#actually I was in Danny’s place in the alien and angel one

[promptcorner]

Will you ever write that dp x tfrb fic? The one with the cody/danny? Cause the idea is genius...the pairing is so cute, two disaster teens lol

When would Danny get to GR? The dude is so damn overpowered that its hilarious, even if he holds back, so imagine the Burns faces when they watch him lift the boys ship with a single hand and the brat says "oh, this? This weighs like a bunch of grapes lol". And when he tells them all his adventures and that he defeated the ghost version of Unicron on steroids and several minor deities.

What do you think of the "kid is next in the line for the throne by right of conquest because he made old peepaw Dark go to sleep once again"?

Some hc of the cody/danny ship? As in, actual couple hc. Who does what and all that stuff...

Good question!

I’m writing the second chapter actually! The first chapter is being edited, I hope to post it on AO3 with my other fics by the end of the week! Hopefully that comes into fruition, if not, then within this month.

I can’t say much on when or how Danny gets to GR. All I can say though, is that it happens in the first chapter. Danny and Cody meet in the first chapter too and mysteries are put in place.

Pttt! Peepaw Dark is a great name! Gold stars! 🌟🌟🌟

I am going to go the Ghost King route, but I won’t go into detail on how. ;3

Danny is an overpowered boy with great humor. But man, he can be such a dork with cringe fail action. Cody is definitely the most mature out of the two, but not by much. He tends to create trouble by his wants and actions when he doesn’t think things through. The Trash-compacter episode comes to mind. Danny does similar stuff.

They’re both nerds, have older red headed siblings, work as heroes, have some sort of relevant connections to royalty and pirates, fight machines, fight ghosts or ghost adjacent stuff, and both have friend(s) who are knowledgeable in things they’re not. The list can go on.

With that dynamic into perspective, here are my cute romantic hcs:

Danny, as Phantom, would often call Cody, “Boy Scout.” But as Danny, he would call Cody, “Codes.” Even before they get together, he calls Cody these names as a way to separate his ghost side from his living side. It doesn’t work, however. Because Cody would be like, “Hang on, how do you know I was as a scout? I don’t wear my sash everywhere I go… Wait, I recognize that hair cut!” Cody would notice that Danny is Phantom almost immediately. But he wouldn’t say anything and just roll with it. He’s seen some weird stuff, this wouldn’t be any different. Danny would also call Cody his Guardian Angel or Psychopomp due to how they met as a little inside joke. But the joke becomes real. The irony of the protecter spirit actually having a protector is funny to me. But this would go both ways.

Cody would a hundred and ten percent believe that Danny is an alien before finding out he’s a ghost. The entire Burns Family and the Docs would believe that as well. Even The Bots would think he’s some strange shifter species from space like them. Danny just happens to either be half alien, or an alien who grew up with human culture, those types of theories. So they brush off obvious signs of ghostly activity for a while. But Cody would be the first to know via Danny telling him. The angst would be obvious.

And just like Cody being the first to know, he would also be the first to gain feelings for Danny before Danny catches feelings for him. It’s a slow build, but he notices them and develops his first crush. He would act all shy, stutter occasionally, and doze off with a dreamy expression.

He would constantly think Danny’s eyes are brighter then Energon, would want to comb through his hair, and go on hikes to the top of GR and watch the stars with him. Heck, he would find a way to the stars with Frankie’s help.

His siblings would notice this immediately, since their love lives have been active since the dawn of time, especially Kade’s. And they would both get nervous and excited. The Bots would look on in confusion, but realize Cody is having feelings, and also get excited.

But hey! Cody’s the baby, so there will be plenty of, “Gah! No! Not the baby! He’s going through puberty! He’s gaining a crush! Oh the humanity! They grow up to fast! What do we do?” \TAT/

The Docs, Frankie, and Mr. Burns would be the only few to handle this with any form of maturity.

Danny would be slower in catching on. But he develops feeling not too long after Cody.

He would stutter too, doze off, but would still give Cody various pet names. However, where in the beginning he said certain names more sparingly, now he’s saying them ever time they hang out. Names like Angel, My Guardian, Soul Mate (I explained why in my last ask, but it’s because they have similar shoes but inverted), Sunlight, Capella, Aviator, the list goes on.

Danny would ask for hugs more often, and help around whenever he sees Cody doing something like cooking and junk. At first, he would ask if Cody needs help, but eventually he just does stuff with Cody without asking first. They get into a grove, chat, and be done with cleaning or fixing something very quickly.

Danny would start to make fudge, to, and give it to Cody as a gift. He would even tinker around and make machines to gift to Cody, like a mini telescope, a compass that looks old but is too advanced for any government to use, and various other items.

I want to say more, but I’m going to cap it off here. The want to speak is dwarfed by my want to show it all in the story.

Thanks for the ask! <3

Update there is now a fic!

#writeblr #writers on tumblr #writers #writing inspiration #writing #writing prompts #danny phantom #danny fenton #transformers #transformers rescue bots #ghost and rescue #danny x cody #cody burns

[hauntingyourself]

DP characters as things my friends and family have said (part 2)

#actually I was in Danny’s place in the alien and angel one #and also wes #but I was there for all of them #?? #danny phantom #myart #Sam manson #wes #jazz Fenton #comic

[tlexx]

Lost Boys Chapter 4

Summary: Multichapter fic loosely based on the Lost Boys (movie).

Warnings: 18+, MINORS DNI, Explicit Chapter

Chapter 3

Chapter 5

Jake avoided all questions you had regarding the fact that Danny had drank his blood and became, what you inferred, immortal. From what Jake showed you, all four of those men haven’t aged at all over the last seven years, and it was easy to assume that the brothers may have been this young for even longer. When he drove you home last night he basically became mute, just giving you grunts and looks as answers instead of having a full conversation. If you could change one thing about Jake it would be the fact that he seemed to always dodge your questions and any resemblance of an actual conversation. But, you knew that he held onto secrets that weren’t just in place to protect himself. He had three other men that he was basically responsible for. That may be exactly why he always stayed so stoic, so the others could act their mortal age for as long as they needed. Jake held some much on his shoulders and now you were added onto that weight. You only knew this because when he dropped you off in your driveway, he made you promise that you would be careful. You had to question him though, why would you need to be careful when he was always there to protect you anyways?

“I can’t be around all the time Y/N. You’ll see me every night you allow it, but I can’t be with you during the day.” You had to admit that this was quite the admission of information from Jake, so you decided not pry any further. Plus, it was pretty easy to start putting the pieces together. Jake hadn’t aged, he couldn’t come out in sunlight, he was able to read your thoughts, and he had an affinity for blood. Vampire.

As you laid in your bed, you spent hours racking your brain around the possibility of this. Were the creatures that you saw in horror movies and read about in books actually real? You always pictured a vampire as some Nosferatu looking beast. Cold dead eyes, fangs that were always present, and an alien-like facial structure. Yet, Jake and his brothers were the most beautiful creature you’ve ever come in contact with. They reminded you of a renaissance painting, specifically The Fallen Angel. Sculpted to look so ethereal yet so terrifying, a common thought you had.

You had to laugh at the situation before you. Here you were a young woman that spent her whole life carefully crafting a life that allowed little room for danger, and excitement, having that all crumble down within the span of two days at the hand of a vampire. The word felt so foreign to you that you decided to try it out. You stared at the ceiling and kept repeating the sentence over and over: Jake is a vampire. It began to sound like a fact rather than a thought. As you kept cycling it a voice inside your head started to speak to you, ‘Yes, darling.’ The voice was so unmistakably Jake. Even from miles away, he was able to know everything you were thinking. This was something that you would have to keep track of, making sure that you didn’t let your mind linger too much on the way Jake’s hand felt on your thigh or the way his smile erupted a fire deep in your stomach. ‘haven’t even kissed you yet and you already can’t stop thinking about me.’ His voice was dripping in cockiness. He was able to know exactly the effect he had on your body just from a few chaste kisses to your knuckles. It added to the intimidation that always overcame you when he was around.

Maybe you could use some of this telepathic communication to your advantage. Jake might be more willing to answer your questions if he wasn’t actually here with you. You decided to speak out loud, since your parents wouldn’t hear you anyways.

“Jake, do you drink blood?”

‘You know the answer to that.’

“Do you want to drink my blood?”

‘Yes.’

“Are you going to?” Even though Jake was so protective over you there was this underlying knowledge laced in fear that he could so easily harm you when and if he chose to.

‘Not until you tell me to do so.’ Like hell you would ever let Jake drink your blood. He would never come near you with those sharp pearly whites that were home behind those kissable lips. ‘You’re drooling darling.’ Your hand mindlessly swipes at your mouth, checking to see if Jake was actually correct. He wasn’t, he just was taking the chance to tease you about your infatuation with him. You naturally cross your arms in a bratty fashion as his belly laughter rushed through your head.

“Can you get out of my head?” You resembled a scolded child the way your lips pouted and eyebrows furrowed together.

‘I’ll stop. But you just call if you need me.’ There was a silent pause before he continued, “For anything baby.” And there it was, his teasing continued on. You wished that you could get inside his head just once to know how he thought of you. The teasing nature of his personality never seemed out of place against his usually stern demeanor. He granted you access to his softness, and albeit annoying at times, you would take it over the silence he fed you earlier in the evening.

“Goodnight, Jake”

‘Dream of me’

***

The next night started like the two previous ones. You aimlessly walked around the pier waiting for the roar of a motorcycle engine to whisk you away for another night of excitement. A giant fluffy bundle of pink cotton candy now occupied your mind as you made your way through the crowd, with it being a Sunday night there are less patrons to avoid bumping into. You hummed along to The Rolling Stones song that was blaring through the speakers next to the Ferris wheel, using your cotton candy as a pretend microphone as you went.

‘Babe. Turn around.’

Jake was staring at you with an amused smile on his lips. He must have been watching you perform your little show from across the boardwalk. Sam and Josh were rough housing with one another, causing the attendee of the kiosk they were standing in front of to begin to yell at them to keep moving. They ignored the demand of the older gentlemen and kept trying to bring each other to the ground. Danny was watching laughing at the antics, moving out of the way to avoid being roped in. It was nice seeing Danny smile since the last time you had seen him he was fighting to hold onto his life in Jake’s arms. He looked so healthy and warm now causing a smile to fall on your lips as you looked at him. He noticed you staring and returned your smile. You wonder if Jake had told him that you now knew about him and what they all were.

“There’s our girl!” Josh must have noticed you as well because he was now galloping his way towards you, quickly followed by Sam. Josh placed his hands on your hips to effortlessly lift you in the air. The strength he possessed actually shocked you at first, as he was able to fling you into the air like a rag doll. You actually think there was a time when his hands left your hips and you were free falling.

“Put her down.” Jake had gently grabbed your arm once you weren’t airborn pulling you into him possessively. Your back was flush against his exposed stomach under the leather jacket he was never seen without. You had to silently praise him for not wearing a shirt that night and the way he pressed his body into you further told you that he knew you had thanked him. His right arm came across your shoulder to drape across your chest.

Sam flicks at your ear before saying, “I forgot our Jakey doesn’t like to share.” It was all playful jest but you were reminded of the dream you had of all four men standing over you waiting to take you as their own. Wondering if this was something that would come to fruition your body naturally tensed against Jake.

‘I’ll never let them touch you.’ Jake said in your own head. His lips pressed to the back of your head to try and ease some of your tension. You had to question him as to why he would show you that dream if the purpose of you wasn’t to be shared. You look at Jake with questioning eyes. ‘I wanted to see if you’d run, you didn’t.” Realization set in that Jake was controlling your dream to scare you away from him and his brothers. He was testing to see if you would run if you found out the truth behind everything. That meant that you did have free will in this whole situation, even with the feeling of a divine power pushing you towards him, it was all you.

“Wait.” Josh’s voice pulled you from Jake’s glare “can-oh my god- can you hear her thoughts?”

Josh had his hand on Sam’s chest directing both of their views toward you. “No way!” Sam was just as excited as his older brother, clapping as he spoke.

“Congrats man.” That’s all Danny said in a deadpan tone as he placed his hands in his pocket. He looked almost disappointed when he averted his eyes to the ground.

“What are they talking about?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Jake’s arm gripped you tight as he pointedly spoke. It was more directed to his brothers as a warning rather than to you, but it was a quick change from his previous sweet nature.

His twin ignored his warning and continued on badgering him, “oh come on Jake! You haven’t told her! You have to tell her man!”

“Josh! Enough!” The volume of Jake’s voice caused you to jump in his arms. Jake being upset wasn’t a pleasant situation for anyone in his vecentity and you would like nothing more than to avoid it all together.

“Alright, Jesus,” Josh curtly spat towards him. Josh then nudged Danny and Sam urging them to follow him towards the group of girls heading towards the line of the Ferris wheel. Before he reached them, he turned around to speak to Jake, “I’ll have us back before sunrise. Go have fun.” Even though Jake had just yelled at him, Josh spoke to him in such a kind brotherly way. It was the way only siblings could talk to one another, easily flipping between anger and love. The three of them gave you a wave before disappearing for the rest of the night.

“You wanna get out of here?”

“But, I just got this.” You nod your head to the cotton candy you were still holding on to.

“I’ll buy you another one. Come on.” Jake flipped you around in his hood before beckoning you to follow him. The nearest trash can was the new home to your cotton candy and you’d be lying if you said that you weren’t disappointed. “Cotton candy is more exciting than me, huh?”

“No! It was just so sweet and tasty!” Entertained by your childlike behavior, Jake stopped in the middle of the boardwalk to face you. He had a wide smile on his face looking down at you through pieces of hair that fell into his face.

“Baby. Things will get sweeter if you just come with me.” Gulping in excitement you decided that it would be best for both of you if you completely forgot about the cotton candy and went with him, so you grab his hand and let him lead you anywhere he wanted to go, discarding the cotton candy in the nearest trash can you could find.

Another word wasn’t spoken between the two of you as you made your way to his bike or the whole ride back to his place. Your bodies did a lot of talking though. You were flush against him, letting your head rest on his shoulder as he drove. Your palm was pressed firmly against the skin of his abdomen, loving the feeling of his skin against yours. The hand he wasn’t using to control the speed of the bike rested over your own. He lazily rubbed his thumb over the back of your hand, an act to display how much he did care. To the strangers you passed you two looked like you had been madly in love for years.

Unlike last night, Jake helped you off of his bike by placing both of his hands on your hips and lifting you off. It was much like the way Josh had lifted you earlier, but Jake held you closer to his body. His movements were rushed as he tried to make his way to the entrance of the sunken hotel.

“Jake. Wait.” When the command fell from your lips his whole body went stiff. He stood straight up and appeared to wait for another one of your directions. Before he could get upset with you telling him what to do, you quickly add; “I want you to kiss me out here, like you should have the night we met.”

Jake peered over his shoulder at you and with the way the moon hit his eyes, he looked almost delicate. It was becoming obvious to him, you, and even his brothers that you were the only thing that could bring out this side of him. Deciding to use the method of communication that you two share, you think Please while you stare back at him. He doesn’t delay another moment, taking wide steps to reach you faster. With one of his hands on the back of his neck and the other one ghosting over your cheek, Jake kissed you, finally. The kids exuded romance, a pleasant surprise to you. It felt as if electricity started in your toes and it made its way to your head the longer you stayed wrapped up in this kiss with him. Your arms were snaked around his neck to keep you steady against him since your knees were already growing weak. Jake slowly walked you back so you were sitting against his bike, he must have been able to tell you were going to lose your balance soon. As soon as Jake stepped to stand in between your legs the kiss changed. It became hungrier, more heated. The grip he had on the back of your neck clenched bringing you even closer to him and the hand placed on your cheek dropped down to squeeze at your hip. Instinctively, you wrapped your legs around his waist to pull him flush against your body. Making out with a mysterious man, on his black motorcycle, on the edge of a cliff was easily the hottest thing you have ever experienced. A low snicker came from Jake as he pulled away from the kiss.

“I’m glad I can provide that for you baby.” He had a smirk on his face but you didn’t get time to take it in because he smoothly nudged his nose against yours to cause you to lift your head. Your neck was now exposed to him and even though lust was clouding all your judgement, you were concerned that Jake would plunge his teeth straight into your jugular. “I told you,” Jake placed an open mouth kiss on your neck, “I am not going to do that until you ask.” He followed his statement with a spew of wet opened mouth kisses trailing down your neck. Again, you think there is no possibility in this world that you would ever let him bite you, but that was something you could discuss with him later. His tongue licking across your throat snapped all your attention back on to him in this moment.

Your high pitched moan seemed to encourage his behavior further, because the hand on your hip started migrating towards your center “I love that you always wear skirts,” he praised. His fingers teasingly danced along the hem of your skirt causing you to wiggle into him further. The cold metal of his belt pressed into your core only enhanced the pleasure you were getting from him. As he brings his lips back to yours, you roll your hips against him in effort to give you more friction. He, on the other hand, was an expert at keeping his composure. You only felt a slightly bigger than normal bulge against his tight jeans and even when you pulled slightly at his hair, he remained focused on your body.

“Please, Jake.” You knew you sounded whiney and desperate, but that’s how you felt. You needed him to touch you anywhere that would give you the slightest amount of relief to your ache.

“Ask me what to do. Be specific.” Usually you hear men say ‘tell me what to do,’ but Jake made sure to put a big emphasis on asking. You made a mental note to comply with what he wanted with this being an act he would be initiating in as well.

“Jake, can you touch me?” He pulled away slightly from you to make eye contact.

“Where, baby?” He licked his lips at the sight of your swollen lips and bruised neck. You looked delicious, in more ways than one. Too embarrassed to actually say anything too dirty, you opt to think it instead. ‘Anywhere Jake. Just touch me anywhere.”

He brought his lips to your ear, nipping at the lobe of your left ear. He whispered in your ear causing more shivers to trickle up your spine. “No no. Say it out loud.”

“Jake, can you please touch me? All over, anywhere, please.” If you had heard your own voice, you would have cringed. It sounded so needy and slightly pathetic, but the way Jake responded told you it was exactly what he wanted to hear. The hand that was on your neck came around to grope harshly at your breasts. Even with his raw strength the pain quickly dissolved into intense pressure under his touch. He already knew your body so well. It was like he knew how much you could take before the pain became unbearable. The fact that he was inside your head with you gave him a manual to your body, likely to lead you to immense euphoria when with him. All of this was allowing you to fall into him and trust him with this, he was going to take good care of you.

His index finger was now playing at your panty line, slowly inching closer to where you needed him. You adjusted your hips to angle them towards his hand.

