#these episodes are getting darker and darker

[minecraftcorrectmode]

Ellegaard: Could you pass my sword? Magnus: Could you pass away? Gabriel, to a slightly horrified Jesse: This is normal.

#mcsm #mcsm ellegaard #mcsm magnus #mcsm gabriel #mcsm jesse #source: unknown #(yes i realise how much darker this gets where episode 3 is involved...i'm mostly just trying to ignore it ;-;)

[jsbashirmd]

@lietwice sent:

[ smooth ] sender takes their time caressing over every part of receiver's body

Their first moment alone. After the camp and the rescue and the incredible mess of feelings that was watching Garak suffer through hell to save them all. After the gut-wrenching revelation that people hadn't even known he was gone--that a changeling had picked up his life...

But now it's just them. Julian hasn't even gone back to his quarters. He took what was possibly the longest shower of his life, dressed in newly-replicated boxer briefs that he could be certain the changeling had never worn, and laid himself down on Garak's bed, which somehow feels safer than his own now. And now he's being petted, which he can hardly blame Garak for with the mess of fur he's grown out in captivity. If nothing else, it's a novelty, and Julian does enjoy the feeling of Garak's hands carding through the hair on his chest.

"Garak?" he finally says, when hands rise to touch his face. He doesn't stop them, of course. "Did you think I was alive? When you realized, I mean. Did you believe I was alive or did you think I'd been killed for the changeling to take my place?"

#[[I got a little bit darker with it than I think you intended #but hey! Garak gets to see furry Julian! #c. julian #lietwice. garak #v. main #s.s. enjoyable company #new thread #answered #t. bright young doctor #but only by two episodes #he's so close to having his secret blown up here

[scizzuhs]

Ya know what’s wild? I never watched The Pacific all the way through until recently, even though I’ve watched BoB a thousand times. And the only reason I was hesitant was… I thought Leckie was played by Matthew Morrison, who I do not like. Only to realize they’re two completely different actors lmfao.

Like??????? I can’t be the only one to make this mistake dude. I think they look so much alike. I just never bothered to look up the casting 😭 like I’m sorry, James Badge Dale, I did you so dirty.

#I’ve owned the pacific blu ray tin for YEARS but only watched a couple episodes #it’s a lot different from BoB and the vibe is just so much darker that it was hard for me to get into as well #but I watched it all the way through this month and absolutely love it and leckie now #going to rewatch again soon #the pacific #robert leckie #hbo war

[hellouniversehowareyou]

precious

#i want to cover him in strawberries and maple syrup bcs he's a sweet sweet lívaneček #black leg sanji #opla #opla sanji #one piece #one piece live action #opla episode 6 #EPISODE 6 IS UNREAL Y'ALL I AM SCREAMING #opla is so good and every second it gets better #seeing his og backstory again after whole cake island was fucking insane like #you think you've heard a traumatizing backstory from someone's past BUT WAIT #IT GET'S SO MUCH MORE DARKER LATER ON #i want to see gordon ramsay at baratie so badly

[tea-earl-grey]

i'm not super into star trek novels and the beta canon and whatnot but i'm so glad that i read Last Best Hope because it really makes Picard s1 infinitely better on rewatch (and i say this as a Picard enjoyer/defender). like 100% recommend if you're even a little bit interested in Picard era worldbuilding.

#i feel like a lot of people complain on tumblr complain about the star trek universe being too static and milquetoast liberal #and then completely ignore picard s1 and s2 #(and a decent bit of discovery for that matter) #where some pretty massive changes happen in universe that are SO INTERESTING #and we get to see complex politics and character drama and stuff that feels MEANINGFUL #and it feels like realistic fallout from the changes the federation went through in ds9 during the dominion war #and yes it is darker and not as optimistic as tng era but imo every season is hopeful in different ways #(synths being accepted by starfleet. the jurati!borg turning the borg into a healing force. s3 healing broken bridges between characters) #i'll always prefer the longer more episodic shows just because i feel like we know the characters better and i have my critiques about #every season of picard #but on a whole i really love it #i just wish we could get more of the characters and politics and worldbuilding without defaulting on “the galaxy is in danger!” plots #star trek picard #my posts

[imminent-danger-came]

