💕 self-love time! talk about which ones of YOUR creations (edits, artworks, fanfics) you like the most then send to other creators to do the same 💕
thank you for asking @isabellehemlock !
because i could not think which one of my fanarts i might possibly like (the most/at all) i made a collage to have a look on all of them 😐
this was also a good moment to look back because!
i've been on tumblr for 40 days today (i counted), and,
for the next 2 months i'll be traveling and separated from my ipad. so i think the iwtv fanart will mostly be on break....
i might post some photos of notebook sketches though if someone'd like to see, or make a separate instagram for travel pictures who knows! i'll decide when on train 🚂
anyway if i have to pick, the fanart of mine that i like the most at the moment might actually be the earlier armand/daniel picture, even though i didn't like it so much when i had just finished it. the colors are okay 😌 it's the pink one in the middle of the top row.
now it’s been a week since the finale of *that* season here i am ready to share how it can all be fixed
armand being the caring considerate companion he is spent his relationship with louis making sure louis had been drinking blood laced with SSRIs and anti-psychotics
however, being the controlling manipulative person he can be he’s never told louis this
so when they break up louis is going cold turkey without realising it and after he meets lestat in nola he goes home and the withdrawal catches up with him and he ends up hallucinating a story where lestat becomes a rockstar, they go see claudia’s ghost, lestat is being abused by his mother, and louis gets beheaded by armand
when he gets past the withdrawal he’s like ‘hmn that was weird’, but remembers in his hallucination he was dating a fine as fuck lawyer he’d worked with before so he hits lemuel with a hey text who responds almost immediately.
armand, who has turned daniel and desperately is trying not to think about it, sees louis has quickly moved on with a lawyer of theirs so decides he’s going to move on to with their old doctor. him and fareed do weird biological experiments together and have even weirder biological experimental sex together.
louis tells lestat his weird hallucination and lestat is trying to show adequate concern for a mental health episode (he’s trying okay!) but is too busy being offended. why would he be in a lame band that don’t do good music?
daniel still publishes the book. this triggers armand to come and stalk him (he misses his baby) and there is eventually a confrontation. danny thinks there’s something more to it but can’t quite figure it out. the talamasca tell him they have files on him that might help and will give them to him if he records a documentary of lestat. he agrees. he gets the files. gets the memories back. he and armand have an angry tearful reunion.
eventually we get to the same point of daniel recording lestat’s tour however the band consists of larry (still played by noah reid), alex his nb sibling, TC who is a black lesbian and salamander who is a fat bisexual woman.
lestat’s lawyer is a black woman and his drug blood bag is the waspiest woman you’ve ever seen. we get to see TC fuck both of them.
gabrielle still comes but is a transmasc icon and them and lestat have a complicated relationship where the incestual element is treated as a complicated question. there is no grooming and nothing happens until they’re both adult vampires. is it different for vampires? how does consent work in this kind of paradigm? how did gabrielle’s complete disdain for motherhood and emotional neglect impact lestat and his desire for them now? as their maker and a more powerful vampire how does this change the power dynamic?
anyway we also get to see gabrielle fuck everyone on that tour bus apart from larry
daniel also fucks everyone on the bus except from TC and larry
this includes armand who has come along for the ride and he and lestat act like cats together will you find them happily cohabitating will you find them hissing who knows?
anyway this leads to the paris flashbacks being given from both of their POV which means we get to hear about all the sex they were having and the actual complicated emotional relationship
eventually the tension between them comes to a head and they start talking about 1940s Paris and about the trial. lestat actually grapples with his culpability.
I find this response to a question about audience backlash really interesting (derogatory). The TV industry is seeing countless cancellations; at times shows will be cancelled even if audience engagement is really high. It's not enough to have a dedicated fandom, you have to fully convince executives that your show is profitable. It sounds bizarre for a showrunner to include in a pitch that he believes their next season is going to cause 33% of their audience to "fucking hate it". With only 10% of the audience favouring it. How exactly is that profitable?
