#2x07: Show Me The Money

[heaven-and-earth17]

{Robin Hood BBC} Show Me The Money - 2x07

#Robin Hood #Robin Hood BBC #BBC Robin Hood #Robin Hood 2006 #2006 Robin Hood #Robin and Marian #Robin x Marian #Robin & Marian #Robian #Marbin #Lucy Griffiths #Jonas Armstrong #Love #OTP #Crying #I always forget about this scene but I love the way she’s so sad and she just clearly wants a hug

[blackjack-15]

Hi I just got through reading all of your liveblogging posts about The Bear! It was a delight to read all of your real-time predictions that ended up coming true, you really had this show’s number from the jump lol. Do you have any predictions for next season? Most fans think Carm and Syd are headed for an explosive confrontation, but are any other storylines, scenes, character beats, etc. that you think we might see?

This is super nice of you, anon! thank you so much for following my chaotic ramblings XD and hey it's a lot easier to know what might happen in the show when they've got such competent writers/directors! tho they surprised me a fair number of times (i don't think i'll be over the interplay/intercuts of claire, carmy, and syd at the end of 2X07/start of 2X08 any time soon), which keeps things fun

as far as predictions for next season...i think it's hard to say without having the first five minutes of S3 in front of me (they do such a good job setting up the tone and conflicts of the season in the first little bit of S1 and S2!), but i've got

a couple things i'm pretty sure about:

-more REM songs (only thing i'm 100% positive on)

-more kitchen/cooking time for our mains, especially carmy. last season's renovations + cliche john hughes nonsense kept him mostly out of the kitchen from ep 3 on, and i'm 99% sure he'll be back with a knife in hand come S3

-nat giving birth to a girl (i'd love it but am not solid on predicting she'd be named some derivative of 'mary' (or a name meaning 'victory', such as nicole), given the berzatto family prayer).

i know the temptation for her to have a boy named after michael is strong b/c it's TV, but this series (rightly, in my mind) tends away from Lionizing the Dead simply b/c they're dead, and after spending S2 breaking down mikey (and showing mikey and nat's relationship, which like ever berzatto relationship wasn't super healthy), i'm hopeful and trusting the writers to avoid this. it wouldn't make me hate the show or anything, but it would honestly disappoint me unless done in a way (i honestly can't think of what way) that would make it okay. plus pete kinda screams girldad to me, and seeing carmy and richie with a little niece would be incredibly precious

-sydcarmy dustup of some kind, but i doubt it'll be as explosive as we've seen in the past, mostly b/c syd was stressed but exhilarated by success at friends & family and b/c i think carmy's (lack of) mental health will be brought up in relation to it

-solidifying of a secondary staff at the bear to let our regulars breathe a bit and have the bear feel like a real, functioning kitchen, not a mom and pop greasy spoon -- this started at the end of s2 but it needs to continue

-cicero setting the tone of the first few months of The Bear (and probably his commentary on carmy's relationships) -- we're not out of the realm of Complete and Utter Failure yet, lads, and the money is gonna come due -- whether by the guise of Friendly Uncle Jimmy visiting with Nat, or the mask of Cicero the Loan Shark coming out in full force

-art storyline with carmy figuring out what will replace the awful painting (i'm going to guess it'll be something of his design, but it'll at least be something he feels represents him, given the comments last season)

-major theme of carmy figuring out what he wants vs what others want for him. him analyzing his relationship with claire by himself -- or, my preference, talking it out with Tina, who he seems to be able to open up to pretty well -- is part of this

things that have to happen but i have no idea how/to what resolution:

-carmy and richie addressing the "donna" fight/comment. it's gonna be multi-ep (neither one is great at complimenting the other to their face and tend to do it behind the other's back, but richie is especially bad at it), and it's gonna hurt.

-pete spilling the beans to Someone (not nat but not sure who) about donna being at f&f

-resident claire's poor little hurt feelings from trespassing into the kitchen and eavesdropping on then leaving carmy in the middle of a really, really bad attack (yes i'm phrasing it that way because it's true <3)

-something about tiff's upcoming wedding (marcus getting contracted/recommended to make dessert for it would be painful but oh so crunchy)

-carmy meets syd's dad. he's proud of her and her success and you know he's gonna want to meet her business partner

nebulous predictions:

-ebra's storyline with him carving out a niche at the sandwich window getting screentime

-tina coming more into her own and maybe getting a designated storyline (about what? no idea)

-more gary nonsense. man lives the wildest life and we see almost none of it

-carmy working through what cooking means to him and what it means in relation to the bear/the berzattos/sydney

-nat's water breaks/she goes into labor at the bear. not sure the baby will actually be born there (i'd guess probably not on the whole), but the process will Begin there

-syd distraction/love interest storyline. not even her dating particularly, just her attention being Split and having the shoe be on the other foot for carmy as they navigate what being business partners means outside the kitchen

-fak time. he's a little uncertain, a little wandering in the restaurant, and he was a major...antagonistic force, let's say? in S2. his place in the world of the bear needs clarification and harmony, and his identity needs solidity and sureness

things that aren't impossible/improbable but would be a Little Treat for Me specifically:

-chef jess being invited to the bear by richie (let the man have people outside the bear and his kid/ex! garrett may come too i'll allow it)

-the return of louie my beloved (helping out at the sandwich window? he makes a good foil to Young Carmy, so i would like to see him more -- carmy in Full Mentorship would be a thing to see, and it would be a being-better-than-mikey-was-to-him thing as well. it's narratively crunchy and provides lots of room for growth, but can be done in ways that don't involve louie, so that's why it's here)

-syd's best meal + comment about being a regular at The Beef coming back. do i think they eventually will? yes. am i aware that my desire for them is prolly stronger than it narratively should be be predicted? also yes. could this easily be combined with carmy meeting syd's dad? yes and i will break the sound barrier

-carmy drawing a dish syd comes up with. a hand-drawn menu for the bear would be Incredible, and syd's face looking at a sistine-chapel-style drawing of a dish she came up with? tremendous, chef

thing that i want to be brought up more than Anything but don't predict it'll be touched (at least directly):

-carmy yelling for syd during his attack in the walk-in (i'm sorry you can't have the man yelling "MARCUS GET ME SYD. GET ME SYD" and expect me not to want it on a billboard

that got long, sorry anon, but there we go -- 4am rambling off-the-cuff about S3...only months to go, hopefully....

#the bear #anti claire bear #asked and answered #sorry this is like a novella but i can't keep my mouth shut! y'all know how it goes #syd x carmy #i refer to her as 'resident claire' because 1) no surname and 2) referring to her place in the bear universe as a Type rather than a person #she's not claire a fleshed out character; she's the resident claire; the archetype that is a vehicle for conflict + growth #also because i am as catty as the day is long and i can be! been in fandom too many decades not to call it as i see it #that and it's her job title so like it works but it works in so many different ways #it's like poetry it rhymes dot jpeg #i might be way off base but i'm p sure i'm at least on the field

[elliebartlets]

veronica mars rewatch 2x07: nobody puts baby in a corner

• hey dirty dancing reference! I’ve been wanting to rewatch that movie for like a week and this just reminded me I was supposed to watch it with my mom today lol

• lol Kendall recognizes Veronica from the gym

• I still don’t understand why Logan can’t just…rent a room in the hotel

• Kendall is 25?! Lmao

• is that teacher not mad about Mr Casablancas fleeing the country and screwing him over? He’s teaching as if nothing ever happened.

• no I remember this abuse plotline…they find the kid in a closet and Lamb shows up (probably because Duncan and Veronica break into the house) and they tell him to look in the closet for the kid and I think he actually does the right thing for once and finds the kid. but I could’ve sworn the kid was Meg’s little sister and not a random kid she was babysitting?

• ok yeah they’re talking about breaking in to Meg’s house to get the book the abused kid wrote in and I think that’s when they see Meg’s sister in the closet

• oh god I remember this teacher she’s so annoying

• “Isn’t this [chlamydia] a flower? We have it on like a trellis at our beach house.”

“Your trellis is a whore” lmao

• oh this mom who wouldn’t let her daughter share the scholarship with that Asian kid because said kid’s dad terrorized her daughter so she’d lose her place as highest GPA

• you gotta admit this show doesn’t just drop most characters. most shows just show them once and pretend they don’t exist again

• what on earth is that dad talking about? Is he inviting Veronica to smoke weed and have sex at his house when they’re gone???

• omg Wallace is still gone! :(

• oh dick and beaver’s mom. interesting. I don’t remember much about her but I’m getting the sense that she doesn’t care for her kids much. like she doesn’t want to sign the trust fund over to them because she doesn’t want them to blow all their money away, but she also doesn’t want them to go live in Europe with her and her husband even with their dad gone.

• akdjshsh the way the teacher’s kid is staring comatose at the tv 💀💀

• she got a date with deputy sacks lol

• I do remember this sleepover involved the other 09er girls, which makes no sense to me. Like Gia told Veronica that she was having a hard time making friends and how no one “got her” yet she has all these other girls there???

• lmao Kendall really is just trying to fuck any rich dude she sees to get $$$

• god this would be my sleepover from hell too

• see they made it difficult to tell what kid is being abused because they all have their weird quirks and act weird so they all could be abused

• not Madison Sinclair saying pretty woman is her favorite movie. Please no, I can’t agree with something Madison Sinclair says.

