#a solidly entertaining episode

[spaceorphan18]

More thoughts on XM97 - because of course I have more thoughts...

Doing some more reflection, because this is what I do during hyperfixation, apparently.

It helps to write things down and get them out of my head, I suppose. Honestly, it'll be nice to get past the last episode, because then I can compartmentalize and just push the thing away until season 2 (if the finale gives me any reason to want to come back).

DeMayo went on another tweeting spree (I just keep an eye on these things because I get curious) and during this particular bout, I feel like I've got somethings clarified. And I think my own personal frustrations come down to - the ideas of writing and creating vs fan expectations.

Overall, I do think that XM97 is a solidly good (or at least entertaining) show. The animation is good. The voice cast is good. And the ideas they are using, in theory, are more adult and mature and nuanced than the original kids' show ever was (which, I'll give TAS some credit - dug deeper a lot of times when most kids' cartoons of the time didn't).

One of the biggest issues for me has been execution. First of all, the show is way too short for the amount they're trying to pack in here. It almost feels like they wanted to do everything on their wishlist because if they didn't, they wouldn't get the chance to do it. And it feels, muddied... They really needed a full season to unpack a lot of this.

The thing about Rogue and Gambit's story.... I get the 'kill your darlings' strategy of writing. In fact, I agree that good stories are messy and have conflict and you should always put your heroes through the worst. I feel like there was a better way to do the story (I believe) they're telling.

I don't think Magneto needed to be a part of it at all, and the triangle just feels... forced in a lot of ways. I understand that they went there to give Remy some heartbreak along the way, but I truly believe the two of them, with their own issues, and the two of them being in an undefined relationship with complicated issues over touch -- still could have resulted in compelling TV, and still would kept the devastation of Gambit's death.

Episode 5 is still my favorite, and despite my distaste for the whole Magneto side of it, I think the writing there was top notch, and still the best this show has been. I get, though, that they wanted to have Rogue and Gambit "break up" for the impact to hit harder, for Rogue to feel much more guilt once he died, for that last line to be even more heartbreaking.

So, the easiest route was to add the Magneto of it all. Episode 5 is brilliant in a vacuum. But in greater context there are other ways you can get there. And, no, Magneto wasn't ultimately needed. Rogue still could have had regrets, there still could have been heartbreak, there are always things you just don't say before a tragedy.

The thing about it, had they set this up correctly, and in a way that was more satisfying and didn't involve third parties? You may have gotten way more of the Rogue and Gambit fans on board. (And I'll get to the fan side of this in a second.)

See, TAS flirted with Rogue and Gambit's romance but never pushed it too far. Not only was it a kids' show, but Rogue probably would have never had her powers under control and it just was never going to go that far. Meanwhile, the comics have moved way beyond where TAS was. Rogue and Gambit's relationship has evolved a lot in thirty years - way past the tragedy, past the will-they/won't-they, past the break ups and reunions, and in the comics, Rogue and Gambit are a relatively healthy (for a comic book couple) couple of best friends and old marrieds. They're story is so far beyond what they once were that going back to TAS feels... odd.

So, the show starting in this place where TAS left off feels awkward in a lot of ways. There's a lot of expectations layered onto this show, but the show -- being limited by external factors, can't really handle all of it.

I don't think the first few episodes of the show did enough to show the sheer strength of Rogue and Gambit's connection and relationship. And part of that was time and part of that is because it's a sequel to a show set thirty years ago and part of it is time compression and part of it is the writing wanting to leave some vague open-endedness to the relationship so that Episode 5 could work.

And thus Episode 5 feels a bit jarring. It's way more a mature script. There's much more going on in those relationships that we haven't seen set up. Not really. And it's almost relying too much on - things that were mildly set up in the original and the heavy history of the comics.

Which leads me to what has happened afterwards. I think that in a world sans the Magneto of it all, you still get a Rogue who is absolutely heartbroken over the loss of her love. She would still go dark. She would still seek vengeance. She would still wrap herself up in that trench coat and wreck havoc on everyone until she ultimately succumbed to her own grief and eventually dealt with it in one way or the other.

(The part that I just don't agree with -- besides giving up the trench coat, which I know is symbolic in gesture -- is her running off to play Colossus in Fatal Attractions. Which, again, is why they did add the Magneto of it all, but I'm digressing.)

Anyway, this leads me to the fan expectations, and why it does feel so raw for a lot of us. Rogue and Gambit have never really had their time to shine. The films are full of mischaracterizations and limited (very limited) appearances. The other TV shows never let the relationship shine. And even in the comics it felt like forever for the X-Office to take them seriously.

This TV show felt like an opportunity to start fresh. To be excited about something. To get behind the characters we love and celebrate them. We can still break their hearts. We can still even kill them off. But give us a reason to care!

But instead of building that relationship with us fans, it went a different route. And now we feel heartbroken and angry, instead of just heartbroken. Gambit fans - who get shit on so often - get one bright of moment of glory before a death that feels somewhat hollow when you start to realize it was in purpose of someone else's story. Rogue fans - have the internet hating her with a passion. It feels like once again - being set up only to fail.

It feels hurtful, even when, I truly believe, that was not the writers' intentions. Make your characters go through hell - yes, but you have to have your audience on your side to make it impactful.

I don't really know where the show goes from here. There's either going to be closure or a cliffhanger. What I'd really like, though, is some sort of hope.

Because I get real life sucks. And I get that we often reflect in our fiction that it does. But we're talking about a cartoon about superheroes. We're talking about escapism at its finest. I love complicated and messy and nuanced and sometimes even heartbreaking stories -- but I also want something that makes it all worth while.

There is still one episode left, and I'm curious as to where it's going to go. Because at the end of the day, X-Men has always been about hope, too.

[marley-manson]

what are some of your favorite xena fics?

Thanks for asking! Fair warning, most of these are on old archives and can be hard to read, like, visually. I generally copypaste the fics, convert them to epubs, and read them on my kobo, but firefox reader view is also an excellent option for either laptop or mobile reading. Not sure if chrome has an equivalent.

