#that quick news story at the end of s3

[ladyluscinia]

Ok, I think I might be exiting the "are you fucking kidding me?" period and ready to make a real argument, so lets talk about Three Act Structure!

Is OFMD S2 just the "Darkest Hour"?

A very common explanation I've been seeing for some of the... controversial... aspects of S2 is that it's meant to be that way. That the middle act is where the protagonists hit their lowest point. Where we get the big failure point. Where everything looks kind of shit.

S2 is supposedly just that point. It's The Empire Strikes Back. People have been making that comparison since before the first episodes even dropped, telling everyone to expect something that could be disappointing or unsatisfying - it's just a matter of needing to wait for S3 to pull it all together.

It's not a baseless framework to consider the show through - I'm pretty sure David Jenkins has mentioned it in interviews (or at least mentioned he planned for three acts / seasons) so it's certainly worth asking how he's doing at the 2/3rd mark.

So - quick summary of Three Act Structure:

Act 1 introduces our characters and world. It includes the inciting incident of the story and the first plot point, where a) the protagonist loses the ability to return to their normal life, and b) the story raises whatever dramatic question will drive the entire plot. Act 2 is rising action and usually most of the story. The protagonist tries to fix things and fucks them up worse, in the process learning new skills and character developing to overcome their flaws. Act 3 is the protagonist taking one more shot, but this time they are ready. We get the climax of the story, the dramatic question gets an answer, and then the story closes.

If you want examples, the Star Wars Original Trilogy is a very popular template. And, hell, he said it was a pirate story... the main Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy also does a solid job with their three acts.

Let's compare. (Spoiler: I'm not impressed 🤨)

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First thing I need to establish... Wait. Two things. First is that Three Act Structure is flexible, so we can't really analyze success or failure by pulling up a list of necessary plot beats that should have been hit in X order. Second is that if you tell me you are writing a romance with a Three Act Structure - where "the relationship is the story" - the first thing I'm going to do is ask you how you are adapting it. Because while there's not necessarily anything preventing you from applying this to a character driven plot, most people are familiar with it as plot structure for externally driven conflict.

Unless there's a reason the status of the main relationship is intrinsically tied up in the current status of the war against the evil empire, a standard Three Act Structure is going to entail either an antagonistic force that absolutely wants your main couple apart being the main relationship obstacle OR the romance aspect being a subplot to the protagonist's narrative adventure. None of those sound like how the show has been described.

So how is OFMD adapting it?

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Act 1

(Can't figure out how well Act 2 is doing if we don't start at setup.)

Right out the gate, OFMD breaks one of the main "rules" for a story where the Acts are delivered in three parts. Namely the one where the first Act is treated as an acceptable standalone story, with it's own satisfying yet open ended conclusion.

In Star Wars, A New Hope ends with the princess rescued, Luke finding the Force, Han finding his loyalty, and the Death Star destroyed. The Empire isn't defeated, the antagonists still live... the story is not over, but this one movie doesn't feel unfinished.

Similarly, Curse of the Black Pearl gives Jack his ship back, Elizabeth and Will get together, and Norrington has the English Navy let them all off the hook and give Jack and the pirates one day's head start.

OFMD's final beat of S1 being Kraken Arc starting is not that, even if Stede returning to sea is still a pretty hopeful note. Now... I don't necessarily think this was a bad call. At least, not if the story is the relationship. It's easy to close on a happy ending and then fuck it up next movie if the conflict is external and coming for them. Not so much if you're driving the story with your protagonists' flaws, in part because it should be really obvious at the end of setup that your main characters need development and can't run off together right now. I actually like that they were risk-takers and let S1 look at the situation clearly vs doing a fragile happy end, because it takes into account the difference between a character-driven and plot-driven narrative.

I think OFMD's Act 1 actually ends at maybe the Act of Grace? Well, there through the kiss on the beach, counting as our "first plot point" before everything goes wrong, basically.

At that point, they have setup the story and characters. We've been introduced to Edward and Stede's current issues. Signing the Act of Grace does make the intertwined arcs between them real - it's no longer a situation that either one of them could just walk away from like it was in 1x07 - and we narrow in on the (alleged) driving question of the show:

It's not about "Will Stede become a great pirate?" or "Will we develop a better kind of piracy for the crew?" - the show is the relationship and the big question is "What is Stede and Edward's happy ending?"

Act 1 ends on their first solution, being together and making each other happy and admitting it's more than just friendship. Act 2 starts, appropriately, by saying both of them are currently too flawed for that to go anywhere but crashing and burning.

Now... looking back, what does Act 1 do well vs poorly?

I think it's really strong on giving us the foundation for BlackBonnet's characters and flaws. We aren't surprised Stede goes home or Edward goes Kraken (or at least... we weren't supposed to be surprised. There are still a lot of holdouts blaming Izzy for interrupting Edward's "healing" despite how at this point in the story it doesn't make sense for Edward to have the skills to heal... but I digress). The relationship question is compelling at the end of S1, the cliffhanger hooks, and the fandom explosion of fics did not come from nowhere - the audience was invested.

I also think Act 1 does a great job of settling us in the universe. We understand the rules it abides by, from how gay pirates are just a fact of life to how there's no important organs on the left side of the body. Stede has a muppety force field. Rowboats have homing devices, and port is always as close as you want it to be. Scurvy is a joke. The overblown violence of pirate life is mostly a joke, but we are going to take the violence of childhood trauma seriously.

Lucius's fake-out death, while technically part of Act 2, works well because Act 1 did a good job of priming everyone to go "obviously this show wouldn't kill a crew member for shock value, and we're 100% supposed to suspend disbelief about how he could have survived getting flung into the sea in the middle of the night." And we do. And we get rewarded for it.

Regarding antagonists - a big focus of any setup - the show is deliberately weak. The one with the most screentime is Izzy, and he's purposefully ineffective at separating our main couple. Every antagonist is keyed to a particular character, and they function mostly to inform us of that character's flaws and development requirements. The Badmintons tell us about Stede's repression and feelings of inadequacy, and Izzy tells us about Edward's directionless discontent and tendency to avoid his problems. Effectively - the show is taking the stance this will be a character driven narrative where Stede and Edward's flaws are the source of problems and development the solution. No person or empire (or social homophobia) is separating them...

...which leads me to something not present - there nothing really about the struggle of piracy against the Empire. Looking at Curse of the Black Pearl... we see piracy is in danger. The Black Pearl itself is described as the last great pirate threat the British Navy needs to conquer. Hangings are omnipresent - Jack is sentenced to die by one almost as soon as he's introduced to the story, when his only act so far had been to wander around and save Elizabeth from drowning. OFMD tries to invoke this kind of struggle in 2x08, but there's no foundation. Our Navy antagonists are Stede's childhood bullies, and so focused on Stede the crew isn't even in danger when they get caught. The Republic of Pirates is getting jokes about being gentrified, not besieged.

Even the capture of Blackbeard by the Navy is treated as a feather in Wellington's cap but not a huge symbolic blow against piracy... because we just do not have that grand struggle woven into Act 1. You only know the "Golden Age of Piracy" is ending if you google it, or have watched a bunch of pirate shows.

Overall, a solid Act 1, well adapted to the kind of story they've said they were looking to tell - a romance in the (silly-fied) age of piracy, instead of a pirate adventure with a romantic subplot.

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Now, Sidebar - Where is the story going?

The thing about the dramatic question - in OFMD's case: "What is Stede and Edward's happy ending?" - is that a) there's normally more than one question bundled up in that one + sideplots, and b) while you aren't supposed to have the answer yet, you can usually guess what needs to happen to give you the answer.

Back to our examples... Luke's driving question is "Will the Empire be defeated?" Simple. Straightforward. Also: "Will Luke become a Jedi?" The eventual climax of our story from there is pretty obvious... the story is over when Luke wins the war for the Rebellion in a Jedi way. That's the goal that they are working toward.

Pirates of the Caribbean is a bit more complicated. We're juggling more characters and have a less defined heroic journey, but there are driving questions like "Is Jack Sparrow a good man?" and "Is Will Turner a pirate / what does that mean?" and even "Will the British Navy defeat piracy?" They get basic answers in Curse of the Black Pearl, and far more defined ones in At World's End. Still, this is another plot-driven narrative. They've laid the foundations for the Pirates vs Empire struggle, and when that final battle turns into the trilogy climax then you know what's happening.

OFMD is not doing a plot-driven narrative. To judge how they are doing at their goals, we have to ask what they think a happy ending entails in a character sense.

Clearly it's not the classic romantic sideplot, where the climax is the first kiss / acknowledgement of feelings. They've teased a wedding in Word of God comments a lot, so that's probably our better endpoint. Specifically, though, a wedding where both of our protagonists aren't ready to flee from the altar (big ask) and where they've both grown enough that their flaws / mutual tendencies to run away from life problems won't tank the relationship.

In Stede's case it's still massive feelings of inadequacy and being too repressed to talk about his problems. Also he ran away from his family to chase a lifelong dream of being a pirate - "Is Stede going to find fulfillment in being a pirate captain, or will the real answer be love?" Edward meanwhile expresses a desire to quit piracy and retire Blackbeard, but we also find out he's struggling with massive self-loathing and guilt from killing his father - "Is retiring what Edward wants to do, or is he just running away?"

If they are going to get to a satisfying wedding beat at the climax of their story, what character beats do we need to hit in advance?

Off the top of my head - both characters need to self-realize their flaws (a pretty necessary demand of anyone who runs away from problems). They are set up to balance each other well, but also to miscommunicate easily. They have to tell each other about or verbally acknowledge that self-realization so it can be resolved. Stede has to decide how much being a pirate means to him. Edward has to decide if he's retiring and what he wants to do. They both need to show something to do with getting past their childhood traumas given all the flashbacks. Through all this, they also need to hit the normal romance beats that convince the audience they are romantically attracted to each other and like... want to get married.

Oh, and this is more of a genre-specific sideplot, but once they demonstrate a behavior that hurts the people who work for them, they need to then demonstrate later how it won't happen again. Proof of growth, which is kind of important in a comedy where a lot of the humor is based in them being massively self-centered assholes. Stede doesn't earn his acceptance in the community until he kicks Calico Jack off the ship, making up for causing the situation with Nigel in the first episode. A workplace comedy can get a lot of material from the boss as the worker's antagonist, but if you want the bosses to stay sympathetic you have got to throw them some opportunities to earn it.

