#and look at all these basic song choices wow such originality

[emma-is-swaggy-and-epic]

Felt like making an MLP next gen lol (something something, inner child or whatever)

[[Link to the base i used]]

SHIPS AND LORE UNDER THE CUT!!!

Characters from left to right

Daisy bell - fluttershy x tree hugger

....yeah, i know that you were probably expecting a different ship considering neither fluttershy OR tree hugger have curly hair. I gave daisy curly hair because tree hugger's design makes it look like she has wicks or some other black hairstyle and that leads me to believe she may be black. Anyway...daisy's special talent is grooming animals and i imagine she probably smokes weed in her spare time

Hailey - applejack x rainbow dash

In all honesty, i'm not really too invested in shipping in the MLP fandom though considering how it's implied RD and AJ got married in the series finale i decided to keep that with my next gen because i feel it makes sense. I chose the name "hailey" for this character for a multitude of reasons: 1. That's the name i chose for ALL my rainbow dash next gen kids ever since i was twelve, 2. It's a pun on "hail" as in the weather condition and 3. "Hailey" just SOUNDS like it could be a farm girl name. Basically hailey's thing is that she earned her cutie mark after getting bit by a vampire fruit bat as a child and therefore has a pair of bat wings. Personality-wise she's pretty much your typical "manic pixie dream girl" type (ramona flowers from scott pilgrim immediantly comes to mind, i've never read those books and i'm just going off of what i've heard)

Pastel dream - twilight sparkle x flash sentry

I admit this is a bit of a generic choice but tbh this was one of the first ships i EVER had so i feel it deserves a place in my next gen. Basically twilight and flash got married though their marriage didn't last very long and they got divorced a few years after pastel was born and twilight eventually got with big mac, pastel was very fucking angsty about having a new stepdad and only really calmed down after her little sister lavender was born. She's emo and also believes in aliens, her special talent is interpreting dreams (also, yes i know she doesn't really look THAT much like her parents. I'm just kinda tired of people ALWAYS making their flashlight fankids straight up just twilight but orange and i wanted to do something different)

Lavender web - twilight sparkle x big mac

Yeah i only really put this ship here because of the semi-infamous fanfic "the spiderses" and her personality is no different, this lass just LOVES her some spiders.

Rosemary - rarity x braeburn

This was actually the very first MLP ship i ever got into! At the time, i hadn't watched the episode braeburn was in and didn't know he was basically male applejack. 8-year-old me just saw him in the gameloft app and thought "wow that's one handsome horse! I must ship him with rarity because she's my favorite character!" So i put the ship into my next gen because of how much sentimental value i have for it. Anyways....i imagine rose to be somewhat of a "southern belle" type, her special talent is writing romance fiction and she's got the flirty nature to match! She's slightly inspired by blanche from the golden girls, i do admit.

Chocomint ice - pinkie pie x minty

To be honest....i only really added this ship in because of how often they're shipped in G3. I don't really have much to say about her other than she's based on the song "aoi-chan is going to eat chocomint no matter what" (bit of a mouthful of a song title but y'know...it's a japanese song so it's probably much shorter in the original language lol) also her bangs are modeled after the titular aoi-chan in the song's music video

I don't know if i'm going to do anything with this AU, but if i do: i'll probably include celestia x mirror!sombra and luna x discord

[kuwdora]

For the vidding asks: 10, 12, 21!

10 What was the best comment you've received on one of your vids?

Let me tell you about a comment that fundamentally rattled my soul to the core and made me extremely hyper-vigilant, but eventually I got less rattled by it and absorbed it into my creative process because it was so incredibly helpful for me and made me a better vidder.

I made this due South Fraser/RayK vid in 2007, it was my second ever vid I was trying to make. It's called Better Off. If you look at my original vid notes I wrote like 500 words talking about how much I hate I my vid. How much it sucks, how it’s awful. How I was apologizing for it and basically giving up on the vid. The whole self-flagellating nine yards. I got a lot of great feedback on it, like over 20 comments, so despite me hating my own vid of new hobby I was learning to do, people fucking loved it.

HERE is the comment thread that changed my life. Where j-s-cavalcante kindly said the greatest most wonderful things to me but also made me go 👀:

I wish you hadn't waxed eloquent on the subject of how bad this vid is, because now I feel like an idiot posting this comment: I LOVED it. It makes me think, it scares me, it makes me see DS in a slightly different way, and it's fascinating with ALL those action scenes and blink-and-you'll-miss-it moments. And, OMG, Dangerous!Fraser is freaking me out a little, here, and making me want to write, and that's one of the best things I think vids do for me. I find the good ones inspiring. I don't think anyone has quite dealt with this issue in a vid before, certainly not in this depth. But the idea that Fraser is deliberately risking Ray's life in these "wildly bizarre ways" for some unknown, maybe pathological, reason of his own is…scary and believable and intense! The use of so many of their action scenes all cut together so quickly is really, really effective in getting the point across. The song is cool and it inspired shivers up my back. Wow. (It also brings Speranza's "Wildly Dangerous Ways" (http://www.trickster.org/speranza/WDWays.html) to mind--one of my all-time favorite F/K fics.) And you did something so clever that I really loved…I'm not sure if I can express it properly, but there are a few clips that seem very obvious choices for the lyrics in question, such as the shot of Damian Kowalski on the " who's your daddy?" line and the scenes from Ray's messy apartment on the "I'll be hiding in your dirty room" line (there are more---"I'll not wake you," and the airport lines, etc.). And when those scenes show up matched to those lines, they seem like too-facile choices, but then in the very next line+clip combination, you reinterpret them: "I'm your daddy now" has Fraser holding the heavy bag for Ray, and so on. I found that very effective and just…intelligent. I think it's an intelligent vid. But you say it sucks, so I guess I don't know any better. I'll just live in blissful ignorance…and play it for writing inspiration…. :)

Dear asker, friend. @marahsarie. I want you to know that when I made this due South fanvid I was 100% sure in my belief that I was making a happy, intense adventure vid. Wholesome. Action. My beta sapote at the time was trying to say the same things j-s-cavalcante was saying but I was not grasping it. So when I read j-s’s comment I lost my goddamn mind. How could I have failed to understand what the fuck I was making? How other people might see it?? I was embarrassed and confused and and and...then I got it.

Iiiiiiiiiiiiiii...didn’t realize that the song I was using was the singer was about a cult leader. But because this song was about a cult leader and that was the reading that people who watched the vid were taking away from it... everyone lost their minds. It was a darker interpretation of Benton Fraser than anyone had ever seen in a vid before. Pathological? Fraser? In my vid? I guess it's more likely than I thought.

I stewed and chewed on this comment and reviewed my 300 emails I exchanged with sapote to understand what the fuck I was thinking when I heard the lyrics and how I made something so different than what I thought I was making. I wrote over 2k words about song choice and what I learned, which you can check out here if you want to see what thinking about song choice was like so early in my vidding experience.

That comment was so full of love, it was supportive, and specific and surprising. It meant the world to me. It made me think about how to intentionally approach a song, try to understand what the song is or might be about based on the song lyrics themselves, the singer’s confirmation of the song meaning, and what other people might interpret a song as. I also started thinking about how and when I will want to vid with or against specific song narratives and how I could make a vid successful in the process depending on what I did to make my case. Whether it was with symbolism or metaphor or technical efforts. Sometimes I still end up with happy accidents (as well as intentional horror, hahh) and there is always the possibility of more unintentional accidents and horrors because my brain is very squishy. I'm still human and I've fucked up before and will probably fuck up again but I will try to do my to know what's going on in what I make.

Truly that was the best comment ever. It really really helped me think critically about my work and how others might approach it even when I do or don't know what they might see. And it was just so kind and nice and reassuring and it really got me excited to make more vids after that, too.

— 12 Most underrated vid that you wished had gotten more views?

My Maya Herrara vid from Heroes! Racist fans were fucking awful about Maya as portrayed by Dania Ramirez. Fuckshit racists. The Heroes writers wrote the most racist shit, too, and did her character a great fucking disservice. It was awful. I’m still fucking pissed about it. You can read my extensive notes about Maya I wrote at the time on the original vidpost.

I loved Maya and wanted to vid her. Even though I wish the show Wasn’t Like That. I wish that she had something better, I wish that actress had something better, too. I loved her so much and I wanted more of her. I love her and I'll probably cry again the next time I rewatch the show. I don’t know if Heroes fandom people ever watched my vid back in the day since it wasn't the main Slash Pairing. I made this vid in 2008 and it has like 18 views on YouTube so here we are. I love Maya. She deserved better.

— 21 How would you describe your vidding style?

