#because it’s a tv show and i can interpret it however i want <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[canonicallyobserving911]

Bobby, Buck and Brad: In 8x7 Brad will be one of the “Wannabes”

He's obsessed with Bobby; he wants to be like Buck and his antics will likely lead to another Buddie and Bathena Parallel

I believe he's going to be the reason for the above call that will mimic when Buck was struck by lightning in 6x10 and I've included my speculation underneath the cut.

Before continuing, I need to make a point about the "Hotshots" storyline. Reminder, it's Bobby's arc therefore, whatever happens with it will be centered around him. However, Buck was enthralled in his own problems with Bobby's replacement (Gerrard) after Bobby left the 118 at the end of season 7. At the time, it was difficult to see how these things would be related later on but I think I figured out how things might play out.

Please note: these are my interpretations and observations and it's completely ok if someone doesn't agree because everyone interprets media differently. Two opposing opinions can coexist.

Now back to the regularly scheduled program...

Brad is a “fake” fire captain on the TV show “Hotshots” and he idolizes Bobby. Based on everything that was included in episodes 1-4, it's evident he didn't want Bobby to leave the show and go back to firefighting. It appears he has a "Hero Complex" and it's possible he's the one who fixed it so an actor will be hanging from the aerial like Buck was in 6x10.  He reminds me of Jonah but I don’t think he’ll be after everyone at the 118, just Bobby and Buck.

I did a post yesterday (linked here) about the similarities between 6x10 and 8x7 with regards to the lightning strike and I believe Brad is the one who's continued to STUDY Bobby’s past (he said he was going to do it in 8x1 while they were sitting at the same table) and he considers Bobby to be a "hero."

In episodes 1, 2, 3, and 4, he proved how mesmerized and captivated he was along with his fixation on Bobby and it was kind of weird.  He asked him to do a bootcamp with him and his friends in the mountains or at his house in Malibu but Bobby’s facial expression said, “Hell No” but Bobby always treated Brad with dignity and respect. He never belittled him and this fact will be reviewed again below. 

Furthermore, when Brad saw Bobby and Buck working together in 8x2 and 8x3, he was IMPRESSED and he tried to be like them during the airplane rescue. When he saw Buck commandeer that motorcycle and ride it to stop traffic, he called Buck, Bobby's boy.

He lied to the soccer player and said he was a firefighter but when she showed him her injured leg, he fainted.

Two things happened that intrigued me and reminded me of things that happened in previous seasons and they led to my speculation about him.

5x18 8x2

First, when I saw the way Brad followed Buck in the sneak peek video for 8x2 and the way he positioned himself right behind him, I figured he was crazy since he was already fixated on Bobby (related post linked here). And it reminded me of something I saw in 5x18 but it happened with Bobby and Buck. At the end of 5x18, after Eddie returned to the 118, Buck was walking in step with Eddie and within seconds, he was behind Bobby and you couldn’t even see Buck anymore (I did a post about what I believed it meant back then [linked here] and I still believe LD was there to do something to Buck but they changed her storyline and tried to make her a good person 🙄. Reminder she was friends with Jonah). But now it’s Brad who wants to be like Buck because Buck is Bobby's protégé and mentee and he will be captain of the 118 one day and it's been foreshadowed since season 1.  In 8x2, Brad did the same thing Buck did in 5x18 except Brad walked behind Buck and he was almost invisible until Buck stepped away and Brad got in the truck behind them.

5x3 8x3

Second, in 5x3, Buck was sitting in the captain’s seat when Bobby and the 118 went to go and help Athena so she could arrest Jeffrey.  In 8x2 and 8x3, Bobby and Buck were sitting exactly like they were in 5x3 with Buck in the captain’s seat and Bobby driving but reminder, they were in a FAKE fire engine.

Brad HATES Gerrard and in 8x4 it was easy to see especially when Gerrard told him that he doesn’t watch firefighter shows. He said, “ALL I SEE IS WHAT THEY DO WRONG.”   Also, he likes doing things the old school way and it was proven in 8x1 when he was talking to Buck and he doesn’t do things the way Bobby does them.  Therefore, it’s likely things on the “Hotshots” set aren’t going well and Brad wants Gerrard gone and he wants Bobby to come back.  I’ve included a video so the things Bobby, Brad, Buck and Gerrard said can be heard (GIFs are great but IMO, sometimes it's better to hear what's being said than to read it). 

Additionally, Brad thinks Bobby’s like “God” on set and he wants to be like him, so if Gerrard is pulling the same $hit he was pulling with the 118, it's likely Brad will try to get him fired.

In 8x7, I believe Brad will be the one to stage the scene to be like the one from the lightning strike and I think he’s doing it so that Bobby will go back to “Hotshots” and so that Gerrard will leave.  But I also think something’s going to happen and based on the narrative, Buck will be the one to get hurt and Eddie’s going to be the one to save him.

Bathena and Buddie have been paralleling each other for years but in season 7, Bobby and Athena had an NDE on the cruise ship and they had another one at the end of the season when their house burned down and Bobby died for 14 minutes.  But that was before TM (showrunner) changed the scripts after they got an early renewal for season 8.  I think if things would have remained the way they were supposed to, Buddie would've had an NDE too but it would have been both of them at the end of the season so they could have told each other, "I love you" like Bathena did when they were trapped inside of that room on the ship. 

Fast forward to season 8 and the opening disaster was of Bathena again but this time, Bobby was on the ground and Athena was in danger.  I think whatever’s going to happen at the end of 8A, it’ll be Buck in danger because of something Brad did and Eddie will have to use his medic skills and remain cool under pressure like Bobby had to use his firefighting captain’s skills to save Athena by shutting down the I-110 to create a runway for her.  Now all of this could change but reminder, Buck and Athena always parallel each other the same way Eddie and Bobby do so if this holds true then, Buck’s next up for another NDE with Eddie set to save him like Bobby saved Athena.  Bathena and Buddie Parallel posts linked here and here.

The purpose of this post is to offer speculation on why I believe Brad and the “Hotshots” are still around.  They’re there so that Brad can cause chaos to get Gerrard fired so Bobby can go back to the TV show but it’s going to end up in a cluster f~ck and Buck will be the one to get hurt.

[spaceorphan18]

The Lady Whistledown Papers : 1x01 - A Diamond of the First Water (Part 1)

An Introduction

Dearest Gentle Reader... ;)

Well, okay, looks like there a good handful of you for this idea! Yay!

I did want to preface this with a couple of notes first, though if you want to skip to the show meta, head straight for the 'read more' below...

My intention with this project is to explore the individual stories as well as the romantic relationship between Penelope Featherington (who is my favorite character on the show) and Colin Bridgerton. So, I'll be looking at every episode of the entire show and kind of go through their character arcs with a fine tooth comb. The first two seasons I plan on batching scenes together while Season 3 might end up almost scene by scene because it is so rich and dense with story.

The whole point is that I enjoy meta and media analysis and breaking down stories and looking at stories from every angle possible. I am usually pretty positive, but that doesn't mean even my favorites are not exempt from a critical eye from time to time. And I'm not hesitant to explore character, story, and production flaws when discussing things. I do, however, try to remain respectful.

While this is primarily Pen and Colin focused, I'll probably still end up opinioning on other things I like as well (and do have respect for other characters and ships on the show).

The only book I've read is The Duke and I. I don't plan on doing any book to tv analysis, but I do hope to get through Romancing Mister Bridgerton before I get to Season 3 so I can point out Easter Eggs.

I'm also no historical scholar. So, probably won't be doing any kind of historical analysis either. Sorry.

I'm a multi-fandom blog, and have lots of projects I'm working on, so I plan on rotating through them. Plus, I have a full time job and family and friends, which means please be patient as I work on the project. It's a labor of love! But maybe a slower one. <3

Not here to discuss the actors', creators', crew, etc's personal lives. While I may put in a tiny BTS tidbit I've picked up, I have no intention or desire to talk about anything but the story.

I always enjoy talking with you guys about things, my meta is only one interpretation of what's going on, and I'm always open to discussions! However, I block or ignore any kind of wank, so please be civil. :)

Tag : the lady whistledown papers (in case you want to follow along or black list it away)

Okay, let's dig into some meta!!

Episode 1 : A Diamond of the First Water (Part 1)

So, it may be something that's easily forgotten or overlooked, but the very first thing we hear when we open the show is Lady Whistledown's voice -- which of course, is really Penelope. Since it's the delightful Julie Andrews doing the voice, it doesn't really feel like it's an 18yo girl's commentary about life in the rich part of London society in the early 1800s, but here we are. It's all done to build a bit of mystery around Lady Whistledown.

But what I think is more fascinating is the fact that the show opens -- not with the Bridgertons but the Featheringtons. They are our starting point. They are our dysfunctional family unit that we may closer resemble in our own lives that we get to peek in on before heading over to the esteemed, charming, and seemingly perfect Bridgertons.

The Bridgertons might be the protagonists of the show -- but Lady Whistledown and (by extension) Penelope Featherington is our framing device. She sets up the world, gives us the expository layout of the land and gives us an insight into the world. So it makes sense that we're starting in Penelope's home -- the person, like the audience, who gets to look into the Bridgerton home, but not actually be a part of it (yet).

When we open, we get a great introduction to the Featheringtons, and in a quick few shots - learn a lot about of them.

First of all, the narration -- while I'm not going to take note of every single narration throughout the whole show, it is important to remember that it's Penelope who is ultimately speaking. And when we open the show -- the first thing she does is blast her own family.

Why? Because it's her only way to push back. Look at what's happening in this scene? Prudence is being forced into the tightest corset ever imaginable as Penelope (and Phillipa) look on in horror. Penelope is still young (she is 18yo) and is being thrust into the market earlier than she wants so that her mother can have all of her daughters out in society at the same time.

Unlike what we'll find over at the Bridgerton family household, the Featheringtons are ruled by a seemingly iron fisted mother who only wants her daughters to marry rich so she can retain her lifestyle and place in society while her father is uninterested in anything other than himself.

