#and if not wrong then really really off base and missing some imo really really obvious setup for as yet undelivered payoff

[kkoraki]

maybe i’ll make a longer slightly more serious post to this effect someday but i do spend an inordinate amount of time fantasizing about Popping The Biggest Bottles When Alecto The Ninth Happens Tomorrow

[tomurawr44]

heyy! I have a request, can you show us how unhealthy and toxic Tomura is? NSFW if you want ✨️

TOXIC!BOYFRIEND TOMURA HEADCANONS!

A/N : okay ty for the first ask!! but imo he's not like DETRIMENTALLY toxic or physically, it's more or so the mindgames he plays and how he unknowingly does the things he does.

WARNINGS: toxic tomura, this is my first time writing him like actually mean so plz forgive, manipulation, all of..that, warnings for NSFW will appear.

he's very into guilt tripping, like actually, it's somewhat sickening at this point, he'll get pissed at just the slightest things and accuse you of hating him or intentionally doing it to piss him off.

he's the jealous kind, like really easy jealous kind, he'll slowly nitpick things about your friends until you cut most of them off of else he'll make you choose between him or them.

he never, ever says sorry, most if not all the blame is on you, he will never acknowledge that he is in the wrong and will blame the world around him for his own failure.

he's very straightforward, he will tell you what's on his mind, for better and for worse. the way he treats Kurogiri reflects on you.

the more vulnerable he gets with you, the more he begins to put his guard up, he's not used to the sensations your giving him, he'll take and take and take, barely giving anything back though.

Don't cry around him, it'll piss him off and he'll make poor half assed attempt to get you to stop, 'stop crying, it's annoying me.' or 'those tears will get you nowhere.'

if you aren't a member of the league, he will put them above you because he craves his 'rightful' seat at the throne as king of destruction, and his hate outweighs his 'love' for you.

he doesn't know how to comprehend his own emotions and will say things he will barely regret during a fit of rage, he'll blame it on you for sticking around.

all your conversations will mostly be about him, once it's about you he kind of looks off to the side and waits with a scoff.

he wants you to touch him but he'll get mad at you if you do.

he's a mess, one day he'll be praising you, touching you and even telling you all sorts of compliments before a little slip up can cause him to lose it and degrade you, say nothing but insults and berate you.

you aren't above AFO, the moment his master finds out about your little relationship (if he even considers it that) he'll break you off like your nothing to him.

his love for you is the same as how AFO loves yoichi.

NSFW AHEAD!

WARNINGS: dubcon, piss mentioned.

sex with him is honestly a hit or miss, he only mostly focuses on his own pleasure and chases his own high instead of trying to get you to cum too.

he doesn't like it when your kinks have something to do with you being on top, and in the bedroom, it's all about him, and it'll always be about him.

he'll have his orgasm, and recover for a bit, a factory reset for his body before he gets right back up to use his PC or go back to the league.

he's very demanding.

horrible in bed, since it's mostly about him it's all about what he likes, what his kinks are, and what makes him cum. he practically just humps you like a dog before he goes on his way.

aftercare, prep, praise, safewords? what's that? those don't exist for Tomura, you stop when he stops, don't want to leave him pissed off do you?

his kinks are gross, honestly. he looks like a basement dwelling NEET, so he'd probably have some freaky kinks, (mhoj2 he says alot of bdsm based lines) probably even piss if he's willing to put his trust in you that you won't snitch.

even if you do, the more vulnerable he gets he'll remind you that he can take your life any day, to keep you in a constant state of paranoia so you'll stay quiet and alongside him.

huge fan of somnophilia, he'll ask you about it and fuck you like a fleshlight while you're asleep, he's not so kinky to the point he'll have sex with you outside but, he'll indulge in it.

don't be surprised if you wake up with a load in or on you.

He gets really mad when you don't swallow, why? you think he's gross? why don't you just leave him at that point?

When you two break it off, he'll only really try and call you back for a quick fuck because he's tired of using his fist.

he'll never apologize for going overboard in bed, it's your fault you couldn't handle it.

—Ake 2024

[corruptedhyena]

uhh hello neighbors, am i doing this right??

at the old age of 22 i've become obsessed with the Hello Neighbor: Welcome to Raven Brooks show and i need help lol

soooo i drew them as furries!! it's not quite all of them, but i feel like once s2 comes out, i'll be able to get a better grip on their personalities in order to decide their species. i've never been into HN as a franchise beyond the initial alphas, so i'm missing quite a bit of context into these kiddos, but i can't wait to see what they do with the show!

general breakdown:

characters were colored based off of their hair and general palette, a few colors were tweaked to better fit my style and preferences (:

Nicky had to be a Pointer dog of some sort, it's just such a perfect narrative fit imo. the hunting dog pointing at the Wrong, only to be snatched up by it in the end

Trinity felt fitting as some type of bob-tailed cat, not sure why exactly bob-tail but it just seemed cute. the cat aspect, though, felt like a nice flip of Nicky being a canine, as well as the knowledge that Trinity has gotten into danger/trouble before coming to Raven Brooks due to her curiosity/snooping, which felt fitting to "curiosity killed the cat"

Maritza and Enzo made sense to be the same species, though with their own little quirks. i felt a fox fit for both athleticism and smarts with a shared trickery in the way the two bicker and spat. Maritza's fur is a bit more fluid and laid-back, whereas Enzo's is a bit more stiff.

Mr. Peterson, finally, had to be a lion. i don't know everything about HN lore but i know he's associated a lot with the amusement park and clowns, hence the big cat of the big top felt right! not to mention it allows him to have a more intimidating figure that plays into the idea of the ringleader of some big scheme (though leaves room for a sad, bullied cat that the one teaser presented)

so! i still don't really know how to exist on tumblr but lmk what yall think for these guys or the other trio! not sure if anyone will see this but hoping for the best ^^

[purpurussy]

hi. once you mentioned your thoughts on the take that phil stayed in the closet for dan. could you share it again with the class again. sorry

⚠️ Dan and Phil DNI⚠️

dsfhjjkl I fear I'm not well-educated enough on the lore to have an accurate take. and it's really the notion that he "went back in the closet" for dan that bothers me. but I'll try to explain how I see it and people can feel free to link me to the vitally important receipts that I'm missing here which change the whole narrative lmao

the thing is I don't think it was 100% because of dan. i do think phil would have come out sooner if dan had been in a better headspace with everything, but imo it's not entirely accurate to say that phil would have been out and proud on youtube the entire time otherwise because as far as I can tell, he wasn't ever in that position 😭 would an out and proud man have made snokoplasm.

I think phil was referring to himself as bi on myspace but so was dan back in the day. and I think id'ing as bi in a setting where you don't expect that many people to see it beyond your personal network is a very different kettle of fish from being completely vulnerable and honest about your identity as a full-on celebrity. Phil has also told anecdotes that make me feel like he had 1 foot in the closet and 1 foot out in some ways (eg auditioning for big brother and then being terrified that they'd post his audition tape bc he said he was gay and then instantly regretted it, getting outed to his family by a friend when he was in college and having an awful time with that whole situation) and I certainly haven't seen anything that would lead me to believe he was ever really out as gay (and proud) on youtube at any point before 2019. Phil has also alluded to experiencing internalized homophobia/feeling like there was something wrong with him for being gay, and I feel like people gloss over that since it wasn't as severe as Dan's experiences.

so I don't think it's entirely accurate to say phil "went back in the closet" for dan firstly because I don't think he was ever fully out of the closet until 2019. he was certainly not out and proud with 0 caveats. like he never said it with his whole chest until coty.