‘Be patient.’ He spoke in your head to avoid having to break the kiss. His lips were moving along roughly with yours. Both of you were attacking each other to try to drink the other's essence. The hand on your breast began to knead in circular motions causing your nipple to harden underneath his touch. You whimper at him while you pull him into you more by his jacket. His hand was caught in between your bodies, not allowing him to move it away from you. He begins to press the knuckle of his index finger up into your core through your underwear giving you some relief. It wasn’t enough though, you agonized for more. More of anything.

Much to your disappointment Jake broke the kiss, allowing you both to catch your breath.

“If you want more I need to be able to move.” He looked down, your gaze following, to his arm that was pinned against you. Your body was so closely entangled in his that he was actually stuck. Embarrassed, you quickly let go and push your body away from him. Jake’s hand left your breast and moved to your hip to hinder your movement. “I never said let go.” With a blush now deep on your cheeks you move back into Jake, but allow enough space for him to move freely.

Jake takes this opportunity to indulge you. With a sudden flick of his fingers, he pushed your lace underwear to the side. He used his middle finger to swipe a line from your core to your clit, causing another desire filled moan to fall from your lips. The circular pattern of his motion on your clit made you bite your lip in bliss.

“Jake, can you-“ You weren’t even able to finish the question before Jake’s fingers left your clit and dipped into you. Even his solo finger was almost too much. They way he moved it so expertly inside you made your head tip back to expose your neck, a gesture from you that was happening more often lately. Along with moving his lips to your neck, his hand left your hip and wrapped gingerly around your throat. With him no longer holding onto you, you had to bring your hands down steadily on the bike to avoid falling backwards. He kept a steady pace placing the palm of his hand against your clit to give you some more friction. Your hips rolled against it at the same rhythm Jake was using. A slur of moans comes from you with his name laced in between. You could feel him proudly smile against your neck becoming even more cocky the more he saw you wither underneath him. A hot tension was rapidly beginning to build in your stomach, this was quicker than this has ever happened before, but there was no use in fighting it.

“God, oh my god.”

‘Wrong. Say my name.’

“Jake!” When his name was said in a minute sob, he added another finger. Pumping his index and middle finger inside of you, he began using a come hither motion to brush against your walls.

In a low husky tone, Jake cheered on your declaration of pleasure; “I know baby. I know you like that.” Your mouth was agape, whimpering up at the moon. Breath was trapped in your chest as the heat in your stomach continued to grow at a fast rate. This was a moment you knew was changing your whole dynamic with Jake. You two couldn’t teeter the line of will they won’t they anymore, this was what would cement you as his.

A nip at your ear was the catalyst of you coming undone. The sensation was so intense that you had to hold onto Jake once again. He slowed down his pace to assist you in your come down, placing affirmations in your head as you did.

‘Beautiful, gorgeous, I’m so glad you’re mine.”

And you were his, for now and forever. When your body finally stopped twitching against him, Jake removed his fingers from you and helped you off his bike. In a filthy move, he popped his two fingers inside his mouth to clean you off of him. He smirked at you as you gawked at him.

“What babe?” He feigned innocence, laughing lightly at your silence, before bringing you into his chest. “Wanna go inside and keep going?”

You didn’t feel the need to answer him, instead choosing to make a bold move. With a shaky hand, either due to nerves or your recent climax, you begin to undo his belt. Just as the button of his jeans was placed in your fingers, his own hands halted your actions. Jake was staring intently down the winding road that led to you.

“What-“ He aggressively shushed you as he kept listening to the distance. You searched the darkness for an answer as to what might have alerted him. There was nothing there, and the only sound you could hear was the waves crashing against the bottom of the rocky cliff.

“Something’s wrong with Josh.”

taglist: @ageofflowerpower @weightofdreams-gvf @maverick-rose @secretgvfstan @greta-van-yeet @tripthelight-fanfic @theweightofstardust @lyndseygoregasmxo @alltimekp @strangeh0rizons @eeeloraaa @calumspretty @livieweasley

#greta van fleet #greta van fic #greta van fleet imagine #greta van fleet fan fiction #gvf #gvf fic #gvf one shot #gvf imagine #jake gvf #jake kiszka imagine #jake kiszka #jake kiszka fic #josh kiszka #sam kiszka #danny wagner #josh gvf #sam gvf #sammy kiszka #danny gvf #jake kiszka fanfic #jake kiszka x reader

[cerezsis]

What I Hoped Would Be Impossible

Chapter Three: It’s a Family Affair

A Weeping Angel in the 1970s leads Cecilia and Clara to a familiar yet unfamiliar face.

--

“So there we are, about to be sacrificed to the fish god,” Clara recounted the tale to Danny as she pulled two mugs out of the cupboard, “We’re tied up, no hope of escape, surrounded by saber-toothed aliens doing some kind of ceremonial song and dance, and that’s when the Doctor stops to ask if they mean a god of fish, or a god that looks like a fish.”

As she snickered at the absurdity, Danny continued to scroll through his phone. The first two times she brought up her adventures with the Doctor and Cecilia, he’d tried his best to feign enthusiasm, but given that he hadn’t even been at her flat for an hour, his mask was starting to slip.

“So, then the chanting stops, Cecilia and I are looking at him like “Really? That’s what you’re concerned about right now?” and, of course, that only makes the leader more-” Turning around, she finally saw Danny with his head down and phone in hand. Eyes narrowing, she paused making coffee as her grin fell. “Sorry, am I boring you?”

Danny quickly looked up, sliding his phone into his pocket. “No, I’m listening. What did the fish god guy do?”

“Oh, it doesn’t matter.” Turning her back to him, she aggressively pressed the buttons on the coffee maker. “Please, tell me about your thrilling evening of grading papers.”

“Clara…” He sighed. “Just… Do you think we could talk about something other than your new friends?”

“What’s wrong with my friends?” she asked, her tone defensive as she turned back around, arms crossed over her chest.

“Nothing’s wrong. It’d just be nice if-”

Before he could finish, an eager knock-knock-knockcame from the front door. All too eager to walk away, Clara hurried to answer it, not even looking through the peephole before she turned the knob. Laying eyes on her visitor, her irritation began to melt away as she moved to let her inside.

“Hey,” Cecilia grinned as she stepped through the threshold of the flat, “You’re not busy, are-?”

Looking over Clara’s shoulder, she caught a glimpse of Danny in the kitchen. “Oh, sorry, I-”

“No, it’s fine,” Clara assured her, unable to mask the lingering passive-aggression, “Things were getting boringaround here, anyway.”

“I didn’t-!” Letting out a sigh, Danny stood up, grabbing his jacket before heading towards the door. “It’s fine, whatever. Call me when you’re done with whatever she wants.”

Without so much as glancing at either of them, he walked out the door, not quite slamming it behind him, but closing it with more force than needed.

“Um…” Cecilia spoke up, “Everything ok?”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” As she crossed her arms, she finally noticed what the other woman was wearing. “What’s with the getup?”

Cecilia glanced down at her outfit, a beige women’s pantsuits with a red blouse, paired with white heels and a belt that matched. All very disco, and a sharp contrast to her usual 50s-inspired dresses.

“Camouflage,” she explained with a grin, “Got a new assignment from UNIT. Was wondering if you’d like to join me.”

“An assignment where?” Looking her up and down, she struggled to think of a place where an ensemble like that was needed. “The 1970s?”

“Actually, yes.”

Clara suddenly perked up, posture straightening as she wore a wide grin. “Is the Doctor coming too?”

“No- er, well…” Biting the side of her lip, she quickly glanced to the ceiling. It was a fair question – adventures in time travel usually involved the Doctor – but the answer was a bit more complicated. “Sort of.”

“What do you mean sort of?” Her eyes again narrowed in confusion.

“I mean a Doctor will be there, but not the one you know. Not one I’ve ever met either.”

“Not one you’ve…” She quickly shook her head. “Nope, sorry, you lost me. From the top, please. What exactly is going on?”

“Well, simply put, 1972 called. There’s a Weeping Angel running around Wales, and UNIT’s trying to capture it.” She cringed as the creature’s name left her lips. “I hate those things, but people have already gone missing, and their chief scientific advisor is apparently moving too slowly.”

“And where does the Doctor come in?”

Cecilia couldn’t help but flash a grin. “Who do you think the scientific advisor is?”

Read More on AO3

#doctor who #the doctor #third doctor #twelfth doctor #3rd doctor #12th doctor #clara oswald #jo grant #the brigadier #alistair gordon lethbridge stewart #classic who #the doctor x river song #fan fiction #my writing #time baby #read on ao3 #cecilia song #the girl who was promised the stars au #what i hoped would be impossible

[user-2-electric-boogaloo]

A Comparison of RTD and Steven Moffat: Saving The Day

So for this analysis I’m going to compare when Moffat and RTD save the day well and when they save it poorly. There are a few bits of criteria I need to explain.

 First I will only be including main series, no Torchwood, no spin-offs, and no mini episodes.

Second, I have to define what makes a good and a bad ending (my examples will come from episodes written by neither of them): 

Bad endings include when the sonic saves the day (see The Power Of Three) (there are exceptions, see below), when a character spouts some useless technobabble that doesn’t make any scientific sense/when it doesn’t make logical sense in general, when the Doctor invents/presents a machine/equipment that miraculously stops the baddy and is never referred to again (see Journey To The Centre Of The TARDIS), and any other ending I deem to be bad (see The Vampires of Venice)

Good endings include when the sonice activates a device that has been well established to save the day, when technobabble is used that actually makes some scientific sense, and just generally when the baddy is destroyed in what I deem to be a creative manner that makes sense with all the things that had been set up in that episode (see The Unquiet Dead).

There will also be cases where there isn’t really a day to be saved, however this happens more often with Moffat.

Let us begin (obviously there will be spoilers but the last episode in the list aired nearly 4 years ago so what you doing with your life).

RTD:

Rose: Bad

What even is anti-plastic?! Like seriously, he’s faced the Autons loads of times and has never thought to use it any other time.

The End Of The World: Bad

The Doctor just goes up to the appearance of the repeated meme (ha meme) and rips its arm off. He then just summons Cassandra back by twisting a knob which apparently everyone can do if “you’re very clever like me”.

Aliens Of London/World War Three: Good

Just nuking them all was a bit dodgy but I’ll give it to him purely because it had been set up earlier in the episode and it is a genuine option that could have been taken.

The Long Game: Good

The heating issue was set up within 2 minutes of the episode starting. It’s always good to see the Doctor using his enemies weakness against them.

Boom Town: Good

Only just. It’s technology that hadn’t been showcased ever before and came out of nowhere, but I’m allowing purely because it was setting up The Parting Of The Ways.

Bad Wolf/The Parting Of The Ways: Good

See above. It was set up the story before so it works.

The Christmas Invasion: Bad

This was so close to being good. If RTD had just let the Sycorax leader be honourable then everything would have been fine. Instead he had to let him be dishonourable and then the Doctor through the Satsuma at a random button that for no apparent reason caused a bit of floor to fall away.

New Earth: Bad

It only makes sense if you think about it for less than 10 seconds as just pouring every cure to every disease ever into a giant tub and then spraying said supercure onto them all, then having them hug each other to pass it on. That is suspending my disbelief just a bit too far.

Tooth And Claw: Good

Everything is set up in the episode so I’ll allow it but I fail to see how Prince Albert had the time to ensure that the diamond was cut perfectly.

Love And Monsters: Bad

It’s Love And Monsters. Need I say more?

Army of Ghosts/Doomsday: Good

It was very clearly set up throughout the episode.

The Runaway Bride: Bad

I don’t like how a few bombs can supposedly drain the entire Thames.

Smith And Jones: Good

All the events were well established

Gridlock: Good

It’s a fairly bland way to save the day, just opening the surface to all the drivers. But how else could he have done it?

Utopia/The Sound Of Drums/Last Of The Time Lords: Bad

As much as I like the idea that he tuned himself into the archangel network, he basically turned into Jesus. It is arguably the least convincing ending in modern Doctor Who history.

Voyage Of The Damned: Bad

Why was he the next highest authority? If he’s the highest authority in the universe why didn’t they default to him in the first place? If not then why not default to Midshipman Frame? And if he’s somehow in between them then why? Also Astrid killed herself for no reason when she easily could have jumped out of the forklift.

Partners In Crime: Good

It works in the context of the episode, but I don’t see why they needed two of the necklace things.

Midnight: Good

It’s human nature, you can’t get more well set up than that.

Turn Left: Good

It works logically

The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End: Bad

Donna just spouts a load of technobabble whilst pressing buttons and then the Daleks are magically incapacitated.

The Next Doctor: Bad

Why do the infostamps sever Hartigan’s connection with the Cyberking? As far as I remember it ain’t explained.

Planet Of The Dead (co-written with noted transphobe Gareth Roberts): Good

A good couple scenes are dedicated on getting the anti-gravs set up.

The Waters Of Mars (co-written with Phil Ford): N/A

The day isn’t really saved cause everyone still dies anyway.

The End Of Time: Good

Using a gun to destroy a machine is much better than using the sonic to destroy it.

Summary for RTD:

Out of 24 stories written by him, I deem 10 to be bad endings with 1 abstaining. That’s 41.7% of his episodes (43.5% if we don’t count any abstaining).

Steven Moffat:

The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances: Good

You’ll see this a lot with Moffat, he knows how to explain things without stupefying levels of technobabble. “Emailing the upgrade” is a perfect example of this.

The Girl In The Fireplace: Good

Some basic logic, the androids want to repair their ship, but they can’t return to it, they no longer have a function so they shut down.

Blink: Good

Always loved this one, getting the angels to look at each other, however they do look at each other sometimes earlier in the episode.

Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Dead: Bad

This is more of a problem with the setup of the episode, I don’t like that he can negotiate with the Vashta Nerada. I’d rather see them comprehensively beaten, but I guess it’s good for the scare factor that they can’t be escaped from.

The Eleventh Hour: Good

He convinced the best scientists all around the world to set every clock to 0 all in less than an hour. In the Doctor’s own words “Who da man!”

The Beast Below: Good

The crying child motif pretty much ended up saving the day (well for the star whale, life went on as normal for pretty much everyone else).

The Time Of Angels/Flesh And Stone: Good

The artificial gravity had briefly been set up earlier so I’ll allow it.

The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang: Good

Everything had been set up perfectly, the vortex manipulator, the Pandorica’s survival field thingy, the TARDIS exploding at every moment in history.

A Christmas Carol: Good

Literally the entire episode is the Doctor saving the day by convincing Kazran not to be a cock.

The Impossible Astronaut/Day Of The Moon: Good

The silence’s ability to influence people is their whole thing, so using it against them is a good Doctory thing to do.

A Good Man Goes To War: N/A

The day isn’t really saved, Melody is lost, but River shows up at the end so is all fine? I love the episode it’s just the day isn’t really truly saved (yes I know Amy was rescued but she still lost her baby).

Let’s Kill Hitler: N/A

There isn’t really a day to be saved. They all get out alive but no one is really saved other than maybe River but we all knew she was gonna live anyway.

The Wedding Of River Song: Good

Whilst opinion is divided on the episode, the ending still works. the Tesseracta was established in Let’s Kill Hitler, and the “touch River and time will move again” was established well in advance.

The Doctor, The Widow And The Wardrobe: Bad

I don’t like how the lifeboat travels through the time vortex for no reason but to rescue the dad. It don’t make no sense and I don’t think it’s explained

Asylum Of The Daleks: Good

Oswin had access to the Dalek hive mind so of course she should be able to link into the controls and blow everything up.

The Angels Take Manhattan: Good

Paradoxes really do be something powerful, and they even acknowledge how nobody knows if it’d work so I’ll let it slide.

The Snowmen: Bad

Lots of people cry at Christmas, why are the Latimers anything special?

The Bells of Saint John: Good

The whole episode is about hacking so why shouldn’t the Doctor be able to hack the spoonheads

The Name Of The Doctor: Good

It was the story arc for the season pretty much, so of course it was explained well in advance.

The Day Of The Doctor: Good

Both the storing Gallifrey like a painting and the making everyone forget if they’re Human or Zygon works in the context of the episode.

The Time Of The Doctor: Bad

Since when were the Time Lords so easily negotiated with?

Deep Breath: Good

I like the dilemma over whether the half-face man was pushed or jumped.

Into The Dalek: Good

It’s set up well with this new Doctor’s persona of actually not being too nice of a guy (at first).

Listen: N/A

There isn’t a day to be saved. It’s just 45 minutes of the Doctor testing a hypothesis and I low-key love it.

Time Heist (co-written with Steven Thompson): Good

It works logically so I’ll allow it however it isn’t very well set up at all.

The Caretaker (co-written with noted shithead Gareth Roberts): Good

The machine to tell the Blitzer what to do was set up well in advance so I’ll allow it.

Dark Water/Death In Heaven: Good

The fact that Danny still cares even as a cyberman is set up fairly early on after his transformation.

Last Christmas: Good

He does use the sonic to wake up Clara but he convinces the others to wake up through talking so I’ll allow it.

The Magician’s Apprentice/The Witch’s Familiar: Good

It’s set up well with that little scene from actually inside the sewers.

The Girl Who Died (co-written with Jamie Mathieson): Good

IDK why the vikings would randomly keep electric eels but they’re set up well so I’ll ignore it. 

The Zygon Inversion (co-written with Peter Harness): N/A 

Not including this one as it’s only the second part and I’d argue the ending is most likely Harness’.

Heaven Sent/Hell Bent: N/A

Again there isn’t really a day to be saved, yes Heaven Sent really is amazing but it’s only the first part and, being completely honest, he dies several billion times before finally getting through the wall.

The Husbands Of River Song: N/A

Again there isn’t really a day to be saved here.

The Return Of Doctor Mysterio: Good

He gets Grant to catch the bomb which is good. But he does just sonic the gun out of Dr Sim’s hand and says UNIT is on its way which just sort of wraps it up very quickly.

The Pilot: N/A

No day to be saved here.

Extremis: Good

You could technically call it the sonic saving the day, I consider it to be the Doctor emailing the Doctor to warn him of the future.

The Pyramid At The End Of The World: Good

The fire sanitising everything makes sense and it’s in character for Bill to love the Doctor enough to cure his blindness in return for the world

World Enough And Time/The Doctor Falls: Good

Yes it is the sonic just blowing the cybermen up, but it’s blowing them up with well established pipelines so I’ll allow it (also the story is amazing).

Twice Upon A Time: N/A

No day to be saved here. Just Doctors 1 and 12 getting angsty about regenerating.

Summary for Steven Moffat:

Out of 39 stories written by him, I deemed 4 to be bad with 7 abstaining. That’s 10.3% of his episodes (12.5% if we don’t count any abstaining).