I will warn for rape and specify the gender configurations (f/f, f/m, or m/f) when I can, because I know that matters to me when I'm choosing what I want to read, but for the fics I haven't read recently it's more of a crapshoot because I just don't remember well enough.

And if you just want my current top faves, I've starred those.

Xena/Gabrielle, fics I've read or re-read recently and remember fairly well:

Aftermath: The Tree of Life and The Hanging Gardens Conqueror AU - imo Gabrielle falls for Xena a little quickly considering how it starts lol, but it's well written, fun, solidly plotty, and the second is a pretty good mystery (though with a caveat for some racialized stereotypes.)

The Paradox of Dying Short glimpse into Gabrielle's state of mind in the later seasons.

*Storms of War A long, plotty, and quite dark exploration of Xena and her relationship with violence. Surprisingly well paced and engaging imo, considering how 600ish pages covers about a week of time. (mentions of m/f rape, past f/m rape)

As Long as Earth Endures Plotty, fun, entertaining OCs, violence and sex as themes (though not really intertwined lol) (mentions of past f/m and f/f rape iirc)

Been There, Done That Revisited Fun one shot set during the eponymous episode.

Confession An angstier take on Xena and Gabrielle's relationship.

Xena/Gabrielle, fics I've read years ago and enjoyed then, but I can't be 100% certain they hold up:

Infamia Conqueror AU, Gab is a gladiator, Xena is Empress of Rome. I actually have re-read about half of it lol but haven't finished it. It's a lot of fun, and the author has a way with words.

Pretium Silenti I plan to re-read this soon, it's another gladiator Gab/Empress of Rome fic, though more dark and serious, and very well written from what I recall. (m/f rape iirc)

Conqueror Series This is a hesitant rec lol because even in 2014 I thought it was very cheesy and tropey in that classic bodice ripper-y way, but like, I honestly had a lot of fun reading it. ymmv of course. (past m/f rape and csa, present f/f sex with a slave that isn't fully acknowledged as rape iirc, past f/f rape. Also warning for some racist tropes, about on par with what we see in the show as far as I recall.)

The Charioteer: In the City of Har and The Amazons of Dahomey I remember thinking these were extremely well written, but I haven't re-read them and I remember very little so I can't warn for any content.

Queen fun pwp

Appetite I remember loving the writing style. Post-finale.

Tarot Conqueror (well, warlord) fic. Fun premise, present day Gabrielle meets a younger, warlording Xena thanks to magic.

Other ships, recent reads:

*The Destiny Series Mostly gen, some het. Conqueror AU but in a very unique way. Focused on Caesar and Gabrielle after Xena has been killed, and it's an excellent depiction of like... everything I want from a good angsty darkfic. Eg the way it could've been hurt/comfort but the hurt character sucks and constantly self-sabotages and the comforter is way out of her depth and stops trying soon enough and they make each other even worse instead. Just about every choice made goes wrong. The world is a miserable, violent mess because three wonderfully, viscerally epic warlording women have been destroying it with their battling. Speaking of, I loooove how this author writes Xena, Callisto, and Najara.

Like the vibes are just immaculate to me <3 (f/m rape)

Payback is Hell Xena/Lao Ma, missing scene

*Equal To the Gods Xena/Gabrielle, Xena/Ares. I've read this twice now and it was an emotional rollercoaster each time, which is rare for me - like, I sobbed for basically the entire last third or so lol. And I'm not usually into poly fic, especially mixed gender, buuuut boy do I love a good trainwreck and this is a novel's worth of well-written, devastating trainwreck. And I do feel that ultimately it's very fair to both ships, despite the author being primarily a Xena/Ares shipper. If you buy into the premise that Xena does love Ares, all the characterization choices work great for me as well.

The Apology A missing scene set between Adventures in the Sin Trade and A Family Affair.

Other ships, old reads:

Among the Tigers and Approach of the Greeks Xena/Lao Ma

The Legacy of Lao Ma Xena/Lao Ma, The Debt from Lao Ma's pov

Aphrodite's Prayer Gabrielle/Aphrodite

The Joining Xena/Ares, I have actually re-read the first two relatively recently, and they're well-written and a good exploration of Xena's heroism versus Ares' job. Gabrielle and her arc gets a lot of focus in the second too. Don't remember the third well though, but I enjoyed it enough to bookmark it.

[threetrenchcoatsinatrenchcoat]

How to win Dirty Laundry.

I'm no expert on lying or deduction, I just take this show pretty serious when I watch it, and I think the patterns to notice in this game offer a cool lens into interpersonal communication.

I. How to not catch liars. Liars largely aren't that spottable. Buckle in for this one: it's usually easier to eliminate ~3 honest people than to find one liar. Liars tend to be hyperaware of everything they do and end up doing nothing. Everyone's all too aware of the concept of tells, so here are some anti-tells that actually work.

The first to talk after hearing the secret read is a truth teller. Seriously. I can maybe count on one hand the number of times the liar spoke first, but everyone alllllllways ends up suspecting the first talker.

If someone unnecessarily implicates themself, they're likely a truth teller. For instance, giving a related anecdote is a strong anti-tell.

Truth tellers will dig deeper into the wording and theorizing cause they're actually trying to find a liar.

Less solidly, the biggest, flashiest accusers tend to be truth tellers. Liars try to fade into the background, so if someone is going ham on a theory--and not simply after they've been targeted--it's often someone unworried about the attention.

II. How to catch liars. There are somewhat tells. Sometimes. There are more in this list than the previous, but this is all less sure. The rest of your natural suspicions will help. The state I'm in when I get more things right is aware of my instincts but not reliant on them.

If everyone thinks someone's the liar, they're right.

Don't let anyone off the hook. Accuse for whatever reason, then see how they react.

Because liars usually act the same each time they lie--going quiet, going loud, accusing, double bluffing, whatever. My theory is people have a strong pre-built idea of what looks suspicious, so they won't be worried about lying the same way as last time as much as being suspicious at all.

