#I just have zero faith in netflix now

[claire8216]

Netflix releasing yet another ghost show they’re probably just gonna cancel after 1 season I’m sick they can’t keep getting away with this

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - Gangsters Win

Organized, in each category, by ones I'm enjoying most at the top. Delayed October reviews included this week! (Still traveling but now in home territory and familiar hotels.)

Nov 2023 Wk 2

Ongoing Series - Thai

My Dear Gangster Oppa (Thurs iQIYI) 2 of 8 - GIVING ME LIFE. How dare they be this… this... Just. How dare!

Twins the series (Fri GaGa) ep 1 of 10 - I have been waiting for another truly sports centered BL since HIStory 2: CTL. This is nowhere near as good, but I don’t care. It’s great pulp and Sprite is a fab central character. I've realized that I love the pulps most when they’re ridiculously soapy (identical twins identity trope for sport’s fuck’s sake) but ERNEST about it (not campy). This one is taking itself seriously and it's so cute that it's trying so hard. Good little pulp. Dee mar.

Dangerous Romance (Fri YT) ep 12fin - was it me or did this show kinda flag on you too?

Poor, struggling Sailom is forced to tutor his bully, Kang, and they fall for each other despite circumstances. I loved it for the first 4 eps, liked it for the middle 4, and then kinda lost interest. I think it's because the focus shifted from Sailom to Kang, and I just find a disenfranchised character more interesting than the poor little rich kid archetype. Ultimately the script waffled and failed these actors - the leads and sides were solid, and support cast on point. 8/10 pretty standard 2023 GMMTV fair

Absolute Zero (Thai Weds iQIYI) ep 6 of 12 - It’s sort of a paradox of emotions not just time. It remains sad and I remain wary. 

My Universe (Sun iQIYI) The Camp Fire ep 11 of 24 - Launched with an argument over rude pronouns and mistaken identity. Highlights the joy of camping. Ugh. I don't think this one is for me despite the pair.

Venus in the Sky (Tues iQIYI) ep 10fin - NO SINGING. I can't believe they brought in rando SIDEs just to sing! WHHHHYYYYY? Sigh.

An indifferent pulp with indifferent acting and poor chemistry (despite high heat) based on the reunion romance trope that was just... so... slow... It wasn’t entirely a waste of time but I can’t in good faith recommend it. unless you have a very high tolerance for Thai pulps and ultra tsundere characters. 5/10 ONLY WATCH IF YOU'VE NOTHING BETTER TO DO

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Kiseki: Dear to Me (Taiwan Tues Viki & iQIYI) ep 12 of 13 - I don’t mean to be rude because you know I love the main couple in the show, but they are simply being out acted by the sides. They are so damn good. Ai Di and his dumb oversized sweaters and flappy flappy sleeves is EVERYTHING.

Bump Up Business (Korea Gaga) 5-6 of 8 - More language negotiation, so of course I like it. I also like that they openly let Eden admit to a crush on a boy. I like this whole thing way more than I should. Save me from myself?

You Are Mine (Taiwan Fri Viki) eps 9 of 10 - I don’t understand why baby boy is trying to escape so badly. (Except for plot reasons.) Running of the gays! Look at you Taiwan stealing Japan’s favorite trope. This show is fun but it’s a bag of tropes held together with some very thin fraying mesh plot. 

If It’s With You AKA Even If I Fall In Love With You AKA Kimi to nara Koi wo Shite Mite mo’ (Japan Gaga) ep 5fin - The leads are so painfully cute portraying a softly simple story of teen first love. This was a nice little piece with an early yaoi feel that come off as brief, as if it were meant to be a short story that had been extended into a series. Sweet but ultimately rather forgettable. 7/10  

Mr Cinderella 2 (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 6-7 of ? - yeah I forgot to watch again, I may be dnfing this by accident.

It's Airing But...

I Cannot Reach You AKA I Can't Reach You AKA Kimi ni wa Todokanai (Japan Tues Netflix-Japan & ????) - in classic JBL fashion, I Cannot Reach You could not be reached. It looks good though so I mgiht put some effort into finding it grey.

Look at Japan dropping all the tropes in on scene: rooftop, kabedon, hand hold.

SHADOW (Thai Gaga) 1-7 of 14 - this is a horror BL with ghosts & paranormal elements in a boarding school setting. I'm not wild about Thai horror (or horror at all). It features Singto (who did paranormal BL He's Coming to Me) opposite Fluke N (who's done a couple horror's before). Also Fiat. Dan suffers from sleep paralysis, and in his dreams he sees a shadow that suffocates him. It gets worse when he transfers schools. I'm holding off on this one and if told it's good I'll binge watch.

What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Gaga) ep 1 of 10 - I find this series more fun to binge, so I'm waiting until it completes its run.

One Room Angel (Japan Gaga) - adaptation of Harada’s manga of the same name (which I did not like) about a convenience store clerk who's stabbed, nearly dies, and returns home to find an angel waiting for him. With only 5 eps and a good chance this won’t end happy, I'm gonna wait and let you tell me how it goes.

Can I Buy Your Love From A Vending Machine? AKA Sono Koi, Jihanki de Kaemasu ka? (Japan cinema release in-country only) - This one is a movie from Japan so in customary fashion who tf knows when (or if) it will get international distribution. Salaryman Ayumu Koiwai just can't tear his eyes away from the strong, muscular man as he checks on the stocks of the vending machine in his office. I did some hunting but only found the manga, so I'm marking it cnf and moving on with life. This will be its last appearance on the weekly update.

I Finished It!

Love in Translation (iQIYI) ep 8 - solid ending, man these two are a great pairing.

A sweet little pulp about a Thai boy with a crush on a Chinese influencer who ends up in a business relationship with her ex-bf. This show had truly great chemistry between the leads, cute found family with good rep, and an exciting (if silly) ending that almost, but didn't quite, make up for how incredibly annoying the main character was in the first half. Gotta say the make-out scene in the convenience store is one of the greatest in Thai BL, tho. 6/10 DEF WORTH WATCHING BUT FLAWED

I Feel You Linger in the Air (grey) ep 8 of 12 - so that was A THING. I did a seriously extensive deep dive analysis, historical & linguistic extras, and review here.

I truly loved this time travel romance. IFYLITA is an exquisite BL, from filming techniques to narrative framework (much like Until We Meet Again). Steeped in history and family drama it edges into lakorn (but no as much as To Sir With Love and with way less scenery chewing). This is an elegant and classy BL… from Thailand which normally doesn't even try for classy. The main couple (both as a pair and individuals) were excellent, particularly Bright (Yai) whose eye-work acting style is a personal favorite of mine. Pity about the ending. Oh it wasn’t that sad but it wasn’t good either. This show should easily have earned a 10 from me except that it fumbled the… erm… balls. Argh. Whatever. 9/10

Only Friends (YT) ep 11-12 - What can I say, this wasn't my thing, it was never gonna be, and I didn't like it. Basically Thailand did the L-Word but with branded BL pairs and the only agenda seemed to be slut shaming and making sure those pairs stayed healthy and sponsor ready. Consequently, the pairs were all executing well and to the best of their ability (of course) but all other characters got shafted, both in the good and the worst possible ways. Unrated but if falls somewhere between 5 (hot mess) and 3 (what am I doing with my life?)

Next Week Looks Like This

11/10 Middleman’s Love (Thai Fri Mandee's YT & iQIYI 1 of 8? - TutorYim (brand pair origin = Cutie Pie) with side couple KingUea (Bed Friends) from Domundi trailer here. This used to be a JimmyTommy vehicle before the pair split (also prev title Middle Love). Adapted from a Y-novel. Jade works as a graphic designer and has always been stuck in the middle - average. His heart is hardened after a life spent being overlooked because he is not as charming or good looking as the rest of his family or friends. When his office gets a hot new intern, Mai, Jade assumes Mai couldn’t possibly be intersted in him. Mai, of course, has other ideas. Warning this is a Cheewin comedy so tonally it could be very OFF, but the cast is solid, and I have liked his stuff on occasion.

