#『They showed a preview for one of the animated episodes』

[endlessp0ssibilities]

ShadowissocoolShadowissocoolShadowissocool

[rayhantochtli]

Grusha page

[kaiowut99]

Finalized!GX 122-123 Update:

Our food's important, so no stealin' allowed! 🍞♥

[lc-holy]

There's been some new info about season 6 and the new Special episodes to come, but I haven't seen anyone talking about it on tumblr.

So I'm taking the liberty of making a summary:

Season 6:

-Sébastien Thibaudeau (the show's writing director) has announced that writing for season 6 is complete. There will be several new writers this season.

-Thomas Astruc has shared an image showing him working on the storyboard for a season 6 episode.

-I'm just coming back to something that was said several months ago since some people don't seem to know: All the animation studios that worked on seasons 1 to 5 will no longer be animating the next seasons of Miraculous. The series is getting a visual upgrade. And ZAG has shared a preview of the new sets for the coming seasons.

-Now we know that the new animation studio to work on the next seasons of miraculous is DWARF. This French animation studio worked on the Miraculous movie.

Special episode:

-The new special "The end of Ladybug" (whose name is only provisional) will take place this year before season 6 airs. This will be the last time Miraculous will be animated in the style we've known since season 1. (No word yet on whether SAMG will continue to animate future special episodes.)

-The dubbing of this special has already been done in English.

(Remember: just because an episode has been dubbed doesn't mean it's ready for broadcast. The dubbing can be done while the animation of the episode is not yet finished).

Other specials:

-Thomas would like the next special episode to take place in Japan.

-Thomas said he had already written the Brazil special episode as well as the Bible for a spin-off. He has also written many other stories in the Miraculous universe, but for reasons unknown to him, nothing seems to be moving to adapt these stories for animation or comics. He asks fans who would like to see these projects come to reality to put pressure on ZAG. (politely, of course).

-Thomas retweeted a fan who created a petition so that the special Tibet episode could one day be made.

-He also explained one of the reasons why Miraculous could not be animated in the Ladybug PV style.

He asks fans who would like to watch Miraculous with this style of animation to petition ZAG, Mediawan or Toei.

I may do more posts like this when I have new information, if you're interested of course (I'll never share spoilers or leaks, don't worry).

[thefirstknife]

A lot of cool stuff in the stream! Highly recommend watching it. Full image of what they call the "tone of the episode" + some stuff with the potions mechanic and artifact perks (yes, there is an artifact perk called "Armor of Eramis").

Also updates to Onslaught with new maps. They showed us Widow's Court with a lot of egregore in the fog which looks nice. Also the weapon on screen is the season pass exotic, a grenade launcher with primary ammo! A lot of stasis focus in this episode.

Onslaught is also tied to the episode, as we're not going into Pyramid ships; instead we're going into some Scorn caves rescuing Eliksni prisoners! They didn't tell us much about the episode to avoid spoilers, but basically Fikrul has the Echo and he's changing his Scorn and he needs more bodies to turn into Scorn as well, which is why we're teaming up with Mithrax and Eido (with other Eliksni also teased; so far Variks is confirmed because he had a voice line at the end of the activity shown in the stream).

Artifact preview and the voice line is from Variks!

Managed to snatch this between frames, unfortunately using superblack so it's hard to see, but it's a new Warlock exotic + helmet from Revenant so for anyone wanting to cosplay Eliksni, this episode's armour will provide.

We're also getting new earnable skimmers! They're The Nine themed and will launch with Revenant; you will need 97 strange coins to buy them from Xur. They're called.... the Xurfboard. Help. The effects are animated!

They also showed us the dungeon rewards so if anyone wants to take a crack at what the dungeon might be about based on these symbols (hoodie and bracelet kinda have different aesthetics almost?), go ahead.

One more look at Festival of the Lost sets!

They also teased some sort of old Destiny activity returning in Revenant Act 2 but that's all they said so we have no idea what they're cooking.

They did a little bit about Frontiers and Apollo and showed us two early concept art images:

It's a new location and those are brand new people we've never met, they said. They specified it's a planet. Losing my mind. There's definitely a human, probably Golden Age type rocket in the first image so I'm just eating my keyboard. A lot of changes to a lot of stuff coming for Frontiers and starting the new saga for which they were very excited about.

Some highlights from the stream! I do recomment checking it out for full details and gameplay!

[yumeka-sxf]

Becky's homewrecking is one of my most favorite stand-alone chapters...and the anime version did not disappoint!

Everyone's reactions to Becky's hilarious delusions are just so perfect - Loid being baffled and totally clueless, Yor being flustered and completely misinterpreting things, while Anya just observes it all with quiet amusement.

Plus the scenes of Anya imagining Becky as her mom, and even the short sequence of showing Becky her house - gah, everything about this chapter/episode is peak SxF comedy~

Becky completely ignoring Bond...poor pup 😂

If Loid thinks he doesn't understand children based on Anya, Becky certainly did not help! (also Bond in the corner still feeling rejected)

Yor's "encounter" with the car worked much better in the anime 🤣

I honestly feel really bad for the driver!

Also this poor guy, lol. Though I'm sure the money Becky gave him was more than enough to cover repairs on the machine 🤣

I know some people found this chapter uncomfortable, but I don't get why. If Loid reciprocated Becky's feelings, then yes, that would be bad, but he doesn't. He reacts how anyone would if some delusional little kid decided they had a crush on you - by being confused (and hoping that your wife doesn't interpret it wrong!)