All that sounds like a lot, but like - the relationship is the story, right? If we spend so much time on establishing flaws big enough to drive a story, we also have to spend time on fixing them. Which is where the turning point hits.

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Act 2: How it Starts

This is where the full story reality-checks your protagonist. Glad you saved your boyfriend and embraced new love in Act 1, but his repressed guilt means he's about to completely ghost you, and your own abandonment issues and self-loathing are about to make his dick move into everyone else's problem.

Again, it's a non-conventional choice OFMD has this start at the very end of S1 rather than with a sudden dark turn in the S2 premiere, but it's still pretty clearly that point in the Three Act Structure.

In Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back opens with a timeskip to our Rebellion getting absolutely crushed and hiding on a miserable frozen planet. The Empire finds them as the plot is kicking off and they have to desperately flee. They get separated. Han and Leia try to go to an ally for help and end up in Vader's clutches. It's a sharp turn from the victorious note that A New Hope ended on.

Pirates of the Caribbean's Act 2 starts dark. Dead Man's Chest opens with our happy couple Will and Elizabeth getting arrested on their wedding day for the "happy end" escape of the last movie. Jack has not been having success since reclaiming his ship, and we'll soon find out he's being hunted by dark forces. As for the general state of piracy, we get a horrifying prison where pirates are being eaten alive by crows, and a new Lord Beckett making the dying state of piracy even more textual. "Jack Sparrow is a dying breed... The world is shrinking."

The key here is making a point that our heroes aren't ready. This is the struggles part - things they try? Fail. The odds do not look to be in their favor.

Now, OFMD apparently decided to go all-in on flaw exploration, especially with Edward. The first 3 episodes of S2 are brutally efficient in outlining Edward's backslide. In S1 you could see he had issues with guilt and feeling like a bad person. S2 devolves that into a destructive, suicidal spiral where Edward forces his crew into three months of consecutive raids, repeats his shocking act of cruelty with Izzy's toe offscreen (more than once!), escalates it with his leg, and finally they state directly that Edward hates himself for killing his dad so much that he fears he's fundamentally unlovable and better off dead.

Stede's struggles are subtler, but most definitely still there. He's deliberately turning a blind eye to tales of Edward's rampage, half from simply being too self-centered to care about the harms Edward causes others, and half from being unable to face or fathom that he had the ability to hurt Edward that much. Upon reunion he wants to put the whole thing behind them, not addressing why he left in the first place. Very "love magically fixes everything" of him, except Stede is no golden merman.

Interestingly, here, BlackBonnet's relationship dysfunction has very clearly been having a negative impact on the surrounding characters we care about. Make sense, since it's the driving force of the story, but that also adds a lot more relationships we need to make right. Like... Edward is the villain to his crew. The show focuses on their trauma and poisoned relationships with him. And then draws our attention even more to Stede taking his side to overrule their objections to him.

For a story where the conflict and required resolutions are primarily character based, and the setup had already given the main couple a good amount to work with, dedicating a lot of S2 to adding more ground to cover was... a choice. Potentially very compelling on the character end, certainly challenging on the writing end... but not a complete break with the structure.

Bold, but not damning.

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Act 2: How it Ends

Now it is true that Act 2 tends to end on a loss. Luke is defeated by Vader and loses his hand, and Han has been sent away in carbonite. Jack Sparrow for all his efforts cannot escape his fate, and he and the Pearl are dragged to the locker.

But the loss is not the point. The loss is incidental to the point.

Act 2 is about struggles and failure, but it's also about lessons learned. There's a change that occurs, and our cast - defeated but not broken - enters the final act with the essential skills, motivation, knowledge, etc. that they lacked in the beginning.

Luke Skywalker could not have defeated the Empire in Return of the Jedi until he'd learned the truth about his father and resisted the Dark Side in The Empire Strikes Back. (Ok, confession, I'm using Star Wars as an example because literally everyone is doing so, but frankly it's a better example of formulaic Three Act Structure repeating within each movie because on a trilogy level - relevant to this comparison - it is a super basic hero's journey in a very recognized outfit and as such the Act 2 relevance is also... super basic "the hero tries to fight the antagonist too early" beat where he learns humility. Not really a lot going on. So, for the better example...)

Dead Man's Chest has a downer ending with the closing moment of the survivors regaining hope and a plan against an enemy now on the verge of total victory - a classic Act 2. But in that first loss against Davy Jones we get Will's personal motivation and oath to stab the heart, Jack finally overcoming not knowing what he wanted and returning to save them from the Kraken (being a good man), Elizabeth betraying Jack (being a pirate), Barbossa's return, and Norrington's choice to bargain for his prior life back. The mission to retrieve Jack from the World's End is the final movie's plot, but things are already on track to turn the tables back around as we enter the finale.

Now, relevant sidenote - one major difference between Three Act Structure within a single work vs across three parts is that Act 2 continues into Part 3, and only tips over into Act 3 about midway through. This is because obviously your final movie or season cannot just be the climax. That's why both movie examples start with a rescue mission. They have to still be missing something so they can get the plot of their third part accelerating while they go get whatever that something is.

But if you wait until the 3rd movie / season to get the development going at all - you're fucked.

Jack's decision in the climax of At World's End to make Elizabeth into the Pirate King goes back to the development we saw in the Pearl vs Kraken fight in Dead Man's Chest. So does Elizabeth's leadership arc. Will's whole arc about becoming Captain of the Dutchman gets built upon in the third movie, but it starts in the second. Not just as an idle thought - he's actively pursuing it. Already consciously weighing saving his father vs getting back to Elizabeth as soon as he makes the oath. Everyone is moving forward in Act 2. Their remaining development might stumble for drama, or they might be a bit reluctant, but I know that they know better than to let it stick, because they already faced their true crisis points.

I'm not sure we can say the same about OFMD.

S2 does a good job of adding problems, yeah, but there's not really any movement on fixing them. Our main couple stagnates in some ways, and regresses in others.

Stede opened Act 2 by running away in the middle of the night back to his wife without telling Edward anything. We know he did it because of feeling guilty and his core childhood trauma of his dad calling him a weak and inadequate failure. Now in S1 he actually speedruns a realization of his shitty behavior with Mary, but what about S2? Well...

He continues to not talk to Edward about... pretty much anything. My guy practiced love confessions galore but Edward only finds out about going back to his wife via Anne, and it gets brushed aside with a love confession. He seems to think Edward wants him to be a dashing pirate, or maybe he just thinks he should be a dashing pirate. Idk, it doesn't get examined. Regarding his captaincy, they give him an episode plot about Izzy teaching him to respect the crew's beliefs, but this is sideplot to a larger arc of him completely overruling their traumas and concerns (and shushing their objections) to keep his boyfriend on the ship so. That.

Stede kills a man for reasons related to his issues, shoves that down inside and has sex with Edward instead of acknowledging any bad feelings. At least this time Edward was there and knows it happened? Neither Chauncey's death nor his dad have been mentioned to anyone. He gets a day of piracy fame that goes to his head, gets dumped, and ends on a complete beat down by Zheng where he learns... idk. Being a boor is bad? He's still wildly callous to her in the finale, and spends the whole time seeking validation of his pirate skills. He reunites with Edward, kisses, and quotes Han Solo.

Where S1 ended on a great fuckery, his S2 naval uniform plan after they regroup is ill defined except to call it a suicide mission - and we don't get to see what it would have been because it devolves into a very straightforward fight and flee. And gets Izzy killed. Quick cut funeral (no acknowledgement of his S2 bonding with Izzy), quick cut to wedding (foreshadowing), quick cut to... innkeeper retirement? Unclear when or even if BlackBonnet discussed Stede's whole driving dream to be a pirate and live a life at sea, but I guess that got a big priority downgrade. Despite the fact he was literally looking to Zheng for pirate-based compliments in the post-funeral scene.

I guess he's borderline-delusionally dogged in his pursuit of love now - so unlikely to bolt again - but he's also got at least a decade of experience mentally checking out in a state of repression when he's unhappy. And he's stopped being as supportive and caring toward the crew in that dogged pursuit, while arguably demonstrating a loss in leadership skills, so, um, good thing someone else is in charge?

And if Stede is a mess, Edward's arc is so much worse.

As established, they devote the Kraken to making Edward worse. He literally wants to kill himself and destroy everyone around him in the process because Stede left, and this is fixed by... Stede coming back. That's it. The crew tries to murder him and then exiles him from the ship (and Izzy takes the lead on both, indicating exactly how isolated Edward has become), but it's resolved in half a day by Stede just forcing them to put up with his boyfriend again. Like they think he murdered Buttons and still have to move him back in???

The show consistently depicts Kraken Era as a transgression against the crew, but they also avoid showing Edward acting with genuine contrition. He admits he historically doesn't apologize for anything, and then mostly still doesn't. It's a joke that he's approaching probation as a performance (CEO apology), and then the only person he genuinely talks to is Fang - the one guy cool with him - and the only person who gets a basic "sorry" is Izzy - the guy he really needs to be talking to. Edward's primary trauma is guilt, but apparently he only feels it abstractly after all that? He's only concerned with fixing things with Stede, despite Stede being about the only person around who hurt him instead of the reverse.

Speaking of primary traumas, Edward hating himself doesn't really go anywhere after the beat of self-realization. Apparently Stede still loving him is enough of a bandaid to end the suicide chasing, but he doesn't like. Acknowledge that. Edward is maybe sorta trying to go slow so he doesn't hang all his self-worth on Stede again (you can speculate), but they a) absolutely fail to go slow, and b) he doesn't make any attempt to develop himself or another support structure. Just basically... "let's be friends a bit before hooking back up." And then we get the whiplash that is Blackbeard and/or retirement.

Kraken Era is Blackbeard but way worse, like no one who has known Blackbeard has ever seen him. In the Gravy Basket Edward claims he might like being an innkeeper, before destroying his own fantasy by having the spectre of Hornigold confront him over killing his dad. The BlackBonnet to Anne & Mary parallel says running away to China / retiring makes you want to kill each other - burn it all down and go back to piracy. Stede rightfully points out prior retirement plans were whims. Edward gets sick of the penance sack after a day and puts his leathers back on to go try "poison into positivity". But also claims to be an innkeeper (look - two whole mentions!) when trying not to send children to be pirates after teaching them important knife skills.

