#also i love when the show does casual references to hockey

[parvuls]

@missellewoods wrote this post, and i wanted to respond to it, but i also didn’t want to add a thesis-length response to their post. the post was about the complexity of the parse iii scene, and i highly encourage looking at it before reading this, because it’s a direct response. 

i wasn’t sure i was gonna do it, but i’m fascinated with jack’s pov, so.

(transcripts from parse i-iii, plus visual cues from lva@pvd i)

[jack turns around, obviously unhappy/startled] "kent." "hey, zimms. didja miss me?" [smirks]

so parse shows up at the haus for the second time, after jack’s seen him last in either freshman or sophomore year. jack is not happy to see him. this is probably the part the remains the most ambiguous to us as an audience, because it leads up to parse iii: shitty’s story about parse’s first appearance is supposed to make us think that jack is jealous, and that he’s holding a grudge because parse is living his dream while he’s at samwell. however, this story isn’t included to give us more information about jack’s psych -- it is, after all, what we expect from jack after his year 1 arc -- it’s there so the impact of parse iii is more significant. it’s the first time we’re given reason to doubt jack’s heterosexuality and are given an actual glimpse to jack’s past since ‘the hockey prince’.

so is shitty’s story true? obviously ngozi is playing with the narrative here: smh all claim parse is a modest, super nice bro, but then we hear how he talks to jack in parse iii. meaning, ngozi is telling us: believe no one. you can’t actually know what he’s like, or what jack and he are like.

so our scene begins with jack, 1) either upset because his former friend shows up and triggers his intense jealousy, or 2) is upset because his former flame shows up and triggers unresolved feelings. honestly, in my opinion, jack himself isn’t sure which one it is. which is a great set up for the unfolding of the next scene.

[jack and parse are talking about jack’s nhl plans]

"...you have no clue?" "i mean... it could be montreal, it could be l.a. okay? i don't know." "...what about las vegas?" "i... i don't know, okay?" "..." [parse probably moves closer/tries to kiss him] "pars---" "..." "..." [whispered] "--kenny... i can't do this." "...jack. come on."

their conversation starts out relatively neutrally. we’re given enough clues from this update and the future of omgcp to deduce that parse isn’t over what he and jack had. this is also the very reason they don’t work and why this conversation takes a sharp turn downwards from here: parse equates his feelings and whatever sexual/romantic connection they had to the chemistry they had on the ice. to him, jack leaving him and going to play for some obscure college is just as upsetting as their ‘thing’ ending. parse spends most of this scene trying to convince jack to come play with him in lv -- the only reason we even know it’s in some way romantic is because of his reaction to the Cup Kiss in year 3. otherwise, he makes it sound like he misses jack as a liney and best friend, maybe as a sexual partner.

but the catch is, jack was in a really bad place when they were playing together, and he doesn’t want that back. does parse know how bad things were? does parse know about jack’s anxiety? how well does parse know jack, really? this is all kept intentionally hidden from us. you could say that they were best friends, so it’s reasonable that parse knew all of this (thus painting his character in a much worse light), or you could say shitty is jack’s best friend and he still didn’t know major things about him. ngozi doesn’t want us to be able to tell how aware or not aware parse is.

so in the beginning of this scene, we’re on the edge of an inevitable cliff. parse wants jack back, as a friend/flame and as a teammate, and jack’s obviously torn. he doesn’t push parse away immediately, but he also doesn’t consent. my opinion is that jack is torn between his old dream (all his 18-year-old self wanted was to play in the nhl with parse, and win win win), and knowing this isn’t what he wants. but does not wanting that necessarily means he doesn’t want parse himself? jack’s obviously not sure, because he lets parse corner him/kiss him before he decides it isn’t right. 

if anyone here has ever met an old flame, especially someone who was bad for you but you cared for for a long time, you’ll know how easy it is to fall into patterns. for a moment the idea of having that all again is so enticing. but then the illusion shatters, and...

"no, i-- ...uh." [and then much louder] "kenny--" "--zimms, just fucking stop thinking for once and listen to me. i'll tell the gms you're on board and they can free up cap space. then you can be done with this shitty team. you and me --" "get out."

here is the most important part of this scene in my opinion. kent doesn’t know jack anymore. anyone on the face of the planet could tell you that jack is a hardass, that he’s tough on his teammates, that his dream is the nhl. but jack loves his team. he didn’t necessarily always know how to be their friend, but he certainly doesn’t think of them as a ‘shitty team’ he’s stuck with.

and parse makes the mistake of shattering the illusion he’s built (with the clever use of the wording ‘shitty’, which probably reminds jack of the friends he has now). jack wakes up from the dream he had when he was 18 and comes back to reality: he’s samwell men’s hockey team’s captain, he cares for his team, and his new dream is to win the ncaa championship and go to the nhl. he doesn’t want this thing parse is offering him, because the person he’s offering it to isn’t him anymore.

and here is the first twist of this scene that op is referring to: jack starts to get angry.

"--jack." "you can't-- you can't come to my fucking school unannounced --" "--because you shut me out--" "--and corner me in my room--" "--i'm trying to help--" "--and expect me to do whatever you want--" "FUCK -- JACK!!! what do yo want me to say? that i miss you?” [twists his fingers in jack’s shirt, crowding into jack’s space. jack turns away, frowning angrily] “i miss you, okay? ...i miss you."

does parse really miss jack, or is it a ploy? honestly, i think the facial expressions we’re privy to in year 3 hint that he really means that. he misses jack. he doesn’t necessarily miss the current jack (it’s likely that he’s stuck on the fantasy of what they had when they were younger), but he means what he says. he wants jack back.

but jack is angry, because parse is complicating things for him. they were talking about playing together, and then parse insulted his choices, and now parse is talking about being together, and jack -- who took A YEAR PLUS to figure out his feelings for bitty -- probably has a hard time handling all of these things at once. for parse there’s nothing complicated here: the jack he knows wouldn’t want to play for a college team (therefore, =shitty team), and playing with jack=being with jack. 

for jack none of these things work like that anymore. they’ve grown too far apart.

"...you always say that." "...huh. well, shit. okay. ...you know what, zimmermann? you think you're too fucked up to care about? that you're not good enough? everyone already knows what you are but it's people like me who still care."

and... okay. so things go south now, and quickly. if you’re a parse stan... honestly, i hope you’re a parse stan who’s aware parse needs a shit ton of therapy. 

jack insults parse, whether intentionally or unintentionally, by being casual about parse’s declarations of feelings. to be fair, jack thinks parse was playing dirty. but parse doesn’t see it like that, so he’s offended, and apparently when he’s offended he gets angry and lashes out.

now. the unfortunate thing about knowing someone at their most vulnerable time is that you also know exactly how to kick them down to their lowest. we all hurt our loved ones the most, because we know them the best. but parse doesn’t just hurt jack here: he goes for the jugular. he kicks jack and then makes sure he stays down. and this is actually the most we see parse say in the whole comic, so... we can’t judge parse as a whole person, but. i’m sorry. he’s definitely not a good friend to jack.

(how bad of a friend? depends on how aware he was of jack’s anxiety and thoughts and feelings. if he was aware, this is a highly emotionally abusive thing to do. if he wasn’t aware, he was just being a shitty friend. either way, parse needs therapy, because he’s holding on to a lot of anger and is expressing it in a really awful way. but we can’t analyze him any further as a character because parse is not the focus of this story and we don’t know anything more about him.)

[faintly] "--shut up--" "--you're scared everyone else is going to find out you're worthless, right? oh, don't worry, just give it a few seasons, jack. trust me." [probably begins shaking] "...g-get out of my room." "fine. shut me out again." "and stay-... stay away from my team." "why? afraid i'll tell them something?" [voice growing stronger] "leave, parse." [door opening; jack and parse are surprised to find bitty outside the door. jack is visibly shaking, holding the attack at bay]

op asked how jack’s anger turns into a full blown panic attack. the answer is parse goes for his weak points faster than jack can prepare himself, just when jack was open for an attack. he calls jack ‘worthless’, which is jack’s second worst fear, and then (probably) tries for the sexuality angle. it’s unclear whether he’s threatening to out jack or to tell the team about his substance problems, but more likely the former, because the latter was all over the news.

parse is clearly upset here. is he just angry for being rejected? is he humiliated? is he heartbroken? we don’t know. the only hint we have is ‘shut me out again’, which implies he’s at least still upset about jack cutting him off after the draft. what we do know is that jack, with the last shreds of his will power, tries to defend his team. tries to cling on to the idea that he knows there are people who believe in him (this is very hard under the cloud of anxiety).

either way, jack’s panic isn’t even about parse or what parse used to be -- it’s just that parse knows where to press.

[parse clears throat, putting his indifferent mask back on] "hey. well. call me if you reconsider or whatever. but good luck with the falconers." [lands the final blow] "...i'm sure that'll make your dad proud." [jack's panic attack takes over. he retreats to his room, slams the door, and slides down to curl into himself on the floor for an undetermined amount of time]

and then parse, in front of jack’s teammate, lands the worst punch he has in his arsenal. jack’s worst fear. disappointing his dad.

jack spent all of year 2 talking to nhl teams and being watched by scouts and negotiating contracts, and consulting with his dad and his teammates to make a decision. he’s not sure about the falconers until much later, but he obviously leans towards them. which is a whole essay in and of itself: jack leans towards the falconers, a smaller, younger team with no cups, but with a lot of potential and good people and something to prove. this is a metaphor for jack’s growth as a character. he could go for a more established team to look good in front of the world, or pick a winning-streak team like the aces to feed into his anxiety. parse is taunting him with his own growth, making him doubt himself: you think you can change? you think you can really be someone new after playing in some college team? if you’re not who you were when you were 18 and first-pick at the draft (before you ruined everything for yourself and ended up here), you’re no one. and your dad will never be proud of you.

[end scene.]

[solitaria-fantasma]

Zap Attack

*still vibing to the opening theme*

Animation school may have ruined me a bit for cartoons bc I keep meerkating out of my childish immersion to go ‘hey! I know that technique!’ 

How long have the ducks been on Earth at this point? When did Tanya go to ‘Lectric Land/meet Dr. Hookerman?

Also….’Hookerman’? Really Disney???

As a kid I didn’t really appreciate the consistent differences in body shape between Tanya and Mallory, but by gosh do I appreciate it now

Dragonus: “DON’T go in blasting.”

Chameleon: “Go in blasting, got it, boss!”

I’m still too young to really understand Chameleon’s shapeshifting cameo references

What do the human authorities think of the ducks just showing up, fighting alien lizards in a government parking lot, and then blasting off to play hockey? Is there anything they really CAN do?

Does anyone else see a very strong resemblance between Dragonus’ electric creature and Kremzeek from the 80s Transformers cartoon? No? Just me thinking up crossover vibes? Oh well…

I actually have to look this up now. IS it considered a legal goal if the shot knocks the goalie clean off their skates AND dislodges the goal simultaneously?

Edit: I can’t find any rule against it, so it looks like it’s legal!

Electricity generates an awful lot of heat - how is this creature not melting the ice as it zips around?

Alright, the ducks just did their superhero change in the middle of the ice, mid-game, in front of a packed house. Any hope of them being any kind of secret in-universe is completely gone now.

Oooh, we’ve got a modern sci-fi hydra situation going on! That’s a cool take!

Yo kudos to those two humans who’s first reaction upon seeing these crackling, jabbering, electricity goblins is to square up with whatever they had on hand.

Do the human police just lock up the precinct when there’s duck-related shenanigans happening in this city? You hardly see anyone out on the streets, so I can only imagine that the citizens see the ducks all armed up and say “You know what? It’s a lovely day to stay inside let’s use some of that PTO I’ve got saved up”.

Klegghorn is going to have an aneurysm over that exploded tanker…

Dr. Hookerman calmed right tf down when Grim kicked in his door and he realized it was Tanya knocking. As if there are other humanoid alien ducks he could confuse her for.

Did they change Thrash’s design from the pilot? I didn’t realize he was plus size. I like that!

“Help your fellow man or I’ll rearrange your face.” why Grim! I didn’t know you had it in you!

Nosedive has a tear in the thigh of his suit that stays consistent in size and placement for the rest of the episode. Not a high bar for animation, but a nice bit of consistency that some kid’s shows didn’t always bother with.

Oh wow that is a LOT of little zappy creatures. We only see they multiply a few times onscreen - where did they all come from?!

The ducks can just casually listen in on private government broadcast signals. The military is totally okay with this, I’m sure.

The ducks kick in the door of the control room for a powerful government space laser with a hermit scientist, and the human employees are just startled, at best.

“What faith in humanity? You’ve restored my faith in ducks!” You know what Dr. Hookerman? That’s valid. Enjoy your self-imposed island isolation.

How does Dragonus get anything done with those ridiculous thumb talons? Good lord, man, go get a manicure, or something.

The ducks turning the last remaining energy creature back against Dragonus - karma at its finest!

[365days365movies]

January 6, 2021: Last Action Hero (1993) (Part 1)

Let’s have some fun, shall we?

Comedy is my favorite genre, and I obviously also love action. So, when looking at the subgenres to cover this month, action-comedy most certainly was at the top of the list. But what exactly is action-comedy?