11/10 Last Twilight (Thai Fri YouTube) - JimmySea are bakc and maybe it's good this time? I dont' know, GMMTV isn't doing great right now. Burdened with heavy debt, Mork, a mechanic, is forced to take a high paying job as a caretaker for Day, a rich heir who suffers from partial blindness after an accident. Day recruits Mork as he realizes the latter does not see him as a disabled person, but rather as co-equals. As they spend time together, the two begin developing feelings for the other. However with Day just having 180 days until he becomes permanently blind, how will the two weather the trials ahead?Upcoming November BL

11/11 Beyond The Star (Weds iQIYI) qp 1 of 8 - Looks like House of Stars meets Boyband. I am not excited.

Upcoming in November

11/16 PLAYBOYY (Thurs ????) ?? eps - trailer here, high heat and it's helmed by Cheewin (shudder) with screenplay by Den (Only Friends) under Copy A Bangkok. It's gonna be a shizz show people. It's predicting Thai style "dark" (War of Y) one of my least favorites. Apparently there is a "plot" but when has Cheewin ever bothered with plot? A university kid who was involved with escorts, sex-trade, porn, online hook-ups, drugs, prostitution, blackmail, revenge, and so forth goes missing. His twin (sigh) and two friends look for him.

11/17 Pit Babe (Fri iQIYI) ep 1 of 14 - high heat teaser here, based on alittlebixth's omegaverse novel #พิษเบ๊บ’ set in the world of car racing (author says show will not be omegaverse). Charlie (fresh face), a young hot nerd, approaches his driver idol (Pavel "my love" 2 Moons 2) to borrow a racing car and win one for the team. Production house is new to BL but behind the Club Friday stuff. Show stars many known actors: Nut (Oxygen), Pop (Ram in La Cuisine), Pon (Phai in Gen Y, we LOVE him), Benz (twins in En of Love: This Is Love Story).

11/19 Bake Me Please (Sun Gaga) ep 1 of 6 - trailer here, stars Ohm (of OhmFluke) opposite Guide (bestie from IFYLITA) and possibly also Poom (well known, but not for BL). This looks like an actually gay version of Antique Bakery (play it again, BL). Still, I'm intrigued, it looks HELLA pretty.

11/22 7 Days Before Valentine (Weds ????) ep 1 of 10 - trailer here, horror-esk. Adapted from y-novel of the same name, directed by Tu (180 Degree) stars Jet (Why You… Y Me?). When you want your old love again, but fate sends you a reaper instead. All he can do for you is kill people. I'll likely give this a pass and wait to binge later. I'm planning to try SHADOW and I can only handle one Thai horror at a time.

11/25 The Sign (Sat ????) ep 1 of 10 - trailer here, horror-esk, but with a suspense and adult characters. Special investigators who loved each other in previous lives reunite with their new bodies, stars Billy Patchanon (BillySeng) & Babe Tanatat (new). Includes other SCOY favorites as a special investigation team. I may give this a try because I like the non-horror bits.

11/26 The Whisperer (Sun ????) 1 of 10 - trailer here. Thai horror BL that ALSO involves cheating (what joy is mine). He has dimples (My Ride) but I don't think even that gives me the will. Maybe a binge for me.

11/26 Cooking Crush (Sun YT) 1 of 12 - OffGun are back, trailer here. Adapted from the novel “Love Course! เสื้อกาวน์รุกเสื้อกุ๊กรับ” by iJune4S this is about Prem who runs a not-so-popular restaurant with 2 friends. About to go on a cooking competition with a huge reward, Prem gets involved with Ten, a stressed-out med student who wants Prem to teach him to cook.

11/30 For Him (Thurs ????) ep 1 of 10 - high heat trailer, I suspect iQIYI will scoop this one up. From the people who brought us Unforgotten Night (please no) based on a y-novel, man nursing a heartbreak has a one-night stand, but the other boy didn't want it to end. It looks terribly trashy so I'm in! Maybe I'll do a trash watch?

VIP Only (Taiwan) - may be delayed/canceled

Wuju Bakery AKA Space Bakery (Korea) - this one may be DOA

A Breeze of Love (Korea) - I know less than nothing about this.

Nov 2023 line up with screen caps here. Not kept updated.

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

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Yang's little smile! Argh. (Love in Translation)

This is our mean and grumpy gagster character talking about playing in game support roles. It's fucking adorable. Such a nasty criminal. (My Dear Gangster Oppa)

(Last week)

[herohimbowhore]

Daniel Ricciardo: Castles Crumbling

Revisionism and recency bias are perhaps two of the most common things that you'll see in Formula 1 and discussions of how we view drivers. It all goes back to the saying "You're only as good as your last race." This, while true in some sense, is only part of the picture when it comes to a driver and the legacy they'll leave in the sport. One race does not define a driver, just as a small portion of a driver's career does not define the driver.

But in commentary and fan discussions, we continue to see that revisionism and recency bias continue to define driver's careers on everchanging standards.

This season, the argument would be that that Carlos Sainz is a better driver than Charles Leclerc due to any of the following reasons:

He's won a race this year

Ahead in the points

Consistently finishing races in the points

But looking at their careers as a whole, the argument falls apart.

Another case of this is Lewis Hamilton in 2022. He finished behind his teammate in the points, didn't win a race, etc. And that year alone had people questioning if Lewis Hamilton was washed or if he should retire. But again, looking at the career as a whole and not zeroing in on one piece of it, makes the argument fall apart.

A driver's legacy isn't based solely on a piece of their career. Alex Albon's career isn't going to be defined just by the Red Bull years, nor is Pierre Gasly's. Sebastian Vettel's career isn't just defined by his time in Ferrari or Red Bull or Aston Martin. Nor is Carlos Sainz's career going to be defined by his time in one team.

However, when it comes to Daniel Ricciardo, the revisionism and hate is strong. Especially in fan spaces like Twitter.

The two years at McLaren are by many considered to be a definer of Daniel's career, completely ignoring or disregarding what he was able to do in Red Bull and Renault.

In one instance he's a PR merchant, in another he can't draw a crowd.

He gets the car to Q3, qualifies 4th, and spends the whole weekend in 10th -> well then people will say it's the car.

Both he and his teammate don't make it out of Q1 with about .006 separating them -> well then obviously the driver and not the car on that specific track

Castles Crumbling is a song that inherently fits the change in the narrative around Daniel. The premise of Castles Crumbling is your legacy falling apart and no longer being loved by people who were once fans. This is a defining feature of Daniel Ricciardo's public perception in recent years as everything he does is defined by the McLaren stint.

Once, I had an empire in a golden age

I was held up so high, I used to be great

They used to cheer when they saw my face

Now, I fear I have fallen from grace

Once, I was the great hope for a dynasty

Crowds would hang on my words, and they trusted me

Their faith was strong, but I pushed it too far

I held that grudge 'til it tore me apart

Despite what people perpetuate now, coming into McLaren, Daniel was highly regarded and considered a great driver. He was THAT guy.

Netflix's Drive to Survive did a lot in helping Daniel transcend from the normal bounds of an F1 driver. He was the first one to be fully on board and give them so much access to him, his thoughts, and his life. A move that wasn't reciprocated by other drivers, so in that first season, it was all about him from start to end basically. He also had the personality to match.

But even before that, Daniel has been the the guy. Just look at any number of grown men that have taken his sweaty race boots and drunk champagne out of them.

