quillbones

like a sick flower emerging from a pile of ash

[quillbones]

i think a key reason why i love good omen's reset ending despite hating all others with this trope (im looking at you teen beach movie 2) is because their love fundamentally doesn't stem from the story's setting.

in most narratives, we feel that the characters love and belong to each other because of the experiences they have gone through together. they have shared moments and memories that brought them closer in the first place, without which they would just be two random characters who wouldn't even fall in love if not for the author's magic pen.

our crowley and aziraphale are different. they found each other because they are the way they are. they didn't come together because of any one single intentional setting. they attract each other simply from being the way they are, their mannerisms, thoughts, and beliefs.

i argue they fell in love instantly; the romance only built up from there.

and yes, they found and stuck with each other for over 6,000 years, spending time and sharing experiences, deepening and lending meaning to that irreplaceable bond they already have.

but take those memories away, and we're still left with crowley and aziraphale in their original, pure, simple form. the form that got them both attracted in the first place.

even without wings and sunglasses and colour coded outfits, without the 6,000 years of pining and yearning and hiding from heaven and hell, they are still them.

the soft, nervous, grinning aziraphale who loves books, and the kind, awkward crowley who fascinates with the universe. the way they talk, smile, move, laugh.

they are still them.

and they had their happy ending. and i am happy too.

[smitten-like-anything]

So much bothers me about this finale, most notably how everyone is hating on Aziraphale, and if no one else comes to his defense I may yet have to.

But the most disturbing thing to me at the end is that Aziraphale once again puts on a mask of bravery. This momentous decision isn’t what he wants or truly believes is the right thing to do.

He conceals his disappointment with Crowley’s answer to what he really wants and just goes along with Crowley’s decision - out of guilt (over what exactly l’m not sure, see the first sentence above), disappointment, or because Crowley has been right before? Who knows.

My point is, our canonically intelligent angel who has always found subtle and creative ways to defy the higher powers follows Crowley into oblivion on a moment’s whim and against his own will and beliefs.

This was such a mess.

[quillbones]

The way I see it, Aziraphale had always championed for the good of the universe, and he chose heaven over Crowley believing that was the way they could be together. Crowley proclaimed his love, and it suffered.

This time, Crowley chooses the universe over being with Aziraphale, because he believes that in having free will, in not being characters in Her book, in a world where Aziraphale doesn't have to choose sides, is where they can be together. He chooses it because that is a world that Aziraphale wanted.

Aziraphale might have changed his mind since the kiss, but recognising Crowley's wishes and that doing the good above their own desires was what he has always wanted is what pushed him to say yes.

He didn't say yes against what he wanted. He wanted to have it all, Crowley and a good universe. But there can only be one. So he chose it together with Crowley.

[siaillustrations]

“If I can’t remember, am I still me?”

In philosophy, this is the problem of personal identity. Do you need your memory to be ‘you’? Or do you?

If a person loses all their memories but retains their inclinations, their way of loving, their way of making choices… are they still the same person?

All things considered, I want to believe so.

Time after time.

[comingupwithjoshdun]

What if I said Aziraphale kissing his fingers and pressing them to Crowley’s lips was more romantic than an actual kiss would’ve been

[quillbones]

look at Crowley's face and tell me he didn't absolutely melt at that gesture. it was a pure act of affection, and they know it, and so should we

[kissingkk]

I supremely enjoyed the good omens finale, but I’m seeing a lot of people say they didn’t?

And I kind of get it but also I feel like the whole point of the ending they did was giving them what they, specifically Crowley always wanted for them.

A chance to live life to the fullest without anyone tugging the strings or threatening them with heavens wrath or hellfire. Just the chance for people to be people and love each other.

And then they got the chance to do just that!

Things are different and they are changed and going back to the way things were wouldn’t make anyone happier.

At the end of the day they found each other and they loved each other. That’s all I really wanted from the show, and even though it’s different it definitely wasn’t bad.

[inafever]

The fact that some people might look down on this simple human life makes me a bit sad. As if it's not enough. As if it's not something magical and fantastic already. As if Aziraphale and Crowley didn't fight for it for 6000 thousand years! To find each other despite all the odds. To live together, explore the world together, die together. To choose each other every time. That seems to be the whole point doesn't? Freedom to live and love. Even if it's a small life.

[quillbones]

yes!! to even be able to be together was what truly mattered!

