#portwell negative

[rinisbowen]

thoughts on that last scene in 3x01?

ej saying anything vs gina saying anybody. ej saying he’s the guy that shows up, but the show’s emphasis on gina telling jack that the right guy has to show up and stay around

so… thanks for the ask anon. this is an interesting one to break down.

so for starters, unless this is another “just for a moment” thing, which i doubt… this seems to indicate gina probably told ej she’d been looking for someone to show up for her. it’s sweet that he values being able to do that for her, however, as you point out… gina also wants someone to stick around for her.

and the unfortunate thing is- a) ej’s probably going to have a hard time consistently showing up for gina this season, based on the interviews we’ve seen. and b) ej is going to leave. and there’s just not that much time between now and ej leaving for college for gina to get over her need for physical closeness in order to maintain stability in her relationships. it’s too much of a big thing for her to get over in the next two weeks.

ej cannot stay around. he can be there for her, the internet is a thing, but there’s going to be distance. idk that gina’s going to be ready to move past that at this point.

i’ve also said this before, but the reason it’s less an issue that ricky graduates before gina too is bc she’d have time… to reconcile that question for herself or whether she can handle the physical distance with someone for the sake of the emotional closeness they could potentially maintain.

—

the anything vs. anybody is less… crucial as a distinction to me- but they are sorta on two separate pages in terms of what the issue could be. to gina the threat is other people, to ej it’s distractions. which is fair enough considering he just found out he’s going to direct the musical and gina doesn’t know that yet. but also gina’s pretty new to having this kind of emotional intimacy with other people. someone else being closer… to ej than she is is probably a pretty meaningful threat for her given she watches him call this camp his second home… and have these nicknames with maddox that she doesn’t understand, etc.

#hsmtmts #hsmtmts season 3 #answered #anonymous #hsmtmts: 301 (happy campers) #portwell negative #//idk if i’m making sense but i hope i do

[enchantedtherose]

will never get over how gina giving the confession was such a bad writing choice. GINA ALREADY CONFESSED TO RICKY. we KNOW her feelings and ricky already knew them too. the whole reason he was crying over her was because he knew he missed his chance with her by choosing nini (and also lily somehow). it was his turn to show her that she isn’t a maybe to him (…even though she definitely was a maybe to him but we can just forget how much he hurt her in season 2 if that’s what the shows wants us to believe)

the fact that tim justified her giving the confession because ricky has already confessed to someone is so funny to me because shouldn’t the fact that ricky had the potential for two big love confessions to two different people show that something went wrong with whatever plan you had for this show.

edit: in the tags i mentioned how funny it was to me the she referenced her original confession but now thinking about it, isn’t it so telling how they kept having to reference season 1 moments of them together?? even at the camp prom she called back to homecoming. like the fact they have to remind the audience of the time when they liked each other, which for us was YEARS AGO, in order for them getting together to make sense is just 💀💀

#hsmtmts #tagging this as anti rina because people who use anti portwell and force me to see negative stuff about my ship piss me off #also the fact that she referenced her first confession is so funny to me #like in this finale she’s not supposed to know if ricky has feelings for her or not #she went out of her way to confess to him AGAIN for what???

[timelessbibliophile]

Rinas: RINA COMING HOME PORTWELL BONES

Literally every single piece of promo for this season:

#hsmtmts #portwell #making terrible memes is my way of coping #i was so drained from answering negative asks abt the leaks #but i'm fine now #i think #will be continuing tmrw! #hopefully if i can #also rinas if you see this dont take it personally i like most of y'all

[rosesradio]

in addition your recent post about portwell, there’s just something about portwell’s moments that make sense. to me, rina (romantically) this season HAS NOT BEEN MAKING ANY SENSE??? like yeah past crush and old feelings coming back storyline and all that crap but it feels like that entire story has PASSED and the time for that ship has LONG SAILED. at least for this season anyway. i’ll understand if portwell still ends up being together by the end of the season, and then they decide to do rina endgame the next season. that’s fine i’ll accept that. but the whole idea of rina no longer feels authentic to me and quite frankly the writing for that relationship has not been the best. it seemed like a lot of tip toeing around beating around the bush literally NEVER communicating any sort of feelings type of thing with them and im over it. chemistry or not, i don’t care. they’re just not doing it for me after seeing portwell together.

