#this is even less forgivable

[tanadrin]

season 1 of picard was pretty good star trek, in that it touched on and expanded on themes that have been pretty common in the show for many years: what is a person and why we shouldn’t fear new or strange forms of life were chief among them. the whole angle of also taking a heroic figure and having him examine his life looking backward at the end of it was also a nice touch. the fact their actually were evil robots in a pocket dimension slavering to destroy the universe was dumb, though; so was the whole shady romulan subplot. like 5/10 relative to its potential.

season 2 had some good bits, especially as like a character study of picard himself, but it was a little hard to swallow that given that it was pretty obviously all a retcon, bc literally none of those character beats had ever been foreshadowed in 7 seasons and 4 movies. also the time travel plot was really dumb and mostly pretty boring unfortunately. 2 or 3/10 relative to its potential.

season 3 so far i’m on the fence about. vadic is a genuinely delightful, cheesy villain. the raffi subplot is not very strong so far, but maybe if they link it up with the main plot it will help the pacing. the guy they have playing picard’s son is also good, and whatever he’s got going on is actually pretty interesting to me, but we’re spending way too much time on boring irrelevant stuff that could have been dispatched in 1 or 2 episodes (changelings are back! we can’t go to starfleet for help; they should have spent max one episode farting around in that nebula).

obviously it’s too soon to render an overall verdict, but thematically this season just seems to lack a center so far, or a driving purpose beyond “oh no we’re being pursued by baddies with Mysterious Motivations.” i do wish the showrunners had spent less time crafting intricate callbacks and sound cues to reference previous installments of star trek and more time making sure the plot and the pacing hung together well. i don’t think you need to introduce new aliens or new villains in every installment of star trek; i don’t think star trek has to be lots of self-contained one-shot episodes; i think there’s room to use continuity to make the world feel fuller and more complete. but i don’t think picard is doing any of that particularly well, which is too bad! they have a good cast and a great art department, and there are some good ideas in here. the execution is just lacking.

#tv showrunners in particular #need to be taught how to structure plots well #and not waste viewers' time #now that american tv is moving more and more often to british-style 10-episode seasons #this is even less forgivable #10 episodes should not be so long a season you have to pad it with filler!

[notmoreflippingelves]

Actually going insane over the implications of Jason asking Dick to be the Robin to his Batman in Battle for the Cowl.

Like I initially took it at the purely surface-level of Jason wanting a partner in the general sense. Which made sense, it's a huge responsibility and a lonely one so an assistant/sidekick/partner seems a no-brainer if you can get one.

But then I really thought about it, because Jason is not asking Dick to be his partner in the general sense; he's not even asking Dick to be his Nightwing. He's asking Dick to be his Robin.

And they both know exactly what Jason means: "Be the light to my darkness. Be the smile to my scowl. Be the hope to my fear. "

He's saying "Be 'Robin'; be the embodiment of Love and Justice and Goodness. Be the exceptional person that you have always been. Be the slightly-less exceptional person that I was when I wore your colors. Be the person that I was in the process of becoming and might have been (or might still be), if only Joker hadn't clipped my wings."

He's saying "I am prepared to become vengeance, become the Night. And I will go further than Bruce ever dared to, because it is what is needed. I will be the necessary evil. But you don't have to be. If Batman is Gotham's curse, Robin has always been its blessing. I will be the brutal punishment to our world, and I am asking you to be its incandescent gift."

He's saying, "Be for me, what we were for Him. Be my anchor, my comfort, my hope. Remind me what it's all for, why it's all worth it. And remind yourself as well."

He's saying "Be 'Robin' again--for both of our sakes."

