#Also critiques some aspects about willow

[folksy]

that link I shared. that creator has a video on buffy and I wish she had more videos on the show!!! because she brings up good points

[desmondkane-of-ao3-fame]

So Hunter is irredeemable for *checks notes* taking note of Willow's abilities and wanting to grant her the highest possible honor of joining the Emperor's Coven, but Boscha is fine and an acceptable partner for her despite constantly belittling her and her abilities, actively bullying her for years, and literally calling her half a person because of her level of magic? Always figured your obsession with Willow and Skara was mainly you fetishizing lesbians, thanks for clarifying that's true.

*sigh*

Link to the original post I think they’re referring to.

I like how Hunter utilizing state power to kidnap a bunch of kids so he can force them into a life of servitude and giving 0 fucks about their consent until he remembers their pets is framed as granting some sort of honor. Especially when he saw Willow having an emotional breakdown and blaming herself for putting her friends into this horrific situation and didn’t realize he was being a POS until the show gives him not one, but TWO other moments to reflect on his actions.

Remember folks: Bullies are irredeemable. But the right hand military leader of a fascistic cult can be forgiven for, how you say, *checks notes*:

Attacking Amity after she offers to help him, then threatening her life with state-backed violence when it’s clear he can’t take what he wants in a fair fight.

Seemingly throwing away whatever friendship he was developing with Luz by then threatening her life to get what he wants, which is to steal the only way Luz could even go home.

Lying to Willow about his identity for an entire afternoon so he could get close to them, before doing all the stuff we already talked about.

Just so long as they are sad + edgy + you pretend the first two things didn’t happen and he was too stupid to realize the last one was bad (despite him knowing kidnapping friends is bad in ‘Hunting Palismen’ but whatever).

‘But he was abused' - Yes and thats bad - I've never critiqued him for being abused, but also being abused doesn't make all his actions okay, and not without at least a modicum of self-reflection the show itself could barely muster because Disney axed it before it got the chance to - Stop making excuses for corporations who side with fascists for the love of God!

But like, a quick request for Huntlow Fans and the Owl House fandom broadly: Can someone please tell me when it became acceptable to allow just outright, blatant homophobia so long as it defended Hunter?

Because that’s unironically what this is.

Liking or just being more okay with one or two f/f ships over a m/f one for reasons I've explicitly explained does not mean I ‘Fetishise lesbians’ - But you saying that that’s the ONLY reason you can imagine I like a f/f ship over an m/f one is fetishisation tells me you're the one sexualising f/f relationships inherently. And there’s a good chance you actually don't - But you'll legitimately say ANYTHING to defend even the smallest aspect of Hunter rather than just saying 'yeah, him kidnapping people was a bit messed up'.

Is anyone actually surprised that I have an issue with how this fandom treats Hunter when this is the shit I get?

I don’t even have an issue with Huntlow fans - I have an issue with people who act like this guy.

I just wanna enjoy my own niche ship and point out my criticisms of the show and how it handles things. I don’t need unironic homophobes barging in to tell me that I’m ‘fetishizing lesbians’ because I prefer a sapphic ship over the cannon straight one.

[inapat17]

Animation shows: The art of drawing society (2/4)

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman

Cartoons are a colorful medium that creators like to use to depict their vision of our modern world. Therefore this series of articles will be dedicated to animated TV, internet shows and movies of this last year that describe with humor and ruthlessness of our contemporary society. Today: a dreamlike film that takes place in the aftermath of a real tragedy: “Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman”

After writing about how our relationship to others and our behavior can be influenced by an imminent disaster in Carol and The end of the world, we will stay in the same type of analysis with Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman. The story takes place shortly after the 2011 earthquake in Japan and the explosion of the nuclear power plant Fukushima. Komura is bewildered as he observes his wife being taken over by the media, which counts the number of tragic deaths daily. One day, Komura came back from his work at the bank only to find his apartment empty. Kyoko, his wife, only left a note on the floor: “Living with you was like living with a chunk of air”. Kamura decides to take a leave from his work and embarks on a journey to Hokkaido. He carries with him a mysterious box. At the same time, we also follow the story of the “poor Mister Katagiri”. A 40 year old bald and tired man. He works tirelessly without receiving any recognition from his boss and co-workers. While working on a particularly difficult matter, he receives a visit from a giant humanoid frog named Frog. The creature convinces him to help him fight Worm, a giant earthworm that is devouring the bowels of the earth. The danger is imminent since Worm is about to create a massive earthquake in Tokyo. In return, Frog offers to help Katagiri in his work.

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman came out in March of 2023 and it is the first feature film directed by Pierre Földes. Experts in cinematographic animation may have recognized the name of Földes from the famous film director Peter Földes. He was a pioneer in computer animation. Pierre Földes is none other than his son. While he has produced some short animated films, his primary occupation is song composition for cinema and television.

Pierre Földes has conquered the public and the critiques with this first featured film. The movie is well-balanced, with complex and enigmatic French dialogue set in a soft Japanese-like universe. Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman is indeed a movie adaptation of six short novels written by none-other than one of the most published Japanese authors: Haruki Murakami. Murakami’s novels are characterized by magical realism. In his narratives, the character is allowed to experience truly magical intervention in their monotonous daily life. The narrative structures of Murakami's short stories intertwine in Pierre Földes' film, creating a dreamlike aspect due to the crumbling story without beginnings or end. 

Poetry is also present thanks to an original animation that blends 3D animations of the characters' faces with 2D pastel backgrounds. The character's movements have been captured in live action which gives an impression of realism. There are also a lot of transparency effects. These two types of animation seem to create two very different universes: a real one that reflects the stiffness of life and the other one which is the realm of dreams. 

Pierre Földes gives a more realistic interpretation of Murakami's novel. Indeed, the film deals with many social issues. First, it is a fascinating analysis of the different reactions one can have in the face of a disaster. Kyoko, who suffers from depression, finds herself trapped. The terrible news of the earthquake is feeding her pre-existing anxiety. Alone in the dark, her face is only lit by the TV screen and her mind is filled with the victim count. It ends up getting the better of her. She feels so entrapped, she can’t breathe and eventually she leaves. Komora doesn’t understand his wife’s distress, not that the catastrophe is irrelevant to him, he is just more detached. The real tragedy for him is the departure of his wife. At last, Katagiri seems to experience the panic, fear, and paranoia that can arise after a disaster. He tries to navigate through life as he did before the earthquake and cannot stop imagining that a new catastrophe can occur at any moment.

