Arista-Spark

Bloom at the masquerade, from my fanfiction Eternal Spark (it's on AO3).

Remember when I said I didn’t even watch it?

I just watched the entire season (I watched it in french to motivate me, to have some kind of tangible reason to watch it, and what better reason to watch it than to see it in my dub?)

Because I wanted to know. I wanted to know if my feelings about Brooklynn were obscuring my judgment and if, apart from that, what was around it was good.

Because I loved this show and more than anything I loved those characters. I loved all of their bonds despite the fan pandering. So I thought MAYBE the season as a stand alone, and not as the ending to Brooklynn’s (and the Nublar 6) arc, has some good in it.

But now I’m finally at peace with season 4.

It’s not even that I hate it because of what they did with Brooklynn. I also just don’t like it, in the basic sense of the word, I got absolutely no enjoyment whatsoever out of watching it. None 😭

I won’t rewatch it, not because it « hurts », but because I just. I don’t like it. It made me stop caring about the show. I find it bad. It’s irritating. Makes me roll my eyes. Makes me mad sometimes. Nothing but irritation, and it’s one emotion I don’t like in my shows.

There’s one thing I hate in fiction, and it’s when you can just see the writers pull the strings to get the characters where they want them to be, and that season is them doing that for 9 episodes.

And it’s even worse when the place where they want them to be isn’t where they wanted them to be, but where the fandom wanted them to be (Heidi’s post about the Ben and Kenji scene’s storyboarding where they say that « unlike in jwcc, here I knew what I was doing 😏 » at least made it clear that they (the crew) were fully and shamelessly indulging in fan service. Because they made it clear, and they already said it in past posts, that the Ben and Kenji ship was never on the crew’s mind when they made jwcc, that they were even surprised when the show came out. But unlike during jwcc, in jwct they knew what they were doing 😏, because they decided to please the fans. And I mean.)

Now enough with the fan service.

A non exhaustive list of everything I disliked, in no particular order (that I didn’t already talk about in my post that was mostly about Brooklynn):

Kenji and Sammy doing what Dodgson tells them to do.

Dodgson puts them inside of a whatever-that-things-called-in-english leading them to Bumpy, DOESN’T go with them, and they… they trust him. They don’t threaten him to make him go with them. He has a business meeting to attend, that makes total sense, yup, let’s just ride this thing and we’ll absolutely stop where Bumpy is.

It makes no sense. It. Literally. Is. The. Most. Ridiculous. Plotline. Of. The. Entire. Series.

As if KENJI and SAMMY would believe a word a man like Dodgson says. It’s as if Tiff and Mitch had told them “wait, come on our boat, you can trust us not to throw you overboard” and they believed them. I can see the writing here because it makes no sense, the only reason they do it is because the writers needed Kenji and Sammy to end up in the jungle.

It just makes the first episode look so dumb because Kenji is all smug and sh*t but then loses any braincell he had and lets Dodgson manipulate him (by barely trying). If I was Dogdson I would have been laughing my ass off at Kenji because all this smugness only to believe an obvious lie??

The way Dodgson name drops the Gutierrez deal out of nowhere to allow Kenji and Sammy to close what we now know to be the irrelevant plotline of Sammy’s family issues (yet another plotline they didn’t care about).

“You want organic food in the cafeteria ? We make a deal with the Gutierrez ranch 🤪 »

What in the bad dialogue writing was that.

This dialogue actually made me cringe. Literally he could have looked at the camera, at Sammy and Kenji like that and it would have fit.

The timing of Brooklynn’s “character development”.

That’s why it was supposed to take 3 seasons for her to get her character development. Because Brooklynn literally changes worldview in between two floors of the same building in the span of like 30 minutes.

She’s being dismissive of her friends and their emotions (be it Darius, Yaz or Ben), she’s being especially awful to Darius when he rightfully tells her he doesn’t like her (the way she pushed him??? Get out of my way??? Because he’s not bending the knee to her???) which culminates in this awful moment where she complains that’s they are too dramatic and complicated (for having feelings?).

She genuinely DOESN’T CARE about anyone’s feelings and sees them as a nuisance, she SAYS IT, she only feels bad when people don’t like her and don’t validate her awful actions. But that’s the thing, she never sees anything wrong with her behavior.

I’m really starting to think that the only way I can find this season tolerable is if I watch it with the headcanon that between CC and CT Brooklynn developped an antisocial personality disorder. Then they would have absolutely nailed it. Then the Kenlynn scene would actually almost make sense because Kenji was so not entertaining her self-importance that she lost any interest in him because he didn’t love her. And she doesn’t have time for people who don’t even consider her.

But back to Brooklynn. She doesn’t care and for some reason, her “give a f” function randomly activates when they enter the elevator, out of nowhere. When 1 minute ago she was incapable of giving a care, it was like a foreign concept to her.

And then we have the scene with Wu where she’s like “people can change”. Yeah they can, but not in under 30 minutes, not between two floors of the same building. She genuinely didn’t care about anyone’s feelings 10 minutes ago, it wasn’t a misconception. So why would she suddenly do, what actually happened in her brain ??

Also this scene where she hugs Darius out of nowhere.

They treat her personnality, her feelings for anyone and her morals like moodswings that change based on the weather (the weather being what will get her friends to like her and give her the attention she’s craving).

And even after this realization she still acts like a jerk, especially when she talks about her friends forgiving her as if they’re just names on a checklist. Even Kenji looks disgusted, at least they kept his reaction somewhat realistic.

The car horn attracting the dinosaurs instead of pushing them away because the plot needs it.

Remember the jwcc days, when they would use the car horn to push the dinos away? Because dinosaurs are animals, because dinosaurs don’t like loud noises and naturally get the furthest away from it as they can, because dinosaurs have survival instincts. Because no animal would knowingly come towards a loud car horn, NONE in the history of the universe.

This scene is so… I have no words. Even the dinosaurs are acting out of character to please the plot 😭 It’s something jwcc established, and they just don’t care.

The plot is a (bad) paid background actor.

Even the lame side quests in Zelda games in which a random peasant asks you to bring him 10 dragonflies to do the most random sh*t you can imagine have more plot relevence that the campers’ mission this season.

