#(btw if anyone has the ep's 3/4 please tell me)

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - 2023 Begins!

Jan 20232 Wk 1

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Never Let Me Go (Tues YT) 4 of 12 - I keep saying this, but I can’t get over how delighted I am to have Perth back on my screen, and under the GMMTV umbrella. He is a stellar actor. I like that the first kiss of this show wasn’t btw the leads. Felt more realistic to high school. Big drama next week!

My School President (Fri YT) 5 of 10 - I missed these two so much last week. But also there was A MUSICAL INCIDENT and it caused a bit of a rant from yours truly. 

Between Us (Sun iQIYI) 9 of 12 - no ep this week, resumes tomorrow WATCH ALONG HERE.

609 Bedtime Story (Fri WeTV) 7 of 11 - Game remains my spirit animal (pushy fucker), and the plot of the main couple is interesting even if I don’t like the cheating component. 

Cutie Pie 2 You (special) 1 of 4 - Oh it’s a full on special. Very very pretty and, is possible, more sappy and full of manufactured angst. Nuea protecting Hia’s interests was sweet. Lots of making out. So... more of the same, basically. What year are we in now, anyway?

I Will Knock You (Fri Gaga) 8 of 12 - (note from my Thai language spy rgr ep 5: the writing on the stone tablets was their names + 2 family members) And now we are suddenly firmly in BL territory and baby Dom is just a baby Seme. No bisexual identity crisis needed... just diving into cheese fest. 

Remember Me (Sun Gaga) 13 of 14 - I would have kept JaFirst apart for longer, quite frankly. I mean otherwise why bother split them up in the first place? Please just end this show already. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

The New Employee (Korea Weds Viki) 3 of 8 - I love them so much, and they are so cute, and this is not open to discussion. Viva la age gap! 

The Director Who Buys Me Dinner (Korea Weds iQIYI) 7-8 of 10 - There is a lot implied about the leads history together, but it was still nice to get backstory plus GAT KISSES. I love it when they flip the dynamic and give the uke agency. I’m really enjoying this show now, I’m even invested in the love triangle.

HIStory 5: Love in the Future (Taiwan Weds Viki) 2 of 10 - Side couple ascension: Daddy Long Legs trope, it’s been a while since I have seen this in ANY romance drama. I’m not really into the main couple, at least not yet (and I totally missed that they hadn’t met each other in person yet), but I really love the side dishes. It’s like H4 all over again only with less dub con.

Candy Color Paradox AKA Ameiro Paradox (Japan Fri Gaga) 4 of 8 - nothing this week. 

It’s Airing But I’m Not Watching It

Love Bill (Vietnam Sat YT) - Bah Vinh is back but I’m too distracted. Also there’s a lot of fund raising stuff going on with them. I can wait.

The Star Always Follow You (Vietnam YT) - same Team RL peeps we have seen before (Sunshine, Stupid)

Moonlight Chicken GMMTV’s Midnight series (Weds YT) 1 of 8 eventually - first segment has begun bit it’s not the EarthMix messy gays. Sorry all, I’m so not interested in messy hets, so I’m waiting until they grace my screen.

Questions!!! 

Should I watch The Warp Effect? Tublr seems excited about it and BL bits look good? Will they end happy? Thoughts anyone? 

Till the World Ends (Thai YT) finished at 10 eps, the heat looked good but I don’t know about the ending with that kind of title, so did anyone risk it and want to tell me what they thought? I haven’t seen much chatter on my feed so I am not optimistic. 

In Case You Missed It

2022′s The Usual Night (Twitter account) from Japan is a 10-ep fake documentary series starring the members of Jpop group the Fantastics. It flew under everyone’s radars but apparently has a BL subplot featuring Yagi Yusei (My Beautiful Man) and Seguchi Leiya. This officially means they beat OnlyOneOf to the punch as the first inter-group BL pairing. Keito Kimura (Onoe from Candy Color Paradox) is also a member of Fantastics and in the show. Source reddit. No word on official international release. Japan is like that. 

OnlyOneOf’s Nine dropped the last (?) in their BL Kpop series, 'beyOnd' (be #6) 

I posted all my 2022 wraps, top picks, industry stats, etc.. 

Next Week Looks Like This:

Jan 19: Individual Circumstances 8 eps - A reunion romance between a movie director who was once promising and a writer who disappeared due to past wounds. Stars JunQ (main rapper of 2nd gen group MYNAME) and Han Jung Wan (Mr International Korea winner).

2023 forthcoming BL master post is in the works... wait for it... I had to finish all the 2022 wrap ups first. Also waiting for the last of the studio announcements.

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Never Let Me Go

Ah the love triangle. 

The Director Who Buys Me Dinner caught himself a live one. 

(last week)

Current Kpop earworm? You gotta check out VIXX (sub unit) new single. Gonna Be Alright = 2 BL stars in one croon. (Hyuk Color Rush 2 & Leo Happy ending Romance). *props chin on hand and bats eyes winsomely at Ken* So?

[jessvivwinter]

!!OBX3 SPOILERS!!

i have quite a few things to say, so hold on tight.

1. i’m really happy about jiara but now that’s it’s ACTUALLY happened idk how to feel and suddenly it does now feel a little forced, i feel as though jonas pate saw how much everyone loved the ship and shoved the characters together too quickly, like literally within the first 2 episodes we had JJ go absolutely feral over getting kiara back and then by ep 3 they had nearly kissed, i mean we all know that JJ is impulse and erratic at times but COME ON, yes we did get jiara scenes last season but it literally felt like it went from 0 to 100 real quick. on top of that it also felt like the only thing JJ was focused on this season was kie which irritated me because JJ is such a complex character and jonas pate spent the last two seasons building the complexity of it only for him to basically completely throw it away and basically have JJ only focus on kiara the whole time, i also thought it was incredibly unrealistic for practically no one else to be bothered by kiara getting abducted TWICE. both times it literally felt like only JJ cared about getting her back, not to mention when she got taken to the wilderness camp NO ONE ELSE WENT WITH HIM TO FIND HER?! there’s just no way that’s realistic in my mind, literally all of them love kiara like a sister and no one went to help him get her?!

2. i’m not a fan of jjpope, they literally have no romantic chemistry, do i think they would die for each other, 100%, they are like brothers and they would do anything for each other but they have zero chemistry. HOWEVER, in my mind JJ and Pope are definitely bisexual and it would not surprise if they had confided in each other about it, hence why they are SO close.

3. why is not one of the characters single, like im sorry, i do really like the ships, but it’s so predictable and overdone to have 3 guys and 3 girls and to just match them up, that’s basically it but i feel like it’s very irritating ALSO WHY DID JONAS WRITE THAT SARAH CHEATS, ABSOLUTELY NOT, NOT HAVING IT, IM IGNORING IT EVEN HAPPENED

4. lastly WTF WAS THE ENDING. that’s one of the main things bothering me atm besides the way jiara has panned out. what was the need for the 18 MONTH TIME SKIP?! suddenly we have a year and a half missing from the story and it seems everyone’s got their life together? which btw doesn’t make any sense considering john b and JJ are both without parents and DCS would be on their asses like hot potatoes. also the random guy at the end? why did they make it seem like suddenly 6 teenagers are now antique specialists and know everything there is to know.

overall, i am quite frankly confused and incredibly conflicted. on one hand i absolutely adore this show and don’t want to critique it like i have but on the other hand there are so many things bothering me and it’s beginning to worry me that obx is just going to turn into the next riverdale which btw i will not stand for cause that show is a shit show, BUT i must say JJs comedy this season was gold and im glad we got more of it this season. please tell what if anyone else agrees with me cause NONE OF MY FRIENDS HAVE EVEN STARTED WATCHING IT AND IM GOING TO GO FERAL.

[anoray]

Quick thoughts after first two episodes of Ahsoka

I am determined to keep my expectations low and refrain from any pre-judging until I finish watching all the episodes. So these are just a few thoughts and questions that popped into my mind during Eps. 1 & 2.

Love the music score, it is wonderful so far. Although space rock always kind of takes me out of the space fantasy setting for some reason.

2. So we still have no idea where the heck Ahsoka was all those years before showing up to become Sabine's master? And why did Sabine put away her armor and helmet? I'm guessing/hoping we'll learn more about both of these things.

3. Meanwhile, I don't quite get the heavy emphasis on the Ahsoka/Sabine master and padawan thing when these two had zero interaction during Rebels, but I'll just stay neutral for now. It is a relief they made it clear Sabine is not suddenly and inexplicably talented with the Force. I do appreciate how they made the way Sabine cut her hair a nod to Kanan's own ceremony.

4. Are they saying Hera really thought Ezra was dead so that's why she has apparently never bothered to search for him all these years? BTW, where is Jacen? I do hope he and Zeb make more than cameo appearances.

5. Okay, this is just me being grumpy, but it would've been kind of nice if Ryder had included Kanan's name when talking about the dedication to the heroes of Lothal. He did help destroy Thrawn's Defender project after all.

6. Enjoying all the ancient lore, star maps, and puzzle pieces. Totally up my alley.

7. Thrawn was banished to another galaxy??? Did the Force tell the purrgil to take him there?

8. I love that Morgan Elsbeth has been revealed to be a Nightsister. (shades of Morgan le Fey?). But kinda scratching my head because I don't remember her appearing in any of the Thrawn novels and the show is implying there is a strong connection between them.

9. Not sure what to think of the fallen Jedi peeps or Inquisitor yet. Does Luke have any idea these guys are running around?

10. Chopper, you are perfect. If we get to see AP-5 and you argue, I will be most pleased.

11. Nothing against the live action actors, but I sure do miss Vanessa Marshall's voice as Hera and Ashley Eckstein as Ahsoka.

12. Last, but definitely not least, thank the Maker this show looks, sounds, and feels like Star Wars aka fun, plus it definitely honors the look of Rebels and TCW animation in many respects. I feel rather sorry for anyone who hasn't watched these shows because they missed a lot of back story. Loving all the droids, lightsabers, aliens, starships, clunky technology, and how about another round of applause for Kevin Kiner's music :)

[streatfeild]

@larryrickard and @spineless-lobster tagged me a million years ago, thank you!! <3

List 5 favourite shows (in no particular order) and answer questions accordingly.

01. The Thick of it

02. Without a Trace

03. Hap and Leonard

04. Lost

05. Yonderland

Who is your favourite character in 2?

Danny (big surprise lol)

Who is your least favourite character in 1?

It’s hard to tell bc those characters weren’t designed to be liked so uh they all suck in their own way. But in a good way you know? But uhhhhh I‘d say John Duggan I guess?

What’s your favourite episode of 4?

UHHHHHMMMM. OKAY. "Lockdown" is obviously an all-time fave but there are better eps in the later seasons like "Greatest hits", "Dr Linus" and (unpopular opinion) "The End". There are too many to choose :(

What’s your favourite season of 5?

Gotta be season 3 🫡

What’s your favourite relationship in 3?

If we‘re talking platonic then yes. Hap & Leonard. What a duo what a dynamic so well written i‘m actually going insane over them btw

What is your anti-relationship in 2?

MARTIN/SAM just LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!! (Martin/Sam/Danny though? Yes please)

How long have you watched 1?

I think i started watching this march, and i haven’t stopped since

How did you become interested in 3?

i‘ve been watching enrique’s entire filmography and. He‘s in it. And BOY am i glad bc i would’ve regretted not seeing this masterpiece of a show. (please watch it if you haven’t)

Who is your favourite actor in 4?

Michael Emerson takes it. BOY does he take it

Which show do you prefer 1, 2 or 5?

god. I‘m so sorry but i‘ll have to go with my awful copaganda show :( wat it is

Which show have you seen more episodes of, 1 or 3?

23 vs 18 episodes, and i‘ve been rewatching ttoi on loop for months, whereas i‘ve only done a partial rewatch of H&L

If you could be anyone from 4, who would you be?

Bernard or Vincent probably lol. Just chillin'

How would you kill off your favourite character in 5?

