#And I would like to keep the thing for at least like 12 ep?

[commsroom]

OK I need you to point me to the nearest entry point into this fandom. I don’t know what this is, but you popped up on my dash.. and I need to know what this is. Please lead the way.

oh!! that's exciting. yes. okay!! wolf 359 is a science fiction audio drama about the isolated and questionably competent crew of a deep space research station, the u.s.s. hephaestus. the initial four characters are comms officer doug eiffel, 'everyman' pop culture guy who really, really hates his job; commander minkowski, who cares about her job and the rulebooks that come with it a little too much, and desperately wants to feel like she's keeping everything under control; dr. hilbert... eccentric? station medical officer and mad scientist whose methods and mission objectives are not entirely above board; and hera, the station's mother program, who struggles with her job and the ways she's perceived by others.

there are other characters who show up later - i would say only three of the above characters are "main" characters, while the actual fourth main character is introduced in s2 - but that requires way more context, and i don't want to get into spoilers, obviously.

wolf 359 is a character drama - it's my personal gold standard for character writing - and the brief descriptions i gave you are the most surface, surface level parts of them. the writers once said something about it, like... that they weren't interested in subverting typical sci-fi character archetypes so much as looking at them and asking "why would a real person behave that way?" and i think it really worked. whether i like them or not, they all feel like real people to me. it has great sound design and a lot of "physicality" in the performances for an audio-only show, which i think comes down to gabriel urbina's film background and the way the scripts are written and performed. (and alan rodi's incredible soundtrack and sense for music cues.) you can't see a lot of what's in the scripts, but they're acted out in a way that you can kinda feel it anyway. i love that.

here's a fan made trailer that i think captures a lot of the right energy. it's a show about a lot of things, but some of the primary themes are communication + music, and i think the collaborative nature of the show itself adds something very sincere to that. it's also about corporate and medical exploitation, resisting dehumanization, what makes us human, connection, identity and autonomy, guilt and accountability, the stories people tell themselves to justify who they are or what they feel it's necessary for them to do, and, of course, the enduring philosophical question: "what's wrong with handcuffs?"

you can check it out at the website i linked above, or anywhere you can listen to podcast feeds! it's free, but they added ads a few years ago, which i hate, so you can pay a dollar here for the ad-free feed if that'll make a big difference in your ability to enjoy it: https://www.patreon.com/Wolf359Radio

it's a sequential story, nothing you really need to know about listening order except that i recommend not skipping the mini episodes (they have important character context and are where they are in the feed for a reason) (with the exception of mission mishaps ones near the end; those are comedy bonus episodes you can listen to whenever) and that you should definitely watch the live show after ep 26 and listen to special episode change of mind between s3 and s4.

i also have a folder here of every recording script where i edited any parts that were different from the show's dialogue + added transcripts for the ones that didn't have available recording scripts, if that's something you'd find useful! i also recommend checking them out just to see what i mean about how they're written.

the first season is pretty short, so i'd say stick with it until at least episode 12/13 (two part finale) if you can - i love the first season, personally, but that's the point it really becomes serialized, and so that's where i think you can safely say if it's something that's going to capture your interest or not. ... and that's it! sorry this is kind of an essay, but i got excited about it. i hope you love the show, please keep me updated, and let me know if there's anything else!!

[thegirlwhorideslikeasamurai]

One very admirable trait of Yuuri is his determination to go through with an idea no matter how terrified he is if that brings him closer to his goal. We see this trait come into play over and over throughout the show. Often, this drives him to do something he has never done before but knows how to do in theory.

And then there's this:

Viktor has assigned Yuuri a short programme, but Yuuri has absolutely no clue how to perform it because he doesn't get Eros.

Yuuri has yet to learn what (unconditional) love is, too, implying that he has never been in love so far, but he is able grasp the concept on a subconscious level since he doesn't struggle to explain his interpretation of On Love: Agape ...

... based on the level of understanding he is currently at.

However, Eros is a concept so foreign to him that his reaction to the music is just this:

When it comes to Eros, he can't even put his associations into words (note his clueless tone). These two very different reactions to both arrangements reflect perfectly his own experience and his (current) understanding of "unconditional love" and "sexual love".

Yuuri is the kind of person who despite his anxiety boldly changes the composition of his programmes over and over because he's that desparate to win and this results in some badass moves like:

putting all the jumps of his SP into the second half just because he has stamina

turning the solo jump (3S) in his SP into a quad although he never landed a 4S in competition (ep. 3)

going back to jump 3 quads in his FS instead of one (ep. 5)

exchange the 4T in his FS against Viktor's signature move (ep. 7)

and most prominently: jumps 4 quads so that his FS has the same difficulty as Viktor's (ep. 12)

While all of these are daunting for Yuuri, they're doable because he knows how to execute these jumps and he knows he has the stamina to go through with it. The ultimate result boils down to timing, technique, and stamina. But skating to Eros is a major calamity for Yuuri because he delivers his best skating when he skates true to his feelings, and to make things even worse, the stakes are astronomical (they aren't, but his anxious brain convinces him otherwise). How should he portray something he can't even feel? How is he supposed to win the Onsen on Ice with that, especially since he believes that losing Viktor as a coach is at stake? No wonder the poor boy outright freaks out at the thought.

Yuuri would have been happy to skate to Agape because he has an innate basic understanding of unconditional love. However, he's completely blind to Eros and will need to rely on workarounds to deliver a somewhat decent performance--at least until he and Viktor know each other well enough for Yuuri to figure out how to seduce him with his skating.

And yet in that moment, Yuuri doesn't flinch because he wants Viktor to coach him. He wants to win the Grand Prix Final. He wants Viktor for himself and to eat katsudon with him. All these things embody a dream he has been pursuing for half his life, a dream that involves skating and Viktor, and for the first time in his life, this dream is within reach. He's not going to let a hissy 15-year-old tomcat take that away from him, he's going to fight for it with all he has. Because even though Yuuri doesn't get Eros, he has eros and this eros is very possessive (and kinky and Viktor happens to like that a lot, but Yuuri doesn't know that yet).

Even when he's terrified does Yuuri keep pursuing his goals because he has this strong determination inside him that pushes him to great lengths to make his dreams reality. Nothing is too difficult not to try. Not even when he's supposed to portray with his skating something he neither feels nor has a concept of. He's terrified, he isn't ready for that, but he does it anyway. To me, that's an exceptional showcase of his bravery.

A little rant below:

I sometimes see fans treat Yuuri like his anxiety and his determination combined turn him into an enigma of contradictions. Like he's two different personas. But these two traits don't contradict each other at all. That's called bravery and this bravery eventually starts bleeding into Yuuri's off-ice decisions like when he sends Viktor home to Makkachin although he needs Viktor by his side, or when he decides to quit his dream so that Viktor can continue pursuing his own (that was a bullshit decision, but that's not the point).

Yuuri claims that he needs Viktor to believe in him and that because of Viktor's love he is stronger, and while it's true that Viktor is a positive influence, his presence in Yuuri's life only reinforces Yuuri's own innate strength.

[trutrustories]

STUDY IN LOKI ROMANCE

Part 2: Breaking Brad

Since we're only a few days away from the last episode, I decided to COUNT DOWN everything we´ve got so far ( that can be interpreted very easily as romantic ) and discuss what the actual fuck is going on with second season. Because even though I shipped lokius practically from S1E2, I absolutely did NOT expect this kind of development. (Not that I´m complaining)

Warning: This is gonna be LONG post, lots of screenshots, lots of SPOILERS, lot of "oh-my-god-they-so-cute" language, and little bit of meta.

I originally thought that this post would be everything at once, but since I have just too many screenshots this time around, I´ll have to split it. so every post will be one episode. Color coding means:

IIIIIIIIII = anything, that coud potentialy be just acting choice.

IIIIIIIIII = everything else (tzn.: whatever was written, and/or carefully prepared by filmmakers. )

side note: I already wrote, about how amazing it is, that Mobius is unable to fight but fights anyway and how beautifuly, and ridiculously brave he is HERE. But this is about Loki/Mobius interactions, so I´ll try my best not to talk about THAT. (Even when I´m really happy, that s2 continues with this formula and Mobius is still his completely defenseless while aggressively brave self. I love him, btw.)

EPISODE 1 HERE

Okay, Check-list, ep 2:

11) matching suits part 1 THIS ⬇️ costume department did a great job and they look badass together also, they´re walking very close to each other.