It's possible that Rolin is lying about this in retrospect to look smarter than he is - "I actually planned this". But let's take his word for it and believe he really did pitch S3 this way. AMC's higher ups and executives are majority rich, white, conservative Americans. In the early 2020s, they could be convinced that a queer black show was profitable when the culture was rife with performative activism / liberalism. In 2025, after the cultural pendulum had swung, executives were way less tolerant of minority-led shows (and it seems to be staying that way). It is believable to me that Rolin pitched the season as potentially controversial with a large part of the existing fanbase but assured that the season would target another demographic. To executives, it is more profitable to alienate a majority black and queer audience than it is to please that niche fanbase.
I can believe this because TVL does exactly that: it alienates their non-white, queer audience in favour of a white, non-queer one. It alienates their "less profitable" niche and seeks out a "more profitable" majority. Race commentary and intersectionality is swapped out for the brutalisation and "humbling" of black characters. This makes a racist white audience more comfortable. Queer romance is faded into the background in favour of Gabriella and Lestat's explicit scenes and wlw kisses for the male gaze. This makes a homophobic straight audience more comfortable. IWTV's more left-leaning political positioning is dropped in favour of a more centrist stance with conservative dog whistling (e.g. Elon Musk bobble head). This makes a more centrist / conservative audience more comfortable.
Rolin acts like TVL is so incredibly radical and risky when it is nothing but cowardly. This season will only be revisited in 10 years to be looked at for what it really is: cheap, conservative pandering, racist drivel.
so many creative choices in tvl make sense when you realize the goal of this season wasn't telling lestat's story or adapting tvl the book but using the premise of "adapting tvl" as the justification for a whitecentric rebrand and lowkey reboot of the whole show, as part of amc and rolin's effort to distance themselves from the "black queer show" image and black viewership of s1-s2 in order to pursue the "mainstream" (whiter, straighter) audience they always wanted. this is why most of the major arcs, especially the material given to jacob, delainey and assad, feel like retreads of the arcs they already had in s2, meant to cover plot beats from s1-s2 and overwrite how they were initially depicted in a way that's both more palatable for white viewers. in many ways tvl feels like 7 episodes of a "previously on..." sequence that flits through brief flashbacks and tells, not shows the audience essential information to get them caught up before the real story begins, and that's intentional- tvl isn't meant to be a story that stands on its own as much as a staging point to establish the new trajectory of the show, the new tone and narrative priorities, and invite the audience amc wants onboard and jettison the melanated s1-s2 audience amc thinks it no longer needs before the real story rolin wants to tell begins in s4.
the narrative seems not only spiteful and uncompassionate to its own established characters and audience but almost apologetic for having demanded that viewers hold empathy for black leads during s1-s2, for asking them to center black characters as protagonists and care about their interiority- the brutalization and humiliation of jacob and delainey's characters isn't just the nonblack writers engaging in a gratuitous fantasy of torturing black bodies and "humbling" black characters who've reached too far above their station, but also a way to restore the status quo that asserts the "proper" role of blackness is to be a site of inherent pain and mortification. racist viewers who rejected the show when jacob was cast in 2021 or at any point during s1-s2 bc the idea of getting invested in messy black leads put them off can now comfortably tune back in, assured that the show will never ask them to care about a black person more than a white person or think a black person's material suffering could matter more than a nonblack person's feelings and reputation ever again. the cruelty is the point, in many ways.
it's valid to criticize tvl for claiming to be an adaptation of the tvl book and failing at that on every level, from tone to sincerity to the fact that like. 80% of the book just wasn't adapted, but once you see through the marketing claims and realize the real purpose of this season was just amc's effort to do a soft reboot and relaunch their vampire show as a cynical whitecentric dramedy without drawing the ire of straight-up canceling iwtv, you realize so many of their choices aren't just writerly incompetence but a deliberate creative and network whitelash on multiple levels of production.
The way the 3.7 Armand and Louis plot, with Louis being punished for his failure to love someone 'adequately', was literally just 1.5's drop all over again (but worse). But rather than a message of "what the fuck I can't believe Louis is being subjected to repeated horrific violence by his romantic and sexual partners" the show's framing of it (including the interviews with the creative team) seems more likely to invite questioning of whether or not Lestat was wrong to drop him.
I've pulled some relevant passages from an amazing book which speak specifically to sexuality but also apply to a romantic context.