#dick grayson #jason todd #battle for the cowl #jaydick #dickjay #kinda but also not kinda #batman #dcu #otp: be my robin #'we can rule together as just it always should've been with you as my guiding light and conscience' #is that not in essence; a sort of marriage proposal ? #well no but it's not NOT one either if you catch my drift #i should note that i haven't actually read bftc yet and i know it's considered controversial/bad #and considered ooc for pretty much everyone #so i am not even sure if I will like it #but i am still planning on reading it for the jaydick crumbs #and b/c i am using it and knightfall as the primary inspo for my krisnix au #apparently jason does ask tim to be his robin first and that's interesting as well #but honestly a little less powerful/interesting to me at least since jaytim just doesn't interest me as much as jaydick #and honestly i've looked at the panels and it seems a little more genuine when jason asks dick idk #more like 'last chance; i'll let you live if you join me' for tim vs. 'join me because this feels right' for dick #and honestly even with clumsy execution; just the narrative and emotional richness of this scene is still making me absolutely feral #this arc could be complete trash in any and every other way but if it gives me THEMES; i will forgive anything #it's the former english major occupational hazard #*apollo justice voice *: I'M FINE #(narrator voice: she was not in fact fine)

[starrysharks]

STICKERz

#zeno's art #ocs #ultimate x-calibur #nova starbridge #optico #of course a redraw of jan's new years piece #have i improved? idk #i guess my artstyle is more cartoony now #i want to say i've gotten better at coloring but i used less colors here than i did in jan #this will be the end of the purple period (lying) #also whenever i draw personal art i always feel guilty i've got like 10 comms to do 😭 #i hope you guys can forgive me #here's to a year with better art #and also 2024 WILL be the year i start a band it's been my dream it will happen god willing #even tho i've gotta get a gee-tar first... maybe i'll practice my sister's dusty old acoustic to get used to holding them #ok. sorry i was weird this year but thank you all for supporting me!

[reigen985]

Had a huge long 3-hour chat with my friend about mp100 after rewatching it and man... Mob Psycho 100 really does have an incredibly hopeful view to humanity.

I love how so many of the enemies they face are never lost causes.... Even the unforgivable still have a chance in making themselves better. They're not always outright forgiven but they're never shut down from changing for the better

Idk it's just really encouraging... Everyone is capable of great pain, but to choose kindness and compassion... Despite it ... Man

#mp100 #mob psycho 100 #sorry thinking abt mp100 again #also I dont think mp100 focuses on forgiveness as much as they do with compassion #like. they never say you have to forgive someone. mob is well aware of minoris acts irl but he saves her bc of his compassion #he cares So So Much #the mogami arc is less of him forgiving his tormentors and more accepting that- #people are capable of great evils and even with that fact they are still worth saving bc theyre capable of change #CHRIST #my rants

[twisting-in-wonderland]

Huh-? Why's my sax's mouthpiece all messed up?

...

... Ah.

(wip progress + 'lineart' under read-more--)

portfest outfits are so cool looking,,,

#twst #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland port fest #floyd leech #art #ram's art #alright-! so i like port fest a lot- #mainly the aesthetics tbhhhhh #i'm biased i love water and aquatic themes and fish etc so its kinda obvious to me- #also!!! they play instruments!!!!!!!! look at them go! #unrelated never make me draw a saxophone again - #(i didn't even try and make this one 'realistic' because i . i cant draw a saxophone are u kidding me- #twst official artists show me your wayssss #also forgive the messy sketch extra underneath lol i am tireddddd #i just looked it up - high-end saxophone mouthpieces are made of something called ebonite- #apparently it's very durable - (though not. like SUPER tough like certain materials--) #I still think floyd could chew through anything if he tried hard enough so it's fineeee bitey boy 10/10 #resin is used for less top tier saxophones - but he could definitely bite that easily too- win-win! #also also sorry rook i couldnt fit you in the sketch :[[[

