#like... i can interpret Episode 7 that way if i really wanted to

[gentlebeardsbarngrill]

03/06/2024 Daily OFMD Recap

TLDR; Cast & Crew Sightings; David Jenkins; Kristian Nairn; Ruibo Qian; Fuckeries; Watch Party Polls; Watch Party Reminders; Fan Spotlight; Cast Cards; Pink News; Q+ Magazine; Stats; #ReleaseTheJenkinsCut; Love Notes/Morale; Daily Darby / Tonight's Taika

= Cast & Crew Sightings =

== David Jenkins ==

David popped his head out today with all the Jenkins Cut talk going around. @bbviago thank you for bringing Dad out of hiding!

Our friends at @adoptourcrew captured the fandom reaction pretty well me thinks:

Also too, @skrifores had a really excellent point about how different the interpretations of this were. Which way were you all thinking? Any thoughts?

== Kristian Nairn ==

Remember the book Kristian kept hinting about? It's up for preorder! It comes out Sept 24! Wanna pre-order it? Visit Kristian's Linktr.ee

Src: Kristian Nairn's Instagram

== Ruibo Qian ==

Our pirate queen singing and playing the guitar for us. In addition... there's some clown/honking going on because of the note she added to her Instagram. *Resurrection* with 3 tiny stars, anyone? 👀

Ruibo Qian's Instagram

== Fuckeries ==

Save OFMD Crew is calling out for some help! Please reach uot to businesses, streamers, personalities, etc today to bring in more engagement if you have a few spare minutes!

== More Watch Party Voting! ==

We need you!

Our crew-mate @iamadequate1 implores you to come vote for the final version of the watch party hashtags! They're neck and neck!

Final Short Poppies Watch Party Hashtag Poll

Flight of the Conchords Watch Party Hashtag Poll

== Watch Party Reminders ==

= A League Of Their Own =

Tomorrow the 7th is ALOTO Episodes 6-7, and then OFMD 6-7 Time: 1-4PM EST/6-9PM GMT Where: You can watch ALOTO on Amazon Prime

Watch Party Hashtags:

OurFlagMeansBaseball

ALeagueOfTheirOwn

SaveOFMD 

= Mar 4 - Mar 8: Wrecked Season 1 =

Don't have access? DM @iamadequate1 on Twitter or Tumblr

Season 1 watch from March 4th to March 8th. 

Times will be 10pm GMT / 5pm EST / 4pm CST / 2pm PST.

Saturday there will be a re-watch for those who need to catch up (time TBD) .

Hashtags: 

#WreckedPirates

#SaveOFMD

#RhysDarbyFaction

== Fan Spotlight ==

= Cast Cards! =

Thank you thank you @melvisik for recognising our dear Gabriel, Nick Kroll! So glad to see some of the actors from just one episode getting some love! Another card to add to the collection!

= Pink News =

I realise that Pink News is an actual news site, but they are joining under the fan spotlight tonight for their continued dedication to #OFMD and quality content/memes.

= Q+ Magazine =

Our friend @spanishjenkies caught Q+ sending some incentive over to Chaos Dad 😉. Just more reasons to love Q+ for their continued support!

== STATS STATS STATS ==

Great News Everyone Looks like Season 1 and 2 are ranking in the top 20 Comedy shows in Germany! WAY TO GO DEUTSCH CREW! Thank you @quirkysubject for the update!!

= @AdoptOurCrew Data Updates! =

== #ReleaseTheJenkinsCut ==

Thank you to @sweet-little-goldfish-stede (@Rowan_ofmd on twitter) for bringing this new hashtag to our attention! #ReleaseTheJenkinsCut is being used not only for fun, but to encourage streamers to #AdoptOurCrew! Please feel free to use it liberally, especially with your favorite BTS scenes! Also, kind thanks are in order for catching Jenkins trending!

== Love Notes / Morale ==

Hey there lovelies! Today had some pretty great excitement going on! Chaos Dad popped his head out, Kristian's book got announced, our Ruibo put out a lovely song for us. All good news! Even though a lot of folks had peaks today, I know some of our crew is still having some troughs, so I wanted to send out a little reminder that it's okay to have bad days. It's okay to not be as excited as everyone else. It's also okay to be excited when others are feeling down. We are all individuals and we all have our unique experiences and struggles we deal with every day.

You don't need to compare your experience to others-- you're allowed to be exactly how you are right now. If you feel down, give yourself a hug, you don't have to come out of it right now if you're not ready, but if you are, there are plenty of things happening to give you some joy.

I was going to save this song for when I wanted to talk a bit about mistakes and dealing with them, but I think it's pretty applicable to any situation where we're feeling down. It helps keep me grounded sometimes when I'm not feeling up for things. Here's just a couple lyrics from: "It's Alright - by Mother Mother"

"It's alright, It's okay, it's alright, it's okay You're not a demon, there's a reason You behaved in that way It's alright, it's okay, it's alright, it's okay And I believe, yes I believe that you will see a better day It's alright"

Another lovely note from @spanishjenkies I thought was really important to include tonight-- Jen is right, David didn't say stop :) Remember that whenever you're feeling like the gravy basket is feeling too deep. Chaos Dad is still fighting the good fight in the background and he hasn't told us to throw in the towel.

Goodnight/G'day Lovelies, hope you all get some rest and have a wonderful day tomorrow!

==Daily Darby/Tonight's Taika==

You can blame thank @celluloidbroomcloset for the inability to think after that Darby gif. @ofmd-ann thank you for the reaction gif for all of our brain cells in the form of Taika.

#daily ofmd recap #daily ofmd recaps #ofmd daily recap #ofmd daily recaps #ofmd #our flag means death #rhys darby #taika waititi #save ofmd #adopt our crew #ReleaseTheJenkinsCut #love notes #chaos dad #daddy jenkins #david jenkins #ruibo qian #kristian nairn #adoptourcrew #saveofmdcrew #our flag means death fanart #save our flag means death

[prettysweetprettysweet]

while i understand why some viewers would be puzzled by Achi's quietness, reserved energy, and the way he nearly always lets Karan take the lead - which might make it seem like he isn't invested in the relationship - for me that is actually an element I really like because it makes certain moments hit a lot harder.

the way I've been interpreting it is that Achi's critical insecurity and lack of self-worth is still deeply rooted and trying to keep him stuck in his default closed off/blend into your environment behavior model. that is certainly not going to go away overnight, but the more he interacts with Karan in this new romantic relationship context, the more opportunity Karan has to start chipping away at the barrier that keeps Achi from letting himself feel comfortable in a state of being loved. and it seems like a challenge that Karan is more than happy to take on, because you can see how giddy he gets when he's able to get a full-bodied positive reaction out of Achi. like when Karan said, cheezily and with an air of ridiculousness, that he had opened the bottle for Achi so Achi wouldn't wear himself out.

like Karan is RELISHING having elicited this wide, full-faced smile out of Achi.

we also saw Achi being treated like an object of beauty as Karan poses him for photos. he's being handled preciously by Karan, and for me this read as 'aaaaaahhhhhh my heart is racing i cant breathe, i've never felt like this before, i love this feeling.' It's a quiet and inward-facing response, but it has a huge amount of significance in regards to Achi's self-image. He is realizing through all of Karan's careful and loving gestures and affectionate gazes that he is beautiful in Karan's eyes - and he's starting to believe it himself, helping him build the confidence to begin responding fully to Karan and extending himself in turn.

We can estimate that Achi has probably never been comfortable with photo taking because he is so self-conscious about his body, and it takes the first half of the date for him to loosen up. but later on when Karan asks Achi if he would be interested in being photographed even more to fill the time before dinner, Achi agrees readily and with a smile, because he has become that comfortable in Karan's company. and Karan, again, is delighted at this slow but steady change in Achi's receptiveness to being loved and adored.

It does seem like Achi isn't vocalizing his feelings nearly as much as Karan. But remember - most of Karan's deepest, most intense romantic pinings have occurred in his thoughts and not out loud, because he's very concerned with Achi's comfort and doesn't want to scare or overwhelm him. Karan is open with his body language and more than comfortable offering signs of his care and affection, a stark contrast to Achi.

Achi, on the other hand, hasn't quite let himself believe that he's worthy of Karan's love and instead seems to think that Karan has made a horrible mistake. This is changing, and we are starting to see how Achi is slowly letting himself believe that this is real and that Karan knows who he is and is in love with him, the real him - and this naturally leads Achi to start viewing himself as a lovable person.

But one side effect of Achi having spent so long doubting Karan's affection for him is that he seems to have tried to squash any hope he might have inside him that anything good could happen to him, that he could really have a claim to Karan and Karan a claim to him. This is an act of self-preservation, in case Karan 'comes to his senses' and realizes that Achi is actually boring, unremarkable, and unworthy of being cared for by anyone.

