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fanonical · 1 month

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look people who've been around here for a while know exactly how i feel about the early doctor who serial edge of destruction but i rewatched it recently and i have feelings

so edge of destruction is the third ever serial of doctor who, right? it's an unearthly child, the daleks, then edge of destruction. and it's also kind of a bottle episode. edge of destruction is a two-parter, and is set entirely on the tardis featuring only the main cast

the plot is weird. everyone wakes up in the tardis with confusion and memory loss, not knowing what's going on. the tardis isn't safe, and strange things are happening. the ship seems to be malfunctioning, but there's nothing notably wrong with it. everyone's freaking out and accusing each other of sabotaging the tardis or hurting each other

now, as i said, this is early doctor who. companions barbara and ian had been kidnapped by the doctor and susan so they don't tell anyone that time travel is real, and at this point they don't trust the doctor and the doctor doesn't trust them. the doctor immediately starts accusing barbara and ian of sabotaging the ship to force him to take them home, which they angrily refute. they've spent the last two stories saving the doctor and susan from whatever's trying to kill them

barbara has a speech here which is brilliant and i can quote verbatim. 'do you realise, you stupid old man, that you'd have died in the cave of skulls if ian hadn't made fire for you? and what about what we went through against the daleks? not just for us, but for you and susan too. and all because you tricked us into going down to the city. accuse us? you ought to go down on your hands and knees and thank us! but gratitude's the last thing you'll ever have, or any sort of common sense either'

and the doctor spends the whole two episodes either accusing ian and barbara of being evil or being wholly unhelpful. (he straight up drugs everyone with a sedative at one point!) yeah, turns out the tardis is trying to tell them what's wrong via cryptic clues, and barbara's putting the pieces together. and the doctor still doesn't listen to her! she's so close to figuring it out and saving them all - they're all gonna die in about ten minutes and the doctor's basically given up, but barbara's trying to solve the problem

and in the end, they have the eureka moment and get out of trouble, but barbara's still understandably pissed. that is, until the doctor takes the time to apologise to her and tell her that yeah, she was right and he's sorry he didn't listen to her and he's going to do better to respect her opinions in future. they go into the next serial as friends, a first for the series to that point

so why do i love this weird little two-parter so much? because it is the moral centre of modern doctor who. this is the start of the characterisation of the doctor that we know and love. before this, the doctor is ruthless! he tries to kill a guy with a rock! he sabotages the tardis to satisfy his curiosity and lands everyone in danger from the daleks! he drugs them just because he doesn't trust them! he thinks he's smarter, better, and more important than the people he travels with

but then barbara stands up to him. she tells him that, no, she and ian are important too. and no, they're worth listening to. and yes, they can help and are worth something. and that's important, because barbara and ian are way more compassionate than the doctor is at this point. they want to help people they come across even if it means putting their own lives in danger.

sound familiar? yeah, the doctor's whole thing of helping everyone they come across and compassion towards everyone starts here. this is one of the most enduring things about the doctor and it would never have happened without barbara telling the doctor he's full of shit

and it's all because he listened to an ordinary woman

#Doctor Who #Classic Who #Ian Chesterton #Barbara Wright #First Doctor #Susan Foreman

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studebakerhearse · 2 years

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I think the episode serialization of adventure shows in the 50s and 60s is super charming. Like the "tune in next week!" schtick. Sure you could miss the entire second part of an episode if you didn't tune in next week and possibly never see it again if you don’t happen to catch a rerun but you can always count on your friends to lie about what happens. It keeps things interesting.

#if I ever get rozzieverse batman made I’m definitely going to use the whole end monologue + recap structure for two parter episodes #I think it’s so cute #rozzie rambles

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prokopetz · 10 months

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My local network habitually aired Power Rangers episodes all out of order when I was a kid – we were lucky if both parts of a two-parter ended up airing consecutively, much less anything further-reaching – so I always had a fuzzy idea of how some of the plot points lined up.

For example, I didn't realise until just now that the gag where Bulk and Skull got turned into chimpanzees wasn't a one-off thing? Apparently they just stayed that way for the next fifteen episodes, and continued to serve as the show's comic relief B-plot in spite of being monkeys, voice-acted Garfield style by their regular human actors?

Now I'm wondering what else the out-of-order airing made me fail to connect the dots for.

