#why is this team so dismal lol

[longeyelashedtragedy]

the fans are leaving at 16th min...wow

#i just feel Bad #ihc watches arsenal #why is this team so dismal lol

[babysukiii]

how long can we be a sad song? (till we are too far gone to bring back to life)

modern day high school au

// your girlfriend lottie has always made it clear soccer is her main priority. when nationals near and she begins ignoring you, your final straw seems to be when she lashes out at you. //

warnings: angst but kinda fluffy at the end, breakups, asshole!lottie, jock!lottie, she’s mean for like a minute lol

you let out a quiet sigh as you sit on the bleachers and watch your girlfriend and laura lee continue to practice on the soccer field. even though practice ended an hour ago. finally, laura lee announces she needs to get home, and she waves at you as she makes her way off the field. you look over at lottie who’s offering you a smile. it’s way too late to go and watch that movie in town you wanted to see, so you know now your only option is hanging out at one of your houses.

you stand up, making your way down the bleachers and over to your girlfriend. “did you still want to hang out?” lottie asks, “i’m a bit tired, maybe we can just catch the movie tomorrow?” lottie offers and you feel your entire mood sour even more than it already was. “i just waited two hours to hang out with you.” you point out, and the raven haired girl frowns. “i never asked you to wait. i told you i have to really focus on nationals.” lottie states sternly, and you nod. “i know that. i know nationals is super important to you… but you’ve blown me off for three weeks now because of it. i just thought… i don’t know, you’d make a little time for me too.” your voice is quiet, and soft. you don’t sound angry but you sound disappointed.

lottie feels a wave of guilt wash over her. “i’m sorry. tomorrow i’ll leave as soon as coach ben ends practice. promise.” she insists, sounding so sincere you actually believe her. your dismal expression is quickly replaced by a happy one. you nod, “okay. can you meet me at my place tomorrow after practice? i have a piano lesson at my house so i can’t watch you practice.” you admit and she nods, flashing you the same smile you fell in love with. “of course, babe. come on, i’ll drive you home.” she offers kindly, and your heart skips a beat as she reaches for your hand, interlocking her fingers with yours.

the next day at school you spent the entire day eager for it to end. you couldn’t wait to see the barbie movie, and you had been going on and on about how excited you were about it. you even missed going with your friends, in order to see it with lottie because she promised. after school, you give lottie a kiss goodbye and made your way to your sisters car.

what you expect after your piano lesson is lottie to text you that she’s outside and waiting for you. but what happens is you get ready for your date, and you end up waiting two hours. two hours and not a single text or call from lottie. you don’t even bother texting her more than once because you feel so emotionally exhausted. she’s been putting you aside all year for soccer, and sure, at first you understood. this could get her a scholarship… but she’s rich! she could afford to get into any school, and play on any college team…

maybe she just doesn’t want to hang out with me.

“honey, why are you all dolled up? you have plans?” your mother asks you, walking out of the kitchen wearing an apron that’s stained with some sort of red sauce. “no. not anymore. i was supposed to hang out with lottie today, but… she canceled for soccer practice again.” you confess hesitantly and your mother nods. “that girls gonna burn herself out with all the practice she does.” she comments jokingly, but you’re not in the mood to laugh. your mother realizes something is wrong right away.

“mom, do you think… do you think lottie likes soccer more than she likes me?” you question, your voice laced with insecurity. your mother laughs as if you’ve said the funniest thing on the planet. “that’s absurd, mija (sweetheart), that girl once walked all the way here just to give you flowers.” your mother reminds and you feel a pang of hurt hit your heart. “she… she just doesn’t do those things anymore. she’s always been so serious about soccer but this year? god, she’s been a nightmare. did i tell you allie broke her leg during a practice scrimmage? that’s how serious they’re taking this…” you trail off and the older woman’s eyes widen a bit at the revelation.

“she’s just a different person these days. it doesn’t feel like she likes me very much anymore.” you admit sadly, and your mother frowns. “have you talked to her about this?” she inquires uncertainly, and you nod. “not all of it, but i have told her i feel like she puts soccer before me and our relationship a lot.” you explain, “she always says it’s just in my head, and that she loves me… but she stood me up again after promising she wouldn’t and i—“ your voice cracks and your mother rushes over to you. “honey, no. this— this isn’t right. you need to talk to her about this. all of it.” the older woman says sternly, and you sniffle as you wipe a tear away. you’ve always been so sensitive and this entire situation was getting to you.

“what if— what if we break up? or what if she confirms that she does think soccer is more important? i… i don’t know if i can handle that.” you whisper the last part and the raven haired woman shakes her head. “well you’re going to have to, because the longer you let this fester, the worse you’re going to feel.” she comments stringently, causing you to look up at her with sad eyes. “y-you’re right. i’ll talk to her tomorrow.” you assure her, and just as your mother is about to respond, your phone starts vibrating.

the screen lights up with texts from lottie, and you look at your mom. “it’s her.” you say, and she shrugs. “don’t respond for a few hours. come help me with dinner, it’ll get your mind off her.” she suggests, and you press your lips together. “isn’t ignoring her just as bad?” you question and she shakes her head, “you’re just giving her a taste of her own medicine. come on; leave the phone there and come help me.” your mother insists, helping you off the couch and gesturing your towards the kitchen.

all your mother let you do was chop up some zucchini, and set the table. still, talking with her about other things than lottie was nice. and talking about lottie definitely gave you some perspective. you were definitely going to talk to your girlfriend about this, and you were going to put your foot down. you weren’t going to make her choose between you and soccer; you’d never even consider doing that. you just wanted a little time, and to maybe be prioritized a little better.

after dinner you end up going upstairs, taking a shower, washing your face, and brushing your teeth. you wander around your bedroom, nirvana blasting on your speaker as you dry your hair. your phone chimes again, signaling you got another text.

(7;56 p.m) lottie: tai made us practice late again, i’m sorry. can we reschedule?

(7;57 p.m) lottie: this saturday is all yours! i promise!

(8;12 p.m) lottie: hello?

(8;15 p.m) lottie: my texts are delivering, so i know your phones on.

(8;20 p.m) lottie: i’m really sorry about the movie

(9;33 p.m) lottie: no phone call tonight?

(9;35 p.m) you: hey, i got caught up with piano practice, and helping my mom with dinner, and then being stood up by my girlfriend

you know your response is petty, and unlike you, but you were still upset. lottie has never just pushed you aside like this, and to do it so consistently all of a sudden made you feel so bad. especially about yourself. it made you wonder if she was losing interest. if maybe she was only using soccer as an excuse to stop hanging out with you.

(9;38 p.m) lottie: well, i’m glad you’re alive. i didn’t stand you up, you know how tai gets when she decides something. i have to take nationals seriously.

you scoff at her response, and quickly get to typing.

(9;40 p.m) you: i understand that. but you’ve promised me four different times about this movie, and at this point i don’t even want to go anymore.

(9;42 p.m) lottie: i know you’re upset and i’m sorry. but if i want to win nationals i have to practice really hard. harder than usual. right now that’s my main concern

you toss your phone onto your bed, not even bothering to respond. it was like talking to a brick wall. tomorrow you’d have to face her and talk about this in person. the thought alone causes a nauseous feeling to settle in the pit of your stomach. there was this wave of dread that washes over you, and for the first time in your relationship with lottie, you feel as though you two aren’t on the same page.

the next day at school was hell for lottie. you barely spoke to her; you didn’t sit with her and the team during lunch. she knew you were upset but she didn’t think you were this upset. you’ve always been so understanding about her passion for soccer, and you’ve never acted this way before. but… then again, lottie has never taken practice this serious. she just doesn’t want to let her team down, and she can see how much the girls want this. she wants it too, but she knows they have more on the line. tai wants a scholarship, and going to nationals will look great on a college application.

you’ll get over it. lottie tells herself. that day she sees you waiting for her by the bleachers; there’s an unrecognizable expression drawn onto your features. she just finished changing into her practice clothes and cleats, and she tries to smile at you, but it doesn’t quite meet her eyes. “hey.” she says as she leans in to kiss you, but you tilt your head to the side in order for her lips to land on your cheek. “hi… we should talk. i’ll make it quick.” you promise and she nods uncertainly, a feeling of unease creeping up on her. “i don’t really like the way i’ve been feeling lately…” you start, and she opens her mouth to talk but you stop her.

“… i’ve always felt like you and i have been on the same page, but lately i just feel like your mind is strictly on soccer. for the entire year you’ve been spending extra time practicing, and you barely talk to me about anything other than it. you blow me off for practice and you’ve missed all of our date nights for the last three months.” you point out, and lottie shakes her head. “y/n, do you understand what’s at stake here? not just my future, but all of my teammates. i’m not just working this hard for me, it’s for my team. i’m sorry if you’re feeling a little ignored and craving attention, but until nationals are over, you’re just gonna have to suck it up and deal with it.” she states, sounding a bit frustrated.

you look shocked with her words; she’s never been that blunt and cruel. here you were telling her how you felt and she was being like this. lottie can see the look on your face, you look as though you’re about to cry. though she’s much too stressed to care, so instead of deciding to apologize like she normally would, she scoffs. “i don’t have time for this. every day is another problem with you. it’s getting annoying.” lottie snaps, and you try to blink away the tears as you clench your jaw. she sounds so much like her father (who she hates), it nearly makes you laugh.

“well, i’m sorry for wanting to spend some time with you. i’m sorry i actually believed you when you promised me you’d make time and put in the slightest bit of effort for me. that was clearly my mistake. don’t worry, matthews, i promise i won’t be a problem for you anymore.” you hiss, tears in your eyes as you sound angry and hurt. lottie watches you leave and she stands there, feeling like a complete asshole. before she can even consider chasing after you, coach ben blows his whistle, signaling for all the girls to get on the field.

so here’s the thing, when you promised lottie you wouldn’t be a ‘problem’ anymore, she wasn’t exactly sure what you meant. but the next day, you came to school with a small box of her things in your hands. you march right up to her, there was nothing but determination on your face. lottie wasn’t stupid; she knew what this meant and it causes her heart rate to pick up anxiously. “the rest of your stuff you can come pick up whenever. it was too big to bring to school.” you say, keeping your voice quiet so no one can hear. lottie looks like a kicked puppy, “wh-what do you mean?“ you almost feel bad about the clear fear in her tone as she realizes she’s losing you.

“it didn’t fit in the box, so you can come and pick it up whenever.” you repeat more clearly, as if you hadn’t been clear as day the first time. “i know that… i just mean— why are you giving me my stuff back?” she asks, completely afraid of the answer. you don’t respond, and the silence tells her everything. “you’re breaking up with me over a fight?” she asks a bit angrily, and you shake your head; your poker face faltering. “i’m breaking up with you because you act like you don’t want to be with me! i’m not asking you to stop prioritizing soccer, i just wanted a little effort, lottie. you couldn’t even give me that.” you point out, pushing the box into her arms.

“like i said, you can pick up your other stuff whenever you’re not too busy.” you practically hiss at her, before you turn around and leave her standing there. lottie feels as though she’s been slapped in the face. the one person she had figured would always be there, was now walking away from her and disappearing into the hoard of bustling students. natalie, who had been watching the entire ordeal from her locker, walks up to lottie. “what was that about? it looked serious…” natalie starts cautiously, trying to make sure her best friend is okay. lottie looks worse than when becky martin started telling the entire school about lottie being schizophrenic. but you were there for her throughout all of that; never caring about her diagnosis or thinking of her any differently. she was always your lottie. but now she wasn’t your anything.

lottie starts to tear up, and natalie’s eyes widen at the sight of the broken-hearted girl. “she dumped me.” lottie admits in a frail tone, a tone natalie has never heard from the raven haired girl. “shit… seriously? what happened?” natalie asks, and lottie proceeds to tell her best friend everything. she tells her all about how she began neglecting you at the begin of the year, and you being you, always let it slide. yet as she became more and more emotionally and physically unavailable, she began leaving you alone.

she tells natalie about how these last few weeks she was a total nightmare. she even forgot to text you some days. natalie looks shocked at this revelation; you two always seemed like such a great couple. you hadn’t even let anyone know there was trouble in paradise. the bell rings, and natalie clasps lottie’s wrists and begins to lead her towards the schools exit. natalie knew the last thing her friend needed was to be surrounded by a bunch of annoying students in class.

as soon as they get to the bottom of the bleachers, natalie flashes her a stern look.

“alright matthews, you screwed up, but i’m gonna help you fix it.” lottie looks shocked at natalie’s declaration, and she shakes her head. “why? why do you wanna help me?” she questions, and natalie shrugs. “you’re my best friend. plus y/n is a good person who actually gives a shit about you. you’re never gonna forgive yourself if you don’t fix it.” natalie’s voice is stern, and lottie nods in agreement.

