#Akira Lens

[lexingtonshiroji]

MIKU DAY

[saitoakirachan-fangirls]

Ena is such an older sister omgggg. She so nice and gentle with Len and her voice is so soft when she speaks to him it's adorable

[haganez]

stay away from my comfort siblings im not playing with u

[veloriium]

( wip ) hiding the fact i cant draw motorcycles by scribbling in half of it

[masaroisu26]

[para-sicht]

Daily OCs until I start a comic

Day 30

Rest In Peace.

[crystalkleure]

[WIP]

Sane individual

[todayisafridaynight]

something something some yakuza antagonists ideals are completely valid and if they just went about them a different way the whole situation wouldnt have been life or death something something. something something i will agree with an antag (nishiki WHO SAID THAT) more if their reasoning behind what theyre doing is solid enough (yeah girl be mentally ill i support you i'll get you help too) something something

this goes for outside of yakuza too idk why im adding it but like. personally i love antags more than the protags because 1 more interesting 2 bro 99% of the time theyre just so mentally unwell if they had help as a child or just someone by their side supporting them enough in life they wouldnt be doing any of that shit 3 half the time theyre just. right. about the status of things? and i got that autistic sense of justice behind me so i automatically side with them like they go about it the wrong way but theyre right my bad 4 not all antags are evil even theyre literally there because the protaganist needs a foil the whole light needs dark dark needs light thing blah blah 5 theyre bad bitches i cant deny a bad bitch their non-heroic deeds.

i need to type up another slideshow about the intricacies of characters and why so and so did what they did or why so and so shouldnt be faulted for their ideals. god i love writing about characterization i love writing i need to write of course people can dislike "bad guys" theyre written to be disliked because of the perspective you see them from but i love being like oooh hoo hoo you are a hidden gem you are a diamond in the rough damn ya ass fat whats ya trauma? oh god this is long uhm. yeah :]

anon you're spitting but im too drunk to make a good response just know im nodding and listening and agreeing

[univiresque]

i think something people fail to understand is that like. it is near impossible to have a protagonist of a video game that is not their own character. it’s possible, for games with little to no dialogue options and also full character customization, but not everything has that. just the act of having a fixed character design creates an incredible amount of personality yknow. i really resent the false idea of “blank slate protagonists”

[badtzmaru11]

[boypussydilf]

simon, too, is the perfect (doomed) doctor who companion, and unlike betty he doesn’t have to sneak on board to be allowed on the tardis. he’s already got it all! curious about the world & fascinated by everything, will drop what he’s doing to help anyone he sees, and ready to follow the rules. he’s cautious. he’s not gonna break time. (by default. barring any extenuating circumstances. you know.) perfect material for a whole season of going on time & space adventures, being slightly disappointed he has to keep all this super interesting information to himself but dealing with it, saving people, getting into campy situations, getting into traumatic situations, all that jazz. unfortunately his problem is he’s very likely to take after the doctor way too much. (sort of like clara, except in a completely different way that’s not like clara at all.) you take these two people who have passions for repressing their feelings and being overly self-sacrificing and you stick them together in a series of life-threatening situations for like, months or whatever. and one of them has been doing this for centuries and one of them is an ordinary vulnerable human. and then you sit back and wait for the ordinary vulnerable human to try a little too hard to be a hero. to give himself up for someone else. and then…

truly betty “impulsively throw away basically my entire life for one thing im more excited about” grof would make a perfect doctor who companion (with a tragic ending). except i think the tardis would like her more than the doctor would. betty would have to be one of those stowaway companions in the vein of zoe or sarah jane like she just gets curious and goes 👀 hey what the fuck is this and the tardis is supposed to be locked but she immediately senses betty as a fellow Madwoman Who Likes Biting People and feels solidarity and secretly lets her in anyway so betty gets brought along on a trip by accident without the doctor knowing shes in there. this is subjective, and depends on which doctor we’re dealing with and what situations they get into, but i feel like generally the doctor would not consider betty Proper Traveling Companion Material she is too betty. she has the excitement and the curiosity but she also has the emotional regulation problems and hubris and she is much more likely to become in some way a danger to herself, others, or the timestream than she is to just Go On Cool Adventures and Help People Without Bending The Rules Too Much. she is already in adventure time canon the type of person who’s 100% down to undo an extremely formative event in history consequences be damned. she might be normal passing enough to get a few trips in but she’s been shoving future technology in her pockets this entire time and the doctor will NOT stand for it but like the tardis still thinks she’s kinda cool so it makes things harder so it can hang out with this weird woman a little while longer. and that’s probably where things go wrong

[kroosluvr]

yay!!!!!!!

typo that im too lazy to fix: on the last page, "kasumi was one of the best gymnasts [in japan]"

edit: BRO I IDDNT REALIZE AKIRA ND SUMIRE WERE SHARING A SPOON TO EAT THE CURRY AM I INSANEEEEE <- She literally drew this image

1st 2 pics are genderbent akira+goro as well as sumire, 3rd pic is canon akira and sumire

in my head m!sumire is dedicated to rhythmic gymnastics, but the fact that it's not a popular sport somehow causes a mental block for him: kasumi was a trailblazer in men's rhythmic gymnastics. he was setting the course, but now he's gone. so does sumire live up to that? does he have to fill his brother's shoes? or can he just strive to be the best rhythmic gymnast he himself can be?

