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tea-at-221 · 4 years ago

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So, let's delve a bit into the Spanish dub of Supernatural.

I'm going to go through a lot of terms here, and a lot of basics, in order to increase people's level of understanding as to how the dub may possibly have come about the way it did.

This post will provide information and, I hope, allow some members of the fandom to move forward with their own theories with more reassurance. Information is power. I will define and clarify industry terms to the best of my novice ability to make it easier for others who wish to do their own research.

This post was inspired by the fact that I've been part of multiple fandoms in which queerbaiting has played an enormous part: I am tired of seeing fandom friends left devastated and without answers, no emotional resolution in sight. So this post is, in spirit if not content, largely dedicated to my fellow Johnlockers and Queliot shippers. And most of all, for Quentin Coldwater, who deserved not just better but the very best.

Disclaimer: This is my own research and there is a bit of speculation involved; I can't guarantee 100% that I will get everything right (I hit some very frustrating walls looking up what should be easy-to-find facts), but I did a *lot* of work for this. Other people will doubtless be able to clarify points/give better specifics/correct what I've gotten wrong. I am not promising a concrete answer to “SPN gate” here, as without more information than we currently have that is impossible to declare with certainty.

More under the cut.

All that having been said, onwards (see end for sources):

First, who airs the Spanish dub of Supernatural?

Answer: the Warner Channel.

Why? It goes back to who owns The CW.

From Wikipedia (2): "The CW Network, LLC, a limited liability joint venture between the CBS Entertainment Group unit of ViacomCBS; and the Studios and Networks division of AT&T's WarnerMedia, the parent company of Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB. The network's name is an abbreviation derived from the first letters of the names of its two parent corporations (CBS and Warner Media)."

Warner Bros apparently is the side that handles the delegation of dubbing to outside studios. So, who does Warner use for their dubbing? Perhaps multiple studios, but the two I found in the course of my research were SPGStudios(5) (who specifically handle localization for Latin American Spanish productions) and Iyuno Media Group (formerly BTI Studios)(3).

What is localization?

Simply put, it refers to the translation of the home language of the show in question to the language of the new market it's entering. So, Supernatural 15x18 is translated from its native English to Spanish for Latin American viewers.

And what exactly *is* dubbing (actually called revoicing within the industry; dubbing is a widely-recognized term, however, and it's pretty well understood what is meant by it)?

Here is the Merriam-Webster definition:

"1 : to add (sound effects or new dialogue) to a film or to a radio or television production —usually used with "in"

They dubbed in the music.

2 : to provide (a motion-picture film) with a new soundtrack and especially dialogue in a different language

The film was dubbed in French and Spanish.

3 : to make a new recording of (sound or videotape already recorded) also : to mix (recorded sound or videotape from different sources) into a single recording"

There is a slang term, "dubby," which refers to any overdub that is comically jarring and obviously a dub. The history of dubbing has been such that this has become a way to think of and recognize it: by how awful and ineffective it used to be when it came to foreign films sloppily overlaid with English dubbing.

However, we are in the midst of an age of networks and companies scrambling to play catch-up, eager to use modern technology to create more effective, convincing dubs. In short, they see the moneymaking potential of presenting finished works that viewers may not even realize *are* dubbed without careful inspection. It's true that a good dub is about 10x more costly than subtitling, but it's hard to satisfy the viewer's desire for escapism if they can't suspend disbelief because they're busy reading.

The truth of that is reflected in internal statistics Netflix (for instance, but not just them) parses to gauge viewer interaction and retention with their various shows: when comparing subtitled vs. dubbed shows, it's easy to see which is the winner.(1)

So to be sure there is no nefarious intent here, we would need to be able to identify the following:

A.) What exactly was the process for this dub?

B.) Who decides what changes to make during a dubbing process?

C.) Who approves those changes?

*Can* there be such a thing as a "rogue translator," as Misha Collins put it? (I am going to clarify here that I think Misha is an upstanding person who believed the best of the show he was involved in and all the people who made it, so his assumption of a rogue translator makes sense in the context of that emotion-based reasoning).

I'm not sure which studio did the dub for the Latin American Spanish version of Supernatural; if I had access to that episode perhaps it's mentioned in the credits. You'd think that would be simple enough to figure out anyway, but I was unable. So maybe someone can take a look and let me know. But, as an example, here is how SPGStudios outlines their localization (dubbing) process:

1.) They make a digital or analog transcription of a show/movie.

2.) The translation, or localization, is done by their staff (in any of 40 available languages their staff can speak). When translating, they translate for meaning and then adapt for time, tempo, and style. They say that "extensive experience is required to capture the essence of the language dialog while accounting for variances in speaking time between the source and destination languages." i.e., wording/word choice will be kept as true as possible to the original intention of the native language, but at the same time the translation will need to use its chosen wording in a way that fits what is being shown on-screen. To produce a convincing/pleasing dub, they won't replace a word like "looked" with a longer phrase like "scanned the horizon" because it's not going to match what's onscreen. That would be venturing into "dubby" territory.

3.) They perform the ADR process: the voice actors (in this case it would normally be Guillermo Rojas performing for Dean Winchester, though it appears things may have been different in 15x18, possibly due to covid) record the new dialogue to replace the original actor's performance.

4.) The newly recorded dialogue goes to the sound editorial department "to ensure that lip-synch is optimized and technical aspects of the vocal performance match the original."

5.) All of the new audio--including dialogue, music, and sound effects--is mixed together to emulate the quality of the original production as closely as possible despite the changes in rhythm that resulted from the dialog having been translated.

6.) Designers, animators, and VFX editors assist with the localization or enhancement of graphics, if needed.

7.) Localized Master: SPG has a 'traffic team' who 'ensures that all client delivery and storage specifications are met, including file formatting, labeling, and uploading." So in other words, the files are heavily encrypted (or that's how I read this).

Presumably, after all steps are performed, SPGStudios transfers the show back to Warner, who then distributes it. The other studio, Iyuno, makes it very clear that *they* can coordinate and handle all distribution themselves to a vast number of networks. That means that if the client desires, Iyuno can send the finished product directly out into the world.

There seem to be two types of scripts that can be given to the dubbing company:

1.) "In-Production Dubbing indicates that dubbing production is active in tandem with post production. In-Production Dubbing fulfillment partners should expect potential changes to source materials."(4)

2.) "Final Asset Dubbing indicates that dubbing production takes place after final delivery of the show. All source assets will be in a final state. The dubbing fulfillment partner should not expect any changes to the source materials."(4)

Without knowing which of these was agreed upon for SPN 15x18, it is very hard to say exactly where or if additional edits may have been performed on the original material that weren't performed on the translated material (in other words, earlier draft).

If the studio was given the episode as an In-Production Dubbing project, this could explain why the title of the Spanish translation reflected the original script title, "The Truth," rather than the final title in English, "Despair".

Assuming this difference was unintentional, rather than a calculated marketing ploy re: audience enticement (which seems admittedly unlikely), then yes, it could indicate a screw-up on someone's part. The question is, was the dub company given the task of generating the title card, or did some other graphics department handle that before the project made it to them? If the latter is the case, the choice to add "Me too" instead of "Don't do this, Cas" could be either a conscious choice on the dub studio's part as sort of a nod to what they thought "the truth" was, or could just be them going with what they were given and making their translation choices based on something else, such as rhythm/timing.

SO, could there have been an original script that had Dean say "me too" in response to Cas, which then went through translation and made it out into the world? Teeechnically yes, but one would assume that the original script and original *footage* would have to have arrived at the dub studio together if the script is being transcribed in-house as SPGSTudios outlines in their process. I'm going to reason that the odds of them using a later edit of the visual--one that contained what in this instance we would be assuming was Warner's preferred dialogue ("Don't do this, Cas") yet choosing to stick with their own audio revoicing of the (supposed) original script/visual's "Me too, Cas" with its now subsequently poor timing, seems unlikely.

So either they would likely have to redo the exact same "Me too" audio again (having made the choice to keep the original dialogue, while also having to work under pandemic restrictions re: travel and talent availability) to make everything match the visual footage time-wise, OR, it was simply a matter that the English scene always was just as we saw it, but that the studio chose to interpret the script the way they did and were able to do their timing the first time around to match accordingly.

This still leaves a question in the air regarding the origin and fate of certain clips of Dean's more visually emotive reaction to Castiel's confession that have been floating around the internet. I've only seen very very brief glimpses of them, myself, and I'm not certain that they're really evidence of anything other than more than one take having been done of that scene, which wouldn't be uncommon and doesn't necessarily point to a conspiracy.

I also want to state that in the wake of 15x18, I opted to protect my mental health rather than follow every development/rumor/speculation that cropped up in the aftermath, so there’s probably a lot that I’m leaving out of this post that may be pertinent. Do me a favor and do assume that I know nothing of it. lol

I will also add this about the other studio, Iyuno: they are very careful to state on their site, repeatedly and with great pride, that they are committed to presenting the world with the smoothest, most true-to-the-original localized version of a film or show possible. Quote: "...our entire team of staff wants nothing more than to make every single one of our partner's content feel as if it were never translated." They are not fucking around. They want to please the client. Would they have done something like the translation in question without any direct go-ahead from Warner? It seems unlikely, though they don't outline their process on their site the way SPG does.

Notice that in the SPGStudios process outlined above, there is no mention made of a review step in which the studio presents the translated dialogue to the client for approval re: the new wording. That doesn't mean there isn't a review step; however, without seeing the contractual agreement that was made between Warner and whatever dub studio they used, or knowing Warner's preferred process by some other means, it's difficult to be certain whether or not there was a review process for the translated script. I did find evidence that Netflix reserves the right to review such translated scripts before air.

