#'but I could wait until there's more episodes so I'd have more material to work with' I suggested

[usodeshou]

My School Prince President - Ten Minutes Ago Music from Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella (1997)

My brain attacked me this morning yesterday (uploading this was an odyssey 🙈) with the revelation that the music in the dancing scene gives me similar vibes as this song and I kept wondering what would happen if the two were put together.

Shockingly, this is how I ended up spending the rest of the day listening to the movie soundtrack and editing this into a thing lol The deed is done now, I may finally rest 😌

[genericpuff]

in reference to the have you read LO poll by god have I tried but god. God...

A vicious cycle. I go okay I really do need to plow through more of it if I'm gonna hang around the ULO reddit, and then I step on the comically placed rake. I can't do a complete skip thing bc I'll be too disorientated on where I'm at in the plot but my brain only tolerates it up until she declares she's missing her dick appointment and like, girl. Please. You committed mass murder (if not genocide) and this is a slap on the wrist considering, let alone that your moms got the worse end of the deal.

Why it's that specific moment idk but the bottom just drops out for me and it's soooo fucking stupid because like, she couldn't have just... bitched about being stuck with hard labor? That's the bitchy shit I'd sort of expect from a privileged nepo baby and even barring the twue wuv story going on it's her actual biggest issue going on right then. What she's presently living out. But yeah no, horny, we gotta establish that she's horny. Okay.

Sorry about the borderline vent over it there's just enough really interesting thoughts mixed up in the pile of flaming garbage to make one go rabid if they stew on it, and you clearly get that given the rewrite. Have a good day.

omg i've had that exact sort of thing happen with me before too tho, not in quite the exact same sense of like, "wanting to take part in a community but struggling to get through the source material it's based on", but there are like, so many webtoons and manga and stories I've tried to read - after being urged to by pals and people who read them - that I've dropped after multiple attempts of trying to read them. And they're not necessarily dumpster fires like LO (though some of them definitely aren't great) it's more like I'm sitting there wondering "when's this gonna get good? when's this gonna be worth all the hype?" Tower of God is the biggest one that comes to mind, I have tried to read that webtoon on SEVERAL occasions and I just can't justify trudging through all those early episodes for it to maybe "get good". And that's not even me saying it's bad, it's just not interesting to me in the slightest. No hate to anyone who likes ToG, I think I've also sorta drifted away from shonen over the years so that's definitely not helping, but I just can't be bothered to try and read that webtoon anymore, I've given it so many attempts and I'm doing lmao Kudos to the creator though because it's a LOT of work to make a webtoon of that length and they should be proud of that.

Back on the topic of LO though, yeah, I was following the comic when that episode was still brand new and it really made us all go 🤨 because of how out-of-pocket it was. And then like an episode (or two?) later she bullied a former classmate of hers from 10 years ago at his job. That was the precedent for Persephone's character that was set for the third season of LO and it's just gotten worse as it's gone on.

Either way, if I'm being honest, you're really not missing much by skipping over the majority of S3 (like, if you made it to the dick appointment episode before giving up then you're already pretty close to the current point in the story). Like I'm not gonna lie, you could easily skip up to the midseason cutoff point because everything leading up to that is just a bunch of nothing. Hades and Persephone get married and it's the most underwhelming scene ever despite it being the moment people had been waiting years for, also they 'adopt' Dionysus but he's barely in the comic except for when Rachel remembers he's a character so you could also get by on minimal details. Oh yeah, and it turns out Demeter had a kid during the 10 year time skip who we see in like two episodes and then proceeds to get fridged forever.

So yeah, as much as I'd recommend people read LO as a sort of "entry ticket" into the crit community surrounding it, S3 is a lot of nothing and you would frankly not miss out on a thing if you skimmed it or skipped the middle portion of it entirely lmao

[horrorhot-line]

howdy! I'm planning to write a saiki x reader myself, and I wanted to ask if it's ok that I take inspiration from saiki and Readers dynamic in your strangers to friends series? I plan to credit you of course! But I just wanted to check just I'm case you're uncomfortable.

While I'm here, can I also ask if you have any tips on how to write Saiki? Thank you for your work, and please don't feel obligated to ans. Take care and have a great day/night!

hiii of course you can and thank you so much for asking i adore you

consume as much material as you can, watch saiki k again, focus on how he interacts with others and try to stay true to his character. saiki is a quiet and reserved character at base level, he prefers situations that require the least amount of effort from his side, but if anyone were to help him he'd feel indebted and he hates that so i'd say keep it in mind. he is on the quiet side, but if anyone knows him properly then he's more snarky and sarcastic but also pretty informal if that makes sense. best tip i can give is research the heck out of the fandom you're writing for, confusing canon can take away from your story's quality. i had to watch saiki k 3-4 times until i decided to write, and when it came to a certain episode i'd pull it up on a tab so i could stay as close to the anime while i was writing scenes. also don't give yourself a deadline, work at your own pace.

also for writing in general, maybe you won't struggle with it but writers block is the worst, so try reading fanfic, maybe about the character or anything that you think is super good, for me watching edits for some reason gives me inspo so there's that, if music is your go to for when you're writing like me check out my playlist or use music that has no lyrics cause it can get distracting some times, but the most important thing is when you don't feel like writing, give yourself permission to write garbage, your draft will not be perfect and you'll probably edit a few times so give yourself permission (not my words, it's from this video that helps cure writers block)

also, please beta read your work, the mistakes in your fanfic might stop your readers from enjoying it because it distracts them (i could be wrong so don't feel pressured, it's just a personal preference more than anything when it comes to a fanfic, the grammar has to be semi decent for me to be able to read) when you reread and give your best work to the reader, they appreciate it more imo.

i hope this helps, thank you for the ask and the compliments, and i can't wait to read and support your work <333

[tacomasterstudios]

FAN TETOCU EPISODE #1 - The Egregious Wackiness of Eliza Whizbang

Do you remember when The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants tried to discuss feminist issues? And how bad it was at it? Remember how the Vimpire episode tried to tackle female representation in media with all the subtlety, tact, and cleverness of a brick to the face? How George and Harold randomly became sexist for the purposes of the plot? Remember how the Barfilisk episode had Erica get mad at George for "boysplaining" in a moment that comes out of nowhere and has nothing to do with anything? Yeah... one of the show's many, MANY problems.

Luckily, I've been thinking of several ways to fix this show, and among this is several new episode ideas. So, I thought I'd take the opportunity to introduce one of these episodes here. This one is specifically a way for Captain Underpants to tackle feminist issues while actually fitting with the established characters and plot. And it's even an episode where Erica Wang, the show's favorite feminist, makes a major appearance!

The episode begins with George and Harold on the tour of the legendary Whizbang Novelty Company, top of the line in prank materials. But when they get to the part of their supposed "founder" Woodrow Whizbang, Erica heckles the tour guide about how he's not the "real" founder. The tour guide tries to remain civil until Erica brings up "Eliza", which gets her kicked out (as well as George and Harold when they ask who Eliza is).

Back in the treehouse, Erica relays the story of Eliza Whizbang, a pranking genius and the REAL founder of the Whizbang company, and how her envious brother Woodrow stole all the credit for her hard work. Tragically, he got away with it and everyone believed HE was the prank genius, because back then, nobody believed a woman could accomplish anything. Furious at this injustice, George and Harold steal Melvin's Time Toad (again) and go back in time to make sure Eliza gets the recognition she deserves. And Erica, wanting to see an influential woman get the recognition she rightfully deserves (and also sick of being the serious one all the time), tags along- and uses Melvin's crush on her to their advantage, with Melvin willing to let Erica and the boys use the Time Toad because she's Erica and Melvin has a crush on her.

When they go back in time, the trio find Eliza upset about her brother taking all the credit for her hard work. Erica gives her a pep talk, and George and Harold create a comic showing how her achievements have inspired them over the years- even showing off their own, even bigger pranks. But it all goes awry when Eliza's newfound desire to be recognized, inspired by Erica's words as well as George and Harold's pranks, results in her own pranks getting bigger and bigger, culminating in her going crazy and embarking on a prank rampage.

With Mr. Krupp still in the present, how can Captain Underpants save the day? Luckily, our heroes quickly come up with an answer. George still has his Hypno-Ring, and wandering the streets is a portly, crabby gentleman who looks kind of like Mr. Krupp. (Possibly an ancestor?) So, they hypnotize him into becoming Captain Underpants (and hypnotize away all his more... antequated notions in the process). And for the super powers, they obviously give him Super Power Juice to drink.

Wait, Super Power Juice? That's right, one of Eliza's latest creations turns out to be Super Power Juice- which she's sprayed herself with from a seltzer bottle, thus giving HER super powers! A climactic showdown ensues (in silent film-style Silent-O-Rama, because actions speak louder than words), and eventually Eliza is defeated and humbled back to normal. But even after the battle, our heroes have to admit, Eliza's pranks were the best of the best, which Eliza herself is grateful for. Unfortunately, because antequated notions still abound, Woodrow still ends up getting the credit for all of Eliza's creations- but Eliza is far from bitter, thanks to the knowledge that her work will be appreciated in the future.

When our heroes go back to the present, they embark on a boycott/protest of Whizbang Novelty Company, because they don't support companies who ignore the acknowledgements of women... or lie about their history. And this movement slowly but steadily gains a following as George, Harold, and Erica work to bring to light the legacy of Eliza Whizbang.

The feminist issue of choice in this episode is cryptogyny, or the Matilda effect as it's called when referred to scientific achievements- the hiding the achievements of women throughout history, a problem that has unfortunately persisted thoughout the ages (and hasn't even gotten a name until 2020). James Watson and Francis Crick took credit for Rosalind Franklin's discovery of the DNA double helix, Isaac K. Shero stole the idea for the modern day curling iron from Ada Harris, and there's evidence that the "author" of the Great Gatsby really plagarized the book from his wife Zelda. I felt that, if Captain Underpants had to tackle feminist subject matter, this would be the most in-character way to do it, with George and Harold discovering an important female prankster silenced by history and doing their best to make sure she's recognized for her awesomeness.

(Although I guess addressing the lack of "strong female characters" in media would make sense by using George and Harold's comics... if you ignore Sarah Hatoff from Dog Man... or Great Granny Girdle, from the Purple Potty People book... or The Amazing Cow Lady, mentioned as one of George and Harold's earliest superheroes in the VERY FIRST CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS BOOK...)

[mdhwrites]

Since you started Arcane I gotta ask. I think you mentioned about Powder not reacting accordingly to her family death from the bomb... on that scene she was sorry to Vi she messed up not that she killed their father basically. Vi reacted "normally" but Powder didn't show any remorse.