So when Achi starts to let hope seep in, it really is precious. in episode 7, he expresses genuine fear about revealing his mindreading to Karan - because the outcome could likely be that Karan will be put off and not want to be around Achi anymore. he and Karan had reached a point of promise and new beginnings (love! hope!), and Achi doesn't want to risk losing Karan as a lover.

Achi also had a moment of real vulnerability this episode, when he tells Tanaka that Karan's support has been a source of motivation for him to continue striving for self-growth. Achi's eyes are welling with emotion, and Karan definitely wasn't expecting an admission like this from Achi.

Achi is visibly having a rough time in the meeting with Tanaka, and reacts with a look of panic when Tanaka asks what would happen if he and Karan broke up, as well as when Karan offered to resign.

Achi had allowed himself to feel hope at the prospect of having Karan be a part of his life, and is starting to panic as complications threaten their ability to start laying a foundation for their relationship in earnest. He's racking his brain for ways to help Karan, covering his eyes as he builds himself up to look at Karan's sales number like its a horror film, and checking in with him/worrying about Karan non-stop.

Favorite moment of the episode: Karan being as explicit as he's ever been about his romantic aspirations ("No obstacles can come between our love now") and Achi looking like he feels like the most special boy in the universe, UNDENIABLY very excited to hear it but also embarrassed - and Karan is so tickled to have gotten that reaction from him.

The episode ends with Achi singing along with the song in Karan's head and being adorably playful when Karan brings him candy. I feel like Achi is a stray cat that Karan is trying to tame, except in this case Achi's feral quality is his insecurity hindering outward expression and Karan is 'taming' him by providing him the comfort and safety to be himself. Every time Karan wins a moment of Achi allowing his true feelings and personality to shine through, I think of someone being like 'mom, the cat I've been trying to win over - he's coming up to sniff my hand now!'

Something to be excited about in next week's episode based on the preview: they have clearly broken through the physical affection barrier. Ecstatic hugs, heads in laps, holding hands in bed, piggy back rides...Achi is going to further permit himself to feel and want things and indulge those wants, and also give Karan affection in return, showing that he is just as happy to be with Karan as Karan is to be with him, and just as invested in the future of their love story. While its been a journey mixed with slow and subtle growth, I really do love and appreciate how the narrative is allowing Achi the time and space to transform how he views himself and how that translates to his relationship with Karan.

more thoughts here

#cherry magic #cherry magic th #cherry magic thailand #yo mismo #karanachi #tay tawan #new thitipoom

[evelili]

I just wanted to say that I've spent the past couple of days reading the Magnum Opus as it were. And I just wanted to say it was really good. I've long since lost my FiMFiction password on account of this being the first MLP fic I've read in, in my rough estimate, 7 years. But I wanted to say you did a really good job writing the characters! You adapted the first episodes of MLP really well, there was enough there to be familiar, but enough to keep me guessing as well. (1/2)

I really liked how you wrote Twilight especially, and the memory swap thing in Chapter 11 was brilliant, and I felt really good for near instantly clocking what was up. And also the illustrations for all the chapters were really good, the way you wrote Celestia and Luna were also both phenomenal, their characterizations were fantastic. Not to mention Sunset and Twilight's relationship. But if I said everything I liked I'd go over the character limit many times over so I'll leave it here. (2/2)

(combined both ur asks together so i can answer at once xd) thank u so much for this lovely comment!! it's great u clued in to c11 quickly, i think one of my writing peeves is twists that come out of nowhere. imo it's really a success of foreshadowing if readers can figure out whats going on ahead of time and then anticipate the reveal to the characters! so im rlly glad u enjoyed that aspect of c11, plus the story + the character interactions, celestia in particular i know i wrote an interpretation of her that's quite different from canon, so im v happy u liked her! and ofc, sunset and twilight are the core of the story, and even if it's a bit of a jumpscare, im rlly proud of how the epilogue can convey their relationship, and how it grows from the "main story" until the "end" ^^

thanks for reading!

#tte #mlp #mlp fanfic #twilight sparkle #sunset shimmer #sciset #scitwi #my art #eqg #equestria girls

[antianakin]

@theneutralmime

Man, you absolutely need to find your way into the pro Jedi corner of AO3.

Setting that aside, what do I think the clones' opinion on Anakin is in canon (and specifically Rex's opinion)?

It seems overall positive, from what we can tell. In season 2 during the Landing at Point Rain episode, Rex's only obvious response to being thrown off a wall is to tiredly tell Anakin to "just ask him to jump next time." During the Umbara arc in season 4, Fives specifically points out that Anakin would never act the way Krell does. In season 6, during the Fives chip arc, we see Fives feeling pretty comfortable teasing Anakin with a dick joke and Anakin's only response to it is basically to tell him to focus. In season 7, Rex feels comfortable pushing Anakin a little about the mission to find Echo, to ask for help and support from Anakin without worrying about any major backlash (granted, Anakin DOES nearly refuse to help Rex at all and Padme has to talk him into it, but Rex clearly believes it's worth asking Anakin for assistance at all which still tells us something about what Rex thinks of him). In Rebels, Rex does nothing but gush about Anakin very positively, at nearly any chance he gets. Rex obviously doesn't know about Anakin betraying them all at this point, and you could argue that due to how he likely thinks Anakin died that his memories have perhaps developed a rosy hue that kind-of distorts them into something more positive than they were initially. But that's speculation and my personal interpretation based on my feelings about Anakin, not necessarily what's actually represented within the show.

So overall, what we DO see of Anakin's relationship with the men under his command during TCW is generally positive and that he's a General who does try to minimize casualties among his troops. HOWEVER, he is not the ONLY Jedi who is trying to minimize casualties, but one of MANY. In the Umbara arc, Fives doesn't just point out that ANAKIN would never be like Krell, but that NONE OF THE JEDI would be like Krell. And during the Citadel arc, there's an entire side story where Tarkin criticizes the Jedi for explicitly refusing to push for victory at any cost, and while both Ahsoka and Obi-Wan vehemently disagree and defend the Jedi's strategy, it's ANAKIN who agrees with Tarkin that they're being too soft. So while Anakin appears to be going along with the Jedi's current strategy and is smart enough to recognize that sometimes there are smarter ways to victory that cost fewer lives, he is BY FAR not the only Jedi to care about minimizing clone casualties and is in fact the ONLY Jedi we ever see who seems to believe they're being TOO SOFT and should maybe be pushing harder for victory no matter the cost.

Rex's relationship with Ahsoka is... odd sometimes. I feel like the end of the show (and things like TOTJ) sort-of insinuate that their relationship is a lot closer than we actually see it be during TCW. There are practically no scenes where the two of them get to just... be together and bond. It generally seems to stay pretty professional through season 5. Obi-Wan at least has a few times where he and Rex have sort-of SHARED an experience on a mission together, like their time on Kadavo as slaves or even Umbara to some degree, Christophsis, Saleucamai, etc. The only arc coming to mind where Rex and Ahsoka are left together is the Blue Shadow Virus arc which focuses much more on Ahsoka bonding with PADME, not Rex or the clones. So while Rex's relationship with Obi-Wan seems to also be fairly basic and professional, there's a lot more times where the two of them end up on a mission together without Anakin or Ahsoka around, while Ahsoka and Rex often seem to get separated and when they aren't, the focus is on Ahsoka bonding with someone ELSE.

I think a lot of people WANT Rex and Ahsoka to have really cared about each other and obviously season 7 of TCW made it a lot more explicit, but the first 5 seasons of TCW don't really build it up that much, and it's something I think TCW failed at personally. It would've been nice to have more exploration of that relationship, but I just don't feel like we got it. If we ignore season 7 of TCW, I honestly feel like Rex DOES have more of a relationship with Anakin than he does with Ahsoka. I think it's always very professional, but there does seem to be a level of familiarity and comfort and respect there between them that just doesn't exist with Ahsoka.

All of this being said, I don't think any of that really justifies Rex GUSHING about Anakin in Rebels and constantly comparing him favorably to Kanan, that doesn't feel in character for Rex to me or particularly accurate to the way that relationship was actually portrayed.

Nor do I think that any of the more professional respect that Rex did have for Anakin would keep him from refusing to forgive him once he finds out the truth about Vader. People attribute "I'm no Jedi" to Ahsoka these days, but the first person to say that line was REX, right before he spears a slaver. And I think it would be reasonable to assume that, if Rex as told the truth about Anakin, that he'd be able to look back at their history and see all of the times Anakin took advantage of him in a very different light. When he thinks Anakin was a heroic Jedi, he can see those moments as just Anakin trusting Rex with all of his deepest secrets. But after he knows Anakin is the one who enslaved the clones and murdered the Jedi? I imagine that might change.

And dear LORD, I've got about a MILLION issues with the idea that Anakin de-chips the 501st clones post-Order 66 and that they still LIKE HIM afterwards. For one, Anakin would not do this. This is wildly out of character for him. Anakin is a slaver and people need to just accept that this is a completely canon aspect of his character. Anakin does not CARE about anybody while he's being Vader, his primary concern is HIMSELF and he wants everyone else to be miserable in the dark with him. He has zero issues with causing pain or exerting power over people and we see this OVER AND OVER AGAIN during the Original Trilogy. There is absolutely no way that Anakin, while still Vader, would EVER de-chip the clones.