Later in season 3, she'll mention that this particular issue is her first issue. So, it's no surprise that she starts writing just as she's coming into society. It's her way of coping and her way of expressing herself. But, I'll also remind everyone, while she is incredibly savvy at her craft, she's also still so young, and not entirely aware of the power she's going to wield.

As for Pen herself -- she's genuinely concerned about her older sister. We don't get a sense of their dynamic yet, but at least we get to see Penelope's kind hearted nature. Prudence looks like she's being down right tortured by her 'tasteless, tactless' mama. And nothing about this is appealing to Penelope.

(As an aside -- this also sets up a couple of things for the show -- for one, throwing us into the historical nature of the show, as well as adding a slight bit of comedy to the over-the-topness of Portia's insistence. The show is telling us that, yeah, there are crude and unpleasant things going on, but we're not taking ourselves too seriously, so neither should you.)

Next, we shift over to the Bridgerton household, but I want to point out something first... Notice how the Featherington door knocker from earlier was much more adorned and intricate? The Featheringtons are more concerned with status and money and appearing as if they're better off than they really are, while the Bridgertons don't need nor want to show off in the same way. It's a neat little detail.

Also, the bee imagery for the Bridgertons always is amusing. Symbol of death there ;) In case you were wondering - the Featherington symbol is the butterfly.

So, it's important to note that the Featheringtons are the next door neighbors of the Bridgertons, and it's of no surprise that Penelope would, after disparaging her own family, turn her attention to the family that has captivated her most of her life.

Okay, I kind of love these paintings as an introduction to the Bridgertons. (Are there ones for Gregory and Hyacinth?) I think it's a fun touch to the whole historical setting of the show. And it makes them look as if they're these frozen, idyllic pictures and who are not exactly real. Which is great when combined with the Lady Whistledown dialogue going on how wonderfully attractive they are - because it sets us just slightly apart from them.

Like I said above - Penelope is on the outside, and as we move in, so are we, but we get to finally move in to see real people behind the paintings. (Also - omg, the look on Eloise's face is priceless and I love it)

Also. A+ casting, guys. I really believe they're all related. ;)

I also love the juxtaposition that when we first hear the Bridgertons talking, unlike their perfect, picture-esque counterparts in the paintings, we get Eloise complaining. (Look, I love Eloise a lot -- and she's the third in this crazy triangle, so we'll be talking a bit about her, too.) We also get a bit of chaos as the camera descends the stairs, with Gregory running around them and the banter between the sisters.

It's all great, quick character set up as each of the Bridgerton siblings gets a little beat in this sequence.

And... we get our first glimpse at Colin!

And here's the thing about Colin. He's the third son. Anthony may not be around at the very moment, but he's very much a father figure to a lot of them and is in a different place being the oldest and actual Lord of the Estate. His role is much different. And then there's Benedict - who is that second in command while Anthony is away. Benedict, though is the artsy one and the experimental one and is a bit more aloof in nature. Which brings us to Colin... Who doesn't have the same set in stone sense of purpose Anthony does nor the happiness of just floating through life the way Benedict does.

And so, this scene has a couple of tidbits to kind of illustrate his place in this huge household. He's says he'll go get Daphne (who is currently hiding out in her room, and whom everyone has been arguing about). Colin does like having purpose, and does like to help whenever he can.

And then there's his banter with Benedict about how he's better liked by Daphne than him. It's a great little moment, not only the show again allowing to us to know that we should not be taking this historical show too seriously, not only showing us the beloved sibling antics (which -- i really love all the sibling dynamics in this show), but also showing that Colin has a bit of a cheeky side, and isn't afraid to bring a bit a levity to the situation when he can.

Also, a tiny tidbit in relation to the book, Colin and Daphne (being close in age) are rather close in the book. We don't necessarily see it in the show due to the nature of wanting to highlight Anthony more, but I feel like these lines are a little nod to that, too.

Of course, then, Eloise screams at the top of her lungs, which is a moment I still laugh at. I love that while Benedict's jaw is dropped, Colin is entirely amused by her, as I'm sure she livens the entire household up.

We get both households coming out of their houses, and we get this sweet little moment where we see that, not only are they neighbors, but Penelope and Eloise know each other and are friends.

I love that Penelope is so overjoyed to be looking over to the Bridgertons that she kind of freezes in excitement and has to be ushered along.

Also as the camera pulls back, we see Eloise reading a Lady Whistledown pamphlet! The first time we see someone do so!

You guys remember Disney's Sleeping Beauty? There's a moment when they enter the castle the three good fairies are announced. The dude who announces the Featherington sisters reminds me of that -- introducing Flora, Fauna, and Merriweather! (Don't even come at me, it's my favorite Disney movie)

Anyway... we get LW's narration that this is a pivotal moment for London society at the time -- when the girls are presented to the Queen and enter the marriage mart. Basically, it's a coming of age for young women. And while Prudence might have the most embarrassing moment by fainting (I mean - who's to blame her, really) Penelope looks so awkward going out there -- before her time, really not emotionally ready, and just not graceful in the way that the other girls, including even her sisters, just are.

Okay, so it's not really our first Polin moment, but there is a pseudo moment buried in here.

But first - I want to acknowledge that Penelope, feeling out of place, and at ill-ease with her surroundings, throws a glance over to Eloise. I love Eloise's truly perplexed look as she watches her friend go through something that neither of them really want -- as if trying to grapple how any of this is real. Penelope and Eloise's bond is incredibly important to both their characters and the show (and is something I enjoy as much as I love all the Polin).

As for Colin standing over there in the corner... No, there's not really anything to pull out here. But! There is going to be a moment in season 3, when Colin is writing in his journal, where it's clear that he's thinking about this moment, and describing watching her as she heads towards the queen. It's a cute callback to this moment, and even if we don't really see it -- it's still there. He's still noticing her, even if it's very, very subtly.

LW continues her narration about how important the Queen's opinion is of the ladies of society, and how important it is to make a good impression. But fascinatingly, Penelope is too busy looking at the ceilings and being in awe of her surroundings to really take notice of what the Queen is doing. She's a bit, understandably, shocked. (and another great comedic moment as Portia kind of knocks her back into focusing.)

It's great for setting the atmosphere of the show, but also allowing us, through Penelope, to take in our surroundings and be in awe of what we're witnessing.

It's also, I'll add, to be an awkward contrast to when Daphne comes in and is completely flawless in her entrance. Penelope is our side character. She's not our main character. And main characters are supposed to have a level of perfection to them. (Or so we're been accustomed to believe.) I think one thing I'm happy to see on the show is that, while we're still going to get a lot of romance story tropes, the show does try to dismantle a few of the stereotypes as we go along.

Also, two quick smaller notes... we don't really get to see Colin's reaction to Daphne -- Anthony and the sister are too in the way, and he doesn't have much of a discernable reaction when we do see him. And, the narration makes note that Daphne is going to burn quickly, which honestly made me laugh a little.

And.... that takes us up to the credits! Which is where I'll be stopping for now. Since this is the first episode and an introduction to the world, there's actually lot of both Penelope and Colin in it, so there's a lot to go through... stay tuned ;)

[percheduphere]

It troubles me when fans find Loki in his own tv series "out of character". Since the first Thor movie, Loki has shown a certain sweetness, protectiveness, and level-headedness that was overcome and eventually self-suppressed by rage and tragedy. He didn't have an environment in which he could thrive and, in Frigga's words, succeed at being who he truly is.

Loki desperately needed a support system outside his immediate family. That support system simply couldn't have been built on Asgard because of:

1. Odin's political machinations, including the intentional creation of an environment rife with sibling rivalry and blatant favoritism.

2. The racist if not xenophobic views of Asgardians.

3. The inherent masculine-dominant, warrior society culture of Asgard.

To break Loki out of his self-destructive patterns, it took the empathy of 1 brainwashed and memory-wiped TVA analyst to rightly recognize that Loki as a person has incredible potential and that he could actively do something about it. That Mobius uses this reasoning for the advantage of the TVA (then under HWR's helm) is a plot point I'll discuss later, but the fact still stands: Loki was given a second chance to be who he really is because of the choice Mobius made to intervene. Loki would have been pruned before he would have had the opportunity to meet Sylvie, B-15, Casey, and OB. This is fact.

Mobius literally drops everything--the case he's actively investigating--to intervene. The fact a minuteman immediately reports the variant of Loki he is most interested in has been taken into custody suggests that Mobius has been planning this intervention for some time.

Some fans hate Mobius for his treatment of Loki in the first episode. It is, indeed, manipulative, condescending, and to a certain extent, emotionally abusive. I'm not denying any of this, but from a narrative perspective, Mobius, to be a fully well-rounded character, necessarily must have his own flaws and personal conflicts to battle. Loki's evolution as a character, and thus his positive impact on others, would be missing an emotional beat of mutual reciprocation otherwise. That emotional beat pays off in every episode of S2, culminating in the final scene of the final episode. This is to say nothing of the likelihood that Loki would not have been receptive to any form of gentleness at that point in time to begin with.

Crucially, Mobius gets Loki to admit that his villainous persona is exactly that: an illusion constructed in a bid for control. Some viewers might interpret this scene as a shortcut for getting Loki to behave "out of character" by S1E2, but Thor 2 proves otherwise:

This scene with Thor demonstrates that Loki has a high pain tolerance and is adept at hiding pain. His need to mask his vulnerability, and how that vulnerability is intrinsically tied with the misplaced shame of who he is, resonates deeply with queer, people of color, immigrant, colonized, and adopted fans, many of whom have intersectional lived experiences (including myself). I believe it is for this reason that so many of us are desperate for blatant representation in mainstream entertainment, and to shame us for the sin of hoping is disturbing.

But I digress. Frigga, Thor, and now Mobius are among the few who can see through Loki's deception. That deception has the unfortunate effect of hurting not only innocent civillians but his loved ones and himself (closeting, internalized racism).

