#NO i DON'T think the look or setup or style of the actual movie is good

[fabcreature]

this is how i feel continuously seeing people act like the minecraft movie would be perfection if it was practically an exact copy of the game just without the interactivity

[thewebcomicsreview]

Anonymous said:

do you have any advice on writing character motives and backstories? all of my characters either have motivations that are too extreme when their stories are taken into view, or their backstories feel laughable and it makes their motives look ridiculous

My snap answer is “Lean into the extreme-ness and have it be part of the character”. My more detailed answer is thus:

A character’s motivation is the most important aspect about them, because a character that is not motivated is a character that doesn't want to do anything and it's hard to write a character who doesn't want to do anything.

Making Comics, by Scott McCloud

So, while I suppose it's possible there are excesses, I would say that giving your character a strong motivation is worth giving them an outsized backstory to fit. If you're writing a series about solving mysteries and your main character doesn't want to solve mysteries, then you'll have to keep coming up with excuses to make the plot happen. So, one way of writing character motivations is "I want the character to do X and if the character also wants to do X it'll be easier to write".

When I wrote Legend of the Hare, the idea was that Jill would join up with the rabbits right away and we'd be off into Magical Girl Adventures, but when I was actually writing the pages (which I was doing as the chapter was being written, which is a terrible habit), I realized that I couldn't come up with a good reason for Jill to agree to join the rabbit war, so....she didn't. I got her super drunk and sent her home with a weird new tattoo and basically had to start the comic over until she had a reason to sign up and we could start the plot. I think I did an okay job of making it all look planned, but I basically threw out my entire outline for the entire comic because my protagonist wouldn't go along with it.

In Saffron and Sage, which is in many ways a reaction to Legend of the Hare, Saffron's motivation is clear from literally the first panel of the first page. I have thus never, in nearly 200 pages, sat around trying to figure out what Saffron would do. But this created its own problems, which is that Saffron's entire motivation wasn't really "established" so much as "thrown out offhandedly" for the sake of having a cool in media res opening chapter. It wasn't clear why Saffron was so invested in rescuing Faunus, and I got enough feedback that I eventually did a flashback chapter that I'm not super happy with but c'est la vie.

So those are the two lessons I've learned. Your character should want to do the thing you want them to be doing, and there should be some definition for why they want that. Sometimes the "why" is pretty obvious

And sometimes it needs a bit more meat.

(Another aspect that's important, though, is that motivations often drift over the course of a character's arc. Indeed, the most famous kind of character arc out there is the Pixar "want vs need" style, where a character's initial motivation is "bad" and they get a "better" one after they grow as a person, but the initial motivation is the one driving most of the plot)

And it's sort of difficult for me to answer your question of "how to establish backstories for motivations" when I don't know what your characters' motivations are meant to be, but lets use the example of a high school romantic love quadrangle, since those are often kind of silly. Here's a basic setup

Sweet Dear Innocent Melody, the protagonist, is in love with Chad Footbalman, the quarterback. But Chad is in a somewhat dramatic and troubled relationship with That Skank Felicity, who is way hotter than Melody and also the villain. Meanwhile, local nerd The Virgin Simp keeps flirting with Melody, who rejects him. Melody will do the generic teen movie makeover thing to get Chad's attention but eventually he'll realize he loves her for who she is. Our planned endgame is that Melody and Chad get together, and Simp improbably hooks up with Felicity, so everyone ends up happy. Very generic teen movie plot. (It's also a very straight one, but shh)

Just from this setup of point A to point B, some potential motivations start to come out of the void. Felicity is hotter than Melody, and we know that Simp's happy ending is getting with Felicity. So Simp's motivation can be "wants to touch boobs". He's kind of a creep and a big part of why he's harassing Melody is that he thinks she's "achievable". We want him to be unlikable (so that Melody doesn't look bad for rejecting his advances), but not so much that the audience wants him dead or anything. We don't wanna go full Mineta here. He can also be the one who gives Melody the fashion tips to get a proper makeover, since he's been studying hot girls enthusiastically.

....Actually, having the dude who's super about wanting to have sex with women also inexplicably being an expert in women's fashion is a very stereotypical "closeted gay dude pair" of traits, which is a possible different ending. Hm. Lets table that thought for a minute.

So Melody wants Chad. That's easy enough, you don't even necessarily need to explain it in more detail than that. Why does Melody want Chad? Is it because he's a handsome jock and she has more in common with Simp that she wants to admit? Well, the story is "She tries to get a makeover and Chad loves her as she is", so Melody's character arc is learning to believe in herself. It's not a story about learning to see the inner beauty of other people. She knows that Chad's actually a cool dude and not just a handsome jock, she sees the real Chad etc. She saw Chad, like, pet a bird or something and now she's head-over-heels for him. We don't need an elaborate backstory here.

Chad wants Melody but he doesn't know it yet, so he starts off wishing his girlfriend was [character trait here], which just so happens to describe Melody. He really wants to start a ska band and wishes he knew a trumpet player who shared his love of ska, which just so happens to describe Melody, sure. The ska obsession doesn't have to be revealed early on, it can be a twist that's revealed around the point he and Melody start connecting.

Chad's basically just Sami Zayn

So, when I started writing this, my idea was that That Skank Felicity wanted someone to wait on her hand and foot, which is an "evil" motivation that'd make Simp the perfect boyfriend for her in a Meghan Trainor's "Dear Future Husband" kind of way, but then I decided that Simp's aggressively horny because he doesn't want to admit something about himself, so the planned ending doesn't fit the motivation I came up with. I could change Simp's motivation to have him be straight, or change the planned ending, but let's see if we can't come up with a way to square the two ideas...hm...

Okay, got it. Felicity is super into the tradwife aesthetic. She wants to look and live a certain way, and she doesn't care about Chad as a person at all, she just wants to have a quarterback boyfriend because it's part of The Aesthetic and she cares about The Aesthetic to an extreme degree. She's the villain in a cheesy rom-com, she's allowed to be kind of ludicrous like that. Plus it fits into our theme of "looks aren't important it's what's inside that counts" to have a villain who's obsessed with looking a certain way. And then she can be catty about the makeover outfit Simp made for Melody, and Simp and Felicity can have like an entire enemies-to-lovers arc in five minutes. Boom. Okay. And then Simp realizes she's trans and Felicity's all "The only thing better than ONE hot 1950s housewife..." and they start dating.

Now we have our motivations:

Melody wants Chad (and needs to learn the self-confidence to get him) Chad wants a ska enthusiast Felicity wants to live the aesthetic of a stereotypical hot girl So does Simp, who is a trans girl spending most of the story as an in-denial egg, which is a bit of representation I wasn't actually planning to put into this story (Maybe, um, we change the name) but it fits all the needs of what the character has to do.

And that very long tangent is kind of how the thought process works. What needs to happen in the story? What motivations get me there? Are there any unexpected details of the motivations and do I like them enough to put them in the story? Those kinds of questions can be really helpful, especially early on when all you've got is a doodle of your OC and a dream.

Off to visit their girlfriends

[generalluxun]

Miraculous: The Movie Reaction/Review

A little more ordering of my thoughts now, and I can go through in a little more detail why I loved this movie so much. This will be a solid look at things, and so... yeah, SPOILERS! And just for the record this will be looking both at the movie itself as a movie AND in comparison to the series. I know that there are different pressures on both, but I do feel there are narrative through lines tackled better or worse.

Putting a cut here for the Spoiler free folks.

This will be somewhat chronological, with some asides.

Okay, so the opening, a great setup. It's a Lore dump, but it's clean and neat and we are already introduced to the vibrant colors we will see throughout the movie, and Mr. Overdramatic Fu who I find priceless.

Marinette:

Oh Marinette, I love this Marinette. She feels downtrodden to start. The type of person for whom one too many hiccups have become a self-fullfiling way of life. The movie spends a lot more time with her on this. Which is to the benefit because her choice and ascension are much bigger payoffs. She's still a dreamer, and energetic, She's our Marinette, but vitalized.

Okay I'll put this here: The Songs. They're fine. They're not great, but they're find. they have a stage-style vibe to them which fits in with the change to Emilie's career. They are also pushing the narrative through most of the time, so even if the song isn't to your liking, you've got a lot going on.

School&Chloé: Marinette seems a lot more jumpy/unpopular in general, it's not JUST Chloé which is a good shift. Don't get me wrong, the blonde is still clearly a nightmare, but it's not she alone among the student body that thinks something's off about Mari at the beginning.

Alya&Nino: What is there to say? She's Alya, she's great. Nino and Adrien friendship! yay! And Alya&Nino are a cute secondary couple-in-the-making. The movie loved it's secondary characters.

Adrien: Sad Adrien, but gentle. Marinette's first interaction with him was great. She's Marinetting, but she actually gets up the will to talk to him. I liked this balance. Yes some of it comes from a shorter runtime, but it comes across as just... healthier?

Gabemoth: Gabriel outside! GASP! He's a human being! Clearly still flawed, but this Gabe is one I buy the ending for, and I quite enjoy it. Both Gabe and Adrien being over the top theaterical fits having Emilie in their lives. and.. OMG we got to see and hear Emilie as a person! I loved this. I'll add in Nathalie here. She didn't have a lot but we get her care for Adrien and the family right away.