• hmm the cigar place sells drugs so that doctor guy is obviously…buying drugs? Or selling them to other ppl? Idk I’m not good at guessing anything in this show lol

• oh my god Logan really thinks Kendall and Duncan didn’t sleep together??? Dude she was in his room for a while apparently and you thought they were just talking??

• yep I was right. God I remember this whole “breaking into Meg’s house and discovering her abused sister in the closet” scene so well

• “I don’t wanna be tested.” What???? What the hell were they doing to her??

• at least Lamb did the decent thing for once in his fucking life

• I believe he was also abused by his father as a child based on what he said to Meg’s dad

• did he drive back to the Manning house to stake them out?

• this music is eerie and really works at making the scene so tense

• does anything ever come out of this plot though?? Like I don’t remember seeing any more of Meg’s family and the abuse plotline or any repercussions from it

#veronica mars #vmars #nobody puts baby in a corner #vmars rewatch

[mesillusionssousecstasy]

TSITP 2x07 - "Love Affaire" : Review

It was finally looking like a summer vibe type of episode.

Did anyone notice that in this episode we didn't have any Belly's POV / voice-over. I would have loved to have her thoughts on the kiss she shared with Jeremiah.

I was honestly shock by Laurel attitude toward Belly at the beginning, the slap wasn't necessary.

We got robbed of any Taylor and Steven's moments.

The house plot got resolved quite easily it just needed for Laurel to get sooner to Cousins. Aunt Julia is not to be blamed, but Adam.... I honestly still don't get the necessity of why this character was created in the first place. Even worse the movers move all the stuff from the house to replace them exactly in the same place again? Very convenient. As for Adam I will become homeless with his solution? Isn't the principal house in Boston also full with Susannah's memories?

I'm glad that Belly and Conrad got to talk and appeased the situation.

I'm also glad that Jeremiah and Conrad got to talk on the beach and share thoughts. To have a mature conversation for once.

I loved every touching moment between Jeremiah and Belly, and there were a lot.

I would have loved for Belly to confess the feelings she has about Jeremiah to Conrad, but maybe not just before a super important examen.

I honestly cried during Laurel and Susannah's flash back. It was emotionally intense.

I really didn't see the bromance coming between Steven and Conrad.

Belly and Steven's moment was nice in this episode.

We finally learned that we are currently in June, because the 4th of July has not yet passed.

Furthermore, I firmly believe that it's Belly last time at the Cousins house during this season. The way she looked at the front of the house when Jeremiah drive them away.

Then it was the best part where Jeremiah got to show Flinch College to Belly. The complicity of those two together is phenomenal. The way they were flirting but without getting in not to hurt each other. He is definitively her best friend, the boy she knows better than anyone else. The ideal partner that every girl wants in their life. And during the tour, we could really see a glimpse of their future together on the campus as boyfriend and girlfriend. The all scene made me think about an ad for "Abercrombi & Fitch".

And then the moment that everyone was waiting for since the beginning of the season finally happened, but everything made it more messy, because finally everything was settled and went "back to normal", but Belly decided to kiss Jeremiah in Brown and not during their tour in Flinch, creating this all mess in the first place. In a way, I think she did it because she became aware of what she could have during their journey back to Brown and she couldn't miss her chance. She wants Jeremiah and the future they will have as she told him so well inside the Volleyball court. I really could picture them there living a beautiful couple life. But then Conrad caught them, that's why Belly was wearing the Brown sweat, never exchanging it with the Flinch sweat, as a foreshadowing that Conrad is still there. As for the kissing part on the Ranger Rover, some people are saying that's Conrad's car, but I honestly don't see the point in it, because I'm pretty sure that the true owner of the car is their father who had the money to buy this type of car in the first place.

As for the kiss it was very hot, the most intense kiss two characters has shared in this series. Jeremiah was true to his world, he really couldn't stop kissing her and touching her too. At one point, I thought he would put down Belly on the front of the car and take her here and there (oh my mind.... what are you doing to me). But Conrad appeared at the wrong time and the wrong moment.

As for the cliffhanger it's really a kind of season's ending scene. I could honestly see this episode to be the last before season 3.

#tsitp thoughts #tsitp season 2 #tsitp 2 #tsitp #tsitp 2x07 #love affaire #the summer i turned pretty #the summer i turned pretty season 2 #belly x jeremiah #belly x jeremiah x conrad #team jelly #where are taylor and steven #tsitp review

[svenni-le]

Rant or Character/Relationship Analysis (?)

Since I saw a lot of people angry about the way Tatum got written out and the way Leighton broke up with her, I decided to go back and rewatch all of Tatum's scenes and boy did I notice some stuff (and yes I have quotes and stuff):

1. For context: I started watching TSLOCG because I saw story videos for Alicia & Leighton on Youtube. I really liked Alicia in S1 and I understood her decision to break up with Leighton. I'm not gonna talk about the discussion of "Alicia forced Leighton to come out", cause that's not the purpose of this post. Then S2 came out and I liked Leighton deciding to have some fun and be in her "hoe era". Tatum was introduced and I was really excited cause I really like Gracie (from Chasing Life, if anyone remembers that). I wasn't really sure about Tatum at first, but she won me over in 2x08.

2. I'm not trying to convince anyone to like Alicia nor am I trying to compare Alicia and Tatum or their relationships with Leighton. I'm just trying to show that Tatum wasn't the nice person some are making her out to be (if that makes sense).

3. Let's get into FACTS/QUOTES/REASONS:

- when Leighton was asked what her type is, she only described how her perfect woman would look like, not how their personality would be -> Tatum might be the perfect woman for Leighton, but only on a very superficial level

- Tatum might be understanding when it came to Leighton not being out to her dad, even Leighton had very nice and understanding moments but most times she was still being a bitch

- she almost ran over Leighton in 2x05, at this point Leighton was still a stranger to her so yeah...

- Leighton about Tatum: "She's so indifferent." (2x06)

- "But that should be fun for like Gen Pop." (2x06)

- Tatum's annoyed look at Leighton at the party in 2x06, when Leighton has done nothing wrong

- "I've never been Prada-shamed before." (2x06) -> explains itself

- "Just to be clear I'm not a Dining Hall person." (2x07)

- "Yikes, I'm sorry. [...] It all feels a little basic and fake." (2x07) -> technically not wrong, but after Leighton told her she got into Kappa; they were still getting to know each other

- "Her personality was as ugly as her name." (2x08)

- Tatum talks bady about her sex life with her ex, while her ex is present (2x09) -> you just shouldn't do that

- "The only time I consider dressing on theme is for the Met gala." (2x09) -> when she's invited to a costume party

- Tatum's judging looks at the Women's Center (-2x09)

- "I love all the Rainbows. So on the nose." (2x09) -> that's sth that S1 Leighton would have said

- "It's kinda cute they thought they could raise money by auctioning off things that are arguably garbage. I mean what is this other than being fucking ugly?" (2x09) -> doesn't even apologise when she gets called out for it

- "Guess I'm the asshole now?" (2x09) -> she directly insults somebody's work, gets called out for it and still thinks she's done nothing wrong

- "I am sorry, but this place smells like a wet thrift shop." (2x09)

4. Tatum only started paying real attention / reacted positively to Leighton, AFTER Leighton bragged about her being more judgemental than Tatum.

5. Leighton felt the constant need to do something in order to impress Tatum or change her personality and you shouldn't feel that way about a new potential partner. I really didn't like they way Leighton behaved, it was like she's back to S1 Leighton.

- Leighton bought Willow a jacket just so Willow would introduce them, also taking a creepy picture of Tatum

- Leighton was excited about the comedy show, but "changed" her opinion after Tatum judged her for it

- Leighton felt the need to play games in order to "maintain her high-status" (waiting to text back, making herself seem busy)

- Leighton lied multiple times (about non-existent friends, makingup a cool party), she even says: "I lied to impress her.", "I really need to impress somebody."

- Leighton payed the pilates instructor to go easy on her and compliment her

6. They were never supposed to be a long-time thing. From the start they were set up to break up.

- Willow talking about "Twincest" and it being weird

- Willow described Tatum as Leighton's "Doppelbanger"

- Lila joking about mixing up Leighton and Tatum

7. All of this was not my way of saying that Tatum needs to change for Leighton, nobody should. I'm just saying that these two are not right for each other. Leighton did a lot of work on herself and she opened her mind to other people's perspectives, so staying with Tatum would have just set her back.

Leighton even says: "Maybe dating you has made me realize that the things we have in common are the things that I wanna change about myself."

At first this was supposed to be just a short post but the more I rewatched Tatum's scenes, the longer it got.