“what should i do?” the yellowjackets sweeper asks uncertainly, and natalie offers her a mischievous smirk. “i have an idea that could work.” natalie admits, as she begins to give lottie a list of ways she could romance you. lottie listens, clearly very interested.

that weekend is the hardest. lottie has never gone longer than a day without hearing your beautiful voice. you two never really fought throughout your relationship; you learned pretty early into your friendship with lottie that her home life was mean and harsh enough. you never dared add any hurt to her life. when lottie was upset she quickly realized she could talk to you about anything; you were so easy to open up to, and no matter what you were doing you always made time for her.

the entire weekend lottie feels like trash. she realizes that she doesn’t even know how you’re doing. you two barely broke up, yet it feels like she hasn’t truly talked to you for months. god, maybe she was a terrible girlfriend. she put soccer before you, and now she doesn’t even feel like going to practice. though she knows she has to. she has an obligation to her friends and team… but she can’t help but feel like she let you down, and you didn’t know it but you were one of the most important people in her life.

now she fears that if none of natalie’s ideas work, she’ll lose you for sure. she’s tried to text you nearly every day since the breakup on friday, but you refuse to answer any of her texts. she even tried calling you on saturday night, but you didn’t pick up. when monday rolls around lottie comes to school with a huge bouquet of sunflowers and red roses. your two favorites. she hasn’t felt this nervous since she first asked you to be her girlfriend, except right now she knew you didn’t want to talk to her or even see her.

everyone looks at the raven haired girl as soon as she walks into school. surely everyone knows about your breakup by now, because mari is your best friend and she also seems to have the biggest mouth. not to mention she had been glaring at lottie all throughout practice on friday evening. she could tell you told mari everything and by the looks she was receiving she could tell everyone else knew now too.

as soon as she sees you standing by your locker talking to mari and akilah, mari’s eyes zero in on the tall raven haired girl making her way up to you. your best friend taps on you, and nods in lottie’s direction. you turn your head, and instead of your eyes lighting up at the sight of her and the bouquet, your large orbs fill with dread. her step falters a bit but she keeps her head high as she approaches you. “y/n… these are for you. i’m really sorry.” lottie’s voice is small, and you shake your head.

“they’re beautiful, but they aren’t going to fix anything.” you deadpan and lottie frowns. “i know that. but i thought maybe they could be the first step to fixing things?” she suggests and you glance at akilah and mari. you reach for lottie’s free hand and lead her to a secluded spot in the hall. “why are you doing this here? in front of everyone?” you ask her with supplicating eyes, and she knits her brows together. “because you won’t return my calls, and i haven’t stopped thinking about you. y/n, if you’d hear me out, i know i could fix this.” she pleads with you, and those eyes nearly make you cave.

you quickly remind yourself how you both ended up here, causing you to shut your eyes and take a breath. when you open them, lottie has a hopeful expression etched onto her features. “i gave you plenty of chances to fix it when we were together. for the last two months i’ve given you nothing but chances. you told me time and time again that soccer was your priority, and i respect that. so please respect my decision and leave me alone.” you whisper the last part a bit harshly as you turn around and storm away.

lottie stands there, heartbroken and ashamed. she looks at the flowers that seem to be taunting her. she crushes the stems in her hand as she approaches the nearest trash bin, tossing them in. so much for flowers and a heartfelt apology. lottie feels like a fool for even trying.

a week goes by and lottie is practically a walking zombie. she’s barely been eating or sleeping. she was so used to falling asleep on facetime with you, or falling asleep texting you… now she can barely get a wink of sleep. all she can think about is how mean to you she was the day before you two broke up. god, she can’t get that sad, puppy dog expression you flashed her out of her head.

“come on, lottie! where’s your head at!?” tai snaps in the middle of a scrimmage. lottie had been paying less attention to anything that didn’t have to do with you these days. it’s ironic, it took her losing you to realize what she had. her notes for her classes were empty lately, her parents didn’t even notice she was barely saying a word at home, and practice was the worst. lottie was so used to seeing you in the bleachers during most of her practices; you’d be watching her with this big smile on your face, or doing homework. you always looked so pretty. now you weren’t there and lottie never realized how happy seeing you sitting on those bleachers made her. how important she felt that you spent time watching her practice because you didn’t want to be away from her.

lottie doesn’t get her head in the game even after being yelled at by tai. in the locker room, its worse. “what the hell, lottie?? we’re this close to winning nationals and you choose now to start slacking??” tai asks harshly, natalie steps in before lottie can respond. “hey, leave her alone she’s had a shitty week.” natalie states sternly and tai rolls her eyes. “so have all of us! newsflash, the world doesn’t stop because lottie matthews is going through a breakup. we’re a team, meaning you need to get your mind together and focus on the game.” tai’s voice is angry and demanding.

lottie feels a surge of rage wash over her. “not everything is about soccer!” she snaps back loudly, taking the curly haired girl and most of the girls by surprise. “god, you’re all so worked up over this fucking game next week that we’ve all been nightmares! jackie, you and shauna have been at each offers throats for weeks, tai you’ve barely talked to van about anything other than nationals, laura lee has been praying to god for nothing but us winning, mar’s been a bigger cunt than usual, natalie is stress drinking again, and my girlfriend dumped me because i was ignoring her for months! for a sport i used to have fun playing, with a team who used to actually give a shit about each other!” lottie lets it all pour out like a leaky faucet, and everyone stands there dumbfounded by the outburst.

“lottie—“ tai starts but lottie slams her locker shut. “fuck this.” she hisses as she swings her nike duffle bag over her shoulder and storms out of the locker room. she doesn’t even bother changing out of her uniform. lottie’s blood is boiling and her teeth are gritting all the way to her car. she feels as though in a week her entire life has spiraled downhill. she’s been downhill more times than she can count, but she’s never been there without you. this sucks.

she seems to be so upset that she doesn’t even realize she’s driving in the direction of your house. she feels so lost, and it seems she ended up where she feels the safest. with you. lottie aimlessly approaches your door; she’s still in her soccer uniform and her hair is in loose pigtails. the way you always said made her look undeniably cute. she knocks on the door and looks down at her dirty cleats. she thinks about how unhappy you’re probably going to look to see her; she isn’t used to that. she hates it.

her eyes well up with tears and she sniffles, the door swings open before she can think to cover up the fact that she was crying. you had seen her through the peephole, putting on your best angry face before you answered the door. but as soon as you saw the broken girl in front of you, and you heard the sad little sniffle, your face softens immediately. “are you okay?” even though you know it’s a dumb question, you still ask because you don’t want to sound harsh. she doesn’t look like she needs anymore of that.

“i— i didn’t know where else to go.” she admits lowly, roughly wiping her tears away with the back of her hand. you give in quickly, stepping aside for her to come in. “what happened?” you ask her as she steps inside, taking her shoes off politely in a way that makes you smile. even in her sad state, she still remembers your mothers rules. “i got into a fight with tai… you were right, lately we’ve all been terrible. i’ve been terrible. to you especially. i’m really sorry, y/n.” she sounds sincere and sad, you can see her staring hopelessly at you; waiting for you to say something.

you press your lips together before letting out a sigh, turning your head away from her. “it’s okay. i understand. nationals are a lot of pressure, and i just think maybe right now it’s better if we’re just friends. i want a normal relationship, and i want my girlfriend to be as excited about prom as i am. i want to be able to go to the movies and have date nights without worrying about getting in the way of your schedule. i just think we want different things now.” you explain, trying to keep your voice light but she can hear the sadness laced through your tone clear as day.

lottie shakes her head rapidly, standing up and inching towards you. “i want those things too. i love our date nights, and you never get in the way of my schedule. i promise. i am excited about prom— at least i was… when i knew i was going with you.” lottie’s response is quiet and low, making you frown. “you never even asked me to prom, lot. it’s next month!” you point out and lottie flashes you those puppy eyes you could never resist when you were together. why does she have to be so cute?

“please go to prom with me.” she insists and before you can decline, and goes on. “i want to prove to you we still want the same things! if you still don’t want to be with me after prom… okay. i’ll respect your decision. but you have to let me try. please.” lottie sounds desperate, and she’s borderline begging. you let out sharp exhale, “fine. fine. i’ll go to prom with you, matthews. but i swear to god if you mess this up again, we’re done.” you warn her and she nods eagerly, reaching for your hands.

“i promise! i’m not gonna let you down this time!” she swears as she leans in and places a kiss on your cheek. “this times gonna be different.” she assures you, and you allow her to pull you in for a hug. you melt into her embrace, and you hesitantly wrap your arms around her. you can’t hope but help she’s telling you the truth this time. you suppose the only thing you can do is wait and see.

#lottie matthews x fem reader angst #lottie matthews x fem reader #lottie matthews x you #lottie x fem reader angst #lottie x reader #lottie matthews x reader #lottie matthews x y/n #lottie matthews #lottie matthews icons #lottie matthews angst #yellowjackets #lottie mathews x reader

[wardenswateringhole]

I'm a relatively new follower so unfortunately I don't know a ton about what to ask that'd work for you, but MAN can I relate to needing to talk or be asked something by someone when you're in that kind of high anxiety state... I'm really really sorry you're experiencing that and I hope it passes soon 🫂🩷🩵

As for a question and invitation to infodump to help, hmm... how about: what's a pokemon design you really like that you could talk a lot about? If that's a question you find interesting of course lol.

Oh honey. You know not what you have wrought. Though I'm going to go with pokemon I dislike instead. There are far too many I adore to talk about.

*pulls up a podium and sets up a display*

So I've been around since the original 151. Back when Pikachu was a tubster.

It was obviously new territory on the gaming scene. It was just a critter collecting and battling game and of course not much thought other than what kids would find cool were put into the designs of the Pokemon.

As the generations continued, people began to try and assign rules to a Pokemon's design. Like what made a pokemon a pokemon. I actually remember a complaint that pulled me away from gen 5 was that the Pokemon designs were terrible and didn't look like pokemon should.

(I have since learned those people were full of shit and I was a fool for skipping gen 5)

While do believe there is probably a set of rules that game freak has to ensure a Pokemon's design coalesces with the rest of the roster, it does feel like there are exceptions.

and I fucking hate them.

I love the majority of pokemon designs. The ones that don't immediately click usually grow on me. But dammit all there are some that I hate with such a flipping passion that I cannot bring myself to even consider catching them and adding the to my party.

Let's get the easy ones out the way.

ALL THE ULTRA BEASTS.

You heard me. I hate those fuckers. Not only are they so different that it makes my ocd scream, but I overall just hated the idea of them in general. it freaked me out terribly. Something about the idea of pokemon from another dimension being so much more violent than the Pokemon native to the normal pokemon universe suddenly crossing over and running amok bothered me so badly when I was younger. I still hate it to this day and could not tell you why.

(Most if not all ultra beasts were designed by the ONLY American pokemon designer on gamefreaks team. That same artist has been responsible for some of the more disliked designs. Not their fault, The higher ups just seem to have terrible taste.)

CHEWTLE

Fucking hate this abomination. The design feels so damned lazy. Also looks like something from Chalkzone than Pokemon. I abhor catching this thing. They get my shittiest ball and camps out in my box until I decide to actually evolve it.

CALYREX

AHHHHHHH!!! Oh sweet Arceus I cannot tell you badly my blood boils when I look at this idiotic thing. I did not get the DLC just because I hate this design so badly. It could have been done so much better but no.

MOST OF THE PARADOX POKEMON FROM VIOLET

It's not that I hate their designs but the idea they represent. The future they foretell feels so dismal. Devoid of life and cold as metal. I actually feel depressed when I look at them. If there were more organic features to them I think I'd like them alot more.

I think I can leave it here. These are the ones that immediately come to mind and thus are the most hated. There are other topics I could crow about but I think this was enough and helped me a lot. Thank you so much for sending this ask.

#Wardenspeaks #I feel much calmer now #Just needed to rant I guess lol #Thank you so much!

[steve-needs-a-hug]

in which Draco needs to ace Herbology

Part 1/? (I don’t know how long this is going to end up being lol)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/25758838/chapters/62556034

Setting: Hogwarts, 3rd year

Content warnings: None. Contains subtle hints of Drarry (with more to come)

Summary: Star student Draco Malfoy is acing all his courses...except Herbology. His father threatens to pull Draco out of Quidditch if he doesn’t get straight As on all his exams, and with time running out before the Herbology final, a desperate Draco finds himself reluctantly accepting help from a most unlikely source.

