#like...Idk his sense of self-worth kind of went away and he spent a bunch of time trying to get it back and figure out how to get by

[musical-chick-13]

I think people who pick one character from AsoIaF/GoT to be The Protagonist are missing the point, because pretty much all of the characters think THEY are The Protagonist™ and that’s ultimately what screws them over.

(I also want to preface this by saying that that’s the reason I find these characters so interesting, and that this is not meant to insult any of them. I LOVE this story, and this is one of the many reasons why.)

Cersei thinks she’s the Villain Protagonist™ of a gritty drama. Even if it doesn’t make sense for things to work out for her, she assumes they will, seeing everyone around her as faceless idiots serving her narrative. Anyone and everyone will betray her because that’s what always happens in stories like this, so she won’t give them a chance to ever get there. People will move the way she assumes they will; everyone is predictable and stupid and shallow and cowardly. And as such, no one possesses the necessary skills to take her down. If she’s more ruthless and ambitious and paranoid than everyone else, she’ll get what she wants. But that’s not how life actually works, so all she does is alienate those around her, even necessary allies. People aren’t always predictable, not all of them are compliant or subservient or easily-frightened or incompetent. And if you prioritize ruthlessness and distrust, the people who aren’t those things aren’t going to see any reason to keep you around or give you aid.

Jaime thinks he’s a Cynical Misunderstood Antihero. He doesn’t need to work on bettering himself or de-internalizing his violent impulses, because he’s not the problem, it’s society, it’s people’s incorrect assessment of him. Look, he made a friend in Brienne, that must mean he’s not all bad, right? He thinks this story ends in a Public Image Rehabilitation, but he still conflates love with violence, and he still has a fucked up relationship with consent, he’s arrogant to a fault, he still insults Brienne (and just about everyone else) when the opportunity presents itself, and he never bothers trying to change that. And it’s all of this that prevents him from every truly becoming a good person. He’s so mired in this idea of being misunderstood that he doesn’t make a concerted effort to prove that he actually is. People think he’s an oath-breaker, that he has too big of an ego, that he doesn’t care about the people he swore to protect, and he thinks that simply going, “Yeah, but they don’t have the whole picture” is enough in and of itself to prove them wrong because, in a lot of stories, it is. But all his behavior does is cement his reputation as these things.

Dany thinks she’s The Chosen One, which means whatever she does is automatically the right decision. People will accept her rule because it’s hers, she deserves it, it’s morally right. All of her enemies are blanketedly wrong on all accounts in all cases. Her goals supersede anyone else’s because those goals are the way to a Happy Ending, and she doesn’t consider that other people might not see it that way. Many people’s gripes with her stem from gross places like misogyny or wanting to continue keeping slaves, but she forgets to acknowledge that some people’s issues with her might actually be valid. And that The Chosen One is actually a terrifying idea to people outside that person’s immediate personal context. She has three sentient WMDs, essentially. And if she thinks that using them is always morally correct, that the fallout from doing so can’t possibly be a problem because she’s using them and it’s for a noble cause, you end up with what happened in Astapor; and you end up with Drogon killing a child in Mereen and, eventually, her demise at the end of the show.

Sansa starts out thinking she’s an Optimistic Child Hero in a fairytale. This leads to her being held captive at court (she trusted that the authority figures were benevolent), writing a letter to her family that almost comes back to bite her to a deadly degree once her sister finds out in the show (she thought she could solve everything herself via a peaceful resolution), and to her trusting a complete monster of a boy until it’s too late (she thought he was Prince Charming). She thinks that being the Soft, Beautiful Heroine means people will love her and everything will end nicely and neatly, but sometimes instead of “love”, people just take advantage of you. And sometimes their reaction to your beauty isn’t innocent appreciation-sometimes you end up with Littlefinger. (Or Tyrion or The Hound who...let’s just leave it at “they have their own issues,” especially book-wise.) This morphs into assuming that a fairytale-esque betrayal will befall her with every new person she meets. It’s why she defends Petyr after his murder of Lysa, and it’s why she doesn’t leave with Brienne; if she’s going to be betrayed anyway, she might as well at least stick with a villain she understands.

Ned thinks he’s the Noble Hero in a typical fantasy series. He doesn’t consider everyone else’s capacity for cruelty or the idea that honor alone might not be enough. Sometimes there are no perfect choices, sometimes mercy does not give you the end goal you envisioned, and sometimes you can try your best and that can all be undone by one impulsive, unforeseeable action. You can’t honor your way out of ruthless political conflict.

