#dangerous romance ep3

[gunsatthaphan]

#comedy king.

[airenyah]

[scarefox]

(x)

I really don't know why they changed it in the subtitles when you can clearly hear him say "asian boy" 🙄

[airenyah]

@frostluvrs i can see it clearly

Happy Birthday, Kanghan!

DANGEROUS ROMANCE | Ep 3

[priapussdick]

sailom: we will act like english speaking tourists and practice speaking english

kang: *speaks in korean*

sailom: ಠಿ_ಠ

[dwreader]

I gotta say I'm shocked that people are saying Louis doesn't feel anything for Armand. That producer whos not Rolin Jones said Louis is falling in love with Armand while Lestat manfiests to pass judgment on him.

tbh i think there is an ambiguity which i mentioned before in my femme fatale post! femme fatales have historically been maligned for being evil manipulative heartless self-serving women often times bc they are subjugated by a powerful man and use the only power they have to achieve their aims. you can certainly interpret some of them as being completely unemotionally manipulative, they're just not the ones that interest me personally.

i think louis's motivations are complex because the situation demands it. he cannot just let himself fall head over heels in love with armand without caution bc in the previous episode armand nearly killed him and has the power to kill him & claudia at any given moment. in ep2 and for most of ep3, they clearly have a real connection and are falling for each other. like the flirtatious chemistry and lust are leaping off the screen idk i feel like you have to be blind not to recognize it but once we get to the end of ep3... the danger is now intermingled with the love/lust. they can no longer be ignored like when louis was still pretending his maker was bruce and everything was fine & dandy for him and claudia. once armand has that power over him, it makes the relationship murkier and murkier. you can't put the genie back in the bottle and revert to their "wholesome" dating phase. and the more dangerous the relationship is, the more it reminds him of lestat and all the red flags he's seeing again. i dont think its unintentional that dreamstat shows up in the bedroom when armand starts pressuring louis about companionship. cause lestat did the same thing to him in 1x01 when louis also wasn't ready (albeit in a very different way). in the museum, dreamstat shows up when armand is "apologizing" yet at the same time flexing his powers and going vintage lioncourt.

and it parallels the same consent questions btwn lestat and louis in s1 where they had a genuine courtship/romance but when push came to shove, the moment louis was forced to make the choice to actually be with lestat and accept his proposal, it was after a show of brutal violence and murder and lestat literally having killed the only friend louis had in the world. then he spends the rest of s1 wondering about paul as well. love & horror co-exist and the horror was for love. its been a very jessica chastain coded week.

[fanfictionroxs]

I'm telling you all, Mew's villain origin story may or may not be TopBoston, but my villain origin story will be people demonizing Mew for not giving up his body for sex. Truly a RANCID TAKE. I mean, do I want my boy to be super duper messy and fucked up and the ultimate boss and the villain and stuff? YES! But do I blame him for having boundaries over HIS OWN BODY? NO! That ain't manipulation, that's a basic human right. Seriously, people will go uwu poor Nick for a guy who is a literal red flag (and I have no issues with that), but hate Mew just because he seems halfway decent and maintains boundaries. People love talking about consent and boundaries and shit until someone actually starts applying them. Then it's all hOw DaRe YoU WiThOLd sEx

Anyway, Mew Protection Squad meeting after ep3 of Dangerous Romance finishes airing.

[27vampyresinhermind]

Part 2 of Dangerous Romance ep3 doesn’t have subtitles for me. Anybody else having the same issue?

[llycaons]

ep3 - bulleted for space

hc's mansion is so open and intimidating...no privacy? I get what he says about having a big cold residence without a family but dude you're 800 years old and insanely wealthy. get a pet at the very least

BAI WUXIANG MENTION!!!!! the flashback to books 2/4 look like a nightmare. I can't wait

there's an unintentional threat couched in hc's power. his huge house, his constant presence, his close attentiveness. everything here is under his control. it reminds me of the book 5 scene when they realize all the statues in that cave are of xl. which is really creepy honestly, and fx and mq rightfully freak out and try to get xl away

sure, hc isn't actually dangerous to xl and would literally be tortured to death rather than hurt him, but that level of power paired with obsession is a little freaky