It's not unusual for little kids, especially little girls, to develop silly, fleeting infatuations with adults (I'm guilty of that myself when I was Becky's age, lol).

Anya's willingness (at first) to go along with Becky's delusions was fitting - she idolizes Becky's lavish lifestyle, especially the food (and since Yor's food is, well...) Plus someone at her impressionable young age can be swayed easily. But I'm sure if somehow this delusion became a reality, she'd realize that Yor is the best Mama and Becky should just be "best friend" 😅

This chapter also confirms that Yor didn't completely forget everything that happened after the bar incident. Or at least she remembered it more clearly after Loid supposedly had the conversation with her again, lol. Just shows how important his compliments are to her.

I love how the episode's key visual is a throwback to the one from episode 6! I hope we get to see more Yor/Becky interactions again.

We also got a short anime-original story featuring Fiona. Everyone was expecting chapter 60 to be adapted, but I'm kinda glad it wasn't since it and the Becky chapter seem a bit too long to share the same episode. Not a whole lot to say about this segment other than I liked how Fiona's actions mirrored the Forgers' activities on their vacation. We also got to see more of her "training" in the woods that was hinted at after her tennis match with Yor.

I liked this bear hitching a ride.

And omg, foreshadowing for chapter 67!

And it seems like the final episode of the season will adapt the 2-part story of Loid and Bond's fire rescue. I know there's a scene of Fiona in the next mission preview, but it's likely from a quick anime-only scene while the rest of the episode will adapt the two parts of chapter 62. The big indicator that this will be the only story adapted is that the next episode only has one title, "Part of the Family."

Can't believe we're just one week away from the final season 2 episode AND the CODE: White movie! Later today there's going to be a Jump Festa panel about SxF so I'm hoping there will be a season 3 announcement - stay tuned!

[thesoftboiledegg]

Rock on! 🎶🎵

After I walked around, took pictures and grabbed a gift from the Rickmobile, I decided to drive home. I'm not interested in watching the anime, so why stay for the screening?

I drove about ten minutes away, and I thought--nope, I'm going back. This is a once-in-a-lifetime event. Watching movies and TV shows is way more fun when you're in a crowd. I'm an MCU fan, so I know how it works.

Earlier that evening, people were parked in the chairs, ready for the show.

Adult Swim reminded them not to record the episode. "We shouldn't have to tell you this, but people suck."

It started raining on the drive back to the Rickmobile, but luckily, it didn't last long. Unfortunately, I arrived just in time to catch the last five minutes. Whoops.

But they announced that they'd air the episode again! I just had to kill thirty minutes.

Check out that guy's Morty mask! 👇

I was hungry, so I bought a hot dog and homemade chips from a food truck. Adult Swim blasted their Spotify playlist--with ads. Apparently, they didn't want to spring for Spotify Premium.

The crowd slowly thinned out. The Rickmobile ran out of merchandise and closed up shop.

Weird, it looks like an ice cream truck in that first photo. 🍨

Morty managed to look even more terrified in the darkness. Someone helpfully illuminated his face with a spotlight.

Before the episode began, the crew played a track that I thought was a remix of the Rick and Morty theme song, but apparently, it's a track called Birth4000 by Floating Points.

And then it was showtime!

Before the episode, Adult Swim played another reminder that this preview was "just between us" and that piracy is bad. And they weren't joking--a guy standing next to me got caught recording the episode and had to leave after deleting the video from his phone.

The episode itself was OK. I enjoyed the art, animation and theme song, but the story was hard to follow. Summer was a badass, though. I also loved getting a glimpse of the Rick with long hair. I'll admit it: I'm biased because my OC is a fellow long-haired Rick.

Thinking about it now, I wonder how many people in the crowd also had OCs or roleplayed, wrote fics, made fan art, etc. It's easy to forget that even a lot of diehard fans don't take that route. We're our own little community inside a giant fanbase.

I hope I can attend another event like this in the future. It's one thing to spot thousands of Rick and Morty fans on Twitter or Reddit, but to see how many people love the show in person? And that's just a tiny fraction of its viewership.

Here's to season eight and beyond!

[cycat4077]

Gator's room: foreshadowing & clues

I went back to take a look at the scene of Gator in his room. While the "flag", girly posters, blaring heavy metal and handcuffs were an immediate stand out to all of us, I wanted to have a look to see if there were any other clues to who Gator is.

First up, here's his room:

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT FOR EPISODES 1-8

Let's look a little closer at the obvious foreshadowing.

Based on the previews and the Instagram post from the makeup artist (along with the subtle nods to Oedipus), it appears Ole Munch is going to torture Gator. We see him holding a knife to his eyes, and in the original trailer, Gator is bloody and blindfolded while being led by a noose.

Gator's own posters, decor, and drawings seem to depict this fate.

#1 The poster immediately behind his shoulder depicts a man with no eyes - potentially gouged out.

#2 The drawing below it has the eyes blocked out in colours that suggest necrotic (dead) tissue.

#3 The animal skull on his wall obviously has no eyes.

The Oedipus parallel and removal of his peepers were foreshadowed right in Gator's room from episode 3.