Gerard Butler (USA 2016)

Christian Horner (Malaysia 2016)

Max Verstappen (Malaysia 2016)

Nico Rosberg (Malaysia 2016)

Mark Webber (Germany 2016)

Lance Stroll (Baku 2017)

Sir Patrick Stewart (Canada 2017)

Martin Brundle (Austria 2017)

Adrian Newey (Monaco 2018)

Lewis Hamilton (Imola 2020)

Zak Brown (Monza 2021)

Lando Norris (Monza 2021)

Any number of Red Bull staff over the years

People all around the paddock

Some happily, some with pure disgust, others taking the shoes right off Daniel's feet for a shoey.

Daniel at Silverstone in 2017: "DC took my shoes off and then in Austria, Martin was frothing for it."

Daniel wasn't just his personality as so many would like to say. The racing was there.

In 2014, Daniel came into Red Bull and beat his four-time world champion teammate. He was Red Bull's only race winner that year with three wins. During his first year with Red Bull, Daniel finished third in the championship, just behind the two Mercedes.

Once more in 2016, Daniel finished third in the championship, just behind the two Mercedes. His only win of the year was Malaysia 2016 and with it came the iconic podium of Daniel, Max, Nico, and Christian all taking turns to drink out of the same race shoe.

Nico Rosberg in 2023, talked about his time racing against Daniel in 2016 and said:

"He's such an awesome personality, one of the best wheel-to-wheel racers out there. If I saw in my rear-view mirrors, [Ricciardo] was one of the last guys I would like to see there at the time, with Max Verstappen."

2018 for Daniel was filled with reliability issues and engine problems. Out of the 21 races that year, Daniel retired in 8 of them. He had two wins that year - China and Monaco.

Going into Renault, Formula 1 World Champion and Renault Advisor, Alain Prost, called Daniel worth every penny that the Renault would be paying him

"Daniel is more expensive than other drivers. When you need that to help the team we did it. Money is not a problem but it has to be justified. We have two top drivers, maybe one of the best lineups in F1 today."

With Renault, people forget that 2020 was one of his best years. While he didn't win any races, Daniel did have two podiums. He gave Renault their first podium in about nine years. Additionally, Daniel finished 5th in the championship, higher than anyone would have expected out of the unreliable Renault. He was doing wonders with that car.

Going into McLaren, Daniel was a highly valued asset. And while many like to say he went to McLaren for the money, salary estimates show that going to McLaren was actually a significant pay cut.

With an approximately $22 million pay cut in cash earnings, the move to McLaren cannot be defined as a cash grab. Doing something for the money doesn't usually mean lowering your value by millions.

My foes and friends watch my reign end

I don't know how it could've ended this way

Smoke billows from my ships in the harbor

People look at me like I'm a monster

Now they're screaming at the palace front gates, used to chant my name

Now they're screaming that they hate me

Never wanted you to hate me

So how did we get from being a highly valued driver to endless public hate by fans?

Well revisionism and recency bias.

Daniel’s time with McLaren was admittedly very bad.

(sidenote: Dropping Daniel was the best thing that McLaren could have done for all parties involved. No one can deny that, but how McLaren and Zak Brown conducted themselves was wrong. Say what you will about Red Bull's ruthlessness; Red Bull is upfront about it, and they don't drag the driver around making apologies or videos promising to try harder and signing another driver while doing all that.)

The car and driver did not mesh. But what most people tend to ignore is that the car design was inherently difficult to drive. It was unpredictable. One could argue that Lando was performing well in the car., but Lando has only driven a McLaren. Whereas Daniel's driven an HRT, Toro Rosso, Red Bull, and a Renault. Instead of helping Daniel with the learning curve or setting the car up in a manner that aligned with his driving style, Daniel had to change how he drove.

With all the McLaren struggles, people have chosen to focus on just that phase. Completely ignoring that Daniel was doing wonders with the Red Bull when the car wasn't great and he was doing wonders with the Renault.

Daniel's time post-Red Bull was not all bad and certainly not deserving of the vitriol and hate he receives when there are other drivers who have much less to show for on the grid.

He got two podiums with Renault in 2020 -- the first podiums that Renault had gotten in years. He was 5th in the standings.

And let's not forget that Daniel got McLaren its only win since 2012. Maybe you can say that the only reason Daniel won is due to the Max and Lewis crash or that Lando was told to stay behind. However, Daniel overtook Max at the start while Lando lost a position to Lewis. Daniel had been the one to take his shot when it mattered. As for the team orders to hold position, well Daniel could have gone faster if he wanted to as we can see with him pulling out the fastest lap on the final lap.

(A random thought that came to me during the research for this: do we think Christian Horner wants a Daniel-related tattoo as well and hates that Cyril and Zak have Daniel-related tattoos? Because if I was in Christian's position, I would want that tattoo. Like you put all this time and investment into a driver and then two other team principals that either took him away from you or couldn't get the most out of him have tattoos chosen by Daniel.)

[limerental]

I recently got back into witcher brain rot but all the tags are filled with people saying how shit the show is and how Cavil leaving is the end times cause he was apprantly the only thing keeping together the entire story where he is present for like 30% of the time, And its legitimately making me question my sanity. Like im fine with being obsessed with media thats objectively shit, hell most of my favs are absolute trash, but like TWN isnt perfect by any means but its not that bad right? Has all my media literacy gone out the window? Am i wrong for thinking this show is objectively good to peak mid? I feel like I'm losing my mind.

Yeah, it's a little goofy silly that it seems like so many folks have forgot concepts like

a) enjoying questionably good sometimes bad sometimes good media mostly for the community that can build up around that media (see: spn)

and b) not posting constant hate within the tags of the thing you now hate

Personally, I came to the Witcher universe through the show and came to enjoy several show-only elements of the universe, even though I enjoyed and prefer the story of the books. I wouldn't prefer a book accurate Dandelion or Fringilla or even Yennefer. I've gotten attached to the ways that TWN expanded or changed several character choices I disliked from the books.

Because frankly. The books are great! They're also occasionally the worst. They're not some literary marvel of the ages. They're good books! Entertaining! Have some deeply interesting characters and commentary and are very, darkly funny and are my favorite books, but there are sure as hell things I would change if I were to adapt them.

That's not to say I would adapt them anything close to the way TWN chose to lol but it's just a little absurd and telling to me that so, so many people seem deeply invested in a book series (or at least in the idea of their fave meathead actor liking a book series) that they rarely seem to have anything to say about except in the context of bashing the show

Anyway sorry, tangent lol personally I loathe the witcher netflix and also, I enjoy it dearly. I'll be as grouchy as anybody when they do some questionable shit to my book blorbos and situations, but I'll still be having a good time because I choose to.

The only thing that's really ruined my enjoyment of the fandom has been people with constant bad faith takes, zero media literacy, and people slurping at hcav's boots

[pissfizz]

I haven’t said a list about the “removing sokkas sexism” thing yet but I wanna explain my thoughts on it. Does removing this aspect of his character ruin the whole show? No. Does it destroy his entire character? Also no. In most cases, it would be fine to remove this and still have a perfectly good, respectful adaptation. Things don’t have to follow the source material exactly to be a good adaptation, see the Scott pilgrim anime for example. However, this is not the Scott pilgrim anime. There are two glaring issues I see with doing this, plus one minor one. Let’s start with the minor one.

While I see how it’s problematic due to the representation involved, a lot of katara’s arc revolves around the sexism in the water tribes, and that includes within her brother. Both of these siblings have a lot of their initial arcs undermined by this change. However, you say, they could just be planning something new! This is true, and this is fine. Not to my personal preference, for a plethora of reasons, but I can see how it’d still be done well.