#tslocg #slocg #slocg s2 #leighton murray #leighton x tatum #tatum #reneé rapp #gracie dzienny

[featheredwatchman]

2x07 - Show Me The Money Robin Hood Re-Watch

#oh I'm sorry I didn't want to cry today and yet HERE I AM #2x07: Show Me The Money #Robin Hood BBC #Robin Hood Rewatch #Edward of Knighton #my gifs #there are so many fun moments in this episode #so it always takes me completely by surprise when it RIPS MY HEART OUT #RIP Edward

[nbcgoodgirlsdaily]

beth x rio + rainbow (insp. 1 and 2)

[image description: 7 stacked gifs, each one composed by 2 gifs in colour, which have the same background colour, and 2 gifs in grayscale. one of the gifs in grayscale has white text overlay that says the line being spoken. the gifs in colour go in this order: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, pink. all gifs show beth and rio, from good girls.

the first big gif consists of: a gif with a red background of beth and rio talking at the bar in 2x04; a greyscale gif of rio gripping beth’s thigh in 2x04; a greyscale gif of rio pushing beth’s hair out of her face in 2x02, with white text overlay that reads “are you going to kill me? / i’m gonna teach you.”; a gif with a red background of beth smiling after rio ups the girls’ drop.

the second big gif consists of: a gif with an orange background of beth and rio talking in her kitchen in 1x03; a greyscale gif of rio smiling at beth after she asks him to kill “dave” in 4x04; a greyscale gif of rio holding his gun under beth’s chin in 2x06, with white text overlay that reads “oh, you think you’re special, uh? / you need me.”; a gif with an orange background of rio pushing beth′s hair out of her face in 2x01.

the third big gif consists of: a gif with a yellow background of beth and rio sitting on a park bench in 4x16; a greyscale gif of rio giving beth his gun in 2x13; a greyscale gif of beth and rio talking about lucy’s murder in 3x06, with white text overlay that reads “you, me, we. it’s just business.”; a gif with a yellow background of rio smiling at beth as she freaks out about the body parts he sent her in the mail in 2x11.

the fourth big gif consists of: a gif with a green background of beth and rio sitting together at a table in paper porcupine’s back room; a greyscale gif of beth and rio kissing in 2x09; a greyscale gif of beth and rio sitting together during rio’s family get-together, with white text overlay that reads “she helps me out. that right? / we’re partners.”; a gif with a green background of beth and rio sitting on her picnic table in 2x08.

the fifth big gif consists of: a gif with a blue background of beth and rio negotiating beth’s cut in 2x06; a greyscale gif of rio looking up at beth after the ob-gyn says she’s pregnant in 3x03; a greyscale gif of rio talking to beth in boland bubbles’ empty showroom, with white text overlay that reads “next time, empty the clip.”; a gif with a blue background of rio holding beth’s hand as she passes him a duffel bag underneath the table in 2x05.

the sixth big gif consists of: a gif with a purple background of beth and rio talking in the breakroom of sweet p’s as beth counts money in 4x14; a greyscale gif of beth smiling at rio during their talk in the bar in 3x08; a greyscale gif of rio smiling as he threatens beth in 3x03, with white text overlay that reads “you're my girl, and so i'ma take it easy on you. i'll do it myself.”; a gif with a purple background of rio touching beth’s hand while helping her aim her pool cue in 4x03.

the seventh big gif consists of: a gif with a pink background of beth’s van and rio’s cadillac parked side by side in 1x05; a greyscale gif of beth and rio with their foreheads touching in 4x06; a greyscale gif of beth talking to rio at the bar in 4x07, with white text overlay that reads “so, dinner was, uh... fun, yeah? / parts of it.”; a gif with a pink background of beth holding the dubby in 2x07. /end id]

#nbc good girls #good girls nbc #goodgirlsedit #tvedit #userstream #usersource #chewieblog #bbelcher #dailyreblogs #dailytvfilmgifs #tvseriessource #tvcentric #tvfilmspot #cinematv #userl #* #gifs #beth x rio #beth #rio #misc

[what-do-1000-swords-look-like]

I posted a while back about Oliver's and Ryan's tattoos and how I thought it was interesting because they were on the opposing arms of Buck and Eddie (not knowing these were the actors' personal tattoos at the time which someone pointed out to me). But then I noticed something:

That's Ryan in 2018, the same year season 2 premiered. He has 2 other tattoos, one on his left forearm near his wrist and the other on his right forearm.

We never see these two other tattoos except once:

In 2x07, with the scene with Shannon outside Christopher's new school.

Otherwise we never see it, only the encircling left forearm one:

My point being that Ryan's right arm tattoo could have been left as well as the "Find A Way" near his left wrist. But instead, for reasons only they know, the show chose to cover up the other two each time. I'm not exactly sure how makeup application works in the industry (maybe someone out there who does can explain it better), if they slather the makeup on to cover such a large tattoo (the compass/map one) or apply a sleeve type device and just apply the makeup around the edges, but regardless, it's time and money spent each time before Ryan shoots a scene.

And we already know about Oliver's tattoos and we saw his in season 1:

The arm bands tattoo on his right forearm. So this was already in stone for Buck's character (as are the tattoos we saw on Buck's chest in that scene with Snake Girl in 1x01 & the script tattoo on his left forearm).

They could have easily chosen to cover Ryan's left forearm tattoo and let the others be or cover all of them or cover none of them. But instead, they left the one tattoo uncovered that just coincidentally happens to almost mirror the position of Oliver's forearm tattoo.

And they decided to draw even more attention in the costuming:

watch on his right wrist, opposite of the arm with the tattoo

watch on his left wrist, opposite of the right arm that has the arm bands tattoo

Tbf, I have no idea what dominant hands these guys have IRL but the costuming choice down to the watch detail only adds to what I'm trying to say:

The show is doing this shit on purpose.

Thanks for coming to my Buddie-going-canon evidentiary screening of the day.

#buddie #buck x eddie #911 fox #they are doing this on purpose #i'm telling you #buddie is coming #911posts

[raayllum]

(I'm asking a question again, sorry) We know there's is a few years time skip between TTM and S4, meaning Rayllum's separate is longer than they together right? Aaron said that people don't need to read TTM to watch S4. For me, seems like a lot of people in this fandom didn't truly understand Rayla's decision at the end of TTM. So how dose Wonderstorm handle this? I mean they have to tell people Rayla's lie and leaving, solve her self-worth issues and have to make sure audience understand it.

The timeskip period hasn’t been confirmed. It could be anywhere from 3 months to 6 years. We don’t know. I’m personally betting on 6 months to a year. But Rayllum being separated for longer than they were ‘together’ (2.5 months in terms of knowing each other, 1.5 months of dating) doesn’t really matter. It’s sad, yes, but it would have no bearing on the strength of their connection; that shit is Forever. He jumped off a mountain for her and she considers him family. End of story.

The only people I saw who didn't understand her decision at the end of TTM were people not understanding the way grief works in TDP thematically as a whole, which at this point just means they're missing a key part of the show and it is too late. They can be left by the wayside. It's not the show or the crew's responsibility to change itself to address fandom misunderstandings or discourse, so I honestly wouldn't even take that into account. But, in terms of how to communicate what happened in TTM to the audience, let me take you on an extremely self indulgent walk through of how Wonderstorm could achieve all these things pretty easily

The short form:

4x01: lots of political stuff with ezran, establishes that rayla left and callum is presumably looking for her. we don’t see rayla at all

4x02: rayla alone style episode, maybe interspersed with like, vague xadian politics (including some janaya?)

4x03: callum searching, and some claudia / aaravos / viren stuff on the rise

4x04: ends with rayllum seeing each other for the first time

4x05: fallout / hashing a lot of things out. something keeps them side by side (shared goal concerning the dark mage trio, maybe?)

4x08: rayla dips again at a last ditch effort to protect him, but callum’s completely burned through his anger at this point

4x09: full reunion / reconciliation, aaravos gets out of the mirror?

The long (self indulgent) form:

4x01 / 4x02 — Could open with narration of Callum explaining what's happened a bit since s3 in order to parallel s2, and that Rayla is gone / he misses her and is likely but not necessarily looking for her. Another easy (indulgent) way to demonstrate this would be to have a cute and brief happy Rayllum scene in Katolis, only for Callum to wake up and for it to be a memory / dream.

4x02 - 4x06 — plenty of time for the searching to take place, can have Callum or Rayla explaining to others along their journey why they're separated / that they miss each other. If Rayla has continued to isolate herself, her deteriorating mental state will be pretty clear from that alone.

4x04 - 4x07 — ample time for a reunion. I’m personally putting my money on 4x04 ending on a cliffhanger where they see each other again for the first time, as the 4th episode of every season has always been really important for their relationship, with 4x05 being the actual reunion / initial fallout. A lot of what happened can also come out in their argument, pretty naturally through dialogue: “You left me!” “I had to, I couldn’t risk you—” “Oh but you can risk yourself?” as well as the root of where Rayla’s decisions are coming from.

Additionally, Rayla’s decision isn’t surprising to anyone who knows her; it’s the same stunt she’s pulled over and over again throughout s1-s3 with flinging herself first and foremost into danger. More precisely, it was what she did in 2x07, 3x08, and 3x09, all in ways that heavily involved Callum and his devotion/concern for her. Understanding what a character does doesn’t mean it’s right, or that the audience has to agree with it, but simply knowing and engaging with why they’re doing it. 

(Aka yes, I’m at the point where I believe that the only people who can’t understand her decision in TTM are acting in bad faith / likely haven’t been through a lot of grief in their lives. Which again, grief is arguably one of the main themes of the show. You don’t have to know / have experienced grief to understand that. But if they don’t understand that, they probably don’t understand the show and its characters very well.)

Season four is not going to be enough time to wrap up, at that point, four seasons of self worth issues. I’m not expecting it to. What I am expecting / hoping from season four is to see the turning point in Rayla’s journey with self worth. The moment when she realizes she has to choose to stay, and choose life / a life with Callum (possibly in order to also save him, as well), and that she’s worthy of those things. That it’s not always her responsibility and that it’s certainly not her responsibility to do things alone, and that she hasn’t / won’t lose all the people she loves purely because they love her and she loves them. 