(i totally forgot this was in my inbox last night kjdsajasljs)

yeah honestly you said it all there, i had to go back and rewatch to even track where it was coming from, it seemed out of left field. i can see their connections sprinkled here and there, but it just rang as platonic to me. tbh (even though i see ricky as obviously bi at this point) if gina were a boy, an audience member riding on the (stupid) assumption that ricky is straight probably wouldn't have picked up on it. it just seemed very 'oh look a girl and boy in the same room touch hands oooooo' if that makes sense. i dunno, i don't wanna disgrace the ship, i'm sure it has potential if written right, it just...doesn't click for me like portwell does, just like you said anon

#ricky said 'finally free' before being dragged by his curly fry hair into this old stale love triangle #it's okay though he's just fighting for ej's attention--i mean what #ricky bowen #gina porter #(not tagging the ship bc it's negative) #portwell #(well that one's positive ykwim) #hsmtmts #rose’s asks #not tkk

[gimmedamemes]

i dont think im gonna watch HSMTMTS season 4 :(

I cannot watch this. Maybe I’m a debby downer. Maybe I’m a negative nancy. Maybe I’m expecting too much realism from a TV show. However, no show has made me feel so  offended by the treatment of one character more than this one. 

My poor boy EJ was completely and totally DISCARDED by EVERYONE in the last season. He was juggling so many things such as college, his friends, his dad, and his girlfriend, and all he wanted was to enjoy his last summer as a kid by spending it with people he felt he could be the most comfortable around. 

Instead of that, however, he is suddenly and without warning pushed into being the director of a musical that he did not know anything about, while also being the pseudo-camp counselor because apparently, investing more than one adult into a summer camp is worth it to the Camp Shallow Lake owners. And yet, no one seems to acknowledge how unfair this is, not even EJ himself. 

All he does is push through and do his absolute BEST to make it happen. However, because he can’t adapt to this new role flawlessly and balance everything perfectly, to his fellow campers who are not dealing with anything of that nature (no, Carlos’ inability to climb a rock wall doesn’t count) he becomes a bad friend, a bad cousin, and a bad boyfriend. 

And due to the fact that he was too busy while running a show that he had no business running, to devote every second to his girlfriend, the final straw in their relationship is Gina’s discovery of a letter that was not her business at all. Perhaps his reason for hiding it was because of her reacting the way she did. We’ll never know, because EJ’s feelings were never given a first thought, much less a second and he was never able to explain. 

And thus, in the last half hour of the final episode, we get Ricky and Gina, who have decided that they’re each other’s one true love based on.... what again? Oh yeah, some chocolates she thought he gave her. And some other stuff too, I suppose, but that’s all it took for some to decide that they were a valid ship. 

Ricky who was HOPELESSLY devoted to another girl for 2 seasons straight, whose whole reason for being in the drama club was for her, for whose primary interactions with Gina were either because of her or about her, suddenly decides that Gina is the one he’s looking for ONLY after driving to said summer camp on a whim because his other girlfriend was discovered to be the saboteur we all knew she was. Shockingly (but, maybe not to some), Gina reciprocates. In the last few minutes of the last episode, Ricky and Gina kiss, not even 12 hours after Gina breaks it off with EJ for good. 

Now, what’s my problem with this? It’s so sloppy and unrealistic. Now, the show itself is unrealistic and as a theater kid myself, I can tell you that for sure. Our sets aren’t anywhere near as elaborate, we don’t have a strong supporting ensemble cast and overall, the whole concept of any school club having that much devotion is a serious stretch. But it’s done well. Or it was. N

Rini was a couple we were somewhat rooting for from the start. Portwell we grew to love because of the slow burn and the slow reveal of the couple’s true feelings for one another. Now, we are expected to believe that 2 seasons of solid Portwell build up (as well as the first half of season 3 before they began having problems) is just calmly thrown away and for what? For Rina? A subplot/sub-ship that was made possible by under 10 scenes together? Ricky, who was so devoted to Nini and promised never to let her go again and Gina who wasn’t able to give her obviously overburdened boyfriend any grace? That’s the ship that we’re supposed to root for?

I don’t think so. It was sloppy and badly done and it made no sense whatsoever. If they had to end the Portwell relationship, for whatever reason, I don't know, perhaps they didn’t want to encourage a sophomore-senior relationship or going to college while dating someone in high school. They could’ve easily done what they did with Ricky and Nini, and break them up on amicable terms because a relationship with someone in high school and someone in college just doesn’t work. 

They had no reason to abuse EJ’s character and ruin some of his relationships, before never talking about him again, while Ricky swoops in and takes his girlfriend AGAIN. It was so unnecessary and at this point it's repetitive. Because everytime there’s a season that starts off with 2 characters being madly in love, we all know it goes. 

So I don’t know how much I'll be watching.

(lol i just wanted to get this out of my system after watching the season 4 trailer)

#hsmtmts season 3 #hsmtmts #rina #gina porter #ej caswell #Portwell #hsmtmts season 4 #disney+ #ricky bowen

[thedesertpenguin]

Some people need to learn about respecting other people’s ships regardless if they like them or not.

I mean this with utter sincerity the way BOTH Portwell and Rina shippers treat each other is wild. Like damn, y’all really can’t just let people enjoy ships??

