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babacontainsmultitudes · 1 year

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In Defense of the Other Teens

Hello besties :)

SO how about that last episode huh? I've certainly seen a lot of interesting takes and cool art and all that come from it!

And I'm... Here to offer my two cents.

Alright y'all, a few things before we actually get into the meat of it. First, this is a long post. Like, even by my standards this post is pretty fucking long. I hope that I'll be able to keep you entertained throughout at the very least, but maybe grab a cup of tea or coffee or the like before venturing under the cut.

Second, my stance on things will become pretty clear I think fairly early on, if you haven't already put two and two together from the title of this post. That said, there are some fairy bold claims I'm gonna make here, and the fact of the matter is some of them may very well be disproven as soon as today's Teen Talk drops. But I wanted to get this out beforehand, partially as a show of faith in a certain someone, and partially cause honestly I think it's good to practice giving oneself room to be wrong about things. That said, there are still many other points that I think remain important regardless of what we find out next episode (or in teen talk), and I hope you'll find those interesting as well.

Next, honestly, the first few chunks of this little essay really start out as more of a rant/vent than a tight analysis, and I kinda start things in a weird spot if I'm being frank with you, so maybe just try to bear with me for the first few parts, ok? They're still important for the bigger picture I'm trying to paint.

Finally, if I come off as a little extra salty and sassy in this one, I am, but I *promise* it's all in good fun. :)

Alright, so let me tell you my thoughts about Lincoln.

You know what I think? What I honestly, genuinely think? Linc is the most selfless of the teens by a long shot. Like, there's literally no competition. Enough "all he wants to do is help other people and all they ever do is betray him" with respect to Mr. TalkedGrantIntoAPanicAttackThenLeft and more appreciation and recognition for Lincoln Li SayHiToYourDadForMe Wilson, I'm begging you. I could sit here and start listing examples of Linc's selflessness to you for a good long while, but really no set of examples could better illustrate what differentiates Linc from the rest of the teens than this exchange:

Scary: "Chosen one…""

Jodie: "Bat’tholemew, we don't use those words."

Scary: "Somebody they wouldn't expect."

Taylor: "It's me. It's got to be someone that they don't expect."

Scary: "Yeah."

Taylor: "Yeah."

Scary: "It's got to be somebody who's really earned—"

Taylor: "Somebody who’s really earned—"

Scary: "—the respect."

Taylor: "—the right to... And all the knowledge of all the animes together…"

Scary: "Somebody with more knowledge than anybody else."

Taylor: "Someone with— who knows what to do. S… "

Scary: "Somebody who knows what to do to step up."

Taylor: "Somebody who can step up and be the chosen one."

Scary: "And be the chosen one."

Link: "Hey…"

Normal: "Guys, I think… I might be the chosen one…"

Yes, funnily enough, it's Linc's absence here that says a lot about him rather than his presence.

What's more, I frankly just don't think it's fair that Linc can do *so much* for the people around him but the *one time* he decides to do something that (seemingly) goes against Normal's plan, it's depicted as some ultimate act of betrayal or Linc "giving up". I feel like we significantly understate how much the other teens *have* done for the sake of Normal's plan (seriously, are we actually gonna ignore Linc stabbing his leg on a candy cane- TWICE??), and how much they've lost in doing so. If every time they fuck something up undoes everything they've sacrificed or done right, well, that's quite the negativity bias!

So why don't we talk about Linc's decision, actually. Did we just witness Lincoln finally snap? Has he given up on Normal's plan to help the doodler? Has he given up on using empathy? Did Lincoln Li Wilson choose the easy option? I would say no! No to all of those! And I think especially upon a relisten of the final moments in the last episode, Linc's train of thought when he breaks the pic is actually quite clear. And yes, this is about Linc showing empathy towards Scary, but I want to talk about the actual implications of that a bit further as well. Let's start by looking at the final bits of dialogue leading up to the breaking of anchor:

Linc: "Scary, what are you even doing?"

Scary: "You gotta destroy it"

Linc: "We can't- you just heard the Doodler's gonna make the world worse it's gonna kill we just gotta find something, why do you have to destroy it-"

Scary: "You don't know that!"

Linc: "I mean you don't know it's not that way we can find another way to destroy it"

Scary: "No, Willy said that it's easier to control if we destroy the anchors"

[ANTHONY EXPLAINS THE SPECIFICS OF WHAT WILLY WOULD HAVE TOLD SCARY]

Linc: "Well we're not gonna do it that way okay, come on like, the easy way is-"

Scary: "Who died and made you the leader?"

Linc: "The easy way is usually the bad way right? Sometimes the better thing is harder."

Scary: "This is easier what you're just gonna tell the pic 'Oh I love you I'm so nice to you' and it's just gonna give you all its secrets that's not how life works."

[LINK TRIES SAYING I LOVE YOU TO THE PIC AND NORM EXPLAINS THAT HE ALREADY TRIED THAT]

Linc: "Okay well like you're right it's gonna be hard but- I know it's not a person but I don't want more people to die we've already killed enough people like can you just do one thing with us and just try to find a way to make this-"

Scary: "The Doodler is gonna kill more people you're not seeing the bigger picture!"

Normal: "What no, Linc don't listen to her!"

Scary: "Listen to me!"

[AND THEN LINC SNAPS THE PIC]

Okay there's... A lot to unpack here. I'll start by pointing out what I think are a few key things to take note of:

- Linc is seemingly adamant on choosing the empathetic route and not letting any more people get hurt

- Linc affirms that sometimes the harder route is the better one

- Scary rejects the notion that simply saying "I love you" or otherwise being kind in words could actually do anything

- Norm says "don't listen to her"

- Linc's decision to break the pic only occurs after Scary says what she does (above point), seemingly in conflict with what he himself said only moments prior about not taking the violent route.

What I think needs to be understood about Linc is that, more than anyone in the group, Linc's decisions are calculated. Yes they often catch us off guard (seriously the amount of times Linc has done something that's made me actually gasp in shock is a bit crazy), but once the dust has settled, his decisions are always clearly consistent with who Linc is as a person and his philosophy, and accordingly, never come from a place of selfishness. The humor of it aside, when Linc says that he never misses any shot that he takes (:( Can't find the exact quote), he is entirely correct (and admittedly while I probably should gather various examples to show you what I mean, Linc swapping places with himself and Nicky really is the most perfect demonstration I could possibly ask for, as it showcases both Linc's aforementioned selflessness and how Linc's seemingly shocking decisions are never actually accidents or executed with uncertainty on his end). Try to keep these above points in mind as we move forward.