he was always solemn and driven growing up, but after the accident, he drove himself further into his practices and routines in an attempt to "recapture the spark" that kasumi had. of course, this is mostly in vain... chasing his shadow doesn't get him anywhere

he slowly develops the cognition of "sumire" being "kasumi's replacement." the younger brother that stepped up to the plate. to attend to his anxiety/depression he goes to dr. maruki (i'd say this takes longer than in canon, because he was always so busy with practice that he didn't really. comprehend 'oh perhaps i need counseling after my brother died' LMAO. and even then it's more "ok im gonna start competing internationally, so i need to make sure my mental is in tiptop shape"

he starts to reveal his insecurities to dr. maruki who. yknow. does all that. i don't think this sumire would specifically say "i wish i was kasumi" but more "i want to continue his legacy the way only he could have done it" which dr. maruki himself takes as "ok so u want to literally be kasumi"

i'd also say his "transformation" into "kasumi" is more jarring than in canon? canon "kasumi" is polite, eager, cheerful and sunny, but i imagine m!"kasumi" to be more boisterous, more outwardly outgoing/extroverted/outspoken, a little bit of a daredevil

on top of that, i think (perhaps) since men's rhythmic gymnastics isn't super popular, maybe not many ppl have heard of "kasumi yoshizawa" to begin with? so maybe ppl accept him as "kasumi" a little easier, which is. um. bad LOL

not sure if this helps his gymnastics at all. i thinkkk it does give him the confidence to execute more complicated routines that sumire himself didn't have the self-confidence to try before. but, of course, this doesn't affect anything in the rhythmic gymnastics world since. erm. everyone knows kasumi died. awkward!!!!

i think the shame would be all-encompassing when he breaks out of the delusion. he never wanted this.... all he wants is to keep competing with his brother, to keep supporting him into the limelight, and he'll never have that again. so i think, like canon, his arc is learning how to support and uplift Himself -- but more like, become more self-sufficient in terms of his own gymnastics instead of always seeing himself as second place to kasumi (and being okay with that)

it's different than canon as kasumi always told sumire they'd take the world stage... TOGETHER! ->

while i think for m!kasumi and m!sumire they worked in tandem, it was never really a dream. kasumi simply decided "i want to do this" and so did sumire. the thing is, kasumi's skills just far outweighed sumire's, and that much was painfully clear to him. kasumi was one who could bring men's rhythmic gymnastics into the international lens, and sumire has no idea if he could ever be strong enough to do that.

there's an interesting sort of dissonance here....... like. big fish small pond (genderbend au) or small fish big pond (canonverse.) i think its interesting.. okay enough rambles from me its 4am sdjsdjfh

edit: last thing i think. in canon it’s heavily implied that kasumi took the reins and pushed sumire to do stuff / pick out clothes for them both / kinda set the stage for both of them but i think in gb au sumire just follows kasumi as a result of kasumi being such a bright light. sumire has ambitions the same way kasumi does but he lacks the self-esteem to back it up…. it’s similar in canon but not 1:1 if that makes sense? i think in canon sumire is still questioning if it’s even her dream to compete in gymnastics so that’s the main diff

[lyle-and-erik-menendez]

The Filtered Truth

What is truth? And how is the truth filtered through our post truth lens? This is something that I’ve been wrestling with, since I saw Ryan Murphy’s latest iteration of Monsters. Monsters is supposed to explore the worst of our society, it supposed to shine a light on the people that society allows to lurk in the shadows. Since its announcement in early 2023, there was must speculation about the tone of Ryan Murphy’s latest offering. The first trailer, released on the 35th anniversary of the murders, showed two shadowy figures entering a house. The stage was set for a glossy adaptation of the Menendez Brothers, that would hopefully vindicate them after decades of public scrutiny. That was not to be, as the subsequent trailers and series showed. Murphy isn’t interested in the truth, nor is he interested in a tonal truth. What he is interested in the exploitation of abuse victims and more broadly and culturally is the re-victimization of the Menendez brothers in a culture that doesn’t allow for their autonomy. Let me pose this question, why are the Menendez brothers after 34 years in prison, why are they playing nice by the very culture and industry that keeps exploiting them?

Ryan Murphy has stated that this season of Monsters would take on a Rashomon style. Rashomon (1950), is a film by Akira Kurosawa that explores the different perspectives of a crime. Murphy states, “The show has a Rashomon approach where it talks about countless perspectives, and a perspective is not a lie. A perspective is an opinion, and the show has an obligation to all of those opinions, including the parents, including the lawyers … on and on and on.” There is only slight problem here, Murphy doesn’t know what Rashomon is. In the film, the audience knows whose perspective they are seeing, so they can clearly distinguish whose narrative they’re seeing. In Monsters, the narrative structure is so confusing and convoluted that the perspective is lost.

The show isn’t a social commentary, it’s not dealing with the case from a post-modern lens. It’s not deconstructing the narrative of the Menendez murders, it is presenting something that is far more pervasive and far more sinister. It is taking real people, real events and twisting and bastardizing into something that is unrecognizable. A grotesque caricature of reality. Art is allowed to break the rules, and film by its very nature presents an artifice of real life, that’s the agreement that we all know. However if your aim is to tell different perspectives, then you have a duty and obligation to present those perspectives. Monsters should have deconstructed Lyle and Erik Menendez, from the prosecution perspective, the defense, the media, their parents, and finally present their version of events. In that way, it would have been a commentary about not only the murders, but the flaw of bias.  