Let’s move on to the bigger issues.

Issue one. Removing sokkas sexism from season one because it’s “iffy” is a red flag. From the sounds of things, it sounds like the show runners fail to understand that how Sokka acted wasn’t a product of the times, and was actually a lesson for the target demographic of young boys that “hey, acting like this is bad. Don’t act like this.” They seemed to pass by on the fact that he is like that for a reason, and that his arc of bettering himself is important. When combined with the fact that the original creators left the project due to “creative differences”, this red flag is even louder, brighter, and practically dripping with blood. If you fail to understand a character being sexist and then bettering himself, what else do you fail to understand? It’s a fairly simple arc and it isn’t metaphorical in the slightest, which makes it hard to believe they didn’t understand it. Sokka is more than his season one arc, but the arc is still important, and if they’re willing to take it away, which also undermines a lot of kataras arc and probably takes hers away too (presuming they take away the N Water Tribe’s sexism as well), what ELSE are they willing to change or take away?

This leads to issue number two. “Mari,” you say “they probably aren’t that stupid to misunderstand such an on the nose arc like that, don’t you think you’re a little presumptuous?” To that I say, you’re probably right, although I wouldn’t be surprised. The alternative, and more likely reasoning, actually is something else. Capitalism. Art can no longer be art, instead it has to marketable and perfectly polished. Three thought processes probably happened here: 1) Your protagonists can’t be bad people, that would be endorsing their behaviors! 2) By making a character sexist, even in an arc where he realizes he’s wrong, some people might be uncomfortable or dislike him, costing Netflix money (or potential money) and 3) showing an arc about a man becoming a feminist could make some of the audience uncomfortable or upset, costing them money. Now, as you can see these are all stupid. Number one is technically more of a fan point of view that hollywood abides by and worsens. Which these three points leads to the same question from the early issue: if they’re willing to cut this stuff to stay profitable, what do lose of the original story are they going to change and/or make way more obvious and simplistic.

I can’t say for sure, but I have zero faith the show will be good due to these reasons.

[orionsangel86]

I'm not in the Good Omens fandom, so maybe I've got this wrong, but I suspect why everyone on my dash seems to be clamoring for an immediate fix-it besides obvious fandom impatience. I think a lot of people are convinced that basically nothing is coming back from the strikes. Tbh I kind of am myself. I've just accepted that we're never going to see Sandman s2 or GO s3 because Amazon and Netflix are shit. At least with Sandman we have the books?

I admit its a tough situation to be in. I guess for me, I am trying to have hope that the streamers will eventually see sense, because otherwise their business models are gonna fail and they are going to lose revenue anyway. Eventually some sort of deal will be made and the work will start again, I just hope beyond hope that the deal is everything the WGA and SAGAFTRA want.

I have more hope for a GOS3 than I do for a Sandman tbh. Simply because making films and TV isn't Amazon's main source of income so they can be a bit more flexible with their choices. They have renewed far less popular shows for far longer. It seems almost like the entertainment division is more a hobby or pet project for Amazon than its main focal point so IDK, I'm just not all that worried about Amazon Prime. I genuinely think Amazon is very proud of GO and they won't let go of it anytime soon. It's also one of their most popular shows so I'd be really surprised if they cancel it (though, then again, with the strikes anything can happen). We also still have the BBC backing it up I believe? Though I doubt they'd ever have the budget to take over fully if Amazon decided not to continue with it, but perhaps its possible the BBC could look for a new partner in that unlikely scenario? I dunno I'm not a media expert here by any means.

Sandman though is a different story. Extremely expensive, and on a streaming service notorious for cancelling shows mid season. With the strikes, I can see them changing their minds and cancelling Season 2 even though it started filming in some bitter attempt to get back at strikers and claim tax breaks where they can. I don't trust them at all. I loathe the Netflix execs because they have been cancelling, making excuses, and screwing over creatives for years now. They are the ones that started it all, and the other streamers simply took their ideas and ran with them. I wish Sandman had been on a different streamer. I feel like it would have been safer on Amazon Prime. Even if we do manage to get through to season 2 of Sandman, I have absolutely zero faith that we'll make it through to the end of the story on Netflix.

Though at least with Sandman, I believe (though correct me if I'm wrong) that Neil still holds all the rights, and if Netflix cancels it, he can put the option out to other networks/streamers to pick it up again? So even if Netflix does what Netflix always does, there is every possibility that it'll just jump to a different network to finish the story.

I hope that is the case, because in all honesty if I had to put money down on a bet on whether or not Netflix will follow through with Sandman right through to the Wake, I'll be betting against them. I just don't see it happening. Netflix are too flakey and well, evil, to care about stories to do it justice.

To your first point, I can understand the fear and do sympathise with fans being hurt and upset that GOS2 ended on such a grim cliffhanger, I just don't think the hate and denial and screams of "out of character!" are the way to handle that fear. But diving straight into fanfiction is a totally acceptable and encouraged way to manage the feelings anyone may have over the ending! That's totally fine! Keep the fix-its to fanfiction, but please stop clamouring for reasons why the ending was wrong and bad and stupid and worth sending Neil Gaiman inbox hate over. You're all better than that.

[bifairywife]

no one touch me i am in inconsolable pain about the possibility that i have netflix writer potential (derogatory)

context and lil list under cut:

(tldr: i finished fate the winx saga and it has a few parallels to some of MY changes for a personal reboot)

SO HERE'S THE THING

I just finished fate the winx saga and my GOD. It's not completely horrible but it has a couple of moments that i just do NOT like 😭😭😭 (overall I'd give the whole viewing experience a 5.7 out of 10)

For majority of the first season i kinda just went through it and i was more invested on the second season cause my fave (flora) is there AND for my floriven crumbs which isn't even crumbs??!!?!? it's an in your face bread slap oh my god

Netflix is just,,,,, so weird. This is an entirely different plot with different characters. Like the only thing they really kept are the NAMES (and some of the power set). Netflix could have just,,,, I don't know,,,, MADE IT UP AS AN ORIGINAL ANGSTY NETFLIX FAIRY SHOW

It really would have worked

Like,,,,,, i watched that show with full faith on the reviews i saw that it DEFINITELY isn't like the cartoon. At. All. It's so ironic seeing "in association with rainbow" in RED and in shots with that angsty grim ass filter that us sucking out any grain of vibrant color

They really just used winx club as click bait for more views istg 😭😭😭😭

I could have just NOT watched the show ik ik ik, but I don't mind watching "trashy" stuff. I don't think it was complete trash tbh, it has some trashy moments and dialogue but it's not total garbage. I just think it really would be better if the show didn't tie itself to a source material they had zero interest in giving justice 😤

Anyways here's a list of my parallels with the show:

bloom and aisha sharing a dorm room

bloom and aisha being besties

flora and stella sharing a dorm room

stella and sky knowing each other before school (BUT ARE NOT EXES IN MY REBOOT OH LAWRD)

FLORA AND RIVEN ROMANCE

Which,,,,,, now that i ranted and listed it all down,,,,, isn't such a bad thing these are pretty basic stuff tbh. Like,,,,,, I've checked my notes and compared the dates,,,,, I've thought of most of these first before the second season was released and i can lowkey live with it ig 🧍 cause i mean:

I have a vision for bloom and aisha roomies idea

There's something about fire and water friendship type of thing

And i actually have plans of making flora and stella become friends and not just dorm roomies 😭😭😭

Royal and royal friendship trope which i think is really neat (I'm surprised they didn't make sky a prince in the fate?? He's a legacy kid there cause of his dad but no royal status)

I've been very vocal about floriven tbh. I published one fic about them for my reboot and a WIP modern au too hajshahsha