Featuring: Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Draco!” Lucius Malfoy’s cold, stern voice reverberated throughout the Great Hall, causing many heads to turn to the Howler that had just flown in to interrupt everyone’s luncheon. Draco Malfoy put his head into his hands as his father’s voice began to berate him about his mid-term progress grades. “Your school performance thus far is highly unsatisfactory.” Draco got mostly As with a few Bs. “Don’t you dare tarnish our family name with a B again. If you don’t bring your average up to an A by winter break, I’m taking you off the Quidditch team!” The letter promptly burst into flame and burned into a little pile of ash on the table. Draco’s Quidditch teammates looked at him with worry and discomfort at the thought of losing their star Seeker, while quiet chuckles and snickers came from the other tables.

“Bloody hell!” exclaimed Ron Weasley, turning to a wide-eyed Harry Potter. “What are them Slytherins going to do without Malfoy hunting you down every game, Harry?”

Hermione Granger shrugged. “I suppose Gryffindor is going to start winning a lot more matches.”

“I guess so,” agreed Harry absent-mindedly. According to Harry, Draco Malfoy had a lot of deficiencies, but intelligence was definitely not one of them. Lucius Malfoy’s standards must have been very demanding. The trio, along with just about everyone else, watched as a sullen Draco pushed away his half-eaten lunch and slinked out of the Hall.

-

The loud cheers faded into the background as Harry strode into the locker room. His last Quidditch match of the term had just ended with a Slytherin victory, but he was still in good spirits, energized by the lingering sensation of the cool autumn wind in his hair and on his cheeks. He took his time changing out of uniform and back into his regular school robes, aware that this was the last time he would get to do so until next term. By the time Harry started to walk casually towards the exit, nearly all the other players had already gone. But in the corner of Harry’s eye, he spotted a lone hunched-over figure sitting on one of the benches, his blond hair hanging over his eyes. Harry hesitantly turned away from the exit and towards Draco Malfoy. Harry was used to Draco’s excessive gloating after every Slytherin victory, yet despite the fact that he had just secured the win for his team that day, Draco seemed pretty downcast.

“Is your dad really going to take you out of Quidditch because of bad grades?” Harry inquired. “You seemed to be doing pretty well in Potions.”

Draco glared up at him with stormy grey eyes. “I’m acing Potions. It’s Herbology that’s the trouble. It’s boring and useless -” (Harry shrugged understandingly; he never cared much about plants either) “- and Professor Sprout never grades me fairly. I suppose that teacher’s pet Granger doesn’t have that problem, does she, Potter?” Draco sneered. His hostile expression quickly weakened, however, as he looked around the familiar locker room.

Since the classroom environment was so restrictive, the only time Draco ever felt truly powerful was when he blasted through the air on his broom, knocking opponents out of the way and skilfully dodging obstacles as he chased victory and received the cheers and admiration of his peers. He couldn’t imagine his life at Hogwarts without Quidditch.

Draco groaned in frustration and ran his hands through his hair as Harry stood there awkwardly. He knew Draco needed help, but he also knew the proud Slytherin would never ask. He arguably didn’t even deserve help, but Harry found himself thinking about how terrible he would feel in Draco’s current position. Powerless, and desperate, even. An idea began to come alight in Harry’s mind.

“Why don’t you…” Harry started carefully, “…come study with us? Hermione got ‘perfect’ on her last assignment – which I honestly didn’t even know was possible – and she could teach you all her tricks. She’s smarter than anyone I know.”

“Oh, yeah. Exam prep with the Mudblood, the Weasel, and the Wonder Boy. Sounds great,” Draco retorted sarcastically. “The noble, virtuous Saint Potter, rescuing me from my plight!”

Harry rolled his eyes. “Listen, Malfoy. You either ace Herbology or you never get to knock me out of the sky again. You choose.” Harry stared Draco straight in the eye, as if challenging him. How far would he let his pride go?

Draco clenched his jaw and turned away from Harry’s intense gaze. Crabb & Goyle certainly weren’t ideal study partners, and Draco didn’t exactly have a cooperative reputation even in his own House. The Herbology final was mere days away and his options were narrow. “No one can see us together. It’ll be the first and the last time I ever choose to be around you lot.”

If Harry didn’t know any better, Draco was making it sound like they were going to start secretly dating or something. Harry fought off a smug smile. “We know a pretty secluded area of the studying commons. It’ll only be a couple of days, really.” Draco did not protest, so Harry continued. “Bring your book and notes and meet me after dinner tomorrow at the studying commons entrance, and we’ll get it done. You’ll see what kind of a whiz Hermione really is.”

Draco sighed. “Fine. But you better keep out of my sight until then, Potter.”

“Gladly,” Harry smirked. “Tomorrow, then.”

Draco shook his head as Harry left, feeling his stomach sinking as he processed what he just agreed to. Studying help from the three Hogwarts students he despised most. This better be worth it.

-

Harry ran into the Gryffindor common room where his friends were relaxing and enjoying their downtime. “Hey, guys!” he whispered to Ron and Hermione, gesturing for them to come closer. “I’ve got some news to tell you!” Ron and Hermione shared a confused glance, and went over to their grinning friend. They looked at Harry expectantly. His bright eyes were glinting with excitement (and a hint of panic), and he paused for effect.

“…Draco Malfoy is going to be studying with us for the Herbology final!”

“Hah!” Ron guffawed loudly. “Good one, mate!”

“Very funny, Harry,” said Hermione with her arms crossed. “Now what were you really going to tell us?”

“No, really!” Harry persisted. “He needs to get an A in Herbology to stay on the Quidditch team, and I told him all about how smart you are, Hermione.”

“Oh please, you can’t be serious, Harry!” Hermione exclaimed. “He’s done nothing but be awful to us!”

“She’s right, mate!” Ron echoed. “Bloody good riddance if he’s off Quidditch!”

“No, listen, don’t you see?” Harry insisted in a conspiratorial whisper. “If we help him…he owes us.” He gestured to Ron. “We can get him to stop calling you ‘Weasel’!” He pivoted to Hermione. “And we can get him to stop calling you…you know…that.” Hermione crossed her arms even tighter.

“The point is,” Harry concluded, “If we’re nice to him and we help him out just this once, maybe he’ll be more decent towards us too. I didn’t come to Hogwarts to make enemies. And honestly, Quidditch wouldn’t really be the same without him.”

“Yeah, we’d win more,” Ron scoffed. “I don’t think this is a good idea, mate.”

“Just trust me, guys,” said Harry. “If it turns out to be a disaster you can say ‘I told you so’.”

“You can count on that,” Hermione said with a smirk. Harry grinned and left to go upstairs. As soon as he was out of sight, Ron turned to her with an anxious expression.

“What do you really think of all this, ‘Mione?”

She let out a deep sigh. “I think…that no amount of niceties or politeness or favours could ever make someone like Malfoy think any more highly of anybody like me or you.” Ron looked down at the floor. “I’m just going to go through with this for Harry.”

“What do you suppose he thinks of Harry, then?” Ron inquired.

Hermione looked into the distance thoughtfully. “I’ve always thought that Malfoy’s jealous of Harry. For having real friends, and being popular without having to treat anyone horribly. I’ve never known anyone as rude as Malfoy.” Hermione shook her head. “I don’t understand why Harry thinks this is going to work.”

Ron nodded dismally. “I’m going to talk to him about it tonight. Don’t worry.”

-

“Harry?” Ron said quietly as he untucked the covers and climbed into his bed.

“Yeah, Ron?” Harry replied, already lying down and staring up at the ceiling, his glasses sitting on the bedside table.

“Why do you want to help Malfoy?” Ron asked honestly. “He’d never do anything of the sort for us. ‘Mione and I are worried, you see. We can’t trust him.”

Harry sighed, still looking up at the ceiling. “I don’t know. I just had a feeling. What would you do, Ron, if you weren’t allowed to play Quidditch anymore?”

Ron tried to visualize himself in that position. “I reckon I’d feel pretty angry. I’d do anything to stay on the squad.”

Harry knew Ron would feel the same way he did about that. “Now just imagine Malfoy next term, all angry and bitter now that he can’t play anymore, and then he sees us walking down the hall celebrating all our wins.”

A terrible realization dawned on Ron. “Blimey, he’d be even worse to us than he was before. Hermione said he’s jealous enough of you already.”

Harry chuckled. “I really didn’t even expect him to agree to come study with us. Though he did make me promise to stay out of his sight until then. Not sure how that’s going to happen since we have the same class tomorrow morning.” This prompted a giggle from Ron.

“We’re all going to be a bunch of chums,” Ron joked as he turned over and squirmed into a comfy position to drift off into an uneasy sleep.

-

Harry stood outside the entrance to the studying commons near the library, arms crossed. That morning in their last Potions class of the term, Malfoy did not look his way even once. Not even when Neville accidentally spilled the wrong ingredient into Harry’s brew and it bubbled over and poured all over the table. During dinner, Draco sat with his head down the whole time, barely saying a word to his friends who were loudly squabbling over all manner of petty topics. Ron had elbowed Harry and asked why he was watching Malfoy like a hawk all day, while Draco had done everything possible to avoid Potter’s gaze. “I’m just not used to it, I guess,” Harry replied. “He didn’t even say anything when Neville made my brew spill over.”

Hermione shrugged. “I guess he’s just dreading spending time with us as much as we are.”

Now Harry was standing there, waiting for the lively-turned-sullen Slytherin to show up. Hermione and Ron were already seated inside (Hermione was amassing an intimidating stack of textbooks to scrutinise). Finally, a pale blond head emerged out of the shadows. Draco slinked over to Harry, book bag over his shoulder.

“Hello, Malfoy,” said Harry politely.

“Potter,” Draco curtly replied. “Let’s get this over with.” Harry fought the urge to smirk, enjoying Draco’s evident displeasure with the situation. No matter how much Malfoy didn’t like it, he needed their help and he was here.

“Follow me,” Harry said, leading Draco into the large room of studying desks and chairs tucked away between bookshelves full of large, musty academic volumes. Some students were clustered together in small groups in different pockets of the room, but despite the quiet hum of voices and flipping pages, the place did not feel particularly busy. A few lamps here and there offered some dim reading light. Draco looked around as if he hadn’t been here many times before.

As promised, Harry led his rival-turned-study-buddy into a far corner of the commons hidden away behind tall bookshelves, where Ron looked on in despair as Hermione laid yet another massive volume on top of her studying pile. The anxious red-head turned to see Harry enter, hoping for some good news, but alas. There was Draco Malfoy, their haughty tormentor. Except now he was standing there uncomfortably, fidgeting with the strap of his book bag.

“Hey, guys,” Harry sighed. “I’m sure you all know Draco Malfoy,” he joked half-heartedly.

Hermione rolled her eyes. “Sit down, Draco.” She ordered, pointing at the empty chair in front of her, beside Ron. Ron looked from Hermione to Draco to the seat, and he jumped up and clambered into the chair beside Hermione to avoid sitting next to the awkward Slytherin. Draco narrowed his eyes and reluctantly took his seat, followed by Harry sitting down beside Draco where Ron was glad not to be.

“Alright, then,” Hermione began, clearing her throat and smoothing out her frizzy hair. She hoped going into full-on study mode would successfully distract her from her uneasiness. Ron watched the beady-eyed Slytherin look around the room once more before reluctantly turning his attention to the large stack of books on the table. “Let’s start with the basics,” said Hermione, lifting a thick volume detailing the magical properties of thousands of plants off the stack and placing it on the table with a thud.

This is going to be a long night, thought all four of them.

-

“Blimey, Harry!” Ron exclaimed as Draco smiled smugly and Hermione shook her head in exasperation. “Everyone knows that Valerian sprigs are a main ingredient in a Forgetfulness Potion!” After going over their notes and looking up more information on some of the plants that Professor Sprout highlighted in class, they had just started quizzing each other on the properties and uses of different herbs.

“Actually, Ronald, I seem to remember you having a particularly hard time recalling the most crucial ingredients of a Forgetfulness Potion,” Hermione remarked. “But honestly, Harry, this is first-year stuff!”

Harry shrugged apologetically. “I know we’re already in Third year, but I’m still not all that familiar with these things. I didn’t grow up in a magical family like Ron or Malfoy, remember?”

“That’s no excuse,” Hermione retorted. “Both my parents are Muggles and I still know everything I need to know to pass my exams.”

Draco scoffed. “No matter how many books you cram into your head, that doesn’t change what you are.” (So far he had done a pretty good job of keeping snarky remarks to a minimum, but as far as he was concerned Hermione had just walked right into that one.)

“And what’s that, exactly?” Ron exclaimed, incensed.

