#also watching some sci-fi show with my dad

[paterday]

Hi guys you will never guess what I’m getting :)

[samthetrekkie]

for having watched this movie at least twice before (albeit several years ago), I recalled surprisingly little of the plot. and so did my dad, who had once watched this with me! I used to think this was my favorite tos movie and I think the reason was bc this movie needs the smallest tos context. like it's objectively a - not super inventive - but thrilling and interesting plot. I also only now realized how much this movie made parallels to the end of the cold war and overall had some really good dialogue, which, let's be honest, not all of tos has.

but I think the reason it's not my favorite tos movie anymore, is bc I now do have the context and for a star trek movie, it was pretty weak when it comes to the characters. and tos is especially character-driven (to the point were the same 2-3 characters are protagonists in each episode). and I find that really interesting bc I do like all of the tos crew, but I also need that kirk/spock relationship thrown into my face again and again. and there was very little of that this time (not nothing though) and each character had kind of important roles to play. I don't want to say this is the only tos movie that operated like that, but I do notice it more in this one as I used to think this was the best movie.

anyway, there were still a few things I liked about the character portrayal in this. kirk and spock seemed to have some bigger issues prior to this as kirk seemed to be pissed off and distant with spock the whole time. and you can't tell me this was just bc of the assignment with the klingons. kirk felt like spock had personally attacked him with this assignment and spock seemed really confused, probably thinking he had given kirk an interesting last mission. so in my headcanon, their seem to have separated at this point :( but later on I really enjoyed how unusually angry spock got when he found out valeris was the one responsible for getting kirk convicted and had ultimately put his life in danger. there was a certain level of guilt in there too, as spock had been the one to get them into this mission in the first place. and kirk having pretty much forgiven spock in rura penthe of all places, was really surprised to see spock's behavior and even felt bad for it, so it seems. he was not even initiating the kiss with iman's character! (also very interesting alien concept, similar to changelings, when it comes to gender.) in general he seemed almost never interested in any of the women in the movies, which I have mentioned before, but I love as it fits right into my headcanon :) but mccoy's "what is it with you" after the kiss was still amazing as it summed up the entirety of kirk's obsessive womanizing behavior in tos. generally, mccoy had the best one-liners ever in this. and he was by far not the most prejudiced one in this movie. and he was actually really nice to spock the entire time and seemed relatively tame in general. do we see a little character change caused by the last movie…? I still don't see mccoy and kirk being a thing, but mccoy and spock on the other hand…

I won't take this any further and rather conclude my tos walkthrough for good now (even though some of the characters appear in other series and movies again). I thought it was really interesting to see the changes the decades made on sci fi and to watch it with a person who actually lived through those decades.

I have to say tos really is up there now in the star trek ranking for me, maybe even above tng. (but we'll watch that next, so this view might change very soon.) spock (as played by nimoy) is certainly one of my top 3 star trek characters and I think that says a lot for a show that was written in the 60s. (the other one is seven and I have no idea who the third one is, but... we got all the autistic-coded ones up there, don't we.)

I'm so glad we have so much to go when it comes to star trek, though! even if it'll take us several years, now that I've counted it… (there is some shows and movies I will skip, though.)

[azure-firecracker]

The X-Files Season 2 Review (First-Time Watcher)

We made it! I feel like I spent forever watching this season. First my dad was hogging the tv and then I went away to summer camp, but I got there eventually (and what an ending to get to! but that’s for the individual episode reviews).

And wow. For as much as I enjoyed Season 1, I LOVED season 2. I feel like the show took everything I loved about Season 1 and turned it up to 100.

I said somewhere in my Season 1 Review that this show is at its best when it makes darker episodes, and this season certainly realized that because I feel like it was a real tone shift from season 1. The atmosphere felt less campy, much more grim, a lot gloomier. Worse things began to happen, to Scully and Mulder but also to the bystanders, and the stakes felt much higher.

Having watched this season, I’m going to amend that statement and say that this show is at its best when it makes intense episodes rather than dark ones (with the exception of one specific episode. Y’all probably know what it is). For the most part, this season towed that line between intense and dark well, but there were a few times where I thought it was unnecessary gruesome. We’ll get into that in the individual reviews.

The best part of Season 1 was undoubtedly Mulder and Scully dynamic, and oh did this season capitalize on that! Their relationship this season, from the beginning but especially after Scully’s abduction, felt so much more centralized in the story. Entire episodes focused on their bond, how important they are in each other’s lives, and the lengths they would go to for one another. This season was packed with amazing, emotional, often trope-y moments, and kind of read like a high-quality sci-fi soap opera! I was 100% here for it.

This season also had several episodes that I considered phenomenal and very few that I took issue with. The like:dislike ratio for me was definitely much higher than in Season 1. Of course it wasn’t perfect, but I don’t think any television season this long can be perfect, certainly not with the time and budget they were working with.

I only have one big problem with this season. If you’ve been around on my blog, you probably already know what it is. I want to make an entire post dedicated to this so I won’t go too in-depth here, but I was frustrated by the saving-each-other ratio between Mulder and Scully this season, not necessarily because of pure numbers, but because of the way it was done. I’ll make a longer post on this topic in the next couple of days, so if you want to debate me about this, I will politely ask you to wait until I flesh out my thoughts further.

With all that said, let’s get into the individual episode reviews! Some episodes deal with some pretty intense themes, so if you’re not familiar, proceed with caution, or if you have a specific trigger you want me to warn you about, shoot me an ask or a DM.

Little Green Men: A very strong start! The end of Season 1 left me wondering how they were going to stay together, and of course the answer is that they’re going to ignore all the rules and do it anyway. This episode had Scully breaking SO MANY RULES. Character development! And so much MSR. The first time I watched this, I was shocked by how much closer they seemed. Like, what happened in that between-seasons gap? It was also an excellent hook with its alien lore. 9/10

The Host: A decent enough monster of the week, a couple of cute MSR moments. It’s harder for me to get invested when Mulder and Scully aren’t together. Their banter often makes the show for me. I’ll give this a 6.5/10

Blood: I could not take this one seriously. Time has not helped it. The score was SUPER dramatic in this episode, but the threat was…grainy words on a computer screen. Also very little MSR. 3/10

Sleepless: Very solid! Interesting idea with the soldiers not being able to sleep and being killed through their nightmares and guilt. Negative points for lack of MSR and also because I think the Vietnam War elements could have been done better. Still a 7/10.

Duane Barry: And this is where the season took a turn and never went back. I always love the human villains the best. Hostage situations are a great way to build tension and this one was flawlessly executed. I loved how we, the audience, knew Duane was a risk but didn’t know if he was right about aliens or just a liar. And of course, the ending cliffhanger had me screaming. 10/10

Ascension: This was so tense. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. The stakes have never felt higher. Mulder has never been this unhinged and it’s incredible. I wanted to strangle Krycek through the television. I will say the mountain is very obviously NOT Virginia and it’s hilarious, but still my heart was pounding and then breaking along with Mulder the whole time. 10/10

3: All right, so the incomparable @actual-changeling encouraged me to view this episode solely through a character-focused lens. And I tried to, I really did. And I could see the point it was trying to make about Mulder’s self destructive behavior and how lost he gets when Scully isn’t there. But also…Scully wasn’t there and I missed her! And the plot did make no sense. It was hard for me to enjoy this even though I tried to. I’ll give it a 5/10 objectively for the character work but subjectively I was at more of a 2/10.

