#both are great actors wbk

[ririnya7]

I think the NC scene between Great and Tyme might be one of my all time favourites in a bl because of how natural it felt. The playfulness between the couple, their smiles and laughter but also the intensity of their stares, the lingering kisses, all of it felt genuine. They spoke without saying a word.

[fyeahfandomtrash]

tb 2020 recap (rambling review of episodes 1-6 because i am very sad we are not getting new episodes until the new year)

wow so i have a LOT of thoughts about this week’s episodes of true beauty that i will be posting throughout the week (also this is my way of coping with no new episodes for the rest of this year). we really went through quite the emotional wringer, and i have some theories about how they’re going to proceed with the story going forward (i think they’re still drawing elements from the webtoon but the timeline is going to be quite different). i get that some webtoon readers are upset by the direction of the drama, but please keep in mind that this is ultimately an adaptation, and the demands of the medium such as a 16 episode miniseries cannot directly translate the source material. i had pretty high expectations prior to episode 1, ngl. so far i’m really satisfied with what’s been happening. 

i get that not all webtoon readers have the same feelings about the webtoon, and i definitely fall into the camp of “i really dislike the direction this webtoon is going right now and disliked how drawn out they made the seojun-jugyeong relationship, thus muddying a clear, logical path towards the desired suho-jugyeong ending that the author envisioned”. truthfully, i never cared for webtoon seojun. he’s a character that elicits a strong emotional, empathetic response, but i never thought for a second he should’ve been with jugyeong. obviously, my thoughts about the character have since changed with the way they’ve changed the character in the drama (and i mean, wbk that i am very much obsessed with hwang inyeop’s performance thus far, making drama seojun impossible to dislike), but i get that drama seojun is a very different character from the webtoon. at this point, the most they really share is the visuals and the name. he acts differently, his personality is different, and his relationships with both suho and jugyeong are very different from the webtoon counterparts.

ultimately, it’s quite clear to me that the drama is interested in focusing on the suho x jugyeong endgame, which is smart of the writer. it does relegate seojun to the stereotypical second male lead role, and that is really unfortunate (and i will be upset about it during the entire run). i’m the type to give this drama a chance. sure, maybe it’s not what the webtoon is anymore, but if the story’s good, i’m going to enjoy it wholeheartedly. i cannot express the giddiness and joy i feel in seeing these webtoon characters, who basically exist as frozen drawings, be portrayed by real-life (and immensely talented and dedicated) actors who look so much like those webtoon characters it’s UNREAL. it has been an absolute joy so far. 

anyways, i hope everyone has a great rest of your year, and i hope you have a happier and healthier 2021! see you guys next year for episodes 7 and 8 :))

[theatresteph]

7x01 Thoughts

Okay, so I’m shamelessly copying from the twitter thread I made after I first watched the episode. This was before I saw the sneak peaks, and I still haven’t seen 7x02. If I sound angry, whiny, irrational, tired and bitter, it’s cause I kinda was. If you want a proper review, check out @travllingbunny’s review below. She made GREAT points!

So yeah. If you love logical and tries-to-be-unbiased-Steph, she’s not here. She’s too busy to care whether she sounds smart right now. Her smart vocabulary is being used for essays right now. Otherwise, here’s what I thought.

Okay, so basically, I’m very annoyed about the lack of Bellamy. I don’t care whether there’s a larger point to it. Bellamy’s the leading man and Bob’s one of the best actors on the show. Not using him is a disrespect and I have every right to feel that way.

Aside from my Bellamy feelings, I was rolling my eyes a lot at the political and religious mess that is Sanctum. It’s a whole bunch of crazy and violent people with military-grade guns in the mix. So... basically the U.S. 😂 seriously though, I can’t STAND fanatics and I’d like to stop seeing them in my favourite dramas 🙄.

Ngl, I was throwing shade at a lot of characters, but Echo actually received none of it! I was surprised too, but I loved what I saw of her and Gabriel working together, and once I stopped being annoyed at Hope for attacking him, I liked that she teamed up with them too.

Also, ROAN WAS BACK!!!!! WHY DID NO ONE TELL ME!!!?? I LOVE ROAN SO MUCH!!!!!! And seeing OG Echo was cool! Them saying that she was useless without Bellamy or something like that was so compelling and I’m actually excited to see her story this year! But I’d still rather see Bellamy!!! Seriously, WHERE WAS HE!!!???