[kaseyskat]

do you guys think sparrow watched henry try over and over to convince lark that he was forgiven for years and years knowing that he was always supposed to be the good twin to lark's bad twin and that's why their parents expected better of him when really he and lark have always been the same. do you think sparrow knows that right now, if lark wanted to accept that forgiveness, he would be forgiven. do you think about how they both doomed the world in different ways but only one of them is going to come out of it with a salvageable relationship with their parents. do you think about how lark was a manipulated teenager and sparrow was an adult in a desperate situation with no better option because the alternative was watching his family die. do you think about sparrow taking that burden from lark because despite it all he wants lark to have that relationship with their parents even if it means sparrow will never get the chance. do you think sparrow remembers henry desperately pleading with him when he was pretending to be his twin that he was forgiven and everything would be okay if they stuck together when he is sitting in that office watching his father turn his back after declaring him unforgivable. do you think about how much sparrow is willing to do for his family, for lark, for normal. he can't be better, the only reason henry and mercedes think he can be better is because ever since faerun he was supposed to be the nice twin, the good twin, the twin not afflicted by unrelenting anger and hatred. maybe henry would've forgiven lark in the same position but he never expected it of sparrow. do you think sparrow ever forgives himself.

#dndads #dndads spoilers #kasey rambles #sparrow oak garcia #that last question isnt even hypothetical we know he didnt #sorry i was thinking about ep23 again. #i think people always forget that sparrow was pretending to be lark for that entire argument #so sparrow knows so intimately that henry wants to forgive and love lark so badly #and lark was a kid and sparrow was an adult it makes sense but it doesn't make it hurt any less #and sparrow gets to hold onto that. for so long #its fucked. this family is so fucked.

[brainworms-all-night-long]

Nine didn't stay alone in the Grim btw. After like a week he packed his bags and went to Green Hill and prime bros au happened trust me bro

#sonic prime #love yhe hug and the forgiveness at all but like #YOU JUST LEFT HIM THERE #ALONE #yes thats what he wanted but i do not accept that #get yo ass some grass and clean blue skies and sunny neaches #you deserve real flesh concious beings as friens #looks like I gotta rewrite my prime bros fic to make nine less sad oh boy here we go #maybe one day it will have a complete one chapter #lol lmao even #miles nine prower #nine the fox #silly brainworms #prime bros #sonic prime spoilers

[shannonallaround]

can I interest anybody in a Sonic and the Secret Rings comic I made 4 years ago

#shannon's art #still proud of this honestly #I really loved it when I made it #had fun adding to the dialogue #I remember Shahra’s face was really hard for me to get right I knew even less about anatomy then than I do now #Also I KNOW I misspelt Shahra’s name in the comic forgive me please I was young #sonic fanart #sonic the hedgehog #satsr #sonic and the secret rings #shahra the genie #sonic fancomic #there is no rhyme or reason to my posting schedule you'll get months with nothing and then I'll spam you for 72 hours straight #i still love this game's story you can take it from my cold dead hands

[sonnburn]

Night you are ripping my fucking heart out, WHAT HAPPENED!?!?

No one who talks about themselves with such self-deprecation, who sounds so resigned to their families disdain while looking on the verge of tears, who calls themselves the villain, could ever truly be one.

#last twilight #last twilight the series #last twilight ep 6 #mark pakin #last twilight night #day and night #Night Kopnopphakhun #mark pakin the ACTOR that you are #you weren't even in the last two episodes and I'm already so attached to your character #I missed you #I MISSED Night so much #I gasped in excitement when I saw him again this ep #I don't even know what happened but I'm already on his side ready to defend him forgiving him instantly #I'm a mark pakin apologist forgive me but also I'm not sorry #you should stab me it would hurt less than this #the angst is killing me #not knowing WHAT HAPPENED is killing me #Night is not the antagonist nope sorry don't believe it #I don't care if I'm being naive or biased or whatever #how can you look at Mark's delivery— HIS FACE and not see his sincerity? #he's so visibly upset that Mork asks him if he's okay #and Night just has to brush it off because even though he's NOT okay he's seems so used to this by now #he's resigned to his brother's animosity. to keeping his distance. to separating himself from his own family to keep the peace #so heartbroken about the state of things but so hopeless that it can get better. that things can change. that things can be fixed #whatever life they had before #whether his relationship with Day was always a struggle but ultimately bearable OR whether they were close and fell out over this #things weren't THIS bad #I can't wait for this backstory I need to know more

[bloodaria]

i have feelings (not positive) about the sudden proliferation of posts saying abigail not being eaten showed how she was unloved even in death cause...that's just her father's philosophy? abigail doesn't seem to believe in it. hannibal certainly doesn't believe in it. like i'd argue that the opposite is true, that hannibal not eating people shows he cares for them beyond seeing them as pigs. hannibal not eating will was proof of his love for him in the end.