4x07 - 4x09 but likely 4x09 for that turning point.

#s4 #thanks for asking #predictions #speculation #rayla #post ttm #this is a team of experienced industry professionals #and this is what i came up with after like 10 minutes #they're gonna be fine

[jadelotusflower]

Robin Hood Rewatch - Season 2

2x01 - Sisterhood

2x02 -Booby and the Beast

2x03 - Childhood

2x04 -The Angel of Death

2x05 - Ducking and Diving

2x06 - For England!

2x07 - Show me the Money

2x08 - Get Carter

2x09 - Lardner’s Ring

2x10 - Walkabout

2x11 - Treasure of the Nation

2x12 - A Good Day to Die

2x13 - We are Robin Hood

#robin hood bbc #robin hood rewatch #2021 roundup #roundup #jlf posts #jlf rewatch

[nothingunrealistic]

what billions scene do you think might be most enhanced by taylor, not necessarily with any added explanation or acknowledgment, wearing an orange tank top (i know the answer is any and all of them really but. idk top 5 that come to mind or something if that's easier. this is all very flexible)

compromising by picking one scene per season, as follows:

2x07: the war room in the hamptons, where axe & the gang are discussing what to do about sandicot. it’s summer and they’re at axe’s beach house; what occasion could be better for the Sun’s Out, Guns Out philosophy?

3x04: the conversation taylor & mafee have about the farpoint launch, in which taylor rolls up their sweater to show the farpoint t-shirt they’re wearing under it. make that shirt an orange tank top, still with the farpoint logo.

4x01: all the scenes at the embassy. taylor should have just showed up in a tank top and some nice jeans and gone “hello yes i am definitely cis, give me money please”

5x12: the entire Here We Are Waiting For Axe To Be Arrested sequence. that shot of taylor standing alone in front of the empty helicopter watching wendy walk away already kills me; a tank top would only enhance it.

#10/10 question #inbox #unproduciblesmackdown #billions #taylor mason

[mrs-nate-humphrey]

how would u rank the parents in gg?

ah, anon, they're all terrible. but you know what you just did? you DIDN'T give me the milo exception. so, #1 is obviously dan, the summer he had milo! most darling and most beloved dilf <3 perfect parent <3 i'm so glad that everything that happened after 4x02 was actually just a dream that nate had after drinking too much and that dan canonically still has milo <3

ok, now for everyone else:

i know that technically the worst parent should be bart bass, since he tried to have chuck killed, but i will be very honest about the fact that i don't understand anything about the bass family in the sense of like. is bart even chuck's dad?? is jack chuck's dad?? who was chuck's mom?? if it was evelyn then why did bart "hate" chuck for his mother's death if his mother was alive and frolicking?? like. bart doesn't feel like a real character to me - none of the bass family drama feels real. so i am simply not counting them in this ranking, because i can't take them seriously. they exist on a different plane of reality from the other gg parents.

so. howard and anne, hands down the WORST parents. difficult for me to say which one is worse (i think anne most probably, because howard at least tried to patch things up with nate, anne all through was singing the 'i've done you no wrong nathaniel!' tune), but i just. when howard hits nate in 1x07 i had to pause the episode to be like. uh wtf? and obviously, the whole blaming nate for his coke thing is messed up. anne is also - she is so busy denying family problems and whatnot that nate often ends up taking responsibilities that he shouldn't have to, like when anne denies howard's suicide attempt and nate tells her off and gives howard a pep talk. (this isn't even mentioning the fuckery of trying to arrange nate's marriage against his consent.) along the same vein, but darker, nate's entire thing with catherine where he's with her for the money is because he is trying to protect his parents. and the fact that he thought this was his only option - yeah, catherine is very manipulative and awful, but i think nate's upbringing definitely played a big part of his being vulnerable to catherine. (you don't give up, not in business, not if your family is depending on you.)

uhhh, i'd probably rank eleanor next, as the second worst / third worst parent, after the archibalds. the fact that she is so overly judgemental and critical of blair to an extent wherein blair has internalised it - eleanor keeps making these comments about blair's body and about blair's food and what she is allowed to eat, i feel like that probably contributed in a significant way to her developing an eating disorder. i know that as the show goes on she mellows and all of that, but growing up with someone like that, as a young girl... it's a very damaging experience. if i were blair, i probably wouldn't forgive my mother for it.

im not sure how to rank alison or harold, since we barely get to see their characters. i think alison leaving was more fucked, especially since she wasn't even honest with her family about it, and unlike harold, who was ready for blair to stay with him, alison didn't even have that kind of conversation with her kids, that we saw, at least. i actually really like harold as a dad, i think the pep talks he gives blair are very sensible and i think if she'd grown up with just him as her parent, maybe things would've been majorly better for her. (my sister disagrees and thinks harold was too uninvolved with blair's upbringing. which is a good point, actually.) anyway, i don't know where to put them, because we don't know anything major about them, other than They Left. we don't see enough of what life was like before they left for me to really confidentally say "oh they're worse than ... " or whatever. im still slotting them into the ranking though, just based on gut feeling, implications made by canon, and vibes.

this just leaves us with rufus and lily.

im gonna answer this question as if they're four people, okay? rufus, as dan's dad, was okay. had his faults (major faults!), but okay. dan wasn't hurt too much under his care. lily, as eric's mom, also, was okay, she fucked up but made amends, and in some episodes like 2x07 we see that she and eric are actually able to have sincere/open conversation with each other. i think lily as serena's mom was kind of terrible, though, especially when you look at everything serena canonically went through pre-series and how little lily was there. i think rufus as jenny's dad was either just as bad, or worse - the way he treats jenny is downright degrading. i don't know how bad of a mother lily really was to serena, since we don't see much of pre-series other than the implications, but i think she was probably really bad. the way rufus treated jenny, though.......... dude, your daughter is getting bullied and peer pressured in school. your solution is to make her home environment unsafe, too?? so to me, from what we've seen onscreen - jenny's dad rufus is worse than serena's mom lily. but i don't know.

okay, ranking, worst to best:

anne archibald

howard archibald

eleanor waldorf

rufus as jenny's dad

lily as serena's mom

alison humphrey

lily as eric's mom

harold waldorf (?)

rufus as dan's dad

i hope this makes sense!!! it's a really subjective answer.

#i do think rufus wasn't the best dad for dan #but compared to literally everything else...... *sigh* #alison would be wayyy higher if she hadn't..... left #meta #anon #gg parents #child abuse mention

[pomrania]

Leverage episode content warnings

I'll add to this as I rewatch episodes, in no particular order (I’ll link the most up-to-date thread here, once I’ve done more than just this first post). If there’s a particular episode you want me to do, or something I missed, or particular stuff you want me to warn for, just tell me.

Some things apply to pretty much the entire show, thus I won't put them in for individual episodes:

alcohol use

non-graphic violence

despicable bad guys, often pulled from the headlines (but they will be mentioned in the “target” section)

lying, manipulation, theft

bad guys getting humiliated

breaches of privacy

attempted murder

the main cast is unfairly good-looking, no matter your preferences

2x13: The Future Job

Target: phony psychic who's swindling a pregnant woman by pretending to channel her dead husband

discussed past death of a child in a traffic accident

abduction

gunpoint threats

2x07: The Two Live Crew Job

Target: another group that steals something before the crew can steal it back

brief references to the Holocaust

having to hold a bomb that will explode if you move it

funeral of someone faking their death

Parker's bad acting

imagined stab injuries

imagined fight scene that would end in death

sexually-charged fight scene that involves both parties partially stripping (shirts off, bra and undershirt exposed)

implication of kinky sex

2x03: The Order 23 Job

Target: hedge fund manager who has just been given a minor sentence, without any of the stolen money being recovered

referenced death because someone couldn't afford treatment

weaponized hypochondria

drugging someone's food and drink

most of the episode is set in a hospital

physical abuse of a child

partial nudity (in undies only)

faked contagious outbreak

living person stuffed in a morgue shelf

panic

taser attack

2x01: The Beantown Bailout Job

Target: nothing formal, but it has to deal with bank bailouts

car brakes not working

car crash that then explodes

hospital

referenced past death of a parent

awkward small talk

attack due to mistaken identity (played for laughs)

dressing as religious figures for a con

getting beaten

faked gunshot death

non-consensual modifications to one's dwelling place

1x07: The Wedding Job

Target: mob boss who didn't care for the family of his fall guy

gun murder

young child with a parent in jail

wedding planning and the drama associated with it

impersonating a religious figure

cynicism against weddings and relationships

awkward wedding ceremony

burn injury

dysfunctional marriage

cigar smoking

1x01: The Nigerian Job

Target: someone who stole airplane designs

alcoholic (and probably depressed) main character

past death of a child due to insurance not cooperating, shown in flashbacks

implied past domestic and child abuse

betrayal

hospital

self-induced offscreen vomiting (but it's heard)

referenced hypothetical of sending porno magazines as revenge

Sophie's horrible acting of Lady Macbeth

minor gunshot injuries in a flashback

destruction of uninvolved property

3x03: The Inside Job

Target: nothing formal, but a food company

mentor and family members held hostage

mass firing to create chaos

dubious child-rearing practices

referenced sexting

attempted agricultural terrorism for profit

3x09: The Three-Card Monte Job

Target: a main character's criminal father, who has an unknown scheme in concert with the Russian mob

blackmailed into committing crimes

family drama

referenced past death of a parent

drugging someone's food and drink

drive-by shooting

3x11: The Rashomon Job

Target: none; pre-crew flashback

unreliable narrators

food allergies

attempted emergency throat-cutting to open airway

stab injuries

stealing someone's clothes with threats

mockery of British accent and dialect

hopeless suitor

#fandom: leverage #original content #not a reblog

[partywithponies]

Rating BBC Father Brown episodes that are adaptations of specific book stories in terms of how good they are as adaptations:

1x01: The Hammer of God:

This one’s actually really close to the book plot! But it adds character depth and motivation that isn’t in the book! A great adaptation, and a great start to the show! 10/10!