Linda's fate (mommy issues)

We learned in the last episode that Linda is dead. Roy tells Dot that he can burry Dot right next to Linda. When Dot confronts Gator and tries to win him over via his mother, Gator gets visibly emotional and shaken. We see hope and heartache run through him simultaneously. I think Gator knows instinctively that his mother is dead, but some small part of him hopes she is still out there.

I also think Gator's drawings depict his mother.

#1 This drawing not only depicts a person with eyes blacked out, but the drawing is clearly of a woman - possibly a corpse. She has breasts and long hair but is drawn in purples, reds, and blues; colours that represent bruises, blood, and dying flesh.

#2 The other drawing with missing eyes is also of a woman. This drawing once again has long hair, but she is smiling.

Perhaps Gator accidentally saw his mother's dead body. He has a drawing that represents a scary corpse (reality) and one that represents an almost comical one. Maybe the smile is how he tries to remember Linda - dead but somehow still smiling for him.

Other little things

#1 Robbed of childhood innocence. Gator's room is filled with "tough boy" items: swimsuit model photos, car photos, alcohol, heavy metal posters, etc. But he also has children's toy cars. The hot rod photos are in direct contrast to the toy cars on his shelf. The boy trapped inside the man. A boy robbed of his childhood by abuse and traumatic events.

#2 Jack Skellington. I'm probably one of the only people on the planet who have not yet watched The Nightmare Before Christmas, but the Jack Skellington parallels go beyond just the mask Gator wore. To me, it looks like he also drew Jack - and yet another reference to death. The skull's mouth is sewn shut too, just like Gator is sworn to obey his father and not speak the truths about what Roy has done.

#3 Red or Blue Pill? Again, I have failed to watch yet another classic film: the Matrix. But this poster seems to be a clear reference to it, I think.

According to Google, "The red pill and blue pill represent a choice between the willingness to learn a potentially unsettling or life-changing truth by taking the red pill or remaining in the contented experience of ordinary reality with the blue pill."

And if there's anyone with the last name of Tillman who will be forced to see reality (and potentially change), it is Gator. Gator will likely be forced this "red pill" by Ole Munch, either finally seeing the reality of his father's ways, or by becoming the next sin eater.

Whatever the outcome, the poster must have some sort of meaning!

That's all for now 😊 But I really love all the subtleties in this show! It's fantastically written and acted, and Joe is doing such an exceptional job playing this mutli-layered and morally ambiguous character of Gator!

***EDIT***

A post by @familyfriendlyhoho got me thinking about the drawing on Gator's wall. I was thinking that his drawings represent his dead mother, Linda and that he may have accidentally seen her corpse. The post theorizes that:

"I feel like Gator knew Linda was dead. but worst, I feel like Roy showed it to him."

And I think that this is the most-likely scenario. Roy is sinister enough to do something like that to his own son. I can imaging Roy telling Gator to stop being a loser and become a winner and, to drive the point home, he could have led Gator to Linda's corpse warning "this is what happens to losers".

If so, Gator's drawings would depict the corpse he witnessed. Even here, before Gator gives himself the "I'm a winner" pep talk, we see him glance towards the drawing - a reminder of what happens to losers. He then feels the need to convince himself that he is not one, despite what his father says.

[themollyjay]

Watch ARK: The Animated Series!!!!

So, I binged ARK: The Animated series today. It's a TV show, which is based on a video game and not only is it great but, I swear to God, whoever wrote this set out with the intention of pissing off the Gamerbro crowd as much as humanly possible.

Stuff that will make the Gamerbros cry and whine like little babies: 01). Main Character is a Aboriginal Australian Lesbian (Voiced by an Aboriginal Australian Actress no less). 02). Main Character's wife is a blue haired women who works as a translator for a humanitarian air organization (voiced by Elliot Page). 03). Main Character is a neurodivergent paleontologist. 04). Main Character's mother was a civil rights activist. 05). There's a plot line revolving around protesting the taking of Aboriginal lands. 06). Another major character is a Chinese Warrior Woman who is also a great big lesbian (voiced my Michelle Yeoh). 07). Main villain is a Roman General (Voiced by Gerard Butler) 08). Secondary Villain is an 19th century British Scientist (Voiced by David Tenant) 09). Tertiary Villain is a female Roman Gladiator. 10). Another major character is a Lakota man from the 19th century who was abducted from his tribe and sent to one of the Indian boarding schools. 11). The Main Character is better at science than the 19th Century British Scientist guy.

Great things about the show: 01). It's very gay. Like, so gay. 02). The characters are freaking awesome. 03). There are freaking dinosaurs. So many dinosaurs. 04). It makes you feel. Just, seriously, it makes you fucking feel.

Cons: 01). Content Warning: Self Unaliving in episode 1 02). This show is fucking violent. Like, I get that there's this whole 'battle for survival' thing going on, but we're talking kind of gratuitous 03). levels of violence. Seriously, half the animation budget was spent on red paint. That much violence. 04). The show is predictable AF. Like, I don't mind that, but don't expect any real surprises or plot twists.

In conclusion: Watch the fuck out of this show, because cons aside, it was freaking amazing. It's not like, Arcane levels of perfection, but if you want a fun, gay, show to watch, this is a great choice. There is also a part too already filmed and in the can which will drop later this year, so we're definitely getting more, and even the preview for Part II has gay in it.