#how i interpret hannibal eating mischa was that it was less an act of love and more an act of forgiveness #mischa's death caused him uncontrollable grief and in the end he had to reduce her to meat to 'forgive' her for causing those feelings #like yeah i have issues with abigail's death bc she died for will's sins not her own #and the writers didn't even have hannibal think about her or grieve her while he was traipsing around in italy #or have ANYONE think about her beyond will #but i don't think him not eating him showed he didn't care #no hate if that's how you see it these are just my half formed thoughts #long post #hannibal rewatch #(yeah i changed the screenshots bc i found ones that fit better) #not eating her*

[tennessoui]

omg time traveler ahsoka au! she gets obi-wan to leave the order for satine in the hopes that he’d be weird with someone else but anakin gets sent on a mission to mandalore and wow there’s this handsome duke he has to look after. what a shame he’s married and definitely wouldn’t leave his wife for this jedi he feels immediately weird about

hmmmmmmm this is one of Ahsoka’s closest attempts because obi-wan’s personal sense of loyalty wouldn’t let him cheat on his wife, and he’s spent so long building a family and a life on Mandalore that he would never toss it aside to be romantically involved with a kid (read: 22yo) that he doesn’t even know even though he feels a very strong pull towards him….obi-wan is adept at lying to himself

It gets easier to lie to himself when he realizes that Skywalker is also married, though secretly…..it offends part of Kenobi, but that’s just because Skywalker is making a mockery of the Jedi order with his secret marriage!! Kenobi is no longer a Jedi of course but he still has great respect for the Order!!!

That’s the only reason he feels so strange when he thinks of Skywalker’s marriage even long after Skywalker and the senator he was guarding as she came to a celebratory feast on Mandalore leave again.

(Ahsoka tenses on her reset button as anakin makes his way back to mandalore a few months later, but they’re being….normal…this anakin requests to study ancient mandalorian and Jedi texts that are housed in the capital city and it’s weird because he’s never really cared about history but he’s being very…respectful….and master obi-wan is also being very respectful if a little stand offish….he accompanied him down to read the texts and they spend hours down there together but as far as Ahsoka can tell there is nothing inappropriate happening —she has gotten very good at telling when something inappropriate is happening between her old masters—they really are just…talking and reading and they’re being…sort of weird…but sort of normal….it’s the closest they’ve come to the original timeline in fact…Ahsoka relaxes on her reset button)

War breaks out anyway of course and obi-wan lasts only a month or so after anakin is pulled to the front lines before donning an old beat up and anonymous suit of mandalorian armor and flying to fight with him. The Duchess of Mandalore offers no comment. The official story is that her husband is sick in bed from a nasty case of Flafu flu. No one knows that it’s the Duke of mandalore in the red armor, supporting Skywalker’s troops.

Ahsoka wonders if Anakin knows, up until the moment some droid gets a lucky shot in and obi-wan goes down on the battlefield and anakin levels an entire field of droids to get to him looking half out of his mind with worry and rage….then she knows he knows and maybe that he’s always known

She’s tensed up over the reset button again, but after obi-wan’s been seen to by the medic, anakin sends him back to his wife on mandalore and, miraculously, after 2 years fighting to be by anakin’s side, obi-wan…stays, but he looks so beaten down over it, so without half his heart, like he’s suddenly aged 20 years and lived in a desert for all of them. But he stays.