I don't think the donghua captures the chemistry as well ngl

in hindsight the fact that e'ming was forged with a sacrifice of living flesh and has an eye and hc is missing an eye makes it a bit obvious what happened no?

making hc a king just reminds me of all those shitty romance books where a ceo or a prince gets obsessed with the mc 😭 why was mdzs so much better

making e'ming a sweet little puppy dog is like saying that love is the emotion that hc held onto in order to become a calamity. it's a method to tell the read that deep down, hc's not evil or cruel, he's a deeply loving character

but this isn't as successful as when togashi did it with killua or yusuke because...hc often IS callous and cruel, and not just to heavenly officials who actually deserve it

I loved lang ying SO much...I wanted to see him heal and thrive. canon said NOPE! he will be replaced by hc for stupid reasons and then he'll disappear. or something. idr tbh

[hughungrybear]

Watching Dangerous Romance Ep 3:

1. I said this before, but the dynamics between Kang and Sailom do remind me of PeteKao (of Kiss series). Both Kao and Sailom are bright, poor students (albeit, Kao is already in uni when the series started) who tutors other students for money. Pete and Kang are both rich a-holes living with a single father who dotes and pampers them (although in Kang's case, it seems his father is trying too hard to be nice whereas Pete's dad is just awesome). Pete and Kao's relationship also started in animosity (with Pete beating up one of Kao's high school friends) and forced to doing school/uni work together (with fistfights in between). Only time will tell if the similarities will continue.

2. Speaking of Kang's dad, it's like he is trying very hard to overcompesate for something - and Kang knows it too. You can tell by the way his fists balled up and eyes glazed when his father says that he doesn't care if Kang's grades are below average as long as he passes. It's like his father keeps on telling Kang that he has no great expectations from his son but I think Kang hears it as his father not expecting that Kang has the capability to do great things.

3. Oh, another thing that is similar to PeteKao is the way it was pretty much implied that Kao is gay (like the way they are implying Sailom is during the motor bike ride) from the get-go. Pete is bi as he had numerous girlfriends before Kao. Not sure about Kang, but since he seems to have a crush on Pimfah (View), I'd say he is also bi.

4. Then I was hit with no English subtitles for Ep3 (2/4). Seriously, WTF 😭😭😭😭 Will edit this right after I find a way to watch this with subs.

<after 4 hours>

I'm baaack. Forgot I have driving lessons this morning. All good now. Also, thanks to @frostluvrs for the link. However, I choose to watch the episode in BiliBili (cause last time I watched using KissAsian, it brought some computer virus with it 😅😅😅

5. Me when Kang went out to pee in the middle of a very expensive meal: Kang, I swear if you leave Sailom with the bill, I will hunt you down and give you a serious beating. <after 5 seconds> ok, we're good. For a moment, I thought Kang is going to a do a dine and dash just because.

6. Sorry, the whole English "studies" at the bar is hilarious to me. Especially when Kang started speaking Korean lol Also, Kang straight up asking Instagram accounts from strangers is creepy under normal circumstances 😂😂😂

7. Back to Kang's dad. I knew it. The way that Kang's dad dotes on him but not expecting any thing great from Kang is just 😭

8. Mark, you b*tch, there are plenty of places where you can get and pay for s*x. No need to harass an unwilling Sailom.

9. My gods, I also feel poor when the gang gave their birthday presents to Kang 😅

10. That's a sh*tty move, dad, reneging on the deal of buying a motorbike if Kang passes the exams. I know you meant well, but gods, learn to read the signs, man. And you're supposed to be a smart politician. Gods dammit. 🤬

11. Where is grandma in all these mess??? Also, what's with the flashback? Does Sailom have an unrequited crush on Kang ever since they were kids? And why would Kang need to beg grandma to rehire Sailom as his tutor? Ugh.

[gunsatthaphan]

#shooketh.

[airenyah]

ngl it does make me a little excited when the dates in shows match with the real date

[scarefox]

why was this so long 😂

[gillianthecat]

The Devil Judge: Episode 11

I just finished The Devil Judge and something about this show compelled me to take copious notes - it had emotional intensity and layers of mystery. These are long and rambling, so they're likely not of interest to anyone else, but since I spent all that time writing it I decided, why not post it. Perhaps someone will find it interesting.