[chaifootsteps]

I know we've seen a lot of blatant lies from Viv before but the "glitches causing animation errors" one has me completely gagged because its so provably false by just. being any kind of video media artist.

like, yes, rendering can cause glitches. but not ones where specific tiny sections of the image have no linework or incorrect colours - that happens at the animation stage itself. rendering glitches are usually time based (the final video output randomly speeds up and slows down due to CPU/GPU overload errors) or effect based (where the preview wasn't accurate to the final output, After Effects is a bastard for this), or another issue where the output randomly flashes red which used to be common with Adobe products.

the animation errors in HB and HH are PURELY caused by crunch. due to the studio's habit of dropping the episodes the second they are "finished". no one is scrubbing through and checking for lineart errors or colouring errors because no one has time, no one is being paid enough to care, and we all know Viv doesn't give two shits.

like its so blatantly a complete lie and shows how little Viv thinks of her fans that she thinks she can get away with it. and also how little her fans actually give a shit about animation that they believe her.

Yeah, Viv's one of those people who lies blatantly and extremely poorly. She'll lie about things that she has to know she has zero chance of getting away with. I've never understood why some people do that, but she definitely does.

[da-man-si]

Some thoughts on Episode 16 of Flourished Peony:

The Aunt is a fun character and a quite determined one. So determined that she locked Mudan and Changyang in a room and decorated the room exactly how Mudan described she would like her dream man to come to her or to be exact "fly down from the sky" which is why The Aunt has Changyang wrapped in sheets and hung above the bed so Mudan can pull the rope and he would come down flying, literally. I respect her endeavors to bring her OTP together.

How does Changyang know Mudan's foot size?👀I cackled during that scene.

The whole "evil spirit" thing in this episode is the first time I am a bit disappointed with the drama. As I was telling @aysekira, When I watched the preview of today's episode and saw that woman standing outside Huamanzhou screaming about her husband, I thought she was going to slander Mudan by framing her for having an affair with her husband, a customer of the shop. However, the lady said "she brings bad luck" which is just not as scandalous or a tough thing to refute against. The public is filled with simpletons because what do you mean "she is actually a demon" like I get in those times such superstitions and con artists who used it to fraud people were rampant (to a degree, still are) but I do not buy the "my husband is sick/dead because he stepped into this shop".

Prince Ning giving a dog to Liu Father as a way of saying that the Liu family is his dog and then seeing Liu Chang's stressed/angry face was hilarious. @aysekira has made the excellent catch of how the drama shows likeness between Liu Chang and caged/domesticated animals and how Liu Chang likes these caged animals and talks to them— the rabbit, the parrot and now the dog representing the Liu Family. He is a ticking bomb waiting to explode and have a breakdown at some point down the line and I am excited for that.

[codegeassfacts]

Okhawa Nanase (From Clamp) x Taniguchi Gorou interview From Newtype About the Character designs of Code Geass (Season 1)

There were seemingly Okhawa-san designs appearing on the magazine to illustrate the interview but I was unable to find the source or the againe, so i'll illustrate this interview with Mokona Apapa's final Geass designs **Will indicate Celiss (still the translator)'s personal note "...." Will mean those are direct quote she didn't rephrase.

*******************

Suzaku originally had a "sharper” look to him. Ookawa : “Originally I imagined him as having Chinese-like, sharp, single-eyelid eyes.” Taniguchi : “In order to have Lelouch stand out more, I had this design changed to a softer, rounder image.”

On the early design for Lelouch (white hair) Ookawa : “I imagined Lelouch as someone everyone will find to be "cool”; a beauty, to put it simply.“ Taniguchi : "We talked about Tackey & Tsubasa as well as early Kinki Kids.” (Popular Johnny’s idols in Japan)

Ookawa attended the Episode 1 sneak preview / test screening; according to her, a large number of reporters and other mass media-related personnel showed up as well because of the pre-show hype. When the 1st episode ended, the room went dead silent. With the fast-moving plot and the episode ending with Lelouch going “Die, all of you” as he Geasses the soldiers into killing themselves, everyone was left speechless. However, the momentary silence was later broken by tremendous applause. Taniguchi himself wasn’t at the screening, but he heard about what happened as well.

How did CLAMP come to be part of the Code Geass project? Producer Kawaguchi was the one who wrote to them first. That was the first time CLAMP heard from him, and also the first time they received a request to design characters for an anime. The members only met the director more than a year later; They were already on board the project when the characters and world view were nothing more than a vague concept. CLAMP offered some “interesting ideas” and these helped shape the world of Code Geass.

The character illustrations shown on the page (not the ones i'm using there) are preliminary designs; When these were first drawn Code Geass wasn’t about a war with an Empire but something different. Taniguchi said “We’re making a hit show”, and wanted to create a show which appealed to everyone. They ended up using the Johnny’s artistes (Tackey & Tsubasa; early Kinki Kids) as a sort of model for the characters (**probably for Lelouch; those Johnny’s artistes are usually thought of as “Prince” types, especially early Domoto Kouichi of Kinki Kids)

The character “Zero” was decided from early on, and is one of the characters left unchanged even when they adjusted the story. CLAMP members call Zero’s mask “Tulip” (because of it’s appearance) They wanted to create a mask never seen before in previous Sunrise shows. They were told to create a mask showing only one eye, and there were two possibilities for that, the other being the masks used in palaces (**…which kind of palace? Asian or Western? I'd say Western) Taniguchi : “When I saw Zero’s mask, my thought processes all came to a halt (laugh) It was extremely simple yet had impact.” The biggest merit of having CLAMP do the designs is that, according to Taniguchi, they can come up with things normal animator-turned-designers can’t. The clothes, for example, may seem impossible (**coughZeroandC.C.‘scostumescough*), but CLAMP still went ahead with them anyway with the simple reasoning that : “These are better!”

