#pre-episode events' interpretation

[fullofsunsetwhispers]

No one needs to convince me that it was Jack's initiative to wear cowboy outfits in the 'Treasure of the Blind Swordsman' episode. However, I'm sort of disappointed we didn't get a scene in which Jack tries to persuade Wuya to dress up.

‘What if there are more wus hidden in Texas, Wuya? We definitely should change into Evil cowboy Genius and Heylin cowgirl witch sometime.'

Wuya would only roll her eyes when Jack brings up the issue because the boy as always gets too hyped up.

In my mind, Jack had prepared a list of arguments for such an idea. 'C'mon monks already went full-cowboy that one time and we couldn't do that because you were all GHOSTY back then!'

‘wuya wuya lemmie show you the art of online shopping’ ‘partners in crime should have matching outfits sometimes!

So, he would mix the most ridiculous reasons with the more practical ones. Wuya would start actually listening to him once he mentions they need cowboy disguises in order to better blend in.

Eventually, she agrees because the clothes Jack showed her really were her style and she wanted to wear them!

‘Ok, fine we can buy them. I can’t remember the last time I wore trousers. Nice call, Jack.’ - she would sum up in one sentence.

And oh boy, I bet Jack was so excited to see Wuya’s cooperating in his silly antics. So, certain he is lucky enough today, he starts suggesting more. ‘Oh, I should, like, build a whole ass train, Wuya. And my jackbots would be stylized to be cowboy bandits, I have to order as many cowboy hats as possible’

Wuya got used to Jack doing everything for aesthetics so she would not interfere. Tho, she would keep on reminding him the wu is soon to be revealed, and thus, she sets up a deadline:‘Just hurry with these’ – she reminds him every now and then.

And when the wu activates, they come prepared. Even they have their own horses in that episode!

What's even better Jack's horse has a red mane!!! Ain't that cool?

I have no idea if these horses were rented/stolen but it has to be admitted it is quite rare to see a horse with a red mane, right? So, I also came up with a wholesome idea.

Let's assume Wuya and Jack entered a stable to choose their animal companions. And Jack, as always, utters some nonsense. (for me it's not stupid but for Wuya IT IS). He tells her, he will pick the most goth-looking horse here. Wuya gets irritated, of course, because it indicates that Jack is about to examine every horse and this way they lose more time on something unnecessary. She already picked her horse, it is Jack, who is stalling!

Sometime later Jack sadly informs Wuya there are no black horses. Wuya is not much of a help. She commands him to make a final decision. Then, Jack spots the one horse, which he had missed. He fell in love immediately once he realized the horse is a redhead, just like him!

'Wuya! Wuya! He's just like me!' -the boy exclaims. Then, Wuya throws a few insults but Jack can't even hear them. He approaches the horse, grabs some ice cubes from his pocket, and hands the offering. The horse licks his hand and once the snack is gone, Jack gives the horse some head pats.

I hc Jack is good at horse riding because it is his mother's favorite sports discipline. (I assumed it bc the Spicers are hella rich so why not make Mrs. Spicer fixated on horse-riding) So, he knows how to recognize an excellent steed.

I only wanted to write down that Jack is such a sweetheart when he takes care of animals. It was proved when he had that little dino-army. Hence, my suggestion he's as good at taking care of horses. Now I want more 'Jack likes horses' content.

#xiaolin showdown #wuya #jack spicer #dear horse with red mane why aren't you jack's pet #i love this funky horse. jack take him home your mom will say yes I'll make her say yes #pre-episode events' interpretation #also side note - jack gave wuya a quick lesson how to ride a horse! #that would be silly if wuya's first try ended with landing on the ground lol #my musing

[sylvestris123]

What does the pre-Fall scene actually mean?

I’ve been thinking about that first scene, with pre-Fall Crowley. We are all swooning over how sweet and innocent Angel!Crowley is, and how smitten Aziraphale is, but on reflection there is something odd about this scene.

The action takes place before the rebellion, before the Fall, when bad things hadn’t even been invented yet. So why is Aziraphale already worried about Angel!Crowley getting into trouble for asking questions? Shouldn’t he also be a cute innocent bundle of fluff without a care in the world?

There is a meta that examines this (sorry, I can’t find it, I’m useless at this), which comes to the conclusion that Aziraphale later on is suffering from guilt (that he might have unwittingly prompted Crowley to seek answers and hence fall), but this still doesn’t explain why Aziraphale knows that asking questions might be a Bad Idea, and Angel!Crowley doesn’t. After all, Angel!Crowley has apparently been working “very closely with Upstairs”.  Shouldn’t he be a bit more clued up?

This leads me to think that there are 2 possible explanations for this.

1. Angel!Crowley has been so far out of things playing with stars that he really is clueless about everything (possible but doesn’t really match up to the Crowley that we know today).

2. This is not a true record of events.

Either: it is one of Aziraphale’s memories, but coloured by what he knows today, so the conversation that actually occurred might have been quite different. Maybe it is because of Aziraphale’s less than perfect recall, or maybe the memory was tweaked (e.g. by the Metatron) to emphasize the innocence of Angel!Crowley and the injustice of his later fall.

Or: IT NEVER EVEN HAPPENED AT ALL. Their true first meeting was as S1, on the walls of Eden, and it is all a false memory planted by the Metatron. (This could also explain why we don’t get to hear Angel!Crowley’s name. It’s not actually known, so can’t be added to the ‘memory’). Why would he do this? It could be to make Aziraphale think that Angel!Crowley was so full of joy that he should be reinstated to recapture that innocence.

There are plenty of theories about the other flashback episodes in the series, all of which could be interpreted as showing off Crowley’s 'good' side, to make the thought of his reinstatement as an angel more plausible or even necessary to right an ancient wrong.

If any or all of this is the Metatron’s doing, what is the motive? He clearly loathes Crowley. Maybe reinstatement as an angel would automatically wipe out his memories of being Crowley and all of his Earthly experience, so you would end up with a cute innocent (and ultimately useless) angel with no memories of his friendship with Aziraphale. Or perhaps it was a way to get him to come up to Heaven where he could be ambushed and imprisoned.

Or maybe the Metatron always knew that the very concept would go down like a lead balloon and that its aim was to make Aziraphale and Crowley part in such a way that they would be less likely to try to contact each other later.

There are so many pieces to this puzzle. Just when I think that a couple might go together I find others that don’t fit with the patterns already made, and which sometimes seem to belong to a different puzzle altogether. I’m sure that I already have 5 corner pieces.

#good omens #aziraphale #crowley #aziraphale x crowley #crowley x aziraphale #good omens 2 #neil gaiman #good omens analysis #good omens meta #before the fall #Why is Aziraphale aware of bad things before they were invented #angel crowley #too many questions #good omens theories

[entrop-y]

the real tragedy of spencer reid: a character analysis

the real tragedy of spencer reid isn’t any of the individual traumas that he suffered on the job, it’s that he became jason gideon.

think about it; the show begins with gideon returning to the bau after he’d been on leave due to his ptsd. ptsd caused by a mistake he made resulting in the death of 6 agents in a bombing.

throughout season 1, we see that spencer idolizes gideon. the way in which he idolizes him, however, is complicated. on one hand, spencer sees gideon the same way he sees rossi—pure hero worship. on the other hand, he sees gideon as a more than a mentor, as a father figure. this is less overt than people make it out to be in canon, but it’s true nonetheless.

in the first season, we see gideon mentor reid, with the goal of shaping him into the future of the bau, the best profiler they’d ever had. we also see the similarities between reid and gideon, though subtly, at this point. it’s established that gideon and reid understand each other (perhaps in part as a result of both of them being on the spectrum), in a way that the other members of the team, do not.

in season 2, however, we see gideon start to grapple with the implications and consequences of reid’s job at the bau. this is most clear when reid is kidnapped. at this point in reid’s career, gideon was supposed to protect reid; so naturally, he blames himself for his kidnapping. in “revelations”, when the camera cuts from reid seizing to gideon panicking in the bathroom, he is desperately trying to justify his actions to himself. he blames himself for what happened to reid, and it’s killing him. reid survives, but hardly unscathed, and gideon distances himself, likely, as a result of his own unaddressed guilt. people in fandom criticize gideon for this, but it is realistic. gideon is flawed, that’s what makes him compelling.

