagine a scene where Victor and Yuuri are at practice or a competition or something being all lovey dovey. Some character comes up to them and says something to the effect of “could you tone down the PDA. You’re making some people uncomfortable.” I don’t think it would need to be outright stated that this is related to homophobia and there doesn’t need to be tonnes of dwelling on it. I would be perfectly happy if the response was just Yuuri and Victor telling the person to get lost and that if the PDA is making others uncomfortable then that’s their problem... Bonus points if Yuri then materializes behind the person and kicks them.

So in that way it’s never explicitly stated as homophobia, but it would still reflect a small amount of the prejudice experienced by gay couples in real life. (I hope I explained this part okay?) I think it would be a tricky tightrope to walk to reflect both real world issues and remain in an idealized reality, but I think it would be possible.

I would also be perfectly happy if neither Victor nor Yuuri ever explicitly stated that they were gay or talked at length about their orientation. But I would like to see an explicit “I love you” scene at some point.

Also, I would like a tonne more conversations between Victor and Yuuri like the one they had on the beach. 10 more of those please.

Also, Sara and Mila should be dating.

Also, ideally, none of the characters are straight.

~~~~~~~~~

Alright, so this got waaaaaay longer than I wanted it to. I sure do love to ramble. So here’s a summary:

tl;dr: The pacing of the show was it’s biggest weakness and could be improved by having a different episode structure. The side characters were great but could be given more depth. Yuri Plisetsky is perfect and needs more screen time. The LGBT+ representation was pretty good, but can always be better.

I think that pretty much sums everything up.

#Yuri!!! on Ice #Yuri on ice #Victuuri #yuuri katsuki #victor nikiforov #yuri plisetsky #analysis #yoi #my stuff #I think the reason all of my posts end up so long is because of university #I'm used to having to write at least 2000 words on a topic #this isn't 2000 words long but it's still pretty long #and I feel the need to apologise for that #sorry

8 notes · View notes