How did the designing process work? CLAMP members drew a certain number of illustrations, handed them to Taniguchi and he would later return it to them with his own comments. The designs would be changed according to his wishes and the cycle repeated. The comments ranged from “I want you to redraw just this part” to “I want you to add this part of the character with this part of that character and come up with a new character.” Taniguchi pretty much gave CLAMP free reign over the designs, telling them not to worry about what the CG world was like, and because of that they came up with all kinds of variations, from SF to Classical, for things like the military uniforms. There were altogether some 40 ~ 50 designs; C.C. also had traditional Japanese clothes as well as Western Barbie-style clothes. (**Now we know why C.C. cosplays so much. Taniguchi probably included them because he thought it would be a waste not to…) ***It's also interesting to note C.C.'s royal gown which appeared in the Mutuality artbook wasn't a command from the staff, Clamp made this one of their own, C.C. really was their favorite doll to dress.

Ookawa : “Taniguchi doesn’t like girls with big breasts.” (**This is true; Taniguchi is famous for being anti-fanservice. He supposedly hates “jiggling chests” the most, but it seems that since GunxSword he’s had to compromise on this area because frankly, sex sells) Ookawa : “Even though I drew all kinds of female figures and body shapes, only the flat-chested designs were returned.” (The unreturned designs = No Good) Taniguchi: “It’s not that those aren’t allowed (laugh) It’s just that when you transfer them on to the screen it usually ends up even more exaggerated, so I wanted to keep the original designs under control, at least.”

Taniguchi also likes having characters who have something different on one side of their bodies (**the “unbalanced” balance) Lelouch has one red eye, for example; Villetta’s and Jeremiah’s hairstyles also fall under this category. Taniguchi : “I like it. It’s sexy, don’t you think?” Ookawa : “You like characters with sex appeal, huh.” Taniguchi : “Sex appeal is important. CLAMP’s characters are all sexy. That’s another reason why we decided to request designs from you.”

Before doing the character designs, KimuTaka (Takahiro Kimura the other character designer of the Geass anime) spent every day copying CLAMP’s art from their artbooks and manga. After analyzing CLAMP’s art to his best ability, he then started on the character designs. He did his best to design them in a way so that the other animators would be able to draw them without deviating from CLAMP’s original artstyle.

According to Ookawa, Schneizel was designed with “Lelouch’s arch nemesis” in mind. The most time was spent on his design. Taniguchi wanted someone who could appear either good or bad and had a large sense of scale (**2 meters… okay so he probably wasn’t referring to height, but still)

Lloyd is the professor-type CLAMP is good at (**Ookawa’s own confession), but originally he wasn’t supposed to be that much of a mad scientist. It happened mostly because of Shiratori Tetsu’s acting (**In the audio commentary for episode 1 Taniguchi mentions that he gave Shiratori free reign over Lloyd’s character) Ookawa was surprised when Lloyd turned out the way he did.

Which characters do the CLAMP members like? Mokona (**she did the final character original art you can see on this post ) liked Clovis, so when she saw that he was offed after only 2 episodes she was really depressed. According to Ookawa, Clovis was killed off a lot earlier than originally planned. Taniguchi apologizes for this, and then remarks that Jeremiah, on the other hand, has survived longer than originally planned. (**The power of 2ch, indeed, as he was really popular in there and within the staff)

Taniguchi: “If you rewatch the first half of the show after watching episode 23, you might discover new things you didn’t see before.” He refuses to say what these things are, saying that this is an enjoyment exclusive to viewers who noticed themselves. (** He is talking about season 1)

Okouchi was the one who insisted that a mask was necessary in order for it to be a Sunrise anime.

Ookawa : “Director Taniguchi is someone who makes it clear what his likes and dislikes are, and this really helped our work. I like Cornelia, and I hope she can be happy.” (**I’m sure she’ll get along well with Fu-kuyama, that crazy Cornelia fan)

Ookawa seems to be a Lelouch fan. She says that she worries whenever Lelouch does something stupid or uses the Geass in a wasteful manner.

Translation By Celiss Galvea. Hope you enjoyed.

[rwbyrg]

What Inspired the Fairytale: Warrior in the Woods as a Rosegarden Allusion

I've broken down Ruby as Little Red Riding Hood, and Oscar as the Little Prince, now I want to analyze the two of them within a canon fable. The very first story within RWBY: Fairytales of Remnant: The Warrior in the Woods.

For those who are unfamiliar with it, I will summarize, or you can read it in the official free preview of the book here. One disclaimer before I get started: I'm not speaking about the animated adaptation here. Something Oz mentions in his fore/afterward of the book is that fairytales often shift and change depending on who it is that's telling the story. The book itself seems to aim to tell the most objective version as possible, whereas in the episode of FToR, it's very clear Tai's experiences and biases greatly influences the way he tells the story. With that out of the way...