Wu basically told them “yeah, go delete that random thing for me, a thing that no-one even cares about, that we will never know the consequences of, but I won’t tell you exactly where it is so that while you waste the viewers time searching for something meaningless you can all make up before it turns into a Ben melodrama where Ben…literally becomes the plot”.

And even the scene where they delete the data pisses me off, because the writers try to play it off by having the characters mention how underwhelming it is.

They’re basically using the characters to laugh at their own storyline because they know it’s lackluster. But I’m sorry, I’m not laughing with you. I’m so tired of the Marvel writing, using humor to highlight the absurdity of the story and go “yeah, we know it’s bad, see, we’re making fun of it!” instead of writing something that’s actually good.

I was primarily here for the story of the campers, but I still expected actual real stakes and motivations for the characters. And as I said. I hate the Marvel writing.

The Brooklynn sacrifice scene.

Going to drop the cynical tone because this one is actually serious and not funny at all. All of this is only my feelings on the matter.

I hate that this scene exists, I could barely sit through it. I think it’s really the moment I was done.

I don’t know who in the writers room came up with the idea that Brooklynn’s « arc » would end with this scene, but I’m heavily side-eyeing that (plural?) person.

This scene hits a little too close to home and not in a positively relatable way.

More in a “my abuser ALSO poses themselves as a martyr everytime I bring up what they did/do to me, or even only do so much as to act coldly toward them because I tend to do that with people who abuse me and that doesn’t make me an abuser” way.

I’m open to having my mind changed but it was truly a hard watch and I didn’t realize it the first time around because as I said I roughly skipped through the scenes.

And then I was like “maybe it’s not as bad as it seems, maybe she just instinctively wanted to save her friends and there wasn’t anything darker, maybe it’s not what it looks like,” but then they had her say “I just wanted to make everything better”, and the hand thingy.

I don’t know if it’s the scene or the line, or both, but If it was the writer’s intention for Brooklynn to attempt *, then I despise the scene. You don’t have to agree with me, it’s not a light topic, I’m only talking about my feelings on it.

Because how would that make anything better. Her friends never said they wanted that. Her friends were only reacting to her behaviour, and rightfully so. They had valid reasons not to like her.

It didn’t mean they wanted her gone, it just meant they didn’t want someone like her in their lives, because she was TOXIC.

But not wanting someone in your life doesn’t mean you wanted them literally d. Yet the writing, or Brooklynn, or both idk, take that shortcut.

There’s no doubt Brooklynn would feel like they might want her gone, there’s no doubt anyone in her place would suffer tremendously. I’m not arguing on a character level. I’m talking about the message the writers sent with that scene.

They make Brooklynn a martyr instead of having her come to terms with the campers feelings. Instead of having her accept that all of this is the consequences of her actions, behaviour, and of all the trauma she inflicted on them, she gets pushed into the victim postition (which was her friend’s). And they strip the others of their right to hold Brooklynn accountable because the narrative changes from them rightfully wanting nothing to do with her to them somehow being too harsh on her, because surely their reaction is disproportionate if it indirectly causes her to disregard her own life and value???

But the thing is that their reaction wasn’t disproportionate. It was warranted. They weren’t being unfair to her.

Again, I’m not being satirical in this section because I really wish this scene didn’t exist. This topic is very sensitive. * isn’t a way out of accountability. It isn’t a way to get back into someone’s good graces. It’s a very serious thing, and I’m not saying my view is the right one, I’m only explaining that I didn’t like how they portrayed it. I’m only saying that there were a thousands other ways to end Brooklynn’s story and that they just had to go and choose this one.

The second half of the season is a spectacle

That’s why I actually have nothing to say about it. It feels very fanfictionny so I can’t even criticize anything. It’s like a mini show inside a show. Dinosaurs. Emotions. Explosion. Benji.

But had been waiting since the first episode for Brooklynn to receive the ending she deserved, so let’s just say that after what they did to her in these five rushed episodes, I wasn’t very inclined to give a crap about it 🥲.

Conclusion

As I already said, Chaos Theory wasn’t written for me, it was meant for the fandom (and I always had very different opinions). And that’s okay. Watching the last season at least allowed me to move on. I think I will still be able to appreciate jwcc because the two are different, so my love for the initial show still remains, but at the same time I feel like I lost interest in even that 😭

I’m sorry I don’t even want to be so negative but it’s really what my experience was like watching and I feel like I needed to at least mention it with how important this show had become to me. It’s like me making peace with it. Understanding why I didn’t like it.

This is also part of being a fan, you get disappointed.

Me to this season 🤣

As I said in the first picture, this post is unecessarely negative. After all, it's a dinosaur show and I'm pretty sure the season looked spectacular and was a success in more than one aspect. And the writers didn't commit any crime, and I'm no one to tell anyone how to write their stories (or I would be hypocritical, because it's the one thing I criticize the most).

Also, when I'm talking about Ben, I'm not talking about the character Ben, I'm talking about his role in the story. The injury storyline might have been emotional, poignant, beautiful in a lot of ways, but it was still a distraction. And in that case it was a distraction from Brooklynn’s story.

This is just petty ranting because I loved this show, I loved Kenji and Brooklynn, and I loved Brooklynn. But when I saw the story of season 4 and the epilogue, I just couldn't recognize the characters, it almost felt uncanny.

I used to be the biggest romantic Dinostar hater but I'm being honest when I say that I would have 100% prefered it if they had made their relationship canon over the ending they were given. Or if they had really commited to Darius being aro-ace, anything but what we were given. I still find the "in-laws" implications disgusting (especially when the in-laws canonically are into each other a week after the breakup), but without taking this into consideration. Their bond is just so confusing. We don't know for sure what Darius feels for her, even he doesn't. We never knew what Brooklynn felt, when she felt it, what caused her to feel it. I don’t know but I think that when you’re in love with someone, your every cells are in love with the person, you’re in love with them. But both Darius and Brooklynn seem just… confused. To me whatever their bond is at the end is a lot weaker than what they used to have. At least when they were platonic soulmates their love was absolute and unquestionable. But now it’s… whatever it is.