Next, let's consider the pros and cons for Linc of breaking or not breaking the pic, as seen from Linc's perspective. I suppose the general impression I've gotten thus far is that many people seem to be interpreting Linc breaking the pic as a likely (or sure) sign that he has "given up" on Normal's plan, and given in to choosing the "easier" route. This, I perhaps a bit boldly argue, raises a number of questions and ultimately implodes in on itself as an interpretation after even a brief consideration of them. At the most basic, and perhaps least interesting level, it's not like it would be that hard to search a little bit for some demonstration of love (especially with a certain pair of will-they-won't-they partners not too far away... Though I feel like the pic also could have been interesting as applied to some of the other characters around right now? Anyways...) You could say then, that maybe Linc simply doesn't care about using empathy, and has ultimately lost confidence in Norm's plan by this point, so he takes the path of absolute least resistance cause, well, whatever. But wait, didn't Linc *just* say that they weren't going to do things that way, and that he doesn't want more people to be killed? (You might say then that he thinks Scary has a point on "not seeing the bigger picture" and believes that choosing violence here will result in less deaths, but frankly I just don't think there's anything promising or compelling enough about Scary's argument here for Linc to have any real reason to believe it, all the more so given Willy’s involvement). Are we to think, then, that Linc changes his mind purely on a whim, and a whim influenced by Scary of all people no less? Frankly, I see this as a severe underestimation of Linc's strength of character, and this is where we really do need to consider the degree of calculation and confidence that goes into Linc's decision making and risk taking. What I'm saying is, Linc simply doesn't fall victim to selfish impulses that way (and within the group this is a quality unique to him!). Moreover, even if Linc might have his doubts in Norm and his plan, he still has significantly more reason to go with that than to listen to Scary. Seriously, Linc has every reason to not listen to Scary here. When it comes to what Linc cares about the most, Scary has without a doubt harmed Linc more than the Doodler ever could (The significance of Tony Pepperoni being stabbed in Linc's home in front of his dad c a n n o t be forgotten or understated!!!). Even if Linc didn't care at all about showing empathy to the Doodler, if he were acting purely out of selfishness he would still have more reason to do so if only because it means not giving the satisfaction to or otherwise helping Scary (and Willy).

But Scary is confused, and Scary is lonely, and from her perspective she probably does feel betrayed. We (and Linc) are given some important information regarding Scary in this episode. Firstly, we get a glimpse into how Willy has twisted things and convinced her that violence is the better option (not because it's easier per se, but because more people will apparently be saved in the long run). Second, Linc finally understands what Scary needs... Or at least what she doesn't need. Specifically, he understands that simply saying "I love you" isn't enough. He understands that Scary will never believe it no matter how many times it is said, and that to really prove to Scary that she is loved and get through to her, he needs to show her, has to prove to her that, despite everything, he is still on her side.

Linc, I dare argue more than any of the teens, has so much reason to leave Scary behind. But he understands her now, and, against Normal's wishes, listens to her. In a weird way (if I'm not dead wrong about this whole empathy thing), this kind of is Linc's "throne of the doodler" equivalent. It would be so easy to not break the pic, to not choose to (help and) empathize with Scary after all the pain she has caused him, but that's not the kind of person Linc is, and I hope the points I raised earlier make that reasonably clear.

So no, I don't think Linc chose the easy option. I think he believes himself when he says that sometimes the harder route is the better one, and followed through on this when he took his shot.

Sincerely, if you think the Doodler is just a scared teen deserving of empathy and sacrifice and making tough decisions, but Scary isn't, then I think you've missed the point. The Doodler is just acting out and needs help, but when Scary or Linc break an anchor through violence (be it violently empathetic or not), we give up on them? We hope for Normal to abandon them when they're hurting and depict it as deserved or even righteous? I can't get behind that, I'm sorry.

Furthermore, whereas Norm would certainly be justified in feeling concerned for the Doodler's sake if Linc's actions count as an act of violence, apart from that like, if Norm chooses to interpret Linc reaching out and showing support to someone as lost and alone and in need of help as Scary as a personal attack against him, either as a betrayal of their friendship (Norm is very jealousy-prone we’ve known this from the start!) or as a direct attack against Norm's perfect little violence-free narrative that lets him be the hero regardless of who gets left behind wait does he actually just hate Hero cause of her name hm, then that is, respectfully, completely a problem with him, and not with Linc. I think if Normal actually snaps from this, then his entire philosophy of choosing empathy is based on a lie, and Norm just wants to follow the narrative that allows him to be the hero on paper, so that everybody finally loves him.

Well that's a bit harsh huh. Believe it or not, I'm genuinely not trying to throw Norm under the bus here. But... I am trying to expose his flaws and shortcomings in relation to the other teens. This is important moving forward, because in refusing to seriously acknowledge the fact that Norm, while still having plenty of good in his heart, is someone who can be quite self-centered, and ultimately cares about being well-perceived and loved first and foremost, we become blind to the ways in which Norm, like Scary, is vulnerable to future instances of manipulation. That bit on appearance vs. true compassion isn't mere interpretation, by the way, Will has stated this quite clearly in episode 27 of teen talk (and in general I'd really rather not rely on that kind of bonus content in these sorts of posts but, well, it's hard to ignore this):

Will: (In reference to Norm's scene in the pride layer) "I feel like I understand Normal better now, like a kind of darker side of his psyche that's different from Henry... Like Henry's very concerned with being a good person but I don't think is super concerned with whether people like him or not, whereas Normal is like a little concerned with being a good person but *mostly* concerned- it's two different ways to solve love [he explains what it implies for Henry], the other is 'if everyone else likes me, that means I can take that in as well'."

I need to stress that I am not trying to imply that Norm is anywhere close to being a bad person, btw. Normal, like everybody else, has his flaws, but has proven that he has plenty of good qualities as well. What I *am* trying to imply is that Norm does have a tendency to put himself at the center of things, and is from a more meta standpoint benefiting from a narrative that puts him at the center of things (more or less guaranteeing that he will be seen as a hero of sorts no matter what- evident even in how fandom largely depicts him vs the other teens), and I'm just saying that if ever he found himself in Oakvale by some chance he might really appreciate the enforced anti-violence initiative put in place by the town's noble leader who really just gets him and praises him and-

I know (almost) nobody wants to hear this, but if Normal actually had a villain arc, it would most likely consist of him falling down the same path that Barry did. Barry was a hero, on paper. And the people around him certainly saw him as such, and loved and accepted him in some sense of the word, which is what he truly wanted at the end of the day. And he got rid of all the violence!!!

But none of that makes Barry a good person.

*sniff sniff*

Hey... Has anyone else noticed the distinct lack of stinky weebs in this post?

As much as I myself am a bit more interested in the Linc side of things right now, I do need to talk a bit (or a lot) about Taylor too. My little guy! You haven't even had a proper, serious character arc yet and people have already decided that you don't have a shot vis a vis the upcoming anchors, despite easily being the most emotionally resilient and stable of the group. You know what, I'm gonna throw in most loyal too. If you'll humor me...