One Breath: Remember when I said this felt like a soap opera? This is what I meant, but in the best way. Like Ascension, the tension here was top-notch. I can’t imagine watching this live and not knowing if Scully was going to be okay. When Mulder started crying, I was crying too. Plus the moment when he visits Cancer Man (is that what we call him?) points his gun at him, and his voice breaks as he asks why her? Perfection. Cinema. 10/10

Firewalker: This was jarring for me as a West Wing fan, to say the least. That aside, I thought this was pretty solid. All of the MSR moments were great (I might have liked a little more follow-up to the abduction arc, but that’s what fanfic is for!) and the volcanic spores were a decent enough threat. It did feel a little bit like Ice 2.0. Not as good, though. 8/10

Red Museum: I think this episode needed to be two parts. There was SO much going on, from the kids going missing and the vegetarian cult (whom I was rooting for the whole time! Animal rights!), the Purity Control and the guy who killed Deep Throat coming back. The pacing was just so rushed, and the climax lasted for like, 2 seconds. All of the ideas were pretty good though, and we did have the barbecue sauce rib date, so I’ll give it a 7.25/10

Excelsis Dei: What the fuck was this? 1/10

Aubrey: A VERY solid episode. It’s not stellar but it also has no flaws that I can find, you know? An interesting monster of the week, some excellent agent-ing from both Mulder and Scully, and a very nice, tense climax (with an excellent score!) Also my mom’s nickname is BJ so that was hilarious. 9/10

Irresistible: I already wrote a whole post on how much I adored this episode. You can read it here. I was also immediately inspired to write a post-episode fic. You can read it here on Ao3. 10/10

Die Hand Die Verletzt: Remember when I talked about intense versus dark? This is what I meant. This episode felt like it was throwing on horrifying detail after horrifying detail without a purpose. Like, we already had the satanic cult. We did not need the teenage girl talking about CSA and then getting murdered. And it wasn’t even clear how real that was, so why even bother? This was also another episode that should have been two parts. 6.5/10

Fresh Bones: I’ll admit this one had a hard time keeping my attention, but I think I was just sleepy when I watched it. Any episode that tries to get political is always a bit dicey for me (not on principle, I just think txf in particular isn’t the best at it), but this one managed to be decent enough. Overall a perfectly fine episode. 7/10

Colony/End Game: SO MUCH PLOT! But it was two parts so it worked! We got so much alien lore and it actually kind of made sense! The Bounty Hunter was an excellent villain, too, and our agents really felt out of their depth. The dread was real! But none of that is even the point because the entire Samantha clone plot line was totally heartbreaking. I had a feeling it wasn’t really her, but my heart broke right along with Mulder, especially when he was apologizing to his father and he started crying. UGH. And it totally makes sense that being so distraught would prompt him to make some incredibly rash decisions, but luckily he has the actual best partner on the planet. Scully saving Mulder at this point in the season was super refreshing, and the ending scenes in the hospital completely melted my heart. 10/10

Fearful Symmetry: Like Season 1’s Roland, I couldn’t get through this. I’m a vegan and a softie, and seeing animals suffer is always rough for me (rougher than humans for some reason). It felt like maybe they were trying to make a point about animal abuse but it didn’t go far enough. It was weird and not at all enjoyable for me. Objective 2ish/10, subjective 0/10.

Død Kalm: My friend the amazing @theswisscheeserag (check out her Ao3! She’s a great writer) phrased it best. She said “I felt the episode was too ridiculous in execution for an attempt at being so serious.” Right on the money. It’s still Mulder and Scully though so 6-6.5/10

Humbug: The one exception to the “intense episodes are best” rule! Who knew this show could be so funny? They should do this more often! I laughed so much. “We’re exhuming your…potato!” I DIED. I also liked Scully getting to be like “Yeah it’s this insane thing because xyz it’s obvious” and Mulder being like “Girl idk what you’re talking about but you’re a doctor so okay.” A nice role reversal for them! Anyway 10/10

The Calusari: Example number 2 of “this didn’t need to be so dark.” The family curse was plenty! We did not need the dead toddler! Not quite enough humor in this one, which makes sense given the subject matter, but I feel like this whole episode was just unnecessarily cruel. I watched this directly after Humbug and got whiplash. I’ll give it a 6/10

F. Emasculata: Super solid standalone episode! I liked the parallel looming threats of the plague in the prison and the escaped convict potentially spreading it. I especially liked the moral dilemma of what to reveal to the public, and how Mulder and Scully fell on opposite sides of the issue. I like when a show presents me with a moral quandary I can’t answer! 8/10

Soft Light: Despite the pretty dark vibes of this episode, I was kind of zoned out for most of it. Maybe it was because the villain wasn’t malicious, but I don’t know, the threat never felt imminent. It didn’t hook me at all, but then the ending came out of nowhere and it was HORRIBLE. Too horrible! I didn’t need that! I don’t care if it’s supposed to add to X’s moral ambiguity. I don’t need to see that. 3/10

Our Town: This one is tricky. I have many thoughts on it. I’ll try to be somewhat concise.

First of all, I really enjoyed @mulders-too-large-shirt’s review of this episode. We had a lot of the same grievances. You can read her review here (and she also liveblogs every episode! It’s awesome! Check it out!)

So in isolation this is probably a 9/10. Genuinely horrifying villains, some good MSR moments, a SUPER tense climax. All good things! But in the light of the whole season this irked me, because this was the fourth time Scully got kidnapped and also the least necessary to the plot. You could have flipped Mulder and Scully’s roles and it really wouldn’t have changed anything. (In fact, I did! Read the fanfic here).

With that aside, this episode feels like it has a lot of wasted potential. The cannibal cult using people’s bodies for their own ends is another clear parallel to Scully’s abduction, and the show just…didn’t do anything with that. And we know they can do great things with these parallels because Irresistible exists! It just bugs me because the material was RIGHT THERE and there was SO MUCH they could have done with it but THEY DIDN’T.

TLDR: Objective 9/10, subjective 7.5-8/10

Anasazi: This was so hyped up to me that I was worried it would be a letdown but IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Oh my God. Zero flaws. I always say txf reads like a fanfic, but THIS EPISODE READS LIKE A FANFIC Y’ALL. Like I’m sorry, but Scully taking care of Mulder while he’s in shock and delirious with fever melted me. His puppy energy was at 1000000000% this episode and it was amazing. And I was SO worried when he started acting weird because I didn’t know what was wrong with him! But of course Scully figured it out (like I said, best partner on the planet). She absolutely carried this episode and I was very grateful for it. I think she’s right that Mulder would have died if he’d been arrested for murder. Good thing she knew what to do! She’s actually perfect y’all.

We also got so much new information! Like what a lore dump! And WHAT A CLIFFHANGER HOLY SHIT! Like, imagine waiting a whole year for that to get resolved. Just wow🤩🤩

Obvious 10/10, I don’t go higher on principle but like, I would.