Liars sometimes act ignorant and way overdo it. Like folks who say they're unaware of basic relevant world knowledge or fully skipped relevant life experience or just forgot the question. It's possible but it's suspicious.

There are some contestants who are just good liars. There usually aren't multiple in one episode (besides Lily and Grant, but it's safe to ignore them as a baseline). If someone fully outwits me on their first lie, especially by breaking any of the above patterns, and I have no suspects later, I'll just have to suspect them. Aabria Iyengar and Anna Garcia could sell me sand in a desert.

Not sure how the show's edited and how much of this is actually applicable to people in the game, but there's always some meta information for us to use. Everyone will get at least two secrets in the episode somewhere, usually no one will repeat until three distinct people have had a turn, often exactly three, they tend to space out each guest's secrets, and Lily and Grant will rarely appear early or be the episode's title. If someone's been on a previous season, they're probably not gonna bring anything crazier than then.

III. How to lie. Mostly chill out a little bit. Unless you're a trash liar.

Don't talk first. As stated above, you won't fool me, but there's less of me than people with the opposite belief.

Be the second to accuse someone. Everyone remembers the accused and the first accuser, but the quiet "oh yeah I could see X doing that" gives the theory a ton of validity while flying fully under the radar.

Don't say "I know it sounds like me, but this one's not me." (Even though truth-tellers and liars both say this all the time.) The best way to lose heat is to confidently say this couldn't ever have been me.

While you're doing so, make the justification very, very concise. Simple nonsense is more compelling than convoluted truth.

You do have to have good secrets. This is an entertainment product more than a competition, so the show will probably want the craziest story, but an uncharacteristic, mild secret will always fool more people than a buckwild but on-brand one.

[crehador]

BROTHER CRAB'S SUMMER 2024 TOP THREE

i can't believe this is happening i really can't believe it but i think i'm gonna have to go with

THIRD PLACE: NIGE JOUZU NO WAKAGIMI

for much of the season, nigewaka seemed like it was easily going to be my anime of the season. it had a banging first episode and never at any point got less enjoyable to me

the animation was consistently beautiful (yeah sure with the occasional jarring bit of cgi but in all honesty it never bothered me much) and the characters are all delightful to me

i think the mix of humor and the horrors of war depicted here, understandably, might not appeal to everyone. but it really worked for me. the fact that these characters are so lively and alive, as opposed to doomed and hopeless, in these times of strife makes the stakes feel all the higher to me

so despite it taking third place on my list, this is still solidly one of the best shows of the season (of the year, even)

a few things just happened to blow me away a tad bit more

SECOND PLACE: DEAD DEAD DEMONS DEDEDEDE DESTRUCTION

honestly this is so close for me that demons and nigewaka may as well be a tie, but maybe demons gets a slight edge just for being something so fresh to me

god i loved this. it's been a hot minute since i've seen something that felt so real and human. aliens are invading, the world is ending, but girls will be girls

i guess, like nigewaka, demons also mixes some good ol' humor with The Horrors, and it really works here too. the theme of "hey there's this giant alien mothership hanging over the city but life goes on" is executed so well in the early episodes of this series, and the plottier plot comes together in such a satisfying way in the later episodes

and seriously just huge props to ano and lilas ikuta for their performances in the leading roles here, they smashed it. if i didn't know, never in my life would i have guessed they weren't voice actors with years and years of experience each

ANIME OF THE SEASON: TSUE TO TSURUGI NO WISTORIA

first things first, i would not say this is objectively the best show of the season

but holy shit this is the most fun i've had all year

i'm probably more surprised than anyone that wistoria is ending up as my anime of the season, because even after a whole season, the story is just so... it's basically nothing (stay with me)

there are so many things you could call the plot of wistoria. typical, tropey, contrived, textbook, tired, etc etc etc. anyone who finds the plot boring isn't wrong. it's a fantasy magic school series like any other fantasy magic school series, with so many tropes that you'll recognize if you've watched basically any amount of fantasy at all

but for some reason i didn't dislike it. maybe wistoria doesn't do anything new, but it hits on all these familiar plot beats in such fun and entertaining ways

at some point i realized what word i really wanted to use to describe it:

quintessential

sure, it wouldn't be unfair to call it contrived or derivative or what have you. but to me, this is a quintessential fantasy action/adventure series. yes it hits on all the story beats we're familiar with, from countless series before it, but it hits each beat perfectly

the characters are ridiculous, all easily recognizable archetypes, but they're so unrepentant in who they are that i find myself enjoying them too

and then there's the animation

guys this show is fucking gorgeous. like if it weren't this pretty, i doubt i would be raving this much about it. if it had been just decently animation, i'm pretty sure i would've just enjoyed it a normal amount

but the animation is so so so good that this quickly became the number one show i was hoping for a season two of (and we are getting one!)

like the production quality just did not waver. i found myself baffled that this is the series, the story, that got this level of masterful work put into it. but then i started thinking maybe that's unfair, because really, the story is not bad. fairly simple and straightforward sure, but again: quintessential fantasy

not to end on an absurdly cheesy note, but just like how it's wistoria wand and sword, i think it's the stellar animation and entertaining story/cast that makes this series work so well. without the animation being this good, the story wouldn't have been enough to stand out. but without a truly entertaining story, the animation, however pretty, would have felt pretty empty too

very eagerly awaiting season two

[sleepyyghostt]

ok i take back everything ive ever said about the doctor who episode sleep no more. my fever-dream memories of it from ten years ago LIED to me i love this episode now. fundamentally stupid premise. ridiculous ending. a solidly entertaining time in between. everything i could ever want

[girl4music]

The Multiverse Theory certainly is an interesting Xena theory to mull over and refine until it is solidly irrefutable. But if it were true, it would kill me that there’s no yin-yang chakram in the timeline with ‘The Xena Scrolls’, ‘Deja Vu All Over Again’ and ‘Soul Possession’ though because that would mean Xena and Gabrielle both died and stayed dead as they wouldn’t have ever been resurrected and there would be no history rewritten angel Callisto so her endgame would have been drastically changed too. That means no Eve.

Therefore No One to carry on Xena’s legacy.