12) Loki defending /saving Mobius from Brad (with magic!) also, Mobius, dear, (my beloved) you were really going for it! Always so ready to fight! I can´t xD

Loki "don´t u dare hurt him" Laufeyson, look at his face!

13) Mobius and Loki struggling to assemble IKEA furniture- sorry Tapmad together

14) " And he knows..." I mean yeah, sure. keep remind us, that Mobius knows everything about Loki, and saw him at his worst, so we can appreciate even more the fact, that Mobius likes him and cares for him so damn much 💚🤎

15) Loki finding Mobius´s joke amusing Mobius: cracking joke right after Loki´s threatening speech:

Loki:

16) Loki being very concerned for Mobius after his outburst, saying that It´s okay, and then suggests having pie because he knows Mobius so well and is avare of the fact, that his man is stress eater I´m gonna cry they´re too pure for MCU someone adopt them

17) Bickering like married couple (part 2) 18) The whole freaking pie scene!

Just them, sharing calm, intimate moment together

Mobius opening up to Loki, and admiting he "lost it"

Loki trying to make him feel better and absolutely KILLING IT! btw, I know, that some people think, this scene doesn´t make sense, because Loki didn´t "lost it" during avengers, but was controlled by mind stone, etc.... well I think that it actually doesn´t matter. Guess what else doesn´t make sense? For example the fact, that they already talked about Loki fighting Avengers ( during their first meeting.) Loki is aware, that Mobius saw New York invasion at least twice now, and he´s telling him anyway. I would say, that point here is Loki trying to lift Mobius´s spirit, entertain him, make him smile. Why else woud he start his monolog by "remember, when...?" And I think, that this is huge, actually: Loki, using his bad memory, defeat, his humulianting experience to make Mobius feel better. So not only, that we see, he no longer care about being rurel but we see him making lightly fun of it FOR MOBIUS´S SAKE! He has different priorities now... our immortal god is a grown man now... it´s just so fucking beautiful... 🥺

Also Mobius saying to Loki: "come on, you´re the God of Mischief" Like it´s a best thing in the world, and Loki gives him THIS LOOK! (I mean that head tilt would be considered "acting" category, but I´m already making concessions by including all these things under one number :D

19) Loki and Mobius: mischievous duo

Mobius trusts him so completly!

They both such a drama queens!

And they works so well together!

like... seriously, Brad didn´t see this coming, AT ALL! xD

also... Loki complimenting his plan?!

20) "They say opposites attract. NO." Mobius´s wishfull thinking xD (But hey, it IS true. Opposites attracts. And works greatly together. That´s the only reason, why, for example, trope like grumpy one/sunshine one is so popular!) I can´t! just look at his face 🤣 Oh honey! just calm down

He is sooooooo NOT chill here xD bless him

21) Loki, not following Sylvie, but actually staying with Mobius and comforting him. AGAIN. (which is an absolutely glaring contrast compared to episode 2 in first season!)

[mikuni14]

The On1y One - Ep 12

I have mixed feelings about the finale of this beautiful series.

First, I'll write what I particularly liked, which is something that relatively rarely appears in BL series, which is the correct portrayal of teenage boys in terms of sex 😊 Usually, it is shown that they are either very experienced, like adult porn actors, or the seme is very experienced and the uke blushes and shies away from the slightest touch, or neither of them is interested in sex.

In The On1y One, horny teenage boys are horny, they're aroused by even the smallest things, they fantasize about sex, whose thoughts about sex come at the most inconvenient moments, who panic, who at the same time want to be close, but who are also terrified by closeness (like Tian, ​​who was afraid to even lie in the same bed with Wang). And who randomly get erections.

It was so real in its naturalness, panic and awkwardness.

My mixed feelings mainly come down to the fact that I lacked closure. I don't like it when I feel like the story is unfinished (I'm not talking about cliffhangers or ambiguous endings) , when in a series a particular season doesn't end with some kind of clasp that ties together what happened throughout the season . I expected that this season (not even knowing if there would be a second one) probably wouldn't end with them starting a romantic relationship, but I expected some kind of conclusion between them. I would even accept their separation, the "break-up" of their relationship, if I knew that they knew where they stood together and, most importantly, TOGETHER MADE THIS DECISION, however heartbreaking it was. I miss their communication here at the end, and after all, they talked to each other the entire series, talking about their own feelings. I keep repeating that I have to feel equality in a relationship to be involved in it, and unfortunately I can't help but feel that Tian is the one who is the most wronged and hurt in this relationship. It was Wang who made the decision that hurt Tian so much, it was Tian who was abandoned again, even though he thought that THIS TIME, it would be different, when, for the first time in his life, he trusted, believed, had hope, had home. It was Wang who had nerves of steel and an analytical mind, who assessed the situation and made the best decision, while Tian only watched from the sidelines with a broken heart, being faced with a situation that had already happened, having no influence on the unfolding events. Of course Wang suffers, I do not deny it to him at all, I know he's hurt too. His first love, first fascination, first infatuation is so unfortunate, and it is not his fault, nor his beloved's. And I perfectly understand his decision, his choice. Wang actually has a very analytical mind, who assesses what he sees, he's also completely devoid of any illusions about reality. He immediately deciphered Jia Hao, his realistic view of the world can also be seen in his contacts with Tian, ​​his family, the rest of the class, the teachers. Similarly, we see him analyzing his relationship with Tian, ​​when he recalls the scenes with him and calmly comes to the conclusion that what he feels is love and - in my opinion - he also knows that Tian has feelings for him. And he immediately comes to another conclusion that this feeling has no future - at least not now. His internal monologue is very telling, when he states that he knows what he feels, but they are brothers.

The contrast between him and Tian is very interesting, although Tian is also very analytical, smart and in tune with his feelings. Only that when Tian knows his feelings, he is able to simply live with them and love Sheng from afar, while Wang cannot live in hiding and it's hard for him not to act on these feelings, which is visible in how much he wants to be close to Tian, how he finds excuses to be with him and how he knows that he cannot and how he knows that he has to give them space, because he will not control it in the end.

And all of this is ok and logical and consistent with their characters, and they both suffer, but Tian suffers much more and only follows Sheng's decisions. And there is no closure to their shared story, there is nothing that the viewer would judge as yes, they know about each other and they make this difficult decision to "break up" together.

The teachers' storyline was cut off just as abruptly, the series also dropped a bombshell about where Tian's scar came from… and leave it at that.

Looking at this ending objectively, I understand everything. The finale was beautiful, heartbreaking, moving, I had tears in my eyes, especially watching Tian, ​​my abandoned, beloved boy. I also feel sorry for Wang, for how much he sacrificed, knowing his capabilities and ambitions. He did it for himself and for Tian, ​​because personally I can't imagine them keeping their romantic and sexual relationship a secret, which in 2012 between boys who are considered by everyone to be BROTHERS, would be devastating for them. Wang already has to come up with excuses to explain their closeness to the outside world, and if they were in a relationship it would be even worse and ultimately impossible. The series is wonderful and I love it. I love the characters, I love the actors. That being said, I was unpleasantly mentally transported to the times of Eternal Summer, Bangkok Love Story, Love of Siam and a whole bunch of Asian productions from that era, the endings of which broke my heart 💔 It was, I admit, very weird and um, kind of hurt me, I honestly thought I'd never have to experience something like this again, hence my unpreparedness for the pain...

That's why I'll mentally stay on my happy pink cloud, like this one: 🥰

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

My thoughts on that line

Spoilers below for "Flash Strike"

"I've changed." "Sure you have."

I'm not gonna lie, hearing Rampart's words with the close up and sinister music did unnerve me. Because why frame the shot like that? What's the implication of Rampart's words? Does this mean Crosshair is going to prove Rampart right? Honestly, I don't think so. If anything, he will prove him wrong.

Rampart hasn't seen Crosshair's journey. He didn't watch "The Outpost" or "Tipping Point." He certainly didn't watch the first half of S3. Time and time again, we've seen where Crosshair's loyalty lies. And it's to his family. Rampart has seen Crosshair at his worst and only knows that side to him. Rampart himself is incapable of changing. He went to prison for at least 5-6 months and learned nothing. Crosshair went to prison for 5-6 months and realized just how badly he messed up. My guess, Rampart is projecting on to him.

