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zeep-xanflorp · 1 year

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so at this point everyone is accepting that rick and diane never had a healthy marriage right??

like i think what everyone assumed (including me) is that they retconned all the things about rick not believing in love in the first two seasons when they revealed rick's revenge quest in season 6. like i thought that because rick was doing all of that for diane and beth, that it was indicative of a healthy relationship. but i don't think that's the case anymore after looking into some old episodes. i truly believe it was the intentions of the writers to make him have a bad relationship w diane since the beginning.

so here's what i've been thinking right.

"listen morty, what people call love is just a chemical reaction that compels animals to breed. it hits hard, morty, and then it slowly fades, leaving you stranded in a failing marriage. i did it. your parents are gonna do it. break the cycle, morty. rise above. focus on science." (rick potion #9, ep 106)

the situation he describes is so specific. he describes "failing marriages" and compared his marriage to that of beth and jerry's which is infamously codependent and toxic.

"i couldn't make [marriage] work and i can turn a black hole into a sun, so..." (the wedding squanchers, ep 210)

he talks about how little he trusts in marriage. because despite his intelligence, he couldn't be happy in his own.

so these are the two hints we get about rick's marriage before diane even actually shows onscreen. both of these quotes demonstrate rather clearly that their relationship was dysfunctional in some capacity. that it was "failing".

so if we're call caught up let's move onto the season 3 premiere.

"why don't i go grab beth and we can go out for ice cream?" (the rickshank redemption, 301)

that's all she has to say after rick says he's giving up on science - his passion. which is rather odd because it was clearly something he was working on for some time and he just says he's giving it all up immediately. which is odd, right? this well seeming remark could be far more insidious than it seems.

i'm not the only one to point this out but that's it. she dismisses his feelings. she invites him out to a place with their daughter (where, with her present, they would be incapable of having an adult conversation which would put more distance between them) and in this regard, beth acts as a physical barrier between them both.

i'm not saying that diane is in the wrong here. i'm not saying rick is perfect. but that's one instance of their relationship where something pretty major had just happened. and it's immediately brushed off.

(abcs of beth, 309)

there are plenty of hints that rick was indeed an absentee father, even when he was still living with his daughter. take the abcs of beth, where rick talks about all the toys that child beth had to play with. beth insists that she asked him to make those because she wanted to spend time with him. let me repeat, beth explains that she wanted to spend time with her father so bad that she asked him to make lethal weapons for her to play with. plus the whole froopyland thing - an environment designed to be safe so he wouldn't have to keep an eye on her. it's obvious she channeled her neglect in a destructive way - aka in a way that she got from her father. but i digress.

the point is, rick has always been absent from his family in some capacity. whether it was emotionally as we see with diane or physically as we see with beth.

there are also some hints at infidelity on rick's end. take mr nimbus, who is confirmed to have known diane.

then when diane and beth die, he absolutely crumbled. and this scene does break my heart watching it bc we know it's not just a part of a fake memory now. it was all real. the pain he experienced in that moment - the hope he had of living a normal life and making everything up to his family - just got ripped away from him.

so even though on the surface, rick appears to have a healthy relationship w diane when she shows up in the show, that doesn't mean that's all there is. it's very unlikely based on all of the information presented in the earlier seasons that these two were stable together and i think that the presentation of diane as a perfect loving caring wife is intentional. it either represents how rick remembers her - as someone kind - or is only a small part of the equation.

oh and let's not forget the ghost ai that rick made for his dead wife. he designed her to berate him, to wear him down. to never let him move on from what happened. like that's something super messed up wow. maybe

in conclusion, rick has never had a stable family or home life. that thing didn't appeal or satisfy him. it caused him to neglect his daughter and continues to impact the relationship he has with his adult family members. by no means is this an excuse and that's hardly my point. i feel it's important that we know the reality of ricks marriage to understand how that impacts him in the show we're watching.

ofc this is just my take on what little we have seen from the two of them. i rlly want to see more so i can maybe make a better assessment. but yeah. whatever went on there? not healthy. no way in hell.

#i know i'm leaving stuff out but i'm tired n this is a rambling rant #rick and morty #rick sanchez #r&m #rick n morty #rnm #rick c 137 #rick c137 #rick #rick and morty season 6 #old man alert #beth sanchez #beth smith #diane sanchez #rick and morty theory #meta #idfk how to tag this #game theory ????

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ranchthoughts · 7 months

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Manipulate, Mansplain, Manwhore, Manslaughter: Ray confronting Boston, ep. 6

I've been loving watching Neo play Boston, and the scene when Ray comes to Boston's house to confront him about sleeping with Top stuck out to me in particular, so I figured I would ~dig~ into it a bit. This conversation felt like Boston cycling through various approaches as he tried to gain the upper hand and hit back at Ray, so I've tried to pinpoint when those approaches start and what distinguishes them.

"Ton, you son of a bitch." "Ray. What the hell?" "How could you be so filthy. Will you do filthy shit to all of your friends?" "What shit are you talking about? What did I do?"

Ray walks into Boston's weirdly shabby chic house and doesn't waste time laying into him. Boston is not unfamiliar with confrontation so he knows better than to volunteer details- better to ask questions and find out what Ray knows (or thinks he knows) before getting defensive or fessing up to something. Boston likes collecting information, he likes knowing where people stand.

"You hooked up with Top! What a douchebag." "How did you know that? Who told you?"

Ray doesn't notice because he's too furious, but Boston is genuinely taken aback. He freezes then shifts side to side, he looks like he did in the shower when Mew came in looking for Top; this is a moment of real panic. Boston is too surprised to play dumb or deny it. Crucially, he doesn't even try the "yeah sure, before Mew and Top got together. what of it?" strategy Top tries at the end of the episode. Instead, Boston is more quiet than we've ever heard him before when he asks, "How did you know that?" and then, quickly, almost frantically, "Who told you?".

Not only is Ray's information good, it's something he should have NO way of knowing. Ray doesn't have the wherewithal to get this information himself, so he must have gotten it from someone else. The fact that Ray, of all people (drunken, incompetent Ray), knows something Boston tried hard to keep on the down low is not good. Boston's used to being the one who holds all the cards, so being out of the loop is disconcerting and alarming.

"Doesn't matter how I knew it! He is your friend. Mew is your friend!"

Ray is preoccupied with not revealing his sources and being angry (he steps closer into Boston's space and shoves him) and gives no indication that he caught Boston's little moment of weakness. This gives Boston some time to pull himself together and pick a course of action.

Approach #1: Manipulate

Downplay.

"So? Top and I screwed before they even started dating. Is it so weird to screw again? I just wanted more. Then I let them love each other all they want. Everyone is filled."

Caught off-guard, Boston has confirmed Ray's accusations. But Ray hasn't accused him of sleeping with Top recently, just at some point (unless there is a nuance in the Thai I am missing). In Boston's panic he now confesses to sleeping with Top after he got together with Mew - Ray already knows that, so it doesn't change the interaction, but this is information Boston gave up without being pressed. He's rattled.

Boston's first approach is to downplay the situation. He and Top have already had sex, what is one more time? At the end of the day Boston's hasn't tried to steal anyone's boyfriend, it didn't stop Mew and Top from falling in love, bing bang boom everyone is content. Boston tries to position Ray as the weird one for not understanding why this is fine. He even pulls out the puppy dog eyes - how could a man with these eyes do anything truly harmful?

Note also how Boston says, "I let them love each other" -> Boston sees himself as the one pulling the strings, he is the one in control. Even when trying to minimize his impact he can't help but drop a little reference to his own superiority.

Probably not Boston's best play in this situation, given how mad Ray is and how emotional he is about Mew, but Boston did just have his world rocked so we can forgive him the sub-optimal initial strategy.

Approach #2: Mansplain

Admit some fault, but smooth it over.

"You're selfish. Damn it, he's your friend. What did Mew do to you? You know that Mew and Top love each other!" "Hear me out, okay? I don't hate Mew at all. I was just needy. The timing was just wrong."

Boston hasn't convinced Ray this is nothing to get worked up over so he needs a new strategy. Ray is sensitive about Mew, so it would be good, would help defuse the situation, if Boston can convince Ray this was not about Mew specifically. To do so, Boston assures Ray he doesn't hate Mew* and takes a little bit more of the blame ("I was just needy!"), but he attributes most of the issue to the timing.

*Note how Boston says "I don't hate Mew at all". Ok Boston... Ray just asked what Mew did to you. You were the one who brought hate into this... Yet another case of Boston telling on himself. While Boston is hung up on Top, he's hung up on Mew too and their comparison war of ideologies they have going on.

Ray has escalated the conversation by stepping closer and even shoving at Boston, so Boston changes his body language as well. He goes from neutral and shrugging to more engaged, leaning in closer, making direct eye contact, and raising his hands in surrender. Boston signals that he is being sincere and non-threatening, just explaining logically.

Approach #3: Manwhore

Ok. Now it's personal.

Gifs by @chickenstrangers

"Timing, my ass. The point is your slutty ass just sleeps with anyone." "Not anyone. I picked him."

Ray isn't backing down - he takes a step forward and escalates it to a personal insult. Now Ray has insinuated that Boston is slut who will sleep with anyone, when Boston takes pride in being a slut in such high demand he can afford to be choosy, he can pick whoever he wants. Boston ducks his head briefly and absorbs the hit, widening his eyes like "did this bitch just...". When he bounces back up, his demeanor has completely changed. Ray didn't listen to logic, and Boston is done playing around. He is a manwhore, and proud of it, and now it's time to go for the jugular.

Boston immediately switches to a cocky, confident tone. He's unapologetic for his actions (look at that little shrug!!). Boston could have his pick of anyone and he chose Top. He doesn't actually care what Ray or Mew or anyone else thinks of that choice; Boston gets what Boston wants.

"And how are you involved in this? Oh! You're playing a good friend who is always so protective of Mew. Honestly, I think you're glad that that happened. You've always waited for your chance. This is in your favour. You're waiting for them to break up and be his rebound when he's weak. You will get that, man."

Thus far Boston has been on the defensive, reacting to Ray's accusations. Now he's on the offensive: Boston loosens up, gets fake casual, and leeches manufactured concern into every syllable. He's not trying to be convincingly, disarmingly sincere anymore, he's being snarky and he wants Ray to feel the contempt dripping off each syllable. Boston leans in, pats Ray condescendingly on his shoulder. Now Ray is off kilter, watching Boston warily. Boston uses Ray's feelings for Mew against him again and smiles like he did in Sand and Nick's apartment that night, the satisfaction of knowing he's hitting hard and causing damage.

Approach #4: Manslaughter

Scorched earth.

Gif by @chickenstrangers

"Ton you motherfucker! What a scumbag. Say that again." "If you tell him, then you're as evil as me. Don't act like you mean well while deep down you hope they will break up. It's disgusting! You should even thank me big time for getting you out of the friendzone."

Boston has dropped almost all his masks now. He's done trying to convince Ray it's nothing, or justify his actions, or defend his slutty honour, or attack Ray with faux concern. He's smiling, even after being punched in the face and knocked to the floor. He hit a nerve, like the night at Sand and Nick's. He's turned this around, now it's Ray hurt and reeling. Ray looks nervous, like he's just seeing Boston for the first time, as the latter sits on the ground and grins up at him.

Eyes locked on Ray, Boston gets back up and advances right into his face, smacking him on the shoulder, barely able to hold back the fury in his voice. Now he's being threatening: if Ray says anything, he's the evil one (or, at least, as evil as Boston, as evil as everyone thinks Boston is). Really, Ray should be thanking Boston for this opportunity, not coming into his house and accosting him, but maybe Boston will be lenient and let it slide this time.