Exactly what it sounds like, funnily enough. Action-comedies rely on physical action sequences to further the plot, but also inject dialogue with humor and jokes throughout the script. Entertainment and amusement combined into one beautiful, succinct package. I’ll be judging the writing for these movies on how much they made me laugh while watching it. That said...

OK, so, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Last Action Hero. Schwarzenegger isn’t exactly the most emotionally expressive actor in the world, as you’ve probably noticed. And expressiveness is somewhat necessary to express humor. Look at Eddie Murphy up there, and see how expressive he is. Schwarzenegger...doesn’t have that. At all. But, this movie could still be funny! Shane Black wrote it, and he wrote one of my favorite guilty pleasure Halloween movies, The Monster Squad. So, I’m looking forward to this movie for that in and of itself. And with that...

 Recap

We start with a sick guitar lick on Christmas Day, as a group of cops close in on a criminal known as the Ripper holding children hostage at an elementary school. But then...Jack Slater (played, naturally, by Arnold Schwarzenegger) arrives. And yes, this is a parody character and scene, meant to lambast all of the stereotypical renegade cop tropes that I’ve literally never seen in a movie. Like, I guess Lethal Weapon and Beverly Hills Cop have it, but I think this character concept has been Flanderized into...well...Jack Slater.

Slater kicks a cop through a window with a Schwarzenegger-esque action line, and CRUSHES A RADIO LIKE A NAPKIN. I appreciate Schwarzenegger making fun of himself like this, and we’ve only just begun. Jack goes through banter with the Ripper (Tom Noonan), who...is unironically terrifying. Holy shit, that guy is creepy as fuck, and his stylized ax is intimidating as hell. And as he holds Slater’s son hostage out of revenge, the two face off with some cool action beats, and...

...Shit, I think I want to watch this movie. And I don’t mean Last Action Hero, I mean the in-universe movie that our actual main character, Danny Madigan (Austin O’Brien) is watching. Danny’s a big Jack Slater fan, and one of the only patrons of a movie theater owned by Nick (Robert Prosky). Nick, a kind old man, invites Danny to see the next Slater film before anybody else. And honestly, I get it. I’d watch this movie series unironically if it existed, real talk. Mostly because it seems fun.

Danny’s skipped school just to see this movie, and he walks into his English class, where the teacher shows Lawrence Olivier as Hamlet. Fun fact! The English teacher showing it is played by Joanne Plowright, Olivier’s real life wife! Very sweet! Anyway, Danny, bored by a goddamn classic movie, conjures a different movie in his head.

Fuck yes. I need this movie to exist. 

We learn from Danny’s mother (Mercedes Ruehl) that his father has recently died, and he spends far too much of his time watching movies at Nick’s theater. I look forward to this revelation never being explored. As he’s headed to the theater when he isn’t supposed to, he opens the door at the exact wrong time, and A ROBBER BREAKS INTO HIS PLACE, OH SHIT! Confronted with the type of real danger that he’d see in an action movie, and with no action hero to save him, the robber finds nothing of value and leaves the place. He gets rescued by the cops eventually, and they tell him to go home. But, no, he goes...to the movies.

Mom might have a point there, sport.

While he’s there, Nick brings him in, and begins to monologue to him about his past in the theater business. And that monologue introduces the MacGuffin of the film: the Golden Ticket, given to Nick by Houdini himself, and an alleged portal to another world.

So, is this gonna be more of a Pagemaster situation, or a The NeverEnding Story deal? The Golden Ticket is torn for admission, Danny sits down, and the movie-in-a-movie begins in earnest. In the film, Slater’s cousin Frank (Art Carney in his last film role) is being held hostage by the crime boss Vivaldi (Anthony Quinn), and his henchman...one of the most immediately visually interesting characters I’ve ever seen in a film...in a FILM.

Benedict (played by Charles Dance), is immediately a fascinating character, essentially a non-Marvel Bullseye, and a gunsman with flawless precision. And yeah...I dig it. Oh, how I dig it.

Jack Slater arrives in his snakeskin boots, and discovers Frank, who delivers a message in the cheesiest death sequence I’ve ever seen, followed by the cheesiest bomb compound I’ve ever seen, followed by a bigger explosion than anyone would’ve expected, FOLLOWED by...OK, look, the references to other action movies in this are already ridiculous and all over the place, and I refuse to spoil them all for those of you who’ve never seen this movie.

By the way, I gotta make a comment about Danny real quick. Watching this many action movies may have made him a little...detached...from reality. I say this because he expressed no shock or emotion during or after the robbery, then went immediately to the movie theater, and had no reaction whatsoever about the death of the two cops in the movie. Little budding sociopath, that Danny.

Although, that might change, now that the ticket’s getting all magic-y, and a stick of ACME dynamite (actually in the film, I swear) makes its way into the theater. It explodes, and Danny inexplicably (magically, even) finds himself in the movie. So, Pagemaster, then.

Danny’s complete lack of reaction and emotion in this situation confirms my theory on him being a liiiiiiiiiiittle detached from reality. But then...the most gloriously stupid thing I’ve seen this month happens.

Arnold proceeds to make a pun that is NOT “Nasty brainfreeze,” and I am disappointed forever. Who wrote this? Who wrote this?

We get a car chase fueled with jumps, gunfire, puns, a casual mention of premature ejaculation, and Coca Cola product placement, all accompanied by Danny finally showing a modicum of reaction to the fact that he is IN A FUCKING MOVIE. REACT MORE, DANNY. At his age, I would have soiled myself immediately. At MY age, I would soil myself if this happened to me! Anyway...

OK, I just have to say this now: this movie has some of the most insane shots and set-ups that I’ve ever seen, and by GOD, I am here for it. Like...Did you SEE the motorcycle dress girl panic while a man WAS ON FIRE IN THE BACKGROUND? Earlier, a car does an INSANE jump and crash and explodes in the BACKGROUND, and the movie just treats it like a pigeon flew on set! Nobody cares! THE SCENES IN THIS MOVIE MAKE INSANITY AN ART FORM.

Anyway...we get to the LAPD, and...HOLY SHIT. IS THAT…

Was that Sharon Stone as Catherine Trammel from Basic Instinct, and Robert Patrick as T1000 from Terminator 2? I...but...wait...if...how...I’m broken now. 404, blue screen, reboot, update needed, WHAT?!? I...just...SO many questions, and this movie better answer them.

We see some added insanity, including a man with a houndstooth suit which I DESPERATELY WANT but could not pull off. There’s literally a buddy cop generator, where we also see a rabbi cop, and an Amadeus reference is dropped as F. Murray goddamn Abraham (playing a cop named Practice) appears in this movie, and THEN...an animated cat cop sexually harasses a female cop. I am not joking.

Am...am I insane? Also, if I was in the theaters watching this movie-in-a-movie, I would be both angry and confused as to what in the FUCK was happening!!! WHY IS THERE AN ANIMATED CAT COP IN MY JACK SLATER MOVIE? WHO DIRECTED THIS BULLSHIT (in universe)?? Also that cat was recently suspended, and is also one of their best men.

And then, Danny uses his knowledge of the Jack Slater franchise to break down the barriers of repressed affection between the chief and Slater, and it’s briefly heartwarming for some reason. Anyway, they’re now suspicious of his knowledge of Slater’s life, and this leaves to the inevitable buddy cop pairing of Jack Slater and Danny Madigan. This art-deco something walks by…

...and I desperately need to know more about the art direction of this film. Because, wow, it is an absolute masterpiece of randomly exaggerated shit, damn.

To prove his point about being in a movie, Danny goes to a Blockbuster, which... man, does THAT bring me back! That’s right you young whippersnappers, I WAS THERE FOR BLOCKBUSTER IN THE ‘90s! We used to go to the store and look at the VHSs. I remember seeing The Lost World there, but my dad said I was too young for it. I was sad, but he got me some candy and a Really Wild Animals video, and we watched it that night after Carmen Sandiego. My God. It was paradise.

Anyway, Schwarzenegger doesn’t exist, and find out that Stallone has taken over his roles.

...I’d watch that. I’d watch the HELL out of that. Danny then uses some legitimately impressive math to dissect the “555” number thing in movies, as well as pointing out the lack of non-conventionally attractive women. Which, credit to you, kiddo, for addressing the overwrought emphasis on conventional attractiveness that permeated Hollywood at this time, and to this day. I mean, he’s not criticizing it, but he is pointing it out, and that’s better than nothing in the ‘90s.

Danny guides his way to Vivaldi’s house, where the butler is...Professor Toru Tanaki! He looks exactly like Odd Job from the James Bond series, but the actor is SubZero from The Running Man! You know, the hockey killer!

Anyway, after crack about Schwarzenegger’s “I’ll be back” line, a conversation with Benedict (who has a smiley face instead of a bullseye), and some terrible CGI dogs, Benedict becomes correctly convinced that something’s up with Danny. They arrive at his house, and his college-aged daughter Whitney (played by Bridgette Wilson, in her first film role in and out of the movie, in a neat little twist!) kisses Danny directly on the mouth, and I’m a liiiiiiittle uncomfortable with that. Anyway, we brush right past that, and realize that his son...died. Oh. Uh. Guess we didn’t see the end of that movie, huh? Yikes. Poor Jack.

Hey, Benedict and his gang arrive at Slater’s place! Fun! There’s a sort-of amusing play on “harming a hair on one’s head,” and the interrogation continues. Charles Dance is legitimately threatening as Benedict. And, while we’re at it, Bridgette Wilson has an entertaining action sequence all her own.

Anyway, Jack arrives, and makes a ridiculous jump off of the balcony to pursue Benedict. Benedict name drops getting a tank, which I’m assuming is named the Chekov (film trope reference there, have a good time). Danny realizes that he’s the comedy sidekick of the movie, and at this point, I need to mention something: in case you haven’t noticed, this film is delightfully meta. And I love that about it. 

But it’s also...cluttered. You’ll see what I mean in a little bit, but real talk, I didn’t realize that Benedict had stolen the ticket until Danny mentioned it, because I was apparently quite distracted. And this is an important plot point, as Benedict soon realizes the true power of the ticket, cleverly overlaid by the opening to the Twilight Zone, with Rod Serling mentioning traveling to another dimension. Also...his eye was a bomb. What. Anyway, that explosion results in Slater officially getting fired from the department, and the chief...

Um. Yeah, this movie is also kind of a cartoon, not including the cartoon cat. And you have no idea how much I’m omitting from this movie. The digitization of Humphrey Bogart, the fact that Slater can’t say “fuck” in a PG-13 movie, the surprising character realization that Slater’s ex-wife is actually remarried, the clearly dominatrix cop clad in leather, the fact that there’s a plan to detonate a nerve gas-infused bomb stuffed into a dead man nicknamed Leo the Fart at his own funeral, a digitization of Humphrey Bogart. Yeah, I said that last one twice, because the effect actually holds up really well, like, seriously.

OK, let’s take a break, yeah? Part 2 later today!

[kzesl]

My babysitter’s a vampire

So I spent the last few days in bed, sick, with nothing else to do but watch stuff. I started watching My Babysitter’s a Vampire because it seemed goofy and short and that was just what I needed. I ended up binge-watching it. At first I thought it only had one season because Netflix only had one season, but no, there’s a second one. No third one, sadly. Why has no one told me about this show?! I mean, yes, it’s targeted at a younger audience, but that has never stopped me.

It’s ridiculous and I love it.

Here are some thoughts and observations. Or feelings. Or- Let’s just call them bullet points. Not in chronological order and full of spoilers.

Lots of references to a lot of things.

Does not take itself too seriously

Goofier than Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but less goofy than Wizards of Waverly place. In my opinion, successfully carves a niche for itself.

Bunch of nerds causing trouble and then fixing it (more or less)

Teenage logic

Casual acceptance of all the supernatural by the main characters and no major freak outs.

I want an outsider pov fic.

Ethan not being trusted to babysit his own sister (for a good reason!) and both of them getting a babysitter needs to be mentioned here, even though it started in the movie, because it needs to be repeated as often as possible.

Was miffed that they barely utilized Benny as a spellmaster in the second half of 1st season.

They fixed that in season 2. Good.

Badass vampire girls, kicking ass left and right.

Erica baring her fangs at least once per episode, because she is a big bad vampire and not a nerd, was never a nerd, don’t you dare remind anyone that she was ever anything other than a badass vampire. Or else.

Likes the taste of Benny’s blood, thinks it’s the best thing ever. 

Rory. Not the sharpest tool in the shed and I didn’t like how he was mostly used as a joke. Adapted to being a vampire ridiculously quickly. A disaster. Protect him.

Dubious morality of everyone. Making people forget things, inadvertently causing deaths, killing supernatural creatures without feeling anything about it. Murder is still murder, even when it is in self defense, and vampires, for example, are not exactly soulless in this universe. Love potion. Ethan stealing Benny’s blood and then trying to convince him that it had never happened. Wth Ethan?    

Earth priestess grandma who is awesome but also not, because she just gave her irresponsible teenage grandson a book of spells with an off you go, and no real supervision or tutoring. Occasionally helping to fix the mess is not enough, grandma.

Where are Benny’s parents?

Ethan’s parents and their Friday date night.

Benny, who is not actually bad at magic, just inexperienced and untrained and trying his best. Also, misusing magic a lot. I love magic shenanigans and failed spells and potions. Gimme.

Implied cannibalism. And I don’t mean the vampires. Ancient pancreas lasagne anyone?  