1x02: The Flying Stars:

As an adaption, this episode makes me Very Cross. In the books, this episode is one of the most important points in Flambeau’s character arc, and more of a Flambeau story than a Father Brown story. So naturally they decided to stick it really early in the show and erase Flambeau from it completely, thanks lads. They included the socialist guy from the books though, we stan that. 2/10.

1x03: The Wrong Shape:

Am I a joke to you? Flambeau has been erased from this one too. THAT SAID, lack of my perfect boy aside, I actually like this one better than the book version. They removed the racism, which is always good, and added a fun twist so that the title means something different to what it’s referring to in the books. And Flambeau may be gone but Leonard Quinton is still here, and rest assured: one look at him and I know in my heart he definitely still fucked Flambeau in Paris. 9/10.

1x05: The Eye of Apollo:

Once again, Flambeau has been erased from a very Flambeau-heavy story in the books. I feel personally victimised. The Stacey sisters are gone too, which is the real tragedy here: Flambeau is in many stories, Pauline Stacey is only in one, and now she’s in none. I love Pauline Stacey. She’s like Toph from Avatar if Toph grew up to be a Karen. And she managed to hide the fact she was blind from literally everyone apart from her sister and her boyfriend, your fave could never. HOWEVER! This is still a very solid episode, it’s lovely to have a Susie episode, and I actually prefer the show version of Kalon to the book version. The show version has more depth and feels more believable and isn’t just motivated by money. 8/10.

1x10: The Blue Cross:

Banger of an episode. I’ve watched it too many times to count now. Captures the vibes and the atmosphere of the book story even when it doesn’t follow what literally happens. Flambeau is there. Literally flawless. 1000/10. (I miss the soup though.)

2x07: The Three Tools of Death:

This follows the book pretty closely, and I like the extra depth it gives the daughter. However, it makes one major change that I think actually does the reveal a disservice. In the book, the father who dies was an entertainer, a public speaker, and a beloved celebrity, known for always appearing happy and joyful and promoting laughter and optimism, and the fact he was secretly depressed for years without anyone knowing and ended up killing himself was actually a poignant and relevant twist, by actually giving him a recently dead wife and a “reason” to be depressed, it kind of loses a bit of its impact. 7/10.

3x03: The Invisible Man:

I am very conflicted on this one. Laura and her boyfriend and Welkin and Smythe all look at sound just like I imagine them when I read the book! However. HOWEVER. While you all know I love a good circus episode of a murder show. Did this really have to be one? Why removing the way in which Welkin is an “invisible man”, you remove one of the best moments of social commentary in the books, and one that could have worked SO WELL with this show and its characters! So well! We were so robbed! Father Brown’s whole speech about how people don’t notice people who “don’t count” in their eyes? When he says that if you ask a noble Lady who lives with her, she’ll say “no-one”, even if her butler and her maid are right there in the room, because servants don’t really count in the eyes of the nobility they work for, they’re mentally invisible, seen as more furniture than people? That could’ve led to some brilliant Lady Felicia character depth, a real juicy look at her character flaws! And they REMOVED IT! We lost that in favour of circus antics and Sullivan being a bit gay! And do you know an even more heinous crime? Not only was Flambeau once again erased from this story, they erased FLAMBEAU’S PERSIAN CAT! How COULD you!!! Give me the social commentary and the cat or give me death! 4/10.

3x04: The Sign of the Broken Sword:

I’m about to pee my entire pants where the fuck is Flambeau. Are you taking the ultimate piss. Pretty decent episode though, 7/10.

3x13: The Paradise of Thieves:

Okay you didn’t even try. This has literally nothing in common with the book story of the same name other than the fact it shares a title and Father Brown is in it. What was even the point. That’s bullshit, this whole thing is bullshit, that’s a scam, fuck the church, here’s 95 reasons why. 0/10.

And that’s the last one, after that they just decided to make up their own original stories. (Thank GOD, imagine if they did Sins of Prince Saradine but erased Flambeau. I would yeet myself off the nearest cliff. Also series 4 onwards slapped majorly, their own original stories are great.)

#inspired by a conversation in the flambrown discord server #father brown

[elixir448]

Good Girls 3x04 and 3x05 Disorganised Monster Post

Apologies in advance for the absolute mess this is going to be. I’ll start with 3x04 and try to keep it organised but it just...won’t be. And yeah, I made all the Dean sections about Beth and Rio. Bite me.

Mick

I. Am. In. Love. With. This. Man. I’m sorry but when he rolled down his window and said “good morning”, my jaw hit the ground. His voice is unreal. Does everyone in Rio’s gang have an amazing voice? Is it a requirement for joining? What is this sorcery?

I also get a kick out of the fact that he is so polite and charming with people that he doesn’t really know, just like Rio. I can’t help but think that they must have grown up together to be so similar in that way. Also, Mrs Karpinski and Mick. I would like to see more of them.

Beth and Dean (Did I make this section all about Beth and Rio? I may have.)

I think @pynkhues has already mentioned this and I totally agree with it. That Dean just works as a character so much better in humourous scenes, like when he’s purchasing a gun. I think the last time I laughed so much at a scene with Dean in it was at the end of 2x07, when he’s interacting with the krav maga instructor.

The moose analogy was hilarious and, I’m not gonna lie, I hope Dean sticks around in the story just so we can get more outsider POV of Beth and Rio’s relationship, because it is genuinely one of my favourite things in the show and to read about in fanfic. And Dean, Rio does not “have his way” with ‘your wife’; she wouldn’t be such a pain in his ass if he did. He did this in 3x05 as well, where he referred to Beth as “something you love”. She’s not an object that people can love or have their way with.

I am convinced that Dean’s gun will be utilised within the story at some point, although whether it will be used by him is up for debate.

When he walks into the house with the gun and ignores Beth’s questions about about it, only answering when she becomes more insistent, I was struck by the childhishness of Dean’s character.

Let me articulate this for a second.

Let’s compare this scene to the way Dean acts in 2x07, when he refuses to watch the kids after Jane’s dance show and immaturely lashs out at Beth saying that he’s going to book club. It’s not even about putting her in her place. It’s simply petty and it’s childish because their is no goal aside from temporarily annoying her. Just like in this scene. He walks into the house with a huge gun on his shoulder, in a clear attempt to seek attention but then ignores her questions and it comes across as petty and childish; in both scenes, he is akin to a child who can feel that the attention of their parent is wandering and so seeks attention by being as loud and annoying as possible.

There is no back and forth in Beth and Dean’s relationship at all. When Beth dumps cash on Dean and tells him that he doesn’t know her in 1x06, when she ignores his questions at the beginning of 1x07 and tells him to take the kids to Disneyland, she was putting him in his place because, really, he deserved it. When she took away his power in the dealership and he became a house-husband, she was putting him in his place after finding out about his multiple affairs. When Dean takes her kids from her, he was trying to put Beth in her place, essentially saying See. I know you. You’re nothing without our children. 

This is all very different from the back and forth in Beth and Rio’s relationship. Importantly, even though Beth and Rio are always trying to get a leg over each other (metaphorically and often physically haha) and even though they do try and sweep the rug out from one another, it’s less about wielding power over the other person than it is about wielding power over each other (I know what I mean in my own head lol). It’s that they enjoy it when the other person gets a leg over them, they enjoy the heated looks and even enjoy the gleefulness from the other person. It’s all a part of their process. Even when Beth and Rio seek attention from one another (Beth taking the pills from the cars and Rio mailing her body parts), it’s less about the end result of having the other person’s attention focused on them or having power over them; it’s more about imagining how they they will look, how they will feel, how they will react when they find out. All of it’s important. It’s all foreplay.

Also, it was one bullet Dean. Not a full clip.   

Before Dean kisses Beth, he says “We were so good with him gone.” Honestly, that line felt like the 100th nail in the coffin haha. Dean just doesn’t get Beth and he doesn’t understand that there is a lack of emotional intimacy in their relationship. He hasn’t picked up on the fact that she’s actually experienced a regression on a personal level; she’s wrapped herself up in the comfort of her familiar life, with her kids, her house and her husband only after Rio’s death. The only reason he felt they were good was because they were having sex, even if it was for all the wrong reasons on Beth’s part. Even then, he classes it as good because it was sex with him.

The reality is that all this matters less than the simple truth, which is that Rio isn’t gone anymore. He’s back. And Dean knows, as stupid as he is, that it’s only a matter of time.

As for the scene where Dean kisses Beth. Here are all the ways it contrasts Beth and Rio’s kiss in 2x09 (all the ways I can think of anyway). Sorry. Not sorry.

I’d like to point out that Dean walks exactly 3 steps towards Beth, before stopping and taking her jacket from her. The same number of steps that Beth took towards Rio in her bedroom. The same number of steps that Rio took towards Beth. And notably, the same number of steps that Beth did not take towards Dean in this scene.