Once Loki is able to drop that persona through admission, however, he is able to relax and be himself in the TVA. And in being himself, Loki is consequently able to love himself, which manifests through loving Sylvie. S1 shows Loki holding her up on a romantic pedestal: he chases after her, he sings a song for her, he wants her to be okay. He loves her, yes, and though it appears she does not reciprocate (in my opinion, your mileage might vary), Sylvie does love Loki enough back to buy him a drink and counsel him about what he really wants. This scene is critical in Loki's development in the same way Mobius sheds light on his potential to be whoever he wants.

Both Mobius and Sylvie are integral for Loki to arrive at his turning point, his ultimate sacrifice. Loki loves Sylvie. He therefore chooses to not kill her. Killing her, moreover, would not solve the issue of free will. Sylvie is right in believing free will, and thus the multiverse, is right and necessary. Sylvie's moral question and Loki sparing her life, answers Mobius's belief that Loki can be whoever he wants.

On the other side of this coin, watching Mobius in the final scene, hearing Mobius whisper, "Let time pass..." answers Sylvie's question of what Loki wants, and what he want more deeply than not being alone is for his friends, most especially Mobius (whom he also loves and cares for most, to LIVE.

The series ends with only 2 characters heartbroken with the outcome of Loki's heroism, which Mobius knew existed within him from the beginning. He saw those little but important moments: Loki comforting his brother, Loki protecting Jane, Loki giving up his life to buy Thor time, and so much more, he saw and he knew Frigga's words were right.

[thegirlwhorideslikeasamurai]

YOI-meta: Viktor's apparent insensitive reaction to Yuuri's love confession & what it might mean

There are several ways to read Viktor's comment on Yuuri's love confession depending on the level of his knowledge of the Japanese language and culture at this point in the series. While his words seem insensitive and blunt at first glance, plausible explanations for the choice the creators made here align rather with Viktor's character and the concept of the show than Viktor only caring about Yuuri's appearance in one of the most significant moments of their relationship.

So let's break this down!

1. Language barriers

The press conference of the Japanese Skating Federation, where the skaters participating in the Grand Prix Series present their season theme, is broadcasted on Japanese TV for a Japanese audience. Hence, Yuuri speaks Japanese in this scene. By now, Viktor has been living in Japan for about 5-6 months, and while he possibly knows enough Japanese to get along on his own and communicate with Yuuri's family about basics like food or the weather, complex speeches are probably still beyond his abilities.

Besides Russian, Viktor speaks English and French, so we can assume he has a knack for languages. But whereas Cyrillic and Latin characters have some resemblances, Japanese has three different types of characters (hiragana, katakana, and kanji), and these differ vastly from Western scripts. Beginners spend a hell lot of time learning these in addition to vocabulary and grammar. It's not a stretch to assume that Viktor understood parts of Yuuri's speech but not enough to connect the dots. Like "here, Yuuri presents his season theme which is about love... Oh, I heard my name! He's talking about me now! ... Was that something about a gold medal and Grand Prix Final? That's my Yuuri! He's so fierce! I love this! But ugh, he really needs a new tie! That hideous thing doesn't fit his new image at all!"

2. Utter shock

That face...

Looking at this scene, Viktor is either completely shocked because he didn't see this coming or trying hard to understand Yuuri's speech. While in my personal headcanon, language barriers keep him from understanding the speech, a person who is described as a genius and already speaks three languages might be able to follow the speech after living in the country for several months (I'm not sure about this though, but some people learn at lightspeed once they start obsessing over a subject). In this case, his reaction is a coping mechanism due to overwhelm. So far, Yuuri has said a few sweet things that showed Viktor how much he matters to Yuuri, but this is a whole new dimension of expressing affection, especially coming from someone so reluctant to voice their feelings. And while Viktor undeniably has been hoping for Yuuri to love him back, seeing his love confessing his feelings live on national TV is quite something to process.

Which leads me to...

3. Viktor doesn't take Yuuri's love confession seriously

This interpretation falls into the category of "Did we watch the same anime?" and I will briefly explain why using some past instances of Viktor's reaction to Yuuri using love language:

Episode 2 "I want to eat katsudon with you!":

Episode 3 "I'm going to become a super tasty katsudon. Please watch me!":

Episode 4 "I want you to stay who you are":

We see the occasional confusion, which is attributed to the fact that Viktoir is still familiarising himself with Yuuri's unique way of expressing his feelings and desires. However, in all these scenes, Viktor is genuinely happy that he means so much to Yuuri. Although Viktor can be insensitive at times, he never mocks Yuuri, which speaks volumes about his character. Not even when Yuuri says things like "Katsudon is my eros!" It's not in his personality. So far, throughout the series, Viktor has helped Yuuri become more confident and express his feelings. As soon as he understands Yuuri's speech and has processed the meaning, he would burst with happiness because Yuuri loves him back and pride because of how confident Yuuri became. But mocking Yuuri for his necktie when he just expressed the full dimension of his feelings? Just nope. He's not JJ.

Bonus: Viktor's reactions after episode 5 (the pattern continues)

4. The necktie is a metaphor

This interpretation came up in a Twitter discussion with @maetae2288 (kudos to her for bringing this up!) and it can coexist with interpretations 1 and 2. If you tell a story that needed to be condensed to 12 short episodes, you don't waste precious air time on throwaway lines.

For this interpretation, I would like to refer to Tumbleweed's translation errors master post. It's a super long post, so I quote the relevant part:

「 初めて自分から繋ぎとめたいと思った人、それがヴィクトルです 」 [...]'For the first time in my life, there’s a person I want to hold on to. That person is Victor.’ Also, while I think this word choice is the best choice, 'hold on to’ doesn’t quite get all the connotations of 繋ぎとめたい across. Tsunagi tomeru is composed of two words, tsunagi = bind and tomeru = stop. It means tying the subject to something and stopping it from going away. Since he added 自分から, 'from/by himself’ in front of it, it infers Victor being the first person Yuuri wants to reach out to and bond with, and with those bonds, bind them together so that they would never part.

I highly recommend reading the full post if you're interested in the linguistic nuances of translations from Japanese to English regarding Yuri!!!.

In his speech, Yuuri voices his desire to form an inseparable bond with Viktor (it's quite a lot like "stay by my side and never leave" if you think about it, although he uses a different vocabulary). Bonds are often symbolised by a knot. In this sense, the necktie comment would refer to the new bond Yuuri and Viktor will form henceforth.

It's unclear when Viktor learns Japanese love language and dating culture (you can read my post on Japanese dating culture in YOI here). In episode 9, Viktor correctly identifies Yuuri's (accidental) marriage proposal, but when did he brief himself on these things? In fact, he uses love language as early as episode 3 ("I love katsudon"), but was he aware of this? Whether or not he is, it's beyond doubt that the creators knew what they were doing when they gave him this line. In this light, his necktie comment suggests that he understood Yuuri's kokuhaku very well and gave a unique response that refers to their future bond and is true to his character. This is top-notch storytelling.

To sum this up, whether Viktor understood Yuuri at once and responded accordingly, or this line foreshadows that he will understand somewhere between episodes 5 and 6, his comment implies that they will start dating soon after. And we see the result in episode 6.

If you enjoy my meta posts, please consider giving my blog a follow or checking out my works on AO3(link in bio). You will find the results of my meta musings in there!

[olreid]

riverdale is.. schrodinger's show? ??

lol re tags on this post i assume? this is actually alfie @hypokeimena's phrase #alfiepilled and literally just means that he does not watch the show but does watch us watch the show and so always at any time any plot point or series of events is possible because riverdale exists in a state of totipotency right up until the moment of viewing the footage to see what actually happened which again he crucially never does.

HOWEVER i have adopted this phrase into my own riverdale lexicon because i think it helps to get at something which is usually kind of difficult to articulate about riverdale's method. riverdale, more than your typical tv program, IS a show where anything can happen, and that quality has not changed or diminished over the course of its run. typically, in tv, as you build out the world and the characters, you become better able to predict what will happen next; the window of probable events grows smaller, even if only slightly. people pair off, foreclosing other relationships; they pick a career, choosing one life over other possible lives they might have lived. even shocking plot twists are operating under a set of basic rules that govern how the setting and the genre operate such that the overarching parameters of what is possible in the world don't change. but not so in riverdale! it's not committed to the sanctity of its own canon, which frees the team up to create a show that reminds me more of a collage; different narrative pieces get swapped around to see what kinds of meanings they might produce with very little preciousness about continuity or canonicity compared to other programs. different storylines are repeated by filtering them through new genres to see what emerges. season 7's premise is a perfect example of this!

the other thing about riverdale that makes it schrodinger's show to me is that it is always operating on multiple registers of reality simultaneously, so that any number of things might be happening at once depending on how you're reading it. for example, in the season 3 g&g plot, many episodes are framed by games of g&g that precisely mirror real-world events going on concurrently in town, e.g. jughead accurately describing archie's prison break as it's happening even though he's not physically there. maybe this is just an extradiegetic narrative device; maybe particular characters are omniscient or psychic in some way; maybe the game itself has powers that allow it to shape the world or the story; maybe riverdale itself only has a certain number of pre-set stories that it can tell. the list could go on. the point is that all of these are equally likely; riverdale does not privilege realism or groundedness, really the opposite, but neither does it often confirm for certain that something supernatural is happening. rather, the viewer is left to interpret for themselves; to choose between these options if they want, or perhaps instead to hold them all simultaneously. indeed, riverdale never forces you to pick, to narrow it down; in riverdale, more than any other show i've ever watched, you can have everything you want, and you can have it all at once, because there is no definitive reality, which means everything is pretty much equally (un)real. the cw is pioneering quantum television and we're here to witness it! what a time to be alive!!!