Do you think she became numb to "death" since she witnessed it from a young age with her parents on the bridge? Vi was a bit older so maybe she conceptualized it already. Since then it's clear they faced death many times around, Zaun is harsh environment/upbringing after all, what's horrible to us is average there. I think she may have became a sociopath from it. Vi as well to an extent but only to strangers, death of close ones will still affect her, Jinx cares if only Vi dies tho (well not just her. Actually I'd add more to that but it'll be spoilers until u finish so I'll wait)

So first: I won't be finishing Arcane. That sucks but at least until I can bury my own trauma from my brother, I just can't have that casting a shadow over it. It'll make it hard for me to enjoy any of it, let alone review it properly.

However, I actually want to rebuff this analysis of how Powder reacts and try and be a bit fairer myself. First: She does technically react to her father's death but she never apologizes. She instead acts like a small, frightened child. She starts shutting down, wanting to be assured things will be okay. That things are okay. It's a very classic response to this sort of trauma, not helped by the fact that, as someone else pointed out, Vi had taught her to react to things with violence but now violence was getting her in trouble.

That is the counterpoint though, isn't it? Milo says in the first episode that Vi was twice the person Powder was and I kind of have to wonder if that meant she actually, you know... Was a member of Zaun. Was a member of the violence and trouble. Even worse when you remember that while they're young, Powder still looks at least 5 during the battle at the bridge that claimed their parents. That KILLED their PARENTS. And she isn't breaking down or running from the scary man who just murdered an enforcer in that scene.

And the rest of the first three episodes are warring with itself over how to write Powder. Is she a ruthless child of Zaun, out for blood and to make a name for herself? The sort that would have absolutely godlike aim even at her age, at the point where she can far surpass others who are years older than her with ease? All while having a cold, expressionless face until she's done with her task? Or is she the innocent? The one who can only run and who seems damn near traumatized by the sight of just a street brawl happening in front of her? The noise fades out and echoes while things go into more slow mo like most media does to show something horrifying, which the street fight in episode 1 seems to supposed to be for Powder, but like... Is that REALLY the first street fight she's seen? Milo even says she needs to take a punch like she's literally never been hit, which does have the horror of Vi being the first person to hit her but this is the same person who made an explosive monkey filled with a material she knew could do some REAL damage to people and property.

It's still done well enough that Powder isn't awful. The pain of the last scenes of episode 3 are still mostly earned and I even admitted in my original review that I had to recognize that I had a problem due to personal elements. After all, characters can be multifaceted, have different sides to them, etc. like that... But that works a lot better for adults like Vander who have had the life experience to turn one side on and one side off. Even then, you still see a core of a person in there.

Meanwhile, Powder is fighting between the innocent little girl who's meant to die and her champion form, Jinx, and those parts to me are just a bit too incongruous. A little too at odds without a bit more smoothing out. It's SO close to being right though that I do want to cut it more slack than I originally did.

[masterskywalkers]

Y'know, I'm not actually sure how I feel about the twist / ending in Doctor Who? I'm going to have to sit on it for a while - because I'm certain RTD has plans for this - but right now I'm just a bit 🤨 Cut for spoiler talk;

So I was mostly excited about this episode because I wanted to see Tennant's Doctor go up against the Toymaker (NPH was just an added bonus in the role) and for the most part the Toymaker did not disappoint. NPH did an incredible job with the character and the chaotic fey-like quality that character brings. I think the last time I felt truly uncomfortable in a DW episode was Don't Blink back when it first aired, but the dolls in this episode really gave me that 'oh shit, I do not like this it's creepy' energy. I'd rank that part of the character up there on my favorite interpretations in New Who next to Capaldi's classic Cyberman episode.

... But the Toymaker is undefeatable. He is a celestial fiend, a being of cosmic power. You don't defeat or kill him - you trick him, and then he waits until the next meeting. And I don't feel that the 'trick' with the ball game worked. It felt like a cop-out. I think the episode was rushed towards the end, which kind of sucks because this could have been something really special. I would have rather that they won the game and the Toymaker grudgingly accepted it, until next time. (Although my God, this is a character you do not introduce often unlike others the show has worn out. Keep their mystery and only release them every so often).

The ending itself left me ... lukewarm as of right now? I don't know how I feel about the bigeneration, and I'm not sure I like it? Also what does this mean for however many timelord / variant timelords are now running around? We have two doctors (Tennant and Ncuti), the Doctordonna, Donna's Daughter, The Master, Jenny's still out there somewhere - there's so many and I'm just like 'we still haven't brought in characters like Romana or Rani! We still haven't used Gallifrey - and it's been ten years since we used a whole anniversary special to save it!'

I wish we had more old who characters pop up in these specials too :( I love that they explored further material and older episodes for them (the Star Beast was a treat, and I don't think anyone expected the Toymaker of all characters to return, especially given the erm ... racism/cultural appropriation conversation the old 60's version brings up these days). But I feel like Jodie's last few episodes are the best tribute to them, and those aren't even specials. While it's nice to see Mel again, I miss my darling Ace, and she would have fit right in at the Doctor Donna family table at the end. Although it was nice to have Fourteen and Fifteen acknowledge Adric, and our dear Sarah Jane.

The best part of the episode however was the Toymaker dancing to 'Spice Up Your Life' and causing havoc. That was a peak 'I Can't Decide' with the Master moment, and it will forever be a fav.

[templeofshame]

did you ever get around to fully finishing stranger things? what did you think of the ending? love hearing your Thots and Onions lol

To be honest my friend and I are waiting on the second half of the s4 finale until s5 is out.  Yeah, that's weird, but I know most of what happens and it's mostly a bumner, so we haven't felt motivated to finish after she fell asleep mid-ep, and we got into Yellowjackets instead.

I do still have opinions though...

like I think Mike sucks this season and I don't buy him and El this season; they were so cute in the beginning but now they're all performative, lies and superheroes and I'm not sure he even sees her as a person, it's Very Important that El has people who care about her as a person and not as a magical deus ex machina. I do know he's gonna say he loves her like 6 times, I'm sure he believes it, I don't buy it.

I also feel like this season has a plot about trauma/survivor's guilt (via vecna/victims) and abuse (via el and a bit max) and I'm not sure very thoughtful about what it's saying about them. Forcing El to go work with her abuser, Max grieving hers, the relationship between Max and Nancy and El and others in terms of survivor's guilt... these are super complex interesting things that get barely touched on. And with Chrissy's apparent trauma seeming relatively mundane compared to what literally every major character has been through (and I forget what Patrick's is, is his name Patrick?), vecna's choices seem kinda weak. Maybe he says something in the second half but I'd rather them have all been dealing with survivor's guilt specifically.

I felt like the guitar scene was anticlimactic and weird for how much buildup eddie the guitarist had, and the plan seemed kinda bad? I guess it's harder for me to say how things should work though because the rules of the Upside Down have substantially changed since s1, like in this Upside Down Will and Barb could've just hid in someone's house with barely any tentacles, there seem to be lots of safe places.

What else... I think Jason was more worried about people thinking Chrissy was cheating on him than Chrissy's death. I think the jock death mob has vibes of that hyena episode of Buffy, and overall I think we could have a lot less of them (I like Lucas being caught in the middle but otherwise they're uninteresting). I wish Eddie was a little less musical theatre in that first scene, it just felt like he was in a totally different show than anyone else (possibly Rent, or Glee). The issues for Nancy & Jonathan feel very contrived and the show trying to throw Steve at Nancy is just annoying. There was no logical reason for her to date him twice, let again another time. Also could've done with less Hopper torture porn, like we get that it sucks. Similarly with the bullying, it's so over the top that it took me out of things rather than really hitting me. I think I've posted already about how the characterization of Robin changed so much and while she has great lines, it doesn't feel like her (and like is it because we know she's a lesbian now that she can't be snarky coolgirl anymore and has to be dorky mess?).

The positives! Love Argyle. The scenes with Will & Mike and Will & Jonathan are lovely heartstring pulls, so well done. (Will deserves better than Mike, but he's young and stupid so). I don't overall love how separate everyone is this season but for that setup, love the whole pizza freezer thing. I love Murray, I love Joyce&Hopper (even though irl I would 100% tell her not to touch a man with that much assault history with a 10-ft pole). Lucas finally gets material to work with and his acting has gotten so good! Running Up That Hill is obviously a great song. I am biased by fic but after that initial scene, I like Eddie and his face. I love the humor.

I'm probably forgetting a lot! I'm sure I'll be bummed about how only Dustin and Wayne seem to care about Eddie's death, and how much of the season was about protecting him just to have him die anyway. I'm sure I'll be annoyed they don't kill vecna. I'm sure I'll be worried about Max.

[shantechni]

Some important Link Click observations PT 3 (1, 2, & 4):

I honestly thought I'd wait until S2 aired or at least until more content was revealed to tease the fandom, but there's still much to analyze about official art, BTS animation/art/genga, as well as the Chibi short series. So, spoilers below for everything I just mentioned, as well as S1 and the S2 trailer!

Keep in mind that the Chibi short series isn't considered canon by most due to contradicting plotlines in some of the episodes, but certain aspects can be taken as canon so long as they fit the narrative of the main series. Though there are a few things that could imply this series takes place after the events of S1, it's mainly for comedic purposes and simply makes callbacks to any major happenings in S1 (particularly it's finale).

In EP7 of the Chibi short series where the trio is doing a Q&A, they're asked about the bunk bed situation and Lu Guang says they got a bunk bed because the room lacked the adequate amount of space for two separate beds. He also went on to say he sleeps on top because Cheng Xiaoshi moves a lot in his sleep and he worried he'd fall off.

In EP2 of the short series where the trio is searching for food, it's implied that Lu Guang gets a bad case of dry eye if he overuses his powers.

Speaking of Lu Guang's eyesight, in EP6 of the short series and EP8 of S1, he's seen wearing glasses whenever he's on the laptop for a prolonged period of time (that or when he's using the laptop in the dark).

Though I previously mentioned Studio LAN's Twitter acct where they frequently post production images/videos of Link Click and other series they've worked on, I neglected to mention the directors' (mainly Lan Laoshi) Weibo accts and how frequent posts of Link Click behind-the-scenes are there as well. Link to the Twitter acct: ☆ & Weibo accts of the studio and Lan Laoshi: ♡ ♧. It's also worth noting that they often post things that aren't canon or related to the plot, much like the Chibi short series, so be sure to check them out for more slice of life content.

