#(yeah watch them release it in march 2025)

[miyku]

.

[strawberrysugar71]

TADC Episode 6 Predictions! + Why I Think Bunnydoll COULD Become Canon (Some Episode 4 Spoilers)

1

Release Date

According to my calculations, we can expect Episode 6 to release on one of the following dates:

21st February 2025

28th February 2025

7th March 2025

14th March 2025

21st March 2025

28th March 2025

4th April 2025

11th April 2025

18th April 2025

25th April 2025

2nd May 2025

I think most likely it would be on May 2nd. But first let me explain how I go these dates.

Episode 2 of TADC released 5 weeks after Episode 7 of Murder Drones. And Episode 3 of TADC released 6 weeks after the Murder Drones finale. However, Episode 4 released 10 weeks after Episode 3. So, what I did was - for Episode 5 - count 5-10 weeks after Episode 4, and then I repeated the same for Episode 6.

Let's say, for example, an Episode released every 5 weeks, we would expect the trailer for Episode 5 to be released on January 3rd 2025. (I'm just gonna point out that the Netflix leak is false. I highly doubt we'd get an Episode 3 weeks after the last one, but if it were true, then the trailer for Episode 5 would release on Friday. The actual episode wouldn't come out on the 1st, anyway, because that's a Wednesday. Not a Friday.) Anyways, enough of me yapping about release dates.

2

The Adventure

We know that Episode 5's adventure is baseball, and set in a baseball stadium, because it was foreshadowed at the beginning of Episode 4 and in the full season announcement for TADC.

It is possible that the baseball adventure could be in Episode 6, because it was Ragatha AND Jax playing baseball (before Gangle joined in), but I highly doubt it because...

I think Episode 6 is another in-house adventure.

3

Why Do I Think This? + What Do I Think Will Actually Happen In the Episode?

I think this because of two reasons:

• I believe that Jax is going to be the cause of Ragatha's abstraction in Episode 6.

• Jax's key collection.

Killing off one of the main three and the motherly one of the group is a pretty good way to fuck everybody up.

"Probably not NPCs" so one of the humans, then.

I think the entire fandom can agree that the worst thing Jax will do he's probably gonna do it in his episode.

Coincidence? I think not.

My take on this entire thing is that Jax is going to cause Ragatha to abstract, and feel really bad about it. Like, I mean, come on.

Kinger won't abstract. He would've most likely already abstracted if he was going to.

Gangle, potentially, BUT she arrived after Jax, and she's most likely the one who has been in the circus for the least amount of time (aside from Pomni).

Pomni arrived, canonically, 4 days ago. I don't think it's possible to abstract that fast.

Zooble I really don't think will ever abstract. They're just too much of a chill guy for that (iykyk) /hi

Jax finds pleasure in bullying the others, even if he does care about them.

It's his way of coping with being trapped in the circus. And I think, even though he's an asshole, having to live with the fact that he abstracted the only person who seemed to genuinely care about him is torture in itself.

• In-house adventure

• Jax says "I want you DEAD!!!" to Ragatha.

• Ragatha disappears to her room.

• Jax goes into her room later on.

• Ragatha's abstracted.

The last 2 bullet points could even happen at the beginning of Episode 7. But I think it would make more sense for it all to be in Episode 6 because the 6th Episode in the last season of shows that have 9 Episode long seasons is the cursed Episode of that show. (Again, iykyk)

4

Why Do I Think Bunnydoll Could Become Canon?

"But Gooseworx confirmed that there's no canon romanc-"

Did you watch Episode 3? She lied.

"Yeah, but Queenie's abstracted-"

Gooseworx also said that Queenie being a chess piece was just a design choice and that she wasn't Kinger's wife. Pretty funny that, huh?

I think this is overlooked. Romance IS canon, it's just not really shown. But I do genuinely believe that if any other ship had to become canon, it would be Bunnydoll. I think this because:

• They're always shown next to each other, or close to each other.

• Their bedrooms are right next to each other's. Just like Kinger and Queenie's (as well as Zooble and Gangle's if your an Abstraggedy fan). AND There's a Mannequin on either side of them.

E.g.

Mannequin, Jax, Ragatha, Mannequin.

• The nicknames he calls her, like hello?!

• Not to mention, whenever Ragatha expresses concern for Pomni, Jax either rolls his eyes or dismisses it.

• The whole premise of Episode 3 was about Husband and Wives. And I think it's pretty obvious that Queenie abstracted because her and Kinger got into an argument of some kind. So, Kinger abstracted Queenie, basically. Abstraction is also the circus' version of death. That would explain why Kinger looked so emotional when Baron Theodore was talking about killing Martha. Then, Martha said "You know how men are, always having the silliest priorities" and then Ragatha said "Don't I know it." whilst looking over at Jax Martha was talking about men, sure, but she was only really meaning her husband. A good writer such as Gooseworx doesn't include that for no reason. It's so goddamn obvious.

• They obviously have/have had something going on. From Jax saying "Why do you always make me out to be the bad guy?" during their fight at the beginning of Episode 4 . They've obviously had arguments like that before. They HEAVILY give exes that still have feelings for each other if they are exes.

All of that combined is - if it does happen - going to make Episode 6 a whole lot sadder. If they are exes, then one of 'em is probably gonna say that they still love them before Ragatha goes. And if they're just crushes, then they're probably gonna confess their love. Maybe even a hug...or a kiss. (Please, Gooseworx 🙏)

Anyways, I hope this makes sense. Thank you for reading!

[gifsbysimplysonia]

Sonia’s Trying to Hold Herself Accountable to Just Write SOMETHING Once A Day challenge - Day 11

March 29, 2025

Second chance romance today. Prompt from @celestialwrites Five Word Prompt post HERE.

"I miss her, you know?" Luke's lower lip shook as he finally looked at her. She smiled sadly at him as silent tears made their way down her cheeks.

"Yeah, Luke. I think I do." At that, his face cracked, so fast. He had missed a lot. He ducked his head quickly as he sat up to lean his forearms on the table. The paralysis that had overtaken her when Luke began speaking about her suddenly lifted.

She sat up and ran her hand over the back of his head, crown to neck, again and again. It was a return to old instinct; this was a gesture that used to comfort him way back when. She loved it too because he always had the softest hair. All she wanted to do now was provide him comfort. She had no idea if this would do it, but she also had no idea of what else to do.

As if the situation between them was not complicated enough, this was the first time Bel faced someone close to her experiencing such a profound loss. Her own loss was one that she worked hard to keep close. She never wanted to be a burden to anyone else, which was funny because if she was asked at this moment if Luke's grief was a burden to her, she would kick whoever asked her that right in the shin. Of course it wasn't. Then why are the rules for everyone else different from the rules she made up for herself?

"I keep wondering when I'll get over it." His words were gasps, breathless pleas interspersed with sobs that he seemed to try and keep at bay. She wondered if this was the first time in a whole year that he had cried for his loss; she hoped that it wasn't.

"You won't. You don't." Her voice was low, but so certain. It was that certainty that had Luke's head turning. Her hand had been resting on the back of his head so the move meant now she was cupping his cheek. His eyes closed as he leaned into her touch. She forgot her self imposed rules for the moment. She allowed her thumb to brush some of the tears from his face. She noticed for the first time the bags under his eyes, too. How long had Luke not been sleeping?

Luke opened his eyes and stared at her, into her. She saw his red rimmed, bloodshot gaze and snotty nose. She resented that he could make her love him more by being an honest mess.

She reached into her sweatshirt pocket to extract some tissues for him. He took them and sat back, wiping at the mess on his face. With the physical connection broken, it struck her like a slap in the face how incredibly vulnerable this moment felt. Bel's nerves about that manifested as a lump in her throat. The compulsion to jump up and literally run out of here was so strong. Her eyes darted to the front door. Luke noted how her shoulders had slowly crept up to around her eyes and the wild look in her eyes as she turned her attention to the front door. He had to calm her down, keep her here.

"So what do I do?" Luke's question was genuine. Until his wife, he had the luxury of not experiencing any permanent loss in his life. He counted his blessings around that often, especially in the last year. Bel looked at him then, and he watched her jaw unclench and the rest of the tension slowly release from her body. This was a subject she was versed in, but he was unsure of whether or not she would share her experience.

