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eyrieofsynapses · 3 years

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Redemption Panel Highlights and Reactions

GATORS

i.e., Beth Riesgraf and Christian Kane (mostly Beth) talking about filming the scenes in (what I presume is) The Rollin’ on the River Job, where they’re pulling some stuff out of the water, and finding out the next day that there was an absolutely massive alligator pulled out of the same place just a little while after they filmed it

Beth’s impression of the wildlife folks warning them about the alligators

Beth scaring the hell out of Noah Wyle by yelling “GATOR” at him just after he finished his scene

seriously that was an absolutely WILD part of the panel

Everyone showering Aleyse Shannon with literally all the love!

Aldis Hodge in particular big-brothering her, and also the older actors calling her out for not giving herself enough credit, and Dean Devlin talking about how she blew him away at the auditions with her ability to turn on a dime

Seeing Kane with his glasses off wiping at his eyes, momentarily thinking “you okay dude?” and then realizing that he was laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes

(same)

The The Bucket Job clip! I’ve been a bit meh on a lot of Redemption, just in how it didn’t feel quite right, but that is possibly the absolute closest I’ve seen it get to the original in the best way. Brilliant

Which comes as no surprise since BETH RIESGRAF directed the episode!!! And apparently put an insane amount of effort in!

Beth’s utter delight and joy at both directing the episode and having the crew behind her

THE CHAIR

So apparently she and Christian went to town on the fight scene and he winds up tied up in a chair somewhere along the line and there’s a whole wild scene, which I am really looking forward to

Beth knowing how insanely particular he’d be about things like zip ties vs rope and what kind of rope e.t.c. e.t.c.

Apparently this is also tied into a VERY DEEP scene with Eliot? It sounds like they’re going to go super hard on his backstory, which is terrifyingly exciting

Just. Beth and Christian going very hard on that episode together

Speaking of: the panel’s going amazingly, I’m laughing so hard my stomach hurts, things are relatively light, and then, of fucking course—

Kane hitting us over the head about Eliot being a mass murderer who can’t be redeemed, is trying to stay static so that he can maintain the place he’s in, and is thus LIVING VICARIOUSLY THROUGH HARRY

What the FUCK. This is of course incredibly insightful and perfectly on point (because it’s Kane) but also, EXCUSE ME, OUCH, why would you DO THAT to us?

Everyone talking about having their families on set and their kids!

Beth’s son growing up on the original Leverage set and now going into being a director himself!

Gina’s daughter also growing up on set!

Noah Wyle’s daughter is playing Harry’s daughter I REPEAT NOAH WYLE’S ACTUAL DAUGHTER IS PLAYING AS HARRY’S DAUGHTER

Gina Bellman remaining relatively stoic throughout much of the panel (seriously, this woman, how the heck does she do it) and then losing it when they’re asked about running/inside jokes

A lot of them are, of course, apparently not appropriate to be spoken on-panel

(A lot of the others are the little inside ones that are special enough not to be ones they want to share, which is sweet!)

Everyone collectively losing it over having LeVar Burton on for The Bucket Job

Devlin and everyone laughing about collecting the various Star Trek people on Leverage

Beth talking about Burton coming over while she’s getting ready and asking her if she’s living on coffee and water, her laughing because he was absolutely right, and then him gently reminding her to remember to eat, which is the sweetest thing in the world oh my gods

Kane apparently choreographing an intense scene with Burton and being scared out of his mind, because Burton really wanted to go for it, but to Kane it was like he’s a figurine that’s not to be messed with because he was so worried about hurting him

Kane choreographing a massive amount of the show, which I knew already, but seriously, this guy blows me away

Gina and the crew talking about how he’d be away for a day of shooting a fight and all of them would be missing him and thinking about him

Family Vibes

Everyone talking about how they’re very noisy and loud together on set and it’s a bit like walking into a group of people having Christmas dinner (or something to that effect) because they’re just Like That together

Aleyse being the most surprised by Beth when she met her because she was like a little angel of light during the auditions but turned out to be an absolute ball of wild energy on set

Gina going “wait you were a MODEL” at Beth

Aldis talking about how much he loved how Parker and Hardison’s relationship had developed and grown!

Also, Aldis apologizing when the New York (iirc) background noise got loud and everyone going “no no we get you”

His outfit is ON POINT today

Gina saying that Christian is the goofiest and wildest out of them in terms of humor

(she goes “some of you may not know this,” which, fair, but also, if you’ve seen more than ten minutes of this guy outside of character you know he’s an absolute ball of sunshine)

Gina, Beth, and Christian talking about how they’d challenge each other to stay off sweets back on the original set, because they knew they needed to stay in shape and also just because they’re competitive (apparently all of them are major sweet tooths) and hide brownies and things from each other, while Aldis is just. doing pushups. eating all the healthy stuff. and then wanders into the room with a literal cupful of chocolates

(and Aldis going “well yeah I have to work off the sweets SOMEHOW”)

Beth explaining that sometimes they’d order a “Kane burrito” from Christian and he’d alter it slightly

Like, you know, chopping up hot jalapenos super fine and mixing them in, and Beth practically not being able to talk after the first bite

Apparently Aldis still went back a lot even after that

(Christian just seems very pleased with himself over it)

(THESE PEOPLE)

Gina goes “hey we should have an episode where we all swap roles,” Devlin going “WAIT FOR SEASON ONE TO BE DONE,” and then somebody (maybe the moderator?? I don’t remember exactly) going “uh actually. We did that”

Cue immediate scramble of “WAIT WHICH JOB WAS THAT”

(paraphrasing) “Yeah you remember the bit where you put on Parker’s harness and went off a building?”

Turns out half the cast had actually forgotten that that existed and only remember when reminded

The original cast all think of the episodes as “jobs”!!!!

Everyone talking over each other, Devlin going “it was with Sterling when we blew up the offices,” deciding that it was the season one finale, and then trying to figure out what episode title it was (eventually they figure out it’s the David jobs)

Moderator and Devlin accurately commenting that the fans know the show much better than they do

Noah Wyle very correctly explaining how Electric Entertainment is like a family and Devlin just. Keeps people

Aleyse and Aldis talking about typing when they’re hacking and going “WHAT THE HECK DO WE TYPE”

Aldis goes “yeah I just type all the bad words that we’re not allowed to say”

Aleyse saying that she’s always a little worried they’re hiding a Word document behind the blue screen and they’re going to pull up what she’s typing at the end of the day and print it out and put it in her trailer going “what the HECK is this”

Noah talking about filming The Golf Job and just getting to direct Jason Marsters and Christian together

Apparently their dynamic in that episode accurately mirrors the one with their characters in Angel!

Which promptly goes straight to the comment that it was very hard to make Marsters look like a golfer (pfft)

(Also apparently Christian plays golf for fun with his friends? Not necessarily something I would’ve thought of!)

Aleyse happily talking about how she loved the dynamic on set and it was very different from what she was used to

Also Aleyse talking about doing stunts and everyone else praising her for going whole hog

Beth especially praising her for the bit where she’s hit with the paralysis injection (I don’t remember which ep it’s from) and her acting for it, because it was incredibly hard to drop off screen in the particular way she did

Aleyse promptly answers that she was terrified with some of those, especially one where she had to keep a clock from falling and breaking

Everyone discussing how they see a new aspect of Breanna’s character in The Train Job

Also, to get serious for a moment, Kate Rorick in particular talks about how Breanna’s part of Gen Z and how we didn’t get the “days of yore” where everything was chill. We’ve basically been living in a world of hostility the whole time. It’s something I deeply appreciate, as someone who’s part of that group, and I love how they emphasize that for us.

This panel was pure chaos and I loved every moment of it! My stomach was actually hurting from laughing so hard, I swear. They had me cackling well over half the time. I would happily take panels double or triple the length of this, this was amazing. I also adore how the second you drop these six people in a room together, they immediately take off and literally just run and give you everything you wanted and more. (It is also evidently very hard to get them to STOP talking.)

I’m also just going to stop and take a second to fawn over the effects for the 3D room. It’s gorgeous—I love how they replicated the headquarters, especially with the stained glass ceilings! Super impressive, especially with all the photos, and I just love the whole thing. Kudos to whoever put that together.

Anyway, I’m definitely missing some stuff too; seriously, there wasn’t a second wasted in this thing, they were cracking some kind of joke or dropping some really interesting piece of information practically every thirty seconds. (And I haven’t even gotten into the clips OR the bloopers. I miiiight do a separate reaction purely for those.) It’s still up right now if you missed it and you want to watch it! I’ll probably watch it again, honestly.

#leverage #leverage redemption #leverage redemption panel #synapse reacts

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hezuart · 3 years

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That anaversary aizen looks absolutely fabulous, he looks like a figure skater xd.

I heard along time ago the last arc of the anime was being animated finally bc they pulled a 90s sailor moon were the last season was not either animated or dubbed untill decades later.

I recall near the end of the current 366 episodes there was an episode were the creapy demon ppl woke up in hell and we're all bitter, and there was the other guy who was like, iM cOmEiNg FoR u IChIgO, but then is never mentioned again after and I'm like,why? Why is lt there just plopted randomly into a different arc that seams unrelated.

And locking aizen up underground seems ok, but It deff won't hold, and he will. Escape, and he will kill, you either need that one spell from star, dubbed, the darkest spell of moon the undaunted, a powerfull dark spell that killed immortal beings, that came from best character, eclipsa, the queen of darkness.

We need that.

Or stick him I'm crystal like eclipsa was in star. Is there no one who could trap him in ice or crystal for all eternity.

How about throw him into the centre of a volcano trapped and caged , forverr being killed by heat?

I assume there's space travel, send I'm into a black whole, were a black whole don't fuckin care if your immortal or fat, you will die

Yes, I love anniversary Aizen. His original octopus-butterfly hollow design was ugly so I'm glad he's back to being the fashion icon he is.

Locking Aizen up underground once is one thing, doing it twice after saying he got more powerful by just sitting there, and he escaped to battle the Quincy Soul King God... is another. I think he should have escaped at the end of the Quincy arc. That is the only feasibility.

I heard the anime is coming back for the Quincy arc as well, but because of COVID its probably going to be delayed. (I'm not gonna watch it until the Rain section of the arc then I'm dipping out. I'm only here for Zangetsu)

and funny that you mention that hell scene in the manga :)

-> spoilers for the new BLEACH 73 page anniversary chapter / thoughts/critique on it

So hey you had a premonition! Syazel .... returned? And his hole is outside of his body??? for some reason???

(I didn't understand the explanation or why / how that happens and what that means for the hollow)

And my friend and I were laughing because out of ALL the things. Kubo could do in this anniversary. He gave Syazel his dick back after going to hell. That is iconic. (that's where his hole was located, and now that its not on his body ... well...) This is the funniest thing Kubo has EVER pulled. Kudos to you, sir.

The entire internet is freaking out over Ukitake being in hell. Honestly Kubo has done far worse, and we've established that Soul Society is a corrupt system that hasn't changed, so I'm not surprised he would pull something like this.

At the same time, Kubo 1. cheated his audience. 2. continues to prove me right that he cannot bring himself to kill his characters

1. Hollows who have commit murder in their human life are sent to hell. Syazel and Aaorniero are two of these hollows, and yet, when they are killed, there is NO gates of hell scene. We see them there later in the hell chapter (which was more of a promotion for the fourth movie and I didn't believe it would hold any merit)

But the same goes for Ukitake. We never see the gates of hell take him. What, was hell late? Did hell's gates get lost like an uber before picking him up? It's bull. Withholding such vital information from your audience, not showing the gates of hell when they should pick up this soul IMMEDIATELY is ... I mean its a lie. Kubo lied to his audience.

2. Now we are told powerful shinigami are sent to hell when they die. First of all that sounds like a security threat. Wouldn't shinigami want revenge for that? Or attempt to escape? Why would they still hold loyalty after being sent to a prison of eternal suffering?

Also "Yhwach and Aizen" were the only ones keeping Hell's gates closed is way too convenient and doesn't really make any sense. I feel like Aizen should have deliberately gone to hell to retrieve powerful shinigami / hollows for his army instead of keeping it /closed/.

This is definitely a Kubo-doesn't-know-what-he's-doing-and-is -making- stuff-up-as-he-goes, but it might have a pinch of merit because of previous plot lines.... but either way, there's some big plot holes here, but again, its Kubo, so I expected nothing less.

Again, he can't kill off his characters. He introduced zombification, he introduced immortality through the hougyoku, he has Orihime and Hachigen's reversal / rejection abilities. He brought back Luppi, friggen.... a character who's entire upper half of his body was incinerated. Like.... come on. No. He's dead, you can't bring him back like that. That's a cop out and just weird. You're taking away consequences and grief.

(Also Yamamoto and Unohana deserve to be in hell far over Ukitake, they've done some fcked up stuff in their pasts unlike him)

Also Kubo's favorite character is Mayuri, which.... you're allowed to have a favorite problematic character. But Keeping said character alive and bared from the consequences of abusing his daughter, murdering innocents, and experimenting on your own squad members? Nah. Nope. Kill him, Kubo. Kill this dude.

(his weird attachment to Mayuri is probably why he keeps bringing Syazel back, since Syazel is Mayuri 2.0, but Syazel is the bad guy who does face consequences for his actions while Mayuri is not)

Also, I'm certain Kazui and Orihime are going to be THRILLED that their precious husband/dad is going to hell when he dies :)

(I just... Rukia teased Ichigo about leaving Orihime at home. She teased him about having a house wife who he leaves all the chores to. Orihime had two panels. She checks on her son who promised he would be at home and sleep. Kazui fcking breaks his promise like it never mattered to him and JUMPS out the window after pretending to sleep in front of his mother. ... An 8 year old... alone... in the middle of the night.)

Orihime is abandoned. She is not invited to SS, she is not informed of what is going on, her son leaves her.... I...

Orihime is a side character. She doesn't matter anymore. She hasn't mattered for a long, long time.

A part of me is glad she had little screen time, since she tends to waste it, but another part of me is embroiled with rage.

I've even see people try to defend this. "Orihime and Ichigo can't be together ALL the time, that's an unhealthy relationship!" and I'm like guys... that's not the point. The point is Orihime is not part of Ichigo's other life. Any shinigami stuff from now on is none of her business. She's going to stay at home while Kazui and Ichigo go off and save the world. Ichigo is going to be fighting by Rukia and Renji while Orihime watches from the sidelines, or worse, doesn't even know what is going on with her husband and son. Orihime is going to be uninformed and abandoned, because she has not proven she is capable of fighting by their sides(go on, @ me. I will fight this. She's a failure.), and also because she prefers a human life over a dead one. Which is ironic, because she married a dead man. Ichigo is a shinigami, and he will be one forever. god forbid she ever meets his Zanpaktou. She would tremble in fear at the monsters her husband harbors in his soul, especially when she realizes they don't care about her and would rather see her dead. (Zangetsu would absolutely kill Orihime. Not sure about Kazui, but Orihime has not accepted Zangetsu, she does not like either of them, and the feeling is assuredly mutual.) frick now I want to make a comic about this

Also still frustrated over Zangetsu's shikai / bankai regression. Kubo once again lied to his audience. Ichigo has no bankai. How ridiculous is that? The main character of BLEACH doesn't have a bankai. Insulting.

(RIP to Chad. He doesn't exist anymore. He's just gone. No mention, no cameo. Gone.)

Kazui is a demon child. That character from the novels? Hikone? They're the same character. Literally same personality, same power level. Its worse because Kazui is a liar. He constantly goes behind his parents' backs. He can summon creepy fish and creepy eyeballs and open portals like is ANYONE aware of this? How has SS not kidnapped Ichigo's son and experimented on him / locked away his powers yet? All substitute shinigami require a reiatsu controlling / spy badge to keep them in line. Where is Kazui's? Or is he just a weird fullbringer?

I was worried Kubo was gonna try and pull a knock off Boruto but luckily he kept the focus on Ichigo and the others. But that being said, Ichika and Kazui are now just... sort of there? Kazui was kinda just.... having his own adventure that doesn't matter to the plot at hand, and Ichika had some nice characterization at first but she just hid behind her dad the whole time.

I have a feeling Kazui is gonna step in at the last minute or do some major behind the scenes thing that indirectly interferes with the main plot so no one will realize how powerful and dangerous he actually is. Its sad because Ichika is the superior character in personality and likability, but she clearly is not going to have a bigger part in this.

Ichigo having a normal life after everything still feels extremely boring and uncomfortable to me. Everyone's like 'I'm still bLEACH!" but.... BLEACH just... doesn't feel like BLEACH anymore. It hasn't for a while now.

~~~

There's two new shinigami characters. Didn't care for the girl, but the Sign Language kid who talks to animals is adorable ... however... he just reminds me of Chad, and I just... it hurts knowing Chad has essentially been deleted. Chad and Orihime are officially benched. They have chosen the human world, and Orihime has given Ichigo his spawn so she has no more use/purpose to him anymore... ////sigh

~~~

Also. This is claimed to be a new "arc". So is the BLEACH manga coming back? What is happening. I thought Kubo was tired and didn't want to do BLEACH anymore. I thought Shounen Jump cut him off. People made so many excuses for Kubo and why the past two arcs have been so badly written the past 6 years and now almost everything they've attempted to defend him with has been revoked.

BLEACH is going to continue to screw up its plot lines and characters, so Its probably best for it to stay dead but I've seen a lot of Kubo stans drooling over this content, they're desperate for BLEACH's return, but its already given out all its possible revelations. There's really nothing else to top here. It's just going to make things up as it goes along ,and I'm not really here for half-assed writing like that, especially since the damage of rushing the previous manga has already been done. Kubo and Shounen Jump are riding off a money nostalgia. None of this was planned.

Honestly though.... overall feeling of this chapter, not as bad as it could have been.

Syazel stole the spotlight, and he's my friend's favorite character, so that's all that really matters.

#bleach #bleach spoilers #spoilers #text post #anti bleach 686 #anti ichihime #ask #tite kubo #technically anti renruki too but #ichihime destroys the plot more than renruki #renruki feels like an after thought #they're only together for kazui and ichika's existence #but if these two are lacking in use if BLEACH were to continue then why have them at all #even tho ive tagged this as anti ichihime #interestingly enough there is no ichihime interaction or really mention at all in this chapter

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ordinaryschmuck · 3 years

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What I Thought About "Yesterday's Lie" from The Owl House

Salutations, random people on the internet who absolutely won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons!