The first poster for Monsters, shows the actors, Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch, both naked looking suggestively to the camera. The subsequent trailers do have an undercurrent of incest, not with Jose or Kitty, but with the brothers. This sexual exploitation of the brothers plays a pivotal role in the show, the men are seen in various states of undress, often in shower scenes or by the pool. And the audience is allowed to look at the look at the men in this sexualised way. In fact, the show gives us permission to sexualise these men. Murphy employs the male gaze when looking at these men, we don’t feel uncomfortable because of their exploitation, we’re part of it. To present a fully nude Erik Menendez in prison, participating willingly in a sexual act in the shower of all places, is in particular poor taste given that Erik was a victim of sexual abuse. In the show there are lingering shots of the male body, which further objectifies the brothers and dehumanizes them. It is interesting that Murphy never films the brothers from the perspective of their father, who viewed them as objects that they owned.

Monsters also overtly suggests that Kitty and Jose were ‘misunderstood’, and in their episode, Don’t Dream It’s Over, he explores their relationship. Well, he attempts to explore their relationship, albeit in a very shallow way. Instead of delving into the psyche of two child abusers, we are made to feel empathy for Kitty and Jose. There is even a clunky expositional scene of Jose’s own trauma. What are we supposed to get from that scene? That Jose couldn’t help it. It feels almost victim blaming in its intention. Murphy also puts in a scene where Jose is terrorizing a male sex worker, an obvious substitute for Erik. But that never happened, and completely negates Jose’s abuse dynamic. Jose wasn’t terrorizing his son’s because he was in the closet, Jose was a sexual sadist who got off on complete control and power. The show didn’t even touch Jose molesting members of Menudo, one of whom has come forward. It’s not like I want to see women abused, but a brothel owner did say that he was cruel to female prostitutes. Jose derived power from the complete subjugation and humiliation of another. Monsters completely ignores that dynamic, and the twisted relationship between father and sons. For all the overt nudity in the show, why didn’t Murphy put in a scene of the father and sons in shower?

The episode also paints Erik and Lyle as ‘bad seeds’ that Kitty and Joe must deal with, but the show never explores the cycle of abuse. There is plenty of testimony in the trial, that would have made a fascinating episode and given Murphy’s background in the horror genre could have made for an intense and gripping episode. The show never explores the physical, emotional and sexual abuse that Lyle experienced from him mother. Also why did they age up Lyle’s hair loss? Why did the show not even mention the sexual abuse that Lyle endured at the hands of his mother? Which makes me question, why even hire Chloe Sevigny if you’re not going to go there? Jose is never presented as menacing, really all he does is yell. Real fear comes in the silence, the unpredictable. There is something to be said by Murphy’s deliberate whitewashing of Kitty and Jose considering he stated that he was using the Rashomon method. Given the testimony of countless relatives, teachers, coaches and the boys themselves, there could have been a real exploration about what makes a monster.

Lyle Menendez deserves to be the angriest about his portrayal in this series. To reduce a person who has very complex motivations and emotions to a stereotype of the worst qualities of a John Hughes character. Why did Ryan Murphy decide to completely assassinate Lyle’s character? Lyle Menendez could have left, he could have started a new life at Princeton, but he didn’t. Why? Because he couldn’t do that in good conscious knowing what, what was happening to his brother. Lyle has been the punching bag for the mainstream media, he’s the brother who is constantly maligned the most and this show is no exception.

There is also a clear divide in the way that both brothers are treated on this show. Erik gets his bottle episode where is allowed to be vulnerable and raw, at the expense of Lyle. But Lyle doesn’t get that episode. Even in episode 4, that is his episode, all his trauma and life experience is undermined by his characterization. There is a constant reinforcing by Murphy that Lyle is lying, that he’s playing the jury. In Kill or Be Killed there is an attempt to go into Lyle’s psyche, the episode undermines the protagonist’s experience while suggesting that Lyle is faking his emotions. Whereas, in Erik’s episode, the much lauded The Hurt Man, Erik is allowed the safe space to reveal his abuse to a willing party which is Leslie Abramson. The episode is only effective because it’s treated like a therapy session, it revels in the silence. Leslie Abramson even jokes about just adopting Erik, Jill Lansing refers to Lyle as a psychopath. Even after Lyle cries, he is able to compose himself because the tears aren't real. A far cry from the real testimony. Erik is allowed to be vulnerable; we’re allowed to feel empathy for him. Why is this grace given to Lyle? Is it because he took action, that led to the murder of his parents? Did Murphy think that an audience would sympathize too much with abuse victims? It’s clear that Murphy doesn’t believe the brothers, or least Lyle given his statements.

The show opens with the brothers going to the memorial service, and this episode is apparently from Dr Oziel’s perspective. This is where the Rashomon method gets clunky, because Murphy tells the audience this, we’re supposed to assume whose perspective it is. However, how is the audience to know if they’re not familiar with this case? The episode starts with Lyle acting like the worst stereotype of every 80s frat boy, being completely obnoxious. They even do the lie about Lyle wearing Jose’s shoes to the memorial, he wasn’t. Our boy was wearing cowboy boots. There is a lot to deconstruct about Lyle Menendez, and it could have been done. But you can deconstruct a character, if you never construct that character to begin with. Monsters never allows the audience to see behind the bravado, we don’t get to witness Lyle’s intense insecurity. Murphy could have explored masculinity and what meant to him. Everything is played for melodrama.