Taylor may not be the most empathetic of the teens (in fact, he may very well be the least), but this doesn't mean he doesn't care, and doesn't mean he isn't kind in his own way. What's particular about Taylor's brand of loyalty compared to the other teens that I think might make it a bit easy to overlook is that it while it is very strong, it tends to be reserved only for the people he chooses to call his friends (oh, and his mom!). There's no question of Taylor's choice to disregard what Nick tells him and go back to save Linc from the FBI, it embodies some of the most fundamental parts of who Taylor is as a person. Which I guess is to say that, there are ultimately only so many people Taylor chooses to have in his circle, but those bonds are extremely important to him, and he really is ride or die about them. I think that this aspect is most obvious when looking either at Taylor's relationship with Linc or Cassandra, but also with Hermie actually! Oh, and similar to the example with the FBI, Taylor's response to the whole Tony situation is perfectly consistent with this aspect of his character as well. Tony was not part of Taylor's circle, not someone he chose to let himself get attached to (because when Taylor gets attached to someone, it is indeed a very deliberate choice), so no, he's not gonna care that much about Tony's death. But he is bothered by Scary's betrayal. He is bothered because, even if they weren't the closest, Scary was, I would argue, still part of Taylor's circle. And yes, he is bothered by Linc leaving him alone in the last episode for the same reason, except that in this case it's probably worse actually. I know I'm straying pretty far from the original topic here, but still I think it's worth exploring the interesting position this puts Taylor in going forward, especially with respect to Nick.

("Seriously baba when did this become about Nicky literally what are you talking about right now?")

Thus far, Taylor has made it very clear that no, he is not going to allow Nick to be someone he becomes attached to. There's a risk, in loving and becoming loyal to someone as strongly as Taylor does, and Nicky has not yet proven himself to be a risk worth taking. So what happens next? Nicky is (finally) around after all, so what might the future hold for little Taylor? On the one hand, Nicky's "words of advice" might begin to get through to Taylor, which could leave him in a pretty dangerous position. Taylor takes a big risk every time he lets someone in (everyone does but Taylor more than all the others because of how fully he loves and trusts and protects, is what I'm saying- er... He's a lot like his dad that way actually!), so what if Nick convinces him that nobody is worth that risk, and that everyone you hold dear will ultimately betray you? Well, I think we'd be left with a very lonely Taylor! Conversely, what if Nicky decides to prove himself worthy of Taylor's love? What if Taylor comes around and lets him in? ahaha shit I feel like there's a bad joke to be made about Taylor keeping his dad at arms length and his dad not having any arms right now god fucking damn it what even is this post. Will Nicky be able to maintain that trust? If he abandoned Taylor again, after Taylor has allowed himself to become attached (or if something happens to Nicky cause lets face it horrible things tend to happen to Nicky), I think Taylor might finally have a hard time getting back up.

What the fuck was I talking about? Oh yeah, so I guess going back to Norm, on the one hand, I guess on the more extreme end Taylor could actually take Linc's actions very hard, in which case I actually could see him sticking with Norm as an act of self-preservation. That said, I don't personally feel that this will be the case, that Linc is still ultimately in Taylor's circle, and accordingly Taylor's loyalty towards Linc will persist, albeit perhaps with a seed of doubt sewn at the back of his mind. And I don't think in that case that it's fair to frame this as Taylor betraying Normal? As others have pointed out, Norm frankly just hasn't really earned much in the way of Taylor's friendship. Really, as far as I'm concerned, Taylor doesn't really owe Norm much of anything at all. From the very beginning Norm has made it clear that he doesn't particularly care for Taylor, and ultimately has let his own jealousy and desire for attention (especially Linc and Hermie's attention) get in the way of ever really getting to know or appreciate Taylor beyond the surface level. Would I call it betrayal for Taylor to choose to continue to support his best friend instead of the guy who told him that anime isn't real? No, and I think the double standard is pretty obvious if we consider the reverse. That is, if Taylor chose Norm over Linc, after everything he and Linc have been through, would we be framing Linc as the victim of some grand betrayal? I genuinely don't think we would, at least not to the extent that we would with Norm. I suppose I'm saying all this, because well as aforementioned I just find there's been a lot of undeserved cynicism towards Taylor, and I think a lot of it does genuinely come from Normal's privileged position within the narrative as its de facto "hero" and what is most convenient for maintaining that image (and when I say "hero", that does include "righteous villains" who "deserve(d) to snap", just so we're clear on that).

Hmmmm I kinda wanna talk about Taylor and Normal as each other's foils but this post is getting a bit long isn't it... *Sigh* Not today, no, not today.

......Okay but still I have to say that if Taylor actually does finally get his "main character moment" I actually think that would be a great opportunity for Norm to acknowledge, reconcile, and learn to cope both with his jealousy and the parts of himself that are self-centered. Conversely, if Taylor does for one reason or another stray a bit too far into the habit of keeping people at arm's length out of fear of abandonment, betrayal, or the like, I think he could learn something from Norm too (having trouble phrasing exactly what I mean here, so perhaps I'll save the full notion for another time!)

So that's... Yeah, I think that's the most important stuff. I debated on sort of elaborating on examples of Norm's major character flaws, but despite everything my intent here was first and foremost to offer a "defense of the other teens" more than anything else. Though I will say that I think there is something to be said about how Normal's self-centeredness gets in the way of his ability to actually help those around him (Grant and Taylor both being great examples in "The Staircase"), how this contrasts with Linc's willingness to actually listen to and figure out what Scary needs in this most recent episode, and accordingly what Normal could potentially learn from Linc about not just choosing the route that's easiest for you.

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nikatyler · 1 month

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People you'd like to get to know better!

Tagged by @paladinlegacy, thank you! Fun fact, I actually saw five of these tags back to back on my dash earlier, so I'm not gonna officially tag anyone because it seems like everyone has already done it when I was sleeping 😂 But those of you who haven't and want to, go ahead!

Last Song: Is It Over Now

Favourite colour: black, dark red, dark blue

Currently Watching: Buffy the Vampire Slayer...is on pause now actually because I'm binge watching Neil Newbon's bg3 playthrough. I haven't seen a Buffy episode in like two weeks 😂 I also still need to finish the Percy Jackson show but eh it'll have to wait, sorry Percy

Sweet/Savory/Spicy: I'm boring, not too sweet, not too savory, not too spicy 😅

Relationship Status: single romancing a vampire as god intended 😌

Current Obsession: Baldur's Gate 3

Last Thing You Googled: bg3 last light inn (because I think I may have messed something up but eh it's too late to turn back now)

#tags #about me #can you tell there's only one thing on my mind rn #it's becoming a problem #like it feels like bg3 was specifically designed to rot my brain and everyone else just tagged along with it but it was made for me /j

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tellthemeerkatsitsfine · 2 months

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My journey through John Oliver's IMDB page that I've been doing in the last few days (summary: his old Cambridge doc got taken off YouTube, I got paranoid about how I'm glad I'd saved that but this is a reminder that nothing stays on the internet forever so you need to save the stuff you want to keep, this escalated too quickly into me buying a new external hard drive just to see how much of his IMDB page I can download and put in one place) has brought me through a documentary about Russell Howard from 2021. I previously knew that documentary existed, but I hadn't watched it because even before Russell doubled down on the Jordan Peterson thing enough for me to be done watching his stuff (I ignored the mild comments for months before he actually invited Peterson onto his show and made ignoring it impossible), I didn't need to see a documentary about how the pandemic made life difficult for an extremely rich and successful touring comedian.