And maybe there is some truth to Rampart's words about how Crosshair is only loyal to himself. But consider the reason why Crosshair didn't say anything about Rampart knowing a way to get Tantiss' location. Crosshair is traumatized and his hand shakes as a result. He is going to do everything he can to protect himself from reliving that experience. I don't blame him. I'll use myself as an example. I have anxiety. Sometimes, it gets so bad that I'll go to extreme lengths to bring myself back into a state of feeling "safe." Mental health is a very difficult thing to deal with. For Crosshair, this means doing everything he can to keep himself and his family away from Tantiss.

However, when Omega gets taken back, Crosshair puts his own worries aside for her. He might say to Wrecker that he "owes her," but his actions show that their relationship is so much more than that. Crosshair clearly loves Omega, but he's not the kind of person to openly admit things. Heck, he didn't voice his concerns to his brothers til Ep. 12. If Crosshair had no care for Omega whatsoever, he wouldn't have gone back. We wouldn't have had that argument between him and Hunter in "The Return." Crosshair would do anything for her.

In conclusion, Crosshair has changed. He's realized what truly matters to him (his family) and will do anything he can to protect them. He's also become more comfortable being open around them. I said in one BB analysis of mine that he's not guided by some giant moral compass. He's guided by whoever he's loyal to. And that just so happens to be his family. But Rampart isn't like Crosshair; he truly is in it only for himself. Thus, he can't fathom someone going to extreme lengths for others. I have a feeling Rampart will realize that his statement was wrong and it's going to be a satisfying moment.

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - There's so much airing even I'm struggling to keep up

That's why I'm late.

Aug 2023 Wk 3

Ongoing Series - Thai

Laws of Attraction (Sat iQIYI) 6 of 8 - Oh no. I am totally in love with the escaped young master & his smitten bodyguard. How did that happen? (Be careful P’Thee the broken ones are the most tempting. Tin understands.) NO SINGING! Trust Thai BL to destroy any moment of sentiment I might have by picking up a damn guitar. And we finally get Charn’s Batman villain origin story. Good use of back hug! This is a GREAT show. Melodramatic as fuck, but GREAT. Gotta say this pair in NOT Thailand’s best kissers but not everyone can be Zee++. Still I think that + singing + a touch of overacting is likely to keep this out of the 10/10 club.

Dangerous Romance (Fri YT) ep 1 of 12 - Rich /poor dynamic with characters & set up exactly as expected. Chimon is great. Perth is good too. A real rich-kid bully, Heirs level or Japanese F4 evil. All the teachers are also corrupt (that’s kinda a Thai thing, I think because they can't call out the government). I gotta say, Marc is doing a bang-up job as the jock friend, too. And the kiss twist was fun. All in all, this is good. And you know me, I love a high school BL.

I Feel You Linger in the Air (Sat YT) ep 1 of 12 - The time travel historical romance many of us have been waiting for. Adaption of y-novel by Violet Rain, from the producers of Lovely Writer. Heartbroken architect is transported to the 1930s. Nonkul (actor playing Jom) keeps reminding me of Cho Han Gyeol from Love Mate. It’s a bit slow to start but interesting when it hits its stride. The pacing feels like a Chinese historical (makes me wonder if this with be 4 or 6 act structure). Nonkul is a wonderful actor. They weren’t sharing the screen for long, but the leads seem good together. I’m in. 

Only Friends (Sat YT) ep 2 of 10 - Well. It’s entertaining, I'll say that for it. Addiction. Manipulation. Queer as folk & all that jazz. (No jazz for you, Thailand. Oh no! I’m giving them ideas.) I would like it to turn out that Mew is actually manipulating everything. This is his revenge con on Top. Mew is, after all, supposed to be "the smart one." Gotta say, this is darn near perfect casting. But honestly? This show could just be about Ray & Sand. Their story (and them in it) is easily the most riveting. Sand better be careful, the wildly broken ones are always the best in bed, because they don’t care ao they have no shame and that's HOT.

Hidden Agenda (Sun GMMTV YouTube) ep 6 of 10 - I like how soft Joke’s version of seme flirting is. It’s mellow, like his voice gets with Zo. I also liked Zo casually chatting to his friends about how he feels about being flirted with. His friends gave good advice & were supportive. Oh no! A boy in a BL went into the rain ALONE. What ON EARTH will happen next? The argument was interesting, because it gave us insight into Zo’s maturity & ability to handle a relationship. I’ve been wondering why anyone would like him, and now I know. Joke & Nita’s backstory is fun. I like the gay boy protecting the straight girl reverse beard action. On a complete aside, I really like Dunk’s makeup in this series. It’s very Kdrama.

Low Frequency (Sat iQIYI) ep 7 of 8 - The house ghosts trying to help are cute. The plot is at least... a plot? I don’t know. Dias Ex Mafia is a new one on me. (COME ON THAT’S A GREAT PUN, PRAISE ME!) I’m ready for this show to be over. 

Be Mine Super Star (Mon Viki) ep 7 of 12 - Honestly, the whole time I’m watching this I’m just thinking I wish JaFirst got better scripts. Speaking of, I don’t object, but these characters sure moved into sex fast. I really don’t quite understand how Daddy & Hot Doc got together so fast either. It feels like their story was meant to be spread out into the other episodes but didn’t get cut in properly, so it ended up all in this one? Or is it just the pacing is particularly bad in this show?

Dinosaur Love (Sun iQIYI) ep 8 of 10 eps - I have no idea what is going on. What are all of Dino’s friends doing? What do they want? what’s their point in the story? I’m even annoyed by Peak, and love him. Sex scene which they tried to make sexy. Operative word being tried. Although, there was some interesting after sex discussion about mechanics. And there was a cute bathtub chat about pet names. But this show is a lotta work for very little pay out. 

Wedding Plan (Wed YT & iQIYI) ep 5 of 7 - I like the sunshine sides? PUNCH LOM 2023! Trash watch here!

Love in Translation (Sat iQIYI) ep 1 of 10 - Pushy older bro is Earn from Love Sick, yay! And he’s the hyung of a side couple, which is "best friend’s older brother" trope! My favorite!!!! Have we seen this in BL before? I don't think so. Anyway, DOUBLE YAY! The main couple… eh. You know I loathe stalker characters. And I viscerally HATE this one. Almost as bad as SCOY, not sure I can take it, actually. The squealing of "Tammy!" is worse on my ear than any off-key guitar strumming. I may have to DNF or fast forward through all his parts… but he’s the lead. What to do? I do like the “Chinese” businessman actor. He very cute. (On an aside, I was just reading about commercial real estate as the loophole for foreign property investors in Thailand. Cool plot point.) I’m getting a Taming of the Shrew vibes from this. Just me? For now it's living at the bottom of the list for sheer unadulterated loathing of Phumjai. Not the actor, he was my favorite and only good thing about Our Days. But this character? NO.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Jun & Jun (Korea Thur Viki) ep 5 of 8 - This is basically the gay Boys Over Flowers of my heart. Or as close as I think we’ll get from BL. I like both of the 2nd leads, even though I suspect Simon of actually being into everyone’s fav hyung. Cute to see the Mr Heart boys back on my screen, oh so briefly. Such a Taiwan trick, reusing a beloved couple like that. Nice gimmie to the fans. Meanwhile, Choi Jun - boy sure knows his angles but his motives? Please don’t let this be another arranged marriage beard situation? I can’t take 2 in the same month. 

Stay By My Side (Taiwan Fri Gaga) ep 8 of 10 - The boyfriends ep! JC is biggest simp spoiling his baby EVER. Taiwan = the sappiest of saps. “Owning the same key” is such a cute way of putting it. Also I love the "knew all along" twist, made me happy. The angst is silly but that's normal in Taiwanese BL. 

Love Class Season 2 (Korea Fri Viki) eps 3-4 of 10 - Pair 1: Lee Hyun is such a wide-open, bleeding, no-shame romantic. It’s kinda great. Boy has a poet’s soul & NO artifice. J-Min is startlingly good, very nuanced. I know I keep saying that, but I’m v surprised by his skillz. And… add in creepy stalker, goody. Pair 2: The "other student couple" I’m not into, also NO SINGING. Pair 3: The underwear gift was so fucking funny. “I’m going reap the boxers I sewed” is next level script excellence. These two are brilliant at gayest-of-gay flirt-negging, I'm INTO IT. One of my housemates said, in response to my audible cackling, "You seem to be enjoying your shows extra much tonight."  