“Remind me why we’re helping him, Harry,” Hermione said bitterly. Draco shot upright but Harry grabbed his arm and plunked him back down in his chair. Draco frowned and brushed his arm off dramatically.

“She’s right, Harry,” Ron argued. “We can’t just let him insult us the way he does. If he wants our help, he has to start acting decent.”

“I don’t need your help!” Draco spat. Harry looked over at him with a Really? expression. Draco looked down at all the extra information he’d added onto his notes. The studying had actually been going pretty well (until this point, that is).

“It doesn’t matter if Hermione’s parents are Muggles,” Ron said, more calmly now but firmly. “She’s bloody brilliant and she can help us all get an A on this bloody final.” Draco didn’t look up.

“Come on, Malfoy. You can keep studying with us until the Herbology final if you just act civil,” Harry told Draco. “We’ve already made a lot of progress. Let’s just keep at it until it’s over.”

Draco sighed in defeat. “Fine.” Without further ado, Hermione reopened one of the textbooks and flipped a few pages to where they were before. “What is Wormwood used in?” she asked in a resolute voice, keeping her eyes firmly glued to the book.

“Draught of Living Death,” Draco replied without missing a beat.

Hermione nodded. “And?”

“And…? What?” Draco was getting annoyed. Ron shook his head, knowing what was imminent.

Hermione sighed in exasperation. “If Professor Sprout asks us that question on the exam, naming one use of a plant is not good enough! We have to show her how much we know, give her all the details we can. Wormwood is an ingredient in Draught of Living Death and Elixir to Induce Euphoria and Shrinking Solution.”

Draco rolled his eyes as Harry and Ron chuckled at Hermione’s meticulousness. She flipped a few pages forward. “Try again. What can stinging nettles be used for?”

Draco recalled that particular plant being mentioned in class. “Dried nettles are used in the Boil-Cure Potion…” Hermione, Ron, and Harry raised their eyebrows expectantly. “And in nettle tea and soup?”

Hermione nodded in satisfaction, but Draco wasn’t done.

“And I heard nettles can improve the glossiness of one’s hair,” he concluded with a smirk, smoothing down his own sleek blond locks and eliciting a chuckle from Harry (and eyerolls from Ron and Hermione).

The rest of the studying session was surprisingly productive. Turns out the four of them could get a lot done when they momentarily put aside their grievances and got to work. By the time they were done Ron felt like his head was swimming with plants and potions. Overall, except for the rough patch in the middle, Harry thought that it went better than he expected.

Harry turned to Draco as they were packing up their notes. “Hey, Malfoy, we’ve still got one more night to study before the exam. Do you want to join us tomorrow?” He half-expected Malfoy to say “No way”.

But Draco just shrugged. “Sure,” he replied. He wasn’t particularly excited about studying with them again but he also had to admit that it wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be. Since he’d gotten this far already, he didn’t see any good reason to stop now. He just hoped he would end up getting that A and it’d all be worth it. He was too tired to worry about his reputation now. Without another word, he slung his book bag over his shoulder and went on his way.

-

“Hey, Malfoy, where you been?” asked Crabb as Draco slinked through the dark Slytherin common room on his way to the dorms.

“Nowhere,” he briskly replied. Realizing that might make him sound a bit suspicious, he quickly rebounded. “Studying. For Herbology.” His friends looked at each other, wondering why Draco was acting a bit odd but not really wanting to ask.

He walked past them without another word and went up to his room. He set his book bag down and sat on his bed, looking out the window at the dark night sky. The more Draco stared out at the sky, the more it seemed to swallow him up in its pitch-black expanse. The only way he could explain how he was feeling right now was “weird”. He was uncertain, about how the exams were going to go, about what the next (hopefully last) study session with Harry and his strange friends was going to be like, about how his father was going to greet him when he comes home for winter break. “Hello, dear son, I’ve missed you”? Not too likely. 

If my father cared about me then why would he pull me out of Quidditch? He only cares about himself. And his reputation, Draco thought to himself bitterly, leaning back onto his pillow. As if a B in Third year Herbology would leave such a stain on the family crest. It’s certainly not as embarrassing as studying with Granger and Weasley. The thing that frustrated Draco the most, though, was that he wasn’t as riled up about the studying session as he felt he should’ve been. He didn’t even feel particularly proud of the jab he took at Hermione. When it was his gaggle of friends behind him egging him on, he relished every chance he got to belittle Potter and his sidekicks. But Draco was not on home territory tonight, and there was no one to laugh.

Then Draco sat up with a jolt, suddenly remembering Harry audibly chuckling at Draco’s comment about stinging nettles and silky hair. Draco didn’t know why he was so stunned by the sudden memory of his nemesis Harry Potter laughing at his harmless joke. That moment was probably the friendliest one they’d ever had. Then he recalled Harry quietly and politely, almost carefully, asking if Draco wanted to join them again. Draco remembered the day he met Potter like it was yesterday, and Harry seemed thoroughly disinterested in being friends then, so why was he acting so agreeable now? A deeply buried sentiment started to bubble up to the surface, 11-year-old Draco’s wish to be friends with the famous Harry Potter, to feel like more than his rival.

But Draco’s cynical side pushed these thoughts away. They must be up to something. I don’t care what. I just need that A, he reminded himself yet again. His mind wandered back to when he got up to leave after offending Ron and Hermione, and how Harry just wordlessly pulled him back into his seat. Harry wanted him to stay. Draco stood up and tried to shake these thoughts away. No point in dwelling on it. Things will go back to the way they used to be after the exam.

~ Part 2 coming soon! DM me if you want to be notified when the next part is up ~

#harry potter fanfiction #will things go back to the way they used to be? guess we gotta find out #spoiler alert: they pull a late-nighter studying and draco and harry fall asleep on each other #harry potter #draco malfoy #drarry fanfic #ron weasley #hermione granger #drarry fanfiction #harry x draco #golden trio + draco #group studying #harry and draco

[hirazuki]

Can't say I'm a fan of tdp s3's pacing, it felt way too quick (and ngl, the pacing has me rooting for Callum and Rayla to break up by the end like call me cynical but these two haven't even known each other a month.) Also I don't like the direction they took Viren in :/ he was actually starting to seem really sympathetic thanks to s2, until he gaslit Soren in s3.

Under a cut because salt and spoilers! :D

Yeah, exactly :/ The pacing was really weird, the humor was off (idk if it was just me, but most of the jokes or things that were played for laughs were… just not funny), Callum/Rayla was way too quick (I think that most fans would have been fine with them going in this direction but maybe only like 1/3 of the way by the end of the season?), and the discrepancy between what was going on with their easy-going fun little romantic adventure vs. the crisis the rest of the world was having and Viren’s body horror galore situation was just really jarring.

I have no idea what they’re trying to do with Viren and tbh I don’t think they do either – he started as a very pragmatic villain in S1, then became sympathetic antagonist in S2 with clear and understandable motivations, and now it feels like they went “oh shit we made him too sympathetic BETTER PUT THIS WHOLE SHINDIG IN REVERSE AND SPRINKLE SOME EVULZ FOR GOOD MEASURE,” which had me going 😑Not to mention his perceived horror at Claudia bringing him back from the dead -- if he was really that evil of a person, I feel like he wouldn’t be horrified? But from his expression, it looks like he thinks that maybe his daughter went too far??? Which makes no sense given how they’ve been building him up??? Are they setting Claudia up to be the next big bad? Is it because Aaravos is no longer in his mind/did dying release him from some star elf magic shenanigans? Wtf? Adding that to what we know about him being named after Ehasz’s close friend and that he’s a staff favorite (and remembering that Lotor was also based off of one of JDS’s close friends and was, supposedly, a staff favorite), I’m just not too hopeful about even things as basic as keeping character consistency.

It just felt like the whole show suddenly gave up any nuance it had built up in S2. The animation has gotten a lot smoother, to the point where I can actually watch without getting dizzy, and even though I’m not a fan of the visual world building as a whole (I can’t tell if they’re going for a medieval society, or renaissance, or enlightenment or what with their setting, there are too many conflicting elements for me to not find it distracting), the individual character designs are super cool, so I was really hoping this could be a series I eventually managed to settle into. I’d much rather genuinely enjoy a show than salt-watch it :/ 

I think what bugged me the most is that it professes itself to be a super progressive show, with representation and sense of morality, etc., except that it continues to glorify really archaic ideals without providing any kind of solid proof as to why these are good things. Like child monarchs or divine right to rule, etc. – I know Opeli said kings are chosen by vote, but there’s been nothing but proof to the contrary for that. Whereas Viren, who has been the only non-royal main character (along with his kids) and essentially the voice/perspective of a more common type of person, esp in S2, keeps offering some of the most forward-thinking and pragmatic courses of action, but which always keep being undermined as “dark magic = evil lolz.” I just… don’t get where they’re trying to go with this, I guess.

The dynamic between Aaravos, Claudia, and Viren was super enjoyable though. Kinda makes me wish the show was about them lmao. It feels like, once again, the writing surrounding the villains is more compelling than that of the protags, and I think that it’s, again, because of the fact that villains don’t have to be “cinammon rolls uwu” and can be real people, whereas the heroes have to be P E R F E C T. I just wish people would write characters as just people, regardless of where they fall on the archetype/moral scale X_X

(I’m not even gonna touch Kasef lol, someone better qualified than me can do that XD).

If anything, I feel like it’s super obvious there was Stuff™ going on behind the scenes, and if we didn’t know about it from the tweets, I would have def wondered what the hell was going on with the writing team. I read some reviews that chalked the pacing up to the show runners not knowing if the series will be renewed and wanting to provide closure should this be the end of the show, but also leave it open enough so that they could continue it if they got the chance, but like… supposedly this season was done some time ago and there was never any risk of it being cancelled, so there should have been no need to make it so rushed? 

 Idk man ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I feel like my biggest takeaway from this season is that either the whole AtLA team had one single braincell between them so that when they split to do their own projects, all those projects went dismally, or that the stars were in alignment for some kind of magic to birth AtLA. or it was actually ghostwritten by some third party lmao bc I literally have no other explanation for it. 

#legendofcarl #thanks for the ask! #i wasn't expecting much of this season esp after I read all the tweet drama but it was still very underwhelming #all i really want is an animated series with a good story; consistent characters; and free of bts drama/horrible industry working conditions #is that too much to ask? #good music and animation are always great perks but i will happily pass on those if everything else is solid

[doux-amer]

When will stuckies stop arguing that the lack of Steve/Bucky content in Endgame is homophobia and queerbaiting and equating it to/bringing it up in conversation when people are talking about the misogyny and canonically dismal queer representation in the movie? This is why everyone outside of your ship hates you and no one likes taking you seriously in the fandom. 

The Russos and M&M, for all their faults, (as well as Chris and iirc, Seb) have explicitly stated several times that they view the relationship between Steve and Bucky as a fraternal one. There are actual examples of queerbaiting in media, and this isn’t it lol. They didn’t bait the audience nor did they shy away from giving Steve and Bucky more time together because they were “afraid of making things too gay” and were trying to “no homo” things.

Some people said they knew the ship would never be canon, but the fact that the relationship ended the way it did was unacceptable and...not really? I do sympathize with people wanting more because Steve and Bucky only got a few new words to say to each other. That said, while their scene could have had a few more lines, it was never going to be a lengthy, ruminative conversation for multiple reasons and it was a natural end to their relationship as I said here and here. 

The most annoying and offensive part of all this, though, is people genuinely equating this to how problematic female and queer representation was in the movie. PLEASE STOP SCREAMING ABOUT YOUR M/M SHIP WHEN THERE ARE ACTUAL PROBLEMS. PLEASE FIX YOUR TUNNEL VISION AND STOP BEING THAT “I FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE WHEN WE ARE NOT ABOUT ME” BIRDSRIGHTSACTIVIST TWEET BY SHOVING YOURSELF INTO LITERALLY EVERY SINGLE SITUATION EVEN WHEN IT’S NOT IN ANY WAY REMOTELY RELATED TO STEVE, BUCKY, OR THEIR RELATIONSHIP AND EVEN GOING THE EXTRA EMBARRASSING MILE BY WRITING THINK PIECES FOR OUTLETS (WHICH, AGAIN, IS ESPECIALLY EGREGIOUS WHEN PEOPLE ARE DISCUSSING SOMETHING SERIOUS).

I’m sorry, but if you’re going to talk about problematic representation, then focus all your ire on actual problems such as but not limited to:

1. Natasha being fridged, her lack of an arc, the way she’s seen as expendable because she doesn’t have children, M&M not doing her justice despite writing half of her films, etc.