Now, this is about the Nublar 6 as a whole this season and in the epilogue. Their bonds felt artificial to me, unlike how it felt at the end of Camp Cretaceous. Because the storytelling failed to make me believe in it, because most of it didn't make sense. Now that I think about it I think the only relationship I found believable and that Chaos Theory upgraded in a way that flew right from start to finish in my eyes was Ben and Yazmina's.

That being said, maybe in the future I will learn to appreciate this season/the overall show, never say never. I HEAVILY doubt it. But I hope lol. Because I really want to like it, because I really loved these characters.

It will be bitter, annoying, redundant, a little pretentious and entitled too.

It’s clear the show was made for the ✨fans✨ (at the very least the last season was).

And I will try not to waste too much time on this. It’s not surprising, I don’t know why I was expecting anything else.

But I want to talk about what they did with Dinostar because it’s one of the worst exemples of wanting your cake and eating it too (not worse than what they did to Kenlynn but you get it).

If you were going to make Dinostar canon, commit to it. It would have been bad writing and wouldn’t have made sense but at least it’s not cowardly, you take a decision and you stick to it.

But what they did by hinting at Darius maybe being aro but dancing around the idea with him not being sure, and with him still giving Brook this “what if” look during the epilogue is outrageous.

They get their cake and get to eat it too.

Get the flowers for the representation, but at the same time the dinostar shippers are happy because it’s so mushy mushy that they can still headcanon that Darius and Brooklynn have feelings for each other.

Win win.

I call this cowardice.

And Brooklynn in all this? She’s a freaking barbie doll with not an ounce of agency.

Kenji doesn’t want her?

“We weren’t meant to be”

Darius looks like he’s about to confess?

She makes moon eyes at him (so she did feel the same? Since when?)

Darius more or less tells her he’s aro?

Platonic “I love you TOO”

Does she love Darius? Does she not love him? Is she allowed to be her own person with feelings of her own that are not changing depending on what the person in front of her wants from her?

At what point does the show even care about asking the question of who BROOKLYNN loves and who she wants to be with?

There’s none.

Bold claim but it feels misogynistic.

If Kenji had told her he still loved her, what would she have said?

She has absolutely no agency and feelings of her own, she’s only giving her “love-interests” what they want from her and that’s it, the writers don’t even bother acting as if they care about what she might feel.

So I gave it a second watch (still rushing through it because let’s not push it).

And it’s a shame because apart from how they butchered Kenji and Brooklynn’s relationship, the rest with the bond of the Nublar 6 was really touching.

Which makes it all the more awful.

Chaos Theory season 4 is basically a severe case of screwing over Kenlynn to please everyone else. At least I’m sure this season will be a fan-favorite, that’s for sure.

I take back what I said they might have been course correcting when they wrote Chaos Theory. Because it’s appelling how Kenlynn are the only ones that are given less than nothing, and not even in the friendship departement.

At some point I even wondered if people who shipped Benlynn weren’t onto something.

But that might be for the best because let’s be honest, the idea that Kenji and Brooklynn could be friends is ridiculous on its own, so points to them for not gaslighting us with the idea by simply having them act as if they forgot they dated, or that the other existed for that matter.

They have that scene where they basically break up as if neither of them give a single f, and then they barely acknowledge each other’s existence. While literally every other pair has countless touching moments together.

Brooklynn hears over the phone that the man she was with for six years might have died and she doesn’t give a crap.

Like, I don’t even know how I can take this seriously 😭

I know the fandom will love this because that’s all they ever wanted but yeah. I guess I’m not even mad at the fact they they broke them up because I’m able to separate Camp Cretaceous and Chaos Theory in my head. To me nothing of this changes my little Camp Cretaceous Kenlynn.

What I hate is that if they were gonna do this, then they should have at least made it make sense and not so obvious. Because you don’t end a storyline by suddenly acting as if it never existed. By not even adressing it, by having the characters act dense.

Kenji was worried Brooklynn might have liked Darius back in season 1, sadly roaming through her apartment and picking up her shoe, then in season 2 Brooklynn cried when he broke up with her, Kenji was the most affected when they found out she was alive, he ran to her to the airport, was mad at her during their phone call during season 3…

And then you have season 4 where all of this gets thrown out the window. Not because they don’t get back together. But because the characters suddenly don’t care as well as the writing. So I’m wondering why did they even write it to begin with.

It’s like they both reached the same conclusion but you’re left wondering when either of them reached that conclusion. Especially Brooklynn.

Kenji was mad at her in season three, suddenly he doesn’t care. Kenji’s world was shaken when Brooklynn was alive, suddenly he barely reacts to seeing her again. Brooklynn cried when he broke up with her, suddenly she’s like we weren’t meant to be. All of this could have happened, the problem is the suddenly,

I will even allow that it might have made sense for Kenji to act that way towards her because of how much pain she put him through. But Brooklynn ? The only reason they’re supposedly not meant to be is the very thing she’s trying to change, they’re even saying it. Now she’s here. She was shown to be heartbroken when he broke up with her so why is she suddenly SO okay with it? Did her love magically disappear during those 6 months she was dead??

And also.

Their relationship wasn’t back to normal, which is why they showed it as little as possible. Because even their break up felt as if Kenji was saying “I’m glad you’re back, but I just don’t care about you anymore”. Because Kenji, the character that famously gets mad everytime he cares, not getting mad AT ANY POINT just says he doesn’t care. Not in a romantic way, but my problem is that it’s in any way at all.

The end of Kenji and Brooklynn’s story is literally that they stopped caring about each other, but that they’re still friends by virtue of being apart of the Nublar 6 not because they care about each other, and the way they barely interact after this is just confirmation. Even in the epilogue they don’t acknowledge each other’s presence.

They NEVER solve their problem, only give up on one another all together. I mean yazammy ALSO never solved their problems but the writers had decided they would work so they did.

This feels like such a slap in the face. I’m like, they could have broken them up. But they ruined even their friendship, and then they want us to buy this happily ever after at the end where all the Nublar 6 love each other.

Before being a fan of the ship I was a fan of their cute banter in jwcc. I don’t know, I know people hated the ship but it’s like… this is the show’s ending, and Kenji and Brooklynn are the only ones whose friendship was turned to shreds to the point where they don’t have a single emotional scene.