Killing Ned Low is a serious, bad thing that prompts ill-advised sex and then going hardcore into retirement mode - leathers overboard, talk about mermaid fantasy, get retirement blessings from Izzy, end up dumping Stede for a fishing job instead of talking about how he's enjoying piracy. The fishing job, however, is also a bad thing and a stupid decision because Edward is a lazy freeloader fantasizing about being a better person. We have an uncomfortable, extended scene of "Pop-Pop" weirdly echoing his abusive dad and then sending Edward to go do what he's good at - disassociate, brutally murder two guys, fish up the leathers, rise as the Kraken from the sea. He continues with comically efficient murder but also he's reading Stede's love letters and seeking to reunite with him so... wait, is this a good thing? Post makeout / mass slaughter he's trading compliments on his kills with Zheng so. Yeah. Looks like it. Murder is fine.

Wait, no, skip ahead and Izzy is dying and Edward suddenly cares a whole lot as Izzy makes his death scene about freeing Edward from Blackbeard. Now being a pirate was "encouraging the darkness" because Izzy - a guy who had little to no influence over Edward's behavior - just couldn't let Blackbeard go. Murder is bad again, and he is freed. Minus the little detail that the murder he explicitly hates himself over was not related to Blackbeard or piracy whatsoever, so presumably haunts "just Ed" still. Anyway he's retiring to run an inn with Stede now, as the "loving family" Izzy comforted him with in his dying moments sails away from the couple that can best be described as the antagonists of their S2 arc. Also Edward implicitly wants to get married. It's been 3 days since making out was "too fast". He's still wearing the leathers.

So most of the way through Act 2 and Edward's barely on speaking terms with anyone but Stede, who he has once again hung his entire life on really fast? Crushing guilt leads to self-hatred leads to mass murder and suicide, but only if he's upset so just avoid that. He's still regularly idealizing Stede as a non-fucked up golden mermaid person (that maybe he personally ruined a bit) because he barely knows the guy. His only progress on his future is "pirate" crossed out / rewritten / crossed out again a few times, "fisherman" crossed out, and "innkeeper ?"

Just.

Where is the forward movement?

It's not just that the inn will undoubtedly fall apart - it's that the inn will fall apart for the near-exact same reasons that China was going to at the beginning of Act 2, and I can't point to anything they've learned in the time since that will help them. I guess Stede realized he loved Edward enough to chase after him, but that was in S1! They should be further than this by now. You can't cram another crisis backslide, all the Act 2 development, and the full Act 3 climax into one season. Certainly not without it feeling like the characters magically fix themselves.

If they just fail and keep blindly stumbling into the same issues because they don't change their behavior, then Act 2 doesn't work. You're just repeating the turning point between Act 1 & Act 2 on a loop.

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Where Did They Fuck Up?

Actually... lets start on what they did right.

The one consistent aspect of S2 that I praised and still think was done well in a vacuum (despite being mostly left out of the finale) was the crew's union-building arc.

With only 8 episodes and more to do in them than S1, side characters were going to get pinched even if the main plot was absolutely flawless. That was unavoidable. With budget cuts / scheduling issues, we regularly have crew members simply vanish offscreen outside of one scene, meaning cohesive arcs for your faves was not likely. Not to say they couldn't have done better - my benefit of the doubt for the TealOranges breakup and Oluwande x Zheng dried up about when I realized he was literally just her Stede stand-in for the parallel - but something like Jim's revenge plot from S1 was realistically not on the table without, like, turning half the crew into seagulls to afford it.

The union building works around this constraint really well. They turn "the crew" into the side arc, and then weave Izzy's beats in so that they aren't just about Izzy. The breakup boat crew working together to comfort each other and protect him turns them into a unit, and Stede's crew taking it upon themselves to address the trauma vibes while the captains aren't in the way solidifies it across all our side characters. The crew goes to war with Stede's cursed coat and wins, they Calypso their boss to throw a party, and they capitalize on a chance to make bank with an efficiency Stede could only dream of.

We don't get specific arcs, but Frenchie, Jim, and Oluwande are defaulted to as leaders in just about every situation, and Roach is constantly shown sharing his inventions with different characters. Individuals can dip in and out without feeling like the sideplots stutter. Any sense of community in S2 is coming from this arc - even if there are cracks at the points where it joins to other storylines (Stede and Edward, Zheng, etc.)

So why does it work? Well, because it's a workplace comedy, and you can tell they are familiar with working on those. They know where the beats are. They know where to find the humor. They know how to build off of S1 because they made sure the bones were already there - an eclectic group of individuals that start as just coworkers, but bond over time in the face of their struggle against an inept boss who they grow to care for and support while maintaining an increasingly friendly antagonism because, you know, inept boss.

OFMD does its best work in S2 when it's being true to its original concept... and its worst work when it seemingly loses confidence in its own premise.

"The show is the relationship," right? It's a romance set in a workplace comedy. The setup of Act 1 was all about creating a character-driven narrative. So given that... where the hell are we getting the dying of piracy and a war against the English Navy?

That's not a character-driven romcom backdrop, it's an action-adventure plot from Pirates of the Caribbean or Black Sails. It's plot-driven, creating an antagonistic force that results in your characters' problems. Once the story is about the fight against the Empire, the dramatic question becomes the same as those adventure stories - "Will the British Navy defeat piracy, and will our protagonists come out the other side of the battle?"

Forget the wedding. The wedding is no longer the climax of the story, its back to the happy ending flash our romantic subplot gets after winning this fight.

Except, of course, trying to pivot your story to a contradictory dramatic question near the end of Act 2 can be nothing short of a disaster, because either you were writing the wrong story until now, or you've completely lost the plot of the real one. I shouldn't even be trying to figure out if they are doing this, because it should be so obvious that they wouldn't.

And yet.

What do the Zheng and Ricky plots add to the story if not this? Neither of these characters have anything emotionally to contribute to Stede and Edward - they truly are plot elements. It's a hard break from the S1 antagonist model, but it also takes up a lot of valuable screentime. This was considered important, but still Zheng's personality and motivation only gets explored so far as it's an Edward-Stede-Izzy parallel with Oluwande and Auntie, and they only need the parallel for Izzy's genre-jumping death scene. Which follows a thematically out-of-left-field speech about how piracy is about belonging to something good (workable) and how Ricky could never destroy their spirits (um...?). And then David Jenkins is pointing to it and saying things about "the symbolic death of piracy" and speculating S3 might be about the crew getting "payback"??? An idea floated by Zheng right before our temporary retirement, btw.

Fuck, the final episode of S2 didn't have time for our main couple to talk to each other because it was so busy dealing with the mass explosion of Zheng's fleet and Ricky's victory gloat. We get lethal violence associated with traumatic flashbacks until they need to cut down enemy mooks like it's nothing, at which point we get jokes with Zheng. The Republic of Pirates is destroyed outright, and it feels like they only did it because they got insecure about their "pirate story" not having the right kind of stakes. Don't even get me started on killing a major character because "Piracy’s a dangerous occupation, and some characters should die," as if suspending disbelief on this aspect makes the story somehow lesser, instead of just being a fairly standard genre convention in comedy. Nobody complains about Kermit the Frog having an improbably good survival record.

Did someone tell them that the heroes have to lose a battle near the end of Act 2, so they scrambled to give them one?

Just... compare the wholly plot-driven struggle in 2x08 to Stede and Edward's character-focused storylines in 1x10 and tell me how 2x08 is providing anything nearly as valuable to the story. Because I can't fucking find it.

At best they wasted a bunch of time on a poorly integrated adventure plot as, like, Zheng's backstory or something, and just fucked it up horribly by trying to "step up" the kind of plot they did for Jim. In which case the whole thing will be awkwardly dropped but damage is done. Otherwise, they actually thought they could just casually add a subplot like this because they've done something wildly stupid like think "pirate" is a genre on the same level as "workplace comedy" and can just trample in-universe coherency while you draw on other media to shore up their unsupported beats.

Bringing us to the most infuriating bit...

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"...end the second season in a kinder spot."

If this was the goal, the entire season was written to work actively against it in way that is baffling and incompetent.

The really ironic thing is that the reason that the Act 2 part typically gets a downer ending is because of the evil empire that OFMD did not have to deal with until they pointlessly added it. A plot-driven story has an antagonistic force - a villain - that the heroes need to defeat. Something external working against them. The story ends when they beat the thing, and it's not much of a climax if they do most of the defeating before you get there. Ergo, they have to be outmatched up to the climax. Ergo, the second part cannot end on them feeling pretty comfortable and confident going into the third.

The same rules do not apply in the same way to a character-driven arc.

We already established Edward and Stede declaring their love is not the end of the story. Nor, necessarily, is both of them confidently entering a relationship. Even once they've developed a bunch they will have to show that development by running into the kinds of problems that would have broken them up before and resolving them better.

David Jenkins keeps talking about this idea that S2 is getting a hopeful open ending and S3 will get into potential problems, and like... I don't see any reason why they couldn't have done that successfully. They didn't, but they could've.

If S2 grew them enough as characters and then had them agree to try again in the last minute of the finale, they absolutely could have had a kind and hopeful ending where you were confident they could do it. And then a potential S3 can show that. It's a bit rockier than they were counting on, but they have learned enough lessons to not break up. And then the overall plot can build to proposal (start of Act 3) and wedding (the romantic climax). It doesn't have to be a blow out fight to be emotionally cathartic.

(Hell, the main rockier bit that they overcome in the S3 Act 2 portions could be marriage baggage. I'm sure they both have some. It would work.)

In the same way focusing on our character's long term flaws and character-driven conflict makes an Act 1 "happy ending" more difficult, I suspect it makes an Act 2 "happy ending" easier.

Instead they wrote an Act 2 that failed to convincingly start development and got confused on its direction, and then presented a rushed finale ending in a copy of the predictable disaster from S1 as though it's a good thing. They yanked the story at least temporarily into an awkward place where a romcom is trying to sell me on a bunch of serious drama / adventure beats that it has not put the work into, and inviting comparisons to better versions of those same beats in other, more suited media that make it look worse. The need to portray everyone as reaching happy closure overrules sitting with a major character death and using it for any narrative significance, while still letting it overshadow those happy endings because a romcom just sloppily killed a major character with a wound they've literally looked into the camera and said was harmless.

If I'm being entirely honest, Dead Man's Chest ends effectively at Jack Sparrow's funeral and then cuts to the British Navy obtaining a weapon of mass destruction, and it still feels kinder and more hopeful just because I leave with more faith the characters are actively capable of and working toward solving their problems.