#media #television #power rangers #power rangers turbo #bulk and skull #farkas bulkmeier #eugene skullovitch #power rangers spoilers #power rangers turbo spoilers #spoilers

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devouringyourson · 9 months

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sometimes i get carried away in the popular moffat bashing like yh fuck that guy sherlock was shite actually etc etc but then i try and list out every cool concept just in the silence of the library/forest of the dead two parter and my head literally explodes in awe like commercial space archeology? monsters made of shadow? simulation children who don't exist when you blink? a whole planet of books? a benevolent computer built from a child's mind? dr moon virus checker psychologist and literal satellite moon?!?! the perception of passing time in a simulation?? echoes of consciousness saved on communicators blinkering out into death!! the imagery of monsters who eat flesh and leave behind bone?! two shadows!!! not knowing whether the love you met in the simulation was real or a creation of the algorithm?! the tragedy of never meeting the very real man you loved in that reality 😭😭 that's not even touching on the introduction of river song and the start of a backwards love story meeting your lover for the on the day you die but he doesn't know you yet like what the actual fuck this was two episodes of television im going to be sick every one of these has kept me up at night since i was 11

#moffat #silence in the library #forest of the dead #doctor who

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jazeswhbhaven · 3 months

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That's What You Get When You Eat a Mandrake~ (Beel Butt L-Card Story: Ch.1) *React I*

-the bby

WE ARE LIVING IN AVISOS LATELY HUH?? Sure we got a healthy dose of our Hades bois, but there's been a lot of content with Avisos popping up lately and I'm like huh...it seems the fave locations are Gehenna and Avisos as opposed to Tartaros and Hades. Anyway this is the first node of the Beel booty story (hooray everyone that got it!) I would technically say this isn't spoilers unless you were unable to get the card then it's technically spoilers but everyone's seen it I assume but just in casseeee

LETS GO another two-parter...this time because there's a new boo I get to ramble about. Get yourself a snackkyyy snack and let's go ( ˘▽˘)っ♨

First we enter Dong-gyun that is at this gift store having his home-made butt shaped chocolates get wrapped professionally

Let me just say that Dong-gyun is a d o r a b l e. And I love him so much. For some reason he reminds me of Yoosung from MYMES and idk why when they clearly aren't the similar just the blonde hair lmao

Maybe it's the soft boi casual hoodie-wearing vibes I'm loving? Anyways

Poor bby was kicked out of the store for being a bit overbearing lol that and it's busy with everyone celebrating their first valentines day in Avisos because MC is also there (they truly do party for any reason it's great) Because they're out here making out, doing shit in the streets like this is wild lol

But DonBear (my nickname for him) made the chocolates for MC :)))) he has like a huge one-sided crush on them and I think that's just the cutest thing.

I also want to add that he's not one of the 72 either, he's just a regular day-to-day lower-level devil and I love that we get to see that. I wanna know how life is for devils who just are "there" ya know?? Like Nina for instance (RIP ;.;)

So he finds out where MC is at and he notices everyone and their mom (except for the 7 grandmothers, i wanna know more about that actually :o) are there with chocolates they have given MC. But he doesn't mind waiting in line.

I only wanted to add this screenshot because I'm crying, Minhyeok forever in the friendzone trenches because "friendship chocolates?????" free this man please.

Ahhh so our DonBear was able to to make it and he prepares to give his chocolates until....

First. Why

HOT???

I can imagine how his jaw had to unhinge unhumanly to eat that pile of chocolate and I'd just be like o__o oh

Second...girl...he gonna give you back that chocolate alright if you want (yes this is a poop joke. no i am not into that i just find it funny mc really sat there and asked for it back like you're either gonna get vomit or poop which one?)

The funny part tho is Beel is casually like "I already ate it tho"

Yes bby we know that. I'd like for you to replace it because you prefer to be childish and eat things that don't belong to you to show your dominance or whatever okay <3

See? See the fucking snark this one has?

>:P he's getting bitten

Leave DonBear alone D: at least let us eat our butt shaped chocolates he spent time making from scratch (also look at his face I'll protect you omg)

Beel.

Beel. Beel. You're going in time-out I swear. The naughty corner.

Sigh....maybe you'll be forgiven if you let DonBear make another batch of chocolates for me

AND this part? Where Beel fainted and is having some kind of episode???? I was like omfg it's whatever was in the chocolates isn't it? It's the damn mandrake stuff isn't it?

And our Avisos bois came to the rescue immediately because they thought it was some kind of attack. (it's really cool how they can sense stuff like this immediately)

So while everyone's trying to help Beel and figure out what's wrong with him and take him to the hospital and such (and dragging DonBear along because they suspect it's him that did it) we go into a flash back!!!

So Dong-hyung was hanging out and being the designated driver kinda friend (the one that stays sober and watches the others) but he doesn't really drink like that anyway so he doesn't mind babysitting.

LMAO so these two characters waltz into the bar and DonBear is kinda side-eyeing them because I mean I'm crying why is MC a clown? xD it makes me think of those memes again dammit

MC showing their ID at the bar 💀💀💀💀💀💀

anyways

So what's funny is that MC is me because they're drunk asf slurring and saying some shit and Beel is just thinking this is cute and just letting it happen such a bad influence... xD

ME coded.

Silly drunk clown bitch hours.

My ass would be laughing at everything and saying the floor is lavvvaaa Beel...the floor is lavvvaaaaaa carry meeeeee

So iirc MC ends up bumping into DonBear and he just knows how to handle the situation perfectly and this was after he realized that it was Beel and MC in disguise and not just two randos in the bar.

Beel gestured for him to come outside with them and he's fanboying about the situation and I find that entirely cute. He's a sweetie and I want good things for him.

