#it's still ongoing and there's already a s2 that he's also in apparently

[duhragonball]

Neon Genesis Evangelion 22

Are we...? Are we live? Can anyone read this?

Uh....... huh.

I think there's something wrong with the DVD player. Maybe if I take the disc out and put it back in again. Hold on.

Shoot. No good.

Uh, folks, I'm not sure what to say here. Might have to call this off until I can figure out what the trouble is.

"I was strangled to death in this building once."

"Shut your stupid robot mouth, you ugly little psycho!"

Oh, okay, there we go.

So uh, let me do some housekeeping first. An S2 is apparently some kind of organ in an Angel's anatomy, and the S2 Engine was NERV's attempt to duplicate this organ. They only managed to make one of these, which was supposed to be installed in Eva Unit 04 before it vanished along with NERV's Nevada Branch.

However, Eva Unit 01 scored a free S2 when it simply ate and absorbed the S2 organ from the 14th Angel. SEELE is concerned about this, becuase whatever playbook they're operating from didn't say anything about Evas running wild and getting upgrades without prior authorization. I believe this is one reason Eva Unit 01 is benched during this episode.

Also, the Eva series is named because it was created from Adam, the First Angel. "Eva", as in the Biblical Eve, who was created from one of Adam's ribs. So that's what that's about. So they're not the same as copies of Angels, or Angels themselves. I guess they're more like genetically engineered Angeloids or something?

NERV is still trying to get back to normal, more than a month after the battle with the 14th Angel. Repairs to Units 00 and 02 are still ongoing, but Asuka's synch scores have gone way down, probably due to the trauma of getting defeated so badly in the last battle. No one's really sure what to do about it, but if her performance keeps deteriorating, she'll get booted out of the program and replaced. With whom? Big Rigg Mahoney? The Dummy Plug? Maybe Suzuhara's ready to check out of the hospital.

Sorry, these goofs act like good pilots grow on trees, but Asuka's a college graduate or something and she's already on the brink of washing out. If she's cracking under the strain, maybe they should whip up some more Rei clones.

We get a few glimpses into Asuka's backstory, but it's kind of tough to make sense of it all. I think the upshot here is that her mother was a scientist who was eventually driven insane. She may have tried to kill Asuka? I guess she and Rei could bond over that........... forget I said anything.

Uh, she receives a phone call from her mother one night and talks to her in German, which is kind of weird because there's no subtitles, so for all I know the voice actress just kind of faked the whole thing. That might be appropriate since Asuka admits to Shinji that she just sort of goes through the motions on these routine calls, since it's not her real mother anyway.

Anyway, this would be a really bad time for another Angel to attack OH SHIT THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENS

This is the one from the title logo, so you know it means business. The 15th Angel's special power is to stay way the hell up in space, where the Evas can't attack it.

Misato's plan is for Rei to fire a big-ass cannon at the Angel while Asuka serves as backup, but Asuka insists on taking the shot. Misato allows this, figuring that she might as well play into Asuka's boldness. Either she'll rise to the occasion and get back in her groove, or she'll fail miserably, and they'll never let her pilot an Eva again. Asuka herself seems to have figured that out on her own, so maybe she only asked for this chance just to get this settled once and for all. But before she can take her shot...

Oh, I'm sorry, the 15th Angel's special power is actually long-range telepathic assault. Yeah, this is pretty bad.

I thought this might resemble the sort of telepathic visions Shinji was having during the battle with the 12th Angel, or when he was absorbed by Eva Unit 01, but this seems much more intense and violent, and much less theraputic. I think it's reasonable to conclude that the 12th Angel was not trying to make telepathic contact with Shinji, or otherwise the 15th Angel would have a little more finesse to its attempt here.

Under different circumstances, I might consider that this might not be an attack at all, and the Angel is trying to communicate and just isn't doing a very good job because human minds are so alien to it. But Asuka screams bloody murder the entire time this is happening, and she repeatedly cries out that it's "raping" her mind. It's pretty difficult to sit through.

Rei tries to shoot down the Angel, but it's still too far away for their weapons to do any good, and Asuka's charts are...

I mean, I'm no doctor, but that can't be good.

Shinji begs his dad to let him go out in Unit 01, but what good would that do? I mean, what can he do that Rei isn't already trying in Unit 00? Besides, Gendo refuses to risk Unit 01 getting hit with this telepathic attack. Instead, he orders Rei to go downstairs to the room with Adam's corpse, and fetch the Lance of Longius.

Admiral Clownshoes tries to talk Gendo out of this, apparently because the Lance will be necessary later on, but Gendo sees no alternative. Misato points out that if Rei's Eva gets too close to Adam's corpse, it could set off Third Impact. That's what everyone was worried about a few episodes ago, but now it's treated like it's no big deal. So Misato realizes this was more NERV bullshit.

But it's worse than that. If Angels and Evas going near Adam can't trigger Third Impact, then that means Second Impact couldn't have been caused by Angels exploding. So that must have been a lie, just like the other lie about it being a meteor strike. So what the fuck caused Second Impact, then?

In any event, we've seen Rei carrying this big fork before, so apparently she just sticks it in Adam's body when she's not practicing with it. So Unit 00 can go down here and horse around with Adam all day and not trigger Third Impact.

As Rei prepares to strike, Clownshoes and Gendo continue to argue the merits of using the Lance. Gendo acts like the situation justifies using it early, and Clownshoes accuses him of looking for an excuse. Anyway, Rei chucks this thing into space like a javelin...

... And it kills the Angel in one hit. Goes right through it's AT shields, smooth as butter. The only downside is that now the Lance is stuck in orbit, and they have no practical means of retrieving it. I guess Rei put a little too much pepper on that throw.

Asuka is safe, but she's far from okay. For all the mental trauma she just endured, she seems far more upset about her wounded pride. Bad enough that Shinji had to save her last time, but now Rei had to bail her out, and that's apparently a new low as far as Asuka's concerned.

So yeah, things are going pretty bad for the NERV gang these days. At least Kaji's still dead. I mean, that's a win for me, at least.

Oh, look, in the next episode Rei's Eva gets possessed and corrupted by an Eva, and she wishes herself dead. So cheer up, Asuka. You can Rei can commiserate over this.

You know what, I'm just gonna see myself out...

#neon genesis evangelion #2024ngeliveblog #shinji ikari #gendo ikari #asuka langley soryu #rei ayanami #misato katsuragi #ritsuko akagi

[a-mag-a-day]

Throwback to when I first started with TMA:

On my first listen I didn't listen to the trailers and started right at MAG 1. This was in September 2020 after my sister bugged me half a year to pls give it a try xD I have never listened to an audio drama podcast before (only audio books) and I did it completely wrong, on speaker instead of headphones and it took me a long time to notice the occasional static rising (at "Can I have a cigarette?" for example).

Still remember my initial reaction to the intro song, the three notes right after the episode title reminded me a lot of Smaug's theme.

Also, although I did occasionally watch content from the UK, I am most influenced by the US and saying "Right" as much as some British people do was so alien to me XD (Although I watched a lot of the old Top Gear Team/Grand Tour and those three idiots do it all the time).

Next thing that stood out to me was Jon's over the top posh and deepened voice and, OMG, that dude is an asshole! I had a boss like this for 6 years and it was hell. I had no idea who Martin was at this point but I was fully supporting him against his toxic prick boss. This was also the reason why I procrastinated hard on the first half of S1. Jon's attitude hit a little bit too close to home because of my (at that time still ongoing) experience. Don't know if anyone else has ever seen this aspect of horror in TMA. (Obviously I now think very different of Jon. No Jon-slander here!)

A few thoughts while relistening:

"all it would need is a half-decent archivist to keep it in order. Gertrude Robinson was apparently not that archivist." lol, and you are? (I mean, from a capital A Archivist standpoint he was..)

I miss the music track that plays in the first episodes. It already got rare in S2 and I think the only time it has been used after that was MAG 121: Far away.

"even when the Stranger asked the question again" hehe

Thank you for sharing! Happy you managed to power through and join the Jon loving club :D

#a mag a day #tma #the magnus archives #mag 1 #episode asks #mod ashes

[narashikari]

A wild Ryo Aoki has (finally) appeared!

And... thank Fruit Jesus, he's wearing a somewhat normal outfit!

@iristial Look he's wearing proper pants for once!

#shinhannin flag #ryo aoki #he only appears for like 3 secs in ep 3 lol #but still XD #i'll continue to watch this series for him lmao #it's still ongoing and there's already a s2 that he's also in apparently

[rachelbethhines]

Tangled Salt Marathon - Rapunzel and the Great Tree Part 1

We’re now finally at the mid-season finale of season two, and it’s easily the best episode of this season. That however doesn’t mean that it’s not flawed, so here we go... 

Summary: The group makes it to the Great Tree, only to be confronted by a new adversary: Hector, the brother of Adira, the most dangerous member of the Brotherhood; sworn to keep all from reaching the Dark Kingdom. Despite all that has happened, Rapunzel is determined to continue on toward the Dark Kingdom to uncover the truth behind her destiny. As they navigate through the Great Tree, Rapunzel discovers the Moonstone incantation which overwhelms the magical powers of the Sundrop in her blonde hair and causes injury and weakness to those around her. 

The Brotherhood Is Such a Wasted Concept 

We have a group of highly trained warriors, directly connected to the series main macguffin, who consider each other siblings, who all have conflicting goals, and they’re all severely underdeveloped to the point of ridiculousness. 

For starters, in a show all about pushing sibling rivalries as parallels to the two main characters, it utterly fails to show the only other siblings who are actually connected to the plot acting like actual siblings. 

Adira and Hector should be a parallel to Cass and Rapunzel in this very episode. One that actually ties into the narrative, yet outside of calling each other brother/sister/brethren they don’t act like family; even feuding family. Adira also fails to treat Quirin, Varian, Edmund, and Eugene as family. She shows no real concern for any of them despite saving her home (which would included her family) from the rocks being her main goal. She should be just as every bit as invested in saving Quirin as Varian. Which is yet another reason why Varian should have been S2 and another entry point for him in the show’s plot. 

As for the rest of the Brotherhood, they never even interact at all. I don’t think anyone tells either Edmund or Hector what has happened to Quirin or Varian. And Edmund clearly didn’t inform Hector of Eugene, even though he logically should have. And did any of them know if Edmund was alive, despite Edmund having the means to communicate with the outside world with the crows? 

What we’re left with is a bunch of holes in the story, because there’s now a bunch of holes in everyone’s motivations and their actions never quite line up. 

And before you say, ‘well they’re not that important’, or ‘they’re aren’t meant to be a real family’; then that is in of itself a flaw because they should be. Not making them found family undermines Raps and Cass being found family, as it undermines every other sibling parallel in the show, and those parallels are the only build up we have to the sister reveal in S3.  