OFMD S2, in contrast, has half-convinced me our main couple would live in a mutually obsessed, miscommunication-ridden horror story until they die.

---

Additional Reading

Normally I link stuff like this in the post, but that requires more excitement than I'm feeling right now. Here's my alternative:

Where I thought they were going with Edward - really outlines the mountain of character development they still have unaddressed

Where I thought they were going with Izzy - touches on a lot of themes that might be dead in the water & also context that's still probably relevant to why Izzy got a lot of focus in S2

My scattershot 2x08 reactions

An ask where I sketched out the bones of this argument, and another where I was mostly venting about the fandom response

This one, this other one, and this last one (read the link in op's post too) about genre shifts and failure to pull them off

The trauma goes in the box but it never opens back up - the whole point of Act 2 is that they needed to start opening shit like that - and also they focus so much on needed character growth and so little on following through

They can't even carry through on character growth that we got last season???

Why Izzy's death feels like Bury Your Gays ran smack into shitty writing

EDIT: Oh and this post is REALLY good for outlining the lack of change in way less words than I did

#our flag means death #ofmd #ofmd s2 #ofmd s2 spoilers #ofmd meta #three act structure #character arcs #blackbonnet #genre #blackbeard ofmd #stede bonnet ofmd #my meta #ladyluscinia #ofmd critical

[sarcasticscribbles]

Quick Sasha the Archivist ramble because twt had me go off: I do this AU as a roleflip but with the same arc so: Sasha - Jon Tim - Martin Sasha gets the archivist promotion instead of Jon, and will be (mainly) eye aligned. Jon's only an assistance with Martin and Tim.

Sasha is marked by the Spiral pre institute (instead of Jon and Web), and The Distortion and Web switch roles, and Helen will replace Annabelle in s5. Wanting a world with lack of control contra a world in control.

Martin gets taunted by Lonely and Peter Lukas s2/3 esp when notjon is revealed and kabooms Peter's flat complex at the end of s3 in revenge of Jon dying (alone, tryna put a lonely spin on it, maybe something with his mum too). Jmart is canon s1, but they weren't public about it, and Sasha only find out s5 in the safe house listening to old tapes, similar to Jon hearing about the TimSasha hookup.

The archives get taken over by Nikola s4 (in a very convincing business suit) and makes Tim her right-hand man while Sasha is in The End coma. s4 is stranger and Tim practically gets taken, lured in by false hope of his brother and Sasha has to pull him out and later on end the world accidentally in their safe house. S5 is pretty much the same, with occasionally Annabelle visits (instead of Helen).

Melanie gets corrupted by Slaughter s5 like Daisy did with hunt. Melanie would have to be killed s5 and Georgie, basically death avatar would be there with her until the end. Wtfgs are still girlfriends for the record, Basira would be the new cult leader and Daisy would act as a bodyguard(maybe still in her hunt shape). Sasha would still betray the plan and kill Elias herself to be the pupil of the eye. Leaving Tim to kill her and travel to their Somewhere Else (maybe the same as Jon and Martin; however, Jon and Sasha are blind, which is their happy ending).

I might wanna write a better outline/ story with this but I find the role switching a fun idea. I know I break my own rules here and there but it's just for fun

#sasha the archivist #mag #the magnus archives #tma #sasha james

[lisa-russell]

SPLATOON 3 -SIDE ORDER DLC

And all the details you need too know on how the events from Splatoon 2's past connect to its future.

Here are all the known Trailers for the Side Order DLC...

First official Trailer of actual in-game play/models/lore

Previous Trailer....

And the latest one, that reveals the actual date its coming out,and a wicked cool looking poster tah boot!

---------‐---------------‐-----------------‐-‐#—----------------------------------

I don't need to say much about Off the Hook, other than by the time S3 came around they decided to go on a world tour. I can only guess that Agent 8 and maybe Four went along with them. As of now nobody truly knows how or why they came to be in Inkopolis. The story for Side Order is still one big mystery, though I'm as Shell as sure some other Inkfish out there are already theorizing.

I just gathered some quick screenshots from Official and pretty accurate CANNON wiki for all things related to Splatoon. Inkipedia is the wiki bruh.

Here's some for Agent 8...

These two renders below are official in-game avatars of are favorite and unfortunatel Octo. (Seriously, Octo Expansion was a horror show,just lookmu0 the lore! Now 5 years later their going to haft to face Side Order?! I can only imagine what the other half of the N.S.S focused in Splatsville, would react to this....Especially the Captain...)

Known Lore about 8s BIO.

And now FOR THOSE WHO DON'T KNOW WHO DEDF1SH IS (UUUUGGGH)

In game model of the belov3d and thought forgotten half sanitized DJ from Octo Expansion!

PL3ASE SHARE THIS OR REBLOG PEOPLE MUST KNOW!

(EDIT: Oh,cheeze! Y'all Inkfishies are da best! I saw reaction videos to the new SO trailer on Youtube and people where confused by dedf1sh! DUDE on youtube was a good example. I couldn't let that go!

Seriously I'm a big splatoon lore fan, and follow Rassicas. Splatoon 3 is introduced to a new gen of folks who've never played Octo Expansion so their missing out on some key lore to agent 8 and Off the Hooks past and friendship. It frustrates me to no end when my fellow inkfolk arent interested in the Splatverse's Lore (Splatoon Universe) they're missing out on s9 much! Every reblog and share helps spread the knowledge of this world.

So, I'll say again.

THANK YOU FOR ALL THE HELP! )

#splatoon 3 #splatoon 2 #octoling #splat2n #agent 8 #off the hook #pearl houzuki #marina ida #side order #nintendo #splatoon fandom #Splatverse (Splatoon Universe) #splatoon #dedf1sh #octo expansion #inkstagram #sanitised octoling #Youtube #splatfest chaosvsorder! #splat series #finalfestconnection #new squidbeak splatoon #splatoon lore #reblog or share this to let those who dont know about Splatoon2 connection to Side Order! #splatoon3 #side order dlc #agent 3 #agent 4 #agent 24 #splatoon side order

[camelely]

The Betrayal of Ted Lasso S3

Yea. The title is a bit dramatic but I have been one of those people who will defend the Shandy and Zava arcs. I thought everything had a purpose, but really really this season felt like a turn, and part of it felt like the plot belonged in a different show...

They keep saying this was the three season arc they planned. But this felt very rushed, and wrapped all these plots up too neatly too quickly. Ted was reduced to a manic pixie dream girl floating in and out of peoples lives teaching them about love, forgiveness, and to believe.

Lets start with my least favorite thing in the finale. Reducing the Jamie/Keeley/Roy story to a fist fight and a "choose me over him" arc. Belonged in a different show. Pheobe said it best in the first episode "Why are you breaking up?" Nothing they did this season was better because of the Roy x Keeley breakup. Even Keeley's bi arc. Like she has always been implied bi, so they could have just made it clear with Jack being an ex that resurfaced instead of a new relationship. Imagine the version of the KJPR plot with Jack being an ex. No out of date leaked nudes plot. Roy can be jealous because he thinks maybe Keeley does want to get back with this ex, but he sees that is his problem not hers and works on it internally/with Dr. Sharon. And Keeley can think Jack is just trying to help and apologize for the mistakes she made in their relationship, but soon its clear Jack wants to get Keeley back by funding her business and then pulling her funding when things don't go her way. This leaves Keeley wondering if she ever had any value as a business woman and Rebecca and Roy are there to support her. Rebecca as a friend and financial backer and Roy as a supportive BF. Then Keeley can return the favor supporting Rebecca when she is deciding to sell the club or not, and Roy when he is promoted to manager.

The leaked nudes plot belonged on a show that came out like five/six years ago when society first started to shift and see that the celebrities were the victims. I understand it was a true story from the real Keeley, but seriously it dated a show that could have been pretty universal otherwise. I know they deal with issues like racism and homophobia but those things aren't going anywhere. We have to keep fighting, but those people always exist. Meanwhile the nudes thing has seen a pretty quick shift already. They built Shandy up as this vengeful character, Why didn't they have her do something to try and blow up Keeley's business? Even something simple like an attempt at wrongful termination? Shandy could have posted on her socials and been like "Keeley Jones claims shes for women but she fired me for no reason" got a bunch 'eat the rich' activists on her side since Keeley is backed by a billionaire and caused a lot of problems for the PR firm in the press.

Jamie reconnecting with his abusive parent. Honestly this did feel in place for a show thats all about forgiveness. But the more we learned about him the more he felt worse than Rupert. Absolutely awful. A better ending would have been his death and Jamie coping with the conflicted feelings he has vs the sadness he is expected to show by the media. Or even just letting Jamie move on. "I don't need him. I have a great mom, team, friends, and step dad/mom's bf" (I can't remember if they were married or not lol).

Nate simply quitting off screen and then being welcomed back like it was nothing. Belonged on another show. This one's been talked to death but I'll say it anyway. We see Rupert try to push a boundary and Nate left the bad situation and then fast forward, Nate quits and Rupert is being accused of impropriety. The start of the season was so focused on Nate being an ass to the West Ham players and then they just brush that under and rush him coming back? I didn't need a redemption arc. I liked the apology to Will and Ted's speech to Beard. But I did need to see the moments with Nate's choices. Nate made zero on screen choices this season. I mean even coming back was influenced by Jade.

Jade suddenly liking Nate, belonged on a different show. Okay I didn't hate Jade. I didn't hate that she started to date Nate. I think its weird the writers wrote a possibly racist character and then didn't address it but I guess the white af writers room just didn't get it. But I also liked Jade, Nate needed a no nonsense strong person in his life. I feel like his sister could have filled the role a bit better. But the girlfriend route wasn't bad.

Rebecca and the Amsterdam guy belonged in a rom com. Yea it worked a bit since Ted's whole rom com speech. But still, part of what I liked about the Amsterdam plot was that he was a great guy and a great time and then he was just gone. A happy memory to look back on and nothing more. It was so stupid that she randomly ran into him and they just magically got together. With Rebecca's romantic past ruined by Rupert's behavior. And the Sam relationship being kinda cute kinda doomed boss/employee weirdness it felt like Amsterdam guy was the true rebound she needed to move on and start a new path. Rebecca didn't need an endgame romance imo, she needed a fresh start. While I think she should have sold the whole club and moved on from the Rupert chapter of her life, I didn't hate the selling it to the fans thing. That was a decent way to end her journey. If they wanted her to have an endgame romance why not let the fans get to know the guy? Or flash forward to a guy we have never met implying that she eventually found someone?