While the lily orchard review didn’t do anything like calling the show bad (they actually praised it a lot but for some strange reasons imo) they did miss a lot of the main points of the show and lightheartedly insulted people who were making angsty fanart of it (they also didn’t credit the artist which was odd) I think they had only watched until season 2 at that point but season 2 was still pretty intense even if it wasn’t as bad as 3 and 4 so I don’t understand why they called it a “Saturday morning cartoon” because it clearly has an overarching plot. One of the quotes taken directly from the video is “There’s nothing in the plot that’s going to shock you or make you think about the human condition.” They said that people making the show seem dark were missing the point of the show. That’s pretty much it I think which isn’t too bad but it does not give the show credit for how they handle a lot of stuff imo

Okay so, watching s1 of the show? I totally understand the "saturday morning cartoon" perspective of LMK. That's what it is at the beginning—I have a half written meta in my drafts about LMK and "saturday morning cartoon" type tropes.

However, I also argue that s2 begings to deconstruct those tropes—take for example 2x05 "Minor Scale". That's an episode with what I would consider to be a tropey plot: "Oh no! The main character gets shrunk!". But, unlike a lot of previous episodes (like 1x06 being the "racing episode" or 1x02 being the "Main character is overworked and turns to a sketchy solution to fix their problem" episode), Minor Scale shifts us away from these monster of the week type plots. The whole reason MK shrinks to begin with is because he's belittling himself ("Maybe if someone was here to teach me! 'Oh you'll figure it out bud, just think little!' Ugh, like I could do this on my own."), which in itself is already a unique way to implement this sort of trope. But, not only that, rather than a little tease and a subtle feeling of the heroes continually losing like in the beginning of s2, the Lady Bone Demon reveals herself directly to MK. She manipulates MK, she gets inside his head, she makes him question his worth to Monkey King.

This pattern of "everything starts out normal and then dips into something darker" continues for the rest of s2. 2x07-2x10 all start out like you would expect—monster of the week "saturday morning cartoon" adventure set ups—that then take a turn for the worse during the episode.

Like, don't get me wrong, s2 isn't like s3, and I'd say it takes until s4 for LMK to truly deliver on everything it's set up, but s2 still has plenty. Minor Scale (STRAIGHT fate vs freewill directly into the veins with MK literally running away from the narrative), Macaque's shadow play ("Heroes inevitably bring darkness to those they hold dear" *sobs* THEY WEREN'T LYING ABOUT THAT), Sandy's sincere belief that helping his friends is where his true value lies (yet he breaks his vow to never fight again), MK's desperation in 2x09, LBD's inevitable victory.

Honestly, watching the way in which MK's mental illness manifests in the first 2 seasons makes even s1 of LMK unique. I remember watching Bad Weather (1x01) and being surprised that MK was so down on himself after the "I'm invincible!!!" facade fell.

But, ultimately, LMK starting with "saturday morning cartoon" tropes and then slowly transitioning into the darker and more plot focused episodes is completely on purpose. The start of the show, the "monster of the week adventures", is the home MK wishes, but cannot, return to. That simplicity and innocence turning to complexity and impiety is part of MK's "coming of age" story, and it's why I like the show.

#''people making the show seem dark were missing the point'' girly no they weren't that was the direction it was heading #''Maybe this is the point in our heroes journey where things get a little bit darker'' thank you 4x01 #smh the spider queen and MK foil must mean nothing to lily orchard #though honestly I feel like 1x09 should have made a few alarm bells ring #Like *beep beep beep* THAT'S WAY TOO SOLID OF AN EPISODE #I forgot to mention ROTSQ but comeee ON the trigram furnace scene fucks. #I think lily over there does a little bit of a disservice to s2. But I also don't really care that much lol #I just wanted to rant about LMK and tropes #lmk #lego monkie kid #story motif #lmk MK #lmk analysis #asks

[felixcosm]

But I didn't pick a long sleeved shirt to keep you warm. Like I care. Baka.