Melodrama has does have its place in this story, and often horror and comedy go hand in hand. It would be difficult to portray this story without leaning into tropes. To take the audience behind the façade of wealth, to juxtapose trauma with the gaudiness of late 80s LA makes for some wonderful exposition. Murphy loves the glamour of the 80s and 90s, but he never wants to explore what is behind the curtain. The toupee scene could have been played for melodrama, much like too often parodied ‘No more wire hangers’ scene in Mommy Dearest. Why do I use this example? Because that scene, despite its camp overtones is a complete horror scene. The façade of the glamour has been lost, and what we’re left with is fear. That is the same element when Kitty rips off Lyle’s toupee, even in its description it seems ridiculous. But it isn’t, it’s horrific, a mother reveling in her son’s humiliation, but playing the scene straight the audience would have been able to see the literal ripping apart of the family. Murphy doesn’t seem to want to even explore toxic women, or any women beyond some shallow girl boss tropes.

The media played such a pivotal role in the case, it doesn’t make sense of the show to not explore that aspect of perception. We get countless Dominick Dunne dinner party scenes which give the audience his narrative but why did Ryan Murphy decide to cut out Robert Rand? Rand is the perfect foil for Dunne, and from Rand we could have gotten a more nuanced perspective of the brothers. Well, Lyle in particular, it seems like Murphy likes Erik Menendez which is why Lyle is sacrificed at Erik’s alter throughout the entire show. Erik is allowed to have an episode with pathos, even though once again, Murphy goes out of his way to state that Lyle molested Erik. Lyle did molest Erik, as a child, but the way it’s spoken about on the show makes it seem akin to Jose’s abuse of his sons. The show never acknowledges just how much media narratives played a part in this case.

In the second last episode, Lyle is excitedly talking about movie rights. Which he did speak to Norma Novelli about, having the rights to their own story. And given how Monsters treated him, he did have a point. The brothers knew just how reviled they were by the mainstream media; they were caricatures and parodies. So why would Lyle make light of an SNL skit that basically made fun of his testimony, a testimony that he didn’t even want to give for that reason. That’s where this show falls, because it constantly makes these self-reflexive remarks without thinking of the context. Lyle had just told the world that he was molested by his parents, it was very emotionally draining for him. Why then, would he have the opinion that they were loved? It makes zero sense in the context of the story. The reason why we’re able to have the conversation about trauma and abuse, is due to how much more open we are now about those subjects. In 1993, Pam Bozanich was telling people that men don’t have the equipment to get raped.

The truth is subjective, but Murphy did have able opportunities to play around with different perspectives in this case. A trial is all about perspectives and crafting a narrative. It is the perfect backdrop for the Rashomon style. It would have interesting to have that as the angle, rather than the uncanny valley retelling of the trial. The actors simply didn’t emote the raw emotion of the brothers during their testimony. But not only that, Murphy could have delved into memory and how two people can experience the same event and still have different perceptions and understandings of it. Instead, we get Lyle furious at Erik for making a mistake, which isn’t something that bears any credence to their relationship.

Monsters also never delves into the bond that the brothers had, not in an emotional way. Although Murphy is more than willing to entertain the incest rumours between the brothers. In episode two we get the brothers kiss, and the suggestively gyrating on each other. These are the kind of incidents is what Murphy is interested in, the suggestive, sensual taboo. He’s not interested in the child abuse, the trauma, how people cope with that trauma. That isn’t sexy. Murphy also plays up the trauma for slapstick comedy when Erik falls with a Popsicle in his mouth. Which is something that happened when he was 7 btw, not an adult. Lyle’s 17 page letter where he’s basically begging Erik for silence is also played for comedy. It all shows that Murphy does not take this subject seriously, the show is about his own gaze at two physically attractive young men. The audience doesn’t see the bond between the brothers, because this isn’t a story about LA excess, it is a story about love. It is a story about the bond between brothers, that unshakable bond that made Lyle Menendez defend his brother. That’s the story here.

The final scene on the boat, proves that Ryan Murphy wasn’t using the Rashomon method, but he was constructing his own history. The series ends with Kitty and Jose in some sort of wedded bliss looking over at their sons as the sons plan their demise. The end basically implies that Lyle and Erik overacted and were paranoid. This alone proves that Murphy wasn’t interested in the truth at all. Considering the boat captain was a prosecution witness and testified to the tense atmosphere. Kitty was seasick, so she wasn’t even with Jose. And the brothers were huddled together at the front of the boat. It was a tense experience all around. But to sum up the murders as a ‘mistake’, makes the brothers complicit and proves the prosecution narrative that they were making up the abuse. Once again, Murphy undermines the brothers, which is something that he’s been doing since episode 1.

What is truth? We all have our own version of it, it is subjective to our life experience. We will never know the actual truth of the Menendez Murders, and by that, I mean memories are funny, they can evolve and change over time. So, we will never have a completely fact driven narrative of that night. What do have? We have paranoia, we have fear, we have sleep deprivation and lifetime of abuse culminating in this one night. This story has the potential to be explored in a meaningful and interesting way that respects the people involved. But you cannot deconstruct a narrative, if the construction that you’ve presented in poorly thought out. Monsters is poorly written, it’s poorly acted, overacted and relies far too heavily on montage. Perhaps it is a story for our age, a story of instant gratification over nuanced portrayals. Perhaps Monsters is a mirror to what we accept as entertainment, a pantomime of reality given to us under the guise of prestige television. We created the Monsters that were the Menendez brothers, so it’s right that we’ve ended up with the Frankenstein’s monster.

