#I'll blame them for being a terrible actor.

[hello-nichya-here]

Let’s be real. The only reason toxic Zutarians and delusional Zukkas became so rampant is for the same reason.

Zutararians and Zukkas are two generations of the same issue.

Maiko is written so incoherently and Mai gets no development of her own. Zuko and her are a terrible match and treat each other poorly (I know the fandom can’t agree which one is at fault but I don’t think it matters).

Fans searching for a more satisfying conclusion of the fandom fav Zuko stumble into the waiting clutches of Zutarians or Zukkas who bombard them with their terrible takes, OOC writing, and admittedly beautiful fan art. Before you know it, they lose touch with actual canon.

This is all Bryke’s fault for writing Maiko terribly.

And yet people blame Zucest… nonsense!

Anon, I don't mean to be rude, but you're just wrong all around. Not only do I not think Maiko is terrible (might not be my OTP, but I am fond of it), but even if it WAS and fans had to rely on fanon for good romance, that does NOT explain or justify the way Zutarians and Zukkas not only act like their personal preference is objectively better than everyone else's but also actively lie to themselves and others about their ships totally being secretly canon but screwed over at the last second.

They do that for one reason alone: Entitlement. They're entitled, spoiled cry babies who screetch at anyone with a different preference because they take it as a personal attack.

Bryke writting Maiko any differently would not have made these people less insufferable. Hell, their ships hapenning in the exact way they wanted them to would also not do the trick, if anything it'd make them worse.

It doesn't matter what you think about Bryke as writers and people, or how you feel about the canon ships: The bad behavior of Zutara and Zukka fans is the responsibility of Zutara and Zukka fans, nobody else.

I don't like Legend Of Korra or the comics. Never sent a death threat to the people who made them. Never harassed fans of it or had them doxxed. I love Zucest to unhealthy degrees, but you won't see me claiming "There was totally a deleted scene of them kissing in the finale instead of fighting, but evil Bryke ruined it all, and if you don't believe my obvious bullshit I'll scream at you until I'm blue in the face!"

I LOATHE the ending of How I Met Your Mother with all my being, and resent the showrunners for being such dicks to fans and complaining we didn't praise their terrible writting. I would NEVER accuse them of abusing their authority over the actors and being predators just because I disagree with awful messages the finale sent - something zutarians do Kataang and Maiko fans ALL THE TIME.

It's really, really, really, really easy to not do that kind of stuff.

Be critical of Bryke and their writting, have whatever opinion you wanna have on Maiko, but let's not pretend writers/showrunners are to blame for FANS attacking people.

It'd be like going "Oh, this actress and her fans got death threats because audiences didn't like her character, clearly this is the writers fault for mishandling said character" NOPE, the blame of that kind of awful behavior ALWAYS lies solely with the people who choose to act like that.

[whymustyouhurtmeinthisway]

Sonic IDW 67 was pretty good, I liked it a lot. No Surgeamy hints unfortunately, and the imposter siblings getting hired by Clutch instead of being a third party's kinda lame (though I'm betting there's a good chance they'll end up rebelling against him). Something I did like a lot was Surge's attitude throughout the whole thing:

Despite seeming like she'd be a terrible actor, she sells it wonderfully by not trying to avoid suspicion. She knows Sonic and co. will be suspicious of her no matter what, so trying to act all buddy-buddy with them would probably make them way more confrontational about her and Kit's intentions. The attitude she instead chooses is less "I've had a change of heart, I want to be a hero and change the world now" and more "Yeah living in Starline's old shack blew chunks and we knew you suckers were dumb enough to let assholes like us live here if we asked, so here we are" which is much more believable (and for good reason, as that's basically the truth of their situation give or take a couple important details). Throughout the entire tour she's constantly pestering Sonic about how letting them in was a bad idea, saying stuff like "Man you've really built up a nice place. It'd be a shame if someone burned it down". When he brings up introducing Surge and Kit to Whisper and the rest of the Diamond Cutters and Amy says that might not be the best idea, Surge's response is basically "What? No, I'm sure Sonic knows exactly what he's doing, this'll go fiiiiiiiine. C'mon big shot, let's see you try to sell them on me, this'll be fun."

Her scene with Whisper was especially interesting, I loved it. The last interaction Surge had with Whisper was beating the shit out of her and kidnapping all her wisps to use as living batteries, so she knew Whisper'd be the most distrustful of anyone there (further increased by the fact that she's much less forgiving than all the other resistance members in the first place). Surge handled the seemingly impossible task of getting Whisper to even slightly trust her the best way possible: make no attempt to do that at all, and in fact tell her she shouldn't. Upon hearing Whisper's flat out refusal to accept Surge and Kit's redemption, Surge bursts out laughing, hands her her wispon, and goes something like "Finally! You're the first one to show a little sense around here! The rest of these schmucks would trust a bear trap if it looked sorry enough for snapping off the first leg, but I can tell you wanna kill me right here and right now. I like you. Here's your gun, if I stay here you could aim it at the back of my head as long as you want. I don't blame you. I encourage you." I love this bit of writing, and it's a genuinely brilliant strategy from Surge, going "You're a lot smarter than everyone else here for wanting to kill me, if you let me live in your base I'll be really easy to kill if you want to." is probably one of the few ways on earth to convince someone who wants you dead to let you live very near them. Also, through flattering her on her superior sense of reason, Surge subtly makes Whisper like/trust her just a tiny bit more, and I feel like she could slowly but surely build onto that more and more until she eventually ends up winning Whisper over. I'm sure her and Kit won't be "undercover" for very long but if they were really in it for the long haul I could totally see that happen. Maybe she inherited Sonic's natural ability to make friends with even one's worst enemies, except she goes about it in a much more fucked up way.

Finally, I really liked the one moment of hesitation Surge has upon hearing that the Resistance wouldn't give her and Kit a single order if they didn't want them to. Though she fully came with the intention of maliciously taking advantage of Sonic and the rest of the Resistance's kindness, she hesitates upon hearing how far that kindness goes. In Surge and Kit's eyes, there hasn't been a single person in their life who doesn't see them as

A: Dangerous targets to kill, or

B: Powerful tools they can use to use to their advantage.

Hell, they know that even the partnership they're in at that very moment with Clutch is an example of B and they still accepted it. But then, for the first time in their life, they're offered a home of their own with a solid roof and good food, rehabilitation and reintroduction to the rest of society, an actual normal life for the first time they can remember, all of it for nothing in return on their part. Amy tells them the Resistance helps everyone in need out of the kindness of their hearts and (though they always appreciate more volunteers) not a single person is required to anything to repay their help, it's all free. For a brief moment you can see Surge drop the shithead mannerisms and genuinely consider the proposition. Her internal monologue isn't shared with the audience, but I imagine it must be very conflicted. She then regains her composure and moves on with the tour as before, but I imagine that moment's gonna affect her heavily in the issues to come, and I'm very excited to see how that plays out.

Anyways, good issue all around, can't wait to read the next one.

[a-student-out-of-time]

There has been some terrible news. Firstly Rooster Teeth an early success story for indie studios, has been shut down by Warner Brothers in another example of corporate greed. While Rooster Teeth isn’t exactly guilt free as many people have issues with it, it’s still devastating for those who have lost their jobs and livelihoods. RWBY and Red vs Blue are being sold off and the news regarding Death Battle is uncertain (1/2)

//I've heard, trust me. I've been sitting on it for a while now, because I've been unsure of how to react. What I'll say is, no matter their faults, both of them shaped their respective mediums and helped make them what they are now. They were both a major part of millions of peoples' childhoods.

//Toriyama is, of course, the creator of one of the most popular shonen anime ever created. I don't need to tell you about Dragon Ball because you already know it; for the vast majority of people, it's probably what they think of when anime comes to mind.

//And sure, he wasn't perfect. He's had his flaws and some elements of his work haven't aged well, but I'd like to share a story that really cemented by respect for Toriyama as a creator. It was, ironically, when he retired between 1996 and 2012.

//When Dragon Ball: Evolution, the infamous in-name-only adaptation of his work, was in production, nobody involved listened or cared what he had to say about it. They weren't trying to make an adaptation of his work of passion or respect, they were using the name to make money.

//Considering that Toriyama, by his own admission, was a pretty laid-back guy who would put off doing his work until the last minute, the fact they managed to get under his skin is a testament to how god-awful that movie was. I don't blame the actors, I blame the corporate parasites who wanted money.