Last bullet point about official accts and whatnot, be sure to check out the official Shiguang Daili Ren Twitter acct (■) and INPLICK's (the character designer behind the series ●)

On the topic of production materials, one most recent image shared by Lan Laoshi pertaining to Link Click is a genga of Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang in a car together. Whether this is simply referencing the duo's overseas trip mentioned by Qiao Ling or if it's a tease of it being shown in the future is to be seen in S2 (the latter is likely since the directors stated they'd go more in depth about the trip in S2).

Two short videos of unfinished animations were shown recently, the first one of Cheng Xiaoshi and the second one focusing on Lu Guang. It's yet to be seen if these are rough animations for S2, but Studio LAN has a habit of showing a few BTS things to keep the fans on their toes.

The Cheng Xiaoshi animation appears to have him imagining or dreaming of Lu Guang before coming back to reality and noticing his absence. The Lu Guang animation is more akin to the S1 OP animation in how the camera is doing a close up on his majestic movement.

Despite Lu Guang being the only one who's blood type has yet to be revealed, he was shown with a blood bag during his rush to the emergency room in the S2 PV. It's up to speculation why the creative team would keep his blood type a secret when the doctors in the PV appear to have found his type.

The series' 1st anniversary since it's airing on April 30th of last year saw the release of official art courtesy of INPLICK. Though there isn't much to be taken away from it aside from the formal apparel the trio wears, the image contains the repeatedly seen phrase, "Past or future, let them be."

In the recently revealed 2D intro to the Chibi short series (the original intro until the last 2 recent episodes has been 3D), the trio is depicted using different styles of cameras to take photos. Cheng Xiaoshi is seen using his phone, while Lu Guang and Qiao Ling are using old style cameras (akin to the one Cheng Xiaoshi has in the S1 ED, as well as the one seen in the 200 million views celebratory art of the trio in high school). This could easily just be a representation of different types of cameras.

The ramen conspiracy--gets dragged

I talked about the 2nd still image (the one of a long haired Cheng Xiaoshi swarmed with photos and a black ribbon) from the S1 OP in my last observation post, but neglected to mention the other 2. The 1st image is of Lu Guang holding a disentigrating photo as he solemnly watches it fly off with a background reminiscent of a cathedral window, while the 3rd image is of him and Cheng Xiaoshi standing back to back and holding onto a black ribbon similar to the 2nd image's (possibly a camera reel). Obviously these images are so ambiguously mysterious that there is little to no concrete explanation for them, but it's fairly certain that these images are representative of things. What they represent is up to interpretation.

This may just be coincidence, but when the verse "stop thinkin' 'bout it" in the S1 ED plays, Qiao Ling appears on screen. This may or may not have been alluding to the S1 finale when the red-eyed antagonist controlled her.

Liu Min calls the red-eyed antagonist from the end of S1 his "friend", raising the question of whether or not Liu Min knew this person before his situation with Emma, as well as if Liu Min hired them as an agent.

It's not confirmed if red-eyes is behind the string of killings before Emma, it's simply implied due to the similar circumstances that each victim died under.

A number of fans have pointed out that in the early character PVs for S1, Qiao Ling's backdrop is the only one lacking a camera shutter symbol. It's been added that the camera she uses in the 2nd Chibi short series intro has a shutter symbol on it, so does the camera from the 200 million views celebratory art. The reason for her lacking the symbol up until now is up to speculation.

Many fans have been pointing out hand signs Lu Guang's been making in the S1 OP & ED, as well as some pieces of official art. There are many theories ranging from him replicating a clock to it having something to do with his powers, but we have yet to find a definitive answer.

Okay I wanted to add more but this is getting pretty long now, so I'll cut it off here and save anything else I have in mind for part 4 (whenever that'll happen lol). I will add: If anyone has something to add to this list or a future one, feel free to speak up, it's nice trying to make sense of this donghua.

[mofieroll]

You Too (Jotaro Kujo x Fem!Reader)

Inspired from my in-character interaction with @mistaeq! Dedicated to them for motivating me to write! 💛

A Post!SDC Jotaro x Reader one shot where you bond with Holly, who you call Seiko, and pamper your man Jotaro.

Trigger Warning: Mentions of Trauma

Word Count: 3k

Two years have passed since the events of the Crusaders' trip to Egypt to save the life of Holly Kujo from being taken by her own Stand. To say that the trip was memorable is an understatement. It was too memorable. The memories of built friendships and increased attachments in just a span of fifty days were unbearable, for fate made the surviving comrades of the group pay for all the joyous moments with the pain of death and eternal separation.

It was hard. Painful. Frightening. Heartbreaking.

It was excruciatingly traumatizing, that even the boy who appeared to be unbothered and distant, the boy who put an end to the cold-blooded century old vampire's curse, couldn't deny it.

Jotaro Kujo couldn't get away from the memories of his dying friends, and so, the supposed flashbacks became inescapable nightmares.

But fortunately, that was until you came.

You met Jotaro a month after he came back from his trip. The meeting was a mere coincidence as you were a year lower than him, you personally did not and had no intentions of getting to know him. It just so happened that Holly or Seiko, his mother, came across your small shop that sold self-designed accessories made from recycled materials. You had told her you search and pick the materials —mostly trash— yourself, which certainly piqued the woman's interest and told you, “Is that right? I have a son, and don't tell him I told you this, but he loves marine animals! It seems you are both fond of nature so I'm sure you'll get along— Oh! I'm sorry dear, we haven't introduced ourselves! I'm Holly Kujo, but you can call me Seiko~”. She was a sweetheart, so you saw no harm in accepting her offer that led you to become a close acquaintance of the Kujo Family.

Much to the matchmaker's Seiko's dismay, it took a year for you and Jotaro to confess that your platonic feelings are in need of a level up. She is Jotaro's mother and your first Kujo friend, of course she'd notice if something was up between you and Jotaro that you both refused to talk about! When you finally re-introduced yourself as Jotaro's.. cough.. girlfriend, Seiko was delighted and decided to treat her second favorite couple (next to her parents Joseph and Suzie) to a nice romantic dinner! The unplanned date embarrassed Jotaro, but he endured it as it gave a good start for the new level of your relationship with him.

Until then, Jotaro became more and more protective. You found it sweet knowing that your boyfriend, former acquaintance, cares about you and shows affection in ways you quite expected for a forbearing man like him. He's not a man of words nor materialistic gifts but a man of straightforward actions— yet he remained mysterious.

Jotaro has been avoiding you since the week has started. He distanced himself yet guarded you as you walked home after class everyday. Everytime you tried to catch him, he's nowhere to be seen. You started to get frustrated, and you know you wouldn't get any explanation even if you corner him and face him alone.

Seiko called you today and asked if you could have dinner wih them, which you excitedly agreed to because you were actually on the way to the Kujo household, a paper bag —which contained your newly designed rings and necklace— in hand.

With Seiko greeting you outside their gates, you entered their traditional mansion and told her about the happenings from the previous days. Even with the mention of Jotaro's sudden actions, Seiko chatted with you nonchalantly.

“Dear, you know my boy would do things that can be a little too unexpected even for me,” Seiko stated, “But if there's one thing or two that I can assure of, is that he means no harm..” You stopped in your tracks as she faced you and tucked your hair behind your ear, smiling, “And he cares for you, [Y/N]. I think, that may be his way of showing it!” Seiko spoke with softness, hopeful that her words would reach you and get rid of any confusion that would spark a misunderstanding on her stoic son's intentions.

You smiled back at Seiko with teary eyes, touched by her comfort. You pulled out the necklace from your paper bag and showed it to her, quietly telling her that it's your gift, only to receive an enthusiastic squeal and hug before you locked the accessory around her neck.

“It looks perfect on you Seiko! I wonder if I'd be as beautiful as you when I reach your age..” You sighed and pouted at Seiko, holding the paper bag on your middle.

“Oh, you!” Seiko playfully hit you as you both giggled, “You shouldn't say such things to a middle aged woman, [Y/N]! I might believe you!” Seiko joked while you insisted that you're sincere about your compliment.

Your chat continued on until she told you to run along and check on her boy, not forgetting to tease that Jotaro misses you. You face warmed in pink, which Seiko found so cute that she had to pinch your cheeks. With her positive and welcoming presence, your determination to face Jotaro fueled.

Seiko informed you that she'll be preparing dinner. You replied, “Mhm! I'll drag Jotaro and we'll meet you here at the dining room! Is that okay?”

“Okay~!”

—

Meanwhile Jotaro, who hasn't come out of his room the whole day, heard you and Seiko pass by. He was sitting in the far corner of his room but the combined voices of yours and his mother's particularly blasted through his ears. He's.. happy.. that you're both safe and sound.. but— why are you here? You should be at home! Did something happen? Did someone bother you? Wait.. did you come here alone? Didn't he tell you even before that you shouldn't go out at night? What if.. what if something happened to you? What if someone showed up and.. and took you away? Took you somewhere.. he can't reach.. What if his dreams were to happen? What if—

Knock! Knock!

Jotaro's sweating face turned to look at his door as his breathing became more unsteady. His eyes widened, brows clashed, and his mouth was agape, gasping for more air. His fists were clenched and he was trembling, who's knocking? Who's trying to get him again?

“Kujo?”

Jotaro stopped breathing for a second while his body still trembled. The voice that called him held sweetness and concern in it but he was still in a dark trance. What if someone's trying to deceive him?

“Seiko called me, may I come in?”

His widened eyes calmed, turning his tormented expression into one of those longingness. His shuddering arm reached out as he subconsciously stood and walked towards his shut door. His cold hand gripped the handle.. but he didn't have the slightest strength to pull it himself. What is he doing? He can't face anyone like this, especially..

On the other side of Jotaro's door was you, with a hand that also gripped the cold handle, waiting for the right timing to enter. Your heartbeat has increased its pace, indicating your uptight feeling of facing him after not seeing him for over a week. You were nervous and a short flashback of your first meeting with Jotaro popped up in your mind. Has it really been two years?

Jotaro never directly told you of his.. episodes. But, there were times where you just happened to observe that whenever you were late on your meeting, he immediately scoops you in a hug while he trembles; or whenever you randomly visit him on weekends and you enter his room only with a knock, he abruptly charges at you with his folded fist stopping inches from your worried face. He didn't tell you about what's haunting him, not even once. Yes, you were undeniably frustrated by him avoiding you, but you love him well enough to have the willingness to act up whilst having patience.

You waited for more minutes before speaking again, “I'm gonna enter now, alright?” You assured, carefully sliding the door behind you and turning on the light switch after you entered.

