#ck season 4 episode 8

[danielslaw]

DANIEL LARUSSO AND SAMANTHA LARUSSO HUGS THROUGH THE SERIES COBRA KAI

[mournersandfunerals]

The thing is, I can forgive a lot of it. The scene where Kaz tries to help Inej with her wounds? I guess it was a nice nod to the CK scene, if slightly too soon. The "I will have you without Armour?" Fine. We all wanted to see that anyway. Rushing Wesper into a relationship rather than keeping as the slow-burn from the books? Okay. I really loved them on screen despite that. Kaz beating up the dregs? Definitely could have done without it for obvious reasons, but whatever. I can brush it off.

But the two things that are really grating on me are Kaz's face-off with Pekka Rollins and Inej leaving to hunt slavers. Because the POINT of these things happening towards the end of the second book is that there's a build up.

These characters go through so much. We learn everything about them, we see their struggles and we root for them. We spend SO much time learning about Kaz's thirst for revenge. We see moments where he starts to lose it when it comes to Pekka, and slowly start to learn why. And at the climax of Crooked Kingdom, there's so much on the line. We finally see him snap. There's a build up there of something that he's spent his entire life and two whole books working towards.

The first season of Shadow and Bone consisted of 8 episodes. So we can estimate that the crows had probably less than 4 hours of screen time. And we learned nothing about them, really. They were the mysterious trio that were hired to steal something. And then suddenly S2E1's "Brick by brick" turns into the peak of Kaz's character arc. It takes away the impact and the reasoning behind it.

And the same for Inej. Where is the journey? Where's the trauma that was inflicted by a woman who was truly evil? When we see Inej running into Tante Heleen for the first time in the duology, she freezes. She can't do anything. Are you telling me that the same girl who is so terrified of this woman can face her without a problem?

Again, there's so much of a development here as well. Inej has this realisation and this epiphany about what she wants to do. She wants to hunt down these slavers. She wants to make sure that nobody goes through the same stuff that she did. And when she sees Heleen after that, it's when she slowly starts to lose power over Inej. I mean, she steals the necklace straight from her neck, for crying out loud. Erasing Inej's trauma from S1 was a problem but they dug themselves in a deeper hole by killing off Heleen. She can't go through the journey that she's supposed to. Her entire character arc was just completely erased.

And the thing is, in the duology, Inej still goes through even more hell before she can get free from her indenture. The Ice Court Heist, Van Eck's torture, Dunyasha, etc. And yet... she's free before the start of the heist?

The heist is an important job for each crow. They all have a reason for being there, and they all have something on the line. None of them really think they're going to survive it, but they're trying anyway because, at this point, what do they really have to lose? And for Inej, this is her chance to get the money to leave the barrel. So... are you telling me that she's going to willingly come back to help on a life-threatening job for freedom that she no longer needs? What's going to happen with Kaz now that he's already had that stand-off?

Would love to know because right now I'm as lost as the rest of the book fans.

[canonicallyobserving911]

So... who thought it was a good idea to bring Vincent Gerrard back?

It's been three days since the finale aired and I'm still trying to figure out why the show did that non-cliffhanger with Gerrard. Did they really believe viewers would want to spend the entire hiatus thinking about all the horrible things that will be said to Chimney, Hen, Buck, Eddie and Ravi under this 100 year-old-dude's leadership?

I mean seriously, he was the WORST captain in the history of 9-1-1 with his racist and bigoted ass and why didn't the LAFD fire him after what he did to Chimney and Hen? It's truly baffling for the show to think anyone who watched the Hen and Chimney Begins episodes in season 2 would want to watch the beloved characters of the 118 be subjected to his f~ckery in season 8.

What was the goal here because it doesn't make any sense? This is supposed to be a TV show not an Alfred Hitchcock movie or an Agatha Christie novel. Can TM please get back to the business of the show and stop trying to recreate movies, stop doing drama for the sake of drama and shock value just because he thinks it'll be good (it won't be and it hasn't been; for proof see episodes 7x7 and 7x9 for his ridiculous recreation of the movie "Vertigo" because it was BS and it assassinated Eddie's character) and start back focusing on the main cast and the emergencies? At this point, the show has lost it's essence and it kind of feels like they'll never get it back.

I miss the way the show was in seasons 2, 3 and 4. The rest has been a cluster f~ck.

[cjbolan]

Finished HOTD Season 2 Episode 2. Lots of thoughts . Mainly about Alicent…

1) Alicent shows a tendency to start f*cking Ser Criston Cole when she should be comforting her mourning children.

2) I thought in the last scene for a second Alicent was going to show Aegon real affection for the first time . But nope she instead turns away from Aegon in his greatest time of need and instead f*cks Cole. Confirming again what a terrible mother she is. Truly incapable of making her son feel loved.

3) This episode is the first time I think Alicent showed her daughter Helaena real affection.

4) I think Aegon does know about his mom’s secret affair and is going to blackmail her with his knowledge of it.

5) Aegon may be an idiot but I am again so glad to see him stand up to his mom and granddad for treating him like crap his entire childhood.

6) The battle between the two brothers was so sad.

7) Whether or not Daemon told Blood and Cheese to kill a child, I still think Daemon wanted that. The way he denies the accusations sounds so bland and unconvincing, he could be lying. I’m with you Rhaenyra; I don’t believe him either.

8) Several characters express regret for their actions , but I think only Ser Arryk shows genuine regret.

9) Anyone else think Jahaerys’ head was going to fall off during the funeral procession ?