Abilities are inherited. Which one of Ethan’s parents has the seer blood? Are date nights actually date nights, or are they secretly dealing with supernatural too? Show runners didn’t intend it that way, but one can certainly make a story out of it.  

Evil Benny. I want more Evil Benny. Character’s turning temporarily evil is one of my favorite tropes.

File titled: In case of Evill Benny. I love that entire scene.

Benny in general. Can you tell who my fave is?

Veronica and Betty. Rory crushing on Betty.

Ethan practicing with Benny how to talk to Sarah and his dad walking in and getting the wrong idea and no issue being made out of it whatsoever.

American tv series if the main sport being played is rugby and Canadian tv series if it’s hockey. Or: How to tell if it’s an American or Canadian tv series if English is not your native language and you are not good at telling the accents apart, A Guide.

Car possessed by a vampire. It runs on blood. Of course.

Werewolf that is not a werewolf, just a shapeshifter that turns into a dog.

Erica, Sarah, Rory, Ethan and Benny all being friends with each other and having different kinds of dynamics between themselves and coming to each other’s aid and friendship stuff. I love friendship stuff.

Ethan trying to lure Sarah back to town after season one by starting a rumor about Dusk star visiting.

The actor actually showing up.

Boys helping Sarah ambush a bad guy (was it Jesse? I don’t know. Things are a bit jumbled. That’s what binge-watching does to you) and coming out of hiding (Ethan stepping out of a recycling bin and Benny out of a locker, I think) all under the impression that they are being very cool.

Cliffhanger ending. Not cool. Not cool.

They all survived. Possibly with amnesia. That is my headcanon.

[idolish7rabbitchats]

Yaotome Gaku: Wonderful Octave Rabbit Chat Part 2

Tsumugi: Everyone, thank you for gathering! I was thinking that we could collect requests for Yaotome-san’s “RADIO STATION Twelve Hits!” here.

T: Continuing from Kujou-san’s turn, I’ll manage the chat. Please take care of it!

8: Thx. I’m looking forward to the requests.

Anesagi: Takanashi-san, thanks as always. Everyone, please take care of it.

10000: Us, the managers, will be attending too.

Okazaki: Please take care of me.

T: The requests gathered from everyone will be, like it has been up to this point, decided by a raffle pull in the show. I’m looking forward to what kind of requests will be chosen!

10: So it’s Gaku’s turn huh! I’m looking forward to what kind of requests will be collected.

8: Why are you looking forward to it? (lol)

10: Is it weird?! I’m always with Gaku and Tenn, so I might be exaggerating it, but you are like my family, so I’m interested. 

8: Ryuu...

9: I’m not interested much tho.

3: You are chilly huh, Kujou!

2: Friendly TRIGGER mode was totally severed huh. (lol)

10: But, Tenn was worried about having to decide on a request before this huh! Don’t you wonder what the others have come up with?

1: He was worried that other people could see it huh.

7: Tenn-nii, if you were worried you could’ve consulted with me though!

9: Ryuu, don’t exaggerate. 

100: Tsundere’s dere activated where you can’t see it~!

1000: He’s at a high level huh.

8: Geez, you’re not honest at all huh Tenn.

8: OUUUCH! He stepped on my foot!!!

9: Don’t smirk while Rabbit Chatting. 

9: I just won’t let TRIGGER’s leader do something weird. 

10: Because you worried a lot, maybe you came up with a nice request?

9: Don’t raise the hurdles Ryuu.

T: I’m also curious about the requests everyone thought of seriously..!

T: So then, I’ll ask for the requests now. This time we’ll also start from the youngest, Tamaki-san please!

4: K

4: Who’s Gakkun’s favorite in IDOLiSH7?

7: Ahh! I’m curious about that too!!

2: I definitely want to hear that (lol)

8: No no no, saying that now is embarrassing!

8: I mean, we are this close, there is no favorite and such.

3: What is that, don’t be embarrassed. lol

1: Who’s song you like or who’s dance you are attracted to or something, you would have it a little right.

8: Even if you say that, everyone has different strengths. Is it bad to say everyone?

4: Definitely bad!

5: But, it’s hard to pick one person. People become unit-oshi because they like the unit...

5: Of course they love each of the members but, the songs and atmosphere that they’ve created are special. The concept of being a unit-oshi is one of the goals that fans would reach at one point.

8: Ousaka, that’s deep (lol).

5: S-Sorry! I mean...

6: I only choose Kokona tho?

100: Single-oshi and unit-oshi’s problem is the hardest subject (＞д＜)

8: It’s difficult from the beginning, but I’ll casually think about it. 

4: Not casually, think seriously!!!

T: As the Manager of IDOLiSH7, I’m also curious about Yaotome-san’s favorite!

T: Next, Iori-san please!

1: From me it’s “Please tell me a project you would like to try with IDOLiSH7.”

1: We sometimes have opportunities of having lives and variety projects together. If Yaotome-san has a preference or request, I wanted to hear it. 

8: TRIGGER and IDOLiSH7 together?

1: Yes. But I also don’t mind if it’s just Yaotome-san.

8: If we’ll do it, I want to do it with TRIGGER. We can do anything.

10: That seems fun! How about an air hockey tournament?

9: That’s as expected of Ryuu who likes sports but, didn’t he want to ask about Gaku’s wish?

10: Right lol

1: No, Tsunashi-san’s opinion will also become an important reference.

8: Reference?

2: Meaning you wanted to study about the projects if you will be there right, Ichi?

1: That’s right.

8: When you said that, I realized that shoots don’t dragged on when I’m with Izumi-otouto. I’m always impressed by seeing you nicely adjust the schedule depending on the show’s progress.

1: Thank you. 

1: You don’t get confused even if any unexpected incidents happen during the show. I was also impressed by your courage to get over things without showing confusion.

8: Somehow it’s embarrassing to be praised by Izumi-otouto. (lol) I have to learn from you too.

3: My little brother’s amazing right!

100: I’m jealous over the younger people~! Let Re:vale join in (°ω°)ﾉｼ

1000: Elder people can be useful too.

100: Like a grandma’s recipes☆

1000: Like a walking dictionary in show business?

Anesagi: What are you guys saying while having baby smooth skin.

100: I got praised by Kaoru-chan. (ノ≧∀)/

T: It seems it would become a fun job with everyone huh!

T: Next is the request from Riku-san please! 

7: From me it’s “I want to see Yaotome-san do a comedy skit”!

8: Comedy skit?!

7: Yes! Yaotome-san is always cool and sexy so I can’t imagine you doing something comedic… I thought I wanted to try seeing it!

8: You are asking the most absurd request with excitement.

7: Waah! Was it bad?!

7: Yaotome-san, you’re a frank and funny person so I thought you’d be good at comedy...

7: I’m sorry!

1: Yaotome-san, there is no right of rejection in the request corner.

9: If you are a man, just give your consent.

8: I get it already! 

8: If I pull it, I’ll answer Nanase’s request.

7: Really?! Yay!

7: Thank you. I’m looking forward to it!

5: But, even if you say comedy, there are many kinds of comedy.

T: Certainly..! What kind of comedy Yaotome-san wants to try?

*T: Definitely a cross-talk comedy when you say comedy?

8: If I do it alone, will it be a comic chat? I’m not too good at talking but it seems it would become a good experience so I might want to try it. 

Anesagi: About the subject, I’ll carefully check it beforehand.

2: So it really does have to be checked by the manager huuh.

8: Eating really hot food seems fun. When I see it on TV, I somehow keep watching it.

Anesagi: Rejected!!!!

8: How about a hot bath?

Anesagi: Where do you plan on going…?

T: Yaotome-san’s new field, I’m interested about that as one of his fans!

T: So then, next can we hear a request from Kujou-san?

9: From me it’s “Heal the listeners with nice words.”

9: It’s seems Gaku’s radio might end up with him talking enthusiastically if I leave him, so I thought a refreshing request would be good.

8: Do I talk that much?

9: That’s something you wouldn’t understand about yourself huh.

7: Yaotome-san is nice!

8: THANK YOU!

100: Gaku, you seem happy. \’’(*´∀｀*)/

10: Gaku widely has a manly image so we want a lot of people to also know the gentle, friendly side of him.

10: Right, Tenn?

9: Well yeah.

9: It’s hard for Gaku’s kindness to come across so it’s important to show them intentionally.

8: So you requested it while thinking about that huh...

9: Not for Gaku’s sake, it’s also for TRIGGER’s sake tho.

8: Even so, I’m happy. Thanks!

T: That’s a wonderful request thinking about Gaku-san! I could feel TRIGGER-san’s bond...!

T: Next is Nagi-san please!

6: So finally it’s my turn huh. I thought of an exciting and very fun request.

6: From me it’s “Free talk from the vocabulary on a chosen card”!

8: What do you mean?

6: Here I have a bunch of cards I’ve written on. Yaotome-shi will pick a card and talk from the word written on it.

4: Amaziiing! Somehow it’s like a game!

2: Heeeh, even if you’re picking it yourself you don’t know what vocabulary will show up huh.

5: That’s seems full-scale and fun!

6: I choose special words. All words are amazing and worth talking about.

6: I’ll give you a hint. The first character is “Ko.”

6: Oops, to know more than this, looks forward to pulling the request. :-))))

3: It’s Kokona lol

100: Kokona huh!

10: Kokona-chan huh!

8: That’s too easy to understand.

6: You don’t though? It could be “Kokoyashi” though. [T/N: Kokoyashi means Japanese way to say Coconut]

8: Who wants to hear me talking about coconuts (lol)

6: ♪(´ε`)

T: I’m really interested in what follows the “ko” but we will move on to the next request! lol

T: Next is the request from Sougo-san please!

5: Yes. 

5: Um, about the request, this would be rude to you so, it’s fine only if you could do it so...

2: Somehow you are making long preliminary remarks (lol)

8: If you are that stiff, that makes me nervous (lol)

5: Right, I’m sorry! So then, allow me to suggest...

5: Would you teach me the knack of voice percussion?

8: You wanna know about voice percussion?

5: Yes. The other day, I heard that Mitsuki-san and Tamaki-kun were excited over doing voice percussion with you. 

5: I heard you were really skillful, so I wanted to aim to be the same level as Yaotome-san…!

8: Since you were so nervous I was wondering what you would ask but it’s just that huh. I did that for fun, it’s not like professional tho?

3: No no, Yaotome, it was seriously good though! Like you could master it if you practice it!

8: It was quite nice when the three of us did it huh?

4: With everyone we always just said underwear though.

5: While doing voice percussions ? Why underwear?

6: Tamaki… It’s because you forgot to wear it huh.

4: It’s nooot! If you say underwear underwear, it will turn into something like a voice percussion!

4: [Huffing Pudding Stamp]

2: Aaah, it became popular that one time huh. If you say the tongue twister, it turns into a voice percussion. 

2: Don’t you know the “Hattsuku Pantsu ka Hittsuku Pantsu ka Kuttsuku Pantsu ka Mukatsuku Pantsu ka” one? When you go drinking, there’s a person who does this one right.

1000: Yamato-kun, you participated in a flirty drinking party huh.

8: That’s so flirty (lol)

2: No no, I don’t want to be told that by you guys. Anyways, aren’t all drinking party like this?

10000: It was popular before huh. I’m quite good at it too.

1000: Ban is too flirty.

100: Flirty Ban-san is also handsome! 

7: Iori, let’s try it too!

1: I won’t do it. Do it yourself.

7: Eeeh!!

1: Shut up.

10: Hmmm, it’s difficult huh. I think I’m not good at it… I get stuck at the “Kuttsuku pantsu” part.

9: Ryuu you’re saying it too fast. It’s fine to slow down a little more. 

8: I’ve done it just for fun before this but I’ve gotten a request so I really need to practice huh...

8: I can’t just say pantsu if I pull the request. (lol)

Anesagi: You really hate losing huh.

5: Thank you..! I’m so grateful!

9: Sorry, can we take a quick break?

9: Ryuu bit his tongue so hard while doing the tongue twister.

8: It seems he’s not seriously hurt but his eyes are watering...

8: He’s saying his fine but it seems it hurts so much he can’t Rabbit Chat.

5: Tsunashi-san, I’m sorry! It’s because I did this kind of request that...

9: It’s not Ousaka Sougo’s fault, is what Ryuu said.

9: Probably.

8: His voice is gone so we can’t really understand though.

T: Let’s take a break! Tsunashi-san, even if you’re not hurt, please don’t push yourself too hard. ><

T: I’ll talk to everyone after the time has passed. It’s a short break but please spend it relaxedly.

[cy-fi-theansweris42]

My Thoughts During: TMNT (2007)

So I haven’t watched this movie in a good long while, so let’s see if it’s as good as I remember it being! (Also I think the last time I watched it was when I was like…15? 16? My taste in movies has improved significantly since then. Also, I apologize for the excessive lols.)

·       RIP Shredder, I wonder if this takes place after a certain series and that shows what happened to him.

·       Nothing good ever comes from stars aligning, does it?

·       Y’Aotl, craving the sweet release of death since 1007 BCE

·       “I just remembered I left the stove on” lol, never noticed that

·       “I’m not afraid of a ghost” How about a teenage mutant ninja turtle?

·       RIP that dude, I can’t believe Leo just murdered him.