But even that has nothing on the absurdity that is the idea that the clones still LIKE HIM once they're de-chipped, like... WHAT THE FUCK. They now know that Anakin MIND-CONTROLLED THEM INTO WEAPONS that he used to cause a GENOCIDE AGAINST THE JEDI. How in the FUCK would any of the clones be OKAY WITH THAT? Anakin MARCHED THEM INTO THE FUCKING TEMPLE AND POINTED THEM AT INNOCENT MEN, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN. If there is ANYTHING that we learned about the clones during TCW, it's that they would NEVER have been okay with that or done it of their own free will. So the only way you can justify the clones "getting along" with Anakin post-Order 66 is to claim the clones just hated the Jedi enough to be totally fine with having been used to commit their genocide.

And even if we assume that, we still have to assume the clones just don't care that much about Anakin having been a part of mind controlling them IN THE FIRST PLACE. That's a MAJOR betrayal for them to forgive EVEN IF they don't care about the Jedi they were forced to kill (INCLUDING CHILDREN). And these are the 501st clones, which means they would've personally known Anakin, these were the men Anakin was PERSONALLY responsible for protecting, which just makes the betrayal all the worse. It would've been bad enough if it was, say, the Coruscant Guard who probably barely know Anakin and who Anakin was not tasked with ever leading, but it's not. It's the 501st, who HAVE to rely on Anakin to lead them well. It's the 501st, many of whom already went through Umbara where they dealt with a Jedi General who treated them JUST LIKE THIS and we saw that NONE OF THEM LIKED IT (even Dogma, who believes in loyalty to the Jedi above all else, doesn't actually LIKE what they're forced to do and is just as horrified as anybody else when they realize they've been tricked into killing fellow clones).

So while I think it's entirely fair to say that Rex and the other 501st DID have a positive relationship with Anakin during the Clone Wars and that Anakin was doing his best to minimize casualties, I think it's UNFAIR to claim that Anakin was doing something the other Jedi WEREN'T also doing and that the clones would EVER continue to respect or like him post-Order 66.

#star wars #captain rex #501st legion #501st battalion #ahsoka tano #obi-wan kenobi #anti anakin #anti anakin skywalker #anakin critical #anakin skywalker critical

[leavemyelevator-alone]

Okay, I know I’m a few days late, but I want to talk about Nicholas the Punisher. This theme shows up in either episode 6 or 7, during Wolfwood’s fight against Livio on the Sand Steamer, and it starts playing when Wolfwood declares that he’s gonna be pissed if he has to hurt Livio. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen Wolfwood fight (far from it), but with such high stakes on the outcome on this fight, both concerning Livio’s safety and Vash’s survival, and the fact that this is the theme that is supposed to reflect Wolfwood as the Punisher, we would expect something fast-paced and tense, maybe, if it wanted to lean into the looming outcome if Vash and Wolfwood lose. 

   But no. Wolfwood’s theme (as the Punisher) is so slow, and seems to carry a melancholic, tragic theme to it. It feels so weary, like Wolfwood is exhausted of having to play this part, and is sick of hurting people he once knew (and even loved, in Livio’s case). It carries an undertone of determinedness, but it’s so overwhelmingly melancholic it makes me pause. Does it mean that under all of his blunder, Wolfwood had already given up on Livio, from the start of the fight? This theme plays before he spits out who he really is to Vash, so does that mean that this is how Wolfwood views himself? Does he see himself as this tragic, unforgivable monster? Does he think that he doomed Livio, albeit unknowingly from the start by letting his little brother follow him around? I think so, but the cool thing about music is that everyone has their own interpretation of it. 

   Knives’ theme is strong gorgeous and victorious, Vash’s is chaotic and clearly feels like someone on the run, but Wolfwood’s stays tragic. It is mean to show who he is with the Eye of Michael — what they’ve made him into. Not this strong, unbreakable inhuman fighter, but a scared, broken man who feels like not only his brother but his humanity was ripped away from him. Let’s compare it to Undertaker, his introductory theme: as @/fatalwhims mentioned, this piece is overall kinda unsettling. It’s slower as well, but is more confident. It’s relaxed, and arguably a little mischievous, as opposed to Nicholas the Punisher’s despondency. This is absolutely the musical personification of Wolfwood’s persona he shares with the gang. This is the relaxed, knows what he’s doing, “big-brother Nico” vibes he attempts to use to get Vash to trust him. But Nicholas the Punisher is so far from that. 

Okay, we got the melancholy, “woe-is me” music out of the way; now it’s time for the action-packed, Vashwood-fighting-back-to-back fight music, right? Wrong. Whom to Kill, Whom to Let Live is the track that plays next, and it is just as (arguably) hopeless. The piano creates a bit more of a determined feel, as well as the bass (I think? Correct me if I’m wrong, cause I probably am) that comes in at 1:07 and the addition of another instrument at 1:37, but if you listen closely, the determination that it invokes fits more that of a grim one than that of a triumphant, I-can-beat-him! feel that most series like to do. That aforementioned piano piece? It’s lifted directly from the track Orphanage. Whom to Kill is just as sad of a song as Nicholas the Punisher, and I feel like this is the perfect score for this fight scene. This is not an epic showdown like it was against the Nebraskas at the beginning of the series, or even against Knives at the end of it. This is what I would call the “Last Agni Kai” fight: Wolfwood doesn’t want to fight Livio. He understands that he seems to have no choice, but that doesn’t mean he wants to fight his baby brother. That is why the Orphanage piano piece comes back and haunts this track. That is why it is grim determination. He will either have to let Livio kill his ward (which will get him killed by Knives), or he will have to kill Livio himself (which will break him worse than death). The entirety of the Livio-Vash-Wolfwood fight is tragic, somber, almost desperate music; not what you would expect to hear from an epic fight scene. None of this might make any sense, but I had to get it out of my system. Thanks for indulging my rambling! 

@tristampparty

#TristampParty #trigun #i don't know why i did this #but it Would Not Release Me until i did #nicholas d. wolfwood #trigun stampede #analysis

[olreid]

riverdale is.. schrodinger's show? ??

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

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

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

#asks #anon #RIVERDALE

[a0random0gal]

Let's talk about hotd's deleted scenes

Soo hotd has a lot of interesting scenes that were deleted. Some people love them, others believe that removing them was for the best.

Today I'll check em out and tell you how I feel about them, and how I think they could have benefited the show if kept in.

1. The infamous Daemon hug scene

Uhh I have.. feelings towards this.

And I already hear you go:

"How could you not like this, it's so wholesome!" Yeah I know I know, trust me, I think this is adorable, just a weird scene.

From what we know this shot was completely improvised by Matt and it shows.

Cause almost all of his character's nicer scenes that make people think "maybe he isn't that bad" were ideas Matt came up with. We can see throughout the show how the poor guy does his best to not make Daemon look like a psycho and it's nice on paper, but the contrast between his improvised scenes and the scripted ones is jarring.

I mean we go from him violently beating his first wife to death with a rock, to him tenderly breaking the news of Luke's death to Nyra or picking up Vizzy's crown and gently crowning him.

It does work more with his book characterization though so that's cool.

It's cute, it makes casual viewers go awww, but it's a bit inconsistent in the grand scheme of things.

I guess some people will interpret it as the softer spot Daemon has for the people he truly cares about, but knowing how he also treats them in other scenes...

Cough cough Rhaenyra choke scene cough cough.

I'm just left a bit confused.

Overall, I like it, but there's better.

7-/10

2. Criston taking his Kingsguard vows.

God I wanted this to make the cut soo bad.

It's just that in the past I've already talked about how dirty Criston is done in the fandom, and I truly believe he deserves more screentime, he's a very interesting character.

So getting a scene like this would have been awesome, and by showcasing the pride and happiness Criston felt at achieving his dream thanks to Rhae, her eventual treatment of him would have hurt even worse.

Personally I'm not sure if it could have swung more people to feel for him and criticize Nyra, but it would have generally enriched his character and relationship with the princess and I would have looved it.

Only point against it is that it's probably one of the least important deleted scenes.

It sucks to say it, but I didn't really feel it's absence, you know?

If I had to cut a scene, I too would have chosen this one, but with a veery heavy heart.

Really solid idea though.

8+/10

3. The Rhaenicent fight at the end of episode 2

Finally, we're moving onto Alicent related scenes.

And this... is my villain origin story.

I can't believe it was cut, wtf!

I get that maybe they wanted to stay loyal to the rule "show don't tell" cause it was already obvious that Rhae was mad at Alicent when she ran out of council meeting room after the announcement of her father's betrothal, but like... The possible angst!

Alicent crying, trying to explain the situation and appealing to their friendship to try and get Nyra to calm down while she screams at her and calls her names for not revealing the truth sooner, god this would have destroyed me even further!