Here it is! The midseason finale of The Owl House Season Two! An episode featuring Luz going back to the human realm, is hyped up to heaven about how painful it'll be for the audience, and features more anxiety by how Creepy Luz is a thing. And BOOOOOOOOY howdy were fans not ready for this. I'm sure as hell not ready for when I wrote this intro at *checks time* thirty minutes before watching the official premier. Yup, the words you're reading right now are from me in the past, when everything was still pure and simple. Whereas future me is still probably destroyed by the events that transpired. Isn't that right, future me?

Future Me: Actually, it wasn’t that bad. The ending hurt, sure, but other than that, it wasn’t too painful.

Wow, that is some neat input! At least, I think it was. I wouldn't know because I literally wrote that after watching the episode. With the words you're currently reading being written at *checks time* twenty-six minutes before the premier...this whole intro is confusing, isn't it, future me?

Future Me: Sure is.

Yeah, it's definitely confusing. In any case, let's dive into this spoiler-filled review as we find out together just how painful this episode was! Take it away, future me!

Future Me: Will do! Major spoilers ahead, folks!

Now, let’s review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

Luz’s Room: We only see it for a short time, but everything about it just screams Luz. The pile of weird-looking stuffed animals, the witch hat in the center of the floor, and the fact that she has bunk beds, a single child's dream (Or so I've heard). It's a small thing, but I love it.

Vee: Here she is! The character previously dubbed Creepy Luz who now turns out to be yet another new addition to the ever-growing list of characters that we, as a fandom, would give our lives for. Because holy s**t was Vee the best type of expectation subversion. Showing us all the ominous ways of how she basically took Luz's place made fans assume that Vee was an evil doppelganger. Turns out, she was just a tortured soul that was desperate to live a new and better life and lucked out in finding Luz's. What Vee does is...questionable at best, but seeing what she went through with the experiments Belos pulled on her, you understand why she would do it. And I personally love it's that same background information that makes Vee resentful of Luz of all people. Luz's life is a relative dream come true, and running away from that would be insane to someone who spent most of their existence through imprisonment and experimentation. It's an intriguing point of view, even though it's admittingly flawed given how it's mostly Camila that seemingly made Luz's life bearable. But the flaws don't matter. What matters is that you can see where Vee is coming from, and to me, personally, I think she's understandable enough to make me root for her to have some kind of happy ending. Whether as Luz or as herself, I'm hopeful to see Vee get some semblance of peace.

Camila: *Round of applause* Don't mind me! Just taking the time to love how all them sons of b**hes who thought Camila was a bad mom are now heavily invalidated. 'Cause, guess what? Camila is a fantastic mother, both to her daughter and her daughter's doppelganger! Allow me to walk you through the highlights:

How Camila looks like she’s not okay with the fact that "Luz" is clearing out her weird stuff, seemingly acting too different to the Luz she knows. Added to the fact that Camila doesn't like it.

How Camila drove Luz to camp whether than letting her take the bus

The fact that Camila takes that box of junk back in, not willing to part with the tin foil sculpture Luz made.

The way she was willing to play along with the game she thought Luz was doing, supporting her daughter's creative mind that Camila admits to being glad to see.

And, best of all, the willingness Camila had to help this poor creature, despite the lies it lived.

It's that last part I really want to touch upon, though. Because an action like that shows just how much Luz's heart comes from Camila. The kindness and generosity of helping this poor creature, who she has every right to run out on, proves how Luz learned to be everything she is today through Camila's own loving heart. Vee was scared and hurt, and the second Camila saw that she was then more than willing to help because of it. It's something that Luz would do, and it proves that even though Camila didn't exactly get everything right, she's still a great mom where it counts.

“A new life”: A perfect line.

Initially, it makes audiences think that it has everything to do with replacing Luz. It's only through future context that we know it's about escaping the s**t show Vee once lived through that it's clear she's talking about starting over. It hits us with intrigue on the first viewing, only to hit harder with the feels during a second. Really well-done.

Luz in the Mirror: A well-done surprise that makes fans curious about how this even happen in the first place. Kudos to you, writers.

The New Portal: I don't mind that they found a way to build this off-screen. Showing Luz and the gang slowly building a new portal would have been a little too tedious to watch, and it's so much better to just start this episode out with it. Besides, maybe we'll get the slow and steadier version now that we've seen how quickly building one might not have been the best way to go, given how fast that thing fell apart.

Luz Between Dimensions: I have no clue what the hell that place she was in is called, but it's awesome! The overall design of the realm is the correct type of unsettling, like it's oozing with mystery, but it's somewhere that you probably don't want to be in for too long. Whoever designed it deserves all of the credit because I don't want to even think about all the hard work that went into making this look as well-made as it was.

Luz Resisting to See Amity: What? Luz and Amity are adorable, and seeing Luz's immediate thought about seeing Amity makes my shipping heart scream with glee. Don't judge me!

Hiding Luz’s Dad’s Face: Well, that was a fun story while it lasted.

So, it turns out that Luz's dad really was a part of Luz's and Camila's life at some point, but not anymore. As for why remains to be seen, as we don't really know yet if we'll see him make an appearance. I'd say that the odds are high that he will, given how much of a point this episode made about keeping his face hidden. Shows don't usually do that unless the goal is to hype up some official reveal, and I can't wait to see what comes of it.

Luz Telling Herself to Count to Five: Hey, more evidence for how I relate to Luz! I know how it feels to be all panicky about a specific situation, and I only got better when I took the time to calm down for a bit. Sometimes, I even tried the "count to x" method that Luz used...it never worked, primarily because it made me feel worse when people told me to do it, but I still tried it! Plus, there's also some narrative foreshadowing when after Luz says five, the realm shows her Vee, or Number V, which is a pretty cool detail you'll notice on a rewatch.

Luz Helping Vee: I gave Camila praise for helping Vee in the end, but that doesn't abstain Luz from her own set of recognition. The second that Luz realized that Vee wasn't really a threat and is far from evil, our favorite human does what she can to help and even makes a deal where they're both happy. Because, of course, Luz is that perfect of a protagonist who is more than willing to help others in need. And it's why we love her so.

Looking for Magic that Eda Left Behind: A pretty cool idea that gives Luz and Vee a chance to bond and giving us an insight into Eda's past antics and misadventures in the human realm. Not much I can add to it, though.

Gravesfield: It's surprisingly not as jarring as I thought it would be to spend an episode in the human realm. I thought for sure, after all that time in the Boiling Isles, there would be something off about walking around a normal environment for a change. Turns out, it's almost easy to get used to. Or, for me, it is.

But I will say that there's this neat use of colors when comparing Gravesfield with the Boiling Isles. In Gravesfield, the coloring looks dulled down and standard, which is a stark contrast to the bright vibrancy of everything we've seen in the Boiling Isles. It's a subtle way of showing how things are different, aside from the major discrepancies we could come to expect. And I think that's why I appreciate it much more.

Eda’s Called Herself Marylynn in the Human Realm: Hang on...hang on...do you mean to tell me that the crack theory about Eda being Stan's ex-wife is actually true?

...

...What even is this show?!

Vee Making Friends with Camp Members: This shows the most apparent difference between Luz and Vee. Where we see Luz is already fearing the many ways that could go wrong with interacting with teens, Vee revealed that she adapted to her situation and had a chance to make friends. The implications of this are worth discussing another time, but for now, I'll say that it's pretty intriguing that we gain this much insight into both Luz and Vee through such a small thing.

Belos Wanting to Learn How Basilisks can Drain Magic: ...Didn't Raine say that Belos was taking away magic? If so, I think we can figure out how he's doing it. The question now is: Why?

Jacob (The Curator Guy): This guy was a riot. At first, Jacob seemed like a threat with the way he trapped Vee and was apparently stocking her, but the second he goes off about his conspiracy theories, it becomes clear what type of character he is. And was it a blast seeing how much of a crackpot this man is. It wasn't cool seeing him wanting to dissect the precious angel that is Vee, but I still chuckle about things like his "Flat Eather's Certificate." So while he's not that much of a threat, he's still fun to watch.

The Owl Beast was in the Human Realm: ...How did that happen? When did it happen? And how the hell did Eda get out of a situation like that?! Who knows, but it's still a shocking piece of news to learn.

Luz Telling Camila the Truth: Hey, she faced her fear after all! Although, the results aren't as pleasant as when Amity faced her fear two weeks ago.

Camila is a Veterinarian: ...One insignificant reveal...managed to destroy so many fanfics. I mean, we probably shouldn't have just assumed Camila was a nurse...but what the f**k else were we supposed to think?! Sorry for seeing the scrubs, and the first thing that came to my mind was "nurse" and not "vet."

By the way, that had to have been intentional, right? There's no way that Dana Terrace didn't think we'd assume Camila was a nurse. She'd had to have put off a reveal like that just to trip up her fans. And if that's the case, then that is a major d**k move...but that's why I mildly respect it.

Two Human Brothers went to the Demon Realm: Turns out we don't have to be in the Boiling Isles to learn more about it. Because now we have more information about how two humans were taken to the Isles with the help of a witch, thus setting up a grander reveal if it turns out that one of the humans was Philip and the witch was Belos. Because if that's true...then there's more of a history between those two than we thought.

Jacob has a Training Wand: This helps me believe that it's highly likely for Jacob to make a return and to have a power boost for when he does. After all, focussing all that attention on the training wand is way too convenient for it not to come up again in the future. Meaning we're most likely going to get more pain from Jacob if he shows up again.

Camila Beats the Crap out of Jacob for Vee: ...Writers, don't make me choose between Camila and Eda on who's the better cartoon mom. I know Eda's technically not a mom...BUT I STILL DON'T WANT TO CHOOSE DAMNIT!

Also, the sandal...just...

Why the f**k does Camila have a sandal in her purse? I don't know. Is it still funny that she does? Most certainly.

Camila and Luz’s Talk in the Rain: Ooooooooh, I was not ready for this...

I wasn't ready for the crying.

I wasn't ready for the hurt in Camila's eyes when she found out Luz chose to stay in the Boiling Isles.

I wasn't ready for Camila asking if Luz hates being with her that much.

I wasn't ready for Luz profusely stating how it was never Camila's fault.

I was not ready for Camila to tell Luz that she'll try to do better.

And I definitely was not ready for Luz to barely have enough time to promise that she'll come back.

This episode wasn't the twenty-two minutes of nonstop angst that I thought it was going to be...but this short scene more than make up for it.

Luz Tries to Stay Strong: Yet another thing she unwittingly learned from Camila. Camila tried to keep a brave face when Vee was with her and Luz, most likely not wanting to tear either of them down in the process. Luz does the same thing here as she avoids talking about the details of what went down in her sort-of journey back home. And seeing her clearly fake smile slowly droop into an uncertain frown, it uh...it definitely tore me up inside.

WHAT I DISLIKED

I want to say it's perfect, but there's one major issue that really bogs this episode down.

Continuity Error in How Vee Replaced Luz: Having Vee take Luz's place the same day Luz appeared in the Isles is a smart idea on paper...if it wasn't for the fact that it's impossible.

Because Eda closed the portal door the second that she saw Luz, meaning that there's no way for Vee to go to the human realm. It's a major plothole that makes no sense, and it might just be the first time ever that this series wasn't so closely knit with its story. Which ends up taking a dive in quality in the process.

IN CONCLUSION

I'd say that "Yesterday's Lie" is an A-. Everything about Luz, Vee, and Camila is incredible, combined into a story that ends in tragedy and uncertainty for the future. That plothole may drag things down a bit, but everything else is handled so well that I'm not lying when I say it's easy to forgive and forget.

(And that's ten episodes in a row without a single stinker. HOW THE F**K DOES THIS SEASON KEEP WINNING?!)

#the owl house #the owl house spoilers #toh spoilers #luz noceda #camila noceda #camila is a good mom ok!#toh vee #emperor belos #what i thought about #the owl house reviews

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luciferloser · 3 years

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Demon brothers & Undateables react to an MC with a preteen child

(As you might have guessed by now, GN MC!)

(the child’s gender may be specified in some of the scenarios)

(Y/C/N = your child’s name)

Spoilers for lesson 16 in Belphie’s section!!

Lucifer

Toddler or Preteen, it didn’t make much difference to the eldest brother. He’s seen all the stages of development with the majority of his brothers and Satan, there’s probably nothing your child could possibly throw his way that would shock him.

That is, until he actually met your child. At first he remained at his full height to assert dominance, there was no way he was going to stoop to this human’s level not that his back would allow it anyways. But then, before he could even properly introduce himself, your 12 year old squared his shoulders and declared to the Avatar of Pride, if he did anything to hurt you, your son would make his life hell... oh wait.

That bold statement did surprise Lucifer at first, but as your son trailed off and stepped back slightly, realising his mistake, he couldn’t help but laugh. “Kudos, young man, but I don’t think there’s much you can do that can torment me terribly.” he chuckled.

“Wanna bet?” your son grumbled in response, already thinking of numerous ways to make this strange man pay.

“I have six younger brothers, I’d like to see you come up with anything they haven’t.” he smirked in response, “Anyways, come along, preparations for your room have been completed.”

With that, Lucifer turned away from your son and strode down the corridor. This year was certainly going to be interesting...

Mammon

The Avatar of Greed didn’t really know what to say when he saw you standing next to a slightly smaller version of yourself. At first, he thought you were siblings, but then it dawned on him that you had a child.

Mammon, as the ‘babysitter’ naturally spent more time around your daughter than you, but that certainly didn’t stop him from adding the odd flirtatious remark to you when he wasn’t being a tsundere.

It was this development that caused your daughter to speak up one evening when she was chilling in the lounge with Mammon and Asmodeus. “Listen, Mammon, as much as I don’t mind you flirting with my parent, there’s something you ought to know. Hurt them and I swear to you now I will kick you so hard up the ass you’ll taste nothing but my shoe for a week.” your daughter boldly announced, not once glancing up from her phone.

While Asmo was busy rolling on the floor in tears of laughter, the white-haired demon just spluttered as his cheeks darkened. “H-hey what makes you think I-I’d hurt ya ma anyways.” he tried to defend himself.

“I’m not saying I expect you’re going to hurt them, just giving you even more of an incentive not to.” your child smiled in an almost sickeningly sweet manner before jumping up from the sofa.

“This was a lovely chat but me and Beel are going out for lunch, catch you later!”

Asmo picked himself up from the floor, and as he pushed Mammon’s jaw back up, he added “she’d be the perfect niece for me, hurry up and take MC out on a date.” With that, Mammon shook his head slightly as he went to go and find you. He wasn’t sure whether he hoped the attitude came from you or not...

Leviathan

When the otaku heard the news that the exchange student had a child, he was quite nervous. One human was going to be enough to handle, let alone an additional smaller one.

His fears only worsened when you left him alone with your child for the first time. The two of you had been gaming as you usually did once a week and your child wanted in this time. You stood up at the end of that round, promising that you were going to get the three of you drinks and some snacks. Before Levi could even protest, you had already closed the door behind you.

The demon of Envy’s eyes darted all around his room, looking anywhere but at the small human. That is until your spawn child murmured his name. Snapping his head round to face your child, his eyes widened slightly.

“Okay so I get you don’t really hang out with ‘normies’ or whatever that’s supposed to mean, but if you really don’t wanna be with my parent then tell them that. I’m not gonna let you hurt them like that.” your child confessed, eyes never once leaving his.

After that confession, Leviathan got a faraway look in his eyes as he thought of the resemblance to an anime he’d just finished binge watching last night; ‘my human best friend has a child that is secretly a guardian angel!’.

Snapping out of his reverie, Levi looked down at your child once more and nodded his head profusely. ‘I solemnly swear to you I will protect them.’ he recited the lines the protagonist from the anime had used, but he meant every word he said.

Satan

Being the youngest of his brother’s meant Satan had never really had anybody to be a role model for. Which is why, surprisingly, he felt compelled to look out for your child when he first met you both. Especially because your child was already past the unnecessary crying stage and had a pretty solid understanding of communication.

Your child had never really been an extrovert and so the avatar of wrath hadn’t been too opposed to looking after your carbon copy when you were busy being pulled in every which direction by his brothers. On one of those days, your child had accompanied Satan to the library to find some more books to occupy themselves with; seeing as they weren’t technically enrolled at RAD there was no need for them to complete any class work.

“Hey Satan, can I ask you something?” Your child enquired, glancing up from their novel.

“Hm? What’s on your mind, Y/C/N?”

“Why do you look at my parent like they hung the stars in the sky? And don’t say you don’t, because I spoke to Asmo about it too and he couldn’t agree more.” Your smaller version of yourself asked, tilting their head slightly.

Blinking rapidly in surprise at the question, Satan gawped at your child before shaking his head slightly. “You shouldn’t ask Asmo questions like that. He’s the avatar of lust - not love. I know for a fact he thinks I’m looking at them like-“

“Gross! I don’t need to hear about things like that, I’m gonna go hang out with Simeon if you’re gonna talk about that.” Wrinkling their nose in disgust, your child stood up to leave, packing his books with him. Smiling to himself as he watched Y/C/N leave, he thought to himself ‘I guess I need to have a chat with Y/N’

Asmodeus

The avatar of lust couldn’t help but squeal in delight when he took in the sight of you standing with your child. He had not one, but two new friends to go out clubbing with! What? What do you mean Y/C/N isn’t allowed to go clubbing? Well that’s boring. Oh well, they can always just go shopping together and Asmo can arrange some fashion shows for you and your child. In fact, yesterday he bought the cutest coat and it would suit Y/C/N so well.

Speaking of going shopping together, one night when you and Beel had gone out to Madame Screams to try some of the new ice cream on offer, Asmo had invited Y/C/N back to his room for a self care night after shopping all day. Applying a face mask to his skin and your daughter’s, he laid beside her to let the mask dry.

“Hey Asmo, I have a question for you.” your child stated, staring up at the canopy that covered the demon of lust’s bed.

“If its about that brunette demon that held the door open for you at River Styx he’s single but there’s so many nicer demon’s out there for you and I’m pretty sure he-“

“No! It’s not about him. I admit he was cute but that’s not what I wanted to ask. What I wanted to ask was, whether you were interested in anybody...” your daughter trailed off, suddenly feeling bad for prying.