My Personal Weatherman AKA Taikan Yoho (Japan Sat Gaga) ep 2 of 8 - Oh I love love love them. It’s so old school yaoi and SO JBL. No other country could produce this kind of show. I love this little feminist aspect where the weatherman treats his boy like a 1950s housewife & said boy thinks that makes him an indentured servant. Clocks. But also, the way our weatherman LOOKS at his boy. He is so in love. (It looks like we skip next week for holiday reasons?) 

Sing My Crush (Korea Wed iQIYI) eps 5-6 of 8 - It remains enjoyable. 

Minato's Laundromat Season 2 AKA Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 2 (Japan Thu Gaga) ep 6 of 12 - At least we know Minato actually desires Shin, he just won’t do anything about it. Also, Minato chose the perfect person to come out to. That's nice for him. Finally, Shu & Asuka are glorious. Sides are winning these days.

Stay Still (Hong Kong Tues YouTube) ep 3 of 5 - A proper faen fatal has entered one of our couples. She won too, since she ended up marrying the boy. Still not sure about this show (and it should have convinced me by now). I definitely like the tattoo couple better than the reunion couple. Still, not a lot happened in this episode and this is short series, they don’t have time to waste. It remains intriguing but not... erm... good.

In case you missed it

River Knows Fish Heart is leaving Gaga soon. It's a decent little bully romance Chinese BL (pulp) - yes, you read that right. Actual CBL. Not great, but if you're into the CBL stuff, especially the early stuff, this has some of that tenor only made in 2018 (I have a feeling it was shot in 2017 and skated through). Anygay, just staying. Catch it before it disappears because with CBL once they gone, often, they gone forever.

Friend. Boy Friend a new Thai BL pulp was supposed to start airing on Aug 19th. I can't find it. Neither can MDL.

Next Week Looks Like This:

Everything from Thailand seems to be dropping on Sat & Sun this month. It's a good thing I got quiet weekends for a while. Also the BL firehose is upon us, so much content.

Starting this week:

8/20 (tomorrow) My Universe series (Sun iQIYI) 24 eps - This is sampler pack BL, 12 pairs, each pair gets 2 eps, not sure on the order they’ll drop. Known couples include EarthBank from Destiny Seeker and KaownahTurbo from Love Stage!!!, fresh faces otherwise. Jane to direct.

8/22 Kisseki: Dear to Me formerly known as Miracle (Taiwan Tues Viki & iQIYI) 13 eps - From screenwriter Lin Pei Yu (We Best Love, H3: Trapped) features a student doctor forced to take care of a gangster. I love the premise and like the writer.  

8/23 Why R U? (Korean remake iQIYI) 8 eps - I find everything about this hilarious. I mean if Korea remakes it, we lose all the sexy and then... would we have a story at all? No we would not. Not even for 8 short eps. It’d be like one of those mesh shopping bags.

8/24 Man Suang (Thailand movie, domestic cinema release) - historical drama about Thai burlesque with KP’s MileApo. 

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED).

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Another show reviewing itself. (Dino Love)

Don't insult bastards, Lom. (Wedding trash)

I would like this adorable romcom GMMTV, please and thank you.

See what I mean? Trixy.

Thanks boys. (All Only Friends)

(Last week) 

[a-sad-mage]

How rich is the Shane Gang?

In the early episodes it's implied they don't have much, and actively save up to buy equipment.

Like Pronto admitted to 'borrowing' money from the others in the Club Slug episode, and Eli expressed his hesitance in trading slugs for equipment when they were short of money.

And then, like I wana say about six to seven months later when the whole thing with Dana stealing from Blakk and the Gentleman being set after her, Eli offers the Gentleman dubbled what Blakk payed for their plan to fake Dana's work.

Double What Dr. Blakk, the owner of a successful business and Railway that makes presumably millions not including the endorsements of Slugterras richest, was willing to pay.

Double

And again

Because the show takes place in a years time, Eli basically went from a broke teen hero, to rich enough to pay off one of the top assassins in the Caverns, in like 12 months.

Keep in mind, while Eli knows there are stashes hidden all around Slugterra filled with things he might need one day(not necessarily money) he has no idea where like 98% of them are.

And while sure, there is clearly stuff the gang gets up to in their off time, and going on adventures to find these Shane Cashes is plausible, how much are we willing to bet they found a cash with a comical amount of money?

Like I have no problem believing the gang have not only their personal savings, but a group fund for communal stuff/supplies. Or that, ever now and then, they get paid for some of the missions they do.

But it's been like, at least six months or so leading up the whole thing with the Gentleman, and unless Blakk was paying him the flattest of fees, how is it possible for Eli to pay double.

I would imagine that an assassin's fees aren't cheap either.

All I'm saying is that someone on the team won the lottery, got lucky chash hunting for Shane deposits, or something because dear god I have questions about their financial situation.

And no, Pronto technically being a King don't mean shit, it's been made pretty clear, for all his ego, Pronto isn't 100% cool with being King, and he is not smart with his money seeing as how he falls for scams.

Edit Nov/20/24: my brain is running on fumes- the 'double the pay' line is form a different ep but my bullshit about Eli being able to double any sort of pay at all still stands.

[silviakundera]

Snowfall watch comments ep 11-12

Ep 11

Vamp Daddy is feeling violated and would like some clothes now, thx. "You keep staring at me. Even if you don't feel embarrassed, I do feel a sense of shame."

Sorry, the villain is erotically, psychotically obssesed with you, so no

Loser Li: "Aren't you a big shot? Aren't you a socialite? You think you're above me just because of your wealth and power?"

Vamp Daddy:

Literal army observing the toxic gay happenings: ... um I think that was supposed to be your inside voice

Mu Lihua is obviously making excuses to herself to use the magic yang ring, which is killing her

BACKSTORY: in which it was all the fault of Vamp Daddy'd grandma for deciding to burn alive both his dad's chicken killing concubine and also her son. Sorry grandma, burning a small child alive while he screams for his big brother is uncool and I'm not surprised she went berserk and killed y'all. 🤷

If that kid grew up to be our mildly evil doctor bestie, I think u 2 should hug it out and say bygones are bygones. Yes he gave you some vampirism but also, you survived 100 years to experience some great fashion choices and meet an incredibly weird blind girl who is very into you. It's not all bad.

Loser Li is literally crying here, just barely hanging into any dignity by a thread, while Vamp Daddy calls him out as looking heartbroken. 🌈

MORE BACKSTORY: Loser Li ran into Vamp Daddy when a teen and naively thought this rich dude could magically fix his sister w his rich people powers. Except some people shot up the joint and Vamp Daddy ran away and his sis died. No magic fix for his sister. No one else to blame, so he hates himself and the (handsome) stranger that he'd unrealistically pinned his hopes on.

Loser Li has all that pent up rage bewing inside, yet still takes time out of his busy gangster schedule to sit on bed beside Vamp Daddy and removing his muzzle, "If you want to escape, that's fine. We can both die together if it comes to that."

More flirting, angst, bars

"You did well."

oh... kay

Loser Li's boss wants to just dispose of Vamp Daddy if the scans don't show anything else exciting. I do not think Loser Li is gonna accept this.

Any more than I can accept more screentime for nepo baby. At least it smoked out doctor bestie!

Jin nepo baby is kinda being used as a plausible deniability There Is A Hetro Explanation For This on Loser Li's character. Except not really, because his behavior and words are also internally consistent with her being a childhood playmate when a sevant kid, who now he wants to draw the line with for multiple reasons (the best one being, he's a murderer & active criminal). Also, bisexuality exists.

Ep 12

We're bringing the gf and doctor bestie along for the ride! Thanks Loser Li, I missed them.

I can barely recognize my fav loser in brown leather.

The trio reunited!

Doctor Bestie is so annoyed that Vamp Daddy keeps being defeated by Loser Li, when he could simply solve this all by killing him

Is Doctor Bestie gonna clock the Mu heir?

Vamp Daddy offers Loser Li both money and 🌈 friendship 🌈 and he's soooooooo shook

Mu Lihua having more seizures because she can't let go of her mood ring. smh.

Midly Evil Doctor Bestie: some people evade all responsibilities and some people bear them all, to feel alive. He's the latter.

Me: and you're the 1st kind, right? right????

Really love his chill. I want to know what's behind it. 🕵

Vamp Daddy alone in a room with Loser Li and very deliberately seducing him while pretending not to: "I will perish together with you." It's the guy I care about, not the girl. People can want & feel multiple things at a time. I didn't know you then but I do now - we know each other.

seriously - the way the actor for Li Yingliang does this swallow at him saying they know each other well now and then Vamp Daddy nods in assent. The body language and his face.👌👌👌

Fuck, Vamp Daddy knows he hooked him

Vamp Daddy and Sus Doctor play Mahjong with the villians and I'm fairly certain they're just fucking with them.