Robb thinks he’s a Romantic War Hero, and thus everything will magically work out for him. His ideals and his marriage will conquer everything. But he broke a marriage promise to a powerful family, and that has consequences. The world won’t bend to his will, not even if he is doing the right thing or has noble goals, not even if he’s had war success, not even if the people at home love him, not even if he’s in love (show) or doing the most honorable thing he can (books). He thinks that being the hero means he can make it through Westeros without having to play the game, and he gets murdered for it.

Theon thinks he’s an Underdog Outcast Hero. He’ll come up from behind with an unsuspecting War Victory, and that will earn him respect, the love of his family, and a legacy he can look back on with pride. And that mindset leads him to murder two children, to drive away any allies and good grace he had at Winterfell, and the reason that the War Victory he imagined was so unexpected is because it’s completely untenable. He gets more and more desperate and it’s increasingly harder and harder to hold onto the control he’s managed to obtain. He has reasons for wanting this that make sense, and he’s been dealt a pretty bad hand in life, and he thinks that’s and his determination to overcome his personal identity struggles is enough to not only justify his actions, but ensure that those actions will be successful. And then his plan blows up in his face, he assumes he’s been miraculously saved (probably still having something to do with seeing himself as The Unexpected Hero), and ends up at Ramsay’s mercy.

Arya thinks she’s a Badass Heroine in the making, a skilled swordslady and Rebellious Princess who’s destined for more than this stuffy life of politics and dresses and formalities. But rebelling isn’t always enough. It doesn’t help with the Mycah situation, and she still needs to rely on others’ help in getting out of the city after Ned is executed. When she does try to embrace the “fully self-sufficient sword lady” idea while with the Faceless Men in Braavos, she is told to functionally discard her identity completely. She does an unauthorized kill because she, not her assassin-persona-in-training, wants to (though the victim’s identity differs in books and show), which leads to her being temporarily blinded and prevented from going on assassination missions, and outright forced to beg for food in the show. In the show, after being reinstated as an apprentice, she is tasked with killing an innocent person, refuses (rebels), and realizes that this life is one she can’t handle. She goes home, and her heading straight for her sword is one of the things that almost completely ruins her relationship with Sansa. In the upcoming Winds of Winter release, her chapter excerpt has her prioritizing revenge over her apprentice duties, and she remarks that her new identity is ruined with this rebellious action. When you rebel, there are consequences-this doesn’t change just because your intentions are good or because you are or think you are important.

Jon thinks, similarly to Ned, that he’s The Good Guy, that doing the right thing, that following The Code is paramount. He thinks that, because he’s The Good Guy, that doing the right thing with the maximum amount of good for everyone will always be a workable option, and that the heroic option will always yield the best result. This is why he thinks proclaiming his love to Ygritte in the show will end well (because love is good and conquers everything) and is, instead, shot by her several times. It’s why he doesn’t foresee a mutiny in either medium, which leads to his (temporary) death. (Let’s be real, he’s getting resurrected in the books, too, this is the one thing I’m sure of.) Because yes, everything is tense and he’s on bad terms with the Watch, but surely they wouldn’t go that far. It’s rough going, and he has to juggle the needs of several widely different groups of people, but he’s doing the right thing and that will win out; his conviction will protect him, at least for the time being while he tries to manage the bigger threat of the White Walkers. The real fight is with them, the mysterious overarching enemy, not within his own ranks. This is a story where everyone puts aside their differences to fight a greater threat-except for the times when it isn’t.

Even Catelyn isn’t immune, as she assumes that Petyr, since he’s her childhood friend, is invested in solving the mystery of what happened to Bran when he tells her the dagger used in the attack was Tyrion’s. Lysa is her sister, she can’t possibly be suspicious. She thinks the Lannisters are evil, her instincts tell her that they were behind everything, she’s the Protective Mother Heroine, so she must be right. But although she is to a certain extent correct, that’s not the complete picture. And this slightly-misplaced confidence leads her to arrest Tyrion, the retaliation of which is Tywin siccing his forces on her homeland, one of the major first steps in the upcoming political war. Then, her continued focus on saving her children-something that must take precedence because they are her children, and this is her story-leads her to taking Walder Frey’s supposed offer of a fix-it solution for Robb breaking his marital pledge at face value, despite House Frey’s reputation, and despite this neat resolution seeming far too good to be true. She’s so focused on the Lannisters-the Obvious Endgame Enemy-that she doesn’t consider the possibility of betrayal from the Freys. She thinks that the world is giving her a break-because she is so desperately looking for one, because she deserves one, because her family deserves one, and those are reasons enough for her to have one-that she doesn’t even bother to re-evaluate the situation until it’s too late.