Rupert hitting the coach also belonged on another show. Rupert is the guy who has everything work out for him. He's cool and collected and confident. Pushing the guy who wouldn't listen to him didn't seem like a Rupert move. Rupert would have fired him and promoted the guy under him. The big change would be if they had that guy quit and then the next guy quit until Rupert was left with no one. Could have also gone back to the Nate thing. If Nate leaving the toxic environment inspired others to do the same. Rupert publicly loosing his cool might have been fun since hes the worst, but it was too neat a wrapped bow.

Beard and Jane. Why did they literally only tell us everything bad about her if they wanted us to root for them? I'm sure she had some good qualities we could have seen. I did like that Beard was the character that got the ending rom com 'stop the plane' moment.

Colin's coming out. I could have done with less Isaac and more Trent or even less angry Isaac and more supportive Isaac but I liked it overall ngl. The kiss in the final episode was the best romantic moment in all of Ted Lasso. My canon favorite ship was RoyxKeeley but they never had a moment I could turn to. This was perfect and Colin was the best character for it.

The Van Damme thing was dumb. The joke about the mask making him 'Zorro' was dumb. I assume they were making fun of Ron Artest/Metta World Peace/Metta Sandiford-Artest but Zoreaux didn't need that. And it was funny for like one month in 2011, get over it.

Ted. Oh sweet Ted. I loved his talk with Trent about changing the name of the book because its not about him, and Trent taking that note but no others. At the end of the day, Ted's whole thing this season is Jason Sudeikis's whole thing in real life. He has a work family in London but his kids and ex in America. He's still low key in love with his ex and doesn't like the new relationship she's in and even though the new relationship ends pretty quickly it still sucks. And that is exactly what ruined the show. I'm sorry Jason is sad, I get people work through their problems in their art. But what a very emotional Jason sees as a good ending for Jason, is not a good ending for Ted. Ted Lasso the character deserved to decide to report Dr. Jacob (sorry Jason you can't report Harry Styles, he didn't do anything unethical... except maybe spit on Chris Pine...). Ted Lasso deserved a solid relationship with his son and a new partner, whoever you ship him with could work. I mean Sassy could have reported Dr. Jacob and told Ted maybe they could make it work since she is spending some time in the US for work. Or Rebecca with her millions saying she can commute as much as they want. Or a third new person in Kansas. The way the show implied Michelle is single and Ted is single. The 'they are getting along' narrative was a bit much.

The dream ending. Yes Bill Lawrence, this worked for Scrubs because JD was a character constantly fantasizing. But thats not Ted Lasso. This show deserved something more unique and more open ended. The final shot could have been Ted on the plane, smiling and that would beat the weird dream flash forward imo.

Yes the show has a central theme about forgiveness. But in previous seasons the person being forgiven earns that forgiveness. Here it was handed out to everyone regardless of who they hurt and what they did. It undermined Rebecca's s1 arc, Nate's multi season arc, Jamie's multi season arc, etc. The only arc that wasn't undermined was maybe Roy, since he ended up in therapy and actively trying to be better. So I guess good for Roy?

Overall my point is Ted Lasso was special because they marched to a positive and hopeful beat while still discussing hard topics. This season took everything special about the show and garbaged it, creating a messy, bland, and insulting final product that was a shell of the show they created. And they managed to do it in three seasons. Congrats guys? I mean most shows take 5-6 seasons to get truly off the rails.

#ted lasso #ted lasso spoilers #rebecca welton #coach beard #roy kent #keeley jones #jamie tartt #dani rojas #colin hughes #rupert mannion #nathan shelley #sassy collins #trent crimm #leslie higgins #sam obisanya #isaac mcadoo #mae #richard montlaur #moe bumbercatch #jan maas #Thierry Zoreaux

[fellshish]

Season 2 spoiled us. A & C were together almost all the time. We got so much screentime with them together. (unlike season 1).

I think I can’t handle it if in season 3 they will be separated for most of the season again. Don’t get me wrong, I firmly believe that we’ll get a happy ending, but I want it to last longer than the last 15 minutes. I want to see at least some of the cute moments we all imagine come to live on screen. And when the conciliation happens in the last episode there will be nearly no time for fluffy stuff, especially assuming that there will be an bigger overarching plot in season 3 and new characters, who’s stories need to be told as well.

I know I’m unreasonable, but I want them to make up early in the season or I need more episodes.😭

Ohh anon, i get you. But I think you’re making yourself sad based on a lot of assumptions that might not necessarily be true.

Remember that most of their scenes together that we got this season were actually in the flashbacks from their long history. I imagine s3 could easily feature a couple of delicious minisodes — we might for example see the reasons for aziraphales past apology dances that he mentioned. We might see aziraphale rescue crowley from hell after the elspeth thing. Those are my hopes and guesses.

While i agree that we got spoiled this season with lots of content together and s3 will undoubtedly feature less of that, and i too enjoyed their scenes together most, i don’t think s3 will necessarily mean a quick wrap-up and fade to black. Sure, we can’t expect a fanfic level episode of fluff only, but to me that sounds just as boring too. That’s why fanfic exists. But we won’t necessarily get a solution in the last 15 minutes of episode 6 only.

I’m a simp yes… but i trust that gaiman and finnemore will not only build a narratively good season but they’ll also honour these characters and give them that happy ending with care and decades of writing expertise. And i trust in tennant and sheen to put their whole tussy and shussy into it.

#my asks #good omens #aziracrow #ineffable husbands #good omens spoilers #good omens speculation

[thefirstpaleontologist]

OFMD S2E8 SPOILERS

Right so. Izzy is my favourite character. And I don’t mind when characters die. I think if it adds to the story and is a good end for their personal story arc then it can be the best choice. But. I didn’t really like how they chose to go about it.

the story gave him a redemption. he protected the crew and suffered and tried to kill himself. he apologised and was apologised to. he changed and grew and found love and family. he had the respect of his friends and crew, the pirate nation as a whole, and even his enemies. He had the chance to give a speech about the purpose of piracy and a chance to say goodbye to Ed.

Logically this should have meant that his death should have been. Idk like not fine but gratifying.

But for some reason it didn’t feel like that? Usually if a character I like dies I’m some mix of “this is devastating, shouting at the screen, how could this happen” and “holy shit my fav guy is getting so much attention and is narratively important and will get so much fix it fic about them”. But with this i was kinda just like “wait what”.

And I think the reasons for this is because

1. I didn’t think the show would go that far. I personally wasn’t expecting any of the main characters to die. Like ACTUALLY die. This is the show that had Lucius miraculously survive being thrown over board, had stede find his marooned crew on a tiny island in the middle of the ocean, Izzy survived his leg being cut off and was walking on a new prosthetic immediately after, Ed had a canon ball bashed on his head and came away with literally no bruises despite apparently dying… For the muppet cartoon rules to suddenly not apply was jarring. But I suppose Izzy has always operated more in the real world than the rest of the cast.

2. the whole episode was rushed. The pacing was very quick and a lot of stuff happened without much time to process. Having a character die in the last episode means we didn’t get to see much of the other characters responding to it. This isn’t the shows fault cause it was originally meant to have 10 eps but still. i don’t feel it was given the appropriate amount of weight that it should have.

3. Izzy didn’t go down fighting in an epic battle. He didn’t die protecting those he cared about. He was hit by an idiots lucky shot and bled out. Izzy is the first main character to die. He was someone that by the end carried the same narrative importance as Stede and Ed. This is just a personal pet peeve but I think his cause of death should have been hard earned.

4. giving an angry miserable character a redemption and letting them find community and happiness only to then. die. is just very sad. Especially coming from a show that before this has been mostly very kind to its characters and audience.

That said, I think a lot of this can be resolved in s3. I think it is very likely that Izzy will remain in spirit in s3, through flashbacks or hallucinations or dreams etc as we have seen utilised for other characters, and we will see more of Stede and Ed and the crews grief (akin to how the goth crew reacted to Ed shooting Izzy at the start of the season). Izzy’s death isn’t meant to be a punishment for either himself or the audience. And I think the main issue was just a lack of time to flesh it out.

tl;dr: The show usually operates on muppet world rules so to have a main character actually die was unexpected. Since the final episode was rushed the appropriate weight could not be given to such a narratively significant characters death. the fact that izzy did not get to go down fighting or protecting others meant it felt kind of random and unnecessary. And having a show that is usually very kind to it’s characters and audience kill off a character right when they’d finally changed and found community kind of feels like a betrayal. BUT having both first mates (buttons and izzy) “leave” is likely symbolically significant to Ed and Stedes development. And the show will likely give due attention to Izzy’s death in s3.

#Izzy hands #ofmd s2 #ofmd season 2 #ofmd spoilers #ofmd s2e8

[literali1110]

6x06 Thoughts

(these are my live thoughts as i was watching, with some later thoughts/clarifications added)

Tamara's moving out? Great [Listen, I like Tamara, but I think it's weird Tim and Lucy are always hanging out over there when she has a roommate] Although the timing is not great. Bet Lucy feels like everyone is leaving her Tim caved to Angela pretty quick Boo 😂 Angela doesn't even want to know why or how he lied? Ok they're sticking to the same story as last week Oh wait there's more? I love these BFFs together again It's like the last 2 seasons never happened 😂 Tim is bad at this 😂

(Del Monte has gotten mean. And corrupt?)

The rest of Tim's story is even worse 😭 So why is he doing the same thing now that he did wrong back then? To protect himself? [i didn't love that the backstory was about how Tim ended up risking his squad to keep his job. perhaps that is just how he is telling it because he feels so guilty? idk. and it's one thing if he comes clean but...he doesn't. and he's doing the exact same thing this episode - not going through proper channels and putting people at risk to supposedly save his job?]