[actual-changeling]

it's actually really important that aziraphale talked about who crowley was as an angel, it's not insulting, it doesn't reduce him to his past. it's not in any way contrary to their relationship.

for the very first time, aziraphale fully understands that there is no fundamental difference between angels and demons, that those who fell aren't evil, that they didn't fail at being good.

that there's nothing to fix.

the entire time we've known them, aziraphale has been stuck in his black and white thinking, terrified of being cast out, of no longer being on the "right" side. crowley on the other hand always knew sides were arbitrary, there's no innate quality that makes someone an angel or a demon, it's not even their choices. they're characters in her book, they cannot escape the ink on the pages.

acknowledging that crowley was the best of them means accepting that crowley is perfect the way he is. it means that he loves him for his past and his present, that he understands how he views the world now. he is finally seeing the universe through crowley's eyes without hesitation, he's not turning away like he has quite literally done so many times before.

an artist, a scientist, a cosmic engineer—none of those are contradictory, they're one and the same. saying crowley was the best of the angels doesn't negate him being perfect as a demon or "private individual". he's all of those and more.

for millennia, aziraphale struggled to balance two opposing views of crowley: the starmaker and the demon.

all demons are evil, they have to be for angels to be good, but the crowley he knows isn't evil. so either his perception of crowley is wrong (impossible, it can't be, it can't be) or the celestial dichotomy is meaningless (it can't be, it has to matter, he cannot question god). his behaviour was inconsistent, dependent on circumstances, both beliefs true and false at the same time.

he just wanted to do the right thing but didn't know how. god lays it out for him, though at that point it's just the final tiny nudge, most of the work was already done. listing his sins which an angel should not have, and yet there he is, the second best angel she ever had. aziraphale can hold both beliefs in his mind now without struggling, without fear, without caution.

finally, he knows how to do the right thing, how to love crowley without feeling like it means losing himself.

it's good, it's honest, it's the truth. real shades of grey.

[quillbones]

Good Omens Season 3 spoiler alert!

----------

oh my goodness it was so perfect. they could only deliver one episode but they did it absolutely perfectly.

the call backs were so insane. master of disguise? bebop? OUR bentley? the nightingale singing? on OUR SIDE???

they ended on OUR side? !!

the relationship arc my ineffable husbands had in this one finale was incredibly satisfying.

just look at the way crowley was in his alley with his dying plant and without his bentley, and then ending with everything he had ever truly wanted. the universe as it is, and aziraphale.

oh, how he yearned for aziraphale even after believing he left him for heaven, taking care of his bookshop, because he can't lose the bookshop too.

and my sweetheart aziraphale, all he wished was to fix things right, so that there could finally be a proper Us.

but there is no right way, there never is nor will be. if everything is ineffable, then there is nothing that can be changed, no good nor evil wins.

and in the end, when everything's gone, they could finally stand on their own side. no good nor bad, just the two of them, on the human side. but even then, as angel and former angel, they knew what truly should matter, above and regardless of themselves and what they selfishly want.

THAT FINGER KISS aziraphale gave. my heart. LOOK AT CROWLEY'S FACE i was having trouble breathing.

incredibly funny to have armageddon be brought about by a tired, overworked, and underappreciated female who's had enough of it, and surprising how absurdly few actors were actually in this special.

the story started with angel crowley creating a nebula of his own before his fall, and ended by finally recognising him as, not crowley the demon, but the best angel there's ever been with the biggest heart for the universe.

absolutely in love with the epilogue, where everyone was just being themselves with no sides to choose, just free will and their heart's desire.

those who are meant to be, will be.

probably lost a lot of nuance because im not familiar with the religious source material, but it truly is a really well written narrative, one of the best love stories ive come across.

still have no idea how i got so deeply attached to two old fellas falling in love, praise the incredible acting and chemistry from david tennant and michael sheen.

oh im gonna miss this duo so much (not like they aren't already married to each other in real life).

good omens, you were such a treat.

[batsandboba]

“scientists don’t want you know” is a phrase that always cracks me up because if you actually meet a scientist they will be shaking and crying like an overstimulated chihuahua with the need to let you know

[oneefin]

number theory* diagram

[michaelrotonal]

these relationships are always increasing numbers as well. so obviously we need six eleven to mean somethimg

[ovenroastedtwerkey]

imagine if that's the date it finally happens

[areseebee]

do you ever think about how important it is that james is standing right there when michelle tells erin that she’d side with james in the event of a james and erin breakup? she’s looking at erin but he’s there to hear her say so openly that she would choose him over her best friend who is so much like a sister to her that it's practically "incest" to see her kiss james.

and do you ever think about how james chooses michelle right back when her and erin are fighting about the good friday agreement?

james calls it “the cousin thing” - something that probably feels like a yoke of obligation rather than a choice half the time - but they really do give each other a lifeline when there’s no one else to chase them down and tell them to stay, or when their friends are fractured and they don’t have anyone else. they choose each other. i think about that a lot.

[jambling]

Saw project hail mary with a friend who hasn't read the book. Turned to them as the credits rolled and said "they didn't talk about the meburgers :(" to which he said "the WHAT"

[lethargicdolphin]

Something that stood out to me about project hail mary is there's no gratuitous shirtless scene.

When Grace wrote 'always muscles??' on his who am I board I sort of braced for a montage to include him working out or a scene in the med bay with his suit ripped off because that's what we've been taught to expect in any a-list star big budget film. But no, Grace is in an unflattering hospital gown instead, we hardly even see his bare arms let alone his chest! He's always covered up in comfortable clothing and there was clearly no expectation for ryan gosling to be straining against too tight tshirts or anything like that.