Rescue Fu Alleyway and Tikki: Saving Fu felt much more earned in this one, give a bonus to whoever storyboarded this. Marinette pulling him from in front of a bus then bodily putting herself between him and the danger of another oncoming car? This girl! Go Marinette, you've earned these earirngs(want them or not) also: Her reaction to this crazed little man screaming about death and end of the world was awesome, I LOVE them lamp shading this trope.

Little aside about Sabrina She's adorable in the whole movie, but we get a hint of her own independence when she covers for Marinette in the Alleyway, and I loved that. Tiny Character building moments are a sign of great writing.

Tikki: They amped up Tikki's energy and I can see why. Marinette's more reluctant heroine role needed someone with a bit more push to keep her going. This is honestly the most I've ever enjoyed Tikki (not that TV Tikki was awful)

Cathedral: So, We meet Cat Noir here, and he's a cocky goofball, and it works. They balance it well. He gets instant karma a few times, he tries hard, and he does quickly acknowledge Ladybug later on when *she* acknowledges herself. This is an important lesson, people do treat you better when you believe in yourself, it shows. Much like I said with Gabe, Adrien being an overdramatic theater kid fits perfectly in this story.

The back and forth between these two is great. And here's something else: It's instructive for Marinette. If Cat Noir was just a fawning lovesick boy from square one, she wouldn't learn to stand up for herself, which she later uses vs Chloé. People fuss at chat for the watermelon, but Ladybug's throwing her own zingers in there too.

I do like that we bring Fu back here, and then again at the end. He's a little more sane, a little more mentor, so his use as comic relief isn't one note. That's another sign of good writing.

Marinette's refusal: I liked this a lot. It felt right for Marinette. This was dangerous, scary, and she was barely managing for a lot of the fight at the cathedral. I love how the scene evolved from loud and frustrated, to comedy, then finally settled on sincerity. Marinette curling up in her chair was more earned emotion and heartbreak than S5 wrung from me in 13 eps.

Plagg and Adrien: Okay so yeah, Fart jokes. The show had it's share of 'stinky cheese' jokes so we shouldn't point too many fingers. I love dad-Plagg in the TV show, so I was slightly bummed it wasn't as prevelent here, but with Tiki needing a more energetic role, Adrien not being a shut in, and Gabriel not being a complete and total heel, Plagg's role is going to be different. It's worth noting that after Chat's failed confession Plagg does Dad-Plagg him, so all is not lost for that dynamic.

Fairground: Just a showcase of fun. Marinette&Adrien, Alya&Nino, the Akumas, Marinette making the *decision* to be a hero and triggering her first voluntary transformation. The two of them working together. This was a great celebratory event, and it kicks off:

Montage!

You knew they'd need this in a movie covering this much ground. We got to see a few fun akuma designs, a few Adrienette dates, and how the changes wrought on the fairground played out. We had enough time with sad, isolated, Marinette that this does feel like a triumph.

Third Act low point: This is where everyone fails. Chat's confession to Ladybug burns out. Marinette's confession to Adrien burns out. Even Gabriel has burned out. All three of our main players are at their low (which is a brilliant way to hint they're framing Gabe as not just a villain, he's treated to the narrative beats of a hero) All three felt solid and hit hard. It's the Lovesquare cliff notes, but it hits all the right elements. You still come away thinking 'If only they knew!' because the movie has really built up both Adrienette and Ladynoir in equal parts.

Final fight: Damn son, what is there to say? Akumatized Hawkmoth is not playing. Plagg telling Adrien to get his stuff together. This battle is just plain brutal. Mari unmasked! Chat punching his dad. Marinette being a hero without the suit, saving Chat in the same selfless way she saved Fu back at the beginning of the movie. Chat unmasked. and Gabriel's breakdown. *Adrien hugging his dad!* CLOSURE. Ladybug getting her Miraculous Ladybugs and it being a BIG DEAL, like it should be!

The Dance: Cute character moments. Chloe is big enough to give Marinette a 'truce' it seems, but mean enough to let her know it's not over yet. Sabrina's shrug is great :) Oh wait MARINETTE'S DRESS. It's Ladybug, it's beautiful. This girl is a designer. A reveal in snow. The two of them together, yes!

Post-script: Mayura next Villain? I'm hype.

End Notes: I feel this movie hit all the notes it needed to. We got the characters, they were compressed clearly because it's a movie, but still felt themselves, but fresh. Everything about this word feels a little more 'real' which is funny considering how ethereal all the lighting was.

I'm notoriously prone to critique and dissecting media, even media I enjoy. Yet my nitpick sensors were surprisingly mute while watching this. They told a huge amount of story, accessible both to long time fans and newcomers.

I probably have more thoughts, but that's already a lot for a Tumblr post. Feel free to engage my Asks or replies if you have questions or would like opinions on anything specific.

[jakethesequel]

I need to prune the followers a bit. What are my most important controversial takes.

I am an anarchist. Yes this includes your favorite heirarchy. The United States is an evil of unprecendented power. Abolish class. Civilization was a bad move, the mesopotamians really fucked us on that one.

I follow the transfem style of agender kung fu. I think gender and sexuality is socially constructed bullshit without inherent meaning. I have opinions on transmisogyny and think it's an important axis of societal oppression unique to transfemininity. Also DIY HRT is fucking based.

I have type 1 diabetes. I wear a P100 grade 3m particulate respirator whenever I'm in enclosed public spaces because covid is still among the most deadly transmissible diseases in world history killing millions, vaccines and previous immunity have only temporary benefits when a virus is allowed to mutate unchecked, and masks fucking work. If you don't wear one I don't trust you and think you're being an asshole. Wear a fucking mask.

I'm not vegan and won't be. Even outside of the dietary challenges diabetes poses, I've only gotten less inclined to it as I've aged and gotten more conscious of where my meat comes from. My family are fishers, my extended family are cattle farmers, you don't need to tell me about what meat cultivation actually looks like, I'm familiar. I've also been trying to get my hunting license. Nonetheless, you have a right to choose what you put in your body, and access to vegan alternatives should be available to all who need with with the same convenience and price as animal products.

On that note: guns are based, and anti-gun legislation is cringe. I'm not American. Any law is evil when it's enforced by the pigs, but even if it weren't, the only reasonable restriction to gun ownership should be showing an ability to use it safely, as you do a car. Which is similar to the setup we had in Canada, sans a couple of nonsensical gun bans and magazine limits.

Speaking of legalization, drugs are morally neutral. You should be allowed to put whatever you want in your body. In fact you should be given unrestricted access to knowledge to make a completely informed decision, equipment to do so safely, and strong support systems if you need to kick the habit.

And finally: Bad movies are the greatest things ever made. An inspired failure is always more interesting than an uninspired success. Make art freely, take critique easily. Believe it to be the greatest thing in the world while you create it and when someone says it's trash say yeah I see why you'd think that it's not perfect. The time for ego is in the creation and the time for critique is in the consumption do NOT reverse the two.

[onebedtorulethemall]

Okay, as you know I just finished Bad Omens, and it was probably the funniest fic I've ever read. THANK YOU for writing this masterpiece.

I adore your sense of humour. Can I ask what inspires, feeds, or fuels it? Because if there is a movie, book, or show you can recommend with more of these vibes, I'm RUNNING to it. I need more of this humour in my life. pronto.

Wishing you well <3

Oh no. You've asked about my favorite topic, I fear. (For anyone else who wants a rambling response from me, feel free to drop the words "Bad Omens" in my ask box.)

Unfunnily, I came by my sense of humor the old-fashioned way—by being fairly ignored as a child. I had a whole comedic routine I'd launch into any time I thought an adult might be about to pay attention. This behavior generally results in either wildly famous adults or extremely annoying ones. I am lucky I have writing to channel it into because I lack basically all the skills to become any sort of performer.

Ok. Obviously, the humor in this fic was mainly inspired by Good Omens. I dissected the book before and during writing to try to get as close as possible to the feel of the original (limited, of course, by the fact that I'm not Neil or Terry). I looked at sentence structure, joke setup and payoff, how and when those narrative asides were used... I remember being amazed by how much of the humor relied on clever adverb usage. Mainly, though, it's the dramatic irony doing the heavy lifting. You swap a muggle for a witch (or the Antichrist for Baby B) and tell the reader you did it, and they're already doing half the work for you. They're ready to laugh. They're bought in. They're spinning up hilarious scenarios in their mind before I've even told the joke (I know this because my comments are full of them).

That's a very long way of saying: I love anything that says "we've set up this absurd scenario, now let's watch it unfold." (Although I don't like when it gets too stressful. That's why the Bad Omens narrator was there to hold your hand through it.)

What We Do in the Shadows is the absolute best for this. Plus classics like In Bruges and Hot Fuzz, both of which I've been casually trying to find a way to adapt into a Dramione for a year now. It's not really the same humor, but I have cried laughing at Veep.

Darker comedies: Fargo and my favorite, Barry. There's an episode in season 2 (ronny/lily) that veers straight off the cliff into surrealism. It's FANTASTIC, and I was absolutely thinking about it when writing the Bad Omens war date. I looooove that feeling of "what the actual fuck am I reading/watching right now?"

And on that note: The Locked Tomb series. Just, please go read it. Join the cult. It's kept me in a book hangover for about two years and I think the only way out is to pass it on to someone else, The Ring-style.