2. Gamora being fridged, the way that the Russos said what happened to her (her dying and her alt self not having the emotional ties she has with her team and the growth she had up until this point) would be great fodder for Quill’s journey, etc.

3. Peggy being reduced to a trophy and her entire journey being thrown out the window. 

4. The self-congratulatory pats on the back for making the film and the MCU so diverse by making the first example of canonically queer representation a minor character who appears for two seconds and is played by one of the directors who is straight and doing that overly indulgent scene of all the women on the battlefield together that made no sense whatsoever and was completely unearned.

Not to mention the fatphobia, cavalier and condescending treatment of depression and PTSD, abuse erasure, and more that featured prominently in the movie. 

#endgame spoilers

[bettedavisgf]

why does every single canadian pairs team have such consistently dismal triple twists what is wrong with them it just cannot be that hard there must be something so horribly wrong about the way development coaches here are teaching them lol because what other major fed has this issue 💀

[lalka-laski]

A - Appearance.

What are you wearing? A sweatshirt with my company's logo & a pair of jeggings

What are on your feet right now? Slip-on sneak type of things? I abandoned my usual flip-flops today because my feet are a tragedy

What color are your fingernails? Like my toenails, my fingernails are also a tragedy! I haven't had room in my budget for a mani pedi in awhile :/

What does your hair look like right now? It's clipped up, but it's clean and therefore, the best my hair has looked this week

B - Best Friend

Who is your best friend? I have several but for the sake of this survey I'll say Sean

What was the last thing you two did together? Sadly it was a post-funeral service for his grandmother. But it was a fun, lighthearted celebration of her life. I adore his family and it's always great to spend time with them, even if the circumstances are dismal.

What is (s)he doing right now? Man, this guy is ALL over the map. I can't keep tabs on him! He could be in Bora Bora right now and I wouldn't question it.

Are you talking to her/him online right now? Nope, but we keep in pretty regular contact.

C - Crush.

Who is (s)he? He's a little more than a crush! He's my fiance

What does (s)he look like? The cutest pumpkin pie in the WORLD (he finds that nickname emasculating?? Can't imagine why...) What was the last thing you two talked about? We're texting right now about what Starbucks drinks we're gonna get later!

Does (s)he make you smile? More than anyone or anything on the planet

D - Dad

What’s your dad’s name? Richard

What does he do for a living? He's an electrician. Although these days he's more of an executive (I don't know his actual title). So he oversees lots of electricians and various projects, but doesn't do as much as the hands-on work. I'm so proud of him for working his way up the ladder but it's still so funny to me to picture my blue-collar, borderline redneck dad, working in an OFFICE.

What was the last thing you two did together? We got ice cream (Glenn & my mom were also present)

Do you get along better with him than your mother? My mom and I have more in common and therefor do more friendly/social stuff together. But I get along with each of them equally well. Especially as an adult.

E - Ebay.

Have you ever bought anything from ebay? Yep I have a few pairs of reading glasses on the way actually

Do you just shop around when you’re online? Kinda but I'm trying to kick the habit

Do you know anybody who is addicted to it? You could argue I am...

Have you ever sold anything on it? Nope

F - Facebook.

When was the last time you logged on? I'm on currently

How many friends do you have? Over 1,000

Do you hate when your facebook chat messes up? It doesn't happen much tbh

Who was the last person to leave you a wall post? I just had a birthday so it could've been anybody

G - Google.

Do you Google everything? I might rely TOO much on Google!

What was the last thing you Googled? Stretches for my calves

Would you ever trade Google in for Bing? Nah

What do you Google the most? "Is it safe to eat expired ______?"

H - Hair.

Do you like your hair? It's kind of my enemy. I spent years destroying it with box dye but even regardless of that, it's limp and stringy in texture. I long for thick, luscious locks!

What color is your hair? Blonde

What does it look like right now? Clipped up in a claw clip

What kind of shampoo for you use? Biolage

I - Ibuprofen

When was the last time you took ibuprofen? Few days ago for a headache prob Do you rely on it for everything (cramps, headache)? I don't take it much, no

Are you so thankful people made it? I mean yeah?

Do you have any right now? We have a few bottles upstairs at the nurse's station

J - Jobs.

Do you need a job? I have one. I need a better PAYING job though...

Where do you work? A fertility clinic

Where would you work? If I could choose anywhere? I'd be a regular columnist for a website, magazine, blog etc.

How much money would you like to get paid? Sadly, I'd be ok with even $15/hour at this point. Ideally $20.... but that will never happen at this job.

K - Kissing.

Who was the last person you kissed? Glenn

Will you next kiss be a mistake? This is a weirdly common question in surveys. But no, it certainly won't.

Do you kiss someone everyday? Mhm

Who was your first kiss? Steven was his name

L - Love.

Who do you love the most in your life? My family, Glenn, my friends, my babies

Have you ever been in love before? I am right now

Does it make you so happy when you feel the feeling of love? Oh it's like SPARKLING, magical feeling throughout my whole body. Electric, even.

Why is this word so hard to describe? Probably because it's such a spiritual, almost otherworldly feeling. While there are a lot of physical sensations that accompany it, love itself is magical. And how do you define that in human language??

M - Mom.

What is your mom’s name? Julie

What is she doing right now? Ugh. The lucky duck is currently in Canada with my godmother having the time of her life. I'm so jealous but happy for her!

Where does she work? She's a retired schoolteacher

Do you two shop together a lot? Oh very often!

N - Netflix.

Do you have Netflix? Mhm but I don't watch it much

If not, what movies would you order?

Do you rent a lot of movies? Nah

Do you have the tool where it just downloads to your tv? Uh what? I have a Smart TV so I don't need any additional tools really?

O - Ohio.

Is this the state in which you live in? No lol

Is Ohio State your favorite football team? I don’t have a favorite Did you know Ohio Is For Lovers? Mhm

Have you ever been to Ohio? Nope

Q - Quitting.

What was the last thing you quit doing? It's hard to say 'cause I quit so many things. I can't decide if this is a bad habit or not? On one hand, I should exhibit some more perseverance. On the other hand, I think it's good that I recognize when something is no longer serving me.

Do you need to quit talking to someone right now? Nah. Everyone in my life is meant to be here.

Would you ever quit school? Well I'm done with school so no.

Don’t you think quitting is stupid? Nope. Again, I think it's good to acknowledge that something isn't doing you any favors. I don't think there's necessarily dignity in keeping yourself in a situation that doesn't serve you. Wish more people had that mentality. Just 'cause you start something doesn't mean you have to finish it.

R - Reading.

What was the last book you read? I'm in the middle of a riveting book called The Opposite of Everyone. My MIL has been lending me some really great mysteries lately. She's turning me on to the genre!

Do you own a lot of books? Our living room is overflowing with them and we actually are planning to buy a third bookshelf soon

Do you have a library card? Actually no but I want to get one for the library in the town I now live in

Have you ever read a book that changed your life? They all do, really.

S - Safety.

Do you always wear your seat belt? Ha. I often don't when I'm in the backseat because I don't find it necessary and my mom always barks back "THAT'S WHAT PRINCESS DIANA THOUGHT TOO"

When riding a four-wheeler do you wear a helmet? I've only ridden one a couple times and I can't remember if I wore a helmet

Did you ever wear knee pads and a helmet when riding your bike? Mhm Do you always think safety first? Eh, no. I'm kinda reckless if I'm honest.

T - Talk

Who was the last person you talked to? I'm messaging with Glenn right now Who are you talking to right now? ^^

Who did you last talk to before you went to bed last night? Also Glenn

Do you need to talk to anybody right now? I'm good

U - US ARMY

Do you support it? What a question... not really one I feel like getting tangled in right now. Thanks!

Do you know anybody who is in the army right now? Actually yes

Don’t you ever wonder why their camo doesn’t match anything? No?

Would you ever go to the army? HA HA HA HA HA

V - Virgin.

Are you a virgin? No, but virginity is a construct anyways.

When did you lose your virginity? I was 17 when I first had vaginal intercourse if that's what you're asking

Do you wish you would’ve waited? Nah, it all happened at the right time and led me to the right places. (Took awhile, but it did)

Do you think you could have stayed a virgin until marriage? No, that's not for me.

W - What.

What are you doing right now besides this survey? Messaging Glenn, texting a groupchat, and drinking coffee

What are you craving? Kind of everything since I'm fasting right now. So ALL food sounds appealing

What do you need to buy? NOTHING at the moment. I'm on a spending freeze for a little while.

Why are you taking my survey? Because I'm bored at work

X -Xanax

Do you know anybody who is addicted to Xanax? Maybe...

Have you ever taken it before? Nope

Do you even know what it is? Yes

Have you ever suffered from anxiety or depression? I do & I currently take Lexapro (I have lukewarm feelings about its effectiveness for me)

Y - Yourself.

Name. Elizabeth

Age. 29 (gag)

Do you smile a lot? Very often, even when I don't want to

Z - Zebra.

Are you addicted to zebra striped? No

Do you own anything zebra striped? Also no Is anything on any of your websites zebra striped? Lol no

[furederiko]

My 2nd and last Random-News-Digest for the month of November!

(Images courtesy of Disney Pixar Studio, Walt Disney Pictures, Marvel Comics, Marvel Studios, and CAPCOM. Taken from Official Trailers and/or Official Sites)

Pocket Monsters

This was actually a news from earlier this month. But since I was more focused on the launch of "Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon" on my previous R-N-D, I've decided to put this on hold.

Variety reported that young actor Justice Smith has been cast as the male lead of "Detective Pikachu". Smith will be playing the human companion of the titular character, who was seemingly a brunette-haired white boy in the video game. I'm not that much familiar with Smith, but the change on the race angle is acceptable because it shows that Hollywood is being proactive in casting POC actors as lead. Of course, the main question in everyone's mind, is WHO will be voicing Detective Pikachu himself. Will Danny DeVito, the actor that seems to be on every fans' wishlist get the part? We'll see...

Disney Animation

The much awaited and demanded sequel among Pixar Studio's roster, "The Incredibles 2", delivered its first poster and official teaser. The teaser might be really brief, as it only features Craig T. Nelson's character and the little baby Jack-Jack showcasing his numerous superpowers. But it didn't stop it from snatching every attention and breaking record along the way. According to various sources, the story will focus on Holly Hunter's Elastigirl and their older kids, while Mr. Incredible is stuck babysitting. Will that be a good storypoint for a sequel? Can this one be better than the likes of... I don't know, "Monsters University", "Finding Dory", or at the very least this year's "Cars 3"? We'll see when the movie arrives in Summer 2018...

Thankfully, at the same time the studio's "Coco" also captured the Thanksgiving holiday buzz, and gained an immense positive reaction from families. The A+ Cinema Score result was a solid win, as the hispanic-themed musical easily defeated the might of DC superheroes to be the number 1 movie over the weekend. It also proved that Pixar still has what it takes to churn out original stories, and not rely on sequels. I strongly hope this movie will have a strong leg going forward, and becomes a financial success as well. Even if to encourage the studio, and other animation studios to work on more originals.

Disney Live Action

If you think the teaser for Ava DuVernay's "A Wrinkle in Time" was weird, then wait till you see its full official trailer. It doesn't look A BIT like DuVernay's previous work, "Selma", that's for sure. LOL. This feels like what you'd get if "Doctor Strange" is combined with an equal dose of bright colors and wackiness from "Thor: Ragnarok" and "Guardians of the Galaxy", with a mixture of a "Chronicles of Narnia" movies and James Cameron's "Avatar" in the story department. I might be scratching my head hearing all those pseudo-science mumbo jumbo, but I also really want to see Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling, Zach Galifianakis, and particularly Michael Peña being weird deities or something like that. My only concern, is that this also reminds me of Brad Bird's "Tomorrowland". With a POC female director behind the wheels, I genuinely want this movie to succeed. So let's just hope it does NOT end up like that Disney movie. March 9th, 2018 can't come soon enough.

Niki Caro's "Mulan" reimagining has found its lead actress. Crystal Liu, or Liu Yifei has been selected over 1000 candidates to portray Fa Mulan. In case it's not obvious enough, Liu is 100% Chinese, so there's no whitewashing this one. She's a very popular name in her home country, though honestly this is the first time I have heard of her. Not surprisingly too, she has had experiences with Hollywood having been part of action movies like "The Forbidden Kingdom" and 2014's "Outcast". So... not exactly an unknown name, huh? Disney is not taking any chances, I suppose. But oh well, at least we won't be hearing whitewashing complains anytime soon. Now if only Godfrey Gao could be cast as Captain Li Shang. He IS, around the same age range to Liu, right? Mmhmmmmm *nods* *grins*

Jurassic Park

"Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" had shared its first official image. Coming straight from writer Colin Trevorrow's twitter account, it portrayed Chris Pratt's Owen Grady with his son... er, I mean a baby Velociraptor. Hmmm... those who have seen the first "Jurassic World" and possess a logical brain, would quickly question one thing: WHY ON EARTH do these guy still mess around with the dinosaurs, instead of leaving them be?! Seriously, Owen might be a Raptor trainer, but these creatures almost killed him too!