The story is about a boy who lives in a village surrounded by a forest that is said to protect its residents from Grimm. One day, the boy ventures into the wood further than anyone would think to look for him. There he is attacked by a monster, the first he has ever seen... Only to be saved at the last minute by a cloaked warrior carrying a curved weapon. He thanks her and asks for her name, but she tells him to leave and not return. He doesn't listen. Every year since the day of their first meeting, he ventures further into the wood hoping he will meet his saviour again. And every time, he is proven right when she shows up and saves him at the last minute. Each year, the boy grows older and wiser, training himself how to fight, bringing the woman gifts as thanks for protecting the village alone and without appreciation all these years. Until one day, the village is attacked by Grimm for the first time in ages. On their next planned meeting, the boy - now a man - fights his entire way through the forest to the hut where she lives, and finds it torn apart and empty. He returns home and tells the villagers her story having taken up the mantle of protecting his people in her place. When asked if he kept going back to see her just because she saved him, he replies (paraphrased): "For that reason, and many more. But I believe she knew the deepest reason of all. I fell in love with her the moment I saw her silver eyes."

Even the summary alone paints a picture very reminiscent of Ruby and Oscar's paired arc throughout the show thus far, but I want to break it down even further. First things first:

The Warrior

She is described as "a fair woman in a flowing (threadbare and tattered) black cape" with a "curved blade" she can spin so quickly it "blurs". Her hair is "almost as dark as the Grimm's, white (ones) standing out as brightly as bone", and in the boy's eyes the first time he sees her, remarks that she is "beautiful and fierce". We know by the end of the story, as well as one of the Grimm fights, that she has silver eyes as well and she tells the boy at one point that she fights alone because she is alone, since all the people like her were killed by other humans. This lines up well with how Silver Eyed Warriors have been hunted by Salem and her forces for generations.

When we compare this to Ruby when Oscar first meets her, it hits all the same marks. He is captivated by her silver eyes the moment he first meets her:

She is fair skinned with black hair (if you include the books illustrations, with a reddish tint), has silver eyes, and a torn and tattered cloak.

There is a point at which the woman also ties a red ribbon around her weapon's handle to hold it in place, which immediately acts as a tie in to Ruby's colour scheme.

Lastly, the boy meets the warrior for the first time in a "moonlit clearing". And we all know how much moon imagery Ruby has associated with her by now, that I really don't have to go over it again.

The Village Boy

There are no photos or descriptions of him within the text, just that he is a boy when we first meet him and is a man by the end of the story after visiting the woman annually 4-5 times. So he is roughly 14, aka the same age as Oscar, for both their first appearances.

What we do know about the boy, is shown in the objects he carries for himself and the gifts he imparts onto the woman in the woods.

The first is a parcel of clothing. It includes some blouses, leggings, a black skirt, some boots... and a new hooded green cloak. Ruby's cloak is red, but as we know both in show with ships like Bumbleby, and thanks to Eddy's bit of trivia in that Reddit AMA a while ago, that wearing the colours of people you care for is a common sign of affection within Remnant. Within this story, the woman dons a cloak in a green colour (something heavily associated with Oscar Pine), whereas within RWBY in V6, it is Oscar who dons Ruby's colour on his shoulders in his outfit upgrade.

The second is the sword the boy forges for himself before their third meeting. It is described as long and thin which immediately calls to mind The Long Memory.

From there, the next gift: a bag full of food.

"She opened the bag and pulled out parcel after parcel. There was honey cake, a strawberry tart, and sweet biscuits. When she unwrapped a stack of fresh-baked cookies, her expression lightened, and her happiness made him happy."

The first bolded example: strawberries are cited by Monty as Ruby's favourite food, and as we know by Ruby's first meeting with Ozpin (which is important given his connection to Oscar), she's a big fan of cookies too.

Now that all the aesthetics and symbolism are out of the way, I want to compare the structure of the two stories.

Separation and Reunions

The Warrior in the Woods, as well as Ruby and Oscar's arc throughout the show (as well as The Little Prince) are stories of absences.

The boy starts his tale without the woman in his live for many years before he meets her. When they do meet, it is for only a moment within a day until they must wait another full year before seeing each other again. When they do meet, at least the first 3 times, the warrior saves him from Grimm attacks. Then, at the 4th time, he runs into no obstacles and is able to sit and talk with her without incident, only for her to disappear shortly before their 5th visit, leaving him to take up her job of protecting the village.

Ruby spends the first 4 volumes of the show not knowing Oscar, but when they meet he, just like the village boy, is in awe of her silver eyes. From there, she saves him from Grimm twice (I imagine we are holding out on the third where she saves him with her silver eyes for a volume we haven't received yet)...

...and they are faced with constant separations and reunions thereafter.

Oscar goes missing in V6E8 only to be reunited with everyone in V6E9...

2. They are separated for much of V7 due to disagreements and other external circumstance, only to reunite and make up in V7E9...

3. They are then immediately split up again, one going down to Mantle and the other staying in Atlas, only to reunited at the beginning of V8E1 (suspiciously after Oscar stares into a fire much like the boy at the end of the story).

4. It is short lived before they split up on different teams AGAIN, which leads to another reunion in V8E10...

5. Only to - you guess it - be separated one more time when Ruby falls into a void, leaving Oscar to think that she died and take charge as the new leader carrying her responsibilities in her place.

Which follows the structure of the original fairytale - at least in numbers - down to the letter.

Beyond that structure, there is also the matter of what both relationships are built upon: the act of taking care of one another.

In the book, the woman explains that she protects the villagers "because she can, because no one else will, and because some people are good, like the village boy, and that gives her hope".