then there's the fact that there can be real-world consequences to coming out which can be hard to predict or manage. things are a little different now but I can imagine it would have been tough trying to do a risk-benefit analysis of coming out when they were working with the BBC, trying to get things like world tours and book deals off the ground, and also I think they were probably not hugely financially secure back then (especially very early on/around the time they moved to London). like this is pure conjecture, but I can imagine it could have been tough to come out as gay, not knowing if you'd be inadvertently tanking a career opportunity because oh never mind we already have an openly gay radio presenter on this show and we don't need 2 more, or oh no don't do that because then we'll have to cancel the shows in Russia and Malaysia or whatever ykwim? (I assumed this was also part of the reason why dan had a breakdown about wanting to come out before II started but again that's based on nothing lmao)

now that I'm thinking about nick grimshaw coming out as gay in 2012 and co-hosting the radio show with them I feel like I'm connecting some dots but again this is just me yapping. I remember finding out he was gay back then and I vaguely remember people posting about feeling "betrayed" or being otherwise homophobic towards him but I can't remember whether the general reaction was positive or negative at the time. I also feel like there's something to be said for the fact that a lot of actors/people in situations like this feel like they're competing against other members of their marginalized community, because they can't both be hired for 2 different important roles because there can only be 1 token gay/poc or whatever. anyway food for thought I guess

I also think it's easy to assume Phil was just chilling the entire time since he plays his cards a lot closer to his chest than Dan. he doesn't like to talk about stuff like this as openly as dan and i think that results in us focusing a lot more on Dan's experiences (which makes sense since that's the information we have to work with, but still). he's hinted that it was rough for him to deal with the speculation about them and their relationship back in the day as well, and while I'm the last person to encourage people to start self-flagellating for the demon era, I do think it's worth considering that it can't have been easy for Phil either (I mean it was his face and words in the v-day video. I would have probably been institutionalized if that happened to me I'm just saying. the factors that led to dans no homo era can't have been easy for Phil to deal with either)

point is I think there were a lot of factors that kept them both in the closet. I do agree of course that Phil would've come out sooner if it weren't for dan needing to work through his issues before he was ready to come out (Phil has certainly said as much) but I don't think it's the only reason. I think it was certainly a show of the trust and respect he has for dan that he waited for Dan to be ready in the end, but I also think it's inaccurate when people talk as though dan singlehandedly kept Phil in no homo jail for 10 years and he would've been out and proud the entire time if Dan hadn't had a mountain of trauma and internalized homophobia to work through before he was ready to come out (which as dan himself has said, may have been a lot sooner than 2019, but there were other factors that kept him from being able to do that first)

[malakaie]

Not necessarily your favorite wrestler, but who do you think is genuinely the best wrestler working right now? In terms of technical skill/promo work/whatever yardstick you wanna measure by.

oh man ... that is a great and really tricky question. full disclosure i don't think i can earnestly pick just one (i'll get into why a little bit more below)

also i'm gonna keep this aew only because i don't feel i know the wwe folks well enough yet to have an informed opinion there, but if that ever changes i'm sure i'll start yapping lmao

for aew men it's a real toss-up between bryan danielson, swerve strickland, and darby allin, for me. bryan is i think in many ways the gold standard - he's committed, he's incredibly versatile as a wrestler, he does what he does for the love of the sport and the art form; he's deeply technically proficient but also very quick to adjust to whatever a match or an opponent needs most, and very happy to do what needs to be done to make sure his opponent has a really good showing and looks great going forward, even if it's a match he's booked to win. his promos are always impassioned but never excessive or distracting, and my guy sells like a motherfucker both inside and outside of the ring. if i had a single criticism it's that he might have a *little* bit of an ego problem - i think swerve got a little close to talking shoot when he got on bryan's case about trying to reappear in another promotion under another name because he loves being in front of an audience too much to quit - but it's an extremely mild criticism.... at the point that your career is this long and distinguished, i don't think having a bit of an ego about it is all that surprising or even necessarily bad, and it's very much tempered by how much he wants to see younger generations of wrestlers thrive and succeed.

speaking of swerve, he's very similar to bryan, while also really making his work distinctive and very much his own. he has charisma for days and has come so far from being underbooked and handled weirdly in wwe, his promos are impeccable, his ability to play heel or tweener or even something close to a face based on what's needed most from him is so impressive. there's nothing wrong with having a singular gimmick that you know you can consistently perform and sticking to it, but i'm personally most impressed by wrestlers that are both physically and emotionally/mentally versatile, and that describes swerve to a t. i do sometimes worry about his work-life balance, but i know he's doing what he believes in and loves, and i do find his dedication not just to his own improvement but also to the stability and thriving of aew really admirable. his wrestling is once again very impressive, both deeply technically proficient while also being quick to adjust, and he makes it look easy. effortless, even, again while making his opponents look great and having their time to shine. good wrestlers are a bit like magicians, to me: i want to watch someone and go, "holy shit, how did he do that?"

darby is one i feel strongly about. for a lot of very similar reasons to bryan and swerve - in a lot of ways i think these three guys are reflective of two distinct but connected generations of wrestlers (bryan in one, swerve and darby in the other). i find it really disappointing and disheartening when people only see darby as a high-flying risk-taker, because he's *so* intelligent and deliberate in the things he does, he's such a fucking workhorse and if you've never seen him do more grounded, technical wrestling you're definitely missing out on something really special imo. he took a little while to find his footing when he first came off the indies, but he's grown and learned so much in the past few years both in terms of his athleticism and especially his ability to give absolutely banger promos; i think we can definitely credit some of that to his time working with sting, but it also shows a real jump upward in maturity and a desire to help carry the promotion on his back that really warms me to see. i love that he spends time for himself and pursues the things he loves outside of the ring but is also ready to jump in and help at a moment's notice when they need someone stable and reliable to fill a gap or take over a storyline, and i love that he works with both passion and humility - i think it's going to take him far and i can't wait to see how the future of his career shapes up.

for aew women it's a hard split between toni storm and willow nightingale, for me.

toni's wrestling is phenomenal to watch - she's brutal and versatile and such a quick thinker, always makes her opponents look great, and her character work is fucking unparalleled. i'll admit it took a while for the timeless toni storm gimmick to click for me, but once i understood what she was doing it's been amazing ever since, and i just find her so compelling and magnetic to watch. i'm also really drawn to her because of what it means to see an openly bisexual performer in the wrestling industry, and while i am frustrated by commentary often hamstringing the obvious romantic story between her and mariah, i can't stress enough how awesome it's been to see a love story (however toxic, lmao) between two women be one of aew's biggest or longest running narratives.

willow is so compelling to me as well, though in a distinct way. she always makes me smile and i love to see a fat woman thriving and succeeding in a line of work that, while it's developed a lot, still in many ways does incentivise both male and female wrestlers to be somehow both thin AND muscular, even if that lacks long-term sustainability for their health. her wrestling is something that i think is quite unique in the women's division, both really powerful and really flexible, and i love that her promos have a real emotionality and complexity that her "nothing matters, smile anyway" gimmick might not immediately suggest. she's tender and passionate and sad and exuberant and loyal and refuses to take shit, and i think she's such an amazing example of fully experienced femininity in sports. and she's so fucking dedicated to showing up and being ready for whatever storylines or matches or curveballs come her way, and so keen to bring up other women - and international promotions - along with her, and i just love her to bits.

[asherlockstudy]

I enjoy gmm because it's low impact and relaxing. Wonderhole (especially the sci fi one) is really heavy even in the first few minutes and I don't know when I'll be in the right head space to watch it. after making me love Sandy and Horst and killing them off (same as killing off the guys weirdly in their second season of Buddy System), i'm wary of their fictional efforts. Don't get me wrong, the cloud episode was lovely! But their work can be very hit or miss - sweet and enjoyable, or *very* dark, often both. I don't have the capacity for weirdly dark codependent death stuff right now. They do tend towards that, however artistically, however deep they want it to be, and NOT everyone loves watching death stuff about characters they like. I don't want to watch dark humor right now. IMO, their daily show is easy, calming, background content - but their fictional efforts are (often) extremely dark. I don't know why people are pretending the audience should be the same for both. Yes they're in L.A. but realistically not everyone loves dark experimental fictional short films. I would be more impressed with a promise of happy endings than how much budget / creativity their work involves. So I am not the audience, and I am not the only one among regular viewers. I wish them well, of course, but really? How is this shocking to anyone? The audience they've cultivated really doesn't like surprises. (Sometimes due to mental health or neurodiversity reasons, sometimes due to life situations, etc. They like the routine shows, the familiar format.) Don't make me love a character and then kill him (and his best friend or other half) off so you can feel something. I really do wish they can get what they want out of the series. I just find it odd how they don't understand it's not for everyone.