I think that it is telling that Boston's last move in this confrontation is "if you tell him you'll be as evil as me"- out of options, he makes a blatant threat. He's been insinuating that Ray revealing this information is self-serving, trying to make Ray feel bad by bringing up his feelings for Mew; now the gloves are off and Boston serves it to Ray straight: it's evil, it's disgusting. I think it's interesting that Boston doesn't go for a strategy he's tried before with Ray at Sand and Nick's house, when Ray was horrified that Boston took photos of him and Mew kissing and Boston said "What? I just want to keep track of my best friends' romantic moments. Was I wrong?" Contrast that with Boston here, where he says he's been "evil". I don't think Boston thinks there is anything wrong with his actions in either case, but he's not pretending to be ignorant of how other people feel about his actions and he's not goading Ray playfully. Boston is spitting mad and lashing out and I think that reveals how rattled and out of control he feels. At Sand and Nick's he had all the cards, he could afford to be playful and antagonistic. Here he's been confronted with information he never intended to get out and he's trying desperately to shut it down and regain some control.

The Aftermath

Gifs by @chickenstrangers

"You asshole! Fucking jerk." ... "Damn it!"

Ray leaves, having lost this battle, and Boston allows himself a moment to gloat, satisfied in his victory and the pain he caused, before dropping his last mask. He sinks down into the chair, hits out, and swears. Ray might have left and Boston might have had the last laugh, but Ray knows about Top and Boston and Boston is pissed. I imagine that conversation felt like a fight for his life, especially after he started off so wrong-footed (allowing cracks to show in his armour, revealing freely he and Top slept together after Mew and Top were together).

Boston is the Hunter, he is the voyeur, he is the one who knows everything (or at least, he thinks he does - see @wen-kexing-apologist's brilliant post). He doesn't like being wrong, he doesn't like being weak, he doesn't like when he isn't the one in control. Now someone has information on him, information he worked hard to keep quiet. Boston doesn't mind scrutinizing other people for weaknesses and blackmail material, but he draws hard boundaries around himself and gets mad when they get crossed (think of how he reacts to Gap taking videos of him without his consent, or sending him messages, or finding him in person - all things Boston has done to his so-called "friends"). I imagine there's an element of "it's Ray of all people" who caught him out going on too - Boston is supposed to be the one with the read on Ray, Ray is supposed to be the drunk one who doesn't know what is going on.

What was Boston's end goal here? I think he wanted to defuse the situation because an angry and vindictive Ray is unpredictable - if Boston can calm him down he can better control Ray. This is why he went for manipulating and explaining and smoothing things over first before bringing up Ray's feelings for Mew. He tried to get Ray to drop it and when that didn't work, he turned Ray potentially sharing the information into a selfish and cruel act, trying to make Ray feel doubt and shame.

Boston doesn't want this information out yet. I think it's partly because he wants to be in control, he wants to be the one who decides when, where, and how Mew gets told... if he intends to tell Mew at all. Boston's been stealthy this whole time - he told Mew to be wary of Top at the beginning, but after that he's kept his comments out of it. He even was supportive of Mew when he phoned right before having sex with Top the first time. I've been chalking this up to Boston wanting to "beat" Mew "fairly": Boston and Mew have pitted their respective ideologies about sex against one another and while Boston has been trying to undermine Mew and break his heart the whole time (choosing Top, someone Boston thinks would never have interest in a long-term relationship, especially one without sex; seducing Top, etc.), he doesn't want this to be known. Boston doesn't want it to look like he rigged the game, he wants it to seem like Mew failed organically his approach to sex and relationships (and by extension, Mew himself) really are inferior (and because Boston's are superior), but Boston needs to be in control so he can't just leave it up to chance. I wonder if it has something to do with Top as well: if Mew finds out about Top and Boston hooking up, Top will be pissed at Boston for messing things up, and Boston will lose any chance of hooking up with or having control over Top again.

@waitmyturtles says Boston is the most honest character on the show, brutally so. I think that if he had had his wits more about him at the beginning of this confrontation he wouldn't have confessed to sleeping with Top recently, at least until Ray brought it up himself, but that's withholding information not lying. Throughout this whole conversation, even when he is trying to downplay or justify, Boston doesn't lie, or at least never quite:

"Then I let them love each other all they want. Everyone is filled." -> I don't think Boston is HAPPY that Top and Mew continued to be together after he slept with Top, but they are, and Boston is either trying to convince himself that it's because he "let" them (gave up on pursuing Top, not that Top shut him down) or he's somehow internalized this as true.

"I don't hate Mew at all. I was just needy. The timing was just wrong." -> Boston doesn't think it is weird for him to want or have Top again, but he's willing to concede that some people might have a problem with his timing. I also don't think he's quite lying about not hating Mew, there's definitely SOMETHING going on there but is envy/jealousy/insecurity perhaps the better word?

"Honestly, I think you're glad that that happened. You've always waited for your chance. This is in your favour. You're waiting for them to break up and be his rebound when he's weak." -> Boston doesn't lie here either: Ray has loved Mew and wanted to be with him, and I think Ray's reaction (going quiet and still, losing his momentum in the argument and settling for lashing out physically and swearing) proves there's a grain of truth there. I wonder if Boston framing telling Mew as something Ray would be doing for himself, a hurtful act for selfish reasons, is why Ray at the bar is so insistent on telling Mew he wants only the best for him, even if it isn't Ray.

#only friends the series #ofts #ofts meta #ranch thoughts #long post #I love love love getting into Boston's brain

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wen-kexing-apologist · 11 months

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Hands in La Pluie Ep 7

Before I begin if you aren’t watching La Pluie, you should be, between the mature, adult sexual encounters and the way they handle soulmates, there are a lot of phenomenal subversions happening and it has been a beautiful thing to behold.

With that out of the way…

Last week I wrote about the hands in La Pluie Episode 6, so it should come as no surprise to you that I will be, yet again, writing about the hands in La Pluie. This time, I will only be focusing on that Patts and Tian scene because by God were hands flying.

(@magpie24601 I have not forgotten about your ask, but I will not be able to get around to answering until probably some time next week.)

To begin we start with Tai and Patts completely covered, no hands in sight, and a safe distance between them, not touching. Patts rolls over, awake cause he’s physically uncomfortable, his muscles sore but keeps his hands covered. He does not touch Tai, he does not try to cuddle with Tai, now that he’s shifted position. He respects and maintains the boundary Tai set earlier in their trip when he walked away from Patts attempts to be physically affectionate/intimate.

We don’t know if they had any conversations off-screen or not, but what we do know is that Patts may be stirring now too, but Tai is wide awake. Now, watching Tai’s face as Patts turns over in bed is intriguing to me, because I think that Tai is expecting Patts to initiate physical touch in this moment. Tai feels Patts stirring and is waiting for an arm to snake it’s way over this torso…which is why Tai turns to face Patts when Patts settles back down.

I’m thinking about vertical lines and how they can be used in visual mediums to indicate a boundary between two characters. Now, this one is a bit less obvious, but if you look between the thin trip of white, the gaps between the pillows, and the indent in the duvet, a line between Patts and Tai is formed.

But this boundary is completed by fabric, something that is easy to fold or manipulate. If Tai wanted to maintain this boundary between him and Patts, he could have stayed on his side, with his back to Patts and Patts would never have known Tai was awake. But instead, Tai turns to look at Patts and acknowledge the fact that they are both conscious. Patts sits up, and the bed sheet folds over, eliminating the boundary between them. He apologizes because he thinks his movements are why Tai is awake, but Tai tells him he can’t sleep. Tai offers no further explanation for why he can’t sleep, but based on what happens next, and based on Patt’s earlier physical affection and Tai’s response to it, I think Tai is hyper aware of the fact that Patts is laying right next to him.

Patts however, does offer an explanation, telling Tai that his muscles are sore from working. Something I take to be Patts telling Tai that he genuinely was shifting cause he was uncomfortable and not because he was trying to start any funny business with Tai. But Tai wants physical contact and so he is the one that has to offer it, in the form of a massage.

God, they are so fucking cute

And look! The boundary line is gone, Patts is resting his head in Tai’s lap and smiling like a doofus cause the only thought in his head is that Tai is really cute. Tai’s hands enter the scene, but Patts’ remain hidden, he is moving at Tai’s pace and therefore content to lay here, with Tai initiating contact.

Then we get a huge step for Tai, he bends down to kiss Patts. Now, in Episode 4 we see Tai be the one to start the kiss with Patts, but there he is drunk, and therefore not as in his head about what is happening. But sober Tai has been a lot more hesitant, Tai’s no blushing maiden, he’s just more uncertain about how to proceed when he’s in control of the thoughts in his head.

And Patts responds, sitting upright, verbally stating that Tai started this, and then going in for a kiss. Something that I have loved about all of Patts and Tai’s kisses so far is that when Patts is the one about to kiss, he brings himself close to Tai and then waits for Tai to meet him. He did it in Episode 6, Patts initiates that kiss by bringing his head slightly closer to Tai, and then Tai gets the message and responds. Tai starts the upside down kiss, but then Patts sits up, exposing his hands, and says “you teased me first,” goes in for a kiss and again waits for Tai to meet him.

When the camera moves away from the wide shot, we see Patts hand slide to Tai’s thigh, then to his waist. Patts is testing the waters to get a sense of where Tai is in this moment.

Gif from @wanderlust-in-my-soul

And Tai reciprocates Patts touch, starting at his arm and then sliding his way up in to Patts hair, and then his throat.

Now, remember where we were last week with Tai and touch. He sticks mostly to Patts’ back, his fingers are straight, he uses his palm, when they switch positions, Tai’s hand stays on Patts’ back or on the ground, we don’t see him play much with pressure or sensation. But our boy was taking notes or something cause this time he has radically altered his approach to touching Patts.

His other hand slides up to hook itself around Patts shoulder. Patts has through this point kept his hands relatively in the same position at Tai’s waist.

Patts applies pressure, pushing Tai, you can see his wrist bend from the effort of it, a suggestion to move closer.

Gif from @wanderlust-in-my-soul (Side note: obsessed with Patts kissing Tai's nose)

The shirt comes off, and Tai has to let go of Patts, lifting his arms to allow Patts to strip him. But the enthusiasm is there, Tai is straight up having a good time, so those arms go right back where he wants them. He hooks his arm around Patts neck to steady himself and is finally able to respond to Patts’ physical request: move closer, by pulling himself in to Patts’ lap

And we get to see the aspects of their physicality that run inherent to their character:

Gif from @wanderlust-in-my-soul

This is the second time we have seen Tai in this position, and both times he has let his hands lay relaxed, fingers slightly curled at Patts’ back.

Gif from @wanderlust-in-my-soul

And this is the second time we see Patts' fingers curled, scratching down Tai’s back.

But we also begin to see where these two encounters differ. Tai slides his fingers back in to Pat’s hair.

And Patts?

I’m sure no one needed an excuse to go back and watch these scenes, but if you watch Episode 6’s make out session and then you watch Episode 7’s you will see the difference in how Patts approaches intensity. In Episode 6 when he is the person who started the kiss, he is always moving slow and being gentle with Tai. His hands are easy to follow, he scratches down the length of Tai’s back, he slowly pushes Tai’s shirt up. In the Episode 6 scene, Patts is proceeding with caution because while Tai has consented to this encounter, because Patts started it, he can’t be positive how much Tai is a) pushing a comfort zone, b) ready for, and c) willing to do during that encounter.

In Episode 7, while Patts starts out their make out in the same way, slowly, gently, cautiously, the knowledge that Tai was the person to initiate the intimacy and the continued enthusiasm from Tai makes Patts comfortable with ramping up the intensity.

Where before, in Episode 6, we could easily follow the path of Patts hands, now his movements are frenetic, jumping all over Tai’s body with no rhyme or reason, no set or anticipated path jumping from Tai’s back to Tai’s chest to Tai’s arm to his neck.

Gif from @gunsatthaphan

Now, last time these two made out Patts was already conveniently shirtless, but this time.

Patts starts taking off his shirt, and Tai wants these clothes off. Tai’s hands slide that shirt up and over, and then Tai’s hands go straight to Patt’s torso.