[bohemian-nights]

Nettles is not cut out but she's not going to be in S2 cause they're slowing a lot the series. Season 2 won't have Gullet's battle and the take of King Landing either, cause Daemon is going to be at Harrenhal, except when he ots with Mysaria Blood and Cheese in King Landing, but that happens in episode 1, after that he's the whole season at Harrenhal, and only by the end of ep 7 will meet Oscar Tully and Nyra is reaching him there in episode 8. It means they're not concluding the season with the take of King Landing, but much earlier, so it does make sense that Nettles is pushed to S3, cause she plays major role in Gullet's battle, Maidenpool arc and Daemon's plotline and nothing of this is happening in S2. About the sowing, they can show that white guy trying to claim Sheepstealer and fails, so after that Sheepstealer is going to be wild dragon around and Nettles will claim him not cause of the sowing but because is finding him randomly, feeding him cause she has no afraid and Sheepstealer will choose her as her rider. They can show that in S3, before she joins first Jace and later Daemon. I also think that considering they're purposely slowing down the series, season 3 will have Gullet and King Landing and S4 Maidenpool, God's eye and the conclusion of the Dance. 4 seasons as George wanted.

I agree that she hasn’t been cut from the show, but if she’s cut from this season, slowing things down still isn’t a good excuse. Not when they have time to include every other dragonseed, expand their plots, and create pointless plots for a random character that is a show creation (who shouldn’t even be there).

Nettles isn’t your run-of-the-mill character. She might be a secondary character, but she’s equally if not more important than Addam(who they are making too big of a deal about when his claiming of Seasmoke was not that remarkable). She’s way more important than Ulf and Hugh who are allegedly getting additional scenes even though they could’ve been combined since they serve the same purpose.

There is no good excuse to cut her from season two. Yes, the Battle of the Gullet doesn’t happen until s3, and Silver Denys is there, but she’s there before the battle like all the rest of the dragonseeds that are being included.

They don’t have to show her claiming Sheepstealer (yes it does take her a while to claim him), but they can show her visiting and observing him.

Or just show how her life is as a homeless orphan and how she longs for a better life. The bottom line is that there are plenty of ways in which they could include her this season. Hell, this show has no problem making sh*t up for irrelevant’s so they can definitely find something for Netty to do.

The only reason why she could potentially be cut from this season is misogynoir and the show not considering her series player in comparison to her male and/or white counterparts. At this point, it’s whatever and the show obviously is going to do what they want, but I’m not buying these arguments and I’m sick of this fandom acting as if she’s irrelevant or what is being done is okay. It’s not.

Nettles is a final girl. She’s in every version of the dance where plenty of others who are being included in this season are not. The narrative doesn’t make sense without her, but no one gives a f*ck.

They say it’s fine that she’s cut, racebent, replaced, whatever because she doesn’t look like them. No disrespect anon, but it is absolutely heartbreaking to see what is happening. Nettles is an amazing important character and she shouldn’t be pushed back another season when everyone else is being included.

[calisources]

THOMAS IAN GRIFFITH AS TERRY SILVER IN NETFLIX'S COBRA KAI SEASON 5.

base icons are 230x130 in order to be use for any type of icon template.

the icons are already sharpened, as well brightened due to the show being very dark.

Thomas Ian Griffith (b. 1962 ) is of Welsh and Irish ancestry.

remember to reblog if you save/use. credit somewhere if you save.

these base icons are free.  consider donating to  paypal or buy me a coffee through ko-fi. it truly helps me a lot.    

psa: while TIG is in his early sixties, his karate is portrayed to be older. there is also a few icons of flashbacks to his Karate Kid Part III appearance.

warnings: blood, wounds, swords. i mean terry is his own warning.

EPISODE 1 - 45 ICONS EPISODE 2 - 158 ICONS EPISODE 3 - 42 ICONS EPISODE 4 - 80 ICONS EPISODE 5 - 116 ICONS EPISODE 6 - 85 ICONS EPISODE 7 - 77 ICONS EPISODE 8 - 122 ICONS EPISODE 9 - 64 ICONS EPISODE 10 - 115 ICONS

TOTAL ICON COUNT: 904 ICONS TIG IN S4 OF CK HERE.

[chaand-jalne-laga]

CJL LIVE BLOG SEASON 1 [EPISODE 2]

Hi. I had an exam on 28th and I had promised my mother that I won't write anything before that. So. Now. Come. Let'z begin :)

1.) So. Now is the time for their sweet re-union. Badshah & Deva. Deva fishes out a harmonica and starts playing 'their' melody which is also an instrumental of the titular song.

2.) Badshah, instantly, recognizes the tune and starts running towards its source, Deva as well comes down running towards him while playing it, with tears rolling down his eyes.

3.) Ok. So. Now. Badshah is doing nakhre. He wants to have a race to a tree at the hilltop. Deva mocks Badshah of his old age and inability to run at full speed. He warns him not to cheat and to start running only at the count of three. (Tho he himself breaks the rules in the next moment. Lol.)

4.) They are about to reach the hilltop and Deva realizes he is loosing, so, he takes a long-ass high jump and lands on the tree, altho the camera could not hide the actuality of the scene but theek hai itna toh chalta hai.

5.) Deva is hanging down a branch and is gloating of his victory but the branch breaks off and he falls down the hill to the-waterfall?-lake?-water body. Whatever.

6.) And, now, we get a glimpse of his trauma getting triggered due to him going underwater. We see the impact of the trauma has been huge on him too, by the line as well as the way, he says it, "Haan haan tu jeeta aur......main haar gaya."