It also undermines the moonstone plot and the whole reason why season two exists. Don't introduce things that connect back to your story and not make them important. In fact don't introduce unimportant elements in a plot driven show like this period. 

Another Indication of the Timeline

As stated before, Tangled is really bad at indicating the passage of time, despite the passage of time being a big plot point. We’re now a ‘few months’ past the island, which itself was 6 weeks, and before that it was several weeks to maybe even a few months before getting to the island... 

So when does this take place? Well we were told that season two takes place over the course of a year by the creator, and that this is the mid-season finale so 6 months since SotSD sounds the most plausible. We also see fall trees dotted around like we did during the first half of season one. Which is the only visual indicator we get of changing seasons in the show, but it’s too understated to be properly noticeable most of the time. 

However, the crew themselves can’t even seem to agree if Rapunzel’s Return is her birthday or not, so if you’ve heard conflicting sources, it’s because this shit wasn’t planned properly first. But all dialogue and visual cues point to the first half of season two being at least 4 to 6 months. With 6 being the most logical placement.  

Just a Reminder, that Hook Foot Is Still Useless 

If all you were going to have him do is whine like a child during the only plot important episode that he is in, then why not just replace him with an actual child? 

It takes more work to leave Varian out of season two and force Hook Foot in his place, than it does just to write Varian in. There were so many potential entry points for his character, that the one they would up going with was the least natural to the characters and the story they were trying to tell. And even then, the Saporian take over they went with could still have worked had they handled things properly and pre-planned that stuff out. 

But they didn’t. By all accounts S2 was a hasty re-write to get rid of Varian and Hook Foot was shoehorned in as his replacement at the last minute. And it’s the most utterly baffling creative decision I have ever witnessed in my life. There was zero logical reason for it. 

This Plot Point Wasn’t Built Up Enough and It Goes Nowhere

Look, had they actually pointed out that Cass is a bodyguard now, and that this line from Raps threatens her career goals, that would make sense; or they could have explored the idea that Cass’s identity revolves around her job, and so feeling like her job is pointless makes her feel pointless therefore making her feel insecure about her future. Either of those would have been interesting jumping off points for her character arc and later conflicts. 

But that’s not what they did. 

I think that’s what they were initially trying to go for here, but it got muddled in the mess that was last minute rewrites. 

Cass obtaining her goals in season one is ignored in favor of a bland and vague validation goal from this point onwards. Her issues with Rapunzel are then boiled down to be about; not identity, agency, class, or wanting a future, but into fighting over a dead mom and how one wasn’t ‘loved enough’ apparently. Which makes no sense given what we know of Cass from previous seasons. 

Cassandra isn’t deep or complex; she is convoluted. The writing team couldn’t agree on what her goals and motivations should be, and so she performs conflicting actions throughout the story that actively undermines what was previously established and what she supposedly wants. 

Most people who try to defend the writing for Cassandra do so with this idea that because they had to work hard to ‘connect the dots’ for all these seemingly disconnected plot ideas, means that of course the writing is ‘deep’ but that’s ignoring one of the basic fundamentals of writing.   

The audience shouldn’t have to do the writer’s job! 

Having to think about a story doesn’t mean that you need to go digging around for basic information like the character’s goals or what happened when. A writer’s job is to first and foremost clearly communicate ideas to their audience. Plot and character analysis is about finding extras like, metaphors, moral messages, and coming up with fun headcanons that don't impact the wider story. Because all of the bare bones information needed to understand the story should already be there for everyone to see. 

If you gotta go into ‘analysis’ just explain the damn plot and why things are unfolding the way they do, then the story is badly written. Full stop. 

Cinderella wanting to go to the ball is a simple goal, but it’s an understandable one that anyone watching can grasp. You could go into a deeper analysis about abuse and what the ball symbolises for Cinderella’s character or how the story is an analogy for wider social issues at large, but at the end of the day everyone needs to be in agreement that, yes, Cinderella wants to go to the ball and we know why she wants to go, so that her actions in trying to get there make sense.

No one knows what Cassandra wants. Cassandra herself doesn’t know what she wants. So the ‘why’ part for what she does is never answered. 

Hector Is Wasted

As already stated, all of the Brotherhood is wasted, but Hector more so than most. Season two desperately needed an ongoing threat, a main antagonist to push the story forward. Hector should have been that antagonist. Instead he shows up for this one episode, and then in a few non-speaking cameos in S3. 

Then Why Not Just Stay With Them Adira?

We’re never given an actual reason for why Adira keeps leaving the group, and indeed doing so conflicts with her stated goal of getting Rapunzel safely to the moonstone. It’s just shoehorned in here to create ‘mystery’, but mysteries have to be answered at some point. You can’t throw something in for drama’s sake and not explain why it’s there. 

Lance’s Crush on Adira Isn’t Handled Well 

Look, this isn’t a judgment upon those who ship the characters. When I talk about relationships in the show I’m only talking about how well they are written on screen. I couldn’t care less what the fans do with them. 

Even when I discuss my personal preferences for ships, that is all that is, my personal preference. I don't give a shit if you ship something that I may dislike, or if you hate something that I do enjoy. I’m a grown up with more important things to do than worry over what a bunch strangers may write on A03 about a bunch of fictional characters, and as someone who hates bullies above all else, I’ll defend your right to make whatever content to want to because censorship is just a form of bullying and nothing else. 

No matter how gross or reprehensible I may personally find it. Different stories resonate with different people and for different reasons. I may debate your reasons, if the subject comes up, or critique professional media for the messages it puts out to the wider public, but I’ll never say you can’t like it or that you can’t make it.    

So with that stated, I don’t like Lance’s dynamic with Adira in the show and here’s my reasons for that. 

She doesn’t ever return the feelings. 

At best she tolerates him, at worse she actively kicks his butt when he gets too close, and most of the time she ignores him. Which is for good reason; she’s old enough to be his mom. Why would she be attracted to him? 

Like I’m not saying that age gaps between adults are inherently wrong; I’m saying that if there is a significant age gap then you really have to work hard to build up a reason for why the two characters would go for each other when naturally they wouldn’t be in each other’s usual sphere of dating options. Which the series never does because once again Adira is clearly not interested in him. 

This leads to Lance basically being an annoying ‘nice guy’ who can’t take a hint. Like constantly badgering someone who doesn’t want you to isn’t charming or endearing, and Lance is old enough to know this by now. 

Basically the writers just took the Varian and Cassandra dynamic from Great Expotations and slapped it onto Lance and Adira despite the fact that it made zero sense for their characters. Lance isn’t a lonely teen who desperately wants to fit in and make a connection with someone. He’s not out to prove that he is mature, nor mistakenly believes himself to be an equal to the only other girl in the kingdom that has ever talked to him that isn’t already married/seriously dating and still living at home. Adira never comes around to considering Lance a trusted friend and confidante after shoving nearly everyone else away. She doesn’t seek out his help or approval, nor tries to build him up with compliments, ect, and so forth. 

Now, I dislike the Cass and Varian ship for many, many reasons, but as they are presented on screen in the Great Expo it makes sense for why Varian would at first have an unrequited crush on her. Now after that QfaD he logically shouldn’t ever want anything to do with her but we’ll get to that later. That’s not the case with Lance and Adira; they’re both too old for such a dynamic. 

To add on to the weird factor, they’re both related to Eugene. Adira is technically Eugene’s aunt, even if she never acts like it. Lance is also the closest thing to a brother Eugene has. They don’t recognize each other as such, so if you want to say their just friends or ship them or whatever, there’s wiggle room. But the end effect is like Maya in Girl Meets World crushing on her best friend’s, Riley’s, Uncle Josh. Only even with less basis, and it wasn’t that great there either. 

Why Do you Suddenly Not Trust Adira Cass?

Forest of No Return was all about establishing trust in Adira, including with Cass at the end, so why the sudden back track? Especially since Adira hasn’t done anything but been honest with them, and has saved their butts several times now. All this does is make Cassandra look like an ass, which you don't need to be doing if you want the audience to side with her later on in the story. 

Everyone Now Knows Quirin is a Part of the Brotherhood, So There’s No Excuse For Later

It’s an odd way to state that fact, but yeah, both Cass and Raps are told directly that Quirin is in the Brotherhood, and Lance, Eugene, and Hookfoot are also present and presumably listing to this exchange. So no one in S3 has an excuse to ignore this plot point until the finale. 

This Backstory Goes Nowhere

Adira launches into this story about Zhan Tiri, Demanitus, and the Great Tree and literally none of it actually matters. It’s never brought up again after this episode. We never get any insight into why they were fighting, how Zhan Tiri corrupted a tree, what significance the tree has outside of being really big and holding some scrolls, nor how the scrolls got there, why the tree is still connect to Zhan Tiri hundreds of years later, nor how Demanitus magic spear works or what it even does exactly. 

Don’t introduce lore and then don't have it mean anything. 

Why Do you Care, Cass? 

Cassandra isn’t a lady-in-waiting anymore. We’ve already established that back in Secret of the Sun Drop and in Beyond the Corona Walls. So why should she care if Adira calls her one? Adira isn’t from Corona. Adira isn’t in charge of anything. Cassandra doesn’t even like her, so Adira’s opinion shouldn’t matter. 

This whole season we’ve seen Cass treat Adira like shit, but apparently we’re supposed to feel sorry for her when she can’t take clap back for all the grief she’s given. Is she really so immature that she can’t just ignore a petty insult for what it is? Why does she have to behave so insecure that she will jeopardize the mission or someone’s life over it? This is the deuteragonist I’m suppose to root for and relate to? I mean she’s twenty three for goodness sake! Grow the hell up woman! 

Also while we on the subject, a royal guard and a lady-in-waiting are both servants. There’s no distinction between the two beyond what duties they perform, and that would be the case regardless of what job Cass had. Rapunzel’s a princess, everyone is her servant. That’s how the class system works, and by all means Cassandra enjoys more privilege than most people in Corona. She’s the Captain’s daughter, was granted next in line for that position in SotSD, and lady-in-waiting means to the princess means she’s above all the other maids except for Crowley and Friedberg. Cass may hate her job, but she hasn’t room to complain when Faith is right there and has things much worse. 

In short making Cass suddenly indignant over being treated as lower class when she didn’t give a crap about the likes of Attila, Caine, Varian, Eugene, Lance, ect... just makes her look like a hypocrite. 

The Other Reason to Dislike Lance’s Crush is That It Hinders His Development

Lance’s arc is that he’s suppose to learn to be more responsible. This episode in particular is suppose address his habit of lying... only it doesn’t. We get no real resolvement on this point. We also never see Lance progress enough to give up on Adira and stop pursuing her even when it’s directly pointed out to him that she doesn’t reciprocate his feelings. So in the end he still remains immature and irresponsible. 

Though this conversation just proves that Eugene and Lance still have the healthiest relationship in the show. They’re about to disagree or call each other’s bullshit without resorting to insults or getting violent, which is more than what any relationship involving Cass does. 

