Yo, what really drives me nuts about people claiming that "tOmMy iS a rAcIsT" *insert spongebob meme* is that they all claim that they all new since 'his first appearance in Chimney Begins and like... I have to laugh.

Cause this is the biggest sign that they're detached from the show.

Tommy's first appearance in the show is not in Chimney Begins. It's in Hen Begins. Just because chronologically speaking Chimney begins happens before, it doesn't mean that it aired first.

And in Hen Begins you can see that Tommy was excited about Hen joining - before Gerrard opened his mouth and everyone, Tommy included, closes off. But even then, by the end of the episode it is heavily implied that Chimney, Tommy and Sal led the plethora of complaints to the Chief.

The whole entire fucking point of Tommy being closed off and sort of a jerk to Chimney in Chimney begins is to show how people grow and change and get better only if they get chance and get someone to be there as an example - which Chimney was for Tommy.

It is supposed to hit hard that Tommy would treat Chimney like that, because we already know he's better than that.

sorry to add on, but this makes me think of an article that I read about how Gen Z is on the precipice of becoming the lonely generation.

basically the adherence to boundaries (valid) and cutting people out of your life when they cross those boundaries (nuanced) means that they're not giving space for people to grow and change

obviously there are situations when people shouldn't be in your life, but the way certain BoBs react to Tommy shows me that they lack the ability to forgive people when those people show serious, sustained change

and I know that forgiveness isn't a given, but the refusal outright to forgive when someone's transgressed is a problem that we're going to see more of going forward in the future

when there's no space for a person to grow and change, what's the incentive for that person to make the effort?

tommy was an asshole in Chimney Begins. we know why he was an asshole, but that doesn't make him less of one. and Chimney was well within his rights to not accept Tommy's handshake, but he did, because Chimney understands that people can change and he gave Tommy a chance to actually be a good friend

which he has been

so I think that a lot of the "Tommy's racist" discourse isn't just because he's an obstacle to Eddie, but it's also because a lot of the BoBs genuinely don't understand that people can change

We need to go back to using sailing ships full time like immediately. Yes it would take longer to get places but the Aesthetic is unmatched

Like there is nothing sexier hthan this

Can’t wait for OP to get scurvy

Are you under the impression that the ships themselves are what caused scurvy

Once again. Do you think this is the fault of the ships themselves

Pictish drip was insane. Look at this choker:

I think it’s so interesting that we don’t know a whole lot about their culture and beliefs but all of the written reports of them are like “AHHHHH. We’re SCARED SHITLESS of these mysterious painted warriors.” and it wasn’t just the Romans who thought they were terrifying, Pictish pirates were a known problem on the eastern coast of Scotland in the Dark Ages, the Picts were constantly warring with the Britons of Alt Clud and early Irish missionaries write about how converting them was impossible and they kept kidnapping Christians. All we really know about them is that they were artists and extremely tenacious warriors. And they had the sickest drip. Very fascinating.

and hilariously that is not why it is called that.

It is the circle of the bears cause of ursa major and ursa minor, and the circle without bears cause ya'know opposite part of the sky.

We lucked right into that one....

#so what you’re saying is#the stars dictate whether bears do or do not exist in places

Astrology is real but only for predicting where bears will be

Bears do not travel to places they cannot see their gods

I've seen this post before but it only just occurred to me that there might be some sort of underlying reason that "places where bears are" and "places where people name stars after bears" overlap.

Reblogging for that last comment.

Some regions are just unbearable.

Daily fucking reminder that Luigi Mangione is innocent, completely and fully. He has been convicted of no crime. He has had no fair trial. He is a SUSPECT. Luigi Mangione is entirely innocent and everyone needs to stop parroting this insidious propaganda that he “committed” the crime he is only SUSPECTED of. He is not a murderer. He is not a criminal. He is an innocent man.

Put this out about Luigi Mangione.

In my first year university course there was a class I remember as being mandatory (at least for English majors) about fallacies and biases in writing. And this prof was all about reading the whole article before you formed your argument. That was his whole thing. You know measure twice cut once he was read twice respond once. He stressed this so much that on our final exam (which was two long form essay questions and a few short answer questions) that I decided to read the WHOLE exam booklet before I grabbed my pen.

Turns out that is what he wanted. The final page, the final question, informed the student that if they wrote 1. Their name, 2. Their student number 3. Their favourite fallacy, and wait for 30 minutes so they don't arouse suspicion, you will literally be given 100 percent for the exam WORTH 40 PERCENT OF YOUR GRADE.

I think about it to this day. The prof literally saw the "reading comprehension on this site is piss poor" and said I can fix them

I feel like I need to stress. This was not done out of the goodness of his heart. This man thrives in chaos. About 4 seconds after me and the maybe 12 other students who read through packed up our stuff and left, the rest of the class discovered his little joke. First they cried out, but then they tried to argue with him. The man that had, at that point, spent two semesters teaching them about flawed arguments.