Vex? You want me to murder Vex? Okay. Killed very dramatically by Negatus (they‘re divorced your honour), the whole cliché list: dying in his arms "i always loved you" yadda yadda (sorry)

Would a 3/4 crossover work?

Honestly? It‘d be so epic. Hap & Leonard on The Island. Yes please

Pair two characters in 1 who would make an unlikely, but strangely okay couple.

*points at adam/phil* THEM!!!!!!!!!!

Overall, which show has the better cast, 3 or 5?

You‘re not making me choose here, right? RIGHT?

[felixstark]

This is where the "You & Me" started..

~ ep: Berliner Bärchen

And this is where we started liking each other..

~ ep: Der lange Arm des Zufalls

And this is where we got closer..

~ ep: Tot bist du!

And this is where we started dating, but still were shy..

~ ep: Zahltag

And this is where we had our first up and downs..

~ ep: Filmriss

[storm-and-starlight]

So I saw a post on here about how, like, Tumblr The Witcher is different from Netflix The Witcher which is pretty par for the course -- fandom creates its own version of the media it’s centered around in order to better fulfil what the fandom wants out of the media. But @jackironsides made a comment in the tags about how the first episode of the show is very different from subsequent episodes with Jaskier, and that got me thinking. (This is very rambly and disjointed bc I’m not good at this kind of meta but I thought it was cool enough to post lmao)

The storytelling style and cinematography of the witcher changes based off of who's telling the story.

When Geralt's the narrator/narrating character/viewpoint character (I'm not quite sure what to label it tbh), the stories are darker, harsher, less likely to have an unambiguously happy ending, cases in point being the Renfri and striga episodes (ep. 1 and 3): Renfri is a tragedy, the striga is horror, both are shot and filmed in more monochrome color palettes (Blaviken, especially, is primarily blue-grey in color minus occasional bits of bright red, whereat a lot of the Striga episode reminds me of early Supernatural: very very dark, very little color and what there is is again, more monochrome) 

Whereas when Jaskier is the viewpoint character, the stories are more along the lines of a traditional adventure story, with a happy(ish) ending and more comedy -- case in point being Posada and the elves (ep. 2): no one dies, the whole episode from his point of view (Yen and Ciri’s sections not included, of course, bc he’s not the one telling their stories) is brightly lit and brightly colored, with a lot of sweeping views of the landscape. The same goes for the first part of the dragon hunt (ep. 6) - brightly lit, more "adventure story" than truly horror-esque or tragic (the one guy who dies does so while having diarrhea which, while dark, is more of a dark comedy than like. the striga), and even the sadder ending is told from his point of view (mountain scene anyone?)

The banquet (ep. 4) is an interesting case because the perspective is a mix of Geralt and Jaskier -- the early part of the banquet is shot and told as though Jaskier is the viewpoint, but the inn and the latter half of the banquet have Geralt as the narrator. It sort of switches between who is most important in a given scene -- as soon as the story shifts from "banquet shenanigans" (arguably a very Jaskier-esque thing to be focusing on) to "Law of Surprise and Ciri" it goes from Jaskier-as-narrator to Geralt-as-narrator.

I dunno what I’m trying to say about this (if I’m trying to say anything at all), but it was just a cool thing that I noticed when I thought about why episode 2 and all episodes with Jaskier are closer to the Tumblr version of the media, and it didn’t just seem to be bc the fandom’s latched onto Jaskier. I haven’t noticed much of this same kind of cinematographic/tonal differences in Yen and Ciri’s storylines, partially because it’s been a while since I watched the show all the way through and partially because it’s a lot more dramatic to see the differences in tone and color and storytelling style between “Geralt fighting Renfri in Blaviken” and “Geralt during the opening djinn scene with Jaskier”.

(if anyone has anything to add please do I’m interested!)

(this is the post that inspired this all, btw)

[the-indie-indian]

58 thoughts I had while watching Invincible EP 1 [Out of Context]

{Spoilers ahead}

These are some thoughts I got while watching the first episode of Invincible.

Few things before,

I love DC comics and this is my first time watching anything put out by Image Comics

I never heard of the Invincible comics and I am watching this without reading anything about the show beforehand.

So, let's begin:

1. If that security man dies I'm gonna cry.

2. " It has to be a spectacle" boy every terrorist’s motto!

3. Seriously this team is just the justice league.

4. Good on you fish out of water Aquaman.

5. But really, 2 vs 8 can't be fair.

6. OMG Louis Lane.

7. What a bratty kid.

8. Okay not so bratty, the parents are too frisky.

9. Is this a Sky High rip off?

10. My God that harassment scene. Hits too close to home.

11. Grayson?!?!?!!! Like Dick Grayson?!?!? Did they rip off my Nightwing too?!? OMG.

12. Ouch.

13. Double ouch.

14. Burger mart? Really? Might as well said “Not A Brand Name” burger store.

15. Yup, sky high

16. Why does Omni man have the speech pattern of President Barak Obama? I'm not complaining, it just makes me want to look up Obamacare again just to make sure I still understand it.

17. Excccuuuuusssse me? Lesser developed worlds? You saved like 4 people while the Justice League saved everyone there.

18. Omni man is hot though, tbh

19. I am so happy I never got the puberty talk from my parents. My Mom told all that I needed to know if I ever get my period and that's it. Thank God for sex education class. "Hair in strange places" *shudders*

20. Why does the kid have a Canada shirt? Again, not complaining, love Canada. Just confused.

21. Oh baby no

22. Oh baby yes

23. Oh baby no

24. Why aren't they wearing masks? Like superhero identity masks?

25. I really like the explanation Omni man is giving about flying.

26. OH NOOOOOOOOOOO

27. That is not........... I mean........ I know why he did it......... But still? Oh boy. I really think he should have told him he was gonna hit him. They should have had Grayson learn a martial art even before he got his powers, it could have given him a huge edge while fighting.

28. Oh his name is Mark? And can someone please tell me, is that how bullying really happens in the US? I really really wanna know. If it does, I am so so sorry you guys have to go through that.

29. Oh look, it's The Thing from The Fantastic Four.

30. I think I just read too many comics and now everything seems like plagiarism to me. Mark has the personality of Wally West and the powers of Superman and has the looks and partial name of Dick Grayson.

31. Is that Jason Todd I see with the hit me scene?

32. Would it have hurt Omni man to say, "You will son, maybe be better than me someday?” Or "I am proud of what you want to do now"?

33. Since there is so much going on, they should have just have Edna instead of this old guy. Oh I forgot, never mess with Disney. DC is fine, but nnnneeeevvveeerrr Disney.

34. Orange and yellow, yup, that's Geoforce.

35. Omniman’s costume suck though.

36. Hell no, DO NOT TALK TO YOUR MOTHER LIKE THAT!!!!!!

37. Aww

38. That's a weak sauce way of getting a superhero name. I mean, it’s technically how Nightwing got his name, but at least Superman had a good story to tell.

39. GOD DAMN IT if it weren't for the yellow that's def Nightwing costume.

40. I love Cage the Elephant

41. Crap indeed

42. I hope this doesn't end up like Man of Steel.

43. Why is the Flash Russian? Oh, I get it ( lame cuz he's always ” Rush”ian joke )

44. That IS Iris West if not for the green eyes btw.

45. Aww Manipulation (jk)

46. Why Denver? What did that city ever do to you or anyone? Just head towards the mountains and enjoy the view.

47. Won't that criminal die in space? Oh.

48. Aww poor fish king.

49. Oh that's not Wonder Woman that’s Sailor Moon.

50. If you ever can, please read Patton Oswalt's JLA: Welcome to the Working Week. You will definitely enjoy it. It's not the greatest comic ever written, but it is a really fun read.

51. Is the green lady Princess Emerald like Princess Amethyst

52. Okay she's not.

53. She's kinda Green Lantern-ish or even Danny Phantom-ish.

54. She's hot.

55. This Batman confuses me. First he has a hover board like Static Shock and now he's quippier than Jim Carrey.

56. Still hot though

57. Aren't our mountains already disintegrating? Couldn't they just have a fortress of solitude? Or an island of remoteness, or a volcano of emptiness or a sound of silence? (sorry)

58. Oh My God

[elizabeatrice]

Episode 12 - The Little Mermaid

Let’s Talk About JSHK Anime #3

Warning: Manga spoilers for The Little Mermaid arc, The Clock Keeper arc, and chapter 64!!! (just a bit, skip point no. 5, 6, and 10 if you don’t want to get spoiled) Also … this ended up way longer than I intended.

Well that was one heck of a feels trip. It’s probably my new favorite episode, just because everyone is here being wholesome lmao.

This is mostly hananene meta I ain’t even gonna lie.

Before we begin, shout out to Black Canyon, our newest anime cutie pie. Just look at him, folks. Just chilling with his sunflower seed.

He has no idea the kind of life his owner leads.

I said before that the best part of episode 12 is how it made Daydream worse, so now I’m gonna ramble about it.

“Maybe different species can’t understand each other after all.”

“Maybe it would be better if I were an apparition too.”

This is my favorite part of the episode. And no, not in the sense that I want Nene to die just so that she and Hanako can be together. But because of how Lerche actually explored deeper what was said only once in the manga.

Well, both in the manga and anime Nene ended up accepting the mermaid’s blood because of her desire to be popular, but the anime decided to revisit what she said earlier in the episode.

Not only did that make her decision kinda less selfish, it’s also just … sad. Thinking that your friend, someone you really cared about, doesn’t trust you enough to tell you things about themselves, to the point where you’re willing to go to such lengths as turning into an apparition just to understand them.

And if you think about it, isn’t this part of her true wish? To have her feelings be reciprocated? Man I just realized that as I wrote this and I am mindblown.

She thought she finally got her wish with Hanako. I mean, he said it himself in the first ep (”You wanted someone, anyone, to return your feelings, right? And as far as you’re concerned, sharing a bond with someone is the same thing, right?”). So it must’ve hit her really hard when she thought he didn’t trust her. Especially with all the wrong ideas the fishes were feeding her mind.

Then we got this little flashback. At first I was like, “Girl, you really be thinking that he doesn’t care about you while recalling the moment he apologized to you and hugged you? Are you insane?”

But after some thinking of my own, it occurred to me. Maybe she was too used to having her feelings not reciprocated, she couldn’t believe it when someone finally did. Not to mention Hanako did kinda trick her with his fake confession a while back (heh, he’s not the only one with trust issues, eh?). And that just made the entire thing even sadder.

So when Nene said, “But I thought, if I were an apparition like you, I could get closer to you. Then, maybe I’d be able to understand you, Hanako-kun. Although I know I probably don’t mean anything to you.”

That was a harsh wake up call for Hanako.

(Btw even more full circle, Hanako brought up Nene’s wish to become human again in the first episode. Nice.)

So. We got one daikon girl who’s afraid of not having her feelings reciprocated, and one ghost boy who’s afraid that daikon girl wouldn’t be his friend anymore if she knew about his past.

While in actuality, said daikon girl already decided she wanted to and would be his friend no matter what, and ghost boy had grown to care about her more than he thought he would.

He heard what she said to Tsuchigomori. He knew all about regret, too.  I mean, honestly, I think if she had said no, he’d let her walk away right then and there, no questions asked. But she didn’t.

Nene’s wish finally came true here. And the best part? It wasn’t the work of magic or curses. Just Hanako finally shoving his fear aside, offering himself as he was, and letting her decide.

And she still chose to be with him.

Heh. Lemme just. Sob for a bit.

Is my hananene trash brain reading too much into this? Idk. Maybe.

So props to the production team for managing to add even more weight to this arc. Which, they had to, since it’s the season finale and all. But I love what they did!

Onto my commentaries!

1. The KouNene

Good shit. She was worried about him but he didn’t want her to worry so he just smiled it off? These two are precious. Thought they were gonna interact. Sadly not. Buuuut! (see point 12)

2. Hanako’s classroom visit

He. Is. So. Adorable. Someone please take his babey license away he’s too dangerous.