[zehecatl]

2025 media thread, part March

7th March: Flow

man, what can you even say about Flow that hasn't, a) already been said, b) fails to properly capture the sheer Experience™️ this is

like. it's beautiful. not just visual-wise, which it absolutely is, but in its story-telling, the heart and soul it manages to capture. it's one of those movies you have to see for yourself, because sure, i can tell you it's a moving experience about a cat going through a mysterious and sudden flooding, and the family it makes along the way, but that does not even come close to explaining why you have to see this movie

there is such character in this film. the way the animals are animated, especially the cat, really personifies them. you grow to love them so quickly, and the journey they go on to become a family is so simple and yet so human. like. etc etc it's about community, etc

like. it is SUCH an amazing movie, everyone should watch this, and it's genuinely no wonder it won that oscar, it absolutely deserves it

9th March: My Sweet! Housemate

really funny, and really charming, My Sweet! Housemate is a short-ish comedy murder sims, which is honestly a really fun take on the genre

it does have some slight issues- specifically, the lack of a skip forward button- but it's just such a charming little game, it's mostly just a nitpicking thing

also, the Ouroboros ending was- so fucking tasty, oh my god 👀

9th March: Nova Lands

i've had my eyes on Nova Lands for, hm, probably since it released in 2023? and mostly, my interest has been because it reminded me- and a lot of other people- of the game Forager, which i did very much like, but this is also an automation game, and while i've never played one before, i always figured i wouldn't really like the genre

but, hey, with this on sale, i figured- why not! and i can now quite happily confirm that, yeah, automation is not the genre for me

that isn't to say Nova Lands is a bad game! it very much isn't! i even put in around 20 hours, so i did very much have fun, it's just- the end game. was really slow

being honest, that's probably my own fault- unsurprisingly, i tried playing this without really utilizing the automation properly, and while that did carry me far, it very much did not take me to the finish line. i'm simply not one for leaving something running in the background, and i found it deeply boring to just, wait, for new items to be produced, and then immediately used up, and yeah, i did not finish this one

again- it's definitely a good game! there's something so satisfying about working your way through a tech-tree, and Nova Land scratches that itch quite nicely, but, unfortunately- not for me. boo

18th March: BLADE CHIMERA

ough.... BLADE CHIMERA... ily...

(and then i didn't write ANYTHING ELSE. HELLO. PAST ME. WHAT THE FUCK)

aaah, i wish i could gush about BLADE CHIMERA like it deserves. it's such a gem, a genuinely great game- i loved every second with this one, and really vibed with the story, which was a bit of a surprise, honestly. like, i've played one of Team Ladybug's other games, the Touhou one, and that one did not focus on story. not like BLADE CHIMERA does

(that is NOT a knock against that one, by the way. Luna Nights rocks. it was just not about story)

but time has passed.. my brain has wandered off, and now all i can do is think fondly on BLADE CHIMERA. god, i wish it had a fandom. there's so much there you can play with, it's a genuinely wonderful setting. it's also really fun as a game- it's not as complex as most metroidvania, it has a tendency to stick a bunch of enemies in a corridor and let you mow them down, but, hey- i liked that. i liked everything about this game. i 100% it, even

if nothing else, i think it's another fantastic addition to the genre. and maybe someday it'll get the insane fandom it deserves. and i can write unhinged Rebecca/Cain fanfiction. and make Shin and Hanzo kiss. maybe <3

20th March: Nodebuster

so, like, there's not a lot to say about Nodebuster, really- it's a fun little incremental game that has you destroying shapes for points, and then you upgrade yourself until you win. very basic set up, but it's kind of relaxing and mind-numbing, in a nice way. also aesthetic wise, i think this game is outstanding. really pleasing to the eye, even if it later on gets very flashy

20th March: The Duck Detective: The Secret Salami

honestly, i'm kind of mixed on this one. on one hand, it's really charming and funny, and a pleasant time, but on the other hand, i found it very... not exactly hard, but i found myself running in circles a lot, kind of confused where i was supposed to 'go', deduction-wise. and maybe that's just because i'm stupid unused to this type of game, but it did have me pulling up a guide, and that did kind of take the fun out of it

i do like it in theory, but idk... maybe i should have played it on the easier difficulty, lol

26th March: Spilled

a short (as in 'i finished it in an hour' short) little cleaning game, where you're a boat, and you clean up the ocean. also yes, i am saying you are a boat. i do not care what canon is, i think you are a sentient boat, and this is my truth <3

jokes aside, this is a rather lovely little game! i've had my eyes on it for a while, since the graphics are soooooooo up my alley, and there is nothing i love more than stories set on the ocean. so i did very much snag this up immediately, and then had a nice little time playing it

and that's pretty much it! if you think it looks relaxing, or you like cleaning games, then definitely check this one out- it's pretty cheap, and part of the money goes to charity. and yeah, maybe it's just an hour long, but really- is that a bad thing?? would you not like to spend an hour having a chill little time with some lovely visuals and satisfying gameplay?? is that not enough??

also i genuinely, like so sincerely, love the 'boss fight'. it's so fun, and also i think we should just do this in real life :)

27th March: Wilmot Works It Out

lovely relaxing experience, that perfectly nails the feeling of sitting yourself down on the floor, and doing puzzles. i played this in bites, and had a fantastic time with it. genuinely, so chill and pleasing to play

also, there's a new game mode called marathon mode. which i did try out. and got brutally murdered

like, it's still very much puzzles. but sorting all these pieces, at once, is... a challenge. and i am not strong enough

honestly, i really hope this either gets a DLC, or even a sequel. i want to play more. i would love to play more. puzzles so relaxing

29th March: Fear the Spotlight

i feel like all i need to say here, really, is that i made a post about why people should play this, but since no one is reading that one, apparently, i guess i can also gush here. even though this will likely reach even less people than that post. but at least i can gush, a little, about this game, because wow, what an amazing experience

Fear the Spotlight isn't super video gamey. it feels, really, a lot like playing a cult classic horror movie. i'm not saying that as a diss against this as a game- i very much loved every aspect- but maybe more as a way to put across the experience, here. this is about the story. the atmosphere. the vibe, if you will

and what a vibe! there's such a tangible feel to this movie, like dirt between your teeth, that crunch that's a misery to get out- there's plenty of filters at work here, a constant wobbling to the models that really just works. you can adjust these in the settings, but i honestly just left them as it- it adds to it, i think, though i'm sure playing with it turned down doesn't ruin a single thing

the story here isn't overtly complex- it's quite simple, really, but i think that also works in its favour. it's about love, about Vivian's crush on Amy, about the obsessive love of a secret admirer, and the way it ends in tragedy. the addition of a second chapter really fleshes out the relationship between Vivian and Amy, which i am so very thankful for, because despite being an important factor, chapter one was very much focused on the 'actual' plot. which i liked! do not get me wrong!! but knowing this was, at first, just a single chapter, makes me all the more thankful for this complete package we have now- i doesn't just finish up the story, but it fleshes out the characters, lets us spend time with Amy, and i love it. the characters here are, surprisingly, so well-written and fleshed out. their dialogue is nailed perfectly, and i genuinely just loved listening to them talk. it's great work

that's really this game in a nutshell. it's great work, an all around banger, and i genuinely cannot believe more people haven't played this one- it's good! it's really good! it's not a long trip, but, honestly- it doesn't need to be. and i love it exactly as it is <3

30th March: Mickey 17

ough, what a good fucking movie

i feel like i need to write an essay about how good this movie is, how well-thought out and plotted it is, how perfectly it balances its many threads, how amazing its characters is- but all i can do, really, is gesture wildly at it and go 'MOVIE GOOD'

there is so much here to pick at. so much to turn over and marvel at. my favourite, of course, is the obviously Nausicaa inspired subplot, that might echo it, but still takes it on a spin of its own. i loved it. i loved everything about this. i loved how, despite it very real and poignant messaging, it kept a humorous tone throughout- it's not afraid to be funny, and i think the message lands even better for it

also, i just love Nasha. i love all the characters, how real and tangible they are, how even the worst of them are human, but man- Nasha. she's so everything. the movie never sidelines her as 'Mickey's girlfriend'. she's not just important to Mickey, she's important to the story, the message. i love her, and i love their relationship, and maaan, what a good fucking movie

[ilovemodernmovies]

The Satire for Unrealistic Expectations and Unrealistic Thinking (or the Marketplace of Negativity) (TUMBLR Edition)

DISCLAIMER:

The following fanfic is a satire making fun of toxic rage bait YouTube channels and toxic DeviantArt accounts that cover cartoons, movies and TV shows as well as showing my defense for any movie Disney has made lately, whether it be a original animated film or a live action remake. This is not meant to attack anyone or be taken seriously at all, with the exception of the message that it's sending. This is also inspired by gamerjerk450's DeviantArt fic, Satire IV: Two-Dimensional Thinking with a few differences. Any constructive criticism is allowed. No copyright infringement intended at all.

And no flames, blind hatred or spam allowed! Thanks and let's begin.

It was the year 2025, specifically March 19,. it would be almost 2 days before the worldwide release of Disney's live-action remake of Snow White. Lots of kids and adults all over the world were nervous and excited about the film's release. And everyone at Disney as well as the cast and crew are proud of what they had done. Despite some fears, here and there, they were still sure, that the movie would be a smash hit at the box office, outgrossing its large budget and being praised for being a new Snow White for a new generation.

However, many miles away from Disney's headquarters stood an old condemned building. inside it consisted of just countless people, chatting and having conversations, like normal people. Around them were tables full of cake, ice cream, cookies, tea, alcohol and all kinds of sweet treats, with soda and juice on the side and a sign that read, "Mad Tea Party", right next to them.