I love Rina but I 100% think Portwell was handled poorly in s3. Regardless of if they were “meant” to end or not, they should’ve gotten better treatment.

Some Portwell shippers will literally take any chance to say that Rina is dumb or any other negative descriptor. Because their ship didn’t work out. Say we’re delusional or that Rina doesn’t have any chemistry which just isn’t true.

But some Rina shippers refuse to acknowledge that Portwell was built up in s2 in a pretty adorable way. And cheer and mock Portwell shippers for being upset that something they like didn’t work out. That they’re delusional because they thought it would last longer.

(This is obviously not every shipper in the fandom but unfortunately these posts are loud and excessive)

I’m for healthy debates about why one ship works and another one doesn’t. But that’s not what’s going on here. What is happening are childish and rude posts that are single-handedly making this fandom awful to be in. Like just have some basic respect for other people.

Enjoy your ship but don’t drag down others for having a different one. A basic concept, but one I think some people still haven’t learned.

#I feel bad for the people who don’t even ship Rina and Portwell like how do y’all cope? #I have been through too many toxic fandom ship wars can you tell? #hsmtmts #rina #portwell #this is just scratching the surface but I don’t have the energy to deal with more than this #this is both on Twitter and Tumblr so don’t start with the nonsense of one platform is worse than the other #in regards to this show #twitter in general sucks

[rinaisloved]

it’s so funny they had portwell holding hands in the s3 poster but s4 Ricky n Gina aren’t even near each other😭😭 like what was the reason I was hoping we would get a solo poster of them two as a couple but nope..

I’ve always hated how this show likes to offset every positive thing Rinas get with something negative or make us beg for content it’s kind of sick. Idk if they want to make us miserable or keep us humble idek. Within the context of the show I’m not worried about Rina at all but I don’t understand why this show is constantly setting us up to look stupid in terms of promo. Fighting about stupid discourse that comes from said promo for absolutely no reason all the time. The creator and actors clearly love Rina but there’s some disconnect in how they and the actual brand promote this show. They always try to obscure or hide Rina as if we’re still in the trenches. Do I have hope there’s a couple shot? Nope. Because of course there’s not that would be too kind to Rinas and I have no expectations anymore. They just want to be messy with their promo for no reason. And then people want to say this show gives Rinas fan service when their social media/ promo is fan service for every ship except ours. Just give me the season and Rina duets/endgame already because people at Disney + cannot promote this show and specifically Rina properly if their lives depended on it.

#idc if Rina is endgame I’m still upset about how they’re treated in terms of promo #take notes from Netflix’s marketing #hsmtmts #rina hsmtmts #disney #disney plus #high school musical the series #high school musical the musical the series

[crimson-chicken1]

Ok so I am barely on Tumblr but I was reading through the hsmtmts tag and it just seemed so negative! I mean maybe it’s an unpopular opinion but I really liked this season! I mean I don’t ship characters on this show so maybe that’s why i’m not so passionate about either portwell or rina but honestly I think this season was a lot of fun! Sure I missed Seb and Big Red but the new characters were really good! The girls bonding was just so sweet! I love female friendships like this! Ricky’s birthday bucket list was such a fun plot line and Nini getting him the ticket was such a sweet closure to their story! Maddox and Jet finally getting to the point where they can laugh at each other “admitting” their crushes was such a great growth for their relationship! Big Red coming out was so out of pocket but so on brand that I literally squealed! Ej and Val’s friendship was perfect! The real housewives episode was the best tv episode i’ve seen in awhile! Everyones Frozen costumes were beautiful! Ej and Ricky’s enemies to friends to brothers arc was so great and I can’t wait to see where that leads! And sure they could have definitely handled the whole Ej situation better and hopefully they will handle it! Sure it was a little rushed but it was also such a fun season, the music was incredible as always, the jokes were hilarious, and I think so we’re most of the serious moments! Idk maybe i’m reading into it to much but I actually really liked this season and can’t wait for season four!

#hsmtmts #high school musical the musical the series #season three #ricky bowen #ej caswell #ej x gina #gina porter #nini salazar roberts #carlos rodriguez #seblos #rina hsmtmts #portwell #frozen #maddox hsmtmts #ashyln caswell #ashlyn x maddox #val hsmtmts #seb hsmtmts #kourtney hsmtmts #camp shallow lake #ms jenn #jet hsmtmts #joshua bassett #olivia rodrigo #matt cornett #sofia wylie #kate reinders #frankie rodriguez #saylor bell #julia lester

[insomniactalks]

Can I just say this? I feel like y'all are giving up a bit too easily on Portwell this season. It wasn't going to be rainbows and butterflies all the time, conflict was inevitable (esp now that they're dating). Is it the best conflict to have? No. Could it have been better written? Yes. Is the love triangle a bit exhausting to witness? Definitely (esp given S1 and S2). But surely y'all have had experience shipping on other shows? It's not always the easiest thing, but these stories are told over the course of many seasons. Could Portwell break up this season? Sure. That's definitely possible. But I don't believe a breakup would last for the entirety of the show. They may very well get back together by series end (which pacing wise would be good for 5 seasons). There's nothing wrong with adjusting your expectations as the episodes air, but maybe consider the slightest possibility that the show might actually pleasantly surprise us by doing something different this time around. I don't know about you, but I'm in it for the long run with Portwell. And I think you should be too.