Hanako’s classroom visit is like my absolute favorite clingy Hanako moment, so I’m really happy I get to see it this season. Ugh. My kokoro. Hugging her from behind, that semi confession vibe … Smooth mf.

The Mokke brushing Nene’s hair!!! The radish hairdo tho lmao.

On a sidenote, as a history nerd I appreciate that they’re actually putting lessons in the background. And the teacher talked about Apollo 11 again??? While my boy was in the room? That ish both hurt and pleased me.

3. The Clock Keeper rumor drop

Heeeeeehhhhh? What’s thiiiiiissss?

4. This freaking thing

*flips table* Darn production team been knew I’m hananene trash how dare they do this to me.

And lookie here there’s Kodama chilling.

5. Fishies! (!!!manga spoiler for The Little Mermaid arc!!!)

Pufferfish didn’t die. Well, good for him. Also I can’t believe they just call the other fish ‘yeah yeah’ lmao what the freak. Has it always been like that in the manga?

6. AOI AND AKANE (!!!spoilers for chapter 64!!!)

I swear I did not intend this numbering coincidence.

*claps* Boi. Nene asking Aoi about cutting ties with someone she’s interested in? And then Akane just swooped in and say he’d rather cut his head off than cut ties with Aoi? What about getting impaled, huh, boy? Would that do?

The not-so-subtle call out to these two pairs’ parallel? BOI.

7. Nene and Yako

These two just chilling together having girl talk, and Yako let Nene pet her? That’s some adorable shit right there. Admit it Yako you like her.

Yako also be really hitting home with what she said. It was extra heavy coming from her, considering what happened to her and Misaki. Boiiiiii.

8. Tsuchigomori

Oh my God, his laughter. Just … oh my God.

Tsuchigomori in dad mode is always one of the highlights of the episode/chapter.

By the way, in this scene according to the sub, Nene asked Tsuchigomori who Tsukasa is. But she knew who he is already. Is it possible that the sub misinterpreted it? ‘Cause I think what she actually meant was, “What happened to him and Tsukasa-kun in the past?”

If someone who speaks Japanese could share their wisdom, please do!

9. The 5 pm bell and twilight

Look how pretty they are!!!

Lo and behold, another important hananene interaction while the 5 pm bell plays in the background. Also, twilight? Y’all giving me Kimi no Na wa flashbacks.

“Twilight, when it’s neither day or night. When the world blurs and one might encounter something not human.”

Huh … kinda fits the ‘boundary’ concept but it still hurt.

Anyway they still had Hanako tell her what she already knew. And I did say in my ‘Walking Blind’ post that it’d be redundant. But since the episode kinda emphasized Nene’s desire to understand Hanako, having him actually tell her himself, even though she already knew it, was a big deal. It’s not about what she knows, it’s about him opening up to her. So I’m super cool with it.

10. The Broadcasting Club (!!!spoilers for The Clock Keeper arc!!!)

I love how Natsuhiko and Sakura are actually decent people. When he told Mitsuba that he was free to choose to stay with them or not? That’s solid, man. Though, of course, Tsukasa might not be as kind.

Speaking of, I know it couldn’t be anything else, but I’m still not sure if Tsukasa’s drawing was confirmation for season 2. Don’t wanna get my hopes up. Imma just enjoy what I currently have.

Kinda curious, though. Because Clock Keeper wasn’t Tsukasa’s doing. Maybe he was the one who released Mirai? But tbh I’d prefer if it wasn’t so. Because having more cases of supernaturals going loco without it being one of Tsukasa’s games is interesting, and kinda underlines the need of The Seven Wonders to keep supernaturals in check.

11. Kodama just chilling

12. The Adventures of Minamoto and the Summer Vegetables

You go, Kou! I’m rooting for you oh my God you’re so precious.

And look at that ikemen smile! Him supporting Kou is just top notch sweet y’all I can’t-

Ngl this was the biggest surprise of the episode. Teru finding out that summer vegetables = Nene? Broooooo. Interesting. I don’t think this little addition warrants any changes to their future interaction, so it should be safe. Clever replacement, too, those veggies.

It’s so sweet that Nene delivered those veggies to Kou! Just imagine the Minamoto family having veggies for dinner. Awww.

(Also, Nene wrote her name in hiragana instead of kanji. Is that a reference to how bad Kou is with kanji? Lol, so sweet)

13. The Coda!!!

Look at him. Just look at him. Look how lovesick he is y’all I can’t-

THEY’RE SO ADORABLE.

All in all, I love this episode. Sorry for how long this post is. I’m just dealing with so many feels right now. Gaaahhhhh.

[muthaz-rapapa]

Let’s talk TroPreCure! (^∀^ 🌺)

i’m so stupidly proud of this dumb pun “tropurikyua~”, hahahahaha

Last post of the year and wow is there are lot to be excited for!

I even had to make a list for the stuff I want to talk about and I’m sure I already forgot one or two things but we’ll get to them as we continue to float~ along the wave to February 28th, mmkay? :)

Now for what has peaked my interest so far. And yes, we have to talk about the following first:

1) HealPre the shortest Precure season??

Unless they plan for double features in February (which I doubt but you never know), HealPre is likely going to reach only 45 episodes long instead of the usual 48~50 before TroPre I’m using this shortening of the title for now so if there’s a better alternative, tell me and I’ll switch out begins its broadcast.

Understandable because the producers probably want to get back to their normal scheduling as soon as possible (toy sales, y’know) and I suspect pushing the start of the new season back by a month is the most they’re willing to compromise.

As for me, I’m quite happy about this since HealPre’s lost its hold on my attention a while ago so the sooner TroPre gets here, the better. Though the downside might be a scrambled climax and a rushed, underwhelming ending for HealPre (I dunno if it’s January’s titles that feel a bit messy or if the hiatus is still throwing me off) but whatever. We’ll refresh ourselves with the new blood Cures so it’s all good.

2) Tropical movie announced for Autumn 2021, no All Stars??

(source)

First saw this mentioned on Youtube somewhere but it’s all over the fandom forums by now. I mean, HealPre’s movie is set for March, the usual time slot for All Stars release. If Toei intended for there to be an All Stars in 2021, there’s no way they would announce the seasonal movie before it so speculations of them skipping it this year are probably true.

To squeeze it somewhere between March and October-ish would force them to readjust their budgets as well and I don’t think even Toei wants to go through that extra hassle after all the trouble the pandemic’s caused for everyone already. It’s just easier to resume All Stars in 2022.

That, and I think Laura being a major character in TroPre despite not having a Cure title (yet) would make for an awkward situation when the three latest teams gather so perhaps that’s also one of the reasons. But I’ll get back to Laura in a bit.

3) Cure Summer is a RAINBOW Cure

So god help me if I see anyone calling her a Pink Cure.

Yes, she’s the lead Cure for this season. NO, she is not a Pink Cure.

Look, even the official website has a rainbow overlay for her profile pic and text font while everyone else’s respective theme colors are a solid hue:

Therefore, RAINBOW.

In promotional material and merchandising, they’re probably going to advertise her primarily with pink bah and at worst, she might occasionally be labeled as a White Cure with multiple subcolors (her outfit is not pink-dominant) but definitely NOT. PINK.

...also, this goes without saying but f***yea, we finally got a lead Cure practically and unabashedly wearing the LGBTQ flag and you cannot tell me otherwise, Toei!

Own up to it! Declare Manatsu/Cure Summer as the Precure queer icon!

I’m not gonna stop yellin’ until you do! 😠

4) Laura = obvious midseason Cure is obvious

First of all, Laura is a babe. I already love her the best and she’s not even Precure yet. <3

Anyways, the set-up is pretty much in the description. Important main character who’s not a mascot, stated to have a self-confident personality and just speaks her mind (oooh, I like~ :D), magical/foreign being from another world looking for Precure to save her home, possesses her own special item(s), has aspirations to become the next Queen (so she’s a princess-candidate or something to that effect, I suppose).

We’ve seen various combinations of these traits in past midseason (and a few starter) Cures so nobody should be surprised when we all guessed that one of the Cures would be a real live mermaid.

The only question is why not just make Laura a Cure from the get-go if she’s introduced to us at the beginning (like Hime or Lala) and having a team of five with no unnecessary extra add-ons later on (like Smile).

Well, there’s a simple answer for that: formula.

Toei is afraid that if they don’t spit out some new animation sequence at the halfway and third quarter points of the show, the kids will lose interest and abandon the series altogether. Which means failed toy sales. Oh nooo... [/sarcasm]

...Yea. 

And this way they can also have Laura available in the Cure lineup for the next All Stars in 2022 instead of making her sit the fight out if we were going to have one in 2021. I’m convinced that’s gotta be one of the reasons. *shrug*

But ok, whatever. Her debut is gonna be later, that’s all. She’s a delayed Cure.  Midseason Cure, same difference.

Moving along to the more important stuff now like what’s her Cure name gonna be, y/y?

Well, knowing Toei, a translation of the term “mermaid” into another language is the most predictable route even though we already have a Cure Mermaid. Not like that ever stopped them from repeating words before (ex. Cure Happy vs Cure Felice). Though if they do go down that road, I hope they opt for the Spanish/Italian “sirena” and not the French “sirène” because the latter sounds too close to how Cure Selene is pronounced in Japanese. And, putting it nicely, we all know Japanese pronunciation of foreign words is as off kilter as can be.

Hell, even the the Portuguese “sereia” sounds aesthetic as hell so it’d be nice if they can just remember there are other languages that exist out there besides Japanese, English and French when making the final decision at the writing table! *stomps foot* >:/

Alternatively, “nereid” or “naiad” are good choices too but they remind me too much of Greek myths and Laura’s from the Grand Ocean which covers more than just a couple of seas (Greece is surrounded by three, btw) so...

I dunno. But whatever it’s gonna be, she’s definitely got a strong association with water and her powers will probably be based on that.

As for theme color, since there’s noticeably no blue or green Cure in the starter lineup, it’s likely she will take up that spot when she debuts around ep 20.

Pink is also open since Cure Summer, again, is technically not a Pink Cure and Laura’s hair and tail fin are hot and light pink respectively but looking at Laura’s design and concept, does anyone seriously believe that?

Her upper torso consists of aquamarine while the body of her tail is definitely some shade of cyan, implying they’re aiming for somewhere around the middle of green and blue on the lighter spectrum.

And yea, I’m aware that green and blue are considered exchangeable in some perspectives with how close some of their shades are to each other but officially, I think Laura’s gonna be grouped with the Green Cures.

Cuz of the hair. If Laura’s gonna keep it the same or a similar shade after transforming, that is. The Blues have always had cool-colored hair so putting Laura in with them might disrupt that harmony whereas if you put her with the few Greens there are (including Parfait), she’d fit right in.

I mean, we’ll see but that makes the most sense, doesn’t it?

On another note, I just want to say that I love how they added frills to her arms instead of letting her elbows go bare naked. It definitely makes her look more like a genuine mermaid than if she didn’t have them (remember, half fish doesn’t mean half the body :P).

5) Magical Items

Frankly, I’m tired of seeing the transformation device being a compact again even though one of the main motifs is make-up this season. But at least, as far as Precure compacts goes, the Tropical one is my favorite cuz of how cute and delightfully colorful its toy version looks! So I guess I’m okay with it.

The Heart Rouge Rod, though? ...I dunno. I think it would’ve been fine without that...straw (?) jutting out at the top. It looks weird, doesn’t it look weird? :S

As for the collectible clip-ons, I can live without those for the rest of my life. Yeesh.

Laura’s items, the Aqua Pot and the Ocean Prism Mirror.

Again with the portable, travel-size housing. *sigh* 😩

Alright, I can let this year slide cuz Laura (I’m so soft for her, omg) probably won’t be getting legs for 20 weeks so she’s got to move about on land somehow. But unless they’re really thinking about turning this idea of carrying your apartment around in your bag/pocket/purse into a reality (cuz that would be effin’ awesome), please be more creative with your toys.