My vidding style is passionate, earnest, irreverent. It’s also unhinged, deeply fucked up. I love utilizing internal motion in clips to create a sense of movement and use that energy with the musicality of songs. I’m also inordinately gleeful about vidding fucked up themes and sources and can’t bring myself to be apologetic about it. But I’m equally unhinged with my love and joy for the wholesome characters and shows I make fanvids for, too. I don’t know if I come off as balanced or anything but. I always approach my vids with love (for the show, the characters, the vidding process, the creative catharsis, etc).

Thank you kindly for these lovely asks!!!

[clarenecessities]

✨🍀 re: wow toons (idk what that is so pls enlighten me!)

AHAHAHA YES!!!! <-sicko voice

✨- How did you come up with the OC’s name?

🍀 - What originally inspired the OC?

these go hand in hand so i'm doin' 'em together >:3c so wow toons are what you call your different world of warcraft characters, of which i have... 12? 15? some multiple of three. i shall describe each of them in turn bc you've inadvertently activated my trap card.

Sétanta - my very first wow character. he's a worgen bc obviously i'm going to pick the werewolf race, come on. i made him a druid bc i heard you could turn into even more animals and this pleased me. He's named for Cú Chulainn (Hound of Culann), who renamed himself that as a kid. I pronounce it 100% wrong, with an /s/ at the start and a /t/ in the middle, but that's what happens when you learn all your words by reading as a small child. i pronounced seamus See-Miss until i was like 16. it could be worse.

Seidrin - As I was fleshing him out i accidentally went way too hard on his mom's backstory, so when I wanted to make a tank she was the natural choice. her dad is the wolf god Goldrinn, who I decided (fancifully) to pretend was named for galdra, one of the kinds of norse magic. -inn being the masculine name suffix, i changed it tothe feminine -in and named her for seiðr magic instead. went with a d instead of a th bc logan very wisely pointed out the "-drin-" mirrors Goldrinn.

Crimthann - Sétanta's dad. I wanted to make a healer and I was like you know what would be really funny? If I named his dad after another guy who renamed himself for an animal. And Crimthann (an old irish name meaning 'fox') is often alleged to be the birth name of St. Colmcille, 'church dove'. so i made him a priest but unfortunately priests are very boring to play so he's... languishing.

Donn - I wanted to make a Horde character but I didn't know how to play anything but a druid so I was like... surely, this will work. I was gonna name him Donn Cúailnge after the Brown Bull of Cooley but it turns out you can't put spaces in the names. But Donn (shockingly) wasn't taken so... here he is! Tauren druid!

Jettion - I was bullied into making a dracthyr, the newest race, bc they have a fun starting quest. Dragons in wow have name suffixes according to their 'flight' (color) and he's a male black dracthyr (who are like anthro dragons) so his name had to end in -ion, and often the black flight's names start with shades of blade, so... it was either Jetion or Jettion, and I liked Jettion better bc it looks like Jettison.

Shannock - We all made vulpera, the little fox people together. but i'd already used the name Crimthann. so I was like 'maybe sionnach'? but if you can believeit some bastard already snagged it. so i went with a rough anglicization. i should play him more.

Lokworg - I've twice been bullied into making a monk bc supposedly they get fun later on & i just need to keep doing quests with my pals, but my pals are much faster than i am and outstrip me quickly. The first monk i deleted bc i don't care about him and honestly lokworg's not doin' much for me either. His name's orcish, lok is song/cry (noun) and worgs are the large, extra smart wolves orcs ride as mounts. More or less 'direwolf song'.

Rumpelteazer - Peer pressured into doing the worgen starting quest & I wanted someone who could learn to pick locks one day, so rogue it was! Originally named Scátha (irish for shade but also kind of an oblique reference to scáthach, the scottish warrior woman who trained Cú Chulainn (and my own pseudohistorical ancestor)), but I kept pronouncing it wrong and was listening to Cats 1998 soundtrack and... well... he's a rogue! and Mungojerrie was taken!

Ulfhedrinn - in keeping with the norse theme, he's named after the Ulfheðnar (singular Ulfheðinn, wolf+what's basically a hooded vest made of fur) that were an appropriately lupine variety of berserkers. I wanted to make a Horde healer and i was like you know... i haven't made this insane little family big enough yet.

Galdrulf - Okay, honestly? He was supposed to be Ulfhedrinn. We were starting with new Horde characters and we were gonna level together, but I got so lost in the customization sauce that I forgot Ulf's particular flavor of orc starts at level 10 instead of 1. So I panicked and made a warrior, and I named him galdr+ulf bc I'm not very creative under pressure.

Fuil - Bullied into making a dark iron dwarf but i'm not clear on why bc we never got farther than unlocking them? guys? are we doing anything with these? irish for blood bc he's going to be a Blood Death Knight. one day. probably.

Tigernmas - I was peer pressured into making a Demon Hunter, whom I wanted to name Crom but noooo, that was 'taken', so I named him after a pseudohistorical king that got himself and 75% of the men in Ireland killed worshipping Crom Cruach.

you know i'm sensing some themes here. a lot of irish. a lot of peer pressuring. jesus christ is seidrin my only woman? she doesn't even use the fpose model no wonder they keep he/himming me

[bettyg196]

My thoughts on Eurovision 2023 entries (part 3)

Here is the third part of the original post.

Enjoy.

Finland: KÄÄRIJÄ - Cha Cha Cha

Rank: #5

Rating: 9,5 / 10

Finland has chosen audacity ! Here is a chaotic entry, messy in the good sense of the term, original, unique and in Finnish please ! Clearly Lordi's Country wants to win the contest this year. The European public will love “Cha Cha Cha”, but what about the juries in the final? Let's be honest, Käärijä will go to the final but can he win Eurovision ? If the juries like it then it can happen.

San Marino: PIQUED JACKS - Like An Animal

Rank: #35

Rating: 4,5 / 10

The music isn't bad but "Like An Animal" sounds dated. The lyrics could have been written better, it lacks impact and it's powerless. San Marino will be one of the pee breaks in the second semi-final.

Poland: BLANKA - Solo

Rank: #36

Rating: 3,5 / 10

Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Blanka's vocal delivery in the Polish national final leaves something to be desired, it looks like she's just content to look pretty. The song itself is listenable but only in studio version. It's a basic and well-produced entry but which is sorely lacking of originality and which is not competitive at all. I could have rated Poland better if Blanka had done a better vocal performance.

Netherlands: MIA NICOLAI & DION COOPER - Burning Daylight

Rank: #10

Rating: 9 / 10

I can feel Duncan Laurence's touch on this song. It's a very beautiful entry with impact, the lyrics are inspiring and there is a lot of soul in this title. But, the Netherlands are in the strongest semi-final, and it's 100% televoting so it's not guaranteed that the country will make the final unless the staging is brilliant. I still hope the Netherlands will qualify because the entry is too qualitative to stay in the semi-final.

Cyprus: ANDREW LAMBROU - Break A Broken Heart

Rank: #31

Rating: 6 / 10

I didn't expect anything from Cyprus and I'm still disappointed. This song is too predictable, I don't understand why people like this entry so much, it sounds like a song that finished 7th in a national final. It's too garish, dramatic and Swedish, what saves it's its quality and the production but I had a hard time seeing the island in the final.

Germany: LORD OF THE LOST - Blood & Glitter

Rank: #14

Rating: 8,5 / 10

Finally ! Germany sends metal to Eurovision ! Ok, it's not Rammstein but it's still a german band with an international fanbase. "Blood & Glitter" is a very good entry, powerful as it should be, impactful, glamorous despite itself and memorable. It has a lot of personality. Germany can avoid the bottom 5 this year and I stand by my words.

Moldova: PASHA PARFENI - Soarele şi Luna

Rank: #7

Rating: 9,5 / 10

This is the perfect choice for Moldova. "Soarele şi Luna" is a great song, Pasha Parfeni returns to Eurovision not only to do better than in 2012 but also to honor Moldovan culture as it should. It's very catchy, repetitive certainly but memorable. Moldova will go to the final and who knows, maybe the juries will be more generous with the country this year.

Iceland: DILJÁ - Power

Rank: #21

Rating: 8 / 10

Iceland made a good choice even if there were better choices in the Icelandic national final but they were eliminated in the semi-finals. "Power" is a powerful, catchy and memorable song with a lot of impact. I could have put a 9 if the song had remained in Icelandic. Diljá is a ball of energy on stage, I think she will have a great time in Liverpool.

Serbia: LUKE BLACK - Samo Mi Se Spava

Rank: #6

Rating: 9,5 / 10

Wow! Serbia is truly in its avant-garde era at Eurovision. After "In Corpo Sano", here is its sequel named "Samo mi se spava". Musically, it's dark, mysterious and chaotic and that's what I'm here for. Luke Black exudes a lot of creativity and charisma, I really like his presence on stage. The public will love this.