Questions With No Answers

We never learn why these scrolls are here, why they have the incantations on them and upon the wall, we don’t know who translated them, nor who came up with the incantations in the first place.

This is all important info that he series glosses over, because unlike the moonstone and sundrop, the incantations are things that someone had to have made at some point, and they could only have made them by studying what our plot macguffins are and how they work. Since the incantations are things that are also sought after by the big bad along with the magical objects, then we need to know how the big bad knows about them when no one else does. How they came about. 

Which is yet another reason why we needed a magic system in place. 

This Song is Catchy, But It Doesn’t Need To Exist

In a musical a song needs to either establish the plot, build the world, or further the characters. This song does none of those things, it’s not needed for Lance and Eugene’s relationship, it doesn’t actually resolve Lance’s plot as he is high when he apologizes for lying, and it wasn’t needed to established the man eating plant. I honestly think this song only exists so that the animators could just reuse assets they built to save on money. 

The Hurt Incantation Is the Coolest Thing In the Show! Shame It’s Not Utilized Well

People are suckered into this show by one of three things usually, ‘Let Me Make You Proud Reprise’, ‘Ready As I’ll Ever Be’, or this scene. 

It’s shocking, powerfull, and a really, really awesome concept. It’s one of the best scenes in the show, and an interesting idea that offers up a lot of story possibilities. 

Possibilities that’ll never actually be explored on screen. The hurt incantation isn’t useless, it does affect the plot, but it’s not used effectively. There was so much you could have done with this but it’s then never explored. Characters outright forget its existence even when they have no reason to, or it’s used to do things that should have been accomplished in other ways. It’s also never fully explained or expanded upon. They couldn’t even bother to give it more than one verse. 

All of the incantations are mishandled in this show, but the hurt incantation is the one that has the biggest let down. 

Conclusion 

So that ends part 1, join me tomorrow for part 2. 

#tangled #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure #anti-tangled #anti-cassandra #hector #the brotherhood #lance #adira

[b-rainlet]

Just want to say I love your blog. Your TUA content is lovely and I can't say what a breath of fresh air it is to find another Luther champion. The fandoms treatment of him, istg, some of the most ludacris nonsense I've ever had to read. Especially love how you point out he's ALWAYS been so sweet and selfless when it comes to Allison and her personal happiness. Anyway I saw you say you seem confident alluther will actually happen. I sure hope so, but why do you figure? The antis are so loud.

Awwwww, thank you anon, you’re so sweet! Yeah, this blog is on 24/7 loving Luther lockdown! I feel like the antis are easing up a little bit after S2 aired because most of Luther’s scenes were used as comedic relief and the faves he was clashing with (Diego and Vanya) seem to have a better relationship with him now, so it’s not as bad anymore, but I have to admit I never ever go into the main tag so I can’t be 100% sure. 

Maybe you should try looking through the ‘Luther Protection Squad’ tag to find some more like-minded people? I swear there are more of us out there!

But to come to the Alluther question: 

I know that the antis are loud and I’ve noticed that most of them have counted S2 as a win for them, talking about how Allison ‘moved on’ and how Alluther won’t happen but I disagree (and I will now launch into a rambly post about why lmao).

WARNING: CONTAINS S2 SALT. PROCEED WITH CAUTION

All of this is based on the assumption though that they will be somewhat consistent in their writing regarding Alluther and S2 taught me that that isn’t very likely, so maybe I’m completely wrong and Alluther will never ever be mentioned in S3, but based on what happened so far, I could see them as an endgame couple. 

I mean in S1 they were a pretty big plot point so I don’t think I have to say anything about that but even though the Alluther scenes have been toned down in S2 they were there. 

Let’s see what antis would say about why Alluther won’t happen: 

Allison is married

And? Allison has been married before and still mentioned comparing every man she ever loved/dated to Luther. Allison has been married and she has had a kid with another guy and still Alluther was going strong. 

Not to mention that the end of this season has made it very clear we won’t see Raymond again.

Raymond (and Sissy) are temporary love interests for this particular season and both of them cannot leave their timeline without majorly fucking things up - at least according to Five, but the whole timetravel rules can change at the drop of a hat - but more importantly, both of them had a talk with their respective lovers about wanting to stay in their timeline. 

So unless Allison will return to the 60s (which doesn’t seem likely tbh), Raymond is gone for good. 

 Raymond was her true love tho! Like Klave!

I don’t think antis actually word it like this but I’ve noticed how all of them hopped onto the Almond train immediately and keep gushing about how good and cute they are and that’s great! You can ship what you wanna ship! But I think a lot of the love for this ship has to do with how it prevents Alluther from happening. If Allison is deeply in love with this wholesome man, she can’t ever like her brother. 

But tbh….I didn’t buy Almond. For two people who are happily married they crumble and burn awfully fast. 

And tbh, I was thinking about making a post about this so I’m gonna add this rant here but I just wanna preface this with the fact that I don’t hate them and I don’t hate people who ship them, I’m just….using this opportunity to poke some hole into their relationship. 

I think it would’ve been more believable if Raymond and Allison would be in the early stages of dating while all of S2 goes down. Think about it.

They are married? After one year? I mean, as far as I know, Allison has been in the 60s for about two years - since Luther was the first one who arrived and he spent 3 years there??? But I am not fact-checking this, so correct me if I’m wrong - so she had time to get used to being there, adjust to having no voice, meet Raymond, fall in love with him and get married to him. 

And considering she could already talk again it must’ve have been a while before she started talking to/dating Raymond? I don’t think a wound like that wouldn’t take a while to heal but with this show’s consistency, maybe it did. 

I was actually hoping Allison would stay mute for a while longer but alas

So, they got married pretty fast imo, and you could argue that it’s the 60s but 

Allison isn’t from the 60s

Allison just got out of a bad marriage. There’s like, a year?? maybe?? between her first marriage and her second one and tbh, I don’t think Allison would get married again so fast, tying herself to someone again almost immediately, especially if you consider what getting married in the 60s means for a woman and her personal freedom (it’s hinted at with Sissy but not with Allison and even though Raymond was probably a good husband who let her have her freedom and her say in things - as we can see with their movement - it’s still the 60s. Women couldn’t earn their own money. They couldn’t even spend any money without having to ask their husband. They were basically property of their husband and I can’t believe Allison would immediately jump back into being married, no matter how nice and good the guy is). 

“That just means it’s true love! That’s why their marriage may seem rushed!”

Yeah true love. I also keep secrets from my true love.

I mean, I understand that Allison couldn’t start talking about time travel or Raymond would’ve started thinking she’s crazy or something - and maybe would’ve sent her to a mental institution as is his right as a husband, so good idea getting married! - but she didn’t mention stuff like “I had a child.” or “I lost my family.” either and those are vague enough to not raise questions.

I mean, she could’ve lied! She could’ve said Claire is dead, which considering the apocalypse was what they were escaping is true!

She could’ve talked about how she had a family, but they kinda lost each other - maybe talking about how they all moved away and she doesn’t know where they are now, even though she misses them terribly. 

I mean, I simply can’t believe that she had to grief for her own child all on her own and she didn’t even tell her husband (and she couldn’t even properly be sad about it since Raymond and her lived together, so she probably didn’t have many moments where she could think about the future and the things she lost without the possibility of being walked in on). 

And how much it would’ve meant if there would’ve been a scene of her crying over Claire when she thinks she’s alone, but alas.

Then there’s also the whole added drama to their relationship. Which was btw, so unnecessary.

@showwriters: Why do you establish a relationship you obviously want to be viewed as full of love and instead of letting it be the steady rock the character can lean on during all the already ongoing chaos, you add drama to it and let it fall apart as a side plot which immensely suffers from not being shown/explored enough. 

I mean, we already have relationship drama with Vanya/Sissy and that relationship feels more natural because their obstacles are outside forces and not...one of them distrusting the other. 

You know, I get why Raymond is suspicious, I totally do! I just don’t think it makes the relationship believable. 

Once again, if they would’ve been in the early stages of dating and suddenly Allison’s weird brothers appear and she seems to be in cahoots with the cops, I would also think ‘???’ and it would’ve made perfect sense for Raymond to be confused and distrustful and not want to talk to Allison. 

But they’re married. They’re married and they vowed to love each other in sickness and in health and yet Raymond immediately jumps to ‘Allison is a spy’.

The woman you love enough to marry. That’s your first thought. Okay. 

(And if you wanna compare that to Vissy...Vanya suddenly drives off in the night to meet her family and disappears for a while and she apparently did something to Harlan and now he’s behaving weirdly and has powers….and she’s talking about taking Sissy and him to the future…..and yet….Sissy trusted Vanya). 

And tbh, I was done with their whole relationship the moment Allison spent the whole night calling every single hospital, trying to find out whether her husband was in one of them - was even alive - in tears and close to breaking down because the last time she saw him they were both involved in a riot and the possibility of him being in jail or hurt is very high only to find out…..

…..he had a meeting with their group without telling her because he doesn’t trust her. 

And what? He couldn’t have called her to at least tell her he’s okay and he’s gonna stay somewhere else overnight because shady shit did just go down that they need to discuss but he wants to be alone for now? That’s the bare minimum and yet he doesn’t do that. He doesn’t even call to make sure she is okay since running away doesn’t mean she couldn’t have accidentally been dragged into a brawl and hurt. 

Once again: They are married. 

So tbh, all I got from this relationship is the feeling that Allison simply didn’t wanna be alone in this new timeline and that isn’t an explicit point against Alluther. 

Okay, but….Allison moved on! So she still won’t get with Luther!

Did she? Did she really? I don’t think so. I mean, one of the first things we get from Allison aside from ‘She’s married’ is ‘She looks at the moon so often, her husband notices and gets her a book related to that’. 

That’s one of the most blatant ways they could’ve said: ‘She misses Luther.’

And Luther only. Not the whole family, Luther. If they wanted to somehow make this platonic or familial, they wouldn’t have taken the character she is canonly interested in romantically (which she is and has been since S1, no matter what antis say). 

I mean, if they only wanted to show ‘She misses her family’ they could’ve added a scene where she listens to the kid next door playing the violin or sees a boy in schoolboy shorts or maybe mistakes someone for Diego or whatever, endless possibilities. But they didn’t. 

They made it very clear she misses Luther and I don’t think she had a scene that shows her missing any of her other siblings in such a way (which is btw paralleled by the scene where Luther mistakes someone for Allison, which is also the only scene where he’s shown thinking about one of his siblings to the point he thinks he sees them - as far as I remember). 

But that’s probably only a coincidence, right?

Then there’s them meeting for the first time. I mean, they hug and the rest of the world disappears.

They took the time to shoot/cut this scene in a way that, when Allison and Luther hug after years of not seeing each other, everyone else isn’t in the shot anymore and it’s just them. Because they tried to make this as platonic as possible. 