Speaking of Netflix, I will include here what their translation requirements are, as I did find those. They, like Warner, also use Iyuno Media Group much of the time for dubbing (voiceover style dubbing in which they apparently like to leave the original language audible underneath, so that's slightly different from revoicing, but I'm working on an assumption that the general expectations are the same for both):(4)

"1. Translation Requirements

1.1 Main Dialogue

All main dialogue in the source (original) language should be translated unless specifically noted.

Due to timing limitations, some of the dialogue may be condensed/truncated as long as it retains all essential elements of the plot.

Please refrain from dubbing redundant words such as character names and repetitions.

Additionally, do not recreate laughs, hesitations, reaction noises, etc."

I'm looking at that bit: "Due to timing limitations, some of the dialogue may be condensed/truncated as long as it retains all essential elements of the plot."

So let's say just for argument's sake that this is pretty standard language provided to the dubbing studios. Netflix is a giant, so I'll proceed with that assumption given the lack of more concrete information:

Does it really change essential elements of the remaining plot to have Dean return Castiel's declaration of love? Forgetting about the outside, emotional ripple effect such a declaration was bound to set off in the viewing audience, no. The two characters have no further scenes together, nor does Dean go on in the next episode to immediately embark on a new relationship, or tell anyone that Cas said he was in love with him but he couldn't return it because he didn't feel the same. So technically, no rule was broken. And that is what it comes down to, if you're thinking like a lawyer reading a contract: specifics, not theoretical implications or consequences.

So, possibly what we have is something that was simple to add and easy to get away with/argue for: translated dialog that fit a dub better due to its length, and didn't actually change anything plot-wise (or at least, the argument for that could easily be made). This points to the painful crux of the matter: why would the Spanish version of Supernatural which aired in Latin America allow Dean Winchester to return Castiel's declaration of love with a "Me too, Cas"? Could it *really* be as insulting as the fact that "Yo a ti, Cas" would be a quicker, smoother dub than "No hagas esto, Cas"? ("Don't do this, Cas" in English.) Or did they see something they could get away with, and a reasonable argument to provide for it, so they went ahead and claimed a small LGBT+ victory?

Is someone, somewhere, getting in trouble for all this? Maybe. But could action be taken against them? That would look pretty bad, public-relations-wise, for the party expressing condemnation if that got out. Could Iyuno, or whatever other studio (again, I don't actually know which one handled the dub) theoretically feel a ripple effect from the fallout of this? Could they quietly suffer a drop in acquisitions/revenue for "reasons unclear"? Sure. That sort of thing happens all the time, so theoretically yeah.

Whatever the reasoning behind the decision to have Dean return Cas' declaration of love, surely they didn't have to do it. Surely they could have chosen some other phrase that fit. But they chose to do exactly what they did. I don't know what went down, in the end, or whether censorship was indeed involved, but I will certainly say that I think it was a brave and admirable choice that was made with the Spanish dub. It doesn't undo the "bury your gays" trope of course, but for some LGBT+ audience members it surely provides a sense of validation and maybe even lends a little hope for better representation--which is long, long overdue.

Thanks if you read this far. I hope that even though it’s not perfect it will be helpful in some way.

Sources

(1) https://www.indiewire.com/2020/02/subtitles-vs-dubbing-what-you-need-to-know-1202212800/amp

(2) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_CW

(3) https://www.iyunomg.com/

(4) https://partnerhelp.netflixstudios.com/hc/en-us/articles/115016062708-Dubbed-Audio-Style-Guide-VO-Style-Dubbing

(5) https://www.spgstudios.com/localization

#spn gate #destiel #supernatural #queerbaiting #lgbt #lgbt+#lgbt representation #15x18 #dean winchester #castiel #johnlockers #queliot #queliot shippers #quentin coldwater deserved better #spn family #they silenced you

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aikainkauna · 6 years ago

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The Ur-Panther

Don't you hate it when you have a perfect, *perfect* way of describing somebody or something, but it's been ruined by overuse and misuse (applied to anything even vaguely similar) until it's become a cliché and just makes you look like you're unoriginal and stupid?

Case in point: Conrad fucking Veidt and cats.

All kinds of people throughout history have been described as feline, or walking or pouncing like panthers or tigers or what have you. And oh dear, is bad romance fiction ever full of clichés like that--it's almost right up there with azure orbs and limpid pools.

But what the fuck do you do when you have found the most feline guy to ever have graced the silver screen? Who also happens to have piercing eyes--yes, piercing, *transfixing* you like no one else's? And whose wooings can only be described as ravishments--yes, exactly what we've tried to clumsily convey for years with "noncon but s/he likes it, really" and wringing our hands to dodge the other, nastier R-word when we know very well this is about something else entirely? And whose elegance is beyond compare, who makes other androgynes seem neuter(ed), who fucking well *purrs* his lines?! Just how many times have those descriptors been used for any old insecure fellow in a crumpled, rented tuxedo walking like he's divorced from his hips and whose delivery lacks enunciation to the point where it's a mumble?!

Seriously. I am always aware of this while writing, and it really fucking bugs me that there will always be several astute readers rolling their eyes over my having called him a cat again, for having written Jaffar uttering a purr in a quivering Pwinzezz's ear before a Wild Ravishment because he is A Beast. And every time he does something with his elegant boypus--I mean hands. And every time his eyes pierce someone and transfix them in place.

AARRRGHHH! It's like finding out you've been copied, plagiarised, almost--because you're in possession of the original, the undiluted concept and then ersatz imitations have flooded the market. It's as awful as when historians discover something ancient and some newspaper or commentator thinks it's witty to call it "a bit like an ancient version of [modern-day trendy thing]", a reference that will date so quickly nobody in 20 years will get it. And you're the historian holding back the Fist of Death (are Dilbert references too old for Tumblr?)

Not that I'm saying Connie invented the cat walk or the slink or the piercing stare (he probably got his way of being from his mum, Max Reinhardt, Romantic literature and cabarets. That last one includes the drag and the bi, naturally). It's just that he *embodied* those qualities so perfectly it's like he was the quintessence of them, a deity/incarnation of those forces. So it's like... well. It's a fight you can't win, writing about him with accuracy, especially if you are like me and hate wanky, "modern" ways of saying something in an unusual way just to sound less clichéd. You can go so overboard with that that it becomes not just an interruption in the narrative flow, but also (especially if it's a deliberate use of ugliness used to mock the beauty of the surrounding text) a huge fucking nuisance that can sink into right old arty-farty pretentiousness.

If I'm arty-farty and pretentious, at least I always lean towards the beautiful and the Romantic. And I revolt, *revolt* at that foolishness that has cheapened and dulled and stupidified so many perfectly apt and beautiful descriptives into commonplace clichés, things who the unimaginative idiots who are the *opposite* of poets use. (I wonder if the scents and tastes of lemons and mint and such were actually exquisite, were they not used to death in household and oral hygiene products. You know?)

Anyway. It's frustrating. I write about that which I experience and see, and if it's been misused, that's hardly my fault, now is it? It's a bit like sex in a way--lovely and pleasurable and beautiful and healthy, an expression of the Life Force, but rendered its exact opposite by far too many people abusing it and thus giving it a bad name. But that doesn't stop me from penning down the thing exactly as it is and how I experience it.

So if you see me going on about those panther glides and purrs and pounces and piercing stares and Wild Ravishments, rest assured that it's absolutely not a lack of imagination on my part. The slinky bastard just WAS like that and there's no other way of describing it, without dishonesty.

And I'm damned if I'm going to hold back from the truth--you get a tell-all on the fucker. In all its hot and wet and sticky and sublime and terrible and awesome majesty.

#conrad veidt #writing #fic #cliches #conrad veidt. sex panther #if he's a goddamn cat i'm going to say so #not make up shit like 'he moved like a lemur'#do most people even know what 'transfix' really means?#i mean that's how overused it is #it's not like i'm incapable of originality or something #it's just... *handmotions* him being like that

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deadcactuswalking · 4 years ago

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REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 14/11/2020 (Ariana Grande, Little Mix)

We’re in a similar situation to last week where despite two massive albums – Little Mix’s Confetti even debuting at #2 on the album chart behind Kylie Minogue’s Disco (which was unprecedented but completely understandable since Kylie is massive here) – are both released, but there’s a very muted impact on the chart, mostly because of silly UK Singles Chart rules. In fact, you could argue there’s more impact from smaller releases from Giggs and The Kid LAROI, but that’s just how streaming goes. Since this chart doesn’t include radio, hip-hop has more of a chance in many ways to debut on the chart than the type of pop Kylie makes but its longevity is seriously impaired. Also, ageism doesn’t exist on the albums chart but on here it is in full effect. Regardless, we have 12 new arrivals, mostly from the aforementioned artists, so let’s start. Ariana Grande’s “positions” is still #1 – you can chalk that up to lack of competition – and welcome to REVIEWING THE CHARTS.