Refusing Compulsory Sexuality: A Black Asexual Lens on Our Sex-Obsessed Culture by Sherronda J Brown, p. 11
We see in Armand's speech the same fucking incel logic they gave Lestat: 'THEY ARE OWED LOVE. HOW DARE LOUIS WITHOLD IT' which becomes even more horrifying if you consider it through the obvious/pressing lens of race which THE WRITERS THEMSELVES invited. Not only is s1 set in a context where the racialized power dynamics are unavoidable (and Lestat presented as someone who'd rather pretend they don't exist), we have Armand, not once, but MULTIPLE TIMES inflicting horrific violence on Black characters that is specifically and notably violence that enslavers used against enslaved people--including cutting the tendons in their ankles and BRANDING--which he explicitly says he took PLEASURE in. (Much love to Armand fans who are understandably upset about their fave being portrayed as a KKK member).
Refusing Compulsory Sexuality, p. 12
In getting an apology from Louis -- which the narrative at best frames ambiguously and at worst, including in interviews with the creators, supports Armand's claim that it's something that he's owed (Hannah's 'Armand knew he'd been used in all sorts of ways by Louis') -- the show not only dehumanizes Louis and refuses his right to consent, but retroactively implies that perhaps Lestat, too, was 'owed' something.
while i’m yapping today. armand’s motivations this season hold no damn water when held up to the books or the previous seasons of this show. is he violent? yes! is he cruel? yes! is he an evil mastermind and machiavellian schemer always ten steps ahead while plotting vengeance? no! what!
armand is desperate. armand wants to be in a cult, whether it be two people (him and his companion) or huge. armand doesn’t want to lead a cult. armand wants companionship, total devotion, and to be wholly loved by those he falls in love with. armand is controlling and manipulative on a scale that does not extend to willing, enthusiastic cult leadership. he picks people he wants to love him, and if they don’t, he tries to make that happen by any means necessary. armand is impulsive and shortsighted, blinded by his ideals of devotion and worship, and terrified of abandonment
armand in season two reacted impulsively and in shame when he stuck by louis’ side after the trial. louis assumed armand saved him and armand was too afraid and insecure to correct him. armand tripped into the perfect excuse and ran with it for 70 years out of desperation. he gaslit louis for decades in a relationship they were both clearly miserable in because he’s the fucking poster child of the sunk cost fallacy. armand doesn’t let go of anything until he’s FORCED to
santiago was the major schemer in putting the play together and armand’s cowardice and insecurity compelled him to participate and direct it. armand was VERY much responsible for his actions there- he played a major role in orchestrating the lynching of louis and claudia, but he wasn’t the sole scheming manipulator of that plot. he didn’t trust louis enough to abandon the coven for him, made his choice when santiago organized a mutiny, and those actions were fueled by his insecurity and desperation
armand is dangerous when he’s afraid. armand will do anything to latch onto others and feel loved when he thinks he’s backed into a corner. he’s a monster who is desperate for love. not a machiavellian schemer. not a mastermind. vengeance and petty cruelty have never been the driving factors of armand’s worst behavior; his misguided understanding of love is always at the core of the worst things he does
in 2x05 he asks louis if louis is miserable inside the prison of empathy armand has built for him
that line understands armand SO well. armand thinks he’s acting out of love. armand thinks he’s constructed a safe harbor for him and louis. armand thinks if he loves louis in the right way, if he can manipulate louis into loving him back, that things simply have to work out, because if they don’t, armand will be alone and unmoored. armand has NO CLUE who he is without tying himself to someone else
armand genuinely thinks that he’s acting in louis’ best interest for all of season two. he’s decided that this is their happy ending and he is DESPERATE to maintain it. armand goes down with the ship because he will not fucking accept that it’s sinking. he tries to scoop water out of the hull with his bare hands no matter how hopeless the situation is, because when he’s in a corner, he blinds himself to reality
i was so incredibly impressed and moved by season two’s depiction of armand. by assad zaman’s clear love for armand and deep understanding of everything that makes armand tick. armand is a monster. he’s a pathetic, clinging monster who at his core is so insecure and so blinded by desperation that he convinces himself he has no other option than to cling on to whoever he thinks will keep him by their side