They barely had 5 mintues of screen time in the entire show.

After all this build up they had a gran total of ONE scene together where they talk, and it was this nonsense.

I think this is the only post I’m going to make about season 4 (and perhaps about the show honestly 😭).

I’ll admit I completely rushed through the final season as soon as I saw THE scene.

Turns out I was VERY off the mark and that’s ok.

That being said, that 3 minutes scene soured the entire show for me. I couldn’t even care to watch the end after witnessing it. And it’s a shame because everything with Ben looked quite good.

I’m not even mad I just don’t care about it anymore because it feels like a joke 😭

Them not being endgame I would have gladly accepted and I would have been fine with, as I said many times. They could have figured out they didn’t work, anything, I would have accepted with grace.

But that’s exactly what I’m saying, I would have been fine with anything supposing we had been granted anything.

But their one and only conclusion being an half-assed talk as early as episode 4 where they both decide they’re “not meant” for each other out of the blue and that’s it, that’s a wrap, and then the show literally forgets about them?

With absolutely no build-up to it whatsoever, no conflict, no tears, no mention of their feelings, no nothing. 3 MINUTES.

After a 6 year relationship??? After Kenji legit wanted to *** himself???

Their story deserved at least SOMETHING??? ANYTHING???

I don’t know EVEN A SEMBLANCE OF DILEMMA, OF EVEN ACKNOWLEDGING THEIR FEELINGS, ASKING THEMSELVES ABOUT THEM???? 😭

Jurassic outpost in their review said that Brooklynn’s conflicts with Darius and Kenji were like at the core of this season and I’m like, WHERE????

That kind of love for someone doesn’t disappear like that, you don’t just stop loving the person on command and be fine with it.

You have Kenji running to her at the airport in season 2, his reaction to finding out she was alive, the entire plane scene, all that for what, for their next meeting to be nah it’s fine, we just don’t care? And then they legit just forget each other’s existence?

As I said it’s not the fact that they don’t get back together that bothers me, it’s the fact that none of them even care and that the writers just disrespected the heck out of their dynamic.

They behaved like strangers and I don’t want this to sour my memories of their relationship in camp cretaceous (I’m not even talking about their romantic relationship).

Even as a non-romantic pairing they deserved better than this. From what I’m seeing they have barely interacted all season through.

I know people hated them as a ship but this is just so bad.

Even Yazammy, though they end up together, were written so badly. They have this emotional breakup in season 3, and then, out of nowhere, they’re just fine, giggling and sh*t??? It’s like they did a game of head or tails with both pairings. They see each other again after their emotional break up and for Kenlynn it’s “acting like we never gave a f”, while for Yazammy it’s “acting like we never broke up and never had a problem”. But there’s absolutely no justification for either, not an ounce of building up to it, it’s just random. You make it, you don’t, but we’re not going to bother explaining why.

On the topic of Dinostar, I think they really hinted at Darius being aromantic. Or at least at him understanding that his love for Brooklynn isn’t romantic. He loves her but is not in love with her. This scene was cute honestly and I would have liked their conclusion if they hadn’t butchered the rest (people can see it as them being hinted at but I personally don’t see it, not after their scene in the elevator, I think they end up as platonic soulmates, as they always were).

And honestly with how they handled Kenji and Brooklynn, Darius and Brooklynn could have spent an entire episode making out I wouldn’t have cared lol.

And that’s such a shame because I loved this show so much. But Kenji and Brooklynn were my favorite characters and my favorite dynamic, romantic or not. But now everytime I will see Brooklynn and Kenji in camp cretaceous I will only think of how the final season butchered their bond as if they never even gave a crap about each other.

Season 4 comes out in two days I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who read my theories/commented/interacted in any way/shape or form.

Because trust me, going against the current and not losing confidence wasn’t easy to do at all, but even people who disagreed had good things to say about what I had to say and just for that it was worth it.

This show truly meant so much to me and I loved talking about it so much ❤️✨

I might turn out to be the biggest clown the earth has ever bore in two days but I won’t go back on anything I said from fear of being wrong. I still wholeheartedly believe Kenlynn are endgame and if I’m wrong, well, life goes on lol. It would just mean that there were some clues I didn’t get right.

But right now? Still convinced they are, maybe more than ever 😂

Hi, really hard to answer without spoiling the interview/episode 1 and some people haven’t seen it.

Just going to say this, I do not think for a second that Dinostar has any chance of ending up together. I used to believe they had a tiny chance. But not anymore, I’m sleeping like a baby at night 😂

Also going to say that Darius seemingly having a problem with Brooklynn’s actions/her personnality is coherent with most of my theories about his character arc when I said that the way they wrote his confession felt intentional, because Darius sounded really delusional, as if he couldn’t see what was right in front of him (the fact that Brooklynn was anything but amazing, and that she was merely using him, and that she was treating all of her friends like they were not important anymore).

So yeah.

The only thing Darius supposedly had over Kenji to be a suitable partner for Brooklynn was that he supposedly accepted her the way she was, that he didn’t want to change her. But the writers are showing how that wasn’t because he loved her more. It was because the Brooklynn he pictured in his head and the real one were opposites.

If in season 4 he starts criticizing her methods then I’m asking, why should she get with him ??? Wouldn’t that make him the same as Kenji (what dinostar shippers are saying, not me), someone who’s unable to accept her the way she is ??

The mental gymnastic is starting to hurt my brain for real. Dinostar as endgame just doesn’t fit into the story because it was never written to be.

And then you have Kenji, who was still very much in love with Brooklynn when he broke up with her despite knowing who she was. The only reason he broke up with her was because she was causing him pain.

What do you think that looked like?

Like...headcanons of what them living together was like.

Helloo.

Feeling the need to correct you because I’m annoying as f. But. It’s not really that I think that Brooklynn and Kenji lived together, it’s more that it’s heavily implied they did.

Visually, verbally any kind of ally you see fit.