I'll cut myself off here. Thank you for the ask, and for reading and loving my silly little fic. I am first and foremost its #1 fan, and it's just fun to get to talk about it.

(stealth edit because omgggg I can't believe I forgot O Brother, Where Art Thou? Comedic PERFECTION. Couldn't be a Dramione. Snakes buddy comedy, maybe?)

[ridley-was-a-cat]

Summer 2024 Anime Roundup

Anime of the Season - Yatagarasu: The Raven Does Not Choose Its Master

I added this to my list of spring shows to check out purely for the key visual they released before the season started. It showed four women in beautifully styled kimonos standing on a large stone staircase, and the vibes just screamed "period drama for grownups", which happens to be one of my favorite foods.

While my read on the serious tone was on target, rather than a straight period drama, it's actually a fantasy series set in the royal court of a society of yatagarasu - a mythical three-legged raven from folklore that can take human form - that's in the midst of a succession struggle, with the four noble houses all sending a prospective bride to the capital for the crown prince to choose from. Joining the would-be consorts is a large cast of characters with a wide variety of interests and loyalties, from factions favoring the crown prince's older brother, to a scheming empress, and a clever teenage boy who'd just like to do his job and get back to his family outside the capital. The first two thirds of the series craft one of the best executed mystery plots that I've seen in an anime, with an incredibly satisfying conclusion at the end of a meticulous setup that made just about every detail count. While the resolution to the mystery in the last seven episodes lacked a bit of the punch the first one had, the setting details it revealed along the way made me wish for a sequel or an English translation of the source novels to get even more of this story.

This would have made its way into the top of the season on the strength of the story alone, but the production quality takes it to the top of the year. The art is nothing short of incredible, with gorgeous painted backgrounds, distinctive character designs, and beautiful Heian era-styled kimonos in vibrant colors. On top of the sparkling visuals, the soundtrack is rich and moody, the opening and ending are unskippable, and the voice cast is full of talented actors. It was the sort of series that comes around once a decade at most, and my pick for the best of the season couldn't have been easier. 9/10

First Runner-Up – Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines!

Before the season began, I saw the premise of nothingburger boy collecting a trio of girls rejected by their crushes, I looked at those goofy bows on the girls' uniforms, and I took a pretty hard pass on this. Everyone's praise got to me by the end of the season, though, and I ended up checking it out and getting completely charmed by it. The kids are all pretty lovable, and the production is top notch, with fantastic character animation and excellent voice acting performances. 8/10

Second Runner-Up – The Elusive Samurai

Centered on the lone survivor of the coup that took down the Hojo clan and set up the Ashikaga shogunate to rule in their place, this shounen action series tells the lightly embellished story of his journey to take back what was taken from him. The balance of slapstick comedy and grisly violence walks the line between purposeful and disorienting, but the art and animation are spectacular, and there isn't a single boring character in the large cast. 8/10

Senpai is an Otokonoko - You don't often get stories like this in anime, where a girl confesses to her senpai she thinks is a girl, then still wants to go out after finding out they're actually a cross-dressing boy, forming a love triangle with another boy who also has a crush on him, and have it treated seriously like a proper coming of age romance instead of a big joke. The jarring chibi animated scenes, and the way it handles a couple of the issues it introduces, keeps this from being as good of a series as it could've been. The upcoming movie sequel may resolve some of these problems, though. 8/10

My Hero Academia S7 - The struggle between the heroes and the league of villains runs towards its climax in this penultimate season, and like much of the series leading up to this point, it's a bit of a mixed bag. At the highest points you get turbo-tsundere Bakugo putting his life on the line for Deku, and the emotional climax for the Todoroki family's struggles, while the lows include a poorly executed storyline centered on a persecuted minority turning violent, and a frustrating decision to make the one fight between two girls be about feelings and crushing on the same boy. I'm still looking forward to the final season next year. 7/10

Pseudo Harem - A girl joins the theater club at school, where she goofs around with a senpai by acting out the different archetypal characters of harem romance, and it's somehow one of the sweetest, most genuine romance series I've seen. It takes a couple episodes to settle into its groove, and the transitions between sketches could be a little jarring, but the couple's chemistry is fantastic, and their relationship steadily progresses up through a perfectly charming and satisfying ending. 7/10

Mayonaka Punch - P.A. Works original anime series like to take a group of clumsy but earnest girls with a dream, and put them in a situation. In this original series, the girls are vampires, the dream is to earn a million subscribers on (not)YouTube, and the situation is avoiding homelessness. The characters come in different shades of girl failure, the stunts are amusingly familiar to anyone who watches YouTube, and the comedy comes with a generous helping of heartwarming friendship moments. A fun ride that stops just short of great. 7/10

The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies - It was a little hard sometimes to watch this knowing that the mangaka passed away while she was writing this. The characters were so charming, the chemistry between the leads was so electric, the art was so beautiful, and the story hook was so catchy, that it hurts to know we'll never get any more of it because a talented woman left us far too soon. I'm thankful that we got such a beautifully produced series for her final work. 7/10

The Fable - As consistently entertaining as this dark comedy about a legendary hitman trying to live a normal life was, and as fantastic as the voice actor performances were, any recommendation for this show needs a big asterisk for the visuals, which combined poor animation with characters that frequently went off-model. The large cast of rogues, and the deathly absurd situations they got into, had me interested enough to watch week after week despite the production flaws. 7/10

Shoshimin: How to Become Ordinary - I wasn't sure what to think about this high school set mystery series at first. The cases were extremely mundane, the production was oddly ambitious, and the characters were a little hard to relate to. Over the series run, however, the characters showed their true nature, and the Holmes and Moriarty vibe came through loud and clear. I look forward to the second cour next year. 7/10

Dungeon People - A lone adventurer gets a big surprise when her fight with a monster breaks through the dungeon wall, revealing a woman's bedroom on the other side, and leading to a new job as that woman's assistant, managing the day to day minutiae of the dungeon. Setting a cozy slice of life series in a monster packed dungeon shouldn't work, but the two main characters had a fun dynamic, and the monsters and humans in and around the dungeon had enough variety and personality to pull it off somehow. 7/10

Twilight Out of Focus - Set in a boys high school with a dorm, this anthology BL series follows three separate couples in the school's film-making club, and like most anthology series, the vibe and enjoyment varies a bit from story to story. The roommate friends-to-lovers first couple was merely ok, the enemies-to-lovers second couple was a step up, and the opposites-attract third couple was straight up great fun. Taken altogether, it's a solid entry in the genre, and a rare romance series that includes sex scenes. 7/10

Days with My Stepsister - Based on the series' title, I assumed this would be a trashy romcom full of light novel cliches, but it turned out to be a nicely directed, low-key drama about two teenagers who happen to become step-siblings. It does a remarkable job of capturing the awkwardness of suddenly living with strangers and calling them family, and the changing relationship between the two was just messy enough to be interesting without being melodramatic. It was a little slow at times, and there's one weird scene between them early on, but it was generally a solid romantic drama on the grounded side. 7/10

The Ossan Newbie Adventurer, Trained to Death by the Most Powerful Party, Became Invincible - For a one-note comedy that's basically two tournament arcs stapled together, this was a surprisingly fun action-comedy series in the style of the manly action shows of the 80s and 90s, where men talked it out with their fists. There were a few characters whose main job seemed to be having breasts, but the main character was such a great guy, and everything happening around him was so over the top and silly, that I can't really complain. 7/10

VTuber Legend: How I Went Viral after Forgetting to Turn Off My Stream - Knowing approximately nothing about VTubers myself, I can't speak to how well this series does or doesn't capture the streaming scene, but being an outsider did not stop me from laughing at the cast of eccentric streamers and their nonsense. From the main character forgetting to end her stream before cracking a cold one and drunkenly visiting her fellow streamers, to a dramatic game of Among Us, to copious amounts of sexual harassment (affectionate), it had something to make me chuckle every week. 7/10

Quality Assurance in Another World - Without spoiling the premise, which is genuinely surprising when it's revealed early on, this series takes a couple of popular isekai and isekai-adjacent sub-genres, and makes a fresh and clever story out of them. The production won't win any awards, and the story cuts off abruptly at the end with no announcement for a second season, but the setting nailed the feel of buggy video games, and the characters were a lot of fun to watch as they navigated a freaky situation. 7/10

Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin - Adapted from a video game, this follows a lazy young goddess who has her peaceful days of lying around in the lofty realm interrupted by a group of humans who wander in and cause an incident that gets them all sent off to a demon-infested island as punishment. I enjoyed watching the characters learn how to cultivate rice over the course of the early episodes, and there were some nice twists and character developments in the second half, but the human characters could be pretty annoying, and the monster fighting action lacked excitement. 7/10

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S3 - After spending the first half of the season bogged down in meetings, the second half gathered most of the enormous cast together for a low-stakes festival arc. A few episodes of action between the two halves offered some excitement, but the season as a whole felt pretty subdued. It feels a bit like the anime doesn't know what kind of show it wants to be, and is now bouncing between dialogue-heavy drama, action-adventure, or slice of life, and it's not equally good at all three genres. 7/10

A Journey Through Another World: Raising Kids While Adventuring - We're drowning in paint-by-numbers isekai every season, and I'm part of the problem, since I usually pick one of them as a potato chip watch. This season's selection features a man accidentally isekaied by a clumsy god, who finds a pair of young overpowered kids and takes them with him on his adventure. Vapid, but cozy. 6/10

Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian - I very much was not the target audience for this romantic comedy about a Russian-Japanese girl and a boy who doesn't tell her he understands what she's saying when she talks about him in Russian, but it was kinda fun by the halfway point with the full cast of girls, so I stuck around. A decision I regretted once the school election plot fired up and the story got tedious, with too much telling and not enough showing. 6/10

Wistoria: Wand and Sword - Since I enjoy the writer's other series, I figured I'd enjoy this as well, but week after week, it kept tricking me into thinking it'd turned a corner and become good, then suck just as hard as ever. It has an insufferable protagonist with the idiotic character motivation of chasing after a girl over a promise made as children, a dreadful case of Proper Noun worldbuilding vomit, and a painfully derivative setting, but it was nicely animated I guess. 5/10

[pain-suffering-even]

types of weapons the hunters would use pt. 2

this time, the draw sword guild, definitely not my favorites :)

goto ryuji:

his sword is really cool, actually. a very nice ruby red. i think he would have a long sword and short sword (kind of like the daisho, a matched pair of japanese swords). otherwise, he would just use his hands. or his teeth. i think he just doesn't really care too much about how it's done, as long as it gets done

sugimoto reiji:

it's not stated in the manhwa what class he is, so i head canon him as an assassin because i think there's only one or two that are canon. so, i think he would have a dagger for short-range kills, and kunai and shuriken for long-range kills (slightly inspired by genji from overwatch's kunai and shuriken setup - the green even matches his usual suit...)

tanaka kenzo:

his fists suit him as a tank-esque fighter. if not that, then brass knuckles (slightly inspired by seo seongun from lookism... beloved...) also i just think he likes to get hands on with things, if him during the jeju arc gives us any clue what his fighting style is like

tawata kanae:

i think a two-sided spear or scimitar would be cool. she also has double blades as it is, so i think she just likes working with two instead of one. higher level of efficiency and all

as i was adding photos... i realized... what this was inspired by... lmao

yeah. that fits her for sure

fujishima tatsumi:

i think he would use things more for looks rather than efficiency, so anything cool or unique... a scythe seems up his alley. something like ruby's scythe (especially because it also works as a gun - and i think the engineering mind i've head canoned for him would love to fiddle with that and make it abysmally powerful)

ishida mari:

i headcanon him as a ranger because i think there's literally only taegyu otherwise. so he would use a compact bow as his main weapon (inspired by the chiron form of the coronacht bow), but he also uses a rapier. he strikes me as a rich kid that studied abroad in london and learned fencing (i know it's really specific but those are just the vibes i get)

shimizu akari:

she has her giant golden battle axe. i also think she would know boxing, so she has short-ranged hand-to-hand combat down

kumamoto atsushi:

he doesn't really need a weapon, since he has a strange fighting style, and i headcanon he transforms like yoonho. but... something blunt, like a mace or a club. maybe nunchucks? or something similar to the playful cloud weapon from jujutsu kaizen?

hamada kei:

they're an ice type mage, so they have a varied attack pattern, but i think they would like a bowstaff or a baton (inspired by nami's clima tact from one piece. it even has the bonus of controlling the weather through temperature - which kei can... sorta do, lmao). something to easily knock-out any monsters that get near them so they can run before they throw up. really, it's more of a back up weapon, since they would take anything out before it got too close to them (inspired by this video!)

izawa ippei:

the actual canon assassin. well, i headcanon he likes collecting all sorts of weapons and learning how to use them, but his go-to would be something slightly ranged, like a spear (inspired by maki's from jujutsu kaizen) or a scythe (i think something simple like the one from soul eater would suit him best)

hoshino minoru:

i also headcanon him as an assassin (i mean, look at that raid outfit - you can't tell me that's not built perfectly for stealth and a better range of motion!), but more short-ranged and borderline fighter style. i think he has a sickle for quick chain kills, and an old dagger for sneak kills. (sickle is directly inspired by percy jackson and chronos' sickle, but i don't think we ever got to see it in a movie, but something along these lines would fit well. dagger is more of the hunting/gutting knife from the hannibal nbc series)

well... that about wraps it up! i tried to get more visuals from media this time instead of just googling the weapon type from the internet. there are some pretty cool weapon designs already out there, unique ones that always catch my eye. i just like weapons a lot lmao

[etaindelaserna]

Thanks for answering my ask before. If you don't mind me asking (again), can I ask, what are your top 10 (or top 7) favorite media (can be books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series)? Why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before......

Welcome back!😊 Don’t worry: I‘ll answer anyway 🙌

(Side note: top 7 OR✨ 10?😂 Oddly specific^^)

1. Star Wars

Aside from the obvious things like lightsabers and force powers, I think what pulled me into the SW universe is the simplicity of it, espeically in the OT: good vs. evil, a hero‘s call to adventure and his responsibility to save the galaxy from the evil clutches of the Empire, the power of friendship, the whole concept of the force, the strength to not succumb to the dark side, to stay true to yourself even if it costs you your life, the idea that the good things in our life are things we have to work hard for while the bad things are easy and faster to obtain and oh so manipulative and tempting. It seems to address a truth we can all relate to or are at least aware of. Luke Skywalker is someone I can look up to. And sometimes I can't ask for more.

2. Harry Potter

Always. To this day the Harry Potter books and movies feel like you're coming home after a long time abroad. The world building has always made me feel like it could be true: there could be a wizard society existing right next to our own. Just the sheer richness of characters, places, magical items and wizard life were enough to draw me in as a kid. It’s childhood preserved in book form. It’s fun in the first school years and tragical in the last ones. It’s a world that feels lived in. It’s a tale about the power of friendship and about facing things you actually don’t want to face. It taught me to be brave and kind and that striving for power is a path towards loneliness and a hollow, ego centric existence.

3. Naruto

I fell in love with the premise pretty early on when I started watching Naruto: the question of what makes a shinobi a shinobi, how can you be a good shinobi and a good person, are you only allowed to be loyal to your village? What about your friends and family? Why do we have to kill each other? Why is it human nature to be cruel and violent? Naruto asked so many existential and moral questions which I find interesting to explore. Then we have the idea of chakra and how its used, different jutsus and fighting styles, shinobi villages, the struggle between being a human being, the hardships of the shinobi life and how to overcome them and what happens to those who dispair and choose a life of darkness. The messages about friendship, family, loyalty, unconditional love and to work hard for your goal no matter what everybody else says, hit me hard. I will always come back to read or watch Naruto.

4. One Piece

Apart from the world building, which is one of the best in modern literature, I think what made me fall in love with this manga/anime are its characters, the humour and Oda's storytelling ability, which has been consistently brilliant for all those years. The world of One Piece with all its crazy characters and rules shouldn't work but it does, because it's not all fun and games and silliness but it means something. It means something to the characters. There are themes in it I will never get tired of: following your dreams, working hard, loyalty, friendship, we don't abandon our friends or dreams, we stick together no matter what. Oda knows how to balance comedy, tragedy and adventure perfectly. He knows also how to do setups and how to cash in the payoffs at just right moment. You as a reader are allowed to follow the bread crumbs and think and I appreciate it that he doesn't spell the things out for us.

5. The Lord of the Rings

I read the books and I've seen the movies more than I can count. It's my ultimate love. It's something I can pop in at anytime, under any circumstances and be completely emersed in it within seconds. It feels like home. It is home. The world building is rich and complex. The characters are loveable and more nuanced than they might let on. The story has timeless themes that transcend cultures, age, gender: chaos and darkness are tempting and destructive, but you not only have the responsibility to stand against it but also you have the ability to do so. It's a story about sacrifices, will power, love, friendship and hope. It seems to touch something within us. It leaves you with the comfort of this one single thought that there are higher powers or a grand plan involved.

6. True Blood/ The Southern Vampire Mysteries

This book series hit me once my girlish enthusiasm for the Vampire Diaries and its repetiveness slowly started to fade away but my hunger for vampire stories was still as big as ever. I thought I gave it a shot and boy, did it hit me. I think I read the first 4 books within a week. I absolutely liked that Sookie wasn't a teenager anymore but in her mid twenties when the first book picks up her story. The way she sees the world was exactly my kind of humour but mature and that was a welcome suprise after all the teenage drama in TVD. Her problems were how to pay for the gas for her car or for a new driveway. And of course that she can read minds. Charlaine Harris also made her vampires different enough but also used common tropes. It was a blend of the old and the new. She imagined how vampires and humans would live together in the modern world and she slayed on that part. I loved Sookie and I loved Eric. They were the main reasons why I kept reading.

7. A Song of Ice and Fire / Game of Thrones

The richness of the world building and the characters is what made me fall for the TV series and later the books. I think I started to watch it once the third seasons was rolling around. Like most, I did like the approach of "let's make it high fantasy but with an overdose of reality and history to it". That was brilliant. George knows how to write interesting characters, who aren't entirely bad or good but just brutally human. He also understands setup and consequences but above all he understands people. You know somebody is writing bloody good characters and plotlines if your are not mad at the author but at the characters for the choices they are making. You always understood why characters did the things they did, even though it didn't make it any less heartbraking at times. I don't think that George is ever going to be able to bring the series to a satisfying conclusion. The fantasy genre follows specific rules and George broke them to create something new. But he will come to realize that he now can't use these rules to finish the series. It's not going to work.