Melisandre thinks she’s a Religious Hero, but she ends up burning a child alive and alienating one of her few remaining allies in the process (and Davos was barely an ally to begin with). She thinks she’s Doing What Needs To Be Done to serve her savior, but it hurts Stannis more than it helps him, and he just ends up being murdered by Brienne. This is obviously in the show only (at least at this point), and I don’t know if Stannis is going to burn Shireen in the books or not. Stannis thinks he’s the Lawful Hero, and thus, because according to law he’s the Rightful Ruler, anything he does is automatically excusable; he’s just righting a wrong. And in the process, he imprisons his closest friend, has a hand in murdering his brother (when kinslaying is one of the most universally hated breaches of conduct in this fictional universe), allies with a dangerous woman that much of his own court despises, and, in the show, murders his only child and drives away most of the rest of his remaining team.

They all think that, since they are the main characters of their own stories, that they’re the main character of the larger, overarching narrative. That having understandable reasons or sympathetic qualities or even just having a clear goal that they desperately want, that’s enough to cement their importance. And they think that means that they’re justified in everything they do, that everything will work out for them, that the consequences will be lesser for them than for others, because that’s what it’s like to be the main character. The whole point is that there is not A Protagonist™ and that maybe we should examine why a story needs A Protagonist™ in the first place and what that narrative tradition tells us. When GRRM said he turned down adaptation offers because they only wanted to focus on Jon and Dany, this is why.

#asoiaf #got #asoiaf meta #got meta #most of this is directly related to everyone deconstructing the archetypes they would represent in other stories #so I'm not sure how much of this is just 'deconstructing tropes' and how much of it is 'Main Character Perception Syndrome' #also obviously this isn't every character I ran out of room and honestly some of them like davos and brienne and maybe even loras #probably don't think they're The Main Character which there's a whole other essay in there about how they're The Good People #I personally think Bran never gave off 'I think I'm the main character' energy but I know haters will disagree with me on that #like...Idk his sense of self-worth kind of went away and he spent a bunch of time trying to get it back and figure out how to get by #in a society that now thought he was worthless. and how to get enjoyment out of life when his goals were no longer reachable #it read less as 'I think I'm more Important™' and more 'I'm just trying to survive man' but also I love bran I might be a little biased lmao #cersei lannister #jaime lannister #dark!dany #sansa stark #arya stark #theon greyjoy #jon snow #catelyn stark #robb stark #ned stark #melisandre #stannis baratheon #I take my life into my own hands by putting actual names in the tags but I talk about these characters and I don't know how else to tag #this to ensure people who don't want to see it won't have to see it #also for anyone wondering where tyrion is on this list: I was too tired to delve into this phenomenon regarding him because it is ESPECIALLY #prominent regarding him. and this post was already so long and talking about tyrion in this context probably would've made it TWICE as long #there genuinely isn't enough space in here to include him but know that I'm counting him too. most definitely #behold! a creation!

[arabvllas-blog]

          i don’t actually know how to write intros, i’d rather just kms but let’s give it a try anyway . . . also, disclaimer / i started writing this like three hours ago but right as i was getting to the good stuff my stomach did some freaky weird shit so i had to improvise the rest which is. . . messy, At Best ! but regardless, i hope you don’t judge me too much ? my name is zee, i’m 20 years old and i’m from the gmt timezone. i also use she/her pronouns. under the cut, i’ll be introducing you to ARABELLA HOWARD, who’s small, blonde, and troubled. sounds interesting ? then please give it a like and i’ll hop on your IMs so that we can plot something dramatic and juicy <3

&. 【 is that OLIVIA HOLT ? oh, never mind, it’s just ARABELLA HOWARD. the CIS FEMALE originally from GRANDVIEW. SHE is majoring in FINANCE and is TWENTY years old. i also hear they’re INCISIVE, yet sometimes PITILESS. they apparently told detective’s they were ava’s TUTOR. i have a feeling there’s more to the story than that !

tw: abuse mention b a c k s t o r y : 

arabella elise howard was born to a fairytale — her mother had been a professor with her round glasses hidden by stacks of books, while her father lived life without a worry, flying from country to country and enjoying the best money could buy. it didn’t make sense for their paths to cross, and it didn’t make sense for matthew howard to fall head over heels for the shy yet headstrong theresa wayne, but they did ; he did. and soon enough, he was whispering loving words to a big belly that housed the very product of their love.

but perhaps because it all seemed too good to be true, their happiness was short-lived. on the eve of arabella’s 3rd birthday, matthew’s car skidded along the icy roads, ending the couple’s life. too young to even notice their absence, arabella was handed over to her mother’s sister — she was a toddler reaching aimlessly for the same head of blonde hair that she’d known since birth. except this one wasn’t as kind, and surely not as loving.