(In comparison, Allison and Diego don’t even hug. And Klaus and Allison do hug and it’s a happy moment but there is no romantic music and it’s more focused on them being happy to see each other and not framed as a romantic scene. I mean, I have no clue regarding things like ‘motifs’ and ‘scenery’ but just watch those two hug scenes back to back and you know what I mean). 

Then the scene proceeds and they talk and sit down and Luther mentions her marriage and Allison tries to apologize. 

Just think about that. She doesn’t outright apologize but she does try to explain why she got married by saying how hard it was and is only stopped by Luther telling her he’s glad she wasn’t alone. 

How….how can you read that as a platonic convo between brother and sister? Just replace Luther with Klaus. Why would she feel the need to explain herself and seems guilty about being married? Is it because it implies she gave up on finding her family? If so, that would be her reaction with every sibling but she is explicitly like this with Luther. She tells Klaus she’s married too, and in that scene it’s definitely a ‘siblings catching up’ moment and it’s a happy moment and she doesn’t seem apologetic about being married. 

She is with Luther. 

Because they both know that there’s something between them and has been for a long time, to the point that Allison is visibly jealous when Luther has other relationships (his one-night-stand in S1) and this is the second time Allison has turned towards another man instead of waiting for Luther. And that’s why she tries to apologize. That’s why she tries to explain that she couldn’t know whether they - whether Luther - would ever show up, so she tried her best to move on - but she didn’t really, hence the moon scene. 

(This is also the scene where Luther could’ve been angry with her - and she probably would’ve thought he’s in the right - since during the days leading up to the apocalypse it seemed like they were slowly working towards being together - even if the kiss never happened, there’s still the phone booth scene which is basically Luther confessing his feelings - and now she once again leaves him standing alone, waiting for her to possibly return to him. 

But he isn’t, he just tells her he’s glad that she wasn’t alone. Because he is the actual embodiment of a gentleman and this world doesn’t deserve him). 

And this is just what I remember from watching the season once and then not really engaging with it, I can’t understand how antis can see those scenes and come to entirely different conclusions. But I guess, you really only see what you wanna see, huh?

But, but…...Incest is disguting! Even their siblings think so!

They don’t. They really don’t. There’s a gifset on tumblr somewhere compiling the scenes in S1 that show how chill the sibs are with Alluther, but let’s disregard those and just focus on S2 since they changed up a lot from the prior season and antis seem to think S2 was them finally saying ‘No Alluther’. 

I guess there’s the hair salon scene where Vanya, Klaus and Allison talk about relationships and Klaus lightly teases Allison for liking Luther. 

Now, he mentions Allison crushing on their brother in the same sentence where he talks about Vanya and her ‘Farmfrau’ and unless I missed it, he doesn’t change his voice. He doesn’t suddenly sound completely disgusted, or like he wants to vomit or whatever people think, so either, he thinks Vissy is as ‘disgusting’ as Alluther, or, he thinks both are simply relationships his sibs are interested in pursuing and he teases them about them like a sibling may do. 

And then you have Allison’s reaction. 

She doesn’t go: ‘Oh yeah, that was gross, what was I thinking’, she doesn’t make a face or disgusted noises or what, no, she tries to defend herself and her feelings. 

Which tells us: 

Despite popular belief to disregard Allison’s say in the Alluther relationship, she wants the relationship and she is obvious enough about it their siblings know (and Klaus makes it a point to say ‘Allison is into Luther’ and not ‘Luther likes Allison and Allison tolerates it). 

Alluther is brought up while they talk about current relationships, implying Allison still feels this way (especially because the way she reacts doesn’t make it seem like it’s a long over relationship with no longer relevant feelings. But again, I watched the season once and I don’t remember everything that was said. I think this is telling enough though). 

So..tell me again how everyone thinks Alluther is disgusting?

By now anon is thinking: ‘What is the point of all this rambling?’ 

And yeah, I am sorry for going way too into detail but I just wanted to make it clear that if the writers were intend on killing Alluther off in S2 - like antis believe - then everything I just mentioned wouldn’t have happened.

(And that’s without even mentioning the cpr scene). 

Alluther did get reduced but it didn’t vanish even though they decided to completely erase other things (like Claire and Eudora who are barely or not at all mentioned or things like Kliego being very close). 

This would’ve been the best opportunity! They re-meet in the 60s and Allison is happily married and takes the time to tell Luther he should move on. Or both are single and Luther tries to ask where they’re standing and whether she would like to try with him and she goes ‘This would be a mistake’ and that’s it.

(I am making Allison the one who ends things because it would be ooc for Luther to just end the possible relationship after waiting for Allison for years and there needs to be some consistency even in the mess that was S2). 

But! This didn’t happen!

Alluther is more or less back where it was in S1. Allison isn’t in a relationship anymore and won’t get back with the guy and Luther loves her no matter what. And the cheek kiss seems to leave them both on a hopeful note of finally getting together. 

So unless they use S3 to once again redo the show, it feels like Alluther is set up to be endgame. Like, I am getting ‘star-crossed lovers’ vibes where you’re just waiting for them to finally get together - because they just belong - but things keep getting in the way.  

You could compare it Diego/Lila in that regard, I think it’s pretty obvious those two are gonna end up together too. 

I have another ask about how they could get together, where I will definitely ramble more, but this shall be it for now. I hope it was halfway consistent. (And doesn’t have too many typos, I’m too lazy to check).

Also the formatting is shit but idc, I spent like two hours on this

#Alluther #tua s2 spoilers #anti tua s2 #Long post

[nautiscarader]

Glitch Techs season 2(ish) - my thoughts.

And right from the start, this season was way better than the first one. 

Though of course, it shouldn’t be called season 2, as the episodes were made back to back. And that form of distribution hurt S1, as it ended with absolutely nothing. S2 gave us better ongoing stories, with not one, but two extra arcs, and even the standalone episodes were better.

The first two episodes were in my opinion the best, and they did generate a high wave most of the season were sailing on. The introduction of Ridley, a tech modder was a brilliant idea. It added much needed counterbalance to the overwhelming presence of Hinobi as a mega corporation. I think it’s also the first time I heard the term “modding” and “homebrew”, and for that alone Glitch Techs need applause. Her story was continued in episode 5, and sadly that was the end of it, which is a shame, as it was an interesting counterbalance to both Miko and Hector’s personalities and personal philosophies.  

Second episode was a great lesson in computer gaming history, as I’ve already half-assedly explained. It also showed us the other side of the hacking coin that Ridley started, introducing Hector’s dad - a programmer and a convicted white hat hacker. (which is a second recent cartoon that used this term after Carmen Sandiego). Shame this never went anywhere, though.

And ongoing story arc number 2 is the mystery behind Miko’s memory problems, or rather lack thereof. Miko, as far as I understand, is written to have ADHD, so I presume the story of her “glitching” is supposed to be a moral story here, but so far, it was only explored in episode 1 and... the clip show episode.

Well, more like Youtube Poop episode, honestly. Yes, in the year of our lord twenty-twenty, we have a clip show episode. And that’s really what I can tell about it, it added a little bit of mystery to that subplot. 

Sadly, the show did continue the ongoing motif of glitches being just Ghostbuster ghosts/Pokemon Go monsters to capture, though with few exceptions. The first pixel from Ping, scary animatronics from hell and Bitt Prime provided a nice break from the monotony of chasing pixelated blobs. 

The nature of the glitches I complained about in my first review also isn’t as random and unpredictable as I would wish, again, with a few exceptions.

In slightly different news, Bitch Mitch William’s personality was improved... slightly by giving him a bit of a backstory, though he still would be at the top of /r/punchablefaces. 

Also, it looks like there is a bit of a love triangle forming between Miko, Hector and Zahra. Multiplayer ahoy!

And finally, we do get a glimpse of a larger storyline with episode 10 that may finally link it to the mind-controlling Polybius knockoff, and may FINALLY explain how on earth is Hinobi operating and what the heck is their goal.

I would LOVE if the show dived deeper into the division between the Hinobi corporation, clearly doing some morally shady stuff and modders and hackers that try to uncover their lies. Image if finale of the show was some sort of idealistic battle between coporate rules and modding freedom, forcing Miko and Hector to choose sides... that would be awesome!  

Will it be? We don’t know. Apparently, the show’s future is unsure, so if you liked the show, keep watching. With the first season being imho okay, and this one above average, there is a chance it will live on, or maybe will transfer to a different streaming platform, like HBO Max, like it happened with Infinity Train.

#glitch techs #glitch techs spoilers

[kittypurritto]

Helllu! I see you've been watching lots of chinese/korean dramas. Can you rec your favs?

 Hello!! Of course I can n.n (sorry it took so long to answer, I kept making changes to this aha). I’ve decided to list my current top 3 favourites, because apparently I’ve watched a lot.

Okay guys, here goes.

Chinese dramas:

So lately the past year or so of my life has been consumed by cdrams (and recently kdramas by extension), but here are some of my faves that I’ve watched.

The Untamed

Anyone who follows my blog knows my crazy obsession with this amazing show. It’s based off of a novel called the Grandmaster of demonic cultivation (has an anime with the same name– s2 is slowly being released right now). The story takes place in a world ruled by the evil Wen Sect. Wei Ying and Lan Zhan cross paths and become good friends (hardcore bromance). Wei Ying tries to save innocent Wen from death, and in the end, he lost almost everything. After going missing for 16 years, the pair find each other again and try to find the real villain.

It’s full of action, mystery, adventure, heart ache, supernatural ghouls, longing, whumping, and an amazingly attractive cast that should honestly be illegal. If you’re looking for a show with lots of emotional pain that will swallow you whole, then you’re in the right place. 

P/s. the 2 mains sing their love song which makes it that much more beautiful/painful.

Ps/s. IT ALSO JUST GOT PUT ONTO NETFLIX GUYS. No excuses not to binge it, and when you do, dm me so we can fangirl together.

Guardian

Another drama based off of a novel, with gay bros, longing, and adventure. Shen Wei is an immortal (kind of), and currently a university professor that has been waiting centuries for his lover/friend (Yunlan) to repay him for what he gave Shen Wei and will do anything for him. Zhao Yunlan is the head of the SID, a department that solves mysteries and crimes with supernatural origins. Together they help save others, solve mysteries, and save the world from Shen Wei’s evil twin brother. 

 All I can say about this one is that if you haven’t seen it, you’re seriously missing out (but warning, the cgi is horrible lmao). It was also super amazing seeing Zhu Yilong in a main role like this. The king of micro-expression seriously doesn’t let us down. 

Legend of Fuyao

This show had consumed my soul for about a full month and a half until I finished it. When I finished watching, it left me sad that it was over. Got to be honest, the ending is still a bit confusing, but is still worth the watch. This is an epic love story about Fuyao, an orphan looking for adventure, but gets caught in a fight between kingdoms and destiny. Along the way, she meets the Crown Prince and they fall in love, but destiny has their fates already decided. They are on the opposite sides of good and evil and need to decide whether one lives and the other dies. It’s got amazing fight scenes and a really attractive male lead (his first lead in a show I believe). Super amazing acting, because let’s be real, any show with Yang Mi is an automatically good show. She’s just too amazing.