The war ends eventually and the Jedi triumph. Ten years later, leia runs through Anakin’s study with an old red helmet over her head as Luke runs after her, playing war. anakin gently takes it off her and sets her on the ground. He cradles the helmet though in battle worn hands, but thankfully before either of them can ask, padmes speeder arrives and they shoot off to go welcome their mom home - anakin stays for a second longer, just staring at the helmet with such a naked expression of wistfulness longing heartbreak and acceptance that Ahsoka almost wants to turn away. Before she does she sees anakin touch his forehead to the helmet’s once before rising and putting it away, turning instead to go greet his wife

and it leaves Ahsoka with such a WEIRD feeling in her own heart that she’s pressing the reset button before she can think it through because she wants them to be apart and she wants the Jedi to win the war and everyone to get their happy endings but…but not like this…not if they’re not happy….she gets 1 reset where she gets to be selfish ok she’s gone through thousands now probably.

#asks #obikin #time traveler Ahsoka au #a marriage of minds and a whole heaping load of what ifs and almosts #obi-wans marriage to Satine is never the same because she can’t forgive him for all the fighting he willingly waded into #and they both know he only #did it because his pet Jedi was in danger #obi-wan says there’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to help a friend #but they both know anakin was hardly just a friend #meanwhile Padmé #knows less than Satine because she never really saw them #interact #after several years of emotional agony because anakin knows he fell in love with obi-wan whole #they were fighting together and maybe even before that even though they never broke their vows to their wives #he finally tells Padmé that the red mandalorian was obi-wan Duke of mandalore #most of the significance of that is lost on Padmé because anakin kept his Jedi life and his personal life so far apart #she thinks it’s strange the Duke #of mandalore would fly out to fight with anakin but she’s grateful of course #and decides the war makes strangers of them all

[dark-elf-writes]

Youvr got me back into my love of Desmond and my hat for William and all I'm thinking os Sally Jackson either A adopting sixteen year old Des or Co parent with him but both end with William facing angry demigods

I will accept the blame because I love Desmond Miles so much.

Akdjjsjshsj I’m not like up to date with PJO anymore but I’m imagining Percy who adores his older brother who scared off his abusive stepfather with little more than a kitchen knife and stone steady words as he swore that if he put his hands on Sally again it would be the last thing he ever did. Desmond who is normal enough that it hides Percy’s presence for years keeping him safe from monsters and gods know what else. Desmond who despite not being a demigod himself was always a bit different in other ways that no one could quite put their finger on including why his eyes sometimes glowed and he would see things no one else could or how he would know when bad people were around. Desmond who gets a normal ish life with people who love him.

And of course Desmond who gets kidnapped anyway and thrown back into a world of assassins and templars only for a very pissed off younger brother to storm Abstergo with a pen, a Pegasus, and an intense issue with any authority figure he has ever met.

#the elf talks #assassins creed #percy jackson #most of what I know is from the original books that I read in like middle school so forgive any inaccuracies and just assume it’s part #of the au ig #Percy as a feral younger brother is living in my mind rent free now #William is getting his ass kicked like Percy has to make it even #not that Desmond is any less feral he is just older feral and with less training #Desmond would swing on a god for his baby brother though liken #they’re equally matched

[fatalism-and-villainy]

Half-formed thought here, but. Usually in my mind I assume that the topic of Abigail goes almost completely unspoken between Will and Hannibal post-canon, but... man. What if they were even more unhinged about it than that. Like, what if they displayed a massive portrait of her on the mantlepiece or something, as a symbol of Will getting Hannibalpilled and buying into the idea that her death was a sad but inevitable consequence of the force of nature that is Hannibal. And then everyone who visited the house assumed she was just a beloved relative of one of them or something, without knowing anything about the details of how she died (or even that she was dead). And whatever murder buddies/protégés/frenemies/pseudo-children/sexy little thirds/[whatever unholy combination of those things] Will and Hannibal acquired would piece together some very idealized understanding of her as the Perfect Dead Sister-Daughter that they could never measure up to, whose ghostly presence hangs over them... and then coming to the very macabre discovery that Hannibal was the one who killed her! I think that'd be neat.