Below are my moment-to-moment reactions, predictions and analysis as I watched episode 11.

eps 1&2  ep3  ep4  ep5  ep6  ep7  ep8  ep9   ep10  ep11  ep12  ep13  ep14  ep15  ep16

I wrote about my initial impressions, up to episode 5, here and here.

This is cleaned up only slightly. I followed the spelling given in the Viki subtitles. I mostly don't explain what I'm reacting to, so this will probably only make sense if you've seen the episode recently. Occasionally I give timestamps. 

(4:00) theme of hating the loser, the humiliated, continues with the Cha relationship w her son

Seon-Ah's back in black.  Does she feel safer/more hidden in black or white?  though the nails are still red

mirrored surfaces, upside down images

Minister Cha with the bright blue shirt.  I think of that as Yo-Han's color (from the back of his vest in particular)

Cut from the women meeting to an all male space. soon to be invaded by Seon Ah

starts at (8:10) -- a lot in this interaction...  the erotic tension between them.  now that Ga-On and Yo-Han are are the same side he needs someone to have dangerous antogonistic erotic tension.  like, i think there are other reasons, but that was part of it.  

(i feel like in a standard hollywood movie, the hero (or even anti-hero) has the relatively gentle female love interest and the evil psychopath male enemey with who he has unitentioal erotic tension.  here it's flipped, although all tension is intended.) (not sure if this idea about hollywood holds water)

the two of them and each other's necks!

so interesting what our power players are honest about and what they keep secret.  not just here but in general. they're actually honest most of the time, which i wouldn't have expected.  

He's good at faking relaxation and suppressing surprise.  although he probably heard her footsteps.  the way he reacts to the potential dead barber "don't tell me you..."

the headless mannequins standing behind seon ah.

tempts her with his house.  going straight for the adolescent id. and her expression looks so unmasked there.

(11:40) this view heading up the driveway is one we haven't seen before

oh my god, I feel like my adolescent self watching her walk through these halls.

This is the second time we've had someone enter their own memories.  The first was also in this house and study. and featured young Yo-Han on the balcony

she must know that returning her will shake her ability to mask and make her vulnerable again.  Is it the carrot or the stick that convinced her? 

(14:30) Wife! so wife-coded like how could anyone interpret it as anything else?  Like I don't necessariyly think they're fucking at this point. In fact I think they aren't yet. but they're still playing at being married. That is how they flirt.  (governess romance style)

the look she gives Y! disappointed? Was she expecting something to happen with him?  i suppose that's valid given their erotic tension, but its a risky choice.

15:05 So married! that's a newlywed husband looking at his talented bride showing them off before company

like, the show is lampshading the fact that there's no other reason for him to be here other than that they want to live together

(I keep using the “wife” language because it feels like the show is clearly referencing tropes from hetero romance novels.  But i don’t think the show is actually feminizing him at all, despite those references)

(i wonder if we'll see any bedrooms again and if so whose and who will be in them)

and then the insertion of blunt young Elijah in the midst of all this political and erotic tension and claimings. so great!  

Ga-On's smirk at the dating question.  I feel like it's a smug look - no you have no chance to get him, he's mine and he knows it.  it's definitely not an uncomfortable or jealous smile.  

I mean, I know they're conspiring.  but those are the looks between a married couple, not co-conspirators. (16:07)

oh and he's loudly telling her he's Yo-Han's wife.  (feeding "their child"!) i don't think its to get her to back off sexually, i don't think he sees her as a threat that way.  i think it's to say, we are in this together, we are solid, you can't divide us with petty political maneuvering.  whether that is actually true remains to be seen, but i think that's what he's saying

and she acknowledges their marriage "he looks like he's always been here" "you won't be lonely anymore" !!

plus other subtext.  she looks genuine here, although i suspect she intends it to be performance

housekeeper reveal.  their faces! but seon ah's especially

"you're smart, relentless, and as broken as I am." (y to s)

"I was thinking it would be fun to play with you.  you suggested it first. you told me to go to the top of the world. with you." I don't know what this refers to yet

speaking of marriage imagery.  (but it somehow highlights rather than contradicts y and g's coupleness) He gives up the cross pendant! the games are getting serious. they both think yo han is winning now. 

their neck thing!