Anyway that’s all for this season! I’ll be back with lots of fic and reactions and analysis but I love meeting y’all! This is such a friendly fandom:) Always feel free to come by and say hi, ask me stuff or give me writing prompts! Let me know if you’d like more analyses or anything different posting-wise when it comes to Season 3.

[hadesoftheladies]

FEMALE MOVIE/TV RECS (PART 9 / ADULT & FAMILY ANIMATION)

got inspired from a recommendation post so decided to make a list of movies and shows with female-centric stories/female protagonists. since i can't post all of the genres in one post, i'll split it into multiple posts and y'all can save or add to the list as you wish. (disclaimer: i have watched most of these, but i only know about the existence of others. not every movie/show on these lists will be my recommendation. my recommendations will be beneath the list with reasons. also some of these are way better than others in terms of storytelling/performance--which is why i'll list my faves separately):

Common Themes/Tropes:

-Woman/girl is OP and gets bullshit from other people for it

-Heroine tries desperately to fix the world

-Leaving home to go on adventures for the sake of a dream or doing the right thing

-Sisters are a lifeline

-Women/girls can literally do or be anything

-Violence is the only answer men will understand

-The world is so big, grand and beautiful and she wants to see more of it

-Girls being the conscience of an entire society

-Things going ham when she reaches Boss Level

-Magic (and violence) are good things, especially paired together

-A man (usually a father or guy friend) is the only conscience she has left

-F*ck marriage there's bigger problems TM

-I must save my father/sister

-Serious mommy issues

-Has an animal companion or IS the animal companion (robots also count as animal companions in terms of function imo)

-Making friends with the monster

OF WHICH ARE FOR ADULT AUDIENCES:

Pantheon

Scavenger's Reign

Blue Eye Samurai

Arcane: League of Legends

Trese

HAVEN'T WATCHED:

Pantheon

Lilo & Stitch

Fiona & Cake

Star Vs. The Forces of Evil

Trese

Princess Mononoke

Green Snake

The Breadwinner

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Violet Evergarden

Barbie in The Diamond Castle

Monsters Vs Aliens

Epic

Finding Dory

Encanto

The Incredibles II

Tinkerbell: Legend of The Neverbeast

Brave

WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND:

Blue Eye Samurai (10/10) (super gritty, but the perfect revenge story, puts John Wick to shame)

Scavenger's Reign (8/10) (split story, but two of the main characters are women, and one is a black lesbian! fantastic animation, though don't watch if you're intensely trypophobic, it can be sci-fi horror)

Mulan (9/10) (one of the most perfect animated Disney classics)

Turning Red (8/10) (this movie remembered the tween era)

Tinkerbell (if you crave matriarchy, sisterhood, magic and female centric society and story, then you need to watch the Tinkerbell movies)

Wolfwalkers (7.5/10) (an anti-colonial, anti patriarchal, pro-pagan fantasy movie with beautiful animation and a very touching, female-centric story)

Arcane: League of Legends (10/10) (gorgeous animation, amazing writing, incredible performances, and don't get me started on the sisters that take centre stage--also, lesbianism and gender nonconformity!)

The Legend of Korra (8/10) (good writing, a badass protagonist, a fantastic cast of characters, beautiful scoring, beautiful animation, amazing action sequences)

PERSONAL NOTES

The Mitchells Vs The Machines is basically a drama between a lesbian girl and her dad who have to figure their relationship out while they're running from robots. It was full of heart and fun and had some good jokes in there. I'd definitely recommend it.

Raya & The Last Dragon is the first Disney movie with a gender non-conforming princess! It also has some of the best action sequences in any Disney animated movie, however it doesn't hold a candle to The Incredibles II, which stars Helen Parr as the main character of the film. It's one of my favourite films of all time because of how they depict Helen and the main villain of the story (a badass genius of a woman). Really pro-female films, even for all their flaws.

Abominable has some of the most gorgeous visuals I've seen outside of a Disney animation. The texturing and coloring is so vivid it makes my mouth water. It's far better than Over The Moon, but both have their own charm. Abominable and Home have very similar plots. Also, the girl in Home is voiced by Rihanna while Beyonce voices the queen of the faeries in Epic.

One movie that shares a similar theme (kindness to animals even if we don't understand them or they scare us) with Abominable is The Sea Beast. The Sea Beast is one of the best animations with a black female girl as a lead I've ever seen. There's also a badass black woman pirate. There are some scenes that could have been written (or colored) better, but I loved it either way. I think it was the first animated film to depict shrinkage for black hair! And it didn't lighten the skin or whiten the features of the black characters!

Many people view Frozen II and Brave as "almost" masterpieces whose writers ultimately failed them, and I can say that I agree to some extent. There are many things technically wrong with the movies. Minor details that set the pacing off or take away from the immersion. However, I still love both of them. I really love daughter vs mother and sister vs sister stories (that includes Tinkerbell: The Secret of The Wings) because there's so much to explore in such relationships. They also both have some killer soundtracks, some amazing visuals and well-executed action sequences. I've truly seen way worse than these two films, and the characters are mostly loveable.

The Breadwinner is an animated film about a girl dressing up like a boy under the rule of the Taliban so she can earn some money to help feed her family. It's scored very high by critics.

I'd also recommend The Owl House (even though there's some appeal to genderism in later seasons). It's the first time I've seen a bisexual animated character and the enemies to lovers arc with Luz and Amity is unmatched in cannon magic school stories. I also really love the depiction of The Owl Lady who is treated like a male character in that she is allowed to be non-maternal, single and old (and wrinkled), arrogant and boastful, all without the show trying to punish her for it. The Boiling Isles are also fascinating as a setting.

If you like The Owl House, there's a chance you'll love She-Ra. There were many things I found annoying about She-Ra, but my experience was mostly positive. I'm not the biggest fan of Catradora, but I do appreciate the drama. I loved the world-building and magic system mainly, so the character quirks didn't get to me as much as they have others. Also, amazing antagonists in this series. It could have been more mature, but it's still entertaining.

I also definitely recommend Home on The Range. It's a whole movie with talking animals, but there's no tomboy like the main female protagonist in a Disney movie. She is one of the most tomboy characters Disney ever made. Also, I love 2D animation and this film reminds me why. Also, the idea of a feminine, micromanaging old heifer, a bull-headed, roughhouse new girl cow, and a young airhead cow that can't sing going on an adventure across the wild west to save their human's (a sweet old lady with some bark and bite) farm? And they have to compete with a hotshot, asshole male horse who is young and fast? It's like the perfect western comedy but with cows!

Anyways, if you can't tell, I love animated stuff and a lot of these are my comfort movies.

[bellatrix-the-leviathan-girl]

This is copy-pasted from my message in the Discord hhhh

VELDIDRONES

Murder Drones X Sitcom au.

First off if you haven’t watched Murder Drones, go watch it. It’s by the same studio as Digital Circus and it’s a sci-fi horror comedy and it’s the first online thing that made me cave and buy official merch from (however if you choose to watch Murder Drones, tw for gore, body horror, cannibalism, vomiting (just in one episode), abuse (but it’s not a huge focus) abandonment, and probably some other stuff but the most common ones in the show are the first 3)

Secondly, spoilers for Murder Drones

Basically it’s the Sitcom au but in the MD world, with a few Murder Drones plot points thrown in.