To be continued in the next post

[matan4il]

Sooooooo from someone who spends too much time researching name meanings before naming their characters to someone who knows too much about names (jk, you can never know too much, I just thought using superlatives would be fun, and yes, I know "too x" isn't even a superlative, just let me have this 🤣):

Thoughts on the naming of 911 characters? And skdhflsdhf if you wanna add some shippy thoughts to it, go ahead😂💕

LOL Hon, can I just mention how much I love that we have in common the whole spending too much time researching name meanings before naming a character thing? XD And you know you can always consult me whenever you want to! My brain is full of redundant information and someone should take advantage of that!

I wanted to do this properly, so I ended up making a whole goddamn post about name meanings for 911 characters, including a few gifs. Sorry that means it took me a bit longer to reply, and thank you so much for your patience! xoxox

My thoughts on these name choices by 911, wow... OK, so can I mention that the most heartbreaking one to me is the naming of Daniel? As you can see in the post, Daniel means "God judges me" which is basically a sentiment expressed by religious Jews, an accepting of God's judgment and an expression of trying to do right in his eyes. But when someone passes away, in Judaism we say, "Baruch dayan ha'emet," meaning 'blessed is the judge of truth' to express an acceptance of this fate, too. Considering how young Daniel was when he passed away, the choice for his name just sends a shiver down my spine.

Evan meaning 'God has graced' gets to me, we just have the irony of this boy who grew up feeling like he was nothing in the present, that he could only hope to be someone in the future (as he tells Maddie in 405), this boy who was only brought into the world for God's grace to be directed towards saving his older brother, and he doesn't see, he doesn't realize just how much grace there is in his own existence! Once again, breaking my heart...

Another one that gets to me is Eddie's name meaning 'rich protection', when he's a dad who has dedicated himself to protecting his son and doing everything in his power to making Christopher's life as good as it can be, sparing no expenses on it, working twice as hard to be able to take good care of him, all while barely spending any money on himself (as his bedroom shows in 204). I also really like that he and his dad Ramon share the 'mund' part in their original Germanic names, meaning 'protection.' They are both devoted father, looking to protect their kids! They just go about doing it in very different ways...

And of course there's an interaction between their names. While Buck has trouble seeing his own grace, and is reckless and de-values his own life, Eddie is also protective of him, doing everything he can to make it clear to Buck that he is not expandable, and that there is no one Eddie trusts in the world more than him. Their love story is coded into their names, for heaven's sake!

Athena's name meaning might be unknown, but the connection between her and the Greek goddess of just, brave, smart war always got to me! Athena is opposed in Greek mythology to Ares, the god of bloodthirsty, treacherous, destructive war. It's just so fitting for a character whose whole essence is to be a warrior for good. And in that instance, the show even made explicit reference to this, saying Beatrice didn't choose her daughter's name randomly.

I like that when David was brought specifically to be Michael's love interest, he's given a name that is the ultimate one for lovers. David (spelled in Hebrew דוד) comes from the Hebrew word 'beloved' (pronounced 'dod' and also spelled in Hebrew דוד). Not only is that a very fitting meaning, but in the biblical book The Song of Songs, you'll find the verse, "Ani le'dodi ve'dodi li" which means "I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me," considered by many people familiar with the biblical text to be the ultimate expression of a lovers' bond there. That THIS is the name chosen for the character brought in to be a part of the first proper mlm couple 911 has featured makes me happier than I can explain!

I can talk about other notable choices (naming probably the biggest villains on the show with names that refer to 'peace' or imply it by meaning 'dove'), but I don't wanna overburden this post. I do think some of the names, when the origin is unknown / uncertain, and when some have very little connection (if any) to their characters, are a reminder that TV show writers don't always do the research. Sometimes they just like a name! Or select one randomly! Or have personal associations that play into choosing a name, that have nothing to do with the "official" name meaning. In other words, we (as fic writers) allowed to ignore this, too. ;) I personally like having intention behind my character's name, as an extra layer of meaning, but it is 100000% okay not to pay it any attention! *hugs*

Hope you have a wonderful day! As always, here's my ask tag. xoxox

[sauerland-2001]

It’s been a while since my last post about shows and movies I’ve watched (wish I could link the post but tumblr hates me), and since then there have been quite a few more:

Finished:

Slow Horses season 2: enjoyed it; more action-packed and faster paced than season 1 but it’s also more of the Gary Oldman Show than before; hated a certain character‘s death :(

White Lotus season 2: Yep, after not even finishing a single episode of season 1, I just skipped to the second season and really liked it. Not as sensational as social media made it seem but still a nice portrayal of messed up people caught in their own misery 🥰

L‘Opera season 1: I don’t know if this is the show’s original title, watched it via the streaming site of a German broadcaster. Brilliant show about ballet at the Paris Opera; an aging principal dancer gets kicked out of her contract and the season covers how she fights to get back in. It also deals with racism in the ballet world through the eyes of a young black dancer who tries to get into the company.

Thai Cave Rescue: I didn’t watch the Amazon movie about the same event because it seems to be focused on the white rescuers instead of the Thai boys trapped in the cave? Liked it but yeah, this could have been a movie instead of a limited series 👀

The Bastard Son & and the Devil Himself: Netflix did its damn best not to promote this show and of course, it’s been cancelled since. Quite a lot of gore for my taste but it was still amazing. Would definitely recommend, despite there only being one season :(

1899: also cancelled, thanks for nothing, netflix 🙄 While I enjoyed the show, I do think that the ship setting is what kept this from being as great as Dark. Should have continued though of course since season 1 was basically entirely a set up for future seasons.

Young Royals season 2: have already posted about this one of course. I hope season 3 returns focus to the show’s main couple. It’s a shame that the two characters of color (of the main cast) were reduced to supporting characters this time.

(Christmas) Movies:

Scrooge: musical version of the old story; really good songs; watched it with my youngest students who loved it but thought there were too many songs 😁

Your Christmas or Mine: omg what a disappointment. I excepted a charming comedy with weird but lovable British characters. All I got was boredom and bad acting.

Tried but gave up:

Wednesday: no comment (for my own safety)

Treason: started watching this for my man Charlie Cox, but wow this is bad. It tries to be like other British shows about MI6 (5? I don’t know) and fails.

The Crown season 5: extremely boring, uninspired acting, and let’s face it, that family is truly FUBAR and should be ignored 98% of the time, especially now.

Currently watching:

Happy Valley season 3: can’t believe it’s back after 8 years 😭 episode 1 was brilliant, can’t wait for the rest.

Mosquito Coast season 2: just one episode left and I’ve liked this one a lot more than season 1, which was basically hours and hours of Justin Theroux checking himself out. Wise choice to focus on the son‘s trauma after what he had done at the end of season 1, but I’m constantly distracted by how much that young actor looks like Ansel Elgort 😳

Kaleidoscope: episode yellow is the first one for me but I had to stop it halfway through the other day and haven’t continued yet.

Almost Fly: very sweet German series about three boys in 1990 who want to become rappers.

[gugf]

How would you ranked the dr Seuss movies?

OH oh thanks for that question!!!

You mean all or just the feature length ones?

Ah, my top tiers are not feature length, anyway.

Maybe I'm just really into old cartoons...

I'll do top 5 on both.

1) Lorax (1972). I can't help it, when I'm sucker for dark things I'm sucker.

I adore the aesthetic all throughout the movie. Animation, color choices, songs, steampunk architecture cheffs kiss. They find so many ways not to show not only Onceler's face but his whole body. This man just feels like an eldritch capitalistic creature.... And this suits the whole thing so well.... Not to mention the changes they made for his character overall.

What can i say, it's the darkest and saddest out of them all. Story vise and visually. No wonder it got such strong emotional response. Poor Lorax, poor Onceler (I mean, of course, he deserved all this, but also on top of that family just leaves after he became useless, seriously, PRICKS), poor animals, poor everything.

The message just enhances from the whole animated potrayal, and these segments just ooze misery and despair from the screen. Wow, i sure am relieved that climate just whipes us all, and we wouldn't be stuck for long in this horrible mud and fumes.

2) Horton Hears A Who (1970)

It's eldritch. It's magnificent. I can't how after all these years it's still right on spot. I guess that's how you make a timeless story.

Ah, yes, adaptation. The animation is some places is outstanding and SONGS SLAP SOOO HARD. They slap in every movie, but here I just adore every one of them. I prefer this version to movie, because of more consistent tone. It remains this seriousness and sence of dread, poor Horton can't even rest most of the time. For me it just makes it more inspiring. Fighting is hard, and may be even exhausting, but in the end, all more worth it when people finally standing by your side. Always make sure you are heard.

I mean, at least that's how i read it.

3) How The Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)

Out of all three adaptations, of course, it's still my favorite. This version just hits that core for me. It's really cute. It worms my heart. Tony was totally his ex.