Loser Li looks annoyed to be losing yet again in life but tbh what result do you expect when gambling with someone 100+ years old

The allusions to his brother !!! Is the doctor his brother???? If so DOES HE SUSPECT?? ?????

Vamp Daddy trying to hard sell Loser Li until the last moment. Run away w me and join my polycule. I have riches and also, I'm me 👁👄👁

I think our fav villainous bisexual is just scared to take what he wants.

He is convinced there's no way back after you sell your soul to the local warlord and is scared to contemplate the alternative; if he walks away now, that means he could have found a way to walk away before - which means he's partially culpable for the wrong he's done.

They're staring at each other thru the window now. It's very romantic.

[posallys]

ok 1 ur desktop theme is GORG and 2 i need (if u wanna) ur thoughts about the show (or show sally in gen bc ur the only one i trust with her)

thank you!! i was actually thinking about updating it but maybe i wont 🤭🤭 and i have a lot of thoughts about the show except none only very few of them are good and i will be crucified by the 13-year-olds

im going to tell you anyway.

i will start with something i like....percy being angry. like yes give me the anger of a 12 year old who feels utterly alone in the world and doesn't understand (or does and it makes him more angry)

the fight scenes are dog shit. the only kind of cool one was in the arch but it was only cool because of percy doing the bait and switch and falling through the arch...the fights are bland boring sucky whatever other synonym you wanna use

uhhhhh sally jackson is not and would never be sitting in the rain pining of the god she told to leave....and especially not to teen pop...if she WERE going to act like a 16 year old and do the pining thing it would be to fucking like...billy joel and ricky martin and donny hathaway and stuff llike that okay...

i will preface this by saying that yes i understand that talking back to an abuser the way sally does in ep 1 doesn't make the abuse less abusive....however i DO not like the fact that that scene explicitly goes against sally characterization in the books....i am not digging my book out atm but the part where percy is like "my mother has never raised her voice or said an unkind word to anyone"....me thinks the writers all read the books 10 years ago and are going off of memory alone + or their brains are so clouded by the obsessive Big Screen Need to make women a badass girlboss slay queen i fucking hate it here

LET ANNABETH BE SILLY AND FUNNY AND CUTE AND CRY AND NOT BE AN ADULT THANK YOU....hated that they made annabeth the one to realize that it was medusa and not grover...give me back grover having to wrangle percy and annabeth into backpack leashes just to keep them on task/stop them from wandering off...book trio i miss you

i absolutely ADORE leah, walker, and aryan though the three of them are so so perfect, A+ casting no notes couldn't have done it better myself. if it weren't for the three of them i would have zero hope for the show i cannot lie...they're carrying. without them it's just..bad.

the pacing???? bad.

why did we waste half of the 4th ep on the train with echidna...stupid dumb pointless i hate it here

i do like the whole not all monsters are monsters and the gods aren't inherently good just because they're gods thing they've got going on though...very inch resting...silently hoping that they do a complete 180 and have percy side with luke and redo the series from there because that would be iconic as fuck <3 a girl can dream because at least then i could take the show at face value and not take 80 health damage every time they mess up a key part of the books...im at -29834 heath rn.

where was the time at chb before the quest??? the oh so important vital scene where luke teaches percy to sword fight???? like BRO that's soooooooooooo important to ME how could you get rid of that

not having annabeth show percy around camp

additionally, not having annabeth feed him the nectar and ambrosia, WHICH BY THE WAY they haven't even mentioned in the show yet...plot armor gone rip

not the fredrick chase sympathy while simultaniously blaming the woman...........rick when i get my hands on you...

annabeth having to EARN thalia's love??? absolutely not probably one of their biggest fuck ups fr.

the scene where sally is talking about Poseidon to percy...i do not like it sam i am. bad. not wistful enough not longing enough not sad enough not gut wrenching enough...also not completely here for sally telling percy that his dad was a god because....sallys whole thing was NOT telling him in order to keep him safe...i know they changed it in the show so sally knew he was going to camp immediately but that does not mean i have to like it

the scene with sally and percy in the pool. i hated everything about that. sally would never talk to percy like that never talk to him about money never make it seem embarassing NOT TO MENTION that percy simply wasn't scared of the water. that's stupid as fuck. theres a part in the book where percy literally says being by the water calms both him and his mom like...come the fuck on just admit you can't fucking read or at least didn't read the book.

sally annabeth get behind me so they cant hurt you anymore

i did loveeeee percy praying to sally though...absoutely insane and true of them. also the "I AM SALLY JACKSON'S SON" yesss baby you tell them about your mommy!!!!!!

them making athena moa level bad in tlt is quite interesting. setting up annabeth siding with percy pretty well.

also the whole impertinence thing over medusa's head was weird to me. when annabeth first said that i had immediately thought that annabeth's impertinence was telling percy to pray to poseidon IN ATHENA'S TEMPLE bc that made much more sense to me...but whatever

the annabeth/medusa parallel is intriguing at the very least

the underwater scene with the neraid was cool even though i hated the parallel to the pool scene w/ sally.

the dumbass pinecone fate line. 0/10 did you read the book? did you pay attention to how empathetic and reflective percy was when he found out about thalia?

honestly....i think disney was just the wrong place to go with this show because it's like what...pg? it should be pg 13 and should have more... sustenance.

this medusa was so cool though. which we could've seen a fight.

i need to know how many women are in the writer's room though...because It Does Not Look Good. funny how the characters that they're fucking up are all women....crazy. weird. totally coincidental.

are we just not going to talk about the vitality and pressure of getting the bolt back on time? where is the inherent inevitable danger, the suspense, the fear of not accomplishing a seemingly impossible talk looming over everything

this is 10000% not all of my thoughts but im not going to rewatch in order to collect them all so this is what you get xoxox

[adachimoe]

PSC Eps 12, 13, 18, 19 "Ah-ha, I SEES it!"

Last time: Ep 1 + Explanation, Eps 2 + 4, Ep 5, Eps 6 + 7 (no Q&A), Eps 8 + 9, Eps 10 + 11 (plus PSC Cafe)

I paraphrased some of the phrasings, except for the fish question. I left that as-is because it impressed Isocchi so much she rewarded the viewer who asked it with a t-shirt.

Episode 12

Q: Does Rise wear earrings with a piercing-type backing, or does she wear clip-ons? A: Clip-ons.

(This sounds dumb because language thing and Atlus's answer. In JP, a "���アス / pierce" is for pierced ears, but an "イヤリング / earring" refers to clip-ons. In English, we just call all of these "earrings" lol. The viewer asks if Rise wears a pierce or a clip-on or a magnetic clip-on, and Atlus answers that she wears clip-on, but not if her ears are actually pierced or not, hence my weird phrasing.)

Q: Where did Aragaki live before moving back into the SEES dormitory? A: He was probably living somewhere by himself, or he kept being an unwanted guest at the homes of his shady friends. Probably a big reason why he got to know Strega so well was cause he spent so long as a vagrant. Q: During Episode Adachi in P4AU, Adachi mentions getting tired of seeing the Moonlight Bridge when he was in the city. Did he used to live in Iwatodai? A: He didn't necessarily live there, but he worked in the city center, and would take the scenic route back to HQ by driving over to Moonlight Bridge to imitate a character on a popular detective drama.

(See this post for more about the TV show in question.)

Episode 13

Q: Who is Margaret's favorite (hot guy) Persona? A: I think Ardha, Helel, and Yoshitsune are her favorites since she swaps between them a lot. She uses Oberon for the 9999 damage Megidolaon, so maybe she's got some obsession with him? Q: Why does the P3 Protagonist wear his MP3 player in Tartarus? It makes sense during his everyday life, but it doesn't work during the Dark Hour, and it seems like it would be annoying swinging around during battle, or I think it would break when he gets attacked. Did he just forget to take it off? A: Part of the reason why is that he will sometimes he listen to it on the way to Tartarus. The other part is that wearing it has become a habit. Q: In Persona 3, what's with the wound on Sanada's forehead? I'm worried because his ribs healed in a month but the wound on his forehead still hasn't healed after a year. A: The band-aid on the left side of Sanada's forehead is just to express that, "He always has injuries cause he's a boxer". Due to his past, he's the type who wants to train to the extent that he's bullying himself, so it seems he has a lot of fresh wounds on his face.