I don’t like that at all. So what, Mel is the descendant of Xena through Solan instead cause if there’s no Dahak/Hope in that timeline then Solan would have survived.

I mean it would make some sense because Solon is an Athenian philosopher and historian and the character was meant to be based off of that historical figure.

And if Gabrielle died without having another child…

Where did Janice come from? Who is she descendant from? Sarah? Lila’s kid? Assuming she still had a child.

‘The Xena Scrolls’ is one huge conundrum on its own. But this is what happens when you mess with the timeline in your show far too early before it’s found its footing. When you want to do something else later on.

Like for example neutralize the dark chakram with light.

KILL Xena and Gabrielle and then RESURRECT them.

Give Xena a baby that is prophesied to end all the gods.

Honestly we could be here forever trying to work this one out. Entertaining, sure. But SO. MUCH good stuff would have to be sacrificed to even make that work.

The only way ‘The Xena Scrolls’ works in the timeline we have in ‘AFIN’ is because Gabrielle and Eve survived. No, it still doesn’t explain the chakram situation though unless somehow an event with Gabrielle undid all that.

Nevertheless,… Xena’s legacy had to be carried on otherwise none of the “future” episodes can happen.

See what they should have done is just done away with Annie, Harry and Mattie and kept it as Janice and Mel.

I would have much preferred a continuation with them.

[realbeefman]

Angus loyal follower here I love your posts I actually started reading hilson fic because of you even though I’ve never seen the show and I never will because once I heard Hugh lauries voice in a fancam and it was so unsexy also they filmed a lot of b roll at my school anyway Seeing your destiel post was so surprising to me please tell me more about your spn opinions I’m so curious I love discourse <3

very long answer so i’ve hidden it under a readmore for the sanity of casual dash scrollers and people who dont care

first off his american voice or his british voice? this is kind of controversial and may seem wild considering i spend a solid chunk of time thinking about what house would be like during sex but i ACTUALLY find him deeply unattractive. i’d love to have his face and wear his skin but never in my life would i consider him a sexual being. he’s too british for it. the only way british people can be sexy is if they are women this is my most political belief on foreign policy. however i do think hugh laurie’s AMERICAN voice is actually very normal and makes him very endearing to me. hilson fic is awesome but honestly!!! most hilson fic for me just does not hit the same unless u can visualize the creepiness with which house looks at wilson. it’s genuinely sickening. he talks about wilson in the softest voice. so many of the most iconic lines in the show just dont HIT the same if u dont listen to the way they’re delivered.

that is SO cool that they shot b roll at ur school though!!! honestly seems like a dream. if i knew i had walked the same halls the house film team had i think i would die. the camerawork on that show is just fucking PHENOMENAL. i could write entire essays fangirling over how they shoot certain scenes but i fear that would be chronically desperately boring

oh man my supernatural opinions… first off disclaimer i have not seen supernatural recently because i am a deeply paranoid individual and prone to delusions and when i first watched the show i genuinely convinced myself that the monsters were real so. i think my most controversial spn opinion would have to be that it’s a PSYCHOLOGICAL THREAT. have you ever met a normal supernatural fan? NOBODY HAS. BECAUSE THE SHOW DRIVES PEOPLE NUTS

other than that my opinions are pretty normal i thiunk. i actually dont have anything at all against destiel even though i am solidly on the wincestie side of fandom. i dont care for the ship and i think it sucks but OBJECTIVELY its a good ship and has strong canon support. i think my hatred comes because i have read SO many destiel fics and have yet to come across a genuinely good one that accurately portrays the characters. i dont understand why an objectively reasonable ship with strong canon support has created some of the middest fic ive ever read in my life. genuinely fascinating. it’s not even that the fic itself is not good or entertaining it just doesn’t feel anything like the actual canon dean and castiel! i have read like two genuinely entertaining destiel fics that felt realistic and BOTH were from authors who primarily write samdean so!!

other controversial spn opinions i have. the “chuck is god” stuff is by far the most entertaining late seasons retcon. objectively ridiculous but so goddamn amusing. i think season 8 and the leviathans was the peak of supernatural. by far the best season in my opinion. plotwise it was not the most believable but i strongly believe that what makes a story good is not it’s logical soundness nor it’s objective value but whether it is ENTERTAINING and COMPELLING and by god the leviathans were both of those things. what a season. also benny and dean were having sex. i loved castiel going insane. OH and i think endverse spn is overhyped both as an episode and in fanon! i did not understand what endverse referred to for so long because i couldnt comprehend that SO MANY PEOPLE could possibly by THAT fanatic over a very mid episode.

not a controversial opinion but rowena is hot. she should've been in every episode for this reason alone. last semester i set up an office meeting with my professor who looked JUST like her to shoot my shot and she literally died before the meeting could happen. i've always felt in my heart that these are related.

[anime-fyi]

The fourth episode of Tomo-chan is a Girl! was a nice set of small, separate stories. Carol and Tatsumi appear to want to be closer to Misuzu but how they go about it isn’t quite effective. Next, Tomo wants to experience a little more friendship with girls, though akin to the earlier stories it doesn’t quote go as planned. And last, we got some time between Junichiro and Tomo, which seems to show they’re incredibly close, and yet still so far from being in a true relationship. This far in, I’m generally sold that this is a solidly entertaining school-based romantic comedy that leans more into the comedy element. The glimmers of romance are here, but it’s quite distant from a lot more friendship elements. Growing curious what progress Tomo and Junichiro will honestly make here, there’s both a huge and non-existent distance to these two being in a relationship but I don’t see yet how they bridge that gap.