Grinch is just right amount of mean. He's malicious, but in a believable and calculated way. Not in obnoxious manner. A grumpy old person, who also constantly abuses his dog for some reason level. He steals the breadcrumbs, guys, what a man! They added a lot of fun and cute details like these. And the whole mountain slide scene is so iconic, why is he so needlessly cruel omg? I guess the failed business and relationships really messed him up...

This movie is really full of imagination and cute stuff. It easily lighters my mood, and also didn't screw up commentary on a holiday itself, what's not to love?

4) Cat In A Hat (1971)

Oh look, all classics in a row. I guess, I'm really that predictable. I really really like how it looks, the colors, and how characters move. It's so adorable...

But I still feel bad for the fish, I mean, not like concerns weren't valid?

Characters are just really fun, i'll say. This movie is just comfy.

(It's unrelated information, but they really butchered russian in that language song. What they said is basically "Hat in a hat". The right way would be pronounced like "Kot v shlape" or "Koshak v shlape" if it needs to rhyme, but that's just a pet peeve).

5) Halloween Is Grinch Night (1977).

I really like the aesthetic. Mc with round glasses might be one of my favorite genders. Easily the Halloween classic.

A lot of really cool surrealism (Gives me particular Yume Nikki vibes).

But I kinda question Grinch's motives. If his concern is really the sound, than what's with the time limit? Looks like he just needs a justification, huh.

And for feature length:

1) Horton (2008). I mean, it's kinda cute. Even enjoyable as an adaptation.

2) Lorax (2012). Purely for memes, the biggering and tumblr sexy man (original was hotter though). So bad it's good, but as an adaptation strongly won't recommend.

4) Grinch (2019). Snow looked pretty and they added that scene at the end, but oh boy how they massacred my boy. Had an untapped potential.

3) Grinch (2000). I liked costuming (but still feel bad for the actors) and set design but not really a color palette. My mom likes it, but not for me. Too noisy.... And i just can't stand some scenes.

5) I needed to fill the gap so Cat (2003) goes here. Set design was neat.

[fukouiro]

i've got that damn konbini song stuck in my head again for the first time in about 12 years!!

it's pretty interesting though, since the last time i heard it was so long ago that i knew basically nothing about japanese. it's not every day you get to have such a direct sensation of "wow i've come so far" when it comes to learning i guess, haha

also, kinda like anything that was translated by some random person 15 years ago, the translation used in the subbed versions of all those animation memes is a little questionable... it misses out on some humor in the original and also has some completely changed lines.

i wrote some notable lines cuz i was bored, so let's take a look!

"さあ 不良を過ぎれば..." ・actual: "so, after getting past those punks..." ・fansub: "so, after getting rid of those punks..." not much to say about this line... odd choice of wording is all.

"エロ本読んでるオヤジとならんで 雑誌読んでから" ・actual: "after reading some magazines next to an old man looking at porn" ・fansub: "an old man next to me looks at dirty magazines" not really a mistranslation, but for some reason they just didn't translate the latter half of the line where the narrator reads magazines

"何を買いに来たわけじゃないけど 買うものを探す" ・actual: "i look for something to buy even though i didn't really come here to buy anything" ・fansub: "i don't know what to buy, so i try to decide" again, it's not exactly a mistranslation but i think it loses a bit of the humor because in the original song they just went to the convenience store for no reason and then are like "yeah i guess i should buy something huh", while the fansub makes it sound like they already went with the intent to buy something

"無口なアルバイト" ・actual: "a silent part-timer [is there]" ・fansub: "a mute-looking part-timer works there" i just think "mute-looking" is a funny way to word that haha

"私はすっぴん(眉毛もかかずに)" ・actual: "i've got no makeup on (and i haven't even drawn on my eyebrows)" ・fanlation: "and i'm wearing no make up (with drawn-on eyebrows too)" i feel like the translator had a brainfart here because drawing on your eyebrows would be doing your makeup... probably didn't understand that the ず form is a negative or something?

"ちょっと おつりの渡し方! 私の手の平 勝手に使い 小銭をぶんちん代わりにレシート置くな! 財布に入れにくいのよ! ちょっとムカッとしちゃうのよ! そんな時は 私からも仕返しするの"

・actual: "what's with the way you're giving me my change?! don't put the coins on top of the receipt in my palm like some kind of paperweight! it's so hard to put this in my wallet! it's kinda getting on my nerves! that's when i decided i'd return the favor"

・fansub: "the way he gave me my change as i open up my hand the coins pile up like a receipt paperweight i can hardly keep all this change together. as i get furious, i have to do something so i planned some mischief"

in the fansub, this whole part isn't written like it's dialog, unlike the original. also, i think it kind of misses out on the detail that the following antics are revenge. when i read this as a kid i always thought it felt like the narrator is self conscious that they're hogging the line while trying to deal with the change so they were just trying to order more stuff... that might just be me though. i'm sure other people probably understood it lol

"おでんください" ・actual: "i'd like some oden" ・fansub: "excuse me" i don't know why this is different... maybe if they misheard the line as ごめんください? oden is a japanese dish cooked in broth. you can look up more about it if you care about food, i'm not a food-knower, but...

"おつゆ多めに" ・actual: "and make it with a little extra broth" ・fanlation: "and lots of tempura sauce too" i don't know why they changed this to tempura sauce either? maybe the translator heard the line as 天つゆ, or only knew つゆ in the context of tempura sauce... no idea though. it could also be changed to tempura sauce since they didn't translate the earlier line asking for oden? i do think it's kind of funnier if they just randomly ask for 3 eggs one-by-one without a reason, but other than that it does make everything else a little weird. i don't think that even works

"からしつけてよ" ・actual: "add some mustard too" ・fansub: "give me change, then" this is after the narrator gives the cashier 10,000 yen for a 220 yen order to get back at him for putting the change in her hand in an annoying way. the fanlation line is funny for not making any sense because of course the cashier is going to give you change you they can't just take your money!! plus originally they were angry for getting change in an annoying way, why would they ask for more change?! kind of a self-defeating prank... also (kinda like the oden line) they just changed it to something that sort of makes sense in context but isn't related to the original line at all

"(いちいちうるせーな)" ・actual: "you're being annoying asking for things one-by-one" ・fansub: "slow down, please" like the oden and mustard lines, this is just a line that kinda fits in context but isn't related to the original line at all. plus, in the first place the cashier wants the narrator to hurry up because she's taking too long, not slow down...

[charlottedabookworm]

Dawntrail Day 3+4

spoilers up to: 4th zone, lvl 95 questchain (including 3rd dungeon)

original draft date: 30/6/24-1/7/24

scheduled release for: 28/7/24

had to work for day three of early access unfortunately so i'm merging these into one, hoping to get to at least the 95 dungeon and maybe most of the way to the 97 one

*

please be koana please be koana please-

*

mood ali mood

*

yeeees we got koana! thank fuck otherwise there would have been a murder of either bakool ja ja or sareel ja

*

a third split zone? huh

that's new

*

a brief interlude for AR rou and a proper glam for picto

*

oh wow, i thought this place was like. wild fires

not from the war between the mamool ja and xbr’aal

fucking hell

*

love the long running joke about alphi’s skill woth collecting firewood

that one will never get old lol

*

pfft

ali fell down a cenote! ahhh the true rdm experience lol

*

“As I recall, you are an accomplished culinarian.”

erm krile

krile no

culinarian is my least leveled crafter it’s not even lvl 50 yet i am by no stretch of the imagination and accomplished culinarian

*

wuk lamat i love you you fucking tell him

*

hmmmm

This doesn’t bode well does it

damn

*

oh

his daughter was pushed fuck

*

oh

wuk lamat is his daughter

he gave her up to keep her safe, gave her to the dawnsevant cos who would protect her better

fuuuuck

*

well that secret didn’t last long did it?

fuckin bakool ja ja

i wanna stab that guy rn

*

so many good options here, i with i could pick them all xD

*

okay this was a very nice duty enjoyed this one a lot

very satisfying

*

…zoraal ja got disqualified

this is not going to end wall

*

…what are you planning

i trust you even less than zoraal ja and bakool ja ja combined

something is so fucking up with you

*

ah cool bakool ja ja gets thwir dickishness from their dad cool cool

at least he comes by it honestly?

because wow zereel ja is a dick

nothing like calling all of your children useless and banishing your son because he was defeated by a non mamool ja

damn I’m actually feeling empathy for bakool ja ja rn fuck the whine he let out when they were banished was just-

*

fuck

yeah okay he's a dick adn it doesn't excuse his actions and it doesn't make anyting better but fuck i can understadn why now

*

pfft

*

koana has already made the choice to give up the rite, hasn’t he

well, maybe not the rite. but the throne, certainly

*

koana you-

you’re great dude, i love the way that youve developed over the rite i love the way that you have looked at yourself and gone ‘i don’t think i’m right to be dawnservant’

just yeah

koana best brother

*

also i love that this instance is still literally two tanks two healers and four dps

got an actual full party here to face gulool ja jas shade lol

*

ketenramm???