Ugh, but moving on, yeah, I was annoyed at characters I love a bit today. I hated watching Clarke continue to pretend like everything’s fine when it’s not and she should actually grieve. I’m definitely going to see that soon though, after that fire! But this is Clarke’s way and I’m used to it.

I did feel good watching Murphy feel bad about Abby. I don’t care about his reasons or whether he thought he was doing the right thing or anything. I don’t blame him for Abby’s death, but I don’t really know how to not be mad at him for Clarke’s near-death. I know I’m holding a grudge, but I guess that’s where I draw the line at forgiveness for him. Making a deal with the people who murdered your friend who repeatedly sacrificed herself for you is one thing. Assisting in her murder when you know she’s actually alive is something else entirely. I don’t care that he helped in the end when he had a knife to his throat. I judge Emori less because she told Bellamy.

In general, I still judge both Murphy and Emori for choosing to become bodysnatchers altogether even though they’re not Primes and I care about them. It really doesn’t matter to me how you sell it; murdering someone else so you can live in their body is wrong, and not wrong as in “morally grey”, as in indisputably selfish. I won’t be convinced otherwise about that. Of course, I still love and care about them as characters because I know them so well, I just can’t get past this. Whatever.

I loved Miller, Gaia, Indra, Madi, Jackson and Gabriel completely this episode 😊. Madi’s story of her birth-Mum had me crying so much! She was only 6! 😭 I want to hug her and Clarke so much! I want BELLAMY to hug them so much!! WHERE IS BELLAMY!!!!???

I called it about Murphy’s “have we learned nothing!?” line being him playing his Prime role! And wbk about Sheidheda possessing Russell. So Russell’s FINALLY dead-dead. I’m excited about where this will go!

As usual, I’m worried about Jordan 😬. I can’t tell if the woman holding a knife to his throat was Nikki Bang-Bang or some other random criminal, but I hate her either way.

Also, Hope saw Octavia! Clearly Octavia was around when she was growing up. We already guessed that based on the trailer and other stuff, but it’s still nice seeing it confirmed.

I don’t want Clarke to lose herself in her grief and Sheidheda’s manipulation and all the chaos, but I do want her to work through her feelings! No one deserves therapy more than her!!!!

Also, the Anomaly stuff was weird, but what else is new? All I care about is saving Bellamy and finding out whatever the f*ck happened with Octavia and getting Bellarke to confess/kiss/sex scene. It’s what we deserve and why I started the show.

I ended it there with a Miranda Priestly gif 😂. So that’s what I thought. I’ll watch 7x02 soon, and will probably give my thoughts in a similar format. I’m very scatterbrained right now cause of assignments and exams. I’ll be finished in about a month, so I’ll be more invested then. I know Bellarke’s not happening until at least after 7x04, so I’m okay with missing out on things here and there until 7x05. Anyway, hope you enjoyed that 😘.

[anxiety-trademark]

The week in review:

Raw 08/10 NXT 08/12 Smackdown 08/14

Raw:

Bianca is strong af, but wbk.

Holy shit I forgot Mickie James even existed.

I'm ngl, I like Lana with Nattie in any capacity, as I did in 2017. If there's anyone that can teach Lana wtf to do in the ring without being held back, it's Nattie. Should've kept them together. Also they look cute. Points.

I really like Peyton's finisher. It's flashy and looks effective.

An irrelevant complaint now, but it still irks me that Baysha never found an actual tag theme. I hated them coming out to each others' music. & this may be random, but I wish more women would pose on the turnbuckles for their entrance. I think it's just Asuka that does? More ppl should.

Bayley to Asuka: "Where's Kairi??" PPPFFFFFTTTTT I guess in kf, Bayley really is my hero.

I love how Bayley snaps in an ankle lock outta nowhere. I wish she'd get a win with it. While I'm praising Bayley, let's give a round of applause to her for her gear (or rather to Mikaze) also while I never underestimate her speed and stamina, sometimes she still surprises me with her core strength. Girl is built.

aaaahahahahha Bayley mocking Kairi’s spinning backfist, ridiculous stomp, and her spyglass. A hero, truly. Good match.

Raw underground is dumb. It’s like watching a low budget Fight Club remake with 1/3 the extras.