Your eyes wandered after it adjusted to the lit room, locking on the form of a slouched man in the corner, sitting with a knee up that had his arm and head resting on it while his other knee was folded. You quietly sighed and walked close to him, hiding the impatience to throw yourself at him and pepper him with kisses, mumbling i missed yous. You would have done it, but that kind of affection.. goes for later.

You sat beside Jotaro and placed the paper bag on your side. You weren't too close nor too far from him, just enough to have your hand caress his messy dark hair. You loved seeing him without his hat, seeing his flawless face be shadowless. But if he took it off, the reason is either he's agitated or.. sleep. There was a time when you told him that he should take off his hat indoors and a time you tried to take it off yourself, but he completely ignored you at both and kept the hat on.

“How are you?” You asked without expecting a reply. It was to make him acknowledge your presence, and that is because you didn't know that he's been waiting for you to come in since the moment he heard your voice.

Jotaro wanted to answer. He wanted to lock you in his arms and.. say sorry. He wanted to apologize for neglecting you but— how is he going to do that without telling you too much?

“Why the f*ck did my mother call you? I don't need any help. That b*tch.”

There it is, his method of putting up a tough facade, the swearing that would prompt anybody to think that he needs no help. It worked on you once, but you're not just anybody to him now.

“Mhm. Seiko checked up on me while I was heading home from.. somewhere. She invited me for dinner,” You informed. You didn't want to tell him that you were on your way here even before Seiko called you, knowing full well that he's against you ‘roaming’ at night alone.

You continued to comb through his hair as he answered, “For real [Y/N], I'm fine. Leave. I don't need you to stay here— or.. or something.”

Your hand lowered to his upper back and started to rub circles, “Would you look at me and say that again, Kujo?” you asked in a slightly teasing tone, trying to light up the mood.

You started humming a soft melody, a melody that somehow always soothed Jotaro. The first time you hummed it was when you were cooking dinner for him and Seiko wasn't home. He got into a fight that day and he was abnormally quiet, not the usual, resulting to a tension between the two of you. You hummed the melody to ease the atmosphere, and when you were placing his plate on the table, he suddenly grabbed your wrist and muttered an apology before he told you to ‘keep doing’ what you were doing. The melody was just random, so you did your best to remember its tone and hum it whenever you both need comfort.

And this time, he was soothed again, but he isn't going to be swayed so easily even if he wants to.

“F*cking go away.” He huffs, “You're just like the annoying b*tch. Leave me alone.”

No, stay. He stated in his mind the complete opposite of what came out of his mouth. Of course you didn't leave and continued to hum and rub circles on his back. He may be one of the harshest men you've met, but you have a counter for that. Well.. you're stubborn.

He remembered what you said about heading home from.. somewhere. Where was that? “Where were you coming from?” He asked in a demanding tone.

“Doesn't matter where I was, Kujo. You're still not looking at me.” You retreated your hand from his back and crawled to sit in front of him in crossed legs before placing your hands on his large ones, “I wouldn't mind being like Seiko, although..” You squeezed the top of his hands, bowed your body and peeked at his face where your warm [E/C] eyes met his tired yet enchanting aquamarines. Your lips quirked into a small smile, “You wouldn't want your partner to be your second mother, would you?”

Partner?

Jotaro looked at you blankly, not realizing how close your faces were, “You're still worrying about me too much, I'm fine. I'm.. I'm just remembering..” You straightened and held his cheeks, gently pulling up his face before standing on your knees. You shifted your hand and cupped his face, delicately looking at him to encourage him to speak.

In that moment where he's putting his toughness down, you've completely set aside the issue from the past week. The thoughts that Jotaro might've had enough of you because he thinks you're oblivious to his personal issues— all gone. Holly's words echoed through your mind. Mother truly knows best.

“Egypt.. friends dyi—” Jotaro cut his words and sighed deeply, “..all of it is hitting hard. You won't understand.”

You bit your bottom lip and nodded. He's right, you would not be able to understand, but that's temporary. It'll take more time for him but you're willing to wait, “I.. dream of you..” He swallows the lump in his throat while you wipe the sweat forming on his temple, “I dream of you dying too.”

With that, you were able to catch on more of what happened before you came in his life. People close to him died. People who he probably traveled with.. might have died right before him.. or not. And now he's being haunted, probably by the guilt or by the experience itself. You're still skeptical, but it's considerably clear now.

Your eyes that looked at your hand which wiped his bead of sweat shifted to his eyes, and you saw fear. He was frightened, not only by the past, but also by the possibility that he might lose you too.

You retreated your hands and sat on your legs as you and Jotaro continued to communicate through your eyes. Your heart was thumping fast against your chest, now of sympathy.

“Jotaro, I..”

This time, you threw yourself at him. Arms snaking around his neck, your face buried on his shoulder. You wrapped him in a tight hug as it took him time to return the affection, wrapping his arms around your back and pulling you even closer as he closed his eyes and basked his head on yours. You and Jotaro savored the hug for a while, not thinking about anything else aside being in each other's arms.

“I'm here.. and I'm telling you that I'll be here to love you longer than that delinquent head of yours expected.”

You broke the hug gently, a hand shifting to cup his cheek while you also reached for the paper bag. Jotaro opened his eyes as he felt you fix his sitting position so you could sit —with crossed legs— on his thighs, laying your back on his chest.

“See this?” You lifted the paper bag with both hands, giving Jotaro the chance to once again wrap his arms around your waist. He doesn't mind giving in to your touch as of now.

Jotaro grunted, “Inside this lovely recycled and eco-friendly paper bag are things that.. uhm.. how do I introduce it..” You slowly placed your head on his shoulder, putting the bag down between your legs. You contemplated as you stared on the wooden ceiling, “I know! The things.. consider it as our promise to each other, Kujo. Am I clear? Yep, I'm clear!”

Jotaro clicked his tounge in annoyance as you lifted your head from his shoulder when he was about to rest his head against yours. Why can't he just cuddle you without you moving too much? Can't you and him just cuddle in peace?

You shifted again, now face to face with him. You acted surprise when you saw his furrowed brow, “Oh? Kujo is annoyed with the mighty [L/N]?”

“Just get it over with, woman.” Jotaro supported your back with an arm, watching you as you struggled to hold his free hand with one of yours. You had set aside the paper bag, the things in it now hidden in your other hand.

When you finally settled with wrapping your small hand around his palm so his fingers were loose, you smiled up at him and swiftly leaned in to kiss the tip of his nose. Jotaro turned away, snorting to at least lessen his flustered state. Where is his hat now that he practically needs it?

Jotaro felt a cold thing graze his skin, along with what seems to be two fingers pushing the thing on his. He glanced and saw you inserting a ring on his pinky with a serious face. You were glaring at his hand, your smile only returning when you successfully inserted the ring.

You let go of his hand and was about to wear the other ring yourself when he grabbed your wrist, snatched the ring and easily inserted the accessory on your pinky, all of it with only one hand as his other arm was still supporting you.

You were taken aback, ready to question him when he pulled you into a bridal position and locked your upper body with his arms within a second. You chuckled instead of saying a thing, wrapping your arms around his torso.

“Keen for a cuddle, huh, Kujo?”

“Good grief. You're one brave woman to challenge me.”

As you and Jotaro became ignorant to your surroundings, a flash of a camera resided from the slightly opened door, the sound being followed by a muffled kyaaah! which, with no doubt, came from the adorably giddy mother of the impatient man in your arms.

[End!]

[ladylynse]

Hello 👋🏻👋🏻 How are you doing? I have been fine. Just life, you know? Oh well, that's for sure. The finale of ML will bring more material created by fans like crazy, that's for sure. I guess, we'll have to keep waiting and see, hopefully the cliffhanger isn't that big or it would create more chaos than normal XD XD (although, anything that happen would be just plain chaos as always with ML). Oh, I'll have that in mind. But I don't think I'm going back to use excel in a very long time. Thanks for the offer though. You're welcome :D :D Later or sooner that eventually, well eventually would arrived ;) ;) (sorry, I'm not sure what part you are replying here, but it was about to happen XD XD) Oh well, yeah that's an understatement. But I believe that's because nobody thinks in the same way, you know? What it could be obvios for you, for someone else it could be alien. It just while it does made sense to work with those common terms in the crossover then it does works. And then you find those who has similar ideas and that's why you find those who had thought about that as well. I don't think that we need to justified a crossover when we know it could happen, you know? While whatever you work on, has the meaning, like it happens in the same place or has the a base to say, then it would work, just maybe work around in the story, you know? So it doesn't end force it, or out of place, like doing it for the sake of it, you know? (I hope I was clear here...) Mmmm... same here, I mostly don't know when someone is also bilingual or multilingual until they say so. They mostly just write in one language. I think because is a pain to translate all, if they do translate something, it's probably their most popular works or their most better work, the one that they feel specially proud of it, you know? (I'm probably one of the very little -if not the only one- that had decide translate everything that had done). Oh! I'm feeling more confortable talking with you like this. That's why I mention to reveal myself, you know? I may do it on the next question :) :) And I mean not the tag of long post but add the line of read more, that it's obviously added because of me, and my long question, that doesn't allow you for say to write the long answer without making a long post already, you know? (obviously, you could just not add the line of read more and have the whole thing without the cut, but that's your decision, and if I were you, I'd do the same :) :)).

See you soon :) :) -Le Fantôme anon

(re: this ask)

Hello! Glad you're doing well!

*grins* Very true. I should see if there's a date for the second episode of the finale to air, though. Might try to watch the first one this weekend if there is.

Yeah, that's fair. I didn't need excel for a long time, either.

Yes! It does make sense that different people make different connections. Part of the fun of fanfic again, I think.

That's true! Half the time, I don't find out someone speaks more than one language until I'm talking to someone/interacting with them in some way.

I still think the fact that you're doing that--all the translating--is phenomenal.

Truthfully, I would usually use a read more with the length of my responses anyway with something that started out with 'what are thoughts on' or some variation thereon, since those answers are typically longer than this one will be. You aren't the only one who's ever sent me a long ask, though. Sometimes people have a lot to say, and sometimes they include pictures, and sometimes both things are true. *grins* People sent me pictures of flowers once. It was delightful.

[loveisneurotic]

Kaguya-sama Blind Reaction/Analysis: S1E1

Hello everyone, this is my blog which I am currently using to react to and analyze Kaguya-sama: Love Is War much more seriously than I should analyze any romcom.

I have only seen the first episode of the anime, which this post shall explore using far too many words. If I'm feeling particularly motivated, I may read the manga as well.

My analysis will contain spoilers. If you're thinking of watching this show and haven't seen it yet, I recommend you at least go check out the first episode yourself before reading any further. I don't know what the rest of the show is like, but what I've seen so far has been both entertaining and thought-provoking.