leila wayne had loved her little sister, and had taken care of her when their senile parents couldn’t. growing up, there wasn’t one without the other. theresa was leila’s pride, the one wayne that would succeed and remember her big sister on the way up. that was until matthew barged in, corrupting her sibling, feeding her lies and stealing her away across the country. there wasn’t a day that went by that leila was sure theresa would still be alive if not for that man. him and his lies, convincing theresa that leila was too controlling, too obsessed, that she wanted her little sister to stay in the gutter with her.

the more she looked at arabella, and those dark eyes she’d inherited from her father, the more hatred festered in leila’s heart. she was the only living family that could take care of the orphaned howard child; how ironic.

growing up, arabella was almost fooled into thinking her home life was normal. the screaming at every mistake, the poor dinner comprised of day-old takeouts, the wasted mattress on the corner of the room that she curled into, whimpering as the lights went off and leila locked the door for the night. but still, some part of her knew deep down, that she had once known more; known better. and it was those blurry dreams of loving hugs and white-teeth smiles that kept the child, then teenager, alive.  

after here i got sick so bear with me as i try to complete this fajsidas

she was often alone for most part of her teenage years, burying herself in whatever books she got at the school library. because she couldn’t relate to the rest of the peers her age, arabella focused all her attention towards studying and making sure she could one day get as far away from her aunt as possible. she got a competitive streak, often harboring anger and envy towards anyone that got a better grade than her, though it meant she was always pushing herself to do better — but not always better for her, but better than them.

teachers and counselors often considered arabella as a rare gem, supporting her all the way to college applications and assuring her there was no way she wouldn’t get a scholarship with her record. so it was really a slap to the face when everyone started getting acceptance letters but her. until she discovered them ripped apart and half burnt in the trash, courtesy of leila. when confronted, the older woman claimed she was just like her mother. so eager to get away, to act like she was a monster they had to run from. but she refused to let arabella leave, like theresa had. ( i’m sure there would be a way to reverse this but idk enough about american education so let’s just go w it for the sake of the story). it was a tipping point, the last drop of water that would send the vase tipping over. that night, arabella locked her aunt in the same room she had spent her childhood in, lights turned off, the only sound the faint rumble of cars passing by. no matter how much the woman yelled, slammed, begged, she turned her back and packed the little she had been given. two days later, as the cab driver hauled up her luggage in the trunk, arabella unlocked the door to a passed out and starving leila, and left without saying goodbye.

she ended up going to her last choice aka grandview, while living alone in her little shoebox apt that was all hers, with lots of light. and when the opportunity actually came to attend oakridge, arabella was the first to take it. while it wasn’t her dream college, it was still a prestigious one, and since ridding herself of the dead weight in her life, she’d started planning to rise as far as they would let her go. far enough that the whispers in the dark couldn’t get to her.

p e r s o n a l i t y and t i d b i t s : 

very self-centered, only ever concerned about her and what happens to her and will this affect her ? really the last person to go to if you want someone to listen… that one girl that zones out when someone starts monologuing and comes back only when her name is mentioned. has a hard time feeling sympathy, especially if you’re rich.

always overthinks her words and waits 5 seconds before speaking to make sure it’s exactly what she wants to say and if it’s something bitchy then that’s just the way it is. but she’s more reserved than outgoing, so if she does say smth mean you just really asked for it. or it’s finals time. 

driven and dedicated about her academics…. like obviously they all are but she’s a freak about it. i’m talking redbull intoxication feat. one of those pinterest pics of like a bunch of coffee cups just laying around like someone’s got time to spare. if she’s not studying, she’s reading…. likes classics but also occasionally reads NA in the middle of the night because no one will ever know.

is very scared of the dark. can’t sleep without a light on, or two on very hard days. once in highschool some kids decided to prank the teacher and turn off all lights and blinds in the classroom and she had a panic attack that led them all to detention. it was a very rough year, kids are cruel.

tutored ava for a while in english because it meant some cash on the side, but was about to quit before she died simply because ava was getting better grades and that was really a bitch ass of a situation. her first reaction when she heard of her death was that at least she didn’t have to have an awkward conversation with her about it. . . but then she was a shocked and a little sad, i promise. well, i don’t promise promise but. . .

majors in finance, hates it. she was definitely going for a english major but realistically decided it wasn’t worth putting herself in debt for it ( no offense for any english majors. ) doesn’t actually know what she wants to do with her life after she graduates. she only knows how to be a student, not an actual working woman. 

in summary, arabella elise howard is a broke, over-achieving, cold twenty year old who’s only 5′3 and thinks she can still be intimidating.