[miku-spotted]

Other blogs like me!! (If you're making a -spotted blog, feel free to link to this or copy-paste! Thank you to @rin-spotted for helping me make this!!)

@aiko-spotted [Aiko Kikyuune]

@akito-spotted [Shinonome Akito]

@an-spotted [An Shiraishi]

@defoko-spotted [Defoko]

@emu-spotted [Emu Ootori]

@emunene-spotted [Emu Ootori/Nene Kusanagi]

@ena-spotted [Shinonome Ena]

@fukase-spotted [Fukase]

@gakupo-spotted [Kamui Gakupo]

@gumi-spotted [Gumi]

@iku-spotted [Acme Iku]

@iroha-spotted [Nekomura Iroha]

@kaito-spottedd [Kaito]

@kanade-spotted [Yoisaki Kanade]

@kasa-spotted [Tsukasa Tenma]

@kazehiki-spotted [Kazehiki]

@kohane-spotted [Azusawa Kohane]

@lapis-spotted [Aoki Lapis]

@len-spotted [Kagamine Len]

@lily-spotted [Lily]

@luka-spotted [Megurine Luka]

@mafuyu-spotted [Asahina Mafuyu]

@mayu-spotted [Mayu]

@meika-hime-spotted [Meika Hime]

@meiko-spotted [Meiko]

@miku-spotted (<< that's me!!!)

@minori-spotted [Hanasato Minori]

@mizuki-spotted [Akiyama Misuki]

@nene-spotted [Nene Kusanagi]

@nene-kusanagi-spotted [Nene Kusanagi]

@neru-spotted [Akita Neru]

@oliver-spotted [Oliver]

@rana-spotted [Rana]

@rin-spotted [Kagamine Rin]

@rui-kamishiro-spotted [Rui Kamashiro]

@ruko-spotted [Yokune Ruko]

@saki-tenma-spotted [Saki Tenma]

@sakura-miku-spotted [Sakura Miku]

@shiho-spotted [Hinomori Shiho]

@teto-spotted [Kasane Teto]

@tonerion-spotted [Tonerion]

@vflower-spotted [Vflower]

if you are starting a new character-spotted blog, please tag me or send me an ask! i'll add your url to the list and reblog your pinned post as soon as i can!!

other -spotted blogs unrelated to vocaloid!!:

@akutagawa-spotted [Ryūnosuke Akutagawa from Bungo Stray Dogs] (she also has a bungo stray dogs masterlist for other -spotted blogs!)

@etho-spotted [EthosLab from Hermitcraft]

@dummygirl-spotted [DummyGirl mii]

@medicine-pocket-spotted [Medicine Pocket]

@nishiki-spotted [Akira Nishikiyama from Yakuza]

@ena-joelg-spotted [ENA]

@mari-spotted [Mari from Omori]

@twilight-spotted [Twilight Sparkle from My Little Pony]

@aizawa-spotted [Aizawa Shouta from My Hero Acadamia]

@kirbyspotted [Kirby]

[chaos0pikachu]

Cinematography?? In MY BL??? Not as likely as you think.

TLDR: it's a joke!!! but also legit sometimes I see "cinematography in bl" and it's just some basic pictures with mid-tone lighting and blue t-shirts. Let's talk film terms like: aperture, panning, tilting, and movement in film so we can see what goes into cinematography (with sources!). Also if I name a show you like as "boring cinematography" don't send me hate mail I'll laugh

(examples used: Our Skyy2 vs kinnporsche, 2gether vs semantic error, 1000 Stars vs The Sign)

If I name a show you like in this post as "bad cinematography" be chill about it, like, I ain't saying you can't like it, I'm just talking about techniques here not personal likability or overall show quality. I like badly filmed shit too say hello to my collection of Friday the 13th Blue Rays we're just here to talk techniques and like, educational stuff okay?

So the straight (heh) textbook definition of "cinematography" is: the art of making motion pictures. Which, frankly, tells you nothing. Like it's not wrong~~ but it's not informative either. Cinematography covers a lot of what we, the audience, visually see on screen:

"Cinematography is the art of photography and visual storytelling in a motion picture or television show. Cinematography comprises all on-screen visual elements, including lighting, framing, composition, camera motion, camera angles, film selection, lens choices, depth of field, zoom, focus, color, exposure, and filtration." (source)

So let's talk movement in film.

So when I talk about movement, what do I mean? I mean the way the camera, the characters, and the environment moves within a frame.

This video on Akira Kurosawa's usage of movement in a scene is brilliant:

Something as simple as having rain or fire in the background of a shot can enhance the emotions of a scene vastly. it gives the scene depth - literal depth, not narrative depth - that would otherwise be missing.

The way the camera moves and transitions leading the viewers eye back and forth makes what you're watching more engaging. You aren't consuming these scenes, you are engaging with them. They are apart of the story itself, giving the environment life and texture so the characters within them matter more.

And, look, I get busting out Thee Akira Kurosawa might be unfair, but if we're gonna talk cinematography we can't not talk the importance of movement on film.

To understand good cinematography you have to understand what makes it good and as such what makes bad or mediocre cinematography.