It was very refreshing that they let the nerdy scientist be just that rather than a secret bodybuilder too.

[quillbones]

Fun fact! They probably had this line in the movie because Grace made a comment about his beach-bod buff after waking up from the coma!

The movie seriously included so many easter eggs for book fans and not to mention, filled up plot points that weren't in the book! It's really good as a complementary film to the book and vice versa, and I don't think they're meant to be carbon copies at all.

[theplatinthehat]

you should go see project hail mary

i know i'm just a girl yelling into the void, but i am telling you - you should go and see project hail mary

i can guarantee there will be something in there you like

are you a sci-fi fan? oh boy, there is so much science and fiction crammed into this movie

do you want to experience a fulfilling narrative? you will love this story, so, so much and you'll be dissecting all the little details you noticed over dinner

want to watch some captivating performances? ryan gosling is obviously the stand out star, but there are many other wonderful characters in this movie you will fall in love with

enjoy looking at pretty things? this film is so pretty you will find yourself gasping out loud in the theatre. the practical effects and cinematography teams pulled out ALL the stops

lover of music? the soundtrack slaps

easily pack bond to inanimate objects? james ortiz's performance will have you feeling things about a rock

an exhausted writer? this film will reignite your creativity, and may help you see things in a whole new light

need a laugh and reminder of the good in humanity? project hail mary delivers this in spades

for me, this film has lifted my spirits from a very stagnant slump and has got me excited to make things for myself again

i cannot express it enough - this film is brilliant. i hadn't planned on going to see it but i am so, so thankful that i did

go see project hail mary (statement)

[gay-mooshrooms]

Very high up on the list of cutest things I’ve ever seen in my life

[jedthewolfdog]

the more i learn about the ties between stress and nervous system disregulation and "mental illness" and physical health issues and what things outside talk therapy are therapeutic the more im like. damn many early cultures & indigenous societies had this shit figured out and the modern world is absolutely one big wellbeing shredder

to really boil it down to essentials like ...

childhood trauma is overwhelmingly common

childhood trauma creates long term stress which leads to nervous system disregulation [same source]

nervous system disregulation leads to inflammation in the brain

inflammation in the brain leads to "mental illnesses" like schizophrenia, major depression, and ptsd

these things contribute to stress, ensuring the stress stays chronic as well as the nervous system disregulation, which leads to physical illness and premature death

and then you look at like ...

spending time in green spaces like forests and blue spaces like oceans and rivers are both therapeutic

singing (especially group singing) boosts your immune system, mood, and regulates your nervous system

exercise regulates your nervous system and alleviates "mental illness" symptoms

playing is therapeutic and integrates your emotions and identity even in the face of trauma

and its like. oh okay. as modern cultures we barely have time for and are discouraged from participating in all the things we evolved to thrive with while constantly heaping on the amount of stress we can possibly fit in our day to day lives

and its like well no wonder people love concerts and karaoke and national parks and sports and going to the beach and playing games. these things Literally make us healthier

but also we need to make these things more regular parts of our lives if we're gonna have the endurance to fight rising global capitalism, fascism, and genocide

so my tips for Surviving All This Shit:

go to the park or be around a body of water at least once a week. schedule a time & make it part of your routine

exercise for 20-30 minutes most days, whether its walking around your neighborhood, playing a sport, lifting weights while you watch tv, swimming, etc

sing with your friends. go to local concerts. sing to your pets. sing at religious services. join a choir

play a game at least once a week. obv my recommendation is ttrpgs (anything but d&d 5e, i beg), but this also includes any video game that's not online competitive games against strangers. playing video games for 30 minutes a day but not over 3 hours a day is literally healthy for you

stop looking at traumatic news if youre not going to do anything about it. if you read a news article and then go volunteer, get involved in a community, donate money, or engage in activism, that's awesome!! keep it up. if you read the news regularly and it makes you upset and scared and depressed and then youre too overwhelmed to do anything about it Please Stop For Real you're both not helping the situation and also actively literally killing yourself. find one topic to engage with, find a way to make a difference for that topic, and delete the news app from your phone im being so real right now

read nonfiction by indigenous authors! this is just a general tip but also like. open your mind to other ways of society operating. it was not always like this and does not have to stay this way. if you see a recommendation post on here seriously look at the recs and try to get one from your library. there's a rec list of indigenous nonfiction here and another rec list here for some options that could be good to start with (both very north america focused). you can also search "indigenous nonfiction" in the tumblr search to see what others are reading. i'm currently making my way through braiding sweetgrass and indigenous economics is next on my list

like. we can and will survive this but it's going to be a much harder and longer fight if we're all riddled with so much stress that our bodies and minds break apart. go look at a tree 👍 play a game 👍 sing with your friends 👍 it could literally change your life & the world

[butts-bouncing-on-the-beltway]

"Just because I'm right, doesn't mean I'm being helpful" is a vastly underrated thought process that I strongly encourage others to get comfortable with