the most telling scene, however, is in the episode “jones”. reid finally confesses to gideon that he’s struggling. gideon responds with an ambiguous monologue about knowing the time to quit. when reid declares he’ll never miss another plane again, the look gideon gives him is not one of pride, it’s one of despair. it’s his realization that reid is too far gone, he has decieed to follow in gideons footsteps in the way of giving everything to the job, regardless of what it takes from him.

sarah’s murder was the reason gideon ultimately decided to leave the bau, however, his guilt over spencer’s torture and subsequent addiction undeniably played a role.

the show goes on, gideon leaves and ultimately dies, but both events eventually blend into the background—just another one of reid’s endless traumas. it is not until season 11, especially following morgan’s departure, is when we really start to see a palpable, negative change in reid.

until this point, reid’s character development seems mostly positive. he’s more confident and sure of himself both in the field and as a profiler, and as a person. but with the introduction of diana’s alzheimer’s, we start to see reid become overall sadder, more anxious, and more reserved. gone is his need to prove himself, but we see the beginnings of the toll that the bau has taken, one he is beginning to struggle to justify.

notably, this is especially clear pre prison season 12. emily and jj particularly seem acutely aware of the fact that reid is running himself into the ground at home, while desperately trying to keep everything together at work. then, once reid goes to prison, he never truly recovers.

while the show abandons any meaningful follow up about reid’s ptsd, it’s undeniable that after prison, reid is never the same. unlike some viewers interpretations of this version of reid as being more attractive and confident (more likely stemming from seeing reid as more “masculine”after gaining some weight and keep his facial hair), the signs really point to reid after prison being utterly depressed.

he has anger issues, which clearly distress him, and his heart to heart moments with the team are laced with an underlying desperation, exhaustion, and sadness. in short: reid is drained. the job has taken everything from him in a way he no longer knows how to get back.

the final episode, the show comes full circle, highlighting the parallels between reid and gideon. reid makes a bad call that results in the death of six agents, just as gideon had 15 years prior. if it weren’t obvious enough, reid visits gideons grave in his tbi induced dream sequence. in “jones”, gideon was terrified and guilt ridden over the prospect of spencer turning into him, but it is exactly what happened.

just as gideon had, reid gave everything to the job, and the job took everything from him. reid ended up a traumatized, depressed, workaholic with no real relationships—barring only his mother—outside of his job. like gideon, like rossi, even, reid was never satisfied, never felt like he had done enough, and all it got him was a lifetime of trauma and crushing solitude. by the end, the bau was virtually unrecognizable to what it had been at the beginning of his career. reid could never leave, despite the pain, the trauma, and the loneliness, his identity as a person and an agent were inextricable. by becoming jason gideon, reid lived up to what had once been his greatest hope, and gideons greatest fear.

#spencer reid #criminal minds #cm #spencer reid character analysis #criminal minds analysis #jason gideon #derek morgan #aaron hotchner #emily prentiss #spencer reid x reader #prison spencer reid #spencer reid gif #criminal minds fic

[allastoredeer]

I just found some Hazbin Hotel leaks, pre-being pick up by A24 and, do you know we could have had an episode where Charlie meets all the Deadly Sins? We were absolutely robbed of a pretty good filler episodes before the big finale with heaven.

Here's link to the leaks: https://imgur.com/a/nCorcZq

In case the link doesn't work, you can also look at this tumblr post: https://www.tumblr.com/hellaverse-critical-confessions/727383242254204928/hello-the-pre-a24-leaks-anon-again-heres-link?source=share

I really hope they use some of this old concepts on the next season cause they seem quite funny and interesting. Those ideas could help flush the characters out a bit more and the worldbuilding. What do you think?

Me writing notes while reading the leaks:

OOOH HOO WE GOT SOME WONDERFUL CHARACTER INSIGHTS! Especially with Husk!

“Angel and Charlie drag Husk out to a carnival show to show him the not-so-sleazy side of life. This proves difficult with Husk being raised to know nothing but crime and no experience with innocent fun.”

Husk has no experience with innocent fun. He only knows the sleazy side of life T.T Also he has mob connections 👀That is good to know. I find that so, so interesting. It explains it grim outlook on life. Why he's hardly every smiling or having fun. I think one of the first times we actually see him smile is after fighting those shark demons with Angel Dust in "Masquerade."

Now that I'm thinking about it, he smiles a lot more after that. Or, at least from what I remember. I might need to rewatch the show (for the dozenth time, LMAO). But, that kind also goes to show how much this guy needs friends. Good relationships. Connections outside of crime, which is all he's known all his life.

I WANT HUSK TO HAVE PURE, DUMB FUN AND TO LAUGH AND SMILE AND IM SOBBING JUST THINKING ABOUT IT

Also love delving more into Vaggie too. How she's incredible responsible, but controlling. After reading through a few of the episode description about her, my personal headcanon/take is that she still has a bit of that "angels are superior" mindset in the way that when she challenges Maxine, she's quickly reminded of her own limits when she's defeated "very easily." It's like what Carmilla was saying in the show. The angels are arrogant in their fighting. They leave themselves open, they're brash, and uncoordinated because they're not used to fighting demons who can actually fight back.

As far as we've seen, all of their victims are regular demons. None of the Overlords. Well, except Carmilla that one time, and she'd taken down the Exorcists with relative ease because she knows how to fight, and she's powerful. Given that this is the first time an Exorcist has been killed, and the first time we hear about an Overlord being attacked during the Extermination, I assume not a lot of Exorcists come face to face with the Overlords.

So, this kind of brash arrogance still lingering in Vaggie, who see's a demon talking down to her and automatically challenges them to a fight, only to lose immediately. Then her falling back into her insecurities that if she's not able to protect/fight for something/someone, than she's useless (which is ANOTHER thing she's learned from her time as an Exorcist angel--if she's unable to fight for the cause, what use does she have?). It's like this double-edged sword, and I'm rahhhhhh I'm gnawing on it.

ALSO ALSO, getting not only one annual event held in Hell, but TWO! "Hells Weapons Exo," (which I like to think Vox co-hosts with Carmilla, as she is a weapons manufacturer, and Vox is the guy to go to if you're looking to sell/buy something. Also, Vox HAS to have a showmanship side of him. Like, a legitimate showy, entertainer side--which I also like to think is what brought him and Alastor together before their, uh, falling out.)

Their second event being "Challenge Day" where lower tiered demons can challenge higher tiered demons for control over souls? I interpreted this in two ways, 1) challenging a higher tiered demon for the souls they already own, or 2) challenging the person who owns your soul as a way to get it back - both of which I really like. It actually fits really well with some of the world-building I've been doing for the last few days, so I am eating it up.

ALSO THE FACT THAT THERE'S A ROYAL BALL HELD AFTER "CHALLENGE DAY." My RadioApple brain LATCHED onto that so quickly. Imagine Lucifer taking Alastor to the royal ball as his date T.T I wanna see them all dressed up fancy, and I want them to dance, and dsofslknjljblkjbj FUUUUUUCK

Thank you SO Much for sending me this! I am soaking up these lore pieces like a sponge.

It also mentions Angel and Charlie taking Husk to a carnival show, which makes me wonder if there are places like carnivals open in Pentagram City, or if it's similar to the traveling circus thing Blitz grew up in. Like, do hellborn demons who doing travelling circus/carnivals just go through all the rings, one-by-one, including the Pride Ring? That way the Sinners get to get in on it too? AH! I just love thinking about it.

Thank you thank you I am feasting so much right now.

(THIS ALSO MAKES ME SO UPSET ABOUT STUDIOS LIMITING SERIES DOWN TO 8-10 EPISODES A SEASON, WE COULD'VE GOTTEN SO MUCH CONTENT AND WORLD BUILDING IF THEY'D GIVEN VIVZIE AND HER TEAM A PROPER SEASON TO BUILD IT ALL UP AND GRRRRRRRR)

Oh, also, I just realized I didn't answer your original question about the Sins, GOD I wish we got that. I want to see Charlie interacting with all the Sins so badly. Though, I suppose with Amazon not really owning Hazbin Hotel, where all the Sin's have been showing up, I wonder if they'd be able to do an episode like at all.