Other honourable mentions: Granting you a dreamlike life, Eternal Love, Untouchable Lovers, the Rise of Phoenixes, Detective L– were amazing shows I could rewatch until I die.

Side note: I am super excited for Xiao Zhan’s Jade Dynasty. So hopefully that movie will be available to us soon.

Korean Dramas:

All right guys. I’ve only recently started watching korean shows about half a year ago or so, so I haven’t seen too many, but the ones I have seen I’ve fallen into a deep love with that keeps me going lol.

My Country: The New Age (ongoing)

This show only has 8 episodes so far and I can’t tell you all how amazing this show is. Words can literally not even describe how much it’s consuming every waking second of my life right now. I think the main reason is Seon ho, who started off as someone you respect, but is constantly doing bad shit. He tries to salvage good things from the wrecks he keeps making, but who knows how long that will last. He is ambiguous and slowly turning into a villain. He is slowly turning into the things he wants to destroy and it’s heartbreaking. My heart aches for him and Hwi all the damn time. I just want them to be bff again and stop fighting, but of course this won’t happen. This show has political turmoil and a country at war with a royal family and council who just wants to watch the world burn. Of course, this means manipulating everyone to get what they want, but both Hwi and SH are trying to play their own game, accidentally putting themselves against each other constantly. Watch for heart break, friendship (sometimes), and very attractive male leads aha.

Also, the music is 1000000 thumbs up. All I can say is PLEASE WATCH IT AND FREAK OUT WITH ME.

It’s on netflix, so guys, no excuse lol (DM me to fangirl with me

Black

I don’t want to spoil too much about this show because it’s honestly an experience. It’s about a girl who can see when people are going to die because of the shadows that follow them. She meets a childhood friend, who has a secret, and he asks her to help him solve crimes and protect people from dying, but of course he has his own plans. Get ready for a funny and badass female lead guys.

It’s the first korean drama I watched and will always be one of my faves. It’s an incredible murder-mystery story with more layers than a damn onion. It’ll keep you on your toes and the ending makes me cri evry tiem.

Arthdal Chronicles

At first I thought this show was kind of weird, but an episode in and I was hooked. This show is difficult to explain, but it starts with a war between Arth and the Neanthal. 2 legendary babies get separated and live in opposite parts of the country. This show is hard to describe but it follows the 3 mains, Eunsom, Tanya, and Saya (and Tagon/ Taelha lol) and their fight through tragedy, and sometimes hell on Arth (lol – like hell on earth – am I funny yet). It’s all about a fight for power and revenge among the tribes. Every single character in this show has a different reason, but they all want power to get revenge, basically.

The fantasy aspect of this show and the different ‘species’ are incredible. It does get very political, but the fun of it is all the plotting, and how the characters fix their plans that don’t work out. Half way through I kept screaming at my TV for the mains (Tanya/Saya specifically) to just fkking talk to each other ughhh. Also, Saya will be my favourite unstable boy forever. 

It has 18 episodes on netflix so far, but just signed up for 2 more seasons (thank god because if they stopped at 18 eps I’d pull a Rosa Diaz and kill everyone and then myself -.-”). I can’t wait for it to come back. GIVE ME MORE CONTENT.

Other honourable mentions: Hwarang, Rookie Historian Goo Hae-Ryung (not finished it yet, which is why it’s not up in my top 3), Missing 9, W Two worlds, Warrior Baek Dong Soo.

Thanks for reading and requesting!

I am always looking for new shows to watch, so send me recs too. I find my favourite ones are the historical dramas. But let me knoww!

#the untamed #cql #mzds #guardian #guardian cdrama #legend of fuyao #cdrama #kdrama #my country the new age #black korean drama #black #arthdal chronicles #my country a new age #chinese drama #korean drama #rec list

[tb5-heavenward]

Prelude, I am COUNTING on you to write a post-finale series for TAG. You write the boys soooo well, you know their voices as if you were related to them and I must know how it all works out now that Jeff's back. Like, is Scott still in charge or does Jeff become the lead again? Do any of the boys (read: John, because we love him) have a hard time with the change? Are Pen and Ink official?! Who is the spy in the GDF?! What does Jeff think of EOS?! Who really is the Mechanic?! I need to know!!

okay well, boy, well okay

full disclosure, as of this answer I still haven’t found the mental energy or brainspace to watch the latest and lastest ep, which is a sad but accurate commentary on how far this show has fallen in terms of importance in my life, because I remember the early days of staying up til five in the goddamn morning, with fuckin hola vpn doing all manner of evil via my IP address, just to watch the latest eps live on ITV. But times change, and times have changed so much that I’m no longer awake at 5AM anyway because I have to nurse a one year old back to sleep, but instead I have to be in bed by 11:30 at the latest so I can walk a six year old to school. Times change.

Anyway, that personal note aside, as far as my writing goes, my major projects have always been a magnification of the aspects of TAG I find the most interesting. Heavenward dialed that lens in on John and EOS and the intensity of their relationship, Harvard likewise focused on John and his most fundamental nature, and these days TA’s focal point is on Gordon/Penny as a couple and the way that all of the relationships both within and without this family ripple outward and overlap and interfere with each other, like a handful of stones thrown into still water.

I’ve been pretty transparent about how I feel re: TAG and the way its latest season went, and the problem with me taking the metaphorical cueball of TAG’s canon and trying to bank a post-series fic into the corner pocket is that I fundamentally disagree with the arc that canon’s taken, pretty much from the end of Season 2. Right up to the finale of S2 there’d been nothing I couldn’t manage to work with, barring a few mental tweaks and adjusted details here and there, but S3 just went so buck fuckin’ wild compared to what I would’ve done, storywise, that to try to write past the end of it is fairly untenable for me personally. 

And while those are all interesting questions, I’ve already addressed a lot of them. The spy in the GDF was a literal fucking rando in a goddamn raccoon burglar mask with a walkie talkie in hand. That is how far the writing had fallen, because if you want a couple of those questions answered right here and now, the mole in the GDF should have been Colonel Casey. And who the Mechanic really was should’ve been was Casey’s son, kidnapped and brainwashed and leveraged against her by the Hood, because that’s a poetic and perfect and poignant level of betrayal---Casey betraying IR as a mother who loves her son, as much as those boys ever loved their father.

Anyway. Here’s the bigger problem I have right now.

(TA spoilers-ish below the cut, a loose discussion of the map of the rest of the story, leave this unread unless you want some insight into my process re: currently unanswered but fairly obviously rhetorical questions and the overall arc of the story)

What the finale does do is makes me ask a fairly critical question about the work I have ongoing now, and makes me wonder if I might want to make it into the venue where I explore what I would’ve done with the series’ larger plot (ie: see above re: colonel casey). talented amateurs is, as mentioned above, fundamentally a fic about exploring relationships within IR. TA is my homage to the art of the slow burn, only I’ve done it bassackwards on account of the pair of them fell in love and promptly slept together within the first five chapters of the work. TA also started as a straight-up mood piece, just something to explore what that moment of an initiated relationship between Gordon and Penelope would look like. Needless to say, it blossomed, and now about 200k later, here we are.

In the same manner that TA wasn’t initially intended to be the behemoth it’s become, it was also at one point a question whether the thrust of the plot would concern Penelope’s pregnancy. Obviously it does now, and the works that follow it will continue along that essential arc---that’s the fundamental three act structure of this story, the three trimesters of pregnancy.

But ever since it started getting serious and started making itself apparent as my Next Big Thing, its been teetering on the knife’s edge of the question: Do I want to bring Jeff Tracy into this? Do I want to overshadow the future of IR with the spectre of its past? Do I want to bring him back?

Because the thing with TAG is that, if you’re the sort of person who can perceive the fundamental shape of an overall story---even one as disconnected and disjointed as TAG’s was---it was always transparently apparent that one day they would find their father. It was the series’ biggest macguffin and it’s kind of like, invisibly woven into the tapestry of the narrative. I can’t even quite clearly articulate why it always seemed so obvious---probably simply because they open the show by searching for that last desperate trace of him, but there was never a doubt in my mind that one day that would be the resolution of that question and the ultimate expression of the boys as IR. Their father wasn’t dead and they got to save him.

So it seems like any fic taking place in TAG’s verse must have that truth baked into it---their dad isn’t dead. He’s out there somewhere, alive and findable. I think the question of where could be more compellingly and believably answered than by “he’s been fridged in the fucking Oort Cloud for eight goddamn years” and I think as a writer I could take the bones of the show we’ve got and craft a more interesting version of that story. TA is a Season 2 AU in the same way that hwd is a Season 1 AU, and as far as canon is concerned, it doesn’t consider anything from S3 to be true. In TA, the Hood is still in prison and he’s going to stay there. Havoc and Fuse and Rigby don’t exist. The Mechanic is the biggest unanswered question, but also no longer IR’s problem. As far as TA’s cast is concerned, their dad is dead as a goddamn doornail.

And maybe that would be the bolder move. Maybe he could just be dead and that’s the deeper and more interesting and more poignant thought. What I can’t decide about TA is whether or not I want it to catch a case of Plot. It’s a double-edged sword, because on the one hand, the interpersonal happenings of this story are easily as interesting than anything like an actual high-stakes narrative about their father being alive could be. But equally I know I could tell that story as well or better than the actual writers actually did, and it seems silly to pretend that I’d ever do it elsewhere, though it would be a hell of a thing if I did, and I only know that because I’ve done it already.

Anyway. I’ll know in about ten chapters or so. Til then the coin’s still in the air.

#ta meta #Anonymous

[roominthecastle]

Do you think Cooper's "family talk" influenced Liz's decision to give Red the "family talk"? bc he basically said that family doesn't walk away from family, and Liz needed an excuse to keep Red from walking away from her?

yes and yes, anon. You read my mind.

I personally find this “you don’t walk away from family” thing a steaming load of harmful crap (you are never obligated to suffer mistreatment from anyone) but I agree that Liz is trying to pull this on Red bc she is worried AF. she was also withholding the Fulcrum in S2 bc she thought he would leave her if he had it, and it contributed to him getting a bullet in his chest (kinda poetic tbh). Truth is, she still has no idea what/how he feels about her and this is why she is scrambling and baiting w/ the family angle to invoke an obligation (which, to me at least, isn’t synonymous with love).

If she were sure that this is how Red sees her, she wouldn’t have begged Dembe to keep her betrayal a secret but she did, she said “you can’t tell him bc he is never gonna forgive me”. That was her entire motivation there and this is why Dembe chose to split his loyalties and risked thrashing an invaluable, decades-long relationship, and now she is like “of course you are gonna forgive bc we are family” as if that was never in doubt and the extremely painful split from Dembe was a silly fuss over nothing. It’s disrespectful and dismissive of the hurt and damage that followed due to her well-founded fear that there was not gonna be forgiveness this time around.