Conclusions:

Moffat was much better at saving the day than RTD

Moffat liked telling stories where the day didn’t actually need to be saved

I’ve spent way too long on this and I need to sleep

If I spent as much time on this as my coursework I’d probably pass

If you’re still reading this, you probably need to get a life

#doctor who #steven moffat #rtd #in case you can't tell I really don't like RTD #Remember the Superwholock days when everyone ripped the shit out of Moffat #what am I doing with my life #tardis #rose tyler #martha jones #donna noble #amy pond #rory pond #rory williams #river song #clara oswald #Bill Potts

[collaborationandresearchproposal]

Thursday 29th April, Research Report: Lycanthropy and the hays code

Notable points * lycanthropy seems  to be synonymous with homosexuality- parallels between Teen Wolf and Buffy The Vampire Slayer's respective coming out scenes. * The Queer-ness of the character Remus Lupin from the Harry Potter books and film series. Many fans head cannon and write slash fics about Remus and Sirius' romance and relationship, reading the characters as queer. The ship, named 'Wolf Star' is quite popular and well known within the fandom. Many fans feel there is enough evidence to build this relationship on; Remus and Sirius' ghosts stood next to each other in the resurrection stone, mirroring Harry's parents,  a canonically married couple. They also bought Harry a joint present for his birthday and know the intricacies of each others personalities. Dumbledore also infamously told Sirius to 'lie low at Lupins.' But the problem here, as the article points out, is that Rowling doesn't acknowledge Lupin as queer, despite the homoerotic cues in the writings,  and instead gives him a female love interest and admits that Lupins Lycantrhopy is a metaphor for AIDS/HIV. She has further dismissed any alternative readings of the character, disappointing fans' hopes of there being a shred of representation in a queer monster who is actually queer. This sort of behaviour from authors and creators is what turns Queer-coding into the more harmful and frustrating Queer-baiting. A large majority of queer representation comes from connotations and interpretations. the clues are there and queer audiences do pick them up. However this grey area allows allows straight culture to use queerness for pleasure and profit in mass culture without admitting to it. Modern examples of this are CW's Supernatural and BBC's Sherlock. I can't personally speak for Supernatural but having watched Sherlock with the advantage of a queer eye, I can say with confidence that it is a prime example of queer-baiting. there is clear homoerotic subtext between Sherlock and John and even Sherlock and Moriarty. I Personally think it's entirely romantic as I head cannon Sherlock to be Asexual or at least on that spectrum but the point is, it is not just wishful thinking or pushing of a narrative. It's manipulation. Queer-baiting takes advantage of an already vulnerable group of people by preying on their desire for representation in the media.

In modern media werewolf's are often portrayed as having chiselled bodies and looming over each other. The 1985 Teen Wolf received a television reboot and it's fair to say it got reasonably more progressive.  It seemed interested in queering the werewolf narrative and in a sly moment of gender-bending the traditional Little Red Riding Hood narrative, protagonist Scott receives the Bite from a male werewolf while wearing a Little Red Hoodie (‘Wolf Moon’). Additionally, the show features LGBTQ characters while Scott’s human best friend Stiles visits a gay bar and makes friends with a group of drag queens in startling contrast to the gay panic of the 1985 film’s version of Stiles. By midway through the show’s second season, the slash pairing that had proved dominant in the fandom was Stiles and wannabe-Alpha Derek Hale. The two characters, who operate in the narrative as belligerent and begrudging allies, rapidly became a slash phenomenon, due, in part, to the chemistry and comic timing between actors Tyler Hoechlin and Dylan O’Brien. The narrative is further subverted when Derek is raped by an adult  human woman.

The pair 'Sterek' gained so much traction that it caught the attention of MTV and the cast and crew behind the show. So much so that they released a video of Hoechlin and O'Brien cuddling on a boat, asking fans to vote for Teen Wolf for this  years Choice Summer TV Show at the Teen Choice Awards. This  was big as it acknowledged fans and slash flics and the pairing itself as a possibility and many queer voices who watched the show felt heard and validated. However this didn't last long. MTV released a video on the official Teen Wolf Facebook, this time featuring O’Brien asking fans to vote for Teen Wolf in a TV Guide Poll. O’Brien joked that if fans did not vote, then the show would kill off its sole remaining gay character and one of the few remaining non-white characters on the show, Danny. The Teen Wolf Facebook released the video with the following caption: ‘Keep #TeenWolf in first place! Heed Dylan and Linden’s advice or we might have to. #KillDanny’ (Teen Wolf). The show’s social media team then attempted to make the #KillDanny tag go viral on Facebook and twitter, but fans, understandably, were not amused, primarily using the tag for outraged tweets to MTV (Baker-Whitelaw).Such blatant disregard for fans’ concerns about queer representation on the show alienated a large number of fans, especially when coupled with Jeff Davis’ more frequently dismissive and condescending comments about the Sterek pairing where he had been enthusiastic and even encouraging of the ship. As seasons wore on without any indication that Sterek would indeed become canon, it became clear that MTV and Jeff Davis had been queer-baiting Sterek fans as a marketing technique and that the unique interplay that fans had enjoyed with Davis, which offered a new kind of truly interactive fandom had, in fact, been something of an illusion. ' serial killer Hannibal Lecter and his love interest Will Graham in Hannibal, and reanimated gay corpses Kieren, Simon, and Rick in In the Flesh. Notably, both series have received an overwhelmingly positive response from fans and critics who have applauded the series for taking their queer monsters beyond mere coding and into explicit text. The warm reception of Hannibal and In the Flesh’s handling of queer representation by fans, and the continuing frustration with Teen Wolf’s queer-baiting and the appropriative nature of Remus Lupin’s narrative in Harry Potter, belie a desire not only for better queer representation, but also for more complex re-articulations of queer monstrosity' the symbolic and narrative trappings of monsters are often used as metaphors for queerness without actually acknowledging the positive behind that queer identity or even confirming the queer identity at all. Another positive example is the miniseries Good Omens. Based on the book of the same name, written by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. Pretty much the whole fandom believe That the two leads, Crowley and Aziraphale are in a romantic relationship. They've known each other for centuries and perhaps what was the main fuel to this ships fire was the episode 3 cold open. Even fans who have only read the book seem to support these two as a couple and what's perhaps even more amazing is Gaiman’s response on twitter. "I wrote it as a love story. They acted it as a love story. You saw it as a love story. How much more proof do you need?" and "I wouldn't exclude the ideas that they are ace, or aromantic, or trans. They are an angel and a demon, not as make humans, per the book. Occult/Ethereal beings don't have sexes, something we tried to reflect in the casting. Whatever Crowley and Aziraphale are, it's a love story." It's beautiful because not only does it confirm that they are in love but it also leaves room for interpretations of what kind of relationship they have together.

https://dialogues.rutgers.edu/images/Journals_PDF/2017-18-dialogues-web_e6db3.pdf#page=164

In the year 1922, when cinema was gaining traction and popularity, The Motion Picture Producers and Distributors Association (MPPDA) hired a devout Presbyterian, Will H. Hays as its head. Eight years later, in 1930, the MPPDA ratified the Motion Picture Production Code. Also known as the Hays Code, these guidelines were set up as “a list of rules that studios could follow to avoid the censors’ wrath” one specific line read “sexual perversion or any inference to it is forbidden” This era in censorship set the stage for a culture in which the stereotypical behaviour of homosexuals, or any behaviour deviating from the traditional gender roles, is seen as dangerous, evil, and even fatal. By representing coded homosexual characters as depressed, perverse, and succumbing to punishing ends, it shifted social subconscious beliefs of LGBT individuals in real life to those represented on screen. Media often teaches us how to feel about others and ourselves – e.g., it promotes specific body types and clothing styles. In the same way, by promoting gendered behaviour and banning homosexuality, it spread a message that homosexuality was not fit to be viewed openly. Although themes of homosexuality were banned they were definitely alluded to and that continues today.

#researchproposal

[redwoodwrites]

Creepy or Not Creepy, That is the Chat Thread

Word Count: 986

Author: Redwoodroots on AO3, aka gosecretscribbles or redwoodwrites on tumblr

Prompt: “Danny Fenton seeming creepy, unnatural, predatory, etcetera to the general population of Amity Park. Or only seeming creepy, unnatural, predatory, etcetera to tourists, while Amity Park locals are confused by anyone finding Fenton ‘creepy/intimidating’.” Phic Phight ( @phicphight ) prompt by @phantomphangphucker 

  [Skepticality216 has entered the chat]

 Phantom_Phenomenon: Aw yis fresh meat

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: *chants* MEAT, MEAT, MEAT

 Skepticality216: uh, hi?

 LilydaleDoppleganger: Ignore them, apparently the two of them saw Danny Phantom fighting a giant spider ghost in the park today and they’re still on a geek high

 Skepticality216: Well that sounds…creepy

 LilydaleDoppleganger: Right?!  Spiders are not cute!  And the ghost ones are always bigger and you can see all the hairs…

 Skepticality216: What?  No, spiders are actually kinda cute.  Like chibi eyes on multiply.

 Phantom_Phenomenon: OH PLEASE NO XD

 LilydaleDoppleganger: Wait then what was creepy?

 Skepticality216: The phantom?

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Wait what?  Phantom’s not creepy

 Skepticality216: Yeah he is?

 Skepticality216: half the time he looks right through you like he can see something you can’t

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Like…other…ghosts?

 Phantom_Phenomenon: Phantom is awesome!  He’s like a regular teen but with superpowers

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Like Oh, truth.  Someone said he can also eat actual food, someone got a video of him eating chips yesterday

 Skepticality216: They didn’t like…see the food in his stomach, did they?

 Phantom_Phenomenom: Nah but that’d be hella cool, imagine him doing that in biology class

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: The education we all need  

 Skepticality216: I’m sorry, in what universe is seeing a ghost not creepy as heck?!

 Phantom_Phenomenon: When the ghost is super hot?

Skepticality216: Look I’m not saying I don’t like the guy, but his skin is literally so pale you can see little green veins of ectoblood or whatever!!

 Phantom_Phenomenon: New theory: vulcan

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Dude got me out of school once and covered the place in mystery meat.  Best day of my life

 Skepticality216: wait I’m sorry he covered the school in what

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Did anyone else know that mystery meat, when left uneaten for more than twenty minutes, forms a substance almost as strong as concrete?  School was shut down for two days, I had time to actually do my homework.  

 Phantom_Phenomenon: Truly, Danny Phantom is our hero

 LilydaleDoppleganger: Yeah, I’m not sure why he creeps you out @skepticality216

 Skepticality216: Aside from the creepy you-can-almost-see-his-blood-pumping?  Or how the air around him goes all wrong, like you’re standing in broad daylight but suddenly it feels like your soul just got doused in shadow and there’s fingers slowly crawling up your spine

 Phantom_Phenomenon: You sure that’s Danny and not the ghosts he’s usually chasing?

 Skepticality216: Pretty sure.  Once I walked into an arcade and looked up and there he was, clearly NOT fighting a ghost, sticking halfway out of a machine while these two kids crashed right through the high score.  

 Skepticality216: You could actually see the electricity sparking in an outline where his ribs and skull would be, and when he flew all the way out he didn’t even have legs anymore, just a tail!  He was a frigging haunted Nike logo!!

 LilydaleDoppleganger: Oh dude, dude, ECTOMERMAN

 Phantom_Phenomenon: I mean basically XD

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: I wanna know if he does the tail thing underwater

 LilydaleDoppleganger: I mean, kind of?

 LilydaleDoppleganger: I went to the aquarium once and when we got to the tank with all the mudskipper fish in it, my guide dog went nuts.  Turns out there was this bottomfeeder ghost thing in the water.  It just came boiling up, and Danny Phantom was already IN ITS ACTUAL MOUTH trying to fight it

 LilydaleDoppleganger: He didn’t actually have the mermaid tail thing although he scared the heck out of the shark exhibit next door when they phased right through the wall

 Phantom_Phenomenon: Come on Skeptical you can’t tell me that isn’t cool

 Skepticality216: I saw that on the news and almost lost my lunch.  There was so. Much.  GOO.  

 Skepticality216: Just goo EVERYWHERE.  He just shoots those rays out of his hands and boom, why does it look like alien dookie, why does it have to just QUIVER like that

 Skepticality216: It literally looks and smells like alien dookie!!

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: And you would know this because…

 [Danny_Dempsy has entered the chat]

 Danny_Dempsy: My Defend Danny senses are tingling

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Skepticality is offended by goo

 Skepticality216: I’m not offended, it just looks Gumby-flavored Jell-O and the way it JIGGLES

 Phantom_Phenomenon: I’m sensing some Gumby trauma

 LilydaleDoppleganger: To be fair, we all have some Gumby trauma *shudders*

 Danny_Dempsy: Be strong, O Lilydale, for we must educate young Skepticality on the perfection of Danny Phantom’s porcelain complexion

 Phantom_Phenomenon: Oh boy here we go

 Danny_Dempsy: His radiant beams of gooey light, the angelic halo of green ecto-energy

 LilydaleDoppleganger: XD

 Danny_Dempsy: Nah but in all seriousness he’s basically a modern superhero with lightning-fast reflexes, powers, and hella good looks.  

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: We’re all waiting for Dempsy to propose at this point

 Phantom_Phenomenon: Get a haunted room you two

 Danny_Dempsy: I’m TRYING

 Skepticality216: And nobody seems to find it weird that there is an actual DEAD TEENAGER just flying around the city and everybody’s cool with it

 Skepticality216: DEAD.  TEEN.  

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Rude

 Phantom_Phenomenom: Have you even been to a public high school, we’re all dead on the inside

 Skepticality216: You can see the veins in his forehead twitching like there’s actual green blood in him!

 Phantom_Phenomenon: How did you get close enough to see that and decide that the best thing to do was stare at his veins.  Way to put the ‘creep’ in ‘creeper.’

 Skepticality216: He explodes ghost guts into quivering piles of alien poop goo!!

 LilydaleDoppleganger: He is desensitizing us to the horrors of Gumby

 Skepticality216: I’m pretty sure he was walking around with two heads at one point and then he smooshed them together and he had ONE EYE!!!!

 Danny_Dempsy: One beautiful Harry Potter-green eye

 Skepticality216: I don’t get it!!  This is like the fifth chat I’ve been to and everybody is in love with Danny Phantom!!  Is it something in the water?!  How does nobody else see how absolutely creepy he is?!!?

 LilydaleDoppleganger: Maybe we don’t judge someone on their outside? Maybe we judge them for who they are on the inside.

 A_Curse_On_Both_Your_Haunted_Houses: Their gooey, gooey insides.  

 [Skepticality216 has left the chat]

A/N: As fun as this was to write I had a hard time coming up with ways for Danny to be creepy.  He’s just cool!  You know, in a really dorky way XD

#danny phantom #phic phight #creepy #not creepy #chat

[alicedoessurveys]

Doctor Who Tag

yes im a nerd...

CHILDHOOD

1. Did you like DW as a child?

I was 10 when it came back on telly with Eccleston and the first episode with the autons scared me so much my mom wouldn't let me watch it again until a couple years later, but yeah my teens I was obsessed with DW... still am at age 25

2. Your age at the time of the revival?

10

3. First DW episode you ever saw?

‘Rose’

4. Did you have any of the toys?

I still have the eleventh doctor’s screwdriver... I used to have some of the figures but there in storage now somewhere

5. Which DW character did you play on the playground?

didn't play it on the playground

6. Monster(s) that scared you most as a child?

all of them! the ones that still scare me now are the Cybermen and the Autons... genuinely cant walk past a shop mannequin without being suspicious 

7. Joke/story you didn’t get as a kid?

as a kid, any of the innuendo type jokes

8. DW opinion that has changed since you were a kid?

idk I think I still have the same opinions

9. Who introduced you to DW?

parents

10. Did you like Sarah Jane Adventures as a child?

I LOVED SJA!! I miss that show, and Elizabeth Slade :(

DOCTOR

11. Who is your Doctor?

Ten was the doctor that made me fall in love with Doctor Who 

12. Your favourite Doctor?

omg why not just ask me who my favourite child is... (I don't have kids but you know what I mean) if I had to chose my top three are ten, eleven and thirteen

13. Least favourite Doctor?

purely just because he doesn't have enough episodes... nine...

14. Best regeneration?

none of them I hate regenerations :( they make me sad, im too emotionally invested in every single one

15. Do you like “Doctor-Lite” episodes?

they're not my faves

16. Who is the most human Doctor?

I think nine maybe? or twelve?