On the other hand, I’m much more interested in the Ocean Prism Mirror but from what Kusyami (the Precure merchandise reviews I follow on Youtube) said in his latest vid, this is the ED dance item so don’t know if it’ll actually have an relevance to the story or not. But I did hear him mention it having something to do with the Queen as well and since Laura wishes to become Queen, maybe it’ll be important after all? Maybe it’s her transformation device?

That’d be super cool. Let’s continue the trend of the midseason Cure having a different transformation item than the starters. Honestly, we should alternate every other year or two but we’ve gone three seasons with all of them using the same henshin gimmicks up till HealPre and I just want a break from that.

6) Fin sleeves??

These look so impractical for combat so maybe it’s exclusive to group attacks.

And/or a sort of precursor to the super forms?

*GASP* Does that mean they all eventually turn into mermaids? 🤩

7) Yui finally became Precure!! 😭

lol, it’s all crack from this point on so don’t take it too seriously but man, after Yuni’s deceptive braids, I thought I wasn’t gonna see anything that reminded me of Yui for a while and lo behold, Sango.

kehehehehehe xD;

Though Yui might be closer to Minori in terms of personal interests (fairytales and storybooks).

8) Akira, the actual Onee-chan version

I didn’t think this when I first saw her but once I read “Onee-san” in her profile, there’s no saving you now. Sorry, Asuka. 😅

Also, damn, do her sandals make her feet look big! Compare them to the heels she wears as Flamingo. Are they even the same?! lololol

9) ...this sounds awfully familiar...

Translation:

Tokimeku Tokonatsu! [Exciting/Thrilling Everlasting Summer!] Cure Summer! Kirameku Hoseki! [Sparkling Jewel!] Cure Coral!  Hirameku Fuurutsu! [Flashing Fruit!] Cure Papaya!

Japanese reiteration:

Mallow/Mao: Pink no tokimeki! Lillie: Blue no kirameki! Lana/Suiren: Yellow no kagayaki!

….........

@Toei 

Care to explain yourselves, punks?! 

୧(ʘ ∀ ʘ ╬)

[i-dont-want-your-hysteria]

The Leppard Albums: A Summary

(inspired by Every Beatles Album)

Happy Saturday night everyone

The Def Leppard EP

Joe is 19 and just wants to ride a motorcycle okay

Groupie fantasy

Zeppelin lyrics meet Rush with an underappreciated bass line

On Though the Night

IT'S!!! ROCK!!! N ROLL!!! BABEY!!!

Joe is 20 and just really doesn't wanna work in a factory anymore okay

pls D; girl D; stop D; hiding D; your D; pain!!

another... groupie fantasy... I think? ...???

Leppard in Space

Joe is 20 and just wants to write something edgy okay leave him alone

STEVE 👏👏👏 FUCKING 👏👏👏 CLARK!!!! 👏👏🔥👏🔥👏👌👌

the original groupie fantasy but it's been re-recorded

girl?? make up?? your mind???

let's be mysteriously edgy ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Zeppelin lyrics meets Rush but it's been re-recorded (but don't worry they still kept the underappreciated bass line)

High N Dry

everyone in this band is a slutty bottom and this is the song that proves it

we have Mutt Lange now and this is the song that proves it

drONK TIEM

betcha didn't think we could write a ballad, did ya ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

STÊVË!!!!! 👏👏👏👏 FÜCKÎÑ!!!!!! 👏👏👏👏👏 C L Ã R K!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥👏👌👌🤙👏👌🔥👌🎉🎉

underappreciated and that's all there is to it

noooo don't go you're too mysterious and sexy hahhaha

oh god Dx oh god no Dx we don't sound like this anymore we swear Dx

betcha thought we stopped writing Beowulf-esque pop songs didn't ya ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

🚫🚫⛔👎🚫🙅‍♂️👎🚫⛔🙅‍♂️⛔ *Joe tearing his throat up for 2 solid minutes*

Pyromania

IT'S ROCK!!!!!! N ROLL!!!! BABEY!!!!!!!1!!!!1!!1!! AGAIN!!!!! 😆😆😆

the Classic Rock Fandom™ in a nutshell 😓

INTRODUCING PHIL 👌👌👌 FUCKING👏👏 COLLEN 🔥🔥🔥

betcha thought we abandoned the idea of doing a ballad didn't ya ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Joe's back at it again with the edgy songs and is getting a lot better at it too

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ∆ ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Gunter 🙃 Glieben 🙃 Glauchen 🙃 Globen

the most underappreciated song on this whole entire fucking list sorry I don't make the rules

Alright, WHO in this band wants to be in a porno >:C

Joe's back at it yet again with the edgy songs but it's even BETTER this time

Hysteria

Girls Girls Girls ALL WOMEN ARE QUEENS ANAKIN

🎸we!!! fucking!!! love!!!! glam rock!!!!!! and african drum rhythms!!!!!!!!!🥁

we're not furries we swear we're just kinky D: also fuck you DJs here's some false endings

we haven't made a ballad that HURTS yet so here we go (with an underappreciated bass line)

the song that invented "( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)" (AKA when you cram for a test the minute before and end up getting 100%)

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)😏( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)😏( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

S T E V E 😭👏👏 F U C K I N 😭😭😭 C L A R K 👏👏👏😭👏😭

nooo don't shoot me you're too kinky hahaha

a song about rioting and being #punk, but the only crime the man singing it has ever committed was getting a speeding ticket when he was 19/20

oh. oh shit. oh god. holy shi- I can't believe... ...we just accidentally made the most perfect song to ever exist :o like seriously- people are achieving nirvana as we speak I'm not joking I think we went too far with the perfection this time guys

THIS SONG IS ABOUT S E X AND WE AIN'T BEING SHY ABOUT IT EITHER LET'S FUCKIN GO BABE-

Don't 👏 give 👏 me 👏 love 👏

Adrenalize

gkKLglldlflhlADKSLALLFLSS 😆😆😆

I fucking love my wife uWu

fkKMglgllsLLslgflephpGLDLPT 😆(͠≖ ͜ʖ͠≖)😆

We're just gonna get extremely romantic and passionate for 4 minutes and 3 seconds if that's alright with you (͠≖ ͜ʖ͠≖)

this album was the most painful thing any of us have ever had to do, so here's the most serious song we've ever done to date. Steve ✊ Fucking ✊ Clark ✊ -n-

now that our mental breakdown is over, we're gonna get extremely passionate and romantic again but for a lil longer this time aiight 🤙

one of us has a protection/ownership kink but we're not gonna tell you who

you know what this album needs? a little bit more pain

we're layin down the line (and by that we mean we want sex)

we're layin down the line pt.2 (we still want sex btw)

Retro Active

Beowulf songs are back babey 🤙

I'll say that again if I have to^

we!!! still!!! fucking!!! love!!!! glam rock!!!!! we even covered something to prove it!!!!!!

Joe has now officially mastered ballads

I fucking love my wife part 2: she's a badass top

While Joe was off mastering ballads, Phil studied the blade

We covered something else bc again!!! we fucking!!! love!!! glam!!!

We rewrote Joe's motorcycle song bc we now realize it was cringe af (and it was an excuse for Joe to talk to Ian Hunter so that made him happy)

Joe has now officially mastered edgy/serious songs

it's a total bop but oh god. No. Please. No. Oh God. No. Don't. Please. No. Pls. No. Oh god. Don't.

This should've been on Adrenalize and you can Fight Me On That

Phil studies the blade (electric version)

Joe masters ballads (electric version)

Vault (there's only one new song on here so that's all I'm doing)

babe nooooo D';

Slang

Epic edgelords part 1

Epic edgelords part 2: Phil wrote it this time

everyone in this band is a slutty bottom and this is the song that proves it Volume 2: Electric Bugaloo

soft breakdown :'c

hOT DOGGITY DAMN JOE'S VOICE HOLY HELL TAKE ME N- *clears throat* I mean introducing Vivian Campbell :3 aND THERE'S A BASS SOLO MMMM 🤤🤤👌 THIS SONG IS JUST SEXY FUCKIN LIFT ME UP AND-

Phil's marriage isn't going too well

in fact, no one's marriages are going too well

severely underrated bop

We're still not over Steve's death and we never will be :c

Joe makes edgy ballads his bitch yet again 👏👏

severely underrated banger 🔥🔥🔥

Euphoria

wE STILL MAKE FAST BOPS IN CASE YOU FORGOT 🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘

Holy shit I didn't know Joe could hit a note that high

The 90s sucked for us but we'rE STILL HERE BICH 🖕

Can we pls give Sav more songwriting space on albums thx 😭💗

everyone in this band is a slutty bottom and this is the song that proves it Volume 3: Even Sluttier This Time 😏

totally different from everything we've ever done and WE 👏 MADE IT 👏 OUR 👏 EDGY 👏 BITCH

uwu but it's sad so it's actually umu

partying like it's 1999- oh wait, it actually is 1999

*hugs Viv and scREEEEEEEEAAAMMS*

Phil studied the blade and attacks you with it

*gets escorted into the back of a police car* IM GUILTY!! I'M GUILTY!!! I'M NOT INNOCENT!!! 😫😫😫

whatever edginess we couldn't fit into Paper Sun we put into this song instead

we're entering the new millennium as Kings and there's nothing you can do about it 👑🖕

X (Ten)

Stand on a balcony at sunset when you listen to this one

(insert Vizzini saying "INCONCEIVABLE" here)

the big UwU

I got ghosted and it’s actually a lot more dark and depressing than I thought also I wish I was never awake

soft and edgy and sad acoustic dads

F-U-C-K SPELLS F- I mean L-O-V-E spells love uWu

babe nOOOooO I'm sorry I suck so much DD;

this sounds like out if Work It Out and Day After Day had a kid

we're gonna have a Funky Good Time whether you like it or not 😎

E D G E L O R D S 2 0 0 2

we can't decide if we want this album to be edgy or uwu so we're gonna make it both

the same passion as Tonight but less sexy and more (you guessed it) uwu

E D G E L O R D S 2 0 0 2 P A R T 2

Betcha thought our emo phase was over didn't ya ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Yeah!

bops have been and will ALWAYS be something we have mastered- even if the song we're playing isn't ours

SAV'S TIME TO SHINE

betcha thought we couldn't cover a Blondie song, did ya ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Phil's just getting nostalgic about London it's fine 👍

don't worry joe's still sCREAMIN

in which we make this song a million times better than the original

WE LOVE ROXY MUSIC SO MUCH WE CANTEXPLAINWEJUSTLOVEHEMRMFLGPHPH

we're letting Joe have his moment ok just let him have this 👨���🎤

yeah we like Free- so whAT??

okay NOW we're letting Joe have his real moment- he's been waiting for this moment ever since he was like 12 okay just. let him. have this just. this one time. pls.

in which we confuse literally everyone by making them think this is a song that we wrote

we just need ONE more bop, okay? Just ONE more we swear then we'll stop being fanboys (for now...)

we'll be right back, it's Bow Down To Thin Lizzy Hour

*Phil tearing up his throat for 4 and a half solid minutes*

Songs From The Sparkle Lounge

this one's actually kinda dark and heavy? :o

honky tonk time 🤠🤙

FINALLY ONE OF SAV'S SONGS IS THE MOST POPULAR SONG OFF AN ALBUM 🙏🙏🙏🙏😩

FINALLY WE HAVE MORE SAV MATERIAL I LOVE IT SM ;∆; !!!!

Phil's songs are severely underrated tho pls give them more attention

it's time for one (1) badass religious song and if you don't like it then you can Fuck Off kindly 🙃

This whole album is "Songs That Were Written By Phil and Viv and Sav" heaven

I think sometimes people forget that we, even as a band, are fans of the Classic Rock Fandom™ too, and we feel the same pain as the other fans :'^)🤙

Joe's three minutes of fame on this album

Joe's three minutes of fame on this album part 2

Viv's songs are severely underrated tho pls give them more attention

Mirror Ball (bonus tracks)

we grabbed fate by the balls and screamed fUCK YOU 🖕🖕

We are still Kings™ in case anyone was wondering 👑🖕

✨PHIL BELIEVES!!!! IN!!!!! LOVE!!!!!!!! AND!!!!!!!!!! BELIEVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!✨

Def Leppard (Self Titled 2015)

Is this song about playing a live show? Probably. Is it also about having a fight? Is it also about angry sex? The world may never know.