The missed potential drives me insane, I would literally pay money to see how this scene was supposed to play out.

10/10

This awesome interaction would have also perfectly set up the hostility and tention that would characterize the next deleted gem...

4. Rhaenicent preparing for Ali's wedding

Godd, this is another one of those scenes that, in my humble opinion, should have stayed in the show.

Not only because of the possibility of more Rhaenicent angst to break my heart,(Yeess) but also because this is one of those scenes whose absence is really felt in the story for me.

We go from Ali and Viserys's betrothal to them being already married with a toddler and another baby on the way and even though I'm aware that hotd has a lot of time jumps, I do feel like we should at least have seen the wedding celebration before moving onto the future.

This event being glossed over really left a bad taste in my mouth.

9,5/10

I can just imagine the sad and awkward silence during that scene, poor girls.

5. Viserys testing Daemon regarding Aegon's prophecy

Soo, time to talk about the most incompetent targ king and his very problematic bro.

This scene had a loot of potential.

Apparently it was supposed to be about Viserys toying with the idea of revealing the Conquerer's prophecy to Daemon, but ultimately choosing not to after his brother showed little to no interest in what he was saying.

It would have been great to set up Daemyra's fight in the last episode

(honestly it would have been quite funny to see Daemon have a meltdown after hearing of the prophecy that he thinks his brother didn't trust him enough to tell him of, when he literally had the chance of knowing about it but threw it away lol)

And it also would have showcased how unfit Daemon is to rule, and given Viserys yet another reason to pick Rhaenyra as his heir over him.

9-/10

In conclusion:

Yes I know there are a lot more deleted scenes to discuss, but I really don't want this post to get too long, so I'm going to end it here.

Personally, I think all of these deleted scenes were good, and there genuinely wasn't a single one I would have hated to see on screen.

But what were your favourites? Please tell me, especially if they weren't featured in this post, I'm super curious to find out about more cut scenes to learn what we all missed lmao.

#hotd #house of the dragon #alicent hightower #rhaenyra targaryen #viserys targaryen #daemon targaryen #ser criston cole #criston cole #pro criston cole #deleted scenes

[saltpepperbeard]

It's the entitlement that really frustrates me. David didn't create this show to fix all problems with representation, he didn't even know what queerbaiting was, bless his heart.

People keep saying "we were promised xyz, we were baited, he betrayed us" ( I wish I was joking about the last once.

He literally promised none of that. And he ows us nothing. Whether people want want to admit it or not, OFMD is his story. This happens a lot nowadays, someone makes something, the response is "well its not what I want ,therefore it's trash".

I dunno, I'm just angry at this point

HONESTLY. And I feel like that's becoming such a large issue that spans across numerous forms of media too. Like, from tv shows to youtube to fanfiction, the audience thinks they're "owed" something. "Owed" something simply for being there and consuming the thing. And it's like??? No??? You are just there on your own volition to consume the thing that's being provided to you???

*hands you a cupcake* "i don't like this cupcake >:(" THEN DON'T EAT IT???

And yeah, as you said, this is very much David's story. This has always been his story. He was passionate to tell it even before it got such a large following. He was surprised it got such a large following!

It seems like he's had a lot of things in mind since the very beginning, and a rather clear direction in which he's wanted to steer the story. And, based on his recent interviews and also very interesting meta pieces I've seen, the whole [redacted] was probably a long time coming too.

That's just the thing. I also feel like everyone just gets so caught up in their own interpretations and their own headcanons and their own versions of the story that it leads to almost inevitable disappointment and/or upset. Hell, even I'm a bit guilty of that; I looked too hard into that one article that described Stede's beach reunion dream, and thought we were going to get a makeout in the waves. And then when we didn't, I was like "oh lol 😀." Same with the little brief snippet of Stede pushing Ed against the wall that we got before episodes 6 and 7 dropped; I went in with preconceived notions which didn't end up getting met.

BUT LIKE, THE THING IS, THAT WAS ENTIRELY ON ME LMAO??? NOT THE FAULT OF ANYONE INVOLVED IN THE SHOW???? And it seems like people are disregarding that very fact! Like, oh I'm upset with how this went, so it's YOUR fault. I'm not responsible for how I'm reacting to this; it's YOU. YOU were supposed to bend exactly to MY wants.

And that's just,,,not! the case!

I'm over here piloting my safe spaceship, but what I've been seeing in my peripherals is making me sad too. Like, just the blatant disregard for everything else this show has given us, and the vitriol being slung towards the cast and crew, and all the negativity around what was supposed to be a hopeful sendoff...

People can be upset. People are absolutely allowed to be disappointed, or sad, or even angry. People can definitely dislike a narrative or character choice. Hell, I'd definitely feel some kind of way if Ed or Stede died, and I've gotten angry over narrative directions in other fandoms before. But just...the lines that have been crossed are just so so disheartening to see. You can be angry without being ugly about it, without pulling so many people down with you.

If people are that upset, I really encourage them to just step back, take a breath, and focus on other outlets. Because the entitlement and accusatory bits are certainly not it.

#Answered #Anons #OFMD S2 Spoilers #only tagging the necessary ones PFFFF #because yeah it's just... #whew #AND #I definitely extend open arms to you anon #Because this little circle is definitely trying to turn poison into positivity

[peri]

Peridot and Unlearning (Internalized & Externalized) Homophobia

i.e., here's why peridot's redemption arc is partially (a metaphor?) about unlearning homophobia

the title sounds crazy but bear with me here.

let's start off with saying NO, fusion does not = romantic love. that's an age old discourse and it can be so easily solved by stating there are many different forms of love, and sometimes fusion is just for power (which is a form of love in-of itself, albeit fucked; the love for power or toxic love) HOWEVER, in many cases, such as Garnet's, it most certainly is about romantic love. so to keep it as brief as possible, thats what we have in mind in this post. it's gay love okay.

now, let's talk about the scene i just captioned. this is from the episode "too far," which is an episode about developing a crush and accidentally hurting them in the process of trying to impress them. (however you want to look at it, but thats how i interpret it) the fact it starts off with casual homophobia is important, coz it shows peridot still has a lot of prejudices despite recently becoming part of the team, which is full of gay people, undeniably.

peridot's redemption arc is partially about coming to terms with your sexuality, retraining your mind from internalized homophobia after being raised in such a homophobic society/household, and becoming proud of your sexuality / identity.

OBSERVE:

"you dont understand! im protecting a planet i was once trying to destroy! i used to follow every order - every rule!"

"now im a traitor! a rebel!"

"A CRYSTAL QUEEEEEER"

sorry i had that joke stored for this analysis since 2019. anyways

i'm going to try to keep this short, but more under the cut.

IM SO BAD at organizing my words so this post is rly hard to make so im gonna do it like this.

MORE EVIDENCE THAT PERIDOT'S REDEMPTION ARC IS COMING TO TERMS WITH BEING GAY / UNLEARNING HOMOPHOBIA:

being frustrated about joining a lesbian/gay gang

coming from a society where homosexuality is forbidden

telling off your mom by saying youre joining some rebel lesbians/gays to fight her oppressive society

wearing pride flags (stars) everywhere after coming out

looking up to experienced lesbians (Garnet)

the scissoring joke (from "too far." if you know you know)

furthermore, i thought it'd be fair to include peridot learning how to respect how people identify in other ways, such as names / how they prefer to be addressed. this, most of the time, goes hand-in-hand with homophobia.

peridot, narrating: "he also said he wanted me to stop calling him "the" steven." steven: "its just, steven!" peridot: "i told him i'd call him whatever i want!" [hiss] peridot: "he told me that was rude."

(from the episode "log date 7 15 2")

peridot learns how to respect how people identify. lgbt win

i should add she also eventually learns how to respect Garnet's whole deal in the same episode (log date 7 15 2) which was also a huge moment in her unlearning homophobia. which, btw if you dont know or dont remember, Garnet does by comparing herself to peridot's (assuming) gay ship between Percy and Pierre from Camp Pining Hearts, saying she was the optimized version of herself (the reason peridot "ships" them; theyre the best team logically according to her analysis ship chart)

anyways, now the biggest most obvious point is the fact that peridot actually is gay. i've referred to this episode a few times now, but thats becoz it really is a huge point in proving my 'thesis';

in the episode "too far," peridot is shown to get obsessed with impressing amethyst. peridot experiences something they havent yet up until this point: a crush. i mean, you can interpret it as you wish, but thats how i saw it. the butterflies, the obsession with making someone laugh, the fact peridot states amethyst is objectively the best gem of the crystal gems and emphasizes "damaging her standing with the best gem here" with their apology to amethyst after hurting her feelings.

and um, this.