This movie also makes a general assessment of our behavior of how we treat our planet. Worm is a representation of how nature will fight back against our irresponsible actions and of the terrible consequences of our thoughtlessness. The destruction can only be stopped by a more than ordinary person (Katagiri). 

This movie examines many other themes. Komura and Katagiri illustrate how the pressure of hierarchy can depersonalize employees. As Komura experienced the romantic adventure in Hokkaido, we can see an analysis of our sexual behavior and our relationship to our body that deteriorates with age.

Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman is a poetic movie about us, how we cope with tragedy and loneliness. Far from being a nightmare this movie tries to cure our sorrow with dreamlike settings and endearing characters. 

Iris Ngoumtcheu

[loversandcousins]

We want everything Biden could give us– and so much more: reflecting on the September 17, 2023 March to End Fossil Fuels

written 10/18/23, and newly relevant since last week Biden announced a “temporary pause on pending decisions on exports of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to non-FTA [free trade agreement] countries until the Department of Energy can update the underlying analyses for authorizations.” This is his attempt to pander to environmentalists and yet...

At the Socialism Conference hosted by Haymarket Books in Chicago in early September 2023, I talked to a guy from Left Voice about Workers Voice members' efforts to mobilize folks for the End Fossil Fuels march in Manhattan. This guy responded to my short explanation with a pointed question: "Isn't that what nonprofits do?" His tone made it clear that he had a critique of nonprofits and the Democratic Party, which I wholeheartedly share. 

When I first heard that Worker's Voice was planning to mobilize for this march, I wasn't entirely convinced. I was skeptical of the demands of the march, and of the organizations putting them forth. However, I had been to two big climate marches in the past, in 2015 and 2019, and had good experiences. Furthermore, I trusted the motivations put forth by other members of Worker's Voice. 

The last time I went to a big climate march was in 2019, as a teacher bringing a field trip of kids. When I planned that, I remember talking to a busy organizer on the phone once, then texting her, and then I remember her coming to my classroom and handing over a bunch of BART tickets. It was up to me and 2 other teachers– both union reps and guys I had organized a bunch with during the strike the previous year– to get permission slips together. 

That day in San Francisco at the Youth Climate Strike in spring of 2019 was beautifully chaotic. For the kids, it was perhaps mainly a chance to get out of school and see the city. We barely brought any signs and the kids were only somewhat clued in on all the current events and facts. But it was a very easy sell in terms of recruiting students for the field trip–  global warming and environmental destruction were real– of course we needed to change our entire world order. They definitely understood the issues and what was at stake. 

My two coworkers and I almost lost a student that day, and one coworker got food poisoning and threw up in a Panda Express bathroom, but I'm really, really glad we went. I also appreciated that the march took place on a Friday–on a work and school day. It wasn't a strike, but it was a one day walk out (with permission slips). 

In comparison, the March to End Fossil Fuels was on September 17, 2023–  a Sunday! Some part of me finds it surprising that I even convinced people to go. The demands were incomplete, to say the least. But I did learn a lot by mobilizing people for it. For example, I learned about the Willow Project, which I feel slightly embarrassed about not learning about before! 

The whole march was put on by big non profits with a lot of resources. That much was absolutely apparent, from every aspect of the process. The "organizers call" became a stump speech for Rashida Tlaib, with no time for discussion or even the opportunity to use the chat function on the Zoom call. Two weeks before the march I received 5 newspapers of full color original art from Big Grassroots, and I did appreciate the art greatly. 

The march itself was protected by the police– there is a lot of work to be done before we can occupy the streets of Manhattan in a way that is safe for children and families without police presence. And where the need for "family friendly" police presence becomes state and police repression is a blurry line– after all, soon before the march, the route was abruptly changed so that we didn't even end up marching to the front steps of the UN. We shouted at them from blocks away. 

Leading up to the march we saw one of the only concessions made to our demands. On September 7, Biden announced he was canceling 7 oil and gas lease permits in Alaska, which seemed like it was in direct response to plans for the march. That same day, the show of civil disobedience at the US Open was impressive, a remarkable escalation. It was good for morale when Coco Gauf supported the protestors.

The point I really want to make is that no matter what Biden throws at us, any concessions to our demands– it will never be enough. We deserve much, much, much more than what can be legislated by the Democrats, adjudicated by the courts, or even written by all the academics in the world. 

In a world of police and UN peacemakers,  the vast majority of people in this ravaged world already want the abolition of police and an immediate transition to a different energy infrastructure and land usage. In the last few short years we have seen promises of the bourgeois government broken without shame– the repeal after repeal of civil rights we thought indelible. Janus, Roe, and Affirmative Action. We already know the system doesn't work, but we didn't even get to make that point at the March to End Fossil Fuels. By the end of it, the mic was given to AOC, who talked about the Green New Deal– she didn't address the stated demands of the march, let alone go in depth about something pressing like the Willow Project. 

I am writing this for the people that I marched with. Biden will listen to what he wants to hear, and he will use the Climate March as evidence that he was able to make a "few hard, but impactful" choices about our earth. Our earth.

I am always happy to go to a mass march. It was a beautiful September day in Manhattan, it really was. I'm always down to pull out the markers and cardboard, and chant, and meet up with friends before and afterwards. 

As for the guy at the Socialism conference, who accused me of doing what nonprofits do, I answered the best that I could– explaining that our particular intervention in Central Jersey was to try to get as many groups as possible to agree to meet a few weeks after the march, in order to plan a local action plan of sorts. I explained to him the importance of not doing a one off march, which I had personally done before. After a bit of back and forth, he asked me, "well, what do you plan to do after march?" 

I'm glad that Worker's Voice was involved with the March to End Fossil Fuels, and look forward to our local climate work in Central Jersey. We are planning to meet for a forum, where we can discuss and debate and figure out what we are going to do. But one thing is clear– we want everything Biden could give us, and so much more.

[lollytea]

Interesting that no one has any issues with Amity's history of abuse in terms of Lumity, even though Amity has based her ENTIRE PERSONALITY around being Luz girlfriend, and pretty much nothing else.