This is an interesting take. I admit I never considered their scripted work “dark” but just having some dark moments but now that you said that I am literally surprised at myself because I have been making these very posts about their scripted content largely being about one sad story… I’m not being much of help here but I remembered that one thing Rhett has said that made the most profound impression on me, many years ago, I remember it vividly, in the EB about laughter and jokes, he had said “We are fundamentally sad people”. It’s the one thing that left a mark and shaped from that point entirely the way I view them and what I think of them.

We don’t disagree though. That’s pretty much what I was saying - they have created a fanbase that does not exactly match their artistic vision. GMM, sure. But their art style needs to build a separate fanbase, with some overlap of course for people like me. However, they base all their hopes on people of routine, on people who want only lighthearted inconsequential content, on people who watch with their kids. It never ceases to amaze me how they have all these dozens of people working and monitoring and quizzing for them and they still can’t bloody understand their own fans.

[fandom-fae]

honestly i really don’t like those hot takes that hook was the good guy/peter pan was the real villain-

first of all for the original storyt;

here it’s true that pan does morally questionable stuff and that he’s not a purely good guy in the original, that’s not wrong, but he’s also not pure evil. he was literally willing to die for wendy in the original story and he did save the lost boys and the darlings from the pirates towards the end and he did let the lost boys and the darlings all leave neverland even if he wasn’t happy about it (which imo is understandable, because what kid would ever be happy about all their friends choosing to leave them? yk) (alsohe doesn’t kidnap them, the darling siblings literally wanted to go with hims. that argument makes no fucking sense). anyway like he’s obviously no angel and these good things don’Ät cancel out his bad deed (like breathing rapidly to kill as many grown ups as possible (that was hilarious tho ngl) or killing pirates for fun or cutting off hook’s hand), but to say that he’s pure evil is just plain wrong. like i would say he’s very much chaotic neutral. and especially with the level of forgetful the original character has, i really don’t think he can be called evil. he’s just childish through and through yk? yk, careless, not thinking about consequences, selfishness, but also whimsy. i don’t to forget the line people always point to to claim that he kills the lost boys when they grow up, but i also disagree with that becuase the phrasing “thins them out” is ambiguous at best and doesn’t confirm anything.

and now for hook in the original. he’s literally the most one dimensional villain i’ve ever seen (which i think is on purpose). iirc, he explicitly kills members of his pirate crew for iirc pretty minor stuff. and he’s a child’s arch nemesis. that alone is imo enough to disqualify him as the “secret good guy” some “theorists” want to turn him into. he attacks kids guys. in what world would a secretly good guy do that? especially cuz he doesn’t even just attack pan himself, but he also kidnapped the lost boys and wendy and her brothers. people like to claim based on pretty much nothing that he wants to save the other lost boys from pan, but really i don’t think making them walk the plank is really “saving” lol. like idk about you, but that’s not my definition of saving someone. and then that idea that he’s a former/the first lost boy who escaped pan and that his crews are also former lost boys. where did they even get that from?? that has no basis in the original story unless i missed like half the book when reading it lmao. just no. like that’s a fun au, sure- but to act like it’s the “hidden true story” behind the tale is just bullshit at best.

but then sometimes people also specifically point to the (animeted) disney version of the story when discussing theory, and here i have to say that it makes even less sense tbh. like pan is morally better in that movie than the original tbh (he still does questionable stuff obviously, but still) and hook is just as one dimensionally evil as in the original imo.

the only version i know where that theory would actually make any sense is the “once upon a time” one, but ouat does not have the best track record of accurate adaptations, so idk how anyone would genuinely think that could be a good argument for that “theory”

[the-ghost-king]

I spent about two hours on this over the past couple of days in total, and I'm sure I've missed a few things and I guarantee that some of my opinions will not be shared by others and that's okay. I'm comfortable with people adding on their own thoughts and feelings and continuing on a conversation if they wish to.

Before I truly begin: this book isn't bad, that doesn't mean it's good it just means it's not bad. I think this book is both wonderful and awful, this book is both exactly what I expected and unlike anything I could have come up with. I will also clarify before you read this that I have never personally enjoyed any of Oshiro's work I've read, if you're someone who enjoys Oshiro's body of work there may be many places you disagree with me and I would like to note that ahead of time. I would also like to note that these are simply my initial thoughts, I finished TSATS two days ago and I have done some thinking and pondering over it since and these are the conclusions I have reached in that time. I cannot say how much of this I will agree with in a week, or a month, let alone three, or a year. I considered writing an essay and then decided a bullet point list would be sufficient, there is no order to these bullet points and some conversation points move in a circular way, I did not proofread this either. Also be aware there will be spoilers. Without further ado, my thoughts:

- Hades is weirdly ooc plus having him be responsible for this and him knowingly harming Nico and Nico just being like "oh ok i understand" undoes so much of the relationship progression from Pjo to BoO to ToA to here!!! Hades is still a god yes but he was becoming something of a father figure to Nico as well again and he just throws that all away because Nyx and Bob were "being annoying" and Nico is just… fine with that??? And they just jokingly brush the whole Hades loved more Bianca thing under the rug WITH MARIA RIGHT THERE

- Why are we reintroduced to Persephone like she's a new character? Sure it's from Will's pov and they've never met but the readers have met Persephone multiple times before!! It was weird to reintroduce her!!

- Worst editor ever, a few typos and apparently some copies have Nico saying his mother is Bianca? He also calls his mom Maria instead of mom or mamma? And we've only ever heard nico call maria mamma before this point so him calling her mom is less weird than him calling her Maria but still off

- Will… still doesn't have a personality entirely and what personality he was given does not match the personality he has in ToA OR in BoO??

- Once again, I don't like Oshiro's pacing and you can tell how hands off Rick was with the whole thing - I've never personally been a fan of Oshiro's work and one of my top reasons has always been their terrible pacing. I will read a phenomenal paragraph and then spend the rest of the chapter struggling to find anything that feels worth my time, and while i felt within chapter there was a fair bit of consistency between different chapters there was not- i would read one chapter that read well and felt amazing and then the next 3 chapters would feel like useless side plot that served no purpose. Oshiro also really struggles to maintain tempo in their work imo.

- Characters defining their sexuality in explicit terminology or labeling isn't inherently wrong but its also not in line with what we've seen so far and while this could be a sign of progress it could also be a step back so instead it's best to consider how this effects or determines characterization

- Nico's coming out party…. God… why?

- There's also this weird thing with so much of the sexuality/gender stuff that it feels more like a lecture than an authentic experience, for me personally based on the flow of these conversations and the events and things i feel like it was done to make this more palatable for a cishet audience rather than to maintain and authentic experience??

- Anyhow the thing where Nico kind of makes Will come out in front of camp is giving me love simon flashbacks and i just have to say making someone come out to a large group or in public just to be with you is so so gross… there was no reason for this to be a plot point whatsoever imo, it feels really ooc and it does that really upsetting thing lots of ya books do where it tries to depict that in order to be authentically and "properly" queer one must be public in their grsm orientation which i think is a pretty harmful/hurtful idea overall but especially in media designed for preteens and teens who are more likely to be living in environments where coming out is unsafe

- None of the jokes land

- Literally they have the worst nicknames for everything. I liked the cringe otherwise, it did have young teen relationship vibes… but that was unforgivable to me personally but i guess other people liked this? To each their own!