[vergeltvng]

SPOILERS for The Boys Season 4

I'm still processing the final episode but here are some of my random thoughts, in no particular order. It was a wild ride and I enjoyed it for the most part. The season had its lows for sure and I'll never forgive the writers for how they treated Hughie. I'm still fucking mad about everything they did to him after episode 5. I also felt like they wasted a lot of potential with Annie's arc. She's been through a lot after season 3 and I loved the idea of her having an identity crisis but it was just so poorly executed. It all felt messy and as if the writers had no conclusion in mind for both her and Hughie's plotlines. Unfortunately I couldn't find myself caring a lot about Frenchie's and Kimiko's subplots which is sad because I love these two. I was hoping they get to kill that bitch Little Nina and Kimiko getting her revenge on the SLLA. Both could have happened this season before they got separated in the end. Instead we've been put on hold to wait if these plots get resolved at all. Firecracker and Sage were great additions, I loved to hate Firecracker and Sage gives off endboss vibes for me. I still feel like she's gonna betray Homelander in the end. Can't wait for "phase two". A-Train's arc was great, he truly redeemed himself and him showing up at the flat iron to save the others was proof enough for me how serious he was about doing the right thing. I liked all of his scenes with MM, too. I loved Ashley this season, I hope she gains some badass powers and kicks everyone's ass. I've seen some complaints about Homelander being nerfed - are we watching the same show? He is fucking unhinged and more terrifying than ever. He is basically god by the end of the season and can (and will) do whatever the fuck he wants with no one in his way. Someone telling me that's not scary?! He is and always will be one of the best villains in tv history. Poor kid Ryan, he deserved better. How is he ever supposed to feel safe around Homelander and Butcher phrasing it that way was downright evil and manipulative towards the boy because he knew it would make Ryan feel insecure and cornered. Him pushing and killing Grace was in self-defense. His reaction afterwards however is concerning and I guess ambiguous for interpretation on purpose. I still don't get how some people in the fandom could hate on a 12 year old child so much, leave the kid alone.

Where do I start when it comes to Butcher? I have many thoughts and this text is already long but I'll give it a shot anyway. Obviously I'm biased because I love this man and will defend him to the very end. I think his arc was one of the better aspects, he is still one of the best written characters on the show. What I always loved about him was him being truly morally grey and the ambiguity in his words and actions. He cannot be trusted. I don't know if it's me but Karl's performance makes him actually a lot more likeable than he deserves. He is a bad person and I don't think this is negotiable. I have thought about this so many times in made-up scenarios and I stick with my opinion that there's no fixing him and there never was. I have tried to stay away from fandom discourse as much as I could for my own well-being but I don't get how people act surprised and as a result hate over his behavior and decisions. I think most were true to his character and also him killing Neuman made perfect sense and was a well-deserved payoff narratively. Not that I'm not mad at him for doing so! I loved Vicky and she was such an interesting character. But his final words in season 3 were "that bitch has to go" and one of his main goals across the whole season was to get that virus to kill her. He was absolutely clear about it and worked towards this goal on his own terms, not even under the influence of Kessler. Certainly Kessler pushed him to commit some of his atrocities but it matched with what he wanted himself. He drew the line when it came to supe genocide and was conflicted about it initially but one of his core themes is doing whatever it takes and losing his humanity on his chosen path. Since he is highly intelligent he knows very well what's wrong with him what emphasises even more that he actively chooses to do bad things rather than being impulsive and regretful afterwards. I personally loved his turn at the end and I am eager to see his villain arc. What's not to love about evil daddy?! I could go on about some of the dynamics between him and Kessler but I'll do that in another post maybe.

[scribeforchrist-blog]

The Great Turning Away 

MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK

=========================

+ Ephesians 4:2 With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,

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VERSE OF THE DAY 

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+ Daniel 3:31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you.

=========================

SUBJECT: The Great Turning Away 

=========================

** SAY THIS BEFORE YOU READ; HERE’S SOME CHRISTIAN TRUTHS **

I AM LISTENING 

I AM NOT GOING TO TURN AWAY 

I AM GIVING YOU MY HEART JESUS 

I AM STANDING WITH JESUS 

********************************

THOUGHTS:

=======================

   It’s a great turning away, and it's happening in this world because people aren’t serving God the way they used to, nor do they fear him. However, some of us still stand because we know where our health is coming from and where our provinces are coming from. Still, people are turning away because they can’t make God do what they want, and we must understand that we can't make God do anything we want; we can't make him give us anything because he sees the content of our hearts.

   Is your heart pure? Do you ask God to help keep you pure? Do you watch what you listen to? Do you mind what you watch on TV? Some things we might feel are okay, and they aren’t because we have this sense of I am grown; I  can watch what I want, but when we watch things that aren’t of God, we will feel or see this change that will happen in our life and one of the things is turning a deaf ear to God’s voice, that’s how the great turning away starts, that’s how it happens when we start to turn away because we feel what he wants us to do isn’t the move for our lives. Hence, we try to find things that resemble what he wants, and God isn’t a God that likes the second place. The Bible says he’s a jealous God. 

   The great turning away happened with King Nebuchadnezzar

 •Daniel 3:9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live forever! 10 Your Majesty has issued a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music must fall and worship the image of gold, 

 •Daniel 2:45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold to pieces. “The great God showed the king what would take place. The dream is true, and its interpretation is trustworthy.”

     He said that the people must worship an image of god, which was the start of something. And Nebuchadnezzar was warned a few times about this

      Verse 27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.”

      When God warns us, we must understand he's showing us mercy and grace. It was recently when something like this happened; God warned a person, and this person ignored God. They felt like they could avoid the hand of God, but when we ignore God, sometimes, something worse happens because we ignore God.

    Friends, when God is warning us of something and he has shown us something, don’t just continue on that path. Ask God to forgive you and turn around; some of us will continue to be disobedient because we feel this is our life, we don’t have to listen, or we have so much mercy and grace that the hand of God won’t move against us. Still, God is telling us today that the great falling away is only the beginning. This devotional isn’t to scare anyone, but it’s a WAKE-UP CALL. DON’T IGNORE THE CALL OF GOD! 

    Still, we can't follow in the world’s footsteps. Sometimes, God isn’t going to give us our way, but that doesn’t mean place your hope in other things; that doesn’t fix it, my friend. It isn’t, but when we don't have what we want sometimes it’s because we aren’t connected the way we should with God. God isn’t a toy; our walk with him isn’t either.

     WE HAVE TO STOP !!! Allowing the things here on earth to take over and to be our god; God loves us so much that he is warning us now to put down our phones, step away from anything that is not like him, and praise him with everything that’s in us and give him our heart today.

   Verse 31 Even as the words were on his lips, a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you.

   Nebuchadnezzar thought he was invincible; he thought this couldn’t happen to me; it’s no way God's hand can be upon my life in such a way that Daniel said and that’s how we are today we don’t see that his hand has moved against us because of our disobedience because we are allowing things and people to conduct our lives but people of God, God is full of mercy and grace but if you look at your life and everything is playing against you; you need to ask God, change my heart because I have done wrong, and sometimes it’s not what we did wrong; sometimes things go the wrong way because it’s not our seasons; that’s why we must SEEK HIM WITH OUR WHOLE HEART! 

   ***Today, we learned about Nebuchadnezzar and how, even today, the great falling away is happening now; the Bible speaks about it, but we must not be part of something we know isn’t real. Jesus IS REAL, he is true, he is the truth, but to continue to walk against God when we hear him is a very dangerous thing. Let go of this idea that this can’t happen to you, but God has moved in people's lives before they won’t listen and stop.

   Friends, God loves us, and a lot of times, he isn’t going to give us what we want because it’s not meant to be; a lot of people get angry with God, and they move away from him, but we must move back to him because we need him more than ever, we have to allow him to show us and we walk In that way! Allow the words of the Holy Spirit to turn you around ;allow his words to strengthen you. A lot of people don’t teach on things like this because a lot of people don’t want to hear the truth but friends this devotional is to show us about God and if you hear him speaking walk that way . ©Seer~ Prophetess Lee

========================

PRAYER

========================

Heavenly Father, thank you so much. We ask you to help us seek you! Lord, forgive us of the sins we did; forgive us if we haven’t listened and if we allowed our desires to pull us away. Lord, we thank you for grace and mercy. We want to follow you. Lord, we love you so much. Thank you. Please give us time to make it right and change our ways. Lord, we thank you for always hearing us when we speak, and we will do the same. In Jesus' Name Amen

========================

REFERENCES 

========================

+ Daniel 3:33 Immediately, what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled.

 

+ 2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

 

+ Matthew 12:36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,

========================

FURTHER READINGS 

=========================

 Proverbs 22

Leviticus 22

Acts 2

Psalm 26

=========================

[asciidot]

anymore angel vox? :3 how does he interact with other characters! /nf!

i am currently in Sketch Hell as i would describe it so ill be reblogging later when i can Draw but. Ramble under the cut

Firstoff i made the design because of a handful of fics which i read and stupidly forgot to save . Namely the one where he died for alastor, angelic interference, and the one where they made a fuckup on the books. (Ill get back when i find their names) . I just wanted to make the design for the sake of it and try to make his looks fit heaven and also my interpretation of vox, so hes intended to look almost like a character youd see on an old tv show but a bit more suave. I also wanted a space age head because i mean thats The Period of innovation and while there were certainly similar designs while he was alive its more symbolic of progress than actual progress. Then my brain started doing its thing and when i start thinking about anything for more than five seconds i get a bunch of pins and red string and become a full blown theorist who needs to connect everything to worldbuilding or ill die

so. I started a fic and if you find it you find it :]

ANYWAY! CLAPS MY HANDS

my angel vox.

Point the first! this isnt a vox goes straight to heaven, its canon divergence. Vox dies, goes to hell, and at the peak of his messy hell career he dies again and goes to heaven. Vox is not redeemed.

2. Vox is powerless. Heaven equalises people. It has rules, a lot of rules, and these are sown straight into their reality which cant be broken. He does however have free will and a silver tongue.

3. I think vox and sera would get along surprisingly well when it came to it. Sera is a 'tough love' sort of character, and does believe shes doing good in spite of it all, and is willing to do lesser evils. Vox cares about nothing but numbers and outcomes. This means that if they share a goal a lot of their approaches would also be shared, and i think theyd be fond of that.