Okay this one just absolutely SLAPS, periodt.

bootleg Another One Bites The Dust

*SOBBING* THEY'RE ALL SINGING LEAD I'M-

being badass, That's The Power Of Love

don't worry, we still know how to be Poetically Edgy

iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii'm *bump bump* hooked on a feeeeling

I've Got a Spiritual Romantic Boner

Can't Keep Away From The Flame edginess gets crossed with some Zeppelin charm and badassery

someone in this band is fucking piSSED 😠😠😠😠

we're gonna @ someone tonight fellas

sAV OH MY GOD BABYYYYY 😰😰😭😭😭😭 DO YOU NEED A HUG

what if we tried to cross newer Metallica with Nickelback 🤔

what if we turned this into We All Need Christmas three years from now... 🤔

Bonus: Personal Jesus/We All Need Christmas

Viv really wanted to cover ABBA but everyone said no so he settled for cowboy goth™ instead

What better man to write a warm and fuzzy Christmas song than the warm and fuzziest man alive (Sav)

[interestray]

it’s always a good moment when I see a critical role episode with so many things happening that my adhd can’t help but develop a mind of its own, so now that my hyper-fixations have stopped beating the shit out of me theres a couple things I wanna bring up most of it theory stuff and the rest personal things. btw its a long post be warned.

SPOILER ALERT- I’m talking about ep 117 of critical role and its a doozy.

 I’ve doing my recent posts in a different format and I’m liking it so I’m gonna use it here. btw I gonna mention some ship stuff I want to make clear I have no hate for any ships mentioned but unless I say I like the ship just assume I’m indifferent.

1. I gonna say I called it because even if I’m wrong about about future stuff I was right that it’s not just Lucien in that body, even if Lucien is completely right about molly as the group knew him is gone forever Molly (which I don’t believe at all) is still a fragment of lucien’s soul. now past that I do think molly as a conscious being is still in there and trying to connect with his friends. why? because theres this weird disconnect with how lucien acts communicating with the m9 from a far vs in person, in person it seems like he had his guard way up but when they scry or message him the barrier is lowered a bit I think when his guard isn’t up Molly bleeds into his actions and mind more. I personally see Lucien at being 130% whole because Molly grew into his own thing.

2. regarding my predictions for this episode I’m gonna give myself 2 points (with 1 of the points being made up of half points) I was hoping for flirting and I think we definitely got some version of flirting between Lucien and Caleb so I get a half point for that, not gonna lie I was a little freaked out (in a good way) how fast Lucien zeroed in on Caleb, I hope if things don’t go pear shaped we get to see those two interact more.

3. Personal thing I really wanted to smack Fjord and Veth for most of the episode like they both had moments of being rational (fjord more so) but for the most part i just want to slap them.

4. it was kind of hilarious to see how freaked out Lucien was of the m9, like there was a little of the bad kind of freaked out feeling I think it was mostly like how Ludinus felt meeting Jester. like poor Lucien he’s just doing his thing and suddenly this group of puppies imprints on him and follows him around poor guy. Seems like Lucien has so distrust towards the tomb takers with the whole ‘we are one’ thing, it seemed to be a recent development. I’ve seen people talk about whether the tomb takers/Cree will backstab Lucien I think it’s possible.

5. I think some members of the m9 have realized Caleb’s not doing ok, most likely from the corpse scene and him talking over Beau (bad caleb bad). what they do with this info is gonna be interesting I personally think Cad should talk with him in private maybe have yasha there as well (also hugs please someone hug the sad wizard man him and Yasha both need it).

6. personal thing I don’t understand jester x Fjord as a possible canon ship at this point in the story like i got it in early campaign but I think they’ve both grown and changed to the point where a relationship between the two would end quickly after starting (whether in tears or not). the only times I like seeing their romantic interactions is when Laura and Travis bleed through and at that point its nots really jester and fjord. again no hate you do you I just don’t understand the appeal.

7. I’ve not watched campaign 1 for a few reasons yet but I’ve done research on some of the bigger events one of which was Percy’s resurrection where Taliesin watched how everyone was acting to decide whether to come back or not. I think Cad’s whole talk about what the rest of the m9′s goals towards Molly/Lucien is first Taliesin’s way of deciding whether Molly will be a npc after this arc or if he picks up playing him again (this all of course depending on whether the m9′s stupid actions don’t get Lucien killed), second I think this is Cad’s way of deciding whether his “debt” is payed and if it’s time for him to leave. To be clear I don’t think this was the final decision I think it was the first step to see whether anyone could say they want their friend back and we had two (almost 3) say yeah they do so I think it was a good start.

8. I can totally see Lucien kidnapping some of the m9. this sounds weird but stick with me, it looks like the tomb takers as a whole have a few important spots missing in their mission like they (probably) have a blood cleric in Cree the goliath and halfing seems more strength based I’m not sure about the human and Lucien is filling spot of a little bit of everything. Lucien has already pointed out Caleb as being curious and smart so I think out of the party is Lucien steals any of them it will be Caleb, if not Caleb tho I think Yasha could also be one that gets his attention (especially if Lucien ever sees them fight) I don’t he would kidnap anyone unprompted but if they go through with their stupid plan I’m sure he’ll want payback.

9. I get a full point for crying at both the Yasha clover scene and Molly’s card about Caleb. 

10. So my best friend is also a fan of critical role but he always works Thursday’s so he’s behind on actively watching the shows, but I can watch them so I take notes of all the funny, interesting, and weird shit that happens then I call when he gets off work to tell him everything that happened then we talk about what we think will happen next. why does this matter? because before the molly reveal when we first heard about them going to aore (I don’t know how to spell the ruin place) I said I had a feeling Essek would probably show up and run into the m9. well I was right so i’m supper happy, hearing floaty bois voice was awesome I hope Essek and Lucien meet at some point (hopefully not while trying to kill each other that would be sad).

11. Caleb’s eighth floor is so interesting like I hope we get to see all the rooms at some point, I think the room we saw this episode was his room at the asylum (mostly from it’s disarray and how drab it was) as for who he was talking to? I’ve seen a lot of people says its Essek or Astrid (I can smell the incoming discourse) I think it’s neither, it’s probably the simplest answer himself or more specificly Bren. I think he was talking to the Bren that spent years in that bed and chair wasting away.

12. wtf do you mean the big snow worm has a double reason for hunting the party Matt?! (I have no clue what that means).

13. the m9′s decision to try and get to A2 before Lucien and take whatever is there is such a shit idea, why did he kill Vess because she was a traitor she betrayed him what are they m9 about to do betray him even after the warning about straying from the path (which btw I think was molly warning them). If they actually go through with this plan I hope Cad is right on Lucien getting amused at them instead of fucking pissed. good news is that even if they get there before Lucien they could still salvage the thing with Lucien by saying they wanted unbiased answers. I get they’re grieving and in a bunch of pain but use the common sense I know you have and learn more about whats happening before fucking it all up. (also I get half a point from Lucien kicking Vess’s body)

14. I will say I mostly loved this episode (except for the ending) but them talking about possibly scattering Lucien to get Molly back no matter how brief did unsettle me a lot. no matter my feelings about Molly this is Lucien’s body when he was scattered molly did have the right to the body so I don't think any of his actions were wrong or bad but now that Lucien is whole again his bodily autonomy should not be violated just for a unsure chance Molly would come back. As it is Lucien seemed already uneasy and annoyed with stuff molly did (ex-tattoos).

15. I originally wasn’t gonna put this point but I think I should. when Taliesin said “he thought they would be on the other side of this” I think most people thought it was in reference to how it seems like Lucien is evil (I still don’t think he is) but what if he meant Molly’s arc. think of it wouldn’t it make sense for Molly’s arc to focus on his past coming back to meet him what if they always intended for Lucien to become whole again and it was suppose to be Lucien’s thoughts/feelings bleeding into molly’s. but Molly died so instead we’re getting the inverse Lucien has to come to terms with his past as Molly and the people Molly left behind coming into his life. I think it would be a good arc him learning that you can’t run from or ignore the past no matter how much you want to it can and will come bite you in the ass. would also make sense why Lucien and Molly both have that attitude towards their pasts (you know other than being pieces of the same person). 

[thesmallgay]

None of my friends watch The Worst Witch but I need to rant so here are my questions/comments/ideas about HB and Pippa's relationship that season 3 has caused (also this is longer than I originally meant i'm so sorry):

[[MORE]]

1. Why does Pippa call HB "Hecate" if HB started going by that after Indigo Moon, HB said she ended her friendship with Pippa when Indy turned to stone???

Potential explanation: Pippa hears that HB prefers to be called Hecate now and respects that OR she and HB actually are friends for a little bit after the Indy incident and HB tells her she wants to go by Hecate. Also explains the Hiccup nickname, but I doubt HB would allow herself to have *joy* (ha) in her life so soon after

2. Why did Hecate end their friendship? Did she believe that the people she was close to would be in danger? Did she think she deserved to be in isolation?

HB says in season 1 that it was bc she thought Pippa didn't want to be friends with her. This could easily be a lie but in season 2 when they're arguing, HB says that Pippa always wanted to be better than her. There's a lot of tension, and honestly, hatred from both ends that doesn't just feel like heartbreak. The way they argue, it seems like HB truly believed that Pippa wanted to be better than HB. Maybe she lied to herself for so long that she started to believe it? Maybe they did hire Miss Broomhead (from the og series) to tutor her and maybe she used Pippa against her?

3. A theory on why HB didnt go to the broomstick display (I separate out friendship and broomstick display bc I think the broomstick display was either the first indication that she and Pippa were done, or the last - first if she immediately pulled away from Pippa, last if she slowly distanced herself)

I have 2 thoughts (though one of them doesnt make much sense). (i) the day the display happened was the day the Indy thing happened or perhaps the day she faced the Council. She doesn't confide in Pippa so Pippa just thinks she ditched but really HB is trying to protect her. Now this doesn't make sense bc HB gives Indy magic during break bc HB herself can't leave and I assume the broomstick display would happen during term. (ii) There is another level to the display competition that would require them to leave school grounds if they won (go to another school to compete or something). HB knows there's a chance they could win, and instead of having to explain to Pippa that she can't leave campus, HB decides to just forfeit. Having Pippa hate her is a bonus bc she thinks that she is holding Pippa back, esp if she is confined to the school. I think this theory relies on HB still being friends with Pippa (using the 2nd potential explanation for question 1)

4. If she and Pippa were bffs then shouldn't Pippa know that HB liked the nonmagic world? It's possible that HB even wouldve brought Pippa with her to the nonmagic world and introduced her to Indigo (I don't think Pippa wouldve minded breaking the rules for HB). If she knew though, Pippa most likely also knew about HB's punishment but I don't think she does based on my previous points.

5. Also, the scenes from HB in the nonmagic world showed Joy being like a real kid, having fun and messing around. She and Indy even made up naughty words to the school song (which btw when would that even happen), but when Pippa is talking to Mildred, she says HB always took everything too seriously which doesn't seem likely given what we've seen and what we know about HB's transformation into who she is now. Unless HB was only carefree in the nonmagical world? Didn't feel any pressures from anyone to succeed? Also, the silver dress comment from Pippa in season 2 implies that HB wasn't always like that ("that" being serious, dressed in black, didn't mind attention every now and then)

6. I also don't think Pippa and HB really talked between the spelling bee and modern witching workshops considering how surprised HB was. It definitely would be something they discussed if they had rekindled their friendship. But, HB does show a bit of familiarity by popping up to the roof to greet Pippa when she arrives. If they had missed each other that much though (per season 1), I definitely would think at least Pippa would make an effort to keep communicating with HB (HB would be too awkward and self conscious to know what to do i think)

I also think that the spelling bee wasnt the first time they saw each other in 30yrs bc Pippa calls HB stricter than ever or something like that. Perhaps she was strict as a kid (as we've said, unlikely), but I think it's more plausible that Pippa has seen adult HB being strict at Cackles before

7. Before they start arguing again in the modern witching ep, Pippa says HB looks angry, but also comments that she never could tell. So Pippa can't read HB very well? Doesn't that kinda go against the bffs thing? Idk about everyone else but my best friend knows what I'm thinking before even I know. Unless Pippa is referring to post-Indy HB who she really doesn't know?