Their discussions were soon interrupted with the blow of a dog whistle. This was done by the group's leader, who wore a T-shirt that said Make Disney Great Again on it, who came in with a henchman who wore a black shirt with nothing on it and a hench-woman with badly dyed red hair with a shirt that said, Go Woke Go Broke on it.

The man leading the Anti-Disney Club then proceeded to speak into a megaphone.

Speaker: Excuse me, everyone, may i have your attention, please? Good. Now, thank you all for coming here today. My name is Nick Sorenson, but you can call me by my online alias ToonEGuy. With me, i have MechaRandom42 and Will Jordan the Critical Drinker.

MechaRandom: It's a honor to be here.

Drinker: Does anyone know why you're here today?

Rando: Yeah, to save Disney and the animation and film industries from themselves!

Everyone: Yeah!

Nick: Excelent! This saves us time for explaining all of it. I've brought some refreshments to pass the time and stuff. So, here's the plan: we strike at 6 PM. sharp, march right to Disney's HQ, and protest our hearts out until all the old greedy bastards and woke employees cave in. Any questions?

Random #2: Yeah, it's close to 4 PM, right now. What should we do until then?

Nick: Good question. Before we strike, we'll pass the time by watching the last good Disney movie, Winnie the Pooh from 2011, from before those lying bastards played with our emotions by promising to make a new hand-drawn movie every 2 years, but it all just a lie to try and kill of traditional animation in favor of soulless overrated CGI movies, woke Marvel, woke Star Wars and soulless woke live-action remakes! But enough of that, let's watch.

So the Anti-Disney Club and all the internet trolls, Cartoonaboos, purists and nostalgiatards spent the next 70+ minutes watching the 2011 Winnie the Pooh movie.

Once it was over, they had all begun preparing for their protest march. Soon, they were ready to set out holding up various signs that read stuff like, "End Wokeness", "Restore Walt's Dignity", "2D is Best D", "Animation is for Everyone", "No Live Action", "Enough with the Remakes", "Go Woke, Go Broke", and other phrases.

MechaRandom: Alright, this is it, guys!

Critical Drinker: This is the day we take back what's rightfully ours!

Nick: Yeah, and this is the day we show those hacks at Disney that they messed with the wrong crowd! Today, they will know the name Anti-Disney Club! This will be the biggest day of our lives! Who's with us?

Everyone: Yeah!

Nick: That's exactly what I wanted to hear! Now, let's fight!

However, as they started marching, they overheard something that ground their gears.

Little girl (singing): Let it go, let it go, can't hold it back anymore, let it go, let it go.

Nick (into megaphone): Hey, stop singing that song, you little brat! You should be ashamed of yourself! You're part of the problem!

The girl ran off crying to her mom and told her to call the police.

Over at Disney HQ, everyone was having an office party, to celebrate the upcoming release of Snow White 2025. A bunch of executives, animators, live action crew members and the cast were discussing amongst themselves. However, the conversations were soon interrupted when one executive spotted something bad in the distance.

Executive: Come here, everyone. I think, I we've got an emergency.

Everyone did as told.

Executive #2: What is the problem?

Yep, there was a problem. It was a burning Mickey Mouse ear-hat. Then they heard so many faint shouting, and they could just barely make out the words, "DOWN WITH DISNEY!", from the screams. Some of them even got X notifications on their phones.

Rachel Zegler: "Cancel the Snow White remake"? "End wokeness"? "Restore traditional animation"? Oh god, not those people again!

Executive: What do you mean?

Rachel Zegler: They harassed, threatened and slandered us over these remakes for too long.

Executive #2: We got to alert Mr. Iger about this.

They all made their way to Disney CEO Bob Iger's office.

Executive #2: Mr. Iger, we got a problem!

Bob: What is it?

Executive: There's some toxic protesters out there who want us to cancel the Snow White remake and other remakes and sequels.

Rachel Zegler: And they are led by those who lied about me and Hallie Bailey and others.

Bob: Don't worry, I'll just force the guards on them, right now!

Iger then pressed a large red button that said, "IN CASE OF PROTESTERS AND BOYCOTTERS" on it, and before they knew it, the Anti-Disney Club were hounded by security guards who proceeded to drag them off the premises and, for some of the pestiest protesters and/or boycotters, pepper sprayed them. However, a select few, including Nick, Drinker and MechaRandom managed to avoid them somehow and made their way into the building.

Soon, they reached the main office, where the party took place. Everyone stared at them in discomfort.

Nick: Hacks! All of you! You're all hacks! What do you think, you're doing!?

Executive #3: We're trying to run a business.

Nick: Liar! You're trying to ruin animation! You want to burn this industry to the (BLEEP)ing ground!

Drinker: Yeah, and you won't stop until all animation is CGI and soulless photorealsitic live action remakes!

MechaRandom: You and Pixar even ruined each other. You're even hating men!

Executive #4: Who the hell do you people think you are, just storming in here and insulting us and hating us!

Nick: I'm Nick Sorenson of the Anti-Disney Club! And we are here to save the industry from itself!

Rachel Zegler: How, by bullying people like me for doing my job!?

Bob Iger stood in to defend his company and everyone in t.

Nick: You! You are turning Disney into soulless corporate filth! You don't care about quality, all you want is money!

Bob: That's NOT true! We're just making the movies we want to make, in the ways we want to make them!

Nick: You are ruining our childhoods, Slob Iger! You've even ruined the company and tarnished it's vey name, especilaly with it's inclusitivity agenda! What do you think Walt Disney would say about this?

Then a lightning strike hits the ground and out of it comes a faceless ghost, shaped like Walt Disney himself.

Walt's ghost: I am the ghost of Walt Disney and I'd say that you all need to calm down and retreat immediately!

Drinker: What? Is this some kind of prank?

MechaRandom: Shut up!

Nick: Yes, Walt Disney. Please tell everyone what you think of what they are doing to your company!

Walt's ghost: To be honest, I think, they are all doing an expectionaly good job, keeping my company alive and current.

MechaRandom: Screw you, guys! I'm out!

MechaRandom leaves to surrender herself to the police.

Drinker: I'm late for dinner!

Drinker also leaves.

Nick then goes mad.

Nick: What!? That's ludicrous! They're ruining your company! How can you just be okay with this?!

Walt's ghost: As long as our primary goal remains, "to bring fun, magic and enjoyment to people's lives", the methods to do so whether it be original or a remake are irrelevant.

Nick: That's not their goal! They just want to make money and brainwash the masses into thinking their trash is good! Nobody wants this (BLEEP)!

Walt's ghost: Correction! YOU are among the vocal minority of people online who doesn't want this (BLEEP). And that type of person is a toxic anti-fan and a blind hater!

Nick: What do you mean!?

Walt's ghost: Have you ever thought that what modern audiences, or rather people in the real world want is different from what you want? People don't watch our movies, because we brainwash them, they watch our movies, because they love them. Because they bring smiles to their faces. It's secretly the same with live-action remakes, too, you just don't know it, yet.

Nick: No, that's wrong! I just know it! CGI animated movies and live-action remakes are inferior and completely soulless!

Walt's ghost: CGI is capable of more than hand-drawn animation, is more eye-catching and is less of a struggle to animate as well. Live action is also easy, because you have everything in front of you and go beyond imagination better. They are the best uses of the latest and greatest technology ever created. Plus today's movies have become more inclusive for the better, letting anyone of any cultural background in the whole world see themselves in every character depicted. To not make use of CGI technology or diversity and inclusion would be like filming a modern day movie using a camera from the 1900s. And to just do original stuff 100 percent and not have live-action remakes or sequels, the world be a boring place to live in.

Nick: Well, everything from my childhood in the 90s was more original and less corporate!

Walt's ghost: You mean, the decade when other studios tried and failed to be more like us? The decade that had even more corporate stuff like A Troll in Central Park? Face it, man! You're NOT trying to "save the industry", you just want to "save the industry for yourself", because you refuse to move on from the past and realize that filmmaking and technologies for live action and animation have evolved phenomonally today and is making it easier for anyone to get into the film industry. You refuse to agknowledge that these movies (whether they be originals, sequels, or remakes) aren't just moneymakers, but they're also beloved modern classics for anyone of all generations to enjoy. We'll still have the original versions of these stories available, but we'll tell them in a new way that builds on their foundation. To cancel the live action remake of Snow White and boycott it would mean to not only put the time, effort and money spent making it in vain, but also to disappoint anyone who really does want to see it. And at the end of the day, would that be ruining the industry?

Nick: But you're killing off traditional animation and making everything woke!

Walt's ghost: You know, I'm not even gonna respond to that, you're a madman! This isn't the past anymore! We're not in the 1930s-1990s anymore! And it's not even the COVID era anymore! You have to keep moving forward and adapt to modern times, like my company does!

Nick: Well, I think, you're a fake! The real Walt Disney would never say that and he would be rolling in his grave! Come on, ADC, let's show these assholes what we're made of! Down with Disney! Down with Disney! Down with Disney! Down with...

Nick then realized that his members were silent and planning to quit.

Nick: What re you guys doing, protest with me!

ADC Member #1: Actually, he's right, Nick. Doing this would hold the industry back.