7.) We, along with Badshah, get a glimpse of his tortured past. He(Badshah) tries to sooth and comfort him but Deva brushes it off by saying that this was the reward for trying to bring a smile on someone's face, he continues, the wounds have healed but the pain is still there.

8.) And, we are instantly taken to that certain someone who, he was talking about, moments ago. Mujhariya ji? Or? Bhojariya ji? They didn't keep track of that name. (¬_¬)

9.) Tara has. Oh. Hi Tara. So. Tara has returned home but she kept searching for Badshah, the whole day, as it is night time now. She has badgered (-Bho/Mu-)jhariya ji the whole day, he is exasperated and tells her to not disturb him as he has no knowledge of the person, who has bought Badshah.

10.) So. We hear someone shouting at the top of their lungs, asking for their 'accounts ki file' and we see Baba throw- Oh. Hi Baba. Long time no see. Hope you are fin-i think not. Did you too find something strange in Baba's behavior? Like. Wasn't he, a self-centered, stuck up 'Sehgal' all those years back? Yeh kab se Tara ki baat manne lage? Something's wrong with him, i think. Whatever.

11.) So. Tara hands him those yellow flowers from the gardens of their ex-house. Lol. Ex-house. And Baba calms down, considerably.

12.) We see Tara leaves Baba inside the room and goes to clean the now-broken expensive lamp of her chachi. Chachi warns her to tell off her Baba to be careful with the things of this house as it is their house(Chacha and Chachi's). Btw, what's with Chachi's over make-up and heavy saree? She didn't go anywhere? Did she? No? Then why the over dressing? Lol. Whatever.

13.) Oh. So. Chachi takes rent from these two. To give them space in 'their' house. To give shelter to their OWN big brother? Like? Blood related BIG BRO? Wow. Just wow. And, she orders Tara to give her additional five thousand along with the monthly rent, for the loss of that goddamn lamp. Chachi, be grateful that she has the grace to give that money, had i been at her place, i would have given you a tight slap. Now. Shut the f*ck up Chachi. You understand? STFU CHACHI.

Not-so-fun Fact : Why are all the Chacha's and Chachi's of the ITV universe doing the GREAT wrong deed / the GREAT injustice? First Arnav's chachaji and now these idiots (also chachas and chachis)? Like? Wtf is wrong with them? Whatever.

14.) Aha. See? I told you. Baba is ill, y'all.

15.) Tara pleads chachi to -understandably- show some mercy to her father but chachi backfires.

16.) Oh. So. I was right again. Chacha and chachi are going for a party thrown by some 'maaldaar investor'. Lol. What was with that shitty woofing at the end. Lol. Whatever.

17.) Hold on, y'all. Let me take a water break.

*takes a two minute time-out*

*returns back* Ok. Let's resume.

18.) Papa is ill. But brother is still the same. Asshole. You noticed how papa has softened towards Tara now? I actually feel sad for Tara. This poor little kid lost so much so soon. And, now she is the one taking care of her ill father and reckless brother. Because Rohan has to get paid to look after his ill papa for ONE FREAKING DAY. Humphf. Shit-hole of a brother.

Not-so-Fun Fact : They highlighted his gold gleaming ring and the watch on his left hand when he asked about his return gift for 'papa-sitting' which means Tara was the only one who gave those to him or at least she was the one to pay the bill. My poor little baby Tara.

LoOoOol. Again, that Sehgal Promise. Bro, the last time you gave your 'Sehgal Promise', you almost traumatized Tara. Just spare her with that shit-ass of a promise of yours and take care of your father, you jobless leech.

19.) Tara has been made part of the event today night, which is probably, being hosted by Deva and he can't wait to start on his revenge, the moment he was waiting for, for the last fifteen years.

20.) Lol. Deva is in love. Yeah. Kind of. The man has everything around him which keeps reminding him of Tara. He really loves her, actually. Had kind of fallen for her all those years back. It's just he has this misunderstanding that Tara had the heart to betray him so when he comes to know the truth he will actually end up taking revenge from those accused Sehgals for his and Tara's tortured past.

21.) Ok. So. Deva in black. His car in red. (Tara in red. Lol. I saw in the thumb nail.)

22.) Ok. So. Wow. The entry. Both of them together. In the chand's light. That? Was? So? Freaking? Beautiful? Like? Wtf?

P.S. : So. Yeah. As I said. I am loving this show. The ending scene was perfect. It was so goddamn beautiful. Wow. Everything was perfect. Deva in black, Tara in red. Btw it was kinda surprising that Tara's chacha-chachi were in black while she in red(You know how it goes in some shows. The whole family is given the same color combination.) But it is also fitting because both of them are the black shadows in Tara's life while Deva, also in black, was given a see-through shirt underneath the coat, so I guess it was to show that he won't be completely black, like, black in the surface but his love for Tara would also be very much visible, just like his own skin is. Whatever. I over-analyzed the thing which did not need any analyzing. Lol. Whatever. Ok. Bye. God bless you.

[ineffable-opinions]

What Did You Eat Yesterday (season 2)

Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (2023)

Ongoing review: Love. Rating: 8/10 so far.

What I liked:

The post-de@th arrangement episode

Shiro san’s mother inviting KenjiShiro to share grave in the name of cost minimization.

Kenji’s reaction to this.

The way he changes the address from oka-san to oka-sama. How he asked Shiro to take his mother’s side in this imagined family feud. Kenji now is the man I wish to marry. Where can I find such a husband! I love Shiro’s confusion upon seeing Kenji’s reaction.