Dropouts & Returning Entries

Before we get to the songs debuting on the UK Top 75 proper this week, let’s have our brief little musical rundown, starting with the drop-outs as there were a fair few, namely “Go Crazy” by Chris Brown and Young Thug (a pretty damn big hit for the both of them), “West Ten” by AJ Tracey and Mabel (again, a very big hit, one of the biggest of the year making its exit), “Only You Freestyle” by Headie One and Drake lasting longer than I expected or it probably should have, “Loose” by S1mba and KSI leaving perhaps prematurely, “808” by Da Beatfreakz, Dutchavelli, DigDat and B Young, “5AM” by M Huncho and Nafe Smallz (Thank God) and a couple of our high debuts and returns from last week, like “motive” by Ariana Grande featuring Doja Cat – but we will see more of Ariana today – and the charity single “Four Notes – Paul’s Tune” by Paul Harvey and the BBC Philharmonic, as well as all three of the returning Halloween tracks, including “Thriller” by Michael Jackson. Oh, yeah, and as anyone could safely predict, all of the Bring Me the Horizon songs are gone, even “Teardrops”, which means we officially have 100% less metalcore on the chart, and I’m surprised to say I’m genuinely disappointed. In terms of returning entries, we have “Before You Go” by Lewis Capaldi making a return to #71, “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey re-appearing for the first time this year and remarkably early to #60 and some returns from album boosts, those being “Magic” by Kylie Minogue peaking at #53 and “Happiness” by Little Mix doing the same at #43. The biggest fall this week was “Ain’t it Different” by Headie One featuring AJ Tracey and Stormzy dropping out of the top 10 to #31, probably because it had its streaming numbers cut as many songs do after they’ve reached more than 10 weeks in the top 40. The biggest gain however was for “SO DONE” by The Kid LAROI just missing out on the top 40 at #44. I can honestly see this becoming huge. Oh, and “Whoopty” by CJ is now in the top 40 at #39. Joy... Let’s just get straight to these new songs.

NEW ARRIVALS

#75 – “WITHOUT YOU” – The Kid LAROI

Produced by Blake Slatkin and Omar Fedi

So this kid LAROI released an EP that attaches to a mixtape he released earlier this year, Frick Love, which has been reissued as a sort of deluxe edition, without there even being a debut studio album to reissue, just a mixtape. Either way, this new hybrid deluxe version, repackaged as Frick Love (Savage), has been considerably more successful than the original mixtape so far, probably off of the back of that “SO DONE” single. Awful cover art aside; I did not listen to this project because I am not interested at all in some Australian emo-rapper’s EP, especially if it’s going to Marshmello, Machine Gun Kelly and YoungBoy Never Broke Again on it. This kid LAROI said that this is his favourite song off of the release because, and I quote verbatim: “I just like it, I don’t know, it’s kind of, dude, I don’t know, it’s a little different, it’s like a little, uh, acoustic vibe, uh, I just like it.” It’s nice to see this new generation of musicians be so articulate. Well, this is a pretty trite song with rote acoustic guitar strumming that is pretty conventional of softer emo-pop, but this song doesn’t come with infectious choruses, emotional bloodletting or even more than a single verse. Instead, it’s just absolute garbage with a guitar riff I swear I’ve heard before. There’s no development to this increasingly exhausting ballad other than this kid LAROI crooning and moaning in a pathetic Auto-Tune falsetto some clearly misogynist lyrics that he only picked up from Juice and other rappers. This kid shouldn’t care about making wives out of hoes, he should be studying. I’m almost offended by this on a personal level, or at least the principle that this kid at seventeen years old could go on about heartbreak that probably didn’t happen and use it to excuse and disguise clearly lazy, sexist lyrics. At least with other emo-rap it feels genuine and angsty. This is just disposable garbage that his audience will eat up like fast food, and it comes from such an insincere place that I can’t excuse it.

#66 – “ALWAYS DO” – The Kid LAROI

Produced by Omar Fedi, Khaled Rohaim, Donn Robb and Haan

Just like that, he’s back, folks. Okay, well, he starts off this song by saying he’s drinking again, which he can’t do for another year according to Australian law. I’ll take that as a complete lie he’s hogged from his mentor Juice WRLD and clearly not understood why that led to his downfall and death; the glamorisation of drugs in Juice’s music was unintentional and misconstrued that way by record label yes-men and some of his fans, who ate up the music and maybe didn’t grasp the message Juice was clearly advocating for. So, you’re just going to blindly lie to your fans – ALL of which are children – about substance abuse with very little commentary around it other than how it affects this fake relationship for the sake of making “relatable” hits that ultimately go against everything Juice would have wanted? Delightful. When other rappers talk about a bitch, they have a casual, disposable tone that suggests they’re groupies and whilst this is such an accepted form of misogyny in music, which also annoys me for the record even if music I adore expresses as such, it at least shows that the rappers don’t care or use the women as a line-filler or flex. When this douche says the word “bitch”, he means it. It comes with such vile, toxic bitterness that I’m convinced the Kid LAROI just hates women. Not even specific women, just the concept of “woman”. Sigh... can someone take this disrespectful toad off the charts – and quick?

#64 – “Buff Baddies” – Giggs

Produced by Trooh Hippi

Speaking on not respecting women, British rapper Giggs is here with his second mixtape. He’s got a couple more tracks on the chart, this is the first and it’s all about “buff baddies”. “WAP” has led to men thinking they can be extra horny as well and I’m not going to shame any kind of sex positivity but when Giggs talks almost exclusively what the women are doing for him and doesn’t have a lick of personality to it, it feels less absurd and over-the-top than it does just gross. It doesn’t help that his delivery is almost comically blunt and completely charmless over this non-existent cloudy trap beat, and there’s no hook or chorus to speak of, so this is just completely worthless. This reminds me of Dean Blunt’s Babyfather projects, you know, the mixtapes where he actively makes fun of this type of rap and even then is miles more interesting and charismatic? God, what an awful track.

#63 – “I’ll Call You Back” – dutchavelli

Produced by Big Zeeko

Oh, and dutchavelli released an album too called Dutch from the 5th, so we have more to come from him as well. Look, I’m tired, I’m fed up, I just want this episode to be done with and maybe I’m not in the right mood to listen to snooze-worthy generic hacks in modern hip hop all have their own mini-album bombs. Just maybe. I’m not sure if that excuses the clear lack of quality and effort in any of this, or the fact that the billion-dollar company I use to listen to the product of billion-dollar companies apparently can’t have an app that works and allows me to listen to said product. To be fair to dutch, this is a more introspective track with melancholy piano loops and pretty basic trap-drill percussion, but I do like some of the lyrical content here, where he talks about how even though he feels distant from his loved ones as a big star, he really wants to keep in contact and he details some of his struggles in a really heartfelt way. His delivery is emotive and even when it’s heavily Auto-Tuned, you can tell he’s pretty frustrated with the conflict between his newfound popularity and keeping up to standards with his personal relationships. He’s not always perfectly on beat and honestly the song kind of goes nowhere, but I like the lyrics about his childhood and his mother, and I especially think his breathless, stiff cadence when he pleads with his girlfriend is pretty effective. As a song though, I don’t think I’ll be going back to this at all, which is a shame.

#59 – “Get Out My Head” – Shane Codd

Produced by Shane Codd

Shane Codd is an Irish producer, singer and DJ from Dublin who amassed a following from his playlist showcasing classic trance and house hits from the 1990s and 2000s, which he became infatuated with as a child, explaining why his first and only song is already on the chart, albeit just at #59. That “Trance Anthems 90s-00s” playlist does have some bangers (I’m not going to complain about Alice Deejay, Moby or Zombie Nation), so does Codd follow in the footsteps of these classic trance acts? Well, no. No, he doesn’t. This is a house-pop song if anything, but it’s not like I know all the ins and outs of this stuff. I have a friend that does know a lot about trance; I don’t even think she’d like this. It’s pretty lazy, bizarrely-mixed house with a lot of focus on those classic 90s pianos that do sound straight out of that diva house and Eurodance era (in fact, this is practically a Eurodance song), but without much character to speak of. For a first song, it is impressively professional but not to the extent that the percussion sounds any less cheap or tinny, or that the chopped-up vocals, from some generic female singer as always, are charming. This is exactly what I think would happen if you fed a robot tropical house music, a couple FL Studio plug-ins and a “Trance Anthems 90s-00s” playlist, and told it to produce some kind of cohesive result in return. It’s telling that this soulless dreck charted, but hey, if he’s got the following and any kind of budget, he could improve considerably and this isn’t that bad on principle. It’s just wearing influences not on the sleeve but as make-up, to cover up the lack of artistic dignity or progression the guy has, not that I expect him to (it is only his first song after all). Next.

#56 – “Say Something” – Kylie Minogue

Produced by Jon Green and Richard “Biff” Stannard

I'm not a big Kylie Minogue fan but I can admit like anyone who's not too far up their own ass that she has a lot of classics, a lot of bops and most importantly to this show in particular, a lot of bonafide smash hits to her belt. My personal favourite is "The Loco-Motion" but her 2014 album Kiss Me Once was a big factor into my appreciation of this type of inoffensive dance-pop (that indirectly made me eventually start this series), especially the lead single "Into the Blue". Speaking of lead singles, this was the lead for her 2020 effort, Disco, but it didn't actually chart until this week interestingly. Well, with that said, there must be a reason the big lead single from July didn’t chart until November, and the second single, “Magic”, did, so I’m not expecting prime Kylie here, and I’m not expecting myself to write positively about it either because I had to restart Spotify like five times before being able to actually play the song so I’m pretty annoyed with these billion-dollar companies right now... and, yeah, okay, with the synthesized choir and the staccato synth bass, I can understand how this feels less alive than other songs she’s made, particularly because this feels like a rather dumbed-down revision of 1980s pop with some really awkward vocal mixing and a chorus that never really hits. Kylie doesn’t sound great here at all either, and the guitars are just kind of garish, especially in the first verse. It doesn’t help that this is a messy song structure-wise, and that the title drop in the chorus is neither cathartic nor worth waiting for. There’s also a bridge-outro that never leads back into a chorus, so the song just floats away sadly into nowhere. Yeah, it’s safe to say this is a disappointment, especially from a lead single but it does make sense that at this point in her career Kylie and her team may be artistically stagnating. It’s been more than three decades; I’m just impressed she’s still putting out music.