It's all so confusing I'm starting to go in circles I think but someone please talk to me about the worst witch! Headcanons are welcome! I just want to make sense of it all (though it is just a kids show so perhaps there isnt any sense to it)

[snkpolls]

SnK S3E17 Poll Results (Manga Reader Version)

The poll closed with 362 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that these are the results of the manga reader poll. Anime only watchers are suggested not to read if you do not wish to be spoiled about certain events! Anime only viewers, click here to view your poll results!

RATE THE EPISODE 354 Responses

Similar to ranking systems seen outside of this poll this week, the episode has gotten a very high score, with no one voting for anything under a 4. WIT really outdid themselves with this one!

Chapter 82 is one of my top 5 favorite chapters of the series to date. This episode is top 5 of the series to date. Absolutely top notch.

Best episode of all media (and i'm not kidding!!!!) We don't deserve SNK/WIT

Absolutely amazing. I’m a manga reader who watched with an anime only. We normally discuss while watching, but even I who knew what would happen couldn’t make a sound. We were completely speechless. Amazing episode. Definitely top 3..maybe 2.

Best ep in the series. WIT and the cast absolutely delivered these past two eps.

It's great. Hats off for staffs who delivered this episode

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT? 356 Responses

Levi taking out the Beast Titan was ranked as the most favored moment of the episode. Following closely behind was Armin’s sacrifice. The third most popular moment, aside from the votes of those who can’t just pick one scene, was Eren dealing the finishing blow to the Colossal Titan.

Let's not forget about the jawdropping Sawano music pieces, the music during the Armin burning scene made the scene so powerful i teared up, as well as Marlowe's monologue one!

I've waited almost two years to see Levi vs Zeke animated and it was so much more glorious and heart breaking in the anime. And the Armin scene had me in tears, every single time, which didn't happen when I read the manga. (Then again I didn't cry at all while reading manga).

I was extremely disappointed with the Levi vs Beast Titan fight, the music choice for that scene was so underwhelming and out of place, and the animation - while better than anything else in the episode - still manages to look extremely lazy.

Am I the only one who actually likes Zeke's monologue? Yes? Ok then.

I never cared much about Armin, he isn't even in my top 5 characters but his death made me cry and every time I see the scene I get emotional. Music was perfect and Inoue Marina did an amazing job.

WHO WAS THE EPISODE’S MVP? 356 Responses

Armin easily takes the mantle as the Most Valuable Person this episode, with Levi following behind at 15.4% of the vote. In third, people voted Pieck as the MVP.

Armin is the mvp of this episode. No matter how much wit wants us to think it’s Levi with the end card, Armin is the mvp.

Levi was, is, and always will be glorious. That break in his voice, that rage... I'm in tears.

WHO’S SACRIFICE HAD MORE EMOTIONAL IMPACT ON YOU? 357 Responses

Erwin and Armin had to make choices that brought them to the brink of death. 63.9% of respondents expressed they felt more emotional for Armin’s sacrifice while 36.1% hold Erwin’s closer to their heart. We thought about adding a “both” option, but some poll makers wanted to be evil and prepare you for the next episode. >:)

I HATE the question with Erwin and Armin as the only choices btw. :( Both of them sacrificed their biggest dreams to ensure victory for humanity, and choosing one over the other downplays the strength of both of them in making their choices. That's what made serum bowl so terrible imo. I love both the characters dearly, and the entire thing is a clusterfuck of a Sophie's choice type scenario (I picked not ready for the serum bowl question, if you couldn't tell).

WHICH CHARACTER HAD THE BEST “FINAL BLOW” AGAINST THE ENEMY? 358 Responses

At 45.8%, Eren gets the most vote for “best final blow” for taking down the Colossal Titan, with Levi following closely behind at 41.6% with the Beast Titan.

Levi vs. Zeke was Imai at his finest, Marina killed it once again as Armin, Reiner vs. Levi Squad was incredibly satisfying, and Eren finally taking down Bert was breathtaking. This episode deserves all the praise it's getting.

Didn’t expect to be so conflicted over Eren taking down the Colossal - he finally got revenge but at what cost ;_;

Daaaaaaayyyyyuuuummmmm. Levi VS Zeke was just *chef kiss*.

WHICH WAS THE BETTER ONE LINER FROM MIKASA? 353 Responses

“Annie. Fall,” still remains as the more iconic pre-mortem one-liner from Mikasa.

THOUGHTS ON WIT CHOOSING TO OMIT ANY MUSIC WHEN EREN TAKES OUT BERTOLT? 355 Responses

Nearly 66% of respondents were happy with WIT’s decision to keep the environment quiet during the Colossal Titan’s takedown, allowing the audience to truly focus on the moment. 21.4% were happy with the choice but also would not object to there having been music. 9% feel that it would have had more impact with some music.

Not having any music was a parallel to back when Eren tried to kill Bertholdt in Trost and failed, also because Armin is badly wounded, not having any music gave respect to his "sacrifice"

I never consider the music of an episode beforehand and I was too into the moment to notice there wasn't any

I'm pretty confused abouy how they chose to do it, i guess i was expecting something more impactful, and the no-music, seen from afar thing didn't do it for me

I was too busy crying to notice there wasn’t music

Would’ve been perfect if the silence hadn’t been blocked by berts needless exposition imo

Sometimes silence is better than music.

850 YEARBOOK VOTE: WHO HAS THE BEST TEETH? 349 Responses

It was almost a tie, but Zeke’s teeth win the yearbook vote with 30.9% of the vote. Just behind him with 30.7% of the vote is the random redshirt that got 2 seconds too much of screen time. 26.6% feel that the Attack Titan has the best teeth. Sorry, Bertolt.

The vast amount of weird looking teeth in this episode freaked me out

WHO WORE THIS LOOK BETTER? 344 Responses

Reiner wins the most handsome look with 61.3% of the vote. But you have to admit, the resemblance is uncanny.

REINER LOOKS LIKE JAMES CHARLES IN HIS TITAN AHAHAHA

HOW WELL DID THIS EPISODE ADAPT THE CORRESPONDING CHAPTERS? 354 Responses

The majority of manga readers feel that the source material was handled extremely well this episode, with only 0.3% of respondents feeling it could have been handled better.

Mikasa taking down Reiner was definitely more badass in the manga too. Her expression is too serene here. Hange was infinitely more BAMF-y and I am very glad for this at least.

Levi vs Zeke had an amazing animation, but i didn't like Levi's slashing flurry at the end of it. It didn't make any sense

I thought I was going to be ready for that Armin scene, but it was so much more intense than the manga. I ended up crying so much.

I wish they added more emotional Levi's faces like in the manga, but it turned out pretty ok

The adaptation was pretty badass this time around imo. My roommate lost her appetite watching Armin's sacrifice

If it weren't for the perfect plot that WIT was adapting, this episode would have been one of the worst quality wise, and I wish they would have taken more time and care to adapt one of the best moments of this series.

WAS LEVI VS. ZEKE: ROUND 1 ALL YOU HOPED FOR? 357 Responses

71.1% of respondents were left feeling extremely pleased with WIT’s adaptation of Levi vs. Beast Titan. 21% were happy, but perhaps not totally blown out of the water like the others. A few small groups of people are either neutral, or felt underwhelmed and/or disappointed.

This was so awesome!! Levi was so badass and damn, rage looks good on him. Zeke clearly didn't see any of it coming!

The voice acting on Levi's part was beyond what I'd hoped for so I was emotionally into it, but the over-the-top drama of the slishy-slashy moment kind of downgraded the actual visuals for me. But you know what, overall I think it was quite good - not brilliant, but good.

It was way too flashy

Zeke's monologue didn't really feel well this time. Yet, the whole scene was pretty good.

SO COOL ALL HAIL GOD LEVI!!

Couldn't fully enjoy Levi slicing Zeke now that I know he'll have him another time and fail at killing him again (with yet unknown circumstances for Levi) :c

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT WIT CENSORING THE SCENE WITH LEVI’S BLADE IN ZEKE’S MOUTH? 353 Responses

52.1% of respondents were pretty understanding of the situation, feeling that the censorship couldn’t have been avoided. 23.2% feel that they could have at least shown a little bit of sliced flesh. 14.4% are hopeful that we’ll get a more gorey version of the scene when the bluray animation comes out. A small percentage were very displeased.

Censorship is understandable all things considered, but it managed to be effective. Sometimes, your imagination makes things worse than the reality of it, such is the case here.

HE HAS SO MUCH TEETH WHY DID THEY GIVE ZEKE SO MUCH TEETH NO HUMAN BEING HAS TEETH THAT GO THAT FAR

The guy got absolutely destroyed right before, the blade still pierced his mouth, I don't give a shit.

I actually think that too much realism would be overkill for fast paced animation. They managed to keep the scenes intense and smooth and i wasn't bothered by it at all.

I was pleasantly surprised we saw the blood from the blade thrusting in his face. I don’t require more gore than that lol

i wanted to see it SO BAD ugh :rip:

Anyone disappointed about censorship in anime in 2019 isn't really knowledgeable about the industry.

I don't care, gore is cheap, snk is better than that.

HOW DID YOU FEEL SEEING ARMIN’S SACRIFICE ANIMATED? 356 Responses

Over half of the fandom felt more emotional about Armin’s sacrifice than they did reading the manga, a testament to how well WIT adapted the material, given we all know the ultimate outcome of Armin’s fate. 26.1% of respondents felt that the scene was equally moving in both mediums, while 12.6% felt more emotional while reading it happen in the manga.

Both were equally moving for sure but the anime version had that extra element of Body Horror™. Armin's skin literally melting off is something I will not forget for a long time.

Emotionally, this episode didn't get me as much as the manga did but that is mainly because I've got like 2+ years of rereading it and working through my emotions.

Armin was just as annoying with his ocean and he should've died here.

Showing the skin melting off was an absolutely brutal touch

After I read that scene I spent a lot of time thinking and mulling it over. After I watched that scene I had to pause because I couldn't see anything through my tears. They are just different types of impact, there's no way to compare them

Seeing his pants in pristine condition right after took me out of it, so probably manga > anime,  but both really good

I told you I wasn’t ready. I had to watch my son melt. M e l t. He is truly a hero and I’m sobbing.

THOUGHTS ON BERTOLT’S STEAM BECOMING AN INFERNO? 353 Responses

61.8% of the fandom felt that WIT’s animation helped really put into perspective the pain that Armin was dealing with during his sacrifice. 21.% really enjoyed WIT heating up the steam attack by turning it into an inferno as a cool effect. 9.3% may have felt that it was a little too dramatic, and a small few didn’t really care either way.

The inferno made the decoy plan even better and shows how powerful bert is with his titan.

It made it even more suprising that Armin survived this

Not really consistent to 02/06 where he just emits hot steam, but whatevs.

I was willing to buy Armin miRaCulOuSlY surviving in the manga bc it was just hot steam (and a nearly 50m fall but whatever). He was literally cooked alive. He caught fire, everything was fire. He’s dead. It’ll be even worse when he’s alive and starts the serumbowl in anime form. The inferno cheapened the whole premise of that fight because there’s no way in hell that armin should’ve survived all the shit they added in the anime. Rant over.

Bert for the win

Shinganshina’s first deep fryer looked pretty cool!