Yes, Beth kissed Dean back and participated in the kiss itself. But she did not participate at all in the lead-up which is, arguably, just as important. When Beth kissed Rio, the mutual nerves, tenderness and affection were a huge part of the scene. In other words, the lead-up was just as important as the kiss itself. That was very much lacking here. I suppose one could argue that this is not Beth and Dean’s first kiss but it certainly is their first on-screen kiss and presumably the first kiss they have shared in a long time. For all intents and purposes, it should be like a ‘first kiss’ because it’s their first kiss after all the betrayals, lies and disdain.

This scene, like Beth and Rio’s, takes place in daylight but, it’s different in basically every other way. Dean grabs Beth and sort of positions her head to directly face him. When Beth leaned in to kiss Rio in her bedroom, he angles his head just right and very slighly inches his head closer. For her. Beth doesn’t even do that for Dean. He leans in and kisses her and she doesn’t actually do anything to make that easier for him, nothing to indicate that she wants him to.

The music also sounds very...young, for lack of a better word. Almost high school. I think that was a very purposeful choice, given that this is the first on-screen kiss between Beth and Dean. In this scene, I definitely saw them more as they probably were when they were in high school, before they got married. There was a notable lack of any music in the scene where Beth and Rio kiss. Honestly, the scene just didn’t need any.

Christina was amazing here. After Dean releases her, her head kind of just disappointedly falls away and she opens her eyes and looks a little bit...defeated. Perhaps because she didn’t feel more or enjoy the kiss. Because it was Dean. And god, then the scene cuts to Rio coming into Paper Porcupine and the most sexually loaded, non-sex scene in the history of television....although every one of Beth and Rio’s scenes feels that way to be honest. The fact that the episode ended here, on a climactic note when Rio scrutinises the money Beth finishes making, says a lot.

The Hills (including 3x05)

I LOVED this storyline. It’s such a great way of exploring the way that Ruby’s guilt over committing crimes has gradually transitioned into a lack of guilt for the crimes that she has become ‘used to’, i.e: robberies, lying. It’s also such a great callback to a common theme in this show, “All this stuff you think you’re keeping from them. You’re not”. The fact that this was said by Ruby in season 1 and is once again coming full circle is peak writing. Also, this means that another one of my hiatus wishes has come true, that the kids would find out more or be suspicious of their parents. I wondered if it would be Kenny, Sadie or Sara who would catch on. Looks like it’s Sara. Lidya Jewett was the perfect one of the children to explore this through because she is such an amazing actress and Sara’s already had an introduction to this arc, due to Stan being arrested in the last season and her having to grapple with the fact that he did indeed commit a crime.

And look, I am the last person who wants to see Ruby and Stan fight. But I think it’s such an important arguement for them to have. Not the fact that Ruby’s committing crimes but the fact that she seems so comfortable with it now and that this is potentially becoming a model for learned behaviour for their children. The only people they love more than each other are their children.

Lidya Jewett did such a great job portraying the audaciousness and the brattiness of a teen when they are confronted by a parent calling out their behaviour. The tit for tat between Sara and Ruby was amazing. Like nuh uh, you may be right about the shady ass stuff I’ve been up to but I’m still the queen in this house. So now you owe me.

I also love the idea that Beth and Ruby have learnt so much from crime-ing. In 3x02, Beth taught Annie a lesson about how they had to deal with the mover ASAP or all the criminals in Detroit would know that they were pushovers. In this episode, Ruby teaches Sara that when you lie once, you need to know that you’ll be lying a dozen more times just to uphold your original story. It’s never over.

In 3x05, I was like why u do dis? I love this storyline and I don’t think that Stan will leave Ruby but god, the idea that Ruby is so terrified of it in Beth’s van, and for good reason, is actually scaring me. The stills from 3x07 and the hints Reno gave that we would find out how Stan feels about Beth have me shaking. I’m so excited but scared at the same time.

Annie

This is probably the first episode where I felt as though Annie’s therapy storyline really found its feet. I’m going to ignore the fact that retinoblastomas mainly only occur in children. Aside from that, it really found its feet haha.

I also just loved the humour of Annie’s scenes in this episode. Mae Whitman is amazing and her delivery is always fantastic. I genuinely think that her long-winded speech in the pawn shop about how she spent her night is one of my favourite comedic moments of the season so far. What a great callback to Annie’s gazelle run when she’s chasing down Mary Pat!

Oh god. When she was asking Dr Cohen about what was going on between them, I was physically cringing because I knew she was going to smash into a brick wall. It was painful to watch. Stop gal, stop.

It was also painful to see Dr Cohen ruthlessly lay out Annie’s psychological coping mechanisms in front of her, partly because it was coming from a place of genuine concern and care and she knew it.

Beth and Rio (Will I ever write a reasonable amount in this section? Nope.)

Gosh, the entire scene leading up to Beth and Rio in the bar and that scene in itself was peak television. Suspenseful, intense, a good back and forth between characters with unbelievable chemistry. I genuinely think that this is one of the scenes in the show that best depicts the ‘dark’ in dark comedy and the ‘drama’ in dramedy, which are usually the genres used to describe the show.

I don’t know what everyone else views as their favourite ‘dark’/’dramatic’ moments in the show? Their are many scenes which I feel really capture the themes above but some of them are:

1. 1x04 - When the girls hear a thump from the bedroom Eddie’s recovering in and they run upstairs only for him to confront them with a gun.

2. 1x06 - Boomer plants drugs in Annie’s locker, Beth dumps bags of cash on Dean.

3. 1x07 - Rio and his boys confront the girls in Beth’s house.

4. 1x09 - Beth and Rio’s first break-up scene in 1x09.

5. 1x10/2x01 - “If you wanna be the king, you gotta kill the king.”

6. 2x07 - Beth and Rio argue in the alley.

7. ....you get the point. Maybe I should write a separate post all about this?

Now this bar scene (3x04) and the entire sequence with Rio, Lucy, his boys and the girls at paper porcupine and outside the van (3x05) are included on my list of amazing ‘dark’/’dramatic’ scenes.

I’d also like to acknowledge the piano music in this scene, which is also present during the scene in Paper Porcupine in 3x05, while Rio waits patiently for Lucy to complete her counterfeit money design. It’s a stunning piece of music and it adds so much suspense to the scenes. I hope it’s released at some point!  

First of all, we have Beth and Dean lying in bed. Everything about this screams that Dean is intruding, from his loud snores, to the way he’s leaning so far into her side of the bed, to the way that Beth is looking out of her French doors, away from him, and clearly thinking about what she’s going to do with regards to Rio. I spoke about this in my 3x02 thoughts post but ever since Beth and Rio began orbiting around one another, ever since their fascination with one another began (god, basically from the beginning), Dean has been consistently displayed as intruding on their relationship, despite the fact that he and Beth are still technically married and he’s always ranting about how Rio is wrecking and ‘intruding’ in on their lives. Beth and Rio have always had a tangible intimacy that’s unbelievably loud in their relationship, even before they slept together. It always feels like any voices aside from their own, any person besides them is an intrusion when they’re together or thinking about eachother.

Beth lies in bed, next to Dean, and thinks about Rio before running away from her husband and her house to see him under the cover of darkness. It feels intimate and loaded with implications. It’s absolutely driven by fear and her desire to survive but the set-up of the scene is inherently romantic. It’s akin to someone sneaking out to see their lover whom they’re having an affair with.

I could wax poetic about how much I love this scene in its entirety. When Good Girls is good, it’s fucking good. The way that Beth is frightened and then annoyed with Mick for saying something behind her when she’s the one running around at ridiculous o’clock, the imposing figure he cuts as he smokes, the way he considers her. Just. All. Of. This. I love all of Beth and Rio’s scenes, including the ones that take place during the day. But gosh, there’s just something about the scenes that take place in the dark that I find dangerous and addictive.

Rio walks into his bar, briefly nods at the bartender and greets Mick. But as soon as he sees Beth, he can’t look away from her. He doesn’t look at Mick as they clasp hands, his lips part and stay that way as he looks at her AND if you look closely, for a brief second, he stands taller and very slightly pushes his shoulders back before walking towards her.

While they are sitting at the bar together, Rio is depicted as exhausted and conflicted. This shot is stunning:

Their conversaion is so well done. Rio sceptically eyeing Beth’s finished drink and only suggesting that she slow down when she asks for a shot of tequila, his hand gently coming down on top of hers, the way he looks at her as he waits for an answer. It’s such a stark contrast to the way Dean treats her. Even now, after everything.

“One for my baby daddy here too.” SCREAMS. OMG BETH. I adore her.

God. The acting. Beth’s face when she looks at Rio after saying “I lost it”, a sort of confused and hesitant realisation that he looks affected by it, by her words. I still waver on whether or not Rio believed that Beth was indeed pregnant. To sum up what I think is going through Rio’s mind in this scene:

1. He has no reason at this point to doubt the words of Rhea’s OBGYN. In other words, it’s entirely possible that following the appointment, he grappled with the idea that Beth was pregnant with his child, conceived during an encounter fraught with emotions in her bedroom and before she shot him three times. It’s possible that he forced himself to be pragmatic, process it and accept it, only for Beth to suffer a miscarriage. There’s a feeling of mourning in the way that Rio regards Beth with his hand over his mouth, the quiet, sensitive way in which he asks when it happened, the way he looks at his palms on the bar counter, the way he tosses back the shot of tequila.