Also never mind that in the previous episode she already concluded that only Agnes and Dom are her family. or that at the beginning of this episode she is like “finding out your real identity has changed everything btw us” and then go “it makes no difference”, once again dismissing all the pain both of them have gone through just so this info she’d been blindly pushing for could surface. Red is also to blame here, don’t get me wrong, but dude was pushed to such an insane psychological extreme in that execution chamber only to be told that it all happened so she could find out sth that apparently doesn’t matter. it’s just… wow

Everything in this season has happened bc his real identity matters a great deal and bc she knows that what she did to find out is (borderline) unforgivable. And now she is trying to pretend otherwise in a panicked attempt at damage control.

Her ongoing uncertainty regarding their relationship is truly the only certain thing about that park bench scene.

#anonymous #tbl spoilers #tbl spec

[mittensmorgul]

today on the TNT loop (which I slept through because migraine which is mildly better now, so I'm watching the blu ray today), 2.13 Houses of the Holy. Aka that one where Dean's skepticism is put to its first real challenge and he's left with a HUGE question he can't answer. It's also where I can clearly see Chuck at work in the narrative, directly challenging Dean's beliefs and forcing him to consider this.

DEAN: That's cute. I'm just saying, man, there's just some legends that you just, you file under "bullcrap". SAM: And you've got angels on the bullcrap list. DEAN: Yep. SAM: Why? DEAN (looks up): Because I've never seen one. SAM: So what? DEAN: So I believe in what I can see. SAM: Dean! You and I have seen things that most people couldn't even dream about. DEAN: Exactly. With our own eyes. That's hard proof, okay? But in all this time I have never seen anything that looks like an angel. And don't you think that if they existed that we would have crossed paths with them? Or at least know someone that crossed paths with them? No. This is a ... a demon or a spirit. You know, they find people a few fries short of a Happy Meal, and they trick them into killing these randoms

Troubled people are being visited by "an angel" giving them orders to carry out "divine will," stopping others from committing horrific acts against innocent people by killing them before they can hurt anyone else. Sam wants desperately to believe it's actually an angel, and he confesses to Dean that he does have faith in God and that he prays every day. We also learn that-- because Mary had faith, had always told Dean that "angels are watching over you"-- that Dean hasn't trusted in that faith since Mary died.

There's a lot in this episode that will become the framework for actual angels when they eventually show up, as well as Heaven itself. Think of this as a smaller-scale version of what we eventually learn Heaven is, in an "as above, so below" sort of way:

DEAN: But she seriously believes that she was ... touched by an angel? SAM: Yeah. Blinding light, feelings of spiritual ecstasy, the works. I mean, she's living in a locked ward and she's totally at peace.

But then they start looking into the person she killed, and discover a literal pile of skeletons buried in the man's basement.

SAM: So much for the innocent churchgoing librarian. DEAN: Yeah, well, whatever spoke to Gloria about this knew what it was talking about, I'll give you that.

But Dean is still convinced it's some sort of spirit, and not an actual angel. Sam desperately wants to believe.

DEAN: Huh. Well, I guess if you're gonna stab someone, good timing. I don't know, man, this is weird, you know? I mean, sure, some spirits are out for vengeance, but this one's almost like a do-gooder, you know? Like, like a -- SAM: Avenging angel? (DEAN turns away) Well, how else do you explain it, Dean? Three guys, not connected to each other, all stabbed through the heart? At least two were world-class pervs, and I bet if you dug deep enough on the other guy —

What they do discover is the connection between all the victims and angel-inspired killers. They all attend the same church, where a priest had been murdered for his car a few months earlier, right before these killings began.

So they go to the church to find the truth, under the false pretenses of wanting to join the parish. Irony much? Even after being caught out in the lie about the previous parish they attended, they persist.

FR. REYNOLDS: Yes. The victims were parishioners of mine, I'd known them for years. SAM: And the killers said that an angel made them do that? FR. REYNOLDS: Yes. Misguided souls, to think that God's messenger would appear and incite people to murder. It's tragic. DEAN: So you don't believe in those angel yarns, huh? FR. REYNOLDS: Oh, no, I absolutely believe. Kind of goes with the job description. SAM: (nodding to a painting on the wall) Father, that's Michael, right? FR. REYNOLDS: That's right. The archangel Michael, with the flaming sword. The fighter of demons. Holy force against evil. SAM: So they're not really the Hallmark card version that everybody thinks? They're fierce, right? Vigilant? FR. REYNOLDS: Well, I like to think of them as more loving than wrathful. But, uh, yes, a lot of Scripture paints angels as God's warriors. "An angel of the Lord appeared to them, the glory of the Lord shone down upon them, and they were terrified." (SAM nods, DEAN looks confused) Luke. Two nine.

(moment to remind everyone what Cas's opinion on Luke was, from 4.18, when Dean was incredulous about learning that Chuck was a prophet of the Lord to be protected: "You should've seen Luke." Apparently prophets are historically disaster humans...)

It's interesting that Sam and Dean come away from this conversation with such wildly different conclusions based on their own personal biases-- Sam's Faith vs Dean's Skepticism. And then after visiting Father Gregory's grave, it's Sam the "angel" chooses to speak to, using his will to believe against Sam, to manipulate him, just like he had with the other troubled people he talked into doing his bidding. Because that's what he'd done.

Father Gregory's spirit believed he was doing the Lord's will, using information gleaned from listing to confessions, and possibly gleaned after his death about the ongoing lives of these people. Like Sue Ann in 1.12, he chose troubled yet essentially good people (drug addicts, alcoholics, mentally ill people) to give this twisted shot at "redemption" to by committing murder in the name of God, killing people guilty of far, far worse crimes.  And post 14.20, I'm wondering if his spirit wasn't given just a bit more info about certain members of his parish specifically to push Sam and Dean into their own crises of faith, especially considering what has come after this.

This episode has always been a game changer with Dean's experience throughout-- refusing to believe in anything he hasn't witnessed with his own eyes. And it's Sam's first test of his own faith in God that shakes his belief in a higher power when he's experiencing so much doubt in himself already. In some ways, we learn that it's his hope that God and angels and good things exist that powers him through his self-doubt, his feelings of unworthiness and impurity and his own confusing powers. We'll see this aspect of Sam's will to believe in God play out over and over again-- being tested by all his life experiences afterward, from learning about the demon blood by the end of s2, to his months without Dean developing his powers, to s4 in believing he can turn his demon-granted powers into something GOOD by saving people's lives... everything that leads to Sam's downfall is directly tied to his need to believe that a divine force he prays to is actually answering his prayers for help. Right on through desperately wanting to believe it was God talking to him in s11 (it was Lucifer), and believing that Chuck might actually help them deal with Jack by healing instead of manipulating and killing. It's 14.20 that finally shattered Sam's belief.

FR. GREGORY: You can't understand it now. But the rules of man and the rules of God are two very different things. SAM: Those people. They're locked up. FR. GREGORY: No, they're happy. They've found peace, beaten their demons. And I've given them the keys to Heaven. FR. REYNOLDS: No. No, this is vengeance, it's wrong. Thomas, this goes against everything you believed. You're lost, misguided. FR. GREGORY: Father. No, I'm not misguided. FR. REYNOLDS: You are not an angel, Thomas. Men cannot be angels. FR. GREGORY: But . . . but I, I don't understand. You prayed for me to come. FR. REYNOLDS: I prayed for God's help. Not this. What you're doing is not God's will. "Thou shalt not kill". That's the word of God.

Heck, Chuck's said a lot of things over the years, hasn't he? He simultaneously ordered the angels to watch over and protect humanity, while leaving instructions for the Apocalypse. Two orders that directly contradict one another, on a very basic level. Yes, thou shalt not kill, but... there's always that caveat of "no, they're happy! they found peace in death! heaven awaits the righteous and that's where they'll eventually find happiness and peace! life on earth is irrelevant in the face of eternal rest despite any and all suffering experienced while alive!"

eta: also, “Men cannot be angels.” Well, Jack may have proven that wrong, but he had to destroy their human souls and warp them into angel grace, just as destroying human souls to warp them into demon smoke makes them no longer human. When we didn’t know this was possible, it was more a theological curiosity, but now? We can see it for the sinister implication of the bigger picture at play on Chuck’s level of the narrative. And it’s chilling.

But Dean? He had to be crushed, to be brought to the point where he doubted everything he's ever stood for, be forced to doubt his own free will and identity through repeated possession and manipulation by Michael to be brought to the point where he would even be willing to sacrifice himself and Jack both in the belief that he truly had no other choice, that his lifelong belief in his own autonomy was a sham and that God's Will was the only force to be obeyed. And even then, gun raised to Jack's head, he couldn't submit. But that seed of doubt was planted in this episode, watching a series of events he could not explain nor justify with his current understanding of reality. He couldn't even explain what he'd seen to Sam.

All he could say in the face of having stopped this man from committing assault (and possibly worse), ending in a car chase where the man is impaled through his chest by a flying piece of pipe flung from a passing truck, was "Holy..." After which he's forced to confront the evidence of his own eyes and find an explanation for what he's seen on his own. He still isn't comfortable declaring it's proof that God exists and interfering in human events, but it shakes him:

DEAN: Gregory's spirit gave you some pretty good information. That guy in the car was bad news. I barely got there in time. SAM: What happened? DEAN: He's dead. SAM: Did . . . you? DEAN: No. But I'll tell you one thing. If . . . The way he died, if I hadn't seen it with my own two eyes I never would have believed it. I mean ... I don't know what to call it. SAM: What? Dean, what did you see? DEAN: Maybe . . . God's will.

The one thing Dean has yet to work out, once he's confronted with the reality of Angels, Heaven, and God's existence later down the line, is whether or not God's Will and God's Plans can even remotely be considered a good thing... and after 14.20, he's got the essential proof. "Good" and "Evil" become irrelevant in the face of that revelation. It becomes a case of Divine Manipulation vs Human Will, and the struggle for individual identity and free will in the face of some Grand Plan of the universe. Divine reward of peace and happiness in Heaven after a life of obedience and suffering? Nah, Dean wants his life back now. Screw the end of the road.

#spn 2.13 #spn 14.20 #s14 hellatus rewatch #it's spirals all the way down #spiders georg of the tnt loop #spn cosmology #that's what free will is #if you say 'mysterious ways' so help me i will kick your ass #spn 4.18 #spn 1.12

[riverdalenerdlol]

I’ve been thinking about the Alice teaming with the FBI thing...

Now, this is still an ongoing train of thought, but what if Charles didn’t contact Alice until, like, halfway through the season? When she was knee deep in it already?