//What matters here is, after seeing the end result, Toriyama was so horrified at the idea that this would be his legacy, he came out of retirement and went back to creating Dragon Ball. That was how we got Battle of the Gods, Resurrection F, and the Dragon Ball Super series.

//He wasn't doing this for money, but because of a renewed passion for creation. The man could've stayed retired and lived comfortably, but what mattered more to him was artistic integrity. I can't tell you how much I respect that.

//As for Rooster Teeth, well...I have fewer nice things to say about where they went as a company. There's no denying they played a major role in how machinima and internet content as a whole is created, with the style of Red vs. Blue being the most influential.

//Rooster Teeth was, for me and for a lot of other people, a big part of their childhoods with RVB and RWBY. They had some very talented and creative people, who put their all into making things that did have a positive impact in the creative world.

//Just as there's also no denying that a lot of troubling things happened behind the scenes as things went on, from enforcing crunch time to deflecting criticism to other mistreatments of employees. There were times it did feel like they were coasting by on the positive reputation they once had. Things like the controversy involving Ryan Haywood also didn't help matters. That, for me, was the moment I really started to drift away from the group.

//But at the same time, I still think about the day that Geoff Ramsay opened a video they released after laying off 50 employees talking about how it was one of the darkest days in their history. He went on to talk about how much fan support means to them, and how important Rooster Teeth is to him and how he wants people to find something they're passionate about, just as he's passionate about the company.

//Seeing that, hearing how they considered calling it a day, but deciding to instead keep going out of respect for the people they had to let go, I do think it rings of that same artistic integrity. Was it naive? In hindsight, maybe so, but I never doubted it was genuine.

//Thinking about that, about how they've had people decrying their creative pursuits and the very clear passion and interest they all had in wanting to do things, just to see it cut down by corporate greed? It really stings.

//Honestly, it reminds me of this one line from Bojack Horseman:

You know what it's like? It's like that show "Becker," you know, with Ted Danson? I watched the entire run of that show, hoping that it would get better, and it never did. It had all the right pieces, but it just… It couldn't put them together. And when it got cancelled, I was really bummed out, not because I liked the show, but because I knew it could be so much better, and now it never would be. And that's what losing a parent is like. It's like "Becker." Suddenly, you realize you'll never have the good relationship you wanted, and as long as they were alive, even though you'd never admit it, part of you - the stupidest goddamn part of you - was still holding on to that chance. And you didn't even realize it until that chance went away.

//I guess there's a part of me that still holds onto the idea that, no matter how far a creator falls or how bad a work gets, maybe there's a chance they could get better. But when something closes down, gets cancelled or sold off, that chance goes away.

//I've seen so many criticisms of RWBY over the years, very passionate discussions about the show's flaws and how disappointing it is. They weren't just mindlessly bashing it for fun, they were talking about how the show has potential and could be made to work, and they were clearly coming from people who wanted it to be good.

//Now it's getting sold to someone who may have even less care for that creative vision, and that could be an even bigger tragedy than if the show were just cancelled. The fact that nobody on the staff even knew until they saw a Twitter post about it shows how little even the current people in charge cared.

//To the people still working on it and all current fans of RWBY, I sympathize completely.

//Idk what else to say. Between these events, and the news that Matpat is leaving Game Theory, it's been jarring seeing all these hits to my youth and the youths of many others. At least it all came when I was out of my depressive episode ^^;

//So what can we take away from all this? I think the biggest is the importance of artistic authenticity and passion for your craft. Not just enjoying what you do, but being willing to hear criticisms and use that to improve yourself. People who constructively criticize you do so because they want to see you improve your work.

//It's a lesson I've tried to live by and I'll continue to live by as long as I'm creating things. And while these losses might hurt, I'm glad that they were part of my life.

//Do I think that this is somehow the end of all creative freedom on the internet forever, as I'm sure someone may ask? No, of course not. This was an example of corporate greed and a tragic death, things that have happened and will continue to happen so long as capitalism is here and immortality is not.

//But if you look at the clear successes of independent works and passion projects, such as the many fangans I've shared my thoughts on, there's obviously still passion in creatives out there. Passion I hope to continue to be a part of.

//And sometimes, bad things like this happen and you get something even better out of it. From Walt Disney's bad management leading to people splitting off and creating Looney Tunes, to the miserable development of Daikatana being superseded by Deus Ex, to the slump of brown and grey military shooters being outdone by works like Portal in the late 2000's.

//Your creations will outlast you, and that's why I believe in artistic authenticity and improving your craft. Give people something they won't just enjoy now, but they'll have to remember you fondly when you're gone and to have as a source of comfort and joy through the dark moments in their lives.

[willel]

Vecna and his choice of victims

This has probably already been written before but I've had some more thoughts since the play. I also have like, 20 asks people have sent in that i haven't answered and I'm pretending to not see until I figure out what I want to say in response >.> (I do appreciate the asks but phew my brain juices are running low. Ha)

Most of this is related to season 4 so I won't be putting them under a read more now. I'll also be making a lot of assumptions here.

I hadn't known until now but apparently people have been getting into fights because of their theories and well, I don't want any part of that. THESE ARE JUST THOUGHTS~. I'm not an ST writer and I have no idea where they're going with things, so let's just chill and have a chat alright?

General assumptions

I know I and some others have discussed this in the past, but it's pretty obvious Henry is deeply connected to El and Will. He has a lot of parallels with them. Not just surface levels ones either, they seem pretty intentional and the writers/actors themselves have been hinting at it.

But what if it doesn't stop there? What if he relates to ALL his victims which is why they were chosen in the first place? What if it's not just "they were teenagers suffering" but it's a specific kind of suffering he could relate to?

#1: Chrissy.

Chrissy was suffering from bulimia and it seems one of her major triggers was her mother constantly talking about her weight. In Vecna's depiction of her mother, she was called a fat pig, her mom constantly readjusted her clothes at the sewing machine so they would "fit". Her father was either dense as hell or refused to see what was happening since his eyes were sown shut in Chrissy's waking nightmare. Food was depicted as rotten and disgusting, which is probably how she felt due to her eating disorder caused by her family situation.

With the extra bits we've gotten from the play and what was in the show itself, I believe Henry faced a similar situation. He was going through stuff and his mother was unsupportive and visibly disgusted by him. Even though Henry and his mother obviously had a tense and extremely negative relationship, Henry's dad Victor seemed completely unaware of what was going on or refused to acknowledge it.

When Victor retold what happened to his family, in his opinion, his life was pretty picturesque. I haven't heard many details about Victor in the play but he completely glossed over all of his son's odd behavior or why they even moved to Hawkins in the first place. In fact, he thought his son was sensing the danger rather than his son BEING the danger.

It's almost 1 to 1 of Chrissy's home life. Terrible mother child dynamics. Emotionally absent father. Irrelevant sibling.

#2: Fred.

We know a lot less about Fred's home life, but there's still a little bit we can pick apart from what we do know. We know that Fred was involved in some kind of accident a year or so ago. Instead of helping his fellow victim in the crash, Fred ran all the way home, terrified. Either people blame him for the other victim's death or he blames himself so harshly that he believes others blame him (guilt basically).

If I stretch things a bit, it sorta lines up with Henry hurting a kid at school while he lived in Nevada before moving to Hawkins maybe?

Or maybe it's that situation they created with Patti in the play with Principal Newby? I don't know all the details but Patti blamed Henry for what happened right? At least temporarily.

When Fred has his vision in the woods, a little girl grows a weird ugly finger and starts the "Murderer" chant. Maybe that's similar to Henry's sister Alice approaching him and telling him he's a different person now?

This one is a stretch I realize, but hey.

#3: Patrick.

This one is pretty similar to Chrissy situation but in reverse I suppose. It's not Patrick's mother that's the problem, but his dad. When Henry selected Patrick as his target, we heard Patrick's dad basically call him worthless. Lucas mentions Patrick coming into practice with bruises sometimes and feels bad for not being there for Patrick more having realized belatedly what was going on.

I don't believe Henry was physically abused by his parents, BUT "Papa" certainly was. Brenner, the obsessed scientist weirdo has done plenty of things to Henry and the rest of the kids so I'm sure I don't need to go into detail.

We've even seen him berate El multiple times for not doing what he wants. He even tried to pin blame on her for everything that was happening in season 4 before she rightly pushed the blame right back on his shoulders. (and then he stabs her with a needle and puts a shock collar on her.)

Maybe it doesn't match up for you but I dunno, I think that lines up pretty evenly.

#4: Max.

