#As you can see handling that last ep so well

[mari-lwyd-fannibal-blog]

The first interview aka slagging off your ex for hours to your high friend who wanted to get railed by you in your coffin.

[frostwork]

Di Feisheng living through the great homosexual terrors Li Xiangyi continuing to die of terminal poison. Fang Doubing’s coming of age story that intertwines with the story of generational shifts anyway this show rules but I’m in pain I’m scared.

ALSO WOMAN PLEASE HE’S GAY THIS ISNT A COOL GIRLBOSS MOMENT YOU ARE SCARY like idk girlfriend look at other men? The man has literally never looked at you positively because while you were frothing with lust he studied the blade and never looked over sorry his head turned for his only martial equal girl he’s gay. I’m surprised a-mians shit ass loser man wasnt spreading rumors about feisheng and xiangyi being gay like woulda been more effective for the scandal or whatever and more believable frfr. Jiao girl saw one hot guy and decided to make that her deathstar ass weakness like what are we doing. Im not even punctuating right anymore girl. GIRLFRIEND STOP GET BACK IN THE CAR.

[arminsumi]

First request ever: Can you make a story about Gojo, where their both in a relationship but gojo had to end it because he was afraid that she would be in danger?

Thank you! Keep up the good work, I love your stories!!!

LET ME MARRY YOU

↳ GOJO さとる + fem!reader

The risk of dating you his too much for him to handle, so he breaks it off, only for him to come back to your doorstep years later and ask: "Let me marry you."

2k

Note : istg each time i edited this... the wordcount grew lol. i hope u enjoyyy 🥹💗 tysm for enjoying my work it means everything

Warnings : angst -> fluff (?) -> happy ending trust me, Shibuya arc spoilers (Ep 9), manga spoilers (chapter 221)

🍒 More from Jay : Gojo works / Gojo fave works / JJK works / oct. reqs open

The risk of dating you is thrilling when Satoru's just a teenager in puppy love. But as he grows older, and heads into those dreaded 20s, the risk makes him more and more nervous.

What if something happens to you?

He presses kiss after kiss to your forehead and feels his chest tremble, feels his lips quiver, as he refrains from telling you the truth about the Jujutsu world. Satoru just can't do it.

There are so many instances of him saving you from curses that you're oblivious about. He just smiles strangely, and you wonder why he looks like he's just seen a ghost. Because he has, those pretty eyes see ghosts. But those pretty eyes also see you, "What am I looking at?" he responds after you ask why he's looking at you so tenderly, "I'm looking at my future wife." he flirts just to fluster you.

That's at the cafe, when things are still simple. He keeps thinking to himself, as he lays with you in bed some nights;

I want to marry you.

I'm going to marry you.

Please let me be your husband one day.

As if he's trying to manifest it.

Everything is okay-ish... until he gets pangs of fright when your name starts to be known outside of his closed circle of friends.

It's October 11th.

Gojo Satoru breaks up with you.

He leads you to believe that the two of you are just "right person, wrong time". It all hurts an incomprehensible amount for him, to finally cut the string that tethers the two of you together.

He sits on the stairs, head in his hands, mourning.

He starts many mornings with crying spells that last until midday.

He destroys evidence of you and him. In case anyone ever finds it and thus finds your apartment, or work, or college... or anything.

But he can't part with a very special photo. It's you and him in Okinawa, sharing a cheesy kiss at the beach. In the moment this photo was captured, Gojo remembers having whispered some dirty joke in your ear and that's why you smiled so big into his kiss.

He drifts to sleep to the lullaby lovesongs that defined your love.

Years pass, he refuses to even talk to you. The heartbreak worsens with time, he laughs when he realizes that on his 27th birthday.

Isn't time supposed to heal all wounds? Someone said that to him once. Well, they must have been lying without realizing it.

The day Gojo Satoru is sealed, he looks into Suguru's eyes, and remembers you through them. When he resides in that awful prison realm, he only thinks of you you you you you you you oh god he misses you so much that it feels like the very thought of your smile stabs his chest. Every memory is painful. Every flashback puts one more crack in his heart.

"Can't I ever catch a break...?" He laughs to himself, chattering skeletons making their eerie symphony around him.

He thinks. Ponders. Wonders. Broods. Daydreams. All about you. Always about you. Never anything else. Just his first love, from the late spring of his 17th year.

His earthly goddess.

The purpose of his benevolent actions.

He cries. And sobs. And weeps. Because no one can hear him but the skeletons and he's sure they don't mind the sight or sound of a 27 man howling in pain over a lost lover.

It's not just your relationship that he's mourning. But the fact he can't feel you in this cube... that he can't feel your presence in the world... that's worse than the heartbreak. At least through all these years, he's been able to sense your existence. Feel the subtle ripples of your soul no matter how distant you are; you'd be stood in a coffee shop, he'd be at Jujutsu High teaching, and yet feeling you.

Because as he promised to you at 17, "Half my soul is yours. And half your soul is mine. I'll always be with you even if I'm not there."

He has the biggest breakdown of his life in that little cramped suffocating claustrophobic eerie creepy box.

It's 19 days later. He's out. He's back in the world. And he feels the sense of you, your existence, swelling in his chest, tickling his mind, prodding his heart.

"Gojo sensei, where are you headed?"

"I'm gonna go find my other half." he says cryptically.

It's a stark bright day.

Gojo Satoru knocks at your apartment door.

You open it.

He looks at you, and you look at him.

"Hi."

"...hey...? Wow. Haha... you grew into your features, huh?"

Your voice fills his heart with life.

"You too... glad you still live in the same place... I was worried you might have moved out..."

"... Ah, Satoru, you'd be able to find me no matter what corner of the world I resided in."

Your laugh fills his mind with pleasant memories.

There's an a magnetism between you and him just like there always used to be. It feels like two magnets connecting at last, after feeling the distant attraction throughout all these years of distance.

"You're right." Satoru says after a silence of just staring into your eyes.

"I'll always find my way home."

A silence ensues after he says this.

"...haha... don't cry... or I'll cry..."

"... Satoru... I thought of you every day after you left me at the station."

"... me too."

"... why did you leave?"

He stares at you.

"... I was scared of you being in danger."

He gulps.

"Me? In danger? But you're the strongest, why would it matter."

Oh god that's right. You said it then when you were 17, "You're the strongest" and he carried that title with him from then. And now you've said it again. He's reminded. He feels a bit stupid. A bit ridiculous. A bit...

"You're right..." he chokes up. "I am. I could have protected you I guess..."

"... yeah, duh."

He smiles meekly.

It was more complicated than that, sweetheart. But I won't tell you.

He hesitates. He contemplates.

"I have to tell you everything... will you promise to believe everything I say even if it sounds insane?"

"Of course. What is it?"

He inhales deeply. And instead of blurting out his whole life story of being a sorcerer in the Jujutsu world, he just leans in and kisses you hard and truthfully. Cups your cheeks. Closes his eyes. Tastes you like a sweet from his childhood that he hasn't had for years. Presses to you. Takes in your scent.

Yeah yeah... he'll tell you everything in a minute.

But for now just let him kiss you until he runs out of breath.

Let him just...

"Hey..." he pulls away, gasping, "Let me marry you."

"Haha, Satoru..." you take it as a joke and laugh, because it sounds as bizarre and unexpected as one. Then you realize there's that serious look on his face. "... Satoru?"

"Can I?"

"... what?"

"Can I please?"

"... huh??"

"Can I marry you, please?"

He looks at you and waits for your answer. His poor heart. It's palpitating. His whole chest cavity inspires with love for you. This man that you haven't seen in years has just asked if you'll let him marry you — with very specific wording.

Can he? Will you let him?

It's funny in a way, because you think to yourself; this is such a Satoru thing to do... show up unannounced years later on your doorstep and ask for your hand in marriage as if no time has passed, as if you know the full story.

"Satoru... what happened to you throughout these years for you to come back to me and ask for my hand in marriage?" you ask, genuinely baffled.

He swallows slowly. "I know I sound like I've lost my mind. But I promise I haven't."

"That's hard to believe. The Satoru I remember was always on the brink of mania. A bit insane but not quite."

You make him laugh. "Yeah..."

"So are you asking to marry me out of insanity?"

"No."

"Well alright then. I guess I'll marry you."

You make him laugh again, with that funny tone. He hasn't laughed genuinely in years... it's always been that plastic laugh. But this is his genuine laugh. Silky and quiet. The opposite of his demeanor.