I'm going in mostly blind, but not entirely blind. There are a few images of the anime and manga that I have been exposed to, although without the attached context. Due to cultural osmosis and the sheer popularity of this work, perhaps that was almost inevitable.

Figure 1.1.1: Why did this guy write an essay about a single episode of an ongoing romcom?

Kaguya-sama: Love Is War

Season 1 Episode 1

I Will Make You Invite Me to a Movie / Kaguya Wants to Be Stopped / Kaguya Wants It

Power dynamics in relationships

Figure 1.1.2: Immediately, the mangaka's tastes become clear.

I heard a saying once that really stuck with me: "The partner who cares the least has all of the power."

In the world of dating, I often sincerely believed this saying. You may yearn for someone's affection, but the other person need not give it to you until they are willing and ready. No matter how much you want it, you can't make someone more interested in you, unless you resort to being roundabout, such as adding some mystery and intrigue to your courtship. But is that excessive?

I once felt a potential lover slipping through my grasp, and before I knew it, I found myself chasing after them. As I was yearning for their attention, I felt as if I'd lost my dignity. It was humiliating. Painful. Was it just that they weren't the right person for me? Or was I not funny enough? Not charismatic enough? Not interesting enough? Too clingy? Too talkative? Should I have been more distant and given them more space? Did I seem too weak? Too eager? How should I have maximized my desirability? Regardless, I had surely lost. Perhaps they wanted the satisfaction and validation of conquering me. Playing me for a fool and asserting their superiority by being so distant. Isn't that right? Or is that just insecurity speaking? At what point is it ideal to cut one's losses and walk away?

If someone desperately wants the object of their affection to desire them, does that make them pathetic? Does it make them a loser? If you show more vulnerability and desire than the other person, does that truly make you the weak one in a relationship?

These questions plague our two protagonists and seem to be a driving force behind the main conflict. Since I have also grappled with how much to reveal my own feelings of desire, I find Kaguya-sama: Love Is War to be a particularly fascinating show.

Desire without action

Figure 1.1.3: Our protagonists are gifted with impressively high academic intelligence paired with impressively low emotional intelligence.

The show wastes no time in introducing us to our two main protagonists. Kaguya was born into a family of high stature (and says "ara ara" frequently enough to power a small country of weebs), whereas Shirogane is a "commoner" (Kaguya's word, not mine) who worked hard to reach the pinnacle of the student body. Like timid schoolchildren, they're crushing on each other, and yet they refuse to admit it due to their pride. Instead, they focus on getting their "opponent" to confess their love first.

What stuck out to me immediately is how they both have different ideas of what their relationship would be like. Shirogane envisions Kaguya as blushing, shy, and conventionally cute, whereas Kaguya (thankfully) envisions herself taking absolute dominance over Shirogane (which plenty of people should see coming as a character trait after the anime's very first scene). The bad news about this is that their two fantasies are at odds. The good news about this is that the mangaka has fantastic taste -- you can learn a lot about a storyteller based on the characterization of a love interest or lead character of the author's preferred gender.

In the event that the two of them become an actual couple, I wonder how on Earth they'll reach a compromise as to how they'll treat each other. Perhaps they will have to figure that out before they can even get that intimate.

I appreciate that we get to see both of their perspectives. It hammers home how everyone has a different truth in regards to what they desire and what they experience, and the show does not hold back when it comes to showing just how different these truths can be -- such as a certain lunch-themed sequence that I will talk about later. This works to great dramatic and comedic effect.

That said, when you spend your time fantasizing about what could happen instead of actually taking action, time is not so friendly to you.

Half a year passes.

Figure 1.1.4: Two geniuses dedicate their pride to wasting their life and energy.

Immediately, I got the impression that whoever wrote this segment of the story knows what they're doing. This is too real. And by "too real", I mean I very much appreciate the realism. How many of us have waited for ages (or for eternity) to confess our feelings to a specific someone?

This is the curse of having a crush and being incapable of acting on it. It's also why I hate having crushes.

Manufacturing affection in others, AKA the extraction of vulnerability

Figure 1.1.5: A plan is devised to weaponize jealousy in the name of affection.

To express your truest feelings means being vulnerable. That implies taking a risk and feeling responsible for any potential consequences of rejection, as well as putting our dignity on the line. It would be so much easier for the object of our affection to make themselves vulnerable instead. So instead of being direct and honest, we act indirect. We drop hints. We act suggestively, but not explicitly. We may even place them in situations where we think they are more likely to confess. If they don't pick up on it, we can pretend we didn't mean anything by it. That way, we don't have to risk our dignity. We can just wait for them to make the move.

It sucks.

Incidentally, it sucks even more when both you and your love interest are thinking that way.

It sucks infinitely more when both you and your love interest are COMMITTED to thinking that way.

Someone has to break the deadlock, whether that's immediately or eventually.

If this show isn't one of those romcoms where the status quo never changes ever (judging by the quality of writing, I have faith that it isn't), then at some point, either Shirogane or Kaguya is going to have to be explicit about how they really feel. And it's going to feel scarier to them than anything else they've ever done.

It's gonna be great.

If we could all grow up and live in environments where it's safe and encouraged for all of us to be honest about how we feel and what we want, surely love would be much less painful for so many people.

Chaos theory

Figure 1.1.6: If your prospective lover won't protect you, then your friend definitely will.

Chika is the ideal wild card and agent of chaos in this arena of love.

From a writing perspective, Chika is immensely useful. The mangaka probably could have gotten by without a third character in the mix, but she serves as a catalyst and an unknown element, able to create unpredictability and subversion of expectations. For a comedy-oriented story, this is invaluable.

Blissfully unaware of the mental turmoil that plagues our two lovesick dorks, she is able to unintentionally invalidate whatever schemes that Kaguya or Shirogane spent so much mental energy on, which adds extra comedy and tension for the audience. She is also an effective vehicle for Kaguya's jealousy and projection, as seen in the lunchbox scene which I have so graciously foreshadowed.

Figure 1.1.7: We have confirmed visual on an unidentified fourth person. Chekhov would love this. From their posture, I wonder if they'll be a gloomy character?

Misunderstandings and assumptions

I've heard that most interpersonal conflicts in life emerge from misunderstandings. In the absence of communication, assumptions are born and give rise to misunderstandings.

You may know where I'm going with this. Let's talk about the lunchbox sequence.

Figure 1.1.8 (not pictured because tumblr wishes to deny me of my image spam): Kaguya is too prideful to admit she thinks that a couple is doing something cute.

Figure 1.1.9: Pride is considered a sin for a reason.

From a writing perspective, I was impressed by the lack of romantic intentions in Shirogane in this whole sequence. Not once did he try to get Kaguya to show vulnerability to him. Instead, Kaguya is the only one spinning the situation in a romantic way, while Shirogane's driving force is the misunderstanding that Kaguya is looking down on him for what he eats. Because of this misunderstanding, Shirogane doubles down and makes his food even better, making the situation even more complicated and more stressful for Kaguya. This was definitely my favorite comedy sequence from the first episode.

I appreciate that the show has demonstrated the ability to create these scenarios where one of the characters doesn't even have love on their mind, but there are still romantic thoughts coming from the other character which drives the drama. It gives me a lot of faith in the variety this show will have to offer, and makes me excited to watch more.

When it comes to comedy rooted in misunderstandings, it is important to have miscommunication or lack of communication. In order to resolve a misunderstanding, you need to talk about it. For a pairing as dysfunctional as Kaguya and Shirogane, expecting healthy communication sounds highly unreasonable, which makes them prime material for a whole world of misunderstandings.

Misunderstandings are rooted in assumptions about what the other person meant when they said something or made a certain gesture or expression. When Kaguya glared at Shirogane and his food, he didn't even think to ask "What's the matter?" He just made an assumption about how she felt. I wonder if trying to understand Kaguya's feelings would be considered a sign of weakness by Shirogane?

A prerequisite to initiating an emotional conversation is the desire to understand or be understood by the other person -- assuming that your assumptions haven't already built a narrative for you. It is far easier to make assumptions than it is to attempt any sort of understanding.

In the end, Shirogane fled, unwilling to confront or attempt to understand the intense and passive-aggressive Kaguya. Kaguya feels that she cannot directly ask to try his lunch, so perhaps this is the closest she can get to initiating such a conversation with him at this time. Despite their mind games where they imagine the reactions of their opponent, they still have a lot of difficulty understanding each other.

I am curious to see if this prospective couple's communication skills and emotional intelligence will improve over the course of the story.

The burden of potential romance

Figure 1.1.10: Even the infallible genius Kaguya succumbs to superficial jealousy. It's "mind over matter" versus "matter over mind". That's how the saying goes, right?

Chika is a free spirit, able to ask Shirogane for whatever she wants without being neurotic. That is the power of not being bounded by a crush. Kaguya, who lacks that degree of freedom, briefly loathes her for experiencing something that Kaguya cannot ask for. It's amazing how much someone's feelings for a friend can change without a single word being spoken between them. All it takes is an action, unintentional or not, combined with the raw strength of insecurity. Just as quickly, the status quo can return back to normal too, with the act of properly making up.

To Chika, asking for food from someone doesn't mean anything at all, whereas with Kaguya, it is an admission of defeat. In that sense, a relationship that will only ever be platonic brings peace of mind, whereas a relationship that can be potentially romantic brings leagues upon leagues of anxiety if the outcome is of great concern.

Love is neurotic.

Is love worth the pain? For some people, it is not. For others, the reward is immense -- but only if you can make sure your relationship with this person doesn't end up being a nightmare for your emotional health.

Love and self-identity

The final scene of the episode surprised me in a good way. It's a brief departure from the comedy, and reveals a more heartfelt side of the show.

Kaguya's servant asks her an insightful question. It is substantially more insightful than I would expect from any romcom: "If you fell in love some day, would you wait for that person to confess their love, like now? Or would you confess your love?" I found myself immediately curious to hear Kaguya's answer, since I knew it would be highly informative about her character.

"If that time comes, I would consider the risk of someone stealing him first and come to the one rational conclusion." Even in the realm of love, Kaguya seems precise and calculating. It's as if she hesitates to give a straight answer, but then she confirms: "Of course I would go."

Figure 1.1.11: "Please understand."

It is not embarrassment or rejection that Kaguya fears; it is the absolute destruction of her identity and sense of self. Kaguya is the daughter of a family that practically runs the country. In her mind, everyone yearns for her and wishes to serve her. Turning that around and reaching out to another person to express her own desire would be a direct contradiction of that. It is probably a similar situation for Shirogane, where the infallible self-image he has built up is being put at risk during his romantic duels against Kaguya.