#woe.begone #wbg cannonball #wbg topher evans #i love how fast this episode can switch between funny and heart wrenching #like the beginning is so comical then it gradually gets darker and darker #until you have a drugged mikey mutilating himself at gunpoint; knowing no one is going to come save him #i always say episode 2 is incredibly lighthearted in comparison to this episode #its so fucked up /pos #but anyway the outtake is funny and i love it

[akriticsongs]

It’s such a dark irony, in retrospect, that in Ep. 9, Both of You, Dance Like You Want to Win!, Shinji and Asuka have to coordinate and synchronize to defeat Israfel

While in the rest of the series, their inability to connect and understand each other is one of the greatest factors leading to their downfall and tragedy

It’s almost as if they teased us with the right solution from the beginning and showed us what might’ve been

#neon genesis evangelion #evangelion #nge #shinji ikari #asuka langley soryu #this episode gets darker if you know what happens next

[salem-xx]

reversed and upright ending for Sage & MC

So the final showdown with Mike happens and Sage turns but MC manages to change him back or something and they're about to take down Mike but Mike gets the upper hand and decides you know what i'm gonna actually kill MC and be successful this time and manages to kill them in front of sage and sage goes berserk and kills mike not before mike dies he's laughing and tells sage that MC basically died for nothing and that it still worked out for him bc sage went back to being corrupted

so then sage is filled with grief and corruption and tulsi and the group do what they can to try and pull him back, but sage is a master of alienating himself from the people who love him and he's so angry (imagine he never even got to say I love you until MC was dying in his lap IMAGINE THAT TO HEIGHTEN THE ANGST) and he decides he's gonna bring MC back (it's giving beginning of the whole damn story but i don't care) and sage goes to felix for help and felix and rime are like ummm don't think you should be doing that and sage is like i have to try so they tell him that maybe he can reach MC in the void if their soul is there. so Sage goes and is trying to find MC and finds them and tells MC his plan of trying to bring them back and MC is like no blah blah i love you blah blah the price would be too steep blah blah i don't want you to lose yourself and your humanity, you need to be with your family/friend (this would be an upright ending) and they have a final goodbye where they kiss and say i love you

in a reversed ending, the void works weirdly so maybe he has to leave before he dies for real and MC warns him against the plan but they don't get their final goodbye. in the real world he lies to rime and felix and says he couldn't find you bc he got lost and in that moment he decides he's gonna bring MC back consequences be damned I don't remember sage ever using magic in the story but say for argument sake he becomes basically the lord of shadows/rime in felix's route but instead he has to gather a shit ton of souls and trade them in order to bring back MC. so he goes around collecting souls (the logistics do not matter and I can't explain it) and finally he gathers enough souls and goes to where MC died and maybe the group had caught onto what he's going to do (time and felix had their suspicious that he had lied but felix was trying to give him space) and they're begging him not to

maybe they're about to fight him (felix telling sage not to and sage yelling at him like you got rime back why shouldn't I get MC back blah blah) bc they dont recognize this angry broken shell of sage (maybe he's even worse than when MC found him bc this time that mc "died" there was a body and the visual confirmation that they died and he blames himself partly) but sage manages to fight them and do the spell or whatever and he opens the void and trades ____ amount of souls for MC's soul and life force. he gets it and MC comes back from the void and MC is visibly different (they have white streaks in their hair or different colored eyes idk depends on what you would want your MC to look like) and everyone is stunned that MC is back

i've run out of ideas but MC is alive but asleep bc coming back from the dead is exhausting and the next day comes the angst, they're so happy to see sage and sage is happy too, but MC starts getting headaches and it all starts coming back in flashes--MC dying, MC talking to sage in the void, and then the coming back to life and (let's say sage has been hiding from them lowkey bc he noticed they didn't remember) eventually MC is just like uhhh what did you do ? and sage explains and angst ensues where MC is grappling with the fact that they're life was brought back at the expense of so many others and the fact that sage literally fell even more off the deep end and idk someone write this bc i cant write and MC grappling with the fact that they're basically an "abomination" and they try calling the astrolabe but realize they've lost their connection to it (so more angst)

#sage lesath #fictif sage #last legacy fictif games #last legacy #i feel mc and rime would bond over this like become besties bc they both now have white streaks in their hair from coming back #for some reason sage did not do what Felix did when he brought back rime if he even did bring him back #i don't know if los brought him back or if it was felix anywyas #the angst that would ensue ughhh #a once upon a time storyline inspired this and then an episode of Ben 10 because why not #HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA #this is giving asras route but darker™ #idk if sage would be punished or forced to live with the guilt but yea #this is like the once upon a time storyline where rumple tries to get his son back #also when emma tries to get hook back from the underworld and charmcaster tries to resurrect her dad in ben ten all rolled into last legacy #would MC still love sage ? most likely yes would they be so conflicted by what sage did ? depending on what choices you made in his route #depending on the choices made on his route maybe you would get over it or something idk

[badolmen]

If I made a video essay covering every episode arc and the overall storyline and themes of Darker than Black would that be too self indulgent?