#54 – “Plugged in Freestyle” – A92 and Fumez the Engineer

Produced by Charlie Mockler

It’s not often that the engineer gets lead billing, let alone an engineer whose stage name is entirely based on the fact that he is an engineer, and didn’t even produce the track. Anyway, it’s not actually unusual for YouTube and radio freestyles to chart, in fact the GRM Daily Duppy freestyles have charted before for both J Hus and Aitch. It is unusual for viral Irish drill tracks to chart however, but this did get traction as a viral video as well as the absurdity of Irish drill, which is now a rising phenomenon. A92 is an Irish drill group and all of the four members present here get three verses each, leading up to either 12 verses overall or just one big collaborative verse depending on how you count these things. You may notice at this point that I’m stalling, mostly because the Spotify app still refuses to function correctly once again. It’s not like I’m missing much in terms of unique bars or even cadence. I expected a delivery or flow that was more energetic from the Irish, just saying. There’s a lot of pointless censorship when it’s pretty clear what they’re saying, and the guys are obviously lipsyncing in the video so it’s not like this is some impressive off-the-cuff freestyle. I do like the incredibly deep voice Dbo has but it’s not interesting enough to carry his uninteresting flow and this really minimal, basic drill beat that works for its intended purpose to carry the bars but it does not make an impression further than that and by the end of the track, it’s just dull. I do admit to really liking the fourth guy Offica’s verses here because he has a lot more energy and intriguing flows than the rest of them; if any of this group get a solo career off the back of this I’d expect it to be him, or at least I’d hope so. Overall, though, I’m not a big fan although I don’t think this is bad, just unremarkable. If I thought it was bad, I think this episode would end up being posted posthumously anyway.

#52 – “Zero Zero” – dutchavelli

Produced by The Fanatix

Oh, hey, look! It’s more of the same. I imagine if you follow the US charts, you’d soon get tired of the trap garbage that somehow ends up on there in the lower reaches of the chart when it could be given to more promising mainstream-adjacent acts that end up just popping up on the Bubbling Under. Whilst I don’t really have the same problem with this chart, I am growing tired of UK drill music at this point and its indignant refusal to be interesting. It’s not like I have an issue with the music itself because I can usually ignore it, but does all of it really HAVE to chart? When it was new and relatively interesting I welcomed it but the sparse drum patterns, badly mixed 808s and “menacing” pianos are all very much getting on my nerves at this point in the year, especially when the chart is flooded with this stuff. For every weekly pathetic house-pop tune we get, we also get at least three drill “bangers”. Maybe the charts have just made me cynical. I should probably maybe rest before trying to continue this episode – I’ve given a notice on Twitter that grants me more time so I suppose I’ll get back to you when I’m not mindlessly ranting about drill music.

Alright, so I haven’t slept but Spotify has decided to function for now, and I guess I might as well use this opportunity to write about the last few arrivals. We all have our “off” days, and this was one of mine so I apologise if this episode isn’t up to scratch – even if admittedly, I’m telling myself that more than anyone else. Oh, and this song is actually kind of fun, with his really elegant strings that are backed up by some hard-hitting drill percussion that actually makes for a pretty hard beat here, especially with those extra sound effects. Seriously, props to the Fanatix for this, and dutchavelli actually brings a lot more energy than I expected, even on the ad-libs on the chorus, though of course, the content isn’t anything new. He is finding new and funny ways to talk about crack cocaine trafficking though, so I commend that. The skit is kind of pointless but I’m sure it makes sense in the album. That was quick! In fact, I’m going to try and be quick before I fall asleep.

#49 – “Spin this Coupe” – Abra Cadabra

Produced by H1K and Zenith

I’ve restarted Spotify so many times and I’ve restarted my computer at least thrice. This desktop app still refuses to function and this is a recent but bloody persistent problem. Maybe I should just re-download the Spotify app, but it does aggravate me that it does this when I’m supposed to be, you know, REVIEWING THE CHARTS. It’s not like it’s down for other people either, it just likes to freeze on me for no reason other than my own suffering. There’s a Dave song coming so I’ve kind of been raring to get to that but just to keep myself in check and on routine I suppose I need to listen to this garbage. I didn’t mind Abra Cadabra on the “BLM” song from a few weeks ago and I do like the semi-introspective tone he has lyrically here, showing some kind of self-awareness about the gang violence he discusses in his music. Lyrics like that are few and far between however and more often than not it’s just uninspired gunplay and some flexing over some drill type beat. I swear I’ve heard that exact same hi-hat sound and pattern so many times, and other than some overly-energetic ad-libs that make this shoddily-mixed track even uglier sounding, Abra Cadabra is not selling any of this, even when he does a more rapid-pace, energetic yelling flow. He’s not saying anything memorable and he’s only vaguely on beat. I mean, it’s fine but I’m sick of this already. There’s a preview of another song on the YouTube video for this song and I thought it was just another verse. Come on, lads, think of something else.

#35 – “Straight Murder (Giggs & David)” – Giggs featuring Dave

Produced by KeyzMusic

What an odd title. It’s like if I called this show REVIEWING THE CHARTS (Cactus), like we know your names, guys. Is this how they want to credit Dave as a co-lead artist or something? I’ve got no idea but this is our second and final track from Giggs’ Now or Never and thank God, it features Dave, a British rapper I really enjoy. His album PSYCHODRAMA was one of the best records I heard last year and I’ve consistently liked most of his stuff, specifically his brand of cool, relaxed flows and blunt, admittedly corny punchlines with a lot of conscious influence and cleverness that most of these drill guys wouldn’t dare to try and implement in their singles. He and J Hus form a crossroad between the mainstream British rap scene and more underground or alternative acts; he strikes me very much as a more accessible male Little Simz, a sharp lyricist with a lot of unique charm who knows how to have fun. In fact, the one thing I don’t think Dave can do convincingly is rap on a drill beat, or at least one like “Paper Cuts” where he just sounded sloppy. He also had a feature on a D-Block Europe song that was just comical, so I can’t say his recent efforts have been as good but that performance of “Black” at the BRITs really cemented him as one of the best British musicians in the charts right now for me and a lot of other people, so this acts as kind of a comeback single for him, even if it is just a throwaway feature track – there’s a reason this debuted so high. I do think this could stick around as well since Dave does have longevity. I still bump “Funky Friday” more than two years later, although to be fair that did hit #1. This won’t, but is it good? Yeah, this appeals to the part of me that just wants bars over a pretty solid, atmospheric trap beat, and Dave does sound checked-out at times but that’s always been a part of his casual, sliding delivery. There is a lot of empty space in his verse but it’s always played out for comedic effect I feel and while this is a flow he’s definitely used before, the sheer length of this verse means it would be difficult for him to have more hits and misses and yeah, his delivery makes nearly all of these lines hit. Compare the amount of Genius annotations on his verse to how many are on Giggs and you can see why I like this guy a lot more. He may be blunt but it has layers and layers of charm to it, and some of these bars are more than they look to be on the surface. Even his opening line about taking orders can be explained in various different ways: he knows about taking orders but he “doesn’t know” about taking orders, suggesting he doesn’t like taking orders, but what are these orders? They could be taking orders from a boss and now he’s a boss but they could also be about drug trafficking or sending out hits, and then he really “doesn’t know” about taking orders, if you catch my drift. Other than that, he uses his “Streatham” flow to mostly flex but there’s tons of wordplay and I appreciate that more than the boring matter-of-fact structure of verses that half of these other UK rappers have. He’s just effortlessly spitting here and I’ll take that any week but especially this week. Welcome back, Dave, I’m excited to see what you’ve got in store for your next album. Oh, and Giggs is here but who gives a –

#23 – “Confetti” – Little Mix

Produced by TM5

Surprisingly, no Little Mix songs penetrated the top 20, or at least no new ones. In fact, this is our only new song from the girls thanks to silly UK chart rules, and, really, it’s just here because it’s the title track. I can’t say much about Little Mix because I feel there’s nothing to discuss. The new album is something I have not bothered to listen to out of pure disinterest, and this title track... doesn’t seem like a title track. You’d think a title track would be a bit flashier than some dated DJ Mustard hyphy-like beat with pretty pitiful trap percussion and plastic vocal production that makes the girls sound admittedly less inhuman than usual. In fact, they sound more human here than ever, maybe because they’re surrounded by one of the stiffest R&B instrumentals I’ve ever heard, and partly because some of the background vocal melodies are actually pretty catchy, even if the chorus makes it clear that none of it matters since the non-existent pay-off is not worth any of the similarly void build-up. This is a fine, rather understated song where the girls mostly just flex – which is pretty unheard of for a dance-pop track – so I have no issue with it but this could have actually been good... and was once again watered down by manufactured factory-sealed production. Speaking of talented women being let down by production...