8. The Mummy (1999)

The cinema and movie nerds among my friends are always making fun of me for liking this movie as much as I do but I can't help it. It's the only successful Indiana Jones movie without Indiana Jones in it. Just the perfect mixture between adventure, horror, romance and comedy. How many times I'm quoting lines of this movie on a daily basis is insane. It's another unconditional love of mine. I'm going to keep watching it till the end of my days. We know that O'Connell and the gang are going to defeat the mummy but how they are doing it is so much fun. Brendan Fraser is a national treasure and just perfect for playing a brave, good looking, slightly ruggish adventurer, with the right amount of humour sprinkled in, who falls hard for the bookish girl. Like, come on. That's enough to sell me on any movie. Him and Rachel Weisz are just hitting it of. This film just feels like a warm cup of cocoa with a lot of cream. It makes me laugh, it makes me gush over Rick, it makes me want to learn acient Egyptian and run off into an adventure.

9. Once Upon a Time

Ten years ago I was so addicted to this show. I liked this idea that because of a spell from the Evil Queen all the fairytale characters have been forced to live a normal life in modern day America and they don't even remember who they are, apart from the Evil Queen. It's a classical the "Chosen One"/Heroes story with a little twist, that the relationship between most of the fairytale characters shifts during the story or was even told differently from how the audience remembers it from their fairytale books. It's basically a criminal investigation about who did this to these characters and how the protagonist can reverse the spell. Besides it's a story about fate, about love, friendship, about how villains and heroes are made and that things aren't just black and white. The characters are complex and because of this setup you can throw them in various scenarios, which made for some surprising teamups (Rumpelstilzchen/Belle). I was never bored with this show. Although it had complex themes at times the show handled them familyfriendly and that just fitted the overall fairytale vibe and wholesomeness of the show perfectly.

10. Band of Brothers

This HBO mini series about the story of E Company of the 101st Airborne during WWII stole my heart. I like war movies and if I had to explain why then I'd say because it reminds me of what was and what could easily happen again. The horrors of war, the sacrifices, the tragedy, the generational trauma, the loss, the heroes, the defeated, how quickly we forget our humanity once the bullets start flying, but also the little moments of friendship and will power that keep us alive. Band of Brothers has all that. It's based on real events and real people and although some things are dramatized for the sake of film making, they managed to stay quite accurate. You get to know these men and you get to see them struggle, in pain, laughing, joking, crying, die or survive. It makes you smile and breaks your heart in the next second. It's a series that captured me from start till finish.

[thescrapbookingscientist]

Bimonthly Media Roundup

-Reservoir Dogs (Movie) - Movie Night! I probably don't need to elaborate on why this is a pretty solid movie. Good setup, the timeline works well, it's snappy in the way it introduces characters then flashbacks to the backstories, there's good interpersonal drama in the group, ect ect. It's also interesting to see a movie set in so few locations, the small budget required the full use of a single setting and a focus on dialogue. I can't say I find any of the characters or ideas compelling outside of the context of this story (Though I do find the acting of Mr White and Mr Pink to be quite enjoyable), but they work great as the bottle episode/short story style tale of an enjoyable and memorable flick. Not my favorite Tarantino Film, but worth the watch for anyone who enjoys these kinds of movies.

- How to Refuse the Route (Webcomic) - Self indulgent Trapped in an Otome game webcomic I've been keeping up with, this ones a BL in which the MC is reincarnated as a young child in what will someday become a Otome game plot and chooses to avoid the bad endings by avoiding any ending and resolutely avoiding any romance or interaction with the game characters, which obviously fails pretty early on. This ones pretty cute, I like the art and the "possessive in the way introverts are with their one outgoing friend" love interest, I think the plot moves at a pretty good pace, and the magic school setting is one I like even if it's overused. I wouldn't really recommend it to anyone outside of the slow-burn isekai shonen ai pipeline though, there's almost no memorable characters outside the duo (and no women basically at all), the magic system isn't super well defined or focused on, and the protagonist, while likable enough, can sometimes be frustratingly dense in regard to these future prophesies he's given. Still it's cute to see a childhood friends to lovers story in this setting with a vaguely knight + wizard couple, for aesthetics alone it earns points.

- Captain Ron (Movie) - Movie Night Part 2. I did not so much choose this one as I was subjected to it when my Kurt Russell loving friend found it on Tubi after watching Reservoir Dogs and went "We're watching this now". Would I have ever watched it on my own? No. Did I think it was good anyway? Also No. Technically I had fun watching it as it was nice to rip on it with my friend but content wise Captain Ron is a mediocre to bad early 90's "Family movie" about a normal family employing wacky Captain Kurt Russell to pilot their newly acquired boat around while hi-jinks ensue. It did have a few funny moments either of the ironically bad sort (Kurt Russell's awful accent) or the actually kind of funny sort (Giving a lift to gun wielding foreign revolutionaries who then casually hang out with the family on the boat) but it really dragged in the latter half and overall wasn't interesting enough for me to label it as a good good movie or a good bad movie. Mostly boring and predictable with unmemorable characters but fairly unoffensive overall - There are far better Kurt Russell movies you could watch instead of this.

- Dungeon Meshi (Anime) - Almost done with the first season, will probably read the manga as the anime seems to be leaving out some cute jokes and world building that I would be interested in seeing. It's been great so far as I expected, likable weirdos in a well thought out and interesting setting with a well paced plot. Plus monsters!

- Community (TV) - Despite being a comedy sitcom fan I'd never actually watched this. So far I do see why it got so big, the dialogue is so witty and fun, the jokes are good, and while the cast is a bit intentionally unlikable right now they do play off eachother well. Looking forward to actually liking these guys (Outside of Abed who's already very charming).

- The Witch of Mercury (Anime) - Making my way through fairly slowly so nothing new to report. The girl's are cute together, I'm starting to get into it.

-Mashle: Magic and Muscles (Anime) - Caught up with the anime. My sister and I mostly watched this as the premise sounded funny and the OP was banging. I do think they managed to get some good comedy out of "guy who doesn't have magic goes to magic school and gets by by punching things super hard", though it did start to wear with time. It was also genuinely funny how much they got away with just ripping off Harry Potter - like the school is just Hogwarts with Hogwarts houses, they play a game that's just quidditch, they go to the same wand shop, Dumbledore is there, it's literally just Harry potter that's hilarious please keep stealing from JK fuck her. The cast is likable enough but also largely just tropes rather than engaging characters, though Mash as a protagonist is fine. The animation and plot are passable but generic and the evil organization is largely uninteresting making the 2nd half drag whenever they show up. I can't say any of the ideas or story beats are original or executed very well here, it's mostly just the absurd comedy that makes it likable, and even then it's usually more chuckle worthy than laugh out loud funny. I did have fun with it overall though as a few of the moments were pretty memorable and it was overall just pleasant.

- One Piece (Anime/TV) - Still doing the rewatch of the live action while keeping up with the new episodes. I plan on reading the manga (Colorized) in full, though I haven't made a lot of progress due to some unexpected health issues. Luffy is super cute in the new episodes. The live action is still pretty solid, though on the rewatch I did start to question why ARLONG of all people needs a map to the Grand Line. Like Arlong, buddy, you're FROM the Grand Line. Did you just forget? Did your whole crew forget? Are you only staying in the East Blue as you all got lost? I guess they have more in common with Zoro then I'd assumed.

- Genshin Impact (Video Game) - So incredibly, when I rolled to get Alhaithem, I was disappointed to get a 2nd Kequing - Only to immediately get Alhaithem moments later. Two 5 stars, unbelievable. I also got a maxed out Bennet, a couple Thomas and Sethos, and surprisingly Heizo? Didn't know you could get unrelated 4 stars on the Event banners. I finished Sumeru's main quest and will be exploring the desert a bit before heading to Fountain.

Listening To: Hope by Akano, Tounges & Teeth and Metaphor by The Crane Wives, HateKiller by WON, Dream Girl Evil by Florence + The Machine, The Red Means I Love You by Madds Buckley, Promiseland by MIKA, All the Boys by Panic! At The Disco, Bonjour Au Revoir by Joyce Jonathan, Fences by Paramore, Little Numbers by Boy, Lay All Your Love On Me by ABBA, Song of the Dead by Kana-Boon.

[toku-fangirl-2015]

My 2023 bullet journal setup!

New year, new notebook! 2023 will be my 5th year (!) doing a bullet journal. I'm using a B5 size journal from Archer & Olive, which is the same size and brand I used for my 2022 journal. I like having the extra space (the most popular size is A5, which is a little smaller).

My cover page features Celeste from my favorite new-to-me thing of 2022, Animal Crossing New Horizons. She shows up on your island when there are shooting stars, and she'll tell you stories about the constellations and give you space-related DIY recipes. (More pics and details under the cut)

Next in my new journal setup is a grid spacing sheet and a page for theme ideas, broken down into different categories. I used the theme ideas page last year when I was having trouble deciding what to do, so my list is a little bit shorter until I come up with more ideas to replace the ones I used in this past year.

My final new-notebook-setup spread is what I call "scribble sheets." You could also put a brain dump page here. This is my place to try out different color schemes, test markers to see if they still work, or practice different doodles and font styles. Basically I'm giving myself permission to be messy here, because I like to keep the rest of my journal looking neat and pretty.