louis spends all of his time in paris insisting that the devolving status quo is maintainable, that there’s a balance to find between himself and the coven, that armand can just tell them to fuck off and everything will be okay. louis doesnt budge a fucking inch for armand in paris. and that makes sense for louis’ character! it’s an overcorrection driven by his experiences with lestat; he was burned so badly in new orleans that he puts his fucking foot down and decides that he’s never giving someone that type of in again. he will not be hurt like that again. he’s in control of the relationship this time, he’s the dominant partner, and he gives armand the ultimatum of choosing between him or the coven because joining the coven would NEVER be an option for louis
they were doomed from the start. fresh off of his travels with claudia and the assassination of lestat, louis never would’ve given armand any ground. he completely ignores and disregards armand’s insistence that what they have isn’t maintainable and that something needs to change; louis places all of the onus for that change on armand. and when armand is caught between his coven of centuries and a man he wants to love who has never budged an inch for him, he picks the coven. he goes with the safer option. because armand would never take the risk of abandoning miserable stability for a potentially happier scenario that requires him to leave his comfort zone
maitre in the bedroom, maitre when it’s convenient. armand needs control. armand pretends at submission and enjoys playing the role occasionally, but armand is a control FREAK. he couldn’t control louis. he couldn’t predict louis would actually stay with him or keep armand by his side because louis spent their entire relationship withholding. so armand picks the coven, and then, when he can’t pick the coven anymore, he takes the in and stays with louis
the armand of season three is not the armand of seasons one and two. yes, armand is cruel. yes, armand is a monster. but the nuances of why he does what he does have vanished by 3x07. it’s as if the writers saw the fanbase’s ecstatic response to 2x05 and the only lesson they took from it was that we like armand being evil and violent, and that armand being evil and violent in any capacity is true to the character without ever considering the reasons he’s driven to violence. what a fucking disappointment
that's it. I liked him. the only character growth lestat had was going from Baby Stutters to Teen Shit-Stirrer Egged on By Mommy Dearest
Shout out Gage Munroe, canadian king
no wait okay being perfectly fair I liked the episode "Toronto" (see, they know how to suggest that Lestat is telling a false version of a story while demonstrating to you that it isn't true, without resorting to the identical subtle framing device that Louis employed. they know. they choose not to, because this is the canon they like right now and they will contradict it as soon as they decide that they like something else). I thought we were on the upswing after this episode.
the one fucking proper flashback we got where Lestat was in the in-between after leaving his home for Paris and meeting Nicki again, where he is still farm-bred bullshit wolfkiller Lestat trying to impress starving artist Nicki and admitting he can't because he's not cultured enough.
I liked Sheila Atim (I CANNOT BELIEVE WE GOT HER FOR ONE FUCKING EPISODE JUST PLOPPED IN THE MIDDLE AND NOTHING ELSE)
I liked Joseph Potter (shame about his extremely deprecated role)
of course return of the kings Assad Zaman, Jacob Anderson, and Delainey Hayles (not their material or the back half of the season but how could I ask them to serve with such little to cook with; blink twice babes)
things I disliked:
everything else. other people have given super nuanced takes on the racism so I won't rehash it but the white writers got real comfortable not using racism or vampirism as a commentary on either, but just straight up using racism as a blunt instrument against their characters in the interest of signalling to the audience who is morally correct and who is deserving of punishment, and somehow that blunt instrument was only deployed against Louis and Claudia, although to be fair they're doing Insidious Shit to Assad Zaman without even the gossamer veil of pretending as if they care about him as an actor or Armand.
specifically the Regina thread. I wanted to give it more time to grow on me as a fucked up coping mechanism for Louis having directly interfaced with his survivior's guilt in Dubai for the first time in 77 years, but they treated it as metatextual ick, everyone in the situation was way too self-aware about how weird and pointless it was, and it went away seamlessly whenever it was more convenient to have Louis doing something else. also rich of them to keep bringing up Louis being a pimp as if his character has been set in stone and inescapable from the beginning and yet he has no trouble or conflict in telling Regina he's gay. So only the bad shit that isn't inconvenient to his relationship with Lestat persists? Being a pimp hangs over his head for eternity even though he hasn't been one for a hundred years and VERY SPECIFICALLY WITHIN HIS CHARACTERISATION HAS A DIFFERENT JOB NOW, but not his complicated feelings about his sexuality, not anything to do with Paul, Paul's Lestat's hallucination now, not Claudia's death seventy years ago, all of that can be shed but not the pimp thing. Fuck you guys.