ANYWAYS I DON'T KNOW MY POINT NO MO I'M JUST A LIL SALTY AND NEEDED TO VENT 🗣️🗣️🗣️

[iminaworldofpureimagination]

after watching the trailers of Aang/Katara playing/laughing... having fun.. I'm getting the same gaslighty feelings i got from zutaras who insist it was canon all along and that aang is a horrible abuser

. what with fandom telling me Aang will be serious when hes playing/laughing in trailers, or that Aang never had visions in the show when he DID. thats how he found TOPH.

or that sokka sexism being toned means hes going to be a bland perfect character when he's still a grumpy guss in the trailers .. like he ws in the show at the beginning. sozins comet isn't removed entirely, we literally see it in the trailer. the return of it is just going to be changed but its still use to wipe out the air nomads.

im so glad i don't rely on clickbait articles and actually watch trailers/ listen to the actual interviews that explain things that said Aang/Katara ave a hopefu; childsview of the world. .and Katara being less motherly is fine by me cause id rather see her be a kid anyway. and. the very idea this will be as bad as the movie is laughable the trailer blew that awful movie away in seconds. i saw that movie 2 weeks ago it was boring, trash... how anyone could think its better is no fan of atla.. isaidwhatisaid.

as for bryke.. im 99 percent convinced avatar studios was why they left .. it probably sounded more profitable.

and I Can def belive bryke wanted to change things maybe they wanted a love triangle and netflix said no.. i wouldnt put it pass em after LOK where they added their scrapped love triangle idea. there is zero proof them being there would have improved things.. zero none. zip.. the moment they left i was just oh well.. whatever after lok i have zero faith in em anyway..

hoping for this to bomb after the actors put 3 years of their life into it though.. its kinda lame... its a retelling it doesnt need to be the same exactly.. plus.. atla did have flaws. sukki is very underdeloped/ ozai bascially has no personality outside of Evil. Zuko should have joined a bit sooner in s3. Jet shouldn't die... just some things off the top of my head. atlas a good show but its not... flawless. i acutally prefer sukki bonding over nonbending over sexism.. its feels sweet.. i dont really like how they got together and his sexism was very Western centric anyway.. i think people really blow the whole toned his sexism down out of proportion. Pakku however he should remain sexist.. hmm getting over it so quickly feels kinda of meh to me.. but then again ive heard of transphobes quickly changing tunes when their kid is trans at times so i guess it not too far out of the realm. but it just felt like a copout to me with pakku finding out katara was the grandaughter of his old girlfriend=no longer sexist to katara esp at his age it seems very unlikely he change so quickly but eh thats just my thoughts on it.

anyway thats all i gotta say for now..

[lesbiankoby]

Honestly? Lupin’s grandfather being racist, if not towards him explicitly, but just in the same way I’m sure a lot of ppl have experienced irl of very casually, probably could add an interesting layer to the series.

From dissecting the truely unlikable qualities in literary hero like Leblanc’s Lupin, or of the moral complexity of a being criminal and a killer, as subversion to main culture, and how a character like Leblanc’s Lupin became sort of a muted version of that, there’s already stuff to built on there

But throw in the whole Lupin wants to prove himself as the greatest thief, admires his legacy, but also doesn’t ever seem to really act like the man, or have any sort of fond memories, and you get a very interesting image of a man who’s craving the validation and love he’d never got from his family, because of insanely high expectations and a fundamental, truly abhorrent aspect of his grandfather even he won’t address for fear of staining his character and the very legacy he’s living for.

And it’s sad cause I def don’t think the people behind Lupin right now have the capabilities or want, and while I can have more faith in fandom and fic writers… uh. I feel like it could also easily end in a Hamilton HIV case study that way if fandom tackled those subjects. For a show that does use Leblanc’s Lupin, has themes of racism, and other interesting aspects about the thematic nature of thieves, I like how Netflix’s Lupin show tackles them, though much different circumstances, not related to Lupin III, and also it’s Netflix so there’s no hope for a long standing franchise to pop out of that. 😒

I think lupin does seem to like his grandfather *sometimes* (rather, some versions of him do) but a character like lupin iii has been interpreted and reinterpreted a bajillion times and so has the theoretical character of lupin the first— he ranges from “probably a good guy” of lupin the first movie to his lupin zero slash manga characterization, which is a hell of a variation.

it’s definitely a thorny variation of the formula that the current lupin writers have 0 intention to explore… i don’t think i’m really equipped to touch it either. obviously. but oh yeah, theoretically EXTREMELY interesting for the reasons you laid out… it’s a part of lupins (og guy) character not often addressed.

i quite like the lupin of the netflix adaption…. i think the series suffers from the actual mechanics of the heists not being super well defined, sort of running on sherlock tv show logic, i don’t think most of them are very fun, but the themes it touches on with assane diop are SOOOOO fresh and cool. i love that guy. very fun character.

[bookishbunnies]

Shadow and Bone season 2 spoilers for the first 7 minutes:

Okay, so still just under an hour till season 2 drops but I've seen the first 7 minutes that Netflix posted and omg. I have so many thoughts already. I can already see they're keeping a lot of stuff close to the books (which I love) along with changing a lot in really interesting ways. I do find it interesting that they've changed the name of the town Mal and Alina end up in when they go to Novyi Zem at the start of siege and storm. It's a weird little change and I'm curious to the reasoning. But also yes, they're showing Alina and the Darklings connection!

Also definitely very curious how the change in the soc stuff will affect the later soc story, specifically crooked kingdom. Coz in CK the Kaelish Prince is across from the Crow Club but now they've made it literally the Crow Club. So do the crows get it back and then Pekka opens up another place named the Kaelish Prince across from it just to screw with them? It's gonna be so interesting to see how the little changes and stuff introduced in the show affect the SoC and CK plot lines.

Also, now I'm really curious how the Crows and Nina sort out that she's the heart render they gonna use for whatever plan Kaz has. Coz she's not with them, and we know from the previously published snippet that Jesper and Inej only find out her name when Inej brings her to meet them and Wylan. So how does Kaz find out she's a heartrender and make a deal to get her to help them? I doubt that was a topic of conversation on the boat, and they must not have talked much on the boat otherwise Nina would've introduced herself there to all of them.

Also wow I absolutely cannot wait to see Tante Heleen when Kaz and Inej walk in, ready to absolutely fuck her up for selling the Crow Club when it wasn't even really hers yet to sell. She really had zero faith in the Crows making it back alive and wow was she stupid for that 😂

Also, holy shit, the end of that 7 minutes, Kaz's face, how absolutely sick he looks, I'm almost certain that transitions straight into the first flashback of him and Jordie

[luzarvizublog]

Library Assignment

"A Minecraft Movie" May Craft Something New

Author: Sebastian Strawser

A brief summary

The article mainly discusses how "The Minecraft Movie" can actually surprise us and answers the question, "What if I was in Minecraft?". He points out the good and the bad things here and there but saying that the cast and the "stunning" visuals might actually make it at the box office.

Sebastian also explains some other things about the game itself, but in another talk, he says that the "Minecraft" movie could end up being a lively, refreshing, and bold take on the expressionless "Minecraft" world.

Why did you pick this article?

I was discussing the trailer for this movie with some friends, and we noticed that some of the designs looked AI-generated. It was as if you had entered any AI image generator and typed "Minecraft"; the visuals and designs were quite similar to those in the Minecraft movie, but of course, we all said this as a joke. We also noticed the kid looked a lil bit "soulless"...? He just didn't look right in a way.

In the end, turns out that we were right. In a recent Q and A conference, Jared Hess (director for the "Minecraft Movie") answered some questions from the fans like...

Why was the movie live-action and not animated?