I've already SAID that I don't believe in the whole "No girlfriends until you've healed from trauma" take so this isn't a critique on lumity. Obviously I adore lumity. But Amity Blight was an emotionally abused, deeply troubled and love starved little girl. At one point, after years of suffering, she eventually learns to stand up to her parents because she's inspired to be a better person by Luz. That being said, though she was implied to improve mentally after that, Amity still did not escape her abusive household. She was still in a terrible situation. Maybe a month later, she paired up with Luz. Where was the time devoted to processing her trauma and healing before she dove into such a taxing emotionally draining responsibility as holding a girl's hand and kissing her on the cheek sometimes? Where was the outrage when it wasn't shown?

I don't mind at all if you believe in the whole idea that Hunter needs time first before he starts thinking about a romantic relationship. Like to each their own or whatever. I'm just saying that it's hypocritical to preach it and not bring that same energy towards lumity.

And also this other idea that if Hunter were to pursue anything romantic with Willow, it would somehow stunt any further development on his part?? What?? he would be rendered incapable of discovering anything new about himself??? You want him to study and learn more about wild magic, you want him to strengthen his bond with Darius, you want him to go to school. Sure. Yeah. I want these things for him too. However because the poor idiot can only focus on one significant relationship at once, let's give his dynamic with Darius all of the focus. Because it clearly has the most healthy and conventional foundation.

(Again, you know I love Dadrius. Everyone knows this. I'm just saying that it's kinda insulting to shelf Hunter's dynamic with Willow in favour of it, if you're gonna preach about a healthy healing process. Of course Darius is gonna be an important part of Hunter's life. But you gotta acknowledge that Hunter's journey to recovery is just destined to be an unconventional one. And it's gonna involve the guy who started off by demeaning him and making him feel like shit. But dating would just be way too much for him to handle, right?)

But anyway, though being Luz's girlfriend became a significant part of Amity's identity, (Listen she's excited. Shes fourteen and it's her first gf. We will be nice to her. ) the relationship did not halt her character development. Admittedly, a lot of it was linked to their romance, though Eclipse Lake had an interesting angle of tackling Amity's trauma by relating it to her relationship with Luz. It was all about how being with Luz has not fixed Amity. However, overall, it's a very positive reinforcement for her.

And what makes it work is that it's never depicted as Luz's responsibility to make Amity better. But rather, it's the reality of having Luz in her life that encourages Amity to do the heavy lifting herself. When Amity realizes that she's not gonna be dumped if she doesn't come back with results, Luz is nowhere around. Luz wasn't even aware Amity was worrying. It was simply Luz being herself that brings Amity to be a better understanding of what love is supposed to be. Amity grows as a person because she wants to be better. And Luz just existing helps her to better understand how.

Beyond that, since she and Luz began dating, Amity has also had time devoted to establishing her interest in competitive brawling, how her dream of being in the EC has been squashed, and repairing her damaged relationships with her father and Willow. (Opinions on the writing of some of these aspects are irrelevant to this subject matter. The point isn't in how they were handled, it's just an acknowledgement that they were added to the show at all.)

Anyway, Amity's relationship with Luz was important to her character. But it did not stunt her ability to develop any further outside of that relationship. Luz did not fix Amity. Amity is working on fixing herself but having Luz around certainly doesn't hurt.

And yknow. Considering the viewpoint of the Hot Take that this discussion is all about. When Amity began dating Luz, she had nobody. She and Willow were still kinda awkward around each other, Alador was still distant. I suppose she had Ed and Em, which was probably the closest thing to a healthy dynamic, if you forget a few months prior when they were absolutely awful to her. Luz was the most positive relationship Amity had at the time. So you don't think there's an argument in here somewhere about dating her being a little unhealthy? Maybe a slippery slope towards the direction of co-dependence?? Maybe??

(Gotta establish AGAIN that I love lumity. You know the point I'm making here.)

Would Hunter have this problem if he were to date Willow? Honestly, it's very unlikely. From where he's at currently, Hunter has a far bigger supportive network than Amity did when she and Luz started dating. He has Luz, Gus, Darius, Willow, Viney, Skara , Flapjack ( Possibly Amity, Camila, Vee, Eber, Eda and Raine too. But we'll only list the ones we're certain of.) Willow does not consume Hunter's entire world. There is no reason for him to become dependent on her alone.

But if I said huntlow has the potential to have a more healthy foundation than lumity because of this point, would you even agree with me? Do I even believe in it? Not really. I dont believe in seriously measuring the level of "toxicity" in either of the ships. They're just kids who are exploring first relationship experiences. Like it's not that deep.

[hamliet]

The Girl Who Gets to Have It All: Buffy Summers

So with @linkspooky​‘s encouragement, I have binged Buffy the Vampire Slayer and relived my childhood culture. And, it's a 10/10 for me. Not that it doesn't have flaws, but it's genuinely one of the best stories I've seen, with consistent character arcs, powerful themes, and a beautiful message. It's also like... purportedly about vampires and demons and superpowered chosen ones, but it's actually all about humanity.

Buffy was able to be a teenage girl, allowed to like the things teen girls are scorned for (boys, shopping, etc), to be insecure about the thing teenage girls are insecure about (future careers, dating, school, parents), and to be a superhero with its good and its bad aspects. The story wasn’t afraid to call Buffy on her flaws (sometimes she got in a very ‘I am the righteous chosen one’ mode) and to respect and honor each of her desires (to be a good person, to be loved, and more). The story listened to what she wanted and respected her desires, giving her the challenges needed to overcome her flaws while also never teaching her a lesson about wanting bad boys or romance is silly or any manner of dark warnings stories like to throw at teenage girls. 

It respected teenage girls--nerdy girls like Willow, jocks like Buffy, lonely wallflowers with trauma like Dawn, and popular/snobby ones like Cordelia, girls gone wild like Faith. It never once reduced them to the stereotypes that were lurking right there: each character was fully rounded, human, flawed and yet with respected interests and goals. This is so rare for a story that I’m still in awe. 