And then moves back up to Patts shoulder

Before doing another thing we have not seen Tai consciously do before…

…play with pressure. This man squeezes Patts’ shoulder like he’s trying to make orange juice from scratch, and then it is off to the fucking races for these two. They become a mess of hands and arms and elbows, and I literally have 80 screen shots in my La Pluie Episode 7 folder of just this makeout scene, and many of them are unusable in this essay because my fast key screenshot camera still can’t keep up with where their hands are.

This is mostly a side note, but I just find the framing of this shot and the shapes Patts and Tai’s bodies make to be beautiful. No, wait, I’ve got it! Look at the way their arms are. Now, @respectthepetty is the one who taught me to look out for dividing and connecting lines in shows, and well, teach, by golly I’ve got it.

Remember how in the beginning I mentioned the very subtle dividing line that is formed by the wall, pillow, and bed sheet?

Here we have a very subtle connecting line, the way Tai grabs Patts’ bicep creates a straight line that connects Tai and Patts together.

They are matching energy, Tai is gripping Patts like that because he is pulling Patts a little bit closer to him,

I love that we have an episode to episode comparison of their intimate moments because as I’ve already said, in Episode 6 Patts does everything slow and soft. When he pulls up Tai’s shirt he presses quick but soft kisses there. He moves up and down Tai’s body in a relatively straight line, not spending a lot of time/focus in one particular area of Tai’s body.

Gif from @wanderlust-in-my-soul

Episode 7 though? Patts starts kissing hard and he starts focusing more on particular areas of Tai’s body. His lips, obviously, but as he goes to increase the intensity of his kisses, he moves down Tai’s neck and settles at his pecs. I know he would have stayed on Tai’s right pec for longer if Tai hadn’t pushed him away.

Camera zooms out a bit, and we see Tai breathless and looking at Patts. Tai started to feel himself slipping away in to bliss and realized that if this continued there was only one outcome. He knows he isn’t ready for it, so he interrupts the vibe to try to slow things down. Patts hasn’t quite caught up yet, so his hands slide down to Tai’s pants and start to tug. He wants to pick up where he left off last time. But again, Tai isn’t ready, and it speaks to the maturity of this relationship already that Tai is completely comfortable voicing that. Knowing that he is the one that initiated the intimacy. (That being said, to parallel Episode 6 and Episode 7 again, last episode Patts also started and stopped the intimacy.)

The change in their make out session between Episode 6 and Episode 7 shows that Tai wants to deepen their relationship, wants to take things with Patts to a different level, but he’s still unable to make himself trust Patts fully, to make himself believe in the soul mate theory fully. He spent years of his life refusing to speak to this man in front of him because he had become so disillusioned with the idea of soulmates after his parent’s divorce. As @lurkingshan said in her post “[Tai’s] brain, body, and heart are all pointing straight at Patts, but he’s afraid to trust it because Patts is tangled up with his confused feelings about this supposed destiny.”

So Tai tells Patts he isn’t ready, and Patts stops, and he is once again allowed to be frustrated. He doesn’t push, he doesn’t complain, you can mostly just see the disappointment and it truly is, in my mind, very sweet and precious that these two are already so comfortable with each other that Patts tries to cool down by resting his head on Tai’s chest and breathing.

And again, looking at the hands here, Tai is doing something incredibly similar with these soft gentle finger strokes across Patts’ neck as he did across Patts’ back when Patts stopped their make out session last episode.

“Can I help you, then?” Tai asks, knowing that Patts is horny, enthusiastic, and has been waiting seven years to meet a soulmate that refused to speak to him.

After denying Patts the simple pleasure of having someone out there to keep him company in the silence for two years, Tai wants to give pleasure to Patts.

And as much as Patts wants to give pleasure to Tai, and as much as Patts wants to prove to Tai that he is committed to Tai’s happiness, as obviously sexually frustrated as he has been in these last two moments of intimacy, he still checks in with Tai.

“Tai, are you sure about doing this?”

Patts has honestly been batting pretty close to a thousand in terms of getting enthusiastic consent before engaging in intimacy.

Gif from @pharawee

And Tai’s response is to pull Patts upward, to ground him in the moment with a hand to his hip, a point of connection which Patts reciprocates with his own touch, a gentle thumb brushing across Tai’s shoulder.

Gif from @pharawee

A gentle thumb brushing across Tai’s lips

And going back to what I mentioned before about the differences in Episode 6 and Episode 7, when Tai suggests he help, and when he starts untying Patts’ shorts, Patts once again reverts back to slow, and patient, and gentle. He has gotten consent from Tai, he has gotten confirmation from Tai, but it is not lost on him that Tai has just said that he wasn’t ready to receive pleasure, and Patts may be worrying that Tai feels like Patts is owed something because he did not consent to an escalation of intimacy.

And while yes, starting an intimate moment may just inherently start of slow, it is just a pattern I am noting about when and where Patts and Tai lose control of their desire and embrace it full force

And ultimately it works out, Tai finds pleasure in giving Patts pleasure even if he himself is not ready to receive it.

And Tai gets what he wanted out of this whole thing, which is Patts, cuddled up next to him, his arm draped across Tai’s side.

And I love that we end on this little moment of Tai stroking the top of Patts’ hand after pulling it closer to him.

I love this show and how it handles the ideas of romance and intimacy. We know from how devastated Tai was at his parent's divorce and from the Nora Roberts book that Tai is a romantic. And while some of this relationship with Patts has been able to carry those same romantic vibes, there have been a number of practical, realistic elements to their interactions as well: Patts and Tai discuss some of their needs from very early on, Patts meets some of Tai's family from very early on, Tien is already thinking of Patts as his brother in law, because unlike a typical burgeoning romance, whether or not they stay together they will be in each other's lives forever.

But the sex? That stays real. Tai initiates a kiss and then falls asleep and Patts stops, and Patts makes Tai feel comfortable with waking up in an unfamiliar place by letting him know that nothing uncouth happened. Patts initiates a more intense make out session with Tai and stops himself because he realizes that Tai is caught up in a moment and may not be ready, and Tai both enjoyed that moment with Patts and is embarassed about it afterward, Tai initiates what I think he intended to be his first sexual encounter with Patts, realizes that he isn't ready for what Patts wants to do and negotiates a solution that still allows them both to elevate their physical relationship.

(also tagging @bengiyo in this cause I cited his work)

#la pluie #la pluie the series #la pluie meta #patts x saengtai #phat x saengtai #phat x tai #title tanatorn #pee peerawich #its always about the hands #la pluie analysis

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zaiban2989 · 10 months

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BNHA S3 EP1 or the Pool Ep

Honestly, I've watched that ep at least 6 times in the last two weeks, just didn't have a chance to pause and talk about it until now lol That post gonna be long again 😭🤣

It's not "that much" of an important episode when you think of it, but it's still one of my favourites. Our cinnamon roll Izuku is just the cutest in this one, being manipulated by Denki & Mineta to use the pool so those pervs can spy on the girls lmao the whole thing is hilarious and cute af - I mean look at this cute baby being all fired up for training! 👇

Our little green bean is so cute and friendly and nice he even texted everyone to come and join them lmao Which is raising so many questions: did everyone in class 1-A share their numbers with each other? Does that mean that Kacchan actually gave it to everyone else, even Deku? Or is Kacchan the only one Izuku didn't text because, you know, fucked up relationship and all that, and it's only because Kirishima got the message that Kacchan came (like his bro definitely has his number and told him about the training)? Or do they all just have a group chat with the whole class so Izuku texted there so everyone, including Kacchan, saw it? I WANT ANSWERS!!!!

But considering the timing of how late Kirishima and Katsuki came to meet with them, I feel like the closest answer is that Kiri got Izuku's text and then texted Katsuki or even went to his house to drag him out or something... Kiri did say that it took him a while to get Katsuki to come, so that's probably it. The thought that Izuku can't even text Kacchan, or didn't even think he could, makes me so sad honestly 😭 (like imagine class A really does have a group chat and those two idiots are in there but never interact with each other's texts and secretly did save each other's numbers but yeah there's no way in hell they'd go and text the other because "Kacchan probably doesn't wanna talk to me", "why the heck should I text the nerd, I'm better than him!" *siiiiiiigh* I want a fic about this now lol)

Anyway, back to the episode... Iida, class rep, always at the ready to order people around lol It's so funny how everyone just listens to him though, I love it 💙

AND THEN THE BEST PART OF IT ALL HARKLZERLKRZEKDE - What happened? Iida and Izuku are having a little moment together (reminiscing what happened in s1 & s2) and Izuku says that he got here with the help of many others and that he needs to work that much harder and WHO yells a loud "OF COURSE!" to that?! Fucking Kacchan! 🧡💚seriously I can't, man! I have so many fucking thoughts on that scene alone, it's ridiculous lol

And I mean, what he says is so freaking weiiiiiiiiiird! (proof in pic👇)

Iida and Izuku were not even speaking that loudly, so how the fuck did Katsuki even hear all of that shit from where he was?! (he just arrived there with Ei, you see him walking up to them with his usual gremlin face, Kiri blocking him lmao)

So now I am HC-ing the fact that Katsuki actually do not have any fucking hearing impairments because of his Explosion quirk - on the contrary, he probably trained himself so fucking much so that shit would never be a problem and so that he could eavesdrop on any conversation his nerd would be having with other people (see Sport Festival and his stalking of Izu/Todo secret meeting lol)

I mean seriously, Kiri and him JUST arrived there and what's his first move? To fucking head to where Deku is hdezdezmde and you wanna tell me that guy ain't obsessed with his broccoli head? PLEASE!

"Otherwise there's no way I'd lose to a damn nerd like you!" - or literally, Katsuki openly admitting that he has been losing to the nerd (in the first DvKpt1 of course, but also when they teamed up against AM for the exam because he had been reckless and had to rely on the damn nerd for help - hell, he even lost consciousness and the guy dragged him to the exit (HC-ing again, but pretty sure Kats asked for the recording of that fight cuz he didn't remember and wanted to know what the fuck happened - he'll never tell Izuku though))

So our blonde baby IS already growing up, it's subtle but for someone like Katsuki to say that he's lost to Deku, I mean that is fucking big, man. I'm certain Izuku didn't even pick up what that meant here, but progress baby, you've been acknowledged by your person! 🧡💚

As soon as he's there, he's already picking a fight with his baby nerd lmao at this stage, it's established he sees both Deku & Todo as his rivals - Hori is even already setting the tone for the next gen' of UA Big Three since the 3 of them end up being the ones winning each racing rounds and are now facing each other in the final

(Just some appreciation of how fucking hot Katsuki is when he doesn't make his bitch face lmao 🔥🧡 also the fucking V-shape he has, god dammit man!)

Of course, the final round doesn't happen - I wonder who Hori would have turned into the winner on that one lol Guess it was too hard to decide huh flekdmzemdez Look at those dum-dums' faces as their quirks got erased 🤣

That episode is so gold, I swear! Even the ending with Katsuki's frustration of not having raced against Deku & Todo when he's on his way back with Kiri and the fact that we see once again that his goal hasn't changed (yet?), honestly, it's endearing 🧡

"No matter who it is, I won't let them catch up to me, let alone get ahead of me!" - oh baby boy, talking about your insecurities like that *sobs* it makes it even more amazing that he changed so freaking much by s5-s6 because he's no longer with that mindset 😭 "The nerd's ahead of me now but I can still catch up!" fuck me man, that 180 is just... *cries*

You see his All Might fanboying seeping through what he says and how he's determined to prove himself, someone please give that baby a hug😭 (he fucking gets kidnapped in this season, I can't man)

ANYWAYS, I LOVE THIS EPISODE SO MUCH OKAY?! lmao Ending this review with the official season ending, firework moment and Kacchan next to his Deku (come on, Hori could have placed him anywhere else there but nope)

That's it, folks! Cheers for coming to my ted talk lol Till next time!🧡💚

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coffeelovesdramasalatte · 1 year

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LITA Ep. 4 Rewatch Thoughts Pt. 4

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 5 | Part 6

Rain really said boy BYE

Did y'all notice that Phayu smacks his lips and looks at Rain's lips like 30 times during this one minute of conversation?