DREAM ON DONG-HYUNG I BELIEVE IN YOUUUU????

even though we all pretty much know how this works though for the most part when it comes to who is the designated 72. Someone should draw him in the uniform though (throwing this idea out there)

LOL so he flopped MC on DonBear and is just like so this kind of night arouses angels...so hold MC for me in case I have to fight or something. And I'm just like oh dear...the poor bby is kinda struggling to carry MC are they that heavy? Lol

He's so determined. I love it

So here, DonBear is asking a lot of questions and one of them is if Bael and Beel are twins, and Beel is like yeah Bael would not like it if I said yes so I'll say no even if we are.

Beel your roundabout answer is killing me lmao

He....he....he almost came from being petted on the nape of his neck?????? *screams*

He's perfect for dry humping, and anything of the sort that doesn't involve penetration because he's so sensitive I love him. I could hug him and rub his back and he'd love it. (granted this means tho that this is only for his favorite person or the person he's crushing on this sounds like he wouldn't react this way to a stranger)

So Bael was getting onto Beel for MC being in this state and just going on and on and Beel is like "Well it's not like I could have just left MC there no way they're drunk :D" so gentlemanly like and Bael agrees that the devils in Avisos are gentleman (are they...? I would assume some aren't)

ANNDDD I've hit the limit my lovelies. (on screenshots allowed in said post) So we're gonna stop here until we get to the other post ^^ see you thereeeee

->Part Two<-

#whb #what in hell is bad #whb beelzebub #whb dong hyun #whb screencaps #whb spoilers #card spoilers #whb reacts

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maidenvault · 17 days

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I'm convinced the writers were so caught up in the symbolic storytelling they were doing with CX-2 that they didn't really think about the ways that portraying him as the dark reflection of one of the Batch would seem to telegraph that it's Tech, who's always been kind of a foil for Crosshair as well.

For instance, the choice to show or not show a character's face is often very meaningful in this show - Crosshair wears his helmet most of the time as an Imperial, while Cody takes his off when he's trying to get Governor Ames to listen to and trust him. So I understand the choice to never show the faces of the particular CX clones who represent what the Batch would be if they were nothing but soldiers and totally stripped of their humanity. But because we did see the faces of other CX clones and they were just clones, of course it made it seem like they were hiding something.

It's just crazy because I talked about the CX clones as "shadow selves" after that two-parter, obviously a lot of us partly caught onto this, but I never thought that'd be all these guys are. Marie-Claire Gould always does great analysis of the symbolism in TBB on the What the Force podcast, and when she discussed those episodes she went a lot deeper into this idea and kind of blew my mind pointing out the ways CX-2 is meaningfully paralleled with Crosshair even though the similarities to Tech are there, too. I just never expected we'd literally see the Batch fight four of them clearly designed to look like evil versions of themselves. I'm not sure how coherently the Batch facing the CX clones at the end really contributes to their characterization this season and it feels like a lot to unpack when it was just...not what we were expecting.

#honestly i'm really looking forward to what mythologist marie claire has to say because my inclination rn is to think it's kind of....#antithetical to what star wars is about that they just. kill them. it strikes me as really bleak #like this is luke in that cave. we don't need to see under their helmets because we know it would just be their faces under there.#crosshair #tbb tech #the bad batch #meta #my meta

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star-rie · 3 months

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making a merlin episode focus solely on arthur finding out about merlin’s magic and arthur accepting magic : (can be a two-parter, subplot in between episodes, an ending to a season)

episodes starts with a village attack. merthur and the knights went there to go investigate. Obviously this is somehow a plot to kill arthur’s life but this time both merlin AND arthur was warned.

arthur scoffs and pretend like nothing happened but this made merlin really paranoid. he always watch arthur 24/7 and stay with him as close as possible. just in case something happens. And happened it did. Arthur walking out the room? Chandelier fell. Arthur hunting? A mythical beast attacked. Arthur visiting a villager? He got trapped in a burning house with merlin.

It eventually got to a point where it’s an all out battle. Merthur fight together, and as they fight merlin broke his leg. arthur got fatally injured as well but he kept fighting to protect merlin. when arthur was about to get killed, merlin finally used magic to save arthur.

stunned, arthur and merlin was locked in a very intense eye contact and it flashes back to scenes, from season 1 up until this point where arthur knows that merlin is hiding something

obviously heartbroken and disappointed arthur drives his sword towards merlin’s neck, but he can’t kill him. Instead he sentenced merlin to exile and says very hurtful words to merlin. Surprisingly the enemy retreats after this ordeal

Some time passes, seeking answers, arthur decided to visit other magical beings. Arthur started to accept that magic isn’t all that bad, and learned that some people are born with it. Arthur is finally ready to forgive merlin, so he head out to ealdor

But when he arrived, hunnith said merlin already left days ago. Suddenly it became very clear why the enemy retreats right after merlin uses his magic in front of him, they never wanted arthur in the first place, they’re trying to take merlin away from him

Arthur rushed back to camelot but finds that merlin is burning half the castle down, morgana was there (obviously), he unsuccessfully tried to snap merlin out of it. They got into a fight and as merlin was about to kill arthur, arthur said “your magic, it’s beautiful” merlin freezes momentarily and arthur knocks him out.