I don't know. Things to think about.

But to sum up! Thank you so much for this! I know this answer kind of went on long LOL, but you have given me so much brain food and I am eternally grateful 🙏

#gnawing on this #eating it #ingesting it #injecting it directly into my veins #AH I WANT A FULL SEASON #GIMME 26 FULL EPISODES SO WE CAN GET PROPER WORLD BUILDING AND RELATIONSHIP GROWTH BETWEEN THE CHARACTERS #I want ALL the filler #All of it #Where's my beach episode??? #I want the carnival #I want the Hell specific holidays and events #I want to no so much more about how Pentagram City works and the Overlords reltationship with the demon population and the souls they own #AMAZONG STOP BEING CHEAP LITTLE SHITS AND GIVE US A PROPER SEASON GRAAAAAAHHHHH #hazbin hotel #asks #anonymous #anon

[olreid]

riverdale is.. schrodinger's show? ??

lol re tags on this post i assume? this is actually alfie @hypokeimena's phrase #alfiepilled and literally just means that he does not watch the show but does watch us watch the show and so always at any time any plot point or series of events is possible because riverdale exists in a state of totipotency right up until the moment of viewing the footage to see what actually happened which again he crucially never does.

HOWEVER i have adopted this phrase into my own riverdale lexicon because i think it helps to get at something which is usually kind of difficult to articulate about riverdale's method. riverdale, more than your typical tv program, IS a show where anything can happen, and that quality has not changed or diminished over the course of its run. typically, in tv, as you build out the world and the characters, you become better able to predict what will happen next; the window of probable events grows smaller, even if only slightly. people pair off, foreclosing other relationships; they pick a career, choosing one life over other possible lives they might have lived. even shocking plot twists are operating under a set of basic rules that govern how the setting and the genre operate such that the overarching parameters of what is possible in the world don't change. but not so in riverdale! it's not committed to the sanctity of its own canon, which frees the team up to create a show that reminds me more of a collage; different narrative pieces get swapped around to see what kinds of meanings they might produce with very little preciousness about continuity or canonicity compared to other programs. different storylines are repeated by filtering them through new genres to see what emerges. season 7's premise is a perfect example of this!

the other thing about riverdale that makes it schrodinger's show to me is that it is always operating on multiple registers of reality simultaneously, so that any number of things might be happening at once depending on how you're reading it. for example, in the season 3 g&g plot, many episodes are framed by games of g&g that precisely mirror real-world events going on concurrently in town, e.g. jughead accurately describing archie's prison break as it's happening even though he's not physically there. maybe this is just an extradiegetic narrative device; maybe particular characters are omniscient or psychic in some way; maybe the game itself has powers that allow it to shape the world or the story; maybe riverdale itself only has a certain number of pre-set stories that it can tell. the list could go on. the point is that all of these are equally likely; riverdale does not privilege realism or groundedness, really the opposite, but neither does it often confirm for certain that something supernatural is happening. rather, the viewer is left to interpret for themselves; to choose between these options if they want, or perhaps instead to hold them all simultaneously. indeed, riverdale never forces you to pick, to narrow it down; in riverdale, more than any other show i've ever watched, you can have everything you want, and you can have it all at once, because there is no definitive reality, which means everything is pretty much equally (un)real. the cw is pioneering quantum television and we're here to witness it! what a time to be alive!!!

#asks #anon #RIVERDALE

[tothepointofinsanity]

Hello, you may have answered this before and if so I'm sorry, I was just curious about why you tag your Sayaka art as "pre-grief syndrome"? I know the game but I was wondering what its significance to your art is. Incredible art btw

Hello, and no worries. No one has actually asked this question before, and I assumed most people just ran with it. I only realised it sounded the same as the game after discovering it, so that was not my initial intention u_u. It’s tagged as “pre-grief syndrome” in reference to the episodes leading up to/before Sayaka’s witch-out, which emphasises the disillusioned descent of her character and specially her brief self-isolation from the world.

It just means that my works of her are always depicting these events and sentiments because it is a limbo within the timeline where you could interpret for yourself that she is either already a witch and plagued by revisiting her memories or on the verge of becoming a witch and recounting her past few moments of living. It’s like…hell? The period at the height of her regrets will keep repeating itself, stretched infinitely for her to get lost in. As opposed to an AU, I thought of it could be an interesting exploration of her experiences, which are also mingled with elements of my own life; she’s stuck in a state between living and nonexistence super powered by her despair, memories, and the magic of the witch. I hope this explanation has been helpful [?] Thank you for the ask!

#ASKS 💌

[bambiraptorx]

What is your opinion on the mystical magenta goat man? (Draxum)

Good dad? Deserved more screentime/emotional moments with the bois? (they gave us like 2 moments like that in the finale, and I'm sad that it's all we got)

owo

Ooh, I have so many thoughts about Draxum. Buckle up.

First of all, it's worst mentioning that when I started watching Rise, I knew ahead of time that he would get a redemption arc. (Reading the wiki and watching clips/analysis videos is what got me interested in the show, after all.) So admittedly, my view of how his redemption arc went was a little skewed just because I knew from the start that it would happen.

Personally, I wish more of it had been actually shown in the show. We get about ten seconds of him helpless in an alley then a hard cut to him in his apartment being bullied by Mikey, and I would love to see how that series of events played out. Also, his arc from mortal enemy to somewhat trusted by the turtles happened in one eleven minute episode, and I would have loved to see that tension be played with a little more. I do understand that the show was cut short, though, and I'm pretty happy with what we did get.

*looks at all my fics* honestly, I think part of the reason that they're all more or less about Draxum spending time with the turtles one way or another is because that dynamic was so underdeveloped and several things went unaddressed in order to give the show a decently cohesive finale.

For example, the roof incident. Leo is clearly very bitter about it and clearly mistrusts Draxum because of it, but the show just didn't have the opportunity to address it. Another issue that had to go unresolved was Draxum's relationship to Cassandra, because she seriously looked up to/trusted him in their episode together but he more or less threw her under the bus.

Not to mention all the little things that canon hints at but doesn't show. Like, somehow Donnie has Draxum's phone number, meaning they had at least one conversation off screen. How did that happen? Do they hang out or something? And really, the whole story of how Mikey got Draxum to move into an apartment and let him come over is so unexplored, at least within the show.

And speaking of things that canon doesn't show, I find Draxum's position among yokai to be absolutely fascinating, especially given that the only yokai he deals with in the show itself are antagonists to him (Big Mama, the Council of Heads, the cops) aside from the gargoyles.

There's a pretty big hole there about how he interacted with the rest of the Hidden CIty-- did he have friends? DId people know about his research and mutations? What did people think about him? And obviously the narrative doesn't address this because the story is about the turtles, not him. But still.

And why did he choose to create mutants in the first place? Its fascinating that the prophecy that motivates him is never actually shown in the show itself, just referenced. Why was mutating humans the best option to him? Did he try other things? When exactly did the Council tell him not to create warriors?

The timeline is pretty fuzzy, and frankly Draxum's motives aren't actually all that clear. That's probably why there's so many different interpretations of why he's doing what he's doing (and what, exactly, he's actually doing) throughout the fandom-- canon doesn't address it super deeply.

So yeah, his relationships with the turtles are really fun to think about and mess around with, but the gaps in the narrative (not a perfect phrase but the general idea) around him are fascinating to explore in their own right. And whether canon would have explored him more or not, I think its fun so I'm gonna do it lol. I have built so much lore about this man (almost none of which has showed up in my stories) because he's fun.

And he is genuinely a fun character, whether pre or post redemption. He's dramatic, he's arrogant, he makes bad quips (seriously, he has a line about "how very NOT NICE to see you" at one point, and that's how my sister used to talk before she figured out how to actually be sarcastic). He, the big bad of season one, ends up as a lunch lady at one point, which is frankly absurd and absolutely in tone for the kind of show that Rise is. He's a powerhouse at times and completely out of his element at others.

And once he's no longer actively fighting the turtles most of his screen time, there's a goofiness to the nature of his character, a powerful alchemist/warrior trying to live a normal life (mostly because a thirteen year old will yell at him otherwise) and not even trying that hard. Season 2 especially does a lot of fun things with his character, and I only wish that they're been able to do more.