“Oh honey, while you’re an absolute treasure and I have loved spending time with you lately I don’t think we’d be a very good match at all. If I’m honest I’m more interested in Y/N. I’m so sorry you had to find out this way- why are you laughing?” Asmodeus stopped his spiel of an apology at the sound of your daughter’s chuckles.

“I’M not into you like that either, babe. I only asked for my parent’s sake. They’re head over heels for you and I just wanted to see if you felt the same.” Your daughter confessed, rising from Asmo’s bed to find a washcloth. “When they get back from the ice cream store with Beel, you should totally ask them out. Watch how quickly they’ll stumble to agree.” And with that, your daughter left the avatar of lust alone with his thoughts of you.

Beelzebub

“Did the human bring a snack with them?”

That was the first thing the redhead ever said to you and your teen son. Needless to say it took a while for your son to warm up to Beel after that. When the situation was explained to the glutton felt very guilty afterwards and went above and beyond to make it up to him.

One afternoon when the three of you were supposed to go to a new cafe that had just opened, Lucifer wanted to go over some paperwork with you, and so Beel offered to take your son out anyways and promised to try to save you a cupcake. Your son didn’t look too thrilled at the idea of going out for food with the demon who thought he was the snack, but reluctantly agreed for your sake.

“Look, Beelzebub I have to be honest with you. You seem nice enough and all, but I still don’t trust you especially knowing you could swallow us whole and thought about doing that the first time we met you. But on the flip side, you did protect Luke from Lucifer a while ago. So I suppose I can learn to trust you, is what I’m trying to say.” Y/C/N stated as he brought a mug of spiced tea to his lips, looking over at the demon who went wide eyed at the sudden confession.

Swallowing the rest of the cheesecake in his mouth, Beel nodded earnestly, “No its okay! I’m not surprised you don’t trust me, after what i said to you I wouldn’t blame you if you hated me. I know this probably isn’t what you want to hear, but i care about you, you’re basically family at this point. And I care about Y/N too; quite a bit actually.” By the end of his sentence, the demon’s face was almost as red as his hair.

“Hmph, I figured as much. If you care about them even half as much as you say you do, say something. You might be surprised what you find out.” Your son smirked, leaning back in his seat to take in the blushing demon before him.

Belphegor

Unsurprisingly, your son had a blatant distaste for Belphegor when they met officially. Watching your body fall still in Mammon’s arms to then disappear was enough to send him charging at the sloth demon. Even after Barbatos’ assistance on the matter and bringing you back, Y/C/N held the iciest glare he could muster. Laying a hand on his shoulder, you assured him you were okay and didn’t hurt anymore.

“Put it this way Belphegor. I never want to see you within touching distance of us again. Demon or not, I will not hesitate to swing for you. Nobody hurts my family.” Y/C/N spat, turning on his heel and tugging you with him.

After weeks of awkward meal times, you and Beel hatched a plan to get your son and his twin talking. You had forgiven Belphie for what happened, understanding that he’d had his own family in mind when he attacked you.

“Oh. Y/C/N have you seen Y/N? They wanted me to meet them here.” Belphegor asked, avoiding eye contact with your son the entire time.

“I wanted to ask you the same thing about Beel, he said-” your son was cut off by the sound of the living room door slamming shut and the lock clicking in place. “Is this some kind of joke? Mammon if that’s you and this is your idea of a joke you’re not funny! Open the door!”

There was no answer from the other side of the door, the only sound being that of a pair of retreating footsteps. Sighing in defeat, your son slid down the door and glancing at Belphegor, to see him looking just as uncomfortable as Y/C/N felt. “Well, there’s no telling how long we’re gonna be in here. I feel like I owe you an explanation...” The sloth demon began, wringing his hands together as he prepared to tell your son everything.

A few hours later, you and Beel opened the door slowly to reveal your son and Belphegor dozing on one another. Smiling at each other in victory, the two of you crept closer and wrapped them in one of the blankets on the back of the sofa. You had to admit, this was the most peaceful the two of them had looked in a long time.

#obey me #obey me shall we date #obey me lucifer #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #obey me leviathan #obey me mammon #obey me satan #obey me imagines

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gra-sonas · 4 years

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RNM Amber Midthunder on Rosa’s Return and the Character’s Demons

From show creator Carina MacKenzie, The CW series Roswell, New Mexico is back for Season 2, and Liz (Jeanine Mason) is torn between having her sister Rosa (Amber Midthunder) back and the sacrifice that Max (Nathan Parsons) made, in order for that to happen. At the same time, Rosa is struggling with her new life in Roswell, as she realizes that she’s been kept in the dark about what really happened the night that she died.

During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, actress Amber Midthunder (Legion) talked about how different things feel now that her character is back from the dead, which cast member she accidentally spoiled about her Rosa’s return, where Rosa is at mentally, working on the present-day sister dynamic with co-star Jeanine Mason, having Max Evans haunt her character, getting to have some of the cast members from the original Roswell series involved with their version of the story, that Rosa is going to continue to struggle with her own demons, and the addition of a new character that will be fully on her side.

Collider: Now that Rosa has been brought back from the dead and she’s living in the present day, do things feel very different for you, being immersed in the present-day storyline and not just exploring her backstory anymore or her past?

AMBER MIDTHUNDER: Yeah, totally. In my life and also for her, they’re both very different. Before, I felt like I was in my own cool little club, getting to just feel things out and re-explore the time period, with the 2000s, and what that was like. In a weird way, it’s a period piece. And now, what comes with being able to be there full time is that there’s a lot more elements, with everything else that’s going on for her, having returned from the dead and all.

After the events at the end of last season, that clearly affected your character in a major way, what was your reaction to learning about where things would be headed for her, especially at the start of Season 2?

MIDTHUNDER: I was just as curious as anybody else. It’s funny, I knew before that she was coming back to life. When a lot of people didn’t know that, I think I actually spoiled it for Michael Vlamis. He said something like, “Oh, maybe you’ll come back to life.” And I was like, “Yeah, when that happens, hopefully, I’ll be here.” And he was like, “What?! What did you say?” And I was like, “Huh? Nothing happened.” So, it’s been a lot of fun.

Rosa is clearly struggling with being back and figuring out what it means and who she is now, compared to everyone else who’s gone on living around her. What’s it like for her, mentally, at this point? What are the biggest issues for her, right now?

MIDTHUNDER: It’s tough. Her journey is like weirdly timely, with what’s going on and what we’re dealing with. (Showrunner) Carina [MacKenzie] and I had a lot of conversations about that. She feels like a ghost, and she said that, in her fight with Liz, where she said, “Before, nobody used to come near me, but now they don’t even know that I’m here.” That is isolating, on such a level that even she doesn’t know how to deal with. There are a lot of elements about it. It’s not just that she has to hide, it’s that she lost out on ten very important years, with all of her loved ones and her peers, and she can’t get that back. There’s this feeling of being left behind. Liz and Rosa have this relationship of, “No matter what, it’s you and me. No matter what, we’re sisters. No matter what, I’m always gonna have your back.” And they couldn’t keep that going. So, to now step back into that place, brings a lot of pain for her. Not only was she not there, Liz started to move on, and that’s a whole other can of worms. That’s super complicated and painful. She has to deal with this all by herself, also. She doesn’t have anybody that she can go to.

What do you think Rosa’s ideal life would look like, if she could live what she wanted?

MIDTHUNDER: Well, it’s funny that you ask that. I’m just gonna leave it there. I feel like you’re a little intuitive. She’s very hard on herself, and sometimes she’s the one who believes in herself the most. She and Liz both have this dynamic of wanting to be the hero, and I think she really sees herself as the protector, which is a huge part of what throws her for a loop and makes all this lonely stuff super complicated. Her one job, she’s now completely inadequate at because her sister is now older than her and super accomplished. She, in some ways, views herself as the hero, and she has this consistent idea of how she shouldn’t be and how she will be, in a perfect world. It’s like, “I’m gonna be the perfect big sister. I’m a great artist. I’m a great daughter. I’m a great thing and that thing. I’m a good friend.” And every time she tries, she just hasn’t been able to get there. What I love about her is that she doesn’t stop trying. She never stops chasing that, as many times as she fails.

What’s it like to also get to work with Jeanine Mason on this different kind of dynamic now? We’ve only seen the past dynamic between these sisters, and now they have to figure out how to deal with who they are now, so what’s it been like to work with her?

MIDTHUNDER: It’s a very complicated dynamic. I love Jeanine. She is my sister now. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it. It’s great. As a human being, I love her and am obsessed with her. She’s my friend and my sister. I feel like I couldn’t have had a better partner on this. I feel like that’s why the sister dynamic is so present between us. We’re very honest with each other. We’ll show up to work, or we’ll talk to each other like outside of work, and be like, “How do you think we should do this?” And we always have the common goal of being honest. No matter what fight they’re having, the feelings are real. You’re never gonna fight with your sibling about “Oh, my gosh, I died, and you took all the stuff off my walls.” But the feelings of, “I can’t believe you’d leave me behind like that,” is very real. So, she’s the best. She’s great. I love it.

Rosa has a real anger toward Max, which is justified, considering that his actions led everyone in town to feel a certain way about her. Clearly, that’s complicated by the fact that he’s haunting her now and begging for her help. How is that going to continue to escalate between them, when he is probably the last person she wants anything to do with?

MIDTHUNDER: I feel like, kudos to Rosa, for not just being like, “Forget you, dude!” At least, she’s considering it. She’s not just on board, but at least she’s thinking about it. It’s super complicated ‘cause there’s a whole history. She never liked him, from the beginning. In her eyes, he wronged them both. He made this big grand gesture to be the hero, much like Liz and Rosa try to do, but he didn’t ask. Rosa never said that she wanted to come back. Liz didn’t ask her that. She’s trying to process so much. The fact that this is happening and the fact that it’s him, if you were to ask her, “What do you think about Max Evans?,” she’s got a lot of stuff to say. But she’s more preoccupied with what’s going on then who’s doing it. I don’t even think she has time to think about how it’s this guy. She thinks about it, but it’s not number one on her list.

It’s fun to see Max Evans be the antagonist of her life, when he’s the hero to all these other people.

MIDTHUNDER: Yeah, that’s true, and that goes into her feeling like she’s in her own world. The one person that she has to talk to is grieving over him, and talking about how great he was and how much she loved him, while Rosa’s having her own experience of, “He wasn’t so great, if you ask me.” It’s very complicated.

It’s very cool that this re-imagining of this story has also been able to include some of the original cast members, with Shiri Appleby directing episodes and now Jason Behr guest starring in Season 2. What’s it meant to the cast, to see how the original cast is supporting the series, and what’s it been like to have them around, on set?

MIDTHUNDER: It’s legendary. It’s so cool. In this time period, when we’re attacking these stories that people loved so much, and they were so well-received and even we loved them, to have them around is everybody’s favorite day. When they’re around, I feel like everyone is geeking out. Roswell is geeking out over Roswell. It’s so great. It’s cool, having them around and seeing them still give 100% to this thing that they had in their lives, that also meant so much to them.

You got to spend the first season of this show, really exploring this character’s past and background, which is not something you get to do very often on a TV show. Now that you’re getting to explore her present, do you feel like you’re learning a lot about her that’s surprising you, as far as who she is?

MIDTHUNDER: It’s all exciting to me ‘cause it’s uncharted territory. It is undiscovered waters, and could be nothing that’s more exciting, especially having been able to spend so much time with her before. It’s cool. It’s exciting, every day, to show up to work and think that we have no established set of rules about how she acts and how she handles things, in this situation, because nobody’s been in this situation, ever. As all of the characters grow and evolve, hers is definitely very unique, and that’s super fun. I don’t think that this is necessarily who she would have been. If anything, it’s the total opposite. The thing is, she’s picking up where she left off. All this time has gone by to everybody else, but to her nothing has happened, except that she woke up and everything is different. She still, in a way, is dealing with the same things, but just now she’s got a lot more.

Rosa is also still fighting with whether to drink or not drink. That hasn’t just gone away because she’s back. Is that something we’re going to continue to see more of, when it comes to her own demons?

MIDTHUNDER: Yeah, absolutely. That was very important to me. When we started the season, Carina and I sat down and talked about how her addiction wasn’t just a passenger that came and went, and existed in TV world. It was important, to both of us, that it was represented honestly. This age group and this audience, and for anybody out there, there’s such a huge epidemic of addiction right now, in this country and in the whole world. I’m a strong believer that, the more that you are exposed to something, in the right way, and the more that you learn, the better you can make choices. I care about what we do, as storytellers. Whether we’re actors or writers or show creators, personally, I feel that we have a responsibility. I heard Jennifer Lawrence, in an interview, one time, say that, “Is someone is gonna listen to me talk, I better have something to say.” That always really resonated with me, and I feel like that’s true. And with this character, I saw a really big opportunity to say something really important, which is that, even in this fantastical world, she’s still dealing with very real things, like her mental health and her addiction. She’s going through all of this crazy stuff, not to mention that she’s bipolar. That’s a huge part of it. As we go through the season with her, it gets hopeful and it gets ugly, and the ups and downs and the inconsistencies are all very real. But the thing is, no matter how difficult it is, it’s known impossible, and that’s what I care about saying. As difficult as it may feel, if you’re in the hole, you can get out.

As the season goes on, will there be someone who Rosa can fully trust and who she feels like is fully on her side?

MIDTHUNDER: There is, yes. I don’t know what I’m allowed to say about that. There’s an episode that I’m really looking forward to people seeing, where we introduce a new character, who is right on Rosa’s level.

~ Collider

#amber midthunder #rosa ortecho #ortecho sisters #roswell new mexico #rnm spoilers #rnm cast interviews

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electronicdelusionstarlight · 4 years

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Alright, I’ve gotten back into writing Spider-Man.

I’m scrapping the Wonder Woman x Spider-Man open relationship with Mary Jane X Felicia Open relationship that ultimately culminates into a 4 people polycule where Peter gets pegged, and go for something a bit more simple. So, I’m sorry for the, like, 20 kudos I received on Ao3 over that, and 31 favorites on HF, but that’s abandoned at the moment.

So, new idea...

Amazing Spinnerete, an AU where MJ gets bitten by the spider instead.

(Spider-Woman and Jackpot were already taken and Spider-Girl didn’t sound right to her, as if it was too early for that).

1) Peter, who doesn’t get any powers ever for the entirety of my story (unlike I was planning to do for Mary Jane in the previous one as I piled power after power on her among star sapphire rings, spirits of vengeance, symbiontes, Gamma Radiations and Thor’s hammer), turns into a Sidekick/IT Guy role to her.

2) He’s there to fulfill a purely supporting role to MJ Heroics, craft the webs, be a support to her, all that shebang you’d expect, while getting worried sick over her going out in New York and risking her life daily among villains and criminals and whatnot. He’s the “Nerd behind the computer,” a concept that got admittedly popularized by Oracle, as well as her “field medic” when she gets back home and needs stitching on both the costume and her scars.

3) Also uncle Ben is alive and on a ongoing trip with Aunt Anna and Aunt May around the world. They solve crimes, off screen, like 3 Jessica Fletchers, so Peter isn’t as fucked up emotionally as in canon.

4) I’m gona take from the MC2 and say that, unlike Peter, MJ is actually trying to profit off her image from the start. This might cause some conflicts with Peter over him not wanting them to lucrate on some of their crime fighting (Such as not wanting to patent the web fluid in fear of criminals getting a hold of it), and mixes up with their already canon conflict over her being the main breadwinner in the couple AND the possibility of her doing progressively more risque work.

5) Specifically, I’m gona say it: Spinnerete and Mary Jane have two separate OnlyFans. It’s a modernized story and they are in their mid twenties and need a stable source of income and what better than a horde of people out there paying the same woman TWICE for pics of her buying wonderbread? “Pictures of Spinneret” therefore become a way different phrase, and there is a debate in universe over a superheroine essentially being a sex worker, and all that that entails. I don’t know how well I’m going to explore it tho so this might get dropped after a while and just make her a ASMRtist or a Twitch Streamer, basically the same thing at this point.

6) Since this is a AU I can do like Spider-Gwen did and not just fuck up one piece of the main universe but make every aspect of the universe different, so, bullet list of things I’ve been coming up with that are different from main continuity:

6A) The Hero to Heroine ratio (as well as Villain to Villainess) is 1 hero every 10 heroines. Major (Male, Homo Sapiens) heroes in the setting are: Johnny Storm (Johnny Storm), Thor (Thor Odinson), Power Man (Luke Cage), Iron Man (Rhodey Rhodes), Original Captain America (Steve Rogers).

6B) The mutant community is a massive polycule of free love and shit. The biggest mutant community in the world is stationed in the Free Republic of Genosha, currently part of a worldwide international federation of small nations around the globe born to contrast Soviet and American influences during the cold war called IFMP (International Federation of Micro-Powers). Latveria and Wakanda are part of it, and are the leaders of the two major factions among the delegates in the form of the isolationists (Wakanda) and the Expansionists (Latveria). The second biggest mutant community in the world is in San Diego. most male superheroes and some of their villains happen to be mutants.

6C) Susan Storm lead a year long deep space expedition team financed by the united states government, and managed to contact several alien races in her travels, returning to earth with diplomatic ties and Power Cosmic given to her by Infinity herself as a sign of good will after she and the united armies of space finally managed to slay and destroy “The eldritch abomination at the edge of reality that makes people racist by existing,” as it was called. This starts a age of cooperation between the various alien races and empires out there in the cosmos and Earth, their embassies being built in most of the major nations of the world, trade and science deals cropping up as a result.

6D) Susan Storm later formed the (apolitical, above nations and planets) superhero team the Fantastic Five, which changed members over the years based on relationship with other alien planets and tensions between the members of the team. Current line up consists in Susan Storm (Susan Storm, former Ms. Fantastic), super partes leader due to the Power Cosmic, alongside Lyja the Lazerfist (Second Ms. Fantastic and Former Skrull chaos agent on earth during the Skrull-Kree Cold War), Crystalia Amaquelin (Crystal, Inhuman Ambassador), She-Hulk (Jennifer Walters, earth representative and legal expert), Thundra (Thundra, Femizonian Ambassador). The Kree empire was disbanded after the end of the Kree-Skrull cold war.

6E) Johnny Storm never became the second human torch but ends up becoming Evil Jesus. During his trip to the stars with his sister he accidentally ends up in the Negative Zone, the void between dimensions, and befriends the locals, becoming a jesus like figure and ending up ruling the place. It’s not as banged up as it sounds but with prolonged commuting with the Negative Zone he has achieved a state of resonance with Oblivion, one of the other 4 great entities of the universe, and has become his champion. (in direct contrast with his sister’s coming from Infinity). He still uses his powers for good, if in a chaotic good way compared to his sister lawful good one.