·       Good LORD April is skinny, I’m concerned (I know it’s an art style but still)

·       Oh poor Donnie, working tech support, you poor child

·       “No I’m not playing hard to get, I’m telling you it’s not that kind of phone line!” Oh, poor freaking Donnie, lol.

·       Lol, just put on a turtle head, everyone thinks it’s a costume, perfect Mikey

·       Lol, Raph being edgy, I forgot about his Nightwatcher costume, I guess that’s one way to avoid people discovering he’s a turtle

·       How does one become a better leader by isolating themselves? Like, it might be a thing that I just don’t know about, but still

·       “Why skate a halfpipe when you can skate a sewer pipe?” Sanitation for one (that whole scene honestly looks awesome though)

·       “Those glory days are over” Wow, they’re teenagers and they’ve already finished the best days of their lives, poor turtles

·       So Leo mentioned Donnie being the one to keep things together and Splinter lectured Donnie on being there for his family, so was Donnie supposed to take over as leader while Leo was gone? IDK why but I always thought of Raph as the second in command (of course I don’t know a lot about TMNT, especially the stuff before 2007).

·       You know, I just realized how deep the whole “this home has become like an empty shell” line is. From my understanding, the shell of a turtle is basically like their spine and ribs on the outside forming a protective barrier, and all the squishy internal organs are inside. After the turtle dies and all the squishy stuff decays away, you’ll be left with an empty shell. A reminder that there was once life there, but now it’s just…empty. Freaking deep.

·       “I was born careful” Proceeds to break something, lol

·       “Friends you choose, but never your family” Freaking foreshadowing his relationship with his siblings (if they’re biologically related IDK) and the parallels with the turtles sibling relationships, stuff that went right over 11 year old me’s head.

·       “If you’re here to kill me could you make it fast?” Lol, mood

·       Why are all the monsters converging on New York? Is it because of the stars? I’m guessing it’s because of the stars.

·       RIP this poor guy getting beat up by Raph again, lol

·       OMG, Casey is literally just wearing a hockey mask, please wear some protective gear

·       “I should have stayed in law school”, lol

·       “What is it, some kind of performance art? I don’t get it.” LOL, there’s so many little lines in this that I never noticed before

·       “I don’t ever care about Leo anymore” Lol, fake news Raph.

·       Raph, PLEASE don’t fall asleep on roof ledges, that’s terrifying

·       …I have no idea how that little pendant can bring stone that was once a person to life, but oh well

·       LOL, Mikey whispering “dude” in his sleep, freaking adorable

·       Aww, Splinter’s got pictures of his sons on his wall

·       “I have nightmares about birthday parties.” Poor Mikey, protect him from the evil children.

·       Jealous of Donnie’s casual bo skills

·       How on earth has no one figured out that Raph is the Nightwatcher?

·       “You never said anything about monsters.” *points sword* “Ooooohhh” Lol

·       Lol, they are TERRIBLE at acting casual

·       Raph: *angrily eats cereal*

·       LOL, Splinter was watching Gilmore Girls???

·       You have to love just how different and individual they make each monster look

·       “What is it?” “The roof…you know what the roof is don’t you?” Lol, me too

·       I am terrified for Casey when he goes out. Someone, please buy this guy some protective gear.

·       “You do know I only have a wooden bat, right?” And who’s fault is that???

·       “And I thought Girl Scouts were pushy!” Trust me, they are

·       *only takes pulse* “Well his vital signs seem to be ok” Donnie, please, it’s a little early for a diagnosis, you only know his heartrate.

·       “It can’t be!” She says while in a room with four mutated turtle teenagers trained as ninjas by their rat father

·       Another dimension? Would it happen to be Dimension X?

·       Ah yes, the familiar Raph and Leo arguments, classic

·       Also, Casey’s expression when Raph is yelling about the whole “following the rule book thing”, he looks so confused, like he’s thinking “Dude, you haven’t been following that rule book either, why you going off on Leo about that?”

·       “So it’s like Hailey’s Comet, only monsters come out of it.” People always underestimate Mikey, it’s their mistake

·       Lol, the entire Raph vs. Little Monster fight. I love it

·       I’m honestly surprised the ribbons on those little dagger things Leo throws are blue, lol

·       Lol, the fact that Leo just starts lecturing this random guy and the fact that Raph is just like “he’s lecturing me!”

·       Lol, sassy Leo, you got to love it when Leo just starts taunting his opponents.

·       The whole argument between Raph and Leo is so emotional, like every little thing that’s built up from over the years, from Leo being gone longer than expected, and him suddenly returning just comes to a head. I love it while at the same time screaming at them to stop fighting

·       You know, something’s got to be said about how when Leo thinks he’s fighting some random stranger, he beats Raph, but when he knows he’s fighting his brother, he loses.

·       That moment when Raph realizes he let his anger get the better of him and nearly really hurts his brother, plus the Leo’s look of barely recognizing his brother, leading to him running off. What a freaking emotional moment. When Raph runs off you can hear him breathing heavy, like he’s struggling to breathe. He’s terrified of what he could do.

·       Also, RIP Leo’s swords

·       Poor Raph, he’s blaming himself and probably hating himself for what happened to Leo

·       Once Leo is captured, Raph steps up as leader, so why didn’t that happen when Leo went away for training? IDK

·       Somebody FINALLY got Casey some armor, bless

·       I love the fight outside of Winters Tower

·       “That would be the swirling vortex to another world, I presume.” Sassy Donatello, got to love him

·       Raph being gentle with Leo because he still regrets what happened and really does love his brothers even if he can’t always show it

·       “Winters!” “Looks more like fall” I THINK I KNOW WHERE MY LOVE OF PUNS CAME FROM, LOL

·       Also, Donnie’s reaction to Mikey’s pun is hilarious, that’s like how my siblings were when I started making puns all the time. (We’re not going to talk about how they forgot to make Donnie’s mouth move when he was talking to Mikey then, lol)

·       “I hate to see brothers fight like this.” LOOKS AT RAPH AND LEO (but mostly Raph) DONNIE JUST CASUALLY CALLING HIS BROTHERS OUT

·       Donnie slamming his staff on a guy’s toes and then saying temper temper, give me more sassy Donnie please

·       Leo arming up with a case full of swords, lol

·       “The thing about you immortal stone guys is that you’re immortal and…made out of stone…I sound like Mikey.” Lol

·       Lol, Splinter’s having fun fighting

·       Karai and random foot soldier #27 just being done with April and Casey’s arguing

·       Karai foreshadowing Shredder’s return (and then another movie is never made, lol)

·       Lol, Winters’ laughter about finally being able to die is me at the end of finals week

·       Winters just fading into dust (and then causing Mikey to start sneezing, lol)

·       So many references on that wall that Splinter has

·       Yep, still love this movie

[roseate7]

A team with a core of superstars should feel like a boon on top of a roster of well-paid solid talent. But in the Pens' superstars' post-thirty years, that's not feeling like the case. It feels like a confused team yo-yoing through highs and lows who have superstars that are keeping the whole thing afloat. I don't think this is a problem with the superstars or with the rest of the team. I think it's that management and coaching aren't even aware of this situation, or at least are not acknowledging it.

As Brass' exit interview proved, and as everyone but "why can't everyone see I'm amazing" Sprong agrees, there's no toxic culture in the Pens locker room. It's not as boisterous as some teams but it's also not cliquey and there are no rules about personal habits beyond guys needing to keep language and behavior somewhat clean considering how often children visit the Pens facilities. Social media is often a bit more stifled than most teams for much the same reason. But you see lots of mingling of new and older guys on the job and in their social lives. New boys get invited to dinners and parties no problem. Sid’s known for not being a yelling captain or a buddy-buddy captain, he’s a listener and a teacher and he’s open almost 24/7. Geno is honest as the day is long and a much needed balance in leadership with Sid. It’s a solid system up top and if you’re a guy who wants to work hard then there’s a place for you waiting among the team. For all that GMJR plays musical chairs with his trades, the team itself wants to bring these guys into the fold and love them.

Which I often wonder if that's part of the problem. Is it better to have a rowdier boys-club locker room where everyone loves their job but there's a healthy balance emotionally between giving your all at work and going home to get away from it, than your team being your second family and the head and heart of it all are two generational superstars who've gotten used to an uncomfortable amount of scrutiny and pressure?

Sid and Geno have faced absurd pressure and media interest since their teens (and from childhood in Sid’s case)  as well as a heightened level of expectation and criticism. The bar was set ridiculously high from the start and yeah they’ve gotten used to it. But while they have been able to handle and keep up with all of that, when you combine it with the talent of the Pens’ Cup-winning core - there's just no escaping how much higher expectations are when you show up to work there.

Especially considering the history GMJR in particular has of bringing in players currently in rough patches and wanting to rehabilitate them. It's gotta be weird being that guy who was a healthy scratch for much of his latter days at his old team and then suddenly you're grabbing a gatorade next to Kris Letang and Patric Hornqvist is trying to kiss you.

Then you see Sid and Geno walking around the halls of a venue they built. They're not even the types of hockey idols who are goofballs. Geno has a great sense of humor and shows his love by chirping, but the weight on his shoulders is palpable. The guy has long shadows in his past and in what's still expected of him, to say nothing of his fraught relationship with the league. Sid especially is so swamped with media responsibility and visiting groups from charities, schools, interviews and meetings that there's never really a sense of being "off". I don't know that that disconnect from normal guy reality ever really goes away when your captain grew up having to watch his every single word and gesture, even in casual moments, because everyone is waiting to catch him out at being human and flawed.

Like, hockey players are heavily flawed by nature. They're overgrown boys given way too much money too early and their lives have had the privilege of revolving around a sport that eats up almost their entire lives. They're socially more like figure skaters or ballet dancers than contact sports athletes because of how much their existence has to revolve around their work. But the balance for that is usually being rowdy, being excessive, and finding women who will put in the work to cultivate a home and family for them.

Sid has more than once gotten a bit of a nudge or a side-eye for not performing the usual post mid-twenties to early-thirties settling down ritual. While I absolutely respect him for being smart enough to keep his personal identity limited to himself for so long, it's plain to see that this aberration is viewed by at least a portion of the hockey world as a destabilizing one. For all that that is backward as hell, it's a real issue if enough guys buy into it. It's clearly not going to peer pressure him into making that kind of commitment, but it's a consideration for the subject of this drawn out ass post.

To bring it all back around: it's not going too far to say that Sid absolutely views his team and his franchise as his second family. Hockey itself has been his childhood best friend and I don't think anyone is in any doubt that the degree to which he's emotionally woven his life into hockey is a good old little bit too much. He's got a LOT of friends scattered across the world and a big ol' family, but Pittsburgh considers him "their Sid" because they're the family who get him the most out of the year. It's much the same for Geno whose Russian bleeding heart has cultivated a Pittsburgh-centric American identity for himself. They gave themselves permanently to this club and the club in turn has declared them as their own until their retirement. They've already achieved a legacy that most NHLers consider out of their reach. They're warm and kind people, but they're also walking that bit apart from everyone else. It's just how things have worked out for this particular dynasty. Most clubs have one superstar who navigates a way to stay integrated with the team (or not, in some cases) or the rare instance like 90s Detroit where the majority of the roster is made up of superstars. But it’s what makes the Crosby and Malkin dynasty so unusual in modern hockey: the arrival of the salary cap era put an end to one team hoarding generational talents. Having a Crosby and a Malkin who agree to huge discounts in pay and tally their income close to each other is, well it’s just fuckin’ unheard of. Likely never going to happen again, to be honest and I don’t blame other superstars at all for not following that pattern.  

So I just wonder if that comfort of knowing you have these two leaders and this stellar Cup-winning core changes the mentality for the rest of the players, regardless of their own talent. And if there is something inherently difficult for a player who walks into a franchise where every turn reminds you that your team is expected by the league, by the media and by the fans to perform and behave at a certain standard or else it's considered abject failure. The reaction is intense and harsh.

It's why I want coaches and management to start imagining a team with their core stars taken out and figure out how to get the other guys to gel together and strategize in a way that will exist on top of the core's ability to ride in and save the day. Examine how, when young players throughout the league play with the Pens core on national and ASG teams, they say that it's almost absurd how easy their job becomes. Maybe that's a hint that the guys outside the core can't figure out how to get their teeth back into their play when they're practising with guys who can generate chances every single time. Maybe the motivation isn't there if they can't find a place where they're needed. 

Maybe there actually does need to be some cliquey-ness to the locker room so that the guys outside the core can train and practise on a level that they feel the urgency again.

Maybe no matter how nice the busy superstars are to you and how much they wanna just be one the guys, sometimes they just can't. The separation is out of their control. And that other players want to huddle up with guys who face the same challenges in their play but who aren't staying hours after a game to talk to media and meet hoardes of fans or having to change dinner plans so no one can see who they're out with.

Idk it's a thing to think about.  

(I know it’s pretentious as fuck to link to myself but it’s for reference I promise)

[outfittrends]

Top 10 Plus Size Hijabi Fashion Bloggers You Need To Follow Outfit Trends - Ideas How to Wear & What to Wear

New Post has been published on https://www.outfittrends.com/top-plus-size-hijabi-fashion-bloggers/

Top 10 Plus Size Hijabi Fashion Bloggers You Need To Follow

Top Plus Size Hijab Fashion Bloggers: For the longest, we have all believed beauty as it was defined by others in terms of colors, shapes, and sizes. However, the new shift in trends promotes body positivity and talks about how important it is to be confident in your own skin.