[tiggymalvern]

I continue the weekly Burn Notice watch with my friend Sonja. We’re in early season two, which is when it’s solidly become Burn Notice, and she ended our scheduled two episodes this week with, “I really want to watch another one, but I have to go! I have to make dinner!” Cue an evil grin from me XD I first came across Sonja via the Due South fandom around two and a half decades ago. She said, “This series is ridiculously fun escapism,” and I said, “Yes! It reminds me of Due South in some ways, in that it’s manic light entertainment fun, full of snarky dialogue, and every now and then it will crank up the drama and rip your heart out.” Sonja hasn’t reached the ripping your heart out parts yet, but she agreed. “It really is like Due South minus the magical realism.” And it’s funny, but I hadn’t actually put it together before - that the things I love in Burn Notice are so many of the same things I loved in Due South. The bonkers energy, the frenetic pace and crazy shenanigans are so Due South-like. The snarky dialogue between weirdo outliers who latch onto one another and refuse to let go is a feature of literally everything I fall in love with, while the other details vary. But now apparently I’ve come full circle back to the late 90s style of my fannish loves…

[h0rsemn]

I just watched the First episode of Sailor Moon (1992). I don't really know if I can judge the quality quite yet since it's very different from what I usually watch i.e stuff like JJK and ONK, this is much more silly,cute(for lack of a better term) and is more Slice of Life in comparison to those 2. If I had to draw a comparison to another series I'd say it's Kamen Rider for girls (same formula it looks like) but I was solidly entertained despite all that though.

[sealwithfeels]

Spring 2023 Anime Wrap-up

Didn't watch a huge number of anime this season, but enough to have some short reviews, plus some fanart. Some spoilers for Witch From Mercury.

Heavenly Delusion (Tengoku Daimakyou) - the standout of the season, definitely the best of the shows I watched in Spring 2023. Fascinating world thats revealed naturally, characters that feel really and have a great dynamic, slowly unfolding mysteries, excellent animation that even messes with style a bit. Heavy content warnings though, deals with some heavy stuff, in a way I'm not sure I've decided how I feel about it yet. Hoping there will be another season to adapt more. Feels kinda like a combination of The Last Of Us, Made In Abyss and Shinsekai Yori so it was kind of inevitable I'd be into this.

Demon Slayer (Kimetsu no Yaiba) S2: Swordsmith Village arc - great animation, pretty fun, but otherwise standard battle shounen. Still enjoyed it. Though the supporting cast are much more likeable than the Entertainment District arc, the fights felt much more messy, and villains not as cool or interesting. Mitsuri deserved more spotlight though, they did her dirty.

Gundam: Witch From Mercury S2 - such mixed feelings here, as a lot of it is good enjoyable stuff, but then there's also so much blegh. Some interesting characters and conflicts dragged down by a bizarre obsession with focusing on things that don't matter in the end. Really needed to either have a third season do the concepts justice, or to have cut them entirely and focus on what mattered. Guel and Miorine continue to be the best, and Prospera steals the show as a villain. The ending was lackluster, with sudden third faction distracting from the core conflict of the show, sudden asspull power-up to defeat the threat, and generally killing the conflicts and plot threads in a very sudden and rushed way. Suletta and Miorine got married, so there's that, but they didn't kiss and their relationship got shoved to the side in the latter half, so the shipper in me is annoyed.

The Marginal Service - dropped, and the less said about this the better. Just kinda incompetent and boring tbh.

Oshi no Ko- the big hype machine. Absurd but attention-grabbing premise and a memorable first episode, but kinda peters out afterwards. I do think I'd have gotten more out of it if I was into the aspects of the entertainment industry it covered. Aqua was rather boring as a main character, and it was baffling that he had all these girls fawning over him, but it could have been worse. Kinda wish they ditched Aqua and had the whole show about Kana and Akane's acting rivalry instead. Lots ups and downs by episode, never really amazing but far from bad either. Solidly enjoyable, but far from living up to the hype.

[snazzy-specter]

i really don't think y'all need to be as worried as you think

vld is . . . a hot mess that i never finished because the pacing was driving me up the wall, but I really feel like you guys need to remember; everybody has black spots in their careers, especially in entertainment.

that aside, i did research on whose doing what and what they have done and, shock of shocks, one of the showrunners from vld is credited as director, Joaquim Dos Santos. He also worked as a director on Justice League: Unlimited, storyboard artist and director on Avatar: the Last Airbender, and has some other directing credits.

the other two credited directors are Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson. Powers doesn't have a huge fimography, he seems to only have film credits in 2012, but those credits include One Night in Miami, which he wrote the original play and the adapatation, and it kinda got him a Best Adapted Screenplay nomination. And if you're worried he has not animation experience, he also happened to be a writer and co-director on Pixar's Soul. and he has experience in franchise material, and is credited as writing 5 episodes of Star Trek: Discovery. I've heard kinda mixed things about Discovery, but again, no one has a perfect track record.

Thompson has more credits that include a fair amount of work in the Art Department of various shows and movies. and he also worked on the last Spiderverse film as a production designer.

also, the director of a film is not indicative of a projects final results. Santos was mainly a producer for vld. he has two directing credits, one art department credit for storyboarding, and two writing credits, one of which is one of IMDb's highest rated episode.

it's worth noting the guy with the most writing credits (not staff writer credits), Joshua Hamilton, has a, frankly, kind of middling career, and i don't feel like dwelling. check his IMDb if you feel like it

meanwhile, Phil Lord is back from the first movie and is joined by his frequent collaborator and guy he has to share a wikipedia page with, Christopher Miller, who was just a producer on the last film. for some reason, i get the feeling they don't need an introduction, but just in case, they also wrote and directed Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and The Lego Movie together. do with that information what you will.

personally, i'm more concerned about the other credited writer, David Callaham, as his credits include the screenplay for Doom (2005), Wonder Woman 1984, and Mortal Kombat (2021), which was beaten at the box office by Demon Slayer: Mugen Train in the second and third weekend of its release. that said, he is also credited as a co-writer for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, so again, make of that what you will.

and for anyone who thinks i'm being too optimistic, let me pull out my oldest fandom card and bring up Danny Phantom, which Butch Hartman desperately wants you to think he was responsible for. yes, Hartman created the concept, but he's only credited for writing seven episodes, one of which being the series finale that fans have rather infamously hated for literal years (it's cooled down, but i saw that shit as recently as 2012). he also has one additional story credit for the episode Splitting Images, which, yeah i can see that.