Ray cloned the gps and is going after Lucy?! Omg she deserves to be furious at him Done being the good girlfriend 🔥 [loved this scene - and I think it made sense, they know due to the job they won't always be able to tell each other everything but that doesn't mean they can't help each other] Woah they caught Ray super fast 😂 [I thought there would be more to this dock scene] Woah interesting editing skipping to him in the interrogation room Why is Tim lying?? I am veryyyyy confused I fear this has ruined Tim's character for me [ok i still love tim but it was not clear to me why he lied and why he didn't try to right his wrongs - both in the past and present]

(Undercover nyla ❤️) (Celina better not be moving in with Lucy [but i bet she is]) (Whyyy do we need a baby Nolan) (It's a little weird this is how they brought Jackson's dad back?? and he seems perfectly fine)

We got a hug But where is the apologyyyy Okay so he lied to protect her and Lopez - and his job - and she's ok with it?? Did she make him lie? And now he's the one mad at her? This makes no sense And now HE'S breaking up with HER?? Oh! He did say I'm sorry 🙃 Is this because he doesn't believe he's good enough for her or he blames her for why he had to lie? Ohh she's not taking this from him, good for her Of course this is happening in the parking lot 😂😭

(Yuck why are we ending with this scene)

Okay so without the rest of the context of the new Tim backstory and how we got to this breakup, I actually really like the last scene and am excited for what comes next. I guess I kind of wish they had done something like this before they even got together - Olicity S3 parallel, anyone? - because these issues existed for Tim even before now.

Also I think it would have been helpful if they didn't just skip to Tim lying, and they would have explained the plan/why he was doing this/what had been agreed upon between him, Angela and Lucy. Because until she said it I didn't think she would agree with that plan and I still don't really understand why Tim wouldn't come clean - except if it's to protect Lucy (and Angela).

And at first I was thinking what Lucy said - so you lie to me to protect me and then you break up with me because you had to lie? that's messed up - but I don't think that's why he actually broke up with her. He broke up with her because he's feeling really guilty and he doesn't feel like he's good enough for her.

And the 'I know, I know' (remember when we held on to each 'I know' we got?) - he knows he's wrong and he's hurting her so that gives me some hope. So basically I have some empathy for Tim here and understand why he felt he had to break up with her but I still think he should have come clean. And I feel for Lucy too of course, she's just had thing after thing be piled onto her.

The promo for next ep is crazy. I'm excited to see Tim do some self reflection and healing. But this is going to be the third Tim heavy episode in a row. So when are we getting our Lucy arc?? Unless they're trying to make her even more alone for hers? And either Melissa is really good not giving out spoilers, or else they're really not going to resolve a bunch of stuff this season that we thought they would... :( Look I'm still processing this all but bottom line, I'm not mad about the breakup. Those scenes were super emotional and good and it just means we get another "getting together"/makeup scene down the line. And I would say this has significantly raised our chances of getting another sex scene! 😏

#chenford #the rookie #6x06

[chocolate-apple7]

Young Royals s3 spoilers for all 6 episodes

Alright, let's try to make this short because it's already almost midnight and I need to go to bed. (Edit: Of course it's not short, I apologize in advance)

I can't believe it's over. This has truly been a great ride and I am so thankful that we got a completed ending. I know I said I would write a fuller review when finished but now that it's over, I don't think this has to be an essay. Here are just some quick thoughts

The fandom has been pointing out that Wilhelm abdicating and August becoming king is so fitting. Because while it was the one thing he thought he wanted for the longest time, he actually realizes that losing Sara is worse. Now he has this ever ending punishment and will have to be owned by the monarchy forever while losing the love of his life. I didn't love that August became king at first but after seeing that analysis it is truly so fitting and I am fine with it!

Another brief note with August is that he actually cried so many times in this last episode (I counted 3 in the first 30 minutes alone). I am glad he was finally able to open up a little even if he did not get his ideal ending. (which I am ok with because he deserves it!) Also glad he and Wilhelm made semi peace with one another.

While I loved that Stella and Fredrika finally got together, I wish we got to see it a little more! Just because it was a bigger storyline in season 2 and I feel like those kind of stories always get tossed to the side in the end. I'm still happy they're together, I just wish it was a little more developed. I know they were short on time though and I blame Netflix for that. (This finale totally could have been an hour and a half long)

I love how the show opens with Wilhelm starting at Hillerska against his will in order to be a better crown prince and ends with the school closing and him leaving a free man. It's so fitting and I love that.

Love that Felice and Sara actually talked and rekindled their friendship. Their relationship and the friendship between Felice and Wilhelm are the ones I truly valued on this show and I am glad I got to see them end properly.

I do wish that we got a little more closure with Felice and her other friends. Like she kind of just ditched them when they went to New York. I know that they may not have fully understood her in the end but they were still her friends and they could have wrapped that up a little better.

I loved that scene at the end and all the flashbacks! I love how it is clear that Wilhelm gave up the throne for HIMSELF instead of just for Simon. You could tell that he never wanted it, even before he met Simon so that decision did not feel spontaneous and I loved it (and I was team Wilhelm stay king before this episode but of course Young Royals worked their magic in the last episode again 💜)!

I don't know where to put this but I also loved that we got to hear both of Simon's songs for Wilhelm. The one he made for his birthday and the one from last season with the improved school song. That made me so happy and Omar Rudberg's voice is so angelic!

Also side note but the Erikson's were so wishy washy in this episode. Like they both kept saying goodbye to their respective lovers then kissing them later and acting like everything was still semi normal. Like if I was Wilhelm or August during any of those scenes in the middle of the episode I would have been so confused.

I still have so many questions. Will Simon and Sara move? Where is Wilhelm going to go to school after this? Will he be able to officially abdicate this young or will he have to wait until he is 18 (I have no idea how abdicating a throne works)? Will Simon and Sara try to see their dad again? What will happen with Rosh and Ayub as I feel like their story was kind of abruptly over? Will the Queen get better or will having to train August to be king just make her even more stressed and sick? Still so many questions, but I feel like that happens with any series I finish. I have to remember that this series is just a pocket of time for these characters and they will live on past this series. I feel at peace with them and confident that their futures will be ok and to me that is all that matters.

I still have to watch the documentary and cry all over again with that. I am so glad this series exists and I promise I will stop gushing about it soon. Thank you Netflix for not letting me down for once! I hope everyone had a great time with the end of this series and all feel at peace with this story!

As always, I'm happy to have some conversations in the comments!

💜👑💜

#young royals s3 #young royals #yr3spoilers #yr s3 spoilers #ending #review

[fanfic-inator795]

A quick TGaMM idea/what if

This just popped into my head and I can’t help but feel like it’s a valid potential direction for s2 to go:

What if Scratch gives up being Chairman... and gives the role to Geoff?

It’s no secret that outside of the occasional perks it gives him such as respect, line-cutting privileges and allowing him to cast more powerful curses, Scratch still doesn’t care too much about being Chairman. He’s often pushing his duties off to the Ghost Council and still needs to be forced to do the stuff that the Council can’t (or doesn’t want to, in the case of stuff like cleaning up Haughty Haunts).

Now to be fair, Scratch has done some good as Chairman - namely refusing to bring back the Flow, making it so ghosts aren’t forced to cause misery if they don’t want to, and instating a Taco Tuesday-through-Thursday. Buuut in doing the former, he’s also made it so dangerous ghosts like Lord Doom and the Frightmares are able to roam free. Regarding the Frightmares, while he was able to capture the ones that attacked the Halloween fest, there’s apparently still some roaming around in the Ghost Realm (see ‘Dance Dad Revolution’).

Between the Chens, the Frightmares (both the ones in the Chens’ posession and the ones that are still roaming free), and Jinx’ quest for revenge, I could see Scratch’s laissez-faire attitude regarding Ghost Realm dangers, only stepping in when he absolutely HAS to/when it affects him and the McGees, eventually coming back to bite him in the butt by the end of the season.

I could see an instance where things go REALLY wrong, resulting in innocent ghosts getting hurt in a way that Scratch could have stopped if he wasn’t so lazy, leading to Scratch feeling guilty. Given how much of a better person he’s become since meeting Molly and the McGees, he and Molly would of course do what they could to save the day and stop Jinx + the Frightmares.

Buuuut, for as good as he is deep down, Scratch is still lazy and fairly self-centered. Regardless of whether or not he enjoys parts of the job, a situation like the one above would be a wake-up call to Scratch that he is NOT the right ghost for the role - but the role still needs to exist, because for as much as the Old Chairman only cared about feeding off misery, a new Chairman could be a powerful protector.

So, when he announces that he’s quitting and giving the job to someone else, Scratch chooses none other than Geoff! On the surface, it might just seem like Scratch passing the job along to the guy who’s most likely to say yes, but when you think about it:

1) Geoff is an incredibly friendly and well-liked guy, making him a popular choice. 2) Geoff seems to care about other ghosts and would want to do what he could to keep them happy. 3) It’s been established that Geoff is a naturally gifted at scaring, so if he had to, he could intimidate the more troublesome ghosts while also being able to protect other weaker ghosts. 4) If the Ghost Council were to ever try to manipulate their new Chairman, Jeff would be there to shut that shit down FAST as a sort of ‘Chairman’s consort/advisor’ in addition to just being Geoff’s loving partner

Really, there’s no one better in the ghost realm to fill the Chairman’s role, as Geoff could be that perfect balance of caring, responsible and (when he needs to be) intimidating/powerful. I also feel like it’d be a nice little bow on the Scratch and Geoff relationship - with Scratch going from seeing Geoff as a nuisance and a screw-up, to seeing him as his best ghost friend, a great guy AND a great potential leader. 

Geoff becoming Chairman also wouldn’t shake up the status quo TOO much imo, so if the show were to not get a s3 afterwards, it wouldn’t necessarily feel like we were missing out on a ton of story potential. And if we WERE to get a s3, Geoff being Chairman would give Scratch the freedom to conclude his own personal arc (that likely being tracking down Adia)

But yeah, those are my thoughts, feel free to tell me yours

#tgamm #the ghost and molly mcgee #random thoughts #scratch tgamm #geoff tgamm

[lizziethat]

given the ambiguity of Jiara at the end of the season, and Madison Bailey even saying that they purposefully left it ambiguous for things to “blow over” … what do u think is in store for Jiara season 4? Do u think they’ll break them up ?

I want to tackle this in parts. The first I've already discussed a fair bit, which is the "ambiguity." I don't actually think the original intention was for it to be as ambiguous as it read to us. For them, if the show ended after S3, JJ and Kiara were together, 100%. No doubt about it. That's the story they chose to tell in S3, and that was the natural conclusion -- even if that would have meant skipping a bunch of steps and healing.