DID MIKASA TAKING OUT REINER HAVE AS MUCH IMPACT AS IT DID IN THE MANGA? 353 Responses

45.6% of voters felt even more excited about Mikasa delivering the final blow to Reiner than they did while reading the manga. 41.1% felt that the scene was adapted well, but that it could have been done better. 8.8% found the animation a bit awkward and didn’t enjoy the moment as much because of it.

Finally Mikasa played bigger role in the anime. She was a real badass.

The only knock that scene has is just... Mikasa get out of the mouth! There's an explosive in there! How did you not get hurt?!

Mikasa has come a long way from being picked up and carried away to safety. The girl who watched Shiganshina crumble because of this guy just stuck her whole-ass body in his mouth like nbd and blew his shit to pieces. Call that narrative satisfaction.

It was wonderfully animated, but when I read it in the manga I felt very sad for Reiner. In the anime, the music was very triumphant

I loved the fluid animation. It’s so fitting for the scene!

Yes. It simply made me cry another time for my poor Reiner

THOUGHTS ON WIT MOVING UP THE FLASHBACK SCENE OF EREN AND ARMIN BECOMING FRIENDS? 356 Responses

The majority of the fandom, at 64.9%, felt that moving the childhood flashback scene added more weight to Eren finding Armin’s burned body on the roof. 21.6% aren’t too concerned about the placement and are just happy to see it at all. A small amount of people felt it was better placed in the manga.

Torn, it made the end of this episode way better but might make the start of next episode a little less impactful, we'll see.

I think their voices should have been more childlike. They sounded too mature.

Baby armin is the cutest thing ever. I' m also glad they did some justice for eremin for the first time in the anime

WHO IS CUTTING ONIONS?? WHY MUST YOU HURT ME WIT?

WHICH SCENE FROM THE PREVIEW ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO? 354 Responses

Seeing the Yeagerbros meet for the first time won out with 37.3% of the vote. Following closely behind is the moment when Levi tries to inject Erwin with the serum. 24% of the fandom are looking forward to seeing Eren and Mikasa’s defiance once Levi realizes that he can still save Erwin.

BUT REALLY, HOW EMOTIONALLY READY ARE YOU FOR THE SERUMBOWL? 354 Responses

34.2% of the fandom feel the impending turmoil coming up as they watch a number of beloved characters either dying or fighting each other. 29.7% are ready to feel everything. 26.3% are looking forward to seeing the characters express their very base and raw emotions. A small few either don’t feel affected or are not really looking forward to the chapter being adapted at all.

One of my favorite characters is Bertholdt so I'm not prepared to see him begging and death next week…

I watch with two anime-only siblings, the serumbowl is going to divide the household into WW3

oh jesus oh fuck i'm not fuckin ready for serumbowl 2.0

I’ve cried so much the past three episodes. I can’t even imagine how bad next week will be.

Last week before Bert dies please no

At least the serum bowl will be dealt with in one episode and we won't need to deal with the endless cliffhanger which definitely did not contribute positively to that part of the arc. It's inevitable with a monthly manga, but man, those few months were rough.

My body is not ready, send help

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODE?

It was so good overall! The anime continues to do a really great job in bringing life to the manga, this episode especially. Not ready for the emotional rollercoaster of next ep tho asgskdk

It was fantastic. I'm so happy with this season. But how dare you guys not give us multiple choice or "all of the above" as options on some of these

So because of the manga I was reAlly beginning to dislike Floch but seeing the survivor scene really reminded me of why his character is the way it is

Zeke’s monologue was much more terrifying than in the manga, specifically when he raged at the soldiers, it was intense. It’s really got me hyped for the next chapter. “Game set” indeed. The way they are lining this up can’t be a coincidence.

i wonder what the cart titan/pieck was doing the whole time

The preview for E18 was wayy to much spoiler imo.

Armin is MVP 5eva but also RIP the anime only fans, it's been so satisfying to see their reactions all over the interwebs

NGL, they put more in the episode than I thought. Guessing that they’ll dedicate 3-4 eps on post photo exposition

This episode was the best of them all. It brought powerful emotions and made me 100% sure that Levi made the right choice with saving Armin's life. Armin is the bravest of them all and I hope he will become a hero in the final arc of the manga. However, for now I can imagine the feelings and emotions the anime-onlies have. They didn't expect Armin to sacrifice himself and die. In the other shonens main trio always survives, while here the situation is different. However, I hope they won't be disappointed after finding out that Armin is still alive. It may feel like strong plot armor for them. Anyway, I love this episode very much!

I've never been so glad to be a manga reader. Watching this episode without knowing that Armin will be okay would have fucked me up for a long time.

I do feel that Zeke's animation turned out a little too cartoonish as he was ripped from his Titan. Which is a weird critique on an anime episode I know, but. The style seems off. Sloppy somehow. Compare this animation to the beautiful chase scene with Levi in episode 2 of part 1 of this season and it feels like two completely different animes. The VA's have done an outstanding job, though.

Armin has evolved to Arman

Can we appreciate how Bertolt was rendered in this episode? His VA did a fantastic job as always and made him more sympathetic. You could sense that Bertolt was rather chill with his monologue. At several times he wasn't ready to commit but he did anyway. Emotional parting is hard for him.rman

Marlowe's scene in chapter 81 was heartbreaking and eerie enough, but this... that shit H U R T E D

My poor heart still hurts after Armin's sacrifice. Like if you cry everytime.

No question regarding Levi vs BT ost? They used such an awesome ost for Armin's sacrifice and made the scene more epic than the manga, which made me really really happy. On the other hand, in Levi vs BT, they used such an ost which didn't even match the fight's mood. Just because of the wrong choice of ost the scene had much much lesser impact.

For me, this episode was the most anticipated from the manga ever since I read it years ago, and they delivered. It's the best so far, but I hope Blu-Ray can make it better

Like a roller coaster of emotions this show was for me, Levi's fight against Zeke put the animation on a high level if I forgot the two last episodes (because it was "meh" for me but good anyways). The promise that's still remain in force, the sacrifices in vain, three epic and decisive battles that put a semicolon in the saga AND the next episode or serum bowl nightmare. Ugh, I need to take a breath because I've cried more that I expected

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 332 Responses

Thank you to everyone who participated! We’ll see you again in a few days!

[suenala]

JIMIN-INDIVIDUAL ; dont try so hard.

episode 2 > 'Milk!'

masterlist // episode 1 < episode 3

[genre] ; fluff + angst (?)

[fandom] ; 방탄소년단

[⚠] ; kinda sad?

a/n ; sorry ep.1 was bad, hopefully, this will be better. -btw i feel like everything seems better if you read this ep. With rain in the bg :) -

-

time ; 12:48 pm

It's been pouring for the past few weeks, non-stop.

I haven't been getting better because somehow, in some way, miraculously i have obtained: a fever.

Getting shot was enough and now this? Did i do something wrong? Did i make someone else angry?

Am i being punished?

I just want and I NEED to talk to someone, days on end, hours and hours, im always home until Jimin comes home. Jimin took last month off to spend with me but now he can't because well, he has a job and i never have anyone to talk to or anything to do and i can't go anywhere by myself because im stuck in a damn wheelchair...im by myself now.

Im alone.

Jimin took last month off to spend with me but now he can't because well, he has a job. I know he likes to 'act like a man' but i also know deep down, improbably the thing tearing him down the most. He tells im safe and ill be okay but every now and then he sneaks out of bed and out the balcony where its dripping wet. I can always hear him whimpering and sobbing- asking him self.. Why he's useless, well until Tae or Hoseok come and tell him everything is going to be okay. They tell him that we're all going to get through this together, everything is okay. He tells me that too.

I know it's not true. We both know.

Nothing will be okay for quite a while now.

Jimin: "Hey y/n, im leaving now, do you need anything else?" -he fumbles with the pills on my desk and his head lowered to them-

Y/N: "Uh no, im fine." -keeping my eyes on the book, sigh, i can feel his eyes on me but what am i supposed to say? 'No, actually can you stay?' Pft, i wish-

Jimin says okay, kisses my forehead and leaves walking towards the door, i don't see him since im on the couch with my back facing him but i hear his keys jingling so he can find the right one to lock the door.

Y/N: "Don't forget your umbrella!" -i yell from across the room and my eyes still on the book-

Jimin: "I got it...thanks.."

I hear him leave and shut the door, locking it through the other side and him walking away.

sigh

What do i do now?

Y/N: -i put my book down beside me and lay my head back, staring at the ceiling- "Today will be boring, won't it?"

I carefully hop into my 'transportation device', put my book on my lap and roll out to the balcony.

Y/N: "It's been raining for quite a while, hasn't it?" -i mumble to my self as i pull open my book-

time ; 4:15 pm

???: "Goodmorning sleeping beauty."

???: "Y/n, you know being outside isnt good for the fever you ALREADY have."

???: "Exactly, so falling asleep isnt doing it justice, all you do complain about is being sick but look at you now."

As i slowly open my eyes, trying to adjust to the light, all i see is Hoseok sitting on the floor with his back turned from me. I look around and realize i was laying on the couch with a blanket over me.

Hoseok: "Do you feel okay? Do you need water?" -he turns around so that he's facing me-

Y/N: "Uh n-no..shouldn't you be at the company?" - i slowly get up with Hoeseoks help and realize Jungkook took the jar of cookies and almost ate them all and HE probably doesn't realize it-

Hoseok: "Careful.."

Jungkook: "Jimin asked if someone can stay home for a few hours with you in case you needed something."

Hoseok: "We have manager approval so dont worry y/n."

Y/N: "I see, well if that's the case, Jungkook, can you make me some tea please?"

Jungkook: "Wha-Why?" -he looks up from his phone still shoving cookies down his damn throat-

Hoseok: "You little shit.." -he stands up and grabs the tv remote, just wide eye staring him down-

Jungkook: "Im just kidding...sheesh calm down."

Y/N: "You guy's are kids seriously." -you carefully hop into your wheelchair and head towards the jar Jungkook left open-

Y/N: "Do you want an-" -you mumble to yourself, about to put the lid on-

Jungkook: "Y/n wait!" -Jungkook turns around with a kettle in one hand and a cup in the other. -

Y/N: "What?!" -Your head turns to him to realize he hasn't even boiled water yet-

Y/N: "Jungkook!" -You and Jungkook put what you're both holding and practically switching spots-

Jungkook: "Im still eating these!" -he says as he takes out like 15 more cookies and placed them on a plate-

Y/N: "What the hell! The water is cold!" -you say as you fill-up the kettle more and set it down, turning it on for it to boil-

Hoseok: "Wow, unbelievable and I am the child? Do you need some milk too Jungkook? Huh???" -he sits down on the couch, shaking his head and turning on the tv-

Jungkook: "Oh, that's right! Milk!"

Y/N: "Hm, 'help me' my ass"

[mcccix]

Ep 1-3 Random Thoughts

It’s fucking long. You’ve been warned:

ONE— NEED MORE MADI

Clarke emerges from the rubble after a month. We don’t see her use the radio until she gets to Arkadia. So we don’t actually know that she was radio-ing him for 2,199 days. We don’t know how long she was unconscious or if she had a working radio immediately after Praimfaya. The radio is a mobile one, looks beaten-up… either it came from the Rover or it came from Arkadia. She was still radio-ing him for a long-ass time though.

And she was radio-ing Bellamy. She refers to Monty and Raven in the third-person and she’s not likely to be chatting to Harper, Murphy, Emori, or Echo instead of Bellamy.

Loved that we see Jasper’s things. I’m hoping for a moment between Clarke and Monty where she gives him those things.

The editing— they are so not being subtle with that Bellarke business.

Murphy hates himself and, as Bellamy points out, likes playing the hero because it’s redeeming. He doesn’t know what to do with himself or how to feel when he can’t do that. I wish there was more growth with him after 6 years but I hope this means we’re gonna see all that growth this season.

Madi was hiding under the floor of the trailer. She’s definitely meant to reflect/contrast Octavia.

Madi’s hand shook when she shot the guy.

Monty is NOT gonna be down with the ground politics and the things they’re gonna have to do. Bromance with Zeke, pls?