The story as a whole follows Buffy from 15 to 21, of her as she grows from teenager to adult. She acts like a teenager and grows to act like a young adult, wrestling with loneliness and duty. The adults, like Giles, Joyce, and Jenny, are not perfect either, but neither are they “bad parents” or “bad mentors” necessarily. Joyce in particular says something terrible to Buffy, but she tries to do better, and it’s rare to see a parent in YA stories shown with such nuance. Basically, it wrote the long-lasting adult characters as human beings, too. 

Speaking of growing up, I appreciated how Buffy’s love interests mirrored this. Angel was someone Buffy loved and admired, wanted to be like, but who was always either extreme good or extreme bad, and combined with Buffy’s own tendencies towards black-white thinking, made for a beautiful relationship to help her grow, but didn’t necessarily form a foundation for a long-term partner. Spike, on the other hand... they both saw each other at their worst and were drawn to each other even then, and were inspired to become better because they couldn’t bear to be a person who treated the other person so wrongly. They pushed each other to become the best them they could be, and believed in each other. Also, Spuffy is an enemies to lovers ship for the ages. 

(Also, most of the other ships were well-done or at least can be understood. Riley was very obviously wrong for Buffy which paralleled Harmony and Spike in being 100% wrong for each other. Cordelia and Xander were a fun ship even if we all knew it would never last, and Willow and Oz were beautiful and cute. But Xander and Anya and Willow and Tara? OTPs. As were Giles and Jenny, the librarian and the computer teacher.) 

That said, it’s not a perfect series. No story is. All of the characters and ships had problematic aspects to them worthy of critique, and the writing is very 90s in a lot of ways. It’s a product of its time, and in many ways it’s good society has progressed beyond some of the tropes/metaphors used in the show. In other way, though, the show was ahead of its time, and in a good way it wasn’t bound by the fear of purity policing with its takes on redemption (many characters would never fly today). 

So, in order of seasons ranked from my very favorite to my “still enjoyed it very much” (no season was actually bad, imo), here’s my review. I’ll also review my top 10 villains in the show, because Buffy does villains very well in terms of the redeemable and irredeemable.  

Season 7:  Yep, the final season was my favorite. 

Overall Opinion: Buffy's finale is literally "f*ck them men, our power is ours" and while it seems cheesy it actually works (also, f*ck in both a literal and figurative sense). The series strongly hit all the themes: love as strength, and redemption. Buffy consistently shows love as her strength--*all* kinds of love. Friendship w Willow/Xander, familial with Joyce/Dawn, romantic with Spike/Angel. These types of love are also never pitted against each other as is so often the case in current-day media. It's beautiful. Also, Spike’s confrontation with Wood was so powerful in terms of exploring forgiveness, redemption, and reconciliation: where they overlap and where they don't, and what it means to move forward. 

Unpopular Opinion: I have seen a lot didn’t like the inclusion of Potential Slayers, and while I agree they could have been better incorporated/characterized, it was a great way to show Buffy’s final stage of growing up to be ending her chosen one status and projecting/multiplying her powers over the world. 

Biggest Critique: Kennedy was female Riley--the anti-Tara to Riley’s anti-Angel (by ‘anti’ I mean opposite in every way). Kennedy was annoying and immature. Her role, like Riley’s, was less about exploring her as a character and more about her just being stamped as “love interest: lesbian.” 

Favorite Episodes: Beneath You, Lies My Parents Told Me, Touched, Chosen

Season 6: 

Overall Opinion: I said this on Twitter, but I felt like this was Buffy’s The Last Jedi or Empire Strikes Back moment. It is polarizing and dark, deconstructing the tropes it stands on--but by digging to the core of these tropes, it actually makes what’s good about them shine brighter. Everyone’s enemy was the worst versions of themselves. Giles left Buffy, Willow's struggle to relate to the world led to her trying to destroy it, Buffy hurt everyone through her anger, Xander abandoned Anya at the altar, Spike... yeah. It ages well as an integral part of the story, and the Trio were eerily prophetic. 

Unpopular Opinion: Dawn is a great character with a good arc. A traumatized teen acting out and struggling to come to terms with loss and identity? She wasn’t whiny; she was realistic. 

Biggest Critique: Willow’s addiction coding (I’ll discuss this below) and Seeing Red as an episode. I see the argument for both of its controversial scenes from a narrative perspective: Willow starts the season not grieving Buffy but instead being determined to fix it with magic and needs to learn to grieve, but. Still. Bury your gays is not a good look. For the Spike scene... he conflates sex/passion and violence (”love is blood, children” is something he said way back in season 3), but like Tara’s death, it had more to do with Spike (as Tara’s death did for Willow) than with Buffy’s arc, and as for the actual execution... they really botched that. Did it like... have to go on that long or go that far? No. Also, the framing was good, but inconsistent with the rest of the series (Xander to Buffy in the hyena episode, Faith to Xander and to Riley, etc.) 

Favorite Episodes: Once More With Feeling, Smashed, Grave

Season 3 (tied with Season 5):

Overall Opinion: The opening continuity of Buffy meeting Lily/Anne after saving her life in Season 2 was sweet. The Witchhunt episode had really powerful subtext: stories of deaths that aren’t even true are actually demons that possess the town and convince them to turn against their children in the name of protecting the children. It’s a good commentary on, oh, everything in society. Faith’s character arc was fantastic, and her chemistry with Buffy was off the charts (look, I may be Spuffy all the way, but Fuffy has rights). The finale was satisfying in so many ways, seeing the entire graduating class unite to destroy the Mayor and the school with it, symbolizing Buffy et al’s readiness to move on to college. Oz's relationship with Willow was very sweet and meaningful for a first romance for Willow. 

Unpopular Opinion: I actually don’t really have one. Maybe that the miracle in Amends was earned? I think you can make a decent case that Season 3 is the best written of the seasons, but can only truly be thematically appreciated to its full potential in the light of subsequent seasons (which finish Faith’s arc and deconstruct Buffy’s).  

Biggest Critique: It forgot Buffy killed the hyena guy in Season 1, making her continual insistence that she can’t kill people very ????? 