Why is it smoky in there? Why is there music playing?? Who are these women??? How did you find worse actors than Shayna for her to demolish???? Why is this woman barefoot???!? WHAT IS THE POINT.

I hope there’s never another women’s segment on there ever again, let’s avoid watching this entirely plz & thnx. Thank god it’s gone now, whew.

Highlight: Bayley vs Asuka

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NXT:

I absolutely love Dakota Kai. She is so talented. There are only three women in nxt that I feel have the full package, and she’s one of them.

“Dakota Kai is acting as if she’s a big star, but until she betrayed Tegan Nox, no one even knew who Dakota Kai was,” shady af. Io’s not wrong though, I was hardly a fan of Dakota, or her music... oof that music. Watching her beat the crap out of Tegan was ace though, so. Even if she sorely reminds me of Bayley.

Hi who tf is Indi Hartwell other than some girl who was inspired by Bayley vs Sasha Brooklyn? Have I missed something??

I would’ve preferred Mia Yim to stay in nxt as a gatekeeper - somewhat as nxt’s version of Nattie. I get that she goes where Keith Lee goes, which is fair, but I feel like she’ll never even reach midcard as a solo competitor on the main roster.

That was a match.

I don’t care for Kayden’s music but she gets points for posing on the turnbuckle.

What happened to Chelsea Green btw? How you gonna team her with Charlotte only to never be seen again? I’d really like to understand why her and Aliyah couldn’t have been a team together in RSB :/

Did Mercedes sell those masks as merch? She should have sold them as merch.

I really like Kayden Carter, and I really appreciate the women’s tag division in nxt. They put the work into their chemistry with each other, and it shows.

Love Rhea but this whole “Rhea has to get her entrance in” thing is annoying. I’m nitpicking, I know.

*sees Dinner With the Garganos coming up* No.

Highlight: Kayden & Kacy vs Mercedes & Aliyah

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Smackdown:

I’ll never get over how supportive Bayley is of the rest of the locker room, but I’m not sure I’m a fan of her wearing other peoples’ merch as a heel. I didn’t even like her wearing Sasha’s merch. Bayley’s sweet though, so half point.

“After what happened on Raw, we now know that I have to face Asuka at Summerslam,” Sasha referring to ‘did somebody hear something’ Bayley pppffffffttttt. Still sour on them not defending all of their titles at SS, but it’s a moo point now.

Fucking ring announcing 😂

“How’s Summer doing” bYE

Creative way of skipping the majority of the entrances, cuz who has the fucking time to hear them all be announced. Points.

Kind of sad that Alexa isn’t involved, but I guess it’s to be expected since she’s in the process of becoming possessed.

HAVE I MENTIONED THAT BIANCA IS STRONG AF

Clever elimination by Shotzi.

Advancing Riott Squad/iiconics and Naomi/Lacey (a feud I despise), a callback to Shayna/Shotzi in nxt, planting seeds for Shayna/Asuka, and foreshadowing Bianca/Bayley were all nice touches.

The fact that Tegan got to eliminate Bianca is criminal. I irrationally cannot stand her. I’m not sorry. Tegan with her dumbass chokeslam attempt on Shayna, goodbye. Negative points.

Fantastic finish. Again, still sour that Asuka challenged for both titles at SS, but it’s also a moo point now. Still... great fkn finish. Points for creativity.

Bayley: “It’s not like my title was even on the line on Monday, so at SS I’ll actually have something important to fight for.” Ohhh noooo the look on Sasha’s face. Man. She sells vulnerability and heartbreak way too well. I’m so happy she finally got hers later in the year, but oof is this gonna be hard to watch.

Shame Sonya had to leave. She is missed.

Love how Alexa’s interview ended, with her grinding her jaw and then looking off as it fades to black. Solid direction.

Love that Braun can’t even look at her while he tries to convince her/himself that he doesn’t care about her. He’s doing remarkably well.

Love how they cut to black with her in midair.

I think y’all are way too fucking hard on Alexa just cuz she beat your favs a couple years ago. She’s talented, she’s legit shining in this role. I’m a big fan, this is the best I’ve seen yet of this story. That’s where I’m at rn.

Highlight: Alexa’s interview & segment w/ Braun

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*Smackdown shined the brightest for me this week. Really great pre-match segment with Bayley and Sasha, and so far I’m really into Alexa’s character arc.