He was in heaven

Okay my previous bucktommy poll is giving me some interesting feedback so I decided to make another one for a related topic

It's crazy that we have an interesting queer storyline between characters who are canonically and explicitely engaging in being their queer selves with each other multiple times on our screen, and yet outside the show it feels like I'm shipping the rare pair who was in the same room once 5 seasons ago that would be kind of weird to talk about to the creators and cast.

Hey, let's talk about that champagne for one whole second.

And how Tommy 100% did not have a shift later.

Because if Tommy really had a shift later, I don't think he would drink.

This man denied the beer in Buck's loft, because he had a shift.

This man drank orange juice at a bachelor party, because he was on standby.

And sure, it probably would've worn off if he had a later shift...

But I fully believe he didn't, and that's just been the go-to excuse that he uses whenever he needs to get out. Maybe it has been for years.

There's no specifics, no 'crosstown traffic,' nothing. Just him quickly dropping the proverbial smoke pellet and disappearing once again.

So, yeah I fully think Tommy would've stayed, that he had plans to stay, didn't have a shift and would've made some mean mimosas with that champagne.

He just cannot handle confrontation.

Buddie journos trying very hard to make interviews part of the show's narrative AGAIN will never not be ridiculous (see: the exit interview).

If you ever doubt and feel things are doomed based on interviews, remember interviews are NOT part of the show. They're not part of the narrative. Not a single screenwriter is writing a show thinking a part of the narrative will be revealed in interviews.

At the end of 811, Buck thought he should call Tommy to clear things up. Will Tommy be back? We don't know. Will they get together again? We don't know. Is this the end for bucktommy? Not as of 811. You don't end a romance storyline with a question, not in a show like 911 and again, we don't know what will happen. People watch the episode, turn their TV off then watch the next episode without spending hours online reading about the show and debating on Twitter. Know the target audience of the show and it's NOT us, who write meta, search for bts and analyze every single interview. The fandom of this show is a minority.

BTS and interviews DON'T COUNT. They are NEVER part of the way people are supposed to understand the story. Could they clarify things or reveal some details? Sure! But no one is expected to be online and look for interviews and bts to understand what's going on. We're talking about 911, not Twin Peaks or Dark.

What I'm Good For

This is a mess, but it's kinda supposed to be. It's the headspace Tommy is in right now. That's my excuse, I'm sticking to it. Enjoy!

You’re okay.

You’re okay, you’re okay, you’re okay.

He repeated it like a mantra in his head as he waited at the corner for his Uber to arrive.

There was a part of his brain laughing; taunting him for believing something was still there. That they could fix what had been broken. Maybe, just maybe, Evan- no, Buck- would be willing to try again. Would want to try again.

It seemed so stupid now. Tommy had been so excited that morning, waking up with Buck pressed against his back. He could feel Buck’s breath on his neck, little puffs, giving him goosebumps.

When he finally rolled out of bed, he made sure to be quiet. They’d had a long and eventful night, and he wanted Buck to get all the rest he needed.

Buck is not pining for Eddie. He even says so to his most trusted confidant, the one person he does not lie to about his own feelings.

He is not pining for Eddie. He is pining for Tommy. He was even baking during the conversation, which is an established shorthand for him thinking about Tommy.

I'm not interested in alternative takes on this scene. This is popcorn TV not prestige drama.

Let’s look at this from Tommy’s perspective.

He regrets the breakup. He admits to wanting to reach out, and even driving past the loft. Buck doesn’t say he missed him too, but he does invite him home. They reconnect (passionately) and Tommy must wake up feeling hopeful. He goes grocery shopping, cooks breakfast, buy champagne. Maybe they’ll celebrate, or at least have mimosas.

Buck wakes up, and the first thing he says is: “I thought you left.” Ouch. Shortly followed by: “Last night doesn’t change anything.” Rough start.

But Tommy’s been missing him, so he makes the leap. Asks Buck out again. Buck says “You want to try again?” Doesn’t say if that’s what he wants too. Instead, he says “You’re not scared any more?” So Tommy reveals an insecurity, couched in a joke, like always. He’s jealous of the family Buck has, and he’s worried about his place in it. Eddie and Buck are so close, and Buck is obviously missing him, holding onto whatever part he can. Tommy’s threatened by the “unattainable straight friend”, and yeah maybe that’s shitty, but fears aren’t always rational.

Buck calls him on it. Pushes. Tommy backtracks. Buck gets mad. Says: “I don’t have to sleep with everyone I have feelings for, and I don’t have feelings for everyone I sleep with.”

The audience has been watching Buck spiral for months. We’ve seen the baking, the obsessive phone checking, the constant name-dropping. In a few scenes, we’ll see Buck confirm to Maddie that he is not in love with Eddie, that he misses him, but doesn’t want him that way.

Tommy doesn’t see any of that.

Of course he ran.

Same people screaming media literacy also don’t understand that sometimes a line is said for the audience and not because it applies perfectly to the situation lol.

No one in the show wants buck to be with eddie.

“Everyone” is the audience. Sometimes characters have to speak to them.