Unsurprisingly, Max's situation is what triggered this entire post. I was just thinking, "All these people moving to Hawkins and it kinda sucks there." Then a light bulb went off. "Wait, Max also had to move to Hawkins because of something Billy did." And it spiraled from there. Nevada isn't California, but I bet Billy, Max, and Henry all preferred living where they were before they had to move to Hawkins.

I wouldn't exactly call moving across the country traumatic, but Henry could possibly relate to Max's feelings of isolation and moving with your dysfunctional family so that things would "get better" but they do not get better at all.

If we look at the play again and coat Max and El a little bit in Patti and Henry's colors, then I guess Henry and Max can relate to the isolation of losing your closest friend, but that's a stretch I admit.

I could make another header for Billy but I think I'll just leave him in Max's section since the situation is pretty identical. Billy is a mixture of Max and Patrick, he's way closer to Henry's situation than Max is.

#5: El.

This one is so obvious that I don't need to go into detail but it still needs to be said. Henry and El's stories are extremely similar. The super powers. The lab. Brenner. The kidnapping and isolation in general. The experimentation. Being forced to kill things. Afraid of hurting people because of your powers.

She even shares the "being separated from the people you care about" stuff, she's had to deal with that multiple times on repeat.

Luckily for El, all of her real parents are chill (Terry, Hopper and Joyce) so in that regard, other than Hopper being a punk bitch a few times, she's been blessed there.

#6: Will.

Finally we get to Will. It's interesting how different Will and Henry's stories are and yet they're also so similar.

Will has an amazing mom but an absentee dad. It's hard to say what is worse between Henry and Will's situations but at least Will had support at all with Joyce.

Apparently, Henry also disappeared once into the Upside Down and returned a completely different person. Not only that, apparently Henry was possessed by the Mind Flayer in the same manner that Will was. This is so obviously related to Will's story that I don't think I need to expand on it.

Like El and Max, Will also had the pain of moving away from most of the people he cared about, though this pain is very understated for Will in the show. Will seems pretty content with just having his family and long distance friends even though the long distance friendship was secretly eating at him too.

Apparently in the play, Virginia forced Henry to visit the "doctor" (lab) like Joyce did to Will. Someone described it as almost exactly like the beginning of season 2. Not only was Henry's lab experience just like El's, but Will's as well. Luckily, Will's doctor was Owens and not Brenner, though I'm sure Brenner was watching (I got an ask related to this btw I will get to it because I wanna talk about this more)

If Henry's life was segmented into parts, then it'd be "before the UD", "after the UD", "before the murders" and "after the murders"

Chrissy, Patrick, Max and Fred are all "after the UD" and "before the murders". A part of Henry's life that is seemingly drastically different than the life he had before.

El is "after the murders". His life in the lab leading into who he is today.

Will is.... a little bit of everything. He was Henry "before the UD" and "after the UD", that transition into a different person specifically after the UD experience. He's also "after the murders" when he's possessed by the MF and "before the murders" when he's a little bit of a lab rat at Hawkins before things go south.

Through the circumstances of the show, Will has literally become the closest person to Vecna. They'll likely understand each other more than anyone else, which kinda sucks for Will.

But I suppose the fundamental difference between them will be.... El. Funnily enough. You know how Henry (and Kali) taught El that hatred and sadness is the key to becoming more powerful? Well, El has already discovered that love is infinitely more powerful.

Not only that, El has chosen her friends and family. She rejected Henry. She rejected Kali. But there is one kid she hasn't rejected that could really use her insight on breaking through the pain to find something greater.

[gojuo]

I used to ship Rhaenicent since not only the actors liked it but the paratext of the writers and directors really centered them as the core of the show. I understand that the show wants to tackle how these two women are pit against each other by the men in their lives and listen I am media literate enough to get these things and can put away my own interests to gleam what they want to do in this show but the reason I just stopped shipping them was because of the fandom can’t do that and ngl. If they throw all those points away to shit on Alicent and blame her for everything or call her abusive or queerbait then why should I even bother 💀

Like, it doesn’t matter what the show or GRRM may say about the show because in the end both teams take what they want to take from it but Team Black? is absolutely the worst about it. Not only is Alicent constantly barraged by them, they insist the ship is terrible because Alicent abused Rhaenyra and etc etc. They make up tons of ideas about the ship being more toxic than it actually is, knowing full well that if it was Laenyra they would enjoy the toxicity. It’s also infuriating when you look at the ship itself and then see how one-sided it is for Alicent, and while it can be from Alicent’s pov just makes Rhaenyra the center. Don’t even get me started on the Rhaenyra apologists and TB shippers. It’s just so frustrating because Rhaenyra is the center of everything in this fandom? The most content, the most fans, the most fanfics. Heck, even Alicent’s children are co-opted by Rhaenyra or Team Black (Rhaenyra has more fics shipped with ALICENT’S children than Alicent herself and then you have shit like L*cemond). It’s always about Rhaenyra and maybe that sounds petty but the fact that people get to do all that while simultaneously spewing the most misogynistic filth about Alicent upsets me heavily.

And seeing Rhaenicents be like: Alicent loves Rhaenyra more than her children just completely took me off their ship. Sorry, I get it’s a wlw moment but the fact that not even Rhaenyra would pick Alicent over her children (and could let them die for all they care while Alicent feels IMMEDIATE regret the next morning for even trying to take Lucery’s eye btw lol) or even DAEMON just made me so over the ship.

In the end, Rhaenicent is just another ship that centers Rhaenyra as the focus. As all the other hundred other Rhaenyra ships lol. At least, it is for WLW and most at least don’t pick a team or are on team green but I cannot stand how Rhaenyra is glorified within this fandom to like it now.

Yeah you pretty much just summed up all the issues with this ship loooll. Sad thing is, it could have been a really great and beautiful and tragic (more like ironic but what tragedy is not irony ? I'll leave the discussions for another time) friends to almost lovers to enemies ship but alas ... the writers are not talented enough and the viewers of this show are not intelligent enough either. Curse the existence of Targ stans because it really is them who have made this fandom space so hostile and unpleasant to be in. The writers are lacking in skill to faithfully and compellingly portray the Dance no doubt, but it is the Targ bootlickers who make and have made everything concerning this show and fandom (and books) so inhospitable. Awful awful people.

[hils79]

Hils Watches The King's Avatar - Ep 35

I have the day off today so I'll probably have time for a couple more episodes than I usually watch. While it's tempting to cram in all 6 and finish it I probably won't do that but we'll see how it goes.

I am having a lot of feelings about these literal children having to raise themselves. I know shit like this happens a lot in the sports and idol industries and it makes me so sad. I know Ye Xiu got kicked out but where are Mucheng and Muqiu's family?

Also, yesterday @hphaeton pointed out that the voice actor dubbing Ye Xiu is the same person who dubbed Cheng Yi in Love and Redemption. It's so obvious now I know. I can't believe I didn't spot it before. He has a very nice voice.

Oh no he's crying again

Poor Mucheng this must be so hard for her too. It's like losing her brother all over again.

Oh no they're all blaming each other for the loss and it's making Ye Xiu Even Sadder. But, look, isn't this the first time they've actually lost a pro game? No team can win all the time this is something they're going to need to get used to. I'm sure Ye Xiu will teach them that.

Oh do NOT start lashing out at my son who is trying to keep the peace

Everyone is so upset. Also, that is a very Western breakfast they are eating

Look, obviously I love them all. But if you're going to suggest disbanding every time you lose a game then maybe you aren't suited to being a team. Take the loss, reflect, bounce back. That's what sport is. To make it All About Me when I first got into hockey my team of choice had one of the worst seasons ever seen. 5 years later they won the championship.

I shouldn't laugh when everyone is dramatically breaking up but Mo Fan is such a mood

He's tired and sad and that should be your rallying point. Unite to cheer him up and help him rebuild his weapon (which I'm assuming they will do when they get over all this)

Ye Xiu at least understands that they need more time to properly bond as a team. The latest member joined them right before the game that they lost.

NO THE GAMER GIRLFRIENDS HAVE BROKEN UP THIS IS TERRIBLE. They were my first ship in this drama 😭

I'm glad you've learned this lesson but you literally ran away from your esports team because you lost a competition and back to your piano school that you also ran away from because you lost a competition. We seem to be going in circles here.