Episode 18

Q: In P4D, Kanamin's costumes include her plain jersey with a shirt that says "Life" (人生) on it, and it seems like the writing changes when she dances. How many variations are there? A: 13 total ("Life" + 12 others). Q: When did Sho from P4AU get that scar on his forehead? I thought the story would explain something about it since it glows when his eyes glow, but even after clearing the story, there was no explanation. A: The scar on his forehead is related to "that one thing" being implanted into his forehead. The blue glow is due to the influence of "that one thing" and the red glow is due to the influence of "the big guy".

(Contextually: Blue = Plume of Dusk and alternate personality, red = Hi-no-Kagutsuchi.)

Q: I want to know if Shiroku's pet fish Akihiko that's kept at Shiroku Pub is a freshwater fish or seawater fish? The fish itself looks like an oarfish making it a deep-sea fish which would at least need a tank with seawater. But Inaba is surrounded by mountains and the only sea on the map is Shichiri Beach. I don't think it's that far away because the main characters can go there, but Shiroku runs the general store during the day and the pub at night so I get the feeling she doesn't have time to go get seawater. A: If you look into it, there's an "artificial seawater mix" for keeping seawater fish in aquariums as pets and it's very easy to get through mail order. If she really is keeping an oarfish in an aquarium, that's impressive - something no one else has been able to do! I wonder how she does it... There's so many fish you can catch around Inaba...

Episode 19

Q: What's with the distinctive hair styles on Yosuke's Personas Susanoo and Takehaya Susanoo? Did Yosuke wish he could have an afro? A: The flashy hair isn't because of Yosuke's heart, but because the mythological Susanoo had the image of a tempest and a violent storm. It being red is to communicate that, within the game, Yosuke is not just strong against wind, but also strong against fire. Q: During January in P3P, it's mentioned that Sanada and Mitsuru take standardized tests for university admissions. But in P4 Arena, Sanada had been training overseas. Did he drop out? A: No. As mentioned in the P4 Arena story mode, he was just on leave from school. It was probably his own version of a ritual purification before embarking on the path of fighting as a professional, but even Mitsuru told him, "You're overdoing it".

(Since Aki joins the police force to support the Shadow Workers in the epilogue, I assume this is talking about him fighting Shadows professionally, not him thinking about becoming a pro boxer.)

Q: Why does Ryoji wear a scarf? November seems a bit too early for scarf weather. Does the scarf have a special meaning? A: Mainly for impact when you first meet him, but also his values are different than other people's and we were conscious of that - like he's "a foreigner who hasn't gotten used to this town yet".

(Japanese people tend to dress based on the season rather than the actual weather lol. [E.g. an older woman in the countryside asked me, "Aren't you cold?" when I was wearing leggings and a t-shirt on a warm sunny day in spring.] November would usually still be considered fall.)

[sapphoshands]

For the fandom ask game!

Fandom:

Agatha All Along - 12, 17, 19

Ship - Agatha/Rio - 2, 10, 14

Character - Agatha or Rio: 1, 8

for agatha all along:

12. ...what attracted me into checking it out.

agatha harkness, baby! i looooved wandavision - like, got up early every week to watch it while i worked out so i wouldn't get spoiled - and i loved agnes/agatha from the moment she popped into wanda's kitchen and started flirting her face off as a force of chaos. and then they added patti lupone, and then i started hearing rumours they were going to make agatha as canonically queer as we all knew she was? i was ready. (except for how i was not, actually, ready.)

17. ...the world-building aspect of the story I have the greatest admiration for.

hahahaaaaa not to cheap out on this one but it's absolutely the fact that agatha harkness is jolene. can't beat it.

19. ...one behind-the-scenes trivia fact I've learned somewhere and my thoughts on it.

oh my god, so daniel selon, the costume designer, recently posted that the shot of the coven flying in front of the moon was done with puppets and that blew my mind. check it out! they are so cool. i actually got to work a bit with a master puppeteer earlier this year (i realise that sounds like an innuendo but it is not) and so i am in awe of how much effort went into these. practical! magic!

for agatha/rio:

2. ...why I do or don't ship them.

holy fuck i ship them like crazy. they are so fucked up. they have so much history. they are each the only person who could ever match the other's freak. jac schaeffer and the writers' room were like, who could stand up to agatha? oh, i know! death! and they were right. death broke all the rules of nature for agatha. how could i not??? and that's BEFORE getting into the knife thing. come on.

10. ...rate the level of stupid they reach in their pining.

absolutely zero. neither of them ever pine for the other. that would be ridiculous. death does not pine. and agatha simply has better things to do. rio definitely does not spend half her time keeping an ear out in hopes that agatha is going to suck another coven dry so rio can figure out where she is. agatha definitely did not dedicate herself to tracking down the book of the damned specifically so she could piss off rio by disappearing instead of dealing with her feelings. none pining. none. (1000000/10, they are both utter fools)

14. ...which tropes I think describe them the best.

hahaha iiiiiiis lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers a trope? (shhhhh they are going back to lovers shhhhh)

for agatha:

1 ...why I love them, like them or hate them.

where do i even begin. okay okay okay okay. i love her. to start with, i have a real pathological thing for characters who slap on as many masks as possible in order to avoid dealing with feelings, for absolutely no reason, thank you. and agatha is such a master manipulator and troll. i love how smart and calculating and incisive and determined she is. i love how greedy she is - for knowledge, for power. i love that she refuses to feel shame about her desires, or at least refuses to let any shame she feels stop her. i love that she does - grudgingly, unwillingly - make space for love in her life. i love that she's such a dick. i love that she has faced so much horror that she just refuses to take most things seriously because nothing else can be as bad. i love that she looks good in literally anything (except maybe that mobcap from ep 9, but to be fair that is playing on hard mode). i love her.

8. ...a headcanon I have about this character.

hmm, i don't know what i want to share that i either haven't already written about or don't plan to write about. let me think. oh, i know i wrote up a bunch of options, but i do believe she makes billy take señor scratchy home, hahaha.

for rio:

1 ...why I love them, like them or hate them.

do i love rio? i love agatha so much and i had to think about rio. do i just love rio because of how much she loves agatha? hm! i wish we had gotten so much more rio! i love that she cannot say no to agatha, hahahaaaaa. i love that she can't quite maintain her poker face when she's feeling strong emotions - the times she lets it slip are devastating. (i have to say, i have never much cared for aubrey plaza, but she has some great moments in this show.) i love her anger. i love that she is fair. i love that she's so petulant ('why don't you want me'). i talked about the scene with alice in another ask, but i love that rio takes a moment there to have a conversation with alice and to be like, actually, you fulfilled your life's meaning here. what more do you want. death isn't kind, but she is truthful, and i love that.

8. ...a headcanon I have about this character.

i absolutely believe that every time agatha kills someone, rio knows immediately.

thank you! ask me more things!

[lurkingshan]

with such limited options/possibilities for the finale episode of i feel you linger in the air (jom's impending disappearance and khun yai bawling in the garden hugging the air), do you have any specific things/scenes/expectations you hope to see in ep 12?

Not Yai bawling in the garden hugging the air! Oh that’s just too sad to contemplate.

I think there are a few options before us for the ending. Episode 11 closed the main emotional arc of the series: Jom found a purpose, and a true love, and a community, and most importantly, the desire to keep on living. Even if he can’t be with Yai anymore, I believe he will be okay and the experience he’s had in the past will bolster him and give him confidence to rebuild his life back in the future.

As for the romance, well. As I mentioned way back before this show began, with time travel narratives sad and ambiguous endings are always on the table. We’ve been given no reason to believe that the Yai he knows in this time and place would have any way to follow him to the future, we know Jom does not have control over his ability to move through time, and we have been told that he will disappear by the will of whatever magic brought him here in the first place when the time is right. So I really doubt these two will be able to be together. We also know there are several doppelgängers in play and that at least some of the characters in the past have one in the present (Yai seems to have had one in an even more distant past). We still don’t know if these are past live incarnations of the future folks and if this is tied to reincarnation, but that seems likely to me. And there is no indication that the doppelgängers have conscious awareness of their other iterations.

I foresee one of three endings:

Jom will return to the future and eventually meet a doppelgänger of Yai. It will not be the same Yai, but perhaps a person who shares his soul, so it’s about as happy an ending as you can get with this set up. This feels most likely to me.