2. The loss of the pregnancy ultimately means that he’s lost the one reason, the single excuse he had to keep Beth alive. I don’t doubt that he could have killed her in the moments when he first saw her again, after the time he spent simmering, plotting and remembering. But now she’s under his skin again. God, she never even left but now she’s probably curled up somewhere inside of him all over again. It’s so obvious in the way that he says “nothing good” that he doesn’t want to kill her, that he’s tired and doesn’t want to even think about it anymore.

Following this, the writers did an amazing job with the back and forth between Beth and Rio in this scene. Beth is desperate and yet so audacious in suggesting that Rio needs money, that he should take another chance on her. I love her when she’s like this, when she’s clawing and doing her best to survive. And the way that Rio huffs an unamused laugh through pursed lips, almost as though he’s thinking, shit I’m doing this again aren’t I? I’m letting her talk? Except we all know she’s not talking him into anything. He’s just looking for an excuse. If anything, to me, he seems unamused with the traitorous part of himself that is listening to her for the sole reason of avoiding the necessity of killing her.

“You couldn’t afford it.” What a backhanded compliment. Rio can’t place a price on Beth’s head because even he struggles to deal with what her personal worth is to him, what she actually means to him, so I love that he ultimately just caves and throws out an arbitrary $100K which is much less than he has previously requested from her. I also love that Beth just focuces purely on the money and ignores the true implications of what he’s saying because it’s too much, it’s too loaded and neither of them have ever been able to contend with whatever’s between them, this thing that is indescribable.

As for the final scene of the episode. I don’t know if I can rationally articulate my thoughts on this but I’m going to do my best.

First of all, I love the idea of Beth and Rio watching each other when the other person isn’t aware of it. So when Rio enters paper porcupine and slowly walks towards her while Beth is rifling through items, unaware that he’s behind her, it just does something to me. I love it.

Also, I love the way they almost circle one another until Beth stops on the other side of the table in between them. They are so often depicted to be standing across from one another. Forever waiting for the day where they stand side by side against a common enemy.

When Rio alludes to Beth doing some custom-printing for him and she immediately catches on, she looks at him with her big, blue eyes and her voice is so feminine when she says “I don’t know what you’re talking about”. God, you can’t convince me Rio isn’t into that.

I’m not going to talk about the music too much just because this is getting too long and the fandom is already obsessed with the song anyway. The lyrics are a complete revelation and the song was, of course, purposefully chosen. I loved the entire song and the implications for Beth and Rio’s relationship but one part I particularly love:

“Though we sleep in different beds You still keep me up at night”

God, Beth lay awake next to Dean, thinking of what she was going to say to Rio, before running away to see him. There’s no way Rio doesn’t lie awake at night and think about Beth. I. Just. Can’t. This is already getting too long.

The youtube video that went up for this scene sums it up pretty well. Rio really does look pretty mesmerised by Beth in this scene. She looks at him apprehensively because she’s afraid of him and fearful for her operation but she keeps doing it because he makes her nervous, because she likes looking at him, because she likes it when he watches her, because she feels something for him and it’s all just too much because he’s watching her, just like he always has but she’s never gotten used to it. GAHHHH.

I also just love interpreting this scene after watching 3x05, when Dean says twice that Beth is “something you (Rio) love”. Beth refutes that at the end of the episode, saying Rio loves money. But here we have all three things, Beth, Rio and money in one scene. And yes, Rio’s watching Beth make money but he also can’t look away from her.

Just look at this shot. Beth and Rio facing each other, as they often do, at equal heights, with the money symbolically positoned between them. It’s not just something that separates them though. It’s something they share if that makes sense. It’s something they both care about but you can care about more than one thing.

And looks like Rio found another excuse to keep her alive. I mean, he had already found one, by demanding 100K but this is now something he can directly participate in and benefit from. Something long-term that keeps them tied together, rather than a one-off payment. He just can’t help himself, can he? They can’t let each other go.

I don’t know where else to put this. But seeing Beth wearing glasses was...life-changing.

Moving on to 3x05.

The Opening Scene and Mick

STOP SAYING GOOD MORNING AND STOP TALKING. DON’T SAY ANYTHING. I CAN’T DEAL WITH YOUR VOICE MICK.

Ahem. We also met more of Rio’s boys which means another one of my hiatus wishes came true. I’m really curious to meet Rio’s bosses, who Manny has said we will learn more about in this season, and what the debts he needs to repay are, which he alluded to in the sneak peek from 3x06 (THE ANGST). I’m guessing it has something to do with the fact that we was out of the game for so long or maybe because people have found out that he fed Turner names, or both?

I love smart Beth. Taking the plates used to make the counterfeit money as a precautionary measure was really important but also just...kind of tragic. I’m going to talk more about this later (see Paper Porcupine and the Shooting).

Also, how freaking loaded was that scene where Beth tries to pay Mick to buy more time? When she said “what if I made it up to you?”, my jaw dropped. Not even exaggerating. And when he said “it’d be a huge order”, I straight up scream-cackled. This 100% backs up the idea that Beth is legitimately the most oblivious person in the world and would totally get into a bunch of awkward situations just because she’s misunderstood somebody else or because she’s said something sexual without even realising it. I. Require. All. That. Fanfic.

I completely agree with @foxmagpie here. I just don’t think that Mick has or will betray Rio. 100K is a relatively small sum of money, given the context. We know that Rio only asked this of Beth because it was an excuse to avoid killing her. For Mick, this is nowhere near enough money to risk his life or his position as (presumably) Rio’s right hand man. And let’s be honest, in the crime world, who are you going to place your bet on? Beth or Rio? I know who I would choose.

Annie 

I freaked when I saw Kevin again because I didn’t expect him to show up after 3x01 but there you go! I genuinely love this though because I didn’t think he was homeless and it just shows you that you really can’t know what’s going on in someone’s life until they tell you. It really hit me hard when he said “I’m experiencing homelessness” because it could happen to anyone. It really reminded me of a news article I read about, about individuals who are homeless but aren’t necessarily sleeping on the streets; instead, they are couch surfing or sleeping in their cars but they feel as though they have no stability, no place they can call their own and as though they have been forgotten about by society.

This show is so good at introducing tertiary characters!

Dean, The Fish and “Something you love” (Did I make this about Beth and Rio again? You’re goddamn right I did.)

So, I’m assuming the three dead fish are symbolic of Beth, Ruby and Annie. The fact that Dean was responsible for killing them is, I feel, more symbolically indicative of the consequences of him breaking the plate in this episode alone. I actually think that when Beth says “How much did you feed them?” and Dean replies “Too much”, this is more indicative of the over-arching plot for the season and really the whole show. The idea that greed, money, and for Beth, the rush, are going to be what ultimately hurts them and potentially lead them to their ruin.

Dean really pissed me off in this scene. I was clutching my head and cursing him. Every little thing pissed me off, from the way that he slammed the drawers shut, to the way he held the plate higher up, to his slighted masculinity when he said “he didn’t waste any time, did he?” Even though he knows that Beth has been willingly involved in crime, he continues to completely underestimate her. He just assumes that Rio offers up opportunities and Beth can’t resist. He cannot wrap his mind around the concept of Beth coming up with ideas and executing them; if anything, it’s Rio who can’t resist.

I gasped when Dean said “something you love”. I think this has been very controversial in the fandom. @foxmagpie answered an ask and wrote a brilliant analysis here, which I would highly recommend reading. Following the season 2 finale, I answered an ask here about Beth and Rio’s feelings for one another and I feel a little bit vindicated write now, not because I think I’m right (their feelings are so complex and completely up for interpretation at this stage) but because I agreed with my initial assessment.

I think some people might be tempted to write off what Dean said as inaccurate, simply because it’s Dean who said it. Dean is often an unreliable narrator when it comes to Beth and Rio’s relationship. His view is tainted by jealousy, misogyny and the need to take ownership over Beth as his wife again. However, he did manage to catch on to the fact that Rio treats Beth differently (Rio flaunting the relationship he has with Beth in front of Dean in 1x10/2x01), that Beth slept with Rio and was using him as a poor replacement (2x06), that Beth and Rio have a relationship that is more than just sex (before Beth brutally emasculated him by saying she just really likes having sex with Rio in 2x11). In season 2, he did eventually see that, fundamentally, Beth and Rio are addicted to one another. So, I don’t think we can write off what Dean is saying in 3x05.

As for whether or not I think Rio is in love with Beth.

I need to explain the way that I view love, in the capacity that we use it to describe the feelings that an individual can have for another person. I find myself consistently surprised by the number of people around me who talk about emotions as being incredibly complex but then act as though you either love something or you don’t or, when it comes to romantic relationships on screen, if it isn’t love then it can only be lust or desire or an obsession. Personally, I view love as a spectrum emotion and I actually think most people view it in the same way, that you can feel varying degrees and intensities of it. It sounds obvious and that’s because it totally is. As an example, I think it’s absolutely possible to be a little bit in love with someone.

So, there’s a diagram I remembered from one of my lectures and I think it’ll help me articulate the way I view Beth and Rio’s feelings for one another. The short answer is that I thought they were a little in love with one another in the second half of season 2 and I actually still agree with that but I think it’s been buried under an avalance of trauma and betrayal.