ADC Member #2: Yeah, these protests and boycotts are all dumb and pointless! You and all those other haters are the ones brainwashing us!

Soon, they all tossed their signs to the floor to burn and gave on protesting and boycotting Disney.

Nick's fury (haha) was growing.

Nick: I'll get you, you impostor!

Just as Nick was about to charge, Walt used his ghostly powers to strike him with lighting, making him still and powerless.

Rachel Zegler: Thank you! Now, let's take this toxic hater to the cops and court!

Bob: Agreed! Nick, you and the other haters who have not come to their senses will be placed under arrest for breaking and entering and attempting boycotts. As for those who are not protesting anymore, you will still be fined, for all this.

ADC Member: But we're already are guilty and we're very sorry.

Bob: All is forgiven. We're still going to testify in court, next week.

One Week Later. The Supreme Court makes a verdict against those who attempted to boycott recent Disney movies.

Judge: All rise.

Everyone in the court rises.

Judge: the Anti-Disney Club, consisting of you toxic anti-woke grifters, conservatives and nostalgia-blinded purists.

Nick: Your honor!

Judge: As punishment for breaking and entering and boycotting Disney, I sentence you and other members of the Anti-Dinsey Club who haven't come to their senses to watching every modern Disney movie that is CGI and live-action on repeat all week starting tomorrow.

And live from NY, it's Saturday night! SNL reference.

THE END.

Thanks for reading and have a nice day. And be sure to check out Rachel Zegler in Disney's Snow White, when it hits theaters everywhere, March 21, 2025.

[atiny-for-life]

Original Song

On February 21st, 2025, Wooyoung's first original solo was released. Co-written by Wooyoung himself, together with Hongjoong and three other members of the KQ producer team, the song tackles Wooyoung's journey to healing.

As the lyrics tell us, he was trapped in darkness until the other members, and by extension also us, the fans, brought light back into his life and helped him relearn to shine on his own as he continues on his journey.

The song comes with a full music video, a variety of outfits, sets, and beautiful lighting, gorgeous smokey eye-makeup and completely original choreography conjured up by the mind of Dun from the BBTrippin team.

He's got backup dancers, confidence, and most importantly: excellent camera work to capture his every move and facial expression so we get to truly appreciate all which makes him such a captivating dancer and performer.

The vocals are stunning, allowing Wooyoung to really show off both in the main audio track and with the added doubling and harmonies. It's a side of Wooyoung we've gotten to glimpse at before in Ateez's releases (i.e. Mist) and got to hear more clearly in his 12:45 cover, but all of it is on steroids.

This song, this music video is everything we know and love about Wooyoung, except this time, it's really all about him. Every. Single. Frame. Hell yeah.

So please... enjoy:

The production behind was released on February 24th, and includes parts of the mere 3 hour dance practice during which Wooyoung learned the full choreo and incorporated some of his own ideas. Additionally, we also get an introduction of head choreographer Dun, whom we're told has known Wooyoung since their school days where they met as classmates:

On dance practice day 2, Hongjoong drops by for a bit to take a look, praising the choreo, Dun, and calling Wooyoung a genius for picking up on the whole choreography so quickly:

As he's observing, Hongjoong, of course, sports a dopey smile as he always does when he watches any of the members in their element. It's very wholesome.

From dance practice day 2, we then skip straight ahead to the first day of shooting the mv. Again, Wooyoung makes suggestions and incorporates his own ideas as the day progresses before they take a break and Wooyoung heads outside to the coffee truck Hongjoong sent them (a return of Wooyoung's favor from when he sent food to the set of Hongjoong's Beat It mv):

Bonus insider information from when Wooyoung couldn't see the members for a week because of the flu and Seonghwa would text him once a day with the following message:

And some cute shots of Wooyoung having fun with his fellow dancers on set:

The full video can be found here:

Fashion (Pt 2)

On March 5th, 2025, Wooyoung attended the Courrèges F/W 25 show in all black, all leather, abs out in late winter (he certainly wowed people, that's for sure):

Later on, on March 19th, 2025, the behind the scenes to his appearance was uploaded which was filmed by Wooyoung himself vlog-style in which he says, while still at the airport lounge, the outfit will be "fun to see" for people:

Upon reaching the hotel in France, Wooyoung tells us he's planning to see a PSG (Paris Saint-Germain) match with Seonghwa later on (who was there for his own Paris Fashion Week appearance) and that he plans on eating a really good meal after the show (likely because he won't be eating beforehand so his abs will be defined).

Prior to the show, he also participated in a photoshoot for W Magazine after which he gets his final wardrobe change, makeup touch-up and is getting into the car, ready for the show but also nervous as heck.

After a final sip of water (dehydration is often a part of getting very visible abs), he's heading out through the final stretch of reporters and fans (whose screams are deafening, y'all - solid work) and then he's indoors at last to get his picture taken even more, both alone and with other guests.

He's giving interviews, posing for more pictures, watching the runway show, and then heading back out to pose for photos with Courrèges's artistic director Nicolas Di Felice who must've felt his heart flutter when Wooyoung unexpectedly pulled this move on him:

Back outside, Wooyoung's received by more screaming and more flashing cameras before he gets to sign some stuff for the waiting fans and is then ushered back to the car so he can return to his hotel room.

Thankfully, bless his heart and soul, he immediately has the right priorities in mind:

Later on, on his last day in Paris, he tells us how grateful he is for Ateez and Atiny for getting him there and how sorry he is that he couldn't sign stuff for everyone who waited for him before he wraps it up by saying he thinks he'll be back.

Creative Spotlight #7: Jung Wooyoung

Masterlist

Intro: With so many new Atinys coming in, I figured now would be a good time to shed some light on all the boys' creative solo projects over the years, big and small.

Muk Wooyoung

Like the others, Wooyoung got his own YouTube series in 2020 and his revolves around cooking and runs under the name Muk Wooyoung:

And yes, Episode 1 gloriously features Wooyoung's mom via phone call and her sense of humor is 100% where Wooyoung gets his own from, I'm sure.

In Episode 2, he already gets to meet the owner of Dooreyoo restaurant who invites him back into the kitchen and teaches him basic knife etiquette and more he'll need to know so he can get licensed as a cook:

In Episode 3, he got an apron with his name embroidered in golden letters...

And he had the professional chef Oh Se Deuk as a guest who low-key clowns on the chef from the former episode every now and again (hilarious) while they cooked together (it's very sweet and wholesome):

In Episode 5, Wooyoung even got sponsors (which is good because this is from the same episode he knocked the glass off the counter):

His skills got tested on Yeosang's fried chicken cook-off episode but it was a 3v3 and the weight of Hongjoong and San's lack of cooking skills lowkey dragged him down (Hongjoong was genuinely trying his best but has zero inherent instincts, while San was doing everything except for cooking, including singing and flirting with Yeosang):

His most recent venture into cooking was, accompanied by Hongjoong and Yunho, in shootbro EP02 where his cooking skills were praised by everyone in attendance.

Our Side of the Story (O.S.O.S.)

Recently regaining popularity is also Wooyoung's Logbook competitor Our Side of the Story.

The series kicked off in 2021 under the name "WooRi vlog", presumably word play on the Korean word for "our" (uri), before it transitioned to Our Side of the Story (O.S.O.S) on Episode 5:

Episode 1 started with Yunho and Hongjoong who'd promised Wooyoung they'd open his series for him (cute). The entire episode, Wooyoung solely communicates through hand signals and commentary in the subtitles, including sponsorship requests:

We also get the captain's official endorsement:

And a thorough roast of poor San:

Episode 2 is a lovely black and white montage to the instrumental version of "Thanks" where we get to see the world through Wooyoung's eyes (spoiler alert: it's a lot of Seonghwa, San, and Yunho being goofy).

Episode 3 features a puppy named Meonji and the lovely hair and make up team who's visibly trying to remain professional and not crack up at Wooyoung and Seonghwa's antics.

Bonus: Trust Wooyoung to always be real with us in the on screen comments:

Episode 4 features another puppy! I'm pretty sure it's the same one we get to see on Xikers' Instagram and in Maddox's vlogs sometimes so I assume someone in the production team adopted this precious baby.

Highlight of the episode is, as always, one of Wooyoung's on screen comments:

In Episode 5, we get our first official O.S.O.S. episode which includes the whole creation story behind the new name (spoiler alert: it was a Topaz collaborated effort):

Throughout the video, Wooyoung uses a clip of Yunho tuck-jumping as a transition method which is funny af:

And it features this iconic Hongjoong quote:

And Wooyoung's follow up comment:

For anyone who's ever called watching Ateez content a hobby, here are Wooyoung's thoughts on that btw:

The entire episode is full of everyone making a fool of themselves to make Wooyoung laugh and it's genuinely so sweet and wholesome.