Ok wait he's going for it!

KISS ALERT HE'S REALLY GOING FOR IT!!!

Rain was SO READY too - he closed his eyes as soon as Phayu's lips touched his. infinity/10 sweetest first kiss. It looks very aesthetically pleasing with the blurred out, neutral background.

Instant replay from another angle, just to drive in how comfy Rain looks to be there

I ADORE this "just been kissed" look on Rain - I like that both actors repeatedly showed us just how into each other Rain and Phayu are

I think we're on the 10th lip touch? Are you obsessed or something Phayu?

Phayu says thank you to Rain here. At first, I thought he was thanking him for the kiss, or for coming to see him. Now, I think it's probably for everything - thank you for meeting me, thank you for making me like you, thank you for not running away, thank you for meeting my expectations, and thank you for liking me back. And then we barely get time to recover from the sweetness of that kiss before Phayu is giving us this adorable face (which is my second favorite of Phayu's faces)

Including this shot bc I love Sky

It's Rain's turn!! Ahh it's so cute that he was so nervous at first but then he remembers that Phayu is supporting him (plus kiss!) and his confidence is restored! Also the background + Rain's tie is giving us some more yellow + navy blue. Cute!

vs.

This teacher panel is so funny - person on the left looks so done, middle dude looks like he's paying attention with the intention to rip the presentation apart when Rain's done, and person on the right looks like he's having the time of his life

Rain does so well! Even the teachers said so!! I knew he could do it :) Except Phayu isn't going to find out for a while bc this dummy forgot to charge his phone. Don't you know Rain's waiting for you?

Listen, I know this shot is for dramatic purposes and that Rain looks truly beautiful in the rain, but you can't tell me that he and P' Saifah haven't exchanged numbers yet. Rain totally could've waited in the house or even in his car, which he definitely drove there in. My dumb son

It's ok, Phayu is here though!! And Rain gets to tell him the good news!! Phayu seems more concerned about how wet Rain is though, and for good reason. He's probably watched a few BLs so he knows that the male leads often have the constitution of sickly Victorian children when it comes to the rain. He's rightly concerned for Rain's health.

Also we get the switch from Pum to Rain (the way Rain refers to himself) during this convo! I did not notice this on my own and will try to find and link the person's post who did. To my understanding, this is a more personal way of referring to oneself and it's yet another way Phayu and Rain are closer now! They're about to get real close tho ;)

Rain's death-grip on Phayu counter is probably up to 10 now too. I don't think I've said this before but Noeul has really nice hands. They're good for holding a certain someone's face and neck:

This screenshot doesn't do it justice but... this LOOK that Phayu gives Rain right before he drags him inside. Bff is ready to DEVOUR his man (we've all waited long enough lmao)

I was going to tell you all a story here and make you wait a bit longer, but I'll post it separately. As for these two, they literally did not wait any more. From here on out this is entirely self-indulgent. Enjoy!

I absolutely ADORE how they framed this scene with the curtains and the rain and the soft blue lighting that looks like moonlight. I also really like Phayu's hand placement in this entire bathtub sequence. Additionally, Rain gets a good amount of active participation in during these kisses (BossNoeul said dead fish kisses whomst?? we don't know her). It's another indicator of how happy and comfortable Rain is to be there

Another thing I've already mentioned is that I completely am in love with the way BossNoeul portrayed the way that PhayuRain look at each other. I have never been as convinced that the on-screen couple is in love as I am with these two. Also I am counting this as a headpat even though it's more of a cheekbone stroke :)

Again, they look so comfy and I love how softly their eyes slip closed when they kiss. Also reiterating that I love Phayu's hand placement here - it's like he's cradling Rain in his palms

New nickname alert!

How am I supposed to cope with this? Also I'm serious, where did Noeul learn to look like that? AND PHAYU'S HANDS send help

Wait I accidentally paused after Rain told Phayu to let him go so he could take a bath and this is so funny - Phayu's like babe did you really think I'm gonna let you go now??

Ok yeah sure Phayu, you're here bc you want a bath and not because Rain's lips are magnets to your eyes. Sure.

When I first watched Phayu pull Rain close to whisper in his ear, I'm fairly sure I gasped harder than Rain

Something happened to my brain chemistry here too

Rain looks so soft right here omg (I know the whole script is literally written into our brain grooves at this point but if you don't remember, this is when Phayu is apologizing for making Rain wait in the rain bc his battery ran out)

Onwards to the final parts for the sugar, spice, and everything nice <3

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 5 | Part 6

#love in the air #lita the series #lita rewatch thoughts #phayurain #bossnoeul

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booklove22 · 10 months

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I’m having such a hard time with this episode - and I saw the larger beats coming a mile away. I knew it would be a solo-visit to the 70′s for Nancy and Tristan and that the Drew Crew would be left in the current timeline. I knew it would be Nancy and Tristan dancing. So none of what happened with them was like “OH NO I THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE NACE DANCING” - like I was already mentally prepped for that. But what kills me about this is all of the missed opportunities...and I’m trying to be objective here and not just wrapped up in the romance aspects - but the larger storytelling opportunities that were also missed.

1) It’s a 13 episode season, but for all the “this is going to be among the greatest ND episodes of all time” chatter from the writers and Kennedy, this felt distinctly like a filler episode. Something that would have been at home in an 18+ episode season, but here feels like a weird detour. It feels especially wasted since the 2nd most recently deceased corpse died in 1975! This could have been an ideal opportunity to explore more about the corpses and...they blew it. They chose to dabble in something time-travel adjacent tor....a spider?

2) There was absolutely no reason to have Bess do the errr...c-section? Like, Ace’s job is literally cutting people open? Like, as a writer, isn’t the goal to up the emotional stakes as much as possible? Can you imagine how much more tense the scene would have been if he was the one doing it instead of Bess? Again I’m not even talking anything romantic here - just more...he was the right person for the job.

3) Ace watching Nancy slow dance with Tristan was repetitive. Like, it didn’t hit or hurt nearly as hard as when he was in the liminal space and seeing it with Park. I know it was probably an intentional callback, not unlike the Gil kiss>Park kiss mirror, but here it just felt like they could have achieved the same outcome another way? Not that I want to hurt more than I already do, but at some point you have to weigh whether a callback is a better choice than some new kind of painful visual.

4) The Ace/Chunky storyline was hit or miss. I prefer when the entire drew crew is working together toward a common goal and when someone is missing (or in this case working on a totally unrelated “case”), the entire vibe of the show feels off. I thought the conversations between Nick and Ace were interesting and I’m still marinating on them. Honestly, they were probably the most interesting part of the episode to me - particularly Nick’s observation that Ace trying to go back to the “friendship” he and Nancy used to have might be a futile effort because what they had might have always have been more than friendship, whether they knew it then or not. Like DAMN NICK, don’t hold back. Everyone else is telling them to move on and Nick’s the only one out here gently letting Ace know that his whole grand “friendship” plan may be impossible.

5) Speaking of Chunky....I’ve seen some people say that Ace let him go out of spite. But my read on it was more that Ace realized there may have been a kernel of truth in what Nick said. Letting go of Chunky was him realizing that there is no going back to the relationship they used to have..so now the journey is figuring out how to be in her life moving forward if its not what they were before they knew they had feelings or what they could have been had the curse not been in place.

6) Finally, I don’t get the vibe anymore that we’ll be seeing Ace’s “ire” over her whatever with Tristan. Ryan’s for sure. But I don’t know...after this ep, I just don’t see “ire” being the thing that comes out of Ace. At the end of the day, he knows Tristan was key to saving Nancy and she would have died otherwise. I’m not saying there won’t be jealousy or anger but I think its something he’ll let fester inside of him rather than calling her out on it (at least for now).

Anyway, I just...I didn’t like that episode. I feel like it had the potential to be so much more and just fell short of what it could have been.

#nace #nancy drew #cw nancy drew

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starseneyes · 1 year

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Chenford REWIND- Lucy Chen / Tim Bradford - The Rookie - Season 5 - Ep 6 & 7

*phew* almost all caught up on this REWIND of Chenford! And with today's edition, we will be completely caught up to date of current airing (5x11 being the most recent to air).

I'll put together a Master Post later to make things easier to find. For now, it's time to talk about another favorite of the season.

SPOILER ALERT: This is not one of those reviews where people tip-toe around spoilers. I will spoil every last morsel in these episodes without restraint. Please know that going in! I do try to write these as though I were seeing them for the first time.

Alright, with all the red tape out of the way, let's dive into the fun!

The Reckoning

"Hello. Good morning!" "Chen. Sanford." "What's up with him?" "He's just grumpy with everything he's got going on." "Wait. What? What's going on? "Nothing." "What." "He's fine. I'm fine. We're just eager to protect and serve." "Aaron." "I have to go. I'm so sorry." "What?"

Cackling during this scene the first time I watched it.

Aaron's doe-eyed, assuming that Lucy would know everything going on in Tim's life already (because he's not Nolan-level oblivious) then realizing oops, he should've kept his mouth closed.

Side Note: "Nothing" is never a good cover... just sayin'.

I also find it fascinating that Chris is framed out of most of the scene. Yes, he's there in the establishing shot and brief interaction with Tim, but as soon as Tim departs, this is Aaron and Lucy's conversation.

Lucy's worried. She could tell something was up with Tim because he was about to walk by without even acknowledging them. When he did, he could barely look Lucy in the eye, and he stuck to last names without salutation.

At first, she thought it might be something trivial, but Aaron's words affirm something is definitely up with her husband.

"I think the radio belonged to the broody one." "The broody... Tim forgot his radio? Tim Bradford, 'Super Cop'? You know, this guy will not let me forget that I was once three and a half minutes late to Roll Call. Can you believe that?" "I guess." "This feels like Christmas. Thank you."

Oh, I know that glint in your eye, Lucy Chen. You're cooking up something. But, she pauses as she considers exactly what to do.

And this is the difference between a Tim/Lucy prank earlier in the show versus now. Now, Lucy wants to do something that will be fun... not just funny. Lucy decides to go the same route my husband did when he proposed—scavenger hunt.

"What the hell?" "What is it? ... Who sent that?" "Someone who's about to get in a lot of trouble." "You know you could just file a incident report and get a new radio." "And get written up? That's one day suspension without pay."

I love you, Tim Bradford (platonicly. I'm happily married and he's fictional... so...). He truly is the Super Cop who wants to do everything by the book.

"I think I know where this is."

And what I LOVE about this is that Lucy Chen has already been to these places, and timed it out to know how long it would take Tim to get from one to the next.

She knows him so well. ("too well", anybody?) Lucy knows that she needs to break through his walls by getting him active.

Paintball? He loves it. Shooting range? Totally something he did with his ex as a date. Tim isn't one to open up about feelings easily.

This is a way to prime him, and help him think about something other than whatever is bothering him.

"Man, this is one sketchy-ass looking coffee truck."

Side note that I love that someone had to look at that line in a script, then either find or design the perfect coffee truck to make Aaron say that. It gives me such special pleasure to think about.

"It's where I get my coffee every morning. No oatmilk mafia hipsters rewriting screenplays. A buck for coffee and you go to work." "You sound like the old dude from Up!"

My husband was over my shoulder when I first watched this on Hulu, and he was rolling at that. But, it's so true. Tim is a creature of habit. He likes what is comfortable because it's stable, and his life often lacks stability.

It started in childhood... not knowing if Dad was going to ignore him or lay into him at any given moment. He learned to constantly be on guard, to be slow to trust, and to find what comforts he could to get through until he could get out of the house.

So many of Tim's life choices are informed by the abuse he survived.

"Damnit. They're running us all over town." "Okay, so, like, what's the point? I mean, they haven't asked for money or anything. And if they really want to screw with the police, they could do a whole lot more with that radio." "I don't know. We gotta figure out what studio lot that is."