#hannibal #headcanoning #hannigram #abigail hobbs #(abigail honey i'm sorry i like you when you're alive too) #i think the reason i can't get into 'murder family' scenarios where abigail lives #is that what i find most interesting about abigail as a character has less to do with her relationships with will and hannibal #(even though those relationships are relevant insofar as they refract the shadow of her father) #BUT when she's dead. hell yeah let's go hog-wild with the gothic dead sister-daughter in the attic vibes #my season 4 mind palace #hannibal talk #honestly the 'i forgive you' moment in the chapel in palermo #was like. a big turning point for Unhinged Graham #despite him trying to turn his back on hannibal in digestivo #forgiving him for abigail was really the gateway for forgiving him for anything #of course he gets past hannibal trying to kill molly and walter. #he's angry but knows he shouldn't be surprised #whether he could ever snap back from that. well that's the question

[fictionadventurer]

Me: Is this Farmer Boy sequel written in 2012 really going to be able to feel like a legitimate follow-up to the style and atmosphere of the original, or is it just another modern cash-grab?

Heather Williams, on page 2: Best of all, he knew that fall meant crispy spareribs and sweet cider and hot roasted potatoes with melting butter and all the pumpkin pie he could eat.

Me: ....it looks like I can trust you. Carry on.

#little house #farmer boy goes west #i'm about halfway through and i'm fairly impressed #she seems to be making a legitimate effort to match some of the stylistic quirks of the original #there are pieces that are anachronistic or too modern #or elements that fit better into the laura books than the almanzo one #(mrs. wilder of farmer boy would not give an explanation of the history of jenny lind trunks even though caroline ingalls would) #there is a lot of focus on food (good) #perhaps a bit too much focus on horses (he wouldn't spend *all* his time thinking about starlight) #the throughline of 'what does he want to be' is stupid when we know he wants to be a farmer #the parents feel less old-fashioned than they did in the original #the sibling dynamics are pretty good (especially with alice) #there are some things that are fun in light of the later books but aren't obnoxious wink wink style foreshadowing #the author's note makes it clear that she did try to do her research and stick to real history and to laura's heavily altered timeline #and i can totally forgive her for a really shoehorned in conversation #because when you find out that the future founder of sears was in spring valley at the same time as almanzo #you *have* to stick that in no matter how clunky it is

[p2ii]

I feel like there's something to be said about the way fandom will treat characters who's trauma they can personally relate to Vs characters who they cant

#like obviously fandom has a thing against unpalatable victims regardless of where their trauma is from #but like #people tend to be way more understanding and compassionate to trauma that they can personally relate to or comprehend #in narutos case: #naruto struggled academically and was bullied as a child. he was alone and neglected on an emotional/domestic level #people can relate to aspects of his character despite the fantasy stuff of being a human sacrifice and part of the military and tend to car #alot more about his struggles #on the other hand the uchiha are discriminated against. sasuke is the sole survivor of ethnic cleansing/genocide. that is not something mos #people could even fathom the pain and trauma of. i mean its fucking /genocide/. and ontop of that he was essentially mind raped by his #brother. the person who he loved the most who betrayed him #and is still expected to function in a society that provides no support and continues to objectify him for his clans desirable traits #i feel like atla is also a good example #people can relate to and sympathize with the parental abuse and inadequacy/anger issues zuko deals with. and are forgiving when it comes to #his redeption arc #but when you take a character like jet. who has trauma in loosing his entire village/community and taking on a caretaker role to other #war orphans. thats not exactly a regual occurrence the average person can personally understand. his trauma is directly related to the war #and so despite him doing WAYY less shitty things than zuko. his is still demonized by the narrative. killed off and then mocked #and the fandom largely saw nothing wrong with this outcome #hama is in a similar bag but she also has the whole 'exploding apartments of pregnant women' distraction tactics added onto her #cause just showing colonialism and forced assimilation and fucking SLAVERY is bad on its own isnt enough ig #psii.txt #slavery mention #genocide mention #rape mention

[khruschevshoe]

"You too, huh?": An Unhinged Ten/Jack/Martha Meta

Alright, so, Ten/Martha/Jack's dynamic has been rotating rent free in my brain all week. You have two people- Jack and Martha- who both admit to fancying a man who could never love them back, a man who is so embroiled in grief over a woman that Jack clearly once loved as much as he loved the Doctor, a man who showed them the stars and showed them the horrors of the universe. A man who directly leads to them both becoming greater and worse than they ever were before, a man who took their lives and twisted himself inside of every strand of them forever, a man who offered them a hand and kissed them and became the best and the worst thing to ever happen to them.