Alex and Mortimer are worker/solver drones while the Veldigun take the role of the disassembly drones but can use solver, as well as being somewhat physically different. Basically, they’re Dissassemblers mixed with Veldigun.

Other mportant details:

-This is shown for a few moments in the show but it’s more significant with this au: drones with Solver can create hallucinations

-The Solver symbol changes to a triangle with 6 circles, yes it’s Six

-Falsified workers tend to grow quite a bit and take on more animalistic traits that are shared with the Veldidrone which changed them.

-Any worker drone can be falsified but only those who have parents who are/were solver drones can have solver. Alex’s mother and Mort’s dad were solver drones.

-Veldidrones work similarly to regular Veldigun, they eat workers and can use the knowledge in the worker’s cpu. They also grow larger with every worker they eat.

-Flock is a Sentinel

-Veldidrones are basically robot Veldigun in appearance, however they have disassembly drone eye screens and the eye light headbands. The eye lights are the same color as the Veldigun’s eyes, with 2 of Klaus’s lights being blue

-Veldigoop is nanite acid now

Alright I’m done rambling *slams head on table*

[mercymermaid]

well here's my full season 5 (nezha edition) rant bc what did i just watch

obvious spoilers 💀

what the fuck was that

blah blah animation, blah blah main character sacrifice, wowee

first off, the mechs?? yeah, i know it's just product placement, and i've never actually liked the concept. in a world of mythology and magic, something to technological belongs in a sci-fi movie, not among gods. and in season 5 especially, they feel *so* out of place. the only people who end up actually using their mech are nezha (twice) and mei (once.) i can't be mad at mei, since yeah it's just one time to have an epic moment and goes away after that, but it's nezha that i'm mad about. that standoff at the festival? okay, product placement, epic moment, never brought up again. but then during the battle thing against the chaos guy??? he's the *only one* using a mech and it ticks me off. i wanna see the third lotus prince not the third lotuce mech!! i wanna see him being all badass with his staff and firewheels (like sealing off the jade emperor's power in s4)

i'm gonna be so honest, i only watched the season (and show) for nezha, as i tend to do to medias when i have a top unbeatable absolute favorite. and the show did not deliver.

tldr; nezha had so much potential and all of it went right down the drain

speaking of the power

so you're telling me that mr. "my job is super duper important and more important than my life" would take lightly to his dad going "lmao no" and just taking his seal and reinforcing it with his little magic house?

OH. THE LI JING SITUATION.

"i've always been proud of you" NO YOU HAVE NOT??? YOU HATED NEZHA SO MUCH YOU BURNT DOWN HIS TEMPLE AND LITERALLY YOU GUYS HAVE A BURNING HATRED TOWARDS EACH OTHER?????

i wanted a fucking fight scene SO BAD. SO FUCKING BAD. but noooOOOOOO you're DEFENDING YOUR BITCH DAD??? okay, i get it, power imbalance or something! give nezha a *reason* to be so buddy buddy with his dad, because he sure as hell wouldn't do it without one!!

that ties in to the whole pagoda thing, how fucking hurtful must it be for your dad, who you are far from on good terms with, to pop in, take the power you've put on your shoulders, deem you not good enough ("you got demoted!"), and push you around?? very! very very!

you do not understand what i would've done, what war crimes i would've committed in order for nezha to get some focus on HIM. specifically angst. with the shit that he went through in s3, being nerfed and having his long-term position as guardian of the map pulled out from right under him by his little friendly rival, and then *s4*, getting his ass absolutely kicked by the shit that went down with azure, being the most injured and put under the giant strain of containing the jade emperor's power, you're not gonna elaborate and give him some depth besides "big brother energy but distant and super 'regal'"?? (btw if you've ever EVER written nezha angst (or even some nezha-centric stuff in general) on ao3 i've probably read it and oh my god i love you so much for gifting it to the world, and if you read this far recs are always appreciated 😭)

actually on that note, mk is the one constantly making trauma jokes, and while i get that he's the main character, everyone's gone through shit. s5 at least kind of works with that, with mei's samadhi fire thing and wukong/macaque's death memory thing, along with pigsy's insecurity moment and sandy's little "i'm very very angry but i control myself" spiel, but like come on ☹️ (not a ruse to get nezha some angsty focus wdym)

ALSO mk breaking the seal? yk how in s4 we had that little thing where their eyes flashed and they felt the jade emperor die? i was lowkey expecting a little similar shot of nezha feeling his seal on the power break but no we needed the emotional moment 😒

i was so excited in the festival scene for nezha to go "yeah, okay, i see you", fight against his father, and join the MCG, but nooooOoo he gets sent to the celestial realm to not be seen until the end of the world

OH SPEAKING OF not nezha but red son??? what happened to the poor guy i feel so bad for red son enjoyers because he had ONE EPISODE of screen time. that's worse than us nezha fans. that little bit about the dog videos meaning help us could've so been used later, he literally joked about how this time he was invited and just. didn't show up?? there could've been such a sick moment of mei sending the dog video, and red son seeing it and coming in and being all badass with them but no he was just literally not featured again except for the 'world is ending/being saved' flash shots. (unrelated but please i want canon big brother nezha lil bro red son content those guys are Iconic)

ANYWAY it's coming to an end now, and boy oh boy

basically i have futile, naive hopes for s6 - please, PLEASE give nezha focus that lasts longer than 1-2 scenes. it literally does not have to be angsty, nor big brother energy, not even a badass moment!! just make it mechless and put the camera on *him*, and i will die a happy woman. (another badass moment, in which he wins for once, would make me cry for joy. a big brother, to literally anybody, specifically red son or mk, would make shake and snarl like a feral animal. an angsty moment would make me force the world to be puppies and rainbows. a nezha episode would make me implode and take the world with it.)

bring back li jing and do it *right*. make nezha bring up their horrible past, and at that point, i'd even settle for a corny talk-it-out session with wise words and an issue that gets resolved way too quickly, though an epic fight scene would be preferable. angst not optional, because you can't tell me that interaction would end without tears and breakdowns on nezha's end. (at this point, i'll write it myself)

LET NEZHA WIN. i do not care what he fights, who he fights, when he fights, why he fights, how he fights, let him actually cop a win for once. this fearsome general who was entrusted with guarding the samadhi map, is a protector deity, and managed to singlehandedly contain the jade emperor's power has never won a single fight within his show screen time?? bull fucking shit i tell you. stop treating this guy who carried the end of s4 like some shit side character who never gets his way, and start treating the guy right.

can you tell i'm mad about this

also ACTUAL s5 thing, not gonna lie, mk's decision is stupid. nüwa is trying to protect her creations like a good mighty goddess, and you go "erm actually me some random guy who you created to save the world and was about to do so is gonna undo all of your work and decide to make my own path and simultaneously create a massive crisis where i not only flip normal on its ass and give everyone magic but also potentially unleash the same cosmis horror you're protecting us from"

i'm kinda curious about this new magic tho... (pls have a negative effect or some sort of effect) (pls let nezha win)

yeah okay i think that's it if you've stuck around to the end here's a selection of desserts because you need it after the crash of the season ending 🍮🍭🍬🍫🥧🧁🍰🍪🎂🍩🍨🍧🍦🥠🍡🥮🍥

[cinderella-ish]

Tag Nine People You'd Like to Know Better

tagged by @lyricalvicki! thank you for the tag! (Also! Sex Education is brilliant! As is Skip to Loafer! Highly recommend both shows! And I love your favorite colors being the bi flag!!)