First off, my hat's off to Aaron, who wants to be a detective. He's diving into the why right off the bat. Tim, though... he's in the game.

Right where Lucy wants him.

"My favorite movie was shot right here on this lot."

Woah, woah, woah. Your favorite movie is Shane!? I mean, it tracks for Tim's character, absolutely. In high school, my US government teacher spent a whole semester having us watch US Westerns and writing about them. I aced that semester if you can imagine.

While I'm not a fan of Shane personally (I don't like most Westerns), I get why it appeal to Tim. And it's heartbreaking.

Shane is a Western where a man is hired to help a family of homesteaders, gets into many a gunfight, befriends the son of the homesteaders, and then when injured protecting them... he leaves. The boy stands at the door crying out for Shane to come back... and that's how it ends.

This is not a happy story. It's a story of a man who did the right thing. He took out the bad guys, then abandoned the people he'd connected with to protect them from retribution. And this is Tim's favorite movie.

"Wait, your favorite coffee place. Your favorite movie. Whoever's doing this knows you really well." "Chen."

Again, Aaron with the Detective cap on. And it takes only seconds for Tim to realize who would know all of these details about his life... Lucy.

When did they talk about his favorite movie? The coffee would be an easy one, but I bet there's some fanfic out there about how Lucy conned Tim into telling her his favorite movie, possibly by guessing terribly on purpose to draw him out.

Much as Tim tries to avoid talking about personal things... Lucy has always drawn him out. He has helped refine and sharpen her, but in the same manner, she has helped pull him out of his darkness. And she's doing it again with this distraction.

"Where's my radio?" "Did something happen to your radio? Oh, you know what, Halloween is tomorrow. Maybe a vengeful spirit took it."

This flirty banter is giving me major end-of-season-4 Chenford vibes. I don't know if Lucy even realizes she's doing it. But sitting together in that hospital room, they erased all the awkwardness—or so she thought.

Because Tim's had time to think about Lucy, now, in the absence of the all-consuming vortex that was Ashley. Without the distraction of his girlfriend, all he sees is Lucy.

"Why are you doing this?" "I don't know what you're talking about." "Is holding my radio payback for how tough I was on you as a Rookie?"

Tim's playing a game of 21 questions and Lucy hasn't answered a damn one. Well done, girl!

But I also like the quirk to Tim's lips at the end of that statement. He's having fun. Even arguing with Lucy (playfully), he is having so much damn fun.

"Were you? I hadn't noticed."

Oh, yeah. Definitely flirting.

"Okay." "But, again, I don't know what you're talking about. But I might be able to help you look for your radio if you tell me what's going on." "Nothing is going on with me." "Please. I rode with you long enough to know when you are being you, and when you're upset. I mean, are you okay?"

How do you tell the woman of your dreams that you're falling in love with them while they're dating another man? I don't know, and Tim certainly doesn't either.

Because this isn't just about Ashley. Yes, he is hurting because yet another person walked out on him. Hell, she practically trampled on his oxygen line on the way out the door.

Without Ashley to redirect his thoughts, he's having a harder time ignoring how much he wants to be with Lucy. And her being soft with him makes it even harder because he starts to question himself. "Is it possible she could feel something? Should I ask?"

His attitude totally shifts as he makes the decision to play it off.

"It's nothing. I'm fine."

Tim, someday, someday, I hope you realize that "nothing" is a terrible, terrible cover story.

"Then I don't know where your radio is."

She storms off, and we can hear she's really frustrated. Lucy hopes that this game is helping loosen him up because she wants to help him.

Last week, she didn't get to be there for him as much as she wanted. Now, she has a chance to help him, and she feels like it's failing.

Lucy is drawn to Tim as much as he is drawn to her. It's all a matter of getting on the same page. And right now she feels like they're flipping back and forth instead of landing on the same spot.

"Hey. Hi. What the hell is going on with Tim?" "Well, he lost his radio." "I will give you his radio if you tell me what's bothering him." "Honestly, I don't know. He won't tell me either." "What?"

Maybe Aaron should do all the lying for the team, because he's the only one who's any good at it. We know he knows what's up with Tim. But, he's being a good Gofer and keeping his trap shut.

But Aaron also knows that Tim and Lucy know more about one another than most cops he's met. Even if Aaron hasn't sniffed out the romance angle, he knows that there's something there. And he ain't getting in the middle of it.

"Hi. Good morning." "Good morning."

Everything is shifting! Did you clock that? Oh, I totally clocked that. Tim's graduated from monosyllabic greetings for Lucy to an actual phrase! Progress! But he's still not looking her in the eye.

"Still missing your radio?" "No, it's in the shop." "Where's your standard issue?" "This is it." "That hasn't been standard since the sixties... Wait, let me get a photo of you with it, first!"

Peep Aaron looking ANYWHERE other than Tim and Lucy? He knows better than to get in the middle of this.

Tim and Lucy have a tendency to take embarrassing photos of one another. It's a quirk they share... one of those places where two seemingly very different people overlap. And I so hope Lucy got her shot so we can see it make a comeback at some point.

Can you imagine their wedding slideshow? Half of it's just going to be shots of them pranking one another.

"Uh, here. I thought torturing you would be more fun, and getting your mind off of whatever has been bothering you."

First off, coworkers don't need to hold onto the object they're passing that long. Y'all are being obvious right outside the station. Second, she clues him in on why she was doing this... it wasn't revenge. It was concern.

Damnit, that's hot. You know Tim's thinking it. Lucy Chen did all this for him.

"I should know better than to get into your personal business."

This is another deflection. Back in 5x02's opening scene she talked about having a lot going on in her "personal life" and we know that involved Tim. But after 5x02's breakup scene, she's convinced that he isn't interested.

"Goodnight." "Night... Ashley and I, uh, broke up. Well, I guess, technically she broke up with me."

Did you see how Lucy's head whipped around? Because Tim Bradford just let her in. It's been a while since Tim has let her in on anything. He's been keeping her at a distance for a while—even last week when he was injured.

But here he is, letting her into his personal life. She had given up, and he just let her waltz right in. Lucy knows what a big deal for Tim this is, even if she doesn't understand what's going on in his head and heart. Could you two just TALK!?

"And just so you know, I did appreciate your whole radio gag, a little. Took my mind off things." "Well, good."

See that little size up and shimmy? Because Tim Bradford complimented Lucy Chen. And she has a thing with Praise. He basically told her that her whole plan worked, and that he understood and appreciated it.

And for some reason, that little affirmation cracks open something between them that they've both tried to bury since their "breakup".

Looking at the woman of his dreams, radio in one hand (a literal communication device), Tim considers another leap.

And, oh, you know he has to have it bad to try this, again, after how badly he fell the last time. But he feels that connection between them, again. And there's no Ashley, anymore, to distract him from it.

And look. At. Lucy. Her face reminds me so much of the end of season 4 when she and he stood in this parking lot looking at one another, her anxious of what he might say. Some part of her knows.

But before Tim can open his mouth, the door opens, and out parts Mr. Professional Chenford Blocker himself, Chris Sanford.

Lucy and Tim both look caught. Because even if they weren't playing tonsil hockey, they were in an emotionally-charged moment that shouldn't happen when she's dating someone else.

And Tim just got the second coldest shower of his life (nothing tops bleeding-out Chris).

"Do you wanna join us? We're gonna go get a bite to eat." "Oh, no, no. I'm good. I'm beat. You two have fun."

And he means that. He wants Lucy to be happy, even if it isn't with him. But that fake smile is so heartbreaking. Because, here he was, considering a huge leap... and now he's clamming back up because he thinks Lucy is truly happy with someone else.

You know who isn't happy about this interaction? Chris, that's who! Early on, he clocked something between Lucy and Tim, but she was able to shove it off.

Think about it. She never called or texted anyone when she decided to spent the evening at the hospital by Tim's side. But likely she told Chris later about it, not thinking anything of it.

Now, Chris comes out to see Tim and Lucy chatting, and she invites him on their date!? Chris might think things are good between him and Lucy, but a part of him definitely sees Tim as a threat. He no likely.

Good.

Lucy and Chris walk off, arms wrapped around one another, but the camera stays on Tim, offering us a shot of him from a distance, defeated, looking back at the opportunity missed with the woman he's falling for.

We feel how distanced he is, now, from Lucy. We feel his struggle with that distance.

And as we switch angles to see it from her side... Lucy is looking back at him.

Remember beginning of season 4 when Lucy and Tim stood together in his living room, his left arm stroking her right arm after their hug? Lucy felt the change in energy between them. She saw the look in Tim's eyes.

She loves that look. She's addicted to that look. It's been a long time since she's seen that look, but she saw it at the hospital, and she saw it again just now. She loves when he looks at her like that.

It's hard to say if she knows how he feels about her, but I think she is struggling with the same thing he did with Ashley—Do I risk it all for someone who I think is unavailable to me, or do I stick with what's easy, but not satisfying?

Even though she's still with Chris, Tim being available, more flirty, complimenting her, and showing the slightest bit of interest is sending her spinning.

She shoves it down... but it'll come out, someday. Like a spring wound too-tight eventually snaps.

Crossfire

"If your puppy vouches for her, it could go a long way." "I don't know. Having a kid act as a CI on his own sister? I mean, they might not even be in touch."

I need to point this out. Is it directly Chenford related? Yes. Go with me here.

If you've seen the episode, you know one of the key Chenford-related moments is coming up, but this conversation feeds right in.

Nyla and Angela want to get Lucy in as a UC. But Tim, yes Tim is the first one to reason why it's not the best idea. Why? Because he's concerned for the kid.

He's not thinking about Lucy's career, or even about the possible apprehending of a criminal. He's thinking about this kid. We need this context to see where Tim's head is at.

"How about we keep an eye on the kid, ourselves? Make sure he's safe."

Nyla and Angela are the ones pushing this. Lucy, too. Tim isn't doing any pushing. But he's actually the one hearing Aaron. Because Tim does have a soft spot for kids. He was one, once, and his childhood sucked.

Lucy at Gunpoint

Aaron glances to Tim, aware of how Tim's stopped freakin' breathing and is watching the situation unfold.

"We should pull Tabin out, now." "Nah, he's fine." "Sir, no it's not. You are endangering this career all because it's good for Lucy's career." "Excuse me?" "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

I saw the responses online, "Good! Someone called him out". And, sure, it's good Tim knows his Lucy-o-meter is showing because that's going to get him in trouble someday.

But Tim would never put a kid in danger for Lucy's career. Hell, he hates that Lucy puts herself in danger for Lucy's career.

But Aaron doesn't know Tim's history with an ex-wife who was UC. he doesn't know about Tim's abusive childhood and how he would never want to put a child in harm's way.

Tim is working the op the way it needs to be worked because he is a seasoned cop. In this moment, it's actually Aaron who is operating off of emotion. And Tim is smart enough to know it, so he drops it instead of starting an argument—the work comes first.

"I don't wanna blow my cover." "You got it."

Wow, how far we have come. Tim used to think Lucy didn't have what it took for UC. Now, he's letting her call the shots on her UC op. He respects the hell out of her, and that is earned, and that is built.

Lucy Makes Herself

Look, I don't know what the long-term plan here, was. Did Lucy want to keep using that cover to infiltrate the gang further? I don't know. But the second she saw Tim and Aaron in trouble, she leapt out to help.

Tim and Aaron can absolutely handle themselves. Lucy made an emotional decision. And it got her made.

Was it the right decision? Who knows. Aaron was the only one to get through to Tabin, and Lucy's presence didn't help anything. But she was worried about Tim and Aaron.

"Night."

Lucy doesn't know what went down between Aaron and Tim while she was undercover. But she knows what made her break it. And she's had time to think about their chat outside the other day—what was Tim going to say?

Because she knew he was going to say something. And lately he's looking at her with these soft eyes... What does it mean!?