#oakridgehqooc #❛ [ᴇʟᴇᴀɴᴏʀ sʜᴇʟʟsᴛʀᴏᴘ ᴠᴄ] ғᴏʀᴋ ! ❜ . . . 𝓸𝓸𝓬 ☰ eight.

[calliecat93]

RvB16 Episode 5 Review: Headshots

So far this season we’ve had time travel, alien Gods, pizza quests, and Tucker cockblocking himself twice at the same time. I’d say so far so good! The question now is what crazy shenanigans will our heroes get into next? Let's find out!

Overview

So last episode, Sarge wanted to try undoing the past again, but this time round up some recruits to ensure success. I wasn’t sure if it was going to go anywhere... but Joe proved me wrong! Simmons informs us through his log that they’re now in the near present (I guess at some former Red Base from the looks of it) and Sarge has rounded up three historical figures. Agent John, Agent George, and Agent Alex. In other words John Wayne, President George Washington (from how it sounds before the Revolutionary War ended), and a dying Alexander the Great. Well, that’s certainly a dream team I never would have thought up.

So what does Sarge plan to do now? Try Broken Ridge again? Nah, at least not for the moment. Instead, they’re going to go back to Season 15 and kill Temple back when they first met the Blues and Reds. Why? Well, Sarge wants to undo Temple convincing him to turn on the others because he still feels guilty about it, though he tries to not admit that it was him even though Simmons already knows. Of course, only George has any combat experience since John is an actor with a tough guy persona and Alex is... well, dying. But they’re gonna go for it anyways. So off to Season 15 they go!

Well... Simmons has one major concern first. Remember back in Episode 2 when Donut said that the portals could only fit two grown men at a time? Well, Simmons is concerned about what will happen with five people going in at once. But when does Sarge play the safe way? So they all go through and things seem okay with them having arrived at the initial meeting of the two teams... except Simmons points out that they were supposed to get there before their past selves showed up. Naturally, Simmons isn’t keen on the idea of his past self getting killed since he’d cease to exist and wants to back out. Sarge, however, decides to press on ‘cause... it’s Sarge, do I need to make an explanation as to why?

So George creates a plan that Sarge likes and ignores Simmons’ protests about accidentally killing their past selves, deciding that the risk is worth it. John proposes a simpler plan of causing a distraction, then getting in close and shooting Temple and therefore getting rid of that risk. They go for it by sending Alex out, which lets Sarge reach Temple and shoot him at point blank. Everyone panics as Sarge does his victory dance (aka, BEST PART OF THE EPISODE) and... Jax cuts the scene... yep, you heard me right. Jax calls cut. So remember during the S15 credits when Jax proposed the entire events as a feature film? Well... looks like Joe found a use for it. So yeah... Sarge killed an actor while Temple is still sitting in a jail cell with his fish. WELP.

Jax is pissed cause... you know, his scene got messed up, but cheers up upon recognizing Sarge and Simmons. So I imagine that those reading this who haven't seen the episode (which... why are you reading this and spoiling yourself? If you are a FIRST Member, GO WATCH IT NOW!) are probably very confused. Weren’t the Reds supposed to go back in time? Not forward? Well, we’ll come back to that later. For now, Sarge is upset that he didn’t get asked to be in the movie because as we learned in that Reservoir Dogs episode in S14, Sarge always wanted to be in a film. Jax explains that he DID try to reach out to them... but no one could find them for a year now. So yeah, they are one year in the future.

Anyways, Jax gives a tour of the set with everyone wearing armor because Halo/Jax forces them. Jax is also pretty much now the angry director which absolutely makes sense... though I wonder if Joe (who is Jax’s VA) did this so that he could vent his potential frustrations about directing the show XD Hey, we all get stressed and need to let it out. Jax is also pretty much trying to turn RvB into this universe’s version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe... that explains all the Norse God references... that we haven’t had in a while. When Jax leaves to deal with a problem, Simmons figures that they got sent forward in time due to the portal being unable to handle more than two men. He also hints that they spent a year gathering the recruits, so they are in the present... yes I know that is confusing as Hell, but it’s time travel. We were going to get confused at some point. Also... I guess that means Wash should be okay by now and I imagine that he and Carolina are NOT taking the guys being missing this long well. Hopefully, we see that soon... please?