Favorite Episodes: Lovers Walk, Amends, Graduation Day Part 2 

Season 5, which ties with Season 3:

Overall Opinion: The entire season is about family and what it means, from Tara’s to Buffy’s to the Scoobies. I loved Glory aka Enoshima Junko as the Big Bad, I loved Dawn’s interesting meta commentary on retconning (like, the fact that she’s retconned in matters), and most of my ships are still alive. Joyce’s relationship with Spike is one of the most heartwarming aspects, and Spike’s arc’s desire is clearly highlighted: he wants to be seen as a person. The episodes after Joyce’s death are the most honest portrayals of grief I’ve ever seen, and absolutely brutal to watch. 

Unpopular Opinion: Buffy’s choice at the end seems a deliberate inversion of her choice at the end of Season 2 (sacrifice a loved one to save the world), but it actually isn’t: much like at the end of Season 2 where Buffy skips town because she’s devastated after killing Angel and doesn’t want to sort out being expelled, her mom knowing she’s the slayer, and her own trauma, Buffy’s sacrifice here was as much about her wanting the easy way out of relationships, family, college, etc. as it was about saving Dawn. Buffy’s death is coded as a suicide, which Season 6 emphasizes as well. 

Biggest Critique: Like Season 3, I don’t have a lot to critique here. I wish the suicidal coding had been a little more obvious in Season 5 itself, but also I’m not sure it could have been more obvious; it’s pretty apparent if you pay attention. Maybe also that Buffy and Riley’s relationship failing should have been more squarely blamed on Riley, you know, being insecure and cheating. 

Favorite Episodes: Family, Fool for Love, Intervention. 

Season 2:

Overall Opinion: Heartbreakingly tragic but exciting and revealing at the same time. It asked the viewer interesting questions about redemption and forgiveness and atonement through Angel being honest about his past, and then decided to show us his past now reenacted, challenging us. And still, we saw them save him in a parallel to saving Willow in Season 6 (but Season 2 was tragic because it wasn’t enough, while Season 6 was not). Jenny’s death was agonizing, and the scene were Angel watches Buffy, Willow, and Joyce get the news through the window was powerful. We didn’t have to hear them to get the grief. 

Unpopular Opinion: Jenny’s death isn’t a fridging; it works for her arc too when you consider her history. She worked to save the person whose life she was tasked to ruin, and it cost her her own--yet she still succeeded, because Jenny brought joy and wisdom to the show. Kendra’s death, on the other hand... was because they needed the stakes to be high--but we already knew that before she died. So, her death was useless. 

Biggest Critique: The subtext was Not It. It was essentially “do not have sex. Your older boyfriend will lose his soul, kill your friends, you’ll lose your family, your school, your home, and have to kill your true love or else hell will literally swallow earth.” 

Favorite Episodes: School Hard, Passion, Becoming Part 2.

Season 1:

Overall Opinion: I really liked it; it’s just lower on this list because the others are just better. It’s a great introduction to the series and to its characters, from Giles to Buffy to Willow to Jenny to Cordelia. It has great subtext a lot of the time (for example, Natalie French as She-Mantis is a literal predatory bug who engages in predatory behavior with students). Additionally, it subverts the typical YA trope of two guys and a girl, in which the girl is usually the least interesting character. Buffy and Willow were both fully fledged characters from the beginning with distinct strengths (even before Willow became a witch, as she wasn’t one in season 1 yet), while Xander was the more ordinary of the group. 

Unpopular Opinion/Biggest Critique: Xander’s arc showed its first flaws that unfortunately continued throughout the series: his writing was either very good or very indulgent in ways it never was for other characters.  (cough, the hyena episode, cough, in which he gets to skirt responsibility--and acknowledges that he is skirting it--for something the show will later hold others to account for). Xander’s just kind of inconsistent, which weakened his character over all. (Which is why both his love interests--Cordelia and then ultimately Anya--were good for him: they did not indulge him.) 

Favorite Episode: Witch, Nightmares. 

Season 4:

Overall Opinion: it’s still a good season. It’s a good portrayal of college and the growing pains of branching out, the strains of college growth on relationships (romantic and platonic). It shows us the first hints of Spuffy, giving us some serious Jungian symbolism between Spike and Buffy early on, and does well in establishing Xander/Anya and Willow/Tara as beautiful OTPs. Faith and Buffy’s foiling is fantastic. The Halloween episode was very fun as well. However, it suffers because its Big Bad, Adam, is not all that compelling thematically--yet, he could have been. See, the final battle pulls off the Power of Friendship in a really strong way but notably the season does not end there. Instead, it ends on dreams of each character’s worst fears, continuing what we saw in Nightmares in Season 1. Why? Because it shows us that the characters’ wars aren’t against monsters, but monsters of their own making: their flaws. Adam, as a literal Frankenstein, exemplifies this, but it wasn’t capitalized on as well as it could have been. 

Unpopular Opinion: Beer Bad isn’t a bad episode, at the very least because Buffy gets to punch Parker. It’s not one of the series’ best, obviously, but it does give Buffy an arc in that she gets her daydream of Parker begging her to come back, but she has overcome that desire and her desire for revenge. If we wanna talk about bad subtext in Season 4, Season 2′s Not It sex subtext continues in the Where the Wild Things Are episode in this season; it’s a powerful callout of abusive purity-culture churches, until the fact that the shame creates a literal curse undermines the progressive message it’s supposed to send. Also, the Thanksgiving episode (Pangs) is a nightmare of white guilt and Oh God Shut Up White People. 

Biggest Critique: Riley is awful. Like Kennedy, he had “love interest:normal” stamped on him and that was it. The thing is, he could have worked as an Angel foil, representative of the normal-life aspect of Buffy to Angel’s vampire/supernatural aspect, but the writers never explore this and seemed to even try to back away from that later on. They threw all the romantic cliches at the wall to see what sticks, from klutzy “I dropped my schoolbooks, that’s how we met” to cliché lines that had me rolling my eyes. Do you know how bad a romance has to be to make me dislike romantic tropes? 

Favorite Episodes: Fear Itself, Hush, Restless

Villain rankings: 

Dark Willow, the only villain to be truly sympathetic. While the addiction coding was insensitive and, while unsurprising for its time, aged extremely poorly. That said, Willow’s turn to the dark side after Tara’s death worked well for her character and the story: it was believable and paid off what had been building since Season 1's “Nightmares” episode (Willow’s inferiority complex). 