"I guess I should be explaining everything to you properly... before I ask you something like that."

"You're damn right..."

"... don't scold me too hard when I tell you all the reasons I left. Or, if you do, then at least hold me while you scold me. And run your fingers through my hair like you used to."

"Satoru."

"Yes?"

His heart throbs. He looks at you.

"Stop standing at the doorway and come inside."

"Oh."

You sigh. He smiles. Then he bows his head so it doesn't hit the top of the doorframe. Damn tiny Tokyo apartments. Your archway always had it out for the crown of his head. You laugh when he bumps into it just like he always used to.

So the two of you sit down and just talk. And talk. Maybe cry a bit. Actually, you cry a lot. And he holds you. And he says he's sorry. He says sorry over and over, as if the word is a bandage he's trying to wrap around all your heartbreak wounds that he caused.

"I'm sorry."

Satoru's apologies aren't easy to come by, and when you receive them, they nurse your heart. It's the gentleness with which he says it, and earnest too. Each successive sorry means more than the last.

"My angel..."

When you call him this after he vents to you about his time in the Prison Realm, and his overwhelming duty of being the strongest, he breaks down completely and just weeps in your arms.

He sobs like you've never heard him sob before, like a dog.

Finally. At least for a moment. He could be weak. Let down his guard. Be raw. Be emotional. Not a teacher. Not a sorcerer. Just your boy. Your Satoru.

Your consolation is all he wanted throughout these years. He looks up at you, eyes red and sore, nose sniffling, and stares at you like he can see your soul.

"...Satoru?"

"Marry me."

You chuckle again.

"If that will stop your tears..." you joke.

He sniffles loudly and swallows, composing himself.

"I thought about marrying you so much when we were together... 'n I tried so hard to bite my tongue when your name nearly rolled off it while talking to my students some days. I was always..."

On the verge of saying your name.

He sniffles long and hard and waits for your hand to weave into his hair.

"Will you think about it?"

"I will."

There's a silence. Satoru feels hopeful. He lays on your chest, arms around you like you're his whole world that he won't dare let go of again.

"There." you say with finality. "I thought about it. Let's get married."

"That took you, like, ten seconds."

You laugh with him. "Yeah... I already knew in my heart when you asked me at the doorway... you know... Satoru... it's funny. When you left, it felt like half my soul was gone. And when you knocked on my doorstep, it felt like I was whole again. Does that sound freaky, or does it tie into all this... Juju... Jujutsu stuff?"

He's silent.

"I have no idea."

"Wow. My future husband isn't knowledgeable at all." you joke.

His heart flutters at 'future husband'.

"Sorry." he says, smiling softly, "My mind is blank when your fingers are running through my hair."

The two of you go on and on, until you're laid in bed sleeping at each other's side. Resting. And god, did Gojo Satoru need a good rest.

In your arms, he's no longer an insomniac.

© arminsumi

Do not plagiarize / repost / translate / copy layouts / etc.

Do not steal what I've worked hard to create.

[wen-kexing-apologist]

I'M BACK BABY! Takara's Treasure, Ep. 7 Scene Breakdown

I was settling in to bed last night when @twig-tea screamed so hard about this week’s Takara’s Treasure episode that I felt the need to get out of bed and watch it immediately. 

WORTH. 

IT. 

After months and months off writing essays, I’ve finally started getting back in to it and today I want to do a scene breakdown of Taishin’s confession scene because- 

TAKARA I SEE YOU! YOU CAN LIE TO YOURSELF! YOU CAN LIE TO TAISHIN! BUT YOU CANNOT LIE TO ME! 

First of all, let’s acknowledge that the episode starts with Takara ever so gently pulling the covers up more over Taishin, such a simple act of care to make sure this boy stays warm and comfortable. He continues that warm and comfortable trend with the coffee that he makes for Taishin when he finally wakes up. 

gif by @usertoxicyaoi

We get our first initiation of physical touch from Takara under the guise of checking Taishin for a fever. And Taishin looks at that man like a marvel. Konoshi Eito truly capitalizes on those baby doe eyes of his for this character and it works so well. Takara lingers, lingers, lingers by Taishin’s side until the moment that Taishin starts to apologize for being rude the night before. Now, that apology is almost certainly for taking his bed and making Takara sleep on the floor, but crucially Taishin did something else last night that might have Takara a little bit hesitant about apologies. 

But Takara never allows himself to have emotions, and the conversation he is about to start is one that is liable to actually cause some level of emotion to arise. So what does he do?

HE SCURRIES HIS LITTLE ASS AS FAR ACROSS THE APARTMENT AS HE POSSIBLY CAN. HE SANDWICHES HIMSELF BETWEEN THE BED AND THE COFFEE TABLE. 

gif by @ellsieee

Takara needs distance, if he is going to handle emotions then he needs the physical distance between them. When he sits, his eyes automatically go down towards the floor, his head does too, he makes his body slack, keeps his posture loose and open, playing at a level of availability and openness he definitely is not capable of achieving. His eyes move first to look towards Taishin and his head follows, opening himself just a little bit more. 

The staging of this scene is brilliant because Takara is sitting behind a glass table we can see his entire body. But Taishin is sitting behind a wood table, so we can only see the upper half of his body, which results in a much more closed off feeling, irrespective of how tense Taishin’s body is (and it is tense). 

gif by @usertoxicyaoi

The part that absolutely kills me about this scene the most is Takara’s face when he asks Taishin if it was a joke. He is definitely not making eye contact at first, and to me personally it doesn't even look like he’s firmly rooted in his own body. It takes him an eternity to settle his gaze back on Taishin’s face like he is assessing Taishin, gathering information about his reaction, and even if the way he sits is loose, there is no question in my mind that Takara is steeling himself to ask the question, steeling himself to the possibility that Taishin was just joking and Takara’s crush (which he refuses to admit he has) is not reciprocated. And Taishin is so tense. Takara’s hand is resting on his knees, his hand is open, and Taishin’s hands are closed in to a fist but he has barely ever tears his eyes away from Takara. When he does, it’s clearly out of overwhelm and embarrassment rather than Takara’s lack of eye contact that is fueled by fear and practiced repression. 

gif by @usertoxicyaoi

When Taishin is hesitating over the words, when he starts to admit that he wasn’t joking Takara’s eyes are GLUED, intensely, unblinkingly on Taishin. And the second that the truth is out, the second that Taishin is himself emotionally honest and vulnerable, and admitting to this crush, he slides his arms off the table and sinks them in to his lap.

Super fucking tense about the whole ordeal. When he admits to liking Takara he starts with eye contact and ends without it, and Taishin immediately believes that Takara is not happy with his confession because Takara looks away. (and because Takara is hot and popular and certainly has had far too many people crushing over him). 

gif by @usertoxicyaoi

I just cannot get over the way Takara engages in this conversation, every single time he starts speaking he has to look away from Taishin, to me it literally feels like he cannot look Taishin in the face until he is certain no emotion is going to leak out with his words. He cannot look at Taishin until he is certain he has control. 

And even though it is Takara that initially puts the distance between them, it is Takara that calls Taishin to his side when the truth is out. It is Takara that reaches out and takes Taishin by the wrist and pulls him down at his side. I love the dichotomy between these two, Taishin could not hide an emotion to save his life, so all his control has to go towards keeping them from spiraling in to something huge, thus he is tense, he is curled in on himself when he sits down. Takara cannot show an emotion to save his life, so all his control is dedicated towards making himself seem uncaring and calm. 

photo from @biochemjess's far more succinct post

When Taishin sits down next to Takara, Takara having invited him in to space, Taishin is crying, and once again it is Takara that initiates contact. Soft and caring contact, as he brushes away Taishin’s tears with his thumb. But now that he is up close and personal with Taishin he makes Taishin do all the rest of the work. He can’t admit that he likes Taishin too, he has to talk in riddles, he has to make Taishin try different questions until he settles on the right one. 

Seriously though, watch this scene and see that every single time Takara starts a sentence he looks away from Taishin first. And then we get to my FAVORITE PART. 

“There’s a win-win scenario, isn’t there?”  BECAUSE TAKARA DOES NOT LOOK AT TAISHIN AT ALL WHEN HE SAYS IT, OR EVEN IN THE SILENCE AFTERWARD, AND HE SWALLOWS HARD WHILST TAISHIN IS LOOKING DIRECTLY AT TAKARA PRETTY MUCH THE ENTIRE TIME. This is Takara getting as close to admitting his feelings as he possibly can, and he can’t even face Taishin head on at any point. Where normally he will eventually look at Taishin directly to read his reaction, here he only leans his head in a little, like he’s listening for something, he looks out of his periphery of his vision rather than turning his head to see Taishin clearly. He is not giving Taishin the chance to read him, he is not giving himself the chance to read Taishin, he is simply nervously waiting for a response. 