It was written and storyboarded that Brooklynn barged into the trailer without announcing herself and immediately opened a cupboard to grab a pack of crackers before looking for her jacket. Oh and how can I forget the moment she opened the backpack for virtually no reason, the same backpack Kenji grabbed during season 1, his backpack. Visual cues, that have only one purpose. If it’s not her place, then at least it’s a place she spends a lot of time at. Oh, but during season 1 Kenji said he didn’t know about Brooklynn’s appartment… if they were living seperately then there was no reason for her apartment to be secret. It would just have been… her appartment. She wouldn’t have needed a secret place to work because she would have ALREADY been living alone.

Nooooow headcanons. Oh boy. I don’t have any but rest assured I will think of some 🤣

- Brooklynn loved Kenji’s trailer the moment she first stepped inside it. He was understandably a little ashamed that this was the kind of place his first sallary could afford him, but she loved it. It was unconventional, it was adventurous, and it was something he worked his ass off to get for himself and she was just so proud of him. And of course, it was their little nest only the two of them knew about (canon that the other campers never visited his trailer). The only downside was that it didn’t have enough place for a computer set so she HAD to get herself another place dedicated to her work. But she didn’t tell Kenji because she was afraid he would get the wrong idea.

- Kenji had been living in the trailer for months when they had THE discussion. You know. The, do you want to move in, discussion. Brooklynn was still living with her dads at the time but was basically spending all her free time in Kenji’s trailer. She had her toothbrush, a drawer for her underwear, and more importantly her collection of shampoo there (that Kenji secretly used because it made his hair ✨shiny✨, but always denied it when she confronted him). It was 4 A.M and they were snuggled up in bed. Kenji was looking at the ceiling, unable to sleep because he had realized that he wanted to ask her the question. At some point Brooklynn woke up because she could just feel his heartbeat go wild against her ear and asked him if he was feeling ill. He finally gathered the courage and asked her if she wanted to live with him, saying that he would totally understand if she didn’t want to live in a crappy trailer. She got a little mad at the fact that he had worried himself so much over asking her this because she had been waiting for him to ask her to officially move in for a long time, but was waiting for him to be ready.

- They both couldn’t care less about decorating the inside of the trailer. At some point they were like, maybe we should decorate, maybe we’re weird for liking this boring and bland interior… but then they were like nah, we actually just don’t care enough to put energy into this. It’s better this way. We like bland, and we’re owning up to it.

- At least once a week, they take all the blankets and pillows they own, pour themselves hot chocolates with lots of cream and lay outside to look at the stars.

- Since their lifestyle was so cheap and they were both ridiculously rich AND still making more money working, they made it their thing to give money to a different association/charity each month. They sat a the table and discussed which one they wanted to donate to.

- After she’d officially moved in Kenji started becoming a little paranoid. Because, you know. The both of them were public figures and arguably the most talked about members of the Nublar 6 (with Kenji being the son of a convicted billionaire and Brooklynn a former child star, and to add to that they were dating???? People were obsessed with their personal lives and it made Kenji super uneasy). But now they were literaly living in the middle of nowhere with no securtiy. So he started telling Brooklynn to do all kinds things to make sure she wasn’t followed, such as changing her helmet so that she wouldn’t get recognized, taking two outfits with her… Especially at night, if there was a SINGLE noise coming from outside he would go out to check if it was an animal or a human, because he knew how obsessive their (but especially her) fans could be. Brooklynn eventually was able to ease his worries, telling him that she wasn’t scared and that she didn’t want him to be in her place. Also, she told him that just the fact that they were together made her feel secure and she knew that if something was to happen, he would manage. The fact that she trusted him so much was enough to make him confident.

- Living in a trailer they had a VERY limited access to hot water, barely enough for two people to take their showers in the same day. The problem is that the average shower duration for Kenji equals the average duration of four people (at the minimum). So they started taking their showers together because Brooklynn had enough of taking ice cold showers. Also, she could make sure he didn’t steal her shampoo, that was a plus. And of course, taking her shower with Kenji was infinitely more entertaining. It often ended up turning into a cold shower for the two of them, but in that case she didn’t mind.

- Brooklynn always cut Kenji’s hair. She loved doing it as much as he loved it. She got to caress his hair, his ears, his shoulders, and it was just a moment they both appreciated. And of course the result was always perfect. One time Kenji insisted in doing her hair but he got so nervous he used the wrong hairdye and Brooklynn ended up with her iconic blue/purple hair. She loved it of course, but she still told him she would never let him touch her hair ever again 😂

- They can’t go to sleep without making out for at least a good thirty minutes before. But you know, the wholesome kind. They get in bed, turn on the bedside lamp, kiss, talk about their days, hug, kiss again, tickle each other… this for thirty minutes MINIMUM.

- Everytime they get into a fight there’s always this akward second where they both stare at each other, wondering who’s the one who will have to go outside this time. Because you know it’s hard to be angry with someone when you’re both inside of a TRAILER. You can’t just go into another room. They stare at each other, and at the door, waiting for the other to be the bigger person.

- They both can’t cook for shit, but Kenji still tries to make her meals. She finds it extremely attractive. She would have found it even more attractive if it didn’t taste awful, but she still gave his meals a try each and every time.

- There’s a little cafe in the town near where they live, they take their breakfast there every morning before getting to work. Brooklynn gets her espresso, Kenji brings his own protein shake, and they eat whatever’s on the menu that day. They even have their own little designated table.

- The first time Brooklynn got sick while they were living together, Kenji insisted she spent the night at her dads in her big, queen size bed, where she would be confortable and getting better quicker. She was outraged, saying she didn’t care that their bed was small, she prefered having him holding her. He never suggested this ever again. So everytime Brooklynn got sick, you can be sure that Kenji caught whatever she had the next day, but they wouldn’t have had it any other way.

Spoiler Underneath

Hello anon, don’t worry you're not coming off as rude at all.

With that being said your question is a little frustrating to me because I feel like I’ve answered it a thousand times already and it makes me feel like my point has been completely missed. Although it’s possible you haven’t read every single one of my posts so it’s possible you’ve simply not read the posts (yes, plural) where I answer this.

I don’t know you and I don’t who you ship so this question is also hard to answer considering I don’t know your own biases. Because you’re not a casual viewer and neither am I, and the people in the fandom are CERTAINLY not lol (they are the OPPOSITE of that).