But anyways, the Temple actor is dead... but he got caught in a scandal so if anything Jax gets free press. Sarge tries to get Jax to hire him... but Jax isn’t sure and then gets called away to deal with wardrobe. So Sarge gets Agent John to help him stage a scene in order to convince Jax to hire him. Yeah, do that against one of the most well known Old West actors. Simmons finds this stupid, but he can’t stop it. Sarge goes for it... and sucks. Like... REALLY sucks. Jax casts John cause... you know, famous professional actor and all. Sorry Sarge, stick to shotguns instead of headshots. Jax’s movie goes forward. This gets Simmons to throw in the towel regarding science and Sarge feels betrayed by one of his old heroes. So yeah, pretty much everyone has either given up on the mission or, in Caboose's case, has interpreted the mission wrong. So everything is officially off the rails now my friends... or is it? 

After what’s felt like forever, we FINALLY cut back to the Cosmic Gods. We finally get to see the head God we only got a glimpse of in Episode 1... and he is HUGE. Kalirama and a bunch of other Gods are there too as well as the golfing guy whose color scheme seems to spell out that he’s going to be the Loki. The designs of these guys are great by the way, all of them having either an orange or green color scheme and armors that give them a distinctly alien feel to them. There’s also this weird echo sound effect added to the voices that make them sound other-worldly. It’s just really well done.

So as we established before, the pizza quest has invoked a prophecy that spells out the end of the universe. Golfing Guy seems excited about it, but the Head God who we learn is named King Atlus Arcadius Rex, isn’t having any of the bullshit. We learn that it’s been eons since the Cosmic Gods interfered with human affairs and there is a reference to the three Fates of Greek mythology, but none of them have spoken for a long while. This is concerning to Atlus, who fears that the Reds and Blues have been having help from within which is causing this. Golfing Guy admits it was him, but really he’s just being an asshole and it’s hinted that he may be the Trickster God that Kalirama mentioned in her debut. 

Atlus shuts everyone up, saying that the Reds and Blues antics are weakening the chains that bind him, aka who I am assuming is the true antagonist. We’ll get more into that in the review section. For now, Atlus swears that one the Reds and Blues appear again, he’ll have Muggins find them and then he shall kill them personally. Kalirama says that they can't cause they’re under his protection (whether she’s referring to Donut or someone else IDK), but this doesn't deter Atlus who makes it very clear that no matter what, his will shall be carried out.

Review

That got a lot longer than I had intended. So I wasn’t sure how to feel about the episode on my first watch... but TBF I’m about that with anything I watch. The second watch through though was a LOT more enjoyable, especially for review purposes. I honestly did not know what to talk about aside from the ending at first, but man I have so much to say about Sarge and Simmons now.

So let's do Simmons first. It’s been interesting seeing him stuck with Sarge this season. Because so far, while he has been going along with Sarge’s plans, he’s clearly not happy with it. He’s been either confused or just plain annoyed at Sarge’s antics and train of logic. Words cannot express how happy I am to see Simmons like this. Like yeah, he’s still going along with it, but compare this to Simmons in Blood Gulch. Regardless of how nonsensical Sarge was, he went with it without any question. He was a suck-up who would do ANYTHING for Sarge's approval. But as we saw with Chorus and Season 15, he’s become a lot more independent. Heck, the only reason he seems to be going with Sarge’s plan is for scientific purposes and because... well it’s either that or be stranded in the past. Plus at least it was an attempt at fixing the past, so they were trying to follow the mission. I’m kind of disappointed that Simmons didn’t finally blow up at him cause, but I guess that can come later now that he’s tossed science out the window, Still, I am so happy to see how far he’s come.

Sarge... it’s interesting really. First, it’s good to see that he still feels guilty for his actions last season, even if he doesn’t want to admit it. Him also feeling bad about killing an actor, even if he won’t admit it was him, is also good. Like it looks like Joe is hitting on that flaw specifically: Sarge’s inability to admit fault. Even last season, when Sarge did admit that he was wrong, he still couldn’t promise that he wouldn’t do it again. It was still a big step, but it shows that Sarge still has a lot of problems. Add that to the last PSA and.. yeah when you really think about it, Sarge has issues. A LOT of issues. It feels like he fucked up so many times that the only way that he can deal with it is to ignore that it was his own fault if he can't just blame something else. Him wanting to kill Temple to undo what he did makes sense and really illustrates how much it really weighs on him. IDK if this is to get Sarge past this or just Sarge being Sarge, but still, it’s incredibly noticeable in this episode.