I combined my 2023 cover page and future log, which is really only possible because I'm using a B5-size notebook. The months are kind of hard to see in the photo, but they're written in with white gel pen on top of the black headers. I used an exacto knife to trim away the washi tape that overlaps some of the boxes, to make it look like it's behind the box. I had to be careful to make sure I wasn't cutting through the paper too, but I really like the effect.

I kept the style pretty simple throughout this setup because I'm trying out a bunch of new spreads (I normally just do a future log at the beginning of the year and maybe one or two others). I wrote everything in a bubble font or a typewriter-style font, and added little star doodles and washi tape. I also kept the white lettering on black headers, which is much easier to read in person.

My new spreads are all inspired by JashiiCorrin on YouTube. I'm excited to do the "Now and Again," which is basically one of those ask memes that make the rounds here. You fill it out at the beginning of the year, and then again at the end. For the year in pixels, I'm keeping track of how much sleep I get and also what hobbies I'm doing. I was in kind of a rut in 2022 so I want to get back to doing more creative things. I have different symbols to draw rather than coloring in the boxes with different colors, because I don't like having to keep track of all the different color pens to fill the trackers in. It looks pretty, but for me it's not worth the hassle.

I've been doing a monthly cleaning log, but I like the idea of only having to write it out once for the whole year. Should save me some time with my monthly setups. My 23 things to do are also broken down into categories: chores, things at the top of my watchlist, craft projects that I have the materials for but haven't done yet, and a few miscellaneous things that I want to get done.

Snapshots of the year is another one that I'm excited to try. In the first box, I penciled in a few ideas of things to write for each month. I've been doing daily highlights pretty much since I started my journal, so I think it will be fun to add some monthly highlights too. Media consumed is divided into books, movies, and TV shows.

My final setup spread is one that I actually did a couple years ago at the end of the year, inspired by Plant Based Bride on YouTube. While I liked having a mini version of all my cover pages, doing it at the end of the year left me trying to remember exactly which supplies I used for each month. My plan for this year is to do the mini version along with my monthly setup, and then by the end of the year they'll all be filled in so I can look back at everything without having to recreate 12 themes all at once.

Bonus pic of my favorite new idea, also from JashiiCorrin: a grid spacing ruler! It's like the grid spacing page at the beginning, but since it's a separate paper, you can use it to actually measure thirds or halves or whatever without having to count the individual boxes. I have the horizontal measurements written on the other side. It's already come in super handy.

[jenzel]

As someone who really likes the new Hunger Games movie, I'm actually really curious to hear why you didn't like it, if you're okay with answering that

HI HELLO

No actually thanks for asking because tbh I didn't give it a fair shake in that post, usually I would have rambled in the notes a bit more SO

Disclaimer: I didn't read the book.

also I'm just some guy

Things I loved, no notes:

Rachel Zegler is an actual Star and I want to go and watch everything she's been in now. Her voice is incredible and fully sold the impact of the character.

Things I loved, some notes:

Premise and plot - I was really really intrigued by the idea of seeing an early form of the Hunger Games, like I would actually just read a massive essay on the history of them and also how they work on every single level (and may have been binge-watching the Tales of The Hunger Games series on youtube). I kind of don't care about some critiques of how plausible or not plausible the entire setup of Panem is because it's consistent within the narrative and it's a Neat Idea, which gives it some immunity from worldbuilding logic.

So, with all that being said, I was left a bit wanting.

My main issue, which I've had with a LOT of high-budget high-concept stuff recently, is that it all still felt sort of cheap and rushed - outfits and sets didn't really look lived in, I felt like a lot of scenes could have benefitted from more interesting dialogue and shot choices. Maybe something to disguise the very necessary info dumping and exposition in the way that the OG did so elegantly. Maybe I'll go back and really highlight some specific things (like whyyyy did the scene introducing the rainbow snakes feel so... not tense at all) but every time I got on board with the movie it seemed determined to throw me off. I might stop with this particular bit of critique now because I feel like if I'm not going to go and do a proper breakdown then it's unfair.

Costumes - Of course the costumes slap. They gotta. I saw some people weren't keen on Lucy Gray's dress but I don't care it was cute, maybe I've got bad taste. I will add that unfortunately all the other tributes and a good portion of the rest of the cast completely failed to imprint on me in any way, and the samey styling contributed to that. Actually add this to my point above, where were the supporting characters who stuck as vividly in my memory and attention as Effie, Haymitch, Rue, Gale or Cinna?? Maybe I can't name all the 74th Hunger Games tributes off the top of my head but I can picture a lot of them, they felt distinct enough for the screentime they had.

Volumnia can stay, Viola Davis had the most fun on screen of all time.

And as much as I did love the costuming, and as much as I would also put Hunter Schafer in incredible outfits all day if I had the opportunity, the Whole Idea of some of these characters were smothered by their cool wardrobes. I'm not buying that the Snow family are in an absolutely DIRE situation when Tigris has a new outfit for every appearance (she COULD have, like if we were given the impression that she was altering and making new outfits herself!!). I'm not seeing Corolianus's obsession with saving face, with presenting the image he wants to present, I'm not seeing his too-tight shoes I'm just being told that they are.

Onto one last point, maybe.

Things I was completely eh about:

Corolianus - ehhhhh. Some friends told me that the internal monologue you have access to in the book is a massive part of his characterization and I'm going to take their word for it. Prose is a ridiculously powerful way to get inside a character's head.

So I'm going to have to assume that he was more memorable in the book, because I'm really not sure what I was supposed to take away from his story... and not in a cool ambiguous interpretation way. He felt overwhelmingly just There.

That's everything I can think of right now!

[animehouse-moe]

Oshi No Ko Episode 2: Third Option

If there was ever going to be an indicator as to what the quality of Oshi no Ko would actually be like, it's this episode. A single 24 minute stretch with Aqua and Ruby settled into their stories. And what does this episode tell you? Well, that the story is far more particular and slow moving forward, and that it's (like sections of the first episode) lazy. So I'll break it down a little bit here.

I'll get the story out of the way: it's inoffensive. They're setting the stage, but the characters feel somewhat hollow in doing so. The exposition carries no energy or flair so it can end up feeling very dry. Regardless of delivery though, the sentiment and information within is pretty solid. Aqua absolutely refuses to allow Ruby to go off and be an idol, which is a totally valid decision. They express and explore it well as Aqua uses his previous life to make his current one a breeze. I think a little more could be done about Aqua's resolve and his relationship with the director, but it is only really the first episode for him in this state.

Bringing back the child actor that Aqua was placed against in his early days is a nice touch, but the sort of "longing" that they express in their first meeting feels weird. Unless it's a guise for hatred or appreciation it feels pointless for a child to have held onto for so long.

And Truthfully, I don't think there's anything else that really grips me with the story here. It's a setup and exposition, they're getting the band (read: Idol Group) back together and starting off at school. Nothing really to write home about in that regard.

Now adaptation wise? Yeah, there's a lot going on that I want to complain about, particularly composition. But we'll get there in a bit. They opened the episode (after the OP) with this. Yeah. Great way to engage viewers and make them think the episode is going to be great.

I just don't understand how you open an episode with this. Sure, there's little bits inbetween here and there, but it's literally a black screen with text coming across it. It feels outright lazy, so much so that they couldn't be bothered to come up with anything else to display it.

So yeah, that's how they set the tone for the episode, but don't worry the content within also helps live up to the expectations. I think the most egregious thing for me was the composition. The characters and the environment just don't work at all together in a lot of scenes. And it's not just art and characters butting heads, look at Heavenly Delusion. The environment is totally different from the characters, but they mesh perfectly fine and don't end up with eyesores like these. It's like all those jokes about Disney movies and being able to tell which objects will be interacted with. Except, with this first example, the dish with something on it isn't interacted with. Nor is the phone or anything besides the juice box.

Anyways, more examples! Aqua stands out painfully against the art style of the background here, and so does his slippers.

And then there's stuff like this. Yeah, this first scene/angle looks perfectly normal. Or well, as close as normal can be to normal. The coffee mug next to the container of pens and whatnot is pretty obviously out of place, but it's better than some of the other stuff.

Also funny little detail! The coffee cup moves between cuts for zero reason. Miyako doesn't touch or move the cup, but it gets placed directly in front of her in some cuts without reason or purpose.

Anyways, another pointless piece of poor compositing. They don't pick up or move any of the awards or trophies so I can't fathom why they force them to stick out so badly. Even worse is the fact that the glass award is out of place, but the framed one is not.

And there's lots of examples of this throughout the episode, but I think my point's been made. There's a whole bunch of needless layering that creates jarring environments where there doesn't need to be. It's confusing.

Though it's not confusing but equally bothersome is the direction. It feels largely similar to the worse parts of episode 1. A lot of headshots of characters with nothing else in the environment and minimal motion. They do good when expressing full body movements, but they take a lot and place that focus on faces. On top of that, there's a lot of cycled animation. Plenty of scenes that remain moving but only through repetition, and it's really quite obvious with shorter ones like this.

And here's yet another example just to help drive the point home. It's super easy to come off as dismissive when providing negative commentary on something, so hopefully giving more examples will help explain it better.