Kaguya clearly feels trapped. She and Shirogane see each other as threats to be conquered, but in reality, they both share a mutual enemy that is much more imposing and insidious: their own simultaneous disgust at the idea of vulnerability.

Their freedom is dominated by their insecurities, and so, even despite their impressive stature, they are still very human. Their upbringing that has lead them to become so accomplished may be more of a curse than a blessing, due to the resulting pride and self-image they likely feel pressured to uphold.

It is hard to cast aside a lie that you have bought into for your whole life.

If our two protagonists wish to have a chance of establishing a healthy romantic relationship, they have a lot of their own demons to overcome first. If they cannot set aside their pride and reach mutual understanding, they have no hope.

Until then, they will both remain trapped in a hell of their own design, however tragically comedic it may be.

My hopes for this story's future

I can tell that the mangaka, unlike far too many writers all over the world, actually seems to have a solid understanding of romance and the conflict that arises within. I've watched too many anime that place huge focus on the "will they or won't they" crap which never runs any deeper than one or both of the characters being too embarrassed to just say what they're thinking, without any sort of convincing mental blocker. In that case, it's clearly just manufactured drama which is designed to pad out the story and waste your time rather than pose interesting questions and themes. In the case of Kaguya and Shirogane, the two of them have substantial communication issues which are depicted in a comedic yet mature way, which I have found engaging.

I very much hope that the show will more deeply explore the themes and questions surrounding the ideas of vulnerability, emotional intelligence, and superiority within relationships. Kaguya and Shirogane have been set up to be great vehicles for such exploration, and I hope the mangaka can capitalize on that, especially if our protagonists can confront these issues directly.

My impression is that the ending will make or break this story. If the mangaka can pull it off well, I can already believe the payoff will be hugely satisfying.

Of course, in order to get to that point, we'll have to see a certain something. It has to do with the most sacred word amongst romcom enthusiasts: "progress". Indeed, after spending chapters upon chapters watching two characters bumble around amidst the same exact status quo, those little signs of advancements in a relationship are highly rewarding.

Underneath all of their aggression, if we can see Kaguya and Shirogane slowly open up to each other and realize the benefits of vulnerability, I think we could witness something really beautiful and really emotionally cathartic.

I've still only seen one episode, but I believe the mangaka has laid a fantastic groundwork for a series and can do a great job developing upon what I've seen so far. On that note, I will surpass our prideful protagonists by opening my heart to this story and entrusting it with my vulnerability, believing it can deliver satisfying development and resolution. You can do it!

Closing thoughts

I did not expect to write so much about a single episode of an ANIME of all things, but here we are. If only I could conjure this kind of power back when I actually needed it in high school English class!

The first episode alone is already so rich with characterization and themes that I managed to find quite a lot to talk about. Given how much I found myself relating to the characters and some of their situations, it's clear to me how this show became so popular. Not only are the animation, direction, and writing excellent, but also many people can probably relate to love feeling like a battlefield.

I do not want to believe in the idea of winners and losers in relationships. That idea creeps into my head whenever I'm having trouble keeping the interest of a new date, and I find myself wondering where those thoughts even come from. Lately, I have been reflecting on the way I relate to other people. Perhaps I've started experiencing this show at a time in my life when I most needed it, and that's why I felt driven to write such a large analysis.

This show poses some very interesting questions about romance that I do not actually know the answer to at the time of writing. I do not know yet how much the show is actually going to explore these themes. Regardless, I appreciate how this show is helping me reflect, and I am curious to see if and how the mangaka will answer some of the questions brought about by the story's themes.

This is a show that I'll most likely have to pace myself with. There was so much to process in this first episode alone. If I went any faster, I'm not sure if I'd even catch all of the details and character moments. I'm excited to move onto the second episode soon.

A highly subjective footnote about my cultured tastes

I'm glad that Kaguya is a sadistic dom with a gentle and vulnerable side, solely on the basis of that being my favorite personality type in a love interest. It also helps that it makes Kaguya's fantasies that much funnier with Shirogane acting so out of character. I feel like this show was made for me.

What was I writing about again? Oh yeah, writing a gigantic wall of text about an anime romcom. Somehow, I spent an entire day on this essay. Hopefully someone got a kick out of it.

[khaotungsfirst]

Even if you're not familiar with norse myths I'd say that the Gaiman book is still really enjoyable 😊It's not too heavy and a lot of the stories he chooses are the more well known ones. It's only about 300 pages, so it's not too long either. I think you can get a preview of a few pages through google, so that might be a good way to see if it's something you'd like or not. - CC 🦊

A lot of the Doctor Who books feel like they could be their own little episode, which is nice. It's been a few years since I read them but I remember enjoying The Stone Rose, The Stealers of Dreams, Invaders from Mars and The Glamour Chase. There's also a huge range of audiobooks where the actors have returned to their old roles. Recently this year it was announced that Christopher Eccleston was coming back to work on some Ninth Doctor audiobooks 😱- CC 🦊

Also, if you're interested in any of the older Doctors, I'd highly suggest looking into Eighth Doctor audiobooks! The actor sadly only got one really odd 90's movie and a short for the 50th to act the role on film, so the audiobooks really let the character shine and give him a chance. And some sci-fi I can recommend are Aurora Rising, There Will Come Soft Rains, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. There's also Jurassic Park but is it sci-fi? Is it horror? Either way there's dinosaurs! - CC 🦊

Omg no but I totally get how you feel with horror! I'm really fussy with the genre myself since I often get bored or annoyed with it if it's not done right 🤣I usually read before bed so that's probably not a good decision on my part either! Were there any books you've read this year that you've enjoyed a lot? Any potential new favourites? ❤️- CC 🦊

I would absolutely love to buddy watch and/or read TGCF with you! That sounds like it would be awesome ❤️We could yell at each other as we follow it that way! And omg, Brooklyn 99 and Queer Eye are amazing! I love Jonathan Van Ness, he's always so happy and positive all the time. A lot of my favourite / comfort shows right now are The Dragon Prince, The Mandalorian, RuPaul's Drag Race, New Legends of Monkey and His Dark Materials. - CC 🦊

I'll stop spamming your inbox after this, but since I haven't asked you an MDZS related question for a little while I figured I'd ask you one today! I think I can guess who your favourite member of the cast might be, but what is it about it them that you admire? Always love an opportunity to see people's excitement over their favs! 😊- CC 🦊

I looked at the preview for Norse Mythology and it actually sounds so interesting!! But I fear that I will imagine the characters as they are in the Marvel Universe 😅 Aaahhh it’s always nice to get some more Ninth Doctor!! I should probably check out the audiobooks if the actors are reprising their roles for them but I gotta check where I can download English audiobooks. And can you believe I never watched the original Jurrassic Park movies? 😬 I should probably get around to that... 

Yeah, some horror books sound really intriguing but then I look at my massive TBR/wishlist and think to myself... well I rather spend my money on this other book that I’ve wanted for 3 months now so 🤷🏻‍♀️ Honestly, this year wasn’t as good of a reading year as I’d hoped it would be. But some books I enjoyed were The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James (YA Sci-Fi), The Sinclair’s Mysteries Series (Middlegrade Historical Mystery), Eight Detectives (Adult Mystery) and Call Down The Hawk (YA Urban Fantasy). What about your reading year?

YES! omg let’s do it!! But let’s wait until you can reveal yourself so we can scream at each other in DMs 😅 JVN is a national treasure, I love him!! But tbh I love all of them! 💕 I just googled New Legend of Monkey bc I’ve never heard of it and the fact it’s a Aussie/NZ production based on a Japanese show which in turn is based on a Chinese novel.. love it! And it even is on german netflix!

Hahaha yeah I guess my love for Yibo is not a secret 😂  But I do love the other cast members as well!! (Fun fact: before I started watching cql I thought wwx was more attractive but I quickly learned my lesson and fell HARD for lwj and in turn yibo askdjgffdk) Yibo is just.... aaaaaahhhhhhhh I just love him so much, your honor!! He’s a classic case of do I want to marry you or be you?? Like his gender presentation??? HELLOOOO??? I want that!! And when he wears earrings and has slightly longer hair (and ideally wears makeup but that’s optional he looks fantastic without it as well) I! WANT! TO! DIEEEEEE!!! Then there’s the fact he’s a lil gremlin boy and he basically hates us askdjgksdfghkdf like I feel like he’s so done with the entertainment industry/the fanservice that’s expected of him and honestly, that’s valid and relatable. I also don’t want to do the things I’m supposed to do for work even though I chose this job 😂 Like that live where he was supposed to talk to his fans for an hour and he was just like uuugghhh how do ppl talk for an hour, this is exhausting askdjghkdf SAME!! And I feel like this makes him seem more grounded (though obv I don’t know him so who knows what he’s really like) He isn’t forcing a smile for the cameras because he is supposed to. If he doesn’t want to smile he won’t and I gotta respect that! Then there’s the fact that he’s so multitalented! Like is there anything he CAN’T do????? Act, dance, sing, motorcycle, skate, etc. the list goes on! And he’s such an amazing dancer, and I dance hiphop myself so I’m very !!!!!! about it all. I REALLY want to get dance lessons from him like he’d probably scream at me to do better and I’d thank him for it aksdhgdkfjg omg I gushed way too much about yibo ok I’m gonna go now. Who’s your fave, CC?

[solargroup09]

Yue bookish stories ep.5

× episode five

× yueliang and luna go ghost hunting

× wc 1219 words

× tw mentions of death and swear words

× credit to @daybreakx for the banner

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

So... let's talk about when we investigated about WJ Entertainment ghost!

Rumor has it that our old building was haunted by a young woman who used to be a trainee. According to the voices, she had left this world in a tragic accident and her spirit stayed back, haunting the company where she wanted to debut so badly. No one knew many details about this girl, but everyone feared her. It was told that she lived in the basement and that she sometimes appeared in the big practice room on the first floor. And, since the ghost only manifested during the night, these two spaces got locked every evening by a manager, just to be sure. Also, most of the trainees that worked overnight, usually chose the practice rooms on the third or fourth floor to avoid her.

I've never been the kind of trainee that practiced until late, because I always had classes in the morning, but I remember a particular day where I stayed back at the company with Luna to work on a choreography that I had problems learning. We had been using a practice room on the third floor and around 2 am we decided to go back. We changed clothes and picked up our things while chatting. We took the elevator and went back to the first floor. We walked towards the back door and by doing so, we passed in front of the basement entrance.

Luna had just made a joke, so we were giggling when we heard a rattling sound coming from the basement. I stopped and looked downstairs.