In connection with movement we gotta talk about camera techniques like panning and tilting:

"Camera movements are a fundamental part of video production. They can be a powerful storytelling device, heightening tension, evoking emotions, and bringing the viewer into the action. Without saying a word, camera movements can transform a scene’s entire narrative, and direct audiences’ attention where you want it." (source)

So we have movement of environment, of characters, and we also have movement of the camera itself.

Ok so like, where does the BL come in Pikachu??

I'm getting to that, I'm going to start with a more general example: Our Skyy 2 (Bad Buddy meets 1000 Stars edition) vs Kinnporsche.

Starting at 5:17 we have Pran stranded or whatever, and this shot is like, it's fine. It's boring as hell, but fine. Why is it boring as hell? Well it's flat, it lacks movement, it lacks depth.

When the driver drove off the camera could have panned to follow his movement and then panned back to Pran at a different angle to showcase his isolation. Honestly since the scene starts with a mid close up of Pran, I would have had the camera behind Pran as the driver drove away, and had the camera pan around Pran 360 so we get shots of his environment, and him, while also emphasizing holy shit he's like, fucking stuck in the wilderness. 

In general, there's a big lack of movement in the scene. The camera remains almost entirely static, there's no attempt at zooming in or out, following Pran's movement, or showcasing his environment in any meaningful way. Even when Pran begins walking towards the camera the angle of the framing is still centered, rather than tilted downward or upwards to give us more dimension (non-BL comparison, the Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington does the "walking towards the camera" shots really well).

We get a cut of a medium close up of Pran, with a deeper focus so his environment is blurred out.

I understand the thought process of this shot, we want the audience to focus on Pran, but if the point of the scene is to emphasize he's alone, confused, maybe even a bit anxious at his new circumstances it could've been done better. Take a wider shot from this angle, open up the lens to allow for that background environment to come through and show him isolated. Maybe do a pan above him or tilt the camera up going from his feet up as he nervously ruffles his hair. There's options here.

This just adds more walking to the scene, which we already had. It doesn't enhance or emphasize anything about Pran's emotions as a character.

Anyway the camera continues to follow him and then we get another cut. And it's from the same angle as before, only this time we see a truck coming. The camera remains static, it completely stops moving, and we just wait for the truck to drive into the frame.

This whole sequence of events ends at 5:57 and while not a long sequence I find it frustrating because it's boring. The only way the audience knows that Pran is anxious is via Nanon’s acting, there’s nothing in the filmmaking that enhances or contributes to that feeling.

He’s alone, until he’s not, and that’s all the scene tells us. It leaves the scene lacking any tension as well, because we’re not getting a sense of isolation - how large is this space? How alone is Pran right now? What is the entirety of the environment? 

Contrast this with a similar scene in kinnporsche ep06 where Kinn and Porsche are alone in the mountains. I don't have a video of this specific scene so I have to link the trailer, starting at 1:48 to 1:52, but see how we start mid-close up of Kinn and Porsche, then pan out from above them? This is a better showcasing of just how vast the environment around Kinn and Porsche are.

They're still center frame throughout all of this, the depth of the scene is in mid-focus so nothing is blurred out and you can see the sharpness of the environment.

It also places the audience in the same space as Kinn, who is looking up at the sky while the audience looks down at him. It makes the audience a more active participant in the shot, emphasizes the state of the characters, gives the audience a sense of space & environment, and relies a sense of emotion.

The additional fast zoom out also adds to the scene by adding movement and making it more dynamic.

(my man pran looking like this 🧍)

Both these scenes are pretty short, but they're relaying similar information and one is way more dynamic and effective than the other. Both Pran and Kinn/Porsche are alone in the wildness, but in the latter there's a lack of space, a lack of movement, and a lack dimension. This is mainly a framing issue, so let's talk more about camera movement (panning, & tilting).

Here's a scene from 2gether vs a scene from Semantic Error.

(saw someone say 2gether had a high production value and chepie where??)

This entire scene with Sarawat and Tine is flatly shot. There is nothing in their background so no outward movement is happening, the lighting is even as are the colors, everything is at the same depth, and there's little to no motion in the camera.

The scene with Sarawat pushing Tine into frame. Why doesn't the camera follow Tine's motion of movement so the scene has more momentum? It just stops and the char falls out of frame before walking back into it. Then we get a series of cuts back and forth of close ups on Sarawat and Tine's faces. Back and forth, back and forth.

The editing leaves a ton to be deserved because if the back and forth did a quick pan back and forth with each beat we could build up tension, give the scene some texture, heighten the intensity of the argument. If we're going for something softer we could place them in on better set, or make the characters move themselves - have Sarawat walk away from the argument up those stairs, have the camera follow his movement as Tine chases him continuing the argument - or play with the lighting a bit, pan the camera down or tilt it something!

When Tine kisses Sarawat why doesn't the camera move with him in a more notable way? Why did we have a cut to a close up? And then we're back in a mid close up and more cuts and this editor is killing me!

This scene is 4mins long and the only engaging bit of filmmaking here is when the camera follows Tine when he steps closer to Sarawat putting the latter in the frame at 3:15, the entire scene is 4 minutes long.

I want to compare this scene to this scene in Semantic Error which is also all dialogue and also obviously filmed on a shoestring budget.

So right away the camera work here is smart, it starts off in an establishing shot, evenly lit, of Sang Woo and Jae Young both in the frame. Then we get a mid close up of JY looking down, then a tight close up of JY looking up.