TLDR: Draxum is probably my favorite character, and also I want to hit him with the hammer of 'forced to deal with teenagers'.

#rottmnt #asks #bambi's rambling #and boy did i ramble lmao #all that being said there is a tendency in fandoms of cancelled shows to romanticize what could have been #and treat the cancelled/unwritten seasons as the theoretical best show ever #and like. i don't know that rise would have taken things the direction i would have wanted to see them go or handled everything perfectly #but that's what the fandom is for anyway #to play in the sandbox we found. even if it's unfinished there's sand here #and it doesnt matter how fancy or cool of a sandbox we didn't get #there's still sand here #so. uh. yeah. i rambled again lmao

[nofomogirl]

Before the Beginning (part 1.2.)

Part 1.1. | Part 1.3. | Part 1.4. | Part 1.5. |

Part 2.1. | Part 2.2. | Part 2.3. |

This series of posts is about the opening scene of S2. Obviously. In every X.1. post I will propose one theory of what I believe the scene tells us about the universe and the characters, and then in the following X posts (X.2. and on) I will interpret scenes from both seasons applying and further examining thet theory.

My first theory, which I presented in the opening post, is that the Fall was a far more transformative event than both we, the audience, and the characters in the show, especially Aziraphale, have ever realized. I believe it's communicated to us by showing us pre-Fall Crowley who has no serpentine traits, from which we can infer that he had no serpentine nature either. It had only appeared after the Fall.

Now I'd like to examine the scenes where Crowley's past angelic identity is ever brought up.

In this post, we'll be looking at the (in)famous Bandstand Breakup from S1E3. The beginning of that scene is one of the earliest instances Crowley's past angelic identity is ever brought up properly.

Here's the original dialogue:

A: It's the Great Plan Crowley. C: Yeah. For the record, great pustulent mangled bollocks to the Great blasted Plan! A: May you be forgiven. C: I won't be forgiven. Not ever. That's part of the demon's job description. Unforgivable. That's what I am. A: You were an angel once. C: That was a long time ago.

I'm not going to lie, I didn't notice anything unusual about it after S1. It's a brief exchange and the Bandstand Breakup is a heavily emotional scene, so even after multiple rewatches it got lost for me among all the other things that were going on.

If anything, my interpretation was that Aziraphale meant Crowley might not be as unforgivable as he claims. But I really wasn't thinking too much about it.

But now that I have a reason to look specifically at those two lines, they are very unusual.

Just compare them to the dialogue from the very same episode, from the 1862 St. James Park scene:

C: Look, I've been thinking. What if it all goes wrong? We have a lot in common, you and me. A: I don't know. We may have both started off as angels but you are fallen.

And, OK, this was somewhat unusual too, but only in how extreme it was, not in the sentiment either of them was expressing. It was perfectly on-brand for Crowley to try and bring Aziraphale's attention to how the differences between them weren't really all that big or significant. It was just as perfectly on brand for Aziraphale to insist they were on opposite sides.

In fact, they both express the very same sentiments during the bandstand scene.

Except in those early lines I quoted where their roles are practically reversed for a brief moment. By pointing out that Crowley was an angel once, it's Aziraphale who tries to convince Crowley they are more similar than it may appear. And by brushing Aziraphale off it's Crowley who shuts down that line of reasoning and underlines the divide between them.

You must admit it is unusual.

So why would they?

When it comes to Aziraphale, it's important to remember that at the time this scene was happening, he was in an exceptional and very difficult position. I've already addressed it in one of my older posts, so I'm just going to quote myself:

"At the end of episode 2, Aziraphale learned who and where the Antichrist was and it was the first piece of real information he got that could actually make a difference. He needed to make a choice about what to do with it and it pretty much paralysed him.

First, immediately after finding out, he got a call from Crowley asking for updates and lied claiming he didn't know anything. Then he arranged the meeting with the Archangels but withheld most of the information and when asked directly where the Antichrist might be he lied again that he wasn't sure. Then he met Crowley face to face (this is where the scene we're discussing takes place), once more lied (by omission) about the Antichrist, insisted he wouldn't tell him anyway, and eventually broke up with him. The next day he approached Gabriel and tried to reason with him by mentioning "human prophecies" but not the Antichrist. Then Crowley approached him again and was rejected again. And finally, he got cornered and assaulted by Michael, Uriel, and Sandalphon.

Frankly, I haven't even noticed it before, with all the other scenes in between, and all the emotions involved, but it's a very clear pattern, isn't it? Crowley - Heaven - Crowley - Heaven - Crowley - Heaven. Nothing could illustrate better how Aziraphale was swinging between the two."

Aziraphale is trying to figure out what to do. He's currently in a swing away from Heaven - which put him off the idea of telling them during their meeting - and towards Crowley. He's searching for reasons and arguments why he might choose siding with Crowley. And it's all very high stakes and emotionally intense.

And under all this immense pressure Aziraphale brings up, in a rather small and pleading voice, something that seems uncharacteristic at the time.

"You used to be an angel once".

You used to be like me. You still are.

This was a perfect opening for Crowley. He should have picked that thread and pulled and he would very likely get where he wanted. Starting from there would make it so much easier to back all his arguments and prove all his points. But he didn't.

Crowley straight-up refused to discuss it.

He pretty much shut the door Aziraphale opened for him and then not even a minute later proceeded to try and break through the wall...

Why?

That is a much simpler question. Just like Aziraphale, Crowley was heavily distressed. He didn't know about the Antichrist. He believed he was running out of options and out of time. The world was about to end and he was powerless to do anything about it. He didn't have the mental capacity to reexamine and discuss this very sensitive and problematic topic right then.

We are not done with the scene yet, but for now, let's leave it. In the next post, we'll look at ones when Crowley is a bit more open about the subject - the Job minisode.

#good omens #good omens meta #crowley #aziraphale #ineffable husbands #post series

[thewrongmoon]

writers twitter deep dive

in light of the "let's start a new party" tweet being cracked, i decided to see what else i could find from the writer's account!

DISCLAIMER: some of these things could have potentially been tweeted by an intern or someone who isn't the duffer brothers themselves. as a result, not all of this is 100% definitive proof of anything! with that being said, here is some interesting things I found:

Tweets hinting at future events of S4:

This is a hint at Max's isolation due to her depression in S4.

This one requires some extrapolation. So, let me interpret this picture by picture:

Steve and his high school friends. I can find two potential meanings for this; the first is that this is meant to show how S4 starts with all the kids not in high school. The second is that this is a representation of "forced conformity", as Nancy, who conformed to fit in with Steve's friends, is present.

Will having an episode. I think this is meant to represent the Vecna visions.

The gang in the basement. This is meant to represent the gang, again, brainstorming in Mike's basement in S4.

Completely black screen. I can think of a couple different meanings behind this-- it might be to show a separation between this storyline and vol 2. Or maybe it's meant to hint at Max's death or coma?

again, let's go through this image by image:

Billy. Billy makes a return in S4. He also serves as a metaphor for the ghosts of their past, Max's especially.

Nancy and Jonathan. I think both of these past two tweets are about the Hawkins storyline specifically, so I don't really think it's meant to represent Jncy literally? I think maybe it might be more of a metaphor for the investigation arc that Nancy and Robin go on, seeing as we usually see Jonathan and Nancy take on that role.

The mindflayer. i.e. the big bad, the lingering doom of the season. Obviously we know that that's actually Vecna, but they weren't gonna spoil the season on their twitter, so think of the mindflayer as a placeholder for him.

Steve with the bat protecting the kids. Once again, Steve is trying his best to protect the kids in S4, Max in particular.

I'll acknowledge that this is potentially a stretch. But CMON MAN, Miss VICKIE'S chips? It's a hell of a coincidence if not intentional.

Tweets of four images:

So on top we have an image of Kali and El, an image of Max and El, on bottom we have an image of Will and El, and an image of Mike and El. The two on the left feature El with an adoptive sibling. The two on the right feature El with a close friend (the image of her and Mike is pre-relationship.) All but one of these are non-romantic relationships.

The top two images are Max and El, and Will and El. The bottom two are Mike and El, and Mike and Will.