That would clear up some of Alice’s actions that aren’t covered by the revelation (aka, due to the Farm’s brainwashing scheme/Alice’s bad parenting).

I’m talking pre-3x13:

Sending Betty to the Sisters

Taking Betty’s college fund

Saying she didn’t trust Betty

Alice generally being a dick before 3x13, etc.

Betty is concerned about her mom in 3x13 when it seems like Alice has cut her out. That can really go one of two ways: Alice just gave up on trying to get Betty into the Farm (and it’s another inexcusable action by Alice) OR Alice was in contact with the FBI and Charles and she was trying to protect Betty by cutting her out of her investigation with the Farm. I think it’s more likely to be the latter.

She knows that there are two main paths to take to protect her youngest: push Betty away so she’s far from the Farm OR bring her in so that she can keep an eye on Betty while investigating for the FBI. Alice knows that Betty is relentless in trying to get what she wants, and she knows that Betty won’t conform to the Farm after everything in the first half of the season. So Alice pushes Betty away for her safety.

I don’t really know what was going on with Alice selling the house and ditching Betty, but it sounds like another attempt to push Betty away. She knows damn well that Betty will not cave and go to the Farm, no matter what she proposes, so she sells their house so that Betty will be protected somewhere else, probably with a friend. I think it’s a stupid plan because Betty isn’t one to give up, but Alice is doing what she thinks (I would have tried to find an alternative) needs to be done.

3x17, Alice admits to talking to her son, who we now know is alive and not dead. She says a few things to Betty about how she talks to Charles, but Betty is under the impression that Charles is dead and writes it off on Edgar and whatever he’s doing at the Farm.

3x18 is the biggest teller and there’s a lot to unpack. Alice admits to talking to her son again just before Betty chloroforms her. Betty has forcefully taken her mother to the bunker and starts trying to get her to come back to her (I cry every time I watch this scene, but either way). All Betty is doing is trying to get Alice to come back to sanity but Alice pushes back. She is trying to get Betty to see that she is full in with the Farm (without mentioning her involvement with the FBI) and that she’s not going anywhere. She pushes Betty away the entire time (hopefully for Betty’s sake because Alice is fully informed that the Farm is Bad News): “Look, I love you, I love you, Betty... But you’re gonna have to let me go.” Now that I know that Alice is only there with the FBI, it is plain to me that she is trying to protect her daughter by keeping her away.

“This is your life,” Betty tells her before she leaves, setting down a stack of photo albums next to her mother. “Look at it and remember who you are.”

Let me tell you. The look in Alice’s eyes. The way she tries to grab Betty as she leaves... IM NOT DEFENDING ALICE BUT IT LOOKS LIKE SHE WANTED TO TELL BETTY THEN AND THERE THAT SHE WAS WORKING WITH THE FBI THE ENTIRE TIME (sorry this scene makes me emotional).

And when Betty comes back to her mom, she finds Alice burning family photos. That’s harsh. To get the Farm to believe her, and for Betty to believe that she is actually with the Farm (not undercover with the FBI), Alice decides that’s the only way to do it. She needs Betty to let her go so that she can investigate.

She knows that Betty will expose the truth. She’s done it to her mother before (revealing she was a Serpent in S2), and Alice can’t have it happening this time when the stakes are much, much higher.

3x20, Alice isn’t seen much. She is still playing the part of a brainwashed farmie for the FBI. She is present when Betty chooses to enter the Farm for her safety from her father, unknowing that her mother is undercover. Alice doesn’t really encourage it or try to get her away, but she seems in favor if not for Betty’s safety (like Betty was looking to get out of it), than so that Alice can keep an eye on her.

3x22, Alice obviously begins to question everyone’s safety at the Farm, rounds up the wagons, and Ascends with the Farm so as not to arouse any more suspicion. She is concerned about Betty’s whereabouts and gets Edgar to admit to graverobbing (lmao, Jason, after Cheryl bursts in) and obviously has Edgar’s trust as he was about to reveal his organ harvesting to her. Alice then sneaks Cheryl out of the Farm before it’s too later, along with Juniper. She stays behind for Polly (and I think, appearances so that it looks like she’s still loyal), but makes Cheryl promise to make sure Betty is safe.

Whatever Alice has done throughout the season to convince Edgar she sides with him has worked, as it was apparent that he was fooled by her

As the season goes on (again, this is ONGOING), Alice starts to distance Betty from her.

Alice isn’t one to be defended in any case... I’m just trying to help myself make sense of what can be blamed on FBI involvements and what can’t. If that means that sometimes i have to see Alice’s perspective over Betty’s, then so be it. I’m also trying to see Alice’s POV because we don’t really know what she was trying to do or what she was thinking. But I can only assume that Alice’s primary goal (while she was with the FBI) was to keep Betty safe.

I’ll keep updating this as I go and find more evidence and whatever.

I’m not even sure if this makes sense, but it’s here for consideration.

And none of this can be proven until Season 4 happens, but again, it’s here for consideration.

[thisisevenharderthannamingablog]

6.21/22 The Final Battle

Well, here we are. I can’t title this “the final write-up” because I still have to go back and finish six episodes in S2, but we’re certainly getting close.

My feelings about this show are large and complicated. My feelings about this finale are of overwhelming disappointment. Read on for large quantities of salt, like we’re talking “Visitors Guide to Hallstatt” here, maybe put on a helmet.

In the Enchanted Forest: Some but not all of the Storybrooke residents are returned to the Enchanted Forest castle, while others remain in the LWM. (???) They can watch events in Storybrooke through a mirror. Zelena arrives from Oz via magic hat (???) to let them know that there is another problem: the realms are disappearing. Additional refugees arrive, including Aladdin and Jasmine.

Regina is determined to find a magical solution, and poofs everyone to her own castle. Hook is just as determined not to wait on her efforts, and sneaks off on his own. Charming follows him to the beanstalk, which he plans to climb in order to look for a magic bean to get back to Emma. They essay the quest together, find a bean, and exit pursued by a random dragon (???).

Meanwhile, the other Regina shows up back at the castle, having abandoned the Wish World with Robin due to her being wanted for regicide there, and joins the effort.

In the other world, Emma burns the book. As the Enchanted Forest comes apart, the beanstalk sways. Hook falls off, and Charming rides the falling stalk down to the ground. Snow realizes that her husband is missing. She and Jasmine go to find him. They find Hook (unhurt somehow), and Snow stays to look for Charming while the other two take the bean back to the castle. She finds him, thinks he’s dead, and kisses him, which wakes him up somehow IDK.

The bean has already begun to wither, and Regina’s magic is insufficiently speedy to revive it in time to use it (??). Her evil half buys them time (??), sacrificing herself to hold back the oncoming destruction. Everyone else takes cover in the castle.

The erosion of the realms stops when there is only a small patch of Enchanted Forest remaining.

In the LWM:: Henry wakes up on the rooftop alone, and quickly finds that Storybrooke has been re-cursed. Fiona is his mother (???) , and Emma has been in an asylum for the past two years, ever since Henry ate that apple tart and poisoned himself in an effort to prove that magic was real. Neither the storybook nor the symbols that he wrote while in an Author trance are convincing. Fiona shows up to reinforce the fake reality in which they dwell and attempt to convince Emma to destroy the storybook as a final act of healing. 

Fiona pays a visit to the pawnshop to visit Gold and Gideon and make sure their new story is in place -- that Belle ran off and abandoned them, and Fiona looks after them as best she can.

Meanwhile, Henry breaks Emma out, hoping to jog her memories with a trip to the site of her recent wedding. She does have flashes, but considers this part of her ongoing problem with reality. Henry determines to steal Emma’s car keys so they can leave town, but Fiona catches him and pushes down some stairs, breaking his arm. She uses this incident to convince Emma that the storybook needs to go, for Henry’s sake.

The worlds’ disintegration accelerates as the book burns.

Rumple asks Fiona to “reopen the investigation into Belle’s disappearance.” She offers him some hilariously bad Photoshops of Belle off seeing the world, blissfully alone.

Emma leaves for Boston (where, in the single least likely occurrence of the entire episode, her apartment is still there -- it’s not even dusty). She finds a version of the storybook that Henry made for her (when did he do that?).

Henry goes to Gold, who admits that he still has his memories because he did not entirely trust his mother, but also that he has no interest in being helpful; he just wants to find Belle. Henry borrows a mirror and a sword and goes down to the beach. He announces to anyone who might be watching via mirror that he’s going to fight the Black Fairy himself. 

He’s all ready to do so when Emma shows up -- she came back! Even though she doesn’t remember anything, she read his story and she believes him.

Rumple concocts a potion and locates Belle, only to find that she’s agoraphobic in her new, cursed life. Fiona comes to the shop looking for her wand and reminds us that she has Gideon’s heart and can command him, because that will be important later. She uses the wand to translate the symbols Henry wrote in his trance, which are about the Final Battle. Rumple returns and confronts his mother, who promises to lift the curse from Belle and Gideon just a soon as she’s done with this fight.

Oh, and she’ll also have ultimate power by then, could even bring people back to life, if that was a thing he was interested in. He could have everything! But, no deal. He takes the wand. Fiona has one last trick, however; it’s still Gideon who’s going to kill Emma, carrying out Fiona’s final command to his heart, because “Darkness can’t snuff out the Light… only light can snuff out light.”

(What the everloving fuck? This plus that final line in the storybook is why it took my poor li’l English major ass a solid month to get around to rewatching this thematic dumpster fire.)

Anyway, Rumple goes ahead and kills her, with 20 minutes left to go in the episode.

(Wait, I thought killing people -- even bad people! -- was supposed to be BAD. Wasn’t that like half of S4.)

But this time it’s okay, I guess, because the curse breaks, and everyone gets their memories back. (So Snow and Charming could have just killed Regina’s no-magic ass in their flashback a few episodes ago and broken the curse themselves instead of letting Emma go through hell to save them. Good to know.) Everyone comes back from the Enchanted Forest as the sun sets. Gideon finds his sword, and Emma.

Belle finds Rumple, and on Henry’s direction, the two of them head to the mines in search of Gideon’s heart while Emma locks Gideon in the mayor’s office. Belle - and I can’t believe I am going to fucking type these words, give me a second - TWISTS HER ANKLE AND CAN’T GO ON because it’s not like her husband is the FUCKING DARK ONE AND COULD HEAL HER IN LESS TIME THAN IT TOOK TO TELL HIM TO GO ON WITHOUT HER.

But oh no, they had to give Rumple a tete a tete with his Enchanted Forest self telling him to just give it up, let the Final Battle go on, take all the power for himself teehee! This could have been a neat moment if it had been, oh, I dunno, built up in any way at all in the entire preceding season instead of just flung at us out of nowhere. Rumple decides to do the Right Thing, but his attempt to command Gideon to stop has no effect, because of… something the Black Fairy did, apparently.