- On that note! I've talked a lot about Solangelo being two sides of the same coin in terms of how their relationship works and while symbolism would have been nice straight up seeing Nico given a coin by will was also cringe and too far? Nico gave Will his ring, this thing that we've built up over the series to view as a representation of his grief and loss and his family and love and home and a culmination of Nico and Will gets nico… this coin he just seemingly had made that has almost no symbolic meaning beyond that? Nico's ring is basically a character unto itself, not only does giving a physical object and having Nico outright state the symbolism of it ruin the "show don't tell" logic of authoring it also feels hollow as the reader has no connection to this object like Nico's ring. There was no reason for this other than to make an equivalent exchange which is kind of a sucky way to weigh a relationship… it could have been better for Will to give nico something from his past as well and to have the piece come up in a memory or something OR for will and nico to have exchanged these gifts at some point on or just before their journey so the reader got to experience this connection as well

- Will's pov was kind of trash actually

- Why doesn't Will ever talk about finding Nico attractive?

- We never have it explained what exactly makes Nico a "star" ..? Like its constantly alluded to or even stated he is a star but we never actually get to see why

- Will never really "goes dark" the sniffles are not dark, dark would be like straight up plaguing them or having some sort of ability to radiate heat and blast things or craft his own weapons out of light or just something beyond singing and having the heart blast effect thingy…

- Their relationship is stated they've been together a year and trauma can definitely change things but for whatever reason their relationship feels more new and raw and tender than it did in ToA??? Why??? They do not feel like two fifteen/sixteen year olds who have been in a relationship for a year, they feel like two thirteen year olds who've been in a relationship for three months?

- I also personally feel conflicted about them not having a major kiss scene? Like on one hand it's nice to see queer couples treated like any other couple and kisses to be fairly casual mundane interactions! But on the other hand being a queer couple especially an mlm couple in a children's/ya series and being able to show physical affection is really quite uncommon tbh and I would have liked to see maybe a little emphasis at least on the first kiss that the audience gets to experience on paper just to sort of acknowledge that groundbreaking act? But maybe that's just me?

- Additionally speaking all of their prior banter is just.. gone..? They literally don't joke around except for 2 or 3 lines in the book despite previously being a very banter heavy couple? There is no reason they can't be both soft and comedic or have banter yet be tender to one another? It's like all the joy that was previously in their relationship was traded for arguing and bickering and this weird pettiness that feels ooc in general but especially from them?

- What was the plot point of going to Sally's house to send the iris message? Why was Sally brought into this? She's cool and we love her but there was no plot reason to add her? Even the percabeth iris message only minimally added to the plot

- Why is Will so bothered by death? Like I'm cool with him feeling weak in the underworld. I can respect that from a tension building pov and also being in the dark does go against his nature but like death is not something against his nature? He is well acquainted with death? People die in medical settings all the time i guarantee he has lost many patients and brushed shoulders with thanatos more than most people at camp + he lost A TON of siblings in the war he would have to be familiar with grief AT THE VERY LEAST but yet he seems to lamblike to all these things the whole novel I feel it weakens his character, the story, the plot, previous books, and his relationship with Nico- if they wanted him to have some reserved hesitations about death they could have done it much more tactfully but they didn't?

- I also hate every time some sort of discussion about him being a healer comes up because yes he is a magical exception that makes him a "natural born healer" but they take that too far imo, yes he is a magical exception but the way this stuff is worded gives this like "Will is such a good healer he never fails or breaks down or fatigues from it" and i just feel like it becomes an unrealistic and unhealthy example after a certain point and I would have loved to see that exploration that so many fanfic authors have done wonderfully about how Will is overworked and needs to learn to take care of himself before his patients just to add that depth to his character but Oshiro and Riordan just skip past this and again it feels like a massively missed plot point to give Will a deeper character

- It's also weird everytime Nico is like "Will always takes care of me now I have to take care of him" because again it just feels like such an unhealthy way to view a relationship… like if a partner gets sick 3x a year and the other partner is sick 5x a year partner A shouldn't be like "well now you owe me two sickness helpings" or something you know? Thats so petty and immature and unhealthy for a relationship and it's something that can be unlearned but also like if they've been together a year and they're supposed to be like a perfect fit according to what i think the symbolism was trying to get at (so much of this book feels like a rough draft not a final cut istg) then why is this even included anyhow?

- Also Nico is ooc at points, he seeks to heal others a lot of the time as well- Hades even mentions this, how even when Nico is offered something for himself he uses the gift to help someone else- this is a quality Nico and Percy (and Jason) all really consistently display throughout pjoverse EXCEPT Nico doesn't do this early on in the text?? He is unfazed by the nature of some things in the underworld (Will is right the fields of asphodel are perhaps more horrific in some way than the variations of hell provided in the underworld) and Nico is just like "yeah that's just how it is here" which kind of goes against that character trait + (though i may be confusing fanfic and canon here) didn't Nico and Hazel have a whole convo about how upsetting or painful asphodel is?? It goes on kind of even more so in this regard though where his regard for humanity seems significantly less so than in previous texts, there's something else as well i can't exactly put my finger on yet that also feels ooc … I'll keep thinking lol

- Once again to the "why is Nico a star thing" we have Nico constantly talking about how live exists even in the underworld and it's obviously intended to be a metaphor for hope and finding light in the dark and therefore a whole solangelo metaphor too but Nico brings it up and Will doesnt understand and then they argue (?) And then the metaphor falls flat because we never get to see this explored; we just have it Stated out loud a few times? Like there are many good explanations as to why this keeps getting brought up especially because we can also tie in how Will and Nico are alive down there or how Nico is seperate from the rest of the underworld because despite being part god he is also part mortal

- Once again Tartarus isn't actually scary and there's only so much "it's for kids" I'm willing to accept there, give it more Coraline please!!

- Again an issue with the Nyx thing, Nico doesn't agree with Nyx about who he is because Nyx cannot understand life and Nico can because he is mortal- Nico's mortality is a hugely defining aspect of his character because it sets him apart from the gods and the dead that make up so much of his life- in order to truly appreciate death and the afterlife you have to actually live and know life and change and things and the gods in their consistency are more like ghosts than anything

- It's also very irritating that this was never explored !!! So much of what makes demigods special in the rest of the series is their godhood and their connection to godhood, they are powerful because they are beyond human. However in Nico's fight with Nyx and some other aspects of Nico's behavior but most notably Nyx vs Nico is the culmination of this situation is that Nico's greatest strength throughout tsats is that he is mortal. He is powerful because he is human. He does all the things he does the way he does them because he is human. He is something beyond the gods' understanding because he is mortal- and that's all just swept under the rug for…? Honestly i have no idea why it makes no sense how that is a constant theme in this book yet it feels like the book falls constantly short of actually grasping that concept.

- And if you're wondering what the plot symbolism of Will being involved in all this is? I dont fucking know he doesnt have one he was kind of just dead weight the entire story!!! He was basically there just to help Nico pick some fruit and have dialogue with. I feel like Will was potentially supposed to represent how the "average person" would feel on this adventure but personally I feel if that is the case that I may be one of the worst people to understand that perspective as I have a peculiar and poetic love for death and dying.

- Plus when they're wandering through Tartarus's digestive tract (if you're reading this and you haven't read the novel yet or you didn't yet finish it, yes this is a thing that actually happens) and Will starts struggling with his memory, I would have loved to see the effects of that situation on Nico explored more as I would assume amnesia and people forgetting about him/leaving him would be a very difficult thing for him to deal with yet instead we're just told they passed stories back and forth and that made everything all right + not sharing much of those stories with the audience was again a missed character building moment for Will and a missed relationship building moment between them!!

- Them cuddling in the hut together and Nico wanting to wake Will up to share his nightmare was kind of cute though I will admit to that much

- I also hate how they put all this time and work into saving Bob and then Bob just fucks off into the sunset like everything is normal?? He just fucking dips like nothing even happened??