However, I learned today that John Oliver had a credit in the documentary, so obviously I immediately downloaded it. To be honest I haven't watched the whole thing, I just skipped through it in search of the John Oliver bits. Because I have given up on Russell Howard, but his former connection to the Chocolate Milk Gang, and my hobby of cataloguing all Chocolate Milk Gang history, is the only thing that will make me temporarily suspend my closely held principles such as a hard line against all Jordan Peterson apologists. I did the same thing with his recent podcast, rolling my eyes when I first saw it announced because surely he doesn't need another platform and Britcom doesn't need another bland podcast, until I saw that there would be a John Oliver episode and obviously I listened to that one.

Anyway, the point is that there was some fun Chocolate Milk Gang history in the documentary, I've cut out the relevant clip:

The Chocolate Milk Gang goes by many names. Andrew Maxwell apparently called them "the guys with the bags". Stewart Lee has called them "The hanging around gang". In a discussion with Richard Herring they were labeled "the nerds of the circuit". But here we have a new one: the golden generation. A name coined by Russell Howard and then immediately and entirely justifiably ripped apart by John Oliver, what good stuff. I greatly enjoyed that. Someone should make a Chocolate Milk Gang documentary. I could probably cut together a Chocolate Milk Gang documentary from all the media files I've hoarded. See how many names they've been given over the years.

Based on the ten or so minutes I watched, I think I might genuinely be capable of putting together better videos than the person who made this Russell Howard documentary, the editing on it looks surprisingly amateur-ish for a film about such a huge mainstream star. However, it did provide me with very slightly (only very slightly, but still) higher quality versions of a couple of CMG-related images I had seen before, but had only seen in terrible quality, so it's nice to have those a little clearer:

And I hadn't seen this one before, I don't think Andy Zaltzman changed in appearance at all between 2003 and about 2017.

Oh and Steve Hall shows up at the end, which is fun. I like that guy. I like Steve Hall probably too much, given the fact that the main thing I've heard him do is be quite gross on several episodes Daniel Kitson's radio show in 2007-2008. But it was really funny. Those episodes made me laugh almost constantly and I recommend them to absolutely no one, no one should ever hear that. Though it's not the only thing I've heard him do. I have to be the only person in the world who watched the We Are Klang sitcom in 2023 just for one actor, but that actor was not Greg Davies. Oh and Steve Hall was in that Late 'n' Live recording from 2007, but that's not a lot better for making him respectable. He writes on The Russell Howard Hour and on some level I know he was probably involved in bringing in Jordan Peterson and probably if I asked Steve Hall to tell me all his political opinions I wouldn't be able to enjoy his old sitcom anymore, but luckily he doesn't have a big enough platform to tell us all his opinions so I'll just assume it's fine.

@lastweeksshirttonight, tagging you in case you don't happen to see this post because you'll really enjoy that video clip, it is relevant to your interests.

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transmutationisms · 1 year

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I apologize if there's something already on your blog about this and I didn't find it, but I was watching tailgate party and realized that Shiv had spent the entire episode pacing around one apartment complex 6000 steps over and that the Roys do this a lot.

My memory of the last few seasons is fuzzy (<- binged it before and now doesn't remember shit) but I feel like the Roys spend a lot of time in very large, usually open spaces, with wide walls and tall ceilings, and usually ones we've seen before or are expected to see again and that a lot of important scenes happen *outside* of these spaces. Important meaning either big moments or iconic ones or sometimes just transitonary. Kendall had his Next-Jesus moment out in the ocean, Tom started throwing water bottles in that cramped ass escape room or talked about his marriage out on the beach, the entirety of Kill List happens outside of ATN offices, Logan meets Mattson for the first time on a personal island, Roman went to a random one story office environment for a fucking business school and was never the same character (well. compared to S1 Roman) again, they have that reverse Jesus thing over cruises on a cruise ship, etc. I feel like plane scenes could both fit into this or break it depending on the season but at least for other scenes I feel like there's a pattern here.

Outdoor spaces or parts where they actually put their shoes outside onto sidewalk always feel semi important to me but it doesn't even have to be outdoors specifically. Like, even just the honeymoon suite was different enough from every other building we'd seen the show have, and that's when Shiv admitted to cheating!

Do you think there's something to this, or do you have your own thoughts? I'd be interested to hear more if only to appeal to my ego ;-). There's other things that could connect to this like the grey-white-brown-dark blue color palette damn near every scene is in vs. scenes with real color inside of them and Kendall's asking why Sophie was "on the street" being indicative of how he thinks she should be raised (based on how he was raised and also how he can recognize the manipulation and abusive inherent to his father's parenting but not the more subtle isolation and neglect) and the fact the Roys are literally running an actual rat race while trapped inside Waystair Rocyo 1/2 the time but I have to stay focused on one thing when I write shit down even if I'm connecting dots in my head or else this ask won't even be remotely legible.

[If you already wrote about this - sorry! I hope this makes sense. Either way, have a good night, and fingers crossed something fun happens at Logan's funeral. I still want Tom to fight someone. It won't happen but it'd be funny as hell lol]

yeah i haven't really written anything comprehensive on this, but i do think there are a few interesting points with regards to how the show uses the characters' environments. forgive me for bullet-pointing lol, maybe you can help string these things together into something more cohesive. but:

yes, the characters often spend most of an episode trapped in one location, even one building. in part i think this is a function of the presence of playwrights on the writing staff, and the way many episodes flirt with the three classical unities of tragedy writing (time / place / action). so, lots of episodes are 1 day only, or 2 or 3 max, and often a character will be mostly confined to one location during that span. in part this helps make each individual episode really tight internally, but it also contributes to that persistent sense that the characters are trapped (within their circumstances, company, family, etc)