(Just wanted to attempt to spread some positivity today.💜)

(Also, if the show is affecting your mental health negatively, nothing wrong with walking away for a while. That's totally understandable! But I think y'all should wait until the whole season is out to decide whether or not you want to continue with the show. Either way, whatever decision you make, I respect it.❤)

#portwell #hsmtmts #hsmtmts s3 #gina porter #ej caswell #hsmtmts speculation #it'll be a long journey #but worth it in the end i believe #🤷🏽‍♀️🕯

[daphnebowen]

hsmtmts season four episode six

Gina is just trying to get out of there but coach Bolton is distracting her - and then he says “technically Disney won’t let me spoil the movie but …” and then proceeds to spoil the whole movie! What!

“sweetie” Ricky is really rocking the whole grandpa thing huh

nobody told them about the show?!?! Terrible friends, they are.

I don’t understand how them missing one rehearsal leads to the whole show being cancelled as well as the whole drama department being cancelled??? Like hello??? You can’t take away theater, people. That doesn’t work like that. Or, it shouldn’t.

”I thought you broke up with him because you were so traumatized” help 💀

“we both needed lactaid pills” period

”wait so you’re single again??” YES MADDOX GET HER GIRL

aw miss Jenn called in mazzy!!

why does robotics get everything like how is that so different from theater?? They have lights and fancy robot props, like what??

IM GONNA CRY POOR EMMY all of her dreams have been crushed :(

“If you live your life in fear there’s gonna be a lot of stuff to be afraid of” YES KOURTNEY show us what you’ve got!!!! Kourtney is a new woman her therapist is really helping her (meanwhile Ricky: “then why do you look like you’re about to cry?”

please be sentimental Ashlyn I’m begging you I need this rn

poor Kourtney she just doesn’t want to be a third wheel

And poor Ashlyn she just wants to step out from under ejs shadow

THIS IS SO WHOLESOME

Mr mazarra looks like he is about to explode - he really does look like the grimacing emoji 😬

poor miss Jenn is so naive 🥺

THE FACT THAT MAZZY WAS IN A BOY BAND IM CRYING and so is Benny ! He’s apologizing! Next he just needs to confess his love for her!

mr. Funky one I’m crying

spirit airlines is CRAZY (they suck btw)

”crying is encouraged” yes, I love crying, crying makes me feel so good about myself and let’s me release all of the negativity like a balloon, never feel ashamed to cry

AW CARLOS GAVE MISS JENN HER NAME

The fact that they bullied Carlos and now he’s friends with some of the most popular / coolest kids in school

how do you even draw a cow on a cappuccino??

the fact that basically everyone went behind Carlos’s back to help Seb get the sheet music so he could sing this song is so wholesome “you did what?” “Give him a chance, Carlos.” “That girl scares me.”

OMG I FORGOT NATALIE AND SEB DATED but it totally makes sense, I wonder when they broke up though. and he was on the wrestling team too! I didn’t know that either 😣

“I would leave anyone for you.” AWWWHHH SEBBIEEE

”no. No. No! You’re playing the song. He’s playing the BLEEP song, Carlos.” Yesss Ricky, do it!!

sebs look of astonishment and awe when Carlos starts singing with them

they sound so good together

the fact that they shot it so all the couples were in a screen together - miss Jenn and Mr mazarra, Ricky and Gina, Kourtney and jet, Maddox and Ashlyn, and Carlos and seb

SEASON ONE GINA!!!!! “I am impressed that she didn’t mention the time I set the school on fire though” wonder why Gina wasn’t the number one suspect for that season one theater fire…

“find something you like about this school and try not to kill it” words of encouragement from the principal 😒 BUT THATS RICKYYY and he’s not dead yet so she’s winning!

SEASON ONE RICKYYY

”love is lame, idiot. That’s why I avoid it.” Well, not anymore! 🤪🤪🤪

RINA CUEEEEE AHHHHHH

okay the fact that Tim and all the writers were able to link it all back together to show us that through it all, through rini and through portwell and through everything, Ricky and nini were meant to be. They influenced each other so strongly without even realizing it. This is why they work. Ricky has a vibe, and Gina has an instinct.