And there is something to the way that Takara’s head moves upright, his body gets a little bit straighter, seems a little bit more open when he tells Taishin to try asking him on a date. And in their own little mirrored image, when Taishin asks Takara to go on a date with him, he is looking away from Takara and Takara is looking directly at him.

gif by @usertoxicyaoi

AND THEN TAKARA POUNCES. Seriously there is barely a breath between “there you said it” and Takara pinning Taishin to the bed and kissing him. 

gif by @usertoxicyaoi

That man has been holding back for far too long. The first time he makes direct eye contact with Taishin is immediately after the kiss when he agrees to date Taishin. Taishin has confessed, Taishin has asked, Taishin has not reacted poorly to the kiss, Taishin’s feelings are his own, Takara’s desire has not influenced Taishin’s decision and now Takara can face him. 

gif by @usertoxicyaoi

And the second Taishin goes back to emotions, the very moment he asks Takara “you like me too?’ Takara goes right back to his detached, uncaring facade. He looks away from Taishin, he physically turns his entire body. He denies the statement. He can’t allow himself to want anything, to be seen to be wanting anything. Takara admits that he was planning to let his feelings go if Taishin didn’t catch on, then admits to being upset and annoyed when Taishin started to back away (again he says this without looking at Taishin). 

And the very first time Takara smiles in the entire scene, and hell one of the first time he truly smiles in the show is in response to Taishin’s reaction to the kiss. The way Taishin is still processing what happened, the way he touches his lip. And I love so much that after all the stoicism from Takara and all the tension from Taishin, we end the scene with Takara smiling and Taishin in a more relaxed and open body position.

[helluvapurf]

...so uhhhhh, "Apology Tour" was... *interesting*-

Didn't even seem that long ago since "Full Moon" came out so I didn't expect another ep drop this morning, buuuut welp! Lets discuss:

First off just to smoothen things up a bit, The Positives:

-Animation & visuals were quite pretty, and wasn't expecting the whole "spooky Halloween" aesthetic at Verosika's party (tho that may just be the summer season speaking lol) but hey, I kinda dig it~ 👀

-Verosika in-general, I was super stoked to see more of here! 💜and even with her staying pretty sassy/bitter towards Blitz... its honestly hard not to feel for her once she & him finally had that one-on-one convo (even revealing that she did legit love him... but Blitz simply couldn't stay with her due to his own commitment/intimacy issues ;-; ). And even if it was technically more of a pettiness move to theme her party around hating Blitz... in a way, its lowkey kinda sweet how much she wanted to help others "heal" from heartbreak? Aww... 🥺 Idk, do I still wish Verosika could've been more of the "major" character focus here (as Fizzarolli was in his past couple eps)? Absolutely. But for what its worth... I had fun watching her as I did💗 (& hopefully this won't be the last time Verosika appears story-wise, cause oml imagine the bonding potential of her, Blitz & Fizz as a reunited trio lol)

-That one incubus dude that flirted with Stolas (+kissed him) at the end seemed like a chill dude. Even if he most likely won't appear again, his vibe was fun to watch lol.

-OH, we finally get to see Mrs. Mayberry again, sweet~! :> ...and, she's apparently dating Martha now? Huh, thats... interesting, I guess? .3. (*wonder what happened to her husband/kids tho, 'cause I kiiiinda thought they would've landed in Hell too ngl-*)

...aaaaand okay yeah, that'll cover the Positives I've got atm. Now for The Negatives... ohhhhh boy:

-I... guess I'm not super alone in this opinion rn from what I've read from other fans, buuuuut... Stolas can you shut your entitled-hypocrite-mouth up for five minutes, please?? 🤦‍♀️Like, I know the dude's still reeling from how "Full Moon" ended, so him being in a mixed mood is to be expected tbh... but omllllll the way he was just SO smug, dramatic and pushy about being the "good guy" in how he & Blitz ended (-as if HE wasn't the one who set up their whole "transactional" dynamic since the start of the freakin' show?? =_=), even whining about the events of "Western Energy" (-when all Blitz was doing was prioritizing his daughter's well-being at the hospital, like a good dad should), was just... seriously?? >> Like... yes, Blitz may be a whole mess himself with how he's treated others (esp poor Verosika 💔), but that does NOT make Stolas a saint with how he handled things himself. From hanging the Grimoire over Blitz's head, creeping on him again & again, practically ragdoll-ing the poor guy's feelings during the crystal exchange (not even skipping a bit when Blitz was close to crying), aaaaand not to mention...

...so like, tell me how I'm expected to believe Blitz is the one who needs to do all this apologizing/groveling... WHEN HE DIDN'T EVEN DO ANYTHING TO STOLAS EXCEPT (RIGHTFULLY) CALLING THIS BLUEBLOOD BIRD OUT ON HIS BS?? 😑

*sighs* Sorry, didn't mean to get heated there but... yiiiikes is this show sending so many mixed messages of where I'm supposed to stand with these two, I can't keep up anymore- 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

-As much as I get what the ep was trying to do in having Blitz see past his own ego/apologize to others… Iiiiii'd be lying if I said I didn't feel just a tad bit uncomfortable at the increasing Blitz hate, throughout the party-sequence ^^; Like, I know he's a shitty guy who's done shitty things, and absolutely he needs to recognize how much he's hurt those like Verosika (& his other exes)… buuuuut tying into my previous point, it just rings rather unfair that most of this seems mostly spurned from him rejecting Stolas, of all people? ._. When… again, they were NEVER an actual couple like him & Verosika were, instead were just a simple once-a-month hookup deal that soured 'cause of Stolas' mess of a "confession"… y'all really expect me to believe Blitz is the bad guy for not immediately accepting the "feefee's" of a privileged, horny prince (aka: the one who did hold the Grimoire over his head since S1's "Murder Family")? …Ehhhh, sorry but I am NOT buying that crap lmao -x- 👎

[bengiyo]

Last Twilight Ep 10 Stray Thoughts

Last week, Day talked to his dad and got some closure about how his dad left his mom and them. Then, Mhok and Day decided to take a side trip to climb the mountain featured on the Last Twilight book. They ended up using the same homestay as the author, and learned that he went on an international journey so that his daughter, who was losing her visions, could see lots of beautiful things. They managed to reach the top of the mountain and had an emotional moment as Day’s remaining eyesight failed.

This is how you start an episode! Immediately into the mom conflict.

Ouch, they made Mhok stay outside for this appointment.

Currently feeling a little sorry for the mom because I understand her being jealous that she wasn’t present for Day’s final moments of vision, feels complex responsibility about making sure they continue to be wealthy enough to care for Day, and also probably is just scared because she feels so powerless. I get the instinct to exert control in some way, even if it’s over Mhok for overstepping in his role.

I’m also glad Mhok made the choice to quit on his own. He’s too close to Day now to serve as his caregiver in a professional capacity.

“Keep it secret. Keep it safe.”

Not keen on the mom being okay with Day regressing.

“Mom, I love him,” is not a winning play here, Day.

Oh no mom hired that patronizing guy from earlier.

At least Mhok got the car back.

I kinda wish Mhok had been holding a boom box in this phone call scene.

She said, “I’m not homophobic. Mhok is just too broke to be with you.” If we’re going down this route, I hope this ties back into the earlier stuff about Day choosing to quit school.

Mm, I do not approve of her taking Day’s phone.

I am glad Porjai called Mhok out on prioritizing Day over himself. I was wondering if we’d do anything else with Mhok’s ex-con status. Not sure how I feel about him picking up culinary skills since he started taking care of Day and changing careers. I was hoping his technician skills would stick around.

She changed the wifi password too? WTF

Mark Pakin is still so, so good. He continues to absolutely crush huge emotional moments that involve a face journey. I like this reconciliation with the brothers. There’s really nothing else for Night to say.

Hold on, what have Porjai and Night been up to? Fill me in!

Okay! That’s his child?? I’m here for this. Good job, Mark and Namtam. So much with so little.

This painting class looks like a lot of fun.

I like the Day has adapted to his system and can find the shirts he wants now.

Oh, Mark, you are selling Night feeling like he doesn’t get noticed by the mom so well.