*

…wuk lamat is calling him tankwa but-

a make roe who does look a little like the flashbacks and he-

he’s definitely ketenramm isn’t h-

ketenramm confirmed!

*

ayyy dungeon 3 unlocked!

skydeep cenote here i come!

as soon as i put the washing out

*

gods there are so many children buried here in this dungeon

*

“Don’t tell me it’s the Allagans again”

Ali out here being the biggest mood in existence

*

okay one, the song playing when wuk lamat does her speech? Love it need it desperately wanna listen to it again

And

Two

“THE DAWNSERVANT DOESNT NEED TO BE A SINGLE PERSON, DOES IT?”

she’s not-

she wouldn’t-

(i hope she is cos i-)

*

“Be Dawnservant with me Koana!”

yessssss!

*

“He would have been proud”

and then the looks on koana and wuk lamats’s faces-

they already knew

gulool ja ja the vow of reason is dead, one of their fathers is dead, and they already knew

they knew and they went along with their fathers deception anyway

Fuuuuck sometimes this game breaks my heart

*

i have a bad feeling aboi thi-

Ketenramm!

fuck don’t be dead

(this is either zoraal ja or sareel ja or both and i’m-)

*

wuk evu is great i love wuk evu

*

ngl every time they mention tacos (basically every time they’re in tuliyollal) i’m just like

‘when will raha get tacos?’

like i’m really glad this exp so far has focused far more on new characters than old scions but it would be nice to see raha and yshtola again soon

*

“Then, perhaps we could travel together?”

yes yes YES

fuck yeah lets go erenville i’ve been wanting more time with you all expansion so far!!!

*

zoraal ja what are you doing you fucker-

oh great sareel ja is still there

annnnnd he’s nicked the key from the dawnservants vault fucking great

i hate sareel ja so much

also you better not have killed ketenramm

*

oh?

mystery woman from the trailer perhaps?

*

oh great zoraal ja is laughing maniacally and saying thatbhis desire is the world itself

wonderful

i’m still waiting for sareel ja to stab him in backkkkk

Oh

oh

okay

Erm

ngl that’s not the way i expected that to go fuck

guess zoraal ja is the actual antagonist the good to know

wonderful

*

in other news sunforged is a fucking awesome title

*

Erenville name reveal!!!!

*

the pretty man is not wrong lol

*

[mockingkaterina]

katerina delgado: a playlist

[curestardust]

Dust Watched: Shoujo☆Kageki Revue Starlight Movie

Genres: Music, Drama // 1 movie (2h) // S01 (x)

Wow...

✧  story  ✧

The original season was certainly something unique in the anime landscape and while I was expecting something on that level this movie completely blew my expectations out of the water. This is a fucking masterpiece.

The movie’s story drops us 2 years after the events of the original season; the girls are in their last year and getting ready to graduate. The beginning of this movie creates a false sense of security. Calm and slow, the girls seemingly content with their school life and their choices for the future. But there’s an invisible tension that you can feel rising up until it explosively culminates in the beginning of another Revue: Wi(l)d-screen Baroque. This is a reference to an actually existing style of writing “Widescreen Baroque” which Wikipedia sums up as “characterized by larger-than-life characters, violence, intrigue, extravagant settings or actions, and fast-paced plotting“. I decided to just copy-paste this because I honestly couldn’t describe the Revue’s presentations in the Movie better.

After the Revue begins, the movie uses a 1-2-1-2 formula. Calling back to the original Auditions, each act consists of 2 characters going head to head, exploring their feelings, doubts and fears in the setting of a grand performance. After each performance concludes, we get a flashback to Karen and Hikari’s past, then we move onto the next act in the Revue. The final act thus obviously consists of the two’s confrontation.

This movie uses the stage as a literal representation of life, just as the original season did, except on a much grander scale. While in the real world everyone acts fine and considerate, the Revues finally give them a place where they can confront their fears, where they can say what they *really* think, before they all have to move onto the “next stage”. 

✧  characters  ✧

Graduating from High School is seen as the first step into adulthood and alongside the girls the movie’s presentation and subject matters all matured as well. The revues call-back to Auditions in the original show, with the expected pairs going head-to-head in their acts. Finding who you’re, letting go of the past, going your seperate ways, dealing with doubts of whether your choice for the future really is right are all stuff we’ve had to deal with (if you’re my age of course) are at the core of this movie. All-in-all I liked every girls outcome although I feel like certain characters could’ve used just a tiny bit more introspection. 

Unfortunately, Karen and Hikari’s plotline was the weakest even though half the movie focuses on that. Maybe that *was* the problem. For all the build-up the 2 get, their Revue is the weakest in my opinion, even though Karen’s feelings towards the future are probably the most complicated. 

✧  art  ✧

The art, animation, art direction, details, basically the entire thing is absolutely flawless. The girls’ designs look older without changing anything about their appearance which was a nice touch. But of course, the stages for the Revues are absolutely incredible. 

✧  sound ✧

Same as with the art, the Revue songs, the OST and even the VA’s performance was absolutely top-notch.

✧  overview ✧

I can’t recommend this movie enough. If you don’t have time to watch the original series (even though I highly recommend it) they released a summary movie called “Rondo! Rondo! Rondo!” so I’d suggest watching that first.

My Rating: 10/10

[kyotakumrau]

2021.03.10 USEN STUDIO COAST 2nd session with Toshiya and Kyo

Fujieda and Takabayashi again came on stage when the tables were ready and after greeting everyone and introducing themselves F asked fans to give band members a loud applause👏

Toshiya and Kyo came back and they both changed for the second session!

Unconfirmed until DIRT announcement, but most likely T was wearing DIRT items: light grey cardigan and black and white floral print set, top and bottom, with a thick white stripe with black frame on the sides. Plus sunglasses.

Kyo was wearing Madaraningen, MANG white shirt with the tie and black slacks, white socks with colorful accent, gold choice of Madara jewellery. And big glasses.

They sat in the same order as for the 1st session.→F K T Ta

T: I'm Toshiya, yoroshiku onegaishimasu

K: I'm Kyo.

The whole time during the 1st session K was turned slightly to the right, but during the 2nd session he was basically sitting facing F.

F: (after he talked about Rock-May-Kan footage) It's the first time you performed Ochita koto no aru sora. Did you have any trouble with it?

T: hm. Chorus is hard.

F: continues fast.

T: yeah. But you just practice and get used to playing it.

F: Shinya said that thanks to the rehearsal you did as the rhythm section songs he got them back quickly.

T: I see. He should be grateful😆

F: How about you, K? Any trouble?

K: don't know (he's looking to the left side of the venue)

F: you've only performed it once.

K: wah! (still intensely looking at the left wall of the venue or somewhere that direction)

F: 😱?! why are you looking there?? Can you see anything?!

K: thingy there is moving and moving...

F: whaaaaat, don't scare us like that!

K: ... (he continued to look there).

👻？😂

F: Didn't you play Jealous first time in a really long time? Wasn't it hard?

T: it wasn't a big surprise, we were planning it originally for the SOGAI tour.

F: the cancelled tour.

T: We were waiting until the last moment to see if we can go on with it or we have to cancel, so we had the proper rehearsal for the tour. So when rehearsing it for Rock-May-Kan show it didn't feel like it's been a long time.

F: K you said it was embarrassing to remember and perform it?

K made the 'robot move' from PV with a totally blank face😂

F: you also played Umbrella, so will you be playing more old songs?

K: Anything is okay except 'Toriko'. There's a drums solo in the end, it's so long and the switch to the next song gets so confusing.

T: How about we leave S and just go?

😂

Then they talked how Shinya fans and other fans would react.

K: Wouldn't fans be troubled with [he made the robot move]?

😆

F: you T don't mind old songs?

T: they're fine/no problem.

F moved the talk to the flyer and their new artist photo.

K: Auspicious/celebrating. Like New Year. And osechi.

F: I see, if using food to explain it's like osechi.

F: How was the filming of the PV?

T: Really long. But speaking of refreshing/Sawayaka, do you know the hamburger shop with that name?

F: it's in Shizuoka (F then again got very enthusiastic talking about how delicious is the meat there, how very juicy etc)

T: so PV is like that (like a juicy meat😂).

F: the single cover art is very unexpected for you.

K: I know and like this artist from before, I asked her to do it for us. I really like it.

After that was time for the merchandise topic. F announced that he confirmed that the rechargeable heat pack can also work as a charger/power bank. K who asked about it in Yokohama and was then told that no, it's just a heat pack just gave him such a look. F, you're not gonna get out of this alive😂

K: ...it'd be such a good item in winter, so it's for the next one? We don't sell it in winter, only for warm season. Wow, heat pack for the warm season...