I asked my friend Chris Bowman (the movie's screenwriter) the same thing and he said "It wouldn't fit like that." He liked the open world of the game and based the cast chemistry and the basic plot on "Jumanji" and "Zatura." Making an animated movie wouldn't work, he had to be faithful to his "inspiration."

Why does Steve as a kid in the trailer look fake?

Because he is! (laughs). We are trying new things with this movie. We put all the effort into the realism of the mods while the rest is being done with artificial intelligence. The kid shot and certain parts of the script were done with those tools.

The director also said a quote like "I just can't disappoint the 10-year-olds or they're going to murder us"...WELL.

There are people who are intimidated by all this artificial intelligence, there is a campaign going on in the animation industry about this and how some corporations are firing a lot of artists, there was something that actually really stick in my head "Corporations don't care about they're employees, but they care about YOU, the consumers". Sounds sad but it's true.

What can we learn about this? AI is a tool, and it is important to remember that this tool is designed to augment human capabilities, not replace them. It's all about finding the right balance and ensuring that we use AI to complement, not to replace.

At this point, I couldn't care less about the movie's plot. Instead, I'm giving all the credit to the artists involved. I recently watched a behind-the-scenes video about the film and discovered that many of the props I thought were created using CGI were actually handcrafted and sculpted by artists working on the project, which I found it's truly amazing!

Did anything surprise you?

Minecraft was a big part of my childhood, so I was both surprised and excited when I first came across a post about this film. My initial thought was, "Okay, cool. I'm guessing it's going to be animated" and then the trailer came out and I just stood at the screen like...oh. Zero thoughts were said at that moment other than..."Why?"

I came across this other article were they talk about what does the target audience think about this movie? You know, the "10-year-old murderers", and there was this kid who said "I think it looks pants. Minecraft isn’t at its peak in popularity anymore. Why are they making a film about it now? I don’t think it will do well." Now wait, the kid got a point there! I mean, this movie was already being discussed a decade ago, right, but I think things could have gone "better"...I don't know, at this point, anything could have happened.

In my personal opinion, I think the interactive Netflix series is better. I would have preferred if they had created something like that or even if they had made an animated movie I wouldn't mind having Jack Black as the voice of Steve. I reached this conclusion after watching someone create a fully animated remake of the trailer. Alternatively, it might be best if they just didn't make a Minecraft movie at all.

At the end of the day, if I decide to go and spend my money on this movie, I honestly think there will obviously be laughs here and there without a doubt. I think this might be just like one of those movies that feels like a fever dream or something. In Mexico, we often refer to movies that aren't particularly artistic but are entertaining as "palomera." These films are funny, easy to follow, and make for a great choice when you want to relax on the couch with some popcorn, whether you don't have anything else to watch or simply want something to play in the background.

Sourced used:

[samasmith23]

Honestly, one of the most baffling bad takes I remember Lily Orchard making about anime was the idea that people who want more faithful translations of English Dubs are somehow "inherently fetishizing Japanese culture."

Like... what?! That literally makes ZERO sense! How exactly is wanting a more accurate translation of a piece of Japanese media so that it reflects the spirit of the original work in as authentic a light as possible "fetishistic?!" Because when you fail to be respectful of the original text you wind up with stuff like 4Kids' infamous attempts to dumb-down and "Americanize" obviously Japanese stories (which is pretty disrespectful and racist if you ask me; as much as we love to poke fun at hilarious memes about jelly-filled donuts...).

Now I do understand that anime dubbing and translation is an art-form in-and-of-itself, and that it's impossible to have a 100% one-to-one faithful translation due to just how different the Japanese and English languages are from a structural standpoint. Certain things are always going to be lost in translation, or some things do need to be changed since what sounds perfectly natural in one language might sound stilted and awkward in another language.

There is such a thing as being TOO faithful, which was a trapping that the Netflix re-dubbing of Neon Genesis Evangelion unfortunately fell into due to it's hyper-literal translation of the original Japanese script severely limiting the vocal performances of an otherwise talented cast for the new dub (and that's not even getting into the issues of queer-eraser with Netflix & Studio Khara changing of Kaworu's overt declaration of love to Shinji in Episode 24 to instead saying that he "likes" him).

Bottom line, Lily Orchard has ZERO idea what she's talking about when it comes to anime...

So, according to Lily Orchard...

“.All Anime is crap because it’s perv-pandering garbage made by creepy old-men, for disgusting, smelly, body pillow-carrying weeaboos. No exceptions. .All anime inspired video-games are the same because see reasons above. No exceptions (except for Kingdom Hearts and Pokemon because…Sora and Gardevoir babus!). .If you use anime-inspired art or anime references in your works, you are automatically a horrible person AND a Channer-board Neo-Nazi. No exceptions. .Because they uses tons of anime references in their work, creators like Rebecca Sugar are Channer-board Neo-Nazis who get off to drawings of underage kids. So says the leader!”

Seriously, what the hell is it with Lily and her massive hatred for anime as well as Japanese culture? My guess is that-like most misinformed idiots-her only exposure to anime was through “research”; and by “research”, I mean she just looked at a bunch of cherry-picked, out-of-context online screenshots/video clips of fanservicey moments in random anime (including acclaimed classics like Cowboy Bebop, Full Metal Alchemist and others) and decided not only did they represent their entire respective series, but that those same fanservicy moments represented an ENTIRE MEDIUM! 

And of course, the only so-called “anime fans” Lily ever met were 4Chan Neo-Nazis-the ones who defaced her cartoon avatar-and since Lily adores the “Hitler Ate Sugar” fallacy, she has convinced herself that 4Chan Neo-Nazis represent the quality of ALL anime. Once again, Gromit, speak my feelings:

It’s hilarious  how Western media is filled to the brim with raunchy sexual content (see Belgian, French and Italian comics, “Metal Hurlant” etc.), yet holier-than-thou Helen Lovejoys like Lily barely bat an eye at them. But whenever characters like Feye Valentine, Winry Rockbell and Olivia Mira show the tiniest  bit of skin or sexual liberation, they cry “Weeaboo spankbait! Women and Girls are in danger!! Won’t somebody think of the children!!!” When you step back, you realize this is all just regurgitated “Yellow Peril” rubbish.

In other words…

Lily Orchard is a racist.

[guqin-and-flute]

Lan Xichen Episode 42 ✨Face Journeys✨

karetahana said: Listen. i am here literally asking for the analysis if you feel like doing 🤩