🌈yeag

sorry im losing any professionalism i started this post with. also this is focusing on early-season / redemption arc peridot which is why its kind of short and is missing stuff from later seasons. i hope this was at least somewhat concise and easy to understand, and i hope yall see my point of view here! feel free to add on (theres SO MUCH its easy for it to skip my mind) if you have any other points youd like to make to support my cause and uprising. love you

#peridot #su #steven universe #q slur #idc abt the discourse w tagging it as that im doing it for a friend. love and light #im so sorry for the bad formatting im off my meds #peridot analysis #tagging that for personal ref ok bye

[verosvault]

🚨SPOILERS FOR FANTASY HIGH JUNIOR YEAR EPISODE 7🚨

Dimension20 "Fantasy High Junior Year"

Episode 7 "Stress Tested"

Timestamp: 2:04:46

Video Length: 4min. & 30sec.

Discovering clues about Lucy Frostblade & Principal Grix (Pt. 1 | ‣Pt. 2)

Emily: "As their Paladin, for potentially Paladin, can I give them a Bardic? I know that that sentence makes no sense."

Brennan: "You can give a Bardic if you want."

Ally: "Yeah?"

Emily: "I think it's like corrupted, but like maybe it won't be bad."

Ally: "I don't ****ing care."

Brennan: "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go roll me a corrupted Bardic."

Ally: "It's an eight?"

Emily: "It's a d8."

Ally: "Eight, an eight on the die."

Brennan: "Okay."

Ally: "Okay, so that's a 27."

Brennan: "Yolanda says,"

Yolanda: "Lucy was a wonderful, wonderful student. It's been very hard these last few months."

Kristen: "What was her domain again or who was she following?"

Yolanda: "She worshipped a goddess of giants and giantkin named Ruvina, who was a goddess of winter and sorrow."

Kristen: "Whoa."

Yolanda: "Lucy was not a very happy soul, but was a very kind soul. And her interpretation of that goddess was, 'the winds are cold and we are made to warm each other. And the night is long and that is why we keep the fire lit.'

Kristen: "Wow, that's beautiful. Hard."

Brennan: "Yolanda sheds a tear."

Yolanda: "She[Lucy] was very special. Very, very special."

Ally: "Would Riz have told me already that she tried to put in the-"

Brennan: "We can allow that. Yeah."

Ally: "Okay."

Kristen: "Wasn't she hoping to switch from that though? Was it to something more positive?"

Yolanda: "Lucy would never have switched. No, I don't think so."

Kristen: "Oh, she was really committed to that?"

Yolanda: "Oh, undoubtedly. Her conviction was profound. I mean, it's an ancestral goddess of her people going back a long, long time."

Kristen: "Yeah, I thought so, too."

Brennan: "I'm sorry, she actually says,"

Yolanda: "From the Mountains of Chaos."

Brennan: "She's like,"

Yolanda: "Yeah from the Mountains of Chaos for a long, long time."

Kristen: "Oh, my- I have a friend who's in the office with paperwork and they just said they were sure that they saw a request form going in her record. I don't know."

Yolanda: "Does your friend have something I could see that would confirm that? Nothing ever made its way to me that-"

Kristen: "Oh, it's not in her file or in any of your info on her?"

Yolanda: "Well, it would've needed my approval. When was it submitted?"

Ally: "I give the time."

Brennan: "She looks and says,"

Yolanda: "Well, after that time period, I mean, most of us, we've already submitted our final grades. I just wasn't at school during those two weeks. This is... I need to talk to Principal Grix. This is-"

Kristen: "So she tried to switch her god, but you don't think she would ever do that, and then she died?"

Yolanda: "Kristen, I wanna thank you very much for bringing this to me."

Kristen: "Yeah."

Yolanda: "I wanna thank you very much for bringing this to me."

Ally: "Oh, can I do an insight check and see if she's real?"

Brennan: "Yeah. Yeah."

Ally: "Or if she feels like found out or something? I don't know."

Brennan: "Yeah."

Ally: *rolls dice* "Okay. Insight is, oh, that's a 27."

Brennan: "She[Yolanda] looks upset and frightened."

Kristen: "I don't know much about Principal Grix, but is that someone...?"

Yolanda: *shakes her head*

Kristen: "Or- Up to you, yeah. I just have gotten a weird, he shot a net at multiple students, and then rode out of the room leaving them in the nets. I don't know. I'm just kind of wondering if he has, like, the care capacity for something this big."

Yolanda: "You're right. I won't go to Grix, but I need to find out what is known about this. There should have been a document attached to this that would've said the deity she was changing to. Was that... is that... ?"

Kristen: "They said it was blank, or that they couldn't find that information anywhere."

Yolanda: "Okay. I won't talk to Grix. I'm gonna go talk to Vice Principal Stardiamond, see what we can find out. Thank you for bringing this to me."

Kristen: "Of course. Anything you need help with, I would love- if you need more eyes on the ground or something like that."

Yolanda: "Please keep your eyes open, Kristen."

Brennan: "She leans over and hands you a little token. And you see that there's a small little emblem that just says, 'When the only thing you can believe in is believing' and hands it to you."

Kristen: "What's this?"

Yolanda: "Hold onto it. Hold onto it."

Ally: "Is there a little picture of Bruce Springsteen?"

Brennan: "Yes, you see there is a- tight jeans, bandana. It's the Boss, baby. You head out from there."

#dimension 20 #dimension20 #blog #fantasy high #fantasy high junior year #stress tested #fantasy high stress tested #fantasy high junior year episode 7 #fhjy ep 7 #fantasy high scene #fantasy high junior year scene #dimension20 scene #queue #kristen #kristen applebees #ally beardsley #yolanda badgood #brennan lee mulligan #bad kids #the bad kids #the intrepid heroes #intrepid heroes #lucy frostblade

[eph-em-era]

OFMD intimacy breakdown eps 6-7

Oh hey, it's me! Back again with an intimacy breakdown for episodes 6-7. prefacing this, once again, that I'm not a certified intimacy coordinator, I'm an IC in training, choreographer and director. I'm also not affiliated with the show, just have interest in the subject.

Check out episodes 1-5 here.

Massive spoilers so it's under the cut.

(I do note that there's not an IC credited in these episodes - I know there's one attached to the project so perhaps they weren't utilised in these ones, or were uncredited. Who can say!)

Let's start with - I don't know why these two episodes were so deliriously fucking fast. Potentially scheduling issues with Taika? Alternatively I heard that they lost some budget, which would have cut things a bit.

HBO Max I am in your walls.

regardless, not a fan! I think the acceleration of the relationship worked, just because of what we know about their characters, but the wider plot was too fast for my liking. Hoping in the event of a season three they take that to heart.

Anyways, onto the intimacy!

Calypso's Birthday

On a whole, I found this episode deeply charming. I love a bit of whimsy, and the ep felt like a tribute to their queer audience. Felt very seen!

It's quite challenging interpreting intimacy in these scenes as an interloper, cause I don't know how much is purposeful, vs how much is staging. Regardless, we will forge on.

One -

I would have loved a little more closeness during Izzy's first singing scene! There's what feels like a metre of space between them; something as simple as arms brushing or leaning against each other helps build that intimacy. I am guessing the gap is for shooting space - you need to see what's going on behind them - but it really loses something. It's not bad intimacy, I just would have liked more.

An alternative character interpretation is that Ed & Stede are still trying to fumble their way through things and public displays of intimacy are too much for them - which could also be the intended effect.

But as we all know - a hand touch can ignite a thousand feelings, and I would have liked a little more.

Two -

Lucius and Black Pete emerging after their day-long fuckfest. I've said it in the past and will happily say it now - I think Matthew Maher and Nathan Foad have the best chemistry out of this entire cast. It's so sweet, and so honest in a way that's very grounded compared to the rest of the cast - which is surprising considering who their characters are!

Lovely positioning! Very simple staging but effective, it makes the moment feel so, so private and intimate. It's really lovely.

Three -

Ed and Stede finally get it together and have sex. Okay, so this is obviously intercut with Izzy singing, so I'll lay it out in stages.

First, the jacket grab.

What does this say about Stede? He's been buoyed by his weird night and he wants to do something about it. What does this say about Ed? He's willing to go along with it, but it is not necessarily his first reaction. He's clearly feeling qualms about something - whether that's his relationship, or being a pirate - and he's not the one to initiate. This comes back later.

Regarding the staging, more technically - this is pretty common. A grab using the lapels or jacket is a very easy way to show intensity and passion. Does Ed respond with the same passion? Not quite.

Oh hey, an up against the wall kiss! Very fanservicey, consider me impressed. I think this is a fun bit of staging, I suspect they were given very strict hand placement, cause nothing moves that much, it doesn't look particularly improvised.

Rhys Darby does something very specific with his hands when kissing that I've noticed now and I will never not notice, which is deeply annoying.

It's a very nice moment, but honestly, I would have loved a pause? There's something very sexy and very charming in a scene like this where one character makes the other character wait for it. A little holding back, breathing together, finding the moment. More of a seduction than this brute force omg we need to do this now thing.