indoor vs outdoor is an interesting thread. one thing that has always stood out to me is that the show has a tendency to use natural sunlight not as refreshing, enlightening, etc, but as blinding, overwhelming, and even dangerous. the sun almost kills logan in s3, there are those shots in 2x10 and 3x09 where everyone's squinting in the bright light, there's a similar effect in 'austerlitz', etc. this contributed to the overall sense of discomfort that the roys experience, despite all their material luxuries; it also contributes to the sense that nature and the natural world is an alien, external force that appears threatening—this sense also comes out in all of the animal metaphors they use, which emphasise the brutality they see in the animal kingdom and in nature generally

if we're talking places, i also must bring up the presence of bathrooms on the show. these are quotidian rooms, but also dangerous ones, in the sense that they exist to purge a civilised society of its filth, and the whole process tends to be marginalised and wilfuly ignored. so, i've always liked that succession has a lot of scenes set in bathrooms, and often characters are able to speak differently in the bathroom—sometimes more intimate (kendall and stewy, tom and logan in 3x05), or more direct (greg and logan in 2x08), or they're allowed to say things they couldn't elsewhere (roman and mencken). bathrooms are also sheltered personal spaces, where the characters can retreat and hide (kendall using them to do coke, shiv practicing a smile in 1x02, greg rehearsing his congressional testimony)

the waystar offices obviously have that very 21st-century glass-and-steel aesthetic that telegraphs new money, a certain neoliberal attempt at severance from systems of social and cultural meaning-making, etc. so, moving the characters to other locations is effective because, in contrast to the kind of soullessness of the waystar building, it makes the other places stand out and emphasises the meaning we can glean from the sets alone (like, the gut-punch of dodds's house in contrast to the sort of corporate default)

in regards to the idea of control and confinement within luxe spaces—yes, this is clearly something we see many of the environments convey (the ultimate expression of this being the anti-suicide wall that logan puts up to pen kendall in). this is really a discrete material expression of how waystar operates in a broader sense, constraining people whilst appearing to create more options and more freedom (also a basic characteristic of neoliberal modes of production, lol)

again i'm not sure i have a thesis statement here unifying all of these observations lol. but i do think the show does well at using its environments and settings to tell us a lot about the characters, the company, and the broader world they inhabit.

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kdinjenzen · 1 year

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kdin I know you're like chetney's #1 fan and also like laudna, but what are your thoughts on the rest of the bells hells + dorian?

Chetney is 100% my fav, and as much as I wanna say "BECAUSE HE'S A WEREWOLF", it was actually waaaaay before that when I was like "yeah, no, he's the fav for me."

I haven't seen the one-shot where he was originally introduced, so Campaign 3 was the first time I was introduced to him.

Travis just gets SO into it with Chet that it's way too fun to watch. Especially as a fellow voice actor, seeing Travis just maintain Chet's energy throughout the entire session - dropping it the least frequently of the cast - really is just something really fun to experience.

Plus Chet is just... he's a little WEIRDO but he's also super honest.

"YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW ME! I COULD BE ARMED TO THE TEETH!" "...are you armed to the teeth?" "Yes!"

First of all, hilarious and also like he's RIGHT they just kinda blindly trusted him for no reason and he's like "bruh, you guys gotta be more careful"

And also FORESHADOWING! He IS armed to the teeth... LITERALLY!

And then when his werewolf form gets revealed to the rest of the party he just:

I won't lie. There are some things that I haven't told you yet, but I'm trusting you more, and I have selfish desires. There are people that need to die, and things that need to be righted, but that's down the road.

MAN, THAT FUCKS ME UP IN A LOTTA WAYS AND I LOVE IT.

And don't even get me STARTED on when Dorian asked if Chet had friends and he replied "I do now..."

These, the constant screaming of "BALLS!", and much more are why Chet has maintained being my fav since I first was introduced to him.

THAT SAID!

Laudna and FCG were my original two favs, and we are currently up to episode 36 (paused right at the ROLL FOR INITIATIVE part before bed last night) and I am ALL KINDS of not okay about SO MUCH.

As time has gone on, I got pretty attached to them all and my "order of favorites" has shifted around.

Chet is still #1 with Laudna being #2.

Orym (accompanied by the many heartfelt moments of his portrayal by Liam) have brought him up to tie with Laudna in the #2 slot.

FCG used to be my #3, but I feel like Fearne has swapped with him. So FCG is #4 and Fearne is #3.

Imogen is #5 on my list and is a great constant for the group. The thing I really appreciate about her, especially as someone who has followed Laura's career since I was a kid and took my very first VO class EVER with her when I was 14, is the fact that she's playing really close to her natural voice for this character which - honestly - I don't hear much in a lot of the stuff Laura is cast for. It's really nice!

I feel bad saying Ashton is my #6 on the list, he's a fun character, he's got a lot of stuff going on and he's super interesting and I love his agency but he's just not a character type I tend to enjoy much. That said, I appreciate him a lot.

Additional Temporary Party Members (That I've Met) Time!:

I MISS DORIAN SO MUCH HE WAS SO GREAT!!! I love that Orym and him are keeping in touch using the stones because those little messages give me LIFE!

And I really really REALLY loved Erika Ishii as Yu/Dusk. Like Erika RULES and they are legit one of my favorite people ever and I'm blessed to have been able to chat with them as many times as I have and their energy IN GENERAL is so fucking RAD and gets me hype - so Yu/Dusk will remain a favorite forever for these reasons and many many more.

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andthebeanstalk · 1 year

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To give credit to the last of us for its queer rep, it’s not just queer characters who have tragic/bittersweet endings. Literally everyone (siblings, parent and child, heterosexual) queer or not, has tragic endings. The older queer couple gets the best one out of all of them.

I guess? I mean, it is certainly much better than if they were the only characters to die in the storyline. But people were on tumblr talking about how theirs was a happy queer story. And I think it is the misleading discussion around these characters that bothers me even more than the writing. Like if I had watched that episode instead of looking up the plot summary, I would have had a meltdown at the end when they both died because I truly had gotten the impression that it was going to be a happy story.

But now that I've mentioned the writing:

It's nice that they live till their 70s. It's nice that they get 20 beautiful years together. And it's a bit fucked that the writers felt the need to end those 20 long years on-screen with a terminal illness and suicide in the same episode they are introduced. It would have been incredibly easy to just say that those men get to live on past the end of the episode. There are a million reasons those men could have continued living in the story.

But that's the thing about a show like this. I think there is a distinct possibility that this show is actually incapable of writing a satisfying happy ending.

Craig Maizin, the show's writer, gained acclaim recently with Chernobyl, proving that he is apparently excellent at writing a long, horrifying tragedy in which character struggle only to find there is no way out.

(His other main credits are The Hangover sequels and the Scary Movie sequels, most of which I haven't personally seen, so make of that what you will.)

But more than the writer's background, the show itself troubles me. It has this repeated mantra in it that goes, "when you're lost in the darkness, look for the light." Which is a cool phrase.

But I have reason to suspect that this writer genuinely doesn't know how to write the light. I have no reason to believe he does. I hope I am wrong.

