#beautifully paced

[cupiidzbow]

THE FUCKING CRANKY ANIMATRONIC IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IVE SEEN IN MY LIFE OH MY GODDDD

[projectjasper]

honestly, i am so impressed with how much is actually packed into each episode of we are. with essentially sixteen hours of screentime, things could have been dragged out unnaturally, scenes could have gone on forever, but no. they are so dynamic on their own and next to one another - they are exactly right.

i was just remembering yesterday that we still had the aquarium trip left (because phuwin has wanted to take pond for ages and it finally happened thanks to filming) and a get-together where they are dressed in matching dotted shirts (as we have seen pics of them filming it months ago). i was sure the latter would happen in the finale because we already have the former, the rest of the chiang mai trip with some scenes for at least three couples (including phumpeem's first time), a return to bangkok, and phum's birthday. but no, looking at the still shots for this episode, the get-together is also happening today, plus there is one more phumpeem scene outside of all that based on what they are wearing.

and it's honestly so funny to me that some people complained nothing is happening in the series, because it's actually such a perfect slice of life that never forgets its characters, their relationships, their development, it never leaves questions hanging for too long (or forever, like certain series do), never dismisses previously established ideas that are important to the viewer and the characters, never considers something that was central to the plot at some point suddenly unimportant. and all of that is packed into scenes that never feel out of place, never seem too short or too long, too slow or too fast, never feel unearned or like they are there just to fill screen time. and these scenes are all perfectly woven together to make a beautiful tapestry that is the world of we are.

[izloveshorses]

on va voir. if you even care.

[abirddogmoment]

Honestly obsessed with her beautiful extension and smooth gait

[iwozlegit]

|| 🍍• I love how Megatron in Transformers: Prime acts as if he’s constantly surrounded by idiots, and yet he’s the complete normal one who had to ingest literal ‘spooky wooky space crack’ to see Optimus Prime for the first time in three years…

[battlecrazed-axe-mage]

God I love when movies have PLOT BEATS and FORESHADOWING and aren't just twelve tiktoks in a trenchcoat

[haleigh-sloth]

The real academia were the friends we made along the way

(another many month old ask I'm so sorry)

No but forreal.

Even with the disappointment, there are a few things that make it to where I wouldn't take any of my time back:

I've made a lot of friends. One of which became an irl friend and is one of my best friends. We travel states to see each other and plan trips together. I wouldn't trade my time in BNHA for anything! (@redphlox). I formed a server some years ago and added a few people here and there and it became a safe haven to bitch and moan about life and talk about whatever story we're into at the time. It's been a consistent space for me online that I very much enjoy, I hope the others enjoy the space also. We're still active in it in bursts since we're all adults with lives and things, but it's so nice to have one consistent space to go back to. I'm so grateful for the small little community I formed on different platforms, tumblr, discord, twitter. I have no regrets honestly. Other friends I've made that I've met in person a few times and plan to again in the future also!

Getting SUPER into BNHA actually motivated me to re-read my favorite series that I'd engaged with in middle and high school and look at it through a meta lens. Even though BNHA burned me, it led to me appreciating my favorite stories (both old and newly discovered) so much more now that I'm older and take the time to catch onto things I breezed over as a kid. It made manga (and any story I consume) a lot more enjoyable, and for that I'm grateful.

Last but not least: I've learned my lesson. Never put faith in an author. Lmao. I haven't been burned by a woman author but I won't hold my breath. I'll pray that Blue Exorcist, Daemons of the Shadow Realm, Black Butler, and D.Gray-Man all have satisfying endings that won't make me regret following the stories (DGM I've been following for 11 years so...pls Hoshino don't let me down). While I'm less concerned about these stories, I still will remain skeptical and just hope for the best rather than indulge in any level of confidence I may have in the authors.

[elderwisp]

The Netflix adaptation of ATLA kali-ma’d the heart and soul of the animated series then slapped a pretty picture over it and called it good

I adore the casting choices and stylistically, it’s beautifully shot (I love the bending) but man, I really wish the storyline felt stronger

Anyways I might go rewatch the animated series so I can ugly sob over Zuko’s final fight with Azula

[betelgeusing]

I don't think there's a director living today that does Americana better than Jeff Nichols

[argylemnwrites]

Sorry In Advance

I might have to find time to write over the upcoming days/weeks (when, I don’t know but that’s a problem for future me to solve) not to finally come back to my Choices WIPs that are just sitting, collecting dust in the corner, but because I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about Wayhaven Book 3 that I need to work through. They aren’t all good, they aren’t all bad, but I definitely feel some of each. (Some TWC Book 3 spoilers for N route below the cut)

The N route is the only one I’ve had a chance to explore even a bit, and it was definitely a mixed bag for me in ways that I was not expecting. Looking at things from an analytical perspective, I think at least 80% of my issues stem from pacing concerns, and I am trying to figure out how much of that stems from the overall sheer volume of content that was attempted with various branches from previous decisions coming into play and how much is just due to my N detective’s personality. I think most of it is the former - even big plot-centric moments felt hurried and frantic to me. The blood drive, the kidnappings, the auction all just zipped by without time to process, let moments develop, or allow for anticipation and dread. I sometimes felt like I blinked and missed massive events. The fallout out for major beats often felt incredibly glossed over. Nothing really had time to breathe.