Last song: when I got the notification, it was "So Very Hard to Go" by Tower of Power, but as I'm writing this it's "It's Over, Isn't It?" from Steven Universe

Favorite colors: green and blue... and recently I've been loving yellow and orange. maybe just all of them i guess?

Currently watching: rewatching Taskmaster S13 and JJK, slowly working my way through JJBA Stardust Crusaders, HoriMiya, and Skip Beat!, and keeping up with Demon Slayer/KNY S4 and Taskmaster NZ S3.

Spicy/savory/sweet: Savory for sure! I like some sweet things (like ice cream!), but I can't deal with anything too sweet, and I have a pretty low tolerance for spice (working on that one, though!)

Relationship status: I have a long-term partner, he's a lovable doof and the cutest cat dad in the world

Current obsessions: really just Fruits Basket! I'll also talk your ear off about The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders or The Dispossessed by Ursula K. LeGuin because I love sci fi and those are probably my two favorite novels ever, period, and NO ONE I TALK TO HAS READ THE FIRST ONE!

I TAG: @queerplatonic-msr @modistemaomaorin @biancanekoyokai @riceballmari @coralpaperthoughts @ofoceansandtombsanew @novelist-becca @angstintensifer @beesonhoneytoast - no pressure to anyone to participate! I'd love to see your answers only if you want to share! (That applies if I didn't tag you, too!)

[your-queer-dad]

hi dad!

i'm gonna ramble about one of my stories/ocs and i have a lot of them, but right now i really like this one for some reason.

so the main character's name is zero (he/it), and he was raised in a lab for reasons (he's not exactly a clone, but he was grown from human cells and they wanted to watch him grow up)

so when the story starts it's like 15/16 and the people who run the lab decide to have it move in with this random old lady and have it come for testing like once or twice a week

and since it's his first time living outside the lab he's obviously really nervous and sort of doesn't know how to act but eventually he meets this girl called jesse and they become friends and eventually a couple (also they're t4t yippee)

anyhow i really like it and i'm very proud of its design (i'm not gonnna show a picture because i want to stay on anon but i think it looks very cute)

anyway i really want to make this into an actual comic at some point, and i think i would make it usually really wholesome and then sort of horrifying at some points because of the whole human experiment thing

anyway bye and thanks for letting me ramble to you :D

-elliot

Hey kiddo!!! Those sound awesome!!! It sounds awesome, I love the balance between sci fi horror and cute rom com!! The characters sound really interesting too! If you want to share some art or anything privately, I'd be more than happy to see! I'm so proud of you kiddo, and I'm always happy to hear people ramble!

- dad x

[shysheeperz]

love ur blog!! I check it out before starting an anime/manga 💞

just wondering do u have any recommendations for complete anime/mangas?

thank u either way!!!

Completed??????

Manga:

Fullmetal Alchemist- the gold standard

Silver Spoon- by the same person who did FMA. Agricultural school stuff. Cute.

Agravity Boys- space sci-fi gag comedy, a wild ride to say the least, I miss my stupid boys

Magu-chan: God of Destruction- cute digimon/pokemon-shaped gods get woken up and mingle with a bunch of middle schoolers. Cute fluff mostly, will occasionally pull at your heartstrings (including the ending)

High School Family: Kokosei Kazoku- comedy/ slice of life, about an entire family attending high school. Has a volleyball arc that rivals the likes in haikyuu!!

Haikyuu!!-sports manga, if you want to cry over boys and their love for the game then this is for you, Boys x Volleyball is the tru otp of the show

Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku- dark historical fantasy, so very, very good. Don't get attached.

Dr. STONE- sci fi, technically the main story is complete. We still have been getting the occasional side chapter or three that continue where the main story left off tho. A very solid shonen jump series. includes one of the best shonen jump dads in the history of ever. Will make u emotional over lightbulbs and stuff. hard not to root for the main cast.

Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya- a non-canon little one volume spin-off about byakuya and mainly about a funky lil robot that will make you sob uncontrollably I'd personally say to read up to the end of the Treasure Island arc in the main story first before tackling this one (about ch 140ish)

Dr. STONE 4D Science- a continuation of the main story, only a couple chapters, the ending is a really cruel tease imo and if Inagaki/Boichi don't give us more may they be cursed to lose all their left shoes forever

Food Wars! Shokugeki no Sanji- spin-off of sanji side stories by the duo who did food Wars. ONE PIECE related ofc. Tasty looking food. Sanji too cool for school. One volume.

Astra Lost in Space- space sci fi survival, solid story that deserves more appreciation, the ending is just a tad lackluster in actually showing what a lot of readers would have liked to physically see. By no means ruins the story tho.

Blue Flag (Ao no Flag)- high school, romance, slice of life, boys and gals just trying to figure out life and relationships. Solid.

Mashle: Magic and Muscles- gag comedy that leans a little too much into the shonen battle-esque stuff towards the end imo, but a decently enjoyable time. A mash up of Harry Potter and other various manga like mob, opm, etc.

Mitama Security: Spirit Busters- comedy, axed but I enjoyed it. Goofy fun. nothing spectacular but reading it won't hurt anyone.

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes- spin-off of mha obviously, average joe Koichi >>> deku FIGHT ME, the goodest of boys, world building u don't get in the main series, Aizawa's backstory, Knuckleduster is the man the myth the legend.

Chihayafuru- screaming crying throwing up, it's niche it's technically a sports manga, romance, female MC, growth™, love triangle but at the end of the day that's not what's important

My Love Mix-Up!- comedy romance, big big mix-up on who loves who and lots of shenanigans ensue.

Noragami- TECHNICALLY not complete until like 2 days from now when the final chapter releases. my emotions! MY EMOTIONS!!!! 😭

Gintama- comedy/gag with dashes of really good drama

I have no idea what your tastes are, anon, so here's a mix that I've personally enjoyed. Some of them were axed, but technically that makes them complete so I included them :P yes I cheated.

Anime:

There's a lot less of them bc I haven't actually watched a lot of completed series.

Run with the Wind- more boys x sports but this time it's about running. Also the boys are in college. Will trick u into wanting to run.

91 days- ol timey story about VENGEANCE. Set during the prohibition.

Tengan Toppa Gurren Lagann- makes you emotional and feel all fuzzy inside, sci fi, mecha

Cowboy Bebop- a classic

Samurai Champloo- also a classic and I actually prefer this one over cowboy bebop tbh, god tier baseball episode

Astra Lost in Space-the anime version, if you'd prefer watching over reading, but I always prefer manga > anime just cause.

FMA 03/FMA BROTHERHOOD- the gold standard. I appreciate both versions. 03 goes the anime original ending root bc obviously the manga wasn't completed yet no biggie.

Mob Psycho 100- MOB!MOB!MOB! and tumblr sexy man reigen arataka

Gintama- animated version alternative lol. The voice actors bring the characters to life.

Obv there are the old school classics like Sailor Moon, Cardcaptor Sakura, Gundam and all that jazz if you haven't already checked out some of those. Oldies but goodies.