/s by K👌💯

F started to enthusiastically advertise the towel saying like a muffler it can be worn on a cold day to keep you warm, and K...😂

But T was also poking so much fun at F with his reactions, 'oh I see! Wow!' 😂

T: I think we haven't had wristbands in a while.

K: what are you actually supposed to do with it?

F: you can wipe the sweat off (he gestured wiping sweat from his brow)?

K: I see. Then what about the towel then? (he also gestured using a towel with one hand and a wristband with the other at the same time [kinda like the Jealous robot move], the look he gave F and that pause when he waited for F to dare to answer, oh my, F, you're so dead🤣)

But T and Ta said that guitarists actually use it to keep sweat off their hands etc.

K: so with all of these fans are settled for the show at Tokyo Garden Theater?  (F was nodding to all listed items) These and the ticket and we're good? And the train ticket? Ah no, commuter pass? What should they wear? (F: The hoodie) But then we don't sell any bottoms, should fans go without any pants? What? But we have two items to wipe sweat!

F: fans can bring the travel pouch, usb, they all fit perfectly in the bag! All good items especially if you come from outside of Tokyo.

K: and no bottoms😆

F: well, they need extra money for the ticket and their own bottoms.💦

F also advertised venue limited edition of Ochita.

K: so there are no plans for normal sale? When it gets sold out that's it?

F: yeah.

(it's contradictory with Kaoru's tweet, not sure if I trust F😂)

After that we moved to the section with questions from fans. F as usual split the papers so everyone got some, K this time didn't even read them, just putting them in F's pile😂 but then he was leaning over all the time trying to read what F was looking at😁

F said there many questions about where T stands on the seat choice.

T: on shinkansen I prefer window, on the airplane aisle.

F: why?

T: if I need to stand up to go to toilet etc it's easier.

F: but on the train you prefer a nice view, I see. Shinya said he prefers window seat any time.

T: He's a kid.

F then told her about the rest of the seat preference story (table down idea and S not needing to stand up at all).

F: "are you okay with the pineapple in a sweet and sour pork? Is there any food you're not okay with?"

K: I don't mind. I don't like milk and coriander. But there's something, not exactly food, that I totally hate. You know when you go to a shushi restaurant, conveyor belt sushi, there's alcohol to clean your hands. (K then said if there's a perfume like smell in it you can't enjoy food or something like that).

K (looking at the venue wall calmly): oh it moved.

F: WHAT??!😱

😂

T: I don't mind the pineapple, it's actually very good to help make meat more tender

F: Is there any food you hate, T?

T: The food F doesn't like.

(does it exist??😂)

K: F, you have to understand pineapple's feelings.

F:

K: I thought you F would get pineapple's feelings.

F: I'll try to step in pineapple's shoes...

K: Pineapple is often disliked, but it's being helpful...

K tried to sway F a bit more into becoming a pineapple...

Ta: I'm ok with it, pineapple's feelings are safe.

T: "please tell us F's one good point and one thing you would like him to improve". F is so popular.

F: Not at all😅

K: despite the pineapple...

F: so, T?

T: He can appreciate food/has good appetite, is energetic. Something to fix is that he answers everything with そうっすね/yeahsure

F: K said something similar.

T: About Tooru (he used Takabayashi's given name), he's very good at laying groundwork for projects. Something to improve... well, when I think of something I'll let you know (to Ta).

Ta: Anytime.

K: Ta's good point, he does his job in a matter of fact manner. He doesn't exactly has something to fix, but he can't eat cheese, so fe when we go abroad he can't have pizza.

K: there are so many things F should fix.

F: That ﾊｲﾊｲﾊｲ・yeahyeahyeah

K: ...🙃 just answer with one proper はい

K also complained again about F's eating manners that he opens his mouth too much when eating, sometimes also will turn his head when eating ramen like it's easier to eat (K demostrated F eating posture, arms high and head turned - a bit like Jealous robot pose😆)

F: any good points?😆

K: ...hm. You make every place comfortable. I can relax with you, I wouldn't be speaking at all if you weren't here.

Both fans and F went 'Aaaaaw😊'

Ta: "are there any electronic goods you want right now?"

K: ...hm, solar panels.

F: does that count as electronic goods?

K: isn't it electronic? I want one you can put on the roof and make your own power.

T: yeah, solar panels would be nice.

K: And you can sell electricity to power companies. It's expensive at first, but after 10 years you can start make money, also you can use it if there's an earthquake.

F: can we get it at the store?

K: Why not, you could carry it home on your back!

F: Maybe not...

K: Can I put one on you F?

F: No.

K: then tattoo the giraffe on you, one long giraffe stretching from neck to knees.

F: You like giraffes.

K: Yes (noded)

K got so excited about the giraffe, F won't hear the emd of this idea😂

F: " do you have a favorite female idol or singer?"

K: This morning I was listening to Togawa Jun, レーダーマン.

F: you T?

T: No one in particular. But ones from the past.

F: like globe?

T: isn't it wrong age?

K: globe is the band with Sam?

F: I think that's TRF, in globe it's Mark Panther and Komuro Tetsuya.

F: "how about favorite artist or band you like?" Or just music you like.

K:  I'm listening now to Sekiri (赤痢), an old female band.

F: foreign band?

K: From Japan, with 3 female members.

T: I just use shuffle, listen to music without choosing who to listen to.

F: It's a streaming age now.

T: Is it?😆

F: Ok we still have plenty of time, "what's your shoe size?"

K: 24.5, for sports shoes 25.5.

T: 27, for sports I go bigger, maybe 28 or 29. Boots are better just right. But why do you need such information?😅

F: Usually fans can't ask such things, like do you pull your hoodie strings? (?)

K: I don't.

T: it depends on my mood.

F: ok, not much time left now, we will finish soon.

T: but you just said we have plenty??😆

Ta: "what your favorite album/single cover art?"

T: to pick just one is tough.

Ta: S said that Oboro is in his top 5 now.

T: Favorite cover... hm... what is it, I know, MISSA!😆

F: it's cool, it has members photo.

T: it does?😂

K: For me its DUM. It really captured album's worldview.

F (unsure): are you angry?

K: S answered that Oboro is in his top 5 to the question what's your favorite? Why?😑

F explained the situation, that it wasn't to the same question, K just replied 'I see'.

And then when F just wanted to finish K said they should do all of the leftover questions, but without thinking too long, very rapid q&a

(and absolute nightmare to write down but so SO entertaining🤣 sorry I'm not sure about all the questions it was TOO FAST)

K: hurry up!

F: (something about some time in their life)

K: now, next.

F: what about T?

K just rushed him😆

F: food you want to eat now.

K: choboyaki

F: T, a fragrance you like (?)

T: Aroma.

F: sakura season will start soon, do you have favorite spot?

K: when is soon supposed to be?

F: T, is there something you want now?

T: No.

F: K, do you color your hair by yourself?

K: Yes, next.

F: Bread or rice?

T: Both.

F: what do you buy in convenience store?

K: sweets

F: what do you do first after waking up?

T: open eyes.

D: which convenience store do you like best?

K: Convenience store.

F: do you eat skin on the chicken?

T: I like the skin best.

F: (how do you deal with stress??)

K: stress.

F: T, do you sleep naked or wear pajama to bed?

T: Pajama.

F: (something about Oboro photo shoot???)

K did the robot move in reply😆

F: which style of clothes you like when shopping?

T: simple.

F: To finish, what's your favourite obento side dish?

K (gave F disbelieving look): You want to finish with this?

F: We asked others tok, everyone had different preferences.

K: what were other members answers?

F: for Kaoru green beans or asparagus, for S hamburger, Die... we talked yesterday, but what was it?

K (seriously): I like unagi.

(marinated eel is delicious, but also very expensive, so definitely not a side😅)

F: it's delicious.

K: It is.

T: is this really needed? Don't have one, just nothing that makes food soggy... Ah, but you know when you have a pickled plum on your rice, you move it and there's this pink spot with plum flavor? I like that!

Then it was really the end and time for the last comments.

Kyo: I don't have anything.

F: By this you surely mean you're looking forward to seeing everyone in May...

K (killer face): ...💢

Toshiya: Thank you for coming today. We are having a concert in Tokyo Garden Theater on May 6th, please come if you want to. Thank you.