So Tang Rou has gone back to music school and Wei Chen is selling his account. This is all feeling very permanent and I am Concerned

Oh, thank god. Baozi is there to (hopefully) stop him

How could anyone resist the puppy face

I love Baozi so much. He really is the heart of the team. He just wants to hang out with his friends and do the thing they all love whether they win or lose. I think he should just go around everyone and 🥺 at them until the agree to come back

Great now I'm crying

Well, fuck, he signed it anyway

Ow, shit, Mo Fan comes out of left field and kicks me right in the chest

God, he still looks so sad! Everyone is so sad and I hate it! If Yifan cries again I am done!

I can't believe this many journalists and photographers have shown up for one minor league esports team

No journalist ever has asked for proof in the middle of a press conference

Wu Chen of all people to the rescue. Holy shit!

To the surprise of no one Wu Chen's 'betrayal' was all just a big misunderstanding

I'm very sorry I called you a dirty cheater. Thank you for being the voice of reason

[frogizz]

The Untamed Episode 32ish spoilers

I've been real quiet about my thoughts watching The Untamed. I haven't read the novel yet but I've been looking at the fan wiki so I know how different things kinda are. Anyways, I'ma list how I feel about the characters and what not. I am at episode 32 or 33 btw.

Yanli is a sweetheart, an angel, a gift to this Earth AND HOW SHE DIES IS HEART WRENCHING! She just gave birth a month ago, she just lost her husband to some stupid fight, her injury and death is blamed on her kinda innocent brother, IM FURIOUS. She deserved so much more than she got, I knew she died young but not like this!

I never trusted Jin Guangyao from the start, I don't like his face (It's the character, not the actor, the actor is fine). He is shady and from the looks of his wiki page, I was right about my gut feeling.

Jin Zixuan has been a tough guy for me to like, but honestly, as long as he made Jiang Yanli happy, he was decent in my book.

THE HYPOCRATES THE JIN CLAN ARE. Explain to me how they think they can do whatever they want just because they aren't the Wen Clan? Their mentality is that they can do what they want because they believe they're already incapable of doing or being bad, when they should really be having the mentality of avoiding doing bad actions and reflect. Jin Zixun annoyed the hell out of me because he was the main culprit of acting just like he was all high and mighty.

Jin Zixun and the other smaller clans just HAD to point fingers and antagonize somebody, didn't they? Like of course, the Wen clan did terrible things, but you don't kill innocent people! Wei Wuxian didn't need to play the hero, but honestly, who would've stepped up to save them? Everything would've been fine if jin Zixun didn't assume Wei Wuxian cast that spell on him and went for the violent route.

I know Wen Qing doesn't show up as much in the novel, which I'll be sad reading through scenes I expected her to be in after watching The Untamed, but she is one of my favorites. She is innocent, or at least mostly, in my eyes. Her actions were those of "I don't want to exactly get involved, and I also kinda think that my clan is doing some bullsh*t but I can't exactly rebel now can I?". I could be wrong, but she deserved a better fate.

Wen Ning, oh my gosh, he deserved better too, he was such a good kid, SUCH A GOOD KID, and he got abused and basically tortured. He deserves more than to be a ghost puppet.

WEI WUXIAN YOU IDIOT, YOU MADE A PROMISE TO YOUR SISTER, YOU TOLD HER THE THREE OF YOU WOULD BE TOGETHER FOREVER YET YOU RUN OFF SO EASILY TO SAVE THE WEN REMNANTS?! Of course, who would've saved them if not Wei Wuxian, that's not necessarily bad. But he just didn't think twice about the promise he made to Jiang Yanli when he just left like that. Not cool dude. Not. Cool.

I don't hate Jiang Cheng, and I don't love him either. I like him, his actions are valid and especially his thoughts are too. To me he is reasonable and makes judgement based on what the audience sees, so I think he is sometimes portrayed as some angry guy when really, he is reacting to things without knowing the full story.

OOH I JUST KNOW THAT MOFO WHO WAS MAKING THE SPIRITS GO OUT OF CONTROL AT THE NIGHTLESS CITY WAS JIN GUANGYAO. Now, I have no evidence, but hear me out, where TF did he go after all the fighting broke out?

I really wanna write some fanfics of 2-5 chapters of different "What if" scenarios regarding Wei Wuxian's decisions in his life and how things could've been better.

Wen Yuan is so adorable and I will protect him with my life. I don't know too much about how he is as Lan Sizhui (btw, I think he's only an adult in The Untamed because he's around 3 when he was Wen Yuan and 16 passed so he's older compared to the novel which makes him 16 years old as Lan Sizhui. Fact check me please).

The music has me in a choke hold.

I have no opinion on Lan Wangji besides he's cool and Wei Wuxian's biggest supporter.

I care a lot more for Wen Ning, Wen Qing, and Jiang Cheng, Jiang Yanli, and Wei Wuxian relationships being fine and healthy than I do for Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangi. Mostly because we don't get to see the romance in The Untamed but I hope to see that connection and care for their relationship more when I read the novel. Until then, the siblings are all I care about because they're family and they could've been so happy together.

The way I sobbed when the Jiang clan was attacked and the previous Jiang clan leader and his wife died. The way the Jiang siblings were now orphaned and Wei Wuxian was orphaned a second time. (I call all three of them the Jiang siblings, is there another thing I can call them that would make more sense? I know Wei Wuxian was a part of the Jiang clan but he doesn't have the family name nor is he part of the clan anymore.)

Lan Xichen is another one of my favorites. Never hated any of his actions or words for one second. He is so agreeable and likeable for me. Reminds me of how I felt towards Yue Qingyuan when reading SVSSS. 10/10 character, mwah.

Where TF are my Nie Huaisang scenes, he barely shows up and I kinda wanna see him more.

Jin Ling is so adorable as a baby but damn does he take after his uncle.

I find it sweet that even after leaving the clan, Wei Wuxian was still allowed to see Jiang Yanli's wedding dress and even name his nephew. So sweet, I cried at that scene. She was so pretty, she was so generous to give a portion of the soup to Wen Ning and I love her generosity and kindness to the heavens.

I'm not gunna lie, I wasn't expecting Jin Zixun's death to be like how it was but it was kind of deserved? I was a little sad when Jin Zixuan died though, only because Jiang Yanli would be a widow with a newborn. Can't hurt my girl emotionally like that, just can't.

Last but not least, I can't remember his name and that one chick, but that Young Master Wen, I hated his face, his smug look, I think his death was deserved. And that lady he had with him all of the time, so annoying, so pitiful, they did a great job acting because they made me hate their faces.

Oh yeah, and, Wei Wuxian is an idiot, but a thoughtful idiot. I say that affectionally and I don't think he's actually full of himself (my interpretation can be so wrong and I'll realize that later). He does things for others not to look good (or at least that isn't the main concern), but to actually do something that no one else does. He plays the hero because no one else will help. Although, yeah, he does take on big challenges to look cool but at the end of the day, It's not really all for his own gain.

Okay, that's it. See another post like this when I finish Ep. 50 and I can't wait to find access to the animated MDZS!

[ooc-miqojak]

The team wrote the musical during the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike. The idea was to create something small and inexpensive, yet professionally done, in a way that would circumvent the issues that were being protested during the strike. Reception has been overwhelmingly positive.

"It was because of the writers’ strike that Whedon had a number of his closest friends — who just so happen to be some of the most esteemed actors — at his disposal for his weird idea, but that wasn’t the only factor working in his favor. Between the period of 2007 and 2008, Whedon also decided he wanted to toy with the idea of using the internet as a way to distribute a film. This way he could bypass having to go through a studio for money and connect directly with those who wanted to support his vision, particularly during a time of need.

The only thing stopping him from doing that at the time was that fact that he didn’t know how do go about doing it. In an interview with Dave Itzkoff last year, Whedon told the New York Times critic that it noted Felicia Day’s work on The Guild, a webseries that premiered on YouTube in July 2007, as a reason for looking to the internet as a realm of possibility in the first place."

-Polygon Article from 2017

Funnily, they mention the show Heroes in this article, and it was a massive favorite of mine that was utterly ruined because the studio behind it kept pushing for it to be made, in spite of the writer's strike at the time... and the show was terrible after that. The lack of talent was obvious, even to a rather young me! And once I understood what the writers were striking for, I was 100% behind it. Sure, it sucks that I'll never have the version of Heroes that I could have... but that's not the writers' fault. I don't blame them a bit! Human rights are more important than knowing what might have been in a fictional world.

Anyways, here's a 45 minute movie Whedon made during a writer's strike - free from the corporate leash! Back before the Whedons just cranked out the same script over and over for Marvel.