We also get Jongho's first proper appearance with Wooyoung calling Jongho out for never showing up before to which Jongho's like "It's not my fault! The cameraman never approaches me!", only for Wooyoung to have the last word via on screen comment:

More Topaz cuteness via Wooyoung's commentary:

Featuring Hongjoong turning the tables by being annoying (give the man more plushies - they bring out the child in him):

Episode 6 is another pretty edit featuring Seonghwa, San, Yunho and more dogs at a campsite for a photoshoot:

Episode 7 is extremely ambitious and documents their entire journey of the Fellowship: Beginning of the End in Seoul tour while Episode 8 is a pretty montage of Wooyoung's time in LA back in 2022 set to an instrumental track produced by Hongjoong.

Episode 9 is the most recent one, only released 4 months ago so you've probably seen it, even if you're a newer Atiny!

Song Cover

Last year, Wooyoung released his first solo cover on the Ateez channel with Hongjoong's help.

Etham's 12:45 suits his voice incredibly well. It kicks off sweet and soft, highlighting his genuinely really good pronunciation, and crescendos near the end with a gorgeous high note and drums.

Shot around the time of Paradigm and Halazia, his hair is red and stands out nicely against the nighttime skyline. He did a wonderful job.

Dancing

Last year, Wooyoung collaborated with Watcha to release a passion project:

It's an original choreography to the song 1-800-273-8255 by Logic. The title is the number for the suicide prevention hotline and the lyrics deal with the singer's severe mental health struggles and journey to wanting to live again after a long time of struggling with suicidal thoughts.

The choreo is stunning and features sign language to convey the message Wooyoung took from the song. This video is also a part of a bigger documentary which Wooyoung was a part of together with other young artists. I personally can't access the full thing on the official website due to geo-restrictions, but you can find clips on YouTube.

In June 2021, Wooyoung was also voted Artist of the Month by Studio Choom, which gave us this absolutely iconic performance to the song Bad by Christopher which he also performed live on one special occasion.

In the making of, we get to see how hard he worked on this choreo, saying he's showing off "restrained sexiness" and "clean moves" - what a legend. Helping him in the practice room were two members of BBtrippin, the mastermind dance crew behind so many of Ateez's choreos.

Fashion

After already being present in Paris during fashion week in 2023 (to spend time with his brother and Hongjoong), Wooyoung made an appearance at the Courrèges fashion show this year, attending as a guest in a piece from their new collection.

Wooyoung shared pictures on his personal Instagram account and his appearance was also reported on by Teen Vogue and other outlets.

On October 17th, 2024, the Behind the Scenes to his appearance was released in which we get to see him prepare for the event, meet the designer (whom he gave one of their albums) and report back to us after on how much fun he had:

[sleepykittypaws]

Celebrate the Olympic Spirit

Sure, the Olympics aren’t a holiday, per se, but the every-four-year, or two if you count both Summer and Winter editions separately, massive international sporting events sure seems like a reason to celebrate, especially given their recent, unprecedented delay. And what better way to get into the Games mood, than by watching a sports movie?

Here are my favorite motivating, inspirational, and aspirational tales of athletic derring do…

Updated: March 23, 2025

Favorite Sports Movies

The Cutting Edge (1992) - This figure skating romance was released around the 1992 Olympics, and actually name-checks that year's winter host city, Albertville, more than once.  It's not good in the traditional sense of great storytelling or athletic veracity, but I loved it so very much I saw it three times in the theater as a teen. Watching it at some point during every Winter Games is a tradition for me so, yeah, I can’t help it, I love this silly sports movie/romance, which also features a bit of holiday feels.

Wimbledon (2004) - It's a rom-com. It's a sports movie. It's a rom-com sports movie that really should be better known. Notting Hill but set at tennis' best-known event. Paul Bettany and Kristen Dunst have surprisingly great chemistry, and there's more sports-related tension than you'd think.

Friday Night Lights (2004) - A football movie for people who don't really like football. a.k.a. 🙋‍♀️. The TV series it spawned is also brilliant (”Clear Eyes, Full Hearts,” indeed), and well worth a watch, but the original movie, starring Billy Bob Thornton, is, honestly, a masterpiece. Definitely Peter Berg's best work and the original book, written by Berg's cousin, Buzz Bissinger, is a great read.

Muriel's Wedding (1994) - You mean you forgot this Australian export, which made Toni Collette a star, was a sports movie? Yep, one of my all-time favorite movies, of any genre, this absolutely brilliant, ABBA-soaked comedy is not only a girls-night go-to, but also a stealth Olympic sport classic.

Remember the Titans (2000) - OK, football isn't in the Olympics, but it sure does make for a good sports movie setting. Even if this early 1970s-set story is most definitely Disney-fied, Denzel Washington, Will Patton, Ryan Gosling and a baby Hayden Panettiere really sell this sort-of true story.

Invictus (2009)-Rugby isn't an Olympic sport, or even one most Americans know much about, but this Matt Damon-led, Clint Eastwood-directed, based-on-a-true-story tale made me care about a sport I'd only tangentially knew even existed before watching.

Hoosiers (1986)-I grew up in Indiana so, by law, I have to include this basketball classic on any "best of" sports movie lists. Also, it actually is really very good.

Rudy (1993)-Ditto the above. But, again, it's hard not to root for Sean Astin (and Jon Favreau!) in this love letter to the Fighting Irish. Plus, there’s no better scavenger hunt task or TikTok challenge than going into a bar and convincing a patron to allow you to put them on your shoulders and march around chanting, 'Rudy, Rudy, Rudy.' 

Miracle (2004) - Given how much more popular the Summer Olympics are, it's weird that the Winter Games seem to get all the good movies made about them, but this Kurt Russell-led true tale is another Disney sports movie classic.

McFarland, USA (2015) - Disney, and Kevin Costner, just really know how to make a sports movie, damn it! This movie made me care about cross country for which it, too, could have carried the title Miracle.

A League of Their Own (1992)-The best baseball movie ever. Yeah, I said what I said. Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Lori Petty—even Madonna and Rosie O'Donnell are making it work. 1992 was a weirdly great year for sports movies.

Moneyball (2011) - A movie about baseball, and math, and yet it's also great, I swear. In addition to all of the above, it's also a stealth Christmas movie and maybe Chris Pratt's best non-Marvel, movie role.

Creed (2015) - This surprisingly effective Rocky reboot starring Michael B Jordan as Apollo Creed's illegitimate son has spawned its own movie series which, in many ways, exceeds the original Rocky franchise.

Rocky Balboa (2006) - Maybe it's because I was a toddler when the original Rocky came out, so only saw the ever-worse sequels as a kid, but this mid-aughts return to the character for Sylvester Stallone, as both writer and actor, is a triumph.

Eddie the Eagle (2016) - That Hugh Jackman features in as many movies (spoiler alert) on this list as Kevin Costner surprised me, too. This story of the English ski jumper who became infamous for being, well, less than golden, is one of those non-Olympic triumph stories that really works. If you're going to watch one underdog-at-the-Games movie, I definitely prefer this this to the more ubiquitous Cool Runnings.

Love & Basketball (2000) - Only because I'm an anglophile is this great, chemistry-filled Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps college basketball romance not my favorite sports-movie-meets-rom-com.

I, Tonya (2017) - Margot Robbie and a nearly unrecognizable Sebastian Stan are perfectly cast in this sarcastic, highly stylized look at the Tonya Harding scandal.

Pride (2007) - Apparently I like this swimming movie, which I think almost no one saw, better than critics, but I found this 1970s-set, Terrence Howard-Bernie Mac-starring story of inner city kids excelling in the pool emotional and entertaining.

Field of Dreams (1989) - This Kevin Costner magical realism baseball classic is often goofy and imminently tease-worthy and yet…It also works. Maybe it's no surprise that someone who loves cheesy Christmas movies as much as I do would have a soft spot for Field of Dreams.

42 (2013) - Chadwick Boseman is absolutely fantastic as legend Jackie Robinson. One of those movies that's ostensibly about baseball, but is really about so much more, except not in a pretentious way.

Race (2016) - Before Jason Sudeikis was Ted Lasso, he was famed track coach Larry Synder in this Jesse Owens biopic that is far from perfect, but still important. Plus, I honestly don't think Stephan James got enough credit for his relatively nuanced portrayal of Owens.

Goon (2011) - This overlooked gem starring Sean William Scott as a semi-pro hockey player whose main skill is his ability to take, and dole out, a beating, is surprisingly great.

Real Steel (2011) - This is a robot-boxing movie starring Hugh Jackman that is basically Rocky meets Over the Top—and yet it's actually really good. Yeah, I was surprised, too.

Forget Paris (1995) - OK, so maybe Billy Crystal playing an NBA referee doesn't really make this a sports movie, but it does begin and end (spoiler alert) at real NBA games, and I will die on the hill that this rom-com co-starring Debra Winger is wildly under-rated.

Bend it like Beckham (2002) - This girl-power sports movie has some highly questionable romantic dynamics (the coach is their love interest???) but this Parminder Nagra-Keira Knightley movie is also a heckuva sports movie and an inspiring immigrant story.

Bonus Pick: The Apple TV+ series Ted Lasso is one of the best things I watched in 2020, and I'm sure of that, because I watched it twice since, just to be sure. Jason Sudekis is absolutely perfect as an American college football coach taking over a UK Premier League team. This sweet show with a heart of gold is smart, funny, and absolutely impossible not to love—even for a cynic such as myself.