6F) Peggy Carter was subjected to the Super Soldier program during WWII, thus becoming Agent England, de facto leader of the Invaders (Mostly same team, Sub-Mariner, First Human Torch, etc.), and guiding the assault against nazi germany and hydra. She and her sidekick end up frozen on the same plane

6G) Steve Rogers was still picked under her wing, if not able to receive super soldier treatment, and still became the (original) Captain America, a purely propagandist figure of a scrawny, physically weak son of immigrants Brooklyn dude, the complete opposite of the German Ubermech ideal for the white man, but with enough anger and outrage over an unjust world to pick fights with people 5 times his size, shown in many a propaganda video punching Hitler square in the jaw and knocking him out cold. They both ended up on that plane crashing in the arctic and were defrosted several years later.

6H) With the disappearance of Agent England, the Invaders disbanding, and the cold war underway, with no superhero team really cropping up, Doctor Deidre Wentworth managed to develop a modified version of the Super Soldier Serum, testing it on herself, and becoming the Superior Captain America. She forms the (US Exclusive, extremely political) “Americommandos” superteam, with selected superheroines and “reformed” supervillaines of the time. The team was responsible for many controversial superhero activities during the cold war, in and out of the united states, and is still going to this day, even if some members have retires or have outright died. Not Superior Cap tho, no, her aging has been slowed down due to the serum, so here she is still guiding black ops teams to capture and imprison some worker rights activists that happen to be mutants.

6I) The Sorcerer Supreme of this dimension happens to be Doctor Doom, Ruler of Latveria.

6L) Norman Osborn never became the Green Goblin. He was still a scummy CEO and millionaire, and still had a affair with one of his son’s best friends. Gwen was dating Peter at the time and ended up getting pregnant with Norman, he finds out, pressures her to get an abortion, almost terrorizes her, she doesn’t cave, Peter is understandably confused and shocked but still wants to support her (as does Mary Jane), but on the day of Gwen’s son’s and daughter’s birth Norman pulls the same shit he pulled in canon with Mary Jane and Mayday, hires an assassin to force a miscarriage, Gwen finds out a couple months later, stages her death, and becomes the Ghost-Goblin, ending up throwing Norman off the New York bridge and killing him in the process for good. His estate and company was inherited by his son, Henry, who devolved most of it to charity, destroying the Osborn business empire.

7) That’s the gist of it really, gona elaborate on more tomorrow.

EDIT: 8) Nightcrawler is the Pope.

#spider-man #mary jane watson #spinnerete #eh #long post

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winterfrostlovetriangle · 5 years

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Old Friends

Part 2

Summary: Tom and Tessa’s back story told in flashbacks. Kudos to anyone who gets the Stephen Colbert interview with Tom reference.

Warnings: Mentions of death and some angst.

Masterlist

Part I | Part II | Part III

*Italics are flashbacks.*

*gif not mine*

“Dad, have you seen my shoes? I can’t find them!” My voice echoed through the quiet house.

Walking into the kitchen, my dad gave me a cross look. “Tessa Nicole,” he snaps. “How many times have I told you not to yell in this house?”

“Sorry, Dad,” I mumble, grabbing my missing shoes and lunch bag from his outstretched hands.

“I’m sorry, love” he sighs. “I didn’t mean to snap. Your Mum had a bad night again, and I’m just tired. I know you didn’t mean to be loud. Please remember that the doctor told us not to upset Mum in any way” he says gently bringing me into a hug and kissing the top of my head. “I love you very much, Tess. Now, get a move on before Tom leaves without you.”

“Bye Dad,” I said giving him another hug before running out the door.

“Come on, slowpoke. I almost left without you. Quit dawdling!” Came a very familiar voice.

I stiffen at my friend's words, only making me more agitated. “Whatever,” I say quickening my pace so I was walking ahead of him.

Lost in my thoughts about my mum, I feel a tug on my elbow. “I’m sorry Tess, I didn’t mean it. I was only joking with you” he apologizes.

I glare back at my friend when he is suddenly on his knees in front of me with an exaggerated look of contrition. A smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, doing a poor job of hiding it.

“Please forgive me, T! Please? I couldn’t stand it if my best mate stayed mad at me,” he yells. His hands shot up in the air. “Forgive me fair maiden,” he says with a wink.

‘Don’t give him the reaction he is looking for,’ I think to myself trying not to crack under his charm.

“Drama queen” I huff, turning quickly around.

(You see, Tom and I are childhood best friends. We moved next door to the Hiddleston’s when I was five, and he was six. We became friends instantly and would get into lots of trouble back then. We both had a love for the theatrics and loved to put on plays together for our families. Our friendship has grown as we have. And now as teenagers, we were still very close.)

Tom pulls at my best elbow again, causing me to face him. “Come on, T? What’s wrong? You can tell me,” he tells me. His bright blue eyes, now clouded with concern.

I sigh in resignation. “It’s not you, Tom. Of course, I forgive you. I-it-it’s my mum. She’s not doing well, and the doctors don’t think she has much time left” I sob.

“Oh Tessa, I’m sorry.” He pulls me into a big hug. “Come here,” he says letting me go and grabbing my hand instead. Tom starts walking away from the school grounds that I didn’t realize we had already arrived there.

“But what about school? Won’t they know we’re missing,” I ask half-heartedly, allowing him to guide me across the street to the park.

“Don’t worry, we’ll be fine. Besides, my friend needs me, and you, love, are more important.” He replies.

We sit under our favorite tree in silence.

“Wanna talk about it?” He asks. Tears well up in my eyes again, and Tom brings me into another comforting embrace.

“I’m just so afraid we’re going to lose her. Dad...wi-will be so devastated if she goes,” I choke out before I start blubbering again.

Tom holds me and gently rubs my back until I calm down.

“I don’t want her to die, Tom” I whisper as I start to collect myself.

“I know. I wish I could tell you it will all be fine, but I can’t. I can tell you two things. One: never give up hope. She may still recover and will be back to her old self in no time. But you ignore that she is ill. And two: I am here for you. I always will be,” he promises with a kiss to my head.

*End of flashback*

I am woken out of my reverie by someone bumping into me. “So sorry” they offer. I give a slight nod and smile in acknowledgment. I decide that I need to keep moving so I am not accidentally caught staring at Tom. I walk across the room to the small bar and take a seat on the far side. I ask for a cup of tea to help calm my nerves. (I don’t drink, ok?) I take a few sips before slipping back to my past.

*flashback brought to you by time skip*

Tom and I were now at Uni together. We were somehow accepted to Cambridge, both for the same majors. We had each decided on drama school because we had a love and proficiency for it, however, our parents encouraged us to try college for a bit. I almost decided not to go because of my mum, but her health miraculously started to improve, much to everyone’s amazement.

Because we were in the same program, Tom and I were still inseparable. My roommate, Ruby, would tell you it was because we had a thing for each other. I tried to explain to her that we were best friends, but she would laugh and continue to tease me.

That fateful day our friendship changed. The day that she met Tom, was the day that my world turned upside down. Clarissa St. Clair, ugh! (It pains me even now to think of her.)

One warm spring day while Tom, Ruby, and I were lunching outside in the square, Clarissa comes waltzing by and trips right in front of Tom. (She twisted her ankle “accidentally,” but who is kidding? It was done on purpose.)

Anyway, Tom being the gentleman that he is, helped her up. He actually carried her to campus infirmary...seriously?

After that Tom was always talking about her or inviting her to hang with us. It was annoying…she was horrible; neither of us liked each other and she made it clear that Tom was hers and she didn’t want me tagging along with them. So I did. I began to distance myself from them, always giving excuses about needing to study or helping Ruby with homework.

“You like him,” Ruby stated one afternoon during an outside study session. I knew she wasn’t asking.

“What? No, I don’t we are, um, we're just friends. Nothing like that,” I replied.

Oh please, I see the looks you give Tom when he’s not looking. And you get bloody jealous when they are off by themselves. I mean Tom super hot, and any girl in their right mind would fall for him” she sighed dreamily.

Um, ew!” I exclaimed. “I do not have feelings for that boy. Try and focus on studying, Ruby. Exams are tomorrow,” I sigh looking back at the textbook with a nagging feeling.

“Hey, Tess! You and Ruby, want to come to the cinema with us,” Tom asks running up beside us.

I begin to say yes when I chance a look at Clarissa who is glaring at me from behind Tom. “Sorry mate, Ruby and I have to study. Maybe next time.”

“That’s what you said the last time...you okay?” He asks. I don’t need to look at his face to know he’s disappointed.

“Fine, we just really need to study.” I counter. “Go have fun.”

After that, Tom stopped asking me to do things with him and his witch of a girlfriend. I was sort of glad, but at the same time, it hurt that he stopped coming around. I missed my best friend terribly!

Two years later, graduation day had arrived. I had done a lot of thinking in those last years at University. Sadly, Ruby was right - I had feelings for the man I knew I couldn’t have. Today, however, I was feeling bold and decided to tell Tom how I felt about him. I went in search of him, but after about 30 minutes of looking, my resolve had diminished. Collecting myself before returning to my dorm, I propped myself against the nearest tree. Today was not turning out how I thought it would. First of all, my parents weren’t coming to the ceremony. Mum had taken a tumble and wasn’t fit to leave the house and Dad didn’t want to leave her. Like any good daughter, I told them I understood and didn’t mind at all. Not true… And secondly, I couldn’t find Tom. I didn’t think my day could get any worse until I heard giggling and some sort of smacking noise close by. I followed the sounds and saw Clarissa and Tom making out. My day was now ruined! I turned around quickly and headed back to my room before I had time to start crying.

The ceremony came and went. Before going back to change out of my dress, I found a bench and sat thinking and admiring the school grounds.

“Tessa?” asked a voice behind me. “Can I sit?”

I sighed and nodded yes.

Hey, I’ve been looking for you everywhere. What’s wrong?” He asked.

I laughed and he raised his eyebrows in question. “I’m fine. Just wished my parents could have been here today,” I said half telling the truth.

“Sorry, Tess. I understand...but you’re not telling the whole truth. I know when you’re lying. There’s something more. Come on you can tell me.”

“Don’t you dare tell me you know me. You haven’t been around the past two years. I...oh go find your girlfriend and leave me be,” I shouted.

“But T -“

He was cut off again by the ringing of my cell. “Excuse me,” I said walking off to answer. “Hey Dad, was what’s-

“It’s your mum, Tess,” he cut in.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“She’s...she’s gone, love.”

*End of flashback*

I shook myself, coming back to the present. I wiped the tears that had fallen, checking my makeup in my compact. Suddenly, we were all being asked to take our seats. I headed towards the second room when someone grabbed my elbow. I gasped in surprise, thankful to see my costar walking next to me.

“Oh, Marcus. It’s you. You scared me.”

“Sorry, love. You looked a little lost and thought I’d accompany you inside so we can sit next to each other.”

“Thanks,” I said with a smile.

Marcus O’Conner - what a sweetheart; always trying to make me laugh or put me at ease. He was my on-screen love interest...well, we did try briefly off-screen too but found we were better as friends.

We found our seats and the evening began. There was one more category to announce before mine and I was so nervous. Marcus sensed my anxiety and gave my hand a squeeze. I squeezed back and felt myself relax a little.

And the winner for best leading male actor is…Tom Hiddleston! Everyone began to clap. Tom walked right past me, thankfully not noticing me. I watched him walk up the stairs to receive his award.

‘Man has he grown’ I thought. His snugly fitting suit showing off his perfectly pert “English countryside” ‘Mmm...wait, what!? I should not be having those thoughts about a man haven’t seen or spoken to in ten years! Especially not after the way I treated him.’ I felt so wrong and very scummy right then and shifted in my seat to distract myself from my thoughts.

“And I’d like to thank…” he paused. I froze for a second but quickly recovered.

“Oh, dear. Please don’t have let him see me,’ I prayed quietly.

I tried not to look up, but I couldn’t help it. Our eyes met for a moment before I looked away, suddenly finding my hands more interesting. I could feel his gaze lingering on me as he finished.

Music played and the presenters for my category walked to the mic. Marcus nudged me, bringing me back in to focus. I cleared my throat and sat up straighter.

And the winner is…Tessa Faraday!!

#tom hiddleston #tom hiddelston x reader #fluff

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spacepaladinranger · 5 years

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Engame Spoiler-y Review

READ THIS ONLY IF YOU WANT TO BE SPOILED. I just need to let my feelings out because I’m a nerd who has nothing better to do.

I don’t think the MC can make another movie like this. That is not to say that the MCE will never be able to make a film bigger or more spectacular than this, because they might. But it will never top the emotional impact of this film.

The MCU has been criticized (justly, I may add) to be series of “junk food” films – full of spectacle, but low on character development. This film is anything but that. The film feels more like a love letter to the characters and the fans. The spectacle was there, of course, but this time it was eclipsed by the small, minute scenes that give insight to our beloved superheroes.Before that, here are the films you probably should watch. Although the references are easy to spot, you might want to brush up on your knowledge of these films.

Avengers (2012)

Thor: The Dark World (I know. They really reminded us the worst MCU film exists lol)

Dr. Strange

Age of Ultron

Capt. America: TWS

Capt. America: Civil War

Iron Man 3

(EVERYTHING AFTER THIS IS SPOILER TERRITORY PLEASE STOP READING IF YOU DON’T WANT TO BE SPOILED. I MEAN IT.)

The film begins before the infamous Thanos snappening, with Hawkeye. The first scene itself was telling to what the movie aims to be. It was emotional and reminded us of the stakes – of what the heroes are fighting for. It was a good mood setter and on the get go, separates itself from Infinity War. If Infinity War was Thanos’ journey of gathering the Infinity Stones, then Endgame is the journey of the original six Avengers in their goal to undo Thanos’ handiwork. Now finally, I understand why this is not called Infinity War Part 2 – because it is not. The structure of the film itself is vastly different from IW because the focus is shifted from the plot to the characters themselves.And this was a tall order. We are talking about a decade long franchise of 20 plus films, all with their own tone and structure, and weaving them together into a coherent film with a solid plot and development is difficult. The Russo brothers, luckily, shine in this kind of storytelling. There is something so enticing with the way they handle the arcs of these characters without it feeling overly dramatic or feeling like a caricature. My second favourite emotional arc was Natasha/Black Widow’s story. Arguably, she had the biggest role to play in the Avengers’ success in the film. Her sacrifice in Vormir to get the Soul Stone was gutting. I literally cried partly because no one expected her to die – she was never in anyone’s death prediction list – and partly because you expect a spy like her to be anything but self-sacrificing. Her fight with Clint/Hawkeye on who between them should be sacrificed to get the stone was hard to watch. They are bestfriends who are willing to die for each other; but they understand the necessity of the sacrifice because they are also heroes who have to do whatever it takes for them to win. Their dialogue was the best of the film, and Natasha’s “I don’t judge people on their worst mistake” is a sober reminder that these two go way back and has been each other’s strength and support all throughout the film franchise. It’s devastating to see Natasha plummet to her death, but it served an indispensable push for the heroes to succeed.

My favourite arc was Steve/Cap (SURPRISE! Lmao). Steve’s role was noticeably reduced in IW and this film made up for it in a major way. Let me just get this out of the way, but the styling team really did god’s work in dressing up Steve this film and the Russo brothers’, bless them, choice to have every outfit of Steve showcased is the very definition of fan service. It was gratuitous but honestly, I am not complaining. There was a running joke about Steve’s butt being “America’s Best Ass”™ (Thank you Scott Lang for that) and having Steve himself recognize it was not only satisfying to watch but also the truest, realest thing that has been uttered in the film. LolKidding aside, Steve’s journey was the most important. People argue that Tony was the foundation of the Avengers but it was Steve that kept them together. And Steve kept them together. It’s more than just him giving rousing, inspiring speeches – Steve has always served as the moral compass of the group. Somehow, Steve always knew the right thing to do, but it never felt deus-ex-machina esque, instead it always felt like it was coming from a place of wisdom and compassion. It’s not that Steve knows what to do, it’s just that Steve sees that there is something that can be done, and actually does it. Steve has always been a hero. That was the journey that was set-up for him since his first outing in the MCU, and Endgame paid that off big time. When Steve wielded the Mjolnir, I tell you, I screamed loudly. It was so satisfying to see this straight-laced hero being recognized as someone worthy. His toe-to-toe with Thanos was amazing to watch and really reminds you that Steve’s physicality and fight scenes are some of the best in all of the MCU. So when Steve returns to Infinity Stones in their proper timeline and decides not to come back to the present to, in his words, “live life”, I shed a tear. It was well deserved. This man who has been fighting wars all his life deserve a life of peace. Steve doesn’t die, but he gives up his mantle and gives his shield to Sam/Falcon. It was a good way to bookend his journey. And I am excited to see how Anthony Mackie handles this huge role in the future.

Tony Stark is the first Stark casualty this April. After his rescue from deep space, we find out that Tony and Pepper got married and have a daughter. When the daughter came to the screen, I knew immediately that Tony Stark is unlikely to survive. Tony dies a hero, sacrificing himself so that Thanos is defeated. It was Tony who wielded the stones to snap Thanos and his alien army out of existence, and his death, although emotional to watch, was really not surprising for me. Tony came to us first being this selfish, brash, genius billionaire and his journey ended with him making the sacrifice that deals the final blow against Thanos.

Scott Lang shined in this film. His funny one-liners provide a welcome reprieve from the heaviness of the film. And he was actually instrumental in the Avengers winning. Nebula was also a stand out and played an important role in moving the plot forward. Who knew a robot had so many conflicting emotions lol. Kudos to Karen Gillan for bringing complexity to her character and I cannot wait to see her in future MCU films again. All the ‘dusted’ characters come back. All of them. And not just them everyone in the MCU almost made a cameo. Hoping this film rakes in billions because it’s probably expensive having so many of the cast in the same scenes. Haha.