[welcometogrouchland]

not only is darimila HYSTERICALLY funny as a crackship i think camila deserves a nice peacock of a boyfriend. i want her to show a photo of him at work and his coworkers are too busy wondering if this guy is an actor or a model or what to wonder about the ears or the goo hair. can you imagine darius helping the nocedas with groceries high heels and green eyeliner and god knows what else. MAN.

Firstly I love that this ask implies that Darius puts 0 effort into concealing his identity as a witch when he's in the human realm. This man is fully willing to expose magic and the demon realm in the town famous for producing a crackpot genocidal witch hunter everyone hates IF. and only if he can look fabulous doing it

I'm also on team Camila Deserves Nice Things anon, though I do differ on the details slightly, mainly because I'm sooooo enchanted by the Darius and Camila fake dating scenario I've cooked up in my brain. It both appeases the part of me that adheres to canon characterization of Camila as a woman who still, years later, has boxes of Manny's stuff lying around the house, yet to be put away, bc realistically she did not get proper space to mourn him when he died and she is not ready to move on...AND the part of me that, like you, wants Camilla's coworkers to see a picture of Darius and LOSE THEIR MINDS. HELLO??? THIS IS THE BAD BITCH SHE PULLED BY BEING AUTISTIC??? FR???????

And then I'm unsure whether or not I prefer Darius with romantic feelings for Camila? On the one hand I think, in the beautiful timeline where I actually wrote this, I'd prefer to have it come down on the side of "Darius and Camila are Good Friends who bond over how terrifying being a new(ly), single parent is"

and Hunter has to grapple with the fact that no, his family is not and never will be "normal" according to societies standards, and he cannot parent trap his parents into loving each other, but that doesn't make his family structure any worse off than something closer to a nuclear family.

Also I'd squeeze some juicy character exploration out of Luz bc she is SO not over her dad's death. She tries to downplay it and act like she is but she is not and it's very very clear in TTT. But she also wants her mom to be happy more than anything. And she loves love! And it'd make hunter happy! So she's just. Sitting there with gritted teeth trying not to get upset at the idea of Darius and her mom actually getting together and being happy.

But, tragically, I can't guarantee I'll ever fully write this out (though I fully encourage ppl to run with the idea if they like it. Please run with it I can't be the only one who's thought of this before) so I give myself a little more room to be silly and I say that. Darius is a person with a lot of walls up who likes pretending to be cool as a method of distancing himself from ppl, and I'd love to watch those walls get eroded by the overly sincere and silly sci-fi nerds that are his son-figure and his crush, who are also mother and son. Also I love the idea of Darius being a man in his forties with a crush. Yes!! Get more pathetic!!! Raeda is cowering rn!!!!!

IN CONCLUSION: I love you anon, I should really make SOMETHING based on the Darius Camila fake dating scenario, but if I don't, let this rambling serve as a testament to the GRIP it has on my brain

[mariathechosen1]

Seeing a lot of people criticize Netflix’s 3 Body Problem for its casting choices (which I understand, they’ve definitely made an…….interesting decision), but when it comes to criticizing it as a show I think many are being a bit unfair.

I get that a lot of people don’t like it when adaptations change elements of their favorite book, but this show was honestly pretty well made! Not to mention visually stunning!

I watched it with my dad, who has read all the books and who’s a really big fan, while I’m only vaguely familiar with the book plot, but we both really liked it! I definitely agree with some critics that the show sometimes struggles (especially in the first episodes) with giving us proper direction and motivation (something/someone to root for ya know?) but that fixed itself a bit as we got to know the main cast more and more. The show’s biggest flaw (except for all the weird af adaptation choices) is that they don’t give us more time with our main cast. They can be a bit flat at times, and I really feel like most of them carry a lot of unexplored potential.

Onto the positives: The way these guys do dialogue is just *chef’s kisses*. It’s smart, it’s layered, it’s funny and they never made exposition boring. I think a lot of the characters were ‘saved’ by just how great the dialogue was. Characters like Wade very quickly became favorites because of just how entertaining they were, while, on the other side, characters like Auggie seemed a bit ‘dull’ at times (though Auggie definitely became better once they gave her more agency). The show’s characters almost seem divided into two categories: Those with emotional depth, but dull dialogue, and those with no depth, but awesome dialogue. Sometimes it balances itself out, other times it’s a bit frustrating.

I was also pleasantly surprised by how they handled the horror element of the story. While probably not as effective as in the original book (converting written to visual horror is a challenge of its own caliber.), there were several scenes that very much scared the shit out of me.

I also cried……several times. Kudos to Alex Sharp for a breathtaking performance.

I think this show is best suited for two types of people: 1) People who haven’t read the books, but who are interested in some nice sci fi, and 2) Book fans…….who aren’t too emotionally attached to the original storyline.

[lronvaliant]

Watched the first episode of Crusade (Babylon 5 spinoff). I have some choice thoughts

They're leaning a Lot more into the fantasy themes. Which is neat. Probably the neatest part. Apparently a dragon shows up at one point according to my dad so I'm curious to see how they'll handle an alien dragon

But like.. I don't necessarily DISLIKE Crusade, but I don't really like it. It's very obviously meant to be more serious, darker and gritty. It kinda reminds me of the grittiness of stuff like the old Fallout games (and other things that I know but cannot remember) But it's too serious. It lacks the wonder, elegance, and whimsy Babylon 5 has.. especially with the characters. The characters are too similar and blend together. They're all dry, hardened, kinda rude types They CAN work, but not when they're all one of the three or more. And they also just lack the whimsy that B5 characters have. Like Garibaldi is really cold and cunning, but that's balanced by him being probably one of the most whimsical characters on the show.

Also, it's further removed from the wonder by it mostly just being humans (so far, at least). There's one alien on the crew but she's not as alien as the other races are And there IS the Drakh as the main antagonist and they're Very alien. But also they're the main antagonist.. and I also have a minor nitpick They're a lot less like the other antagonists on Babylon 5. They're just pretty much unequivocally evil, and they do have a reason but it's just like.. "oh yeah let's fuck over everyone for revenge!" and not even following the ways of their masters (trying to avoid any spoilery stuff for the ppl who i wanna show it)

Also worried that the fantasy themes might be leaned into a bit too much. Babylon 5 blended sci-fi and fantasy pretty well together (they actually go hand-in-hand often but Babylon 5 especially had a lot of that type of stuff) but it really leans into traditional fantasy.

Also, they very obviously are using the Technomages as the equivalent to the First Ones which is okay, and I am interested to see more of the Technomages, but I'm also worried it'll just make them less cool if we know more abt them

[supernovaa-remnant]

Anyway!! Mutuals, if you're leaving blogs please let me know so I can still follow you!! and if you're leaving the fandom lmk what you're getting into I'd love to know what my mutuals are interested in :3

if anyone cares, my current strongest non-mcyt/dsmp interests are below, and you're always free to talk about these:

coffee talk (literally obsessed w/ this video game and the characters pls talk to me abt them)

dungeon meshi (banger anime!!! ty to everyone on my dash who convinced me to watch it)

my silly little sci-fi shows (mostly stargate & star trek with a hint of farscape and sanctuary) (guys please all I've ever wanted is someone to talk abt sci-fi with who isn't my dad) (I love my dad tho to be clear)

percy jackson (I've loved these books since I was a kid, okay? also currently re-reading them)

dungeons and dragons (I'm always willing to talk abt my characters and campaign)

avatar the last airbender (it's iconic what can I say?)

as for writing... I still have plenty of fics I wanna write and will write, but I also wanna start doing some original writing. I have a coming-of-age novella centered around an aromantic protagonist that I really wanna write.

anyway, I'm still mainly a dreblr/dtblr blog with hints of multifandom (as I always have been). I have other interests, but probably won't talk abt them much without prompting? absolutely will talk in length about them with prompting though.