Once again, we see platonic/familial relationships on top. On the bottom is one romantic relationship and....one relationship that you literally can't label as platonic atp since one is in love with the other. Veeeery interesting placement here.

This one stumped me a bit? The main motif I get is love triangles. Lucas, Max and Dustin were in a love triangle in S2. Dustin is not in the photo with Lumax because their love triangle has been resolved. With Robin, theres two potential paths: Her love triangle featuring her, Tammy, and Steve, or, her trying to get Steve and Nancy together in S4, even when Nancy is dating Jonathan. We also have Dustin looking at her in this configuration, which could represent how he thinks she should date Steve.

And then we have Mike, Will and El. The only set of three here. The only love triangle yet to be resolved.

This one I found interesting because it places the rain fight on the same level as El being traumatized, Max watching her brother be possessed, and Murray watching Alexei being shot. The only other message I can garner is that they're saying these things come back. And we do see that in S4 (El is placed in an isolation tank again, Max is haunted by Billy, Mike and Will have unresolved tension, Murray's Russian skills are needed once again.)

Tweets of single images with lowercase text:

Okay, so if I showed these to a byler on twt I have a feeling they would immediately start doubting and say this means byler has no chance of being endgame. But let me give you my observations on this:

With Jancy and Lumax, there is an adjective given. With mlvn, it's only "love." (you could look into the love being lowercase, I know that's another reoccuring motif.)

I think it's interesting that they chose this word for mlvn. namely because it's literally the exact word Mike cannot bring himself to say to El. THAT is what I believe they are foreshadowing with these tweets.

Also, most other mentions of love on their account is in a platonic sense. See: this tweet featuring a gif of Steve and Dustin.

the only other example of them using the word "love" I found was this one of Nancy:

In which, I believe, she is talking to Steve. So this is another mlvn/stncy parallel!

they also don't just make these lowercase + image tweets with couples. Here's one with El and Hopper!

Miscellaneous interesting tweets:

A mention of Wonder Woman. In relation to El using her super powers. Once again, the only person who compares her to male superheroes is Mike.

For you lettergate truthers, here's another instance of a letter being put in the left chest pocket (by the heart in their own words!)

Likening Max and Mike's relationship to El

Not once, but TWICE they did this! Directly comparing the way Max and Mike "love and support El" despite the fact that one is her best friend, and the other is her boyfriend.

Honestly, they don't tweet many pictures of byler? But this is one of the few i did find. Actually, funnily enough, this is the notorious 53 minutes 5 seconds time code. Makes you think that they were aware of it, hmmmm?

#long post #analysis #byler #stranger things

[starry-fantasies]

An Attempt to Clinically Analyze Sephiroth's Psychosis at Nibelheim

Sephiroth has fascinated me as a villain for a long time, but I’ve also struggled to “figure him out” for just as long. For all the simplicity of his villainous goals (i.e. become a god, destroy the world), it’s really the heart of his breakdown in Nibelheim that confounded me regarding his motives and the causal factors behind how he becomes what he becomes. I think Sephiroth's story can be interpreted in drastically different ways depending on how you see the explanations for his breakdown preceding the Nibelheim Incident. Not to mention, there’s the multiple retellings of the incident within the Compilation and the inconsistencies that come with it.

I’m still in the process of unraveling how to approach Sephiroth’s psychology, so this won’t be a regular analysis. Rather, this is mostly going to be a stream-of-consciousness type of piece, where I just let my thoughts flow. Definitely expect some stuff to sound rough or disjointed, and possibly some inaccurate facts due to my terrible memory (please let me know). Also, for the sake of the most updated canon, we will go with the Crisis Core version of events.

~Major FFVII and Crisis Core spoilers ahead~

Psychosis

Firstly, I want to address the clinical term that can describe what happened to Sephiroth at Nibelheim. I’ve heard people call it a mental breakdown or psychotic break, among other things. If we want to be consistent with the psychiatric language of the DSM-5, we would say that Sephiroth experienced the onset of a psychotic episode.

Psychotic episodes are a state of significant psychological disturbance that involves a loss of touch with shared reality. Historically, what we now know as psychotic episodes were once called madness or insanity. The duration of an episode affects what type of psychotic disorder would apply, but overall, psychosis can be either transient or continuous.

It’s hard to say which is the case for Sephiroth, specifically because of how his prognosis transforms pre- and post-Lifestream dip. Pre-Lifestream, it’s clear that he went into an abrupt and severe state of psychosis. Even though there were already warning signs prior to when he holed himself up in the Shinra mansion basement, Sephiroth’s behavior change still occurred in a short amount of time and marked a drastic change from the anguish and confusion he initially experienced upon first learning what Jenova is. He is experiencing a psychotic episode that marks a clear departure from his prior functioning.

Afterwards though, Sephiroth learns what Jenova truly is and makes a conscious decision to use its power and influence over the Lifestream for his own means. At this point, we can’t say that it’s a temporary condition. Not to mention, the question of how much Jenova is influencing Sephiroth also complicates how we understand Sephiroth’s psychology. At best, I would say that post-Lifestream Sephiroth is experiencing an ongoing psychotic disturbance.

Delusions

At the heart of Sephiroth’s turning point to villainy is a delusion, a fixed and false belief that is resistant to change even in the presence of contradictory evidence. Although I've seen it used a lot in casual contexts, delusions are in fact a clinical term for distorted beliefs. Essentially, delusions exist beyond reason and cannot be logically refuted. Delusions are a hallmark feature of psychosis, involving a resistance to the facts of reality that conflict with one’s beliefs.

There are several reasons that someone might develop a delusion. Obviously these reasons aren't always mutually exclusive, but I think what reason you attribute to Sephiroth's breakdown influences how you understand it.

Certain people are genetically predisposed to delusional thinking. Jenova. Injected in the womb. Supernatural prenatal development. Need I say more?

People come up with distorted ways of explaining the unexplainable. This is the type of thinking that is linked to an inclination for conspiracy theories. Sephiroth was searching for answers about his birth and origins, and with false, piecemeal information, he formed the erroneous conclusion that he was a Cetra. I wouldn't say this is the driving force behind his decision to burn down Nibelheim, but you can see the gateway to vengeance through this avenue.

People have trouble coping with life and preserving their self-esteem, therefore they use delusions to attempt to uphold it. This is the most sympathetic perspective, mainly because it boils Sephiroth down to the misunderstood savant that is mourning the loss of his self-worth. More on this later, since this is the angle I see portrayed most in Crisis Core.

People experience significant life stressors, such as low socioeconomic status, trauma, and drastic life changes that heavily influence how they perceive and understand the world. We could create a whole list of known or presumed "life stressors" in Sephiroth's life, but if we want to highlight a specific one, it would be the discovery of the Jenova Project files. It could be argued that it was deeply traumatizing to him, enough to rock his worldview.

Reasons aside, there are also several different types of delusions classified in the DSM-5. I think Sephiroth shows features of at least two types. You could say Sephiroth experienced a grandiose delusion, or what you might know as a delusion of grandeur. This is defined by the belief that one is extremely powerful or important. Sometimes it even takes on a religious bend, leading to the belief that one is omnipotent or holy. Sephiroth believed he was the last of the Cetra race, one that was more connected to and respectful of the planet compared to humanity. He was "the chosen one to rule this planet," someone exceptional and superior to everyone else.

You could also say that Sephiroth was experiencing a persecutory delusion. This is when someone believes he is "being conspired against, cheated, spied on, followed, poisoned, maliciously maligned, harassed, or obstructed in the pursuit of long-term goals." Sephiroth drew the conclusion that he had a duty to punish humanity for persecuting the ancient Cetra. He believed he had to pursue vengeance for Jenova and for Cetrakind. People with persecutory delusions tend to demonstrate significant anger and violent behavior, which also checks out with Sephiroth's subsequent decision to burn down Nibelheim.

Obviously, both the grandiose and persecutory delusions transform a bit when Sephiroth learns about Jenova's true nature as an extraterrestrial, not a Cetra. But that's a conversation for another time; remember, we're talking about the psychotic episode that became the gateway to Sephiroth's villainy. So, let's backtrack a bit and talk about how Crisis Core chose to lean into a sympathetic portrayal of Sephiroth's psychology.