Some stand-out moments:

1. Thor’s beer belly

2. Wanda/Scarlet Witch and Thanos rematch (Thanos got beat, BTW)

3. The all-female team-up of Capt. Marvel, Scarlet Witch, Okoye, Pepper Potts, Valkyrie, and Mantis

4. Thor double wielding Stormbreaker and Mjolnir

5. Stephen Strange having like one line and being a badass

6. Spider-Man being… Spider-Man

7. Peter Quill being kicked in the balls by Gamora

8. Everytime the camera pans to Steven Grant Rogers

9. The close-up of Steven Grant Rogers’ ass

There are flaws to this film. But honestly, I leave that to the actual critics. It gave me what I wanted to see and showed me things I did not expect to see. It was emotional. As a fan who has watched all the films multiple times, as someone who obsessed over the details and made theories, as someone who holds these comic book characters close to my heart, I truly enjoyed this film. It was worth it.

#endgame #avengers #avengers:endgame #chris evans #robert downey jr.#chris hemsworth #scarlet johansson #mark ruffalo #jeremy renner #paul rudd

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galadrieljones · 5 years

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Writer’s Interview

thanks for the take @a-shakespearean-in-paris!! <3

Q: What is your coffee order?

Usually just a cappuccino? I don’t usually like sweet things in my coffee, except for at Christmastime when I order exclusively peppermint mochas lol.

Q: What is the coolest thing you’ve ever done?

Tbh the coolest thing I’ve ever done is probably be a fake socialite for like a portion of my late twenties and early thirties. My husband’s great uncle, who passed away last year, was quite wealthy and a huge, well-respected philanthropist for the LGBT community and gay rights. He lived in Palm Springs, and any time he had a gala or a fabulous event to go to, he would invite my husband and I to be in his entourage. We got to go to the GLAAD Awards about five times, including VIP events and cocktail parties with like, Leonardo DiCaprio, the Getty family, and Michael Jackson’s daughter. It was decadent and ridiculous but a fun role to play for a little while in my life.

Q: Who has been your biggest mentor?

My biggest mentors have been my professors from graduate school, both of whom are fantastic writers that taught me how to respect the work, stay grounded, and focus on making writing an important, central part of my life, no matter what comes. They taught me and my colleagues a very “purist” approach, which I appreciate to this day, revolving around the concept of inevitability: writing for love, writing for vision, writing in secrecy, ignoring the world as I grew and developed, and viewing The Industry as but a secondary factor that, when focused on with too much intensity too early in a writer’s career, can and will spoil their outlook and creative struggle forever.

Q: What has been your most memorable writing project?

I have several? My MFA thesis is memorable, because it was weird, and I was doing things back then in this very raw way that I can see and feel coming back to me now, eight years later, as a more mature writer and person. My Solavellan longfic The Dead Season also stands out as hugely memorable, as it took two years of my writing life to complete, and I believe it single-handedly improved my writing skills in ways I am only just now beginning to appreciate.

Q: What does your writing path look like, from the earliest days until now?

I have no idea lol. I have been writing since I could read. I started when I was very young, filling notebooks with horror stories and christmas stories and bad poetry and world building ideas. It was literally just notebook after notebook after notebook. I started typing my writing on a computer probably in fifth or sixth grade, and using it more consistently when I was in eighth or ninth grade. I wrote some fanfiction for boybands when I was in middle school, but that was short-lived. I continued to invent worlds and write shitty poetry all through high school lol, and then my senior year I started writing short stories. I went to college, majored in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing. Taking workshops honed my short story writing and gave me lots of practice, and then I won a little prize money out of it which helped me pay for my graduate school applications. All I ever really wanted to do was be a writer. I took a year off after college and worked as a bank teller back home in Wisconsin, and then I got real lucky and got into a very good MFA program which moved me out to California when I was about 23. I wrote and wrote and wrote. I met my husband, who was one of my colleagues at the workshop table. We moved in together. I finished my thesis, he finished his. Then we went to Montana for a little while, and we got engaged. I published some stories, mostly in small places, a couple big ones, too. Then we got married, had a baby, and I came to fandom out of boredom and frustration with the mainstream, and I’ve been toiling away here every since.

Q: What is your favorite part about writing?

I agree with @a-shakespearean-in-paris that for me, the best thing about writing is discovery. Discovery of language, ideas, characters I love.

Q: What does a typical day look like for you?

Uh, wake up. Feed child. Snuggle with child. Derp around on tumblr. Drink coffee. My husband and I switch off mornings and teach on opposite days of the week. If I have to teach that day, I’ll lesson plan, go teach, maybe have office hours for my students, come home, hang out with my fam, put the child to bed, and then I get my nights. Mondays and Fridays the kid is in preschool and I don’t teach, so on those days I try to be as productive as possible with my own writing and also art (if I don’t have to comment on too many student papers lol). I write when I can. I don’t have a set schedule. My grown-up life has taught me the importance of speed and the kill instinct as a writer. Like when you have the chance to write, fucking just do it. Don’t hem and haw. And when you feel the need to finish something, don’t stop.

Q: What does your writing process look like?

Lol. Who knows. I consider music to be a big part of my writing process. I always use playlists that I keep on repeat whenever I’m not writing. I also do a lot of my drafting in the notes on my phone, a lot of the time in bed at night, right before I fall asleep. When I sit down to write, I usually have something in mind. I know what I need to do. At this point, once I start, I can go for a long time and write a lot of words in a very short timespan. It’s just getting to that point where I’m sitting down. But once I’m there, I can kind of just go.

Q: What’s the best advice you’ve gotten?

Stay in the room. I got this advice from one of my professors in graduate school. It literally just means: Once you’ve made the decision to write, don’t leave the room. Stay in the room. Because if you leave the room, you’ll lose your momentum. He always said the biggest challenge for any writer is staying in the room, ie: forcing yourself to do the work. Thinking of writing as work and as something that is not always pleasant but must be done anyway was very important to me. It taught me not to be so precious about my work and to just do the thing and let drafts be drafts. I also learned from him that the best thing you can do when finishing your writing day is to write one more paragraph. So when you think you’re done, write one more paragraph. It’s usually there that the best discoveries are made.

Q: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned?

Don’t focus on publishing. Writing is not a well-paying gig. Even those who get grand book deals are rarely living large. Unless you’re Stephen King or equivalent, you’re still having to teach and apply for grants and do other shit to get by. I’ve learned that the only true satisfaction that comes from writing is pleasing others, pleasing readers. Having readers at all. You can toil away on a story for months, publish it in a lit journal, and never hear about it again. It’s pure vanity. I’ve learned from fandom writing that there is nothing more gratifying than the response from and interaction with readers. Actually touching peoples’ lives with my characters, inspiring and affecting them in some way. That’s what writing is all about. It’s an exploration of the self, but it is not self-serving. It can bring real joy to people, and that’s the thing I want.

Q: What advice would you give someone who wants to start writing?

Just write. There’s no reason not to. In fandom, there is a lot of concern over not being good enough, I think, because of this culture of constantly sharing everything we make, and notes, and kudos, etc. But if you want to write, you have to just write. You can’t say, “Oh, well, I’ll never be as good as so and so, so what’s the point?” Writing is a journey of many choices. The first choice has to be: I will now write. Don’t compare yourself to others. Find a niche that works for you. If you like to work alone and avoid showing your work, that’s okay. That’s how most writers start out. You don’t need a “beta” or a workshop team, particularly not when you’re just beginning. Share your work when you feel comfortable. It’s not important to always be sharing. It’s important to always be writing. And try not to get ahead of yourself. You must write for your own reasons and not to impress others. That is a toxic mindset that will only bring you down. And write. And write. Skip the over-planning. Skip the worksheets and the organizational worldbuilding software. Just write. It’s the only way to find out what you actually have to say.

tags for @thevikingwoman @bearly-tolerable @idrelle-miocovani @pikapeppa @littleblue-eyedbird @ocean-in-my-rebel-soul @buttsonthebeach @ellstersmash and anyone else who’d like to do this!! <3

#on writing #about me #writer's interview meme

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mayquita · 5 years

Text

Pictures of Reality (11/16)

Hi everyone! Here we go again. I’d like to express my gratitude to all those who have given this story a chance, thanks for your likes, comments, kudos and reblogs. It means the world to me.

Summary: Emma Swan returns to her birthplace, Storybrooke, in search of a fresh start after a life marked by abandonment and betrayal. After a year there, she finds the stability she needed and also the possibility of learning about one of her passions, photography. Killian Jones, a former British war reporter with a tragic past, establishes himself in the same town as an instructor of photography, following in the footsteps of his best friends, the Nolans. What will happen when their paths cross? Will their common passion for photography help them heal old wounds?

Rating: M (Language, mature themes, implied sex)

Warnings: Alcohol abuse, mentions of the loss of a limb in an armed conflict.

Other ships / Characters: Although, obviously, this is a cs fic, Snowing plays a major role here, mainly David. In fact, the story contains three different points of view, those of Emma, Killian and David. Also, Henry appears in the story as Regina’s adopted son but he is not Emma’s biological son.

Beta: I’d like to express my gratitude, as always, to my beta @jarienn972 I’m aware that you have had to deal with a monster of more than 100k words and English is not my mother tongue, so I value your effort even more.

Artist / art: Go visit @imagnifika’s blog and enjoy her amazing art. The art that accompanies this chapter perfectly captures a decisive moment in the story.

Art for the prologue/ Art for chapter 1 / Art for chapter 2 and banner / Art for chapter 3/ Art for chapters 4-5 / Art for chapters 6-7/ Art for chapter 8 / Art for chapter 10

Special mention to @saraswans , thank you so much for your perpetual support, for believing in me when I doubted myself and for offering ideas to make this story grow.

Don’t forget to go read and enjoy the rest of the amazing csbb stories and art.

Word count: ~ 6400 (116k total in 16 chapters)

Also on (From the beginning): Ao3 / Ffnet (Current Chapter) Ao3 / Ffnet

Tumblr: Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11

What to expect from this chapter? This chapter is going to be a bit intense... for reasons.

CHAPTER 10

My dearest Emma,

I still can't believe that we've finally been able to see you, actually see you, on your twenty-eighth birthday. Perhaps I could have left you this letter right there, along with the rest of the gifts you received on your special day, had the circumstances been different.

Maybe you wonder why, despite having been here for a few months, crossing paths each day with you through the streets of the town, or attending the same place for dinner, we haven't yet approached you. Or why we haven't told you the truth and we settle for observing you from a distance, to at least make sure that you are living the life that you deserve so much and that had been denied to you until now.

Well, maybe the answer is not the most satisfactory for you, or is it just a reflection of our cowardice, and I wouldn't blame you for thinking like that, but the reality is that the moment we arrived here and Regina told us about your past, we felt completely devastated and consumed by guilt.

Believe me, sweetheart, if we had the certainty that our confession would serve to alleviate your sorrows, we would willingly have bared our souls in front of you, although it would likely have meant that we would lose you forever.

But considering your traumatic experiences that have led you to run on more than one occasion and the history of abandonment and betrayals that you have suffered, we didn't want to risk ruining your life once more. I couldn't bear that because of our fault, you might lose everything you've achieved since you return to Storybrooke.

Because, as I see it from outside, you have become a strong and brave woman, ready to pursue your goals. You're also a caring person with the people you feel comfortable with, like Ruby, Graham, or Henry. And you have achieved all this without our help, so, if for you to maintain stability in your life we must stay away, so be it.

In addition, irony, or perhaps destiny, has decided to give us something beautiful and promising. We learned just yesterday that you will be one of the people who attend the course that Killian will start teaching in a few weeks.

Our Killian and our daughter, united by their passion for photography. I don't care if it's destiny or a simple coincidence, but the fact that you two are going to meet under such circumstances was unimaginable until a few weeks ago and now it has become a reality. You and Killian are going to cross paths and, fortunately, we are going to witness it even from the distance.

Who knows? Maybe Killian finds that hidden gem, that talented person that he always seeks, someone whom he can help develop full potential. Maybe I'm totally biased here, but I'm hoping it's you. Either way, you are already a gem for us, even though we aren't yet able to prove it to you.

Maybe some day...

Until then, your father who loves you and never forgets you,

David.

Emma Swan. Storybrooke - February 26, 2018

When Emma woke up that Monday, the light had barely begun to filter through the window of her bedroom. Still reluctant to get up and continue with her morning routine, she snuggled up between the sheets and let her thoughts wander for a while, bringing to mind the memories of the previous day.

Yesterday…

Emma had learned about Killian's birthday through his friends. The information had also come with a warning. He did not celebrate his birthday since his brother passed away. Even so, they always managed to spend the day with him and they hoped that this time she would join that kind of non-celebration.

Again, that feeling of belonging that was becoming habitual since she came to Storybrooke, settled in her stomach, spreading a warm feeling all over her body. Even so, she also felt some hesitation, not quite sure how to act in front of Killian, wondering if it was more appropriate to continue to respect his wishes or on the contrary, to subtly encourage him to move on with small details like being with him on that day or offer him a small gift.

The talk a few days ago with Mary Margaret had allowed her self-confidence to take hold, so she decided to let herself go, loosening the control she used to have over everything and instead be attentive to the little hints she would find along the way that would help her to follow the correct direction.

It was like that, quite literally, as she found the perfect gift for him. She was walking towards Killian's apartment when her gaze caught something that made her stop short in front of the pawn shop window. Right there, as if it were calling her, she found a vintage photo album bound in leather, with a small message engraved on the cover — ‘Collect Beautiful Moments’. That album definitely had Killian’s name on it so, without thinking twice, she went into the store and acquired it, writing inside a personalized note with the aim of explaining with her own words the symbolism of the present.

Sometime later, while waiting for Killian to arrive, she had a nice time with the Nolans while they showed her old photo albums full of memories. Unlike Christmas, she did not feel like an intruder at a family event, but rather included, as if she really belonged there, with this unconventional family, with these friends who really acted as proud parents of their son while offering to his girlfriend some embarrassing details of his youth, or remembered all the experiences they had lived together.

Although she longed to know more about Killian, to know everything about his origins, and she was more than grateful with the Nolans for offering her these happy glimpses of his past, she could not help feeling a little thorn in her heart since, again, she had to settle for witnessing the happiness of other people, while the craving to experience something similar washed over her.

Her mixed feelings faded into the background the moment she noticed Killian's presence. She had been so engrossed in the conversation with the Nolans and in her own thoughts that she had not heard him arrive. But now that he was there, everything around them seemed to vanish, her only goal to look up and make sure he was okay with that little surprise.

What she found did nothing but increase the endless feelings that danced within her. She detected how his body was tense although his troubled expression and his stormy gaze quickly morphed to an almost awe expression as his gaze softened when it met hers.

After a tentative first approach, he clung to her, as if he was afraid that she would disappear. Since she was not good with words, she chose to assure him through her acts and her displays of affection that she was not going anywhere.

Killian Jones was a complex man, no doubt, but also a challenge for her in the sense of trying to climb those walls that acted as a barrier and discover the real Killian behind all those layers that covered him. And she was more than willing to keep trying.

The tension did not completely disappear from Killian for the rest of the day. She sometimes detected a glimpse of something akin to resignation, but at least that stormy expression had softened, allowing them to enjoy a quiet and pleasant evening, the four of them together, adding up memories that would be immortalized both in the photographs they took and in her own album of memories that she kept in her heart.

She waited for his friends — maybe now it was appropriate to use the term ‘their’, at least she felt it, she hoped that the feeling was reciprocal — to leave to give him her humble gift since she preferred to do it in privacy, turning it into a moment just for them.

For a moment, she thought she had made a terrible mistake, holding her breath as she watched Killian's reaction intently. He stiffened, holding the object in an awkward way as he stared at her, as if he couldn't believe what was happening.

After those first seconds of shock, his gaze fell on the album while his fingers slid delicately over the leather cover in an almost reverent way. After reading the handwritten note she had left inside, his gaze traveled back to her, staring at her in such a way that her head began to spin, her heart fluttering furiously against her chest.

"Thank you so much, Swan, you didn't need..." He reached up to scratch behind his ear, but his gaze never left hers. "I'm not sure I deserve this." His lips pressed together drawing the ghost of a smile.

She shrugged her shoulders. "It's just a photo album."

"Aye..." Killian remained pensive for a moment, his tongue darting out to wet his lips, "but just for the record, I have every intention of you appearing on all these pages with me."

It was a simple phrase, innocuous enough, but she did not lose the intrinsic meaning. She had offered him the possibility of a future and he was offering her, in return, the possibility of being part of that future. That was the only thing she needed at the moment.

The alarm clock announcing the time to get up got her out of her reverie. Even so, she still remained a while longer in bed, lying on her back with her arms folded and her hands under the back of her head, allowing herself a few seconds more of introspection.

Even though her wounds from the past had not yet healed enough and Killian's still seemed to continue to bleed from time to time, she was going to hold on to any possible future that awaited them together. They were meant to be together, she felt it in the depths of her very soul and she was going to do everything possible to make that happen.

And that began by acting and fighting for what she wanted. And if there was one thing she was sure of, it was that she wanted Killian, the charismatic teacher, the traumatized war reporter, the loyal friend, the glimpses of fiery lover she had gotten.

With a new goal in mind, she hurried out of bed feeling a surge of energy take over her body. She was not going to stand by letting the opportunity pass, she was going to cling to it. And if that meant starting to share breakfast with her boyfriend — yes, boyfriend, she was no longer afraid of that word — as a normal couple, so be it.

Killian Jones. Storybrooke - February 26, 2018

The irony decided to show its face to Killian once more, as if it was laughing at his expense. He remembered having serious difficulties finding an available flight when he had needed to travel urgently because of some unforeseen event. However today, it only took him five minutes to acquire a plane ticket that would take him back to London tomorrow.

The moment his finger pressed the button that would allow him to finish the purchase, a wave of regret seized him. That sinking feeling accompanied him for the next few minutes, when he took the suitcase out of the closet and moved it to his living room.

The purchase of the ticket did not change anything, he could still decide not to take that plane. In addition, it was a round trip ticket with the return scheduled within five days. It was not like he was fleeing forever, he tried to convince himself - without much success, really.

If he himself wasn't convinced, he doubted that he would convince Emma and his friends. With Emma, he would have to resort to a small deception, adding one more weight to the burden of guilt he carried. In regards to David and Mary Margaret, he had decided to tell them that night during dinner.

He expected his friends to understand his reasons. He didn't do it as a desperate measure to force them to confess the truth to Emma, but rather the contrary, to allow them to experience some more time together, getting to know each other more. He only intended to give them more time to figure out how to approach the subject.