- Also people have been saying Will kissing Nico when he found out Jason was dead was wrong, and look idk if I'm personally going to go that far but I do think as a first kiss it's definitely weird than cute?

- I think Will's background and childhood could have been expanded on a lot more to make him an interesting character- we learn some about his life with Naomi before camp (and its nice to see her as a complete person and I think she has cool mom vibes for real) but I feel like the only adventure we get to hear about is him and his mom being in New York for concerts… what about other places around the country? what about the life he had with her when she wasn't touring?

- Along this same vein I feel like Will's behavior in the story not only doesn't match his behavior from the previous appearances he's made, but that for someone who seems to have spent a lot of time on the road getting to experience lots of different places (even if it was just the US, that's still pretty significant) I once again truly cannot understand his weird behavior about dead people and the underworld- its not only inconsistent with previous behaviors and beliefs he's exhibited but if he's been show so much diversity from a very young age he's probably naturally curious and inquisitive as well as naturally adventurous and outgoing- yet instead he basically just sticks his nose up at everything underworld-ish?? It not only weakens the plot, his character, and his relationship it also makes no sense with previous set ups AND it has no true culmination by the end of the story because we never truly see him accept or enjoy the underworld and what it has to offer he merely endures it.. so again, what was the point of him acting like that?

- Unpopular one: coco puffs are very cute but i find them unnecessary and completely over the top even for pjo and i can see them becoming annoying later on but that's just me personally.

Okay, I'm going to call it quits here. There's probably more I'll think to say later on but I feel this is a good summary of my initial thoughts. Weirdly enough, despite the negativity here, I would still recommend people read this book? I feel conflicted about whether or not the book belongs among my favorites, and it would certainly be the worst book among my favorites and/or recommendations for novels if I do end up feeling it belongs there. I have to say even despite as much as this book fails, I admire what it was attempting and I think like so many works in pjo before it there was a level of unrealized potential here amongst the text that will always be mildly infuriating. I feel very strongly that this book is a whole new era in Riordan's pjo verse, despite some aspects being "cringe" or some things being literary flops and emotional failures in my opinion, i do think this novel may be one of the most "mature" pieces in Riordan's collection- even in his and Oshiro's failure to bring MOST of their narrative full circle or to tie up their loose ends I can see what they're going for and I think having a taste of that potential really did something for me. I have read lots of books that leave me staring at the ceiling for hours in wonder and awe with a feeling i cannot describe as anything other than a "readers hangover" a desire to hold onto that book and to keep it beside me for a long time just to remember reading it, and I would pick it up many times through the following week or two just to rediscover certain parts, i have to say this book has definitely not been that. However I did spend a long time looking at the ceiling pondering it, and I do think I will reread it in the next week or so- but I have less a desire to return to the events of the novel and more a desire to simply upturn more stones in the landscape and find what I am missing. I want to say I hate the book, that it has no redeeming qualities, that everyone should simply leave it behind because of how awful and excruciating I found this novel- that wouldn't be accurate. I think this is the greatest book I have ever had the misfortune to read, I have never cared so deeply for a book I cannot stand. I absolutely adore this awful thing. I feel comfortable saying that for me, personally, percy jackson will never be the same again and that this book has completely changed the field and depth of my experience. I am literally failing to put into words how this book makes me feel. I suppose this book is my most wretched child and I shall cherish it dearly.

[dearweirdme]

hi rain

Back on my defending Jimin bs. What taekookers have to understand is that jkkrs are insane, they will use anything and I really do mean anything as ammunition. Jimin didn't even mention JK and hasn't really all year unless asked about him. any jkkr holding onto the idea that tae is driving this wedge between their dumb ass ship is delusional and wasn't coming down from that fantasy anytime too soon. I thought jimin was hilarious and personable in his live and to me clearly missed taehyung and wished he was there.- Bym

Ps. Heyyy how you been I hope life slows down for you so you can relax and hang more ♥️

Hi BYM anon!

Jkkrs have had an odd year I think. I’ve been keeping up with them a bit and except for a few highs (Jk’s live and Jimin in NY) there’s been much doubts. Doubts because it’s been very obvious even to them (though they won’t admit it) that Jimin and Jk haven’t been as much a part of each other’s lives as they have with others. Jimin has been close with Yoongi, and doesn’t shy away from mentioning or showing that. And Jk has obviously been close with Tae. The difference is obvious. They’re throwing around all kinds of reasons, like ‘laying low for the military’, ‘Jimin is not willing to show us’, ‘they had a rough time’.. whatever just suits the moment best I guess. Tae is a disturbance to them. His mentions of Jk (due to actually spending time with him) to them come off as Tae stirring up shit. It doesn’t even register in their mind that Tae is the one being sincere here. To them it will never make any sense, because their core belief is wrong. They base everything on Jk and Jimin being together.. and if that’s your starting point you’ll always be confused and you’ll always need to place the cause of your confusion somewhere else.

Tkkrs hating on Jimin is sadly enough not a new thing. I suppose to some it’s hard to see Jk interact with Jimin freely while he can’t with Tae. And we have seen Tae hurt at times when Jk and Jimin interacted, so that is tough. But it’s not Jimin’s fault. Or it’s that Jkkrs and Jimin are a bit the same to them. But Jkkrs do not stand for Jimin. Imo Jkkrs are very often very wrong about Jimin, so they can’t stand for him.

The whole Jkkrs and Tkkrs situation is the oddest thing to me really, because so often it gets treated as though it’s a competition about which couple is the realest. I actually got an ask about me being hypocritical because I don’t regard both ships the same 😂. Ofcourse I don’t, one is real to me and the other is a group of people being mistaken. I don’t judge them the same, because they aren’t.

[xtinaangelicax]

J Being on the Chapter 2 Title Card?? Theorizing (sorta... I'm clueless ;-;)

Can we talk about the fact that J is on the chapter 2 title card rn?? Like... I see ALMOST NO ONE so far in the fandom theorizing about what this could mean. We know that her secret about Mariabella being her mom was revealed during this chapter, but... I don't really feel like that's big enough to warrant her being on the title card yet so far? I think? It's an important secret, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't rly rival the importance of the actual murders going on imo.

I mean-- Teruko and Xander were on the first chapter title card. That is a big deal. Xander died after trying to kill Teruko, and got killed by Min instead: Teruko's our protagonist. Being on the title card is obviously the most indicative clue of a character being insanely important to the narrative for that chapter, possibly even a culprit or victim, but we all just been sleepin on that clue lately and ignoring it lol wut--

Like... I mean, J tries enlisting Teruko's help getting away from Arturo for a minute in this chapter- the dressing room scene- and has a frigging knife pulled on her. She got her secret she desperately wanted to cover up, probably for a large portion of her life, exposed by some jerk in the very same, what, 24 hour period? And she's constantly now being stalked by said jerk, too. Poor gal.

I don't know if J maybe snapped from it all, and murdered Arei. I'm not sure how she WOULD have, given Arturo stalking her. So... maybe it's... something else? But like? SOMETHING is being set up with J here, and if anyone has any ideas feel free to suggest, cuz I can't figure out what it is yet. I'm thinking randomly off the top of my head of stuff we know... like...

J was the first to go to Arei's room to check for her body, after they realized she was missing? Also, J was the first to complain about Teruko possibly being in cahoots with the culprit and choosing who guards the body based on that. After which, J was then promptly chosen to guard the body as well. Important? Possibly. Maybe. Idk...

She goes on a whole spiel about how serious murder is that gains a lot of spotlight for a few minutes, when she was talking to Nico... also, she has this new sadistic grin sprite after revealing Arturo's secret. UH is that sprite gonna be used again for something?

I think there's literally no way J isn't gonna have some sort of big reveal of significance to the plot during the rest of the chapter 2 trial.