I think it would be very hard for me (or you) to know what a real casual viewer would think of the ships because let’s be honest, casual viewers don’t speak about the show so we have no idea what they think.

Most people came to the show with pre-existing biases - kof - hating kenlynn - kof - loving Dinostar.

So everyone sees the story in a way that fits their narratives. Dinostar shippers are doing it, I’m doing it…

It just so happens that the fandom is made of 99% dinostar shippers and 1% Kenlynn shipper, so the narrative presented by Dinostar shippers starts sounding like common sense that must be shared by casual viewers when, believe me, it’s not (I’m the living proof that it's far from being common sense for everyone).

To me the relationship that has been presented as unhealthy since the beginning of Chaos Theory is Dinostar.

The narrative that pretends that Kenlynn is unheathy while Dinostar is this amazing ship is an opinion that is seen as true by almost the entire fandom, but as I already said it doesn't mean it's the correct opinion or at the very least the opinion the writers wanted us to have watching the show.

99% of the fandom was also convinced the writers were pushing Benji, that they were THE couple of the franchise, EVEN in Chaos Theory. We all know how that went.

My point being that the narrative that Kenlynn was ever unhealthy is a complete fabrication of the fandom.

I'm not saying that they weren’t unhealthy, they’re fictional characters, they don’t even exist outside of what’s shown on screen lol. They could be for all I care. What I’m saying is that Kenlynn being “unhealthy” was never what the show said about them, but that the fandom received it that way because of their pre-existing bias against them (that they might not even be aware of).

My take on how Kenlynn will get back together has never changed and I already spoke about it so many times it's not even funny.

The only issue Kenlynn EVER had was Kenji thinking Brooklynn didn’t love him (because she was doing everything but being with him, so I’d say he was being pretty resonable), and breaking up with her because it was less painful than being with someone who didn’t love him (which is the contrary of unhealthy???).

And after breaking up with her to stop his suffering, his behaviour toward Brooklynn remains absolutely coherent throughout the entire run of the show, with him doing everything he can not to suffer anymore, which is the sole reason he didn't rush to help her, because at this point of the story she hadn't changed yet, which meant that he would have willingly exposed himself to suffering again which is LITERALLY the very thing he has been trying to avoid since the first season, since he broke up with her. His behavior has always been consistent, just as Brooklynn's behaviour had been consistent until the very end of season 3 (hurting the people she loved, making them feel like they don't matter to her).

It's not about the ships and checking the boxes of who came to help Brooklynn and who didn't, it's about coherent character arcs and individual character writing.

And as I explained, the reason for the breakup was never a Kenlynn specific issue it was always presented as a BROOKLYNN issue. An issue that negatively impacted every single one of her human relationships, not only her relationship with Kenji. If anything Darius is the anomaly for starting to "love" her when she mistreats him the most.

The narrative (so the writers) acknowledge Brooklynn was in the wrong and that everything that happened to her was nothing but the consequences of her actions, actions she had yet to take accountability for, which she only started doing at the end of season 3.

Her taking accountability for her actions and changing not to do the same mistakes will literally be the whole point of season 4.

She literally admits Davi was right about her selling her soul, and admits she wants the people she loves in her life, a realization she only had at the end of season 3.

But if she wants them in her life, she can't act like she did with her friends, she can't act like she did with Kenji, she has to show the people she loves that she loves them back.

Which is. Literally. Exactly the ultimatum Kenji gave Brooklynn when they broke up.

“I can’t be with you if you’re not going to be with me”

It's literally the only thing he wanted from her, the only thing he wanted her to change.

On a storytelling level Kenji's character spelled out the "requirements" Brooklynn had to meet for him to be with her again (for lack of a better way to put it).

The only thing he wanted was for her to want to be with him.

As of season 3 he was convinced she didn't want to be with him (and with them to a wider extent) because it was ACTUALLY the case. Kenji was actually right.

Because Brooklynn only realized she wanted to be with her loved-ones at the end of season 3. She only realized her relationships were more important than her investigation there.

"But I want them in my life."

The fact that Brooklynn didn't know this before was the ONLY reason he broke up with her.

I know people have made up their minds and are convinced Brooklynn isn't in love with Kenji and vice-versa and I won't try to change anyone's mind about this because I know there's nothing I could say that would change anyone's mind lol.

I'm good at rhetoric I guess but I'm not a wizard, I can't accomplish miracles.

So I'm only speaking for myself when I say that to me there's NO scene that shows that Brooklynn had a moment where she was like "I'm not in love with Kenji anymore". And to me in the VERY few scenes we have seen between them, it's shown that she still loves him. To me Brooklynn never stopped loving Kenji, but everyone is free to disagree.

So the only thing I see for season 4 is that Brooklynn, after her realization in season 3 that she wants to be with the people she loves and that she actually screwed up, will finally take accountability for her behaviour. And more than that, she will show Kenji that she REALLY wants to be with him (not her unconvinced "I really want to see this amazing view you're so hyped about" from season 2).

And since this time it will be her sincere feelings, things will be different.

Because Kenji will understand that she does want to be with him, and for real this time. Which, I'm repeating myself, is everything he ever wanted.

I don't see how this would hinder his "character developpment", as I've seen some say. On the contrary. He would have stayed true to his words, to his values.

It would be Brooklynn that would meet him where he is, not him that would lower his standards or forget his good resolutions.

Oh will you look at this gorgeous animation in this one sequence !

An essay by me, who would have thought 🤯

I read @swan2swan post about their thoughts on Davi and it made me reflect on his character (tagging you because I want to be transparant, it’s your post which led me to question what I thought of the character, giving credit where it’s due).

Because while reading the post I was reminded that I personally LOVE Davi 😭.

Also. Nick Rodrigues wrote some time ago that he wanted to see more Davi appreciation so here you go. You’re about to get plenty of it.

So this is why I love him.

I think part of the reason why I love Davi so much is because he fits perfectly into my understanding of the show and more specifically Brooklynn’s arc (there’s going to be some Dinostar/Kenlynn mention OF COURSE or it wouldn’t be me 😂). He is the single piece that makes this arc truly amazing.