The image he had witnessed the day before had pierced his heart. It was undeniable that Emma should know the truth; it was unfair that she was involved in this game of lies. That was what was killing him inside, the helplessness and frustration of being between a rock and a hard place when all he wanted was for the three of them to achieve the happiness that had been denied to them before.

He was aware that he was carrying out an act of cowardice, at least in the eyes of the others, but he felt so pressured that he was no longer sure what he was supposed to do. Should he behave like the honorable man and confess the truth to Emma, even at the risk of betraying his friends? Should he keep the secret, knowing that this would mean the impossibility of maintaining a relationship with Emma?

There was something of which he had absolute certainty, though. He was not going to, under any circumstances, ignore that secret with the sole objective of keeping Emma by his side. If he already felt ashamed for his weakness, for not being able to resist her charms, for having fallen under her spell, he could not forgive himself continuing to take advantage of her ignorance.

The doorbell announcing the arrival of someone brought him back to reality. He realized that he had remained standing in the middle of the room, lost in thought while the empty suitcase was in front of him waiting to be filled.

He shook his head, brushing aside those thoughts for the moment as he wondered who was visiting him so early. David would probably already be in the newspaper office and Mary Margaret would have already arrived at school. Maybe it was Emma, on her way to the town hall. The corners of his lips instinctively rose at that thought, while his heart fluttered in anticipation, though her presence in his apartment at that moment would mean inflicting one more torture on his already battered heart.

"Hey," Indeed, it was Emma who had decided to pay him an unexpected visit. She was wearing a cute beanie, her hair falling in soft waves over her shoulders, her cheeks colored with a slight pink halo due to the cold and a wide smile pulling at her lips. She was a vision with the ability to take his breath away. "I brought breakfast." He forced his gaze away from her face, his eyes sliding to the paper bag with Granny's logo she was holding.

He swallowed hard as he managed a smile that he hoped was enough to hide his inner turmoil. "You've read my mind, love. I could do with a cup of coffee."

She grinned at him, gave him a peck on the lips and, without waiting to be invited to come in, she passed by his side in the direction of his kitchen. He could not help feeling somewhat marveled by the ease with which she seemed to move through his apartment, demonstrating how comfortable she felt not only with him, but with what surrounded him.

His satisfaction was short-lived, though. Just as she was walking through his living room, she stopped in her tracks, her eyes fixed on a particular point in the room. Holding his breath, he followed the direction of her gaze to find the empty suitcase on the coffee table. Bloody hell! He had completely forgotten the damn thing.

"Are you going somewhere?" Her head turned in his direction as she gave him an inquiring look, her eyebrows knitting together in confusion.

His hand reached out to rub the back of his neck while his brain began to scramble frantically for a convincing enough excuse. Bloody hell! He had thought he would see her later for lunch so he still hadn't had time to look for an explanation that might work.

"Aye... something has come up... I have to travel to London to make some arrangements before starting the new course." He managed to mumble a poor excuse that did not sound convincing, while he hated himself a little in the process.

"London?" Emma blinked a couple of times as if she were processing the information. Her previous carefree expression gave way to one of confusion. "When?"

"Tomorrow afternoon." Her eyes widened slightly, so Killian hurried to offer something that would help reassure her. "It will only be a couple of days."

Emma nodded subtly, pressing her lips together into a thin line as she made her way to the kitchen and deposited the paper bag on the counter. Then she turned, standing in front of him, her arms crossed over her chest, her head tilted slightly.

"You know, if you had told me before, I could have accompanied you. I've never been to London… I could have taken a couple of days off…” A shadow of hurt crossed her gaze but she seemed to recover immediately, the corners of her lips twitching into a tiny smile as she shrugged. "Anyway... we better start breakfast or I'll be late and Regina will kill me."

He felt utterly miserable, a new wave of guilt tightened his gut, threatening to further weaken his fragile composure. The image of Emma discovering London through his eyes and his experiences was so damn tempting that for a fraction of a second he was about to send everything to hell, grabbing her by the hand and getting out of there, the two of them together, missing from the rest of the world for a while. He had no choice but to restrain himself, though, and instead, he offered her a poor substitute. "I apologize, Swan, the trip came somewhat unexpectedly, but I'd like to travel with you to London one day."

The faint smile she returned did not reach her eyes. He had to hold back a sigh of frustration as he approached her and began to pull the food out of the bag in an attempt to make breakfast distract him enough. It didn't work, she did not even bother to take off her coat, implying that her visit would be brief. Although they made the effort to keep a carefree talk, he could feel the tension in the atmosphere.

Ten minutes later, she got up, going to the front door. "I really have to go. See you later?" The hint of insecurity in her voice caused a new pang of guilt piercing his heart.

"Sure, I'll grab some lunch and go find you at the city hall." He affirmed in an attempt to reassure her.

She nodded, the corners of her lips moved slightly upward. "I... you know ... Do you want me to get you to the airport tomorrow?"

For all response, he pulled her to him in a tight embrace, the need to feel the warmth of her body against his too overwhelming. "Believe me, Swan, there's nothing I'd like more." He whispered in her ear. “I’ll come back to you in a couple of days.”

The moment the door closed behind her, Killian was aware that he was making a terrible mistake. Letting out a deep breath, he leaned his back and head against the door while pinching the bridge of his nose.

How could he have been so blind as to not realize the reason behind the vulnerability shown by Emma? How could he not only have neglected her abandonment issues, but feed them with his evasive attitude? He resisted the urge to bang his head against the wooden surface in frustration. Instead, he groaned inwardly while his hand curled into a fist.

He could not take that flight. Not when it meant leaving Emma, even for a couple of days. He would meet her for lunch and tell her that there had been a change of plans, that he could travel with her at another time. He had no choice but to regain the strength necessary to face what was to come. He only hoped that he would be able to protect Emma in some way.

Emma Swan. Storybrooke - February 26, 2018

He is leaving, leaving, leaving. Emma tried to block that thought, make it disappear from her mind, but she felt too weak or helpless, unable to cope with that sinking feeling that had settled in her stomach.

Deep down, she knew that she was being irrational, that Killian would never abandon her. But the suitcase, his evasive answers and his expression of ill-concealed guilt had awakened her old demons who soon emerged from their hiding corner and began tormenting her.

She did not even know how she got here to the office, too consumed by those disturbing sensations. Even so, she made the effort to get involved in her work with the goal of getting distracted enough. And she got it for half an hour. Until she had to talk on the phone with someone who, without her asking him, told her that he had just arrived from London.

Fucking London... He had to travel to the damn other side of the ocean... And to think that the morning had started well, with her determination to develop the next step in her relationship with Killian. And all that she found was a sudden trip sprinkled with evasiveness. She tried to find a logical explanation, though, still reluctant to think that she had been betrayed once again.

That spiral of sensations and thoughts did not disappear when Emma was called to Regina's office to deliver some reports. That's what happens when you lower your walls, that you risk being hurt, her inner voice reminded her...

"Emma!"

The unexpected shout caused her to flinch and wake up from her reverie. Feeling her cheeks flush, she looked up and found Regina staring at her through her narrow eyes.

"I pay you to do your job, not to be there absorbed, thinking God knows what and ignoring when I speak to you." Regina's authoritative voice caused her to straighten her back, as she tried to get Killian out of her mind for at least a few minutes.

"Sorry, I got distracted for a moment." Emma mumbled an excuse as she focused her gaze on the documents she was holding.

"Okay then, spit it out."

“What?” Emma looked up at Regina again, not sure that she understood correctly.

Regina rolled her eyes as she pursed her lips, she was losing patience, clearly. "Just tell me what's going on in your head. We'll deal with it and move on to what's really important, my job and this town. I'm a very busy person, in case you forgot."

Emma had to suppress a gasp of surprise. Was she being serious? No way was she going to confess her worries to Regina. She was not only not her friend but also her damn boss. But on the other hand, she had a point... Emma shifted uncomfortably in her seat while appreciating Regina's proposal. She really needed to expel those thoughts, for someone to tell her that she was being ridiculous. And Regina was the person available right now...

"He's leaving." To her horror, the words came out of her mouth without her having had time to process it.

"He? Who?"

Emma groaned inwardly, wishing she were anywhere else instead of here, feeling like a student in the principal's office. "Killian, he's leaving for London." The way Regina was looking at her did nothing to alleviate her inner turmoil. Something flashing in her gaze as her features darkened slightly. "Look, I know it's stupid - he's coming back in a couple of days, so can we continue with the meeting and forget all this?"

Luck was not on her side that day because, after remaining pensive for a few seconds, Regina muttered almost to herself, "So that boyfriend of yours is also a coward - just like his friends."

Emma felt her stomach drop to her toes as her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. Far from reassuring her, her boss's words had left her even more uneasy. "What are you talking about?"

She held Regina's gaze for a few seconds studying her features in an attempt to find out what was happening. Regina’s face remained impassive, but Emma did detect a shadow crossing her gaze, perhaps shame, maybe regret, she was not sure. After what seemed like an eternity, Regina let out a deep sigh as her shoulders slumped a bit. "Taking into account that the photographer hasn’t managed to handle the situation and has decided to flee instead, I guess it's only fair that it's me who tells you the truth. I brought you here in the first place, after all."

The truth? What truth? A myriad of thoughts, each more disturbing, crowded in her head causing it to start spinning. What do Killian’s friends have to do with all this? And what about Regina herself? A wave of panic began to creep from her stomach to her throat, as the desire to run away from there became more intense. In the end, her curiosity won, "Just tell me what's going on." She hissed in a tone perhaps sharper than she intended but this whole situation was getting on her nerves.

Regina's features softened and even Emma detected a glimpse of something akin to pity. That could not mean anything good. She didn't want pity, she didn't need it, did she? She felt a strange sensation taking over her, like a bad omen approaching unstoppable. She held her breath as her stomach tightened into knots.

"It's about your parents, Emma."

My parents ... Her blood froze as she clung to the desk with such force that her knuckles turned white. "What about them?" She managed to mumble in a trembling voice.

"Let me clarify something before continuing, if I'm telling you this, it's because I don't get why after all that they have gone through... and also all of what you have gone through... they still prefer to keep hiding..."

"Just tell me." Emma cut her abruptly, causing Regina to flinch slightly in her seat. At the moment, she didn't want explanations or excuses, she just wanted to know what the hell was happening.

"Killian... well, both he and I know who your parents are." Regina finally admitted in an apologetic tone.

Far from bringing some light to the situation, Regina's confession left her even more confused. How was it possible? Killian had been in Storybrooke for only four months, there was no way he knew this information when he had been living all this time in London... The only contact he had ever had with anyone from here was with…

"No!" It can't be! No no no. She felt all the air leaving her lungs while she refused to accept that possibility, trying to block her mind. Her attempts were in vain though since her brain began to act on its own, tying up loose ends and processing all the information. Killian was the one who had introduced them to her, he had also been the one who had propitiated the first encounters, who had talked to her constantly about his friends...

Any doubts she might have had disappeared when Regina confirmed in words what she had already deduced. "I'm afraid so, Emma. David and Mary Margaret are your parents. They..."

"No!" Emma raised a finger in warning. She did not want to hear anything else. It was as if someone had ripped her heart from her chest and was squeezing it slowly with every memory that came to her mind, with every moment shared with them, inflicting even more suffering.

"Emma, let me explain..."

She shook her head as she rose abruptly and headed for the door, unable to look Regina in the eye. "I gotta go." Emma said, her voice even, though she felt her blood boiling. The weight of the betrayal was so high that she was not sure she could maintain the little composure she still had left. She should get out of there immediately. Ignoring one last call from Regina, she went to her desk, grabbed her purse and coat and then walked to the exit.

A raw rage began to bubble inside her. Unable to handle everything that was happening, she blocked the thoughts about Regina's involvement and completely ignored the revelation about the Nolans. Instead, she focused all her fury on one target - on the person she had blindly trusted. To whom she had given her heart.

The ride to Killian's apartment, far from appeasing her anger, increased that sinking feeling that had settled low in her stomach as she was assimilating all the information received. Tears of humiliation threatened to slide down her cheeks, but she blinked stubbornly holding them back.

Gradually, she realized that she had remained oblivious to a whole plot that had been hatched around her. Emma wondered bitterly how far the threads of these machinations would reach, while the bubble of stability she had lived in when she came to Storybrooke exploded, splashing her with a whole series of questions to which she hoped —or maybe feared— to find an answer.

It was as if everything she had experienced since arriving in the town was part of a huge farce, from her job, the photography course, or even Killian's feelings. A wave of shame and rejection washed over her when she remembered the conversation she had had with Mary Margaret a few days ago, causing her anger to boil again in her veins.

Fortunately, the arrival at the building where Killian's apartment was located stopped that escalation of feelings. Instead, she directed all her energy and anger into a single target. She would have time to deal with everything else, later.

There was a brief moment of hesitation when she reached his door. She felt all her emotions radiating off of her, like a volcano about to erupt. Maybe if she went home and tried to calm down enough she would be able to keep a cool head when the inevitable conversation with Killian took place. She rejected that idea almost at the same instant it crossed her mind. The need to expel those feelings that bubbled inside her was too tempting, although, in the brief lapses of lucidity that dared to appear among so much contained anger, she was aware that she was opting for the easy way. "I don't care." She muttered to herself as she pounded on the door hard.

The moment the door opened, she marched directly towards Killian poking a finger into his chest. "You damn asshole - how dare you?"

He recoiled at her advance, his eyes widening in surprise. "What are you talking about, love? What's wrong?"

"You don't have to keep pretending, I already know the truth about your friends." She threw the last words with contempt, knowing the impact they would have on him. She wasn't wrong. His face suddenly paled, his mouth fell open on a gasp.

"They told you?" He asked in a small whimper.

She huffed, while shaking her head, "It was Regina." She placed her hands on her hips in a defiant attitude. "It seems that your friends are just cowards like you."

To his credit, he seemed genuinely affected, his face contorted in an expression reflecting a mixture of hurt and shame. But she didn't let herself be daunted, hardening her features as she continued her verbal attack without even waiting for a reply. "I trusted you, Killian! How could you do this to me?"

"Emma, let me explain, please." He almost begged, tentatively advancing towards her.

She jumped back instinctively, raising a hand in front of her, thereby avoiding the possibility of her body betraying her due to his proximity. "You lost your chance to explain yourself at the same moment you decided to lie to me. How could you take advantage of me like that?" Emma forced herself to swallow the lump that was forming in her throat. In no way was she going to break in front of him, although the truth was that she was dying inside. She repressed those feelings though, leaving them for the privacy of her apartment.

To her surprise, he did not try to defend himself or repel the attack. He simply dropped himself on the couch, breathing out on a shaky exhale, his shoulders slumped, his lips pressed together in a thin line. He seemed defeated. "I'm so sorry, Emma." He muttered as he ran his hand through his hair.

Emma hesitated for a moment. She needed to fight, to expel these feelings that were threatening to drown her, but she couldn't do it with someone who was already defeated. He wasn't even going to try to hit back. "That's all you have to say? That you are sorry? Are you aware that you've ruined my life? That I don't know what is real in my life anymore?" Frustration and impotence began to take their toll, her voice slid between her lips in a broken murmur.

This time Killian did seem to react. He looked up, seeking her gaze. "I assure you, Swan, that my feelings towards you have always been real." For a moment, she was lost in the intensity of his eyes, they had always had a hypnotic effect on her, even in this moment of such tension. But she shook her head breaking the spell. She was not going to be distracted by two pretty blue eyes.

"You have a strange way of showing it, don't you?" He flinched at the harshness of her tone and the sarcasm of her voice. Something caught her attention at that moment. The suitcase, the original cause of this situation, was no longer on the coffee table. Still, that didn't prevent the pain of a possible abandonment for being more bearable. "And you know what is the worst of all? That in spite of my abandonment issues, you were willing to do just that. At the moment when things get tough, you leave, don't you? Maybe you couldn't bear the pressure of lying to me? Or did you decide it wasn't even worth the effort?" This time Emma had to suppress a sob, but she could not stop thick tears from starting to run down her cheeks.

"I was coming back to you, Emma. The return trip was scheduled for next Saturday." He defended himself in a weak voice. It wasn't enough for her, because she still did not know the reasons that had made him travel in the first place. She was about to reply when he continued. "I wasn't abandoning you. I just needed a few days to think about all this. I also know what it is to lose someone. I could never do that to you, Emma, I promise."

Emma hesitated again, her heart beating frantically in her chest. The hurt was evident both in his broken voice and in his expression. But when she processed his words, she felt a new twinge go through her. "It's not the same and you know it. Your mother, Liam, Milah, they all died. They're dead." She was aware of the damage he was inflicting with her words, but she was unable to stop, a whirlwind of thoughts and feelings swirling inside her, struggling to surface. She did not have the strength to fight against them. "They didn't choose to leave you. But what about me? Starting with your friends, they all chose and decided that I wasn't enough. Everyone - even you."

"That's not true, Emma, they chose to come back for you." Killian got up trying to reach her.

"No!" She stopped his advance, feeling an extreme exhaustion overtake her. "I can't continue with this." Her voice trailed off as she wiped her tears and began to walk in the direction of the front door. She felt again a lost girl, confused and adrift, without anyone to turn to, without knowing who to trust anymore.

"Emma, wait!" She stopped but didn't turn around, unable to hold his gaze and his stormy expression again, "I understand and accept that you are mad at me, but they are your parents. They love you. Please, Emma, I'm begging you, give them at least an opportunity to explain themselves."

A new wave of tears began to slide down her cheeks. Parents... She not only hadn't been enough for them when she was born, but neither was her when they found her, choosing not to confess the truth.

There was something even more painful, something that squeezed her stomach to the point of feeling almost physically sick. They, her parents, had chosen to act as substitute parents of another person, precisely the person she had fallen in love with and who had betrayed her in a cruel way. Because of them. They had chosen Killian over her - taking care of him instead of doing it with her when she needed them the most.

"My parents died in a traffic accident when I was three years old." She muttered before finally leaving his apartment.

Killian Jones. Storybrooke - February 26, 2018

Killian watched helplessly as Emma left his apartment without him being able to do anything about it. The moment she disappeared from view, he felt as if all his energy had been drained from his body, noticing how a sense of emptiness invaded him and left him dazed. Before dropping back onto the couch, he grabbed his phone and typed a quick text.