There's a bit of evidence that could point to her being the killer, but I don't wanna say I believe that for sure. Just that... SOMETHING'S up.

J being on the chapter 2 title card is definitely important.

ALSO FINALLY: J's hidden quote is "Please don't call me your daughter ever again."

????????how the frick is J going to say this quote?? So far, all the hidden quotes have been said a little while before the character dies, before/during a pivotal moment in the plot and their development... therefore, J is gonna say this line at some point. That's indisputable.

But??? How?? Will it be said during a flashback where she said it to Mariabella in the past? Or... are we gonna see J get in contact with her mom somehow? Is J the culprit, and MonoTV calls in a 'special guest viewer video call' right before her execution just to rub it in her face, and it's her mom, and... J says her hidden quote there?

Is one of the future motives gonna involve being able to communicate something with your family, maybe, and then J says it?

I'm probably gonna look back more and see if there's any other sort of hints or foreshadowing going on with J, but... I just wanted to point all this out and possibly open up discussion/theorizing about this :)

[theteasetwrites]

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon | S1E2 Thoughts

⚠️ SPOILERS AHEAD ⚠️ do not read below the cut unless you’re okay with spoilers

Positive Thoughts

The opening scenes in Paris at the start of the outbreak? Genuinely got my heart pumping and my adrenaline rushing. I was actually freaked out. I wish TWD would have shown the outbreak actually happening more than they did. It would've been really interesting to see how each character ended up at the quarry, going all the way back to season 1 of TWD, but that's irrelevant lol

Camerawork is crazy good??? I mean, I don't really know anything about cameras but I thought that there were some really cool dynamic shots, especially in the flashbacks.

Isabelle is growing on me a LOT. I am so glad she is turning out to be her own character so far. I mean, I don't completely trust her because I think she definitely has her own agenda (can't really blame her), but I like her character. She hasn't annoyed me once which is crazy because even DARYL has annoyed me a few times in this episode lol

I loved the little detail of Sylvie being at the abbey when Isabelle arrives with Lily. Just a cool little detail where we see a little bit of Sylvie's story, too

The entire concept of Laurent being born to a walker is cool as hell and idc what anyone says. I wonder if him being born to a walker actually has some kind of effect on him. Of course, my first thought goes to maybe he is immune or something, or he carries the cure to the virus in his blood. I am so excited to see how that pans out. Idc if it's "ripping off" TLOU (I don't think it is tbh)

Speaking of Laurent, I have a newfound appreciation for him. He's so cute and sweet, and I felt bad for him when the children were picking on him

Lou's group is SO COOL. I love that they're a little group of children who raised themselves. Kinda reminds me of Jocelyn's kids from season 9 of TWD, but less evil. MUCH less evil. Not evil at all, actually. They remind me of the Lost Boys from the movie Hook, which is based on Peter Pan. That dinner scene was especially reminiscent of that for me

Daryl being undercover as a priest LOLIONGJWKDS

Daryl has some amazing sassy/cute moments in this episode. I think my personal favorite is when he loudly slurps down the soup at the dinner table. I also loved the little detail of Daryl starting to eat before everyone else/before they said grace, signifying how Daryl doesn't really have good table manners (which I love). It's so cute when he starts saying the prayer with food already in his mouth lol

And Norman's acting in this episode was once again so good. There's a scene when they're watching the TV where the camera slowly zooms in on Daryl. His smile begins to fade and you can just see in his eyes how much he misses home, and how much he wishes he could be with his family, even Merle, who he is probably thinking about, too, since he used to watch the show with him.

DARYL USING A MORNINGSTAR DARYL USING A MORNINGSTAR DARYL USING A MORNINGSTAR DARYL USING A MORNINGSTAR DARYL US--

That annoying American was slightly entertaining. Mostly annoying but slightly entertaining as well

Daryl and Laurent are very cute. I love how Daryl sort of relates to him in that they were both outcasts as children

Negative Thoughts

There are a few things Daryl does in this episode that rubbed me the wrong way just a tad bit. Of course I still love him but I just don't understand some of his decisions lol. Like when he let the mule go instead of just getting off his ass and taking out those walkers. He could've done it! Especially with the help of Isabelle and Sylvie. They probably could've taken out that herd without sacrificing the mule. Just kind of a stupid decision imo. Unnecessarily cruel too. I also didn't get why Daryl locked Lou in that shed. Kinda not cool? He could've just said, "hey, you stay back and I'll handle this." I didn't really see the point in having him do that :/ and he lies a lot to Lou and the kids in order to get what he wants. I mean, I get that he doesn't owe anything to these kids, but still... just seems a little callous. It's giving Carol vibes lol. They're basically making Daryl do things the way Carol does them—by lying, manipulating, and being cruel to children. I like Daryl because of his kindness, not this weird deceitfulness that he has going on suddenly. Again, I get that he is in a foreign place and these are all strangers to him so why should he care, but it just really doesn't seem like our Daryl. Other than that, I liked Daryl a lot in this episode, but there were just some little things I didn't vibe with

This episode did seem to veer away from the main plot quite a bit. I wonder if Lou's group will return later to help Daryl and the others in his group, or if they were just a one and done storyline. While I loved this little adventure, it did seem to not really add to the overall arc, and the little scene at the end with Codron walking around the abbey did seem a bit shoehorned just to remind us of the actual plot, but who knows?

Neither Positive Nor Negative Thoughts

So lets talk about the bed scene. Idk. I didn't hate it because I didn't see anything romantic there between Daryl and Isabelle, BUT it was a little like... can't you guys just have there be two beds lol. I really just think it's baiting, once again. I don't feel any romantic connection between them, and I don't think the show is necessarily trying to get that across to us, but I do think that they're like "well if people do think this is a romance, it will get them to continue watching the show and see if they get together!" So basically I think it's just a way to get people interested, but I don't think anything will happen. I think they will stay friends, otherwise it would be very awkward, at least from the way their relationship is so far

That's about all I have to say I think! Thanks for reading my thoughts. Hoping to get Chapter 2 of Begin Again out before the next episode, but no promises <3

[yakuzabrainrotlive]

Did some real plot progression! Finished Tanimura's section ^^

The first and only thing I wanna say above the read more is F U C K that boat chase sequence. That was TERRIBLE. Had to switch to easy difficulty. I don't usually get motion sick, but that shit made me queasy. Controls were weird too. Or at least I thought they were.

Maybe I just suck - wouldn't be surprised. You see, I suck at those types of tasks in these games in general - the car/helicopter/truck shooting chase sequences in previous installments also had me tearing my hair out.

Corruption??? In law enforcement??? NO WAYYYY *pretends to be shocked* . Nah but fr. Wish I could say I'm surprised.

Okay I really wanna see how this was pulled off. I'm VERY curious. But also I feel SO bad for Saejima. He lost 25 YEARS of his life to murders he didn't actually commit. Obviously he would have done some time for attempting the whole thing, but I doubt it would have been anywhere close to that long.

IT'S ALL STARTING TO COME TOGETHER. I've been waiting for this!! Can't wait to see all the boys working towards solving this mess. I was worried for a second that this would be kind of like Y0 and they'd always be so close to each other but never cross paths.

I'm happy I actually managed to get this part right in my first impressions-based character analysis. Maybe it was obvious, I don't know. Always fun to see what I get right or wrong. Gosh, Akiyama is such an intriguing character. So, SO rich, yet still so kind.

Also I'm sorry but I still don't buy this Akiyama-Falling-For-Yasuko thing. Like sure!! I've heard love can be quite unpredictable and some people fall fast. Hell, maybe Akiyama is that type of person. But... I feel like they barely interacted in my opinion. I remember there was the whole "looks like my ex whom I still miss" thing and I guess that's... valid? But gahhh. I just don't feel this one.

