Latest Posts by xenapuff - Page 4

Thoughts on Sleepy Hollow’s “Dawn’s Early Light” episode

If Sleepy Hollow is going to connect Danny’s emotional manipulation to covert emotional abuse then I will say season 3 of Sleepy Hollow transcends mere entertainment. At first glance, Danny’s character seems like a nice guy, but his comments and behaviors throughout the session belie a sense of entitlement to Abbie’s affections and attention that goes beyond him just being her boss. He appears to be the model of a “nice guy;” that is, the guys who like to think they are nice but who actually don’t respect their partner’s independent interests. Abbie is one of my absolutely favorite heroines ever written. To show that even a “tough person” like Abbie can get caught up with one of these “nice guys” would be such an amazing statement about the reality of emotionally abusive relationships.

Danny has literally done nothing but try to control Abbie through swinging from charming, flirty, nice-guy behavior to guilt trips and yelling at her since she got back from the catacombs. Even before she disappeared, his behavior toward her in “This Red Lady from Caribee” showed his true feelings toward her as a person who should exist at the mercy of his whims loud and clear. Recall, the wasp sting only revealed the person’s deepest fears; it did not create those fears. When Daniel Reynolds says, “you just can’t see what you do to people,” he’s actually blaming Abbie for his not being able to get over her emotionally. Even prior to that in the car, he accuses her of manipulating him likely due to his being threatened by her having some emotional pull on him.

The Hidden One is the clear, stereotypical abuser: narcissistic and completely unapologetic. He resorts to physical abuse the second his significant other withholds information from him. He even revels in his ability to punish her physically. This is the person who would brag to his friends about “putting her in her place.” If Pandora is killed at the end of the session due to her leaving him, it is a direct mirror to the fact that many women who leave their violent partners are in the most danger after they leave. That is when most victims of abuse are killed.

Daniel Reynolds is a much more insidious abuser. He’s the man who thinks he would never abuse his romantic partner. His abuse is completely unintentional, subconscious. That is why the victim would likely take a much longer time to recognize the abuse. His emotional manipulation is firmly grounded in his internal beliefs of superiority over his partner and his entitlement to be treated as such. Many people have mentioned how he is keeping secrets from Abbie but is constantly snapping at her and making her feel guilty for keeping secrets from him. That, my friends, is not just a red flag; it is a glaring “exit” sign. Anyone who feels entitled to their own secrets while belittling someone else for theirs is not someone to partner with on a professional level, much less a personal one! The sad fact is, it’s working. Abbie thinks all the strain between Danny and her is her fault. Abbie tried to tell him she needed time after coming back and asked him to be patient with her. That is what he’s now using as ammo to convince her she’s being unreasonable toward him. How many times has he said, “I’ve been more than patient” to her? (And what does that phrase even mean? How can a person be more than patient? You either are patient and respectful or you’re not.) That’s the magic of this type of abuse. It saps the victim of a sense of agency and leads them to doubt their own emotions and actions. This is the same objective as the more stereotypical abuse profile of The Hidden One, but most people outside of the relationship would only see the attractive, charming Danny who genuinely insists he’s only looking after Abbie’s best interest—that he (and likely only he in his mind) truly loves Abbie. Basically, Danny is Abbie’s Katrina. All of his actions have come from a place of selfishness—including kissing her!

Crane, on the other hand, never pushed Abbie or insisted Abbie be anything to him after her return from the catacombs. He respected her wishes every time she said she needed to do something even when he was disappointed—like after he slaved over that lovely meal she rejected. He never put his disappointment on her like it was something she needed to fix. He doesn’t blame or guilt-trip. He is there when she needs him but also respects her emotional boundaries. He helps her the second she lets him know what she needs from him. He is the model of a person so secure in himself that he would never feel threatened by Abbie. He revels in how capable she is. He has shown himself to be the very example of the “Love passage” from 1 Corinthians, which I post here because I think it is one of the greatest definitions of love, not out of an interest in pushing religion onto anyone in anyway:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Crane won’t confess his feelings toward Abbie until she has worked through her feelings for Danny not because he’s cowardly. Far from it! He would never want his emotions to either cause Abbie strife, internal conflict, or to feel pressure from him. He would never want to inadvertently coerce her into anything. This is made abundantly clear when he seriously would go along with her desire to not return to the catacombs even if it means the world is destroyed! Crane would rather die at Abbie’s side than cause her additional pain.