[sanstropfremir]

the smf leader/subleaded/rookie/etc choreo videos just all came out and they really are something i guess. i do not personally get the creative decisions to shove like 293838 men into the two middle groups or cut dance videos like that but Oh Well. personally chosing to focus on how fascinating the styling for the subleaders choreo was. like, thoughts? visually they look semi-fantasian (for lack of better words) but you turn the volume up and its bibi & yoon mirae so … ??

took a break from my graphic design hole to watch these and.......well. mnet has never learned a single thing i guess. i'm not really sure either why the choice was to add the two 'middle' sections, bc the original way they did it in swf with just the leaders/subleaders was fine. adding the rookies worked great too, since it was still kept to eight, but then designating all the other guys as 'middle' is lowkey disrespectful lmao. like yea everyone is not the same ability but you don't need to all label them like that, yeesh. my issue with a lot of these choreographies + the way they are directed (and it was the same with swf) is that they're not very good routines because of how broken up they are via editing and use of scene changes. this especially applies to the middles, bc those are basically just two person choreos that they half-assedly expand to include 16 people. the middle 1 choreo has a cut in the middle of it that doesn't make any logistical sense in terms of the flow of the piece, and it's the same with middle 2. i have to assume that mnet has some kind of requirement for having them separated out on risers like that, because wow does it fuck with the flow AND it looks bad.

vata had a great intro for the leaders but then immediately undercut everything with shaky camerawork and a ton of cuts, whereas it would have been so much stronger if they'd kept in that first space and actually showed the transitions between everyone. the rookies was very 'pop six squish cicero but what if we were BOYS' (boring, you could have been cuntier about it, esp with a sik k song), but it did manage to stay all in one place and keep its flow. i think wootae did the best job actually, since he was willing to go beyond the hiphop styling that everyone else is stuck in bc men are fragile. he also used the camera very well, and the cuts are mostly feasible transition points (other than the costume changes). also i like the set the best as well, since it looks like it's the inside of a building atrium/courtyard that they just added plants and ionic columns too, which makes it this kind of weird space between industrial and fantastical. since the title of the song is 'love and war' (law), i'm assuming that all the juxtapositions were intentional, including the more fluid costuming. i'm not sure that it's totally conceptually coherent as a piece, but it's more interesting than any of the others specifically because it looks different, so that's a good thing

[aliceinreverselondon]

You Really Got Me – pilot (Kakashi Hatake x Reader)

(Original title: Stay This Time Around. But this song made me change it.)

It was supposed to be a short, routine mission, perfect for the team to learn the basics. What he wasn’t expecting was seeing you there, hanging out with some guy. Dealing with those three was already enough for Kakashi, but now he couldn’t stop thinking about what he had seen. Was it a date? Were you now dating some weird, blue-haired punk? Talk about a downgrade…

Though he wasn’t proud of it, he asked Pakkun to follow the two of you and find out what it was all about. He had to know if it was a private or a professional meeting because he couldn’t recall officially breaking up with you. Well, okay, he couldn’t remember the last time you talked either. He hated it when things got confusing. He really did.

A few painfully slow hours later Pakkun finally returned, but the news he brought wasn’t what he had expected to hear. Despite being careful and sneaky, the mysterious guy eventually revealed he knew they were being followed and he didn’t like it at all. What’s even worse is that you knew Pakkun so you definitely knew he was behind this silly spying mission. This meant he now had to talk to you about what happened.

Finding you wasn’t hard, all he had to do was looking for the highest building in the town. For some strange reason, you had always loved heights and jumping off tall buildings. But when he laid his eyes on you for the first time in a while, Kakashi didn’t know what to do. He had just realized how much he missed you, but he couldn’t shake off the feeling that the mysterious blue-haired guy was your boyfriend after all. Was he also here with you?

“I didn’t know you turned into a stalker,” you suddenly noted loudly, making it clear you knew he was there. Letting out a sigh, he walked over to you with his hands in the pockets of his green leather jacket. “How long were you planning to hide there?”

“I wanted to make sure you were alone. I don’t feel like getting into a fight, to be honest,” Kakashi explained as he scratched the back of his neck.

At first, you looked at him with raised eyebrows, not sure why he said this. But then he could almost see the moment your brain finally put the pieces of the puzzle together. “Oh, so Pakkun already told you we had noticed him following us and that Grimmjow got pretty mad.”

Well, now that he had a name, he officially hated him. “Grimmjow, huh? Is he your new boyfriend?” he asked as cheerfully as he could, even faking a smile under the mask. Or was it too much? Was he way too obvious?

“Are you jealous?” you asked teasingly.

Okay, so it was obvious. Still… “No, only a little curious.”

“Answering your question, no, he’s not my boyfriend, only an arrancar friend I like to train with these days. You see, not long ago I met a wizard called Bruno in Reverse London,” you began to tell him as you sat on the concrete railing of the rooftop. “These two are so much alike that now I want to convince Grimmjow to visit him to see if they’re related.”

You were sitting too close to the edge. He knew you were perfectly safe and you wouldn’t get hurt even if you fell, but his instincts told him he should make sure it didn’t happen. Without thinking much about it, he stepped closer and put his hands on your hips. “I see,” he said quietly as he thought about what you told him.

Suddenly a wicked little smile appeared on your lips then you grabbed the front of his shirt to pull him even closer. “Also, if it was only up to me, I’d be dating this idiot in front of me. Too bad he told me to fuck off during a fight.”

Wow, you knew how to kill the mood. “That was harsh, I know. I’m really sorry, Y/N.” One second passed after another, each feeling longer than the previous one. You were still mad at him and this had to be the reason why you remained silent. “Hey, you know me, I would never intentionally hurt your feelings,” he pointed out.

“I can’t remember you calling to apologize, though.”

“I wanted to, I promise, but I kinda forgot.” And it wasn’t even a lie, he really had forgotten to do it.

“What, you got lost on the path of life again?” you asked surprisingly calmly. Kakashi loved to be this close to you again. So close that if he wasn’t wearing his mask, he would’ve kissed you already. But just when he actually began to consider doing it, you let go of his shirt. “Anyway, what are you doing in Karakura Town?”

With an annoyed grunt, Kakashi took a few steps back and stuffed his hands back into his pockets. A cold shower would probably help a lot more but a little distance would hopefully do the job for now. “We’re on a mission with my team of students. Pretty basic stuff,” he added with a shrug.

“Your students? You let some brats pass?” you asked in the company of an incredulous laugh. When he nodded, you suddenly fell silent then let out a quiet whistle. “Well, good luck to them. They’ll need it.”

There were many things he wanted to say but he didn’t know where to begin. A part of him was dying to ask you to stick around this time so you could fix your relationship because despite completely forgetting to apologize, he still cared a lot about you. In the end, he chose a more subtle approach. “Are you working on anything now?”

Your answer turned out to be a good start because you said, “Nah, I’m on an extended vacation.”

“Hey, shut up or they’ll hear us, idiot!”

You both turned toward the source of the sound but couldn’t see anything. But you certainly weren’t alone there and Kakashi recognized that voice right away. “And here they are,” he noted as he let out a sigh. “Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke, come out, we know you’re hiding over there!”

The three kids came forward and stopped in front of the two of you. Kakashi had been so focused on you that he didn’t even notice them before. While Sasuke looked completely unimpressed as if he had been dragged into this against his will, Sakura looked guilty, and Naruto acted like being busted wasn’t his fault. In a way it was true this time, after all it wasn’t his voice they heard.

“I told them not to do this but they didn’t listen!” Sakura quickly pointed out. Great, she was coming up with excuses to save herself.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw you roll your eyes at her. “And yet here you are,” you informed her with a mocking grin. “Anyway, it’s nice to meet you, guys, I’m Y/N. I’m gonna be honest: I never thought he would even let anyone pass that stupid bell test.” Oh, no, you weren’t mocking Sakura, you were mocking him.

“Did you only accept this mission to meet your girlfriend?!” Naruto demanded angrily as he pointed at the two of you. Shaking his head, Kakashi pinched the bridge of his nose. “This is so unfair!”

“We met by accident,” you pointed out before he could scold the boy himself. “But I can’t deal with kids when I’m hungry so–” You stopped right then and pulled out your phone to take a look at the screen. Whatever the message was, you weren’t too happy to read it. “Where was I? Oh, yeah, why don’t we go and eat something?”

As you jumped off the railing and began to walk toward them, Kakashi began to count down in his mind. It was only a matter of seconds until–

“YES! YES, YES, YES, let’s eat some ramen, I’m starving!” Naruto yelled enthusiastically with a wide grin on his face.

Laughing, you pulled out your phone and quickly typed and sent a text. It soon turned out it was for Kakashi as his phone beeped right away and you even gave him a meaningful look. “I like this kid. There’s a great place nearby, I texted you the address. See you all there in… I don’t know, maybe fifteen minutes? I have to take care of something first.”

After Naruto, Sakura, and even Sasuke agreed, Kakashi had no choice but to do the same. Then he noticed you were walking backward, your eyes fixed on the edge of the rooftop. He hated it when you did what you were planning to do. Such a show-off. “For real?” he asked quietly.

You winked at him in response then said, “See you guys later then!”

And with that, you began to sprint to the edge and eventually jumped off the building and disappeared in the form of black smoke. All three ran to the railing without hesitation and tried to figure out what had just happened.

“Don’t worry, she’s fine. I’ll explain on the way,” he told the kids before he began to walk toward the door. Because this was how normal people left places. Either this or at least teleporting without the stupid theatrics.