4. Vox despises heaven. Just the fundamental concept of it. He does enjoy a struggle and he does enjoy pain, thats the point of being alive to him. Or well. dead. Its an uphill battle but its his uphill battle to fight. Also he just needs something to keep him occupied at all given times or he might just snap #adhd

4a. He also hates the residents, mostly because of very well earned trust issues how its not fun to talk to any of them. They just say whatever theyre thinking, no song and dance, no fine print, and vox loves fine print and searching for hidden meanings.

5. Emily is nice and almost tolerable but he would absolutely throw her off a bridge if it benefited him without second thought. He hates how much of a bleeding heart she is, but that seems to be a trait of everyone up there

6. Vox's relationship with himself is a complex mess. It always has been and heaven made it worse. Not only did it revert his body to how it was when he first fell but Angel Edition, hes barely mechanical anymore- and while being a good part machine was all part of hells punishment at the start for various psyche reasons (as well as how inconvenient it was) he had grown to worship and love his inorganic nature, and how much better it was than his faulty body . I have headcanons about that but that falls under spoiler territory for Said Fic. But heaven handing him back his flesh and blood is a massive massive violation of his boundaries and the moment he stops and actually starts thinking about what the hell has happened hes gonna break

7. The vees think vox is dead dead. Angel!vox would... have a strained relationship if he were to meet like that. On one hand, hes vox! Their vox! But like this he can't be his usual overlord self and while he trusts them enough to view them as friends, he wouldn't be able to face them as partners like this; business or otherwise. Hes horribly powerless and they need him on his A game.

8. Alastor (angel!vox punches the ground and eats drywall)

[kamenstranger]

Several years back I did a review on Kamen Rider Black and my opinion hasn't changed much since. Like a lot of my older stuff, I think that review is a bit long winded describing the ending stretch of the series, but overall it still conveys my love of Kamen Rider Black.

The short of it is Black was a return to basics for the franchise while at the same time breathing new life with more contemporary themes of 1980s Japan excess. Very cult like villains akin to what what happening in the late 70s and coming to a head by the 80s. You have plot lines centered around the ever rising cost of living, the booming idol industry satirized as a means of brainwashing, a greater emphasis on the horror aspects, the strongest environmental message since the original Manga, and uh, cults infiltrating politics.

It's a fantastic series and it's one of my highest recommended Showa era shows alongside V3.

Today, I mainly want to focus on the Bluray release by Discotek, which primarily means talking about the special features. However, I quickly want to run down a few key factors. First off, the image quality; it's the exact same as the Japanese release, which is what my old review used as a basis so I don't have much to add. It's a crisp gorgeously detailed transfer with those annoying seizure inducing attack sequences of the original broadcast and DVD release removed. Nothing is removed except those flashes in-between frames. This is the ideal way to view the series for that improvement alone. There is a special feature that shows the original attacks from the first couple episodes, should you happen to have a TV Power belt laying around.

As for the subs, truthfully I wasn't even gonna mention them cause I think you know Discotek has a long proven track record for quality. Still, someone might ask, and yes, they're good. They're also your best option nowadays, anyway. The Century King subs are so old you'd be hard pressed to find them, and the redone version that came about with the JPN bluray had a number of misspellings and other typing errors.

I will admit I've not finished this watch, but nothing in Discotek's release has stuck out to me as egregious. The only thing I can think of that might bug some people is that Kaijin is interpreted as Monster rather than Mutant, which is… whatever. I can understand why the old Century Kings translation used Mutant, it's a good way to keep it separate from how we typically associate Kaiju = Monster. Mutant invokes the more human/jin aspect as opposed to a beast. But that's a level of semantics even I don't care about. Hell, it's not even as if it plays a massive narrative or thematic role, with the possible exception of Whale, who has humanity in a morale sense. The monsters in Black by in large exist as humanoid animals, they're rarely ever humans turned into animal hybrids like the other Showa shows, so I don't think that distinction is all that important in the grand scheme of things.

I should also note, as always, the movies are treated separately, meaning "Hurry to Onigashima" and "The Phantom House of Devil Pass" are not included in the set.

With all that out of the way, first and foremost we have to talk about how Discotek handles presentation of the special features on this set. I will say it's a marked improvement over Gavan, which didn't even mention Special Features on the back of the case. They list the special features on Black's case…but they don't list what discs those features are on. So I started with 5, which had a almost everything but the cast reunion I was looking for. So I pop in disc 1- no special features. So I start working backwards with disc 4; Cast Reunion part 3. I then had a sense of déjà vu because I did this same song and dance with Gavan. It's a minor thing, but one that could've been easily resolved by simply stating which discs had what, either on the case or the disc themselves. Hell, even just a "Special features discs 2-5" I don't know how they look on RX and Sharivan, but I'm gonna laugh if I get my V3 Bluray and the special features aren't listed as clearly as my Generation Kikaider set.

Anyway, the first special feature is on disc 2 "This is Kamen Rider Black" which was a special that aired one week before the series premier and acted as a sneak preview. I'm glad it's here and not left out or relegated to some bizarre compilation disc (looking at you, MillCreek.) It's an interesting time capsule and stuff like this should be preserved.

Note that the image quality here looks significantly worse than the remastered episodes because this was on tape, although still quite clear for what it is. You will however notice lines at the bottom of the screen now and then.

As far as the special itself is concerned… it's kinda just marketing fluff hosted by Ishinomori's son, Jo, and Jiban's own Michiko Enokida. You get a very brief interview with Ishinomori, a pretty cool behind the scenes bit of the casting process, Tetsuo Kurata in the recording booth for the main theme and a… pretty awkward as hell interview with Kotaro, Kyoko, and Katsumi. Notice I'm using the character names. It's awkward in both a delightfully and painfully 80s way.

However, the real meat of these features is the 3 part cast reunion, which was included in the 3 sets released in Japan back in '22. Each part is about 40-ish minutes and consists of Testsuo Kurata, Moe (Ayaumi) Taguchi, Hitomi Yoshii, Producer Susumu Yoshikawa, and Director Yoshiaki Kobayashi. Quite the eclectic mix and even a bit odd in the case of Kobayashi, who only directed the opening episode of Black and is slightly infamous for being a bit of a hardass, which the actors do not hide at all. Although they do credit him with pushing them to be better, so there's no ill will. That was, after all, a grueling month long shoot for everyone.

Compared to Gavan's cast special, it's not quite the same wealth of knowledge, or at least it doesn't seem like it because it can feel a tad disjointed. Although that doesn't make it any less interesting. There's simply more reminiscing filled with small personal stories, both entertaining and occasionally insightful. My favorite was Ishinomori insisting Kurata's purchases at a particular restaurant be put on his personal tab. Charming tales aside, there are still major gems about the industry and not just with Black. Such as Kobayashi mentioning the influence of Easy Rider on Kamen Rider due to Ishinomori liking the movie and being fascinated by the counterculture movement. It's nice to have a more direct source on it, since the only other place I can readily cite that claim is dubious at best.

Kobayashi also goes into the complication of not having time to watch your own work as it's airing, which makes it difficult to do adjustments on the production, get audience feedback and see where your own faults lie. There's also discussion about JAC and how incredibly strict their standards are, mainly because hesitation more than anything else is what results in injury. (Although Gavan has a far more in depth look into that area) We even get some tidbits about Toei's Spider-Man, which both Kobayashi and Yoshikawa worked on.

But perhaps my favorite production story with Black specifically is the theme song, which was the duo of Yoko Aki writing the lyrics and her husband Ryudo Uzaki handling the music. It was less a decision on the production side and simply Ishinomori happened to be great friends with Aki, so why not? Which, if you're unfamiliar with the two, they were a HUGE deal. Aki and Uzaki wrote several hits for Japan's biggest idol, Momoe Yamaguchi, in the late 70s, including her biggest hit "Yokosuka Story." Incidentally, Yamaguchi has a son, Takahiro Miuram, who you're probably familiar with as Bilgenia in Black Sun.

Susumu Yoshikawa's only instructions to Aki was to keep the lyrics simple and use very little English since it's a program for children. Uzaki sung on the demo tape with a backing guitar. The original lyrics, according to Kurata, were a bit different in the opening, something along the lines of "Last through the ages, race through the Sky." Although that original demo tape is now sadly lost. Kurata would listen to the tape on repeat in preparation for the recording, which took 6 hours in the booth, all while Aki and Uzaki were present, which made the pressure even harder. Although by Yoshikawa account, it was on the faster side of recording.

There's other production stories I won't cover, some small, some as interesting as the theme, such as the still fairly new Jiro Okamoto taking on the challenging suit acting role (Which it's a shame he isn't part of this feature.) But I won't spoil everything. It's a good three part special that's worth the price of admission alone, but it did leave me wanting more. Thankfully, we still have more.

Most of the other special features are what you would expect; original post credit commercials for Giveaways and Toei's various festivals and events, the U.S. Bluray Trailer, a trailer for RX's Discotek release, the aforementioned segment showing the original attacks in their flashiness. But, as with Gavan, we have a wonderful write up by MachDent.

This is the cherry on the sundae right here. Again, not to deride the other stuff. Trailers and the like should be here, I'd be complaining if they weren't. But this is what I'm interested in most; historical examinations of a show. Frankly, it's quite a bit more informative than the cast reunion while also having a clear concise time line of how Black came to be. Stuff like this, having the Japanese special features, and of course quality subtitles for the main event is really what sets these Discotek releases apart from others. I'd be happy with a relatively bare bone but quality release, but I'd be lying if I didn't say a big selling part was getting these features. I'm not going to pretend these are cheap set by any means, but they're also not cheapening out. I greatly appreciate Discotek not only gathering the stuff on the JPN side, but adding their own special features that elevate the whole thing. Now that we're in an era of having fewer and fewer indie shops and smaller distributors, I feel almost an obligation to support what few remain-- less Sony or Toho gobble them up next.