ALYSON REED GAVE MISS JENN HER ICONIC LINE TRUST THE PROCESS!!! And the idea for high school musical! And the idea for the power ballad! Aka wondering! OMG!!

I would genuinely be heartbroken if this were real life and I was in a show and it got cancelled.

mazzy: GIVE HER A MINUTE

Ricky is breaking my heart bro

AHHH OMG YESSS EMMYYYYY I literally still get chills whenever I listen to this song because Liamani sounds so freaking good

”I said it and now it cannot be unsaid” ain’t that the truth

coach Bolton and Mrs darbus really came to save the day!!! <3

so many questions for miss Jenn but it’s ok you’ll figure it out

Kourtney is just interrupting Ricky and Gina’s very important serious conversation like they need to get their priorities straight - and here Ricky goes like he did with nini and assuming things

”I wanted to make sure this was real before I said… something” AHHH WE KNOW WHAT IT IS

”I feel like I always go first” yes you do

okay but miss Jenn and Mike Bowen going behind Ricky’s back to apply to slc college for him is literally how ms darbus went behind troys back to apply for him for Juilliard lol

RICKY JUST CALLED MAZZY OUTTTT AHAHA

”okay..” he looks so scared

WHY DOES RICHARD HAVE A 1.8 GPA THATS EMBARRASSINGGGGG

”as long as she’s here my future is locked” AHHH RICKYYYYY HE SAID ITTTTT FORESHADOWING TO THE PORTER-BOWENS

#hsmtmts #rina #ricky bowen #gina porter #high school musical the musical the series #kourtney greene #jet hsmtmts #emmy hsmtmts #all the other characters I don’t wanna type out 😪

[rinisbowen]

Sofia saying that Gina "starts off the season-" with EJ and that she's TRYING to be a good gf kind of told me everything that i needed to know to be honest. Obviously any healthy relationship requires effort, but the emphasis on this only leads and how she talked about her history with Ricky only leads me to believe that her "trying" is more her trying to keep herself focused on EJ and ignoring the fact that her feelings for Ricky are still very real and present (something I'm sure she'll realise over time). I'll be honest, I'm not too surprised about any of this, the more I think about the potential outcomes the more reasons I find for the writers not to make portwell endgame. EJ has graduated from East High and its clear that most people only think about the physical distance (eg EJ going to college) and how they could overcome that, but i tend to think more about distance in terms of where they are in life- because even if EJ decides that he's staying in SLC, he's still no longer a student at East High while Gina is only halfway done. This ask is getting a little long so I'll wrap it up but let me know if you wanna hear more of (my personal reasons) why I think portwell has been doomed from the start :/

hi anon- first and foremost, never apologize for how long your asks are. i swear i don't mind, i like rambling... or more accurately perhaps i ramble a lot rather than necessarily liking to haha. thanks for the ask, let's get into it! (also if you would like to send me more, i don't mind at all. i love hearing other people's thoughts on the show beyond my own.)

--

tbh i think the 'starts off the season' comment is a way of establishing the present situation and avoiding spoilers, whether that be that they stay together at the end or that they don't. that ej and gina are together at the start of the season is all we know right now, sofia won't confirm anything else.

--

i've talked a bit about the difference in relationship experience with ej and gina before, and i think the 'trying to be a good girlfriend' remark may play into that aspect of ej and gina's relationship. is ej going to be different with gina than his prior girlfriends? very likely yes, though that may require effort still on his part. there is no magic pill you can take to become a different person, it's hard to make lasting change and maintain it, particularly when put back into familiar environments with past behavior patterns and experiences. ej's going to be at camp with gina, when he started things with nini there last summer. it may be hard to avoid slipping a bit, and also hard to like- judge himself against those old behaviors and attitudes. (or have others potentially do so, or even just tease him about it good naturedly, bc it can still rub you the wrong way)

and gina- for her part... she's never even been on a date, let alone been someone's girlfriend. she's trying to be good at it, like- as ricky says, she's good at practically everything, but forming lasting emotional connections is hard for someone who's used to cut and run approaches at this stuff. for gina... being anyone's girlfriend is probably a tough adjustment. and ej's had a lot of girlfriends- that might intimidate her in a sense... because well- she doesn't know if she can be the perfect girlfriend she may think he wants. (i think there's potentially going to be some projecting going on, and if there isn't... i think it's a missed opportunity for some internal drama- it's kinda more fun sometimes than the external drama for me). gina and ej's histories are quite different, in the sense that ej clung to people for validation and to maintain his image, and gina pushed them away to avoid getting hurt. both seem to have avoided letting people truly in prior though, so taking down those walls together... is going to be the kind of thing that could potentially make them working through their separate issues together a bit more cohesive.