[bengiyo]

The Warp Effect Ep 12 (Finale) Stray Thoughts

The week of finales continues! I was forever changed by My School President. Will this show change me as well?

Last time, things finally came to a head at Jedi and Rose's wedding, which used prom as its theme. Jedi and Rose continued to make me believe in long term romance. See-ew committed the cardinal sin of proposing at someone's wedding. Mollie and Nim managed to reconcile a bit. Joe and Army danced in public, and are building their romance. Alex learned that the sex ed teacher was his bio dad and refused to forgive him for abandoning his mom. Alex tried to reconcile with Jean, but Jean refused. Kat is hanging out with Tony now. Alex learned that the camera came from his bio dad.

As always, so much happens on this show.

I do enjoy the sci-fi conceits of someone experiencing this huge period of time, and then returning to an earlier moment. Everyone else being so confused amuses me.

I also like Alex immediately going to reassure his little brother.

Clize and Sing are so funny together. I hope we see them paired again.

Alex getting ahead of the Mollie issue by kissing her himself is unexpected, but makes sense to keep it from becoming a rift between Nim and Mollie.

Oh, Alex, please don't out Army and Joe.

Yep, they're still closeted jocks, so yeah that's definitely the same outcome.

Jojo definitely likes Kill Bill, Vol. 2.

I love Jedi and Rose so much. Mark and Best look so comfortable together.

Have we not learned our lessons about drinking too much??

Jojo, why have you joined the ranks of people forcing me to witness vomit??

Ah, nice. Shielding the gays is the right move.

I swear if Jean gets expelled still because of these photos....

Fah is also so funny. She actually works really well with New. Cutting off the music when she passes out was fantastic comedic timing.

Alex is still a people pleaser, but I like him being confident about helping people.

I actually like the chemistry between New and Fah a lot.

I'm never getting over the BTS clip where Clize slaps Sing so hard that he walked away stunned.

This elevator make out competition is peak Jojo. Best, Clize, Mark, and Sing are so amazing.

It's a bit contrived, but I really like how far a little earnest validation is carrying all of these couples.

Even Sarran gets a nod.

Oh, I do love creating the intro at the end.

Absolutely comedic poses for Jean and Alex's consensual first time. Still, that was much nicer than what happened originally.

This friend group is honestly impressive if they all not only stayed in their pairs, they also remained friends for a decade.

Kinda hope Alex gets the memories of the better ten years and doesn't have to piece those together too.

Final Verdict: 10, Highly Recommended. This show was an absolute delight from start to finish. I cannot overstate how impressive it is that this show remained legible despite the sheer volume of threads it was managing. This show managed to be funny and sexy, while still continuing the mission to make people more comfortable with their bodies and aware of their own sexual health. It also managed to accomplish those educational goals without feeling like an after school special. It's also the queerest show we've gotten to enjoy in quite some time. I'd say in some ways it cared more about queer issues than some of the BLs we've watched. Please watch and enjoy this.

[intergalactic-garbage]

i see you've chosen to be into red dwarf today, which i've never heard of, so i'm currently working out from your posts what it even is at all

my guess went from fiction podcast to musical (a la starkid) to somewhat low budget tv show (made no later than 2007 and likely in the 80s)

it seems fun! and i'm also having fun with my lack of understanding of what it is so it's your call whether you want to tell me or just laugh at my guesses :)

hiiii monarch! i love the phrasing "whats this mf gonna reblog today *spins wheel*" :D <3

red dwarf is a sci-fi comedy sitcom from the uk, which aired some time ago. it's something i used to watch with my dad (still do sometimes) - we have all the series on dvd in czech, and the dub holds a special place in my heart.

as do the characters! the cast features dave lister, last human whos accidentally survived an accident that killed everyone else on the spaceship, wakes up 3mil yrs later, and is only accompanied by rimmer, his former insuffrable roommate (now in the form of a hologram), cat (guy who is from a race that evolved from lister's cat which he sneaked on the spaceship (and the reason why he got sent to stasis for 3mil yrs)), totally flamboyant and very stupid mf (i love him), holly (the ships sarcastic ai interface) and kryten (servant robot who learns to be more human and rebel against his programming).

the cast all have their insufferable qualities that make them so very human. lister is just a guy. hes very punk subculture guy who just views the world through very common sense, likes to poke fun at rimmer, and is gross at times :D but very much is the one to be the voice of humanity and just. empathy. real. rimmer is a horrible know-it-all whos a terrible coward and loves to pesk everyone around him (and drop the blame for things he did to himself on everyone else). he has 97 illnesses and isnt allowed in most public spaces

(this is a hannibal meme but applies to rimmer too well.) hes very autistic coded, his parents hated him, is obsessed with becoming a great world ruler/hero/whatever, and terribly in denial of the fact that hes just sabotaging himself in becoming that. also frequently made fun of for not having a lot of sex with women, but it all just comes of as him being gay and horribly horribly in denial about it.

basically, rimmer was only revived as a hologram to be a companion to lister, and was picked to be the person who was best fit to be listers companion for an eternity in space from every person on the ship of red dwarf (which is said to be big like a small city). which idk but if you ask me thats pretty gay.

the sort of core of the show is the banter of them two, and them being polar opposites in a way, but also, despite how annoyed they are by each other, clearly caring about each other.

the third character is holly, the ships ai with iq in the thousands, who exists to provide info on the ship and have sarcastic remarks. sometime in s2 he switches gender and becomes a woman. dont remember why or how. but then she has this horrible haircut

the fourth character is cat. hes stupid, cares about himself, dresses in flamboyant suits (my personal fashion icon), but never to such an extent that hed become actually unlikable. theyre all kinda annoying but that makes it so good :D the fifth character, who joins the cast sometime in s2 is kryten, android who is their maid. hes very kind and caring and they slowly actively try to disrupt this programming, so he can lie and rebel and just. im soft abt it

the entire show is enjoyable bc of the characters and the fact they all share a single braincell, and the setting allows fun sci-fi shenanigans to happen. like a manifestation of their worst aspects in the form of a planet, a version of earth where time is in reverse, and all that jazz - but it all really serves as a setting for the characters and the bits :D despite all that, often theres a deeper thought underlying the eps, like theyre often on the verge of death, or discussing the morality of something. it's all just very british.

and ahhhh i just love them all they have zero braincells and the humour is so special to me<33 and thank you for asking!!! im literally so happy someone asked me about this :3 also please if theres anything that didnt make sense to you or want to ask further about please do <3

[epicrox]

Till The End Of The Moon Thoughts - Episode 2

WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW

PARTS: 1.1 | 1.2 | 2 |

This is mostly for me to look back on and see the moments that I caught my eye. Nothing analytical. I offer nothing to the table

I'm also a visual person so there's a lot of screenshots x

This is called my thoughts because I refuse to call what I'm writing down as a review. Reviews inform people and this post does nothing for people.