More Sports Movies Worth Watching

For someone not very into sports, I am, apparently, into watching movies about sports, so while not a comprehensive listing of the entire, vast genre, here are a few more suggestions I personally think are worth watching.

The Miracle Season (2018) - This movie about high school volleyball champs whose star player dies suddenly stars Helen Hunt and is a lot better than you'd think based on its tiny budget and, honestly, fairly small story. Just missed making my Top 25.

The Way Back (2020) - This Ben Affleck as a drunken high school basketball coach movie is a lot better than expected. Released just as the pandemic kicked into high gear, it was overlooked last year, but worth seeking out.

Fighting with My Family (2019) - Does it count if it's a show, not a sport? Either way (but that's why this isn't in my Top 25), this stealth Christmas movie/love letter to the WWE is a lot better than it ever needed to be thanks to some really great performances from Florence Pugh, Lena Headey and directer Stephen Merchant. Even The Rock reins it in.

Warrior (2011) - You couldn't pay me to watch an actual UFC bout, but this Tom Hardy story of (literally) battling brothers is incredibly compelling and well done.

Win Win (2011) - This movie isn't really enough about wrestling, even though its ostensibly centered around the sport, to make it into my Top 25, but it's still really good, and Amy Ryan gives an outstanding performance.

Fever Pitch (2005) - Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon star in this remake of a UK film whose ending they had to shift when the Red Sox unexpectedly won the World Series.

Fever Pitch (1997) - This Colin Firth-starring, Arsenal-centered original is much smaller, more realistic and arguably better than the big budget Barrymore-Fallon redux.

We are Marshall (2006) - A real-life sports tragedy made into a sports-movie tearjerker starring Matthew McConaughy. And my tears were very much jerked by the end.

Coach Carter (2005) - Samuel L Jackson plays real-life basketball coach Ken Carter and, because it's a Disney movie, doesn't use the F-word even once. Now that's a feat worthy of its own sports movie.

Invincible (2006) - Yes, it's Mark Wahlberg, and another based-on-a-true-story, Disney sports movie that hits all the cliches, but dang it, that works on me. It just does.

Glory Road (2006) - If you're sensing a theme with me and Disney sports movies…Well, you're not wrong. This look at the first all-Black starting lineup at the 1966 NCAA Final Four does, unfortunately, center white coach Don Haskins, played by Josh Lucas (though I always mis-remember it as Josh Charles), making the important story it tells less than what it should be, but it still mostly works.

Million Dollar Arm (2014) - Admittedly one of the lesser Disney sports movie entries, and another that centers a white guy in a film mostly about people of color (not a great look), this Jon Hamm movie about a scout seeking an Indian cricket star who can make it in the Major Leagues still mostly worked for me.

The Mighty Ducks (1992) - One of the few movies on this list aimed directly at kids, this beloved peewee hockey saga actually is cute, and mostly does hold up.

Cool Runnings (1993) - Kind of shocked this movie that is part White Savior-movie and part-wacky kids movie essentially making fun of a real group of athletes of color came out in 1993 and not 1973, but the earnest charm of John Candy and a general Disney gloss keep this from being totally unwatchable and mostly just mildly, rather than extremely, offensive. Not really recommending, but feels like it belongs on an Olympic movie list.

Nadia (1984) - This made-for-TV, mostly true biopic, starring Talia Balsam as Nadia Comaneci, was a Disney Channel staple in that network’s early days. 

Munich (2005) - It's a movie with the Olympics very much at its heart—namely the 1972 Israeli athlete hostage tragedy—that isn't really about the Olympics at all, but this Steven Spielberg-directed movie about national revenge is compelling, yet devastating, on multiple levels.

September 5 (2025) - I can’t exactly recommend this as a grim double feature leading into Munich, but it also does work thematically and emotionally, just don’t expect to be uplifted in any fashion.

American Anthem (1986) - Is this Mitch Gaylord-Mrs. Wayne Gretzky (a.k.a Janet Jones) starring movie good, realistic and/or well-written? No, no and none of the above. But did I still watch it 8,000 times as a kid on HBO? Yes. Yes, I did.

Men with Brooms (2002) - Once, on a business trip to Canada, my husband was stuck in a hotel that only got three channels, and one of them always seemed to be showing curling, which actually got him weirdly into this obscure sport. This movie wasn't quite as fun as I hoped, but it's still a mostly charming, if slight, Canadian classic.

Unbroken (2014) - The harrowing and incredible real-life story of Louis Zamperini deserved better than this Angelina Jolie-directed movie delivered, but it's still a serviceable version of a worthy tale.

Chariots of Fire (1981) - I remember being bored out of my mind by this movie trying to watch this movie on cable as a kid, but no denying that, if nothing else, the score is iconic and indelibly linked to sports-movie magic.

Without Limits (1998) - Jared Leto’s Prefontaine beat this one to the theaters, but this Billy Crudup-starring film is the better of the two movies about the life of running pioneer Steve Prefontaine. There’s also a 1995 documentary, Fire on the Track: The Steve Prefontaine Story.

Personal Best (1982) - Mariel Hemingway’s story of ambition at odds with love, is a sports and LGTBQ+ classic. 

Olympic Dreams (2019) - The story of how this small, meandering movie was made during the 2018 Winter Games is, unfortunately, more interesting than the movie itself, but there is some charm in watching Nick Kroll as an Olympic dentist making his way through the real Village, while interacting with real athletes.

Foxcatcher (2015) - This excellently-acted story is more true crime than sports inspiration, but if you're seeking a look at the dark side of the Games—and don’t want to turn on a doc like Athlete A—this is very dark tale indeed.

Seabiscuit (2003) - Every great athlete deserves to have their story told.

Any Given Sunday (1999) - Oliver Stone and Al Pacino take on pro Football. 'Nuff said.

The Replacements (2000) - I mean, the movie isn't amazing, but Keanu Reeves is super charming and Gene Hackman is always worth a watch.

The Program (1993) - Another bit of a dark-side-of-football take, worth it if only for the fantastic cast: James Caan, Halle Berry, Omar Eps, Joey Lauren Adams.

Everbody’s All-American (1988) - Not a movie I particularly love, but this Dennis Quaid-Jessica Lange football story that spans decades has always stuck in my memory.

Bull Durham (1988) - Just let Kevin Costner play actual baseball already.

[the-bejeesus]

To Those Who Say “I’m not gonna catch up on One Piece until it’s finished. Why would I watch/read 1000+ episodes/chapters when I don’t even get to know how the story ends?”

      Now for the past few years, when I came across somebody who said this, my rebute would be something like “Well the series is great already. It doesn’t really matter if I don’t know how it ends, because the journey itself is enjoyable.” or “Man if that’s your excuse, who you gonna explain why you read/watch stuff like Berserk, Hunter X Hunter, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, and My Hero Academia? Newsflash, they aren’t done yet.” But it came across my mind that I can now apply a completely different approach:

“If you start watching/reading at this pace right now, it will be over by the time you catch up.”

      If you’re a fan of the series, you’ll know that for awhile now Oda has been saying that he plans to end the series in just 5-4 years. Now he’s made lots of claims in the past that turned out to be ridiculous. However, many One Piece researchers have compiled his claims and found out that they only get more accurate as time goes on, with the most ridiculous claims being found to be myths. And with the most recent claims of ending the series in less than 5 years, even his editors who are usually skeptical have started to trust that he can do this. After all, he has officially set there to be only one more saga (which isn’t necessarily one arc, but it’s either going to be 1-2 major arcs or an anthology of 5-6 shorter arcs). And now that we can trust this claim, we can essentially extrapolate how many chapters/episodes are left and what pace we have to binge to catch up at just the right time.

If you plan to read the manga (black and white):

The manga in black in white is a perfectly fine way to enjoy One Piece. It’s what Oda draws, it’s how he intends it to be viewed, and best of all, it will be the first version of publication to finish.

     Out of the 1223 weeks since the first chapter published in July 19, 1997, 1000 chapters have published, meaning on average he publishes 42 chapters per year, or in other words, there are only 10 hiatuses per year (including holidays where WSJ does not publish). Now if I wanted to be more accurate, I’d only look at the chapters published this year, to exclude outliers like how he had no hiatuses for the first 200 chapters, or how he had a 4-week hiatus during the timeskip, but 2020 has been a bit crazy, so we’re not doing that for this or any of the others.

     Going off of this, the final chapter would be chapter 1212 in December 28, 2025 (yes, the 28th would be a Sunday again.) So here’s how you’d calculate the pace in which you need to read One Piece, and really this is how we’ll calculate it for every version)

     Now I know math is boring, but the reason I’m showing this to you is because the amount of weeks until One Piece ends will vary based on when you start this binge. Chances are you aren’t going to start the day you see this post, and there’s an even greater chance you won’t see this post the day it’s posted. For every example I’m going to assume you started binging on December 28, 2020. Now let’s try to use it for this example.