Jom will return to the future and there is no Yai doppelgänger waiting for him there; the lovers are separated indefinitely. We see Jom looking at his sketches and historical documents to find a trace of Yai, and everybody cries. This feels a bit less likely but still possible.

A secret third thing that will blow my mind.

Regardless of the romance ending, I just hope the finale is able to stay true to the beauty of episode 11, which was such a poignant close to Jom’s time in the past. And I hope we leave all the past characters in a good place, with Yai going to Europe as planned, Eung Phueng getting the safe abortion and life away with Maey she deserves, Fong Kaew finding peace, and Ming, Prik, James and the rest all as okay as they can be given the time and place they live. And I would love to see the new life Jom builds for himself in the future and be reassured that he is happy there.

[bloodyshadow1]

my detailed thoughts on the first season of Percy jackson.

Cons:

The pacing, I know everyone says this, but really the pacing of this season was all over the place. having 8 episodes while probably the only option for the writing team really hurt the series overall. Adding an additional episode would helped keep things better I think and would allow a better flow. Not to mention it would help keep things structured in a 3 act system with a beginning, middle, and end that a lot of stories, are told in which would have just fit and flowed better. I would prefer 12 eps, for each act having 4 eps, but that is greedy since they're probably going to be stuck with 8 for the rest of the series too

Lightning, the series was just too dark in a lot of scenes, I didn't have much of a problem because I watched on my smarttv, but I know a lot of people who watched on computers or phones had trouble

The beginning, there should have been more episodes in Camp Half-Blood, at least 1 more. I get that the meat of the story is in the journey, but by not establishing camp half-blood as the first place Percy felt like home it makes it feel emptier. I do like how they including flashbacks of luke training percy in the finale but I would have liked more in camp half blood before the start

There's a less wonder and magic in the series than there was in the books. I don't really know how to describe it, but the books made it feel like there were two worlds hiding within each other and there is magic everywhere. Just small things like Ares turning his lost shield into a bullet proof vest because that's the more modern take.

I'm not with a vocal part of the fandom that bitch and moan over the kids not falling into every trap, I like that Percy is smarter, but instead of just making him smarter, I think they should have just had him ask more questions, like if he was a 12 year old with ADHD who had his eyes open to a world. By making him ask questions, it would help let them explain the world more by having people answer Percy, instead of him knowing everything. Certain things I think could have been done better, like the Kronos reveal and the Luke reveal, it could be done as a reveal instead of Percy figuring it out and I think it would have worked better. like have Percy realize it when talking through the prophecy with Luke because Luke mentions the bolt and the helm, something Percy wouldn't have told him or anyone at camp.

For the most part, I like how they did the gods, with the exception with Zeus and Athena. Zeus is such a larger than life figure, as much as I love Lance Riddick's performance, he played him too epic. The Zeus from the books feels more like a powerful blowhard while the series makes him feel too cool to me. As for Athena, I'll admit I'm bias because she's my favorite god but I don't like her being made the villain in Annabeth's story especially offscreen. I get that they're playing up the gods being shit more than the books and since they made Poseidon more sympathetic, making Athena more antagonistic is a choice to make. I just don't think it fits her cold and logical, but still cares about her kids in her way that she was portrayed in the books.

Grover. I honestly like a lot of the things they added to his character, but I wish they didn't take away from his canon character moments. Not many, but I liked him being a different species than Percy and Annabeth, he isn't human, he's part goat and instead of the books stuff, he's more just a kid with different legs and short horns than another creature. Also by taking away his reed pipes and not showing him being able to do magic, it limits the character.

While people complain about the show... showing not telling, I feel like there was a lack of exposition in the show that wasn't there in the books. It kind of goes with Percy being smarter in the show than the books, but there's a lot of stuff left out of the show that is good world building. small example, no one mentions that monsters don't die for good, which is a very important plot point in heroes of olympus, even if they don't make it, it's a good thing to tell a new demi-gods. Or other plot points, like Annabeth wanting to see her father after all these years, despite how badly things broke before, which just kind of resolves offscreen.

Honestly though, it was only the fandom that ever really bothered me. Too many people focusing on uncharitable changes about the series that had to be made since there is a difference between a first person perspective book series and a tv series that they had to make. That they couldn't fit everything into an 8 ep series that's in a whole book

Pros:

Honestly, one of the best adaptions I've seen despite all the cons.

The acting in the show is awesome, the actors for the kids are young but perfect for the roles they were assigned. they might not look like the books, but I genuinely think it doesn't matter if they're going to be this good. Walker, Leah, and Aryan stand out as the stars of this show and for good reason

I really like the way they portrayed Luke in the tv series, I get the twist in the books, but by bringing up stuff with him earlier I think it makes him more sympathetic. I also think by not including the scorpion to kill Percy, and instead make it clear Luke doesn't want to kill Percy makes him feel more like a kid making a dumb decision instead of someone willing to murder a 12 year old.

I like how they portrayed Sally in the show even if some people disagree. I like that she shows more flaws and character than just being the sweetest saddest woman that she was in the books. As much as Sally loves Percy, him not only being a demi-god, but a neurodivergent kid, it wears on any parent's patience, especially a single mother. Having her get angry and lose her temper, having us as the viewers know what she's been through makes her feel more real and fits better for a tv show.

I like most of the effects, I think it fits in the show and looks better than a lot of blockbuster movies. Lightning aside. I think the monsters looked good and so did the magic even if I think the latter could be better

Honestly, I think the fight scenes were great for a disney show where the main character is supposed to be 12. I know people are annoyed with how short they are, but that's how they were in the books. I think they were adapted fine.

I like that since we're not in Percy's head, we get more of Annabeth and Grover. It feels like a real proper adventuring trio than the books where it felt like it was so Percy focused with Annabeth being the secondary main and grover being a main, but kind of sidekick character. Letting Grover and Annabeth be characters, to have scenes without Percy and changing things from the books, like having Annabeth seeing the fates cut the thread, makes more sense when you're not doing a first person books

Overall I think they changed things in a very fair and pragmatic sense. There were a lot, but there were less egergious than the movie that changed the whole plot.

[reitheist]

bucchigiri ep 12 lb thoughts:

wow, tbh I was not expecting to get more backstory on ara this late, but it's appreciated

aww ara thought matakara was cool

i'm still unsure what exactly a honki person is to be completely honest

komao is the best nurse thanks buddy

bucchigiri pleaseeeeee let mahoro do anything please im begging

ahaha the cat gag is finally revealed

also he just fucking stole jasmine right out of there lmaooo

okay so... mahoro uses a man to wake her brother up... sweetie I'm sorry but your brother only cares about men and fighting. it's time to give up

the siguma goons dressed in nurse outfits I'm cackling

yet again love is used as a metaphor for fighting and here it's applied to arajin and matakara hm

ahaaaaa as I predicted his wish changed. specifically to wanting matakara to wake up, no less

so like, is ichiya's issue with senya similar to matakara's issue with arajin? in that he wasn't as strong as he wanted him to be

is it inappropriate to say senya is lucky and I would like ichiya to beat me up as well

oh damn ichiya was sick and wanted to be killed by senya. senya looked up to ichiya and didn't want to do that.

komao carrying zabu aww

so now that ichiya is controlling matakara's body, matakara is stuck with his darkness. notably, the best friend stone lies in there, broken. he sits in the corner of his laundromat room, the place he's had to stay since his brother went to juvie

ofc these two muscled bitches can only make up by fighting

divorced dad senya got his wife back by being real for once

the only thing stronger than ichiya's pettiness--matakara's lack of self worth

ope well the only thing stronger than matakara's lack of self worth is ara's delusional love for mahoro ig

wow his wish change did not last for long lol

ohhh matakara shoving ara away, he believes everyone from his past makes him weaker "I don't need my friends, or my brother, or even you!"

matakara is deathly afraid of being left alone. it happened with ara, it happened with his brother, so now he wants to sever all his relationships so he can't be hurt again

literally shoving the love of friendship into matakara's face so he can't reject it, healing the inner child so afraid of loneliness

matakara finally having his investment in ara acknowledged and reciprocated

senya's unfinished business is done, he can ascend to heaven with his boyfie

i KNEW that stamp was gonna be for matakara. also stamping it in blood hell yeah

matakara I love youuuu

ahh a very sk8-type ending montage

MATAKARA YOUR BESTIES LOVE YOU

i'm at least glad mahoro is still ignoring the fact ara exists

did shindo wear fake boobs and heels just to sneak back into NG ��� he's fulfilling his true calling in life: to be the drama member of an idol group

lmaooo catboy doing his best sales

ara and matakara making gyoza again 😭

matakara's brother is alive phew

lmaoooo the ending

well, I guess the ending would keep it open for a potential S2, if that were to ever happen. good episode with excellent animation, even though it didn't quite fulfill all of my desires for this show. would've liked mahoro to have a more active role in all this. this show also felt a bit limited by runtime and writing at times, but overall it was a pretty enjoyable experience with charming characters (who I would've liked to learn more about, tbh). matakara and ara's fight was amazing. I wanted more ichiya and senya than we got but I'm glad they resolved their issues too. I'm kinda curious as to what happened with ichiya after the fight. is he also in the bullet with senya, did he pass on, or is he in his own bullet? if it's the first option, I need a spinoff of their stupid domestic lives inside their separate spirit world

[greetings-humans]

Hi! I saw your Suo martial art anaylisis and it is such an interesting analysis!!