Daniel. He's annoying now. He's got a huge ugly petty chip in his shoulder about nothing and he's ready to murder over like, Lestat fucking up an interview one time. Girl I don't even know why you fucking care this much. and the prolonged associated mockery of autism. Like has the world changed so much that these writers can straight up call someone behaving unusual "autistic" and pretend like that's what. what was he doing. positive affirmations? that's some reddit level shit.
Gabriella. And associated transphobia and, since they weren't interested in addressing anything about her gender dysphoria, just straight up misogyny. Thank god Lestat made sure to scream at her at the end so everyone knows she's a 2D (double d if you wanna go with the low hanging humour the season employs) villain with no motivations outside of death and fucking her son.
the fucking band. I don't fucking care about these people and the show never did more than give them the shallowest possible character archetypes (rival artist, recovering party guy, washed out party girl, horny band guy), so why should I? Why did they add the fourth guy and kill Larry? Why even bother putting TC in his Lescoma?
the music was bad and the constant fourth wall mockery of the music was worse. also what purpose did any of it serve? they got bored of rockstar Lestat they got bored of vampire revolution concert so it just seemed to be a lot of Sam Reid fanservice except it was embarrassing to watch. and what like. they started insisting there was what, a subliminal vampire message in there impossible to hear if you're mortal. was that all woven in to the bad fanfic songs about the people in his life? could I not hear it because I'm mortal? the sound of the vampire revolution is a song about how mad he is at armand?
and everything else. I'm not gunna keep listing shit because it's making me angry.
call me when any of the show runners are asked to actually and directly address what they have done here, instead of people just kind of grilling Jacob Anderson about whether or not he was uncomfortable which he can't say if he wants to.
the tvl writers really just said “fuck everybody” this season. they hate autistic people, they hate csa survivors, they hate brown people, they hate lesbians, they hate nonbinary people, they hate domestic abuse victims, they especially hate women, and most of all they hate black people.
This is a discussion of louis, Armands and Claudias dynamic (in regards to race) after that fuckass show ending.
It has become abundantly clear that not only have they stripped away any semblance of nuance or understanding of racial politics. In hindsight, it has also become clear that this was an issue ever since s.2.
S.1 understood that making Louis black would change the dynamics, politics etc. It took that in stride and incorporated it in every way. S.2 properly introduces Armand. Let it be known, this dynamic had fuel to last multiple seasons, if understood properly could've been so interesting. The politics of racism between POC characters is something less explored and if given the space and nuance could've been extremely interesting. The dilemma of Armand simultaneously being A POC CSA victim (from a white supremacist btw) while actively abusing Louis and using his power over him COULD HAVE BEEN INTERESTING.
But I dont think the writers have ever taken Armands race into account, in the same way that Louis' race is only being taken into account when they want to (frankly) demean, hurt and abuse him. Armand should by all means become even more complex an nuanced, how does his race play into his self victimisation. How does he submit and purposefully demean himself to white characters but use whatever semblance of power he has as an ancient vampire, and use it over Louis. His internalised racism could've been something interesting to explore.
But no, we get active racial abuse against Louis where he is the blandest most boring 1D villain to ever exist. Im not against Armand being evil and racist himself (POC characters are allowed to be complex and it is realistic to explore this), HOWEVER this is not that.
This, and in the same vein of making Claudia anti-black, and calling Louis a slave while talking about how she "respects Lestat and always like him more anyway" is not exploring the nuances of racism with POC community.
No, this is the writers team actively choosing to be racist through OTHER POC characters because their cowards. Canonically, Marius, Gabriella etc are racists, by definition white supremacists. Its interwoven to the canon but its suprisingly left out. Instead we get Armand lynching Louis, once again without a single considering to how his race, his story and his personality plays into this.
They won't make the white characters do it, they'll put in on Claudia and Armand, because they will exist as scape goats to say "oh but POC characters are allowed to be evil". Sure but when your just writing a story that brutalises Louis to a level to which is unheard of in the book, im not going to give you the grace of assuming your trying to write a story about the inter racism of POC people, especially from your all white writers room.
So I have not really been talking about this season because I just have not really been enjoying it. However with this last episode I think it’s really important to stress considering the intent of the writers.