Self-Concept

We still know very little about Sephiroth’s childhood and upbringing (although it looks like Ever Crisis may change that?), aside from several key facts. We know that he was born an experiment, having been injected with Jenova cells in the womb. We know he was essentially raised by Shinra and did not get to experience a normal childhood. He was known to be a prodigious fighter and was the reason that the SOLDIER program was created. As a teenager, he fought in the Wutai War and gained his status as a war hero.

This is all to say that though Sephiroth knew little of his childhood, he knew one thing for certain. He was a very good fighter, and a hero to Shinra. Sephiroth’s established self-concept revolves around this fact. He was likely praised and lauded for his wartime achievements, and even before then, we can presume that Shinra scientists noted him to be an exceptional fighter. He was the epitome of prestige and strength.

Let’s contrast that with the information he gains right before the Nibelheim Incident. When Sephiroth sees the monsters at the reactor and begins to question his connection to them, he began to mull over his identity and existence. Sephiroth knew he was unusual and exceptional even as a child, and he said so himself that he doesn't know what it was like to have parents or a hometown to speak of. Genesis then reinforces what Sephiroth feared, that he is a monster and a product of experimentation. He was told he was subhuman, repulsive, an abomination.

Sephiroth’s self-concept started as that of a prodigy, someone who is an extremely capable fighter. After the war in Wutai, he was labeled a war hero. Once he was led to believe that he was a monster, this shatters his worldview. He went from seeing himself as a prominent hero to seeing himself as subhuman. This is further driven by the fact that Sephiroth had already lacked answers about his origins and craved a sense of home, of parental warmth and connection. Because of this gap in his history, the premise that he was no more than a monster was eerily plausible. With his self-concept dramatically rocked, he was left starving for answers to what he is. This is what led him down the rabbit hole, seeking an explanation that would either tell him that he was not a monster, or that his initial self-concept can still be upheld somehow.

And thus, Sephiroth was in a vulnerable place where a grandiose or persecutory delusion can uphold his self-esteem and self-concept. If Jenova is truly the last of an ancient race, then Sephiroth is exceptional, not an abomination. If the Cetra had powers that humans didn't have, then Sephiroth was powerful, not just a monster. The delusion takes hold because it is something Sephiroth needed in order to preserve his worldview, his belief that he is special and important.

This is how Crisis Core gets you to sympathize with Sephiroth. He's painted as a lonely savant that lacked a home and a family, and so when he was told he was a monster, his self-concept was shattered and radically warped. In order for him to protect it, he needed to come up with a delusion that would uphold his understanding of the world. Sound familiar? I don't think it's a coincidence that Sephiroth's psychology here sounds parallel to Cloud's, especially since I've considered delusional disorder for them both.

It'll be a while before I gather enough thoughts to move onto how Sephiroth progressed from this state to his post-Lifestream-dip, Meteor-summoning, god-seeking self. But for now, I think this helps paint a picture of how I've been trying to conceptualize him.

#final fantasy vii #final fantasy 7 #final fantasy 7 remake #final fantasy vii remake #ffvii #ff7 #final fantasy 7 crisis core #final fantasy 7 crisis core reunion #ff7 crisis core #crisis core #crisis core reunion #sephiroth

[aeternallis]

i want to hear all the violence: 14, 16, and 18 !!!

14) that one thing you see in fics all the time

In a lot of Kimchay reconciliation fics on Ao3, a lot of authors like to write Chay running away and going off on his own.

And don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I can’t see that scenario of Chay leaving post-canon events as a plausible idea at all, but rather it’s that I disagree with the impulsivity with which he usually makes that decision in the fic, yknow? The impulsivity is mostly based on how he regards both Porsche and Kim at the moment, instead of it being a well-thought out decision on his part and giving the appropriate weight of consideration it deserves. And by this I mean more often than not, the running away scenario is a result of feeling abandoned or left behind by Porsche and/or the betrayal from Kim.

And see, I’ve always been a firm believer that Chay is a very strong, brave, and rational character, so the running away thing is an antithesis to this belief. Despite his young age, the narrative tells us that he's not as naïve as one might expect, and he knows his own worth and steadfastness. I’ve said it before too that at where BOC leaves Chay in the final episode, he has more reasons to stay than not.

He no longer looks at Porsche with the idealization of a younger brother, but it doesn't mean his loyalty to him is any less than it was before. His anger over Kim's lies and perhaps the sudden changes in his life is clouding his judgement, but it doesn't mean he loves Kim any less, or that he wants to cut ties with everyone in his life completely.

So the Chay running away scenario is something I can see under only specific circumstances, but it's an interesting interpretation by a lot of writers for the KP fandom that this character would completely drop everything based on emotional impulse alone.

16) you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

The babygirl/uwu-fication of one Kimhant Theerapanyakul--//HITS It's a bit vague, but certain headcanons such as:

-acts like a cat / loves cats -not knowing how to act on his emotions -not knowing how to articulate his feelings -no confidence in taking the lead in his relationship with Chay -allowing for Chay to bully him because of his lies, lol

Lol I've said it a lot of times, but I might as well go a bit more in-depth with it on here lol

Okay, see--here's the thing: it's hard for me to see Kim as having any soft edges or any weird, lovable quirks outside of his interaction with Chay and/or his brothers, because throughout the entire show, there's an air of mystery surrounding his character that BOC never quite shakes off. Honestly, my ongoing theory about that is the fact that they may be setting Kim up to be the "true" heir to the throne, as established in the novel. Which again, brings him a little bit closer to his book counterpart.

He's the only character in the show that has no comedic scenes--most if not all of his scenes are either soft/sweet w/ Chay pre-break up, rude to Big, an asshole to strangers, and angst post-break up, lol

He's a very controlled, serious-minded character who is capable of being vulnerable and open with only a select few people, but it's not his default state whatsoever. I don't think it means that he doesn't know how to act on his emotions, since the show shows us the contrary: he's physically affectionate with Chay once the latter confesses to him, and he didn't hesitate to sing to Chay of his feelings and his remorse for his actions that have hurt them both.

These aren't the actions of someone who's awkward with feelings and isn't aware of them; on the contrary, it goes to show that he's all too aware of them, hence his controlling nature from the beginning and his need to know what's going on.

Kim is definitely a character who understands what he wants and the effort he has and is willing to make in order to get it, be it Chay or wanting to know the machinations of his father and their family. Because of this, I just don't want to give disservice to his character by thinking that he's not capable of what he can actually do.

18) it's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on...

THIS VERSION OF KORN! He's so different from the Korn in the show who's all scheming and be playing 4D chess with everyone in this life, and I'm just so surprised that not many creatives in the fandom has utilized him????

He just screams divorced male dad energy who miraculously got custody of all 3 kids during the divorce proceedings w/ the ex and doing his best to keep himself and his 3 sons afloat, all the while running an illegal empire on the side. XD

For example, the chocolate factory thing: he wants to get it off the ground for sentimental reasons, and the wrappers for the chocolates depicts his 3 kids. Adshjhjkhfdkj

For reals, I would have loved to have seen how this version of Korn would have changed the tone of the story, yknow? In the book, he definitely gives off that aura of an exhausted father who's doing his best to leave behind a legacy for his children, even if it means at the questionable cost of trampling on everyone else.

The fact that in the book he's divorced and the boys' mama left the family just a little while after Kim was born is honestly an interesting backstory for this guy, and I for one am here for it. LOL

#kimchay #kinnporsche #my ramblings #asks #korn theerapanyakul #meta

[thestupidhelmet]

Wondering why Jackie didn’t feel anything when her and Hyde kissed in S3 ep 8. Hyde obviously felt something, why do you think he didn’t really act on it until later seasons? Was he just pining the whole time?

T7S writers' reason: they were going for irony. The whole time Jackie pursues Hyde romantically while he continually rebuffs her, he's the one who ends up having developed true romantic feelings while Jackie finally realizes hers weren't real but made-up as a coping mechanism (for her grief about Kelso's betrayal and the loss of her relationship with him).

In T7S Universe reason: the kiss breaks Jackie's fantasy about her imagined romantic feelings for Hyde and shoves her back into reality: her loneliness plus Hyde's compassion during a very vulnerable time created a mental-emotional delusion. Grief and pain can make a person convince themself of many false things -- out of self-preservation.