The change in camera angle emphasizes his surprise at seeing SW here as he looks up at SW. The lighting has also changed, it's much brighter now. The camera also begins to move, where it was static before it begins to tilt and shift.

We get a cut to SW, the first one of this scene. JY is seeing SW in a new light for the first time, and as such so is the audience. By starting the scene off in an outward shot with both chars in the frame, they are placed on the same level and the audience doesn't see their expressions up close. So when we're hit with JY's close up of surprise and then SW's close up of his wet hair it holds way more impact. It enhances the feelings of JY's character for the audience.

The lighting behind SW has also changed, it's much brighter, and warmer compared to the cooler tones of light behind JY. The camera also slows, and continues to to tilt and shift. JY's world has literally been shifted on his axis.

We get another cut, this time medium on SW and notice, the camera stops moving for that moment and the light around him dims. It's not as saturated. We're moved out of JY's pov here and back into "regular" framing.

SW tries to make JY leave, we get a close up cut of the cut on JY's arm - hey editing used to display important and new information! - then the camera cuts to SW getting medicine and here's a small but important thing, when he tosses at JY the camera follows his movement. And instead of cutting away, when JY gets up thinking SW is hurt, the camera follows JY's movement back towards SW.

It would have been easy to make a cut there back and forth - like in the 2gether scene did over and over - but following the movement of the characters makes the scene way more interesting visually to watch.

Changing the angles of the camera from a lower angle (where JY is looking up) to a downward angle (where SW is looking down) makes the scene more interesting visually as well and enhances the storybeat of JY looking up at SW in a new light memorized. This contributes to the story as well, as it's JY who catches feelings for SW first so their are literally, on uneven ground until they're not later in the story. The camera is panning, tilting, moving with the characters even given the limited space. The lighting adds to the effectiveness, as do the minimal cuts.

On a technical level, the scene in Semantic Error is just better filmed. In my own opinion, the scene is far more engaging b/c the filmmaking is better, where in 2gether the reliance is almost completely on the actors to sell the scene with little help. And I'm not saying nothing about Bright and Win cause their stans wildin'.

Next, I wanna talk about aperture.

I saw a post that used this word and I didn't understand the context in which they were using it because aperture isn't a style of filmmaking its a camera setting or lens adjustment - it's the rate at which the camera opens and closes letting in light and focus.

"Aperture is the opening of the lens through which light passes. When you hit the shutter release button to take the picture, the camera aperture opens to the predetermined width, letting a specific amount of light through. A large aperture lets more light in, and vice versa. Aperture is calibrated in f/stops, written in numbers like 1.4, 2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11 and 16. The larger the number, the narrower the aperture." (source) <- really recommend this article if you want to learn about aperture in film.

A great non-BL example of aperture used for style is One Piece Live Action where cinematographers Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, and Michael Wood love using deep focus aperture in a lot of scenes.

But let's compare The Sign vs 1000 Stars.

So when the scene starts, we're in mid-focus/aperture, everything is of similar sharpness and depth. Nothing is especially blurred out we're getting the full spectrum of Phaya and Tharn's environment.

When the camera switches to close ups of Phaya and Tharn however, we get a deep focus aperture. That's why everything behind them is so blurred out. In a close up of Phaya, even Tharn's face is blurred. The director wants the audience to focus specifically on these characters individually, so we can understand the weight of their dialogue. But when the camera wants us to see the characters as a unit, it cuts, pulls back out of that deep focus and everything is back in mid-focus again.

Here's another thing, it's subtle but it's important.

This scene also combines what we already discussed about movement. At :08 of the scene, in that first mid-shot the camera is actually zooming in closer on Phaya and Tharn. Not dramatically, subtly, but it is there. This is important, because at 3:23 we get another mid-shot of them, pulled out of that deep focus, and the camera begins to zoom out.

The camera also follows the movement of Phaya grabbing Tharn's hands, then pans back up to Phaya's face once again before panning higher into the frame and panning back to their faces and zooming in.

When we move back out of that deep focus, into a mid-shot the camera continues to zoom out on the two characters as they kiss.

I saw someone say that this scene wasn't "filmed like BL kisses" and, eh? Like it isn't filmed in that static style of filmmaking which has dominated BL filmmaking probably due to budgetary reasons. But

The Sign follows a similar filmmaking style as Kinnporsche and Domundi shows do. But also just like, basic filmmaking techniques you'd see in shows of the non-CW/soap variety.

The thing fans are seeing here is film technique (probably partially due to a larger budget). Movement, lens adjustment, panning and titling, lighting and color are all playing a role in this specific scene.

Cinematography baby.

(sidenote the VFX of The Sign is dope as fuck too)

Okay so let's talk Our Skyy 1000 Stars

So this opening scene follows a similar structure to the scene in The Sign: mid focus shot of the two chars, into separate deep focus close ups. It's also a dialogue heavy scene like the one with Phaya and Tharn.

So why does their scene work better on a technical level than this one in Our Skyy 2?

The scene in The Sign combines techniques of aperture, movement, lighting, color and framing to give everything more impact.

In this scene with Phupha and Tian we get a similar editing style as the scene in 2gether: lots of back and forth cuts, very tight close ups, static camera movement. Where as the camera zooms in and out during mid-shots, the camera doesn't move in Our Skyy 2. It remains motionless even though a zoom in as the two characters lay in bed would add a lot to the scene itself.