Meanwhile up above, Gideon finds them again (natch). Regina gives a Hope Speech™. Emma fights Gideon but refuses to kill him, so he stabs her. There’s a lot of light. Emma appears to be dead until Henry kisses her.

For reasons I don’t understand at all, Gideon becomes an infant again. The storybook is finished. The Enchanted Forest is back where it was - Evil Queen included, and it looks like she and Robin are expecting. Snow and Charming get a farmhouse and a dog. Emma and Hook drive off in the bug to fight crime together. Regina gets to be queen of Storybrooke. Everyone gathers at Granny’s for a weird-ass homage to Da Vinci’s Last Supper.

(I have blocked every gifset that includes that scene that crosses my dash, because what the actual fuck.)

In sum, happy beginnings all around.

Also: In some wrapper scenes after an unspecified time jump, we meet a plucky young girl named Lucy and her fairy godmother, Tiger Lily. Lucy has a storybook and a sword and says she’s Henry’s daughter. Henry (now an adult and living in Seattle in our fade-out) has no memory of her. A grave new threat has overcome the Enchanted Forest and their family.

I didn’t pay much attention to these, as I am not planning to watch the season.

Parallels: This episode consisted of (depressingly) little else but direct callbacks to other episodes -- which is not nearly as effective as parallelism, unfortunately.

Fiona = Regina, obviously

The now-magicless Zelena travels by magic hat (1.17); apparently in his years off-screen, Jefferson made a new one

Emma’s pullup scene is a reference to Terminator 2 (another sequel, see earlier this season)

Operation Cuckoo’s Nest is a twofer, as the entire “operation” business is now several layers deep in self-reference. Unfortunately.

Killian and Charming climb the beanstalk from 2.06

Her Handsome Hero makes an appearance in 6.21 and then again in 6.22, when Rumple uses it to find Belle.

Fiona giving Belle an agoraphobic personality is reasonably close to Regina having locked her up

Snow kissing Charming awake was a callback to, well, rather a lot of their scenes since the S6 curse.

Fiona’s final plan as she explained it to Rumple - no more laws of magic, bringing people back to life, making them love - was lifted wholly from the OUaTiW spinoff, where it made a hell of a lot more sense.

We got one last reference to the price of magic, although it’s hard to see any rhyme or reason to how that’s applied these days.

Henry kissing Emma reverses the S1 finale.

Six seasons’ worth of material, magic items, and emotion to draw from, and this random grab-bag is what they came up with.

On a cheerier note, Lucy means “light” which I feel is appropriate for Snow White’s great-granddaughter and the granddaughter of a Savior.

Wardrobe Department:

There was nothing new or interesting here.

In Hindsight: The villains on this show have gone steadily downhill in capability for the past few years. Regina enjoyed most of a decade as the tyrant of the Enchanted Forest, and 28 more years with Storybrooke in her iron grip before Emma broke the curse for which Regina had murdered her own father.

Rumple was the Dark One, holder of unmatched power, for centuries, came thisclose to living forever in a world specially designed for his happiness (S4).

Pan had absolute power in Neverland for centuries. Cora held sway in Wonderland for years, and got the better of Rumplestiltskin once (very nearly twice). Zelena ruled Oz for something like forty years, if my timeline is anywhere near correct.

Fiona lost her wand ten seconds after turning evil, and was defeated by a fairy who regularly gets herself nearly-dead and doesn’t even show up in the town’s magical ranking these days. She was imprisoned for centuries, sulking and plotting in the Dark Realm, before she made it to Storybrooke, where she spent a week romping around, finally cast her curse, her great work of villainy -- and it got broken and she got killed THE NEXT DAY.

What a loser.

I did a rare thing for me and asked Adam on Twitter what was up with this episode, given that most of it was clearly written for Regina, not the Black Fairy. I did not get an answer, and I suppose we’ll never know what caused this change in direction -- maybe it was as simple as the fact that JMo was leaving and Lana was staying next season, and they didn’t want to end the show. It seems inarguable to me, however, that this change was made, because absolutely nothing about Fiona’s actions makes sense in light of her character.

Fiona’s Dark Curse was (retconned to have been) intended to protect her son (Rumple) by taking all of the Enchanted Forest children to the Land Without Magic. Her later actions were fixated on Gideon as substitute for Rumple. The Dark Curse as enacted in the finale didn’t appear to have anything in particular to do with Rumple or with Gideon. They were both supposed to be cursed and oblivious, so how would that have been a happy ending for Fiona? Was she going to spend eternity watching their family from outside? Storybrooke under her curse had plenty of magic, too, ignoring what was supposed to have been the entire original point.

The new Dark Curse did end up having a lot to do with Emma, with whom Fiona had no relationship at all beyond the inescapably lame “you’re a Savior so I have to kill you” thing. It separated her from her family and drove a new wedge between her and Henry. Fiona had no reason at all to be interested in Henry -- but in this new world she adopted him? -- or in any of Emma’s family for their own sake -- but she made sure to send specifically them away, and no one else? She has literally never interacted with any of these characters, and it makes no sense that she would care about their whereabouts.

(And why for the love of Pete was Henry immune to the curse? I don’t think they ever addressed that. He wasn’t under the first one because he was brought to town later on, but there’s no obvious reason why he should have kept his real memories this time around.)

(While I’m at it, how in hell did she still have Gideon’s heart? She and Rumple were supposed to have been allies as of a couple episodes ago; there’s no way he would have made any deal without securing that.)

None of what Fiona did makes sense for the Black Fairy, but it would have been very much in keeping with Regina’s past actions. (Yes, even down to harming Henry. This is a woman who killed the thing she loved the most.) Even Fiona’s costuming was identical to Regina’s look in S1.

I’m too irritated by it to even really discuss Regina and Rumple’s ending for this season. Suffice to say that they got everything they ever wanted -- twice over in Regina’s case -- and I will never stop being bitter about it. What was even going on with Rumple here? Is being the Dark One irrelevant now? Because if he’s been 100% able to make good decisions this entire time, curse or no curse, and just couldn’t be arsed until this very moment, that blows up another enormous piece of show mythology.

Moving on before my blood pressure kills me.

In my opinion, most of this finale’s mess comes from chickening out with Regina. The rest of it falls out as a consequence of that decision. Having slotted the Black Fairy in for her at the last moment, having decided to make this a metaphorical battle and not a literal one, they had the problem of what do with all of the other characters. I suspect the decision went like “leaving them in Storybrooke would mean re-establishing their cursed identities for viewers who haven’t seen them in five seasons, and it would mean creating all new curse identities for some of them, so let’s just send them off to the EF and, um, they can do absolutely nothing useful there.” The Captain Charming scene was cute as far as it went, but it was also useless, and that dialog was flat-out terrible.

That entire half of the finale was pointless. Literally nothing was accomplished there that had any effect. In order to make all that nothing look like a very urgent something, the writers came up with this “Emma’s lack of belief will destroy all the lands” hack at what was obviously the last possible moment, and I say that because it is in DIRECT CONTRADICTION of the ENTIRE PREMISE OF THE SHOW.

We literally spent all of S1 and onward having it explained that what we think of as stories have objective existence in other worlds, that these people and these realms are real, with their own long and complicated history independent of our own; we only know of them because of the storybooks. Now all of the sudden they only exist if one particular person believes in them? What about the first 28 years of Emma’s life, when she didn’t believe in anything? What about the worlds she’s never been to, never interacted with? Stuff that happened before she was born? The history of the Authors, Mr Disney included? All of those other storybooks from the last hack job of a season finale?

The idea that the final battle is an internal one is fine in itself, but then what makes it final? Why was the Black Fairy involved at all? Why has it been six years and we’re still talking about whether Emma Swan believes in magic? Shouldn’t the “final” battle revolve around everything that has happened to her SINCE that moment, not take us back to just before it happened? What narrative purpose does isolating her from everyone except Henry - again! - serve?

It wasn’t even really a battle; the curse didn’t capitalize on any weakness in Emma’s character.  We just rewound the tape to the S1 finale so she could make the exact same decision she made then -- to leave -- and then convince herself to come back sans apple tart-induced trauma? Was that supposed to be the big pivotal thing, that she came back on her own? Because that was pretty fucking drastically underplayed, and also pretty far from definitive. Emma could get her memories wiped tomorrow (and given this show, probably will), and we’d do the same thing all over again. The fact that they didn’t even feel a need to show her moment of deciding to act on screen says everything, I think.

And then we have the concluding fight, which defies explanation. One thing this show has generally done a good job with is parallelism, but here of all places it fell flat. Everything about the “climax” felt perfunctory at best. They introduced the vision of the fight with Gideon in 6.01, therefore they had to revisit it in the finale, even if it made no particular sense to do so (nothing about Gideon has made sense). This fight happened because a dead character who had no established reason for doing anything she did gave a pointless character an order that didn’t make any sense in the first place; Emma had to “die” purely because the writers said she would six months ago. As an action and as a scene, it accomplished nothing.

Having previously established that the sword was a real sword that would cut people, they hand-waved that and gave it a magical effect instead, allowing Emma to be struck down and then wakened by TLK. The TLK with Henry at the end of S1 was one of the most hard-fought-for scenes I have personally ever seen in any medium, with an entire season of loving development leading up to it; this one felt like a distant echo through a mile of aluminum ducting. Henry has barely even been in this season, hasn’t had a good episode for his character since 6.08. His relationship with Emma in particular has been on the back burner since “The Other Shoe.” The two of them didn’t even get a good spotlight in this episode what with all of the side action in the Enchanted Forest and with Rumple and so on. That kiss didn’t bring anything new to the story.

And so here we are, if not at the end of the story, at least at the end of a significant chapter.

Adam and Eddy wrote some of my all-time favorite episodes of this show, back in the day. At this point, I have to say that while they might make solid staff writers, they have no business running a show. They don’t care about consistency from one season or sometimes even one episode to the next, their creative toolbox appears limited in scope, their writing is self-indulgent, and they’re apparently not willing to follow through -- of their own accord -- on events that should have significant in-character consequences. The result is a finale that very nearly systematically trashes every piece of moral and magical world-building that was still standing after six seasons -- and which I feel comfortably certain will be ignored when the show goes into S7. 

All of that said, I do want to end this on a positive note. I have over the past few years very much enjoyed the story of Emma Swan, the ugly duckling who thought she would never have a family, the lost princess who gave up on love, the hardass with her box of sentimental treasures -- the mother, daughter, sheriff, swordswoman, sorceress, leader, lover, and all of the other jackets she’s worn across the years, leather and otherwise, in the end a fully realized woman with a whole heart and a happy future ahead of her. That’s a story I will never get tired of, and for that I offer my gratitude.

To all of you reading this, I would like to say thank you as well, for the many hours of diverting conversation, for the moving and hilarious commentary, and for the friendships that have grown up from this unexpected ground. May your supplies of fic never run dry.

#b thinks about once upon a time #ouat #ouat 6x21 #ouat 6x22