Glory managed to be genuinely terrifying, and humorous/enjoyable too. Her minions and their numerous nicknames for Glorificus were hilarious, as was her intense vanity. Her merging with Ben--a human being who genuinely wanted to be kind and good--added complexity and tragedy to her role. 

The First. A really good take on Satan. The seventh season as well as the First’s first appearance in season 3′s “Amends” had kind of blatant Christian symbolism, and so the First being essentially Satan works. Their disguising themselves as dead loved ones and the subtle manipulation they used to alienate people was really disturbing and well done. 

The Mayor, who was a terrible person but a truly good father. He provided an interesting contrast to the normal ‘bad dad’ bad guy character, in that he provided Faith exactly what the other characters refused to: he saw the best in her and offered her parental support, while the heroes didn’t and wound up pushing her away. 

The Trio, who were villains ahead of their time: whiny fanboy reddit dudebros, basically. The stakes seemed so much lower than fighting Glory, a literal god, the previous season. But that’s why they worked so well for Season 6′s human themes, and were especially disturbing because we all know people like them. I also appreciated the surprisingly sensitive takes on Jonathan and Andrew, who got to redeem themselves, but Warren did not, and I don’t think he should have either. 

Angelus + Drusilla. I’m ranking them below the Trio because Angelus was just sooooo different from Angel that it was difficult for me to feel the same way for him. He was still Angel, so it wasn’t possible to enjoy his villainy, but he also wasn’t nearly as sympathetic as Dark Willow, had no redeeming qualities like the Mayor, and wasn’t as disturbingly realistic as the Trio. However, the emotional stakes were excellently executed with him as the Big Bad, in that you were never quite sure how to feel and it just plain hurt. Also, Drusilla was a favorite recurring character. She was sympathetic and yet batsh*t enough to be enjoyable as a villain at the same time. 

The Master, who was just completely camp and really worked as an introductory villain. He was scary enough to believe he was a threat, and was funny enough to introduce the series’ humor as well. He was, like Glory, an enjoyable Big Bad. 

The Gentlemen, the one-off villains of Season 4′s Hush who were genuinely terrifying. It’s not as if they got a lot of explanation or any backstory, but they didn’t need it. 

Caleb, the misogynist priest. Fitting with the First’s Christian symbolism, Caleb serving as a spokesperson of all bad religious beliefs felt appropriate. He was also a good foil to Warren--being actually supernaturally powered instead of a wannabe--and to Tara’s family in being full-out evil. I despised him. 

Snyder. Okay Snyder is not a Big Bad like Adam is, but let’s face it: Adam is lame compared to the other villains. But Snyder as a principal? He was so irritating and yet really well used in the series to critique overly strict, hypocritical teachers. Like, we all know teachers like him. I loved to hate him, and his ending was so satisfying. 

[huihuiheart]

100 Followers!

So here is the thank you thing I said I would do for 100 followers! I’m going to add 4 paintings of settings that I have done (god help us all I’m going to show off my art).  If you have a plot idea that fits one of those settings send it in. The most unique one will get a series for it, though I will probably write something of the sort for anything. NONE of these will count as requests, so requests are still open and you can head there instead if you want. 

ANY GROUP/ANY IDOL/ANY GENRE, literally the only boundary is the setting and you have to pick 1-4 below. 

This closes on August 2nd at 11:59pm EST so I can get to it the next day which is Monday.

Also please please don’t critique my art. I by no means am a painter, it’s just therapy and usually I’m too impatient for tutorials and try to fix things as I go, anyways.....

Setting 1:

Honestly, just a random space scene cause I couldn’t get the background to blend the way I wanted it to. Like space though it means the options are basically limitless. It can be space related or about a planet or something in the painting whatever you want.

Setting 2:

A weeping willow by a stream. I tried to make the outside look like hole in a tree, but despite being a carpenters daughter I have no idea how to paint wood grain, and it wasn’t going to happen easy. (Maybe one day.) Honestly for some reason as bright as this painting is I’m wondering if it gives anyone else any dark plot ideas. (Maybe I’m just a weirdo.)

Setting 3:

Purple monochrome cityscape. I wanted to do something monochrome and the only cityscapes I did were in highschool art years back as sketches and in chalk pastels. That is a body of water, it’s undefined though and so is the land mass if that makes any difference to you. Do whatever you want with the monochrome aspect or completely disregard it.

Setting 4:

Palm trees and a sky. I finished this one long enough ago that I can look at it again without entirely hating palm trees. (4 fucking hours for 4 trees....) Yes they are orange, yes that was on purpose, no it doesn’t really matter. 

Anyways go nuts guys, or don’t I guess. I just thought it would be a fun and different way to celebrate 100 followers!

[lochsides]

evermore: Track-by-Track review

I didn't think I'd be writing another review for a Taylor Swift album so soon after folklore but here we are. Truthfully though, evermore feels more like a figment of my imagination than a real album, and as a result this album has been a grower for me. When Taylor said evemore would be the sister record to folklore, I was curious as to the distinguishable differences between the two, because Taylor wouldn't simply give us the same album twice. evermore is, strangely, both the wild younger sister that's more experimental and the wise older sister with a mature outlook on life. Where folklore was a product of isolation, evermore is a product of creativity and that can be felt in the music.

I’ve written my thoughts and theories on each song, and bolded my favourites, below the cut, if you’re interested. I also included my current ranking at the bottom.

Taylor has been very good at picking leading singles for the folklore/evermore era. willow is brilliantly catchy while maintaining the alternative folk sound that she established in folklore. Her vocals suit the song so well, especially on ‘follow’/“hollow” in the chorus. They pair so beautifully with the mesmerising production. The reason this song is one my favourites is purely because of the rhythm and the guitar. The lyrics are, for once, a bonus. As an entry point to evermore, willow does not ease the listener in, the song instead throws the listener in the deep end — which I feel was intentional, as Taylor said evermore was the product of wandering further into the folklorian woods.

champagne problems is easily my favourite song on this album. Storytelling is Taylor's biggest strength as a songwriter and I think this song is a achingly beautiful example of what an emotive storyteller Taylor is. It would be so difficult for me to pick a favourite lyric from this song but I love how she sets in train in the opening line, "you booked the night train for a reason, so you could sit there in this hurt / bustling crowds or silent sleepers, you're not sure which is worse." The accompaniment is gorgeous and the composition of the bridge is breathtaking. Every time the bridge plays I get chills.

gold rush was a grower for me. I'm still not a fan of the intro/outro but I enjoy the production in the rest of the song once the beat kicks in. I think it's one of the more experimental sounds on evermore but it's very catchy. I won't even talk about how the chorus called me out with "I don't like slow-motion, double vision in a rose blush, I don't like that falling feels like flying 'til the bone crush."