[frostyreturns]

Frosty Ruins The Neighborhood

One of the benefits from unplugging from most pop culture is hearing about all the dumb shit people are watching that I've never seen. Eventually you get to a point where a show you've never even heard of has five seasons by the time it reaches your awareness. Every new show gets one of two reactions from me "no I haven't seen it" or "what the hell is that?" This show falls into the latter category.

Sometimes it's interesting though to dive into the middle of a show that's totally escaped your notice. I've not experienced an ounce of the shows marketting, I've not seen so much as a second of a commercial for it, I've not seen a clip of it online and I have not even come across a gif or image set of it on social media. This means my impression of it is completely my own.

My first impression is that it's going to be a terrible sitcom. Sitcoms can be bad in a good way and there are some sitcoms that are bad that I'll still enjoy as something mindless you put on in the background while I do other shit. But then there are bad sitcoms that hurt to watch. Right off the bat I notice two actors from different tv comedies, one is the blonde chick from two broke girls…which is a bad sign because that show was fucking terrible. However I also notice the extremely jewish gay but not really gay dude from New Girl which was the good kind of bad tv comedy.

A minute into the show I think I understand the premise of the show I think it's a reaction to percieved tokenism. I think they wanted to make a black show with token white people. It's the racial equivalent of the female ghostbusters, ignore all the positive black representation on tv and get mad about a fake problem and solve it by doing the thing you accuse others of doing. No wonder they picked the bland basic white chick from 2 broke girls and the persnickety magoo dude from new girl.

And like female ghostbusters it's full of horseshit libtard socjus political propaganda pretending that it's funny and entertaining. It delves very quickly into complete and utter cringe with lines like "set your alarm it's time for me to get woke." And of course like any show that follows this formula the men are also all dumb or jerks or dumb jerks.

The point of the episode I'm reviewing seems to be to create a strawman justification of regressive racial politics being pushed onto kids. They act like all they're doing is teaching kids about history and telling the truth…and any resitance to racial politics in schools is just trying to deny history…when in the real world these "diversity" classes are full of lies hatred and insane cultist marxist ideas designed to breed social conflict and societal upheaval.

The characters say things like "I just think its important for kids to get the whole picture." when what they meant to say was "I just want to ignore all of human history except for what a small number of people of a certain group did at a certain point in one specific place so I can paint one race as being victims and another as being perpetrators so that the murderous pedophiles who wrote this curriculum can turn people of different races against each other so none of us notice that it's always just the government committing atrocities and trying to rule all of us like tyrants."

For some reason I don't think teaching kids that slavery means 'that time when white people enslaved black people' is "giving them the whole picture." Treating slavery like it's this thing that happened once in American history rather than something that every group of people has engaged in and been victim to is retarded and evil. Evil because it's being done specifically for the racist and malevolent purpose of demonizing white people. Nevermind that the word slavery is named after slavic (white people) because of how those people were viewed. The retards who wrote this will say things like "it wasn't that long ago" to try to place collective blame on white people but will ignore slavery happening today…currently in Africa.

The other angle the propaganda here takes is one not everyone might notice. They pretend these kind of divisive racial politics is a new thing…it's a new curriculum that they are fighting to add and that most except a few are in favour of. In reality they've been teaching this shit virtually forever and almost everyone hates it. It's just gotten progressively worse and boomers and gen x have been mostly unaware of how batshit insane the stuff being taught to their kids in public schools is. It's insane as someone who's been out of the system for a long time watching tv shows like this pretend like this is a new thing being introduced when I had to listen to it daily. They don't want anyone to make the connection between how retarded people have become and the things they've been teaching. By pretending it's new they can act like the consequences are an unknown but we've been seeing the consequences for a long time and they're very real…and they're fucking intentional.

The other thing about jumping into a comedy like this in the middle is you really notice whenever it lacks comedy. Shows like this rely on character gimmicks and self referencing to generate the appearance of funny. I keep hearing the laugh track going…and genuinely have no idea why what was said was supposed to be a joke. The dialogue is stilted unnatural, the acting is terrible, the characters are wooden and pointless and everything just seems so empty and soulless. I'm really starting to believe that conspiracy about everything being written by AI. Sitcoms have always kind of been like that…but there's just something so alien about the way this show is put together. Like it was written by someone who's watched a lot of tv but has never talked to a person before. I think every character in the show would fail a turing test.

This hurt to watch, everybody who was involved in it should be ashamed and embarassed. If you like this show you have a cultural gutter palate. I refuse to believe that anyone watches this earnestly. I will believe that there are men who enjoy getting kicked in the balls, that makes more sense to me than there being a single viewer for this show. Once again I'm proved right that you should never watch anything made after 2017 if you want to have a good time.

F- late stage cancer

[gothichorrorshow]

Autism representation in Wolf Pack

We're currently only two episodes in but this is just what we've seen so far.

So the little brother (Danny) of the main female lead (Blake) is autistic. So far the representation has been... not great. Not terrible, but not great.

Stereotypes are quite many in this boy! He's a male child (6-8 maybe? I don't remember if they've said his age) and there's been some stereotype-y scenes. (The scene where Everrett is playing with Danny and Blake says "He doesn't talk to strangers")

And I had so much hope for them to use good language when Blake corrected the term Asperger's! And then she proceeded to use the term high functioning in that same scene. Seriously.

I also feel like in episode two he was kinda being used as a prop? He was just a means for Everrett and Blake to get closer, and the scene where Blake says "Danny will be fine, I'll just turn on the news" just felt kinda weird to me? They're just using him and then getting rid of him when it's convenient.

As for the relationship between Blake and Danny, it's not really being shown greatly. Blake is constantly telling Danny to "Say it in a sentence" when a couple words convey the meaning. I know as a semiverbal autistic that it kinda sucks being told to speak more than what you're comfortable with.

However he is allowed to stim, complete routines, and stay fairly quiet most of the time. Idk what Blake has against this one specific symptom.

Idk if the actor is autistic or not, but I think for the most part he manages to portray autism in a non-offensive way. There's been some times where it seems like his actions don't really fit/are stereotypes, but I'm blaming the writers for that.

Anyways 5/10 autism representation. Not horribly offensive but could be a lot better. And please I'm begging you to treat this child like a child and not a prop.

[rhysmademedoit]

So...

I recently rewatched the 1997 movie Batman and Robin, which was a mistake, but probably not in the way you'd expect. I have a lot of opinions about this movie now. In fact, I have so many opinions that I need to make a tumblr post breaking them down before I go crazy.

Let me say that I went into this movie with an open mind. It's a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad, movie, but I do genuinely think it has some interesting points. I'll start with the casting.

George Clooney is legitimately the worst Batman ever put to the silver screen. He's just playing George Clooney. I've seen him do a good job in other movies so I have to assume he read the script and decided to just phone it in.

Chris O'Donnell actually does a much better job as Robin in this movie than he did in Batman Forever. He and Batman feel like an actual team this time, even if Clooney could be carrying his weight more. The actual character O'Donnell plays in this movie is fairly over the top, but I think he does a good job grounding him in the reality of this movie.

Arnold Schwarzenegger actually really fits Mr. Freeze in a weird way. His cold, mechanical delivery evokes the Terminator, proving he still has what it takes to play a villain. The problem is that Mr. Freeze himself is TERRIBLY written. EVERY LINE HE SAYS IS AN ICE PUN!!! He's probably the single worst part of this movie, but I don't blame Arnold for that, he did a good job with what he had.

Uma Thurman is another actor I've seen do a great performance in other movies. For some reason, she decided to play Poison Ivy like she's Rita Repulsa. That might work for Power Rangers, but it feels really out of place here. It's a shame since I think Poison Ivy in this movie had a lot of untapped potential.

Alicia Silverstone is an actress I haven't seen in anything else, so I don't want to judge her too harshly. She's just... not very good in this. Not bad necessarily. I don't know if she wasn't given enough direction or didn't understand her character or what. Batgirl is actually a kind of interesting character who, like most things in this movie, doesn't get fleshed out enough. She does have some sweet moments though. Most of them are helped by the real star of the show...

Michael Gough delivers what has to be the greatest Alfred performance of all time, and definitely HIS greatest Alfred performance. And why shouldn't he? By far, he has the best scenes and the best lines in the entire movie, elevating the entire thing from a cheesy kids film to something that actually has a little maturity. Singlehandedly he becomes the sole reason to rewatch this movie. The "soul" of the movie, if you will.

I guess now it's time to talk about the plot of this movie. I'll be covering it in very broad strokes so I don't end up writing this forever.