[ssaseaprince]

I swear anyone who says Hannibal and Will aren't canon just didn't watch the show. It's not implied, it's not hinted, it's not subtext. It's incredibly romantic and is explicitly said so. The moment and embrace they shared at the end of season 3 was so powerful to me. Just because they didn't kiss or say "hehe want to be my boyfriend?" like they're in some teen romcom doesn't mean they aren't a canonical pairing. They got together at the END of the show after it being stated several times that they love each other and can't live without each other and want each other more than anyone. Lines like wanting to run away together and hungering for each other and "is Hannibal in love with me" are, apparently, completely platonic in some people's eyes or just wishful thinking or, christ, queerbaiting (a point I hope no one has made because it's ridiculously stupid). I'm quite happy with the end of season 3, but I'd hope for a 4th season if only, so they can be a couple on screen and people can stop being dumb about the canon of their relationship

I am so sorry that I have taken forever to reply to this, I lowkey forgot that my inbox was a thing 😅

You are completely right. I want to call it a lack of media literacy, but I'm not sure that's the best phrase. As an autistic person, I completely understand struggling with subtext and needing to have things presented in a straightforward, blunt way. However, with Hannigram, you don't even need to rely solely on subtext. Like you pointed out, Will flat out says, "Is Hannibal in love with me?" And then you've got the entire cast, the showrunner, writer, producers, etc, all saying that they are canonically in love.

And because of that, I really struggle to give people the benefit of the doubt when they say that Hannigram isn't canon or that their relationship is "open to interpretation." Because if you were solely confused due to issues with understanding subtext, then you wouldn't get all up in arms about people pointing out that Hannigram IS CANON.

This honestly leads me to believe that the very vast majority of people who will fight tooth and nail to convince everyone that Hannibal and Will aren't in love is because of homophobia.

We are not used to seeing queer relationships in media. There is maybe a handful of movies and TV shows that revolve around queer relationships. So it is people's knee-jerk reaction to assume that every character is straight and that only heterosexual relationships are canon, and it's because of this bias that they will fight against all queer representation and only accept it when the characters are physically affectionate, and even then they will find reasons to claim it's not valid.

Cishet people are a lot like white people, and men, and basically every other majority, in the way that they feel the need to relate to every single main character, otherwise they can't enjoy the show/book/movie etc. Hannibal and Will have been confirmed as canon, in and out of the show. But these people will fight against it because, whether consciously or unconsciously, the second that their characters are confirmed as queer, they immediately can't relate to them and therefore can't enjoy the show.

They see queer people and queer relationships as so *other* that queer representation literally ruins it for them. Maybe this is an extreme analogy, but it's like watching a movie about humans, and then halfway through finding out that they're robots, and all of a sudden, these aren't people that you're familiar with, they are something other. The knowledge that a character is queer is genuinely so incomprehensible to them that they will do anything to deny it.

And I think that kind of thinking is the biggest problem. It's not always done with bad intention, and it's not always conscious, but it's there. You can see actors and actresses who do the same thing. They have such a visceral reaction to the idea that their character might be queer, that they immediately shut it down. Because if the character is queer, the character isn't relatable, and if the character isn't relatable somehow, the show isn't enjoyable.

By relatable, I don't just mean, "They're straight, and I'm straight." I mean that they genuinely see queer people as completely other from them, and they just cannot grasp the existence of queer relationships as actual relationships and not just vague ideas. Yes, they know that queer relationships are real, but they genuinely can not look at a queer relationship or a queer person and actually have any level of deeper empathy and understanding. They see queer relationships are something completely different then cishet relationship, so the second that a queer relationship becomes the focus, they disengage.

This all relates back to people refusing to acknowledge any kind of queer relationship as canon unless physical affection is apparent.

Obviously, not all straight people do this, but it's an issue that's a lot more prominent than what most people think. As soon as you start looking for it, you see it everywhere. I'm not saying these people hate queer people or don't want queer representation, but this kind of homophobia is just so widely accepted and normalized that it's a knee-jerk reaction, and unfortunately, it's so normalized that people don't even realize they have these biases that they need to get rid of.

Sorry this reply is so long and late coming! I appreciate the ask and love hearing your opinions ❤️

[redhoodinternaldialectical]

Was wondering who's your favourite Jason Todd writer. (Maybe least favourite too)

Oooh this is a tough one! In part because I'm not entirely sure who to count as a Jason Todd writer, and in another part because I'm trying to pick someone other than Winick bc saying it's him feels too obvious lmao

The joke answer is Bruce Jones, because I genuinely adore Nightwing: Brothers In Blood, though I uhhh- look I GET why other people do not xD

But really maybe I should just bite the bullet and say it's Judd Winick. I do love what he did with the character and I can say with confidence that I'm not just listing him cause of Under the Red Hood. Seeing Red in Green Arrow (2001) is like my favorite comic run ever. Jason's appearance in Outsiders (2003) is great. Streets Run Red in B&R was solid. Lost Days remains my favorite interpretation of the time after he came back, despite the fact that I have some criticisms.

That being said, I do think I mildly prefer him in an anti-hero role rather than Winick's sympathetic villain who can sometimes be reasoned with, and I quite like what Rosenburg has been doing with him.

It feels like Rosenburg has a really solid idea in his head of who Jason is and why/how he clashes with the other bats. I enjoyed The Man Who Stopped Laughing way more than I thought I would. Taskforce Z has definite merits. Gotham War was a complete clusterfuck and horribly organized, but I do think I see what he was going for there and was interested even though it clashed badly with what the other writers were doing.

So yeah, I guess that's my answer. Rosenburg is my fav modern Jason writer so far and Winick remains the heavyweight champion of Jason writing overall.

My least favorite on the other hand isn't any of the usual suspects (Starlin, Morrison, and Lobdell)

Starlin seemed to want to write vicious, seedy thrillers about realistic serial killers and the worst that humanity has to offer and was instead stuck writing Batman and Robin lmao. Should he have just found other employment instead, or knuckled down and written to the tone of the material at hand? Probably! However, putting Batman and Robin in a world that was patently unfit for their type of heroics was interesting to read for me, and frankly, most of what I love about Jason wouldn't exist without it.

Morrison was certainly unfavorable to Jason, but using Jason and Dick as opposing ideas of what it means to be Batman is honestly really cool, and idk I think if you can get passed the aesthetics this version of him works.

Lobdell... might actually just be bad at writing entirely? But! Lobdell has a lot of good ideas and can write something that's fun. There are several more competently put together stories that I can't say the same of.

So yeah, it's none of them, because Cavan Scott was the one who wrote the worst rendition of Jason I've ever had the misfortune to read.

Even mother fucking Battle for the Cowl did a better job with Jason! Just by giving him character motivations and a reason to be in the plot! Titans United Jason is a complete asshole to everyone around him despite having reasons not to be. Like, not even for no reason! For negative three reasons!! There are many different roles he could have taken in this comic that would have been interesting, but instead he is "thug who insults Connor Kent and is generally useless and incompetent".

Though to be fair to him, Titans United was a tie in for a TV show that has very, very different histories for all of the characters involved. It was basically a commercial and as far as I can tell this author wasn't involved in the show or any of the characters outside of this one comic. It might honestly be unfair to call him a Jason Todd writer at all.

And if we don't count little one offs like that then... yeah I don't really know who my least favorite would be *shrug*

Anyhow I feel like I've rambled more than long enough, hope this was an interesting read and thank you thank you for sending the ask :3 !

[canonicallyobserving911]

My theory about "Brad" for episode 8x8

In a recent post (linked here), I indicated I would reveal "My Theory" regarding the reason why I believe the character "Brad Torrence" is still around this late in season 8 and here it is.

Full disclosure: Initially, I didn't have a problem with Brad because Bobby was working as the tech advisor for the TV show "Hotshots" and I thought he was interesting. Also, after 8x1, I posted that I hoped him and Bobby could be friends since Bobby hasn't had anyone to hang out with outside of the 118 since Michael left in season 5. But my opinion of him has changed because he should be gone and I thought he would be once Bobby went back to the 118 in 8x4. He's still there taking up screentime from the mains and I don't like it 🙄. Even though I'll be glad when he's gone, I've still provided a fair and balanced assessment of his character.

On Friday, I posted my review of episode 8x7 "Hotshots" (linked here) and earlier this week I posted about my expectations for 8x8 "Wannabes". After rewatching 8x7, I noticed a common theme between Bobby's and Athena's storylines and it was centered around preparation for their retirements with Bobby dealing with Brad, a fake firefighter and Athena working with Sparks, a rookie police officer.

Before I delve into this, I need to make something crystal clear! These are my interpretations and observations regarding what could happen in episode 8x8 and even though it's possible some might not agree, it's ok if they don't because two differences of opinion can coexist. I'm basing my analysis off things that happened in episodes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7 along with the stills that were released for episode 8.

Let's get started.

At the beginning of season 7, I did a post about the way the show was setting everything up for Bobby and Athena to begin their retirement arcs (linked here) but something happened (probably during the three-week hiatus between 7x5 and 7x6) that changed their storylines. When season 8 started, they were and still are living in an apartment, they're looking for a home and once again, Athena was in peril during the opening disaster. At the time it seemed like neither of them would be slowing down but the "cracks" in their communication were shown again and they've been present throughout their marriage (especially in season 4 when they argued about not talking to one another and it was about their retirement). They don't talk about the important things and it was even more evident in 8x7 when Athena told Hen that she told Bobby she didn't want to walk around with a cane. IMO, they're setting up their retirement arcs again but this time they're inserting others (guest stars) to assist with the development (which is unnecessary to me especially since the main cast is large enough which means they could utilize the people who are already there. I mean HELLO Buck's right there but I digress).

After rewatching 8x7, the common theme I found between Bobby and Brad and Athena and Sparks was that both Brad and Sparks were inexperienced, hot heads who wanted power and they were aiming to use firefighting and police work to get it. Brad is an actor playing the role of a fire captain on a hit TV show that contributes to the LAFD while Sparks was a rookie cop (who Athena kept addressing as a "probie" instead of a "rookie" and I think that was done on purpose for Brad's storyline). Brad and Sparks were/are impressed with Bobby's and Athena's work and they admire them.

Athena - Sparks did his homework and learned everything he could about her including the number of arrests she'd made and her commendations along with all of her other accolades.