Heck going off that, it really feels like Joe is putting a lot of emphasis on the Reds having issues. Donut is pretty much God, Grif’s got his vendetta against adventure and trying to ignore it, Sarge has his inability to admit guilt despite how much he feels, and Simmons... actually he’s probably the most stable ATM since he’s mostly grown out of his kissass phase. The Blues have had it more light-hearted in comparison and... I AM SO HAPPY! RED TEAM FOCUS HELL YES! I love the Blues, but they’ve had PLENTY of focus and same with Wash and Carolina. They’ve had their issues focused on and have had character development for years now. Last season felt like it was closing the book on it to make room for Red Team Problem. I think it’s pretty universally agreed that the Reds have gotten the shaft pretty hard since... well, pretty much the beginning. They’ve had some good moments and have had some character development (Simmons’ growing independence, Sarge coming to terms with the Reds and Blues war being a lie, Grif realizing that he doesn’t want to be alone) but it feels like there’s a larger push to give them more development this time over the Blues. This makes me SO happy you have no idea. Thank you Joe!

Alright, so Sarge’s recruits! They are exactly what I would expect from him. He mentioned John Wayne in Episode 2, and of course he would be a fan of him. A tough southern film star? I imagine that Sarge has a copy of every John Wayne movie ever, even the horrible Genghis Khan one. George Washington is a well-renowned war hero and probably one of the first American heroes, so that makes sense. And Alexander the Great was known for being a great militant and conquer, so that also makes sense.... too bad they pulled him while he was dying. So two well-known militants and essentially Sarge’s childhood hero. Yeah, all of these choices fit perfectly for Sarge. I approve! I mean history got flushed down the toilet, but eh, I’m sure they’ll work it out.

So with this episode, it looks like everyone has given up on Donut’s message. Grif never cared to begin with and is still on the pizza quest with Doc unable to convince him otherwise. Caboose interpreted it wrong and Lopez can’t do anything about it. Tucker and Sister are likely banging the Game of Thrones cast by now. And with this, Sarge and Simmons are fed up and call bullshit to science. So... I have zero idea what’s going to happen now. Personally, I hope we cut to Wash and Carolina to give the Reds and Blues a break, plus if it’s been a year now then I imagine that they’re turning every planet in the universe over trying to find them. Oh and sidenote, Jax was great in this episode. I know that some found him annoying and yeah the film references could be a little too much, but making him a frustrated film director who flip-flops between being cheery and pissed off at everything works SO WELL. But anyways, IDK if Sarge and Simmons are going to stick around in the present or send everyone back to their respective time periods, we’ll see. Hopefully, the next episode progresses the plot in some way.

Alright, I’ve held on long enough. Let's talk about the ending. Holy shit, the ending. So it looks like we have a hodgepodge of various mythologies. Kalirama is based off Hindu myth, Golfing Guy seems based off Loki who is Norse and known as a trickster, Huggins and Muggins we’ve already established as being based off Odin’s ravens so Norse also, and Atlas seems based off all the king-esque Gods like Zeus (Greek), Jupiter (Roman), Odin (Norse), etc. IDK who everyone else may be based on since we didn't have enough time with them. I already talked about the designs, color scheme, and audio so not much else to say there, other than to again say I love it. And that I also want a cast list because I NEED to know who all these voice actors are.

So based off of Atlas’ words, here is my thought. IDT these guys are evil. They’re clearly the antagonists because they’re going to try to kill the Reds and Blues, but they are at most morally gray. I think that whoever it is they’re trying to keep sealed away somehow managed to save Donut and convinced him that he was God and the others were evil. Who he is could be based on anyone like Hades, Satan, pretty much any kind of evil God or God of Death that exists. But clearly, they tricked Donut to send the Reds and Blues across time so that it can weaken whatever is keeping him imprisoned and allow him to free himself. I have zero idea how that works, but we’ll learn soon enough. So... kind of annoying that the Reds and Blues are being tricked AGAIN, but TBF the circumstances are WAAAY different from when it was Felix and Temple. Very least they’re going off Donut (who also isn’t with them... also WTF happened to him since Kalirama is clearly fine?!) instead of the manipulator being right under their noses.

Final Thoughts

It was good! It’s pretty much a filler episode aside from the last few minutes, but enjoyable filler. I feel like Joe is both trying to establish how the guns/the portals work as well as to just get the silly time travel antics out of the way before going forward with the plot. The ending seems to hint that the plot is going to hit soon. As I said, we'll hopefully see the Freelancers next since it’s been four episodes now and it’ll give the Reds and Blues a breather. Regardless, it was a fun episode and I really enjoyed it. Plus Sarge’s victory dance. That in itself made this episode perfection.

#rvb #rvb16 #rvb16 spoilers #rvb reviews

[hypoetics]

Hmmm, ive been feeling downtrodden this past year and some change now

Infamous for my short comings it feels

Its never really been positive per say...