Now you might be thinking, "aren't you just nitpicking everything?", and in a sense you're correct. But here's the thing - there's nothing to stop me from doing that. There's nothing where I can say, "well, X is actually doing really well so I'll give Y a pass". There's nothing that really speaks out and says "hey, give us a little break because we put our effort here".

The season opener seems to have gotten everyone hook line and sinker, and whether they just put their effort into the start or they calculated it and wanted to reel people in for the season I have no idea. But I do know that even for anime onlies this is is not 9+ territory. The story can only carry so far, and on such an expected episode there's no justification for it. There's chances ahead for Doga Kobo to come out swinging, but any attempt to establish dominance over how "quality" this adaptation is going to be has gone out of the window. I'll probably end up watching it still since Wednesdays are rather empty for me, but between what amounts to now 4 or even 5 episodes worth of content, they really don't give me a reason to engage with the anime over the manga.

[twistedtummies2]

Howdy!  I was wondering if you could give me advice. I want to create twisted wonderland characters out of some obscure Disney movie villains, such as Alameda Slim(Home on the Range), Professor Ratigan(the great mouse, Detective), and Mr. Sikes and his two dogs(Oliver and Company), etc, and I was just wondering if you had any ideas. They can be from character design to personality to even which dorm they would fit in. Anything would be helpful. 

Well, I don't want to get too involved HERE with helping you in terms of personality/designs, for two reasons. One, those are elements that are probably best discussed in private, and they're also things you should probably work out on your own terms. Two, some of these characters I actually want to make OCs of myself, or already technically have done so. XD However, I can give you a few basic pointers on when you're crafting your TW characters. First of all, you'll need to find a balance between good and bad: while all of NRC's students are based on villains, the entire point of the game is that these "villains" aren't monsters. Unlike their source materials, who are more or less purely evil creatures of darkness, the students of NRC all have their dark sides (except maybe Kalim and Silver), but they also all have their nice or sympathetic qualities. Finding what gives them their good side without making them TOO good is going to be a challenge. Second of all, try to play by the rules of the game. By which I mean, your characters should feel they mesh more or less with the rest of the main characters. Making them too old, or the wrong gender, or connecting them too closely to established Disney figures can all upset the balance, because it brings too much of the universe itself into question or goes against information we already have established in the canon of the game. The only way they can properly fit then is with a complete AU setting. Third of all, as far as the designs go, pick and choose what you think are the most important accessories or color choices for those characters, and try to build around them in some fashion. Sometimes it's going to be difficult, but it's necessary, because you want the villain the character is based upon to be at least semi-recognizable in your own OC. I hope all that makes sense, and I also hope that I've helped a bit. ONE LAST THING THAT I WILL DO FOR YOU: I can definitely tell you which dorms I would personally place those characters in, if I were to create OCs for them that were students. Alameda Slim = Savanaclaw; while the Savannah is different from the Wild West, I think the motifs used in the uniforms and overall look of the place would mesh the most easily with Slim's sense of style. On top of that, with Slim's background and setup in the film, the idea of him in a dorm made up seemingly entirely of beastmen opens the doors to possible story concepts. ;) Professor Ratigan = either Ignihyde or Diasomnia; both feel like they'd fit Ratigan's sense of style and intellectual capacities the best. Not much else to it. Sykes & His Dogs = Octavinelle; this may seem an odd choice, but they are mafia-based characters, and Octavinelle is a mafia-styled dorm, so where ELSE would they fit better? XD That's one thing I do want to add: when picking the dorms for my characters, I focus less on what the dorms represent, and more on the style of the dorm itself. What aesthetic or story-based elements fit best where? Keep that in mind when creating new...well...creations. LOL

[iwanttolickthatcowboy]

📅🥖🩹 for the camping asks!! -@moondane-lovers

📅 - How much planning went into the trip? Was it spontaneous or well-planned out over a period of time? I feel like this trip would be a family vacation that James is invited to. James feels like he wouldn't be able to say much due to being a guest. he doesn't want to be needy or pushy. so he lets Coop and Barb plan everything. it's most likely a week-long trip in their small hometown to visit coop's parents up in the countryside. I feel like Barb is the bigger planner to help make sure Janey has the most fun she can, as well as fitting in 3 adults + in-laws. cooper is the typical dad who packs all the stuff in their car like Tetris and makes sure they have everything. Barb is the more emotions and activity planner, and Coop is the physical handy work planner. and James is the tag-along who sometimes does heavy labor but mainly to help coop and hang out with him. 🥖- Food without a kitchen can be a hassle! What do your meals consist of while traveling and camping? Snack foods? Did someone manage to bring along a functional cooktop? This is the perfect excuse to snack on whatever you want from the store... during this pre-war camping trip, I feel like they have some kind of fallouty-style pre-war cooking setup. a mini stove of some kind. they also are most likely camping right near Coop's parent's place so they are more like camping in a big field with a farmhouse than actually camping in the middle of nowhere. this is mainly so Janey can do more activities than just playing in the woods. this means they do have a kitchen and clean water if needed. James most likely brought his own snacks and money for food if needed. the "I don't want to be a bother despite being invited and welcome" energy is very strong. I feel like he ends up being given food and snacks by the couple anyway and rarely touches his stash. Postwar traveling is another story. they eat what they can and try to not eat too much. jambo packs a lot of food to make meals but Coop thinks it's a waste and a lot of dead weight. he isn't saying shit when he gets a good brahmin stack AND peas that night. jambo is also a cannibal but tries to not do such things if he can help it. but he is not above eating ass jerky. he actually likes the taste. Jambo will eat a box of expired sugar bombs no matter what. he doesn't care if it kills him. hasn't yet and it's been 200+ years.

🩹 - Someone has to get hurt or sick, of course. Who slipped and fell or caught something? How do you or your F/O handle it or help one another? james is the most likely to fall into a river or down a hill. he's the less outdoorsy of the two. cooper will get dirty and go get him. Pain is very much a sore spot for James and feeling it in any extreme or sudden way shuts him down. cooper would most likely carry him back to the campsite or even let him rest in the house. helping James becomes Coop's main priority. it looks odd to anyone who isn't used to their dynamic but Barb and Coop's parents have seen this before and can handle themselves till the two are ready to come back. if they are in a tent then they are bundled up together. if they are inside, they watch a movie. whatever calms James down and gets him out of his stunned state. in the wasteland, pain is common and after 200+ years both men are rather numb. doesn't mean it doesn't stress the fuck out of them if it's serious. both are drugged-up lil weirdos. coop canonically can get shot and feel nothing.....jambo not so much. They are just as bad with chems but not as numb due to said above reactions. getting shot more than twice usually causes him to faint. That's why he normally wears power armor on the road. the lil lady needs her safety bubble.

oh right this was about camping lmao.

[notebookmusical]

Hi!!! I'm so sorry I didn't reply until now. This week has been blah and I've felt more tired than usual. I love it all too and I loved seeing Long Live live so much, but I mostly understand why they were cut. I like everything how it is, but I would probably change the Evermore and Red songs the most. I would get rid of We are Never and I guess 22 for State of Grace and Red, which is an awesome opener and title track that sets up the whole album. I would not get rid of ATW 10 at all omg!!! For Evermore, I would probably get rid of Tis the Damn Season and Tolerate it, even though I like the table setup. I would probably put Gold Rush instead or maybe Long Story Short and would hypothetically want Evermore since it's another title track and my fav. I still liked her solo version of it too. I think I would try to add Our Song somewhere but it's a good thing its in the movie! I definitely love Look What You Made Me do with the other Taylors and the Don't Blame Me transition. The thing about rep to me..is I like every song but I don't really have specific favorites in the album as much. I feel the same way about 1989 sort of but Iove the singles, so I don't know if I would change anything on tour.

I am excited to hear it later tonight though omg!!! I forgot which song you said you were the most interested in or the most excited to hear. For me, I think it's still Slut and between Suburban Legends or Is it Over Now. Did you see the lyric snippets she posted and which songs do you think they were a part of? The first one reminded me of Holy Ground cuz of the coffee lyric mixed with a little bit of I Wish You Would but then someone said it was more chasing shadows in the grocery line lyric and I might prefer it if the song did have more longing actually so I guess we will see. That might also change what song I'll think it's from. When she did these for Midnights, I was pretty good at guessing a few of them. I am more interested in the pool lyric cuz of aquamarine for now but we will see if she shares another one later today too! Do you listen in order or vault first? I'm still gonna try shuffle for this one and see how it goes. If you have any other predictions for the songs, you can put them here. I am very curious on the sound, though I have no idea what it could be. I think there could be another slowish dreamy song and maybe it will be the new closer. Even though most of the songs are pretty short, I'm hoping they are still amazing and I'm sure they will be! Also, I wanted to ask you if you plan to listen to The Good Witch too cuz I really don't know if I should listen to Maisie or Taylor first. Like I feel like I wanna save Taylor for last but then I will be too excited..and maybe it depends on how long the album will be, but I also wanna hear Maisie's songs too, and I don't know what to do.