Bobby - Brad told Bobby to his face in 8x1 that he was going to study him and in 8x2, he suggested Bobby do a bootcamp in the mountains or at his home in Malibu with him and his friends so he could learn how to be a fire captain.

Sparks and Brad have a lot of similarities; however the major difference is Sparks is young and he doesn't have a LOT OF LIFE EXPERIENCE (Sound familiar? It should since that's what Bobby told Buck in 6x1 when Buck wanted to be interim captain). Even though Brad is older, he's an asshat and he's also a reckless manchild (Bobby's description of him in 8x7) who will likely get someone hurt and he seems like a womanizer (Sound familiar? It should since that's how Buck USED to be when he first started at the 118.) He's been married 5 times and in the stills; it seems like he's flirting with a woman during that water rescue call.

These two guest characters have a lot of similarities with 25-year-old probie Buck and I believe that was done on purpose. During one of OS's Entertainment Weekly Q and A responses, someone asked, "In 9-1-1 s8 was Brad the British actor a reference to you being a British actor" and he answered, "Yes! Well, not like based on anything but I think he is an "homage" to me." The word "Homage" means "to show respect or honor to someone or something." Therefore, I believe my theory has merit since Callum Blue the actor who plays Brad Torrence is supposed to be an "Homage" to OS.

I've included a quick video below of Brad's interactions for two reasons, one, I didn't feel like making the GIFs for them and two, I think when the things a person says can be heard as opposed to reading them, it provides more context.

It's evident that Brad is mesmerized by Bobby's and Buck's father/son relationship and before 8x7 aired, I completed a post that included the way Brad wants to be like Buck and how IMPRESSED he was by Buck's and Bobby's heroics during the opening airplane disaster (linked here).

At the end of 8x8, Brad said he talked to the chief and had the show put his character in a coma so that he could "job shadow" Bobby but in the stills for the episode, he's wearing full turnout gear with a name on the back. I found this to be problematic for two reasons. First, Brad is NOT a firefighter, therefore he shouldn't be wearing any 118 or firefighter gear period. Second, the turnout coat he's wearing has a name on the back of it. Now, it's unclear if he borrowed it or if it's his but the last name is "Boothe" and since his actor name is "Brad Torrence" it made me wonder if that's his real last name.

FTR, job shadowing means a person is supposed to observe someone while they're doing their job. It doesn't mean "participating" and they shouldn't be dressed to look like they're part of the team but Brad is and it's going to be a cluster f~ck.

Why is this a problem?

It's a problem for him to be wearing turnout gear because he should be standing off to the side without getting involved. Bobby's captain of the 118 which means Brad should have a notepad and an ink pen instead of standing next to him. Since he's wearing 118 gear, someone will easily mistake him for being a real firefighter and reminder, in 8x3, he lied to the soccer player and claimed he was one even though he isn't.

Also, during the Metro Dispatch fire in 5x16, Eddie was still a firefighter but he wasn't with the 118 and when Bobby told him to grab some turnouts, THERE WASN'T A NAME ON THE BACK OF THE JACKET.

Therefore, how is it that Brad "an actor who plays a fire captain" is wearing full turnout gear with a name on the back when he hasn't even gone through the academy to become a real firefighter?

In the above BTS stills, it seems like Brad's flirting with a victim and the statement about not dating someone they meet on a call has been spoken numerous times since Eddie said it in 6x15. Since Brad's not a firefighter, he doesn't know that and he appears to be fascinated with the attention he's getting from the people who recognize him. Therefore, it seems like he's going to hookup with someone from a call and it's likely to cause problems with the team and the LAFD.

While I was making GIFs and the video for this post, I noticed something from episode 8x3 that I didn't see before. After Athena landed the airplane and the emergency escape slide inflated, the spotlight was on Brad for about 3 seconds and he was standing there all alone. Then the camera showed Buck and Brad standing next to each other and I don't believe that was a coincidence.

Here's my theory... I believe Brad is there so that he can become a "Probie" and Bobby will be the one who has to make a decision at the end of the episode about if he wants him to be part of the 118. The interviews all indicate that Brad will be there, he's going to cause chaos and he's supposed to have a conversation with Eddie that will be life changing and I think it'll revolve around Brad asking Eddie what made him want to become a firefighter. TM (showrunner) said in an interview that their conversation will revolve around something that has to do with being an "All American" (I couldn't find the quote but I remember reading it) and based on Brad's propensity to want to be like Buck and that he does in fact have "daddy issues", it appears he wants to work with Bobby so that he can aspire to be like him. This guy has to be at least 45 years old or older so his daddy issues should be resolved but that's my opinion.

Brad wants to be like Buck so he can become a firefighter and like I said in a previous post, he was impressed by Buck's and Bobby's dynamic. Everyone knows Bobby is Buck's found dad and they've been working together for so long that Bobby didn't have to tell Buck what he needed while they were preparing to shutdown the I-110. Brad watched all of it and he called Buck, "Bobby's boy."

I don't know how long Brad will be around but based on everything that's happened so far, it seems like he could be part of the 118 at least until the end of 8B the same way Jonah was there until the end of 5B and he didn't leave until the real reason he was there had been revealed.

Do I think Brad is dangerous? No, I don't believe he is... at least not in the sense of him trying to capture someone and hurt them so he can be captain of the 118 or anything. But I do believe his reckless behavior is going to get someone hurt or they'll experience an NDE because of his actions and those someone's will likely be Buck or Eddie and/or Buddie.

All of this seems like a huge setup for the second half of the season.

These are more Bathena and Buddie parallels (related posts linked here and here) and I believe it's being done this way for a reason. IMO, it's still too early to tell if these things have anything to do with the 9-1-1 spinoff that's supposed to start filming in March but I'm not ruling it out. Since TM and RM (creators) like well-known stars with top billing name power (hence AB, PK and RL from LS) I'm not sure if Callum Blue fits that description to carry an entire series on his own but only time will tell.

The point of this post is to highlight the reason why I believe Brad is still around and it's so he can become part of the 118. That way Bobby will have someone to lead, teach and train since the core four (Chimney, Hen, Buck and Eddie) have been working with him for so long that they know what he expects. Even though Gerrard was a complete and utter terror while he was there (mainly towards Buck), when he got injured, they carried on with Hen as interim captain. It kind of seems like Bobby needs someone to lead who doesn't know anything and this is more about him than it is about Brad. At the end of season 7, Bobby left and he didn't tell his team that he was planning to retire. Now that he's back, it appears that he's realizing they can and did function without him and it's making him understand his role as captain could be coming to an end the same way Athena pulling her hamstring is making her realize her own mortality as a LAPD police officer.

It'll be interesting to see how this will play out but Brad being around at this late date is NOT a coincidence and I think Bobby will have to decide if he wants to hire Brad as a probie after Brad reveals he wants to change careers.

Just saying.

[hath-e]

So now that I've actually watched 10 anime I wanted to rank them from best to worst

1. MSG: the Witch from Mercury; I have not seen any other Gundam show but I don't think this one is leaving #1 spot ever, and Bandai were cowards and homophobic for not showing us either a kiss or the wedding even though they got married, also I'm so mad that I episode 11 during the hug they didn't even say "I love you". The robots became the least interesting part of the robot show (8th I watched)

2. Bocchi the Rock!; probably what I want most anime to be, can't wait for the movie('s), this, G-Witch and Your Name might as well both be #1, also I want a cute Bocchi plush but I can't find one that's affordable without a high delivery :< (7th I watched)

3. Your Name; A movie that I found on a trans subreddit about a year ago, I didn't think it'd be as good as it was or that it'd affect me as much as it did, but I was left in tears when the credits came on, the story went somewhere completely than I thought it would, 10/10. also tied for first place, it deserves to be watched in a movie theater so much (10th I watched)

4. Cowboy Bebop; twink and his bear friend go on space adventures oh and the twink has his own shadow the hedgehog (6th one I watched)

5. BNA: Brand New Animal; the one of 2 studio Trigger show I've seen but from what I've read and heard they have a pretty mid reputation, I really liked it tho, I watched it around the time I came out and it's a pretty good trans allegory (still feel a tad weird about the ending) (4th one I watched)

6. Neon Genesis Evangelion (and the 1st movie); (don't)Get in the robot Shinji, I had been interested in it a bunch, big robots and all that, but only just got to it. The self perpetuating loop of abuse and trauma that Shinji and everyone gets put through because Genduo can't get over the death of his wife is horrible and I can't think of a more despicable antagonist than him, the movie was so fucked up. I still struggle to get what Seele was supposed to represent. I loved every scene where the Eva's get shown as demons, those looked real cool (9th I watched) (watched it entirely cuz of Signalis)

7. Cyberpunk Edgerunners; watched this before I played the game, the abuse that David went through combined with the end that I miss interpreted put me a bit off and I missed the point, but I got it after a rewatch (3rd one I watched)

8. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure; now that I've grown as a person I can safely say that it deserved to drift from spot 1, part 4 is still my fave. And it's still really really good in spite of how low it is (1st I watched)

9. Guilty Gear Xrd & Strive story mode; I am both counting and lumping them together, I liked the oversized Smurf with a gun, also Elphelt bby girl, still would've preferred an actual game tho(5th one I watched)

100000000000. Future Diary; I've watch this in a trade to get someone else to watch JoJo's, they came out better off with that deal, I am also no longer friends with that person (not because of the show but it's funny to mention) (2nd I watched) I still think it's missing some zeros, just add however many you believe it needs

Honorable mentions:

- Signalis; I know it's not an anime but it's anime adjacent and it's the best story I've ever played through, I don't even like horror games or gore at all that much but I will 100% this game and get all the endings, I wish I could talk about it more but spoiling ANYTHING about it feels wrong and making posts where half the words are censored just so fans get it isn't gonna work

- Pokemon; I loved the XYZ and B&W runs but I haven't watched it all and only remember catching it on TV

-Scott Pilgrim takes off, I watched the first few episodes, I don't particularly care for it, but it looks pretty good

Dishonorable mentions:

- Attack on Titan; I've had a run in with the series back when season 1 came out, back when I thought gore was cool, now I have negative interest in the series, I literally couldn't care less and I'm only putting it here to be fair

Conclusion:

After the Witch from Mercury and Evangelion, I don't care for big robots as much as I used to.