I’m not entirely sure about this one yet. But the reader is a pretty powerful and badass creature, a perfect match for the equally powerful and badass Kakashi. Yes, I mentioned Bruno and Grimmjow so if I continue they might show up later. I have a scene in my mind in which the reader takes Sakura to Hueco Mundo where she can train to get stronger.

Update: I continued this one.

[wynsnerdyrambles]

KNY Season 2 News Thoughts

OK, now that I've spent the whole day squealing about this news, I might actually be able to coherently give my thoughts on it. OK, let's go chronologically in series timeline:

Mugen Train TV Anime Edition:

I actually did not see this coming. Of course I'd heard the rumors that the beginning of Season 2 would be 'Mugen Train', but I brushed those rumors aside with the logic of: "Well, the movie didn't cover the entire arc, we still have some aftermath to go over, so that's probably what this is talking about." Well, I was completely wrong. Not only are we getting what I'm affectionately dubbing "Mugen Train Extended Edition", we also get an entirely anime original episode starring Kyojuro in the days leading up to the fateful mission aboard the Mugen Train. Words cannot convey how excited I am for this re-adaptation.

I've seen some press complain that it's simply milking the Mugen Train cash cow for all it's worth. While I do feel that, in regards to things like this, the financial side of things must be taken into account when determining causes of decisions; I feel there is more to this. It's a television re-adaptation of the singular most successful film in the entire history of the Japanese box office. Much like the Television specials that have been broadcast in the past, I feel that this is more a publicity move than a financial one. Instead of compiling many episodes into a few specials to air over the course of a couple of months, we instead are treated to an extended cut of the film split up into seven episodes, including a special episode starring the film's most popular character: Rengoku-san! That way, with each new episode airing weekly, hype and publicity builds to a climax for the premiere of the Entertainment District Arc. (We also get 2 new LiSA songs serving as a full OP and ED for the mini-cour, which my KNY playlist will gladly accept). Only time will tell which version of the arc will be my preferred version for viewing, but I am ready for this arc to hurt me again- in a serialized weekly format (maybe with Taisho secrets pls).

Entertainment District Arc:

So the Entertainment District Arc will start airing early December, which to be fair, is not unexpected for me. Aniplex and Ufotable had basically nothing final to show us regarding the arc back at the Aniplex Online Fest in July, so it was always iffy in my mind that we would actually get this arc in October like many people thought. A few of my main takeaways from the trailer will follow. (Manga Spoilers after the break)

I am excited by the prospect of an hour long premiere, although it makes me wonder whether the Mugen Train re-adaptation will include the aftermath scenes with Tanjiro's visit to House Rengoku. It seems odd to me to have an hour long premiere if we're just gonna jump right into the heat of this arc, especially if you consider the fact that there are plenty more episodes in this season to follow.

Daki's voice sounds perfect! Miyuki Sawashiro definitely captured the 'sultry and intimidating' air that Daki puts on when she's confident, but I wonder how she'll fare during Daki's tantrum, or during the flashbacks to Ume. I'm sure she'll do great, though it will be interesting to see the direction they take.

On a related note, I'm quite happy they seem to be keeping Gyutaro under wraps. Hopefully we can keep it that way until December! (On a vaguely Upper Moon 6 related tangent, I'm so hyped for Doma reveal during the flashbacks, purely for the eyes, and to finally get some semblance of a canon hair color for the guy).

I was initially a little sad to hear that LiSA would not be lending her vocal talents to the OP and ED for this arc, since the vocal consistency between seasons 1 and the movie was very appealing to me; but having heard that tiny snippet of it during the promotional reel, I think it fits. It's not at all what I envisioned though. I had initially envisioned a LiSA song, that was kind of tight, focusing on the suspenseful atmosphere of the arc, and the mystery. But wow, what we got is so flamboyant, and sure to be an earworm (it's already stuck in my head). I think it works, despite having taken the opposite vibe of what I expected, and Aimer seems to be an excellent choice for this song (I've loved pretty much every song of hers' I've heard).

The shots that we were treated to in this reel seemed up to par with what I've come to expect from this adaptation of KNY, and served a really good purpose as a trailer of things to come. It showed things and characters people should keep an eye on (I'm looking at you, shot of angry Nezuko).

While we've still been shown very little footage from the arc, I'm quite excited by it, as much like Mugen Train, it's a favorite of mine, and I'm ready to see what flashy magic tricks Ufotable has in store for us with this arc. I'm just hoping and praying that Daki VS. Nezuko gets the episode 19 treatment.

Well yeah, that's the end of my hopefully coherent ramblings about this news. This has maybe been the biggest day in this fandom since I joined a little over a year ago, and I'm glad I get to be a part of this with all of you. Here's to season 2!

[swapder]

Spam Aficionado

Wasn’t sure what to draw for this chap so here’s some random doodles!

Chapter 5/20: Chapter 5: Five. The phone…… Ring Ring.

Total Chapter Word Count: 750?

(Title is link to story! Under cut for those who don’t want to read on A03)

(Hmm not liking how this turned out, might delete later lol)

“HELLO?”

There was silence. He fiddled with the cord in his hand.

“HELLO, [Mike]?? I’M AT [Phone] NOW. PICK IT UP [Pick] IT [[Up]]. I’M [All Alone On A Late Night] [Please] [Please] [[Please]] [[Pick up the phone]]”

Nothing. Not even the fuzz of garbage noise. Just the dial tone. He sat down, scooting as close to the desk as he could. There was only a small pause as he glitched out, before he made a choice. His fingers started to put in the numbers on the dial. He ignored the voice in the back of his head screaming at him to stop, stop, what are you doing?! This is exactly what you came to prevent!

“We're sorry; we are unable to complete your call as dialed. Please check the number and dial again, or call your operator to help you.”

Both relief and disappointment zipped through him. That’s right. Of course. It never was a real phone number, was it? Not until…

“…Okay! So!” Spam’s head swivelled to watch the passing darkners. Spamton decided to stay quiet so he could hear however Spam started his pitch. He couldn’t at all remember how he used to, before [Mike]. It was clear Spam was trying not to futz or move about like he let himself do at home. There was a brief frown on Spam’s face before he twisted it to a slightly crooked, typical addison smile. “I— Okay. …Twelfth time’s the charm…”

There was a pause as if he forgot his lines, before he cleared his throat and spoke back up.

“Hey! Car sale, I— We’re selling a great, used car for cheap prices! At half the price than you’d find originally. Only 10 thousand dark dollars!”

It… Certainly was a pitch. But the words were spoken at a normal conversation volume, and not really ‘professional car salesman’ level. Or with the same excitement as Spamton. Even his words to Kris had fulfilled the basics of any sales pitch. As freaked out as Kris had been, it still worked.

“WOW. THAT’S [[Dirt Poor Quality]] DEALS!”

Spam practically blinked in response, his smile twitching down. There was no reason to hide how dumb Spamton thought it was. Not all of his glitching words were totally involuntary. Just mostly.

“Wh— It was perfectly fine.”

“YOU NEED, TO BE LOUDER! AND [Adobe Flash]IER!” Spamton declared, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. He patted Spam’s shoulder and gave a computer fan hum. The younger’s smile truly fell this time.

“Is that why you yell?” Doubt was obvious in the younger’s expression, though he wasn’t sure why.

“OF COURSE! THAT AND MY vOICEB0X IS… [Stuck In Traffic].” He didn’t want to dwell on that so he tried to think of how to continue on the previous topic. His grin grew wider. “WATCH AND LEARN, [Little Sponge]!”

He threw his arms up, dropped his jaw, and then let out strange music from his throat. Along with the music, his fur and hair started to shift through rainbow colours. It was quite bright, lighting up the area around him. Eyes previously ignoring them turned at the odd and mildly obnoxious sight. Perfect.

He glanced over to Spam, then to the street. Picking a random stranger, he walked up and swung an arm at them to force their attention on him. The legal papers in his hand crinkled loudly. “HeY HEY HEY!!!” He cut off his song and rainbow. Luckily this situation had the best sort of requirement. He just had to reuse the exact words he did the first time he sold this car. He waved his hands and approached closer after each sentence.

“[[Are you tired of walking place to place in this city? In need of a cheap solution that really works? Our lightly used and EXCELLENTLY maintained car is just what you need!!]]”

He paused to sort what to say next, gauging how they reacted. Oh. Hm, that was not a good look. Could he recover from that glare and electric zap of annoyance? He probably should have paid attention more to who he singled out. A werewire didn’t need a car. This one clearly didn’t like the audacity of the suggestion.

(Heh heh, as you may have guessed, this is just my version of April Fools! Yeah… It’s only parts of the draft for chapter 5. I’ve just been stuck on the end of the chap and in a lil’ depressive spell is all.)