So I can usually parse at least a VAGUE idea of what something's about based on out-of-context gifsets but I'm coming up totally blank on what the hell this Haven show's about. The only thing I think I've figured out about it is that I like this Duke guy's face. So uh.... what's it about? XD (and is it worth a watch?)
Is it worth a watch?
Oh. OH. Have I GOT A SHOW FOR YOU. *rubs hands together gleefully*
Intro
Based on the Stephen King novella “The Colorado Kid”, this Canadian-American Syfy series is set in the quaint, seaside town of Haven, Maine (actually filmed in Nova Scotia, so it looks the part), where many of the local residents harbor supernatural afflictions referred to by the locals as “Troubles”. The Troubles have always existed - but have a habit of coming and going throughout the ages - and the quirky, standoffish townsfolk are understandably wary of strangers.
Main Cast
Enter Audrey Parker (Emily Rose), a spunky, beautiful FBI agent with a mysterious past who visits Haven on what she believes to be a routine assignment to track down a fugitive, only to find herself in wayyy over her head. She feels drawn to this town she has most definitely never been to before in an eerie, unsettling way, and she just can't seem to leave. Hmmm. Maybe she isn't such an outsider after all? *strokes mustache*
Immediately upon her arrival, Audrey has a run in with the local law. Meet Nathan Wuornos (Lucas Bryant), the stiff, serious, emotionally-constipated, handsome Haven PD detective with daddy issues and a rare medical condition which prevents him from feeling any (physical) sensation... neither pleasure nor pain. Can Audrey break down the walls around his carefully-guarded heart and help him feel something? Anything?
And then there's Duke. Nathan's beloved sworn enemy frenemy since childhood, Duke Crocker (Eric Balfour) is a swashbuckling smuggler and pirate (no, actually), who also has daddy issues. And mommy issues. Just... ALL the issues. He is snarky, charming, rogue-ishly good-looking... and almost always doing something super illegal sketchy, but he secretly has a heart of gold, okay? Solid, piratey gold. We like his face. We like his character development even more.
Surrounded by a cast of delightfully peculiar and endearing supporting characters, this odd throuple (BROT3? OT3? NOT3? You decide...) have to figure out exactly how they are all connected and why the universe has brought them together now, of all times.
Plot
You like a particular trope? This show's got it! There's romance. There's mystery. There's humor. There's angst. There's fluff (but a high angst-to-fluff ratio, just the way I like it). There's magic and curses. There are ghosts and monsters and shapeshifters and aliens... oh my! There's body-swapping. There are dimensional/space/time travel hijinks. There's a TARDIS in the form of an old barn. There's... reanimated taxidermy...
Anyway, it's an interesting premise with some truly stellar characters, relationship dynamics, and character development/arcs, and, as the series unfolds, there are some really good plot twists and reveals.
Caveat
(PARTIAL SPOILER ALERT: I must warn you, there is a major character death at the end of S5, and it's pretty upsetting to watch. If you can't handle main character deaths, you might not want to watch that far... or at all. Personally, I'm glad I did, even though it hurt like hell... but it will 100% haunt me forever.)
If you do decide to give it a go, please tell me, so I can squee with you!
[ID: Seven gifs from Leverage: Redemption of Eliot wearing black leather armor with silver studs. He has a sword fight with two men wearing silver plate armor over chainmail.
When the fight starts, each man has a sword and a round shield. As the fight progresses, Eliot is winning and drops his sword and shield in favor of using his fists and elbows.
In the end, Eliot knocks both men out. He then takes one of their swords and twirls it in the air as he turns away from them. He drops to one knee and stabs the sword into the ground in front of him
In the last gif, Eliot looks up and shakes his hair out of his face. The lightest parts of the gif radiate pink sparkles, making the gif appear glittery. end ID]
*Steve Rogers voice* Fellas, do you ever find yourself wishing you had America's Ass™? Well, you're in luck! For a limited time only, wash with LIBERTY LATHER from Dr. Squatch... and you, too, can smell like freedom, non-toxic masculinity, and justice for all! Buy your bar today, boys, and show us just how true-blue your blood - and bathwater - runs!
My favorite thing about Teen Wolf is watching so many people try so hard to hate Scott and just slowly, kicking and screaming all the way, become undyingly loyal and devoted to him or at least finding themselves on his side. There should be a Failed Enemies of Scott McCall support group co-headed by Derek Hale and Chris Argent.
They should also write a book together called So Some Dopey Fucking Teenager Destroyed Your Whole Belief System, Now What?
Saw my first post with someone admitting they used chatGPT to ‘write a fic’ which they then shared here on tumblr and on Ao3.
To be clear, using AI to churn out a piece of fiction is not writing.
Using a bot (possibly one that was trained using a scrape of Ao3, that is to say, the theft of work from every writer who has posted their work on Ao3) is NOT WRITING.
It is theft. It isn’t creation. It’s a regurgitation of the consumed collective work and effort and heart and time of every writer who has shared their work on Ao3.
‘I’m not a good writer’ is no excuse.
Want to be a writer? Put in the time everyone else does to practice.
Don’t feel confident in your work? Open yourself up to the same vulnerability and risk that the rest of us do.
You don’t get to use a fucking bot to vomit out an approximation of a story and pretend you’ve got skin in the game.
The sad thing? This bot-assembled fic wasn’t bad. It was bland, but it had internal logic, some passing context to character and canon. It wasn’t like those early AI art pieces that had surreal compositions and extra fingers. It wasn’t immediately obvious it was made by a bot.
In this instance the person who posted it admitted they had used a bot. Which, actually, I have some respect for. But it probably isn’t the first and it won’t be the last.
I don’t know that there’s a solution to this, but it is both hurting my heart and enraging me.
the worst part ab having online friends is that to maintain the friendship you actually sort of have to have conversations with them. if we were all irl friends i would invite you into my home, give u my xbox controller & let u play a game on my bed while i lie next to u and coexist in ur space and backseat game you