17. Best multi-Doctor story?

the 50th anniversary special 

18. Best Doctor monologue?

“Hello Stonehenge! who takes the pandorica, takes the universe. but bad news everyone, cause guess who? HA! You lot you're all whizzing about- its really very distracting. Could you all just stay still a minute because I AM TALKING. Question of the hour is, who's got the pandorica? Answer, I do. Next question, who's coming to take it from me? Come on, look at me! No plan. No backup. No weapons worth a damn. oh and something else, I don't have anything to lose. So, if you're sitting up there in your silly little spaceship with all your silly little guns and you've got any plans on taking the pandorica tonight... just remember who's standing in your way. remember ever black day I ever stopped you and then- AND THEN- do the smart thing... let somebody else try first.”

not copied and pasted, remember that from the top of my head... its always there waiting in my mind incase I ever need an epic monologue :’)

19, What do you think TenToo/MetaCrisis Doctor is doing now?

hopefully living his best life with Rose

20. Best Doctor/companion pairing?

ten and donna 

COMPANIONS

21. Favourite companion?

Donna, Clara, Amy

22. Favourite secondary companion?

is Mickey classed as secondary? idk

23. Least favourite companion?

Ryan

24. Best TARDIS Team?

Doctor, Amy and Rory

25. Most underrated companion?

Graham, but that may just be cause I love Bradders

26. Most overrated companion?

Rose... I like her but idk, I think she gets more hype than she deserves.. don't @ me

27. Favourite companion’s family?

Rose’s mom

28. Who should have been a companion but wasn’t?

idk I cant think of anyone

29. Favourite (canon or non-canon) DW universe relationship?

Amy and Rory

30. Who did you not used to like, but really like now?

wasn't keen on Bill at first but by the end I really liked her, same with Rory

EPISODES

31. Favourite episode ever?

girl in the fireplace

32. Least favourite episode?

most of Chibnall’s episodes tbh sorry not sorry 

33. Which episodes do you skip?

the regeneration episodes

34. Best two-parter?

Human Nature - Family of Blood

35. Historical, present day or futuristic episodes?

I like them all in there own way but I think present is fave, then historical, then future

36. Episode that will always make you smile?

all of them

37. Episode that will always make you cry?

Rory and Amy’s last episode :’(

38. Best run of episodes?

ugh I cant answer this theres too many 

39. Best cliffhanger?

the end of Spyfall part one when the Master reveals who he is... I was SHOOK

40. Favourite Christmas special?

Voyage of the Damned

SERIES

41. Classic Who or New Who?

new who

42. Favourite series?

four or five

43. Least favourite series?

eleven, I just cant with the writing

44. Which series do you skip?

none

45. Favourite series opening?

eleventh hour

46. Favourite series finale?

Doomsday

47. Best series arc?

Bad Wolf

48. Thoughts on series 11/12?

I adore Jodie Whittaker and her doctor, and although I think 3 companions is too many I do love Yaz and Graham (Ryan is hit & miss). I just think theyve been massively let down by the stories/writing... they’ve tried to hard to tick certain boxes and completely missed what Doctor Who is about for a lot of people.. an escape from the real world into these outrageous unbelievable but lovable fun alien adventures 

49. How much of Classic Who have you seen?

not a lot

50. Who should have had another series?

NINE NINE NINE NINE NINE 

MONSTERS

51. Favourite monster/villain?

the master 

52. Most creative monster?

Weeping Angels, whoever came up with monsters that look like statues and only move when you're not looking at them is genius 

53. Monster(s) that scares you most?

Autons, Cybermen, the creepy dolls from Night Terrors, the ones from Waters of Mars, Weeping Angels

54. Monster you think is too easy to defeat?

idk

55. Least favourite monster/villain?

absorbaloff

56. Monster you want to return?

The Master, I really hope that isn't the last we see of Dhawan

57. In your opinion, what makes a monster good?

being genuinely scary, 

58. Daleks, Cybermen or Weeping Angels?

Weeping Angels

59. Best Dalek story?

Daleks in Manhatten

60. Best one time villain/monster?

my brain has gone blank I cant think of an answer right now 

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL

61. Torchwood or Sarah Jane Adventures?

SJA

62. Favourite Torchwood Team member?

I haven't watched it all so I couldn't say 

63. Which Torchwood death made you saddest?

again, not watched it all 

64. Do you rewatch COE or MD?

huh

65. Favourite SJA Team member?

Sarah Jane

66. Mr Smith or K-9?

K-9

67. Maria or Rani?

Rani

68. Do you read the comics/novels or listen to Big Finish?

Nope

69. If you do, your favourite additional stories?

n/a

70. Do you like DW analysis (video essays, fan theories, etc)?

yes

DESIGN/PRODUCTION

71. Favourite piece of alien tech?

the sonic, I love how it is so multipurpose except for when it comes to wood 

72. Favourite piece of Murray Gold music?

I am the Doctor - gets me pumped every time 

73. Favourite TARDIS design?

Ten’s Tardis 

74. Has the 2005 era CGI aged well?

actually yeah, I was rewatching the ‘are you my mummy’ episodes the other day and my God when the gas masks emerged from the faces... ooooooof I was like omg how 

75. Favourite Doctor outfit?

eleven or thirteen

76. Monster with the best design?

not really a design more of a costume.. I live Dhawan master’s costume. that shade of purple, oof he so stylish 

77. Best show runner?

idk

78. Best writer?

Gatiss

79. Best opening titles?

eleven’s titles where the Tardis is flying and being zapped is cool but thirteens music hits different 

80. Will DW age well/stay popular in the future?

I hope so, I feel like its lasted this long surely it can last forever.. if the writers don't fuck it up... 

IF YOU WERE IN THE SHOW

81. Time period you’d want to go with the Doctor?

whatever time means Id get to wear the most beautiful costumes

82. Planet/place you’d want to go with the Doctor?

Galifrey, pre-desctruction

83. Doctor you’d most like to travel with?

any of them, please and thank you

84. Companion you’d most like to travel with?

donna, sceso a good laugh but also I feel like she’d look after me 

85. Monster you’d like to defeat/fight?

The Master 

86. If you could go back on your own history (like Father’s Day), where would you go?

back to when I was a toddler, I wanna see what I was like 

87. If you could ask the Doctor anything, what would you ask?

theres too many to ask 

88. Historical figure you’d like to meet?

Shakespeare

89. How do you think you’d meet the Doctor?

id probably be rescued from doing something stupid and then the doc would be like you know what the bitch clearly needs supervision she's coming with me 

90. Would you travel forwards or backwards in time first?

backwards

IF YOU MADE THE SHOW

91. Historical event would you like to see in DW?

Hamilton

92. Issue you’d like to see addressed in DW?

idk 

93. Who would you completely erase from the DW universe?

Ruth

94. One unanswered DW question you’d love to know the answer to?

where is Clara now?

95. Actor/actress you’d like to see play the Doctor?

Phoebe Waller Bridge (or Lin Manuel Miranda)

96. Actor/actress you’d like to see play a companion?

Andrew Scott (yes I did just basically recast fleabag and hot priest)

97. Is DW “too political”?

series 11 got a bit like that 

98. Which characters fate would you changed?

Danny Pink

99. What about DW could be improved?

I think ive made my options about Chibnall pretty clear... 

100. If you could write an episode of DW, any ideas for what you’d do

bring back Jenny, the Doctor / Daughter adventures they would have. I’m actually writing a fic about it if you wanna read.... here

#doctor who #tag #doctor who tag #doctor who questions #survey

[luci-cunt]

6, 20, 50 (I dont think you've done these yet? I hope???) (also yes I am using this as an attempt to force content out you bc I love your stuff so much)

aksdjf;lasdkjfakdsjfksjdf IM GONNA EXPLODE ILY I had to put a cut there because alkjdf;lajsdfkj I GOT RAMBLY aljd;faljkdsf Im sorryyyy adlfkjads;kflj

6. Favorite character you ever created.

oh this is so fucking hard XDDD 

it’s probably a tie? ja;ldsfkj there’s just so many and I love them all--

Ok I’m making myself narrow it down to at least 3, I think it’s gotta be Chris, Ezra, and Ash

Chris: is part of this story idea I had that involved immortal people. She was an assassin sleeper agent who didn’t know it and she ends up living with/ befriending a bunch of immortals and then there’s the drama of her later having to kill them. In the begining she’s really emotionless and blank since she has no memories, but by the end she’s ridiculously in love and has a family so alskdjf;asl

Ezra: this bb boy is from Reclaim actually, so my alien/ angel/ immortal phase that I ^^^^evidently never REALLY grew out of XD. He’s a prince with a massively fucked up backstory and mommy issues, but his mom’s murder gets pinned on him so he has to “Reclaim” the throne (aha). He’s very high strung, wickedly smart, and basically raised his two younger siblings. He’s also kind of a massive asshole XD. 

Ash: she’s from Just South of Casual!! The main character actually. She’s very problematic and at the beginning of the story recovering from a suicide attempt. She’s very non-challant and callous about everything (literally she starts the book by calling people babies for being upset that the worlds ending) but by the end she’s got bffs and a boyfriend and is just overall in a much better place. 

(can you spot the underlying theme XDD)

20. Post a snippet of a WIP you’re working on.

>:) I got this one but don’t worry, it might be cheating a bit but here’s a snippet of JSoC XD <3

“Well, it’s the end of the world, time to cash in on miracles,” I said, he rolled his eyes, any spark of the anxiousness I’d seen moments earlier gone.

“You believe in miracles?” he asked pointedly. I noticed his eyes dip to my wrists, he probably didn’t even mean to do it and I pretended I hadn’t seen it.

“You met me,” I said with a grin I didn’t feel. 

Cal glared at me. “I’m being serious, how do we plan on finding someone in a huge city?” he said, I shrugged.

“Why don’t you just text her?” I asked, he made his face at me.

“She doesn’t have a phone.” 

“How about her dad?”

“No.”

“We could pretend to be–”

“No.”

“Acquaintances?”

“No.”

“Stalkers?”

“No.”

“Stop saying no.”

“No.”

I growled at him and he glared back.

(I love Cal, so much.)

50. Weirdest story idea you’ve ever had.

Ok this was actually the hardest one to come up with adkjf;ldf I managed to narrow it down to 2 because kajds;fljasdjl I WRITE WIERD OK?? XDD

Murderous: this one was mostly weird because of the style I was trying to write in, but it was about this guy and girl who try to hook up at a wedding, get the wrong room, accidentally kill the actual owner, and cover it up. 5 years later the guy calls the girl and says he wants to come clean, she races over to try and convince him NOT to, and finds out he’s dying from cancer. They end up becoming friends again, but then the guy finds out who she is, realizes “oh no” and dies without coming clean. The girl then confesses to the murder after, and the story is told from the POV of her best friend who’s getting told this for the first time while girl is in prison and is REMARKABLY bitchy that she was never filled in. 

The Likelihood of Living: this one’s weird because of the mc, Dye. The book was a zombie apocalypse story--Dye wakes up immune and invisible to zombies and also with a really weird addiction to pineapple. He’s also like, really not sane at all and very good at pissing people off but he’s on good terms with the local war-lord Devito (Dye’s the one telling the story so YES like Danny Devito )))):<)  because he hoarded a bunch of pineapple scented hair gel and Devito’s obsessed with it. Eventually tho, Dye pisses him off enough that D decides he wants Dye dead so he sends his top 2 enforcers after him. They drag him back but end up actually coming to like him and yeah, they escape. 

I’m sorry this is so rambly I just went on and on alsdkjf;lasdkjf

#asks #luci doesn't shut up #not joking Dye is stuck in my fucking head and he bothers the hell out of me #if you wanna know what he looks like jsut imagine basically Carter with darker skin a ridiculous amount of those tourist-flower shirst #a stupid love for absolutely MASSIVE sunglasses #and an addiction to pineapple and pissing people off #he's also like #horrendously gay #XDD #I lvoe him but god I wish he'd get out of my fucking head

[wmua-amherst]

Four Albums with Distinct Atmospheres

By John Matraia

We are currently living through a historical event and at times, it is difficult to keep our spirits up. All we can do is try to adapt and do what we can to keep ourselves safe and sane while being cooped up indoors. One way to cope is to try and step away from the tragedy for an hour or two. I’ve personally found myself watching movies, reading, or listening to music to distract myself. There are many different ways music can help, but I’ve found that albums that distinguish themselves from the rest are those that create a distinct atmosphere and a world of their own. They do this by establishing consistencies, not just sonically, but also in terms of subject matter.

An atmosphere alone isn’t ideal though. Many albums fall victim to using the same presets, filters, or vocal pitching across songs to the point where they blend together and create an album that serves as nothing more than a soulless tone. What is really impressive is an album’s ability to have a collection of songs that stand strong on their own, while also reinforcing the qualities that many of the tracks around them share, thus creating a cohesive piece.

You may be thinking that I’m just describing a concept album, and some may use that term more loosely than I do, but the projects I point out below are not in-your-face with a singular story or meaning. While they create their own universe, that universe may vary from listener to listener because these projects allow us to make our own interpretation of it, while still focusing on certain themes and stringing the project together musically. This is exactly what makes these albums below such transcendent experiences.

Liquid Swords – GZA (1995)

Liquid Swords gives me a feeling similar to the one I felt when I watched Michael Mann’s film Heat from the same year. The world of Los Angeles in Heat, contrary to the film’s title, is actually cold, devoid of any compassion or love. The icy blue hues that consume so much of the film’s color palette represent the city’s cold nature and the characters’ inner workings. The film is raw and up close and personal with the characters and the multiple lives that they each balance. On Liquid Swords, GZA (and other members of the Wu-Tang Clan) recognize the reality of the world they are living in, and this album is them coming to terms with that reality and telling their story. The intoxicating combination of GZA’s otherworldly raps and RZA’s barren beats place the listener directly into New York’s cold world in 1995. Everything, down to the way the album is mixed, drops the listener into their story.

The beats on Liquid Swords are dark and skeletal, with grim storytelling to match. Its minimal production doesn’t distract from the rapping, but everything included is necessary for the album’s success. GZA reflects on his surroundings, most notably on tracks like “Cold World”, speaking on the violence and other social problems that surround him in New York. Along the way though, he also establishes his dominance as a top tier rapper who will slay any opponent he comes across. It wasn’t just RZA’s production that created the bleak aura of Liquid Swords. GZA’s way of translating the daily problems people in his position faced for the listener to give them a harsh, yet realistic depiction of his life adds to this nature and brings the listener in. Liquid Swords is a true timepiece that captured the gritty essence of a night in New York, and has also proven to be a lasting piece of music that has influenced the generations to come.

The OOZ – King Krule (2017)

The OOZ is King Krule’s slow and lengthy descent into loneliness. It translates emotional outbursts into music on post-punk influenced tracks like “Dum Surfer”, and converts roaming aimlessly into ambient pieces like “The Cadet Leaps.” Tracks here include subtleties in the background that would be musically impressive even without the dark jazz infused instrumentation that graces the foreground of those tracks. The album drags on in the most realistic way possible, following our protagonist as he copes with the dreary world surrounding him.

The album’s moody nature swallows the listener through fleeting guitar solos and alienated keyboard melodies. The instrumentation of “Lonely Blue” becomes more climactic as Archy’s vocals become louder and more helpless. The experiences Archy describe seem uncertain to the listener at times, but the mystery within the songs reflect the unpredictable essence of his experiences. We empathize with his sense of misdirection, and wander along with him in a world that seems hopeless at times.

Big Fish Theory – Vince Staples (2017)

Even if Big Fish Theory came out today, it would still be ahead of its time. There is nothing quite like this album, and I’m sitting here waiting for it to get the credit it deserves. If nothing else, from a production perspective alone, it is remarkable. The beats are sharp and cold with rhythms that move in hot and sweaty fashion, serving as a wake-up call within an album that has a very gloomy feel to it. The punchy, booming bass on every track feels like the thunder that accompanies a rainy day.

Regardless of whether the track goes down a more electronic dance route or takes on an industrial sound, Vince’s adrenaline-packed delivery is hard to ignore. When a track like “Big Fish” takes a funkier approach, a subtle running water sound effect plays throughout the track and strings together the album’s motif of water, supplemented by other tracks with bubbly synthesizers and futuristic recordings. A small detail like this only adds to the theme of drowning created by the other tracks through Vince’s lack of optimism about society’s future and even the way his vocals are mixed. We hear this distrust in Vince’s lyrics that are fed up with the system and the dystopian world that the music of the album creates.

Wildflower – The Avalanches (2016)

Wildflower is breezy and care-free musical bliss. It’s rooted in nostalgia and creates a sense of longing for the unknown future in the listener. The light, airy rhythms and angelic vocals are pure joy in sonic form. It’s full of bright and colorful textures, and flows together beautifully. The run from “Subways” to “If I Was a Folkstar” features infectious grooves that float above the glistening samples and take us on a journey like none other.

The group’s unique sampling style we heard on Since I Left You is still there, but Wildflower presents more easy-going instrumentals at times that give the listener space to breathe and lounge on the beach. Not only that, but The Avalanches also make room for a number of guest appearances on the record from the likes of Danny Brown, MF DOOM, Biz Markie, Ariel Pink, Toro y Moi, and more.

While the first three projects I pointed out featured murky aspects, I’m glad to end this piece on more of a cheerful note with an uplifting album experience. Many of us tend to resort to consuming darker art, and it’s good to be in touch with that side of ourselves. It’s important to understand our situation and face it. At the same time though, it’s important to take a step back from all of this and try not to worry or mope around too much, because better days are ahead.

Originally appeared in Lyrical Lemonade

#wmua #radio #Amherst #Album Reviews #hip hop #punk #jazz #electronic

[annakie]

It took three and a half months, but I’ve finished my Doctor Who Rewatch.

It’s time to talk about seasons 10, 11, overall wrapup thoughts and some best/worst lists.  Very long post below.

I started doing this back at the end of August as more of a joke when I was going back and cleaning the terrible cringe stuff off the first few months of my blog, then ended up taking that project from when I started the blog in May, 2011 until late 2016.  I realized that I had too much going on IRL right now to revisit my life at the end of 2016 when things took a sharp turn the wrong way, so I haven’t picked that back up again.  I still might at some point.

After the start of the nostalgia tour I:

Cried about Doomsday

Still hated the Manhattan episodes but renewed my love for one of my favorite characters of all time.

Reflected about Martha Jones and being an overly-zealous defender of a fictional character

Cried a lot over meeting and losing River Song in the span of an hour and a half.

Made my way through Season 4 and found myself still mostly loving the show.

Finished Season 4 and was starting to tire of Ten but knew I had more content to get through.

Didn’t post again til I was done with Amy and Rory.  Loved Amy, Rory and River even more, especially Rory.

Watched an episode I remembered I didn’t like just because of the guest actors.  Only marginally helped the episode.

Disliked the second half of season 7 even more than I used to.  Felt meh about Clara.

Warmed to Clara more in seasons 8 and 9.  Still, was ready to see her go.  Loved Twelve, though the first half of season 8 continued to be rough.  Adored the Husbands of River Song for the 6th+ time.

 Took a brief moment to love Bill.

Full disclosure on the rewatch: I skipped most of Fear Her except the first and last few minutes, and actually haven’t gotten back to Waters of Mars or the one 11 Christmas Special with the kids who’s father dies.  I may or may not pick those up in the next week or two.

So tonight I finished rewatching all of Thirteen’s episodes and wanted to talk a bit more about Bill, and then a lot about Thirteen, and some general thoughts about the whole rewatch.

Bill Potts is too good for this world.  I remembered loving her during her season but was blown away on the rewatch with how much I loved her, and almost all of her season.  Her energy, her story, her smile, it’s infectious.  It’s infuriating that so many people didn’t watch Bill because wow she deserved a lot more attention that I feel like she got, and also I feel like the show itself turned a real corner that season.  Season 9, yes, definitely better than 8 and 7.5.  But It’s like Moffat or the writers in general kinda grocked into several important things and made the show more progressive and less cringe?  

There wasn’t an episode I thought was bad, even the more filler episodes like the one in space with the air being a commodity was tense and fun.  I’m not sure I’d skip a single episode.

And then Bill, I think, ends up getting an even shittier deal than Martha in her season.  Left alone for ten years in a shithole mopping up floors, only to be turned into a cyberman and get left extremely traumatized, and sacrifice herself.  A very good story.  A very sad and frustrating ending.  Except that she does get to “transform” and travel the universe with Heather.

Maybe she did eventually go back home and finish living her life from not long after she left in the TARDIS the last time -- it’s entirely possible.  The Memory-Bill in Twice Upon a Time (the Twelve & One crossover) remembered traveling with Heather, which means her memory was taken from some point AFTER.  So maybe she got to be an ethereal being for a long time, and then eventually went home to Earth.  Or maybe she’s still out there traveling the stars with Heather.  Either way, she deserves a good life, and a good ending, even if we never know the true ending.