From the get-go, two things are VERY apparent: (1.) This movie's visuals, lighting, and set design are awe-inspiring and (2.) A lot of the dialogue is absolutely HORRIBLE. It feels unfinished. Mr. Freeze looks jaw-droppingly epic in his suit with pitch black eyes and a glowing blue mouth, but it's all downplayed by the fact that he never has anything even remotely interesting to say. When Batman is saying lines like "Hey Freeze, I'm Batman" I just picture a little annotation next to it in the script saying *write a cool opening line here.

After an admittedly good fight scene with Mr. Freeze, we're introduced to one of the main conflicts of the movie: Batman doesn't trust Robin. I actually really like that premise. It feels true to the characters while also making for some interesting drama. Hopefully we see that same concept taken on by a better movie one day.

Next up, we're introduced to Pamela Isley, who gets turned into Poison Ivy... somehow. The movie really doesn't make it clear. I think they wanted to do a similar thing to Catwoman with Dr. Woodrew being her Max Shreck, but they plow through it before you even have time to think. Oh, and Bane is here too. I didn't mention him because he's just a strong henchman for Batman and Robin to fight, and honestly might as well just be a giant plant monster. In fact, he kind of is a giant plant monster, since Venom in this movie comes from Poison Ivy's plants. Whatever, on to the next scene.

At stately Wayne Manor, the movie does a really good job setting up that Alfred is getting older. He's a lot slower to respond, gets tired faster, and all around just looks much older here. We're also introduced to Barbara... Wilson?? I actually think making her Alfred's niece instead of Commissioner Gordon's daughter makes a ton of sense for this movie. After all, what better way to flesh out Alfred as a character than showing him interact with family? And as I said before, these moments are genuinely very touching! I love this stuff!

Gotham Observatory, another gorgeous set with a giant statue holding the observatory in the air. Pamela says some really interesting things to Bruce here, and in many ways she's right, the elite should be focused on saving the planet rather than exploring the stars. I think she could've used her hypnotism on this entire room and gotten what she wants immediately, but then the next scene wouldn't happen. Also Bruce Wayne randomly has a girlfriend now? She's only in two more scenes and is really forgettable. I don't see what the point of her is.

This is probably the scene most people think of when they think of this movie. I don't actually have anything to say about it that hasn't already been said, but there were some lines I do genuinely find funny, like when Batman says "You don't have the money," and Robin replies "I'll borrow it from you!" Batman having a credit card is dumb but in a fun way that I can appreciate.

Mr. Freeze shows up in his tank and steals the diamond, and a car chase ensues. The scene of Batman actually capturing Mr. Freeze is actually pretty funny, but more importantly, that point of conflict between Batman and Robin is brought up again. It's actually a really interesting moment because although Batman was genuinely saving his partner, the entire reason Robin wanted to risk his life was to prove himself, an attitude which came about because of Batman's overprotectiveness. It's pretty complex stuff considering the movie it's in.

I like this scene in Arkham because it shows how the patients detained here are treated inhumanely, but the movie doesn't do anything with that which is another huge missed opportunity. At least we get a nice little nod to the last movie's villains.

Plot twist! Barbara isn't actually the sweet uni student you thought she was, she's actually a street racing punk who wears leather and despises authority! The visuals of the street race are stunning as always, but the part that sticks out to me the most is how she completely slams Bruce and Richard for their treatment of Alfred. They've always thought of him as family, but in reality he's just their servant, and now we have his actual family member coming in to challenge them. It would be super compelling stuff if they actually focused on it for more than two seconds.

I can't find a good picture, but something about the set design of Mr. Freeze's lab feels really cheap. The set itself is cool but the lighting design feels oddly bright, almost washed out. It gives off a kids TV show vibe, not helped by their encounter with Bane and Poison Ivy which is really cheesy. There's a good moment of banter between Batman and Robin to let us know they've reconciled, and Arnie does a good job showing the stress Mr. Freeze is under, but that's about it. If you saw this scene on TV with no context, you'd think it was a made for TV movie.

This next part is really silly. Why would Poison Ivy want Mr. Freeze to freeze all of Gotham? Wouldn't that kill all of her plants? The part where she seduces Commissioner Gordon is probably my favorite scene of Gordon in this entire quadrilogy, he really does a good job playing up the goofiness. The biggest problem is that the plant-infested GCPD headquarters looks really cheap. It's like the opposite of Mr. Freeze's Lab: the lighting is beautiful but the actual set looks so fake. Speaking of things that look cheap, what's with that Batgirl costume? It doesn't even look like a bat! This is probably one of the dumbest scenes in the entire movie, but it's still kind of sweet that they show Robin still trusting Batman after everything that's come between them.

I've been leaving out a lot, but the fight against Poison Ivy and the fight against Mr. Freeze actually are back to back. The Gotham Observatory is a beautiful set to stage the finale on, even if the actual plan makes no sense. There's also some nice moments of teamwork between the trio where you see how well they work together... or at least they would be nice moments if the three of them had any chemistry together at all. Seriously, this needed another draft. The fight scene isn't anything to write home about, but I do really like Batman's speech to Mr. Freeze at the end. It really shows the evolution of his character. In Batman 89 he was a hard edged antihero and a bit of a psychopath. In Batman Returns he became more bold and confident, but was also willing to open up emotionally. In Batman Forever he gave up his vengeance streak to become a more pacifist hero who only kills in self defense. Now, in Batman and Robin, he's willing to reach out to a man who almost killed the entire city, and to say to him that there's still a good man buried deep inside him somewhere under all the ice. It's too bad George Clooney is still phoning it in or it would have a lot more impact.

I know this movie has a lot of problems. I know I have a lot of problems with this movie. I know that one of my biggest problems with this movie is its cast. And yet somehow, watching the end of this movie, where Alicia Silverstone, Chris O'Donnell, and George Clooney put their hands together and agree to be partners, I couldn't help but feel excited to see them return. I want to see them come back in Batman Unchained. I want to see them fight Coolio's Scarecrow and Joker's daughter Harley Quinn with Batman hallucinating about Jack Nicholson's Joker. Heck, throw Man-Bat in there as well! And Tim Drake as the next Robin! And let's stunt cast everyone because why the heck not.

But that movie's never going to happen now. Even if they made a movie with that exact plot and everyone reprising their roles, it wouldn't be the same. It would just be nostalgia pandering.

There's one scene I left out, but it's arguably the best scene in the entire movie.

Alfred's lying in bed, dying. Bruce says to him "I've spent my entire life trying to beat back death. Everything I've done... Everything I'm capable of doing... but that can't save you." And Alfred responds by saying "There is no defeat in death, Master Bruce. Victory comes in defending what we know is right while we still live." They embrace. Bruce says "I love you, old man." Alfred says "And I love you, too." They smile. It's a beautiful scene on it's own, but it hits even harder because of Barbara's rant to Richard before. When Alfred says "I love you" to Bruce, it resolves his entire character arc in the movie. His search for his family has come to an end. Bruce is his family. Richard is his family. The Wayne's were his family. Batman is his family.

In short, this movie sucks, but I've come to appreciate the little strands of brilliance that live on inside of it. I may even like it a little more than Batman Forever. Just a little though.

Here's to hoping we see the trio of Batman, Robin, and Batgirl return to the big screen in the future. Have an ice day!

[tailingstripes]

   "How well the books are selling today, Mrs. Grimm?" I smiled, entering the bookshop I always visit every Sunday after school since the seventh grade.

"Well good afternoon, sweetheart! It's terrible!" Mrs. Grimm laughed.

I sat at the chair front of the table near the window and place my backpack beside. I look around, seeing a few people, mostly adults, open books that interested them and then they placed it back the shelf. Without buying anything from the inside, they'll leave.

Just as everyday.

I saw Mrs. Grimm walking towards me and grabbed a chair to sit on. It was a while when I noticed a newspaper she's holding.

"Interesting news?"

Mrs. Grimm's eyes narrowed. "You really know the look on my face,"

I chuckled. "Mrs. Grimm, it's written."

She laughed, just as always, a music to my ears.

Her old age, her wrinkles on the face, her wityness, the pink clip she wore in a ponytail, never fails to make me feel home.

Mrs. Grimm is my best friend's grandma, my best friend who died three years ago due to an accident that occured to a condo where she was staying at with her older brother That time I heard the news, I couldn't sleep for months. I grieved for almost a year, and until now, I know I never really moved on. But I also know that I had to go on.

"Now, now, let's see the news, sweetheart!" Mrs. Grimm was laughing, changing the subject.