But when you write episode after episode after episode that is an endless inescapable slog of tragedy and desperation - and then advertise it to me, a sick queer person actually living through a pandemic and trying to escape disease and poverty - well.

I think a better writer would include moments of light and hope beyond just trauma bonding. Moments that don't end in death.

When my wife writes about characters in awful situations, there are still these moments of genuine loveliness and fun and joy between the characters; these moments remind the reader what is worth actually fighting for, living for. Imagine! Entire chapters in a post-apocalyptic novel in which characters don't undergo a "hacking someone to death with a cleaver" level of trauma!

But the fact that Bill and Frank still had to die even after an earnest attempt to tell a beautiful love story....

I fear that the light the story ends with - if there is any - will be as dim and desaturated as the show itself. And personally, I am at a point in my life where I don't care to see a story like that.

It's fine if you do like it. It doesn't matter to me if you find beauty in a tragic queer love story. There are places for that in this world. But it is tragic. I am sure of that. And I wish I hadn't been seeing posts saying otherwise, ya know?

And I hope I am wrong about the writer. But I see cracks in the premise. Like in Stranger Things. There was always a promise of light that kept me watching, but it never seemed to come. Instead, the misery and trauma continued to stack and compound for the lead characters, like in TLOU. But... does the writer know how to make that worth it, for us, for the audience - for me? I don't think he does.

I think it very possible that the light isn't really coming for Ellie and Joel in a way that provides catharsis because I have noticed that on shows with no intermittent joy and hope, this is too often the case.

But I do hope I'm wrong. Because if I am right, then a lot of mentally ill fans will leave the experience more depressed than if they hadn't watched it at all.

But for my own part, I'll just continue to skim through the show for monster design ideas. And also I'll say that everyone should watch Infinity Train - ESPECIALLY season 2 of Infinity Train, if they'd like to see a story in which people actually DO find a light that makes the whole journey feel worth it.

#original #tlou #the last of us #bill and frank #writing #writing analysis #again i don't care if you like the show or not. you can like the show. it is well made. but that is NOT a happy queer ending.#it is not a happy story to me. i know it isn't AS BAD as it could've been but also.... i don't care #my money is on 'joel dies and ellie is so traumatized by the experience that she is basically non functional'#look for the fucking light i guess. wheeeeeeee #infinity train #mt infinity train #lake infinity train #seeing a story in which a character escapes a seemingly inescapable situation GENUINELY made me feel like there was hope for me #and i have personally found that the opposite has an opposite effect #tragedies have a purpose. but i fear sometimes the tragedy in some shows is just there bc the writer feels there must be 4 tragedies per ep #but like. trauma in a story - added just for the sake of extra trauma - it is a red flag for where this story is going #bly manor #FUCKING BLY MANOR MY ARCH FOE #i also see no need for a show of endless tragedy to be this long. like. they are experiencing the SAME trauma repeatedly. what does it add?#ellie loses ANOTHER friend horribly! like. okay. we've... already seen that? why is this one worthy of screen time other than you CAN?

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lutawolf · 2 years

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My Beautiful Man and the BDSM Element Episode five

We are finally about to see Kiyoi's point of view. For those that haven't read my other reviews, you can catch them here. Also I want to give a reminder of what a D/s relationship is. D/s is one aspect of the wider category of BDSM, sometimes also known as kink. Some people are into all of the things listed under BDSM, and some only some of them. D/s is more about power than about physical sensation. The submissive consensually gives up more power to the Dominant in their relationship. That's it. However, it's important to note that D/s lifestyle relationships have a certain dynamic. A Dominant views their sub as a treasure, even as they hold all or most of the control and the submissive worships their Dominant.

Kiyoi - "I wanted to be an idol when I grew up. Everyone seems so happy on the tv. I was alone and they seemed so happy. I wanted to join them. Fans always wave their hands like crazy at the idols on tv. As though dedicating themselves to them. All though it sounds a little scary, I guess their happy if their worshipped that way. I would like to be worshipped that way, too."

We start Kiyoi's point of view after he has kissed Hira and they have separated ways. He is now practicing for a play that they are going to put on for the café and everyone is making fun of his inability to deliver the line "I like you" with sincerity. Saying it's likely due to the fact that he has never actually said it in real life. When he is practicing alone, he begins flashing back to when he met Hira.

When I first saw him. I knew nothing could happen between us, just a useless person. But then I can tell from his eyes that I'm the only person in his world. <- Kiyoi doesn't view anyone as Important. He has been discarded and left alone by his family. Used by his peers. No one is someone to him. That changes though when he sees that he is everything in Hira's eyes.

You look kind of gross when you look surprised. I don't care about this type of person. The kind that just keeps staring at me. It's all out of curiosity. That's it. So Beautiful. <- If Kiyoi doesn't care then he can't get hurt. He is use to everyone not caring about him and only using him. It's safer behind his wall.

Flashback ends and we are back to the practice room in the here and now: It's the first time that someone has complimented me so bluntly and directly. I longed to be stared at like that again and the desire continues to grow stronger and stronger. I didn't know that it was like, at that time. I like you.

We once again flash back to the past. To the day that he asks Hira to save them a table. He says that day when he first engages with Hira is out of curiosity. "I want to know what he wants from me" Because Kiyoi is used to only being used.

Can I trust those eyes. Is he really different than the others? I hear the pounding of his heartbeat. Why? Gross

Flashback to when he lost the contest. I signed up for the contest to fulfill my dream but when I didn't win, everyone left me. <- See that day, he had to push Hira away because he was completely prepared for him to treat him like the others. Maybe not right away but eventually. Then he realized he was wrong. That Hira would not leave him. That Hira's eyes still looked at him the same.

Then comes the moment where Hira defends him. Are people who are religious like this? It reminds me of the crazy fans that I've seen in the past. Hira, you can sacrifice yourself to me to this extent...

It is very hard to describe the relationship between us. But Hira is the one that made me realize I could be POWERFUL and be me. <- What is a Dom? So what is he describing?

"Do you have something you want to tell me?" I even asked him first, but he would not say anything! This is probably the last time I'll see him. He does like me doesn't he. Kiyoi kisses Hira. I think he was very shocked I can't even believe it myself. That was my first kiss! The memory of that first kiss will always remain. It's so intense, like him.

He probably wouldn't have thought that I would think of him in such a way. Hira is kind of arrogant in some ways though he isn't aware of it. He never tried to understand how I felt. He has been completely gone since graduation.

I never really thought he would completely stop following me after we graduated. It was very obvious that he was sincere to me by the way he looked at me.