As much as I enjoy exploring the idea that Jackie was afraid of what she feels for Hyde during that kiss, and the fact they eventually do get together romantically gives support to this interpretation, that wasn't the writers' intention.

As for Hyde, since Jackie admits to feeling nothing (romantic) for him in the kiss, he believes there's no point in revealing how he truly feels toward her.

One can reasonably interpret that his romantic feelings for her remain despite him suppressing them. He acts passive-aggressively toward and annoyed by Jackie and Kelso's renewed relationship. True, he acts the same in seasons one and two, but in the context of now having romantic feelings for Jackie, his motivation seems different.

Before, he wants his partner in crime (and bud) back and obnoxious, nuisance Jackie out of the basement and his life. This time, he struggles watching the girl he likes (loves?) be with someone else and, especially, someone who hurt her so badly.

Once Jackie breaks up with Kelso in the summer between S4 and S5 (via letter), and she and Hyde find themselves hanging out with each other most of the time that summer, they've obviously grown comfortable with each other. Instead of keeping their physical distance, they sit on the basement couch together. She's barefoot, and in a promo shot for "Going to California" (5x01) he's not wearing his sunglasses during the scene that shows them on the couch together, an indication of just how comfortable with her presence he's become. In the episode itself, they used the take where he's wearing his sunglasses, but his new comfort with Jackie is still obvious in the scene.

Even though their romantic relationship begins in earnest, Hyde hasn't forgotten that Jackie used him in S2-S3 to ease or forget the pain of losing her relationship with Kelso and why she lost it. That's his interpretation of events, at least, and it left him with deep insecurity about Jackie's feelings for him. Considering that both his parents (pre-W.B.) used him then abandoned him, transferring this wound onto Jackie is understandable (albeit not right) -- especially since she did essentially same thing to him previously.

#that 70s show #jackie x hyde #that '70s show #jackie burkhart #steven hyde #ask #anon #my meta #meta #essay #my essay

[inconsistentlywrittensoul]

What's My Line part 1 thoughts:

MR GORDO! And Angel can't help playing with him. Someone should really get that guy some plushies of his own - you know he'd love cuddling with them.

Angel: "It's career week." Buffy: "How did you know?" Angel: "I lurk." Angel:

God, he's such an awkward, pathetic disaster [affectionate]. And he knows he is! When he's with Buffy, he's just fumbling around, trying to sound vaguely person-like. But because he's big and quiet and vampiric, everyone interprets his awkwardness as badass brooding.

Buffy says ACAB. Honestly, this subplot is just reminding me how how pre-9/11, the view of cops as corrupt, lazy and/or violent was pretty standard across pop-culture. (I'm currently playing Miles Morales: Spider-Man and it's so weird the way these games treat the NYPD as unambiguous allies, compared to how most Spider-man media has always treated them.)

Buffy and Giles' interactions feel like a regression after the last four eps developing their relationship. To be fair, Buffy is regressing a little due to having feelings about her life (never a good idea, always suppress those), but it still feels odd.

Looking at Spike's obsession with Buffy here, you can really see the origins of his feelings for her, on both a Watsonian and Doylist level.

Snyder, to Xander: "Whatever comes out of your mouth is a meaningless waste of breath. An airborn toxic event." Huh, is Principal Snyder part of the Buffy fandom? He really sounds like the Buffy fandom here.

Feel like Willow and Oz's big computer company opportunity isn't quite as exclusive as they're making it seem, if two students from a small town are being offered it.

Wonder how you comission the Order of Whatever. Is there a ritual, or do you just call them? Do you pay in money? Magical relics? Virgin sacrifices?

The ice-skating is really pretty. That's it, don't have any critical thoughts, it's just super pretty.

The piano soundtrack here isn't the iconic Buffy/Angel theme, but it sounds a little similar? But more innocent. Is this like an earlier variation? I guess it makes sense - this feels like their first real date beyond coffee at the Bronze; the first time they feel like they're in an actual relationship together. Which is kinda weird when they've already confessed their love, but idk, I guess teenagers and vampires are like that.

"Kill as many of these assassins as you want, it won't make any difference. They won't stop. Unless you kill three of them, then they'll stop and never come back. But otherwise? They're completely unstoppable."

Has Buffy been to Angel's place before? It looks significantly nicer than where he was staying in 'Angel'. Fits with the sense that he's gradually learning to be a person. I do wonder how she knows where he lives, though. Like, that can happen off screen, but first time at his place seems like a significant step?

And now Xander has named the Scooby Gang the Scooby Gang! If you don't like the name, blame him. (The writing of Cordelia in this scene feels very Season One though. Not great.)

And Kendra's finally here! Man, these episodes are really paying tribute to Chris Claremont with this accent.

#i think this show might be a bad influence on me #my quips are sounding increasingly xander-ish #xanderesque #xanderogynous #btvs #Buffy the Vampire Slayer #btvs rewatch #What's My Line #What't My Line part 1

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

Ողջույն👋

Do you have any tips for writing Carlisle? For example, episodes from his work, human life, or something else?

General Writing Advice

Personally, I find writing scenes without purpose extremely difficult/not producing the best results. Obviously, everyone's unique, but if the characters don't have anything to do then they tend to just sit around not having anything to do.

Even something like a one-shot should have a point (reflection on an event, relationship, etc.).

So taking an episode from his work, human life, or anything else without asking the question "why am I showing this" or "what point am I trying to make" to me is the wrong way to approach it.

If you want the character to do something, he should have something to do.

Writing Characters in General

Once again we get into the weird realm of how I personally write the man versus how everyone else might. There's a lot of interpretations of Carlisle across fandom and even if I don't agree with all of them based on what we see in the text, none of them are wrong. Fandom's about having fun which means you can do whatever the fuck you want.

If movie Carlisle is your game, go for it, if fanon Carlisle's your man, go for it.

The trick with any character is to be consistent. You should have an understanding of them such that if X happens you know they'd respond with Y. This keeps the story from feeling contrived and as if they're being forced to react in whatever way the author wants them to.

If you keep it consistent and you write well then readers won't really care if it lines up with their exact interpretation of the character.

Tips on Writing Carlisle

A lot on Carlisle Cullen in here

However, I assume you came to my house for a reason and that you're asking specifically how to characterize Carlisle Cullen in the way that I and @therealvinelle do.

So, I'll give the general roundup characterization advice we've given for other characters in the past (thus far Aro and Lily Evans).

Carlisle is Religious

Carlisle is fundamentally a religious character. This is brought up in canon and is one of the first things you learn about him: he believes in God.

Now, this one is also very tricky as I've seen a lot of writers having no idea where to even start with this. Most writers I see... the only way I can describe it is they write a very Catholic, flagellating, God-fearing Carlisle Cullen. This is how writers in general write any religious character. That's fine, that is a way to interpret his character, but it's not what @therealvinelle and I go for.

Our thoughts are that Carlisle had to do a lot of philosophizing after becoming a vampire and essentially has his own doctrine. Because of this, out of the Cullens, he's one of the least haunted by what he is personally (a vampire) and is not necessarily married to interpretations of the bible we see in either the past or even the modern day. (The man canonically advocates abortion).

Regardless of how you choose to interpret him, you have to address the religion in some way or another.

Carlisle Thinks a Lot

We're talking about a guy who did the above section (rethink his religion) upon becoming a demon. He had large problems (such as trying not to eat people) and yet this is something he spends significant time and thought on.

We're talking about a very introspective guy then who is interested by abstract ideas and the way the world works. (As opposed to Emmett who would have no interest in such things).

This is probably not going to apply just to religion but to a lot of other facets including "should I turn dying people into vampires" (something he canonically confesses pondering to Bella), "what the fuck is up with Renesmee biologically" (less esoteric but still a very nerd topic with no real answers until Nahuel comes around).

Not to mention pre-canon his regard for the Volturi who were probably the most learned of the vampires he ever came across.

Carlisle is noted to have pursued several different fields before settling on becoming a doctor.

We're talking about someone very curious about the world, to the point where he's clearly not bored/moping after 350 years (as opposed to Edward who's only been doing this 100 years and is a brooding bored mess).

He's someone who wants to do things, learn things, and be a part of the world and keep up with it.