In fact, if there's one thing I don't like about the games too much this far, it's how these "romances" are handled. It often feels like they either:

A) come out of nowhere (current example and Kiryu and Yumi imo) OR

B) they're there for a very small amount of time and then they're kind of... pushed aside and not explored (Kiryu & Kaoru).

Only exceptions I can come up with are... OBVIOUSLY Majima and Makoto and, while it wasn't a romance, I also liked the thing with Reina and Nishiki in Kiwami. Yes, despite how that one ended. Dunno know if that's a hot take or not.

Looking back, there were some visible flags for this that I probably should've picked up on. But to be honest, I don't tend to pick up on things on first playthroughs in general, AND it had been a while since I played Akiyama's part. This one was a surprise.

I liked this warehouse scene a lot in general. Sugiuchi's power play of "What are you gonna do? Shoot me? Japanese police don't shoot!" was rad and it really showcased how much of a veteran he is in terms of knowing how the police operate.

Also enjoyed the display of Tanimura's almost tunnel vision-type of determination for finding the truth. Consequences be damned; this man will shoot and fight if it keeps Sugiuchi there and gets him closer to his goal.

Sugiuchi being an undercover Yakuza member came out of left field for me. Gosh, I kind of wanna see more of this guy's life and how he operated back in the day. His backstory was cool enough to fit a protagonist character in my opinion.

Uh-

Huh. Okay. Umm... lemme just... Process.

I can kinda sorta see it. Maybe. Still, a very risky plan. This relied on:

-all the men actually getting knocked out from the bullets (especially those that didn't hit their heads) after they were hit and not waking up right after

-Saejima not noticing the relatively significant lack of blood from the bullet wounds and on the floor at any point

-Saejima not checking for signs of life on Ueno Yoshiharu after the shot like a proper assassin would

-AND, glaringly, two yakuza not noticing the bullets not being proper bullets while inspecting them before the hit.

Clearly it worked, but... gosh. So many risks. Also can I just say... Munakata is SCARY sharp. I know he's trained to notice discrepancies in crime scenes, but the way he utterly DISMANTLED Sugiuchi's report was kind of terrifying.

The amount of sloppiness on Katsuragi's part makes me wonder if it was all purposeful, though. It was almost like he knew Munakata was sus and would wanna contact him.

NAHHH NO WAY😭😭 There was only one gunshot, though!!!! Someone survived, it has to be true!! (delusional) 🥺

[destinyc1020]

TCR Reviews: Episodes 5 & 6

I missed posting my review for Ep 5 last week, so I'll just combine it with my review for Ep 6.

*****WARNING: SPOILERS!!!!

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Ep 5 Review:

Overall, I felt like this episode was really good! I was glad that we as the viewers were able to get a little more insight into Danny's childhood. This episode was very sad to me though. 😔 And some scenes could have possibly been very triggering for some watching because is deals with the topic of child sexual abuse. 😔

To me, it's just utterly DISGUSTING how a grown adult would take full advantage of a CHILD and abuse them in this vile way, and basically rob them of their innocence like this. 😡 Those actions have awful consequences for the child victim, and many times they struggle with the abuse even into adulthood, and it basically ruins their adult life forever...especially if they don't receive any assistance/therapy. 😔

I kept praying that they weren't going to show us too much of the abuse in this episode, because that would have just been super sad. 😭 Thankfully, the show stopped just short of showing too much (thank goodness). I feel like Ep 4 started making it more and more apparent that Danny is dealing with DID and doesn't even realize it himself (but others around him can tell something is wrong with him), whereas I feel like Ep 5 kind of showed us why Danny is the way he is, and some of the reasons behind his mind split. The interesting thing though is that his mind seems to have split even before the abuse of the stepfather, so it makes me wonder if maybe he had some other possible childhood trauma in his history? 🤔

Anyway, by the end of Ep 5 I just felt SO SAD for Danny, and I keep wondering..."When is his life going to change for the better??" 😭 His life is just so sad and depressing. 😩 My heart goes out to him. With that said, I like how this show isn't making Danny into some kind of "monster", but is more so showing how we should have sympathy for his character and his mental struggles. I know a LOT of fans were worried that the series would focus on the murders and rapes, and were afraid it was going to cast people with DID in a bad light, and some were worried about seeing Tom in a controversial role like that, but so far, it's clear to see that a LOT of fan worries and anxieties (and assumptions) were waaay off base.

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Ep 6 Review:

I really loved this episode! 😃 I LOVED getting to know more about Rya and seeing more into her life. Now things are starting to come together. The pieces are all starting to fit.

Idk why critics claimed that the series is difficult to follow in the timeline. The timeline isn't difficult to follow imo at all. In fact, I actually LOVE when shows/films go back and forth from the past to the present. I like trying to connect the dots lol. Maybe they didn't add the "5 weeks after the Rockefeller shooting" taglines on the episode scenes at the time the critics saw the show?? Anyway.... Tom's acting! He did awesome in Ep6. 👏🏾😃I can't wait for more! I feel like we will get even MORE of his great acting in the latter episodes. He did the transitions so well too. You could see him switch from Jack to Danny so effortlessly. Even the way he holds his eyes... It's very subtle, but it's noticeable. His scenes in this episode remind me so much of James McAvoy's performance in the film "Split" and his therapist scenes. The switch btwn characters is just amazing. I'm glad they added those elements in this series as well.

After what I've already seen so far, I definitely think Tom deserves at least an Emmy NOD. I can only imagine we get more of his fine acting in latter episodes.

This series reminds me so MUCH of "Primal Fear" with Edward Norton. GREAT movie. If you haven't seen it yet, I highly recommend it! I saw it years ago, so when Tom said this series was going to be a lot like "Primal Fear", I already knew what type of ride we would be in for lol. 😅🤣

I honestly don't know why critics slammed this series so much. It has been a "slow burn" (sure), but definitely not anything horrible at all! I'm almost wondering if they even saw all 10 episodes?? 👀 I also love how the series isn't making Danny out to be a monster. I know a lot of fans were worried about that, but I had faith that they weren't going to go that route when I kept hearing about how the series was being described. I like how it's moreso focusing on his mental health. I love it. It's been very good so far. It's VERY much like the film "Primal Fear" imo.

Can't wait for Ep7!!! 😁👏🏾

[goldenpinof]

I'd love to chime in on the wad talk if I may!

I think you saying that you're generally not a big fan of theatre makes a lot of sense as to why for you it didn't necessarily have to be a stage show. I work in live events and I absolutely adore theatre and such so to me it made a huge difference that it was a live show rather than a video. Which is why I think the blanket statement of 'it could have been a video' doesn't work, because the experience of the show is so subjective, especially with the topics Dan talks about. It might not be the most innovative show but I def think the emotional aspect for me and many others was the way it was because it was live and you could experience the energy of the room. That's not something that can be translated to video, simply because it's not the same medium and a certain layer of what the show's about get's lost if you change it! I think it will be interesting to see how different the experience will be now that we will have the recording of it tomorrow, I can imagine for some it might be the same as it was in person, but I also think for other people it might not be the same and both are totally valid! I think Dan choosing the live stage show over a video does deserve to be noted tho, because there is a level of vulnerability and honest that comes with speaking to people directly and in person that gets lost when you have a video and that was a very deliberate choice. He's always done his work with the security layer of the camera and youtube and him choosing not do this, when sharing so much with us in wad I think matters.

just my little thoughts from someone who adores theatre and live comedy and everything else that's 'in person'!