#22 – “pov” – Ariana Grande

Produced by Oliver Frid, TBHits and Mr. Franks

So we got the obviously planned pop smashes out of the way from Positions so now it’s time to see what the fans are really gravitating to and to my surprise, it’s the closer. This is the fan favourite from the record and is just now charting because “motive” dropped out and it’s clear why this one is the preferred track. It takes somewhat of an introspective outlook but very much through an immature, lovestruck tone running through the track and its really sweet lyrical content, where she just expresses how much her partner loves her to the point of her even feeling some bizarre envy in the chorus, as she wants to reach a level of self-love comparable to how her partner feels about her. She wants to see why her partner loves her this much despite what she perceives as tragic flaws. By the bridge, she reaches a conclusion that there isn’t any emotional baggage coming with this relationship anymore, a natural book-end to her “leaving her baggage at the door” in the opener of the album. I love the vocal melodies here, with her multi-tracked cooing really shining beautifully amongst the flourishes of strings and more subtle pianos, with trap-adjacent snapping percussion that is actually well implemented and adds a sense of casualness to the song that would otherwise perhaps seem too melodramatic for Ariana. Also, the last line in the chorus is admirable and it works as a perfect closer to the record.

Conclusion

So there is a single good song here, and that is “pov” by Ariana Grande which snags Best of the Week, and, sure, while I like Dave on “Straight Murder (Giggs & David)”, Giggs royally screws up so it can only get the Honourable Mention. For Worst of the Week it’s going to The Kid LAROI just in general for both “WITHOUT YOU” and “ALWAYS DO”, with the latter only being slightly more tolerable. I guess I can give the Dishonourable Mention to Giggs as well for whatever “Buff Baddies” is. Sigh... here’s this terrible week’s top 10.

Thank you for reading my uncharacteristically cynical and just mean ramblings on pop music this week. You can follow me @cactusinthebank on Twitter, I promise I’m not as angry on there. See you next week for hopefully something better than this.

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theantisocialcritic · 4 years ago

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Archive Project - September 2, 2014 - Best Summer Movies 2014

2014 has been a really solid summer for quality Blockbuster movies! Lots of really compelling and fun stuff has graced our local theaters and i'd like to talk about my favorite ones! For the sake of the point though, i'm only going to include "Summer" movies. A Most Wanted Man would easily break this list but its not really a summer movie, its an independent movie for film geeks that can tolerate slow as molasses pacing (like me!!). Here we go! My top six movies of the summer (which for technical purposes includes only movies that released between May to August)!!! But first, some honorable mentions: 22 Jump Street Godzilla Neighbors Fault in Our Stars DragonBall Z: Battle of Gods And now... 6. X-Men: Days of Future Past The newest X-Men movie is an extremely flawed movie, but at the time I really didn't give it what it deserved. After seeing it again, i've come to terms with just how compelling and fun the newest iteration is, even after 17 years of this annoying and convoluted continuity. In any case it easily breaks the top 3 X-Men movies we've had so far and its made me excited for the next movie! Cheers to Apocalypse! 5. How to Train Your Dragon 2 The Dragon movies are such a weird force in modern filmmaking. What seem on the surface like a series of cliche Dreamworks movies have become some of the most claimed and exciting animated films since Pixar fell into it's unfortunate coma. Its not quite as grand as The LEGO Movie in my eyes (because few movies are…), but for being an exciting, visually fantastic and very well written and compelling story, How to Train Your Dragon 2 earns my 5th best! 4. Edge of Tomorrow Like or hate Tom Cruise, this movie is the perfect Tom Cruise movie. If you don't like him, enjoy watching him die hundreds of times in awesome, hilarious ways! If you do like Cruise, prepare to enjoy a surprisingly well written, well conceived action movie. Despite the, "I've seen this before" style of the visuals, the characters in Edge of Tomorrow are fantastically written and relatable. I can't recommend this movie enough! Mainly because almost nobody saw it… oh well, it comes out on DVD in October! Definitely check it out then! SUPPORT GOOD MOVIES PEOPLE!!! 3. Guardians of the Galaxy Guardians has been my most anticipated movie this summer and it hasn't disappointed me! Few movies that come out nowadays are filled with the kind of fun and creativity that Marvel's newest ego boost has brought to the world. Great comedy! Fully realized worlds and a sci-fi action movie that might actually be the best Star Wars movie since Return of the Jedi! If you still haven't seen this movie for some reason… prepare to meet my FISTSS.. <Disclaimer, writer is extremely passionate in regards to the proceeding movie. Do not take threats literally.> 2. Snow Piercer This summer's out of left field hit for me was a little Korean sci-fi flick by the name of Snow Piercer… AND IT IS AWESOME!! In the near future, humanity is destroyed by an ice age and the few remaining survivors are left alive on an Ark-like train that circumnavigates the glove once a year. Whats left of humanity is forceable segregated between the rich first class riders and the poor people living in the back of the train. Now Captain America and the War Doctor must team up to revolt against the social injustice of the train… GEE!! I THINK THE MOVIE IS TRYING TO TELL ME SOMETHING!!! If you can't get over the liberal wankfest self congratulatory thats running amuck in this movie I can get why you wouldn't like it but thankfully i've seen Elysium a few times so it doesn't work on me anymore. Snow Piercer is a ridiculous, awesome action movie that puts to shame most American movies we've gotten this summer. If your a fan of movies, definitely give this one a rental! 1. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes And this summer's best, most emotionally impactful, most well made and exciting movie goes to the movie with the most ridiculous title! Dawn is a powerful sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes and carries the story to new heights! With a powerful, emotional lead performance by Andy Kircus (Gollum, Kong), the movie about apes with long stretches of no dialog and extreme amounts of CGI is one of the most emotionally compelling and tense movies all summer. Its like watching the fuse to a bomb ignite and burn its way to the end, with the movie's final confrontation being surprisingly insightful. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is the best movie that Summer 2014 had to offer! And now for some good contrast, here are my least favorite movies of the summer. 4. The Rover The Rover isn't a bad movie, not at all. What it is is a movie that made me horribly frustrated and upset. I've seen plenty of downer movies, ones that aren't meant to give you a happy feeling. No movie i've ever seen though has left me feeling as bleak as this movie did. I don't think I was even able to give this movie a review, just because of how emotional I was after seeing it. This movie isn't bad, but its one of my least favorite things i've seen this entire summer and I don't feel compelled to give it a fair analysis. 3. TMNT I don't hate TMNT. TMNT is naively lame and horribly constructed and it feels like a movie made by people that don't know how to make a movie. I've seen much worse this summer but no movie I saw had me laughing at huge chunks of it for being lame. The characters for the most part don't work, aren't really well conceived and Michalanglo was a pervert for some reason. TMNT is a hilariously bad movie that can't reach the legacy of its surprisingly well made predecessors from the '90s. 2. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Yah, I'm going there… I really didn't like this movie. Spider-Man has never been one of my favorite superheroes but I grew up with the Sam Raimi films, and having reviewed them before seeing this movie, i've come to the conclusion that they were infinitely better. Even Spider-Man 3, yah! I'll go THERE!! That movie had great moments mixed into a pot of mediocrity. Remember the birth of the Sand-Man? MAN TEARS DUDE!!! AS2 didn't have anything that good. AS2 is a long, boring movie with no central story! It doesn't understand the character of Peter Parker in any meaningful way and the whole production feels as corporate and cynical as any movie i've ever seen, and I gave Transformers 4 a positive review… If you honestly liked this movie, i'm not going to argue with you. I can basically understand why people liked it. I merely disagree with you. 1. Persecuted You probably didn't hear about this movie, GOOD FOR YOU!!! Persecuted is the WORST Christian movie i've ever seen. I really like the genre and i'm always willing to give it another chance. Every once in a while they come up with something sweet like I'm In Love With A Church Girl that feels sincere and sweet, and i'm willing to wade my way through all the Son of Gods and Black Nativitys to find them! But Persecuted doesn't just fail as a film, it wastes a really powerful concept. We live in an ever changing world, where concepts like religion and faith are slowly being marginalized and a lot of people within these communities fear the possibility of persecution. Persecuted had the power to be something great, a movie about being persecuted for faith at the hands of ones government and the personal challenge of having to stay convicted to ones beliefs no matter what. Instead what we got was a wannabe action movie with inconsistent characters whose actions don't seem human, with a plot that doesn't quite mean anything beyond paranoid jabs at progressivism. YOU DROPPED THE BALL Persecuted! You could've meant something to people and you couldn't do any of it right! Persecuted is the worst movie of the summer! Now, with that all out of my system, lets look forward! I'll post my thoughts on this fall's upcoming movie releases as soon as I can! Till then, avoid November Man… Its looks awful… Thank you for reading! Live Long And Prosper!

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jellyfax · 7 years ago

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Is Neo Yokio Really All That Bad?

Neo Yokio is certainly a production with some striking ideas embedded in its premise. Directed by Ezra Koenig, the adult cartoon follows the life of “magistocrat” Kaz Kaan (Jaden Smith) as he balances being both a demon slayer and a socialite in the affluent city of Neo Yokio. At a glance, the production seems pretty good. The series seemingly exposes, critiques, and satirizes the frivolous and vapid excesses of high society in Neo Yokio which is itself a completely bourgeois-centric version of New York. However, on closer inspection, Neo Yokio’s allegedly poignant social commentary and satirical humor are severely lacking.