I know Nothing™ about martial arts, so bear with me for a moment if I make any stupid questions 🥲 but I'm truly curious!!

Would it do any difference whether the arm or the elbow was grabbed (and/or stopped(?)) before one another 🤔? Ex.: the first manga panel, we see how Suo takes hold of Kanuma's elbow (?), would it be enough strength (withou fucking up your joints aksbakd) to swiftly divert the punch?

If it would, I wonder if the animation was trying to convey the movement more slowly and ended up chunky, but honestly, because the fist is the first thing in the manga panel, we can safely assume that was what happened first (in which case, rip joints).

Uhm, minimal spoilers (I am at 88 rn) it seems like Satoru Nii is learning about what not to do™ in martial arts because I don't think Suo has tried to pull that out since so... Maybe Satoru Nii didn't know or learned about it later and it was too late to change previous chapters (we creators have a vice with cool poses without thinking about realism aksbkadb) but implemented the changes later.

Anyways sorry for the ramble!!! Thank you for the analysis, it was very cool 🥰

omg hiii! i hope this hasn't been sitting in my asks for too long. now let's get started!

first of all, curiosity is like the best thing ever. it's wonderful, it's awesome, and im happy to help so don't worry about stupid questions!

"Would it do any difference whether the arm or the elbow was grabbed (and/or stopped(?)) before one another 🤔?"

well, what you grab first is usually what's closest, so not really? if you're doing it properly then it's fine. you don't really want to hold on to your opponent, tbh, unless you're a lot stronger and you know they can't break the hold, so you can/want to prove a point.

usually, the tactic is

1) deflect incoming hit by grabbing (the grabbing isn't mandatory, tho, you can simply deflect. ppl tend to grab when they want to stay close, usually to attack back, so keep that in mind)

2) hit as much as you're planning on

3) let go & depending on the context, run or wait for the opponent's next move. in a mock fight in a dojo, you don't really want to run for the hills, lmao, but in a street fight, i don't see why you shouldn't run like a bat out of hell.

(for reference, after this point there are minor plot spoilers for up until ep 4/ch 8 and spoilers suo's fighting style which you first see at ep 5/ch11-12)

"Ex.: the first manga panel, we see how Suo takes hold of Kanuma's elbow (?), would it be enough strength (withou fucking up your joints aksbakd) to swiftly divert the punch?"

i'm not really sure what panel you're talking about, cause suo largely deals with wrists and punches, not elbows/elbowing, especially in his fight with kanuma. but assuming suo at some point in his fight with kanuma grabbed kanuma's elbow here's my commentary.

scenario 1: kanuma starts with a punch, suo tries to get his elbow.

first of all, boooo!!! if someone is about to punch you, suo, darling, then how did you end up not deflecting the punch and going for the elbow? 0/10. if you have an incoming punch, your first thought is to deal with the incoming punch. don't make it hard on yourself. just slide to the side and knock away the punch with your forearm or your open palm. This doesn't really require any crazy amount of strength. Of course, the more built you are the easier it is, and if you have any issues with your muscles or nerves, it'll hurt more, but that's the basic disclaimer always (or at least, near-always) there in martial arts.

scenario 2: kanuma attempts to elbow suo, who goes for said elbow

okay, look, grabbing the point/tip of the elbow with his hand would hurt more than doing what I recommend and it's just so unnecessary. so assuming, that kanuma tried to punch suo and suo like deflected/ducked/moved away/wtv. and then kanuma used the punching arm that's extended to elbow suo. here's what suo should be doing right about then. he should be putting his hand(s) up to stop the elbow. his forearm(s) (blocking with forearms is super recommended, it's the greatest!) should end up on kanuma's bicep. and then suo should just side-step in a deflection (suo likes them, and so do I) and then keep the fight going (or alternatively, he could sucker punch kanuma in the face cause they would be very close in the sequence I'm describing!).**

"If it would, I wonder if the animation was trying to convey the movement more slowly and ended up chunky, but honestly, because the fist is the first thing in the manga panel, we can safely assume that was what happened first (in which case, rip joints)."

Now, since i'm not really sure what scene you're talking about i can't comment much here. What I can tell you is that, I agree in general. The animators are trying to make it look smooth, cool, and impressive in slow-mo, but without some research, they obviously ended up making a bunch of mistakes. The technique is easily seen in slow-mo, but they don't know the proper technique(s) so yeah, ofc it had me ranting lol.

"Uhm, minimal spoilers (I am at 88 rn) it seems like Satoru Nii is learning about what not to do™ in martial arts because I don't think Suo has tried to pull that out since so... Maybe Satoru Nii didn't know or learned about it later and it was too late to change previous chapters (we creators have a vice with cool poses without thinking about realism aksbkadb) but implemented the changes later."

Don't worry about spoilers, I'm at chapter 144, lol. So I can safely tell you that he doesn't get that much better, unfortunately😭😭😭

He avoids some super blatant mistakes like the palm thing with suo, from what I remember, but he's drawn other iffy moves. And like, it's not his fault that he doesn't know! I'd just appreciate it if he looked into martial arts a bit before making a whole-ass manga about it, from where I'm standing😭

I do love it that they look cool generally, like I'm a writer so I also write unrealistic stuff for the coolness factor. this just doesn't look cool to me when they're doing the weirdest stuff ever when fighting--

anyways,,,, sorry i ranted back at you!! i just wanted to address everything! hope this answers your questions!!

and hey hmu in the asks with thoughts on the manga, if you want! i'd love to talk about it with more people<33 (no pressure tho!!) [this stands for anyone rll lol]

**honorable mention to my bsf @fifteenth-entity who had to get up and help me choreograph a fake fight sequence to figure out the details of kanuma & suo's moves (noel: i have excellent elbows) (dee: he really does, super pointy, glad they weren't actually hitting me)

[chalkrevelations]

So, I already compared my disappointment with Last Twilight to my disappointment with Only Friends, but until I saw someone explicitly refer to Jimmy and Sea as a branded pair somewhere in all the response to the final ep, that similarity didn't hit me. But yeah. I almost posted after Ep 11 that I would prefer Mork and Day end up apart, although I was holding on to the hope that Ep 12 would give me some reason to think that Mork shouldn't just say, "Nope. I have supported you and supported you and supported you, and the minute I needed some support, you cut my legs out from under me and left me to bleed out in your yard like garbage that needed to be collected, so I think maybe this is not the best relationship for us me to be in." Sadly, not only did this not happen, but the show turned Mork into even more of a doormat, apologizing for things he hadn't even done. Stop lying to your dead parents, Mork, you have not found someone who'll support you, unless you very literally mean financially. Love yourself more.

It took re-framing Jimmy and Sea in my head as the branded pair that they are for me to viscerally realize that ending the show with Mork and Day apart was never going to happen - no matter how much character damage, both within the narrative and metatextually, it meant doing to Mork, in particular, to keep them together. The toxic elements of the MorkDay relationship, along with Mork's trauma, had to be overlooked in a rush to jam the characters together so they could end as a HEA couple. Just like the toxicity of couples in Only Friends had to be overlooked - like a tablecloth thrown over a sink full of broken dishes - for them (and their branded-pair actors) to end up as HEA couples. (Don't get me started again how the characters for the non-branded pair had to have their characterizations warped and the relationship set on fire to catastrophize their ending because they were the only "safe" bad ending, despite damage it did to both character arcs.)

This does not make the thought of watching more bl with branded pairs very compelling. At least not from a production company that has shown itself to be so completely risk-averse in the final analysis.

I guess I've got time to get back to Kiseki: Dear To Me, now, so there's that.