'tis the damn season is the non-holiday-holiday song that still has a classic sound and production. I know this song is Dorothea's perspective but I get a lot of illicit affairs parallels with this one as well: "don't call me baby" / "you could call me babe for the weekend", "what started in beautiful rooms ends with meetings in parking lots" / "the road not taken looks real good now, time flies, messy as the mud on your truck tires".

tolerate it is a hard song for me to review because I literally zone out every time I listen to it. I think it's my brain's way of protecting me from toxic relationship trauma 🙃 but it's another gut-punch track five, what else is new? I mean she literally said "now I'm begging for footnotes in the story of your life, drawing hearts in the byline, always taking up too much space or time," and broke my nervous system.

no body, no crime is the best country song Taylor has ever written, period. The sirens at the start, the storytelling, the way it sounds like an old-school murder-mystery movie. HAIM on the backing vocals were great, though I do wish they had at least a verse of their own. That's literally my only critique of this song. It's that good.

There's so much maturity in Taylor's outlook on happiness. I connect this song to her tarnished relationship Sc*tt/BMG and how she's happy after leaving but she was also happy during the time she was with them. I really enjoyed the simple addition of the piano and the way it built up to add depth to the production. Taylor's delivery of the line "no one teaches what to do when a good man hurts you and you know you hurt him too" really hits me.

dorothea is a really nostalgic, retro school-dance-vibe, kinda playful song with a personality, which I adore. The production is absolutely timeless. I woke up today with the chorus stuck in my head. I think "if you're ever tired of being known for who you know, you know, you'll always know me" is fun word play and I'm a nerd of that type of thing. (Side note: to me, this song feels very reminiscent of her friendship with Karlie Kloss, right down to the "selling makeup in magazines.")

coney island gives me desolate, abandoned theme park vibes. The simplicity of the production only enhances it. It's everything I could've hoped for in a song titled "coney island" and featuring The National. Matt Berninger's vocals are absolutely astounding. What does it say about me that my favourite aspect of this song is the feeling of despair laced into its bloodstream.

ivy is another favourite but what did I expect from a song filled to the brim with longing and mentioning the crescent moon? The instrumentation and her vocal styling is similar to willow. There are also lyrical parallels of "... your freezing hand, taking mine" / "I'm begging for you to take my hand" and "how's one to know I'd meet you where the spirit meets the bone" / "I never would've known from the look on your face" and she echoes both those sentiments in a different way after the respective bridges and I wonder if that's intentional. Knowing Taylor Swift, probably.

cowboy like me belongs in the center of a country/folk/slow blues Venn diagram. It's the perfect blend of the three genres. Marcus Mumford's back vocals sound so good with Taylor's. "We could be the way forward, and I know I'll pay for it" and "the skeletons in both our closets plotted hard to fuck this up" are great lyrics.

I'm not all about the way long story short stars but the song quickly settles into its skin. This is easily the most pop-sounding song on evermore but it's still somewhat experimental in comparison to Taylor's existing discography and I think it's cool that she can find space to experiment within a musical space that she has all but mastered. Say what you will but Taylor Swift knows how to make hits no matter the genre. The lyrics "he's passing by, rare as the glimmer of a comet in the sky and he feels like home" reminds me so much of Call It What You Want.

marjorie gave me chills on the very first listen when Taylor sings about how her grandmother left her backlogged dreams to her. I love that they used her grandmother's actual vocals in the background, that's a really heartwarming detail. This song comes with some really solid advice too. It just feels very personal. I love the way production builds on "what does didn't stay dead" right to the bridge, which is my favourite part of the song.

closure is easily the most experimental song on the album with that the scratch tape sound and those drums. I love the sheer pettiness in her tone and the lyric "don't treat me like some situation that needs to be handled" is brilliant. That said, this is probably my least favourite. I think it's a cool song but just not for me.

evermore has some of the most beautiful lyrics on the album. "I replay my footsteps on each stepping stone, trying to find the one where I went wrong" and "barefoot in the wildest winter" are some of my favourites. I'm not a big fan of the sudden shift in tempo on either end of the bridge but Justin Vernon's falsetto makes up for it. The production is otherwise beautiful.

Note that the bonus tracks are currently at the bottom because they have not been released yet.

[buffster]

19 and 20 for the ask :)

Thanks, anon!

19. Tell me an unpopular opinion you have about the show.

Hm. Honestly my unpopular opinion about the show is probably my lack of a strong opinion on it. It’s a popular trend lately to burn Joss at the stake for his feminist flaws or whatever but I think we can critique the bad aspects (mainly the lack of POC and fear of the word bisexual) without claiming the show is a garbage fire. 

I don’t think any character in the series deserves an insane amount of hate except the villains. What gets me hating a character is the narrative ignoring their flaws, so I didn’t really hate anyone in the Buffyverse. If you asked for my unpopular opinions on literally any other show I’d have a lot to say. I really enjoyed Buffy, I guess.

20. Would you want to be a vampire, demon, human, witch, Watcher, or Slayer?

Okay, please direct me to anyone who answers human for this question.

The analytical side of my brain is whispering that I do well in supportive, directive positions so I should consider Watcher. I’m also intellectual and a reader so a Watcher or a witch would be a good fit for me. I’d probably get too into being a witch like Willow, though. As a slayer I might become like Faith and use it to take out some aggression. So I would probably excel as a Watcher.

But the little girl inside who watched Buffy throughout her childhood is screaming Slayer! Slayer! SLAYERRRR.

Buffy Questions!