Enter Season 4 and now ...there's a chance to explore some things that, storytelling-wise, are pretty fun to dive into. Especially because love isn't a cure-all, and my boy JJ has some traumas. And hey -- Kiara does too, and some serious parental issues too! So a S4 (and flashbacks) allow the show to do just that, explore. If they're smart, they'll take this as a chance to deal with internal issues instead of throwing outside drama at them. I think this is probably what they're going to do, because there's just so much to explore -- but I'm not trusting blindly here, because I mean, Jarah did get Topper 3.0 and whoever thought that was a good idea?

Ofc, exploring internal issues means angst, yes, but the good kind, particularly with the foundation S3 gave us. Because, let's just do a quick list -- we still need to see the Pogues reacting to Jiara, not to mention Kiara's parents. We need to see their relationship tested by just being back home, and the judging eyes of people that know them. And that's without even going into JJ's self-esteem issues and how the fight to feel worthy isn't something easily conquered. Then there's Kiara, who fought for JJ a lot this season ...and at some point, she's going to need him to show her that he will fight for her just as hard, not just physically, but emotionally. That he won't run when things get hard, and he won't try to self-destruct, because if he does now that they're together...it'll mean destroying both of them. All of that takes adjustment ...and its perfect character-based angst S4 can take advantage of.

Even with angst, I don't see the show "moving on" from Jiara in Season 4 -- otherwise, what's the point of S3, the buildup of S2, and the moment of realization of what was there after S1. Sure, they can deal with things in a good way, or throw some drama for the sake of drama at them (please, no), but there's no reason to course-correct something that works and that they're just getting to explore.

Finally, as for Madison, the interview I saw that seems to have everyone worried was filmed before S3 came out, and before the renewal news -- which means she literally has no clue. She's guessing, and she's teasing, because that's her job. But she has about as much idea of what's coming in S4 as we do. Scripts are likely not even close to finalized, and at this point even the writers aren't 100% sure what's coming, much less the actors. I think if there's something to worry in the future it might be in the "how" they handle it, not in a possible "if." Jiara is a thing now. It happened. No take backsies.

#outer banks #jiara #madison bailey

[inevitably-johnlocked]

Hi Steph!!! Hoping you can help me since @bluebellofbakerstreet is trying to kill us all softly ...

Are there any John in a kilt stories?

Preferably making Sherlock all hot and bothered?

Hey Lovely!

Ahh, I do have an old Community Recs list from 2019 here, but you're giving me a good reason to make a new list of my own; I have enough on my MFL list to make one of my own, after all.

Please, if you guys have any, add them below! <3 I’ve only added anything that a search of “kilt” gave me on my personal offline list :) I know there are a tonne that I may have not tagged, and I surely don’t have nearly all of them.

JOHNLOCK AND KILTS

See also: Alexx’s “Johnlock in a Kilt” List

All the Girls Love a Soldier by Book7BrokeMyBrain (E, 12,951 w., 1 Ch. || Military Kink, Frottage, Domesticity, Post S3, Pining Sherlock, Kilt John, Wedding, Dancing, Oral, Romance, ) – John is invited to a stag party and a wedding. The related accoutrement suit Sherlock to a T. 

MARKED FOR LATER (TO READ)

the dead-end case of the kilted kirkyard killer by darcylindbergh (E, 8,823 w., 1 Ch. || Alternate First Meeting || Scotland, First Kiss/Time, BAMF John, Frottage, Blow Jobs, Banter) – In which Sherlock follows the wrong man and gets more than he bargained for.

The Perfect Specimen Series by Cleo2010 (E, 27,825 w across 2 works || Kilts, Masturbation, Drunkenness, Oral / Anal Sex, Hand Jobs, Cock Worship, Manipulation, Toys, Rimming) – After seeing John undressed for the first time and making certain observations, Sherlock quickly becomes obsessed with a certain body part belonging to his flatmate. This is the story of how that first sighting came to be and the following attempts to learn more. An unashamed masturbation-fest, first person and very detailed. It's rated explicit for a good reason!

The Bachelors' Handfasting by Jberry (E, 30,624 w., 20 Ch. || Regency AU || Arranged Marriage, Virgin Sherlock, 1800′s Scotland, Bodice-Ripper, Romance, Kilts, No Period-Typical Homophobia, Smoll Sherlock, Suicide Discussion, Romance, Miscarriage, Depression) – After her son is caught in a compromising position, Victoria Holmes must make arrangements for a quick marriage between Sherlock Holmes and John Watson.

Men in Kilts by okapi (M, 33,000 w., 23 Ch. || Alternate First Meeting, Meet-Cute, Hurt/Comfort, Kilts, Fluff, Slow Burn, Hand Jobs, Oral Sex) – Mrs. Hudson hires John, who works for the Men in Kilts housekeeping service.

The Straw Man Fallacy by Vulgarweed (E, 40,422 w., 8 Ch. || Wicker Man AU || Ritual Sex, Sacrifice, Mystery and Horror, Romance, Fuck or Die, Dubious Morality, Mildly Dubious Consent, Pagan Festivals, Public Sex, First Time, Case Fic, Virgin Sherlock, Scotland, Kilts) – Summerisle is not a welcoming place to visitors, but it shows its best face at May Day. For ulterior motives.

Philia and Eros by distantstarlight (E, 84,660 w., 20 Ch. || Historical AU || Friends to Lovers, Time Travel, Kilts, Possessive Behaviour, Love Confessions, Slow Burn, Implied Rape/Non-Con) – Love is timeless but time isn't necessarily linear. John Watson and Sherlock Holmes are about to embark on an unintended adventure that will take them far away from the comfortable confines of 221 B Baker Street. Part 1 of Strange Paths

October to Hogmanay by snorklepie (E, 127,318 w., 25 Ch. || Post HLV Fix-It, Awkward First Times, Hurt/Comfort, Sherlock is a Mess, Shameless Smut, Sherlock’s Past, Scotland, Poison, Holmes Family, Kilts, Dancing, Angst) – John stared at Sherlock’s profile against the cab window and exhaled slowly. After a long moment, he reached out and touched Sherlock’s long fingers where they were fiddling with the button on his coat. The tall man didn’t look around again, but his fingers slowly unfurled before curling deliberately around John’s hand. Part 2 of Scotland

Nine and a Half Weeks by CumberCurlyGirl and Kameo (E, 198,502+ w., 40/? Ch. || WiP || American AU || Different First Meeting, Daddy Kink, Bottomlock, Anal Plug, Riding Crops, Spanking, Light Bondage, Anal/Oral, Aftercare, Posh John, Virgin Sherlock, Homophobia, Sugar Daddy John, Rimming, Coming in Pants, Light Dom/Sub, Past Sherlock / Victor, Light BDSM, Public Sex, John in a Kilt, Vibrators, Happy Ending) – Sherlock Holmes is about to graduate from high school in midwestern America. Despite his intelligence, his prospects are bleak due to poverty, an indifferent, alcoholic father and poor choices. One day, at work, he sells a riding crop to a handsome blonde Brit and his life is changed. He doesn't know what hit him - until he does. This is a story of a journey to love and self-acceptance and explores many themes along the way: drug abuse, grief, coming out, age difference, consent. Lots of sex but so much more.

#steph replies #johnlock fic recs #kilt fics #johnlock and kilts #my fic recs

[bandicoot88]

Good Omens 2 ending was perfect, actually, and I'm gonna talk why, cos I got a lot to say.

Naturally, massive spoilers ahead!

The finale ended in a way that makes total sense to me. I hear y'all being like "this isn't canon, no, let them be happy, I hate this!" *proceeds to write a fix-it fanfic that's all fluff and kittens*, but just... listen to me for a moment.

Don't get me wrong, keep writing alternative endings for that temporary fix, but in terms of canon, I believe what Neil wrote is better than anything else that's gonna get create, more or less. Remember, it's important characters stay in-character.

Sure, I sobbed at 5am with a broken mind, heart, and hated everything in the moment, but letting it digest... it actually works very well. People want their "happiliy ever after", and I do too, eventually. But that time isn't now.

Also, side note, to anyone who sent Neil hate mail because of said ending, fuck you. Don't be a sensitive little shit and just accept that stories don't always have to be happy to still be good.

Here we have a 6000+ year relationship/friendship of two non-humans that don't know how to act around each other. THEY DON'T TALK, as Nina said. For them to suddenly get the talking bit down correctly was never going to happen. Which makes the ending so much worse. A quick kick up the backside from 2 people isn't the sudden fix-it to everything. They continued to STILL not talk, not taking even a single day to communicate, think of a plan, anything! I.e "Good luck", "Then there's nothing more to say." The Metatron told Aziraphale to take all the time he needed, and yet Az was gone within 15 mins. Crowley could've said something more, but instead chose to kiss Aziraphale.

Which while it was long overdue, I think it was still too fast. Aziraphale realized his love for Crowley in 1941, according to Michael, which is VERY late to the game, and in the 60s, he said Crowley moved too fast for him. I assume this is still the case, as the 60s wasn't that long ago in angel/demon years. The kiss probably frightened him, because we know what Aziraphale is like, has always BEEN like. He's cautious and jittery and incredibly soft. He's the emodiment of a kitten, and you need to treat him as such.

Had Crowely taken his time with Aziraphale instead, things might've been different. The outcome also might've remained the same, but there would at least be some communication, and probably much less heartbreak. In that moment, Crowley could've really poured his heart out into words, but he didn't. Even during the confession, he ended rather nonchalantly with a "you and me, what do you say?" This is after hearing Aziraphale's news. It's hardly romantic, and gives the same vibe as "let's shack up".

He should be using every ounce of his power to get Aziraphale to stay, but he doesn't. He says his piece, begins to walk off, rubs the non-relationship in Aziraphale's face, kisses him, and then leaves. All this sets up pefectly for a s3 to sort their shit out. I like that it wasn't just a fluffy arc where everything's suddenly perfect, because where would s3 go then? It would be less fun.

I like the angst. I want to enjoy a good show with conflict and difficulty and confusion and anger and whatever else. I want to watch this angel and demon evolve and go through it and realize and learn and love.

What happened at the end of s2; it was ineffable.