See, Davi was Brooklynn’s fan. Which is literally short for fanatic.

It’s not romantic love, I’m not arguing that, it’s a love that’s different, but it’s a kind of love that is even more passionate in a way and even more unreasonable. Adoration.

Fans tend to turn a blind eye to the flaws of the person they ideolize. It’s a really ride or die, this person can do no wrong type of love.

And we see it in his introduction scene.

He’s completely fanboying over Brooklynn, and is completely hyped by the idea that she faked her death and went undercover. She's treating him like absolute crap but he's so busy talking about how amazing she is that he doesn't even seem to mind. He finds her dedication for her work admirable, he wants to be like her. He’s initially completely on board with her actions, again, blind admiration.

He knows her on a surface level. He's a fan.

Davi is her fan, and has been since BEFORE camp cretaceous, which makes his relationship to Brooklynn unique in a way, but what makes him truly great is that he’s not only that.

Davi is not only a fan, he’s also an aspiring investigative journalist.

Which gives him all the more reason to look up to Brooklynn, but also allows him to relate to her in a way no other character can.

He experienced firsthand what it’s like being in Brooklynn’s place. He knows what this job does to you. He knows all too well the thrill of a good mistery, the desire to get to the truth and the lengths you’re willing to go to discover it. If he didn’t understand, he wouldn’t be in this crappy dark market but he would be in New York or Paris writing about fashion.

But instead, just like Brooklynn, he wanted to expose the dinosaur trafficking. Not only does he adore her, but he IS like her.

Davi had literally all the cards in his hands to root for Brooklynn, it’s in the character’s DNA.

He should have.

And yet.

He was the one to call her out.

“If selling your soul is what it takes to be like you, it’s not a sacrifice I’m willing to make”

He was the one who accused her of having sold her soul. He was the one who risked having the very person they ideolized dislike him because he was lucid enough to see her actions for what they were and not to turn a blind eye to them, to see past his admiration, to see past the Brooklynn persona he knew, to see who she was.

And he was the one who could finally get through to her, exactly because of what I explained, because of his unique position.

Brooklynn had fallen so low that even the person who was DESIGNED to understand her actions was disgusted by them.

Because what Brooklynn had become was well beyond the scope of investigative journalism, it was no longer admirable, it was tragic, self-destruction.

She had sacrificed her life, her soul and her morals for this investigation. And it’s only when she saw the disgust in Davi’s eyes, the very eyes that were filled with admiration before they got to know the person she was becoming, that she finally understood that she was on the wrong path.

And that she had been for a very long time. Perhaps since the moment she had started taking her boyfriend, her friends for granted.

And it absolutely relates to why Dinostar isn’t happening. Because the very existence of Davi confirms that Brooklynn was the one in the wrong since the beggining of the show and, by extension, Darius.

Even Brooklynn admitted this at the end of season 3.

“You were right. About a lot…”

Darius shouldn’t have found her dedication amazing, he shouldn’t have faulted Kenji for having a problem with what she was becoming, he shouldn’t have been okay with the trajectory her life was taking, he should have known to call her out, to see the signs of her downfall.

Like Kenji, and later Davi did.

Because it may have taken time, but even Brooklynn ended up agreeing with them.

If Brooklynn is striving to change in season 4, which is only the natural continuation of her realization that Davi was right in season 3, then it means she will no longer want to behave like the girl Darius confessed to behaved.

The girl whose passion, dedication to her work were the very things he swooned over.

Davi was the wake up call she needed. He was a person that was literally designed to support her through everything, to support her every decision, even more than Kenji and, more importantly, even more than Darius were.

But he didn’t. Because no one was supposed to.

Because her actions were wrong, or it’s more that the consequences to her actions were warranted.

Kenji was absolutely justified for breaking up with her, she couldn’t even leave her work a few minutes to watch the sunset with him. It said nothing about his love for her but everything about the lack of consideration he was willing to take from his partner. He set a healthy boundarie.

Sammy was justified in her anger, because Brooklynn WAS not putting any effort in their friendship back when she was alive and she did chose to refuse their help when they offered it to her.

The choices Brooklynn made doesn’t make her a bad person, but they came with consequences that were warranted.

She couldn't expect Kenji to stay by her side despite her unwillingness to be at his side. Same with Sammy. Same with all her friends. And it should have been the same with Darius.

It's not about her being career-driven or passionate about her job.

It's about human relationships.

A healthy relationship is about mutual love, mutual care, mutual respect. Mutual consideration.

If a person pours all their love into a person that doesn't give any of it back, then by definition that relation is unhealthy.

Brooklynn momentarely stopped attending to her human relationships, only living for her job.

Hence why she found herself alone.

Hence that scene where the handler refuses to help her.

Brooklynn is so alone that she has to stoop so low as to beg the ennemi, the very person who amputated her arm, to grant her some mercy, but only because SHE put herself in this situation. It her fault the only person close to her is a freaking psychopath. It's her fault her friends aren't there to help her.

It’s the path she willingly took, the consequences of her choices.

(She SO deserved this...she's so pathethic... I LOVE HER SO MUCH RJOIRRORFORFHRIRJPR)

In the end she realized that this life wasn’t the one she wanted, that she wanted the people she loves with her.

But in order to have that, she has to change. She has to play her part. She has to give back the love she receives.

Darius looking at Brooklynn with stars in his eyes while she stays at his cabin solely because a sale is taking place nearby, while she can’t even lay down her phone for a minute to listen to what he has to say and smiles at her phone because she got a notification while he’s still speaking, while she immediately gets back to work after what should have been a life altering confession isn’t love, it’s blind admiration.

He was acting like a fan of hers even more than Davi, her actual fan.

Fine with her lack of consideration, defending her actions without knowing the context, bad-mouthing people who weren’t willing to put up with it the way he was willing to.

Claiming they don't love her as much as he does, because he accepts her for who she is. He doesn't mind her abuse. He doesn't expect her to change.

But it doesn't make him someone who loves her more. Because love is about a relationship, it's about a mutual feeling between two people and above all it's about seeing the other person as opposed to admiring them.

It makes him someone who adores her more.