IT’S NOT FUNNY In fact, one of the more pressing failures of Neo Yokio is rooted in its comedy. It’s just not funny. Very little humor or adventure stems from Kaz being a demon slayer, to the point that his status as a “magistocrat” is hardly worth mentioning. Virtually all of the humorous exploits of the cartoon spawn from the luxury obsessed denizens of NYC. That’s the joke and that joke is repeated again and again and again. Out of context, these jokes are funny, but when they’re strung together one after another, it becomes all too clear it’s just the same scenario on repeat for the benefit of no one. What I’m saying is, the humor is ham-fisted, cliché, repetitious, and even alienating. Too many of the “jokes” rely on the viewer to be acquainted with knowledge that only a New Yorker, or more accurately, a wealthy New Yorker would be privy to. Mentions of the Hamptons, bespoke attire, 14th Street, squashing, field hockey, and Eastside require the audience to know about NYC upper echelons and any lack of knowledge into that specific class structure makes a lot of the show’s humor seem like white noise. Watching Neo Yokio is like being the new person in a group of friends and they’re all spouting inside jokes while you’re just left to politely nod along and try to find something familiar to you in their estranging anecdotes. It’s painfully obvious that this series was created by a bougie progressive minded New Yorker for bougie progressive minded New Yorkers. Clearly, some people are finding Neo Yokio to be a stupendous display of comical wit that to them doesn’t feel distant, but that doesn’t change how restricted the comedic antics of the show are in retrospect.

THE ANIMATION IS BAD: NO, IT’S NOT A PARODY OF BAD ANIME It also doesn’t help that Neo Yokio’s production quality and presentation leave something to be desired. Let’s all take a deep breath and say it with me now: “The animation is bad and the ostensibly bad voice acting is not an intentional parody of poorly animated and dubbed pre-2000s anime.” Since its release on Netflix a few days ago, fans of the series have been strong-arming the notion that because Neo Yokio is a supposed biting commentary against modern capitalist-centric society, that must mean that its lackluster animation is intentionally subversive. The problem with that interpretation is that in his interviews about the series, Koenig never once states that the animation and dubbing are purposefully mediocre as an homage to 20th century anime. Moreover, in an interview with Pitchfork, Koenig is confronted with accusations that Neo Yokio has a “poor art-style” and he doesn’t respond by saying it’s supposed to look awful. Extremely limited animation, overly simplified character design, and off model animation errors are the norm in anime. It’s very disheartening to see anime fans reject that reality in favor the banal excuse that Neo Yokio looks the way it does because “it’s satire, so it’s purposefully awful.” Plenty of contemporary anime have the same animation issues as Neo Yokio, so it’s nothing special. A staple of anime is the principle of quantity over quality and efficiency over value; the medium is about practicality above all else and Neo Yokio should be accepted as a part of that distinct animation process. As for the voice acting, it’s well done. It’s the really limited animation that creates the illusion that the voice acting is subpar. The actors and actresses are reasonably hammy and it would have worked if the animation were equally expressive and dynamic. The Boondocks is a good example of how overacting and over-the-top animation can create a great viewing experience. As for Neo Yokio, the fantastically campy and zealous acting of the performers is undermined by the stilted, dull animation. While there are cases where limited animation is paired with energetic voice acting to intentionally create friction, the clash of visuals and audio in Neo Yokio is clearly not intentional. All in all, the awkward disconnect between the cartoon’s poor animation and zany dubbing isn’t purposefully satirizing banal anime.

JADEN SMITH ISN’T THE WORST THING ABOUT THIS SHOW Jaden Smith isn’t a terrible voice actor in this role, because his awkward performance matches the blandness of the animation. He helps to make the main character, Kaz Kaan, into an endearing young man, who though exceedingly whiny, self-centered, and every bit as shallow as all the other citizens of NYC, Smith gives his character a sense of naiveté that adds some dimension to the hapless enforcer of bourgeois values. As Kaz was created in the image of Jaden Smith, there’s much that can be said about their similarities. Nevertheless, Kaz’s development throughout the cartoon is rather minimal and slow paced, resulting in him being an aggravating character to follow.

A TERRORIST SHOULDN’T BE THE MORAL COMPASS OF THE SERIES While Kaz is a bore to watch, Helena St. Tessero embodies Neo Yokio’s shoddy and empty social commentary. Helena serves as the moral center for the narrative; she’s portrayed as the voice of reason as she constantly decries the corrupt system of NYC. For most of the series, she spends her days sulking in a room of her parent’s opulent abode as a self-proclaimed “hikikomori” while listlessly parroting Marxist theory at Kaz when he comes to visit her. Towards the end of the series, she suddenly bombs a glitzy billboard and makes Kaz her accomplice when she goes to him to help her evade the authorities. At best, Helena is a whiny but “woke” moocher who lives as a hermit in the lap of luxury or at worst she’s an aimless terrorist and she readily endangers people’s lives to express her social opinions. She’s presented as an agent of justice and the audience is never made to doubt her actions, even though she’s done nothing to deserve our trust let alone our empathy. Stale humor and wonky animation aside, the most frustrating aspect of Neo Yokio is Koenig’s insistence on making Helena, the freeloading directionless terrorist, the moral compass of the series.

Helena symbolizes Koenig’s lack of investment in exploring the narrative as an anti-capitalist parable. If Neo Yokio’s premise were more skillfully executed with social justice issues being emphasized with tact and care, maybe we could have seen Helena protest and draw attention to the destitute and working class that live on the outskirts of Neo Yokio. Instead we got some rich white rebel causing mayhem because she’s disillusioned with her status, but refuses to do anything productive with her privilege. Furthermore, the general omission of the disenfranchised citizens of the city only proves to dampen the implied anti-capitalist message of the premise. The audience is given no sense of their struggle and survival as their screen time is sacrificed for the sake of more elitist shenanigans.

IS NEO YOKIO REALLY ALL THAT BAD? Neo Yokio had potential to be a good show which could have provided much needed criticism regarding classism and capitalism, but it falls flat under a torrent of one-note humor and an ill-conceived message. Overall, Neo Yokio’s so-called humor is insipid and its alleged social commentary is disingenuous. When Neo Yokio could have been revolutionary and entertaining, it’s instead a production that exists so that the rich socialites who had a hand in creating it can laugh at their own dull jokes and proclaim themselves to be socially enlightened. It’s not the worst, but it’s definitely not good either. It’s a special brand of bad with a few good ideas thrown in.

#neo yokio #neo yokio review #ezra koenig #venting

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dwoboyle · 7 years ago

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Review - Metroid: Samus Returns

Metroid: Samus Returns is another mediocre official Metroid release that shows that Nintendo just doesn’t know what to do with the franchise. Fans of Metroid should temper expectations, newcomers should maybe look somewhere else.

Note: there will be some minor spoilers in this review.

It’s impossible for me not to compare Samus Returns to last year’s fan-made Another Metroid 2 Remake (AM2R). Both games reimagine a Game Boy only sequel to a popular NES game, but take drastically different approaches. AM2R was my favorite game of 2016. It captured the spirit of the genre and franchise so well, while also modernizing it in some smart ways. It was the best Metroid related thing I’ve played since Super Metroid. It’s unfortunate to report that Nintendo official remake doesn’t come close to achieving that.

Samus Returns felt like a lot of the other handheld Metroid games. Just how Fusion and Zero Mission suffered from the limitations from the GBA’s fewer buttons, Samus Returns faces similar issues. I played it on an original 3DS XL, and often ended sessions because my hands (particularly my left hand) hurt. The game requires you to hold the shoulder buttons, sometimes both at once, to aim and it felt so awkward. Using the circle pad to to both move and aim doesn’t quite allow precision with either. Holding L to lock your position then aiming with the circle pad is never as precise as you want it to be. Even trying to shoot directly forward while moving is a chore. Firing missiles while holding R often ends up with them going slightly off course. This makes boss fights or some of the tighter exploration way more frustrating than enjoyable. Controls can’t be changed either. There is no option to make it so that L and R are toggles instead of holds. In an ideal world, you would be able to move with the D-pad, aim with the circle pad, and use L to go through the new Aeion abilities. Well, in a real ideal world this game would be on a platform with a modern gampad, but regardless the developers did not utilize what they had well enough. Control customization is something that has been widely unavailable in the first party 3DS games that I’ve played and it’s never not a knock against them. Nintendo really needs to step of their game and allow players to rebind their controls. It’s clearly not a priority for them and they need to change that. Especially considering that it was a feature in many first party SNES games.

Controls asides, Samus Returns is lackluster in other ways. Where in other Metroid games each area had its own unique appearance, that’s not really the case for this game. While there are some really beautiful unique backgrounds and the occasional one-off set piece, all the rooms are built from the same few tile sets. Here’s the purple caves, here’s the ancient tech, etc. Music is bound to the tile sets too. Hot rooms always have a rearranged Lower Nofair theme, etc. This creates a feeling of sameyness. It’s easy to forget what area you’re in when exploring for missed upgrades. Lack of enemy variety compounds this. You face maybe around five to six different enemy types throughout the game. There are upgraded versions that are colored slightly different, but the tactics don’t generally change much. Maybe you use the Screw Attack against this version, or Powerbombs against this one, but generally once you’ve seen an enemy you know how you’ll be dealing with it for the rest of the game.