Side note: Why the f*ck is Shiro not inviting Kenji to join his household? What is he waiting for? I know real people don’t follow BL logic and that KenjiShiro don’t think of their relationship to be of a settled happily-ever-after type. But still! I don’t think Kenji’s family would object or ask for the other way around.

3. Shiro being thrown off guard by propriety and informality.

Shiro babe, you can offer financial assistance to your parents but don’t give it in one go, unless they ask. Don’t make it obvious, filial-piety coat it. Tell them this is what little you can do to show your gratitude for having raised you. You can also send them money in installments: the money you gave them already is going into making it possible for them to save and afford this for themselves. You can also win lotteries. Strike that, that’s too Gu Hai. For those who didn’t get that: HaiLouyin, in the danmei novel Addicted, indirectly fulfils filial piety by arranging random lucky draws that gets Bai Hanqi, who refuses to accept money, a lot of consumer durables.

4. Shiro apologizing for having let his parents mistreat Kenji. Kenji’s maturity despite his sadness on the matter.

5. Kenji is probably one of the most femme characters: he reflects so much of traditional femininity.

Barbershop drama

Barbershop owner and wife pretending to be civil for the sake of their child.

This is such a protective thing that parents do.

2. Owner’s wife’s decision to divorce once her daughter gets into uni and to leave the barbershop.

I am not a big fan of people springing well-thought-out decisions on others. I also believe that people can change, and that can be for good. That marriage ended with owner’s infidelity; the band-aid had to come off someday.

3. The ikemen hairdresser’s straight forward attitude and the customers who seem to appreciate it.

4. His girlfriend

I am not very happy with her choosing to leave him. This kind of self-sacrificial letting go really doesn’t suit a BL character, does it? Aren’t you supposed to fight for your love? Also, if the ikemen is able to let her go so easily, maybe it’s not worth it. But then he kept her stuff untouched. Also, she looks so good, such a scholarly beauty.

5. I love how the ikemen love drama.

Much water has flown through the drain

This is so anti-Great Indian Kitchen (2021).

GIK is a Malayalam drama movie that holds a mirror to sexism in praxis in Malayali household. Drain water appears prominently in GIK.

2. Shiro’s past - being weak/cheap uke! Aka simp. Kenji feeling jealous.

3. Kenji not being Shiro’s type.

Kenji’s care and attention winning Shiro’s heart. This is the greatest BL trope – that there is someone who treats so well you’ll love them regardless of everything else. Kindness wins!

4. Shiro having treated Kenji with sincerity from Day 1 as seen from the recollection of the first meal he prepared for Kenji.

KenjiShiro is the closest thing to an arranged marriage couple, not the western romance trope bullshit. The proper, south-Asian kind. Sometimes people marry people who are not their type but treat them with sincerity and affection befitting a spouse.

5. Shiro admitting that Kenji is his boyfriend.

6. More than that the simulation!

The cousin one got me crackling like nothing else. That’s the go-to lie that couples, including straight ones, tell their nosy ‘well-wishers’, especially landlords, where I live.

Shrine-visit

Main CP & secondary CP going to shrine together.

Cherry Magic! 30-sai made Dotei Da to Mahotsukai ni Nareru rashii (2020) did this before.

2. Shiro praying! The household happiness charm!

This happened contemporaneously with I Can’t Reach You (2023) with charm drama involving teenagers.

3. Shiro having never done this with friends or at night.

4. Kenji wanting to party at Nichome and Daisaku X Gilbert CP turning him down.

Ten years since they last visited Nichome! This is some relationship flexing, saying we are an old-married couple without actually saying it.

5. Discussing parents and single kids.

Filial piety pain.

6. Building with a history. “I’ll eat in bedroom,” was the funniest.

Kenji thinking that Shiro was contributing more to the rent. Shiro, please stop being so-so. Add Kenji to your household already.

Wataru kun

He toes the line between the BL’s classic bishonen Gilbert and someone suffering histrionic personality disorder. This could be intentional; I don’t know for sure since I haven’t read the manga. If not, then screenwriter, director, actor or all can be held responsible for it.

This is a BL. Characters like him are supposed to feel at home here and find the right partner too. This has been achieved. So, this is less of a criticism and more of a praise. 

--

Aside: Turns out post-death arrangements are cheaper in Japan even without purchasing power parity adjustments. If it was not for my desire to be buried under Mimusops elengi flowers…

[0aurelion-sol0]

MY TOP 10 SHOWS OF 2022 (because why the f*ck not ?!)

_________________________________________

10.The Walking Dead's 11th & Final Season 🧟‍♂️

9. Miss Marvel 🦸‍♀️

8. Moon Knight 🌙

7. Wednesday 🖕

6. The Boys' 3rd Season 🦸‍♂️

5. The Crown's 5th Season 👑

4. Andor 🌌

3. Better Call Saul's 6th & Final Season ⚖

2. Westworld's 4th & (sadly) Final Season 🤖

1. 1899🜃

_________________________________________

Honorable Mentions:

The Umbrella Academy's 3rd Season ☔

(My guilty pleasure! I think this show is actually really good and misunderstood by a lot of people. And I can't help but love my lunatics so it was a win for me!)

Stranger Things' 4th Season 🕰

(As much as I hate this f*cking season and still gets annoyed by it everyday, it still paid the bills for 3 years and was a moment regardless given everything that happened in it... 🙄 Some I enjoyed, MANY I did not. But I have to mention in as a show of good faith.😏 At least what's left of it...)

Euphoria's 2nd Season 💊

(I have mixed feelings about this season overall compared to the first one. A lot of amazing moments as well as a lot of infuriating choices, however directing, music and acting was on point especially for Zendaya and Sydney.)