I’m sure Julia Child would be happy to see these people crying into a beef stew.

This family scene is very charming, but I ain’t forget that she took that man’s phone and changed the Wi-Fi password.

Curious about ending on the eye donation.

I don’t like how we just seemed to forgive the mom, because I did not like the way she handled literally anything this episode. We had Porjai point out that Mhok had spent too much time thinking about Day, and only mentioned his job struggles as a quick aside. Yeah, we saw his issues earlier, but I feel like we should have spent more time with Mhok this episode seeing him step back into the reality of his world. In a less egregious way, this is a lot like the Dangerous Romance issue, where we switched perspectives after one or two episodes and never really went back.

[visualtaehyun]

KluenDao anon - I'm so sorry but tumblr ate your ask because it's stupid and couldn't handle my long-ass reply 😭

I hope this post reaches you anyway and please excuse the long wait! You'll hopefully understand once you see how lengthy this got dsjhdfjs This is the post referred to, my second-ever post about Thai language in Thai QL, from over a year ago :o

Lemme first page @airenyah though hehe feel free to chime in if I missed or glossed over anything~ I quickly had to realize btw that there was no point in asking you for timestamps since I had completely forgotten they'd moved SIMM over to VIKI 🙃

Disclaimer, as per usual: not a native Thai speaker! I am very much still learning 🙏

In the beginning and all the way into at least ep. 7, they use rude familiar pronouns กู /guu/ & มึง /meung/ (=I & you) and rude informal particles วะ /wa/, เว้ย /woei/ etc. same as all of their friends!

In the Freshy Boy promo vids they both talk about how they'd speak to a partner:

"If you had a partner, how would you refer to yourself?"

They both say they'd call themselves by name, instead of using a 1st pers. pronoun. It can indicate familiarity and sounds cute. Daonuea emphasizes that 'Dao' is reserved for people who are special to him (both being referred to as 'Dao' by others as well as calling himself 'Dao' as a 1st pers. pronoun).

"And what would you call your partner?"

The misunderstanding about Daonuea's brother Fah being his boyfriend stems from how they talk to each other - same as how everyone assumes that Kluen and Gia are dating! Both the brothers and the besties (who are like siblings to each other anyway) call each other and themselves by name, just as both of them said they'd do with a partner.

Every relationship and pair of siblings is different of course. For context, the brothers in Last Twilight for example also have a large age gap but use กู /guu/ & มึง /meung/ with each other, disregarding seniority. Others yet again may call the older one พี่ /phi/ (=lit. older sibling) while the younger one speaks politely, like Ongsa and her older sister in 23.5.

Apart from pronouns, there's also the matter of particles. Earlier I said that KluenDao start out using impolite particles. But with Fah and Gia, who they're close to, they use other particles. Here's an instance of Kluen using polite particle ครับ /khrap/, expressing sweet politeness, and Gia replying using another particle:

- ครับเจีย /khrap Gia?/ - หันหลังหน่อยจ้าา /han lang naawy jaaa/

The particle จ้า /jaa/ (or จ้ะ /ja/ and จ๊ะ /ja/ actually) is a bit difficult to explain but I'm gonna try 🫠 It's mostly used by people more senior/older for younger people/juniors. If the addressee is close to or related to the speaker, you might hear them use it back in response, affectionately. In Thai QL, you'll hear it used this way by parents or grandparents when talking to their kids and their kids' friends, for example:

Kluen's mom to Daonuea: จ้ะ /ja/

Between equals, be it friends, partners etc., it can similarly 1) express closeness and familiarity but it can also be used 2) teasingly or sarcastically:

Sean: ชนะใจเพื่อนกูนี่แหละจ้าาาาา /cha na jai pheuuan guu nee lae jaaaaa/

Emphasizing the vowel length like Gia (and Sean!) does up there, is why the translation choice came out to 'will you?', it gives a bit of?? attitude?? basically. Polite particles like ครับ /khrap/ can be used that way too, in fact, you hear the gang in Star in My Mind do so a lot. You could compare this use of particles to how you can sound teasing or condescending in English when saying something overly polite to someone you're close to like 'And what exactly are you doing there, miss?' or 'Yes, sir!'

Daonuea also uses polite particle ครับ /khrap/ with Fah sometimes, to play up the cute baby bro mostly lol Here for example he's trying to get his brother to come watch the contest by basically doing อ้อน /aawn/:

Tough luck that Kluen's timing is always the absolute worst lmao so he came in right when Daonuea turned up the sweetness compared to earlier in the conversation. And Daonuea, bless his heart, confusingly only tells Kluen that Fah is his พี่ /phi/:

Literally anyone who's older qualifies as พี่ /phi/ so of course Kluen would go How is that special??? lmao It's only after the contest that Daonuea finally properly introduces Fah as his พี่ชาย /phi chaai/ = older brother.

So! At that point, no one but Fah gets to call Daonuea 'Dao', everyone else calls him 'Nuea' or 'Daonuea', including Kluen of course. He does (at least once) call him 'Dao' though, that night the gang get shit-faced drunk in their dorm and everyone but Kluen is passed out already. He calls out to Daonuea to wake him up:

มึง ดาวเหนือ ดาว ดาว /meung. Daonuea. Dao. Dao/ = [Hey] you/Dude. Daonuea. Dao. Dao.

When everything is finally getting cleared up in ep. 7, Kluen changes his way of speaking to Daonuea. He stops using rude pronouns and particles and starts referring to himself by his own name and to Daonuea by his:

คลื่นขอโทษนะ /Kluen khaaw thoht na/ = I'm sorry. คลื่นรักดาวเหนือนะ /Kluen rak Daonuea na/ = I love you.

But Daonuea doesn't switch along with Kluen, he keeps using rude pronouns and particles. Meanwhile Kluen slowly starts calling him 'Dao':

- ดาวอ่ะ นั่งทำให้คลื่นจนดึกเลย /Dao a nang tham haai Kluen jon deuk loei/ = You sat doing [this] for me until late. - จำไม่ได้วะมึง /jam mai dai wa, meung/

And here I'll just use a clip cause otherwise we'll be here for another 30 screenshots lol Please take note of how Dao still calls Kluen ไอ้คลื่น /ai Kluen/ (= informal, like the entire gang call each other) and uses rude informal particles วะ /wa/ and นะเว้ย /na woei/ as well as rude pronouns but--

He agrees to Kluen asking to be boyfriends by referring to himself as 'Dao' in the line "Thank you, too, for loving me":

In ep. 8, we start hearing Daonuea use their new pronouns more confidently when they're talking at Fah's condo with Kluen lying on Daonuea's lap again. Once Fah comes home, we get another bit of hilarity from Fah using rude pronouns with Kluen lol because he's still holding a grudge against him for causing his little brother so much pain in the past.

This is already long enough and I don't feel like rewatching Sky in Your Heart for their scenes djskdjshs so I'm just gonna skip right to Your Skyy 2 for a brief look at how they talk once their relationship has been established for a while: They call each other and themselves by their nicknames 'Dao' and 'Kluen', as previously established, and use polite particle ครับ /khrap/ A Lot - if you wanna know just how much, just listen out for any 'khap', 'khrap', khaaap' in the proposal scene or the scene where they wake up together:

- ตื่นแล้วครับ /dteuun laaeo khrap/ - ตื่นนานแล้วครับ /dteuun naan laaeo khrap/

In conclusion-- they are incredibly sweet with each other 🥹

Thank you for asking and reading, dear anon! If any Thai speakers read this and have any additions or corrections (especially about me struggling to explain the usage of จ้า and co. 🥴), please jump right in. 🙏

[sweetlittletangerine]

Why Queenie Exists or something

Hey there! So I don’t really know how to put together this theory in a cohesive way and I made this for fun, so keep that in mind if I jump around a bit.

But I’ve had this theory for a long time now, and the fact Kinger is one of the two characters getting major focus in the next ep has just hyped me up even more. (Guess who my favorite is you’ll never guess it.)

So… as a not-so-normal Kinger fan, there’s a certain someone else who’s been rattling around in my brain for a while too.

Yes. She.

My theory is about why she even exists in the first place from a narrative standpoint. I have many other theories but this one feels like one of my most concrete ones (imo ofc), So I thought I’d share it before ep 3 comes out, even if it won’t come out for a while. I mean, it’s very possible this is the ep we learn about her since I don’t think she’s gonna be very relevant for any other character’s stories outside of Kinger.

ANYWHO time to get to the theory itself.