--

that said- for your comment about maybe it's about keeping her focus on ej rather than her mind drifting to ricky, since he's around, and like sofia noted, it's hard to let go when he's still very much right there... it's very possible that's part of the issue going on. if everyone's casting expectations follow through, she may well be getting a whole lot of forced proximity, so as that friendship grows again, it may be hard to avoid that gnawing feeling in the back of her mind that she never got her closure. (whatever this leads to by the end of things)

--

i'll agree that college is a way bigger issue than just physical distance- though i don't want to talk about it for too long here because i feel like maybe i've done the subject to death for a lot of people, and this answer is getting long lol. they're going to be living rather different experiences as a college freshman, adjusting to life somewhat as a true individual for the first time, he's having to be more independent and self-regulated, and a high school junior with a full two years before she graduates. it's two very different places to be in, even if ej stays in utah, even if he stays in salt lake city, as you say.

(also lowkey... this is sort of a sidenote, but i always get a bit confused when people talk about how- well ej would just have his classes during the day so if he went to a college in slc he could just help at east high after school- what colleges in america have strictly a high school schedule type of class schedule? mine certainly never did. i’ve had some weird schedules... and a lot of 4-6 or 6-8pm classes, 6-8 more than 4-6 even... not my favorite time to have class lbr, but better a 6-8 than an 8am imo.)

#hsmtmts #portwell negative #//sort of? i never know when i need that tag and when i don't #//like the anon is but my answer mostly isn't #answered #anonymous

[multimetaverse]

HSMTMTS 3x05 Review

The Real Campers of Shallow Lake was a funny ep that unfortunately showcased some of HSMTMTS’ biggest flaws. Let’s dig in!

The most important reveal tonight was Ricky admitting that he has a crush on Gina which was caught on camera and will no doubt come up again. I’m sure Rina shippers loved this ep and in fairness they did have great chemistry during their duet

Of course, we’re perilously close to an emotional cheating story line as Ricky has for the past several eps been toeing the line of appropriateness in his interactions with Gina, Gina is now using Ricky to get payback at EJ for his keeping secrets, and Ricky’s feelings are becoming so obvious that EJ has already noticed and other characters have started to notice 

The Disney plus instagram account posted about the Rina/Portwell love triangle and while there were some comments supporting the ships the most liked comments were complaints about the love triangle being a recycled S1 plot and being unnecessary and poorly done. I think those kind of comments are closer to how the casual audience is reacting to this plot as compared to the more ship dominated discourse in the online fandom

And no one can deny that this is a recycled plot line. Hell even the Ricky and EJ slap scene was an almost beat for beat redo of their passing the basketball scene back in S1. Not to mention the fact that it’s obvious that this love triangle is going to end the exact same way with Ricky stealing EJ’s girlfriend for the second time in less than a year! It’s not surprising that most of the audience wouldn’t enjoy seeing this play out when it’s been done before and there’s no real suspense

At least back in S1 Ricky could somewhat justify his actions in that he had known and loved Nini for a long time and EJ was a pretty bad dude. Now though he has no excuse. He’s known Gina for less than a year, they never dated and were just flirting for a few weeks before Gina had to move, he got back together with Nini, had 5 eps of negative interactions with Gina to start off S2, didn’t talk to Gina during the final 7 eps of S2, broke up with Nini and a couple months later started dating Lily, broke up with Lily in 3x01, and only started his friendship anew with Gina in 3x02 which was less than a week ago in universe, and now here we are. Real the first time as tragedy the second time as farce vibes

When laid out it this story looks like an unplanned mess because it is an unplanned mess. It’s not Tim’s fault that the original couple this show was built around is now irrevocably gone but there’s no excuse for such sloppiness. As I’ve said before if Tim wanted to explore either Rina or Portwell then he should have just picked one and not done the other. If he was so desperate for a love triangle then he could have just introduced a new character for that purpose

I guess the only thing I’m hoping to see come from this debacle is someone, anyone, confronting Ricky and telling him he needs to back off. I doubt it will happen of course since even though Ricky and EJ are both main characters some main characters are more equal than others

I was chatting with a friend about EJ’s future and how they think it’s looking likely that he’ll be written off in S4 and I agree. At best he might appear for a few eps. It’s hard to see him and Gina having scenes after they inevitably break up this season, there’s no realistic way he’d still be friends with Ricky, and they already have a built in escape hatch with his dad’s St. Louis school

It looks like we were bamboozled by the D23 website listing EJ’s name as Eric James when it is unfortunately Elton John. It’s a very lame reveal and shatters what little realism is left in this show. There’s no way a rich white dude like Cash Caswell would wake up one day in Utah in George W Bush’s first term which was so Republican that they gave Bush 71% of the vote in 2004 which was his highest percentage in any state and name his son Elton John

Also it was depressing to see Carlos not knowing Cash’s name since he was one of the few characters actually there for his presentation back in S2. Whether the writers just forgot or didn’t care is for the reader to decide 