Self-acceptance is essential when it comes to celebrating body positivity. Uplift yourself and others around you by redefining beauty and loving yourself with each passing moment. Here, we talk about 10 beautiful Hijabi women that choose to celebrate themselves with strength and courage. These plus size women do not fear to talk about body shaming, self-acceptance, and self-love which were previously believed to be topics that not everyone could speak about. Their strong will and positive attitude are worth looking up to. Get ready for a dose of inspiration which will leave you wanting to know more.

What Plus Size Hijab Bloggers to Follow?

Beauty is not size-zero nor is it in curves. Beauty is resilience that each of these 10 beautiful ladies encompasses. Spread across the globe, these women take each day at a time, spreading smiles wherever they go. Their fashion sense and beauty choices are unmatchable and are all worn with absolute confidence. We are in awe of how they beat social standards effortlessly and are now creating examples for others. They flaunt their Hijab proudly, making them stand out amongst the rest. They juggle between their responsibilities and prove that they are nothing less than superheroes. Like it is said, “not all superheroes wear capes.”

↓ 10. Iyza Aryff 

Iyza Aryff is a freelance Plus-size model and a fashionable one at that. Her Instagram feed is super aesthetic and we love how she puts together outfits that are modern and creative. Here is her wearing a gorgeous pink shirt that she chose to tuck inside a pleated skirt. Her super cool fashion sense and her confident self make for a killer combination. Her everyday style is definitely on fleek and we are taking notes.

Here is another one of her uber cool outfit and we wonder how she does it all. With an audience of over three thousand, she is super impressive. We absolutely love how Iyza is detail-oriented and makes sure to capture every angle of her outfit. From her jewels to her shoes, everything is picked very carefully to go well with her outfits. She is inspirational when it comes to fashion for young girls.

↓ 9. Nazirah Ashari

Nazirah, also known as Nazz, is a feminist, traveler and a woman who loves accomplishing it all. She is based out of Malaysia and makes sure that her style matches the weather there. The images from her trip to Turkey left me amazed and I was compelled to want to visit the country myself. Her captions come straight from the heart and there is always so much that she expresses through them. On her Instagram, she often jokes about her double chin, calling it her triple chin.

This is her portraying her 80’s self for a series and we are blown away by her sense of style. The turban wrap, funky shirt, and the wide-legged jeans are all stealing the show here. Following Nazz and reading more into her life, here is what we learned. The beautiful woman takes every chance to travel around but does not forget to count her blessings in life. For someone with an audience of over 3,600, it would be convenient not to talk about one’s vulnerabilities, but I love how she is able to do it with such ease. Another lesson we got from her was to love one’s own self. Despite being curvy, she loves to dress up and does so flawlessly. It would be a shame for wasting your life dressing up in boring outfits each day.

↓ 8. Afrah 

Afrah is a super mom who is based out of UAE and loves talking about lifestyle, makeup and more. She is a big foodie which gives you ever the more reasons to follow her. She has a very comfortable and laid back sense of style that we absolutely adore. Many mommies out there often look for inspiration in terms of people who are comfortable enough in their skin to practice their own fashion sense. While being a stay-at-home mom may seem like an easy job, it definitely is not. We love how Afrah is able to handle it all with ease while juggling between all her responsibilities. Here is a picture of her from her trip to Washington DC, which only proves her love for travel.

Despite being a plus size, Afrah loves dressing up in floral outfits and pashmina scarfs. Watching her smile and go about her tasks with such confidence is definitely inspiring. She seems to own a large collection of Hijab Scarfs and we definitely want to see more of them. Additionally, Afrah also talks about motherhood and it is impressive how she is bringing up her 6-year-old son Rahil. With a following of over 4,700, she is definitely someone to look up to.

↓ 7. Plus By Mai 

Mai Alsaudi behind the Plus By Mai blog is a Middle Eastern blogger and is a mother to a beautiful baby girl named Ameera. She is all about body positivity and also talks about the difficulties that she faced as a mother. 116 million women worldwide have been affected by PCOS which is a hormonal disorder. Not many people openly talk about it, but through her blog, she talks about her own struggle with it. We love her chic and casual fashion style which appears super comfortable.

We have not seen a better-looking mom wearing wedges and sling bag so effortlessly. Being an Arab, she practices Hijab and we admire her love for neutral colors that she is able to pair with almost every kind of outfit. She adds her personal touch to each look by picking out gorgeous pieces of accessories like sunglasses, handbags, and footwear. If you are a new mother or a mother-to-be and are looking for inspiration, Blog by Mai is the place for you.

↓ 6. Happily Hafsa 

Hafsa is a motivational Muslim mom based in Chicago who claims to help moms be happy with themselves and their bodies. Despite having a simple and minimalistic style, she is definitely someone we take much of our fashion inspiration from. Her winter coats and stunning scarfs are enough to brighten our Instagram Feeds. Hafsa often talks about body shaming in terms of skin color and weight. On other times, she talks about her beautiful family and the relationship she shares with her husband. She saw him for the first time on her university campus where he was draped in a Canadian flag, running about and screaming as Canada had won the World Junior Hockey Championship. That is when she told her friend, “I feel so bad for whoever marries this crazy guy.”

The ways in which Hafsa chooses to talk about her struggles, vulnerabilities, and shortcomings are commendable. More often than not, bloggers choose to filter out the happy moments of their lives when displaying their lives publically. This gives the impression of how perfect their lives are, which is often far from reality. Hafsa’s struggles with her weight, motherhood, and work are genuine. The way she deals with it all is a true example of resilience.

Via

↓ 5. Arfa Shahid 

Here is one of our favorite Fashion bloggers who is also a journalist. She is a Desi at heart and currently resides in Dubai. She is Pakistan’s first plus-size reporter and an amazing one at that. Her statement style involves wearing a head wrap as a Hijab along with some super quirky outfits. Arfa often gets questioned about her body positive messages which are construed as promoting obesity. She defends herself by talking about how she has lost over 20 kilos and continues to struggle with weight loss. She promotes compassion and kindness by speaking against negative body images and abuse against people of all sizes.

She has immense love for makeup, dressing up and reporting. She also has a thing for concerts and is often spotted at them. Being a Pakistani, we love how she carries Eastern attire along with her Hijab. If you are a plus size Hijabi and love all things beauty related, Arfa is the person to follow. We love her super cute videos and reviews of makeup brands. She also talks about Mental well-being as someone who has struggled with depression and anxiety. She is a genuine person who talks about her shortcomings freely. The message we get from her is all about self-love and self-acceptance.

↓ 4. Sarah Aziz

Sarah Aziz is another one of the most followed Plus Size Hijabi fashion bloggers. She has an eclectic fashion sense that is worth every praise. Being from Malaysia, she has a Southeastern style of doing the Hijab which goes very well with her Western outfits. What we absolutely adore about her is that she does not believe in beauty standards, something that body positivity is all about. She posted the picture below with a Mean Girls reference which gives us more reasons to follow her.

Sarah’s fashion sense is something all young girls would want to replicate. We love her burnt orange winter coat that she added to elevate her simple everyday look. We love how Sarah does not allow her weight to stop her from dressing up. She believes that style knows no size and we could not agree with her more.

↓ 3.Had You At Salaam 

If sweet and sass had a face, it would be this supremely talented woman. Leopard prints, bold colors and a thing for makeup, are these not enough reasons to want to follow her? We love how she often takes to Instagram to talk about body shaming and how damaging it is. She talks about how she spent years obsessing over her weight and often looked into the unhealthy means of losing weight. Weight gain and weight loss are daily struggles that we all share but often do not feel the courage to address it. With individuals talking about it on such platforms, it gives a sense of relief to know that we are not alone.

Learn all the right tips and tricks to doing makeup and skin care with her. Her casual style and positive outlook are definitely worth following.  Being an African, she loves talking about her culture bringing it to light through her posts. We love how she is able to pull off both her heritage clothing, as well as, modern fashion outfits both effortlessly.

↓ 2. Yasmine

Yasmine is a Canadian living in Saudi Arabia and is all about Modest fashion and Body Positivity. She is currently pregnant and we are loving her transformation. Her optimistic outlook at life and the hardships that she has faced make her who she is and we are super proud of her. Yasmine is an avid traveler and loves showcasing different cultures and places. One thing we absolutely admire about her is how she expresses her gratitude publically.

Yasmine often talks about toxic relationships and how important it is to break ties when it becomes harmful. She talks about finding love and accomplishing goals, not limited to time. With how fast paced our lives have become, it is nice to unwind with some positivity thanks to her. Looking at the picture below, we cannot help but love her fashion sense. While there seems to be a blend of colors here, we love how they seem to be going together. Despite being a Hijabi, she is able to keep up with all fashion trends and pull them off easily.

↓ 1. Intan Kemala Sari

Kemala Sari is a young Indonesian Blogger who talks about all things fashion, travel, and beauty related. The 27-year-old is also good at self motivate and has a WordPress blog where she puts her thoughts to words. The tagline to her Blog, To my Mind, reads, “Honest and sometimes random.” Her Instagram features some super cool images of her that scream Fashion goals. She redefines the definition of beauty and we are all for it. Kemala also happens to be one of the most followed Plus Size Hijabi bloggers.

This adorable image of her tells us exactly how to do Winter fashion for Plus size girls. Being a plus-size and a Hijabi does not get in her way of expressing herself. She often takes to her Instagram to talk about body shaming and here is what she has to say, “Body shaming on social media is like a natural thing done by almost everyone. So natural, they do not consider it an act of abuse because they are used to seeing it on Social media” and we could not agree more. We love how she is a source of positivity and can help many with her words of wisdom.

[madlori]

Hockey, the FAQ edition

As a follow-up to my Hockey Quick and Dirty post, I present this, a list of questions I have been asked by friends and family members and random people on the interwebs.

1. Why doesn’t Canada have its own hockey league?

They do. The NHL is really the North American hockey league. Seven of the 31 teams are Canadian teams. The reason there are more American teams is just...well, we have more cities large enough to support a team, although there’s perpetual talk of a team returning to Hamilton, ON, which used to have a team but hasn’t in forever, or to Quebec City. Hockey was invented in Montreal and traces its origins to 1917 when four teams came together, including the Montreal Canadiens, the longest continuously-existing team in the league (the Ottawa Senators were also there in 1917 but they went away and then came back). The Boston Bruins were the first US team. There was lots of flux until 1942 when the league settled into a 25 year stretch of what is now called the Original Six teams: the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, Detroit Red Wings, and New York Rangers. Those were the only teams in the league until 1967 when a massive expansion happened and they added 6 new teams. More teams were added over the years to get us to our current 31. The most recent (completed) expansion was in 2000 when the Minnesota Wild and the Columbus Blue Jackets were added, and in 2011 the Atlanta Thrashers were moved to Winnipeg to reinvent the Jets. Now there’s the new Vegas team, too.

Which is probably more information than you wanted.

I might point out that there is such a thing as the Canadian Hockey League - but that's a major junior hockey league, for players ages 16-20 (or until they're drafted or go to college or whatever). The CHL is an umbrella organization with three member leagues, the WHL (Western Hockey League), the OHL (Ontario Hockey League) and most famously the QMJHL (the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League). This last is ubiquitous enough that it's simply referred to as "The Q" (as in "Yeah, we played in the Q together."). The US doesn't really have an analagous organization, but it is also much more common for American players to go to college. The CHL leagues are major feeders for the NHL draft. The CHL leagues are, in fact, professional leagues - the players are paid. Not much, but they're paid. If you read "Check, Please!" this is a point of inaccuracy which Ngozi freely admits to screwing up - Jack Zimmermann played in the Q, but since it's a professional league, he would not have then been eligible to play NCAA hockey at Samwell. Oh well.

2. Why haven’t any modern players beaten Wayne Gretzky’s records? Lame.

Heh. Gretzky’s records will probably never be broken, but it’s not because the players now suck. It’s because changes to the game over the last 20 years, and especially since 2005, have made it all but impossible. Overall, scoring in the league has decreased about 20% since Wayne and Mario were playing. This is a combination of training (the players have a much higher level of training and experience now, making it harder to get past them and score), goalie equipment, and the salary cap (which is an entirely other topic).  It is worth noting that even with adjustments for era (there’s math that can be done to correct for this effect) both Gretzky and Mario Lemieux were freakishly good.

3. Have any teams never won the Cup?

Oh yes, tons of teams have never won it. In fact of the 30 current NHL teams, a whopping 12 have never won the Cup. And then there’s the Maple Leafs, who haven’t won it in 48 years. But the team that everyone talks about on this topic is the Washington Capitals, who have been...well, at this point I’m just gonna say cursed. They’ve won the President’s Trophy (that’s for having the highest point total in the regular season) three times in the salary cap era, their captain, Alex Ovechkin, has won the goal-scoring title a totally ridiculous six times (out of the 13 years he’s played in the NHL), they tend to dominate in the regular season and then...can’t quite get there. In fact they haven’t even made it to the Stanley Cup Finals since 1998. Nobody knows how this keeps happening. The Penguins are a bit of a nemesis for them. They cannot seem to beat them in the postseason. And since they’re in the same division, the Caps will always have to go through the Penguins to get to the final, in any year that both teams qualify for the postseason.