Arthur will eventually find a way to revert merlin back to the way he is while keeping his magic secret from everyone (yes no one saw merlin burn half the castle down, shut—), probably a true love kiss or something (with all my heart but make it 10x angstier and merthur). They reunite the end!!!

#merlin bbc #arthur x merlin #merlin x arthur #merlin #merlin emrys #merlin prompt #bbc merlin #merthur #merthur prompt #arthur pendragon #arthur bbc

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ectomoog · 5 months

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How to Get Your Friends into Doctor Who (2005) - A Guide

Ok I really like Doctor Who, and of course I like introducing people to it, but oh my god do you forget how randomly terrible and/or cringy and/or uncomfortably Moffat-esque some of the episodes are, *especially* when you're watching it with someone who has no idea what to expect.

SO I made a list of ten episodes that I think would be the best loose sequence of episodes for a causal introduction to the show...

But first, some requirements:

It has to be a one-off (NO TWO-PARTERS), low commitment, etc

It can't require watching previous OR following episodes to be enjoyable

It needs to actually be good

It needs to represent Doctor Who well

In a social setting where you're showing a group of people an episode, most of these would be fine. Watching consistently with one person however, loosely follow this order, and if your person decides at any point that they want to commit to actually watching the show, skip straight back to The End of The World and watch Series 1. Ok list time...

1. Rose (S1, E01)

I think Rose is the perfect episode of Doctor Who to start on. It's campy, it's fun and weird and it sets up almost everything you need to know for the Revival Era. You get the companion, the Doctor, regular Doctor Who tropes and themes, etc. Plus, if they can't get past the Mickey bin scene, this show probably isn't for them anyway.

2. Dalek (S1, E06)

Skipping a few episodes into Series 1, Dalek is a great way to get a feel for the format of the show, and also a great and intentional introduction to the Daleks. The Doctor and the companion turn up in a mysterious place and have to battle an alien force and really unlikeable one-off side characters, the works basically. It's a fun monster-movie of an episode.

3. Vincent and The Doctor (S5,E10)

Jumping a whole five series forward, Vincent and The Doctor is a notoriously heart-wrenching historical that I think is a classic (if a little indulgent) example of Doctor-meets-famous-historical-figure. It's nice to jump to a different Doctor and a different era of the show, to get a feel for its' diversity. Although there's a few moments relevant to the greater series plot, it's contained, very pretty, very sweet, and easy to understand.

4. Midnight (S4, E10)

Midnight just feels like an essential episode to be honest. A fantastic one-off sci-fi horror/thriller, with one of David Tennant's best performances, a great introduction to the 10th Doctor. It's a shame you don't get more Donna, but I think this one would be my go-to if someone asked for the best episode to watch stand-alone, just based on how genuinely great it is.

5. Heaven Sent (S9, E11)

Jumping to Series 9 with another critically-acclaimed episode, but also one that I think is an amazing introduction to the 12th Doctor. Heaven Sent is a little unconventional, and I'm not 100% sure it should be here, but it does give Capaldi a whole episode to just act his ass off, and he completely delivers. It's artsy, mysterious and dramatic, very much the high concept sci-fi style of Moffat's later scripts, so I think an appropriate watch.

6. The Voyage of The Damned (2007 Special)

If you're not in a festive mood, try The Lodger or Demons of the Punjab instead

The Christmas episodes are too iconic not to show, and as far as Christmassy vibes, celebrity cameos and whimsical concepts go, this one is a fun one. This is David Tennant in his prime, with Kylie Minogue, a massive budget and a romp of a script.

6. Blink (S3, E10)

I mean, duh, but genuinely I think Blink is just *too good* not to include. A tense, creepy, tightly-written piece of horror TV with twists and turns and drama, it's considered the best episode of Doctor Who for a reason, and along with Midnight is an amazing stand-alone episode. It's not super conventional, but all the timey-wimey stuff is very Doctor Who.

6. The Mummy on The Orient Express (S8, E08)

If you're a Tennant stan you could swap this out for The Planet of the Dead

This one is just a fun one really. The Mummy on The Orient Express is stylish and fun, with a cool concept and a little peek into a more complex Doctor-companion relationship. With a short explanation you can get the context pretty easily, and it's a good example of your typical episode anyway.

HOWEVER if you have time, there's a bunch of two-parters you should watch instead, like The Family of Blood, The Empty Child, Silence in the Library, even Extremis.

9. The Haunting of Villa Diodati (S12, E10)

Finally some 13th Doctor rep! This one has some of the strongest writing in the Chibnall era, and is a fun horror mystery that serves as a fun introduction to Jodie Whittaker as the 13th Doctor. It has a little bit of series-wide arc, but that's okay.