"Smile, you fit pretty well in this house."

i also like this move to the plastic covered room that echoes the false house she built to kidnap him)

wait. Was that actually a marriage proposal? would korean speakers have gotten that? I’m confused.

Seon-Ah and Jai-Hui.  Jai-Hui's loyalty and devotion?

"Its weird.  I want to be fooled. Even if it's just for a short time." touches the cross pendant.

--

(23:40) This is how mere co-conspirators look at each other.  These guys do not feel married.

I do like Oh Jin-Ju.  even if the narrative forces her to be dumb or naive a lot of the time.

25:15  someone's in looove. and shy about it (😔) so adorable omg i can't handle it. It makes him clumsy! He's never clumsy. this is a romance novel.  (Does he also feel guilty for this marriage game with Seon Ah? if that's even what happened i'm still confused)

and Ga-On chases after him (😔😔😔)

the duke! in his chair! and the governess standing before him!

Ga-On sees Yo-Han's secret pain. or not even pain - self consciousness.  which is somehow even more tender to witness.  oh my heart. He understands him! my heart. I literally have goosebumps right now.

the grumpy duke! his angry ward! they're too competitive with each other.

play with *your family* !!

omg the way he snaps his suspenders at Ga-On.  like, i don't think there is any way to read this as anything other than romance.  What other reason could possibly exist for this behavior?

this whole jenga game.  my heart.  I can't take it. the little look of thanks he gives Ga-On at the end.  I just don't even know.

(since we're only on ep 11 of 16, I expect one more "break up" i expect them to get angry at each other over methods, for Ga-On to think Yo-Han has gone too far in hurting people, or perhaps that Yo-Han sacrifices Ga-On's revenge for his larger goals.  I expect him to move out, back to his old house one more time.  I don't think it will be over jealousy though, even if Y does almost marry Seon Ah.  I think that a) jealousy just isn't a concern for them?  and b) that might get too close to ackwoledging that they're gay and in love.  although we keep getting more and more acknowledgement, so they're pushing further than i would ever expect.  

but their root conflict is morality, not possessiveness, so i still don't think jealousy will be a serious issue.  perhpas a brief cute moment to lampshade thier gay love.  

ok, but immediately in the next scene Su Hyeong says "Did something good happen to you recently? You seem a bit different."  my friend, he is IN LOVE.

like they are highlighting this so much i think they might just come out and make their romance explicit.  like this might not be a censored bromance at all.  the not ending up together part could be a tragedy, not censorship.  or just ending the story before it happens.  because... how else are we supposed to take this?

"once this is over... I'll definitely..." what?  fall in love with and marry Su-Hyeon?  What are you thinking Ga-On, that you can't even finish the thought in your head?

again i'm asking, is he gay and self closeted?  Is he scared by falling in love with the bad guy? or any guy? like, at this point i don't even think we're supposed to take it that he's not falling in love, this show seems too honest and consistent about the major characters relationships

but also, he really does love her.  and it seems like he really does want to be able to fall in love with her.  It could be that we're supposed to read this as he is in love with her but scared to admit it, but i don't think that's even what they want us to think.

--

30:48  button theory

oh fuck, Seon-Ah found the actress from the son's trial. hmm. I feel like the actress is acting. that Seon-Ah hasn't bought her compliance with the mom threat. something calculated in her eyes.

oh right. and Seon is supposedly allied with Yo-Han now.  So maybe she and the actress are plotting together? But why bring in this illegal thing  Kand did at all?

The truth is what we say it is.  and yet the characters are so often honest.  Interesting, I don't know what it means.

greyish purple on Cha and purple on black on Seon-Ah

gauntlet thrown

Kang does look surprised to see her.  but they're drawing this out.  (35:58)  my money is that this is all a plot that will damage Minister Cha instead.  I'm about to find out!

called it! (*fist pump*)  at this point, we know our judge kang is the supreme manipulator of reality, above all other manipulators.