Of course, I’m not going to include the original image from my lecture (which depicts the spectrum and crossover of mood and psychotic disorders) but here’s a stock image that depicts a similar idea:

Now, I think the obvious way to look at this is to stick love on one side and hate on the other, as they are classically considered to be ‘opposing’ emotions, and then something neutral like indifference in the middle.

Personally, I agree with the idea that indifference is the opposite of love and so I’d like to place indifference on one end, hate in the middle and love on the other end, especially when it comes to considering Beth and Rio’s relationship. I’d justify placing hate in the middle because it is an intense emotion, whereas indifference is literally nothing and these two have never been indifferent towards one another, no matter how much time Rio spends on his phone when he’s with Beth. The way I see it, Beth and Rio rapidly slide up and down the part of the spectrum between love and hate and those emotions never have time to settle so that they can be acknowledged as one or the other.

(sorry this is so bad)

I guess what I’m trying to say is that, even at this point in their relationship, the majority of viewers cannot point to the middle of this spectrum and say that Rio definitively hates Beth or vice versa. Nor can we point at love and say the same. I don’t even think we could point vaguely in between. I’d personally be continuously sliding my finger up and down the spectrum between those two points.

I think Manny worded it perfectly in his interveiew, “They hate each other but want to be each other. They hate each other but want to be with each other.”

Lucy, Paper Porcupine and The Shooting

I’m going to just put this in here because this scene was so dark (and very well done in my opinion). But Rio is such a little shit! Look at his face after antagonising Beth:

God sake. Check yourself Rio. Your boys, Ruby and Annie are all watching and it’s so obvious that you’re like straight up thinking about your crush.

Even though I loved the fact that Beth thought ahead and took the plates, upon rewatching the episode it all felt so futile and painful. It really felt like so many of the Beth’s actions took Lucy to that moment. I know we’re all thinking the same thing, that Dean unknowingly triggered all of this when he broke the plate. But the reality is that even if Dean hadn’t broken the plate, it’s likely that Rio would have eventually gone straight to the source of the design. From the moment Beth chose to bring her into this, Lucy’s fate was sealed. It’s heartbreaking.

I absolutely agree with @sothischickshe when she said that Beth knew that something was going to go down. She looks at Lucy so much in this scene, with fear, with guilt but also with an almost intuitive grief. I don’t think she knew that Rio was going to kill her but I do think she had a feeling or a thought clawing at the back of her mind, that something terrible was going to happen to Lucy.

Rio orders Beth to go with Lucy, telling her to “be smart”. He still has Ruby and Annie with him and he knows that Beth would never abandon them. He makes her choose between Lucy and Ruby & Annie in this scene; when she chooses not to ask Mrs Harris for help, when she chooses to beg Lucy not to finish the plate rather than telling her to run out of the store, she is essentially choosing Ruby & Annie.

So much of this scene was about Rio punishing Beth for what she has done, by taking what she had built, ordering her to go with Lucy and forcing her to share in the responsibility of what was about to happen. Because he hasn’t been able to kill her and he knows he’ll never be able to. But I also think it was about proving a point to Beth and here’s why.

Beth shot Rio for many reasons but a lot of it was about the situation she had been placed in and the pressing need to just do something in the ‘heat of the moment’. She has never been able to kill any of her rotten eggs when she had time to plan how to do it. Even when she hit Boomer in the back of the head in 1x01, it is was in the ‘heat of the moment’. She is bound by the moral barrier that separates a murder (i.e: intent, sometimes premeditated) from voluntary manslaughter (i.e: when provoked, in the moment.) I know Beth shot Rio two more times after the initial thought and I may write another post all about that. But now is not the time. For all intents and purposes, Beth cannot kill someone after definitively making that decision in advance.

Something that I’m so struck by with the sequence in Paper Porcupine is how long it is. It’s obviously this long to build tension but it really highlights to me the length of time Rio had to consider his options and decide what he was going to do. Even the scene outside the van was long; he had time to back out of killing Lucy but, unlike Beth, he did not balk. And because of that, he proved to Beth that he can do it all.

He’s basically saying look, I can kill someone before they even have the chance to go rotten.

Obviously, we know that Beth is Rio’s rotten egg and Rio knows it too (that’s why he’s punishing Beth in this scene). But Beth has never allowed herself to believe it. She thinks it’s all about the money.

Oh god. Don’t even get me started on the implications of Rio grabbing Lucy’s hand to help her into the van and looking over at Beth as he says “ma girl”. Yes, we get it Rio. Beth’s your girl.

@pynkhues​  pointed out that Rio has a kind of honeytrap language that Beth is starting to recognise and you can just tell from the way that Beth closes her eyes that she knows the situation is escalating and that something is imminently going to happen.

This scene is so interesting when you stop and pause and just look at Beth and Rio’s faces. Because Beth is desperately trying to justify why Rio should keep them alive. She keeps looking at his face and then prompting Ruby and Annie to speak and answer her questions, so she can prove their worth. And then, at the very end, she sort of tacks Lucy on as an afterthought and it’s just tragic. It was over for Lucy already but, even so, Beth basically gave a speech about their value vs Lucy’s value.

And I totally agree with everyone else. Rio did not look like he was being convinced by what Beth was saying at all. I mean, he definitely had heart-eyes (haha, they’re both idiots) but he didn’t look like he was really considering what she was saying, rather he seemed more like he was impressed by what he was seeing, almost falling into the habit of staring at her as intensely as he always has. He was definitely just letting her talk so he could put a bullet in Lucy and deal with someone in front of his boys and the girls.

Rio

We already knew this but Manny and the writers have really doubled down on how charming, personable and downright sinister Rio can be as a character. His smiles come easily when he’s questioning the mover in 3x04 and interacting with Lucy, he jokes around with them and exerts an effortless control over both situations.  Perhaps even more importantly, his smiles are real in these moments. It’s become very obvious that Rio enjoys it all. It’s fun for him. Just like Beth, he gets a kick out of crime and is pretty unhinged.

As for him shooting Lucy, a completely innocent woman whom he knew Beth had dragged into this. Well, I agree with what a lot of people have already said; I think it was in character. I mean, this is the man who sat and messed about on his phone while his boys waiting on the order to kill the girls in 1x02. This is the guy who killed Eddie, somebody he presumably knew well considering the fact that Eddie only called his mum aside from Rio. This is the guy who shot Dean, who we as an audience hate but who really had nothing to do with Beth’s plot to have Rio arrested. This is the guy who didn’t just have Agent Turner killed but a slew of other FBI agents. Interestingly, of all these characters, the only one aside from Lucy who was unwittingly brought into the crime world was Dean and Rio still shot him. I don’t think this was an attempt on the writers’ parts to make us hate Rio because let’s be honest, the vast majority of us will continue to love his character and they know it. This is who he is and none of us can lie to ourselves anymore. I think that’s good.

The Ending

I loved it! Annie seeking comfort from the people they love, the people who support them. And Beth not being able to do that. God, she looks exhausted and two seconds from falling to pieces in that last scene and Dean is such a narcissist that he can’t see it. All he cares about is Rio, not the effect all of this is having on Beth.

When Beth says that she also really hates being around Rio again and Dean questions her, “really?”, it’s the only thing he can focus on when it comes to her. Like once Rio stuck his dick inside Beth, she wasn’t just her anymore, she was only a person with relation to Rio. Ewwwww Dean. Go away.

Also, it’s so telling that Beth couldn’t repeat herself when Dean questioned her. God, even after Rio ordered Mick to shoot Lucy, she can’t lie about it. She’s such a good liar but, in this scene, she’s so exhausted that she can’t even put in the effort.

God, Christina was amazing. Her watery blue eyes, her forced smiles and pained expressions. I felt like I had been stabbed in the heart when Max said “except for you” and that Beth was Lucy’s only friend. I feel terrible for Max and completely agree with Lucy! He is totally awesome.

#nbc good girls #i'm sorry this is so long

[onceinsomniac]

Ngl, Wayhaught brought me in (my gay ass is always looking for wlw content), but I agree with you 100%, Wynhaught is the funniest pairing (2x07 is one of my favorite episodes). I absolutely ADORE that even when death is knocking on her door, Wynonna still jokes and is sarcastic abt it.... Waverly is my comfort character, I love her so much, she's so sweet and caring and I'll stop here before I rant abt her for hours.... Sheriff Haught and her gay/closet jokes...

THERE'S JUST SO MUCH!!!!

P.S.: can I be 🍭 anon?

Lmao I swear that’s me. I literally decide which show to watch next off of wlw edits on youtube. I’d seen wayhaught on so many and I honestly have no idea what took me so long before I finally started watching it. 2x07 is amazing and drunk Nicole is the cutest thing ever but 3x07 is just iconic. Their whole debacle between which one should mary the gnome and wynonna basically dragging a drunk nicole through the snowy forest 😂. The whole episode is filled with memorable moments (wynonna wanting to steal bunny’s money and pills and nicole’s reaction 💀)

And honestly, wynonna isn’t about to let something as minimal as the apocalypse or her death stop her from making her jokes and I aspire to one day reach the same level as her of not giving a fuck 😂. Waverly is the sweetest and I just love her so much. I’m probably gonna be writing a few fics from her pov just to keep myself from watching the last season. As you can see, I also tend to rant quite a lot so I’ll stop here before I end up writing a whole ass thesis on everything I love about the show.

Ofc you can be 🍭 anon. Thanks for talking with me about this 💕

#🍭anon #anon #ask #non kpop