She already knows. I'm deeply sorry, Dave. KJ

Then he switched off the device and left it on the coffee table. The feeling of despair was so intense that his body began to tremble slightly. He closed his eyes resting his head against the back of the sofa, but that did not alleviate his internal agitation. He had failed not only Emma but his friends. He could never forgive himself.

TheLadySwan .........

I'm sorry, again... Thanks for reading. Let me know what did you all think :)

What to expect from the next chapter? As many of you had already imagined, Emma hasn't taken well to know the truth. We will see how she feels after her confrontation with Killian and how Killian and the Nolans deal with this new unfortunate situation.

#cs ff #cs au #csbb #captain swan #captain swan ff #pictures of reality #mayquita writes #my cs writings #cs au ff #csbb 2018

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amandajoyce118 · 5 years

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Captain Marvel Easter Eggs And References

My goal for Easter egg lists is always to get them up within a week of a movie’s opening, or the same night that a television episode airs, but I’ve had an injured wrist/thumb that has made writing difficult. So, Captain Marvel hasn’t been delayed because of a busy life, but because I’ve been trying to rest my hand. I’ve been wearing a brace and thumb stabilizer for most of my day for the last few weeks, so I should be getting back to normal soon.

As usual with my Easter egg lists, this list assumes you’ve seen the movie, and the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for that matter. There will be spoilers. You have been warned. I’m sticking mainly with comic and MCU references, so you won’t find a lot of pop culture ones here. If you want someone to give you the 90s rundown, I’m sure you can find it online.

The Stan Lee Tribute

Every MCU movie opens with the same sequence, highlighting the heroes that are part of the universe. This is the first Marvel movie to hit theaters since Stan Lee’s death, so they did something a little different. That sequence instead highlights him. The color scheme and the background text remains the same, but none of the actors are there, just shots of Stan Lee from different movies and red carpet events. I won’t lie. I’ve teared up a little every time I’ve seen it.

Hala

Both the name of the main planet and the capital city in the Kree Empire. MCU fans saw it before in Guardians of the Galaxy, though it was a bit darker and didn’t seem as tech-friendly. It makes me wonder just what happened in the years in between.

“There are tabs for that.”

Not an Easter egg, but a tiny bit of world building. Going into this movie, I think most people knew that Carol Danvers AKA Vers was really from Earth. But, I find it interesting that Yon-Rogg is so quick to offer Carol a Kree sleeping aid. It reinforces the idea we’ve seen on Agents of SHIELD that human and Kree physiology are relatively compatible.

Supreme Intelligence

Less of an Easter egg and more of a direct comic book adaptation, the Supreme Intelligence is also an A.I. in the comics. There, it’s made up of all of the minds of the smartest and most distinguished Kree after they day. That’s presumably what Yon-Rogg’s “join the collective” comment meant in the movie as well. The idea of it becoming the person you most admire is created for the movie.

Carol’s Inhibitor

The comics have tried many different inhibitors on characters with super powers over the years. The X-Men usually have collars. Alien species like their neural inhibitors though, which is what Carol appears to have when she trains with Yon-Rogg. Kudos to the MCU for keeping their tech consistent across movies and TV since it appears to be the same type as what Quake ends up with in the future on Agents of SHIELD. Interesting that Daisy’s is embedded in her brain tissue while Carol’s is on the surface of her skin. Something changed in the decades in between - probably the fact that Carol was able to disable hers. Then again, so was Daisy.

Starforce

This is considered a group of supervillains in the comics, so perhaps movie fans might have expected their turn if they knew that. A few of the members are different in the comics. For example, Yon-Rogg isn’t a member, but Ronan the Accuser is. ScreenRant did a good job at running down who’s who in the movie version since they’re all comic book characters. You can see that here.

Torfa

Torfa is a relatively new creation in the planets. It first popped up in 2014, which tells you the movie pulls from a lot of the new comic book continuity. Like the movie, Torfa was a planet where refugees lived. Also like the movie, not all of them survived the hostile atmosphere, though in the comics, it was chemicals, not Kree that were hostile. Carol also had it out with Starlord’s comic book dad there.

Talos

Talos is in the comics, but apparently he’s also a Star Trek reference. Not a Trekkie, though I do find the franchise interesting, so I’ll direct you to this article for a full explanation.

Carol’s Look

One of Carol’s most iconic looks in the comics is her mohawk. She gets it for the movie in the form of her helmet keeping her hair in place. Her uniform, with the green color scheme, is one all of Starforce uses, but it’s also a nod to the original Captain Marvel’s uniform in the comics. In fact, the color changing of her suit appears to be a nod to a few other costumes she had in the comics too. The red, yellow, and blue came later. I’m just glad we didn’t have her bathing-suit like uniform of her Ms. Marvel days.

Maria “Photon” Rambeau

Maria is created for the movie (her daughter is from the comics), and though we learn more about her much later, we see her callsign on her jet during Carol’s early flashbacks. Photon is actually one of the many superhero names Monica Rambeau uses in the comics. Nice touch.

Carol’s Family

Carol’s family flashbacks only ever show us her brother and her father. We don’t get much of an idea about her homelife other than her relatives not wanting her to be as rough as the boys. That’s very much a part of her comic book background. Her father favors her brother so much that, even though Carol has the better grades growing up, he only pays for her brother to get a university education. Carol joins the Air Force for the free tuition and to prove she’s as good as the boys to her father. (It’s also interesting that we never see her mother since a recent retcon in the comics has her mother as a Kree refuge and Carol’s birth name as Car-El as she’s half Kree.) It’s also interesting to note that a lot of Carol’s major stories in her classic comics involve her losing her memories and having to figure out who she is all over again.

Lieutenant Trouble

It’s a cute nickname for Monica with Carol’s military background. It’s also a nod to another little girl Carol new in the comics with the same nickname and Monica being a police officer in the comics when she’s introduced as an adult. She’s also from Louisiana, just like the Rambeaus are in the movie.

Dr. Lawson

We’ve got some genderbending going on for the new generation. In the comics, the original Captain Marvel is Mar-Vell, a Kree soldier sent to Earth to monitor the planet as it gets destroyed by Galactus. Mar-Vell comes to sympathize with humanity and turns on the Kree to help the humans. He also takes the guise of a scientist with NASA named Dr. Lawson while he’s undercover. Sounds familiar, except her Lawson and Mar-Vell are a woman and the race she sympathizes with are the Skrulls. The original story also had Mar-Vell and Carol ending up in an accident with a piece of Kree technology that left Carol with his powers. I love the twist on this origin story. There’s plenty of nods to the source material without Carol’s jealousy of Mar-Vell from the comics, and without her playing second fiddle to a heroic dude for a long time.

Project PEGASUS

In the comics, Project PEGASUS is a unit researching alternative energy sources. It also acts as a prison for those with superpowers. We’ve actually seen mention of it in the MCU before. For the MCU, it was created in the 1940s when Howard Stark found the Tesseract in the ocean while looking for Captain America. It was a joint venture between the Airforce, NASA, and what would become SHIELD to study it. It gets a mention in a few of the tie-in comics for the MCU movies, but specifically, Tony Stark mentions he wants files on it to JARVIS when he’s going through his dad’s stuff in Iron Man 2. A sign for it also appears on the wall in a SHIELD facility in Agents of SHIELD.

Blockbuster And Radio Shack

A+ choices for the businesses for Carol to run into. Two companies that are essentially extinct 20 years later, but were cutting edge at the time. (From what I understand the Blockbuster scenes were actually filmed at the last Blockbuster left in the US. It’s in Arizona. Go figure.)

True Lies

True Lies gets noticed in the video store because Carol shoots the standee, but the spy movie is known for a fighter jet sequence, and it was the first true “blockbuster” movie because it cost over $100 million to make - unheard of in 1994. The fighter jet prop used in it was also repurposed and used in The Avengers, so it’s like Easter egg inception here.

Universal Translator

So much is made about alien races speaking English in the MCU. In the comics, pretty much anyone traveling through space has a universal translator built into their ship or their helmets. This one off mention from Carol reminds us of that, though she’s likely speaking English anyway.

Coulson the Skrull

Phil Coulson appears as a rookie agent in the 90s. I’d wager this is one of his first big jobs since he’s still on evidence collection. You know him from the Iron Man and Avengers movies as well as, you know, Agents of SHIELD. I like that he’s the one a Skrull simulates instead of Fury because there were so many theories about who could be a Skrull when they were announced for this movie. It’s also a nice misdirect from Marvel that there’s concept art out there of Fury’s transformation from a Skrull, but not Coulson’s.

And, I mean, Nick Fury’s not an Easter egg, so I don’t need to remind you he basically started the MCU with Hulk and Iron Man, right? Though this movie does make me worry about his driving record in the MCU. He seems to end up in a lot of accidents.

Stan Lee And Mallrats

Stan Lee’s cameo is extra special because it’s also a nod to a real life cameo of his. How very meta. The script he’s holding on the train is for Kevin Smith’s Mallrats, where he really did say the line, “trust me, True Believers,” something he also said a lot in his editorials in the comics.

Kelly Sue Deconnick

When Carol gets off the train, she passes a woman with red hair and glasses in her walk. That’s Deconnick. She wrote the Captain Marvel comic book series a few years ago that this movie pulls a lot of its nods (and aesthetic) from. We can likely credit her with the surge in popularity Carol’s seen the last few years, and the reason she had a movie in development at all.

1989

In case there’s anything noteworthy for you in the year Carol ended up in Hala: Ron Perelman bought Marvel Entertainment Group, the massive X-Men Inferno story arc played out, the new Nick Fury: Agent of SHIELD comic launched, and Jubilee made her comic book debut.

1995

Likewise, for Carol’s return to Earth: the Age of Apocalypse comics launched, Thor made his 400th comic book appearance, comic books like The Fantastic Four and The Amazing Spider-Man had landmark issues as well, and a bunch of Punisher comics were cancelled, only for Marvel to turn around and launch a new Punisher comic later in the year. The Skrull Kill Crew mini series also launched.

SHIELD Logo

Thanks, Carol for calling out the fact that a covert group shouldn’t put their logo on everything. Fans have been saying that for years. Also, nice touch that it’s not the sleek and modern logo we see in Agents of SHIELD, but the older one seen on the Wall of Valor in the MCU before.

“Smile for me.”

I know that Brie Larson was asked about this moment in an interview and said it wasn’t an Easter egg. But the fact that she was criticized so much by male fans for not smiling in promotional materials made me add this to the list.

SHIELD Medical Examiner

Nelson Franklin played him. He also appeared in an episode of Agents of SHIELD. Maybe they’re just relatives.

A “Full Bird Colonel”

Carol calls Fury this during their chat at Pancho’s. His military history before joining SHIELD is right in line with the comics. Of course, he was from New York, not Alabama there. He also says he likes the B’s and spent time in Budapest. Not the same mission as Hawkeye and Black Widow though, right?

“Just Fury”

Nick Fury also points out that he only goes by Fury. Not Nicholas. Not Nick. Just Fury. I intend on going back and finding when in the MCU someone calls him Nick to his face. Maybe it’s like a distress signal for him.

“You look like someone’s disaffected niece.”

Fury says this to Carol when he points out her clothes not fitting in on a secret base. But it reminded me of the comments about her looking like Emily VanCamp, who plays Peggy Carter’s niece Sharon.

The Welcome Wagon

Carol’s not familiar with the term, though Fury is. Probably because that’s what they call the intake program for new “assets” with SHIELD. That’s what Coulson eventually wants Skye to do when he adds her to his team in Agents of SHIELD.

Ronan The Accuser

You probably recognize Lee Pace’s character from Guardians of the Galaxy. In that movie, he was after a little purple gem that turned out to be the Power Stone. He’s a Kree purist, out to conquer neighboring lands and make sure the Kree stay in power. He’s not all that different here. His mention of coming back for the weapon and the woman at the end is likely a nod to him pursuing other Infinity Stones, even if it’s not clear that he knows what they are here. By the time of Guardians, he’s got whole rituals he’s participating in, which includes painting his face in Blue Kree blood. It doesn’t look like he’s quite that fanatical here. He does, however, inspire loyalty in Korath, who eventually works for him directly, which does make me wonder what happened to Yon-Rog after this and how much Korath told Ronan about their encounter with Carol on Earth as well.

“That’s a flerken.”

Goose likely gets his name from Top Gun, but he gets his alien identity from the comics. In the comics from a few years ago, Carol has a companion on her spaceship - a cat named Chewie. As Rocket Raccoon points out to her, “that’s no cat. That’s a flerken.” Like Talos, Rocket was right. Chewie ends up having a whole litter of flerkens. Goose just eats things and people at convenient times.

Women Flying Combat

Maria notes that women weren’t allowed to fly combat in 1989. That’s true. They weren’t allowed to fly combat until 1993, a few years before the movie is set. The first woman to get to after the ban lifted? That would be Jeannie M. Leavitt. Now Brigadier General Leavitt, she actually trained Brie Larson for her role in the film and appears in the new Air Force ads.

ASIS

The name given to Lawson’s new aircraft, as mentioned briefly by Maria, is ASIS. It’s a nod to Marvel’s Ultimate universe where that version of Captain Marvel developed it. Carol was his head of security, and his girlfriend, in that universe.

A Kree Blood Transfusion

We find out that when Carol was brought to Hala, she needed a blood transfusion to stay alive. I like this nod to GH-325 on Agents of SHIELD, but it does make me wonder why Carol was saved from going mad. Is it because that particular Kree on the series had something in his blood that made everyone end up with it driven to find the ancient city? Is it because Carol was already brainwashed into thinking she was Kree? It’s interesting that Kree blood often comes with messing with memories though.

A Kree Imperial Cruiser

Mar-Vell much have had some military connections when she left Hala and came to Earth if she had a cruiser. We’ve seen them before in the MCU commanded by Ronan’s people. The design here is basically the same, but again, it looks like she’s got more tech, likely because the scientific nature of her work. It does make me wonder if she ever ran into the other smaller ships stationed near Earth that were monitoring the planet for Inhuman activity. (Remember the ones left in orbit to destroy the inhuman abominations in Agents of SHIELD?)

The Tesseract

The Space Stone certainly gets a lot of mileage in the MCU. Hydra wanted it, SHIELD experimented with it, Loki stole it, and now, we found out what else SHIELD was doing with it besides Fury’s secret weapons making team. Lawson, though we see her as part of the air force, is a SHIELD scientist. Like I said, PEGASUS is a joint effort by a few groups. She’s using the Tesseract for space travel though, like it should be.

Quadjet

Nice touch that Carol and Maria use a quadjet to rescue the Skrulls. Why? Because just a decade later SHIELD is using the later model - a quinjet.

Carol Stopping The Warheads

This imagery, like a lot of what comes with Carol glowing and flying, is straight out of the comics. She actually flies into Earth’s atmosphere and slows a sentinel from crashing to Earth in one comic. It looks nearly exactly like this sequence, except, you know, there are other Avengers with her in the comics.

Sizzling Power Lines

We hear the crackle of electricity and see power moving along the lines when Carol brings Yon-Rogg to Earth. This looks to be a nod to how her power works in the comics. She doesn’t just magically produce photo blasts. She absorbs ambient energy from her surroundings to fuel herself. That’s why she doesn’t technically need to eat, or even why she doesn’t need to breathe in the vacuum of space. Her power converts energy around her to sources to sustain her.

Mother Flerken

This has to be a nod to the fact that MCU movies don’t drop F-bombs, though Samuel L. Jackson loves them.

Mar-Vell. Two Words.

Fury mistakenly calls Mar-Vell Marvel. Carol corrects him. That’s kind of how the Captain Marvel term came to be in an alternate universe in the comics though. No one could pronounce Mahr-Vell in the Ultimate universe, so people called him Captain Marvel.

“We found her, and we weren’t even looking.”

I know that this is a nod to Fury’s eventual gathering of the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, Black Widow, and Hawkeye together. But this is also a reminder that for decades, SHIELD was seeking out people with powers. As Agents of SHIELD showed their audience, some of those people were then locked up and exploited by Hydra agents working undercover. SHIELD still likely has a lot of super powered skeletons in its closet.

Mid Credit Scene

What a surprise. Captain Marvel will show up after the pager is activated in Avengers: Endgame. We’re all surprised, right? (Sarcasm, I know.)

Special Thanks

During the credits, there are a slew of comic creators listed in the special thanks section. Among them are heavyweights like Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Waid, Ralph Macchio, Gene Conway, Jack Kirby, and Chris Claremont. I honestly missed that section the first time and didn’t read them fast enough to catch more. But they aren’t directly responsible for Captain Marvel, but instead had a huge effect on Marvel comics as a whole with massive runs for different properties.

Post Credit Scene

Goose coughing up that tesseract was necessary for Fury to later use to attempt to develop weapons, just like Hydra, in a secret SHIELD program that Captain America won’t like in The Avengers.

A few side notes:

Coulson’s Gut

To be perfectly honest, I feel like Coulson’s part was originally just a generic rookie SHIELD agent in the script. I think when they got the chance to add Clark Gregg to the cast, a few things changed, like this exchange between Fury and Carol about going with your gut instead of following orders. That has always been Coulson’s thing. And, even though Fury is always yelling at people to follow orders, it’s actually how he operates too. It’s why he’s always set up ways for himself, and his proteges, to work around the system. I like that it was touched on here since it’s such a big part of Agents of SHIELD.

Coulson’s Kree Knowledge

Does this create a plot hole? Coulson specifically remarks to Fury at the end of the movie that he heard a Kree took out his eye. But when Lady Sif made her appearance on Agents of SHIELD, Coulson had no visible reaction to her telling him that Kree were one of the blue skinned aliens she knows of. Also, does Coulson even know they were (mostly) blue? After all, he might not since his only face to face with a “Kree” was Carol. It makes me wonder if he suspected the alien that provided GH-325 was Kree all along. Obviously, this is just the kind of thing that happens when universes expand, and it can all be explained away with SHIELD’s use of their memory machine on him, but it still makes me wonder.

Fury And The Women Around Him

I love the theme in the MCU of Fury surrounding himself with powerful women. We’ve seen that Maria Hill is his right hand over and over - even when she was working for Stark. We also saw that he and Natasha Romanoff were close. He trusted her to do the dirty work Steve Rogers wouldn’t. We also know he trusted Sharon Carter and Melinda May to report to him directly during their spy work. Now, Carol Danvers inspires the Avengers Initiative and he invites Maria to work with him after spending one mission with her. I want to meet Fury��s mom. Because she must have been one hell of a woman.