"Hey, uh, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for what I said, you know, about Lucy. That was totally out of line." "It was."

Because Tim would never endanger a child just for Lucy's career. But, also, calling Tim out about Lucy was out of line—but that part wasn't wrong. And Tim knows it.

"It's all good. Look, sometimes tensions get high, but we get the job done. And you had my back the way you threw yourself in front of mom for me." "Oh, yeah, she was gonna lay you out." "Come on."

Aaron and Tim has become a really unexpected relationship for me on this show. Tim has softened enough that while he maintains authority over Aaron, he listens to him. Of course, this is Lucy's influence in his life. So it makes sense that the three of them are sort of becoming a new OT3 on the show.

In the past, it was Jackson, Lucy, and Nolan who formed the OT3. Common element? Lucy, of course. She brings people together in unexpected ways.

And while Aaron's comments were out of line, it's not wrong for someone to call Tim out about his intentions and choices. He's an authority figure in the station, and a supervisor. People need to know he's on the level at all times.

That's going to play into the rest of a season, I think. But, what do I know? I'm just a girl from the very-near future rewinding back to Chenford classics of ages past.

As ever, thank you for reading and joining me on this journey. We're all caught up! Can't wait to see what's next for Lucy and Tim (and Chenford)!

I'll put together a Master Post to-date later. And I can't WAIT to see what 5x12 has for us all! See you then!

#Chenford #Lucy Chen #Tim Bradford #Melissa O'Neil #Eric Winter #Lucy x Tim #Tim x Lucy #The Rookie

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negrowhat · 1 year

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Hey Eboni!! I hope you're well. I was searching for a new BL to watch and I came across some of my faves from when I first got into them and it got me wanting to hear your thoughts on quite a few things. I'm just going to bother you with the top one though. What are some of the steamiest 🌶️🌶️🌶️ BLs that you've watched? Maybe top 6? It could be older or a newer release.

HELLO! You can always drop by with BL questions lol! Steamy BLs are quite a new thing these days, more and more series are incorporating more sex-positive themes into their series which can be a good and bad thing. We love some spice but sometimes that spice turns into 'How nasty can we make this before people start to complain?' Anyways here are some of my fave spicy BLs. Top 6 you say? Easy!

TharnType 1 and 2. I mean...people are allowed their opinion of the actual plot of the show, there are no wrong interpretations for that. Tharn and Type were both toxic and there was hella questionable content mixed in with romance and a splash of comedy. But I think we can all agree that Tharn and Type were pioneers in the Spicy Thai BL category. Half of the series was them banging and boy did they BANG and they did it well. I recently did a rewatch of TT2 and the amount of times Tharn was lifting Type's big 6 ft solid ass up onto a hard surface to ravage him was very many.

Why R U? the Series. Ok so COVID pretty much ruined all the couples on that show except FighterTutor, but what COVID did not ruin was the spicy bits of the series. The sexual tension between Fighter and Tutor was very high and it was showcased on the series very, very frequently. The way that one d!ck grabbing/makeout scene lived rent free in my mind for a very, very long time??? Not to mention there was some powerful vers energy between them and that made for some excellent spicy scenes.

Secret Crush on You. Nuea and Toh were all over each other; kissing, teasing, touching, and banging. I'm not even exaggerating when I say that Nuea did not care where they were, discretion was not a thing. The two of them were very sex positive and explored a lot of k!nks together. Consent was a constant thing featured in their conversations (and the overall series). Also kudos to them for talking about exploring being vers in one ep and following up with it in another ep.

Love in the Air. Horny BITCHES! And I mean PayuRain. The clear D/s relationship they had was *chef's kiss*. Their spicy scenes were top tier because it directly reflected the type of dynamic they had. Payu was introducing Rain to the wild side and Rain was an A+ overachieving student eager to push the limits and find out if he would be rewarded or punished...either way was good for him. I could go on and on and on about them. SkyPai definitely had some epic spicy scenes too but there were layers to their sexual relationship.

KinnPorsche the Series. Duh. My gawd. Their spicy scenes were top tier. All of them. It was clear that a lot of writing and thought went into the love scenes in this series. None of them felt cheap. Smut with emotions was very much what was happening in that series. The scenes were jaw dropping but also carried weight which made them more memorable to the masses.

Big Dragon the Series. That series was a bit of a mess but one thing they had a firm understanding of was SPICE! Mangkorn and Yai had that love/hate/fuck thing down real good! Yai also seemed to have a bit of a dom/bondage k!nk that I personally think was not explored enough...maybe in s2.

Honorable mentions to: War of Y, Y-Destiny (KaengPuth), We Best Love: Fighting Mr. 2nd, and the HIStory series.

#the thai series owns the spice #tharntype #tharntype the series #why r u #why r u? the series #secret crush on you #scoy #love in the air #love in the air the series #kinnporsche the series #kinnporsche #big dragon #big dragon the series

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yohangaontdj · 9 months

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The Devil Judge Rewatch Ep 6 (Part 4)

Continuation of Part 3 which can be found here.

The next bit, we have the family eating together for the first time. And look at the spread Gaon had prepared, which was more like a feast than just breakfast.

And here we have Yohan puffing his cheeks out at Elijah. And Elijah refusing to look at him, obviously still pissed at how Yohan had teased her.

And that wasn't the only silliness Yohan had exhibited. Look at him, jealous of his own AI butler for calling Gaon master.

Now we have Elijah saying that she hated Korean cusine. And going on to spout some ridiculous reason for being llke this.

And now that I'm rewatching this with the knowledge that it was her way of keeping Miss Ji's terrible cooking a secret. It's so endearing and love her so much for doing this.

And look at Yohan trying to keep a straight face when he obviously knew that Elijah was lying.

Next, we have Yohan doing exactly what Elijah had done. Protecting Miss Ji by saying he couldn't taste anything.

And here is Elijah giving him a dirty look. Cause she knew it's a big fat lie too.

And I love how they can read each other so well. They do have a closeness that goes beyond words - even though they will deny it vehemently, should anyone point that out to them.

The next bit, I really dunno what to say except... Why must Yohan eat kimchi in such a way?

And looking at Gaon as he did so. 🤣

Makes me wonder if he had read some lousy book about how to seduce your love interest.

Even though this might not be much, but I love it a lot.

And it's when Gaon had faltered when Elijah had asked if his parents had stopped running a restaurant. And Yohan, he could have tried to steer the conversation away from what was definitely a sensitive topic.

But he didn't. And had kept quiet, letting Gaon decide how he wanted to handle the situation.

And how can we ever forget this! Miss Ji stumbling on the happy scene.

And Yohan! Gosh, he really's so cute - mouth stuffed with Gaon's cooking and looking like a guilty child caught in a naughty act.

Then attempting to escape Miss Ji and nearly choking himself

And Elijah! Keeping quiet and unobtrusive throughout the whole incident. Probably trying to escape from being questioned by Miss Ji as well.

And then we have Gaon, oblivious to all that was happening and telling Miss Ji he had left food for her.

I'll never tire of watching this.

And now, we have Gaon and how cool he was riding the motorcycle.

But he had to learn how to fight better.

And last but not least.

How can someone look so... just by drinking water.

If Yohan had seen this, might make him thirsty for something else more than just water.

And then there's this when Yohan had stumbled out of his car after getting kidnapped.

He's just so... And it had my imagination thinking of Gaon on his knees and... (You can refer to him drinking water to get an idea.)

I'll stop here for now, even though there's more I'll love to say about this episode. And see u in the rewatch for Ep 7.

#the devil judge #the devil judge rewatch #gahan #kang yohan x kim gaon #lawful husbands #yohan x gaon #i just love love them and i want to rave about them.#And gosh all the stuff I keep discovering the more I do this.#I'm just so obesessed and maybe I'm reading too much into it all with my clouded judgement.#And thank you for reading what isn't all my own ideas but influenced by all the posts I've ever read on TDJ

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alectoperdita · 2 months

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take care of yourself! but if you have the time, please tell me your thoughts on the last couple of 7th time loop eps.

Episode 6

Again, the Theodore-Mokuba connection is strong in my head for some reason. Mostly because Theodore seems desperate for his brother's acknowledgment and respect.

Also I love that Rishe just escaped capture within like minutes. Arnold wasn't even worried about her safety. He knows his wifey is super competent! Hahah. What a boss! I love that image of Jou breaking free to give a lecture, "yo, this is how you properly take someone prisoner."

Lol, Arnold full-on warning her: "you cannot fix me."

Okay, yeah, there's that brand of fucked up trust/codependency/misplaced self-sacrifice I can see between the Kaiba brothers.

Also the way she collapsed 👀. I feel like that may have been an indicator of a pivotal moment/relationship changed?

Yoooo how could I (and Rishe) forget about the kiss from the previous episode???

Episode 7

Ooooo she had a room prepared specifically for him at the villa! She wants to keep the same residence as him. 🥰🥰🥰

I can't believe it's only been three weeks in storytime with everything that's happened.

Yes! They're finally sparring! Haha I love the handicap equipment they're wearing for this duel. I know it's to demonstrate how hardcore the training can get, but the aesthetic is also very on point.

Also this dude, getting jealous over himself again. We love to see this. He just wants to monopolize all of Rishe's attention and focus on him. Also adore the fact that she's basically reenacting the duel to her last death.

Omg omg, scar touching! SCAR TOUCHING! The intimacy! Thank you I am eating well just on that one bit. And girl, baring your collarbone like that. You are testing him.

OF COURSE SHE CROSSDRESSES TO START KNIGHT TRAINING. Brilliant. Five stars. I'm already going feral over the idea. Especially if this allows her to go into the battlefield alongside him. Can you imagine her fighting on his side this time??? (Hopefully not for the intention of world conquest or whatever this time). But girl's gonna be one fierce knight/honor guard and no one will touch her liege. 🔪🔪🔪🔪 Truly this speaks to my Tortall loving ass. 😭😭😭

Episode 8

Also Theodore is being such a troll. He's getting a kick out of the idea of knowing a secret that his brother doesn't yet know about. I love the little gremlin.

"I must give your maid my highest praise." Translation, you look really pretty today.

Rishe is so smart, yet so dense. We love her. This is clearly a date, hehe. The man is playing hooky from work to take you out on the town and buy you pretty jewelry (and maybe test the extent of your wide and varied knowledge).

OMGGGG IT'S RING SHOPPING!!!!

Hahaha and he gets her to accept by framing the extravagant purchase as a way to inject funds into the local economy.

Omg yesss, get a stone that matches the color of his eyes!!!!

"I JUST THINK THE COLOR IS PRETTY!" She protests. I'm dying over here.

(Also think of Jou in a similar scene 🥰)

He admitted to wanting to give her a ring because he's feeling possessive. And he gets soooo jealous when Kyle compliments her.

Episode 9

Oooo another one of Rishe's relationships from a past life.

Omg, what is with this scene with Michel force-feeding the medicine to Kyle and then making him explain it? I feel like I'm intruding on someone's specific and private kink play/scene. 🤣

Ahhh!!! Arnold gave her his pocket watch!!

We get some politics in this episode. It's so interesting to see all the little disparate pieces come together and present the picture of how Arnold may move against the nations of the world later. Because Kyle has just exposed a crippling weakness in his nation's prosperity. Any power-mongering nation would come to the same conclusion that Arnold presents at the end of the conversation.

Love the image of Arnold's eyes glowing like that. We love to see him play to his sinister image too.

Episode 10

The way I fucking cackled when Arnold showed up to knight candidates training.

"He's letting me get away with it! Yay!" Next scene: angry kabedon!

No reason Arnold can't have his wife and his knight side-piece. HAHAHAHA. I'm dying imagining the rumors already.

Oh... black powder must be gun powder... Michel wants to use it to rock the very foundations of the world...

Ahhh I love that Theodore has his little intelligence network.

So that's Michel's damage.

I like that not everyone Rishe has met or had relationships with is a net good or bad person, and that she doesn't write them off forever. Maybe in that given life she didn't have the knowledge or leverage to affect them, but she can try again in different lives if they meet again. I like the tenacity of her character.