     And there’s your answer, just read 4-5 chapters per week. By the end, One Piece should be nearly over or have very recently ended. To put that into a different perspective, you could purchase and read just two volumes per month and you’ll be at prime pace. Or you could read one chapter every day, but only on weekdays.  If you want to, you can see this calculation in action in graph form.

     While this is a very rudimentary graph, it’s a basic visualization of what we’re calculating here. We’re calculating what speed we need to binge to catch up at exactly the right moment. I say exact, but ultimately no one can predict how many chapters there will be exactly, nor how many hiatuses Oda will go on during it. It will be important, as you’re nearing the end, to find a spoiler-free way to keep up on how close One Piece is to ending. To know whether you ought to speed up or slow down.

If you plan to watch the anime (subtitled):

For years now people have hated on the anime “terrible animation!” “terrible pacing” but at the end of the day, it’s the more popular version. Or the more viewed version I should say. And personally, I think that once you acknowledge its problems and learn how to deal with them, it’s a perfectly fine experience. There’s enough good voice acting and enough good storytelling that you’re easily able to ignore the problems. Plus, the animation has substantially improved since Wano.

      Now for this we’re going to have to change a lot of variables to get this right. We’re going to have to adjust when publication started, and recalculate when One Piece will end by looking at how slowly the anime adapts the manga, and how behind it is. The anime aired on October 20, 1999, and has aired 956 episodes since then. This means on average they air 44.9 episodes per year, meaning there is pretty much only 7 breaks the entire year. With these 956 episodes, they have adapted 955 chapters, making the pace almost exactly one chapter per episode. However this is really inaccurate, considering all the better-paced arcs earlier on in the story. Looking solely at episodes 2012 and onwards, the anime adapts at a pace of 0.65 chapters/episode.

     Knowing that there are roughly 212 chapters left, and Toei adapts at 0.65 chapters per episode, we can assume that there are going to be roughly 324 episodes left. That sounds like too many, but keep in mind that there will be several, several instances where the manga will be on hiatus whereas the anime will keep on airing. Knowing there are approximately 324 episodes left, and that the anime only takes about 7 breaks a year, we can assume that it will take 7 years, or 374.49 weeks before the anime will end. So now we have the information we need to do the math again.

x = 1280/374.49

x = 3.417 episodes/week.

     It may seem like a more relaxed binge, since you get a whole 2 extra years to binge, and you only have to do 3-4 episodes per week, compared to the 4-5 chapters. But keep in mind that these episodes are 24 minutes each. Still not at all bad, but you will be spending more time on it overall.

If you plan to watch One Pace:

One Pace is a fan project that edits the anime so that filler and padding is cut, other edits will be made to make the anime more manga-accurate, such as reorganizing scenes, or adding title cards where absent. Originally only used by a niche number of One Piece fans, One Pace has grown in popularity, and has tried to improve its quality to accommodate more fans, such as making their episodes Dual Audio (meaning you can switch between the dub and original Japanese audio tracks), and including Spanish subtitles.

      You’d think we’d have to adjust for when One Pace began, how slowly One Pace catches up, and the works, but there’s not much to calculate. Fortunately for us, no matter how far behind One Pace is on editing the current arc, they always like to wrap things up just a few weeks within when an arc ended, if not the very same week. So really all we have to calculate is how many One Pace episodes there will be by the end of all this, so that we know how many you’ll need to watch per week.

      Looking solely at what they’ve covered so far, One Pace has taken 573 episodes and condensed it down to 259 episodes. That’s a pace of 2.21 anime episodes/ paced episode. Earlier we calculated that there would be 324 episodes of the anime left, making for 1280 episodes total. This would mean that there would be around 578 One Pace episodes by the end. And One Pace would probably wrap up in, let’s say 376 weeks, because as I said, they’ll probably finish editing the final arc a week or two after the last episode airs.

x = 578/376

x = 1.53 episodes per week

      Now that’s a relaxed pace. 1-2 episodes per week? That’s so slow, I’m not even sure if I’ll remember what I watched last week next time I watch some episodes. The only problem is some of the pre-timeskip still haven’t been edited. They’ll probably be done by the time they finish the final arc, but that’s not gonna work out fast enough. You’ll hit your first roadblock about 7 weeks in when you need to watch the Baratie arc and it’s not done. And don’t even get me started on how many arcs aren’t done in dub or Spanish sub yet. Hopefully you could just switch to the anime or manga when you hit these arcs, readjusting how many episodes/chapters you need to watch/read when you do. But that’s a bit of an excessive amount of math for something that’s supposed to be fun. So yeah, if you’re still convinced you shouldn’t get into One Piece until it’s ended, maybe this is the option for you.

If you plan to read the manga (Colored):

Since 2012, Shueisha has made a colorization of One Piece. It’s not a fan coloring, it’s as official as it gets. Many consider the color schemes portrayed in this version as the most canon, as the majority are pulled straight from whatever colored illustrations of Oda’s they can find. And quite frankly it makes the manga at least 10 times more beautiful. It’s especially great if you have trouble interpreting dense, small black and white panels.

      This one is a doozy. You’d think all I gotta do is calculate how far behind the colored manga usually and just adjust from there, right? Wrong. Because how far behind the colored manga is, or how frequently they release volumes in full color, is one of the most inconsistent things I have ever seen. You wanna see what I’m talking about? This is how they’ve chosen to release each volume since 2012:

Volume 1-12: July 15, 2012

Volume 13-23: September 28, 2012

Volume 24-63: December 4, 2012

Volume 64-65: April 4, 2013

Volume 66-68: December 20, 2013

Volume 69-70: August 25, 2014

Volume 71-72: September 16, 2015

Volume 73-75: October 4, 2016

Volume 76: December 2, 2016

Volume 77: March 3, 2017

Volume 78: July 2, 2017

Volume 79: September 4, 2017

Volume 80: December 4, 2017

Volume 81-82: March 3, 2018

Volume 83: October 4, 2018

Volume 84-86: August 2, 2019

Volume 87-92: September 16, 2020

     How I am supposed to find out how long it will take for Shueisha to colorize the final volume of One Piece is beyond me. I guess the first step would be to look at how far behind the manga each release was on average, but I’m going to ignore all the ones before 2013, because those were clearly just Shueisha catching up really fast cause they just started and didn’t want to be dozens of volumes behind forever. So of the 14 publications between 2013 and now, on average the last chapter of the last volume they colored was 97.78 weeks after that chapter had published in Weekly Shonen Jump. This means that if the final chapter of One Piece is chapter 1212 on December 28, 2025, then you can expect the final colored volume to publish November 14, 2027.

x = 1212/359

x = 3.37 chapters/week

     So if you prefer the manga but don’t want to read 5 chapters every week for 5 years, this might be a better option for ya. But yea, I have no doubt my prediction is at least a little off for this one.

If you plan to watch the anime (dubbed):

Unlike the 4KidsTV and Odex dubs of One Piece, the FUNimation dub is a perfect way to enjoy One Piece. The DVDs come with enjoyable commentary and a marathon mode, great for binging.

       FUNimation’s releases of the dub are inconsistent, although not nearly as erratic as the colored manga release. However, there was recently a 2-year hiatus we only just got out of. Since Episode 1′s dub in May 27, 2008, the dub has gotten as far as Episode 614. But that’s only looking at the DVD releases. If you’re willing to stream on FUNimationnow, the dub is as far as 641, and if you’re willing to digitally purchase it from an e-shop such as the Microsoft store, it goes all the way to Episode 654. With that being said, that would mean that on average, FUNimation dubs 1.004 episodes per week. Although if we go back to before the two-year hiatus so as to exclude it from the average, it’s actually 1.10 episodes per week. Not a huge difference, actually. And then if we look solely after the two-year hiatus, it’s actually 2.25 episodes per week, which is insanely faster. It’s hard to tell what the future of the dub will be. I can’t assume they’ll go this fast forever, so I’m just going to take the average of all 3 and say it’s 1.45 episodes per week. Don’t know if that’s the best mathematical approach, but the number seems about right.

     So knowing that the dub is at Episode 654 and looking at our previous guesstimation that the anime will be 1280 episodes long, we can predict that it will take 431 weeks before the dub catches up and ends. That would be in 2029! Sounds quick at first until you notice it’s 4 years behind!

x = 1280/431

x = 2.96 episodes per week

      Looks like it’s almost exactly 3 episodes per week. Not as much less of a workload as I expected, compared to catching up to the sub. You know, I figured those 4 extra years would make you binge a lot slower.

Final Thoughts:

      There’s a lot of my math that was estimation, approximations, extrapolations. Feel free to correct me or fact check me, especially if you plan on using this. I figured this would be a fun thought excercise. There’s also a lot of smaller variables I simply didn’t want to take into account because of how long this is already. For example, reading the black and white manga. The calculation can vary slightly depending on if you read it the day it’s published (which I assume would have to be a fanscan unless you can read Japanese), reading the weekly publication legally on Viz.com, waiting for the physical volume release. The dub can also vary depending on whether you buy from Microsoft, wait for the FUNimationnow release, wait for the DVDs, or wait for the Collection sets. So feel free to take this into account.