Seon-Ah is so cute with her hands in her pockets. the smirk at Cha, Cha's glare at her.

I don't know if i said this yet, but Cha's actress is fabulous.  Her and Ji Sung's microexpressions in this stare down! (37:37)

Oh.  and now is when they use this bait.  (although the fact that Judge Kang was so prepared for this moment implies a little that he was behind this whole thing.

(39:50)  I love that the husband and the son are at home anxious in the "women's roles"  . I don't know if it has the same connotations in S. Korea, but I'm guessing it does.

Ga-On's face in this phone call with Su Hyeon.  He's moving further and further away from her and her clean morality, and it's breaking his heart.

Did Cadillac sponsor this series? them and that instant coffee brand?

(45 ish) - raw desperate Cha Gyeong-Hui

I think this man genuinely has no fear of death.  he gets an adrenaline rush. He's scared to play jenga with his niece, but not that he'll be shot by his angry enemy holding a pistol.

Also, I was right about Seon-Ah being the main antagonist, but I was also right about it being a battle between the three of them. (although don't forget, the two representative businessmen are plotting something together in the wings.  prez buffoon is just a buffoon)

again, with the way these powerful people manipulate each other by telling each other the truth.  somehow it works and feels plausible! and still they say the power comes from creating the truth

at the Lee/Cha household.  Sunlight afternoon when they were hopeful.  dark and glass and reflections in despair

telling her family "don't show weakness. only the weak will suffer." This is emerging to be a major theme. (also Cha's voice and face hand posture here)

49:35 - plotting back at the gothic castle

Yo-Han - is that jealousy? are you jealous that your two men are having a brief, mildy pleasant and slightly (professionally) complimentary conversation? lol. I guess he is a possessive one.

Minister Cha looks dead inside, like she's hanging on by a thread

This collapse is moving fast!  this show has no time to waste, we've got to hurry up and get back to romancing the governess in our gothic castle

she plays 'powerful figure falling apart' so well

53:52 - Prez Heo "you're breaking the game, aren't you."

Interested in the aesthetics of the blue house.  It's warm, sort of, but in a yellow, perhaps almost sickly way.  It doesn't fit the glass/marble/cold/stone/reflections aesthetic of other places of power.  I think that's because it isn't actually a place of power.  Pres. Heo can only react, he owes it all to the others and has no real power of his own.  (I don't know if it looks anything like the real Blue House) 

(is the show using trad. Korean vs. trad european vs. modern aesthetics? don't know if there's anything there)

They're all using each other at guns pointed at each other's heads.  I've lost track of who's blackmailing who with threats to reveal what to who.  but somehow it feels like it all makes sense

insert gender thoughts here

prez and wife hold the upper hand here, but i think it's only because cha is so weakened now

Maybe the show's constant use of cars is because of the aesthetic, especially at night: metal and glass and shiny and reflective.  cold harsh bright headlights.  alienated from people.  also i think they really do have a cadillac sponsorship, although which came first?

Ga-On. Kitten.  You do not look intimidating here.  (but I think he can. so it's probably a deliberate actor choice?)

again, unformed gender thoughts

is she going to commit suicide? burn documents? Chekhov's gun exists, and that cigar box the camera lingered on looked like the gun case.  she looks suicidal.  and yahon looks like he knows that's what's going to happen and he is allowing  it.

What brings Su-Hyeon here?

dark room, the back of her head, cigar smoke and satie.  she's going to shoot herself.

However, she may not succeed. Is Su-Hyeon going to save her? or find her?

would we lose her in ep 11 or early 12? I think it's possible.�� she's already fallen to complete pieces.  and she's not the main antagonist. although the most interesting of the lower circle.  but i think the show would get rid of her at this point. it would escalate Kang's missions 

This is heartbreaking.  the grief on Cha Gyeong-Hui's face.  this memory of her son.

the morality of the show is getting complex in a deeper way.  it was 'grey' from the beginning, but aesthetically.  Now it's looking at the actual harm that befalls people.

oh. Yo-Han was not expecting that either. He looked genuinely shocked.  How will this affect each of their moral compasses going forward? 

oh wow, and I was not expecting that arrest.  but it makes sense.  things have been going so well for them, they need a major disruption. and that photo did say that Kang was in jail.  I'd gotten so used to Kang being all powerful I didn’t think he could be taken off the board.  He and Ga-On did too. 