#replies #anonymous #Alecto watches 7th Time Loop #i hope this liveblogging comments are entertaining anon #spoilers #for those that care #long post #and yes you were right the crossdressing in context makes me lose my mind in the best way #it's exactly my cup of tea #i'm slurping it up with relish

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ourladyofmaplemurder · 5 months

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Soooooo.....Penelope grows Jimson Weed in the greenhouse. I don't know how I missed that one before, but I did.

So, for those of you who don't know, Jimson Weed is another name for Datura.

Datura is like, a hellish delieriant. It causes hallucinations that seem real. It's like being in a living nightmare seeing entire people and having entire experiences that are absolutely not happening. Oh man.

So, my theory is that Cheryl's most vivid hallucinations are caused by the ingestion of Datura via Penelope.

Receipts below the cut. <3

Do I think she has hallucinations without this? Possibly, we'll get to that.

Do I think Penelope would do this? Absolutely and frankly, I think it would be more shocking if she didn't.

Penelope benefits greatly from impairing, discrediting, and destroying Cheryl.

I think she does it as a punishment, for practical reasons (in S2 especially), and because it's her thing. Penelope loves to poison people. It's her favorite.

So, let's talk about Cheryl's hallucinations.

The very first thing we need to establish here is that Cheryl hallucinates.

Here's her first major hallucination.

This occurs in S1. Ep. 5 - Chapter Five: Heart of Darkness. Cheryl is not dreaming here. She is fully awake watching her mother and grandmother put flowers on Jason's grave.

Her second major hallucination occurs in S1. Ep. 13 - Chapter Thirteen: The Sweet Hereafter. Once again, she is not dreaming. This is a full-on hallucination.

Her last major hallucination is in S5. Ep. 11 - Chapter Eighty-Seven: Strange Bedfellows. Once again, she is awake here.

Now, what are the similarities between these three hallucinations? Well, first of all, they're all of Jason. So, you could easily choose to interpret these as a supernatural bond she has with him or even as a metaphor for her grief.

However, there's another similarity. Penelope is directly involved with these hallucinations. She's in 2/3 of the scenes and for the Sweetwater River incident, she was definitely a catalyst.

You'll notice I didn't mention Cheryl's "talks with Jason" either at the Farm or in her house. The reason being is that we never actually see or hear the hallucinations. We only know from context and her talking about it. Therefore, we cannot determine their nature. (Not only that, but it is highly likely that the ones she has at the farm are created/exacerbated by maple mushrooms administered by Edgar.)

Now, what we can determine is that Cheryl's hallucinations likely go beyond the solid examples listed above.

She talks of having a "frightful daymare" in Season 2 and then mentions having a "horrible phantasmagoria" in season 4. In both instances, she mistakes reality for a dream, which tells us she's not always sure whether she is dreaming or awake.

Additionally, when at the Sisters of Quiet Mercy, Cheryl assumes that Toni calling out to her is a hallucination. She reacts to the sound of Toni's voice, but immediately recovers and starts to cry harder. This implies that her first instinct is to assume that she cannot trust what she hears.

Now, these three things together imply that Cheryl has hallucinated before with enough regularity to expect it. She has a familiarity with the experience of hallucinating.

Now, let's talk about the times Cheryl does not seem to hallucinate at all.

Namely, season 3, part of season 5, and season 6. (Not counting season 7 here. That's an au.)

In season 3, I think it's too much of a risk to poison Cheryl. Those pesky seizures could mean bloodwork and Penelope wouldn't risk it. Not to mention the fact that Toni is always hanging around. Penelope has far less opportunity (not to mention bigger fish to fry).

The SoQM Conversion Therapy moment: Stress and hallucinations go hand in hand. She doesn't seem to hallucinate while she's there. Could she possibly be on anti-psychotics? Maybe, but those take time to work. More time than she spends there.

Season 5 Prior to Penelope's Return & S6: No Penelope.

Now let's address the why of it all. Why poison Cheryl with Datura? Honestly, I think it's as simple as sadism.

-This is a private game. It's primarily to fuck with Cheryl & manipulate her. Unfortunately, it only seems to trigger episodes with Jason. So, I'm sure Penelope is disappointed with that.

-This goes hand in hand with my theory on Penelope drugging Nana as well. Her dementia seems to "get better" when Penelope is not there.

-Also, that's not how psychotic symptoms work . They get worse with stress and that is not the case for Cheryl.

Now, the last thing I'll say on this is that I think multiple things can be true. Cheryl can be psychotic and Penelope can be drugging her AND it could be supernatural. Why not? This is Riverdale.

#cheryl blossom #riverdale #Hark a RiverPost #im not dead

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4gem · 1 year

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Just watching too much msp so let's talk about ep 4. I think ep 4 is sometimes overlooked because of how much stronger ep 5 and 6 are in terms of the emotions showcased. But what really caught my eye was the use of colours in ep 4 so leggo.

Gotta appreciate how much colour is brought into the Student Council room with just a touch of Gun's magic. The stark white to this beautiful mess of colours. There's a lot of pink, orange and purple hues in the scene and the diffused light makes everything appear soft. Gives off very romantic vibes. Really sets the tone for how Tinn and Gun's relationship is slowly evolving. From enemies to friends, acquaintances to somewhat friends and potentially more.

I want to thank whoever decided to get that huge neon sign of cafe in pink because its perfect. Just the right colour for the ambience. It's definitely the centre of the display of colours. Also interesting how they show us the Student Council room through a window. We can see how the outside remains the same after the decor but the inside has changed so much. Kind of like how Gun entered Tinn's life and changed his life in monochrome to a life full of colour. All the emotions he could experience just because Gun decided to sing that day in the cafe. Love these hurt comfort vibes.

All the flirting happens while they're covered in pink hues. It's almost like they're blushing or something. And there's also Tiw rolling his eyes while he's covered in shades of orange. Tinn going wide eyed when Gun kind of flirts with him and as they get closer, all the other colours go out of focus, just leaving the pinks. Interesting how when Tinn and Gun are being romantic, you can only see the pinks but when where is warm interaction we see a lot of orange instead.

Back to the warmth of the yellow and orange shades as Tinn and Gun get some distance between them and get to their tasks. Even without being flirty, we can feel the intimacy building as the colours shift.

Then we enter a new scene with an almost sage green background. The colours are muted and not as vibrant, almost grounded as Tinn and Gun's converse about their experiences and fears. A lot more light and shadows present in the scene. There's more contrast compared to the previous scenes in the Student Council room. Tinn and Gun have simple but meaningful conversations which are crucial in understanding and connecting with people. I really enjoy how they develop Tinn and Gun's relationship and it's interesting to see much emotional connections form, with such dull colours as the backdrop. Love doesn't have to be bright and scorching.

Later in the episode, as Tinn asks Gun to go back to the Music Club, the pinks fade and the orange hues are more pronounced. And when Tinn worries about Gun, we see just a hint of pink shine on him.

When Gun returns to the Music Club, we have the same muted ochre and green in the background. But as he brings back Sound to the group and they perform together, the pink and purple lights are brought back. Really highlights how love isn't just romantic and there are so many different types of love. Even love between friends is such an important form of love.

After the performance, Gun comes back to the Student Council Room and we get to see my fav neon sign. As Tinn and Gun sit facing each other, the colours are a lot darker on Tinn's side than Gun. Tinn looks like he is drowning in the pink hues whereas Gun is slowly getting dyed by the pink. To me, it symbolises how Tinn is sure of his feelings for Gun (took him only 2 years of crushing on Gun to get here) and Gun's feelings aren't as strong but he's somewhere along the way.

And ofc THE scene. Funny how Gun pulls Tinn for a with the neon sign as the backdrop and now they're both pink. A lot of glances and Tinn seeks confirmation from Gun before entangling their pinkies together. And they're finely holding onto each other. Definitely kids in love. And I'm definitely not thinking about how Gun's attention is constantly on Tinn's lips. Nope, not me.

So, basically, a lot of pinks which are always pleasant to look at. It's kind of cute considering what stage they were at in their relationship at that time in the show.

A lot of assumptions and inferences by me so nothing to be taken too seriously. And a lot of overthinking, again by me. Funny I wrote an entire post appreciating the use of the pink considering how long I hated that colour. The things msp makes me do. Anyway, gotta go watch msp again.

#my school president #tinn #gun #tinn gun #gun tinn #tinn x gun #gemini norawit #fourth nattawat #gemini fourth #overanalysing msp #msp #why do i love this show so much #need to go watch msp again #listening to msp ost on repeat #our skyy msp when #colour analysis #pink

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mejomonster · 9 months

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I need to read a Bad Buddy canon divergent fic where either Pran makes a move FIRST, or Pat realizes he likes Pran early.

Possible scenes of divergence:

In the scene on the rooftop where pran meets pat and says he was the one who gave him the green tea. What if in that scene Pran said "do you still want to watch the moonlight with me" and then did not follow it with "did I break your heart?". Or, if when he said that, and Pat Said "fine I'm the heartbroken one," what if Pran pushed him there. And asked why he's heartbroken, if it's because he wanted Pran... because you know that whole scene? Pran is dancing around the fact he did like Pat in high school, is kind of giddy that Pat flirted, kind of giddy Pat asked him on this date (on accident), and kind of feeling out if Pat would actually want to date him...if that was even something Pat could consider. But Pat takes Prans feeling around as "trying to put the blame of the situation on someone" so Pat let's himself be the "loser who's heartbroken." (Which is so interesting because 1. Pran literally thinks he's the heartbroken loser right now because he loves Pat and thought he lost any chance with Pat in high school so as soon as he sees Pat on this roof he hates that he got his hopes up on a potential crush, and 2. Pat will later take the conscious stance to lose to his crush Pran whenever winning would hurt Prans happiness... and even here, before Pat is even aware it's a crush he feels, he already has decided he will choose to "lose" if it will make Pran feel better. So Pat chooses to act like the "heartbroken" one in this scene, even though he's not even AWARE of why Pran feels like a loser in the moment, only aware Pran seems defensive and sort of sad so He wants Pran happy... and pran is happy when he wins their competitions).

In the scene when Pran is looking at a new apartment, Pat follows him in, and they wrestle then tickle on the bed. The audience knows, they probably would've kissed if the rental girl hadn't come in. So, how would that have changed EVERYTHING? Would they even kiss... or would Pran lay on top of Pat until they BOTH realized Pran wants to kiss, then Pran would get up, get angry and defensive, and run. And Pat would have to confront that it was VERY likely Pran had just wanted to kiss him, that it's likely pran ran away because he didn't like that he wanted to (and that entire can of worms). And Pat on a lighter immediate level would contemplate if he'd wanted Pran to kiss him... if that actually would be great. On a more concerned level, just like what actually plays out in ep 6, Pat probably wouldve gone to try to find Pran and ask why he ran. Ask why Prans scared. Why prans upset. Ask pran what he wants, why he almost kissed Pat. Pat would probably admit during such a conversation that he wishes Pran did kiss him, actually, and he doesn't know why Pran ran away when Pat isn't upset at all about the almost-kiss. And then episode 6 stuff would hit like a fucking train Way earlier in the story's plot. Because Pran wouldn't admit it's their parents feud keeping him scared of being close to Pat only to risk losing him and everything in his life here. At least he wouldn't admit it easily. And Pat would be dealing with the anvil of a realization he likes Pran, desperately loves him and does NOT want him to withdraw, did like him back in high school and was in agony when he was gone, and has been desperate to get close to him again ever since they ran into each other in college. The difference from the shows version? In the show, Pat gets all of episode 5 to deal with those realizations alone, then Pran doesn't withdrawl To An Intense level until ep 6. But if they almost kissed in episode 2 in that apartment? Oh boy. They'd be both dealing with those heavy emotions at the Same Time.