[koiponderingsss]

Idk why I haven’t looked this up either. It’s been such a long time coming and also this weekend has snuck on me! I can’t believe it’s now 🤯

Ok frens after nerding out a little too hard i now believe the end of the tour is the beginning of the conversation, maybe an release on the tenth of this month (or the 13th of Jan), this year’s midnight is the one that counts, and the ides of 2025’s march will be brutal with maybe an release on the 15th 🤡💫

Here’s a bunch of words from some people smarter, more knowledgeable, and clearer than I am:

“…The fifth thing to watch for is transitions between different eras or periods. These transitions often happen within systems, structures, or even personal paradigms. …Similarly, the Jupiter-Saturn square can signify transitions from one phase of life or societal structure to another, often accompanied by conflict or tension.”

“December 7th, Mars begins its six month retrograde in Leo. Mars is fire, Leo is fire. A six month retrograde in so much fire is very rare. This one will feel as if all our old ways that have given us comfort are no longer there. It can cause a sense of alarm for some … motivation for others. Expect this to be quite a ride. I would suggest for each of us to step away from the drama as this is a period designed to trigger the weak minded and to collapse those that do not have the coping mechanisms. …This is an opportunity to shift perspectives because you cannot change what is going to unfold.”

“AF: Yeah, that Neptune station for sure. [chuckles] I think there’s sort of this interesting theme of, like you’re saying, Mercury, Venus, and then the Sun coming to one by one oppose Mars. Because I sort of think about Mars retrogrades in five stages; there’s the shadow phase, the first half of the retrograde, and then the opposition with the Sun as stage three or the sort of height or culmination of it. So it kind of feels like everything is moving in this funnel towards that opposition, which is really intensified by the Full Moon that’s going to happen. It just made me think of everything going through a funnel in the first week or so of the month.

CB: Yeah, that makes sense. And really just putting the laser focus on that as we hit the halfway point in the cycle.

AC: I really like that the image of a funnel. Because that’s very– it’s very Sagittarian, right? Sagittarius focuses and brings things together. On a very simple level, bringing human and horse into one being. But also if you think of the practice of archery, you have to bring your awareness, which is usually much wider, to a single point. And that’s how you bring physical objects or liquids into a single point, where you funnel them down into the tube.

AF: Yeah, I totally think about that Saj-Gemini opposition that way. It’s like taking a lot and then bringing… Yeah, taking something broad spectrum or a larger volume and bringing it into a point of specificity….

Mars leaves its post-retrograde shadow period on March 15th and then eventually will depart from Gemini and move into Cancer not too long after that…

we get this Full Moon that takes place on December 7th. Yeah, December 7th at 15 degrees of Gemini. But Mars is right there retrograde at 16 degrees of Gemini when that Full Moon goes exact. So as soon as the Moon hits the opposition with the Sun, it just immediately applies to the conjunction with that retrograde Mars in Gemini. I feel like that Full Moon is going to be a very important turning point in terms of the entire Mars retrograde story, not just because the Moon is conjunct Mars, but also because the next day Mars opposes the Sun. And that’s the halfway point in Mars’s retrograde cycle.

AC: Actually the Sun and Mars oppose within hours of that Full Moon. If you look at the chart right there, they’re only seven minutes apart and mutually applying.

CB: Yeah, looks like it takes place early the next day here. Yeah, and that’s the halfway point in the entire Mars retrograde cycle. So it seems like having that happen when we have a Full Moon when there’s also a feeling of culmination or heightened feelings or something like that, that we’re getting a heightening of some of the tensions of Mars. Some of the conflict… One of the things you mentioned last month, Austin, that I thought was funny was the doddering effect of sometimes people coming back into your life, or sometimes Mars-type figures coming back into your life from the past. I’ve seen that as being an interesting thing that’s come up for some people as well.

AC: Yeah.

AF: Can confirm. Yes.

CB: Confirmed, okay.

AF: Can confirm. [laughs] But yeah, I think that that sense of culmination will be there, but also I was thinking about themes of revelation. Because so much of the Mars retrograde has been also cloaked with its square to Neptune that may have made it entirely unclear for people exactly what is happening. And then the Full Moon feels like this moment where we might actually realize, “Oh, oh, this is the theme from the last few months.” Or something might click into place in a way that’s been challenging to pinpoint or identify because of the way that Neptune can obscure things despite Mars’s specificity.

AC: Yeah, [laughs] I think that the various conflicts and whatnot that this Mars retrograde is shepherding will be very not concealed during this Full Moon, you know? Like lighting the sky up with fireworks, you know, with it being two mutable signs and just kind of going everywhere, I get the image of like fireworks when they’re 40 little explosions, right? Like cluster munitions, things scattering and going everywhere. Like lighting off… I’m thinking of– not bottle rockets– but anyway, lots of little explosions all over the place, and not subtle.

AF: Not subtle. [chuckles]

AC: Not subtle in the slightest….

Re Dec10: The Moon is in Cancer in the fifth whole sign house, the place of good fortune in Hellenistic astrology. And the Moon is applying to and has a nice trine with Jupiter that it’s applying to within 13 degrees, which is very helpful and supportive for the Moon, especially as the Moon is coming off of that Full Moon with Mars in Gemini but it’s now safely out of that range. At this point in the month, it’s not just Mercury in Venus, but also the Sun is finally separating from Mars and separating from that opposition…Venus is up there in the 11th whole sign house, which is good for friends and groups and it’s not too far off of the degree of the Midheaven. And yeah, those are the major things with this chart trying to capture the very last of Jupiter in Pisces before Jupiter is gone for a while. …Okay, well, what would you want to say yes to with this chart?” And Jupiter at 29 degrees of Pisces is the ultimate state of possibility. …AC: Yeah. Jupiter is also ruling the 10th in the Sun so it’s saying yes. It’s supporting whatever the Sun wants to do in the 10th. And although we often simplify the 10th to professional matters, it’s really action in the world. Like, going out and doing a thing in the world is to some degree always 10th. And so Jupiter ruling the first and saying yes to whatever 10th house activities are there is… That chart’s really good for a pretty wide variety of things like Moon in the 5th in Cancer supporting what’s in the 1st, Jupiter in the 1st ruling the 10th. I would say that that’s a pretty multi-use election….

if you think about all the stuff that’s already in play that is probably gonna get faster and louder during that Full Moon, all the things that are in the air it’s a lot of changing the map or changing the position of pieces on the board and the terrain of the board. Things are very much in motion right now and so it makes a lot of sense that the phase after this one by the end of December is going to be like, “Okay, so where are things now?” Because they’re different than they were six months ago. Like, what’s what’s going on? We always do that, or there’s a sort of collective taking stock when the Sun’s in Capricorn and we have the beginning of the secular year. That’s always there but it’s like doubly important, right? Because this last quarter, there’s just a tonne of stuff in play.

AF: Mhm. And that sense of a lot of the planets starting to move into cardinal signs instead of their time in the more mutable signs. And that idea of taking stock feels very cardinal to me as well. Or very Capricorn, like, “Okay, so what are we going to do about it? What are we going to do here?”

AC: Right. And cardinal Earth, right? Not cardinal Fire, which is like, “Let’s go,” but like, “Let’s hurry up and sit down and think this through really carefully on a strategic level.” That’s the Capricorn thing. Like, “Let’s hurry up and make a plan rather than let’s just act.”

AF: And with Venus in Capricorn, that plan has to have something of value to it. There has to be some kind of meaning or value to the action steps

AC: Yeah, how do I get what I want slash need in this version of the world? And just to go back to what you’re saying about, you know, right now and for the first part of December, it’s mutable. And mutable is very much like, “Okay, this is how I’m going to adapt in the middle of the game.” It’s late rounds of a fight, it’s the fourth quarter of a game, you know, it’s end game in chess where you can’t go back and set things up the way you want. You just got to work with things as they are with what you have. But cardinal, especially cardinal Earth, Capricorn is like, “Okay, what am I going to do? How am I going to set myself up for success when the next game begins?”…

AC: Yeah, and even though Mars will continue to be retrograde until was it 12th or 13th of January and will still be in Gemini until the end of March, a lot of the Mars… Mars retrograde has played a lot of its cards and those cards might get replayed in future hands, but it won’t be a surprise. Right? Yes, these themes, but it’s one thing when like, “Yep, it’s still this, but it’s been this for a while. I’m used to it or I’m adapted to it.” Versus like, “Holy shit, I didn’t know that we were playing. I didn’t know you had that card.” Whereas Mars’s you don’t play some of his more unpleasant cards several times already. Anyway, even though it’s not over, simply it becoming known makes it planable. Unknowns are much harder to plan around.”

I want an infographic that says the more you clown instead of the more you know please

Or maybe the more you know with a clown instead of a star?

Mars stations retrograde today spade

2/2

And there is a mercury cazimi!

Omg I don’t know why I didnt look at this astrology until now it’s all… very a lot lol

Already excited for tonight and trying to temper my expectations