10. The Church on Ruby Road (2023 Special 4)

If your person liked all those episodes but still doesn't want to watch 13 seasons of TV, just abandon ship and watch the 2023 Christmas special in preparation for Series 14 (or Season 1) in Spring 2024. The Church on Ruby Road is the beginning of the latest soft reboot of the show and has been explicitly created as a jumping on point for new fans. Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson absolutely shine in this special, it's fun and silly and in my opinion bodes very well for the next season of Doctor Who...

"in 900 years of time and space, I've never met anyone who wasn't important" - Bannakaffalatta

I hope that was a success! After all those episodes hopefully you either had a good time with whoever you were watching it with, or you've already moved onto Series 1! I'll be trying this out the best I can with my girlfriend this year, so look out, because I may be back with adjustments later...

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miraculouslbcnreactions · 3 months

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The Many Failures of Lila's Writing

There are three main issues with Lila Rossi (or whatever her name is): she was introduced too early, she doesn't fill a unique role in the story, and her lies are too over the top for her to feel like a good villain. Let's go through that list in order because the issues build to create the show's most annoying character even though her setup could have lead to a legitimately great character who we would have all loved to hate.

Issue 1: Lila Shows Up Three Seasons Too Early

Lila is introduced in the final episode of season one and then essentially disappears from the show for a full season. The only time we see her in season two is her brief appearance in season two's finale where she takes on the role of Volpina again in order to help Gabriel fake Ladybug's death. That's also the episode where we learn that Lila has been "in Achu" for some unknown amount of time.

[image: a list of Lila's season two appearances (source)]

Season three sees Lila show up with reasonable regularity (8 episodes, none of which are two-parters) and we get a real conflict with her, truly establishing her as a villain who lies like crazy and who wants to destroy Marinette.

Then season four comes and Lila is once again forgotten about. She shows up more than she did in season two, but only as a background character and most episodes don't see her at all. She doesn't have a single line until the final three episodes of the season and her role in these episodes is exceedingly minor. She does a few petty things to remind you that she's awful, but she's not the focus of the plot. She's just there to remind you that she exists and to establish her and Chloe as coconspirators of some sort.

[image: a list of Lila's season four appearances (source)]

Then season five comes and Lila is back to being an active antagonist. She shows up in almost every episode and we even get her very lackluster defeat.

This is some of the worst pacing that I have ever seen. It's honestly impressively bad. I hope the issue speaks for itself, but in case it doesn't, you don't chop a story up like this without a good reason and, frankly, their isn't one. Lila's introduction, villain setup, and defeat should have all take place over the course of a season or two, forming a mini arc.

Just in case you don't know what that is, most stories have a main conflict that drives the whole narrative (ex: getting the butterfly miraculous back) but within that story you have lots of mini stories. Things that get resolved so that it feels like things are moving forward and so that the audience stays engaged. If you don't get any satisfying resolutions until five seasons in (or more), then the audience will start to get annoyed or just stop watching. It's also a good way to keep expectations from getting built up too high. If every season or every other season has a satisfying conclusion to some big conflict, then you don't leave everything riding on the big finale.

By chopping Lila's story up, you made the audience spend four seasons dreaming of her defeat. Expectations were sky high. She's more hated than Gabe! If she's been introduced mid season 4 and had the exact same story arc, then her lackluster take down would be a mild disappointment and not a major issue for most of the fandom.

Issue 2: Lila and Chloe Should Never have Coexisted

When it comes to story telling, characters fill roles. Ladybug is the lead. Alya is the plucky best friend. Gabriel is the big bad. Etc. Etc.

Generally speaking, you only want one character in a given role. Having two or more characters in the same role leads to character bloat where characters are fighting for screen time because they don't have a clear place in the story. This is especially true for key antagonistic roles. It's a lot easier to balance two best friends than it is to balance two big bads.

Enter Chloe and Lila.

I've mentioned before that I thought that Chloe was going to be redeemed. The reason I thought this was not because of anything to do with Chloe. It was because the show introduced Lila and, narratively speaking, Lila and Chloe are the same character. They're both petty school bullies whose main job is to cause trouble for Marinette while she's at school and to give setups for akumas.

However, in terms of perceived threat, Lila is the bigger badder Chloe. No one but Sabrina likes Chloe. Everyone but Marinette likes Lila. Chloe doesn't make plans. Lila lives to manipulate and plot. If you're going to get ride of Chloe, Lila is who you'd replace her with. That's just how this works.

One of the most well known examples of this type of setup is Zuko and Azula from Avatar the Last Airbender. Zuko is the main antagonist of season one, but season two sees him step out of that role as he starts his journey of self-discovery and redemption. And who is introduced at the end of seasons one? Azula, Zuko's evil, more powerful sister. In season two, Azula fills Zuko's former role, but also makes things feel more serious because she's a bigger badder Zuko.

This brings us back to a big part of issue one. Namely, Lila's ongoing disappearing act. She only does that because of Chloe.