In the close ups the camera continues to remain static, only changing angles when there's a cut. At 1:22 Phupha moves his arm to wrap around Tian, the camera could have taken a closer shot at his arm, and then followed his movement as he wraps it around Tian. Like how the camera followed Phaya's movement when he holds Tharn's hand.

Instead it's just a flat shot, we see his arm wrap around in a mid-focus above shot. The camera does move to follow Tian a couple times - at 1:50 for example. But overall, the scene is stiff - who sleeps like this frfr - in framing, in movement, in depth.

I want to say that I don't think this scene is bad - like I do the 2gether scene or the earlier scene with Pran - I think it's just, okay~~

And no, for none of these examples did I pick "the worst" shots or whatever. I'm not out to get any specific show, but tried to find comparable scenes and compare and contrast the filmmaking techniques used in both and how effectively they were used.

I want to leave off with this.

There's a lot that goes into cinematography, yes this singular shot of Furiosa is amazing, but what makes the scene amazing?

Pay attention to how the camera moves (panning and tilting), when the camera moves (zooms in and out), the movement of the scene (the hair and sand moving), the lighting (Furiosa from behind is in darkness, her side profile more lit), the depth of the scene itself changing (as she walks away from the group the focus/aperture gets deeper on her, then when she walks out of the frame it grows larger to focus on the characters left behind).

All these little things make up what is "cinematography". The more you learn about the techniques used the more you can notice about film and what makes a scene powerful.

As BL gets more budget we're seeing shows expand their filmmaking catalogue more and more. Which is exciting! If fandom is gonna talk cinematography I think it's helpful to have the vocab to do so, and it's cool to watch a scene and be like "oh I see what they're doing here and why and how".

I mentioned other things that go into cinematography like framing, lighting, color, and there's also editing (which is separate). Idk if I'll make a post about those things cause I'm lazy and this shit takes forever to research and write but who knows~~

Check out other posts in the series:

Film Making? In My BL? - The Sign ep01 Edition | Aspect Ratio in Love for Love's Sake | Cinematography in My BL - Our Skyy2 vs kinnporsche, 2gether vs semantic error, 1000 Stars vs The Sign | How The Sign Uses CGI | Is BL Being Overly Influenced by Modern Western Romance Tropes?

[like these posts? drop me a couple pennies on ko-fi]

[sho-tournament]

HELLO!!!

It's me @proshipwanderer ! I've been wanting to do a gimmick-y proship related blog for a while, and I haven't seen anyone do a shota bracket yet so here we are! I got most of these by skimming tags, asking for recommendations and yoinking some found on @derangedfujoshi 's blog!! (hope the @ is okay!!)

I have 40 participants lined up, popular and obscure shotas alike. The tournament will likely start on 12/3 around noon EST if I remember lol

Possible FAQ??

q: "Why didn't you include (xyz character)??" a: I can't include every single shota, there'd be too many!! I picked out 40 that I a) knew about, and/or b) liked the designs of. My personal tastes heavily influenced the participants I'm sorry in advance

q: "Why is (xyz character) here? He's not a shota." a: I have reasons why I picked the characters that I did! Not every single one is going to be the "perfect" shota, and that's okay! As long as they have shota-like qualities, they qualify :)

q: "Why are you doing this? I don't like this and I don't like proshitter pedos like you. kys" a: IDC stay mad!! If you don't like it just block me and move on, you'll never have to see me ever again!

The participant starting lineups are listed under the cut! Hiding them just in case some people like to be surprised with the options :3 (also sorry i couldn't figure out how to make a tournament graph anywhere so it's all just typed out)

Mitsuba Sousuke (Toilet Bound Hanako-Kun) vs. Laphicet (Tales of Berseria)

Elias (Dragalia Lost) vs. Angkor (Elsword)

Nagisa Shingetsu (Ultra Despair Girls) vs. Es (MILGRAM)

Mitsukuni "Honey" Haninozuka (Ouran High School Host Club) vs. Dantalion (As Miss Beelzebub Likes)

Len Kagamine (Vocaloid) vs. Hitoki (Okegom)

Headspace Basil (OMORI) vs. Misha (Honkai: Star Rail)

Tsubaki (Shota Oni) vs. Lloyd de Saloum (I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability)

Hanako (Toilet Bound Hanako-Kun) vs. Kana (Fire Emblem Heroes)

Akira (Kemono Jihen) vs. Scorpion (ZeroERA)

Hom (Atelier) vs. Yuma Kuga (World Trigger)

Akita Toushiro (Touken Ranbu) vs. Tarith (Elsword)

White (Promise of Wizard) vs. Angepitoyeir (Megaman)

Miya Chinen (SK8 the Infinity) vs. Jataro Kemuri (Ultra Despair Girls)

Julei (Visions of Mana) vs. Haste (Epic Seven)

Mousse (Food Fantasy) vs. Young Aqua Hoshino (Oshi no Ko)

Ciel Phantomhive (Black Butler) vs. Kokichi Ouma (Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony)

Zero (ZeroERA) vs. Leo (King's Raid)

Young Louis de Sade (The Case Study of Vanitas) vs. Chenxi (Love Nikki)

Jack Mouton (Visual Prison) vs. Luca Oriflamme (The Case Study of Vanitas)

Voyager (Fate/Grand Order) vs. Gin Ibushi (Your Turn to Die)

All participants were randomized!!