diff --git a/tl/resources/public/css/app.css b/tl/resources/public/css/app.css
index 712b326..c165d4a 100644
--- a/tl/resources/public/css/app.css
+++ b/tl/resources/public/css/app.css
@@ -370,13 +370,13 @@ html.dark .timeline-head {
   background-size: cover; background-position: center;
   opacity: 1;
 }
-/* a solid label chip pinned top-left — readable over any thumbnail (the old
-   black-text-with-white-halo muddied over busy frames), shrinks to its text so
-   the rest of the thumbnail stays visible. */
+/* a label chip pinned top-left — translucent like the annotation lane bars so
+   the thumbnail still reads through, but a solid-enough paper wash keeps the
+   text legible (the old black-text-with-white-halo muddied over busy frames). */
 .clip-name {
   position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; z-index: 1; max-width: 100%;
   box-sizing: border-box; padding: 0 4px; line-height: 1.5;
-  background: var(--paper); color: var(--ink);
+  background: color-mix(in srgb, var(--paper) 70%, transparent); color: var(--ink);
   border-right: 1px solid var(--ink); border-bottom: 1px solid var(--ink);
   white-space: nowrap; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;
   text-shadow: none;
diff --git a/tl/src/tl/subs.cljs b/tl/src/tl/subs.cljs
index 662df82..e95dd9d 100644
--- a/tl/src/tl/subs.cljs
+++ b/tl/src/tl/subs.cljs
@@ -108,13 +108,11 @@
             (first anns)))))
 
 ;; every annotation the playhead is currently inside (overlapping marks ⇒ more
-;; than one). Falls back to the single ::active-annotation when between marks so
-;; there's always one highlighted.
+;; than one; none ⇒ empty set, so nothing is highlighted between marks).
 (rf/reg-sub
  ::active-annotations
- :<- [::annotations] :<- [::playhead] :<- [::active-annotation]
- (fn [[anns ph fallback] _]
-   (let [inside (into #{} (keep (fn [a] (when (some (fn [[lo hi]] (<= lo ph hi)) (:bars a))
-                                          (:id a)))
-                                anns))]
-     (if (seq inside) inside (when fallback #{fallback})))))
+ :<- [::annotations] :<- [::playhead]
+ (fn [[anns ph] _]
+   (into #{} (keep (fn [a] (when (some (fn [[lo hi]] (<= lo ph hi)) (:bars a))
+                             (:id a)))
+                   anns))))