"the energy of the room" aka people around you, not only Dan. Dan likes getting live feedback, so i get why we went on tour. i still think that his show can be easily adapted into a video based on what i remember.

i think there's a difference between working with the audience and getting a reaction from the audience. and since wad is so heavily scripted it was the latter. he wasn't working with us, he was getting a reaction and moving on to the next bit. which is fine, it's not a stand-up. but a lot depended on how the audience was perceiving jokes and audience's ability to include itself in the show. Warsaw, for example, was very loud, and since the venue was small, people could hear each other and it made the whole experience a bit crazy. like, the fun was coming from both sides, so it was never boring. we were responding as a union to the things Dan was saying (e.g. communism and later putin), but also some people were yelling relevant jokes in response to Dan, thus making everyone laugh. in Berlin, i had a completely different experience audience-wise. the venue was much bigger, we couldn't really hear each other, thus no jokes coming from the seats that could bounce off of what Dan was saying. he was interacting only with the first 5-ish rows, and everyone else was just watching. we could still scream shit for the bit, but it didn't really matter. god, big venues were such a miss during wad, imo. BUT the show itself was better in Berlin because some things were improvised and the stage was bigger so he could move more. i'll try to explain what i mean by "the show could be a video". adjust the bits where we "choose" something by screaming and it's a video. it's him showing us shots and talking. and no matter what we scream or if we scream at all, the show would go on. no matter if the joke lands or not. he has a script and he follows it. sometimes he removes parts of it depending on the venue (aka the cubes, asking people to twist his hand and use the gavel), he also can remove parts if something goes wrong aka the bubbles. a lot of audience participation can be removed. and without it he would still have a lot to show and say. and this could be a video because the script doesn't heavily depend on the audience participation. if the show was more improvised that would be a different conversation. if you think that this show couldn't be a video because of the audience then it's your experience with the audience more than with the show. have a mid audience and remove some bits and that's a video. it's not a bad thing, idk why people are mad at me. the show is not bad, it's just not for everyone. i'm also curious how people will see the filmed version of wad. both those who saw it live and those who never saw it. people who weren't at the venues aren't gonna participate, so it's a different experience. some things will depend on the editing, but i would love to hear people's opinions on the show itself. we all love Dan and wish him success. i'm a dannie through and through ffs, he shines on stage, i'm not arguing with that. seeing him live is better because of how he enjoys being there. and seeing so many phannies in one place making each other giggle worth buying a ticket. but i'm interested to see reviews on the show.

[scarletlotus182]

Ok so now that it’s had time to marinate in your brain: Unicorn thoughts? Also how’s 00 going?? Don’t forget the movie!

Fuck, where do I start with Unicorn?

Uhhhh, I really loved it, of course. It's definitely one of my top Gundam series. If CCA was the ending to the "main" UC series I think Unicorn was the perfect epilogue and it perfectly represents the heart of what the series is about. People still face conflict, and yet there are those you strive for peace and understanding no matter how naive or idealistic it might be.

Banagher, as a protagonist does a great job embodying this too, imo. He's not particularly strong or talented like the other UC protagonists before him but he's honest in a way that the others aren't.

Mineva also being a main character is great given how she was a catalyst for a lot of really big events in Zeta, and I just think it's cool that a small scene in the original MSG would end up paying off with a plot point like, 30 years later. And honestly, the entire cast is great. In particular I got really attached to Marida and Zinnerman. The only character I'm kinda ehh about is Riddhe, he's just.... kinda there, and his arc feels really out of place.

I have some issues with how Marida's arc "ends", it again feels like a long line of UC tropes that just rub me the wrong way the more it happens. I think the fate of all cyber newtypes/puru clones is kinda lazy but I'll admit that I think Marida's death was handled a lot better than previous incarnations of this trope- in at least the sense that it had actual impact and felt like she had more of a presence in the series, rather than a lot of other cyber newtypes feeling like they were made to be disposed of by the narrative. That said, Marida's death hit me the most and I actually cried during that scene while I was at work. The only other character who came close to that impact was the original Puru, and I was more mad when that happened.

As for non-narrative stuff, the presentation of Unicorn was amazing. Soundtrack by Hiroyuki Sawano literally does not miss, and I think a lot of the CGI holds up pretty well. There are a couple sequences that look kinda off but none that really stand out to me. The MS designs all fuck supremely, I love the Delta Plus and the Jegans, especially love the Geara Zulus and their very "wolfenstein" look. The fact that they carry Mobile Suit STG-44s is also rad as fuck. Unicorn even manages to make a lot of the older suits look really good and have some moment to shine, like the scene with the old Zeon suits raiding the EFF base before the Byarlant of all things taking them down.

I think my favorite scene in the series though is when Banagher uses destroyer mode to hold onto the tether and the Sleeves' carrier. That scene was actually Peak.

I'll probably talk about 00 when I finish season2 and then again when I finish the movie, but I'll say I'm loving it a LOT. I can see why a lot of people recommend 00 if UC is too daunting of a starting point.

[colourful-void]

OKAY I GOT DISTRACTED FOR A BIT BY GETTING IN THE ZONE BUT AITSF UDPATE:

1: finished the komeji and shoma ending! i! okay ill be honestly i wasn't super thrilled. I REALLY like the set up stuff in terms of simulation reality, and beleiving its all fake bcs you can't cope, im MASSIVELY INTO THAT. But. I don't. like. Komeji I'm so sorry his just. he's so cube. and he annoys me. I feel like a usually have a pretty high tolerance for this kinda stuff but I just. On paper i get it but in practice I really dont like him. was very happy to see date n co tho. i think it's RIDICULOUSSSS how they explain date's interest in porn like that did not need to be explained. however. its such a stupid explanation it kinda loops back around to being funny to me. sure. why not.

2: ollowing finishing that route i tried to get back to Tokiko to see if i could use that elevator code, bcs she'd been mentioning frayers and i thought i knew what that was but i did not. but no thats only 6 digits so still not right f=/. dang. i also tried to get onto mizuki's half i miss my baby, but i found i needed two names. i know Dahlia is one, but the other is 4 letters so. Currently its probably either for Mame, Lien, or Naix. I suspect Naix the most as an answer.

3: started onto the other route from komeji's somnium. I maintain that these are too easy. It's not like they're like. the problem is that I feel like i'm being treated like I'm an idiot. ryuki and tama talk everything out in such detail, and theres often not a lot of stuff to interact with at all, a lot of which doesn't even let you make the choices like from the last game. like, proper timie usage was SO important to me last game and in this one I've never even racked up 3. i also feel like there's less dream logic, and it's a little disappointing. like, oh tape the cardboard back together. turn on the tv. =( the whimsy. it did improve some in the back half though, and i'll take it!!!

4: liking this dead komeji route WAY MORE than the other one. its not that i hate him that much but i do like the way the plots moving here. what does mame know? whats the masked womans deal? has anyone seen shoma. WHAT IS WRONGGGG WITH RYUKI <33. what is wrong with ryuki is by far my favourite mystery. im more interested in that than i am in the half body killings honestly. (part of that is teh victims i think. we dont really know jin, chikara was annoying at best but the more i learn about him the more i hate him, komeji was annoying, so. honestly i havent really been that upset about any of them dying. tokiko i did love and i am sad she's gone, but also these murders are a little bland following the first game. i just watched a guys head explode could there at least be a little blood? just a little? i know its probably for plot reasons but ive never missed gore so bad. im not even that into gore.

5: somewhere on the dead komeji route i finally figured out what that little green thing in the menu was so i've activated my tamagotchi thingy!! very fun i love it. mines an iris-y one or something? its cuteee!!

6: in terms of the wider mystery: im just really curious how far they're gonna commit to being meta.they did start with asking ME what i knew about the last game so.... looking forward to ryuki's whole deal, actually getting to play as my darling mizuki again, finding out what is UPP with date. i really like the weird videos series i just think they're neat. if the endgame doesn't have a somnium based on those thigns i will be disappointed, surely thats what we're building to.

i left off right before starting mame's somniumin the gameshow room. i don't think shes' actually involved in the killings, but doing that would be REALLY NEAT as a sequel thing, imo. i'd like it. i think shes just hiding stuff bcs she was threatened. assumably i've still got a good chunk of the game to paly! i havent done much if any of the extra eyeballs either, just whats on the way so. i'll get those guys. have been picking up some costumes n stuff tho. you can put tama <33 in pants <3333333333.