I saw someone on Twitter say "Ed and Stede fucked but haven't made love" and that's the vibe I'm getting off the scene. Both of these characters have had a weird day, they're probably tipsy, there's been a lot of emotions and this is a desperate spilling over I need to feel your skin against mine now thing, from two people who don't really know where they both are yet. There isn't seduction cause it's not the place for seduction, cause no-one here properly knows how to communicate yet! They're saying everything but saying nothing.

I hope, in the event of further scenes like this, they have the moment to breathe.

And finally, the third piece - the closing of the curtains.

What does this say about the characters? Hey this is a private moment, you're not allowed to witness this. It's the same as Ed/Stede other moments of intimacy. Everything is private, it's hidden, it's on a remote beach on an island or unobserved under the moonlight.

These dudes might talk about each other constantly and are unashamed to say they like each other, but they sure as shit can't show it publicly. There's also clear reticence within Ed - which echoes him saying he wants to take things slow, as well as his hesitance in the next episode.

This reticence is also shown in their costuming. This isn't a we spent care and time taking each other's clothes off energy, this reads more like Stede Bonnet is emboldened for one of the first times in his life and got naked way too fast. Hey, he's the one taking charge. He's the one closing the curtains.

Man On Fire

Not a whole lot of intimacy in this one. I'm not going to spend long on it, because it's not particularly meaty, but I think the Olu/Zheng hand grab over the table is adorable and a perfect way to show two people on the same page after going through it. It's balanced and sweet.

Now, the other thing:

This staging is suuuuuuch a missed opportunity, but I also think it works considering the later context of the scene.

Y'know how you'd usually show a morning after? Snuggling up together, shoulder to shoulder, legs intertwined. Hazy and precious and lovely.

It's a bit harder with this particular set piece - you can't shoot them from the reverse, cause of the window, so everything needs to be pointed out towards the camera, making snuggling side by side harder to shoot. In theatre you'd just angle the prop differently, but you can't do that on film in a room that has established locations.

Initially when I watched this, I was like "okay rookie move, they've missed the obvious".

But.

It makes sense with the characterisation of this episode. Stede's killed a guy. He's had probably the first bit of pleasurable intimacy in his entire life. Man's ego's the size of the room. He's got his chest out cause he feels good.

Ed, however. He's fully clothed. He's doing the good thing, doing the right thing, getting breakfast in bed but it's still not quite right in the way "it should be" (the twine), and he's buttoned up to the neck. No swagger, no body showing. What does that scream? Avoidance. Weirdness. Maybe even a bit of discomfort.

Keep in mind that in the last 12 hours he's seen Stede, who he fell in love with because of his whimsy and difference from other pirates kill a guy. He's seen him threaten other peoples' lives. He expressed the desire to take things slow and instead, in a feat of piqued emotion, they hooked up, and they probably shouldn't have.

They're not cuddling because it's weird. The whole moment is weird. It's almost a walk of shame but they're on the same damn ship together. They might have hooked up, but the pair of them clearly still aren't on the same page.

I doubt we'll see it next week, but I hope these two can find their peace. This is a genre comedy, not just a romance, so I doubt it'll be anything explicit, but I would love to see a scene that's deeply passionate, building the intimacy without building the pace. Take us in closer, let us feel what the characters feel without immediately cutting away.

Loathed as I am to link some of these clips because of their nonsense dialogue, here's some moments in other mlm media that do well at building that intimacy.

This Bill/Sam clip from True Blood that doesn't even have a kiss but holds the tension really well. Another nonsense dream sequence scene from True Blood that still has nice staging. Agron and Nasir from Spartacus have incredible chemistry with a variety of clips to choose from. There are so many options and I would love love love to see them explored in the final episode of S2 or in S3. Very excited to see them both on the same page - ENTHUSIASTIC CONSENT FOR THE WIN.

Thanks for reading! Reblog if you liked. If there's anything juicy in ep 8 I'll cover it as well.

#ofmd #our flag means death #ofmd season 2 #ofmd season 2 spoilers #our flag means death spoilers #stede bonnet #ed teach #intimacy direction #intimacy #intimacy coordinator

[ultraviolet-cello]

Today's episode analysis is number 7 - Wolfwood. Now from here on out I get wild abt theories so do watch out hehee

Spoiler warning for tristamp and trimax, general tws for most of those, and enjoy my analysis/details if you want :]

@tristampparty

TL;DR, there's still something fucked up with Livio and Razlo

I CANNOT believe this MOTHERFUCKER is wearing a seatbelt, but still reading a book and controlling the car steering with his mind. I hate him.

Okay so when Livio gets up here, he's been down for the count for a while, the mask has seemingly. Broken a little bit, his irises have contracted a noticeably amount, and the way he moves is different. So I could attribute that to just, whatever brainwashing EOM has on Livio is falling apart, but I think it's more likely Razlo is stepping into front in some way or another. If the remote-switch mask theory has anything to do with it, the breaking of the mask could be tugging them both into a rapid-switch state.

In any case; something is clearly different - Livio's fighting style as we've seen is very steady, holding the guns in place and just walking forward. Maybe-Razlo here just gets up and flings himself at Vash, starts running, absolutely whaling on the Punisher with the Double Fangs (Which is accurate to Trimax - if you read their pages closely, Livio and Razlo have very different ways of moving that then converge into a more semi-coherent style post volume 10)

Also like, it doesn't have to just be one thing. All of the things I point out here can also be interpreted as just the breaking free from brainwashing thing. Could be both!

I'm Not Done with this scene yet because then uh. Livio-Maybe-Razlo starts looking a little dizzy, starts wobbling, hands shaking. So with Dissociative Identity Disorder, the difference between that and OSDD-1b (Another type of system) is usually the dissociative aspect. When alters switch in, it's usually accompanied by a period of dissociation, which looks to an outsider like the person is dizzy, vacant, or blank. The dissociative period is also common in rapid-switching. I read Livio and Razlo as a DID system and it is definitely the most well-known type of system, so if Studio Orange is trying to portray them as a system, they'll most likely be characterized as DID.

MORE VASH FIGHTING STYLE STUFF!!!

So aside from being just a physical martial artist, I dabble in traditional okinawan kobudo (weapons) as well - one of these being the tonfa, which is a baton type of weapon. Vash in this scene is using his gun similarly - holding it by the handle and swinging the muzzle to block and strike. In the second image you can see him winding up to get the full arc of the swing in for more power.

These are what tonfa look like, so I especially appreciate how similar Vash's gun functions! You hold the handle in a loose-ish grip and can swing them overhead and around for extra Thwack Power

Oh you can actually see him spin it back in that blocking position (holding the long end against your forearm so you can just lift and block with your forearm, since the part of the tonfa is shielding you) here! Come to think of it, when blocking with the Double Fangs, Livio uses them similarly.

Once again Roberto calling out that Vash is not human - again he's had the longest time to Hear about Vash's reputation and now he's seeing it firsthand. Imagine spending all your life knowing of a legendary guy and then when you actually see him he looks. like 20, and at least some of his fighting prowess is true.

I guess I'm also curious about like. The mask has been breaking for a While now, and then when it completely powers off that's when Livio starts coming back to reality, which could lend to it being neural-connected in some way. I think it's really really interesting that EOM has specifically suppressed or trained Livio's mind so well that he barely recognizes Wolfwood - But how did that happen without Razlo's interference? Did he agree to this, was he manipulated into it, did Livio make that decision and it was too late for Razlo's protectiveness to kick in? Or is this a means to control both of them? Season 2 please please please ple

I'VE GOT MY ONE FRAME OF RAZLO EVERYONE GO HOME

Okay seriously though I do want to uh. Has Razlo just always had that idea of what he wants to look like or is there some kind of Very drastic change going on lmao. Because there is no way Stampede "Twink" Livio has the body to pull this off, no matter how much hair gel and tits out clothes Razlo can put on. If that sort of image was created by eom as an intimidation thing (because Razlo is Chapel's golden child) though, that's fucked up especially because like. Razlo and Livio struggle sharing a body enough by themselves.

Not grabbing a screenshot but it's uhm. Well. Livio shoots himself in the head specifically, which does seem to be the weak spot for EOM agents, which uhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Like we've seen Razlo foreshadowing Right There there's not a chance he's actually dead, but it's probably gonna fuck him up. Further. I wonder if there's gonna be some body construction fuckery going on later on?

Roberto just sitting down and giving up is kinda funny but also like. Yeah. What do you do in the face of such alien, incomprehensible odds and events. Roberto's very,,, chill about dying, which is an attitude that lots of people would have on Gunsmoke/NML (I know it's nml. but i like gunsmoke). He just wants to go out drinking on his own terms (which... well, he does.)

Meryl's decisions in the control room are so so fascinating. Meryl in Trimax is a little bit insane about Vash (following him, quite literally, through the apocalypse), and we're starting to see her belief and trust in him in this scene. She believes in him And in Wolfwood. and Roberto, Roberto who has always said that he'd take the path to live, believes in Meryl, enough that he's apparently ready to take the chance to die with her, even when given the option to leave by himself.