Twelve -- I love him.  Again, he had a really rough start but Capaldi is an amazing actor and he owned the role. I don’t think it’s actually possible to rank my favorite doctors from the new Who era, they’re all different, all great.  And Missy -- such an amazing villain.  Paired with Simms-Master was so, extremely fun, but even on her own, I think she’s now my favorite incarnation of The Master.  (I’ve only seen a few episodes of Old-Who with Delgado, and I really love Delgado’s Master as well.)  

Nardole was also a fun addition to the season.  I know technically he was considered a full companion and enjoyed him when he was there, but tbh, to me it was all about Bill.

But hey, when Twelve left, it was a good time for him to go -- I really think three seasons is the sweet spot for length of a Doctor.  I was so ready for Thirteen and The Fam.

I remembered loving Thirteen when her episodes were airing and, I was right to.  Jodie Whittaker is so good -- I never doubt for a second that she’s The Doctor.  The show one again feels very different with a new doctor / companions / showrunner.  I honestly loved the lack of Doctor-Angst in the season.  Thirteen is so much more brightness and sunshine and I think it was a good way to swing the Doctor after Twelve.  I also liked that there were a few comments about changing genders, a little bit of frustration from noticing how people treated her differently, but it was neither an earthshattering thing that made EVERYTHING DIFFERENT nor was it a non-event.  I really think they handled it well.

I will say that I think some of the critics were right, that the season itself could have used a bit more of an arc.  Not a heavy arc, like seasons five and six had, but a bit more than Tim Shaw showing up in the first and last episodes of the season.  It looks like next season is going to have that.

The arc that was there though really came from Graham and Ryan’s grief about Grace and their relationship growing.  Honestly, I remember when we learned that one of the new companions was going to be a 60-ish year old dude I wasn’t looking forward to that at all, but honestly, I love Graham.  He’s an actual good guy, he loves deeply, he’s allowed to show his emotions, he handles things WELL.  He’s not perfect but also I felt like they wrote his character so well, he wasn’t an arrogant guy expecting everyone to follow his orders, he cares deeply for Ryan and even had some great scenes with Yaz.  

Ryan and Yaz are both also just so fantastic.  I loved getting to spend time with Yaz’s family both current and past.  I actually learned a little history in the episode that took place in Pakistan (and loved having a benevolent alien storyline there, love that episode so much).  I also loved that they allowed Ryan to show grief and sadness, and vulnerability too.  

I was definitely feeling the 13/Yaz vibes on the rewatch, and although I wouldn’t say I’d be upset if they did end up doing a Ryan/Yaz storyline, I also wouldn’t be upset if they didn’t do any romance storylines at all.  I didn’t miss it this season, and 13/Yaz seemed more likely than anything.

I also loved that they took on racism in a couple of big ways this series.  I felt like the only big swing-and-miss episode was Ker-Blam! where they were so close to really hammering down a good message in the episode and then it felt like Jeff Bezos himself came in and rewrote the last 10 minutes.

TBH there were a couple of episodes that I had COMPLETELY forgotten about, especially the one with Chris North and the big spiders.  Like while I was watching it I had a vague memory of seeing it before, but not up until then.  I’d also forgotten about the New Year’s episode last year with Ryan’s dad.  I only remembered to watch it because after the final episode I was like “Wait, wasn’t Ryan’s dad supposed to be in this season?” and so I went to hunt for the episode.

SO... that’s it.  I was actually a little shocked last night when I finished up the New Year’s episode and realized... I was DONE.  I made it back through eleven seasons and... it was worth it.  

Some final thoughts... and I’m just picking a few things out here off the top of my head, I wasn’t keeping a list all the way through so I’m sure I’m going to think of other things after hitting Post, but here we go.

---------

COMPANION RANKINGS: God Tier: Martha Jones

Faves: Bill Potts, Rory Williams, River Song

I love you so much: Donna Noble, Amy Pond, The Fam (All together!), Jack Harkness, Mickey Smith, Wilfred Mott

Very very Good: Rose Tyler, Nardole

I Still Like You: Clara Oswald

---------

FAVE SEASON: I mean, it’s still gonna be Martha’s season with an honorable mention of the second half of 4.

If you take Martha Jones out of the equation, it’d probably be either 6 through 7.0, or Bill’s season.

LEAST FAVORITE:  The second half of 7, for sure, and the first half of 8 is kinda rough.  It’d be easy to say season 1, as well, but I don’t think that’s entirely fair, as I think the age of the show really shows there and there was a lot of getting-on-their feet they had to do.  There’s still a lot of good there, you just have to look for it harder.

---------

Favorite Specials: 

The Husbands of River Song, #1 favorite no question

The Day of the Doctor a close second. 

Honorable mention to the Night of The Doctor for the canonical return of Eight.  Seriously, the first time I saw that it may have been the single most joyous moment of New Who for me.

Least Favorite:

I mean, I haven’t rewatched two of them yet since I remember not liking them.  

Also Voyage of the Damned was just even worse than I remembered it.

I Cried The Hardest:

Amy and Rory��s leaving in The Angels Take Manhattan

River’s death in the Library

The end of Doomsday

Danny’s death

The end of Vincent and the Doctor

Prem’s death in Demons of the Punjab, maybe the only single-episode character death that hit me that hard.

Happiest Tears: 

Martha leaves the Doctor

The group in the TARDIS towing Earth home in Journey’s End

Twelve and River get 24 years together

Ryan calls Graham “Grandad”

Jackie and Alt-Pete meet/”reunite”

Heather shows up and... “saves” Bill, they go off on adventures.

Best Twists: 

John Simms Return at the end of season ten.  

YANA is the Master

Oswin is actually a Dalek

Heaven is run by Missy, and the Cybermen. (Damn I really love twists concerning the Master don’t I?)

Bill discovers she IS a Cyberman

Loudest cheers: 

Mickey showing up in Doomsday

Martha laughs at the Master

Rory’s speech at the beginning of A Good Man Goes to War

The Doctor punches a racist who insulted Bill

Best dramatic moments: 

Jack and the Doctor talk about Rose in Utopia

Twelve takes several billion years to punch through a wall

Just This Once, Everybody Lives!

Turn Left

The Doctor says goodbye Idris in The Doctor’s Wife

Missy and the Master’s mutually assured destruction.

Biggest Laughs for a good reason: 

The entire poison scene in the Unicorn and the Wasp

Basically everything about the Doctor attempting to be normal in The Lodger.

Right, putting Hitler in the Cupboard.

Doctor, when I’m on a date, do not put the Pope in my bedroom.

Biggest Cringe: 

Penis-head half-human Dalek

Concrete blowjobs

Anytime a lady slapped/hit a guy not in self-defense

Old goblin Ten / Jesus Ten in Last of the Time Lords

Most of The End of Time part 1

Eleven forces a kiss on Jenny in The Crimson Horror (THAT deserved the slap.)

There’s a lot of things I could point out in season 1 but I’m grading season 1 on a curve.

Favorite non-companion recurring characters: 

Danny Pink

Brian Williams

Jackie Tyler

Worst Villians: 

“Love And Monsters”

“Fear Her” 

The eye-crud sleep monster with Twelve

I kinda wanna say the Daleks are so overdone it’s hard to get excited about them anymore, though I did kinda like what they did in “Resolution” (13′s New Years episode last year.)

OK I honestly don’t know if I want to put “A sentient universe who is in the form of a large frog and just wants a BFF” in best or worst but I feel it belongs SOMEWHERE.

Best Villians:

Missy

Whatever the fuck that thing is in Midnight

House

Got a Raw Deal award:

Adam (Seriously, he was told nothing and did nothing wrong via what he’d been told?!

Donna

Bill (Seriously, TEN YEARS SCRUBBING FLOORS? only to not be saved by 2 hours and then turned into a cyberman and killed again?)

Most Bothersome Lack of Continuity:

The rules for meeting yourself / interfering in the past.

Uh so who was the Not-Danny astronaut in “Listen” anyway?

Most Improved on a Rewatch:

The Fires of Pompeii because... ten and twelve?  It used to be one of my least favorite eps of season 4.

the Daleks in Manahattan episodes I guess just because I liked them more this time though they’re still not great. 

Seeing all of River’s timeline in such a short period of time

Gotta say I enjoyed Planet of the Dead a normal amount when before I used to really dislike it.

Best Premiere of a Doctor:  The Eleventh Hour Roughest Premiere of a Doctor: Deep Breath, since I’m grading season 1 on a curve. Best Exit of a Doctor: Honestly?  I’m gonna give this one to Nine.  He sacrificed himself to save Rose, and he died too soon.  It seemed a fitting end, if too quick.

Roughest Exit of a Doctor: I’m going to go with Eleven here.  It came at the end of what I felt was the worst period of New Who.  The episode itself was... I kind of felt like it was overwraught and didn’t pack quite the same punch as the other three.  Say what you will about the “I Don’t Wanna Go” line with Ten and Twelve needing to be convinced to regenerate at all.  Matt Smith did the best with what he was given, but he wasn’t given much in the entire last run of his episodes after having some of the BEST episodes the previous two and a half seasons.

Best Premiere of a Major Companion: Honestly?  Still gotta go with The Eleventh Hour, for both Amy and Rory and the great way they were both set up and the mysteries of the season.

Worst Premiere of a Major Companion: If you don’t count Asylum of the Daleks (which I thought was great) as Clara’s premiere, then it was definitely Clara’s “The Bells of Saint John”.  No contest.  I don’t think ANY of the rest of them were done poorly, TBH.  I guess I’d have to go with “Rose”, because the Autons themselves are pretty meh and the plastic wasn’t great.

Best (Main) Exit of a Major Companion: This one is more difficult. Doomsday deserves a nod.  Martha Jones walked the world and ended on her own terms.  Journey’s End saw the end of an entire era of companions we loved.  River showed up and died on the same day, but her final appearance is one of my favorite episodes ever.  The Angles Take Manhattan was SO GOOD.  But The Doctor Falls was exciting and tense and tragic.  Hell, even Clara’s final episodes were great.

Honestly, this shouldn’t even be a question.  I can’t choose.  I can’t think of a single one I didn’t love.

Anyway, thanks for reading this, if you got this far!  Know what?  Doctor Who is still a great show, even if it’s not an obsession anymore.  I can see myself doing this rewatch again in a few years, and I’m super looking forward to the next season starting in a couple of weeks!

#doctor who stuff #personal post tag thingy

[ty-talks-comics]

Best of DC: Week of August 21st, 2019

Best of this Week: Superman: Year One - Book Two - Frank Miller, John Romita Jr., Danny Miki, Alex Sinclair and John Workman

Superman has always stood for Truth, Justice and the American Way. 

This has never been more true (arguably) than right here in Superman: Year One, where Clark Kent becomes a US Navy Sailor. I briefly touched upon it at the end of the last issue, but this one really resonated with me in a way that no comic has in a little while. Other books have made me feel feelings of fear, disgust and elation beyond compare, but this one makes me feel the bittersweet memories of my own experience.

I remembered my first haircut, carrying my seabag across the base, marching and all of the PT (physical training) that I had to endure for those grueling two months. Clark isn’t fazed by any of it. It takes a few clippers to cut his dense hair. He breezes through the PT, noting how hard it is for everyone else to do and when he has to qualify for using a pistol, he hits the mark dead center every single shot. There were a few superstars like Clark when I was in boot camp and seeing that written and excellently drawn by John Romita Jr., made me feel something of a kinship to one of my favorite heroes.

You can see the struggle in his shipmates faces as they sweat and heave with Clark monologuing in his mind that he can hear their lungs about to burst or their legs about to give out. That shit was me. Every single PT test leaving me winded, marching at a double time… I hated every second of it. But through all of it, I felt proud. I wanted to get through, to push myself harder than I ever could. 

Clark doesn’t feel that. How could he? He’s an alien from another planet with abilities beyond compare and he could do anything he set his mind to. But what does he choose to instead? He answers the call of duty, he chooses to serve his country and his fellow man. It’s ridiculous, but at the same time absolutely commendable and inspiring. If I were to level criticism at the first two acts of this book, however, it would definitely be the lack of real feeling of camaraderie that Sailors feel together in Boot Camp. Never once do we see Clark interact with his shipmates in any meaningful way, aside from his Captain later on. The feeling of pride is there, but the friendships and relationships that come with it does leave a little bit of the story feeling hollow in favor of a less than great, but still good subplot later.

Another problem I have is… I don’t know how accurate print media and comics are allowed to be with military rank and titles, but Kurtzberg is supposed to be a Captain, but wears the insignia of a Petty Officer Second Class and Chief Petty Officer at two separate points. It’s a mildly irritating and nitpicky thing, but what can you do?

Of course, Clark's path diverges greatly from my own. A little bit before the pistol qualification section, he gains the attention of a Captain Kurtzberg and after his perfect scores, he's allowed to try out his skills further with an assault rifle, which he also excels at. Kurtzberg recommends him for more advanced training and soon after, he trains to become a Navy SEAL. I don’t have a singular clue as to what the SEAL lifestyle is like, but training he’s made to endure is even worse, though you wouldn’t know it from how he reacts to it all.

It’s here at SEAL training that the first seeds of the subplot, later becoming the hook of Act Three are sewn. Clark begins to hear the calling of the sea. It’s something that some deployed Sailors still feel to this day, the Siren Song or Mermaid Call that drives most men mad with how beautiful their voices are. Kurtzberg calls Clark out during one evening of PT and makes him to push ups on the shore of the beach after Clark tells him that the Captain should see how pretty “they” are. Unable to sleep during the night, Clark sneaks out of his barracks to watch the beings on the coast when Kurtzber appears next to him, warning him to not tell anyone about what they’ve seen as Kurzberg too knows of their beauty and the world of wonders that they live in. 

If you’ve been reading Superman stories for a long period of time, things may start to click as what or who may be calling Clark. After our hero accidentally starts a bar fight while trying to defend the honor of a woman, he’s punished by having to use his toothbrush to clean the head (bathroom) and garbage cans. After finishing his chores way into the night, he makes a dummy in his rack (bed) and sets off to explore the sea, taking to the water like a fish since he doesn’t actually need oxygen. 

He follows the sounds of the voices calling and finally see them, Mermaids, laughing at this strange human. One in particular catches his eye, Lori Lemaris, one of Superman’s original love interests from the late 1950s. He follows her as she laughs, until her voice turns to tears, seeing a submarine having crashed into their city. In one of his first of many acts of heroism, Clark lifts the sub off of the city, saves the people and helps them rebuild just before Morning Colors. Lori begs him to stay, to become her husband and King, but he tells her that the people up there need him, but that he will be back. As always, Clark is torn between two worlds, but his first thought is always to honor his commitments because he’s such a good guy.

Romita Jrs art shines best in these few pages for me. Lori is absolutely beautiful, playful and the visuals of the underside of the ocean are stunning. Everything’s a beautiful hue of blue except for the vegetation and Lori, who’s colored with yellow and purple clothing. Clark looks amazingly strong and happily curious as he saves the people of Atlantis. Romita Jrs. lines are amazingly crisp and he makes great use of only a few hatch lines to shade things. Everything is thoroughly enjoyable to look at, even the way that everything flows under the water is awesome.

Clark manages to return back to the barracks just in time as Kurtzberg watches on, knowing where Clark’s been and thinking to himself that the young SEAL better keep those memories clean and pure because he’s witnessed something amazing. He swam with the angels. There’s a three page long training montage where Clark shows just how efficient he can be in combat, embarrassing one of his shipmates so hard that he’s pulled aside and given his first assignment.

Things take a dark turn as Clark and his team are made to infiltrate a ship that’s been hijacked by pirates. During the training, as Clark thought to himself just how easy it would be to kill, he started to get a pit in his stomach. Things weren’t sitting right, especially as Kurtzberg egged him on by saying, “That there is how to kill a man good!” This stuck with Clark as he did his bet to avoid killing any of the hijackers. He saw how monstrously they murdered the crew of the ship and he felt himself getting more angry, but he still couldn’t bring himself to take a life. 

Things reach a head as the team reaches the control deck and Clark still refuses to kill any of the enemies. Kurtzberg lambasts Clark and orders to give him some corpses, until one of the hijackers pulls out a grenade. Everyone starts to panic as the mission goes FUBAR, but Clark utilizes his strength to stop the grenade, subtly, making it seem like it was a dud. 

While he ended up saving the lives of his fellowsailors, his reckless actions reward him with an honorable discharge. Kurtzberg advocates for him, but ultimately Clark has to pack his sea bag and say goodbye to his friends. Before he departs, he has something of a heart to heart with Kurtzberg. The Captain tells him to hone his skills, that he could do amazing things with his gifts and Clark salutes him, walking into the ocean to find his destiny.

The way this scene is framed, with the lighting indicating an early morning, makes everything seem like the future is absolutely bright for Clark. Having Kurtzberg abandon his badass attitude of authority and strength to give Clark advice while shaking his hand like a man is an amazing and heartfelt sight. For the first time, Clark doesn't have to try to lower his strength, it just comes naturally.

All of this is bittersweet. Clark Kent wanted something different than his life in Smallville. He knew that he would have to hide his abilities if he stayed, he knew that he could do so much more for the world. He chose to serve his country, one of the best things a Patriot can do, but his heart was too good for it. His skill and power raised him to a position that did not align with his own moral code. Clark would never kill, but no good deed goes unpunished.

The third and final act of this book comes with Clark returning to Atlantis, seeking out his new love, Lori. She reacts happily once she sees him again, calling him the love of her life and saying that he should meet her family. Then they… frolic in their special hiding place until the next day. She tells him to wear his best as he is to finally meet her father, Lord Poseidon. He emerges from the shadows in his iconic red and blue with fish swimming all around him and the flora lighting up in his presence. 

Poseidon isn't amused, seeing Clark as a little standing frog and proceeds to put Clark through impossible tasks to win his daughters hand. Clark begins to find the true scope of his powers as he concentrates and releases his heat vision on one of the enemies. It's a stellar display of power and control as Clark monologues that this fire inside of him was his and his alone. Alex Sinclair did an amazing job of portraying the ability and powerful it is with intense and vibrant reds.

Poseidon pulls out every stop that he can to try and crush Superman. He sends his best warriors, but Clark doesn't even acknowledge them trying to crush him. Stone automatons fall to his might. A giant squid swallows him whole and vomits him back up, unfettered by the stomach acid. Becoming increasingly enraged, Poseidon summons the Kraken and uses the fabled beast to try and crush Superman to death. 

As the tentacle lifts and Lori cries, thinking her one true love has died, Clark stands right back up with a smile. Lori jumps for joy, the people are stunned and in a silent rage, Poseidon calls off the Kraken and plots revenge on the frog that he couldn't crush.

Throughout this entire act, Poseidon monologues to himself about the bug that wouldn't be crushed or burned or destroyed in any way. Clark just smiled, snickered and mocked Poseidon the entire time. There was no malice in his smirk, just the boyish exuberance of love and youth. Poseidon though Clark wanted his crown, but really he just wanted Lori, a place to finally be himself and a peace of mind that he's never truly had.