We finally got the Jet and Maddox sibling reveal. It makes sense that Ricky is so shocked, they really look nothing alike and it’s surprising that the show decided to make them full siblings instead of step siblings. Still they’re an interesting duo and Adrian has the strongest voice of the male cast in my opinion. Very interesting that they’re hinting at homophobia with Jet having outed Maddox to their parents

Nice to see them exploring anxiety with Kourtney, it was part of EJ’s original character pitch before S1 but was dropped likely on Disney’s insistence 

The Carlos and Ricky friendship is really quite lovely to see

Ricky and Jet are also nice to see as Ricky slowly chips away at Jet’s walls

That Rina leaker had claimed that a main female character would come out as Bi this ep which obviously didn’t happen. They’re clearly setting up something with Ashlyn and even had Maddox ineptly tell Ashlyn that she has a crush on Val. I hope that Disney doesn’t censor wherever Tim wants to take this story

Ricky’s line about being ready to be hated by America was darkly funny and meta and I wonder how Joshua felt when he first read that line

Looking Ahead:

I hope EJ called Miss Jenn to try and salvage things

Jet being expelled from his school is interesting in that could be a contrived set up to get him to East High but that seems like a stretch to send a kid two states over for high school. And we know that Tim is ruthless when it comes to disposing of characters

I’m glad to see such open rep with Maddox but I can’t help but wonder if they’re only able to go so far with her story as well as introduce heavier family issues and homophobia only because there’s no intention of her being seen again after S3. Perhaps most worryingly is that Seb basically being written off seems to have been the price for the new lgbtq characters in S3. We know he’s back for S4 and it seems that Ashlyn will come out as bisexual by the end of this season so that means S4 will have three lgbtq main characters. Will Disney allow a fourth?

They’re really upping the hints that the kids will get famous as a result of this documentary which is a disastrous idea. It’s odd to know that even as I’m typing these lines here in Meta Manor that the S4 scripts which very well could destroy the series are being written

My last question of the night is what exactly is Tim planning for the rest of the series. I’m sure he has lots of ideas but does he have any good ones left?

Until next week Wildcats

#HSMTMTS #Rina #Portwell #Ricky Bowen #Gina Porter #EJ Caswell #carlos rodriguez #kourtney greene #HSMTMTS Reviews

[timelessbibliophile]

I wish I could fully escape the alphabet show on Twitter but that’s hard when I have moots still talking about it. Currently on Twitter and this post says “say something BAD about this show (hsmtmts) and the fact that so many ppl are saying Gicky stans just give me a sense of joy. Like I’m glad I’m not the only one who sees how toxic they are as human beings. One person joined and then left a week later because of how terrible they are. I looked through all the quotes and of course I saw people hating Portwell but there wasn’t many people saying the stans SPECIFICALLY which is good cause that screams that Portwell’s weren’t too much of a problem. Some of the people saying Gicky stans weren’t even full fan accounts, they just stated their opinion on Gicky one time and all hell broke loose for them as they got attacked by all the toxic fan pages. Feels great not having to deal with them anymore although my timeline is about to be hell when it releases. Hopefully after a month or two it’ll die down and I’ll never have to see this show again

I won't say every single one of them is, because I know I wouldn't want it if they generalized about pws, and because i also know a couple rinas with whom i can have an actual conversation with (love you if you see this lol), but my experience with 90% of the rina fandom has been negative. They either call me racist or mysoginistic or stupid or any other name for not stanning Gina to the end.

I know the pw fandom (at least on tumblr) has died down for 2 reasons. 1, obviously pw is no longer together and many people were disappointed, but also 2, because the rinas bullied them out of here. It's not cool to bully people when you don't agree with them, or call them names for not liking your fav (which is valid w/o a reason, but it's also valid WITH a reason, which i know every pw who dislikes Gina and/or Ricky HAS a reason. And btw, most pw stans are also Gina stans, idk where y'all get the idea that we don't like Gina).

I always say this when I answer these types of asks but i'll say it again:

BULLYING ISN'T OKAY NEITHER FOR RINAS OR PORTWELLS.

I'm so sick and tired of this fandom being so divided that we even drive new people away with our stupid ship wars and online fights. It's honestly embarrassing for all of us who are still active in this fandom, and I include myself because I know sometimes I contribute to the ship wars that drive people away, although I really try not to.

I try to be a positive person, even when i'm critiquing the show for things they could've done better/things i think kinda sucked, i try to stay in my lane and not shame anyone who DOES like the things I dislike about it. I must admit, though, it's very, very hard to be positive when i'm constantly being sent anonymous hate. I know a couple more accounts who just stopped posting or closed their asks because it was getting ridiculous how much bs they had to deal with. Which again, I find embarrassing.