I have mixed feelings about the combat. They tried something new by giving you the ability to “parry” certain incoming attacks. It works well enough and it utilized well in boss fights, but for the majority of encounters against regular enemies it’s the most common way to deal with them. Your gun is pathetic. Even after upgrades. Most enemies take tens of shots to bring down. It’s best to let them do their one attack then counter it. Countering leaves enemies dazed and usually then only takes a single shot to kill. This makes shooting feel flimsy and underpowered. I ended up trying to just avoid enemies if I could, or impatiently waiting for them to do something I could counter. It really ended bringing the game to a crawl. Move a screen forward, counter the enemy, then repeat. A lot of the combat is in boss battles. Just like any of the other versions of Metroid 2, this game features many encounters with metroids in various points in the metroid life cycle. These encounters are by far the best part of this game. I particularly liked the fights against the Zeta and Omega metroids. If there is anything that this game has above AM2R it's these fights. However, that’s not saying too much because the metroid fights were the weakest part of AM2R. Here, they’re varied and more interesting. Though they’re still fairly repetitive and I wish there was even more variation in the arena designs. Especially for the later encounters. I wish I could be as positive about the non-metroid related boss fights, because those are by far the worst part of the game. There’s not many. Only about three or four. One in particular was so awful that I had considered putting down the game for good. That boss was this large robot thing that you face late in the game. The fight has the typical hallmarks of poor boss design. Short windows when it can be damaged, long periods (2+ minutes!) where you can do nothing but dodge, and one-off gimmick mechanics that aren’t very clear. But there was one thing that was especially egregious. In its second phase it has an inhale attack that is real easy to dodge. You can see it sucking up rocks from the ground and if you try dropping bombs in its path they do nothing. Then in the third phase, it has that same attack, but this time to further the fight you HAVE to drop bombs that then get sucked up and damage it. That’s some extremely questionable design! None of the bosses in this game are super challenging. They’re all very pattern based and focus completely on having the player recognize those patterns. The cost for any mistake, however, is tons of damage. It’s not unusual for an attack to drop more than two full tanks of health off you. Fortunately the game checkpoints before every fight. So when you die, you can, after a rather long loading sequence, start the fight over without losing progress.

The abilities in this game, outside of the new Aeion abilities, are pretty standard for a Metroid game. The Aeion ones are fine, but not really used very well. Of the four, I found myself only really using two of them frequently. The other two were completely situational. One thing of note is that almost every ability you get also acts as a key to a particular type of door. “You need the charge beam to open this door,” etc. It’s odd. It some ways, it makes sense and prevents sequence breaking (though why would you?). On the other hand, coupled with how underpowered the shooting already is, it makes your weapons feel like just keys. They do find some clever ways to use the grapple beam that as a fan of the series I certainly appreciate though. Then there’s the upgrades. Missile tank upgrades are a common thing in Metroid games. Typically they end up giving you around 255 missiles if you collect all of them. This game is no different. However, in Super Metroid you would pick up 5 at a time. Meaning there are 51 missile upgrades in that game. In this game, you pick up 3. Meaning there are 85 missile tanks to collect! You pick up so many missile upgrade over the course of this game. Almost all the rewards for exploration are more missile upgrades. You never need more than maybe 100 missiles, and are more likely going to rely on super missiles once you get those as you’re more likely going to counter them instead. Missiles aren’t an important thing in this game at all, but man, will you be collecting them.

I can’t say that Samus Returns is awful. It’s not. It’s playable, but unremarkable. Coming off the heels of AM2R really paints this mediocre game in a much worse light. Nintendo needs to with Metroid what Sega did with Sonic Mania. Give it over to the fans who know what they want rather than making another dull addition. I’m starting to feel like Super Metroid was lightning in a bottle and they’ve been failing to recapture that ever since. At least with the 2D Metroid games. I have not played the Prime games and have no opinion on them. AM2R is a much superior product and I’m excited to see what comes from that dev in the future.

I’m not sure who to recommend this game for. Fans of the series will likely be disappointed. Fans of the genre will find a playable, but uninspired game. Newcomers to both should probably start elsewhere. The price is too high and the game is not worth it. I have not done hard mode nor used any of the Amiibo stuff, so I cannot comment on that. I know Metroid fans have been clamouring for a new 2D Metroid, but they should turn to other developers for the higher quality experience they’re looking for, as they won’t find it in this game.

As always you can find my as-I-played thoughts on the game in my List of Games Played 2017.

#metroid #metroid: samus returns #review #game review #game recommendations #video games #videogames #video game #videogame #AM2R

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palmphoneblogcom · 6 years ago

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What do reviewers don't like about Palm?

Before I get to Palm review myself, I read the great reviews on this phone and try to summarize the most fundamental criticisms I have found in reading.

summary of complaints

When I read all this, the following comes out to me:

missing nfc chip

missing jack connector

missing volume buttons

worse camera

life mode not only switch off notifies notifications but also WiFi and LTE

small phone size

messaging applications are unusable due to keyboard size

low battery capacity and low battery life

older versions of Android OS - 8.1 Oreo

high price

It seems to me that many experienced reviewers do not know what they want from such a phone. Before I go to the review, I will have to play with the phone, try out the possible use scenarios and maybe come to that.

Anyway, I recommend reading all the linked reviews and viewing the photo galleries because the view of Palm is truly breathtaking… d8-D

android authority

However, what was upsetting was how much power drained when the phone was in standby mode. Overnight, I could expect at least 20 to 30 percent of the battery to be gone if I didn’t plug it in.

The Palm Phone’s cameras get the job done, but don’t take it with you if you want to capture high-quality memories.

android police

The screen is too small to be comfortable with modern apps that expect more real estate—things get cut off, and typing is awful. TCL's attempt to make the experience minimalist with features like the launcher and Life Mode fall flat, too. The Palm Phone is fun to play with for a few minutes, but I can't imagine regularly taking this thing with me on a night out instead of my real phone. The awful camera alone is enough to put me off.

ars technica

What are you supposed to use this for? Is it a new-age iPod? A smartwatch alternative? A smaller phone to take on your fitness activities? It's not really good at any of these things.

First, the $350 price tag puts it firmly in smartwatch territory, which is a huge problem for justifying a lot of Palm's supposed use cases. You can get an Apple Watch Series 3 with cellular access for $380. You can also get an LTE-equipped Wear OS or Samsung watch for around this price.

Palm calls this phone a "wearable" and sells a variety of cases, armbands, and lanyards designed for easy portability, but nothing is more portable than a smartwatch. So, if you're looking to travel light, just get the smaller device.

The Palm phone isn't a great music player thanks to the lack of a headphone jack and physical volume rocker. Sure, you can pair Bluetooth headphones to it, but you can also just pair Bluetooth headphones to your smartwatch, which is going to be smaller and more portable.

The Palm phone also can't beat a smartwatch for fitness activities, since a watch is going to be lighter and easier to carry. Plus, a watch will do heart-rate tracking. Maybe you want to bring a real phone, because you hate the lack of a keyboard on a smartwatch and don't want to speak to your device in public—but the Palm phone is too tiny to comfortably type on. The body is so skinny that you can't hold it with two hands, and the keyboard on this skinny screen is so small that a fingertip presses about four keyboard letters at once. You're relying on autocorrect so much that you might as well use Wear OS' tiny keyboard.

Plus, a smartwatch has one more major feature that the Palm phone doesn't support: NFC. If you're out for a jog, you can run into a shop and buy a drink with your smartwatch. You can't make a payment with a Palm phone.

digital trends

No. The Palm doesn’t offer any value. The camera isn’t good, the battery won’t last you more than a few hours while you’re out, and it’s frustrating to type on. You’re better off saving yourself $350 by simply tapping on the ‘Do Not Disturb’ button on your (already expensive) Android or iPhone and going about your day.

engadget

The Palm seemed like it could be the right device at the right time: it’s a tiny, secondary smartphone for times when you want to be more present in the real world. To the company’s credit, its namesake phone is a beautiful, well-built conversation starter. Unfortunately, the Palm’s size will make it too difficult for some to use, while some compatibility issues and poorly executed features are sure to frustrate others. Ultimately, Palm’s ambitions were admirable, but its first device feels like a half-baked answer to a serious problem.

mashable

Even though I didn't find the Palm as good at its job as simply adhering to those habits (and others), I'm still compelled by the idea and think it could be improved. I can live with its slow performance, but I'd like to see an even better camera and a more robust battery. Those enhancements would certainly add to the cost, but I feel that's not such a hard sell, and a more accurate picture of the Palm idea: I don't want a crappy phone, just one that's better suited to being more present IRL.

pc magazine

The idea of having two phones isn't insane. You might already have a work phone and a play phone, for instance. I've seen that as far back as Nokia's fashion-phone line from 2005. I personally wouldn't mind a tiny weekend phone. I'm the guy who's been asking for smaller smartphones for years now. The Palm phone, beautifully designed and tiny, should be the phone of my dreams.

But it fails to function well. I can forgive a low-cost phone for not having a Pixel-quality camera. The Pixel 3 costs $800. But the Whatsapp and iMessage problems, the weak Wi-Fi, the scratchy call quality, the tiny keyboard, and the lack of volume buttons all add up to a phone that's irritating, not relaxing, to use. Many of these annoyances are probably fixable with software updates, which just puts the Palm phone on the list of products that had to come out in November, whether or not they were ready.

slashgear

The Palm Palm, or whatever you’d like to call it, is a great effort by a company whose head seems like it’s in the right place, but not quite going the right direction. When I first imagined that this Palm device, I thought it was sort of absurd. I thought it was ridiculous mistake.Now I’m convinced that it was a really great effort put toward a device that might be sorta doomed.

Especially considering the cost of the phone, there can’t possibly be a large enough population of users ready to toss down cash for the privilege of having a phone for their phone. Imagine paying $350 USD for a phone that’s only able to act as a second phone for the phone you’ve already got in your pocket or purse.

tom’s guide

We all need to spend less time staring at our phones, so at least there's a good idea behind the Palm. But part of the problem is that the phone lacks the courage of its convictions. If we're supposed to use the Palm only intermittently, why preload it with apps that are contrary to that mission? And, why let people add even more apps that can potentially suck away time and attention? Features that do serve Palm's stated mission, like Life Mode, could stand to be fine-tuned, and it should be easier to control the phone's volume.