I’ve seen posts on Tumblr calling Tantai Jin a Disney princess cuz he’s being mistreated and talks to animals 🤨

The scenery is so pretty.

3. There seem to be Chinese subtitles on the right side of the screen indicating that background music is playing but I think they cut it out because I’m not hearing anything. Maybe it’s because I’m watching it on YouTube. I don’t know about other platforms.

4. Yeah, they cut the music now and it just sounds awkward and empty.

5. Omg she’s just leaving him there! Aren’t you supposed to keep him alive?

6. He legit looks like an old man because of the snow.

7. This man looks so delicate.

8. Even at the brink of getting hypothermia, he looks like he has a better chance of getting a modelling contract than me.

9. Disney Princess indeed.

10. Bingchang looks really sweet. I’m praying she doesn’t turn out evil or two-faced.

11. Wtf is this crow’s voice?!

12. It sounds like a demonic robot. This further proves my point about this show being sci-fi.

13. The crow’s basically a camera.

14. Then don’t let him die! That celestial being never told you to kill him and didn’t even mention the evil bone, your dad did. He literally told you that Tantai Jin’s torment and death triggered his demonic powers. All you need to do is prevent that! And what do you mean he deserves this?! He hasn’t done anything yet!

15. Her strategy is irritating me.

16. It looks like she’s cradling a head. Just the head.

17. I love that he just had to faint for her to understand the severity of the situation.

18. Wtf is that? His subconscious?

19. This demonic being reminds me of that demon that trains Luo Binghe after he gets pushed off the cliff.

20. He wants Tantai Jin to give him his soul to allow him eternal peace? Does he want to use Tantai Jin’s body as a vessel?

21. It’s the 2nd episode and we’ve got Xi Wu feeling him up.

22. Ma’am, how are you sleeping with that on your head?

23. She even got her dangly earrings on!

24. Get over what?

25. Ha! Xi Wu is having thoughts.

26. So am I.

27. She beats him?!

28. Why am I surprised?

29. OG!Xi Wu was an evil person.

30. The fact that she is hesitating about hitting him! Put the whip down! Even though he’ll see you’ve changed and would make him suspicious, at least he’ll be happy about not getting whipped.

31. She cares more about staying in character than changing the past.

32. At least take the gear off before you go to sleep.

33. After literally TORTURING HIM, you're worried for his health. It seems you’ve figured out actions have consequences.

34. AHHH!!!

35. Also as an otherworldly being, deity or whatever she is, Xi Wu can be really dense. I’d understand if she didn’t know how some things worked in the mortal world but for someone responsible for saving the world, your strategy is confusing.

36. I know she’s grieving for what had happened but she can prevent tragedies if she were a little smarter.

37. Is that even comfortable? I’ve always envied my parents for being able to sleep while sitting down because for some reason I can’t.

38. Awww. I love how confused he is.

39. He’s so delicate (This man is over 10 years older than me).

40. Yes, she’s possessed.

41. Just like villainess stories, is she hated by her family?

42. Oh no. She seems to be the favourite. Makes sense since the OG!Xi Wu was running around making trouble without much consequence. How can you be punished for your actions if you’re the Apple in your family’s eyes?

43. Also how many concubines does Xi Wu’s dad have? Does Bingchang and Xi Wu have different mothers?

44. It’s very clear from the beginning that the eldest brother is going to be useless.

45. Ze Yu just vanished. And make Xi Wu apologise to Bingchang. OG!Xi Wu must’ve thought she was entitled to everything. Bingchang must feel ostracised by her own family.

46. Wow, even the kitchen boys are bullying him. They’re probably gonna get beaten by Xi Wu and zapped when Tantai Jin gets into power.

47. This whole thing must be so humiliating as a prince.

48. How is he working in the kitchens and doing dishes while looking so pristine?

49. Is that ice?

50. Are they purposefully making him wash dishes in ice-cold water? Or is it something people did historically?

51. HE HASN'T DONE ANYTHING YET. But he’s going to.

52. I’m not sure you’re aware of this but you’re in the body of his abuser. Of course, he’s avoiding you. Like didn’t you whip him last night?

53. Also, you haven’t spent long enough in that body to make this statement.

54. Yep. I think they put the ice in to torment him.

55. This reminds me of a trope you mostly see in isekai mangas/manhwas where the ML is so rude and aloof towards the FL that all the servants start to think they can do it too.

56. One thing that irks me about these tropes (it irks a lot of other people too) is that when the FL begins to stand up for herself against the servants, she slaps them.

57. Ooh, the music changed.

58. Not only does he speak to robotic crows, but he’s also talking to flies. Or was that a wasp?

59. I was under the impression Tantai Jin would commit murder but he just made the head cook (I think) swallow a fly. His reaction after swallowing the fly would have made you think he was being poisoned or choked.

60. It’s funny that she’s lecturing the staff about how rude they are even though this whole time she kept on saying he deserved it. You left him in the cold and whipped him. You know he’s a captured prince.

61. She’s putting all the blame on the servants rather than saying that OG! Xi Wu and even herself were wrong.

62. Instead of Xi Wu slapping them, they’re slapping themselves.

63. “If I had dignity, I would’ve died years ago” He really is a Disney princess.

64. More specifically, Cinderella. I saw a video essay from a channel called The Take. They talk about how people victim blame Cinderella a lot for not fighting back her abusers. In one part of the video, they talked about how Cinderella allows the abuse to continue as it is very likely that her stepmother would kick her out if she acted out.

65. Tantai Jin doesn’t know that the Xi Wu in front of him is not the original. So if I were him, I’d be more cautious about what type of food Xi Wu feeds me than the servants. Although, OG!Xi Wu could’ve ordered the servants to poison Tantai Jin’s food.

66. This man gives me Jin Xixun vibes or Mo Xuanyu’s cousin who died in the first episode of MDZS/The Untamed.

67. Oh, this is hard to watch.

68. That guy threw the cake on the ground and then stepped on it. Even if I was hungry I could never take a bite of it. It took me a while to even eat/drink something that someone else touched with their hand or mouth.

69. Is she drugged or drunk?

70. omg

71. They kissed! And we’re on the 2nd episode. I know it isn’t the FL but still. I count it.

72. Ok, they’re drugged.

73. I remember the two actors were together in a previous drama and there was a make-out scene that everyone freaked out about. So I assume they know what they’re doing in this drama.

74. So someone tried to make Bingchang and Jin Xixun prince spend the night together by drugging them but instead, they both ate it. It was 100% OG! Xi Wu.

75. Oh wait, they actually did it? But they’re clothed.

76. He has every right to be suspicious of you and the food you’ve given him.

77. Gosh. That crow’s voice is terrifyingly comedic. I giggle every time it opens its beak.

78. Tantai Jin is definitely planning something.

79. At least he’s pretty while doing it. Look at this shot.

80. This king looks familiar. Wasn’t he the emperor from Ashes of Love?

81. Tantai Jin is definitely ripping his head off.

82. This whole political drama is going to push Tantai Jin to join the dark side.