I lean forward and look at the headline of the newspaper she's holding.

Clover Lewis, a rising star of the year!

My heart almost dropped, it does skip a beat, reading the headline. It's like there's something heavy in my chest, heavy and empty. I don't know, but it felt like it.

"Clover, that kid...that's why he left this town, huh? To become an artist?" Mrs. Grimm took out a scoff.

My lips formed a smile I never know I could make as I saw his face under the headline looking like a prince waving to people, with lights flashing all around him as he's on the red carpet in a black tuxedo.

"I thought it was a new news," I let out a sigh.

"Sweetheart, you knew about this? Why didn't you tell me?"

My smile faded. I slowly look down and stared at my lap. "I'm sorry, I never thought you'd like to know about him since he left this town. Besides, we have no television as you are too, Mrs. Grimm, but if I have time, I'd go over a friend's house to watch his shows or films...I..." I sighed. "Sorry, Mrs. Grimm."

Mrs. Grimm stared at me, I savour the silence between us until she smiled and spoke.

"Clover is like a grandson to me, just as you are a granddaughter to me, Asha. You two make my life brighter ever since my two grandchildren died in that accident."

Silent as I was while listening, it's starting to get loud in my head. I've only got myself to blame for not telling her.

Mrs. Grimm sighed. "Alright, tell me the reason, sweetheart. It's not like you think I'd never would've like to know about him being an actor in a big showbiz world, you know how much I'd be."

I swallowed my saliva, starting to speak. "Clover reached for bigger dreams, and I think he wouldn't like to inform people he'd known in this town that he's now successfully pursuing his career. He somehow hated this town for the reasons he wouldn't tell me...I didn't tell you because...because Mrs. Grimm, I hated him for it." A soft touch of the wind blew my hair to my cheeks as I placed it at the back of my ear. "I don't want to open a topic about him, I know I'll bring that up."

"Why would he hate this town..." Mrs. Grimm absent-mindedly asked the air.

"I asked him before he left, but he also hated me for asking. He wanted to forget everything in here, like this town never existed. Like I never existed."

"Asha, sweetheart, what happened between you two?"

I slowly lifted my head to look at Mrs. Grimm's eyes. "I don't want him to leave, Mrs. Grimm. I tried stopping him, and that's the wrong of me."

Mrs. Grimm held both of my hands, stuffing it in hers. "It's his dream, Asha. You just can't stop Clover for pursuing something. You won't want to see him regretting everything for the things he didn't do."

"I was selfish for that," I took a deep sigh.

Mrs. Grimm smiled, she touched my hair. "I'm sure he'll forgive you, Asha. It's Clover." My eyes stopped at Mrs. Grimm. "Your best friend."

"I don't know,"

I stayed for two hours in the bookshop to help her and went straight to our house. My father was cooking something, and smells like a chicken soup.

He noticed me and invited me to sit. Then he asked if I was from Mrs. Grimm's bookshop and I told him I was.

"How's Mrs. Grimm? Doing good?" Father asked, stuffing rice in his mouth.

I chuckled. "Dad, I told you to refrain yourself from speaking while eating. Didn't I tell you? And yes, Mrs. Grimm are doing good. You should visit her some time after your work."

"I'll do that, I'll do that."

The dinner table was full of laughter between us two. I can't help to think that it'll be more filled with laughter if only mom was alive.

"Big day tomorrow, sleep early!"

"Got it, you too, dad!"

I closed the door of my tiny room and squatted at the floor. I stumbled upon my old notebooks and diary. My eyes linger through every words I've written years ago as I open pages. There's words that caught my attention in the last page.

   There's something in Clover's eyes I couldn't quite explain. Should that feeling spout a word? It feels weird and exciting. It's like a glitter or spark.

My eyes narrowed. I quickly closed the notebook and breathe, I feel like panicking when I should not. I placed the notebook inside the drawer but it just leads to another thing I would revisit through my memories.

A picture dropped.

A picture where it all started.

Me and him.

[spaghettificationandpretzels]

Plots line and episode themes that would have improved Sons of Anarchy part 2.

As stated in the first post, these ideas are just for fun and are silly and unrealistic. Feel free to use these ideas in fanfics if you wish. After rewatching the show I've grown to dislike Sutter even more, he took a show and charters with amazing potential and made it dark and depressing. These ideas take place in a world where everything has a happy ending.

1. The leather care episode, we heard all through the series about how important their Kutts are but we never see them look after them. At weddings, the Groom says "I'll treat you as good as my leather" but we have no idea what that means.

2. As stated before I don't like Tara but it would have been good to see more of her and Jax together, they never really had many super long scenes and while the actors had amazing chemistry, I felt like it would have been good to see the more mundane moments. I want to know why they love each other.

3. More Chibs, it would have been nice to see him find an Old Lady and settle down, also the older I get the more appeal he has.

4. The "make a wish" episode; one of the kids at St Thomas loves motorcycle and the club. However, he's sick so the club includes him in all activities one day, he gets to sit in on church and they vote for what's for lunch or what flavours of ice cream to have after work. He gets a little TM vest and a tiny Kutt. If I was to stick to the theme of the show the child would die at the end of the episode but I say no, someone reads about an experimental treatment the club gets the money somehow and the child recovers and sees the guys every now and then.

5. A prank war episode, it starts small and ends when Gemma goes off and gives a Mom lecture.

6. An episode that explains everyone back story. There are basically no flashbacks in SOA, it would have been good to see the start of everyone's journey.

7. More Nazi punching.

8. I want to see the guys cooking or trying to. I can see one of the guys begging Gemma for help to impress a woman who can cook.

9. More of Happy, he was a hard character to nail down and I could never decide if he was written to be evil or just morally ambiguous. In Mayans, he showed he was capable of caring for a dog and I do think he loved his brothers, Gemma, Jax's kid, and Lyla (I'm not too sure about Tara)

10. Less of Tig, the necrophilia thing was terrible and it should have been written for what it was and not a joke. His behaviour in just the very first episodes was disgusting and him killing Donna was my last straw, I really didn't like him and in all honesty, I think he was a coward in many ways. Had he told Opie right away and not blamed Stahl, my opinion would be very different.

11. There is an episode about the crow tattoo, all the old ladies have one, yet we know nothing about it. How do they know when it's time to take that step? Is there only one design (it seems so) or do the couple design it themselves? Does the man pick the placement or the woman? For something that has been shown to be a huge part of the club women, there's no backstory at all.

12. More of Lyla, I loved her character and we should have seen more of her, it would have also been good to see more of Lyla and Tara together, I really liked their dynamic in season 3.

13. Given that I'm not acknowledging seasons 6 and 7 I want more of Nero and Gemma, also more of Nero and Jax.

15. I fucking hated Jacob Hale, he was a Neo-Nazi sympathiser and capitalist pig, I would have loved to see him lose to Oswald and be exposed for what he truly was.

16. The summit episode, history 1% clubs did hold summits, it would have been good to see a whole lot of them gather at TM to discuss being a biker or whatever.

17. The Swole Boys should have been a part of SOA, it would have been hilarious.

18. I don't like Tara but she did so much for the club. Bobby and Chibs were the only ones who ever recognised her. The rest of the club should have been more appreciative.

19. More T.O, I loved his character, it's a shame he was most featured in the saddest season.

20. More of Juice, in the first 4 seasons he was one of my favourites, I hate what they did to his character arc.

[sohemotional]

Do you have any scenes that are technically negative for Brittana that you still enjoy watching because they’re entertaining? I had to ask you too because I really like this question.

Okay some of these will be super unpopular but honestly everytime HeMo and Naya were on-screen gracing us with their presence and interacting as Brittana was a blessing and I'll take whatever I can get for Brittana because we got so few scenes with them.

The sort of argument they have by the lockers in Born This Way (The Shirt Locker incident) is one of my favourite Brittana scenes. Santana is getting all insecure and mad at her as usual as she was for half of that season. She snaps "I said I love you and you didn't say you love me back!" which isn't true at all and Santana knows that on some level but she's mad and she's taking it out on Britt because she's a moody teenager who's hurt. Unlike other "arguments" Brittana had that season, Brittany stands up for herself and argues back. I love how she just tells Santana off and walks away in anger because she's so done with Santana's behavior (and really I do love Santana but she was so hot and cold all season with Britt, so I don't blame Britt at all for getting fed up at that point). Santana seems taken aback by Brittany being so bold for once. So it's definitely a conflict between them but it's a great turning point for their relationship and the start of Santana realizing that she needs to accept herself/grow up.