For all that Kiyoi talks about Hira being arrogant. He doesn't go looking for Hira. He knows where he lives but he doesn't go. Then he finds out that the Director of the play has a little brother and he is dating Hira. Hira is happy! I can't believe it! And who is this guy with bad taste in everything. They don't match at all! 🤣🤣🤣 Is this the reason why he stopped contacting me! He tells the director to invite them to the play.

The day of the play comes. I can hear my heart beating so loud that it's going to explode! My hands were trembling so much. So unlike me. Then he sees him. This is the face that I've been thinking about day and night. I could still see the passion in Hira's eyes.

Hira says yes initially to going to the after party. I thought I had won. Even though I felt bad for Koyama. He needed to know that he stood no chance. Then Hira apologizes and says he can't come. This leaves Kiyoi extremely hurt. He feels abandoned as he has been by others. He chose someone else. Something that Hira had given him the confidence to believe would never happen.

Hira begins to show up to many of the plays. This confuses Kiyoi because Hira has clearly chosen Koyama. Kiyoi invites him to the after party and this time Hira comes. However, one of the other actors notices that Kiyoi is always looking at Hira and asks what Hira was like. "To be honest, he is the kind to tell you that you are beautiful and follow you around. Keeps taking photos of you, kept to himself. Kind of a gross person." "But you invited him anyways." The light bulb goes off in Kiyoi's head. Especially when the guy hits on him. It's different. Totally different. I don't feel anything when this guy looks at or touches me. What I want is...him.

As Kiyoi is sitting on the bank where he used to meet Hira, he goes over his script and stops at "I like you." He flashes back to the day that he saw the rubber duck floating in the dirty gutter way. I feel like I was that yellow duck. Forced to be in a place where none of us wanted to be. Maybe there is a chance to find a partner. That's just impossible. Disgusting! <- Kiyoi isn't saying Disgusting to the duck. He doesn't want to have hope. He is scared of it.

How can I forget about him. The way I feel about Hira is... I Like You! I Like You A Lot! The Director praises Kiyoi on his acting, he finally captured the essence of Love. It's so gross! Damn it! Why talk about love, I just want to see him again. But at the same time I don't want to see him anymore! This dilemma makes me feel helpless.

Even if a hundred eyes stared at me when on stage, his eyes would be the only ones I couldn't resist. This is when we see the move from a boy acting like a Dom. One who wants the adoration of so many. To a man who can be Dom if given the chance because he cares about no one else but his submissive. He is learning that it isn't about what the masses think of you, it's what the important people to you think. If your living to impress many people, you'll always disappoint but if you are selective on who you want to impress. You can live up to the expectation.

He calls Hira. He quickly calls and hangs up. Then waits to see if it would be like it used to be. Where Hira would automatically call him back. Does Hira still feel the same? If not then this will be it. Hira does call back and Kiyoi quickly lies and says he called the wrong number but then he asks to practice his line at his house.

Koyama accidently knocks over Hira's picture box and sees all the pictures of Kiyoi. He now knows who that one person was that Hira would only take pictures of. He know Kiyoi is coming over and now he is striving to hang onto him. Kiyoi misunderstands the situation and though Hira tries to rush after him to explain he stutters. Kiyoi tells him, "I told you I don't care. Goodbye" Then leaves.

Koyama and Hira's conversation feels like a conversation between a Vanilla and a Kinkster. "Didn't Kiyoi say you were gross?" "He said that before." Finding it hard to explain that he understands that Kiyoi doesn't mean it for it's actual meaning. Wanting to explain that it doesn't have the effect that it would on others but not having the words to do it. "I like him for who he is.." "I don't understand." They often don't. "Why do you like him?" "I'm sorry. I don't know how to describe it." "Goodbye, Hira."

We are almost to the last episode. Hope you guys enjoyed this and are looking forward to the next one. 💜💜💜

#Utsukushii Kare #utsukushii kare #my beautiful man kink #my beautiful man #luta opinions #coconuts mafia #luta talks my beautiful man

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phantom-of-the-501st · 1 year

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So I just rewatched "Entombed" and I enjoyed it a lot more this time round.

(Post will contain some spoilers)

It's still not one that I love, but I had a better time watching it now that I've had time to sit on it. I think my main problem with it the first time round was that I had certain hopes that just weren't met and rather than accepting it for what it was, I accepted it as a failed attempt of what I wanted it to be. I normally try to avoid watching things with that attitude but clearly that didn't work out so much last week.

I definitely don't think it's perfect but it is a lot of fun and I can appreciate it more now.

I'm just gonna leave a few more bullet pointed thoughts down below to add on to what I said last week.

I still wish we had gotten more Echo content this episode, but I do understand a bit better why he is the way he is this episode (or at least, what makes sense to me looking back at it).

Hunter and Echo looking really exhausted this episode is actually really interesting and I do hope we touch more on that in other episodes.

Wrecker is adorable but we all knew that. 🥰

Didn't bring this up last week, but can we appreciate the planet design? We haven't really had a "spooky trees" aesthetic but I like it. 👻

I still believe that the rockfall was a genre stereotype moment that they used just to get 3 of them out the way for one scene, but it didn't make me annoyed like it did last week.

I found myself lowkey obsessed with the dust animation this episode.

Going backwards a bit, why are none of us mentioning the fact that Phee was pushing around the lowest rock dial thing by herself but when Tech did it, he had to enlist the help of Wrecker? Basically, I'm convinced Phee could probably knock someone out cold because she is stronger than she looks.

Every time I see them hanging off of things I feel bad for Echo. Poor guy's got his entire body weight hanging off one hand. 😭

So this weird mech thing has a stone that activates it. When it's in one slot the creature is dormant. When it's taken out the mech activates. When it's put in a different slot the stone melts and the mech self-destructs.

Weird design but okay.

It looked cool so I'll let them off on whatever weird activation system they decided to install in this thing.

I love seeing Omega interacting with other women in her life. She's surrounded by men all the time but having Phee around gives her a little bit more freedom to have time outside of her little bubble with her brothers.

Also, I've seen some complaints that this episode undoes Omega's character development. I personally don't think it does. At the end of the day, she's still a child and this episode let's her be the kid she never truly got to be on Kamino. ❤

And I feel like Hunter's insecurities about losing Omega and his struggles with watching her grow up are going to become much more prevalent later.

I feel like I had more thoughts than this while watching it but I don't remember what they were. 😐

Overall, I just embraced this episode for what it was this time round: a fun Indiana Jones style adventure. Nothing overly complex or deep. Just fun. And while I loved that in episode 4, for some reason I had a problem vibing with ep 5 when it first came out. But I enjoyed it a lot more this time round.

I'm not sure this episode will ever be one of my favourites, and it'll probably stay pretty low on the ranking for me, but seeing as there is no episode of TBB that I hate, I'm okay with that.

°•°•°•°

Less than 12 hrs to go until episode 6, "Tribe"!