Superman: Year One has been amazing thus far. While it's only a few peoples take on what would happen if Superman joined the military, I feel like it's a great and accurate one in line with who Superman would be as a man. Given the lessons that he'd learned from Pa Kent, how could we expect him to be ready to kill at any moment? Instead, we see his compassion for humanity shine through as he's even willing to preserve the lives of absolute monsters. 

John Romita Jr. captures the apathy of an effortless Clark in his early career, the wonder when hears the beautiful call of love from the sea and the conflict of a man caught between duty and morality. To say that this is some of his best art in years would be an understatement when it concerns this entire story. While the last issue focused heavily on the vast normality of the midwestern United States, this issue feels more tight and focused on the inner turmoil of Superman. The locales feel more linear, allowing us to explore more of Clark's own inner thought processes. He is surrounded by other strong men, but he is in a league of his own until he meets Lori.

Superman: Year One is a great journey of self-discovery. Other Superman stories have tried similar themes with varying degrees of success. Superman: Earth One went in the hard direction of Superman being an apathetic douche that knows he's a God and lowers himself to the level of men until someone bigger makes him want to protect the citizens of Earth. Superman: American Alien grounded Superman near as much as this book does, but what makes them different is the journey Clark takes to find himself.

This book warmed my heart something fierce with it's incredible storytelling and art. With issue two being this good, I can only hope that the next one will be nearly as amazing. Given that the preview of the next one shows Superman holding up the Daily Planet globe, we are absolutely going to be in for a treat. 

Highest of recommends.

#comics #dc #dc comics #dc black label #frank miller #john romita jr. #superman year one #superman #clark kent #lori lemaris #poseidon #us navy

[tardisgirlepic]

Ch. 3: “World Enough and Time” Analysis Doctor Who S10.11: Doctor’s OMG Hair, Meet Delilah’s Mr. Razor & More

<- Read previous chapter

Samson & Delilah: Doctor’s OMG Hair, Meet Mr. Razor

OMG, I could not believe how long the Doctor’s hair had gotten at the beginning of “World Enough and Time.”  From now on, to distinguish Doctors, I’ll refer to the Doctor’s hair that we saw at the beginning of the episode as “OMG hair.” 

In fact, it was even funnier that I had mentioned it in the previous analysis with my sudden revelation about Samson & Delilah, where River was Delilah. 

Yes, DW is playing out this Old Testament story.

Due to time, I didn’t get to talk about the entire Samson & Delilah story and how it fits in. But I’ll show you in a few minutes how this fits together with River.

Funny: “A Thing Happened…”

First, though, a funny thing happened while watching the episode.  I was so intent on getting subtext and trying to pick up dialogue that I wasn’t looking for John Simm.  I’m not sure I would have recognized him under the makeup anyway. However…

Once he said

RAZOR: People, people, people, people, people!  People, they are people.

I knew he was John Simm because only his Master has spoken this way before.

However, here’s the funny part: I didn’t catch his name on the first viewing.  Once I watched with subtitles, I had another OMG moment when I realized his name was Mister Razor!

Wow!  Ha..ha! 

Mr. Razor & Delilah Will Give Samson a Haircut

There’s some additional information about the story of Samson & Delilah that’s quite important, so I’m going to weave it together here from different sources, including the razor part I mentioned from the previous analysis:

Wikipedia says

Samson had been dedicated as a Nazirite, "from the womb to the day of his death"; thus he was forbidden to touch wine or cut his hair.

While the 11th Doctor did abstain from alcohol, he had a shaved head in his last episode “The Time of the Doctor” and was wearing a wig for most of the time.  Now, I see that the Samson and Delilah story was playing out then with Clara metaphorically asking God to restore Samson’s powers to defeat the Philistines.

The 12th Doctor drinks alcohol.

According to BibleStudyTools.com:

The summary from Scripture starts with Samson's birth was announced by an angel during a dark time for the Israelites. Israel was under the rule and oppression of the Philistines. Samson was born a Nazirite and was set apart with supernatural strength from God to do His work in the nation of Israel. Samson became great in his own eyes and began to pursue women outside of God's plan for his life. During his wedding sermon to a Philistine women, Samson was so humiliated by her and the wedding guests that he sought revenge by killing 1,000 Philistine men.

We’ve certainly seen the Doctor’s pride and ego take over, at times.

Anyway, regarding Samson, Wikipedia says

He then falls in love with Delilah in the valley of Sorek.  The Philistines approach Delilah and induce her with 1,100 silver coins to find the secret of Samson's strength so they can get rid of it and capture their enemy.

We saw this money scene playing out with River in THORS.  However, as we also saw how not everything was as it looked.  We saw the Roman cross behind the money ball with access to all the banks, as River is really trying to save the Doctor from this alternate universe.

Delilah keeps trying to figure out the source of his strength, and Samson keeps telling her different sources, which she tries to exploit.  But they are all lies. 

This is mirrored with River. She said the Doctor’s name in “The Name of the Doctor,” which would have led to his torturous death, except Clara saved him.  River knows this alternate universe has to die. 

Eventually after much nagging from Delilah, Samson tells Delilah that he will lose his strength with the loss of his hair.  God supplies Samson's power because of his consecration to God as a Nazirite, symbolized by the fact that a razor has never touched his head. Delilah calls for a servant to shave Samson's seven locks, then woos him to sleep "in her lap" (either literally or figuratively). With this, Samson has finally broken the last tenet of the Nazirite oath; God leaves him, and Samson is captured by the Philistines, who blind him by gouging out his eyes. After being blinded, Samson is brought to Gaza, imprisoned, and put to work grinding grain by turning a large millstone.

Here’s where the Doctor is blinded by eyes being gouged out, like we heard and saw in multiple ways with other characters and references in “The Empress of Mars” analysis.

Ohila, in “Hell Bent,” told the Doctor that he had broken every code he ever lived by, and we see his fall in one way, kind of sort of, in that episode.  We’ll see it from a different angle in this last upcoming episode of the season.  So Missy may be playing Delilah, or will it be River or Clara?  Or is there something else?

I’ve often wondered about Missy’s 3W Institute in the finale of Season 8 where we see Danny Pink die. While the episode suggest 3W stood for “I love you,” I also saw it potentially as being Missy, River, and Clara, where 3W stands for “3 Women.”  Vastra and Amy fit in here, too, but that is beyond this right now. 

Anyway to finish Samson’s story, according to BibleStudyTools.com:

The Philistines brought Samson out before a great crowd of rulers and thousands of people gathered in the temple to celebrate his capture. Samson's hair had begun to grow back and as he leaned against the pillars of the temple, he prayed to God for strength once more to defeat the Philistines. Samson used all of his might and pushed down the temple, killing himself and thousands of Philistines and rulers.

God forgave Samson and still accomplished great things through Samson. It was through Samson's destruction of the temple and his death that the Israelites were freed from Philistine rule.

So Mr. Razor is the metaphorical symbol of the razor in this Old Testament story. 

And this is foreshadowing the rescue and the Doctor’s fall and death.  This is just more evidence of what we’ve examined over and over.  While he’s not supposed to fall in love, as we examined before, it is necessary for the rescue.

Wow, how cool is that!?

Anyway, there’s a lot more to this.  It’s a truly epic love story that spans all of DW, but I’ll save this for later…

Operation Exodus & Genesis of the Cybermen

Wow, I’ve been geeking out, since the airing of the episode, about all the cool things that are coming together! 

Operation Exodus explains why we saw all those robots in Season 8, including the half-faced man in “Deep Breath” wanting to go to the Promised Land – Heaven.  However, that’s the wrong Book. We’re not in the 2nd Book of the Old Testament right now.  Before that, we have the Fall of Man and the Doctor.

We’re back in the 1st Book: Genesis.

As we’ve examined in various chapters, we are, indeed, going back in time and telling the backstory of the Doctor.

This is the epicenter of the Time War.

Don’t Make the Doctor Angry: “The Unicorn and the Wasp” & 1056

We keep seeing Floor 1056 come up in “World Enough and Time.”  But what does it mean?  It has a connection to “The Unicorn and the Wasp” and is from The Devastator series of Doctor Who: Battles in Time trading cards, meaning the Vespiform sting.

I’ve been wanting to talk about “The Unicorn and the Wasp” since the very 1st episode of Season 10 aired.  However, I ran out of time to put it in “The Pilot” analysis.  I would have put it in “Knock Knock,” but I ran out of time there, too.  Anyway, this is the 10th Doctor story with Agatha Christie in 1926 (yet another 1926 reference) where a murder takes place after the Doctor and Donna crash a garden party.  The odd thing is that later we see a giant wasp that turns out to be the murderer.

The Hybrid

Well, it’s not quite that simple because it turns human, and the Doctor can’t figure out whodunit right away.  The wasp is actually a hybrid, who doesn’t realize he is a hybrid for 40 years of his life because he grew up in an orphanage.  Normally, he lives the quiet life as Reverend Arnold Golightly, the vicar of a small English village until his death in 1926.  He is the son of a human mother and Vespiform father. Vespiforms are an ancient and wise insectoid species. 

In 1926, some time after his 40th birthday, his church had a break in.  His temper flared when he caught the bandits in the act, discovering he had the ability to change from a humanoid appearance into a wasp-like alien. 

The thieves are associated with a Greek Cross, meaning they represent Doctors.  From all the subtext story, this suggests to me that the Doctors intentionally are driving the Doctor over the edge, so he has something to fight for.  We saw that with Missy using Clara to push him over the edge and go hell bent through the universe.

As far as insects go, Clara has called the 12th Doctor a stick insect.  Of course, there’s the insectoid shadow that we looked at prior to the airing of TRODM.

The Unicorn

The Unicorn refers to Scotland.  In fact, according to Wikipedia, “The Lion and the Unicorn are symbols of the United Kingdom. They are, properly speaking, heraldic supporters appearing in the full royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom. The lion stands for England and the unicorn for Scotland.”

Why the Wasp? & What’s “Knock Knock” Got to Do with It?

In 1991, Peter Capaldi appeared on the TV series Agatha Christie’s Poirot with David Suchet who played Poirot.  Suchet also played the landlord in “Knock Knock.”  These appearances by both actors are important.

Capaldi played Claude Langton, who was being set up for murder by someone who wanted to commit suicide in the episode “Wasp’s Nest.”  Therefore, having David Suchet in “Knock Knock” was a strategic move to bring in a bunch of subtext.

The Patriarchal Cross

The connection to “The Pilot” comes in with the Patriarchal cross, which I haven’t talked about before since I have yet to post my Religious metaphors chapter.  Due to lack of time, I’m going to skip the images. However, there are crosses on the university building that match the cross the reverend’s mother is associated with. Bill actually is associated with the Patriarchial cross.  By the metaphors, that would make Bill the parent of the reverend, the Doctor.  But there’s more pointing to this…

In “The Lie of the Land” analysis, we looked at the woman with the son at the beginning, who was taken away with the shoebox.  The subtext showed she was a mirror of Bill.  And the boy had a rabbit, a symbol of redemption.

Also, interestingly, Mr. Razor says

RAZOR: You are dear to me. You are my dearest person. You are like BILL: I know. RAZOR: A mother to me. BILL: Definitely not a mother. RAZOR: Or an aunt.

Mr. Razor is playing the 24th Doctor. 

I have no doubt that Bill and the Doctor are related.  She is playing, among other things, various Doctor’s faces.  And she is the namesake of the 1st Doctor, William Hartnell, while Heather is the name of Hartnell’s wife.

Episode Title References: a Poem, a Book, the Apocalypse & Rescue

The title “World Enough and Time” is a brilliant reference, and obviously DW has had this reference in mind for a long time.  The title references multiple things, but it initially alludes to a line from the 17th-century poem, "To His Coy Mistress," written by English author and politician Andrew Marvell.  The bolded words are ones that I want to give more information about.

To His Coy Mistress

Had we but world enough and time,

This coyness, lady, were no crime.

We would sit down, and think which way

To walk, and pass our long love’s day.

Thou by the Indian Ganges’ side

Shouldst rubies find; I by the tide

Of Humber would complain. I would

Love you ten years before the flood,

And you should, if you please, refuse

Till the conversion of the Jews.

My vegetable love should grow

Vaster than empires and more slow;

An hundred years should go to praise

Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze;

Two hundred to adore each breast,

But thirty thousand to the rest;

An age at least to every part,

And the last age should show your heart.

For, lady, you deserve this state,

Nor would I love at lower rate.

       But at my back I always hear

Time’s wingèd chariot hurrying near;

And yonder all before us lie

Deserts of vast eternity.

Thy beauty shall no more be found;

Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound

My echoing song; then worms shall try

That long-preserved virginity,

And your quaint honour turn to dust,

And into ashes all my lust;

The grave’s a fine and private place,

But none, I think, do there embrace.

       Now therefore, while the youthful hue

Sits on thy skin like morning dew,

And while thy willing soul transpires

At every pore with instant fires,

Now let us sport us while we may,

And now, like amorous birds of prey,

Rather at once our time devour

Than languish in his slow-chapped power.

Let us roll all our strength and all

Our sweetness up into one ball,

And tear our pleasures with rough strife

Through the iron gates of life:

Thus, though we cannot make our sun

Stand still, yet we will make him run.

So world enough and time is about the poet wishing he had more time with the coy lady.  There are 4 other references that I highlighted worth mentioning here.  We’ve seen lots of birds of prey lately.  There’s the mention of the sun: the Doctor running with his companions to avoid the sunset and the passage of time. 

Wow, how interesting the poet uses “My vegetable love”!  That’s interesting when compared to the normal “animal love.”  This most likely refers to a couple of things in DW. First, since we are talking about the Garden of Eden, garden goes along with vegetables.  In fact, the Doctor mentions “garden”:

DOCTOR: Short version. Because of the black hole, time is moving faster at this end of the ship than the other. It's all about gravity. Gravity slows down time. The closer you are to the source of gravity, the slower time will move. (Jorj looks blank) If you're standing in your garden, your head is travelling faster through time than your feet. Don't they teach you this stuff at space school?

However, vegetable love may also come back to something we looked at with the “Heaven Sent” analysis in Chapter 17 of Fairytales and Romance in Doctor Who the 4th Doctor story “The Seeds of Doom,” where 2 alien pods land on Earth.  One opens and creates a jungle-like environment.  They can possess animals and take revenge on animals eating them. Plants and trees have an important place in the story.  The basic plot is playing out in this finale.  Just substitute people for plants.

The other reference in the poem is much bigger – “before the flood” – and alludes to multiple things.

Genesis & Noah, “Before the Flood,” & a Rainbow

With all the talk of the Book of Genesis, the line with “before the flood” takes on new meaning in DW. It’s a flood on a grand scale – an apocalyptic event, a Ragnarök of sorts.  Of course, it refers to the story of Noah’s Ark, where God instructs Noah (a righteous individual) to build an ark to spare him and his family, along with some animals from the flood that will destroy the world before its rebirth.

The poem’s line also alludes to the Season 9 episode “Before the Flood,” where we see the Fisher King creating ghosts.  So this flood is meant to destroy the source of the ghosts, the Fisher King, who actually puts his arms out and makes himself into a cross before he dies. He’s being crucified.  The Fisher King, as we’ve examined, is supposed to be a good character from Arthurian Legend.

Because the flood was so devastating and people would fear rain, God made a promise to Noah and all Earth that he would never send another flood to destroy all life again.  The visible sign he sent was a rainbow.

We saw a rainbow at the end of “The Eaters of Light,” just before everyone got in the TARDIS.  While the episode was mostly about another view of “Face the Ravens,” it showed the outline for this week’s “World Enough and Time” (with people united together, pawns in the Chess game), and the rainbow to show the results of “Hell Bent” and the upcoming final episode.

The Flood & “The Unicorn and the Wasp”

The flood and waters relate to “The Unicorn and the Wasp,” too.  Golightly’s mother Clemency told the story of how she had had an affair. When she came back to England, she locked herself away, saying she had malaria, to hide the pregnancy, even from her husband.

CLEMENCY: It was forty years ago, in the heat of Delhi, late one night. I was alone, and that's when I saw it. A dazzling light in the sky. The next day, he came to the house. Christopher, the most handsome man I'd ever seen. Our love blazed like a wildfire. I held nothing back. And in return he showed me the incredible truth about himself. He'd made himself human, to learn about us. This was his true shape. (A giant wasp.) CLEMENCY: I loved him so much, it didn't matter. But he was stolen from me. 1885, the year of the great monsoon. The river Jumna rose up and broke its banks. He was Taken At The Flood. But Christopher left me a parting gift. A jewel like no other. I wore it always. Part of me never forgot. I kept it close, always.

ROBINA: Just like a man. Flashes his family jewels and you end up with a bun in the oven. AGATHA: A poor little child. Forty years ago, Miss Chandrakala took that newborn babe to an orphanage. But Professor Peach worked it out. He found the birth certificate.

There is a geographical connection with the poem, as both have aspects set in India: Delhi and the Ganges, respectively.  The poem, therefore, is meant to relate to Clemency and Christopher, the hybrid’s parents. Since we have multiple faces of the Doctor, who is whom?

Also, Golightly’s father died in a great monsoon, and the son, himself, drowned.  The 2 characters who have drowned or nearly so, are Rory in “The Curse of the Black Spot” and the 12th Doctor in “Heaven Sent.”

The Poet & the Daughter

There’s even more to glean from this title reference.  The poet and his tutoring give us some very important subtext, too.  According to Wikipedia:

"To His Coy Mistress" is a metaphysical poem written by the English author and politician Andrew Marvell (1621–1678) either during or just before the English Interregnum (1649–60). It was published posthumously in 1681.

This poem is considered one of Marvell's finest and is possibly the best recognized carpe diem poem in English. Although the date of its composition is not known, it may have been written in the early 1650s. At that time, Marvell was serving as a tutor to the daughter of the retired commander of the New Model Army, Sir Thomas Fairfax.

Sir Thomas Fairfax Gives Us Information about the Rescue & Apocalypse

The Doctor is mirroring Marvell, who is tutoring Sir Thomas Fairfax’s daughter, played by Bill.  According to Wikipedia, Sir Thomas Fairfax’s nicknames are “Black Tom” and “Rider of the White Horse.”

We’ve examined the Rider and the White Horse in connection with the New Testament Apocalypse in “The Lie of the Land” analysis.  The White Horse symbolizes Conquest and there is a debate by some on whether the Rider is Christ or the Antichrist.  DW is playing both sides of the war, which comes back to what we’ve examined in multiple ways: the Horse and Rider, along with the name Lucifer, CAL’s world and “Turn Left.”