That’s it. Anything I missed? Feel free to tell me because there’s no way I caught every Easter egg.

#captain marvel #marvel comics #marvel easter eggs #agents of shield #iron man #easter eggs

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prcmctheus · 6 years

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beep beep y’all ur resident dumpster dweller kay here in action and ready 2 introduce u all to my Fave Boy misha who uhHHhh p much has rbf and a Thicc ukrainian accent. will this contain anything of substance other than immense rambling ?? whO KNOWS but we’ll go on this journey together but feel free to drop a like if u wanna plot and i’ll pop over to ur dm’s !!

potential triggers: death + mob activity

! ✰ ° — [ CHRIS PINE, CISMALE, HE/HIM ] mykhailo “misha” chernenko, aka agent prometheus is a thirty-five year old tactical agent that has been loyal to mercy twelve years. during that time they were injected with the gamma serum and earned regenerative healing they have a reputation of being the sagacious because they can be pragmatic & diligent. but let’s not forget they’re pretty acerbic & reticent. if you listen closely you can hear another one bites the dust by queen whenever they walk past.

okie to start off ya boy was brought into the world as михайло оландрович черненко ( aka mykhailo oleksandrovych chernenko ) but typically goes by the nickname of misha bc it’s easier and was born in kharkiv, ukraine ,,, he is a proud ukrainian and v much dislikes being deemed a russian ,, don’t do him dirty y’all . . it’s a struggle and one he will never forget n have u on his shit list ,, especially since his accent is still Thicc so any jokes will get u a side eye

his father oleksandr had strong nationalistic views , especially so when ukraine was still under soviet control and following the death of his first wife yulia ( they were visiting her family in moscow when she was caught in the crossfire of russian mob activity on her way home from the store and ultimately died from gunshot wounds ) he became heavily involved anti-russia groups back in ukraine

in 1983 when misha was born, he uHHhhHHhh wasn’t really wanted per say ?? like ,, his dad was hooking up with his mother kateryna and it was a surprise to them both that kateryna was pregnant ?? so oleksandr did the noble thing ( arguable bc he ain’t so noble ) and put a ring on her ,, mainly bc it was expected and kateryna gave him hell so u go kateryna

misha’s childhood wasn’t the best considering his parents argued more than they got along and kateryna really despised her husband from his life of crime ?? definitely didn’t agree with his ties to the ukrainian mob bc of the threat it brought to the family and especially the dirty money so she often put her sewing skills to use and made little of her own money ,, then wOP ,, four years down the line kateryna surprises oleksandr with the fact that she’s pregnant again but this time it ends up being a daughter that they name nadezhda but call nadia

it was an odd thing for misha bc for as harsh and distant as his father was to him, he had put him on this pedestal with a strong sense of idealism of what his father was like if he managed to do something to make him proud ,, despite not fully knowing in depth what his father did in the mob ( aka not good things like murder, drug trafficking and human trafficking ) so essentially that became misha’s goal in his v young life ,, he mimicked his father’s anti-russian views and showed interest in what he did for a living ,, rip 2 misha’s mom bc she nearly had a heart attack when she heard her son acting like everything she didn't want him to end up being

but with kateryna’s dismay came the affection from his father that misha had so desperately wanted and it became some weird take ur child to work day thing ,, this started when misha was around 6 years old and lasted up until he was 13 ( for reasons i’ll get into soon jndsjksd ) where oleksandr would often bring misha after school or even take him our during school ,, as some weird initiation thing of another generation of chernenko dedicating themselves to the cause of ukrainian independence

misha himself is an intelligent boy with a quick witted mind and ability to retain information and was quick to pick up on the russian language around him in kharkiv as well english ,, generally v good at learning languages and i just !!! get a lil emo thinking about the life misha could have had bc of his smarts if he didn’t get himself involved in this spy shit

his father finds it useful to start teaching misha how to properly fight bc #fambonding am i rite ,, also bc oleksandr is a shite dad who was gonna bring misha along to some attack they were planning near the russian border from tensions between the ukrainian mob n the russian mob that was starting to infiltrate in ,, just dudes being dudes n getting territorial

let’s pray 4 kateryna when she finds out bc it’s when misha is 13 and tags along with his father to this smackdown which ?? ukraine is independent at this point by 5 years so oleksandr is trash n still chilling with the mob and when shit hits the fan and long story short, oleksandr ( along with many others ) gets killed, misha ends up severely hurt and it’s not a good time ,, but things shift bc when misha comes to he’s in a hospital bed and o shIT ,, he’s chilling with the security service of ukraine which deals with counterintelligence activity and terrorism

chilling ain’t really the term but yA KNOW ,, turns out they’ve been keeping eyes on the mob movements and misha attracted the attention of ukrainian intelligence “offered” him a role as a spy with the promise of training and serving his country proudly ,, u know ,, offered is in quotes bc hoe didn’t really have a choice but it wasn’t a hard choice bc misha was eager to help out his homeland

he didn’t officially go out into the field until he was 17 bc of extensive training in combat and espionage to help defend the still young foundation of the ukrainian government especially since it was rocky from the poor economic conditions ,, and after proving both his worth and abilities in several missions, he was activated as a sleeper agent in the russian government to get a hold of information regarding russian intelligence ,, more importantly such impacting ukraine

ya boy excelled in his position, given it wasn’t the most exciting bc it involved a lot of blending in and upholding this russian persona ,, gone was mykhailo chernenko for those three years up until he was 23 since he went by the alias of konstantin vasiliev ,, and he did well !! as someone who excelled in linguistics, his was v fluent in the russian language with a believable accent to match ( one of his best qualities in his ability to take on accents easily and rn he’s fluent in french, german, italian and spanish outside of his ukrainian, russian, and english )

things went well for the three years acting as a secretary for a high ranking russian government official and uh,, u know it helped that misha was attractive and knew how to use it to his advantage and successfully infiltrated into classified information since his superior viewed misha as just a pretty face with minimal understanding of how politics worked ,, meanwhile he was the one who spilled shit during sex so who was the real weenie

due to unfortunate events, misha’s cover was blown and barely made it out of russia alive and it was around his 23rd/24th that mercy got into contact with him and for as much as misha loved his country, he figured for his own safety it would be best to leave the area since lowkey the russian government still had it out for him ,, so he joined the mercy division as a field agent and AGENT PROMETHEUS was born ,, a couple of years into it he was convicted into taking the gamma serum which gave him regenerative healing which helps out v much when he gets shot at or generally hurt

so yeah p much ya boy has been chilling at mercy as a field agent for eleven years and generally enjoying his time here given things can’t ever really get normal as a spy ,, but it was last year that bc of numerous influences, misha decided to accept the offer of joining the tactical agents and retire his days as a field agent.

personality wise ,, misha is v devoted to his job and does this hoe ever genuinely laugh or smile ?? who knows ,, i think there’s a rumor somewhere that he’s actually a robot. def gives into the slavic stereotype where ukrainian’s never smile ,, not to mention his father ingrained into him the ukrainian saying of Сміх без причини є ознакою тупості aka “laughter without a reason is a sign of stupidity” soooOOoo he’s just a bit stoic and has resting bitch face

doesn’t really realize he’s v blunt and forthright in his speak so he can come off as an asshole ( which 67% of the time he doesn’t mean ) ,, has the patience of a saint but if u push hard enough he’ll crack ,, a bit dry on the humor but can def be an asshole when he wants to. doesn’t trust a lot of ppl and it’s hard to earn his trust ,, word the only major ppl he’s trusted was a) his dad b) the security service of ukraine and c) now mercy so kudos on getting on his good side

has no contact whatsoever with his mother kateryna or his sister nadia ,, partially bc couldn’t keep up for security n safety reasons but also bc misha is p much dead to kateryna after following his father’s footsteps, getting involved in the whole mess of ukrainian / russian political n governmental affairs and also dropping his v tiny attempt of college before becoming a sleeper agent for ukraine ,, so ya boy is on his own so u can expect wALLS around him ,, bc u know ,, he don’t do emotional vulnerability or relationships

#mhq.intro #if all goes well and i am .. not dumb fjdnsj then this posts while im out to dinner #luv me and my goblin son

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cinlat · 6 years

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Fic Writer Tag Meme

Awww, I was going to do the exact same thing when I got home from work for the same reason, @chivalin. Thanks so much for the tag!

I’ll tag @salaciouscrumpet, @dingoat (I’m pretty sure that a lot of this could be translated for art if you want to give it a go. But, I know you’re an awesome writer too.) & @dimigex just because of our earlier conversation! :P

What is your total word count on AO3?

*digs out calculator* 561,415 words across 31 works and three series. The majority of which are SWtOR and centered around my OC Fynta Wolfe. However, I’ve dabbled a bit in FFXIV too, and started an alternate series where Aric Jorgan ends up with a proper Cathar mate (instead of my Mandalorian disaster) and is raising triplets on the Odessen base alongside Quinn and his four Sithy daughters. *evil grin*

How often do you write?

I try to write every day, it’s how I unwind (even if it involves pulling my hair out when plot befuddles me) Usually after we’ve finished eating and are watching TV. Or, after my kids go to bed because, let’s be honest, there is no way to properly concentrate on anything before then.

Do you have a routine for writing?

I flop my butt down on the couch and dig out my laptop. No less than five interruptions within the first half hour are acceptable. My husband must call me into the computer room where he’s playing a game at least once, usually when I’m on a roll. And, when the words start to blur, I squint at the clock and realize that I’m too old for such nonsense, and it’s past my bedtime.

Oh, and I must also have no fewer than eight tabs open to all manner of research things that probably have me on the NSA’s top watch list. (come on, you’ve all met Fynta.) And must absolutely send bits to Dimigex so that she can bask in my cleverness, too. I think that about sums up my routine.

What are your favourite kinks/tropes/pairing?

Kinks:

Pain, probably. I think it comes from the fact that I’ve been writing Fynta anywhere from three to five years (she had a previous incarnation in some random OW that I’ve never done anything with) and that’s her thing. The girl likes pain.

Tropes:

Enemies to lovers. I have an innate need to turn all that malice and distrust into something that can’t be broken by mortal beings. Hence the Mandalorian/Cathar pairing of Fynta/Aric. Usually, those people find that they are more alike than they want to believe, and there is something special in that realization.

Pairing:

Fynta/Jorgan: This really shouldn’t surprise anyone. Once they got past the “oh crap, my people kind of wiped yours out” thing, there’s actually quite a lot those two cultures have in common. Except for the fidelity part, that was fun to flesh out.

Theron/Zolah/Vector: Although honestly, Vector and anyone is good with me. Theron and an Imp Agent make sense, and there was no way that I could discount Vector. So, there you have them.

Haurchefant/Anyone: This is in the FFXIV realm. Right now, my WoL is kicking it with X’rhun Tia, because he’s adorable. But, before that, she was with everyone’s favorite bastard Elezen. But, I really do enjoy reading fics about him and everyone else’s characters.

Do you have a favourite fic of yours?

The Meet Me On The Battlefield series is my labor of love. It’s the one that I nudge everyone towards when they ask. But, I tend to like all of my works.

Your fic with the most kudos?

At the moment, it looks like Family Is More Than Blood is sitting at right under 100 kudos.

Anything you don’t like about your writing?

I’m a high action writer, not so great with angst, and terribile with fluff. Which is why I have a beta. (another shout out to Dimigex, who is amazing at all of those). Which is why I generally try to take prompts and challenges that push me in those directions. I also could use a little more ambiance in my writing, I think.

Now something you do like?

My action scenes are my favorite, and I think I’m pretty decent with snark and humor. I like to twist the words around to give as vivid an image as possible without stepping on anyone’s imagination. If you read it a little different than the way I intended, I’m cool with that, because it means I’m not forcing you to see a narrow picture, but enabling you to draw your own conclusions.

#cinlat rambles #fic writer meme

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strangcrdoctor · 6 years

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∞Last Marvel Meta Field Notes for the night is for Ant Man. This set is a lot more lighthearted than other recent entries but that’s because the other movies are so deep in Marvel mythos that they’re just. An investment. An investment I love, but an investment. Because AM is an origins movie, however, it’s more light-hearted and independent, and a hell of a lot of fun.

1. So obviously the building under construction during the meeting Hank had with SHIELD in 1989 is obviously the Triskelion (which Steve blew up in CA:TWS), but I like that mid-construction as it was in that period they showed the bays where eventually the helicarriers would eventually be housed. I’m a little curious as to why SHIELD built those bays so large thirty years before they had helicarriers planned, just. You know. As a question. 2. Scott Lang is every single one of us that has worked a customer service job and who is over-educated, over-qualified, or frankly just too done with that shit. 3. The Yellowjacket Presentation is in fact 1000 times worse than the Jericho Presentation in IM, and Cross Technology within Pym Tech is shameless about marketing to the rich and paranoid and zealous. The whole moralistic argument that Cross makes when selling the Yellowjacket armor is the kind of shit that rich white supremacists would eat up, which is precisely why he ends up with the clientele he does. However, I do find it interesting that AM included a direct tie-in Carson being a part of SHIELD in the 80s and then being the person that arranges for the business deal Cross gets with HYDRA. 4. Cross is literally “crossing” the boundary into godhood, or something possibly worse because it’s not that he fashions himself as a god so much as he completely disconnects from any sense of morality, law, or respect for life. To date he might be the most ostentatiously disgusting villain, but it’s because his brain is literally rotting. And I know that can be a prickly subject when talked about in the wrong light but Cross doesn’t just have a mental disorder - he has physically melted his brain-pan and his morality and concept of justice are fucked because of it, which feeds into why he’s so creepy but also why it’s arguably creepier that his nihilism attracts fascist supremacists. Like I even liked Stane better than this lord. 5. While I understand Scott’s ex’s complaints about visitation rights, there’s a complex legal process that has to be walked through before legal action can be taken (so her schlub cop fiancee is keyed to be a defensive moron), but since Scott is still technically the father they’re obligated to set up a court approved parenting plan before they can bar him completely. Like any attempt to totally bar him would have to be put before a court and no real court given a good prison record and attempting employment would keep Scott from seeing Cassie entirely. He’d have restricted hours, but they couldn’t legally out him even if based on financial reasons. Not that he could afford to sue over that, but still. 6. Even though Hank and Hope are still jagged people and won’t ever necessarily slot into one another’s lives perfectly, the portrayal of a difficult adult father/daughter relationship is refreshing for Marvel. It’s a complicated and touchy subject no matter who you are, but again Scott steps in as a sort of mediating factor in both of them understanding that their relationship can’t go on as it has and that something has to give. Scott isn’t the one who “fixes” them so much as Scott is the person who breaks the ice, and from there he lets them have their space to discuss their hardships which is a very real and very adult set of exchanges. Nicely done, Marvel. 7. I appreciate Hope loving kicking the shit out of Scott. I just. That’s it. It’s great when she’s proud of his progress too, but I like that we get to see a woman reveling in beating the tar out of a guy. 8. Just ever so slightly more on why Hope still gets to be angry at Hank about her mother, it’s impressive to me all the same that even while Hope points out why she has every reason to think the way her dad handled the situation wasn’t okay, Hope also identifies immediately the guilt that Hank was carrying all those years for killing his wife and being the reason her mother died. Hope is so much the big person in that talk because she could continue to rant and rave, but at some point adults let go. Adults live with not getting closure and handling it well or badly, and Hope has spent her whole life trying to process that trauma. By the age she is, she doesn’t need reconciliation to function, but when she gets it she appreciates it and makes a point of acknowledging the truth of the matter because she’s sorted a lot of her feelings on her own, though she hasn’t sorted all of them. 9. For a really interesting period for Hank to be involved with historically, late Soviet brinkmanship is a really poignant choice. The USSR was changing leaders like the British gentry change hats, and even though the Cold War was in decline the tension between countries was also relatively at an all time diplomatic high. With America tangled up in what came after the Vietnam and Korean wars, and headed headlong into the Gulf War, Russia saw its neighbors getting hemmed in from all sides at its weakest moment and did try to pose as many major problems for its enemies as it could because the communist regime was losing, and they couldn’t accept that. Regardless of whether or not Hank bought into the ideology, Hank’s connections to SHIELD - and by unknown association HYDRA - would have been an especially tense one in those years because of the intelligence war that was really seriously being waged during that time. Hank also would have seen it as the worst a country can do when they’re backed into a corner and afraid, and he didn’t want his technology to inspire that in any person or any country because he knew what the results would be. 10. Scott Lang is actually the WORST thief because he has the personality of a jilted millennial mixed with a golden retriever, and yet somehow is the BEST thief because he’s brilliant and versatile. 11. Cross literally selling out to Hydra is the least surprising thing because let’s face it fascists go for the lowest hanging fruit and Cross is it. 12. Also little man Hank Pym who will punch a bitch just because. He knows he’s not going to beat the tar out of them, but he’ll punch them if and when he wants to. 13. Kudos to Pym for being so paranoid that he carries a damn actual tank on his keychain “just for emergencies.” That’s actually a step above and a step ahead of Tony Stark in some ways. 14. Also it figures that Cross calls it the Yellowjacket because yellowj ackets are the asshole of the natural world and everyone knows it. 15. The visual aesthetic of the sub-atomic realm in AM is a predecessor and also thematically similar to the view of the Multiverse that Doctor Strange gets. Especially one level of the sub-atomic world exhibits mirror-dimension type qualities and even if they’re independent the visual similarity and parallelism is striking to note. 16. Scott and Paxton having a real shared-dad moment that’s not toxic masculinity? Fuck yes. It’s awkward yeah, but when both of them get over their own perceptions of how they are the better dad for Cassie, and especially when they see that both of them would die to make sure she’s okay, them getting to have that genuine moment of “you’re okay” and “thank you” is very cathartic for paternal masculinity in general because it circumvents the need for competition to be the only point of contact between them. 17. Cassie adopting the giant ant because she would. I hope she names him Ant-hony too without ever knowing that’s what Scott called 247. 18. Luis I think is the most hilarious Marvel side character to date and I honestly don’t know what the Ant Man movie would be without him. Scott is amazing at offsetting the seriousness of the plot aspects of the film but Luis is the keystone for where Scott’s humor and irony comes from, and where the actual absolutely necessary comedic aspect of Ant Man comes in and I appreciate him greatly.

That’s all for tonight guys. More to come later!∞

#''the doctor is out #''marvel meta field notes #''MMFN

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