Some might call it love, call it whatever you want, but it’s definitely not healthy and certainly not a dynamic I will EVER root for.

However, I have this dread that since so much of the focus and mystery from Season 1 was about what happened to Brooklynn ‘that night’ and how Darius’ feelings played a part in what happened/why he wasn’t there for her then, D & B will end up together.

And I keep telling myself the crew (showrunners, writers, etc.) are better than skipping over B & K having the conversation they deserve about their relationship (whether they get back together or remain single), but I also have this growing dread Kenji will give a very resigned/bittersweet nod or statement to Darius as his permission for him to pursue Brooklynn and that’s all we’ll get.

If something like that happens, or even if Kenlynn get the conversation they deserve, but B still ends up with D, how do you think Kenji will take it? Like, I want to imagine he’d be upset and angry and not want to be near either of them for a long time, if ever again. But I fear the show might have Kenji just ‘accept it’ and ‘be happy for them’ despite the pain and betrayal D & B getting together would cause him.

Hi friend!

Thanks for the ask^^

It will be very hard for me to answer this because I’m really in a different place than the one you are in right now. While I think it’s still a possibility Brook could end up single, I no longer have any fear about her ending up with Darius.

Like. I know she won’t end up with Darius. We’ll see in two weeks… but I know she won’t 😭

Not even the little « what if » hesitation I had before. The interview solidified what I already knew, to me it’s over, finito, they will end up as friends. For me to doubt it I would need to gaslight myself. We’ll see in two weeks if I’m a clown, but I can’t force myself to doubt lol 😂

Buuuut. Let’s pretend I still think they could be endgame.

About your first point and Darius’ role during ‘that night’.

It’s funny because it seems you and I have opposite ways of thinking because his involvement in that night has always been to me one of the main clues showing they wouldn’t end up together, even when I was much more doubtful.

This event put a definitive stain on the « romantic » potential of dinostar before anything romantic even happened. Darius’ romantic feelings were shown to be the reason he wasn’t there for Brooklynn when she needed him. For the first time in his life he wasn’t her friend when she needed him to be and she payed the price.

To put it into simpler words, his romantic feelings ruined his friendship with her and not in the « we can’t go back to be friends because we’re destined to be lovers » way, but in the « now I don’t know if I can even trust you to be my friend » way.

I can’t wrap my head around how everyone just casually brushes over this.

Yes. All he did was not respond to her numerous calls for a single night, it’s not terrible.

But it’s still bad.

And he still did it.

He had her trust and he broke it.

This is being a lousy friend. And it’s the first time he was a lousy friend to one of the Nublar 6 (to that extent at least), because of these feelings.

I just don’t understand how people see this initial situation and think the resolution will be… what ? Just Brooklynn being like « no but I like you too I was just embarrassed and had to wait the required seven business days you have to wait before you can make out with your boyfriend’s brother, now pin me against the wall and kiss me my hot dinonerd » with Kenji cheering in the background ???

Then there would have actually been no point in his involvement in that night. Because it would just be pretending it never happened because Brooklynn would think nothing of it.

The way I see it his romantic feelings are a piece in the « he didn’t show up » storyline, it’s not the « he didn’t show up » bit that is a piece in a romantic storyline because it simply doesn’t fit.

Like let’s just imagine just for the sake of it that Brook (had?) magically developped feelings for Darius (when? No one knows lol).

The problem would still remain lol. Still wouldn’t change that Darius was a lousy friend to her that night.

And I don’t see how one goes from platonic soulmate to lousy friend to suddenly romantic soulmate.

Doesn’t platonic soulmate to lousy friend back to platonic soulmate make a lot more sense ???

If Darius and Brooklynn being friends was point 0, what Darius did that night set them back to -10000. You don’t magically go from -10000 to +500000000. Especially not if 0 was lost in the way.

Feeling very metaphoric tonight ☠️

It’s the very foundation of their bound that was broken. They couldn’t start a romantic relationship without repairing their friendship first. And starting a romantic relationship would not repair their friendship because Brooklynn not returning his feelings isn’t the problem with Dinostar, the problem with Dinostar is that Darius didn’t show up that night and was a lousy friend.

But I think I already said this over a hundred times in my old posts lol I don’t know how I can explain my thoughts better 😂 Might try in french.

La relation de Darius et Brooklynn dans la Théorie du Chaos n’est pas, et n’a jamais été, une histoire de romance. Purée de pomme de terre. Les sentiments romantiques de Darius l’ont poussé à trahir son amitié avec Brooklynn. Ses sentiments n’ont jamais été montrés de manière positive mais, au contraire, comme un obstacle dans son amitité avec Brooklynn, comme le déclencheur de tout ce qui ne va pas dans sa vie.

Sorry my humor is broken lol 😂😂

Back to serious stuff.

And there’s no way they will go from -10000 to 0 to +500000000 in a single season. Especially not with what Paul said about dinostar in season 4. Because he made it sound like it will actually go from -10000 to -500000000 and THEN, eventually, back to 0. Maybe 1, because surely their friendship will be stronger after surviving all these hardships.

Paul said that in season 4 Darius was going to struggle with emotions he hadn’t felt for a long time and I think it will be his feeling of guilt and shame about that night because Brooklynn HAS to bring it up.

That’s why I always felt that they wouldn’t end up together because where everyone saw a romantic relationship storyline I always saw a broken friendship storyline 😭

Now as for the second part of your ask it’s almost impossible for me to answer because as someone once said to me it relies on the chicken and the egg fallacy.

If Darius and Brooklynn had been made canon chances are it would go as you described, Kenji would take it with grace. No doubt at all lol. In no world would they end the show with Kenji being on bad terms with the only people he ever had lol.

But it’s supposing Darius and Brooklynn were made canon. If they are not, then this scenario doesn’t even exist.

It’s as if you were pointing at a nest and asking me what color I think the egg the chicken will lay will be. Probably beige. But there’s not even an egg yet. And worst, there’s no chicken in the nest to begin with.

It this marvellous metaphor « kenji’s reaction » is the egg while « dinostar being endgame » is the chicken that might not even exist.

So you’re asking me to describe something I believe doesn’t exist.