Trevorrow's name has been painted rather 'negatively' thanks to his departure from "Star Wars", so many people have been watching this title closely whether it will get the same effect of his "Book of Henry" or not. Of course, J.A. Bayona is the director for this one, but who can really tell what kind of influence Trevorrow brings, right? "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" roars into theatres on June 22nd, 2018. You might want to wait a little longer to see a trailer...

DC Films

When filmmakers keep on using lame excuses like "This movie is made for fans and not critics" to explain bad reviews, then... well, that's exactly what you get. Only fans... in fact, just half of them and not all, came to see "Justice League" on opening weekend. I'm not trying to throw a shade or being sarcastic here... (or am I, you decide), but the first weekend performance for the movie? It was NOT good. It even didn't reach the minimum expectation number. Great goodness, where did all those so-called devoted DC fans go?! #SARCASM

I know this news has been reported pretty much everywhere, but let's have a quick recap of what happened. Signs of trouble were already apparent when the movie had a somewhat 'troubling' start on Thursday, November 16th. Comic book adaptations, and in particular DC properties tend to be massively frontloaded, because unlike other studios, Warner Bros usually opened their movies on the same dates worldwide. So the fact that it had a dismal Thursday night was quite a surprise. But it was still a higher number than critically received Wonder Woman, giving it a glitter of hope. Then Friday sum came along, and it was another disappointing number. Again, still better than Gal Gadot's solo movie. But then the overall weekend estimation came out, and the concern was justified. "Justice League" 'only' took $96m domestically, which was a 'disaster' for a movie featuring not one or two, but SIX of DC's iconic superheroes. Some folks were still spinning a positive point of view, saying that it at least had passed the lowest speculated number (which was $95m, by the way). Oh no, it got bett... er I mean, worse. The ACTUAL revenue wasn't even inline with those numbers, as the movie merely achieved ALMOST $94m. OUCH!!!

As I've talked about in an earlier category, last weekend the movie quickly fell down from its top spot, thanks to "Coco" dominating the Thanksgiving holiday. The movie might have passed $480m worldwide in its 2nd week, but judging from the family power of that Disney Pixar movie that has yet to open in European countries, combined with the wonders of "Wonder", and strong leg of "Thor: Ragnarok"... can we even expect "Justice League" to perform much better compared to previous titles on its kins? I doubt. The movie is still on the path of 'biggest bomb' of 2017 if not all time, and is prone to inflict loss for the studio. Of course, should we even be surprised about it, when even the underestimated "Power Rangers" fared better than this movie?

Say what you will to defend this movie, but to WB it all comes back to nothing but business. You can even call this, an unmitigated disaster. This low number would totally influences the executives' upcoming decision regarding their Movie Universe. Seriously, because this is NOT the first of its kind (already the fifth, in case you forgot), yet the opening numbers of each movies continue to decline. It's an ambitious ensemble movie that the studio boldly expected to perform as big as Marvel Studios' 2012 "The Avengers", but wasn't able to even achieve the same response to an obscure team of "Guardians of the Galaxy". Compared to WB's own DC catalogue, even the oft-ridiculed campy had "Batman Forever" opened higher! That might be acceptable in the eyes of 'fans' or average moviegoers, but for a studio as big as WB? Likely NOT. Especially when they still can focus on other more beneficial franchises like "Kong: Skull Island" or... the next category *grins*.

Could we be heading towards another Dark Universe situation here? Really though, I think I can actually agree with a reboot or some sort, so the universe can keep the good parts (like Gadot's Diana Prince) and pretty much ditch or change everything else. Ben Affleck is on his way out anyway, and Henry Cavill's prospect to continue with his version of Superman has become very dim because he has completed his obligation. "Aquaman" and "Wonder Woman 2" will still be released. "Shazam!" is set to start production early next year, but its script might be reworked to safely exclude the character from the continuity. An idea that I'm totally ALL IN! *grins*. Matt Reeves' "The Batman" will be set in an entirely different Bat-Family-verse, possibly alongside Joss Whedon's "Batgirl" (no, Whedon is NOT fired or anything like rumored. Seriously, what is wrong with you DC Fans?!). And that R-rated "Deathstroke" movie might still see the light of day, even if because its lead actor is desperate keen to have it made. But the rest of the movies planned or talked about? You might not want to get your hopes up for them too soon, to avoid disappointments. Unless... the studio decides to resort to "Flashpoint" for a soft reboot.

Anyway, back to "Justice League" for a bit before I wrap up this category. Apparently some fans are already hilariously campaigning for the studio to release a Zack Snyder 'Director's Cut' version of the movie. Not surprising, considering WB had indeed DONE that TWICE already with the garbage that were "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice" and "Suicide Squad". Three times the charm, huh? To the point that they are desperate enough to do practically ANYTHING to get what they want... as reported by a movie critic whose name has been illegitimately used for 'the cause'. *sigh* Here we go again...

No offense to those 'over-passionate' people, but this is EXACTLY the problem with these fraction of DC fans. They are quick to act without properly thinking about things first. Why? 1) As Batman-News has pointed out, WB did NOT like Snyder's cut. He screened his unfinished version, like 10 effing months ago. So naturally, Snyder could NOT have his 'version' done considering WB immediately handed over the job to Whedon, who took over the entirety of the movie's post production. If a 'Director's Cut' these fans are asking, then that would be Whedon's and not Snyder's. 2) Despite the fact Snyder showed support in one, or how his cinematographer is dying to see one, his Director's Cut version would obviously require additional funding to finish. Don't forget that despite the worldwide response that leans towards positive, the movie's theatrical release might end up as a financial LOSS to WB. That pretty much prevents WB from spending extra money for another retool. They would be crazy to shower more money into this already-expensive movie just to please fans (for as much as they say they make movies for them, they don't actually give a damn). Unless of course, Snyder pulls a Ridley Scott and finished his version with his own money. Meaning, he probably would need to buy the movie's rights, and pay for all the visual effects, etcetera etcetera. 3) This petition proves that instead of going to the theatres to see the movie again to... I don't know, boost its revenue number, these fans would rather whine and demand for a HOME VIDEO release. No wonder the opening weekend was low! 4) I'll have to repeat my previous criticism here. If WB will indeed release an 'Ultimate' or 'Extended' home video version, then... well, the more the reason to NOT see this in theatres now, right? No kidding, why would we waste money on a half-baked product?! Just wait a few months, and we can see the whole thing with just a bit of extra money, right? That's the easy logic right there, and precisely the method I took to see these DC Films titles until now. The fact that WB had done it twice, is also the reason why some folks I know blatantly REFUSE to see the movie in theatres. After all, nobody would want to be fooled more than TWICE, right?

Fans be fans, and expecting them to change would be beyond comprehension. But at the very least, I hope on the other side of the table, both WB and DC Entertainment are learning the correct lessons from this outcome. Things as general as... don't rush into things, don't put too much stuff without proper payoffs, focus on telling a good story, or don't treat audience like they are stupid, to the most philosophical one like stay humble, be nice to others (whether its fans, critics or other studios), and stop trying to best a rival who's already waaaay ahead in their game *sigh*.

I'm not rejoicing or being rude or anything, but I believe DC direly needs to hit the reset button on the movies. And if it's possible, ditch WB completely if they want to do this right. Much of the DC Films ordeal actually have gotten to do with the studio execs meddling too much and demanding so many things that has continued damaging the properties. DC fans DESERVE better movies, and I don't think this flawed universe can hold it up anymore. Much like how Rebirth 'deleted' New 52, time to create a clean slate for the movie universe as well! If it works in the comics, why not, right? In the end, I think DC should just stick to what they do best, or better than the competitor: TELEVISION. FYI, this is what they get from not utilizing or banking in the same actors from those successful CW shows. Told ya so...

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Bring on "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald"!

Yes, I might be the odd man out, but I'm genuinely more interested to see what the "Fantastic Beasts" franchise has to offer next instead of DC Films. I admit, my favorite part of the first movie was Eddie Redmayne's Newt Scamander Pokede... I mean Private Zoo, so I felt pretty disappointed that the sequel will focus on Johnny Depp's Gellert Grindelwald. But the words of executive producer David Heyman has made me highly intrigued. Talking to Entertainment Weekly, he said that the sequel will have "a very different feel than the first. It’s got a thriller quality. And it’s also a story about love and passion and all its forms — paternal, romantic, political. And it’s just a thrilling and very fun adventure.". That 'thriller' aspect is enough to catch my attention. Can we expect to see a darker turn, possibly involving Jude Law's young Albus Dumbledore? How will Scamander and his Scooby-gang be properly integrated into this situation without sacrificing the things that made them interesting?

Heyman also teased that the movie will look more 'dynamic' with "contemporary cinematic approach". Despite the time setting being maaaaany years prior to "Harry Potter"? Now THAT is what I'm curious to see too. I hope the end result will not mirror the issue with "Star Wars" or "The Lord of the Rings" franchise. Remember how their prequel stories look waaay more advance (in visual and also... actor's age LOL) than their original stories? "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" opens on November 16th, 2018.

X-Men Universe

According to a very fresh report that just came in yesterday, apparently talks between Disney and FOX about the latter's movie and TV division have resurfaced. It's still rumor for now, but I'm not surprised if it's true. Other corporations, including SONY and Comcast have approached FOX for the same proposition, so it makes perfect sense that Disney will up their game and pursue the deal more rapidly. After all, FOX had some movie copyrights that would benefit Disney greatly. As I've mentioned before, there will be pros and cons if this acquisition becomes a reality. Naturally, fans everywhere are already filled with logical and occasionally pointless concerns over the fate of FOX's Marvel movies. A bit premature, if you ask me, but I guess that's what makes the internet such a fun and... crazy place. Let's just see how this turns out, okay!

Meanwhile, actress Lizzy Caplan has entered negotiations to play the lead female actress in Channing Tatum's "Gambit". It's still unclear if she will be portraying Bella Donna Boudreaux, considering actress Lea Seydoux had previously been attached to the role. Assuming the script has not gone through massive alteration, that could very well be the character Caplan has been offered. At least, that's the general notion in many people's head for the time being. Of course, things could have evolved since the movie was first promoted as a sexy thriller heist, so it's not yet a sure thing until it is confirmed. Directed by Gore Verbinski, "Gambit" will arrive on February 14th, 2019.

Marvel Studios

This here is the main reason why this R-N-D got postponed a few days to the end of November: the first trailer of "Avengers: Infinity War". Yes, OFFICIALLY available worldwide around 8,5 hours ago (following the 08.00AM EST premiere on Good Morning America), it's Marvel Studios' answer to the crazy buzzing cries of demand that got many people... uhm, emotionally riled up. It has gotten to the point that people have been shamelessly leaking actual footages from the movie itself. Not cool people, NOT cool.

I personally didn't really need to see a trailer for this movie. But I'm not gonna lie, the HYPE machine was tooo strong, that well... a not-so-strong-on-the-inside guy like yours truly would easily got swept away. I think ANY fans of the Marvel Studios release would be weak for this kind of thing. LOL. Is the trailer any good? You're kidding, right? Of course! #MINDBLOWING. It teases that the movie lives up to its somber title, and... that's all I'm going to say, as you need to see it yourself to have the full experience (I almost had a heart attack when I first saw it... Oh, Vision T_T). Beside, every entertainment sites will surely be talking about it, excessively analyzing every details that will decorate their pages. For at least two weeks ahead (if it hasn't started before... LOL) until its Disney-cousin "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" comes knocking on everyone's door. "Avengers: Infinity War" arrives on May 4th, 2018. But I'm sure you're already aware about that... XD

True to what Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige had promised, said trailer arrived in November. Timed perfectly just a few days after Vanity Fair unveiled its special coverage (published on November 27th, to be precise) to that much-talked-about exclusive photoshoot that took place in Pinewood Atlanta Studio last month. A grand celebration to the studio's 10 years of enduring success. For the record, Vanity Fair held their own separate photoshoot featuring only 32 out of 83 people involved in the event (a small percent are likely directors, writers, and producers), so the actual result of said event is still big question marks to any of us. Thankfully, the magazine's coverage is a marvelous substitute. It details the studio's journey and rise to fame from an independently-funded team into a billion dollar maker. It also pushes Feige's hidden personal story to the spotlight, exposing the key ingredient to the Marvel Cinematic Universe's success and global domination: FANBOY FEIGE himself. Go ahead and visit Vanity Fair to read the entire coverage, alongside its coupling stories about the superhero looks and look back to "Iron Man". Those are really good and highly recommended reads!