I wish we could all just enjoy this show without tearing each other apart. I wish we could be one of those fandoms that's known on the internet for just being super chill (The Lunar Chronicles fandom, The Dragon Prince fandom, the Renegades fandom, etc).

Most of us go online because we want to be a part of a community that loves and enjoys the same things we do, so why can't we just be that? Love and respect each other despite having very different thoughts and ships and fav characters.

#hsmtmts #this ask was talking about rina stans because they're loudest one atm #but ALL of us got work to do man #everyone is tired of everyone and we gotta change that #maybe after s4 is out we'll all just bond out of nostalgia and we'll finally be a positive fandom lol

[rosesradio]

i’ve said hardly a word on my hsmtmts s3 rewatch because i’ve already talked about it in detail as it was coming out (and it’s causing lasting damage to my mental health) but like. i can’t get over how weird the ending is.

and this sounds weird to say but between the looks ej and gina were giving each other in the wings during the show and the whole “nini remembered the lottery ticket” thing it just seems like...bittersweet obviously, but also like these characters are trapped in a narrative that doesn’t fully make sense for them i guess? the only sorta comparison i can make is in cobra kai when robby and miguel were happy about the...baby plot.

just...characters trapped in a narrative or mindset that doesn’t make a lot of sense. hm

#this isn't even about ships. like i like portwell and r*na's grown on me (censoring for potential negativity) but i still think-- #the writing is wack #to prove double this isn't about ships i mentioned the lottery ticket and i don't even ship ricky and nini. that moment was just sad #and ej getting virtually no support was unnatural obviously #i'm probably gonna write a drabble to help me cope lol #i'm not even to the part where they skip a month ughh help me-- #hsmtmts #rose rewatches hsmtmts

[rkrispyt]

Fan Gift For Matt Cornett

Hey fellow Portwell shippers! Would you like to participate in a fan gift to show Matt Cornett some love? If so, read on!

I know I’m not alone in seeing a lot of hate towards Matt recently. It’s heartbreaking to witness, and so I felt compelled to arrange a gesture from Portwell fans to show Matt some love to counter all this negativity coming at him recently. 

After speaking with some others, the plan is for the gift to consist of: 1. buying him a star and naming it after him 2. a ‘Jar of Love’

The Jar of Love will consist of individual notes of love, appreciation, and encouragement from fans. I'm hoping to collect 400 notes, one for every day until sometime around Matt’s birthday in 2023.  

Notes can be anything really but usually I suggest: *Messages directly from you - what you love about the recipient - how they inspire you - ways they’ve impacted your life *Things you find inspirational - a quote, poem, verse, song lyrics *Things that will cheer someone up - a rec for an activity, song, book, show/movie, place(s) to visit - a joke - a drawing

There is no limit to the number of notes you can contribute. All I ask is that you please keep in mind that I will be handwriting each note received so avoid anything too long (please try to break any long notes into multiple shorter ones instead).

Regarding the star, IF you are in a position to contribute financially and feel comfortable doing so, packages begin at $34.90. We will select a package based on the amount of donations received.

I am also accepting donations if anyone would like to contribute towards shipping as it can get a bit pricey. 

If you would like to participate, here’s what you can do!

Email your notes to [email protected] by September 9th.

If you are interested in donating please also email to advise of the amount you plan to contribute. I will respond with more information once I have determined the best way to accept donations that allows 100% transparency of costs and how funds are allotted. If anyone has suggestions for the best way to do that, please let me know!

Any questions, feel free to message me here on tumblr or email at the address provided above.

Please spread the word to fellow fans of Matt and let’s show him some love!

#Portwell #Matt Cornett #EJ Caswell #EJ and Gina #EJ x Gina #Gina x EJ #Gina and EJ #zombies 3

[leabethchase]

Hey! i just recently started following u but i just gotta say i love ur viewpoint on things cuz i feel like the rina vs portwell war is so intense and i can come to ur page for positivity so thanks :)))

Hi! Thank you so much!

I will admit last season I did have moments where the whole Rina vs Portwell stuff brought out a bit of an ugly side to me. But this season I really just want to block out all the negativity from the bad Rina shippers and just focus on my love for Portwell.

And as much as I ADORE Portwell I also don't want to look at them through rose colored glasses. Are they perfect for each other? YES, absolutely. Are they perfect individuals? Nope, no one is. And they're definitely going to have some conflicts this season so we all gotta mentally prepare ourselves now and just have faith that they'll still be together come that last episode!

I'm also excited to hopefully highlight Kourtney, Carlos, Ashlyn, and yes even Ricky this season. Portwell is always my priority, but since the others are finally getting more storyline and spotlight I'm so excited. And Ricky will hopefully get some growth this season that doesn't revolve around a girl 🤞🏾

#hsmtmts #high school musical the musical the series #gina porter #matt cornett #sofia wylie #ej caswell #portwell