[addcrazy-blog]

New Post has been published on Add Crazy

New Post has been published on https://addcrazy.com/vehicle-magazine-test-bmw-340i-vs-nissan-maxima-sr/

Vehicle Magazine Test: BMW 340i vs Nissan Maxima SR

If you have been to ask any BMW fan how they felt about a Nissan Maxima, you’d get responses various among sneering to downright laughing. At the same time as Nissan used to boast true overall performance vehicle chops at some point of its lineup, and nevertheless does with the GT-R, the majority of Nissan’s cars inside the beyond a decade or so were indescribably dull. However, the famous Japanese emblem feels as if it’s come up with a sports sedan which could honestly rival the BMW three Collection and its different German competition — the Nissan Maxima SR. Does that declare warrant laughter? Automobile Magazine finds out.

In this modern song Check, Car Mag pits their 4-Seasons Nissan Maxima SR against a BMW 340i to the peer that is better. On paper, the BMW has advantages everywhere in the place. It’s rear-wheel force in comparison to the Maxima’s front-wheel power, it has a manual gearbox compared to the Maxima’s CVT and it’s greater powerful. The BMW 340i packs a three.0 liter turbocharged I6 engine that makes 320 hp and 330 lb-ft of torque. Through evaluation, the Maxima’s certainly-aspirated three.five liter V6 makes simplest 300 hp and 261 lb-toes of torque. So the Bimmer is notably faster, getting from zero-60 mph in four.9 seconds, in comparison to the Maxima’s relatively lazy 6.zero seconds.

However, does that make it higher at the tune? It actually makes it quicker, as the BMW 340i turned into three full seconds faster than the Maxima on the Streets of Willow’s Massive Willow circuit. But, Vehicle claims that the BMW 340i made up most of its time at the straights and with its greater torque coming out of corners. Reputedly, the Maxima hangs right with it through corners and may deal with simply as well, with a few staffers claiming to have desired the Maxima.

That does seem tough to trust, as all of Nissan’s current merchandise, apart from the excellent GT-R, have the athleticism of a sloth. Perhaps the Maxima SR is reduced from the identical material the GT-R is. We’re not pronouncing that we doubt the oldsters at Automobile, it’s just that the idea of a current Nissan Maxima being as amusing to drive as the BMW 340i is something we’d pressure and feel to truly trust.

However, Car claims that the Maxima’s guidance feel is not best on par, However leading to the BMW 340i’s and that it turned into less complicated to toss around on a track. I should admit, the last contemporary Nissan product I drove had some of the worst steerage feel I’d ever encountered, main me to impeach if there has been something wrong with it. It felt as though the wheel wasn’t surely related to whatever, nearly as if steerage rack snapped in two. So it’s surprising to listen the Maxima putting out correct guidance feel.

2017 Nissan maxima 01 750×441

There were some regions wherein the BMW turned into still better. Its manual gearbox is far superior to the CVT within the Maxima. The Nissan’s continuously variable transmission was lazy and slow to respond, even in “manual mode”, making it difficult to force quickly at a few points. The Bimmer also had a good deal higher brakes, which helped it to the tune. The 340i also has the lots higher engine, as there are few engines of any type available on the market better than BMW’s B58 I6.

Average, Car found the Maxima to be proper up there with the BMW 340i, in phrases of sporty dynamics. which is sudden. Although, it’s also encouraging. A primary couple of Maxima generations has been simply quite a laugh to force and had been exceptional overall performance values. But Nissan has regarded to have lost its way in latest years in dramatic fashion, becoming every other vanilla economic system logo. So it’d be great to peer the well-known Jap brand to start placing out a few well correct using vehicles. Hopefully, that is a trend that keeps.

The Race To Primary

Does your coronary heart get speedy and furious with the smell of NOS? Do your palms get sweaty with the notion of lifted Jeep rock crawling? Perhaps you are the subtle kind and like the push of a smooth trip in a new 2007 Lincoln Metropolis car.

Regardless of which institution of those you may fall into, you can sleep smooth understanding you are not the simplest one. Humans love their automobiles and vehicles. Fortuitously for us that do, there may be no scarcity on Television suggests websites and cheap magazines devoted to the problem.

Sure, I did say magazines, as in print magazines. The print isn’t pretty useless yet and car magazines are nonetheless very famous. Bookstores frequently stock complete racks with a variety of various magazines all with one of a kind special topics.

In accordance to research the top 5 promoting automotive magazines By way of subscription are:

automobile and Driver – This Mag is for Automobile fans interested by domestic and imported vehicles. Every problem carries street checks and functions on performance, sports activities, global coverage of avenue race, inventory and championship car occasions, technical reports, personalities, and products. road tests are conducted with electronic gadget Through engineers and journalists and the results are a vital a part of the Magazine’s evaluation segment.

street & music – This Mag is written for car enthusiasts and emphasizes motors and driving mixed with huge-ranging feature stories, enjoyment and occasion coverage. Its street exams run the gamut of home and imported sports activities automobiles and sports activities sedans. Moreover, it capabilities technical articles on car topics, nostalgic characteristic articles, humor and fiction and evaluation of enterprise trends in conjunction with travel stories, e-book critiques, and coverage of global racing activities.

Motor fashion – Motor fashion Mag is an automotive guide committed to home and foreign automobiles with an emphasis on performance, contrast checks, interviews, race insurance, new vehicle previews and technical capabilities, collectively with articles on the issues affecting the auto in society.

Autoweek – For the automobile and truck enthusiast who just can’t wait to learn the trendy vehicle information. This Mag capabilities memory on the most modern fashions, product Takes a look at critiques, enterprise developments, and automobile racing reports. It is also spotlight stories on thrilling Humans within the auto enterprise. The Magazine additionally includes a big classified phase selling automobiles and elements.

Warm Rod – This Mag is oriented to high overall performance and personalized automobiles and the sport of Warm-rodding. It covers overall performance information, trends, technologies and automobile occasions. It showcases a ramification of various vehicles from custom constructed street machines to restored muscle motors. In addition, articles provide insight into the human aspect of the game. Searching for this listing, you may see the variety within the challenge depend simply on motors by myself. Regardless of what your choice of experience is, a lifted pickup to an old Pontiac GTO, you can discover a Mag overlaying it. Magsforless gives a diverse preference of Mag subscriptions to select from.

Joel Simkhai has posted several articles on a huge variety of topics associated with Mag journalism. He’s currently the owner of MagsForLess – a business enterprise that provides reasonably-priced magazines and focuses on customer satisfaction.

https://addcrazy.com/