So let’s start off with one question. (Well it’s two, but same deal.) Why does Kinger get a look-a-like? Why not the others? Hell, Gangle exists and she has the whole ‘comedy tragedy mask’ thing going on.

Well it’s simple, he’s been there the longest. I personally don’t believe he’s the first player to join the game, but he’s been there the longest out of our main cast (Of humans). So naturally, that brings up another question… how did he last so long?

This is where Queenie comes into play. She’s important in understanding why Kinger hasn’t abstracted yet, which would tell us, the viewers, how a person can prolong their abstraction.

So for starters, I 100% believe without a doubt the reason these two look so similar is because they entered the circus at the same time. This means they started off with the same level of “girl where tf am I” When they arrived.

Second, when you compare and contrast their appearances, you realize that their differences… don’t actually affect how their bodies function. (Assuming the bottom half of Queenie is like Kinger.) So, they also came into the game with the same body when it comes to how they work. They had to adjust to the same new features in the same environment.

So when you combine these two factors, they were basically given the same tools to work with to survive (for as long as they can).

But the most important part of this… is their personalities. I love the theory that the chess pieces they became are tied to their personalities, with people connecting how Kinger’s personality relates to the role of the king in chess. (For those that don’t know, the king is the weakest piece and the queen is the strongest.) People have used this as a base to figure out who Queenie could’ve been. But if this is true then that wouldn’t be all. When you think about the role and power of each piece, you realize they’re opposites. So the bottom line here is that they’re very different people.

This impacts how they process and adapt to their new environment. And this is why Queenie abstracted and Kinger hasn’t. Some people truly are more adaptable than others in the circus. Queenie couldn’t handle the place as well as Kinger, making her lose her mind and abstract first.

Hell, we can already see something about Kinger’s personality that could’ve helped him out. I think the fandom (including myself) overestimated how much of a scaredy cat he is. The more I think about it, the more I realize that he’s not afraid of the adventures. He’s afraid of the circus itself, which is probably tied to his trauma.

(I’m aware it’s only been two episodes, but the only time we’ve seen him panic during an adventure is when an abstracted Kaufmo entered the Gloink Queen’s nest, suddenly making the adventure way more dangerous.)

You could argue he’s so chill on them because of experience, learning that at the end of the day if someone gets hurt or lost, Caine can snap his fingers and bring them back to normal. There’s pain, but no serious harm.

However, maybe he learned this a lot sooner than we think, back when he was adapting to his digital life. He internalized the fact that he’s not going anywhere sooner/better than Queenie, and was able to ‘go with the flow’ better than her. Who knows, maybe Queenie avoided going on adventures, (wink wink nudge nudge to a character Kinger is oddly fond of in the group), which gave her more time to think about her situation and mental state. The adventures are a surprisingly effective distraction from all of that.

If the story itself is supposed to focus on why the characters are the way they are, then it’s going to focus on the characters as individuals. And considering the fact Kinger and Zooble’s characters are heavily tied to their identities, that’s probably going to be one of the main themes of ep 3. So it makes sense that the reason Kinger lasted longer is tied to who he is and how he copes with the world around him (both now and back then.) This would, by extension, explore the fact that Queenie was her own person too, and now that that person is gone. The abstracted characters were all people, people who lost themselves as they went mad, leading to their inevitable abstractions.

So uh, I guess that’s all for now. Posting things online scares me so idk if I’ll post more things like this, but I might. If you read through this whole thing, then thanks!

Back into the pit I go

[wendylianmartin]

Hi

Is it really going to be only 50 ep left for the last season? Is it me or the fact that I love castel swimmer asf❤️ bc it look a Lil short for everything that they will do I mean we get new plots and everything also if what I said remains you of the things you have to do I'm sorry I mean don't stress it can take one year if you are alright it's the most important 👍

Also will we get like... 5 or less or more anyway episodes where it's only them two flirting and making couples things or other things also?

(Adult scene too?) sorry I'm just asking like that if it's a no ok we let that work to the fans

I mean siren is 19 kappa 20 and siren said that kappa would make a good dad (it's fun he is the younger)

Anyway also big hugs by...wifi ?

And I love yur webtoon (I never think I could love something that much) and what you do too ✨have a nice day bye and thank you

Well I don’t yet know how many episodes will be in the final season so it might go over 50. I also don’t know if or when there will be more mini episodes, I just have to see how the season plays out.

And as for adult scenes, no there won’t be any sex scenes. The comic has a tone that is aimed at more general audiences (there’s no cursing and it’s pretty lighthearted with a lot of silly moments) there are darker scenes but I always try to keep it at a level that I think younger teens can handle.

I would like to explore more mature stuff in future comics aimed at adults but I don’t think that stuff fits with the tone of Castle Swimmer imo.

[marshallpupfan]

New Marshall Pics! (Season 10, Ep. 20)

It's been a while since I've done this, eh? Well, a new episode premiered early on KnowledgeKids, and I'm quite happy it did, since... well, you'll see!

The first segment - "Pups vs. The Hum-Flectors"

As you can see from the title card... it's an Ultimate Fire Rescue!! Wow, we haven't seen one of these in the original TV series since all the way back in season 6! As many of you know, the Ultimate Fire Gear is my favorite outfit of Marshall's, so I was of course thrilled to see him wear it again! And the Ultimate Fire Truck, too... that thing is legit cool. :)

Just some before-the-mission screenshots before I get to the good stuff. The pups were digging holes for some plants, if you're curious.

And now, some pics during the mission! Again, it was awesome seeing Ultimate Fire Marshall again! However, you want to know the other big surprise?

...THERE WAS AN ACTUAL FIRE!

Unlike the theatrical films, the TV series often shies away from fire. It's always either off-screen, implied, something smoldering or getting too hot, or in the case of Sparks (from Rescue Knights), his "fire breath" is more of a hot mist. The last time we seen an actual uncontrolled fire was... all the way back in season 1. And yet, they had an actual fire in this episode... TWO, in fact! Color me surprised!

My only complaint is that, despite what I described, the whole thing felt kind of... small in scale. Marshall's regular gear and firetruck could've easily handled the situation just fine, and the other stuff just required two pups in their normal gear. Still, I won't pass up the opportunity to see my favorite character in his best outfit!

And the second segment - "Pups Save a Capybara".

I don't have much to say about this one. Tracker's involved, so that's cool. Anyone notice the cartoon seems to be using him a lot more lately? Either way, outside of him, it was just Chase and Zuma. Otherwise, Winnie Winnington showed up again, and I won't blame you if you don't remember who she is. Overall, not as good as the last segment, but it's hard to compete with an Ultimate Fire Rescue. ;)

That's all for now!

[fortpeat]

Love Sea EP 2 review

When Love Sea was announced and Both Fort and Peat kept saying that Love Sea is spicier I told myself "you survived Fortpeat in Lita nyx, you will survive Love Sea as well pshhh" oh how much of a naive idiot I was coz after last night's episode it was cemented that Nyx might not survive the Love Sea Era ! 🫢🫢😳😳🫠🫠

COZ WHAT THE EVER LIVING HELL WAS THATTT OMGGGGGG 😱😱😱😱 I AM SPEECHLESS LIKE BFMSHDMWVNDHEK36!*:$(2-_(2-?_-_! MY BRAIN IS JUST ON STATIC MODE RIGHT NOW .... 🫠🫠🫠

(ok nyx deep breaths)

A part of me knew that the beginning of the episode might be Rakmut unhinged but this level of unhingedness is what I didn't expect coz oh boy oh boy.... Fortpeat ATE heir NC scene and did not even leave any crumbs hell they outdid themselves which I somehow didn't think was possible but they did thattttt 😱😱😱😳😳

Ok moving on ... This was a real rollercoaster of an episode coz we got steamy scene and then a soft scene where they open up about their past and why they do what they do 🥹🥺🥺 and then we got them flirting and then we got even more emotional scene with Rak's trauma surfacing like I couldn't take a proper breath for a single second ! 🫠🫠🫠

I can already see Rak's protective side towards Mut and I am LIVING FOR IT !!!! coz I am already feral for this Island boy 🥹🥹 LIKE FIGHT ME YOU MONSTERS WHO LAUGHED AT MY BABY !!! 😠😠😠😤

I loved how calm and collected Mut was in this scene even though what Rak did was reckless ... 🥹🥹🥺 He was so soft with Rak and my heart can only handle so much 🥹🥹🥹 BABIESSSSSS

Rak casually claiming Mut Infront of everyone 🫠🫠🫠 I am OKAYYYYY I AM TOTALLY OKAYYYY (she was infact not okay)

And Mut's obsession with Rak biting his lips 🫠🫠 - YOU KNOW I HAVE ONLY READ THIS KIND OF DIALOGUE IN FICTIONS AND TO SEE THAT ON MY SCREEEN.... I WAS NOT PREPARED Y'ALLLL I WAS NOT PREPARED...