Carlisle's Way or the Highway

Canonically, Edward had to leave when he left the diet. Granted, Edward chose to do this of his own accord, but Carlisle didn't chase him down or try to negotiate with him.

You either try to do the diet to the best of your ability or you're out.

Edward was already a very close companion of Carlisle, Carlisle had broken down after three hundred years of loneliness, not to mention Edward was very distressed and very young: didn't matter.

What this says that is for better or worse Carlisle will stick to his principles even if those closest around him do not.

An important note on this is because of this Carlisle assumes that his family, those around him, share the exact same principles even if they do not (for all the Cullens think that they share them as well). It's unthinkable to him, even in canon where he sees evidence now and then, that they don't actually care that much for human life and more the Cullen lifestyle and moral superiority of it all.

He's Ridiculously Stubborn

We're talking about someone who crawled into rotting potatoes while dying, managing to stay silent, then crawling his way out of London without eating anyone and spending the next N days trying to kill himself until he crawled into the woods to starve painfully to death.

He discovers the animal diet, lives on cardboard for the rest of his life despite having a few morsels of blood here and there as he starts turning people, even when Aro's literally dropping corpses on the floor in front of him.

He then leaves Volterra despite having no idea where he's going, a good chance of getting killed, all for the chance that he might find someone on the diet or convince someone to do it.

He is unbelievably stubborn to the point where... Edward and Bella are close contenders but Carlisle's doing very well in the stubborn race himself.

The exception is that he compromises when it comes to his family/things that don't just affect him. In Twilight, he wants to move when it's clear Bella's Edward's singer and the van incident occurs. Nobody else wants to move though and Alice announces Edward's in love with Bella so... they stay... he guesses... In the Bella/Edward relationship, like everyone else, he lets Edward handle that one as it's not really his business.

He's Very Likeable

Everybody likes Carlisle. To a really weird extent actually, and by far he's the most outwardly charming of the Cullens.

Otherwise

You got anything else, @therealvinelle

#twilight #twilight renaissance #writing advice #carlisle cullen #meta #opinion #vinelle #therealvinelle

[princeescaluswords]

Random question, Prince. Do you think Lydia had any banshee experiences before Peter bit her? Maybe little incidents she kind of shrugged off?

I think it's most likely that she was slowly beginning to experience manifestations of her power. After all, Lorraine foresaw her need for supernatural protection. Peter's bite was simply "the spark that lit [her] fire" earlier than it might have happened naturally. For evidence, I want to look at three scenes from the show that indicated Lydia having supernatural insight before Formality (1x11).

The first is a flashback happening all the way in Season 5's Required Reading (5x06). Now, since it is a flashback, there is an air of unreality to it, but I'll argue that, while the details could have been different, the event still happened.

We know that Lorraine Martin was a patient at Eichen House, where she was in the care and ultimately murdered by Brunski. There was at least one situation where Natalie was called into the mental health facility. In the flashback, Lorraine had drilled a hole in her head. What exactly happened can be up to interpretation; it could have been Lydia's powers trying to warn her of what Valack was going to do to her. But we do know that Lydia found her way to the scene, only for Natalie to yell at her "I told you to stay in the car!"

Why did Lydia go in there? How was she able to infiltrate Eichen House, which as dingy and horrific as it was, still seemed to have formidable security? I would argue that Lydia got in the same way Meredith seemed to be able to get out when the other banshee felt like she needed to do so: her powers. Lydia needed to see what had happened to her grandmother, so -- much like her fugue states later on when she became a teenager -- she went where she needed to be in order for that to happen.

Now, the reason I think this really occurred and it wasn't a novel-induced nightmare were two separate scenes -- the first is in The Last Chimera (5x11) where a psychically traumatized Lydia warns her mother by repeating that phrase "I told you to stay in the car!" and Lydia's later reaction to Jackson's insistence that she stay in the car in Night School (1x07). Just it is possible that the traumatized Lydia was trying to warn her mother not to let Valack/Fenris take her to Eichen House, Lydia subconsciously sensed that something dangerous was going to happen to people she cared about (at the time, Allison and Jackson) inside the school. Her insistence on going inside could be instinctual, as she had no problem waiting in the car earlier that season, in The Tell (1x05).

That is also the scene which I believe is the third pre-Formality manifestation of Lydia's powers. She did not get a flash of insight in front of the Videos 2C, but she did scream. I would argue that this is the first scene where particular attention was paid to not only Lydia screaming, but on her face and her mouth while she was screaming. It was not just out of shock -- she had no idea that there was a dead body and Jackson had been attacked -- it was a reaction to Peter's presence and what he meant for her and all the people she cared about. The show wanted us to think the scream as noteworthy.

Because so does Peter. When the Sheriff shows Deaton the footage from the security camera in front of Videos 2C, they see Peter change from alpha-monster to human form a few feet behind the car in which Lydia is in. Why? In previous episodes, Peter hasn't shown any trouble staying in that form, so why take human form where he could be seen? My head canon is that he heard something in Lydia's scream, something that shocked him before leading him to realize that she would be perfect for his "back-up plan." Peter demonstrates throughout the show a wider knowledge of the esoteric than Derek does (the ritual to heal Cora, True Alphas, berserkers, even nogitsunes). I suspect he either recognized a banshee's wail the same way the Darach did or he was interested enough to do a little research in that laptop he transferred all of the Hale family files to a few weeks after he got out of the coma.

#lydia martin #teen wolf meta #peter hale #natalie martin #jackson whittemore #lorraine martin

[mortalfollies]

List 5 topics you can talk on for an hour without preparing any material.

a challenge from @ginevralinton

i um don’t have any topics that i consider myself an expert on (i have approximate knowledge of many things). anyway, here ya go!

oneirology: psychologists really spew a lot of shit about dream interpretation, fuck freud, dreams are cool, you shouldn’t rely on some quack (spiritualist or psychologist) for an interpretation, please listen to scientists and understand that your dreams are for your memory to process events & your imagination to go fuckin hogwild (if you’re lucky like me. sucks to be one of those people that has boring dreams or doesn’t remember them). but also damn isn’t it cool that there are some near universal symbols for hope (eg. birds) and fear (teeth falling out & other typical nightmare stuff). pls tell me about recurring symbols in your dreams. mine usually feature birds and travelling through a fantastical place.

disney’s frozen, and what a clusterfuck the entire production of it was: blame my 13 year old self for this but seriouslyyyy there was so much that got cut and rearranged and the concepts were way cooler and the world would be a better place if let it go had never been written, i’m not joking!!! there was gonna be a curse!!! the film was actually going to be about sisters!! AUGHHHHHH

frasier: hey did you know they made roz have a baby because executives thought she should “have a repercussion” (aka be punished) for sleeping around? isn’t that fucked up. did u know bulldog’s actor is gay? lilith is so hot & funny & human & im in love with her. did u know that one of the creators of the show died in 9/11, and that’s why they named the baby david? here’s my slideshow on why frasier’s should’ve ended up with lana. here’s why s4e6 “mixed doubles” is one of the finest pieces of sitcom television - i actually just deleted a whole paragraph bc i could talk about that episode alone, god i love it.

commedia dell’arte: harlequin <3 columbina <3 innamorata of various names <3 i’m not a big fan of pierrot but i understand the hype. more of an opinion piece on how the costumes & archetypes have been used throughout history (pre&post commedia) and why i think they remain semi popular.

making bread: less of a talking thing where i tell you what to do and more of a come into my kitchen, sit at the bench and let’s eat. i love you. use more water in the dough. yeah no we’ll put it in the fridge overnight. oh look at those bubbles. listen to that crack. maybe five more minutes in the oven. put some butter on that finished thing. and then we eat and sit quietly. this is something i like to do. usually lasts more than a single hour tho

tagging @cactus-bag @sleeeepy-demon @belladonnafey @retourne-toi-eurydice & anyone else that wants to.

P.S don’t reblog this from me pls i don’t like threads! i just like being tagged!

#i’ll wake up in the morning and remember something else i could easily talk about but whatever #anyway this was a reallllly fun one! #thanks grace!! #u guys r the 4 most likely to respond so only ones i’m gonna tag lol #s/o to my bestie for always sharing dreams w me. love u g