"Ant-Man and the Wasp" has officially wrapped on November 20th. This one was finally confirmed by director Peyton Reed himself and lead actress Evangeline Lilly. Lead actor Paul Rudd on the other hand, had some fun on HBO's "Night of Too Many Stars" benefit show, flaunting his latest Ant-Man suit while making a joke about his previous movie "I Love You, Man". I personally loved this comedy, so I fully understand what he's saying. The end of production also filmed a rather spoilerific scene in Hawaii, featuring Michael Douglas' Hank Pym and Michelle Pfeiffer's Janet van Dyne. You might want to avoid that link if you don't like spoilers. Anyway, with "Infinity War" trailer out on the market, the greedy question now is: When can we get one for this movie? LOL. "Ant-Man and the Wasp" opens in July 6th, 2018.

On the "Captain Marvel" side of things, the one and only Jude Law has entered talks to portray a key role: the original Captain Marvel... Dr. Walter Lawson a.k.a. Kree Warrior Mar-Vell himself. Mar-Vell is an important figure in the Marvel universe, because not only he's partially responsible for Carol Danvers' powers, he's also the father of another superhero, and a Guardians of the Galaxy member. Having this character in the MCU is inevitable, because I'm sure his involvement will bleed into the next 'Phase' paving way for new characters. And of course, if Law agrees to accept this role (which I think he will), then we'll have two pair of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson in the MCU! If there's one thing Marvel Studios' movies are always good at, it's in their choice of picture-perfect A-list casting. To think that Law wasn't even the first big name who was approached for this part...

The Hollywood Reporter coverage of the same story, seemingly confirmed that actor Ben Mendelsohn has officially become part of the movie's ensemble. Although many have speculated that he could be playing a Skrull Commander, it looks like he could be portraying another key role in Brie Larson's Carol Danvers' ascension to hero: the super villain Yon-Rogg! Not that I'm surprised, of course, regardless of the source's... uhm... lack of credibility. Lastly, a report stated that the movie's production has undergone another schedule change. Apparently, production for the movie is now expected to begin early March to mid-July. However, casting process have already begun because several key roles are expected to film earlier in January. Are they needed for "Avengers 4" then? Quite possibly. Larson herself has already been confirmed to be part of it, which also explains the swift progress the studio is taking with Mendelsohn. With the same reason, I think we can expect follow up regarding Law's status in the near future as well. "Captain Marvel" might be released on March 8th, 2019, but her buzz is already getting louder and louder everyday!

As for what's next? Well... this is where things get rather startling. In a fascinating mysterious way. In the Vanity Fair coverage, Feige confirmed that the May 3rd, 2019 "Avengers 4" will indeed bring a finale or some sort. "There will be two distinct periods. Everything before Avengers 4 and everything after. I know it will not be in ways people are expecting.", he stated. But about that 'everything after'? He revealed that the studio has already mapped not one, not two, and definitely not just three movies after the UNTITLED Avengers movie... but TWENTY COMPLETELY DIFFERENT ONES. Calling that as a 'big plan' would be a huge understatement. Okay, assuming the pattern of releasing 3 movies per year goes on, that means we'll be getting around 6 more years of MCU after 2019. Feige wasn't kidding (he's a man of his words) when he said the studio have plans until 2025. But what will they be?

We know that a sequel to "Spider-Man: Homecoming" is set to be the third 2019 release. "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" from James Gunn (who was recently generous enough to share his first draft while providing details regarding the second movie) will spearhead 2020, while paving way for more cosmic branches. Scott Derrickson probably had already signed up a directorial return to do a sequel of "Doctor Strange" in the same year, opening the portals to more multidimensional journeys. Both "Black Panther" and "Captain Marvel" will most definitely get sequels. Perhaps, we'll get another bromancing Thor and Hulk by Taika Waititi as follow-up to his "Thor: Ragnarok", while Tessa Thompson unites with the other female heroes for an "A-Force" adaptation. And then a cosmic movie featuring Adam Warlock because he might NOT be in "Vol. 3". That's EIGHT... what about the remaining DOZEN then? LOL. A solo movie for the popular Ms. Marvel, or a live action version of "Young Avengers"? Those would be DOPE. Not to mention, that number most likely does NOT include Marvel characters currently under FOX and/or SONY. Imagine what would happen if Disney ends up merging with FOX!

One thing for sure, Marvel Studios' movies are here to stay! Meaning we'll still some great fun times at the theatre for several years ahead. So what are you waiting for... celebrate the 10th year, and speculate on!!!

Marvel TV

The 5th season of Marvel's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." will premiere in just a few days from now on Friday, December 1st 2017 08.00PM EST. In order to amp up the hype and anticipation level, Marvel TV had released an official extended trailer to give audience a glimpse of what to expect. And if that's not enough, they have also published the debut episode's first 17 minutes on Youtube. In case both clips weren't obvious enough, the setting is in space, and all but one (Fitz! Who else?) active members of Clark Gregg's Phil Coulson's team are trapped in a galactic prison or some sort. Fans of the show only need to wait a bit longer for their beloved characters' return.

As for me? That extended trailer has totally convinced me... to SKIP this season entirely. No, this is not a drill. Hmmmm.... I don't know how, but I guess because this looks... redundant? The prospect of going interstellar felt engaging and promising when the previous season ended. But things have changed in the months after, when new space-themed series like "Star Trek: Discovery" and "The Orville" debuted and gained attention. Including yours truly. I admit, in AoS' case it felt more like "Firefly" or "Star Wars", but my point remains: it's a space opera or any of its variations. And being not much of a fan to the genre, I'm already good with following just one of it this season. Care to guess which one?

Besides, good reviews and/or words of mouth don't instantly mean everyone is going to like it. Take for instance... Marvel's "Runaways". People everywhere are praising this Hulu show, yet only two episodes in, and I'm already feeling utterly... BORED by it. Many said that this show is unlike or even better than CW's "Riverdale", but I say... it's more or less the same thing (but with superpowers) or even worse. I'll give it the benefit of doubt and continue watching for a few more episodes (possibly until episode 4 or 5 out of 10), but only out of obligation to a personal quirk. Come on Hulu, just release more episodes for "The Tick" already! Anyways, the same goes for AoS. People have been saying good things about its two hours premiere, but my gut is telling me that... it's not working for me. Call me back when Mr. Lance Hunter returns, okay! *winks*

Netflix

Over on the Netflix side, Marvel's "Luke Cage" has wrapped filming. That's what the production staffs seemed to be hinting at. At the very least, it's nearing completion to pave way for other Marvel-themed shows. LOL. Considering this could be the last season for Mike Colter's Luke Cage on Netflix (with that Disney streaming service and all), this could be a bittersweet news for its fans. Oh well, let's move on...

DC Television

Speaking of dedicated streaming service, DC is already ahead of Marvel (See? DC's forte is on television, so they should just totally focus on it). Aside from the highly demanded new season for "Young Justice", and "Titans" that has gathered almost all of its core cast, a new original title has been added to its roster. Yes, coming from the producers of the short-lived "Powerless", an animated "Harley Quinn" series has already scored a 26-episodes first season! This series will be a half-hour adult action-comedy, written by the same set of guys: Justin Halpern, Patrick Schumacker, and Dean Lorey.

According to Deadline, actress Margot Robbie is the desired candidate to voice the titular character. She might not be reprising the same incarnation from the live action "Suicide Squad", but banking on her popular name would totally give benefit to DC. Of course, I personally prefer Arleen Sorkin or Tara Strong to reprise their roles from "Batman: The Animated Series", but who am I to argue. The story will focus on Harley, who after breaking up with The Joker, wants to become the criminal 'Queenpin' of Gotham. Her bestie Poison Ivy will naturally be part of the show, alongside other DC heroes and villains. Can Harley carry a whole series on her own? We'll see.

Do you want a new season for "Justice League Unlimited" in the service too? Well... keep asking DC about it, and you might get what you wish for. Hey, it worked with "Young Justice", right? Especially when voice actor Kevin Conroy himself is up to do one. Come on DC, make it happen! I just hope that it doesn't involve cancelling "Justice League Action", because it IS close to ending its first season...

Marvel vs. Capcom

Those three leaked DLC Marvel characters for "Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite" have been confirmed! Bucky Barnes / Winter Soldier, Natasha Romanova / Black Widow, and Eddie Brock / Venom will be available starting next week on December 5th, 2017. Each can be purchased separately, or directly available to those who own 2017 Character Pass. PlayStation 4 players have been given exclusive opportunity to test out these characters through a free demo during the weekend. You can check out the official announcement trailer on Youtube.

As I said last month, these characters are pretty much... redundant. However, all three have devoted fanbase thanks to the live action movies, so perhaps CAPCOM is trying to attract their attention? I must say though, seeing Bucky's cybernetic metal arm changing from left to right in between scenes is pretty disturbing. It's excusable for a 2D fighting game (because developer would refrain from creating different data for left and right sides of a character), but this is supposed to be 2,5D right? Can't they do it proportionally in this method?

Naturally, the snowball didn't stop with these characters and has continued to roll. As soon as they are confirmed, talks and rumors regarding MORE characters have begun surfacing. Claims on Reddit and other outlets have brought variety of names as potential 2nd Season DLC characters. They include: Star-Lord, Ms. Marvel, Green Goblin, Wolverine, Cyclops, Psylocke, Magneto, Storm, Deadpool, Doctor Doom, and Daredevil from the Marvel side; Asura, Lady, Gill, Rashid, Captain Commando, Nina, Deis, Regina, Gene, Vergil, Akuma, and Apollo Justice from the CAPCOM side.

Many of those names have been openly thrown around, but among them are several characters who have been reported by multiple sources. According to Youtuber Maximilian, there are 5 names with a solid match between various sources, with 1 other one in question. So yeah, just like the first line of DLC, it might be 6 characters... but in an opposite pattern, as this one will contain 2 Marvel character and 4 CAPCOM ones. The Marvel side is said to herald Star-Lord and Ms. Marvel, while the CAPCOM side will bring fan-favorite Asura, "Street Fighter III" big boss Gill, and "Devil May Cry" Lady. The last character might be either "Street Fighter V" Rashid, "Dino Crisis" Regina, or "Ace Attorney" Apollo Justice, because the sources didn't seem to be in agreement about it. This report came along a potential 2 vs 2 co-op gameplay rumored to be available in Summer next year.

Just for the sake of speculation, let's talk about them! Star-Lord? Another pretty redundant Marvel character. But I understand if they want to bank on him due to his popularity on the big screen. Ms. Marvel is a fantastic choice, even if she's pretty much the Marvel version of former MvC roster, Dhalsim. Asura is also a great choice, considering the fans already went wild over that "Asura's Wrath" DLC that pitted him against Evil Ryu. Gill is an interesting addition that makes good sense, since it's pretty unlikely to see him showing up in "Street Fighter V". Rashid is similar to Ms. Marvel, because he works by adding much needed diversity to the game... aside from being a cool wind-powered fighter. Apollo Justice, and Regina will be a clone version of Phoenix Wright, and Black Widow/Jill Valentine respectively, while Lady practically serves as the female versions of Dante and/or Vergil. Personally, I would rather the last character be Rashid, but Apollo will bring his unique style that (similar to Phoenix) separates him from the other fighters.

In the end, these are just rumors with no certainty that it's going to be accurate or not. For now, let's just enjoy the three DLC characters already available in the game, as we wait for three more to arrive very soon. Don't forget that CAPCOM can always stretch the second set for almost a year after... *sigh*

Street Fighter

Yeah, you did catch the jabs I threw CAPCOM above right? Because we all know the both seasons of DLC characters for "Street Fighter V" took an entire year to release, eventhough there were only SIX each. The last one for Season 2 has only arrived last month, even if we probably have been teased about it since last year.

Of course... when the dust settles, a new wind blows. The topic of the game has since shifted towards... "Arcade Edition" and 3rd Season DLC. Inline with its half-brother in the category above, a slew of rumors regarding 6 more characters have begun dropping throughout message boards. The same leaker who posted the potential characters for "Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite", stated two things that some people have found to be... rather conflicting.