All in all these two are just so horny for each other they put Paisky to shame 🤣🤣🤣 and I thought I was ready for this but clearly I am not ... But give me the next episode already COZ WE ARE GETTING RAKMUT CUDDLING 🥹🥹😍😍😍

Also this scene where Mut was pulling Rak from the depths of the ocean felt symbolic to how Mut will be the one to pull Rak away from the darkness thats in his life 🥹🥹🥹

[17snifflesandsnzes]

Hello! I have an odd request: can you do a Booseoksoon fic where Seungkwan gets sick while filming the fighting music video. But the odd part is can you include Youngji? Like as one of the caretakers if possible if not totally fine too!

Love your fics!

Thanks for the compliment! Sorry for the long waiting time 😅! Hopefully, it lives up to the hype! Hope you enjoy~!

We Will Always Have Your Back

BSS making a comeback after nearly 6 years was definitely a huge leap of faith for Seventeen. The song “Fighting” had been absolutely perfect for them, leading all 3 of them to want to work even harder for this comeback. Which is why Seungkwan was currently heading home at exactly 12 AM after having spent the entire day recording for the EP. As he was currently sharing a dorm with Chan, Seungkwan tiptoed into the apartment, careful not to wake the younger, only to find both Chan and Hansol awake and seated at the table. “You're back, hyung? It's pretty late…” Chan looked up from his phone, wine glass cradled in his hand and Seungkwan gave him a tired smile. “I know. I really needed to get my recording done perfectly, though.” Hansol gave him a deadpan look. “You should take better care of yourself, Seungkwan. You have to shoot the music video tomorrow, right? And here you are, out and about at 12 AM without a jacket on.” Seungkwan rolled his eyes before heading towards his room. “I'll be fine, guys. I've been through worse.” Both Chan and Hansol looked at each other skeptically as Seungkwan said that but he decided to ignore them. But just because you've been through worse doesn't mean that you won't be affected by the small things. Seungkwan definitely had to learn this the hard way.

Waking up the next morning was particularly difficult for Seungkwan. Mainly because he had a splitting headache. Cursing under his breath, Seungkwan forced himself to get out of bed. Even though his morning routine was basically muscle memory to Seungkwan, unsurprisingly, it took way longer today. When he finally dragged himself to the kitchen to get some food in his system, he found Chan already there, whistling as he made some ramen. “Morning, hyung!” Seungkwan winced at his not-so-loud-but-loud-to-him voice. “Morning.” Chan looked at him in concern at the utter lack of energy in his voice. “You okay, hyung? You sound super tired.” Seungkwan took a seat at the table and rested his head on the cool surface. “I'll be fine, Chan-ah. I'll have to be.” He heard the tell-tale sound of Chan sighing in exasperation as he placed a bowl of ramen in front of Seungkwan, but fortunately, Chan didn't say anything. After eating as much as his appetite could handle, Seungkwan was soon in his company car, driving to the music video set.

On arrival, Seungkwan was immediately swarmed by the other two members of BSS. Seokmin ruffled his hair and Soonyoung gave him a teasing look. “Oh, Seungkwanie~! How could you be late to shoot our first comeback in 6 years?!” He asked in mock-betrayal. Seungkwan rolled his eyes but there was no heat behind the action. “I got caught up in traffic, hyung! Of course I didn't want to be late!” Seungkwan pouted and Soonyoung and Seokmin laughed. “Let's get started then!” Seokmin said as he led the way to the cameras. Seungkwan braced himself for a long day. He could do this. He had to.

After about an hour into the shoot, Seungkwan had given up completely. His headache made him unable to focus on anything the director or his hyungs were saying, and he just wanted this day to end. After the first shooting was over, Seokmin approached him. “Seungkwan-ah, are you okay? You look like you barely slept last night.” Seungkwan sniffled lightly, the action causing a tickle to flare up at the back of his sinuses. He turned away from Seokmin and brought his hands up to cup his nose and mouth. “Hh'IkTChiHh!-” Seungkwan sniffled again, the sneeze having caused his nose to start running as well. When he turned towards Seokmin again, he could see the worry in his hyung's eyes. “Seungkwan-ah, are you sick?” Seungkwan shook his head, the action causing him to wince. Damn this headache. “I'll be fine, hyung. You don't have to worry.” Seokmin gave him an unconvinced look but didn't say anything.

The rest of the shooting was difficult, to say the least. Now that he'd sneezed once, it was almost impossible to hold back the tickling sensation at the back of his sinuses. After the first shoot, Seungkwan was supposed to shoot alone. Despite wanting to just curl up in bed and cry, Seungkwan tried to focus on the director's instructions. As he waited for the camera to start rolling, he felt the irritating tickle come back, and he immediately brought an arm to his face. “Ah, PD-nim, could you wait a sec…hh'IktChiHh!- hh'ItChiHh!-” Seungkwan sniffled wetly as the staff blessed him. “Seungkwan-ssi, are you ready to start now?” The director asked him kindly, and Seungkwan nodded immediately. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Seungkwan willed himself to be alright.

Miraculously, Seungkwan survived the rest of the shoot. Well, that was until they got to the shoot with Youngji, who was featuring in their song. She was bubbly as always as she greeted both his members and patted him, slightly harshly, on the back. Seungkwan tried his best to be his normal self, but he could tell that Youngji saw right through him. Before they began with the shoot, she approached him. “Are you okay, sunbae?” Seungkwan rubbed a hand over his face, turning towards her, plastering the biggest smile on his face. “I'm fine, Youngji-yah. You don't have to worry.” Just as Youngji was about to argue, Seungkwan felt the overwhelming urge to sneeze come back, and he pinched his nose between his fingers, eyes fluttering shut. “hh'NgtChiHh!- hh'ItChiHh!-” Seungkwan blinked away the irritated tears from his eyes, and Youngji patted his arm gently. “Sunbae, I think you're sick,” She said kindly. “You need to rest.” Seungkwan rolled his eyes at the tone of her voice, which sounded so obvious. “Youngji-yah, I can't just go back home on the day of the mv shoot of our first comeback!” He said, his voice rising with irritation. At that statement, he felt someone's arm wrap around his shoulders. “But you can, Seungkwan-ah. You need to rest when you're sick. We can shoot the mv some other time, and your health is more important.” Soonyoung ruffled his hair as he said that, and Youngji nodded as hard as she could. Seungkwan sighed. “Fine. I'll rest if that's what you want.” Seokmin managed to catch his last sentence, and he joined the three of them immediately. “Finally! Let's get you back home, Seungkwan-ah.” Seungkwan nodded, feeling the tickle at the back of his sinuses flare up again. Sniffling softly, he rubbed his nose with his wrist. Unfortunately, that did nothing to hold off the intense tickle. Admitting defeat, Seungkwan cupped his nose and mouth with his hands, gasping softly. “hh'IktChiHhh!- hh'IktShUhHh!-” “Bless you.” Seokmin said softly, putting an arm around Seungkwan. Seungkwan leaned against his hyung a little, drained out by the day.

Soon enough, his hyungs brought him back to his shared dorm with Chan. Chan himself wasn't home, but he'd left some kalguksu for Seungkwan. Soonyoung laughed immediately upon seeing that. “We really do know our members best. How did he know you were sick?” Seungkwan smiled softly, making a mental note to thank Chan later. “I think he caught on that I was sick this morning. He said that I looked too tired.” Seokmin nodded thoughtfully while Soonyoung heated up the kalguksu. Seokmin and Soonyoung kept him company while he ate, and as he entered his bedroom, Seokmin pulled him into a hug. “Get well soon, Seungkwan-ah! Let's film the mv once you're better!” Seungkwan nodded against Seokmin's shoulder while Soonyoung patted his head. And as Seungkwan got into bed, he realized these really were the moments he cherished the most with the members. Because he knows they'll always have his back.

[bluginkgo]

On today's Ginkgo rambles we have: the teaser, yet again. What? I really liked it.

Spoilers, duh

Instead of dissecting it again, which many smarter people have already done, I kinda wanna ramble about how well the teaser was well... a tease. It's titled The Beginning of the End. A bit cliche, but it works here both in the context of the end of this season, and hopefully the beginning of the second.