Chloe is a much easier villain to write. She doesn't have to hide anything. She is openly petty and evil. So if you're going to pick a character for a petty conflict, you're going to pick Chloe. The only time Lila gets pulled in is when the drama revolves around lies because Chloe is actually a strikingly honest character. She rarely lied prior to her "friendship" with Lila because, for the most part, Chloe doesn't care if everyone hates her. She only cares about the opinions of a chosen few. (Or, at least, she acts like she does.)

For Lila to work, Chloe needed to be redeemed or written off the show. The best proof of this is seasons five, where Chloe straight up becomes Lila's minion because the writers had to force that relationship if they wanted to have both characters involved in the plot. It's also why season four saw Chloe suddenly obsessed with Marinette when, prior to that, Chloe bullied everyone. The only way to team Chloe and Lila up was to give them a common goal and that didn't exist in the first three seasons.

So, building off of point one, Lila should have been introduced much later and she should have stepped into Chloe's shoes after Chloe either switched roles or completely left the show.

Issue 3: The Lies

I think that we can all agree that Lila is a terrible liar. Even a toddler could see through the BS that spews from her mouth. There are multiple satisfying Lila takedown fics that don't involve clever plots to beat her. They involve Alya or someone else doing a google search because - even with the declining quality of that tool - that's still all that it would take to prove what Lila is.

This is a really bad way to write a character who is supposed to be a master manipulator. Especially when she's going to be the next big bad. They desperately needed to tone her down.

For example, DON'T have her claim to be Ladybug's best friend. Have her claim that Ladybug saved her. That would still go up on the Ladyblog and, more importantly, it would be a lot harder to disprove. I doubt that Ladybug remembers everyone she saves so no one would fault Alya for just taking that at face-value, but Marinette could still instantly peg Lila as a liar.

Tinnitus from saving Jagged Stone's cat? How about tinnitus from being too close to the speakers at Jagged Stone's latest concert? The concert where Lila even got to meet him because she had back stage passes. Once again, hard to disprove. Jagged meets a lot of fans. I doubt he'd be able to tell you that she was lying.

And definitely don't have her openly state that she's a liar. The fact that she did that and was STILL able to manipulate the adult characters is abysmal writing. Especially because it comes right before Lila disappears for a season, giving the impression that her confession essentially defeated her, only for the show to go PSYCH! No one cares about her confession, it meant nothing for the Lila conflict.

I've had someone tell me that they think that Lila's lies were suppose to be a joke and, to be fair, that's plausible. The show relies on a lot of ridiculous humor. If Lila had shown up later, then this might have worked. But because Lila has been around for so long, we've all had time to think about her lies and build up the expectation of how they'd be handled.

I don't just mean Lila being exposed. I mean the fallout of all of her "fans" having to deal with the truth of who Lila really is, an issue that I won't go into here because this is already super long and I think that the issue of how her lies effect characters like Nino and Alya is pretty well understood.

There's also the Chloe thing. Chloe is very over the top, so replacing her with a character who is over the top in a different, more terrifying way would have made some sense. But Chloe's still here and she's more ridiculous than ever, so Lila matching that ridiculous just makes them an annoying duo that we all have to suffer through. Their team up was one of the most forced elements of seasons five. I just do not buy that Chloe would ever subject herself to being someone's minion. When it comes to that team up, the hand of the author is glaring.

Conclusion/Final Thoughts

Manipulative characters are fun. They make for fantastic villains and Lila could have been one of these fantastic villain, especially if Gabriel was played as more sympathetic. If there were lines that Gabriel wouldn't cross, then Lila getting the butterfly would be terrifying. As-is, I don't see how she's any worse than the dude who created Chat Blanc. Plus I'm not even sure why she needs the butterfly. She could already get anything she wanted with minimal effort because her lying powers are so OP. Like, why should I care about that twist? What has changed with the passing of the butterfly? The stakes have not been raised. If anything, they've been lowered.

Lila is just your generic evil villain who is evil for evil's sake. The heroes already hate her. Finding out that she's the big bad is not emotionally devastating. If anything, Marinette should be thrilled that she finally has an excuse to punch Lila.

It's possible that the writers will give Lila an interesting back story, but because she's been around for five seasons, I don't have any faith that they will. I mean, what was the point of introducing her all the way back in season one if you weren't going to use that to set her up in a satisfying way? I've seen people say to just wait and see and wait for what? They couldn't manage to pull off Gabriel's defeat or Chloe's defeat/redemption or Lila's first takedown in a way that was narratively satisfying. Why should I give them a chance to disappoint me with Lila's next take down? Three strikes and you're out!

@tallwriter as requested, there are my thoughts on Lila. As with every character in this show, I think she deserved better. She could have been great. She's one of the worst examples of squandered potential because everything about her was done wrong.

#ml writing salt #ml writing critical #ml season 5 salt #Lila salt #Lila Rossi salt #Lila Rossi deserves better #She's got everything she needs to be the kind of character we all love to hate #Instead I see her and I just go “oh no not her. The writing is so bad when she's around.”