4. What happens to the ice between games?

I LOVE THIS QUESTION because I weirdly find logistics fascinating because I am a giant nerd. 

Answer: nothing! It’s still there. Arenas where hockey is played host other events as well. Many hockey teams share their arena with an NBA team - both the Rangers and the Knicks play at Madison Square Garden, and the Kings and the Lakers both play at the Staples Center. In addition, most of these arenas frequently host concerts, speeches, conventions, stuff like that. Coordinating all these schedules must be a nightmare and I'm glad I don't have to do it. I mean, the Knicks and the Rangers can't have a home game on the same night so does the NHL and the NBA work together on the schedule? I don't know. A lot of spreadsheets must be involved.

Obviously the ice surface is the most difficult to establish and maintain. They can't possibly destroy and re-make the ice between every game. So once the ice surface is created for the season, it remains there until the hockey season is over. If you've ever been to a concert or another sporting event at an arena that also hosts hockey, during the hockey season? The ice was there, just covered up. Some arenas leave the boards up, depending on what's coming in next. The nets, glass, player benches and penalty boxes are removed and seats are moved in. The ice itself is covered first with insulating rubber, then with flooring, then with whatever surface is required for the next event on the schedule. If it's an NBA game, a basketball court is smaller than a hockey rink so the court surface is brought in and the courtside seating is set up. Arena crews do this overnight superfast. They're really good at it. There are some fascinating time-lapse videos on YouTube of arena crews doing this changeover.

Here’s one of my favorites: a time-lapse video of 72 hours at Nationwide Arena (Columbus’s arena) showing them transitioning from hockey, to a concert, to basketball, and back to hockey:

https://youtu.be/sjpoTokyvVs

Once the hockey season is over, the ice surface is chiseled up and disposed of till next season. The Penguins did a cute thing this year where they let fans come in and paint messages and pictures onto the ice before it's taken up.

5. Why is Sidney Crosby considered the greatest hockey player in the world? He doesn't seem like all that.

Yeah, I know he might not, but he is. If you ask 100 hockey pros (writers, players, coaches) who the greatest player is, you'll probably get about 90% agreement, if not more. The thing about Sid is that he's great in ways that aren't casually apparent. He's not flashy (well, he can be - if he goes to one knee to shoot say your prayers - but usually not so much) and some of his most important skills aren't exciting except to other people who either play hockey or spend all their time watching it and thinking/writing about it. He's not out there doing trick shots or scoring on huge slappers. Not a lot of people are going to get all hot and bothered over puck protection skills, but that's the kind of stuff that wins games.

Sid isn't primarily a goal-scorer, although he's more than capable of scoring (he won the goal-scoring title this year, and has done it once before). He's a guy who creates offense. People who've played with him or coached him talk about his near-spooky ability to "see the ice" - hockey talk for playing chess in your head with the puck. He can see what's going to happen and know where to place himself and the puck to enable a goal to be scored, whether it's by him or one of his wingers. He's somewhat notorious for having trouble finding wingers who can play with him, and this is why - his wingers need to be good at this, too, to keep up with him, and it's not a universal skill.

Other players also talk about how difficult he is to defend because he's near impossible to knock off the puck. Part of this is...okay, let's just put it out there, it's genetics. You know how Michael Phelps is an amazing swimmer partly because he lucked into the perfect body shape for it? Sid lucked into the ideal hockey body. He has a ginormous ass and thighs like flying buttresses, plus he's short and has a low center of gravity. There are amusing YouTube compilations of defensemen trying to check him and just sort of...bouncing off. Sorry, thanks for playing.

So it's not always obvious why he's great. On the other hand, sometimes he'll do some insane shit like score by bouncing a puck off the goalie's back, passing to a teammate between his legs behind his back without looking, or streaking up the ice half off his balance and score off a one-handed backhand shot and you're like...okay yeah, I get it now.

If you want some numbers, here you go. One of the most important player stats is points per game, which is a straight-up measurement of a player's offensive power. Sidney Crosby ranks FIFTH in points per game...ALL-TIME. The only players ahead of him are Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Mike Bossy and Bobby Orr, and those four guys are basically the Mt. Rushmore of hockey. And that's WITHOUT any corrections for era (see the answer above about Gretzky's records).

Just for a little point of comparison, three current NHL players hit the 1000 point mark this season (that's a big deal). The first was Henrik Sedin. It took him 1213 games to reach that milestone. The second was Sid's main rival in the "greatest player" thing, Alex Ovechkin. It took him 880 games to hit 1000 points. Sid did it in 757 games. Only 11 players in NHL history have done it faster.

6. So...fighting is really and truly just...allowed?

For certain values of “allowed.” It happens, the refs know it’s gonna happen, a real fight is almost always somewhat planned. Players get into minor scuffles, pushy-pushy, sweary-sweary all the time - those aren’t fights. Capital-F Fights are when the gloves come off, punches are thrown, the players keep each other from piling on, the refs just sort of let them fight it out. When they’re done they’ll usually both get a penalty of some kind, either fighting or roughing. 

7. Who the hell are the Habs? That...isn’t a team.

The Montreal Canadiens are called the “Habs” colloquially (it’s short for Les Habitants, the French-Canadian term for Canadiens). Several teams have nicknames. The Tampa Bay Lightning are often called the Bolts - in fact, that nickname is on their third jersey. The other teams’ nicknames are usually just the shortened form of their actual name (the Caps, the Sens, the Hawks, the Pens, etc).

8. What’s this points stuff? Why aren’t standings by W/L?

Because hockey is special and wants you to know about it. Team standings in hockey are not determined by win/loss record, but by total points. You get two points for a win, zero points for a regulation loss, but -- and here’s the difference -- you get one point for a loss in overtime. This is sometimes called the “loser point” and it’s relatively new. It’s like getting partial credit for a tie. A team’s total points is the sum of wins + OT losses. A team can have fewer wins but more points than another team if that first team had a lot of OT losses. Ties are pretty common in hockey, being generally low-scoring, and it’s well worth the effort to try and tie up the game (resulting in heart-taxing strategies like pulling the goalie) because not only could you then go on to win in OT but you’ll at least get one point just for ending regulation in a tie.

9. What’s with the tape on their socks?

Hockey gear is complicated. The players wear chest/shoulder pads, elbow pads, helmets, hockey pants (which have built-in kidney protectors), shin guards, and skates. Hockey socks are actually hip-high - they go way up underneath the pants. Here’s an image for you - pro hockey players actually wear garter belts under their pants. The socks clip to the belts to keep them up. But players also use clear tape wrapped around their shins to keep their socks in place over the top of their shinpads (which are underneath the socks). Each player has their own special way of taping their socks. And taping their sticks. And putting on their gear. And breathing, probably.

10. Hey, the goalie's buggered off again, but it's like the middle of the second period. You said that happens at the end of games.

I did say that, yeah.

So WTF?

What you're seeing is the result of a delayed penalty. That's...a whole thing.

Hit me with the thing.

Okay, you asked for it. So here's the scenario. Let's imagine a game between...oh, let's say the Capitals and the Sharks. The Capitals have the puck, they're charging toward the goal to score. But oh no, one of the Sharks trips a Capitals defenseman! Penalty! The penalty will benefit the Capitals, but they would really rather keep possession of the puck and complete their scoring opportunity. To get the power play they are now owed, they'd have to stop, change lines, have another faceoff - and sacrifice the puck possession and scoring opportunity they already have. So the penalty is delayed until the Capitals lose possession or score.

Well, that means...what, exactly? It means that the second one of the Sharks takes possession of the puck, play will be stopped and the penalty will go into effect. So the Capitals are in absolutely zero danger of being scored on right now. Play will be stopped the second they lose puck possession. So they might as well pull their goalie and put another skater on the ice, and give themselves a better chance to score, right?  So that's what usually happens. A delayed penalty is like getting a little bit extra on that power play you're about to have, except you get a brief period of 6-on-5 before your 5-on-4.

You might think this happens all the time, but it really doesn't. Definitely not every game.

Well, this concludes this edition of Hockey FAQ with Lori the Hockey Noob. I welcome your questions if you have them. If I don't know the answer I'll find out.

[Support my original writing on Patreon!]

[thatawkwardnerdytomboy]

My Review of Neo Yokio (Spoilers!) Episode 1.

So, I first learned about Neo Yokio via Facebook. My friends were posting about this and when I saw the trailer, I thought “Ah, this looks really kind of cool. The protagonist is black, Jaden Smith is voicing the character and I really liked his character on The Get Down so I’m definitely going to check this out.” Then I started hearing about all the negative reviews and I reserved judgement simply for that fact that I wanted to see it for myself. When I finally saw the show, however, I was more than disappointed...after the first episode. I’ve seen all 6 episodes already and I don’t know what to think about it other than it not being good. So, for those who haven’t seen the show, I’m going to torture myself and review this show episode by episode. I’m going to break everything down from the animation to the dialogue to the plot and then summarize all of my thoughts with a final review. So this is my review for episode 1. 

Episode 1.

So in the series’ intro, we are introduced to what exactly New York, I mean -clears throat- “Neo Yokio” is. It’s basically New York but the name is mixed with Tokyo which is strange and makes no sense to me because we don’t get any references to Japan or Japanese culture in the city whatsoever other than the fact that this show is supposed to be an anime. It seems as though they were trying to reference San Fransokyo from Big Hero 6. However, we actually see Japanese architecture, culture and people in this well-integrated city. In Neo Yokio, we don’t. A very disappointing missed opportunity. We next learn that Neo Yokio is constantly under attack from demonic entities because of the city’s prestige. This is reminiscent of 9/11 and the various attempted and successful terrorist attacks on NYC and it makes sense to me that evil entities would want to seek to cripple and destroy NYC’s power seeing as how we’re one of the largest financial and social epicenters on Earth. We’re told that to combat these demons, the mayor who looks suspiciously like FDR, invited a class of exorcists to become citizens of Neo Yokio so that they could fight off these threats and that because of their growing status in the city, they became part of the elite in the city which I also thinks makes sense. It also reminds me a bit of Pacific Rim where the jaeger pilots became famous heroes for their victories against the kaiju. 

So we are introduced to the main character, Kaz (after getting an unnecessary butt/crotch shot of one of the girls playing tennis) on a tennis court. The first thing we learn about him is that he has recently broke up with his girlfriend Kathy when his mecha butler, Charles returns his watch to him that is engraved with her name. Kaz then throws this very expensive watch onto the street to be run over. I guess removing the engraved words and pawning it were out of the question? We then meet his friends, Lexy and Gottlieb whose jarring use of slang reminds me of The Boondocks. Except that it doesn’t seem to fit with the tone of this show so far, or at least, not to me. Although Kaz has prior commitments like his field hockey game, he asks Charles to cancel his appointments, tells his friends that he’s dropping out of their field hockey tournament and sulks over the end of his relationship by spewing a bunch of poetic nonsense about death and feeling like going through the daily motions of life are like navigating through a maze. Like, jeez, I know that break-ups are depressing but it sounds like the writers were trying to force his depression on us without really showing that he’s depressed.

We then find out as Kaz leaves with Charles (it’s so suspicious that he flies on Charles the way that Hiro flies on Beymax when we already have the San Fransokyo reference, like they’re intentionally trying to rip off Big Hero 6) that there is a board in Times Square that ranks the city’s most eligible bachelors and although Kaz claims not to care about it, he’s disappointed to find out that he’s second to his rival who is number 1. He goes to meet up with his Aunt Agatha who reminds him that he has work to do fighting to protect the city and that he’s been wasting his time with frivolous matters. Kaz laments again about how depressed he is over his girlfriend to which Aunt Agatha replies that it wouldn’t have worked out because all people like her will see in their family is that they are “neo riche” rat catchers despite the prestige and elegance they have achieved in society. She tells him that Helena St. Tessaro, one of the city’s top fashion bloggers has been possessed which for some odd reason, is good news. Kaz, still sulking refuses until she yells at him that he has no choice and that he’ll lose his extravagant lifestyle if he doesn’t do this job. 

Kaz goes shopping for a new suit...to go perform an exorcism...and he shops by touching the suits rather than seeing them. Charles’ positive reaction to this makes me wonder how in the world they got Jude Law to voice this character. We meet Kaz’s rival, Archangelo who after a bunch of classist insults gets himself blasted through a bunch of walls with Kaz’s exorcist powers. Oh, and he’s completely unscathed after this! He destroys a bunch of changing rooms in the process. Does he eventually pay for that? Is he not going to apologize to the salesclerk? Also, I’m assuming that security and law enforcement are going to turn a blind eye to this because Kaz is rich and powerful. After having done this, he claims that performing the exorcism on Helena would be easy. 

Kaz and Charles venture to the scene of the exorcism, 14th street which, for some odd reason is underwater. Is it because of climate change? The two enter the house where they meet Helena’s fans and are told by Helena’s parents that after being offered a Chanel suit, she became possessed. Kaz walks into her room and sees her floating in a ball. He tries talking to her, complimenting her on the suit, casually reminding her about how they may or may not have had sex at another rich kid’s party and when she doesn’t respond to his “charms,” he tried touching her suit which results in him being electrocuted. He gives up after this, so easily. What the hell? Just after he was boasting about how easy it was going to be to exorcize this girl. Not surprised they pulled this cliche. Her parents kick him out of the house. Kaz sulks again. Charles informs him that this failure has taken on a toll on his ranking. How the hell does this ranking system work anyway? How did whomever is in charge of changing this ranking find out so quickly that his attempt to help Helena failed? Did Helena’s fans tweet about it or something? Did her family complain to someone about this? Also, who the hell cares about his stupid ranking? What about Helena? Sounds like this episode is trying to say that if you’re wealthy and famous, it does’t matter if you do your job well, it’s your status that matters. 