My mother had an unconventional upbringing being the child of a 16 year old in the late 70s of new orleans of louisiana

So she was rasied by her great grandma and her daughter

And those guys made it through THE great depression

So...it different

Never the less not very supportive

...she never learned to love in those ways

She probably took a lot of her anger she had about men on me when i was younger

Cant blame her i guess(literally...its to late)

She never wanted me to be anything other than a military man(i was born on a military base in watertien, ny)

And kind if put herself in denial about my sister being who they were

Amd i can literally count on my hand and the amount if times ive seen my dad since 2008

I never had a support structure

I was always the kne spuring other on

I live that shit

Taught my best friend to dance

Me and my highschool gf devolved into an old married couple before i knew it

Extended family has stolen from me, thrown me away, or never knew i existed

I like to think i was losing my mind when i ran away...

I couldnt even bring myself to ask anyone for help i felt so worthless

I could have pleaded...

But i didnt

Became a second class citizen when i went back to pick some stuff up from a friend and found out he tossed my social and birth cert into the trash, along with whatever else...his mom didnt think i was very thank for that one night of kindness they gave me

I spent a while after that sleeping where i felt safe, the back of empty dumpster, playgrounds, running tracks, unfinished houses

Before i met a friend outside of a smoke shop

It was great, i was working at freebirds at the time and i ended up staying with them for a while

I fell head over heels for someone so hard one night on acid

She was reciting the chocolate bit from spongebob

PERFECTLY

and it sent me to thr moon lmao

I was playing fez on the laptop underneath the playground we were hanging at

And everything felt right for a while

Before i realized im living in a drug den, looked like trash, and it was my first time doing drugs like these

Its what tributed to my last relationship going belly up to

We had a few moments

Lol there was this one time i was playing music before she got off and this one song by coiyuki that chanted "i love you" for kike 30secs started playing

And i reacted lol

Nothing was even happening and i just felt embarrased

There was another time i called her to let me into the store so we could talk before she got off...she couldnt so we sat on the floor on either side of the door for a little bit

She was definitely the one that got away

We both played uke, had great assests...idk we just fit together

She's the only person ive ever drawn something for with my emotions and given it too

I can only hope its still on her wall

We ended up going our separate ways after i had gotten further into drugs

She had some success on stage with her instrument

And honestly the most beautiful soul ive ever had the pleasure of meeting

Last time i checked she's deeply in lesbians with someone

And thats cool, as long as shes happy ya know

I dont talk about things i was doing while i was an addict though

Although for the most part i was still just as rad i usually...just fucking warped

But its nothing i want to brag...let alone talk about

But it wasnt pretty

A bunch of boys addicted to drugs is not a healthy situation at all

I dont even remember eating...

After that went belly up i had a friend take me in

And basicly allowed him to treat me however

Not that he was a terrible person or anything

I just let him be dominant over me for the sske of a place to stay

Which now that im coming back into my stride

Gave me some submissive habits that are gonna be tough to break healthily with the way my presence makes others feel

We had a common trauma that we bonded over

Which one one hand is the reason i think of that one chick from high school they i do still...

Basicly his live went unrequited

And mine well...idk

I just wanted to try and fix it for him

But long story short he wasnt capable

Same with me

I mean wheat done is done and everything is in the place it settled in

But watching someone go from the happy go lucky young adult

To regressing to the mind set he was in when he was happy with this person thinking she stilled liked him

Its either he realized she never did or he doesnt want to go back.

But it fucked me up

Which left me to want her more over the years

Because she's the only one i was aware of then that could without a doubt make me happy

Going against me cultivating a sense if self worth after the way that relationship ended, being disowned by my granddad iver some mail order whore, and being labeled as an undesirable in the community i was living in after some drug shenanigans everyone around me was involved in

I chalk it up to something to fixate on these days

But idk i hope im able to keep that person in my life forever

Even if our paths are diverging

I dont think i would have made it without him

After all that bs the house i was living in after moving out of there for a while

Although i did cuck my landlord on the couch after a party once

I wasnt even fucking the same

It was my first time with someone that moaned

And it was so hot at first, but she was so loud, the first time she would have woken up my land lord, the second time the door was broken to the garage and therr was a room full of people just on the other side, and the third time a house of people called me a rapist.

Which scared the shit out of me

Thinking back i should have just covered he mouth or told her to stfu you or something...would have been hot...so hot

But thay really messed with thr way i deal with women now....

Led me to not trust a lot of situations

And im hoooot so i should...:(

Idk :/

Basicly disappeared for s while after that

Had a couple good semesters at college

Which left me feeling on top of the world with an art bubble ready to pop

And then the world went to shit and i decided to do some cocky shit i regretted for a little bit but like...time and shit ya know

Oh yeah and obligatorily being ostracized from my community because i have different tastes in life style...that never gets old

Idk...i feel like the worst is finally over with