meanwhile, the guy credited as the series developer in thirty-one episodes, Steve Marmel, has fourteen story credits and nine writing credits by my count, and one of those is the highest rated episode that also got a video game tie-in, The Ultimate Enemy.

even with that praise i've given Marmel, i'd still argue he's had a solidly OK career, which i would also say of Marty Isenberg, who has fourteen writing credits and Sib Ventress, who has nineteen writing credits.

the point i'm trying to make is that media like film and television is a collaborative medium. every participant has some black spots on their resume. looking at everyone's track records, i'd said Across the Spiderverse is in mostly good hands. and the one guy i'm worried about isn't the one who worked on vld, which frankly, i think is just kinda a show that started strong and fumbled that execution towards the end into mediocrity.

just remembered the v*ltron showrunners are directing the into the spiderverse sequels

[warm-soda-solutions]

SUMMER ANIME FIRST IMPRESSIONS/RANKING WOW!!!!!!!

bunch of shows are coming out and i'm watching some of them!!!!! now that each show has 3+ eps i'm gonna rank them from worst to best by my enjoyment of them so far. 12. My Deer Friend Nokotan: probably a controversial pick for last place but i dropped this one after 2 eps because it was painfully unfunny and also not nearly as wacky as i was hoping it would be.

11. Days With My Stepsister: i don't get the generally positive reception this show was getting. dropped after 1 ep because it was real boring. this kind of premise is trashy no matter how you try to dress it up, and doing that rather than leaning into the trashy aspects like Domestic Girlfriend makes this show a lot less entertaining than that one. essentially this is a trashy show pretending to not be one and i dislike that sort of thing greatly. 10. Narenare -Cheer for you!- : dropped this one after 2 eps because it still wasn't really clear what the motivations of the protagonist were or where the plot might go. felt like it was juggling too many characters and i wasn't super interested in any of them. parkour was cool though. big gap in quality between the bottom two and this one. 9. ATRI -My Dear Moments- : dropped after 1 episode not because it was bad, it was honestly pretty solid, but because i found the whole robot girl thing to be done in a way that's kinda cliche and uninteresting to me. definitely check this out if you want a Key-esque thing but other shows were just more interesting to me.

8. Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin: this is where we get to shows i'm actually still keeping up with, and this one is just a cute little farming show. i like the character designs and the world a lot, but i'm pretty mixed on the characters themselves and the focus on rice farming after the premiere is expected and done solidly but also not quite as interesting to me as the more fantastical elements from the premiere. unsure if i want to stick with this the whole way through 7. Wistoria: Wand and Sword: absolutely killer visuals and music elevate a very generic Harry Potter/Mashle/Black Clover thing into a solidly enjoyable spectacle. if this were at all dumb or annoying i'd probably drop it but it's fairly inoffensive when it comes to dumb anime bs surprisingly.

6. The Elusive Samurai: some of the best art and animation i have ever seen in a TV anime (less so in the newer episode for justifiable reasons) and a very solid premise mixed with some awful, tonally dissonant humor and not super interesting characters so far. thankfully it seems like the show is getting the humor in check but it's gonna have to keep up the good elements of the story and the quality of the animation to keep me watching. 5. Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines!: this one is mostly a very good romcom so far with a great, kinda grounded visual style that i really like. the op and ed here are also both fantastic. i think this shows's got a really good sense of comedic timing and a very likeable cast of dorks so i generally feel quite positive on it BUT i'm worried it could very easily become some garbage-y wish fulfillment harem stuff, and an awful, out of place fanservice scene in episode 2 has made me highly suspicious of the show's direction in the future. if this stays good, which it so far has, i will keep watching, and if it doesn't i will not. 4. Senpai is an Otokonoko: this is kind of the unexpected sleeper hit of the season for me. i was worried going into this one that it would handle its subject matter poorly since i don't really trust most anime to handle LGBTQ+ issues sensitively or all that well in general (not that i can particularly speak to this personally). however, it turned out to be mostly very good in that area and all the characters are quite layered and enjoyable. it's a great mix of fun slice of life shenanigans, a little bit of romance, and some surprisingly compelling if somewhat too quickly paced character drama. likely sticking with this one all the way through. 3. Mayonaka Punch: just a super fun romp about making YouTube videos from a lot of the same people behind Ya Boi Kongming, which i also loved. i think this show's got a really strong sense of style visually, and i enjoy getting an anime where the protagonist is actually an adult, i feel like that sort of thing is far too rare. every character here is fun in their own way, and the show seems intent on meaningfully developing them as well. i also like that the protagonist is really not a great person, so i'm curious how she'll change over the course of the show. 2. TASUKETSU -Fate of the Majority- : this show sucks really really bad but it's so unintentionally funny that it's easily one of my favorites of the season. the combination of an edgy nonsense premise, beyblade looking characters, limited animation, and completely out of control pacing make for the most fun i've had with a trainwreck of a show since EX-ARM. this honestly might be at number 1 if it weren't for the pacing grinding to a halt for no reason in the 4th episode, but even that just kinda adds to the fascination of this show. 1. SHOSHIMIN: How to become Ordinary: i really like Hyouka, so unsurprisingly this is my favorite of the season so far by a decent margin. it's a ton of fun to watch the two leads solve such incredibly mundane mysteries. you'd expect that kind of thing to be boring but the characters and direction work really well together to make it actually super engaging. i also love that the leads are something of a mystery themselves, with the audience slowly learning more and more about why they are the way they are each episode. it seems like it's just beginning to get to some even meatier character stuff so i'm very excited for that. i also really love the ED for this show, the live action settings with the anime characters just fits the whole show's vibe so well.

[grimmmviewing]

S1E14: “Plumed Serpent”—C/C+ (Watched 3/30/24)

“Til then, you might as well go home and get a little… rest.”

Now here is the (sort of) continuation of the Nick and Juliette conflict from “Last Grimm Standing,” in the sense that a certain rockiness in their relationship is the focus. It needs to be said, though, that doing this sort of episode with a temptress/stalker character endangering their relationship was a pretty obvious avenue to take. I more or less guessed that was the angle from the description alone (“Nick’s latest case threatens his relationship with Juliette”). It would have been more surprising to not do a story like this at some point!