That foreshadowing with Becho tho.

TWO — KICKASS ROMAN TERROR-QUEEN 

Really really interested in the rumours Abby hinted at. Love getting Ark history. Definite foreshadowing.

Niylah and Octavia… not sure what’s going on there. How’d she know about the book? She also didn’t want to leave when Octavia tried sending her away for her safety.

I like Jackson and Miller but when the revolt happens… they hadn’t been down there long. They’re sure moving quick with the I-love-yous. Hope they last.

The “choose” scene— kick ass, well-edited, loved Octavia here.

Surprised by how Jaha died. I knew they’d make him a hero but I expected something much more dramatic and quick. I was surprisingly emotional over it.

They never address what they do with their dead (Side note: I hope they keep Jaha’s ashes/bones/whatever and he eventually gets to be buried with his son.)

Indra thinks of Octavia as her daughter, and now her actual daughter is interfering in that relationship. Gaia obviously becomes an influence on Octavia— how will Indra’s relationship with O change? Potential conflict.

Octavia took the Roman thing and fucking ran with it. It’s a connection to her brother but in a really unexpected way. (I’ve said before that I think Octavia’s arc will in some ways reflect Bellamy’s in S3b-4a but she’ll reach a far different conclusion than he did.)

Most annoying thing for me is that Octavia keeps getting new titles. 

THREE— THE BEST YET

Murphy knew wtf he was doing bringing up Clarke. The little shit, I love him.

4 PHDs? I love backstory.

Madi is not on board with Clarke’s actions and I can’t wait to see how that plays out when things get really bad.

I’m LOVING the parallels with s1— Diyoza’s speech, Clarke’s silence, the impaled newcomer.

Anyone else think Raven is gonna have a field day with these new weapons? Imagine how she could adapt them.

Murphy wants to be a good guy but has never felt or been treated like the good guy. He tries to do the honourable thing and it ends up screwing him over. This dude TRIES and has no luck. That being said, him being left behind with Raven will give the audience a chance to see how they’ve evolved and hopefully will give us some spacekru stories.

But I’m guessing they’ll come down soon so the setup for Raven-Zeke can happen (What is their ship name, btw?)

Madi was way more confident killing this time (and multiple people!) but I feel like she’s gonna have a moment later when she just cannot deal and her turmoil will reflect the things Clarke and Bellamy went through. (Please tell me they do the parental thing and counsel her through it? A la Kane to Bellamy and Abby to Clarke)

Ok but the framing and blocking for the Bellamy-Madi meeting is so important.

The hilarious thing about the Bellamy-Madi meeting is the way it was edited makes it seem like they just ran off together to save Clarke without a backward glance at the others, just abandoned them in the woods.

Bellamy couldn’t even THINK to ask about his sister, who he’s been desperate to return to. “What? No, how can that be?” -- I don’t think this question is about the bunker

That mug! The mug had narrative significance, yes, but it could have said ANYTHING. They could have made it blank, or had the Eligius logo, or anything else. The fact that they made it say that is just…extra.  It’s not coincidental, the writers know what they’re doing.

They’ve seen each other for 2.2 seconds and there’s already been a declaration. I know everyone said things would be fast this season but damn.

Up until this point, they’ve never outright stated how much they care for each other. Other characters have implied it, they’ve done things that implied it, and they’ve hinted at it with things like “I can’t lose Clarke”, “I need you”, etc. but never a confirmation of “Yes, I care about this person. Absolutely.”

“She must be important to you.” This was a statement, not a question. Rhetorical. He didn’t have to reply but he did.

Clarke wasn’t really mentioned by spakekru in ep1. This episode, she was mentioned repeatedly (mainly by Bellamy). The sudden change from no mention of her to the constant reminder of “Clarke died for us, I left her behind”, etc. in the first half of ep3 is meant to emphasize their later reunion. Bellamy mourned Clarke, he felt guilty about leaving her…. and now he returns to find her alive but in danger and he’s thinking “I can’t lose her again..”

It’s a slightly more level-headed concern and need than his absolute desperation in rescuing her from Roan in s3.

The fact that it’s Bellamy alone that goes to rescue her is so important.

Eligius is morally grey, yes. But one thing everyone forgets when comparing their version of morally grey to the main characters’: Bellamy, Clarke et al did shitty things mainly because they were in life or death situations. Eligius is full of people who did shitty stuff before the world ended. What I’m gonna enjoy seeing is how the show is gonna separate the super fucked-up prisoners from those who, like the MCs, did shitty stuff for good reasons. And to see what these super fucked-up prisoners will mean for their survival because they’ve never yet faced an enemy that was actually evil (as in kill-because-they-love-it evil).

Every second of this was a gem.

Things I want to see going forward:

Clarke and Monty reunion. Talking about Jasper with each other.

Raven and Murphy learning Clarke is alive. Bellamy has to have a way to communicate with Raven to tell her if she needs to pull the plug on the prisoners or not. So I imagine him radio-ing her and revealing what happened. And Clarke getting to talk to Raven and Murphy.

How Raven and Murphy react to Madi. 

Bellamy and Madi interaction. Lola said Madi views him as a hero, we need to see more of this.

Bellamy at some point talking to Madi about Octavia.

Kane or Abby reacting to the knowledge that Bellamy and Clarke were separated for six years.

Eligius having an “oh shit” moment when they see Octavia do something badass.

Murphy’s friendship with Raven. Murphy’s friendship with Echo. Or Clarke. Or Bellamy. I want John Murphy to have friends.

[marytagus]

Arrow 5x20 - Compilation of Spoilers

Disclaimer: Totally aware these are not all the spoilers out there. There’s sure to be much more. These were the ones that I remember the most.

Yep you guys there were a lot of spoilers for this episode. Official and unofficial

From Marc Guggenheim Q&A’s:

beemichelle7: Can you give us an Olicity dialogue tease from 5x20? I need something to put on my viewing party invitations.

marcguggenheim: “Please promise not to tell anyone we had bunker sex.”

touringfangirl: Is there going to be the standard one week timeline jump happening between 519 and 520? Or will the end of 519 be immediately picked up in 520?

marcguggenheim: 520 is a direct pickup from 519.

smoakin-bitchwithwifi:It would be awesome if the concept of Felicity's chip being hacked could be explored!!

marcguggenheim:Hmm.  Hacked… no.  But 520…

damnturtle1:Hi Marc. So, any chance of us ever seeing Oliver tending to Felicity's injuries like she has done for him? I think it's only fair 😉

marcguggenheim: I don’t disagree, but given the extent of injuries in the near future, I think you can expect Felicity to tend to Oliver’s injuries before he tends to hers.

alanna-the-lionheart:3 words to describe the Olicity sex scene in 5x20?

marcguggenheim:Consensual.  Safe.  Satisfying.

fight--for--now:Stephen teased Emily will be getting some stunts and attempting the salmon latter. Anything to tease about all that? :)

marcguggenheim: 520!

giixx:Hi Marc.. welcome back!! So big question here -- on a scale of 1 to 3x20 how hot is the Olicity sex scene in 5x20? Give us a little preview please 😜✌

marcguggenheim: I think it’s pretty hot.

fight--for--now:The tension between Oliver and Felicity in the promo for 5.19 is amazing, will it "explode" in 19 or carry over to 5.20?

marcguggenheim: Totally carries over into 520.

beemichelle7:Can you give us two truths and a lie about Olicity in the last 5 episodes? Thanks Marc!

marcguggenheim:

1) Oliver and Felicity’s interactions are different in the wake of 520.

2) The internet will have a strong reaction, one way or the other.

3) Oliver and Felicity get married.

beemichelle7:So, I'm an Olicity shipper (because I have eyeballs and a heart)...I'm also a fan of Arrow as a whole, in case anyone had a wrong impression that those two descriptors were mutually exclusive. But, anyway- I'm a hardcore Olicity shipper and proud of it. So, knowing that- is 5x20 going to make me happy? I know it's Olicity-centric, answers Qs etc & I'm excited for it.. But also a little scared.. But mostly excited. I should be, right? It's good? I'm battle weary. I need hand-holding, that's all😉

marcguggenheim:I think it’s been well established that I don’t know what makes Olicity shippers happy.  ;)

That said, as long as you’re not expecting them to get back together at the end of 520, you’ll be quite happy.

smoakd:295th time is the charm :p I was just wondering if you'll ever bring Felicity's microchip back into play? I'd love to see Felicity mass-market the chip which will be the legacy she leaves behind as Felicity Smoak (not Overwatch). But also I'd love to see her own chip malfunction. I can see a lot of good angst come from that. I sort of hate how her whole paralysis has been brushed off and forgotten :/ It's a part of who she is now. I'd love for the show to embrace it not forget it.

marcguggenheim:520

truebehappy:Do you have a BJ song to describe Olicity in 5x20!?

marcguggenheim:“Until You Come To Me” (find more details here)

Marc Guggenheim to Ausiello

Question: Will we see anymore Arrow flashbacks into Felicity’s past? —Jennifer Ausiello: I cannot guarantee that Felicity plays into them, but EP Marc Guggenheim said that since all of Stephen Amell’s scenes in the Olicity-centric Episode 20 are with Emily Bett Rickards, the Russia flashbacks will get a week off. Instead, “The flashbacks are to a different time period, as we occasionally do,” he shared. “They take place between Seasons 4 and 5.”

Jen got some “Spoilers” from Marc Guggenheim directly (details here )

10. “I think those two are gonna make the cutest couple one day.”

9. Episode theme: Trust, Teamwork and Truth

8. Everyone on Team Arrow is working together to save Oliver and Felicity, but OTA is definitely the varsity squad.

7. All Olicity focused flashbacks

6. There are Olicity and OTA stunts. Oliver, Felicity and Diggle each have standout moments. Sometimes multiple standout moments.

5. There is a question Oliver needs to answer and it relates to his relationship with Felicity, but also his overall journey.

4. Felicity articulates her position on William and what she needs from Oliver.

3. Oliver and Felicity are not the only couple addressing their issues.

2. There is a love scene, but it’s not present day.

1. Big Olicity, OTA and Dyla episode

Heros and Villains Fan Fest Chicago

There were a few spoilers about 5x20:

Stephen Amell:

-  “you’re gonna love 5.20.. because all my scenes are with emily which has never happened before..” - natalie‏ @amellxwood

-  5x20 two truths and a lie: in the arrow suit, every scene is with Emily and he falls down a elevator shaft  -  Jen @HVFF‏ @jbuffyangel

- Felicity tries the salmon ladder in an upcoming ep

Emily can do the salmon ladder. Not sure Felicity can  -  Jen @HVFF‏ @jbuffyangel

-  SA: doesn’t know if olicity will get back together but they will explain why there’s a cold almost robotic distance between them -  Jen @HVFF‏ @jbuffyangel

There are other spoilers from the same HVFF namely about Olicity that I’m not sure will happen in 5x20 or later on, you can find it all here

Behind the Screen Stills

(from SA twitter)

I’ve made a meta on this still and the GA suit showing on this still (it’s Season 4 GA BTW) here

(from SA twitter)

The paps and the guy from reddit also dropped a lot of hints, find them under the cut

They are NOT happy, they have no love for this episode whatsoever. And being they hate Olicity that’s GOOD.

@vaelisamaza | @hope-for-olicity | @tdgal1 | @bindy417 | @supersillyanddorky06 | @emmaamelia95 | @coal000 | @miriam1779 |@felicityollies | @eilowyn1 | @jules85| @scu11y22 | @quant-um-fizzx | @memcjo | @dmichellewrites | @bringbackianto |@mogirl97 | @laurabelle2930 | @oli-feli | @oliverfel4 | @mel-loves-all | @spaztronautwriter | @cruzrogue | @bekaoperetta |@charlinert |  @almondblossomme | @oliverdant | @callistawolf | @jbuffyangel | @felicitys| @fadinglands | @nalla-madness |   @onceuponarrow |  @leonie1988 |​ @stygian-omada-fan | @smkkbert