The beginning of the end that is called Season 1. And the beginning of the true end, that is the universe of Murder Drones- be it Copper 9 or the actual story.

Not to mention, this beginning of the end theme keeps up in the entire teaser. I guess you can say I'm a sucker for being nostalgic and seeing how far the show has come.

It starts with Uzi's Booting up// Exposition: "We are worker drones." Closely followed by what is happening to her as of Dead End. So much for the innocent worker drones, am I right? "It's not like we revolted and killed all humans or anything, mostly because they handled that just fine all by themselves." At this point, and especially in the teaser, it's heavily implied that maybe the humans didn't actually do that. Sure, they were probably the ones that caused it. But seeing as we get a shot of Tessa closing Nori's room/locker and then the core collapse from the pilot... eh, I don't know about you, but I think she's got something to do with it.

Then, we have N. His cute little introduction and his killings in the pilot, followed by Dead End's scenes. A disassembly drone- a demon that has been depicted so many times by other worker drones, one of THE murder drones of the series, reduced to nothing but a scrap of metal by sentinels. Not to mention the only person from his past, V, also in grave danger. We hear him call out to her just like in Dead End throughout the entire teaser. I also wouldn't be surprised if his last desperate call for V that we hear right before we get the actual scenes for eps 7 and 8, to be used as the trio fall down in the elevator at the beginning of ep 7.

Closely followed by V's first words. "And yet, I still feel nothing." Then we see her sacrifice at Dead End. From a simple and mindless murder machine to a friend and an ally who was willing to give herself up so the rest of the group would be safe. (D*mmit, V, come back queen😭)

Now as for something I don't quite understand/see. So please, feel free to point it out.

BUT WHERE DO PEOLE SEE THAT HER VISOR IS CRACKED? All I see is that her visor must be turned off, because the floor is reflecting in it.

Another thing I kinda wanna touch on briefly, is Uzi's hand.

As many people have already mentioned this, Uzi's hand lights are yellow. Of course, so far, this teaser has been for both episodes 7 and 8. So we can't confidently say what scene is from where. But this constant switching in Uzi's lights might lose its meaning. Of course, these might be the only times that Uzi's lights actually change. But if it isn't... the anxiety and fear that ought to come with seeing Uzi's purple lights turn yellow, might be less severe. Unlike in Dead End, it was both anxiety inducing and cool to see Uzi be posessed by Absolute Solver. Eh, it might be just me, though. Of course, teaser is just that. A tease. So there isn't much to go off of.

You crazy for making it through that entire useless rant. Have a cookie. ^_^

[dragonrider9905]

Hunter is not a villain for his caution….What did you take away from Ep 16?

A lot of people have been vilifying Hunter these past few episodes and while we love characters, they have flaws. I’m not saying he doesn’t. I can make fun of Hunter and will definitely call out his flaws but people are putting a lot on his shoulders. Do you not think he’s doing that as well?

“When will it be enough” when he’s talking to Echo. This statement seems cold but maybe he wasn’t talking snotty like us fans are doing so that’s why we took it that way? Fans are at each other’s throats. I saw disagreements but both loved and respected each other. Maybe he wasn’t saying “when will you have saved enough people” but rather “Echo when will you be at peace with all you’ve done?” Because Hunter knows this isn’t a winning fight. He knows the guilt Echo carries. Notice how it’s not a problem for Rex? He asked Rex once why fight and Rex has a totally different aura about it. He just knows it’s what he’s supposed to do. Echo is passionate and angsty. He’s driven by another force. Echo thinks about his time on Skako Minor a lot, as shown in S2 by his comments. How much has he shared with Hunter? Hunter still looking out for him?

I already shared a post about Hunter��s cautions about Crosshair’s warning here.

“I don’t know if it’s worth it” we literally watched Tech fall to his possible demise. THIS IS WHAT HE WAS AFRAID OF. The man wasn’t saying Crosshair wasn’t worth it, but maybe this chance was a foolhardy one to take and wait it out till they had a better one. He knew how sketchy it would be and it’s his call. He wasn’t going to take it lightly because the brothers and sister who are all he has left in the galaxy might be taken. The man is literally paralyzed in fear. We’ve seen him running and not facing problems. It’s not good but it is his coping mechanism. He’s not being mean, he’s choking up and dying inside. And he doesn’t argue when everyone of their own free will wants to go because he does want his brother safe.

“We’ve decided to settle on Pabu” he wasn’t giving up on Crosshair folks. Do you think Echo would drop the hunt not just for Crosshair but because there is a base full of clone prisoners somewhere? They thought Hemlock was killed in the explosion so there’d be time. He was a prisoner now not a lab rat. Once Echo had news, he’d probably share it and they’d bust their brother out. In the meantime….they are grieving Tech! Hunter literally shut down! His face when he told Omega he didn’t make it?! His eyes? And Omega didn’t handle it well when Tech fell OR when she woke up, adding to the fact SHE almost died. Think about someone you lost/almost lost. I know my thinking got emotional and protective when I was in that situation with people I knew.

Hunter is going after Omega, and is seemingly more determined to find her than Crosshair because he has nothing left to lose. Find Omega and find Crosshair. Omega was Hunter’s weakness in a way. If she wasn’t with them, he might have been more along Echo’s line of thinking earlier. Now that she’s taken, that last scene? Hunter’s face, man? That guy is out for blood. It is the first spark of determination and not tiredness in a long time. He’s getting his muster back. The baddassery is about to get real because he’s freakin sick of his family getting torn from him. Hunter needed to be pushed this way for the sake of his character writing. He needed to come to a breaking point. He lost so much when he was desperately trying to hold it together. That’s why he was so cautious. He didn’t want to see his brother fall. He’ll dream of this and blame himself because he sent Tech. He won’t sleep well because he’ll blame himself for Omega getting caught because he chose to go back to Cid’s right after her Almost dying. Sitting by her bed? That was one worried dad. So you expect him to want to keep fighting after she was hitting him because Tech didn’t make it?

We as fans need to stop thinking the worst right away. We need to be kinder and more cordial. We don’t have to agree because that’s the fun of it, to debate friendly certain ideas but the intense hatred for fictional characters who have real human flaws (which is what makes the writing intriguing) needs to end. You don’t have to like him, but please be fair, that’s all I ask. Crosshair has done plenty but it’s forgiven and overlooked (I love the man too guys, but let’s be honest, he’s morally grey.) we’re all grieving. I love Tech and that really hurt to see. Whether or not he’s really gone, I don’t know. But we’re all grieving so I understand being hurt.

I just needed to let it out.

[ctl-yuejie]

KoiNido ep. 5: a break-up episode done well

Over the first half I was busy being happy about how this show doesn't go the tropy route without considering the characters (Miyata confronting this newly appeared "rival" with confidence, mild annoyance towards Iwanaga's popularity and possible past hook-ups and possessiveness) so when he show ramped up to the break-up I was in denial. At that point an impending break-up felt at odds with their characters.

Until Miyata couldn't answer the question of whether he loves Iwanaga and then posed the suggestion of a break-up.

As soon as Iwanaga in return suggests to take a break with the relationship, we can see in Miyata's eyes that he doesn't really feel good about this. A break-up, a break, none of it feels like the thing he wants but it is still better than his state of not knowing what exactly he wants with all the revelations around Iwanaga's family situation unfolding.

Without the interference of Sugimoto or the sister, the topic of his family might have come up at some point (I don't think Iwanaga would be as reluctant to tell Miyata that he got kicked out if he could still consider the family issue a closed matter, sans maybe trying to hide it as long as possible lest Miyata feel guilty or bad about it) but the world around them really decided to come at them at the worst timing.

While they are dating - it is still not a full committment to each other (understandably so) since Miyata wants to date Iwanaga but still has a possible break-up etc on his mind.

And while his reasoning is that he got hurt before, the argument that he loves Miyata more than Iwanaga does him might not hold true afterall.

We got to see a bit of that in last week's episode when Iwanaga - indignantly challenged by Miyata - confessed to loving Miyata in many similar ways. This is also the reason why Miyata feels confident about these past flings: he might be jealous, but he feels secure enough to show it and actually believe that Iwanaga loves him. He might be uncertain about the depths of these feelings, but at least he isn't anticipating getting cheated on.