Guillermo Del Toro's Cabinet Of Curiosities🗝

(I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this show. It's one of the better anthology series out there I must say, as each episode felt carefully crafted. Favorites are episode 3, 7 which is a f*cking vibe & 8; at least those who come to mind right now. However, I will never watch episode 5 again (I probably will though) because it made me feel the most uneasy I've ever been in front of an episode, and it is cursed, ugly, offensive, horrifying and... ANYWAY!)

She-Hulk 🟢

(It was fun.)

[error404vnotfound]

SO

what did we learn?

they fucked up the crows so much idk if there is a way to fix this mess. soc and ck are perfect books. 10/10 character and story beats are on fucking point. SO WHY TOUCH IT. IF IT AIN'T BROKEN. sure changes are necessary if you want them on the show but come on. emotionally these bitches are on the last third of crooked kingdom while the plot hasn't even begun for six of crows. make it make sense

anyways

as for the grisha trilogy people. they merged book 2 and 3 in one season. which. uh. sure why not. they made some weird changes to how amplifiers work to speed shit up because there was no budget for the fire bird apparently. the whole thing with baghra's bones sure was confusing lore wise. ALSO THE OTHER LIVING SAINT????? SURE THAT MAKES SENSE. mal is being dumb? for reasons? we are in king of scars territory now which ???? how are we doing that AT THE SAME TIME AS WE DO THE ICE COURT HEIST

the end of episode 4/ episode 5 was the beginning of the end for me. involving the crows with the fucking sword was dumb. they could have had the crows doing fun shenanigans in ketterdam while the Alina plot buddies did their thing. not this mess

speaking of messes. wtf was episode 8. what was that structure. end the fucking show, don't introduce 7492 new plots. setting up nikolai having a shadow friend is fine I guess, as well as the jurda parem thing with the crows. but like. inej is with Mal on a boat ?????????????????????? alina has gramps powers now too apparently. again, mal is just being dumb for the plot. the apparat shows up to be icky and weird after being gone for a whole ass season. PEKKA IS IN FUCKING HELLSGATE

i- just

why

[carinalastimosa]

Will the Bachelor Franchise Give Asians Their Flowers?

I was a latecomer to The Bachelor franchise. It was the first year of COVID,  we’d gotten past the lockdown stage but it meant that new scripted content had dried up. So naturally, my husband and I turned to the backlog of Bachelor episodes on streaming services to keep the drama alive and well. That’s how it works, right? Either way, we were hooked and took enjoyment in watching every bloated episode of “starting to fall in love”-isms. 

I think part of our viewing enjoyment was being detached from the real time drama that unfolds between each week of an episode’s release. We could speculate in our own little bubble how serious Greg was about Katie or if Becca regretted not choosing Blake. Reality dating shows have long struggled with addressing social media. Should they focus on what was presented during the show or touch on the narrative created outside of the show on social media? It’s a tricky balancing act. Just ask Vanessa Lachey after the season 4 reunion of Love is Blind. The Bachelor franchise, which includes The Bachelorette; Bachelor in Paradise; The Golden Bachelor; and soon to be The Golden Bachelorette iteration to air this fall, is no exception to this. In fact, The Bachelor franchise first piqued my interest when Season 13 Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay published her article on being the first black person to lead the franchise and the challenges and failed expectations that came with that. This coincided with the surfacing of photos of Season 25 Bachelor contestant Rachel Kirkconnell attending an Antebellum-themed party. At that time, The Bachelor was airing Season 25 with Matt James, their first black man to lead the franchise. I followed these headlines loosely as it made the pop culture news rounds but I still brushed off the show, thinking that it was something not worth investing in, as ultimately, this was a dating show by white people, made for white people. 

Cut to March 2024, and I have now become well versed in the Bachelor universe, having now watched 8 Bachelor seasons and 10 Bachelorette seasons. I have my favorite contestants (Gabby Windey), favorite seasons (Tayshia Adams’s half of The Bachelorette), and honestly look forward to whenever Jesse Palmer pops up to do some hosting. I had found my trashy T.V. , my guilty pleasure, the thing I can turn on to turn off my brain. It was supposed to just be something I could watch and that’s it. But to be a part of Bachelor Nation is more than that. 

Bachelor Nation is known to dig. No matter how beloved or trivial a contestant, they will find something that could move the dial in a devastating way. Some of it hilarious, like Season 28 Bachelor contestant, Daisy Kent, being a part of a music video, featuring the poetic lyrics of “I think I’m better and I don’t give a f*ck now / So you can lick on my sack suck my nuts now / That ain’t no fossil, oh bitch this a bust down / I feel alright ain’t dark like the sundown”. While some are worth discussing like Season 19 Bachelorette contestant Erich Schwer dressing up as Jimi Hendrix in blackface for a Halloween party; which the show ultimately ignored during their finale because Schwer ended up being Gabby Windey’s choice and the show needed their happy ending since co-Bachelorette lead Rachel Recchia’s choice ended up cheating before they could even air the finale. While not ultimately a part of the show, I do view it as supplemental material that either enhances or informs my viewing. Bachelor Nation has done my research for me so that I don’t have to. But there’s only so much I can consume. I’m not one to engage in the comments, whether it’s reading them or writing them. Whatever Bachelor Nation has found, I get nice little summaries of it from my favorite recaps such as The Ringer’s podcast Bachelor Party and YouTube channel Bachelor Fantake. 