Then there's the matter of the Palm's $350 price tag — which isn't insignificant at a time when the prices of fully featured smartphones are on the rise. It's tempting to compare and contrast a companion phone like the Palm to an LTE-enabled smartwatch. You'd certainly pay more for the watch — the Apple Watch Series 4 starts at $499 if you want LTE connectivity — but you'd get a device that offers the same features as the Palm in a form factor that's better suited for at-a-glance uses. And the watch throws in health and fitness tracking features not found in the Palm.

the verge

The core of that ethos is something they call “Life Mode.” (Or, because the founders are dads, hashtag dad mode.) More than any other feature, the Life Mode on the Palm phone is what makes this a “time well spent�� minimalist phone. When you turn Life Mode on by tapping a palm tree icon, it enables a set of Do Not Disturb and Low Battery settings.

In Life Mode, your notifications are obviously turned off, but Palm is also turning off the wireless radios. The cellular and Wi-Fi radios will only turn on when the screen is on. (Bluetooth will also turn off but stay on if you are connected to headphones.) It’s a much more aggressive way to turn off notifications and deny incoming phone calls. Palm specs the phone at eight hours of normal use without Life Mode on, so if you toggle it the Palm phone is expected to last a super long time on a charge.

Oddly, the Palm phone is not running the latest version of Android which has a bunch of Digital Wellbeing features built right in. The company tells me that they didn’t want to conflict with those Android 9 Pie features. Perhaps an update will come in the future, but it’s a miss for now.

#palm #review #elsewhere #android authority #android police #ars technica #digital trends #engadget #mashable #pc magazine #slashgear #tom's guide #the verge

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palmphoneblog · 6 years ago

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Co se recenzentům Palmu nelíbí?

Než se sám dostanu k recenzování Palmu, pročítám si velké recenze věnované tomuto telefonu a pokusím se tu shrnout ty nejzásadnější výtky, které jsem při čtení objevil.

shrnutí výtek

Když jsem to všechno pročetl, vychází mi z toho následující:

chybějící nfc čip

chybějící jack konektor

chybějící tlačítka hlasitosti

horší kamera

life mód vypne nejen notifikace, ale i WiFi a LTE

malé rozměry telefonu

messaging aplikace jsou nepoužitelné kvůli velikosti klávesnice

nízká kapacita baterie a malá výdrž

starší verze OS Android - 8.1 Oreo

vysoká cena

Po pravdě mi přijde, že mnoho i zkušených recenzentů vlastně neví, co od takového telefonu chtít. Než se pustím do recenze já, budu si s tím telefonem muset pořádně pohrát, vyzkoušet možné scénáře použití a třeba na to přijdu.

Každopádně doporučuji pročtení všech linkovaných recenzí a prohlédnutí fotogalerií, protože pohled na Palm je opravdu úchvatný...d8-D

android authority

However, what was upsetting was how much power drained when the phone was in standby mode. Overnight, I could expect at least 20 to 30 percent of the battery to be gone if I didn’t plug it in.

The Palm Phone’s cameras get the job done, but don’t take it with you if you want to capture high-quality memories.

android police

ars technica

What are you supposed to use this for? Is it a new-age iPod? A smartwatch alternative? A smaller phone to take on your fitness activities? It's not really good at any of these things.

digital trends

engadget

mashable

pc magazine

slashgear

tom’s guide

the verge

The core of that ethos is something they call “Life Mode.” (Or, because the founders are dads, hashtag dad mode.) More than any other feature, the Life Mode on the Palm phone is what makes this a “time well spent” minimalist phone. When you turn Life Mode on by tapping a palm tree icon, it enables a set of Do Not Disturb and Low Battery settings.

#palm #recenze #reviews #odjinud #android authority #android police #ars technica #digital trends #engadget #mashable #pc magazine #slashgear #tom's guide #the verge

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peachhplum · 7 years ago

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Easy Hacks for A Nautical Tabletop

Hands up, who’s used a laundry hack they found on the internet? Vinegar to try to eliminate a lingering odor on clothes? Lemons for brightening when washing your whites? How about baking soda for removing a stain? If you’re anything like me, you’ll have raised your hand for at least two of those laundry hacks. I always remember trying to use lemon to brighten my whites while I was at college and let’s just say the results weren’t exactly, well, bright. As for the that time I tried to use lemon to lighten my hair? Well, the least we say about that the better! Suffice to say that sometimes hacks don’t work the way we want them to – and after the time it can take to do them, that can be frustrating, right? That’s why I was thrilled to partner with Tide to learn how #TideBeatsHacks. In today’s post I’m going to show you two DIY tabletop hacks for a stylish nautical tabletop, that are 100% worth the time and effort! Then, I’ll show you how Tide beats laundry hacks when it comes to keeping my table linens bright, white and stain free. No more stressing over red wine spills – hurrah! OK, let’s dive in.I love creating beautiful, crisp tabletops but I am always anxious about buying white linens for entertaining. I know that inevitably, they will get food and wine stains from the very first use. The first time this happened, I turned to the internet and found a handful of laundry hacks.

I tried the most common laundry hack for removing stains – baking soda. I mixed a paste, pre-treated the stains and washed the linens with a bargain detergent that I had on-hand. The results were awful and after all the time I took, it was frustrating. Suffice to say I was resigned to never using white linens for entertaining again.

So when Tide told me there was a better way – a way that required way less effort and even better results, I wanted to try it out. I did and the results were great. See those bright white linens on my nautical tabletop? I can take no credit, my friends! It’s all thanks to Tide Ultra Oxi, which successfully rid the napkins of their stains. They came out looking bright and white, so I can use them over and over again as part of my nautical tabletop. No more stressing over red wine spills – hurrah! I’ll show you the impressive side by side shots later, but first I’ll show you two DIY tabletop hacks for a stylish nautical tabletop, that actually are worth the time and effort (unlike the baking soda!).Here’s the thing: when it comes to DIY I want to be sure that the project is actually going to work. I don’t love DIY enough to do it just for ‘fun’; I can’t walk around from a few hours of crafting gone wrong and feel like it was still a good use of my time. See also: failed laundry hacks! For that reason, I only tend to undertake DIY projects for the home that I know will work – and I’m sharing two of those right here for you today. For this nautical tabletop I made both the sisal placemats/chargers and the rustic twine napkin rings. I love the texture and tactility that each brings to the tabletop. And the major plus to these DIY tabletop hacks? Making the chargers and napkin rings is considerably more affordable (and satisfying!) than buying a set from the store. Here’s how to make them…DIY sisal placemats / What you need Sisal rope Heavy duty craft scissors Tape measure Glue gun Hot glueDIY sisal placemats / What to do 1. Turn on the glue gun and allow it time to heat up. Then, start making a small and tightly bound coil of sisal rope by placing a small line of glue on the outside of the rope and then coling the rope around itself. Be sure to hold the coil in place (10-30 secs) until the glue has dried, and then continue. 2. Continue to coil the rope until you have a placemat that is around 1 ½ inches bigger than your dinner plate. In my case, the plate is 9.5 inches in diameter so my placemats are around 11” wide. The tape measure will help ensure you have the right diameter as you go.DIY rustic twine napkin rings / What you need Toilet paper tubes Gardening wine Scissors Tape measure Glue gun Hot glueDIY rustic twine napkin rings / What to do 1. Cut the toilet paper tube into lengths 2 inches long. 2. Turn on the glue gun and allow to heat up. Then, place a small amount of glue on the paper tube at one end and start to wrap the twine around the tube neatly in a tight coil. Be sure to hold the twine down until the glue has set before moving on. 3. Continue to wrap the twine around the paper, sticking with glue until the paper ring is completely covered. 4. Once you get to the end of paper tube, neatly cut the twine off and use a dab of glue to stick the end down.As well as my two DIY tabletop hacks, I included blue and white table linens and flowers to play into the existing palette of our dining room nook at the beach house. The nautical tabletop harmonized perfectly with the layers of textiles that we have in the cozy banquette corner of the space, as well as the white oak hardwood flooring and shiplap details. Now, all we need is for the mercury to rise so that the temperature matches this summer-like mood!Remember at the top of the post when I wrote about how I was ready to incorporate bright, white linens into my tabletops again thanks to Tide? Well, here’s the proof! Above, on the left, you can see the red wine stained napkin from my nautical tabletop, which is how the other two napkins also looked before washing. The middle napkin shows the result of using baking soda with the bargain detergent to try and remove the red wine stain. The napkin on the right shows the result of washing the stained napkin using Tide Ultra Oxi. As you can see, the napkin on the right is white and bright, whereas the middle one that was washed with the laundry hack still shows dulled stain marks.

I learned about the science that goes into Tide’s laundry products at their lab in Cincinnati last month (remember my fun Insta stories with Jennifer?!). Quick refresher: laundry is getting tougher as modern synthetic fabrics (aka your favorite workout pants and tops) trap dirt and bigger machines mean more laundry in one wash at lower temperatures. These factors all make it harder to remove stains and dirt, so it is really important to use a quality detergent, like Tide, for a successful wash…not the hacks that have been around for over a hundred years. Tide has been reengineered to take on these challenges, such as being able to breakdown stains even a low temperatures. It was great to come back home armed with laundry knowledge so I can keep my tabletop linens looking fresh for the summer! Thanks, Tide!// Photography and styling by Will Taylor

#home decoration #interior design #floor care

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