Ariel is clearly written to fulfill this role from her very first verbal interaction with Nick as well, which makes the obvious trope-y-ness even more annoying. The fact that the parallels between Juliette’s eventual abduction by the draconic villains of the week and the classic damsel abducted by a dragon scenario are explicitly acknowledged by Monroe in terms of archetypes further undermines some of the cleverness of the situation. It’s not exactly deeply-hidden to begin with.

It’s not that the episode is without fun or deft touches: The concept of a dragon expelling a biological accelerant created from its own fat before breathing fire grounds the fantastical just enough in the plausible to make it cool/satisfying. I was not expecting the link to ketosis and the keto diet reference in Monroe’s explanation of the process, though. In a similar way, the real-world issue of people stealing copper for profit gets twisted to tie in with the draconic treasure obsession, and it results in some fun designs for the father’s and daughter’s respective living spaces—his junk-strewn cave with its ominous entrance, and her house with the many roof rods and an interior that’s eventually revealed to be positively wrapped in strands that curl across the ceiling. Replacing a pile of gold with something more modern and accessible while still being valuable was a solidly subversive idea.

These are fun visuals that resonate with the creatures’ fantastical nature and that also represent a certain continued care and attention to detail in the series overall. They could have just had a traditional house or cave with maybe a bunch of jewelry or bits and pieces of copper, but both are instead dressed with some intricate-feeling care that no doubt made the filming process some degree more complicated. The visual of the father’s little junk-accentuated, downright Mad Maxian, cart that he drives along the train tracks was also cool and fun in this same vein. And ditto a certain prominent warm/orange slant to the lighting (reminiscent of fire) in this episode as well.

When I break “Plumed Serpent” down into the little details or moments, that’s when I start to feel much more positively about it. There’s that sense of something like care, again, where the creators clearly know how to make fun or cute moments happen. Take Nick initially finding Monroe at the club watching Ariel perform her sexy fire dance show—It’s a subversion of the standard arrangement where he’s just at home, essentially waiting to dispense information, and it also results in him being embarrassed about having been caught patronizing such an establishment. It speeds the episode along thanks to the convenience but also creates something warm and entertaining as well with the two characters.

Monroe finally getting to meet Juliette is also well-handled, despite the brevity of their interactions, and the relationship drama’s climactic conversation in the car, post-rescue, also feels quite thoughtful and relatively grounded given the events that led to it. Although the writing can be heavily expositional or “fast” out of the necessity of fitting everything into 40 minutes, I’d go so far as to say the characterization is probably consistently the best part of the show and that it’s a shame it ends up subservient to a monster-of-the-week plot here that just feels kind of meh to me.

I really loved how Nick immediately calls Juliette to tell her when he has to go back to Ariel’s again to get out in front of any further misunderstandings. He assures her that Hank is coming too and has Hank speak into the phone himself to confirm it. I’d say that this earnestness is both a lot of fun but also maybe a weakness—that the writers do (at least for the time being) treat the Nick-Juliette relationship as sacrosanct rather than, say, making Ariel less of a Crazy Stalker and over-the-top sexpot and instead pitching her as an actual, serious option, even if only in passing, in ways that could have enhanced the conflict. After all, she doesn’t have Juliette’s ignorance of Nick’s true nature or her human frailty and, unlike other Wesen, she doesn’t see him as a threat. Maybe it’s actually a shame that fascination is so obviously leading somewhere negative from the jump…

(Also, I don’t feel like you should be allowed to use a Baldwin (Daniel, here) in an inconsequential part like they do in this episode. The face and voice are just too distinctive to blend seamlessly into the passing impressions these types of characters need to leave. Or maybe he was supposed to be a red herring, as I thought there was no way he didn’t have some further relevance to the plot, only to be completely wrong about that.)

[zalrb]

Watching SATC is so bizarre because there’s some episode that are just there for background entertainment, others that are completely outdated and just ew, and then others where the writing is incredibly good and make me understand why it was such a big deal.

And obviously that’s normal for shows , but the gap in SATC isn’t even seasons it’s like episodes like outside of s5 that’s solidly bad (i know this bc i literally slept through it), everything else is too much of a mixed bad

I'm curious, which episodes do you think are incredibly good?

[honeyleesblog]

July 15 Zodiac - Full Horoscope Personality

They believe that everybody should know them and gain general appreciation, yet they act modestly, as though they wouldn't fret drawing in the consideration of others. Thrifty, exceptionally moderate in their perspectives, they solidly stick to their standards. Heartfelt and frequently profound individuals, their minds are bizarrely created. In spite of the fact that their impact draws in others, they don't generally live together as one with their current circumstance. They are fairly bizarre naturally, and others can't necessarily comprehend what they endlessly don't need, which makes them mistaking for the climate. They appear to be viewed as an enigma, yet nothing could be further from reality. They are extremely delicate individuals who get profound effectively, exceptionally close to home, removed, to some degree bashful yet exceptionally joined to their objectives. Its most trademark include is its alterable mind-sets. They can likewise show huge peevishness, responsiveness, and apprehension, as long as they don't figure out how to control their impulses and temperaments. The weaknesses of this birthday: When such an individual isn't grown, then, at that point, his spirit turns into an assortment of insignificant impulses. Then, at that point, she becomes shaky and hesitant, particularly in everything connected with her sentiments and encounters. Be that as it may, when he arrives at a higher moral level, he starts to figure out how to control his emotional episodes and creates incredible resolution. These individuals seek after their objectives with industriousness and steadiness, and they accomplish them through politeness or ability or through applause and conviction, which they apply masterfully. [subtitle id="attachment_19058" align="aligncenter" width="612"]July 15. Schedule Symbol with long shadow in a Level Plan style. Day to day schedule separated on blue foundation. Vector Representation (EPS10, very much layered and assembled). Simple to alter, control, resize or colorize.[/caption] Zodiac sign for those brought into the world on July 15 On the off chance that your birthday is July 15, your zodiac sign is Malignant growth July 15 Zodiac - Full Horoscope Personality