The latest season to air this year, Season 28 of The Bachelor starring Joey Graziadei seemed to reignite Bachelor Nation’s love for their leads. Off the heels of the very successful debut of The Golden Bachelor, despite the fallout of Gerry Turner post the show’s airing, Bachelor producers capitalized on the moment and it seemed that everyone fell in love with Graziadei. Heck, I did too! I mean the emotional intelligence and the way he looks at you! With all eyes on the bachelor, it meant that close attention was also paid to the Bachelor contestants. Nothing too disparaging was found, with the exception of the already mentioned Kent music video, but that’s more unfortunately hilarious than damning. Instead, the discourse came well into the season, when fan favorite, Maria Georgas asked Graziadei for a moment to speak to him privately just as the final 3 rose ceremony was about to begin, and when Goergas came back to join the rest of the women, fellow contestant Rachel Nance asked, “What was that about?”. Out of context, this seems like a simple enough question, and even watching the moment play out, there was nothing to clock. In fact, what I found to be slightly irritating was Georgas’s response to Nance, “I’ll tell you one day.” But Bachelor Nation perceived this differently. Immediately attacking Nance, not necessarily for what she did (ask a question), but for who she was (half Black/half Filipino). I don’t gotta say it but this is where I mention that Goergas is a white woman. Call me biased but Nance was my favorite contestant on Season 28 of The Bachelor.  Sure, partly because she’s Filipino, but she also seemed like a really cool, chill, no fuss kind of gal. As down to earth as a person can be considering they decided to be on a reality T.V. show. The kind of woman I want to be. When she made it all the way to hometowns, I was fist pumping over her teaching Graziadei how to greet her parents with mano po and her saying she likes the fattier parts of the lechon. This was exposure to a culture for a viewership that is predominately white. I was thrilled! So it saddened me when the Women Tell All aired with a segment where host Jesse Palmer discusses the racist comments fired at Nance over social media. Hearing her repeat what had been slurred at her reinforced to me that Bachelor Nation still isn’t accepting of a black lead and is not ready for an Asian lead. This show that I love to indulge in, will continue to be ruled by whiteness.

So to my surprise, and most likely disappointment of Bachelor Nation, Jesse Palmer announced the next lead of The Bachelorette, Vietnamese-American Season 28 Bachelor contestant Jenn Tran as the franchise’s first ever Asian-American lead. It’s been made public that Tran was not the first pick (Maria Georgas), nor was she even the second (Daisy Kent). This is also reinforced by the casting of Tran’s men, predominantly virtually white men with just one Asian man. While Tran does not have to date a fellow Asian, it shows how little Bachelor producers have thought this through. Pre-casting under the assumption that surely one of the 2 fan favorites from the top 3 will say, “yes” but then having to pivot to a contestant who placed fifth and focusing on the historic casting of it all to try and gain brownie points worries me.

I must admit, I was also skeptical of Tran’s casting and I felt guilty over that. Shouldn’t I have been thrilled that there was meaningful representation for a show that caters to whiteness? But I was placing unrealistic expectations on Tran that I wouldn’t have any other lead. Watching her Bachelorette announcement segment started out on a high that quickly deflated as Tran failed to meet what my expectations were for Asian representation. In a quick effort to make Jenn relatable, producers went with the “Fun Jenn” angle where she’s just a gal who wants to have a good time and will ask for shots to get the party started. To me, it came off as someone not ready to take on the responsibility of being the first Asian-American to lead this franchise. It’s always tough to be the first in something where barriers need to be broken. You need to be so many things for a marginalized group of people that contains a multitude of perspectives and values. By already dismissing Tran as not my type of Asian, I missed sight on what she was trying to achieve and move forward for the Asian American community. I projected my own baggage of having to prove myself in white spaces. She doesn’t have to be all the things, she just has to be herself, which looking back at that announcement segment, she already was doing. That in of itself is progress. We can also let loose, have a good time, and also still bear the weight and responsibility of what it means to be an Asian-American, a child of immigrant parents, a woman of color, and more all at the same time.

Tran has mentioned in interviews, “I just never saw herself as a main character.” A sentiment that I connect to deeply. Growing up in the 90’s, there wasn’t much Asian representation in the television or movies I watched. And now, as an adult, trying to carve my spot in acting, I’m constantly trying to prove to casting that I’m worth it. That I can be that person you cast as your lead because my voice is worth hearing.

Tran will now do the same as The Bachelorette premieres tonight. Like the many Bachelorette leads before her, her journey of love begins as she meets the men and hands out roses until the final rose that leads to engagement. She’s going to do it her way and America will watch every week, captivated by the choices she’ll make.

Bring on the Jenn-ergy. 🌹

[canonicallyobserving911]

My thoughts on season 7 overall.

It seems like a lot of things were done for shock value but none of it had any real depth. It started with the cruise which was mostly good but the rest of the season was really messy and the pacing was off. The last minute changes were noticeable and the crappy storylines they keep giving Eddie got worse and worse and based on one of RG's interviews, it seems like his storylines in season 8 won't be any better. It's possible Kim might comeback but can Tim please put Devin K. on LS since he wants to work with her so badly? That doppelganger BS should have been left out and Marisol should be gone for good but that's up in the air too. I don't even have words for Gerard being back at the 118 because he had complaints in Hen Begins so what the actual f~ck is he doing back? He's a racist and a bigot just like T*mmy.

WTF is going on in the writer's room? OG was better than this but now, they're suffering from a lack of creativity and recycled storylines.

I don't believe this being a shortened season had anything to do with how sloppy and underwhelming it was. Season 1 was 10 episodes and season 4 had 14 episodes but the pacing was a lot better than it was in season 7.