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oneatlatime · 6 months

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Journey to Ba Sing Se, Part 1: The Serpent's Pass

Alternate title: Gimme Appa Back, Take Two.

Bit of a mouthful for a title. I will definitely be watching this apparent two parter as two single episodes. There's commentary too, but that'll wait for a rewatch.

The previously on segment seems to point to Suki making an appearance. I didn't like her in her original episode, so this bodes ill.

That was incredibly ominous title card music.

Explain this to someone who's never seen the show. Also, air mattress made of ice is a very efficient way to get hypothermia.

Sokka saying "no more distractions' actually summoned a distraction. He should look into harnessing that power.

This brings up a point I've been thinking about. So the Earth Kingdom are smart enough to house refugee transportation underground, presumably because they've figured out that fire can't dig. So why didn't the entire population of the Earth Kingdom just become mole people at the first sign of fire nation attack?

Get yourself Iroh's brand of chill. It's dearly bought in his case, but he has such a good way of looking at life. Also, half of Zuko's face is like an inch higher than the other half, and that haircut is not doing him any favours.

Oh god it's fuckboy. I'd take a million Sukis over fuckboy. Nice to see that the majority of his posse seems to have come to their senses and deserted him though.

CABBAGE GUY!!! HI CABBAGE GUY!!! I MISSED YOU!!!

She's got a point about destruction of the ecosystem, but unless there was woodworm in that cart, that platypus bear is guilty of needless destruction of cabbage guy's possessions.

I loved this. The double punch of getting stymied by bureaucracy and undermined by cosplayers. There are some wacky ideas in this episode.

Aang! You may have lost Appa but you still have your glider! You don't need a passport or a ticket! Just fly to Ba Sing Se and make puppy dog eyes at the Earth King to make him send a boat to collect your friends!

You know that part in Harry Potter where Ron and Harry miss the train and decide the only logical course of action is to steal a flying car rather than, I don't know, wait for a responsible adult? I have a feeling this show is going to do the same type of thing with the whole Serpent's Pass. And I have to say, it's a brilliantly accurate way to do a plot that involves pre-teens, because they will often reach for the most out-there, illogical course of action no matter their intelligence. Curse those still-developing neural pathways. It also makes perfect sense in a kids' show, where the audience mostly wouldn't be caught dead turning down an adventure in favour of asking a responsible party (or a bureaucracy) for help.

"It is your pleasure" Get wrecked bitch!

I love seeing Toph weaponise that which previously kept her caged. I love to see Toph winning at life. Actually, I love to see Toph.

Get yourself some friends who'll commit to the bit no questions asked like these guys.

Get yourself a man who says your name the way Sokka says SUKI!!!:D Get yourself a girl who's so into you, she'll flirt with you in front of your entire found family.

Momo knows what's up. He's a good judge of character.

It's rare for me to advocate for criminal behaviour on this show, but after that bureaucracy lady denied them any sort of solution for the refugees who got their tickets stolen, I was kind of hoping that Katara would just say 'fuck it' and steal one of those ferries. Or even smuggle people on to them. They've got two waterbenders; they could make ice boats to take them out to the ferry, or even across the whole lake presumably. Plot dictates they go face this serpent thing, because this appears to be a monster of the week episode, but boy did that ferry lady need smacking.

Sokka's acting funky.

Is corniness one of the side effects of pregnancy?

No one in their right minds thinks that a pass called "the SERPENT'S Pass" in a universe like this one is named for its aesthetic qualities. Nice try at misdirection, but there will be a Sneky Boy in that water.

Aang's kind of right about the whole 'hope is a distraction' thing. Hope can too easily go from fuel to crutch.

It didn't occur to anyone to hide from the Fire Nation ship until it passed?

Toph's just saving everyone's bacon today huh?

Am I sensing some post-Yue trauma?

I would love to know the context behind Zuko knowing this very niche skill.

Jet has this fascinating ability to do objectively good deeds in such a sleezy way that you end up siding with the greedy oppressors. Weird.

This makes so much sense. Aang zipped into the Avatar State so hard and fast in the desert that he probably scared himself, so now he's keeping a lid on things so hard that he's scaring everyone else with his newfound apathy. He's 12, and this episode he feels 12. This is probably the first time he's met emotions this big; of course he doesn't quite know what to do with them.

You know, Katara doesn't get paid enough to put up with this.

Suki. Honey. I'm pretty sure there's a girl code about not flirting with a guy in front of his ex.

Has Suki been filled in on the whole moon thing? Or is she just really confused right now?

You know, Smellerbee is just as unusual a name for a girl.

Jet talks the talk, but I don't believe he'll be able to walk the walk, despite second chances being one of the big themes of this show. Something about him still feels off.

Hope you guys can swim!

Katara to the rescue again. I'm liking this new level-headed action-oriented Katara that appeared in The Desert, and I'm glad she wasn't just a one-episode character.