After that event, Charles offers Kaz a giant Toblerone (the first of the ever famous Toblerone references) but Kaz declines and asks to go visit the grave...his grave. Yeah, that’s right, this kid is so narcissistic that he created his own grave to go visit whenever he has a problem, apparently. Besides his break-up with his girlfriend and his worries about being considered neo-riche, what could possibly be going on in Kaz’s life that’s so bad that he has to resort to mourning his own metaphorical death in order to cope with it? I also notice that his gravestone says that he was born in 1997. So this isn’t the future? It’s the accelerated present (like with Real Steal)? Also, this means he’s 20? I’m so confused about what time period this is supposed to be. Then to add to his pretentious attitude, he tells an old man who’s spraying his wife’s favorite perfume onto her grave that he should spray a more youthful perfume onto her grave instead. When the old man insists that his wife loved the perfume that he’s using, Kaz arrogantly condescends to the man that the elderly don’t understand anything about style and that the girls of his generation would never use that perfume. Now Kaz is being a straight-up asshole and I’ve decided that I don’t like him. And somehow, the writers decided to use this moment of ass-holery to help him figure out a mystery surrounding Helena’s exorcism. The Chanel suit wasn’t subject to the same security measures as other luxury items! It was vulnerable! The suit was possessed! Not Helena! 

Kaz rushes back to help Helena and fights to suit off her body. We’re subjected to some really terrible voice over effects to convey the fact that she’s possessed and she’s left in her bra and underwear after Kaz fights to suit off her. Fan service? When she wakes up, wet and nearly naked, instead of the rational reactions of “what the fuck? Where are my clothes? Did we have sex again?” I’m guessing she’s a party girl and this happens to her all the time? She casually greets him and says that she hasn’t seen him since that party...ok... Kaz makes it to the field hockey game. He makes such an inspiring and riveting speech about how he was depressed and how it effected his feelings toward field hockey but now that he was there, he knew that they can win the game. Oh, I’m being sarcastic about that last sentence, by the way. And of course, they win the game because they have to because happy ending. 

Stray Observations

-The lip-syncing is terrible; so terrible in fact that I have seen comments from people asking about the original Japanese version of this that doesn’t exist because this is an American made cartoon. Yep, it’s that bad. 

-Why do Kaz and everyone in his family have magenta hair? Not necessarily a bad thing, just curious. Is that one of those typical anime character distinction things? The main character must have an outlandish hair color to stand out!

-I heard that the director who helped create this, Kazuhiro Furuhashi made some animes pretty amazing. What the hell happened here?

-They refer to The Bronx (that’s where I’m from!) as being a “prefecture” in a sorry attempt to make the city sound more Japanese. 

This first episode was so painful to watch... And it sets a pretty shitty precedent for the rest of the series. Will be reviewing the 2nd episode soon.

[lovedyouless]

connor mcdavid/leon draisaitl masterpost

tbh this is all you need to know about them:

posted and captioned by teammate and frequent linemate patrick maroon. 

but if you want more ...

connor mcdavid

everyone in hockey knows who connor mcdavid is. drafted number one in 2015, connor is frequently mentioned in the same breath as wayne gretzky and sidney crosby (he’s canadian too, of course). he’s fast, he’s skilled and he was named as the youngest ever nhl captain at the start of 2016′s season. anytime you see connor on the ice, he’s probably wearing a ‘c’ whether it’s for the erie otters where he played in the ohl, for the oilers, team north america or even the 2017 all star weekend. he’s a Big Deal and everyone loves him (except maybe brandon manning).

connor is very humble

(x)

okay connor but you’re VERY GOOD AT HOCKEY, YOU CAN’T HAVE EVERYTHING IN LIFE 

his bff during his ohl years was dylan strome (drafted to the coyotes). connor hung back after his draft to watch dylan get picked. connor and dylan are Very Soft

connor is very polite to his elders, referring to them by their title such as mr crosby

(x)

sid finds this hilarious.

connor is so good that subban, one of the best defencemen in the league, can only resort to blatant hugging cheating to contain him

(x)

connor’s rookie year was going great until he got injured (damn you manning) and broke his collar bone. 2016/2017 marks his first full year in the nhl. 

leon draisaitl

leon was born in germany and is two years older than connor (more like 14 months but who’s counting). occasionally he fools people by pronouncing ‘out’ like a true canadian, but he’s definitely german. his dad was a german hockey player. leon is the highest drafted german player ever in the nhl - he was drafted third in 2014. leon can speak four languages. like connor, his natural position is center BUT MORE ON THAT LATER. 

leon, by the way, just very casually looks like this: 

(x)

AND I AM VERY MAD ABOUT HIS FACE ALL THE TIME. this is a rare smiley leon though. usually his interviews look more like this: 

(x)

by the way, this is his face after he scored the overtime winner for team europe. excited, huh?

before they became nhl superstars, leon and connor were baby prospects together touring the Rogers Place during it’s build. the whole video is great because leon is just SO INQUISITIVE and asking lots of questions and connor mostly spends the video laughing at leon?

in a fun twist of fate, leon scored the last oilers goal at Rexall Place before they moved to Rogers Place

try and control your glee there, leon.

connor and leon have become regular linemates in the 2016/2017 season and have killed it this year

leon’s natural position is center but he’s spent much of this year on connor’s wing. did i mention that connor is very very fast? 

"I just saw Connor take off and it's pretty hard to keep up, let me tell you," said Draisaitl. "I just got on my horse and tried to catch up and get open for a shot."

it’s okay though, because connor is not great at everything (yet). leon takes most of his faceoffs in games and they practice them together (warning: leon turns into a competitive giggly monster when he wins and connor accepts his loss with a happy grin)

(x)

because usually-grumpy-looking leon actually smiles a lot around connor

(x)

also their hugs are ridiculous

(x)

like who raises their arms like that, leon??

(x)

here it is from another angle and it’s just as terrible. also, connor LET GO OF DARNELL because he saw leon coming and wanted two arms free so they can octopus around each other?? THE WORST.

(x)

this is connor’s ‘about to hug leon’ face and it’s just as terrible as you thought it was gonna be

i like to call this their ‘caught red handed but we’re still not letting go of each other’ pose

(x)

this is great because leon is a huge solid hunk of man who is almost impossible to knock off his feet and connor is very much smaller than him but leon drops his arm and lets connor fold himself into leon

(x)

did i mention that connor is smaller than leon? because here he is fitting himself into a tiny space next to leon rather than, i don’t know, standing somewhere else with more room??

@ edmontonoilers: pre-game pals

EVEN THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA TEAM SHIPS IT

(x)

also here is leon chilling in the sin bin. wanna guess why he’s here? if you guessed that he took a run at manning (as previously mentioned, he took out connor in his rookie year for a few months and cost connor the calder. he also apparently chirped connor earlier in the season to say the hit was deliberate, so obviously leon stepped in to avenge his captain)

anyway. as it turns out, they’re pretty close off ice too. here they are enjoying a date night by hanging out with patrick maroon and his son and playing some ball aka pat knows his teammates are in love aka connor is trying to show off for leon but anthony is kicking his ass

(x)

here they are enjoying a double date with nuge and ebs (leon of course looking cool as fucking ice while the other three look like idiots)

here they are being interrupted on their date with darnell. you will often find darnell third wheeling

inseparable. also they all look super hot here.

THE OILERS KNOW, GUYS. THEY KNOW.

okay, leon, okay

leon deliberately cropping out darnell so he can post a picture of him and connor, and both of them sounding entirely unapologetic about it

“Leon, you and Connor are one point away from one hundred, wouldn’t it be kind of special to get that point on the same goal?”

“Yeah I mean, it’d be fun. Obviously he’s played about 1000 games less than I have, but um, you know it’s a nice milestone and it’d be nice to get it together.”

FUNNILY ENOUGH ... okay they didn’t get it on the same goal because connor is an overachiever always and got his 100th point first, but leon’s 100th point came in the same night, an assist on a connor goal of course

ANYWAY it’s not all about the hugs and fate and being bros together

or giggling off the ice

(x)

(honestly, have you ever seen leon this happy when he’s not scoring/assisting/winning games?? no, no you haven’t)

they’re also super supportive of each other

(x)

or that time when the Flames tried to hook leon and then took a hit (which didn’t even knock him off his feet because he’s a fucking tank, tkachuk falls to the ice though which is hilarious) and connor takes offence and defends leon’s honor

“Leon, this morning Connor said you might be one of the most underrated players in the NHL. Does that matter to you?

(x)

HAHAHAHAHAHA WELL IT SURE MATTERS TO ME IN CASE ANYONE WANTS TO KNOW

we should also talk about the fact that connor has this strange habit ...

of just taking leon’s things? 

totally normal to have an interview wearing your teammates hoodie. tell me connor, does it carry leon’s scent? does it hang off you because leon’s shoulders are ridiculously broad? DID YOU TAKE IT ON PURPOSE??

MOVING ON. we should definitely talk about connor’s 100th point this season to win the Art Ross because i love FATE. of course connor gets his 100th point on leon’s goal. OF COURSE. connor really, really wanted that 100th point which is understandable because who wants to finish the season on 99? he turns to hug leon immediately (of course) and leon stops for a quick hug before he’s off to grab the puck for connor JUST IN CASE IT GOES MISSING GUYS, HE WANTS THAT PUCK FOR CONNOR except he realises that caggiula already has it so he goes back for another hug EXCEPT the rest of the guys are there and that’s fine, but leon wants his own hug so he grabs connor from behind as they head for the bench and they just coast together for a second, completely flush against each other and i’m super chill about the whole thing, guys.

(x)

anyway this is the most important moment ever caught on camera. also, leon just leaps into the air with him and catches him and he lands without even a stumble like?? HOW STRONG ARE YOU LEON??

anyway, in conclusion, these two fools are in love and everyone should jump on board and they’re probably gonna accidentally kiss one of these days after a goal

[haleighshouse]

Do Time and Space Exist Anymore?

     In modern society, humans engage with one another through various modes of media. Previously, individuals could only interact when they were in physical proximity to one another. The new modern society allows the notion of “place” to extend beyond a physical location. The idea of “time-space distanciation” describes how certain forces, such as media, shape our actions away from physical places and situations. Sullivan (2013, p. 174) explains that “modernity increasingly tears space away from place by fostering relations between “absent” others, locationally distant from any given situation of face-to-face interaction”. To put this idea into perspective, I am an audience member to a social platform called Twitter. I use Twitter frequently to interact with others whom I am not physically with, depleting the notion of “place”. A common tweet I will post usually addresses and greets my followers as friends. For example, I once tweeted “Hi friends, any suggestions on a new tv show to watch?”. Despite the fact that I address my audience as friends, an audience on a social platform such as Twitter is not easily defined or understood, and I do not specifically know whom I am talking to, however I am “engaging a distant and invisible audience in what appears to be a casual and ongoing conversation”. The expansion of the notion of place uses devices and social platforms to blur audience experiences as “these devices are unique because they provide instantaneous links between our private domestic world and the world outside” (Sullivan, 2013, p. 175). 

     The depletion of the sense of place also relates to my audience experience within sports. I will commonly watch sporting events with my friends, such as hockey games. We have been audience members to both live hockey games where we were in the stands, to watching it on television in our homes. “The perception of presence is an important element affecting the nature of the mediated sports consumption experience. Presence refers to the phenomenon in which an individual develops a sense of being physically present at a remote location through interaction with media thus, an individual does not “perceive or acknowledge the existence of a medium in his or her communication environment and responds as if he or she would if the medium were not there”. In other words, presence is the perceptual illusion of nonmediation” (Kim et al, 2016, p.392). My friends and I get very into the sporting event we are watching and tend to forget that we are not always physically at the game. We do not acknowledge the existence of the television and will commonly yell at the refs stating “come on ref, what a terrible call” or yelling “shoot” at a player every time we want them to take a shot. Through the use of media, I find it interesting how time and space have changed and the notion of “place” extends past an audience members physical surroundings, represented by the fact that as an audience member I do not always acknowledge the presence of a medium, such as a television screen. 

     Lastly, relating to the depleting notion of “place” because of digitalization, two main trends have shifted media institutions into audiences. Historically, the media used to be so concentrated it was easy to understand audience sizes and viewing habits, but because of the rapid development of online platforms, audiences begun to be more dispersed. When I was a child, I watched Disney Channel and used MSN, two common social platforms for consumers my age. Today, I use many more social platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, ReddIt, etc. that it is much more difficult to understand the audience because of the fragmentation and the fact that audiences are scattered across hundreds of social platforms (Sullivan, 2013, p. 217). This relates to audience autonomy because audiences are possible based on the fact that users can generate any type of media they desire, termed user generated content (Sullivan, 2013, p. 218). Participatory culture allows for consumers to more actively participate within the media as they can create and circulate new content, which is why consumers have shifted away from traditional modes of media (Sullivan, 2013, p. 219). I love the fact that I am able to autonomously post whatever I want to social media. I love using Twitter to join in political debates, stating my opinion on various issues, as well as using Facebook to connect with other audience members and share my personal stories and photos. As an audience member, as well as an active producer of content, it is concerning that I do not specifically know my audience. 