-Did you hear that?- I asked.

-Ehm...

I looked at Luna: -Is it the ghost?

She went to grab my arm: -The correct answer is no, no I did not hear anything and no, it was not the ghost. Now let's go.

-But...

She was pulling me away when we heard another sound, like a muffled moan or a soft cry. We exchanged a look and Luna shook her head: -Yue, no.

-I'm curious! Let's just see if we can open the door!

-Chasing ghosts is a bad idea!

I smiled: -I can go by myself if you prefer...

-As if I'd ever let you do something dumb alone!- she hissed, -I'm sure the door is closed anyway.

It was not.

-If something bad happens, I'm blaming you!- Luna said, while I pushed the door open. We took our phones and light up the flashlight. The basement had a little staircase and it looked dusty and full of cables, pipes, and spider webs. There were some large boxes and some materials like cardboard and wood pieces. There was a path between all the mess and we started walking.

The room was silent and I could only hear the sound of me and Luna breathing. The basement was a big echoey area so it was hard to distinguish sounds.

-Yue... this place is too creepy, I want to go home...

-C'mon just two more minutes- I whispered, trying to take a good look around.

-What if they lock us in here?

-We left our bags in front of the basement door, it's okay.

Luna and I were holding hands while exploring, just to make sure we could not get lost or be separated. Suddenly she pulled at my hand, making me lose my balance. I dropped my phone and Luna screamed. She was frantically pointing the flashlight around, looking for something.

-Yah... why did you do that?- I protested, picking up my phone.

Luna looked at me, fear in her eyes: -I saw something, I swear!

I stood up, looking around myself suspiciously. Then I felt something on my back. I turned around immediately: -Did you just touched my shoulder?

-No!- she said loudly, -Oh God, can we please just leave? I'm terrified!

-Shh, be quiet!

I hear again the footstep kind of sound and the rattling.

Luna and I just looked at each other.

-Did you hear that?- I whispered. Luna nodded.

We pointed our flashlights around us but we could not see anything.

We heard the clatter again and it was coming from the floor. We lowered the light and we saw the biggest rat ever, just standing there staring at us.

I swore loudly and Luna screamed before she grabbed my hand and run away back to the door.

We shut the door behind us, panting.

-Well, I guess this place is not haunted- I said.

-It is haunted. By big fucking rats!- Luna hissed.

I giggled and after a second, we were both crying laughing.

-What are you girls doing down here!?- someone asked. We stopped laughing and we looked up. There was one of our managers, looking even more surprised than us.

-We... ehm... went exploring?- I said.

-It's dangerous! You shouldn't have gone inside! Thank goodness I found you, girls! We have rats down here and we are waiting for the disinfestation!

-Yeah... we know now- Luna said.

-But what about the ghost?

-What ghost?- he asked while locking the door.

-The ghost of the dead trainee that haunts this place! The reason why you lock this door and the big practice room!

He looked at us like we were aliens.

-We don't have ghosts!

-What about the rumors?

-No trainee died since we started the company- he said, -and we close the basement because of the rats and the big practice room because we store there all the tapes about trainees’ auditions. We don't want to risk someone breaking in and stealing personal things.

Luna and I exchanged a look: -But they told us someone died! That it was a tragic story!

We walked out and the manager than said: -Well, we had a very promising trainee that was forced to leave the company because she had to help her parents with the family business. It was very sad because she was extremely passionate. Unfortunately, she will never become an idol...

Luna shook her head: -So someone misunderstood her "leaving" the company with "leaving" this world?

-I guess that's what happened. You know how rumors go...

-That's crazy!- she added.

-So we got a rat problem, not a ghost!

And this is how we found out we were not haunted by the undead.

Luna and I still talk a lot about that crazy adventure and it always brings us laughs.

The basement got cleaned up and the rumor of the ghost died right after. After about eight months we actually moved to a new building in Cheongdam-Dong, not too far from other entertainment companies.

The book I recommend this week is "A Good Girl's Guide to Murder" by H. Jackson. It is a good mystery novel and I had tons of fun trying to understand who the culprit was before the end of the book!

Stay tuned for the next episode! 📖🌒

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

Just a note: Luna and I were reckless to go and explore a place we knew we had no permission to enter in. Please refrain from doing so because if a place is closed probably there is a good reason (like: rats). We were lucky that we were not injured or anything but please, be safe! 🥺

[theangrypokemaniac]

There's a sneering attitude that the dub is inherently inferior solely for being a dub, and when I say 'dub' I mean the American one. No one attacks the South American interpretation, funnily enough, or the variety that exist globally.

Why not if foreign languages are so abhorrent?  Do you think it's kewl to hate America?

That's so original you know.

If the moan centres on the dub changing certain things, well that's a pointless stance, because it's impossible to do otherwise.

What's accepted in one country is not always permitted elsewhere, so either you make those alterations or it's never shown. I'd prefer seeing a slightly toned down version rather than have it never reach the West at all.

This is without considering the technical obstacles that a direct translation brings. The words do have to fit the mouth movements, and if they don't, truncation must follow.

America and Japan are different; the population of the former are not going to comprehend the references to the latter's history and culture, which necessitates some divergence from the original to give it mass appeal.

Anime is a branch of entertainment. It has to attract the public's good will to stay in business. If impenetrable, it'll fail, with all the resulting unemployment and finacial losses that brings.

Those in charge of dubbing understandably think they're on safer ground promoting familiarity rather than the strange, but that's not to say Pokémon was stripped of its identity. On the contrary, it was like nothing I'd ever encountered before.

I may have watched Western cartoons then, but the idea of doing so now is silly. I won't give time to any modern animation unless it's Japanese. Growing up on the dub has not produced an ephemeral fan less serious or 'true'.

The 4Kids dub had wit, humour, deep emotion, suggestive comments and flights of fancy. The voices fitted the characters well.

Unlike the current one, where everyone sounds on the verge of vomiting, but then they're clearly working with substandard material on a miserly budget. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear after all.

Dubs can be bad, but the very state of being a dub doesn't confer worthlessness automatically. Considering the work gone into them, attempting to gain your favour, it seems rude not to appreciate the time and energy spent in production.

Knowing a little about history, sub-only fanatics remind me of the kind of folk who opposed an English Bible, because it was too good for the oiks to read the word of God.

Of course it was alright for them, rich enough to be taught Latin, but not so much the ordinary man.

It amuses me how dozens dismiss the dub, but see no hypocrisy in using its evidence to further their ship or anti-ship arguments, so it can't be that revolting.

It's also bizarre that so many hold sacred the sub of a series currently in a frenzy to shed every aspect of its anime and Japanese origins, leaving a vague, rootless ghost, supposedly making it easier to slip down the gullet of the masses.

Pokémon I've seen referred to as a 'gateway drug', as in the anime that introduced a generation to the entire concept. This means the dub. You would not have got enough kids in the late Nineties to read a screen rather than watch it, and even today most would lose interest rapidly.

Where would you be without that dub? Unless you're Japanese, your first experience of Pokémon will have been a dub, and if not the American, the one where you live, which was only made because there was the funds available.

You may have then progressed to watching the sub, but only because that dub stirred love in your soul.

Where would the franchise be without that dub? You think Pokémon would've grown to be a world-wide obsession raking in billions by itself? No, it'd still be a solely Japanese phenomena, and most likely never lasted this long.

Its decades of supremacy rests on the quality of that dub. It sold games and merchandise to kids by the ton, giving an incentive to keep the series going. If you're not a fan from the first wave, then your favourite era would have never existed had it not been financially attractive carrying on.

The team who wrote the first film actually preferred the dub, moved to tears by its emotive use of music, therefore they aren't so precious as the fans.

Where would anime be without that dub? Pokémon brought it to the West. A handful slipped through previously, but made minor impression.

To those who would dismiss Pokémon entirely in favour of more 'worthy' output such as Studio Ghibli, I would say that Pokémon, first the games, then the programme they inspired, must have an integral quality to have caught on in Japan, which isn't exactly short on similar concepts.

To have gained popularity in a crowded market, and so fervently a dub became an option, can only have come about because it held a certain magic.

It was the dub that smashed a hole in the cultural barrier, setting free the tidal wave to engulf the world. In Pokémon's trail followed Digimon, Cardcaptors, Monster Rancher, Yu-Gi-Oh! et cetera.

Without Pokémon, I doubt they'd have been translated, and definitely never broadcast on mainstream television. That came about as channels desperately hunted down anything Japanese to serve as the next craze.

I really appreciated the effort made by 4Kids in converting every aspect of the series to suit American tastes, including changing text on signs, letters and books into English. I assumed this was standard practice until I watched others.

I could never be as involved in them as I was Pokémon because of that block. It was like being denied access to the deeper waters, fenced into the shallows, and implied a rushed dub, with little care shown but to chase the same crowd and money.

If personified, the dub 'n' sub wouldn't be one human being, but rather identical twins: the same to a casual observer, but easy to tell apart by the more attentive.

It's like the games: Red and Blue are versions of a single adventure, but not totally one. Take the dub and the sub the same way. They are parallel dimensions running on separate rails, and beyond reconciliation, and that's before we consider that, sub and dub alike, each generation has only a faint relation to its predecessor, working on its own whims.

Everyone has a favourite, or can like both, and there's nothing wrong in that, but so many are proud of the fact they hate the dub, as if it conveys a revered status of supremacy.

When Disney films are shown abroad, they too are translated, and I'm sure references and jokes are redesigned to make sense to the locals. It's no use selling yourself as a comedy then being surprised when the audience refuses to laugh, having no idea what you mean.

If people prefer that one, for being what introduced them to Disney as a whole, or as a fond memory of childhood, then so what?

I don't mind if their view of a character is minutely at odds with mine, having seen the original, because what they think is canon to their version, so can't be wrong.

I don't go round declaring every Disney dub to be pathetic by its nature, that viewers of them are of a lesser breed of fan for preferring their own tongue, even though more of the world's population understand English than they do Japanese.

If you enjoy one tailored to your country there's no crime in it, just as I like one at least comprehensible to mine. It's not even my culture, but I pick it up mostly.

The choice must be made on which to follow, and this blog runs on dub canon, as that has a claim on my heart. Just because I don't acknowledge what takes place in the sub doesn't mean I'm unaware of it, but it has no bearing on what I write.

The idea that the dub alters things willy-nilly without rhyme nor reason is also mistaken. Often it does it because the original does not make sense.

In the sub, I know Nanny and Pop-Pop are just a couple of old duffers taken at random and dropped in to a castle, supposedly as James's far away nannies.

Oh yeah, that's a cushy position. You doing a lot of child care from miles off?