Meryl is also taking control of her own agency in this situation; she has been an extremely reactive character up till now, but here she gets to say what Meryl Stryfe would do in this situation. Not getting yanked around by people bigger and taller than her, not having to report to her seniors, just making a choice on her own that she knows might kill her. Women on Gunsmoke/NML aren't afforded a lot of agency (Rosa had to try and capture Vash for the bounty so Tonis could live, Meryl in any iteration deals with a lot of adversaries using her as leverage against Vash or taking control away from her, hell, Tristamp Elendira isn't being afforded the agency to grow up! She's been like that for 20 years there is definitely some fuckery going on, whether it's Tesla cells not allowing her to age past the point Tesla was when she died, or Conrad or Knives keeping her that age for some reason). It's nice to see Meryl's arc revolve around taking that agency for herself.

OKAY NORMAL AGAIN. the fucking MUSIC in this scene is insane, it's so,,, I don't know how to explain it but it's so Big and Vast. Also the ion cannon laser looks much like a Punisher laser. Which uh. Woag, if that's the case. And Razlo gets three of those bitches? forget the deadly weapons everyone's gonna just die looking at the light show.

A design element I really like for Legato is his hair and how neatly it's trimmed. I drew a parallel to Knives cutting off a slice of his hair when they first met each other, but I do genuinely think that Legato might be so meticulous about it specifically because of that. Knives means so so much to Legato, and Legato seems to reclaim his body from his past sexual abuse by devoting himself to Knives in an act of empowerment (or at least that's how I read it), which,,, I mean it's hair, but i really am a curtains are blue guy.

Tristamp Wolfwood is often. A tad shorter than Vash which is extremely funny to me. Nightow said Wolfwood's taller and everyone, including the guys making a 3d animated love letter to trigun, said no he isn't ^_^

I need to start collecting these fucking smiles that Vash gives Wolfwood. It's specifically,,,, Trimax and 98 Wolfwood call Vash out on the fake smiles. But Tristamp Wolfwood doesn't, because most of the true smiles we see from Vash are directed at him. Or something. Idk i'm normal

Wolfwood has been holding the Punisher like this all episode, and it's ~~really cute~~ (Tristamp Wolfwood gives me awful cute aggression) but also,,, maybe self-soothing. Keeping the Punisher directly in front of himself as a shield. Looking out over Hopeland as the Punisher acts as a barrier.

White Girl Wasted :pensive:

Vash's hair looks like a little flower here :]

Annnnd Vash down for the count!

So there's so many things, always, to do with these episodes, and I will Not be stopping lmao

Thank y'all who left nice comments on my last analysis post, i'm glad everyone had fun reading it!

#cli speaks #tristampparty #trigun #trigun stampede #cli analysis

[gwenllian-in-the-abbey]

didn't the showrunners for some reason portrayed helaena-aegon marriage as sexual abusive one like their parents marriage?

Hi anon! So, I didn't really interpret it that way, but I think it's one of those things where your mileage may vary. We really were only given crumbs about their marriage in the show, so this is just how I interpreted it.

The only line we get from Helaena about her marriage to Aegon is that "it isn't that bad, mostly he just ignores you, except sometimes when he's drunk." It's completely devoid of context, so for all we know Aegon comes back home drunk to bitch and moan or cry on Helaena's shoulder, not to have sex with her. But assuming she is talking about sex, we know from episode 7 that Aegon didn't want this marriage, so you can also easily read that line to mean that Aegon can literally only perform with her sexually when he's intoxicated. Also, if you watch Aegon's reaction when Helaena says this, he's clearly embarrassed. She's roasting him in front of the whole family, exposing him for being a shitty husband who isn't very present, but he's not getting angry, instead he looks like he wants to sink through the floor. And like, obviously victims can act any sort of way around their abusers, there's no rulebook, but I think that if the director of this episode intended for us to read the dynamic between them as an abusive one, they would probably not have had Helaena gleefully mocking Aegon and Aegon reacting with obvious shame. It's important to remember two things about Helaena and Aegon. First, she's his sister, and second, it was an unwanted marriage that happened when they were both too young. And Aegon and Helaena would have been pushed into doing their duty and securing his line with children the same way Rhaenyra was. They wouldn't have been given a choice. And although they're Targaryens, Aegon, at least according to TGC, hates being a Targaryen. Brother-sister marriage is something only Targaryens do in this world, something their mother might grudgingly accept but which goes against her faith. If Aegon rejects his heritage (with the notable exception of his dragon!), he probably has a hard time being married to the sister he never wanted to marry in the first place. In this context, him needing to be drunk to make it happen makes sense.

So I don't know anon. From the (albeit limited) dialogue in the show as well as the interviews that the writers and TGC have given about Aegon, I just don't think we were meant to interpret that line as indicating he rapes Helaena. Just because show!Aegon raped a serving girl doesn't mean that he never has consensual sex or that he rapes every woman he lays eyes on either. In fact, that's one of those dangerous misconceptions about the nature of sexual assault. It would be great if it was that easy to identify potential rapists, but in reality a person can have a consensual relationship which never crosses any boundaries with one person, and still cross the line of consent with another, especially when there are power imbalances involved. So in this case I'm inclined to believe that Aegon's relationship with the Helaena is not sexually abusive. He and Helaena both seem to draw lines with each other, both as brother and sister and as husband and wife, whereas clearly Aegon lacks any sense of boundaries when it comes to the staff.

#asks #tw sex assault #aegon ii targaryen #helaena targaryen

[natalisdragon]

COOK, LOVE, AND HOME

Someone has already introduced the topic, but I want to delve deeper and give my vision on the matter.

This is the kind of thing that, when you think about it, is so obvious that you can't help but feel a little silly for not noticing it sooner.

When we talk about cooking, the doors are opened for many interpretations, but we will not go to something as complicated as… analyzing the dishes that appear next to the names of the episodes. It's something much simpler.

Cooking is something that we can associate with independence and maturity. I think this is easily represented by Arajin's mother, who, although she can be somewhat eccentric at times, let's not forget that she is also the owner of her own restaurant, in addition to having to take care of her son practically alone (as far as we know) both being responsibilities that are not exactly easy to carry. We even have Arajin himself, who despite demonstrating questionable behavior throughout the story, we know that he helps his mother, again, a responsibility about which he usually doesn't complain, being one of the few things that probably helped him with his trauma and develop a skill necessary for adult life, or in his particular case, a business that he will most likely inherit.

We can talk about the scene in which Arajin and Matakara cook together, these are already my conjectures, but perhaps it is a way to contrast how each one has tried to cope with their lives, and it's even more revealing if we remember that they were making gyozas ( They are stuffed/external part, internal part), showing us that Arajin (despite what one might think) has had more tools at his disposal (which his mother also provided him) to move forward than Matakara, who has managed to do so, as we can see, with great difficulty.

Akutaro is another one we see cooking in episode 7, but since it's something he's doing more out of obligation (and possibly threat) perhaps it's more to emphasize that HE NEEDS INDEPENDENCE (he depends on Ichiya) and learning to manage with his own resources to mature.

Now let's talk about what really matters, cooking and love. Cooking has an important relationship with love, being very commonly represented as one of the most sincere gestures of affection, both for those who cook and those who eat. Let's remember when Marito is hospitalized and Mahoro visits him, the food that she prepares for him is well… we know… peculiar, but we see that despite this, even if it's not in front of his sister, Marito makes the effort to eat what she prepared for him, making us understand that despite seeming distant, he appreciates her.

On the other hand we see it in Arajin's mother and the effort she puts into preparing his lunches for school.

We also notice it with Matakara while he prepares the party to welcome his brother, where he offers to help Arajin to make the food. Let's remember that the only person with whom we have seen Matakara cook apart from Arajin is his brother, therefore, the two people for whom he feels the most affection. That's why he wants Mitsukini to eat something that he prepared with his own hands.

But here there is something else. We talk about cooking as a sign of maturity and affection for those we love, but there is something else, and you should already imagine what I mean. Cooking as a representation of a home and its warmth. We already see it with all of the above, especially Arajin, who if there is something he doesn't lack is his mother's love and support . Personally, this makes Matakara's situation even sadder, because if we are good observers, we have NEVER seen Matakara eating or cooking with his "relatives." Basically yelling at us that he doesn't feel part of them, which is confirmed when he simply leaves after what happens with his brother.

In contrast, Arajin's house is a place where we know that beyond being also a restaurant, it's a place where cooking is done with love, therefore,it's not just a house, it's a home.

And now that we know about his past, it's just heartbreaking. Deep down, Matakara not only wants strength, he wants someone who won't abandon him, he wants a home and feel its warmth, maybe that's why we see him so happy making gyoza with Arajin, because it had been a long time since he could experience it. In the end, for Matakara, any place where he can be with a person he loves is his home.

#bucchigiri?!