This heavy responsibility the warrior carries is very reminiscent of Ruby's character arc. A leader who feels she can't be a failure, who can't rely on her friends and teammates to share how much this all weighs on her, someone that lost all her silver eyed family and fears for her own fate because of a trait she had no control over. Even going so far as to try and push people away for fear they will end up hurt because of her. Someone that "remembers all the people she saved, and all the ones she didn't".

This is juxtaposed by a boy who was sheltered and safe, far from the dangers of the world, but set out and joined hers anyway. And when he did, he brought her new clothes, a new weapon, some food, and an ear she could tell her stories to. When he explains his motives, he says:

"You've spent all these years looking after us. I thought maybe it would be nice if someone looked after you for a change. Because that's what I can do. Because no one else will."

Which ties into Oscar's character exactly as well. After his conversation with Ruby in V5 about how scary all of this is, his first thought after saying she's amazing, is to acknowledge how hard this must be on her. And from then on out we see him looking after her to the best of his ability, despite his inexperience, time and time again. Protecting her when she's hurt, standing up for her when their friends fight, and baking her a casserole after she's had a tough day.

All of these things tie into what Ozpin cites as the main message of the fairytale in his notes at the end of its chapter:

It is often used as a cautionary tale, intended to discourage children from wandering too far from home on their own, or from relying too much on others to save them. But the most enduring, and I think the most inspiring, aspect of this story is one which many have taken to heart: If you can help others, it is your responsibility to do so. Whether that means fighting evil singlehandedly, or baking cookies (for kindness can be as rare as silver eyes) is up to the reader to decide for themselves. From each according to their own abilities.

Ruby and Oscar are two characters driven by their responsibilities to do something about all the bad in the world, in whatever ways they are able, before they run out of time. While Ruby's main allusion is Little Red and Oscar's is the Little Prince, I think it's really inspiring to see a canon fairytale within RWBY's own universe that relates to their story so well as this one.

[emotionallychargedtowel]

I noticed something exciting while watching Minato’s Laundromat episode 4!

So, at the end of the episode, Minato saw Shin from across the way and started to call out to him, but stopped when he saw him having an animated interaction with another dude.

It’s basically impossible to recognize this actor from this blurry snippet. But we get a much better look immediately in the episode 5 preview. Apparently he’s some kind of instructor, possibly a professor, seemingly from Shin’s university, named Kirihara. He seems to have a particularly close—and, uh, physically demonstrative—relationship with Shin, and Minato is clearly concerned. Seems the jealousy theme already developing in season 2 is intensifying.

But the really interesting part (to fans of a certain actor, at least) is who’s playing this apparent rival. He's an all-time favorite of mine.

Got it yet?

How about now?

Or now?

(Uh oh, he's not only hugging Shin, he's doing the ol' back-of-the-head grab. I don't think this is one of those benign misunderstanding situations. )

It's Takeda Kouhei! Also known as Nozue from Old Fashion Cupcake...

and Kazumin (my beloved)/Kamen Rider Grease from Kamen Rider Build, and as Kurenai Otoya in Kamen Rider Kiva.

I think they're being intentionally mysterious here. Takeda usually posts on instagram about roles before shows air/movies are released, and the Minato's Laundromat account similarly tends to show behind-the-scenes material for upcoming episodes right around when a current one airs. Takeda also isn't listed on MDL for this role. So it does seem like they're being a little cagey for now--though that could end now that the preview's been shown.

I'm SO psyched, y'all.

The ever-observant @bengiyo pointed out that this is continuing a bit of a trend of veterans of prior BLs playing romantic rivals in newer series. We saw Izuka Kenta from The Novelist/The Pornographer playing this type of role in Candy Color Paradox and someone from Life: Love on the Line doing the same in Kieta Hatsukoi (I haven't seen LLotL and couldn't immediately tell from perusing cast lists who this was).

I like this trend! So many opportunities for intertextual commentary. I'm always excited for more connections between the BL and tokusatsu worlds, too. Really looking forward to seeing more in episode 5.

[ecargmura]

Wonderful Precure Episode 48 Review - The Wolf Pack

This review contains major spoilers--read at your own risk.

I can’t believe I guessed the twist right. It does make sense, though, given that he stands up on two legs despite being a wolf and his mouth doesn’t move. Subaru’s revenge was for the wolf friends he lost due to humans and that he wanted to live with the wolves, but lost his chance when humans started hunting them down. His idea of revenge is to terraform Animal Town into a giant forest and he probably did succeed. It’s crazy how the scenery changed in just one episode.

Despite all the twists and reveals, I still don’t get how Subaru died. Did he die with the wolves or something? Like how did his spirit manifest and manage to merge with what’s supposedly Gaou’s fang? Will that be explained in the next episode? His revenge feels more like a personal vendetta against humans—he’s a hater of his own kind in a way.

Regarding Zakuro, it seemed that she already knew Subaru was Gaou and that the one she loves was actually Subaru who took on Gaou’s name. Though, it does seem that Gaou does like Zakuro, but not romantically. He did talk gently with her and did not get rid of her when she failed. Too bad he’s too focused on revenge to be even thinking about a happy future. Zakuro is fully on the Precure’s side now as she wants to stop Gaou. The way Friendy and Wonderful were hugging her were so adorable. Though, if she loved Subaru all this time, why did she have some sort of ‘thing’ for Satoru back in Episode 35?