Oh and I'm watching some more soon-ish gimme recommendations

[persephoneprice]

hey lily!!!!! thank u sm for sending me asks whilst i was away, it was a lovely thing to come back to 🫶

so here i'll drop some miscellaneous modern hcs for the fun of it (summer edition!!!!!!)

- every summer coral and mizzen go back to visit ireland for two and a bit weeks. they're from a small seaside town where everyone knows everyone and its so great to be able to see their family again.

- mizzen spends his entire time at the beach and there is a point where there is sand EVERYWHERE in their parents house and there's no way of cleaning it because there's just so much of it.

- coral buys a million pretty souvenirs for lucy gray because she can't pick which one that she'd like the most.

- coral and mizzen go surfboarding at one point and they fall over so many times. there's a video mizzen has on his phone of coral going total wipeout.

- the weather is pretty good but on the ONE DAY that they decide to go swimming/surfing it absolutely pours down to the point they can't tell what's rainwater and what's seawater.

- by the time they come back all of coral and mizzen's clothes are either soaked beyond belief or unchangeably sandy.

- when they come back they do a caravan holiday with tanner and treech (and later lamina and brandy).

- mizzen is great with the 2p machines and has a tactic he uses (brandy helps him later) that allows him to get a ridiculous amount of tickets (like 10,000 or something.)

- treech is terrible at claw machines but tries to win something for lamina every time and continues to do so even after he fails 10 times in a row and wastes all his money.

- lamina however is VERY good at the claw machines and wins treech like a million different plush sonics 💀.

- tanner and coral spend half their time at the bar because they think they're somehow above the festivities of caravan holidays. but then mini golf or hide and seek gets mentioned and they lock in.

- they watch some horrific reality tv show every night (probably love island) and scream at the tv when the contestants r being stupid.

- genie and dennis go on a road trip throughout the summer, both declining to go on extravagant luxury holidays with their families (genie because her father would be paying for it and dennis because his brother would be going.)

- they stop off at all sorts of places, they see art exhibitions and try a bunch of different food that they want. at one point diana and apollo join them but only for a few days.

- they go to parties at night and end up realising that half of the mentors are somehow also there??

- livia cardew is somehow not on a luxury holiday somewhere with her mother which makes them laugh (she leaves the next day for her first class flight and arachne comes with her.)

- persephone has a seaside holiday with clemmie!!!!

- they do a no devices holiday where they stay at the beach half the time and read books together.

- this could be interpreted as clem x pippa or just friendship but either way its adorable.

- panlo and sheaf spend the summer on panlo's parents farm. it's really relaxing to both of them since they rarely get any time off of their intense jobs.

- lucy gray spends her holiday in scotland with the covey, travelling and playing music. she buys lots for coral and jessup while she's there and somehow ups coral in how many gifts they got eachother.

that's all i have 4 now but i hope u enjoy this and also hope u loved ur holiday!!!!!!

ahhhh oh my gosh bel thank you so much for all of these thoughts <3

mizzen & coral being irish!! mizzen is impossible to pull away from the beach and when you do not only does he bring back all the sand but also any little ‘treasure’ he can find. his mother also makes him turn out his pockets because he’s known to try to sneak in little creatures.

lamina winning all the plushies <3

tanner and coral at the bar…they are sipping their fruity drinks and talking shit….

genie & dennis weirdo road trip!!!!

pippa and clemmie seaside no electronics holiday…it’s giving sapphic….

i love all of this !!

[accirax]

📚💛https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YpvZr_SJ6QE💛📚

Even though I'm not the biggest fan of Fiore and still have my gripes about how Alec treated his son (despite me liking him a lot more & having some sympathy for his situation before and after the divorce), I won't lie, all of their little moments together in this finale were incredibly sweet and fun to watch~ ^_^ Each one of those scenes (especially Alec piggybacking her on the way to the airport) put a smile on my face because they were just *so* (unfairly) adorable/wholesome! <3

That being said, the feeling is pretty conflicting tho... I mean, I am happy the two were able to make up and find solace in each other, but at the same time this just makes me feel even worse for Daniel. 😟

I mean sure, Cheryl might've recovered after the divorce and is already getting over Alec, but that wouldn't mean he would. We already know how badly a divorce can mess children up mentally/emotionally, and I don't doubt that he's probably still missing the guy. So imagine being in the place he is and then seeing all of *that* on your tv. Your dad showing more care & concern for, and actually looking happier with some other kid he only had only known for 2 years (the same kid your dad said he wished you'd be more like). That's gotta do some deep damage to someone's self esteem/worth, especially at a young age.

(Hopefully he'll find a good therapist in the future, and that his mom will do a better job than Alec ever could (though it probably won't fill the void completely).)

OK getting back on topic- this one image raises a LOT of questions in my head, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.

One of two things is possible here: Either Alec has made the dreams of a million fans come true and has actually canonically adopted Fiore (and is likely homeschooling her), OR, he somehow managed to pull some strings behind the scenes and became her personal tutor (that way she wouldn't have to spend as much time around the nuns at the boarding school, which would give her just a little bit of peace, even if only temporarily). It really could go either way (Ik a lot of fans are already claiming it to be the former); it could be that the Jared & co wanted to leave it up to personal interpretation, but I'm hoping maybe we'll get some solid confirmation in a future cast & crew Q&A stream. Or maybe, if the TomJake spinoff does well enough, they might consider making spinoffs for the rest of the cast, and then we'll know. I'm hoping they will~ ^_^

Alright I'm done rambling, have a good night/day!

i know, the two of them were so sweet in the finale! as i said when i first watched the finale, i know that they were probably over-amplifying the extent to which Alec and Fiore would realistically get along/be happy in the context of the series so far to bribe fans of their dynamic into liking the finale and/or really make sting for Riya seeing everyone else be so happy... but as i also said, i am not immune to that bribery.

but it is definitely a bittersweet "victory" whenever you think about how Daniel feels (or will feel, when he's a bit older) about the whole shebang. the whole thing is easier to swallow-- intentionally so, i imagine-- because Daniel isn't really a real person. We don't know anything about him other than a name, an age range, and a couple of anecdotes. he's just a plot device meant to illustrate how terrible of a father Alec is with a normal child. however, if you ever do start thinking about him as a real-life figure, then yeah, pretty much everything regarding Alec's actions becomes really fucked up and tragic.

i was also puzzled by that picture too! specifically the geography of it all. Fiore is listed as Italian/American, and Alec as British/Turkish. their home countries don't line up at all, so where was this image taken? given that Fiore appears to be doing schoolwork, i imagine it must be close to wherever she's attending school. did Alec come to visit her in Italy/the US? if so, why is he using that short visit to help her with her homework?

that's why i sort of took it as a low-key confirmation that maybe Alec and Fiore are now living together, just because I don't know why they would be in the same place taking the time to do Fiore's homework if they weren't pretty committed to each other. it's certainly not confirmed, though, and i wouldn't take it as such until we get an official confirmation. i also hope there's another livestream to answer this and other questions. but mostly just so that there is another livestream, because i greatly enjoyed listening to the last one!

[rjmenvs3000f23]

Lichen and Moss ~ Blog 9

As we near the end of the semester in this course, I can say with certainty that I am a Nature interpreter, and that interpretation is all around us. It works to enrich our daily lives and serves as a motivator when we may least expect it. In our textbook reading for this week, one story struck me. A father and his son were visiting Gunnison National Park, but the boy was eager to leave the trail. One man noticed the pair and offered to take them to a spot where they could see a bighorn ram. The son was in awe, and now he was refusing to leave the trail as he was memorized by the animal. Honestly, if I saw one in real life too, I would also be memorized. This moment in the boy’s life was probably a stepping stool in his future with nature. It shows that unexpected experiences can change one’s life.

For this week's blog, we were asked to write about the most amazing thing we know about nature. Recently I started watching this documentary on Netflix called “Life on Our Planet”. I haven't watched a Nature series in a while, but I thought why not? This series is like no other I’ve ever watched, and I highly recommend anyone who has Netflix to check it out! It recounts the evolution of our planet and all the stages of life and hostility on Earth.

Before the age of the dinosaurs, our planet was completely desolate and inhospitable. According to the documentary, it almost resembled the moon, covered in dead volcanoes and craters. I know for me it's hard to imagine our world like that, but it's also immensely fascinating that it used to be like that. However, even before this, life underwater had thrived for more than a billion years. From this emerged lichen, a curious life-form that is neither a plant nor an animal. Almost like fungi, and they are a combination of fungi and algae. Lichen spread rapidly over our planet and worked to break apart and infiltrate rocks that covered the land. Producing soil, and I’m sure we’re all familiar with the life-bearing properties of this medium.

From this first development of soil, came moss; which ruled and carpeted the planet for 40 million years!! This brought forth the evolution of plants that had lignin, which strengthens the cell walls of plants, allowing them to grow upwards. Trees and all different types of plants start shooting up, growing closer to the sky to get the best access to sunlight. Trees are the tallest living organisms on our planet, and this green evolution made the land hospitable to animals, insects, and all different types of creatures.

It’s honestly crazy to think that lichen and moss gave rise to all the greenery we see on our planet. Now when we look at plants, we know that their beginning was simple yet so profound that it changed the face of the Earth. I find that simply amazing, and I stumbled upon this finding because I wanted to watch a new documentary on Netflix. There’s beauty in the small things in life, quite literally.

Lanfear, S. (Writer & Director), Hamlin, J. (Director), Salisbury, E (Director). (2023, October 25). Invaders of the Land (Chapter 3) [TV Series episode]. In S. Spielberg, D. Frank, J. Falvey, K. Scholey, A. Fothergill (Executive producers). Life on Our Planet. Amblin Television & Silver Back.

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Chapter 21: The Bright Future of Interpretation . In Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World (pp. 457–476). essay, SAGAMORE Publishing.