I'm exhausted and the whole "will they won't they" with Buck and Eddie is tiring. It's been 6 years and Tim keeps writing them like this instead of following the narrative that's been established since season 2. Chris leaving was a whole other issue and the Bummy relationship should have ended 🙄.

I ONLY SHIP BUDDIE!

I'll finish my multi-chapter fanfic and reevaluate in August to determine if I'll watch next season because at this point, I'm glad for the hiatus and I'm on the fence if I'll watch season 8.

[spnyouresostupid]

Season 4 Final Rankings

Listen to out wrap up here

Here is our Top 5!

5. The Rapture

Alex's Score: 9

Sarah’s Score: 9

Total Points: 71

So good I had to disrupt my whole rating system! I love this episode, I love Jimmy, and I love Misha. This was still so good on rewatch!

4. Lucifer Rising

Alex’s Score: 10

Sarah’s Score: 9

Total Points: 75

Supernatural proves that it does finales so well. It’s heartbreaking, exciting, and that cliff hanger!

3. Monster Movie

Alex’s Score: 9

Sarah’s Score: 10

Total Points: 83

Are you suprised this one is so high on our list? So are we! This episode was well shot, well acted, and just a great heartfelt homage to classic horror movies. When Supernatural can get the right balance of horror and comedy that might be when I love it the most. (Also it has one of my favorite Sam lines ever)

2. Lazurus Rising

Alex’s Score: 10

Sarah’s Score: 10

Total Points: 83

Do I even need to explain this one? Just as good as I remember and beats out Monster Movie because of Cas. This is another one that just hits the sweet spot of what this show can be.

And Finally....

1. On the Head of a Pin

Alex’s Score: 10

Sarah’s Score: 10

Total Points: 84

Man Supernatural really knows how to f*ck you up. I remembered this being good, but I was still kind of surprised at how much I liked it on rewatch. It’s tense, it’s heartbreaking, and reveals a lot of season long secrets. I honestly think this might be Supernatural at it’s best. I can’t sing the praises of this episode enough!

For the rest of the list:

15-22

6-14

And because I’m a Masochist, here are all 4 seasons ranked:

Season 1

Season 2

Season 3

1. On the Head of a Pin

Season 4

2. Lazarus Rising

3. Monster Movie

4. Ghostfacers!

5. A Very Supernatural Christmas

6. Night Shifter

7. In My Time of Dying

8. What is and What Should Never Be

9. All Hell Breaks Loose Part 2

10. Faith

11. Lucifer Rising

12. No Rest for the Wicked

13. Something Wicked

14. Tall Tales

16. The Rapture

16. When the Levee Breaks

17. Jus in Bello

18. Home

19. Hunted

20. Yellow Fever

21. Mystery Spot

22. Devil's Trap

23. Bloodlust

24. Heaven and Hell

25. Skin

26. Hell House

27. Jump the Shark

28. The Kids Are Alright

29. In the Beginning

30. Bad Day at Black Rock

31. Sex and Violence

32. Crossroad Blues

33. Death Takes a Holiday

34. The Monster at the End

35. Hollywood Babylon

36. Scarecrow

37. It's a Terrible Life

38. Simon Said

39. Asylum

40. Windego

41. Folsom Prison Blues

42. Croatoan

43. After School Special

44. Provenance

45. Playthings

46. Dream a Little Dream of Me

47. The Benders

48. Everybody Loves a Clown

49. All Hell Breaks Loose Part 1

50. Criss Angel is a Douchebag

51. Born Under a Bad Sign

52. Are You There, God? It's Me Dean Winchester

53. Pilot

55. It's the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester

54. Wishful Thinking

56. Bedtime Stories

57. Phantom Traveler

58. Bloody Mary

59. Salvation

60. Dead in the Water

61. Nightmare

62. Roadkill

63. Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things

64. Red Sky at Morning

65. Family Remains

66. Houses of the Holy

67. Fresh Blood

68. Dead Man's Blood

69. The Usual Suspects

70. Hook Man

71. Long-Distance Call

72. No Exit

73. I Know What You Did Last Summer

74. Heart

75. The Magnificent Seven

76. Time is on My Side

77. Shadow

78. Malleus Malefixcarum

80. Metamorphosis

79. Bugs

81. Route 666

82. Sin City

[youwerealwaysitforme]

I posted 454 times in 2022

That's 174 more posts than 2021!

6 posts created (1%)

448 posts reblogged (99%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@spencersliv

@tim-lucy

@sseureki

@ourstartingpoints

@cuppcakkes1

I tagged 398 of my posts in 2022

Only 12% of my posts had no tags

#all american - 300 posts

#season 4 - 283 posts

#spelivia - 261 posts

#chenford - 79 posts

#the rookie - 78 posts

#4x10 - 42 posts

#4x17 - 39 posts

#4x15 - 37 posts

#4x11 - 31 posts

#4x16 - 31 posts

Longest Tag: 71 characters

#heard her man struggling and said f*ck this fight let me go support him

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

All American season 5 returns October 10th. Spelivia better be on the mend before the credits roll.

3 notes - Posted July 5, 2022

#4

All American S2-S4 rewatch

Decided to do an All American S2-S4 rewatch. I'm going in with an open mind because I hated season 2 and thought it was boring.

Now playing:

201-Hustle and Motivate

The memorial to Nipsey was a nice way to start the season

I still hate the way the Corey story was played. That man abandoned his kids for 8 years because his wife cheated on him. Spencer being so forgiving and loyal to him irks me.

Jordan consistently deals with his problems by being a ho. Nice to know some things just don't change.

These James family scenes are not cute and just doesn't work for me.