  character: respectful, earnest, able, abominable, forceful, discourteous calling: secretary, orthopedist, performer tones: orange, green, yellow stone: emerald creature: coyote plant: hackberry fortunate numbers: 29,39,44,46,57,59 very fortunate number: 34 Occasions and observances - July 15 World Youth Abilities Day July 15 VIP birthday celebrations. Who was conceived that very day as you? 1905: Enrique Laguerre, Puerto Rican author (d. 2005). 1909: William Cochran, Scottish analyst (d. 1980). 1913: Darrell Spat, American author (d. 2001). 1915: Manuel Giდºdice, Argentine soccer player (d. 1983). 1917: Juan Bonet, Spanish columnist and author (d. 1991). 1917: Nur Mohammad Taraki, Afghan scholarly, progressive and legislator (d. 1979). 1918: Bertram Neville Brockhouse, Canadian physicist, 1994 Nobel laureate in physical science (f. 2003). 1919: Argimiro Gabaldდ³n, teacher, painter and Venezuelan guerrilla (f. 1964). 1919: Iris Murdoch, Irish essayist and thinker (d. 1999). 1921: Robert Bruce Merrifield, American natural chemist, 1984 Nobel Prize victor in science (d. 2006). 1922: Leon Max Lederman, American physicist, Nobel laureate in material science in 1988. 1923: Anilda Leao, Brazilian artist, essayist, women's activist lobbyist, entertainer and vocalist (d. 2012). 1925: Philip Carey, American entertainer (d. 2009). 1925: Josep Mussons, money manager and Spanish games pioneer. 1925: DA Pennebaker, American movie producer and narrative creator. 1926: Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentine military and despot (f. 2003). 1927: Luis Dდ¡vila, Argentine entertainer (f. 1998). 1927: Carmen Zapata, American entertainer (d. 2014). 1928: Carl Woese, American microbiologist. 1930: Jacques Derridდ¡, French savant (d. 2004). 1930: Stephen Smale, American mathematician. 1931: Clive Cussler, American author. 1932: Josდ© Antonio Echeverrდ­a, understudy pioneer and Cuban progressive (d. 1957); killed by the Batista autocracy. 1933: Julian Bream, English guitarist and lute player. 1933: Guido Crepax, Italian artist and illustrator (d. 2003). 1934: Harrison Birtwistle, English author. 1935: Vდ­ctor Female horses, Mexican entertainer (d. 2000). 1937: Horacio Garcდ­a Blanco, Argentine games writer (f. 2002). 1939: Anდ­bal Cavaco Silva, Portuguese lawmaker. 1941: Rodolfo Fogwill, Argentine author (d. 2010). 1942: Mil Mდ¡scaras (Aarდ³n Rodrდ­guez Arellano), Mexican expert grappler. 1942: Vivian Malone Jones, American social equality dissident. 1943: Jocelyn Chime Burnell, Northern Irish astrophysicist. 1944: Millie Jackson, American vocalist. 1946: Muda Hassanal Bolkiak, Bruneian king. 1946: Linda Ronstadt, American vocalist. 1947: Peter Banks, English guitarist, of the band Yes (d. 2013). 1947: Trevor Horn, English performer, of the band The Buggles. 1949: Carl Bildt, Swedish lawmaker. 1951: Jesse Ventura, ex-grappler and American lawmaker. 1951: Gregory Isaacs, Jamaican artist (d. 2010). 1952: Terry O'Quinn, American entertainer. 1952: Johnny Roars, artist and guitarist, of the band New York Dolls (f. 1991). 1953: Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haitian progressive lawmaker and minister, leader of his country. 1953: Alicia Scaffolds, American artist. 1954: Mario Alberto Kempes, Argentine footballer. 1955: Carlos Iglesias, Spanish entertainer and chief. 1956: Ian Curtis, English artist, of the band Satisfaction Division (d. 1980). 1956: Antonio Fernდ¡ndez Garcდ­a, Spanish lawmaker. 1956: Marky Ramone, American drummer, of the band The Ramones. 1956: Joe Satriani, virtuoso American guitarist. 1959: Vincent Lindon, French entertainer. 1961: Woodland Whitaker, American entertainer and producer. 1963: Brigitte Nielsen, Danish entertainer. 1966: Amanda Foreman, American entertainer. 1966: Irene Jacob, French-Swiss entertainer and vocalist. 1966: Jason Bonham, English drummer, child of drummer John Bonham. 1967: Adam Savage, American TV have. 1968: Leticia Calderდ³n, Mexican entertainer. 1970: Chi Cheng, American bassist for the band Deftones. 1971: Iosu Olalla, Spanish handball player. 1973: Buju Banton Jamaican reggae vocalist. 1973: Mario Kempes Argentine footballer. 1973: John Dolmayan, Lebanese drummer, of the band Arrangement of a Down. 1976: Jim Jones, American rapper. 1976: Diane Kruger, German entertainer and model. 1976: Marco Di Vaio, Italian footballer. 1977: Lana Parrilla, American entertainer. 1977: Beam Toro, American guitarist, of the band My Synthetic Sentiment. 1978: Josდ© Antonio Delgado, Spanish artist lyricist. 1979: Travis Fimmel, Australian entertainer and model. 1979: Alexander Frei, Swiss footballer. 1980: Erika Sanz, Spanish entertainer and artist. 1981: Josდ© Marდ­a Calvo, Argentine footballer. 1981: Issa Gadala, Dominican artist lyricist. 1981: Peter Odemwingie, Nigerian footballer. 1981: Taylor Kinney, American entertainer and model. 1982: Jerდ³nimo Figueroa, "Momo", Spanish footballer. 1982: Aდ­da Yდ©spica, model and character on Venezuelan TV. 1990: Olly Alexander, English entertainer, artist and musician, of the band Years and Years. 1992: Koharu Kusumi, Japanese voice entertainer and artist, of the band Morning Musume. 1992: Watchman Robinson, American DJ and electronic music maker.