#Good Omens #Good Omens 2 #Good Omens Spoilers #Crowley #Aziraphale #Aziracrow #Ineffable Husbands #Good Omens Other #My Stuff #My Good Omens Stuff

[punkascas]

aww, man, i'm hella bummed over the news of ofmd.

i wasn't even jonesing that hard for s3 — like i'd of course watch it when it came out, but s2 reiterated and reenforced for me why i'll always choose fandom and fanworks over canon — but i feel gutted for the writers and actors. i feel grieved and jaded. and i feel aggravated that it is a familiar, well-worn groove of jaded grief over how queer stories and stories centred on non-white cis characters with diverse casts don't get their chance to flourish and grow. they don't feed the capitalist beast, even though they absolutely fckin do you're just dumb media executives. those stories are not as easy to market; not the sure, quick buck. not the stories for 18 – 25 year old straight white boys you can peddle to advertisers and that look good in quarterly-projection presentations.

i'm sad because the cast really seemed to get on. really seemed to have one of those rare mixes of chemistry and off-screen friendship. and i want to see them hang out and be creative together and fall further in love with now they portray found family on screen with so much ease and sincerity and full of genuine joy.

i'll miss them. i'll miss watching them play their characters. they seem to love them as much as and for the same reasons that we love those characters.

and to a lesser extent i'm a little disappointed to never find out what the plan would've been for s3, where djenks originally had the characters end up, how and if the creative decisions in s2 would've been addressed. fandom will of course find answers to this, and i know i'll probably think those stories are better if i could compare because i always do, but there's still a part of me that wants to know what djenks and the writing team and the cast would've done.

that all said, a part of me finds it extremely awkwardly morbidly hilarious that the s2 ending is now the official end. the ending that i can only read as a fascinating-yet-distressing lovecraftian horror story waiting to happen. like, not great as a final note due to how much it upset and divided the fandom. i wish it had been an ending that sparked opportunities for community-building and excitement and creativity that comes from a place of wanting more rather than feelings of betrayal or discomfort or creativity that comes from the need to process or to fix or to ignore.

but also as someone who enjoys absurdist dark humour, it's kind of perfect to me. the ending is an amazing (accidental) representation of schrödinger's cat of a conclusion. and i love it.

like, you can read the ending as happy. the main couple is together; the crew has their freedom and found family and can continue a life of adventure without the drama ed or stede can cause. izzy… whatever, i guess. whatever people who are cool with izzy's fate wanted for him.

or you can read the ending as, like: stede, run! you just shacked up with a known mentally and emotionally unstable guy who just very traumatically (and violently) ended a longterm codependent relationship. with the fresh grave of your boyfriend's ex right out front. because both of them are dudes that literally hoard each other's corpses because the codependence and obsessive possession just runs that deep. and you made these life choices while on an isolated spit of land with no one else around but the sea and a rundown shack whose aesthetics are straight out of a horror film. and that's implied to smell like death in one of your last lines of dialogue ever. nothing good will come of this, my guy.

if you know me, you know which reading i'm taking and running with.

#the gay pirate show #ofmd #ofmd spoilers #sort of #otp: divorced in a married state #edizzy: love means never having to let go of your rotting corpse #i have a lot of other thoughts about how they accidentally set up character arcs and character backstories #in a way that positioned the narrative beats the characters needed to complete their arcs #in direct opposition to the story and plot beats they originally meant to tell #which is part of why s2 starts to feel wonky #what the characters need based on their flaws and emotional wounds to self-actualise and grow by the end of the story #is not the story they intended to set up or thought they were writing #so all you can do with your characters is stall their development #or regress them #or sweep things under the rug #or change them in ways that feel unsupported and ooc #maybe i'll write a mini meta on this one day for my own sake just to organise my thoughts #ofmd critical #just in case #but no seriously you're telling me i'm supposed to root for stede and ed #when ed and izzy are so obsessed they can't even let go of each others' dead bodies #up to and including burial in a shallow grave in your garden highly visible from the front windows of your love nest with your new paramour #this is a red flag stede #this is the textbook definition of a red flag #adorable insane fucked up little freaks (edizzy) (affectionate) #kat talks

[hellshee]

i don't quite believe in the coffee theory. this is aziraphale learning a lesson that crowley has already learned. there is a message here, even if aziraphale isn't as quick as crowley to getting it. aziraphale doesn't consider heaven as toxic as hell and he might actually miss it: see aziraphale reporting his good deeds to crowley as he did to heaven before.

sure, deep down he's been hurt by heaven and he knows they're not on the same wavelength, but it feels like metraton is not only offering him hope, but supposedly control over what heaven might look like, and by extension new hope for crowley too. aziraphale loves crowley and is, to a degree, aware that what they craved out for themselves on earth is special, but he's still clinging to the hope of fixing things when he's given the option. time and again we see aziraphale do deeds that maybe we wouldn't do, or crowley wouldn't want to do at first, like taking care of gabriel and generally choosing kindness more often than not, so of course when he heard the offer he thought "i could fix this. we could fix this.".

i feel like the coffee being a spell or a miracle or whatever not only isn't necessary for where they are in their stories: remember that they never actually got to talk and face their feelings, especially aziraphale, the way nina and maggie pointed out, but it would take from aziraphale's genuine rection to the whole thing.

the tragedy of that moment is that aziraphale genuinely believes he's doing this for the right reasons, for good, for crowley, and s3 will be his last knock down on his ass from heaven and it will end with his inevitable return to crowley one way or another.

#hellshee.txt #good omens #good omens spoilers #ineffable husbands #crowley x aziraphale #anti coffee theory #idk i dont want to offend anyone but just my 2 cents #something something second coming lol #the only other way i can see it is metatron threatening crowley to. make aziraphale accept his offer but im not sure how realistic it is

[incorrectsibunaquotes]

Kira Miller • Quick Facts

art by @sbmranger

Age: 16 - 17 (S2), 17 - 18 (S3 & TOR)

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexuality: Bisexual

Nationality: American - British

Personality Type: INFJ

Languages: English, French, Russian

Residence: New Jersey; Anubis House

Occupation: Student; French Tutor (Formerly); Seeker (Briefly); Professor (Future Profession)

Family: Eddie Miller (Twin Brother); Catherine “Cathy” Miller (Mother); Eric Sweet (Father)

Best Friend: Mara Jaffray

Relationships: KT Rush (Girlfriend); Benjamin Reed (Formerly); Greg Harrison (Briefly); Joy Mercer (Former Crush)

Roommates: Mara Jaffray; Patricia Williamson; Willow Jenks (Formerly); Amber Millington (Formerly); Nina Martin (Formerly)

Allegiances: The Jackal (S2); Sibuna (S3 - TOR); Ammut/Team Evil (S3 Briefly)

Enemies: Team Evil; Ammut; Caroline Denby; Victor Rodenmaar Jr. (Formerly); Robert Frobisher-Smythe (Formerly)

Pastimes: Reading classic novels; Teaching; Writing

Words to Describe Her: Observant; Practical; Loyal; Romantic; Stubborn; Realistic; Wry; Familial

Post-Story Future: Kira is committed to Middlebury College in Vermont for a degree in Russian Studies with a minor in Education Studies. She will go on to get her masters in education and teach both Russian and French at the university level. She and Fabian end up teaching together at the same university, and the students are obsessed with their dynamic. She visits her dad in the UK often, and spends every moment she can with her loved ones.

You can learn more about Kira by reading Two is Company on AO3 & Wattpad

#this post has been in the drafts for MONTHS #thank you to all who took the time to come on the odessey that was two is company #here is a little character bio of miss kira miller #i know it’s not technically over but yeah #i know all their futures post-tic but i figured this would be the one to post #house of anubis #two is company #tess writes #kira miller

[yellow-salamander]

something that absolutely gets me about alan becker’s animations is just how much personality each of the stick figures has. To list some examples:

-red is a little bit more reckless that most of his friends. like TSC, he tends to just dive head on into danger, and his method of solving problems is pretty much “beat it up.” He also loves animals, especially noticeable in his absolute epic pet pig. However, he is also quick to trust and generally thinks less before doing things than his friends, especially TSC. He’s also been possessed twice now. I think. Good for him, I suppose.

-TSC also dives right into dangerous situations, and would do absolutely ANYTHING for his friends. He’s a bit more OP than the rest of them, obviously, which you can see whenever they’re in a fight, especially when he fights red in the desert during AVM shorts season 3. He’s quick to forgive and understand, and can see the good and bad sides that make up a whole with little difficulty. However, like with purple in S3 and red a bit later, he can also hold some grudges when someone tries hurt his friends. He’s definitely closest to the leader of the group, simply because he’s got a bit more experience and fighting ability than the rest of them.

-purple, even before we got his really awesome backstory in ep.29, held a distinct need for power and influence that clearly came from a need to belong. He cares for all his friends, but doesn’t know how to balance that with the space left by his past experiences, leading him to abandon green and blue in the void and later join King Orange (do we call him Mango Tango on tumblr? I am pretty new to this side of the fandom and can’t quite figure that one out 😅).

-yellow is kind of the science lover friend. He’s inventive and resourceful, which we can see whenever he digs up some red stone machine or command block to solve a problem, like with the villagers in S3. He also seems to trust pretty easily (especially if they offer him some cool tech like king orange showing him the command block staff) and in ep 30, stands with blue staring rather distrustfully at the reformed MT until he’s offered the command stick. He is a pretty funny guy, if you ask me.

-green is probably the thinker of the group. He hesitates to jump into things, and tries to care for every member of the group, and understand each perspective. He waits for orange before jumping into purple’s parkour portal after fighting the witch, and chooses to go after purple INSTEAD of helping his friends despite yellow telling him not to. All of this after being abandoned by him multiple times and seeing exactly what he could be capable of. He looks for the best in people when he can and never wants to leave anyone behind, which makes for some fun character dynamics!

-blue is the most go-with-the-flow out of all of them. He clicks with all his friends, and has some cool adventures with each of them. He also gets attached to the piglins and bonds with THEM, though he does this while chasing his drug addiction, of all things. This poor stick figure is canonically a drug addict. Poor guy. He is a bit slower to forgive MT in the end, and unsure about purple for a while because of how he left blue and green in the void that one time, but normally likes to just do stuff and worry about things later, and just hang out with his friends. Even if he accidentally sends them on a wild goose chase for him and accidentally creates a chain reaction that nearly destroyed all of minecraft. Because he wanted some more nether wart.

And that’s just the basics. I could talk for hours about some of their relationships, namely red + TSC, blue + green, blue + yellow, and green + purple, but that’s a story for another time. TLDR: Alan Becker gave stick figures personality and I just can’t get over that.

#alan becker #red stick figure #tsc #animation vs minecraft #animation vs animator #tsc animation vs animator #orange stick figure #purple stick figure