Slowly we get the reveal that there are several levels to them trying out their relationship. For one, they haven't seen each other in a very long time and while it is very sweet how they just fit together (them going on dates, having conversations, sexual compatibility etc) while visibly not being the same people as they were in highschool, they are taking their time to get to know each other. Iwanaga thinks he can take his time now that Miyata at least decided to date him and is convinced he can make him stay - but he is withholding a lot from Miyata.

And Miyata...realizes that moving in would be too quick for them. And that he doesn't know how to handle Iwanaga wanting privacy ("outsider") while trying to shield him from something he doesn't tell him about. He gets to learn important information about Iwanaga's life from someone that is not Iwanaga, not only making it so that his image of Iwanaga was somewhat false (there actually was a lot at stake for Iwanaga to try and run away with Miyata) but in way that he has to feel embarrassed and bad about it.

He made Iwanaga out to be this villain and player in his mind and treated him that way, but now Miyata might blame himself for being fooled. The embarrassement he felt in highschool just came back to haunt him. And it might be easy to talk about hurt feelings (he does communicate that a lot to Iwanaga after warming up to him) it is much more difficult to communicate when you haven't sorted your own feelings out.

He went from thinking that Iwanaga might actually love him despite himself being in love with Iwanaga in a way more inevitable way that felt unfair to him, to realizing that his love might not be enough for this.

His hesitation was solely focused on reasons that started and ended with them as individuals. But being in a relationship might now also entail hurting Iwanaga while being held at arms-length about his "insider" issues. How the outside will react to them being a couple. And that is a lot to put on something you are in the process of "figuring out". Miyata's reasons for not moving in are understandable, also as a gut-feeling I get it. But within the context of these changed parameters Miyata might now questions the extant for his love for Iwanaga and his ability to commit to a long-term relationship, to be family to Iwanaga in face of his inability to even move in with him.

That logic is warped, but this disturbance seems like that catalyst of uncovering where Miyata hasn't quite realized the extant to which he feels unsure in himself and inferior to Iwanaga. From highschool to know this uncertainty has stayed with him and it is coming to haunt him now. He might have to figure out how he's good for Iwanaga to come to truely trust himself in this relationship.

Which leads me to Iwanaga not letting him.

Rather than relying on Miyata he has decided to resolve the family matter on his own and in his dramatic romantic way (that is hardly every visible to Miyata, but always simmering beneath - we can see it in his eyes when Miyata isn't looking) he'd rather separate Miyata from all his issues and sacrifice himself.

And while there can be conflict in a relationship because not everyone has the same idea of privacy (e.g. withholding family issues, illnesses, debt etc.) his reluctance in sharing his pain with Miyata also seems to come from a place of self-loathing. The ease with which he flirts with Miyata (which annoys Miyata to no end and makes him questions how sincere Iwanaga is) seems to stem from fighting alone for a very long time. When in highschool it migh have come from a place of privilege induced obliviousness, him detaching himself in this way now seems like a survival strategy.

His desperation and want makes him pursue Miyata, but he does so in a seemingly unserious manner, toying with Miyata just in case this won't work out. Just like he gives the huge bouquet to Miyata: if Miyata likes it all is well, if he detests it he can make a joke out of it and still win (the bouquet strategy obviously took an estimation of Miyata's character into account, but no one can tell me that Iwanaga didn't actually want to get Miyata flowers and have him move in. Even when he is somewhat aware, he always leaves himself a way out).

To him this family issue was resolved, maybe only a question of whether he ever wanted to tell Miyata how he isn't actually a rich kid anymore (see above). So suddenly he has to actually treat something seriously (his family, his sisters wedding) and come to terms with his family issue not being resolved entirely as he thought and having to possibly burden Miyata with something. And he hasn't had the time to figure out how to do this while leaving himself an out, so when Miyata proposes a break-up he is quick to change it to taking a break in order to resolve this issue detached from Miyata but with the opportunity to get back with him.

Which resonates with how Miyata is very astute of but also consciously puts an effort into not making the same mistakes. Whereas Iwanaga has been fighting on his own for so long, he hasn't really changed that much since high school. It is now on him to learn how to actually let someone in (the degree might still be different to what Miyata wants) and feel precious about himself.

We get a similar situation to 10 years ago, both feeling unsure of themselves and devalueing themselves while the outside world does the best to interfer. And I'd chance they'd stood a better chance if this happened further into their relationship, but alas...they get thrown into a very similar situation and now it is on them to proof to themselves that these 10 years made a difference.

Obviously this is the plot device timed for the halfway point, but I enjoyed the build-up and going from "oh no" to "oh.....I get where they're coming from and how this will be a catalyst for a new beginning" because it all was set up well within their characters (Miyata not being able to say publicly that he loves Iwanaga after refusing to move in with him, Iwanaga being playful about his feelings for Miyata while having a hurt look in his eyes everytime they get to the topic of their highschool romance, Iwanaga getting kicked out does tie the lose ends together from where the show left them during their highschool days).

They are both very suddenly confronted with a barrage of struggles so it made sense to me that their weren't able to communicate what they actually wanted to say. Because Miyata doesn't know it quite yet and Iwanaga is putting himself down by making assumptions about what Miyata is thinking - sth only Miyata has learned to no solely rely on since high school.

The idea that history repeating itself wouldn't be so bad, if it didn't happen when the protagonists weren't quite ready yet, is a very entertaining thought to me. And I am interested to see how these two will muddle their way through it to challenge the repitition.

This feels like it is getting off the rails so I'll stop here

tagging @bengiyo since I promised more substance (although this got way longer than i expected)

[bengiyo]

My Love Mix Up TH Ep 3 Stray Thoughts

Last week, the class organized to put on a Thai version of Cinderella for their school. Atom wanted to help Mudmee get closer to Kongthap, so he volunteered Kongthap to be part of the stage design team, but got himself volunteered as well. Half accidentally interfered with his efforts, and Atom grew to appreciate Kongthap even more. When the lead actors got sick, Mudmee and Kongthap were assigned to play the leads despite Atom volunteering. Later, when Mudmee got stage fright, Atom took to the stage instead. They pulled off the play, but some boys in their class teased Atom about possibly liking Kongthap. Kongthap defended Atom before the class was shuffled out of the room. Atom confessed his feelings for Kongthap to Mudmee, who revealed that she likes Half (Half and Kongthap have similar names), and she has asserted her enthusiastic support to help Atom.

Poor Half has no idea what’s going on.

I do like Mudmee telling Atom to kill the homophobe in his head.

Oh interesting. I wasn’t expecting them to return to the eraser like this.

When I was a teacher, I would help study groups form if I knew certain students were nursing crushes just to give them a nudge.

I gotta do some more looking at modern Thai home design, because I’ve been seeing patterns for years, and I’m curious about their goals with the designs they’ve been using.

Fourth is generally frightened of animals. Look at him working with a cat so we can get the ad in.

I do like Chokun as Half. He’s got the right level of playful, I think.

I like the specifics of the way the Mudmee crush. I get feeling warmly about someone who was kind to you when it didn’t really benefit them to do so.

Those glamour shots of Half putting on his gloves were so thirsty.

Oh, Kongthap, you can’t just casually drop that you think about this boy all day. He’s going to be a wreck.

Oh, Atom, you’re gonna struggle in this situationship if you can’t handle an undefined existence.

Half is finally in the know. Finally, we have an action-oriented character involved in the situation.

“If you like my ornaments, you should see my box” UM, Y’ALL.

Ah yes. Here we go with Chekhov’s guitar. There was no way we were going to miss an opportunity to sell another song.

Oh ho. A sleepover.

3/3 of Fourth’s BL characters having missing fathers.

Interesting that we got to see both moms this episode, and both are dealing with difficulties around their husbands not being around.

Oh interesting. They decided to cliffhanger on the roof clearing of the misunderstanding.

Oh good! I’ll get to see Aungpao again next week.

Kieta Hatsukoi Comparison Thoughts: I kinda wish they’d lingered a little longer on the crush reveals. I enjoyed the original beat of Aoki and Hashimoto bonding over having a mutual crush and recognizing that they might be competing for the same boy’s affections. It’s a touching bit that supports the bisexual awakening and coming out aspects. I like that her acceptance of Aoki and reassurance comes before and after knowing that they like different people. I also think that sometimes the Thai shots might be too wide and at wrong angles. I think that too many of the studying shots were not at the same level of the seated characters. I do like what Fourth is trying with comedy, even though it’s not his strongest skill. Kinda wish they’d let Gem seem more fond though. Curious if they incorporate the trash scene next week.