In my mind we have gone so far past the point of thinking about why characters act a certain way in universe and instead need to start questioning why characters have been written they way they were.
All this to say, discord about the fictional aspects of the show are way less important right now then real considerations of the writing and authorial intent.
Daniel's always been a dick, but when in the context of breakable human vs two powerful vampires it has you rooting for him. Words are your weapon in that case. Especially when you're trying to get to a truth and the people who called you for an interview insist on lying, and feeding you a fantasy.
Having said that, while both Daniel and Louis had moments of being cruel to each other during that high stakes interview. They were also kind to each other, they saw something there. Daniel said what Louis said to him changed his life and he repeats it as if it's his own mantra. Louis chose to spare Daniel and then console him in the 70s.
They had that connection with their feet in the sandbox(lol) too. Idk I think Louis saw himself in him, and in that artistic hunger to the point of self destruction. Just tried to kill himself, burned and he finds it in him to hold Daniel and encourage him. Like you can't find that type of thing this season. And Daniel saw someone who was bullshitting himself but who he actually liked as a person. I think someone he also respected.
I'd say this is the same in regards to Armand and Daniel, Armand acting like Daniel is the enemy and yet defending him when Louis goes too far. I just didn't see that this season. I don't see that sort of softness or understanding between characters. And when it's between Loustat it's so unearned. I miss those little moments fr.
The writers sure forgot about a LOT of things this season in favor of their pookie Lestat and Gabi <3
Daniel's eyes change color, his canon color in the books is purple. He's been orange all season. I wouldn't have minded it if it was Devil's Minion related, heh, but they haven't really explained or explored anything regarding Daniel's state of mind. His mood is orange, I guess.
Daniel's documentary. That went fucking NOWHERE. Again, I wouldn't have minded if they explored it from a storytelling perspective--maybe keep it in black and white and as a way for us, the audience, to see the truth. Lestat and his band are having fun partying, etc, but Daniel's camera shows Lestat's loneliness and isolation. That would've been fucking interesting! No. Go on girl, give us nothing!
Dee. Where the fuck did she go? What was her purpose in the story? Was she supposed to represent a chaotic drug-addicted lifestyle that Lestat was addicted to? If so, why not show Lestat "rejecting" that lifestyle by sending her away? She literally just vanished entirely. I miss you, Dee.
Christine. Why did the writers replace her with lizard Gabi? Christine had more character to her than Gabi of all people. Was this change supposed to show that Gabi is slowly taking over Lestat's life? I guess that's not bad? But how and why would Gabi have ANY experience being a rockstar manager? There should have been build-up and scenes between the two women debating which concert venues Lestat should perform at. It would've been AWESOME to see Christine, strangely, be more like an aunt to him and genuinely want to see him succeed on his own terms. Versus Gabi who would definitely book Lestat for 50 concerts in a row with no break--as a way of showing that she doesn't see Lestat as anything but a tool to be used. It was just...handled weirdly.
Lestat/Armand WAS a big deal to both of them. The writers totally threw this couple to the curb in favor of *checks notebook* more Gabistat scenes. Yay. No, but genuinely, this couple was amazing. I'm a Devil's Minion and Loustat shipper but Lesmand was FANTASTIC. Here's Lestat, a guy who's dating a human and his vampire mommy. His relationships are FUCKED UP. Along comes Armand, a vampire, who accepts Lestat for who he is and is rather enthralled with him. Armand has had only Marius--horrible relationship--so he's finally learning more about his wants and desires through Lesmand. Lestat AND Armand build up their confidence in themselves with this mostly equal footing relationship. Armand has more vampiric power over him in the beginning but unfortunately, trauma-riddled Armand bargains his "usefulness" in the relationship by giving up that power and instructing Lestat on how to use it. That's the biggest issue with the dynamic, Lestat sees Armand as a tool to be used for himself and Armand just completely falls for Lestat at the expense of himself. Which is why this wasn't going to last but ALL OF THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN ON SCREEN. THEY NEEDED THIS RELATIONSHIP FOR EACH OTHER! nah teehee Lestat said armand was a desperate simp. Like, what the fuck? This shit was romantic and I'm sorry TVL writers you have no taste whatsoever.