In one universe, the Doctor is seen as the savior of the universe.  However, in the other universe, he would be the Antichrist, the Destroyer of Worlds.  According to Wikipedia,

Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron (17 January 1612 – 12 November 1671), also known as Sir Thomas, Lord Fairfax, was an English nobleman, peer, politician, general, and Parliamentary commander-in-chief during the English Civil War. An adept and talented commander, Fairfax led Parliament to many victories, notably the crucial Battle of Naseby, becoming effectively military ruler of the new republic, but was eventually overshadowed by his subordinate Oliver Cromwell, who was more politically adept and radical in action against Charles I. Fairfax became unhappy with Cromwell's policy and publicly refused to take part in Charles's show trial. Eventually he resigned, leaving Cromwell to control the republic. Because of this, and also his honourable battlefield conduct and his active role in the Restoration of the monarchy after Cromwell's death, he was exempted from the retribution exacted on many other leaders of the revolution. His dark hair and eyes and a swarthy complexion earned him the nickname "Black Tom".

In the DW world, it sounds like Bill’s father (the Rider of the White Horse) is trying to rescue her. With the gender change, it could be her mother.  Since Bill is a face of the Doctor, the Doctor’s Mother metaphor would apply to her. The Doctor, himself, has to be rescued, too.

This all foreshadows redemption and rightful restoration after the DW revolution.

Robert Oppenheimer & the Righteous War in the Bhagavad-Gita

I can’t get this relevant quote out of my head, so I’m adding it:

“Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds” – Robert Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer, according to Wikipedia, was an

American theoretical physicist and professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley. Oppenheimer was the wartime head of the Los Alamos Laboratory and is among those who are credited with being the "father of the atomic bomb" for their role in the Manhattan Project, the World War II undertaking that developed the first nuclear weapons used in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

…

Oppenheimer later recalled that, while witnessing the explosion, he thought of a verse from the Bhagavad Gita [shown above]

The Bhagavad-Gita is Hindu scripture in Sanskrit, which Oppenheimer could read.  It is often just referred to as Gita. This is very appropriate to the Doctor and what is happening.

The Gita is set in a narrative framework of a dialogue between Pandava prince Arjuna and his guide and charioteer Lord Krishna. Facing the duty as a warrior to fight the Dharma Yudhha or righteous war between Pandavas and Kauravas, Arjuna is counselled by Lord Krishna to "fulfill his Kshatriya (warrior) duty as a warrior and establish Dharma." Inserted in this appeal to kshatriya dharma (chivalry) is "a dialogue ... between diverging attitudes concerning methods toward the attainment of liberation (moksha)".

This passage reminds me of the Ice Warriors and the Doctor in “The Empress of Mars,” pledging their duty as warriors.

Science & World Enough And Space-Time

Being that we are talking about Black Holes, space-time science is important.  DW is using real science on the spaceship, when talking about time dilation.  Time would be slower closer to the Black Hole due to the immense gravity.  However, I do question the almost negligible space distance of 400 miles against the force of gravity of a Black Hole.  I’m no expert and I’ll leave it at that.

Having said that, this is all metaphorical, and we know we are in the alternate universe, so it doesn’t matter.  There’s plenty of other stuff that tells us other things aren’t right.  The 400 miles, refers to the Library, once again.

I actually do see this spaceship-Black Hole relationship in the episode as brilliant.  I’ll show you why in a bit.

Anyway, the title of the episode relates to a 1989 book by the American physicist John Earman called World Enough And Space-Time: Absolute vs. Relational Theories of Space and Time.

Goodread’s description says

Earman introduces and clarifies the historical and philosophical development of the clash between Newton's absolute conception of space and Leibniz's relative one.

It leads into Einstein’s theories on relativity. 

BTW, I do love the title World Enough And Space-Time in relation to DW.  It’s so appropriate.

Black Holes & the Eye of Harmony

Since we are touching on science and relativity, it seems appropriate to examine the Black Hole metaphor here, which includes the Eye of Harmony.   The existence of the Black Hole metaphor in “World Enough and Time” is a reference to “The Impossible Planet” and “The Satan Pit,” so we know, from our previous examinations, that slavery and the Beast are involved. These last 3 Season 10 episodes have been about facing one’s beast.

The Doctor, Nardole, Missy, and Jorj are looking up at the Black Hole, which really is the Eye of Harmony. And it’s a djinni with an octagon. From “The Impossible Planet,” we learned that people could go mad by looking at it.

We need to revisit the definition of the Eye from the Wikia because it tells us what can happen.  According to the TARDIS Wikia, regarding the Eye of Harmony in the TARDIS Cloister Room in the Doctor Who movie in 1996:

It was a stone structure shaped like a hemisphere which appeared to open outwards like an eyelid. While inside the Cloister Room of the TARDIS, the Master described the Eye as "the heart of this structure". The Doctor said it was "[t]he power source of the heart of the TARDIS." Both the Doctor and the Master claimed to Chang Lee that it belonged to the Doctor; the Doctor referring to it as "my Eye" and the Master saying that "now it belongs to him". The Eye responded to a physical linking device. The particular structure of a human eye had the effect of opening it.

Opening the Eye allowed the Master and Lee to see a visual projection of the Doctor's past and present forms and let them see what the Doctor saw so that they could find him. It also assisted in returning the amnesiac Doctor's memories. The Doctor claimed that if he looked into the Eye, his "soul" would be destroyed, and the Master would be able to take over his body. Leaving the TARDIS' Eye open for too long would result in space-time distortion, and any nearby planets would be "sucked through it".

Here’s where I find this situation with the Black Hole and the spaceship brilliant.  From the movie, opening the Eye allowed the Master to see a visual projection of the Doctor’s past and present forms.  This is exactly what is happening due to time dilation. On his TV, the Master has found the Doctor and is viewing him and others in their past and present forms at the same time, due to time dilation near the Black Hole in the Eye of Harmony.  This is such a brilliant way to do this!  It’s so elegant.

The Eye of the Black Hole is most likely the Doctor’s, as the movie suggests.  That means the Master can take over the Doctor.  There are multiple Doctors, so things aren’t the way they may seem.  The Doctor has been taken over, but I’ll talk about that in another chapter.

Is the Doctor in the Opening an Imposter?

The Doctor in the opening appears different than we’ve ever seen him.  OMG hair and fierce look.  He also does something strange.

The Tardis materialises in a snowstorm. The Doctor steps out, falls to his knees and starts to regenerate. He cries out in pain.) DOCTOR: No. No. Nooooo!

The Doctor not wanting to go is a big red flag to me, especially for a Doctor who has been suicidal. I could possibly see that this is really him if he were in the middle of saving someone.

However, this is very much a Master thing to do.  We know the Doctor has been usurped, so chances are that this is not the real Doctor.

BTW, the Doctor is wearing his raggedy 11th Doctor-type jacket again.

In the Next Chapters

We’ll take a look at how “World Enough and Time” is applying concepts set up in “Heaven Sent,” along with “Face the Raven.”  Also, we’ll look at the meaning of “Doctor Who” as the Doctor’s title, how.  We’ll also look at the Master, some really creepy subtext in the Hospital metaphor, the meaning of solar farms, Mondas, and more.

Read next chapter ->

#doctor who #twelfth doctor #bill potts #nardole #river song #clara oswald #eleventh doctor #missy #master #world enough and time #meta #analysis

[legendofgrump]

Talk bout dem OCs, drop your rant. Wanna hear their stories yo

omg who are you because you just flattered me hardcore. Ahh I’ll put them under a cut so I don’t make everyone hate me with non-fandom stuff. And if you wanna ask more questions or anything, I have a blog specifically for talking about my OCs which is @meme-team-adventures​ !!! (But also if you don’t that’s cool too, I know not everyone is into that ahhh I’m rambling already). Anyway!! 

Most of them have rp/ask blogs which I’ll also link to when I mention them if you’re Really into it for some reason, but I haven’t done anything with any in a while and some of them might be kinda bare.

ANYWAY (part 2)

@confused-snail which actually just used to be my personal blog (and also my main blog goddammit) turned into an rp blog for a self-insert. So Snail is a 29 year old freelance artist. They’re nonbinary/demiboy who got bottom surgery so they could have a dick and sometimes they still get dysphoria over their chest (which they will one day get the surgery to remove) but they’re generally okay with how they look! They’re very aggressive and abrasive and also very controlling. They have the hardest time giving other people control because they kinda use it to avoid getting hurt like they did in a past relationship. Anyway they’re a pretty big meme most of the time. They love eating, sleeping, and they’re always down for some sex, especially with their boyfriend Daniel, but they exclusively top as part of their constant need to be in control. They get irritated kind of easily if you push the right buttons, but are generally pretty lazy/laid back and chill. They LOVE to laugh at stupid memes and stuff. And they also have pretty cool piercings and kind of lowkey wanna get a tattoo but they’re not really sure of what. They got a degree in art, though their grades were pretty bad because they weren’t in a good place during college, but they did graduate which they’re really proud of!

@death-and-fireflies I don’t know if he really counts as an OC but he might as well haha. But basically I had this Grump AU where everything was basically the same except that Dan was an immortal harbinger of lost souls that manifested in the form of fireflies. He’s blind, but his eyes glow really bright yellow (just like the fireflies that float around his head) and he’s lived on his own kind of nomadically for the longest time. He’s generally quiet and reserved and a little shy because he deals a lot with the dead and usually the living don’t want much to do with him, but he’s also really thoughtful and a little philosophical and very kind! He cares very much for the souls that he’s destined to take care of and his entire life purpose is to help them move on and get whatever unfinished business they have out of the way so they can finally find peace. He currently has a boyfriend named Kenry and a (basically) adopted daughter named Alice who kind of help him live his life without all the constant anxiety and hopelessness that comes with dealing constantly with the dead and some very talkative souls.

@wolf-in-sarcasms-clothing Marianne is a monster girl who kind of resembles a spider? I mean not technically because...not at all. But we call her a spider/bug babe so just roll with it. But she has four arms and one eye and very sharp teeth. And also she eats humans. Funny, right? She used to live in a heavily secluded cave system with the rest of her kind, where they were apart from humanity and only hunted wild animals and that worked. But then a companion that Marianne had used and manipulated her until she got so angry and felt so betrayed that she ate them and got kicked out of her clan and banished from the caves. So she kind of wandered into the human world until she stumbled across Daniyal and (separately) Kenry, who both kind of took her in despite her threatening to eat both of them at first meeting. She loves physical affection (pets, hair playing, scritches) and once given this affection, she’s much more like a big, dumb doggo that likes to play and cuddle and is basically a six foot tall lap dog.

@flirtbot3000 Originally spawned because I kept sending all of my friends’ muses/rp blogs flirts and pick up lines, so I just made a character for it. Andy is a pleasure bot designed for platonic, romantic, and sexual affection depending on the desires of the person they’re with at the time. Though most often they just end up having sex haha. But they’re a cute android that is extremely compliant and loves to please whoever they’re with and they legitimately also just enjoy having sex in general. They’ve done a lot of things in their life, such as being a pinup girl, modeling for magazines and fashion lines, and just straight up doing porn, and they enjoyed it all! But then they also accidentally fell in love with an interdimensional farm boy named Daniyal who accidentally turned them human when they had sex and then had sex with them again and turned them back into an android. But they love him regardless and the two are very happy together and it’s really pure and cute.

@of-bats-and-lovers (This one kind of links to two OCs but I’ll explain that hold on to your pants.) Beauregard (or just Bo is fine) is a bat boy that is rich as hell and lives for parties and meeting people. His biggest goal in life is to find his One and Only true love darling. But it’s kind of difficult because he had this person and then he lost her and just can’t seem to get over her. All of his riches came from when he was a thief and criminal with his true love, so they’re all stolen or at least not legally obtained. But, y’know, he keeps that under wraps. He likes partying and drinking (he’s kind of a heavyweight, but that doesn’t stop him from getting buzzed) and just generally having a good time. He’ll “fall in love” with anyone that gives him a smile or says something nice and then will fall out of love the morning after and go into a bit of a depressed mood that he’ll cheer himself up from by going to a party. (And thus the cycle continues.)

Esky is the Bonnie to Bo’s Clyde and the love that Bo lost to a big stand off with police and a well-aimed bullet. Or at least, that’s kind of what he thinks. Esky was shot and declared dead, but actually, y’know, wasn’t. So when she woke up in the morgue, very confused and alone, she made her escape and went on the run so as not to get caught and actually killed. She heard that Bo was also declared dead (which wasn’t true at all. He escaped and the media declared it because they didn’t want people to panic that this great criminal was still on the run) so she focused on getting herself to safety. The two have kind of been looking for each other ever sense, but also at the same time thinking that the other is dead so the search is fruitless.

@interstellar-superstar Venus is an alien from an unspecified location is space that came to earth and became an international pop star. She sings really well and is a positive and peppy girl, so the people adore her. But it also kind of taxes her because she has to hide the fact that she’s not from earth for fear of the government taking her and experimenting on her or at the very least, locking her up. She has a third eye and her skin is actually bright yellow, but luckily she can cover the eye with her hair and the general public believes that the yellow skin is just extreme dedication and a lot of body paint. So for the most part she’s okay, but there’s always a bit of stress with interviewers finding out about her true home. She’s also very easily confused about basic earth culture because she’s a sheltered celebrity and kind of fell into stardom from the moment she came to earth. So she has no idea what things like french fries are. Or memes. Or anything of the sort. And she also has no idea about basic geography, so she’ll just spout out random locations whenever someone asks her where she’s from. And the answer is always different. It’s adorable. She’s currently in a poly relationship with two cuties, Charlie and Avery, and she loves them both very dearly.

The next three are all from @here-queer-full-of-cheer and they’re all friends and roommates. They’re also all in a poly relationship with Danny Sexbang called polybang or Sexbang’s Angels so just that’s great too.

Nikki is a laid back guitarist that dropped out of high school to pursue a music career with her band. They’re semi-successful, at least locally, but they’re really trying to make it in the big time. She’s desperate to make this all work out because she wants dropping out of high school and never going to college to be worth it, especially since it kind of disappointed her family and makes her look bad to a lot of dumb soccer moms that need her to know their opinions. She loves music more than anything. Listening, writing, performing, she loves the whole process and always gives it the full attention it deserves. She’ll block off entire chunks of time just to listen to a new album, laying on her bed with her eyes closed in the dark just so she can full appreciate it.

Bailey is a nonbinary artist with a degree in specifically Color Theory. They love painting, especially with oil and acrylic, and uses big dramatic colors and shapes. They’re actually really good at realism, though they mostly paint scenes and locations, rather than like portraits or anything. (Not to say they wouldn’t paint those things, though.) They’re also really into the abstract and are currently experimenting with that. Also! They’re really bubbly and sweet and friendly, especially with small children. They love supporting their friends and just being chipper and happy in general. Also they have the raddest bright pink hair with a partly shaved blonde half and it’s really cool okay.

Megan is kinda cold and calculating and currently working on her PhD in physics. She puts a lot of pressure on herself and her academics and tells herself that she has to spend most of her life studying/working if she wants to get the grades she wants and graduate. A lot of the time she puts her health to the side in favor of studying and will go too long without eating or sleeping because of an essay. But she’s really passionate about what she’s doing and loves every second of the knowledge she gains. She’s a little rough at showing affection and generally has a hard time saying it in person. A lot of the time, if she has something important or generally sappy to say, she’ll write it down in one of her many, many journals that she uses as a diary/vent place, and then show it to the person she has to say the thing to, because she finds it easier to get her thoughts down on paper than to say them. But she does feel love deep in her cold, cold heart haha. Also she’s super kinky ;)

@cookie-dough-boy is a little trans sheepie boy named Cookie. He’s very soft and chubby, but also extremely full of anxiety and self-doubt. He cares about his friends more than himself and will put them before himself no matter what. He’s a total momma’s boy that will constantly call and check on his mom or visit her just to see how she’s doing and he loves her more than anything else in the world. She taught him like all of the recipes he knows and basically how to be an adult in general and he’s so grateful for her. He’s a little coffee shop barista and kind of hates his job because he works with pricks, but the customers are usually pretty nice to him, which makes it kind of worth it. Plus he gets paid, so. And he’s dating a very edgy, 2cool4me guy named Mortar who you would not expect to actually be involved with him at all but it’s really cute and they’re soft together it’s great.

The last three have no blogs because they’re pretty new OCs, but descriptions anyway!

Blythe: She’s the goddess of deception and also a beautiful trans prankster that loves fucking with mortals in little, inconvenient ways, like enchanting underwear drawers not to open or making arcade cabinets shoot out quarters. She’s generally pretty chill and likes humans well enough, but she still has a Goddess Complex where she kind of feels like she’s above them just in general. But she treats them fine, she just gets a little arrogant sometimes. Also she’ll do humans favors like try to talk them into Valhalla and stuff because she knows all the gods and goddesses and has cool connections so why not. She’s immortal and has really big, cool wings, that are even taller than her own six foot self like wow she’s got a massive wingspan.

Cleona: She’s a smol chubby mechanic girl that loves tinkering with tech and being a general dork. She likes reverse engineering things and figuring out how they work and go back together, but she’s also a bit messy and sometimes the things she’s taken apart can’t get put back together because she lost pieces/they got mixed in with another thing that needs to be put back together. She’s very very gay and also super friendly and chill in general. Also she wears these really big, clunky combat boots that are way to big for her smol feets because she wants to be taller. But they don’t fit her like at all, and there’s a running gag that she just always has asinine bullshit shoved insider her boots.

Maxim: Asshole. 100% irredeemable fuckhead. The personification of anxiety, basically, that will universally fuck with you until you no longer want to live on this planet. He’s a piece of shit that does it just for the hell of it. He’s also from the world behind mirrors that’s a reflection of the Real World (I’m sure you’ve heard this trope before lol). He can put his voice into people’s heads and fuck with them from there until they feel like they’re going insane from all the insecurity he’s putting in their heads and whatnot. And he’s just...the actual worst. He has no redeeming qualities. He’s an immortal demon boy that gets a kick out of making people’s lives horrible. Also he really likes hot pockets.