The fight with the many GaoGaon wolves was cool. It was nice seeing them use various Kirarin Animal techniques. Poor Kirarin Rabbit, Hamster and Panda—ya’ll are the least used animals of the nine. I did like the creativity especially with how Tire Komugi made her grand return and how Lillian used Lillian Net to trap all of them and flip the tire over so they’re all trapped in the enclosure.

It did feel like Niko was used as a punching bag here, but it was nice to see her actually care about Mey Mey when he decides to go rescue the cat stuck in the tree. I wonder if Niko will try to get the wolves to live in Niko Garden at the end because it’s a paradise where even extinct animals live in.

I wonder how the Precures will stop Gaou’s plans as they’re all trapped. The preview for the next episode shows that the Precures are trapped in the tree while Satoru seems to be safe due to jumping into Niko’s magical portal with Mey Mey at the last minute. There’s speculation that Daifuku and Satoru might transform because the former was staring at a piece of the Mirror Stone. Oh gosh, since these trees are life energy suckers and that Satoru, Daifuku, Niko and Mey Mey are the only ones safe, it could be a good segue to introduce last-minute saviors to rescue the Precures, even if the transformation is brief. It’d be lovely to finally get human Daifuku because it’s definitely a waste to keep him movie-exclusive. I can’t wait for next week! What are your thoughts on this episode?

[disneytva]

20th Television Animation Brings Animation To San Diego Comic-Con 2024

Animation fans will have a lot to keep them busy and entertained at this year’s Comic-Con. Disney just announced its plans for its Hulu and 20th Television Animation festivities and panels set for the San Diego.

Friday, July 26

Solar Opposites, 2:00-2:45 p.m., Indigo Room. The popular animated series returns to San Diego Comic-Con ahead of a new season packed with new family values, mayhem in the Wall and some all-new Silvercops adventures. Join executive producers Mike McMahan and Josh Bycel, and cast Thomas Middleditch (Terry), Mary Mack (Jesse) and Sean Giambrone (Yumyulack) for an advance screening of a never-before-seen episode, and a discussion of the hilarious and out-of-this-world upcoming fifth season premiering Aug. 12 on Hulu.

The Great North, 3:00- 3:45 p.m., Indigo Room. Embark on an exhilarating journey to Lone Moose at Comic-Con. Catch an exclusive look behind the scenes of this animated comedy series that follows the quirky Tobin family as they navigate life together. Get to know the creative minds behind the series including creators and executive producers Wendy Molyneaux, Lizzie Molyneaux-Logelin, Loren Bouchard and the voices behind the Tobin family including Jenny Slate, Dulcé Sloan, Paul Rust and Aparna Nancherla to gain fascinating insights into the production of the show, its unique setting, and the colorful characters that inhabit the world of the Tobin family.

Bob’s Burgers,  4:00-4:45 p.m., Indigo Room. Join the Belcher family and the creative minds behind Bob’s Burgers for a can’t-miss panel. Creator and executive producer Loren Bouchard, executive producers Nora Smith, Holly Schlesinger and supervising director Bernard Derriman will break news about the upcoming season. The cast including H. Jon Benjamin, John Roberts, Kristen Schaal, Eugene Mirman, Dan Mintz and Larry Murphy will have the audience howling with laughter through exclusive sneak peeks, a lively panel discussion and Q&A.

Saturday, July 27

Futurama, 11:00-11:45 a.m., Ballroom 20. Neither snow nor rain nor cancellations nor pandemics nor Hollywood strikes can keep Futurama from blasting back into existence. Please join Matt Groening, David X. Cohen, Claudia Katz and “Futurama” superstars Billy West, John DiMaggio, Lauren Tom, Phil LaMarr, David Herman and Maurice LaMarche for a live sneak preview of the all-new season premiering July 29 on Hulu. They promise to spill the maximum legal dose of spoilers. Plus, there is the chance to walk away with debatably precious door prizes!

The Simpsons, 12:00-12:45 p.m., Ballroom 20. Show creators give an exclusive spooky sneak preview of “Treehouse of Horror 35” – the scariest 35th Halloween Special ever. Join panelists Matt Groening, Matt Selman, Rob LaZebnik, Tim Bailey, along with special guest moderator Kevin Smith and surprise terrifying guests for original drawings, prizes and more.

American Dad! 1:00-1:45 p.m., Ballroom 20.  Celebrate the enduring success of the show at Comic-Con with hilarity, hijinks and heartfelt moments. Dive into the quirky world of the Smith family and their eccentric friends and foes as this beloved animated series celebrates its ongoing success with stars Wendy Schaal, Scott Grimes, Rachael MacFarlane, Dee Bradley Baker, Jeff Fischer, and executive producers Matt Weitzman, Kara Vallow and Nic Wegener.

Family Guy 2:00-2:45 p.m., Ballroom 20.  It’s time to look back at 25 years of laughter, satire and iconic moments with the long-running show at this must-attend Comic-Con panel. This milestone event will bring together fans, the iconic cast including Alex Borstein, Seth Green, Jennifer Tilly, Gary Cole and Mike Henry, and executive producers Rich Appel, Alec Sulkin, Steve Callaghan and Kara Vallow to honor a quarter-century of hilarity, irreverence and unforgettable moments in Quahog. Whether a long-time fan or new to the Griffin family’s antics, this is the ultimate event to honor one of television’s most beloved and enduring animated series.