Momo here fulfilling one of my childhood dreams. There was an aquarium room at my local zoo that had a tunnel you could walk through. Seven year old me would have sold my soul to be able to glorp through the glass and swim with the fishes like this.

Once again, Toph saves the day. She's doing a lot of heavy lifting this episode.

Big Sneky Boy has the colour palette of an exercise video from the 80s aerobics phase. Kind of detracts from the terror when he's wearing a leotard.

Number one sign of irresponsible pet ownership: sacrificing your lemur to Cthulhu.

Aang just bitchslapped Big Sneky Boy.

Why didn't they go with a big ice bridge in the first place?

Yeah that's a problem. Could she make rock skate blades and attach them to her feet maybe? Would that help her see?

Guys. Just. Send someone out there for her. The ice doesn't have handrails. Come on.

Suki can swim in like half a tonne of armour. I bet they have swimming with armour on drills on Kyoshi Island.

"You can go ahead and let me drown now." That is EXACTLY my sense of humour.

Unlike goldfish, Big Sneky Boys can be flushed down the toilet.

"Now it's nothing but smooth sailing to Ba Sing Se." *Something immediately goes wrong* Has Sokka thought about harnessing his ability to speak things into existence?

Tragically, it makes perfect sense that Katara knows exactly how to deliver real human things.

"You know, as soon as I saw your scar I knew exactly who you were." Jet's little speech here got the biggest laugh out of me yet. I had to pause so I wouldn't miss dialogue. He's so deliciously wrong.

This episode's Beat Up Sokka quota is fulfilled by a baby that has yet to be born.

"I want our daughter's name to be unique" TAKE COVER FOLKS! UNNECESSARY VOWELS INCOMING!

Didn't you guys just nearly get killled by a pass that told you to abandon Hope? Are you sure about that name?

Ok it isn't pregnancy that makes you corny. It's being a character in this episode. While I'm glad to see the back of Stoic Aang, this is getting to be a bit on the cheesy side.

Hell yeah Katara deserves that cry. And that hug.

I'm watching this at my mom's house and I need to report that when Sokka said "You came along, to protect me?" my mom audibly went "awww!"

On a more serious note, this is exactly what Sokka needs after the Yue situation. A badass girlfriend who not only can and does take care of herself, but who also can and does take care of Sokka. Boy needs some pampering.

That is one hell of a wall.

That is one hell of a Big Sneky Boy.

"Appa's gonna have to wait" hit like a tonne of bricks. Another step in the journey to turn Aang from carefree monk to repsonsible Avatar. Appa having to wait is a genius story beat, but I want Appa NOW.

Final Thoughts

I had to check out my window for flying pigs before I started typing this section, because Zuko was consistently the most reasonable character in the B plot, perhaps in the whole episode. Apparently the 'make Zuko decent' project is finally seeing results. Have we turned over a new leaf? Dare I hope? It helps that he was juxtaposed with one of the single most batshit crazy characters from season one, but still.

I also need to issue a formal apology to Suki and all of her fans. I didn't like her in The Warriors of Kyoshi, and while I'm still not overly fond of that episode, I love what they've done with her character here. A good standalone character with her own strengths, goals, and responsibilities, and a good match for Sokka. I'd go so far as to say she's a better match for Sokka than Yue was, for all that both ladies have a startling amount in common: a position of responsibility, devotion to those who regard them as a leader, good taste in water tribe ass, etc.

I'm also going to hypothesise that Sokka is, in universe, the hottest member of the Gang. He's now had four girls expressing their interest: Suki, then Yue, then Azula's pokey pink friend whose name currently escapes me, and now Toph too! And she can't even see him, so his hotness is more than skin deep.

This episode was another stealth character episode in the style of The Blue Spirit. You think it's an action episode but it's actually character work with some fights for spice. It's got: -payoff for Katara's new-found levelheadedness -the other side of the coin on Aang's desert freakout -Toph doing just ALL the heavy lifting in the absence of Appa (seriously, teach her to fly and you won't need Appa as anything but a friendly couch) -Toph also getting an incredibly logical weakness that she learns she can rely on her friends to surmount -Sokka getting some Yue resolution from a frankly ironic source -Zuko getting what I'm sure is going to turn into a dark mirror

Speaking of fuckboy, there was nothing in this episode that hinted that Jet's turn to good was anything but genuine, but something about him still really makes my teeth itch. So I'm calling it now: based not on any evidence, but entirely on my own feelings, Jet's turn to good isn't going to stick.

There was some corny stuff in this episode, but it's a kids' show. It gets way more allowance for corny than an adult show does. I'll let it slide, so long as it doesn't become a habit.

This was part one of a two part episode, but it certainly didn't feel that way. There was the Big Metal Sneky Boy plot hook at the very end, but other than that it was a self-contained story.

I had predicted last episode that the rest of season two would be spent getting to Ba Sing Se, and they did it in one episode. So I'd like to announce my retirement from predicting the future because I am not good at it. I have no idea where we're going beyond next episode. I guess I'll have fun finding out!

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #avatar the last airbender #the serpent's pass

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