OH, WELL IF YOU INSIST *turns with a lovingly embossed binder full of Xichen pictures* This is sincerely self indulgent and long as absolute fuck, just a warning. Bold is a direct quote from the show (Youtube/Netflix)

~~~

OKAY. Episode 42. We start at 30:20, Lan Wangji is sitting next to Wei Wuxian who is convalescing on Lan Wangji’s bed back at the Cloud Recesses after having been stabbed (bummer) during a disaster of a recon mission that landed not only him and Wangji in hot water with everyone (double bummer), but Xichen as well for demanding entry to Jin Guangyao’s secret room (triple bummer). Wuxian is worried about being back in the Cloud Recesses-- “What if your brother finds out?” Enter Xichen, rocking up to the conversation with a fucking joke; “I found out already.” Letting him sweat a little, but as he sounds pretty calm, it’s mostly a ‘it’s hilarious that you think that I wouldn’t know about this, dude.’ (Bro, how are you so chill? How are you so good?)

They get up and bow as he strolls in. Wuxian apologizes for existing here, in his mountain and stuff. Xichen shakes his head with amused fondness; 

and hits them both with this smile that reaches his eyes and says ‘Nah, son, that was me. You can live here while they search for you ‘cause I’m nice and I like you.’

Genuine, comforting, and warm. ‘Glad to have you here, Wuxian.’

WWX and LWJ exchange a look--probably WWX asking for confirmation, LWJ giving it. Then, with zero further ado, WWX jumps right in with “Where’s Chifeng-zun’s body?”

Surprise. Looks like they’re jumping right into it (and I don’t know if Xichen notes this, but I certainly do--with no ‘thank you’ or ‘sorry about that, kinda awkward for everyone’ or pre-emptive offered explanation as to what the fuck went down yesterday at JinLinTai.)

That pain has resurfaced recently and is not easily hidden away. This topic is upsetting.

He turns his back, walks away as he tells them that the body is safe and with Huaisang. He’s not sure he can control what’s going on on his face when it comes to what happened to Da-ge. His eyes move around a lot as he says this--he’s still thinking. 

WWX: What was Jin Guangyao’s reaction? 

LWJ: [slightly bitter] Flawless

At this, Xichen turns back, face under control. (Liebing is in between them, now. Subconsciously defensive?)

He looks between both of them as he speaks and these smiles don’t quite reach his eyes like the first ones. His chin dips down in firmness, his eyebrows are raised in what I personally would interpret as ‘leading expectance.’ The point of this visit is incoming.

LWJ knows that tone, even if WWX doesn’t. 

Looking at WWX, he’s smiling, but still doesn’t quite meet his eyes. There’s something more than just fondness there. “Now that Wei-gongzi is awake...” [pause] 

Looks to Wangji. Abruptly, there is more to his expression--less masking, more intent in his eyes. This is serious and he is being earnest.  ‘Don’t you think you owe me something of an explanation for how nothing you both said was proven after I publicly threw my lot in with you without question and demanded Jin Guangyao open his secret room? And then his wife died inexplicably? And then you fought your way out? And I told you to bring WWX back on good faith because we both care about him and I know what he means to you?’ (Have I mentioned yet how chill Xichen is? And how great?)

LWJ: [slightest of head bows, no expression change] Brother.

Now, I don’t quite know what this is supposed to mean, but Xichen sure does and his reaction makes me think it’s some sort of younger brother sass that he’s used to.

Fond exasperation and some warmth back in his expression. A sigh and an affectionately despairing ‘what am I going to do with you?’ But he’s still waiting. 

LWJ: Brother. Jin Guangyao does indeed have Chifeng-zun’s head.

This is not an explanation or proof. It’s a doubling down of what they have said before with no further information. 

Immediate disbelief--’This again.’ He covers it quickly, mask back up, but there is a tightly held patience in his smile that does not bode well for LWJ or WWX.  The pleasantry starts to leave even if the smile remains.

LWJ: He saw it with his own eyes

And oh holy shit. That fake, tight smile drops away, and there is something almost cold in his eyes for a moment, here. We have hit the heart of it. His eyes flick over to WWX and a low, troubling cello note plays in the background. Deep displeasure at this answer. (This is one of those times when I remember that Xichen is, in fact, quite a dangerous monster hunter.)

WWX knows how this sounds and does not meet his gaze. He, at least, shows he’s aware of what Xichen is getting at.

Xichen stares a moment more, looks back at Wangji and very visibly swallows back anger as his jaw flexes. 

When he blinks, the smile is back. He holds a lot of tension in the corners of his mouth as he forces it. There is anger in them there hills. He is frustrated. Wangji is deliberately not seeing things from his perspective, as he has repeatedly tried to do for him and Wuxian. Xichen is trying very hard to be reasonable and calm about this.

LXC: You believe in Wei-gongzi? LWJ: I do. LXC: [in the manner of a teacher leading you to an answer] What about Jin Guangyao? LWJ: Not credible. 

[Slightly jarring cut to Xichen from farther away, (and blurry as hell?) clearly a different take, but whatever]  He sighs and comes closer and--YAY--fond exasperation is back. ‘You are being deliberately obtuse, bro.’ 

LXC: Then how do you judge who is credible or not? [Pause] LWJ: [silence] LXC: You trust Wei-gongzi and I trust Jin Guangyao. [Expectant pause]

He’s being patient again. ‘You know, like 16 years ago? When no one trusted Wei Wuxian or looked for all the facts? And just relied on hearsay? Do you see what I’m getting at? Is this familiar at all, Wangji? There are parallels that you should be able to empathize with.’ 

Silence from Wangji as he stares into the middle distance around the area of Xichen’s shoulders. 

Xichen elaborates further into this silence, saying something along the lines of; ‘neither of us saw the head, we’re going on trust--both of us. You do not have solid evidence beyond hearsay whereas I am working off of years of personal experience as evidence from my perspective. You do understand that I’m going to need more than this, right? I have not seen Wei Wuxian in 16 years and the last time I did he was trying to murder us all.’ (Well. Okay, maybe not in so many words, but that’s the gist.) During the majority of this speech, the camera slowly pans past Xichen speaking, zooming in on Wangji’s face. 

He is deliberately closed off. He is not responding to Xichen verbally and his nonverbal signals are basically, ‘I disagree. I disagree. I disagree.’ Then, we get this little batch of juicy facial expressions along with a speech.

So much is here. Frustration, fear, pleading, asking to be understood. He is intense and earnest. ‘You’re not trying to understand my position. Please.’ He ends with this face.

Waiting. He is losing his composure. This is a Lan fight, now; he is no longer really considering the fact that there is anyone else seeing him or hearing him other than Wangji. There is a beat of silence. Wuxian looks at Wangji. The camera cuts to Wangji and nothing has changed in his face at all during this pronouncement and he is still not looking at him. Xichen tries again.

There is less mobility in his eyebrows, and the corners of his mouth are tight again. He is disbelieving. ‘So your reason is allowed to be because Wei Ying said so but mine isn’t allowed to be I’ve watched this happen before to you and I refuse to be party to another mob before I have all the facts? You’re not even going to try to understand when I’ve done all I can to try to understand you?’ He ends with this face, for a few moments, clearly hurt.

Wangji remains silent, but he looks down and away with his eyes. Wuxian breaks in, says, “Lan-zongzhu,” almost reprimanding, obviously tense. And it’s clear that Xichen had forgotten that he was there because here’s the face journey that started this whole post.

He looks to Wuxian instinctively without masking, reminded of his presence. It takes him a second but he blinks and and realizes what he’s done.

Goes inside. Has whatever dialogue with himself that he has whenever he dares to have an undiplomatic and entirely “selfish” emotion. Takes in a breath. Makes himself presentable with a smile. And reassures Wuxian that he still plans on being impartial and will not reveal where Wei Wuxian is. Wuxian bows and thanks him for this.

Xichen almost says something--or maybe he’s thinking--but all he does is sigh. He looks vaguely regretful and is clearly reeling himself back in. He does not reply and he does not look at Wangji. Wangji is staring past him. (The boys are fightiiiiing.)

In this opening, Wei Wuxian steps closer and insists, very seriously, that Mingjue’s head really was in Jin Guangyao’s posession. And Xichen does this.

He steels his jaw, takes a breath, and smiles. ‘Sure kid. What I say clearly doesn’t matter. Because we’re here again.’ Now, he talks with Wei Wuxian and he is measured and patient and perfectly pleasant. Sometimes, his face grows serious when he listens. 

But when he speaks--either right before or during--he smiles this smile. 

He ends all of his sentences with this smile.

Even when Wuxian suggests that it might have been the music being played that drove Mingjue to qi deviation, he blinks, sighs, and says;