For Midnights, I honestly just consider the 3AM version the main version. I think when we heard it, it was all together cuz it was almost midnight and we were barely still getting thru the main album. I remember being the most excited for Midnight Rain, and Lavender Haze, and Antihero. I did not really like Midnight Rain on the first listen and my prediction of the song was wrong. I thought Lavender Haze might be an old fashioned 50s Broadway style love song from the way she talked about it and that was wrong lol. Antihero has become one of my favorites and I liked it when I first heard it but it wasn't an instant love either. The album grew on me a lot but my favorites have stayed mostly the same, and we have some of the same favorites! I think I'm going to listen to it later to get in a 1989 pop mood and I haven't heard it in a while.

Anyway I listened to Hollys album again and I think my favorites are Into Your Room, Ghost Me, Antichrist Lauren and Elvis Impersonators. Some of the songs blended and I think I need more time but I really enjoy the whole album. I think some of her older songs stand out to me more though at this point, like Scarlet and Walls are Way too thin.

Ya stunt casts are always sort of mixed for me, but if it works and gets more people to see shows, then I guess it's a good thing. Ya I was wondering how you felt about Jordan Fisher in the role. I knew it was rumored but didn't know it was confirmed, and I would be interested to see him in the role. I hope you have fun at the tour and I think seeing someone else might make a difference in a good way, even though I like Reeve. The only thing about the Waitress proshot is I'm not used to Sara in the role haha but I'm sure she's still good. Idk if I will see it yet but I do want to at some point and hope I don't forget about it. I realized I never got around to watching the Heather's proshot either, except it wasn't one of my favorite musicals. I seriously meant to watch Daddy Long Legs and Allegiance at some point..like I had both on my old computer, but never got around to it! I have listened to the cast recording of Daddy Long Legs though and know the basic plot and meant to watch the old movie version from the 50s. I remember one of the things my sister said was she has such an interesting voice too and thats why some songs would always get stuck in my head. I love She Loves Me and have seen a non pro shot version of First Date before. I've never had Broadwayhd but always wanted to check it out. I try to watch as many proshots as I can. I've never heard of Snapshots but it sounds interesting mixing Stephen Schwartz shows. Haha yes, we have actually already discussed Smash more than once in your asks but I do love it. I wonder what happened to the Smash musical. By the way, I heard Gatsby got mixed reviews but at least I think the costumes I saw made it look better and the sets were gorgeous!

Les Mis was great but now I can barely remember it! I can't believe I went but it almost doesn't feel like it. I loved him as Marius! He has a good voice and I always love Empty Chairs. My sister said she actually didn't care for Enjolras on tour and preferred Aaron in the movie and also that Jean Valjean sounded like Hugh Jackman from the movie, but it could be that we are too used to it even if I do love it..but seeing it on stage obviously just feels different and it's better. Just remember that reading or annotating is supposed to be a hobby so just take your time if you want, since it's so long. Eventually you will make some progress. Honestly I haven't had a lot of time for reading either if it makes you feel better. I did make time to start our buddy read which I wanted to do before I replied to you cuz I read that you said you didn't like it as much, and wanted to see how I felt about it. only read 2 chapters so far. I thought it was okay, but I think the thing that threw me off was that I never read third person so I would have to get used to that. If you don't want to read it anymore for now though, I can also start the Night Circus..even if it's not October anymore lol. Also I realized that I might have been confusing the Starless Sea with the book that you said you hated..the house in the cerulean sea lol. I realized I don't even know what that book is about but maybe I will try to find it if I like the Night Circus. But another person I follow said they loved the Starless Sea too and it's definitely one of their favorites so I might have to check it out. Oh I did not know that about Only Murders but I know the newest season revolves around a theater show and does have music or singing in it so thats awesome. Also..I actually know nothing about hockey at all! I remember it was a category on connections at one point and I was so clueless, but I hope you had an awesome time at the game! Anyway have a blast listening to the album tonight and I will reply with my reactions and opinions so we can talk about it!!!!

i was just thinking about you, friend! i've been looking forward to hearing from you, but no pressure on when you pop into my askbox 🤍 i hope your week gets better soon, and you get to rest this weekend!! do you have anything fun planned?

ugh i love state of grace — i do prefer the acoustic but it's such a good song. "mosaic broken hearts" is one of my favorite phrases that taylor's ever written. and i was lowkey always surprised gold rush never made it on the eras setlist, but then also a lot of things about the eras setlist surprised me (like no mashups). her solo version of evermore is so good; i really hope there's a live album of the surprise songs!

and i did! i think the 300 coffees one is from is it over now, but i'm not sure what the aquamarine one is from! othe chasing shadows line is so good too, i love cardigan. i'm still upset it was cut from the movie (despite understanding why she did that). i'm really bad at guessing things so we'll see! i would love a slowish dreamy song, but i feel like 1989 will be more pop upbeat stuff this time. i'm going to listen in order, but i might actually listen to maisie's good witch deluxe first and then 1989!

i'm still holding out hope for a 3 am vinyl. i love the way midnight rain is done on tour (i think a lot of midnights is perfect for touring, actually). i do think that 1989 and midnights seem more like sisters, than midnights/anything else — including lover; what do you think?

and yay!! i'm so happy to see that you listened to holly again! i do think some of them sound a bit similar, and i think that my favorites from her ep (scarlett, the walls are way too thin, deep end, etc) still outrank how i feel about my favorites on PMBB, but am curious to see how that'll change with more listens/over time!

i think jordan fisher will be great, vocally! there's been a lot of jokes about if he shows up to work (from when they were in deh) but i think jordan's always been a very strong vocalist and i'm really interested in his interpretation! i've never seen sara in waitress, but i have some friends who REALLY love her, so i'm excited to one day see the proshot! i am so bad at watching things — it's been years and i still haven't watched the come from away proshot either, and i love that show. i loveeee megan mcginnis' voice, it's so pretty! i also really like how she sings in some things are meant to be (little women)! i remember that now 😭 sorry! i haven't looked into the gatsby musical too much after we talked about it!! i'll look at some reviews and then we can chat about it next time :")

i'm so glad you got to see gregory as marius before he left!! i just love his marius! and yes — i am so excited to buddy read! are we still buddy reading both books? which book did you get two chapters into? happy to match your pace, obviously! i am finishing up an audiobook (hopefully tonight) and then am good to start something else! i love the starless sea! but i do hate the house in the cerulean sea!! the house in the cerulean sea is probably up there for my least favorite books of all time (for many reasons). if you want i'll also buddy read starless sea with you! a quick note for night circus — pay attention to the dates! i didn't realize it wasn't chronological the first time i read it and had to restart after a friend pointed it out to me.

wait do you play connections daily!! i play connections religiously; i love it. i had a blast at that game, and i feel like every time i go see a game in person i get more into the sport — i've been watching the last two kraken games online, which has been really fun (i used to lowkey just follow updates but now i'm watching from home and learning a lot more)!

by the time you read + reply, you'll probably have listened to the vault tracks + good witch deluxe so i'll leave you with some questions! what were your favorites, and initial thoughts? least favorites? how accurate were your predictions?

hope you're having a good weekend + have some time to rest!! xx

[popblank]

Now watching Melodifestivalen deltävling 3 since I was busy earlier today; I listened to the 1-min snippets and am very curious to see how some of these songs will be presented (and received) in full.

Dolly Style. Sometimes I watch this show and am struck by how it is its own little universe.

Paul Rey, "Royals" - I tend to like his songs more than his performances, though this seems to be the week of the songwriter-performer. The staging is a little cheesy; the song is nice enough but I keep thinking the basic idea is unappealing. Being "royals" now suggests to me a having lot of unearned privilege combined with stifling expectations and unwanted attention. It's very innocent and optimistic compared to say, Lorde's "Royals."

Casanovas, "Så kommer känslorna tillbaka" - I kind of like their sparkly light platforms. For an otherwise very static setup, I like looking at it. Well executed, even if not my usual musical preference.

I can't understand most of what Jesper is saying but it took me about five seconds for the anthropomorphizing to work on me. The camera is blushing! Aww!

Melanie Wehbe, "For The Show" - She looks so happy to be on stage but that works against the words she is singing. It gives the impression that her answer to the question the lyrics pose is "yes, this is absolutely what I wanted, I am thrilled to be here!" It is sort of charming but also confusing.

Nordman, "Släpp alla sorger" - Giant image of a bird standing birdlike in the background. By that I mean it might be intimidating if it were actually that large and made eye contact with you, but otherwise it is a little goofy. (I liked the song well enough too but was mostly distracted by the backgrounds.)

Laurell, "Sober" - I have not generally liked her songs in the past so I am biased. Hmm, this staging is full of things to look at and it is not taking itself too seriously. It is not as bad (or at least it is weirder) than I expected. Getting some Eurovision Movie vibes from this.

Ida-Lova, "Låt hela stan se på" - Slow start, sounds a little shaky. Depending on the angle of the camera, the single hanging banner draped over the stage is sometimes striking and sometimes makes the stage look peculiarly empty. It seems like a tweak to angles/lighting could be very effective. I wanted to like it better than I did.

Marcus & Martinus, "Air" - Lots of icy lighting. Rhymes "ocean" with "emotion" and "fire" with "higher." Catchy enough but I am not feeling a lot. Maybe I would like the studio version better.

If I had to pick a top three, I'd say Nordman, Casanovas, Melanie Wehbe, and I don't know who would be #4. But from the last two weeks, it turns out the songs that actually stuck with me were "Inga sorger" and "Grytan" so my taste is clearly not in line with that of the Swedish public so far.

Oh apparently I have the taste of a Swedish telephone voter.