Along the lines of Crane’s beautiful speech on art, art doesn’t only entertain; it inspires us and helps us to understand what is the best humanity has to offer. If this is what the creators at Sleepy Hollow are getting at with the revelations in seasons 3 and the Abbie and Danny dynamic, then seriously, this will go down as one of the greatest works of art in my mind.

This should have been the season when Sleepy Hollow went over the top with fan service and absolutely bending the fuck over backwards to show how much they loved the fans for sticking with them through that disastrous season 2 even if it still ended on a more serious note.

Just goes to show they didn’t really get what happened wrong with the show and were too arrogant to course-correct.

their lips can collide with my ass i am having none of it

The problem is that characters can grow and change over time. Except on this show. Because the writers are bad but think they’re so clever. The best friends thing could have been done. Crane could have had a powerful and capable wife who had powers that added to their struggle as Witnesses. Abbie could have had Danny as her guy on the inside of law enforcement. Or Frank Irving could still be with us. They just don’t see it. And they think it’s more fun to play these games. I wish I had such a big platform on which to tell people screw you.

3.16 “Dawn’s Early Light” Crane and Joe. Certified BrOTP.

Abbie Kisses Someone Who Isn't Ichabod

Abbie: I hate Danny finding out that way!

Ichabod: I hate Danny.

Abbie: What?

Ichabod: What?

Papa Mills Thinks Abbie and Crane Are Together

Even an absentee parent knows.

I hope you're right

My First (and probably last) SH Meta

So after tonight’s episode, and having thought through my initial feelings on it, I feel like this Danabbie thing is a parallel to the Zoe thing. She pointed out to Crane he was ready for more just not with her and I believe Daniel is going to come to the same conclusion. Bear with me, I have evidence to support my speculation.

In the preview pics we got for the next episode, there are a couple of Danabbie and one of Ichabbie that make me think that things are not going to be roses and sunshine for Abbie and Danny:

Pic number one:

This is not a happy face. They are having a conversation Abbie wasn’t expecting or wasn’t ready for. I’m thinking he really saw how her and Crane are together and he got it, even as she remains in denial.

Pic number two:

Looks like Danny is pointing out, like Zoe that he is not the one she really wants, which would also show immense character development for him. He’s been a bit self centered this whole season but him helping her realize her happiness lies elsewhere (hint hint Crane). Abbie also appears to be reluctantly accepting his conclusion. Still maybe not ready to turn to Crane but maybe more open to the idea than before.

Pic number three:

And lastly, but certainly not least, Crane seeming to sense things have not gone the way his fellow witness may have hoped. Abbie appears upset and resigned while he looks concerned.

I’m still not ready to accept, especially with all of the ship baiting we have been getting in 3b, that setting the stage for Ichabbie is not the endgame. Whether we will actually get it this season or, if there is a fourth season, I still have hope Ichabbie could still be endgame.

Too little too late Danny!!!! 😭😭😭😭

Abbie Mills x Daniel Reynolds | Sleepy Hollow 3.16

Mark Henderson is just waiting for people to talk shit about Richonne on Facebook.

Thanks American Girl!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/QAD43zuThNI?feature=oembed&enablejsapi=1&origin=https://safe.txmblr.com&wmode=opaque

SLEEPY HOLLOW | A Pleasure from “Dawn’s Early Light" 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/G-wVaQwrOU0

Emergency from “Dawn’s Early Light”

*slams fists on table* where’s my obligatory beach/pool filler episode!! what the fuck!!!

-tla

*not pictured here: crane drowning face-first by the shore after passing out

Reblog if you only acknowledge the One True Bow

Sleepy Hollow: “Ragnarok” Episodic Photos

Ichabbie - Sleepy Hollow Season finale [X]

Reblog if you are Team Ichabbie

So you've been with my former lover AND my son? 😂

I'm dying laughing at this!

“I’m sure we’re gonna laugh ourselves sick about all this one day.”

Mages of the Inquisition!