[grimreaperofroleplay]

Spoiler for 2 of Dragons rising

Okay so like I just finished my little Ninjago season 2 dragons rising marathon, it was with all honesty something that was very exciting, and it's only part one part 2 will probably roll around I'd say October November ish from the pattern I have seen through part 1 and part 2 upload schedules of Ninjago seasons

In my opinion this season was a really amazing season, the plot was awesome the A&B plot of episodes was also awesome the main plot of the season was also very interesting and for the J fans we get to see a bit more of him we will probably be seeing him more in part 2

Let's start off with the obvious the two dragon warriors/ninja (I don't know how to spell their names) they were amazing the two paired up was like bad cop and good cop you can never go wrong with that trope and honestly the whole thing in it was just amazing,

I think one of my favorite arcs for part 1 is going to be Arins the development that he goes through just in this first part is already immaculate and as time goes on that's going to develop into something much bigger and with how he's already feeling I feel like that's going to be a lot of help

Also one thing I want to point out while I was marathoning drs2 is the fact that Lloyd probably / is implied to have PTSD. Like the paranoia with visions and the need to stop those visions are like flashbacks you have a PTSD but they're not flashbacks for Lloyd they're visions of things that could happen but it basically takes on the same concept of what PTSD is like for people who experiences it, and like as the visions come in there's this resistance that he wants to stop them that he wants them to stop that he doesn't want them there he wants them to go away and it just ends up in this mental break

And honestly the way they interpret this is a lot like PTSD and it's really fascinating to me, it has crossed my mind that but probably has a lot of issues and disorders from what has happened to him and what probably is going to come but actually seeing Lloyd actually as vulnerable as he was in this season was really exciting actually, vulnerability is placed differently in people and seeing how they interpret it with Lloyd was really fascinating

Since I have seen a lot of different shows that doesn't really allow their character to seem vulnerable, but from what I have seen the writers in Ninjago doesn't seem to be one of those people who refuse to give vulnerability to their character Lloyd is a great example that has a pinpoint a vulnerability in this season

But a little cameo of another vulnerability is Jay and I believe episode 8 if not 7, it's shown that he doesn't remember who he was bonzel says that she knows his heart isn't and it's right place and that he doesn't really want to capture her, and he admits it he doesn't know anything about him before that

He doesn't know how he got to the administration he doesn't know anything before that all you know is that his name is Jay walker, and then Sprite (the glowing orb) approaches Jay and starts to like go around him and when she looks ahead or into Sprite it shows him this image of him best splitting image of what Jay looked like before the merge or well while the merge happened

The sense of of vulnerability comes from when Jay touches the image lightning sparks into his hands and he panics cuz no one can know he has elemental powers, he knows he's an elemental master but no one else could know because he's afraid that if they know something bad will probably happen to him, something so bad that he insist to say no one can know about his powers

Even if it doesn't seem so this is a good example of a moment of vulnerability same goes for Lloyds multiple breakdown and visions, these are the things I want to see in shows them showing the actual character being vulnerable around others, and the writers not being afraid to push the boundaries of their writing to go to extent like this

Use Wyldfire as an example, she's a really complicated character on the surface rough as a stone with rusted edges but inside she's this kid that wants to show the world that she can do what everyone else can do no matter what anyone else is saying, she likes doing her own things but sometimes that's not a bad thing, and most times she wants to be included as the ninjas are one of the first people she's interacted with and that's fine because people get attached and protective and comfortable with the people they surround them

And I feel like I can relate to that feeling I get attached to people I'm comfortable with it I sometimes don't want them to leave my side so I stick close by observing conversations and just being by their side, and if there's a group of activity I sometimes don't want to be left out if it's with the people I'm really comfortable with and when I am left out because of something it most have frustrate me, I feel like that's how Wyldfire feels

There is a lot of the Season that is amazingly done is absolutely fantastic and I can't even start to phantom how greatly written the characters are getting, despite like the past seasons before dragons rising I'd say this was one of my favorite seasons for the new releases if it's DR S2 then it would be prime Empire but I'd say for the new releases dragon rising season 2 is my go-to the writing is just amazing

It goes unappreciated a lot of times and sometimes frustrate me that a lot of people don't see the characters other side the characters deeper meaning or the characters arc in general it frustrates me to see the kind of people complain about characters just because they don't understand their motive or compliant of said character, because a lot of these Ninjago characters are very well written

I'll probably have a separate post regarding everything from the season I think the one after this you'll be seeing is a Geo x Cole (Coleo) one and then a Lloyd one I'll probably leave my favorite one the Jay ones for last there will be a kai one thrown in there somewhere In the mix of things, I think you will be seeing a long paragraph for a Jay rant soon tho, it was gushing over him when I saw him I was so excited my dad asked me if I was okay

#jay ninjago #ninjago cole #ninjago lloyd #zane ninjago #kai ninjago #ninjago nya #ninjago arin #ninjago sora #ninjago wyldfyre #geo ninjago #Bonzel ninjago #rant post #ninjago #new season #dragons rising

[trelinha9]

Every time I see a Friede x Amethio post, ten of my neurons die. I know these posts come from new fans who only watched the episodes released on Netflix (which goes up to 13 if I'm not mistaken), and he's only appeared in 6 episodes at this point (which is a crime against my mental health. What the hell is he doing in that time offscream? I WANT ANSWERS!!!) I remember in the first episodes of Horizontes, that Tumblr and AO3 were full of posts and fics about Friede x Amethio, and they disappeared over time as the episodes went on.

It's funny, because nowadays, almost a year after Horizons officially started, fans who watch the subtitled episodes are all worried about the mental health of this teenager and wondering why the heck they are in Exploradores, while the new fans are in the same boat as most of the old ones were and abandoned, shipping the poor guy with Friede.

I personally never shipped them because:

1: Amethio is, canonically, and confirmed by his original voice actor, a teenager (on bulbapedia it said he was between 13 and 19, but now they removed that part and only added the fact that he is a teenager, without mentioning a possible age) I headcanon him as 16, because, for me, it's the age that makes the most sense for his behavior and mannerisms, but that's just me. You can imagine him as 18 or 19 if that makes you feel more comfortable shipping him with Friede, but it doesn't change the fact that he's still a young and emotionally immature person, with no apparent emotional support base other than his Pokémon and his subordinates (Zir and Conia will get there someday, I know they will), while Friede is a fully grown adult, and clearly more mature than Amethio (there's even a line about it in episode 25). Friede had already been a Pokémon teacher for probably a reasonable amount of time when Liko was around 5 to 7 years old (we find out about this in episode 18), and honestly, Amethio doesn't look that much older than Liko. The clear age difference between them makes me uncomfortable. There are a lot of adults in the Horizons cast to be shipped with Friede, leave the traumatized teenager alone.

2: The way Friede, especially in the first arc, keeps teasing Amethio, even though he's clearly irritated and on edge, makes me want to punch him. I love Friede. But the way he interacts with Amethio, one minute he's having a good time taking care of Liko and Roy, and the next he's ready to annoy the shit out of a teenager make me so angry. I love this idea that Friede is a complete social disaster who doesn't really know how to pick up cues (scareing a deaf girl, for example, is definitely something he would do by accident 👀), but there's no way he can't see how negatively his actions and words affect Amethio. Amethio wants to prove himself. He wants to fulfill the mission ordered to him, and this idiot adult, in addition to getting in the way, bothers him every chance he gets (ep 5, ep 22 and ep 25 are the best examples). I'm amazed at how Friede either doesn't really realize the harm his actions cause to Amethio, or he does and simply decides to keep doing it.

This post may make it seem like I don't like Friede, which isn't true. I love Friede. I think he's a very funny character, but he also has a lot of flaws, and bullying a teenager is one of them.

I don't want to start fights about ships, because I'm not in Horizontes for the ships, but for the story and the characters. The only ship I really like is Friede with a certain Explorer who erased a child's memory (because for the love of god, they couldn't have made their battle in the last episode any less gay, could they) I don't want to offend anyone who ships Friede and Amethio, I just wanted to give my opinion on the matter and why I, with my interpretation of the story and characters, hate this ship. (Hate is a strong word, but I feel uncomfortable whenever I see this ship somewhere)

I'm really sorry if I offended anyone at any point in this post, I just don't like seeing a teenager and an adult being shiped.

#pokemon horizons #amethio #professor friede #pokemon friede #pokemon #Amethio is my favorite character he needs therapy not romance #I tried to avoid as many spoilers as possible here #I know that this new popularity of the ship comes from new fans #and I don't want to ruin their experience with the story #but be warned: episodes 22 and 25 have a lot of interactions that I consider problematic between Amethio and Friede #“you wanna play tag?” asks Friede to the teenager who wants to throw him into a wall #Dude who you think you are? #The Collector? #And his line in ep 25 is SO MUCH WORSE #WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT TO A TEENAGER MY MAN? #ARE TOU INSANE? #I have a lot of fun when these two interact #it's fun #when Friede isn't being an amoeba incapable of socialization that is