It is all nearly the exact same expression. It is perfectly acceptable, completely polite. But it is not familiar or warm and it does not reach his eyes. It is defensive, covering up whatever other emotional reaction he might have to Wei Wuxian’s words. Any vulnerability is gone. He is not offering it to Wei Wuxian. He is no longer asking to be understood. He simply repeats, in different ways, ‘You do not have hard facts. You have not brought me proof. I’m sorry, but you have not convinced me.’

Xichen does not look at Wangji through this entire conversation and Wangji says nothing. Wuxian offers to show Xichen proof--the thing he’s been asking for this whole time--and his reaction is to nod.

And smile the same exact smile.

[u-look-beautiful-today]

I deff feel like this message will come across as kind of negative and i'm sorry in advance for that but I wanted to ask a wenclair shipper myself because...I'm not sure why so many people think this ship will be canon or even semi canon. For one, the showrunners have been obsessively talking about all the things they love doing with wednesdays character and they surely would have mentioned if they explore her in a romantic relationship by now (actually they specifically said the relationship of the season is mother/daughter) Not to mention netflix's god awful track record with LGBT ships. Again, sorry for the negative message but why do you guys think this ship will happen? Or is that you don't think it's canon and just like the idea of the dynamic? Because there's a similar one with morticia/debbie that isn't canon but I've seen people like them and even ship them in the past

Hey, not negative at all! I personally dont have much faith in Netflix but I love the dynamic that they have! I've been in many fandoms for a long time and honestly, I'm always so use to never getting canon ships. I was a Faberry shipper back in my Glee days and THAT was delusion. I expect the queerbait, the empty promises, the actors shipping them but it never playing out. I don't know how to describe it exactly. Like I make all these posts about them but I genuinely don't see ANY romantic relationships with Wednesday developing in season 1. I just like to attach to dynamics like theirs. Even if I know it'll never happen. It might be sad, but I've been doing it since I was 12! I grew up with ZERO wlw in anything. Now, I feel spoiled having She-Ra and Owl House, they heal the inner gay kid in me. But, I am still the pessimistic 25 year old and I know not to get any hopes up to see wlw representation.

And I can't speak for everyone. I don't know how many people truly believe it is going to be canon. Like I said, I don't think it will be, unfortunately. But, I've been around and I have lived off of fics, art, and other people making head canons, of ships that never, ever, sailed. I'll still carry on and ignore canon as I always have! It's not exactly about it being canon, sure that makes it sooo much better, but it's about their dynamic and the what ifs. Debbie and Morticia is a great example! The vibe is there. The looks, comments, Debbie being a killer is very appealing for Morticia. People ship it cause it's fun sometimes to imagine the what ifs. Canon doesn't stop us. That's why we have fics with AUs. We WANT to see this dynamic and since we won't ever see it, we will create our own out of it.

Now, if Wenclair does happen for some reason, then it's a win and it'll be a rare time I won't be disappointed.

I hope I answered your question, friend! If not, you can always message again or even dm! I'm always happy to answer!

[iminaworldofpureimagination]

yeah its already pretty annoying did we need a dozen I CANT BELIVE THEY RUINED SOKKA takes? no we did not.

Now i dont hate bryke im indifferent to them and admit they /along with many talented writers/animators made a good show.. I dont' think they're awful people ike some fans do but i do think they are flawed people who got to use LOK to do scrapped atla ideas and giving em more free reign was a mistake. bryke leaving netflix meant nothing to me. i have low faith in them after LOL and to me it just its so obvious they left due to Avatar Studios. no big conspiracy needed.. i saw both trailers there was zero hint of zutara or kataang.. .. just sukka..

After LOK I have low faith in bryke i rem being so mad that they got rid of korras avatar past that i just quit the show.. plus i was bored with it.. and knowing what they did to aang/toph making toph a shitty mother... aang a shitty dad.. im just but why? theres a propping up for the animated movie that we barely know anything about and im just hmmm i dunno im not convinced thats gonna be great either.. unless more talented people got involved with it, we can only hope. cause they're alright in a group but given too much control they make well LOK.. and i really dont want lok to be the timeline for avatar. in those movies but im sure it will ..sigh..

My prediction for the new Netflix Avatar the Last Airbender show is that it’ll ignite the most annoying discourse ever conceived, perhaps surpassing that of the 2020 ATLA renaissance in 2020.

Also, the potential for Bryke’s initial vision of the live action series will live on in people’s imagination as a shining ideal that the INFERIOR Netflix show could never ever top, not realizing that it was realistically never going to live up to the standards of their childhood nostalgia. Mark my words, this adaptation is going to be no different from the other unsatisfactory adaptations and it may even cause a worse reaction because of the high esteem the original animated show holds in everyone’s memory. So, people are going to cope by telling themselves that Bryke’s vision would’ve been far superior to the Netflix adaptation (even though there are a multitude of reasons why one would doubt that) and spend the runtime of it moaning about this and that.

All of those inflammatory articles about what the show is going to change proves my point tremendously. It’s enough to make you want to break the laws of reality and rescue Katara from the disparaging discourse that’s going to resurface now that ATLA is going to become relevant again. People are already in the process of idealizing Bryke’s original plan (which no one has ever heard, mind you) and it gives me such a headache.

[collectionoftulips]

Also, I watched Persuasion (yes that cursed Netflix adaption). Admittedly, it is a bit like beating a dead horse, and I think that the review that said that everyone involved should be briefly put in prison until they understand their crimes against literature and cinema more broadly said it perfectly so adding my own thoughts into the mix are perhaps redundant. But I will say I have never watched anything that has made me quite so angry and offended at its complete butchering of the source material.

And I'm by no means an Austen purist - I think some of the best adaptions that have been made of her work has been made when creators have taken risks and not everything needs to be as faithful to its source as 1995 Pride and Prejudice. The diversity of the cast is about the only nice thing I will say about this movie even though its diversity felt incredibly surface level. Plus, Henry Golding clearly ought to have been Wentworth and:

They fundamentally misunderstand and butcher Anne as a character and therefore the most fundamental element of the novel doesn't work

The writers and producers have created as close to a carbon copy of Emma (2020) as they possibly could, not only copying major elements of the visual elements of the movie but also trying to change Anne's character to be more like Emma, completely forgetting the fact that they are two completely different characters

It was also like they saw how the occasional breaking of the fourth wall worked so well in Persuasion (2007) and how popular it was in Fleabag, and decided to just throw it in with little thought or consideration, thereby ruining one of my favourite least-used narrative devices in visual media, making me wonder why I even like it to begin with if it can produce such a travesty as Persuasion (2022). I might exaggerate but only barely.

Absolute garbage use of tension for a story that is entirely too reliant on the maintenance of tension. Anne and Wentworth don't go around checking in re: each other's feelings all the time because they are prevented from doing so at two levels: personal and societal. Completely removing that all together made for a movie with zero stakes and no tension. If they really wanted to ignore everything about the time period, they really ought to have just made a modernisation, instead of whatever cursed halfway house this was.

I could quite frankly write books about all the myriad of ways this adaption was just an utter flop, and I know no one asked for this, especially seeing as I mostly just write about Bridgerton stuff on here, but I just need you to know that WATCHING THIS ADAPTION IS NOT FUN - IT'S NOT EVEN FUN!BAD AND TBH IF YOU CAN AVOID AND WATCH IT LATER, PLEASE DO, BECAUSE I REGRET WATCHING IT BECAUSE NOW NETFLIX ARE GOING TO THINK PRODUCING THIS LOW-LEVEL CRAP IS OK BECAUSE THEY ARE GOING TO GET LOTS OF VIEWERS.

Sorry, I will resume my regularly scheduled programming soon but I just need people to know my pain. This is in my opinion arguably Austen's greatest novel and it's so quiet and delicate and this wonderful exploration of human psychology, relationships, regret, loyalty etc. It also has the most romantic letter ever committed to fiction and to have that reduced to "Now we are worse than friends, we are exes" or whatever the exact line is, is an affront.