You know, I would have preferred Gabi to not be written as a mustache twirling villain. Here's one thought a friend and I had--split Gabi into two characters. Have the family nanny abuse Lestat and Gabi (mom) be best friends with Lestat. But she's always jealous of Lestat's masculinity and as soon as Gabi becomes a vampire, Gabi dresses as masculine as possible. And have Gabi be a trans man in modern day. That way one can still explore the dynamics between Gabi but not "erase" the abuse Lestat experienced as a child. Bonus if Gabi changes his name to Gabriel. I feel like this would have satisfied Lestat's core traumas while giving Gabriel agency in the story without the bogged down incest abuse. Too bad there was mostly white writers in the room this season, this would never have happened. I doubt they'd hire a trans man writer either if they couldn't even be bothered to replace the black writers with a new one this season. Lol. Lol. Lol. FUCK. Why the ever living fuck did we get so much explicit incest het slop this season over actually fleshing Gabi out. Fucking hell.
Poor Claudia. She did NOT deserve this shit. So, her r*pe is completely made up and not in the book. Okay, are you going to explore how it affected her? Have her talk to the camera about it? Or show how limited her interactions are with men as a result? No? It's going to just be about Lestat's trauma and how much his life sucked too? Claudia lied about Lestat's r*pe threat just to get Louis on her side? She's a lying liar who lies? What the ever loving FUCK? Oh, she screams racist shit at Louis and pointedly ignores Lestat during her monologue. Okay. I just. Genuinely have no words. I don't understand the choice made this season regarding Claudia. I got downvoted to hell on Reddit for saying that Claudia's ghost should genuinely have been haunting Lestat every scene this season. She should have had plenty of episodes to bring up Lestat's mistakes and criticize them. Sadly, Lestat is NOT allowed to be criticized this season by anyone. He's done nothing wrong, apparently. I also want to be clear, i did look into the writer's room this season. There is ONE woman of color in the room this season. It is 90% men. Which explains a lot.
ive already talked about them overloading lestat with non-canon trauma in s3 and how theyve transferred a big narrative element from armand over to him
ive mentioned this goes against the way lesmand are set up as foils in the books because they contrast intensely and are basically diametrically opposite
i also said before i think the writers knew they amped up lestats abusiveness too much in s1 and thought well ppl sympathise with armand bc of the csa so we'll make grooming and abuse by a caregiver a big lestat thing so ppl ~understand
but they made lestat not want to talk. like armand doesnt want to talk. of course armand does eventually in the books for benji & sybelles sakes. but in the show? armand dissociates. he separates his past identities. he has traumatic amnesia. he made louis forget a traumatic episode (according to rolin) on his request. he thinks an inability to dream is reassuring, because its like the sleep of an infant: tabula rasa. book armand feeds by letting the suicidal walk out of their homes and into his waiting arms.
lestat talks. he loves to talk. he loves to regale you with accounts of himself as an affable gentleman devil. he freely lets the mask slip to show something darker underneath. he loves to perform. he loves to narrate. hes the brash, confident day to armands quiet, cynical, fatalistic night.
but not in the show. in the show hes lost all the warmth and openness of his book self and this is attributed to a bunch of random shit the authors introduced. they took the golden boy who was a natural on the stage fron day one and made him the stuttering ape from auvergne, and completely broke the way his character works
and thats why lesmand doesnt work anymore either. we have the bullishness of lestat without his romanticism to balance it. no sleeping beauty, no cinderella at the ball, just furtive blowjobs and degrading dismissiveness.
i should have said of course: its armands childhood mutism that they give to lestat in the form of his stutter. lestat, preternaturally garrulous, who loves to bare all, even what he did to david-
and armand, reticent, unwilling to tell his story, reluctant to acknowledge the things done to him
armand has been hollowed out in the show for the sake of cannibalising his story for elements that they have given to lestat instead
i think the answer to 'what is left of book armand in the show?' is one thing only: assads performance. he doesnt get the fun or moving or important narrative aspects of armand but he still projects armands character so strongly that we recognise him. hes still there even if given nothing to do but serve drinks or get homophobic insults thrown at him.
and if course this is why we feel so much delight when hes murderous. thats the one part of him they let us keep! bc hes useful to them as a villain! hooray for armand in his ruthless killer aspect, and rip to his tenderness, humour and domesticity.