Alternatively. Pat could kiss him impulsively in that apartment bed. Thinking of it as gay chicken competition and Just, as usual, enjoying anything he does with Pran and not even realizing the depth of what that gesture Actually means to Pran right away. It would only be later, when Ink enters the plot and prans in absolute disaster mode (because pat kissed him but didn't even mean anything by it), that pat would realize oh OH pran has loved him since high school. And Oh no... pat totally wrote off prans feelings, didn't think about if pran cared, and now it makes sense why pran is avoiding him like the plague. It would play out a bit like the Canon story's eps 5 and 6, except in reverse. Pran would be withdrawn first (like ep 6) and then pat would figure out he's in love and prans been in love.

The scene where pran is designing the bus stop and pat pretends to be his boyfriend. Though honestly? Any little scene anywhere in the show, could work for this kind of exploration.

In the shows story canon, pran says in episode 5 right before the kiss "you can't keep doing this to me. We aren't a thing. We aren't even friends." And those lines speak volumes. It's an acknowledgement pat HAS been flirting. Both in high school and in college, before he realized he liked pran and after. But to pran, its been interpreted as flirting with no intent to actually be with pran. Flirting with no intent to take prans feelings seriously. And even if Pat WAS oblivious to his own crush? When pran says that, pat is fully aware he Has been flirting for years. "You can't keep doing this to me" pran says. Keep acting territorial over who's close to me (when I can't do it to you), keep flirting with me (leading me on so I keep wanting you... and Pat does purposely tempt pran to keep engaging with him, because pat loves being close to pran, even when pat isn't aware he has a crush.... on some level pat has always been aware that when he Flirts pran responds by interacting with pat more, and pat WANTS that and has wanted that for ages... maybe even since pran saved Pa as a child tbh). Pran is talking about how pat has been trying to keep pran close to him, but they cant be close. Both because pat kept picking friends and girls over pran, and because their family situation and friend situation won't LET them be close even if they tried to be. "We aren't a thing" is about romance. It's vague, it could be about a lot honestly. But to me I see it as pran being like "we aren't lovers, we aren't even fuck buddies, we aren't crushes (according to what you said to me about liking ink)" and then "we aren't even friends". To pran, it's clear pat has acted way more intimately than a friend would... for ages. And in that moment on the rooftop pat is aware he HAS been. Even when he wasn't aware he liked pran romantically, on some level he Had to pick up on pran crushing on him (after all pat doesn't go through any big exploration trying to figure out if pran likes him... it's obvious from all the times pran shut down pats flirting and fled, the way pran wrote a LOVE SONG FOR PAT, from the times pran put out feelers to see if pran would respond to the bait and Just Ask Him Out). And Pat has been indulging in prans crush by giving it attention, to keep pran close to him. And the "we aren't even friends"? Pat is so jealous of SO MUCH, but mostly that. He can't even go to prans house and eat dinner, the way friends can. He can't go up to pran and ruffle his hair and hug him and smile and joke in public with him... like prans friends (especially wai) can do at any and all times. Pat can't simply knock on his door and be let in (pran made him jump through hoops, pat has to push for every inch... which is partly why he resorts to flirting... because it Works and pran gives up an inch at a time, but pran pushes pat away constantly so pat can't just go into his room to hangout for no reason, can't give him headphones without an excuse, can't cry on his bed about a stupid fight or get drunk with him at a public bar. In fact who knows how much pat indulging his friends desire to beat up architecture kids was (at least ep 1-2) partly pat subconsciously angry those people got to cling to pran and ask for his help and hug him and laugh with him when pat can't even walk next to him in public or knock on prans family door? The line "we aren't even friends" hits pat right in the heart. The line "we aren't a thing" hits pran in the heart.

That emotionally open conversation on the roof in ep 5 before the kiss? In reality, they might have been able to have that conversation at any point. It could have happened earlier, a bit different. But the core of it: that pat has been flirting without being able to give pran the full reprocitiy he wants, and that pran keeps pushing pat away because he's scared of getting what he wants then it destroying the part of his life he enjoys. That was there since they ran into each other in college. And the outcome would ultimately always end the same: pat would decide if pran wants it? Then he CAN commit to giving full reciprocity and the consequences are worth it to pat. And pran would get what he's wanted forever, and be terrified of losing it on the terms of outside consequences instead of by his own choice, and withdraw.

It's possible the scene in the sleepover, when pat confesses to liking ink...that in that particular night, things could have gone differently. If pat had said he liked pran? Or pran had the guts then to ask "do you like me?" Instead of do you like ink? That night could have gone very interesting. Because if pran DID ask "do you like me?" Pat would've stopped his one way track mind on ink. He would've been surprised. Then he would've realized, if pran sounded serious, that pran liked him. And that would've made pat more careful in what he said next. Because pat, conscious of his crush or before that, would always rather lose then see pran hurting. He'd rather he has to move next time their parents threaten, he'd rather pran was never sent to boarding school, he'd rather confront his parents then have pran feel he has to do the confronting. And he'd rather admit he likes pran first, if pran feels safer that way (hence ep 6). So if pran DID ask if pat liked him? The entire trajectory might change. I'd be very interested to see how. I imagine later, after that night, hed confess to ink still as more of a weight off his shoulder and excuse to vent about his other crush to her (just like in canon). But what would pat say that night, if pran asked? Would pat say "who wouldn't like you?" And try to deflect his sudden realization that pran might want or need an answer to the years of flirting pats done just to keep pran from throwing him farther away. Would he say that to make it clear he thinks prans great, he just isn't ready to answer? Would pran be pissed off at that answer, that non answer, because it's another occurrence of pat flirting with him without committing to SHOWING if he really likes pran back or not. Would pran tell him to get out? Would pat deflect and ask "do you like me? I'm very likable." Would it devolve into them challenging the other to see who falls first, like in ep 6, to spare both of them the terrifying notion of having to confess their true feelings that night? Would pat be brutally honest, and answer without thinking, and just say "I've never thought about it." Which would break prans little heart, confirm that pat HAS been flirting with no intention of follow through, imply that pat never liked pran as much as pran THOUGHT he did (pran especially used to think the crush was mutual in high school). I am so curious

Anyway yeah. I'd love some canon divergent fic. If you've read any, PLEASE recommend me some! ToT

#bad buddy #patpran #meta #lb #rant #im thinking about it and. if pran at ANY POINT had kissed pat?#had dared to say: i like you. date me you prick. unless youre a coward.#pat would have IMMEDIATELY WITHOUT EVEN THINKING ABOUT IT AGREED.#he might think its a competition first or pran playing mind games and pat might be terrified #that pran doesnr actually like him and is planning to leave pat heartbroken now that pats falling for him #but like. in the moment? if pran kissed him? pat is KISSING BACK no hesitation #if pat asked him out? as in directly. yes no as only options? pat is saying yes.#because pran approaches his crush very sideways. he will throw a feeler out and see if pat takes the bait. but pran wont #actually say or do what he really feels. now... thats just his Character so pran is Not likely to kiss or make tje first move.#but im saying if he DID? things would go GREAT #i think pran mightve made the first move in high school. like #if hed been able to sing his song and see pat after? them excited they played? hed admit to pat the song is about pat.#and pat wouldve been shocked but probably flattered. and 100% wouldve #tried to see if he had a crush back and explore that with pran #(which is Exactly why prans mom sent pran away. sje probably knew if they kept hanging out theyd get together #its horrible but yeah ive met parents who did shit like that. no way she didnt rip pran away #to keep him away from pat)

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wen-kexing-apologist · 11 months

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Hands in La Pluie Ep 6

I've been on a pretty solid run of overfixating on and overanalyzing hand movement in the shows I have been watching. Which means it is time to talk about some things I noticed in today's episode of La Pluie. Y'all can thank @bengiyo for this, he convinced me to watch it.

Patts and Tai

The way Patts gripped Tai when Tai was on top of him, you could see the indents and wrinkles in the shirt excellent work 10/10.

But, as the scene progresses and he continues to move his hand across Tai's back he is also so…soft? gentle? with it too, like the way he kind of scratches Tai's back, but it doesn't feel like he's digging it, it feels and looks like he is being light with it.

(and this softness is conveyed in addition to the hands, in the way that Patts so carefully initiates the actual kiss.)

But what I found supremely interesting about the hands in this scene is that Tai and Patts have completely opposite hand work in this makeout scene.

Patts when moving his hand around Tai's body constantly has his fingers moving, they are bent, they are scratching, they are worming their way up the fabric of Tai's t-shirt. But his other hand, when Tai is on top of him at least, when he's trying to keep Tai in place. That hand is very rigid, his fingers don't bend. (you can see it in the image above)

CONVERSELY, Tai constantly has his fingers curled up, loose until he starts running his hand along Patts' back.

When Tai is aware of the movements he wants to do, when he decides he wants to run his hand along Patts' back, his fingers straighten out, he doesn't play with pressure, or sensation. He is only moving his palm. But his other hand, which he is using to keep his balance while sitting on Patts lap, that he isn't consciously thinking about, is almost in a fist.

And once Patts isn't trying to keep Tai in place on top of him, he lets go of Tai's shoulder and his fingers on his other hand go soft, curl, play with sensation, and move independently of Patts' palm (I recognize indepdently is a weird way to phrase it but I can't think of a better way)

When Patts is talking to Tai at the end of the kiss, when he says "if it was anyone else I would stop here, but I want to wait until you are comfortable" Tai isn't thinking about his hands touching Patts because he's so honed in on Patts' face and Patts' words that you can see the hand that is still around Patts' shoulder is soft, it's staying in place, he's not trying to touch Patts, but his middle finger dips down a bit in a way that makes contact with Patt's skin. And from the way the knuckle moves it looks like Tai ends up unconsciously playing with pressure in that moment.

And then of course they go and destroy me with Patts linking his arm underneath Tai's to make their arms a daisy chain before he rests his hands on top of Tai's. Superb.

Exquisite.

No notes.

Tien and Lomfon

We get another great hand scene with Tien and Lomfon in this episode.

So we as an audience are generally more aware of the pathway those two characters are following, than the characters themselves are. Whether or not they will get together remains to be seen, but I like the potential comparisons that could be made between Soul Mate love and non-soul mate love.

BUT

that's not the point!

The point is that Tien gets drunk, and collapses in to Lomfon's shoulder, and then proceeds to REST HIS HAND ON LOMFON'S KNEE AND THEN STROKE LOMFON'S KNEE WITH HIS THUMB

I don't have a gif of this, so you're just gonna have to trust me on this one, Tien is stroking Lomfon's knee in this shot. Talk about subconscious attraction there! The soft tenderness that Tien is giving Lomfon in just the way he's touching him before you even get to the way he is cuddled up, or the way he is talking to Lomfon.

And then Lomfon's hands are all over Tien when Tien shifts to sleep on Lomfon's lap.

Lomfon is incapable of keeping his hand still for more than a few seconds, and despite moving his hands up and down Tien's body, it doesn't read as sexual or really even tender, it reads as akward and uncertain, like he's not sure where he should be putting his hands, if he should be putting his hands.

Comparing to the earlier scene with Tai and Patts, where Patts literally never takes his hands off of Tai when he's moving them, Lomfon is always picking his hands up, moving his hands somewhere else, and then putting his hands down.

And even when he finally settles on stroking Tien's hair, he is making as little physical contact as possible, resting his forearm on Tien's arm and then only stroking Tien with the tips of his knuckles, as opposed to resting his entire hand in Tien's hair like he did earlier on in the scene before he continues to move his hand around Tien's arm.

There were lots of other really good hand moments in this episode, especially from Title's end. The way Tai is able to signal to Patts to let go of his hand, the way Tai fidgets with his hands when Patts is looking at him fondly when he shows up for the trip.

All this to say, hands belong to the gays and we stay winning, Happy Pride!!!

#la pluie #la pluie the series #phat x saengtai #phat x tai #saengtien x lomfon #lomfon x saengtien #that's right y'all w-k-a is back! with more essays about silly little gay shows!

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