Mind you, it used to describe 'em as 'caretakers' on Bulbapædia, as if Nan serves as housekeeper whilst Pop tends to the garden.

That's right. Ma and Pa finally got some work out of this pair of freeloaders.

They're not related, remember? No, no, absolutely not, no way. Of course their style reflects that. They just gave Pop a 'tache, thick eyebrows and a bigger nose, and Nan got a bun and lines in her hair, but there's certainly no connection. Oh no. Such a thing is ridiculous.

They're NOT family. No. Yet Hoenn James still panics they might learn he's joined Team Rocket, spending the whole episode trying to hide the truth.

Why? Who are servants to criticise the son of their employers? Why should their opinion be of any consequence to Hoenn James, especially when his parents, fiancée and butler are cognizant of reality?

Children of aristocrats are usually brought up by governesses, thus develop a stronger attachment to these figures rather than their parents, but that isn't the case here.

James lived with Ma and Pa, not the codgers minding the castle. He would have very little contact with distant employees compared to those who waited on him daily, so why seek out their approval?

Hoenn James apparently was permitted visits to Nan 'n' Pop, which is strange considering they're not relatives. Why them and not any other house-stters?

That's right, Ma and Pa sent their son to one of their properties without them, entrusting him to the care of two shrivelled pensioners of his size that he barely knew, and who could keel over at any minute. There are no other servants present. Apparently Nan and Pop clean an entire castle by themselves.

Oh, and they run a makeshift Pokémon sanctuary, but since it's not their home it has to be done with Ma and Pa's blessing, who also have to pay for it, but they're eevul aren't they?

The idea that somehow Nanny and Pop-Pop have not cottoned on to James's occupation by now is risible.

Servants gossip about their masters. I bet the entire household of his home know, and so in turn does the county. That Nan and Pop remain oblivious proves how isolated they are, for no one's thought to inform them.

When it came to dubbing it, they were made his grandparents, removing all the above nonsense. Of course he visits his nan and granddad, it's their gaff and their money funding the place, and it is likely his mother or father would keep James's job a secret, for fear the shock would finish 'em off.

It should do really. If they're not bothered by it that's a sign of where his rapscallion ways were inherited.

They aren't facially akin to Ma and Pa, but display the same additions, so if staff it's bloody lazy, as if nannies have to resemble your parents, but inventing a blood link excuses the slothful characterisation.

Every reference I've seen on Tumblr relating to the coffin-dodgers calls them Nanny and Pop-Pop. Apparently the dub decision is met with universal approval. It does have redeeming aspects then.

Now the sub writers, rather than ignore this development, took to it too. They aren't exactly bursting with ideas these days and are probably grateful for the lifelines offered.

Remembering James had parents, they forced a likeness between them and Nanny and Pop-Pop. How else do you explain the inexplicable ageing, even when Sinnoh Ma and Sinnoh Pa are younger than Ma and Pa?

I've also known for years that the sub has this woman as Jessie's foster mother, not Ma Jess, but that's stupid.

I can grasp the idea that Jessie and Ma might have endured extreme deprivation, considering that's what Team Rocket has brought to Jessie anyway, and that they may have lived at the bottom of Mew's mountain prior to Ma's death.

What I find difficult to take in is that social services (or as they're known where I live, the S.S.), however notoriously awful they are, would give a child to a mad bitch in a shack with no running water.

Come on, they have to at least pretend to be concerned for Jessie's welfare.

As Jessie is very young, bereavement can't have befallen her in the distant past, so how can she be happy this soon after becoming an orphan? How could the grieving period be a cherished memory?

If that woman's creaming off the money, why hasn't she fixed the place up by now? Where do the payments go, sniffing glue?

Then there's the depiction. If this is just some daft bint never to be mentioned again, why do they conceal her face? Who cares what she looks like when she's unimportant?

Here's another figure from Jessie's past. She isn't disguised, and why not when she too briefly appears and is then forgotten?

Who was she?

The only sort of characters they tended to hide were other members of Team Rocket:

During the early scenes featuring Giovanni, he was enveloped in shadow, adding both intrigue and a sense of menace.

Madame Boss also got this treatment, even though there was probably no intention to ever feature her in the anime. What's the use in keeping an appearance a mystery if it'll remain masked?

With that pattern, it implies this woman is in the same category, like Ma Jess.

When it came to animation, it definitely was intended to be a foster mother. Not her real one. No.

What did they do?

They gave her Jessie's skin tone and purple hair hanging down her back!

You know, like Ma Jess?

Any colour would've done. Any at all, and being anime I do mean any colour, but no. The choice was made to give her the looks of the exact person she's not meant to be!

Is it that surprising the dub simplified things?

I don't mind if you like the dub, sub, both, or any from around the world, but I'm tired of the smug condescension, as if we all agree the sub is the only one that counts, and that dub fans are grunting troglodytes, or not 'proper' aficionados.

None of us would be here were it not for the dub. Pokémon would not be here. I think it deserves some respect for how much of a difference it made, to my life and to yours.

[wham-bam-thank-you-jam-wrestling]

WWE Love (Smackdown Edition)

I'm watching the June 18th episode of WWE, the one that opens with "No Chance in Hell" blasting from the arena PA system and Vince McMahon himself walking to the ring with that still all-too-familiar strut that just screams "I'm a scared little boy who has spent the past 70 odd years trying to convince myself I'm a man".

In case you've missed it, there has been a lot of drama happening in the WWE of late. I'm not going to get into any of that now, suffice to say that none of it is good.

What I am going to do right now, is zag when the rest of the world is zigging and list a bunch of aspects of the WWE product that I am really enjoying right now.

More of this sort of thing, please.

Montez Ford - Not only is he a bonafide main-eventer in waiting, but he is also going to bring something brand new to the main event scene with his combination of charisma and athleticism. The wholesale theft of The Rock's catchphrase a few months back, as well as the weak, pious-man Twitter game aside, the dude is a STAR.

Pat McAfee - this man is a pure delight. His energy, his idiosyncratic delivery, his one-liners and references. Not everything he contributes is a home run (wrong sport, I know), but he adds so much to the presentation of WWE Smackdown that I don't think I could get through the 2 hours (including commercials) without him.

Xavier Woods - I'd like to believe that this man is also on his way to the very tip-top of the card and the WWE universe. Alas, that appears extremely unlikely. If we could give him a sustained push at some point, that would be great. The New Day have remained crazy over for a long, long time despite the, at best, inconsistent booking, yet Xavier Woods is the only one of the three who still hasn't sniffed a solid singles run. And he is the best promo guy in the group! Give a him a chance WWE, just do it confidently, unlike how you treated Kofi and Big E.

Butch - the Brawling Brutes trio, as it is currently presented, is a bad idea that is going nowhere. Sheamus, despite being a big lad who can still go when given the right opponent and enough time to work, is apparently not someone WWE is going to get behind again. Ridge Holland is green, in and out of the ring, and just doesn't inspire any kind of reaction. The former Pete Dunne, however, is playing his part as well as he possibly can, given the material, and is someone I would love to see given a solid 15 minutes with a quality opponent on a premium live event

Also, a quick shout-out to Sheamus's music and entrance. I think it's great.

Sami Zayn - I'm not gonna lie, I started writing this one before he even appeared on screen. There is a guy on the other WWE show for whom you can pretty much copy and paste the next few sentences, but we'll get to him another day. In the meantime, it's been said by pretty much anyone and everyone, Sami gets it. He understands his character better than anyone, he elevates bad material, and he can tell you the story that needs telling without leaning too heavily on cliche and the standard pro-wrestling tropes. Plus, maybe not to the same level as 10 years ago, but he can still put on a banger between the ropes.

Gunther - Just don't screw it up, WWE. Keep the title on him until Wrestlemania at the very least and give him some class competition.

Brock Lesnar - Just to be clear, I am not referring to the booking on Brock Lesnar, of which I am not a fan. I get that he is a monster and needs to be booked as such, but there is a way you can accomplish this without making every other wrestler on your roster not named Roman Reigns look like a complete and utter piece of trash. But Brock has a physical charisma that is undeniable and is still, 20+ years removed from his debut, a talent you can build a company around.

That's all I've got at this stage. Let me know if you agree or disagree with any of these. Let me know if you think I've missed something. And let me know if you'd like to see more of this or if you'd like to see a little bit of WWE Hate instead.

Cheers

[atopfourthwall]

Sorry if this information is already out there, but how much is the Patreon price for an episode review? I looked around but I didn't see a price mentioned (I'm assuming because it's not listed right now due to you not taking more requests atm) but I'd really like to see an 8 issue comic story that I just recently read reviewed, and I'm hoping to snag a slot when it next becomes available. I was just curious how much I'd need on hand for the payment.

That... is a very good question.Indeed, the slot is not shown right now because requests are closed. However, it will be reopening in the fall. That being said, I'm planning on making some changes. One of the problems I ran into with it was that people could request a review and then leave the slot immediately - mostly because my Patreon has pay immediately enabled (as opposed to only charging people at the beginning of the month). And normally that's not a problem - sometimes I need additional cash and asking people to swap out of the slot was a good way to get around that......but that also meant that a CRAPTON of Patreon reviews went through. More than I ever really wanted. Some people actually held onto the slot for a whole year so they could make sure to get a second request in (since I limit it to one request per year per person). That helped slow down the flow of requests, but it's a rare thing. The original cost was $80 for a review, so if someone could afford to pay $960 for a whole yeah, I wasn't exactly going to stop them. But yeah, that's an exception rather than a rule.It's likely two things are going to happen with the new rules I implement, that I'm always open to suggestions: the price will be set lower, say $50 or the like... but you can't leave after paying. You have to wait until the next month's charge comes around (so you're actually paying $100, just in two payments). The only other alternative is to raise the price much higher so it's harder for people to get the slot, but I also don't want to gatekeep the slot only for those who can afford such a luxury. Seems kinda douchy.That being said, I'd probably ask for a different request anyway, since there will also be another new rule concerning the Patreon requests: length restrictions. The JLA/Avengers episode was only 4 issues... but each issue was 40 pages with a crapton of content. While that's a rarity, it's still more like I was looking at 8 issues and I ended up needing to have a two-part episode for it. It's a TON more work for me to do and frankly more than I ever wanted to take on. There's a reason why I normally limit my reviews to only one or two issues at a time - I CAN fill up a regular episode's worth of material from a single comic, but the more content people ask me to cover, the harder it is. I'm not necessarily going to say no to your request when it happens... but bear in mind that I do have my limits and I might say no, but it's something to worry about only when I actually reopen requests. =)