Either we finally get more Echo next episode or we don't. Either way I will become incredibly annoying so prepare for that! 🤣

#the bad batch spoilers #the bad batch season 2 spoilers #tbb spoilers #the bad batch #the bad batch season 2 #star wars #echo #tech #wrecker #omega #hunter #tbb echo #tbb tech #tbb wrecker #tbb omega #tbb hunter #phee genoa

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closetsof-backlogged-dreams · 7 months

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so, ik not a single person gives a shit, but fun fact/story time about me: i've never actually, in full, watched the last three episodes of merlin. i've been in this fandom for about a year, and have even written entire analyses on specific scenes in the last episode, so let me explain my madness lol.

when i was younger, maybe like 10 or 11, my mom was OBSESSED with this show. like, she'd watch it all the time. i could distinctly remember random scenes i walked in on, like when they try to execute Gwen and the soldiers pull Arthur and her apart, or that one random episode when Arthur is placed on that wheel with an apple in his mouth and knives are thrown at him, or, the one that probably left the most impact, was the entire ending of the show. i watched probably the last ten minutes of the last episode, and watched Arthur die and Gwen be crowned sole ruler of Camelot. i didn't really care tbh lol.

but because of that, i knew exactly how the show ended. i had also seen bits and pieces of the two episodes before, so i just generally had a vague idea of the final three episodes, arguably the most important in the entire series.

but then, i got older, and got more and more interested in fandom. and yk which fandom i saw in every corner of the internet? that goddamn show my mom used to watch as a kid. i always told myself i'd watch it at some point, but i didn't get around to it until they announced it was being taken off netflix. let me tell you, that was the binge session of my LIFE. i watched all five seasons (except for the last three episodes) within a week and a half. but when i had around half a week left to finish the series before it was removed, i completely avoided those last three episodes. i buried myself in fanfic, tumblr posts, and the like. then i found them all free on youtube, around two days before it got removed, and i just told myself i'd watch them later. newsflash: i didn't.

i've been VERY active in the fandom ever since (honestly way too active, im like mentally ill lmao) and still havent seen those episodes. i wrote an entire 3k word essay (that i had to cut A LOT from lol) about the series and even analyzed the scene where Arthur dies in a portion of it. now, i keep saying i still haven't seen those episodes, but that's actually untrue. because as of ten minutes ago, i watched them.

so what does that make this post? well, it makes it a warning, because i am going to be so completely insufferable about this series i am 100% sure someone is going to poison me within the next 72 hours. be warned—i am a changed woman now, and i am absolutely unstoppable.

#sof absolutely loses her shit #thats what this is right #i am actually so unwell its not even funny #i have cried like six times within the past two hours #merlin has destroyed me #honestly why did i watch those episodes #this wasnt worth it guys #i am In Pain #merthur #merlin #bbc merlin #bbcm #arthur pendragon #merlin bbc #merlin thoughts

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tonedeafkunst · 6 months

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assorted helluva boss sentiments

I knew it from the moment asmodeus appeared on screen. I felt it in my soul, I could see the heart eyes. I wonder how it ever felt to be a doubter because I was never one

2. While I do enjoy Fizzarozzie as much as the next guy I do hope the series continues to be about IMP instead of shifting focus every season? or at least concluding some type of arc for Millie and Moxxie? It feels weird that we haven't seen them in the last two episodes.

3. Speaking of weird things that don't fit. Musical numbers. 4 in one episode is way too much if they're going to be full-length musical numbers. Fizz's song should've been cut after the first verse -like the distraction one- and it should have been way less pop. Get fucking weird with the songs please I dare you. ALSO TOM CARDY. MORE TOM CARDY ALWAYS PLEASE THANK YOU

4. speaking of things that stop tempo to a halt and are way too based on the internet's love for the trope rather than the actual quality: Stolitz. not the ship in itself but the conflict it's going to endure in the next episodes. Please. for the love of god. "Oops" was without a doubt one of the best episodes in the series by virtue of the fact the characters TALK AND COMMUNICATE TO ONE ANOTHER. and as Oops shows, this doesn't mean having less conflict or interesting stuff happen! You can have Stolitz without getting this played-out fanfic Will-they-Won't-they bullshit and still make it interesting! I'd usually trust the writers cause Helluva Boss is one of the best-written series I've ever seen, flat out, but Stolas' backstory episode makes me weary. PLEASE have them communicate, Blitzo's problems aren't going to be carried away by it all because he's the protagonist and the story centers around HIM, having Stolitz be an arc of personal growth rather than the end point of said arc will make it MORE engaging

5. silly things interruptions. The Major Sin Design Debacle was obviously bad faith bullshit, and I enjoy every one of the Deadly Sins' designs, but I especially enjoy their theming. Lust isn't tied to any particular negative environment because this show, rightfully, doesn't want to depict lust as a sinful thing in the first place lmfao. Beelzebub as a party queen completely incapable of holding back is good, Sloth being depicted as hospital land is fun and I hope they expand the joke further, Wrath being a fiery and desolate land is appropriate. Greed is fun as a design and I find it very apt that a group of animators would depict the sin of avarice as being into entertainment and the merchandising of said entertainment and the people behind it. I do wonder why he's an insect? maybe there's some catholic lore behind it I don't remember but considering they (rightfully) are only kind of inspired by it as Beelzebub shows I would have preferred to see Mammon as a bit more parasite-like. Also, did I miss something. WHy is he Australian. he should definitely be British. though if you apply that logic I guess everyone should be British in hell

6. and last but not least... why oh why, if your show wants to focus on inter-character relationships (and it clearly does and it's the correct choice in every kind of storytelling) would you ever bring in class warfare and make the anticapitalist the asshole. Striker might want to kill our fave bird bottom but he's right. "ooooh but he works for Stella he's part of the system" hey the fact S2 stripped her of all her nuance doesn't excuse making Striker's cause into a joke as well. I just pray the writers KNOW what they're doing (and if Stolas' Harvest Moon Festival characterization is still canon, then they should be aware of what they're writing) and... I don't know if I'd prefer they ignore the entire theme by closing it off with a joke or at least give a satisfying ending of """compromise"""" to the entire system in hell. Considering how every romantic relationship between an imp and an overlord has been shown to either be incredibly positive or at least healing, and how the only negative relationships we're shown are -by nature of the show- character-focused and don't really touch on the systematic oppression of imps, I don't trust SpindleHorse will ever actually give space to the Imp Socialist Revoluton, which is a damn shame.

I'm going to go ahead and make the mistake of tagging this because I'd really like to find other fans to discuss with but please. for the love of god. If you read this until the end and aren't able to recognise this criticism is born out of LOVE for this show and a desire for it to become even better than it is. do us both a favour and ignore me.

Mediocre bad shows don't elicit this type of reflection and engagement and if they do for you I urge you to stop letting media make you more miserable

#helluva boss

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