And it's not just the Year That Never Was- it's more than that. It's Jack dying for the Doctor and then being cursed with eternity and yet despite a century of being tortured by Torchwood/waiting for the Doctor, he never lost hope in the Doctor being able to fix him. It's Martha going through some of the worst shit any companion has had to in a single season (the racism/hopelessness she had to face in Human Nature/Family of Blood, being stuck in the 1960s for months and having to get a job with no guarantee that she'd ever make it out, having to walk the dystopian earth for a year with the weight of the literal world on her shoulders, nearly burning to death due to a living sun, taking on the psychological weight of keeping the Doctor steady- hell, the Doctor's purposeful ignorance of her feelings isn't even at the top of the list and yet it still did damage) and yet managing to find the strength to respect herself and leave.

It's the way that both of them have their images of the Doctor irreversibly cracked at the end of the Year That Never Was. They still believe in the Doctor, would still go to the ends of the earth for the planet, as we see in Journey's End, but they don't quite fancy him anymore. They can't. Jack was tortured and killed over and over again by the Master for a year straight and Martha was forced to walk the burning earth for a year straight while her family was tortured and yet at the end of it all, the Doctor didn't comfort them. He cradled the Master in his arms and begged him to regenerate and sobbed when he didn't.

It's the way that Martha and Jack are the ones to make the initial threats to Davros in Journey's End. (Yes, Sarah Jane helped with the warp star, and made threats of her own, but Martha and Jack opened up the comms. They looked the creator of the Daleks in the eyes and said do you hear me?) Martha and Jack walk off at the end of Journey's End holding hands, because they're so similar, at the end of the day, because they understand each other, because "you too, huh?"

But it's also the Doctor looking at them both and seeing Jack and seeing something wrong with the man he once loved (don't tell me that Nine didn't reciprocate his feelings, I've got a whole post on the Rose/Jack/Nine dynamic) that he can't ignore, because he's the last one of his species and he's the only one left to pay attention to the laws of time. It's the Doctor needing a doctor of his own, someone with a better grasp on themselves than he does, and completely ignoring the damage that it does to her to keep him steady.

It's the Doctor being unable to love Jack while Jack over and over again coming to his call. It's the Doctor coming the second that Martha calls him in the Sontaran Stratagem and maybe, just maybe, realizing that he got something wrong. It's about Martha being a doctor being a soldier and the Doctor being a soldier who never wanted to be a soldier but won't admit that he's a soldier and Jack being a con-man who was fixed and broken by a doctor and so became a soldier to find his Doctor.

(It's about the fact that after Journey's End happened and the Doctor lost Donna and Rose, he really should have realized what he could have had waiting for him. Maybe gone back and groveled and maybe gotten slapped and then gotten hugged. Or kissed. Or they slept together, if that's your jam.)

#did not mean to ramble for so long #i want to read every fic about them #i want to explore the fucked up dynamic between them #I want Jack and Martha to have comfort sex after the Year that Never Was #i want the Doctor to grovel for forgiveness #i want him to understand that he loves them and actually figure out what to deal with that #never would have happened but a girl can dream #ten x jack x martha #tenmartha #jack x martha #ten x jack #listen just as unhinged as the nine/jack/rose ot3 but WAY less wholesome and way more damaged #captain jack harkness #martha jones #tenth doctor #rotating RENT FREE in my brain #meta #i don't even know if this is proper analysis #i just have some FEELINGS about them okay?