The first one headcounted Sagat, Sakura Kasugano, Cody Travers, Sodom, and two newcomers (who could either be "Final Fight" Roxy, or a Shadaloo member). This one COULD be considered credible because many other sources have been singing similar tune. For example, dataminer X-Kira claimed that Sagat, Sakura, and Neo Shadaloo (Ed's team member on his Story Mode) are three of the DLCs. Flowtron (the user who successfully leaked the entire Season 2 characters) mentioned a somewhat different set: Sagat, Sakura, Blanka, "Mayor", "Another Bae", and "President". But the user also warned, that they no longer had connection with CAPCOM, that even they couldn't be sure of their own statement. LOL. At the very least, if the Red Bull Battle Grounds was any indication, then Sakura has pretty much been officially confirmed.

The second part of the leak claimed that four characters; namely Crimson Viper, Q, Necro, and Oro; will be available as free characters for the Arcade Edition's free update. Flowtron has debunked this, saying it's not true. Youtuber VesperArcade commented that while the previous names made sense, these free ones sound rather unlikely. He argued that to pull this off, it would require CAPCOM to make all four character available when the update is launched on January 16th, 2018. And the company doesn't really have a good track record in developing things quickly. Remember when the first set of DLC mostly ran out of its initial schedules? Beside, CAPCOM would have announced this kind of update in advance, to ensure that players who have purchased the vanilla "Street Fighter V" be pleased... and not complaining. But there's no such thing about it until now.

To be honest, I'm merely talking about this because I'm excited about the probability of seeing my champ Cody back in a Street Fighter game. If he IS part of the 3rd Season, that gives me more reason to purchase the game... as soon as I get a PlayStation 4 or a strong enough PC. LOL.

Moving on from rumors, CAPCOM have also released official information. Eventhough there were some concerns about the promised secondary V-Skills and Critical Arts, the company confirmed that every character will indeed receive one among other new stuffs. And to prove that, they even released an official trailer (available in Japanese as well) to showcase them in action, with a note saying "Street Fighter V players will receive the free Arcade Edition update. In addition to an all-new Arcade Mode and new monthly challenges via Extra Battle Mode, every character will receive a second V-Trigger attack. These are but just a few to get you thinking of new possibilities for 2018 and beyond…". Here's hoping this update will boost or rekindle interest for the title among fans and gamers in general.

Meanwhile, "Puzzle Fighter" had launched for iOS and Android last week. The free for download puzzle game should be available worldwide with a new look and new features. If you ask me, it actually feels more like a "Capcom All Star" game, because of those other characters from non-"Street Fighter" titles. I guess that is expected to appeal wider demographics, huh? You can download the App game on your smartphone right away to try it, or you can watch the launch trailer on Youtube to get a visual taste.

The King of Fighters

Looks like we'll be getting another update for "The King of Fighters XIV". Following the result of a social media design contest that took place last month, SNK Corps will soon add two things. A Saudi Arabian-themed fighter named Najd, created by designer Mashael Al-Barrak from Saudi Arabia, and a modern day Masmak Fort stage, created by Oman designer Zainab Al-Lawaty. It's currently unclear when they will be added to the game, but I hope SNK will also expand the roster with more characters. Now if only SNK would hold a similar contest in my country...

Nintendo

To wrap up this month's final R-N-D, we have some happy news from Nintendo. The company's popular and highly praised "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild", has scored several wins at the Golden Joystick Awards in UK. The open world RPG won 'Ultimate Game of the Year', as well as 'Best Audio', 'Critic's Choice Award', and 'Nintendo Game of the Year'.

While the alternate reality "Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon" hit the market, its original titles "Pokemon Sun & Moon" also won the 'Handheld/Mobile Game of the Year'. These titles could be the reason why the game developer itself got crowned as 'Studio of the Year'. This award relied exclusively on public votes, which means Nintendo has gained a truly positive buzz this year. And that's before the equally praised and critically acclaimed "Super Mario Odyssey" could take part in. Could we see the Zelda and Mario game pit against each other in future Awards? I believe that would be the case.

#Random-News-Digest #random thoughts #news #movie #pokemon #the incredibles #a wrinkle in time #Disney #justice league #fantastic beasts and where to find them #gambit #Marvel Studios #Avengers #infinity war #ant-man and the wasp #Captain Marvel #Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #marvel vs capcom: infinite #street fighter v #kof xiv #nintendo #game #Mulan

[sueboohscorner]

HAHN: S4 Ep22~ For the Team *Recap & Review* #HAHN

Episode Rating Scale: (9) Excellent

As we get closer to the finale, what bombshells will explode? Can Charles change Candace bad girl image? Which Cryer will do down for Jennifer's murder? Will Veronica turn Justin's life upside down? Who is going down for Quincy's murder? So many plots, so many twists and so much to look forward to, How will the Have and the Have Nots end?  

This episode wasn't as turned up as I would have liked it to be but it had some interesting moments. I think Katheryn gave me the hardest laugh tho. Hmmm, Jim wasn't too far behind. Them two is something else.  Silly me for thinking through all the heartache, pain and scandals; Jim was ready to put the love back into marriage with Katheryn. As he lay there repeatedly saying I love you, Katheryn, apart of me believes that. Katheryn has endured so much. You can hear it. Between Jim cheating all the time, Amanda's issues, Wyatt's issue and her trying to keep it together; that's a lot. You can't help but wonder why Jim stopped being in love with Katheryn. Where did their marriage go wrong? Katheryn is done with Jim. I guess she just needed that itch scratched.

Jim repeatedly tried to convince Katheryn he loves her and wants their marriage. Katheryn did what most women would do, asked questions that only a man in love would remember. What's my birthday? What's the kids birthday? What's our anniversary?. Jim got two out of three right, what that means? Lol. Katheryn isn't the same person, and Jim has lost her. His sex game couldn't reel her back in. Katheryn too funny. She told Jim she would blow his brains out just as easy as I blew you. If it's that easy, Jim better pays attention. I guess Jim will be joining David in divorce court.

Erica fake abusive fiance has gotten her into David's apartment. As she gets settled in, David calls and check on Jeffery. David is trying to get Jeffrey out of this murder case with Candace. He asked Jeffrey about a set of keys and bracelet the police have as evidence. Jeffrey admits to the keys being his keys but not a bracelet. We all know the bracelet belongs to Benny but does Jeffrey know. I mean, he knows Benny buried the body right?  David reminds Jeffrey to stay away from his mother. David fears that if Veronica continues to push Jeffrey; Jeffrey will snap. This time he might kill his mother. Jeffrey agrees to stay away from his mother. But he asked his father he going to do something to her. David still loves Veronica, and he will never hurt her. After hanging up with David, Jeffrey gets a call from Wyatt. He wears a kool aid hearing Wyatt's voice. I must admit,  seeing Wyatt sober Wyatt too bad. Wyatt invites Jeffrey out to the park with him and Anna. All that Jeffrey has going on him not up to it. However, you can tell Jeffrey is happy that Wyatt is getting his self together. Will he say sober is the true question? Wyatt mentioned Justin being at his house with the DNA. Wyatt tells Jeffrey to stay away from him because he is weird. Justin isn't weird tho. He feels in love with a man, while married to a woman and he is living a double life. A secret he wants to stay a secret. I guess that's what makes him seem off to everyone. Jeffrey calls Justin after talking to Wyatt. As always, Justin dropped what he is doing and headed to speak to Jeffrey.

I like Erica and David together. I wish he weren't a mark for her. I was hoping she feels for him, but I guess her fear of Candace trumps love. As she enjoys the scenery of David's home, they share a drink.  You can tell David is starting to fall for her. He began opening up about Jeffrey and Jeffrey's issues with Veronica. David must have caught himself because he changed the subject. Could David be lonely or is he feeling Erica? Only time will tell. As Erica continues to play her dismal in the distressed card, David invites her into his bed. He makes his clear she will not be on the couch. He wants her to share his bed every night she there. We all know she is not leaving anytime soon, but Erica makes it sound good. She tells David one night at a time. Before they can head out for dinner, David gets a call from Jim. Jim has lost his mind. He wants David to take one for the team because he did. So sleeping with Katheryn was suppose to make her mind clear. Jim hasn't been attractive to Katheryn in years. Somehow he thought sleeping with her would give him control over Katheryn. Wth? Now, David having sex with Veronica. David refused that thought several times. Jim tries to convince David, but that's one for the team David will pass on no matter what Jim said. For some reason, Jim feels Katheryn and Veronica are out of control. But, why does he think him and David can calm this two ladies storms.

Justin arrives at Jeffrey's hotel room. Again, Jeffrey tries to convince Justin to get help to deal with his issues. Sadly, Justin doesn't feel he as an issue. He does have anger issues, but I wonder if that's because he not being who he is. Why is Justin living this double life? We don't know too much about him and his life. That would be interesting to find out. It's a reason he in the closet other than denial. Veronica calls while Justin is there. Jeffrey tries to ignore her calls, but she keeps calling. Finally, Jeffrey answers. Either she is following Justin or her Spidey senses is on 1000. She knew Justin was there. She repeatedly tries to get Jeffrey to come home. Once that doesn't work, she plays the only card she has left. She tells Jeffrey to put the phone on speaker. She makes it clear that if Jeffrey isn't at her house soon, she will be in court explaining why her charges should be dropped. She will expose Justin to his wife and with the pictures to prove it. Justin tells her he is warning her. Too bad Justin doesn't know Veronica, but Jeffrey does. After she hung up the phone, Jeffrey warns Justin that Veronica will do as she said. For some reason, Justin thinks she wouldn't. Justin thinks again. Veronica about to destroy your life honey.

Landon apologizes to Charles for his behavior about his relationship with Candace. Landon did what he was ordered to do. He cleaned Candace internet lifestyle. The escort site has disappeared. Charles thanks, Landon and for once they share a not so tense conversation. Landon congratulations Charles. Charles invited Landon for drinks in the Oval office. Charles then excuses Landon so he can call Candace. As always Candace isn't so nice. She is interested in why Charles called her. The man is just checking on the woman. She did just lose her son. Amazing how she can't handle someone being time enough for her. She tells Charles she is headed to the funeral home. How is that going to go with Hanna and Benny being there? I know Candace has to feel alone right now. I still can't find in me to feel sorry for her.

Benny and Hanna arrive at the funeral home. Hanna isn't ready to view Baby Q's body even though that's why they are there. Katheryn has agreed to pay for Baby Q's funeral. Though Katheryn's is the person paying Hanna is still trying not to get something too expensive. The casket is picked out, and other decisions have to be made. Should the casket be open and close? Is the obituary probably done? So much to do when someone dies. It is so much sadder when that someone hasn't begun to live life. Candace shows up in the middle of the final arrangements for the funeral.  

Now, this chick has truly lost her mind. I know her and Hanna have the worst mother and daughter relationship, but to blame her isn't fair or right. Candace never wants to accept responsibility in nothing. Her actions and lifestyle are the reason why her son is dead. Hanna, Benny, and Mitch could be dead as well. It could be four funerals to prepare for. Despite their differences, Hanna loves that baby. She fought for her grandson. She got on her knees to Candace and begged for her grandson. I know Candace is hurting but blame yourself first. Getting War killed doesn't change that void and that burden. Then again we are talking about Candace. She may or may not have a soul. All the arrangements Hanna made for Baby Q; Candace wants none of it. Hanna picked an inexpensive white casket. Candace wants the expensive blue casket. Finally, Benny gets to see the real Candace. She flips on Benny. Now it's Benny's fault. If Benny wouldn't share his dreams and need for money to make them happen; she wouldn't blackmail Jim. Lmao. This chick is out her mind. I was happy Benny checked her tho. I hope after this he realizes he can't help or save Candace. Benny has been there for Candace just as well. Even now he could be going to jail once they discover the owner of that bracelet. Candace is bickering about everything about the funeral arrangements. She doesn't want Katheryn to pay for anything. She tells the funeral coordinator, she will bring him cash. Everyone knows Candace is broke. That's when Hanna connects the dots. She tells Candace she is blackmailing the guy running for president. Now they know why Benny was in jail. Candace denies it, but Hanna knows her daughter. Candace lashes out backfires. As she repeatedly says, she doesn't want the white casket. She walks to the blue casket and says she wants this one. Her intentions of opening that casket and probably knocking it over backfired. She opened that casket and found her dead son lying there. They were viewing his body. The purpose of the visit to the funeral home. Candace hugs that wall in tears and screams. I still couldn't bring myself to feel sorry for her. Maybe if she showed some remorse, I could. 

As this episode end, I can't help but wonder; what is the finale going to bring. Stay tuned cause I know I will. If you missed any episodes binge on Comcast On Demand. 

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Editor: Lattice Johnson

#tylerperry #OWN #tikasumpter #richandpoor #HAHN