[margheritaluke-blog]

Jack Gleeson Will Likely Gave up Acting After 'Video game Of Thrones'.

I have not written much concerning the responsible for the scenes of recipe book development, however I assumed I would share the method a little bit extra once I'm not managing both points at the same time. Telltale has gone far for on its own along with story-driven anecdotal video games and The Wolf Among Us is just one of its best. Regarding Blog post - Realized being one of the best 10 bedspread outlets in the country, the Quilted Moose located in Gretna, NE is your source for designs, cloths, thoughts, and even courses. Every additional 2nd I had I was actually competing back to my manual to immerse on my own in to this magical globe. Rockstar has actually carried out a fantastic project of structure hype for the video game, and its own most recent trailer has certainly got our company excited to discover the Old West once again. Yet just what an option it is. The Switch may discover itself in the uncommon position of possessing one the littlest launch line-ups in background, but the most effective individual launch activity since Super Mario 64. Although Breath from bush also discharging on Wii U does muddy that concern. Also the way he wases initially introduced in the book is among the most momentous scenes ever. Noteworthy: Father brown Ken Yaremchuk was actually a very first NHL selection due to the Chicago Blackhawks in 1982 as well as played 235 NHL games for Chicago as well as Toronto. Uncle Gary Yaremchuk likewise played in the NHL, spending 34 video games over 4 periods along with the Walnut Leafs just before an illustrious career in Europe. In the event you loved this article in addition to you desire to obtain details with regards to http://handglasses.info/ i implore you to pay a visit to the web site. Brother Nolan Yaremchuk likewise plays on the Lions. Split his jr job between Lloydminster and Drayton Valley in the AJHL. Participated in senior high school at Bev Facey. If you are actually supplied up with competing activities paying out even more focus on whether the tarmac looks photorealistic instead of the amount of enjoyable it must be actually to zoom along at crazy velocities, look at Perspective Chase This homage to traditional game headlines is actually all about the large happiness from auto racing, instead of dull realism. The initial Myst's 'slide show' style of action has been actually changed into a free-roaming adventure, updating a game that's still a timeless, with reasonably durable touchscreen navigating. While our team've pertained to the forthcoming activity as Reddish Dead Redemption 2, the title is actually currently not known - therefore start your hunches. And also appearance, launching re-mastered activities on a new body works with Sony and Microsoft's makers as a result of the high variety of labels discharged on either console. An arithmetic parlor game gives a wonderful technique to integrate arithmetic, board concept and video game regulations. And some casual viewers go additionally, thinking that tragic school firings show a link between such video games and real-world aggressiveness. When you have actually ended up operating your technique with every one of Lester's goals, and grabbed all from that wonderful lolly, you ought to possess a luck to either put in back in to the securities market, or even make use of to snap up every service and property accessible in the video game planet. About Blog - ICAP's mission is to help innovative fine arts specialists craft business excellence coming from their imaginative enthusiasm. Noteworthy: Likewise plays golf, where he describes his capacities as standard. Gone to institution while growing up at College Charles-Lemaeyne. Has likewise stay in Montreal and also Halifax in his lifestyle. Was the 3rd goaltender on the U from A Golden Bears throughout the 2015-16 period ... Participated in jr hockey for the Drayton Valley Thunder in the AJHL. The agent possesses crucial information concerning the story and also the advancement from the video game. Many games coincide rate or even perhaps slightly extra pricey compared to they were 25 years ago. Something that was produced extremely clear in the 1st manual in this series was exactly how wrecked Quin was actually when Rochelle left their agreement. Headey, most effectively referred to as Cersei Lannister in Game from Thrones, mentioned having been put in the shoes of an immigration policeman and also left open to a script based on real-life accounts coming from folks benefiting the Home Office had actually affirmed her idea that a change in perspective was actually needed to have. . The times of needing a souped-up COMPUTER to play the very best online video games are actually long gone. I don't presume there is any individual out there that hasn't read through any one of the Activity On books yet and also those from you who have actually been followers this series are actually going to 100% love this set!! A bunch of well-known Steam activities as well as console titles owe their attraction to sites like Miniclip and also Newgrounds, bunches to countless free-to-play labels coming from tiny workshops along with minimal printing budget plans. As a video game developer for Zombie Studios, John E. Williamson focuses on all the different components of bringing an entire new planet in to existence. The theory seemed to be demystified in Season 6 after we finally came to observe the High rise of Pleasure setting, and also there was just one child presented: Jon Snow But, similar to Jon Snow, the tip may be actually coming back coming from the lifeless. Yet despite that being one of the enduring greats, there is actually a true secret that is actually inconceivable to dismiss: That's a five-year-old game. Activity from Thrones supporters food craving their personal Ghost, Nymeria or even Gray Wind could fortunate. Response: When you're presently conforming in any degree, push the pause switch and also in the food selection that appears you will definitely find the Head to Room" choice. Between its futuristic Earth as well as its impressive dream arena, the activity is actually consistently taking you to astonishing brand new locations. Yet recently that was actually starring in Game From Thrones, makinged him famous to millions around the world.

[allaboutd2]

“It is better to be hated for what you are than loved for what you are not“. Andre Gide

Although not always possible beyond reasonable doubt, it is often relatively easy to spot a Dsquared2 piece or outfit. But how? It is because the brand uses a series of codes, quirks, that make it recognisable as an entity. In other words it has its own DNA.

In this post we have tried to deconstruct the elements that constitute the Dsquared2 identity. Note that we will focus on menswear, without excluding a similar post related to women ready to wear later.

The Caten twins have said themselves that the Dsquared2 style was “accidental and personal”; another time they spoke of “sportswear meets the catwalk”. We decided to look even closer by putting the brand’s DNA under the microscope. Here we go, by alphabetical order.

                                                   The D2 DNA

-Back tab on pants: you will notice that on jeans, as on the majority of pants, including tuxedo pants, there is a small tab sticking out upwards in the middle of the back. This is a typical signature detail, and one that we also find on most swimwear and boxer shorts.

–Bibs: borrowed from formal dress shirts, they appear on casual shirts too, as well as on jackets or t-shirts.

-Bling: flashy doesn’t scare off the twins. Their experience as drags years ago in Milan has left its mark. Gold, neon, leopard prints, necklaces, chains, broches, Swarowsky…and all in the same pot. Often, “More is more” at D2.

-Bright colours: some collections might use ‘black, white and (blue) jeans’ a lot, yet every year, especially in the summer, the brand proposes a range of items in the brightest shades of yellow, red, pink, green, orange… often with contrasting prints.

–Canada: having grown up in Toronto, the twins never forgot their native country. From their first collection ‘Homesick Canada’ to the 20 years anniversary ‘ICON’ collection, from references to their national sport in the ‘Hockey horror Dsquared show’ to the hommage to first nation peoples in the infamous #Dsquaw show, from the maple leaf on t-shirts, underwear, sneakers…to the use of real fur, from the prints about cabins, logs, the wild, to lumberjack checked shirts…the list goes on and on.

-Cryptic prints: the prints we just mentionned range from the classic logo to unfathomable references that probably only the twins can understand. Why ‘Hues of Hockney’? What is ‘marchetting’?

–Cult of personality: not uncommon, a massive ‘Dean’, or a ‘Dan’, or a ‘Dean and Dan’ or a ‘Caten’s’, a ‘Twins’… or their own faces, sometimes morphed into some famous person’s photo, like  Dean into Marilyn (who became ‘Marildean’, see “play on words” below).

  –Denim: because when they grew up, Dean and Dan were not allowed to wear jeans at home, they made up for this frustration later in life by wearing and producing a wide range of denim items, in particular their iconic jeans, often distressed, torn, bleached…with the aforementionned red tab. To our knowledge D2 is the only brand that produces various cuts (‘Clement’, ‘Cool guy’, ‘Kenny twist’…) of the same wash (by wash we mean colour, place and size of various holes, stains…). Note that the brothers worked at Diesel before founding their own label. Who influenced whom? Hard to tell.

-Distressed style: full of holes, speckled, stained, ripped…the distressed style is not reserved to jeans, but t-shirts, sweatshirts, shirts, even boxer shorts are subject to intentional  battering.

-Formalwear mixed with streetwear: copied by many since, Dsquared2 is still the best at that. Tuxedo jackets worn with jeans, even with sweatpants, are a coined style which made us fall for the brand.

–High gorge: The gorge is this break in the lapel of a suit jacket. The higher it is placed, the taller the wearer will appear. this is a similar trick as the “short jackets” one explained further down. Just compare a D2 suit with any classic Italian tailoring and you will really see the difference.

–Higher heels: mens shoes, whether formal or streetwear, tend to have higher heels than average, from 3 to 5cm, which is an advantage for the non-giants.

-Hybrid pieces: is this a bomber? Or a leather jacket? Or a blazer? Or a cardigan? Well, it’s a bit of all the above really. D2 key pieces often combine sleeves from a type of jacket, collar from another, pockets from something entirely different…Some aficionados go crazy for these. Personally I don’t as I would get sick of a piece quite quickly, which doesn’t happen for more classic items, but I do admit that they look good on the runway, or on my friend Frederic.

–Layering: think Joey Tribbiani in friends: “Could I BE wearing any more clothes?”. That’s often what a DSQ runway show looks like.

–Leather: not exclusive to D2, but it is a fabric used in nearly every collection for  jackets and pants. The biker style is always an option at D2.

–Logos:  very appealing to disadvantaged urban youths in quest of social status, the ‘brand’ is everywhere. Logo here, logo there…To the untrained eye it makes little difference whether your t-shirt says Dsquared2 or Jack&Jones. To us, for some insane reason, it does.

–Matching what can not be matched: who else can blend oppressor and oppressed like 19th century aristocracy and first nation peoples? Who else could make trousers that include the Y front of men’s briefs? Who would have thought of having skinheads wear disco boots?…

–Play on words: these are the kind kids come up with. Just one example which will illustrate the point. In the Pop art collection, Andy Wharrol and J.M. Basquiat became Andean and Dansquiat. Far fetched to say the least, but classic Caten twins humour.

-Political incorrectness: not many would get away with a ‘homeless collection’, an ‘asylum’ collection (which included the ‘asylum sneakers’, which is as offensive but to another group)…Runway models smoking cigarettes…Sometimes they don’t get away with it and we know that the brothers have had to apologise in the past (e.g the already mentionned Dsquaw hashtag).

Homeless collection

-Pre-tied bow-ties: blasphemy for the purists, Dean and Dan have made laziness cool. Personally I prefer the imperfection of the self-tied items, and I love the ceremonial of tying one’s papillon, but as the Southern Spaniards say:  “hay gente pa’ to‘”…(there is people for everything, phrase uttered by the colourful torero Fernando “El Gallo” a century ago).

-Red tab: not a D2 invention, but probably (as we discussed in a previous post about trademarks) a Levi’s one, however the Caten brothers strategically changed its position, giving it a whole new identity, by moving it from the back right pocket to the fly of the jeans. Mirroring the style on denim shirts and jackets, the same tab was moved from the left breast pocket to the hem, beside the buttons.

–Sex: there is no lack of sexual elements in D2 clothes. First of all because the clothes themselves are often sexy. Of course this is a subjective concept: a Milanese woman and a New-York ‘bear’ will have different opinions of what sexy means, but the Caten twins actually manage to provide for all tastes in that regard. Secondly because some of the details on the clothes can have a sexual connotation. The aforementionned red tab on my crotch being an example, the visible private bits of the hare (yes it is a hare!) on the ‘horny rabbit’ t-shirt being another one.

–Skinny ties: black, with a tiny symbol linked to the collection, or the classic maple leaf.

–Short jackets: Dean and Dan are quite short…and so is the author of these lines. Smaller men have a few tricks to appear taller, or at least to minimise the impact of their clothes on the perceived height. Shortening the jacket is one such trick. D2 suits, blazers, down jackets, duffle coats, pea coats…are often extremely short, to the point of leaving the whole ass area uncovered (and we’re back to ‘sex’ as previously discussed).

-Street style: Sneakers, jeans, bare chested youths, improvised and unexpected layering, near DIY jewlery…D2 shows at times are closer to college kids hanging out than to typical Milan runways.

Surf collection

–Tailoring: with a capsule collection of nearly a dozen styles, the twins have proven to be exceptionally good at fine suits. There is one for every bodily shape, one for every season, one for every latitude. And with working cuffs!

–Tuxedos: not just an extension of the above, as über-cool odd dinner jackets were commonplace even before the suit collection was launched. Still there, in a range of interesting variations in terms of lapel coverings, colours and fabrics, alongside now the classic full evening suits named Beverley hills, Tokyo, London, Napoli…

–Urban tribes: from mods to rockers, punks and skins, preppies and glam boys…nearly every style has been explored, sometimes even on several occasions.

Mod inspired outfit

  That’s it folks. If you’ve noticed any recurring elements of the D2 DNA that we forgot to mention…let us know!

____________________________________________________________

If you liked this post, thanks for clicking the like button or leaving a comment, and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram!

DEAN, DAN, DNA. Part I (menswear) "It is better to be hated for what you are than loved for what you are not".