All that extra negativity over every small detail has deterred me from engaging with the fandom as a whole. I know the writers have messed up but the last episodes have been interesting and even then it's impossible to please everyone.

and that’s a shame, really. i mean… i’ve been in this fandom almost from the very beginning. i’ve made some pretty good friends in it, too, like… best friends. so i’m grateful for just that. i love these people.

but i do get it. it’s annoying. and it’s tiring. and it’s discouraging. to come up in here after what i think is an awesome episode to gush and squeal and instead have to block half the posts in the tag or on my dash… it’s like being a kid in a birthday party with a cute balloon and some asshole poking it with a stick until it pops. 

and it’s like. i see articles about how sleepy hollow is so bad now and i’m like

tbh, i don’t trust anyone who saw s2 and can say that with a straight face. it is objectively false that s3 is worse than 2.

does the show still have flaws? sure. the monsters are pretty hit or miss, betsy ross is still inexplicably a thing, and sleepy hollow the town still feels more like a stage than an actual town since they categorically refuse to build it up with people who are not victims of the week. but just in s3b–just since we’ve been back–we’ve had:

character development for abbie up the wazoo

team b having just as much time apart from team a to feel like their own people and not plot devices (granted the balance is off sometimes but nowhere near the flustercuck that was pushing jenny and frank away to focus on clifford the big red fail)

sophie, who is amazing and lovely

actual progress on mythology-building. like, the hidden one is a bag full of dicks and pandora needs to shank him and take her rightful place as queen but their backstories were super interesting and the twist they put on the pandora’s box story was cool and something i’d never seen before

joenny. i like them together and apart so i’m adding it, idgaf. their relationship does seem to leap forward jerkily at times, but they’re cute together and i’m not rooting for them to fail

a crane who is neither an asshole nor a buffoon

progress toward canon ichabbie that has been inexorable. that’s not me being some naïve dope. every single episode since the midseason premiere has made sure to built up the emotional connection between crane and abbie–and not just wrt to the witness bond, i’m talking crane the man and abbie the woman. even when they’re apart the show makes certain to point out that they should be together. explicitly and implicitly. 

so to see all that glossed over because ichabbie isn’t fucking yet is… frustrating. because even if you’re watching for just them, you’re getting stuff! good stuff! but nope. let’s wallow in negativity forever because goffman was a blind dipshit.

goffman is gone.

s1 was only doubleplusgood in the first half and it’s not coming back (plus it had its problems, then, too).

the headless horseman turned into a pile of shit and the show is better without him.

the show has moved past frank irving. headcanon him happy with his family and just let it go.

does it suck they’re gone? yeah, a bit. but the show isn’t broken because of it, and it’s silly af to act like it is. 

to clarify: not wanting to participate in renewal campaigns or polls or whatever because we’ve been burned before is fine. totally cool. understand completely. but to actively hope it fails or to pick apart the show to where the whole thing is bad because ONE THING hasn’t happened quickly enough to suit you is clownish bullshit. it just is.

so yeah, i completely understand you not wanting to engage. i wish we were in a place where i could tell you to engage anyway because it’s fun, but it hasn’t been, really. not lately. truthfully, every day i think about joining you and just tracking tags and reblogging gifsets and basically writing off fandom completely.

but.

i will say that there are still good people around. if you like, i’ll point you to a couple, even. just know you’re not alone in your fandom fatigue, nonny bunny. not at all.

[via]

“I thought all was lost.”

Ichabbie 3.15

So cute! ❤️

i don’t even know where this came from but i really want to draw more polaroids from thedas now. also couples sleeping on public transport

Sleepy Hollow Episode 317 - Delaware promotional photos.

“Yeah that’s the thing about being trapped in a timeless dimension filled with sheer rock walls… you find your inner spider-man, real fast.”

Abbie x Jenny | Sleepy Hollow 3.14

I think you are on to something. Someone on Twitter just pointed out that it looks like the symbol was painted across Crane’s grave in the pilot.

https://twitter.com/MichiganCubsFan/status/708812140610789376

So, what are the odds, y’all, that SH is about to retcon the hell out of the Katrina storyline, without even naming her?

What if … what we end up getting is that what saved Crane in 1781 wasn’t really Katrina’s shitty witch powers at all, but the bond between Witnesses? Basically:  Abbie saved Crane, not Katrina and her coven?

I would lol forever.

Abbie Mills x Sophie Foster | Sleepy Hollow 3.14