#ra speaks #personal #darker than black #dtb #tag rambling #yes I’m making it for me ™ but it’s also an absolutely massive project like #the video introduction I’ve drafted is 2.5 pages font size 11 1.5 spaced. it’s a lot of text. #and reading it out loud definitely takes longer than 20 minutes #and that’s without getting into the actual arcs and episodes of the show that’s just me rambling abt my personal discovery and interest init #but my real reason is that the wikia has some glaring inconsistencies/shortcomings in terms of its summaries and descriptions plus a lot of #subjective interpretations posited as canonical fact #which y’know I could remake the wikia piece by piece in a doc.wiki format #but to do that I’ll need a thorough rewatch with notes on all canonical events and circumstances as portrayed through the media itself #instead of through a personal lense #sorry I looked up video essays for dtb on YouTube and one of the first literally criticizes the show for something that’s #explicitly addressed in episode 9 like sir did you even fucking WATCH the show how is this the most popular video on the show

[akkivee]

if it was a slice of life kinda story with the fcked up elements and brief action scenes included, ichikuu would probably be like ‘the misadventures with a punk monk ~i think my best friend is in love with me??~’ lol

#this is vee speaking #you’ve got your zany characters and supernatural elements mixed in with ichiro’s kinda darker world setting turning in the bg #like he extorts some money off a kid and he feels slimy as all fck about it but then kuukou shows up and drags him on a date #and the whole time it’s ichiro wondering ‘what are we’ while kuukou goofs off with —10 inches of space between them lmao #and their date (ichiro’s been calling it a date in his head kuukou just said they were going out lmao) gets ruined because crime happens #in the form of that kid from earlier is getting double extorted by bullies and ichiro and kuukou beat them up lol #that’s episode one lol and ends with the sense ichiro’s going to try redeem himself throughout the series lol #that weirdly happens because the set up is kuukou flirting with ichiro in some capacity lol #(but the supernatural twist is that kuukou has been crossing world lines in a similar sense to homura pmmm in order to help ichiro be happy) #(and has jumped enough times to be able to predict how different worlds interact to be able station himself accordingly) #(and the only way this is hinted is his power to talk to ghosts on different realms and him occasionally needing something basic explained) #(yes ichiro your best friend loves you very much lmao)

[transingthoseformers]

Now i'm thinking about what's the right balance to keep G1 SG au tonally consistent, and feeling at least a little like the G1 cartoon it's based on. Particularly with the PARD incident idea.

I mean G1 can get really dark under the surface, and a little bit ON THE SURFACE too, but still.

Idk, because on average I've observed that shattered glass in total tends to get darker than baseline (but hey that's based on the SG comics I read and fanfiction so many my sample size isn't big enough)

In my opinion, it's easy for something to come off as darker than intended so you might have to treat it like adding blue paint to other colors: a little truly does go a long way.

#but hey that's a suggestion based on my own experiences with writing #there'll be surface level things that if you overthink WILL get darker #also_ in g1 a lot of the decepticons get stuck in frankly hilarious shenanigans so don't forget the shenanigans #the petty and ultimately lighthearted arguments and rivalries #maccadam #transformers #g1 sg au #sometimes you need an episode that reads like a tumblr shitpost that you just know will end up in a youruber's r/tumblr reddit reading vid #i am absolutely remembering all the ''mEGATRON HAS FALLEN! I STARSCREAM AM NOW LEADER OF THE DECEPTICONS'' jokes #also the purple griffin thing. and galvatron consistently shouting all the time. and the cons dipping themselves into electrum (gold?) #transformers generation one #idk #go as dark or lighthearted as you want

[tendercoretroglodyke]

the incredible divide between how people rank the seasons of daredevil based on whether or not they know that foggy (and more importantly, foggy's smile) is by far the best thing to happen to the MCU or if they simply hate fun and love