#my ocs #long post #i'm so sorry about all this rambling #please go to the other blog if you wanna ask more questions or something #haha sorry about all this~ #anon #ask

[gokaihearts35]

My opinion of new series Doctor Who

Top Doctor

I love all the doctors in the new series, but I still prefer Peter Capald, even reviewing every episode. While I really like the ninth doctor,As he stayed only one season had no way to stay on top of the others, comparing how many different situations the other doctors suffered. The tenth and eleven were the most difficult to decide the positions, I love both, plus the tenth has several negative characteristics that I hate

1) 12

2) 11

3) 10

4) 9

Top Companion

Some characters surprised me as how much I liked. I did not remember that Rose was so fun and even with her various faults until I liked her more than I remembered, Donna I thought I would be better positioned since she has the best and More amusing relationship with the tenth doctor, but had forgotten how incredible Martha was, in several episodes she had to act alone to survive and save the day even with the tenth doctor treating her horribly and condescending several times. Rory and Amy did I did not remember how much I liked their relationship, and how beautiful it was Amy's relationship with the Doctor was, I liked her more than I expected. Clara I already knew that  would be in first place, I love your relationship with the doctor, its complexity, its flaws, is the most complex and developed character of the new series (Clara, we knows that she loves stories, she sees the life of her parents as a fairy tale, loves and wants to take care of children she has an authoritarian personality and tries to take control of the situation (I'm not just talking about their several episodes of the eighth season about this, but also looks to the end of The Bells of Saint John different from the other companions that when the Doctor are invited them to Tardis instead of jumping inside the Tardis she sends him come back the next day, she takes control of the situation and it shows that it will do the thing of traveling with him on her terms, she takes control of the situation instead of the Doctor who let her travel with him is the Doctor waiting to know if she will travel with him). I hate it when they say that Clara is too perfect, when she is the companion with more defects being quoted and who are important for the stories and their development, this does not make sense. Clara is my favorite companion of the new series and the most of the people completely lose the arc point of the Impossible girl: The whole point of her season 7 arc was The doctor realizes that he was wrong and she is only a normal person who later did something incredible, like Rose and Donna. Initially she tried to balance her normal life with the life With life with the doctor, And as Danny died it was as if there was nothing else that bound her to Earth, she saw herself as a protagonist of a book, she and Doctor were the heroes who could always save the day and escape the danger, of course it ended Being so equal to the Doctor who ended up dead, plus she and the Doctor forged such a deep bond and he this season (the ninth) was already tired of letting people die (Ashildr's bow, the girl's death in the bow of the underwater base ) and did not want to lose anybody else and with desire of revenge against the Time Lords he ended up going too far and breaking the laws of time and he brought her to life, plus what could end up breaking the universe, but he with his selfish did not want Give up saving Clara, so he had to erase his memories of her, and you can notice he learned the lesson that everything has to end an hour, that nothing is forever, in the at the The Husbands of River Song. Clara of course would return to Gallifrey, her final arc was a critique of the trope of killing of female character and that any person can be the Doctor, that he is not just a being, but an ideal that anyone can try to be, Idea that has several Moffat scripts, like Extremis, The Zygon Inversion, The Witch's Familiar and several others. . Bill, while I quite liked her, she was very simple, and I sincerely liked the others more than hers.

1) Clara

2) Rory

3) Martha

4) Amy

5) Donna

6) Bill

7) River Song

8) Rose

9) Nardole

10) Captain Jack

11) Mickey

Top Season ( The best to worst)

9

4

8

5

10

3

1

6

2

7

Top Season Finale

One thing I prefer in the Moffat season finale is that it focuses on the characters' relationships with each other and their developments, how situations are dealt with, and are centered on the dialogues between the characters while those in Russell T Davies are more focused in action, how the situation affects the characters and their choices. In RT Davies are situations that are increasing, threatening the Earth or the Universe, while Moffat is the opposite, starts with a great threat, with several villains to become small situations, with only a few characters in one place, talking between they, in Davies the characters struggle with the external situation, in that of Moffat they struggle with their interior.

1-Face the Raven/Heaven Sent/Hell Bent

2- World Enough and Time / The Doctor Falls

3- The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang

4- Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords

5- Dark Water / Death in Heaven

6- Army of Ghosts/Doomsday

7- Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways

8- The Name of the Doctor

9- The Wedding of River Song

10- The Stolen Earth / Journey's End

There are no episodes that I did not like, for me, every episode goes from good to great. Actually it was very difficult to do the lists, because several episodes were good and great, so some positions were decided not only how much I liked, but by elements of the episodes.

SERIES 1

10º — The Long Game

9º — The End of the World

8º — Rose

7º — Boom Town

6º — Father's Day

5º — The Unquiet Dead

4º —  Dalek

3º — Aliens of London/World War Three

2º — Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways

1º — The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances

Series 2

10º — Fear Her

9º —   The Idiot's Lantern

8º — Tooth and Claw

7º — Love & Monsters

6º — School Reunion

5º — New Earth

4º — Army of Ghosts/Doomsday

3º — The Girl in the Fireplace

2º — Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel

1º — The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit

Series 3

9º —  The Lazarus Experiment

8º — Smith and Jones

7º — 42

6º — Daleks in Manhattan/Evolution of the Daleks

5º — Gridlock

4º — The Shakespeare Code

3º —Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords

2º —  Blink

1º — Human Nature/The Family of Blood

Series 4

10º — The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky

9º — Partners in Crime

8º —  The Unicorn and the Wasp

7º — The Doctor's Daughter

6º — The Stolen Earth/Journey's End

5º —  The Fires of Pompeii

4º — Turn Left

3º — Planet of the Ood

2º —  Midnight

1º — Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead

Season 5

10º —  The Vampires of Venice

9º —  Amy's Choice

8º —  Victory of the Daleks

7º — The Beast Below

6º — The Lodger

5º — The Hungry Earth / Cold Blood

4º —  The Time of Angels / Flesh and Stone

3º — The Eleventh Hour

2º — Vincent and the Doctor

1º —  The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang

Season 6

11º —  Night Terrors

10º — The Curse of the Black Spot

9º —  Closing Time

8º —  Let's Kill Hitler

7º —  The Wedding of River Song

6º —  The God Complex

5º — The Rebel Flesh / The Almost People

4º —  A Good Man Goes to War

3º — The Doctor's Wife

2º — The Girl Who Waited

1º — The Impossible Astronaut / Day of the Moon

Season 7

13º  - Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS

12° -  Hide

11º —  Cold War

10º —  Nightmare in Silver

9º —  The Power of Three

8º —   The Bells of Saint John

7º —   The Angels Take Manhattan

6º —  Asylum of the Daleks

5º — The Name of the Doctor

4º —  Dinosaurs on a Spaceship

3º —The Crimson Horror

2º — A Town Called Mercy

1º — The Rings of Akhaten

Season 8

11º — Kill the Moon

10º — In the Forest of the Night

9º —  The Caretaker

8º — Into the Dalek

7º —  Time Heist

6º —  Deep Breath

5º —  Dark Water / Death in Heaven

4º —  Listen

3º — Robot of Sherwood

2º —  Flatline

1º — Mummy on the Orient Express

Season 9

6º —  Sleep No More

5º —  The Girl Who Died / The Woman Who Lived

4º —  Under the Lake / Before the Flood

3º — The Zygon Invasion / The Zygon Inversion

2º —  The Magician's Apprentice / The Witch's Familiar

1º — Face the Raven/Heaven Sent/Hell Bent

Seasn 10

10º — Knock Knock

9º — Smile

8º —  The Pyramid at the End of the World / The Lie of the Land

7º — Empress of Mars

6º — The Pilot

5º — Thin Ice

4º —  Oxygen

3º —  The Eaters of Light

2º —  Extremis

1º — World Enough and Time / The Doctor Falls

Chistmas Specials

12º —  The End of Time

11º —  The Next Doctor

10º —  The Christmas Invasion

9º —  The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe

8º —  The Return of Doctor Mysterio

7º —  The Runaway Bride

6º —  Voyage of the Damned

5º —  The Snowmen

4º —  The Time of the Doctor

3º — The Husbands of River Song

2º —  Last Christmas

1º —  A Christmas Carol

Regarding the list of episodes of cybermen and daleks, one can notice that the list are not only of the ones I liked the most, but also how well I found them to have used these villains in history

Top Cybermen  Episodes

1- World Enough and Time / The Doctor Falls

2- Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel

3- Dark Water / Death in Heaven

4- The Next Doctor

5- Army of Ghosts/Doomsday

6- Closing Time

7- Nightmare in Silver

Top Daleks Episodes

1- Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways

2- The Magician's Apprentice / The Witch's Familiar

3- Army of Ghosts/Doomsday  

4- Dalek

5- Asylum of the Daleks

6- Into the Dalek

7- Daleks in Manhattan/Evolution of the Daleks

8- The Stolen Earth / Journey's End

9- Victory of the Daleks

Top Episodes of Russel T Davies

12 - Gridlock

11 - The Stolen Earth/Journey's End

10 - The Runaway Bride

9 - Partners in Crime

8 - Voyage of the Damned

7 - Aliens of London/World War Three

6 -  Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways

5 -  Army of Ghosts/Doomsday

4 -  The Waters of Mars

3 - Turn Left

2 - Utopia/The Sound of Drums/Last of the Time Lords

1 – Midnight

Top Episodes of Steven Moffat

12 - The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances

11 - The Impossible Astronaut / Day of the Moon

10 - Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead

9 - Blink

8 - The Magician's Apprentice / The Witch's Familiar

7 -  Extremis

6 – Last Christmas

5 -  A Christmas Carol

4 - The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang

3 -  The Day of the Doctor

2 - World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls

1 – Heaven Sent/Hell Bent

Top Episodes of Mark Gatiss

1) Robot of Sherwood

2) The Crimson Horror

3) The Unquiet Dead

4) Empress of Mars

5) Cold War

6) The Idiot's Lantern

7) Victory of the Daleks

8) Night Terrors

9) Sleep No More

I love Robot of Sherwood, I think it's a really funny episode, Clara was great, I loved the Doctor's dynamics with Robin Hood and had a great message about heroism and inspiration and fiction from the heroes. The Crimson Horror, I like to focus in the Paternoster gang, mostly in Jenny, and I loved Winifred Gillyflower and Ada, they were great characters. As of Cold War, the episodes for me are just regular. Victory of the Daleks and Sleep No More are not so bad episodes, both have good ideas and scenes, in Victory I liked the story of the scientist, the fact that nobody believed in the Doctor and in the end the daleks win, already in Sleep No More sincerely not I see what's so bad about this episode, it has a good idea, a good mood and a good ending, of course there are several things I would do differently, but there's nothing bad about the villan. The only one I do not like, that I hate is Night Terrors, I hated the kid in the episode and had several things that I think did not made sense. Overall I like Mark Gatiss, he did not write my favorites of the seasons but he is not such a bad roter as people say.

#doctor who #top #doctor who analysis #steven moffat #russel t davies #mark gatiss #10th doctor #eleven doctor #twelfth doctor #clara oswald #daleks #cybermen

[splitshortsyeah]

Flying Lotus 'Cosmogramma'

- Matt Duelka

I hate to admit that college taught me quite a lot. Each month I reach into my pockets in an attempt to reclaim my dignity one monthly payment at a time, but it was worth it. What I’m not afraid to admit is that the ACTUAL COLLEGE INSTITUTION probably only took part in about 15% of my acquired knowledge during that time. I had the opportunity of taking part in some uncredited extracurriculars that made up for the other 85% that allow me to know how to stand on my own 2 feet without a crutch to lean on.

One of those opportunities that helped me get to the “head of the class” was a brainchild of my breadthen Chris Winn, called NotDrugs.com. I would be doing an ill service of trying to give you all a proper derivation, but it was a way for some college kids with ambition, who were into some shit, to talk about that said shit, in a way all that you wanted to talk about the prior stated shit. That freedom, but also the acceptance of whatever was outputted onto the platform, to be without a “cage” of traditional format that kept you too close to the ground was, well, quite exhilarating. It was, though, completely trial by fire, and I learned to be able to take the pat on the backs just as easily as I was taking the punches in the gut. Some shit worked, other stuff didn’t. There was no hiding in the back of the classroom. Front and center, the best way to earn those calluses.

Equal to having the ability to learn to swim by diving into shark infested waters, I also was able to watch others do the same. Just taking a step back and absorbing from the small cohort we had was just as valuable at times. One folk in particular wrote something that introduced me to an artist – and an album – that 10 years later, altered my auditory acceptance valve moving forward. Julian Williams was that guy, a friend to this day, and man -- F THAT DUDE.

Not really. But you get it.

May 12th, 2010, Ju dropped a banger, a Ju-Banger if you will, and introduced me to Flying Lotus. ‘Cosmogramma’ was released about a month earlier (April-ish) and it was his third album (‘1983’ was his first in ’06, ‘Los Angeles’ was his second in ’08). It’s hard for me to put into words what it felt like listening to ‘Cosmogramma’ for the first time, because I don’t think I was that into it. Saying something like that in 2020 makes me want to go back and kidney punch myself until organ failure – but maybe that’s a little harsh.

Ju mentioned in his piece that FlyLo isn’t easy to take in immediately, or even after a few listens through. It’s jarring, and with ‘Cosmogramma’ specifically, arranged in a way that catches you off guard IMMEDIATELY if you aren’t ready. So even if you want to give it a chance, 30secs in most people might throw it away and not even try.

“They only thing I can describe it as is what Aliens would listen to while gliding through space.”

That was said 1 year ago, while at Danny George’s bachelor party. I had a few beverages and I thought everyone would collectively love to jam out to some ‘Cosmogramma’. I was very wrong.

Like I said, or like Ju said, it’s hard to declare it a gold medal winner off the bat if it’s a brand new sound for you. I didn’t give up on it though. I wasn’t sure why but there was something I wanted to like, and knew I could get into, but couldn’t figure out why it was so hard. So, I flipped back a few pages in the book of Flying Lotus and did my due diligence. I cued up ‘Los Angeles’ and checked myself into bootcamp.

‘Los Angeles’ is necessary in order to take in ‘Cosmogramma’. It’s still weird, still out there, but it comes at you with soft jabs and telegraphed body shots before the haymakers start to show up. It gives you time to warm up, like a mile or so jog, before the racing begins. It’s lovely, brings me smiles. I can lose myself in this album – walk from Battery park to the Cloisters, and not even remember if I had gotten dressed for the day yet.

The second half of ‘Los Angeles’ (probably by the time “GNG BNG” comes on, you should be lubed up and ready to go) is where things start to go off the rails (in a spectacular way) and you start to just fire away on all cylinders. And then by the time “RobertaFlack” hits – you can safely say to yourself “This shit SLAPS.”

That’s when you’re ready for ‘Cosmogramma’. When you are comfortable in the skin that ‘Los Angeles’ hardens around you, then it’s okay to press play and enjoy. Gimme Dat. And I received all of it. ‘Cosmogramma’ was a main stay in my arsenal. I had adapted my existence to welcome this unorthodox way of delivering deliciousness to my ear canals.

Before I dive deeper, I feel the need to be transparent and say if you’re looking for a track-by-track evaluation, I ain’t your guy. I don’t think I’ve ever been able to correctly identify specific tracks on any FlyLo album, because it’s too hard for me to step out of the zone while the record is revolving. I probably even recommend to never listen to a track out of context of the album. Just go ahead and take an hour out of your day, block it off in your calendar, and take a ride.

Okay.

Now fast forward with me for a scene,  if you don’t mind. It’s 2011, and we, me PLUS 6 others, are driving a minivan overnight to Ashville, NC. We were going for a 3 day walkabout, visiting different music venues that were showcasing different artists, all with the overarching theme of banging on the Moog (Yes, MOOGFest 2011). After the 16 hour journey, and a decision to “dust off the sleep deprivation and drink through it instead,” the seven of us blitzed our way through the day and night. Until we got to (our) main event.

We were sitting in the bleachers of the UNC-Ashville Arts theater taking in the artistic stylings of Moby (he wasn’t the main event) counting down the minutes on our watches until Flying Lotus was set to go on. Moby could only satiate our appetites so much, so we found the next venue – and a few drinks later – There he was.

It was energy I had never experienced before. It easily could have been the alcohol numbing my surroundings, but I felt if I was in a bubble and I was vacuumed off from the rest of the crowd. My senses were on overload. Usually when you are at a show, you are anticipating each song, or waiting for those few that you know you are gonna POP for. With FlyLo, I don’t get that. I want the experience from start to finish without even stopping to think about what “track” he might play next. I just enjoy being set in a trace and letting FlyLo take me on whatever trip he has planned for that show. And this was only just year 1 of my Flying lotus experience, but having the year top off with that show made me know I was in for the long haul.

Tim will say ‘Cosmogramma’ was peak FlyLo and he hasn’t done better since. I’d say FlyLo reached A peak with ‘Cosmogramma’ but hasn’t descended since. Just kinda stayed up there, peak-hoppin’, enjoying the scenery.

My wife calls it “noise”. And, sure, but you can say that about any music you disagree with. If the sounds aren’t soothing, it’s noise. With FlyLo, calling it noise, though is an easy way out. Because without any interest in the artist, or WANTING to understand what’s going on, you can call it noise and move on. But ‘Cosmogramma’, specifically, isn’t just unheralded noise. It’s strategically placed nodes meant to instigate foot tapping and head nodding, hip swaying. You listen to those opening, rambunctious sounds on the album and for me, I can feel my body, NOW, start to fall into rhythm, because it KNOWS what’s coming. When I said earlier that I ‘Los Angeles’ had a nice warmup before we got into the race, that was because my body was ice cold. When I play ‘Cosmogramma’ today, my body is already at room temperature waiting for the gun to go off. It only needs those opening 11secs before the race can begin.

Here’s a weird way to describe this album. It’s like watching The Shawshank Redemption on AMC, or TNT, or A&E (those are cable channels for my cord-cutting fans). Anytime I used to channel surf and land on that movie, regardless of where the movie was, I could sit and watch the rest – knowing exactly what I had missed, and knowing exactly where the movie was headed. And I would enjoy it, every time. I can do the same with this album. If a track ever randomly comes up, or a Spotify algorithm sends me something it thinks I like, I can listen to the song, know exactly where I am in the album, and know exactly where we should be headed.

Since MOOGfest ’11, I’ve seen FlyLo pretty much anytime he came around. And my emotional and neurological connections to the music haven’t changed. My dopamine levels are always at all time highs and I get to leave the outside world for a bit. And hopefully, I know have the ability to introduce Flying Lotus to a new audience, as Ju did 10 years ago to me.

I think back to NotDrugs a lot. This little exercise we decided to do streamlined a lot of memories about all of the content we produced and the ambitions we had. It was meant to live the life it lived, but I always wondered if we were able to keep it on life support for the few humps after 2010, what it could have been like. Would we have been able to impact the culture outside of the college bubble like we always wanted? How would our perspectives have changed on what we wanted it to be, and would new perspectives have been added to keep our finger on the pulse?

It’s hard to speak for Chris, or any of the other cohorts, but to me, it seems like NotDrugs was never just NotDrugs. It could have always been anything we wanted it to be. We made it what it was, just as a new group of folks have come together, sifting through the ashes, and coming out with some shit that they want to do.

I guess MSSC is NotDrugs.