The confession scene in Sexy is another one that technically ends on a terrible note with Santana crying and both girls devastated but it will always be one of my favourite scenes to watch in Glee because of how well-acted and moving it is.

I also love the "Soulmates, so to speak" moment (can't remember if that's also from Born This Way... it might be). It's a really subtle but deep Brittana moment. Santana is asked if Karofsky is her soulmate but you can tell from her voice/look in her eyes when she claims that he is that this is a complete lie and she's staring at Brittany the whole time. Meanwhile Brittany can hear/see this happening and she looks heartbroken as she watches Santana but at the same time, there's sad resignation. It's like if she didn't expect anything different from Santana. I wonder if at that point Brittany was losing hope and thought maybe Santana will never be ready for her. Meanwhile I think Santana was still in the frame of mind that she would never be able to be with Brittany and her whole life would just be faking it with someone she doesn't love.

I actually like the "Left Behind Club" scene, despite the fact that the way the conflict between them got resolved (or didn't get resolved) after this moment was so bad (fully the fault of the writers, not the couple or the actors btw). I believe this is from 4x04. Brittany's friend starts having a panic attack at their book club meeting and Brittany looks at Santana and says that's how she felt when Santana left her behind. Santana looks shocked and devastated to hear those words from Brittany. It's so sad from both of their perspectives. Brittany obviously felt extremely upset by Santana leaving but never admitted it to her before that, meanwhile Santana is only now realizing how sad her being at college in Louisville made Brittany. You can just see the moment when Santana's heart breaks and I think this is a major part of what lead Santana to decide that breaking up with her was somehow the best way to protect Brittany.

Here's a super unpopular opinion. Despite the stupidity/absurdity of this particular plot, I actually thought Naya and Hemo portrayed the sex tape scandal in Saturday Night Glee-ver very well and the forehead kiss in the library/the whole scene leading up to it with Brittany suggesting ways to get Santana famous was adorable. The whole thing was of course, OOC of Brittany and could have been handled way differently but Glee is a highly absurd series in general. Was the sex tape subplot necessary? Of course not. However HeYa's acting and facial expressions were on point.

The scene that leads up to "There Are Worse Things I Could Do" in Glease (4x06) is another heartbreaking moment but the angst of it is so good and actually well-written. Brittany just goes up to Santana in her dressing room and actually flirts with her openly (she definitely is still into her) with her hands all over Santana's shoulders. She tries to win Santana back coyly, only to be rejected because Santana is still fearful and convinced that it's somehow better for them to be apart even though she's a terrible liar when she tells Britt she doesn't care if Britt was dating someone. Brittany is very shady towards her in a passive aggressive way by reminding Santana that Fridays used to be their date nights and then she just leaves Santana to think about that in silence. Brittany absolutely knows the effect that those words will have on Santana. I think in a way, it's almost like Brittany wants Santana to feel the same pain she herself is going through. You can see by her facial expression after that how Santana is absolutely wrecked by being reminded of the little things about their relationship.

Diva (4x13) on a whole is one of my favourite Brittana episodes, even though most fans seem to hate this episode. It has some really interesting Brittana development despite technically being "bad" for them. Santana confronting Brittany to ask her why she didn't tell her about Bram and showing off Elaine her new "girlfriend" is just peak Santana. Santana is being a jealous, insecure brat - she wants to rub her new relationship in Brittany's face because she's so hurt and jealous about Bram. The angst of it all is so good. You can tell from Brittany's expression when she sees Elaine and Santana kiss that she's heartbroken and jealous (maybe the only incident of romantic jealousy from Brittany towards Santana). Then the end of the episode when Brittany finally confronts Santana and tells her she won't be leaving Sam is painful but at the same time you can just feel the love that they both still have for each other. You can see how heartbroken they both are when they part. At the time, some fans thought this was the end of Brittana forever but I see in that moment it was obvious they still wanted each other.

There are probably a lot of other "negative" Brittana moments here and there that I could analyze but I'll have to think about it some more. Thanks for your ask!

[flaringgoosebumps]

Y’all throw around the word “predator” too much for things that aren’t remotely predatory. I agree that large age gap relationships are usually bad, but they’re not bad (imv) because of the attraction itself, they’re bad because of the power dynamics. But how does a 29-year acknowledging they find someone who is almost 20 attractive have anything to do with power dynamics? Having a crush on an actor (who is a legal adult, btw) has literally nothing to do with being predatory and it’s insulting to actual victims to claim that it does. “Oh, you wouldn’t say that if they were a guy.” Yes, I would? Gender has nothing to do with anything. An adult should be able to say that another adult is hot without everyone collectively burning them at the stake. Some people even believe that ANY age gaps are weird/creepy, even if someone is only 2-3 years younger. But that’s a terrible line of thinking

You can keep this predator enabling bullshit to yourself. I'll reiterate what I said earlier. A person who is 30 feeling attracted to someone who is barely a legal adult it the equivalent to a senior in high school being physically attracted to someone who just entered middle school. The physical, emotional, and mental differences are that different.

It's not insulting to victims of predatory behaviour to call out something that is predatory behavior. People have especially over sexualized the kids of stranger things for years and the fandom has swept that under the rug repeatedly.

I am 31 years old myself, anyone under the age of 25 is a kid to me. My youngest sibling is 20 and all of their friends look like children. I can not imagine being a grown ass person and actively lusting over someone their age, celebrity or not. It's literally repulsive.

Predatory behavior begins with the weird social acceptance of "a celebrity, who cares" and then "age of consent" then continuously gets worse until someone's blaming the kid instead of the person who groomed them. I've sadly seen so many family members and friends fall victims to shit like this and it was always an adult who had a weird infatuation with a recently legal age child star. No one saw that as a red flag until it was too late.

I hope that if you're a kid yourself, you consider what I've said and try to do better because these things are sadly normalized and they don't need to be.

But if you're an adult anywhere near my age, trying to justify this bullshit. Choke.

[nellie-elizabeth]

Barry: ben mendelsohn (3x03)

I mean, it's a good show, what more do you want from me?

Cons:

I'd say that Fuches is probably the main character in Barry who offers me the least when he's onscreen. The stuff between him and Barry, the whole fucked up nature of their relationship, great television for sure. Their phone call was captivating. But when it's just him talking to other minor characters, being weirdly settled in his exile, I find that my interest is less than fully held. It's a minor thing, I just think the character type is slightly less captivating than most of the other things going on.

I wouldn't call this show "subtle" necessarily, but one thing I really admire about the performances and the script is how usually the audience knows the inner turmoil of the characters, but it's in-universe believable why other characters don't pick up on certain things. One moment that didn't quite work for me on this level was when Sally's young co-star was asked about Sally's new stable relationship. Her reaction was so awkward and stilted and clearly showcased that there was something to hide. A little over the top for my taste.

Pros:

Let's start with the Chechnya/Bolivia drama. I find myself surprisingly... moved, but Hank and Cristobal's plight. First you had Cristobal saving Hank and his men, and then here he deflects a plan to go back and try to kill them again. Meanwhile Hank's men want to kill Cristobal since they blame the Bolivians for shooting up their place. They're doing all this stuff to protect each other all while knowing they can never, ever blow their cover. It's a real Romeo and Juliet story, and I'm kinda digging it.

Sally is put through a press junket where she's asked simple, repetitive questions over and over by a revolving door of reporters. This is going to sound so obvious and silly but sometimes I forget how truly funny this show can be. Sally thinking that maybe Cake Boss is one of the new Avengers was honestly really hilarious. Idk, there's some new dude called Moon Knight that everyone is into, so why not Cake Boss?

But on the more serious side of things, Sally is someone who is getting what she's always wanted and is simply drenched in dissatisfaction and stress about all of it. You see how much of her is a façade, how terribly important her success is to her, and how much her own happiness has fallen down in the list of requirements.

Contrast that to Barry, who is also getting what he says he wants, in forcing a "friendly" relationship with Mr. Cousineau, in getting work as an actor. It's such a twisted, funhouse mirror version of what Barry is fighting so hard to achieve. We see immediately how unsustainable it is, when Gene totally loses it and screams at Barry during filming. That's one thing I'll say overall for this show and this season, is that the pacing is quite brisk, the entire shifting dynamics of various relationships happen within these short half hour episodes. I love that.

I'll leave it there. As always, I feel oddly unequipped to write about this show. It sort of exists outside of the standard realm of TV for me, and it always has such interesting gifts to give.

8.5/10