#seasons 2 and 3 of daredevil chose violence #they ran with the wrong elements of s1 and amplified those to the detriment of the good elements (foggy & karen & matt's friendship) #like genuinely some of THEE most disappointing sequel seasons #and yet! go in the tag and some people just loved them #like ok. i love foggy nelson and his besties karen and matt though. brooding means NOTHING to me if its not a part of angsty relationship #rough patch that gets resolved within a few episodes #back in like 2015 i watched dd s1 like 10 fucking times. i watched s2 once when it came out and i dont think i ever even finished s3 #(ftr i am NOT a marvel fan anymore ive just been rewatching jessica jones s1 for some reason) #(its much darker than i remembered!) #tw mcu #lmao #foggy nelson

[wazzuppy]

i love abu allsaintsstreet. literally all he does is go wah wah wah wah wah wah and scare his friends by accident what a funny little guy

#tara says stuff #all saints street #wan sheng jie #abu #when will he get more screen time. hes only done stuff in like three of the episodes come on man #(it feels especially sus to me considering hes the only character with significantly darker skin) #(and all his much much paler friends get way more to do) #(hm hm hm.)

[pandoratheprocrasticreator]

darius has mentioned alador before and they both seem to keep up with each other’s lives, since darius follows alador on penstagram and alador has darius’s book and i know thats why the fandom focuses on their potential dynamic and i agree i really want to see what they were like when they were still friends! but what i would REALLY like more people to explore is the relationship between darius and odalia. all we have is them hanging out at school in eda’s flashback but they were friends too. what happened?

#toh #the owl house #alador blight #odalia blight #darius deamonne #again i HATED the blight parents arcs and how they were written in the finale #especially odalias writing bc they removed all nuance and just made her a genocial capitalist and her plan doesnt even make any sense #the conflict between her alador and the kids shouldnt have been about whos helping belos it should have been about who believed their kids #but anyway otherwise the blight parents as characters are fascinating to me bc theyre abusive assholes but theyre still sympathetic? #even odalia the 'more' abusive one who ends up solidly a villain #bc in the flashbacks she was worried about getting detention! she was smug and mean but she liked hanging out with her friends! #in the picture of alador winning the bonesborough brawl she was flustered bc her boyfriend was super strong! #even in her debut episode she has a charisma to her as a saleswoman but you also see her worried about sales and be scared of the emperor #and i wanted to see more exploration of why she needed to control the kids and what she wanted them to live up to #not to excuse her but to humanize her and make her more interesting as a villain #bc i hate the trope of the abuser whos shitty not because of fleshed out reasons but because the characters need a plot contrivance #irl abusers arent like that and evil or not everyone has a past and a thought process that explains why theyre Like That #and to make abusive characters evil for cheap drama is poor writing and misses nuance that could have made the story more interesting #anyway i read an analysis before that darius and odalia are parallels and i can see it #odalia is just a darker version of what darius could have become #an exploitative high society asshole who uses her prestige to further her own goals without care towards her loved ones #but theres also the tragedy of the whole trio because like another post said darius could have been uncle darius to the blight kids #but because of the falling out hes never met any of them and the blights have ruined their kids mental health #i hate HATE the hc that they stopped being friends because odalia 'stole' alador from darius as if alador couldnt make his own choices #and the idea of alador 'learning from his mistakes' and rebounding with darius after the odalador divorce because first of all #the 'odalia is an abusive wife' retcon is bullshit and even if it isnt is rebounding to your ex wifes romantic rival REALLY that romantic #especially after leaving said abusive ex wife #idk if i have enough tags to explain my own theory on why darius left the friend group but just know id like it to be more aladors fault #bc darius only expresses disdain towards him odalia probably just got caught in the middle and took aladors side #shut up pandora

[aprilblossomgirl]

The Eclipse | Ep. 11.2

#the eclipse the series #the eclipse #the eclipse ep 11 #🎞️ my still set #in black/white #i am so gonna miss making a b/w still set for this series #bracing myself for a quick rewatch to capture these scenes i somehow finally get the episode #yes it still feels jumpy #somethings are while hard to accept but understandable #that said the emotions this episode was that what i would say an actual roller coaster #the fast transition between wait what to ah i see still with but how #but i must applaud all actors for their peak superb acting this episode! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 #anyway the mood of this set is more on a darker side 🥲