Love that Grace is Billy's emergency contact at the bar. I ship them so much.

How does Jordan get two different mustangs and Liv is driving around in a VW?

Liv's concern for Layla show what a good friend she is, but it bothers me because Layla never has that same energy for Liv.

Spencer saying no one cares where he lives and it being so obvious that Liv misses him being at the house.

I kinda wish they had went with Dillon being Billy's son.

Grace telling Spencer that he is a king and that he never has to beg anyone for anything is such a powerful scene, especially since she turned around and essentially did just that with Laura.

Liv being the one to get through to Billy and make him start to fight for his family was nice

Laura going to bring Spencer home was such a great scene. It showed how much she loves Spencer and that she heard Grace's apology. I love how far Grace and Laura's relationship has come in 5 seasons.

It's so funny that Billy's love for Spencer is what made Corey decide he didn't need a DNA test for Dillion.

Baby Spelivia is just so ♥️

See the full post

4 notes - Posted December 6, 2022

#3

The way I was dreading that episode and it wasn’t even that bad. Loved the Spencer and Olivia scene and can’t wait to see jealous Spencer in the second half.

5 notes - Posted November 28, 2022

#2

I'm so glad Liv released that article. If you're going to break up your main couple over this issue and use 7 episodes to tell the story, her not releasing it would have been a copout and a waste of time. I'm glad Liv took some of Spencer's advice and didn't put her name on it. I'm nervous and kind of excited to see what happens with Spelivia in the next episode because the fallout looks bad for Spencer.(I don't really care what happens to Jordan when it comes to football.)

5 notes - Posted November 22, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

One week post All American season 4 finale and I know Spelivia is going to be fine come season 5. Olivia was so upset with Spencer, but the second she felt he needed her support she paused all that anger and showed up for him. She was genuinely happy for him when he was playing well. She's not going to let that man go.

12 notes - Posted May 30, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[danielslaw]

“YOU THINK I BROKE YOUR HEART? YOU BROKE MINE TOO.“ SAMANTHA LARUSSO & ROBBY KEENE IN COBRA KAI SEASON 4 EPISODE 8

[animechick2015]

Anime I Watched in 2021 :

1. Dororo 5/5

Severely underrated anime. Great animation. Intriguing plot. Likable characters. Just enough of angst. Highly recommend this one.

2. Burn the Witch 4/5

Great to see Tite Kubo’s work again. And great to see the bleach universe once more. Can’t wait for this to continue. Already love the story and characters. Interesting villains (and by interesting I mean hawt 🥵)

3. Fruits Basket 2019 5/5

Listen I didn’t want to like this one. It was so hyped that I thought it was overrated but booooyyy was I wrong. It deserved the hype. The plot was top tier. At the end of the second season I had to pick my jaw off the ground with that reveal. All the characters were likable. Except Akito; she deserved punishment for what she put all the members of the Zodiac through. Overall this is highly recommended.

4. Re: Zero 4/5

This one took me to Spain without the S. This one frustrated me but I just had to keep on going. Subaru is the biggest simp but I can’t blame him; Emilia is just the cutest. Really liked this one but I’m not sure if I’m emotionally ready for the next season. Also this anime made me scared of bunnies 🐰

5. Gintama 1,00,000/5

Where do I even begin with this masterpiece. I went into this for the comedy. THE COMEDY!!! I did not expect the FEELS. Jesus H. Christ this one blew me away. All the characters were likable, the plots were sometimes questionable but it worked for this anime. The OST’s were god tier. The openings and endings deserve awards. Unpopular opinion but I think Gintama’s opening and endings are better than Naruto. Please if you haven’t watched this one just give it a chance. It took a couple episodes to hook me in but when it did it, it hooked me good. Also if you want an anime with strong female characters this is the one. No waiting for men to save the heroine, the women go in and f*ck shit up (I’m looking at you Courtesan of a Nation Arc.) Seriously though, everyone needs to watch this.

6. Devil man Crybaby 4/5

My coworker put me on to this one. Word of advice: do not watch this one at work 👀 that first episode almost gave me a heart attack. This one surprised me. And that ending wow 🤯. This anime is not for the faint of heart. Please don’t watch this if you’re underaged. I took a while to like the animation style but it eventually grew on me. Overall it’s a good one that I highly recommend.

7. Those Snow White Notes

Tik Tok recommended this anime to me. You know that one scene with the guy and his mom in the apartment, yeah that one. I remembered getting goosebumps and I knew I had to watch and for once tik tok lead me in the right direction. This one isn’t about romance or school is about the shamisen ( a traditional Japanese instrument) and let me tell you how good this was. The music blew me away. The emotions from the MC and his love/hate relationship with the shamisen really captivated me. And that first opening was amazing. Definitely recommend this one.

8. To Your Eternity 5/5

I think I need to send my therapy bill to the creator of this show. Seriously though this one brought pain but goddamn that opening was good. And Fushi was just too dang cute you wanted to see his progress. This one had so many characters that you just can’t help but fall in love with each one of them and damn the author for ripping out my heart every time.

9. Heaven’s Official Blessing 5/5

I’m sorry but Xie Lian and Hua Cheng invented true love. There’s no debating. They’re the epitome of power couple. This series took me by surprise and I loved every millisecond of it. And please if you haven’t read the novel PLEASE PLEASE read it!!! I promise it’s worth it. Now excuse me while I cry because I’m sad and lonely 😩

10. Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation 4/5

This was one was great. Action, comedy, tragedy with a added touch of barely there romance. Since this was only the second Chinese animation that I watched the names were a bit confusing but by the third season I kinda got it?