That sensation definitely was felt in the N romance for me as well. (I use Nate, so from here on out, I will often be using he/him pronouns since that is the story line I experienced.) For a romance that before seemed like this wonderful blend of pure intensity and quiet gentleness, I honestly felt overwhelmed as Nate and my detective, Emma, bounced aggressively through major relationship moments. First, they fought, but the narrative never let them sit with that tension. It resolved quickly so that he could begin to trust her with his backstory (a scene that ended so jarringly, I wondered if I had failed a stat check - he drops the picture of his family, sends Emma on her way, and she just goes? In the middle of everything? She doesn’t stay to make sure he’s okay, even if he cannot share anymore of his past at that moment?). This set the tempo for everything else. Both potential intimate scenes just happen without much fanfare, which I probably would have adored if there had been more of a build up of romantic and/or sexual tension in the scenes leading up to those moments (although I will say, the start of the research picnic was wonderful and gentle and beautiful, and the pool table scene worked better from a pacing standpoint when I chose to have my detective cool things off at the picnic). I actually think that N and my detective impulsively giving in for their first time having sex could have been a lovely contrast from their usual selves and could convey a real intensity of emotion. But the build up and actual scenes themselves just flew by. Again, nothing had time to breathe.

This was most evident with the love declarations. My detective, with her near 80 stoicism stat, would not be able to vocalize that she loves Nate right after realizing it. So, I had her keep that realization to herself. But at the end, when Nate is in tears over his fears and worries about losing her and tells her it’s all because of how much he loves her, it was very awkward to not even have the option for my detective to at that point express that those feelings are mutual. From what I can tell, there is no way to get mutual love declarations between N and the detective. When I tried out having my detective blurt out her feelings at the picnic, Nate said nothing in response. No matter who states their love first, N or detective, the feelings just hang there without verbal reciprocation, or even the option for that reciprocation if N goes first. Hell, my detective didn’t even take a shot during Never Have I Ever for falling for a colleague regardless of whether or not she verbalized her feelings.

I realized this has quickly turned into a long-winded rant, which was not my goal. Like I said, I have a lot of swirling, mixed feelings about Book 3 as a whole, and there was plenty I adored. N’s pet name reveal scene was glorious, particularly if the detective has not yet been intimate with them. The ongoing tension about N wanting to protect the detective (from both outside threats and themselves in certain respects) and worrying about the detective’s coping (shout out for Tina’s protective talk with a clear bonus blurb because my detective is so wildly stoic) feels organic for this romance. The blood stuff, both at the Tina dinner and from N’s POV towards the end hinted at future tension in a very natural and captivating way. M is my detective’s BFF, and there was a lot to love about that dynamic, as well as the friendship still growing with A and F, all leading to some very beautiful found family moments. Even with very minimal exploration, I can tell that the auction climax can play out in a ton of different ways, and knowing my M, F, and A detectives, I’m guessing I will end up settling on four different outcomes that feel “right” for each route. That is nothing to scoff at. And while the Rebecca stuff still feels like it wants to push you to forgive her, the narrative acknowledged that my detective’s relationship with her is slowly but surely deteriorating under the weight of Rebecca’s continued secrets and those two women having very different opinions of the Agency. It is always nice in IF when more complex relationship dynamics are acknowledged. I just wish I had more time to really sit with some of these moments before the narrative was barrelling full steam ahead.

Some of my pacing issues do likely arise from my detective’s stoicism. But even ignoring that element, I do wish there was more time in the narrative for aftermath of many major moments. Whether or not Elidor had to “save” my detective from donating blood, there isn’t really any acknowledgement from the team. The kidnappings would have been even more impactful if they weren’t just mentioned in passing so much of the time. And I desperately needed more post-auction content - from Rebecca, from the rest of Unit Bravo, and of course from N.

I don’t know, that was a wild ramble with no clear point. It was so long-winded, and I didn’t even get around to talking about how I’m sad our detective is no longer a detective. Hopefully, I will have some time to write soon, because writing fic helps me sort through conflicted feelings about media I adore (and I do still fully adore one N Sewell)

[sskk-manifesto]

ಥ‿ಥ

[seastoried]

sram and tj's lemon elderflower soda on...well i won't say who but not my dime is actually getting me through the week

[yioh]

tw for suicide mention! i’m reading traces of the sun (ITS SO GOOD BTW) and it really shocks me how people treat characters with suicidal thoughts, all the comment section under the chapters are just putting yiseon down for “not getting over the past” and being “obsessed” with the past etc like that’s fucking insane, imagine going through all that trauma and not having any will to live and ppl just tell you to get over it and suck it up and move tf on??? if you treat manhwa characters like this then imagine how those people treat real life people with suicidal thoughts …. it’s so disgusting and horrifying how unempathetic and uncaring people can be

[eyepatchdate]

The first words of smtiv being jesus final words as a mortal vs smtiva starting with what must be past!flynns final thoughts alive. Hello. Lets go.

[kyorru-remade]

i think it’s wonderful how kana and hatori had their own happily ever afters but it’s still so unfair that they didn’t get to make that choice themselves :(

[t4t4tclethian]

you guys should watch lego monkie kid by the way. just sayin