Su-Hyeon standing alone with her gun against all the forces of evil in this world. and now her love, her meaning to her life, her Ga-On is standing with the evil.

eps 1&2  ep3  ep4  ep5  ep6  ep7  ep8  ep9   ep10  ep11  ep12  ep13  ep14  ep15  ep16

[priapussdick]

i love to see how kang actually can be a really kind and sweet person. we don't know his whole story yet, but now it is clear that he indeed has been raised right and deep down he is so different than he seems. just as i thought he just had a severe case of stupid teenage boy syndrome. that was it.

[kazoosandfannypacks]

Clone Wars Things 2/7

S2:EP1: The keyboard the shapeshifter uses is in alphabetical order- except the entire thing is configured upside down, fro an upside down Zrill to an upside down Aurek.

S2:EP2: “Don’t shoot me, he’s the commander!” *Rex shoots commander* “Well, I guess I’m the commander now!”

S2:EP2: In Hostage Crisis, Anakin gives his lightsaber to Padme, saying the weapon “is [his] life,” and thus symbolizing she is as important to him as his own life. In this episode, when negotiating with Cad Bane in order to rescue Ahsoka, he lays down his lightsaber, signifying he values his padawan as much as his own life.

S2:EP3: The look of absolute sorrow on Ahsoka’s face when Palpatine calls her “child.”

S2:EP3: Mace Windu: *accidentally triggers a dangerous security system, lazer beams, guns, ext.* Obi-Wan: *makes a pun about it*

S2:EP4: WHY ARE ANAKIN AND PADME ALWAYS ROMANCING EACH OTHER IN FRONT OF OPEN WINDOWS!?!?!

S2:EP5: AND WHY DID THEY HAVE THEIR LITLLE SQUABBLE D R I P P I N G WITH TENSION LIKE AN OBVIOUSLY MARRIED COUPLE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SENATE ROOM!!! LIKE, WHERE ALL THE PEOPLE ARE STILL BARELY SHUFFLING OUT OF?!?! DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND SECRET MARRIAGE?

S2:EP4: Padme: But I made you doubt me. Anakin: Never. 😍

S2:EP5: Anakin and Ahsoka not even low-key channeling Legolas and Gimli with their “I got 25!” “You’re falling behind!” AND MUNDI JUMPING IN ON IT TOO!

S2:EP8: Anakin waiting at the edge of Ahsoka’s sickbed.

S2:EP10: Fireflies! You can see fireflies after the shot of Rex lying there.

S2:EP10: The Deserter mentions he ran away after the Battle of Geonosis, but his kids must be at least four or five years old, and the Battle of Geonosis has to have been no more than two years ago?

S2:EP11: Ahsoka loses her lightsaber and is concerned that Anakin will be upset?

S2:EP12: “Is reality what makes a Jedi abandon his ideals, or is it a response to political convenience?” -Duchess Satine.

S2:EP13: Just the moral for this episode: “Fear not for the future, weep not for the past.”

S2:EP13: Kenobi: Your highness is too kind. Satine: You’re right. I am.

S2:EP13: The look on Merik’s face when his hostage straight up confesses her love to Obi-Wan.

S2:EP14: NOODLE BAR! AT 12:00 A NEON SIGN SAYS NOODLE BAR!

S2:EP16: While the opposing Admiral’s name sounds like “Trench,” our Admiral’s search screen spells it “TARANCH” which is funny because he looks like a tarantula.

S2:EP16: Bail Organa’s hologram saying “Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope.”

S2:EP16: Typo- The words above “FIRE” on Anakin’s big red button says “TORPEDOS” instead of “TORPEDOES”

S2:EP17: That one bounty hunter who literally wore his shield on his head so he could carry two blasters, AND THEN JUMPED IN THE AIR, THREW IT CAPTAIN AMERICA STYLE, AND RAN HIS FINGERS ALONG THE EDGE LIKE A FEDORA.

S2EP21: R2-D2 FALLING DOWN THE STAIRS to get the message to those who need it.